#Judo said he would take one for the team

[respectthepetty]

The raw chaotic energy of this scene is unparalleled.

i'm dead @ the chaotic proletarian solidarity of judo letting night and neon hide from loan sharks in his car in the middle of his sex work appt, and then proceeding to fuck her right in front of them bc ~she's paying him hourly~ i'm fucking LOSING IT over night and neon's traumatized reactions and esp night's high-pitched "thank you, thank you" while neon is fanning herself lmaooo whoever wrote this show must've had the time of their fucking lives

[strawberryj0y]

I just wanted to make this post to highlight a particular aspect of their relationship that I think can get overlooked, but when you read/watch their interactions, is glaringly obvious - Sae's softness towards Shidou.

When RyuSae met for the first time, the tension between them generated by the potential they saw in each other is palpable through the page!! Sae saw a demon he can work his magic on and Shidou saw an explosive path to freedom. A chance for both to finally be able to play the exciting soccer they've dreamed of. Their relationship initially began purely to satiate their own curiosity and egos (and boy, did they!!).

However, as they play together, we witness this adorable tenderness develop and manifest between them. This is surprising at first glance but, in hindsight, expected. I suppose you would grow to be soft-hearted with the person who's finally allowing you to play the soccer of your dreams. For two people who live and breathe soccer, this must mean everything.

And maybe this is why Sae really has a soft spot for Shidou and he shows it in his own little ways...like letting him do whatever and talk about whatever while he just observes and listens :')

Sae's just not harsh with Shidou (the closest we get is that incident where he threw him off his back LMAO but tbh with all the 'throbbing' Shidou was doing, it was warranted - but hey, Sae still sticks close to him immediately after, continues flirting with him throughout the match and even gives his number later soooo :D).

Amongst all the things Sae calls him, he never strays into actively mean territory. The most he does is call him demon and adds an appropriate descriptor (e.g., horny demon). But 'demon' is a pretty great descriptor for the life force that is Shidou Ryusei LMAO and what Shidou happily calls himself, so if anything, the way he uses it comes off as affectionate tbh c:

This is Itoshi Sae we're talking about, the guy who walked into a room, took one look at the chairman of the JFU and manager of the U20 team, and said this before calling their prized team shit:

The same guy who stood there in front of the entire U20 team and told them they sucked, specifically going in on poor Sendou and didn't let up about it during his convo with Oliver either LMAO

(since this post is very long already, i have some extra thoughts on the above panel that u can refer to here)

His poor manager after Sae said he'd rather die than play with Japanese forwards and spent the entire interview ruthlessly ripping into them LMAO

So this is the kind of guy we're dealing with here...

Yet when it comes to Shidou, he's suprisingly patient and gentle with him. Like when he's guiding his inspiration to lead him in the direction of the most explosive play possible:

Sae's just so okay with playing along with all of Shidou's antics; from helping facilitate his wild soccer visions and philosophy to indulging in back-and-forth flirtatious and sexual banter. The little shots we got throughout the match of Sae just standing closely next to Shidou between plays, seemingly chit-chatting away. This occurs even when he just judo-flipped him off his back and onto the ground, called him gross, yet we see him still sticking around right after, just conversing with him while he's on the ground.

This whole thing really struck me while rewatching the finale; Sae's beautifully cruel and calculated plays against the Blue Lock team combined with his merciless dismissal of Rin's awakening and immense efforts to be acknowledged by him, contrasted so starkly with that little conversation he had with Shidou afterwards, post-match. Where we see him taking the time to actually explain himself and his decisions to not pass to Shidou in that final minute, reassuring him that he fully intended to and deemed it the optimal play he envisioned, but unfortunately it just didn't work out.

Despite tha fact that Shidou responds to this with a playful jab about how it was Sae's fault for 'getting foiled by your little brother' . Then coming to the very Shidou-like conclusion of that final goal actually belonging to him so he's earned the right to his number, Sae still continues to play along. In fact, he flirts back ten-fold by saying "Hmph. At least let me shower first." (in the anime, earning a giggle from shidou)

He's doing all this after losing a match, btw!! Ofc Sae's not super torn up about the outcomes of this match because it never affected his career in the first place. However, he is an egoist after all, so he doesn't play matches to lose so I doubt he would been in the mood to justify his plays to anyone else. We've literally seen this guy pack his bags, getting ready to abandon the U20 team 45 mins ago, and we've been shown several times since he appeared for this arc, and even in his first appearance in chapter 4, how he doesn't spare his time or energy for anyone and everyone has to run on Itoshi Sae's time.

He'll even get up and walk out mid-interview without warning. The interviewers have to be on his time LMAO

It's all rooted in the fact that Sae genuinely respects Shidou, as a player and therefore as a person*. From his very first appearance in the manga and in every appearance since, we're reminded that Itoshi Sae rarely respects anyone, and he makes that painfully clear. So this is why Shidou can have his passes, jump on his back and envelope him in a sweaty full-body hug, demand answers and justifications from him after a loss, and can have access to initiate further contact with him beyond this match.

*since we know from his characterisation and also further backed up by the egoist bible, sae only knows football and is pretty clueless about anything outside of it. It's all his life revolves around so everything (including relationships w others and the corresponding feelings) has to stem from, be relative to and occur through the medium of soccer.

The foundation of their relationship is honesty. There are no pretenses between them, they've been transparent from the very first meeting (not that it would've gone any other way since these two are not the type of characters that can or will hide their true feelings for the life of them LMAO). They entered this partnership to satisfy their egos. When you're so honest with someone, whether you intend to or not, you will begin to trust them. Knowingly or unknowingly, you become comfortable with their company. Where there's honesty and mutual understanding, there's comfort and consideration which eventually manifests as affection.

Sae feels comfortable with Shidou, hence why he's constantly glued to his side. Sae has so much consideration for Shidou, hence why he stepped in when he was about to foul Niko, reminding him not to get red-carded, and offered him gentle but firm guidance and reassurance during that following free kick, encouraging Shidou to pursue the explosive path he's always wanted but couldn't yet tread. Now, when it comes to the affection part, I think Sae's style is more so the other party expresses their affection and he...allows it to happen. LMAO (bc as we've seen, there are infinite times where he doesn't allow it to happen)

So like allowing Shidou to jump on his back and hug him, actively listening to Shidou to give a starry-eyed declaration (of love) about how Sae's the first person to truly understand his freedom, never refuting and instead full-on indulging all of Shidou's shameless flirting and basically everything else I've already said in this post lol

In conclusion: Sae likes this guy. Like, really likes him. In fact, we know he liked him even before he knew him. He couldn't stand Japanese strikers, and considered none worthy of his passes, until he saw Shidou Ryusei after all :')

[ohnococo]

JJK MMA Fighter AU Headcanons

[Headcanons for Toji, Geto, Gojo, and Sukuna as MMA Fighters]

MMA fighter Toji Fushiguro, who keeps everyone on his training team shocked when he consistently makes weight because he eats whatever he wants until about a month before weigh ins. When he’s fighting he’s always lean and cut as hell despite said “fuck it” diet.

MMA fighter Toji is a light heavyweight, he could choose to fight as a heavyweight if he wanted, but he’d be at the lower end of the weight class and if he bulked up any more it would affect his flexibility.

MMA fighter Toji is a black belt in Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu and holds the record for fastest submission. Absolute master of sneaky submissions, to the point that opponents will try to avoid being taken down by him at all costs. Suits him, if he doesn’t win by submission he’ll win by points alone because they’re too afraid to get in his (long) reach. He hates boring fights though, so expect lots of taunting in these cases.

MMA fighter Toji’s early fight record is a bit spotty, but once he hits his prime a few years in his record is nearly flawless. Except for one fight that gets brought up a lot more than he would like where he was knocked out cold. 

MMA fighter Toji comes from a fighting family, a boxing family specifically, but absolutely does not associate himself with them. When he was young and talked more shit he asked a few of them to fight him, but they either blew him off or refused to have an MMA match - it was boxing only or nothing. 

MMA fighter Toji gets his chance to fight someone from the Zen’in family eventually, and decides he won’t take them to the ground at all - he’ll box them. He wins by knockout in the second round. 

MMA fighter Suguru Geto is a middleweight. He sticks to his wheelhouse and you won’t find him moving weight classes or suddenly trying any flashy moves.

MMA fighter Geto whose background was initially in Judo, and early on he made the smart choice to supplement it with Brazilian jiu-jitsu. That paired with his strength and stamina make him a dangerous combo and he’s known for getting almost anyone down for a little ground and pound until he earns himself a stoppage win. 

MMA fighter Geto doesn’t have to make weight, he just stays at weight. Thanks to this he’s a frequent late call-in when other fighters have had to back out at the last minute. His diet is clean and measured and he has to be on rest for a good while to really indulge. He just prefers being a clean eater. 

MMA fighter Geto can get in his head sometimes about his opponents though, particularly if they’re known to be slippery on the ground and hard to get a favourable position against. His losses tend to be a result of hanging back too much and letting it go to judges' decision - in which case it’ll be his lack of striking that gets him. At his best, though? He’s fearsome and will hold a title at some point in his career.

MMA fighter Geto is neither a trash talker, nor a show off, so he doesn’t get quite as much press as other fighters. Some of his fans theorise that he’d have much more title shots and bigger fights if he were to play up his personality for viewers, but even more fans like and respect that he’s himself and is a purist in his fighting. He gets the job done, without bells and whistles.

MMA fighter Geto has excellent sportsmanship. Even if he’s a clear winner he doesn’t ever downplay his opponent’s skills or talk badly about them. Always taps gloves before a fight, and the second the person taps or the ref waves his arms to stop, he’s letting go and checking on his opponent. This behaviour earns him lots of respect and lots of friends among his peers. It’s beneficial in the end because lots of other fighters enjoy training with him, and Suguru is particularly good at incorporating new things he picks up seamlessly into his existing skill set.

MMA fighter Suguru Geto who, of his generation of big names, is most expected to become a trainer upon retirement. He’s always helpful to even the most inexperienced fighters during training, and generally has really great insights on fighting. 

MMA fighter Geto always gets dragged out to at least one place to celebrate after a win. His training partner Satoru Gojo insists on it. Though he doesn’t stay out late and will always end the night icing his muscles and drinking loads of water to recover.

MMA fighter Satoru Gojo is the poster boy for his company. He has sponsorships galore. He’s handsome, interviews well, keeps his nose clean as far as the public is concerned, and is an amazing fighter.

MMA fighter Gojo’s talent was noticed early, so he’s been in some kind of combat sport competitively since he was a kid. Judo, taekwondo, anything he could try he’s done for at least a summer. He later refocused on primarily Muay Thai and kickboxing.

MMA fighter Gojo is a lightweight in his early career, but as he gets older and bulks up a little Gojo moves up into the welterweight class where he really shines. He has an incredible reach thanks to his long limbs, which poses problems for anyone against him. 

MMA fighter Gojo is an all rounder - dangerous standing and dangerous on the ground, but if an opponent is strong enough they can carve out some points by holding him down so he doesn’t have the chance to get momentum on those powerful kicks. 

MMA fighter Gojo can eat whatever he wants and not put on weight, he never seems sluggish after his big meals or sugary treats either and no one understands how. He just seems to eat whatever he wants without consequence, although as he gets into his late 20s his manager and trainers are always on his ass about eating better. He listens… sometimes.

MMA fighter Gojo will taunt and tease loads before and during fights, but really does have good sportsmanship. He always taps gloves at the beginning of a match, compliments his opponent and hugs or pats them on the back post-match, and you won’t find him breaking rules. Say he mis-judges a punch and hits someone on the back of the head or his foot slips during a thigh kick and he gets them in the groin, he’ll feel genuinely bad and allow them all the time the referee can for recovery before the match resumes. 

MMA fighter Gojo parties hard after a match. Not necessarily drinking, but he’s going out on the town, dancing, being his happy loud self, eating all the things his trainers begged him not to in the lead up to weigh-ins. Even though his manager initially worried he would make a fool of himself, it actually only helps his image. Many fans will come across him in a bar or club after a match and get pictures with him. He’s just friendly and takes the time, even if he’s trying to unwind. 

MMA fighter Ryomen Sukuna whose only losses are disqualifications for times he got too carried away - if that even counts. No one has ever beaten him outright. Despite this he has some of the gnarliest cauliflower ear you’ve ever seen.

MMA fighter Sukuna who got kicked out of his first MMA company for poor conduct. 

MMA fighter Sukuna is a heavyweight that specialises in boxing and Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu - the latter gives a lot of his opponents trouble because at this weight class they’re expecting a glorified boxing/kick boxing match and don’t know what’s coming once they’re on the ground.

MMA fighter Sukuna always has some viewers debating on whether he’s a fraud for how, despite winning, he’s always down on points in his scorecard. It’s only because he likes eating punches from opponents if only to show them that he can shake them off like nothing, and he gets his own points deducted for rule breaking. Punches to the back of the head, kneeing downed opponents, but he only does these things once in a match to avoid disqualification nowadays. The points don’t matter to him anyway, he finishes the fight when he feels like it.

MMA fighter Sukuna secured a spot on title cards from a young age, thanks to his impressive frame and even more impressive taunting in the press leading up to fights. 

MMA fighter Sukuna once dropped down two weight classes just to fuck up someone he doesn’t like on record. People count him out for the physical strain dropping so much muscle would have on anyone else, but this isn’t just anyone else, it’s Ryomen Sukuna.

MMA fighter Sukuna who, as he ages, has to teach new up and comers a lesson again and again. The more someone talks about him being past his prime, the harder they’ll fall. Though he’ll still talk non-stop about how early MMA was better, when you could fight anyone of any weight class and there weren’t so many rules around how to safely beat someone. 

MMA fighter Sukuna who, after yet another win, celebrates by drinking and feasting and fucking. Just pure hedonism. He’s had a few belligerent moments, and a few encounters of getting a little too hot and heavy in the corner of a club, but he’s just too popular as a sort of “heel” in the MMA world that organisers make any press around more illegal activities disappear. 

[lolliputian]

I think you are the most qualified person to ask this question since you write the tieflings so well: what Olympic sport would the tiefs complete in?

High praise indeed, Anon! Thank you so much!

Going through the list of events, I'm going to go through the adult Tieflings we see in the Grove. I'm also sticking to the summer events.

Zevlor is, of course, Equestrian, and more specifically eventing (which, I discovered, is basically a triathlon). Tilses would also take place in Equestrian, but she'd be focused on jumping. If the Hellriders aren't taking place in the equestrian events, it's a crime. Nuff said.

Rolan would be a swimmer. I think he'd would find swimming for exercise cathartic--the water resistance, the controlled breathing, engaging all your muscle groups to move through the water.

Lia would be a rower for a similar reason, engaging all the upper body muscles. I think she would do really well with a team, as well, and find a lot of fulfillment in it. Cal, in perhaps a surprising choice, would take part in gymnastics. His high strength score lends itself to strength based events. Imagine Cal taking on the pommel horse or the rings, holy shit.

Dammon, surprising absolutely no one, would take part in the hammer throw. But, before I remembered that existed, I also figured he would do well with shot put. Short bursts of power suit him.

Along a similar vein, Alfira would really excel at rhythm gymnastics as a form of artistic expression. Lakrissa, on the other hand, is a natural for archery, and in a modern AU would absolutely be that person doing trick shots on TikTok.

In canon, we know Bex is a great runner and that she was able to outrun the cultists. Thus, I can see her taking part in the sprinting events. Danis, meanwhile, I think would get the most enjoyment out of golf out of any of the events available. Outside of competition, I think he'd like the social aspect of it.

Komira is absolutely a Taekwondo girl--she was ready to throw down with the druids and strikes me as the type who wouldn't hesitate to fight for what she believes in. Locke's temperament, in contrast, reminds me more of a distance runner. He's much calmer than his wife.

So I debated between Asharak and Guex whom I thought would be a better fit for fencing--we see Asharak training the kids in fighting, and Guex using Main Hand Attack against Makeshift Training Dummy. Ultimately, I felt Asharak's temperament was a lot better for it and, frankly, that he would do well enough to compete on an Olympic level. Guex's event? Javelin Throw. We see him use potentially any weapon you sell Dammon against the Training Dummy if you defeat the druids (off the top of my head, I can't think of anyone who uses a javelin canonically otherwise minus maybe Cal). But I also think he'd like the challenge and feeling powerful without having to get into close quarters.

If we've talked Tiefling headcanon, you'll know I carry a headcanon that Okta is/was a monk and actively adventured until her pregnancy. Thus, she's a natural fit for Judo. Ikaron, too, does a physical event that requires a lot of control and precision: Boxing. Like Rolan with swimming, I think he'd find it cathartic.

Cerys would take part in the modern pentathlon. We don't know much about her backstory from the game besides her being a scout and the third leader option if both Zevlor and Asharak are killed in Act 1. Thus, IMO, she has to be extremely impressive in her own right. The pentathlon presently includes fencing, swimming, equestrian jumping, laser pistol shooting, and distance running.

Zorru and Yul are other canonical scouts. We know Zorru was able to make it Baldur's Gate presumably by himself, which means not only is he a good runner, but he has to be skilled at dodging obstacles, too. He's a natural choice for hurdles. Yul, we don't know enough about, but for the endurance required for scouting, let's slot him into cycling.

Kaldani and Rikka get to be our beach volleyball pair! I really wanted a duo that's seen a lot together in game, and they seem to get along well. I can see them working amazingly well at a team and being unafraid to work hard to win.

Damays and Nymessa were a little hard for me--I very much wanted Nymessa to be in breakdancing just to make Damays's head explode (at least the way I characterize them). But, in the end, I thought pole vault would be a good fit for her. Damays seems a fit for discus throwing.

Kanon strikes me as someone who would be really good at diving. We know he was a tailor in Elturel, and I think he'd appreciate the precision and artistry. Arka and Memnos? They get to be our tennis duos team. I think they'd balance each other well in the sport.

Pandirna absolutely has to be in weightlifting, all things considered. Let's hope she doesn't get in trouble for doping with Ethel's potions... Toron I think would be wrestling because wrestling cattle or something. Nadira would be sport climbing, because that seems to fit in well with her sneaking around devils and the like. (I can't remember at the moment how much of that is canon and how much of it was headcanon we came up with on the camp server.)

Eramis and Elegis I slotted into long jump and high jump respectively. At the time of writing this, this is based off vibes from each of them rather than anything in game that lent itself to this. Finally, Xeph, Rechel, and Amek get to be our synchronized swimmers, because we gotta have synchronized swimmers, and also I don't know where else to put them.

Hope you enjoyed the post!

[paladin-of-nerd-fandom65]

DC Comics Superhero OC: Chickadee, The Boy Wonder of Toronto

Co created by @confusedhummingbird and yours truly

Civilian Name: Henry Holland

Son of Natalie Holland, Captain within the Royal Canadian Mounted Police O Division and Lieutenant Colonel Terrence Holland, of the 32 Brigade Group of the Canadian Army

Age: 12 1/2 years old

Height: 5’0”

Weight: 77 lbs

Personality: Mature Minded and Intelligent with Tactics in the Field, Formal and Professional When Addressing Older Heroes and Civilian akin to a Military Officer, Determined and Steadfast, Stubborn in his Attempts of Leading a Team Efficiently, Has a Low Sense of Humor That He tries to work on, Doesn’t Like to Show Any Weakness of any Degrees in front of enemies and allies, Deep Down All of That, an Utter Fanboy of Nightwing in particular and if his guard is down, can be an excitable, passionate and cheerful. He’s begun to slowly open up more courtesy of being around fellow heroes around his age range.

Possible Junior Partner to Flying Fox II and Definite Leader of the Canadian based Titans North

(More Below the Cut)

History: Born to both a Soldier within the Canadian Army and what are commonly referred to as Mounties, Henry is a child that easily takes much inspiration from his parents’ works whom they take with honor and distinction. Though this comes at the drawback even in the present day of being usually with his aunt or a babysitter at home during days he’s not on patrol or at school due to the consistent scheduling his Mother Natalie has keeping her away from home. As for his father Terrance, there’s an element of tragedy to him which effects both Henry and his mother to this day; during a combat tour in a war torn Middle East as part of a US led coalition, Terrance’s platoon became ambushed by extremist insurgents and in the chaos that initially wiped out most of said platoon, Terrance was taken captive. For two weeks, the Lieutenant Colonel was brutalized and tortured for any sort of intel the extremists wanted yet through it all, he maintained a stern silence and refused to talk. Eventually the insurgents found their hideout under attack by a rescue operation from other Canadian and American troops, so they proceed to execute Terrance, rather gruesomely, so much so, the other soldiers had no choice but to simply take the dog tags and leave the body behind.

Natalie and Henry of course took the loss hard given how much of a good man Terrance was for them as a husband and father respectively but both maintained a firm and strong face at the memorial service, knowing at least they have together as long as they do. They’ll remain strong. Wanting to honor both of his parents for their many deeds to save, serve and protect others, being a lifelong fanboy of the first Robin, the Boy Wonder and later the leader of the Titans International, Nightwing, in addition to some encouragement and advice from the Flying Fox, the recent one to bear that mantle and with some self teaching in martial arts and police detective work, Henry decides to create and don a mantle of his own choosing for which he can patrol and protect the streets of his native Toronto, being a hero for the city the way his parents are for their county or entire country.

As for why the Chickadee, not only are the commonly found throughout Canada and have a degree of being an equivalent to the Robin birds of America, but when Henry was five, during one of the few times the Holland family was able to have a vacation, they took a hiking trek on Mount McKay. Whilst there for a photo for both Terrance and little Henry, two Chickadees perched gently on top of their heads to which made a perfect photo for Natalie to capture and a new nickname for Henry that his parents especially Terrance would refer to him. Hence naming his mantle as such serves a tribute to Terrance as far as Henry is concerned.

Skills, Equipment, and Abilities:

- Black Belt in Judo, Yellow Belt in Tai Tzu and Lui He martial arts

- Has Proficient Enough Knowledge in Using a Grappling Hook and Wires

- Ametuer level with the arts of Disguise

- Advanced Junior Training in Forensics

- Wing suit flaps built into his suit

- Can communicate in English, Francaise, Algonquin and 3 other Amerindian languages (Related Below, also two Jewish languages)

Occupation: Student at Robbins Hebrew Academy

Physical Appearance: Light Brown Hair, Peach tone skin with freckles on the face, Green Eyes and a Birthmark on the Back of his neck

Crime Fighter Uniform:

- Black Domino Mask, Advanced in meaning containing a Holographic Heads Up Display, featuring a Radar for contacts within 50 meter radius, Heart Rate Monitor, Proximity Sensor for incoming attacks, connected to ear piece for contact with teammates

- A White Cape that extends to the back of the legs with a Light Brown Underbelly, attached to it being a black hoodie which covers the back and crown of the head, leaving only the face open

- White Bulletproof Vest with Black Long Sleeves and Light Brown Highlights throughout the buttons. Has his Logo, a Red Chickadee Silhouette displaying its wings in a white circular background with a black circle around it, on the right side of chest

- White Fingerless Gloves with Light Brown Soles

- Black Utility Belt with a buckle having said Chickadee logo; contains pouches housing Grappling Hook, Magnifying Glass, Signal Flares, Smoke Pellets, Flashbang Grenades, Snacks including Toffee, and Spare Masks

- Black Kevlar Pants with Light Brown highlights on Knee Caps

- White Robin Style Pixie Boots with built in hidden Steel Toes, and White Soles. Made from a leather and Kevlar fabric blend that makes them extra sturdy and durable in harsh environments

Additional Facts and Trivia

- The Holland family are prominently descendants of Ashkenazi Jews who emigrated from Poland during the Interwar Period (1920-1939). While having Liberal leaning politics and values, the Hollands are Orthodox with their Faith, adhering in particular to Halakhic traditions and customs. Therefore Henry wears a black Kippah on his head even as Chickadee which his hood covers. Henry also has a Kosher diet based on said Halakhic Orthodox customs. He’s currently training in reading the Torah in preparation for his Bar Mitzvah. He’s so far made it to Shemot, also known for The Christian faith as the Book of Exodus. The Hollands are fluent in both Hebrew and especially Yiddish, the latter more promotional spoken between the two languages in that front.

- As stated above, leads a small Canadian branch of Titans, named Titans North, who as of yet are not yet officially affiliated with the well known Titans International but have so far managed to earn a small follow of supporters and fans across the Toronto metropolitan area and other localities throughout the state of Ontario. Often gets teased playfully by said teammates for being the youngest of them

- Among the Titans North, one member called Push-and-Pull, a 14 year old Algonquin female Metahuman with a compassionate and caring tomboy personality, possessing the ability to control and manipulate gravity with the palms of her hands (Similar to My Hero Academia’s Ochaka Uraraka) and Chickadee having a small budding crush between them or at least the starts of one in process ever since they first met

- Has a small hobby of playing video games, mainly on the console side. Not interested in competitive or online play as due to lack of friends outside his Titans North, he nonetheless has a fondness for games that are both sci-fi and military themed as befitting his background. Henry however finds himself woefully out of date when it comes buying the latest hardware; his most advanced console in possession being the DCU equivalent of an Xbox 360

- Trivia: Can in fact Successfully Curl his Tongue while the rest of his teammates can’t

- While an admitted fan of the first Robin (therefore also fond of Nightwing), Henry is rather very cautious and weary of the Batman himself. This can be attributed to his earlier childhood having been told of terrifying stories surrounding the Bat, a lot of them coming the earlier days when he worked solo and was regarded as an urban myth. As for Superman, Henry has a trust and respect for him. He’d probably however faint from excitement should he meet Nightwing in particular

- Is particularly interested and into the music elective in his school, more so in particular having a liking for classical songs and artists, mainly Beethoven and Salieri. Plays the Cello as his main instrument. While not intolerant and rather okay with more modern music, his playlist on his phone features mainly said classical songs and is working on working on compositions himself.

[fablesrose]

Ch 5 - The Tap-Out Job

Series Rewrite Masterlist 

Pairing: Eliot Spencer x Ford!Reader

Description: The team goes to Nebraska giving the client a fighting chance, quite literally, with Eliot in the fighting ring.

Words: 3586

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

I only started taking projects I knew I could finish quickly. It was a nice side income, but I wanted to be available when Nate decided on a client. In fact, in my free time or in between my own jobs, I was helping him research. Trying to find douchebags and people who were screwed over. 

“Alright, six tickets to Nebraska, coming right up!” Hardison called when the time finally came.

Nate looked at him confused, “Six? But-”

“Thank you Hardison” I cut in.

Nate turned to me, “I don’t know about that…”

“Come on Nate, it’ll be fun! She’ll be helpful,” Sophie argued.

I grimaced a bit, because I wasn’t sure how true that would be. I wanted to be, absolutely, but I wasn’t sure of the reality of it.

“At the very least she can learn something,” Parker pointed out helpfully.

I smiled and pointed at her to help emphasize her statement. 

“It can even out the girl to boy ratio,” Sophie added on.

Nate sighed, but didn’t answer.

“Uncle Nate,” I said in a sing-song voice that I only used when I wanted something from him. “Come on, I’m already too deep into this, you can’t keep me out now.”

He looked at me and sighed again, “Fine.”

We all cheered and started packing.

The day after Nate met with the client, we started the briefing of our resident bad-guy: Jed Rucker.

“He runs a homegrown mixed martial arts league here in Nebraska,” I explain, “they have a very strong wrestling tradition here, so, supposedly, there's a lot of talent.” I took it upon myself to help Hardison out with the research and background info on this guy, since if I know one thing, it’s research. 

“Wrestlers have a good base for a blended training approach,” Eliot expanded, “they can go from that to jujitsu, kick-boxing, judo.”

“Rucker promotes fights,” Parker concludes. 

“And manages fighters, taking a cut every step of the way,” Hardison adds. 

“Yeah, you know, plus he’s not above fixing bouts and the Howorths found out,” Nate said, “We’ve dealt with some lowlifes, but when I heard about this guy…”

Hardison started playing some videos of fights on the tv of the motel room.

“That was a nice takedown. Good ground-and-pound,” Eliot comments, “He’s a little sloppy in a closed guard, but it’s a solid arm bar. I mean, you can tell this guy’s a wrestler. This ain’t the UFC, but these guys got skills.”

I admired him from my seat, impressed at his knowledge about all of this stuff. He was focused on the screen, studying the fighting and techniques. It was almost like I could see the gears turning in his head about it all, just behind his clear eyes. 

“Where’d you get these?” Nate asked.

“Online,” I answered, “These are viral videos.”

“See, Rucker doesn’t have a TV deal,” Hardison explains, “It’s pretty much a bare bones operation.”

“You call this a sport?” Sophie asked with a pillow covering her face. 

“Yeah, this is a sport,” Eliot rebuffed, “These are some of the best conditioned athletes in the world. Are you kidding me? It’s about precision, technique, skill.”

“Like cockfighting?”

“It’s not a cockfight, alright? Let me show you something, Hardison. Come on,” Eliot tapped him on the shoulder causing him to stand, he then asked Parker, “Can I borrow you?” 

He then instructed Parker, reminding her what he showed her before. He positioned Parker as if it were a fight, and Hardison laughed before playing along.

“There’s three phases to an MMA,” he paused while Hardison did some footwork to warm up, “to an MMA fight, okay? One, striking.”

Parker immediately punched Hardison solidly in the face, making me flinch.

“Nice,” Eliot praised. “Next is grappling, the takedown.”

Hardison seemed to get that this was more serious than he thought as Parker flung him to the ground.

“Exactly, alright. The third one is jiu-jitsu, try to isolate a joint.”

Parker switched to twisting around Hardison.

“Good, that’s a textbook arm bar. Put some pressure on it,” Eliot instructs, “there ya go, or a choke hold.”

Parker moved to what I assumed was a chokehold on Hardison who was clearly struggling. 

“Then the guy will submit by tap out,” Eliot finished after instructing Parker a bit more. 

Hardison started trying to tap out with little success, in various different ways that made me laugh. 

“These fights are won by inches. It’s all about leverage.”

“Sophie, he has a point,” I commented, “while you may not find it entertaining, there's a lot of work, training, that goes into this. They do deserve some respect.”

Eliot nodded at me in approval.

“No TV deal, you said, huh?” Nate brought the attention back to the task at hand, “Yeah, Hardison, what are this guy’s other interests, this Rucker guy?”

I took a look behind the couch to see he was still struggling with Parker, “I’ve got it, Rotary club, he’s got a golf membership.”

“Golf, huh?” Nate asked.

“Yeah,” Sophie jumped in, “I mean, this guy’s like a 1950s sitcom character. He plays a weekly game with the local businessmen. In fact, last year, he won the club championship.”

I looked at Eliot and nodded back towards Hardison and Parker, wordlessly asking if we should help him.

He shrugged.

“Did he?” Nate asked thoughtfully, “It’s time to hit the links.”

Nate stood up and left in his dramatic way while I attempted to convince Parker to let Hardison go.

I was a little surprised when Nate said he was going to play Rucker at golf, but once Hardison explained the rigged golf balls, I couldn’t wait to watch. I tagged along with Hardison watching the game through the camera attached to Parker. Hardison even let me direct a few of Rucker’s shots into sand traps. Nate won by a landslide soon enough, and with Rucker in debt to him, the plan was set. 

Nate and Eliot left for Rucker's gym to both collect the money Nate won off of him, as well as plant Eliot in Rucker’s sights as a fighter. They told me what was likely going to happen. That they were going to sort of jump Eliot to test him out a bit. It made me nervous despite the whole crew assuring me that Eliot would be fine. 

As promised, it all went well with the fight and then Eliot setting the hook for Rucker and the idea of a TV deal with Sophie. It was only then that I allowed myself to watch the footage. While I knew that Eliot was good, I had never seen him in action before. I watched the video Parker took to upload a couple of times in amazement. His actions were smooth and calculated. I had watched fights before, but I didn’t think I had ever seen such efficiency. Rucker was right about one thing, he fought like something wanted to get out, but the amount of control he practiced… I think that could be more impressive than the skill.

“Like what you see, y/n?”

I closed my laptop with a start. Eliot had come back from the gym quicker than I had anticipated and was standing right behind me. I turned to him with a sheepish smile, “I hadn’t seen you fight before…” I looked back to my closed laptop for a moment, “suffice to say, I’m impressed.”

“What, you doubted me?” Eliot had a spark of amusement in his eye, but I moved to correct myself anyway.

“No, I mean, I knew you were good, heard you were the best even, but I guess, I never really knew what that meant.”

He cracked a cocky smile, “Oh, you ain’t seen nothin’ yet, sweetheart.” He left the room to clean up with a wink that left me blushing, more than I’d like to admit. 

The next phase of the con went off with only a slight hiccup. Rucker wanted to meet with Sophie at the concert she claimed to be producing. The crew had it figured out quicker than I thought possible. I hovered around the production booth and backstage with a clipboard and badge that Hardison got me. It gave me a bit of a thrill being somewhere I probably wasn’t supposed to be, but as I’ve learned a couple times over, confidence is key. I wandered around and spoke to some of the workers, learning some of the ins and outs of concerts and filming while listening to Sophie set up the deal with Rucker. If anyone asked who I was, I said I was an intern.

Eventually, it seemed like everything fell into place. 

“Did you get all that?” Sophie asked. 

“Got it. Great job,” Nate replied, “We should be, uh, on our way home by this time tomorrow.”

“Awesome, while it’s not bad, I want something other than this mystery meat they call chicken fried steak,” I tossed my badge and clip board on a table before I met up with everyone else. 

“Have a good time wandering?” Parker asked.

“Yeah, I’m seeing why you guys like this.”

The next morning Sophie went to the gym to get the money. It all went downhill very quickly. 

“So, where are your partners?” I heard Rucker say through the comms, “waitin’ for you to blow me off?”

“Uh, I’m sorry, I don’t know what you’re…”

“Let me tell you why,” he continued, “Alex’s cousin Jimmy’s in the fight scene in South Dakota, and guess what? He’s never heard of Bill Wells.”

“Nate…” I said through comms.

“I know.”

Sophie laughed, trying to play it off, “Sweetie… I think you’re getting a little paranoid.”

“So, you think you can come to my town, huh? Us country bumpkins, right? Cause all we can do is kick ass.” He paused, “I’ll show you what us ass-kickers will do.”

“Whoa,” Sophie said as Tank started to advance on her. 

“Alright, leave her alone.” Nate and Eliot stormed into the gym.

“Look who’s here. Wells.” Rucker made Tank back off. “So where’s the rest of your crew? In the getaway car?”

I shivered in my seat in the van next to Parker and Hardison. 

“Yeah, alright. Parker, Hardison, y/n, break it down, we’re outta here. Come on.”

The three of us started to scramble putting everything away to ensure once they got out we could leave quickly. 

“Oh, you talk on a wire, huh? Pretty fancy.”

“Yeah, nothing but the best for you, Rucker.”

“Yeah, well we’re not all frauds… People do wanna see you fight. So, why don’t you take on Tank here?”

“I’ve got five seconds to kill our Monday,” Eliot responded.

The way this conversation was goin made me pause in our packing.

“No, no, no, not here, Tank,” Rucker said, “But, you know, you’re probably right. I’ve seen what you can do. But that’s the thing, you know. See, you’re favored, so I’m gonna need you to take a dive.”

I couldn’t believe what I was hearing.

“Come on,” I heard Nate mutter, and it sounded like they were walking away.”

“Fine,” Rucker called, “Go back to LA or wherever. It’s a shame you won’t be here next month when Jack Howorth’s house goes on fire… Or in six weeks when Mark has a car accident. But you won’t be around for any of that.”

“I’ll do it,” Eliot responded after a moment.

“You don’t have to do anything,” Nate responded.

“He’s right Eliot,” I agreed.

“Yeah, I do,” he rebuffed, “and then you lay off the Howorths.”

“You do what you have to do and they’ll be fine” Rucker explained, making my stomach churn, “But I’m betting it all on Tank here, so it can’t look like a fix. And, uh, feel free to use the gym. We don’t want anybody to think you’re not ready.”

They came around the corner where we were waiting for him. Nate had a look on his face as if looking for answers, his hands raised.

“What?” Hardison responded, “ What was I supposed to do? It was cousin Jimmy!” 

“He’s right, we couldn’t have planned for that,” Sophie conceded.

“Look, you know what I can do? I can retask a satellite, I can get level three NSA clearance, but I can’t hack a hick!”

“Alright, it doesn’t matter,” Eliot cut in, “What do we do now?”

“We could move the Howorths?” I asked.

“No, we’re not movin’ the Howorths,” Eliot said, “This is their home, that means something to people here.”

“Yeah, we can’t babysit them forever,” Sophie added. 

“Alright, we’ve taken out bigger players than this,” Nate said, thinking out loud, “There’s gotta be someway, uh, something that we can…”

“No!” Eliot interrupted, “No. I take the dive.” He said it like it was obvious.

“Are you sure?” I asked him, concerned how this could play out. 

“Give me some time, okay?” Hardison offered, “You know what? I found some funny business in Ruckers accounts, I can move some things…”

“Forget the fact that we got beat by Barney Fife, alright? This is the right move,” Eliot insisted, “Tactically, this is the right move. You all know that.” Eliot walked off, showing there was no room for discussion.

Reluctantly, we all followed. 

It was that night when Sophie and I went to check on Eliot. He had been in the gym for hours, training, working, preparing, I wasn’t sure what he wanted to call it. It was late, the patrons long gone, the streetlamps seemed to want to go to sleep, still he was in the ring boxing an invisible figure. 

“Hey,” Sophie called, getting his attention, “Listen, you, you don’t have to do this.”

“Nate’s gonna come up with something,” I assured. 

He shook his head nonchalantly, “I’m losing a fight, not diving on a grenade. I’ll be alright.”

“Yeah, I know. I’m not talking physically,” Sophie insisted.

“I think my ego can handle it.”

“Look, you told me it’s all about control,” she continued. “About knowing that you’re never going to be the victim…”

I turned to her, listening as I hadn’t heard this conversation. 

“And that’s what keeps you going right?”

Eliot stopped and approached us, “you think I’m upset because I gotta let this guy kick my ass?”

Neither one of us answered, as we just tilted our heads, allowing him to continue. 

“I learned a long time ago, you can’t control the violence. I can take the punishment. It’s what I do,” somehow he said it with a smile. “What I need to control is not out there… It’s here,” he patted his chest, “Always.”

Sophie just smiled softly and walked away. I stood there for a moment, tracing his sweaty features with my eyes. I then reached up and grabbed a hold of his gloved hand, giving it a tight squeeze. I nodded at him with a tight smile, trying not to get emotional for him, but I wanted to convey that I understood, maybe not all of it, but as much as I could right now. I followed Sophie soon after, but I could feel his eyes on me as I left.

Too soon, the night of the fight came. The crowd was cheering, but I only felt sick. Who knows what Rucker would pull tonight. I vaguely had in the back of my head the plan, but it wasn’t helping. The crew kept me in the back, away from Rucker since he wasn’t as familiar with me, and they wanted to keep it that way. I wasn’t complaining, I didn’t want to be in the fray anyway. 

I watched as the fighting commenced, Eliot and Tank exchanging blows. Eliot sure wasn’t gonna let Tank take the win easy. It wasn’t too long however, when I noticed Eliot getting dazed. I knew it was going to happen, but it didn’t make me feel better. I watched across the ring as Nate sniffed Eliot’s water bottle, and Sophie started arguing with Rucker. Reading Sophie’s lips, I caught the gist of it, she was telling Rucker that Eliot was a different kind of fighter. He doesn’t just do it for sport, that’s how he keeps alive. 

I could even hear her in the crowd when she said, “You’ve just made him more dangerous, you’ve taken the safety off the gun!”

Then Eliot seemed to lose control, he wasn’t gonna be losing this fight. Tank tried to tap out, but Eliot wouldn’t let him. The ref had to pry him off to let him loose. 

The doctor came into the ring, checking on Tank. Eliot sat in his corner, bloody, but otherwise calmed down. I stayed back in the corner, letting them do their work as the crowd was cleared out of the gym.

Rucker stormed the ring, “What the hell just happened?”

Nate shot right back, “What the hell? You could’ve killed him.”

“You know how much you just cost me? I’m gonna make you pay!” 

Hardison had to step between the two.

“Make me pay, huh?”

“We had a deal!”

“Hey, listen to me!” the ring doctor interrupted, “Tank is dead.”

Rucker quickly changed his tune, “No, no wait, wait.”

“You killed him,” the doctor pointed at Eliot, who when I looked at him now, almost looked distraught.

“Wait a second, are you sure?” Rucker asked him. 

“There’s nothing I can do.”

“Listen, he could just be out,” he insisted. 

“I gotta call the police,” the doctor said as he pulled out his phone. 

“No police!” Rucker shouted before turning to a whisper, “Listen to me. Listen, we can work this out. Keep it in the family. I’ll make it worth your while.”

“There were hundreds of witnesses!”

“They’re gone now.”

“Plus we’ve got a dead body, what am I supposed to do about that?! And also?” he continued, “we ain’t family.”

Rucker finally seemed to back off, “alright, alright, you’re right. You call the police, and I… I’m gonna call the athletic commission.” He hurried up to his office, where I knew he wasn’t going to make that phone call. 

I sat next to Hardison once everything was settled down, waiting for confirmation from Parker about the GPS and Rucker leaving. 

Hardison opened his phone to see the GPS tracker on his screen, “Looks like he’s headed to Iowa.”

“Make the call,” Nate said. 

I immediately took out my phone to comply. 

“What’s going on?” Howorth asked as he walked in. 

“Just give me a sec,” Nate replied, “Doc, you’ve got Tank right?”

“Yeah. Oh, he’ll be fine,” the ring doctor stood, calm as could be, “should come around in a few minutes.”

“Wait, wait,” Howorth stepped up to the ring, “he’s not dead?”

“Succinylcholine,” the doc raised a syringe, “it’s a mild paralytic. It only works for a few minutes.”

“Yeah, it was just enough to scare off Rucker,” Nate explained. 

“So, so Eliot wasn’t…”

“No, no. We found the drugged water bottle before the fight, switched it out with a clean one.” Nate explained. “Rucker’s not too original when it comes to this kind of thing apparently.”

“So, Jonny, you were in on this?”

The doc nodded, “Mr. Ford and his friends came and asked me for help. I told him around here, we always stand up for our own.” He looked around, “where’s Rucker?”

“The Iowa State Police just got a tip that a fugitive is headed into their jurisdiction,” I replied.

“And I’m pretty sure crossing state lines with a bag full of cash won’t look too good,” Hardison added. 

“Especially when they find the little surprise in his trunk,” Parker laughed. I recalled how Parker went and picked up a bunch of firearms with the money Nate won off of Rucker in golf. That’s a lot of guns to find in a trunk. 

“That should hold him off until the IRS gets down here,” Nate commented. 

“The IRS?” Howorth asked.

“The money that Rucker makes from these fights,” Sophie began, “well, it’s all in cash.”

“Yeah, and he wasn’t too good about reporting that income,” Hardison finished. “You see, all we had to do was flag the government about the tax evasion.”

“Rucker won’t be coming back to town anytime soon,” I smiled at Howorth, proud of the crew and what they could accomplish. 

“He doesn’t have anything to come back for,” Sophie added, “He literally bet the whole house on Tank.”

“So all that money’s gone?” Howorth asked.

“Well, you see, not exactly,” Nate said. 

Hardison made a bunch of online bookies that Rucker placed his bets with, he explained. Meaning that they had access to the money. 

The doc examined Eliot, “you took a hell of a pounding. We should get you a CT scan. You could have internal bleeding.” 

I sat down next to Eliot, looking him over, hoping he was okay.

“You let yourself get hammered like that on purpose,” Howorth commented, handing him an ice pack, “that’s a hell of a lot of punishment to take.”

“That’s what he does,” Sophie answered. 

Eliot nodded, only making brief eye contact as he held the ice pack to his shoulder.

Once everything was settled, we were able to hand the gym over to the Howorths, encouraging them to be better for those that wanted to be in the sport, to help them. They were excited, and ready to take up the challenge. But for us, it was time to go back home, we all needed some rest I thought, one more than the others. 

Tags: @isoldeahlstrom @kniselle

[wenclairfamily]

Summary: It's the much anticipated "Wednesday" prequel that finally gives the origin story to television's greatest couple; in this dark comedy thriller involving romance, stalkers, pirates, fencing matches, giant monsters, and murder! *Click "Keep Reading" to read the first chapter for free right now!

On a large yacht that was resting comfortably in the water near a resort, many rich teenagers were partying above deck. One male teenager however stood on a small podium before his peers while holding up a large stuffed jackalope shaped creature. The lead teen smiled as he said, "My fellow Preston Prep peers... tonight we don't just celebrate our football team's victory over Cemetery High... but also that we stole their ugly mascot! Now lets party!" All of the teenagers on the yacht cheered, and continued to party. One other teen however walked over to the lead teen as they said, "Are you sure we should have stolen the mascot of Cemetery High Chuck? I mean, you know how crazy some of the people from that school can get when we screw around with them." The lead teen: Chuck, smirked as he said, "Relax. We've got nothing to worry about when it comes to those creepy and kooky characters."

Meanwhile, coming towards the yacht in the distance... was a pirate ship sailing across the ocean. As the pirate ship moved towards the yacht, a teenage boy named Gomez Addams stood at the front of the ship looking proud. He wore a white shirt with black coat, along with black pants, black boots, and a white bandanna tied around the top of his head; while his uncombed hair flowed in the wind. As Gomez saw the yacht coming into view, he made a huge happy smile. Gomez then turned around and looked at a group of teenagers behind him all dressed in black sailor uniforms. As Gomez looked at his crew with a big smile he said, "My friends; the time has come for us to seek vengeance against those that would do us wrong! For if our enemies of Preston Prep think they can take our jackalope, then we shall retaliate by taking their ship!" Then Gomez pulled out from behind his back: a sword, and then lifted the sword to the sky while a big grin was going across his face. All of the other teens in Gomez's crew took out swords and various other weapons, and then lifted their tools to the sky as well.

Meanwhile all of the rich teenagers on the yacht looked confused as the pirate ship came towards them. Meanwhile on the pirate ship, Gomez stood at the wheel as he yelled, "Thing, fire the canons!" Then suddenly the living hand: Thing jumped up and quickly lit multiple fuses attached to canons around the ship. As the fuses began to quickly spark: all of Gomez's crew smiled, while all of the rich teenagers on the yacht looked very confused. Then Gomez pointed his sword forward and yelled, "Once more unto the breach dear friends!" Then in a fiery explosion, the canons shot large canon balls at the yacht damaging it. Then the pirate ship crashed into the yacht causing many of the rich teenagers to panic.

Gomez, using a rope from his ship, then swung towards the yacht. In an instant, Gomez flew above the teenagers on the yacht, and then did a flip in mid-air as he came down towards his enemies. Gomez then had his feet hit two rich teenagers' heads on the way down, and then put one hand on a fallen teen's back as he kicked several more teens down. Then as two rich teenagers ran at Gomez with their fists out, Gomez made a big happy grin as he judo flipped them to the ground. Gomez giggled, and then yelled, "Now Fester!" Then Gomez's brother Fester jumped onto the yacht and began to shoot bolts of electricity from his hands, shocking many of the rich teens. Then Fester looked at Gomez as he pleaded, "Come on Gomez. Let me shoot them in the back!" Gomez smiled as he excitedly said, "No Fester, we must ensure everyone here lives so that they can spread the tale of our glorious victory today!" Then one teen tried to run at Gomez with a baseball bat, but then suddenly Thing sneaked up from behind him and threw several sparklers down his pants. The teen immediately screamed as he ran off feeling pain under his pants. Gomez then laughed as he said, "Oh Thing. You trickster, you!"

Many of Gomez's other crew members then began to throw sparklers, small sticks of dynamite, and stink bombs at the rich teenagers. Meanwhile two co-joined female teenagers were throwing scorpions all around the yacht, causing more rich teenagers to scream. Gomez looked impressed as he said, "Why Flaura and Fauna, you two are in excellent form today." Flaura smiled as she said, "Really. Is my form excellent enough to maybe go to the school dance with you?" Then an angry Fauna said, "Back off sister. I called him first." Then Gomez proudly said, "Why Flaura and Fauna, don't you know? Gomez Addams' heart belongs to no one!" Then suddenly a group of large muscular teens angerly ran at Gomez as they yelled, "Get him!" Gomez's eyes then went wide with excitement, and he made a giant smile while saying, "Oh, the course of chaos never did run so smooth!"

Then as the large muscular teens ran at Gomez, Gomez instantly judo flipped one teen, but then grabbed his legs and twirled his body around while using it to hit several other teens. Then three teens ran at Gomez with baseball bats. However Gomez spun his sword around, and in a blur: he cut the baseball bats into many pieces. Then another teen ran at Gomez with a large chain in his hands. However Gomez quickly slid his body under the teen, grabbed his chain in a blur, and then Gomez quickly tied up the teen up in his own chain. Then eight of the largest teens surrounded Gomez and tried to body slam him. However Gomez dug his sword into the floor, and then while holding onto the sword's grip with one hand to balance his body, Gomez launched his feet up and spun around while kicking every teenager in the face. Instantly all of Gomez's opponents hit the ground knocked out. Then one last teenager ran at Gomez screaming angerly. However Gomez simply smacked the front of his head hard into the other teenagers' head, and knocked his opponent out. An incredibly satisfied and smiling Gomez then proclaimed, "I came, saw, and overcame!"

Meanwhile Fester just rolled his eyes and simply said, "I still think it would've been more fun if we just shot them all in the back." Then Gomez saw one last teenager, the leader of the rich teens: Chuck trying to run off the yacht. However, Gomez quickly cornered Chuck with his sword out and yelled, "Stop right there fiend! You have dishonored me this day by stealing the mascot of my institution. From here on out, you will live the rest of your days knowing you have a blood feud with my family." Chuck meanwhile looked confused as he said, "A blood feud with your family? Gomez... I'm your cousin!" Gomez then had the tip of his sword come less than an inch from Chuck's neck as he said, "Indeed. So for that alone... I will allow you to keep your ship... or rather what remains of it." Then Gomez turned his head and yelled, "Now Thing!" Then Thing quickly lit a fuse, and within seconds: an explosion came from the center of the yacht. Gomez's crew quickly jumped on board their pirate ship, while all of the rich teens left on the yacht screamed in terror. As a smiling Gomez stood proudly on the exploding yacht, he held out his arms as he passionately proclaimed, "Cry Havoc, and let slip the dogs of war!"

***

The next day, Gomez was sitting in a limo looking upset while facing his mother. Gomez was sitting in a suit, with his hair well combed now. Gomez's mother meanwhile had a look of disappointment go across her face as she said, "Now Gomez... we have a lot to talk about; especially with all of these charges that were recently brought against you." Gomez then glared at his mother as he said, "Mother, I assure you I committed acts of bodily harm to far more people than were filed. I swear." Then Gomez's mother angerly said, "That's not the problem Gomez. The real issue is... you let them all live! You do realize when you start a job, you need to finish it. You know if your father were still with us, he'd agree with me... but unfortunately he's still serving his fifteen year sentence in maximum security prison." Then a confused Gomez said, "I thought it was just a ten year sentence."

Then Gomez's mother casually said, "He extended it by causing a few riots. Your father actually wanted to stay there longer, since he finds the environment so pleasant and comfortable. But the point is Gomez, you haven't been acting like a son of mine for some time now. You don't even shoot your enemies anymore like your brother does. Outside society has made you too soft. So to sharpen your mind and skills, for your final year of school - I'm sending you to the perfect place for regular people like us... Nevermore Academy. I have a friend of mine named Obsidian who serves on the board. She pulled some strings and is allowing you to enroll mid-semester. While there, I'd also like to introduce you to her daughter. Obsidian and I have talked quite a great deal, and we think her daughter would make a fine wife for you."

Gomez suddenly looked very frustrated as he said, "A wife!? Mother, don't you know? Gomez Addams' heart belongs to no one!" Then Gomez's mother used a stern tone as she said, "Nonsense. You're too unhinged Gomez... and not in a good way. You need a woman to settle your spirit. Plus, Obsidian has already promised to babysit any future grandchildren of mine once a month for a year if we ask, as long as you at least go on one date with her daughter... which you will do, and then you will marry her." Gomez rolled his eyes and then said, "But mother, aren't arranged marriages too much of an outdated custom now?" Gomez's mother then crossed her arms as she said, "Ridiculous. Arranged marriages are an Addams family tradition! We've been doing it for centuries, and there hasn't been a divorce yet! ... Just a few untimely deaths. Now then... would you at least promise to go on one date with Obsidian's daughter and see how you feel about her?" Gomez sighed, and then said, "Very well. What's her name?" Gomez's mother made a happy smile as she said, "Why her name is Larissa Weems."

***

Outside of Nevermore Academy in a large garden: a giant mutant Venus Fly Trap looking plant was emerging from the ground. The mutant plant had huge vines popping out of its' body that were starting to move towards an average height teen girl with brown hair. The brown haired girl backed herself into a corner, as fear and anxiety went across her face while saying to herself, "Breathe Francoise. Breathe. You can't let yourself get too shaken up or traumatized." Then suddenly, the brown haired girl: Francoise found the mutant plant's vines were starting to tie her up. Francoise then closed her eyes as tears started to appear. Then suddenly Francoise heard a female voice say, "Oh Ptolemy, stop throwing such a fit." Then Francoise turned her her head and saw walking into the garden was Morticia Frump. Morticia walked with a calm demeanor wearing a knee high black dress, while her hair was nicely combed with two long braids going down her upper body (with two ribbons attached to her two braids).

The mutant plant then made a roaring sound causing Francoise to look more scared. Morticia meanwhile took out a sword, and grasped it firmly as she simply said, "Alas, I suppose you're in need for some good pruning." The mutant plant then immediately shot several vines at Morticia. Morticia however made quick fluid movements as she dodged and ducked away from each vine thrown at her. Then Morticia made quick slashing movements, and her sword cut away many of the attacking vines (including the vines holding Francoise, causing her to be freed). Then just as the mutant plant shot many vines into the sky, Morticia cut a hole near the large stem of the mutant plant. The mutant plant made a piercing scream... just as a smaller mutant plant burst out of the large mutant plant's stem. The large mutant plant then calmed down and quickly shrank in size, as a smiling Morticia said, "There, there now. That wasn't so bad." As Francoise felt a bit more calm, she now looked very confused as she said, "What just happened?" Then as Morticia looked calmly at Francoise, she said, "Oh, our school plant: Ptolemy was just giving birth."

As Francoise continued to look confused, she asked, "Is that normal around here? Giant plants giving birth?" Morticia smiled as she picked up the small baby mutant plant and said, "Only in the fall season. The headmaster said I could keep Ptolemy's offspring once it was born. I think I'll call her Cleopatra. Oh, I'm Morticia by the way. You must be new here. I saw you trying out for the school fencing team last week." Francoise nodded her head as she said, "Yeah. I'm Francoise." Then Morticia immediately shook Francoise's hand while saying, "Well it's a pleasure to finally make formal introductions with you. How have you enjoyed Nevermore Academy thus far?" As Francoise looked at her surroundings briefly she said, "It's a school... that's certainly full of surprises."

Then suddenly the two teenage girls heard another female voice say, "I knew I'd find you here Morticia." Morticia turned her head and saw a petite red haired teenage girl wearing a purple dress walking towards her. Morticia made a small smile as she said, "Francoise, allow me to formally introduce you to one of my esteemed peers. This is Raine. One of Nevermore's most accomplished seers. If you're ever looking for something you've lost around campus, Raine can be quite helpful at foreseeing where you'll find it." Francoise held out her hand as she said, "Hello there." Raine shook Francoise's hand, and then Raine's eyes suddenly glowed while saying, "Ah, yes... your future husband is currently working for the sheriff in town. You should stop by the police station in Jericho sometime." Francoise then stepped away looking a bit startled as she said, "Um... okay, I guess. Anyway, I should get back to my dorm room. Nice meeting you two."

As Francoise walked away, Morticia glared at Raine while saying, "So how did you know I'd be in the garden Raine? Did you foresee I'd be here?" Raine gave Morticia a warm smile as she said, "Well I know you'd be here because spending time in the garden helped me calm down too when I first got my visions." As Morticia put her new baby mutant plant in a pot of soil, she glared at Raine while saying, "Did you use your powers to learn that I just started..." Raine put her hands up for a moment while saying, "No, no. Larissa told me. She said you wake up often in the middle of the night believing you're going mad... and not in the fun way. You know you could have talked to me about it." Morticia turned her head to the side, looking slightly embarrassed as she said, "It's not quite the same. Raine... you see visions of just the future. I however see visions of both the future and the past. I see images of both what I experienced long ago as a child, and of myself looking into the mirror and finding that I am an old woman. It is... confusing and difficult to endure."

Raine looked up at the sky as she said, "They will make more sense in time Morticia. The past is past, and as for the future... well you may eventually find comfort in seeing what is to come. For me, the picture is still incomplete... but the day I saw a vision of my future self marrying a kind man with telekinetic powers... that's when I knew I could stop worrying." Then as Morticia looked down, she said, "But I've read the research. Visions for the future aren't completely accurate. So how do I know what visions of days to come are certain or not?" Raine paused for a moment... and then handed Morticia a pendant as she said, "Morticia... this pendant has mystical properties... which includes the ability to help you see and make a strong connection with a possible future in your life." As Morticia put the pendant around her neck, Raine continued with saying, "I want you to have it. Maybe it will help you with your visions going forward."

Then suddenly the two heard a male voice say, "I can help you with anything you want going forward Morticia." Morticia and Raine turned their heads and saw a tall teenage boy with long blonde hair walking towards them while holding several dead flowers in his hand. Raine looked very annoyed as she said, "Garrett Gates, what are you doing here? You don't even go to this school!" Garrett smiled as he said, "I just thought I'd give Morticia these dead flowers from my lawn. They smell of your favorite pesticide." Then suddenly from around a corner of the building, an African lion sprung out and immediately tackled Garrett to the ground. Garrett immediately screamed, while a calm Morticia said, "Garrett, you're such a lovely creepy boy, and I'm so glad you've enjoyed our conversations we've had at the home improvement store about insecticide and weed killers; but my sweet Kitty has always been a reliable judge of character for me. So if he doesn't approve of you, then we simply cannot be." Morticia's lion then got off of Garrett. Garrett then stood up and began to walk away as he pleaded, "I'll prove myself to you soon. There is a connection between us. I know it's real. You must know it's real too."

As Garrett walked away, Raine giggled while a smiling Morticia gently patted her lion. Then from nearby, a teenage girl with white hair walked towards Morticia and smiled as she said, "I see Garrett Gates just had his heart broken again today." Morticia smirked as she said, "It he keeps coming back, is it really broken Larissa?" Morticia's friend: Larissa then began to look slightly worried as she said, "I don't know how you put up with that boy always stalking you Morticia. Haven't you tried calling the police?" Raine then raised a hand up briefly while saying, "Actually I have on Morticia's behalf; but they've honestly been no help. Guess being the son of the richest man in town has its perks." Morticia maintained her calm demeanor as she said, "I'm certain Garrett will eventually find another girl that will appreciate how revolting he is. As for Garrett's father, I'm sure he takes his role in guiding his son's actions very seriously."

***

In the living room of a dark mansion, Garrett Gates was punched in the stomach by his father: Ansel Gates. Ansel then hit Garrett in the back, causing Garrett to fall to the ground. With hatred in his eyes, Ansel said, "What the hell do you think you're doing chasing after an outcast Garrett!? Those people took land that rightfully belonged to our family and built their filthy school on it." As Garrett slowly stood up, he spit some blood out of his mouth, and then said, "That was hundreds of years ago dad. Plus... Morticia Frump is different. She's beautiful, kind, and a kindred spirit." Then Ansel punched Garrett in the face, and angerly yelled, "Her kind are the scum of the Earth. And now I have to pay off the sheriff again thanks to those stupid complaints that scum keeps making. My God Garrett, what good are you if even scum doesn't want you?" Then Ansel kicked Garrett in the chest and knocked him into the nearby wall. As Garrett fell to the ground hurt, Ansel's wife walked into the room with a disturbed look on her face. Ansel then casually glanced at his wife while saying, "Clean up your son." Ansel's wife had a few tears in her eyes, but then calmly nodded her head as she said, "Yes dear."

***

Gomez sat with his mother in a limo as it slowly approached Nevermore Academy. As Gomez looked out the window, he said, "My, what a dark and dreary penitentiary." Gomez's mother rolled her eyes as she said, "It's not a prison Gomez. Don't treat this like your vacation to juvenile hall when you were twelve. This is a proper school." Gomez then simply glared at his mother while saying, "There is nothing more confining than the prison we don't know we are in." Gomez's mother sighed, and then said, "Well the sooner I find Obsidian and introduce you to Larissa, the sooner I can turn you into a proper man."

***

Morticia and Larissa were walking near the edge of the school as Morticia calmly said, "So for the Poe Cup tomorrow, I was thinking we could all dress up as black cats. All of our costumes are supposed to have an Edgar Allen Poe theme to them, and his story: The Black Cat was a favorite bedtime tale of mine growing up." Larissa smiled as she said, "I'm sure the team won't mind. After all, you've led Ophelia Hall to victory in the Poe Cup the last three years, and are already captain of the fencing team, and leader in the Nightshade Society." Morticia looked at Larissa with warm eyes while saying, "You give me too much credit Larissa. Leaders are nothing without their right hand. And you've been there right beside me, being my trusted confidante through all of my trials and tribulations. My name may be on all the trophies, but rest assured: people will remember the two women that achieved great fame and victory in this era of..."

Then suddenly Morticia found her body shaking, and her eyes became very wide. Morticia suddenly saw flashes of herself as an adult looking into a cracked mirror in a living room while saying, "I know you're behind me mon cherie." Then in the vision, a male voice from behind her was heard saying, "Tish. That's French! You know what that does to me!" Then just as a male figure began to touch her, Morticia suddenly regained her senses and saw Larissa standing by her side. Larissa looked concerned as she said, "You had another vision, didn't you?" Morticia nodded her head as she said, "Yes. The visions of my past, and my ancestor's past have become easier to cope with. But when I see visions of what must be the future... they confuse me." A curious Larissa then asked, "What are you seeing of your future?" Morticia took a deep long breath, and then said, "I'd rather not say. Raine has given me a pendant that is supposed to help me make a better connection with the days to come though. So perhaps I shall gain clarity soon."

Suddenly the two women heard a car honking sound. Then they heard Larissa's mother from far away yell, "Larissa, get over here!" Larissa then turned to look right at Morticia while saying, "Ah, yes. Speaking of the future, my mother wants to introduce me to the son of her good friend. She says he'd make a wonderful husband for me." Then Morticia kept a calm face, while smiling as she said, "Well good for you. I wish you all the best Larissa." Then Larissa looked slightly worried as she said, "Well... I mean... Nevermore Academy's rules are if two students of legal age did get married, they'd have to live in a special room in the teacher's quarters. So if that did happen... we'd no longer be room mates. Wouldn't you miss me?" Morticia shrugged, and then said, "Well I'd rather neither of us miss out on seizing our destiny." Larissa had a slightly annoyed look on her face while saying, "For someone so insightful Morticia, there's still so much you miss." Then Larissa quickly walked away, while Morticia remained where she was looking confused.

Then just as Morticia walked away, Gomez stepped out of a nearby limo, followed by his mother. Larissa and her mother then quickly approached Gomez and his mother. Gomez's mother looked very happy as she said, "Obsidian, good to see you old friend. How's the body burying business going?" Then Larissa's mother smiled as she said, "Oh, you know. The Fall season is always when business is slow. But when we get close to Valentine's Day, there's always tons of people offing their spouses to make room for the new sugar baby they're going after. Anyway Gomez, this is my daughter Larissa." Gomez simply nodded his head, and said "How do you do?" Larissa made a very false smile as she said, "Quite well. I must admit, you are more grotesque than my mother described you." Gomez then made a genuine smile while saying, "Flattery will get you many places." Then Gomez's mother looked very happy as she said, "See. She's insulting you already. You're perfect for each other."

Gomez looked slightly annoyed again, but then looked directly at Larissa with simple kindness while saying, "Perhaps we could begin our courting tomorrow morning?" Larissa nodded her head while saying, "Agreed. Perhaps we could take a walk by the nearby river in the early morning. After that... would you care to be my date to the school's special annual dance tomorrow evening?" Gomez nodded his head and simply said, "I vow that I shall go on one date with you tomorrow morning, with the possibility of a second that evening." Then Gomez's mother leaned over and said, "Perhaps before your first formal date, you could ask Larissa to give you a tour of the school." Larissa smiled as she said, "Oh yes. I'd love to check out... I mean, check up on my room mate who is training with our school fencing team right now." Gomez suddenly looked excited as he said, "Fencing!? Oh, give me a foil and show me to your school's greatest champions. I will defeat them all and become their new king in mere minutes." Larissa looked slightly confused, but then said, "But of course. Right this way." Then as Gomez and Larissa walked off, Larissa's mother looked at Gomez's mother while saying, "Ah, those two will make a fine pair... as long as you deliver me the dowry you promised in full on their wedding day."

***

On the side of a road, a young man stepped out of police car. From nearby, Ansel Walker approached the young man while keeping a straight face. Ansel Walker then stopped near the young man as he said, "Sheriff Walker." The young man: Sheriff Walker, nodded his head as he said, "Mister Gates." Ansel then handed Sheriff Walker an unmarked envelope while saying, "As requested, here's my monthly contribution to your campaign, along with the extra amount for the agreed upon favor." Sheriff Walker briefly glanced in the envelope while saying, "Yes. That shall do quite nicely." Then Ansel kept his eyes away from the sheriff while saying, "Just remember when you win the election and become mayor next month, don't forget your friends that helped you." As Sheriff Walker put his envelope in his large coat pocket, he said, "I will... but don't you start pushing how far our friendship can take you. You know there's only so many paper trails I can erase before I have state and even federal authorities coming in and asking me questions." Then Ansel finally made a little smile as he said, "And I'm sure if something like that were to happen, you'd have plenty of answers... considering you'd also be protecting yourself now." Ansel then walked away, while a nervous looking Sheriff Walker got back into his police car. Then Sheriff Walker quickly drove off.

Meanwhile Ansel began to walk towards his nearby mansion, when he saw Garrett coming out the front door. As Garrett approached his father, Ansel angerly said, "Where are you going? Off to that scum school that's sitting on our land?" Garrett looked a bit nervous as he said, "No. Just... taking a walk." Then suddenly Ansel and Garrett noticed Raine appeared far away in their view, and was starting to walk towards them. Ansel had an angry look in his eyes... but then glanced at Garrett while saying, "You've been in that school. Tell me. Are all the records I discretely acquired on their students correct? Is that girl one of the Nevermore's only two individuals that can see into the future?" Garrett nervously nodded his head, and then said, "Yeah. That's Raine. From what I heard, she can see glimpses of the future at times, but it's never a full picture." Ansel then smirked as he said, "Well if she could, she wouldn't be walking by here right now." Then Ansel suddenly gave Garrett an angry look, while yelling, "Go!" Garrett suddenly looked scared and then ran away.

Then just as Raine was about to cross paths with him, Ansel suddenly acted like his leg was hurt, and he fell to the ground while screaming in pain. A concerned Raine ran over to him and said, "Oh my gosh. Are you okay sir?" As Ansel pretended to be in pain, he said, "It's my leg. Oh. It's an old war injury acting up. Please. Could you help me to my house. It's right over there." As Raine helped Ansel get up, she said, "Oh, of course sir. Don't worry. You'll be okay." Then Ansel and Raine slowly moved towards the front door of the mansion. Then once the two got inside the mansion, a sympathetic Raine asked, "Okay. We're here. Anything else I can do for you?" Ansel then made a big grin as he said, "Just let yourself be knocked out." Then Ansel suddenly moved fast, grabbed a large baseball bat, and hit Raine in the head with it. Raine then hit the ground knocked out, while Ansel wiped his hands clean on a rag. Then Ansel's wife walked into the room with a shocked look on her face. Ansel then casually glanced at his wife while saying, "Put her in the vault downstairs." Ansel's wife had a scared look in her eyes, but then calmly nodded her head as she said, "Yes dear."

***

In a large room at Nevermore Academy, Morticia was wearing a full fencing suit with a helmet covering her head. Morticia was facing another opponent, and with a few strokes, she hit them. Morticia then took off her helmet briefly, and looked at 12 other students surrounding her while saying, "Remember everyone. It is important to not extend your arm for as long as possible. Don't anticipate the moment when an opening will occur. Let the moment come to you." Then as Morticia put her helmet back on, Larissa entered the room with Gomez (who was already wearing a full fencing suit). As Gomez proceeded to put a fencing helmet on, Larissa rolled her eyes and said, "Come now. What are you trying to accomplish here?" Gomez smiled as he said, "Victory. For war gives the right to the conquerors to impose any condition they please upon the vanquished."

Once Gomez had his fencing helmet on, he stepped forward into the middle of the room as he said, "I, Gomez Addams, newest student of Nevermore Academy, challenge any would be champion of this class to a duel. And to the victor, go all the spoils and privileges the ruler of this small army would have." Morticia (still wearing her fencing helmet) turned to look at Gomez while saying, "I see that with men: events of importance are still the result of trivial causes. To answer your question, I am the captain of Nevermore Academy's fencing team. Do you wish to challenge me for my title?" Then Gomez happily said, "It is war's prize to take all vantage." The Morticia chuckled and said, "Well... to whom God will, there be the victory."

Gomez and Morticia then took fencing stances, and then moved their bodies forward prepared to duel. Gomez and Morticia instantly had their foils strike at each other. Each individual found themselves moving forward several steps multiple times, only to find themselves moving back several times. The two began to strike with repetitive movements, constantly attacking and blocking the other. Over time, Gomez began to put more effort into moving his entire body with great speed. Morticia meanwhile made many simple fluids movements as she defended herself from Gomez with no display of strain. At one point as they battled, Morticia calmly asked, "Ready to give in?" However Gomez loudly proclaimed, "I'll fight, till from my bones my flesh be hacked!"

Then suddenly Morticia extended her arm and had her foil move towards Gomez. Gomez quickly ducked, but the tip of Morticia's foil suddenly hit Gomez's helmet. Gomez then extended his arm, but due to Morticia trying to dodge, the tip of Gomez's foil hit her helmet. Gomez and Morticia then quickly lifted their foils, and each pulled off the others' helmet in the same moment. Gomez and Morticia suddenly paused for a second as they saw the others' face for the first time. Gomez suddenly felt his heart race, as he found himself unable to move. Morticia in the same moment also saw herself freeze briefly, unable to understand why. Both Gomez and Morticia then quickly attempted to hit the other with their foil again. Morticia made quick fluid movements against Gomez's attacks. Gomez was able to stop Morticia's attacks several times, but soon found his eyes beginning to focus just on her face.

Then just as Gomez began to lose concentration in mid-lunge, Morticia saw an opening, and then extended her arm and had her foil's tip hit Gomez in the chest. Gomez immediately froze as he looked up at Morticia's face with both confusion and amazement in his face. Morticia then smirked as she lifted up her foil and said, "I came, saw, and overcame." Then Morticia turned to her fellow students who all cheered for her. Meanwhile Gomez remained standing in the same position as he longingly watched Morticia. Larissa then walked over to Gomez as she said, "Are you all right?" Gomez nodded his head as he said, "I am. But... who was that?" Larissa made a little smile as she also longingly watched Morticia while saying, "That's my room mate... Morticia Frump." Gomez then made a big smile as he said, "Morticia... what a dreary name."

***

In his mansion, Ansel was walking up the stairs from the basement. Ansel then walked into the kitchen where he saw Garrett was getting some food. Ansel didn't make eye contact with Garrett as he proceeded to get his own food. Garrett then had a nervous look in his eyes as he said, "So, dad... um... we got a phone call earlier. It was one of those Amber Alert calls. Apparently one of the students from Nevermore Academy went missing... and it was Raine. Since we saw her just this morning, I just wanted to know if you heard something about..." Then Ansel turned to look at Garrett with anger in his eyes while saying, "If you know what's best for you, you'll stop wasting my time with pointless questions!" Garrett quickly nodded his head and then rushed out of the mansion. Ansel meanwhile continued to look angry as he headed back down to the basement.

Once he reached the lowest level of his home, Ansel went over to a heavily locked door, and then opened it. Then Ansel walked into a room where he saw sitting before him was a beat up looking Raine who was chained to the wall. Raine had tears in her eyes as she said, "Please, let me go. I promise I won't tell..." Then Ansel suddenly yelled, "Tell!? The only person you're gonna tell anything to is me! I want to know everything about the future! Tell me every secret about the other scum at Nevermore who can see into the days to come like you! I want to know the names and intimate details of anyone that will one day be capable of stopping me and my family!" As Raine began to sob she said, "It doesn't work that way. My visions simply happen on their own. I can't just conjure up specific details of the future on a whim." Then Ansel suddenly began kicking Raine very hard multiple times as he screamed, "Well maybe what you really need is more motivation!"

Raine then began coughing up blood, as her eyes closed. Ansel then groaned in frustration... until he saw that Raine's shirt had become undone. As Ansel looked at Raine's more exposed body, he glared down as he said, "Just about the only thing you scum have in common with us real people are your bodies... and for all the terrible things your kind did to my family, I deserve some form of compensation right now." Ansel then began to take off his clothes, and soon after began to peel the clothes off Raine's body. Then Ansel's wife walked into the room with a mortified look on her face. Ansel then casually glanced at his wife while saying, "Give me a blanket and a pillow. I want to have some comfort while enjoying myself here." Ansel's wife had a distraught look in her eyes, but then calmly nodded her head as she said, "Yes dear."

***

Very early the next morning, Morticia was walking by the river before the sun had begun to rise. As Morticia walked by the river, she was taking roses she saw growing in ground, and immediately cutting off their petals. However Morticia's activities halted when she saw nearby was a funeral that was in the middle of its' proceedings. Standing around an open grave was a small crowd of people. However Morticia saw standing at the back of the crowd was a well dressed Gomez. Gomez then turned his head, and instantly his eyes locked with Morticia's. As the moon still shined in the sky, Morticia's face became pale as the moonlight touched her skin. Other people in the funeral crowd also began to find themselves glancing at Morticia, while Morticia began to slowly walk towards Gomez. Wanting to act like she was invited to this event, Morticia quickly put some of the roses she picked (which had all their petals cut off) in a vase that was sitting on a table. Morticia then quietly stood next to Gomez, as another individual in the funeral crowd began to give a eulogy. However as the eulogy concluded and a coffin was lowered into the ground, Morticia and Gomez found their eyes consistently trailing back to the other.

Eventually the rest of the funeral crowd began to leave, as Morticia looked directly at Gomez while saying, "Apologies. I didn't mean to intrude, but... I've never been to a real funeral before. I mean I've read books and seen pictures... but I never dreamed it could feel so... magical." Gomez smiled as he said, "It's quite all right. The funeral was for my cousin Balthazar. His home is coincidentally near the school. Still, I'm quite surprised they let me attend considering I've been suspected of staging his alleged suicide." Morticia suddenly looked excited as she said, "Is it true?" Gomez laughed a bit, and then while grinning he said, "I would never directly shorten the life of any tormented man... but I may have played a part in causing him to become quite mad. Honestly, I didn't think my methods I tortured him with were that effective." Morticia chuckled for a moment... but then composed herself slightly as she said, "We have already dueled and had one conversation now without making formal introductions. We certainly cannot acknowledge we've actually met until we do. So with that being said... I'm Morticia Frump."

Morticia then held out her hand. However Gomez leaned his head forward, gently kissed Morticia's hand once, and then said, "And I am Gomez Addams. It is a pleasure to finally meet you properly for the first time. Might I ask Morticia, what is a girl like you doing wandering around a dreary place like this so early in the morning?" Morticia smiled as she said, "I like to find any roses I can that are growing near the school, and prune away all those awful petals. All that bright color makes the land surrounding the school look so cheery." Gomez nodded his head as he said, "Indeed. You are doing a great service to the community. I too like taking long walks in the morning. However I prefer to do it when it's raining with lightning and thunder." Morticia looked very excited as she said, "Oh, I do love walking in the midst of a powerful storm. All the rain and wind pushing against my body. And in those rare circumstances where I can be electrocuted... oh, the surge of pain and power coursing through my body; feeling my heart nearly stop... it's the most beautiful sensation one could ever experience." Gomez's eyes lit up in admiration as he said, "I never thought I would meet someone else who understood..."

Then suddenly the two heard a roaring sound in the distance. An excited Gomez then said, "Well what do you know? I believe that's thunder. It may turn out to be a pleasant morning after all." Morticia suddenly looked worried as she said, "Oh no, that's..." Then just as the sun began to rise, Morticia's African lion suddenly appeared from nearby and was running straight at Gomez. Gomez's eyes immediately lit up as he said, "My, what a magnificent creature." Morticia began to look more worried though as she said, "Gomez, you may need to run because my pet..." Then suddenly Morticia's lion stopped right in front of Gomez... and began to gently lick him. Gomez laughed and began to pet the lion as he said, "What a ferocious feline you have here. Mmm. And his breath smells of postal service workers. You certainly have a feisty one here Morticia." Morticia stood with wide eyes of amazement while saying, "Umm... yes. Kitty sure is full of surprises." Then suddenly the two heard Larissa's voice say, "Morticia?" Gomez and Morticia turned their heads and saw Larissa walking towards them with confusion in her eyes. Gomez looked a bit nervous, but then smiled as he said, "Hello Larissa. While I was waiting for you, I bumped into your room mate. You certainly surround yourself with fine company. Shall we go on our date now?" Larissa smiled as she said, "Lets."

Then Gomez and Larissa began to walk away together... but as they did... Gomez found his head turning back to look at Morticia one more time. As Morticia watched Gomez and Larissa walking away, she found a few tears coming from her eyes. Suddenly though Morticia found her body shaking, and her head jerked up. Morticia suddenly saw flashes of Gomez at various adult stages of life. Then for an instant, Morticia saw the backs of two young children hugging an adult Gomez as they said, "Hello father!" A confused Morticia then said, "Father?" Then Morticia saw multiple images of adult Gomez at various ages jumping back and forth between one another, with the one thing they all had in common was Gomez lovingly walking towards Morticia as he said, "Ma femme chérie." Suddenly Morticia could see her regular surroundings again. As Morticia looked shaken up, she said, "Ma femme chérie? Why that's French for... my darling wife."

***

In the basement of Ansel Gates' home: Raine lay on the floor completely naked, while locked in chains attached to the wall. Raine's face meanwhile looked possessed as her hands moved quickly while writing many notes on sheets of paper, along with also making several drawings using colored pencils. Raine was breathing in and out heavily as her hands began to move at almost inhuman speeds while her writing and drawing continued. Ansel then walked into the room, and smiled as he saw the many notes and drawings on the floor. As Ansel picked up many of the papers, he said, "Excellent. I knew with enough motivation you'd finally sing like the freak canary you are. Now what information do we have here about the future of outcasts at Nevermore?" Suddenly Raine's eyes widened, and her voice sounded more raspy as she said, "Death and doom is coming. Death and doom is coming. In 30 years and eight days from now, I will die... and then Rowan... oh my God, my future son Rowan is going to die at the hands of a Hyde. Oh God, my son. How can I mourn for the death of a child who has not been born yet!?"

Meanwhile Ansel's eyes were focused on the notes he was reading. Ansel smirked as he said, "Nice. Very nice. You've written up and even drawn full size pictures of what the most dangerous students in Nevermore's future will look like, along with detailed family histories. You've even written up statistics on all their strengths and weaknesses. Oh, this is like winning the lottery!" Then Ansel's wife walked into the room carrying a brown coat, while having a sad look on her face. Ansel then casually glanced at his wife while saying, "Put the outcast scum in that coat, and then dump the cheap beer all over them. When the police or whoever find her, they'll think she was just out getting drunk." Ansel's wife had a painful and hesitant look in her eyes... but then calmly nodded her head as she said, "Yes dear." Ansel then walked out of the room, while Ansel's wife began to unchain Raine, and cover her body in a coat. However as this occurred, Raine grabbed one drawing from the floor (that Ansel had failed to notice), and quickly put the drawing in a pocket of the coat.

***

Morticia was beginning to walk into town as she headed towards the main cemetery of the town. There was a light rain outside, but Morticia looked very pleased as her skin and clothes were beginning to become wet. Morticia then stopped, and starred at many of the graves from afar. Morticia sighed, and then said to herself, "I always dreamed I wound find a nice boy to be buried alongside one day... but what do I do when I have visions telling me who that must be. It is like choosing between wanting to read the words of a script, against following my heart... but what if my heart is wrong?" Then Morticia heard a male voice behind her say, "My heart can't be wrong when it thinks of you Morticia." Morticia then turned her head and saw Garrett walking towards her, holding a fencing foil (with a bow) in his hand

Morticia looked a bit startled as she said, "Garrett... what are you doing here?" Then Garrett smirked as he said, "I've been following you and memorizing your typical route for days now. I wanted to pick a spot and time where we'd likely be alone. I know you like fencing, so I bought you a new foil as a present." Morticia looked a bit unsettled as she said, "Garrett, as flattered as I am to have a boy stalking me, you need to know that..." Then suddenly Morticia's eyes widened, and her head jerked up. Suddenly Morticia saw a vision of the near future that involved Garrett angerly running towards her inside of Nevermore Academy while holding a sword out. Morticia suddenly looked frightened, and both in her vision and in reality, she yelled, "No Garrett! Stop!"

Meanwhile nearby, Gomez and Larissa were walking down a sidewalk near the cemetery while Gomez was holding an umbrella. Suddenly the two heard Morticia's yelling, as a concerned Larissa said, "Is that Morticia?" Gomez then saw Garrett in front of Morticia, as a scared Morticia (still having a vision) yelled, "Stay away Garrett!" Garrett meanwhile looked confused as he said, "But why?" Then Gomez glared at the scene while saying, "No man should torture a woman that does not welcome it." Then suddenly Gomez pulled a fencing foil out of his umbrella and ran towards Garrett. Meanwhile Morticia saw in her vision, a crazy looking Garrett was swinging his sword towards Gomez. Morticia looked frightened as she said, "Stop this!"

Meanwhile in reality, Gomez ran at Garrett with his foil out. Garrett quickly noticed this, and immediately stopped Gomez's foil with the foil in his hand. Gomez immediately began to swing his weapon several time at Garrett, but Garrett fought back by block blocking Gomez's attacks, all the while Garrett also tried to hit Gomez. The two young men each tried to lunge forward at the other, but each was able to dodge the others' attack. Meanwhile Morticia saw both flashes of reality, and flashes of her vision where an angry Garrett was attacking Gomez in the middle of the night with his fists. In Morticia's vision: Gomez looked like he was slow to reaching his death, causing Morticia to be frozen in terror as she yelled, "No! Stop!"

Then in reality, Gomez was finally able to knock Garrett's foil out of his hand. and knocked him to the ground. Morticia then snapped out of her vision, and saw only reality again. Garrett looked scared, while a heroic Gomez point his foil down at Garrett's face while saying, "This dreary woman has asked you to leave young man. Do as she says, or your throat shall meet my weapon!" Garrett looked confused and frustrated as he said, "What the hell is wrong with you!? I didn't mean any harm." Then Gomez smirked as he had the tip of his foil stop right near Garrett's throat while saying, "But I do. So make your next choice carefully." Garrett then reluctantly walked away as he said, "We're still meant to be together Morticia. You'll realize it one day."

Then once Garrett was gone, Gomez put his foil back into his umbrella. Gomez then looked at Morticia with concern while saying, "Are you unwell Morticia?" Morticia then made a grateful smile as she said, "Only now that you're here. Thank you Gomez. That threat you made at Garrett was so... alluring to hear." Then Larissa walked over to the two, cleared her throat, and then said, "Well Gomez... shall we continue our date now?" Gomez quickly nodded his head and said, "Ah, yes. Of course."

Then Gomez and Larissa began to walk away together... but as they did... Gomez found his head turning back to look at Morticia once more. However as Morticia watched Gomez and Larissa walking away, she found herself beginning to get light headed. Suddenly a fog of smoke began to surround Morticia's body as she said to herself, "My senses... are beginning to feel so strange. What's going on?" Then Morticia heard a female voice say, "I believe I can explain that." Then Morticia turned her head, and looked confused as she began to see a female figure that was hidden in the fog. A confused Morticia then asked, "Who are you?"

***

Francoise was walking out of Nevermore Academy with an umbrella in her hand, when she saw a figure beginning to walk towards the school. Then Francoise realized the figure was a disturbed looking Raine, who was walking towards the school wearing nothing but a coat. Francoise suddenly looked very concerned as she yelled, "Raine!" Then Francoise ran forward, just as an exhausted Raine fell to the ground. As Francoise tried to hold Raine up in her arms, she said, "Raine, where were you? We called the police, but no one could find you. What happened!?" Raine however had wide eyes and a scared look on her face, and her body began to shake as she said, "I've seen death and doom. Death and doom. I've foreseen the end of my life, my son's life... and the end of Nevermore Academy!"

Then Raine pulled a drawing out of her coat pocket, and handed it to Francoise. A confused Francoise saw the drawing was of a dark man in a Pilgrim outfit standing near a girl in a dark dress and braids, while an image of Nevermore Academy burning was behind them. As Francoise looked at Raine she said, "What is this?" Tears appeared in her eyes, as a crazed Raine yelled, "The future! Nevermore Academy will one day meet it's end at the hands of Joseph Crackstone... and the one who will claim to be the daughter of Morticia Frump and Gomez Addams!"

***

As Morticia stood surrounded by fog in the cemetery, she saw a shadowy female figure walk towards her. Morticia still looked confused as she said, "What is happening here? I demand to know your name!" Then suddenly emerging from the fog was a girl in a black dress and dark braids. The girl then glared at Morticia, and while keeping an emotionless tone to her voice she said, "My name is Wednesday Addams... and I've traveled from beyond to assist you in this important turning point of your life... mother."

TO BE CONTINUED...

*Author's Note - Welcome everyone to this very special limited series that aims to give you all THE origin of Gomez and Morticia's love story. Great amounts of time have been taken to make this series not just align with the Wednesday TV series, but to also borrow/adapt from every incarnation of the Addams Family (to help make this story also feel like a prequel to any incarnation of the famous fictional gothic family). For those that are unfamiliar with me, I have slowly become well known in the Addams Family community for my "Wenclair Family" blog on Tumblr, and for my incredibly long lasting Wednesday and Enid fanfiction series: "The Passion of a Moment". If you have not read that series of mine yet, but you liked this story, I highly encourage you check it out.

Also, special thanks to artist @emeriart for creating the main cover picture used for this story, and three other pictures that will be used throughout the series. Also, special thanks to @annietheartsyartist for doing the majority of the additional art. Be sure to check out their work on social media. Anyway, be sure to come back next week as we delve into the next chapter of this very special prequel tale.

[evolutionmmachi-blog]

Evolution MMA / Alliance Jiu Jitsu would like to congraulate Mark Manalad on his Black belt!

Evolution MMA together with Team Alliance Jiu Jitsu would like to give a huge congratulations to Mark Manalad on recieving his well deserved black belt.

Mark has been training and rolling in the art of Jiu Jitsu for 18 years and has become one of one of our best students and family members!

Recieving his black belt from the best Jiu Jitsu instuctors in the nation.

Taking the one on one camera roll with his Jiu Jitsu team, classmates and now students

How the new Jiu Jitsu Black Belt Started his journey and continues his Jiu Jitsu rise.

Over 18 years ago I stepped foot in a Naperville Judo school to sign up. The owner asked why I want to practice Judo. I told him I want to learn some form of martial art. He looked at me and said you probably like the Jiu Jitsu school in the back of the building and told me to go there. I was a little confused but followed his directions. That is where I met Jeff Neal and Brian Bishop and was introduced to Carlson Gracie Jiu Jitsu and fell in love with the art. I met Jason Sullins when he taught class at Overtime MMA and connected with him right away and he has been my coach ever since. He is the one who gave me the nickname The Mad Hatter! The art demands a lot of respect and will be a humbling experience every time you step on the mats. The biggest thing I’ve a gained during my journey are the great relationships with all of my brothers and sisters who love the art as much as I do. That is the one thing I am most thankful for. Thank you all for being part of my Jiu Jitsu journey and developing my game. Thank you Jason for promoting me to black belt. Having you as a coach and more importantly as a friend is truly a blessing. I want to thank my wife Jeanette and my daughter Mya for supporting my Jiu Jitsu lifestyle. I also want to send a special thank you to my coaches and teammates at Alliance Jiu Jitsu and Levels Jiu Jitsu.

It has been an honor and will continue to be an honor training, teaching and rolling with You Mark!

The whole team Thanks you!

OSSSSS!

[kariachi]

Have some digimon au fic, featuring that Chosen team I threw together last year. Team is having a get together at the Jones farmhouse (as opposed to the O’Toole one) and Ezekiel is chilly.

~~

“Cocoa?”

“Thanks, Mrs Jones.” Trying to ignore how strange it felt to be calling someone that, Ezekiel accepted the mug with a smile, holding up under his chin and letting the steam thaw him. These weren’t the coldest temperatures he’d ever experienced, but back home it was an easy twenty-four degrees Celsius while there in Connecticut it was sitting at ten. His team was fine, for them this was considered chilly but not cold, and Aequcedramon was loving it, but he’d been raised poor in the Outback and didn’t appreciate it when the temperature dropped below sixteen. As such he was fine with sitting under a quilt on the porch, huddled around a warm drink, while the others got in their outdoors time.

One would think the months they’d spent camping in the Digital World would have been enough for them, but no. No, apparently he was the weird one.

As Casey’s mom slipped back into the house- and it gave him a little thrill to realize she hadn’t made cocoa for any of the others, as a middle child misunderstood by his family it wasn’t often he got something ahead of anyone else- Monette broke off from Casey and Gazimon’s sides and essentially pranced back to the porch.

“Knowledge,” she crooned, draping herself over his shoulders, “we’ve been talking.”

“Not about hockey I take it?” He was pretty sure it was hockey season, was hard to miss it when half your friend group played the sport.

“At first about hockey,” she admitted, “you know Case is looking for the Sabres to make it to the playoffs this year? The Sabres.” Ezekiel made a commiserating noise. His supply of concern for hockey began and ended with whatever games Casey and Monette were in, but he’d learned in the past five years that it was easiest to just play along like he knew what they were talking about. Hadn’t even heard of the sport before they met. “But no, actually, we were talking about how it’s a travesty you, Mari, Strabimon, and Auqucedramon don’t know how to ice skate.” Oh. Oh, and now he looked back into the yard, there were Gazimon and Casey approaching the rest of the team.

“Do we need to know this,” he asked, already knowing what the answer was going to be and almost dreading it. He was not the outdoorsy sort, but knowing he had friends that wanted to show and teach him the things they loved never failed to warm him. Seemed like every year they met up and every year there were another three things somebody wanted to share with the rest of the team, and every year they all ran with it.

“It can’t hurt to,” Monette said. Technically it was a lie, there were plenty of ways they could hurt themselves learning, but the same could be said of the judo moves Marian and insisted they all learn, or the stretches Casey taught them, the time Ezekiel himself had dragged them all out to rob a museum. His mom hadn’t been as impressed as he’d have liked, but Casey’s aunt had bought them all a cake to celebrate. “Not like, right now or anything, but say in January? You guys can all come out here and we can teach you. Then you can take us home with you and we can all thaw out.” Ezekiel hemmed.

“It’d be easily over thirty-five C back home,” he pointed out.

“So we’ll thaw quickly, and bring cold drinks.” They really had thought about this. Taking a long draw of his cocoa, he shook her off and rose from his seat, flashing a grin at her when she immediately grabbed the quilt and draped it about him.

“I’ll talk about it with Auqucedramon, for now though, I’m heading in. It’s already bloody cold enough out here…” Grinning back, Monette gaze him a quick hug and shepherded him towards the door, shouting back to the others.

“We’re heading in! You guys coming?”

“Sure, just a minute-!”

[kirisaki-daichi-scenarios]

aftermath of manager betraying the boys p4

part 1 here, 2 here, 3 here

It’s Friday. She’s about to leave home for her afternoon shift at the bookshop, slipping her shoes on just as the door swings open.

“Honey, I’m home!” Her husband of one year tosses his rucksack to the side, and wraps his arms around her waist, “have a nice day at work, yeah?”

Leaning into his embrace, she turns her head to kiss his cheek, “you need to stop acting like you’re in a sitcom.”

Then, quietly, knowing how much he hates the topic, she adds, “how was the physio?”

“Fine.”

One final kiss to her forehead and he walks away with the limp he’s had ever since Yamazaki’s foot made contact with his spine. He can’t play judo anymore. He sees a physio once a week, and yet there’s been barely any progress since the appointments began. He was a man whose motto was “push through the pain”, but you can’t push through chronic pain. A man who lived for judo, and now all he lives for is his pain meds in the morning.

(And she never snitched. Gentleman than he is, he didn’t push her, but he wanted her to. He said that if they told on Hanamiya and his gang, they’d be expelled and she wouldn’t have to worry anymore.

“Look at what happened when you told the headmaster about their behaviour on the court,” he had said.

But she was looking at it. She is still looking at it, remembers it every day, every time she looks at him and his limp. And so, she had sworn to break up with him if he ever dared to snitch.

God she’s vicious. Undeserving. Hanamiya was right.

——

Excluding a group of children who screamed her ears off over a new instalment of some shoujo manga, her shift passes without a hitch. Outside, it’s dark and dreary. Drizzle batters the windows. But the shop itself is cosy, more so when you’re at the counter in a thick jumper. With one hand, she’s updating the shop’s blog on next week’s offers. With the other, she’s bringing her thermos of hot chocolate to her lips. It’s a lovely evening, with no customers to bother her. And, in just one hour, she’ll be on her way home, and Friday’s are movie nights.

“Excuse me, ma’am, could you direct me to the crime section?”

She hadn’t heard anyone enter. She flinches at the sound of a voice.

“Yes, it’s just on-“ she looks up. Pauses.

It’s not fear, it’s not dread that flits across her face: it’s horror.

How ironic. This was all because she snitched on them, but Seto must have told them where she worked.

—

In their first year of high school, she and Seto sat together in almost all their classes. Any group projects, they did together. Lunches, they spent together. His being there was the main reason she’d agreed to being the team’s manager. And, until the very end, when she was walking to the headmaster’s office with that damning USB in her skirt pocket, she’d still been thinking that Seto was a good guy. Yes, he’d ignored the hostility the team spewed - but that made him guilty of apathy, not cruelty, right?

It took hearing him laugh as he watched the others beat her boyfriend up for her to realise that he was just like the rest of them: entertained by violence.

Why she’d thought he’d keep his promise - when she asked him not to tell anyone where she worked - even she didn’t know.

—

“Ma’am, you still there?”

Hanamiya leans over the desk, and grins at her. It’s been six years since they last saw each other. He’s a little taller now, dressed far more formally than he used to be (black suit, sleeves cuffed, and a long black coat like the Grim Reapear), and his tone is formal though relaxed - but that big Hanamiya grin hasn’t changed.

There’s no one else in the shop. Yet, even if there was, this situation would always feel like Her-and-Hanamiya.

“The crime section, yes,” she shoves her hand below the desk so he can’t see them shaking, “take the stairs over there. The crime section will be on the other end of the basement.”

“You know, my eyesight’s not great. How about-“

“Fuck off.”

The grin slips off his lips.

He straightens his back, looks around - looks at each and every CCTV camera on the floor - then turns back to her.

“What would your boss think, if he knew you were a) speaking so rudely to a customer and b) refusing to support a customer with an eye disease. I have glaucoma, don’t you know?”

He’s a cunt. He’s a lying fucking cunt. He’s a disgusting piece of shit, whom her mother adored. She insisted that Hanamiya was a good sort, based on how kindly he helped her around the house when the team would stay the night. She with her glaucoma, that she fought with so valiantly until she died of a heart attack. Hanamiya knows she’s dead. The whole team attended the funeral with their beloved manager, letting her cry on their shoulders, holding her hand, offering her tissues. Hara even completed her memorial speech for her when she couldn’t.

And Hanamiya also would tell her boss about her behaviour. He’d tell the tale in such a way there’d be no arguing with him; her boss would fall in love him with, and she’d be unemployed by the end of the day.

For someone who warned her what happens to snitches, with her now husband’s blood across his palms, he sure is comfortable with being a snitch himself.

So she gets up slowly, holding onto her chair as tight as she can, so her fist doesn’t make contact with Hanamiya’s mouth. Steps away from the desk. And, keeping her eyes fixed in front of her, committed to ignoring him, walks towards the stairs with Hanamiya in tow.

“We should hang out sometime,” natters on Hanamiya, “reminisce the good old days. How’s that bloke of yours? Are you still with him after we… redecorated his ugly mug? Not that there was much to like originally. You were just desperate.”

“Don’t talk about him like that,” she snaps. she’s fair game, but her lover is the only good thing in this world, the only sun shining.

Hanamiya continues. “If you were so desperate for some male attention, we could have pimped you out to someone. There was no need to cause such a fuss just to get some judo moron to sleep with you. Does he even sleep with you? Back in the day, it was the male students who got along best with him, wasn’t it? Big fan of the male first years-“

She can’t bite her tongue any longer.

“You’re grown ass adults now,” she spits. “Just because you’re realising you peaked in high school, and the rest of your lives will be spent as angry depressed salarymen in shitty marriages with angry depressed kids, doesn’t meant you need to take it out on me.”

Hanamiya pauses, as if surprised - or mock surprised. As she turns the corner to the crime section, she hears wolf-whistling and applause.

“She’s still got it,” says Hara, referencing the times the team used to perform rap battles while watching each other practise shooting.

She won everytime. She was the “rap battle queen”, and when she got a 3-pointer from the bench, after coming up with a lethal bar about Matsumoto’s hair - or lack of - she was deemed the queen of the team full stop. Those were the good days. Yamazaki, ceasing to clap, has a solemn look in his gaze like he’s thinking the same thing.

The rant has given her some more confidence. Even knowing that the crime section is the only part of the bookstore that has no cameras on it, and that that’s probably why they chose it, she still feels better. They can’t do their worst in a public location. And it’s only forty minutes until she can close up shop, head to the local police station, only a five minute walk away, and tell them that she’s being followed by an obsessive boyfriend and his friends, could she please stay at the station till they walk away. As long as they don’t find out her current address, or anything about her husband, she’ll be alright.

Thirty-nine minutes now.

“It really has been a while.” Before she can think to push him away, Hara wraps his arms around her, his weight pressing her into the corner, and whispers in her ear, “I missed you, you know?”

“Leave her be, Hara,” Yamazaki sighs.

“Jealous much,” replies Hara, but he does let go, adding, “you’ve put on weight. No more basketball to keep you fit, ey? I was the same way for a bit. After you happened.”

38 minutes. Just 16 two minutes left to go.

“You know, you’re the reason Zaki didn’t get to his first choice university. Because you gave him a record.”

“Sucks to be him,” she retorts, just as Yamazaki mumbles, quietly,

“That’s not true. My parents sorted it out.”

“But it could have been true,” interjects Hara, “which is why someone should be showing more remorse.”

Hara hasn’t changed, that much is clear. He argues with the same pointless, childish, circular arguments that he’s had since he was in high school, whose logic never had to make much sense as long as he had it in his mind that he was superior to whoever he was arguing with. Even his hair colour hasn’t changed. And these stupid remarks now aren’t much different to the times he would pull her ear or punch her in the arm. Time has killed much of the malice he used to have towards her, leaving nothing but that same demand for attention. Plus - a confusion as to why he wants that attention, like a bully who targets their crush.

Had she not snitched, would she have ended up like this too - forever trying to return to the days of high school? Or was it because she snitched that the rest of them got stuck in the time loop, clinging onto the life they lived before they realised they weren’t above the law?

There’s no juvenile laws to protect them anymore. Plus she doubts that their parents would be happy to get them out of trouble, now that they’re adults who’ve been given everything they need to have a successful future. They’re not going to hurt her, really hurt her, in a situation where they could face the consequences; they must know she’ll go straight to the police.

They can’t hurt her but they also can’t leave her be.

With this in mind, she starts to speak.

“When I said I did it for your sakes, I meant it. It wasn’t from the moral high ground that you perceived it to be. I genuinely meant it. You’ll never know how many times I thought about throwing away the USB and carrying on as if the team’s - our team’s - behaviour was normal. I barely slept for the nights leading up to that final day, and I barely slept afterwards. To this day, part of me feels guilty. I threw up in the headmaster’s office when I showed him the clips. He thought it was because I was so disgusted - but it wasn’t. It was just, when you watched the videos,” her voice cracks, “you could tell we were all friends. I was watching those videos thinking what a horrible person I was to betray you all like that. I was-“

She takes a shaky breath. Her eyes are burning as she fights the urge to cry.

No one else speaks.

“The worst part of it is, I was never planned on doing it. I started recording during practice, after matches, whatever, because I wanted to make a film of us. I was going to present it to you all at the end of our third year, as a memento of our time together.

But the more time I spent editing, the more I realised what you - we - were really like. We were so cruel. I’d never realised it until I was watching us as pixels on a screen. God, the things we said - honing in on people’s physical weaknesses, with no respect for the actual game, and ignoring the fact people could actually be crippled for life thanks to one stupid basketball match. Jokes about beating people up for fun that became actually beating people up for fun. Comments on how you’d make people pay for going against you, that got increasingly explicit and violent over the course of the year. Or that time a guy yelled at me after a match, and you were with me, Zaki, you overheard. Yes, he shouldn’t have called me a bitch - but you could have killed him if Seto hadn’t showed up to help me pull you off him. What future would you have had then?

The entire fucking team was edging closer to doing something that would be in your records for the rest of your lives. Practice after school was less about basketball and more about honing this pack mentality where all that mattered was violence with no consequences. What I showed the headmaster was the mild stuff. I deleted the really incriminating bits, like Furuhashi holding a knife to someone's throat to school, or Hara waterboarding one of the health committee kids.

We didn’t need any of that. Hanamiya, with your brains, you could have developed any sort of team, you could have learnt any skill you wanted. Why did you have to pick hurting people? Kiridai could have been a really good, genuinely good basketball team. You guys were all so talented!”

Tears fall to the carpet as she stares down at the floor, her fists clenched, her voice growing quiet.

“And I loved every moment I spent with you all. I loved every single one of you. I loved pre-match prep, running around an unknown school to figure out where the toilets were, scouting out opponents in stupid disguises, playing streetball at dawn in an area I would never have felt confident to walk around with you there, or team sleepovers at my house where we’d fall asleep together on the sofa. I still dream of you all now, and I wake up crying, knowing that I was the one who ruined it. I’m sorry.” She looks them each in the eyes as she says this; her voice is loud again, and resolute, “I’m sorry. I was naive, I was self-righteous, and I ruined everything.

I’m really fucking sorry.”

She wipes the tears off her face one final time, and says, “The shop will be closing soon. Hanamiya, I directed you to the crime section as requested. If you want to make any purchases, I’ll be at the counter but please make them in the next twenty minutes. Thank you.”

She walks away.

No one calls her back.

[bengiyo]

The Eclipse Ep 4 Stray Thoughts

Back-to-back high school shows on Friday, and they're both good. Excited to see the new form of oppressive structural power we'll face today!

Really love the homoerotic energy of these Judo scenes. It's fun watching them knowing that Khaotung was better in their training, and that First was so nervous about injuring Khaotung.

Akk half undressed is framed well with Ayan's peeking. Me, too, Ayan.

Ayan needs a better way to secure this notebook.

Oh lord a pratfall kiss. This one was okay, but I am just not a fan of this as a dramatic tool.

A bunch of educators trying to gang up on a student by making him look incompetent in class is such a bad tactic. It makes him sympathetic to his peers, and the teachers look petty. Worse, Ayan is actually good at memorization and recall, so he's embarrassing them.

It's sad that Akk is being boxed in by this teacher. Akk doesn't like seeing people get hurt, and he's being told repeatedly to ignore the pain of others, lest it befall him as well.

Notable how few ads we have with this show. Hope this isn't a bust for GMMTV.

Ayan looks legitimately tired here. Khaotung and the makeup team did a great job here.

Ayan's premise of understanding personally how this school attempts to break people down is compelling. I think what scares him and Akk is that it might actually be working. Ayan looks like he's taken a loss.

Wow, that was a good scene. The way First plays Akk's fear is fantastic. Really loving the dynamic between Akk and Ayan.

I tell ya. Post-it notes are an integral tool to Thai BL.

All of us who said Khaotung should be lead were correct. Cut the check.

I like the dynamic between the prefect boys as well. Akk and Kan have a very different rapport, and it's fun. I hope we see a version of them when they aren't repressed. How does First manage to pull this out of every scene partner?

The look of hurt and frustration from Aye when his mom didn't support him got me.

Kan suggests that Ayan might be meeting a lover, and that's what makes Akk decide they must go in the cafe. Oh, boys.

Okay, what is this actual cafe. @heretherebedork I'm pretty sure this is the same one used in Antique Bakery???

I appreciate that they used a lot of girls and femmes to show that this is a diverse cafe catering to a queer audience. There are enough boys in the show.

Mmm. I'm not sure I approve of Ayan thrusting Thua into this situation with Thua's mom.

I'm curious how Kan feels about not knowing that something was wrong with Thua, and that it was Ayan who helped him.

I'm presuming that the Uncle was queer, and now this whole school must burn for driving a gay uncle to death.

Khaotung is quite vascular.

Oh, I think I'd be more upset if the uncle wasn't queer, but took the time to help build up a queer support system for his nephew.

Loving this version of Thua that will tell Kan exactly what's going on.

I think they found Louis's angles. He looks gorgeous here.

I like Kan and Thua repairing their friendship a bit, but I don't think it's enough to ease the longing between them.

Not surprised that this school would like about Dika's death. Really fucked up that they let students think he was a traitor.

I sometimes struggle with the romance of pulling someone from getting struck by a vehicle, because the levels of car violence in Bangkok are alarmingly high.

That kiss is going to lead to nonromantic things. I'm concerned about Ayan taking a picture.

However, that lip bite from Ayan was affective.

Curious where we go next with this show.

[kantosableye]

untitled law firm au part 1

this is a thing i’ve started writing scenes from because i have been just. having it on my brain. i’ve decided to set it in the us just to make research easier/draw from my own knowledge. more to come, but probably in the form of disjointed scenes.

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

“Hey - Gary! Hey!”

Maybe Ash should have felt self conscious running down the courthouse hallway. Still, he chased after Gary until he turned, an eyebrow raised. “Do you need something?”

“Just to say hi,” said Ash. “I didn’t know you went to law school, I thought you were doing…some kind of science?”

“Biomedical engineering.”

“Wow.”

Gary shrugged. “I turned out to be pretty good at mock trial. Someone from Chicago was there and told me I should consider it. I’m more surprised to see you here. Weren’t you doing…” He paused. “Wrestling?”

“Judo, actually,” said Ash. “But I pulled my back pretty bad a few years after college, and my girlfriend at the time was a paralegal, so we both took the LSAT and… well, here we are.” He grinned. “How long has it been, anyway? 10 years?”

A bailiff behind them cleared her throat, and they moved off to the side of the hall. It was then Ash noticed the strange expression on Gary’s face. Gary was smiling, but his eyes had the same calculating expression as they had in the courtroom. “Sounds right,” said Gary. “You really don’t strike me as the law type,” he said. 

Ash recognized the tone in Gary’s voice. He had heard it years before, targeted at him or whoever else Gary refused to believe was on the same level as him. When they were younger, the disdain and snobbery practically dripped from Gary’s voice, but now, with age and training, it was hidden under what must have been a carefully practiced polite neutrality. “I was pretty good at mock trial too, you know. I led my team in law school.”

“What law school was that?”

What was this, direct? “Duke.”

For a moment, Ash could see he’d caught Gary off guard, and he had to fight a small laugh. Gary appeared to be recalibrating. “So when did you graduate? How long have you been practicing?” 

“About a year now.”

“I’ve been in five. Do you want some advice?”

Now, Ash couldn’t help but laugh a little. Advice - maybe Gary would have the tact to frame the barbs as advice, but he braced himself. He couldn’t think of any issues with the hearing that were his fault - he hadn’t chosen the expert, and he hadn’t given Gary much to object on. His suit would certainly come up, though.

“I’m sure you know your witness is a quack, and if you’re only a first-year associate you’re not going to be able to fight the partners on that.” said Gary, “You were gonna lose this one anyway, but you could’ve tried to qualify him better. You can’t be scared of the other party objecting – unless, of course, you don’t know the evidence rules…”

“I know the rules of evidence,” said Ash. He had known what was coming, and he knew what Gary was like. Still, he could feel the blood rising to his face, and one of his hands curled into a fist at his side, his knuckles tense under his skin.

“Mm-hmm.” Gary sounded skeptical. “And you keep staring at the judge like a freak. Did you just take ‘maintain eye contact’ completely literally?” He laughed at his own non-joke. “And please don’t get me started on…” His eyes flicked up and down Ash. “This,” he said, with a vague gesture.

“Knew it,” said Ash. “Okay. What’s wrong with my suit?”

Gary inhaled deeply. “I honestly don’t know where to start. Your tie knot is completely inappropriate, though I suppose I shouldn’t expect you to know how to tie a windsor knot. Clearly you didn’t bother to get it tailored, because your jacket is too small and your pants are too loose - you might as well be wearing sweatpants. At least they match each other, which is more than I can say for your socks - black socks and a navy suit? Really?”

At least Ash could respond to this one. “I-”

“Your shirt’s wrinkled, too.”

“-I care about the law and my client. I don’t see why it’s so important to care about something as superficial as clothes when we’re here to resolve a lawsuit.”

Gary put his hands over his heart. “That’s so sweet,” he said, the disdain clear in his voice. “Maybe you should go do something public interest. Wait, no, they’ll also tell you you have to at least put some effort into looking like a professional if you want a jury to take you seriously. Wake up, Ash, image matters, and it tells the court about you.”

This time, Ash didn’t have any sort of comeback. The only idea he had was to call Gary a snobby piece of shit, but he knew by now that Gary would seize on anything that came across as a personal insult as evidence of Ash’s lack of intelligence. So he met Gary’s eye and nodded. “Thank you,” he said, squeezing his fist to keep his voice from rising into a yell. “I’ll be sure to remember that so I can take you down next time.”

Gary raised an eyebrow. Then, slowly, he broke into a laugh. “Please! If it was anything you could even dream of taking me down on, we’d have already stipulated. You couldn’t do it in a custom Boglioli. You’re not bad for a first-year associate, but we’ll never be on the same level. That’s why I’m not worried about helping you.”

“Helping me,” Ash started, about to point out that Gary’s true purpose was obviously far from altruistic. But Gary was looking at his phone.

“Hey, listen, I gotta get back to the firm. But it was so great to catch up with you! See you at the next hearing!”

Ash felt like he had been hit by a truck, but he stood in silence, staring at Gary’s back as he left down the hallway.

[qqueenofhades]

#71 kastle if it hasn’t been done already?? thank you queen 🙌🙌

71. "Would you just shut up, please?"

It's been a while since she's seen Frank -- it always is, usually -- and for once, Karen hasn't been thinking about him all that much. Not forgotten, because she never does that, but just pushing him back to the corner of her mind that keeps things deep and dark and quiet. She has a life of her own, after all, and she intends to get on with it. Besides, much as she likes Frank, his appearances do tend to come paired with a lot of violence, drama, chaos, and very bad people trying to gruesomely murder one or both of them, and there is only so much you can take at once. Maybe, she thinks every time. Maybe this is the time he'll disappear and never come back. Perhaps she should want that. Her existence would certainly be a lot more peaceful if he did.

(And yet. And yet.)

It's spring in New York City, trees greening and buds blooming and everyone still optimistic about the Mets' chances this year, and it's at least six months since Karen has seen him. Her life is never exactly quiet, but quieter, and she, Matt, and Foggy are plugging along with the law firm and Foggy's half-baked ideas about asking Marci to marry him and move to Queens. Matt is appropriately horrified ("Queens?!?") and doing that Matt thing where he tries to control everyone in his life for "their own good," and Karen's getting tired of their half-serious arguments. Foggy deserves some happiness and a respite from the Murdock Nonsense Machine. Matt, if he's honest, has to admit that too, and probably does. Still. It's always been them. The idea of breaking up the dream team can't fail to be frightening.

Karen gets home later than usual that evening, clutching another bag of takeout -- she hasn't had the time to cook or shop, and her apartment is mostly devoid of food. She's digging in her purse, looking for her keys, when the shadows move and a man in a hooded sweatshirt steps out of them. "Hey," he says roughly. "Hey, Karen."

She reacts by instinct -- after all, she's a single woman who lives alone in New York, and that's even before the misadventure she attracts on a regular basis. She yells, seizes his arm, and vaults him into a makeshift-but-not-ineffective judo throw, whereupon he hits the deck with a whoof and a very startled expression. "Shit!" he splutters. "Shit, Karen, what the hell? It's me! It's me!"

"Frank?" Karen glares down at him, as her brain catches up with her reflexes and assures her that yes, she does know that voice, and no, it could hardly be anyone else. "Are you trying to give me a heart attack?"

"Course not." Frank rolls over and gets to his feet, still looking slightly miffed at such a rude welcome. (Considering the ones he's given her over the years, he does not have any right to complain.) "Just, you know." He shuffles his feet, almost shy. "Back in town. Thought I'd drop by and see how... see how things were."

Back in town, Karen thinks. Implying, of course, that he was out of it for God knows long doing God knows what, and wants to drop by her apartment for a shower, a proper dinner, and some downtime before running off to God knows where for God knows why. Frank Castle is nothing if not deeply, singularly frustrating, and yet, he's looking at her with big brown puppy eyes and she can't summon up the heart to shoo him off like a nuisance stray. "Fine," she says shortly. "Inside, before my neighbors see you."

Frank, who doubtless wishes to avoid a reunion with the NYPD at any cost, takes the hint and scuttles inside, and Karen closes the door behind him. Her hands are shaking, which seems stupid, and for a very long and very awkward moment, they just stare at each other. Finally she says, "Why are you here, Frank?"

"Like I said." He looks confused. "Check in."

"You think that's what I need? You to just turn up on my doorstep out of the blue, make sure nobody has murdered me yet, and then go on your way?" Karen's voice is sharper than she intended, but she's tired of this dance, and the way they keep doing it in circles, over and over. "Of course, if you have some new psychopath after you, that only increases the odds that they'll go after me too, but I guess that doesn't matter to you, does it?"

It's unfair -- she knows it matters to Frank, matters perhaps more than anything else in his world, and for all her accusations, she too is terrified to think about the meaning of that -- but she's fed up, she's had a long day and a long week and a long everything, and she is torn between smacking him and -- well, not smacking him. Why, why can't he just be normal and why can't they just be normal and why can't he just, for once, stay. That's all she wants from him, when it comes down to it. That. This. Them.

"Well," Frank starts at last, sheepishly. "Madani might have called and said that there was a situation she could use my help with, and -- "

"Would you just shut up?" Karen doesn't care about his excuses, and there's always going to be one, some other mission, some other damned-fool idealistic crusade. "Please? Fine. You're here. You saw me. I'm alive. If you wanted anything more than that -- "

His eyes sear through her. He opens his mouth, wets his lips as if to speak, and stops. Then he takes a step forward, and then another, and almost without their own volition, his hands come up, cupping her head. Karen is sorely tempted to push him away, or knee him in the balls, or throw him on his ass one more time, just because it feels like she still owes him about a hundred. But then his mouth is on hers, rough and gentle and wet and hungry and devouring all at once, and there's nothing else she can do but whimper, and clutch at him with both arms, and kiss him back like the world is ending.

Time slows, stops, turns into molasses and honey the same hue as the evening light, the lengthening sunset. Karen doesn't know how long they stay there, like that. But then at last they break apart, and she can't breathe and doesn't care, and Frank is looking both slightly shocked at his own nerve and oddly proud of himself. "So," he says, smile crooked. "Still want me to go, Karen?"

"You are -- " She stops to make a funny wheezing noise, like a stepped-on soccer ball. "You are the worst."

He shrugs, unrepentant. "Yeah," the Punisher says. "I know."

(Of course he stays for dinner.)

(Of course he stays the night.)

(And maybe one day, at last, he will finally stay forever.)

[fic prompts]

[pillage-and-lute]

Pins and Needles: Part 2

Part 1, (here)

———- 🌷 🐺 🌷———-

“Oh my gods,” came a voice from over the counter that Geralt was currently under, sweeping up leaves.

“Uncle Lambert was right!” Ciri said, draping herself over the top of the counter so she could smirk at her dad. “You’re totally hiding from the twink tattoo artist.”

“He’s not a twink,” Geralt said, straightening up, dustpan in hand.

“Not what Uncle Lambert said.”

“Bertie hasn’t even seen him,” Geralt said, scowling. 

Unbidden, the memory of just how solid Jaskier had felt in his arms. How low his shirt was unbuttoned and how delightfully hairy his chest was. Not a twink.

“I should be concerned about how invested you are in my dating life,” he told Ciri. She was sitting on the counter now, battered combat boots thumping against the side.

Geralt didn’t exactly have a conventional relationship with his daughter. He’d been friends, although not terribly close, with her parents, and when they died and there was no one to take Ciri, he had. Lambert joked that it had been temporary insanity. Eskel said that Geralt had just experienced a bout of baby fever. Vesemir just smiled knowingly.

They all knew the real answer. It was orphan syndrome. A nasty mix of abandonment issues, trust issues, and the inability to leave other orphans to social services. All three of Vesemir’s boys had it, because he’d become their dad only after they’d each individually been kicked from every home the state could place them in. 

So Geralt had taken one look at the squalling, tiny baby, with hair so blonde it almost looked like his own. Geralt had gotten stiffed on the genetic spectrum, and through no fault or deficiency his doctor could find, had entirely white hair by 23.

Now, Ciri was sixteen, captain of her hockey team, and raking in the medals for Judo. Geralt took great pleasure in bragging about her at every PTA meeting, especially since it meant rubbing it in Suzanne ‘My daughter’s a piano prodigy’ Delmore’s face.

“If you’d been on a date since Aunt Yen then maybe I wouldn’t be so concerned,” Ciri said, popping her gum. 

Geralt winced. His relationship with the used bookseller down the street had been disasterous and short, but in the end, Ciri had been able to tack yet another name to her list of non-blood-relative aunts and uncles.

“We’re better as friends,” he said. “Move your foot, I need to get into that cabinet.”

Ciri obediently swung her foot aside so he could grab the florist’s foam. “That’s why you should go ask out someone else...like the cute tattoo artist.” Her eyes went wide. “Oh, can I get a tattoo.”

“Absolutely not. Wait until you’re nineteen.”

“But I can get one at sixteen with parent’s permission,” she made puppy eyes. “Dad, it’d be so cool.”

“Nope.”

“C’mon, why not? And why nineteen, why not eighteen?”

Geralt smirked. “Did you know that your Uncle Eskel has a tattoo?”

“No,” Ciri said, leaning forward.

“Mmhm,” Geralt said. He began selecting flowers from buckets for his next arrangement. Something nice, maybe with some tea roses.”

“Oh, c’mon Dad, you have to tell me now!” Ciri hopped off the counter and got her apron off the peg. It had been a gift from Lambert. Geralt’s own was a simple denim apron, and her’s was the same, except it had “Don’t flirt, I’m a minor” embroidered on the chest.

“Well,” Geralt said, handing her her own block of florist’s foam. “He was eighteen, and he was really into Gwent.”

“That card game? The one that used to have that super weird animated tv show?”

“Oh yeah, we all were huge fans, but Eskel was the biggest. Which was funny, because Bertie and I beat him every time.”

“Oh my gods,” Ciri said. “Does Uncle Eskel have a Gwent tattoo?”

“Yep,” Geralt said, snipping off a too-long stem. “On his thigh. It’s pretty big, too, that’s why he only ever wears those ugly cargo shorts or long pants.”

“That’s hilarious!” Ciri said. “But what does it have to do with me?”

“There’s a lot of personal growth done between eighteen and nineteen,” Geralt said, trimming a leaf. “And I don’t want you to get something you regret. But when you are nineteen, I will happily pay for your first tattoo.”

“Really?”

“Mmhm. I don’t want you going to a cheap placing and getting some horrible blood disease.”

Ciri beamed at him and Geralt smiled to himself. He was a very cool dad.

“Why don’t you get a tattoo?” Ciri asked.

“Why would I?”

“It would look totally cool.”

“I don’t even know what I’d get,” Geralt said. He examined the flower placement. It was even, but maybe too even, he swapped a couple of the taller flowers around.

“You’d get to talk to the cute tattoo artist, I bet he’d have some suggestions.”

“I like wolves,” Geralt said. 

Ciri rolled her eyes. “Dad, like every guy with a tattoo get’s a wolf. Be original.”

“Trees are nice,” Geralt said.

Ciri groaned. “Even worse than the wolf. Maybe you should go over to the shop, see what sort of art he does. Can I get a piercing?”

“What? Oh, yeah, if you want. What sort?” Geralt was a little taken aback by the quick switch, but Ciri was sixteen and had ADHD, so he was pretty used to it.

“I want an industrial.”

“Which one’s that?”

“The bar, through the top,” Ciri gestured. 

Geralt fluffed out some petals. “Yeah, definitely. I’d much rather you get any cartiledge piercings done by a professional.”

Geralt, in his moody teenager phase, had gotten plenty of piercings, several on his right ear and all the way up his left. Most of which he’d done himself with a needle he’d boiled to sterilize it. He shuddered to think of Ciri trying it. Geralt had lucked out and not shattered his cartiledge, but there would be no risks taken with Ciri’s perfect ears.

“Cool,” she said. “Can we go right now? We usually close for lunch about now anyway.”

“I’m not sure they take walk ins,” Geralt said. He did not look cute enough to go see Jaskier right now. 

“We can ask,” Ciri said. Taking his hand and tugging him across the street.

———- 🌷 🐺 🌷———-

I imagine that in this world Gwent is like a mix of Yugioh and Magic The Gathering. 

Tag List!

@jaybeefoxy  @sweetiepieplum

[halcyonstorm]

gift for the lovely @ellepellano for Levihan Xmas in July!! I really enjoyed writing this and hope you enjoy too!

Read on AO3 or Read below the cut! Enjoy <33

Day 1

Levi was not looking forward to summer camp that year. He was going into his senior year of high school and frankly, he felt too old to be attending a summer camp. He had been going since he was a child. It had its ups and downs, and even though Levi disliked most things about being outside, he generally enjoyed himself. What he hated the most, though, were the campers themselves. They were annoying, immature teens (and his mother considered him “mature for his age”). Levi knew it was going to be a hot, dreadful week, but his mother insisted he go, and he couldn’t say no to her. After the long, two-hour car ride down to the campsite, he was ready to get moving. He hopped out of the car, groaning as he stretched his lower back. His mom opened the trunk, allowing Levi to grab his suitcase and sleeping bag. He dragged his suitcase behind him as he trudged down the paved path (about half a mile) to the cabins. His mother carried his sleeping bag on her back and walked beside him. He looked aimlessly towards the sky, the bright green trees forming a canopy over his head, sunlight peeking through the leaves. It was cool in the shade. He wished to have a personal tree canopy to shield him wherever he wanted to go.

“It’s your final year,” She said. “Make the most of it, okay?” She gave him a soft, sweet smile. Levi wanted to be annoyed at her, but she just wanted the best for him. He just wanted to stay home in the cool air-conditioned oasis of his room, reading or playing games on his computer. 

“I’ll try,” he muttered. Once they arrived at his red, worn-down cabin, they stepped inside. The calm of the nature around them was quickly disrupted by the loud chatter and yelps from inside his cabin. Am I sure this is my cabin? He asked himself. He peeked outside before stepping fully inside. Cabin 14. Yup… He found one of the free beds in the corner of the room, throwing his suitcase on top of the bed with a loud grunt. He saw a man he recognized as Erwin from the previous year. They hung out quite a bit last year, so Levi thought maybe he could stick with him if he needed a partner for a game.

“Hey, Levi!” One of the campers called out. He turned to see a tall, dark-blonde man greeting him. He had a shit-eating grin on his big face. It pissed Levi off, making him scowl. “Good to see you back!” 

“Mike,” Levi said under his breath. Mike pulled countless pranks on him last year. He was not looking forward to it again this year. He pointed behind him to the bed next from Levi’s with his thumb.

“Looks like we are bed buddies!” He exclaimed. Levi cringed at the statement. Why did he have to say it like that?

“Leave me alone.” Levi started to grab his sleeping bag from his mom. She gave him a kiss on his cheek.

“Do you need anything else?” She asked, indicating she was going to start heading back to her car. I need you to take me home… He didn’t want her to leave.

“I think I’m fine. Thanks,” Levi replied. His mom pulled him into a tight hug. In the hug, he smelled the fresh scent of her shampoo and a hint of perfume. It reminded him of home, making him yearn for it.

“I’ll see you in six days, okay?” She mumbled into the top of his head before giving him a kiss there. “Have fun, try to enjoy yourself.” Levi nodded.

“Yeah.” She pulled away, squeezing his hand before saying goodbye and exiting his cabin, leaving Levi all alone. 

-

The first event was mandatory that evening. After Levi ate his mediocre hamburger, he headed to the Main Hall across the bridge from his cabin. Under the bridge was a large, crystal clear lake that flowed throughout the camp grounds, where many campers in the past would canoe or swim. The reflection of the Main Hall was visible in the lake. When Levi looked up at the building from its reflection, he noticed it looked similar to his red cabin but with a better paint job and an awning. When he went inside, he recognized that the floor inside was covered in blue padded mats. In the distance, he saw hanging hoops and tunnels. He wondered what they’d be doing that evening. He found a seat next to a black-haired girl before the camp leader started to speak.

“Welcome campers!” She cheered into the mic. He recognized the girl as Alicia who has been the camp coordinator ever since he began high school. She wore a bright green shirt with the words “Camp Titans ‘21” across her chest. “Who’s excited to be here?” The crowd cheered. Levi kept a visibly monotone face. He wanted to go home. “We are going to start off this trip with a fun obstacle course! The group will be divided into four groups. The goal: reach the end before the other team, run back and tag your teammate. The first team to get through the entire obstacle course will win. We will be staying in these teams for the duration of the camp, so be sure to befriend your teammates! Our cabin counselors will be picking the teams.” Levi took a deep sigh. He was good at running and obstacle courses… He would consider them “fun”. His monotone expression changed into something more… neutral.

Within a few minutes, Levi was put on the blue team out of red, blue, green, and yellow teams. He wasn’t with Mike, thank God. He had a few strong-looking teammates, including Erwin, so he was glad. The black-haired girl he was sitting next to was picked for his team too. 

Levi opened his mouth to speak to her when a hand was placed on his shoulder. Levi tensed, turning his head slowly. It was a girl taller than him, her hair thrown up in a sweaty, messy ponytail. She wore a blue t-shirt and matching shorts. 

“Hey there! Some way to start off the week, huh?” She chirped, her hands placed on her hips. Levi turned his head looking forward.

“Sure,” he replied. He really wasn’t in the mood to talk to her. She seemed too… excited.

“I’m Hange,” she said, tapping his shoulder in such a way that drove Levi up a wall.

“Okay,” he responded, crossing his arms. It was almost his turn to go. Him and Hange were towards the end of the line. Hange being the final person to complete the course. The black haired girl started to run in front of him, and Levi stepped up to the start. 

“Good luck!” Hange said, tapping his shoulder yet again. Levi took a deep, deep breath. Levi got one leg in front of the other, widing his base of support. He bent his knees, holding his hand out for the girl to hit. She ran past him so fast that he only felt the breeze of her passing by before he noticed his legs already running underneath him. 

There were a variety of obstacles in the course: ducks, jumps, hurdles, and judo-crawls. After running for a moment, there were five different sized hurdles, growing progressively taller as he went further. Luckily, he was a hurdle jumper in high school. He knew what he was doing, his one leg jumping over the hurdle while the other leg swung over the side. Once he got past the five hurdles, there was a long tunnel. He dove on his stomach, using his arms to tug him through the tunnel. It was dark, creepy, and yet Levi liked that the most. It was where no one could see him. Once he got out of the tunnel, there were hoops above him in such an order where one would have to swing across them. There were only a few: after all, this was only for fun. And some of the campers were not as fit as Levi. He bent his knees, jumping high. His hands gripped the hoops, his body swinging in all directions as he advanced towards the end of the course. The final part was the ducks. One of the camp counselors would swing a foam bat at the person a few times, the camper had to duck and jump as appropriate. He was successful in dodging the attacks from the brawny counselor, before sprinting down the strip, ready to tag Hange’s hand. She was not paying attention. As he got closer, he saw she was chatting to Alicia, the camp counselor. 

“Hange!” He called out loudly. She looked just in time for him to tag her hand, his hand stinging from the forceful impact. She took off. Levi caught his breath as he walked to the bench.

“Nice, Levi!” Erwin called out, waving him over to where he was sitting. Levi sat next to him. Who else did he know to sit with?

“Thanks,” he muttered. He finally looked up and saw Hange throwing herself across the hanging hoops. She looked like a monkey, swinging herself across the course without a care in the world. He heard her annoying laugh echo throughout the Hall.

“She’s insane,” Levi thought aloud. He couldn’t watch; he thought she’d hurt herself. He didn’t feel like cleaning up her blood off the floor. He wiped his sweaty forehead with the bottom of his shirt.

He looked up and saw Hange pass the finish line, her hands on her knees as she heaved loudly. 

“Congrats to the Blue Team for winning our first competition of Camp 2021!” Alicia cheered. The people sitting down on his team cheered, including Erwin. Levi took a deep sigh, clapping softly. Hange walked over to Levi. 

“You see that?” Hange bragged, folding her arms across her chest, still breathing a bit heavy.

“...Yeah?” Levi responded, standing up to get ready for the next team event. Hange does a strange thing where she shakes her head and shrugs her shoulders. He’s not sure what it means.

“I was tryna act like you,” She laughed. She sounded like she was mocking him, and he hated it. Why was she purposely pissing off? Usually, dorks like her left him alone after he gave him a glare that was scary enough, but she didn’t back off, let alone seem fazed by it. He was extremely annoyed with her.

“Leave me alone,” he snapped before walking away from her. He didn’t like how she was so… pushy? Annoying? Nosy? Wasn’t there a better word?

Day 2

The next morning was a team volleyball game. Their camp teams were too big, though. So, Alicia picked Hange and Mikasa to pick the teams. He hoped, he prayed that Mikasa picked him for her team. He stood in the front of the group. He didn’t care if his team lost; he didn’t wanna be with her. At that moment he remembered she didn’t know his name. How could she call him out if she didn’t--

“You!” Hange called out, pointing straight at him, her eyes piercing into his soul. He scowled, not taking a moment to hide the disappointment on his face. She grinned wide at him.

“This is Levi,” Alicia told Hange. A smug grin grew on her face. Levi felt a chill trickle down his spine. Now that she knew his name, she could piss him off even more than she already was. Levi zoned out while the other members were distributed amongst the two teams. Hange’s team was up first against the first yellow team: Mike’s team. Levi was set up in front of Hange, who was serving first.

“0-0!” She said aloud. 

“Everyone knows the score. The game just started,” Levi muttered under his breath. She let out a huff through her nose, hearing Levi after all. He turned to watch her swing her right arm back and forth to practice her aim. Then, she dropped the ball from her left hand, punting the ball over the net. For someone who was annoying as hell, she was pretty good at athletic activities like this. It was expected though. 

The ball was coming back over the net already, Levi held his hands together, bumping the ball to one of the teammates. He bumped it to Hange, who smacked the ball with the heel of her palm. She was a strong hitter; the ball flew just over the net, hitting the floor before bouncing out of bounds.

“Nice!” Mikasa called out from the crowd. Hange faced her to give her a cheery thumbs up. Hange received the ball from the other team, catching it one hand. 

After a few volleys, Levi was up to serve. He practiced throwing the ball in the air a few times to assess the height. Finally, he threw it in the air, striking it with the heel of his palm. It soared over the net. He heard a gasp come from Hange.

“You are so cool!” She exclaimed. Levi shook his head. She sounded like she was mocking him again. He didn’t respond. She should be focusing on the game.

Day 3

The next evening, Levi was eating with Erwin in the cafeteria. It was late, so the two of them were just having bowls of cereal. Levi didn’t really like cereal, but if he had to choose a favorite, it’d be Life. It was sweet but not too sweet, got soft but not too quickly, and crunchy but not too crunchy. He was having his second bowl that evening after a hot day in the August sun. Now it was cool, the full moon shining light onto the floor of the cafeteria, as well as the lights illuminating the room to be bright. It was nice and quiet until the peaceful calm was interrupted by no other than Hange and her lanky friend.

“Hey, Levi!” She exclaimed, standing at the head of the table. “I brought cards.” Erwin scooted over allowing Hange to sit next to him, face-to-face with Levi. The lanky boy sat next to Levi, facing Erwin.

“This is Moblit,” she introduced him, gesturing towards him. He gave a shy wave. “Erwin, Levi, and me!” She introduced the rest of them. Dork.

“Let’s play BS.” She briefly went over the rules. Each person is handed cards until the deck is completely passed out. Whoever gets the ace of spades goes first, and that card stays face up for the duration of the game. Going in numerical order, each person takes turns putting cards down. Whether you have the card or not, you have to put something in the stack. One can call “BS” if they think the person is lying. If they are lying, the liar gets the whole stack. If the accuser is wrong, they get the deck. The goal is for the player to successfully get rid of all the cards in their hand.

As Hange explained the rules, Levi realized she wasn’t as annoying today. She explained thoroughly and clearly, asking if anyone had questions before they started. He knew how to play, but she was patient with Erwin who didn’t know. He caught himself staring at her and focused on the natural pattern of oak wood on the table instead. After a few minutes of further explanation, everyone was ready to begin.

“Let’s play!”

As it turns out, Hange is an extremely good liar. She ended up winning the first game. When Levi had to call her final card BS, he flipped it and it was the correct card. He had to admit he was a bit impressed. It annoyed him that she kept winning game after game too.

“Let’s play blackjack or something,” Levi suggested, sick of losing.

“Are you a sore loser?” Hange sang, getting closer to his face. He scoffed, leaning back.

“Don’t get so close to me, you four-eyed creep.” He rolled his eyes, standing up. He hated that his heart started to race. It pissed him off. Her teasing pissed him off.

“I’m going to my cabin for the night,” he decided. “Goodnight.” He felt flustered, confused, but most of all: annoyed. All of these emotions were caused by Hange.

Day 4

Day four came fast. It was a cool, breezy morning when Alicia announced there would be a relay later that afternoon. She announced the four teams within the team itself. Each smaller team can win a point for their team, helping their team as a whole pull ahead. Levi was looking forward to that. Halfway through the camp week, the Yellow team was close to the Blue team in points, scoring a 5 and Blue 6. Red had 3, green had 2.

Levi was paired with Mikasa, Reiner, Annie, and not Hange. He was relieved... She exhausted him. The goal of the relay was running 100 meters and passing the baton to each member; a total of one lap around the track. They only had the morning to prepare. Luckily, everyone on his team seemed fast enough. They went to the track to practice. It was starting to warm up. On the other side of the track, he noticed Hange and her messy mop of brown hair, standing with Moblit.

“Levi, do you want to be the first one to go?” Mikasa asked, handing him the baton to begin.

“Sure.” 

The order was Levi, Annie, Reiner, Mikasa. He was excited to go first and help his team get ahead from the beginning. They practiced handing the baton to one another from behind, practiced sprints, and practiced both together. Whenever he had the chance, his eyes kept wandering across the track.

The relay took place an hour after lunch. Levi threw on his blue camp t-shirt and black shorts. Annie and Mikasa wore theirs as crop tops. Reiner wore his with the sleeves rolled up. Levi’s team was first to go. As he waited for the go-ahead to the relay, he stretched his legs. He caught a glimpse of Hange out of his periphery. She wore her blue shirt with “Zoe” written across her upper back. She was facing Moblit, chatting with him and gesticulating excessively. His eyes wandered lower towards her backside, getting a glimpse of something lower on her body that he should not be staring at. He shook his head, looking away quickly. He hated her. She was annoying.

The sun was beating down on the campers, starting to become too hard to handle. Levi was glad he was going first to get it over with. 

“Hey, Levi!” Hange called out. He was stretching to his toes when she called to him. Hange and Erwin were heading towards him. She wore one of those stupid umbrella hats on her head and had one in her hand. To his disgust, Erwin was wearing one too. With a fucking smile on his face. Levi looked petrified.

“These help with the heat! Put it on!” She smiled wide at him, offering him the umbrella hat in her hand. He reluctantly grabbed it and looked at it in his hands. It was a rainbow pattern, one that was extremely harsh on his eyes. He squinted, putting his hand down. Why didn’t she leave him alone? He had insulted her, making it clear that he wanted nothing to do with her. So, why did she offer him a gift?

“No.” Hange grinned again.

“They really do help,” Erwin chimed in. Levi scrunched his nose at him, feeling betrayed. Don’t encourage her! 

“Attention all relay runners: Would the first team please report to the start? I repeat, would the first team please report to the start?” Levi handed the hat in his hands back to Hange. Her smile faded just enough for Levi to notice.

“I’ll… grab it after our team wins,” Levi said, bargaining with her. He kept questioning his actions. Hange smiled again.

“I bet I’ll beat your time! If I do, I’ll kiss ya!” She called out. He waved his hand at her, then suddenly processed her offer. She’s so annoying… What a disgusting offer.

“Yeah, right. I’d like to see you try.” 

He jumped in the air a few times to warm up his already warm body, bending down to get into position to run. He anxiously anticipated the fire of the gun, beginning the relay. Now he had motivation to run faster: he did not want a kiss from Hange.

“Ready…” The caller yelled. Then, the sound of the gun echoed through the crowd, piercing the silence. Levi was off. His legs started to pump, helping him accelerate forward. He began on the third slot, and he started to pass person four, five… then six. Now, he was in the lead. He was starting to pick up the pace, his opponents falling further and further behind.

“Annie!” He called out. She got into position, leaning her hand back. He handed her the baton, and she went soaring across the track. He stumbled to a stop, his hands resting on his knees. He himself was heaving heavy. The sweltering summer heat didn’t help either.

He felt someone touch his back with a cold and wet hand.

“Here,” Erwin said. “Nice job.” He handed Levi a cold bottle of water. Levi opened the cap, pouring the water down his throat. The cool water stung his sore throat, feeling the water travel down to his stomach.

“Thanks…” he panted. He collapsed to sit on the grass in the center of the field. Hange sat next to him a moment later. She sat quietly, leaning back on her arms with her knees bent in front of her. They were all cheering for blue, of course. They wanted to win. Cheering for Annie, cheering for Reiner. Then, it was Mikasa’s turn. Mike was the yellow team’s anchor. He and Mikasa were close in the race, but Mikasa pulled out the first win for blue.

The final relay came around and it was Hange’s team’s turn. Levi ended up giving in and wore the stupid umbrella hat about halfway through the second relay. The heat is too unbearable, and it actually provides good shelter from the sun, he rationalized.

The shot was fired, and the runners were off. Hange was the final runner; The final person to help the Blue team pull through and win. Moblit was the first runner for Hange’s team. She did some preparation stretches in her spot then got in position. It seemed like Moblit had far to run and he ended up falling behind to third place. Moblit finally reached the 100 meter mark, handing the baton off to Zeke. He got to the next checkpoint pretty quick but still remaining in third place, handing the baton off to Bert. Bert’s long legs helped him pull ahead of the two rival teams. As he approached Hange, she started to run a bit. He handed off the baton successfully and then she was off. She didn’t seem like one to be athletic since she almost passed out during the obstacle course, but she persevered. She extended her legs further than usual and pumped her arms faster, helping her maintain the first place ranking. She pulled through the finish line, earning first place for the Blue team.

She stumbled a little as she halted to a stop, leaning her hands on her knees as she heaved. Levi felt shy showing her he had on the stupid hat, so he took it off. She caught her breath (for the most part) and stood upright. Erwin and Levi were walking over towards her. She started to walk towards them too. She rested her hands on her head, opening her chest, allowing her to catch her breath quicker. When she approached them, she looked at Levi with wide eyes. He felt mesmerized by her glistening brown eyes; he almost forgot about how annoying she was. She had a stupid, stupid grin on her face. Levi thought she looked stupid. She was messy, dirty, sweaty… Why did beautiful cross his mind first? Flowers were beautiful. Christmas lights were beautiful. The full moon was beautiful. What made him think a sweaty, dirty, annoying person was beautiful to him?

Hange placed a hand on his cheek, giving his other cheek a wet, sweaty kiss. Levi was so exasperated that he couldn’t even process it since it happened so quickly. She pulled away and Levi’s face was one of pure shock. She… kissed me? 

“I beat your time, shorty.”

“I… didn’t think you were serious…” Levi stammered. Hange chuckled, winking at him.

“I wouldn’t wanna let you down like that.” 

Levi tried to avoid Hange the rest of the day. While he could avoid her physically, she was still dancing around his head, her kiss replaying over and over. He was restless in his bunk that evening. His heart wouldn’t stop pounding so hard in chest every moment he thought of her.

“You’re so stupid,” he whispered to himself. “Get out of my mind.” 

Day 5

The next day was the “Water Day''. Levi hated that term. Every event that day would take place either in the lake or the pool. The first event was canoeing. Levi was undoubtedly hoping not to be with Hange, but Alicia picked the teams. Apparently, Hange was horrible with canoeing. On the other hand, Levi had canoeed many times in his life.

“I want to face my fears!” she explained. Stupid. And annoying. 

“You should go with Hange in case anything happens,” Alicia told him. Levi passively agreed. They put on their bright orange life vests over their clothes. Hange had to get in the boat first.

“Come on, you’ll be fine. It’s attached to the dock.”

“...Yeah but that’s not the point.”

“What is it?” Levi asked.

“I’m…” She had a frown on her face. This was the first time Levi saw her like this. She always wore a grin. This was unlike her. “I’m fine! Getting in now…” It looked like she was telling herself, “Move your legs, dammit!” 

“Hange,” he said her name calmly. She turned to face him anxiously. “Follow my instructions, okay?” She nodded.

“Bend your knees,” He began. She followed. “Grab that side of the canoe.” He pointed to the edge furthest from her. “Now, put your right leg in, move your right hand to the other side, then get your left foot inside.” She was in the canoe now, she let out a sigh of relief. “Sit at the front of the boat. You’ll be the bowman.” 

“Ooooh! Sounds fancy. I’m up for the challenge!” No, clearly you’re not… Levi untied the strings on the dock, the canoe getting loose. Levi got in the boat the same way but sat towards the back, pushing off the dock with his foot, the boat starting to drift away from the dock. 

“You are the bowman,” he explained. “You have to let me know of any obstacles in the way. Though it is a lake, so I think we’ll be fine. You also have to paddle on the left side. I'll paddle on the right. That’s all you gotta do.” Alicia handed Levi and Hange the paddles. 

“That doesn’t sound too hard! Let’s go!” For someone who almost had a panic attack, she seems pretty excited. Maybe she is juiced up on adrenaline. 

As Levi and Hange paddled further to the center of the lake, he noticed Hange was blabbing less and less. Maybe she was getting anxious again.

“Are you okay?” he asked. He stuck the paddle in the water, pushing the water backwards. She was paddling too, but with much slower strokes.

“Fine,” she answered abruptly. Sounded like a lie, but Levi didn’t press.

“We have to paddle in sync, you know.” 

“Can’t we just go closer to land?” she answered in a snappy tone, her voice a pitch higher than usual.

“Yeah… sure.” Levi started to push his paddle in a “J” motion, starting to turn the boat. He noticed her shoulders were rigid and her paddling strokes stiff.

“Hey, Hange,” he said softly, placing a gentle hand on her shoulder. With the small touch, Hange whipped around, the canoe shaking harshly side to side.

“What?” She sneered, now facing him. He could see her eyes were glassy. He was a bit shocked by her tone but wanted to keep her calm. She was clearly scared of being out on the water, so far from land. The last thing he wanted to do was flip the boat. He stopped paddling for a moment. He scooted forward, placing a hand on her shoulder.

“Look out there,” He said, pointing past her. In the distance, there were beautiful green mountains of trees, big puffy clouds, and the water was glistening. As she turned, she also blinked, causing the tears to fall from her face. It broke Levi’s heart. All he wanted to do was to cheer her up at that moment.

She looked towards where he was pointing, she gasped softly. If Levi weren’t so close to her, he wouldn’t have heard it. She had finally looked up instead of down at the flowing water around the bow of the canoe.

“It’s funny…” She began. “I haven’t looked up since I got on the boat.” Levi smiled softly. He admired her, admiring the nature around them.

“It’s truly beautiful,” she said softly. Indeed.

-

Later that evening, Erwin wanted to go to the pool. Levi was hesitant because of all the people that’d be in the pool. Alicia did mention, however, that the pool had a chemical that would darken when someone urinated. So Levi felt safer. He walked with Erwin in his swim trunks and flip flops, a towel folded over his arm. It was a large pool with slides and beach chairs lined up around the perimeter. Levi’s inner child was screaming to go in the pool. Maybe Erwin would want to go. 

The two found a shady spot in the corner of the pool area, laying down their towels and taking off their flip flops. Levi stood up, ready to go in the pool when he noticed a familiar wet mop of hair in the water. Hange. She was with a blonde girl with a short haircut. The blonde pointed behind her towards Levi and Erwin. Hange turned around, smiling and waving to the boys. 

“Hey you two!! Come in!” She waved them over. Erwin jumped in the pool with his knees tucked to his chest, getting Levi soaked before he even entered the pool. Levi sat on the edge of the water, pushing himself in the water. The cool water was refreshing compared to the late afternoon sun.

“This is Nanaba, one of my my cabinmates,” Hange introduced her. Nanaba waved shortly to the two boys. “This is Levi and Erwin.” 

“Nice to meet you!” She chirped. “Nice to meet you.”

“Let’s try out the slides!” Hange suggested with a wide grin. She seemed much happier than earlier. For that, Levi was grateful.

“Aren’t they gonna be filled with slimy kids?” Levi retorted, trying to seem uninterested. He didn’t want to go after some smelly kid.

“Nah, the pool is only open for the older kids today,” Nanaba replied. Levi shrugged.

“Fine.” They all got out of the water, their bathing suits heavy and dripping from the water. Levi walked behind Hange, starting to stare at her as they walked up the stairs to the slide. He purposely averted his eyes to the wet concrete, avoiding the very tempting view in front of him. She looked… different. Maybe since Hange had just been wearing t-shirts or tank tops and shorts he didn’t even think of what she’d look like underneath. He felt flustered. She had tanned skin and more curves than he thought. She wore a white and beige striped bikini, the bottoms high waisted. She looked nice.

They got to the top of the slide. One of the male camp counselors was standing at the top, wearing sunglasses and a whistle around his neck. There were two slides next to each other: a purple and blue one. 

“You’ve gotta go one at a time down each slide,” he explained. “You can go first.” He was talking to Erwin first. He got in the blue one, the one with more turns and twists (to Levi’s surprise), and he got the go-ahead, pushing off and sliding down. About seven seconds later, there was a large splash that came from the pool. “You’re next,” he said to Nanaba. Hange turned to face Levi.

“Which will you do?” She asked softly. Levi thought about it for a minute.

“I’ll do blue.”

“Me too.” Nanaba screamed as she went down the purple slide. 

“You’re up,” The man said. Hange gently patted Levi’s shoulder.

“See you on the flip side.” She chuckled, getting in position for the slide. The man gave her the “okay”, and she slid down the slide.

“Woohoo!!” She echoed through the slide. Levi smiled when he heard her splash into the pool below. When the man noticed, his face quickly turned to a death glare.

“Whenever you’re ready...” the man cowered.

He got in, pushing himself off. It was a basic slide at first, then it started to curve, his body quickly sloshing to one side then the other, it went side to side quickly, a bit upwards, then he was spat out, suddenly colliding with the water. His body submerged, his ears filling with water. He turned his head towards the surface, his hair slicking back as he went above water, gasping for air.

“Wooo!” Hange cheered again with a huge grin. Levi smiled softly at her. It seemed to take her breath away.

“Let’s try the other ones!”

Day 6

The final day of camp had come. Levi hated to admit it, but he wished to stay a little while longer. He was finally starting to have a good time. It was a week to remember.

Early that morning, Alicia gathered the teams together to take photos before the final event, as well as show off some of the photos from the past week. The teams waited in line. It was finally Blue’s turn.

“Let’s get a photo of our winning team!” Alicia cheered. “Tall people in the back, shorties in the front!” Levi rolled his eyes at the comment, reluctantly standing in the front. Hange stood behind him. Levi was the only guy in the front with the rest of the girls.

“That’s you, a shorty,” Hange teased. 

“Shut up, you can’t even see,” he retorted. She laughed.

“Smile!” Levi was naturally smiling for the photo. He wished to make Hange laugh more and more. Alicia snapped the photo.

“Beautiful smiles!” She chirped. Everyone got out of their pose and started heading back towards the cabins. 

“I don’t think I have ever seen you smile,” Hange mentioned to Levi. Levi looked away. 

“It’s nothing special,” Levi replied. Hange chuckled, patting him on the back.

“It is, to me at least…” She said, much less confident than her previous statement. Levi felt his cheeks flush. Hange was pulled away by Moblit to go do an activity across the field, so Levi stuck with Erwin for the rest of that afternoon.

-

The long awaited bonfire at sunset came fast. He stayed with Erwin, clinging to him like a lost puppy, almost the entire afternoon. They played some ping pong and cornhole to pass the time. He passed Hange and Moblit, who were chatting amongst one another, but he averted his eyes to avoid looking at her. How dare she make his heart ache? She was annoying.

The orange sun was starting to hang low in the sky, the sky turning a dark red. It was something Levi would call “beautiful”. Although he disliked being outdoors, he enjoyed the beauty that sprouted in nature. All the campers were either sitting or standing around the firepit, chatting amongst one another. Erwin and Levi were sitting together on a towel on the slightly damp grass from the rainfall the night before. They were waiting for the bonfire to be lit.

“The weather really cleared up,” Erwin mentioned, leaning back on his palms. Levi agreed. The two boys heard laughing from their left. Levi recognized the laugh almost too easily. He saw Hange and Moblit laughing with each other. Hange was eventually laughing so hard no noise escaped her mouth, her hands resting on her knees. Levi felt himself smile. Her laugh cheered him up. 

Moblit saw him and Erwin, pointing towards them. Hange looked their way and waved. The two started walking over with their towels, laying them down and sitting.

“Hey,” Hange said happily, hugging her knees. “Fuck… I just realized I start school in a few days… At least I got to spend some time away from my parents.”

“I start school in a few days too,” Erwin mentioned. “Levi, what about you?”

“Yeah… same. Where do you go?” he asked. Hange flashed her teeth in her grin as she showed off her sweatshirt.

“Saint Maria High School! It’s my final year there,” Hange replied. Moblit chimed in: “Hange and I go to the same school.” 

“Oh!” Erwin noticed. “I go to Saint Sina! The second sister school. As does Saint Rose…”

“How do we all live so close and haven’t realized?” Levi mentioned. “I go to Rose.” Hange smiled again when she realized Levi went to one of the branch schools. The schools were less than ten minutes away from one another. That must’ve meant Hange and Levi lived close. After all, the camp was for kids in their city.

“Geez…” Moblit sighed. “So, we all live less than twenty minutes from each other and we never met each other?” 

“Seems so…” Levi decided. He took a glance at Hange. She was looking back at him then quickly looked away. 

“I’m gonna go grab some food,” Levi said, standing up. Hange stood too. “Me too!” She brushed off her backside before waving him along. “Let’s go!” 

Moblit and Erwin stayed behind. They had an idea of what was going on between the two, hoping they’d make a move on each other. Levi was grateful for that. They were walking towards the food stand.

“Do you wanna, like,” Levi began, speaking softly. “Hang out sometime… Like, after camp ends?” It seemed like minutes before Hange responded. Levi’s heart was pounding in his chest. She looked at him, her glasses reflecting the crescent moon.

“Are you asking me out?” She asked in a serious tone. After a moment, her cheeks puffed and she laughed softly.

“I guess,” Levi muttered. Hange stopped laughing and gasped.

“Really?” she said. The two gave their orders quickly and waited for them to be prepared.

“...Yeah.” Levi couldn’t believe the shit he was spewing from his mouth. Was he really confessing?

“Well…” She grabbed her tray from the stand. “I’d like that.” Levi grabbed his tray, glancing at her. Her cheeks were flushed red, he wasn’t sure if she was sunburnt or not.

“Me too.” They started to walk back towards their two friends.

“Why did you kiss me?” Levi thought aloud.

“I beat your time, silly,” Hange teased. Levi huffed. They got back to their friends, sitting down. Hange sat a bit closer to Levi than the last time. Levi noticed Erwin and Moblit distanced their towels further away than they were earlier.

You missed. He wanted to say. He didn’t have the guts to say it, though.

“I see…” was all he could muster. Suddenly, the fire grew tall in the firepit; licks of the red and yellow flame dancing in the air. It was beautiful. Levi towards Hange; he noticed her eyes were glowing. 

“You’re beautiful,” Levi said in awe, not realizing he said it aloud. He meant it, too. She looked beautiful in her oversized school sweatshirt and black jean shorts. She looked beautiful with her hair thrown up, her bangs framing her face. She was the most beautiful person. Hange looked towards him, giving him a smile.

“I think I missed when I kissed you,” She chuckled. “Can I try again?” Levi felt his heart start to pound in his chest, begging to escape. He took a deep breath.

“Sure.” She gave him a small smile before leaning in to kiss his lips this time. Levi only realized he was cold when her kiss warmed him up from head-to-toe. She placed her hand on his cheek, gently squishing it. It was chubbier than she thought, and she felt honored to hold him like this. He hadn’t touched her at all besides with his lips. He was too stunned to do anything else. He was leaning back on his hands, his hands gripping the towel beneath them. She pulled away from him, looking a bit breathless.

Maybe she wasn’t so annoying after all.

[ackermansupremacy]

More marley kids headcanons because i’m still distraught

The sheer amount of content that i could write for them is a s t r o n o m i c a l

Gabi

•An animal lover!

•Has a really big intimidating dog like a rottweiler or mastiff that her friends are lowkey scared of

•But it has some headass name like ‘Fluffy’ or ‘Princess’

•Or something oddly human like Joe or Robert LMAO

•She drinks a lot of energy drinks so shes up until like 3am blasting music

•I saw another post saying that they could see her being a kpop stan and i SEE IT

•She would be a boygroup stan and would stan NCT

•She would really like Gorillaz too Rhinestone eyes would be her JAM

•When shes not playing roblox shes plays things like overwatch and league of legends until the sun rises

•Yet somehow shes still full of energy the next morning??

•Her deepest secret is that she has a wattpad account and randomly publishes stories and never updates them

•She also reads like,,,1D fanfic and would never admit it

•Her walls are covered in doodles in the spaces between her miscellaneous band posters

•Shes the kind of angsty kid that acts like she doesn’t like you

•But honestly? You’re her role model

•She really admires you :)

•Especially if you’re a single parent

•Whenever someone asks she always says

•“I wanna be just like my mom/dad when i get older” :)

•She’ll never admit it to you, but she just wants you to be proud of her

Zofia

•She strikes me as the daintier type but like at the same time not really??

•Shes definitely no stranger to fun

•She loves amusement parks and its one of her favorite places to go

•Surprise her with tickets to disneyland and she’ll cry

•She enjoys fashion but dislikes makeup so shes never really bothered trying to get good at it

•I think she has like, two different types of music she listens to

•She likes classical music when shes trying to focus on things like her hobbies or homework but indie music is her go to

•Mozart, Bach, Beach Bunny and Melanie Martinez being some of her favorites

•I think shes artistic too

•Her room always smells slightly of acrylic paint

•Her room is always really clean

•Other than that one single moldy coffee cup... iykyk

•it has a black and white minimalistic aesthetic

•But her walls have her favorite pieces that shes hand painted framed

•Along with a Van Gogh tapestry next to her bed

•A simple girl, she has a pink betta fish

•It probably has some fancy long name

•Like Elizabeth or Charlotte

•The tanks is perfectly matched to the aesthetic of her room

•She would take such good care of it it would live way past the life expectancy

•She probably takes some sort of martial arts class as well

•Like judo or karate and shes REALLY good at it

•Trophies and medals are all over your house because shes so proud of them

•She just keeps making you proud huh

Falco

•Oh this sweet child

•Hes so gullible

•Hes really smart but he just...believes everything Colt tells him

•And he always finds out its not true the hard way

•It would be dumb stuff that would send him into a crisis too

•Like Colt once told him that if he wasn’t asleep by midnight he would die or something and he actually believed it

•So when he couldn’t sleep he started saying his goodbyes to everyone LMAO

•After a teary eyed conversation you had to convince him it wasn’t true and made Colt apologize

•That gave him trust issues

•As i said in a previous headcanon, I think he would play a lot of instruments

•Piano, guitar and the cello are among his favorites

•He has the most diverse music taste out of all of them

•Its mostly mainstream music though

•He would just hear a song on the radio or on tik tok and would add it to his playlist if he liked it

•Resulting in the most random music

•From bands like coldplay, to doja cat, to cardi b to occasional kpop...

•His dirty secret is that he really likes boybands

•He loves backstreet boys, one direction and 5sos

•Gabi found out and made fun of him for it so he never told anyone after that

•His room is pretty bare and empty other than mass amounts of instruments

•Most of them he never even plays anymore

•He def has empty water bottles everywhere

•But the little bit that he does have in his room is organized chaos

•“Do you have a paperclip?” “to the left of my keyboard pedal on the floor” “Bro...” 

Udo

•B-Babie...

•One of his favorite things is watching a good mystery show or movie, especially the classics like Agatha Christie’s mysteries

•He loves writing them too!

•He takes it very seriously and probably has a mystery novel in the works that he plans to publish when he gets older

•Hes really passionate about it if you ask him about it he could talk about it for hours!

•He has a chameleon or a snake or some other reptile

•Gives it a cute name like Henry or a fandom name like Dobby

•Or something unique nature related like petrichor

•Its his lil buddy it always rides around on his shoulder :)

•His music taste is also diverse

•Zofia introduced him to indie music and he loves it

•He loves bands like The 1975, The Neighbourhood and Jack Stauber

•But his all time favorite band is The Beatles

•His favorite song is Beautiful Boy by John Lennon because it reminds him of when you used to sing to him when he was a little kid :)

•He collects The Beatles posters and vinyls and displays them on the walls in his room

•His room is pretty cluttered with things like clothes, books and school supplies strewn about but his desk is always spotless and organized

•Notebooks with story ideas, his laptop and a gaming controller being the only things on it

•His deepest secret is that he struggles with anxiety which makes him pretty clingy to you :(

•And he doesn’t want to keep sleeping in your bed like he did when he was little so he has a playlist of all the lullabies you sang to him when he was younger

•And he can’t sleep without it :(

•Hes not the most athletic, but I could see him joining the soccer team Falco and Gabi are on just for fun and tries to convince Zofia to join too

•Kinda sad but i think he cries himself to sleep a lot and doesn’t really know why

•Sometimes when he feels really really sad he comes into your room and you watch tv together until he falls asleep

•And hes v tiny so hes easy to carry into his room

•Hes my precious boy I love him so much :,(((((((((((

******

I have two more things I wanna publish for these absolute jelly beans before i take a break from writing for them unless y’all wanna request more hahahahaplzrequestthingshahaha