#ah just one of those days I wanted to draw something wholesome
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fatedroses · 1 month ago
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The overwhelming power of the doting grandparent.
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heartofspells · 1 year ago
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Tuesday Snip Snip
For not other reason than the fact that I want to share this.
Tagging: @tracingpatternswrites @spikybanana @maybebabyplease
Harry is seated against the wall, knees drawn up towards his chest, wedged just behind the door. He's got a piece of paper pressed on top of a book, a pencil scribbling doodles over the surface, his head bowed. The boy shrugs one shoulder, not instantly responding.
Crouching down in front of him, Sirius cranes his neck, peering at the drawings.
"What're you making?"
Green eyes half-hidden behind glasses flicker up to Sirius' face before dropping again.
"Treasure map," he mumbles.
"Ah," breathes Sirius, shifting around until he's beside his godson. "What's the treasure?"
Harry glances at him from the corner of his eye, his head dipping further over the paper, his scribbles increasing.
"Mum wouldn't let me have any of the biscuits she made earlier for after dinner," says Harry, voice lowering to a near whisper, like he's sharing the most precious of secrets. "So, I took the whole tin and hid it."
Biting the inside of his cheek, Sirius tries his best not to laugh. A small hiccup escapes before he can rein it in, and Harry's shoulders relax a little.
"I see." Sirius pauses for a second before his eyebrows lift high on his forehead. "Hang on a tick, you're not only punishing your mum by nicking them. Those were meant for me, too!"
"I'm going to give her the map so she's got a chance to find them," says Harry, sounding unconcerned.
"And if she doesn't? You gonna share the hiding place with me?" questions Sirius, titling his head down, trying to catch the boy's gaze.
Harry looks up at him, silently evaluating, his eyebrows pinching together with deep consideration.
"Are you going to tell her?"
Sirius mimes locking his lips together, swearing himself to secrecy. His godson's reaction is slow but worth the wait, his grin spreading and stretching, green eyes crinkling in their corners. Leaning closer, Sirius tugs his wand free, tapping the tip to the piece of paper. He mumbles a spell, all of Harry's carefully placed details vanishing from sight.
"What did you do?" cries Harry, immediately upset, but Sirius holds his finger to his lips when a furious and accusing green gaze pins on him, silently quieting his godson.
Touching his wand to the paper again, Sirius says clearly, "I solemnly swear I'm up to no good." The map reappears, and Harry blinks at it in wonder. "Give her a bit of an extra challenge, eh?"
"Wow," breathes Harry, and Sirius chuckles, arm draping over the boy's shoulders as they sit together in the shadow of the still open door.
"You never did tell me why you're hiding here," broaches Sirius after a little while as Harry continues working on his map.
Harry scowls at the paper. "Mum and Dad were talking," he mutters. One of his lines digs in deeper than necessary, nearly tearing the page. "That's all they ever do now is talk. Talk, talk, talk. And they always make me leave."
Arm tightening around his godson's shoulders, Sirius looks up, gaze travelling the space, coming to rest on the firmly closed kitchen door a distance away where he can hear muffled voices. Sirius isn't surprised that it had finally come to this, the separation of his friends, something he'd known for years they'd probably been hurtling towards all while they'd ignored it. And it's not as though he'd wanted or hoped for it, because he hadn't, no matter what others might believe of him, at least those that know some semblance of the truth.
Lily and James together had been a stunning thing, beauty written out in stanzas like poetry. In so many ways, they'd been right, a wholesome duo, that power couple all others try desperately to compete with and always seem to fail. And Sirius had backed them from day one, stood tall and proud at their wedding, at least to outwardly watching eyes. If James was happy, if Lily was happy, then Sirius had convinced himself to be happy for them, to forever support their choices in life because he loves them both. He hadn't wanted this.
He'd wanted this even less for Harry. His parents divided, no longer living under the same roof, constantly falling into arguments that have likely grown and spread for years. The only life he'd ever known is now gone, leaving him hurt and confused, masking it with anger and blame towards the one person who remains the closest, his mother always around like a waiting punching bag, Lily taking it with all the graceful, resilient stride born into her, trying her very best not to rock her son's boat more than it already has been.
"That's boring stuff," says Sirius, clearing his throat as Harry's pencil pauses on his paper. "Adults like me, like your mum and dad, we've all got a penchant for doing that, have you noticed? We talk about things you've got no interest in. You don't want to be part of that, do you? Even I find it dull and I'm an adult!"
Scowling down at his drawing, Harry's hand begins to move again, creating carefully dotted lines through a cleverly crafted jungle that was once his home. His expression remains dark, mouth tugging down deeply at the corners, shoulders unforgiving beneath Sirius' arm.
"They're fighting," he utters in a foul tone. His head lifts, blazing green eyes burning into Sirius' face, accusing and incriminating. "They make me leave because they start fighting and they don't want me to hear it. But I still hear it. They're doing it now."
Silence falls between them, other sounds meeting their ears, the muffled voices behind the kitchen door no longer soft but loud. James' voice rumbles, nearly vibrating the floor, Lily's higher pitched and furious. Harry tenses and jolts at a particularly explosive shout, Sirius following suit alongside him.
"Hm," hums Sirius. "Yeah, I can see that now." Shifting beside Harry, Sirius tilts his head back against the wall, licking over the backs of his teeth. "Well, Haz, there's nothing for it, really," he says, his own voice rising, carrying outwards. "Your parents sometimes forget they're not children any longer, but maybe they should stop acting like giant bleeding yobs and remember that not only do they have company invited into their house, but they also have a wonderful son listening to every single horrendously immature word they're lobbing at one another."
The voices in the kitchen die quickly, the embarrassment permeating from behind the closed door palpable. Harry looks up at Sirius in the quiet that descends, Sirius quirking an easy smile when his eyes flicker to his godson, who practically beams at him.
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voidedbattery · 23 days ago
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Iron and Smoke
@rvbrarepairweekdos
I GOTTA GET MY CHARON STUFF IN!!!!!!!
By the way, see this post if you haven't read it yet. It has notes that you need to know when you continue to read this post.
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This post has MAJOR focuses on the Sleeveless Insurrectionist and The Demoman (both of which refer to the characters in RvB).
+ POLL
also check image alts if you don't know what nonsense I drew today 🔥
This is one of the only two days where I'm gonna post about. Why? Here are my excuses:
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Right, so let's get into it.
The Appetizer
Caboose x Reader
Once I looked up a fanfiction with this exact tag. I was curious, so I was wondering if there was something wholesome. And it was! I read a fanfiction on AO3 (i don't know where it is but it's like one of five) where you and Caboose decorate a cool banner and annoy everyone on base with it. How fun! Definitely the caboose of all time.
Also like... You're supposed to make ship thingies for other people on this date so here's that. I'm also gonna use the wheel too and
The Wheel
where is it
OH MY GOSH LOOK THERE'S MORE STUFF!! WOW!!!
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anyways i found it after five mouse scrolls
GONNA SPIN!!
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ah yes. a main character and a main character <3< <#,,333,3#<####3,3,3,3,,3,3.....
when i got a Starburst yesterday, it was orange and pink
is this
is this foreshadowing or what
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yeah i still can't draw properly but i can make it obvious enough to make a couple people that i know to go crazy
i have like 7 of these drawings but they're not about halo at all so i doubt you'd be interested
but if you do, let me know!
Main Course
I'm going to expand off of this post.
In short, Ch6/Dax's arm is just as large as Ch4/Marcus' if you take the bandolier off.
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Here's where the "deeper diving" begins!
Team Crimson
Who Marcus (Ch4) and Dax (Ch6) belong to
Initially started as three people
Marcus is one of those three
They advertise very lightly because of the attention they don't want to bring up, so they use posters
But it happens anyway when Ch2, Ch3, Ch4, Ch6 are KIA while Ch1 goes MIA
The above is referred to as the Longshore Massacre to some groups (this fact is mainly for a specific AU; lmk if you want in on this)
The wiki says that they resemble Noble Team so I'm headcanonizing that
The team plays rough with each other but can remain professional in specific environments
Occasionally give out cinnamon treats to little ones who pass by
You probably won't survive a road trip with them if it takes enough time for you to get hungry for food
They were hired exactly four times before Longshore
One of those times was because a few friends were bored
Marcus
If you want to talk with him about something, it's best to do it alone
He's a completely different person when the team's assembled
Probably has a really big dog that lives at his house
Lives in an apartment but sleeps over at his cousin's about 30% of the time
Has a mutation which is probably the reason why having no sleeves hasn't killed him for his six years as an ODST
Started going sleeveless by pure accident due to an alarm clock failure, so it was really four years without sleeves
Marcus just kept going as soon as people were all over him
"What's your workout routine? BROOO those shoulders" they'd ask
Would only hug his S/O for over 20 seconds
Anything other than that would go to anybody who genuinely asked for a hug
Once made $872.36 from arm wrestling bets at one of Earth's major spaceports
He's the one who gives out the cinnamon treats
Chain Twins
Would give out raw cinnamon powder
Yes, I included the twins specifically to say that they'd give out raw cinnamon
They enjoy really obscure fandoms
One of them probably likes history a lot, but nobody really knows about it because of the fact that the textbooks are hidden in his/her backpack the whole time
Dax
Emailed the leader about joining Team Crimson just solely to work with whoever was on the poster that he saw two months ago
Actually jumped so much that he put a dent in the floor when he met Marcus in person
I saw a post that said that Ch6 would be Simmons but 20% cooler and I'm making that canon
Either that or he's the Rookie if he grew up in a crowded neighborhood
Was born in New York City (or something similar if Dax wasn't Earth-native)
Eats really small burgers for some reason
You'd know when you go to a restaurant and he starts complaining about the size of the Junior burgers
Forgets to take post-workout supplements but still looks like one of those people who'd miraculously save you from a car wreck
I think he teaches the other workers in the Charon Industries company how to drive a truck or something
His party trick is taking the square of double digit numbers
Someone said this on an Amino post but Dax is really formal after his arm gets blown off
THE Main Course
(and not the 50 plates of appetizers that already filled your stomach for the next two meals)
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Iron and Smoke
Iron, because Marcus goes to the gym really often
Smoke, because that's what explosions do
I would've used another element for "smoke" but I can't tell which one makes explosions
Uranium? No, that sounds too techy-
wait... what IF Dax was a techy sciency person?
probably not. Dax would need to spend less time at the gym so he can study
The actual relationship between Marcus and Dax
I don't think they've "done it" at all even though a lot of people joke about it
They do helmet bops every day. They do it every day somehow. Even if nobody's looking, they do it. Even if it's 12 AM, they do it.
Marcus is the dominant person in this relationship (battery why are you mentioning this)
Marcus and Dax share a shockingly similar physique. If they wore the exact same armor, then you couldn't tell who was who until one of their faces was shown to you.
Because they're ODSTs they don't focus much on social media.
If you followed them, their posts would be VERY outdated in terms of trendiness, and the posts would actually be its own thing rather than something else (marcus and dax actually focus on things like legs and forearms instead of jugs of creatine)
(this totally isn't to cope with my social media experience)
The two have been together for about 15 months up until the events of Longshore.
If they survived long enough to retire (Charon's actually given them enough money to retire at 30 and somehow live a really good life), Dax would probably try to build something cool at home. Marcus would watch and help with something heavy.
One time, someone made a statue for the two of them about a month before Longshore. It sits in a museum somewhere, and nobody (other than the sculptor) will find it until 2554.
Marcus will back up Dax in an argument.
Dax will listen to Marcus talk about his gains for a full hour.
sharkface has blackmail
Dessert
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Marcus is the one with the red helmet by the way
In an alternate timeline Marcus goes scuba diving and argues with a... thing
But instead of burping he accidentally "scares it too much"
Happy November guys! Let me know if you want to see more...
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twompweek · 6 months ago
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PROMPT LIST ~ Guide
Want to know what the prompt lists for twomp week will look like and how to use them? Look no further!
Each day of twomp week will have 8 prompts. These are for you to use as loosely or as seriously as you may choose. Throw them away entirely if nothing sparks your imagination! Or put multiple together for the ULTIMATE PROMPT. The choice here is up to you!
For each day there will be one prompt for each of the following categories:
Crossovers - Enjoy this excuse to mash up your favourite parts of twomp with other media you love. Put the characters into each other's situations, argue why they parallel your favourite characters, or just have twomp characters decide which of these is their favourite!
Swap - Here we're trying to switch things around. Think about how fun it would be to see something in twomp acting in a way it normally wouldn't. Play around with their designs or characterisation to make them fit into this alternate universe version of themself!
Fluff - Where would fandom be without the soft and cuddly feelies? Let's make things cute and wholesome so we can all give these horrific guys some time to relax.
Angst - Conversely, where would fandom be without the pain and suffering? Take people out of harms way? Goodness no! Let's make them suffer more. Put your favourites into new and worse situations and see how they struggle!
Trope - Fandom tropes... We all know them and we all love them. Lets throw some fandom classics into the mix here and see what new angles we can come at them from.
Ship - We all love our twomp ships. From the main pairing, to making background characters kiss like Barbie dolls, take this as your chance to play around with some pairings in this fandom. Platonic or romantic, all that matters is how we think they'd get on with each other.
Twomp Episode - When was the last time you watched some of these twomp episodes? Have a little rewatch of this random sample plucked for the event and see if you can make anything fun based off of them. Who knows what inspiring material might be hiding in a forgotten episode.
Colour palette - Ah, the artist classic. Crack out your pens, pencils, and drawing tablets guys and challenge yourself with a strict palette. Or simply see what ideas come to mind just by looking at them. All those greens make you think of grassy plains? Why not write about a void filled with endless fields?
But what do you do if there's a prompt you like for one day that you want to do on another day? Do it for that day anyway! The prompts are only a loose starting point. This event is for you to make whatever it is you may please.
Maybe a prompt gives you a loose idea, but as you finish your work you discover it's changed from the original prompt entirely. That's fine too! I cannot stress enough how much this is up to your own preference to use.
The official prompt list will be revealed prior to the start of the event. The dates for these are both still TBD. Keep an eye for further updates and feel free to reach out with any questions
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korolife · 8 months ago
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Blog No.000🧺 24年4月5日
『KoroLife』 : (I wish for) A Colorful Life
in hindsight I probably should've started with this introduction but ah well
Hello! I go by Aki Shourikawa, also known as TheAwesomeAki-kun from DeviantArt. Ever since dA "died" in 2019, I felt like I lost a place where creativity and the fun aspects of making art was celebrated and utilized. With the character-limiting, trend-chasing, confusing censorshipping, popularity-prioritizing algorithms and systems most social media sites use, I lost an outlet for expressing my scattered thoughts and experiences throughout my art journey.
Even though talking to the void for not having a following was normal to me even from my dA days, it felt especially lonely the past few years trying to move everything and start anew to cold, uncaring websites who valued clicks more than integrity or ingenuity. So much so that I just felt like I shouldn't even try doing anything apart from quietly feeling inadequate and too incompetent for anyone else outside my own head.
Outside of being a creator, I can hardly find artists I'd like to follow as a viewer in these sites now compared to before; when all the recommended recommendations tend to be the hundred-thousand-eyeball-popular artists that usually ➀cater to a younger demographic for profit, or just ➁follow along with whatever is currently trending and mirror what other artists already made. Not that there's anything bad about understanding your market and making profit off of it! It's just... art, to me, has always been an escape from ridiculous societal standings, hierarchies, or denomination prejudices present in day-to-day lifeーEveryone is capable of drawing or making art, and that's something I've always liked about it. But even if bad apples with bad takes are probably just a minority to an otherwise wholesome majority of artists out there... the idea of transforming the creation of art into a pure competitive market, or even some kind of 'content' generator somehow leaves a bad taste in my mouth, personally.
I want to see more of artists who create their own art as a showcase of how they perceive the world in their unique sense and style, just because! But those types (especially ones without a following) seem to keep getting shadowbanned, stunted, and pushed away by unquenchable zombie algorithms that push and normalize this trend.
There's a lot of laughably bad things to say about DeviantArt's online reputation, but I found that a lot of like-minded lurkers were easier to find back then + genuinely interact with beyond one-word compliments and befriend over a common interest (art!) regardless of following size, skill level, or what have you...compared to how it is these days where it's a ridiculous..."looking for art moots, but I will be picky❤"-kinda world. It was probably because it was focused as an art website and not just a really broad scope of 'social media' site where everything non-art also goes down the hatch...that was the case for old dA, at least.
Now, enter Tumblr!ーa site that I've been extremely familiar with even before I started uploading my stuff online, even though I haven't used it myself mostly because of DRAMAtical Murder memes ngl- and while I understand it still contains most of the flaws I've listed of other social media websites... it's meant to be a blogging site! With multiple blogs for multiple different things! That'll work great for me!... with my category-varied 2.4k submissions on old dA...I think!!
So instead of moping around for halcyon days as I did the past 4 years or so now, through Tumblr's platform... I wanted to get back to being productive again and document an aspect of my life that I wish to be filled with different colors and flavors. Through this nonsensical ramblingy, longass tangent about not liking other social media sites in comparison to old dAーalreadyーI'm doing it now!!
I want to learn all sorts of things when it comes to drawing, so I want to share all the failed experiments, confusing experiences, and silly things that generally makes me a little happy when I'm drawing. Even though I'll probably still be talking to the void...I think even the void will appreciate having more than 280 characters to use without sounding like an incoherent, shattered fortune cookie prophecy.
And if somehow, somewhere, someone finds and reads through them.... I hope they can give some form of motivation, inspiration, entertainment, or a cautionary tale for your own artistic endeavors, maybe? like, underestimating your deadlines and procrastinating at the last day, then panic upon the realization that you should've started like a wholeass year ago to finish the task at hand, then proceed with praying to a god (of your choice) and cramming until the very last minute til you nearly break your hands! Me and my 7-, 11-, 14-, 19- and 23-year-old selves do not recommend this at all! Tune in next week for more wild experiences that will summon forth bombasticeth side-eyes!!-
See you around, and for now, I hope you have a nice day ahead! 'v')/
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・・・ALL LINKS・・・
・Art Gallery・Commission Info・Ko-fi shop・
Main blog・Art blog・Non-chatterbox drawing process (KoroLite)
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lampmanliveblogs · 2 years ago
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”Feisty witches make the best leaders,” Terra says. She follows this up by giving Raine a boop on the nose and saying how she especially likes Raine. That’s funny considering events involving the leader of the Bard Coven and Terra in some thirty years or so.
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So my prediction before was kinda half-right. Raine did lose the game, lost their scholarship, and did transfer to Hexside as I thought. But Eda didn’t win the game, she lost. In fact everyone lost. But Terra spoke to Principal Faust and sorted things out. I imagine that conversation involved very little talking, and more of her sending him bouquets of poisonous & carnivorous flowers alongside a card informing him of the situation.
Oh, and the Raine’s Rhapsody/Eda’s Requiem leitmotif returns once again.
Also, I guess Saint Epiderm is up on The Knee. And since Saint Epiderm was supposed to be a bit fancier, a bit more elite, it kinda makes sense for the school t be in a location with lots of magical power.
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This screenshot is here because I thought it was cute.
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This is also really cute. Slightly less cute was Luz somewhat uncanny drawing of Eda & Raine, but still, this is still a really nice, wholesome moment to end the episode on.
…is what I would say if there wasn’t a minute left.
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We cut to the castle, where Terra is feeding Raine their daily dose of brain detergent.
Raine, as per usual, blows on on their tea to cool it down, which produces a whistling sound, just like we saw earlier when they used it to modify Eda’s juice and alter its taste.
Hol up-
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Oh look, Raine found one of Darius' little mini abominations wandering around! It must’ve gotten lost inside that wall, the poor thing. I hope it wasn’t carrying around sensitive information in that letter! It could be very bad if that got into the hands of some traitors planning on overthrowing the Emperor.
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Alright, so first things first THIS IS WHAT MY SISTER HAS BEEN TALKING ABOUT ALL THIS TIME! FINALLY! The identity of the traitors revealed!
There’s suddenly a lot of things to talk about, so let’s break it down.
(for context, I watched to the end of the scene, but I chose this screenshot because of the information)
Raine has been using their whistle magic to counter Terra’s tea. How long have they been doing that? Ever since the beginning? If so, then what happened at the Coven Day Parade was all an act, which I could believe. Raine does say they don’t want to put Eda in danger again (because they love her and Eda also has kids to take care of), so the act would’ve been both to keep Eda safe and to make sure Terra & Belos didn’t catch on to that Raine wasn’t under their control like they thought.
Then we  have Darius. Raine and Darius obviously didn’t know about each other before the events of Eda’ s Requiem. If they did, Raine wouldn’t have tried to have Darius (and I guess Eberwolf was there too), ah… permanently incapacitated via the use of Eda’s curse.
Speaking of Eberwolf, is he(?) in on this? I’m thinking maybe not? Because he and Darius went to capture the traitor (Raine). But if they were both also traitors, then they wouldn’t have captured Raine, they would've teamed up with them. Unless… Kikimora did appear unexpectedly, which might’ve been what messed up their plans.
(I think I might go back to Eda’s Requiem and Follies at the Coven Day Parade and rewatch those scenes to look for clues. I don’t have the time right now)
Regardless, Darius and Raine are now working together to try and stop Belos’ evil plans. Darius has managed to figure out at least part of the plan. I was right that it involves draining magic through the coven sigils and that it’s channeled through the coven head witches (although it doesn’t specify that it has to be the head witches, just nine strong witches).
The magic power will be directed or channeled to the spell center, which is where the door is being moved to. This will do… something.
The eclipse is also important. Maybe.
When Raine asks if there is any way to counter the draining spell, Darius suggests Eda. Eda’s curse messes with magic, true, something Darius would know from experience… though I’m not 100% exactly what it is he thinks they could do. Raine & Eda together could use bard magic to spread the curse, but there have got to be several thousand witches, if not more coming to this thing. Maybe if they got close to the spell center and could disrupt the flow of magic somehow…
I suppose it doesn’t matter because Raine refuses to involve Eda. They might still have to resort to that plan once the Day of Unity does roll around. We’ll see.
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The episode ends with Raine looking out over the head of the Titan, which reminds me of the image from the outro with Luz looking at the head.
I need to be up pretty early tomorrow for work, so I don’t have time to do my usual rewatch right now. Although to be honest, I think I caught most of the important stuff the first time through. And if there was something I missed, you guys will let me know.
Anyway, I’ll do a little follow-up post tomorrow talking about my thoughts on the episode overall. See you then!
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trainofcommand · 1 year ago
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Tell us more of the cowboys and golden retrievers retrieving a weird scientist
Well, okay then! :)
Cracky flash ficlet: Retrieved, with Science (Cam Mitchell, Jonas Quinn, Rodney McKay, two golden retrievers, cowboys 1950s AU).
"Those are some dumbass dogs for a cowboy," some idiot once said to Cam, his face scrunched up with disgust and derision. "Dumbest cowboy dogs I ever seen," he'd reiterated, drawing out the 'dumbest' into a slow drawl, and punctuating it by spitting a mouthful of tobacco on the ground.
The dogs in question – Killer and Fang – had looked up from where they'd been curled on the stoop of the little cabin where they all stay in the off-season, their mouths open, panting happily, exhausted from a long day of doing whatever the heck Cam had wanted them to do. He'd looked at the dogs, looked at the idiot who was talking, and figured to hell with him. Then he'd punched that idiot right in the mouth, smiling the whole while.
He'd kept on smiling while the guy spit out blood and a tooth, and smiled a little wider when Fang got up and ambled to stand between them, tail wagging, canines showing.
"Oh darn," Jonas had said when he came 'round the front of the cabin, buckets of fresh water from the well in each hand. "Insulting the dogs, huh?"
"Yup," Cam had replied, wiping his bloody hand on his shirt.
In the evening light, Killer and Fang's fur had gleamed golden, and so had Jonas's sun-bleached hair, and the idiot had looked at them all, thought better of trying anything, and walked away.
---
The truth is, golden retrievers make great dogs for a couple of cowboys out on the range.
They're loyal.
"They sure are," says Jonas.
They're energetic.
"Oh, definitely," Jonas agrees, as he bends to give Killer a good scratch.
They'll chew a man's leg off, just for the fun of it.
"Well, I'm not sure I agree with that one." But Jonas is smiling, so Cam doesn't have to argue about it.
And finally, they look fantastic in bandanas. Wholesome. Fetching. Downright red-ribbon-winning. "Heck yes, they do," Jonas says, nodding vigorously as he ties a new red bandana around Fang's neck. Cam likes it – the red looks great against Fang's fur, it makes her easy to spot from a distance, and it'll hide any blood after she sinks those teeth into an interloper's arm, or leg, or whatever's in biting distance that gets in her way.
"Ah, sure, Cam," Jonas says, stepping away and observing Fang's new look.
---
"Well, this is interesting," Jonas says, the evening that Killer trots up with what looks like a stick in his mouth. Turns out it's not a stick at all, unless it comes from a tree made of metal and covered in numbers and lines. Cam's seen a lot of trees out on the range, and he's never seen a tree like that.
Killer's path is followed, a few minutes later, by a guy who's huffing and puffing a little bit, his face red, his hands dirty, and his mouth yelling.  
Cam listens for a while, arms crossed, taking in the swearing, the exclamations about their sub-standard camp, the demands for something to eat, the admonitions that their food stores are inadequately out of reach from invasive wildlife, the complaints that it's now too late to safely get back to his own camp so he's going to have to stay with them for the night, and the accusations that Killer took an instrument that cost more than 'whatever the hell it is you two are' make in a month, which is really inconvenient, because there's science that needs to done.
Eventually the guy stops talking, mostly because he's alternating between chewing on a biscuit and tearing into some dried jerky. But even as he's eating, he's looking expectant, like he's waiting for some kind of response.
So Cam shrugs, reaches down and takes the metal instrument out of Killer's mouth and says, "Not like we can expect much else. He's a golden retriever."
Jonas nods and holds out an apple, just in case the scientist-guy is still hungry. Jonas is real welcoming like that.
Science-guy scowls but he takes the apple.
---
Cam doesn't listen much while science-guy and Jonas talk details. Mostly it's boring. Plus there are golden retrievers curled up on either side of him, the cattle are lowing in the distance, the sun's starting to sink below the horizon, and all together, that's just bound to make a guy sleepy.
"That is very interesting, Dr. McKay," Jonas says excitedly, not for the first time. "Right, Cam?"
Cam just hums because it'll make Jonas happy, and leans back against a tree stump, already dozing off.
---
Science guy heads out in the morning with several warm, freshly-baked biscuits wrapped in a bandana in one hand, his metal stick instrument thing in the other, two apples in his pockets, and what Cam guesses must be the minimum amount of grumbling and complaints that he allows himself each morning. He leaves behind some a whole bunch of quiet, which Cam is real grateful for, and a jaunty wave from Jonas, accompanied by, "Have fun with your science, Dr. McKay!"
He doesn't leave behind Killer, who gamely gets up, stretches, and trots off after him, tail held high and wagging. And that's a real son of a bitch, because Fang is going to get lonely, and Killer was wearing Cam's third-best back-up emergency bandana.
"So much for loyalty," he mutters, watching man and dog disappear into the edge of the forest.
Beside him, Fang rolls onto her back, kicking her feet into the air and flashing her fierce canines. "Don't worry," he tells her. "Next time we meet him, I'll let you gnaw his leg right off." She kicks her back feet a little harder, baring all her teeth, and wagging her tail so hard it makes her lose her balance, rolling onto her side.
Then she picks herself up and shakes, loose fur and pieces of grass flying everywhere, and she looks deadly as hell.
Cam feels real proud.
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absolutepokemontrash · 4 years ago
Text
MC’s Half Demon and They Look Awfully Familiar Part 4
(The side characters strike again!)
Part 1 Part 2 Lessons 1-5 Part 2.5 Group Retreat Lessons 10-12 Part 3
L!MC= Lucifer’s kid | M!MC= Mammon’s kid | A!MC=Asmo’s kid
Let’s get right to it!
The Uncle That Hardcore Simps For His Spouse In the Most Wholesome Way (Diavolo)
Gasp! More half-demon kids? Oh my! Maybe if he tried again next year a kid of his own would pop down! Hang on- he hadn’t slept with a human in almost a century... dang. No kids for him...
...maybe...
Remember when I said Diavolo would try to do those stereotypical dad (tm) things and be hip with the kids? Yeah he keeps doing that.
The number of broken windows related to wayward baseballs goes up 150%. At least that’s how they all figured out that M!MC is nearsighted like their dad!
M!MC had developed a bit of a habit of telling Diavolo about cool human stuff and making the Crown Prince even more interested in the human world than normal.
You may be thinking “what’s so bad about that?” well, the number of yo-yos at RAD went up so high that Lucifer had to ban them.
Belphie and Satan, being the rebels they are, became yo-yo masters specifically to spite Lucifer.
It was sort of like the fidget spinners craze if you were in school for that.
Oh, hi Lord Diavolo. What’s a fidget spinner? It’s this- I should stop talking...
Since no one learned their lesson from the previous incident, Diavolo threw another BBQ.
“Why are we doing this again?” L!MC asked to no one in particular.
“Don’t worry, L!MC. I’ve taken every precaution possible to make sure that what happened last time doesn’t happen again.” Diavolo said and continued in his crusade to cover the entire pathway with sidewalk chalk doodles.
L!MC, Luke, Diavolo, M!MC, Belphie, and A!MC were all busily drawing a wide variety of doodles and drawings with chalk while the other guests milled around nearby. A!MC was in the middle of drawing quite the nice looking Cerberus chibi, while M!MC and Belphie were drawing a lot of stick figures. L!MC and Luke had just finished a wonderful drawing of... an alpaca? Giraffe? Thing...? Hell, even they didn’t know what it was.
Diavolo looked over at M!MC’s stick figure army with a big smile on his face. “So what are all of them doing? It looks like that one’s flying!”
You could practically hear the Addam’s Family theme play as M!MC and Belphie looked at each other and grinned.
“Oh Belphie was just talking about L!MC’s flying lesson fails and I felt that an artist’s rendition was needed.” M!MC explained, he began to point out certain doodles. “Here’s L!MC getting up off the ground, then there’s them actually flying, and this is them falling in the fountain.”
L!MC looked over at the chalk and glared at M!MC. “It’s generous to call that an artist’s rendition. It looks like crap.”
“And what did you draw?” Belphie smirked at the alpaca-giraffe-thing, Luke protectively covered up the drawing (side note, Luke was wearing white and playing with sidewalk chalk, by the end of the day he looked like a walking pride flag).
“None of your business!” Luke huffed.
“And what about that one?” Diavolo seemed completely oblivious to the hostility brewing between the two groups, A!MC was completely used to this and walked away to grab a drink.
“Ah, good eye, Lord Diavolo!” M!MC chirped. “This is a drawing of the time L!MC almost burned down your kitchen.”
Diavolo laughed and gave M!MC a few pats on the head. “Very accurate!”
“You’re so lucky I followed the rules and didn’t bring a water gun...” L!MC growled as they slowly reached for their backpack.
“Yeah... lucky. Real lucky...” M!MC nodded as they tried to casually reach for their bag, Belphie followed suit.
“I’m so glad we all followed the rules.” Luke smiled, his own hand inching towards his bag.
There was a brief moment of stillness before the four of them whipped out their water guns and pointed them at each other.
“This BBQ ain’t big enough for the both of us!” M!MC’s terrible cowboy impression aside, their gun was poised to shoot directly at Luke and L!MC’s alpaca-giraffe-thing.
“Everyone, I know this is a human world tradition but-”
Belphie silenced Diavolo by pointing his water gun at him. “Sh, don’t talk unless you have a water gun as well.”
Deciding not to smite Belphie for treason, Diavolo pulled his own water gun out of his shirt. “Okay, what now?”
“Now, we’re in a standoff...” L!MC glowered at M!MC, the air was practically crackling with hostility...
Until a burst of flames got everyone to whirl around to see A!MC with hairspray and a lighter.
“No water guns! I refuse to go home shivering and covered in grass again!”
Crisis averted. Everyone went to go fail at throwing beanbags into a hole instead of shooting each other.
That was probably for the best... Belphie filled everyone’s water guns with paint.
The Uncle That Does All the Cooking for Family Dinners (Barbatos)
Remember how I said that Barbs liked smol Lucifer? Yea, he likes smol Asmo too. Smol Asmo is willing to admit that they don’t know how to use an oven and is willing to learn.
M!MC is formally banned from being within 50 feet of the kitchen. It’s for the best.
A!MC often tries to get Barbatos to look into the possible futures so they can see if they can avoid messing anything up and A!MC is just so adorable that Barbatos actually thinks about it.
He still says no every single time.
“Could you at least tell me if I have the possibility of doing something embarrassing in the near future?”
“My apologies, A!MC, but no.”
“P-please?”
“The answer remains the same.”
A!MC sighed and went back to helping chop vegetables. Under Barbatos’ tutelage, A!MC’s cooking ability had increased tenfold, they could now make as many burgers as they wanted without worrying about burning down the kitchen.
Pitying the anxious half-demon, Barbatos sighed. “I cannot confirm nor deny a future where your outfit gets ruined.”
A!MC perked up. “H-huh?”
“I cannot confirm nor deny a future where your outfit gets ruined.”
Quickly understanding what Barbatos was trying to do, A!MC quickly nodded and spent the rest of the cooking time carefully taking note of their surroundings.
“Hey! What’re you guys doin’?” M!MC had managed to get in... damn! Everyone must have been putting their best efforts in keeping Solomon away from the kitchen and forgot about M!MC...
“We’re just finishing up, M!MC,” Barbatos had on his ‘oh no...’ smile. “We don’t need any help.”
“Really? You guys sure?”
“Why are you so interested?” A!MC asked.
“Lucifer said that idle hands are the devil’s playthings and that I should go look for something productive to do.” M!MC huffed. “Very ironic phrase.”
“F-fine, I guess you can...” A!MC searched for the least destructive task they could give. “Take the utensils and set the table.”
M!MC gave them a mock salute and grabbed the utensils, as they turned to leave, they knocked a large bowl of chopped fruit over, sending the fruit pieces flying.
Remembering Barbatos’ prediction, A!MC didn’t bother to try and stop the fruit from falling, they only grabbed the nearest big plate they could find and shielded their outfit from harm. The fruit splattered harmlessly against the shield.
“Whoops... my bad. You alright, A!MC?” M!MC asked as A!MC inspected their outfit.
“Y-yes actually...” A!MC turned to Barbatos, who was already getting the cleaning supplies.
“Thank you!” A!MC whispered.
Barbatos smiled and nodded. “You’re very welcome, A!MC.”
Barbatos now has two sorta-children. A!MC and Luke!
M!MC means well, I swear! He just shouldn’t be allowed in a cooking environment!
The Cousin That Your Mom Points at and Goes “Look at Him, He Helps With the Dishes, Be More Like Him.” (Simeon)
Oh man... time for some more embarrassing stories.
“Asmo was the most adorable child, it’s a shame he was such a troublemaker...”
“Really? My dad?”
“What about mine?”
“I think you can guess.”
I cannot comment on Simeon’s help with flying lessons because I refuse to Headcanon what Simeon’s wings look like until canon gives us a GLIMMER. LIKE SERIOUSLY SOLMARE IM CURIOUS-
I have a feeling the children were quite curious as well.
“What do you think his wings look like?” M!MC asked A!MC as the two peered around the corner of one of the hallways in Purgatory Hall.
“I bet they’re super nice. But besides that...” A!MC leaned over and squinted. “Why is Simeon writing with a pen and pencil? He’s writing a book... shouldn’t he use a computer?”
“Bold of you to assume he knows how to use a computer.” M!MC snickered.
A!MC frowned. “Don’t be mean... I’m sure he knows how...”
Simeon picked up his DDD and took a picture of his face, seemingly by accident, with the flash on, causing him to drop the phone in surprise.
“Probably...”
The two surveyed their angel friend like two wildlife documenters, here we see, the Simeon, not in his natural habitat, surrounded by confusing technology...
“Do you think if we scare him his wings might pop out in surprise?” M!MC wondered aloud, A!MC shrugged.
“Maybe... but I don’t think we should bother him...” A!MC whispered. “He looks busy.”
“What are you two doing?”
It took literally every bit of willpower for the two half demons to not scream in absolute terror at the sudden interruption.
Ah... it was just Solomon... in an apron... Solomon... in cooking clothes...
Oh no.
“Spying on Simeon?” Solomon asked.
“N-no...” A!MC giggled nervously. “Just crouching casually in this hallway...”
“...smooth, A!MC.” M!MC rolled their eyes.
“Well, it’s great that you two are here, I made lunch!”
A!MC and M!MC looked at each other in pure horror, they needed to get out of there!
“Uh- um... we’d love to but...” M!MC looked around frantically before just pointing at a random spot behind Solomon. “LOOK! A DISTRACTION!”
A!MC and M!MC ran out of there as fast as their legs could carry them. Finding out if Simeon had wings was not worth being poisoned. Not at all...
Good ol’ Simeon... Mr. Cristopher Peugeot on the other hand- M!MC had some questions for him.
“TSL is literally the most popular book series ever, does that mean you’re completely loaded?”
“Oh, no I’m not, I don’t have any use for human world money in the Celestial Realm. All the profits go to charity.”
“...Dude really?”
“That’s nice of you, Simeon!”
“You didn’t keep any of it..?”
Wait... Who the Hell Are You..? (Solomon)
So A!MC basically has three dads; Fabulous-dad, butler-dad, and wizard-dad!
“So you just... have capes lying around?”
“Yes, would you like a cape?”
“Okay if they don’t take the cape I want it.”
Solomon shows up to RAD with his nails painted different wacky styles every week, courtesy of A!MC.
Though- the unholy combination that is M!MC and Solomon is feared by all.
“Road work ahead?”
“Uh, yeah I sure hope it does.”
Solomon and M!MC’s rampant quoting of vines elicited another glare from Lucifer.
Despite Solomon having literally been alive since the seven rulers of hell were angels, he had kept up with pop culture fairly decently. Decently enough that M!MC had someone that wasn’t Levi to bounce memes off.
“Pff...” M!MC suppressed a laugh at a seemingly normal water bottle advertisement. “Enslaved moisture.”
“I’m not going crazy, right Simeon? You’re hearing this too?” Lucifer tiredly turned to the angel, who shook his head.
“This is just the tip of the iceberg. Solomon quacked at M!MC earlier and they lost their minds laughing about it.” Simeon shrugged, unbothered by the sorcerer and the half demon’s rampant meme-ing behind them.
Lucifer on the other hand, was quite bothered. Incredibly bothered, if you will. “If you two don’t shut up right now I’m going to-”
“Quick! We must abscond!” Solomon turned and heelied away, followed by M!MC. The shoes that Mammon bought to replace the ones lost during the casino incident were apparently heelies as well...
The day was saved when a rock jammed one of Solomon’s wheels and he slammed face first into the concrete. Yikes... that had to hurt.
A!MC had fun glow in the dark bandaids for Solomon to patch up his face. Even though he he could heal himself with magic, he let A!MC do what they wanted because they were just too adorable to say no to.
Asmo has pictures
The Cousin Squad (tm)
(Luke, L!MC, A!MC, and M!MC)
Ah yes, the bab squad. The most adorable group in the Devildom. Surrender your candy immediately or face destruction.
M!MC teases the crap out of Luke, and A!MC tries to stop it, but L!MC is the one who manages to actually make M!MC stop.
Only L!MC gets to pick on the smol angel. GOT IT?!
A!MC and Luke are already baking buddies because of butler-dad so they get along swimmingly.
Poor Luke’s the victim of many of M!MC’s shenanigans.
Luke: Are you sure this is safe, M!MC?
M!MC (about to put mentos into the bottle of coke Luke is holding): No.
L!MC and A!MC get along really well, being honest, everyone loves A!MC.
A!MC makes sure L!MC gets some sleep because they don’t want their cousin picking up on Lucifer’s habit of living off of coffee and coffee alone. L!MC doesn’t get it but they’re very grateful anyway.
M!MC and A!MC were friends from the start. Well... M!MC decided they were friends right from the start and A!MC did not have the ability to fight the power of friendship.
M!MC: You are being befriended. Please do not resist.
Since M!MC is great and amazing like their pop, they took it upon themselves to be the friend that speaks up when A!MC is too nervous to do so.
M!MC and L!MC? Lucifer and Mammon 2 electric boogaloo. Sorta.
L!MC and M!MC bicker all the time but the babs bounce back from their fights way easier.
One minute they’re at each other’s throats and the next they’re showing each other memes.
“There’s no escaping this.”
Lucifer stood between M!MC and the door... their one way ticket to freedom...
“You need to go to the dentist.”
The entire HOL plus the Purgatory Hall crew were getting ready to go visit the dentist to get their teeth cleaned. It was the time of the year that Mammon dreaded most... and his child felt the same way.
“My teeth are fine! Lemme stay home! I’ll hold down the fort with dad!” M!MC smiled and nodded as enthusiastically as they could, but even the most unobservant person couldn’t miss the sweat beading on their forehead.
“Beel.” Lucifer snapped his fingers and before M!MC could do anything Beel had thrown them over his shoulder like a sack of potatoes.
“Don’t worry M!MC, the dentist isn’t that scary.” Beel tried to assure them. By the way M!MC was still kicking and screaming, they were not convinced.
“Y-yeah kiddo, suck it up! Don’t be a baby! I’m just gonna take my car there-”
“MAAAAAAMOOOON?!”
“YIKES!”
Lucifer had the important task of keeping a hold of Mammon as the very large group made their way to the dentist’s office.
A devious little idea popped into L!MC’s head as they all sat down in the waiting room. They began to hum a familiar little tune.
“She said be a deeeentiiiist~ a dentist!” L!MC sang to M!MC, who’s attempts to escape increased tenfold after hearing the song.
A!MC began to hum along, not seeming to notice the commotion going on next to them.
“Son be a deeentiiiiiist~ people will pay you for causing them PAIN! She said be a deeentiiiiiist~”
Belphie perked up and smiled deviously as he realized what L!MC was doing, he began to sing along as well. The three were a veritable choir of terror to poor M!MC. Mammon did not understand his child’s terror and was more unnerved by what a great team Belphie and L!MC made.
Satan rolled his eyes and tried to focus on his book, Asmo was absorbed in his magazine, Levi was having a very in depth conversation with the fish in the aquarium, Simeon and Solomon chatted about school, and Luke was stuck watching the train wreck go down.
Thankfully, it was halted by Lucifer. “L!MC, A!MC, Belphegor, stop tormenting M!MC with show tunes.”
“You would have made a good dentist in another life, Lucifer,” Belphie cooed. “You know what they say, the only difference between a dentist and a sadist is that one has newer magazines.”
Asmo grimaced at his magazine. “Is it the sadist? Because I’m reading a magazine from 1843...”
The conversation was interrupted by one of the dental hygienists coming into the waiting room and saying that Mammon was up first. The Avatar of Greed’s final escape attempt was foiled by Satan (not even looking up from his book) clotheslining him.
Thirty minutes later, Mammon emerged from the forbidden dentist room, with the look of trauma in his eyes and eating a lollipop.
One by one, the group went in, A!MC took it upon themselves to try and make the rapidly panicking Luke feel better.
“It won’t be too scary, in the human world dentists are usually very nice.” A!MC smiled encouragingly.
“I-I’m sure that’s true but...” Luke looked around. “We aren’t in the human world...”
Asmo skipped back in and flashed a blinding grin to the group. “Absolutely perfect, no flaws! It’s your turn, A!MC!”
“If you die I get to say I told ya so!” M!MC shouted as A!MC walked into the dentist’s room.
They did not in fact, die because of the dentist. A!MC walked out and gave a thumbs up. “The dentist said they had never seen a kid with such perfect teeth.”
“That’s my baby!” Asmo chirped.
“M!MC, you’re up.” A!MC and Beel had to practically drag the poor kid out of the room and into the dentist area of doom.
“GO BE A DEEEEEENTIIIIIIST!” Belphie and L!MC shouted one last time as the doors shut. Wow, what dickheads...
Mammon probably would have tried to save his poor little bugger, but he was in the middle an impromptu therapy session with Simeon over the scary scraping dentist knife thingie.
Beel was the last to go, and he walked out of the dentist’s room with his face covered in blood, the dentist walked out after him, missing a hand.
“You tasted like toothpaste.” Beel sighed. “Not good.”
“Don’t worry,” The dentist said to Luke, who looked like he was about to pass out. “My hand will grow back in about four to five minutes.”
Luke, still terrified, nodded. L!MC patted him on the shoulder.
“Anyway, almost all of you are fine, but I have to recommend M!MC to the orthodontist.” The dentist flipped through their notepad one-handed. “Their secondary set of fangs are coming out crooked and need to be corrected with braces immediately.”
M!MC sat calmly for a moment, then attempted to sprint out the door. “NO NO NO NO NO!” One of the dental hygienists grabbed them by the back of their shirt and halted their escape.
“Sucks to be you.” L!MC smirked.
“And L!MC needs to fix their cross bite, braces are a strong possibility.”
The colour drained from L!MC’s face as the news dawned upon them. “Pardon, but what exactly are you talking about..?”
“Your top jaw and bottom jaw aren’t properly lined up.” The dentist explained. “It will lead to problems later if it’s not fixed now.”
Lucifer rubbed his temples and sighed. “L!MC, if you try and run away I swear...”
L!MC stiffened and shook their head. “I’m not some coward, I’m not running away. Just... what exactly are you going to do to my mouth?”
The dentist pulled up a few pictures of the braces and explained what would be done. L!MC nodded, and turned to their father with a big smile on their face.
“It won’t be so bad, mind if I go to the bathroom before I get the mold for my teeth made?”
Lucifer nodded and almost audibly sighed in relief. He basked in the glory of having a child that wasn’t afraid of the dentist and faced their fears like an adult-
L!MC sprinted past the dentist’s office, they had busted out of the bathroom window.
“...Beel.”
“Yep.”
A few minutes later, Beel returned with a completely irate L!MC who was screaming their demands to be put down and be allowed to run for the hills. Taking advantage of the distraction, M!MC ran for the door again, only for Belphie to tap them on the forehead.
M!MC collapsed into a snoring heap on the floor.
“FATHER! DON’T MAKE ME DO THIS!” L!MC practically screamed as they tried to wrestle themselves out of Beel’s bear hug.
Lucifer rolled his eyes. “L!MC, calm yourself down. It’s just braces.”
“AS EVERYONE HERE AS MY WITNESSES I’LL NEVER FORGIVE YOU FOR THIS! NEVER!”
The half-demons in need of braces were dragged right back into the dentist’s area... poor fools.
“They’ll be okay... right?” Luke asked.
“Of course they will be. It’s just braces.” Simeon patted Luke on the head. “They’ll both be fine.”
The scream that came from down the hall right after Simeon said that did not reassure anyone.
“Hey,” Mammon piped up. “How much do braces cost?”
“From what I know about dental procedures,” Satan rubbed his chin. “A few thousand Grimm.”
“Mammon if you try and run for that door I will cut your credit card into a thousand pieces.” Lucifer growled.
Overall, it was a fairly average trip to the dentist. 0/10 would not recommend. A few weeks later L!MC and M!MC were fitted with their mouth prisons- I mean braces, and the two cousins bonded over their horrific mouth pain...
Seriously- braces suck.
——————————————
So! Those are the headcanons! Four and a half whole parts... phew... To all the people who enjoyed this series, thank you so so much for reading! You guys have been so super nice!
Fret not, I plan on writing more for this universe! From what I know about season 2 of Obey Me things will get... interesting. Stay tuned for more! Or don’t, I can’t force you.
...or can I?
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tartagliad · 4 years ago
Text
Seeing you for the first time pt.2 (ft. Albedo, Xingqiu, Venti, and Razor)
summary: how they react when seeing you for the first time
G/N reader
warning(s): misspellings, grammar mistakes (?), some scenes from windblume festival in Venti's and some from Razor's lore and a little angst ig
fluff!
(A/N: hey there, I'm back..this time I wrote for the other characters, i hope you enjoyed it)
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~
Albedo:
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You met this boy at Dragonspine
That boy literally spent 24/7 of his life in that place ._.
He was at Starglow Cavern, painting cave structures and some hilichurls
You entered the cave and continued your adventure there (finding the history about the place)
Suddenly, a bunch of hilichurls started to attacked you..
There he saw how calm you are in that position, just swaying your sword back and forth elegantly
He just stands there and didn't realise that you've finished fighting the hilichurls and stared at him
"You know..it's not nice to just stand there and do nothing" you joke
"Oh..uhh sorry, I kinda zoned out.." he blurts
"ahaha, it's alright..i can see it on your face" you said
Albedo is literally stunned by your appearance, your figure, your eyes, everything
"I'm y/n, are you always go to this place?" you asked him
"Oh uhh, yes actually..i always do some research on this place..I'm Albedo btw" he respond
"Ahh I see.." you said, after that you accidentally saw his paintings
There was a painting of hilichurls and sketches of..you fighting?
"uhh are those your drawings?" you asked him
His face flushed because he got caught sketching a portrait of you
"Uh..yeah, you were an interesting...'view' let's just say..so I decided to draw you" he confess
You actually find his drawings beautiful yet pleasing to look at
"Wow..these are beautiful" you speak
The boy is literally out of words ngl, he's used to get some compliments from other people, but somehow..compliments from you made him flustered
"a-ah..w-why thank you.." he said
"Uhm..maybe you could come and join me next time..maybe pickup some materials or sightseeing areas of Dragonspine" he adds
"Of course, I'll go with you" you said
You two always spend time together at the mountains, well.. even though you don't go there everyday..lol
You always helped Albedo on his 'unusual' experiments or even tell him your stories of your adventures
The boy loves your eyes, he literally could get lost in those beautiful pairs..
Even though he painted it or sketches it..the feel is still different compared to looking at it directly
The feel just makes his heart race..<3
"𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸, 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘣𝘢𝘣𝘭𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘪𝘯𝘵𝘦𝘳𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘱𝘦𝘳𝘴𝘰𝘯 𝘐'𝘷𝘦 𝘴𝘦𝘦𝘯 𝘴𝘰 𝘧𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘐'𝘮 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘐 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘧𝘪𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘰𝘮𝘦𝘰𝘯𝘦 𝘭𝘪𝘬𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶.."
Xingqiu:
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Like Albedo, he always spent most of his time at a certain place, for him..the place is the library
So... you obviously met him there
He was looking for a book that he wants to read since the last couple of months
The book was actually rare that not many people knew or read it..so he's looking for it
You actually borrowed the book from the library and you wanted to returned it
He currently asking the librarian when you suddenly walk to the counter and returned it
"I heard that you want to borrow this book?" you asked
"Oh..yes, I've been wanting to read it for sometime now" he answered
"It's quite rare that people actually read this book though and yet it actually caught your attention" he added
You nodded and smile at him "Yes actually, I was reading a few pages and then I was so in to the book, i have to borrow it"
You both laughed as you leave the library
"My name is Xingqiu btw, may I ask yours?" he asked
"I'm y/n, nice to meet you Xingqiu"
There, you two talked for archons know for how long
You two sometimes switched books from your collections or maybe go out and find some interesting books
Other than reading, Xingqiu enjoys going on adventures with you
Seeing the nature around him makes him feel lighter
He really loves to read books though, but he tries to make you comfortable as much as possible around him
Maybe he'll try to take you out on a stroll around Liyue Harbor or maybe eat at Wanmin Restaurant, depending your mood
Sometimes you guys planning to pull another prank on Chongyun LMAO
He wants to make sure that you're comfortable around him and feel happy around him
All in all, he wants to see you enjoyed his company
"𝘏𝘦𝘺, 𝘸𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘨𝘰 𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘢𝘵 𝘟𝘪𝘢𝘯𝘨𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨'𝘴 𝘱𝘭𝘢𝘤𝘦? 𝘐 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘳𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦'𝘴 𝘢 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘤𝘪𝘢𝘭 𝘮𝘦𝘯𝘶 𝘵𝘰𝘥𝘢𝘺, 𝘐'𝘭𝘭 𝘵𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵 𝘺𝘰𝘶.. 𝘮𝘢𝘺𝘣𝘦 𝘢𝘧𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘰𝘶𝘭𝘥 𝘨𝘰 𝘰𝘶𝘵 𝘯𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘩𝘢𝘳𝘣𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘣𝘰𝘰𝘬 𝘴𝘵𝘰𝘳𝘦..𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘤𝘩𝘰𝘪𝘤𝘦"
Venti:
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You met him at The Windblume Festival
It was your first windblume, so you're still confused about the traditions that happening around
He was in front of the Cathedral finding students for his poetry class
When he saw you, he waved at you and you approached him
"Hey there! New to the festival?" he asked
"Oh yes, I've lived in the city for awhile but i never experienced this festival before.." you answered
"Ehe, allow me to explain it. The Windblume Festival is a Festival in Mondstadt celebrating the thousand winds. Usually, the people of Mondstadt offers windblume to the anemo archon and to their special loved ones" he explains
"The people actually have to take their matters into their own hands, so they don't really have anything to get helped with" he added
"Is that why when I asked if anyone needs help, they say they don't need one?" you asked again
"Hehe, that's right" he says, "Oh, I haven't introduced my self haven't I? ehe, my name is Venti, the most popular bard in town!" he adds
"Your that bard, I've heard great things about you, my name is y/n, I'm just a regular adventurer.." you replied
He shrugged and acts a little nervous when you said that
"So uh.. want me to take you around town and see what people are doing?" he offered
"Sure, that would be nice.." you said
With that you two took a stroll around the town
Seeing people prepare gifts for their loved ones, the atmosphere feels so wholesome
You guys even took a little trip to Windrise, and he even play you a tune or two
You really enjoyed his company and he’s enjoying it too
During the festival, you guys grew closer together, and maybe you guys would perform together in front of the Cathedral
You were really happy that you have someone to enjoy the festival with
Even Venti feels a lot of joy hanging out with you
He wonders that he could be with you for a long time..
Well, whatever he is feeling, he wants to grow more closer to you :3
"𝘠𝘰𝘶 𝘬𝘯𝘰𝘸.. 𝘪 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘦𝘯𝘫𝘰𝘺𝘦𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘪𝘴 𝘺𝘦𝘢𝘳'𝘴 𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘭 𝘸𝘪𝘵𝘩 𝘺𝘰𝘶, 𝘪 𝘶𝘴𝘶𝘢𝘭𝘭𝘺 𝘴𝘱𝘦𝘯𝘵 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘧𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘷𝘢𝘭 𝘴𝘵𝘳𝘰𝘭𝘭𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘢𝘳𝘰𝘶𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘤𝘪𝘵𝘺 𝘢𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘦..𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘺𝘰𝘶'𝘳𝘦 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘵. 𝘞𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘢 𝘩𝘦𝘢𝘥 𝘵𝘰 𝘚𝘵𝘢𝘳𝘴𝘯𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘊𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘧 𝘵𝘰 𝘸𝘢𝘵𝘤𝘩 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘴𝘶𝘯𝘳𝘪𝘴𝘦? 𝘦𝘩𝘦"
Razor:
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Bless this wolf boy :")
You two met at his habitat, Wolvendom
You were currently adventuring at that place
When you're peacefully strolling around the place, you saw a bunch of wolves dead..
So you rushed to see where it was coming from
There, you saw a boy fighting against an abyss mage, boi... that thing really do like to cause trouble
The boy looked really angry despite the mage killed his wolf packs
You determined to help him and so you did..
After you two defeated the mage..he turned to look at you, "thank you... lupical, dead.." he said
This baby almost cried because he couldn't save all of them, only a few of them that are safe..
"I tried to protect them...but I failed...", he said in a sad tone
You looked at him sympathetically, "aww..it's alright..you tried your best, it's not your fault.." you said to him
He looked really sad and disappointed, but at the same time he felt kinda relieved that someone was there to help him
"Why did you come here..?" he asked, "Oh, I was just adventuring and then I suddenly found you..." you said
"My name is y/n.." you added, "I'm Razor"
"Do you come from here Razor?" you asked again, "yes..I was raised by wolves, Razor has no human family" he said
You were shocked that there's actually someone who is raised by wolves
"I see..." you said, "I think some of your wolf friends got hurt..may i help?" you offered him
Razor nodded and help you as much as he could
"There, that should do it.. they can't move that much for awhile, but they'll be alright.." you said to him
Razor was very grateful that he could find you, maybe he would be doomed if you hadn't come..
"You're strong...can Razor learn from you..?" he asked shyly :")
"Of course, I would be happy to teach you" you say
Razor smiled a little, he wanted to learn from you so that he could protect his lupical if something bad like this would happen
The next day, you came back to Wolvendom and train him
He picked up the lesson pretty quickly, and he now learnt how to use his Vision
You even teach the boy how to write and read loll v:
You came to Wolvendom couple of times, and besides train him, you helped him hunt some meats to eat
You never really force him to come and live at the city, but if he wants to visit it once or twice..you bring him there
Razor is really happy now that he learned new things from you and also has a friend that helped him..
Sometimes he wonders if he could protect you from danger too
He just didn't want to lose you like he loses his other wolf friends
Razor silently swore to him self that he will protect you from any danger that you encounter
Overall, you guys cared about each other and wanted to protect one and other, he just wishes that you'll be saver around him <3
"𝘛𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘩𝘦𝘭𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘙𝘢𝘻𝘰𝘳... 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝘸𝘰𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘢𝘳𝘦 𝘴𝘢𝘷𝘦 𝘯𝘰𝘸 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺'𝘳𝘦 𝘷𝘦𝘳𝘺 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘺. 𝘈𝘯𝘥 𝘢𝘭𝘴𝘰..𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯𝘬 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘦𝘢𝘤𝘩𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘮𝘦 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘣𝘦 𝘮𝘺 𝘧𝘳𝘪𝘦𝘯𝘥, 𝘥𝘰𝘯'𝘵 𝘧𝘰𝘳𝘨𝘦𝘵 𝘵𝘰 𝘷𝘪𝘴𝘪𝘵 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦 𝘢𝘨𝘢𝘪𝘯..."
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(A/N: AHHH this is not like I wanted in my head...I hope you liked it, leave me some suggestions what I should write next, I still have some couple of ideas, but requests are open...so yeah ANYWAYS- thank you and good day :D)
Here are the rules if you wanted to request
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shoichee · 4 years ago
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Hey luv! I just got my braces off and I don’t know if I like myself with or without them cause yah girl has ✨confidence issues✨ so can you do the GoM + Kagami and Teppei thanks my savior
OH, rn i have braces too (although they’re ceramic and harder to see) but I definitely can understand the apprehension when you have them taken off after for so long;; 
the amount of characters requested actually exceed the rules, but since i’ve taken a while to get to your request, i’ll still do them but they will be shorter^^ THANK YOU FOR STICKING BY THIS BLOG AND READING MY STUFF <3
[Headcanons]
Kuroko Tetsuya
right away, he notices that something was amiss with you, and asks upfront if anything was bothering you
you replied hesitantly, but while you talked you held up a hand in front of your mouth:
“Um… I don’t know if I like how I look right now…”
Kuroko stares at your nervous eyes and then looks down to your hand in front of your mouth before asking why
“Just got my braces off, and I feel a bit… weird without them? I feel like I look strange without them…”
“Do you mind if I see you?” he asks, softening his eyes at you
“W-Well… you’re not someone to judge, I know, but don’t… laugh or anything.”
“I won’t, (y/n)-san.”
he slowly brings your hand down and you slowly smile to reveal your teeth to him, and he gives you the purest smile… and that catches you off guard so badly like… YOUR TEETH GOT HIM TO SMILE LIKE THAT??? DAMN, MAYBE YOU SHOULD SMILE EVERY SECOND TO SEE SUCH A TREASURE—
“(y/n)-san, I think you look wonderful,” he muses, bringing your same hand that was in front of your mouth into his own hand with a gentle squeeze. “I’m sure everyone who sees you will think the same.”
ah Kuroko, the individual who has a knack in comforting people with his genuity (example: see Momoi)
whenever you do have those moments of self-consciousness again, he’s always there to calmly reassure you otherwise
Kise Ryouta
IMMEDIATELY sees your teeth when you talk, and freaks out like a little kid on Christmas
“(y/n)-cchi! (y/n)-cchi!!” he hoots around, pointing at his own teeth. “You got your braces off today! You look amazing!”
when you hesitate and tell him that you’re not so sure about yourself without your braces, he pinches your cheek and gives a little dramatic huff
“But (y/n)-cchi…! Come onnnn, trust me!” he says, giving a signature pout, and you laugh at his antics
“Ohhh, do that again! Do that again!” (he craves for your laughs, and he wants more)
he definitely tries to get you to smile and laugh to get you more comfortable with your braceless teeth
whether you have braces or not, he doesn’t mind so much because what he really cares about is your smile, and if he sees your teeth showing, braces or without, it means that he knows he’s doing a good job in making you comfortable and happy
while he showers you in praises every single moment, when you feel really down, he takes an extra measure or two to cuddle you gently while being much softer in delivering those compliments
always gives a daily compliment to give you a serotonin boost
Midorima Shintarou
he’s confused… why would you be upset that you got your braces off? you looked great before and even now, so does the fact of braces really change your perception of your appearance that much?
he won’t make any comment on your new appearance unless you bring it up to him and ask for his opinion/reassurance
he’s just happy for you that you have another milestone of your life, and not to mention, braces generally promote better oral health and fix misaligned bites
“Hm? What do I think of how you look? D-Don’t be ridiculous… What am I supposed to say?”
“Well, I just… think I look a little odd… I kind of… want my braces back.”
“You know you can’t do that, nanodayo,” he sighs. “So much money, effort, and care were invested into your teeth for many years. You did the most you could to take care of them and achieved the goal you set out for yourself when you first got braces, correct? That isn’t something to be ashamed of, nanodayo.”
despite his lecturing, his words do have some merit, and Midorima’s words were comforting in his own way
“But Midorima, um… sorry for annoying you,” you say, giving a chagrined smile
Midorima takes a good look at your exposed teeth for the first time and widens his eyes in a fluster before turning his eyes back to his astrology book
“I-I-It’s nothing.”
bonus: he’s definitely that one fussy parent who forces you to wear your retainers religiously, NO EXCUSES—he doesn’t want the whole process to be all for naught just because you got lazy in wearing a simple metal thing
Aomine Daiki
idiot #1
“Whoa, your teeth look different,” is something he would say tactlessly
immediately, you slapped your hands over your mouth at his words
forgive him, he usually says what’s on his mind with no filter and consideration
by then, he’d realized that the tone of his words was poorly delivered and would try to correct himself before he says anything more to dig himself a deeper grave
“Er, sorry, what I mean is… I didn’t know you were gonna have them off today…”
that actually made you more self-conscious and you try to flee from the scene
“W-Wait, hey!”
insert Aomine clumsily explaining that he didn’t mean to be tactless with his words and that he just meant that he was surprised in a good way
definitely shows you a lot more wholesome affection in addition to his usual PDA, but you wonder what he thought about your new “appearance,” so to speak
“What kinda question is that?” he scoffs. “You’re still hot and always will be.”
if there’s one sure benefit to his blunt words, it’s that his straightforwardness can easily dispel all your doubts and clear up any misunderstandings in one go
if you’re still doubtful about yourself, he’ll gladly resort to action to prove his point… perhaps makeout sessions with him would become a lot more exploratory and… just putting it out there, but we will leave this up to your imagination
anywho, he’s not afraid to give you more direct kisses to try to show you that he doesn’t care about your teeth and your lack of braces
definitely would tell out-of-pocket jokes and laugh more to get you to grow comfortable; after all, smiling is contagious right? who can resist Aomine’s smile???
if someone tried to make you uncomfortable by drawing everyone’s attention nearby in how you got your braces off, whether intentional or not, he’s scaring them away, no questions asked and he’s taking you away from the scene
Murasakibara Atsushi
“Oh…” he says with his usual drawl. “You got them off, Chibi-chin?”
it was a usual day with him tucking his own head into his arms to nap on the table when you walked up to him apprehensively, and he immediately notices your presence but lazily picks up his head to look at you when he noticed
“Er… yeah…”
he slightly tilts his head to the side like an inquisitive child to silently question what was wrong
“It’s nothing really! Just feeling tired… not in the talkative mood today.” as you said this, he noticed that you were more… tight-lipped, speaking in a quieter manner as if you were trying not to show your teeth as much as possible
he beckons a languid hand over and you reluctantly sit by his side, your face still slightly turned away
you thought he was just going to go back to sleep like he always does, but imagine your surprise when he easily picks you up from the side and placed you on his lap, face-to-face
Murasakibara then pulls your cheeks apart, revealing your pearly whites to him
“H-H-Hey!! Lert… gorw!”
“Don’t wanna.”
“I’m… serwious!”
he stares at you impassively for a few moments before he suddenly lets your cheeks go and yawns
“... you look fine, Chibi-chin,” he mumbles, and he sets you off his lap before getting up with a stretch. “Besides, now that you don’t have braces anymore, you can finally eat whatever you want right…?”
“I… guess I can…”
and he’s already reaching for your hand to tug you to the nearest takeout with a slight shine of excitement in his dark pupils
“Chibi-chin, we can finally eat those candy apples together you’ve always craved for, lots and lots…”
he’s very fixated on you eating with your braceless teeth for the next few weeks with a small smile on his face, because you enjoying the food you eat are some of the simplest joys he loves when he’s with you (and you hadn’t been able to do that because your braces forbidden you from eating a list of things)
definitely drags you out for food outings a lot more for the next few weeks
he tries his best in trying to make you not think about your teeth and your self-consciousness about them in his roundabout way (note: see his cheek pulling, distracting you with your favorite snacks, etc.)
he’s not someone to make any deal out of it because worrying over such a trivial thing is annoying to him, but nonetheless he certainly wants to make sure that nothing is bothering you because that’s the greatest inconvenience (since he doesn’t like to see you in such a state)… you being upset and worried makes him upset and worried, after all
Akashi Seijuro
he immediately understands that feeling of self-doubt/self-consciousness, but nonetheless he compliments you to let you know that he truly finds you desirable/beautiful inside and out
still, words alone sometimes don’t convince you and even when he gives physical affection to comfort you, there’s still that nagging feeling of how you felt about your teeth
and he’s totally okay with that, and he knows that feeling very well himself (regarding having inner voices that taunt him)
rather than constantly hammering in compliments because he knows that at some point they’d feel more disingenuous the more he says them, he offers you to help overcome the self-consciousness on your own terms
Akashi offers the suggestion of wearing face masks (not necessarily the surgical ones, but the cute/plain colored masks you’d see around!) if you have certain days where you feel low about your braceless teeth
he’d be quite sly and teasing all the while; whenever you wear your cute mask for the day, he’d be a lot more affectionate with the PDA and give pecks on your lips… but the mask is always in the way, preventing you from feeling actual contact with his own lips
he can tell you’d definitely get pouty when you don’t really feel those kisses and he simply laughs and walks on
“You…! I know you only try to kiss me when I have the mask on! Don’t play dumb with me!”
“Hm? Is it really a crime for me to show physical affection to the person I love?”
he eventually does help you coax you out and become comfortable, and your face masks would eventually be stored away in a drawer
he rewards you for being strong in overcoming your own doubts:
“To celebrate your strength in overcoming a huge milestone, what would you like your reward to be?”
“For starters, give me back all those kisses you tried to give me throughout all the times I wore a mask!”
“Of course,” he chuckles, moving closer to your lips. “How could I ever resist you when you’re this stunning?”
Kagami Taiga
idiot #2 (see idiot #1)
unlike idiot #1, idiot #2 doesn’t notice the change on your teeth, at all
he doesn’t know why you’re fidgeting around or acting really, really strange… were you hungry? upset at him for something he didn’t realize he did wrong?
so after a few days after you got your braces off, he finally asks:
“Is there something wrong? Did I do something to upset you?”
poor guy doesn’t know if he was at fault or if he was missing something, and he physically holds his head to try to recall EVERYTHING for the past week
you reassure him that it wasn’t anything like that, but you still had furrowed brows and you were very careful in how you were talking
Kagami thinks you haven’t eaten and offers to make dinner, but eating in front of him for some reason really didn’t sound like a good idea to you so you declined
you’ll eventually tell him that you just felt a bit self-conscious after your braces got taken off
“Huh?”
he stares at your teeth for a very long time, and you immediately regret it, not wanting to draw his attention to you like that
he snaps out of his intense daze and immediately apologizes for making you uncomfortable
“M-My bad… I just didn’t notice until you told me.”
“Really?” you ask, slightly relieved that the change wasn’t as drastic as you thought it would be
“Er, yeah…” he mumbles, scratching his cheek, “you look good, by the way…” but by the time he finished his compliment, it came out as a cough
you can only laugh in relief, knowing that everything he says is always earnest and sincere
Kiyoshi Teppei
definitely noticed that your braces were off, but pretends to not notice until you bring it up yourself because he’s quite sharp and in tune with other people’s emotions
so he treats you like he always does, being the sweet “airhead” that he is, and he waits until you bring it up yourself (because he knows how self-conscious you were about your lack of braces)
you yourself are confused… like… was Teppei actually dense? was your whole inner dilemma not a big deal like your mind thought it would be?
you tug on his sleeve one day and ask him if he noticed your teeth, pointing to them all the while
and he immediately chastises himself (“silly me”) for not noticing, and he tells you that you were beautiful either way, and whether you had braces or not didn’t change that inherent fact (and that was his “reason” for not noticing to reassure you)
all while giving his easy going chuckles and ruffling your hair
laughs at your shyness at his words, not because it’s funny or anything but he truly finds you adorable
once you get comfortable without giving a second thought about your braces gone, he just drops the truth bomb on you so casually like:
“Ahhhh (y/n)-san,” he sighs in nostalgia. “You were really cute when you were so shy about getting them off, you know that?”
“Now wait a second…”
“Hm?”
“What did you say?”
“That you’re really cute.”
“No, no, the other part.”
“Whenever you get shy.”
“That is not what I mean and you know that—”
“Aww, you’re being really cute right now, (y/n)-san. Don’t tempt me to carry you around when I just finished with my physical therapy.”
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mythicamagic · 4 years ago
Text
Funeral Flowers: a Sesskag Oneshot
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Summary:  Sesshoumaru knows what Kagome's favourite flower is- because it just so happens Forget-Me-Nots have been filling his throat for months. Hanahaki Disease fic. Sesskag oneshot.
AN: for @drosselmeyerwrites​, who is also a lover of the 'suffering Sesshoumaru' trope. She's been a lovely commenter and wholesome person in the fandom ^^
Warning: body horror elements. This is a Hanahaki Disease fic with a twist on the concept.
Words: 10,000
Rated M
@cookieasylum​ drew an amazing fanart for this fic so please check this fic out on Ao3!
Funeral Flowers
It started as a mere flutter. Sesshoumaru could feel it at the back of his throat: the beginnings of something that tickled and irritated his windpipe- not enough to cause anything serious, but just noticeable. This sensation only worsened with time.
Kagome looked at him like he'd grown a second head after hearing him stifle a certain noise clumsily behind his fingers.
"Huh," she mused, peering closely at him. "I don't think I've ever heard you cough before."
After a few weeks, he'd begun coughing. A little blemish that he could easily hide behind his hand. Sesshoumaru had wanted no one to notice such a shameful thing. An unwilling action, but required in order to clear his airways.
"Hn," peeling long fingers away from his down-turned mouth, he looked away. Kagome shifted bare legs in the glittering water, lounging on some rocks by a river while half-heartedly sunbathing in a tank top and shorts. Golden eyes slid back to the slim, pale stretch of her smooth, toned leg as she swayed it.
"Kind of a human action, isn't it? Do demons even get colds?" her concern only seemed to increase. "You're not sick, are you?"
"No," he huffed, adjusting himself beside her. They kept a respectable distance. 'Friends' was what she called them. Sesshoumaru tried and failed to tear his gaze away from the parting of her thighs as she stretched languidly. "I do not get sick," he added, "such a thing is beneath me."
Kagome slid both arms behind her head to act as a cushion, laying down. "A few years ago you'd have said sitting beside a priestess ankle-deep in a river would be 'beneath' you. Things change."
Sesshoumaru tilted his chin up to regard her haughtily and gave a dignified snort, adjusting his rolled-up hakama pants. "It is beneath me."
Kagome rose a brow, fluttering one hand carelessly in a shooing motion, "go on then. Leave if it's so offensive," she sighed, trying and failing to hide her smile.
No.
His body flared alive at the thought, unsettled. Sesshoumaru bit back another prickling cough, settling for clearing his throat. "You should be the one to leave. This one was here first."
"Wha- no! I got to the river before you!"
"I was referring to age. Bratty mikos should listen to their elders."
Kagome burst out laughing, sitting up to lightly bat his shoulder. "That makes you sound ancient! You're such a dork. No one else knows how much of an absolute dork you are, do they? It's a crying shame."
Sesshoumaru did not know what a 'dork' was, but he assumed it to be something unflattering. He should've been annoyed by it, aggravated. Kagome's playful, happy scent made this notion impossible.
Thin lips twitched at the edges, dragging his heels through the cool current. He couldn't honestly put into words why exactly he'd shown up, following her scent. Logically, he knew he should leave her alone.
They fell into an amicable silence again, one that had been born from months of time spent together. Odd snatches of coincidental meetings had flourished into something more, and they'd begun seeking one another out for company whenever he visited the village. Sometimes she even paid him a visit the Western Stronghold. Any demons who complained about it were silenced by how… determined the miko was to make friends. A force of nature. It had amused him to no end watching ancients tripping over themselves to try to avoid her bad books.
He could also deeply understand those who had taken an immense liking to her.
Kagome was warm and teasing, a rare thing not wholly unwelcome. Her stories of the future were interesting, personality vibrant but down to earth and occasionally sassy. He enjoyed her more than he should, a quiet, snarky male by nature basking in her effortless glow.
"What's your favourite flower?"
He blinked, "this is a question belonging to Rin. I do not expect such fanciful notions from you."
Kagome huffed and flicked her hand to splash some water over his knee. "I can talk about flowers if I want to. Shinto asked me what mine were, so I got to thinking. I'd like to know what yours are too- or do pretty dog demons baring flower crests not have an opinion on them?"
He sniffed, bringing down one leg to create a splash that soaked her side. Kagome let out a yelp. "The Shiragiku flower. "
"Oh you can't be serious!" She giggled. "When I asked what your favourite colour was, you said 'white' of all things. White! That's the absence of colour!"
"This one is aware. You kept rabbiting on about it," he wiped some imaginary lint off one shoulder.
"But still! And now you tell me you like flowers that are infamously used for funerals," blue eyes rolled skyward, glittering with mirth. "Why am I not surprised, Mr Killing Perfection?"
Thin lips lifted into a sneer free of malice. "Very well, Shikon miko. What is your favoured flower?"
Kagome hummed. "Forget-Me-Nots."
Letting out a noise between a huff and a chuckle, he shot her an exasperated look. "And you give me grief over mine. Did you not say that blue was your favoured colour?"
"Hey, Forget-me-Nots can be pink, white or blue! I'm not as predictable in my tastes as some people."
That was most definitely true, he thought flatly. She had moved on from her first love, a Hanyou- only to bond with a Daiyoukai, and then…
And then…
Kagome stood, stretching both arms above her head. Sesshoumaru knew what she'd say before she even said it, wincing and bringing a hand absentmindedly to the base of his throat. It throbbed. Now the ache even seemed to seep lower.
What is this pain in my chest? He wondered. What is this strange sensation?
"I should go."
Sesshoumaru slid tired attention up to her and nodded silently. He would not wish her well.
"Shinto will wonder where I am," she needlessly elaborated.
"Indeed."
Kagome glanced at him and dropped her arms. "What's wrong?"
He thought to tell her, not for the first time. But it was silenced by everything else that had come before. Their history. Their species. Her lack of discernible interest, her new flame. A heavy weight pressed down upon his chest. His shoulder ached.
"Nothing. I am fine."
Dark brows pulled together. Sesshoumaru stood and nudged her away with a single palm on her back that lingered too long. "Go. I am… merely hungry."
"Oh!" a look of relief swept over her face. Kagome laughed, "okay, I'll leave you in peace. Happy hunting!"
Sesshoumaru felt his chest ache and constrict while his expression remained a blank mask. He covertly winced after she'd jogged away to a trail within the forest that would take her back to Kaede's village. She stopped to wave, and he quickly wiped his expression clean again, rendering it neutral.
Kagome smiled gently, her face full of friendly affection. Sesshoumaru regally inclined his head, eyes burning.
Do not go.
She left him alone, hurrying away to see her new flame in complete ignorance.
Sesshoumaru coughed and massaged the base of his throat as soon as she was gone, frowning.
Feeling something stuck to the roof of his mouth with his tongue, he curiously parted his lips and reached behind a sharp tooth to pluck the soft, small thing out.
Damp from saliva, a tiny, pretty blue petal caught his attention, clutched between forefinger and thumb. Sesshoumaru stared. A sense of creeping foreboding slipped into the back of his mind at the discovery.
This did not bode well.
---
His affliction made visits to the village difficult. It was easier in the beginning when he could hide a few coughs and tickles of the throat. Steadily, however, the discomfort increased. Sesshoumaru needed to pick out petals from his mouth every day, and the number of them only grew with frequency. He had to remove the irritating little things every hour now.
"Lord Sesshoumaru has been picking at his teeth a lot lately," he heard Rin whisper to Jaken, pausing mid-brush. She had been tasked with caring for the old miko's horse. "Is it a toothache?"
"Shh! Don't comment on such a thing so loudly, girl! If Lord Sesshoumaru wants to do some teeth maintenance, then he may do so!" Jaken squawked, frowning up at her.
Sesshoumaru cut golden eyes to the sky and turned away.
"Ah, I didn't mean to insult you, Lord Sesshoumaru!"
"You're STILL drawing attention to it!" Jaken griped.
Pointed ears twitched, blocking out their animated voices and tuning into a set of quick footsteps. Sesshoumaru inhaled, wincing as his lungs protested- the scent of citrus, summer and home comforts reaching him long before Kagome appeared from around the side of a hut. She beamed. His heart ached.
"Hey," she called, trotting over.
"Hello, Kagome!" the little girl waved enthusiastically, wobbling.
Steadying Rin atop her wooden perch as she continued brushing the tall horse, Kagome flashed him a knowing look. "You look tense. Is it from being near the stables?" she teased.
Rin gasped, "does Lord Sesshoumaru not like horses?"
"It's their smell, you nitwit!"
Kagome frowned at Jaken, before searching Sesshoumaru's face for answers. Obviously his silence and demeanour was starting to worry her. Taking a breath, he tried to ignore the petals stuck in the gaps of his teeth. He could feel more building, pooling in the back of his throat like thick mucus.
"They are skittish and afraid of this one. It is better to keep distance."
Predictably, Kagome gentled- but surprised him by easing closer. She seized his hand, tugging- and he was helpless to do anything but follow. Heat touched his cheeks.
Kagome walked backwards, maintaining eye contact like the femme fatale she wasn't, shifting her soft touch to grasp the back of his hand, lacing lithe fingers through his. She then forced the Daiyoukai's palm to rest against a warm neck. The horse shifted slightly, tail flicking, yet it did not startle. With Kagome's prompting, Sesshoumaru glided the flat of his calloused palm down the length of its powerful neck, the thin layer of brown fur tickling his skin.
"Maji isn't like other horses, he's calm around demons. He has to be if Kaede is gonna ride him to fight Youkai," her voice glided through his ear canals like melted honey. Kagome hummed, "though she said because of her age that he might be mine soon. Weird, huh? It's like she's prepping me to be the village miko more and more."
"It is not 'weird,' it is expected," he uttered, thrilled at the prolonged touch. How foolish. The heat of her palm felt exquisite, hand clasped intimately around his. "You will make an acceptable village miko."
Blue eyes flitted up to him, smiling. She gave his hand a squeeze. "Thanks, but… sometimes I wonder if-"
"Ah, so this is where you escaped to."
Sesshoumaru stiffened. Kagome ripped her fingers away- tearing open a gaping hole inside him. He quickly stifled a cough, but it was larger this time, throat clogged. His shoulders shook, sweat dotting his brow.
Kagome was busy being scooped up by Shinto, a large male. He dressed well, for a human, a jagged scar running over one eye. A momento from his mercenary days, he'd called it, though he was now reformed.
Kagome laughed and swatted his shoulder, demanding to be put down. Jaken piped up, yelling about indecency. All the while, Sesshoumaru fought not to let anything show. To not let the agony out. The jealousy. The consuming desire to act upon instinct and take what he ached for.
He couldn't stand it. Couldn't stand seeing the male's burly, meaty hands drag over her hips to settle at the base of her spine. Like they belonged there. Sesshoumaru coughed again, drawing away.
Kagome caught the action, turning to him. "Sesshoumaru?"
He hated the concern swimming in her gaze. It would be so much easier to despise her.
"I have lingered too long," he said quietly, trying to mask the rawness of his voice. "This one should be going."
Kagome nodded slowly, "do you want some honey to soothe your throat? It sounds a little-"
"No," he quietly snapped, starting to walk away. Confusion immediately curdled in her scent, and he regretted the lapse in control. Now she'd worry.
Foolishness.
"Lord Sesshoumaru!" Jaken hurriedly ran after him, following his Lord from the village. "Bah, those humans get more presumptuous every day. I don't blame you for leaving in such a hurry," he muttered, keeping up his tangent long after they'd met the treeline of Inuyasha's forest.
Sesshoumaru unexpectedly stopped, slamming claws into tree bark and causing it to splinter.
Jaken yelped, jumping and dropping his staff. "Mi-mi Lord?" bulbous eyes widened upon seeing him stoop over slightly, silver hair obscuring ashen features.
Sesshoumaru's shoulders shook, dry heaving sounds reaching Jaken's hearing. The retainer gasped, watching him cough, gasp and choke. Thick trails of dewy saliva pooled onto the ground. Rasping noises shuddered out from clenched teeth. Trembling claws reached inside his mouth, feeling something at the back of his throat. Grasping it, Sesshoumaru fought not to gag, coughing while removing the thing and looking at it with stinging eyes.
A Forget-me-not flower sat innocently between forefinger and thumb.
Both demons stared. Phlegm soaked petals rested at Sesshoumaru's feet. Jaken stood gravely silent for a while.
"Mi Lord…" he said thinly. "You have fallen prey to something very old…"
"You will not breathe a word about it to anyone," Sesshoumaru coughed, eyes stinging. He straightened and wiped his mouth, collecting himself. He threw the flower aside.
"But-"
"No one, Jaken," Sesshoumaru hissed, molten golden eyes burning. "Or I'll kill you."
Jaken yelped and quickly bowed several times, promising wholeheartedly not to interfere.
"I-I understand! However, if it's not too much trouble, perhaps you could hear out a suggestion?"
Sesshoumaru sneered and started walking again, his breathing slightly hoarse and rasping now, no longer quiet. His lips pressed together, trying to silence himself. It proved painful, and he quickly breathed through his mouth again.
Jaken tentatively continued; "your affliction is something ancient. I know little about it, but I do remember that it's possible to have it removed before it claims your life."
Sesshoumaru stopped, hands curling into fists. Claws scraped palms.
"That will not do, either," came his soft response.
"W-why ever not, milord?! This matter is potentially deadly to demons!"
Sesshoumaru stared ahead unseeingly. He knew of the affliction too. Had recognised what it was immediately. If he removed the flowering bud from within his chest, wiped away all evidence from her from his body, then he'd lose the very thing that had made him catch the illness in the first place.
His feelings for Kagome Higurashi.
"My reasons are my own," Sesshoumaru coughed behind his hand. "I will not die. Do not fuss over trivial matters, Jaken."
His retainer gaped, hurrying after him. Fierce worry painted his features. The infamous and deadly Hanahaki Curse could fell even the strongest of Daiyoukai.
---
It interfered with eating.
Sesshoumaru thankfully did not need to eat too often, but hunger inevitably gnawed its way into his gut. Transformed, he raced through the forest on all fours in a smaller version of his true form. Low-hanging branches lashed at his face. Forget-me-not flowers lodged in his throat conglomerated into a thick mass. They were practically a ball stuck at the back of his mouth. Sesshoumaru managed to ignore it just enough to track the scent of a deer- only to lose it and find a green pheasant within range.
Barely a snack, but it would do.
With a gurgling snarl, Sesshoumaru sprang at some bushes. Squawking with distress, the bird took flight- only to be caught in his jaws. Bringing sharp teeth down elicited a satisfying crunch. The taste of iron filled his parched mouth. Tilting his head back, Sesshoumaru had every intention of swallowing it whole. He'd done so before. The bird was small enough compared to his form. However, this quickly became impossible.
Red eyes widened. The flowers acted as a barrier, preventing food from travelling down his throat.
Spitting out the bird, Sesshoumaru tore into it. He tried again and again, breaking the kill into smaller pieces. He even tried drinking from the river to wash down the flowers. Nothing worked. No food could pass into his stomach.
With a low crooning noise that hissed out between his teeth, Sesshoumaru padded away from his uneaten kill with an agitated flick of his tail.
---
It affected his sleep next.
At his Stronghold in the Western lands, Sesshoumaru set aside his paperwork and retired to bed. Curling into a nest of furs, he stretched out long legs, sprawling on one side.
Only to feel a dull ache thrum from his ribs.
Wincing and setting a hand over the spot, Sesshoumaru frowned. He was unfamiliar with the sensation, however, Kagome had once whined and complained about 'pulling a muscle.' Perhaps the tight, clamping sensation echoed that pain. Deciding to roll over onto his opposite side- he abruptly burst into a coughing fit. The angle had upset his breathing, lungs protesting.
This vicious cycle continued long into the night. He tossed and turned, trying to get comfortable. Even laying still made him feel tense and pained. In the end, Sesshoumaru rose from his futon and began running.
Too tired to think, he transformed, relying on instinct to guide him. He whined softly; the ache spreading. He wheezed a little, breathing constrained despite being physically fit.
The inuyoukai sprinted to the outskirts of Kaede's village. Scenting the air, he caught a welcome fragrance on the breeze.
Mate.
Clearing the hillside with a single bound, Sesshoumaru shrank his form even further to that of a regular dog. Sniffing around the outside of a hut, fluffy ears perked. She was not home.
Where?
Following the invisible trail in the air, he padded around the village, passing by unseen by some villagers. Their lack of vigilance disgusted him. What lax security. Stopping at the Monk and Slayer's hut, he listened, hearing a soft humming from within. The sharp tang of blood, vomit, faeces and afterbirth caught his frayed attention.
The Slayer had been pregnant. From the sounds and smells of things, she had given birth and now slept while Kagome remained awake. He could pick up the faint fussing from a young babe.
Sesshoumaru stayed still, listening to the miko gently hum. Slowly, his body weakened, and the inuyoukai lay down outside the hut, resting a weary head atop large paws.
Something stirred from within, the rustle of covers. "Mn... are you alright? Want me to take over?"
"No, I'm fine," Kagome answered in a hushed tone. "He seems completely zonked out, little cutie-pie."
The Slayer paused, "your head. You said it was aching again earlier."
"Heh, Sango! You've just had another baby! Focus on yourself!" her lovely voice tinged with exasperation. "Really, everything is okay. It just hurts from time to time ever since that night with the boar youkai attack. It's no big deal."
"Prolonged headaches and amnesia does not fall under 'no big deal,' Kagome."
Laughing this off breezily, he could hear the shrug in her tone. "I just blank on a few things from the month prior to the attack. I'm sure it wasn't anything important."
Tired lids slid shut, and Sesshoumaru gained some sense of rest while imagining the woman within cradling a newborn pup instead of a gurgling infant. The two women talked some more, lulling him into a false sense of comfort even as his throat thrummed with continuous pain.
---
Breathing was a struggle.
Every inhale became a wheezing, quivering thing. Like crumpled paper that had been smoothed out and squashed too many times. Mucus constantly filled his mouth, senses clogged. His breathing ranged from laboured to a noisy, rasping thing.
He could no longer afford to visit the village. Sesshoumaru took to monitoring Rin from afar whenever he felt the need to check up on her. Needless to say, he avoided Kagome at all costs. The miko was an infamous busy body who would become a nightmare to deal with if she knew of his suffering.
Yes, that was the only reason.
However, on a random day he briefly let his guard down, the unthinkable happened.
Inuyasha found out.
If Sesshoumaru had comprised a list of all the beings he did NOT want to know about his affliction, Inuyasha would be right up there, along with his meddling mother.
Inuyasha stared, watching him with a complicated, horrified look on his gruff features. Shifting, Sesshoumaru stood from where he'd been knelt by a river.
Forget-me-nots floated downstream.
"... What the hell is wrong with you?" were the first words Inuyasha blurted out.
Sesshoumaru wiped his mouth, sneering. "I need not explain myself to you, whelp."
"Keh, if anything warrants a damn explanation, it's barfing up flowers."
He didn't need to hear anymore, turning with the intent to leave. No doubt the fool would talk nonsense, and he had no patience for such things with his current headache. His temples were pounding, throat parched.
"Why don't you just fucking tell her, you coward?"
That certainly caught his attention. Sesshoumaru halted. "What?" he croaked.
"Ya think I'm that ignorant, huh?" Inuyasha rolled his eyes, shoving both hands inside his sleeves. "I know."
"Know what, exactly," silken tones rasped. "You are but an ignorant pup. You were not raised within youkai circles, and so could not possibly understand."
"And whose fault is that?" shaking his head, Inuyasha huffed. "I dunno what crap you're yappin' on about, anyway. I'm talkin' about your secret relationship with Kagome that you had a couple of months ago."
Stiffening, Sesshoumaru felt his bones lock and throat inflame. He swallowed, wincing slightly. He flashed his teeth, "whatever you think you know, it is incorrect. A baseless assumption."
"Bullshit!"
Continuing to walk with every intention of escaping the pending conversation, he stopped dead the second Inuyasha opened his mouth; "I could smell you on her! But that all changed the second she hit her head. Did she forget you or something? You were happy to just abandon her after she stopped being useful for a good time?"
A deafening snarl upset his aching throat, ripping something inside. Blurring through the air impossibly fast, Sesshoumaru snatched up his sibling's throat and slammed him into a tree, causing the trunk to shudder.
"Silence," a blood-curdling rasp hissed out from clenched teeth like boiling steam. Crimson eyes glowed, claws itching to bury into the nuisance's windpipe.
Even while choking, Inuyasha managed to bark out a laugh, grasping a striped wrist. "You really do like her, huh? Never thought I'd see the day, bastard." White ears pulled back flat against his skull. "What's the deal? Just open your mouth and tell Kagome. Then I don't have to smell your pining ass all over the forest while you stalk her."
Burning embers were snuffed out. Sesshoumaru coughed, lifting a hand to his mouth. His shoulder thrummed, aching. "I cannot do that."
"Why not?"
"She does not remember," releasing him, the Daiyoukai stepped back. "The miko fell quite quickly for the male who rescued her that night. The fault lies with me that she sustained injury. If she is content with another, I cannot force her gaze to me."
It wasn't as though he hadn't tried. However, Kagome seemed happy with their relationship as friends. Guilt, stung pride and other such ugly emotions were all tied up with the incident.
Inuyasha blinked with disbelief, sizing him up. "When the fuck did you get so noble?" Sesshoumaru sneered, glancing away as his brother continued. "And anyway, what does that have to do with you coughing up flowers?"
Since he'd revealed more than intended as it was, Sesshoumaru felt no inclination to divulge extra information. He turned and this time; resolved not to stop walking. "Drop the subject, whelp."
"Maybe I'll tell Kagome about it."
Sesshoumaru did not falter, knowing the fool's game by now. "Do as you please," he dismissed in a wheezing, thin voice, stepping under the cool shade of weeping willow trees and leaving him behind.
---
He did not intend to revisit their old rendezvous point. Sesshoumaru had wanted to put it behind him, to let everything that had happened within the cave fade into obscurity.
The second he stepped foot within the mossy mouth of its opening, however, Kagome's lingering scent fanned over a striped cheek like a breathy exhale.
Long white lashes slid half shut. Hooded golden eyes became hazed. The memory of her salty, sweet taste wrapping around his tongue flooded his senses. Claws twitched, recalling the phantom sensation of full breasts falling into his palms as her back arched exquisitely. Her eyes had darkened into a lush, deep blue.
She'd been memorable, to say the least.
Walking further in, so that he stood fully submerged in their love-nest, Sesshoumaru basked in the illicit scents and breathy whispers he could remember caressing his hearing. It hadn't just been about sex. It never was with her.
Kagome had held his demonic hand without fear and stroked his cheek, murmuring ardently or giggling quietly. She told him things he hadn't thought he'd wanted to know before.
'You're nothing like your father' she'd said easily but with a conviction that made the ageless demon believe her. The notion should've been insulting. His sire had been unbeatable in strength, so of course he should wish to be like him.
Yet Sesshoumaru had never appreciated such compliments. He wished to be unique, bold, powerful, walking an entirely different path. Her words had been strangely welcome.
"And yet here I stand, Father," Sesshoumaru uttered to himself. In love with a mortal. Dying, because of a human woman of all things.
Just like you.
"Sesshoumaru?"
Golden eyes snapped wide open. A wave of elation, dread, guilt and longing washed over him. Every fibre of his being flared to life, muscles stiffening, heart racing. His lungs constricted.
Sesshoumaru swallowed a rasping breath, shifting to face the priestess.
Kagome crept closer, glancing around the cave curiously. "Was just in the forest to collect some things. I thought I sensed you close by. Looks like I was right. What are you doing in here?"
"Nothing," he said softly. His voice sounded fragile these days.
He could tell she was confused, radiating hurt. He hadn't visited in so long. No doubt she'd wondered why. The flowers buried within his windpipe felt heavier in her presence. He cleared his throat.
"Oh," Kagome scuffed a sandal over the dirt-covered floor. "Well... I'm glad I caught you-" she offered a tentative smile. "I've missed talking with you."
Sesshoumaru's insides screamed at him. The marks on his shoulder felt like blistering iron tongues being thrust into his flesh they wailed so loud.
Mate.
"I dunno what's kept you away," Kagome continued talking, making her way out of the cave. He followed, "but you haven't missed much. Rin is progressing nicely with her riding though. I'm not too shabby with that thin sword you gave me either, though Shinto says I need more practice."
That very sent icy needles piercing his skin. Stepping foot outside, Sesshoumaru couldn't stop the abrupt bite in his tone; "why are you here, miko?"
Kagome blinked and glanced at him over one shoulder. She then threaded her fingers behind her back, attention sliding away, voice unreadable.
"Shinto proposed to me."
Sesshoumaru stopped. A profound sense of loss rendered him breathless. He anticipated a coughing fit. Wheezing. Pain. But there was nothing, just him and Kagome standing alone in the silent woods. But she'd be beyond his reach for good soon.
He'd tried. He'd tried hard to forget, as she had. To push all the feelings and words right down from his throat into his chest. Maybe that was how the curse had started.
But he'd have kept the curse for good if it meant lingering in the 'almost' fantasy of them.
Now that illusion would shatter.
The very idea of her belonging to another felt like a wound somewhere inside him that he couldn't locate. The sensation of teeth on his shoulder thrummed, and he coughed, snuffing out the sound behind his hand.
"I didn't really know what to say," Kagome was muttering. "A part of me feels like it's too soon. I wanted to talk to you about it-"
"This one is needed elsewhere," he said in a clipped tone, turning on his heel.
He couldn't be her confidant anymore. Not about this.
"What?"
He began walking, trying to put distance between them. He should've known it wouldn't work as Kagome quickly caught up and planted herself firmly in his way, halting the demon.
"Okay, what is going on with you?" she demanded. "Is it the cough? Are you in so much pain that you can't talk to me?"
Sesshoumaru flashed his teeth in a faint sneer, throat protesting at the extended use of his vocal cords. "is it so unthinkable that for once, I may not have time for you, miko?"
"Yes," Kagome planted both hands on her hips. "Because this isn't an isolated thing. I've hardly seen you all month! And besides that, you're my friend, Sesshoumaru. Friends tell each other things. Remember how you talked about the court and how obnoxious General Kito was to deal with? Things like that. I need to talk to you about this- and clearly, you need to talk to someone about whatever's going on with you. I'm worried about you!"
His heart clenched, and Sesshoumaru bit back a hiss at the stab of pain it caused. Thin breathing rasped and rattled. He raised a hand, urging her aside via a gentle grasp on her shoulder to continue walking.
Kagome's grip was not so gentle as she latched onto his arm.
Frustration abruptly burst in his chest and Sesshoumaru snarled, whirling with the intent of spilling everything to her. Ruin their friendship. Burn everything they'd built and admit his failure to protect her-
-only to cough up a mouthful of blood onto her collarbone.
Kagome yelped in surprise, eyes wide. Touching the wet substance dazedly, horror paled her complexion. She looked up at him with palpable fear.
"S-Sesshoumaru?"
Humiliation stung white-hot and burning into his body. The visceral, blinding sensation of being exposed- of being seen- felt like too much. Too raw. As a demon unused to such things, his first instinct was to remove himself from the situation.
Sesshoumaru blurred away from her outstretched hands, putting the length of the clearing between them.
Kagome called his name again with alarm, asking him to wait, but he would not heed her call.
Taking to the skies, he flew fast and erratically, a wobbly figure. Coughing hard and feeling blood clog up his windpipe like mud, Sesshoumaru had no choice but to land not long after.
Within an overcast clearing upriver from Kagome, he steadied himself against a gnarled tree.
"Hah- hah-" he wheezed, doubling over and squeezing stinging eyes shut.
Something suddenly constricted tight around his lungs, around his very ribcage. Bones protested and ached. He gasped for breath, blood leaking from his open mouth to pool on the floor. Forget-me-nots mingled with it, petals stained red.
Jolting and snapping upright, Sesshoumaru arched his back, throwing back his head. A cry escaped him unlike any other. Loud, agonised and roaring in its ferocity tinged with pain.
Stems shot out from within his ribcage, tearing his chest asunder.
---
Her friends made noises of alarm at the sight of Kagome's bloodied clothes, but the miko ignored Sango and Miroku's questions, bypassing them in favour of finding and grabbing Jaken by the scruff of his robes.
"You're going to tell me in 10 words or less what the hell is going on with your lord," she demanded.
Jaken yelped and squinted, hanging from her hold. "Haven't the faintest idea of what you could be alluding to!" he sniffed.
Kagome snarled and bared her teeth, lifting him closer with a menacing expression and gesturing to the red substance marring her priestess robes. "This is HIS blood. He looked awful. Like- like he was dying, Jaken," her voice broke. "Please. I need to know what's happening. He won't tell me what's wrong and I'm scared."
Yellow eyes rounded wider, swallowing the imp's face. He appeared conflicted.
"Kagome!"
Releasing Jaken, Kagome shifted her attention to Inuyasha, who leapt towards her with alarm pinching his gruff features.
Dread dropped low in her stomach. That was never a good sign.
Distant snapping noises like wood being felled reached her ears. From behind the approaching Hanyou within the forest, large vines could be seen shifting and slithering over a portion of the trees.
"What is it?" Miroku gaped. "I sense a demonic aura, but it's distorted."
Kagome shuddered, feeling strange. She recognised that energy. Identified it as easy as breathing.
"Maybe a forest spirit has been disturbed?" Sango guessed, clutching her son a little more protectively.
"It ain't that," Inuyasha dropped from his jump, landing before them. He panted, white hair windswept. Of all people, his gaze landed upon the miko first. "It's Sesshoumaru."
----
Their way became blocked by a thick mass of vines crisscrossing through the forest. It created a wall, preventing any from entering.
"Lord Sesshoumaru must be further in," Miroku observed, leaning to inspect the leaves. "Beyond this 'barrier' I suppose you could call it."
"I wonder what could have happened," Kagome murmured, brows pulling together. "Sesshoumaru doesn't even have nature powers."
"Why on earth did you bring ME along for this?" a high pitched, nasally voice reached their ears. Sango and Inuyasha readily ignored it, while Kagome frowned down at the imp she held by the scruff of his robes.
"Because you're clearly hiding something, and until you come clean, I'm not letting you out of my sight."
His mouth thinned into a stubborn line, glancing away.
Kagome turned her attention back to the vines. Worry took root in her stomach. The memory of the Daiyoukai spitting up blood remained fresh in her mind, evidence of it staining her clothing and plastering it against her skin.
Handing Miroku their son, Sango went first. She swung Hiraikotsu with a seemingly effortless toss- the bone boomerang spiralling, cleaving trees in half but bouncing straight off the vine wall. It didn't so much as leave a dent.
Not wasting another moment, Inuyasha unsheathed Tetsusaiga. Everyone immediately gave him a wide berth, watching as he shook the sword out into a monstrous blade. He swung it back over one shoulder, feet planted far apart- delivering a swift blow downwards with a loud cry.
A burst of power shot out, heading straight for the vines. They made contact, and for a moment Kagome thought the consuming golden light might break through, only for it to fizzle out. The insurmountable wall remained intact.
Inuyasha tried again and again, using different techniques. None of them worked.
Nocking an arrow in her bow, Kagome took aim. Pale pink reiki split forth, coating the arrow while glowing ever more blinding until she set it free.
She held out hope as it shot through the vines, managing to burst through the dense foliage- which repaired itself almost immediately, covering up the hole.
"Nothing appears to be working," Miroku muttered, turning his friends. "Perhaps we should seek advice elsewhere first before trying to continue."
Her friend's voices faded into background noise as Kagome approached the vines. Frowning slightly, she stretched out her senses, using her aura to touch and brush against the barrier. It felt like him.
If that were the case, the wall was of Sesshoumaru's own making, whether he'd consciously chosen to hide away or not. Perhaps they were going about things the wrong way.
Thinking back to Maji and how carefully they'd run their linked hands down his neck, she raised a palm. Gradually easing closer, Kagome set it down gently onto the vines, stroking downwards.
Hearing outcries of alarm as the greenery parted, only for swirling stems to curl about her shoulders- Kagome quickly grabbed Jaken.
"It's okay, guys. Just find a way to follow me in later," she met their startled gazes. "I feel like I need to reach him quickly."
"Kagome, wait!"
Ignoring their protests, Kagome lept into the fray. She welcomed the green vines that wrapped around her, enclosing the miko and wailing kappa securely behind its wall.
---
Mercifully the winding tendrils of vines that moved as though infused with a will of their own allowed her freedom of movement. Kagome climbed through their moving, twisting stems, occasionally losing her footing and having to grasp hold of some.
"Again, I ask; WHY ARE YOU BRINGING ME ALONG WITH YOU?!" Jaken shrieked, clinging to her back and looking around fretfully.
"You know the answer to that. Tell me what you know about Sesshoumaru's situation and I'll let you go," Kagome hummed, shielding her eyes and looking up at sprawling branches above where sunlight streamed through. Maybe she could punt him over the treetops.
"I have sworn not to break my vow of silence on the matter!"
Grinding her teeth, Kagome stopped and reached over her shoulder, tearing him from her back to frown at him. "If your silence ends up hurting him, is it even worth it? Which means more to you; Sesshoumaru's trust or his life?"
Jaken clamped up, thinking about this for a moment. His eyes abruptly filled with tears, "fine! But you had best save me from his wrath once this is over."
Kagome grinned and patted him on the head, continuing to walk. "I promise."
He huffed, "Lord Sesshoumaru is suffering from a curse."
Blue eyes widened, and Kagome set Jaken over her shoulder like she would Shippo. He did not appreciate the gesture as the kit would while she minded swirling vines aside from their path and ducked through. "What kind of curse?"
"How much do you know about youkai mates, foolish mortal?"
At that, she tilted her head, noticing a blue flowering bud among the vines and gently touching it in passing. "Very little. I know they're like married couples. They, uh... make love and bite each other instead of having a wedding ceremony and stuff. That about sum it up?"
"Insolent girl!" Jaken griped, noticing the bud she touched opening up into a flower behind them. "It is far more than that! Their energies synchronise, aura's linking. However, it's quite imperative they both bite one another."
"Or else the mating is incomplete? What's so bad about that?"
"The partner that was bitten will consider them mated and suffer a one-sided attachment. This isn't so terrible if they have the bite mark healed and lose their troublesome feelings towards their mate," he continued with a self-important air. Kagome didn't mind it if it meant getting answers. "But... if they choose to linger in longing and are prevented from completing the mating, then their energies become distorted! Their youki takes on a life of its own as flowers."
"That's what these vines are," Kagome mused. She shifted, a strange, unsettled feeling churning in her gut. "You're implying someone bit Sesshoumaru? He'd never allow someone to do that if he didn't want it- let alone not reciprocate. Besides, if he could remove it, he'd have surely done so."
"I agree this situation is unprecedented! Unthinkable! Besides that, ANY partner resisting Lord Sesshoumaru's advances is unworthy of being his mate! AH-!"
Kagome jolted, feeling a weight lift from her back. Glancing over her shoulder, she gaped and strained to reach Jaken. Vines had wrapped tight around his mid-section, lifting him away.
"Hang on!" she shimmied her bow off her arm, quickly taking aim. Releasing the arrow, she watched as it hit the mark, sailing through a vine and breaking it in two. Jaken yelped, falling, only to be caught by another vine that continued dragging him back the way they'd come.
"J-just leave me!" he wailed. "Go save Lord Sesshoumaru!"
Kagome blinked, strangely touched. Nodding with conviction, she turned and hurriedly continued to make her way through the dense foliage.
---
Her breath caught the second she caught sight of the flowers.
Forget-me-nots littered the area, becoming more frequent the further in she ventured. Soon she practically waded through a sea of blue petals. They hugged trees, peppering logs, the ground beneath her feet, even climbing above to hang from branches. The vast mass of familiar flowers eventually opened out into a huge clearing packed full of them.
And there, at the centre of it all, Kagome finally saw him.
Vines had burst his chest open, putting quivering lungs on full display. To her horror, she witnessed them expanding and deflating with each struggling, wheezing breath. His ribcage had been repurposed for a vase of flowers. Vibrant blue forget-me-nots poked out between his ribs, green stems tightly wrapped around his bones, constricting.
Sesshoumaru's body lay tilted back, face turned upwards to the sky. Glassy eyes were vacant, blood caking his chin. His armour and hankimono lay shattered and torn on the ground. Around him, the stems that had spilt forth from his gut propped up his lifeless form, clearly part of the mass of greenery that had hindered her approach. Kagome covered her mouth, hand shaking. Tears pricked her eyes. Blue veins visibly spread over his flesh, causing her to wonder if the stems had buried beneath his very skin.
This was not Sesshoumaru. It couldn't be.
Choking on nothing, Kagome hurried closer with a thin noise. Reaching his motionless form, her hands hovered uselessly over his decimated chest. She didn't know where to start. How could she even help him?
"Who did this to you?" her voice wobbled. Stinging eyes misted over, running over his body. He looked like a corpse that had been picked clean by crows. His moving lungs moving were the only indication he was even alive.
"Sesshoumaru- I don't know if you can hear me," Kagome tried, reaching out and touching his cheek. It shocked her skin, icy to the touch. "But please- let go of the person who caused this," she said, locating what she assumed was the mating mark upon his shoulder. "No one is worth dying over. You could start over with your mate. Ask them out- anything!" she shuddered, looking at the flowers poking out from his ribs.
"Just don't die! This isn't like you!" Kagome snapped, tears rolling hotly down her cheeks to slide free from her chin. "Fight this! Keep living. T-there's still so much I want to talk to you about."
The tears landed upon pretty blue petals.
Leaning against him slightly, Kagome sobbed. She wondered if she could just reach out and rip the awful things free from inside his chest.
Why Forget-me-nots, anyway? Why not another flower-
The mating mark halted her hand, fingers brushing the stems. It didn't look like an animal bite, nor did it belong to a demon.
Kagome's eyes slowly widened. She had a distinct tooth at the back of her mouth.
The tooth marks looked like a perfect mould of her teeth.
"Was it...me?" she breathed, glancing up at Sesshoumaru's features dazedly. "Those blank spots in my memory. Was I... with you?"
The puzzle pieces slotted into place perfectly. Kagome stared, feeling like a fool for having not noticed. She'd just thought, assumed- he would never look at her like that.
But if the miko cast her memory back and pictured Sesshoumaru's lovely features, his honeyed gaze resting upon her face, half-lidded, lips quirked, face soft and drinking her in- maybe he had been looking at her 'like that' the whole time.
Kagome shook her head, feeling frantic. She latched onto his shoulders.
"I-I'm so sorry. I'm sorry! I never meant for this to happen. Why didn't you bite me? Why didn't you TELL me, you stupid demon!" she snapped, cheeks reddening as a fresh wave of tears stung her eyes. "All that time we spent together goofing off and talking- and you were suffering in silence? You're so stupid, Sesshoumaru!"
His anguished face did not stir. Kagome mindlessly wiped away the dried blood from his chin with shaky fingers.
"There's no taking this back now," she said quietly, glancing at the bite mark. "So... I guess there's only one thing for it."
It sounded terrible, but Shinto was far from her mind as she lay a hand over her mating mark and began concentrating. When resolving to save someone, Kagome became bullheaded. Sesshoumaru was all she could see as her aura rose out from her body, seeping into his bloodstream via the bite marks.
"You need to wake up," she mumbled, using her free hand to adjust the parting of her white kosode. Sliding it off one shoulder to bare her flesh, Kagome remained heedless of the vines growing and curling around them. They seeped into her ebony hair, twining into the long locks like a lover's hands.
Kagome straddled the Daiyoukai, shuddering a little at being so close to his bare bones. She couldn't have sex with him, obviously, but she suspected it wasn't truly needed to complete the bond. Feeding her energy into his body, she bit her bottom lip. Sweat beaded on her brow.
She began to mumble and pray under her breath.
When her spiritual energy had spread through most his system, Kagome grit her teeth and hoped he'd forgive her. Laying one hand atop his rib-cage directly over his heart, she raised her voice.
"Wake up!"
A pulse of reiki shot out through her palm.
Sesshoumaru jerked beneath her. A ghastly, chocking noise escaped him. His head lolled to the side as he looked at her unseeingly, a trickle of blood welling from the corner of his pale mouth. Kagome quickly wrapped an arm around him, guiding his head to her shoulder.
"Bite down, Sesshoumaru," Kagome whispered fiercely into his ear.
Sharp canines brushed her skin, causing a shiver. Wet flecks of blood accompanied it as he coughed. Whimpering with desperation, the miko curled trembling fingers into silver hair. She pressed a kiss against his cheek.
"Please- I want this." She'd do anything to save him. Besides that, a small, buried part of her felt strangely at peace with the action and its meaning. "Bite down!"
A blood-curdling snarl vibrated out from his open chest. Fangs sank deep into her shoulder. At once, dark, dominating youki burst through her system like a shot of adrenaline. Kagome gasped, back arching. It turned her heart into a burning star. Sesshoumaru's presence filled her until she practically burst at the seams. She distantly understood why youkai had sex before biting each other, reeling from it. The orgasm probably softened the intensity. Completion was something the mind could fathom, a release, the pooling of cum inside her.
This felt overwhelming. He was everywhere. His energy burned and licked, igniting and soothing her body like burning whisky.
Kagome felt the pinpricks of fresh tears in her eyes, overcome with a hurricane of emotions she couldn't quite name. She could feel his weakness. His exhaustion. The part of him tethered to her became a lifeline between them, feeding him the energy he'd lost.
Sesshoumaru's mouth peeled back from her flesh. He panted, sinking back. Kagome caught him about the shoulders, cradling him close.
A wave of tiredness sent her sinking down against him, lashes falling shut as dizziness spun her vision.
The last thing she saw before surrendering to the lure of unconsciousness was a canopy of Forget-me-nots surrounding their weary bodies.
----
Drowsy lids slowly cracked open- wincing at the setting sun's harsh orange light peeking out from between the trees. Golden eyes averted and Sesshoumaru stirred with a dusty rumble.
Something heavy lay over his bare chest. He lifted his head.
Kagome rested against his shoulder, dark hair spilling everywhere. Sesshoumaru stared, feeling he must be dreaming. They were laying within a clearing together, which looked clear, quiet and picturesque.
Squinting, he sat up, adjusting the woman against him. Kagome sank against his side, revealing a gaping hole in his flesh, exposing his rib-cage.
Ah, that's right.
The flowers. The vines spilling forth from his chest as blood asphyxiated him, making breathing impossible.
And Kagome...
The miko had come for him. Saved him.
Sesshoumaru ghosted stiff fingers over his mouth, dragging clawed nails down to the fresh bite mark branding his shoulder. He then shifted Kagome, running an aristocratic nose to similar marks adorning her shoulder- a tongue sliding out to drag over bloodied flesh. She tasted wonderful.
Kagome groaned and wrapped her arms around him tighter, burying her face in the juncture between his neck and shoulder.
Closing his eyes, Sesshoumaru held her close and revelled in the sensation. However, he soon picked up on the far off shimmer of his barrier enclosing them within their mini safe space. He could sense Inuyasha waiting outside, along with Jaken.
Deciding to lower it, Sesshoumaru rested his lips against the crown of Kagome's head before drawing himself up to stand unsteadily, lifting her into his arms.
When Inuyasha burst into the clearing, leaves scattering and clinging to his thick white hair, he brandished Tetsusaiga, only to lower it with a raised brow.
Sesshoumaru stood clad in his hakama pants, arching a regal brow in return. He approached the hanyou and passed Kagome over wordlessly, ignoring his noise of surprise at the sight of his ribcage.
"It is healing," the demon dismissed.
"Uh, alright," Inuyasha grunted, supporting Kagome. "Should I even ask what the hell happened?"
Sesshoumaru ignored him in favour of looking at the miko. His shoulder ached, and when he drew back his heel with the intention to leave- a fresh wave of discomfort elicited a wince.
Kagome stirred, blue eyes blinking open. She then drew a hand out towards him, "where are you going?"
"This one is..." he trailed off. "I must..."
"No, you don't," she murmured. Patting Inuyasha's shoulder to prompt him to set her down, Kagome flashed her friend a smile. "Thanks for coming for me, but I need to stay with this impossible guy to make sure he heals alright."
Inuyasha eyed the bite mark on her shoulder, nostrils flaring. "You sure?"
Kagome nodded firmly.
"What do ya want me to tell Shinto if he asks where ya are?"
Guilt passed over her face, and blue eyes flicked away, before finding him again. "Just say I'm visiting another village. I need to tell him the truth myself."
Relenting, Inuyasha stepped away, shooting Sesshoumaru a warning look before reluctantly leaving them be again, feeling like the wind had been thoroughly knocked out of his sails.
The Daiyoukai watched her, stunned.
"It's crazy you're even up and walking around in your condition," Kagome rubbed at her forehead, reaching out and seizing frozen fingers. "Come on, let's find a cave to take shelter in for the night."
----
The demon lord stopped and slid unrelenting attention down to her once they reached the mouth of a cave. "What made you choose this place?"
"I dunno, it wasn't far away and it felt familiar," Kagome hummed, meeting his gaze. "Have we... used it before? In the past?"
Golden eyes cracked wider. "You remember?" he asked in a quiet, brittle tone.
She shook her head, "not at all. I just figured it out. Would've been nice if you'd told me," releasing his hand, she wandered inside, finding a bed of furs awaiting them further in, cracks of sunlight streaming in through holes in the rock ceiling. Her cheeks reddened a little, imagination running wild.
"You really scared me back there," she murmured, back turned to him. "I thought you were going to die."
"That is why you completed the mating," Sesshoumaru uttered. To save him, and for no other reason.
A part of him had hoped she'd remembered, but another had immediately recognised the sacrifice she'd made. Kagome was a selfless individual in the face of danger. If Inuyasha were dying, or any of her other friends, he wondered if she'd mate them if it meant saving their lives.
With a benevolence he did not truly feel, Sesshoumaru forced himself to prioritise her comfort. "If this is not something you wish for- there are ways of severing the bond."
"Stop," she grit out, whirling to face him. Flinty blue eyes took his breath away. "Stop lying all the time. I remember valuing your company and opinion because you were always so blunt with me. You never held back your opinions."
"I am not lying, there is a way to sever it."
"But that's not what you want! Damn it- you nearly died because you couldn't open your mouth! Just be honest for once and tell me how you're feeling, Sesshoumaru. What do YOU want?"
Energy lashed at the air, kicking up a breeze that caused dark hair to fly back. Hands closed over the back of her neck, cradling her skull. Lips were shoved against hers, smothering startled breath.
"You," Sesshoumaru breathed in a brief parting, kissing her fiercely again. His mouth slanted ardently over hers, the hint of a fang brushing her lips. "Is it not obvious I cannot abide anything but having you? Foolish woman, it is for your sake I held back. Once you submit, there is no escaping me."
Kagome gaped, unable to keep up with the sheer amount of heated kisses. Her hands settled over his arms, heat igniting her cheeks. She'd never received a kiss like it before and tentatively returned it. A small gasp and accompanying noise from him only confirmed to her how much he wanted it. She could feel the tension in his frame. He was holding back even now.
When he pulled away, she panted, thumb dragging over magenta cheek stripes. "Didn't that feel so much better than burying everything?" she teased weakly. "Even if I'd rejected you, surely that would've been better than regret- than nearly dying."
Sesshoumaru's gaze slid away. He then released a long sigh, clawed hands curling in her hair. "You seemed happy with the mercenary."
"Ex-mercenary," she corrected out of habit, leaning into his touch. "And I was. I like him. But..." Kagome looked at him. Really looked, and somehow it clicked that his face was the only one she wanted to wake up to in the mornings to follow. When had things gotten to that point? Had she wanted this while lazing on the riverbank with him so long ago? Things would've been so much more simple if she'd identified it sooner. If he'd said something.
How foolish they both were.
Stepping closer, she blushed and tilting her head back in order to ghost her lips over a firm jaw. "I like you more."
Power sparked her insides at the ensuing shudder he gave. "Mating entails more than 'liking' one another, miko. Can you deal with my extended company? Being mine?"
Kagome pretended to consider this. "For how long?"
His lips quirked. "Centuries. Possibly thousands of years."
"That's a long time," her eyes danced. "I guess I'm okay with that if you work on your communication skills."
He inclined his head gravely, dipping his nose into her hair and inhaling a lungful. It felt so good to have clear airways again.
"Sesshoumaru, there is something I want to ask you about; Why didn't you bite me? And what happened during that night I lost my memories?"
"I intended to, miko," he said with dark promise. Displeasure curled his lip. "You managed to bite me during climax. I do not think you understood the ramifications of it at the time. I would have reciprocated nonetheless. Unfortunately, my senses- brilliant as they are- sensed a disturbance in the forest. A herd of boar youkai were bolting towards your precious village."
He could scowl all he wanted about it, but Kagome knew of his attachment to Rin. No doubt they'd both wasted no further time in lovemaking and quickly made for the village.
"We fought them, tried to redirect them. You asked me to save a boy that had fallen during the village's impromptu evacuation. Naturally, I did so- but it meant leaving you alone."
Kagome winced. Her hand found the back of her head, remembering waking to a sizable bump and stitches. "They got me, huh?"
"One struck you down," Sesshoumaru uttered with a weary tone. "I did not know where you were, as we had become separated in the chaos. When I eventually found you... the mercenary was nursing your wounds."
"I remember," she said gently. A stab of sympathy clenched her heart. Stroking a hand down his bicep, she sighed. "That must've been awful, to lose me so soon after almost completing the mating. I didn't realise, didn't recall our relationship. I greeted you so casually and didn't get why you were lingering around in his hut."
"The fault is not yours," Sesshoumaru rested large hands possessively on her hips.
Kagome glanced at him, squinting. "Neither is it yours," she pressed her fingers to his lips when he opened his mouth. "Nope! Not yours. I wouldn't have wanted you to prioritise guarding me that night. If you had, that boy you saved might've lost his life. Besides, I can usually take care of myself. They caught me on a bad day."
The two fell into silence. Sesshoumaru closed his eyes, resting thin lips against the crown of her head while Kagome leaned carefully against him.
"I find it weird that we've had a whole conversation while you have a massive hole in your chest. At least I can't see your whole ribcage like before. Seems like the skin and muscle are repairing," she mumbled.
"It will heal quickly," he dismissed, palms gliding over her back.
Kagome made a soft noise, basking in his warmth. "It's also weird that this feels so natural to me," she lifted her head, catching his eye. "I might not remember us. Ever. So just... promise me you won't search for my past self in me. I've been through that before."
He swept her down into the furs, covering her form with his own. "Hn, we will live in the present."
Heat flushed her cheeks as she sank into the soft, comforting furs. Her heart fluttered, stomach jumping. "Thank you."
A silver curtain of hair blocked out their surroundings as Kagome pulled him closer, both mindful of his injury. She smiled, searching his gaze and slowly delivering a sweet kiss to his lips.
Sesshoumaru let out a long sigh of relief, their foreheads meeting.
"Hey, on the bright side..." Kagome gave him a cheeky grin. "I get to experience my 'first time' with you again."
Astonishment painted his features. A simmering, darkly satisfied look soon replaced it, transforming his face into something more raw and honest. Kagome accepted his anticipation, his hunger, not dissuading him from it. She endeavoured to encourage even more displays of emotion from him.
"You don't need to hold back," she murmured, accepting his searing kiss. "Tell me everything you've wanted to say to me since losing my memory. I don't mind."
Their energies twined once more, and the miko hooked her leg over his hip to anchor him against her without any seductive intentions. She merely wanted him close, and Sesshoumaru did not argue, burying closer to her the second he healed. Skin met skin, noses brushing.
In the hush that followed, Sesshoumaru took his lips to her ear and began talking.
End
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imagines-r-s · 4 years ago
Text
sticking it - j. farabee
chapter 8
a/n: idk why this chapter took so long, but here it is. it’s very domestic and wholesome, so enjoy it. honestly i’m sad we’re so close to the series ending, but there will be more y/n and joel from the sticking it au i promise. and as always, lmk what you all think
taglist: @butgilinsky @barbienoturbby @sunsetholland @lovenhlboys @sortagaysortahigh @hockey-racing-fubol @oopsiedoopsie23 @iwantahockeyhimbo @dreamsndior @itsurgirlgracie @heartshapedkissxs @lwstuff
warnings: more high school musical references, a sprinkle of angst, friends fighting, idk if it counts as an innuendo or suggestive content, but some of that (not a warning, but Adrian content and ‘no thoughts, head empty’ Joel)
sticking it masterlist
wc: 6.1k
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  “All I’m saying is that it doesn’t make sense that she’s the only one standing, singing to Troy about scoring a basket. Like what if someone showed up to the game late and didn’t get the memo to twist the signs around and stay seated, you know? And it’s not just Gabriella standing up,” you said, grabbing multiple outfits to choose from for the movie night that you had been invited to. 
“Well, I don’t think that it was really an ‘ok, everybody. One person is going to be staying up, but everybody else stay seated and lift your sign’ sorta thing. I feel like it was just a heat of the moment thing,” Joel replied as he walked out of the bathroom. 
“Yeah, but it still doesn’t make sense. And I’m curious to know if that mid-game duet actually motivated Troy or if he was just annoyed or something.”
“If you sang to me mid-game, I would honestly probably throw a stick at you. Out of love, obviously.” 
“That’s sweet of you, not really, but I’ll take it,” you said, turning towards Joel, “I don’t know what to wear to movie night.”
“It’s not really like you have to try to impress anyone, it’s just movie night,” Joel said, as he scrolled on his phone, “but you look hot in anything, so I’m chilling.”
“You’re definitely just saying that,” you said, rolling your eyes.
“Yeah, you’re right. You in the mornings is kinda concerning, not your best look,” he said, pointedly.
“That was not an opportunity for you to say something like that, I will throw a chair at you.” 
“That’s concerning, but well deserved. I’m sure it would be out of the kindness of your heart, so I respect it.”
“You better respect it, Farabee.”
“Oooh, the last name. I’m shaking in my boots,” he said to which you immediately shot a glare his way, “actually, you’re very hot when you’re mad, not gonna lie.”
“Better watch yourself, Beezer, you’re on thin ice,” you said, jokingly.
“Good thing I know how to skate, babe,” he retorted, making his way towards you. 
“You’re annoying,” you huffed as Joel wrapped his arms around you in a bear hug, “Bee, you better stop.” He lightly pecked the top of your head before stepping back, “wait, what was that?”
“What? The hug or me kissing the top of your head?”
“Both?”
“It’s called a display of affection. I know you aren’t familiar since you show your love by threatening to throw chairs at the people you care about, but that’s what that was.” 
“Oh, it was nice,” you said, which caused Joel to chuckle.
“God, I love you,” he paused for a moment, clearly contemplating something, “this is kinda random, but have you ever thought about posting about our relationship? Or is that a no in the gymnastics world?”
“I mean, yeah, I have thought about it. I just haven’t because I didn’t know how you felt, but if you want to post it you can.”
“Why don’t you post it first?”
“Why don’t you? You brought it up?” you questioned. 
“You confuse me so much sometimes and I’m usually confused, so it makes it kinda worse,” he said honestly.
“How about whenever we get back here tonight, we post at the same time?” you offered.
“Sounds okay with me. Come on, we have to go if we want to make it on time,” he said, softly. 
…..
“Hey, it’s Short Stack and Beezer,” Travis said, as he opened his front door.
“I still don’t know why you of all people call me Short Stack, Tiki Bar,” you said to which he simply shrugged before opening the door more to let the two of you in. 
“Ooh, Short Stack, Karly has something for you. I think she went upstairs,” you sent a confused look to Travis, “it’s nothing bad, just go.” You rolled your eyes as you made your way up the steps.
“Karly?” you called as you walked closer to her and Travis’ room.
“I’m in here,” she called. As you walked into her room, you quickly noticed her shuffling through the things in her closet, pulling out a box that had clearly been wrapped in a hurry. 
“What’s that?”
“Just open it, I hope you like it,” she rushed. 
“Um, alright,” you tore off the wrapping paper and opened the box to reveal what looked like a regular denim jacket, “a denim jacket?” you said, earning an eye roll from her. 
“Take it out of the box, Sunshine.” You picked up the corners of the jacket to see that there were multiple patches with the flyers logo and bees on the sleeves, turning it around to see a number 86 and Farabee on the back.
“Karly, wha-”
“Look, I know you and him haven’t announced it officially yet or anything like that, but I figured that you would like it. I even got the bees on there for obvious reasons. I wouldn’t be upset if you didn’t wear it out, but you needed one,” she said, gently.
“I- Wow, I love it, Karly. Thank you,” you said, giving her a quick hug. 
“You should wear it downstairs or at least show him at some point.”
“Oh no, I was just going to keep it in a bag in my closet for a while until he inevitably finds it,” you said, sarcastically.
“No need for the sass, Sunshine. You should try it on though, I want to see what it looks like,” she suggested, her smile only growing as she saw that it looked amazing on you, “oh yes, the bee patches really add to it. Definitely a great choice on my part.”
“Always the humble one. Come on, we have to start the movies eventually.”
“Wait, you’re wearing it downstairs?” she asked, to which you simply nodded as you walked ahead of her down the stairs. 
Travis was the first to notice your arrival downstairs as he talked to Joel, smiling as he saw that you were wearing the jacket that his girlfriend had stressed over for days, “hey, y/n, I’m really liking this new look.”
“Hey man,” Joel started as he had his back turned towards you, quickly turning around after hearing that you arrived downstairs, “watch yours-” He immediately recognized that similar jacket that many of his teammates significant other wore to games, a perfect sign showing off their boyfriend or husband. “Wait, hold up.”
“Yes,” you answered, already knowing what he was going to ask.
“Swag,” he answered simply as he walked closer to you to examine the jacket. “Are those bees? Why are there bees?”
“Hmm, no idea. They’re just randomly there,” you retorted. 
“Beezer, did you get knocked in the head at practice or something? I’m very concerned, dude,” Nicole asked from beside Nolan. 
“Why are there bees? I don’t understand,” he asked, frantically.
“He’s hopeless,” Nolan whispered to Nicole.
“Bee, did you forget your own name?” you asked.
“Bee,” he paused, “ohhhh, that’s me. Those are for me, wait, turn around,” you rolled your eyes as you turned around to see the back of the jacket, “oh, that’s my name.”
“Yeah, no shit, Sherlock,” Kevin said, concerned from the whole exchange. 
“He’s just having one of his moments. Be nice, Kev,” you said, holding back a laugh as you turned back towards your boyfriend who looked like there was something wrong, “Bee, you okay?”
“Yeah, yeah, I just- you got my name on a jacket. You usually aren’t this nice, but this is something nice, so I’m just worried something is wrong with you,” he said, genuinely. 
You visibly gaped as the guys around you howled in laughter as Karly spoke up, “technically, I got her the jacket, she’s just wearing it.”
“Ohhh, okay, that makes more sense.”
“Damn, y/n/n, how badly do you treat the poor kid?” Scott asked from the couch.
“Better watch yourself, Scotty,” you said, shooting him a glare. 
“Let’s just get the movie started before Short Stack attacks someone,” Travis added. 
Drawing names to see who would pick the movie, Nicole picked out the movie, Stick It, which had always been one of her favorites. It was expected for people to be getting up during the movie, but when you noticed Nicole missing from seeing her favorite movie, you became worried that something had happened, “psst, did you see where Nicole went?” you whispered over to Joel. 
“No, did you see where Nolan went?” he asked you, which caused you to grow suspicious as you noticed both of them were gone. “Maybe they’re just making out in the kitchen or something?”
“Why would they be making out? They’re just friends.”
“Dude, they’re still friends in the same way you and me are still friends.”
“No, because if something were going on she would tell me and I think it would be obvious.” 
“Look, I know I’m oblivious, but you choose to ignore a lot of obvious details just because.”
“Yeah, whatever.”
“Fine, if we get up and find them together or doing something romantic? I don’t know, but either way, you have to post that we’re together first, but I choose the caption.”
“Is that a bet?”
“Yes,” to which the two of you shook on it. 
“Hey guys, how many of you think there’s something going on with Nolan and Nicole?” Joel asked the group. 
“Oh, yeah, I’ve noticed for months, they just haven’t done anything about it out of fear of what y/n will think,” Karly said like it was some simple statement. 
“What do you mean that they fear what I would think?” you asked, causing everyone to look at you. 
“Short Stack, you are literally this little spitfire that could attack at any moment, they just don’t want to upset you,” Travis added just as the pair walked back into the living room, “ah, here’s the two lovebirds now.” 
A flash of panic crossed Nicole’s face as Nolan blushed, “no, I just needed help getting drinks and Nolan was right there.”
“Okay, then where are the drinks and why does Nolan have a hickey?” Scott pointed out. 
“I forget them in the kitchen and Nolan burnt himself with a curling iron,” she offered. 
“Karly, did you leave your curling iron in the kitchen again? Silly goose,” Travis said. 
Joel quickly noticed how quiet you were from beside him, “hey, babe. What’s wrong?”
“I’m okay, I’m going to go and get a drink really quick,” you said, softly smiling before heading into the kitchen. Everyone’s eyes followed you as you retreated back to the kitchen, Nicole sighed, the guilt of not telling you finally hitting her. 
“Do you want me to come with you?” Nolan offered.
“No, this is definitely between the two of us,” she answered before following you, “y/n/n, look-”
“Nicole, it’s fine,” you said, filling a cup with ice. 
“It’s obviously not, I know you better than that,” she said, gently, waiting for a response from you, “look, this honestly hasn’t gone to anything serious yet because I knew I needed to tell you. I know I shouldn’t have kept it from you and that you would have been fine with it, we just didn’t want anyone to know. No one really knew, Karly just picked up on it because she’s Karly and everyone else figured it out. And I know you knew something was going on, you just didn’t want to accept it.”
“I don’t have an issue with it, I would have rather you just tell me straight up what’s happening, but I had to find out because Joel made a joke and you couldn’t give Nolan a hickey where it wasn’t visible,” you said honestly, filling your cup with water. 
“I’m sorry. I don’t know what else to offer, there wasn’t really another reason other than we didn’t know how you would react,” she said, leaning back on the kitchen counter as you stared at the cup in your hand, “y/n/n, please say something. I’ll break it off if-”
“I would never make you break things off with him and you know that. How long has this been going on?” 
“Uh, we’ve liked each other for a while, but didn’t do anything about it until you had to go back on crutches, so maybe a few weeks.”
“Gotcha, gotcha.”
“Are you mad at us? It was my idea, Nolan said we should just tell you, but-”
“Nic, please. I’m not mad, I knew something was up, I was just more focused on other things. Does he make you happy?” you asked, looking back up at her, smiling at the small blush that had rushed up to her face. 
“Yeah, he really does.” 
“Then, I’m chilling. Come on, you already missed half of your favorite movie making out with Nols,” she laughed as the two of you made your way back. 
“You good, y/n/n?” Kevin asked as you sat by Joel again, who wrapped his arms around your shoulder. 
“Maybe you should ask Nicole, just to make sure y/n/n didn’t attack her,” Scott added. 
“Eh, I’ve known her for years, I have a few strategies,” Nicole said, simply. 
“Oh, shut up, Nicky,” you said, jokingly rolling your eyes. 
“I know damn well that you did not just say Nicky,” she said, shocked. 
“Oh, did I?”
“You want to take this outside, babe.”
“Hmm, maybe tomorrow.” 
“I’m concerned, but this is entertaining,” Travis said, to which everyone else agreed.  
“I’ll record it and post it on world-star,” Joel added. 
“Thanks, babe. Oh and Patty Lapone, if you hurt her, I will bust your kneecaps,” you said, faking sweetness.
“Understandably, so,” Nolan said, honestly. 
“Glad we’re on the same page. And Nicky, don’t hurt him either.” 
“Noted,” Nicole said.
“Hey babe, you know you have to post us first now, right?” Joel said, smirk growing on his face, “and I get to choose the caption.”
“You’re letting him choose the caption?” Karly asked, “good luck, Sunshine.”
…..
“So, do you know what picture you’re going to post? I have mine picked out,” Joel asked you as you finished your night routine. 
“I’m still upset that you won that bet, but probably the picture of us that’s my wallpaper,” you said, patting your face dry. 
“What picture?” Joel asked, confused as to what you meant. 
“Oh, Karly took a bunch of pictures the day we were at the lake and the one that’s my wallpaper is the one where you’re about to throw me in the water and I’m laughing at you. Or I might post one of the pictures Nicole took of us where I’m wearing your jersey,” you explained. 
“Ok, one, why haven’t I seen these and two, why didn’t you send me them?” 
“Oh, I don’t know, you never asked.”
“I never knew.” 
“Same thing?” you offered before walking out of the bathroom to sit on your bed as Joel grabbed his bag to start packing for the next day.
“Ok, well get the post ready and I’ll caption it,” Joel said, holding his hand out. 
“Please keep it reasonable, I am an example to tiny humans.”
“Kids?”
“Same thing,” you said, handing your phone over to him, already open to instagram. 
Joel had been thinking about what he would caption this post for the rest of the day after you had talked about going public. Quickly typing up the caption and tagging himself, he posted it, “okay, all done.”
“It didn’t take you that long?”
“Yeah, I know. I kinda figured it out earlier,” he said, shrugging and handing you back your phone. As you saw the notifications for the post, you opened it to see the picture of you two captioned ‘the bee to my honey’. 
“That is so incredibly cheesy and adorable,” you said, smiling at your phone, “Karly already commented upset that you didn’t give her photo credit though, but she said the caption wasn’t terrible.”
“Yeah, I’m so good with words, babe. We’ve established this.”
“You’re truly something. Wait, are you captioning yours ‘the honey to my bee’ because that way it’s just in reverse?”
“Yeah, we’re just that cool,” Joel said, handing you his packing list, “will you go over this with me to make sure I have everything?”
“Superstitious King, ok, um, your garment bag with your suit?” you continued down the list as you heard him respond to everything you said, “Glasses? Glasses? Why do you have glasses on this list?”
“Because I need them to see?” he said, confused by your question. 
“Since when have you worn glasses?”
“A while actually, I just don’t wear them all that often,” he shrugged. 
“Wait, what do they look like on you?” you asked, watching as he contemplated showing you before reaching in his bag and grabbing his glasses case. 
“If you make any jokes, I will never wear them around you again,” he said before putting them on. “Ok, one joke, and that’s all.” He was shocked by how quiet you were, “y/n/n, please just make the joke already while I’m prepared for it.”
“Oh no, I actually don’t have a joke this time. You look really good in glasses.” 
“Oh, a compliment?”
“Ha ha, yeah, I can be nice sometimes. But no, you genuinely look hot in those, you look hot in general, but like, now especially,” you continued rambling. 
“Awe, you’re being nice and I made you nervous,” he cooed. 
“You don’t make me nervous, Farabee,” you said, rolling your eyes. 
“Oh, I don’t? Okay,” he took steps closer to you standing in front of you and placing his arms on either side of you, smirking as he heard your breath hitch, “you sure I don’t make you nervous?”
“Y-you don’t,” you replied, watching his actions closely as he leaned his face closer to yours, placing his hand on your thigh before leaning beside your ear. 
“Okay, then,” he whispered before standing back up to finish packing, a smirk lacing his features. 
“That was rude,” you pouted, to which he simply shrugged. “Yeah, that’s not going to work, babe. Karma is a real thing,” you said, watching as he furrowed his brows.
“What do you mean?” 
“Karma,” you said, before just grabbing a longer shirt of his for pajamas and heading to the bathroom to change. Coming back minutes later to see Joel in bed, leaning against the headboard, already looking your way. 
“y/n,” he said, cautiously, “please say there’s something underneath my shirt.”
“I don’t know, Bee, is there?” you asked, pulling the comforter back on your bed as you laid down for bed. 
“I don’t like this game, it’s not that fun,” he said, moving down to lay his head on your chest, your hand instinctively going to his hair. 
“Karma is karma, pretty boy,” you said, chuckling when you felt him start to trace patterns on your thigh, obviously looking for a way to tell if you had shorts on. “You have to be up in a few hours and Kevin and Nol will barge in here tomorrow morning if you aren’t on time.”
“Yeah, yeah, yeah. Are you going to answer my question?”
“You didn’t ask a question.”
“You’re really annoying sometimes. Are you going to answer my statement?” 
“You still love me though and I won’t answer your statement,” you said, softly, knowing that he was ready to fall asleep. “Goodnight, Bee.”
“Goodnight, babe.”
The alarm for the start of Joel’s day went off way too soon, but he knew he needed to get up. Quickly turning off his alarm to avoid waking you up, he got up to get his shower and get dressed for his day. 
After getting a text from Nolan that they would be at your door in about 5 minutes, he decided to tell you goodbye, “y/n/n, baby, it’s time for me to go.”
“You don’t have to go, tell them you can’t go,” you said, half asleep, barely even realizing what you were saying. 
“As much as I wish I could, it doesn’t work like that, babe.”
“Well have you tried to see if it would work?” he chuckled at your question. 
“I love you and I’ll see you in a few days, alright,” he kissed the top of your head before grabbing his bags and heading out to the living room to wait on Kevin and Nolan. Taking a seat on the couch as he waited, he heard the bedroom door open with footsteps following, “you should go back to sleep.”
“I have to go to PT in a few hours, so might as well be up,” you said, “plus, I kinda want to say bye to Kev and Nols.”
“You have PT at noon, it’s almost 5am. Once we leave, please try to get some sleep.” 
“Awe, Bee, you worried about me?”
“Unfortunately I’m always worried about you and you’re such a chaotic person that it’s reasonable and the concern only ever grows.”
“That’s true, I am kinda chaotic,” you said, causing him to chuckle. 
“Just a tad.”
The sound of the key turning and door opening drew yours and Joel’s attention away from each other for a moment, “sup, bitches,” Kevin’s voice rang out. 
“What the fuck, Kev?” you asked, grabbing a blanket from your couch, wrapping it around you. 
“Rise and shine, y/n/n. Hope you slept well, now we have to leave, so say bye to your boy,” Kevin added, turning back to leave again. 
“Ok, I have to get going, shawty bae. Go get some sleep, text me how PT goes, and tell Adrian I said hi. Bye, babe,” he kissed the top of your head once more before grabbing his bag and heading on his way. 
…..
“So, no lover boy today?” Adrian asked as you stepped into his office. 
“No, not today,” you said, sitting down on the bench, “him and the boys have an away game tonight, so they left this morning and will be back in a few days.” 
“So, I assume things are going well?” he asked, rolling his chair over to you. 
“Yeah, things are going very well. We posted about us being together officially on instagram last night.” 
“Oh, wow. Instagram, that’s crazy,” he said, sarcastically. 
“Hey, shush. It’s a bigger step than you think.”
“Oh, yes. The power couple that you two athletes are, hmm. Forgot about that.”
“Stop, it’s not that crazy. It just kinda is a big step in my opinion.”
“Well, I am happy for you and I’m also proud of you for actually listening to me and staying off your knee.”
“Hey, that rhymed,” you softly interrupted. 
“Ha ha, so funny. Anyways, with how it looks now, I say you’re good to start training again,” he said, taking the time to examine your knee. He could tell that you had actually listened to what he had told you, just like he hoped you had. He was excited to see you back to where you needed to be. 
“Like training training? Or just training?”
“Training training. Just be careful and don’t overwork yourself. I am aware that there isn’t much time before you have the U.S Championships, but don’t rush it. Take your time. Quality over quantity. Okay, Superstar?”
“Yeah, yeah, of course,” you said, excitedly, jumping off the bench to hug Adrian, “thank you.”
“Hey, I didn’t do anything, this is all you. But if anyone can do this, you can. Just take care of yourself, alright? I don’t want all my work to go to waste,” he said, jokingly. 
“Wow, I see how it is. I see how it is.”
“You know I’m joking, Superstar. Don’t even.”
“Do I, Adrian? Do I know that?”
“Just leave already,” he joked, “you have a lot of work to catch up on. Good luck, y/n/n.”
Knowing that the boys were either at lunch, wrapping up morning skate, or getting settled, you shot Kevin a quick text to call you whenever he had the chance; your phone rang only a few minutes later. “Hey, is everything okay?” Kevin’s concerned voice rang through.
“Yeah, yeah. I’m fine. Adrian cleared me to train again.”
“Aye, let’s go. Alright, so you have like, what? Two weeks before you leave for the U.S. Championships?” 
“Yeah, Marcus and Michelle already figured out all my travel arrangements months ago, so no worries there. I’m just worried about the fact that I have about 12 practices, but Marcus will probably worry and have me practice less, so about 10 practices? And what if-” you rambled. 
“No, we’re not doing the ‘what if’ conversations right now. Or anytime soon for that matter. You’ll get it. And if you have to simplify it for now, then that’s how it’ll be, but you stressing out right now is not going to change the number of practices you have or how they go. Only you can be the one to determine how practices go.”
“Since when did you get all wise, Kev?”
“I read this really inspirational fortune cookie earlier, it caused me to have a whole epiphany on life. Same old, same old.”
“Alright, wasn’t expecting that one, but I’m here for it. What are you guys up to?”
“What are we up to? Or what is Beezer up to?” Kevin asked, knowingly. 
“I was honestly just asking in general, but since you brought him up-” the two of you took a little bit of time to catch up. Him filling you in on how morning skate went and how the lineups for the game were looking. He also told you how the team was looking good this morning and that if they played how they needed to, they could easily win. 
You were still on the phone with Kevin by the time you pulled into the gym parking lot, “hey, I have to talk to Marcus about training, but I’ll probably talk to you after the game. Tell Bee I’ll talk to him later too. Bye, Kev.”
“Stay safe, be careful, make wise choices. I’ll talk to you later, y/n/n.”
Walking into the gym this time was different, almost similar to your first time back after everything, but right now you had the ability to train and to work how you needed to. You just needed to get back into your element. 
Knowing that the only practice going on was for the younger kids, you made your way up to Marcus’ office. Knocking gently on the door, you opened it to see him and Michelle sitting near his desk. “So, what’s the verdict?” Marcus asked, expectantly. 
“Well, there’s two weeks until Championships and I need to get this dismount,” you said, watching as the two of their smiles only grew. As the three of you went over everything that Adrian said, the three of you planned out the next two weeks. 
“Alright, Monday, Wednesday, and Friday morning practices, you can spend the whole practice on beam, drills, and conditioning, but afternoon practices you need to do other events.  Then, Tuesday and Thursdays will be working on other events, and Saturdays is just a markthrough day for routines,” Michelle explained easily, which showed that they had already thought of this beforehand. 
“And we’re going to ease into it again, but this time from doubles. We both know you can easily get back to where you need to and we also believe that with how determined you seem right now, you’ll be fine. If you do okay with doubles, we’ll move onto triples as soon as we can. If anyone can do it, you can,” Marcus said, honestly. 
…..
Checking his phone after the game was over, the smile on Joel’s face quickly grew at all the encouraging texts he had gotten from you. Quickly replying, he looked up to see most of the guys sharing knowing looks, “what?”
“Nothing, we can just easily tell who texted you from the way you looked at your phone,” Nolan pointed out. 
“You don’t really hide it, so it’s kinda obvious,” Carter added. 
“Well yeah, I don’t have a reason to hide it. My girl makes me happy,” Joel said, turning to see Kevin giving him a pointed look, “okay, maybe one reason to hide it.”
“Didn’t she have a PT appointment today? Any updates?” Scott asked, walking towards the younger guys.
“Oh, yeah. She got cleared and starts training again tomorrow,” Joel answered, causing all the team to smile.
Rushing to finish getting ready, so that he could FaceTime you, he grabbed his bag and made his way to an empty hallway to talk to you. The phone rang only a few times before you picked up, “hey, baby. You did really good at your game.”
“Thank you, thank you. I was thinking of you when I scored,” he said, watching behind you to see you walking around the apartment. 
“That was really cheesy.”
“Yeah, I realized that after I said it, but it’s the thought that counts,” he retaliated, causing you to chuckle, “did you get everything figured out with your coaches to start practicing again?” 
“Babe, you just won a game and you’re worried about my PT and training schedule?” 
“Well, I don’t have an explanation, but I get hockey 24/7 for the next few days, so I kinda want to hear about your life and gymnastics,” he said, honestly, which only made you smile. 
“Yeah, we got my training schedule figured out. I start practice again in the morning, but luckily I was able to work it out to where I have a day of just beam work to mostly do the dismount and drills and then the rest of the week is for other events. But I will have to travel for this meet, which I haven’t had to do in a while.”
“Oh, it’s in Texas? Right?” he asked, causing you to hum in agreement, “and how long before you leave?”
“Well, I leave the Wednesday night before, podium training on Thursday, and then, competition Friday and Sunday. And then I’ll be back Monday.”
“Ah, so I get to know how you feel when I’m on the road.”
“Yep, and you’ll know much it sucks,” you said, rolling your eyes. 
You were happy that Joel was happy and playing the sport that he loved, but him being on the road often threw off the routine that the two of you had with each other. Waking up next to each other; either making or getting breakfast; him driving you to practice before going to his; jamming out to music as the two of you prepared for your day; the list goes on. 
“Awe, you just miss me so much. It’s understandable really.”
“Don’t get cocky, Farabee,” you said. 
“It’s okay to admit that you-”
“Bee, I will hang up on you,” you threatened.
“Babe, you would miss me too much,” he said, making you roll your eyes once again. 
“Bye, Beezer,” you said, hitting the end call button. 
He simply smiled at the action, knowing well enough that if he called back you would decline and that you were too stubborn to call him back. Quickly sending you a goodnight text, he made his way back to the locker room, not missing all the chirps the boys had to say in response. 
…..
You spent the Monday and Wednesday of that week working on drills to be able to do the dismount. With the boys still gone until Friday, you spent your practices wisely and used any extra time that you could at the gym. Your routines were getting back to where they needed to be and you couldn’t have been happier. The drills that you were doing to work your dismount were also working out very well. 
“I want you to try a few triple dismounts. Just a triple and by tomorrow I want you to go for the 3.5 twist. The drills you’re doing aren’t really doing anything at this point, you’ve basically mastered them. So, I do believe if you really work towards it, you could get the quad twist by Olympic Trials, you will compete a 3.5 for U.S. Championships, but with the way practices are going I firmly believe the quad is only a few tries away from you,” Marcus told you as you did your beam warm up.
“Marcus, I-”
“You’re doing the dismount,” Michelle added as she passed by. 
“Just go for a triple, that’s all I want to see today. Once you do one, you’ll get back in the groove of things and you’ll be able to do more than one today. You got this, y/n/n, I know you can, you just have to get past the mental block.”
You knew he was right. As you thought about the skill, you knew it was basically a step away from you. If you went for it, with the way the drills are looking, you would have it. And from there, it’s just the 3.5 and then more work towards the quad. You knew you had the skills, you just had to remind your body of that fact. 
Taking a deep breath, you started your beam routine. Hitting all the skills that you had, you made your way back and forth on the beam until you got the the start of your dismount. “C’mon, y/n, you got it. Just breathe,” you heard Marcus as you took another breath before starting the dismount. Going for the roundoff, you started for the twisting part of the dismount, watching and twisting three times, you opened up, shocked when you landed the dismount. 
“Twinkle Toes,” Marcus beamed, “you did it.”
“Huh?” you said, realizing what you did, “wait. I did it.”
“You did the triple. I knew you could. I need you to do a few more, just to create the habit. Land at least five and then switch to bars.” 
“Alright, yeah,” you answered, quickly realizing that you were one step closer to your goal. Doing the next five took a little bit of time, but you were getting used to the landing and the skill itself. After finishing, you moved onto bars. 
“Did I see a triple dismount?” Nicole asked as you walked over to the chalk box.
“Maybe you did, maybe you didn’t,” you said, shrugging. 
“Does that mean you’re trying the 3.5 again soon?”
“Most likely tomorrow. You will be seeing it soon, I promise.”
…..
When Joel noticed that he got home early enough to come surprise you at practice, he jumped at the chance. Quickly dragging Nolan and Kevin with him - considering they were his ride - he asked them to head to the gym. Once they entered, they got settled in the overhead seating area, he quickly found you standing with Marcus near the beam. 
“C’mon, Twinkle Toes, in order to get the dismount back, you have to get on the beam,” he heard Marcus say. 
“Look, trust the process. I’m mentally preparing for it before I go for it.”
“Are you actually going to get on the beam at some point today? Or will you still be mentally preparing by the end of practice?” 
“Shush, it won’t take me that long, I promise,” Marcus sighed. 
“Just get on the beam, that’s all I need.”
“Alright,” you got onto the beam, walking towards the end as you prepared for the dismount. 
“Ok, just keep the same habits, just twist faster and open up a little bit later, you got it,” Marcus reassured you. Taking a deep breath, you prepped for the dismount. “C’mon, Twinkle Toes.”
Joel and the boys watched closely as you went through your habit of mentally visualizing first, watching you go for the round off and start twisting. “Wait, she’s going for the 3.5,” Kevin said. The three of them all held a breath as they watched you go for the dismount, letting out the breath when you landed it. 
You landed it. “Wait, I did it. Marcus, I did it.”
“I told you so, your boys are watching by the way,” Marcus said, causing you to look up to see the boys smiling to which you simply waved, “I need you to do some more of those either today or tomorrow, but you can go see your boy.”
Rushing over to the stairs to go see Joel, he met you at the bottom of the staircase, “hey, honey.”
“Hey, Bee.”
“You did the dismount,” he said, smiling. 
“I did the dismount,” you reiterated, matching his smile as he picked you up and spun you around.
“I’m so proud of you, you have no idea,” he said as his lips met yours. 
73 notes · View notes
neutinya · 4 years ago
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So guess who has another AU 🤩🤩🤩🤩 This time it's the boys as Minecraft YouTubers/streamers LMAOO hfjdjfjdjd Anyway yeah, headcanons at the back as usual!! Also I gave up drawing can u tell!!! I'm so sorry dhjdjd, I just got really tired which explains why the drawings are extremely shitty and not coloured😔😔😔 I'll definitely draw more of this though 🤡🤡  The concept is really fun since there's so many different types of Minecraft content makers;; also because a lot of my followers on insta are asking me to watch the dream team's vids, which I will, I will hopefully get inspiration to draw more of this lol
please open thread for headcanons!!
Some general ideas!!
Hajime like many people suggested and I agree, is a wholesome minecraft youtuber/streamer lmao, yes it may not be the most niche content, but he’s really genuine when playing and he get easily excited by new animals lol
He tends to download mods that add mobs, like frogs or dinosaurs or something
He goes by tofuzilla lmao, although fans just call him by his real name or zilla.
Also he’s actually really good at building, although most of the time his pretty builds are for his animals or something
Kuroo is KuroiNeko, Kenma applepie, Issei is Allgae and Hiro would be CreamYourPuff or something ahhh
Look, tooru is either a fucking god or absolute dogshit at PvP, he goes by grand king, and his content is mainly him doing PvP or really stupid challenges lmao
I feel like Kuroo and Oikawa would actually do a lot of hungergames/spleef all that funky jazz together, they betray each other a lot which explains the last slide
Honestly, I kinda headcanon most of the haikyuu babes to do stuff like bedwars, skyblock, the classics in general for a bulk of their content. Also smplive hell yeah
But I personally see characters like Hiro or Kuroo making those minecraft parody songs or like those skit kinda videos? you know, like explodingTNT or pinksheep
Hiro, Kuroo, Issei, Tooru, Suga, Daishou would also definitely do trolling vids
Kenma would do horror maps, never getting jumpscared, he’s also really good at redstone and just managing servers in general. Also, he’s the guy no one wants to PvP because they’ll die instantly
Yachi would make those really aesthetic calming building videos!!
Hiro learned redstone for the sole reason of making traps and killing tooru. also, he’s definitely obssessed with the ah yes Perry the platypus, I will now unveil to you my cock-and-ball-torturinator meme
issei? You can't have too many sheep he says, the server crashes they all die
also like just stupid ideas I had for some interactions lol
Context, these two are streaming together and Hajime’s trying to tell a story.
Hajime: When I was small-
Tooru: *Wheezes*
Hajime:
Tooru: *Bent over from laughter* Was?-
Hajime:
Tooru:
Hajime: *kills Tooru who had 79 levels and like diamond armour*
alternatively, Iwa and Hiro interactions would be like
Hiro: What a day
Hajime: What happened
Hiro: Nothing, living is tiring
Hajime:
Hiro:
Hajime: okay do you have wood
also yeah, this is a b99 quote but this would definitely happen if they were playing hungergames/pvp???
Tooru: So how'd you convince the whole squad to betray me?
Tooru: What did you offer them?
Hiro: I asked them if they wanted to embarrass you and they instantly said yes
Tooru:
Hiro:
Tooru: I'm not gonna lie that turns me on a little bit
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tinygrneyedshadow · 4 years ago
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Answers
This is Entrapta X Hordak fanfic and it’s wholesome
A continuation of “Questions”
 Adora wasn’t snooping, honestly, she wasn’t! She had wanted to check on Entrapta, that was absolutely all it was, not snooping.
 It wasn’t hard to find Entrapta. Emily was pacing back and forth outside the door to the room they’d given to Hordak. She stood there thinking about it for long enough to draw confused looks from a passing patrol guard, on their second pass.
Hordak was, well Hordak. Ruler of the Etherian Horde. He had been her superior, her commander for her entire childhood. But She-Ra had been in his head, She-Ra had reached in and pulled out the infectious monster that was Horde Prime and while she was in there she’d seen so much more.
He had been a confused, scared, lonely creature, separated from everything he knew. Just like she was when he found her. They were both helpless children. They were the same. Two lost souls, alone in a world that wasn’t theirs.
He had just wanted to feel safe again. He had been trying for so long to be someone Prime would be proud of, so he could feel safe. It’s what he had tried to give all of his soldiers. A home where they were accepted through regiment and order and rules.
But in his Horde he had never rejected the broken ones.
He had still been a bad guy, because Horde Prime was a bad guy and he was trying so hard to be just like Prime.
But for a bad guy he hadn’t been truly terrible, to his side anyway.
The Fright Zone wasn’t all bad. She had played. She had friends. She had, a mother, sort of. Hordak had made a place were all the broken imperfect creatures had felt at safe, so long as they followed the rules. From his perspective even the ration bars were a big step up from clone nutrient fluid. rations came in 2 flavors. 
He was still a bad guy, still killing the planet, people still died fighting in the battels for all those years.
But he had suffered too. She knew he had suffered. She had seen the things they did to recondition him when she was in his head. No one deserved that.
Maybe call it time served? He could do something else. Community service to fix his wrongs, maybe?
It didn’t matter, she was here to check on Entrapta, just Entrapta, right?
She pushed the door open quietly and stepped in.
Emily pushed past her once the door was opened and clinked her way over to the edge of the bed in a huff, plopping down loudly.
Entrapta was curled into a little ball laying on Hordak’s chest. It looked like they were sleeping. He wasn’t even fully on the bed, his feet were hanging off the end, still in boots. She was pretty sure he couldn’t have gotten up if he wanted to, Entrapta’s hair had him half cocooned.
Adora bit her lip. If only Bow could see this!
“Was there something you needed, Adora?” His voice was still smooth and dignified and she almost instinctually stood at attention when he spoke. His eyes had opened to a narrow slit of green.
“I uh, was just, uh, I was coming to check on Entrapta.” Adora said awkwardly.
He blinked and seemed to consider her words. “She fell asleep, again.” His brow furrowed and his gaze shifted down. “I can’t remember if it is normal for humans to need this much sleep.”
Adora could barely breath. He looked so worried. It was so cute. “After a hard day, yeah, it’s totally normal.”
He nodded and the lines on his forehead smoothed away. “Ah, then she is otherwise in acceptable health.”
Adora stared at him for a moment longer than was polite, but like, when would she ever get the chance again. “Do, do you need anything Hordak?”
His face was impassive.
“I mean, you had a hard day too. Are you okay?” Adora pressed nervously. She had only come to check on Entrapta.
His gaze flickered down to Entrapta again. “When the time comes, take her to the remains of one of the ships, or to some other piece of tech. Something she will find interesting. She will need a distraction.”
Adora had no idea what he was talking about. “What?”
“I do not have all my memories back, but they are returning, enough to know that will likely be disposed of.” He frowned. “Do not leave her alone. She will need someone to listen to her. Don’t let her hide away with her creations.” He looked so sad about it. He was talking about getting executed and he was more worried about Entrapta.
“Hordak, that’s not going to happen.” Adora said a little too loud. “Yeah, you have some things to make up for, but we aren’t going to kill you.”
He blinked at her, not comprehending.
“You’re going to live and your going to fix things. Entrapta, doesn’t need somebody, she needs you. I was in your head Hordak, I saw all of it, I know what she means to you.” Adora needed to lower her voice before she woke Entrapta.
“What is it called?” He said quietly, but urgently.
“What?” She was lost again.
He looked away. “What does she mean to me, Adora?
“Oh!” She almost laughed but the look on his face stopped her. “You really don’t know.”
He sighed. “I am unfamiliar with this, sensation. I have never felt this before, before her. It broke through Prime’s conditioning. It made me lie to Horde Prime. I tried to kill him, for her.”
She nodded smiling softly. “Yeah, love is like that.”
“Oh.” He stared at her, his ears dipped and his cheeks turned a little bit pink. Then his gaze shifted down to the still sleeping Entrapta and he stared at her with absolute wonder.
Adora quietly stepped out of the room with one last glance at Hordak’s bewilderment, cause really, it was probably the only time she’d ever see it. She had checked on Entrapta.
Entrapta was in good hands.
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the-gay-prometheus · 3 years ago
Text
Frankenstein AU Segment - “Willful Disobedience”
Clervalstein yearning goes brrrrrrr
Anyways- uh... so as I said at the beginning of pride month, my goal for June is to write at least one directly Clervalstein related AU segment each week because gay. 
This time around, I was inspired to write about the events that led to how Henry would eventually find Victor and the Creature on the mountain, so in terms of timeline, this takes place before all segments I’ve written except for “Home Again” and “Same Scars, Same Stitches.”
A couple of fun little tidbits about the making of this segment (feel free to skip over them and get right to the segment below the cut, this is just me rambling about some inspiration):
1. The whole bit with Victor drawing and the Creature mimicking him by drawing as well was somewhat inspired by the “Forbidden Friendship” scene from How to Train Your Dragon. I listened to that specific track from the movie score a few times while I was in the process of thinking about this idea!
2. Another bit of musical inspiration actually came from the Chronicles of Narnia, specifically the track “Evacuating London” from The Lion, The Witch, and The Wardrobe. If you time it just right and you’re somebody who can actively read and listen to music at the same time, it should somewhat line up with the last few paragraphs (excluding Henry’s bit at the end) - starting at where Victor says “I’d give anything-”, then with the little piano part being timed with the paragraph that starts with “It was intricately detailed-”, then the major swell in that half of the song should line up with the paragraph where the Creature begins feeling the need to disobey Victor’s most important rules; then comes the part that begins with a bit of bells and eventually vocalization, and that entire half of the track should align with the Creature carrying out his plan at least most of the way. Of course - all of this depends on your reading speed, but I would definitely recommend listening to the song after reading at least and imagining those parts of the segment along with it if you’re interested in a little peek into my crazy writing process! 😅
Anyways- this is another wholesome segment, so no warnings needed to my knowledge!
As always, all likes, reblogs, and comments of any kind are welcomed, encouraged, and appreciated!
~~~
Sunlight warmed the cold stone of the mountain ridge upon which Victor sat. His sleeves were rolled up on his arms, as the heat from the summer sun was felt much more intensely up on the mountain top despite the cool alpine breeze. Heavy clouds capped the peaks beyond though the sky was primarily a clear blue, and mist drifted through the valleys below. Though the view was magnificent, the sketchbook that sat on Victor’s knee contained no trace of the mountains. His eyes darted from the open page to the horizon, but it wasn’t the horizon he was searching for. As he stared over the peaks beyond, it wasn’t the view itself he focussed on, and instead an image that was clear in his mind. With a slight smile at the thought, he turned his gaze back down to the page and continued his sketching. It wasn’t long before the smile faded as the sound of quiet, careful footfalls upon the stone broke the calm silence, and he became aware of a presence directly beside him. He instinctively scooted himself about a half inch away as the other figure slowly sat at his side, his brow furrowed as he tried to concentrate harder on his sketching. “What are you doing?” came the inquisitive voice of his creation, and he felt the looming figure lean over in an attempt to view what he was drawing. With a further frown, Victor covered over his sketch with his other hand and turned away.
“Last I checked, that was none of your business,” he grumbled in reply. The creature tried to get a better look, but Victor’s hand covered over too much of it for him to be able to see. He sat there for a moment longer, his mind wandering and his gaze flitting about from view to view as he tried to decide what it was he should do. Now that the cabin was finally completed, he found himself with a lack of activities to keep him busy, and though his creator was certainly better company now than he had been when he first arrived to the mountain, he still wasn’t much of a conversationalist and was often preoccupied with his own thoughts or projects. Out of ideas, he hummed something softly to himself, some tune he had once heard Victor singing one day many weeks ago. Victor lifted his eyes at the sound and glanced over at him, but the moment the creature returned his gaze, he rolled his eyes and shook his head, turning back to his sketching. Quieting himself at his creator’s reaction, the creature sighed and stood, walking back toward the cabin. Victor almost felt bad - almost - but he kept drawing, now absentmindedly humming the same tune. After a few minutes, he became distracted by the sound of footsteps once again, but this time the creature sat a ways away from him. He went quiet, trying to ignore his creation and keep his focus, but he heard the scratching of another pen on paper, then a pause, then more scratching, and he felt himself being watched. With an exasperated sigh, Victor dropped his pen beside him and looked over to the creature. “What on earth are you doing?” The creature looked up at him, his expression blank.
“Last I checked, that was none of your business,” he answered matter-of-factly. Victor stared at him a moment, then frowned.
“Back talking me? That’s new.” The creature blinked, but didn’t answer, instead turning back down to the piece of paper that lay on his knee and continuing to draw something on it. Now thoroughly curious, Victor stood, walking over to him and standing behind him to look over his shoulder. The creature made no efforts to hide his drawing, and Victor could clearly see the rough beginnings of a person sitting in the exact same pose he had been sitting in. “Are you… drawing me drawing Henry?”
“Ah, so you were drawing someone named Henry.” Victor blushed furiously.
“Oh you sly bastard,” he muttered. The creature glanced up at him. “How clever of you, to get an answer out of me like that.”
“That was not my intention, but I cannot say I am disappointed by the result,” the creature responded simply. Victor sighed, sitting down beside him before flopping dramatically onto his back. Now trying to think based on memory, the creature gazed off into the distance before looking down at his paper and continuing to draw. “May I ask who this Henry person is?” he asked as he drew. “I hear you speak the name often. He must be of great importance to you.” Victor wanted to be angry. He wanted to tell his creation to mind his own business and stop prying into his personal life, and yet… he couldn’t be angry - not while Henry was the topic of the conversation, anyway.
“Henry is… was my…” He paused, carefully thinking about how to choose his words, “closest friend.” There was a length of silence as he felt an ache in his chest from the thought of Henry, and the creature took a moment away from his drawing before returning to it.
“Tell me about him,” he suggested as he sketched. Victor sucked in a deep breath and exhaled slowly, holding his sketch of Henry over his heart as he stared into the sky.
“Where to even begin with him,” Victor uttered quietly.
“Describe him to me.” Victor lifted his sketch up and stared at it, before holding it out to the creature. The creature glanced up, and looked at it with a curious expression. Victor gave him a curt nod, signaling that he was welcome to inspect it closer, so he gently took it from Victor’s hand and inspected it closely.
“He’s tall, but not too tall - just tall enough that I have to look up in order to look into his eyes. And he’s always well dressed - I don’t think there’s ever been a day when he wasn’t looking his best, though I suppose I might be a bit biased on that.” For a moment he wondered just how much further he should go with his description. How could he describe someone like Henry without giving his true feelings away? He hesitated, then sighed with a smile. His creation already knew one of his secrets, and, after all, it wasn’t like he was going anywhere or seeing anyone else, so what harm was there in completely venting his thoughts? “He has the most thoughtful hazel eyes, toffee brown around the edges and streaked with emerald green that deepens toward the pupils, the kind of eyes you could get lost in if you stared for too long.” The creature’s pen went still and he looked up toward the horizon, trying to imagine what Victor was describing. “And his hair is long - not quite so long as yours, but ends just past his shoulders - and lays in tangled waves always kept tied back, though a few strands never fail to set themselves free. When the sun hits it just right, I could swear it was made of fire,” Victor breathed as he pictured it in his mind. “It’s the kind of brilliant auburn that takes your breath away, that seems to gleam with its own radiant light. Sometimes I swear he’s more angel than man, and perhaps if angels do exist, he may well be one of them.” The creature smiled, but the smile soon faded as his mind drifted to Paradise Lost and further to his past. He blinked the thought away, then turned his eyes back down to his art, setting Victor’s drawing of Henry down at his side. “He’s covered with what must be thousands of freckles, mostly concentrated on his cheeks but they expand over his face and at the very least his arms, chest, and back. I would liken them to… dark stars against a bright sky,” Victor explained. He raised an arm up and began tracing lines in the air as he continued. “I used to try to find constellations among them, and sometimes I thought I nearly could. Orion, Andromeda, Lepus, Lynx, Pegasus, Phoenix, Vulpecula,” he muttered each constellation as he imagined himself tracing the lines between freckles on Henry’s skin, his chocolate brown eyes seeming to light up with wonder as he grew to be lost in his own imagination.
“He barely sounds real,” the creature interjected nonchalantly, hardly looking up from his drawing as he began to focus closer on it. Victor grinned and chuckled softly.
“I tell myself that every day,” he murmured with a hint of sarcasm. “Surely no man could ever be so perfect, and yet there he is-” He paused, reaching higher toward the sky and extending his fingers to feel the breeze between them, “as real as you and I.” His hand dropped back down to his chest as he heaved a sigh. “There’s no man on earth as generous or as compassionate as my-” He stopped himself, blushing hard as he realized what it was he was about to say. “As Henry, I mean. Just… just Henry.” The scratching of the creature’s pen stopped again, and Victor glanced over at him to see him staring ahead in clear contemplation of the implications of his words before returning to his art. “You know,” Victor began, returning his eyes to the sky. “I can just about guarantee that if it were Henry who made you instead of me, you would have turned out ok.” The weight of his words hadn’t set in before he said them, but now that they were out, they sat heavy on his chest like lead. It took him a moment, but he sucked in a ragged breath and exhaled unsteadily. “If it were him instead of me, William would still be alive.” At those words, the creature froze, as rather than a weight to him they felt like a dagger slowly piercing between his ribs and etching each letter directly onto his beating heart. “And to think… Even if it wasn’t him who made you, if it were him who found you here, perhaps your night terrors would have all but ceased by now. And maybe, by his grace, you would be at peace.” They sat in contemplative silence, both somehow altogether calmed and unnerved in each other's presence. “I’d give just about anything for him to be here,” Victor mentioned, breaking the silence and lifting himself up onto his hands. “And I know all it would take is one letter. He’d drop everything to come here. But that’s… that’s just it. That’s the problem.” He sighed, fully sitting upright. The creature glanced over at him. “I can’t let him just… ruin the rest of his life for me. I don’t know how I could live with myself knowing that I held him back because of my own mistakes.” His eyes dropped to his other side. “And yet… I barely know how I can live with myself without him here.” It was at that moment that he felt something being laid gently on his lap, and when he looked down, he saw the drawing the creature had been working on.
It was intricately detailed, each line placed carefully onto the page with such precision. Though it was only simple line art, Victor could clearly see the image of himself sketching from earlier on the page, but standing in front of him was another figure - Henry. He was exactly as Victor described him, tall and well dressed, with long hair tied back and a few strands that drifted over his face. Though there was no color, his eyes seemed just as gentle and full of wonder as Victor remembered them to be as he stared off to some distant land. His face was covered in tiny dots, freckles, each so meticulously pricked on that Victor could clearly trace some of the constellations he described between them. Tears welled in his eyes as he placed his fingers gently on the drawn image, running them gently down the drawing’s cheek, wishing instead of cool paper that it was the soft, warm touch of Henry’s face. “Did I do him justice?” the creature inquired quietly, trying to read his teary expression. Victor sniffled and smiled.
“You… you’re quite the artist,” he managed to answer. Gingerly, he folded the paper and slipped it into his pocket, slowly rising to his feet. “I’ll… I’ll be back later. I need to take a walk and… clear my head,” Victor mentioned, wiping the tears away from his eyes. “Will you be ok on your own?” The creature didn’t answer for a moment, his yellow eyes staring into the distance as he thought deeply, but soon he snapped his attention back to the present.
“Yes, of course. Take your time, Victor.” Victor sighed and nodded.
“I’ll try not to be too late to return.” His creation watched as he wandered off and eventually disappeared into the trees, before returning to his thoughts. It was strange - in all the months that he had been there, the creature had never once considered disobeying Victor, especially out of the fear that he might abandon him again. Suddenly, however, he felt the strong need to disobey each and every one of Victor’s most important rules. He hated to see his creator so struck with longing, but even more so, he considered the positive ramifications of what his carefully formulated plan might bring. Sure, Victor might be initially upset, but with how much he desperately wanted this Henry person to be there with him, surely it would be well worth it in the end.
The first part of his plan was simple. He would need to break Victor’s trust, and search through his personal belongings. He made his way back to the cabin and slipped into Victor’s room to find a mess of folded papers lying on the bed stand - each paper being a letter he had received from a Henry Clerval. Though all he was searching for was an address, the creature couldn’t help himself and decided to read through some of the letters. As he did, he became even more certain about his decision. Not only was this man exactly as Victor had described, but the connection between them was clearly something so strong that it should have been unbreakable. To his luck as well, the creature managed to find amongst the scattered papers a letter Victor had intended to send as a reply to Henry but never had the chance to send, dated from a time before his creation.
The second part of his plan would be the most time consuming, but also the most critical, and this unsent letter would prove to be the perfect resource. Retrieving his pen and a small stack of paper Victor had stashed away, he began crafting a letter of his own. With as much precision as he could muster, he forged Victor’s handwriting and did his best to copy his style and choice of language. A few hours were spent on this, most of that time spent on crafting one single sentence until he was sure it was perfect before finally continuing on with the rest of the letter. After he completed it, he spent a few more minutes checking it once, then once more to ensure it was in fact as accurate as he could make it, before then spending a little more time practicing forging Victor’s signature and finally signing the note in his creator’s name.
Finally came the most dangerous part. With only his own memory of his travels from Ingolstadt to guide him, he would need to find and deliver the letter to someone who would be able to ensure that it reached Henry safely. Of all Victor’s rules, perhaps his greatest was that the creature was to never descend the mountain, and above all, was never to enter civilization or interact with any other human beings. Each of these would need to be broken in order for his plan to succeed. For a moment, he hesitated. Would Victor become so cross with him over this that he would abandon him once again? Where would he go if he did? What would he do? Who could he turn to? Still, it cut him sharp to think that he might be squandering this small chance to bring his creator some joy after all his sorrow if he were to abandon his plan now. His mind was made - no matter what the outcome would be, he was going to ensure this letter was delivered, and hope that Henry would arrive some day soon just as Victor said he would.
He would need to be swift in order to ensure that Victor would never know he had even left, so he quickly yet cautiously put each letter back in its rightful scattered place as though they had never been touched, and pulled the hood of his cloak over his head. With a deep, shaky breath, he could feel a new sensation pulsing through him - a rush of adrenaline that raised his heart rate and widened his yellow eyes. Letter clutched tightly in hand, exited the cabin and broke into a sprint. Down the mountain he ran with superhuman speed, leaping over logs and boulders as though they were mere hurdles. Though he should have balked at sheer cliff faces, instead he lept from them and skid down their sides, ignoring the sharp pain of the rock scraping at the soles of his feet and the palm of his empty hand. Letting his intuition guide him, he continued his swift journey to Geneva. Though the place held painful, dreadful memories for him, the surge of adrenaline that coursed through him overrode the thoughts, and he raced toward the location of the address. Slowing to a walk, his chest heaved and ached from exertion, but he slowed his breathing as he came upon a fence that outlined one of many pastures that outskirted a large house on a hill beyond. In one pasture, he could just barely see a figure on horseback, cantering through a field with his wavy, tied hair flickering ember orange in the sunlight behind him. 
“Can I help you, sir?” came a sudden voice from beside him. He jumped at the sound, instinctively hiding his face in the hood of his cloak.
“I- ...yes. Yes, I believe you can,” he stammered in reply. The stranger, a servant from the Clerval household, gave him a curious look as he held out the letter. “This is a letter for a man named Henry Clerval. I am of the impression that this is his residence?” The servant smiled as he took the letter.
“Ordinarily I would have sent you in the direction of Ingolstadt in Germany, but as luck would have it, master Henry returned home just yesterday.” He inspected the folded letter curiously. “May I ask your name?” The creature froze, gripping his cloak tighter around himself.
“I am but a simple deliverer of this message, kind sir. My name need not be of any concern. As for the letter, I am under the impression that he will understand who it is from once he has received it.” The servant nodded.
“I understand. Thank you - I will see that it’s delivered to him promptly.” With that, the man turned and started off toward where the man on horseback was riding, glancing back at the creature in confusion for a moment before continuing with a brisk pace to the one he would be delivering the letter to. The creature waited a moment longer to watch for the rider’s reaction, smiled, knowing he had made the right decision, and began his sprint back toward home.
“Master Henry? Sir?” the servant called in the pasture, letter held carefully in his hand. Henry’s hazel eyes lifted as he turned his head and gently pulled back on the reins of his mount. The mare he rode slowed to a trot, then to a walk as Henry carefully turned her in the direction of the servant.
“Yes, Marc? What is it? Is there something wrong?”
“Nothing wrong, sir,” Marc replied. As Henry slowed his steed to a stop at his side, he looked down curiously at the other man, who held the letter out to him. “This arrived for you just now from an unknown deliverer. He said you would know who it was from when you read it.” Now thoroughly intrigued, Henry took the letter and opened it. His eyes widened as he beheld the handwriting, and slowly his other hand lifted to his mouth as his jaw dropped while he read. “Is there something wrong, sir?” Tears welled in Henry’s eyes, dripping down onto his freckled cheeks as he looked up from the letter, his expression of shock turning to a tearfully happy smile.
“No, Marc, everything is much better than I had anticipated.” Marc gave him a confused glance. “Will you help me ready a supply pack and ride with me? I will need to be leaving at once.”
“Of course, sir,” Marc replied with a curt nod. “May I ask where it is we are headed?”
“The base of Mount Montanvert.” Henry turned his mount, his eyes resting on the distant mountains. “Be prepared to bring the horses back here for me once we arrive there. I might not be returning for quite some time.”
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kakairu-rocks · 3 years ago
Text
Get To Know Us!
Hey there! If you read our last What’s Happening? newsletter, you would have seen in our announcements that we have two new mods on our team, @oneinist, and @kaoruhana08​. The time has come for us to formally introduce them to you, and we couldn’t be any more excited! 
You can read about Oneinist & Kaoruhana in our new Get To Know Us category, or below the cut!
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Oneinist joined the Mod team in Aug 2021, and they’ve been working tirelessly since to help us make the forum an even greater place to be. They’re the expert who put together our Prompt Generator, and they have many other talents that they’ll be showcasing in the months to come (we wish we could tell you more!)!
Oneinist is a friendly soul who would be more than happy to help you find your way around the forum, so if you’re ever stuck, you can go to them for assistance!
Socials:
AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Oneinist/ Tumblr: https://oneinist.tumblr.com/ Twitter: https://twitter.com/oneinist
1. How long have you been shipping KakaIru?
It was a gradual awakening from the anime days. I lurked for ages and became an active creator in summer 2021.
2. What are your favourite tropes to indulge in? Do you have any specific storylines you like within those tropes?
Based on my mood it varies but I enjoy Angst, Hurt/Comfort, Whump (either of the pair getting hurt and saved basically) and domestic fluff. Love a good Omegaverse setting too, and mission fics - my gosh, this doesn’t stop does it. I love crossover fanart too.
3. Do you like Kakashi, or Iruka more?
Both, we like both.
4. Out of your own KakaIru creations, which is your favourite?
I don’t have one, all my fics and drawings hold special places in my heart for being made at all.
5. What is your favourite ramen flavour?
Miso Chashu, extra chashu.
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Kaoruhana officially starts as a mod in Oct 2021, but she has already been busy working away with us. She is killing it with Meta Monday, which she has chosen to take on; and has also contributed some amazing event & activity ideas (that we will be sharing in the coming months)!
Kaoru is still finding her way around the forum, herself, but she is resourceful, so when she officially becomes a mod, if you ask her for assistance, she’ll do whatever she can to help!
Socials:
AO3: https://archiveofourown.org/users/kaoruhana Tumblr: https://kaoruhana08.tumblr.com/
1. How long have you been shipping KakaIru?
So, officially I think I’ve been shipping KakaIru for about 2 years now. I did read KakaIru before, but I kind of fell in love with the idea of KakaIru as a ship I could get behind 2 years ago.
2. What are your favourite tropes to indulge in? Do you have any specific storylines you like within those tropes?
FLUFF! I hoard fluffy stories and love writing fluff! I’m pretty sure people who read my stories at this point know this and actively expect it. Specifically, I love domestic fluff: characters going grocery shopping, doing the laundry, lazing about the house on the couch, cooking, etc. There is just something so wholesome about seeing my favorite characters enjoying their time together like that: down to earth, human, doing normal things that show they care for each other or show two characters in love. (Also, if found family fits in here, I guess that’s a trope I like to indulge in too. Especially when it’s mixed in with domestic fluff stories).
3. Do you like Kakashi or Iruka more?
This is a hard one. I like Kakashi because there is something about seeing a character who has suffered so much give back and grow into the man he is. But Iruka cares for everyone and is more like me. Honestly, besides the teacher bit, I’m kind of like the parental figure in most of my friend groups, just like Iruka. And then when I let loose, like Iruka, I tend to let very loose. So, I think I like Iruka more because I can relate to him more, and I like how he cares for everyone, how he’ll go extra miles or do extra things for the people he cares about. (Also, just the relationship between Iruka and Naruto…that is so sweet! And how can someone not like Iruka after that?)
4. Out of your own KakaIru creations, which is your favourite?
Ah! I’m terrible at these questions, because I am my own worst critic. Hmm…let me see. I think my favorite would have to be, and I hope this isn’t cheating, my KakaIru drabble story. It’s drabbles featuring KakaIru in all kinds of settings: canon and AU, crossover, etc. I get prompts from all over: in the comments, from tumblr, from KakaIru events, etc. It’s really fun, and I like to see what the reactions are when people see what I’ve done with the drabble prompt given to me. It gives me the freedom to write a lot of KakaIru, but it also helps me limit myself and not let WIPs get out of hand. (I have a feeling though, that in the next year, when I finish my long slow-burn KakaIru story featuring Yakuza Kakashi and Irezumi master Iruka, that might become my favorite KakaIru. We shall see?)
5. What is your favourite Ramen flavor?
This one is easy! I’m vegetarian, so that’s the one! I actually don’t really know beyond that because my sister and I make a homemade Indianized version of ramen whenever we’re craving it. We throw in a bunch of veggies, either Maggi Noodles or Rice Ramen (whatever is on hand), and do chili-pepper and ginger paste as a flavoring base. I have pictures I can share sometime if anyone wants to see. (Oh, and sometimes we make baaji (the Indian version of tempura) to to along with it).
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