#Wolfsrainrules writes

[north-peach]

Alright for those who are unaware, my oldest fic, the one that's nearest and dearest to my heart is Of Cybertron

Last 2 days, @wolfsrainrules and I posted 5 chapters with roughly 30k words worth of new content.

It's been six years but we live again!

Anyways, the reason for the post. I have an oc and Megatron that both write poetry. I need opinions on if the stuff I write sounds like it's written by an angry gladiator living in a Functionalist universe. Which is like an even shittier version of fascism. Or would fit in with a deeply traumatized child soldier, growing up, winning the war and finding happiness during and after said war.

This one I wrote, with a pen on actual paper an hour ago at 0530 in the morning.

Now is when I look at my rage.

I've polished it, see how it shines.

Another blade for my collection.

Grief is there too, dull and blunt.

I have not picked it up since I put it down.

Hope is my most lonely weapon.

Gleaming and bold, my constant companion.

Should I hold out my bold hope, my polished rage and ask you, which one?

What would you say?

Such an ugly blade, the shining silver ones sneer at my rage.

Such an amusing novelty, they laugh at my hope.

You would ask, this I know, which one lifted me up? Made me stand? Made me walk?

I know you wish for hope, but it is rage.

In a thousand atrocities, I exist.

Here with my polished rage, my dull grief and my lonely hope.

[ding-dong-the-bitch-is-dead]

@halfagone @north-peach @wolfsrainrules @disillusioneddanny @dark-elf-writes

[vodkassassin]

Six Lines Challenge

Tagged by @alpharaposa

Rule: post the last line(s) of your most recent writing and tag the same number of people as lines you posted to keep the chain going.

My lines (5):

Trojan wonders how it would feel to find out that the place you’ve lived all your life is not just a lonely planet filled with siblings that don’t care for you, but an actual nightmare dystopia complete with routine executions of said siblings that no one can (or will) do anything to stop.

They had woken up already knowing what to expect.

Well, not quite that — even having the information beforehand hadn’t quite prepared them for the reality. But they’d at least known the truth.

Boba only knows a lie.

I tag (5):

@north-peach @wolfsrainrules @ladyteldra @myakkoh @chershare

[ding-dong-the-bitch-is-dead]

@blackkatmagic @cywscross @esamastation @dark-elf-writes @secret-engima @sparklecryptid @north-peach @wolfsrainrules

[in-the-gardens-of-inspiration]

From @alpharaposa

Rules: make a 24-hour poll with the names of your WIPs, let it run, then write one sentence for every vote the winner receives.

Not all of these are published yet ;3c

Below the line is a sentence spiel abt each of the fics~

(defenestrate the) window of opportunity : A post-Final-Getsuga-Tenshou Kurosaki Ichigo is tossed into HeroAca'verse, this impacts a lotta people- Midoriya Izuku, Shinshou Hitoshi, Aizawa Shouta, Yagi Toshinori, Sasai Susumu- but more than impacting the lives of the people around him, Ichigo finds he still is connected to both halves of Zangetsu (as well as some extras.)

glass prisms : lmao second verse, same as the first, no be serious Lilac. A post-versus-Future-Byakuran Sawada Tsunayoshi and a post-Final-Getsuga-Tenshou Kurosaki Ichigo wake up in a hospital in the HeroAca'verse, and eventually three skies (>:D) walk into U.A.'s 1-A classroom.

Be A Hero! : A slow burn crossover, wherein Marinette Dupain-Cheng makes bonds, breaks bonds, saves godlings, gets kinda-sorta-maybe adopted by godlings, gets a partner she can rely on, a new Order is established, (and also lionised,) not necessarily in that order: and, have I mentioned the dimensional instability yet?

halfway between the black and gray : I like aliens, I like wacky crossovers, I like wacky crossovers involving aliens, and snark-to-snark combat; aaaaaand I also think I could make Voltron: Legendary Defender a little more interesting/a little less worse with the addition of Ben Tennyson.

worth two lions (yet here i am) : A giftfic for Wolfsrainrules; posing such a question as 'what if Sawada Nana was the daughter of the Arcobaleno Fon?', worth two lions is my answer- featuring kiddo shenanigans, arson, and the beginnings of a beautiful (terrifiying) team between half-feral cousins.

(don't you ever for a second get to thinking) you're irreplaceable : There's something going on in Paris, and halfway-incompetant emotional terrorists, temporary disappearances, lying liars who lie, and unreliable superhero partners are only the half of it- ome thing's for sure though, Marinette Dupain-Cheng's got her work cut out for her.

per ardua ad astera: on supervillainy : Let me pose you a question, 'what makes a villain?'- is it the acts (atrocities) one commits, the thefts, the fraud, the debasement of the sanctity of peoples lives- or how often is it that a villain is a villain because they come into ideological conflict with the heroes or the authorities? As history tries to repeat itself, and people have to live with the consequences of the fallout, more and more people, who once buried their heads in the sand, start asking questions that will take months, if not years to unravel from a tangled web spanning almost 3 decades- civilians, heroes, and villains alike.

murky reality : Disappearences, mystery ailments, and people whispering of spirits, this is not unknown news to the Gaang- the sleepy hill town in the Earth Kingdom almost begs to differ.. as Aang, Sokka, Katara, Toph, Zuko, and Suki investigate, the shadows grow longer.

Thunderhead : During Cloud Strife's mako coma, Gaia bestows a boon- a gift and a duty all in one, becoming a weapon, yet not a WEAPON against the Calamity; as the time for the final confrontation between the Planet's Champion and the Son of the Calamity draws closer, a storm brews- then all too soon, a thunderstorm breaks, and Cloud must face "Sephiroth", and JENOVA with his dying will.

balance-maker, balance-breaker : Finding out that having saved Paris is simply not enough for some people, and the Pocket God Collective of Marinette Dupain-Cheng feels that their hands are forced, and it's now the time to take drastic measures to protect their (child) human; and so Marinette wakes up a child in body, in another dimension, there are shenanigans afoot; but then the developing peace is knocked down a flight of stairs by a monster that leaves most, if not all, of the kwami deeply afraid of what might happen to their Marinette and her new found family.

at full speed through the stubborn night! : When the kwamis of Precognition, Evolution, and Constitution come to you, Marinette Dupain-Cheng, grim-faced and a breath away from paralysed with worry aboit your well-being in the very near future, well, you listen, and with the rest of the pocket godlings that decided along the way that freeing them made you their perfect-yet-human Guardian, you plan; if only they told you about the interdimensional instability that would serve as your cover for getting the hell out of dodge-- so 'you' drift in and out of clarity for a few years, before everything meshes and Tailor D. Fortuna Rinne opens her eyes to her hidden memories, and powers-- but rumours fly fast o'er the seas, and not one, but two thought-lost overpowered Paramecia Devil Fruits just reek of bad news to the World Government and Navy.

[wolfsrainrules]

If you're doing fics for lines, I've got one. Any fandom you want. -"Yeah, I'm sure. Bedrock solid and blue sky certain."

THIS ONE took forever. Not because I didn’t have an idea for it, but due to having too many. BUT HERE WE ARE I FINALLY SETTLED.

Izuku’s breath shook just as much as his hands did. 

He’d never seen one up close before. Nobody had. It was called a ‘Nightfury’ known for being able to blend into the sky and strike like the mighty lightning of Thor. It knew no bounds, had no limits, was a rare sight on the battlefield, and had a flee on sight, a ‘hide and pray’ approach in every book Izuku had ever read.

And Izuku was the idiot that was about to poke one with a stick. 

Or well. Figuratively.

It was his fault anyway, he owed it to the dragon to at least go check on it. He was the one to shoot it down. 

Still. His hands shook.

He kept himself low to the ground and tried to breathe through the anxiety.

(His Mother was going to kill him if she ever- when she eventually- found out) 

If his calculations were correct- and they always were- the dragon should be…right….there.

Izuku followed the destroyed earth, tracking the trail right up to the cove, and over the edge.

The dragon was stuck in the hole, because he was missing part of his tail.

Izuku leaned heavily against the rock of the cliffs heaving for breath. He was-

That was terrifying.

A slow, perplexed grin worked its way over his face. The dragon had allowed him close. Had accepted- and shared, though that part was rather disgusting- his food. Izuku had managed to attach the prosthetic device to the dragons- he needed a name- tail and it worked.

Sort of.

It needed work, but it would allow the dragon to fly.

Izuku shoved his wet bangs out of his face with a cough. “Always need to have the last laugh don’t you? I’m going to call you Katsuki. It means victory. Kacchan for short!”

Izuku had never felt so free, so alive, as he did when he was really truly flying with Kacchan. 

Their practice runs had been nothing like this. The wind in his hair, the flex of scale and muscle under his legs, the feel of pressure as Izuku had to strain to stay on the saddle. The constant instinctive awareness of how to move his foot, so that he could help Kacchan fly. 

It was….

Exhilarating.

Izuku never really got into a fight with his villagers. He was made fun of, of course, being a member of a warrior village who….wasn’t. He was often shoved around by his peers, sneered at by the less friendly adults, and pitied by most. 

Izuku was fully aware of those facts.

But….he was doing well. He was more informed about dragons than even the most blooded warrior of his village, and he was causing problems with his peer group. Most didn’t like that the ‘Deku’- the useless- of the class was suddenly doing so much better than any of them. 

And frankly? 

Izuku didn’t give a damn.

He’d discovered everything they knew was wrong, he’d tasted the sky, the wind, the rush, of flying with his partner. 

Izuku loved Kacchan. He was his  best friend, and if Izuku may not have stood up for himself, but if he had to fight for Kacchan? Izuku would do it. 

Without Question.

Izuku plastered himself to Kacchan’s back, fingers digging into the saddle handles as wide terrified eyes focused on the beast before him. It was larger than anything Izuku had ever seen, than any dragon ever recorded before. Larger than the mountain, and hiding in the very lava of the volcano. It’s scales were black as night, and as far as Izuku could see it had no eyes- skin stretched taunt over the place they may have once been, scars trailing over its face and chest.

And still it-

It was monstrous and like nothing he had ever seen.

Izuku knew his village had been searching for centuries for the Dragon’s Nest, but as he looked at the King that ruled it, he knew none of his village would survive if they chose to fight.

Izuku would never tell them where the Nest stood, would never mention what he had found “Kacchan,” his voice shook as he whispered and watched the ears flick in his direction “let’s go Kacchan, come on.”

Red eyes flickered in his direction, but Kacchan threw himself off the cliff-side they had hidden inside and turned them back towards the cove.

Izuku had failed. 

They were going to fight that creature. 

His village, his people were going to die, and Kacchan had been taken. Taken to lead them all like lambs to slaughter. 

But….

Izuku turned towards the training grounds. 

If he did something utterly mad, he might just have a chance.

“And where,” a voice chirped right behind him “do you think you’re going?”

Izuku jerked but narrowed his eyes “Uraraka-san, please move. I need to save everyone, and I won’t let you stop me.”

Uraraka eyed him, Iida-kun, Todoroki-kun, and Tsu-chan standing behind her, all of them staring at him like they had never seen him before.

“Are you sure, Midoriya?”

Izuku turned towards Tsu at the question, nodding firmly, straightening to his full height as he answered “Yes. Yes, bedrock solid, and blue sky certain.”

(There’s a shift as he utters the words that had always been an oath in everything but name in their village. A promise, something inescapably true to the person speaking. As solid as the bedrock that protected the foundations of their village, and as certain as their ancestors had been that they would see a ‘blue sky’ at the end of their quest, that it was possible one day, to win against the dragons.)

The students- his peers- trade glances and then Todoroki speaks up “You’re not doing it alone.”

Izuku meets each of their eyes, and sees his determination reflected back. 

‘Bedrock solid’ their eyes scream out at him ‘Blue sky certain’ their stances firm.

Izuku smiles “You’re going to need to listen well then, let’s go!”

It’s madness when the arrive, flying over the battlefield. 

-And it is a battlefield. 

There’s dead and dying, easily spotted in the sky, fire and screams that echo and cut out suddenly. Dragons swarm through the air, ignoring the humans underneath them, and it’s obvious why.

That thing, the King, the Black Death, that Izuku had seen with Kacchan was loose and rampaging. His lack of eyes didn’t seem to hinder him at all, even beyond his area of effect.

“Alright!” he takes control of the situation, yelling to be heard over the chaos “Iida! Take Ingenium and start evacuating the wounded! Move them to the far side of the island! Todoroki, your with him- work defense! You want to keep Iida and any wounded safe! Tsu! You’re the distraction! Keep a level head, and don’t get hit!”

Tsu nodded sharply, breaking off to help draw the King’s attention from the feeling villagers. Izuku turned to face Uraraka. “We need to find Kacchan! And then you can help Tsu! The less attention the King pays to the villagers the more likely they are to live!”

It was a good life right?

Izuku thought it was.

Sure he hadn’t been having the greatest time, had been sort of pathetic before Kacchan, but these last months?

Izuku wouldn’t trade them for anything.

As he plummeted towards an explosion, perfectly aware it would be his last moments, he couldn’t help but smile.

Falling was kind of….peaceful, if one ignored the sudden stop at the end. It was like riding with Kacchan. He was just sorry his friends would survive this, and probably feel guilty. 

(His father was gone- supposedly on a quest, but he had never returned- and his mother had been lost in a dragon raid long ago. He was an orphan, though Aizawa-sensei had long ago told him he was in line to be Chief when he was ready. 

Looked like they would need a new Chief.)

He heard a roar of anger and rage, and his eyes snapped open.

Kacchan was diving for him, wings folded back, paws extended and furious focus in red eyes.

Izuku smiled, and reached back.

[tonystarktogo]

I was looking at your Villainous Weekend prompt thing and well, it made me think. SO here I am. Can we have a Stuckony verse with MobBossTony, Bodyguard!Buck, and DetectiveSteve wherein Steve reports to Tony/Buck b/c Tony is a GOOD mob boss who looks after his town. Only some people take offense to that. And Tony gets taken and gets to be a BAMF while Steve/Buck ALSO get to be BAMF who are also panicking really bad b.c they havent lost track of tony like this since the Ten Rings incident

First things first because we got to get the facts straight: Tony Stark is not a mob boss. He's not. That's just rumors and people being silly, not to mention tacky, okay? Okay.

That said Tony Stark is a business man. An important one for this city too.

(And if no one really knows what business he does exactly, well, that's just how Tony likes it.)

So when he disappears, naturally the police takes an interest. And since Detective Rogers used to be childhood friends with the head of Stark's personal security -- why an ordinary business man needs an entire security team that consists of the type of people you do not want to face in a bar fight is a question that should not be asked and will not be answered, thank you very much -- it only makes sense to send him in.

Not to mention that Chief Fury is a very smart man not prone to fighting loosing battles.

Which brings us to now, with Bucky and Steve standing in the kitchen of one of Tony's lesser known properties. Spread out on the table is everything from real time surveillance on Tony's last known location to updates on the latest movements of his enemies.

(It feels a bit like old times, Steve thinks with an odd sense of nostalgie as he watches Bucky pour over the information with the same narrow-eyed focus he used to give Steve when he knew Steve was lying as Bucky slowly but surely narrows in on his prey.

Bucky is a good tactician, an even better fighter but tracking? This is where he really shines. He's a hunter at heart and it shows.

It eases some of the tension in Steve's shoulders because as much as the thought of Tony in danger drives him crazy, Steve's got faith in Tony's ability to keep himself alive. He's got even more faith in Bucky's ability to find Tony and remove every obstacle that stands in his way.

With Steve's help, of course.)

Meanwhile Tony finds himself in the company of Thor Odinson of all people. Suffice to say he is not impressed.

[ding-dong-the-bitch-is-dead]

@north-peach @dark-elf-writes @wolfsrainrules @rayshippouuchiha

Netflix Original Style: Time (to Protect You) by Blueseabird2

(Throughout Infinity)

[secret-engima]

That moment...

when you finally get the inspiration to work on a WIP that’s been languishing for ages, but now its suddenly FUN to work on again so you do until your muses get so hyper-excited they thunder off your intended track and you watch in sobbing despair as all your carefully crafted anti-writers block plot notes go up in the flames of enthusiasm. So now, once again, you have no clue where in the world your story is going, but you have a funny feeling its heading right for the nearest cliff(hanger).

[north-peach]

I know that the replies for the post about aros writing romance are turned off, but I need to thank you for what you wrote. Well, to be honest, I hadn't realized it was you at first. I typically bypass urls but I needed to reach out.

After reading this a few times, it's knocked a few things loose in me. For one, I hadn't realized how conditioned I was into expecting romance in everything at some level. The relief I felt when I realized it was all platonic, just existing with another person? But showing it in ways I hadn't realized I was missing?

Your post let me realize that this is something that's perfectly acceptable and it shouldn't be restricted to just lovers. Humans are meant to exist as a group, a community. The necessity of skin contact has been scientifically proven. What society sees as acceptable often do not correlate with what people need. Why should this be anything different?

Also, it showed me that this is what I've been missing and adding to a large part of my depression. I've been separated by circumstance from my partner for a while now and while I knew I was depressed, I hadn't realized how much of it was from that very physical need. Now I can use this to try and help myself heal.

Thank you

I- well.

I really struggled and still struggle with this so I understand where you’re coming from.

Honestly, it was when I found out I couldn’t write smut, but I could write platonic relationships, I could write fluff and comfort and squishy relationships.

I could take friendship and make it romance and I could take romance and make it friendship but the two character’s didn’t have to change, just the characters around them were making different comments.

I discovered, obvious in hindsight, but a revelation then, that my relationships were between me and the people they involved and no one else. 

Regardless of what other’s saw, the relationship was nothing I didn’t say it was.

I call @wolfsrainrules my wife and I’d legally marry her in a heartbeat, but honestly? Nothing would change. 

I’d move in with several people without question, and nothing would change.

Thankfully, I reached my conclusion at a young age.

It was my life, I wanted hugs, headpats, cuddles, teasing and affection however the other party was willing to accept it.

If other’s saw that as flirting, as something more, that was their problem not mine. I just made sure that everyone that was involved knew that hey, you are are my friend and I love you, I’ve got your back, but I’m not comfortable with this and likely will never be.

I am the affectionate cat that will love you without hesitation or question, but I come and go as I please. 

That’s me, and there’s nothing wrong with me.

But I’m glad my thoughts were able to help you. 

So thank you for letting me know!

[ding-dong-the-bitch-is-dead]

@blackkatmagic @rayshippouuchiha @dark-elf-writes @north-peach @wolfsrainrules

I like to think that Vulcans who come to understand that Humans just can’t try to process emotions the same way as them, it’s just healthiest to let it out in harmless ways, decide that venting and stuff should be taken just as seriously as Vulcan’s meditation time, and will encourage the Humans around them to complain about what’s upsetting them

People who are used to aloof Vulcans who avoid Humans at all cost running into one comforting a Human

“-and then they said my cheesecake was subpar, and they didn’t even bring a dish!!!”

“The purpose of this event was that every participant brings a food item of sorts, correct?”

“Yeah!!”

“And they did not follow this rule while insulting dishes that were brought?”

“Mostly just my dish but yeah >:(“

“How illogical”

“That’s what I’m saying!!!”

[ramblebrambleamble]

Tagged by @whetstonefires 😊

Rules: Write the latest line in your WIP and tag as many people as there are words in the line. Make a new post, don't reblog.

I'm kind of writing out a concept for a fic I'll never write? Probably won't finish it.

He isn't getting rid of them that easily :)

@snspoetry @kairos-thehumanpoet @wolfsrainrules @mouseymightymarvellous @createuntiltheendoftime @leemartenspoetry @quilliumwrites @rayshippouuchiha

[anotherbnhaaccount]

MY RECOMMENDATIONS ON BNHA FANFIC Part 1

Virdian // SlivermistAmineLover

One of my personal favorites, a Quirkless adult Deku gets sent to the past to save the future. Parental Aizawa, background Erasermic, Big-Brothery Keigo. It’s just awesome, just read please-

Unfinished

About 100,000 words

https://archiveofourown.org/works/22304209/chapters/5327300

Displacement // cloud_nine_and_three_quarters

Eri based, Two years after the New ‘Symbol of Peace’ dies strange things start to happen and slowly more people get roped in the secret. Interesting but heartfelt read, no need for tissues unless your sensitive. 

Finished

70,000 words

https://archiveofourown.org/works/16854265/chapters/39571339

Canary // cloud_nine_and_three_quarters

Deku doesn’t get One for All, but he gets into UA support course and he finds out he has a quirk he’s never known about. Shinso friendship, Supportive Yamada, Radio station dialogue chapters;)

Finished

About 290,000 words

https://archiveofourown.org/works/19334392/chapters/45992473

Detective Midoriya // rogueptoridactyl

After the sludge incident, Midoriya finally realizes he can’t become a hero, but maybe he can become someone to help. Nice Detective(s), super smart Deku, it’s cool from beginning to end and how far he becomes.

Unfinished

About 120,000 words

https://archiveofourown.org/works/17549252/chapters/41354681

Here we go Loopty Loo // Tired_College_Student_Writing

Class 1-A plus Allmight finds themselves in a time loop, reliving the same three years (and sometimes more) over and over again. Timeline changes, secret family relationships are found out, timeline changes now and then, a good short reads for now and then, funny- light hearted, a overall fun story to read.

Unfinished

About 70,000 words

https://archiveofourown.org/works/24501283/chapters/59143876

I Hold With Those Who Favor Fire // northpeach, wolfsrainrules

The worlds goes to shit but one hero gets sent back to the past to save it all and it’s... Endeavor. Endeavor learns to be a good person, things change for the better. You like, like Endeavor??? Idk, but it’s hella good writing.

Unfinished

An easy 25,000 words (last checked)

https://archiveofourown.org/works/14543247/chapters/33602904

[in-the-gardens-of-inspiration]

Well... I've fallen headlong into another odd idea...

Consider the following:

There's a lot of cat!/fox!/kitsune!/lizard!/dragon!Ichigo. To be frank, I'd be down for nekomata!/wolf!/croc!/bison!/falcon!Ichigo too.

Isn't it kind of funny that we see certain traits in a characters and assign them an animal that we think corresponds with them?

I'm super interested in writing a falcon/gryphon/direwolf-inspired Ichigo, it just seems like a lot of fun and potential. And nekomata/bakeneko imagery for the so-called deathberry would be neat (one could play up the rule of cool, funny, or angst, or yes).

Sawada Tsunayoshi can't escape the lion imagery to save his life- not that I don't see how it fits him, 'cause I do- but there are other, less common and more interest-catching options, like the black-footed cat. Adorable, tiny, and also the embodiment of the phrase "murder muffin", a.k.a., all kinds of badass.

.... I very well might have the obligation to write a Midoriya Izuku that has swan motifs. Total 'ugly duckling' kind of vibe, before growing into his own. Swans are a lot more muscular than what a lot of people expect, and like, 99.999999% down to fight you.

But that's me sticking my oar in, I'm a little curious to know what imagery pops out at you with your favs

@thefringeperson @wolfsrainrules @north-peach @high-pot-in-noose @shadows-haunt-angels

[lovingempress]

An Ode to Fanfiction Writers

I’m often silent

I don’t know what to say on the things that mean something

But,

Every alert lights up my day

Your writing fills me, often so full I burst with emotions, or even just gnawing at the scraps you toss like crumbs to koi

Sometimes I am glutted off your ideas and creativity,

Filled to the brim with the evoked emotions

Others I feed off of various bits and pieces

Though they are small and few, in words and feelings,

They add to me, ever hungry for more and peck-peck-pecking at rice grains scattered

Those small bits, shed from your mind like the hair on your head, buoy me through my days

Your writing adds Life to my World, Color has Meaning, Joy-Sadness-Comfort-Sorrow-Vengefulness-Complicated things that wring me tight and soft Fluff that holds me close...

Sing me, again, these bedtime stories, your hymns and chaotic madness, your soft lullabies that hold us close as if a babe to thy chest

Bring me comfort, bring me pain, evoke outrage, induce flight- FanFiction Writers, you become everything to me

@writer-and-artist27, @akaluan, @wolfsrainrules, @north-peach, @alkhale, @writing-frenzy, @silenceia, @cooliogirl101, @athanatosora, @araceil, @kegareki, @cyb-by-lang, @cywscross, @owlsofstarlight, @blackkatmagic, @surfacage, @hweianime @bluethursday @luki-fanfic @feynites @metronomeihear @ladyhallen @thefringeperson @alleycat4eva @esamastation @kyogre-blue @abalisk @exocara @secret-engima @hraap @tsume-yuki @acernor @aerialflight @adelmortescryche @simkjrs @seitosokusha @sanjuno @sakhyu @reighost @wingbladeweaver1357 @klonoadreams @dosbysilverqueen @chaosgreymistchild @mullk6 @hi-pot-and-news and so much more...

Merry Christmas y’all, Happy Holiday season, and have a great New Year!

[captainsupernoodle]

@wolfsrainrules @north-peach IT’S HERE!!

This is very long????????????

(also writing this really drove home another one of those moments where i'm just like “what the FLIP I have FAMILY as young as this hero WHAT ARE THE GROWNUPS DOING”)

Ichigo is immediately like “a person who Knows Things! Who's willing to Tell Me Those Things!” and sits down and lays out everything he's been mentally and not-so-mentally screaming about since he got STABBED with a SWORD and got up with MAGIC POWERS. Byakuya eventually meanders them to his estate and orders tea and half of soul society feels Judged even though they're not sure where it's coming from. Byakuya is massively unimpressed with Everything.

Whether this is right after the first invasion or later would change some things, but in any era what the fallout mostly boils down to is the Gotei freaking out because suddenly! The super-powerful kid they've had running around is asking questions! And doing things!! Legally!!!

Ichigo puts Byakuya on speed dial on his soul phone and calls him up every time he thinks of a problem or someone tries harassing him or Isshin says something that just. Doesn't add up.

And eventually he just starts calling Byakuya to yell about shinigami nonsense around town (his bedroom is no longer marked as a safe house, has the esteemed Gotei 13 fallen so low–), about theories and experiments he's doing to adapt kido to his reiatsu levels, about history and science and reishi architecture and whatever else catches his interests, and Byakuya pretty much always picks up, even if it's just to tell him that he's in a meeting and setting a time for them to talk, and when he visits soul society he has friends who are eager to see him but he always spends some time at Byakuya's.

(more under the cut!)

Byakuya is quick to invite him into the Kuchiki library, and they spend many afternoons and evenings just sitting quietly, Ichigo tearing through scrolls and records, Byakuya doing paperwork or reading, and sometimes Ichigo will ask a question or Byakuya will point out that this author over here expounds on that point in the book you're reading, and they'll have intellectual debates over hasty bites out of their dinner and the staff is Scandalized by the young lord taking books to the table but after the first three times they got up in the middle of eating bc byakuya was trying to enforce Decorum ichigo just brought his books with him and then byakuya had to get up to reference something and it was just too much trouble. The head servant whatever is just like fine! fine, at least they're not eating in the library, who knows what might happen with a Shiba in the works, at least the young lord still has a grip on his temper.

And it is funny to anyone who sees them together -- it took a little while because Ichigo isn't actually in SS all that often, he usually trains in the bunker and Kisuke is about all the mad scientist he can handle, but he comes to hang with Renji & other friends on some weekends -- but they actually do get along like a house on fire after byakuya flipped the "mentor" switch and let his guard down enough to keep getting sucked into heated debates. Ichigo's not a rebel, necessarily, in that he's not out there constantly looking for reasons to pick fights with anyone, he just doesn't let anyone pick fights with him or his friends and also goes "well that's stupid" with... pretty much any kind of unjust authority and law. It drives Byakuya a bit bonkers but he channels it into "educate the unfortunately misinformed future clan head" instead of immediate senbonzakura-ing. Trouble is that Ichigo is entirely ready for friendly debate throw-downs and yeah, maybe he doesn't have a law degree, but execution without a trial for trying to protect people, byakuya, really?

And this is where a little of the cultural confusion comes through, because Byakuya is intellectually aware that Ichigo is human but it doesn't really affect much beyond Ichigo being from somewhere else and being unfamiliar with soul society. And he's like, mostly adult-shaped, right? He's bigger than Toshiro, and most souls that look like Ichigo are already out doing things, even if they're still pretty closely connected with home, and he acts young sometimes but most of the time he's at Byakuya's level, just less experienced, which is to be expected given shinigami aging. So Byakuya answers any questions he has and applies pressure in ichigo's favor when needs be in the background, and otherwise lets Ichigo come to him and generally be independent.

And this works for Ichigo! He's been independent for years, wrongfully so, but he still has more life experience than most kids his age and is fiercely independent on top of that, so having someone to lean on is both novel and avoids being suffocating or condescending. A lot of the time he wants help – he already has more independence than he really wanted, and he's mostly adjusted to it, but it doesn't stop him from wanting some of that support that he's been lacking for so long, and that Byakuya is freely offering.

And eventually he figures out that he's started telling Byakuya things he hasn't told anyone else – questions about hollows eventually led to offhand mention of his hollowfication, and oh right, he'd actually kind of attacked Byakuya with his hollow mask, he'd probably want an explanation for that and even as chill as he's been so far the soul society anti-hollow rhetoric has gotta come into play somewhere with a noble –

Except Byakuya doesn't push. He never pushes. Even with that first offer, he was just laying out an option that Ichigo could take if he needed it, and he followed through when Ichigo took him up on it.

So he has a bit of a crisis and is a little more scowly than usual, but his sisters and friends know what it looks like when he's thinking really hard about something and leave him be, and he takes some long walks with Chad, just turning over what's been happening in his head and considering.

(Byakuya's been one of his people since he got his head screwed on straight, but Ichigo knows he has a tendency to latch on in ways that most people don't reciprocate, and it's okay. His friends have gone to war with him for someone they barely knew, they trust him, and he can lean on Chad most times, and it's good, it's good to have friends and precious people to protect.

But Byakuya isn't looking for his protection, or for someone to follow, or to spar with or experiment on or manipulate.

He's just – there.)

His thinking doesn't change much. He's already confided more in Byakuya than he has with anyone, because before hollows and Soul Society his friend group was all human teenagers doing teenager things, and Chad was sorely needed relief from a chaotic home life but he was still Ichigo's age, didn't have answers to a lot of the questions Ichigo's been shoving deep ever since his mom died. Byakuya doesn't press, doesn't judge, thinks deeply before speaking, but Ichigo always knows he's listening.

It's. It's good. It's really good.

And I guess I have a timeframe after all because Ichigo's really been there and back by the time of the Winter War. Byakuya sent his sister and his lieutenant to support Ichigo before he'd even been denied help to rescue Orihime, and came to Hueco Mundo himself, and listened again when Ichigo came to him, glaring and stiff, and slowly, quietly told him about dying and coming back less than human, fear in the faces of his friends and enemies, about seeing a soul – a person – crumble at his own hands.

Byakuya gets a hint, then, that Ichigo isn't quite the same as a soul. Souls might go entire lives only in soul society, from birth to death, but even souls who grow naturally rather than coming from the Living World are in some ways static, slightly less flexible in some fundamental way than those in the Living World. He does a little asking around, and Ichigo is so young even by human standards – Soul Society has been leaning on him like he's as old as his power levels suggest, in a place where passive reiatsu output is often more accurate than physical appearance, and all this time he's not even fully developed as a person, is still soft and learning how to exist in the world.

Byakuya has his own crisis right about then, and I'm playing fast and loose with timelines because I don't even remember most of the show, so in this au we're in a waiting period after clashing with the Espada just enough to get Orihime back – all the shinigami are alive, Grimmjow is licking his wounds-presumed-dead, tragic batman is dead, harribel and the tres bestias are not wearing battle bikinis cool, uuuuuuuum I think???? the vizard already happened before the grand desert slaycation??? Byakuya has a few belated heart attacks when he hears about training and the dangers thereof even though he's been privy to & helping with Ichigo's solo experiments with the hollow mask, and after Orihime is back and the shinigami do whatever sneaky sneak they've been planning or however it was they figured out about the time limit or whyever they wait for the Karakura pillars fiasco instead of, idunno, trying to prevent the megalomaniac from keeping hold of the magic rock….

ANYWAY there's a quiet period and Byakuya has his oh crap i'm a dad crisis and eventually is just like this is a literal child but he's proved himself time and time again that he's capable and wouldn't appreciate anyone butting in on his business uninvited, so instead he's sneaky about it. Most of his sneaking reveals that things are about like Ichigo's described, he has school and friends and training (urahara probably notices his snooping but he's certainly not the one filling in for Isshin's catastrophic failures in parenting, and maybe he sees the need or maybe he just isn't bothered enough to do something about being spied on, and he never interferes or tells kurosaki). Okay, this is fine, if everyone else is a complete and utter failure of a parent then he'll have to fill in whatever Ichigo hasn't covered himself. He gets an actually competent shinigami to cover Karakura, gets a copy of his school schedule and keeps people from harassing him near tests, is even more stringent with fronting central 46's stupidity and Very Firmly, At Risk of Murder cuts off all possible contact between Kurotsushi and Ichigo's people (and may start quietly grooming nemu to take over the 12th but nobody can prove it).

Things are bopping along, and then we have whatever permutation of the winter war that happens in this AU. Byakuya's been busy with the Grand Karakura Relocation or whatever the plan is and reinforcing his division, whipping them into shape after centuries of nothing but low-level hollows, and he knows that Ichigo's doing the same and he isn't concerned when they have less time to communicate.

Then Aizen.

I never actually watched the interim between the hundreds of episodes of vs arrancar fights and the butterfly beatdown but i'm assuming that everybody's tied up elsewhere or else they wouldn't have let a SINGLE 15YO fight aizen on his own, right? RIGHT???

Anyway in THIS fic that's the way it works, and while urahara and some of the other captains/ whoever's fighting fit, free, and not gonna die just from standing near the powerhouses lends a hand, so Byakuya is busy but not really worried bc Ichigo is a proven warrior and he has backup and for all his unexpected fondness, byakuya is still a military man and he Compartmentalizes.

Except then Ichigo's power rises and rises and rises again, and then all at once disappears.

Byakuya promptly flips his lid and Aizen goes into the box a bit more shredded than he did in the og timeline.

Everybody else gets the idea pretty quickly and flings Ichigo at Byakuya, who figures out what happened very fast and immediately decides Isshin has lost all rights to anything, ever. Ichigo is kept abreast of all developments in the efforts to get his powers back and NOBODY leaves him to his own devices for two years because Byakuya is persistently present and Isshin is on his shit list big time so he takes great joy in thwarting him at every turn.

I haven't watched or read the Ginjo arc at all but from what I gather they sneak in while Ichigo's isolated so there's a solid chance all that mess gets cut off at the knees.

Byakuya may or may not have an apartment and double life as a reclusive rich businessman in the Living World so that Ichigo has a place to stay when Isshin is Too Much, maybe the welcome eventually gets expanded to Chad and Orihime and the twins, but whatever goes on after Aizen, Byakuya is there and backing Ichigo up.