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#also as fun as the jumps are animating that chorus scared me
quinn-pop · 9 months
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every time i try animating something smooth i always have to stop and remember that i’m way too impatient for that. so. here’s a shrinking kirby
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hidingoutbackstage · 6 months
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Okay I’m STILL procrastinating watching s15 bc I’m SCARED so here’s my extremely biased ratings/opinions on the episodes of s14 to help me procrastinate (episodes which are multiple parts of a single story will be condensed into one slot)
Room Zero: SO cute and good, I LOVED the animation style, it was simple and short but really well done with great colors, fun alien designs, and fluid animation, and I just like seeing the guys go on missions like that. It's a shame that the animated show never got picked up bc I would've adored seeing more of it. 10/10
From Stumbled Beginnings: Very cute and funny origin story for Simmons and Grif, and I love that they were p much always together since they enlisted lmao makes their dynamic rlly good and the humor actually got a couple laughs out of me. 8/10
Fifty Shades of Red: Sarge's humor never quite landed with me like is has for some people (my boyfriend lmao I literally have to pause episodes sometimes so he can stop laughing. Anyway) but it was a very humorous and in character origin for him as well. 5/10
Why They’re Here: Less interesting than the previous two, obviously just meant to fill in plot "holes" and to also show us the origins of the other characters. Also I am completely ignoring that one line from Tucker in the interview, just gonna chalk it up to the "edgy" humor it does not exist to me. 4/10
The Brick Gulch Chronicles: WONDERFUL stop motion, very fun and cute and entertaining, very wholesome and still in the vibe with what the show itself is. I appreciate the willingness to do stop motion for most of it. 10/10
Red Army Unit FH57’s Adventure: It was kinda interesting and kinda funny but I found myself kinda tuning it out cuz it just felt kinda whatever. The combo of the different animation styles was cool though and I thought the ship misunderstanding them was funny. 5/10
Locus and Felix: Okay I'm gonna be a black sheep for a second and say that I rlly don't care that much about Locus and Felix. I don't think Felix is a secretly deep sadboi whom I'm gonna spend an unnecessary amount of time thinking about, I don't think Locus as secretly good all along, and I don't care that much about their partnership and what they were like before Chorus. That being said, the animation here is absolutely gorgeous, this is probably my favorite animated story in the whole season, it looks awesome. The plot is nothing special but who cares like I said it's beautiful, 6/10
Fight the Good Fight!: VERY funny and well-executed propaganda video, short and sweet and nothing more to it. It does its job. 5/10
Meta vs. Carolina: Dawn of Awesome: Another one I really don't care for because literally everything leading UP to the fight between Meta and Carolina is a waste of time. Maybe some people really care about their weapons and stats, but I don't. And even then, you kinda know Carolina is gonna win the fight, the question is just how. 4/10
Grey vs. Gray: I don't know or care about the Game Grumps and the entire thing felt like a short gag that went on for way too long with a predictable ending. 2/10
Caboose's Guide to Making Friends: Again, ADORABLE art style and very cute having a story be told from Caboose's perspective. 7/10
Head Cannon: Kinda funny I guess. I wish we'd gotten it spread out more equally among the heads Omega jumped into. Ik he didn't spend equal time in there but who cares. Whatever, still funny. 5/10
Get Bent: I LAUGHED PROBABLY THE HARDEST AT THIS ONE AND THAT'S MOSTLY BC OF LESBIAN DONUT IT CAUGHT ME OFF GUARD AND IT WAS HILARIOUS (also hello, bisexual church?) 9/10
Red vs. Blue: The Musical: it was fine. it was creative. The dancing was well animated. Enjoyable. 5/10
Mr. Red vs. Mr. Blue: I haven't seen Reservoir Dogs but Kaikaina was in this which automatically boosts it to a 8/10 (I also like that they have movie nights it's cute)
RvB Throwdown: Fine but mostly forgettable. 3/10
The Triplets Story: REALLY interesting concept (y'all know I love the freelancers) that felt like it dragged on too long and only gave Ohio something to do. 4/10
Immersion: The Warthog Flip: I loved the costumes and the actual Warthog and it got a couple laughs out of me. 5/10
Red vs. Blue vs. Rooster Teeth: This was made for the fans/themselves. As someone who is neither, none of it was funny and I just kinda waited for it to be over. At least the animation of the armor irl looked rlly good
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amusement-park-date · 3 months
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I'm currently working on Pipp's chapter of the cutie mark series as I'm casually calling it. It'll have a proper title as well, of course. And, naturally I found myself listening to the G5 songs again, both from the movie and Make Your Mark. And that made me think. I want to talk about the animation, more specifically a few of my favorite moments in the movie as far as the animation goes. However I'm going to limit this post to the songs, otherwise I'd be here all night listing almost everything that happens in the movie.
I'm actually going to start with the first song, Gonna Be My Day. When Sunny reaches the chorus for the first time and sings the line "I'm calling their bluff" I love the way she moves one front leg in front of the other. It's such a little thing and I can't even explain why I love it so much, but I do. It's pleasing to the eye. I've been listening to this song a lot. It's a lot of fun to sing.
Next is "I'm Looking Out For You." I guess I'm just going to do these in order. The lyric "Back at home it was earth ponies first, heard it so many times I could burst. And I fought for a change, but it's lonely 'cause, you know, party of uno" and the accompanying visuals are what I want to bring up. I just love seeing how the ponies move, and the hopping from the rock to another looks really nice. Also, I'm getting a bit sidetracked here, but the VOCALS of Kimiko and Vanessa are so pleasant to listen to. I'm trying to mostly stick to talking about the animation because otherwise this post would be me just GUSHING about the insane vocals.
Next is "Danger, Danger." Another song I've been listening to almost on repeat. And oh my god. Where do I start? Right here. "Outsiders creep up slow and steady. Wings glistening, horns at the ready." The way Sprout moves up closer to the foal and snatches the ice cream cone. I've been rewinding that part just so I see him zip into the frame and look at how they animated his legs. Again, I'm just fascinated with how the characters and their movements are animated. "Don't just sit on your butts and do nothing and wait" when he bucks that pony off the couch. Simple but so good. "Mob!" "Mob?" "M-M-Mob, mob!" "Mob?" "Mob?" "Angry, angry mob!" "Mob, m-m-mob, mob!" "Mob, mob, angry, angry!" Just.. all of this, literally. And from there we jump to the very next part of the song. And it's going to be another longer section. "Fight, see in black and white That's your pony right Time to lift your manes and proudly Throng, numbers make you strong Millions can't be wrong Especially when they're screaming loudly You might not have a bale of hay to borrow Are you saddled with your sorrow? If Are you scared about tomorrow? Well, it's all gonna work out painlessly If you follow my orders brainlessly" Just this WHOLE THING, okay. And it's just as much about the visuals as it is the vocals. I could have kept going but I'm choosing to end it here with this song and move on to the next one. Alright, so "Glowin' Up" is the main reason why I chose to even make this post. Again, OH MY GOD THE VOCALS. But the first, and most important thing I want to bring up is during the first "We don't fly like we used to, we take what we've been through" How Pipp twirls and soars higher in the spotlight, I've been watching that one part so many times and it always leaves me in awe with how beautiful and majestic it looks! If I was a fictional pony and was there to see Pipp perform, I would have fallen in love right there. Now I'm simply in love with the animation. Honorable mentions to when Hitch barges in and sees Pipp for the first time, and of course to his little moment in the spotlight. "Throwin' up, find a glove Fly around, bup-bup-bup Doin' stuff that I love You're like "why?" I'm like "what?" Crisp and dry, eat some mud Glowin' up, lovey dove" Classic. As for "Fit Right In", there's a few different parts of the song. I'm trying to speed this up a little bit so I can get back to writing. But, here goes. First: "They taught us unicorns were super scary maniacs With horns like razors and tongues like tasers and teeth like tacks They take your hooves and then they grind them into midnight snacks The basic gist of it is unicorns are not okay!" Then the very next part: "Look, I know we're riskin' everything for this endeavor But look at us, we're brave and strong and weird and clever" The next one is another longer one. "I know you will, now watch and learn This is how a unicorn walks (walks) This is how a unicorn talks (talks) This is how a unicorn hoops (hoops?)This is how a unicorn—"
"Oops!" "Oh!" "Geez!" "Stop!" "This is how a unicorn struts Oh, watch us shake our unicorn butts Now you're in the unicorn know" "Whoa!" "Soon you'll be a unicorn pro!" And then finally at the very end of the song: "We're gonna fit right in This is how a unicorn walks This is how a unicorn talks Now you're lookin' unicorn strong This is how a unicorn ends this song!" And at long last, "It's Alright." This one is luckily going to be a quick and easy one. When the song really kicks up with "It's alright, alright, alright-right-right." Again, it comes right back to watching the characters' legs move. It's fascinating. This has been me going over some of my favorite moments from the MLP A New Generation movie. Thank you, thank you.
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suzdotranslation · 2 years
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[Interview TL] Utsugi Uyu DengekiOnline Interview
Original article here
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The phantom thief that values beauty, Interview with Utsugi Uyu.
What’s a “god-like” scene during a horror game stream looked like?
――There might be people reading this article who weren’t familiar with UPROAR!! so please introduce yourself!
I’m a phantom thief who also works as a café manager, the name is Utsugi Uyu! I mostly streamed gaming content, with horror games as my main. I'm not easily scared so if you'd like to watch a horror game stream with a fun vibe, feel free to drop by!
――In your own opinion, what kind of unit UPROAR!! is like?
For me, they're like a comrade in arms who does their best and aren’t afraid of being honest. Usually, I'd only show my good parts toward others but now I don't have any problem showing even my worst. That's the kind of place UPROAR!! is in my opinion.
――Please tell us about your views on beauty and things you keep in mind as a phantom thief
I steal things not because I want them, but because I think they will fit me if I own them. I don’t target only aesthetically pleasing things, but it is part of the factor I keep in mind.
――What do you think your charm point is?
My face obviously (lol)
――If you were to compare yourself to an animal?
I always got assigned a dog in those animal personality tests, so I guess a dog then?
――What is your favorite food?
Chocolate!
――Do you have something you disliked?
I guess that would be... That one black thing with rustling noises...
――Do you have someone that you respect a lot?
All of my Hololive Production seniors
――Do you have a special skill you’re proud of?
Using a voice changer to play around with my voice.
――A song you’d do good at during karaoke?
Wada Koji's Butterfly.
――In June, you finally dropped your first "cover song" video, is there any plan to do more song covers from now on as well?
Of course! I actually have prepared a one-chorus cover that’s already mixed for a practice and covers that weren't originally planned to be uploaded, I’m thinking to have these revealed as membership-only contents eventually.
――Do you have any recent games you're interested in?
Splatoon3 which is coming out this September! I'm not that good at it but it's one of my favorite games, I'm excited to see how much different it is compared to the 2nd game and what kind of new weapons it'll have!
――Is there any entertainment content you'd be interested in currently?
An anime called "Mushoku Tensei(Jobless Reincarnation)” who's also getting a 2nd season around next year. Although I've been liking the series before it got adapted, the first season was nicely animated despite it coming from a newly established animation studio. It's a series with a great story, animation, and music. I'm really looking forward to the sequel.
――What's your current obsession?
Going to the sauna!
――What's something that made you laugh recently?
We recently had a full Uproar!! collab of us playing horror game, I remembered during that collab everyone actually screamed so genuinely that it made me laugh (lol).
――What is the number one thing that made you cry recently?
I cried at the last part while watching a movie called Guardians of Galaxy: Remix... I recommend everyone to check out Marvel's movies as well!
――What was something you're most embarrassed about lately?
There's that time when I found a dog being tied in front of a convenience store, before I realized it the owner came back and actually has been watching for a while already...
――Please tell us a "god-like scene" from one of your recent streams!
The screaming part during Uproar!!'s DEVOUR collab! I never really "screamed" much whenever I played horror games so far, but only in this one where I let out a genuine scream. In a way, listening to someone who rarely screamed might've been quite a "godly" experience itself.
――Please tell us your impression of your first special program "Jump Uproar!!"
Simply put, "I'm just so taken aback that I couldn't find the right word to convey my feelings now." The happiness I felt from having my first special program and how things will go from now on, it's just a lot of feelings in one and at some point it made me cry a bit, it's a secret though (lol).
――Please let us know any interesting points from the program!
It's like you're seeing a group of lively close-knitted college friends. As they progress, they learned to grow as an idol through the program as well... I think that's part of the show's charm.
――Please tell us your honest feeling from being dragged into bungee jumping recently!
I casually yelled "Oh this is like the one I saw on a variety show!!" to myself. Going to high places or seeking thrill has been part of my hobby at first, I even like watching variety shows about it so I actually felt quite jumpy at that time!
――With that sudden bungee jumping, it looked like Utsugi-san enjoyed the experience a lot. Did you feel anything different from before and after doing it?
There's no change in how I feel about it personally. But when I thought about going for a 2nd run, I felt a bit of pain around my crotch area when I was getting pulled back so I gave up on it. That might be the only difference I felt about bungee jumping afterward!
――You've become the top batter based on the rock-paper-scissors result but how did you feel personally?
Obviously, I felt quite "lucky!" at that time! Not only at bungee jumping, I generally like being in high places since a long time ago so I was thinking of going all in while trying to let the others know so I can "Give them the pressure!". If you're curious how everyone else's bungee experience went after I did, don't forget to check the full video itself!
――Uproar's manifesto was to "Take the top with four of us" and for that reason, are there certain challenges that you wish to do with your group?
The bungee jumping aside, I'd like to do more on-site shooting like in "Jump Uproar!!" and attempt things that no other VTuber had done so far. I believe by doing that, everyone will be able to see our growth as idols and have fun during it as well!
――Lastly please tell us your message to the fans.
"I love you guys"
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rovelae · 3 years
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Behind the Scenes of “Hologram”
           Today marks exactly one year since I posted arguably my most popular fic. “Hologram” is a postgame Saiouma one-shot about escapism, loneliness, and running away from the past. I put a lot of myself into this fic and I’m blown away by all the love it’s received, not only on AO3 but in Discord servers and other social media. All that excitement made me keep thinking about it, so I thought I’d share a (very self-indulgent) behind-the-scenes of sorts about how I wrote it, as well as what I think of the story.
           This essay will contain spoilers for the whole fic, so if you’d like to read it first, you can find it here. Of course, if the tags scare you off, that’s valid, but you might want to skip this post too since I’ll be quoting it throughout (so, just to be safe, expect the warnings I’ve posted on AO3 to apply here too).
           If you’re a Lorde fan you’ll recognize the lyrics in the fic summary – “Nothing’s wrong when nothing’s true,” from “Buzzcut Season.” The inspiration for this fic came to me while I was on my way to an early shift at work, and I needed a good song in my head to give me the will to live for the next eight hours. Not sure why I chose that song in particular, but maybe part of it is because I like imagining stories to go along with the songs I listen to, like AMVs playing in my head, and I’d never been able to pin down exactly what this song reminded me of.
           The mood of the music is really what compelled me – there’s something lonely about it, and the lyrics sound like the singer’s trying to convince herself that everything’s okay even when all evidence points otherwise. There are “explosions on TV”, and “The men up on the news / They try to tell us all that we will lose,” but “we live beside the pool / Where everything is good.” Despite everything going wrong, despite the notes of fear creeping into the pre-chorus, the character will “play along… in a hologram with you” and “never go home again.”
           From there, it was an easy jump to “postgame Saiou” and that was that.
             There’s a cloud of seagulls hovering in the air around him, and a dozen or so more standing just out of reach, staring him down with beady black eyes. Kokichi takes a slice of bread from the loaf he’s holding and tosses it to one of the birds, watches it catch it and stumble under the weight, watches its head bob as it tries to swallow the whole thing at once. It gets remarkably far before four other birds descend on it, shrieking wildly.
           “Mine, mine, mine,” he mumbles into his folded arms, wondering if Shuichi would get the reference.
           He really wishes Shuichi was here.
           Kokichi upends the rest of the loaf of bread onto the sidewalk and laughs at the resulting chaos until his chest aches.
             To start off, I wanted to create the same lonely mood from “Buzzcut Season” in Kokichi’s simulation. He’s not exactly trapped there, but he’s refusing to leave, because as long as he’s on the fake Jabberwock Island, he can pretend the killing game never happened. The trade-off to that escapism is that the only people he can talk to are the NPCs, who aren’t complex enough to be remotely interesting to him, and Usami, who… well, tries her best, but is more of an informational / moderation program and can’t offer him what a therapist could.
           The only thing Kokichi has to look forward to is Shuichi, who he’s convinced is an extremely lifelike computer program rather than the real thing, because the real Shuichi would definitely hate him for everything that happened during the killing game. He’s so locked into this line of logic that he doesn’t let himself consider that Shuichi has forgiven him – he doesn’t even have a good answer for why the Future Foundation wouldn’t just keep the supposed Shuichi AI on indefinitely, believing it’s their way of baiting him into leaving the simulation.
           It’s not a healthy or sustainable lifestyle in the slightest, but Kokichi stubbornly refuses to do anything but wander the islands aimlessly, passing the time with ice cream and feeding seagulls until the next time he can see Shuichi.
             He dreams that DICE is here in the simulation with him, smiling and carefree as they explore the weird music venue. One of them has gotten the karaoke machine working, and another found a box of kazoos and maracas in the back room. Kokichi already pities anyone unfortunate enough to walk by the building tonight.
           “Not going to sing, Joker?” one of his DICE asks (over the sound of their youngest member shrieking through seven kazoos at once), sitting on the bench next to him.
           “Some games are more fun to watch than play,” he answers, leaning back on his hands and sighing.
           “Like a killing game.”
           The warm dream-atmosphere turns cold then, and Kokichi’s head snaps over to look at him—but his brother is gone and Kaito’s looking back at him instead, blood in his teeth and face ashen pale.
           “You... we don’t have to do this, man,” Kaito says, but it’s a lie and they both know it, and he doesn’t want to look behind him because he knows the machine’s looming over him with its unyielding steel and slow slow slow descent—
           “You’re not real,” he snaps at dream-Kaito, who doesn’t respond except to lift him up again. “Nothing’s real, none of—PUT ME DOWN! LET GO OF ME! DON’T PUT ME BACK IN THERE!”
           “Death is more mercy than you deserve,” Kaito says, and Kokichi claws and bites and kicks his way out of Kaito’s grasp like a wild animal, only to end up in front of a prison cell full of—
           DICE, his beloved DICE, trapped and hurt and afraid, bloodied and beaten and helpless.
           “Why didn’t you save us, boss?” says his second-in-command, clutching the bars with bleeding hands. “Why didn’t you do more? Now we’re all dead and it’s because of you.”
             Moments like this are my reference to Buzzcut Season’s pre-chorus, where the not-okay starts to creep into the illusion. Despite Kokichi’s valiant efforts to forget, he’s still dealing with the aftermath of seeing his family hurt and in danger, watching his friends die, orchestrating the deaths of two of them, being killed himself— and then being told every bit of it was made up to entertain an audience who sees nothing wrong with that picture. Running away is not the way to heal from trauma, and one day soon it’s all bound to come crashing down around him.
             “Do you know what this … island paradise represents, Kokichi?” [Hinata] asks, and Kokichi’s really not in the mood for a lecture but he continues anyway. “Jabberwock Island … was the setting for the fiftieth season of Danganronpa. The golden anniversary, they called it. It was my season.”
           Kokichi hunches over, hugging his arms over his torso and stifiling a scream. He does not want to think about this right now—
           “They wanted it to be the best season of all, which, unfortunately for us, meant it was also the bloodiest,” Hinata says. “Twice as many participants, deadly traps hidden across each of the islands— they even changed the way the motives worked, like when they told Fuyuhiko to cut out his own eye so Peko could have a quick death instead of suffering for days.”
           “Do I look like your therapist, porcupine-head?” Kokichi hisses. A sharp pain is pounding into his skull, and there’s a bitter, metallic taste at the back of his throat. A taste like poison and blood.
           “There was so much going on that the simulation malfunctioned,” Hinata says. “When people died, their Ultimate talents downloaded themselves into me. I’m told that the stress of so many personality grafts came close to liquefying my frontal lobe. I’m lucky I woke up at all… especially considering more than half of the others didn’t.”
           “Why are you telling me this?” Kokichi grates out through the static building in his head. If he opens his eyes, will he see the beach or the dull chrome of the machine closing in on him?
           “Because I know how much you want to forget about what happened,” Hinata says. “Believe me, I get it.”
           ….
           “These things that happened to us… we can’t erase them, no matter how much we want to. Some things have to be remembered.”
             I’d mostly like to leave Hajime’s season up to interpretation, but there are a couple things I wanted to say about it. I imagine Danganronpa is like the Hunger Games in that it’d go all out for big anniversaries. So, there were twice as many participants for the Jabberwock Island beatdown that was probably subtitled “Bloodbath Bay” or something equally appealing. The game’s formula changed from a focus on the mystery and the trials to “look at all these kids massacring each other a la Lord of the Flies,” and since the VR system wasn’t equipped to handle that many people and their deaths, it malfunctioned, giving Hajime way too many Ultimate talents and putting half the cast into comas from which they never woke up.
           Viewers either absolutely loved or absolutely hated this season, depending on whether they were DR fans because of the “blood n’ guts” factor or the “mystery and psychological thriller” aspect. Team Danganronpa faced quite a bit of backlash for actually causing the real-life deaths of half its participants, but were able to weasel their way out of serious legal repercussions because of the waivers the participants had signed beforehand (plus a lot of bribery and falling back on their longstanding popularity). So, the cast of Season 50 failed to end the killing game, but helped provide great evidence for the “Danganronpa is morally wrong” argument.
           Hajime works as a victim liaison for the Future Foundation and has been trying to take down Danganronpa since he got out of it. He’s like that in a few of my fics, actually; I like the idea of Hajime acting as a big brother of sorts to the V3 cast. It’s especially entertaining to imagine his interactions with Kokichi— though maybe not so much in Hologram, since to Kokichi he’s a representation of the past he’s trying so desperately to forget and the future he refuses to acknowledge.
             “SHUT UP!” He launches himself at Hinata, his hands wrapping around the other man’s throat as he uses his momentum to slam him to the ground. “SHUT! UP!”
           “Ko— ghk—” Hinata coughs, eyes wide with surprise, but aside from moving his hands up to grip Kokichi’s wrists, he doesn’t seem all that worried about fighting back.
           The thought only fuels Kokichi’s rage until he’s choking Hinata so hard his knuckles are white. “If you want me out of this simulation so badly, you can kill me,” he snarls. “I’m never waking up! I’m never leaving, do you UNDERSTAND ME?”
           Hinata grimaces, the outline of his avatar flickering, but he still doesn’t struggle, and Kokichi hates him all the more for it, despises him with a seething malice that festers low in his stomach. He wonders distantly if he’d actually kill this man in real life. Or if he’d be able to stop himself, feeling like this.
             Kokichi’s breakdown here is more out of fear than anger. Like I mentioned, Kokichi sees Hajime as another piece of what’s hurt him, and no matter how Hajime tries to help, Kokichi will always remember Danganronpa whenever he sees him.
             Warm yellow-orange light casts a relaxed, cozy glow over the dining hall. It’s an ambience compounded by the flickering candles on the table, which seems overly idyllic, but Kokichi will let it slide because of the adorable way Shuichi flushed when he noticed them as they sat down. Well, if he’s being honest, everything about Shuichi right now is adorable, from the way his hair keeps falling into his eyes to the way he’s nervously fiddling wth his chopsticks. Kokichi wishes he could keep staring at him forever.
           Ah, not… not in a weird way, though, just… because Shuichi’s beautiful, and when Kokichi looks at him he can forget everything bad that’s ever happened, can create some new and brighter world to exist in.
             This is an idea I wish I’d had room to explore a bit more in the story— that is, just how far Kokichi will go to pretend everything’s fine. I thought about making him border on delusional, like having him talk to people who aren’t there or forget what’s actually happening around him because he’s so lost in his fiction-within-a-fiction. It would have creeped Shuichi out a whole lot.
           Unfortunately, there wasn’t much room for that past the plot I’d already nailed down, so I focused on his loneliness and escapism instead. I do touch on it later in this scene, though— the couple paragraphs where he slips into fantasizing about being a phantom thief having a surreptitious meeting with his detective under the not-so-subtle supervision of his DICE. There would have been a lot more of that if I’d gone with the ‘delusion’ stylistic choice, to the point where even the readers would be confused about what’s real. Maybe I’ll look into writing something similar in a future story.
             Eventually, Shuichi sets down his bowl and looks away with a little sigh, and Kokichi clenches his teeth because that’s the sigh he does when it’s time for that conversation.
           “Um… Kokichi?”
           Kokichi’s only response is to exhale the breath he’d been holding in a quiet hiss.
           “I-I know you don’t want to, but… but I really need to talk to you about something,” Shuichi says. “Please?”
           “My Mr. Detective can talk about whatever he’d like!” Kokichi says with a lilt to his tone that makes it sound more sarcastic than he wants it to. He takes the last bite of curry and wishes that it burns hot enough to hurt.
           “It’s about Kaito.”
             This more serious part of the date scene is meant to reflect the little bridge in “Buzzcut Season”:
“Cola with the burnt-out taste
I’m the one you tell your fears to
There’ll never be enough of us.”
           It’s a part of the song that sounds especially bittersweet to me, a bit of self-awareness between the insistence that everything’s okay.
           Really all I think I managed was to reference it when Kokichi’s internal dialogue comments on his drink being “so sweet it tastes burnt” and then later not tasting like anything. But hopefully the mood’s still there.
             “Tell him… that I have nothing against him,” he says.
           “That’s … not a lie?” Shuichi presses.
           Kokichi shakes his head idly, still not raising his gaze. “I wanted to wreck the killing game and he wanted to save his friend. We both got what we wanted. I’d say the end more than justifies the means.”
           Was that a lie?
           (I don’t want to die Shuichi I’m sorry I’m sorry save me Shuichi please I’m sorry ithurtsmakeitstop—)
           His fingers tighten into clawlike shapes, nails digging sharply into his forearms.
             I really don’t think Kokichi would have anything against Kaito, even if here he’s not being completely honest with how much he’s affected by what happened. It wouldn’t make sense to him to hate Kaito for something he himself proposed, but I think there’d still be a subconscious barrier between them. Too much history.
             “Don’t go, Shuichi, I’m so sorry, I— that was so dumb, what I said, please don’t be sad anymore.” He’s not sure if he can’t breathe because of the exertion of running or because of the hysteria boiling over in his head. “Please don’t go, I didn’t mean to hurt you— please don’t leave, Shuichi, I’m so sorry.”
           “Oh, Kokichi….” Shuichi’s tone is strange, soft and pitying, like he sees something Kokichi doesn’t, and he shakes his head slowly as more tears follow the paths of the others.
           Kokichi goes to his knees, ready to grovel if that’s what it takes, but Shuichi follows him down, closing his other hand over Kokichi’s, and then they’re both crying and he doesn’t know why, and all he can do is repeat a mantra of I’m sorry and hold on as tight as he can.
           It’s horrible. Shuichi’s horrible. Shuichi’s wonderful, and kind and lovely and perfect and Kokichi hates him, Kokichi adores him, and it doesn’t matter because Shuichi’s not actually here but Kokichi doesn’t want to be alone, just let me pretend some more, please, please let me have this—
           “I’ll… I’ll stay,” Shuichi says at last. “I can stay a while longer.”
           You shouldn’t, Kokichi wants to say, but his mouth won’t obey him. You shouldn’t stay if you don’t want to. I don’t deserve having you here. I’m not worth your mercy.
           But there on the bridge, crying tears of relief, he soaks up as much mercy as he can get and hopes it’s enough to drown him.
             I wanted to create a contrast between them that highlights just how the isolation and trauma Kokichi’s experiencing has affected him. He has an almost unhealthy reliance on Shuichi as “the only thing that makes this world bearable,” and panics when faced with the prospect of being alone again so soon. Part of why Shuichi’s crying is because he’s realized the extent of Kokichi’s desperation. It’s not that he thinks Kokichi’s apology is insincere, but that he’s hardly heard him apologize for anything before, so Kokichi going this far has him realizing how bad things really are.
             The door rumbles and slides open when they approach, revealing the bright light of the log-out point that took Shuichi away every time, that would wake Kokichi up in his real body if he walked into it. Shuichi stops just a step away from it, biting his lip as if searching for something to say, but before he can find it, Kokichi reaches out to tug at his sleeve.
           “Shuichi?” he says, distant as the waves on the beach that he can still hear if he listens closely enough. Shuichi turns back toward him. “Before you go, can I be selfish one more time?”
           “Huh…?”
           Shuichi doesn’t move when Kokichi steps closer, reaches up to ghost his fingertips over Shuichi’s jaw and around the back of his neck. He lets Kokichi tilt his head downward, lets him hover inches away, close enough to feel their breath mingle in the night air. Kokichi pauses there to give him the chance to pull away. He doesn’t.
           So Kokichi closes his eyes and the distance between them.
             That last line is a ZEUGMA! It’s a literary device where one word refers to two more in a different way. A popular example is the hyenas’ line “Our teeth and ambitions are bared” from The Lion King. It’s my favorite grammatical trick and I’d love to see more of it in fanfic.
             Slowly, he slides his hand down to Shuichi’s shoulder, using it as leverage to push himself away. That hurts even more. He can’t seem to open his eyes, and he feels so weakened, breathless, fragile. Cracked open, hollowed out.
           When he finally does open his eyes, Shuichi’s are wide with some mix of astonishment and a dozen other emotions. Kokichi bows his head, taking a deep breath to ground himself. “Sorry,” he whispers. “I just wanted to know.”
           “Kokichi,” Shuichi breathes, like a bullet through his heart.
           “Goodbye, Shuichi,” Kokichi says, and shoves him into the light.
           Shuichi’s little yelp of surprise cuts off abruptly as he falls through the door, vanishing into the glow, and all too soon, Kokichi’s alone again in a dream that suddenly seems far too vast. Alone, with the faintest taste of Shuichi’s lips still lingering on his own.
           And he thinks, It was enough just to know you.
           It’s a lie.
             Nothing to say here except that this is my favorite scene and I’m so happy with how it turned out.
             Fake sun rises over fake ocean, fake seagulls glide through fake sky while fake wind tousles fake palm fronds. Kokichi lies on his stomach in the fake grass and talks to his fake family in the fake notebook. Gives them fake names and runs through everything he remembers about them. Apologizes, over and over, wishes he could hug each of them goodbye one last time. Wonders if it would be more painful to die or to never have existed at all.
           He leaves the notebook of his memories on the seat of one of the Ferris wheel cars on the fourth island, because one time he promised them they’d steal the London Eye together.
           He buys a can of fake soda from the fake convenience store on the first island and sits on the fake beach watching the fake waves. Wonders when he’d hit the end of the simulation if he started swimming, or if he’d drown first.
           White sand, blue sea, bluer sky. Washed out, like an amateur watercolor painting.
           He opens the soda can and raises it to his mouth, but … even the thought of drinking it makes him sick to his stomach. He sets it down in the sand and flicks it over, watching the bubbly liquid run down and sink into the sand. The color’s all wrong, like blood streaked against a metal floor.
           He walks the fake streets of the fifth island, passing fake skyscrapers and fake commuters and their fake conversations, until he finally stops outside the factory he’s never been able to bring himself to go into. Smells like oil, and metal and machines and he can hear the sounds and he’s immediately back in the hangar, dizzy on adrenaline and desperation and leaning heavily on Kaito so he doesn’t keel over and die then and there. Kaito says something about how maybe he should sit down for a minute, and Kokichi didn’t agree back then but he does now, goes down on all fours and dry heaves.
           When his vision solidifies and he can stop gasping for breath, he sits up and presses his back against the factory wall, covering his ears and hiding his face in his knees. Tries to convince himself not to imagine Shuichi’s there with him, holding his hand again, promising everything’s going to be okay.
           “I’ve got you. No one’s going to hurt you anymore,” or maybe, “Breathe with me, it’ll be over soon. You’re safe now.”
           I love you.
           He laughs until there’s nothing left in his lungs. He called these little daydreams obsession, before, but now they just seem sick and insane.
             I wanted to indicate throughout this scene that Kokichi’s gotten substantially worse. Instead of halfheartedly interacting with the NPCs or finding something to spend time doing, he’s aimlessly wandering the islands, focused on how fake all of it is. Not even talking to his sketches of DICE can make him feel better. The suicidal ideation starts to slip in even if he doesn’t realize it— a fixation on wondering what death is like, purposefully triggering himself by walking by the factory….
           The thing I want to talk about most though is the italicized I love you. I left it outside of quotation marks and dialogue tags on purpose because I wanted it to be ambiguous as to who’s saying it. If it’s Kokichi’s line, it’s sudden and almost out of place, like he couldn’t hold back from thinking it anymore. But it could be Shuichi saying it, too. Since it’s outside quotation marks, unlike the previous dream-Shuichi lines, it’s more vague, almost a whisper in Kokichi’s thoughts— like he can barely bring himself to imagine it and even feels guilty doing so, because there’s no way it could possibly be real.
           Which do you think?
           Eh, I don’t have an answer. When I hear it in my head, they say it at the same time.
             “How did you know?” he finally croaks.
           Shuichi’s breathing still sounds shaky, too. “Because you said ‘goodbye,’” he says.
           Kokichi finally looks up at him in a silent question.
           “You never say goodbye,” Shuichi says, rubbing his sleeve over his eyes. “It’s always….”
           “‘See you later,’” Kokichi finishes for him. Despite himself, a tiny huff of astonished laughter escapes him. “I didn’t even know, not until a couple of hours ago. And you figured it all out from one word?”
           Shuichi bites his lip at that. “You kissed me,” he says.
           Kokichi’s stomach twists and he looks away. “I said I was sorry—”
           “No.” Shuichi squeezes his hand into a fist and lets it fall to thump against Kokichi’s chest, like he’s trying to knock some sense into him. “It was so honest, and vulnerable, and… and I know how much you hate showing how you really feel.” Another tiny sob catches in his throat. “And so it felt like … like something you’d do if you weren’t going to s-see me again.”
           “Shuichi….” Kokichi trails off as Shuichi muffles his cries in his hand again. He’s so breathtakingly smart. There’s no one else in the world who thinks that way, no one else who could possibly be that attentive and that clever. Not a programmer, not a team of shrinks… how can an AI manage it? How is it that Shuichi always manages to take him by surprise? How can he see straight through him when he least expects it?
           Kokichi’s hand reaches up to Shuichi’s cheek. Reverently traces the path of the tears falling down it.
           “I wish you were real,” he confesses in a whisper.
             Kokichi’s stubborn. So, so stubborn. And he’s not used to being cared about, if the way he does everything by himself is any indication. So it makes sense to me that he’ll refuse to believe anything good can happen to him even in the face of convincing evidence. He’s pretty self-hating for someone so arrogant.
             Kokichi’s weak, deep down to his core, weak for this man. Already knows he’d do anything for him, and the thought is terrifying—that one person could have that much power over him, even if he doesn’t realize it.
           But what if he has realized it? Couldn’t this all be an elaborate ruse, a lie he knew Kokichi would be so desperate to believe that he wouldn’t bother questioning it?
           …Shuichi’s never hurt him, though. Only that one time, when he really deserved it. Shuichi wouldn’t … betray him, even for what he thinks is Kokichi’s own good. They’re… different from each other, that way.
           But still….
           “I’m so scared, Shuichi.” It’s barely a whisper. “I don’t want to be alone anymore.”
           “You won’t be.” It’s so hard to be skeptical, lost in his eyes. “I’ll be right there with you, for as long as you want. I won’t let you feel like this anymore.”
           Promise me, he wants to blurt out. Promise you’ll stay. Promise me you’ll never leave me, Shuichi, he wants to demand, but that’s wrong, that’s manipulative and selfish and everything he doesn’t want to be for Shuichi anymore.
           Shuichi, of course, says it anyway.
           “I promise, Kokichi.”
…        
           “Kiss me again,” he says. “Please?”
           Shuichi leans in close, then pauses, his brow furrowing the way it does when he catches him in a lie.
           “I’ll kiss you again in the real world,” Shuichi says. “Okay?”
           Kokichi shakes his head. “Shuichi, please.” Please, I don’t think I can do this. Please, I don’t want to wake up to a lie. Please, one last kiss for me to remember in case it was all fake.
           Shuichi reaches out to tilt his chin up and Kokichi closes his eyes, savoring every second, burning it into his memory.
           Shuichi’s soft breath ghosts over his lips.
           “Trust me,” he murmurs.        
           Kokichi’s eyes flutter back open, searching his face. Shifting him around on the white board in his head, seeing what categories he fits into this time. Weird, of course. Suspicious, maybe not. Trustworthy?
           Trustworthy….
           “I do trust you,” he realizes.
             Kokichi’s still hesitant to accept all of this— Shuichi kissing him didn’t magically fix everything. He’ll still doubt all the way to the log-out point, but at least now he realizes that this simulation is only hurting him— that if things are to get better they’re going to have to change, too. He’s got a long way to go before he’s all right, but he’s not going to have to face it alone anymore.
             And that’s a wrap!
           Once again, I’m really proud of this story, and I feel like I grew as a writer because of it. There are a few things I would change if I wrote it again, but for all its flaws it’s still my baby and I like how it turned out.
           Thanks again for all your support for “Hologram,” and thanks even more if you actually waded through all this nonsense of a director’s cut. It’s a huge confidence-boost to think that people liked what I wrote, and even wanted to hear what I had to say about it. If there’s any interest, I’d love to review some of my other fics here, or theorize or brainstorm or whatever else  you’re into. (Ask me what Byakuya’s Thing is in my superhero AU, I dare you 😉)
           I do have a WIP in my folder of bits and pieces currently titled “boy finally gets that kiss”, and it’s a post-Hologram scene from Shuichi’s point of view to just sorta… tie it all together, have them talk things over again… and kiss, of course. We’ll see if anything comes out of that.
           Until next time!
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purpleyellow · 4 years
Text
Left & Right
Seventeen 14th member
Hayun’s masterlist
“The one where they have a comeback in the middle of a pandemic”
a/n: I straight up didn’t know how to title or describe this, so I guess you’ll have to read to find out. Feel free to let me know your thoughts as well as send me some requests💙. Ask box is also open to random chats.
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“Why are we performing so many songs again?” Mingyu asked walking inside of the dressing room. 
The Seventeen members were currently getting ready to start recording the MNET stages for their Left & Right comeback and, for some reason, they would also be performing songs from other comebacks as well.
“Because Blueberry Oppa told us to” Hayun said from her sitting position on the couch without getting her eyes off her phone and Mingyu furrowed his eyebrows.
“Who?”
“Me,” Scoups said unamused from his makeup chair, his blue hair currently getting styled “Also, I wasn’t the one who decided it”
“Yeah, but to me you’re in charge of everything I don’t know the reason of” Hayun shrugged her shoulders and blocked her phone, patting the empty spot on the couch for Mingyu to sit and let her lean against him. “Anyways, does anyone remember the chorus choreography for Mansae?”
“What do you mean does anyone remember? We literally rehearsed it over and over all week long” Woozi turned around from his spot on the makeup station with a shocked expression.
“We rehearsed a lot of things this week, I guess my mind just focused on the new stuff, but I’m sure once I hear the song muscle memory will jump in” Hayun said and felt Mingyu giggling at her dumb excuse.
“It goes like this” Hoshi said from the other side of the room, standing up and doing the first move of the choreo.
“Yeah, see I remember it now” Hayun pointed at him and gave him a thumbs up and a wink. Without a reaction, Hoshi sat back down on the other couch, clearly used to dealing with her forgetful mind.
“Hayun hair and makeup done, you’re already in costume as well, great” One of their managers started walking inside the room and checking how far along things were going “Mingyu please go dress up as well and we’ll be right on schedule” 
“Nooo” Hayun whined clinging to the boy’s arm so he couldn’t move “I need my headrest with me”
“Let him go,” Joshua said standing up from where the stylists were just done with him “I’ll cover for him”
Letting Mingyu go, she waited for Josh to sit on his place and leaned her head on his shoulder “Where did our child go by the way?” She asked while looking around the room.
“Our child? Dino is your kid, not mine” He laughed at her question and Hayun rolled her eyes.
“Dino is my and Jeonghan’s child. Vernon is ours, you’re doing a terrible job as a father by the way” She smirked even though he couldn’t see her face.
“I’m sure he’s grown enough to take care of himself”  As he said that, Vernon walks in along another manager, Hayun couldn’t help but notice how his shoelaces were untied and slapped Joshua on the chest pointing at them.
“Clearly not enough to walk without a tripping hazard,” She said loud enough for the younger boy to hear and Vernon looked at his shoes confused. With a yelp, he kneeled down to tie them and Hayun smiled satisfied “And that’s parenting 101”
Snorting, Josh rested his arm on the couch and started playing with her reddish hair “You’re calling Cheol blueberry, but you’re out here looking like a strawberry”
Rolling her eyes, Hayun slapped his hand away and got up from the couch mumbling a “Mingyu didn’t make fun of me” and walking out of the room. 
Without a specific place to go, she decided to check out the stage. Usually doing that before a performance was impossible due to the fans waiting in the audience, but since South Korea was doing their most to prevent agglomerations that meant there would be no audience there.
Passing behind the staff members, she went to the side of the stage and stared at the almost empty auditorium they had performed at so many times before, but now it seemed different. Of course, Hayun was no stranger to changes, having adapted moving around since a child, and living through tough times made her very resilient. Still, there was something melancholic about having a comeback without the straight feedback of a crowd.
She stood there for a few minutes, staring at the empty seats and imagining the faces of all the fans who could have been there cheering for them. For a split second, she remembered the unfinished tour they had to stop because of the virus and she wished to meet each of the people who bought tickets and personally apologize for it. 
“It’s not your fault” DK showed up out of nowhere behind her, making Hayun jump scared from the sudden company “I know what you’re thinking because I was thinking the same thing, but we have no control over what happened”
“I know” Hayun smiled softly at him “ At least we can put a smile on, perform with a lot of love and hope they’ll feel it through the screen”
“That’s so cheezy” He laughed at what she said, not in a mocking way, but more of an amazed one “But, yeah, sounds like a plan”
“Let’s go see if the other losers are ready” She said side hugging him and walking back to the dressing room. 
Within five minutes, all of them were ready and they started the marathon of performances. It wasn’t as tiring as the tour itself since they had breaks in between to change outfits, touch up their make up and get feedback from the staff in charge of sound and cameras.
After the last song, they stayed on stage to do last mentions and thank the staffs, Hayun stood at the end of the line next to Jun when suddenly, the screens on stage that were making some kind of animation, changed to show a bunch of Carats holding paper signs and lightsticks.
Looking at her right, she asked the staff if they were live and they said they could see and hear them at that time. 
“Wow,” she exclaimed with a smile on her face and jumping on Jun’s back for some kind of height leverage. Waving at the fans through the screen, she could feel herself becoming giddy and tried to tone down her excitement, but of course, that wasn’t doable.
Turning her head to the other members, she only got happier as she saw the gleam in their eyes. Seokmin looked at her from his spot and mouthed an excited “They’re here!!” to which she gave him two big thumbs up.
“Can I put you down? I want to wave at them too” Jun said smiling still in a little bit of shock and she jumped off his back, making a big heart with her arms.
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not-your-damsel · 3 years
Text
I Gotta Let it Out, Please Forgive Me Guys
I got a random message on Facebook messenger from my bestest friend from the tail end of middle school until onwards… or so I thought.
*Names have been changed for this… mess? I’m so sorry guys, I’m all over the place 😑 and this is kinda long so, head’s up
She was like a sister to me, we told each other any and everything. We wrote fan fics for *N’Sync before fan fics were even a goddamn thing, before there was a place to even post them! She made the life move from New Jersey to Pennsylvania bearable and then livable after having my whole life uprooted once again. My Mom and I always moved a lot when I was a child so I was always bouncing from school to school once I thought I was finally settled and was steadily making friends only to up and move again. That coupled with constantly having to go to the hospital because of my illness didn’t bode well for my learning abilities. I’m great at everything else now as an adult but don’t even come to me about math or I’ll spit on you, I don’t make the rules 🤷🏽‍♀️
However, once my Mom met my Sister’s father, our living situation somehow downgraded from living in a beautiful brownstone house to then living in a trailer in a trailer park. Please don’t take that as me shitting on trailer parks or folks who live in them. I just despise them because they immediately remind me of the verbal, mental abuse/gaslighting I endured when we lived there which continued into PA and the house we moved to there is all. My stomach churns when I pass by one as I immediately feel like I’m 10 again and about to be in trouble and grounded for the next tiniest thing he deemed wrong of me.
Anywho, we moved to PA when I was 12, my little sister having been born in NJ just before we left it to come here and I was livid. Leaving all my friends behind after finally having a taste of actually settling in and making friends and not moving away right after the fact only to pull the rug from under me and do it again. As an adult now, I get it. It’s safer here than where we’d been and the taxes rock, no tax on food or clothing or pharmaceuticals and also utilities for heat and shit and not to mention, a better school system.
And school is where I met my immediate bestie, around the second or third day being there, we had to swim for gym and since I didn’t know I had to sit out for the period where the other girls and I started talking about *N’Sync and she asked me who my face was, which was Lance and then she said hers was Justin Timberlake and that she fantasizes about him. Anyone who can tell me that right off the bat with the same energy as telling me what their favorite color or animal is has immediately won my friendship. Immediately.
That’s how we met, that’s how we rolled and we stayed joined at the hip throughout the rest of our school years together. We’d been through it all, crushes, familial loss, pet loss, watching mutual friends come and go or fuck each other over, and yet her and I remained as though we were born sisters. I never needed a whole entourage of people to call my friends. Whoever’s gonna hang with me, I love and appreciate and protect dearly and those who won’t that’s fine as well. But she was a constant in my life, we both were constantly in each other’s lives.
She provided an escape and safe haven away from my home when it got to be too suffocating to be within my own home because of my overbearing stepfather and I taught her how to appreciate and accept and play video games, specifically of the survival horror genre and we’d get together for a sleepover when a new release would come out and we wanted to get lost in stories and scream for dear life at perfectly crafted jump scares. She turned me on to being a drama kid since her and I were in chorus together being Soprano 1’s, and it turned out to be one of the most fun things I did in high school.
But time passes and we graduated. Sad as I was to be parting from everyone, we all began to scatter, coming together during breaks to party and catch up. After moved to Queens NY to be with my fiancé at the time and she was doing her own thing. Over time, life got in the way. There was no grand fight to speak of, no secretly harbored feelings of ill will or hatred, nothing of the sort. Which is why I’m left feeling so baffled over how what was meant to be a great reaching out and reconnecting moment ended up turning into me feeling angry, dejected and feeling as though maybe there were some things she never spoke to me about when she should’ve.
It started out great, happy to hear from her especially out of the blue since the times I tried to reach her would always fall through. We caught up with one another, as you do, and then the conversation turned from catching up to suddenly me being questioned about why I never contacted her. I explained everything that happened, how I tried several times apart from the yearly birthday wishes and such, and how I never got a reply back, that I assumed it meant she had a different phone number. How as the years passed more and more, my insecurities of no longer being wanted by her ran rampant and that maybe she had better people in her life. I apologized for that, seeing now that I was blinded by that insecurity and that was something for me to sort out. That and that life literally got in the way.
I told her everything as honest and truthful to the best of my ability because I’d never lie to her, never had and never would/will want to. I admitted to her that I’m definitely different from the last time she’s seen me and that I’m now utter shit with the phone. I personally think it’s a mix of my Major Depressive Disorder mixed with my anxiety that I prefer messaging over actually talking on the phone. But that’s not for my lack of trying to reach her over the years.
However, that wasn’t good enough for her though apparently. She kept pressing me and questioning if “I ignored her” because of scenario A, B or C. She said that. She literally said, “Did you ignore me because of…”. She started labeling despite me telling her what happened, putting words in my mouth. It got to the point that I was just repeating myself over and over because she kept interrogating me on the issue, bringing up weak reasons as though she just knew that was the “reason I dipped and left her in the wind” when meanwhile, when you look at which of us two was the last to try to contact the other through Facebook messenger, it shows it as me and before that all my attempts to reach her through something I knew she’d see my shit to her through and yet I was never answered.
I ended up saying to her, “Look, I don’t know what it is you’re wanting me to say here. I feel like you’re trying to get me to admit to something to please you but I’m not gonna do that because if I did, then I’d be lying to you and I’m not here for that. I told you everything on my end here, what has happened and that’s exactly what it is. Nothing more, nothing less. I don’t secretly hate you, I could never hate you. It wasn’t your fault about what happened with my ex and I at your party, I’ve never held you responsible for his cheating actions. He cheated on me with Stan, not you, so don’t think that has anything to do with you when you stuck up for me when we all found out the next morning. Please stop fishing for a conflict that’s not there.”
I don’t hear from her after a long while and I explicitly tell her that I want to talk about this more the next day because this isn’t right and I want to clear up whatever it is that she thinks is wrong, that I love her and to have a good night as it’s past 2am at that point. She proceeds to bring up past scenarios hours later while I’m well asleep and she knows this, guilt tripping me about how she was there for me whenever I needed to be in the hospital but that maybe I had forgotten what it meant to be best friends with her and she then blocks me on all socials knowing I can’t even fight for myself because I’m asleep. All socials save for one and that’s Insta.
I call her out on that shady bullshit and tell her that it’s absolutely unfair that I sat there and I was being an adult and admitting to my mistakes and apologizing for them only for her to push all the blame on me for not contacting her which we established that I had many times and not been acknowledged. I said, “The phone works 2 ways, Sadie, 2 ways. Do not sit there and act like you’re not to blame as well, especially when I’m here admitting fault and apologizing for it and you haven’t even bothered to claim some of that faulted responsibility. That’s fucked because if it were me having come to you, yet again, and this time you answered, I would’ve taken my part of the blame and admitted to my faults here as well, I wouldn’t’ve piled it all on you the way you did to me. I was honest with you and it seems that’s not what mattered to you, what mattered to you was putting untruths into my mouth to fit your narrative that “I hate you”, “that you never mattered to me” and so on. Again, not cool. Will it hurt to lose you? Absolutely, it’ll kill me to lose you permanently, but not at the expense of a lie you want so badly to be true.”
Not only that, but several times throughout this conversation, she would bring up something factual that happened, that she knew happened, only to turn around and say something snarky like, “I wouldn’t know what happened or I wouldn’t know about that because you never told me about it.” I sat there for a good moment afterwards, seriously questioning if she was drunk or high or a combo of the two and just crossfaded because it made no damned sense!!!
I’m not gonna lie, I’m truly hurt by all this. I cried happy tears when we first started talking because it had been so long, and then by the end of it, I was left baffled, hurt, confused, and feeling like I didn’t even know this person anymore and crying in a panic that this was all actually happening. That I somehow unknowingly became a villain to my own best friend, my sister. It still feels unreal, the whole thing was so all over the place, it gave me whiplash. I don’t know what to do and I apologize for putting a portion of me and my troubles on here, I just needed a safe space to vent and let loose because I’m warring with myself of if this is even still worth it with her because this feels so… icky. Like in my gut I can feel that this isn’t the same person I once knew and I’m only gonna find more upset, hurts and disappointment and that feeling causes even more hurt.
Idk guys, I’m tired and worn out. I cried a lot so that’s gonna and made me even more tired only with puffy, splotchy pinky/red rings around my eyes that now are sensitive to the touch from wiping them so much. But thank you for letting me do what I felt I needed to do and just let this mess out. I know it’s all over the place but I can’t even bring myself to fix anything if there’s errors and shit. Love y’all.
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theleftovertaco · 4 years
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Ratel
Someone sent me this amazingly specific ask about a Afro- Caribbean girl at Hogwarts and I loved the idea so this is the result. I would like to preface this by saying that I am not afro-Caribbean. While I did spend a few hours researching Trinidadian, Kenyan and Nigerian culture, food and customs, I am extremely sorry if anything here looks stereotypical or if i get something wrong. Please correct me if I mess up because I would never want to dishonor a person’s culture or country.
ONTO THE STORY
Y/N’s arrival had been a bit of an event. Transfer students were rare, and when they occurred, they were treated as a big deal, since often they only happened for some political reason of the students parents. This was exactly the case with Y/N
Dumbledore had stepped to the front of the Great Hall at the beginning of the year after the first years had been sorted and called everyone’s attention.
“This year, we have a new 4th year transfer student joining us,” excited chatter erupted around the room, “I trust you will make her feel welcome and show her what Hogwarts School is all about. Please welcome Mrs. Y/N  Y/L/N from Uagadou School of Magic in Uganda!” The doors opened and you walked through, head high and looking straight ahead despite the stares that followed you.
Professor McGonagall gave you a smile and instructed you to the stool for your sorting. 
The hat barely touched your head before “HUFFLEPUFF” was exclaimed and rapturous applause came from the yellow and black table. 
As you sat down for the feast, a tall boy with fluffy brown hair reached out to shake your hand, “I’m Cedric Diggory, sixth year. That was quite an entrance. Welcome to Hufflepuff.” 
“Thank you.”
“Are you surprised to be in our house? Honestly with the way you carried yourself I would have guessed Slytherin.”
“Not really. Hufflepuff is the house of the loyal, kind, and hardworking. Just because I’m sharp or harsh looking doesn’t mean I can’t have those traits.”
He looked at you in shock
“You’ve done your research. Yeah, I guess you’re right, a person can be more than one thing. So what’s Uganda like?”
“To be honest, I’m not sure. I went to school at Uagadou but my family is mostly Nigerian, Kenyan, and Trinidadian and most of my life we’ve spent moving around those areas and the Americas. My parents have some sort of business here for the next year or so, and I decided that I might as well try a new school, so they let me come here.” 
“Oh that sounds fun!” A younger blonde girl jumped into the conversation, “Sorry to interrupt. Hannah Abbot, third year.” You nodded her way and shook her hand as well as other Hufflepuff’s began to introduce themselves and listen into the conversation. 
“So,” Susan Bones asked, “Do you speak any other languages?” 
You nodded and listed them off, “Yes. Officially, English is the main language in Nigeria but in Kenya and Uganda, Swahili is also common. I also speak Spanish, Portugese, and I’m familiar with French and the Trinidadian dialects of French as well as French Creole.” A chorus of wows surrounded you. 
“What’s Uagadou like?”
“It’s nice, just very different from what I can tell. They are a lot more loose about how they teach things there. It’s strange, everyone here is dependent on wands.”
“You don’t use wands?”
“We do, but before that we’re taught to use magic with our hands and nonverbally. Helps avoid detection and makes it easy to still use magic if we’re disarmed. Dependence on a wand is pretty strictly European. Almost every other country learns without them first.”
“So you can just do magic, like with your hands?”
“Yup.” You flicked your fingers and the fork and knife in front of your plate did a little dance before picking up a piece of chicken and bringing it too your mouth.”
You looked around and your cutlery show had attracted the attention of a few of the surrounding houses students as well as professor Flitwick’s attention.
“That was marvelous, Mrs. Y/L/N! Would you mind demonstrating some of that again in my class tomorrow?” 
“Sure, I have charms tomorrow at 2 pm so it should work.” He nodded and walked back to his table with the other professors.
The conversation deviated and eventually with dinner over, you were ushered to the coziness of the Hufflepuff common room and dorms. Plants and comfy blankets were all about the rooms. This was exactly the house you belonged to.
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Breakfast the next day saw a new set of questions and some repeats from other houses students who hadn’t gotten the chance to ask. Word had made it’s rounds by then, and people realized you were exceptionally gifted. 
During your free period after lunch, you were practically assaulted by a set of identical red headed string beans.
“You’re the transfer student right?”
“Yes, I-”
“We heard you’re gifted.”
“I mean I suppose-”
“What else can you do?”
“Can you show us?”
“Someone said you’re already an animagus?”
“OK SHUSH! One. I am not a goddamn zoo animal for you to just ask to do tricks at your whim. Two. One question at a time, for fuck’s sake.” 
Shocked identical looks were followed by sheepish remorse.
“And three. Yes I am and animagus.”
One of them stepped forward.
“Sorry, that was kind of rude of us. We didn’t mean to come off so pushy. I’m George. He’s Fred.”
Fred also apologized and once you accepted, they asked again, albeit a little more gently.
“So, what animal can you turn into?” Fred asked slowly, like he thought he might annoy you again if he asked. 
“You don’t have to talk that slowly, I won’t bite.” Fred laughed some and motioned for you to continue.
“I’m a Ratel.”
“A wot?”
“Also known as a honey badger.”
“Ohhhh.” Fred gasped
“I actually like that better than honeybadger. Sounds nicer.”
“Can we call you that? Ratel?” You shrugged and from there on out Ratel was more your name than your actual one. The teachers, staff, students. Even Dumbledore called you that. 
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The one group of people you refused to tolerate was Malfoy and his goon-squad. 
It’s the superiority complex for me. 
And everyone. 
“How dare you look at me, filthy little-”
“Malfoy I know you weren’t just trying to beat up another first year.” You marched over to him with Neville, Luna, and the twins behind you. Crabbe and Goyle immediately dropped the Ravenclaw they had hoisted over their shoulders, and the small boy raced behind you and clutched onto your side. Crabbe and Goyle knew not to mess with you. Not after the thrashing you had given them before winter break. 
Apparently Draco hadn’t learned the same lesson.
“Technically, I wasn’t.”
“Not you trying to use that smart shit with me. Why don’t you pick on someone your own size.”
“And if I don’t? What are you gonna do Princess?”
Princess. Absolutely not. 
You stormed over to him, grabbed his pressed collar (fucking prick) and slammed him against a tree. 
“If you even look in the direction of any of the younger kids. If you even look my way, or my friends way, or anyone’s way really. I will shove your own wand so far up your ass your can taste it, throw you to the forbidden forest, chuck whatever is left of you at the Whomping Willow, and then throw the remains in a disintegrating solution. Don’t try me. You know I’ll do it.”
You leaned back, and then punched him in the sternum. He crumpled to the ground before stumbling back up and running off. 
You checked over the first year and then sent him on his way. As you walked off with the others, Neville spoke up. 
“I’ve never heard of a disintegrating solution. Did you just make that up?”
“No, my mother and her twin have this old family book of spells and potions. It’s been passed down through the past few generations and people add to it often.”
“Wicked! Is that how you managed to remove Parkinson’s nose the other day?” Fred asked.
“Yup. She still in the infirmary?” 
George laughed before responding, “Yeah, Pomphrey still can’t figure out how to reattach it and Parkinson refuses to say who did it.”
Everyone laughed as you headed to the library. 
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“What are you doing in here?” Dean and Seamus stepped behind the portrait in the kitchens. 
“Jesus CHRIST! You scared me.”
Seamus smiled and kissed your cheek, “Sorry, love. So, whatcha making?” He leaned over the pot you were stirring. 
“Trinidadian curry. I missed home, and no offense, but British food has little to no flavor.”
“None taken- Mm! Thasth really goof!” His mouth was full but you picked up the gist. Dean laughed as he also stole a bite.
“Quit it you two. It’s not quite done yet.” 
“Fine.”
“Sorry, Ratel.”
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“Harry James Potter!” Harry jumped as you stormed into the Gryffindor common room.
“How did you even get in here, you’re a hufflepuff?”
“Don’t change the subject. Why didn’t you tell me you were getting headaches? I just had to find out from Hermione!” 
“Ratel, it’s not a big deal calm dow-”
“Kid. If you’re getting headaches everyday you need to get some help for it.”
“I’m not a kid, and it’s none of your concern!”
“You’re my friend. Of course it’s my concern. And don’t pull all that ‘Oh I’m the Chosen One, I need to do shit by myself’ because it’s dumb, ok Harry.”
He paused, “Fine… I’m sorry.”
“Damn right you are, now sit your ass down and I’ll grab you a headache potion.”
“Ok… Hey, Ratel?”
“Yeah?”
“Thank you.”
--------------------------
“The mandrake leaf has been in your mouth all month, you’ll all be fine.” Fred, George, Seamus, Dean, Luna, Neville, Cedric, Ron, Harry and Hermione all stood surrounding you in a circle as you held a glass phial. A flask of a potion was passed around and then each of them chanted the needed incantation.
All around you, each of them shrunk or grew as their form took place. 
Fred and George transformed into identical hyenas who turned towards each other and erupted into a high pitched cacophony of screeching and laughing. Seamus turned into a phoenix with bright orange and yellow plumage, while Dean turned into a rather large fluffy golden retriever. Luna turned into a white hare and proceeded to dart around the hill you were on. Neville was now a meerkat. Cedric was a Lynx. Ron was now a roaring lion, Hermione now a river otter, and Harry a similar Stag to his father’s. 
You shrunk down to your badger form and the lot of you rushed around for the next few hours until the sun came up. Racing, messing with each other, 
Hogwarts had turned into home.
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If you saw something incorrect or inconsistent with any culture PLEASE LET ME KNOW SO I CAN FIX IT. There is such a lack of POC representation in the fandom and as someone who is latina, I love when I see even a scrap of representation so after this I will probably start doing more like this (likely more mexican/ salvadoran cause thats where a lot of my family is from).
Also I’m sorry if this is too long or I wasn't able to get every detail in I hope this was what anon wanted! 
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aestheticseungmean · 4 years
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Midnight Academy- Yeosang
You were born with magic, and because of that, you went to Midnight Academy. Yeosang caught your eye the first time you met him.
Magic Au, loosely based off of Harry Potter.
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Life as someone with magical powers can be fun if you knew how to use them. The wrong wrist motion could injure someone and the wrong pronunciation could turn someone into a frog and not a cat. Risks are a casual thing in the world of magic. There are many types of magic that each child will learn in Midnight Academy. It was a simple and quaint little school that was restored regularly. Not a crack lay in the foundation nor a chip of paint peeling from the wall at the start of the year. Throughout the year, typically, newer students blow up potions and cause the loaned rats to explode. Nasty business that is. The poor caretaker has to scrape the bits off the wall before scrubbing it clean.
You could see why he hated new students and trouble makers, they made his job impossible sometimes. If students were bad, their punishments consist of helping Mr.Darty with his job. Mr.Darty was an older elf gentleman with balding grey hair. More often than not, he was cranky as most of the staff were. He was always found accompanied by his favorite Sphynx cat, Chabiel. The two were inseparable as if the cat was his life support. Mr. Darty was not the only teacher who seemed to have an animal attached to them. Although he was by far, the one with the ugliest. Often, you’d see a mixture of miniature dragons, owls, cats, dogs, and even an occasional Harpy Eagle or Peregrine Falcon. They typically roamed the halls to deliver notes and packages to and fro their owners that the mailroom was too lazy to deliver or be bothered.
This year was a special one. It’s your first year at the Midnight Academy. Time to get away from the non-magical creatures. Muggles as they are called. You loathe your brothers whom you live with. Silence is scarce in that household and luckily, you were the only one who had inherited your mom’s recessive trait of witchcraft. She herself had not had any magic rather, she made up for it by being a very successful business tycoon. Often, you helped her manage some of her gaming companies and you tested them too. Hex Gaming Co. was the creator of some of the world’s most famous games such as Utopia, Weapons of Deception, Deception 2, Undying, and more. All of which were some magical role-playing game that was super addicting and had kids playing it everywhere. If you ever told anyone who your mom was then instant fame. Your dad, on the other hand, was not as famous but he was still a famous musician.
Aside from your brothers, the only person to know about your wealth and parents’ true jobs was your best friend, San. He had inherited magic but he’s also part incubus. You met him when he appeared on your block five summers ago. Fourteen was your current age now and you guys practically live with each other and do everything together. When most people hear that San is part incubus, they stay away because they are afraid of having their dreams visited. But what people didn’t stay to find out that San didn’t find the need to go into people’s dreams. Besides, he only found you slightly attractive, everyone else wasn’t even on the radar. Deep down you know that he might be bi but he will not let you have the satisfaction of being right.
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𝗬𝗲𝗮𝗿 𝗢𝗻𝗲
San and you entered into the school that is more intimidating the closer you get. The seeming mile-high doorway made you feel small enough already. All the new students were being crowded together to get handed their classes and dorms they were going to stay in. Of course, you will miss your brothers but you got San! You’d prefer that any day. “I hope we get the same dorms. I don’t think I’d be able to live without you.” “Me too, San. Me too.” To say that you weren’t scared for your life was an understatement. Anymore worrying and you’d be dead. Finally, your turn came around to get your scroll. The teacher administering them was undeniably short and part goblin. He had a snaggle tooth that stuck out of the bottom of his mouth and long Yoda like ears that stuck out of his head. Little hairs covered the face, they were minuscule but visible.
“Name.” The voice was gravely and harsh but you still gave him your name. “Here you go.” You took the parchment with shaky hands. San waited for you at the door. “I got Sapphire dorm!” As soon as your face fell, so did his. “I got Emerald dorm.” Emerald dorm has the reputation of some really mean and uptight people. They are usually the richest ones. “No escaping from my money now.” You groaned out. San placed a quick kiss to your cheek. “You got this.” He ignored the stares but you didn’t. Blood rushed towards your cheeks. A slender figure appeared in front of you. You recognized it as the teacher most often seen by the headmaster. Her voice was strong and dominant, perfect for teaching. She was aged like the expensive cheese your mom was forced to eat at business meetings. “ATTENTION! You are to go in and find the table corresponding with the dorm name you got. The headmaster will address you soon.” As you walked in, hand in hand with San, you were taken aback by the busy chatter. Almost immediately, you were pulled away from San and torn to the table decorated in different hues of green.
You know nobody so where to sit was nerve-wracking for you. “You can sit by me.” A hand waved in the air and you saw a boy giving you a cute smile. “Me?” He could be talking to anyone so you wanted to make sure. “Yeah! I’m new too.” With nowhere better to sit, you sat down next to the blond boy. “Hi! I’m Wooyoung and I hope we can be friends!” “I’m ________.” You smiled at him. A voice sounded through the room getting everyone’s attention. “Students. Most of you are coming back from a great year last year and I wish you a welcome. For the new students coming here this year, we all give you a warm welcome and wish you well in the following days to come. Make good friends, learn new things, and most importantly, do great things. I hope that I do not need to interfere with any problems as our teachers will deal with it accordingly. Just know, we will be paying attention.” Wooyoung and you shared a nervous look.
“For now, we feast!” Little fairies delivered the food to the table. Immediately, you recognized them as brownies. They are house fairies that live to clean as love dishes of cream. You loved the brownie that resides at your grandparents’ house. His name was Hayelam and he was the nicest creature you had ever met. At night when everyone was supposed to be asleep, you’d sneak out and leave a bowl of warm cream on the counter. It was a ritual and you couldn’t go to sleep without doing it. Maybe you could sneak some for them. Without thinking, you grabbed some cream. “Are you going to make whipped cream for this delicious pecan pie?” Wooyoung asked, causing you to look at him. “Ah no, habit. I’m going to heat it up somehow for the brownies.” “Brownies? Where?” You giggled at Wooyoung looking for actual brownies. “The house-elves silly. They love warm cream.”
Taking out your wand, you attempted to do a simple heat spell but it didn’t work. Neither did the next six tries. “Let me try.” How would he be able to do it? You watched in amazement as the metal bowl in his hands turned a soft red causing the cream to simmer a little. “Woah!” The cream was still hot when he set it down onto the table. “I’m a descendent of a fire fairy.” “I guess you could say that you’re hot.” Normally, San would give you a dirty look for your puns but Wooyoung loved it. Although he was laughing, he was dying inside from embarrassment. “Let’s dig in!” You exclaimed, grabbing a turkey leg and taking a bite. San laughed at you from afar glad that you found someone to talk to. Don’t forget about me. Get out of my head, San. Looking up, you caught him pouting but after you gave him a smile, he cheered up.
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“Mr.Song, would you be so kind as to answer this question on the board?” Your red-haired classmate stayed visibly slumped in his seat. He wasn’t the only one confused, you watched as Wooyoung got confused as well. Discreetly, you waved your wand and watched as the answer appeared on your seatmate’s notebook. Thank god that he saw it appear and reworded it. “In a sense, if you added blisterwort instead of chorus eggs then you would essentially get a toxic hair remover. Extremely dangerous if taken in as it acts as a poison as well. The victim would be dead within minutes.” “Very good, Mingi.” The teacher turned and continued on with her endless lecture. “Thank you,” Mingi whispered. “You’re welcome!” Your hushed voices caught the teacher’s attention and she was now standing in front of you. “What are you saying you’re welcome for?” Once again, Mingi froze up, you, on the other hand, were used to this pressure.
Thinking quickly of a lie, you responded calmly. “My seatmate asked me to help him with the things he doesn’t understand.” “Hmmm, all right. No more talking in my class.” The bell rang and the hallway became overfilled. “Wait up!” A hand on your shoulder made you jump. You turned and saw Mingi. He was taller than you thought, around 6’0. “Can you actually tutor me in alchemy?” “Sure. The defense room is empty around six.” He smiled and nodded. A different, smaller hand appeared on your shoulder except for this time, you recognized this hand. “San!” You were quick to hug him tight. “We have the next class together so I wanted to see if you wanted to walk with me and meet my new friend.” Playfully, you pinched him and pouted. “You’ve already replaced me?” “YOU REPLACED ME FIRST,” he whined. Mingi, who was still there, cleared his throat. “Oh yeah, San, this is Mingi, my classmate and friend. Mingi, this is San, my bestest friend in the entire world.
“What about me? I thought I was your bestest friend in the entire world and he was your BFF.” You giggled as you watched Wooyoung walk up still whining and complaining about your rejection. “Woo, of course, I love you. You two are my bestest friends in the whole wide world.” Once you introduced the two, Mingi went on his way while you, San, Wooyoung, and San’s friend whom you later learned was named Seonghwa, walked towards class. You watched as San waved bye to his newfound friend before walking into class with him and Wooyoung. In the middle of class, you watched as a 2nd-year student came in to get the teacher to break up a fight. “MR.OIEK! YEOSANG AND TJUM ARE FIGHTING RIGHT NOW.” “Lead the way, Hongjoong.” The class rushed towards the windows where there was a clear view of the courtyard.
Unfortunately, you got pushed out of the door during the madness and fell right into one of the boys. For a moment, the boys stopped and stared at you which let the teacher neutralize them. “Why are you out here Miss.____?” “I-I got pushed. Sorry, sir.” You hung your head in shame, not wanting to look into his intimidating eyes. Ignoring the pain in your wrist or the odd warm feeling on your lip, you stood up. “Yeosang, I trust that as a 2nd year you can show her to the nurse’s office.” “Yes sir.” When you started to protest, the boy gave you a look, the one your brothers gave you when you should shut up. Sighing, both of you started trekking towards the nurse’s office well aware of the fact that you’ll be missing the next class too. With Yeosang leading the way, you couldn’t help but take in his figure from behind.
“Right in here.” “I’m fine, I really don’t know why you are taking me to the nurse.” The look on Yeosang’s face made you question if you were losing your mind. “You are bleeding from a cut on your face and your wrist is sprained.” If that wasn’t convincing enough, the nurse told you the same thing. There wasn’t much she could do quickly so she gave you a concoction of herbs to help heal you. “Wait here for a few minutes so it can start working.” You nodded and watched as the old woman sauntered away, mahogany robes swishing with each step. As soon as the door shut, you turned to Yeosang who was forced to stay with you. He was entranced by something outside of the window, a bird perhaps. His features were vague but what stood out to you was a birthmark adorning his left eye. Your gaze traveled down his body, crossing over his arms and his black robe with a sapphire blue trim and down further. Underneath the undone robe, you caught sight of the pressed button-up with the top two undone showing the perfect amount of collarbone.
His gaze flickered towards you and you looked at your feet, avoiding the blush of the fact that he caught you when you were checking him out. “I saw that, you just checked me out.” A meek sorry was all that you could manage, your face ten times redder now that he called you out. Luck was on your side, the nurse returned and assessed the healing. She warned you not to strain your wrist too much until tomorrow. You agreed and followed Yeosang back to where lunch was being held. All through lunch, you couldn’t take your eyes off of the older boy and you completely ignored what Wooyoung was saying. It wasn’t until Yeosang caught your eye that you looked away, nodding to whatever Wooyoung was saying. You still threw him glances and at one point, you swore you saw him smile. Or smirk. Either way, you finally focused on Wooyoung and whatever he was saying.
Lunch ended and it was time for the next lesson. Fighting. For some reason, the school decided to do second years and first years together, something about the experience. The teacher, short and balding, partnering you up with a short boy, definitely a second year, about two inches taller. His casual laid back posture made him look superior despite the fact that you won every sparing round. “Petrificus Totalus!” You flicked your wand before he could blink and once again, he found himself bound, unable to move. “Very good work, Miss._____!” The boy, whom you later learned was named Hongjoong, congratulated you on doing well while pouting. You thought it was absolutely cute. The bell rang and you stayed behind. There was still a few hours before dinner and Mingi was supposed to meet you. A tall figure emerged behind you and then another.
“I hope you don’t mind, I brought a friend.” “Do they need tutoring too?” Mingi shook his head. “Great work at fighting today, Hongjoong couldn’t even raise his wand.” Mingi’s friend, who was as tall as him if not taller, sported black robes with an emerald green trim. Same as yours and you can’t fathom how you missed someone as tall as him roaming around the dorm. “I’m Yunho by the way.” His cute smile gave you puppy vibes and you forced the instinct to cuddle him away. Mingi introduced you quickly to move on through to alchemy. You couldn’t help but giggle when his potion failed and he screamed at it. “I DID YOU RIGHT! YOU JUST DON'T LIKE ME, DO YOU?” Eventually, you found yourself rolling on the floor laughing when Yunho had put a silencing hex on Mingi. Mingi continued to scream but nothing came out. “You only get your voice returned when you get a kiss on the cheek.” Mingi sheepishly looked at you and leaned closer. “Yunho…” He laughed and ended the hex. Mingi was taken aback at first but ultimately ended up laughing along. Maybe this year wouldn’t be so bad after all.
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Year two
Grey clouds rolled overhead signaling the start of another gloomy season. You, San, Wooyoung, Seonghwa, Mingi, Yunho, and Hongjoong trudged towards the train car that was to take you back to the academy. Surprisingly enough, you realized that the boys didn’t live that far from you. As summer rolled along, you and the six boys grew closer and of course, your brothers liked them too. Yeosang, you found, should’ve been in the emerald dorm but something got screwed up in the housing situation. The rumor got around that he was being switched back to the correct dorm though only time will tell. Although, it would be quite awkward. The seven of you were confused to find someone in your car already. A boy of a stronger build and brown hair sat by the window staring out of it. “Hello?” His head snapped towards you. “I’m sorry, am I in your area?” He was new, you could feel it, the newbie energy radiating off of him. You knew the others could too. “It’s okay! You can sit with us. I mean you’re new aren’t you?” Gosh, you love how kind Wooyoung is. He’s so sweet, you are surprised you don’t have a cavity. “Y-Yeah.” As you all settled in, the boy introduced himself as Jongho.
We introduced ourselves and soon got lost in laughter and conversation. “Did you see the new Deception: End Of Time game is coming out tomorrow?” Wooyoung asked. An abundance of yeahs and can’t waits filled the car in agreement. “You’ll love it. I did.” The boys looked at you in confusion. San laughed and nudged you. These people didn’t know you were one of the testers of the game let alone the daughter of the creator. “My mom runs that company and created those games. I test them out.” “You have to convince her to let us test some out too.” You giggled at Jongho’s enthusiasm. “Maybe during spring break. I know mom is working on a big game.” They cheered quietly. San a little more considering he’s done it before and knows the excitement of giving suggestions. It was also a bonus when the character he creates in the test is a character that gets added to the game and is already situated to his stats.
The ride to the school felt short. Jongho proved to be a perfect fit for your friend group. He sank back at the intensity of the school but you and your friends ushered him forwards. “Don’t worry! You’re only alone until they give you a dorm and there is at least one of us in each dorm.” The first year smiled and watched as you guys sat at your respected tables. It wasn’t that long of a wait considering his surname was a C. He quickly found that he got ruby dorm. It turns out for you that Yeosang and Yunho got mixed up therefore Yunho was with San and Yeosang got transferred into his rightful dorm. The headmaster made his welcoming speech before launching into an apology. “I’d like to wish a formal apology towards two-third years. I humbly ask for you to see this as a way to make new friends.”
You glanced over at Yeosang getting surrounded by a bunch of people welcoming him into the emerald dorm. His face looked panicked, clear that he was not used to all this attention. Wooyoung seemed to notice it too and felt for his hyung. “Yeosang, hyung! You can sit with us if you want.” He looked at the two of you, happy, ecstatic to see two faces he knew. A year ago, if someone would’ve told you that you’d be sitting with Kang Yeosang, you’d have laughed in their face. But here you are now, sitting face to face with the boy. His eyes met yours and you fell into a trance. “Earth to ______!” “Sorry, what were you saying?” Wooyoung repeated his words once again, not even bothered that you had zoned out once more. The bell rang and you jumped up, ready to head to the dorms, forgetting the tradition you and Wooyoung did every day last year. “Are we not going to heat up some cream for the brownies?” You turned and nodded sheepishly while grabbing a bowl of cream someone had left. Yeosang watched in amazement as Wooyoung's hands caused the liquid to bubble.
The following weeks of school consisted of review and having awkward run-ins with Yeosang. It wasn’t until your professor introduced teleportation to you that things got started. All second years had to learn how to use their magic and teleport from one place to another. And with most people, you initially aren’t the greatest when you start to learn something. For the next few days, you’ve practiced and practiced, only teleporting to the common room and back to your room. Unfortunately, the following day, you were going to be tested on your skills, and frankly, you could barely even make it out of your bedroom. This is how you found yourself at two in the morning on the roof of the mailroom trying to teleport from one end to the other.
You closed your eyes and imagined the other side and muttered some hopeful words that this would actually work. A quiet pop sounded and you opened your eyes to complete darkness. Trying to find your way out of wherever you were, you blindly walked around only stopping when you hit your ankle on something metal. The surface you fell on was a mix between hard and soft. A pained groan emitted from behind you causing you to let out a few choice words. In the midst of the rant, a light turned on and you caught Yeosang’s brown eyes boring into yours. “Well, this is most definitely not where I wanted to teleport, sorry for appearing in your bed at 2 in the morning.” The words lingered in the air and neither one of you moved. Maybe you should just give up and fail the test.
A sigh left Yeosang’s lips and he grabbed his wand. You watched curiously as he stood up and took a place beside you. “Hold my hand.” “H-Hold your what?” His hand grabbed yours and you felt the familiar swirly feeling that you got when you teleported. A cold breeze brushed your cheeks and you shivered realizing that you were back outside. “Why did you bring me here?” This was the first time, you actually went into the gym despite this being your second year. “I’ve been hearing from Wooyoung that you have a test tomorrow and I…I wanted to help you learn to teleport.” You wanted to hold Yeosang and treasure him forever but that would be quite awkward. “Okay then. What are we waiting for?”
Turns out that either you’re a great teleporter or Yeosang is a great teacher. You opted for Yeosang though because without him, you would’ve failed. In fact, you actually aced your test. The first one since the best friend test that you did with San in first grade. When the students were to return to the dorm, you waited excitedly with the little slip of paper in your hand. For the first time, Yeosang was late back to the dorm. He found you asleep on the couch beside Wooyoung who was doing his homework. “Hey, hyung!” “Hi, Wooyoung. Why is she asleep?” He asked, pointing to your form. “She wanted to show you that she aced her test and she waited and waited for you. I came out to keep her company but she fell asleep.” Yeosang carried you to your room and tucked you into your bed. He left a note with one of the post-its that he found on your desk along with your unfinished homework. He’ll apologize tomorrow for leaving you waiting for so long.
The knock on your door woke you up. When you opened your eyes, you saw the sunlight peeping in through the cloudy windows. “Rise and shine, angel. It’s almost time for class.” Shoot. Class. You rushed to get dressed only stopping momentarily to read the note attached to your now finished homework. ‘I’m sorry I kept you waiting, I had some things I had to do. Meet me on the rooftop tonight at midnight so we can celebrate your success. -Yeosang’ You shoved the paper and the note in your bag before running out to the common room. “Come on Woo! We’re going to be late for class.” You two rushed to the Alchemy classroom and took your assigned seats. A smile formed on your face as you saw your seatmate had already made it there. “Good morning, Sannie!” “Morning, Sunshine.” He smiled at your chirpiness and returned his attention to the homework he was rushing to finish.
The day buzzed by and midnight arrived quickly. Quietly, you teleported to the roof and saw Yeosang already sitting on the edge. “Such a pretty moon, isn’t it?” His question caught you off guard. Had he heard you arriving. “Yes, I suppose so.” “So I heard you aced your test for the first time. Glad I could help.” You took a seat next to him and sighed, watching your breath form a cloud in the chilly air. “Thank you. I can’t tell you how much you’ve helped me.” “I want to make a deal. For each test you ace, I’ll tell you something about me.” Yeosang is a mysterious person and plus you had so many questions about him. Why is he in the Emerald dorm? Favourite food? Cats or dogs? Why go to the academy? Why teach you? “For your first test, I’ll tell you what everyone wants to know. How am I in the ‘rich’ people dorm?”
He told you how his dad was a very famous doctor and his mother was a famous chef. His deal made you ace all your tests-with help from him of course- for the rest of the school year. By the time summer rolled around, you practically knew his entire life story, like how he loves the colors red and black or how much he treasures his drones. You knew that he vents by riding a skate board and he loves to play your mom’s videogames. His reaction was just like the other’s when you told him who your mom was. Yeosang demanded -more like pleaded but he won’t admit that- to meet your mom and praise her for her games. When you introduced him to the guys, they all welcomed him with open arms aside from Hongjoong and Seonghwa who were previously friends with him already.
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You walked around blindly, only stopping when you hit your ankle on something metal. The surface you fell on was a mix between hard and soft. A pained groan emitted from behind you causing you to let out a few choice words. In the midst of the rant, a light turned on and you caught Yeosang’s brown eyes boring into yours. “Well, this is most definitely not where I wanted to teleport, sorry for appearing in your bed at 2 in the morning.” The words lingered in the air and neither one of you moved. Maybe you should just give up and fail the test.
A sigh left Yeosang’s lips and he grabbed his wand. You watched curiously as he stood up and took a place beside you. “Hold my hand.” “H-Hold your what?” His hand grabbed yours and you felt the familiar swirly feeling that you got when you teleported. A cold breeze brushed your cheeks and you shivered realizing that you were back outside. “Why did you bring me here?” This was the first time, you actually went into the gym despite this being your second year. “I’ve been hearing from Wooyoung that you have a test tomorrow and I…I wanted to help you learn to teleport.” You wanted to hold Yeosang and treasure him forever but that would be quite awkward. “Okay then. What are we waiting for?”
Turns out that either you’re a great teleporter or Yeosang is a great teacher. You opted for Yeosang though because without him, you would’ve failed. In fact, you actually aced your test. The first one since the best friend test that you did with San in first grade. When the students were to return to the dorm, you waited excitedly with the little slip of paper in your hand. For the first time, Yeosang was late back to the dorm. He found you asleep on the couch beside Wooyoung who was doing his homework. “Hey, hyung!” “Hi, Wooyoung. Why is she asleep?” He asked, pointing to your form. “She wanted to show you that she aced her test and she waited and waited for you. I came out to keep her company but she fell asleep.” Yeosang carried you to your room and tucked you into your bed. He left a note with one of the post-its that he found on your desk along with your unfinished homework. He’ll apologize tomorrow for leaving you waiting for so long.
The knock on your door woke you up. When you opened your eyes, you saw the sunlight peeping in through the cloudy windows. “Rise and shine, angel. It’s almost time for class.” Shoot. Class. You rushed to get dressed only stopping momentarily to read the note attached to your now finished homework. ‘I’m sorry I kept you waiting, I had some things I had to do. Meet me on the rooftop tonight at midnight so we can celebrate your success. -Yeosang’ You shoved the paper and the note in your bag before running out to the common room. “Come on Woo! We’re going to be late for class.” You two rushed to the Alchemy classroom and took your assigned seats. A smile formed on your face as you saw your seatmate had already made it there. “Good morning, Sannie!” “Morning, Sunshine.” He smiled at your chirpiness and returned his attention to the homework he was rushing to finish.
The day buzzed by and midnight arrived quickly. Quietly, you teleported to the roof and saw Yeosang already sitting on the edge. “Such a pretty moon, isn’t it?” His question caught you off guard. Had he heard you arriving. “Yes, I suppose so.” “So I heard you aced your test for the first time. Glad I could help.” You took a seat next to him and sighed, watching your breath form a cloud in the chilly air. “Thank you. I can’t tell you how much you’ve helped me.” “I want to make a deal. For each test you ace, I’ll tell you something about me.” Yeosang is a mysterious person and plus you had so many questions about him. Why is he in the Emerald dorm? Favourite food? Cats or dogs? Why go to the academy? Why teach you? “For your first test, I’ll tell you what everyone wants to know. How am I in the ‘rich’ people dorm?”
He told you how his dad was a very famous doctor and his mother was a famous chef. His deal made you ace all your tests-with help from him of course- for the rest of the school year. By the time summer rolled around, you practically knew his entire life story, like how he loves the colors red and black or how much he treasures his drones. You knew that he vents by riding a skate board and he loves to play your mom’s videogames. His reaction was just like the other’s when you told him who your mom was. Yeosang demanded -more like pleaded but he won’t admit that- to meet your mom and praise her for her games. When you introduced him to the guys, they all welcomed him with open arms aside from Hongjoong and Seonghwa who were previously friends with him already.
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𝙔𝙚𝙖𝙧 𝙏𝙝𝙧𝙚𝙚
Everything was the same as last summer except this time, Yeosang was involved. The same playful banters and video games nights proceeded as normal. The adventures and park dates continued. To them, Yeosang was just another family member, not an outsider. Everything was the same down to a T. The ten of you gathered on the train once again to head to yet another year at the academy. For you, it was the third year of your life but for the older three, it was the beginning of their last year at the academy. Four years is the total amount of schooling needed to be deemed okay enough to use magic on the streets. Although, some students head onto university to further their magic education or regular education depending on who you ask. If you asked your mom, she’d say something along the lines of it’s not her place but four years is way too short.
The dorm rooms were the same as usual, clean and tiny. It almost feels like home. You sighed and sat your bags on the bed and headed to the common room to spend some time with Wooyoung. When you got downstairs, he was sitting there staring at the fire. “Hey, Woo! Long time no see.” You joked around. He smiled and tackled you in a hug. “You saw me thirty minutes ago but it does feel like forever.” He squeezed you extra tight before letting go and returning to his original seat. He patted the seat indicating that he wanted you to sit so you did. The seat was slightly warmed by the heat of the fire. It was cozy and swallowed you into the cushion. “Wooyoung?” He hummed and turned his head towards, signaling that you had his attention. “What’s going to happen to the friend group now? I mean it’s Hongjoong, Seonghwa, Yunho and Yeosang’s last year. Next year Mingi, San, you and I are graduating. And, Jongho will be last. I’m scared, Woo. I don’t want to lose us.”
His eyes softened and he ran his fingers through his hair which showcased his sad eyes. It was evident, he didn’t want to lose you and the guys either. Unbeknownst to you, from the staircase, Yeosang was heartbroken and his eyes threatening to spill tears. Before he came to this school, he was a nobody. A quiet kid who was good at school and had anxiety. He couldn’t make friends, it was impossible. Yeosang couldn’t stop embarrassing himself in front of his classmates. He had told you all this already after you aced your transformation test at the very end of the year. Your words on that night will forever play in his head as a way of remembering that he could make friends who loved him. “Yeosang-ah. I want you to know that if you ever need a friend, just call me and I’ll be there.” No way could he let you guys go. Back in reality, you cried silently into Wooyoung’s sweater. Yeosang had to control his own emotions before helping you, besides, Wooyoung looked like he was doing a good job.
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You hated Yeosang. You hated that he had you putty in his hands but was completely oblivious to it. Either you were going to confess or you were going to die. Those are your only two options until you told San and he suggested using a love potion. It seemed like a good idea at first but it soon became a fiasco. Neither one of you knew how to make a love potion, that was advanced stuff. Something Yunho would know. This is how you found yourself in the kitchen baking a ‘Love Cupcake” as the boys called it. “I don’t know if I’d be scared or honoured if a girl slipped me a love potion.” San pondered out loud to no one in particular. “I’d be scared.” “Yunho, you aren’t helping my mind.” He smiled and let out a quick ah as if he was going to say something. “This is the perfect thing for Yeosang. I’m tired of seeing you go for an oblivious idiot.”
The cupcake turned out messy and San ended up wearing more than half the icing due to a wrong cut to the tip of the bag. But all in all, you were pretty impressed with the look of the sweet pastry. The yellow cake topped with the light red icing was placed on a paper plate. You carefully held it and met up with the rest of the boys in the courtyard. “Yeosang! I have this for you. As a thank you.” Yeosang grabbed the cupcake and took a bite. He hummed in delight and watched you throw away the plate. “This is delicious. Thank you.” According to Yunho, once the item containing the potion is consumed, it will take up to twenty-four hours for it to set in. You mustered up the most innocent smile you could form. Now, you wait.
𝑇ℎ𝑟𝑒𝑒 𝑑𝑎𝑦𝑠 passed and Yeosang was still acting the same as usual. No compliments, no flirting, no heart eyes. Maybe the potion was incorrect. Not possible, Yunho aced that class. Maybe, it didn’t work. It doesn’t hurt to ask the ‘Potion Master’ if something went wrong. “Three days passed and he’s still acting the same. Is it possible that it failed?” “No way. I’ve seen this work before. There’s no chance for it to go wrong.” Now you were forced to confess. Well, eventually. You turned to go back to your dorm to vent to your diary. “Hey, _____!” That smooth, deep voice set you off. You turned towards Yeosang and stomped up to him. “You-“ you forcefully poked him in the chest. “I slipped you a love potion but what the hell? You’re not even acting different.” You threw your hands up in the air in defeat at his confused look.
“Maybe, if you used your brain, you would’ve noticed a lot sooner that I like you.” Yeosang towered over you and watched as you stood in place dumbfounded. “Close your mouth princess, you’ll catch bugs.” “Y-You like me? Like, like like?” At this point, Yeosang was fed up with your obliviousness as hypocritical as it seems. “If it weren’t against the rules, I’d kiss you.” “Screw the rules!” The boys were cheering as you and Yeosang snuck a quick kiss. “Meet me on the roof tonight for our first date.” A smile appeared on your face and suddenly, you couldn’t wait for midnight to roll around. As excited you were for the night, it seems like mother time had other plans. The seconds seemed to pass by slow, almost as if each tick was an hour itself. Finally, midnight rolled around and you teleported to the roof to find Yeosang sitting on a blanket surrounded by a bunch of food. What a perfect first date for you.
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justtoarguewithyou · 4 years
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9/28: New Beginnings
day 10 of @swottypotter comfort minifest. something completely different from me. i’ve had so much fun. thank you, @swottypotter!!!
Sirius stood outside Remus’ house with a boombox, playing Peter Gabriel’s “In Your Eyes.”
The first few times he’d played the song, he’d held the boombox over his head, like Lloyd Dobler in “Say Anything.” He and Remus had been to see that in the theatre three times that spring. Remus loved romantic comedies. Sirius loved Remus.
Sirius had put the boom box down, and sat on his longboard in the drive way instead, yelling at Remus to come out.
“Come on, Remus,” Sirius yelled. “I’ll stay here all night.”
Hope twitched open the living room curtains, and gave Sirius a small wave. Sirius was drinking from the bottle of water he’d brought in his backpack. He was trying to follow the shade as it shifted along the driveway. He’d been out there for 45 minutes. The song was starting for the 9th time.
Hope, who had started singing along under her breath, turned to her son. “Remus, I really think he would stay all night. I don’t see why your father and I should have to suffer through all that noise.”
She covered her burgeoning smile with her hand, and did her best to not sway along to the music. She loved Sirius, and all his grand gestures. It reminded her of her husband, Lyall, when they were young. And she loved her son. But she also knew her son could hold a grudge like no one else. She wasn’t proud that he had inherited that from her.
Remus stomped over to the couch and sat down with a huff.
“Remus!” Sirius yelled. “I gave you my heart! Please don’t give me a pen!”
Sirius had used his brother’s tape recorder held up to his own stereo to dub the song onto an old cassette single. With just this song on both sides, and no need to rewind, he could keep this up all night. Or at least, as long as his batteries lasted. He’d put in new ones, and packed extra, just in case. He also brought the power cord. Sirius had never been a Boy Scout. But he did believe in being prepared.
Lyall came to the window as the song ended. He gave Sirius a big wave. Sirius waved back.
“Hi, Lyall!” Sirius yelled, and then flipped the cassette over. He shrugged apologetically.
Lyall turned to Remus and said, “Tell me, son, what exactly did he do?”
Remus looked away from his parents and mumbled.
“Louder, dear,” his mother said.
“He came up behind me while I was working and grabbed me. I didn’t see him come in, and I wasn’t expecting it, so I screamed like a little girl in front of everyone. All the customers, and my boss,” Remus emphasized.
Remus was working at the mall that summer to help save up for his college expenses. Sirius’s Uncle Alphard was helping him pay for college, so Sirius was unemployed. He often loitered around the mall food court, waiting for Remus to take his breaks. He always had an Orange Julius ready for Remus’s lunch breaks.
“Did he apologize?” Hope asked, biting her lips together after asking the question, to keep from smiling. She knew she wouldn’t improve Remus’ mood by appearing amused.
Sirius answered as though he could hear her.
“I said I was sorry. Come on, Remus. It’s so hot out here…” Sirius lifted his shirt to wipe the sweat off forehead. Hope sighed. She remembered when Lyall had abs…
“It was undignified!” Remus pouted on the sofa, his arms crossed.
Lyall rolled his eyes, and went to the kitchen to pour Sirius a glass of cold lemonade. He walked it outside.
“I think you’re breaking him down,” Lyall said, and sat down on the driveway.
“Remus!” Lyall yelled. “Come on out!”
Sirius gave Lyall a high five, and the two of them laughed. Sirius gulped his lemonade, and put the empty glass down in the grass. Lyall usually took Sirius’s side, as he knew his son could be very stubborn. Lyall remembered what it was like to be on the receiving end of Hope’s stubbornness. He swayed along with the chorus.
“You’re both off to college soon,” Lyall said, pulling himself out of the song.
“Yeah. I’m really looking forward to it,” Sirius said.
Sirius had been accepted to the California Institute of the Arts to study animation. His uncle had also put him in touch with some friends at Pixar, a relatively new company that was getting into computer animation. Sirius was excited about the possibilities.
“It won’t be easy, being so far apart,” Lyall said, with a sneaking suspicion his son was upset about more than the incident at the mall. Remus was planning to study math at UC Berkeley.
“No,” Sirius said. “But, I know I want to be with Remus. And we can write, and I’ve already bought us some long-distance calling cards so we can call each other, and we can see each other on weekends and breaks. Alphard said he’d help me buy a car.”
“I’m just not sure a long-distance relationship…” Lyall began.
“Mr. Lupin,” Sirius said solemnly, holding his hand out to stop Lyall’s train of thought. “I love your son. I know your son. I know he’s in there pouting because I embarrassed him today. I know I’ll probably be in your driveway for another couple of hours unless Mrs. Lupin can talk him into forgiving me sooner.”
Lyall groaned. The concrete was very hard. But he had chosen to cross the battle lines.
“But,” Sirius continued, “there’s nowhere I’d rather be. I know you think we’re 18, and we’re idiots, and that I sound like a moron for saying Remus is my destiny. But he is. I know he is.”
Sirius shrugged his shoulders and smiled at Lyall. What else could he say?
Lyall sighed, thinking Sirius sounded very young. And he looked very young, Lyall thought, as Sirius sat there in his neon green board shorts, and old white tank top. Sirius had let his hair grow long, and Lyall thought he looked like a surfer more than ever.
Maybe when Remus has gone, and he and Hope had time for themselves again, he’d take up surfing, Lyall thought. He’d had abs once. He wondered how long it would take him to get them back. He was still a relatively young man. Not even 40! He’d just turned 37.
Even though he’d never let on, Lyall Lupin was a firm believer in young love. He and Hope had married shortly after high school graduation, even with the threat of the Draft looming over him, and had Remus 9 months after that. They were still so happy together. He loved his wife, he loved his son. He loved this doofus, sitting beside him in “the light, the heat.”
Inside, Hope sat on the much softer couch with her son.
“Is this just about what happened at work?” she asked knowingly, pushing her son’s hair out of his eyes.
“No,” Remus said, curling into her lap.
“What is it, then, baby?” she asked her only baby. Maybe she and Lyall would have another. She was only 36. It had been so hard when they were young, working in a canning factory. Then, she’d had Remus, and had stayed at home with him. They’d never had that much money. Lyall joined the Navy, and they ended up in California. But she loved her husband, and her son. She was excited about his going to college—the first of their family to go.
“What if we go away to college, and Sirius decides he wants to break up?” Remus asked. Hope sighed. “What if we grow apart? What if he meets some devastatingly handsome surfer person, or some artistic soul and decides that they have more in common, and he doesn’t want a nerd like me who loves poetry and math?”
“Well, my dear, my crystal ball is in the shop. But I can tell you that Sirius must love you an awful lot if he’s been sitting outside in the heat for this long.”
“I’m scared, mom.”
“I know, dear,” she rubbed his shoulder. “I can’t tell you what the future holds, but I can tell you not to be stubborn and make yourself miserable for no reason. Believe me, baby. It doesn’t make your life any easy to hurt before there’s any reason to.”
She smiled at her kiddo. Her smart, stubborn, grudge-holding kiddo.
“Ugh, I love you so much. Just like me. Go on. Take pity on Sirius and your father. Let’s go get a burrito down the street. I’m not cooking tonight. And then we can go to the beach for a while. Okay?”
“All right,” Remus sighed, and his mother squeezed him tight.
“It won’t be easy, but you’ll be ok. Look me and dad. We’ve lived through so much. College will be a piece of cake.”
Remus smiled, and got up smoothed his shorts, and wiped his eyes.
Remus opened the screen door, and looked sheepishly at Sirius, who jumped up the second Remus opened the door.
“Hi,” Sirius said, turning off the boom box, and tucking his hair behind his ears.
“Hi.” Remus said.
“Thank goodness,” Lyall said, pushing himself up, and smiling at his wife. He picked up the glass, and put it inside the door. Hope came out with her purse, and their beach bag packed with towels, and a blanket, and sun screen. She jingled the car keys at Lyall, handed him the keys.
Lyall smiled at her, and kissed her cheek. “Stubborn, just like his mother,” he whispered in her ear.
They got into the station wagon, and rolled down the windows, and waited.
“I’m sorry,” Sirius said, reaching out to hold Remus’s hand. “I didn’t mean to embarrass you. I just knew you were about to get off work, and I was excited to see you.”
“I’m sorry, too. I’m just…”
“Hungry,” Lyall said from the driver’s seat. “Come on boys. Talk on the way.”
Sirius kissed Remus’s cheek, and Remus smiled at him.
They went to dinner, and laughed, and Hope and Lyall told stories about their being young and in love. Sirius smiled at Remus with all of his easy confidence, and Remus knew that he was a lot like his mom: patient and loving and strong.
“If you guys can make it through deployments, I think Remus and I can make it through a few semesters apart,” Sirius said, holding Remus’s hand under the table.
Lyall grinned at them. Dorks, the both of them.
They went to the beach after, and while the boys swam, Lyall pressed play on Sirius’s boom box, and the song started somewhere in the middle.
Lyall sang into Hope’s ear, and she giggled, as he grabbed her behind.
“In your eyes, the light, the heat, I am complete,” Lyall sang.
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teamxdark · 4 years
Text
More Office AU stuff
Kay: I got my security guard job through Lamorak. Apparently he just told the boss that I am big and intimidating and that got me my interview. Arthur hired me on the spot.
Kay: This building has never been safer. People say hello and goodbye to me. Dindrane brings me lunch. Life isn’t as bad as I thought it would be. Fuck what my parents told me.
...
Lancelot: Someone in the office set an alarm for 5pm every day, so now whenever it’s time to pack up and leave, YMCA plays very loudly.
Lancelot: It used to be just Arthur and Guin, but it’s gotten to the point that, whenever that song plays, everyone stops working, does the arm motions when the chorus hits, and we all leave on time because we’re out of work-mode. It’s resulted in no overtime, which the higher-ups like, but slower productivity, which they don’t like. But people are less stressed out, which tilts the balance more in our favour.
Guin: *passing by, pauses to listen*
Lancelot: I have no idea who started it, but ending every workday with the YMCA song is honestly brilliant and I wish I knew who to thank.
Guin: *smirks, winks at the camera, and leaves*
....
Tristan: Guinevere has a framed picture on her desk.
Tristan: It’s not of her husband. It’s not of her family. It’s not of her friends. It’s not even of her. It’s a picture of her pet lizard, Omega.
Tristan: I consider myself a powerful, go-getter type woman in the workplace, but that lady is fearless and is going places. There are some things in this world that just command instant respect from others, and apparently a framed picture of your pet lizard is one of them.
....
Smithy: Being part of the product design and manufacturing team is fun here because there’s three of us: me, Enid, and Dindrane. We all like listening to music while we work, so we alternate playlists every day.
Smithy: I’m the kind of guy who just makes one big playlist every time I hear or remember a song I like. I add it to the list. I’ve got hours of music at the ready and on my days, we never hear a song twice, unless the shuffle option glitches.
Smithy: But the other two? Very specific in their music tastes.
Smithy: Enid? He likes songs that sound upbeat but have downer lyrics that you don’t always notice at first. Things like Pumped Up Kicks, 99 Luftballons, Jump, and lots of songs by Third Eye Blind.
Smithy: Dindrane? Her playlist is entirely metal and alternative rock in every language that isn’t English. I can’t name a single song or band on that playlist. The one exception is Macarena. Dindrane knows the actual lyrics to the Macarena and that’s a power that no one should have.
Smithy: One thing’s for sure, though. None of us can resist singing along to Bohemian Rhapsody, even though none of us can sing.
....
Enid: I’m part of the production team, but I’m more of a designer than a builder. I help draw up plans, but when it comes to making the prototypes, it’s all my coworkers. On the flip side, I’m the main graphic designer for the branch. I make a lot of advertisement concepts and show them to the boss.
Enid: Here’s the thing... I got bored once and I made an alternative design one day with the slogan “Avalon Industries, Because Fuck You”. I accidentally showed that one to the boss and he laughed for five minutes straight and taped it to the fridge.
Enid: Now I always make two designs. One to submit, and one for the fridge. Sometimes it’s a dumb caption. Sometimes I badly photoshop a meme into the design. Once I just gave a blank paper with the words “Insert Ad Here”.
Enid: We have a wall dedicated to my art and I’m honestly more proud of that than any design the company actually uses.
.......
Gaheris: I make sure to celebrate everyone’s birthday in some way or another. Not everyone wants to make a big fuss, so sometimes it’s as simple as leaving a snack or a brand new stapler or something on their desk.
Gaheris: Guin and Lancelot share a birthday, so that’s always a big celebration. I don’t think any work gets done that day. We’re all usually partied out by the time Arthur’s birthday rolls around a few days later. I still leave some cupcakes and fruit out on that day.
Gaheris: The thing is, when my birthday rolls around, I reap what I sow. Last time, my desk was covered in cake and flowers and cards and I couldn’t uncover the phone for a good twenty minutes.
Gaheris: As far as problems go, that’s a pretty neat problem to have.
.....
Bors: Pros of living with one of your best friends who also works in the same place as you? Save money on carpooling. Save money on rent. When one of you is tired, the other can look after your son who always seems to have endless energy. Lunch is easier to plan. With all the money we save, Elyan goes to a good school and we can afford his extracurriculars.
Bors: Cons of living with Bedivere? I have to subsidise his coffee addiction. I don’t think he’s slept in a week and I keep waking up at 2am to the sound of him watching anime or let’s plays.
....
Merlina: It’s hard to say who scares me the most in this office. It’s not just basic intimidation either, even though Gawain and Kay have that down. I swear some people here are on a completely different level of existence.
Merlina: Once I saw Tristan get her performance review and I guess it said that she wasn’t showing the desired level of productivity or something because she sat down at her computer and worked without a break for the rest of the day. She didn’t stop for lunch, or to go to the bathroom. Just sit, work, YMCA and leave. She did three days worth of work in eight hours and I still don’t know how she found the strength to do that.
Merlina: Once Lamorak was struggling to find a mistake in his code that kept it from working. Bors looked at it and pointed out a missing indent in less than twenty seconds. I then watched him eat an entire burger in one bite and then fall asleep in his chair.
Merlina: And it’s not just my coworkers. I swear I saw one of the teen interns bend a spoon with his mind, and I’m pretty sure the other one is a pyromaniac who hides it really well.
Merlina: And Geraint... that guy is beyond understanding. He works in accounting but I’ve never seen him use a calculator. I don’t think he owns one. One day he deadass started reciting pi and he made it to maybe the 87th digit before he stopped, and that was because he had to cough.
Merlina: All of my coworkers scare me in different ways because I feel like one day I’ll come in and I’ll learn that someone’s mother is actually god and no one will bat an eye.
Merlina: ...I hope it’s Lancelot’s mother. She’s a saint.
.....
Geraint: *takes a sip of water and clears his throat*
Geraint: 3.141592653589793238462643383279502884 *continues with no sign of stopping*
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d4rkwr1t3s · 5 years
Text
I Won't Surrender
Warnings: Unsympathetic Lights, Remus angst, Sympathetic Deceit (?)
Summary: Deceit had been accepted by the Lights and Thomas leaving Remus behind during a relationship. The lights don't let him see Remus. Inspired by: "If It's War You Want" by Fire Follows
He promised! Remus' hand hit the wall in a cry of frustration and loss. He promised! Remus threw a knife at the wall where old pictures were but didn't pierce them. He promised… Remus went over to one and held it close as tears brimmed his eyes. 
It hadn't been a week since Deceit left. Remus went to where Deceit's room was before and it was gone! At first Remus thought he had just done it for privacy till he heard Deceit's voice in the light hallway talking with Roman of all sides! He was even laughing with him! His brother! The first one to leave him in the dark, scared and alone. That was the first hit from Deceit. This time Remus' own insecurities hit but then he remembered Deceit's plans and thought nothing more of it. Just humming to himself thoughtfully before going to his room again to come up with some more intrusive thoughts. Bats with knives instead of wings! Poison cookies for friends! Acid pool instead of water to swim in! Oh what a pool party that would be. A gore party with guts as balloons and streamers! That reminded him Deceit's birthday was coming up soon. But what to give him. What to give him.
Those plans ended the next day. Usually he'd pop in by now just to check in. Where was he? He never forgot. It's not that Remus didn't try to pop up beside him, he couldn't. He was being blocked. What was going on? Was Dee in trouble? Did they kidnap him? Torture him? Remus shook his head quickly. No way. Deceit would never let that happen. But he couldn't help himself from sneaking down to as far as he could to hear them. Popping in his favorite stuffed animal that replaced the comfort of a side as he listened into their "bonding time". Holding the animal close as tears fell.
No wonder he likes them better. He was the bad while Roman was good. Patton was fatherly Remus was nothing more than a child. Logan was orderly while he was chaos. Virgil held better conversation while he could only spew random bullshit from his pie hole. Deceit was classy while Remus was messy. He deserved better and he knew it. He jumped when he had the chance. But why did he make a relationship to just abandon it. Remus didn't understand. All he wanted was to be loved. Why did he have to suffer? Why was he cast aside? Why was he the unloved? Why can't he have anything good anymore? Why? The silence never answered. Remus put the picture back with shaky hands before going over to the bed defeatedly. Well if that's how things were going to be played so be it. 
It had been weeks since anyone had heard even a peep out of Remus. To Deceit and Logan it was very troubling. He didn't just disappear. What was he planning? Remus never planned. What was he doing? Patton wasn't letting anyone even mention him unless it's to bring him down lower. The others were celebrating that he was gone. He would usually show up at the mere mention that he was gone just to throw it in their faces. What was going on? Logan and Deceit shared a look before looking at the stairs. Something was brewing and it wasn't going to be good.
As the days passed the two brain cells were getting more and more worried. Thomas still wasn't sleeping soundly due to Remy and Virgil but where were the intrusive thoughts. Even Thomas began to wonder where the intrusive side was. Nothing could prepare them for Remus' next attack.
It was finally time for the next video. Time for the next attack and the final. Remus knew he wouldn't be let back out after this. After attacking just one person while the others were busy. But he couldn't wait anymore. They'd know. He knew it. He was smarter than he let on. Remus gripped his mace tighter, a sick grin forming on his face as tears fell one more time. Or he hoped the last time. He had never felt so alone for those weeks of waiting. Hearing the laughter that seemed to ring through his ears for hours. He hated it. It needed to stop because it was louder than it should've been. They were torturing him and he knew it. Let's see how they like it.
Deceit was waiting in the light's commons. Everything happened so suddenly. He woke up one morning to knocking on his door with an unfamiliar set of knocks. They were cheerful. A nice cheerful not Remus' chaotically cheerful knocks. They were also quiet. Where was Remus? He kept asking about him until his attempts were silenced. Deceit shivered at the sudden cold. When did it become cold? He grabbed the nearby blanket and wrapped it around himself shivering. This wasn't right. What was going on? What he didn't notice was the shadows creeping closer.
As Remus stepped into the light side the air turned chilly. Of course it would. They always needed to know. Shadows following him with a fire behind his eyes as he snuck up behind the unsuspecting deceptive side. The shadows just like tentacles of their own, branching out and darkening everything they touch. He was sure the lights felt the chill. It wasn't enough to put Deceit to sleep but it was enough to make him sleepy and not want to move from his warm spot. "I'm sure they'll come to warm you soon," Remus thought bitterly as he stepped closer. The snake like side seemed to hear him as his head moved to see who it was through bleary eyes. He raised the mace with trembling hands. This was the man he loved. He was with for years. The one who held him and reassured him. The one who gave him physical affection and attention. The one who didn't shut him away. The one who promised to never leave. To be there always. To always come back. Promise breaker! Remus dropped it with a heavy heart whispering his recent favorite song's chorus. Deceit tilted his head, not hearing what was said so he spoke it louder.
"Shut up. I've so had enough. No this is not love! Why did I ever let you get so close?" Remus cried out before continuing, "The darkness finds me cause it knows how I escape. It overwhelms me. I can feel its cold embrace," his hands wrap around himself for effect before another outcry, "I don't remember how I ever called you friend! I won't surrender! If it's war you want I'm in," when he spat out the last words with a hurt anger the others heard it loud and clear. Remus sunk out before Deceit could reply at the words given to him.
The light sides sunk in right after and quickly started warming him up as the words sunk in. They did this. This would be an unfair fight. He would be destroyed or forgotten. Though he already was being forgotten. Deceit sunk out to his room quickly as he tried to regain composure. All those things he did for Remus to get him to trust again. All those years together washed down the drain. Remus probably believed he wanted nothing to do with him anymore. That's that hurt the most. Knowing your partner was suffering but unable to do anything. His breath hitched. No one would notice Remus' disappearance until Roman started getting Remus' thoughts. Another King Creativity. Would they shut Romulus out like they did Remus? Would he wake up so confused and alone just like Remus? Is that Remus' goal? To make them feel how he did? Or is he after the same acceptance Virgil and he got? 
Remus stood in front of his shattered mirror with a small half smile. Ruffling his hair quietly as he thought of everything they might do to him for dare trying to hurt Deceit. Their newest precious member of their FamILY. It made him sick. Almost barfing rainbows sick to think of the FamILY. It didn't matter. It'd be solved soon. He kissed the tips of his fingers and pressed it to the cracked glass before doing the same to a broken picture on the ground. Over the course of those weeks his entire room had been completely destroyed along with his side of the imagination. Roman's side was already taking over his own. It wouldn't be long now. There were some secrets Patton couldn't repress and he was going to find out the hard way.
Deceit had to stop them before any of that happened. He couldn't let them. Not again. He bolted out of the room to see them lowly whispering to each other. Roman's hand on his sword protectively. Virgil's protective fight response triggered. And a hate he had never seen on Patton before. What had Patton done to them? He stood in front of the hallway of the dark sides with a harsher swallow when Logan looked up at him before shaking his head. This was going to be a long fight.
He sighed softly before grabbing his mace. Now or never. Would anyone really miss him? No one missed Romulus. Maybe he'd be the same. Remus took a breath and walked outside to yelling. Now wasn't this a twist? A figure blocked the others from walking to the dark side. Was it-? It was! But why? Slowly stalking forward while remaining in the shadows to see what was going on. The males in front of him shivered violently. Man wasn't that a sight. Not as much fun as a scream but he'd take anything he could get anymore. The one blocking their path was thrown to the one on the far left who held him down while Roman or who he assumed was Roman charged him with his sword. Remus grinned, it had been awhile since they fought like this. He blocked the sword with his mace before swinging to hit his brother's side. Roman moved out of the way just in time and sliced one of Remus' arms which made him laugh. The laugh confused Roman a moment giving Remus the chance to hit his calf and make Roman cry out in pain. Ironic how the light shines on them but will never shine on him. Remus grinned again. One more hit or one more connection, that's all it would take. Remus would be no more than a memory. Romulus would return and make everyone that much happier. Wouldn't they?
A loud thud resounded as Remus' mace hit the ground. He opened his arms as if embracing the next move. Eyes closed as he looked up at the ceiling even if they couldn't see it. Two voices resounded out from the ex dark sides in a distorted yell from one and a desperate cry from the other, "STOP!" Suddenly Roman did. Who for? Remus may never know. Both creativities painted heavily from their fight. The good turning to look at the anxious side and the lying side. The bad dropping to his knees with a shaky breath in a grin to hide the hurt. Why did he stop? Why did they tell him to? Either way it wouldn't stop what's going to happen. Roman stepped towards the two ex dark sides, keeping the blade away from Remus. So he caught on? When did they realize? When did he become so predictable?
The side holding Deceit turned the both of them to leave. Deceit struggled in his grip before headbutting them and running past the others to pull Remus into a constricting hug. Remus jumped a bit at the sudden touch before wrapping his arms around Deceit and breaking down. Tears staining the other's outfit while Remus wrapped his arms and legs around Deceit tightly so he couldn't be separated without a tremendous amount of force. Deceit softly rubbing soothing circles into his back as he glared at the sound of footsteps. Remus growled possessively and threateningly but they didn't back off. Instead a hand gently touched Deceit's shoulder. One he recognized as Logan before it was gone again.
"I'm so sorry."
"Don't leave me alone."
"I won't by choice."
"Promise?"
"Promise."
"If it's a war they want."
"We're in."
"We won't surrender."
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theonceoverthinker · 5 years
Text
In a world where Fair Game fights the good shipping fight, one woman strives to make HC’s that every fan can enjoy! She is...THE OVERTHINKER! Coming to Tumblrs everywhere...RIGHT NOW!
(Requested by @xwildangel! Thanks, girl!)
Let’s do this!
Lights!
Camera!
ACTION!
-The first time Qrow and Clover watch a movie together, it’s at the Atlas base. Clover’s watching a bad comedy (Like, we’re talking about a C-list Adam Sandler films) in one of the lounges one evening and Qrow walks in. Qrow asks if he’s really into lame films like that, and Clover says that he’s not, but there’s nothing better on. With a playful roll of his eyes, Qrow challenges the claim, only to be borderline bewildered that it’s in fact true. So with nothing else to watch, they turn back the first film and watch it. For the rest of its run time, they make quips as to how bad it is, laughing all the way at how unintentionally terrible it was. Going forward, if they hear of a movie that’s so bad it’s good, they make an evening out of it. Apart from that comedy, comedies in general are hit and miss for them. If the film does it for them, it does it for them, and if not, it doesn’t.
-They both really like action films, and they’d probably pick it as their favorite genre of movies. Whether it’s spy movies, superhero films, adventure films, or just straight up guns blazing action films, they are into them. They make for-fun bets to themselves about what’s going to happen, who’s gonna die, etc. But mostly, they just love getting excited about the cool explosions and stunts with each other. While Qrow has people in his life to do this with, Clover really doesn’t until he and Qrow meet, and it’s honestly so special to him.
-They’re also both dorks for sci-fi and fantasy movies (Though Clover is a bit more into fantasy and Qrow is a bit more into sci-fi)! The two of them, as well as Ruby and Yang sometimes, go to see them all together and/or talk about the films afterwards on their scrolls. It makes for a nice bit of family bonding.
-Qrow’s into horror films. He loves the buildup, suspense, scares, and gore! Clover gets freaked out by horror films, so he lets Qrow enjoy those films on his own or with his nieces. If Qrow finds himself in a teasing mood, he’ll paint some of the creepier scenes with his words, maybe spooking Clover at the end. For someone as brave as Clover, Qrow’s jump scares seldom fail to make him yip in fear, only to playfully smack Qrow when it passes. B-horror films are the exception to the rule because they’re usually silly enough to not spook Clover and they’re, as mentioned above, bad in a funny way.
-Clover has a soft spot for Disney films (Or Remnant’s equivalent of Disney films). He loves the songs, the energy, and the animation. They’re cute and funny and timeless, and Clover can’t help but be drawn into them (PUNS). Clover has many an urge to bust out into a chorus of “I’ll Make a Man Out of You,” “Go the Distance,” or “Out There.” Qrow’s not a fan of them. They’re usually too happy and cute for his tastes. BUT if Clover wants to watch one of them and can’t get anyone to accompany him, Qrow will suck it up for an evening.
-Neither of them really like romance movies. Clover dislikes them less than Qrow does, and will sometimes reference the more well known goopy films to tease Qrow with (In the spirit of the above HC, he’ll break into a verse of “A Whole New World” or something). The teases always work as intended (Especially the musical numbers), and Qrow’s left blushing, swatting Clover away, and joke-yelling that he hates his husband. Clover lets him go...but not without a kiss on the cheek first!
-They both love film scores and have a few of their favorite melodies downloaded on their scrolls. They listen to them on road trips and while doing chores.
Tagging @homokinetic @skybird13 @whipped4qrow @mooksie01 @luck-of-the-caw @xwildangel @solitude-of-stars @magneto-is-neato @o0nashipear0o
Want to be tagged in future Fair Game HC’s? Of course, you do! So send me a reply, PM, or ask, and I’ll grant your greatest wish! XD
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s-nebul0sa · 5 years
Text
Borrow the moonlight
Read it on AO3
Lena stares distantly out the window. Ice blooms on the glass, mirroring the weather outside. It’s been freezing for a while now but the ice flowers on the window are new. Something they have the power outage that happened only hours ago to thank for.
The castle is losing its heat. Even with the extra isolated walls and roof, double glassed windows and currently burning fire places, the air is cooling down at a rapid pace. And as night starts to descend over the isolated building, Lena starts to worry about surviving the night. Not exclusively because of the still steadily dropping temperature.
Hypothermia is a real threat, though. None of the bedrooms having fireplaces — the risk of smoke inhalation having been deemed too dangerous a long time before Lena started living here — and Lena herself isn’t very warm blooded, for a human.
Muffin, the fattest cat of the castle, plops down on Lena’s sock-clad feet. His body radiates a very welcome heat even though Lena knows the only reason he’s picked this spot to lie down is to leech her own warmth. A steady purring from the animal calms Lena’s anxiousness slightly. Muffin seems perfectly content and maybe rightfully so. They can all help each other keep warm. It isn’t the first power outage they have to endure, even if this is the coldest.
A warm blanket appears around Lena’s shoulders and she instinctively leans back into its heat.
“Come to the living room, babe, it’s a lot warmer there,” Kara suggests, pulling slightly on Lena’s shoulders in an attempt to get her to turn around. “I built a blanket fort for us there and most cats are already inside. It’s really warm.”
Lena relents and turns in Kara’s arms, pressing a quick grateful kiss to her lips. “I just worry.”
“I know. But all the doors are bolted shut. The windows are locked and there are still swords on the walls in case someone does break in, which won’t happen.” Kara reassuringly rubs Lena’s arm and lets her hand slide down so she can old Lena’s hand and drag her away from the window.
“Those are decorative swords,” Lena protests as she lets Kara guide her to the living room. Muffin meows grumpily at having to leave his warm spot but follows them anyway.
“You and I know that, but a trespasser won’t. Tadaa!” Kara steps aside when they reach the living room and reveals an intricate blanket fort inside. It’s built a safe distance away from the fire but close enough to be warmed by it.
A fond smile creeps up on Lena’s lips. Her wife is ridiculous. Ridiculously cute, too.
“Come on, Lena! Our kids are waiting for you. Don’t leave them longing and don’t stay out here catching a cold.” As if to prove Kara’s point, a chorus of meows sounds from inside the fort.
Lena laughs as Kara holds her hand over her head so she can enter the fort without hitting the roof and sending the whole thing crashing down.
“You know being cold doesn’t actually give you a cold—” Lena starts to say as she takes in the roomy inside of the construction. The floor is padded with mats and pillows, a small lantern placed in the middle to light up the space.
“I know, I know. Bacteria and viruses do,” Kara finishes with a slightly exasperated tone, having been told that fact time and again by both Lena and Alex.
Lena hums approvingly at having educated her wife on at least one thing. “It looks really good, dear. How long did you even spend building it?” It looks like it should’ve at least taken Kara the better part of the day with the extensiveness of it.
“I started when the power went out.” Kara makes herself comfortable on the floor, fluffing a pillow for her had as several cats jump on top of her as soon as she lies down. She happily greats each one and pets them as they paw her for a good space of Kara to use as their mattress.
Lena hesitantly lies down next to her, quickly smothered by cats too.
“Not on my face, Nala,” she softly scolds, pushing away a skinny black cat. Nala reluctantly gets up and moves to another warm spot, paws digging into Lena’s thigh before deciding to lie down there.
“Isn’t this nice?” Kara asks, turning her head to watch Lena.
“Mhmm.”
“Lena,” Kara berates her, not unkindly, “get out of your head, please. We’re perfectly safe here. Relax and enjoy the quiet.”
Kara reaches out her hand to hold onto Lena’s as they stare up at the colourful ceiling of the fort. The quiet isn’t exactly quiet. The fire crackles and pops occasionally and the purring of several cats fills the silence even further. It’s different from the normal sounds, the buzzing of electronics, music, typing, their own footsteps on the floor. Lena decides Kara is right and she should try to enjoy it.
After a while, Lena turns on her side to watch her wife, pressing her cheek into her shoulder. She can’t fully relax, something keeps nagging in the back of her mind making her feel on edge. Kara looks back at her, as if she can feel Lena’s staring. She wraps her arm around her and pulls her a little closer, forcing some disgruntled cats to relocate.
“See, it’s nice here, right?” Kara presses a kiss to the top of Lena’s head, hoping to help her let go of that last residual bit of anxiety.
“I guess,” Lena answers. Kara is right, it’s nice here but she can’t shake the feeling something is going to happen. They’re sitting ducks without electricity in such a huge building. She should’ve gotten them a hotel room as soon as the electricity went out instead of try and find out what was the cause.
“Just admit you love it. Lots better than last time, at least.”
The reminder of how they got through the last power outage in winter brings a small smile to Lena’s lips. It’d been so cold and they had trouble keeping the fire in the fireplaces going because Lena hadn’t thought to stock up on logs. She hadn’t expected the power to go out. Or the castle to get so cold when the central heating wasn’t on. Or for Kara to stay, for that matter.
Her biggest concern back then wasn’t her own safety but mostly that of her cats and Kara. She’d already grown fond of of the blonde, who was just an employee she was on friendly terms with back then. Kara helped with the cats and taking care of the huge property.
Kara had returned Lena’s worry and they ended up huddled close together beneath several layers of blankets, trying to keep warm by the barely existing fire, talking all night. Lena had refused to leave behind her cats and find a warmer place to spend the night. Kara had refused to leave Lena behind, having noticed how uncomfortable Lena was.
Lena is sure that night is what kickstarted her romantic feelings for Kara. It wasn’t long after that they started actually dating. She holds fond memories of the night. Neither of them slept and as they grew tired, their conversations grew weirder. Lena specifically remembers them talking to the cats and Kara running circles around the room to warm up and stay awake, jumping over obstacles as she went and nearly tripping several times.
“Certainly more comfortable and warmer, yes. But maybe you should run around some more. That was very entertaining.” Kara jokingly sticks her tongue out at Lena, getting repaid in kind. “And while you’re at it, you can double check the doors and windows again.”
“Babe, no one is getting in. Trust me. And if one of us is getting cold, I know a much more efficient and fun way to warm up.” Kara wiggles her eyebrows suggestively at Lena.
Lena gives Kara a friendly slap on her shoulder as she laughs at her, shaking her head in rejection. She isn’t relaxed enough to be able to enjoy sex right now. She wants to be able to hear all the sounds their home makes. Make sure they’re really alone. She can’t do that when they’re making all sort of noises themselves.
Also, there’s at least a dozen pairs of eyes staring at them and Lena doesn’t want to scare their cats.
“Don’t laugh at me!” Kara admonishes. “It’s a good idea. Two birds one stone Why are you so worried about people getting in anyway?”
Kara turns over and curls herself around Lena, offering some comfort and as a kind of promise. She won’t initiate anything Lena doesn’t want.
“When I was little, six, maybe seven, I heard noises downstairs so I went to wake up dad. He told me to get back in bed and went down to check out where the sounds came from. He said he’d keep us safe and that it was probably nothing. Maybe Lex getting some water. I knew that was a lie because Lex had a bathroom across from his bedroom so he wouldn’t go downstairs for water but I listened to my dad and went back to bed.
“I waited for what felt like an eternity but was probably only a minute. You know how time works differently as a kid, especially when you were waiting.” Kara nods, putting her hand over Lena’s to stop her nervous fidgeting with the buttons of her shirt. Instead, Lena starts fidgeting with Kara’s fingers. “When he came back, he told me to get in the closet and hide behind the clothes. He threw some of them off the hangers so I was hidden from view completely. He told me not come out until he came back. I don’t know how long I spent in there. After some time, a gunshot went off and I was so scared, I wet myself as I tried to quiet my crying because daddy had told me if I made a sound the bad man might find me.
“Eventually, he came back and got me out of the closet. He was fine. I was fine. I remember police being at our place but I didn’t pay them much attention, having attached myself to dad and refusing to let go. Well, until mother pried me off him and made me take a bath.
“I know it’s an irrational fear but I’m always scared that something like that will happen again, except now my dad isn’t here to protect me and my family. And maybe, now that I’m saying this allowed, I’m also afraid that same burglar will come back and want revenge. I guess the entire thing just left a much bigger impression on me than I realised.”
“I didn’t know,” Kara says apologetically, unsure whether she should really apologise for it happening or should offer her support and comfort.
“I never told anyone before. I guess I thought if I didn’t acknowledge it, it was like it never happened. But that’s not true, is it? It happened regardless of whether I talk about it or not.”
“I’m sorry that happened to you,” Kara offers. “And I’m sorry for making fun of you bing scared of people breaking in. I shouldn’t have made those jokes.”
“You didn’t know,” Lena says calmly, resting her head close to Kara’s, foreheads nearly touching. “You can’t take things into account you don’t know about.”
“I was rude regardless. I should’ve stopped and thought for a moment. Everyone has a reason reason to do the things they do, or feel the things they feel.”
“I didn’t even know I had a reason until you asked me. It never really sounded significant when I tried to shove it to the back of my mind and not acknowledged it.”
“Thank you for trusting me with it and I promise, I will keep you safe if something ever does happen.” Kara presses a quick kiss to Lena’s nose, making Lena’s face scrunch up for a moment.
“And yourself. You keep yourself safe too. No reason keeping me safe if you’re not.”
Kara gives Lena an incredulous look but quickly agrees with Lena when she raises a single eyebrow at Kara.
“And myself.”
“Thank you.” Lena closes the distance between them and kisses Kara. A short and tender kiss before she presses back into Kara’s side. “I’m not completely defenceless either, you know. I can protect us too.”
Kara smiles lovingly at her wife. Of course she knows Lena is no damsel in distress but she also cannot help her inherent instinct to protect her family.
“We will keep each other safe,” she suggests instead. “Stronger together.”
“Stronger together,” Lena agrees before rolling over to lie on top of Kara, stomachs pressed together. “Want me to read you something now that we don’t have much else to do?”
Kara enthusiastically agrees. She loves it when Lena reads to her. She briefly slips out of the safety of their fort after tickling Lena’s side to get her off of her so she can get a book and some extra blankets.
Hours later, when Kara has fallen asleep, Lena thinks that maybe a power outage isn’t so bad. Kara’s arms are protectively wrapped around her and they’ll probably be safe. They’re definitely cozy and comfortable and if Lena forgets about her fears for a moment, it almost feels like a little vacation in their own home.
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ebelwrites · 6 years
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Over protective nightmare ( im work I gm on a version of this too)
I’m so sorry for how late this is. I managed to sleep through the entirety of my aeroplane exhaustion just in time to be hit full force with the time zone difference. My sleeping pattern is all screwed up and I’m so exhausted. I finally got some decent sleep last night and got around to editing this one. I’ll try to edit the others when I’m well-rested but it’s very much a roulette wheel these days.
I’m also going to be writing and posting a story soon for Azure-Night-Owl’s birthday. I’m going to force myself to write this one soon because I did not know it was their birthday! Everyone who has already submitted a prompt, don’t worry, I haven’t forgotten yours. They will be posted soon, I just need sleep.
Dream sighed as he climbed up the hill at a leisurely pace. The letter had asked him to meet at the top, though he was already planning excuses to cut the meeting short. He was not looking forward to this. It wasn’t the first time he had to turn down an unwanted advance and he doubted it would be the last. It would be flattering, if not for the fact that he knew perfectly well that none of them were actually interested in him, just in what being his datemate would mean for their status. He wondered how many times he’d have to state that he just wasn’t interested in anyone for people to finally understand; Probably far more than he would like to. He reached the top of the hill, spying the writer of the letter.
“Beatrix? I’m sorry, but I have-”
“Too many responsibilities to see anyone right now. I thought so.” She was shaking and fiddling with her hands. She wouldn’t look at him. “I-I gave it some more thought after I sent the letter to you and came to the same conclusion. I-I’m sorry for bothering you.” This was very strange; from what he knew of the girl, she was quite strong-willed. This was not normal behaviour, and she was very pale.
“Are you sick? You don’t seem well.” She almost jumped out of her skin, her eyes wide like a hunted animal.
“I-I- Maybe. I-I should go home. Rest.” There was definitely something up, Dream just couldn’t figure out what it was.
“Okay, you take care.” She practically flew down the hill after he spoke. He watched her leave with a suspicious glance, wondering what he was missing. He completely missed the flash of purple that was watching from nearby.
“Come on, just one date. It’ll be fun.”
“I’m really not interested, Ink.” Time had passed but some things never changed. Dream still got a number of unwanted advances, even with no tree left. Now it was his aura that attracted people, and it had attracted Ink. Ink was…Interesting as a friend, but Dream was definitely hesitant to take it up a level with him. Besides, he was pretty sure Ink wasn’t actually able to feel love.
“Just one, please. I’ll never ask again.” That got Dream’s attention. Being able to hold Ink to a promise-
“Even if you have to cancel at the last minute? You can never bug me for another one.”
“Even if!” Ink’s eyes brightened and shifted shapes as he spoke. Dream heaved a sigh.
“Fine, just one. But no asking again.”
“Deal! I’ll meet you here tomorrow!” And the AU guardian took off before Dream could get in another word. He heaved another sigh, wondering what he’d gotten himself into.
The next day, Dream received a phone call from Ink saying that the soulless guardian had gotten food poisoning the previous night and was too sick to make their date.
“Our agreement still holds, are you sure?” Dream could hear coughing from the other end of the line, but something about it seemed off.
“Y-Yeah, can’t even move. I-I know, no more asking.” Dream narrowed his eyes; what the heck?
“Is it bad? Do you need me to come over?”
“NO!” Dream startled, not expecting Ink to shout. Ink seemed as startled as Dream did when he spoke again. “Uh, it’s better if you don’t. I’ve got black…uh, ink. Yeah, ink all through the house. I caused a bit of a mess. You don’t want to see it.”
“Okay, then. Get better soon.” Ink abruptly hung up on him the second he finished speaking. Dream sighed. Well, at least Ink wouldn’t bother him for a date anymore.
“Hey, sweetheart. Give us a smile.”
Dream grit his teeth and held up the pamphlet he was reading to block line of sight between him and the catcaller. ‘Just ignore him and he’ll lose interest.’
CRASH
The loud sound of glass shattering and metal crunching made Dream whip his head around on instinct. A large truck appeared to have careened off the road and into a shop of the sidewalk, just barely missing the catcaller from earlier. The man was on the ground, alive and apparently not badly hurt, but definitely scared out of his wits. His friends tended to him. Dream, however, was more interested in the rather familiar-looking black shadow that fled the vehicle and dove into a back alley, dripping cyan blue blood. Dream chased it.
The sound of aggressive hissing paused his pursuit; it appeared that the back alley led to a dead end. A small pool of the brightly coloured blood was starting to accumulate behind a stack of abandoned boxes. Dream sighed heavily and knelt to the ground.
“Come on out. I know you’re there and I know you’re hurt. May as well let me help.” Nightmare poked his head out just long enough to stick his tongue out at Dream before disappearing again. Alright; if that’s how Nightmare was going to be then Dream had no choice. He forced his way behind the boxes, ignoring the screeching and flailing of his stupid brother.
“No! Go away! Don’t you dare touch me!”
“Just let me fix it, you big baby!” He dodged the attacks of three sharpened tentacles and grabbed the fourth that Nightmare was quite clearly trying to hide behind him. There was a deep cut along the tip that caused Nightmare to screech when he grabbed it; or maybe Nightmare screeched because he had nothing better to do than to try and blow out Dream’s eardrums. Dream managed to corral the other three tentacles underneath him and sat on them, pinning them to the floor and leaving the tips flailing wildly but unable to harm him. Nightmare shot him a nasty look that seemed more like a pout as Dream finally began to heal the cut.
“Why do you keep chasing away everyone who hits on me?” Nightmare’s glare turned into a look of surprise and Dream couldn’t restrain from rolling his eyes. “I’m occasionally oblivious, not stupid. Once is an occurrence, twice is a coincidence, every single time for the entire five hundred and two years we’ve been alive is a pattern I’d almost call ‘yandere’. And it’s not like you were subtle about your involvement, either.”
“They’re not allowed to.” Nightmare wouldn’t look at him; the pout was back. “I should be your focus; not some insignificant worm who would only use you.” Dream paused, hands halfway through wrapping a bandage around the wound; the white fabric was already starting to be dyed black. Then he grinned.
“Aw. Is big bwother Nighty trying to protect his pwecious baby bro?” Nightmare’s horrified croak would fuel his happy dreams for years to come. He barely managed to tie off the bandage before Nightmare finally tipped him onto the ground. He landed hard on his back, wheezing with laughter.
“I do not! Just, I am the only one allowed to harm you! No one else!”
“Sure, sure,” Dream managed to squeak out amidst his laughter. “Whatever you say, brother.”
“I’m leaving!” Nightmare shoved past him, pushing him down again just as he’d managed to sit up. “I’m also disowning you!”
“No, you won’t. You love me!” The look on Nightmare’s face told him that maybe he’d pushed it a little too far. A quick portal let him escape the attacking tentacles, his laughter joined in chorus by Nightmare’s furious screeching. What a silly, overprotective big brother.
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‘Roughing It!’ Shuichi x Fem!Reader
A mini fic where Rantaro, Ouma and Shuichi with fem s/o going out camping? (They all hang out and chill like good buddies do but shuichi spends most of the trip with his s/o ;^0
Got you covered! I really hope you like it  -Mod Korekiyo 
“Ah, Nature!” Rantarou breathed, stretching out his back as he faced the river. Ouma rolled his eyes, kicking a pine cone for no reason and you and Shuichi had just finished setting up the tents. “This is where we become men!” “No thanks.” Ouma said playfully. “I’m not going to wrestle a bear or anything okay? I’m going to eat cheap junk food and bother squirrels.” “Also, I’m not a man.” You commented, making Shuichi giggle. “It’s okay, S/O, “ Ouma started. “Neither is your boyfriend-” “Guys hush!” Rantarou said playfully, “Do you hear it?” “You talking?” “No. Nature!” “All I hear is you talking.” Ouma said, patting Amami’s shoulder.”Well, I’m going to bother wildlife. Don’t wait up.” “Oh.. Okay... Hey, Shuichi,” Rantarou started. “Do you want to go fishing?” “Of course, That sounds nice. S/o, care to join us?” “I’d love to.”
You sat in Shuichi lap, helping him reel in what you called the worlds tiniest fish. You liked them. keeping them in a plastic container and blowing bubbles with a reed so that they stayed alive in the still water. Rantarou smiled, casting out again and Shuichi just stopped fishing, seeing all he was getting were guppies. “I want to name this one, Ouma.” “Please don’t.” He begged. “Just throw them back. You can’t blow in that water all weekend.” “But they’re so cute and tiny!” You said happily, as Rantarou reeled in a nice sizable fish. Shuichi blushed a bit, looking off to the side. “Don’t remind me.” “It’s not the size of the fish,” Rantaro started, taking a selfie with the floppy fish near his face. “It’s what you cook it into.” Suddenly the fish smacked him, falling to the floor of the boat. You reached for him, unhooking him and releasing him back into the water. “There you go little guy.” You sighed, and decided to release Shuichi’s small fish too. “By Ouma!” “Did you name them all Ouma?” Shuichi asked, a little jealous “Probably cause they’re all little shits.” Rantarou commented.”By the way, where is Ouma-” “SURPRISE!” You screamed hearing the shorter boy behind you, jumping out of the water and grabbing the edge of the boat. Shuichi instinctively grabbed you and Rantarou stood up, throwing is phone as far as he could towards shore so it didn’t fall into the water. The boat completely flipped over seconds later.
“I said I was sorry.” Ouma whined, tied to a tree with a small sign that said Gay baby jail above him. “I cracked my phone you little prick.” Rantarou said, raking his hands through his hair. “Oh great, this sucks.” “At least it’s not broken completely!” “No thanks to you!” As they continued to bicker you shivered, wearing some nice big comfort clothes you packed and sitting by the camp fire. Nothing like oversized shirts to make you feel all fuzzy. Shuichi sat down beside you. “You alright, Sweetie?” “I’m a little cold.” He kissed your cheek wrapping an arm around you and pulling you closer. “I know what will warm you up.How about,” His voice lowered to a whisper. “when the boys go to sleep, you and I slink off and go for a swim.” “This is a camping trip,” You reminded him. “No one brought anything to swim in.” “You don’t need to wear anything to swim in.” He said shyly. He kissed your cheek again and you giggled excitedly at the idea
The moment Rantarou’s snoring kicked in, you and Shuichi snuck out of the tents, making your way further down the river where the water entered the lake. The moon shone brilliantly off the surface of the water, making for a romantic atmosphere. You both undressed, walking into the water hand in hand . You couldn’t even make it too deep in the water, falling onto one another and roughly making out in a shallow part of the shore that just barely covered you both. It wasn’t too long before the night was fill with moans and grunts. When everything was done you stayed in the water for a bit longer, just holding each other in the cool mountain air. You were sure one or both of you would get sick but it was worth it. 
The next day started off promising, with Rantarou teaching you how to catch a rabbit. His intent was to cook it but you grew so attached to it he just couldn’t do it. You had brought plenty of food anyway. No need to get too outdoorsy. You ran to camp to show Shuichi your new rabbit only to find him vigorously rubbing his eyes and sniffling. “Aww,” You started. “You’re sick.” “Yeah,” He said simply, his nose clearly back up. “But, No regrets. Last night was amazing-” He cut himself off, Sneezing into his arm. Ouma happened to be walking by as he sneezed, noting the pose. “Nice dab, Saihara-” “I Was not dabbing!” “Ignore him, Check out mister fluffers!” You said happily, shoving the bunny in his face. The creature ���merped’ making him smile. “He’s cute. I-Is that his name?” “Well, it’s not permanent. Can I keep him?” “Well,” “Hey, Saihara!” Ouma said, “Can I borrow this shirt?” He held up a blue t shirt, wiggling it around. “...Why do you want to-” “thanks buddy.” He said quickly, taking the shirt and running off into the woods. “....What the hell was that about?”
You sat by the camp fire in the early evening, making smores and telling stories. You leaned against your boyfriend, which made Rantarou feel a little like a 3rd wheel. Before he could question it though, Ouma finally did appear. “Guys!” “there you are,”Amami started. “You’ve been gone all day!” “I was training. Shuichi!” He said, walking to a nearby tree and pulling a raccoon from behind it. You cracked up, seeing it wearing Shuichi’s blue shirt and a pair of his underwear. “Those are mine?!” “Well, Shuichi is using them,” Ouma said smugly. “He looks adorable-” “You put a wild animal in my underwear?!” “I’m putting this online.” Rantarou said, snapping a few pictures of the confused critter. “This is gold-” “Don't upload thaaaa-” Saihara ended up sneezing, which scared the raccoon and forced it Out of Ouma’s hands. The creature ran away, wearing shuichi’s clothes. “N-No! Get back here!” “Wait Shuichi come back!” “You leave my Raccoon Alone.” “I’ll just stay here.” Amami said, putting a marshmallow on a stick “You guys have fun.
Rantarou turned his signal on, pulling onto the highway and driving away from this fun little excursion. You all sat in the back seat, arms folded for one reason or another and Ouma’s face was scratched up. “....Why did you just take his clothes off him?” Ouma whined. “He looked cute.” “Why’d you put my clothes on a raccoon?” “Why’d you throw a rock at him while I was holding him!” “Why were you holding him!” “Why’d you fuck your girlfriend in the lake-” “Stop arguing,” Rantarou warned. “Don’t make me turn this car around.” “Please don’t,” You begged, scratching the little rabbits ears. “I’ve had enough excitement for one weekend.” “Wait, you were watching us tht night?” “No I heard you. I was smart enough to keep my distance.” “What were you doing in the woods that late?” “You tied me to a tree!” “No yelling.” Amami reminded them. “or I won’t stop for breakfast when we get back into town.” There was a sudden chorus of protests and Amami smirked. “I’m glad we went camping.” You said sweetly. “We should do it more often.” “Fine with me.” Shuichi said weakly, still battling his cold. “We’re leaving Ouma at home next time.”
-Mod Korekiyo
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