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vampiremansionpoolboy-moved · 4 years ago

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renga week day 4: cindereki

Cindereki stared around the room, looking for Prince Langa, but he was nowhere to be seen. Her prince had just found her and then he was taken away by an evil emperor. She had finally found happiness only for it to be stripped from her. How typical.

Cindereki fell to her knees reaching out to where Prince Langa had stood seconds before.

“Wait...Langa....don’t go...”

She heard a murmur of voices, but they were too distant to understand. She was Cindereki, a poor servant girl, who had fallen in love with skating, and fallen in love with the prince. She would get him back if it was the last thing she did.

“I’m Cindereki!” She started but never finished because her surroundings were becoming kinda fuzzy. She tries to open her mouth again, but it feels like her teeth are lined with glue. What was happening? And so Cindereki pushes herself to call out for Langa but ends up waking herself up.

“PRINCE LANGA!” Reki yells as he wakes up, startling Koyomi. They make eye contact for the longest ten seconds of his life before she bursts out laughing. Reki’s face burns like a forest fire, and he’s sure it's the same color as his hair.

“Oh- oh haha, oh my god! You just had a dream about your best friend!” she dissolves into giggles. “Haha- oh my- what's Cindereki by the way?” she asks, eyeing the book in his lap.

Reki, face hot enough to cook an egg, stutters out. “I- I was Cinderella, and so my name was C-cindereki.”

Koyomi clutches her stomach again, laughter echoing through the room. Reki wishes he could skateboard into the sun and never reappear.

“Not a word,” Reki hisses to his sister.

“Ok, my lips are sealed.” she mimics zipping her lips. “At least until I want a new book. Or a new shirt. Or a game, or a snack, or a-” she rambles with a smirk.

“Ok, ok, ok that's enough with the blackmail!” Reki cries.

“Thanks, Cindereki,” Koyomi calls as she leaves the room, laughing behind her hand.

“Thanks, Cindereki,” Reki mocks.

Reki slides back down to his spot on the floor. The book lay forgotten a few feet from him. He picks it up, glancing at his sleeping little sisters around him, before opening up the book. He flips through the pages, glancing at the parts that he remembers from his dream. He laughs at the memory of Shadow, Miya, and Cherry fighting in their dresses. He then remembers Muscle Magic Joe and wonders what's going on inside his head for him to think that up. And why was the guy from the love hotel Langa’s advisor? Adam’s narration sends shivers down his spine.

Even in my dreams he still comes for me. Reki thinks. The image of Langa reaching out for him and Adam spins him faster and faster pops into his head. It makes him think of when Adam trapped Langa in his spinning turn back during their beef and Langa used it against him. Then the memories of their fight surface and Reki wishes to banish them from his head. But then he remembers the soft and tender smiles Langa gave him yesterday when they were skating. His face burns again like it did when Langa called him amazing. The way Dream Langa said “so pretty” is the same voice Langa talked to him with last night. Reki smiles at the thought.

Then a thought hits him. Do I like Langa?

Pulling out his phone he prays Google can help. He begins to type something out. How do I tell if I like someone? He clicks on the first article that pops up and reads the first few lines.

“You find yourself wishing for more time with the other person.” the article reads. Check, Reki thinks.

“You're wanting to text them all the time.” Check.

“Everything makes you think about them.” And that hurt so much during our fight. But check, nonetheless.

“Everything feels more exciting,” Langa said it first, but check.

Does- does this mean I like him? Reki thinks, the phone screen illuminating his shocked face. He types another thing into the search bar. What does it mean if you have a dream about someone?

“Dreaming about someone means you are feeling lonely, sad, or used.” He had felt like that during their fight. Check.

“You deeply miss someone, but they do not have the same feelings.” He knew Langa had missed him, but did he have feelings for Reki? Did Reki have feelings for Langa? Check (to be determined???).

“You struggle with moving on from this person and think about them constantly.” He did think about Langa almost all the time. Check.

“The good news is that they are likely also thinking about you, even if they don't show any signs.” Langa never shows any signs that he's thinking about anything, Reki thinks fondly, but everything he said yesterday had the certainty of someone who had thought of it before. So, check?

Reki pausing before typing his next question. This time a small box doesn't pop up, but he clicks the first link.

The title reads “How to tell if you are gay?”

The next morning Reki rushes to get out the door despite not going to sleep until three AM. He may know about his crush on Langa now, but he's determined to keep things the same between them. At least until he’s pretty sure it's not one-sided.

Reki stayed up early into the morning researching things and trying to sort through the thoughts in his head. Finally, at two AM, Reki came to the conclusion that he was a raging bisexual and had a big fat crush on his best friend. He then spent the next hour trying to process it all before he passed out due to mental and physical exhaustion.

When Reki woke up, he didn't remember right away but then it hit him like a freight train, and he was filled with excitement and adrenaline. He was out the door in almost twenty minutes. His family was stunned by his rapid speed compared to his slow pace yesterday, but Reki didn't pay them any mind.

As he skates to their meeting spot Reki swears his heartbeat quickens with every kick of his foot. How am I going to act around Langa? Do I pretend like things were normal or am I supposed to be acting differently now? Reki tried to picture himself like one of the girls confessing to Langa, but he just shook his head to get rid of the thought, his dream from last night still fresh in his mind.

As Langa came into view Reki let his look linger for a bit too long, letting himself admit that Langa looked pretty. That he looked beautiful. Then he smiled and slowed as he neared Langa. He held out his arm and their hands met for their dap.

Reki wondered if one day he could hold that hand, but then Langa was asking what course he wanted to skate, and then there was no more time for thinking. Only time for the infinity of skating.

#Ok I had fun writing this #And I like how it turned out #rengaweek2021 #renga #sk8 the infinity #sk8

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friggsdc · 4 years ago

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Title: little delinquent pt iii

part ii | part iii | part iv

Warnings: Female!reader (bat!sis), mostly family fluff, AU, hurt/comfort, Jason’s language

Word Count: 4700~

Synop: It had Bruce and Dick sharing a look for a moment before the latter spoke up, “It’s not like I’m against continuing to expand the family, but…” he eyed the child you held nervously, “please don’t start bringing home every child you find…” he tilted his head, “he’s bad enough.” Bruce settled a light glare at his first son (that definitely wasn’t what Bruce was thinking), though Dick was stilled by the way your eyes narrowed at him instead.

“His name is Terrence,” that was all you said, brushing past as they were suddenly on guard at the inherited Wayne-scowl on your face.

A/N: tbh I cut the last chapter in two, this is the second half ee;;;; but I rewrote it to be it’s own chapter tho haha. Hum… this doesn’t pick up exactly where the last chapter ended, but it’s still all here. c’: Also, if you wear glasses, just know grumpy ol’ Bruce would probably force contacts on you in public (he’d see them as more ‘professional,’ and glasses as a danger/hazard in the field). Glasses are for home only sighs.

Ngl I see lexcorp similar to westworld’s delos, lotsa fancy designs ee;;;; Cadmus like nasa test rooms, clinical as heck with little to no windows, and wayne ent with Alien franchise’s archaic but advanced spaceship tech, or dracula’s castle with cubicles lmao

“Hey, Jaybird…”

Normally he knew what to expect, normally he’d open the door braced for a tackle, so when the rush of wind never came, he was at a bit of a loss. There you were, dressed like Bruce for some irritating reason. A size-too-big of a jacket, zipped up over a uselessly thin black turtleneck, a pair of black gloves, pants covering everything, and a pair of black lace-less… boots… with red… soles…?, and a suspiciously familiar-looking kid in your arms…

There was a slight guilty look on your face as you gauged his reaction, he could tell, you were nervous.

Wait.

He eyed the kid something scary, his voice grounding out, “so, who do I have to murder?”

“You weren’t gone that long, you know.” Snorting, you pushed past him into the small safe house, frowning at the bareness of it all before situating Terrence on the floor mattress. “How you sleep on this thing is beyond me…” he just shrugged, “too used to it? Answer the question,” he pointed at the kid while closing the door, “who?”

Agitated.

“Terrence,” said child was looking around, but there was only so much that would grab his attention, as empty as the room was.

“His name is Terrence, and he’s no one else’s, he’s… mine.”

“You just said it hasn’t been that damned long—” his frustration was building; he wasn’t liking where this was going, not that you were aware which direction his head was headed at the moment, you’d just gotten here.

You shook your head, “don’t tell me you…” his anger settled into a dark scowl, but you refused to look at him, “you can’t seriously bring more kids into that fucking prison.” He was so conflicted, it was you, but you were still a Wayne. It scared him to think of more children stuck in that lonely mansion, becoming bitter like he had.

You remembered what Dick had said days earlier when he first saw the child,

“Jason—” you began, a slight warning to your tone.

He didn’t care,

“Don’t be like Bruce.”

His voice was so cold.

Terrence had crawled his way over to the legs of the table in the makeshift kitchen, eyes on a prize as he began trying to figure out how a chair worked.

“You know, that actually hurt.”

You didn’t hate your father like Jason projected, but you knew the way he spoke about him, the way he expressed his feelings, that he ‘hated’ him. It was a half-truth, you knew. Jason preferred not hurting you, next to Alfred, you were more tolerable than the other family members.

Somedays Tim and Dick made that list. Somedays.

But that didn’t mean he was actively trying to be kind, he wanted it to stab.

Petty. Resentful. Haunted.

He went to say more, but stopped, fists shaking slightly from anger.

You were staring him down, that same look of disappointment Bruce would give him when he made an obviously stupid decision, as if he were still a Robin in training. Like your father, you could read him like an open book when you tried, it made him feel vulnerable, guilty, small.

Fucking frustrated.

“Don’t look at me like that,” he was at a loss for words, “…shit.” He turned away from you, coming back to the moment as he tried to reign in his temper, “it’s just…”

“It’s fine.”

“No, it’s not.”

Instead of continuing to argue the point, too used to his outbursts (Alfred and your family primed you too well for dealing with the unstable emotions of others), you walked over and wrapped your arms around him, head resting on his clothed chest, “missed you, Jay.”

Almost hesitantly, his arms returned the hug, his head burying itself in your hair, “sorry…” he breathed out, almost too quiet. He was tense as you pulled back a bit, reaching up to grab his face in your gloved hands as you leaned up on your toes, pulling his head down to yours. You touched your forehead to his, making certain to be gentle, “Honestly, it’s okay Jay. I forgive you, okay?”

“Cold,” his hands cupped your (oddly chilled) gloved ones, eyes searching your face before he shifted, head nodding slightly, rubbing yours. A heavy sigh escaped him, an awkward smile forming, “so, how’s my cutest little sister been?”

Glad that he was trying to get past his guilt, you shook your head, “a roller coaster. Dad’s upset at me.”

He just snorted in amusement, relaxing a little as you continued, “And how was California? The Titans? I miss Kory…” you blinked at his flat expression, “what? You were at the Tower, right? With Kory and Roy, and the others?”

Wow you ruined the moment fast.

“Aaaand that’s where you stop being cute. I swear this family is full of creepers. I think Dick’s the only normal one,” you tilted your head as he kept his hands firmly on your shoulders. “Honestly, you and Tim are terrifying, your brother is a demon, and I don’t even want to describe Bruce.”

“Glad you didn’t include yourself in that, zomboy,” he groaned, “that’s hurtful,” then he pouted, finally getting a good look at you.

Terrence was old enough to stand on his two legs as he held onto the chair, but he kept stumbling as he moved uncertainly. His eyes were focused on his mission as he started trying to climb further up.

Something clicked in the back of Jason’s brain, sudden realization dawning, “what…” you sighed, his hand moving from your shoulder, “is this…?” You refused to meet his stare as his fingers hooked on the zipper of your jacket, “uhm…” you flushed as he pulled it down, a bright red bat in his face.

There was a sudden sparkle in his eyes.

“Huh, didn’t expect you to be that much of a fan.” You were burning from head to toe now, refusing to look at him at all, rubbing the back of your neck with a thick swallow. “That… that’s kind of the problem…”

“What, that you’re walking around with my colors?” His grin seemed disappointed, but turned a bit more concerned at the frown you leveled at him, “it… let me explain… I think I need help…”

“Definitely gonna need explanations. A lot of them.” The kid was one thing, this outfit was another. He made to sit down, and you followed, leaving Terrence to his own devices for the moment.

It’s not like there was much trouble to get into, everything of worth or danger was out of his reach.

“…yeah.”

“…”

“What is it?”

“…Why’d you think I slept with someone? When you first saw Terrence in my arms?”

He leaned away from you, chin resting on his palm, propped up on the arm of the couch with his elbow, “I’m your brother, and he looks like… it’s… I’m supposed to get upset about that… just… answer…” he did his best to keep a straight face, but eventually he had to turn away, looking at the wall, ears burning.

“Hm…?” you leaned towards him and he didn’t have to look at you to know you had a less than innocent smile on right now.

“Creep.”

You just laughed as you leaned into his side, causing him to crack a small smile, still not looking at you.

[“So… How to start this…”]

[“The suit, first, Terry after.”]

[“Terry?”]

[“The kid. Just explaaaaain already, uuugh I have patrol in a few hours…”]

[A heavy sigh, “Okay, then... So, you know how Lex helps fund the Society’s shenanigans?”]

[“…oh.”]

[“Yeah.”]

When it came to most places, breaking and entering was always easier at night, but for the LexCorp building? Nighttime came with problems, it came with heightened security, rigorous control, and the easy ability to spot something that was out of place. There was also your youngest brother who had filled you in on his adventures with Jon once, not a single detail of the LexCorp building having been left out; he was a thorough kid.

It was far easier to infiltrate during the day, the number of staff on the security team, the cliques of scientists and researchers, and the average workers meandering about made it easy to blend. You had donned a pair of (older prototype) smart glasses, normal from the viewer’s perspective, an integrative matrix mapping AI system from the wearer’s. Well, it could do more, but this was what you needed, the constant reconstruction of old building plans for more accuracy as you walked around.

Tim’d made some amazing things over the years, such as his matrix encryption to keep your work phone quiet, scrambling any noticeable connections that could be traceable. But this one was probably the coolest in your opinion, and he had yet to see the return of said glasses since you wouldn’t give them up, and he could never find where you’d put them. The glasses were a useful subtle change from the norm, a quick disguise, the security barely giving you a glance-over as you entered the passcode for the ID tag you wore, walking into the building.

With a slight wave from you, and a “Good Afternoon!” from them, getting in the backdoor was always the easy part. There were two more women next to you chatting in excitement and you made to stick close to them, parting only when you came upon the women’s locker rooms. The badge number Tim’d tracked down for you was useful until it wasn’t, Lex’s problem was needing levels three and above extensive background checks on anyone hired, and Tim knew exactly where to look.

[“Like I said, terrifying.”]

[“You do the same thing.”]

[“That’s a bit above my paygrade, usually I ask Tim for help when I need information from behind top-of-the-line security walls.”]

[“Oh.”]

[“Yeah.”]

Next was invasion of personal privacy and property, and a lot of it. You’d have felt worse if it weren’t for having been raised this way, “you’ll find out that people are just that, some sick and twisted, some happy and kind-hearted, but in the end, we’re all the same. Eventually, nothing will surprise you,” your father would say.

It didn’t take long, going through a few lockers and purses, letting your glasses do most of the work. They were able to see in a three-dimensional matrix, constantly being constructed behind most any material or metal. There were plenty of lab coats in varying sizes to choose from, and you spotted one badge and wondered who the dumdum was. You had plenty of electromagnetic strips for your ID if you needed a switch, but it seemed unnecessary. Some people left their everything when they clocked out, too.

You’d secured your purse around your stomach and under your shirt, the bulge flattened at your side, tying the ends in place. It would uncomfortably dig into you, but you couldn’t leave it behind and it would only be for a short time.

No one had paid you any mind, too busy rushing to get in and out of the locker rooms, and you made to escape with a group of women in the same coats as yourself. The group and yourself came to an elevator, and you let them do all the work. One of them scanning their ID for the group, the rest blurting out the number of the floor they needed to get to, and yourself joining in. A strange calm settling as you got more into the coworker attitude.

Seventh level Research and Development wing.

[“Not his office?”]

[“Why?”]

[“I dunno, there’s probably some terrible top-secret info in there.”]

[“I mean, I was on the main R&D floor, how much more top secret can you get?”]

[“Touché.”]

The entire R&D area was made up of floor to ceiling glass window dividers, a white and chromatic color scheme, and a lot of tightly sealed doors. You honestly didn’t even need the glasses to find the head researcher’s office, it was written in huge bold letters next to the dumb door on a plaque.

Weaving through a few people with their eyes busy reading clipboards and cellphones, you eyed each inch of the floor, and wondered if the other stock standard R&D floors at LexCorp were similar. No one paid you any mind as you stood in front of the group of office doors, all packed neatly in a little corner, and each leading to a different R&D office. They were mostly empty, only one occupied, most of the techbros and techgals were out and about doing work.

Again, the glasses did the decoding work for you, getting you the set of numbers you needed to enter the room. Unlike the rest of the lab, this office had less windows, though the few it did have were still large. Though they faced out rather than in, and it also wasn’t as large and as roomy as you’d have imagined. The Wayne R&D offices being waaay bigger in comparison.

Taking out two small flash drives, you shoved the sticks into the lone computer on the desk, booted it up, and just let them do their thing. Having the computer start with the flash drive, it acted as an executable program, letting it bypass any needed passcodes or security clearance for now.

One for unlocking the system, the other for information storage.

No doubt someone will notice that.

You wondered briefly if this was how the Cyborg felt, only ever having gotten to see him briefly before he utterly devastated an entire operating system. He then rebuilt it to his preferences, all in the matter of seconds. Tim had always lamented not getting to watch when you described it.

Notably, it was quite lovely how LexCorp’s researchers had everything organized in a folder subsystem so well. You were able to track down the needed information in less than a few minutes through the root directory.

Gotta be faster.

However, as you stared at the processing bar on your information download, there wasn’t a whole lot to do. Clicking the monitor’s sleep button to dim any light, you stood up and strode over to the door.

Being the lookout for a computer program was a new one.

[“Pfff.”]

[He snickered behind his palm as you smacked him on the shoulder.]

[“At least you got in without needing to hack anything yourself. Get dunked on, Dick, Damian.”]

[Light laughter echoed.]

Nothing had happened by the time the computer let out a small ding, indicating the download had finished. With both flash drives now pocketed, you turned to the next problem: getting out.

It really shouldn’t have been that hard, it was so stupidly easy to get in, thank you new temporary coworkers, but as you eyed the group of security detail by the elevator, you made a hard turn to the side.

Had you gone through the front doors instead of the employee entrance, you would have seen a ton of security. Through the back however, they really were only at certain check points, it’s not like just anyone could get in. So of course, there was no way they would have been able to get so far as the head office of any department.

How long had you been gone from the others? How long did you still have on Tim’s encryptions?

Oh heck.

The options were now trying to squeeze by the security, which was doubtful, they were checking everyone, or figure out a way to base jump without any gear. Neither option sounded appealing, you had no wings or grappling hooks with you, and it was still midday.

The corridor you turned into went from full on glass to a partition supporting windows, half and half, split horizontally to allow for more privacy, probably.

This was also exactly where you didn’t want to be.

Frick.

Most of the rooms looked like chemistry labs, charts everywhere, huge gravity convection and forced-air ovens, and thermo-freezers that looked like they belonged in meat markets. It was almost overwhelming at how cool some of these things looked as you searched for an exit. So filled with anxiety and adrenaline as you were, you almost missed it out of the corner of your eye. It was the red shimmering of a glass bowl on your face that made you notice it, the barely-there stream of sun that caught it just right.

You wasted no time getting to work, the door just as easy as the others, passcodes, they were all passcodes. Where were the fingerprint and retina scanners? Hell, where was the facial recognition scanners? You’d come prepared for so much, so you were incredibly confused at the lax security features. But again, this wasn’t the ground floor and security clearance was stricter this far in, your badge did most of the infiltration for you.

Was your dad that paranoid that now, so were you?

[“The civi world is full of sub-par idiots.”]

[“You sound like Dami.]

[“Gross.”]

[“…it’s uncanny, really, he said the same thing.”]

[“Shit.”]

The room looked similar to the others, less windows, more wall, plenty of graphs and charts, but there were a few different things as well. A few of which you pocketed; the only expensive looking laptop was also grabbed straight off a table to the side of your quarry.

The most notable thing however was glaring you boldly in the face, all black and a giant red bat on the chest.

A batsuit.

[“Yeah, I’m gonna want to know why baldy even had this thing.”]

[“Tim’s going through the drives right now, Dami dropped them off…”]

[“Damn.”]

Why did Lex have a batsuit? Where did he get it from, or did he help develop it? Terrence was part of all this, and what about your fa… the Batman? Why was Cadmus part of all this? Why was Lex? Were there more suits? More clo— children?

Shit shit shitshitshitshi—

To say you were freaking out a bit was an understatement.

Hearing heavy footsteps, you panicked and grabbed the garment from behind it’s glass case and took a dive behind the nearest desk. They hadn’t come in yet, they hadn’t gotten to this room, there was still time, but… still time to what?

You eyed the suit in your hands, it’s size horribly different from your own body type (but you could probably still fit it) and you decided to make a really dumb decision then and there.

You were gonna get caught regardless, might as well suit up and try to fight your way out. If you were lucky, you could get out of this without ruining your father’s reputation (or Batman’s identity.)

You began stripping behind the desk, fully intent on donning the batsuit. If nothing else, these things usually came with masks, even though you hadn’t seen a single one near it.

The moment you pulled the fabric over your legs, heels sliding effortlessly into the red soles, you watched almost in amazement as the fabric melted to your skin, reshaping to fit you. There was going to be a lot of bagginess in the suit when you wore it, a lot of tightness in weird places, too, and it had looked fitted to a larger male. So you hadn’t expected the suit to fit perfectly on purpose. It even had a built-in utility belt. Suddenly you were a bit giddy.

Again, what the hell was Lex Luthor doing?

“So freaking cool.”

The material felt almost like a second skin, there was also no sensory loss from wearing it, you could feel the floor as if you were barehanded.

You’d never thought about it before, but now you couldn’t take your mind off Dick and his skintight suit. You felt almost nude in this suit, not used to something showing everything off like it was.

Did Dick enjoy this?

Your ears burned brightly as you finished suiting up, no longer able to think about a large portion of superheroes and villains.

How could you ever face some of them again?

How could you ever look Dick in the eyes again?

“Oh no…”

Perverts. All of them.

[Loud laughter.]

[A very red face.]

You had to admit though, it was so much cooler than your heavier and bulkier recon gear. It didn’t weigh you down and the sensory adaptation was something you’d never come across before. Speaking of, reaching up, you took the glasses off to get a clear view of your surroundings and immediately regretted it.

The suit seemed to come to life on it’s own as something came out of nowhere, engulfing your head in complete darkness.

A silent scream, too terrified to let out any sound.

You about died then and there.

The suit wasn’t that cool anymore.

Without missing a beat and calming your fears of being bagged or worse, the darkness faded, and you could see your surroundings. Blinking for a moment to adjust, you tried to get your bearings on what the hell just happened, your hand gingerly coming up to feel your face.

[Booting...]

Were you hearing things or did the suit just...?

Unfortunately, that was the exact moment the door to the room you were in opened, and you panicked. It was a dead-end room, you weren’t as good at fighting as your brothers, and the security here could be scary when hunting down an intruder.

Stupid Lex.

Without thinking, you grabbed your things now bundled up in the labcoat like a bag, slung it over your shoulder, and bolted towards one of the windows looking out.

You were so used to recon jobs that you hadn’t taken into consideration that you had none of your gear (but your brothers did this kind of stupid thing constantly, so you’d be okay, right?).

You were too caught up in the moment.

You hadn’t heard the sound, mind too blank, but the glass falling around you was enough indication of just what you had done.

Base jumping it was.

You were in a batsuit, after all.

Falling seven stories was terrifying, but definitely brought you back to reality. Securing the makeshift bag on your back, tied around your neck, you began thinking as fast as you could. Claws? The suit had them, you had noticed, but you were too far from the building, having jumped a distance, then... The suit had a built-in utility belt, right? Maybe there was something useful in one of the —

[Servo-Motors engage…]

[Checking system function…]

[Loading protocol…]

…huh?

[84 feet till impact.]

…wait—

[75 feet till impact.]

“Yeah I see that.”

[71 feet till impact.]

“Thanks.” Sarcasm, “What else can you tell me other than my unfortunate demise at the hands of gravity?”

[Thrusters not online.]

[68 feet till impact.]

[Grappling gun unavailable.]

[Batarang lines unavailable.]

[67 feet till impact.]

[Retractable wings availa—]

“Yes, that one, wings, please! Wait… thrusters?” you had little time as your whole body suddenly started tumbling, a set of red wings expanding between your arms and the sides of your torso. “Shitshitsh—” and then you were gliding, your arms having spread on their own from the force of the fall. “Oh… Oh my…”

The suit was cool again, “Dang this is… nice… Like a bird or… him.” You reeeaaallllly didn’t want to chance him hearing you say his name.

You wanted to try this higher up now, in a sea of clouds… It was like floating, an almost weightless feeling taking over. The wind currents were a bit to get used to, but it wasn’t terrible, having imagined it would be worse higher up, in them dang fluffy clouds... sigh.

[23 feet till landing.]

The suit helped guide you to an area with less people, something akin to your own Gotham alleyways (to a point, Metropolis’ worst streets were like Gotham’s safest ones). The small alley that led to several businesses’ back doors was rather clean, and there weren’t many places to hide. The best you could do was a growing shadow next to an empty dumpster.

“Alright then…” you sighed aloud, hands doing their best to find any seam in the suit, and after a few minutes, your—

[Heart rate at 142bpm.]

[Heart rate rising.]

[Blood pressure at—]

“—No kidding,” you thought, mind racing, and unfortunately, there wasn’t a single seam on the suit.

Anxiety was building in your chest,

“Frick.”

[“Wait, the suit talks?”]

[“I think it has an OS on it? I haven’t tried the cowl since…”]

[“You should.”]

[“…Nnnn”]

“Why do you look like Nightwing?” All you did was take the clothes from Damian and began to dress yourself over the suit, not certain at all on what you could say to this situation. You’d called Damian the moment you lucked out and made the cowl… come off?, and in his eagerness to leave Jon behind, he showed up quickly.

“You will tell me,” he was sounding just like dad.

“Dami, I uhm…”

“…I won’t tell father.” he could deduce a few things this pertained to, including but not limited to the child you had brought home, and how you avoided Bruce.

You could only sigh and nod at him, resigned. You really hope this didn’t come back to bite you in the bottom.

“What are you two doing?”

The clothes you had couldn’t cover most of the suit, the clothes Damian had brought you were able to do just that. Strangely, you weren’t feeling overheated, even though you looked like you were ready for cold weather.

“Ah, Jon.”

“You look silly.”

“…thanks.”

[“…”]

[”...”]

“Nightwing? Screw that brat.”

“Please don’t speak like that…” you sighed, your head in your hands.

He just huffed in annoyance, “I wear the colors better,” he muttered, “it sounds like a lot, what's your next plan of action?”

You let yourself slump forwards as he pulled you into a side-hug, arm slung over your shoulders, “it’s this suit. I can’t get it off, and—"

BAM

You and Jason about had twin heart attacks.

Without missing another fraction of a second, the larger male was on his feet, flipping over the back of the couch ready to attack before he swore at the sight in front of him. Striding over to the table in two long steps, “What the hell, Terry.” He haphazardly picked the kid up, a red helmet falling on the table with a clang, and turned to you, “your kid just tried to kill us, you realize.”

Having slid to the ground out of need to instantly roll to the side, you stopped, staring at the smoking gun that’d been pushed off the table, lying on the floor near you. Your eyes then shifting to the hole in the safehouse’s wall, “Uhm… The safety…”

He just snorted, “I don’t always have it on.” He wasn’t great at taking care of himself, sadly. You did your best with your busy schedule and budgeted time constraints, but when he wasn’t here, he easily fell into old habits.

“Please don’t let the demon spawn near him.”

“Please keep the damned safety on your guns.”

Batman was straining so hard that it looked like he was in the middle of a fight, an obvious aura of unrest around him.

“Whoa, you gonna punch yourself in the face? Wait, wait a minute, I gotta…” Batman groaned, irritated as a red blur came into the room, jabbered on too quickly, then took his phone out and pointed it at the big bat.

“Okay, I’m recording now, do it!”

It took a moment as Batman thought, rubbing his temples.

“I trained my kids too well,” at that, Flash put his phone down, tilting his head in confusion, “and that’s… bad?” He looked up at the League’s computers in front of him, noting the blinking [[ALERT ALERT ALERT]] off to the side.

“Because,” Batman reasoned, “I have to deal with them,” he ground out, glaring at the sign of intrusion.

“Ooooh, your kids hacked into the system again, huh?” Flash let out a low whistle, clearly amused by Batman’s misfortunes. Batman did his best to ignore the red nerd, calling on Cyborg to assist him, even though he had already been on his way, noticing it moments prior.

“Family, amirite?”

Batman said nothing in response,

Tim almost got away with it.

Almost.

#tim drake x reader #dick grayson x reader #jason todd x reader #stephanie brown x reader #duke thomas x reader #bat!sis

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betweenthetimeandsound · 3 years ago

Text

Three Minutes to Eternity: My ESC 250 (250-241)

(Author's note: I intended to have the list ready by 1 September, but I was a bit lousy in compiling the final spots on there. As a result, they will seem a bit shoddy, but there will be good summaries, I promise! And there will be honorable mentions soon enough.)

#250: Harel Skaat -- Milim (Israel 2010)

“האור נרדם, דמעות של דם, שורפות לי בגרון, ידית שרוטה, תקרה שמוטה, כשאני שר לך את השיר האחרון” “The light fell asleep, tears of blood scorch my throat Scratched handle, sloping ceiling When I sing to you the last song” Curiously, I already knew of Harel Skaat before hearing of Eurovision: I listened to a few of his earlier tracks when I found him singing with another Israeli pop artist, Dor Daniel. I particularly liked משנו ממני and כמה עוד אפשר. Milim is a requiem for what was once lost—the presence of one whom the narrator really loves. The imagery used in this song adds to the melancholic feel—a classic ballad of sorts, with a lot of emotion. And the performance from Harel was very good, even though he butchered a note at the end. Maybe it was the pretty blue lights that really accompanied the mood of the song. Personal ranking: 7th/39 Actual ranking: 14th/25 GF (grand final) in Oslo

#249: Tina Karol -- Show Me Your Love (Ukraine 2006)

"You see it in my eyes, my heart is on fire Don’t hide your love away, don’t wait another day" As mentioned in the note, I had a hard time determining the last few spots on my list. I went through the results of both sorters and picked what I felt in the time. Show Me Your Love is a bit odd, but with the accordion intro striking right away, it deserves a place here! While an overly simple song with stilted lyrics, Show Me Your Love is still a bunch of fun. From the boppy beat to Tina's infectious presence on stage, one can't help but smile as this comes along. And there was a jump rope right in the middle of the performance--never change, Ukraine. :) Personal ranking: 5th/37 Actual ranking: 7th/24 GF in Athens

#248: Alan Sorrenti -- Non so che darei (Italy 1980)

“Non so che darei per fermare il tempo Per dormire al tuo fianco solo una notte Non so che darei per sentirti mia Per tenerti vicina solo una notte” “I don’t know what I can give to stop the time To sleep beside you only for one night I don’t know what I can give To take you close to me only for one night” Recently, I find myself humming to this a lot, because it's so calming and nice. I particularly like Alan’s vocals in this song! He really conveys the pain of losing (or on the verge of losing) the one he loves, expressed by the melancholic lyrics. Together, they form a song which is just as beautiful, if not more so than the winner of its year. Despite its 6th place, it became a continent-wide hit, which was quite deserved (just like a good number of Italian Eurovision songs over the years, haha)! Alongside that, Non so che darei also had the only black conductor at Eurovision while there was an orchestra, along with a couple of women playing fake guitars. For some reason, I imagined they were holding umbrellas instead, but I clearly remembered wrong... Personal ranking: 3rd/19 Actual ranking: 6th/19 in Den Haag

#247: Sanja Vucic ZAA -- Goodbye (Shelter) (Serbia 2016)

"I lick my wounds So that I can keep on fighting" Another last-minute choice, but this is an important song, both in 2016 and now, unfortunately. Despite the advances in women's rights over the decades, domestic violence still persists across the world. Goodbye (Shelter) tells the story through someone who's struggling to get out of a toxic relationship, and there's a mix of vulnerability and strength in the lyrics. Of course, lyrics don't make up the whole song; the music also conveys the story through a dramatic build and beautiful strings. Considering the 2016 contest, it does get a bit lost amongst the crowd, but it feels like a musical number in all the right ways. Also, the performance told the story well, and Sanja is a wonderful singer (she also sings a cover of one all-time favorite you will see towards the end, hehe). I even would shed a tear at points. Personal ranking: 8th/42 Actual ranking: 18th/26 GF in Stockholm

#246: Remedios Amaya--Quien Maneja Mi Barca? (Spain 1983)

“El verde de tus ojos verdes, mírame, Que mira que yo te mire, mírame, Que mira que yo te mire” “The green of your green eyes, look at me, Look at me, so I can look at you, look at me Look at me, so I can look at you” One of those songs that can be defined as an acquired taste--the people who love it enjoy its subversive status in the Eurovision canon for being unapologetically Spanish, while the people who hate it will dismiss it as just a bunch of noise. This is a song which is part of the “New Flamenco” genre popularized since the 1960s, which mixes up flamenco music with other genres, such as rock or electronic music. Quien Maneja mi Barca ‘s studio cut has nebulous lyrics combined with an electronic beat, which is alright at best. I found it quite hollow and quite forgettable there. I prefer it in its orchestral form, which fuses synths and concert instruments fantastically. It definitely amps up the drama with Remedios’ voice, and made me appreciate this very distinct entry. Personal ranking: 6th/20 Actual ranking: Joint last (with Turkey) in Munich

#245: Marianna Efstratiou - To diko sou asteri (Greece 1989)

"Μα στο βραδινό τον ουρανό το δικό σου αστέρι ψάξε βρες Γιατί οι σκιές στο πρώτο φως μοιάζουνε φοβίες παιδικές" "But in the evening sky, search and find your own star Because the shadows in the first light seem to be childish phobias" While To diko sou asteri sounds a bit safe in the grand scheme of things, I think its lack of pretension is what makes this little song shine. The lyrics encourage one to find their star and encourage the listener to pursue what they believe in without any fear. Marianna's vocals also add to this song in that they're quietly hopeful and sweet. Also, for some reason, I got some "True Colors" vibes while listening to it every time, despite there being some differences. Both have this relaxing, calm vibe to help the listener on their journey through life. Then again, True Colors doesn't have some nice flute flourishes throughout the song, haha. Personal ranking: 4th/22 Actual ranking: 9th/22 at Lausanne

#244: Dina -- Amor d'agua fresca (Portugal 1992)

"Peguei, trinquei e meti-te na cesta Ris e dás-me a volta à cabeça" "I picked you, bit into you and put you in the basket You laughed and made my head spin" 1992 is one of the most average years at Eurovision--after the chaos that was 1991, it seems like the songs and production sought something safer, and the whole thing felt really bland. Amor d'agua fresca is anything but dull--it's bubbly and sweet, with quite relaxed atmosphere. The combination of instruments--particular the guitar in the beginning and Dina's vocals-- really help with conveying a mood. But after that, we have the lustful lyrics, describing a romance through enjoying different fruits, which was quite different for me... But hey, different makes things quite a bit better in life! Personal ranking: 4th/23 Actual ranking: 17th/23 in Malmo

#243: Lucia -- Él (Spain 1982)

"Él me perdona porque es un pedazo de buen pan Y me trata con paciencia Sé que no debo ser cruel Que le debo confesar que él a mí, no me interesa" "He forgives me because he’s a scrap of good bread And he treats me with patience I know that I shouldn’t be cruel That I should tell him I’m not interested in him" One interesting thing about me is that I'm a sucker for tango music. There's a sense of drama when one listens to it, and even more so when people get on the dance floor. While I've only danced it a few times, when one does it right, the connection between two people is quite powerful, and you could fall right into a dream. El definitely amps up the drama--Lucia is in a conflicted relationship, but she plays the "player" role quite well. It's very flirty and seductive, and you could immerse yourself in the story. While the dancing was a bit too much for a stage as small as 1982's, it's still quite fun to see. Also, it was sent as a way of supporting Argentina in the Falkland Wars, which is quite interesting... Personal ranking: 4th/18 Actual ranking: 10th/18 in Harrogate

#242: Gabriela Gunčíková -- I Stand (Czech Republic 2016)

"I am thanking you, you made me You are my air, I’ll always care" For those who have an aversion to ballads, why is that? I find it annoying because there can be ones where they can touch you and tell a story. Life can't always be happy bops with heavy beats (or it's because they don't really inhabit my musical atmosphere most of the time...) I Stand sounds like a derivative ballad sonically, but it carries itself with such grace and grandeur. The instruments add to the drama of the song, which thanks a special person for their help in their life (though the lyrics above can come off as a bit co-dependent...or so I've heard) And Gabriela delivers this with the necessary composure and grace the song desires. It feels like a highlight track from a musical--one where two characters meet again and the narrator wants to recognize the latter's good deeds before they're gone forever. Thanks to that, the Czech Republic gets their first grand final appearance (though getting 0 televote points once there was harsh...) Personal ranking: 7th/42 Actual ranking: 25th/26 GF in Stockholm

#241: t.A.T.u -- Ne ver, ne boysia (Russia 2003)

“Кто-то понты а кто-то маньяк, Кто-то как ты, кто-то как я.” “Someone's a psycho and someone's a maniac, Someone like you, someone like me” If I’m right, I may have heard this song without knowing this was from Eurovision. It was because there was a period between middle school and high school where I love t.A.T.u’s music, and this was one of their singles. Ne Ver Ne Bosia is compelling and dark, with an interplay about the people around them using an old Soviet proverb as the title. It’s gripping and intense, and brings the listener into this crazy and mad world they're enveloped in. The performance, on the other hand, almost couldn't have been worse. The vocals were really ropey (especially from Lena, who would usually be trusted to help Yulia), and it didn't come over as a great listening experience. While I love it, t.A.T.u were really lucky they competed in the televote era, as they would've been struck down hard by the juries. (and the worst part: there will be a couple of poorly-performed entries which will be quite high on this list...) Personal ranking: 6th/26 Actual ranking: 3rd/26 in Riga

#esc 250 #esc top 250 #eurovision song contest #esc israel #esc italy #esc 2021 #esc serbia #esc portugal #esc greece #esc russia #esc czech republic #vintage eurovision #three minutes to eternity #esc ukraine

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producingtrashycontent · 4 years ago

Note

Might I ask you for a bit of William x Mereoleona scenario? Maybe with pirate x navy person dynamics? Or maybe with them just being dressed in those costumes for a halloween-like event?

Of course you can ask!!! I love this ship! I read a few chapters of One Piece while writing this, so if you get One Piece vibes, that's why. (Excuse my cringy as hell title. I couldn't come up with one.)

Not All Pirates Are Bad

Captain William Vangeance never regretted his life as a navy officer. He always believed pirates were the scourge that terrorized the people of this world. He had lost many friends to pirate attacks. One day, he swore to himself that he would become a navy captain to help people in need. Pirates were devils. Whenever he imagined them, he saw them with little horns on their head and tails with points in the shape of an arrow.

Recently, a group of pirates had been causing trouble on a nearby island, so William gathered up a few of his subordinates and set sail towards Kiten Island.

•~•~•~•

William removed the mask on his head and held it close to him. That mask was given to him by someone he looked up to. He was never letting it go, even if it looked a little tacky. He had painted it to match his navy uniform. Now, the mask blended with the rest of his crew and was nearly unnoticeable. Placing his mask on his nightstand, William rolled onto his bed. It would take a week to reach the island, and his crew had already been at sea for 2 days. Life at sea was hard; William was lucky to live on dry land for the most part.

A gentle knock on William's door interrupted his thoughts. His personal aide, Alecdora Sandler, stepped in a moment later. "Captain Vangeance. A ship has been spotted on the horizon coming from the direction of Kiten. What shall we do?"

"Identity the vessel. If it's a navy ship, simply pass it. If it has any markings of a pirate ship, warn me and be ready to fight."

It was only a few moments later when something crashed into the water near the stern of the ship. That's where William's room was. Alecdora didn't even need to warn him. He knew this was a pirate ship attacking. Grabbing his pistol off his bed, William bolted for the door. William also grabbed his sword, which had been sitting by the door, and slid it into his scabbard. World Tree Magic was no good on the open sea, but William slid his grimoire into its pouch just in case.

By the time William arrived on the deck, the other ship was close enough to identify it as a pirate ship. The setting sun slowly covered the other ship as a cloud floated in the distance, and William caught a glimpse of the other ship's flag. It was the flag of the Crimson Lion Pirates. Known for their dual abilities of fire magic and swordsmanship, the Crimson Lions were one of the most feared pirate crews on the sea today. Unfortunately for William's crew, they were facing a headwind that gave the other ship the speed it needed to reach the navy ship.

It barely moments later when the Crimson Lions made their way across the gap between both ships. Pistols went off, swords clashed, and fists flew. A pirate ran towards William with his sword outstretched. William dodged and hit him with a punch that sent him flying overboard. Shaking his wrist out, William froze when he heard someone mention his rank behind him.

"Where's your captain?" A feminine voice growled.

"I-I would never tell..." a voice whimpered in response.

"Tell me where he is, or I'll shove this sword up your ass!"

"He's right there!" The blond navy officer pointed in William's direction. The woman holding him threw him overboard and stormed over to William.

"David!" As William leaned against the railing to reach for David, the woman pressed herself against William and held a sword up to his neck.

"Move or say anything wrong, and you're dead. Now, I want the Navy's map of this area. It's bound to have all the islands and towns that the Navy is supposed to protect."

William moved back slightly, and the woman pressed herself against him even harder than before. William swallowed when he felt her breasts press against his back. He was never good with women, especially with spirited ones like this.

"Answer me!"

William let out a shaky breath. "What if we talked about this over some drinks?"

"Haha! You're really something, captain. Trying to convince me not to pirate." The woman removed her sword from William's neck for a moment and pointed at the pirates that were beginning to outnumber his men. "These men are pirates. Part of being a pirate is raiding ships. Do you really think you can give pirates money and think they'll be satisfied? Pirates find joy in raiding ships. Now, if you don't want you men to be slaughtered, then take me to where your maps are."

"O-ok." William began formulating a plan to escape and fight back when the barrel of a gun was pressed to his head.

"I know you were thinking of escaping and fighting me. This pistol is loaded with ammo and backed by my Fire Magic. If you even think of escaping, I'll blast your head into mush. And don't forget that I'm the strongest fire mage on my ship, so even an injury to the foot may leave you wounded for years to come."

Wait, the strongest mage on her ship? I know that Captain Fuegoleon is scarily strong, but there were rumours that his sister was even stronger. Could she be-? William whipped around to face the woman. She was shocked that he did that, but she didn't hesitate in cocking the pistol.

"Wait! Please don't shoot!" William shot her a look that caused her to make a few weird faces before settling on a furious face. "You're Mereoleona Vermillion, The Uncrowned, Undefeated Lioness, right?"

"It's been a while since someone lived long enough to identify me."

"You also said something that I found weird earlier. You said that this was your ship and these are your men. Isn't Captain Fuegoleon captain of the ship?"

Mereoleona let out a sigh. "Yes, but my idiot brother was injured a month ago, and he's hasn't woken up since."

"Oh, I'm sorry about that. I hope he recovers fully."

"You hope he recovers?" Mereoleona raised an eyebrow. "What kind of Navy Officer wishes good health on a pirate captain? Shouldn't you be happy that he's injured?"

"Well, I'm not the type to wish ill will upon others, even if they're my enemies."

Mereoleona raised an eyebrow. He's definitely an odd one. He may be nice, but he's still a Navy Officer. I still need that map!

"Take me to the map!" Mereoleona ordered him.

"Um, of course."

•~•~•~•

"This is exactly what we needed." Mereoleona rubbed her hands together before gently picking up the Navy's map. "It has Nean Island and all of its trade routes. That's perfect."

"Why would you need Nean Island's trade routes?" William asked. "Granted, they have the best healers around, but they're by no means wealthy."

Mereoleona frowned. "That's none of your business, Navy Boy."

"I'm sorry if I prodded too much..."

Mereoleona stayed silent. It looked as though she wanted to say something. After a few silent moments, she spoke. "I've had my men raiding Navy Ships for medical supplies. You already know that my brother is injured. He hasn't woken up in so long, so I'm worried he won't get better. I know this is a stark contrast to my reputation and usual personality, but I can care too. He's my little brother after all."

William's eyes widened. "Oh, so you want Nean's trade routes to raid their medical supplies and possibly enlist a healer to help your brother. You really are kind at heart."

Glancing off to the side, Mereoleona scoffed. "Don't go telling people that."

"My lips are sealed."

Mereoleona grabbed a rope lying in the corner of the room. "I'm gonna tie you up with this so it doesn't look like we cooperated for a moment. I don't have a desire to kill you, so I'll let you off scot-free this time."

"I can't argue with that logic." William smiled. "Tie me up."

•~•~•~•

When Mereoleona and William arrived on the deck, Mereoleona took on her fearsome side again and dragged William out onto the deck. She let out a high-pitched whistle that got the attention of her crew.

"Alright you imbeciles! Let's head out before these weaklings call for reinforcements!"

"Yes ma'am!"

Mereoleona grabbed William and leaned close to his ear. "Um, thanks for the map. I'll hold off attacking any Navy ships that you're on."

William smiled. "And how will you know I'm on the ship?"

"If I see you on it after I invade the ship, I'll leave."

"Well, I feel very safe now."

Mereoleona gave him a hard shove that nearly threw him off balance. As he stumbled, William wasn't sure if he imagined the rosy color on her cheeks or if it was a trick of the light. It was hard to see at dusk.

As the Crimson Lions left with their stolen goods, Alecdora released William from the ropes binding his limbs together. William walked to the side of the ship and leaned on the railing as he watched the Crimson Lions' ship sail away. He caught a glimpse of Mereoleona ordering her men around. Leaning his head against his fist, William watched Mereoleona and her ship disappear into the horizon. He wasn't sure what this fluttery feeling in his chest was, but William was sure it would lead him back to Mereoleona. He was sure of it.

William sighed. "I guess not all pirates are bad..."

#black clover #william vangeance #mereoleona vermillion #mereoleona x william #william x mereoleona #merilliam

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smalltowndetective · 4 years ago

Note

Can I request #28 "This is why we can't have nice things" with Adam (always breaking the detectives stuff) du Mortain ?

Hello Anon! Of course! I’d love to!

This is the sweetest I’ve written these two, and considering these two, I don’t really write them as sweet as all haha. I hope you enjoy! Kind of unsure about this one, but I’ve held onto it long enough!

Ao3 Link

Title: Work Break

Pairing: Adam and Natasha

Words: 1.2k

Whenever Adam was staying at the station, he normally avoided Natasha, letting her do her own work in peace, at least that was what he told the others. None of them seemed to believe that reason though.

And I’m not even sure I could convince myself of that anywhere.

The majority of the day he had spent watching her work, her eyes rarely leaving her laptop screen, her typing almost having a rhythm to it. When she put her mind to something, she did indeed complete it, with as much poise and professionalism that she did with everything else

It was something that he was finding he admired about her, that complete devotion to everything that she did, no matter how small it was, even if it annoyed him the way she would run herself ragged to keep up with the forever piling amounts on her desk.

Not that he would ever say that her, since he knew that Natasha would call him the biggest hypocrite if he did, and he supposed she would be right to say so.

Not that it looked like she was stressed in the first place. Her professional front seemed to fool most people, but it just left Adam with the realization that he knew when she was. He had no idea how he did, or even why, but was starting to see it.

When she was stressed, her normally tight bun would have the slightest bit of shorter bits of hair framing her face, not pulled back like it completely was. Natasha would also absentmindedly drum her fingers on her desk, which at first, he thought was due to boredom, but he realized that was something she did when she was trying to figure out her plans in her head.

Such small things, but he did see them, and he was not sure how exactly to deal with it, or if he would ever really know. It was almost just a glaringly obvious sign that, as much as he had tried, these feelings were not going away.

Wouldn’t it be better if they did?

But that was another thing that was becoming harder and harder to convince himself of.

Adam managed to tear his eyes back to look at her through the partition, and he saw her pick up her cup of coffee, before setting it back down as if she just noticed it was empty.

And before he could talk himself out of it, he walked back to the small kitchen area where Natasha had made her coffee, and he took one of the empty coffee cups, and poured the remaining coffee still in the pot, it still quite warm against his skin.

I’m just going to walk in there, set this down, and then leave.

I don’t need to do anything more.

He did so, Natasha not looking up as he entered the room, and he was not sure if that was because she did not notice he had walked in or if she was rather acting like he was not there at all, something that she had been doing since after he pushed away the day after the carnival.

But just before he was about to leave, quietly spoken words made him stop.

“Thank you”

Turning around to face her, he caught gazes with her icy blue eyes, but there was something different about them. They were, almost soft, and he was not quite used to her eyes looking at him that way. It was as if he was watching the melting of a glacier, something that should have never happened, but had anyway, and it took him a moment before he could finally find his words in return.

“Of course,”, he nodded, fully intending to leave now, but it was almost like he found himself stuck, unable to move away from her gaze, and Adam watched as she pushed away her laptop, and moved forward to lean her arms on top of her desk.

“Do you need something?”, she suddenly asked, squaring her shoulders, and then she gestured to the messy stacks of paper on her desk, “Or are you here just to tell me my office is cluttered again?”, her eyes flashing in challenge, as if she was just begging him to say it again

But even with the flatness of her words, there was a hint of a smile at the edge of her lips, and it surprised him, as if she was actually joking with him. Natasha, one of the most serious people he knew, joking with him out of everyone.

And it was not like her office was ever cluttered to begin with, since she always preferred the more minimalist side of things, the plant that he ended up breaking the only real extra decoration in the otherwise bland room, and he had broken that, the small amount of color in the white and gray decorated office gone.

“Not as cluttered anymore, is it?”, he said, slightly narrowing his eyes, but his voice felt lighter than it normally was.

“Yes, because you broke the only decoration in here”, she lightly scoffed, “Since, apparently with that and the desk, we can’t have nice things. At least, I can’t anyway”

There was not much he could say to defend himself on that front, but he rolled his eyes, trying hard to hide the amusement on his face.

“And you’re never going to actually repair the damages, aren’t you?”, Natasha said, the smallest bit of a laugh in her words, a small smile making her eyes crinkle, “I’m going to have to deal with the fact my stuff is actually never going to get replaced”

“I wouldn’t say that”, he shrugged, but truthfully, he had not thought much about the objects at all.

“The Agency decided to leave my broken desk after a bunch of thralls came through here”, she said flatly, but the amusement never dying in her eyes, “If that doesn’t say anything, I don’t know what does”

Adam shook his head, wanting to tell her that the reason it was left like that was leave it exactly as it was, but she gave her the faintest hints of a smile anyway, “Wouldn’t count it out just yet”

“Then I’ll hold you to it, du Mortain”, she replied, the surprising hint of a smirk on her lips, and the two of them seemed to lock eyes, neither of them glancing away from each other, unspoken words hanging in the hair, the tension greater than it had ever been.

The only thing that he could do was to turn away, but it did not escape his notice that Natasha seemed to be expecting that, the small smile not leaving her face anyway.

But before he left, he turned to say something.

“I know you will”

Natasha gave him a full smile this time, and it was almost tempting enough to get him to stay, but he left anyway, knowing that the longer he stayed, the more he would not want to leave.

And it’ll just make this harder if I stay.

Adam was starting to realize, however, that staying away from her was not working either, instead almost making everything worse.

But there is not much else I can do.

He took his spot in one end of the station, and after a few minutes, he got the nerve to look back through the glass partition, where she continued to work, but that smile never did quite leave her face.

#the wayhaven chronicles #wayhaven chronicles #twc #detective natasha trexler #adam du mortain #adam du mortain x detective #request #thank you again for asking anon!

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purplesurveys · 5 years ago

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746

What are some of your favorite cities you've been to? Locally, I loved Sagada, Vigan, and Basco. Outside of the country, I really enjoyed Bali and Shanghai. Would you allow your children to date prior to 16? (assuming you want any) I wouldn’t stop them but I suppose I’d watch over them more and have more rules while they’re still under 16, like no overnights at their SO’s place or that they have to be home by a certain time. Did you ever go through a phase where you thought guys in bands were 'hot?' Hah yep. I grew up during the pop punk/alternative rock era man, where most prepubescent girls were gaga over people like Stephen Gomez from The Summer Set or Jack Barakat of All Time Low. What's something about adult life you were never warned of or prepared for? The extent of being independent, like the sheer amount of bills to pay, how to check if the gas in your kitchen is doing fine, etc. I panic ever so slightly more day by day because I still don’t know how to cook anything and that’s literally Basic Adult Life Skill #1. Did your parents teach you proper table manners when you were growing up? Yes. They both work in hospitality management so stuff like that has been taught to me from a very young age. I can still vividly remember my mom teaching me how to eat pasta and soup properly or when she told me what it means when a bunch of spoons and forks of different sizes are laid out in front of me.

What was the last thing you baked? Chocolate chip cookies, but that was nearly two years ago. Do you live more than 5 hours away from the nearest international border? Yeah, if you swam all the way there lmao. Kidding but uhhh I don’t – at least I don’t think so. The countries nearest us are pretty...nearby and if you took a boat you’ll probably get there in a couple of hours. Does your town have a farmer's market? No. I think the ones in Cubao are the closest one. What's the westernmost point you've been to? I’m not so sure, I’ve only been around Southeast and East Asia. Strictly speaking I think it has to be Malaysia, but that’s nowhere near the west haha. What was the last restaurant you made a reservation at? Gab and I never really get to have dates as fancy as this. We tried to book a reservation at Barcino once for Valentine’s Day, but they told us no precisely because they weren’t taking reservations for that day. When did you last feel lonely? This afternoon. I always start feeling a tad bit lonely during the afternoons which a nap can often fix. Can you easily tell when others are masking their true emotions? Not always. Some people are good at masking. How often do you wash your car? I don’t. My mom is so particular about how every single item in the house must be cleaned a certain way, and no matter how hard I try to imitate her methods they’re almost always wrong in her eyes so I didn’t even try with my car anymore. I don’t think I wanna hear “you didn’t scrub right” “you missed a spot” “did you even clean the car?” especially after trying my best. When did you last lend money to a friend? It was years ago when I’d lend money to Gab so she can put gas in her car or book a Grab/Uber. Now it’s the other way around, hahaha. Which app on your phone do you tend to get the most notifications from? Facebook. Messenger is almost always active since it’s the most popular chat app where I live. Do you own a Dutch oven? If so, what was the last thing you cooked in it? We probably do but it’s most likely one of my mom’s prized kitchenware that’s always hidden away and never used unless we have important visitors lol. Do you find it easy to put yourself in somebody else's shoes? No, I don’t think you can truly understand what someone with difficulties is exactly going through. What I am prone to be though is feeling sensitive and when someone is having a tough time, I do usually feel sad for them. Sometimes I’ll simply cry thinking about what they’re going through. What is currently on your kitchen table? We have one main counter and on it are my parents’ coffee maker, the water dispenser, the rack for our plates and glasses, mug hanger, and utensil holder. What is your favorite time period in history to learn about? Ooooh I really like history though. I don’t think I’ve ever found myself bored reading about a certain era. How old were you when you met your current best friend? I was 7 when I met the first one, and 13 when I met the other. Have you ever kissed a smoker? Yep but I’ve never liked kissing her after smoking. What is the minimum age to obtain a driver's license in your state/country? 18. ^ Do you think this is an appropriate age, or should it be higher/lower? It’s appropriate. I got mine at 18 and it worked out fine, and the only reason I got into accidents early on is because I was always driving very carefully but was unfortunately surrounded by dumbass drivers who liked to bully my much smaller car around. If you won the lottery, do you think any of your family members would ask you to give them some of your money? I honestly don’t think so but maybe I just don’t know their true colors just yet HAHAHA. What is the craziest thing you've seen happen at your workplace? Thankfully I didn’t see it happen in person as it would’ve broken me completely, but it was when the Shopping Center at campus burned down. That was the first place I went to after I officially enrolled in my school (I had lunch with my dad and bought a UP car sticker) and it was also the first place my block dropped by to hang out together when we all met each other for the first time, so a lot of memories were in that place and I’m sure this was the case for all students too. That was a really sad day and I almost didn’t want to go to class when I saw the videos of the fire. Do you own any home automation gadgets like wifi thermostats or wifi bulbs? My parents have a wifi bulb. What is something you gave up on after many failed attempts? Instagram. I’ve always tried hyping myself up to finally make an account but egh, it just screams fakeiness to me. How old were you when you started to seriously think about what career path you wanted to pursue? When I was 19 or 20 as that was the age when I started having friends who graduated college and went on to have Real Life Jobs. Have you ever disliked a book so much that you didn't finish it? Yeah I got a random book once when my mom let me pick out whatever book I felt like getting when I was like 11 or 12. I don’t even remember the title anymore hahah but it was such a bore. I don’t know if I threw it out or if it’s buried somewhere in my room. Would you rather read a book, or listen to the audiobook? Read the book. I’m bad at listening to accents and have always needed subtitles, but if I needed subtitles for an audiobook then I might as well have just picked the book hahaha. Do you think tomorrow will be a better day than today? I don’t know. All days are the same now.

#survey #surveys

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kucheek · 6 years ago

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I Gave A Homeless Man A Home

[PART 2] ~pending

requested: yes! this was also the imagine out of the last three that got the most notes, so as promised, I’ll finish out writing out this video. maybe not all at the same time bc i have a few more requests to start.

request: LOVE YOUU

Hi!!! Can you please do imagines/ a series based on mrbeast videos where the reader is in a relationship with jimmy so basically fluff?❤️ Btw I love your work!!

pairing: mrbeast aka jimmy x reader

// Yeah, super late haha but with school, work, and other circumstances, I don’t have too much time to write. BUT, I’m making as much time as possible. If anyone has any requests, feel free to send them in or just words of encouragement which i love v v v much! They do motivate me very much to get off my butt and write. //

-o-o-o-o-o-o-o-o

“Is it going to fit?” You bit the side of your cheek, looking at the TV measurements. “What are the wall measurements?” You glanced up, all the boys staring at you blankly. “...did anyone take the measurements?”

“Y/N, we’re professionals.” Chris frowned. “of course we didn’t.”

“Maybe we should call Chandler and ask if he even wants a TV?” Jimmy suggested, already pulling out his phone. You drew your eyebrows together and huffed. “how is that going to help? Even if he wants to get the TV, which he will, how are we going to know it’s going to fit?”

Jimmy waved off your logic. “let’s see if he wants this...” He quickly put the phone on speaker and after a few seconds, Chandler answered, “hey, what’s up?”

“Hey, do you think he wants this TV?” A few seconds passed without an answer and just as you were going to say something, Jimmy spoke quickly before hanging up, “alright, we’ll get it.”

Your eyes widened. “Jimmy-”

“It’s fine, it’ll fit.” He assured you, patting the top of your head in what you assumed he thought was comforting, but at the moment, you found incredibly patronizing.

You gave him the dullest look you could muster, “how do you know? You didn’t measure the ‘freakin wall.” In the background, Garrett and Chris were moving the TV onto the cart, when Chris spotted the TV stands set right next to them, “hey, TV stands!”

“Jesus Christ.” You mumbled, crossing your arms. You should’ve measured the wall. Assuming the guys had done it while they were going around the house, pointing at things that they needed to replace and buy, was obviously a bad call.

Turning back to face Jimmy and ready to argue, he had already noticed your sour mood. He smiled lightly, and poked at the sides of your mouth, “come on, turn that frown,” he moved his fingers up to try and make you smile, “upside down.”

You felt a crack in your angry front and swatted his hands away, “I’m still peeved that you didn’t measure the wall.”

“It’s going to be fine. It’s just a wall,” he dismissed, moving his hand to pat your head again. “Fine,” you sighed, “but when the TV doesn’t fit and the refrigerator is too big, I’m going to say I told you so.” Just as he was going to respond, Chris called you over to look at the TV stands that he had been sifting through.

“If we get him a nice TV, we got to get him a nice TV stand, right?”

At this point, you just resigned the idea that we were actually going to think through any of these purchases.

Checking out was a quick process that you were grateful for and you were finally on your way to Walmart, your final destination of the day.

-o-o-o-o-o

“We should just go through the aisles and get things as we go,” you suggested, crossing your arms on the handle of the Walmart cart, moving it forward through the entrance.

“We need toilet paper.” “Are we going clothes shopping too?” “Can we get strawberries while we’re here? They’re on sale, look.”

After trying to make everyone on the same page, you gave up and just moved forward on your own, everyone trailing behind you like ducks. You felt a little like an overexerted mother, with three hyperactive children when shopping with the guys. Weaving through a few aisles, you made it towards the paper towels and toilet paper-esque aisle. You were looking at the prices when you felt a jostle. Chris and Garrett were throwing things into the cart, you laughed slightly and moved the cart backward causing the toilet paper to fall on the ground.

“Saboteur,” Chris said loudly, pointing at you, “Jimmy, she’s cheating!”

“You’re cheating!” Jimmy grabbed a toilet paper pack and threw it at an unsuspecting Chris. “ah, why?!”

Not even managing to get out of the aisle, Chris found something and stood in front of your cart, stopping you from moving forward. “We almost made a very bad mistake,” he started, holding up a plunger. “...you need a plunger,” he finished, plopping it into the cart.

You quickly noticed that there was a recurring event that happened when going through the aisles. Right as you were going to exit, someone found something that needed to be added. From lemon scented Swiffer pads to multi-colored napkins. And if you were being honest, you didn’t think anyone even bought a Swiffer. With that thought in mind you rolled your eyes, sneaking the box out and placing it onto a random shelf.

“Hey, I saw that.” you paused and gave Jimmy an innocent look. “saw what?” He was leaning forward, hands on either end of the end of the cart.

“You’re tampering with evidence,” he said, matter-of-factly. You snorted, trying to move the cart forward, “there’s no evidence. Move it or lose it.”

-o-o-o-o-o

“He’ll need some glasses,” Chris said, hefting up a box and placing them into the cart. It had been a while since Garrett tapped you out to push the cart, as it slowly got heavier and heavier with everything that was being added.

You and Jimmy were in another aisle, looking through other appliances while Chris was in the one over. “Old people love...” Chris tapped the cover of the box. “...countertop ovens.” At that point, you and Jimmy were entering back and Chris motioned over. “dude, Y/N, Jimmy, tell me I’m wrong.”

“You’re wrong,” you answered, still absentmindedly scrolling through your phone.

“You didn’t even see!”

“We still need bathroom stuff, don’t we?” Garrett mumbled through a mouthful of chips. You sent him a strange look, and he offered you a chip innocently. “I’ll buy them! I’m just hungry, I thought we’d be done by now.”

Your group ambled into the toiletry aisle and everyone was picking through the items and dropping them into the basket.

Jimmy was staring at two bottles of shampoo before taking his phone out of his pocket. “I’m going to call him.”

You rolled your eyes and raised your eyebrows slightly. “if you keep calling Chandler, you’re going to give it away.”

“Maybe he’ll think I’m just being a good friend,” Jimmy argued, dialing his phone. Quickly putting it on speaker, he picked up a Suave bottle. “hey, is he a Suave or a Head & Shoulders typa guy?”

“Head and Shoulders,” Chandler answered back immediately, to your amusement. “Gotcha.” Jimmy nodded, setting back the Suave bottle and grabbing the other. “Head & Shoulders, it is.”

“You pronounced it wrong,” you mentioned, grabbing back the Suave bottle. “it’s Suave, not Suave.” You teased, tapping the title of the bottle.

Jimmy squinted at the title and waved his hand. “what difference does it make, potato, potato.” You only managed to walk a few steps before there was a new distraction.

Chris was holding up a bag of maxi pads. “do you think he needs these?”

“Ahh, doesn’t hurt,” Jimmy shrugged.

“They’re like band-aids,” Chris observed, reading the label. “he could probably use some bandages.”

“Yeah,” Jimmy affirmed, holding up his arms and rubbing at his elbow. “like, maybe for his elbow.”

“Yeah, these are elbow band-aids, right Y/N? You’ve probably used these before.”

You’d been doing a good job keeping your laughter in check, but after Chris said that, you snorted. “completely Chris. They’re elbow band-aids. For elbows. Nothing else.”

“Which shampoo do you use?” Jimmy asked randomly, holding up two bottles in your direction before you left the aisle. You glanced at both bottles before picking up another from shelf. “you should know. You use it all the time.”

He scoffed, snatching the bottle from your hand and reading the label. “I do not!”

“You do.” Garrett added, popping into the conversation. “you always smell like lavender.”

“Why are you smelling me?!”

“Because you smell good!”

-o-o-o-o-o

video timestamp 3.08

#mr beast #mr beast imagine #mrbeast #mrbeast imagine #youtubter imagine #youtuber

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crayonwriting · 6 years ago

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Irreplaceable You: 7 (Bucky Barnes)

Summary: Unexpectedly diagnosed with a terminal disease, you embark on a mission to find a new love for your fiancé and childhood best friend, Bucky Barnes.

Disclaimer: This story is a rewrite of the movie of the same title on Netflix. Directed by Stephanie Laing and written by Bess Wohl. Go check it out!

A/N: So, we’re almost midway to the whole story now. And I don’t know if anyone is still reading this. Haha. But for the sake of this beautiful story, I shall finish it to the end.

You, who is reading this, I hope you enjoy!

—

"A hundred and fifty dollars? Aren't there anything here that's worth at least five hundred?" Tony inspected each rack of clothes. He would pull one out, look at—more like, judge—it then sigh disappointedly before returning each item. "Can I buy class here?"

"Focus, please." You held up a denim coat before returning it in the rack. "We just need to freshen up Buck's look a little."

"Why is that again?" He questioned, sassily.

"Trust me." You sighed. "Any woman that meets him is gonna want to shop for him." You pulled up a pair of bell-bottom pants with one too many rips. You cringed. "The wrong one will put him in these." You turned your attention to Tony. "What are you doing?"

Tony removed his jacket and tried on an ugly looking vest. Tony pulled on the end of the it, smoothing out the fabric. He checked himself out in the mirror. He spotted your questionable gaze.

“What? You're the only one who gets to make bad decisions because you're dying?” Tony signalled to the assistant nearby. “Terminal cancer. Put it on my bill.”

“You're just so cool with everything.” You scoffed, shaking your head.

“I'm not cool with any of this. I've been dying longer than you have.” This made you stare at him. Tony just shrugged. “You get better at it.”

“How?” You interjected.

“Well,” he gestured to his body. “It's like this vest. At first it's, ‘Why is that old man wearing that horrible vest?’ Pretty soon I become the vest guy. After that, you realize that you'd hardly recognize me without it.” He continued to stare at his reflection, somewhat longingly. “I look comfortable in it. It's a part of me, so...you accept it.”

He stared straight at you through the mirror. You shook your head and busied yourself by looking at a nearby rack.

“I don't think I can ever accept you in that vest.” You said, holding out a dark blue jacket towards him. “Try this on. I want to see what it'll look like on Bucky.”

“Okay.” Tony slipped it on and checked his reflection. You made a face at how good it looked on him. He also nodded in approval. “This looks nice. I look three days younger."

“Great.” You patted his chest. “Let’s go look for jeans.” You rushed off to the other side of the store with Tony trailing behind.

—

“Come on.” You pulled your hardest to get the jeans you got for Bucky to fit. You were standing behind him, tugging at the material.

“These... Oh!” Bucky struggled. “They're cutting off my circulation.” He jumped a few times, wiggling his hips to ease the pants in. He chuckled, almost strained. “Seriously, my ankles are tingling; my feet are asleep!”

You didn’t respond to him as he finally buttoned his pants on. You inspected it carefully before picking up the jacket on the bed and helping him put it on.

“You look hot.” You remarked.

“It's just… Can I ask what this is about?” He tugged the jacket on, adjusting to the fit.

“Just.. Just some retail therapy.” You purse your lips, shrugging nonchalantly. You placed an arm across your chest; your hand under your chin. You looked him up and down, liking the results.

"And where am I supposed to put my phone?"

You just laughed and walked towards him. You inspected the tag inside the jacket and showed it to him.

"Now… Okay, this jacket is dry clean only. Which means," You looked at him straight in the eye. “If I'm not around, do not put this in the laundry.” Your eyes widened in realization. “Oh. Shit. Laundry.”

You held his hand tightly around yours, pulling him out of the bedroom, into the kitchen and then to the small laundry room beside it. You both stood in front of your washing machine. Putting a hand to your waist, you turned to him saying,

“All right, so—”

“Really?” Bucky interrupted, smiling. You gave him a pointed look and he just raised his hands in surrender.

“Okay, so…,” you continued.

“I know how to turn it on.” Bucky cut you off once again. He gave you a knowing smile.

“Yeah, I know. But colors, whites, delicates.” You pointed to the various buttons on the machine.

“Right.” Bucky rolled his eyes playfully.

“The dryer sometimes gets stuck, so, uh, you just give it two kicks.” You kicked twice on the lower right corner of the washing machine. “Right here. Like that. And it will generally unstick itself.” Bucky chuckled softly, walking toward you and mimicked your actions.

“Exactly.” You smiled, proud. “Uh, this dial is the minutes. It tells you how much time you have left...”

You looked at Bucky then back at the washing machine letting your words sink in. Bucky looked at you with a pained expression but he did his best to hide it. Oh, how your words filled something more than teaching Bucky how to do the laundry. The air in the room grew thick. Without looking at him, you continued.

"If-if the time runs out before the clothes are ready, you just...turn the dial." You sighed softly, feeling defeated all of a sudden. Your chest felt heavy and your shoulders ached somehow. You looked slowly at Bucky who had the same expression as yours.

You gulped loudly, with eyes looking up at him in worry. Bucky smiled sadly at you and reached out for your hand, holding it tightly in his. He tilted his head down and kissed you softly on your trembling lips. You kissed him back only for a moment until he pulled away.

He stepped back slowly, waiting for your response. He continued to smile at you encouragingly.

“C’mon…” He whispered, pulling on your hand.

You walked closer to him and leaned up to kiss his lips once again. He kissed you back, pulling you flush against his body. The kiss turned into something more as you poured out your everything—all the pain, fear and struggle you’ve felt since learning about your cancer.

He breathed in, holding on to your arm and kissing you urgently. You kissed him back with much fervor, taking off his glasses and setting it on the counter blindly. He pushed against you, leading you out of the small room and into the kitchen. He lifted you on the kitchen counter, still kissing you. You grabbed and nipped at his lips, hungry for his touch.

A sharp pain shot through your side and you clutched it tightly. You pushed Bucky away with your other hand as you waited for the pain to pass.

“What?” Bucky panted. He eyed you warily. You groaned loudly, shaking your head a little as the pain grew. “Are you okay?” He asked.

You pushed him out of the way, jumping down the kitchen island and ran for the sink. You retched and coughed out the contents of your stomach, clutching the metal sink to keep you steady. Bucky pressed a warm hand against your back, trying to soothe you. He leaned down and kissed the back of your neck.

“Yeah, I tend to have that effect on women.” He chuckled, making you laugh amidst your vomiting. “Too soon?” He asked. You just laughed at him, wiping your mouth. Bucky laughed to himself. “Yeah, too soon.” He grabbed a clean glass and filled it with water before handing it to you.

—

You were relaxing in your ‘treatment suite’ when a gust of something wet touched your face.

“Mom, would you stop?” You wiped at your face, irritated. You opened an eye and saw your mother spraying on some facial mist on her own face.

“Hospitals are very dehydrating.” She looked to you, slapping your hands away from your face. “Don't touch your face. I don't want you to get sick.” You gave her an irritated and knowing look. She shrugged and said, “Well, more sick.”

“Everything going okay in here?” Scott came in, eyeing you. You gave him a pleading look, glancing at your mom. He nodded discreetly. “Hey, Mom, you want to do me a favor and run down to the cafeteria and get us some Ho Hos?”

“Ho Hos?”

“Yeah. You don't know Ho Hos? They're like little pinwheel cakes. Chocolate covered. They're delicious.”

“How about if I get you a green salad?” She looked at you. You smiled tightly and nodded.

“Great.”

“Green juice.” Your mother stated.

“That sounds great.” Scott interrupted. “Yeah, but don't forget those Ho Hos though. I got a little bit of a sweet tooth.”

“They still make Ho Hos?” She asked gathering her bag, getting ready to go out.

“They still make them.” Scott smiled.

“Thanks, Mom.” You murmured as she kissed your forehead and went out of the room. You looked to Scott and bumped your elbow with his—a secret handshake. “Thanks Scott.”

“No problem.”

—

“Psychology. Spirituality. Oh! Here we go.” You gasped. “Vegetable Gardening for Dummies. Camping for Dummies. Ooh. He could take up Bridge.” You pulled out each book title, adding them to the pile in your arms. “It could help him meet people.” You showed the book to Clint who was on the other end of the aisle.

“Oh. Here's a good one.” He showed the book to you as you neared him. “The Art of Letting Go. Try that.” He smiled, putting the book in your arms. You rolled your eyes at him, putting the book back on the shelf.

“Look, if you don't agree with what I'm doing…”

“I don't. You know I don’t, Y/N.” He eyed you before turning his attention back to the shelf. “But you’re my best friend. Can’t leave you doing shit alone. Even if it is dumb. Plus,” he crossed his arms against his chest, “It’s interesting to see where this idea of yours is gonna go. It’s like a slow-moving car crash.”

“Thanks.” You said, sarcastically. Sighing, you felt your shoulders sag a little. “It's exactly how I feel, actually. It's like I'm heading towards this brick wall, and I can't do anything…” You looked at Clint who was busy on his phone.

“Clint!”

“Huh? Oh, sorry.” Clint pocketed his phone. You huffed out at him in frustration. “Aww, come on. Don’t be mad at me.” He slung an arm around you, pulling you tight.

“Yeah, yeah. Whatever.” You shrugged his arm off. “You’re lucky you’re my best friend.”

“Shouldn’t I be saying that?” He pointed to the stacks of books you were carrying. “You're gonna get all of that?”

“Yes.”

“Is Barnes that much of a dummy for you to buy all the dummy books ever published?” He took the books from you as you both walked to the counter.

—

‘Likes vegetable gardening and is learning to play Bridge,’ you typed away at your laptop, updating Bucky’s dating profile. Finishing up, you closed your laptop and set it on the bedside table. You looked at Bucky who lay beside you. The sight made you smile.

He was asleep. His mouth was slightly agape, glasses still perched on the bridge of his nose. One of his big, heavy science books lay open on his stomach.

You reached over and pulled off his glasses. He stirred slightly, looking at you with glazed eyes. You smiled down at him, placing his glasses on his bedside table. He languidly placed the book aside, opening up his right arm to you so that you could settle into his side.

You made yourself comfortable, wrapping an arm around his waist. He kissed your forehead and relaxed his body. Out of the blue, a question popped into your mind.

"What if I had run away and joined a cult?"

"I guess…" he said slowly, trying to wake himself up more. "I would have to join too."

"What if relationships between cult members was frowned upon?"

"Like an asexual cult?"

"Yeah. And you couldn't do an intervention and get me out because I was totally brainwashed."

"Hmm." He thought for a moment. "Well, I guess I would have to become a rival cult leader, re-brainwash you according to my philosophy, and then steal you away into my cult," he raised his index finger into the air, "Which would be a sex cult." You laughed lightly.

"What if I were exactly like me, except I had really terrible halitosis?" Bucky looked down at you.

"I would get you a mint." He chuckled. "Or I would destroy the olfactory receptors in my nose so that I didn't care.."

You smiled, pecking his nose. You stared off into the distance.

"What if I die, Buck?"

He didn't answer right away. You regretted ever asking that. Bucky wrapped both of his arms around you, burying his nose into your hair.

"I would…never recover."

You stared into each others eyes, letting the words sink in. He smiled sadly before pulling you closer. You basked in his embrace, letting yourself fall asleep.

—

feedback is greatly appreciated!

Tags: @blueskiesbleakeyes / @justanothergirlwithdemons / @butteryoptimisticpeanut / @likes-to-smell-books / @hennessy0274-blog

#b writes #irreplaceable you series #sebastian stan #sebastian stan x reader #sebastian stan imagine #bucky barnes #bucky barnes x reader #bucky barnes imagine

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asterinjapan · 5 years ago

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Another day, another castle

I mean, I could apologize for the implications of that title, but I wouldn’t mean it, so…

Anyway, good afternoon after a short but no less fun day! Since tomorrow will be very busy and I’ll be making the long trip to Tokyo the day after, I didn’t want to cram too much on my Friday. There was one thing pretty high up on my wishlist, but I’d heard a lot of walking was involved… then again, I’d say my feet have had enough practice now to put up with a shorter day of walking, haha.

And so, I had reserved a ticket last night on the Shiokaze train down for Marugame! And yeah, this is another long report. Sorry, me and castles…

Marugame is one of the first cities on Shikoku if you come onto the island via Okayama and the Seto Ohashi bridge. I had actually passed the station when I went to Matsuyama earlier this week, but since that was such a long trip, I couldn’t combine the two. Since Marugame is a good 40 minutes removed from Okayama, I could sleep a little longer in the morning. Or I could have, if I didn’t wake up at 4 AM, and then again at 6… I kept hearing tinny music, so loud I thought my phone or alarm was malfunctioning, but I think it must have been a neighbor in the hotel anyway. Either way, I was determined to at least rest until 8 AM, so I did just that, haha.

After a good breakfast, I made my way to the station to find the Shiokaze already waiting for me. I noticed all Shikoku bound trains have theme naming: Shiokaze means salty/sea winds, then you have the Marine Liner, and then there’s also the Nanpu (southerly winds) and Uzushio (whirling tides). Train names are very poetic in Japan, haha.

Anyway, the sea wind train brought me to Marugame, where the skies were also grey. I hurried from the station immediately to find the castle. It was super easy, basically one straight road ahead, and then – wham, the castle comes into view. The main keep is rather tiny, but it sits on top of Kameyama (turtle mountain) at 66 meters high, and the mountain has been covered in stone walls. So much so that you can be forgiven for comparing it to a pyramid, actually. These walls are imposing, wow. They’re one of the reasons this castle stands out. Another is that it is one of the twelve original main keeps still remaining, with both Matsuyama castles from this trip being other examples. The main keep is the smallest of the twelve, but these walls might actually be the highest in the country.

Anyway! Just as I made my way through the Otemon gate, it started to drizzle. I was taking out my umbrella already when I noticed the nearby information center also offering something fun, so I figured I’d go in first, if I was going to walk through the rain anyway.

You see, Marugame is famous for the uchiwa fans, and apparently produces about 90% of all uchiwa fans going around. They’re the type of round fans made from bamboo and flat paper, so not the fans you can fold back. And here in the information center, they were making them, still by hand – and for thousand yen, you too can make your own uchiwa fan! Obviously, that sounded like way too fun an opportunity to pass up on (and if you buy a fan, they’re usually around that price class anyway if you want one with a nice print). And so, I applied – and could get started right away!

The bamboo crosspiece was already prepared, so I got to pick the paper I wanted and get gluing. They asked if Japanese instructions were okay, so I said they were if they could speak a little slowly, and they were very accommodating and helpful. I suspect small children want to do this too, so they have some practice with uhm, my current levels of Japanese, haha, but I knew what I was doing now in Japanese! Once the paper was glued on and had to set, I was guided to the area where the crosspieces were created. I received a bamboo handle, and got to cut it into a crosspiece myself! This was kind of tricky, because the instruments are very right-hand oriented while I’m a lefty, but I got hands-on guidance, so I didn’t injure myself as I cut up the bamboo into tiny, tiny strips. After a lot of bending back and forth, the crosspiece was more or less done, and I got to pose for a picture with it after writing my name on it, haha.

My glued fan had dried by then, so I was given a hammer and a sickle to cut it into shape. That’s a good way to get any aggression out, by the way. You trim both the paper and the bamboo parts with the sickle, so you have to beat down that hammer hard. Almost done now! I got to choose a paper hemming and pasted it along the edge of the fan to smooth it and decorate it further, and topped it off with two small pieces at either end to keep them in place.

Now, since these fans aren’t the kind you just stick in your handbag, I got to leave it behind for now while I went on my way to the mountain top. I was given a map, a lot of generous instructions (they really are super kind patient here) and went out the door – to find the last drops of rain had just fallen, and it was dry now. Nice!

I had read warnings about the steep climb, but honestly, after Bitchu-Matsuyama castle and Onomichi these past few days, I was barely fazed, haha. Okay, in all fairness, these are some steep roads, but they’re not that long if you take the quickest route up, and there’s plenty of space in between as you go through the third and second bailey on the way up. There’s even a slope called Mikaeri zaka, which means ‘slope on which you look back’, which you definitely want to, because the view on the walls is great. And the views on the look-out points, oh wow! Of course, the castle was built in a strategic spot, overlooking the Seto Inland Sea. Supposedly Marugame is at the coast of the narrowest part of the sea, which means that no-one could sail here without being seen from the castle top. In the distance, I could spot the Seto Ohashi bridge, as well as the interestingly shaped mountain Iinoyama and tons of tiny islands dotting the sea. In fact, the weather was getting clearer and clearer as I moved up, giving me better views.

Once I’d made my way past the defenses, I had finally reached the main area with the keep – and the sun had come out! I couldn’t believe my luck as I got to take pictures of that sweet, white little castle against a blue sky, the sea in the background. Wow. I don’t know which deity here I have pleased what with the amazing weather I’ve had so far, but I have to find out to give them my offers, haha.

You can enter the keep for 200 yen, which, to be fair, is reasonable considering how small it is on the inside. There’s a small exhibition, with tiles featuring fans on display, and the second floor had pictures up of all twelve original keeps, of which I have seen seven now, haha. Actually, the first version of this castle only existed for a couple of years. It was dismantled in 1615, as a new rule stating only one castle per area was allowed, so nearby Takamatsu castle got to stay while Marugame had to go. After a small fief was granted, there was allowed to be a castle once more, and so, the castle was rebuilt in 1641. Most buildings burnt down over the centuries, but the main keep remains standing.

There’s also a stamp rally going on inside the castle, but you needed to have bought the 200 yen sheet for it back at the information center, which I missed. I’m still a bit sad, because if you collect the stamps in order, you basically created an ukiyo-e painting: layer of color over layer of color to produce a full color stamp of the castle. Lesson learnt for next time!

Since the weather was still nice enough despite the forecasted rain, I took the long way down to take in the sights, as the walk was lovely and quiet. It’s not a super touristic castle, at least not today, although I’m sure the weather and it being a weekday had something to do with that. Anyway, I came across a well at the second bailey, which is apparently 65 meters deep! And since it’s almost Halloween, there’s a creepy story attached to this well.

My pamphlet nicely narrates the story of Juzaburo Hasaka, the stonewall designer who worked very hard and had earned the nickname of ‘Juza the naked’, since he, eh, worked wearing only a loincloth. Thanks for that detail, pamphlet. Anyway, the lord was very impressed with his work, going “ha, now nobody can get over these walls unless they’re a bird!” To which our naked buddy replied: “oh, actually, you can totally climb them. Just give me some iron bars and I’ll demonstrate it, easy peasy.” And so he did, and the lord’s eyes probably all but popped out. (I mean, I know mine would – these walls are high.) Since he was so impressed, the lord then said to Juza: “dear upstanding and oh so naked gentleman, would you please go down this well to do research down there? For, you know, Reasons?” And Juza, ever the hard worker, went down into that 65 meter deep well. For, you know, research reasons.

And then our nice lord promptly threw rocks on him until he died so he couldn’t spill the secret of climbing the walls to the enemy. What a cute little intermezzo! Honestly, I peered down into the well, and that’s – deep and dark, wow. I’m so sorry, Juza the Naked Man. You did an amazing job on those walls, if that’s any consolation.

I’m surprised there isn’t a ghost story about him, but there is another one that my pamphlet also lists. My pamphlet is a little macabre, actually. Anyway, since we’re already at it to keep up the Halloween mood: apparently the construction workers were having a tough time on the castle, as it kept raining, so they were all but about to call it quits when a tofu peddler came by to sell his tofu. “Tofu, tofu!” He kept shouting. I mean, makes sense, construction is hard work, surely they’d want a bite. These workers seemed to hear something completely different than ‘tofu’, or maybe just really hated tofu, I don’t know. Either way, they heard ‘sacrifice me so that the rains will stop!’, which is a lot longer than tofu, but that’s – exactly what they did. They buried him alive as a human sacrifice to the castle, and it is said that on rainy days, you can still hear a muffled ‘tofu, tofu’ coming from what sounds like underneath. That poor guy, cursed to sell his tofu until the afterlife…

Well, it wasn’t rainy and I think the well was located in the area that was closed off for reconstructions (… or was it for reconstructions, hmmmmmm), so I didn’t hear him selling tofu, but I was getting hungry, so I made my way down, through some lovely forested areas filled with tiny butterflies, and crows, and HUGE spiders, and EVEN HUGER hornets, which I quickly ran far, far away from. They had warning signs up, and they were not exaggerating, help. I think I prefer the huge spiders, provided they eat the huge hornets.

Inside the gate I had come through was a small exhibition, so I sped through it (hey, it was free), and then I also came across the front gate of the lord’s residence and the guard house, the kabuto (helmet) rock, before I hit a dead end and finally returned to the information center.

Apparently they had gotten a bit worried I had forgotten about my fan, haha. Nope! Just me losing track of time when exploring castles! I watched as one of the ladies here expertly tied a string through my previously cut crosspiece, and then I got to keep that one too, so I can either stick my own paper on it back home or use it for decorations: they showed me an example of one put up against the wall with flowers pinned through, which does indeed look lovely, so I might just do that. They then realized I’d have to take them back home with me, so they rushed to get some cardboard and cut it to size, giving me some bands to keep it in place. They absolutely didn’t have to go through all that effort, but they absolutely went above and beyond here, wow.

So that was a really fun day, as you can tell by the length of this report despite it only being 2 PM now, haha. Still, that means I spent around 3 hours at the castle if you don’t count the time I spent on the fan, oops… Needless to say, I absolutely recommend this castle. Sure, the walk up is steep, but the short path really is just that, and there’s plenty of space to catch your breath in between. Dang, I really love the castles I’ve visited so far, plus their surroundings. Thank you castles of Japan for introducing me to lovely cities with lovely people! I got to speak a lot of Japanese today, since I stood out a little as a foreigner making a fan, so a group at the main keep asked me if I was indeed that girl, haha, and we chatted for a bit about my trip.

Anyway, I still hadn’t eaten, so I picked up lunch at the convenience store at the station and hopped on the Nanpu train with it. This one is just as fast and brought me back to Okayama, where skies were getting grey. I think I felt the first rain drops as I made my way to the hotel, so I am really lucky, whoa.

I’m gonna get an early night so that I’ll hopefully be well-rested tomorrow (I’ll wear ear plugs if I have to, stupid tinny music), since that will be a busy, busy day, but also very fun. And then it’s off to Tokyo already! Time really flies. I always look forward to Tokyo, although I’m not sure how many of my daytrips from there can actually go through. But you know what? I’ve already been so, so lucky, I honestly don’t dare to complain. And if all else fails, I definitely know how to entertain myself in Tokyo for a week, haha.

Good evening for now, and see you tomorrow! (Or Sunday, if I’m too worn out to type out my report, haha.)

#report #japan 2019 #report: japan 2019 #places: marugame

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avenger-concerto · 6 years ago

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Operation Knight Song (RFSS2018)

Heya @invaderpig I’m your Secret Santa for 2018. I want to extend my deepest apologies for posting this so late. The Holidays got hectic as hell for me back in December along with other priorities coupled with post-Holiday slump. I managed to finish this ficlet though. I had a blast working on this one. I’ve never done Doug x Frey in any fan RF4 work so I hope I captured their dynamic finely.

Wishing you a late Happy Holidays and a Happy new Year! Once more, I would like to thank @runefactorysecretsanta for hosting this event. This is my third time in a row participating and I love how it brings the RF community together.

Title: Operation Knight Song

Genre(s): Slice of life, romance, fluff, comedy, some drama

Pairings / ships: Doug x Frey and Margaret / Meg x Forte

Rating: T (13 and up) - mild profanity, some innuendos / suggestive jokes but nothing extreme.

Summary: During the Night of Holies in Selphia, Doug and Frey help Forte confess to the love of her life in a group outing.

Word count: 3813 words.

It was the snowy and star-lit evening of Winter the 24th in the independent town of Selphia. More specifically, it was the eve which preceded Christmas day: the Night of Holies.

Usually, it was tradition for the natives of Norad and by extension Selphia to celebrate the evening in peaceful solace and tranquility. In addition, it was known as a night perfect for romantic rendezvous and evening dates. It was all the more true for the Night of Holies this particular year.

Within the grand halls of Selphia Castle, the princess and her first man hurriedly prepared for what the former codenamed as “Operation Knight Song”.

“Doug, we’re going to be late. C’mon you’re taking too long! They might have arrived at the plaza already…”

“Hold on, dear. Ngh, this jacket’s too huge! I have no idea what size Volkanon picked out but it’s taking me longer than usual to…”

“Ok, less complaining, more moving or we’re gonna be late. We don’t want to keep them waiting, right?”

“Wait dear, I’m finished!!”

In a frenzied but enthusiastic rush, Princess Frey’s husband: Doug, descended from the 2nd floor of their living area with a pair of black pants, brown snowboots and a crimson colored jacket. Despite his previous complaints, it turns out the jacket was just about the right size as shown through his satisfied grin.

“Well, how do I look?” the red-head dwarf asked between gasping breaths.

“You look fantastic!” Frey chirped with a smiled as she clapped her hands together. “What do you think of mine now? Dolce and Clorica helped pick this out for me the other day. We had it custom tailored and ordered from Norad’s capital.”

Doug took another look at his wife’s snow-friendly attire which consisted of a beautiful black coat accompanied by an emerald coloured Wooly fur snow cap with both pieces complimented by an illustrious snow white scarf. For the evening, Frey had also undid her twin-tails, letting her long and beautiful emerald hair down.

“Stunning, I dunno what else to say.” Doug widened his eyes while his lips formed what could easily be described as a dreamy yet flustered smile.

“Hoooooh? Flirting this early on in the Night of Holies?” Frey snickered as she motion towards her husband, clinging onto his arm playfully. “I guess you are desperate for a spot within Santa’s Naughty List.”

“Gahhh, cut it out!” Doug yelped, his objections contradicting his now reddened cheeks. “N-not that I mind but not this early either, h-haha…”

“This blockhead,” Frey whimsically thought, “Wonder how we’re gonna have kids at this rate?”

Doug spoke, “So uh, what about Ventuswill?”

“She’s fast asleep.” she informed her husband, “I had Clorica and Vishnal prepare her a cup of hot milk and a serving of pancakes. Venti wanted to go to bed early so she wouldn’t wake up late and miss the Christmas festivities.”

“Alright! Now that’s all settled…Let’s head out then, shall we?” Doug smiled coolly, extending his hand out.

Frey giggled slightly as she took her husband by the hand. “Of course. As the high princess of Selphia, Operation Knight Song will not fail!”

For the sake of some yuletide context in this given Night of Holies and by extension “Operation Knight Song”, it is commonly well known in Selphia that there were two individuals who helped push the princess together with the hotheaded dwarf shopkeep of the general store. The honour went to none other than Margaret or by her nickname: Meg, the gentle elf musician of Porcoline’s Kitchen and Forte, the dashing and valiant head knight of the town.

Meg acted as a wingwoman of sorts to her close friend Frey and it was Forte who was always there to convince Doug to get his act together when it mattered the most. They’ve both remained strong family friends to Selphia’s royal couple ever since.

Of course, there is much more to this story and Frey herself knew it very well. Throughout this all Meg and Forte remained close friends. Relegating the overall feeling to “friendship” was a massive underestimation, so to speak. In reality…

“Forte, Meg! We’re here!” Frey excitingly called out as she and her husband approached the two figures waiting outside on the snowy centre of Selphia plaza.

“Good evening you two!” Margaret waved her hand and approached the couple, giving Frey an affectionate hug afterwards. “Ohmigosh, you both look so adorable!”

“Awwwww, thank you!” Frey squeed in delight. “You’re looking stylish too Meg. Same goes to you, Forte!”

“N-no, I’m not in need for any compliment whatsoever…” the blonde and tall knight mumbled. “I just put on a new cape that Kiel bought me. If anything, Meg looks so much better.”

Margaret wore her usual outfit but this time adorned with an azure mantle cloak, a kind of fashion that was common in the Nation of Elves as well as a checkered scarf which Forte had given her as a birthday present earlier in the year.

Forte had her usual armour equipped with additional protection from the winter evening including the aforementioned new cape which her younger brother had given her as a present. Outing or not, a knight had to remain prepared for anything. Whether it would be against monsters, immediate threats…or confessing to the love of her life.

“Great, then we’re all gearing to go.” Frey raised her fist into the air. “Onward to the observatory!”

“Hey, be careful or you’re going to trip!” Doug called out as his energetic spouse went on ahead. “Honestly, some things never change…”

“You seem rather excited yourself.” Forte commented with a half-smile on her face. “Not as enthusiastic as Frey but still.”

“Yeah, yeah yeah…So, you’re ready for this?” the dwarf gazed at the knight whose cheeks became flushed with pink not soon after. “I mean, you can do it any other time of the year but if you want to leave a lasting impression, it’s now or never.”

“Um, I know that!” Forte answered with a determined voice.

“What do you know exactly, Forte?” Meg curiously tapped her on the shoulders, resulting in a brief but alarmed shriek.

“M-MEG?! UHHH NOTHING!! WE WERE TALKING ABOUT ABSOLUTELY NOTHING! Just about how we should enjoy the Night of Holies b-because it only comes once a year. Yeah, it’s like that.”

“Well, best we get a move on. The snow might stop at any moment and I want to bask in this blissful scenery as much as possible. I saw Frey rush past your house already.” Meg stated while pointing to the western-most exit of the plaza.

“R-right…” Forte nodded as she followed Margaret down the steps leading to the town’s western residential district.

Doug was left alone in his thoughts for the time being. “Man, I know Frey wants to thank them for everything they’ve done for both of us but…this is something out of a romcom novel that Granny Blossom keeps inside her old shelves.”

Frey’s eccentrically named plan, “Operation Knight Song” had one and only one singular goal: successfully get Forte to ask Meg out. This wasn’t anything platonic or familial either.

Another piece of information that was common to most of the town’s inner circle was that Forte being madly in love for Selphia’s star musician, Margaret.

As a knight, romance or intimacy was not within her scope of immediate prioritization. Those never crossed her mind as much as it did for the other girls in town especially during their seasonal sleep over gatherings.

Yet Margaret came into Forte’s life and ever since then her existence alone did just about everything to question the knight’s supposed heterosexuality.

There are numerous reasons as to how the elven musician had stolen the knight’s heart but even then she couldn’t list all of them properly without breaking down into an awkward, stuttering and anxious mess. Meg was resourceful, hardworking, beautiful, compassionate, charismatic, somewhat of a dorky odd-ball, both shared some latent fear of phantoms (Pico was the prime exception) and Forte’s mental list could go on and on.

Forte was content simply just remaining close friends with the musician but as the months and years went by it became clear that she couldn’t deny her own feelings any further.

It started out with simpler things such as her regular compliments towards Meg becoming more frequent in nature. It was followed with other small instances such as their hands brushing against each other by accident on several occasions or noticing the aromatic scent of her hair on a more regular basis. Afterwards, it all escalated to much greater physical contact such as sitting awkwardly as Meg fell asleep next to her on the bench during one late afternoon after work.

It reached an apex when the musician casually kiss the knight on the cheek during her birthday. All Frey and Doug could recall was that Forte was reduced to a stuttering, flustered mess that same day.

A few weeks later, the knight confided with the royal couple that she could no longer deny the feelings she’s harboured for Meg and declared her resolved intention to confess.

Needless to say, Frey 100% supported the proposition alongside her husband, even if the latter wasn’t too enthusiastic about lowkey stalking their Night of Holies date in the guise of a group outing.

Doug sighed and hurried to catch up with the rest of the group. Even if he wanted to, it was too late to turn back now.

Within the top floor of the windmill observatory’s interior, Doug had finally caught up as his wife handed out the hot beverages and snacks she had prepared for them all prior to leaving.

“I brought along some hot cocoa and choco cookies.” Frey pulled out four heated thermos containers and a plate of chocolate chip-cookies from her picnic basket. “I have a few bottles of Prelude to Love in here too that I brewed up during these past few days if you’d like some later tonight Meg.”

“That would be lovely, thanks!” Meg cheerfully replied.

“Doug and I are gonna go head down now.” Frey announced suddenly, “Oops, you see…uhhh…turns out I forgot a few extra cloaks and blankets, incase for when it gets colder tonight…Y-yeah.”

“Wait, we just got up here!” Doug stuttered in an alarmed fashion. “Also, I brought us some blankets and cloaks in my bag…AGH.”

Frey interrupted her husband’s objections by playfully pinching him on his bottom. He played along as a result. “Uhhh, I mean yeah. I totally forgot them. H-haha, oops.”

“We’ll be right back in a jiffy, ok? I left the hot drinks and cookies near the benches next to the outer entry. Help yourselves!” Frey playfully declared as she and Doug descended down the stairs.

Forte sighed. She knew very well that the entire thing was a copout ruse to make sure she and Meg were alone. She appreciated the sentiment but wished as well that the couple didn’t have to sacrifice a part of their romantic evening to help her confess the feelings she’s held for so long towards the beautiful elven musician who stood nearby.

“Ahem. Ummm, mind if we step outside? I want to take a good look at view right now.” Forte somewhat nervously proposed.

“Hmm? Sure thing. The snowy evening view probably goes great with the hot cocoa.”

“So easily. What about your fear of heights, Meg?”

Meg giggled lightly and responded, “Why would I be worried about that? Especially when I have you by my side?”

Forte couldn’t help but melt internally and smile at the sentiment. She extended her arm out towards Meg, offering her hand. “Well then, shall we?”

“Wowwww!!” Meg gasped in delight. As they walked into the exterior viewing balcony of the observatory, the sight of a tranquil snowy evening glittered with the night sky’s stars awaited them both. “I’ve been to this observatory countless of times but the view’s always amazing…”

“And to think you were afraid of coming here, let alone of setting foot into the observatory’s top floor because of your fear of heights…” Forte teased slightly and continued. “…I’m glad you’re enjoying the view these days.”

“Uh huh…” Meg nodded enthusiastically while she opened up her drink. Taking a light sip, she sighed happily. “Ahhh, this is heaven. I’m not big of a chocolate lover as much as Dolce but this alongside he winter evening is pure utter bliss…”

“Indeed,” Forte agreed, taking small sips of her hot cocoa while her gaze was transfixed between both the view and at Meg herself. “This reminds me of my childhood…Our parents always used to make us hot cocoa on winter evenings. My mother was practically a master at the craft and it was one of the many things that warmed our father up after his snowy evening patrols…”

“Forte…”

“They’re both gone now. However, what isn’t are the memories they left behind for Kiel and I. For that reason…I want to keep living on, protecting those I hold dear and…well, continue to make even happier memories with the people I care for.” Forte uttered the last part out with a faint blush.

“Awwwww, that’s so sweet…” Margaret softly said, hugging the knight from the side. The surprise was almost enough to let her drop the hot cocoa she had been handling finely.

“EEEEEK!! M-meg…please.” Forte staggered, “I could have spilled something hot on either of us… be more careful…”

“Sorry, I couldn’t help it,” she laughed gingerly, breaking the hug. “I really am happy though…to be here. Happy to be with you all…that’s all.”

“Hmmm? Is something the matter?”

“Well, just that…When I first came to Selphia, truth to be told: I was afraid. Porcoline had recently taken me under his wing at the time…I knew nobody in town. I wasn’t sure if I could open my heart up so easily. Especially somewhere so far away from home…Then I met you, Lumie, Venti, Dylas, Arthur, Frey and everyone…I fell in love with this town soon afterwards. It’s far from my birthplace but…Selphia’s my home. I wouldn’t have it any other way and…I’m just so thankful to be here with you all.”

“Meg…”

Meg sighed trying to shake away what was a bittersweet smile on her lips just moments ago, “…Sorry, I got over sentimental again. Winter evenings like this remind me of my homeland a bit, I couldn’t help it. Anyways, why don’t I play us a song?”

Now was the time, Forte realized.

“Uhhh Meg…look…I…there’s something I need to…uh, well…”

“Huh? You want me to play a Christmas song? Ok, I’ll think…Silent Night or Jingle Bells…I want to see how it works on my harp…”

“No, that’s not it, I wanted to say that…um…”

“Wait, neither of those songs? Well, I’ll just play us Joy to the World and…”

Forte bit her lip in frustration. Her thoughts raced insanely as her heartbeat rose sharply. “Forte, it’s now or never.”

“I got it! I’ll go play us Rudolph the Red Nosed Reindeer, that was a classic my old teacher taught me…”

“Meg, please listen to me: I love you.”

“...Huh?”

As the knight uttered those very words from her lips, it’s almost as if time itself had stopped in its tracks that winter-clad evening. Meg’s expression went from that of her usually cheerful eccentric one to that of pure speechlessness.

“I don’t mean as a friend or as a sister. Meg…look, I love you as a woman. Romantically. You’re caring, knowledgable, talented, compassionate, empowering, warm and just pleasant to be around everyday. My chest has been racing as of lately just being next to you…I don’t know what else to say…”

“Forte…is this true?” Meg blinked while a tint of red began slowly surfacing from her own cheeks.

“Yes, it’s all true. I was scared prior to this…We’re both girls and I have no idea how your culture does it…hell, I’m not even sure how my parents would react if they could see this but I don’t care! As a knight of Ventuswill and all of Selphia, I’m not going to hold my feelings back in front of the woman I love, damn it!”

Once more, Forte was met with a silent and blank response from the musician. Fearing it amounted to nothing but a potential awkward rejection, she steeled herself for what was next. She walked into this knowing that heartbreak might be a viable outcome but she would rather have professed her feelings than hold her silence forever.

“I’m sorry…who was I kidding. Just pretend I said nothing, please…Regardless, I want us to remain friends and…”

“You idiot…” Meg gritted her teeth, glaring with tears in her eyes.

Forte wasn’t given much room to react as Meg tightly embraced her as if it would be their last.

“M-meg…?!”

“Honestly…you blockhead…” she sniffled, keeping her arms wrapped around the knight tightly. “Took you long enough…! I’m so happy…I’m so glad you feel the same way…”

“Feel the same way…y-you…you mean…?”

“Yes…but…I’m afraid too. Not because we’re both girls. I don’t care about that at all…it’s because I’m an elf. You’re human.”

“What if you are an elf? I care nothing about that. I know there are places in Norad that ostracize your people but I’m not…”

“It’s not that!” Meg cried out as she continued to cling onto Forte. She blinked through her tears and continued, “It’s much more complicated. You know that elves live longer than humans do. What if you go before me…? You’re a knight…You’ve already pledged your life to the sword. Your line of work makes it so that you’re ready for death at any given moment. If you die before me and I have to live out the remainder of my existence in this world without you…I…”

“Meg…” Forte whispered, “You’re not wrong. I’ve devoted my life to the path of the sword. The sword is nothing more than an extension to my real devotion: those who I care for. You included most of all. You’re right…maybe I could fall in battle or I might succumb to illness, who knows what the future has in store but…I’d rather face those dangers while protecting and loving you…”

“Forte…”

“I know we have to go slow of course…I-if you say yes, that is!” Forte stammered but regained her verbal composure right after. “Going moderately is the key but my feelings for you are genuine…Meg…I want to be your knight and dedicate my sword to you. B-by that…I want to be your girlfriend. W-well…?”

It wasn’t too long after that the musician’s anxious tears were immediately replaced with tearful giggles as she broke her embrace. “Honestly, do all knights have to confess like this? I don’t even want to know what the marriage proposal would be like…!”

“H-hey, I was being serious…”

“I know, Forte. I know very well…Therefore, my answer is: I accept!” Meg spoke out the last part with a cheerful grin as she wiped the last of her tears away.

“Huh?! Meg, are you sure about this?”

“More sure than I’ve ever been in my entire life. Not going to lie: I’m still anxious…I have no idea what awaits us but…with my brave and dashing girlfriend by my side, I have nothing to fear.”

“Meg…ugh…I…” Forte attempted to choke back a sob as tears welled up her own eyes. She stepped forward and gave her beloved a firm embrace. She sobbed softly between sniffles and hiccups, “Ngh…I’m so happy…I was afraid that…ugh…Meg…I love you! I love you so much!”

Reciprocating the embrace, Meg giggled softly as she comforted the sobbing knight. “You big dork…I love you too…don’t panic. Even if I said no, I wasn’t going to leave you behind either…You’re precious to me no matter what…”

“Sorry…I shouldn’t have lost my composure like that. It was unknightly of me, so to speak.” Forte calmed down as Meg wiped her tears away.

“I dunno, I have absolutely no problems seeing this side of you either.” Meg playfully teased.

“Hey!! Ugh…you’ve always been unpredictable at times, you know that?”

“Maybe. Maybe not…I wanna do something else unpredictable, of course.”

Forte swallowed a lump as her heart raced once more. “Well, what would that be?”

Kiss.

Eyes still widened, Forte stared blankly as Meg’s lips parted from hers in a quick but blissful instant. “Merry Christmas Forte. I love you.”

“Ah.” Forte said aloud and continued. “Ah. Ah. Ahhhhh.”

Thud.

“Oh my gosh, Forte!!” Meg cried out in horror as she witnessed her newly confessed girlfriend dropping to her knees. She immediately knelt down herself cradled the flustered knight around her arms. “Are you okay?! Do you have a fever?! Are you tired?!”

Meg was all the more puzzled as she witnessed Forte’s unconscious but dreamy eyed and flustered expression. It was as if she had gone to heaven and ascended into a higher plane of goddesshood.

“Honestly…I need to get us both inside ASAP. Can’t have my girlfriend fainting outside here.”

Unbeknownst to either of them, the royal couple stood quietly in wait within the observatory’s interior in a floor below.

“Fufufufu…looks like Operation Knight Song was a grand success.” Frey sheepishly giggled. “Mission accomplished!”

“Uhhhhh…We did absolutely nothing besides eavesdrop.” Doug informed in a deadpan tone.

“C’mon, dear. We promised to be backup for Forte incase she froze up but looks like she didn’t need our help. That’s my Forte, haha…”

“Well, I’m happy for them both. That much I’ll say. I think we need to go up there before Forte freaks out any further.” Doug proposed but his intentions were interrupted by the mischievous princess holding up a mistletoe over both their heads.

“Oh hell no. Dear, please. Not now…w-wait until home at least!!” the fiery red-head dwarf took a step back, panicking.

“Awwwww, don’t be like that.” Frey licked her lips. “It’s almost midnight. Besides, I want to give Forte and Meg some time to themselves while I have my own little fun…”

Doug swallowed hard, laughing nervously. He had no intention of denying his playful wife’s advances but he braced himself for what came next. This of course consisted of Frey pouncing on her husband and showering him with cuddles and a flurry of kisses over his face and neck.

Overall, it was just another snowy, heated, chaotic but romantic Night of Holies in Selphia.

#rfss2018 #rune factory 4 #rf4 #rf4 frey #rf4 doug #rf4 margaret #rf4 forte #frey x doug #meg x forte #yuri #femslash #avenger concerto writing

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drbtinglecannon · 7 years ago

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Preen to stay clean

So thanks to @blamedorange and @quirk-registration-office I'm super into HawksxFuyumi. There's too little content so don't mind me contributing haha. I got this idea from a discord I joined for fans of Hawks, him and a s/o preening but he's complaining no one does it right. I had a lot fun writing this, hope you enjoy! Also on Ao3.

-----

Fuyumi tried to keep her eyes on the TV directly across from her, but they kept wandering to the side to stare at the house guest. Hawks came over unannounced, as he always does, and sat himself on the loveseat in the living room waiting for Endeavor.

She didn't understand why the winged hero wouldn't just go to her father’s agency whenever he had a whim to discuss something. Endeavor wasn't very tech savvy so that ruled out texting or emailing, but the younger hero could still try calling instead of dropping by Todoroki manor.

Fuyumi found Hawks insufferable at first, and while she's still not his biggest fan, he's a lot easier to deal with when in a quieter, more private setting. Sometimes. He still talked far too much and spoke arrogantly, but at least he was consistent and honest.

She fidgeted, trying to focus on whatever show was playing, but her eyes kept straying to the side. Hawks was sitting with his legs crossed propped up on the coffee table (Fuyumi has given up telling him to stop putting his feet on the furniture) while methodically running a brush through his wings. He was working small sections at a time, adjusting the dark red feathers to precise angles and picking tiny specs of dirt or dust out, dropping them in a small pile in his lap.

“Y’know, instead of staring you could just ask what I'm doing.” He didn't look up, focus still on his wings, but a smirk appeared on his face. “I know I'm handsome, but I thought you Todoroki kids were raised with better manners than this.”

Fuyumi would've rolled her eyes at his self-praise but was too startled from being caught staring and then called out on it. “My apologies, I didn't mean to stare.” She fixed her gaze on her feet right when he glanced up.

“Nah, I don't mind, especially when it's a lovely lady like yourself doing it.” He started chuckling as Fuyumi’s face flushed from the compliment. This time she did roll her eyes.

“Nevermind, I’m not sorry.”

He laughed louder. “Ooh, so cold! I didn't know your quirk could reach your words.” Hawks continued laughing, thoroughly enjoying making his unwilling host suffer.

“...You still haven't asked.” He reminded her in a low voice when his laughter finally ceased.

Fuyumi pursed her lips and examined her slippers as she weighed her opinions. If she engaged further, there would be no going back to quietly pretending to watch the news, however...she was very curious.

Silence settled between them, Fuyumi still pointedly staring down and Hawks still watching her waiting patiently. She heaved a long sigh. “Fine, what are you doing?”

Her eyes finally darted up and locked on him, regret sinking into her stomach as a shit eating grin broke on Hawks’ face. “Preening.”

Fuyumi blinked. He said it so casually as if to say what else could I be doing? “‘Preening’?”

“Yeah, like a bird.” He answered easily, turning his attention back to where he was previously working on his left wing. “Preen to stay clean!”

She gave him a flat look at his dumb joke, knowing full well he was acting as if he didn't notice while he brushed away. “I suppose that makes sense...” Fuyumi titled her head as she continued staring. “Is it difficult to preen? Your wings are rather large.”

Hawks shrugged slightly, running his fingers over the smooth feathers. “Not really, it's definitely time-consuming though. I have to preen at least three times a day, and it's only a pain if I got dirty while doing hero work.”

“One time I caught someone who fell from a construction site and got COVERED in paint. That was a pain in the ass to clean.” He grimaced slightly mentioning that story, personally Fuyumi would've paid money to see it.

Hawks moved to the larger feathers on the base of his wing, brushing long strokes through them. “At this point though I'm so used to the routine of preening I can do it while still waking up in the morning. It helps me relax and I feel energized afterwards.”

It wasn't a surprise the process felt relaxing, since it was relaxing just to watch. The way he was knowingly adjusting the feathers, gently brushing away any filth until they were fluffy and soft looking was almost hypnotic.

Fuyumi had a overwhelming desire for the hero to brush her hair.

Immediately after that thought popped up she turned her face away quickly, embarrassment washing over her as warmth crept up her cheeks. The sudden movement wouldn't go unnoticed, but Fuyumi prayed Hawks wouldn't comment.

“You ok?” He asked, confusion and slight concern evident in his voice.

Fuyumi cursed her luck, wishing he just feigned not to notice. “Nothing...I just…” She now cursed how awkward her voice sounded and cleared her throat before continuing. “Your wings look nice, you’re clearly very diligent about preening them.”

There was a small pause before he snorted. “You're such a liar.”

Fuyumi whipped her head back to glare at the winged hero, who merely grinned in response. “Excuse me?!”

“I said you're a liar. You might really think my wings look nice, but that isn't why you suddenly turned away blushing.” Hawks leaned forward slightly as he spoke, sharp eyes searching Fuyumi’s soft gray ones. She gulped, feeling very exposed all of a sudden.

He raised an unruly eyebrow as he murmured in a sultry tone. “Maybe perhaps it's because you were thinking…dirty thoughts?”

Fuyumi threw the closest decorative pillow she could grab at his face, unfortunately he caught it right in time even as he howled with laughter. She scowled and crossed her arms, trying not to think about how red her face must be or how stupid attractive his voice sounded just then.

“Ok, ok, I'm sorry, sorry!” He apologized in between laughs.

He pushed his blue tinted visor up to wipe at tears that formed, taking a few deep breaths to calm down. “But really, what made you freak out just now?”

The glint in his eyes told Fuyumi he wasn't going to drop it anytime soon. She would never hear the end of it if she confessed (even if she did get what she very briefly wanted), so she blurted out the best sounding lie she could think of.

“I wondered what it would be like to brush your wings. There, happy?” Her arms pulled a little tighter around herself as they stared at each other.

Hawks blinked once, twice, then quickly peered down at his neglected brush. “No.”

The silence that followed was awkward. Fuyumi watched wide-eyed as Hawks’ face flushed slightly and he pouted.

She snorted, quickly covering her mouth as he threw a glare her way. “Sorry, I didn't expect you to be so protective of your precise preening time.”

His eyes narrowed. “No one else can do it right.” The hero turned back to his wing and resumed brushing. “I hate when interviewers or fans ask if they can play with my wings and I have to chuckle and say 'Sure!’, because then I just get stuck fixing it later.”

His cheeks were tinged pink, and it was clear by his tone he intended to end the conversation there. Normally Fuyumi would be relieved when Hawks would finally shut up, but right now it left a sour taste in her mouth.

She toyed with her hair, a nervous habit of hers, before apologizing again. “I’m sorry, I didn't mean to make you uncomfortable. Although…”

Fuyumi glanced at him and waited until he finally shifted his gaze back on her. “...if you're willing to explain how, I wouldn't mind trying to properly preen your wings.”

Hawks’ eyes widened at her request, clearly thrown by the forwardness. Fuyumi herself was surprised she offered to learn, but the idea people thoughtlessly make a mess of his wings on TV or in public for entertainment genuinely angered her.

He cleared his throat after a long pause. “...ok, sure. It’ll, uh, work best if I sat in a chair backwards. Or if you sat in between my legs but um...yeah I can get a chair---”

Fuyumi patted the coffee table directly in front of her. “You put your feet on it all the time as it is, what more is you sitting on it?” She chuckled under her breath as he pouted again. “Don’t worry, my father has stood on this table before, it's very sturdy.”

Hawks eyed the spot warily, before pushing himself up and gently floating over to sit cross-legged directly in front of Fuyumi facing her, the small pile of dust still in his lap. He silently held out of the brush for her, which she delicately accepted.

It was clearly a specialty brush, with long, strong, sharp bristles and a curved shaped to it. Fuyumi was equal parts irritated people either misused this nice brush or used a low quality one on his wings, and touched he trusted her enough to actually learn his process.

He spread his right wing out, and guided her hand to the top where it arched. “Brush in small downwards strokes, similar to how you would with hair, until the feathers look smoother and soft. Don't worry about dust or dirt, or adjusting the feathers individually, it uh, won’t really make sense the first time.”

“‘First time’?” She raised a neat eyebrow, and smirked slightly.

“Well...I suppose if you do well enough just brushing...I can let you preen them again some time.” He said quietly.

A small part of her hoped she lived up to his expectations.

She started brushing the striking colored feathers softly, not wanting to tug or damage them. It was a little awkward, especially with how tense Hawks was seated in front of her, but after a few minutes working down the length of his right wing, his posture visibly relaxed.

His eyes fluttered closed, and he rested his chin on his left hand. Aside from the occasional gentle instructions, his body language was so loose he could've easily been mistaken for being asleep. If he were a cat, Fuyumi is sure he'd be purring loudly.

Eventually Fuyumi finished brushing the feathers, and had to resist the urge to run her hands over the soft looking tendrils. Hawks slowly blinked his eyes open, glanced over her work, and gently fluttered his crimson wings until they poofed out a small amount.

It was adorable. Fuyumi tried to keep her expression neutral looking, but it was difficult after the little display.

“You actually did pretty well, considering you didn't even know what I was doing 15 minutes ago.” His voice was missing the snarky edge it usually carried, coming out more timid than he probably meant. “... thanks, that uh...it was nice.”

Fuyumi would never admit out loud she vaguely thought Hawks blushing or being awkward was cute, but she could admit it was refreshing to see the smug hero shelf his arrogance every once in a while.

“You're welcome, it was kind of fun. Perhaps I can learn more about your preening techniques next time.” Fuyumi said with a small smile.

“'Next time’, huh?” He leaned forward, too close that Fuyumi backed up further into the cushions behind her. “Now, Todoroki-san, if I didn't know any better I'd say you were flirting.”

His smirk was confident, but there was this delicate emotion in his eyes she couldn't quite decipher. Fuyumi’s heart was beating so loud she's sure he could hear from where he was leaning not even a foot away. “I…---”

The resounding noise of the front door opening and firmly closing in such a quintessential Endeavor way was enough to dispel any further teasing.

Hawks jumped so hard he used the momentum to hop off the coffee table and fly a few feet away onto his feet, barely collecting the small dust pile into his hands before it could spill. His face was as red as the ruffled feathers on his back however Fuyumi couldn't fault him. After all, if her father walked in on their little scene there she would be shocked if it didn't result in someone being set on fire.

Endeavor must've heard the small commotion because he was now in the doorway, scrutinizing eyes darting between his daughter and begrudged colleague. “What are you doing here?” His tone as harsh and fiery as always.

Hawks took a small breath, before suddenly tossing the dust in his hand at Endeavor's chest, right into one of the open patches of flames his costume produced. The dust immediately singed. “Just looking for the trash.”

Endeavor blinked at his chest, then looked up and blinked at Hawks. The winged hero wore his best sassy grin proudly on his face.

Fuyumi supposed she’d never be able to learn Hawks’ proper preening techniques, because if the face her father was pinning the younger hero with said anything, it was that he was going to be charred alive in a few moments.

#fuyumi x hawks #drbtinglecannon #hawks trolling endeavor #hawks is a little shit #huwumi #rating: g

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koganeirou · 6 years ago

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It took me a whole ass month and then some but I’ve finally finished Norn9! The first video game I’ve finished in 2019!

After all my bitching and moaning about Mystic Messenger, time for some positivity. BUT IT’S ALSO TIME TO WALLOW IN POST GAME DEPRESSION FOR A MONTH NOW *CRIES* this happens every time I finish a good game. This game was so good and even though I seriously waited on my ass since AUGUST for this game to go on sale so I could snag it, boy I am not disappointed! It easily lands a spot in one of my favourite otoges ever (Nightshade is still my number one, but this is a close contender for second place. Not sure whether it actually tops Code Realize but I’ll have to wait for my post game depression to fade before I can make that decision lel).

Anyway more thoughts under the cut. I guess it will be like a review though unlike my ikerev reviews it’s just gonna be purely my thoughts. Spoilers will be marked.

For starters yikes I knew from the beginning that the localization was bad but I did not expect it to be this bad…. any regrets of waiting so long for it to go on sale is gone after seeing how poor the translation is. I’m so glad Aksys’s later titles are a huge improvement from this hot mess.

After much deliberation I have come to the conclusion: that this plot makes no fucking sense LOL! It’s wild how they have 9 routes to flesh out the plot, and they still failed, even though the plot is pretty much the same in every route!

**SPOILERS**

My biggest confusion is why the hell Shiro picked up the hobby of starting wars to kill time as he waited for his dead wife to reborn. Unless he’s like Isaac Beckford 2.0 and wanted to start war IN THE NAME OF SCIENCE, but his motives remained wishy washy in the end. Also Sorata’s character makes… sense, but at the same time, I think his existence and relationship with Aion made the plot way more convoluted than necessary and I feel like the plot would have been much smoother without that convoluted mess of an epilogue.

**SPOILERS END**

That being said I still really enjoyed this game a lot, and I think this game is the embodiment of that tumblr post “You can give me the shittiest plot in the world but if the characters are real and I feel for them then I will defend the whole shitty shebang until my dying breath”. Admittedly, the plot or story isn’t actually bad! The premise is really interesting and brings up a lot of tough moral questions, like if it’s morally correct to tamper with scientific advancement and history in the name of stopping war. Unfortunately these themes only get really challenged in one (Natsuhiko’s) route and plot is weirdly repetitive while still being vague and confusing.

That being said, despite the messy execution and despite me not loving every love interest, I have yet to play an otoge with a cast of characters as endearing and colorful as this game. The way the characters are all drawn together and interact with each other outside your chosen pair had me so damn invested so even if I wasn’t enamored with the love interest or the romance, I never found myself bored because of how vivid and interesting all the other characters and their relationships were. Every character acts autonomously and undergoes their own development independent of your chosen route, and that just made the setting feel so much more alive. It was really cool to see each characters’ relationships develop differently in different routes. The way the characters are set up honestly kind of reminds me of Danganronpa with “every character has a unique ability/talent which shapes their backstory and personality” and I loved it.

I think the greatest strength of this game isn’t really the love interests more so having three fully fleshed out, fully voiced heroines, whom I loved all very dearly. I think this is what makes Norn9 unique compared to other otoges. Every heroine was unique and loveable and switching between heroines while playing just kept the experience fresh and it really made the cast more dynamic, especially watching the girls interact with each other, as well as with boys outside their target group. I love how each heroine has a really distinctive character arc and backstory connected to their powers and it was nice seeing how their respective love interests brought out different sides of them. In terms of heroine characterization, no other otoge holds a candle to Norn9. Also I can’t help but fantasize about a capturable character shuffle lmao (specifically Kakeru/Mikoto, Senri/Nanami, Itsuki/Nanami, and Akito/Koharu). The characters all felt real, and their struggles and pain and happiness felt real.

So yeah the plot may have been a dumpster fire but as far as telling a story about a bunch of teens who grew up being exploited, used, and abused as tools or weapons, and them trying to come to terms with the consequences of their powers, and find happiness despite of that, then this game absolutely succeeded.

Anyway my favourite character order is probably something like Natsuhiko > Itsuki > Mikoto > Kakeru > Nanami > Senri > Koharu > Akito > Ron > Heishi > Sakuya/Masamune (easy toss up between last place).

Route wise it’s probably Natsuhiko > Kakeru > Itsuki > Akito > Senri > Heishi > Ron > Masamune > Sakuya. Funny how Natsu, Kakeru and Akito are my fave from each girl’s target group haha they totally deserve to be the poster boys/girls’ “canon” love interest.

Anyway this game was great, please play it. I’m gonna go off and mope now because 1. I’m finished and 2. THE FANDISC AIN’T LOCALIZED.

#ellie plays norn9 terribly #ellie plays #norn9 #time to go cry myself to sleep now in a fit of post game depression #i'm so sad its over #anyway this game was amazing please play it

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el-dritchknight · 6 years ago

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all i want for christmas is you (passing all your fucking exams) [grecinto secret santa gift fic]

Title: all i want for christmas is you (passing all your fucking exams)

Summary: Law student Ilyong Jacinto is facing his toughest challenge yet: finals week at the University of Santo Tomas. Luckily, his boyfriend, Goyo, is there to support him no matter what.

Characters | Ships: Ilyong Jacinto/Goyo del Pilar | Grecinto

Notes: Dates are based off the 2018 UST Academic calendar HAHA. For PCHU Secret Santa twitter user @SilverCai16!! Pasensya na na super clutch itey ^^; regardless, I hope you like it uwu

Dec 14 - End of Classes

Books, check. Pens, check. Highlighters, notebooks, and emergency coffee: check, check, and triple check.

Ilyong stretches his fingers above his head then rolls his shoulders back. Classes may have ended, but the real battle — the preparation for finals week — begins now.

He picks up Pointers in Criminal Review and turns to the first page .

“I don’t want a lot for Christmas~”

He blinks at the sound, checks to see if he accidentally played music on his phone. Waley. He shrugs. Baka kapit-bahay lang yun. “There is just one thing I need!”

...Isang maingay na kapitbahay. Ilyong huffs out an annoyed sigh and brings his attention back to the book. ‘Criminal law is a branch or division of public law that’ —

“I DON’T CARE ABOUT THE PRESENTS UNDERNEATH THE CHRISTMAS TREE!”

Puta naman o!

Ilyong tromps out of his room and out of the house before he goes out of his mind.

“Gago, alas tres pa lang ng hapon, bakit may mga nag-cacaroling—!” He stops short at the sight of his boyfriend, Goyo del Pilar, donning a santa hat and a shit-eating grin. For reasons unknown, a guitar is strapped to his shirtless chest.

Ilyong knows he should probably tell Goyo off for disrupting the peace (Ilyong’s peace, if no one else’s), but he can only stop and stare. Damn, those pandesal abs.

“I just want you for my own,” Goyo continues to croon, voice at a reasonable volume now that he isn’t vying for Ilyong’s attention, “more than you could ever know…” Tearing his gaze away from Goyo’s chest took effort, but the anxious, niggling thought of gago, may finals ka pa! gives Ilyong the mental strength he needs. He walks closer to Goyo, shaking his head bemusedly. “Gagoyo, anong ginagawa mo?”

In response, Goyo puts a finger against Ilyong’s lips.

“Make my wish come trueee!” Ilyong roll his eyes at the exaggerated vowels, but Goyo is undeterred. “All I want for Christmas is… you~!”

He starts to dance a little to the upbeat bells, hips moving from side to side. A smile cracks Ilyong’s facade, a surge of fondness going through his chest amidst all the confusion. Goyo continues to kembot, until the music is sharply cut off by an obnoxiously loud air horn and a man’s voice yelling about subscriptions to Spotify Premium.

Goyo curses. “I hate these ads so much.” “Mag-premium ka na kasi, may student discount ka naman ah,” Ilyong says through a bout of snickering. He points to the guitar. “Or try mo kaya tugtugin ‘yan next time.”

“Sige, sabi mo ah! Next time, I will play the guitar sa susunod kong harana sa ‘yo.” Goyo’s grin is brighter than a ray of sun, and warmer still, than the heat of sun bearing down on them.

Ilyong’s face seems to burn hotter than said sun. He crosses his arms, looking away. “Basta’t siguraduhin mo na wala nang ads.”

“Oo na! Anyway, Mali-Goyong pasko, babe!” Goyo pushes his guitar behind him and wraps his arms around Ilyong, who most definitely doesn’t squawk as his face comes in contact with Goyo’s pecs.

“M-Maligayang Pasko, mahal,” Ilyong returns, his reply somewhat muffled in Goyo’s bare chest. He talks a moment to breathe, to compose himself, before pulling away slightly to look his boyfriend in the eye. “Not that I’m not happy to see you, but what are you doing here? Akala ko nasa Katipunan ka pa.”

Goyo lets him go to pose with a flourish. “I’m here to support you, of course! Alam ko mag-fi-finals na kayo, and need mo ng emotional support at taga-remind ng pagkain, so here I am!” A snort escapes Ilyong. The edges of his mouth curls in amusement. “Aww, sweet mo naman... Pero di ba finals week niyo ngayon?”

“Kakatapos lang, actually,” Goyo answers with a relieved grin. “Thank god for early scheduling. Though dapat meron akong Philo orals ngayon, e my classmate switched with me kasi gusto niya mag-Bora.” “Swerte naman ng mga Atenista.” “Swerte nanam ang isang Atenista,” Goyo corrects,” at ako iyon dahil swerte ako sa ‘yo.” “Corny mo.” Ilyong snorts, but ends up averting his eyes in embarrassment. What did he do to deserve such an adorkable boyfriend? “Pero, uy. Sigurado ka ba talaga? Medyo… single-minded daw ako kapag nag-aaral, especially sa finals.” Goyo smiles and puts his hands on Ilyong’s shoulders, giving them a comforting squeeze. “Sure na sure ako, mahal! Like I said, I really just want to support you. Plus, I kind of need a break from Katipunan, anyway.” “Kahit mainit ulo ko sa ‘yo?” “Kailan ba naman hindi? Aray!” Goyo laughs and rubs the spot on his arm that Ilyong had playfully punched. “Oo, G ako sa kahit ano, basta’t kasama kita.”

Ilyong’s blush strikes back with a vengeance. A shy smile blossoms on his lips. “Well, thank you, mahal. Pero alam mo na hindi mo ‘to kailangan gawin, right?”

“Alam ko,” Goyo answers easily. “Pero gusto ko.” “Goyo, I —” “Para naman maharana kita ng maayos next time. Mahirap pag naging cockblock ang acads, noh?” This time, Goyo manages to dodge Ilyong’s incoming punch to his shoulder. “Joke, joke lang! ‘Kaw naman, ‘di mabiro o.”

Ilyong rolls his eyes and grabs Goyo’s bicep. “Gago ka talaga kahit kailan. O siya! Tara na nga sa loob. Magkape ka muna para matauhan ka sa mga kalokohan mo.”

Dec 17 - Study day

Ilyong is sitting on the floor. Flashcards surround him from every angle. He is trapped, and victory can only come at the cost of memorizing all the provisions on these fucking 3x5 index cards.

He flops down on his back, heedless of all the flashcards he’s crushing under the weight of his fatigue.

“Okay ka lang, babe?” Goyo calls from his place on Ilyong’s bed, looking up from his Nintendo Switch.

“Yeah, nagpapahinga lang,” Ilyong responds listlessly, staring up at the ceiling. It’s such a pretty white color, Ilyong notices. He’s never had a chance to ponder about the ceiling before, but now seems to be a good time to fully appreciate how white it is. Parang kulay ng mga ulap o kaya ng mga sinusuot sa lamay… o ng scantron sheet na binibigay tuwing exams.

...Putangina, bukas na ang finals. Ilyong groans. He wishes he can just disappear into the pile of flash cards, but Bathala was not known to be that merciful.

Goyo’s pretty face suddenly looms over him, blocking his view of the fascinating ceiling. “Hi.” “Hi.” “You need help getting up?” “Please.” Goyo takes ahold of Ilyong’s arm and lifts him up with an ease Ilyong envies. Goyo runs his hand up Ilyong’s arm to his shoulder, rubbing it soothingly. “Wanna talk about it?” “Eh, wala namang isyu. Stressed lang ako. Feeling ko e-explode yung utak ko kapag nagbasa ako ng isa pang flashcard.” “Same,” Goyo says sympathetically.

Ilyong snorts and lightly swats his arm. “Gago, anong same? Naglalaro ka lang diyan, e.” “I mean, di naman literally, but I get the feeling, you know? Exams were early, yeah, but they were still hell. Traumatised pa nga ako, babe.” “Aww, kawawa ka naman.”

“Yeah, gumagaling lang ako sa kiss mo, eh.” Ilyong hates how easily he turns red at Goyo’s words. “Landi mo, gago.”

“‘Kaw kasi, ang cute mo kapag nagblublush ka.” “Stooop,” Ilyong says, covering his face with his hands. He cannot take much more of this.

“Okay, pero seryoso, Ilyong.” Goyo gives him a second before gently taking Ilyong’s hands into his own. He stares into Ilyong’s eyes with a serious gentleness that Ilyong only ever sees directed at him. “Just breathe and rest your head for a bit. You’ve been studying non-stop since you woke up three hours ago.”

“Kailangan ko pa i-memorise yung mga provision —” “Makakahintay yung provision na yan. Kailangan mo mag-rest. You’ve been studying for the past three days also. You deserve a break.” “I don’t—” “Sige ka, you’ll get sick if you don’t rest. Si Enteng, yun yung ginawa - he worked and studied so hard that he got sick on the first day of exams.” A horrified gasp escapes Ilyong’s throat. “What happened?” “Wala, nag make-up exams si gago… and the make-ups are harder than the original tests.”

“Oof.” “Oof is right, babe. So, ano? Are you convinced? Matutulog ka na ba?” Ilyong rolls his eyes but nods in grudging defeat. “Opo, matutulog na po ako.”

Goyo is lucky that Ilyong doesn’t have the energy to wipe that smug smile off his face. “Yehey! Kasi ang bait mo, I’ll make timpla coffee when you wake up.” Placated by the promise of caffeine, Ilyong settles down on his bed while Goyo sits next to him, presumably back to playing on his Switch. A few peaceful seconds pass.

“…Uy, Goyo?” “Mm?” “Salamat.” “No problem, babe. Anything for my favorite future lawyer.”

Despite the massive headache threatening to split his head open, Ilyong smiles. He feels like he could take on the entire world.

Dec 18 - Armageddon Final Exams begin

Ilyong feels like he could tear the entire world apart. He glares daggers at the google document that is supposed to contain their interpretation of certain provisions for a final paper. Instead, all Ilyong sees are lines and lines of Sergio Osmeña and Manuel L. Quezon… flirting.

Nonong, we should really get to examining the sample case facts.

how about you examine my ‘witness’ instead ;)

NONONG, PLEASE.

the ‘witness’ is my dick btw

YUUUCK! Ilyong physically recoils from his laptop. Lord, bakit ako pinagpala ng ganitong groupmates?!

Semi-colon open parenthesis is right. Osmeña and Quezon may be brilliant students, the top two of the class to boot, but Ilyong had had it with them. Flirting openly with one’s boyfriend is alright, great even! Ilyong admires the brazenness in this very Catholic, very traditionalist university.

Pero puta naman o, google docs is not the time and place for this kind of landian! Hoy, Ilyong types below the sad face, fingers shaking with the attempt to stay calm. Pwede bang mamaya na iyan? Tapusin muna natin ang trabaho natin, please.

It’s a testament to Ilyong’s self-control that he hadn’t sworn at them - okay, well, that he deleted the curse words that peppered his comment. God, he misses being groupmates with Feli and Remi. While the two of them were constantly sweet and flirty, they didn’t let it interfere with their work.

Sorry about that, Jacinto.

yeah, sorry :( we’ll be good

You better.

Ilyong heaves out a sigh. He had finished his parts for the paper, but more than half had yet to be written. Combined with the other papers he still had to write and the other exams he had to study for, Ilyong wanted to rip something apart. Annoying group mates, while certainly rippable, were not helping.

“Babe, you okay?” Annoying boyfriend, while sweet and adorable, is also of no help at the moment.

“No,” Ilyong flatly says after a beat.

“Is there anything I can do? Anything I can get you?” “I’m fine, I —” He takes a deep breath. Aggravated as Ilyong is, the gesture is still appreciated. “I think I just need to be alone right now.” Goyo nods, understanding. It had taken a while for him to know when Ilyong needed him close and when Ilyong needed a moment to himself. While it still isn’t an easy feat, as they both still needed to work on mindfulness and communication, it’s a task that they’re determined to work through together.

“A’ight, I’ll head out and visit some friends muna, but promise me you’ll take care, okay? Gamitin mo yung poporo timer.” Ilyong raises an eyebrow. “...You mean pomodoro timer?” “Same thing,” Goyo calls out as he gathers up his things and walks out of the room. “Sige, love you, babe! I’ll be back later.”

Ilyong merely hums, his attention already back to his laptop.

Hours later, it is in the midst of writing papers and cramming tomes worth of information in his head that Ilyong realises that Goyo has returned. The boy is slumped over, asleep in the chair beside him. Not only that, but Goyo had apparently brought food; the take-out tocilog sits next to Goyo's elbow, cold and untouched.

A soft smile steals across Ilyong’s lips. He reaches out and places a blanket over Goyo’s shoulders.

Dec 21 - Final exams end

The sound of a door sharply being slammed open heralds llyong’s return. Goyo rushes towards him but stops short at the sight of Ilyong’s downcast gaze, and the way he drops his bag on the floor of his room.

Goyo slowly approaches him with all the caution of a man facing an animal in the wild. “Ilyong, mahal��?”

“Goyo…” Ilyong looks up, revealing the horrendously dark circles under his eyes and tired smile on his lips. “Goyo, tapos na. Tapos na exams! TAPOS NA EXAMS!”

Before he’s even finished speaking, Goyo takes Ilyong in his arms. He lifts him up effortlessly and twirls his love in a gleeful circle. “Babe, that’s great! Ang galing mo talaga! Celebrate ta — mmph!”

The sudden warmth of Ilyong’s mouth against his catches him by surprise. Goyo’s quick to react, however, already cupping the back of Ilyong’s head with one hand as he deepens the kiss. It’s sloppy compared to their usual momols, but Goyo doesn’t care. He can feel the relief and joy radiating off Ilyong with each press of their smiling lips. It’s a kiss that communicates Ilyong’s gratitude and his love—a kiss to which Goyo eagerly responds, conveying his own love and willingness to do anything for the other boy.

“Saan mo gusto mag-cecelebrate mamaya? Libre ko,” Ilyong says breathlessly after pulling away.

Goyo laughs, touched. “‘Di mo yan kailangan gawin, babe.”

“Gusto ko.” Ilyong’s grin is radiant, near blinding. Matching his boyfriend’s smile, Goyo leans in once again. He’ll think of where he wants to eat later. Right now, all he wants is to do is reward his cute, smart, hard-working boyfriend.

#grecinto #bayaniserye #goyo x ilyong #goyo del pilar #ilyong jacinto #heneral goon #el writes

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ihaveanimagine · 7 years ago

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You pick the skelebros, please include classic. They find out that their s/o is a writer, and writes amazing stories, full fledged books, but never shows anyone because she thinks they’re shit. She writes mostly romance, and a lot of it is monster x human, and then she also writes fantasy, but usually portrays the humans as the villain, not the monsters. She has one book, that is actually about everything that has happened since they fell into the underground, in extreme detail. Everything.

(I did UT, MT and Gaster!Sans and Papyrus)

Undertale!Sans

Sans found out about your work through Alphys who hadrecently fallen in love with your newest novel involving a “Shape ofWater” vibe and showed it to Sans who instantly recognized the Author’sname. Wanting to reveal he knows of your books in the cheekiest way possible,Sans asks Alphys for the cheesiest romance novel you made, and she hands himthis book called “The Tale of the Underground”.

Sans kinda just snorts at the title, inwardly squealing athow cute the title was and began to read it. He was surprised that this wasBASICALLY your diary dictating your thoughts as you travelled the Undergroundand…ooooohh boy, haha, Sans pulled at the collar on his shirt.

Ho boy was this detailed.

Marking the page, Sans went home and awaited your arrival.The second you walked in the door with a distracted “Hey, Babe!” Sansopened the book and read aloud: “…after sans had licked the red spaghetti sauceoff his teeth, i suddenly had the hugest urge to kiss his teeth until my lipswere numb.“

Silence was the only response he received.

“that offerstill stand, dear?”

Undertale!Papyrus

This sweet cinnamon roll was simply dusting (the dirt kind,not the dead monster kind) the house when he came across an unfinished booksitting on your desk wide open. Papyrus wasn’t one to snoop, he honestly didn’tmean to, but he saw the words “Papyrus” and “Gorgeous” nextto each other and allowed himself to read several one chapter.

Wowie!! Whoever this author is must have VERY good sourcesbecause it sounds like his wonderful S/O wrote this from entirely their persep-OH!! IT WAS!! Papyrus felt a wave of embarrassment and fluster overflow hisemotions. H-HE REALLY SHOULDN’T CONTINUE, BUT…HIS S/O OBVIOUSLY PUT A LOT OFWORK INTO THIS BOOK A-AND HE SHOULD BE ABLE TO GIVE AN ADEQUATE CRITIQUE!!

So he read everything up until the part you stopped writing(which he spent a good 10 minutes mourning over) before rushing back to hischores, waiting for you to get home later tonight.

Once you walked in the door Papyrus scooped you in his arms,twirled you around and planted a big fat kiss to your lips before allowing youto speak.

“Wh-what’s withthe greeting?” You asked, face completely red from blushing, “N-notthat I mind!” Papyrus simply grinned and kissed you again before helpingyou brush off the snow from your clothes.

“OH, NOTHING INPARRICULAR, I JUST WANTED TO HELP OUT MY ADORING SWEETHEART!”

“Aww, that’s awfully sweet of you!”

“WELL OF COURSE!! ALTHOUGH MAY I ASK A QUICK QUESTION?”

“Shoot.”

“HOW EXACTLY AM I A ‘PRECIOUS NOODLEBONES SKELE-BEAN THATCAN MAKE GLOOMY DAYS GO EXTINCT BY SOUNDING LIKE A BABY RATTLE SNAKE WHENEVERMY BONES RATTLE WHEN I’M HAPPY’?”

You just knew thatsentence was going to come back and haunt you….

Mafiatale!Sans (Colt)

He’s supposed to be grabbing a book on “how to wash bloodstains out of white clothes” when he sees your name scrawled across a bookin the “bestseller” section of the bookstore. At first he thinks it’s acoincidence, but then he picks up the book and thumbs through it, when this employee bounces along andasks if he’s interested in the series.

Series???? This should be good. Naturally, he says “yeah, but I dunno where tostart” which allows the employee to gush about how much she loves your work and how it has almost exclusivelyhuman/monster pairings that more often than not revealed the darker side ofhumanity through satirical situations and comedic monster characters.

Colt had to snort a little at that, not that he wasjudging (he was probably the reason you began the monster/human pairingsanyway) but he knew how much you wanted to repeatedly smack the whole ofhumanity with a baseball bat until it gained some sense and hey, the pen ismightier than the sword, right?

So after Colt accidentallybought one of the shorter book series, and a book labelled “Trip Down Under” heleft the store (completely forgetting his original goal) and began devouringthe books whenever you weren’t with him.

Once he got to “Trip Down Under” he nearly had a heart attack.Before this book, he thought your other ones were marvelously written, balancingpure, unadulterated snark with mushy romance (a trait that he was proud toadmit only he was the recipient of irl)but this one was………an extremelydetailed step-by-step walkthrough of your entire trip in the Underground.

Granted, there were different names and places andenvironments used, but this was creepy!!!He specifically remembered having this exactsame conversation with you at 1am about whether or not condiments were anacceptable flavor spice for pet foods that the protag and her romantic interestwere having.

So, what does he do? After his post-mission meeting withDon Asgore ends and he heads home and proceeds to do your normal routine of smothering each otherin relieved affection before placing his hand on your back and the other onyour head, dipping you backwards.

With a feral grin, he leaned in and whispered to you: “Am Iliving up to your expectations as your bone-ified,straight-shooting, suave-talking punster of a soulmate?”

You suddenly regretted every life choice you’ve ever made.

Mafiatale!Papyrus (Sniper)

This guy was most likely gossiping with Bayonet (Undyne)when she offhandedly mentioned this romance novel series she was reading thatwas set in a fantasy world that had a boss fight similar to the one she experienced when you had gone through Waterfall. Shethought it was just a coincidence, after all, the fight became common knowledge after a while but Sniper’s experience taught him nothingwas a coincidence.

So he went and Googled everything he could about thisauthor.

He found online versions of your books, and read the book that Bayonet said she was reading, and BOY WAS HE SURPRISED. You certainly were detailed in your adventures, but you changed enough facts and names and places so it seemed that every important Family Secret you experienced were all different.

Being the little prankster he was, Sniper wanted to give you a scare. But, in order to do that, he had to pretend he had just heard about your book, and went and Google’d a picture of you.

WOWZA, DOES THIS PERSON LOOK FAMILIAR!!! HEY, S/O! COME LOOK AT THISPERSON!! YOU NEVER TOLD ME YOU HAD A TWIN!!!

You briefly considered lying to him when you felt embarrassment and a bit of fear well up inside you, but that idea wasquickly erased. “Sniper, darling….that’s….that’s me!”

Sniper looked back and forth between you andyour online picture before turning to you with a flirtatious smile: “OH GOOD, FOR A MINUTE I THOUGHT SOMEONE HADSTOLEN MY RECIPE FOR FONDUE! WINK!”

“OH MY GOSH, SNIPER!!!!”

Gaster!Sans (G)

You and G were out on a casual date in the town, arms linked, pulling you close together as you wandered aimlessly, idly chatting abouteverything and anything. Your romantic peace was interrupted by a pair of girlswho spotted you entering the park and ran over to greet you.

They immediately began squealing about your latest bookcalled “Echoes of Home” which set you off into an internal panic, G WASN’TSUPPOSED TO FIND OUT ABOUT THIS BOOK, OH STARS YOU WERE GOING TO DIE OF EMBARRASSMENT!!!

Without any regard for your dwindling dignity, the girlscontinued to fangirl about “Echoes of Home” Going on and on and on about howmuch they fell so hard for the “teeth-grindinglyhot-headed, self-righteous, aloof little jerk of a hunk”.

At one point in the conversation one girl looked over at Gwho had been relatively silent and said with an awe-struck face “Is this him???”She almost screamed with glee. Sensing this was your way out, your shushedloudly and began dragging G away with a quick wink to the girls who giggled andwaved goodbye (you were sure one was about to faint from swooning so hard).

Once you were both out of earshot G threw you a curious look“what was that about?” He asked, your face erupted into color and tried tobrush it off as nothing.

The matter was dropped until you walked past a bookstore with “Echoes of Home”displayed proudly on the window, showcasing the edition of the book with a picture of the main characters in each other’s embrace. “ain’t nuthin, huh?” He asked with anincreasing smirk, you frantically tried to pry G away, but CURSE HIS STRENGTH he was too hard to move!!

“huh, this guy on the cover looks like a weird version ofme. total coincidence, am i right?”

“YEP, ABSOLUTELY, LET’S GO NOW!!”

“ah, darlin’ I’m messing with ya. I’ve known about your bookwriting career for a while.”

“You wHAT!?”

“yeah, your fangirls are rabid.”

Cue an embarrassment-induced faint.

Gaster!Papyrus (Aster)

Aster was out on a grocery runwhen he came across an elderly woman struggling with her bags and decided tohelp her. While he was stuffing the bags inside her car, the old woman hadmentioned that he reminded her of the main protagonist in this book: Tall,suave, drop-dead gorgeous, and the personification of chivalry.

Since there wasn’t aplethora of writers in the Underground, Aster made an inquiry as to who thewriter was, the old woman couldn’t remember for the life of her, but she didgive him the book’s title and recommended he read them as soon as possible.

And so he did.

The book was a romance novel filledwith cheesy fantasies that were definitely made for the hopeless romantics.Scenarios of tall but gentlemanly heroes with a passion for science or artoften guided or encouraged a lost, starry-eyed female to follow her dreams andscrew with the system if it tried to stop her.

After several novels, hefinally read the one the old lady had recommended him, and, oh dear, is that-!!???It is!!!!

This book was a, uh, detailed edition of your travels in theUnderground.

He knows this because he’s the one who taught you thatspecific chemical formula of the carbohydrate strings which would allow foroptimum flavor!!!

And- hey wait, he rememberedthis part!! This was when he took you out on your first official date with him!!He was always so scared he over did it on the pulling out all your chairs,taking your coat, having no physical contact beyond hand holding or arm linkingbut this narrative showed that you-you….oh….didyou really think that?????

Aster felt his face explode incolor and he had to put the book he felt so flustered.

Later, when you came homethat day from a sleepover with Alphys and Undyne, Aster met you at the door likenormal, took your coat, kissed your cheek and asked you how your day was. Onceyou both got the pleasantries out of the way, Pap circled his arms around youand bent down.

“Do I really make you swoonjust by existing, my darling star?”

#gaster papyrus #gaster sans #mafiatale #undertale #mafiatale sans #mafiatale papyrus #undertale sans #undertale papyrus

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