#PHOENIX: ashes and broken glass

[line-of-fire]

Yk the fact that, in two separate AUs/timelines, who Pixie would consider to be her closest friend is some antisocial winter-coded bitch (Sommer in her standard verse and Borealis in her Phoenix verse) probably says something about her.

Idk what, but Something.

[theladyofrosewater]

Thinking about shadow knights and how their forms reflect their individuality when separated from Shad's direct control and they maintain their individuality and yes I will draw these later

(Content/Trigger Warning for like Body Horror, stay safe besties)

Laurance glows from the cracks in his armour, to his hair and even his footsteps leaving sparks when he's angry enough. He'll give off heat but it's never enough to really burn them, not anymore. It's more like he's a campfire or a fireplace. Something that makes you feel safe rather than threatened. Eventually the rock in his armor begins to look like wyvern scales as he ever so slowly learns to let other people back in and eventually he won't even look like a Shadow Knight....He'll look like an old friend.

Sasha seems to leach heat from the air even if she can still burn you without trying. Her hair goes short and is constantly flaking off ash as she walks, her hands ending in finger bones instead of flesh. Her armor is sharp and glass like obsidian which could cut someone if they even grazed against her. Worst of all her armour resembles the old guard uniform of Meteli and she doesn't even realize. What she does notice however is the burned in runes surrounding her left ring finger bones and reading them reveals that they were the wedding vows she wrote before her death.

Zenix's armour looks slightly childish and impractical, with twisted barbs and jagged edges, he looks how a child would imagine how a shadow knight looks instead of anything based in reality because he was a child himself when he was turned. He grows fangs just too long for his mouth to close comfortably and the heat he gives off does nothing but hurt himself and others when he loses his temper quickly. As the years go by the armor starts to shift slightly, oh ever so slightly into his old Phoenix Drop armour and he snaps at anyone who mentions it, trying to ignore the homesickness that's taking root in his heart.

Vylad is covered with ash and soot and seems to be made out of the very earth of the Nether, with regular pulses of heat that are just uncomfortable enough to make you sweat. He's made of the abyss that took him and was made to blend into it, to be forgotten in it's walls and let himself melt and become fuel for the souls in it's walls. That is except for the hole in his chest that goes all the way to the other side and glows with an inner fire that's white-hot.

Gene's armor is what one could call "fanciful" with polished rocks and glass to look like gemstones and the mix of red and gold of the earth forming a elaborate trim. Even his weapon looks perfect with it's glass sharp reflection and edge. It's almost eerie how perfect and put together he look. The perfect look for a head guard and Shad's right hand general or it would be if it weren't for the choking smoke that followed him everywhere and the fact that he can burn you without you even noticing. not to mention the rusty metal band around his neck that leaked a dark red every so often, as if it was holding a wound together.

Zane grew hanging lichen from his limbs while he was captive, with black metal growing and wrapping around his limbs and body as he grew thinner and thinner, his body desperate to stay together. Eventually the very rocks in the walls started to form together with his skin, so much so that when he finally stepped into the Overworld after decades several guards fled from the sight outright as he looked like an Eldrich being with the broken halo that seemed to form behind his head and the rocks that overtook his jaw, leaving nothing but a single burning eye to stare into your soul.

[kalimat-kalimat-kalimat]

The Golden Phoenix

And as she burnt in flames and smoke her soul broke and shattered like glass, as she screamed in pain of the misjustice the world stopped moving, as her scream of pain reached the heavens even the gods felt her despair.

From the ashes of her body, a flame of gold emerged, her soul reformed and was made whole. As the Golden Phoenix formed from the ashes and rose out of flame spreading its majestic golden wings and screeching with the same ferocity as the broken girl the gods once again heard, and they shivered in fear.

The Phoenix took flight, its size dwarfing the mountains, it spread its wings and flew around the world leaving flames in its wake and making the people look up in awe at such a majestic site.

It screeched again, shaking the very foundations of reality and life, it broke the veil of the heavens and they fell, they shattered and crumbled as they burnt and broke, falling back down to the realm of mortals.

With a final defanging screech, the Golden Phoenix exploded in flames and cinder, lighting up the sky again, bringing forth a new god in the shape of the sun, a blazing and hot, a bright new symbol of hope.

[akwolfgrl]

Chapter one Phoenix redemption

“Hope rises like a Phoenix from the ashes of shattered dreams”-S. A. Sachs

Sunset Shimmer unlocked her door with shaky hands. Her face was still damp, her breath ragged. She had to keep calm. She couldn't break down. Not here. Not again, too many people who would inevitably ask questions. Questions to which she wasn't sure if she had all the answers to. As nice as her neighbors were they wouldn't be able to help her in this situation.

Sunset stumbled inside, her legs felt weak and boneless. Shutting her door and dropping her bag at the foot of the steps to her loft bed, Sunset just wanted to change and get into bed, end this miserable day. She quickly shed her clothes as she walked to her small dresser that was under her loft bed. Sunset focused on each movement she made. Taking deep, steady breaths, she pulled the drawer open and took her purple pajamas out. She pulled the shirt on over her head and stepped into her pants, and pulled them up.

All the exhausted girl was trying to was to become numb. Numb to the pain and heartbreak she was currently in the midst of. Hoping that being numb would be better than the alternative. Sunet had some anger issues she didn’t care for. She climbed the steps to her bed, pausing at the at the framed photo of her friends. Overcome with rage Sunset let out a screech she shoved the picture off her nightstand. The glass shattering on impact with the floor below. For the third time that day, her knees hit the floor. Picking up the pieces of broken glass, she began sobbing anew. She cut her finger on a piece of the glass. She watched as the blood fell onto her floor. Were they ever her friends? Did they ever even care about her? She had just been their little pet to parade around. She clutched the glass in one hand, the bite of the glass a welcome change. The pain was different from the inertial churn in her gut. It would be easy to slice her wrist open and watch the rest of her blood drip, adding to the small puddle below.

“No!” Sunset growled, getting angry at her weakness.

Anger was power. Being numb would get her nowhere. Besides, since when did Sunset Shimmer ever take the easy way out? Dropping the piece of glass back on the pile, resisting the urge to fling it across the room, she wiped her face and picked up the rest of shattered picture and dumped it in the trash next to her nightstand were it belonged. Tomorrow was a brand new day. Tomorrow, she'd start to fight for a new life.

Sunset walked back down her steps and into her small bathroom to wash the blood from her hand, grabbing the disinfectant and the ace bandages. She better get this cleaned up. She hissed slightly at the sting from the disinfectant, then quickly wrapped her right hand in the bandage, pulling it tight. She was glad she practiced writing with both hands. She hadn’t been aware that humans had dominant hands, and being a unicorn, she had no need for a dominant hoof. By Celestia, she did miss levitation. She headed back to her bed. Today had been very long, and there was a giant roller coaster ride of emotions, and being numb was not the answer. Anger would carry her much further. Sunset quickly rolled over into a more comfortable spot and slept a, thankfully, dreamless sleep.

The next morning, Sunset awoke bright and early. Today was the start of her new life. First things first was to get ready for the day. She quickly headed down her steps and to her dresser below, grabbing her clothes before heading for the shower. Sunset turned the hot water on, looking at the mirror while the water warmed up.

“First, go see Principal Celestia and see about transferring out of Canterlot High. Second, do whatever necessary steps to leave the former school. Third, get through the school day with your chin held high. And fourth, make sure Princess Twilight doesn’t come through the portal. “ Sunset gave herself a nod in the mirror, glad to have a plan in motion.

Sunset stood under the searing hot water. She always preferred it hot enough to almost burn your skin off. It made her feel clean and alive. She was always partial to fire spells back in Equestria. She refused to think of it as home. Homesickness was unproductive and unhelpful. She would not go crawling back there, begging on her belly, pleading for a pardon. She was Sunset Shimmer, and she would fight tooth and nail for it. She needed to earn it. She finished washing up and relentlessly turned the shower off. Sunset toweled off and got dressed before starting on her makeup. Everything had to be just so. Sunset took her time to make sure her face was perfect . She stared on her fiery hair, brushing and curling it ever so slightly.

Sunset looked in the mirror, giving herself a quick pep talk. “You are Sunset Shimmer. You ruled that school and the students in it for years. You changed and worked hard to redeem yourself. You are strong. You will not let them bring you down. Redeemed does not mean push over. If any of them try to hurt you, you break them. “

She couldn’t show weakness. Teenagers were like sharks. If they smelled any weakness, it would be a bloodbath. Humans, especially teens, were quite vicious and violent. In all her years among them, Sunset still wasn’t quite at ease with all the overt violence. She had used to her advantage, of course, but it still hadn’t sat right with her. Sunset did one last check in the mirror before grabbing her stuff and heading out early. She wanted plenty of time to talk with principal Celestia. She locked her apartment door, grateful no one knew where she lived.

[romantic-poem]

Whispers of Betrayal and Longing

In the garden of shadows, blooms a heartache, Where whispers twist like ivy around the bones of trust. Joy dances on the edge of a razor’s kiss, Yet sorrow swells, a tide of broken glass. You were a comet, bright, yet fleeting, Leaving trails of regret in the velvet sky, Each star a memory, an echoing sigh, Anticipation hangs heavy like ripe fruit, Sour to the taste, sweet in the dream. In silence, rage roars like a wild storm, Yet here I stand, a statue of yearning, Hands outstretched, grasping at the horizon, Where intimacy shivers in the distance, A paradox of closeness laced with void. You were the ink in my heart’s quill, Writing sonnets on the parchment of our nights, But betrayal, a thief in the twilight, Stole the verses and left me with blank pages. Come back, oh specter of sweet affection, Let’s reconcile our fates in the dance of shadows, For love, like a phoenix, rises from ashes, Yet here I am, a ghost in this garden, Longing for a touch that lingers in dreams.

[thequeenofthewinter]

What Color Does Your OC's Love Feel Like?

Thanks so much to @hailtheknownworld for tagging me. This was super fun, Mem ❤️

You can find the quiz here.

Tagging some more people but no pressure: @oblivions-dawn @sneaksandsweets @blossom-adventures @rainpebble3 @rose-like-the-phoenix @dirty-bosmer @nerevar-quote-and-star @elder-dragon-reposes and any other friend who wants to join. ❤️

Dahlia is a warm, burnt orange

Riding off into the sunset, the hope of a happy ending, the bitter after taste that still in it's own way smells kinda great. Your love is all bitter hopefulness, all about a broken heart that refuses to quit, all about the unshakable knowledge that a burning fire has a great comforting warm and a soft glowing light, all about the way when the sun comes down there's a beautiful starry night. It's stubbornness, it's the refusal to give up, the clutching of broken shards despite the searing pain and being adamant that dammit you can still make a beautiful stained glass window out of it. Yours is a screaming heart, a pleading love, a bitter and almost belligerent hopefulness that things will still work out even if you have to roll up your sleeves and make them. And god, aren't you tired?

Isn't your heart heavy? Is all your hard work worth it? Don't you just want to curl up and let it be? Let the fire turn to ashes and the sky turn dark and let love die down and watch people leave? But you don't, do you?

You're the bravest out of all of us, so you pick up the pieces and you keep going, you keep believing and you keep your heart full of hope because some day. Some day you know you'll get it. You keep riding off into the sunset and you keep filling my heart with hope as you go because god, how do I wish you finally get it too.

[maiawrites]

Quintessential

Such a mysterious girl, always misunderstood.

My fragile indiscretions,

constantly leaving you with a bad impression.

My complexity always such a glorious and raging

fire that consumes and devours,

whilst my errant simplicity carried a quiet and soft reservation

that goes unnoticed and aloof by most.

But still you see me, still you see this soul

hidden far beneath this human flesh.

Like a Phoenix rising from his old ash,

this freedom you exude, gives me wings and makes my soul afresh.

Somehow you just know how to articulate, what is going on inside of me, especially when I lack the words to express

myself in a proper manner.

It's like you were sent to me by the heavens above with my exact blueprints. We're inside connected, trust me when I tell you that my heart's been heavily affected.

Mixed and laced together in my conflicting and oh so contradicting , but complex mind.

Pain, beauty,passion, especially love in the middle of the hate that we bring,

all these symphonies, belting out notes, lyrics and echoing beats so loudly but beguiled in soundproof walls.

Would it be too much?

To have this silence finally broken,revealing previous indecipherable truths.

Mine and yours.

You know mine and I see your truth, partially revealed but heavily fragmented and hidden.

But what does it sound like, what does it feel like? And most of all what does it taste like?

Mine is fast and inexorable. Passionate but yet honorable.

But the question remains, will I ever know yours?

Looking through your glass tainted windows,

reaching out to touch your nucleas panes but never quite reaching past them, but wanting to though.

Because to do so I would have to break them, and reveal so much, reveal pain or maybe beauty,

cause the sum of your soul equates to the rays of the early morning sunrise, catching just the right ray, the quintessential epitome of warmth.

But who can say though? So much is hidden undercover, but hoping that if I look deep enough I might just be lucky enough to uncover, all the secrets leading to your soul just waiting on me to be discovered

[mikaelsonwife4life]

Monster High: The Rise of the Phoenix

The full moon shone down on an abandoned factory, glinting off of partially broken glass. Smoke and ash lingered in the air, piles of it laying across the dirty factory floor. It was this building that Headmistress Equestria Bloodgood, Lord Dracula Dracul, and Victor Frankenstein encountered as they searched for a young monster. They knew what they were looking for but not who. A phoenix was the rarest being to walk the earth due to only one being able to be alive at once. 

A flash of red dashed across Headmistress Bloodgood’s peripheral vision and she whirled around, her silver eyes searching the darkness for the flash of color she’d seen. 

“Ve are looking for the Voenix,” Lord Dracul spoke, his thick Transylvanian accent altering the pronunciation of some of his words. 

“Don’t just say that,” Victor grumbled at his friend, “She won’t come out if she thinks we’re just looking for ‘the Phoenix’,” the simulcranium admonished. 

“Be quiet, both of you,” Headmistress Bloodgood snapped, glaring at her two friends, silently questioning if she shouldn’t have brought Phantom and Viveka along instead, “My name is Equestria Bloodgood. I run a school called Monster High.” 

“Monster High?” the trio looked up, shocked at what they saw. She was young, thirteen or fourteen, with golden tan skin and red-orange symbols across her limbs. Her eyes were fiery, red and orange and yellow blended into one. Her nails gripped the beam she was perched on, the inch long talon-like nails puncturing the wood. She was dressed simply, in jeans and a red to yellow ombre blouse that trailed, not unlike the tail feathers of birds. Her shoes were stilettos, red and scuffed with age and use. She wore a simple black leather jacket, also appearing to be heavily used. 

“That’s right,” Headmistress Bloodgood nodded, stifling her shock at the visibly half-human girl, “Monster High is a school built for monsters kinds. Not only that, we welcome monsters of all kinds.”

“That’s all good and well,” the Phoenix girl drawled, eyes narrowing, “When you speak of all monsters. What about half humans?”

“Vumans vave never attended Vonster High,” Lord Dracul spoke up, his searing red eyes staring up at the young girl, whose blood red lips curled into a mocking smile. 

“Untrue,” Victor spoke up, his rough voice seeming even rougher against the smooth baritone of Lord Dracul, graceful alto of Headmistress Bloodgood, and the Phoenix’s song-like soprano, “Father attended Monster High as a Normie.”

“It vas a vailed attempt,” Lord Dracul snapped, his fangs flashing as he glared at his old friend. 

“Dracula! Victor!” Headmistress Bloodgood snapped, narrowing her eyes at the two men, “That is enough. If you two can’t stop arguing, wait outside.” The two men grumbled but after a particularly harsh glare from the Headmistress, they sulked out into the cool night. 

“Between you and me,” Headmistress Bloodgood continued, silver eyes flashing back up to the monster, “Several half-human monsters attend Monster High already. Part of the special program I put together about seven years ago in hopes of creating a positive relationship between humans and monsters.”

“And the other monsters don’t care?” the Phoenix asked, her sunrise eyes narrowed suspiciously. 

“For the most part, the other monsters aren’t aware,” Headmistress Bloodgood told her, “It would be your choice on whether or not the other monsters are aware of your heritage.” 

The Phoenix narrowed her eyes before she jumped from the rafters, a set of fire-like wings expanding from her back and slowing her descent. 

“The name’s Pyria Nix,” the girl told her, holding out a tan hand, “Consider it a pleasure.”

Headmistress Bloodgood smiled and shook the young girl’s hand, “Welcome to Monster High, Pyria.”

[etruatcaelum]

SUMMER ROSE

Always the best of us.

The nursery rhyme goes like this:

One for sorrow, two for mirth Three for a funeral, and four for a birth Five for silver, six for grimm And seven for a secret shared with a grin.

It's an old song. There is always a warrior; there are always grimm. Summer Rose was a lonely child, and in the mirror of her eyes the world would see its own sadness looking back. She smiled a lot. She was empty, then.

Legend has it that the sun fell from grace because it tried to please everyone: and then everyone tossed the sundered pieces back to the sky to reflect the light of a better sun into darkness. They called this broken thing the moon, because it cried too much for their liking.

———

Here is a different story:

Once upon a time there was a wicked old witch who lived deep in the wilds, among the beasts and monsters. Once upon a time there was a warrior with silver eyes who protected the woods until the monsters carried her away. Once upon a time, a woman looked into a mirror and found that she did not know the woman looking back at her.

Without moonlight, the darkness cannot speak; and the moon can only see when the darkness opens her eye.

Sometimes the mirror breaks.

Summer Rose is empty now. She is who she has always been and she's not the same at all. The woman behind the mirror never learnt how to smile. The woman bleeding with glass in her hand has long forgotten how to cry.

The witch eats the warrior. The warrior becomes the witch.

That's how the story has to go.

———

This is the first thing Summer Rose said to Salem, that night:

I know what you are.

She wasn't supposed to say anything. Maybe things would have turned out differently, if she chose the pragmatic path instead of the heroic one and staged an ambush, instead of a conversation. But she's never liked to ruminate on maybes, past or future.

What did happen is this:

Salem pulled another tomato from the vine (it struck her as a strange thing, then, for the witch to be doing when the warrior came to slay her) and weighed it in her palm for a moment before tossing it to Summer. It was ripe and firm and redder than roses.

And then the witch said:

Do you?

———

No one ever finds the body. No one could tell you the story of what happened except the three who walked away, and none of them are much inclined to grin.

Summer Rose is buried in an empty grave—the dust on an old man's sleeve. But a rose is not unlike a phoenix: new things always grow from the ashes of old. Truth still haunts her, phantomwise.

She's not the one who died that night.

———

PHYSICAL

Short stature. Lean. Pale, warm-toned skin. Hair, deep mahogany-red, easily mistaken for dark brown or even black in dim lighting, worn shoulder-length and usually pulled back at the top.

Silver eyes: before she meets Salem, the irises are an overcast grey struck through with silver-white striae, and darken gradually to a foreboding stormy color over the years. In the present, they're clear, polished silver. She's a faunus; her only visible trait is the tapeta lucida in the backs of her eyes.

Irregular patches of discolored skin cover her hands and forearms, grayish and slightly darker—old scars from a caustic burn, courtesy of a grimm. Nerve damage caused by this injury leaves her with poor grip strength, as well as numbness and pain; Summer wears reinforced gloves with an aura-reactive lining to compensate for the weakness of her hands.

STYLE

In her huntress days, elaborate and put-together, devoting considerable effort to looking the part of the perfect huntress—including by pumping aura into her clothing to keep herself pristine in battle. Rich browns, subtle red, gold and bronze, warm.

After joining Salem, she keeps the moonlight-grey cloak with the crimson lining and little else; trades gold for silver, going more for what's comfortable and simple to maintain.

Her emblem is—or rather, was—a burning rose.

SUNDERED ROSE

Note changes from the canon design. Sundered Rose begins its career as a battle-axe built, in somewhat ungainly fashion, around a hunting rifle; over the years, it has evolved by a process of incremental adjustment into something more like a short halberd.

Summer mostly doesn't use the gun in combat. It is a hunting rifle in the literal sense, as in of animals, for food.

AURA

The color of lilac in bloom. Her levels at rest are well below average, but Summer is a phenomenally skilled auralerist; in a contest against an opponent with even quite deep reserves, she can often match and surpass her foe on the strength of her highly-efficient aura usage and swift recovery.

SEMBLANCE

When she enrolled at Beacon Academy, Summer registered her semblance with the Valean Huntsman Guild under the name Blinding Mirror, which she defined as a kind of multi-sensory camouflage. Simply put, it allows her to move unobserved.

Some peculiarities quickly became apparent. Her teammates were among the first to notice Summer's assertion that she could just make herself invisible and inaudible didn't add up. She could and often did vanish herself only selectively—leaving herself perceptible to her allies and intangible to her opponents. Likewise puzzling was the fact that her semblance seemed to affect grimm, too, something that true sensory manipulation can't achieve. The only thing that can obscure a person from a grimm's perception is the masking of emotion or aura.

These oddities never concerned Summer much. Her semblance did what she needed it to do, and worked best when she didn't over think it. Why question a good thing?

Then, about two years after Team STRQ graduated from Beacon, the automatic door at the Guildhouse went out of order, and Summer Rose—having missed the little warning note taped to the glass—simply walked through it as though the barrier didn't exist at all. That caused enough of a stir for Summer to get serious about understanding what she could do.

The real nature of her semblance is the manipulation of probability. Specifically, Summer can modify the probability that she will be in a certain location at any given time, as long as the natural probability is greater than zero—no matter how slim the chances. A malfunctioning automatic door poses no obstacle to her because it isn't impossible that a broken sensor might have, coincidentally, fired at just the right time to open the door for her... and if Summer isn't paying attention, her semblance tends to adjust the real probability to match her subconscious expectations.

It is, of course, much harder to walk through a door she knows is closed, and harder still to walk through a wall.

The conditional imperceptibility her semblance can give her derives from Summer's ability to move from one point to another by changing the probability that she will be at the end point at any given time; when she uses her semblance this way, her movement through physical space isn't necessarily coherent.

She isn't truly imperceptible; it just isn't possible to be certain of where she is in between Point A and Point B, unless she makes the conscious decision to also be where her allies look for her, when they look for her, en route to her intended destination.

(Further reading on my personal for interested parties: the Ruby Rose Quantum Bullshit Theory. Obviously I don't expect or require Rubys to follow this, but in my head, Summer and Ruby share the same base semblance, expressed in very different ways.)

MAJOR HEADCANONS

On Summer Being a Faunus On Silver –> & Addendum: On Silver Bloodlines Visage I, Visage II

PRINCIPAL ALLUSIONS

The Last Rose of Summer -> Summer herself is not the rose. She is the speaker of the poem, who plucks the rose and scatters its petals while contemplating his own loneliness and desolation; the proverbial "last rose" of Summer here is Ruby, whom she leaves behind shattered and alone.

The Marvelous Land of Oz –> Summer is General Jinjur, who leads the Army of Revolt to conquer the Emerald City and spends the remainder of the book searching for the royal crown—which the Scarecrow took with him when he fled the city. (The twist, of course, is that this General Jinjur works for Glinda.)

Little Red Riding Hood –> Summer is both the Grandmother and the Wolf, or rather she's the Wolf who is the Grandmother in truth; and this layer of character allusion intertwines with:

Maiden-in-the-Tower Stories –> Summer is also the Wolf who devours Petrosinella's ogress—the third, and last, beast Petrosinella conjures to aid her escape from her captor.

Cinderella –> Summer is the Good Stepmother, at least from Cinder's perspective: a Stepmother who chooses Cinderella over her own daughters, one who also needed to escape, one who understood the role she was meant to play in the story and refused to accept it.

Irish Mythology –> Summer is the Cú Chulainn to Raven's Morrígan—the enemy who thrice wounds her and swears never to lend her aid, and is thrice tricked into healing her.

OTHER NOTES

Summer was a child soldier. Her silver eyes ignited for the first time when she was eight years old, while grimm rampaged through her hometown—an SDC-operated mining company called Visage—and from that point on, her whole identity was silver-eyed warrior whether she liked it or not. Throughout her childhood and her years as a student at Beacon, Summer had very little conception of herself as a real person.

She inherited her faunus identity from her mother, Ginger Rose, and her silver eyes from her father, Eglantine Vermeil. Eglantine was the son of Sharon Vermeil, one of two illegitimate children born of an affair between King Osiander I and Dame Hyemalis Vermeil, his close ally and the winter maiden at the time of the Great War. Summer has only the vaguest interest in this family trivia, but the irony of Salem asking her to hold the fort at Beacon and find the crown is not lost on her.

Going after Salem was a suicide mission. Summer did plan to return, but half-heartedly; deep down, she meant to die and take Salem down with her. Salem intuited this and answered her desperation with honesty, telling Summer the truth about the Brothers and the task Ozma had been given and her history with them. Summer chose to stay with her out of genuine conviction that it's the right thing to do.

She's, accordingly, the closest and most trusted of Salem's associates in the present. As far as Summer is concerned, this is her war just as much as it is Salem's; she considers Salem her friend, and herself Salem's general.

Summer is also—at least compared to the others in Salem's inner circle—fairly close to Cinder, and the only one Cinder even remotely trusts. She was principally responsible for Cinder's combat training after the girl arrived in Evernight, and her feelings toward Cinder shade into maternal.

[line-of-fire]

Alkka: Who would you kill out of the four of us, Borealis? Borealis: You, easily. Alkka: What the fuck, man. Borealis: Well, Phoenix would be too easy. She'd probably be into it. Phoenix, now standing in the doorway: What the fuck, man!? Borealis: And I wouldn't feel like handling you without your moral compass Voitto: A safe decision

[undeadexecutioner000]

I'm the god I scream about I was never there when I was dying I was absent my whole life and now I have returned home but all that's left is broken glass and emptiness and an open grave that no one mourned above the home has burnt down, and I'm standing in the ashes I should feel like a phoenix but something claws at my ribcage like a wounded dog so I'm sitting by the lake and looking at the reflection but I don't see the light anymore I think she died so why am I still here?

[symphony-screams]

The orange phoenix

Perhaps I had it wrong

This kind of pain doesn't come from breaking.

After all, i was never one of those girls,

I wasn't made of satin and glass

No one looked my way and looked again a second time

I was never one to faint at the touch of moonlight

I wasn't made of glass

They could never break me.

So they lit me up and called me a flame

And sought warmth in my destruction

They made embers out of a lush tree

And called me walking hell

Waking catastrophe

So this kind of pain doesn't come when you shatter.

You can pick up broken glass-

But you hiss at the touch of embers

And broken things can be fixed-

They are still themselves.

But of what use are these dying embers?

These black flakey ashes?

What could you make out of them?

What do ashes do?

Except be born again.

With scarlet eyes and orange wings

And a song as beautiful as her death scream

Dying embers had never any beauty

But that which she claimed in her own calamity.

[akwolfgrl]

Part 2 Phoenix redemption

"In order to rise from its own ashes, a Phoenix must first burn” - Octavia E. Butler, parable of the talents

Sunset strode into the school with her head held high. There were very few students here since there was only a few clubs early in the morning. She could feel their hate-filled glares as she walked past them. Her was chin up in defiance as she headed for the principal’s office. Sunset knocked on the door, waiting impatiently for the signal to come in. She heard footsteps approaching the door.

“Sunset? Come in come in. “ Principal Celestia opened the door, gesturing for her to come inside.

“Thank you. “ Sunset stepped inside.

She normally tried to avoid being alone with Celestia since she had been so close to her counterpart who had the uncanny ability to see right through Sunset. So far, the Principal hadn’t quite the same uncanny ability. Sometimes, perhaps, she saw more then let on, but that was neither here nor now. Sunset needed to focus on the problem at hand.

“How can help you today, Sunset? “

“What are my options for leaving this school?” Sunset questioned, hoping for an answer. “I am not anon-a-miss, but if I can not convince the Rainbooms off this, then I have no chance of convincing the rest of the school. I'm not a masochist I will not stay where I'm not wanted. “

The principal sighed. “I’m sorry, Sunset. I had hoped my students had learned better, but unfortunately that doesn't seem to be the case. “

Sunset felt a flutter of guilt pass through before shoving it aside. Now was not the time.

“I will be sad to see you go. You’re my best student. Top of all your classes in fact. I believe you have enough credits to graduate early if you wish. If, of course, you finish your SATs which I’m sure we can get those done before the end of this semester. “

Sunset felt her heart leap with excitement. A way out! College sounded wonderful, a real challenge. Sunset could only imagine how much she would learn and discover while there. Twilight would hopeful be excited for her.

The student nodded with approval. “That sounds great actually! I’ll do whatever I need to. “

Celestia nodded and went over to her file cabinets and took out a few college applications and handed them to Sunset, along with SAT practice sheets.

“I’ll arrange for you to start your SATs, so use this time to study. I’m certain you'll do great, Sunset. We will miss you. “

Celestia looked genuinely sad to see her student go, but it was for the best. The principal knew if Sunset stayed she'd just bring more trouble since she was anon-a-miss’s target. It was time to move onwards. Time’s arrow matches forward after all.

Something caught Celestia’s vision. “Sunset, what happened to your hand?” The principal asked, concern shining in her pink eyes.

Sunset looked down at the bandage covering her right hand. “Just some broken glass. It’s not a big deal.” she smiled reassuringly.

Principal Celestia still look slightly concerned and a bit sceptical. But Sunset was not a child and she refused to be coddled. She never had been while growing up and was not about to start now. But she didn't say anything, she knew when to pick her battle's. Principal Celestia was not the enemy. Sunset gathered up her papers and stood ready to leave before saying something she would regret.

“Thank you, Principal Celestia, but I’m afraid I need to be headed to class. Shall I come find you when I’m ready for my SATs?” Sunset inquired.

Principal Celestia nodded her head, her aurora-colored hair moved slightly with the momentum. How similar yet so vastly different to the princess sunset once admired.

“Have a good day, Sunset. Please don't hesitate to come to me about any problems you’re having.” The woman offered with a kindly smile.

Sunset merely nodded her head as she walked out the door and to her locker. The halls were now filled with students laughing, talking and arguing. There seemed to be even more teasing and anger than yesterday. Sunset was bumped into several times but she kept her head held high and ignored them. There were far too many people to pinpoint each offender. She finally made it to her locker, growling at the graffiti written on.

“Oh, how original!” Sunset called out, sarcasm dripping from her lips. “anon-a-bitch and she demon! I knew you all weren't the brightest but how pedestrian and unimaginative. “ It seemed CHS was full of imbeciles. Why had she ever given them the benefit of the doubt was beyond her. She put up with the abuse before right after the fall formal racked with guilt (and still a bit shaken up due to being shoot with rainbow lasers) thinking she deserved it, she had her friends as sort of a back up. They never stopped the abuse, but there was the chance that they might. Now that she had been abandoned, she was fair game. Sunset slammed her locker shut, chin in the air, and headed to her first class.

Sunset took her seat in Honors Calculus, setting down her text and notebooks. Grabbing her pencil and her SAT practice sheets, she would need something to keep herself occupied after all. Most of her classes were honors, the exception being her art class and free period. Sunset began to read through the practice sheet, circling the questions she would like to study more. The class went by quickly and quietly without incident.

Sunset headed down the hall to her next class when she was shoved against the lockers. She looked up to see Hoops smirking down at her.

“You really shouldn’t smirk. It just makes you look even more idiotic. “ Sunset knew she shouldn’t say it but she’d rather deserved to be hit.

Hoops’s face flushed with anger and he threw a punch. Sunset wasn’t sure where it was supposed to hit, but she could have moved out of the fist’s way but she had been a touch too slow. His fist contacted with her shoulder, hard. She punched him in the balls and quickly slipped out from under his arm and twisted behind him and kicked him against the locker, keeping her foot against his back as he whimpered from pain.

Sunset growled. “Do that again and i will squeeze your balls so hard it’ll pop out of your skull. And i will shove them down your throat. “

She watched satisfied as his dumb face paled further. Hoops quickly nodded.

“Please don’t hurt me again.” He whimpered, scared and in pain.

Sunset took her foot away, flipped her hair and walked away, heading to her next class. The students that had crowded around in anticipation, hoping for a fight, quickly parted. She knew that little display wouldn't be enough to keep her safe. She rolled her shoulders, biting back a hiss. He struck her hard. Sunset would have to put an ice pack on it when she got home after her shift at Tamaki and Tea Sushi Bar were she worked as a waitress. She entered Honors History. It was surping how similar their histories were, where in Equestria, it was magic mostly. Here it was typically guns and a lot more death. It wasn’t Sunset’s best subject. She actually had to study for it. As the student pulled out her stuff for this class, a wad of paper hit her on the head.

“Whoever threw that needs to knock it off before I make you.” Ms. Harshwhinny snapped. “It is highly inappropriate. I expect maturity from my students. “

Thankfully, that was the last incident until lunch time. Sunset’s next class, Honors English, was right next door. Sunset stood in the line for lunch, staring the other students down and pointedly refusing to even glance in the direction of her prior companions. When she was close to the food trays, Sunset grabbed one and placed on it an egg salad sandwich and an orange before heading to the library for some quiet when suddenly her tray was smacked out of her hands. She watched as her food hit the floor, the orange rolling away. A girl snickered and began to walk away. Sunset grabs the tray and swings it, hitting the back of the girl’s bare legs.

“Ow! “ The girl yelped in surprise.

“Wha in tarnation do ya two think y’alls up ta ove’r here? Now yous two best be pickin up ta mess ya’ll made else i be fixen a talkin ta wit the principal bout tis. “ Miss Smith, Applejacks’s grandmother and the school lunch lady, came bustling over. She stood over the pair with her hands on her ample hips.

Sunset bit the inside of her lip to keep back a retort and got down on her knees to pick up the mess tossing it in the trash.

“But she hit me!” The other girl cried, pointing at Sunset. “It's all her fault! I'm not picking up that mess!”

Sunset watched as the elderly woman grabbed the girl by her ear. “Who be teachn’ ya ta mouth off ta elders youngn? Now go get yurself a mop ‘n bucket. “

The girl ran off. Sunset couldn't remember her name, just that she was friends with Photo Finish. Sunset went after the orange that had rolled away- thankfully- from other students. She gave the the orange a quick look over. It seemed like it hadn't been too damaged so she kept it. Sunset knew she should eat it, especially since she forgot about breakfast, but she wasn't in the mood for food anymore. Sunset did notice that her bandage was starting to get dirty. She made a mental note to make sure to change it when she got home.

Sunset turned to Miss Smith. “Am I done here? Or do you want me to wait for her to come back?” She asked politely.

Miss smith waved her hand. “Nah. Ye best be getting along ‘fore another ting comes along.”

Sunset nodded and headed off to the library to study. It was becoming quite clear that she need to leave, otherwise someone (probably her) would be dead by June. It was a good thing she already had a discussion about this very subject.

Lunch came and went. The slightly dented orange had been left uneaten. Sunset really hadn't been in the mood for food. Thankfully, that had been the only little incident for the rest of the day. Pinkie Pie had glared at her all through art class and multiple bumps in the hall, but it was nothing compared to earlier this morning.

Sunset caught the bus to the mall right after school. She had a shift in Platform Sandals to complete before heading home. Hopefully Applejack and Rainbow Dash weren't working today. Getting off the bus, Sunset went straight for the bathroom to change clothes.

“What are you doing here, traitor!” A familiar scratchy voice barked at her. Sunset turned to glare at the rainbow-haired teen, holding up her work uniform.

“Changing clothes, obviously.” Sunset spoke calmly even though her heart was pounding in her chest. Dealing with the other students had been easy compared to this.

“Likely story!“ Rainbow continued to shout at her.

Sunset shrugged, resisting any urge to beg for her ex-friend- how bitter that word felt- to listen or to punch her lights out.

“Believe what you will, but I must be getting along to work “ Sunset stepped into the stall, her face falling as tears threatened to fall. She felt Rainbow Dash pound on the stall door.

“Come out here, traitor! I'm not done with you yet!“ Her fists shook the stall door. "Get out of thire so I can kick your ass!"

Sunset ignored her and continued to get dressed. She wished she had remembered her father's words much earlier.

“Friendship and caring are a disadvantage.” he would tell her. The only ponys he cared for were himself and his younger brother.

Rainbow Dash continued pounding on the stall door, obviously irritated at being ignored. Sunset took a deep breath and wiped the door open.

“Leave me the fuck alone, after all you're quite good at leaving. “ Sunset pushed past her former companion sliding her bag with her street clothes over her shoulder, wincing slightly. She hurried out the door before Rainbow Dash had a chance to respond or relate. Luckily there had been someone else in the bathroom at the time, or else Rainbow Dash more than likely would have done something very rash.

Sunset was wary when she finally unlocked her door, her feet and shoulder ached badly. She wanted to go inside put her free meal in the fridge shower change and go to bed. She always got a free meal after her shift. Sunset did in fact eat most meats, beef was one she felt off about, after all cows back home were sentient. Chicken, fish and pigs were not however.

“Yoo hoo Sunset dear I need your help! “ Ms. Petunia called out.

Sunset groaned and shut her door turning to her neighbor one of the many elderly who lived there. It was a nice arrangement. Sunset got to live rent free but she was like a mix between a property manager and home help provider. She did everything from changing light bulbs, to grocery shopping(mostly large and or heavy objects).

“Yes Ms. Petunia how can I help you.”

“Oh Sunset I've told you many times to call me Emerald. “She waggled a green finger tutting lightly. Her pale sea green hair was pulled back in a yellow scarf.

“Now I need you to help me fix me tv its acting all wonky again. I told my son I didn't need a fancy fangled new Tv my old one worked perfectly fine. But you know men and their toys. “ Emerald Petunia chatted her slippers scuffing slightly on the floor ass she lead sunset inside her kimono robe trailing behind like silk waterfall.

Sunset reluctantly followed her inside. She wasn't even from this world and understood technology better than some of her neighbors. She tuned out Ms. Petunias chatter the best she could as she yet again reporgamed the Tv.

“Oh thank you dearie! Here have some chicken Alfredo your much to thin my dear. Have you been eating properly? And your fancy fish from your doesnt count. Why there's barely anything there! Not a proper meal at all. “

Ms. Petunia handed Sunset a big tupperware container full of chicken alfredo. Her neighbors sometimes tired to feed her up always saying how she was so skinny. They meant well food was their way of showing they cared about her. It was still an odd feeling, have anyone actually care about her. Her parents certainly hadn't. Times like this Sunset felt that her father was wrong.

“Thank you. “

“Your welcome dearie. You have a good day at school tomorrow. “

Sunset headed back to apartment put her food in her mini fridge, kicked her shoes off and trudged up the stairs and promptly passed out cold. Not bothering to even change her clothes.

[wordsofelie]

Chapter 2

🔥Phoenix and Ashes

Suna Rintarou x f!reader

Summary: “It’s funny how nobody believed that we could make it work.” - “Well-maybe they were right.”

Meeting Suna Rintarou wasn’t part of your plan. Dating him, either. Getting your heart smashed into the palms of his hand, even less.

Content Warnings: same as chapter 1 - High School Setting, Fluff, Mention of an Original Character

Words count: 2.9k

chapter 1 - chapter 3 - chapter 4 - chapter 5 - chapter 6 - chapter 7 - chapter 8 - chapter 9

You usually have quite the Cartesian spirit. Always rational and logical. You know one hour contains sixty minutes and each minute contains sixty seconds. So why do the past fifteen minutes feel like hours?

You’re waiting outside the Kobe Science Museum, just like you agreed with Suna a few days before. It’s almost 10 a.m., the hour you’re supposed to meet. You arrived a little bit early, just out of politeness — and absolutely not because you woke up at 6 a.m. from the excitement, stress, or thrill. You look at your watch to make sure it is not broken. Only one minute has passed since you last looked at it and you seriously start questioning the concept of time. Maybe you’re encountering some temporal anomaly? Anyway, this feels like torture.

A snowflake falls on the glass of your watch, you look up and you realise the first snow of the year has decided to come out. It’s good that your “date” (you still don’t want to call it that way) is indoors so you will not need to cancel it.

As you look at the grey sky, you remember you’ve never really been fond of either winter or summer, both seasons are way too cold or too hot to your taste. When you were younger, you never joined the other kids from the neighbourhood to play outside when it snowed. Your parents would call for you to tell you to go out, but you preferred staying in your room, reading some books. Sometimes, you would sneak peeks out your window and watch strangers making snowmen and doing snowball fights. But you never felt curious, or envious. You were just there and it seemed enough. But for the first time, your heart warms up at the falling frozen drops. You reach out to feel them on your skin. It burns, you think. Your fingers get red and wet as the snow melts on your hand. It burns, but you find yourselves craving for more.

Without realising it, time passes faster and the clock reaches the due hour.

“Hi.”

You jump in surprise.

“Did I scare you?” Suna asks with his usual lazy smile.

“I - hm.” You’re hesitant. Did he see you just now? You hope you did not look too childish and try to devise an excuse, “No, I was just lost in my thoughts.”

“You’ve never seen snow before?”

So he did see you. You shouldn’t be surprised anyway; being observant of his surroundings, deciphering his opponent’s expressions is nothing but normal for a middle blocker.

“I have but it’s just-”

“Nice?”

You pause for a second before smiling at him. “It is.”

Suna looks at you with attention. He wouldn’t qualify you as grumpy but seeing you smile so genuinely was akin to witnessing a rare eclipse. At that moment, the boy feels a certain gratitude that such an uncommon sight was given to him, and him only.

“Oh by the way.” He did not realise you were holding a little white cardboard box until you handed it to him. “Happy birthday. I’m sorry, I know it was last weekend, so I’m a little bit late… I hope you will accept it.”

Why would you apologize while giving a birthday present? Suna thinks. Polite. You’re always so polite. You look down at your feet and your cheeks redden — are you cold? Are you shy? He can’t unravel the reason behind your expression. In the ten months he's known you, he has never seen you react like that. A feeling arises in his chest like a sudden urge. He’s not the type to overthink — it’s too tiring. However, a myriad of questions start racing through his head: how do you look when you’re bursting into laughter? What expression do you have when you’re feeling a sense of accomplishment? How do your eyes sparkle when you're genuinely happy? What is it like when you’re surprised by something scary? How does your face light up when you talk about something you love? He wonders how you look when you’re at peace, content, and everything in between. He wants to know. Maybe one day he’ll know everything about you.

But he answers simply, “You didn't have to. Thank you though.”

“I hope you like strawberry cakes.”

He nods in response and the knot that had formed in your stomach is finally relieved.

You both go inside the museum. After a few hours, once you’ve visited most of it and even have lunch together, you finally make your way to the planetarium area.

As the physics nerd that you are (according to Umi’s words), you’re excited to see what the show will look like. But once you settle into your seat and the lights dim, all thoughts of stars and planets fade away as your attention is captured by the boy sitting next to you. The conversation flows easily and you don’t realise it has started before someone asks you to keep it down.

“Suna-san I was wondering,” — this time you whisper — “you don’t have a Kansai accent, were you born in Hyogo?”

Rintarou leans in closer to hear you better, causing your heart rate to spike — too close, too close, you want to protest.

"I was actually born in Tokyo. Moved there when I was six. What about you?"

He tells your name and you think it falls perfectly on his tongue.

“I was born in Kobe but my dad is from Fukushima. Sometimes when I'm with my cousins from my mum's side, I pick up a bit of their accent.”

He starts laughing and despite your protests about disturbing the audience, he can't seem to stop. Another warning comes from a nearby visitor, you place your hands on his face in an attempt to get him to focus (on you, on you).

“Rintarou, stop that already.”

You are only a few inches away now, your fingers cup perfectly the lines of his face as if they had been carved for it. You have an ideal view of his eyes (they’re so green), and lips (the most beautiful shade of pink), and nose (so delicate, it almost looks like it’s made of porcelain). Right at this moment, you truly believe he is going to be the death of you. For his part, he doesn't seem bothered by the proximity at all, "I would pay good money to hear your Kansai accent," he teases. Imagining you talking the way the Miya twins do seems to amuse him.

You quickly pull back and cross your arms. Buried in your seat, you try to regain your composure.

“How dare you mock me, stupid Suna.”

“Oh, so it’s not Rintarou anymore?”

All of your efforts to maintain a cool exterior crumble with that last sentence.

But before you can respond, an annoyed voice interrupts. "Kids, if you don't shut up right now, I'll call security."

“Kids?” Suna raises an eyebrow at the older man, not intimidated in the slightest.

Despite being considered rather small for a middle blocker and not appearing particularly strong, there's something about him that makes you feel safe and protected (and he is still over 6’ tall after all). So when he gets up and looks down at the man, you feel a cold shiver running down your spine (note to yourself: Suna Rintarou can be scary outside of the court too).

You move reflexively and gently brush his fingers with your own. Without realising it, you start tracing a path from his fingertips — rough and calloused, the result of years of training — to the palm of his hand — where the cracks soften and almost feel like honey under your touch. You haven’t even intertwined your fingers with his, still, this is the closest you have ever been to taking his hand. It should be a simple touch, it only lasts for a fleeting seconds but it’s enough to start a fire inside your heart. You forget how to breathe as if you were being strangled by the smoke but your mind begs to you draw in for more. Inhale. Suffocate.

You don’t feel him tremble from the touch.

“Suna-san…” you call his name in a hushed voice and try to calm him down. “It’s fine.”

He clears his throat and puts his hands in his pockets — you already miss him. “Apologies, we got carried away. It won’t happen again,” Suna says with a smile that can only be described as forced. You think he is about to sit back next to you but instead, he calls your name and makes his way to the exit. You apologise politely and follow him, of course, you do. He does not even need to ask you to, his move is enough to guide you out of the planetarium.

Both of you stay quiet for a moment as you walk through the corridors of the museum. If someone had asked you if you were excited to visit this place you would have said yes. However, right now you can’t dismiss the unpleasant tightness that has settled in your heart. You try to hide your slight disappointment by walking a few steps behind him. You really try not to replay what has just happened, but the more you think about it, the more blame you put on yourself for making him feel uncomfortable. You should never have touched him in the first place, you ruminate. What if Suna dislikes you now? What if he never wants to talk to you again? Who could have guessed that you could be so pessimist? You — the girl who usually puts the minimum effort in everything that she does, the girl who tries to stay as far as possible from dramas and unnecessary distractions. The one who never cries, never cares more than she should, never opens her heart to overwhelming emotions. Meeting Suna was enough to crumble everything that the sixteen years you had lived forged in you.

You don’t understand.

“So, Sensei.” He starts saying while stopping in front of what looks like an interactive machine. “How does this…” he squints his eyes to read the sign, “generator work?”

You’re a bit taken aback. The boy in front of you seems to be wearing his usual expression (slacker, unimpressed).

“I need help for the midterms, remember?”, he smiles.

Right, you think. You’re here to help him, nothing more, nothing less.

You blink a few times as you try to make the negative thoughts vanish. “Basically…” you reply, cautiously. “The generator creates static electricity by moving electric charges to the dome. When you touch it, the charges transfer to you, making your hair stand on end."

Suna nods, his eyes fixed not on the machine, but on you.

"So, the electrons build up on the dome," you continue to avoid his gaze and mechanically expound what you have learnt in class, "and when they have nowhere else to go, they leap to the nearest conductor. That's why you get a shock. It's all about the movement of electrons creating a current. For the midterms, I think you should -” You finally take a look at him. Although his eyes are on you, he seems absent. “You’re not listening, aren’t you?”

He lets out a small cough, snapping out of his thoughts. "Yeah, sorry. It's just... you make it sound so interesting."

You open your mouth, a bit flustered but immediately take a step back. "Well, I hope it's making sense."

"It is," he leans over, getting a better look at your face.

Suna has learnt his lesson. He knows you easily become flustered when he gets close to you. He did it in the planetarium, he loves to do it in the library when the two of you are studying. In these moments, he can’t help but think about how pretty you are. But this time, something is off with you.

“Are you okay?” he asks. “Did I say something wrong?”

Now you feel bad for making him worried, you want to reassure him so you shake your head, “No… absolutely not. I’m sorry Suna-san, I should be the one apologising.” Your body moves on instinct and you take another step back. But Rintarou is more stubborn than you think and the more space you create, the closer he wants to get.

“You already are.”

His teasing grin doesn’t help you overcome your gloomy mood.

“What are you sorry for anyway?”

Suna wants this conversation to be over soon, he wants your usual self to come back and explain more scientific concepts to him — not that he cares about these concepts, he just loves how serious and captivated you look.

His tone is more pissed than before so you decide to surrender, “I took your hand in the - in the planetarium. That was weird, I shouldn’t have done it.”

You’re searching for anything in the room that could distract your gaze from falling on him. Your hands sweat and you don’t know if it is from the void his fingers have left on yours or from the embarrassment you feel from the current situation.

“Did you hate it that much?”

You build up some courage and finally decide to look up to meet his eyes. They’re sharp, like always, but you also catch the sight of a certain intensity that shows nothing but sincerity.

“’Cause I didn’t.”

Your heart skips a beat and before you can justify yourself, apologise, again, for misexplaining the situation — because you certainly did not hate it either — he takes your hand in his.

“I actually enjoyed it. You can do it again, whenever you want.”

This single move makes you forget about your sweaty hands and tightened heart. There’s a chuckle, first from you, then from him. You inch a little bit closer — not too much, you might get burned by the heat that radiates from your two bodies. You close your eyes and for what feels like an infinite amount of minutes — remember your whole perception of time has been shattered today — you just focus and lean into his scent. He smells like pumpkin spices and wet wood, one that has been washed by the rain. It reminds you of autumn (if you never liked summer and winter, then starting today, autumn can become your favourite season).

“Ladies and Gentlemen”, his grip loosens at the sound of the speakers, “we gently remind you that the Kobe Museum of Science is about to close in ten minutes, please make your way to the exit. We thank you for your visit and hope you will come back again.”

There’s a disappointment that the day is coming to a close. You wonder if he feels the same way, if he enjoyed your company as much as you did. The silence between you is comfortable yet you wish you could find a way to convey your feelings into words.

“Thank you for today,” you finally say, breaking the quiet moment.

Suna turns to you, his gaze steady, “No, thank you,” he replies softly. “I had a great time and the cake looks very good.”

You smile shyly, feeling a rush of warmth in your chest. “I’m glad.”

You go through the shop together. You take advantage of a moment of inattention from him to buy him a planet key ring. Little did you know, Suna also got you something. You laugh as you exchange your gifts. Despite him complaining about how you already gave him the cake, he accepts the present.

“Why Mars though?”

You don’t tell him that Mars is the god of war and fire and that the latter reminds you of him. You don’t tell him that if you had gotten yourself a key ring you would have chosen Venus for they have loved and consumed each other passionately. You prefer cutting out the topic by saying the colour of the planet, red, would fit with his volleyball jacket (you also try to overlook the fact that Venus and Mars never got a happy ending). He thanks you again.

There’s a pause as you both stand outside the museum. You’re about to say goodbye but he interrupts.

“I was wondering if…” Suna starts, then stops abruptly as if unsure of how to continue.

“What is it?”

He takes a deep breath, steeling himself, “Maybe we should come back here. But… not as friends.”

You look at him confused, “Do you get what I am saying?”

Your heart is racing too fast to come up with anything so you shake your head.

“What I mean is-” he stops again, not because he is annoyed, but because he needs to. The sound of his heartbeats is going up to his temples. It’s pounding louder and louder. No volleyball game ever had this effect on him, ever. He scratches the back of his neck, “Do you want to go out with me?”

You don’t think your mind has ever been this quick to make a decision. You can’t remember what you said exactly, perhaps, “I’d love to.” Or “it would be a pleasure Suna-san.” It doesn’t matter anyway. What you remember is that your cheeks hurt so much from grinning you fear you might get cramps.

Rintarou takes a moment to admire your smile, he thinks there is sunlight in it.

When you go home that night, you realise your room is the same: your bed is still neatly made, the books on the shelf are exactly as you left them, and the faint scent of that lavender softener your mother uses still lingers in the air. Yet, everything inside you feels different. Your heart beats with a new rhythm filled with the warmth of Suna's fingers. The quiet corners of your mind are now bustling with his words.

You swear (“on my life, Umi”) that you wanted to call your best friend as soon as you sat on your bed but Morpheus had other plans for you and you fell asleep in the blink of an eye.

So the next day, during lunch, when you tell her about your newfound relationship, even if she pouts at first because “why didn’t you tell me yesterday ? Or this morning?”, she falls into your arms and hugs you tightly.

“I’m so happy for your though, I might even be the happiest one here.”

Gods know she’s wrong, so wrong, there is no way she could be happier than you, no one in the world could. But you don’t tell her that, you only thank her and chuckle.

“I’ll tell Gin he was wrong then.”

You frown, puzzled, “wrong about?”

“He thought you would date Osamu.”

You suddenly choke on your food. How would a guy that you barely know (Gin) see you with another guy (Osamu) with whom the amount of conversations you have shared can be counted on the fingers of a hand?

“Osamu is…” you hesitate after taking a sip of water “kind.”

“Yeah don’t worry, I already told him that you only had eyes for Sunarin.” she shakes her hands to defend herself.

You’re about to growl; you hate when your life is exposed to random people (that includes absolutely everyone at school except for Umi and Suna), but she’s quicker than you and grabs your shoulders.

“There’s the sports festival in a few days and you’re on the same team as Osamu for the relay race so you’ll get to know him. You’ll see he’s very very kind, much kinder even, I would say.” she crosses her arms and you know she secretly wants to add “much kinder compared to her stupid brother.”

“Indeed, I will see.” You conclude as you lay your head on her shoulder. She is initially a bit surprised, as you’re not usually a fan of displays of affection. Perhaps this relationship with Suna will bring out the best in you — a softer, more vulnerable side, she hopes. But there is this strange feeling that accompanies the joy, one that settles in her chest and that will never leave her afterwards — she tries to forget about it.

You finally close your eyes and appreciate the calmness that has invaded your body.

At this moment, sitting next to your very best friend, you think life is made of wet wood and fire.

author notes: my hearts melts for them <3 enjoy the fluff while it’s here 🫣 see you next friday! lots of love

Elie

[jodilin65]

The older I get, the less emotional I get, but when I went to Aly’s Twitter profile which is still there, and saw the birthday balloons pop up, I shed some tears as I wished her a happy birthday. She should be alive to celebrate her 43rd birthday today. Instead, she is a pile of ashes somewhere in her parents’ home. Life is just so fucking unfair.

Looks like Ray’s gone. It frustrates me that the honker is still here. I’m going to be pissed if he isn’t gone by May. As it is, it sucks to now be stuck with him for 6 months a year instead of 5.

I’m also frustrated because I can’t see clearly out of my new glasses. If anything, they make it harder to see out of. I need to look for a female eye doctor. Other than Tom and very few other exceptions, guys are just so dumb and incompetent. I can still use the new glasses; they’re just not as clear as they should be.

I’m not sure if it woke me up or if I noticed the smell when I woke up but I didn’t think of how the place would smell like a woodshop when he ran out to Lowe’s as I was crashing to get the plywood for the waterbed which is due to arrive Friday. About 3 more sleeps on this dented piece of shit! This will be my third waterbed but the first one with tubes rather than a big bag. The one I had in Massachusetts was a full and the one we had in Phoenix was a king. This one is a full.

Anyway, I don’t mind the smell of fresh-cut wood at all but I’m not sure if it woke me up or I woke up and then noticed it. All I know is that I had trouble getting back to sleep. While I was still lying there awake I heard what I first thought was a seriously low-flying helicopter before I realized it was the mower. I wonder if it would have woken me up. I’ll find out soon enough because, in a couple of weeks, they’re going to come around every week.

Surprisingly, I’m not as tired as I thought I would be after getting up. There were a few spikes on the oxygen chart because I didn’t sleep with a mouthguard once I knew my sleep was going to be broken up. I think it’s deceptive, though, because I think when I wake up for a minute here and there and tend to take a deeper breath, it’s counting that as a breathing issue.

Still waiting on the second fitted sheet and my Temu order. Also looking forward to trying out a new Chinese place once I start staying up later in the morning. the first time around I’m going to try their rice and ribs. if I like them I’ll eventually try their egg foo young and fried crabs. then the third visit will be for their pu pu platter. The food will last a few days.

[esoteric-v]

LUCID - CHAPTER 1

VOLUME 1 – WHITE ASH

"You get broken down, only to rebuild yourself better.”

–Mikayla

“Like a rising phoenix emerging from the ashes, you embody the cycle of life and death.”

–Sushie Plushie

“From dust to dust, ashes to ashes, yet your spirit remains eternal.”

–Kaz

This Novel is dedicated to my cult members, friends, and patrons. Thank you all, for your support.

ARC I Down The Rabbit Hole

If life is a joke, then God has a sick and twisted sense of humor.

For we are all a product of otherworldly entertainment, and I am His pen.

Chapter 1

In this realm that I inhabit, the very notion of time has been stripped away, leaving me in a state of perpetual disorientation. The ebb and flow of night and day takes on a peculiar, twisted quality that challenges my senses without any discernible pattern.

As I peer through the looking glass, a reflection of our familiar world presents itself, yet upon crossing its threshold, I find myself immersed in a reality entirely distinct, plunging me into the depths of my own unraveling sanity. Here, everything is turned upside down, defying logic and reason.

Though the semblance of order in our previous reality may have seemed coherent, this world, to my disturbed mind, appears to possess a deeper sense of understanding than even the most mentally sound and emotionally stable individual could comprehend.

I venture forth into the abyss beyond the mirror, transforming into the embodiment of my own subconscious, thrust into a realm of sheer lunacy. Down the treacherous rabbit hole I descend, surrendering to the whims of this chaotic dimension.

Author's Notes:

I've decided to enter this domain within Tumblr in order to evade myself off the metaphysical wastelands of other forms of social media. Especially Reddit, VRChat, and Discord. It may be for the time being, yet it is for the betterment of my own mental health.

Fret not of my old alias, I go by the pen-name Esoteric_V now, due to the relentless inexplicable horrors that traumatized me due to absolute r***rded hivemind of the internet.

Forgive me for the way I talk, this is not intentional I assure you, I honestly have no way of diagnosing the cause of such a manner of speech.

But I can assure you that, this wasn't how I talked 3 minutes ago.

I hope all of you are having a wonderful day.

Additional Notes:

My DM's are open. Friend me at your own leisure, by any means please.