#and leo will kick your ass and make a PUN before doing it

[meanderfall]

decided that the reason why 2003 splinter can be so laid back at times about the adventures his sons get up to is bc he knows he's unleashed hellions upon the world

[physalian]

Character Types: Femme Fatales & Comic Relief

These two have nothing in common except the one thing I hate about them: By design, they exist to fulfil one shallow purpose, so I’m lumping them together.

—

Comic Relief

Characters that only serve one purpose in the cast stick out like a sore thumb. “Comic Relief” characters exist solely to be funny, as if the rest of the main cast is incapable of humor, and that this character is incapable of any serious moments. Instead of distributing different flavors of humor—sass, dry wit, jokers, pranksters, dark humor, dad jokes and puns—the writer comes up with their grumpy group of heroes, then I guess thinks “oh I need somebody funny to cut some of this seriousness”?

But on top of that, as this character exists just to be funny, there’s usually comparatively less development and rich character nuance for the comic relief over the other heroes. They get whatever crumbs are left over after every other more important character has eaten.

If they do have some tragic backstory or any serious moments, they are still the one desperately trying to cut the tension and either annoying other characters and the audience in the process, or being quite tone deaf in their endeavors.

The one everybody hates: Jar Jar Binks

The one some people hate: Olaf

The one that subverted himself right quick: Sokka

Prequel apologists, step aside. The writing is still terrible and Jar Jar even in Clone Wars features in episodes (“Bombad Jedi”) I routinely skip on rewatches. Maybe he’s funnier for little kids? I haven’t seen every piece of SW media out there but I can’t recall a single moment where Jar Jar has any moment of depth or seriousness and he’s frequently the most inconvenient element of any mission he winds up on.

Honorable mention for C-3PO, far less irritating but still largely a bumbling idiot (I love him, to be clear, he’s just always in the wrong place at the wrong time). The droid factory shenanigans on Geonosis comes to mind, as well as when he was so useless, he was riding around in a sack on Chewie’s back because he got disassembled in ESB.

Jar Jar is funny, but he’s only funny, and most often incompetently funny.

Olaf’s dark humor is what saves him for me personally. “I’ve been impaled” still makes me chuckle no matter how many times I see Frozen. Not only that, but he does have the big heart moment of the movie with Anna. He has zero tragic backstory, he was basically born yesterday, but he’s not a one-dimensional cardboard cutout.

Another honorable mention to, like, 8 out of 13 Dwarves, specifically Bombur, in the Hobbit trilogy. A combined 9 hours of movie and they chose to fill it with Mirkwood River Rapids™ instead of making up development for the heroes.

Sokka, on the other hand, looks like he’s going to be the sarcastic comedic relief, but he becomes so much more and wastes no time doing it. Compare him to the version of him written by the Ember Island Players. He’s been essayed about to death and there’s nothing more I can say about him that hasn’t been said before so I’ll leave it here: Sokka (and Toph) is comedic relief done right.

The whole cast is funny when they want to be, serious when they have to be. No one character gets designated “the funny one” or “the hopeful crying one” or “the buff one” no matter what Fire Nation propaganda wants you to think.

Final honorable mention to Leo Valdez. He has a ton of depth and nuance to him, but is very much "the funny one" of the Seven. Comparing Percy's trip to Ogygia with Leo's and one was a rather sullen "you could have this peaceful escape if you left your destiny behind, but you won't, noble hero" and the other was a bizzare romcom that, to me, wasn't funny, and just created a whole new set of issues surrounding Calypso's character.

—

Femme Fatales

Femme Fatales exist to look pretty, kick ass, pretend to be strong female characters, and be something for the male characters and male viewers to guiltlessly lust after because she’s asking for it. This is not a badass woman protagonist. The classic depiction of this trope is the shallow accessory to a male character, a seductress meant to either manipulate the hero into straying off his moral high ground, or to pit him against another man.

So.

Black Widow.

In Iron Man 2, you can argue that she’s supposed to be shallow. She plays it very close to the chest as a spy and has no reason to let any other characters, especially Tony, behind her mask. It’s not her movie.

In this movie specifically, though, she is this trope exactly. The bodysuit, the perfect hair, the whole changing in the back of the car, her provocative fighting style. She is eye candy that can kick ass, the only thing missing is an attempt at seducing Tony but you'll still catch him looking. That’s the femme fatale.

Extremely popular in 80s and 90s action movies as an accessory to the male protagonist but they've existed as long as film has. If he doesn’t have a damsel in distress to save, he has a sexy leg lamp to woo.

But Black Widow shows up in another decade’s worth of movies and dies to motivate the boys (and because her life matters less than Clint’s because he’s got a family while she can’t have kids), only getting a solo film after they killed her off, but in that time, they gave her plenty to do.

Natasha has many moments with depth, most of them in Age of Ultron and Winter Soldier, but she does have them. She laughs, she cries, she jokes, she’s smart and resourceful in moments where she doesn’t have a male character to impress, she has strengths beyond her physical attributes, and she has flaws. And, she and Steve Rogers miraculously weren’t written a romantic subplot in Winter Soldier.

On the one hand, Natasha knows exactly what she is and her fighting style fully leans into using the weapons she has as a woman… but on the other hand, in creating her character, the writers chose to lean into sexing her up.

I love her character, I just don’t love what they did with her.

—

Both of these character tropes tend to feature in scripts that aren’t the best to begin with. A strong, nuanced cast of heroes doesn’t usually have that one outlier that completely drops the ball.

All I’m asking for is to not designate any one character as the bearer of whatever you forget to give the rest of the cast. “Oops I forgot the funny, let me add in a comic relief, here’s Bob,” is a disservice to Bob. “Oops I forgot the women, let me add in this femme fatale, here’s Nyxandra,” is a disservice to Nyxandra.

Let every character have some funny moments.

You want a femme fatale? Go right ahead, honestly, but maybe don’t make her the only lady in the cast? If she’s a femme fatale because she wants to be, that’s great, but maybe have a woman who proves that you do, in fact, know how to write women?

[vshushmshu]

pickup lines

usually the red eared slider’s flirts and compliments were flowery, over the top with heaps of silly, and you would roll your eyes at each and every one. grand sweeping gestures, an arm slung around your neck, or running his thumb over your knuckles with a wiggle of brows that didn’t actually exist. it was entertaining, something you would never actually admit outloud, so you never really shut down his teasing. you only let it happen for the hell of it. yeah.

a wink that looked as if his eye momentarily had an uncontrollable spasm, “i would never play hide and seek with you, because someone like you is impossible to find.”

you grimaced as he walked over to sit beside you on the rooftop, “i honestly wish i could hide from this.”

finger guns, “are you from tennessee?? because you’re the only ten-i-see!”

a huff, looking over the city once more before you stopped patrolling for the night, “new york, buddy.”

“you never humor me…”

“you have no idea.”

an irritatingly wide smile, leo splayed out on your bed, “this might sound cheesy, but i think you’re really grate.”

you turn from your homework to cock a brow at him, “…puns? really? you’re stooping to puns now?”

“hey, a turtle’s gouda do what he’s gouda do.”

“i hate you.”

“awww, i love you too!!!”

you were drawing with mikey when your self-proclaimed bestie barreled in, “i seem to have!! lost my phone number!!!! can i have yours?”

the orange clad turtle seemed to be holding in the fattest cackle, so you ignored him to look at leo with a fairly neutral expression, “i thought you already had my number?”

“yeah, but i kinda… deleted it just to make this work..”

“…you’re stupid. i’m friends with an idiot.”

he pouted, until his phone lit up at an unknown number’s message, “and i’m friends with a meanie pants… oh! thanks!”

you shoved your phone back in your pocket while mikey eyed the two of you, his red striped brother already tapping the number into your contact once more, “sure, mhm.”

nabbing a piece of popcorn from your bowl, eyes scrunched from his simper as he glances at you, then lets his eyes land back on raph and april’s mario kart game once more, “it’s a good thing i have a library card, because i am totally checking you out.”

“…aren’t you illiterate or something? do you even know what a library is?”

“shut the fuck up….”

he looked up from his comic as you flopped onto his bed, just having listened attentively to another one of donnie’s infodumps, “did you just come out an oven?”

you huffed, draping an arm over your eyes, “no, leo.”

said turtle leaned over to poke your cheek with a snicker, “‘cause you’re hot.”

“goddammit, leo.”

“is this hogwarts express, because it feels like you and i are going somewhere magical.“

you stared at him as he gestured to a newly opened portal, “man, i swear, are you getting these from buzzfeed articles?? ain’t no way you pulled a harry potter line out your ass like that.”

“…is your name google? ‘cause you got the answers for everything i’m searching for.”

you swore you saw the face of a slider caught, and your eyes twinkled in amusement, “so, you are.”

“LEAVE ME ALONE.”

“your hand looks lonely. want me to hold it for you?”

you readjust your grip on your weapon, eyeing him in a sort of flabbergasted way, “lee, we are literally in the middle of a FIGHT.”

“right, whatever.”

you both were on your phones, the turtle laying on you scrolling through god-knows what, while you watched a video essay on something you were to inevitably forget about. you snickered at an elaborate joke about something or other, and the slider grinned a little, “roses are red, violets are blue. with a smile like that, looks like i’m doomed.”

“…”

you were tempted to kick him off, something inside you churning, but you just refocused on your video once more. his face seemed a little surprised in your peripheral vision, but at what, you couldn’t be sure.

leo sat beside you in blankets, barely conscious in his goofy pajamas during the latter end of a movie night, everyone else already asleep (except for donnie, who could care less about anyone else as his eyes stayed glued to the screen projected on the wall, hyperfixated on a jupiter jim movie he’s no doubt seen a thousand times over), “are you- did you fell from heaven- cause- fuck. i forgot how that one goes.”

you hid a grin behind a facepalm, equally fatigued as his head dipped to rest lightly on your shoulder, neck giving up on keeping it upright, “of course you did.”

sometimes though, those bits of flattery are uttered so quiet, barely above a whisper, the turtle holding such reverence in his tone. like now, just before he drifts off to sleep to no doubt drool all over you, the slider makes himself comfortable buried in your side. you still when his cheek rubs against your shoulder, a content sigh escaping leo while he wraps his arms around you in your shared blanket nest, “hm mwarm… i wish this would last f’rever..”

you can’t doubt that it’s sincere when it’s said like that. you look away from the movie to stare at him with tired eyes, face warm while you fiddled slightly with your fingers, buried under the blankets wrapped around your own body. leo started snoring in record time, light chirps coming from him every time he shifted in his sleep, and you rest your head on his. maybe you wished that too, maybe your mouth twisted into the smallest of frowns, but you decided not to dwell on it.

letting your eyes drift close, and pulling the red eared slider closer, you knew you were going to wake up to dumb pickup lines that held a bit too much sincerity in them. maybe you were glad.

[wxlfstxrx]

sweater weather chat #5, part 2

our dear @shinymooncolor​ asked me to help write part 2 of her amazing text fic that had me screaming into my pillow at 6am. lots of hockey puns, lots of laughter, and lots of flirting oOoOooOOoo. thanks shiny for the guidance, and i hope you like it as much as i do :) characters by @lumosinlove​!

They had won. He had had his second shutout of the season. A perfect way to pay back a new sponsor. Kasey had never cared much for sucking up to the guys in suits. He had a handful of lucrative endorsements— he didn’t have to do much besides wear certain brands for press and endorse a bunch of stuff like skates, equipment, and even hair products once in a while. 

The teasing over the past few days had been near insufferable. And he still felt like kicking himself. But he’d been so frustrated and turned on and Nat knew. She knew what a single snap would do, knew he had to suffer through another two hours worth of presentations. He had tried to pay attention, he really had, but once he knew Kris was taking notes, his mind had drifted. Having his girlfriend live texting and snapping pictures of herself did not help. His phone had glitched at one point, and the texts had been sent off to the worst imaginable group of people. Even texting his mother by accident would have been better than his immature, prankster teammates. 

He stomped down the hallway, following the excited chatter and buzzing of his team. He knew the press would be interviewing him, so he stayed in character, not even wincing when Pots threw an arm around his shoulders and cheered loudly before smacking a kiss to the helmet perched on the top of his head. He did, however, squeeze back when Leo wrapped an arm around him, part congratulating and part sympathetic, and he patted his rookie mentee on the back in response. 

Coach began his victory speech as he slowly and methodically padded down, unlacing his skates and disregarding the increasing volume that arose on the back of a win. He ignored the pointed whispers of the boys next to him— Kuny and Nado were always up to something, and he wasn’t going to rise to their bait. Not this time. 

Dumo got his attention as he sat down heavily next to him, between him and his Russian stall neighbour, wrapping a sweaty arm around his shoulder and waxing poetic about his saves. He rolled his eyes, but immediately re-schooled his face as the media swarmed through the doors. They descended upon him and Cap, and he politely answered questions with pre-studied replies and polite smiles. There was a commotion and some wolf whistles and whooping, but he resolutely ignored it and continued speaking to the reporter.

“No, I’m always preparing differently, each game is new and you can never truly rely—” He stopped short, feeling his cheeks flame; even his many years of psychological training and optimisation had not prepared him for the sight of his six foot teammate dressed up in fishnet tights, some sort of leather bodice and his tattoos on full display. Their teammates were whooping and guffawing, and when Nado caught his eye, he winked exaggeratedly and blew a kiss.

“What the bloody fuck,” Kasey whispered, his jaw dropped and his face bright red.

Nado casually sauntered over to him, falling into Kuny’s stall with frankly too much grace for someone in five inch stilettos. He draped himself against Kasey’s side, and Kasey blinked, leaning back.

“Hey, handsome,” Nado smirked, curling a lock of Kasey’s long brown hair around his finger. He leaned closer, his breath tickling Kasey’s cheek. “I bet my stick would feel great in your crease, don’t you agree, sweetie?”

Bewildered, Kasey’s gaze snapped to the rest of the locker room, purposefully avoiding looking into the cameras. God, he bet the media was having a field day with this… whatever this was. All around him, his teammates and some of their partners who had come down to congratulate them on their win were bent double with laughter, with Pots right at the front gleefully recording the whole spectacle, presumably for Nat, who had not been able to make it due to a gig on the other end of the city.

Nado hooked his legs over Kasey’s on the bench, throwing his arms around him as he seductively trailed a finger down his cheek. “Or, if that’s not your cup of tea, I’m happy to let you cover my crease any time. We can work on our power plays together.”

Someone roared with laughter, and Kasey pushed Nado, who was practically seated on his lap now, off of him. The heavily tattooed man pouted, his big blue eyes glistening like the ocean on a clear summer’s day. 

“Aww, c’mon babe, don’t I look hot in leather? The boys seem to think so, and something tells me that you do too,” He smiled sweetly, and Kasey scowled at the others. Tremzy looked like he had just scored his first goal in the league, and Harzy had an arm slung around him, grinning smugly. He met Leo’s eye, and he gave him an apologetic smile and half nod, but his eyes were glittering with amusement. 

“I—” Kasey had to stop himself from cussing in front of the media, and he groaned instead, running his hands through his frazzled hair.

“Err, sorry,” The reporter— not Skeeter, this time— cut in, evidently entertained but also very confused. She turned to Nado, seeing as Kasey had buried his face in his hands, muttering under his breath. “Jackson, help me to understand the situation here. Is this some sort of new game ritual you have, or are we missing something?”

Nado smiled lazily, leaning back against the stall divider beside him and combing his fingers through his floppy brown fringe. “Ask Kuny, he’s boss.”

Realising what Nado had done, Kuny spluttered, glaring warningly back at Nado, but he simply shrugged and began to rub Kasey’s back sensually.

Kasey jumped, and he quickly whispered to Nado as the reporter headed over to a very harassed looking Kuny, the cameras trailing behind her.

“Nado, what on earth? What are you guys playing at?”

“Sorry man, I had to. ‘s my punishment for that whole… thing with Kuny’s cousin. He made me do it,” Nado grimaced for a second, then shrugged, batting his eyelashes. He looked down at himself, cocking his head and nodding in approval at the tight leather bodice around his torso. “Gotta admit I look smashing though, I might just have to get a picture of this for the gram.”

Kasey sighed, and looked over at Kuny, who was surrounded by the media and the rest of the team, in their various states of undress.

“Nado been bad. I punish him,” He replied curtly, not wanting to speak more than he had to. Talker snorted, and Sergei and Dumo both barked out a laugh which they covered up with a cough.

The reporter’s eyebrows flew up beneath her bangs. “Oooookay, seems like there’s been lots of, uh, love going around today,” She turned back to the cameras, which swung back round to face her, and she began wrapping up her interview.

Kuny awkwardly slid away, approaching Nado and Kasey as the press made their exit. He thwacked Nado upside the head, and he yelped. 

“Fuck you. You— You buttface,” Kuny growled menacingly, but everyone around them burst into another round of laughter.

Timmers wheezed, and he slapped Kuny hard on the back. “Fuck Kuny, you’re a real special one, you know that?”

“What?” He glared. “I cuss at Nado, why you laugh?”

“Nothing,” Timmers shook his head, his hazel eyes bright and shining with mirth. “Nothing, Kuny. You’re good. Stay like this forever, please.”

Pots, who was still recording, whipped the camera around to face Kasey and Nado, still seated on the bench, Kasey having forgotten about removing his gear when the press had come in. Nado instantly threw himself back onto Kasey’s lap, flicking his fringe dramatically and smiling at the camera.

“Say, Nado, why do I have a feeling you’ve got more to offer than what you’ve given us already?” Pots grins, zooming in to Nado’s wink.

“Oh, I thought you’d never ask!” He lifted the back of his hand to his forehead theatrically, his voice a high pitched whine. He didn’t even break character, Kasey had to give him that, but before he had the chance to push Nado off him again, the other boy had cupped both his cheeks in his large hands and brought their faces close together.

“You know, I think the ref should’ve given you two minutes in the box earlier,” Nado simpered, waggling his eyebrows at Kasey, who decided to fix his gaze on the long scar running across his teammate’s face rather than look into his eyes. “Because baby, you’ve got me hooked onto you.”

Kasey’s eyes flew up to meet Nado’s in a frown. “I— That wasn’t— What?”

Tremzy gasped loudly. “Blizzard, are you… blushing? From that pick up line?”

“What? No I’m not,” Kasey tried to defend himself indignantly, but Nado was grinning from ear to ear and even Loops, who had been silently watching all this while with a mysterious smile, snickered at that. 

Nado turned so he was straddling Kasey, and his hands gripped onto the dividers on either side of them, effectively caging Kasey in his stall. With nowhere else to look at, Kasey dared to roam his eyes over Nado, from his chin-length brown hair falling into a curtain around his face, to his confident smirk, down to his bare unshaved chest, still glistening with sweat from the match earlier and the stifling heat in the locker room. 

Up close, he could see the details on his tight leather corset, the three heavy straps in the front and the tight shiny material stretched out at the crotch, giving Kasey an impressive but probably very inappropriate view of Nado’s groin. He flushed even more as he realised Nado’s bare ass, save for the fishnet stockings, was planted on his lap. 

Speaking of the fishnet… Fuck. 

Nado had actually shaved his legs for this. What the hell. His long legs were spread wide open and his muscular thighs were pressed against his own, and those stilettos... His stall suddenly seemed very warm, and Kasey leaned back against the wall behind him, his head thunking against the wood loudly.

“Oh, Kasey,” He pinched Kasey’s flaming cheek with one hand, and he swatted it away, huffing in embarrassment. “Seems like the fishnet and leather are indeed to your liking, eh?”

“Fuck off,” He muttered in response, crossing his arms and turning to the side.

“Oh, but don’t you just love the way the fishnet feels against your legs?” Nado purred into his ear. “Just imagine, darling, what these legs will feel like, wrapped around your—”

Kasey stood up suddenly, his hands sliding under Nado’s ass and lifting him up. Nado shrieked and clutched onto Kasey’s broad shoulders tightly as he turned around, slamming him up against the empty wall beside his stall. He leaned in close enough so their noses were almost touching, his light brown eyes blazing, a stark contrast from his usual calm and collected front. “Yeah, Nado? You wanna go? Why imagine? I’m not afraid of spearing you. Think you can handle me, hmmm?”

He raised a brow, and Nado’s eyes widened in shock. He heard a mixture of gasps, chokes and laughter from behind him, and his lips curled up in a victorious smirk. He stepped back from the wall, walking them over to Kuny, who was seated by his stall. Kasey let go of Nado, dropping him into his roommate’s lap, and nonchalantly turned back to his stall to continue undressing. As he tugged off his leg pads and skates, he called over his shoulder to Kuny.

“Take your work wife home, won’t you, Russian God? He’s got a timeout.”

With that, he peeled off his jersey and the rest of his gear, and headed to the gym to cool down, leaving the rest of the team in chaos.

On the way out, he passed by Kuny patting Nado on the head comfortingly and telling him, “Hehe, not be bad anymore. I’m win.”

He was sure he heard Nado respond with a “Fuck, I think I need a cold shower. Now.”

[davids-cartoon-corkboard]

Do you think that if Shredder!Raph will occur in rottmnt, the aftermath might result in Raph inheriting some of Shredder’s rage even after saved? Maybe that is how the crew is going to implement Raph’s trademark temper throughout previous generations and maybe even make him have to step down due to it, making Leo the new leader?

Short answer: “Inheriting the rage of a centuries-old demon" is a dope-ass idea, so if you’re a writer I would definitely encourage you to use that in your own stuff. But I think that if Raph’s temper worsens throughout the show, it should be because of his own character development and not a magical effect. However, a Shredder!Raph scenario could contribute to said worsening temper by inflicting emotional/psychological damage instead. :)

Long answer ahoy!

Looking at “Many Unhappy Returns” from the Shredder’s perspective makes it very clear why he does what he does. Like, he’s been dead for five hundred years, and then something went wrong with his resurrection. He’s waking up with no idea where he is or what’s going on and oh shit those guys are pointing weapons at him, that’s a threat!

Note that he doesn’t even bolt for them immediately, he does a warning stomp and screech (back off!) before starting to approach.

Those other guys are yelling, that’s also a threat,

and they’re closer so he’s gonna attack them first, actually. (None of the Foot wind up even comically injured, suggesting that flailing them around was an intimidation tactic rather than genuine Murderous Intent.)

And then the first group attacks, so of course he’s going to retaliate.

And then suddenly he’s somewhere else, with other threats (the animatronics), and then the first group that attacked him is back, so he’s gonna fight them again.

And these jerks just keep following him? He’s not going to ignore that. And WOW that’s a lot of bright lights and loud noises, which are also threats, what the fuck is going on?!

And then this tiny human girl chucks a giant metal box at him, holy SHIT?! Sure, the Shredder is a dangerous antagonist, but at this point I wouldn’t call him a “bad guy”, he’s literally just responding to what’s happening to him.

In summary, the Shredder was stressed tf out because he didn’t know where he was or what was happening, he retaliated against perceived threats, and quite possibly wouldn’t have attacked the turtles in the first place if they hadn’t just rushed in without understanding the situation.

Gosh, doesn’t that sound familiar?

So yeah, I’m waiting for Rise to give us that good good Shredder!Raph content.

As for the possibility of Leo taking over afterwards... no, but also yes, sort of? On the one hand, we know that Leo does have leadership capabilities, and it would be a waste for the narrative to not explore that. On the other hand, Rise has broken from the status quo in many ways, and it would also be a waste for the show to do a complete 180 and return to Leo Being The Leader™.

Consider how the “leader” role has influenced Leo in past iterations: his perfectionism wears on him and his brothers, any failure tanks his self-esteem, he feels isolated from the rest due to taking on such a large share of responsibility, being an authority figure grinds everyone’s gears, etc. It’s just bad for his mental health.

No doubt all this responsibility will also wear on Rise!Raph as the story progresses and the stakes get higher. It will be bad for him as well. But if Raph steps down, Leo will once again suffer from the weight of this role. So if neither option is quite correct, if neither brother can shoulder the burden of leadership alone, then the solution is just... for neither of them to shoulder the burden of leadership alone. Sure, Raph will probably remain leader in title and in spirit, but Leo taking on a sort of “deputy” role makes sense from a strategic standpoint, and would be good for his character development.

Here’s how I think it could go down:

The Shredder!Raph scenario will be different from the Shredder!Draxum scenario. The Shredder was starved for mystic energy the first time around, so he immediately chewed Draxum up and spit him out. But Raph could be compared more to a battery than a meal; it will take a while for the Shredder to drain him. And at this point the Shredder could be back in “evil samurai” mode, and thus will understand the value of holding Raph hostage.

Y’all who have followed my blog for a bit know about my “Raph is a system” theory; that when he was little, he got separated from his family and pursued by some cryptid hunter. This trauma formed Savage Raph, who is able to handle “being lost/alone/threatened” when Host Raph cannot. “Pizza Puffs” didn’t give us a lot of info about who I’m calling “Red Raph”, but he made his presence known when Host Raph was sort of... "emotionally alone”? In that his brothers were dying a little bit and too stoned to care.

So if Raph is trapped inside a living cage, scared and helpless and hurt and exhausted, his family unable to help him... he’s not going to be able to handle it.

Or, rather, Host Raph isn’t going to be able to handle it.

These two can, though.

I’m imagining a scene in the mindscape where the Shredder says something like “Your pathetic family cannot bear to strike you down, and so there is nothing that can stand in m- wait, why are there three of you OW FUCK-” Red and Savage will mentally kick his ass long enough for the other turtles to rip off a chunk of the armor so Leo can portal it into another dimension or something. Shredder gets K.O.’d since he’s not whole anymore, and the battle is won.

Since the armor didn’t drain Raph as severely as it did Draxum, he won’t become as weak as Draxum did. However, it will still take him some time to recover. Raph trusts Leo in serious moments as of “Many Unhappy Returns”, and he already took charge when Raph wasn’t available back in “Man vs. Sewer”. So Raph will be like, “Hey Leo, can you handle the Mad Dogs for a bit? Just long enough for me to get back on my feet.” And Leo will be like, “Sure bro, I’ve got this.”

He does not, in fact, “got this”. Leo’s ego has caused trouble before (”Shell in a Cell”, “Minotaur Maze”), and being in charge will no doubt go to his head. This has the potential for both comedy and seriousness, leading to wacky mishaps and genuine danger. Being the leader is hard work and it’s not always fun, but someone has to do it and Leo will have to put the others before himself for it to get done. Once Leo realizes this, he could bond with Raph by asking for his advice on leadership. Sometimes Leo will follow the advice and sometimes he won’t, sometimes that will work out and sometimes it won’t, laying the foundation for the idea that there are situations where it will be better for one or the other to lead, rather than having one lead all the time. But that will only happen for a few episodes, because Raph will heal quickly and he’ll be the leader again and everything will be fine!

Everything will not, in fact, be fine. Raph is the strongest in the family, the tank, the one who can take a hit so the smaller ones don’t have to... the idea of being hurt, of being weak, scares him because his family is also in danger if he’s unwell. So I don’t think he’ll acknowledge to anyone, not even himself, that getting possessed hurt him emotionally as well as physically. And when a wound isn’t acknowledged, it doesn’t get tended to, and when a wound isn’t tended to, it gets worse.

That he’s a system will add another layer of complexity to this. The Shredder!Raph incident would make all the alters aware of each other via mindscape shenanigans, but it would also leave them with the fear of not being in control, so I think they’ll come in conflict with each other for a bit. They’ll argue with themselves, switch, and lose time more often, enough that it impedes their ability to function and the other characters start to notice something is wrong.

Host Raph will convince himself that Everything Is Fine and try to get things “back to normal”, which probably means he’s just straight-up not going to acknowledge that he's a system. He’ll rationalize that he’s always “gotten weird” from time to time, so it’s nothing to think too hard about... right?

Savage Raph will be on high alert because they just survived a near-death (a near soul-destroying) experience. He’ll probably take the front and go overboard fighting some villains that Host Raph could have ordinarily fought on his own. It might also take a while to convince Savage Raph that these “sewer monsters” who keep following him around really don’t mean him any harm.

Red Raph will get snappy (pardon the pun) about the more social aspect of “not being in control”; that Host Raph asked Leo to be in charge and then Leo started being an egotistical dumbass. And when Leo does make the right decisions, Donnie and Mikey might side with him over Raph, and that will also grind his gears.

Mix all that together and you have a recipe for a capital b Breakdown.

So yeah, I can definitely see how the Shredder!Raph incident and its aftermath would worsen all three of their tempers, trauma will fuck up your emotions real bad. Perhaps Host Raph loses faith in himself and tries to step down and get Leo to replace him as leader... only for Leo to be like “Bro I cannot do this full time I will one hundred percent have my own Breakdown if that happens.”

The life lessons here are that Leo learns to offer support by sometimes taking the leader role; not to benefit his own ego, but because he wants to help Raph. And Raph learns to accept support by letting Leo be in charge sometimes; not because he’s weak or incapable, but because he can’t always be a Staunch Immovable Rock and he needs to let himself rest by trusting Leo.

And then the Raphs can work on communicating, cooperating, letting their allies know about them, digging into their trauma, etc. now that they have some breathing room.

(Do you think the Hidden City has therapists? Steven Universe and Mao Mao both have therapists can we BLEASE get one for Raph.)

[questionablygod]

Moon sign opinions

Aries moon: Honestly yall need to chill the fuck out and think before you act because your dumbass is gonna get whooped if youre not careful. Will yell at strangers for fun. Ngl fiercely protective but hella passive aggressive. Will also gossip with you like an old ladies bingo night.

Taurus moon: Y’all are the shit. ‘Tea sis.’ Kinda vibes. Will gossip with you like a and will fashion evaluate and judge the shit out of EVERYONE AND YOU. Will blacklist you if they do not like the way you walk. Super chill and I want to have midnight adventures with you.  Very shy on first impressions tbh, but y’all bounce of the walls once you’re friends with someone. LOyaL AF.

Gemini moon : Y’all are weird af in a good way. You don’t think anything is too weird and can talk about anything and everything. Smart as shit. I dont have proof of this but Gemini moons are like the pretty boys and girls that are hella good at sports and are somehow the top of the class as well???? Likes to shade people tho. Will also disappear on a person without any precursors (i.e ghost) but still stalk the fuck outta that person.

Cancer moon: For some reason people are intimidated by you or think you’re really weird but y’all chill af. A lil needy ngl. But honestly you’re very accepting people and you’re very supportive and sadly people try to manipulated you a lot because of how nice you are. Rarely works tho. Y’all cute af too.

Leo moon: Pretty fucking similar to Aries tbh y’all need to chill on the self centered shit and passive aggressive. Has a lot of balls and will be that person to confront your ex about being an asshat. Very dependent on others because when it comes to more personal matters they wont do jackshit unless they are pushed and pulled kicking and screaming into getting themselves together. Also stop thinking that you are the reason behind everything and realize that other people are dealing with shit and really just want to be left alone by you. 

Virgo moon: MY DUDES I LOVE YOUUUUUUUUUUUU. Super driven and want to win everything. However, you guys are also super supportive of those around you and wont rub anything in other peoples faces. Very competitive but its friendly and aren’t dicks about it (cough looking at you Leo moons). Honestly you guys do some weird ass shit sometimes that no one would expect from you.

Libra moon: UMM one question how do you guys always have the latest tea??? Every time I see you we always have a bomb time tbh. Lowkey hella shady tho. Switches opinions on people like every 5 minutes. Cuties tho. ALSO you guys give the best hugs and are so snuggly and like ily. Love to kid people in to thinking things. LIke nothing bad but will convince people that they got like a tattoo when they didnt. 

Scorpio moon: MY FAV LITTLE NUGGETS. Honestly I dont get why people think you’re controversial. Y’all are the best. A hoe for puns. Homebodies that just wanna  watch cheesy Netflix series and eat Oreos with you. The most chill friends. Don’t really like going outside of their comfort zones too much but will do so to defend the fuck out of you.

Sagittarius moon: Y’all are either 0 or 100. You guys are the definition of “Ill have your daughter home by 8” to “Your daughter calls me daddy too” You guys can make anything fun tbh. However, you guys kinda get tired of having to be the life of the party all the time. I can be friends with you and not have seen you for like 3 years and you’re still my best friend.

Capricorn moon: I feel like you guys get such a bad rap. Super chill and love to throw shade at people. Also you guys always have a funny story to tell that incorporates five other stories in the space of one. You guys are definitely hardworking but y’all have the best fun side. 11/10 want to protect.

Aquarius moon: y’all scare the shit out of me. Probably a fuckboy. I have not known one  fucking aqua moon that didn’t send me shirtless snaps at one point or another. That person that posts 11:11 and “GAINZ” Jokes aside tho you guys do make the best friends. Will 10/10 bring you ice cream and chill with you when you tell them you are having a bad week.

Pisces moon: honestly I don’t know a lot of you. Probably an egirl/boy/ice cream flavor. Really fucking pretty btw. A hoe for space buns. Are down for adventures any time. Oh also have like one bff that they stick with till the grave. 

(Reminder: this is a personal opinion and based upon my own interactions with each)

[courage-a-word-of-justice]

Akudama 2 - 3 | HypMic 4 | Yashahime 3 | Taiso 2 - 3 | Moriarty 2 | Maou-jou 3

Akudama 2

I think one or two of the reviews I read of this anime picked up the names of each episode are based on movies and it seems they’re right. Namely, episode 1 is Se7en while episode 2 is Reservoir Dogs...so they’re crime movies specifically.

Kanto, Hikari etc. are the names of certain shinkansen.

Playing with your own blood in front of a no violence sign and smoking in front of a no smoking sign…LOL. So edgy and yet simultaneously so fun.

…*blinks* Welp, that OP was…an experience.

…hey, Funi are hypocrites…they gave HypMic a language warning, but not this???

Come to think of it, this anime is already exactly how I’d imagine the HypMic MTC episode to go…but with more cyberpunk, of course.

…why is “are you gay?” an insult…? I thought we were past this point years ago.

…what’s up with these puppets? The shark��s shirt says “fool” on it…

The rabbit and shark’s shirts keep changing every time they spin. When they talk about poverty/rich, the rabbit shirts says “poor” and the shark’s “rich” (or something of the sort). When the shark talks about Kansai burning to the ground, his shirt says “nervousness”.

Wow, Hiroshima vers. 2…Rabbit: peace/shark:war

Hoodlum’s just a sycophant…

…ooh, so if the girl and Hoodlum aren’t part of the plan…they could f*** s*** up?

LOL, plasma shield.

“Lil’ stick”? That’s a jitte! A non-bladed weapon which is still plenty nasty by itself!

Ken the 390??? I knew UraShimaSakataSen were on this ED and I knew this was a rap ED because I heard it in AMQ before I was able to finish this ep, IIRC, but I didn’t expect the guy from BATTLE BATTLE BATTLE....

Taiso 2

A-hah! I was right on the money! Tomoyo is an actress!

Oh, it’s senu. That’s an old-timey way of negating your verbs (it’s shinai now), hence “retires not”.

I think they’re hailing Minamino as the first winner in 45 years if I understood the newspaper article on the screen right…?

Does this mean Minamino will join Leo and Aragaki…? The OP shows him with them.

The AnimeLab translation of the title is “Duelling Samurai”, but the translation on the hardsubs is “Rock-Bottom Samurai”. The word donzoko indicates the latter is correct.

I think Leo said “Rei-chan”, not “Rachel”. It’s a bit hard to hear because he’s eating though…

I think there’s only one line where he doesn’t talk like a ninja in his intro to Ayu and that’s the line where he uses keigo instead.

I think the card says “acupuncturist Kawa????” (can’t read the last character due to Britney’s thumb), but…welp, Britney’s kinda disturbing in their (not sure what pronoun to use) own way. There also appears to be an address in Ikebukuro on the card.

I wouldn’t be surprised if Leo learnt how to speak Japanese fluently from ninja movies – that’s a pretty common anime trope, like in Tada-kun’s Rainbow Samurai case. “Always make your heart rainbow!” and all that jazz.

…so that’s what the card said - Kawamoto Orthopedic Clinic.

“My shoulder would…”

Seriously, this anime is just an excuse to look at Aragaki in different outfits (and also shirtless) and I love it, LOL. (I’m such a simpleton.)

Ah…sometimes, people ask me about the days when I used to learn piano and I bring up the fact there is such a thing as “overpractice”. I thought gymnasts would know when they hit their limits in that regard, but…I guess they don’t because they’re so consumed in their passion, or they can’t see what they’re doing to themselves (because it occurs under the skin and doesn’t ache)…?

Minamino is basically Yurio…LOL.

That’s a cute, laidback ED. It’s called Yume? (yes, with the “?”) and it’s by Hatena, hence Leo’s shirt saying “Hatena”.

Welp, I don’t think anything supernatural will happen anymore, but…it’s still a fun anime. They toned down BB too, which should please a huge number of reviewers who found him obnoxious.

Yashahime 3

Hitokon? Short for “hito control” (hito = person)? Update: It seems the name was also kanji for “flying head root”.

“…puts one to sleep.”

“…from a place like that?”

Can a Dream Butterfly steal memories?

Moriarty 2

“Colum” (sic).

These CGI horses are gonna bug me, aren’t they…?

There is this sentiment that people need to be “saved” from poverty, especially when it comes down to African and Asian people living in slums (these days). I get the same feeling from this.

Maou-jou 3

Free advertising for Maou-jou’s home magazine! LOL!

I was wondering why those things were called “Show the Mary”…remember Mezo Shouji from Boku no Hero Academia? Same pun (the walls have ears and the doors have eyes, or something of the sort).

LOL, instead of yokudekimashita (literally, “you did good”) it’s makura ni narimashita (“you made [the book] into a pillow”). The common sentence ending for verbs means it’s funnier in Japanese, I think.

…argh! I can’t read all of Alazif’s info because of the hardsubs! Umm…”Current worry: Princess” and “Worry of the past hundred years: Destroying the demon clan” is in the box next to the logo. “Powerful magic techniques are recorded inside this book, so the demons feared it and sealed it away as a ‘forbidden grimoire’.”/”Currently, under the control of the princess, they’ve been bestowing magic and magic techniques to her, so they haven’t been used for the purpose they were made for and they’re wishing the princess would use them for not-so-stupid things” (I don’t know what pronoun to give Alazif, so I gave them 3rd person “them)…ah, someone translated the stuff for me! (That saves me a lot of time.) So Alazif is a “he”, huh?

OHKO to Demon Cleric, LOL.

SAN…? Oh, “sanity”?

Oh, Demon Cleric’s ears are black goat ears. No wonder you can’t see ‘em.

This sword is like Ex from Princess, ‘Tis Time for Torture!

HypMic 4

From here until episode 6-ish, I’ll be paying extra attention to characters’ role language. I normally do that, but I picked this anime for an assignment because I knew it had a lot of examples…yes, you heard me right. An assignment! I should be happy, but I’m wondering if my taste is going to get roasted by the normies or if I’ve gone too far with my unabashed love…

I was discussing with some of my peeps in a Discord server and…is it possible MTR will get an ED from here on out if you divide the episodes up for an almost equal amount for each division? We’ll have to wait and see.

…Oof. I’m sort of scared for this episode. It’s gonna have swearing galore…and yup, there it is, right out the gate.

Wait, why not translate wakagashira? It just means “young head” or “2nd in command”.

…well, at least they got some variation in their swearing this time…?

Hmm, normally the translation is “rabbit cop” or something toned down like that. They dialled it up to “rabbity-ass cop”. (Yakuwarigo: Samatoki = na, on the whole = very, very slang – as a former naval officer, you would expect Riou to speak formally, but he speaks as casually as almost everyone else (yamero etc.))

I’ve never seen anyone refer to Samatoki as “Kashira”. *laser stares Rentei for guest VA roles*

(Yakuwarigo: Samatoki (?) = zo)

“…why don’t you ask the cops to deal with it?” – Uh, Samatoki? Jyuto is the cop. (Well, a cop.)

I still have no idea why they subtitle the laughing…

Wait, if there’s a casino…is Dice there?!

…yup, right on cue. I didn’t think Tom and co. would be there too.

Oh, LOL. HypMic is a tourist trap anime = see those buns Tom’s eating? They’re chuukaman (Chinese buns). Makes sense in Chinatown.

It took me several watches to realise who’d passed by, but it’s…MTC in formal clothes?! (You can see part of Jyuto’s face, just to confirm it.)

Why are they wearing glasses? Even Jyuto’s wearing different glasses to the usual, LOL.

I learnt how to do some of the casino stuff while trying to get a job as a gaming customer service assistant in a huge casino joint one time. In a sense, this brings me back to then. (Update: I mean, the sound of the roulette, the sight of the board, the chips and the like. That’s what takes me back.)

(Yakuwarigo: Dice slurs his words a lot, especially when yelling things along the lines of “Please lend me moneyyyyyyyyyyyyy!” This is also true in the game.)

Dice seems to have jumped straight to “Riou”, rather than “Riou-san”.  

I wonder if anyone will ever elaborate on that incident where Dice and Riou met?

(Yakuwarigo: Samatoki speaks coarsely, but not outright swearing in the source language…for an example, he says kussotare when roped into being Jakurai’s “female counterpart” for the ARB Halloween event, but he doesn’t do anything of the sort here.)

Even Ramuda uses “san” with Samatoki, most likely to emulate how Samatoki calls himself “oresama” (but with lower formality).

Ramuda-chin? That’s new.

Yakuwarigo: Gentaro spoke normally, just with desu/masu. Maybe the “perchance” was to make it blend in with his -de aru?

Uh-oh…Ramuda’s favours always are things like “dress up for me” and “hang out with me”, if the game is any indication. (One of them happens to be how Ichiro was roped into being a sorta-Kirito for the ARB Halloween event.)

This CGI…it’s not the jankiest, but it is gonna bug me ever so slightly.

I’ve noticed a lot of people in the English-speaking fandom, when they watched the anime, took a shine to MTC (because they seem to embody the entire “refuge in audacity” thing they’ve picked up on…plus that one hamster lyric people got attached to). You can see them being all “cop/gangster husbands” here if that’s your gig – it’s kind of my gig, but to be real HypMic is not a scene where I ship dudes. I’m sorry, but I just like watching pretty boys kick butt.

What warranted the dramatic glasses drop…? (LOL anyway)

That whistle…LOL. It’s like “Look at my boy fight” and “Riou’s got some sweet fightin’ moves” rolled up in one.

For some reason, when I saw the sign for the Organised Crime department, I heard the Student Council theme from Boueibu play in my head…? (Remember that harpsichord theme?) *shrugs* I dunno why that happened.

Hmm…they crossed out the subtitles using Swedish letters instead of strikethrough, huh? Didn’t know that was a limitation.

(Yakuwarigo: Jyuto = dazo)

“Wouldya look at that forlorn mug of his?” – Seeing a man taller than you (Riou is a good 190 or so cm, mind you, making him the tallest member of his division above Samatoki’s 180-something and Jyuto’s 170-something) making a sort of demented puppy-dog face…LOL.

(Yakuwarigo: Jyuto elevated himself to kimasuyo…maybe to win back Riou’s favour?)

(Yakuwarigo: The translation elevated Samatoki’s “nanda” to “the f***”. “Nanda” is not that bad – it’s casual, but doesn’t imply swearing like “ittai” is supposed to mean “the hell”.)

(Yakuwarigo: Jyuto doesn’t finish when he says “ore wa hanashi ga”. That’s called an omission, plain as that may be.)

(Yakuwarigo: Taihendaze!...Maybe that’s a bit far to call it “we’re f**ked”…? It could just be “we’re doomed!” or “we’ve got trouble!”)

(Yakuwarigo: Jyuto uses desune. He’s the most feminine of the trio by virtue of being the smallest height-wise and most polite due to his job, but he seems to bounce between casual and polite a lot.)

…wow, even the rap lyrics have the F bomb…and this time, you can see the evidence.

Natsu no mushi = bugs in the summer. Not a perfect match, but it works. (Notably, things like Gentaro’s speech and rap lyrics don’t play by the same yakuwarigo rules because you can play characters within it – e.g. the evil doctor Jakurai sometimes plays. I’ve noticed most of the songs use casual or whatever rhymes, even for someone like Doppo who’s considered more polite than most.)

…Despite the swearing…that song slaps, man! That’s great.

MTC seems to have more tragedy on average than other divisions. This is because FP and BB are quite light-hearted and mostly family-friendly with hidden depths, but MTR mostly has stalker stories. Update: That’s when they’re focussing on MTR solo. FP’s currently could get pretty dark soon and a lot of the dark/tragic stuff is not actually going to make the anime because it’s in the drama tracks/manga.

My gosh, we got to see Nemu animated!

Okay, I’m not well-versed in yakuza slang but kumicho = boss, so Samatoki would have to answer to a kumicho.

(Yakuwarigo: Notably, when Riou bows, he doesn’t elevate his speech.)

(Yakuwarigo: Jyuto = desukane)

…and randomly, rock solo postcard memory away from the sunset. (LOL) (Also, I believe I befriended Zainou during my time on WordPress. This episode title really does mean things, in a certain sense.)

Ah, it did switch! It’s just…uh, gone to an MTC version of itself (and it has the same name, “Kizuna”). So that means we wait another 6 episodes for MTR. On the other hand…what will the final version be? A whole cast version? A different song? No song at all? *shrugs* Only the future can tell us these things. (Also, why is Jyuto so loud…? That’s why I’m not a bigger fan of him. Much like Ramuda’s minna genki?, his iconic quotes like “In the building!” are so loud and silly-sounding, you just can’t get them out of your head.)

The cityscape in the middle of the disc at the ED’s start seems to have changed. I would assume that’s a Yokohama skyline.

Keiichi Nakagawa is the voice of Rentei…I should stop burning myself on guest VA appearances, this guy’s a rookie. This Nouzenkazura VA (Kenji Hamada) though is voiced by the guy who does Otegine in Touken Ranbu and isn’t as much of a rookie as Rentei’s.

Notably, where BB do the “BB sign” (as it seems to be known), MTC do a finger gun. MTR have the wolf fang, but…what is FP’s, then? Update: It’s a peace sign to the side to make an F.

Today’s new music was “Red Zone (Don’t Test da Master)”, by KLOOZ and DJ WATARAI.

*cringes at the airhorn* *briefly presses fingers to forehead, as if going to massage temples, but then removes them* The airhorn reminds me of crazy sport fans. Crazy anime fans are more civil than them, which is one reason why I don’t follow sports on the regular.

Update: Oh! The pond owl cafe in episode 2! It means Ikebukuro!...Sort of. Fukurou rhymes with ‘bukuro and ike = pond.

Akudama 3

Hmm? Is it just me or is that T in the code the kanji for “bird” (tori)?

“It’s where I belong.” – I know my reason for pursuing Japanese is a purely selfish reason – so I can stay above others in the topics I think matter to me and pursue the endless natural high that comes from the thrill of translation (which may be all one reason or two, depending on how you look at it).

Oh, the bunny and shark again.

The bunny’s shirt said “life” at one point, I didn’t understand the shark’s though.

At one point, shark: Ka (from “Kansai”), bunny: ken (authority).

At the end, shark: heaven, bunny: hell. These broadcasts look like NHK broadcasts at the end.

Most of these words are katakana, making them look foreign.

Kansai 300, 25-1.

“Move-you-s**t!” – It…seems a bit out of character for Swindler to say the swear word there.

Taiso 3

That CGI…is not the greatest.

According to Moon Land, gymnastics operates on a deduction/addition system. You add points for difficulty, but deduct points for errors like how Minamino’s feet are apart.

*sees montage* - Those CGI scenes really take out the budget, huh…?

Gymnastics moves are named after their creators…kinda like scientific names and finders.

There was a lot of commentary in Moon Land so I’m not sure what the moves are called from memory (the dialogue always did that for me), but having the reactions speak for themselves…I think the anime team has enough faith the reactions will convey everything. They did, by the way.

You can see the bone at the base of Minamino’s neck, under the skin…it’s sort of scary.

The fact you couldn’t see Jotaro’s eyes for a shot or two…that kind of unnerved me and built tension.

Oh! The men in black appear after the credits!

[devilbat]

Kitchen Confidential, 2

Warning: lemon, kitchen smut and bad food puns..

Tom was kicking himself for leaving you untouched, besides your lips. He cursing himself for denying you. But here he was laying in bed, not able to sleep. Hoping that you were not thinking, he didn’t want you. It was far from the truth. He just wanted to take his time with you. Making sure you knew that he wanted more then just a good time. Sure he’s known your for a few years and that didn’t mean he never wanted to bang you against ever surface in the kitchen before hand. But now was different. He never knew what had changed in him. Maybe it was the countless dates you’ve gone on, ones that made him jealous. That another man would have his hands all over you. These thoughts and more swirled in his head. Enough to make him look over at his phone with a loud frustrated groan. It was four in the morning. Only an hour before he needed to get up.

Heavy sigh he through his covers off of him. Rubbing his tired face. Sliding out of bed. His cock even after getting himself off earlier, never went down. Hoping the shower and work would help. Who was he kidding once he saw you his mind would be swirling once more. The sent of you made him go hard. You never knew what you did to him these past months. Always wanting to press himself against. Having you feel how hard he got for you. Though he wouldn’t dare to. You would have probably stabbed him. His cock would twitched just at the thought of you. He had to think of things to get his growing member under control.

Once he made it to work he could hear the music play from the back end of the restaurant. You must have decided to come in early as well. Most likely putting the order away. That was his plan anyways. Making his way into the kitchen, the walk-in door was open a bit. Figuring you were in there he went in. You were standing there with your back to him. Check off thing as you worked on putting things in the proper area. Your chef coat hung open. Wearing the god awful pants, that he hated but for some reason now they look tantalizing on your ass.

Tom slowly walked in behind you, put the eggplants away. You jump when you felt a presence behind you. Then gasp when you felt Toms breath tickle the back of your neck. His lips placing gently along nap of your neck. Tom hands gripping at you hips pulling you against him. His once soft member, now fully hard again and pressing along your ass. Luckily you could always recognize him in when he came in there was something spicy, musky and woody about him that was always unique to him.

“Couldn’t sleep, love?” Tom purred into your ear, kissing gently right on that spot of flesh behind the ear. Making you shiver.

“Y-Yes .” You panted out. “I figured I would get a head start on the day.” You tried to focus. Staring that the same box of vegetables. “What are you doing here?” You knew it was a dumb question, but it was past four in the morning Tom normally doesn’t show up till about six. Well so do you but. You couldn’t sleep. So you decide to beat the delivery truck.

Toms left hand found the elastic hem of your pants running his fingers along it. Before moving his hands under the band. Slowly inching down. Making you take a shape breath, while his hand made their decent. Fingers reach their goal. Long slender fingers brushed over your damp pantie covered folds. Tom hummed in delight knowing your were aroused. Grinding into your backside.

“I needed to get in some prep time in first.” He smirked kissing along the shell of your ear. Nipping at the lob. You moaned in response. Tom free hand resting on the blue shelving that held the produce. His fingers dipped under the side of your panties line. Slipped his thumb between your damp folds, finding that hidden jewel. While he slid two fingers into your needy core.

“I was going to make ratatouille but I think I might put my eggplant in something else.” Tom teased. Moving painfully slow in and out of you, his thumb pressing hard circles over your clit.

“P-please, n-no f-food referen- Ah fuck.” You tried to state. But Tom knew what he was doing to you. Rubbing his large member against you, in tune with his skillful fingers worked you over the edge. Your head feel back against Tom’s shoulder. As you screamed out your first orgasm, soaking Tom hand.

“That’s it darling.” Tom hummed kissing your jawline. “Cum for me.” Working you through your orgasm. Your body fell a bit lip against the rack. Head rested on the cool metal, panting heavily. “Tired already love? We are just getting started.”

Gasping in shock, as Tom spun your around to face him. Tom mouth found your lips. Kissing you passionately. His tongue swiped across your lips. His hands pushing down your pants and panties, just enough to allow him access. Tom lips never leaving your, as he did the same to his own. Freeing his large throbbing cock. His left hand grabbed ahold of it, kicking your legs apart. You gasped when you felt the sheer size of his twitching cock rub along your slick folds.

“God I want to bury myself deep inside you.” Tom moaned leaving your lips to look at you.

“Tom, please.” You begged. Arching your back, desperately needing him inside of you. Without being told twice Tom thrusted into your wet hot core. You cried out in pleasure. Tom groaned as he slid into between your tight walls. God how you felt around his twitching cock. Clamping around him already.

Once Tom pushed in to the hilt he paused let you adjust to his size. Resting his forehead against your. Both of you panting heavily. Tom left hand moved under your tank top kneading your breast. Tom started moving Deep slow thrusts. Enjoying the sounds you were making. Slowly pulling out then pushing back in just as painfully slow. Making you squirm around. Desperately trying to make him go faster.

“Patience darling I want to saver this. Finally having you against the racks. It’s a fantasy come true.” Tom purred teasingly, though he had always thought of the idea of having you on ever surface in the kitchen.

“I don’t have patience, you know this.” You hissed, well it was more like a moan. Your hands fisted into his hair, pulling his towards yours. His lips found yours kissing your passionately. You nails scraped along his scalp. Making him moan against your lips. “Now please fuck me hard.”

Tom chuckled as he did as you asked, thrusting into you harder. Picking up his pace. Making you and the rack behind you shake. Moaning his name, his hand roughly groping your breast. Feeling your nipple harder under the thin fabric of your bra. Pinching the hard nipple toying with him. Your head fell back, give Tom the perfect opportunity to devour your neck with sweet kiss and hot bites. Your walls started to flutter around his large member, tightening the hold your core had on Tom’s cock. Your moans turned into scream.

“Oh fuck, Tom! I’m going to c-cumm.” You screamed in pleasure. Tom thrusted deeper hitting that spot deep inside of you. That made you come undone for him. Tom was soon to fallow few more hard thrust and he was spilling deep inside your walls. Your walls that milked him for all he had. As you name fell from his lips. Tom thrusts slowly came to a stop. His head rested against yours and you both panted out trying to catch a breath.

“How about this, we head back to my place, clean up. Not like we don’t have a few hours before we really need to be back at work.” Tom winked, kissed your swollen lips softly. You Griping his arms, as he slowly as he pulled out. You felt an emptiness when he was finally out of you. Tom pulled you pants back up with a smirk. “And then dinner tonight at my place? How dose that sound.”

“Sounds amazing.” You hummed. Kissing Tom once more. Before leaving the walk-in on shaky legs.

Permanent tags: @kitkatkl @lokilvrr @instantnoodlese @drakesfiance @meyoko10 @jackheart180, @miraclesoflove @wolfcore227, @mr-hiddlestons-Pet, @madleiine, @teageowen @scorpionchild81 @redlipsinkorea @mintzxi @it-jinxed-us

Tom/Loki Tag’s: @theoneanna @graveyard-groupie @silverquartx @moonfaery @kcd15 @moonlightprime @youveseen--thebutcher @shockwavee @sabine-leo @screw-real-life-i-pick-fandoms @vethrvolnir @darkprincessloki92 @archy3001 @chaoticwithpurpose @paanchu786 @metalheadspider @myownviperroom @arosewithdaisies @jilldsumner @witchbitch-stuff @too-cold-for-youhere @iamverity @sterwild @hiddlefan81 @villanellevi @desimarie12 @loser-alert @cest-le-temps-de-lamour @lucantis

[heckyeahitsnick]

thank you @in-madhouses​ for tagging Magnolia from my fic Her Soul is Like Magnolia. This was super fun and I appreciate you thinking of me and my character! 

1. If you weren’t doing what you’re doing now, what would you be doing instead?

I’ve always known I was gonna be a STEM girl and be a chemist, ever since Professor X from the Powerpuff Girls was my very first crush ever. But, if I truly had to choose a second-option, I’d probably become a lawyer so I can be the kick-ass brown Elle Woods and go around flexing the line, “What? Like it’s hard?” to any question ever.

2. If you could change one thing you did or didn’t say in the past, what would it be?

Despite the fact that I literally NEVER think before i speak and i’m always sticking my foot in my mouth, I still don’t think I’d regret anything in particular? Maybe change something vague in my past, like I'd say something kinder in place of something rude I’ve said or replied with a more well-thought out response instead of just speaking the first thought in my mind. But overall, no regrets. No wait, scratch that; no ragrets!

3. What’s one personal secret you haven’t told a soul?

One time I ate one kibble of Pumpkin’s cat food. I just wanted to try it, in the name of science, and she always eats it with so much gusto it had to be good. It was not.

4. If your mum texted you right now, how would that make you feel?

Shook. My sweet, innocent immigrant mother only technologically communicates with whatsapp and ill-informed facebook posts. If she were to ever text me, it’d definitely be an imposter.

5. Have you pictured your future? If so, what does it look like?

I wildly swing from both ends of the spectrum: I have like a vague, general idea about what I’d like in store for my  future but I also have a very, detailed 5 year plan of future accomplishments. Short answer is I picture being content, owning a house if I can stop wasting my money on avocado toasts, working as an environmental chemist. Harry, Pumpkin, Niall, and Marisol are featured in my future too, but this MY story so they’re not that important. I’m kidding. Kinda.

6. What is your Zodiac sign and do you agree with it?

Uhh. First, let me clear the air. I don’t hate on people who believe in horoscopes and astrology. More power to them, but I personally don’t believe in astrology and know next to nothing about zodiac signs. I don’t know what the sign’s characteristics are, but I do know I’m a Leo because Niall made Harry and I take a horoscope compatibility quiz the other day.

7. Do you use social media? If so, what kinds of things do you post? If not, why not?

Instagram, because selfies, and Facebook because I’m here to advocate they are not for boomers. I’m refraining from making a twitter account. I'm trying to protect the world from my random thoughts, despite Harry’s futile attempts to make me my own account.

8. Who’s the most important person to you?

Cop out answer that’s actually true: there isn’t just one singular person. Me, Niall, Mari, Harry, my sister, my mom, the opportunities for important people are endless.

9. What are your interests and hobbies?

Love chemistry and all things related (except Harry’s awful chemistry puns). I love reading, especially sci-fi books. IDK if it counts as an interest but my faith? That’s super important to me.

Oh, and Horror movies - the Scream movies are undefeated and I’m currently trying to get my coworker, Liam, who’s a film major, to cast me as the lead in his horror short for his class project, despite my lack of acting skills. It's not going well, but I’m a huge advocate to make horror films more diverse. I can be the dumb brunette with big boobs who runs into the locked basement with no exits instead of running out the door. That could be me!!

10. Have you ever been in love? Why/Why not?

Yes, I’m in love with so many people right now. I love all my friends, I love my family, I love my life. But i’m sure this question meant romantically, and all i’m gonna say is Harry and I are definitely getting there (though he’d argue, we’re already here. Wherever here is. I think i messed up my metaphor - ugh this is why I hate English majors!)

[goddessofthundathighs]

Hollyweird: The Tales of Tops, Bottoms, & Beards

Premise: What happens when Angel finds out about King Jade’s escapades outside The Kompound. Based off the following photos:

A/N: This story is 100% fictitious and the results of what happens when I’m allowed to write/post whatever I want without restrictions. It’s meant to be comical. Just gotta put that out there for anyone that stans any of the celebs mentioned.

**************************

“Biiiiiiiiiiitch,” Angel’s thick Creole accent called through Charlie’s iPhone. She was between takes on her latest film and had just been given the juiciest tea that she’d ever heard. I’m talking boiling hot. And when she learned that it involved one of her sister wives, she had to FaceTime and get the firsthand account of the details.

“So you out here pegging actors?” The question caused Henny and Charlie to choke on their water.

“Excusez-moi?” Henny exclaimed as she tried to compose herself from the coughing fit.

“The fuck you talking about, Angel?” Erik’s deep voice could be heard from the other end of the phone. He’d decided to surprise both Hennessy and Charlie with a lunch date to their favorite ramen shop as a means of catching up with his two favorite doms and the news came as more than a shock to him.

“Ask Charlie,” she replied with a sly smirk. Charlie gulped hard as she realized that all eyes were on her.

“Okay chill, I’ll spill it. But Daka you can’t get mad because we were on a break,” she warned before regaling the tale.

“Aight so boom,” she started with a chuckle.

“The house was pitch black with red candles leading the way to the grand family room where the festivities would take place. They were smart, choosing to rent out a house in the Hills far enough away from civilization as to not raise suspicions. Each room was labeled with the type of activity that was taking place inside, a precaution so no one could say they didn’t know what they were getting into. Everyone’s face was covered with masquerade masks, a means of preserving identities. But being as cunning as I am, I knew roughly 85% of the crowd. I stood clad in a white bodysuit, my bountiful breastesses accented with sheer lace. Around my neck was the diamond choker Henny gifted me last Christmas along with the custom white fur jacket Bastion made for me. A matching white masquerade mask hid my face from the rest of the room as I ventured deeper into the space. Will’s voice could be heard over the sensual music that flowed from the hidden speakers.

“Release all of your inhibitions. Tonight you’re free to be whoever you want to be. Relax, have fun, and unleash your demons.” Riveting speech, Fresh Prince. I smiled as a young buff man made his way towards me. His chest was perfectly chiseled, not as nice as yours, Daka, but it worked for the moment.” Erik kissed his teeth in annoyance before leaning back in his chair.

“I really don’t wanna hear this shit,” he pouted.

“Shit, we do!” Angél and Henny called in unison. Charlie giggled before continuing.

“You looking for a party?” he asked once he was directly in front of me.

“Sweetheart, King Jade is the party. On your knees.” He dropped without question, looking up at me as if he knew I were a goddess on earth. He could tell.

“Worship me.”

“You’re beautiful. The most beautiful woman I’ve ever seen. Your eyes shine like diamonds in the night and your thighs look as though they hide the greatest treasure known to man.”

“Damn,” Henny interjected, looking pointedly at Erik. “How come you don’t compliment us like that?”

“Girl if you don’t shut yo ass up and eat them noodles,” Erik fussed. “You don’t be worried about compliments with my di—”

“Aight nigga damn. Nobody asked you all that. Continue Cha Cha.” Charlie slurped a noodle before looking down at her phone.

“Exactly how much did Jamie tell you so I know what holes to fill,” she said causing Hennessy to erupt in another fit of laughter.

“No pun intended!” Charlie laughed when she caught the joke.

“He said he walked in on you pegging Leo DiCaprio and Robert Ri’Chard And something about Beyoncé pegging Jay-Z.”

“Oh so you in other niggas booties now, Charlie?” Erik asked, crossing his arms over his chest with an attitude.

“First of all, lower your voice we’re in public. Second of all, mind your business. I told you we were on a break.” Angél kicked her feet and squealed in excitement as Charlie continued.

“To spare our husband the gory details, yes I pegged them both. Leo was a diva and kept trying to touch me, while Robert was the perfect sub. Yes Beyoncé pegged Jay and Diddy engaged in some “questionable” activities as well. But the true tea is what went on in Will and Jada’s room.” Hennessy ordered another round of margaritas for her and Charlie and another double Hennessy on the rocks for Erik before urging Charlie to continue.

“After I was done with my little Hollywood twinks, I began roaming the house to see what everyone else was up to. I walked until I stopped outside a large, red door. The sign outside only had a black X on it, so being the curious little nugget I am, I went in. I was immediately greeted with the sight of women on women and double penetrations galore.” Hennessy and Angel were on the edge of their seats.

“Who was in there, girl?” Henny coaxed.

“All I’ma say is, Angél, if you have a kissing scene with Jamie, don’t do it.”

“Wait bitch, what?!” Angél screamed, side eying her co-star.

“That man, along with a few others, takes and sucks more dick than any woman you’ve ever met, including us!”

“Who were the ‘few others’?” Angél asked as her eyes roamed the set.

“I couldn’t make out everyone, but I remember seeing Terrance Howard, Taye Diggs, and Wesley Snipes to name a few.”

Erik perked up at this.

“On yo mama?” Erik asked with a wide grin. “Wesley Snipes? Blade? Out here taking pipe?”

“On my mama. I seen it with my own eyes.” The quartet laughed loudly as Charlie continued the tale. Erik ended up finding humor in it all rather than being angry at the fact that she’d topped someone else.

“I still can’t believe you went King Jade on another nigga,” he fake pouted, showing off the slight patch in his beard.

“Not my fault I got bootyholes in different area codes.”

**************************

TAGS: @hearteyes-for-killmonger @poosypoosy @itsangeludaku @amethyst1993 @vikkidc @ljstraightnochaser @trevantesbrat @panthergoddessbast @alyshastevens-udaku @thereturnofbadazz @bidibidibombaclaat @forbeautyandlife @inlovewithmakeupcomicsanimelove @whatmoredoyouwantamericaa @thehomierobbstark @dameshaemonique @destinio1 @thadelightfulone @supersizemeplz

[chickenscript]

A/N: being friends part 2; leo addition. thinking about offering requests, but i’ve still got those prompts i want to work on. i’m feelin’ a little conflicted in priorities

- oof. what have you done.

- you two are a whirlwind of disaster.

- mostly because he taught you how to skateboard and you’ve made it a mission to master all the tricks he knows and then some. but it is unanimously agreed - minus leo - that no, the lair isn’t a place for someone who just learned how to skateboard. much less you who has hard luck with clumsiness.

- it was great that one time you grinded your board on don’s face by accident (he was passing by at the oh so wrong time). he was more pissed than you’ve ever seen him, but before you could apologize, and after you say he shouldn't have been so concentrated on his tablet, you were guffawing madly with leo at his misfortune. (once you pulled yourself together and went to don’s lab, he had some choice words for you. luckily, you knew a few magic ones)

- you have bad luck like him and often bump into something, trip, ect. doctor mike patches both of you up on a regular basis.

- doc don does when it's something more severe than what can be swatched by band aids (i.e, a gash down the back of your forearm that needed ten stitches. you've never seen mike bawl his eyes out more than when he sat through the process with you- leo was busy being way to nauseous about blood and all that exposed flesh to even be in the lab. and you were just trying to comfort mike, sure it hurt but you’ve broken that same arm when you were younger. the thought doesn’t really soothe mike)

- he’s got his work cut out for him because you both like rough housing. you didn’t usually win in the past, but since you started joining their training sessions (mostly to observe what it is that their mentor and father figure teaches them) and doing your own shoot boxing training on the side, you don’t let him win easy. but, honestly, it’s more like you two are antsy, clumsy dogs swatting at each other in a messy tangle of wrestling limbs.

- you love his one liners. and you mean that. sincerely.

- everyone though you were crazy to like them, but then it started. the punening.

- your uncle had this old joke book full of bad, awful, no good puns, and when you were little and got bored, you would read it. so now, you knew ever speck of puns from it and the new ones you made up or found out about.

- also, it feels really great to encourage your friend to make more one liners since you know the struggle. not everyone has the capability of understanding the taste in A class humor you two shared.

- he helps you make puns too.

- he’s questioned a few of your quirks before, like blanking out while you’re talking about something - the names of certain things just leave you sometimes -, or how competitive you can get. you’ve also got the patience of a god when it comes to letting them have their way with you on certain things. like when april enforces herself onto you when she wants to practice doing makeup - which you don’t wear all that much -, or mikey and his body paint needs that could have you sitting somewhere for an hour or more. he envied you, really.

- he had a pretty short attention span half the time.

- you shrug and just say that there’s stuff they do that you think is cool or weird too.

- the brothers have told you before that it was strange; having a new friend. and they enjoy learning your preferences and other things about you. you just wish leo could learn to understand your concept of personal space sometimes.- he likes to just assert himself near you whenever he can, and you mostly didn’t mind, but there are times when, like don, you need air.

- you can’t say you don’t feel bad when he’s skateboarding or moping around like a despondent fish.

- he just gets nervous about what you think of him as a friend sometimes. he's clingy like that.

- speaking of clingy; surprise hugs like mike.

- but like really, scare the shit out of you surprise.

- he's a master of scares and getting scared as piss makes you peeved off. so, you're proud to say you punched him in the windpipe a couple times when he caught you at the wrong angle or when your spidey senses actually worked.

- ho boy, the scares aren't the only things he does.

- pranks. and once you express how much you'll kick his ass if he tries to prank you again, he lets you join in, and when he's ever in the trickster mood; locals beware.

- the shit you guys pull is enough to put everyone on edge.

- there was one time when you borrowed some stuff from april and put false lashes, way too much eye shadow, ruby red lipstick and a voluminous, curly pink wig on raph after an intense training session almost everyone passed out after.

- he looked like a whole (infuriated) queen when he woke up and you two couldn't stop laughing for weeks after the incident. you still do whenever it crops up in conversation. ("Heh, hey, remember operation Ms. Pink?" "Snrk- shut up Lee, he's looking over here." "He is? Oh shit.")

- it was the first time you ever saw raph lose his temper, like someone pulled the tick on a grenade, and it was worth it. mostly because it was more funny than scary- all he really when he caught leo was throttled him and make him say uncle.

- thankfully he chased after his brother more than you too and the sight of that, combined with mike squrrieled on raph's back trying to calm him down while trying not to also laugh and make things worse, will be imprinted forever in your memory.

- leo knows a ton of good places to get away to when he wants to stretch his legs.

- you wonder how he found them considering he can't really go topside much, but apparently he and april, and sometimes mike, used to all the time when he was younger and blended in a lot better with just some layers of clothes. his shell is way too obvious nowadays to try to pull the same stunt.

- he knows the best sushi shops, asian markets (shell yeah did you make a pit stop there to get stuff for mike), abandoned warehouses and just gems people otherwise wouldn't know about or glaze over in their normal commute of the city.

- he's got an eye for things, even if he seems a little dull or oblivious sometimes, like his little brother who has also proven his smarts to you.

- leonardo's got wit, like his packed, crappy one liners.

- he's also pretty good at motivational talks when you're down. or at least, making you forget about the issue because you can see how hard he's trying.

- he's a great, caring guy. even when he’s trying in vain to prove he’s right against your opinions.

Bonus:

"Oi pretty boy,"

Leo looks at you, batting his eyes and getting into this languid pose on the couch, "Yes?~"

You can't keep a straight face, hard as you try, and sigh loudly.

"C'mere, I was gonna yell at ya for breaking another one of my mugs that I always remind you not to fuckin' use-"

"But then why do they have quotes that I can synch with?-"

"This one said Cunt. The handle was the C." you had come bearing that very handle and waved it around for emphasis.

Leonardo blinks slow and it seems like a swollen bubble of realization just popped for him.

"...Oh. Well that's not very nice. That's probably why it broke."

"Leo."

This is why you bring the ugly duckling of your mug collection on your next sleepover at the lair. It's the only one that you're one hundred percent sure is bulletproof. But you're still waiting for the day he proves you wrong and you shamble into the kitchen to find it like all the others. (Which Mikey has taken the glass bits of and glued together to make a mug crypt that looks like a professionally made, stained glass window sheet hung up in his room.)

[xxxdragonfucker69xxx]

PROM IN BLACK

"This is ridiculous," Des said.

Shadow stared at her thoughtfully for a minute before agreeing. "You're right. The train is far too long, you'll be tripping over yourself all night. Sutsam!"

Sutsam came forth from where he had been lurking in the corner, bobbing and scraping. Shadow pointed to the foot of Des' dress, and the ghostly tailor set to it with needle and thread, performing some sartorial sleight of hand that managed to vanish half a foot of cloth. Des sighed.

"Not that," she said. "Though that is better. I mean... this whole thing."

Shadow frowned. "What, the dress? We've spent a good amount of time designing it, but I supposed Sutsam could probably whip something up --"

"No," Des interrupted, to Sutsam's visible relief. "I mean, holding this... prom, just for the three of us. I know it's all the rage in the Realm, but... we're hardly Dynasts." She laughed sadly. "If we're counting by blood, I suppose I am technically royalty, but still."

Shadow's softened, then hardened. "Don't think of that," he admonished. "This isn't about showing off or performing social maneuvers. This is just... fun."

"Fun," Des repeated. "With all due respect, Shadow, you're hardly an expert. I don't think you've ever had fun in your life."

Shadow raised an eyebrow. "For your information," he said drily, "I once had a riveting conversation with the former Magnus about the nature of Essence. I was positively lightheaded." He kept a straight face, but Des laughed until Sutsam pleaded for her to stay still. "But seriously," Shadow said, and she subsided. "I know it doesn't feel like it, but... you three are young. Even Star. You all deserve the joys of young adulthood, its attendant rites and ceremonies. Not... not to have to hide your face and wrestle with darkness." Shadow's face was averted as he spoke, watching Sutsam's work, but Des detected a quiver in his voice.

"Like you did?" she asked softly. "What was your prom like?"

Shadow had Awareness 3, so there was no excuse for him not to have heard, but he acted as if Des hadn't spoken. He stepped back and surveyed Sutsam's handiwork. "Perfect," he said. "The boys will never know what hit them."

+++

"This is ridiculous," Seal growled. He rotated his arm as if feeling his shoulder. "I can barely fucking move in this. First punch and I'm gonna dislocate my fucking shoulder, or maybe just rip the damn thing in half."

"You're not gonna get in a fucking fight," Leo said through gritted teeth. He was helping the boy struggle into his tuxedo, a black-and-white getup that made Seal look like a clown. As far as Seal could see himself in the tiny bathroom's mirror, anyways. And it was too fucking tight.

"You're one to fucking talk," Seal retorted. "Didn't you fuck a guy up at the last party you went to?"

"Hey," Leo snapped, rising to his feet and staring Seal in the eyes. "That's out of fucking line."

A heated glare passed between them for a few seconds before Seal broke it off and rubbed his neck awkwardly. "Sorry," he muttered.

Leo closed his eyes and breathed deeply, visibly composing himself. "It's alright," he said as he moved back around Seal to adjust the collar. "I deserved that one."

"Any advice?" Seal asked. "Besides 'do what I say, not what I do'?"

"Well, for starters," Leo said, "don't get smashed and punch the worst guy in the world." He met Seal's eyes in the mirror and they chuckled. "For real though, you don't have to worry about any of that tonight. No paparazzi, no drama, no mess. Just some kids having fun."

"I'm not a fucking kid," Seal growled, quieter this time.

"Yeah, you are," Leo said. "Oughta be hanging out at the schoolyard, menacing all the sorcery nerds or whatever."

"I'm eighteen," Seal countered. "What were you fucking doing at eighteen?" Leo was silent, so Seal pressed his advantage. "You weren't going to fancy fucking parties in full dress," he accused. "Why the fuck should I?"

Only after he said it, at usual, did Seal feel bad. He saw Leo's lips pressed together in a thin line, his eyes in some distant place. After a while, Leo looked back down at Seal's collar. "We're not talking about my life," he said roughly. "We're not even talking about yours. We're talking about what life is supposed to be like. Kids are supposed to have fun, not -- wrestle hellboars or be soldiers or what the fuck ever. It's fucked up that I didn't get to, and it's fucked up that you don't get to."

Seal felt his eyes heat up. Motherfucker. He pressed the back of his hand to his eyes angrily.

A hand pressed itself to his shoulder. "Hey," Leo said quietly. "Listen. I know your whole deal is shitty, and everything feels like it's gonna be fucked up forever, but... you should at least know what a normal life feels like. So, someday, you can start working your way back towards that."

Seal blinked rapidly, wiping a little blood away from his eyes. "I still look like a fucking idiot," he muttered, but without heat.

Leo chuckled. "A little, maybe," he admitted. "But it can't be worse than Star."

+++

"Thisch isch fucking ridiculousch," Star said.

Pho frowned around the bobby pin in his teeth. "Hold ftill," he said. "Allllmoft got it."

Star looked up at the ceiling of the kitchen. Various stains overlapped across the tiles, some more threatening than others. He considered using his new Investigation Charms on them, but decided against it -- he didn't really want to know what Harv got up to in here. At his neck level, Pho was fiddling with a bowtie, the most ridiculous garment in the universe.

"Thish kinda schit never happened in Shkullschtone," Star complained. "Not that there'sh that much fanschy partiesh there. But I got to juscht wear my polische uniform whenever that happened. It wasch cool," he preened for a second.

"Not my ecfpertife eifer," Pho agreed. "There. Got it." He stood back and took the bobby pin out of his mouth. "Now let's get that hair."

"My hair isch fine," Star said defensively, backing away. "It'sch purple and fluffy. No problemsch here." Pho considered him for a moment, then shrugged and put the bobby pin away somewhere in his armor. "What did you wear to your fanschy partiesh?" Star asked.

Pho shrugged again. "Never really had any," he said. "Lived on the road, mostly. Bounty hunter work with my ma. Circus stuff before that. I guess a circus is kinda like a party," he allowed.

"Whatever happened to your ma?" Star asked.

Pho frowned. "She died, and then the Mask turned her into chains for me. He was kind of a bastard," he said. Star stared awkwardly at the top of Pho's head. "Then I got out and turned her into an axe, and we kicked Mask's ass. Then the Sun set her free. It's a long story."

Star coughed. "Yeah," he said. "That'sch, uh.... that'sh rough, buddy."

Pho gestured vaguely. "Old news," he said. "Tonight is for all you kids, not old fogeys like me."

Star couldn't help bristling a little. "I'm not exshactly a kid," he said. "I'm twenty-one. I can drink in Shkullshtone."

Pho raised an eyebrow, a perfect imitation of Shadow's expression. "Well, you won't tonight," he said. "No alcohol at prom. It's the rules. Besides, you can't exactly say you had a great childhood either."

Star leapt to Skullstone's defense. "It'sh pretty good, actually," he said. "Free schchooling and shtuff, a plasche to live, food to eat. Lotsch of plashesh have lessh. And a job I'm pretty good at, if I do shay sho myshelf."

"And how much of that childhood did you spend playing?" Phoenix countered. "Getting drunk and doing dumb shit with your friends? From what I hear of Onyx, that shit doesn't exactly fly." Star was silent. "Listen," Phoenix sighed, "I'm not criticizing the Prince or whatever. I'm just saying, live a little. Uh. Pun not intended."

Star sighed and ran a hand through his hair, which was indeed purple and fluffy. "Schure," he said. "Guessh I'm not exshactly gonna turn down free food."

+++

There was food. There was mood lighting. And there was music.

The Sanctuary had been transformed into a dance hall worthy of the shittiest teen dances. It was dark, and colored lights strafed across the walls (cast from will-o-wisps Shadow had captured himself). The table that usually held coffee and donuts was now laden with various cookies, cupcakes, and at one end was an enormous punch bowl filled with blood punch (Hours' secret recipe, which amounted to "punch someone until you can take their blood"). All the couches and chairs were cleared away to make an open space for dancing.

Where the TV cabinet usually stood, there was instead a podium where Harv was directing a spectral quartet; the ghostly organist bent over a keyboard while the singer moaned about a burning mercy seat. Harv himself was wearing what appeared to be suspenders cut from tuxedo-grade silk, in black and white, with a bowtie at his neck. And on the dance floor, several zombies were shuffling around aimlessly, hands held out in a vague attempt at dancing.

Simultaneously, the doors to the bathroom and kitchen opened, and two of the Shitheads shuffled out.

Pho was wearing his full armor, since it counted as fancy dress; and he was escorting Star, who was in a ruffly silk tuxedo. The spikes of his arm had been artfully incorporated into the tuxedo, each one poking out from a different design; it looked almost as if it had been intentional, an artistic choice. And on his neck, a perfectly tied bowtie. Seal almost choked when he saw how good Star looked.

Seal himself was in a suit, tightly cut in black and red. A little golden pin shone on his lapel, a concession to Glorious First Light. Behind him was Leo, wearing much the same thing, though at least he got to wear sunglasses. "Go talk to him," Leo suggested, pushing Seal forward a little. Seal stammered, but Leo was already off to the food table, so there was nothing to do but push forwards through the zombies.

"Hey!" Star greeted him cheerily. "Check all thish schit out, huh? Guesh Harv thought we needed more danschersh at thish dansche."

"Fucking weird," Seal agreed. "Look at them. I think that one's trying to do a jig." They watched the zombie jerk up and down for a while, its foot dangling from its leg where the tendons had been cut or rotted away. "Anyways," he said, breaking the reverie, "where the fuck is Des?"

As if on cue, the zombies parted. Sensing the mood, Harv quickly switched the musicians over to some kind of military march. The door to Shadow's room stood open, and there they were. Shadow himself was dressed in his finest regalia, good enough to peacock around at a Dynast ball (minus all the arrow holes, maybe), but he didn't hold a candle to Des, and he stood like he knew it and was proud of it.

Des smirked, soaking in all the attention, and advanced slowly. She was wearing a glittering black dress with thorns embroidered all down its length. They grew more numerous as they neared her shoulder, where an enormous rose bloomed, red so dark it was nearly black. Her gloves were of the same color, mimicking her anima and complimenting the dress, and Bloodthorn hung at her side, held by a loop rather than a sheath: present, beautiful, and ready to kill.

Seal's jaw just about hit the floor; he didn't know shit about fashion, but he was pretty sure Des was wearing all of it tonight. Beside him, Star was similarly gaping. Des' smirk turned into a grin as she came near them, dress trailing on the floor behind her like a pool of night. "Hello, boys," she said, extending an arm to each one. "Ready for prom?"

Star, at least, knew what to do; he knelt and kissed her hand, fully mock-chivalrous. "Milady," he said, struggling not to giggle. Seal was too busy staring. "Holy fuck," he said. "If I wasn't gay my dick would be through the fucking roof right now."

"Don't be gross," Des said, swatting him, though she was visibly pleased with the compliment. "Come on, let's dance already."

Seal frowned. "Yeah, but this music sucks. Hey, Harv, this music fucking sucks!" he shouted over the music, which had returned to something rustic and melancholy at best. Harv was conducting like his life depended on it, though, and didn't hear -- until Hours loomed over him.

"Make vay, leetle man," the Dusk growled, and Harv obliged meekly. The musicians leaned closer to see what Hours was going to ask for, but instead the man pulled out a balalaika and started tuning it. Then he let loose a lively tune, and the musicians shrugged and took it up on their various instruments.

"That'sh more like it," Star said, grinning. "C'mon, Scheal, let'sch fucking dansche."

Well, when he put it like that, Seal had no choice but to dance.

+++

They danced for hours.

Des knew some kind of complicated three-person waltz that let her spin Seal and Star around herself in dizzying counterpoint, so fast that Star accidentally gored a zombie on his way through. But it was, somehow, incredibly fun, as long as Seal didn't try to think about where his feet were going and just kept dancing. He'd never thought dance could be fun, not without any swords or anything.

After a while, though, they were starting to slow down; Seal was dipping into his Essence to keep going, and all their castemarks were starting to show. Des' was burning brightest, so he expected her to step out soon, but what he didn't expect was the sudden maneuver that brought Seal and Star face-to-face while Des stepped back. "I'm going to get a drink," she said, flashing a treacherous smile at Seal. "You two have fun."

Bastard bitch son of a snake, Seal thought venomously at her, but Star shrugged and stepped up, holding out his hands. "Might ash well," he said. "Care to dansche, mishter Scheal?"

Seal sighed and stepped into his arms, taking Star's hand in one and nearly impaling the other before landing safely on Star's shoulder. Right on cue, the music slowed to something meandering; Seal looked over to see Harv ushering Hours from the podium, balalaika torn to shreds. Star hummed for a moment then started moving, forcing Seal to follow his footsteps. "I learned thish one at the academy," he confided. "In cashe we had to infiltshrate a fanschy party or shomefing."

They stepped back and forth for a while. In the distance, Seal spotted Shadow and Harv slow dancing, so he tried to copy them. Anything to avoid the sheer awkwardness, to not have to look Star in the eyes. Shadow and Harv weren't look at each other either, though as they rotated Seal caught the same look of contentment on both their faces. Ugh. Disgusting.

"Scho how do you like your firscht dansche?" Star asked, drawing Seal back to himself. "I'm guesching you didn't exshactly do a lot of dansching in Fortitude or whatever."

Seal shrugged, hoping that Star could see or at least feel it. "It's fucking weird," he said. "It's... fun, I guess. I thought I'd hate it."

"Way better than the danschesh at the academy," Star agreed. "That wash all formal and shtuff. Thish ish nische, though. Jusht ush and our friendsh. And a doshen schombiesh, I guesh, but thoshe don't count."

"Yeah," Seal said. "Just us kids."

+++

A few hours later, the Sanctuary was empty. Forlorn decorations littered the floor, and the refreshment table looked like it had been stampeded. Shadow sat on a folding chair as the zombies slowly picked up the remaining detritus of the dance. Suddenly a shadow loomed -- well, not over him, since Shadow was taller than Phoenix even sitting down, but in front of him.

"Hey," said Phoenix, removing his spiky helmet and setting it on the table. "I think that was a success."

Shadow smiled wearily. "Yes," he said, "I think so too." He raised an eyebrow at Phoenix. "I didn't see you on the floor, much. What's the matter, shy?"

Phoenix chuckled a little. "Dancing's not really my thing. I can shuffle, kinda."

Shadow rose to his feet. "Well, we can't have the kids outshining their teachers, or we'll all lose face. Would you give me the honor of this dance, sir Phoenix?"

Phoenix looked around skeptically at the zombies sweeping up and the lack of music, but he followed Shadow out onto the floor. With a sweeping gesture Shadow banished the zombies to the edges of the room, took Phoenix's hand and set it on his waist, hummed for a moment, then imperiously stepped forward.

Shadow had learned the dance a long time ago, and it was buried deep in his muscle memory: designed to be an easy one for the follower and a difficult one for the leader, though he knew both parts. A memory flashed into his mind, of dancing it with a different partner, and he sighed. "So young," he murmured.

Phoenix grunted in agreement. "Seal was thirteen when he exalted. Just a kid."

They revolved slowly on the spot for a moment, Shadow's feet dancing lightly around Phoenix's. It was a while before either of them spoke again.

"When I was young," Shadow said, "I watched the other children. They were pampered, I thought. They slept on soft beds and ate delicious food and played for hours at a time without any worry in the world. It was an unimaginable luxury."

Phoenix sighed. "That's what kids need," he said. "Safety, comfort, they need to know that things are okay. They deserve happiness. It's not their fault they never get it."

Shadow nodded sadly. "Sometimes," he said, "I think about dropping it all -- the quest, the burdens, everything -- and just... living with them. Taking care of them. Making sure they never have to go through what we went through, or even what they've been through already."

"I tried that," Phoenix said. "Rescued a whole damn buncha kids from Dowager. You heard about Sachi, right?" He shook his head. "That kid's gonna be an adventurer no matter what I do. Gonna get into all sorts of trouble." Resignation mixed with pride in his voice.

"Perhaps that's true," Shadow agreed. "Perhaps all we can do is... make them secure in themselves, to weather the storms that must come."

Phoenix sighed. "That's all you ever can do," he said. "Can't fight everything for them, even if you want to. I mean, big things, sure. But they gotta learn for themselves, too."

Shadow nodded. "Nevertheless," he said, "I wish they didn't have to." He looked down and saw Phoenix grimacing.

"Me too," Phoenix said. "Me too."

[keijiwrites]

The Sky & The Sea

Pairing: Jercy

Word count: 2820

Characters: Percy Jackson, Jason Grace, Nico di Angelo, Will Solace, Piper McLean, Zeus, Poseidon. Mentioned: Lou Ellen, Leo Valdez, Kayla. 

Rating: G

Percy was worried sick. Jason had went on a quest along with Nico and Piper. They were supposed to get back two days ago but they hadn't. He had asked Chiron for a quest to find them but the centaur denied, saying it would be too dangerous for Jason to go by himself. Percy was furious because three of the closest people to him are missing. He knew he couldn't take Blackjack because he had no idea where they were. He had tried Iris Messages but they wouldn't work. He was so close to losing his mind.

"Percy!"

Said boy turned around and saw Jason limping towards him with a wide grin. Percy was immediately relived. He saw Nico and Piper in the back walking towards the infirmary. They worry came back when he saw Jason's swollen ankle - it was twisted weirdly - and cut in his arm.

"What happened? Did you get attacked? Why didn't go straight to Will? You need to get those treated. How the Hades are you walking? Jason!"

Jason chuckled. "I'm fine. Just twisted it."

"No, you aren't. And it's broken." He slipped Jason's arm over his shoulder and his own arm around the other waist. "I have no fucking idea how you're walking. Look at it!"

"Perce, I'm fine."

"Shut up." Percy snapped. "I've been worried sick for over two days. When you were supposed to come back. IM's weren't working. I even asked Chiron for a quest to find you and he said no. So just shut up and let me worry."

They reached the infirmary where the Apollo kids quickly took care of the three injured demigods. Percy sat in a corner, shoulders slumped. Piper smiled at him as she got her leg bandaged. Nico had a gash on his torso that looked deep.

Now Percy was worried for Nico as well. "What happened?" He asked to no one in particular.

"We got attacked." Nico winced as Will worked on his gash. He glared at his boyfriend who ignored him. "It was a Chimera. Piper charmspoke. Jason struck it with lighting and then I made a hole on the ground and it was gone."

"Then there were empousai." Piper continued. Percy shuddered. He hated those. "We were outnumbered but then Mrs. O'Leary came to help."

"How are you so badly wounded?" Percy frowned.

"We haven't finished." Jason sighed and winced as Will squeezed his ankle with a frown after finishing with Nico. Kayla was bandaging Nico up. "We came across a gorgon. I don't know which one it was but it was annoying." He screamed as Will clicked his ankle in place.

Everyone winced. Lou Ellen started to dab Jason's forehead with a cold cloth. She looked at Percy who nodded. He took the cloth as Lou scurried off to help Kayla. Jason sighed pressing the cloth against Jason's forehead. Percy grabbed Jason's hand and squeezed. Sweat rolled down Jason's forehead. He looked pale from exhaustion.

"You two," said Will pointing to Jason and Nico, "are going to stay for a few days. Doctors orders." He stated firmly when Nico looked close to protesting. "You're free, Piper. Just try not to force it much."

She grinned at him and waved as she left.

Percy raised an eyebrow. "I thought you said you were going to work things out," he said to Jason.

"We did. Decided to stay friends." Jason mumbled. "Months ago."

Will fed Jason some ambrosia and a little bit of nectar. The son of Jupiter fell asleep minutes later. Percy sighed and let go of Jason's hand reluctantly. He stayed by Jason's bed until Will kicked him out.

"Can I stay the night? Please, Will? I could help around." Percy pleaded, baby seal eyes strong.

Will sighed. "Fine. But you need to shower and bring Jason a bag with his things."

Percy nodded and did as told. Half an hour later, he was settling in the bed next to Jason. Will had taken residence on the one next to Nico who looked mildly annoyed at Will fussing over him because "you can't just leave with a wound like that, Nicolas." "That's not even my name!"

Percy skipped dinner and Will scolded him for it. Eventually, the son of Apollo brought him and Nico plates full of food. Jason was still passed out.

"I'm surprised you didn't shadow travel here." Percy said as he and Nico ate.

"Oh, I did." The son of Hades mumbled. "But I didn't pass out."

Percy snorted and continued eating. He set his plate aside and lied on the bed on his side. He stared at Jason's complexion without shame. He and Percy weren't exactly exclusive but they didn't mess around with other people. They were un-exclusively exclusive.

Percy reached and traced his hand over Jason's. He wished he could fit in the bed next to him but he didn't. He'd thought about squeezing in but he didn't want to make Jason uncomfortable. Jason slowly opened his eyes and Percy retreated his hand.

"Jay?" He quickly sat up with a frown.

"Hey, Perce." He smiled and passed a hand over his face. "How long was a I asleep?"

"A couple of hours." Percy said sitting on the space left on the bed. "How are you feeling? Need anything?"

"Water, please."

Percy fetched Jason a glass of water which he downed in two gulps. "Thanks." He murmured. "Are you alright? Your eyebrows are doing the thing when you think too hard."

Percy frowned. "I was just worried. I'm just glad you're okay."

Jason smiled weakly and reached for Percy's hand. He stroked his thumb over it and kissed it softly. Jason was such a complete contrast to Percy it hurt him. Percy was reckless and barely obeyed the rules. He was sarcastic and acted completely on impulse. He would tear down whatever was in his way to keep his loved ones safe. He spoke his mind freely not caring about the consequences. Jason on the other hand thought things through and followed the rules. Being a Roman did that to you. He was a little soft and was sometimes hurt by Percy's lack of filter. He thought things through before saying them, not wanting to hurt the other person or say the wrong thing.

"Relax, Jackson. I'll be fine."

"Shut up, Grace." Percy said with no bite. "I still don't know how the Hades you were walking with your foot like that."

"Adrenaline. I just wanted to see you first."

Percy smiled fondly. "Next time come here first, please." He kissed Jason's forehead.

"I will." Jason grinned and Percy rolled his eyes.

"Liar."

The blue eyed demigod snickered. "Why don't you join me?" He scooted over and made space for Percy who looked unsure. "It'll be fine." He patted the spot and Percy lied down, arm around Jason's waist hugging him close.

"Don't scare me like that again." He whispered against Jason's neck. "You've done that enough for a lifetime."

"I won't." Jason cushioned Percy's head with his arm and wrapped the other around his waist. "I can feel Nico and Will staring holes into my back." He mumbled half asleep.

"Let them. I don't care." Percy murmured and leaned up to peck Jason's chin and then his lips. He lingered there and rubbed his thumb over Jason's bottom lip. "I missed you. You were gone for a month with no communication and I-" he swallowed the lump in his throat. "I was so worried. For all of you." He was slowly opening up with Jason. The first thing they established was communication so Percy was letting his feelings out. Especially if it had to do with nightmares.

"Percy."

"I know you can take care of yourselves but I still worry. I hate it. I hate it. I hate it." He whimpered.

"We're fine." Jason kissed the pad of Percy's thumb affectionately. "I'm here. I'm okay."

"You better be or I would've gone down to the Underworld to kick your dead ass."

Jason snorted. "You're an idiot."

"Thanks, Blondie. I try." Percy said dryly. "Just cuddle me."

Jason wasn't one to object.

***

When Jason was healed, everything went back to normal. He was still pontifix maximus, so he went from camp to camp building the shrines. He trained and taught the new campers how to fight and defend themselves. He often did demonstrations with Percy who played dirty. The son of Poseidon would grin triumphantly whenever he had Jason at his mercy.

He spent his afternoons with Percy watching the sun set as they sat on the beach. They would sit around the campfire and sing along with the other campers. They'd roast marshmallows and 'feed' each other. (They ended making a mess on each other's faces.) They'd kiss each other goodnight and good morning. Many campers were shocked - no pun intended - when they started doing this constantly and showed affection openly. Mostly the Athena cabin because they thought Percy wasn't over Annabeth yet.

Everything was going fine until Jason suddenly disappeared.

Percy was desperately looking for him. He hadn't slept in days searching for his lover to no avail.

"Have you checked on Camp Jupiter?" Annabeth asked. "He probably went there."

"He wouldn't leave like that. Without telling anyone." Percy protested. "He never does that. Chiron! Do you know anything?" Percy was desperate for any information on Jason.

"I'm afraid not." Chiron said.

Percy hung his head, shoulders shaking with silent sobs. Annabeth hugged her best friend tightly. "Come on, Seaweed Brain. You need some rest." She guided Percy to the Poseidon cabin where he lied down in the bed with Jason's shirt close to him. "We'll find him." Annabeth ran her hands through his thick, dark hair until he was asleep, drooling away. She sighed and left the cabin to keep looking for clues and answers.

Meanwhile in Olympus, Jason and Zeus were having a heated argument. Jason doesn't know how long he's been arguing with his father, all he knows is that he's exhausted of arguing with deaf ears.

"Not Poseidon's brat!" Zeus argued. "He's no good! You are not loyal to your father. You weren't supposed to befriend him! You were supposed to fight him!"

"Don't lecture me about loyalty!" Jason argued back. "He's my best friend and lover and he's the greatest person I've met and he's saved Olympus twice and I don't care what you say it won't change my mind! I will not fight him."

Thunder rumbled as Zeus stood but Jason didn't flinch. His eyes were as hard as steel, hands clenched by his side. He was breathing heavily and was slightly pale.

"He's a hero and he will go down in history just like the first Perseus."

The door to the throne room burst open and Jason couldn't be more shocked to see Percy and Poseidon.

"Jason." Percy exhaled, shoulders slumped in relief. He hugged the blond tightly. "Oh, my gods. I'm so relieved you're okay."

"Uh, Perce." Jason said letting go of Percy. "How long was I gone?"

"A week, you sack of-"

Someone cleared their throat and they turned their heads to their fathers who were looking serious. Poseidon was more passive than Zeus whom had a murderous look on his face. Poseidon turned to his brother.

"Tell me, brother." He said the word venomously. "Why are you making such a big deal out of nothing."

"Nothing?" Zeus grit out. "You call this nothing?!"

"Well, all I see are our sons in a relationship. Nothing wrong with that." He turned to look at the half-bloods. "Go back to camp. I'll deal with him."

"Thank you, Lord Poseidon." Jason said with a nod of his head. "Father." He spat out and dragged Percy out who waved at his father, a smile on his face.

"Slow down, Jase." Percy huffed and made him stop. "You've been gone for a week. Just-"

Percy didn't finish his sentence as Jason pressed their lips together. Percy felt like goo as Jason cupped his cheek softly.

"I'm sorry. I didn't know I was gone for so long. It only felt like hours." Jason apologised, rubbing his thumbs over Percy's sharp cheekbones.

"I was so worried something happened to you." Percy said softly but then his look turned steely. "Why the Hades didn't you tell me anything?!" He pushed Jason away. "No one knew where you were and we had been searching for you day and night! Nico was shadow travelling to the point of exhaustion looking for you!"

"I'm sorry! I didn't come here because I wanted to! I went to the cabin and the next thing I know, I'm here! I swear, Percy. I wouldn't want to scare you just because." The blond took Percy's hands and kissed his knuckles. "Let's get to camp."

Nico and Will were the ones to receive them. It surprised Jason when the son of Hades hugged him. It didn't surprise him when Nico punched his solar plexus, leaving him gasping for air.

"You imbecile!" He exclaimed angrily. "You worried everyone! Do you know how many sleepless nights we've had! I want to kill you!"

Will smiled sheepishly as he tugged Nico away. "Glad to know you're okay!" Will smiled. "Need a checkup or something?"

"No, I'm good." Jason said and tugged Percy along as Will pulled Nico away who was cursing in Italian.

Percy chuckled and tugged in Jason's hand to get his attention. "You should go see the others. They were worried about you."

"Aren't you coming with?" Jason frowned.

Percy shook his head. "I have a couple of things to sort out. I'll see you at dinner." He kissed Jason and disappeared into armoury.

Jason did as told and searched for Piper and Leo first. They were in Bunker 9 looking gloomy.

"Miss me?"

"Jason!" They exclaimed and tackled their friend.

Jason hugged them closely, a wide grin on his face. He was glad to be back.

***

Just as Percy said, Jason saw him at dinner. They weren't supposed to sit together but sitting alone during a meal wasn't fun. And since Nico had a "doctors note" Chiron didn't say anything.

"What were you doing?" Jason asked after they scraped off a portion of their meal into the hearth.

"Running a few errands for Chiron." Percy said. "I was training a few new campers and then did a demonstration with Clarisse."

Jason hummed. "Do you think we could… skip the campfire tonight? I just want a bit of peace and quiet."

Percy smiled at him. "Of course."

After finishing dinner, they walked towards the beach hand in hand. They didn't need to say anything as they spread out a blanket on the sand and lied down. After a while, they started to point out constellations. Jason grimaced as Percy pointed out Hercules. The son of Poseidon laughed as Jason said his half brother was a "dickhead, who needs to get his head out of his ass."

"Easy. Don't want him cursing you or anything." Percy laughed.

Jason scoffed. "He's stuck on that island. Not much he can do." He lied on his side, getting comfortable without making his glasses go askew. It was a real struggle at times. He openly stared at Percy who was staring at the sky. Jason raised an arm and caressed Percy's cheek with the tip of his pointer finger.

"Stop. It tickles." Percy murmured squirming a little. He grasped Jason's hand and playfully bit his finger.

Jason yelped and glared at him. He decided to take his glasses off and lie his head on Percy's chest. He curled around the son of Poseidon like an overgrown puppy.

"Gods. You're worse than Mrs. O'Leary." Percy grunted.

"I take offence to that." Jason grumbled.

Percy chuckled and winced as he heard the screeching of the harpies. They looked at each other with wide eyes.

"Shit."

They scrambled to their feet and narrowly avoided being spotted as they hurried to the cabins. They hastily made it to the Poseidon cabin and slipped inside. Percy shut the door, chest heaving in laughter.

"That was fucking close." He laughed and went to the bathroom. When he walked out, Jason was lying comfortably on his bed. "Are those mine?"

Jason looked down at the pajama pants he was wearing. "Obviously. It's your cabin."

Percy rolled his sea-green eyes and changed into pajama pants as well before slipping in beside Jason. The latter curled around Percy once again, pressing his front against Percy's back.

"Good night, Perce." He murmured, lips pressed against Percy's neck.

"Night, Jay." Percy took Jason's hand and squeezed it before falling asleep with Jason's warm breath against his neck.

They got a scolding from Chiron the next morning but neither regretted it. Percy had never slept more peacefully since before Tartarus and Jason didn't feel like he was being watched in the Zeus cabin.

It was the best nights sleep after all.

[italicwatches]

Animal Sentai Zyuohger - Episode 07

God damn, I can finally get this done. So it’s Animal Sentai Zyuohger, episode 07! Here we GO!

-We begin at the Big Bow, where Kubar is modifying some tokens in the back room…

-And then down at the cabin, Tusk finds that Amu has run off and left him with ALL of the chores! Literally every single one! Laundry, trash, dishes…And to make it even worse, the garbage collection is coming by, like, now. MotherFUCK

-Opening! SHARK!

-Episode 07! It’s a G-G-Go-Ghost!

-Tusk has barely gotten back from dropping off the trash in time, is ready to die, and then Amu shows up and now he’s ready to kill. At least until she shoves a really tasty bread into his mouth and she quickly starts explaining all the reasons why it’s better if Tusk does it than her. …She’s more evil than Genis, I’m telling you. Anyways she’s off again and then Tusk stomps off after her and that’s how Sela and Yamato find themselves with all the remaining chores.

-Up at the Big Bow, Azald is getting bored, because isn’t it supposed to be Kubar’s turn? They’ve got a fucking game to run here! Which is when he learns that Kubar snuck off with some tokens, without even informing Genis. Whatever he’s doing, it’s part of his own plans…

-And that’s when Amu and Tusk both get vibes. A Dethgalien, and close! They’ve got to race off after it…

-While back at the cabin, Mario learns about Amu’s trickery. Well, nothing to be done about it today, they’ll all sit her down for a long chat late—Leo and Sela get vibes, and the whole crew has to go, NOW.

-Tusk and Amu are, of course, the first on the scene, and find themselves staring down Kubar himself…They’e gonna have to buy time, then, if they’re dealing with a Team Leader!

-While Yamato’s trio…End up somewhere entirely different, by the water? And they’re facing something that’s no Dethgalien at all, but a cyborg under the service of Shocker! Oh shiiiiit.

-Meanwhile, Tiger and Elephant are working their way through mooks…When Kubar gets a chance to blast Tiger, and get in there with his fencing foil until her suit’s ripped off, and he can draw Amu into a syringe weapon…And inject her essence into a Moeba!

-Producing an obedient tigress Moeba. Who is legitimately unnerving with the way her suit actor twitches her head. And of course she’s sent right for Elephant!

-While Yamato’s crew are getting attacked by this Shocker cyborg…Only to be joined by a man of great spiritual power. Tenkuji Takeru has chased this creature across Japan, and he can’t let it get away…! He snaps out a shimmering sphere, and slams it into the belt around his waist…

-AYE! And his own shroud leaps out into the world! WATCH THIS! WATCH THIS! Henshin! EYES OPEN! It’S ME! LET’S GO! DEAD SET! G-G-GO GHOST! GO, GO, GO, GO! The shroud crashes back onto him, forming armor, as he rises into the air…

-Lands before the crew, flips back his hood, and know this, cyborg. Kamen Rider Ghost will be finishing what he started! Please stay back, you three. He has this. And Ghost races in, unleashing a flurry of blows…

-But he can’t do it alone. Not with the cyborg spraying him down with its water blasts. He needs help! Newton, come forth! EYES OPEN! NEWTON! APPLE FALLS FROM TREE! IT GOES DOWN AS GRAVITY! A new shroud crashes into him, and Ghost redirects everything coming at him!

-Edison, your turn! EYES OPEN! EDISON! ELECTRICAL INSPIRATION! THE KING OF INVENTION! Bolts of lightning tear through the cyborg, forcing it back, and give Ghost enough room to call in his most treasured of comrades, Musashi! EYES OPEN! MUSASHI! SWORD SWINGING! BLADES RINGING! IT’S THE MASTER SWORDSMAN!

-Until he has the cyborg on the ropes…And the Zyuohgers pick that time to get in there, knowing how likely it is that this guy’s about to do some kind of comeback. Instincts Awakened!

-Champion of the soaring sky…ZYUOH EAGLE! Champion of the surging waves…ZYUOH SHARK! Champion of the savannah…ZYUOH LION! Animal Sentai, ZYUOHGER!

-While up in the Big Bow, Genis is deeply intrigued…A cyborg and a spirit. They might just be interesting additions to the game…

-Meanwhile, Tusk got his ass kicked by Amu, and takes a few vicious blows that draw legit blood…Until he’s forced to barely escape with his life, leaving behind his friend. And Kubar makes it clear…He’ll kill this Moeba if you aren’t back here with your little friends, in…Ten minutes.

-Leaving Tusk with a shit choice and shit options…

-Back at the coast, Ghost can sure use the backup, as it’s time to finish this…Instincts Awakened! Gorilla charges up… And Ghost gets out the big guns. ALL EYES OPEN! SWORDSMAN INVENTOR COMPOSER PHARAOH SAMURAI PRIEST AND SNIPER! GRAND TRANSFORMATION! Countless spirits forge themselves together, into incredible armor…As these two warriors of this planet’s life unleash a kick, and a punch, that tear the cyborg apart! The battle is decided!

-While Genis decides he wants to see this keep going. Go see if you can put this Continue into that cyborg somewhere…So Naria gets down onto the ground, and with no slot, she just kinda…shoves the token into the thing’s body. Which is super unnerving. But the results speak to themselves, as he gets big.

-Zyuoh Cube! Animal Combination! SHARK! LION! GORILLA! THREE TWO SIX! ZYUOH WILD! Zyuoh Wild, ready! And Ghost just kind of gets to watch a mecha battle. Which is not the worst way to spend an afternoon, all told. It’s a vicious battle that rapidly ends in the Wild Rocket Knuckle, and the cyborg is gone with a final declaration of Shocker’s power…! So I guess that feeds into the first round of movies.

-And then Takeru bids them farewell, and just vanishes right before their eyes…Damn ghost kid. At least this one doesn’t make pun-filled banter.

-And that’s when Lion and Gorilla realize that they never saw any sign of Tusk or Amu…While he’s realizing that there’s no way they’ll make it in time. All he can do is stall for time…!

-And that’s how he races out there on his own, where Kubar is casually waiting as he literally pets Amu’s head. Oh that is so fucked up. But, Instincts Awakened! ELEPHANT! Kebab gives his minion a weapon, and Amu starts firing upon Elephant…As he tries to get through to her! You’re IN THERE, dammit! He knows it! So FIGHT! Resist! Don’t let a fucking Moeba’s form control you!!! He takes gunshot after gunshot, and finally reaches her…

-Only to get shot straight in the chest, ripped out of his armor, and Tusk is left staring her down…But something starts to hesitate inside of her…She slows…

-The others race there…In time to see the Moeba form take command, and force her to pull the trigger. Kubar is loving this shit…Only for her to whip around, and shoot the injector out of his hands! Tusk snaps to his feet and snatch it out of the air, jamming it into Amu’s chest and drawing her out of that Moeba’s body! IN a flash, he has her back out and fully free…

-She managed to get loose, and gave him a signal…And played along perfectly. You lost your ace in the hole, Kubar!

-And he’s…So very amused. You are interesting, you five. You’ll make actually interesting opponents! Until next time~ And then he’s gone…

-Which is probably for the best, since Tusk collapses into unconsciousness, totally drained, about five seconds after Kubar bails out.

-In the aftermath, Amu is overworking herself, scrubbing the cabin down and doing everything she can…While Tusk wakes up, finding himself bandaged and battered and god damn that all hurt. Amu’s so very happy to see he’s up, and also, you had something you wanted to tell her, didn’t you? That’s what you said, when you were trying to get through to her…

-Naturally, it was how deeply she’s been frustrating him with not doing her fair share! Of course. Amu despairs.

-Credits! Let’s Let’s Dance!

There were definitely some interesting beats in there, and for all that Kamen Rider Ghost had some real problems as a series, I still love so damn much of its suit design work. And jeez, that whole Kubar plot had some legitimate edge to it. If the show didn’t have to be so episodic due to its market demo…

Oh well. Looks like we’re getting some more focus on Leo next time, so look forward to that in episode EIGHT of Animal Sentai Zyuohger! Wait for it!

[heartsoftruth]

Are we just not going to talk about the fact that Neymar tried to make his father look good by saying he didn't want him to move. 😂😂 nothing in the world will make me believe his dad didn't have a hand in all this oh ney u love ur friends and family way tooo much even tho i feel they at times take advantage of it i still admire u for this!❤❤

Anonymous said:Neymar is OBVIOUSLY protecting his dad as always because of all the things that have been said about him. Because that part of the message mentioning his dad was totally unnecessary but he did...Ney LOVES his dad well all know and always Jumps to defend him

Anonymous said:In his message, neymar specifically said that his father wanted him to remain in Barcelona, but it was Neymar himself that wanted to leave

True, I dont buy that bit either... But oh well I can't blame him for trying to defend his father who he loves dearly. I would do the same with mine. 

Anonymous said:Well because he left in a really bad note with the club (not the players tho I think pique might be 'angry') and besides his father is threatening to sue them for the loyalty bonus so can't blame them for not posting anything tbh. Sad but oh well he and his dad could have done this amicably from the start

Well they almost all did yesterday! :) Happy about that! 

Anonymous said:He's leaving alvaro too 😥

Yeah I also get that feeling? :(

Anonymous said:I'm lost and confused right now I don't even know who to follow. Or what blogs to follow, I know nothing about PSG so how do i keep updated on him up

Exactly. I’m also trying to find a few good ones. At least on Twitter. I mean enough Insta accounts, but I also need some real news haha. 

Anonymous said:Ash I just read something scary about Ligue 1 and now I am scared for Ney . Apparently the defenders are way more physical than la liga and injure players a looot. With the way Ney plays this will be a serious problem,...I rely hope this boy doesn't get injured or worse become a failure with this move. He is toooo good do this

I think it indeed is physical. I dont know the level of it tho... I guess we will find out... He will be ok. He is used to fouls on him. He jumps. 

Anonymous said:ofc he cares but lmao he still left because of moneyAnonymous said:😂😂😂 out of all the letters Neymar could have chosen he chose "M" 🤔😂

Ok no pun indented but these two asks compiled after each other 😂😂😂😂 Maybe the M was for something else? jisajfhjakdhfk Just joking. Just joking let me live xD 

READ MORE TAGGGGGGGG

Anonymous said:Barcelona have a practice match today u have any idea if its gonna be on television??

Dont think it was aired. Only a highlight now on the site. 

Anonymous said:Y'all in all this mess and drama spare a thought for valverde he must have aged 40years more by now😂 seriously tho he has a huuuuuge task ahead of him

HAHA poor Valverde... What a way to start a season by having your 2nd best player leave... 

Anonymous said:all Neys statements at this point, including his goodbye msg, are carefully planned, superficial PR statements for press with no real explanation and reason, no one leaves Barca for PSG for challenge! No one!! cuz its no challenge! just anticipated BS... and everyone is bawling over it.. I don't get it. I don't believe half of what he says... he said things like this before which were obviously not true...

Think it’s to be a leader, maybe a challenge and money too. I mean 600k per week I would go live in Parieee. Tho if I already had his money and would be playing with Leo I wouldnt. xD 

Anonymous said:hello ash i am one of your biggest fan s but you may hate me bec i am well real madrid super fan . but i am here to say that i really feel that NEy will achieve the glory with psg yesterday i was surprised that am so sad for his leaving bec for a madrid fan his leaving is good like what ramos said i hope that he can win the CL even if he faced us i will hope to win so all ppl can learn that if you follow your heart you can do it i hope you all support him GLORY GLORY NEYMAR love ya all

asgddsgjhasd my fan?? hahaha. Im just a tumblr account darling. Nothing special ;) 

Well RMA fan or not I think everyone wants to see the best players in one competition. It’s sad he left, but we will get over it. Or like it said maybe not and then we all move along. 

Anonymous said:dont worry he'll do well!glad u found me mature but no honestly i think at some point we all need to stop with he is doing a mistake he wants to be the king so he is leaving. Truth is we dont knw y&we'll never knw obviously the way this happened it hurt ppl but lets be honest what other way cud this have happened? At the end like i said earlier above all he is his own person who has every right to decide what he wants from his life we need to respect that&move on. Bitterness leads nowhere😁

Exactly. We will never know his true reason (publicly). If he make a mistake he will learn from that one too. I can understand that no one understands it now, but maybe if he wins that CL.... 

I mean for now people can sulk and I think many will for a while... Barca will look different without him, play different etc It will have a big effect on our season, but hopefully we will recover from him leaving. And he will do good too.

Anonymous said:Imagine if messi decides to end his career at Argentina and leaves how will u feel at his farewell??

sobbing hysterically. But I know Leo won't leave for another team in Europe. Or something has to drastically change within Barca to force him out or something. 

@malak15x1 said:I feel lil better that he talk Apologize to us and I wish he was more honest but I know it's more business then anything .. plus I'm still hurt every time I see him I feel sad even I can see his beautiful smile again I feel it's what he said about "new challenge" true but I still feel like my boyfriend broke up with me and I'm watching him smiling While I'm eating ice cream with His Shirt 🙄 Sorry but I need to talk to someone lol

Aaawhhh. You can come talk to me. You will hopefully feel better within a few days I’m sure. He looks happy and I mean for him personally that’s important. 

It’s not best for our team to see him leave, but he wanted to go or whatever his reason was he decided to leave. We just have to accept that now. 

Anonymous said:did you see Neymar photos with Lele

Yeah. 

Anonymous said:girl what is ney eye color am so confused

Hazel brown. 

Anonymous said:do you have a link for a full transcript of the press conference? i would like to see all of what both neymar and that sheikh said. i read that he implied that there is something like a release clause for neymar but as they are not used in france im confused. and i also would like to read it all in the order it was said so i can get my own impressions rather then just excerpts... thx

I think you have to google it or you can watch it back online. He indeed said something about a release clause which it weird bc in France they dont work with that...  aka shaaaady. 

Anonymous said:okay ASH here we go now you need to choose between neymar and kevin coz am gonna take the other one ;)

Ney. 

@msn-forever​ said:Thanks a lot for posting so much about neys new adventure! U know it's hard to see him in another shirt than Barca, but anyway I still support him and always will. I'm glad u do the same! Don't be sad if some people don't follow u anymore. U do the right thing to support ney, not psg! Keep doing what u Do!❤

Aaawhh thank you for your sweet message girlie!!! Means a lot to me

Anonymous said:A lot of people been talking about how they see Ney joining Madrid in two or three years, and I'm not gonna lie, I do too. Do you? I think that I (and those other people) can see it because we're very disappointed at the moment. We're just hurt so we're expecting the worst from him. But do you really think he could go to Madrid?

He would be death to me. I think Barca at least put a rule somewhere he can never join them. 

Anonymous said:U guys that's all rabiot can do Instagram fun on field he just disappears under pressure😝 i mean psg team was eliminated by lio alone in the past not to mention an extremely injured messi who was limping soo yeah that team has some mentality issues😝 i am certain dani&ney are bought in to take care of that just like zlatan was once bought. Even ronaldinho😂

HAHAHHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA. you made me laugh way to hard haha. 

I hate that guy so much already! Fuckkkkkk. 

Anonymous said:even if they got back it gonna fail well lets admit they are not made FOR EACH OTHERS MOVE ON GUYS PLZZZZZ

PLEASEEEEEEEE. 

Anonymous said:I was going through golden shoe winner list leo is getting last season. There is ranking there right? I mean some leagues are considered superior over the others hence have more points??

Yeah, thats true! 

Anonymous said:Yeah, the seats near the corner flag. Now I'm just planning on going to Paris to see him play, but I don't know when I'll have the time/money. Going to Barcelona is always my priority.

Yeah I’m going to Paris too to see him. I was going to Barca this year to see him since I saw everyone else up close besides him... I really want to see him so Paris it is again... 

Anonymous said:Because at one point barca has kicked everyone's ass😂 i mean arsenal is making fun of us arsenal like seriously?!😂😂😂 though on a honest this whole transfer has been pretty embarrassing for the club hopefully we recover soon.HAHHAHA, Let them all sit TF down. We will survive. Barca is more than one player. leo is still with us. The best ever. Anonymous said:I'm the anon that just asked if you were a PSG fan now, thank god you're not! I thought you were going to leave us too since ney left, especially since the world seems to be against us at the moment :( glad to hear you'll still be supporting Barça!!

HAHAHHAHAAH. Nooooo!!! of course not!! Visca el Barca siempreeeeee!

Im a net fan not PSG hahaha. I’m trying to see how that will work our xD 

Anonymous said:fuck i cant see him in that jersey so comfortable

Well... I mean I wouldnt want to have seen him sad tbh. That way I would have thought his father really forced him. 

Anonymous said:if Bruna couldn't move to Barcelona for NEYMAR, what makes you think she can do it now that he's playing somewhere else ??? if she does, then its truly bc of the city and not for him. they need to move on... its better this wayzsdjgjhasgjshad And she said she will work very hard in the upcoming months or something. At least something about work hard/a lot. So it won't work. Anonymous said:How many times did Neymar actually say "um novo desafio" during the interviews ? omgggggg boyhahahahhaha. Anonymous said:what do you think of Di maria ?

Please dont come to Barca XD 

Anonymous said:Who's snapchat was that from?What?Anonymous said:i know why they hate barca bec barca is fucking their ass and winning all of them

Exaclty hhaha. 

[vampirerafa-blog]

Major Quest 004: See You At The Crossroads

What: So much awkwardness. Bickering. Banter. Pop culture references.

Who: The Teenage Mutant Ninja Turtles aka Leonardo Flynn and Rafael Alvarez

Where: So far away from where they should be.

Notes: Mobile time stamps. I’m lazy, sue me.

Status: not finished

viktor . – 25.02.17 05:45 > This was the first time Rafael didn’t finish a quest and to be honest, he felt utterly lost. He wasn’t used to not getting all the necessary clues handed to him as a reward for his hard work, instead having to go with whatever rumors pop up on the message boards. Closing the user interface with a grunt, he decided he’d have to find a better way to obtain information. It was just in that moment when a somewhat familiar dark-haired man passed him by, the translated note in his hands. Blowing all caution to the wind, he decided to follow him. “Hey, wait up!”, he called out, obviously struggling to keep up with his wide steps. “Hi. We know each other. You’re Leonardo right? I’m Rafael. We met in the tavern once? My friend dragged me into this awkward conversation between-”, it was rare that Rafael caught himself rambling, usually not even noticing when he gave too much information in too little time for any brain to comprehend, but it seemed that miracles still happened. “I- uh- just wanted to ask if maybe I could take a look at that?”, he asked, his voice becoming more and more quiet the further he got into the sentence, motioning towards the note.

Ro – 25.02.17 22:00 > Leo had been minding his own business when he was suddenly accosted by the random other player. Coming to a sudden stop, all he could do was stand there and blink at the onslaught of babbling. Is this how others felt when they spoke to him? And Leo was taken aback with the confidence that he had when he stated they knew each other. Honestly, Leo barely remembered whatever encounter the man was referencing until he felt a brief flicker of recognition at Rafael’s name. “Rafael? The teenage mutant ninja turtle guy?” he repeated back with a raised brow. He hadn’t expected to ever encounter him again. “I suppose you could take a peek…” he agreed grudgingly, reluctantly releasing his tight grip on the paper. “For a moment.”

viktor . – 25.02.17 23:15 > “The one and only,” he said with a bright smile before snatching the note out the Leo’s hand before he had the time to change his mind. Reading it, he nodded between making small humming noises. “This is fascinating,” he commented with his eyes still glued to the paper, raising his hands to push up his glasses out of habit only to be reminded that he didn’t need them in game and hence wasn’t even wearing them. “Seriously, fascinating!”, he repeated as he handed it back, his expression going blank. “You got any clue what this is supposed to mean?”

Ro – 26.02.17 00:04 > Leo watched with a tense frown, arms crossed. He didn’t have any reason to suspect Rafael would take off with the clue but he still didn’t want to take any chances. But he couldn’t help the slight curl of his mouth upwards when Rafael pushed up his nonexistent glasses. Leo was having the same problem, he was used to wearing reading glasses. Taking the paper back with a shrug, Leo put it back into his inventory. “Seems to be a riddle. Word on the street is that the answer is ‘crossroads’.” he replied.

viktor . – 26.02.17 02:58 > Rafael gave a small laugh in reaction to Leo’s reply. “Wow, someone is super invested in this, huh?” Maybe he was just overly excited, driven by this whole you-want-what-you-can’t-have mentality, but the other man’s disinterested still seemed somewhat odd. “Are you not doing the quest?”

Ro – Monday 05:23 > “Eh. I figure if I don’t do it, somebody else will.” Leo offered indifferently. Wasn’t that what had happened with this quest? It was all over the message boards anyway. But Leo had to admit, after getting the run around for the clue he kind of felt obligated to see it through. “I honestly hadn’t though about it yet.”

viktor . – Monday 12:40 > “That’s the downside of MMORPGs, isn’t it? You don’t really have to think for yourself,” he commented with a shrug. “Dude. Are you serious?” he asked with an almost offended expression, quickly turning into an enthusiastic smile, “You can’t just not do it. You traveled miles just for this piece of paper! It would be a shame not do it!”

Ro – Tuesday 20:35 > Leo’s eyes widened at the sudden enthusiasm. Raphael seemed to go through more emotions in a single conversation than Leo did in an entire day. “Err….” he hedged, taken aback. “I guess? If you’re that keen, did you want it?” Leo held out the paper. Rafael seemed ten times more interested than himself, he probably deserved it more.

viktor . – Tuesday 20:48 > “Are you serious?” At this point Rafael was basically bouncing with excitement. “That’s awesome! God, I’m excited,” his expression faltered a little. “How are you not excited? What are you, some kind of quest Grinch?”, Rafael asked, slapping Leo’s arm lightly.

Ro – Tuesday 20:53 > Leo just watched the others excitement with mild shock. What was he, the fucking energizer bunny? “No,” he shot back with a scowl, mildly offended. He didn’t realize that was definitely not helping his case. “I just don’t really see the appeal.”

viktor . – Tuesday 21:03 > “Oh come on!”, Rafael groaned. How could someone be this pessimistic. “You don’t see the appeal of it? This is the most awesome quest yet! Venturing of into the jungle, fighting high level monsters, finding whatever this clue is hinting at”, he said, guesturing wildly. “Come on, don’t say you’re not even a little bit excited?”

Ro – Tuesday 23:58 > Leo raised a brow. “Getting our asses kicked by things way more powerful than us,” he added onto Rafael’s list. He dodged a flailing hand. “Have you read any book or comic ever? Going into the creepy jungle alone never ends well. June Moone thought it was a good idea to go into the jungle in Central America and then she got possessed by a creepy killer witch goddess. Do you want to end up as Enchantress, Rafael?”

viktor . – Wednesday 13:23 > “Well, that would actually be pretty awesome,” he said, blinking at Leo with a blank expression, obviously having trouble with wrapping his head around the idea of anyone not wanting to end up as Enchantress. “Okay. Fine. But think about it. The adventure. The mystery. It’ll be like Indiana Jones! Fighting our way through the jungle just to find some mysterious object. Doesn’t that sound cool?”

Ro – Wednesday 13:26 > Leo just frowned. “Seriously? If I had the option I’d want to be like, Captain America or something. Or Spider-Man. Significantly less creepy evil vibes.” But that was besides the point, he was getting off topic. Leo paused. When had my become our? He shifted. “Well…I suppose somebody needs to make sure you don’t get yourself killed.”

viktor . – Wednesday 13:31 > “Sure, I mean, Cap is cool. And Spidey is classic. But the creepy evil vibes are what makes Enchantress so enchanting .” He raised his brows with a wide smile on his face, pointing finger guns at Leo, anticipating his reaction to what Rafael considered a clever pun. “Oh come on. I’m a vampire. I’m tough.”

Ro – Wednesday 13:35 > Leo stared blankly before rolling his eyes. “Gesù, that’s… that’s just awful. Please stop.” Sighing, he leveled him with a flat look. “Great. So you can take it on yourself then.”

viktor . – Wednesday 16:34 > “I- uh, sure,” he started hemming and hawing. Letting out an awkward, humorless chuckle he rubbed the back of his neck, looking at the ground for a moment before looking back up at Leo. “I sure could make it on my own. Definitely. No problem. But, you know, you kinda need two people for this. So it’s not like I need help or anything because I really don’t. I can totally handle it, but, I, uh…”

Ro – Thursday 03:39 > Leo watched his bumbling with a slight smirk. “Right,” he said with mild amusement. “Lead the way then, oh fearless one.”

viktor . – Thursday 07:25 > “Are you serious?”, Rafael asked, almost surprised, but beaming with a bright smile. “Awesome!” Stretching his arm high over his head, he waited for Leo to give him a high-five.

Ro – Thursday 07:32 > Leo looked back at him, horrified. Seriously? He gave the hand a skeptical once over before sighing in defeat and reaching up for a reluctant high-five. “Don’t make me regret this.”

viktor . – Thursday 22:38 > “Yeah, there we go, big guy. That wasn’t too bad now, was it?”, he asked, patting Leo’s shoulder with a wide grin. “Oh I’d never. You’ll see, this is going to be so awesome. Just follow my lead.” He nodded towards the harbor and started walking.

Ro – Thursday 22:47 > Leo rolled his eyes to the sky, begging for the lord to give him strength, before trailing after Rafael. “Awesome isn’t exactly the adjective I’d use. Hey, what’s your class anyway?”

viktor . – Thursday 22:51 > “How about amazing? Terrific? Marvelous?” He gave Leo a quick once over before weekly suggesting “ Rad? ”, just because it seemed like something that fitted Leo’s vocab. “I’m a thief. You?”

Ro – Thursday 23:00 > “Rad?” Leo repeated as if the very word offended him. “No, I was thinking somewhere more along the lines of noioso.” There. Let him try to figure that one out. “I’m a pirate. Seems we’ve both picked classes better suited to DPS. Pity we don’t have a tank.” translation: boring/tedious

viktor . – Thursday 23:18 > “Hey, no offense. I mean, you look like a rad kinda guy,” Rafael said with a shrug. “Or swell maybe? Your expression sure fits that whole Breakfast Club atmosphere.” Squinting, he gave Leo a long, hard look. “Sorry. I don’t speak Spanish. I don’t even blame you. I get that a lot. I mean, it’s the name right? Like. Rafael? That just sounds so Latino. And I am Mexican. Also Cuban. And some Columbian. So definitely Latino. But boy, my Spanish? The worst.” Rafael shrugged lightly and gave a small wave. Sure, Leo was somewhat right, but his species perks made him quite durable. “I’m a vampire, too. So I can take a few hits. We don’t need a tank.”

Ro – Thursday 23:55 > “Breakfast club atmosphere?” Leo repeated weakly before trailing off as Rafael rambled on. Was he joking? Did Leo even look Spanish? “Look, kid, I don’t care about your long and confusing background.” he cut off roughly. “And it’s Italian. I’m Italian.” He was mildly offended. How could somebody not recognize that? Shaking it off, he frowned. “I’m a human so I guess I could make a tasty treat if need be.”

viktor . – Friday 08:20 > “Yeah?”, Rafael asked almost sarcastically. How could anyone no know what he meant with Breakfast Club atmosphere. “You know. That 80s movie? Set in a high school? Bunch of kids from different backgrounds come together for detention? Everyone is white, because, well, it’s the 80s?” For a second, he didn’t know what to say. He was used to rambling. He was used to people cutting him off, but this? This seemed a little harsh. “Wow. Sorry, I-”, he hesitated for a second, raising his hands defensively, “I really didn’t mean to offend you.” His characteristic smile was still heavy on his features but his brows were slightly furrowed, making him almosy look worry. “I really appreciate the offer mate, but I’ll pass. I try not to feed of actual people. I’m not too good with blood,” Rafael said, pulling a face.

Ro – Friday 08:29 > Leo snorted despite himself. He wasn’t wrong. “Right, well I suppose that makes you Brian then?” He didn’t even want to know who Rafael would say he was. Bender, probably. “It’s fine just - seriously? Spanish?” He was rather proud of his heritage, the idea that someone could think he was Spanish was ludicrous to say the least. “You chose vampire? When you hate blood?” he couldn’t help but ask dryly.

viktor . – Friday 08:41 > “Duh, obviously,” he said with a light chuckle in his voice. “I’d almost say Bender. Not really that whole bad boy thing, but this?”, raising a hand, he vaguely gestured at Leo’s face, “This looks like Bender material. However, I think almost everyone here is a little bit of Brian.” Obviously. Most of the other characters would never ever pick up a video game, so some Brian undertones. “I’m bad with languages, okay? Also Spanish and Italian are both Romance languages so cut me some slack,” Rafael was half whining at this point. He didn’t like to admit that he wasn’t good at something. Especially languages. Especially Spanish. Or in this case, not Spanish. “I didn’t say I hate blood,” he raised his hands defensively, “I… Just prefer to… Stay away from it?” Rubbing his neck, a sighed in defeat. “It makes me icky, okay?”

Ro – Friday 08:47 > Leo narrowed his eyes slightly at the gesture. “This? What - no, I don’t even want to know,” he sighed. Might as well just stop him while he was ahead or they’d be here all day. Rafael somehow managed to drag him into these stupid arguments without Leo even realizing. It was exhausting. His eyebrows shot up. “It makes you icky?” Seriously, what was he, five? “Don’t you need it to survive? You’re kind of fucked there.”

viktor . – Friday 09:01 > Rafael just opened his mouth to explain, but then decided he’d rather not. Offending Leo anymore didn’t seem to be the best idea after all. “Yeah,” he admitted with a goofy smile, “I noticed. Not like I could actually expect that though. That I have to drink blood or literally die. To death.”

Ro – Friday 09:10 > “As opposed to simply dying, yes,” Leo barely managed to get out with a straight face. He didn’t think it was possible to meet somebody more rambly than him, but here he was, staring Leo right in the face. He cracked a smile. “I’m just thankful I picked human.”

viktor . – Friday 09:15 > Seeing Leo smile felt like a huge accomplishment - one that Rafael knew better than to comment on if he wanted it to last. “Why did you though? Some people might just say humans are boring.” Upon reaching the harbour, Rafael quickly looked around to find a ship. “Want me to show off my cool vampire abilities to get us onto that?”, he asked, pointing.

Ro – Friday 10:43 > He simply shrugged. “I wasn’t really interested in anything flashy or complicated. I just wanted something comfortable and familiar.” Besides, boring was actually pretty accurate. Leo wasn’t really one for excitement. Trailing after Rafael, he raised a brow. “Go for it, Dracula.”

viktor . – Friday 22:00 > Rafael nodded, “Just how Leonardo chose to go with a sword. Simple, classic, effective. Good call.” A wide grin spread on his face as he passed Leo by with a pat on the shoulder. “Okay, watch this.” Walking up to the captain, he looked at him with a… focused expression? Actually, it was hard to tell what exactly what Rafel was doing. But it was obviously not compulsion. After a few more unsuccessful attempts, he just went back to rambling, explaining how he was trying really hard to make his new friend all excited for this quest and he really needed for things to work out because he while he said he could totally make it on his own he totally couldn’t and he wished he could just pay for a ride on the ship like a normal person or do anything ever like a normal person instead of being his weird awkward self - That was when the captain suddenly cut him off, rolling his eyes at him he stepped aside and motioned for him to get on board. “Come on!”, he shouted over to Leo, thankful that his charisma skill saved the day once again.

Ro – Saturday 01:13 > Leo grimaced at the use of his full name but simply nodded. “Raphael used sai so it seems we’re both conforming to our stereotypes.” He just raised his brows at the wide grin. “Alright, go work your magic.” He watched skeptically from the side as Rafael talked to the captain. Was it supposed to be taking this long? Surely the vampire compulsion was supposed to be quicker than this. Right before he gave up and moved to join him, Rafael finally waved him over. Sighing, Leo jogged over “You do realize I’m a pirate? I could have helped with that?”

viktor . – Saturday 15:24 > “What, like we have choice?”, Rafael teased, his hand immediately finding his daggers in his pockets. Funny enough how he just noticed the similarities now. He was proud enough that he actually managed to work this out for them, but Leo’s comment sure made it feel like less of an accomplishment. “I- That would actually have been helpful, but as you can see, I managed just fine,” he pointed out in a weak attempt to fix his pride.