#SHS WAS JUST A FIRST YEAR HIGH SCHOOLER WANTING TO FIT IN..........

[whspermy-name]

STOP WHAT THE FUVK WHAS THAT ENDING

[absolutepokemontrash]

MC is Half Demon and They Look Awfully Familiar

(Lessons 1-5!)

Part 1 Part 2 Lessons 5-6 Group Retreat Lessons 10-12 Lessons 13-15 Part 3 Part 4

So we obviously know that things would run a little differently with L!MC instead of a normal human MC, but just how differently do things go?

No Mammon, you are not allowed to babysit!

Unlike in canon, Mammon needs to be kept away from MC at the start. Why? He’s known this kid for less than a day, he’s gonna try and use them for scams.

Everyone else in the house? Well, they’re of... observing MC. This is a first, a half human kid just wandering around the house...

MC and Lucifer, despite their amicable meeting, were in this really awkward beginning stage where they didn’t really know what to do with each other.

“So...” MC resisted the urge to twiddle their thumbs as they followed their father through the halls of the House of Lamentation. This was their home for the next year. It was very grand... and also very creepy in some places. “Where’s my room?”

“Right here.” Lucifer stopped suddenly in front of a door in the hallway, nearly causing MC to crash into him. He opened up the door, the room was very very pink. “Asmodeus decorated, you can redecorate as you see fit.”

MC popped their head in and looked around, there were approximately a thousand pillows scattered around the bed. It was the perfect amount! The very pink colour scheme was... okay. Maybe they’d be able to switch some of it out for a nice blue.

“It’s nice! Thank you,” MC was about to say Lucifer, then father, then just shut their mouth. What were they supposed to call him? They had known each other for like... an hour. He seemed like the type to want to be called father, he was too posh to be ‘dad’ or ‘pops’, and calling their father by his first name seemed way too casual as well... Parental Figure..? Guardian? Sir..? Should they call him sir???

The fact that MC ended their sentence like they were going to continue it left the two in a very awkward silence. A+ job at conversation.

“Anyway,” Lucifer finally broke the silence. “If you need time to settle in, we can pick up the tour later.”

“N-no, it’s okay! I didn’t really bring anything so...” MC was in the middle of mentally cursing themselves out, they thought they had successfully avoided falling into the awkward middle schooler stereotype! “We can keep the tour going.”

“Alright then.” Lucifer turned and motioned for MC to follow. Wow... he was very... curt? Was that the right word to use? MC hoped this was as awkward for him as it was for them.

The next stop was the portrait staircase, Lucifer explained each one down to each minute detail, MC listened in rapt attention.

“We received that one from a painter from the sixth layer of the Devildom, it was quite a rare find.”

“How many layers are there?”

“Nine, we’re in the centre most layer. This is the most highly defended part of the Devildom.” Lucifer explained.

“Oh,” MC smiled. “Cool, so it’s like how Dante described it in the Divine Comedy?”

“Mostly, some changes have been made since that time.”

“Ah, okay.” MC nodded, a thought came to them which made them clear their throat to suppress a giggle. “May I ask a question that might bother you?”

Lucifer turned and raised an eyebrow at them. “You may ask one such question.”

“Why did Dante say you were frozen in an ice lake?”

Lucifer looked around, once he was sure that no one was listening, he turned back to MC, his voice was slightly lower when he answered. “I was ice skating with Lord Diavolo, I fell through the ice and into the lake right as Virgil and Dante arrived. Of course, Dante had to embellish or I’d smite him, if only he left out the ice part.”

To MC’s credit, they didn’t laugh, but they weren’t doing a very good job of hiding how hard it was to not burst into laughter. “Oh my... how upsetting...”

Lucifer rolled his eyes. “I’d tell you not to tell anyone but,” his lips quirked up into a smile. “No one would believe you if you said anything anyway.”

MC gasped, but the gasp ended up releasing the laugh they were holding in.

The half demon noticed some of the other portraits on the wall, each of the brothers had a portrait, there were two demons that MC didn’t recognize. So that was their family... they wondered if their picture might be on that wall one day...

“Who’s he?” MC pointed at the portrait between Mammon’s and Satan’s.

“That’s Leviathan, the third eldest, the Avatar of Envy, and the Grand Admiral of Hell’s Navy.”

‘Oooo, so he’s a military guy!’ MC thought to themselves. ‘And the third most powerful brother? Wow... he must be crazy scary...’

“What about him?” MC pointed at the seventh and final portrait.

It may have just been MC’s imagination, but they swore they saw Lucifer’s expression sour slightly.

“That’s Belphegor, the youngest and the Avatar of Sloth.” Lucifer explained. “He is currently in the human world as an exchange student.”

“Oh,” MC studied the portraits a bit more. “Cool! I hope he’s having a good time up there.”

“As do I.” Lucifer replied. “Now we should move on to the Underground-”

“LUCIFER!” Asmodeus cried. “MAMMON’S BEING STUPID AGAIN!”

Lucifer sighed and dragged a gloved hand down his face. “We’ll continue this tour later, MC. Feel free to explore some more, try not to break anything.”

“Because the things might be cursed?”

“That and the things are old and expensive.”

MC spends the rest of the day chilling in the house with Asmo, who peppers MC with ALL the questions.

They does their best to answer... but it’s clear Asmo was hoping for something a little more interesting.

“So, do you run the human world?”

“No. No I do not.”

Finally, Mammon escapes whatever punishment Lucifer’s got him caught up in and tried to get MC involved in something that’ll probably make them lose their money.

Mini HC! A demon’s wings, tail, or horns might pop out randomly if they aren’t paying attention! The demon doesn’t even need to be in their true demonic form for this to happen. It happens more often with younger demons like MC!

Mammon stops his little scheme when he notices that MC’s wings have popped out and left a few stray feathers lying about... he can hear the CHA CHING sound already.

Our favourite dummy tried to Mission Impossible his way into MC’s room but MC caught him trying to make off with some loose feathers after they came back with a dustpan to clean them up.

Eventually, it was dinner time, and Levi was still camped out in his room. Mammon got sent to get him out, and he decided to drag MC along with him.

“I don’t think we should bother him-”

“Sh! We gotta get him out of his stupid room or he’s gonna stay in there until the exchange year’s over.” Mammon snapped, stopping in front of Leviathan’s door.

“I still don’t think we should-”

Mammon rudely interrupted poor, aghast MC by slamming his fists against the door. “LEVI! GET UP! DINNER’S READY!”

The only response was someone increasing the volume on whatever show was playing behind the door. Wow, petty. MC suppressed a snort until they realized exactly what they were hearing.

Was that...

“Is that the Sailor Moon theme?” MC turned to Mammon and asked. The moment the question left their lips the pair heard someone practically bolt to the door. It swung open and hit Mammon right in the face.

“MOTHER FUCKER-”

“You!”

Ah, so this was the Grand Admiral of Hell’s Navy. MC didn’t know that track pants and headphones were a part of the uniform.

“You like anime?!” Levi asked, MC slowly nodded.

“Y-yeah..?”

Quick as lightning, MC was pulled into the room, and Levi slammed the door shut, tragically, the door hit Mammon again.

“LEVI YOU ASS-”

Leviathan didn’t seem too interested in Mammon’s chorus of curse words and angry knocks, he was grabbing some figurines off shelves and showing some to MC.

“Do you know who this is?!”

“That’s White Blood Cell from Cells at Work. What about Mamm-”

“How about this!”

“Violet Evergarden from the show of the same name, now Levia-”

“Whose this?!”

“LEVIATHAN!” MC stomped their foot and pointed at the door. “Mammon said we need to go eat dinner.”

“Don’t interrupt me, human!” Levi hissed, MC rolled their eyes and snorted.

“Nice to meet you, by the way.” MC crossed their arms and let their wings appear and puff up behind them.

“...w-whu-WHAT?!”

“We have to go to-” MC was cut off yet again by Levi passing out. Wow... what a day...

Mammon was still pounding on the door, MC rolled their eyes and opened it.

“He passed out, can you carry him?”

Mammon was decidedly not careful with his dear little brother when he dragged him out of his room and into the dining room. When Levi finally woke up, he got an earful from Lucifer, and tried to kill Mammon.

Apparently money was owed that Mammon wasn’t about to pay.

So yeah, MC and Levi’s alliance did not stem from desperation, it stems from otaku-camaraderie.

MC and Levi planned their credit-card hostage situation over a fun evening of watching anime.

Mammon never knew what hit him...

“Okay Mammon, pay up or your credit card gets cut up.” MC playfully opened and closed the scissors before poising them to cut up the helpless credit card. Mammon let out a shriek and shook his head.

“NONONONONO- don’t do that!” Mammon put his hands up and let out a nervous laugh. “MC... wh-what’s with all the animosity..? We’re buddies, right?”

MC snorted and rolled their eyes. “Buddies don’t try and make money off each other’s feathers.”

“You heard them, Mammon.” Levi snickered. “Pay me back the money you owe me!”

“I don’t have the money right now!”

MC shook their head. “Pity... oh well, bye bye Goldie-”

“The money’s in my sock drawer- just please put the scissors down!”

They slowly lowered the scissors. “What do you think, Levi?”

“Hmmm... you have two minutes.” Levi said, Mammon took off in a sprint out of the kitchen.

“Nice job Agent L!” MC chirped, holding their hand out for a high five, Levi looked positively elated and gleefully hit his hand against MC’s.

“We did it! I’m finally going to have enough money to go to the live show! Couldn’t have done it without your help, Agent Near.”

“Wait- why am I Near?” MC asked. “You get to be L and I have to be Near?”

Levi crossed his arms and huffed. “Would you rather be Mellow?”

“No! I want to be Light! We agreed that I’d be Light!” MC hissed. Levi, literally hissed back.

Rude.

Anyway, Levi got paid, and everyone had a very entertaining breakfast. Well, Mammon didn’t have a very good time, but boo hoo he should have paid Levi back sooner.

I think MC felt legitimately bad for Mammon, all the insults and jabs being aimed at him made MC feel a little guilty...

MC took care to be extra sweet that day, and it made Mammon feel a bit better. You know what made both of them feel amazing?

Screwing with the dipshits that were talking crap about the two of them.

MC didn’t need super-hearing to notice that some of the demons at RAD found it to be peak comedy that Mammon got slapped with babysitting duty.

“...do you want to mess with them?”

“What?”

“Too late, I’m doing it with or without you.”

Mammon was totally in, obviously. A little magic to move some of the lesser demons’ things around and voila! They were all at each other’s throats and Mammon and MC got to enjoy a fun lunchtime show!

The Purgatory Hall crew got to meet MC too, of course!

“And this,” Lucifer gestured to MC. “Is the other human exchange student.”

MC popped up from behind one of the rows of desks and gave the three newcomers a toothy grin. “Nice to meet you!”

Simeon’s calm and serene expression dropped almost immediately as he quickly looked from Lucifer to MC. The latter just gave him an innocent smile and tilted their head.

“Is something the matter?” MC asked, through the corner of their eye they saw Lucifer smirk slightly.

“N...” Simeon snapped back to reality. “No, nothing’s the matter, it’s nice to meet you, MC.”

“You awful demons!” A much younger voice yapped. “You brought a human child down here?! Shame on you!”

Lucifer rolled his eyes. “I’m overwhelmed with guilt, put me out of my misery.”

“Oh!” MC gasped. “You’re the chihuahua!”

“Wh-what?!”

“What?” MC shook their head and shrugged. “What’s the matter with me being a kid? You look like you’re ten.”

“I’ll have you know that I’m well over-”

“Am I just going to go ignored?” The third and final stranger asked, a cheeky/very suspicious looking grin on his face.

“Right, you.” Lucifer sighed. “This is Solomon, another human exchange student.”

“It’s nice to finally meet the other... human exchange student.” Solomon offered a nod.

“Likewise.” MC pretended not to notice the pause before he said human.

The first bell that meant “haul your ass to next period because if the cleaning staff finds you skipping class you will be maimed” sounded. MC slung their bag over their shoulder and brushed past their fellow students.

“Have a nice rest of your day, everyone!” MC chirped as they and Lucifer headed off to their next class.

“What do you stand to gain by pretending you aren’t my child?” Lucifer asked.

MC snickered. “It’s funny! Didn’t you see their faces?”

Lucifer half smiled and shook his head. “Perhaps.”

—————

“That kid is Lucifer’s.” Solomon said the moment Lucifer and MC were out of earshot.

“Oh thank heavens someone else saw too... I thought I was going crazy...” Simeon sighed in relief.

“Hey! We’ll be late to class if you guys don’t hurry!” Luke called from down the hall.

Solomon chuckled under his breath. “This whole year just got way more interesting...”

A lot of MC’s time got devoted to getting to know their newly found family.

Satan was proving to be very... polite? Almost weirdly so? He’d address MC like he would address a formal acquaintance, not like one would address a family member... or even a roommate.

MC tried the delicate dance of trying to respect his boundaries and trying to get him to like them...

Once the glasses incident happened everything kinda caved. MC had been quite rudely shunned by Satan and they were quite done trying to be his friend! Hmph!

...hmph :(

At least Beel was nice... despite MC being a little intimidated by his size and resting bitch face, MC soon found out that Beel was a massive cinnamon roll.

In return for all the snacks Beel shared with MC, they introduced him to at least five human world cooking shows.

“MC, why is the music so dramatic? They’re just revealing the cooking supplies.”

“It’s a reality TV thing... everything is 10 times more dramatic than it needs to be. The music’s doing its job though, I’m very impressed by that pie dish.”

Overall, MC’s first week at RAD was pretty decent! Until... well... until Friday.

MC could only hide their demonic side for so long...

“That’s them?”

MC slowed their steps and turned to look for the source of the voice.

“Yep.” A second voice confirmed. “Human kid, like I said.”

Ugh... of all the times to have needed to stay late after school... the hallway MC was in was completely empty and they had no clue where anyone they actually knew was-

“Boo.”

MC whirled around to see the two gossiping demons standing right behind them. They instinctively took a few steps back before the taller of the two demons grabbed them by the wrist and yanked them forward.

“Geez, are all humans this tiny?” The taller one asked as he slowly lifted MC off the ground. MC fixed him with the nastiest glare possible, he tried to scowl back, but ended up looking away and laughing to the shorter demon. “Look at them, barely enough for a snack, no wonder Beel hasn’t eaten them yet.”

Turning to the shorter demon, MC gave them a similar glare. “Put me down.”

“Tsk, quiet.” The taller demon snapped, he turned back to the shorter demon. “So if we just nab them now, how much do you think someone’ll take for their soul?”

“I-uh...” the shorter demon couldn’t pry their gaze away from MC’s as they tried to sputter a response. “I don’t think we should...”

“Why not? The exchange program’s still in its trial phase anyway, we kill this human and they’ll just bring in another one.”

The way he was speaking about them made MC’s skin crawl. How dare he? How dare he talk about them like they were just common trash? Who did this... person think he was?

An old familiar feeling bubbled beneath the surface. It had always been there, the intense, sometimes overwhelming desire to let the whole world know that they were better. The feeling coiled its way up MC’s spine and wormed its way into their head where it settled.

“You can’t be spoken to like that.”

Every single time this feeling had flared up, MC had done their best to suppress it. They didn’t know what would happen if they gave in, and frankly, they didn’t want to know.

“Let them know you’re not to be trifled with.”

The burning desire to crush the two demons like ants was almost impossible to ignore. MC felt their hands twitch and sparks snap between their fingertips.

“I’m not going to tell you again,” MC growled. “Put. Me. Down.”

“Human,” the taller demon turned back and cooed, his mocking tone made MC want to rip his throat out. “I said be quiet.”

His grip on MC’s wrist tightened until a sickening crack echoed through the empty hallway.

Bile immediately rose in MC’s throat as they let out an earsplitting scream. Their wrist seared in pain and their heart began to race hammer against their ribcage.

The desire to give in only grew and became harder to control, MC could feel themselves slipping. The feeling only had one simple question to ask, one that MC knew the answer to.

“Are you going to let them get away with that?”

Their face morphed into a cheek splitting grin despite the pain, their head tilted to the left as they stared down the two demons.

“No.”

Horns twisted and burst out of their skull as they dug their rapidly sharpening nails into the demon’s arm. Their teeth grew and sharpened while formerly hidden fangs burst through their upper gums. The agonizing pain of their bones growing, snapping, and shifting in and out of place as their demonic form took hold for the first time numbed as MC revelled in their new power.

Through the reflection in the taller demon’s horrified stare, MC could see their pupils stretch into almost catlike slits. He dropped them onto the floor while he and the shorter demon backed up. MC’s impossibly wide smile only grew as they watched the realization dawn upon the lesser demon as he stitched together what he had just done. The human he had decided to bother wasn’t quite so human after all.

“Oh?” MC cooed as their wings split through their back and unfurled behind them. “Where do you think you two are going? We haven’t even gotten started yet.”

—————

Lucifer was jolted from his conversation by a sharp blast of blue light and the sound of screams from a nearby hallway. He instinctively rolled his eyes.

“Lord Diavolo, pardon me but I need to go deal with a disturbance in the halls.” Lucifer said, Diavolo sighed mournfully on the other end of the call.

“Alright, if you must, but make sure to come over later! There are events that need to be scheduled.”

Lucifer knew full well that Diavolo was making half of the school events up as an excuse for basic social interaction. Oh well, it wasn’t the time to think on his prince’s social woes, he had a problem to solve.

How many times did he have to tell some of those idiotic students to take their petty squabbles outside?

Lucifer made his way over to where the fight was happening, he wasn’t walking with particular urgency, a fight on school property wasn’t too unusual, until a massive shockwave spilled through the hallways and slammed into him.

The Avatar of Pride felt the hairs on the back of his neck stand straight up, that was his magical signature... wasn’t it? No, it was just different enough...

“Dammit.” Lucifer doubled his pace, when he reached the end of the hallway, the sight was just what he feared.

MC stood straight in the middle of the hallway with their back to him, two other demons were lying in crumpled heaps on the ground, one was next to an incredibly dented row of lockers while the other was lying next to an almost completely broken drinking fountain.

Lucifer’s own true form was out in a flash as MC turned to look at him. their eyes glowing a shining blue. Their lips curled into a snarl as they let out an otherworldly growl.

“Go away.”

“MC, calm yourself down.” Lucifer said slowly as he approached them. “Return to your normal form.”

The half demon bowed their head slightly and took a few steps back as he stepped closer. Lucifer almost patted himself on the back for such a show of authority, until MC paused and looked up defiantly. The glow in their eyes doubled as any sense of fear left them completely.

“I said, GO AWAY!”

They lunged at him, which he easily sidestepped, only for MC to quickly turn and latch their claws into his arm.

The child packed a surprising amount of force into their strikes, but he was able to block and redirect almost every single one. If this were any normal fight, Lucifer would have just swatted them away and have been done with it, but this wasn’t any ordinary opponent.

MC was his child, the exchange student, and going through their first transformation. They weren’t exactly rational or directly responsible for any of their actions at that moment.

During a first transformation the demon is almost completely relying on base instincts to function, they’ll go completely ballistic for a while, trying to tear through anything in their way until they run out of energy and pass out. Which is why during a demon’s first transformation usually happened much earlier in their lives under the watchful eyes of parents or guardians.

It was clear to anyone with even casual knowledge of demons that MC had fully given themselves over to their pride and wouldn’t stop trying to prove their superiority until they passed out.

Even though Lucifer was blocking and avoiding most of the blows, MC had managed to get in a few good scratches.

They snapped at Lucifer’s right hand, narrowly missing it and aimed their elbow at his jaw. Almost casually batting the hit away, he hissed in frustration.

“Damn it... MC, control yourself!”

MC snarled and sloppily lunged forward, only for Lucifer to use his wings to bat them to the side. They slid across the floor, their glasses falling off and skidding away from them. MC lay still for a few moments, their chest rising and falling rapidly.

Lucifer stood in place, waiting for any sudden movement. For a few moments, the hallway was quiet, save for the massive gulps of air MC was taking and the occasional groan of pain from one of the demons on the floor. MC slowly sat up and blinked a few times, then looked from side to side.

Something important dawned on Lucifer, he didn’t know just how blind MC was without their glasses.

MC’s rapid breathing began to slow as they continued to squint and search the area around them for their glasses. Lucifer almost audibly sighed in relief as the blue glow in his child’s eyes began to dull.

“MC.” Lucifer allowed his demon form to disappear as he slowly moved towards them, making sure MC could hear him approaching.

The half demon stopped scanning the area for their glasses and looked up at him, they awkwardly covered a yawn with their hand as their wings sleepily fluttered behind them. It would have been much cuter if MC wasn’t spattered with blood.

Lucifer slowly offered his hand, which MC eyed suspiciously. “Come on, let’s go.”

MC blinked a few times, then yawned again and awkwardly accepted his hand. “Mmph... m’tired...”

“That’s good,” Lucifer said quietly. “Everything’s okay.”

MC half nodded and awkwardly stumbled as they tried to find their footing. Lucifer tried to help steady them, but it proved ineffective as MC collapsed into his arms. Sighing, he picked them up and began to walk back to the House of Lamentation.

Just before leaving the school, Lucifer passed by Simeon and Solomon, who looked from MC, who had curled their wings around themselves and was sleeping soundly, to Lucifer, who had a few scratch marks on his face and whose hair was a complete mess.

“Ah, you two, one of you do me a favour.” Lucifer said as he brushed past them. “One of you go to the biology hallway and pick up MC’s glasses.”

Simeon and Solomon nodded and mumbled out an affirmation as Lucifer left the school with MC. Hmph, it seemed MC was right, their confused/shocked faces were quite funny.

MC woke up the next morning with the worst muscle pain they had ever and hopefully would ever feel. On the bright side, their wrist wasn’t broken anymore :D

They had literally built their true form. Their skeleton just stretched and rearranged itself, horns grew out from their cranium, their wings broke through their back and a new set of fangs decided to break through their gums... and then all of that new stuff was gone as MC lay in bed in their normal form like a deflated beach ball.

Not wanting to seem like a wimp, MC dragged themselves to breakfast, and everyone was all: “MC, go back to bed, you can’t do anything when you’re like this.”

“Quiet, I’m fine.”

“MC, if you’re fine, then give Beel a high five, make sure it makes the slap sound.”

“Alright then, Beel, come here.”

Beel didn’t exactly think to take MC’s shorter stature into account when holding up his hand for a high five. He’s tall, okay?

MC then proceeded to grit their teeth and try not to scream as they lifted their arm to weakly hit their hand against Beel’s.

“It made the noise..!”

“No it didn’t, I didn’t hear it.”

“Fatherrrr!”

“Couldn’t hear it, go back upstairs.”

When MC trudged upstairs, Asmo practically squealed and pointed out that MC had called Lucifer father for the first time. It’s a shame no one took a picture of happy/surprised Lucifer.

Side note: after the whole event calmed down, Lucifer was crazy proud that his kid kicked the asses of two grown demons.

Funnily enough, this incident is what kickstarted MC and Luke’s friendship! Luke heard MC got into a fight and brought over get-well cookies! Sure... Beel, Mammon and Levi stole most of the cookies but they were still good!

At school on Monday... hooooooo boy... the two demons that tried to kill MC had lived to tell the tale thanks to MC getting distracted by Lucifer, and now the entire student body knew NOT to fuck with MC.

A few weeks into the exchange year, things had settled into a somewhat normal routine... until one really shitty night in particular.

MC was curled up in bed, their new comforter and sheets were a pain to put in, but they suited MC’s taste much better than the pink that had been there previously. Sighing in contentment, MC felt themselves drifting off to sleep-

Mother fucker who was texting at the ungodly hour of 10:30 pm on a Sunday? ‘Twas the lord’s day and the lord of the house stated that everyone needed to get their asses to bed at a reasonable hour.

MC picked up their phone and put on their glasses. After being blinded by the light of the phone for a brief moment, MC read the text.

Not-Rich Uncle Pennybags 💰🕶: Oi! MC! U want a snack?

Not-Rich Uncle Pennybags💰🕶: I’m in the kitchen! Get down here!

After debating whether or not to throw Mammon to the wolves and rat him out, MC decided that they did in fact want a snack and hopped out of bed to go to the kitchen.

“Hey kiddo!” Mammon said through a mouthful of something in a container, a loose note hung limply from a piece of tape that was stuck on the Tupperware. “Next time, hurry it up, got it? Ya can’t keep me waitin’ like this!”

“Mm...” MC grumbled, rubbing their eyes and looking around the kitchen. “What are you eating?”

“Custard!” Mammon smiled brightly. “Ya gotta try this!”

Oooo, custard! MC grabbed a spoon and practically skipped over to try some. Right before they were about to try a bit of the heavenly deliciousness, MC paused and finally caught a glimpse of what the note said.

‘Property of Beelzebub, you eat it, you die.’

Uh oh-

———————

Okay, the next few bits of this WILL come out in order, I promise! Kinda... not really... eh... but it matters not! I hope you all enjoyed this! I didn’t leave you with a cliffhanger this time considering Lessons 5-6 are already out ^_^

So uh- wanna fight the demons that tried to hurt MC? I’m bringing the pitchforks, who’s driving?

[xoxopeace]

Beautiful Boy ~ A Mr.Curtis Tale

I got this idea, after replaying Beautiful Boy by John Lennon a thousand times. I've seen a lot of posts about how kind and caring the Curtis parents were, and I wanted to write something that I felt like shaped what kind of parents they were. Enjoy!

( I gained all the information from the Outsiders Wikia. Also, I know that the Outsiders is set during the 1960s, and this song didn't come out till much later. Buttt lets pretend that it did :) .)

As time goes on for the Darrel and Susan Curtis, and their family of two soon becomes a family of five. He keeps singing a tune in his head as he watches his sons grow up.

January 5, 1945

It was no surprise to Darrel Curtis, sir that his first child would be a boy. Not that he would've minded having a girl, but there was something different in his heart once he saw his child. Even he and Susan, his high schooler sweetheart and now wife, were only twenty years old. Just kids themselves, he knew he was ready to take on the responsibilities of a man.

As his wife laid in the bed, exhausted from the hours of birth. He sat in the arm chair, with his newborn son in his arms. Darrel Shaynne Curtis Jr. That was his son's name, and a strong name at that. He still couldn't believe it. He was a father, he helped bring this tiny person into the world, someone besides his wife who needed him.

His train of thought was soon broken when the tiny baby began to squirm in his arms.

"Sh...sh Darrel it's okay." He whispered as he slowly rocked the baby in his arms. After his child kept squirming for a few minutes, and his face slowly begin to screw up ready to let out a wail. Darrel held him close to his chest and began whispering to him.

"Close your eyes." He began.

"Have no fear... the monsters gone. He's on the run and your daddy's here.".

His son slowly began to settle down, but he kept on whispering to his child.

"Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful boy." He said quietly. Even though his son was no back to sleep. The young father kept singing to himself.

"Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Beautiful boy."

January 1948

It's been a few years since Darrel, Darry for short was born. He was growing as fast as a weed. His son was polite, always saying please and thank you. Always helping his mother around the house as best as his abilities could.

Once his wife announced that their family would gain a new member soon, he knew that it was time to move his family into a bigger place.

It wasn't as big as the other houses the family saw as they drove across to the other side of town. But it was home, their home. The place they would watch their son, and any other children they had grow up.

The Curtis family adjusted well into their new home. Hanging up photos of themselves on the wall, Susan making her famous meatloaf and then all three of the Curtis members watching cartoons made the perfect night.

That night as he was tucking Darry into bed, Darrel stayed by the side of his son's bed a little longer. And as he watched his now eldest son fall asleep, he continued whispering to himself the same tune.

"Before you go to sleep. Say a little prayer. Every day in every way, it's getting better and better." He sang.

He pushed his son's hair back a little, as he continued.

"Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful." He whispered.

"Beautiful boy."

July 22, 1951

In a matter of six years, the Curtis family was finally complete. Darrel Curtis Sr. sat in the living room holding his youngest and third son in his arms. They named him Ponyboy, since they wanted to name their children something unique. They were original people of course, they even named their second son, Sodapop.

Sitting on both sides of him on the couch, was his oldest sons Darry on the left and Sodapop on the right. Both boys were excited to meet their new baby brother. They were at awe when they saw how little he was.

"Daddy he's so tiny." Sodapop whispered.

"Of course he's gonna be tiny." Darry told his little brother. "He's a baby, all babies are like that.".

Darrel laugh at his son's conversation.

"Don't worry." He told them. "One day he's gonna grow big and strong just like you guys are. But he's still your baby brother, he's gonna need the two of you.".

It wasn't long until Darry and Sodapop fell asleep at his side. The father sighed in contempt, still rocking Ponyboy in his arms. Looking down at his youngest child, he chuckled to himself as he thought about how far him and his wife have come. Looking at all three of his children, he knew that this was who he was meant to be. He was their father, he had a responsibility and a job that only a man could do.

He whispered to himself quietly, smirking as he watched his son's sleep around him.

"Before you cross the street, take my hand. Life is what happens to you while you're busy making other plans." He said.

"Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful. Beautiful boy."

Time Skip

His son's were growing every day. Even though it's been years, it still feels like they were all born just yesterday. Darry was twenty now, would soon be leaving fo college hopefully. Even though, they didn't have enough money to send him off to school. His son always tried his best in school and sports. He was a big star on the football team and maybe he would even get an athletic scholarship.

Sodapop was their wild child. At sixteen years old, he was a charming and kind soul. Always making a friend no matte where he went, even though everyone knew his best friend was Steve Randel. Sodapop always had a smile on his face, even during moments of sadness. Darrel and Susan knew they could count on Soda to brighten everyone's mood.

Ponyboy was their dreamer. He was younger than everyone else at just fourteen, but he fit right in with his brothers. He was always reading, or studying and was quiet most times. But whenever he was with his brothers, he was just as loud as they were.

As Darrel stood in the doorway of their kitchen, he watched his sons as they helped their mother set the table. Darry was sitting the food down, while Ponyboy was setting out the plates. He placed a few extra ones in case Johnny, Dally, Two-Bit or Steve showed up. Darrel smirked as he watched Sodapop try to swipe some icing of the chocolate cake Susan had set on the counter.

As he watched his sons, the father of three smiled to himself.

These boys were his legacy, they were his responsibility to take care of. And he would be dammed to mess that up, a lot of young men in their neighborhood don't have a father. He watched as those young men would get into gang fights, steal or get arrested constantly. Hoping to see if someone cared enough to stop them.

He always told himself that he wouldn't be that kind of father. He would always be there for his boys.

He whispered to himself quietly as he watched his son's bicker about whose getting what as they sat down at the table.

"Beautiful, beautiful, beautiful" He said quietly. And smiled as he finished the last sentence.

"Beautiful...boys."

[turquoise-stones]

Cinnamon Coffee

Shinsou x fem!reader

A/N: hey ya’ll I’m looking for shinsou fanfic inspiration, so if ya’ll have something you want to see dm me (no lemons plz). I wrote this a year and a half ago and there hasn’t been a shinsou fic since so... long overdue

. . .

Shinsou often blanked out most of the daily coming and goings of his day. After all, his daily routine was rather simple. Going out for coffee in the morning, going to class, going for a jog, then returning home to his beautiful... cats.

The hero in Shinsou's story was coffee. His endless sleep deprivation was especially apparent in the morning, and his wake up cup was the only way to look semi-alive. But how does a broke high schooler afford to buy coffee every morning?

With that in mind, he came to the realization that his true hero was the girl who he saw pretty much every morning. She seemed to be his age, and was the daughter of the owner of a cute little coffee shop called Red Bean Cafe, which served pastries and coffee at a jaw-droppingly affordable price. Not only that, but the customers all seemed to adore her.

Shinsou would specifically take a detour away from school to grab a deliciously simple cup of black brew from that cute barista. She made it best, regardless of the price. But as much as he wanted to get to know her better, he always had to hustle to class.

The familiar tinkling chimes greeted his ears as he walked into Red Bean one normal morning. The sun was just starting to peek out from behind the clouds, casting the small shop in a tranquil, golden glow. It was moments like these that Shinsou tried to remember, and not take for granted in his busy day.

There were just a couple sleepy looking people sitting in the cozy booths. The barista, (y/n), as her nametag said, was quietly frosting cookies at the counter.

There was something magical in the way she looked, cast in that gentle light. Her hair swayed slowly around her face as she moved, hands expertly squeezing swirls of frosting onto cookies. The cute way she leaned back to take a sip of coffee before pushing her glasses up and returning to her work caused warm fuzzies to emerge in Shinsou's heart.

As she noticed him come in, a cheery smile bloomed on her face, and she waved sweetly at him. He greeted her with a small smile as well. It warmed him up inside to know that she recognized and was happy to see him.

As he neared the counter, she set her frosting down and whisked away into the kitchen, quickly coming out with the signature takeout cup. She had a mischievous glimmer in her eyes. Before he even opened his mouth, she gracefully slipped the coffee across the counter to him.

"House blend, no sugar, no milk." She had a playful smile on her face, voice still quiet as to not disturb the other patrons. His wide eyes turned into a soft chuckle as he paid.

"Thank you..." He really had grown quite fond of her. Not just because she supplied him with his morning dose of energy, but for some unknown reason, he had started looking forward to just seeing her in the mornings. Maybe it was the adorable way her melodic voice would tinkle when she called his name out for coffee pickup, or maybe the way she smiled so purely to greet him as if she was as happy to see him as he was for her.

Yes, he found himself entranced by that girl. And judging by the way her eyes sparkled as she talked to him, he was sure that his feelings were reciprocated.

With a satisfied smile on his face, he took the warm cup in his hands and said a thank you before turning around to continue his walk to school.

"Ah, please wait a moment sir..." Her quiet voice came. He noticed the cute way she called him sir, even though they were practically the same age.

"Hmm?" He turned around, letting his sleepy eyes return to her. Her hair fell over her eyes as she fiddled with the ends of her apron.

She seemed to regret her spontaneous outburst for a second, before she fumbled with a rather large cream topped cookie and stuck it out to him with an embarrassed look on her face.

"I-it's on the house. I hope you like cinnamon." She stuttered, blushing slightly, looking down. Little did he know, she knew exactly who he was, he was in the Sports Festival after all. His handsome features had instantly drawn her in, and his determined personality and straightforward words kept her hooked.

But she knew that it was rather weird to just tell a stranger that you knew them, but she did want to get to know the mysterious purple haired boy. Thus, an offering of a cookie. Shinsou let out a tired chuckle and took it from her trembling hand.

"I love cinnamon. Thank you very much." He reached out, purposefully brushing his fingers against hers for a second before accepting her gift. With a parting smile at her flustered form, he left the cafe. God, she was just too cute.

. . .

Since that day, Shinsou had wanted to make the sweet barista a part of his daily routine as well, not just her coffee. But he found himself unable to stay and chat with her because she had other orders to fulfill. He noticed with a smug sense of pride, that she never gave anyone else an extra cookie.

So one day, he dragged his sleep-deprived body out of bed early enough actually spend time in Red Bean, instead of just grabbing a cup and beelining out.

The familiar bells tinkled as he pushed the door open for the hundredth time. She waved energetically from behind the counter, frosting cookies before rush hour.

"Good morning sir! You're so early today!" Shinsou had once decided to ask her to call him by his name, but he enjoyed being called sir a little more than he should of. Little did he know, (y/n) was just avoiding the fact that she had mildly cyberstalked him.

It was another beautiful sunrise lit morning, and not a single person was in the shop. The cafe looked straight out of a fairytale, and the center of attention: she and her cheery presence fit in perfectly. He glanced at his clock, it was barely past six.

With a small wave, she slipped into the back, he assumed to grab his prepared cup of house blend, and wrap up a cookie for him. He never ordered one, but she always gave him a yummy pastry. He thought they were so tasty anyway that he didn't have the willpower to say no.

But he didn't like the fact that he took cookies for free (even though she wrapped one up every day without hesitation), so he always made it a point to pay in the form of a tip, a caring fact about him that she quickly noticed.

Silently, the perfect amount of money was given, and the coffee was passed over. He hesitated a moment, not really knowing if he should talk to her here, and opted to simply settle down in a cushy chair.

He munched on the flavorful cookie, aimlessly looking at her bustling figure, frosting-coated fingers brushing a speck of sugar off her nose.

She noticed his gaze with a small smile, noticing that he was actually sitting down, before making the decision to put off cookie making for a moment, and joined him instead.

With a quiet huff, she plopped down in the seat across from him, giving him a nervous smile. He tilted his head to the side, taking another bite, watching her settle in and sip some coffee of her own. There was a comfortable quiet in the air as if they were old friends having a day out, instead of strangers. Today, it seemed as if the cafe was for the two of them and the two of them only.

"Try the coffee out... I put a little extra something in it." She chimed quietly, soft voice blending in effortlessly with the dreamlike quality of the room.

He raised an eyebrow over his raised cup, before cautiously taking a sip. The dark, rich, familiar flavor of the mysterious Red Bean house blend washed over him before a deliciously sweet spice snuck in on him in the end.

"Mm... you put cinnamon in it." He mused, before taking another long sip, savoring the new flavor. It was quite a tasty change from his daily routine.

He thought she looked so adorable, with her chin in her hands and elbows on the table, leaning toward him slightly to get a good look at his reaction.

"What do you think?" She asked with a slight smile on her expectant looking face.

Looking at her doe eyes, he smirked slightly, a naughty idea crossing his mind. He set the coffee down, leaning in closer to her until he was inches away from her face.

She flushed, with a wordless stutter, confused at his sudden proximity. But she didn't pull away, opting to stare at his glimmering eyes instead.

"If you want to know so bad... why don't I let you try some?" He murmured, before pressing his lips against hers.

He didn't see her eyes widen in surprise, as his were closed to enjoy the moment. She felt his mildly chapped lips tint hers with the bitter touch of coffee, before a sweet taste of cinnamon. She hesitantly moved her lips against his, liking the feeling of having him so close. All too soon, he pulled away, leaving her dazed.

"What do you think?" He rasped quietly, looking with satisfaction at the trance-like expression on her face.

"I- er... uh... good? I-It was really sweet..." she sputtered.

He raised his eyebrows at her in amusement.

"S-shinsou... don't look at me like that..." She chattered, her burning embarrassment scattering her thoughts. While she considered the purple haired patron extremely attractive, she never thought that he would ever kiss her.

"Oh, so you do know my name." He stated smoothly, leaning back with a smirk.

She hid your face in her hands, cheeks burning as she realized her slip up.

"I-I... well, you're kinda f-famous! A-and... I write it on your coffee! And yeah!" She sputtered, shaking her head and rocking slightly in her seat.

"I like the way you say my name... I think I even prefer it over 'sir'..." He took another quick sip of coffee, causing another firework of red blaze to erupt over her face. After a moment of silence, she spoke again.

"W-why did you kiss me?" She mumbled out. "That was my first kiss..."

He quirked up an eyebrow, feeling a little guilty. But he couldn't have helped himself.

"I was your first kiss? Sorry I didn't ask... but I'm glad I took it before someone else did." He smirked, after realizing that she wasn't really angry. He leaned an elbow against the table, resting his cheek on it, playfully looking at her.

She looked down slightly in embarrassment, twiddling with the ends of her hair. She shifted a bit, before brushing her hair back and looking up.

"Well... now what?" She fidgeted awkwardly. Shinsou leaned forward, smoothly lifting a pen out of her breast pocket. His proximity to... that area caused her to blaze a blush that outshone the sun.

He scribbled his number down on a napkin before sliding it over to her.

"Call me and maybe I'll answer that question." He smiled smugly. (Y/n) nearly fainted at how smooth this boy was being.

Just then, a tired looking patron walked into the shop, looking around for the missing cashier. Sending Shinsou a final flustered glance, she snatched up the tissue and scampered away to the cash register.

With a satisfied look on his face, he scooped up the remnants of his food, before slipping out the door.

Taking a sip of his delicious drink, he decided that this adorable little cinnamon roll of a girl would definitely become a part of his daily routine.

[booksandeverything-in-between]

My journalism journey

... has only just begun! 

This is my post for the “Life Narrative” assignment for JTC 326. I’ve added a “keep reading” tab because I hate putting extremely long posts on my dashboard! Keep in mind too, I’ve formatted this to fit the platform, so it’s not strictly professional. 

Also  — this is the first time I’ve shared my Tumblr with anyone who is not my sister, but it’s the perfect platform for this. 

** All pictures were taken by me unless otherwise specified, some taken from my old blog posts on here. 

A note before I start: When I first thought about this assignment, I had so many things I thought I could share, a lot of them deeply personal, somewhat dark and just not the right fit. I had a bit of a crisis; I cried a little. There is so much in my past that makes me, me, that I’ve only ever really shared with my therapist, but have generally wanted to write about. But it’s hard, and I don’t know how. And a whole lot of other stuff. BUT THEN

I realized I could share a story that I have always wanted to share! It perfectly relates to our class too and basically everything anyone would ever need to know about me! It’s amazing! I’m so excited! I hope you like it! 

(line break) 

It’s the summer before sixth grade. That’s how I define, or sort, my life, in my memories. It’s the year of school, or it’s the summer before/after. It’s not my age, or the calendar year; it’s school. For a long time my whole identity revolved around school, so it fits. 

Anyway, I’m bored. My older sister and I can only do so much Netflix-watching (because we didn’t have cable) on the Wii (because this was 2011), and I need something to stimulate my active mind. Here comes books! 

I’ve always, always been an avid reader. I was the first person in my first grade class to start reading chapter books  — something I liked to brag about a lot back then. But I’m about to be a middle schooler, so I need to find something a little more mature. My parents decide that I’m at an appropriate age to start reading some of my sister’s old books, which were originally marked for garage sale. 

One of these books has a long, juicy title, with a teen girl posed on the cover in a preppy school uniform, hand on her hip. I don’t have to look this up to remember; it is forever in my mind. The book is I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You by Ally Carter. Juicy, right? AND I LOVE IT. Seriously. Love. It. 

Photo: I’d Tell You I Love You, But Then I’d Have to Kill You by Ally Carter. 

... And I guess I move on. That part is a little fuzzy. Enter: Back to School Night, sixth grade. I always would go with my mom, because I loved school, and nights like those I thought were super cool. So, I’m hanging out with my best friend Sydney by the stairs, and she has this book from the school library with her. 

Do you believe in fate? Was it kismet? I do not know; I will not guess. But I do know, I freaked the f*ck out. Because it was the book, by Ally Carter!! I loved that book! When I asked Sydney where she got it, she said in the library, and there were a bunch of other books like it. 

That made me pause. Honestly, I couldn’t believe it. Because, what do you know, it was a series!! There were three other books to be read! How, oh how, did I not know this? It had to be fate. 

I can still picture exactly where the books are, in the Preston library. The smaller shelf, up against the wall, right by the opening into the conference/meeting room space (I don’t know what we called that room???). Bottom shelf. 

Who knew a series about teenage girls going to a spy school would set me on this path? 

Suddenly it’s the summer after sixth grade, and once again, I’m bored. But, I have access to a netbook, that my grandpa gave us. Something entices me to start Googling these books. I find Ally Carter’s website. I found out that there are going to be two more books in the series. And I stumble upon this Google search suggestion, with the word fanfiction. 

And wow. 

Stories, countless stories, about my favorite books. Eventually, I make my own account on fanfiction.net, I try my hand at some of my own stories, I get a smartphone and make this very tumblr account when I turn 13, I find a place where I can express all my nerdiness in peace and all-caps, without any sort of ridicule fear. 

But that’s not the end, nor the point, of this story. 

Photo: The first four books in the Gallagher Girls series by Ally Carter. 

(line break) 

So here I am, spending all my free time secretly reading fanfic and trying to write it, and hating my life sometimes and thinking about what I want to study in college because that’s my best chance at escape from this life that I feel I’m stuck in. 

But I can’t think of anything to write! I love to read; I enjoy writing; I am learning more about grammar because my dad has me grading his grammar quizzes he gave his JTC 300 students; but still, something isn’t right. I viscerally hate English class. 

But! There’s a way I CAN write, without it being creative! My dad is going to school for photojournalism, my sister took a high school journalism class, and now it’s my turn to register for classes in high school. I sign up for Journalism 1, the precursor to Journalism 2, which is the class that houses the student newspaper. It’s a great plan. It was a good class.

I was looking through my old journal the other day, and I came across this line dated from September 23, 2014, just into the beginning of my freshman year of high school. “I want to be a journalist.” 

Photo: A journal entry that reads, “I want to be a journalist.” 

My sophomore year of high school, I take Journalism 2 and join the paper. I’m kind of terrified because there are a bunch of people I don’t know and now I’ll actually have to go out and report and talk to people ... but we do some really fun team-building, and people seem to like me, and I relax. I feel, just a little, like a really belong. 

And I had felt that way before, during band, and with some of my friends, but this thing, this journalism thing, I’m actually good at it. And there’s this one moment that sticks out to me still. 

It’s probably 7:20 a.m. I’m trudging up the steps to Spanish class, and I do not want to be there. It’s not that I don’t like school, or I don’t like my classes, because I do. But I’m tired, and it’s not what I want to be doing. I think, if I could spend the entirety of my day in my journalism class, I would be happy. 

To this day, as a college student, I am jealous of the people who get to spend their whole days doing journalism. 

I’ve found more than a home. I’ve found a place where, for what feels like the first time, I can speak my mind. I can be sarcastic, I can make a pun and I can also point out when there’s a bad typo somewhere and have that be appreciated. 

Halfway through my first year writing for the paper, I’m given extra responsibilities and get to start copy editing articles from the students in the J1 class, and I start to learn how to redesign/maintain our Wordpress site. I go on a class trip to Los Angeles, an amazing feat of independence for me, and I feel valued. And then, I’m award the position of Copy Editor for the next school year! It’s amazing. 

I learn my junior year that the freshmen whose articles I edited were afraid of me. Afraid, of me! (For reference, I am five feet tall). But once they met me, they were like ‘Woah, Serena’s not scary!” and now we’re good friends. I’ve since learned to be less harsh/blunt in my editing. 

My senior year, I was Editor-in-Chief. That was something I dreamed about as a freshman, but wouldn’t let myself actually fathom. And even though I felt like I could have done a much better job, and I had a lot of personal sh*t to do with too, by the end of the year, I knew that I was leaving behind a strong legacy. 

It’s really something special when people you love give you a speech, crying, telling you how much you welcomed them, how much you made them feel like they had a place to grow, to be, and how much you’ve inspired them. 

Because journalism, especially student journalism, is about so much more than the news. It’s about a community. It’s community with your fellow reporters and editors, it’s comradery while kicking ass, it’s creating a community with your readers and your peers, it’s learning about the community you live in and sharing the ups and downs of life. 

Photo: A screenshot from my Instagram account of my high school journalism family, taken at our end of the year picture my junior year of high school. We had this running joke that I was going to be a world-dominator type person (because I’m so tiny and quiet) and my teacher said, “Okay, Serena now push Katie over” because I was taking over as EIC. Photo credit goes to my teacher (not going to post his name here). 

(line break)  

I have a lot of setbacks, too. I have anxiety. Like, a lot. Of anxiety. I haven’t been formally diagnosed with General Anxiety Disorder, but I think I should be. 

I used to think I was just shy. And that was partially the case. But I grew from it, in large part because of journalism. I went from not sitting in my designated seat at the beginning of class because there were older kids in the way my freshman year, to leading the entire class three days a week my senior year. I liked high school journalism because I could get away with asking my friends for quotes, or just not really quoting anyone at all. 

I spent one quarter at the University of Denver last year, and it was somewhat the same thing. They didn’t have any strict standards on a number of sources, and I wrote articles that didn’t require speaking to a lot of people. But then, I took over nine months off from school in what should have been my freshman year of college, and thus took nine months off from journalism and reporting. So starting at The Collegian was a challenge. 

I am still damn proud of myself for getting up the courage, on the second day of classes at CSU, to go down to the newsroom and ask about reporting. I wouldn’t be where I am today if I didn’t, and I love where I am today. 

To think that wasn’t even a year ago ... 

Photo: Here I am, remote copy editing for The Collegian, the week after Spring Break. Photo cred to my dad. 

When I started at CSU, I felt good. I was nervous, but transferring was a really good decision, and I’m from Fort Collins, so I felt more comfortable. And at first, my reporting felt really good.

But then I got too stressed with school and work, and that stress led over to increases social anxiety when I was reporting. I went to this community meeting and tried to talk to people there, but I felt helpless and quiet and I left and cried to myself. I then conducted my interviews over the phone. 

I even had to take a break for a few months last semester, because I had a panic attack with the mere thought of approaching people I didn’t know. 

But I worked through it. Aided by Xanax and peer support, I interviewed a bunch of people at the Eva Schloss event and felt really good about it. I also saw my high school journalism advisor, because his wife works at CSU Hillel, and talking to someone who knew my struggle felt good. 

For a long time I’ve doubted if journalism, if news reporting, is something I’ll actually be able to do. It’s the only real thing that makes me feel like I have a purpose, the only thing that makes me not feel depressed about life, but I am still so worried I’ll hold myself back in some way. 

That hasn’t happened yet. 

(line break) 

It’s the summer before my junior year of high school, and I am about to go meet up with the other members of the new leadership team, Katie and Kathleen, at Starbucks. I’ve recently got my license and it feels really good to be driving myself around. 

I go to Target and buy a fancy looking notebook with the last $15 I have to my name, because I don’t have a job yet. I go to Starbucks and discover I like drinking tea. I talk with Katie and Kathleen and we brainstorm what we want the journalism class to look like next year. What we want to change, how we’re going to get students to know that we exist. 

It’s the summer before my senior year, and I bring this same notebook to a meeting at Dazbog that I have with our leadership team to get ready for the school year. I’m in charge. It’s weird, but in a good way. There are a lot more people there, and I fill pages upon pages of ideas, and agendas I want to start the first weeks with. 

So much had changed in a year. My parents got divorced, I started working a lot, I was looking more seriously into college. But so much was the same. The same people, the same work, the same purpose. It was good. 

It’s the second semester of my first year at CSU, my sophomore year of college. I’m at home, cleaning my room, procrastinating because I don’t want to write my final essay. I get a text from Laura, asking if I’ve heard back about the editorial board yet. I had shut my phone off because I was checking my email so obsessively. 

And there it is. I am going to be the 2020-2021 News Editor for The Rocky Mountain Collegian. I still don’t fully feel like I know what I’m doing, even though I have all this experience. News is happening, but it’s summer. Do I write about it? Do I ask other people to write about it? Can I express the authority and knowledge I know I have, to people who have more experience at the paper than I do? It’s still early. 

The day I get the news, I pull out an old, blue notebook that’s barely filled. It’s the perfect place to start brainstorming the things I want to change on the desk and the things I think are super important for Laura and me to talk about. 

I forgot that I had notes from my Editor-in-Chief days in there. 

Photo: The notebook!

It feels like I’ve completed a circle. Like all the highs and lows of my last few years have led me to here, right back to where I’m supposed to be. Where I’ve always known I would be. 

I know who I am; I know where I belong; I know my place and my purpose in this world. 

Ally Carter’s Gallagher Girls series brought me to writing, and writing brought me to journalism. In my obsession with those books, the unofficial motto of the CIA really resonated with me. “And you shall know the truth, and the truth shall set you free.” 

Community and truth, that’s journalism. 

I want to be a journalist.

I am a student journalist.

I am a journalist. 

[kyufiber-moved]

hey hi helloo~ so,,,you kinda seem like you know lots of kdramas,,,,and i wanted to ask you,,,if you could recommend me some of your favorites? tbh anything would be fine kdjs it can be something where i can cry my heart and soul out or something really cute! that's totally up to you (but something where i can absolutely get emotionally invested in that it shatters my heart is what i probs need rn tbh 😩✊🏻)

this is my time to shine 🤓🤓🤓 i DEFINITELY CAN !!! esp for my favorite follower 😔💕 also this is gonna be pretty long bc i gave a lot of info for each drama so i’ll put a read more~!

_ MY PERSONAL FAVS _

go ho’s starry night- a chinese-korean collaboration drama starring snsd's yuri, kim youngkwang (the secret life of my secretary), and lee jihoon (legend of the blue sea) - go ho (yuri) is a dedicated worker who deals with her grumpy boss and quirky coworkers. she requests to be transferred to a different team, where she discovers her new boss is her ex-boyfriend, and then basically there forms a harem of 5 of her coworkers who all like her- super fluffy!! episodes are only about 15 minutes long each, and although there is angst, there's a lot more comedy and fluff. the relationship between the two main leads is adorable and had me squealing way more than once

put your head on my shoulder- a chinese drama starring fair xing (master devil do not kiss me) and lin yi- si tu mo is a bubbly girl who moves into a house only to find out that the owner's nephew (?), gu wei yi,  is already living there, and the two end up living together. si tu mo is sweet and outgoing, while gu wei yi is quiet and intellectual- SO cute. although the plot seems cliche, the focus is not really on them living together, that's just what brings them together originally, and the main lead isn't the stereotypical "cold and super smart asshole" type, he's actually very sweet. there are a lot of episodes but i would definitely recommend watching this!

like- a korean webdrama that you can find on youtube starring kim yu an, kim kangmin (maybe, maybe not), yoo jungwoo (love after school), and seo ji hye- about a group of students who create a film club to make youtube videos and the dumb shit they get into, plus there's some romance, betrayal, and fuckboys. - so so so so cute honestly. the dynamic between the characters of the club is so cute and funny, plus the love triangle has me wheezing. also the asshole fuckboy gets what he deserves which is super satisfying. it hasn't finished airing yet, but so far it's really cute

failing in love- korean webdrama  you can find on youtube starring son sang yeon (triple fling), yang hye ji, and shin yoon seop- about a group of high schoolers who deal with falling in love, crushes, rejection, etc.- ok so the summary i gave was pretty vague but that's because any more and i'd be exposing the whole plot. there is humor and fluff but also teenage angst, and the characters are all more complex than they first appear. i would highly recommend this show !!!

i have 3 boyfriends- short webdrama you can find on youtube starring kim ji eun, park sungwoo (produce 101 season 2 [that 30 year old dude who danced to rain's song OMG], moon jihoo, and lee jungsik - when la hi gets in a car accident and wakes up with amnesia she finds that she has 3 men all claiming to be her boyfriend.- OK LISTEN . this show is so funny and cute. let me just say: you MUST watch to the end. that's all i'll say. pLS WATCH

last minute romance- two episode drama special starring han seung yeon (age of youth) and lee seo won (the liar and his lover)- when baek se finds out she has terminal cancer and only has a short time to live, she desperately wants to complete her one bucket list item: date her favorite actor. it's then that she meets an aspiring actor who looks exactly like her favorite actor- so cute and very short, so you won't spend ages trying to finish. it is very fluffy, cute, and funny, but has an underlying tone of sadness because the main female lead has cancer and will eventually die. also her best friend is a monk??? the ending is bittersweet but very fitting

want more 19- a short webdrama you can find on youtube starring jung ha joon, sin gi hwan,  jeon yoo rim, nam yoon soo, and lee jungha- a story of 5 friends in high school. A mutual crush, a one-sided love, and a rough patch for sweethearts, all taking place right around the end their senior year- OH GOD i can't breathe this drama is so cute. it had me squealing every single episode, and it's very lighthearted with hardly any angst 

splash splash love- a two episode drama starring kim seulgi (queen of the ring) and highlight's doojoon (radio romance)- right before her ksat, danbi is transported to the past during a freak rain shower and is mistaken for a eunich (which, in korean, is the same word for high school senior) . due to her knowledge of future math, the king enlists her to teach him mathematics and they fall in love- a lowkey parody/remake of the kdrama love in the moonlight but if you added time travel into the mix and took out nearly all the angst. SO cute and funny, and has a happy but open type ending

something about 1 percent (2016)- korean drama starring jeon so min and ha seokjin (drinking solo)- lee jae in is an arrogant company heir, whose wealthy grandfather who decides to grant all his wealth to a kindly elementary school teacher. to only way for anyone else to get the money is for someone to marry her, but they devise a contract that changes it to date for 10 months. although they hate each other at first, they eventually fall in love- this drama is super cute and the kisses are AMAZING. there are crazy exes and all that but the couple's dynamic is super cute and they quickly warm up to each other

triple fling (s1)- a short choose-your-own-ending  korean webdrama on youtube starring jung bomin, son sangyeon (failing in love), themanblk's jeongyou, and themanblk's eom sewoong- lee sehee accidentally becomes friends with the three most popular boys in school and ends up in a love square with them- alright im whipped for stuff like this so naturally i loved it. i also really liked how viewers could choose their own ending as for which boy she chose. there is a second season that i haven't seen yet that focuses on another girl in ANOTHER love square (containing one of the guys from sehee's love square) in which it shows which boy she actually did choose (and it was my favorite so . yay!)

weightlifting fairy kim bok joo- a korean drama starring lee sungkyung (cheese in the trap) and nam joohyuk (who are you: school 2015)- a drama about a female weightlifter who falls in love. persuing the relationship would jeopardize her weightlifting, and focusing on weightlifting would jeopardize her relationship with her crush.  she and her group of friends deal with one-sided crushes, athletic pressure, and self-love.- i watched this drama in full in only two days, and loved it. seriously, it's funny, cute, sad, and just a generally AWESOME drama. plus it takes a lot of cliches and makes fun of them or turns them on their head

when you love yourself (s1)- a short webdrama you can find on youtube starring jung mingyu (sweet revenge 2) and saet byeol . - about a girl who is heavier than her classmates who struggles with self-love and self-acceptance, and along the way finds love- god. i can't even explain how much i loved this drama. the message is wonderful and there's no moment where she glows up and loses weight and then gets the guy's attention or anything: he simply loves her as who she is, no matter what weight she is, and is supportive. there's also an episode that focuses on the queen bee girl who also struggles with weight and self-love and it's just beautiful 

after school: lucky or not (s1)- short drama starring 5urprise: kang tae oh (my first first love), seo kang joon (are you human too), gong myung (drinking solo), lee taehwan (w: two worlds), and yoo il, as well as kim so eun (our gab soon)- when so eun gets an invite to the choose-your-mission club, she meets 5 chaotic guys that she becomes friends with, but there's something they aren't telling her.- yes, there is a lil romance and a love triangle HOHO. ok but seriously this drama is the most crackheadery i've ever seen like. genuinely i was just wheezing so hard every episode because of the dumb sh*t the guys were doing and so eun's reaction. this drama seems dumb and funny at first, but there are emotional moments as well as some angst relating to the love triangle and the origin of the club. please do watch this show !!! (don't recommend season 2, though)

accidentally in love - a chinese drama starring amy sun (the eternal love), fiction guo, and ma li- chen qingqing, who is raised by her grandfather) is arranged to be married, but wants to find love on her own terms. on the day of the wedding, she runs away to the university her parents attended to find out more about their death. to hide from her grandfather, she changes her appearance drastically and enters university. her new deskmate turns out to be singer si tu feng, whom she has already run into and has gotten off on the wrong foot with- so this drama was longer than the ones i usually watch but it was worth it. it was cute and they didn't drag out the couple not getting together for ages like some dramas tend to do. the romance was super cute and the female lead's undeterred determination to march to her own drummer was amusing. the only thing i didn't like is that they didnt give the side couple enough screentime bc they were super cute too

my woofy poofy love / my dog-like dating- a short korean webdrama you can find on youtube starring chae ji an and kim do hoon (your imagination becomes reality)- a girl who has recently been cruelly dumped by her boyfriend brings a stray dog back to her home and wakes up to find that instead of a dog, there is a man! she happens to be looking for a roommate, and so this man (who can turn into a dog) becomes her new housemate- literally adorable. female lead is stunning and the relationship is so cute and fluffy and innocent, but the kiss is steamy as hell. 

unrequited love (2019)- a chinese drama starring zhu yan man zi and zhao shun ran- a story of a girl who has secretly loved the same boy for 10 years, but he doesn't know she exists, until one day when they meet in college. so begins their love story, but things become more complicated because of other people- ok so like . damn i love this couple. this drama is really cute but has its fair share of angst, so don't expect an easy ride the whole way through. very cute though !!_ MORE DRAMA RECS _

a love so beautiful- a chinese drama starring shen yue (meteor garden) and hu yi tuan- chen xiaoxi has liked her neighbor jiangchen onesidedly for years, and continues to like him despite his seeming disinterest. but her determination and bubbly personality, as well as a romantic threat starts to cause him to fall for her- aight so . i feel like this drama was dragged out a little bit longer than necessary and then the ending was slightly rushed but!! it WAS a great and super cute drama

ok to be sensitive (s1)- a webdrama you can find on youtube starring kim da ye and kim youngdae (extraordinary you) and others im too lazy to put- focuses on feminist issues like sexism and sexual harassment in a college setting, which each episode focusing on one particular incident and the characters dealing with it- listen so like . this show had me emotional at some points bc of how amazing the message was. it dealt with sexual harassment, sexism, how females are expected to act, stalking, pressure to have sex... etc and basically every episode was like . you can stand up for yourself. you don’t have to “take it” just bc you’re a female, etc. also there was really cute romance uwu

ok to be sensitive (s2)- season 2 of otbs, also can be found on youtube, starring yoo hye in and lee shin young, as well as others but again im too lazy to list them all- same thing as season 1, but a different cast of main characters, and set in an office workplace. (original cast makes a cameo at the end)- the issues in season 2 were definitely a bit darker because it was set in a work place, where the main characters were worried about getting fired if they stood up for themselves, but the way things were handled was really admirable imo. also the male lead in this one is ABSOLUTELY adorable

go back diary- a 4 episode webdrama you can find on youtube starring kim ye ji and lee jong won (jaemin’s webdrama how to hate you)- about a boy who sees a girl at a karaoke bar (?) and instantly develops a crush on her. she then transfers to his school, and it tells the story of their love story after 10 years.- i’ll just say it right now. the whole drama was adorable except for the ending, which fucking sucked. literally was horrible. boycott episode 4 pls i was SO UPSET. otherwise, great webdrama

before we get married- taiwanese drama starring puff guo (just you; we got married w/ suju’s heechul) and jasper liu- tells the story of two people who already have partners and are planning to marry them, only to meet each other and fall in love- bro this show had so much angst i couldn’t even breathe lmfao. but the romantic scenes between the two leads were S T E A M Y let me TELL you. 

love after school (s1)- korean webdrama that can be found on youtube starring park so eun and yoo jungwoo (like)- about a couple who fell in love in high school and their story, told from 5 years later when they meet again- i love love love this bitch. LOVE. season 2 ... we won’t speak of her lol. but season 1 is super cute and the ???? kiss at the end(ish)??? DEAD. literally anything with yoo jungwoo will destroy me but omg. it was fantastic

lucky romance- a korean drama starring hwang jung eum (she was pretty) and ryu joon yeol (reply 1988) - about a woman who believes wholeheartedly in superstitions meeting a man who believes only in science and mathematics, and their very chaotic love story- this show was so funny tbh. the main couple’s dynamic was HILARIOUS and even though they were literally complete opposites they worked so well together. warning: towards the end there’s that whole ‘i have to be noble and let you go bc its for the best’ bullshit but!!! there is a happy ending 

maybe, maybe not- a webdrama starring kim kangmin (like) and gong yoorim- a girl who can read minds and is an outside bc she knows what everyone is really thinking meets a guy that she can’t read the mind of- so fluffy. so cute. oh god. pls watch it’s so soft and cute 

my first first love- a korean drama starring jisoo (strong woman dbs), dia’s chaeyeon (drinking solo), and b1a4′s jinyoung (love in the moonlight)- about a group of friends who all, due to various circumstances, move into their friend tae oh’s house, and find love along the way.- idk why netflix did that dumbass thing where they did mffl 1 and mffl 2 but they’re the same show, just eps 1-8 then 8-16. anyways !! very cute show!! jisoo is fine as hell. taeoh and the rich girl are cute together. i found the ending abrupt and unsatisfying, but overall a good show

thumping spike (s1)- a korean drama starring hwang seung eon (part-time idol) and song jae rim (our gab soon) - about a volleyball team and their coach who are aiming for success, and a female professional volleyball player who becomes their athletic mentor- i know it doesnt sound super romantic but trust me. there is lots of romance, and even a love triangle hehe

u-prince: the single lawyer- a thai drama apart of the u-prince series starring august vachiravit paisarnkulwong and apple lapisara intarasu- firstclass is a straight a student who is strict about punctuality and properness, while minute is a spoiled rich girl who loses all her luxuries when her family files for bankruptcy. she begins “going out” with her gay best friend, aka firstclass’ brother, for money and ends up living in their house, but she and firstclass hate each other- listen all the u prince dramas are cringy and low quality but does it look like a give a shit . NO BC I KEEP WATCHING THEM . they’re cute ok . anyways this was my favorite one so this is the one im recommending yeehaw

unexpected heroes- a short korean drama sponsored by the CDC organ transplant management center, starring btob’s minhyuk, ioi’s sohye, and choi jonghoon- about three high school students who discover that, after their respective organ transplants, they have supernatural powers- though there’s not much focus on romance in this drama, it’s still funny and cute. plus minhyuk is in it and what more can you ask for ?? lol. anyways the trio uses their powers to help solve crimes n stuff it’s gr8 and ive been waiting for a season 2 for 98429834 years

what to do with you- a korean webdrama - that is actually literally an ad for a facemask - starring lee hayoung and kim youngdae (extraordinary you)- saerom and geun are friends, but it feels like they’re something more. will they ever take the next step?- yeah this webdrama is super cute and that’s really all lol. also the bitchy girl in love after school is the best friend in this one oho

your imagination becomes reality- a webdrama that can be found on youtube starring oh se young, kim dohoon (my woofy poofy love), and jin ho eun- soram has a crush on a mysterious upperclassman, and wishes to see him again: she does, soon after. each time she makes a wish, it seems to magically come true. - yeah so like . it’s not a supernatural thing or anything, it’s just a cute college romance that’s basically every girl with a crush’s dream lol~! 

[youtuberswithalex]

Consone, Chapter One: The Princess

Summary: After Thomas passes away, the Sides are all sent spiraling into their next lives. New families, new dreams, new surroundings. But… Something has always felt missing, to them. Something important.

When four strangers meet at Tamzen University, they discover that some loves can transcend lifetimes.

Warnings: Ableism (both external and internal), awful friends, probably sexist thinking, author probably not doing near enough research and only going off of what he’s learned from his friends who have IBS

Word Count: 2.274

(Author’s note: I’m interested if you folks can guess who’s who in these upcoming chapters! Some might be more obvious than others...)

Writing Masterpost – Ko-Fi

-------

Sarah had always known she was a princess.

For as long as she could remember, she had always felt drawn to tiaras and Disney movies and glittery ball gowns. Half of her birthday parties growing up had been princess themed, even when she was probably considered too old to have them. Her friends all knew to never try to convince her that she was just a normal girl; anyone who dared would end up having to watch her break down in tears and feel bad enough to try to fix it. She was lucky to have parents that encouraged her interests, always reminding her that she could be whatever she dreamed, whether it be royalty or not.

Not that she needed reminding, at the beginning— at the start of middle school, when all of those dreams should have began to fade away, the boys in school began to notice her. Sarah reveled in all the attention she could get. They loved to watch her draw her poorly-done anime characters, and read her cliché-ridden fanfiction. Some boys would even argue over who would get to see it first, if they weren’t fighting over who got to ask her if they could be this week’s boyfriend.

High school started out pretty much the same way. As her art and writing developed, so did her looks, and with everyone hitting puberty now, it was rare to find a girl safe from the boys’ gaze. There were quite a few unsolicited and creepy ones that she was lucky to get away from. On the other hand, she had the choice of any of the popular boys to date, and she loved every second of it.

But not every development in her body was for her entertainment. And halfway through her junior year, she got a diagnosis that cost her everything she had.

IBS.

Sarah made the mistake of trusting one wrong person with the secret, and suddenly, no one could get away from her fast enough. Students would scurry away from her locker in the morning, bellowing about how she was going to shit on them if she got too close. Lab partners would purposefully miss class to avoid being near her. Friends, both the ones she knew were fake and the ones she thought she could rely on, gradually stopped answering messages and calls.

By the end of the year, Sarah was left with her parents, her older brother, and a diagnosis that made her sick.

She was no princess.

--------- 

“Sarah?” a voice called through her door. “I’m going to the store. Do you want to come along?”

Sarah looked up from her laptop, her greasy, blonde hair falling into her vision as she looked over. “Uh… Sure, Mom,” she slowly replied. “I’ll be down in a minute.”

Footsteps pattered back down the hall, and she carefully sat up and set her laptop to the side. Her arms crossed over her torso as a cramp rippled through her abdomen; she swallowed thickly and pushed her way off of her bed, trying to force herself to ignore it.

She had wanted to put on make-up and a cute outfit, present herself as something worthy just in case anyone from school was there. It didn’t seem like it was going to happen. It never happened, anymore.

Instead, Sarah just slipped on a pair of flipflops and tied her hair into a ponytail. Really, there probably wouldn’t be anyone there that she knew. It was a Wednesday morning in the middle of July—what high schooler would ever want to get up before noon during the summer?

(Sarah, of course, was including herself. She hadn’t gotten up before noon. She simply had stayed up the whole night to write.)

After a moment’s hesitation, she decided to throw on her glasses before heading out the door. Can’t see the judgey stares if you can’t see, right? But she also wouldn’t be able to see the shades on the lipstick she wanted to pick up. So, glasses it was.

Sarah flashed her mother a smile when she reached the bottom of the stairs, and Rebecca returned it, fishing the keys out of her purse. “You ready?”

“Yeah, let’s go.”

As she was opening the door and walking out to the porch, her mom touched her shoulder; she stared at Sarah with a frown, and a knowing eyebrow raised.

“Did you go to bed last night?” she asked.

Huffing, Sarah pulled away and walked out. “Inspiration waits for no one.”

Rebecca scoffed and rolled her eyes, quickly following after her. “Y’know, one of these days, you’re going to pass out and fall down the stairs.”

“Good, can’t wait,” she retorted. “I hope I break my leg so that I can make Noah do everything for me.”

She caught a glare from over the top of the car. Throwing up her hands, she raised her eyebrows.

“What? I’m kidding!”

Rolling her eyes again, Rebecca dropped down into the driver’s seat, waiting until Sarah was safely inside before opening her mouth again. “So, what do you want to listen to today?” she asked. “Haven’t had a Disney day in a long time.”

Sarah’s gut twisted— only emotionally, thankfully –and she avoided her gaze to snap her seatbelt on. “Mom, I’m not a little kid anymore. I have taste now.”

“Taste? You, of all people, are insulting Disney music?”

She ignored both the comment and the hole opening up in her chest, electing to grab her phone and open Spotify instead. “Paramore’s better— and more age appropriate.”

Before Rebecca could say anything, guitar riffs blasted through the speakers. Sarah sat back and stared out the window.

 -------------

When they got to the store, the two split up to get the items on their respective lists: Rebecca to the grocery section, and Sarah to the cosmetics.

She had a mental list about a mile long with all of the new products she wanted to try out, all the lipsticks and nail polishes and foundations—and the eyeshadow! There was something that always made her adore eyeshadow above everything else, something that just felt… familiar about it. She couldn’t let herself go into the aisle unless she was planning on buying four new pallets, so she always ended up steering clear, but damn if she didn’t long to go in every time!

There was a bounce in her step as she headed towards the lipstick aisle. If she couldn’t add to her (far too large) eyeshadow collection today, at least she could get some new lipstick. And eye liner. And bronzer. And—

“Oh my god, is that Sarah?”

Her stomach leapt into her throat. Those harsh whispers were not friendly.

“I think it is!”

“Holy shit, dude, she looks terrible!”

It took all of her willpower not to let her shoulders fall. She couldn’t let them know she could hear them. If she did that, they would confront her, make fun of her and her disease in the middle of everyone.

“How many times do you think she’s shit her brains out today?”

“I don’t want to think about it.”

“She’s probably here to buy those adult diapers!”

Sarah ducked into the nearest aisle just as tears began to well up in her eyes.

Embarrassed rage began to fill her chest. It wasn’t fair! Of all the people that could have gotten stuck with this, feeling sick all the time and constantly running to the bathroom, why did it have to be her?! Princesses were supposed to be perfect! A little naïve to get kidnapped so often, sure, but never cursed like this!

Where was her prince? The man who was supposed to save her from this hell, who would rid her of her faults with a single kiss? The fairest knight of all to protect her from evil high school boys and their despicable comments? Her soulmate, her one true love?

Wasn’t he supposed to be here by now?!

Sarah wanted to throw a fit. She wanted to knock shampoo off the shelves, rip her own hair out, turn around and yell at the stupid boys that had started this emotional mess in the first place. But the idea of drawing attention to herself paralyzed her with fear more than anything, so she instead scrubbed the tears from her face so forcefully that she was sure that her cheeks were red.

I can’t keep doing this anymore!

He wasn’t coming. There was no prince coming to sweep her off her feet, no knight to save her from her enemies. Even if there was, he’d run for the hills the second he found out about her curse. There was going to be no wedding, no crowning, no epic fight where he vanquished her enemies!

She was stuck with herself, and only herself, forever.

Sarah had to be her own knight.

A knight, she thought to herself. That feels… right.

Why should she have to sit around and wait for someone to save her when she could do it herself in half the time? Why should she stay helpless and a victim when she could stand, and fight, and save others from their hells, too? Sarah could practically feel a sword in her hand, cool metal against her palm, weight pulling on her wrist, the resistance of flesh while she stabbed it into a winged lion—

Yes. This was what she was meant to be.

Sarah huffed out a laugh and grinned, reaching up and snatching the first box of hair dye she could grab. She needed all the world to know of her change, and the easiest way was to change the most obvious part about her.

 --------

That night, Sarah stood in the bathroom alone and stared in the mirror. Long, blonde hair covered the floor around her, and drips of hair dye stained the tile floor. The thin, plastic gloves on her hands crinkled and held in the humidity of her sweaty palms. In the back of her mind, she thought about looking down to make sure the stray dye on them wouldn’t touch her shirt, but she couldn’t take her eyes off of her reflection.

Short, uneven, bright red hair sat on top of her head.

Taking a deep breath, she squared up her shoulders and lifted her chin.

“I am a knight,” she whispered, “And I live to serve.”

 -----------------------

Just over a year later, Sarah got the name of her college roommate.

If it had been last summer, she never would have said a thing to this stranger about her IBS. She would have kept it to herself, like the prim and proper princess she was trying to be, never allowing a flaw through her perfect disguise.

But this wasn’t a year ago. And Sarah wasn’t a perfect princess anymore.

…Still, she couldn’t ignore the nerves causing her guts to rumble. She’d had to run to the bathroom three times while typing, deleting, and retyping this Facebook message to the girl she’d be living with for a whole year. She wasn’t ashamed of IBS anymore, but watching people’s first reactions never got any easier.

To her surprise, when she returned from her fourth trip, she found that her roommate had beaten her to the punch.

Hey, this is Kealoha! I’m supposed to be your roommate this year. I’m excited to meet you!

Sarah sucked in a deep breath. It was now or never.

Hey, Kealoha! I’m Sarah. Great to meet you! I know we’ve got a lot to learn about each other, but I just want to tell you this in case you want to switch roommates. I have Irritable Bowel Syndrome. It’s a chronic digestive disorder that makes me need to use the bathroom, like, a lot. It shouldn’t effect you or your college experience in any way, but I know people think it’s gross so I just wanted to get it out of the way now.

She sat back in her desk chair as soon as she hit send. Her heart thudded in her chest, and she wrapped her arms around herself. After a moment, when the three little dots popped up on the conversation, she had to remind herself to breathe.

Kealoha’s message popped in.

Oh, okay. I was actually messaging you now for a similar reason. I have a permanent leg injury that requires me to be on crutches any time I’m not sitting. I can get around fine, but I might need a little help every now and again with little things. If you’re okay with me, then I’m okay with you.

Sarah let out a breath she didn’t realize she’d been holding. A relieved laugh slipped out of her before she could stop it; she sunk down her chair until she was almost on the floor, hand over her eyes as she laughed.

Another message popped up, and then a second. Sarah quickly sat up to read it.

You let me know how I can help, by the way. Even if it’s small stuff, like grabbing some candy from the store when you’re not feeling well.  Also, I saw on your page that you like Zelda. I’m a huge nerd for those games. Which one is your favorite?

Sarah was typing in an instant, and it wasn’t long before the two fell into casual conversation. The rest of the evening was spent geeking out, sharing stories, and learning new things about each other. The next day, they picked up the conversation where they’d left off, and the next day, and the next day.

It almost felt like they’d known each other for their whole lives.

Sarah couldn’t wait for college.

[alternativewinxcontinuity]

Winx Alt Con Season 02 Recap:

Previously: Season 01, Weeks 9.2, 10/11, 12, 13, 14, 15, 16, 17, 18

Week 19: Episode 216 - HalloWinx

During the first few days of the week, Bloom video calls her parents on Earth, and introduces them to Daphne.

Vanessa and Mike are as welcoming towards the older fairy as Bloom had hoped, and Daphne almost starts crying with relief when she considers how lucky it had been that her protective spells had brought Bloom and the Earth couple together.

While on the call, the couple tell Bloom that Mitzy has invited her to a Halloween party. The Rest of the Winx, and their pixies, who had been hanging out off screen from the call, immediately crowd around and ask for details.

As soon as Vanessa mentions 'costumes' Stella is pulling an art book from her carry space, flipping through until she finds a section labelled 'Bewitching Winx' showing it to Bloom and Vanessa, asking if they'd be appropriate for the party.

Bloom laughs, saying they'd be perfect, and telling Vanessa to 'please RSVP me for plus 5?' Kiko Jumps into her lap, 'plus six.' (off screen the pixies protest, until Flora reminds them that normal Earth Humans can't see them anyway.)

Daphne leans over Stella's shoulder and looks over the designs, considers for a moment, then offers to teach Stella how to imbue the costume wings with a flight and sensory spells so they'd work almost like the Winx's real wings.

After Mike and Vanessa say their goodbyes, the Winx settle down for 'class' with Daphne.

 Bloom sees Mirta later that day and extends an invite, but Mirta turns it down when she finds out the day, blushing as she explains she and Lucy have a day out planned before exams start.

Bloom wishes her friend good luck with her date (“it's not a date date!”), but before she can leave to check on Stella, who is determined to make the 'costumes' herself (“no one else will do it right!”) Jolly stops her with a dire warning, of deceit, and three women.

Bloom feels a chill go down her spine, thinking automatically off the Trix, but Jolly shakes her head when Bloom asks if that's who she means. Jolly tells Bloom to beware of the masks people wear, as a cruel trick awaits her and her friends.

Unsure what else to do, Bloom thanks the Pixie of Fortune Telling for her advice, and heads off to find her friends.

After talking it over, the group comes to the conclusion that Jolly may have meant the party they're planning to attend, where people will be wearing masks.

 After letting Faragonda know they're going, and confirming what time their first exam is the next day, (having arranged the trip with her earlier in the week,) the Winx, Kiko, and the pixies head off to Earth, via Stella's staff powered teleport.

They arrive around midday at Bloom's home, where she introduces everyone to her parents.

The girls help add a few final touches to the house for trick-or-treaters before getting dressed.

All of the girls are pleased with their outfits and the fit, Kiko shows off his matching vest and cape, while the pixies change into animal inspired outfits, made mostly of soft fluffy looking clothes, and ears on headbands.

The pixies decided to do something fun just for them since Mike and Vanessa are the only adults that can see them on Earth.

The girls fly from Bloom's to the mansion where the party is being held, testing out the enchantments on their false wings, which hold up amazingly well throughout the flight. Kiko seems a little worried in his place in Bloom's arms, but she puts that down to him not liking the extreme height.

As they fly, the girls talk about the somewhat uncomfortable feel of Earth, the way it feels drained of magic. Bloom admits she didn't notice before she met Stella, but she's fairly certain it's always been that way, and that tonight, it actually felt less drained somehow, than last time she'd been back on Earth, which Stella and Flora agree with.

They girls wonder if drained feeling has anything to do with the disappearance of Earth's fairies, but they arrive at their destination before they can get too invested in the topic.

 When they see the gloomy nature of the woods they'll have to pass through to get to the house, the girls rethink their landing point, but decide to make the trek so they aren't seen landing by the other guests. Stella changes her Ring into its staff form, and conjures a soft protective light to it's ornamental disc, using it to light the area.

The girls don some basic outer robes to keep their costumes clean on the walk up to the house, and Bloom keeps hold of Kiko while the pixies flit around. Bloom tells Kiko to stay with her until they get inside so he doesn't dirty his costume. Kiko nods in agreement, and Musa turns her head to find the source of the strange sounds that creep from the woods.

Between her, and Tecna, they confirm it's coming from speakers.

Aisha reminds everyone to be on their guard concerning Jolly's warning, but to try to have fun.

Flora giggles and asks 'what if solving this mystery is the fun?' Stella takes the set up to deliver a subtle jab at Mitzy, 'well, if what Bloom's says about the hostess is true? It probably will be.'

The girls giggle as they begin to navigate the path to the front door. As the girls pass through some of the narrower parts of the path, they form a single line, with Flora at the rear. As she passes a black cat on a short post it turns its head and greats her with a monotone 'hello Flora.'

She calls the girls back to her as she turns to find the cat gone.

When they ask her what's wrong, she tells them about the talking cat, which had greeted her by name .

Musa checks for the sound of movement, but can't catch anything that sounds like a cat.

The group would put it down to electronics, but the fact the cat had known Flora's name was concerning.

Adding it to the list of things they had to figure out, the group continue on, finally spotting lights through the trees. As they enter into the jack-o-lantern littered ground surrounding the mansion itself, murmuring from the trees catches Musa's attention. She focuses in in time to hear someone female sounding say something about a 'bone white mask'.

She whips her head around to see someone tall and lanky with long dark hair and a pale dress move further into the woods. Quietly she lets the others know what she's seen.

Tecna declares that 'that's it' and pulls a container out of her carry space, opening it, she presents the girls with small decals to place on the area just behind their ears. She tells them it's a project she's been working on to improve their communications long distance, with out the standard bulk. The Decals include a pink flower, an orange star, a blue love heart, a red music note, a green drop shape, and a purple triangle.

The girls apply them and do a quick test, confirming they can quietly radio each other. Kiko makes a sad noise when he realises he doesn't get one, then stroke his fur in a sad way that seems to say 'that's okay, it probably wouldn't have stuck in my fur anyway :( '.

Bloom tells him he'll just have to stick close to her, which brightens his mood.

('Alright, now let's get in there, we just vanquished Satan, we can handle some high-schoolers with no magic.'

'...who's 'Satan'?'

'Darkar, I was talking about Darkar... it's an Earth based cultural reference, I'm sorry, I'll explain it later.')

The Winx finally mount the front steps and knock on the door. It creaks open to reveal no one for a second before a jack-o-lantern in a jest hat drops down. A loud rip and thump sound out as Stella uses the butt of her staff to smack it away.

A maid appears in the doorway looking very annoyed.

'Sorry, a few too many years of self-defence training,' Stella tries to laugh it off, but the maid dismisses her, turning to Bloom to ask who she is and what she wants. Bloom tells the maid her name, and hands over her invitation. The maid frowns but allows the group in, showing them to the main room. Tecna makes several comments concerning the house's structural integrity, or lack there of.

In the main room, the girls see plenty of people in costumes, but no sign of Mitzy. The girls consider mingling, but a few seconds later, their hostess arrives at the top of a staircase. She descends 'gracefully' as music plays, and she talks about how expensive her dress is.

The Winx try not to snort as Stella whispers 'that is the wrong way to glitter,' in reference to Mitzy's outfit. They're fairies, their normal outfits were 85%+ glitter, they knew how to glitter.

As Mitzy's slow walk down the stairs reaches two thirds of the way, the music begins to skip, and the hostess rushes down the last few steps to berate the boy in charge of the music table.

She tells him to leave and never show his face again.

The Winx watch as he gets up, and makes his way to the front door, tears in his eyes. Musa goes after him, to make sure he's okay. She offers some words of encouragement as she escorts him down the path, a hastily conjured lantern in hand, and by the time they reach the exit he seems like he'll be just fine.

As he heads off, a short man in a red and blue outfit arrives, he tells her he's there to deliver some cakes to Mitzy's party. Musa offers to take him up to the house, but he says he has other deliveries, and just hands her a box before leaving.

Musa opens it as she walks, floating the lantern with her magic, she picks up one of the pumpkin shaped cakes and raises it to take a quick nibble.

'I wouldn't eat it,' a monotone voice says, and Musa sees the shape of a cat in the corner of her eye, but she has to catch the box before it falls from her startled grasp. When she finally turns to check, there's no sign of any cat. Musa drops the cake back in the box, and casts several of the food inspection spells Stella and Aisha had shared with the group.

The cakes weren't poisonous, but they apparently tasted terrible.

Musa contacts the others as she walks to tell them about the cat and the cakes, the others let her know she hasn't missed much, Mitzy has been throwing a mild tantrum about everyone ruining her party.

Listening to the girls, she misses three figures lumbering around moaning about maggots in faces.

Just as she reaches the house, they tell her to hurry up, because Mitzy has just turned on them about their 'lame ass robes'.

Musa makes it through the door, and shoves the cake box into the maid's hands, just in time to drop her robe with the other Winx.

The other guests stare in shock at the group's witch inspired darkly-cute-and-fun fairy outfits. Even Kiko works his dashing cape and vest.

The other guests crowd around and ask about the costumes, the girls remain vague, and when asked how they'd made their wings, Flora replies with 'it's a secret.'

Because it was a secret.

And a fabric that didn't exist on Earth.

Mitzy shoves her way forward, cake box in hand, offering the Winx some cakes. Bloom looks up from a chat with one of the other girls about her skirt, and tells Mitzy to 'pick out a good one for me.'

When the scowling Mitzy opens the box, the small pumpkin cakes jump up, glowing, they begin to circle around Mitzy, who freaks out and dashes from the room. Most of the guests follow her, trying to beat the floating cakes away.

The Winx laugh amongst themselves, and when Musa asks if anyone had recorded that, Tecna lets out an affirmative hum, and 'fixes' a lock of her hair, drawing Musa's attention to the large bow in Tecna's hair, where the music fairy can see a small ladybug just peeking out. The same kind of ladybug Tecna's micro camera's are typically disguised as.

Looking around with new eyes, she spots a few more of the little bugs.

Tecna remarks nonchalantly how it's 'amazing what one can do when others are distracted by tantrums,' and the girls have another laugh. (Bloom told her friends about Mitzy, they know exactly what kind of person she is.)

Mitzy reappears a short time later, no sign of floating cakes. The party gets back to its boring baseline of everyone standing around, barely talking, and no one dancing. The group splits up to mingle, and look for any sign of the conspiracy Jolly had hinted at.

Tecna notes a large crack on one wall, which seems to originate from behind a photo. When Digit notices it's a picture of three women, it strikes enough of a chord for Tecna to comm the others. When Tecna describes the three faceless women in the picture, Musa mentions that it sounds like the 'bone white mask' figure from the woods outside.

In an upstairs room, Aisha finds another crack-sprouting-picture, a news paper clipping with a picture of the mansion they're in. It talks about the 'Silent Villa', and how no renovators would go near it, because the house aged 50 years a just weeks whenever some one tried to refurbish the house. Millions of dollars had been lost trying to fix the place up.

'So, haunted house, or part of the trap?' the girls wonder amongst themselves.

Bloom is pulled away from the investigation though, when the maid arrives to tell her Mitzy has fallen sick, and is asking for Bloom.

Mizty claims to have seen 'them', flailing about in her bed as she tells Bloom the backstory of the house.

Of three sisters who'd lived there with their younger sister, until the youngest was killed when someone tried to destroy the house.

One of the other guests shows them a newspaper article about it, and tells them how, to seek revenge, the three sisters made a deal with powerful witches.

The Winx share a look over the alleged magic contract that had taken place roughly 100 years ago, during a time when the only suspected magical on the planet would have been the Fairy Godmother that Daphne had been trying to send Bloom to during the second siege of Domino.

Stella says 'these sisters must be pretty ugly if they're breaking mirrors' but manages to refrain from adding 'are you sure it wasn't your face that cracked the mirror Mitzy?' Because Bloom doesn't need her to be that level of petty right now.

When Mitzy starts begging Bloom to help her, since Bloom is 'the only one who can help' her, Bloom listens to her heightened instincts, and while out loud she is kind and compassionate to Mitzy, inside, she calls bullshit.

Bloom and the Winx move into the hall, and Bloom begins signing to her friends, who read the hand signals with ease. Tecna and Stella lag behind, while the others move downstairs to listen to the other guests as they wail to Bloom, going on about how all the glass on the pictures and mirrors broke at once.

Bloom takes charge, ordering everyone into groups, she gets them to search the cupboards for salt and iron, acting like she's preparing them for a battle against the supernatural. (Of course, Bloom bases her preparations on her 'knowledge of the supernatural' which she'd picked up from her childhood fascination with fairies, and not on her actual Alfea learned knowledge of warding.)

Mean while, Stella and Tecna have slipped 'out'.

Only when they reappear, does Bloom tell everyone to stay inside while she and her friends take a look around outside.

Through the fog they see movement, lanky figures by the tree line, Musa and Flora reach out with their powers. Getting a sense of what they are facing.

'Stilts and costumes,' Flora confirms, before Bloom gives the go ahead. Flora brings the wood of the stilts back to life, and Musa snatches up the sounds of three screams before they can go anywhere.

The costumes slip up and off the trio of human girls, leaving them looking terrified, bound from the knees down by wood, and unable to make a sound as their costumes seem to come to life, swaying in the air.

The Winx 'react' like frightened teenagers, running for the only opening the trio wouldn't have blocked off.

The three wraith costumes drift to the ground, and glide along behind them, moving in awkward swaying motions that would be impossible for any human to mimic, let alone one on stilts.

They move into the cemetery where lights float above the grave stones.

While Flora says 'we're surrounded' she adds a signed 'humans' to her warning. They'd expected as much.

When she hears the comments around them, Musa signs to Stella and Aisha.

Echoing groans begin to sound through the graveyard as the lights from the 'floating' pumpkins rise from their grinning shells, the fog thickening on the ground until no one can see their own feet.

The 'three sisters' slither into the clearing amongst the tombstones, circling around the Winx as they continue their diatribe about maggots and faces and bone white masks.

Bloom calls out to the others, telling them to be brave, they can handle this, that they defeated that demon army, and the witches, and the embodiment of evil itself, a few angry ghosts will be nothing.

Around them, the guests in on the prank are getting worried, Bloom's 'pep talk' making them realise that something is not right.

They notice how far above them the lantern lights are just as 'the fourth sister' steps into the clearing.

Bloom steps forward, while the other Winx strain to keep in character, and begins trying to negotiate with 'the fourth sister', who just moans until the other three suddenly seem to notice her presence. The turn, and swoop across the clearing, leaving trails in the thick fog that covers the ground.

'Sister' they begin chanting, swirling tighter and tighter around her, and higher and higher above. From the shadows of the forest dark creatures seem to emerge, half hidden by the fog and gloom, half seen, half imagined nightmares.

The fourth sister begins to scream, batting the others away as the girl beneath the mask realises it's not her minions beneath the sheets. The fog roils, and the others guests add their screams, as the dense vapour peels back to reveal every surface, and quite a few guests, covered in a variety of insects up to the waist.

Mitzy tears off the costume, ripping things in her haste to free herself from the confines. She takes off running for the house, her guests not far behind her.

The Winx are silent for a moment, until laughter from the air above them causes their poker faces to crack. The insects swarm back into hiding, and the monsters on the edge of sight vanish. The fog takes a little longer to ebb back into a light, atmospheric haze, but Musa shutters the sounds instantly.

The pixies ditch the heavy costumes on the ground, and Mirta and Lucy float down far enough to be seen through what remains of the mist, Kiko held securely in Mirta's arms.

Chuckling, Lucy admits that the Winx are alright, for a bunch of fairies. Mirta drops to the ground completely and thanks the girls for thinking of her. Tecna shrugs and brushes it off, saying they needed the help, and Mirta had once told them about how she and Lucy had always planned to pull of a Nightmare Prank like this, it was the only logical conclusion.

Bloom apologises for interrupting their date, but the duo brush her off, saying this was plenty of fun, and a great way to spend the night.

'It was, indeed, very amusing,' comes a monotone voice, and the group turn to find the black cat sitting on a gravestone.

Bloom asks after the cat's identity, but it merely shrugs, and says only that it is 'a passing mischief maker who happens to be a fan of the way you girls... turn tables, shall we say.'

In less than a blink the cat is gone.

In the quite that descends, Stella clicks her tongue, and asks if anyone wants to head back to the party. Lucy tries to decline, saying she and Mirta aren't dressed, but as soon as Bloom retrieves her rabbit, Stella snaps her fingers, casting an outfit changing spell.

Mirta and Lucy's clothes are changed to outfits similar to the Winx's, though Lucy sports what Bloom has told her is considered a 'witch's hat' on Earth, rather than wings like Mirta and the rest.

('what, you thought I didn't plan for them just in case? Please, I have an outfit for Diaspro too.')

On the way back to the house, Tecna does some quick research on Earth's internet (which is slow and terrible and just let her fix it! please?) and finds out that the three sisters had been real, but there had been no fourth, and the house had only swapped hands a few times, with almost no attempts at renovations.

The group makes their way up to the house where they find a bunch of scared teenagers (the trio in the costumes had been released remotely by Flora and rushed for the house alongside their co-conspirators.)

Bloom tells everyone that, Mitzy had woken the three sisters who had actually lived in the house, the trio had been aggravated by what Mitzy had done, but also infected by her version of events, and forced to play out Mitzy's falsehood.

Bloom goes on to tell everyone that the situation has been handled, and that Mitzy not need worry about those three sisters again.

'Also, two more of my friends showed up after all, that's okay right?'

Between Tecna, Stella and Musa, the party has lights and good music in no time. The Winx, Mirta, Lucy, Kiko and the unseen pixies all making themselves at home on the dance floor. Slowly, the other guests unfolded from their frightened huddle and joined the girls.

 The group manages to get a few hours of sleep back at Bloom's house, and gratefully eat breakfast cooked by Vanessa, she and her husband wishing all the girls luck on their exams before they teleport back to Alfea, Bloom promising to see her parents in a week, once exams were over and done with.

[automatismoateo]

(Final Update) My(m18) Parents yelled at me because I don't want a graduation party at my house during Covid, so they're gonna invite 40+ people from church instead. As a result of everything, my brothers have recently renounced their faith as well via /r/atheism

Submitted May 05, 2021 at 11:43PM by Throaramagazine (Via reddit https://ift.tt/3nOnBV0) (Final Update) My(m18) Parents yelled at me because I don't want a graduation party at my house during Covid, so they're gonna invite 40+ people from church instead. As a result of everything, my brothers have recently renounced their faith as well

It's been a couple of weeks, and I wanted to write about a few things that have happened since my last post. A lot of people gave some really great advice, and I've tried my best to start some of it in motion as well... not just for the party that is in a couple of weeks, but also for the future and getting closer to supporting myself

Before I start though, I want to take a moment to thank everyone who commented and offered advice and sympathy. As I mentioned previously, I doubted myself for years and believed they were right in many ways until recently and the responses to my last posts, the last post being the one that hurt most, the one where my dad said I needed "medical help" for not defending homeschooling to my friends throughout the years, the same friends who they would go out of their way to destroy relationships with, by insulting their parents to a degree where they wouldn’t let their kids hang out with me like I mentioned last time

From reading your responses and other stories on Reddit after finding the site, it’s done wonders in many ways and provided comfort and confidence too, providing insight into real world relationships/perspectives that I never received being homeschooled for 12 years, only knowing people from church and our homeschool group through our church for the most part, and while I understand that you should take everything with a grain of salt, I feel like I've actually learned a lot from other posts and replies, certain things to do and not do from the examples and stories of others

Before I start the update though, I want to say that I don’t feel like recapping everything I did last time, since it gets a little repetitive to be honest with you. However, I want to address some of the steps I’ve taken since last time, along with something I wasn’t comfortable to share originally, my most recent trauma that adds some perspective into this graduation situation, and something I’m still trying to fully overcome in my mind. I didn’t plan to share it at first, but given how therapeutic the first two posts were and their responses, I wanted to add them here and make them the focus of today, the issue that led into my graduation that opened my eyes to how wrong my parents were for years, and it ties into my current financial situation as well

_____________________________

I want to touch on the job I currently have, since a lot of people said that being financially independent is a major part in getting away from them. The job I have now, is actually my second job, and while I sometimes like it, I don't love it like my first job, and I want to explain why. From the months of last October through December, I had what I believe to be my first experience of depression, and I want to talk about it and my most recent struggle, the situation that led into this graduation party

My parents helped me find my first job when I turned 16, and it was a retail job that I loved very much. I was hired before the store opened, and one of my fears with being homeschooled and going into the workforce, was that I'd have a hard time fitting in with people from being isolated, but since this store was yet to open, there would be no friend groups that were already established, so I felt that I had an equal footing to create those groups at the same time as everyone else was potentially shy too, since my social awkwardness wouldn't stand out as much

We built the store from scratch when there was nothing on the shelves. We had a few weeks until the store opened, and it was really amazing to see how it all came together. Another positive thing, was that most of the kids who were hired were from the local high schools, and the store was mostly 80% high schoolers and people around my age, the high school experience that I never got to experience, something that made me excited to go to work each day, and my parents could see just how happy I was to be around other kids… something they wouldn’t like as time went on, but I’ll get back to that

However, I still had a tough time making friends, and when I was paired with other kids for various things, I was scared to talk to them and didn't know what to say, and when they would sometimes talk about school things/friends or world topics I didn't know, I just didn't know how to join the conversation, and that pretty much remained for my entire first year

After a year of being there, our department managers met with everyone for their yearly evaluation, and my evaluation was absolutely terrible (our first year evaluation came 4 months in, because of how late we opened). I remember having the wrong mentality when I worked my first year, although I don't blame myself for having it as of writing this. My mentality was to make friends and have the high school experience that I never had, but when I kept telling myself that I would talk to others and get out of my comfort zone, I could never do it when opportunities came, just like getting cold feet when trying to ask out a girl, only to keep pushing it to next time

In my first year evaluation, I was rated a 2/5 and "in need of major improvement" from my department manager, and the areas he highlighted was needing to finish my workload faster with more urgency and care, since I was always down and disappointed in myself and only focusing on friends and how I wasn't making any

Well, just like sports and after a tough loss growing up, that really ticked me off, and I used it as motivation to get better the next year, just like my tennis mentality of always trying to become the best in every group. I wanted to be the best one in my department, and before my next shift, I went shopping and changed my wardrobe and began carrying myself much differently at work, focusing less on making friends and just finishing my assignments and then going beyond them and helping others in their departments because I would finish my work early... something that later got me picked on by other kids/managers for "caring too much" about a "meaningless" job, and from their perspective (mostly the younger people), I now see where they're coming from as I’m slightly older now

The manager who did my evaluation noticed my wardrobe change, and he also began to notice my improved work effort and get behind me, giving me more responsibility (such as closing down registers and handling money) and giving me supervisor/price overriding numbers too, not to mention shouting me out to other managers who also began to notice

As months went by, other people began talking to me, and I also began to make a few acquaintances, although I don’t have any of them as of writing this. Fast forward a year, and my next evaluation comes. The same manager who did my first one told me that I was graded a 4/5 by all of the managers, and he was also impressed with how I had improved myself, something he said the other managers and himself didn't expect, and he also asked me if I wanted to become a supervisor in the coming year (in which I would be 18 by the time it was all said and done, since they were starting to look for a few around that time), and I was surprised and said I'd be interested

In the coming months, I was assigned with a task of sorting deliveries that came into the backroom for a few months, and after doing very well on that task, he began moving me to different departments to get a feel of different areas in the store as well, and this allowed me to be seen by a few more people including kids my age who were starting to take notice, and after completing the tour of departments, my manager said that they would give me the position in the coming weeks and that I basically had it, and I remember how excited I was

It was also around this time that a girl began talking to me from one of the other departments, something I never expected to happen at this job, and during my second year, we would begin to hang out outside and after work, and she wanted to hang out way before she knew about my promotion, since no one knew about it until it'd be official. She didn’t care that I was homeschooled, and she seemed to just like me for me, and she also vented to me about things about her parents, and she had quickly become my best friend at the job

However, it was around then that I began to enter a really bad state, and it started around the time that things began to look up. After hanging out with her and even playing video games for a few months, we were about to make it official that we were dating after 7 months, and we discussed it too.

However, after being confirmed for the supervisor position and after having it announced to the rest of the store, my manager told me that the other managers changed their minds last minute and decided to give the position to someone else instead, a girl from a different department who was dating one of the other managers, and while my manager disapproved of what they did, he gave me a few reasons that they used that still hurt me to this day to think about

He told me that it was “not based around my work performance”, since he said that “I knew almost every technical area of the store”. Instead, it was based around certain biases that the other managers had. The first being that, they only chose to see me for my first impression and not how I improved, according to him, and the second was that they thought I was really stupid and "too introverted and shy" and “just looked down on me and homeschooling”, and here's the example he gave me

When other managers would talk about their relationships and non-work-related things with other employees and me, I would remain quiet and not know how to enter the conversation and just seemed uncomfortable, but in addition to that, it was things I didn’t know too that just seemed really basic, and here’s what I mean. I remember one evening when I made a fool out of myself for not knowing something that they couldn’t believe I didn’t know, and it happened when an employee called an annoying customer a ‘karen’ after closing up for the night, and when I asked if they were talking about an employee whose actual name was Karen, they couldn’t believe I didn’t know and just laughed at me, and someone said how I was homeschooled and told them to "take it easy", but I remember feeling horrible and just stupid about it, since that just epitimizes how people look down at me as a homeschooler and how sheltered I was. My manager also said that he received "a lot of flack" for wanting to promote someone who they deemed "wasn't bright or intelligent" despite knowing all of the work technicalities of the job

After finding out that they had changed their mind about promoting me, I remember being sad after telling my parents that I was going to be promoted months ago, but they were never happy because of how I raved about having a high school experience there with people my age, and they really hated that and said “I was learning a lot of worldly things” and “things they tried to keep me away from” and that “I should leave my job” because I was hearing other opinions than theirs, the main reason they wanted to homeschool me from the beginning, to keep me from being around “worldly people” (her favorite phrase… basically anyone who’s not a Christian)

When I told them that they had promoted someone else after promising me the position, I remember asking my dad if they could legally do that after announcing it and making it official, and I also told them that it happened to me because I was homeschooled and how “they looked down on me”. But when I cried to them about it, they got angry at me for "blaming it on god" and "blaming it on homeschooling" and not "defending homeschooling to them" when they tried to put me down, along with “playing a victim like every black person who gets corrected” by blaming homeschooling as the reason why I am not socially adequate, which she compared to black people throwing around racial inequality “because it’s popular and easy, just like how girls lie about men hitting them to benefit”, and I hate that example whenever they use it. She would continue to say how "god does stuff to draw us back to him" and how "he gives and takes away" and nonsense like that and other stuff about "getting my life back in order with god", and it just made me feel worse, but not at my lowest yet. I wanted them to help me see if they could legally do that, but they refused to give me answers and kept throwing god at me

All of this happened right around when me and the girl were about to make our relationship official, including finally saying "I love you" after 7 months too, but after feeling like crap and having my parents play the abusive god card and being yelled at until I cried and thinking that this was god’s "punishment" and that I had done something wrong, I told her that “while I know I said I love you”, that I "had some stuff going on" that was affecting me emotionally (the job and embarrassment and my parents, not to mention rumors about me doing something terrible to lose the position at my job) and "wasn't ready to commit just yet"... words I now regret, but just remember being a mess, although it doesn't excuse what I said

She took it okay and said that that was fine and looked sad, but after that night, she stopped responding to me completely. Didn't matter over text or call, she even blocked me on social media in the coming weeks, and this on top of the embarrassment and hurt from the promotion and stuff from my parents, stuff that made me call out a bunch of days and stay bedridden and cry and do a bunch of stupid things to try and feel anything, and this lasted for a couple of weeks too

She wouldn't talk to me, and my parents were happy with how everything happened, since to them, it saw it as karma for me "walking away from god", and they'd take every chance they could get to rub it in my face. And after reading a bunch of relationship posts on Reddit now (something I didn't do back then), I know that I hurt my soon-to-be girlfriend by letting my hurt affect our relationship and ask for space, and if I could take back those words, I would in a heartbeat and regret them everyday. I was a coward to react that way, having no comfort from my family or anyone at the job when I was sad, but that still wasn’t an excuse to ask for space because of my emotional state. However, my parents used my emotional state to make me buy into their religious crap one more time, and this is probably the most hurtful thing of my life recently

I remember being so desperate, that I actually listened to them and did a Bible study for 3 months out of "repentance" thinking that she would return by some miracle (in my first ever breakup), something that they told me “would happen” when I had never felt in my entire life. I never thought anyone would ever be interested in me as a homeschooler and that I'd never be social enough to meet anyone or even get married. But after 3 months of crying and time going by, it was then that I began to finally realize that they were wrong and some of the realization that I have now. But they forced me to leave my job in "an act of faith to trust God to give me something better" after losing my promotion that would've gave me $19 an hour instead of $15 like I was making

​

Update

I'm in a grocery store now, making $15 again. I've been here since leaving my first job, and the pain of everything doesn't hurt as much, months later, although sometimes, it still really does. I hate myself for how I let myself buy into their "Bible study to make her come back" which was manipulative of my emotional state and first ever time around kids not in church, and I hope to move up in this new job at some point, but my parents have been angry at me for stopping the Bible study after the breakup stage, saying that "I gave up on God" and only "used him for what I wanted" and other stuff like that

My 2 young brothers also saw what happened and my bedridden stage, and as of a result, have both recently renounced their faith, something my parents are very angry with me about, and possibly carrying over that anger into their graduation demands. My brothers are 13 and 16 and have both decided that, and my youngest has said that he plans to go NC with my parents from 18 on and not go to college

In regards to the party, I talked with one of my cousins who said that they'd be willing to take me in during the party and potentially more time after that, for the simple basic reason of “mom trying to kill people by having an illegal party” not to mention the emotional abuse

As for my finances, I have inquired about opening my own checking account for my new job, since I used to share the same bank with my parents for the past 2 years. My uncle helped me with that, and he’s been really awesome. But what I just mentioned in regards to my first job, is what opened my eyes to the wrong in my parents, and while I understand that none of my abuse excuses how much of a coward I was when I pushed my girlfriend away out of stupid pity for myself, I am hoping/working to better myself as a person, and it starts with me learning how to say no to them, something I’ve gotten better doing a little since leaving my first job, realizing that god isn’t some genie in a bottle like she tried to make me believe he’d “make her return” like some vision she pulled out of her behind. I want to better myself for the next person I meet, and some of the small steps I’ve taken and putting my foot down with this party, will help build a backbone that I hope to have as a father one day and someone who will learn what not to do from my parents

$19 from my promotion would've been nice to have while trying to move out, but you can’t change the past, so I try not to look back, although sometimes the past still gets me. As others have recommended, I'm constantly looking into new jobs and potential trade schools, and I even practiced taking the train to the city on my own during the last week too, since my cousin lives out there and he'd be willing to help me out

With all of that said, here is my question. My brothers have reached out to me and look at me in place of my parents (in some ways), and they’ve begun opening up about how much they hate them for homeschooling them without their consent and forcing them to stay homeschooled… and when my youngest asked if he could go to public school, he was yelled at and similar stuff that happened to me in the past, and the 16 year old apologized for taking my parents’ side in recent years, and this is after they have both renounced their faith

My question is this… I’m still trying to move on, and I haven’t done anything yet to be seen as an example to them by any means, but I don’t know how to help them when I can’t even help myself, and my parents don’t want me to talk to them anymore and have had conversations scolding me for “putting garbage in their heads”, and if I talk to them, they will also get punished. How do I manage this situation and help them, if I should even help them at all right now for their safety, since they’ve lost a lot of privileges permanently for renouncing their faith, and I want to help them along with continuing to help myself. Any other advice is appreciated, and if you read all of that, I really appreciate it, and any advice on how to move on from my first job and this graduation mentally, would be appreciated too. My brothers are getting the worse of my parents for turning against them after seeing what happened to me, and one of my relatives has even considered calling CPS, but is unsure of if he’d be okay with taking the youngest one away from his parents if he’s accepting of it, and I just want to add that too

If I update in the future, it'll probably be after the party in over a month, but if you read all of that, I really appreciate it, and your advice has really helped me so much more than you'd ever know

TL;DR: I've tried my best to take a few more steps following the advice that others gave leading up to the party, but I really appreciate all of the comments and support, it's been really therapeutic. However, I want to add something I didn't add in my first two updates, my most recent trauma that I didn't tell anyone about, and something I'm still trying to overcome myself, the thing that made me realize how wrong they are for the first time. My brothers have also renounced their faith as a result of watching some of the things that I went through

[smokeybrand]

Insincere Sensibilities

I touched upon this a few days ago when i ranted about Outrage and Cancel Culture but, the current Sentai Filmworks purge over at Crunchyroll, i feel like i need to address this sh*t directly. I think that’s over licensing issues but it’s just a drop in the bucket with all of the other purges and alterations being made, all over the place. American censorship of international media is f*cking ridiculous. It is and i can’t stand it. I get that, for a lot of the youngsters out here, especially the ones that are of that Social Justice disposition, certain things, especially out of Japan, can be misconstrued, misunderstood, or even seen as offensive. The thing is, though, mind your f*cking business. Not everyone is outraged by the same sh*t you are. If it’s media to be consumed, just don’t consume it. Not everyone wants to fit in your very narrow worldview of assumed offense and righteous indignation. You look like a clown doing that sh*t. The motherf*cker who sh*ts in the pool, forcing everyone to leave. You’re the no-fun police. Chill the f*ck out, man, and keep your negativity to yourself. F*ck off with your soft ass sensibilities. Instead of harassing a Japanese artist, who lives in Japan, and is actually part of that culture, maybe get some f*cking context first? Maybe understand that, where that person is from, the sh*t they draw is fine and probably popular? Maybe don’t insist upon applying your narrow, prudish, American "values” to a country that, in so many ways, resembles nothing that you’d recognize as everyday life? Like, Amazon removed the Grimgar books. What the f*ck was wrong with Grimgar?? Interestingly enough, you can still watch the show on Prime. That hypocrisy is going to be a running theme, just letting you know ahead of time.

Not everyone who likes lolis wants to f*ck kids. Not everyone who likes guro wants to rape then eat corpses. Not everyone who likes isekai want’s a slave harem or is some weenie neckbeard that lacks all of the confidence. It’s nuts to me that this wave of pearl clutching is so selective. Like, Amazon removed all the No Game No Life novels, among others, because of “questionable content”. A cursory search reveals that you can still buy Catcher in the Rye on the site; A book about a teenage sociopath, who sells drugs and tries to f*cks prostitutes. Dude is sixteen. Shouldn’t this be removed, too? Isn’t this offensive material as well by these new rules? It’s required f*cking reading in high schools across the nation! F*cking A Clockwork Orange is still available, both the book and the film. Why? That sh*t is literally a murder-rape rampage. Dude rapes two ten-year-olds in that sh*t! It’s also another book i read in high school just to see if it was as bad as everyone says. The book is, yes. The film? Not so much. Also, and this is probably the most pertinent of my unabashed hypocrisy on display, f*cking Lolita is still available on Amazon! Both films, hardcover, soft cover, and even audio book if you’re too lazy to read for yourself. Lolita is quite literally, the inspiration for the loli genre that everyone seems to be completely out of their minds about now. Loli is short FOR Lolita. That’s a thing. You can imagine the content therein so why is THAT book okay but not No Game No Life? The Lolita audio book is f*cking free with an Audible trial! Free! But go off about Shiro, though.

This sh*t is frustrating to me because it feels like a targeted attack on Japanese media and ONLY Japanese media. I got Senators getting on TV, talking about how Dragon Ball Z is degenerate trash, even though it’s been on US television for almost three decades. Sony is prematurely censoring games like Sengan Kagura and Devil May Cry V, but Abby gets a whole ass, grunt filled, bro down, f*ckfest in The Last of Us II. That sh*t was so jarring and hilariously gross to see, it became a straight up meme. Her entire peck-a-titty was completely exposed, nips and all. Her animalistic barking and grimaced face, were so brazenly displayed. Graphically. Gratuitously. Uncomfortably. That sh*t look painful. That’s what sex is like in real life, right? That interpretation is grounded and not sexualized at all, right. Sex can’t be sexualized anymore. No joy or fun in the f*ck. It has to mechanical and the most unappealing sh*t, ever, or you’ll be objectifying women or some sh*t. Okay. Stunning and brave, I'm sure, but why? Why the f*ck was that necessary other than to wag a finger at your player base? Here’s some f*cking in your game, we know you like it, but don’t like that way. That way is wrong. Women are not cum-dumpsters. They are to be respected and never subject to your pitiable sense of passion or attractiveness. They can be inconvenienced by sex, too! That’s what i thought, at least, as i watched this aggressively icky display happen on my television for a miserable amount of timen. It’s this way or no way. I get a lens flare on the butt of a beauty like Lady from DMC, but I'm forced to see Abby’s whole body tense as whatshisname goes in raw with no lube? For real?

There’s just so much stupid surrounding the media i love lately, you know? Let’s go after Shield Hero because I'm offended that Raphtalia is a child slave. Because i only watched three episodes and completely ignored the heartwarming relationship that developed between Naofumi and the adult Raphtalia. Because Raphtalia grew the f*ck up. She only appeared that young, for that long, because Naofumi's trauma wouldn’t allow him to see her as an adult. I’m not saying don’t feel a certain way about whatever. Let’s get the pitchforks and torches because Scarlett Johansson is portraying a Japanese cyborg, even though the Japanese don’t care. They’re wrong for being indifferent to the racial injustice perpetrated by this Hollywood production! Even though the character of Batou IS canonically of Japanese descent, not a full cyborg so his body is organic with certain cybernetic enhancements, and still got portrayed by a white dude. Yeah, that’s fine. Ignore the whitewashing of literally every other Japanese or ethnic character in this movie, and focus on the one what is literally a brain in a mechanical shell. Outrage! Did I want to see a Japanese actor in that role? Sure. I think Rinko Kukichi was a perfect fit for Major Motoko Kusanagi. However, the Japanese people don't care so I had to let my bias go, too. If the director of the original anime film gives his blessing, who the f*ck are we to be so pissed off about it? Plus, the Major in this version of the picture is named Mira or some sh*t. She not even MY Major and I can separate the two. Apparently, I am in the minority on that one.

My favorite character in the Monogatari series is Shinobu. She’s a loli vampire that’s nearly six centuries old but looks to be about twelve in real time. Shinobu starts as a ravishing, adult beauty named Kissshot. Through a series of events, her power was sapped and, in order to save her life, she was left in her juvenile form. She later reclaims her voluptuous, mature, appearance and carries on for the rest of the series as such, but she was Shinobu, not Kissshot, when i fell in love with her. I do adore both versions of that character; Her haughty, too-old-for-her-looks, pre-teen self and the reserved, stoic, haunting beauty of her true form. That said, even as a loli vampire, Shinobu is still pretty tame. If Shinobu is worth a Change.org petition, what about Claudia from Interview with the Vampire? Claudia is FAR more problematic. She is Lolita on steroids. Claudia is nine when she was turned and was killed sixty-five years later. It is stated, in detail, she wanted to f*ck. Badly. But she couldn’t because, you know, the whole nine-year-old body and everything. That was actually a pretty big thing with Claudia’s character, that sexual frustration. Never mind the, you know, murderous rage and delight in cruelty, you know? Claudia is fine, with all of her bloody, murderous, psychopathy and manipulative, over sexual, personality proudly displayed, but Shinobu is an issue because... why again?

Cats are apologizing for violent abusers because they’re pretty women, and you HAVE to believe all women, regardless of the fact that they’re pathological sociopaths. Instead, let’s cancel a child for drawing She-Ra characters “wrong”, even though she drew the G1 versions of said characters F*ck her, right? Because she liked the designs of the old, problematic, version of that show? It’s on the “wrong side of social justice”. This is a child. One that can’t be more than a decade old but these motherf*ckers came for her, like her last name was Weinstein. It’s kind of hard to take your moral outcry seriously when you’ve directed your hateful intent on a goddamn grade schooler. Sh*t like that, the gross hypocrisy and targeted vitriol, is just f*cking exhausting. You’re entitled to your opinion. Hell, you’re entitled to even voice your opinion out in the wild. The internet is an awesome soapbox. I’m using it right now! As long as the discourse is civil, f*cking go for it. It’s rarely ever civil. Attacking someone because you made assumptions of their character over sh*t they follow on Twatter, is pure folly. Raising the alarm because you don’t like seeing “youthful characters” depicted in a certain fight, while ignoring other media that takes it even further but is more palatable or subtle with their transgressions, is hypocrisy. If you’re going to be outraged about something, if you’re going to call for censorship, make sure yo censor all of it. If you’re going to hide Japanese boob jiggle, make sure you fade to black with the hard sex in your domestic games, too. I’m as offended by Abby’s body in TLoUII, as you are of Ayane’s from Dead or Alive. Why should i be subjected to your bullsh*t while you curtail and demonize mine? Motherf*ckers want to be champions of tolerance and understanding but these same motherf*ckers sure refuse to understand any point of view obtuse to their own. You want that moral high grown so bad? Then stop picking and choosing what is or isn’t offensive. Either all of it is okay or none of it.

[storylocke]

Connections 14

[As the Skull Grunt explained about finding Devin, the urgency to tell their boss about hitting the wrong kid dwindled. Guzma‘s usual scowl made it had to tell if he was about to erupt in anger or simply contemplating the news. A smirk finally crossed the man’s lips.]

Guzma:

[Rises from his chair, cutting him off completely as the spy flinches. Hollers at the top of his lungs as he knows someone will deliver the message.] GLADION! GET IN HERE!

Grunt B:

[Somewhat hopeful] So… you're not mad at me?

Guzma:

[While his volume returned to normal, his tone turned to a sour mix between playful and sarcastic.] Mad? Nah. I’m absolutely FURIOUS! But not at you. [He steps down from his pedestal and shoves passed the grunt to head over to his closet. The wall of junk piled high within the frames of the door from years of being compacted into place quickly comes pouring out as he starts digging.] I told that half-baked researcher that even kids ain't dumb enough to fall for a trap so obvious. Damn device only gets one shot anyway- [Turns to toss a couple of worn out wooden boards to him] -which means now we get to do things my way.

Gladion:

[Arms crossed as he stands in the doorway.] What do you want? [He wonders if he should really ask after seeing the time-worn Trial Gate that looked like it hadn’t seen the light of day since the Kahuna died. Heavy sarcasm.] Am I on trial?

Guzma:

[Leaves the mess for the moment as he turns with a huff to the young mercenary.] You're going after Plumeria. She's stuck dealing with the Chosen now.

Gladion:

[If it's who he’s thinking of, Plumeria needs no help at all. Still rather annoyed.] And how do I go after her? She already took the boat.

Guzma:

She’s got a ride down at the dock. [Tosses him the keys] Boat’s all yours, so get going.

Gladion:

[While he’d normally have some snarky comeback with the leader, he looks at the keys in his hand with a sickening feeling. He knew they planned to catch Lillie, but he’d been waiting for the chance to strike once she’d been brought in. Something told him now that she wasn't coming… But who…? He looks back up at Guzma to ask, his usual cold stare showing the starting signs of suspicion and distress.]

Guzma:

I don't ask twice! [Turns back to his pile and steps over it to grab a particular box that had caught his eye.] Now get out before I make ya get out!

[Gladion takes his leave without another word. There wasn't any time to waste on these scum now anyway if he was right. The grunt had stood silently staring at them as he held up the gates in front of him like a shield.]

Grunt B:

Yo, Boss… you don't think Sis is really in trouble now, do ya?

Guzma:

[No, he didn't, but their last conversation still stung at the back of his mind. Their last conversation...? He needed to crush any such ideas. It wasn't anything any grunt needed to know anyway. They were talking about Gladion.] We’re just tying up the loose ends, B. I don't know what Gladion’s deal with Aether is, but he won't work when they're around. And if he won't with us, he's no use to us. Y'all have been wantin’ to drop the little punk anyway, right?

Grunt B:

… … … [Glances away in slight shame.]

Guzma:

As for Bird Boy… [In the slightly crushed shoebox, there's several little, very old, odds and ends, but he pulls out the thing he’d been looking for. After being hidden away all these years, the Z-ring from his trial days still bears the simple white stone Hala had given him. Nothing special, nothing like the one he’d seen on Devin anyway. The white leather band certainly didn't fit anymore, but he wonders for a moment if the stone might still work.] We’re gonna have ourselves some fun.

=+=

[As the rain passed over the Aether House in it’s usual waves from the north, the darkness revealed the sun had already slipped away. It was after nine, and still no Devin. Acerola was trying her best to get the two restless pre-schoolers to bed despite Kayla’s whining how she couldn’t sleep until her Yungoos came home. Lillie would share the bed with Acerola when they finally settled down for the night. Hau planned to stay on guard in the lobby. Except…When Acerola moved to the lobby to wish him good luck for the night, Hau seemed to be missing. She could feel her jaw drop at the thought since, no matter how worried he was, they PROMISED not to leave the building until they heard from Devin or Nanu. Hau didn’t seem like the type to pull something like this on them. Especially without telling anyone? No, no, she had to consider he just might be in the other room. Or hanging out with Mrs. Nanners. Or… as guilty as she felt for doubting him, she couldn’t help but carefully push the door open to peek outside.]

Acerola:

[At least he didn’t go far. She heaves a sigh of relief to spot the boy hung up at the edge of the stairs, fidgeting as he fought himself on whether to stay or go, somewhat pacing as he couldn’t get the nerve to actually step down yet. She glances around the area before sliding out the door to talk to him.] Hau? [He doesn’t respond at first, so she went to go tap him on the shoulder. Instead, he startles her by abruptly turning to look at her as if he’d been expecting her.] Oh! I’m sorry, I just wanted to check on you. Are you okay?

Hau:

No, no, no… I’m not okay. [He tries to shake the thought as he’s aware of her staring at him] I need to… something. I don’t know, I’ve got too many things going through my head, I don’t even know where to start!

Acerola:

[Yeah, she’s noticing that too. And given Devin’s odd behavior all day, she’s a little annoyed to think why. Crosses her arms with a bit of a huff.] Dad?

[They both come to a stop as a large black shadow slides out from under the door to stand beside her. The Gengar rises up with ease and looks at her with a wide, smug, grin to prove her wrong.]

Hau:

Uh… No. [He gives the captain a weak smile as well, trying to be reassuring.] I’m fine as far as that goes. I think? [He scratches at the back of his head as he’s not really sure how to begin on that] I’m kind of used to it, it’s just never been this bad.

Acerola:

[Still eyeing the Pokemon, but she’ll not question it for now.] Then what’s up? Are you sure you and Lillie want to stay here for the night?  

Hau:

She can, but I have to go. [As his head is reeling, his hand is still shaking from the energy, but he slowly lifts it to cover his face.] I sh-should have just gone in the first place.

Aceroloa:

[Leave Lillie? That didn’t sound right…] Alright? We might be able to make the last ferry-

Hau:

[Looks up at her in surprise, he’d gotten lost in the rain of comments, he almost didn’t know what she was talking about. But then, he’s the one who wasn’t being very clear. How could he?] What? No! Not leave the island. I need to go after D76, he’s in trouble! [He finally managed to spit it out and all his fears spilled forth] I, I got like… a warning, a siren, just… [how to describe it?] like this screaming over and over again that D76 is in trouble! He’s lost, he’s- he’s hurt…he’s… [he pauses to make a small grasping motion as if he’s physically trying to pull words from the air. Nothing clear seems to come clear though and he just looks to her in exasperation] He’s in trouble, that’s all I really know. I can’t understand anything, it’s just a lot of panic and debating about WHAT exactly happened, but I know I should- [Spins away as he walks off towards the edge of the porch again, only to turn around again, still fighting with himself on the matter] But I shouldn’t leave you guys, I promised Devin I’d stay out of Skull’s way. But the Voices are really insistent that-

Acerola:

[Now she’s VERY concerned and places a hand on his shoulder to make him stop long enough to listen.] This “screaming,” you mean literal screaming right now? Like… Little voices telling you to go after him?

Hau:

[Just stares at her a moment in bewilderment. Acerola didn’t seem like normally a very serious natured person, but the look she gave him now came off as stern. The expression on her face seemed to demand he tell her the whole truth, and be quick about it. He gives her a very nervous smile] Um …yeah? Most of them are, but some want me to go check on Lillie, and a few keep reminding me that I haven’t completed your trial, but both of those can wait. [It’s pretty bad when someone used to listening to disembodied voices is looking at him like he’s crazy, but he’s not quite sure he’s convinced her yet that he’s not possessed either. On second thought, he possibly was. Shakes his head.] But it’s always been like that for me. More like really stray thoughts, vague urges, random numbers, but it was always really soft. Like I’d have to concentrate to realize I was being told things and not just acting on my own impulse. It’s just really super subtle. Unless D76 is around, but I thought all of you could hear it too, so I never thought…

Acerola:

….. I think you need to go back inside.

Hau:

[Frustrated sigh as she takes him by the hand and starts to march him through the door.] But what about Devin?! We can’t just ignore this!

Acerola:

I’m not~! You just sound like you’re super overwhelmed right now. [She seats him on the couch and tries to make herself look cheerful.] I’ll go after him myself. I am still Captain, after all. And it’s my job to keep you two safe when you’re under my jurisdiction. Besides, it’s after dark, and you wouldn’t have any way to get there even if you could find the place.

Hau:

But you don't understand-

Acerola:

[Nooope, she already made the mistake of letting one of you go she’s not losing both of them.] I believe you, I do. But if Devin really did get into trouble, what makes you think you won’t fall for the same thing? I’m entrusting you with the house until we get back, okay?

Hau:

[If he can fight it that long.] Yeah… I guess. How far away is it?

Acerola:

[That’s a good question, really. Normally she could Fly straight to Po Town, but since Devin may have fallen anywhere along the roads between, it might be better to take the long way] Hmm… Give me about an hour, alright? If you haven’t heard from me, I need you to take everyone to Malie City. You can hide in the library until we get everything settled.

Hau:

[That he could do. At least it wouldn’t be sitting around, and to just do SOMETHING might help relieve the tension with the Voices.] Thanks. I hope it doesn't come to that.

[As the girl rushes out the door, another one very quietly tries to slip out of her room. Hau had already gotten up to wander the length of the lobby when he suddenly noticed the figure in white, so good at blending into the colorless Aether facilities.]

Hau:

Whoa! Lillie, I almost didn’t see you come in here. Can’t sleep?

Lillie:

I heard Acerola was leaving. [She had a bad feeling as to why. Her frown only deepens as she glances down at Nebby already at her heels.] What happened?.

Hau:

[Should he tell her? Of course he should, because there was no amount of “we got this” in his bag of lies that would likely comfort her. He starts to fidget with his Z-ring as if it were some kind of watch, a feat he’d never actually done before now, but he shyly glances away as he explains what he told Acerola.]

[Outside the house, a pair of shadows watch carefully as the door finally opens and Acerola can be seen bounding out of the house. They make their way out of the tall grass, pausing a moment at one of the trial-guides’ posts and wait to see if anyone else followed.]

Grunt:

I don’t know about this, Sis. Seems too easy. And we just saw that Chosen kid, or whatever, go back inside. I don’t know who they got at the base then.

Plumeria:

[That’s a very good question, but she’s got a feeling. Damn little bird keeper trying to play hero. But that did mean that the house was unguarded otherwise. No last minute heroics to stop them this time.] What, you’re not scared of him, are you? I don’t care if he’s special, he’s not invincible. That’s just old kids’ tales anyway. Come on, we better move quickly while they’re gone.