#apparently the doctor did clip a bit too short

[facesblind]

idk what is happening honestly so tired so eepy let boys run the errands with teddybeardog and i have some regrets ( tm )

[winderlylandchime]

Hello!! I love how we are all hoping that Jordan brings back the podcast, i need those two besties back so badly. I feel like they have so much stuff they could talk about especially now with the strikes, it’d be fun to hear their take on it. I am honestly not ready for him to find out how the filming and the aftermath of the show was on Gale and Randy. I know he’s gonna lose his shit to find out how some people were towards them (especially since his idea of Gale in his head is obviously different and in his mind Gale and Randy are bffs like how he is with his friends.) but also i think he will be shocked to find out they both kind of stepped back from the show and had certain issues with it. He did storm in my room randomly today and went ‘IS THAT WHY THERE WAS LESS SEX STUFF?!’ Which btw it was 10 am when he did that, I barely knew i was awake. Basically he was up almost all night thinking about the finale and the podcast (he is once again that conspiracy meme) and he realized in later seasons there’s less sex scenes and now he is distraught that maybe it’s because Randy was uncomfortable. He was having an entire crisis over it. While I don’t know what all i will show him/what he’ll see on his own (i wanna show him bts content and like obviously anything else i can find) but i will be keeping con videos/posts FAR away from him because some of those are the worst things ive ever seen in my life, no offense to anyone. I will say, If you or anyone has any ideas what else I should show him, let me know because he has been losing his mind begging me to let him listen to more of the podcast.

As for our mom, i swear that woman is actually pretty chaotic herself but unlike my brother she hides it better. Both of our parents are insane but for some reason only he doesn’t even make an effort to hide it. She did get a long email sent to her by my brother because she was ignoring his calls and he wanted to talk about s4 finale. It was titled ‘IMPORTANT! NOTHING TO DO WITH THE SHOW’ and then it was almost a short novel about the show.. He wanted to hear her thoughts since he is still undecided about Justin not saying yes to moving in. And he wrote a little bit about the podcast and he also asked her if she thinks Randy would like him if they met (clearly he is feeling a certain way about this) which caused a different crisis, a much bigger one: would Gale like him if they met. That crisis lasted almost 2 hours btw. Anyway as a reply to the email she just forwarded it to our dad who forwarded it back to me to tell me to ‘change the wifi password.’ And then I immediately got a call from my mom about the podcast asking me if it’s about the show and how he already has enough weird hobbies and why can’t I get him into something normal like a pottery group or painting group or something with normal people around. And then I heard in the background our uncle who went ‘after all the stories about him talking to DOCTORS, you want to unleash him on a person who is not medically trained?’ So he is now being encouraged to stay home and watch tv. Also: he is currently talking to his best friend about the finale, while writing down mind maps and lists of what he thinks season 5 will be. He’s having a bit of issues with it because the LA offer apparently fucked quite a lot of things up for him so his original list no longer makes sense. He is also talking to him at the same time (he’s jumping from topic to topic) about Gale and how shocked he was that Randy didn’t enjoy the qaf fame. I don’t know how this became my life. More importantly I would just like to say: i cannot wait for your new fic! I mean your last fic got us here so I can’t wait to see what happens next. But also bearded Brian>>

The podcast talking about the strikes would be amazing! I was hoping we would get a Barbie movie episode but alas. I really want to hear the besties talk about Greta Gerwig.

I have never seen the con clips and I’m grateful. I have too much secondhand embarrassment to sit through that boundary-crossing behavior and invasive questions.

I LOVE that your parents were like “change the wifi password” and uncle was like “unleash him into the world?” and they responded “jk never mind.”

I personally think Gale and Randy are still friends but we would never know with the one proof of life per year Gale gives us and Randy being tightlipped about his time on the show.

Wait until your brother realizes that one of Randy’s partner’s is named Justin (or is that the kid? either way there’s a Justin!)

I am dreading his reaction to S5 but we all watched it so he must as well…

And, yes, bearded Brian >>>

BUT I saw your request at the top - folks let’s start to pull together a post-S5 education for all necessary BTS for Brother Anon to fully understand QAF! In box me or comment on this post.

[rndyounghowze]

What You Might Not Know About…

Jacques Ze Whipper

Jack Lepiarz or “Jaques Ze Whipper” or “Jack the Whipper” has been whipping it good for about fourteen years now. You may know him from his appearance on America’s Got Talent when he whipped a piece of straw from between Simon Cowell’s legs. You may also know him from his viral short videos where he sings parodies to songs like “All the Single Ladies” or the Animaniacs “Yakko’s World” song all while cracking the whip to keep time. However, there are some things about Jaques that you might not know about. We got to chat with him for a short while to bring you some trivia like…

Jack Comes From a Circus Family

“I grew up in the circus. We were with the Big Apple Circus until I was about 6 years old and then we did a bunch of Renaissance Faires when I was a kid. I have a weird parentage. My father is a circus performer (His father John Lepiarz currently “Mr. Fish” with the Super Scientific Circus) . My mother, now retired, was a college professor of anthropology with a doctorate in anthropology. She was very big on me getting a normal education so I kinda split time between normal school and the circus growing up.”

Jack Started On The Streets Of Boston

 “I went to Emerson College. I’m like ‘I have all these circus skills, why don’t I just try to do some street performing and see how that goes?’ It went as well as you would expect for someone who’s not very polished to go, which is that it went alright, there was nothing catastrophic, but it wasn’t great work. But it helped me kind of polish the act. Then I was like ‘well alright now I have this slightly more polished act let me do Renaissance Faires’ so I started working at King Richard’s Faire when I was twenty. 

Father’s Advice 

“My father, who had done the Renaissance Faire circuit for years, said ‘well what makes a good, successful Ren Faire act is the character and the comedy. You don’t have to be the most talented circus performer as long as you can make people laugh and keep them engaged and a character is a great way to do that.’ One of the things that we wanted to do is to make the whips less threatening. We kind of played around with the idea of being a goofy character and that didn’t quite translate. We decided to try being the French character because, you know, everyone at the Ren Faire is English, Irish,  Scottish. There aren’t a lot of French characters at the Renaissance Faire. We tried that for a couple of days and it went alright. Then the last day of my first weekend I drew on the mustache and it was like everything clicked. People understood this show is dumb and that it’s okay to laugh.”

Jaques Fans Are Why He’s On Tik Tok 

“[In 2021] a couple of longtime fans of mine came to my show, recorded bits of the show, put up 30-40 second clips of the show on Tik Tok and the first one got like three hundred thousand views, the second one got two million views and the third one got two point two million views. I was like ‘oh okay apparently there is a demand for Jaques Ze Whipper in the world that I had never known’. So I started on Tik Tok and from there it’s kinda been like, as I find I have the brain space to expand I expand to a new social media and so from there I went to Instagram and from there I went to Facebook and then Youtube.”

Digital Show 

“As my following has grown on social media there are these people who are like ‘come to the UK, come to Germany, come to Indonesia’. There’s no way for me right now to easily get to those places and even if I could get to those places the amount it would cost for me to get there would be prohibitive for a lot of people. So I said ‘why don’t I do this show where we can kinda do the best of my show and the secret show that I do with Ses Carny and by making it a digital show what we could do is get people from all over the world and that helps us keep the price point pretty low’. Ten bucks is still too expensive for some people that I’ve talked to but I think that it’s reachable for most people who are fans of mine. You could get four people to all pitch in $2.50 and just share one ticket. That’s fine. 

My plan is to do a show like this every year around this time for as long as WBUR will have me. We did a walk through in the theatre this week and they said they’re fully on board for another show next year and the year beyond that so I think my plan is: once a year do a digital show like this and assuming the interest is still there bring in other performers and kind of make it ‘Jacque’s Circus Hour’ and use it as a way to profile some of my wonderful colleagues who I think are just as if not more talented than me who just for some reason or another haven’t gone viral yet”.

The Physical Toll 

“A lot of people don’t understand quite how physical the show is and the amount of work that goes into making sure that my body is able to hold up under the stress of the show. The last couple of years I have been semi injured while performing and it’s been amazing how something as little as [spraining] my wrist in August of 2021 and the entire ‘21 season…there were certain tricks that I could not do without a lot of pain. Then this past season I tweaked something in my right shoulder just before the season started or early in the season and it never felt quite right until I had a chance to just rest it for a few weeks. (You can see this video where he sings a “Sound Of Silence” parody while remarking that his Physical Therapist would be mad because he wasn't cleared to whip with his right hand yet.)  I think that’s the biggest thing. The show is an athletic performance even as I’m just up there just cracking whips and singing songs. It is a workout.”

Get your tickets now! Virtual Ticket sales end at 5pm Eastern on Friday Jan. 27

[letarasstuff]

One kind of intern

(A/N): This was requested by @greenslifestuff :) It took me a week or two because I had to interact with my friends in order to get the inspiration I needed 😅 Summary: The team gets to work with a gen z teenager. Let’s see how that goes.

Warnings: Swearing and gen z humour

Wordcount: 2k

✨Masterlist✨

___________________________________

“Team, this is (Y/N) (L/N). She will be interning for the upcoming three months alongside this team. (Y/N), these are Agents Emily Prentiss, Jennifer Jareau, David Rossi, Derek Morgan and Doctor Spencer Reid and our Technical Analyst Penelope Garcia”, Hotch introduces a teenage girl to his team like this happens every day.

“Wait Hotch, we don’t get interns. What is she going to do, no offense, but getting us coffee or what?” Morgan eyes her suspiciously. She looks like any teenager grabbed from the street. A band t-shirt, a torn pair of jeans and a cup from starbucks in her hands. Nothing you would expect to even enter a federal building.

“No offence taken, Agent Morgan. I know having an ugly pickly bitch working with professionals seems weird. It’s just I have summer break and I thought it would be a good thing on my resumé if I already interned in the FBI, because I just graduated and I wanted to go to the academy this fall. But if you wanna do a vibe check with me first, that’s fine by me. Whatever floats your boat.”

The room falls silent. Then out of all sudden everyone turns to Garcia, who puts her arms up in defense. “I don’t even know half the things she said, ask her yourself.”

That’s how the BAU gets their first contact with Gen Z culture and let me tell you it is a wild ride, so buckle up your seats, drink your tea up because we aren’t going to make any stops.

“(Y/N), I need you to come with me. We are going to the M.E. getting the latest reports from our last case”, Morgan tells her while passing her desk. In the blink of an eye the teenager is ready, putting her denim jacket with various pins and bits of patches on.

“Derek, can we get starbucks on the way back? The pumpkin spiced latte is back on their menu and I am on withdrawal. Pleaaaaaasseeee”, she looks at him with a pouty face. Morgan smiles. “Ok, under one condition: We both get one, take awesome pictures and send them to the group chat and then we act like we didn’t get them anything, but we actually buy them their usual.” He got the hang of it pretty fast. “Deal, Sis.”

While they are in the car on their way to the M.E. the agent groans. “Ugh, road work ahead.” “Uh yeah, I sure hope it does!” Morgan eyes her from the side. His whole demeanor says ‘old and confused’.

“What was that, kid?” But (Y/N) begins to laugh. “Don’t you know vines? Short dumb and funny clips people made?” It’s safe to say that this afternoon he learns to speak in vines, getting on Rossi’s nerves because nothing makes sense anymore.

“Ok, I heard you wanted to become a profiler. So I thought I would show you some old cases and then you try to figure out the profile. I’ll present them to you like I do to the team, alright?” JJ and (Y/N) sit in her office, safe from curious eyes. “As right as the law, Ma’am.” 

“Good, this is a case from several years ago. It happened here in D.C. Three men were murdered execution style in the middle of the night in an alleyway. They were all from different backgrounds. The only connection between them was that they were evicted for some form of sexual harassment or assault. The UnSub also had a signature: A shot into their groin while the men were alive.”

Unfaced by the presented facts (Y/N) pops a piece of gum into her mouth. “It do be like that.”

“What?” “I mean, it’s obviously a woman. She experienced any harassment or assault herself. She also has excess to the files, I assume she works as a paralegal, since most of them are women. Female serial killers are extremely rare, but they are better organized. The only thing left to say is good for her getting revenge.” The blonde looks at the teenager with wide eyes.

“I-I guess but you know you can’t say anything like that to Hotch, do you?” She asks concerned. “JJ, I’m dead inside, not dumb. I know this.” But the agent shrugs. “Good. Though I really want to see his face.” “Mood.”

Penelope Garcia is the closest one to relate to Gen Z culture, since a great part of her time is spent on the internet. She happily learns about all the phrases and their meanings as well as the newest trends and hypes.

“Purp is sus, I tell you”, is heard from the lair into the hallway. Spencer and Derek look at each other with concern on their faces. “Do you think they are alright or do we have to-” “IT’S A SELF REPORT I SWEAR PENNY! YOU WORK WITH PROFILERS IN GANDALF’S NAME!” Spencer’s question is answered by that.

“Baby girl, crazy girl, are you doing good? Do you need help or something?” The older one asks warily. But it’s drowned in another screaming match. “I TOLD YOU PURP WAS THE IMPOSTER BUT YOU HAVE TO TELL THEM I VENTED WHEN I DIDN’T! I WANT ALL TIKTOKS I SENT YOU BACK!” “YOU DON’T DARE TO REVOKE MY TIKTOK PRIVILEGES!” “WATCH ME GARCIA!”

“Whoa girls, what about taking a break?” Morgan tries to diffuse the situation. “Yes, I think JJ got new pictures of Henry and Emily brought cookies this morning”, Spencer adds.

The girls, who mere seconds ago were ready to jump each other's throats, look at the other one. “You get the cookies and I go to JJ, deal?” (Y/N) asks. “Deal!” Without sparing the boys another glance they run out of the lair. Their devices are still lit up. A red figure shines into their faces. ‘AMONG US’ is written underneath it. “I think we get too old for this stuff, don’t we Reid?”

Spencer always thought he was young. Of course, his mind is older, but physically he is not that old. But the intern proves him wrong. And boy is he wrong.

“Spencer, is there anything interesting to know today?” (Y/N) takes a seat on his desk, distracting the genius from his paperwork. It is a common occurrence for her to go to him to ask for a fun fact.

“Do you wanna learn something about sloths?” His knowledge (or the writer’s) on this subject is astonishingly big.

“Spill the tea, sis.” “Did you kn- What? But I don’t have tea to spill. And I don’t wanna spill anything, I-” Reid rambles in confusion.

“It’s just a saying, Spencer. There is no deeper meaning to it then ‘Tell me everything about it’. You know, it’s mostly used for gossiping, but I don’t really like to gossip. That’s why I use it in a different context. You got it?” (Y/N) explains it to him in a soft manner, knowing her generation can be complex.

“Yeah, I think I do. Thank you for telling me. I really like the phrase. It has a nice ring. What about you spill the tea about all the phrases you know and I tell you some things from my knowledge?” “I think you got yourself a teacher, genius. But now tell me about the sloths, I love them.”

A few days later Rossi catches her doing some weird moves. “Are you having a seizure or what is your problem, youngster?” Even though he tries not to show it, David took a great liking to (Y/N), thinking of her like a granddaughter. Still, most of her actions confuse the hell out of him.

“I’m practising a dance for tiktok. My friends and I worked on a choreo we wanted to film later. Come here, I can show you.” And that’s what she does in the conference room. The teenager walks him through every move of the choreo, explaining the meaning to it and how it correlates with the song.

“And then you move your arm like that. Exactly like that! You did a great job, David! Are you sure you don’t want to come with me later? We can make you your own account and name it ‘Grandpa-on-tiktok’. You can promote your books over there and it’s a way to float with the trend!”

Seeing her this excited Rossi can’t do anything but agree to the idea. Also, he secretly liked doing the dance thing. It made him feel young again.

“(Y/N), you said you graduated this summer. But your file said you are 16?” Emily asks her one boring day filled with paperwork and countless cups of coffee. “It is what it is”, she mindlessly answers, too focused on filling out the work in front of her.

“I mean yes but how?”

“Emily, smart people exist. I know, coming from me hits different, but here we are.” Finally (Y/N) puts her pen away looking at the raven haired woman.

“What are you talking about? I can’t really follow you.” The more the intern says the more confused gets Emily.

She sighs. “I don’t want to leave you on read here. I kind of am smart somehow. Apparently I was smart enough to skip a grade or two. But it’s no biggie. Many peeps do this, so I don’t sweat it.”

“Even though I feel like you are selling yourself short here, I know you are an incredibly intelligent person. Someday you will be an awesome profiler and any team will be lucky to have you. I really hope we will be the lucky team. But I’m still not sure if this is what I should say in this context.”

“Emily, you are goals. This fam is squad goals. I really hope to be a part of this someday”, (Y/N) admits. “I’m sure Hotch will do his best to get you on the team, you became a great part of it. I can’t imagine a future without you.”

Sadly Prentiss has to get used to a time without the team’s beloved intern. On her last day (Y/N) knocks at Hotch’s door.

“Hey, I wanted to say thank you. The time with you and all the others was amazing and I learned so many useful things for not only the academy but also for my daily life. I really had a glow-up here”, she says after coming in.

Hotch motions towards the chairs in front of his desk. “Take a seat, (Y/N). I got something for you. See it as a compensation for not getting paid for your internship. You really did great work and a better job than some agents, who are doing theirs for many years already but don’t know half the stuff you do. You are a valuable member to the team.”

“Wait, you speak in presence tense. I leave you all this afternoon, you know that, do you?” But the Unit Chief only gestures to a white envelope on his desk. Quickly the teenager takes it and reads it.

“Are you serious Hotchner? Because I will cry you a river if you joke”, she threatens him.

“I’m dead serious, (Y/N). Even though half of your talks are difficult to understand, the other half is twice as useful and important. Additionally to that, you are like a fresh breath of air that the team needed. That’s why a place here will be available for you as soon as you graduate from the academy. I trust you that you will pass with flying colors, I had to promise that to Strauss.”

“Of course, Hotch. I swear on my Animal Crossing Island that I will do my best and more. Thank you so much”, she leaps into his arms.

The others watch the interaction from the bullpen, pretending to not get teary eyed. Their favorite Gen Z Kid will come back to them after all.

Taglist:

Spencer Reid

@calm-and-doctor

[iacomary97]

Doctor Who 60ies Anniversary Theory

I hope you are going to find this interesting. The theory is not complete since there are a few things that still don't make sense to me but, i might have guessed most of it. And i might keep this updated in the following months. :D

I'm going to use set pics, interviews, whatever is available to us since filming to prove my reasoning for this so, careful for eventual spoilers. To make this also useful in the future i might add links to sources when i'll find them again.

Also some of my italian friends who heard the theory first said i might be really close. (i hope so, that might be cool to guess right so much time in advance) So i warn you... Also this is kinda long sorry

First i'd like to start with some questions:

Who is Neil Patrick Harris's character?

Why did Jodie Whittakers 13th Doctor regenerated into David Tennant, instead of Ncuti?

Why is Donna Noble back, how can the Doctor and Donna interact without her dying or be hurt in the process apparently?

Where the hell is Ncuti Doctor and why he is so confused?

Some of these questions are easier to answer, and some can be answered together.

Question 1

From set photos, characterization and what we've seen so far, he will probably going to be the Toymaker, most known from being one of the enemies of the first Doctor (while he was traveling with Dodo and Steven). Coincidentally this year it was also released the Vinyl version of the original story in audiodrama format. I'm currently reading the novelization version that actually helped me figure out most parts of this theory. I don't want to lose too much time on this point since it's someting already explained better by other creators in these last 4 months, both The Confused Adipose, and Tharries did multiple video updates about it.

Question 2 and 3

Now that we explored who NPH might be, we can go to the real theory part, why and how does this make sense!? Short answer: It's all part of the big Toymaker game. And Donna's fate is the incentive for the Doctor to join it

The Toymaker wants to force the Doctor to play at his game, that he is plotting since the last time he lost to him, and he wants a second attempt at it, but he knows that the Doctor would never accept to play with him, so he has to force him to. How you might ask. First, the Toymaker toys with the doctor's appearence by turning him into the Tenth Doctor's old face*, then he manipulates him into meeting Donna**. Because he has that face, Donna is in danger as soon as they meet.

*I'm still working on how, but it might be because of all the regeneration-degeneration mess in Power of the Doctor that left both the doctor and the master very weak, and the immense Toymaker powers that are usually confined in his realm but RTD might have improved them a bit for these specials too.

**from one clip from the set we know that at first the doctor tries to not being seen by her, there's this moment when the Doc and Donna are separated by just boxes, and when one is removed the doctor makes sure to put it back where it was so to hide his face from her. So at least at first he is scared, he doesnt want to be seen by Donna, afraid of what might happen to her if she sees him. But in other moments on set we see them talking normally, also with other relatives and family present as if anything is wrong.

And we know this is dangerous because of everything that happened at the end of series 4 with the Doctor-Donna metacrisis plot. It seems likely to me, based on the other powers he has, because of how he tricked the doctor last time into falling inside his realm, that the Toymaker could stop the "metacrisis" madness from happening there***, just to taunt the Doctor with a choice: Playing his game, or letting Donna just die. Then, if that wouldnt be enough for him to proceed, giving him a price and a loss; if the doctor wins, the toymaker will remove the curse on Donna and she and the Doctor will both go on free, if they lose Donna will die and the Doctor will become the Toymaker "plaything" something that the Toymaker wanted from forever ago.

***The question i still don't know how to answer is: if the toymaker powers only work in his realm how does the Doctor end up in his realm before the regeneration Jodie-> Tennant happens. Easy answer, after all these years he just got massively powerful and just waited for the doctor to get really weak... But if i figure out something else i'll do an update...

Like in the original story, the Toymaker won't be fair during this game, and the other enemies found on set, like Beep the Meep and its enemy (cant remember its name now) might be also part of his plan to distract him from his game/bet.

I'm really not used to write these things, i dont know where to add this part, but the fact that the Doctor's clothes regenerated is not a mistake, or something to take lightly, the Doctor too seems puzzled about it, saying What! also while touching and looking at his new clothes, which again are not 10th Doctor clothes, even if the vibe is there.

There had been other two regenerations inside Power of the Doctor so we know this is made on purpose. (Chibnall or RTD didn't forget how regeneration work, dont worry lol)

Also, i think the Toymaker tried to dress him up as close as possible like when 10th was traveling with Donna, but not getting it entirely right. Almost like, the toymaker tried to figure it out while not being able to know exactly right since he wasn't there to experience it himself. And so we see a blunt tie instead of a pointy one, we have a sleeveles jacket, the colors and materials are all wrong...

Question 4

This is what i'm less sure about, since the only thing we got is Ncuti Gatwa with Tennant's 60ies clothes being confused in a place where you can see only the sky filled with clouds.

It kinda reminds me of the Edge, that it was introduced as a concept in the Centenary Special, but with the sky before a storm. The place might change look based on how the doctor that is in control is feeling. Might be a cool thing to show.

Also it almost feel like (Ncuti) is talking with someone, in that case we might see other Doctors try to figure out why Ncuti is still here, in the limbo space and the 10th out there "again". Because of hearing or seeing no leaks about it i think we wont see anyone (for the centenery a pic of all the classic doctors eating together got found out, exactly around the time of filming...) but i hope so cause it might be fun!

Another idea is of him simply talking with himself, or talking with the current Doctor if he found a way to reach himself.

Also some people has said to me the Ncuti shot is when he has just regenerated from Tennant, but i dont think it is the case, like it doens't make sense to me his confusion and rage there... Also because i think that they wouldnt show us, him post regeneration already.

This ramble-theory is a mess but in conclusion...

What i'm sure about:

The Toymaker will be the main villain, and Meep the Beep just a distraction, as the clowns were into the original story;

Donna is the toymaker's trap into forcing the Doctor into his games;

The Doctor's appearence was deliberate, and made somehow by the Toymaker;

What i'm less sure about:

How powerful is the Towmaker right now? What can he do really?

This is happening for real or into the Toymaker realm?

Is Tennant really 14th and Ncuti 15th or its already Ncuti but with the Toymaker illusion affecting his appearence into Tennant?

This is still a theory that is a work in progress. I think it does connects more dots, then other theories that i read online, but it's not perfect, and i'll add to this when i'll either know more, or figure out a way to clear some of the biggest doubts.

I'm also 38% away of finishing reading the novelization of the original story, the thing that really made me want to write this. Also, for anyone who read until here, im so sorry for eventual errors in grammar or if it's not clear enough in certain points. I haven't written such complicated theories in English in quite sometime. Also I love and hate Rachel Talalay hints on instagram cause sometime they help and sometimes they really confuse me even more. I still don't know how to read her latest hint (The brickwall, her favourite new scene), cause by the text i'd say we'll see the return of the Weeping Angels ("Weep") and of Matt Smith (since he is working currently on the "Game of Thrones" spinoff)

[starglow-xx]

owning a bakery and being discovered by the ada and the port mafia (part 3)

platonic! yosano akiko x f! reader

type of writing: head canons !!

this is part of my head canon series, flour & fluff !!

tag list is open !! go to this google form and fill it out to sign up!

series synopsis: owning a bakery at 20 is tough; even more so when you have to handle members of two opposing organizations! this is your journey to meeting those fools and creating an unlikely bond with each of them. but only at the cost of your peace and sanity.

fandom: bungou stray dogs

content: fluff & platonic stuff but trigger warning!! there may be a sensitive topic for others

*getting grabbed and pulled to an alleyway! alcohol mentioned!*

please remember that yokohama isn’t the friendliest place, especially at night.

previous: part 2 : their beloved president

author’s note: same ages as last time!! (so that means everyone is one year younger than canon; that makes yosano 24)

this one is actually pretty long :0

i got info abt her likes on her wiki page (careful! there’s spoilers!)

and yosano is a queen and no one can tell me otherwise

the doctor is in the house (quite literally)

going grocery shopping was an okay chore in your opinion

it honestly depended on your mood or whatever kind of shit happens when you go shopping

cause like something always, always happens whenever you go do groceries

sometimes it’s good, sometimes it’s bad, and sometimes it’s just plain weird

one time some weirdo proposed to you in the middle of the store asking for a double suicide

he was good looking you’d admit but it’s not like you’d ever see him again

or so you thought

a n y w a y s

every so often, you’d run out of real person food in your apartment

you mostly survive off all of the leftover bakery treats and ingredients—which works out pretty well actually—but bakery supplies unfortunately also run out quite often

and also unfortunately, one time when both fukuzawa & ranpo took a visit to Sakura’s, fukuzawa argued that “no you can’t live off sweets for the rest of your life”

ranpo was scandalized and scrambled to cover your ears

you guys were at it for a while

in the end you sided with fukuzawa causing ranpo to go off about “betrayal from the people he cared most abt” or smth like that

you guys were okay again after bribing him with sweets :)

for bakery supplies you usually have them delivered bc you order them in large quantities bc ahaha no way were you gonna carry like 15-20 50 pound bags of flour no way

when days like those happen, you close up the bakery early so you aren’t walking home when it’s too dark

you scheduled it to happen every first saturday of the month

on those saturdays, you close at 5 instead of at 8

currently, you were at the grocery store looking for basic cooking ingredients such as proteins, vegetables, fruits, and most importantly, snacks

ranpo’s been rubbing off on you

the sun was starting to set and you were walking home with your two bags of groceries when shit went down

tbh you were kinda expecting it cause your grocery run was peaceful for once

but what you weren’t expecting was a wack-a-do to appear out of goddamn nowhere right when you were opening the side door to get to the staircase up to your apartment

like honestly

let a woman do her own thing

the man who grabbed you tried to covered your mouth so you couldn’t scream but you didn’t exactly make it easy for him

you kicked and thrashed around even using the grocery bags—that were somehow still in your hand—as a weapon and the man struggled but he was still bigger than you and was able to bring you to a nearby alley

he reeked of alcohol and you spotted a wedding band on his left hand

not that you cared about the detail in the moment

you kicked him in the groin and in response he let you go only to fall on broken glass that was in the alley way

using the wall to help yourself up, you grabbed a nearby wooden stick and struck him right on his back

your attacker fell and you immediately turned on your heels to escape only to fall back down on the hard cold ground once again

you lift your face up and look back to see the man holding onto your ankle

grabbing a shard of glass—cutting yourself in the process�� you begin to swing it at him only for him to easily grip your wrist and stop you

you get ready try and kick him in the groin again but you’re interrupted as your attacker gets sucker punched and flies to wall

you look up to see your savior and you’re blessed to see a beautiful woman, probably not that much older than you are—she’s probably around ranpo’s age— donning a white long sleeve button up, a matching black necktie, knee length skirt, and gloves, along with tights, red heels, and a pretty butterfly clip in her short black hair

but what you really notice is her eyes

ranpo’s eyes were pretty but you like hers just a bit more

you’ve always liked the color magenta

the pretty lady holds out her hand and you take it graciously and thank her as she helps you up

as that’s happening, your attacker gets himself onto his feet and his groan catches both of your attention

he struggles to stand and the pretty lady simples saunters over to him and delivers an uppercut knocking him out cold

you’re stunned and you breathe out a “thank you” making her turn towards you

she notices the condition you’re in

bleeding scrapes on your hands, arms and legs, small rips in your clothes like your tights, blouse, and skirt, and the ruffled state of your hair and clothing

she asks if you live nearby and you tell her that you own the bakery that’s one or two buildings away

when you tell her that, it clicks in her mind that you must be the bakery girl ranpo’s been talking about and the friend fukuzawa was cat sitting for

it’s been abt two weeks since ranpo and fukuzawa first met you and since then, they’ve seen lucky in the office plenty and the boxes of your signature sweets even more

if those two trust you, she has no reason not to

she smiles at you, holds out her hand for you to shake, and introduces herself as the doctor of the armed detective agency

your eyes widen and you smile back at her shaking her hand

“ah! you must be yosano-sensei then! ranpo-san and fukuzawa-san have talked about you! it’s so nice to meet you! im (l/n) (y/n)!”

“they’ve talked about you too, it’s a pleasure to finally meet you (y/n)”

after that exchange she insisted on bringing you home to treat you wounds which you told her it wasn’t necessary

she gave you a pointed look and that was when you realized what state you were in

you sighed and weakly gave in to which she only grinned at

before leaving the alley she walks over to the unconscious man and pulls out his wallet for some sort of identification and home address as you try to see if there’s any groceries still salvageable

after texting the details to kunikida, yosano turns to you poking around the now ruined grocery bags

she simply rubs your back and tells you that the both of you could go buy more groceries together as she was meaning to get some anyways; she even said she’ll pay for you

you refused obviously but she, unknowingly, used the same tactic fukuzawa used with you

“so you’re saying you don’t need groceries?”

“...”

*cue an eyebrow raise from our resident queen*

“...you agency members don’t like making things easy for me huh.”

you gave in reluctantly and at this point you don’t even know why you try negotiating with them

and that’s only three of them

apparently, she was on the other side of the street on the way to buy groceries for the agency when she noticed different produce items on the other sidewalk leading to the alley and she went to check out what happened

ironically, the way to the grocery store from the agency makes you go past Sakura’s but she didn’t realize it until after the two of you had met

before you know it, the two of you are in your apartment kitchen as she cleans and patches up all of your wounds

as she does so the two of you have a little girl talk

you find it quite comforting bc since you opened up Sakura’s you haven’t really had the chance to connect to many people much less other women

you definitely see yosano as your cool, loving, badass older sister

she thinks you’re adorable and agrees with ranpo’s opinion

yup 

that’s right

the opinion that you’re like a little kid </3

you called it a betrayal and all she did was laugh at you <//3

“awhh that’s really cool yosano-sensei!—MFPH?!?”

*squishing your cheeks the same way ranpo did* “ranpo-san was right (n/n)-chan, your cheeks are squishy!”

“?!”

after that small fiasco, the two of you talked some more and bonded over your love for flowers, japanese sweets, and much more!!

you even made a date to have a girls day to go shopping and eat out!

you’re internally squealing a bit bc it’s been a while since you’ve gone shopping

yosano notices and she giggles behind her hand not saying anything bc she knows you’ll only throw a fit

the two of you came around the topic of ranpo when lucky passed by

lucky quickly warmed up to the doctor and cozied up in her lap

“i wish ranpo-san was able to meet lucky when he came by the first time, but then again, he’d probably throw a tantrum if i don’t pay attention to him for 5 seconds”

she snorted at that and like fukuzawa, she shared stories abt the slightly older male

“ranpo-san doesn’t know how to ride a train?”

“unbelievable right?”

“for someone so intelligent i expected more from him”

“i’ll be telling that to ranpo-san, (n/n)-chan”

“wha—?! yosano-sensei please don’t!”

like ranpo, she’s also a tease </3

but you love her anyway <3

eventually, she finished patching you up and promised to treat you to a new set of clothes when the two of you go out

“you don’t need to lose a good set of clothes just because of a sleazy man (n/n)-chan! you deserve better!”

you were going to argue that the rips in your clothes were fairly small and could easily be fixed—except the tights—but you stopped in your tracks when you remembered that it was practically useless to argue against an ada member

the two of you walked to the grocery store and bought both of your needed supplies—along with some extra goodies—and then she walked you back to your place bc it was already a bit dark out

but even if it wasn’t, she would walk you anyways

besides, if anything happened to you, she’s 1000% positive that ranpo and fukuzawa are gonna flip the fuck out not that she wont cause she most definitely will

speaking of which

you were drinking a bottle of water as the two of made your way back to Sakura’s when all of a sudden

“(y/n) you do realize that i have to tell shachou and ranpo-san about what happened today right?”

you choked on your water

“yosano-sensei you can’t! if you do they’ll freak! they won’t leave me alone for at least two weeks! one if im lucky!”

“exactly the point”

you just accepted your defeat already knowing that you’d lose

but maybe you can simmer down their anger towards the bastard with sweets and lucky

you arrived at Sakura’s shortly after and after bringing groceries in, you packaged a bunch of pastries leftover from today—bc you closed early—and bc you’re well aware that ranpo doesn’t share any of the sweets you send him with

you even gave yosano her own special box filled with goodies she loves, and a thermos of fukuzawa’s favorite, your special hot honey lemon tea

other than the sweets, you prepared lucky to spend the night at fukuzawa’s

you really really hoped that doing these things would make them calm down

you shivered at the thought of what their responses would be

you felt really bad for giving yosano all these things to carry and that you were keeping her very late

she assured you that she was fine and that if someone tried to mess with her she’d kick their ass

and after exchanging numbers, the magenta eyed queen bid you a good night and walked back to the agency with lucky walking by her heels

arriving back at the agency, yosano was greeted with some concerns asking if she was alright bc she came back from her grocery run pretty late

(she usually goes in the mornings but today was pretty busy so she left in the late afternoon but now it was already dark)

she waved off the concerns and plopped a couple boxes of your signature bakery boxes at ranpo’s desk, the one for her at her own, the last few boxes in the kitchen for any other agent or clerk to grab, placed the thermos on the desk fukuzawa was by, and picked up lucky and handed him to the president

the two males were pleased with what yosano had brought them, and pleased that another agency member had the chance to meet you

fukuzawa was rubbing lucky and ranpo already snacking on treats as yosano expected

but here comes the hard part

or maybe it’s gonna amusing who knows

“i met (y/n) today.”

“we could tell.”

in goes another treat in the green eyed man’s mouth

“would you like to know how?”

“you bumped into each other, had girl talk, made plans to go out, went grocery shopping, and you brought me and shachou presents.”

“great job ranpo-san, you’re almost completely correct.”

this caught the attention of basically everyone bc they knew ranpo was never “almost completely correct”

“we ended up meeting bc she got attacked on her way home from grocery shopping, i treated her wounds, then we had girl talk and did all the other stuff”

ranpo and fukuzawa froze right in their tracks

“i sent all the info of the bastard to kunikida”

“kunikida.”

“yes shachou”

“find out everything about that man and bring it to me and ranpo”

“...yes shachou”

“and yosano”

“yes?”

“text (y/n) and tell her that her cat, tea, and pastries aren’t going to work as a bribe”

just as you finished taking a shower you sneezed

<<previous // next >>

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[honey-dewey]

Gold in the Summertime

Pairing:  Frankie ‘Catfish’ Morales/Reader

Word Count: 2,545

Warnings: Panic attacks, mentions of injury, stitches, and needles, but it’s mostly just that sweet sweet hurt/comfort

Permanent Taglist: @phoenixhalliwell @star-wars-hell

Very few good things ever happen at three AM in the Urgent Care. Let’s make a short list of things that will definitely not fall under the category of ‘good.’ 1) Having a patient who has apparently injured himself but refuses to tell you how. 2) Said patient hyperventilating and panicking until he actually breaks something because you tried to give him a tetanus shot. 3) The same patient’s three best friends yelling at you. 4) Singing to still the same patient to calm him down so you can stick him with a tiny needle so he won’t possibly die of tetanus.

A/N: The song that inspired this fic is actually a favorite of mine called ‘Gold in the Summertime’ by Matt Nathanson. Not required to read the fic, but it’s a cute song. 

“Hey.” 

“Oh hell no,” you said, turning to see your fellow night shift nurse, Tori, standing in the door of the break room. “No, I am not dealing with whatever drunken fool walked into that waiting room. It is three in the morning and I do not feel like screwing around right now.” 

Tori raised an eyebrow. “Done?” 

“Done,” you said, standing and preparing for the inevitable. “Who’s the patient?” 

Tori handed you a file. You opened it, quickly scanning the information. F. Morales, forty two years old, in decent health, up to date with all his immunizations, served in the military, and was currently in the Urgent Care for a laceration on his left shoulder. 

“How bad is it?” You asked, closing the file and following Tori to the waiting room. 

“Eh,” she said with a shrug. “He isn’t gushing blood, so it’s not ER worthy. Probably just needs some stitches and a tetanus shot, depending on what got him.” 

You blinked. “He didn’t say?” 

Tori grinned. “Nope. Have fun.” 

Groaning to yourself, you opened the waiting room door. “Morales?” 

A man stood up, clearly the injured one in his group of friends due to the wad of cloth he was pressing to his left shoulder. “Yes?” 

“Follow me,” you said, tucking the file beneath your arm. “So, what happened?” 

The man grimaced. “Uh, I busted my shoulder.” 

“How?” 

The man was silent as you pushed open an exam room door and gestured him inside. “Well?” 

“Well what?” 

You sighed. “How’d you cut yourself?” You asked again, watching the man hop up on the exam table. You walked around to his back and slowly cut away the patch of his shirt that covered his shoulder. “And while you’re at it, you got a first name I could use, Mr. Morales?” 

“Please just call me Frankie, most people do.” 

“Most people?” 

Frankie shifted as you examined the harsh tear in the skin. “My friends, those assholes outside, call me Catfish.” 

You chuckled. “Military nickname?” 

“Yeah.” Frankie winced as you pressed a finger against the wound. 

A beat of silence, and then you had another question. “Is Frankie your legal name?” 

“No, why?” 

You smiled. “We need a legal name for the records.” 

Frankie shrugged his uninjured right shoulder as you continued to evaluate the messy scrape on his left. “It’s Francisco. And that shit hurts.” 

“Sorry,” you said, stepping back. “It needs a few stitches,” you decided. “But it isn’t horribly urgent so I’m gonna go grill your buddies outside to see if they’ll give me more answers about what happened.” 

Frankie nodded, watching you leave. 

“Would the party that escorted one Francisco Morales please follow me?” You asked, pushing open the waiting room door. 

Three men stood up, and you led them down the hall a ways, so your conversation would be private. “Alright. Spill. He won’t tell me what happened.” 

The man on the left snorted. “Unsurprising,” he said. “Fish is like a damn lockbox.”

“Benny,” the man in the middle hissed, nudging the man on the left. “Santi, you wanna take this? You saw it best.” 

“Excuse you!” Benny objected. “I was there too!” 

“You’re drunk.” 

The man on the right, Santi, sighed. “Frankie got into a fight outside the bar we were at tonight. Some guy made a horrible comment about how women belong in the kitchen, I dunno, I didn’t hear that bit too well. But Frankie managed to win the fight with minimal injuries, right up until the guy’s equally shitty friend clipped his shoulder with a ripped in half beer can.” 

You nodded, jotting notes down on Frankie’s file. “So what I’m hearing is that he was cut with a piece of likely filthy metal?” 

“Yep.” 

“Perfect,” You grumbled sarcastically. “You boys can head back to the waiting room. I’ll send him out when I’m done.” 

The boys left, and you swung by the supply closet to grab a suture kit before heading back into Frankie’s exam room. “Still bleeding?” 

Frankie looked up. “Yeah.” He had taken his hat off, fidgeting with the worn out brim. “Hurts.” 

“I’ll bet,” you said, coming up behind him and gently taking his hand off the wound. “Gonna pop some stitches in, disinfect the hell out of this, then get your height, weight, the like, and send you off with a tetanus shot just for good measure. That old beer can probably doesn’t have any kind of illness, but we have to be sure.” 

Frankie was silent, which wasn’t a good thing. You disinfected the wound, which sent him into a tailspin of hissed curses in your general direction, and before he realized what was happening, you were halfway done with the stitches. 

“And that’s the last one,” you said, tying off the last stitch. “The stitches dissolve after a while, so you shouldn’t have to worry about coming back to get them removed. But do take care to change the bandages twice a day, and do not use this arm. I don’t care what you have to do, please do not rip these stitches.” 

Frankie chuckled. “Yes doctor.” 

Finishing up the bandage, you grinned at Frankie’s current shirt situation. “Do you want me to grab you a new shirt? I kinda ruined yours.” 

“You did your job,” Frankie pointed out. “But yes, that would be nice.” 

You ducked out of the room and grabbed a spare shirt from the nurse’s lost and found. “No one’s claimed this thing for almost eight months. I think the guy who owned it quit,” you said, handing Frankie the old Jack Daniels whiskey shirt. You watched him struggle to put it on, helping him a bit as the shirt got caught on his shoulder. 

“Okay, follow me,” you said once Frankie was wearing a shirt again. He followed, just as asked, and you took his height and weight, texting both figures to Tori so she could prep a tetanus shot for you. In the meantime, you kept Frankie occupied, asking him questions about military things in the exam room. 

“What’d you do in the military?” 

“I was a pilot.” 

“Planes?” 

“Helos.” 

“Fun. I’ve never been in a helicopter before. Those friends outside, are they?” 

“Military friends? Yeah, mostly. I knew Santiago before all that though.” 

A knock at the door interrupted your bonding session. Tori opened the door, holding a tray with the tetanus shot and a band-aid. “Sorry. Those shitty kids band-aids were all I could find.” 

You shrugged. “Nah, it’s fine. I’m sure Mr. Morales won’t object to a Paw Patrol band-aid.” 

However, as you turned back to Frankie, you realized he’d gone white as a sheet. “Frankie?” 

Frankie shied away from you, despite you not moving. “Don’t,” he said, voice choked. “Please.” 

Your heart squeezed at the desperation in his voice. He was very plainly terrified. “Frankie,” you repeated calmly, holding both hands up so he knew you were unarmed. “Hey, deep breaths.” 

Frankie took a stuttering breath, and you sent a silent prayer out that he wouldn’t have a panic attack here. You sat next to him, keeping a few feet of space between you and him. “Do you want me to go get the boys?” 

Frankie shook his head, eyes wide. You tried to think. Distracting him would do no good. You’d tried that before with other people, and with patients who were this panicky, a distraction made it worse. Trying to sneak up on him was somehow an even worse idea. With his background, he was likely to know when someone was trying to surprise him, and he could definitely defend himself. The only thing you could think of was calming him down and then sticking him as fast as you could. 

It took a few minutes, but Frankie’s breathing returned to normal, and his muscles relaxed somewhat. You didn’t move, simply sitting there beside him and establishing yourself as a calm figure despite your reeling mind. “Frankie?” 

He looked up at you, not saying a word. 

“Are you ready to try?” You asked. “I have to give you the shot. I don’t want you to get sick, okay? Tetanus is a killer, and I don’t wanna see you dying in a hospital bed until you’re at least eighty, okay?” 

A slow nod. You stood, making your movements obvious as you put on new gloves and opened an alcohol wipe. 

“C’mere,” you said, gesturing Frankie closer. He scooted towards you, and you met him halfway. “This is cold, just a warning.” 

You rolled up Frankie’s shirt sleeve, exposing his left shoulder. He shivered as you ran the alcohol wipe across his skin, and kept his eyes anywhere but on you as you uncapped the tiny syringe. “Frankie?” 

Frankie whined, his breathing picking up again as his body barreled towards full panic mode. 

“Frankie!” You recapped the syringe and set it aside, turning your full attention to Frankie. He jumped away from you, eyes wide once more. You stood back as he curled in on himself, breathing quickening too fast. He was hyperventilating. “Frankie! Listen to me! You’re not-“ 

You cut yourself off as the loud, ragged breaths began to turn into animalistic screams, Frankie losing his balance and falling off the exam table and crashing into the sink before hitting the floor. The thud his body made scared you, but not as much as his current panicked state. 

“Tori!” You yelled, opening the door and yelling for your coworker. “Tori!” 

Unfortunately, it was not Tori who came to your rescue. It was Frankie’s three friends, all of whom looked incredibly concerned. Tori was behind them, shouting that they couldn’t be back here. Santiago simply pushed past you and immediately rushed to Frankie’s side, the other two joining him as he attempted to console Frankie. 

You, knowing your help wouldn’t be needed, tried to step away, but Santiago turned to call you back. “Come here!” 

Sighing, you hesitantly entered the exam room. “What do you need from me?” 

“What did you do to him?” Benny asked, clearly the most worried. “He hasn’t had an attack this bad in years!” 

“I just tried to give him a tetanus shot!” You defended. 

Santiago and the other man had gotten Frankie situated back on the exam table, sitting on his sides and keeping him upright as Benny rushed in and took his hands. “Fish? You with us buddy?” 

Frankie, who had thankfully stopped screaming, whined. Benny smiled, squeezing his hands. “There’s our Fish. Hey, hey, no, look at me,” he directed as Frankie’s eyes drifted to you in the corner and his breath hitched. 

Frankie’s head slumped against Santiago’s shoulder. He hummed uncomfortably, face scrunching as he shifted, trying to get comfortable. 

“His shoulder,” you guessed softly. “Someone’s touching it.” 

The man on Frankie’s right looked at his back. “Shit. Sorry Fish.” 

Frankie sighed in relief and turned into pudding against Santiago’s shoulder. Benny still held his hands, humming softly. The other man, whose name you still didn’t know, stood and pulled you aside. “Hey. Did he tell you?” 

“That he was trypanophobic?” You said, sliding your hands in your pockets. “No. But I figured it out pretty quickly when he went white as hell as soon as he saw the syringe. No one has a reaction this severe unless they have a phobia.” 

The man nodded. “Yeah. Benny was right. Fish is kinda stubborn about these things. He hasn’t had an anxiety attack in years though. Sorry Benny gave you shit about triggering one. I know it wasn’t really your fault.” 

“It was,” you mumbled, eyeing Frankie over the man’s shoulder. “It just wasn’t my intention.” 

“Yeah.” The man looked back at Frankie. “Is the tetanus shot necessary?” 

You nodded. “Unfortunately, yes.”

Santiago looked at you. “How good are you at singing?” 

“I’m sorry?” 

“It keeps him calm,” Santiago explained. “He used to sing to the helos whenever there was bad turbulence. Kept him level. We’d do it while you give him the shot, but none of us can sing.” 

Frankie made a small, strangled noise, and you almost freaked out until Benny smiled and you realized Frankie was trying to laugh. 

Smiling, you grabbed the syringe, a new alcohol wipe, and the band-aid. Santiago moved so he was sitting mostly behind Frankie, still supporting him. The other man, who you faintly heard Benny call Will, sat back on Frankie’s right. Benny took Frankie’s hands and stood to the side a bit so you would have room to work. 

“Oh, let’s keep this going, I wanna go all in,” you sang softly, repeating some cute and catchy song Tori insisted on playing whenever she could. “We’ll never be lonely in the dark.” As you sang, you opened the alcohol wipe and cleaned a patch of Frankie’s shoulder. 

“Rooftop in soho, Prince on the radio,” you kept going, uncapping the syringe and taking Frankie’s arm. “The city streets glow, gold in the summertime.” You quickly, between words, stuck Frankie and pressed down on the plunger. He whined, shying from the pain, but you just pressed the band-aid over the tiny puncture mark and kept singing. “Summertime, summertime, summertime, I gotta get that feeling.” 

Gently taking Benny’s place, you stripped your gloves off and put your hands overtop Frankie’s. “You did good, Frankie,” you said. “C’mon, let’s get you out of here so the boys can take you home.” 

Frankie wobbled to his feet, still nonverbal and a bit unsteady. You ended up needing a break in the waiting room, which was still empty. Giving Santiago a bottle of water for Frankie, you sat next to Frankie while the boys started the car. 

You absently hummed the song from earlier, mostly to fill the stifling silence. As you reached the part you’d sung for Frankie, you noticed, with a small jolt, that he was humming along with you. 

“You like the song?” You guessed, and Frankie nodded. 

“Here.” You pulled a pen from your coat pocket and took his hand. “Give the whole thing a listen,” you said, scrawling down the name and artist of the song on Frankie’s hand. “And then call me,” you finished, adding your phone number below the writing. 

Frankie smiled. “Meet cute,” he rasped, voice practically destroyed. 

You laughed. “This is more of a meet ugly, but sure.” 

Santiago came back, helping Frankie to his feet. 

“See you again?” Frankie asked, voice still pretty shot.

“Hopefully not,” you said, holding the door open for Santiago. “At least, not here.” 

Just like that, Frankie was gone. 

That sunrise, as you settled into bed, you got a text from an unknown number. 

Unknown Number: Song was super cute. Definitely adding it to my exercise playlist

You: Is this Mr. Morales?

Unknown Number: Just Frankie

Unknown Number was saved as Just Frankie

You: Okay Just Frankie. How’s your shoulder

Just Frankie: Hurts like a bitch, but I’ve had worse. 

You: I’ll bet. 

Just Frankie: Hey, wanted to ask you something 

You: shoot

Just Frankie: do you always work nights?

You: not always, but mostly. 

Just Frankie: cool. You free tomorrow at noon? I found this cool lunch place that has the best burgers ever

You: ever? I’ll have to see about that

Just Frankie: it’s a date then 

You: It’s a date

[ka-writes]

——————

Notes: I had already started on the second chapter before I posted the first one, so don’t expect updates every day... I also had to do a lot of googling for this chapter.

——————

Chapter 1 in case you missed it:

——————

Inspired by:

Humans are Space Velociraptors

By:FreshRoses_InMyGarden_NeedTheRain

Some kids come from storks, others come from crashed spaceships

By: mmmajora

Home Again, Home Again

By: teeth_eater

All works can be found on Ao3

——————

Warnings: Cussing, needles, character conflicts, intentional poisoning, poisoning, Jaws reference

——————

“Humans are [and text here]”

Chapter 2: What is this, an interview?

Tommy was now restrained to a chair six feet away from the weird scientist alien. He had a dark brown lab coat with a fuzzy yellow sweater underneath, matched with black pants and black leather boots. His gold rimmed Harry Potter glasses slipped down his nose bridge a bit before he pushed it up and shuffled through papers. He wore a red beanie with a big whiff of his curly chocolate hair. His skin was a weird translucent grayish color with blue speckles decorating it. He had deep brown eyes with an odd electric blue circle outlining the pupil.

His tongue licked his finger as he turned the page. This was a habit that most of the weird teachers and counselors did. It always annoyed Tommy. This time fear was also mixed into that annoyance. His saliva was tinted blue and he had sharp teeth which immediately reminded him of a shark.

“You have shark teeth.” Tommy stated absentmindedly. Clearly, this caught the scientist alien off guard.

“I have what?” The alien asked, confused.

“Shark teeth.. ya know like the weird fish creatures that eat people.” Tommy started rambling causing the shark-alien to become even more confused and slightly alarmed. “I mean I think they eat people. That’s what the shark movie showed… what was its name, Jaws I think? I dunno, my foster mom freaked out in the middle of it and we went home. That lady was weird.. She made us wear itchy clothes and take weird photos before she sent me back to the group home.”

“What?..” The shark-alien asked. Tommy jumped a bit. He forgot he was rambling to a stranger. Alien stranger at that.

“Doesn’t matter.. What's the first question bitch-boy?” Tommy liked the way the alien jumped at the randomly timed insults.

“Er- right.. First off, what’s your name?” The shark-alien asked after collecting himself.

“Tommy Innit. Yours bitch-boy?” Tommy replied.

“Wilbur Soot. Stop calling me bitch-boy!” Wilbur huffed.

“Next question, bitch-boy!” Tommy emphasized the name, getting an even angrier expression in return. Wilbur’s weird blue circle flashed red for a second which caught Tommy off guard.

Wilbur took a shaky breath before asking the next question. “How old are you?”

“Old enough! I am a big man!” Tommy stated. Yet another thing that pissed him off.

“Age?” Wilbur asked, clearly irritated.

“18.” Wilbur raised a brow, “14.” Tommy huffed. His age should only be his business not some alien-bitch who didn’t even have his file.

“If you keep lying, I may have to get the truth serum from the back.” Wilbur half-heartedly threatened. Tommy, the big man that he is, did not get scared at that statement, only slightly unsettled which clearly showed on his face.

“Now, do you have a family?” Tommy tensed at the question. It was a touchy question and was not one that was asked often especially with his reputation.

“I am a big man. I don’t need a family to be great.” Tommy stated, happy with the answer. The alien-bitch shifted awkwardly.

“Right… What is your diet?”

“Umm.. I dunno, whatever I can find. I am allergic to nuts though..” Wilbur nodded in understanding and wrote things down in his notepad.

“What plants are poisonous to you?” Wilbur asked without looking up from his notes.

“Ermm, poison Ivy, poison oak… uh I think parts of rhubarb, and most wild berries. I am not sure other than that.” Wilbur nodded while adding bits to his notes.

“What was the place you lived like?” This time Wilbur glanced up to look at Tommy. This was again another touchy subject… How many times would this alien bitch get into the sad background?

“Shitty.” Tommy snapped. That was the only response the bitch was gonna get.

“Right.. Do you have music on Earth?”

Tommy scoffed, “Of course we have music, dumbass!”

“Can you tell me about the animals there?” Wilbur asked, almost hopeful.. which was weird. What was he hoping for?

“Erm I guess..” Tommy mumbled, trying to figure out where to start, “There’s a bunch of animals. Mainly on land. My favorite would be the cow.”

“What’s that?” Curiosity stained Wilbur’s face. This got Tommy excited; he was practically beaming as he started talking.

“Well they are these big ruminants that make milk and have horns. There are a bunch of types too like the highland cow, which obviously is the most poggers one. They are a Scottish breed with really long hair. I met one once, on a field trip his name was Henry.” Tommy rambled on for the next two and a half hours, jumping from topic to topic and explaining anything that wasn’t personal. He usually ended those paths with short insults.

——————

Wilbur hated to stop the kids' detailed story, but two and a half celestial hours had already passed, and Dream would be coming to check soon. Luckily, he had a couple new poisons that could pass off as a research development. He had even managed to send the distressed signal and no doubt Phil would already be there with the SBI craft ready to fly at any given moment.

“Alright Tommy.” His voice dropped to a serious tone causing the kid to stop his story of how he got poisoned by mushrooms on a camping trip. “You’re gonna have to trust me just for a bit. I am going to get you off the ship at the next stop but in the meantime I need you to tell me how allergic you’re to nuts.” The kid immediately tensed at the question.

“I am mainly allergic to tree nuts.. almonds being the worst. After a few minutes I can’t breathe properly and I usually pass out. The doctor said if I don’t get it treated within 15 minutes, death is most likely.” He took a moment to go through the information. The kid most likely has an anaphylaxis reaction to tree nuts. Meaning either he would have to know the exact time of landing and exactly where Phil was or he needed another poison that was less severe.

“Alright, here is what we’re gonna do. I have a chemical mixture that is similar to that of rattlesnake venom. I also have a chemical substance that numbs any pain you may feel. Side effects would include being very very tired and delirious over the next few days. Along with being knocked out for a good ten hours. To put it simply I am gonna fake poison you, in order to get you off the ship. It’s your choice if you’re willing to do it.” Wilbur paused to study the kid still restrained in front of him. It was odd how relaxed the kid seemed to be in a situation like this. He had no urge as far as Wilbur was aware, to fight against anything that happened. His complaints only being those that touched on personal matters. It was unsettling to say the least, and intrigued Wilbur. He really wanted to unravel the life the kid had lived before this and how he was actually dealing with the situation.

There was a long pause before the kid spoke, “I wouldn’t mind getting away from the weird smiley bitch.. plus you seem nice and to know what you’re doing so sure. Poison me bitch.” He said the last sentence with an enthusiasm Wilbur wasn’t expecting. He took a moment to rethink his plan, which was interrupted by a knock at the door.

“Dream says you better have advanced in your stupid testing. Otherwise he’s gonna kick you off the ship at the next stop.” Stated the rather rude blazeling, Sapnap. The blazeling never liked Wilbur and made a point to argue against any advancements at meals. That led to Dream installing a new system of emails and Wilbur eating meals alone.

“Yea yea, it’s going!” He yelled through the metal door.

“Better be.” The blazeling snapped before making a non quiet track back to his quarters.

“Stupid blazeling.” Wilbur grumbled as he sorted through vials and picked up new needles and measured out the substances. “We are going to start with the anesthetic then move onto the poison.” He softly addressed Tommy.

Wilbur swiftly disinfected Tommy’s shoulder and gave the needle. He then gave the second needle. Immediately Tommy slumped over. Wilbur swiftly took off Tommy’s restraints and moved him on to the patient bed in the back corner of the room. After the transfer was done he clipped the body restraints around Tommy and waited for the alert signaling landing.

After about five minutes the light next to the door turned blue. He moved over to his seat and clipped on the safety belts. The light turned green and the ship shook momentarily before a thud could be felt. Quickly as Wilbur could, he emptied the needles into the waste bin and waited for his soon-to-be-ex-boss to arrive.

Dream stepped through the door and glanced around the room before heading to Wilbur for his report.

“Report.” The dreamon commanded.

“The subject's body would have gone through a painfully slow death and have multiple organ failures if I did not intervene. The chemical mixes used created a conflict in the patient’s body which resulted in the patient falling into exhaustion as they recovered.” He responded in a monotone tone. Dream looked over Tommy. He flinched back in disgust as Tommy grunted in his sleep.

“Is that all?” The dreamon questioned.

“No.” Wilbur swallowed down his panic, “This is the last testing I will be doing with this crew.” The dreamon scoffed.

“I am assuming you’re getting off at this planet?” Dream spit. Wilbur knew he absolutely hated when people left his crew as he saw it as a direct violation of his loyalty.

“Yes.” The phantom stated, keeping his even tone apparent. With that Dream stormed out cursing in Siestian. Somewhere in the mess of words he told Wilbur to get his things.

Without hesitation he grabbed his bag from his quarters, which was held in a small room that branches off the lab. He half sprinted down the short hallway and straight to the bed Tommy was on. He swiftly unrestrained the human and sat him up. He slipped on boots and gloves then tied a cloak around the kid. He pulled the hood up and carried him off of the closest exit. There were faint yells from Dream down the hallway and reassurances from the only two beings that put up with him. And with that Wilbur was off to find the only craft he had ever called home. The SBI ship.

——————

Chapter 2- End

Words~ 1774

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End Notes: ‘‘twas to lazy to reread... sorry for minor mistakes. Also suggestions are always appreciated!! Please reblog...

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Chapter 3:

——————

Wilbur:

[toraodwaterlaw]

Heart to Heart

Part 1, Part 2; Part 3 of a four part AU fic set just after Marineford.

2416 words, angst with a happy-ish ending

-

Ten Days Later

Rosinante sat in the heart seat. It was about the last place he wanted to be but his brother had insisted and he wasn’t about to push his luck. He’d learned long ago to pick his battles when it came to Doffy, especially when he was in a mood. And, oh, what a mood he was in.

He’d returned to Dressrosa that way, equal parts amused and furious. It wasn’t all too unusual a mood to find Doffy in but it was always a dangerous one. Many members of the Family avoided him. The Executives mostly took the opportunity to spur him on to new heights of depravity. The Colosseum grounds were drenched with blood and more toys appeared on the streets every day.

Viola kept Rosinante appraised of all of it. It was probably a bit masochistic of him to insist on it, given he knew he could do nothing about it from his palace prison. He wanted to know, though. He needed to bear witness to his brother’s crimes and, more importantly, he needed to try to use what he heard to gauge what was in store for Law when he returned. He knew Law would scold him for both. How many lectures had he received for trying to shoulder Doffy’s crimes? How many more for worrying more about Law than himself?

What else was he supposed to do at a time like this? He couldn’t remember the last time Law had so thoroughly disappointed Doffy. That was the word Doffy had used. Disappointed. Only he could make so mild a word sound so terrifying. After that, Rosinante was willing to do anything he could to temper the storm to come, even if it meant sitting in the damnable heart seat.

Doffy turned on his heel, having completed another angry loop of the room. “Do you know the trouble he caused with this stunt?”

Rosinante did, in fact, know. Doffy had talked of little else. What could Law’s actions mean aside from how they benefited or inconvenienced the king of Dressrosa? Not that it mattered whether the question was rhetorical or not. Rosinante couldn’t speak even if he’d wanted, not with his lips sewn shut. His decade long punishment for the crime of pretending to be mute. Twice a day he got a supposed reprieve during Family meals. It was paraded as a kindness but all it meant was that Doffy would try to taunt him into saying something he’d regret and that his lips would never have a chance to scar or heal.

So Rosinante sat silently, as he always did. As expected, Doffy got back to pacing without so much as waiting for a shrug in response.

“Of course I have my ways of smoothing things over.”

He flashed a quick smile that said he knew Rosinante understood full well what he meant. Rosinante resisted the urge to roll his eyes. That was a skill he’d honed well over the years. He might not be able to speak but Doffy delighted in trying to provoke a reaction. It was never worth the minimal effort of a raised brow or the skin pulling sting of a frown.

Doffy, as usual, didn’t care. He enjoyed poking at things, whether he got a reaction or not. He stalked over to the heart seat and put a foot up on one of the arms to steady himself as he loomed. “But I don’t like going through the trouble just because that brat got ideas in his head. Just what was our dear Corazon thinking, do you suppose?”

Rosinante expected this to be more of the same but then Doffy pinched his fingers together and pulled. The effect was immediate. His lips stung as they were freed from their prison. He opened his mouth and then closed it.

“Well?” Doffy asked, leaning in closer.

Rosinante put one hand on his throat and with the other, touched his lips delicately. The strings were really gone. He couldn’t think of a time in eleven years when Doffy had removed them without an audience to amuse himself. Did he want an actual conversation? Rosinante wasn’t inclined to answer his brother but he was too shocked to refuse completely.

“Well what?” he croaked.

“I know you imagine you understand him better than anyone else, so tell me— Why did Law do it?”

Rosinante hadn’t a clue how he was supposed to answer that. There was no safe response, for him or for Law. There was likely a way to spin it in his brother’s favor but he didn’t trust his voice beyond a word or two. Doffy surely knew that and hoped to get the blunt and easy truth.

“I don’t—” He coughed and Doffy frowned. He waited through the burn in his unused throat. “I don’t know.”

“Come now, you must have a guess. What would he want with a small-fry like Monkey D. Luffy? Is it that cursed middle initial? What does he know?”

“Doffy—”

Doffy leaned in closer so that his razor sharp smile was so close it could have cut. “I’ve never let him in on our little secret. So what have you told him, little brother? Trying to sow dissent, eh?”

Rosinante felt his heart thud heavily in his chest. Trafalgar D Water Law. Perhaps it was well past time he told Law the truth to keep him safe. For the moment, though, he was happy he hadn’t done so yet.

“I haven’t…told him…” He swallowed over the pain every word brought. “Anything.”

Doffy just stared at him and, not for the first time, Rosinante cursed those infernal sunglasses. All he saw was his own frowning face reflected back at him. There were times when he felt like he didn’t know his brother at all. He couldn’t begin to guess what was going through the elder Donquixote’s head.

Not that he had long to wonder. Doffy’s silent interrogation was cut short by the call of the den den mushi in his pocket. Rosinante could tell at a glance that it was Trebol. That man made even snails look extra slimy.

“Doffy, Doffy, little Corazon is on his way.”

The already dangerous curve of Doffy’s smile sharpened further. “Make sure we aren’t disturbed.”

It seemed Trebol had more to say but Doffy had already hung up on him. He strode over to the door and waited. Rosinante wanted to rush in front of him, to intercept Law and let the boy rest rather than face whatever it was his brother had waiting, but he knew how well that would go. He instead waited in place with his heart in his throat.

The familiar clack of Law’s heels heralded his arrival. He looked small standing between the massive doors of the throne room and far younger than usual. Rosinante’s fingers dug into the arms of the heart seat.

“Corazon, do come in."

“Doflamingo,” Law said, curt as ever.

His long, even steps became abruptly clipped when he saw the heart seat was occupied. It was the only sign he gave that he was bothered. He leaned easily against a window ledge and waited for Doffy to speak first. He was careful not to look over to Rosinante but Rosinante had no reason to resist himself.

The dark rings under Law’s eyes were more pronounced than usual. His usually well groomed jawline was dusted with stubble and punctuated by the sickly green of healing bruises. If he looked that bad where they could all see, Rosinante didn’t want to imagine what Law was hiding.

Doffy stalked over. Rosinante might have been imagining things but he swore his brother intentionally positioned himself to avoid blocking Law from view. More likely, it was meant to keep Law’s view clear and let the boy stew in concern over what was planned for them both. What part of this hadn’t been contrived? Doffy was ever the puppet master.

As if he knew Rosinante’s thoughts, Doffy used a string to tilt Law’s chin up. He examined the bruises while turning Law’s head this way and that. “Straw Hat repaid you well for your kindness. It’s not often that you let someone else get the better of you. No good deed goes unpunished,” he said with a chuckle. "Isn't that right?"

“So it would seem,” Law replied. “I assume I’m here to find out just how true that is.”

Doffy threw back his head and laughed. “That depends— what exactly was your intention, Corazon? You’ll find that I don’t enjoy a fire quite as much when it comes back to burn me.”

Law kept his features carefully schooled. Nothing about his face or his posture gave away unease. “I didn’t mean anything by it. It was a whim, nothing more.”

Doffy’s fingers played with unseen strings. “A whim? You don’t act on whims.”

Law shrugged and inclined his head. “It’s as simple as that. I didn’t intend anything against you. I just acted. Call it… a doctor’s instinct, if you need an explanation.”

"And what if I had needed my doctor? You were at Marineford for me."

Law raised an eyebrow. "Are you saying anyone there was an actual threat to you?"

Doffy laughed. This time nothing else painted the sound, only honest amusement. That didn't make it any more pleasant to listen to. The things that amused Doffy rarely were. In this case, though, it granted Rosinante the smallest sliver of hope. Perhaps Doffy's anger had lost its edge. Maybe he remembered why he was so fond of the boy he'd chosen to be his right hand man.

Then, just as quickly as that anger had subsided, it came rushing back. It showed itself in the protruding vein on Doffy's temple, the glint of strings between his fingertips. He stood up straight. When drawn up to his full height, without his usual slouch, it was even more apparent that he was nearly double the size of Law.

"You were there for me- under my flag, my name- whether I needed you or not. I don't care if it was a whim or open revolt, you put eyes on me I'd rather not have. I had to pay for your whim and I expect repayment."

Law let out a slow breath and let his shoulders slump. There was something akin to relief in his features. Law had surely been waiting for this exact moment for weeks. Whatever was to come, that wait was over. Rosinante only wished he could feel anything other than dread. He couldn’t remember the last time he’d seen his brother so furious. He would spare Law the brunt of that anger if he could. He’d failed Law on Minion and he would never do so again.

“I understand,” Law said with an even voice.

“That’s good to hear. What I want from you—” Doffy bared his teeth, the expression too vicious to be called a smile. “—is my brother’s heart.”

The careful facade Law had constructed fell away in an instant. “He has nothing to do with this,” he shouted. “This was my decision. My mistake. Let me pay the price.”

He clutched a fistful of Doffy’s coat when the older man turned to walk toward Rosinante. Doffy grabbed hold of his wrist hard enough to make Law cry out when he wrenched the young man off.

“He has everything to do with this,” Doffy growled. “He’s the reason you’ve become the sort of soft, sentimental fool who would act based on a feeling. So you will pay the price and I’m naming the payment.”

Law flicked his wrist and formed a Room around him. It was enough to get Doffy to stop in his tracks. Law’s golden eyes took on a flinty edge. He formed his hand into a sort of claw and held it before his chest.

“Take my heart instead.”

Strings snapped onto Law’s arm before he could complete the operation on himself.

“You’re testing my patience,” Doffy said. With one hand still controlling the strings, the other reached for the gun tucked into the band of his pants. He pointed the pistol at Rosinante. “I could make you pull the trigger. I could make you carve the heart out without the use of your powers. Now do as I say or I’ll ask for more than just his heart.”

Law fought against the strings. At this rate he was liable to break his wrist, if not lose the arm completely. Rosinante knew he should be more concerned for himself. There was no saying what Doffy would do when he had control of his heart. However, he couldn’t spare a thought for that with Law in pain before him and threatening to push Doffy over the edge.

“Law.”

That single syllable was enough to put a stop to Law’s struggles. He stared, wide eyed. “Your mouth. Your voice. But when...?”

Rosinante waved him off and crossed the room to kneel before Law. He ignored the way Doffy smiled, all of this no doubt going according to his plan, and took Law’s hands in his own. He could feel them trembling. Those weren’t the hands of a killer— of a Corazon— but the boy he’d watched over for the last fourteen years.

“Do as he asks.”

There was no way Law would have cried if he was aware of doing it. As it was, the tears pooled and fell unheeded while he searched Rosinante for an answer. He squeezed his eyes shut so that the last of the tears were forced out. When he opened them again, the gold had lost its shine. He pressed close, wrapped one arm around Rosinante’s back, and poised the other with the hand at his chest.

“This won’t hurt,” Law muttered.

Even if he hadn’t known how Law’s powers worked, Rosinante wouldn’t have doubted it. No matter what Doffy tried to make of Law, that would never change.

It was over before he was even aware anything had happened. He only knew because the blue haze of the Room fizzled out and he saw his heart beating steadily in the palm of Law’s hand. Law’s fingers curled protectively around it. Rosinante felt it as a comforting squeeze.

“I’m sorry you forced me to this point,” Doffy said as he took the heart from Law.

Law said nothing, only nodded and left the room when Doffy asked for nothing more. Rosinante felt a shiver that started from somewhere outside himself and curled into the empty cavity in his chest.

[bungou-stray-dingus]

Hello, I'm back! 💕 May I please ask for a serving of soft!dom Ranpo with a smol, shy female s/o scenario please~ and if you don't mind, maybe add a dash of daddy kink? (But if you're not comfortable with that, it's okayyy) THANK YOU ♥️

a/n : OOOOH a little bit of spicy snack boy >.^ SAY NO MORE! ALL MY LATE NIGHT INDULGENCES HAVE PREPARED ME FOR THIS MOMENT! GOsh I hope this is good because I am SWEATING writing this. But Ranpo is a whole snack.

T/W : Slight NSFW, A little Dash of Daddy Kink, Soft!Dom BB BOI, Fluff;

Ranpo

This boy loved how sweet and innocent you were, you were as sweet as the candy that he binge eats. But it wasn't just your sweetness or your innocence, you were also on the shorter side. Honestly, according to him, you were the dictionary definition of the perfect little cinnamon bun, which is what he called you often. Not only were you innocent and sweet, but you were also shy, which he was perfectly okay with. He didn't like talking much, so the two of you found a way to talk with your eyes and different facial expressions. Ranpo had brought you up to the Agency members once, and they (Dazai mainly) had begged him to bring you in, they wanted to meet you, the girl who had managed her way into Ranpo's secluded, snack filled life.

When he had first brought you to the Agency to meet everyone it was a big deal for him and you, he could tell how nervous you were about meeting his coworkers who had in a sense become family to him, but he had reassured you that they would all love you. "Not as much as I love you obviously, but how could they not love you? You're amazing Y/N." His hand way on your thigh, he was always touching you in some way, especially out in public. You were clearly the most beautiful girl in Yokohama, and he wanted everyone to know that you were his and his only. If anyone even looked in your direction he would squeeze your thigh, or his hand would trail down to your ass and give it a light squeeze causing a small squeal to escape your lips, your face dropping as you tried to hide from the strangers gazing eyes.

The train ride was short, when you got off the train Ranpo kept his hand on your lower back, hovering just above where your back curved to your butt. If needed, he could swiftly move his hand down, reaching under your skirt to pinch one cheek, letting any man who's eyes lingered a little longer than necessary know that you were taken by him. He brought you into the Agency building, watching your facial expressions as you took in the coffee shop on the lower level, breathing in through your nose, letting the smell of coffee fill your nostrils. You closed your eyes, sighing and smiling to him. "Adorable. I could kiss you." He said, you hadn't noticed how close he had gotten until you felt his breath, hot against the lope of your ear. His teeth grazed against the sensitive skin and your body shuddered. "R-Ranpo... there's people..." You were highly aware of the man behind the counter watching the exchange between the two of you.

"I don't mind. You're mine, aren't you?" His words were not much more than a whisper, his lips were moving lower down to your neck. His hands were on the same downward course, inching teasingly slow down your backside. Your breath hitched in your throat as you felt his nails dig into your upper thighs, right below the hem of your skirt. "Of course I'm yours... B-but... they're waiting upstairs." You tried to get his mind back on track. It wouldn't be unlike him to try to take you right there in one of the booths. It's not that he was actually into doing things in public, but he had a one track mind, and when he suddenly felt the urge, he acted on it no matter where you two were. He had riled you up many times, leaving you a flustered frustrated mess until you got back to the privacy of your own home.

He sighed, pulling away slightly as your words brought him back to the moment at hand. "We stay for twenty minutes. I need to get you home to deal with what you've caused." He murmured, his voice low and sultry. You felt the heat pooling between your thighs, but you had to keep a straight face when you met his coworkers, you had to make a good impression. Your teeth tugged at your bottom lip as you tried to contain yourself, rubbing your thighs together, literally trying anything to get a grip on yourself. It felt like your knees were shaking, and Ranpo noticed immediately. "Mmm, my little princess, you're not as innocent as you want people to believe. Be patient for Daddy, won't you?"

He led you over to the elevator, and the sexual tension between the two of you felt like a thick fog. You didn't know how long the two of you could hold off. He was practically undressing you with his eyes already, and it didn't matter how loose his pants were, you could see the slight bulge growing between his legs. As soon as the elevator doors shut he had you cornered against the wall, his arms on both sides of your head. His lips crashed into yours, his knee pushing your legs apart before bringing his leg up to drag across your most sensitive area. You moaned into the kiss, bucking your hips against his leg, desperate for his touch. He pulled away, a low chuckle escaping his lips as he looked down and saw the small wet spot on his pants. "So needy, you're already so wet for Daddy. I might just make you wait a little longer, how about that?" You didn't have time to answer before the doors slid open and he grabbed your wrist to pull you out.

The office door opened and out stepped a beautiful woman, her hair was short and black, adorned with a butterfly clip on the side. Her eyes were a beautiful magenta, but you could tell by looking at her that she meant business. Her outfit seemed very business like, a knee length A-line skirt and a white button up with red heels. She looked you over, and you couldn't tell if it was a look of approval or disapproval, but it made you slightly nervous. "So this is her?" She asked, looking over to Ranpo, her eyes scanning over his face as she waited for his response. You didn't like the way she looked at him, the smug smile spreading on her lips as she stared at him a little longer than necessary. "This is her." Ranpo finally said, a hint of pride mixed in with his tone. The jealousy that had been slowly trying to creep it's way in had all but vanished when you heard him say those three simple words. He moved his hand down to intertwine his fingers with yours, giving your hand a soft squeeze to help calm your nerves.

The woman turned on her heel and walked back into the office, not another word spoken, and you could have sworn that you sensed a feeling of agitation emitting from off her. You tried not let her mood affect you too much, even though the look that she had given Ranpo would bother you for a while, especially considering they worked together and saw each other almost every day... was there something there that you had to be worried about? Your stomach sank as your pessimism took control, all of your doubts and fears formed into one. Not even his hand in yours seemed to calm your nerves, and the feeling that was once sexual tension that had been building inside you turned into flat out tension.

You couldn't really focus on all the people in the room, they had their eyes on you, but you couldn't seem to lift your gaze from the ground. "She's just shy, isn't my little cinnamon bun precious?" Ranpo said, the feeling of his thumb brushing along your cheek should have been enough to calm you, but even still, the only thing you could think of was him possibly doing the same to the beautiful bob haired woman. He began his introduction, pointing around the room as he said everyone's names. "Kunikida, Kenjii, Atsushi, Tanizaki, Naomi, Kyouka, Dazai, Fukuzawa, and last but certainly not least, Doctor Yosano." When his hand motioned to her the pit in your stomach only grew larger. He said her name with a sort of devoutness. He had never told you anything about this woman, he had never brought her up to you at all, yet he looked at her with almost the same eyes he would give you after a long day of work, when you were the only person he wanted to see... apparently that wasn't the case though... maybe he had more than one person he adored. "Everyone, this is Y/N." He said your name the same way he said hers, but that didn't make you feel any better. In fact, it made you feel worse. Did he think of you the same way he thought of her, or did he think of her the same way he thought of you? Either way, it didn't seem very good.

"Ranpo-kun, can you come over here for a minute?" Her voice might have seemed seductive to anyone else, but to you it was piercing, like a needle going straight through one ear and out the other. The hardest part to handle was the fact that he obliged, leaving you to stand in the middle of the office so he could walk over to her. She shifted her long, slender legs, folding one over the other and leaned back on the desk she was sitting on. You could tell what she was doing, you had done the same type of pose multiple times at home to try to get Ranpo's attention, and the worst part was that it was working for her just as well as it worked for you.

Your eyes were focused on what was going on across the room, unaware of the man that had been making his way over to you. He tapped your shoulder lightly and you quickly turned around, having to look up to actually see his face. He was obviously a very charming man, and extremely cocky, you could see that in the way that he smiled down at you. "So, you look a little uncomfortable. How about I show you around the office?" You tried to remember the mans name from the ones Ranpo had listed off. Tanizaki? Atsushi? Kunikida? No.... oh, that's right. He was Dazai, the one that Ranpo had warned you about before you had even come here. Apparently he was a flirt and a natural born charmer.

Ranpo had wanted you to try to stay away from Dazai unless he was around, but your emerald eyed boyfriend was currently being held up by the beautiful doctor, so you might as well have a little fun. Of course you would never do anything to actually hurt Ranpo emotionally, you couldn't bear the thought of losing him, but you weren't going to just stand by and watch as Yosano clearly flirted with your boyfriend, whether he noticed it or not.

"Is there anywhere that you'd like to see first?" Dazai asked, leaning against the desk as he stared at you, his eyes shut, a small smile on his lips, his head cocked to the side. You could definitely see now why he was the heartthrob of the Agency.

"The coffee shop... downstairs... i-it smelled really nice. I'd love to have a cup." You said it softly, so soft that nobody else had been able to hear you at all, even Dazai had barely made out what you said, but he heard enough. He nodded and pushed himself away from the desk, wrapping his arm loosely around your waist as he led you to the door. You weren't expecting him to be so touchy, and you weren't sure if this would be considered going to far.

You used the time alone with Dazai to learn more about Ranpo and Yosano's relationship, finding out if it was platonic or if there was something more there. When you finally heard the full story you felt awful for even assuming, and even more awful for thinking that leaving the office upstairs to go with Dazai was a good idea.

Meanwhile, Ranpo had finally finished his conversation with Yosano. She had been talking to him about how cute he and you looked together, and that she wasn't used to seeing someone shorter than him. She was proud of him honestly, that he had found someone that he seemed to be truly in love with. She saw how he would open his phone occasionally while sitting at his desk, and his eyes would open for only a second to read the text, then his eyes would close and a wide smile would spread across his face as he leaned back in his chair. She knew before he had even brought you up that he had found someone, and that someone made him truly happy. That's all she wanted for him, he was like a brother to her, and she believed that he deserved nothing but the best.

He turned around, thinking that he would find you still standing in the middle of the office, or maybe sitting on the couch talking to Naomi or Kyouka, but he saw that you were gone, and not only that, but Dazai was gone too. He didn't want to make a scene, of course not, but thinking of you being anywhere with Dazai had him slightly irritated, maybe even... jealous. He had no reason to be jealous obviously, he knew that you would never actually make a move on Dazai, but it wasn't you that he was worried about. You were shy and soft spoken, if Dazai tried anything on you, you would be too nervous to say anything about it or tell him to stop.

His eyes shot open, flashing his beautiful emerald green irises to everyone in the office. They knew he meant business then, clearing a path for him to the door. He already knew where the two of you had went, he thought it was quite foolish of Dazai to try to even take you out of the office in the first place. First thing, he would know exactly where you were, his ultra deduction wasn't just used for crime cases. Also, you were HIS, so it took some nerve for Dazai to sweep you off somewhere to be alone with him, especially when Ranpo was around. He wasn't exactly angry about it, no, just irritated and he wanted to show everyone in the office that you belonged to him, specifically Dazai.

You were at the little booth in the front of the small cafe, sipping from your coffee cup, trying to avoid Dazai's stare. When you put your cup down his hands immediately moved to capture yours. "Wha- What are you doing?" You stammered out, trying to pull your hands away, but his grip was tight. "You have your doubts about Ranpo, and I'm not going to tell you whether you're right or wrong about them. But I will tell you that you are the most beautiful woman I have ever laid my eyes upon. It would be an honor, a great privilege if you would commit a double suicide with me." His eyes were twinkling, filled with excitement at the possible prospect of having someone to do the fateful dead with him.

"I... uh... uhm... no thank you." You yanked your hands away, and just as you were about to get up you felt a set of strong arms wrap around your waist. You turned your neck to see his green eyes staring into yours, and you couldn't think of anything to say, so you shifted your body in his arms, burying your face in his shoulder. He tsked at Dazai, shaking his head at the man at the table. "I'm not shocked, just disappointed that you would attempt such a thing with MY girlfriend. I know that she is absolutely gorgeous, stunning even, but she is mine. I don't share any of my sweets, her included." His voice was stern, and you could only imagine how he would look. The thought of his face, matching the serious tone in his voice, it had a fire burning deep inside of you.

He led you to the elevator, leaving Dazai at the table in silence. You still didn't know what to say, but Ranpo had an idea of how to make you talk. You had been staring down at your shoes as you waited for the elevator to come down from the top floor, but Ranpo didn't like your silence, not at all. He grabbed your chin between his thumb and forefinger, forcing you to look at him. "You belong to me, isn't that right my little kitten?" You hummed in response, but that wasn't enough. He shook his head and got closer, his face mere inches from your own. "I want to hear you say it." You were putty in his hands, and you loved when he was domineering like this. It turned you on and he knew it, he knew exactly what he was doing. "I'm your's, Daddy. No one else's." You whispered, and you could have sworn that you heard him moan.

The elevator doors opened and he pushed you inside, slamming his finger into the button repeatedly to close the doors. He pressed the top button, but as soon as the elevator started moving he pushed the emergency stop button. When he turned to look back at you his eyes were lidded, a darker version of the beautiful emerald green. That look alone had you practically dripping, and you were rubbing your thighs together, trying to feel anything, any type of friction. He was leaning in the far corner, watching you with a smirk. "Mmm, Daddy's little kitten is so impatient. Do you need my help?"

He walked over to where you were, moving to stand behind you. You grinded yourself against him as his hands traveled agonizingly slow up your thighs, under the hem of your skirt until he reached your panties. "You're soaking already, has Daddy been keeping you waiting too long?" He was kissing along your neck, biting it occasionally as he toyed with your over sensitive slit making your hips buck into his touch. "Let's see how many times I can make you come before someone saves us, hmm?"

A/N : I WAS SWEATING WHILE WRITING THIS AND I REALLY DO HOPE THAT IT'S GOOD BECAUSE I WAS LIKE "OOOHHHH MY GOSH HOW DOES ONE SERVE SOME GOOD FUCKIN FOOD!!!???" BUT I REALLY DO HOPE YOU LIKE IT!

[tiredcowpoke]

TITLE: From That Night PAIRING: Arthur Morgan/Reader REQUEST: anon asked: “could i request the reader finding out she’s pregnant and trying to tell arthur x also i’ve binge read all your fics here and on AO3!! i love them all so much you’re such an amazing writer xx” WARNINGS: Pregnancy, mentions of vomiting, talk of child death, some angst.   NOTE: Firstly, thank you so much anon! I’m glad you’ve been enjoying what I have written so far! That is really flattering to hear. Secondly, I really debated on writing this request as pregnancy can be rough for me due personal reasons, plus I feel like it’s been done to death in regards to x readers (even now I feel like I’ve unintentionally mimicked something from other fic in this, much as I tried to approach things differently). However, I did decide to go for it, so I hope you enjoy it, but I don’t feel I’ll be writing many more of these in the future.

This really was happening. 

Valentine’s hotel didn’t have the most glorious bath, but it was usually enough. However, in the moment, it felt suffocating. The humid air from the hot water of the bath, the smell of soap, and you couldn’t stop staring at yourself in the mirror. You had got your pants and boots back on, the first few buttons of your shirt buttoned but you had stopped halfway down. 

It had been a good couple days since you had been waking up in the early morning, quickly trying to rise to a stand and trying not to disturb the other people around you before stumbling off toward the edge of camp to empty the contents of your stomach from the night before. You had been getting more and more tired, you were usually pretty composed but you had found yourself in yelling matches over the pettiest of things around camp. 

Abigail caught on, trying to bring the subject up once before you snapped at her, denying the possibility of it. Over and over to yourself, you denied it. You didn’t want it to be true, so it wasn’t. For a while, at least. You still went out riding, you still did jobs, but you also still had that sickness in the mornings and sometimes during dinner after getting too close to the pot. Pearson was ribbed enough for his cooking, but the savory smell of meat and broth mixed in a strange way sometimes and--well, you had heard the odd tease about someone finally puking over just the smell of his food. 

You couldn’t deny it forever, and rubbing a hand gently over the firmness of your stomach that had started to fill out more somewhat--well, you couldn’t. 

With a shaky sigh, you buttoned the rest of your shirt, slipping the vest on before heading back out toward your horse. It wasn’t that big of a bump yet, you knew with clothes on it was very hard to tell, but in the moment you felt like you stuck out like a sore thumb. You wandered over toward your horse, climbing into her saddle before starting to make a somewhat slow trot back to camp. 

We’re gonna have to tell him. 

You dreaded that terribly. If you had some way to bend time and go back to that night, you wouldn’t have gone through with it. You and Arthur had been walking around the subject of your attraction to each other for quite some time--you had been around while Mary was in his life, and the aftermath of that. Many months you had dealt with the on and off feelings you had toward him, stepping off when it seemed like he wasn’t interested anymore, stepping back in when it felt like there was a chance. 

That night had been awkward, and you had been turning it over in your head for a while. A sort of hunting trip, getting food for the pot, and resting under the stars. There had been a tiny bit of sharing of whiskey, and somehow you both had managed to play into your mutual loneliness for a night. The morning after had settled that awkward feeling in you, nobody wanting to talk about it, despite pulling clothes back on. Arthur got distant after, and you had kicked yourself for it. Sometimes you regretted it, sometimes you didn’t. A couple nights you had even wished it happened again, though knowing what was happening you had to wonder if that was part of it. Now this?

“Shit,” you cursed, letting out a breath as you continued to ride upon your horse at the slow pace. 

If that was how Arthur was going to deal with that, you had no idea how he would deal with what you had to tell him. 

It had been a couple months, maybe it wouldn’t be so bad. The distance had closed a bit, things felt somewhat normal until...well. Perhaps Arthur didn’t know things had changed, but you knew clear as day now. Visiting the doctor had confirmed it, that odd look in his eye when he saw your stomach like he figured you of all people should already know his answer. It had pushed you right back into denial, the bath letting you forget it for a moment but it was back as soon as you were out. 

We need to tell him. 

You didn’t want to agree with the voice, but it was becoming all the more pressing. You could only hide it for so much longer before it was apparent that you were carrying someone’s child, and he might as well know it’s his. 

Still, the arrival back to camp had your nerves shot, your horse fidgety as you tried to feed him and let out a couple slow breaths against the tightness in your chest. You stayed there for a couple minutes, petting your horse well beyond the point where he needed it to calm down. It had been enough for you not to notice the footfalls coming up behind you, a small jump escaping you at a familiar voice. 

“Everythin’ alright with you, dear?”

Grimshaw was probably the last person you were expecting to see, her expression concerned and somewhat softer than you were expecting. A part of you just wanted to say yes, that nothing was wrong, just something off you ate. Yet, your mouth had gone dry, your hands clenching as they shook lightly at your sides. 

“...I don’t know what to do,” you replied lowly, almost a whisper before you took in a shaking breath. “Miss Grimshaw, what do I do?” 

“C’mon,” she replied, approaching you somewhat carefully as she placed a hand behind your shoulders and moved you toward where some of the bails of hay for the horses were sat.

“Just sit down a minute,” she continued, helping you sit down with your weak legs. “...You don’t gotta tell me, I’ve been on this earth for some time. Ain’t hard to miss the signs after a while.” 

“I didn’t want this to happen,” you muttered, pressing your hands over your eyes, “I was being stupid, didn’t think it could for a while.” 

“Well, I ain’t gonna lie to you and say it’s the smartest thing you could’ve done,” Susan replied, that familiar stern tone sitting behind the somewhat calm one she had in the moment, “You know whose it is?”

“...Arthur’s,” you replied, somehow feeling like a big weight had lifted while it also came settling right back down as you finally said it out loud. 

“...Arthur?” Grimshaw asked somewhat slowly, like she didn’t believe you as you let out a short huff. 

“Yes, believe it or not,” you replied, “It was a couple months ago during a hunting trip. We haven’t talked about it since.” 

“Have you told him yet?”

“No,” you said somewhat thickly, “I don’t know if I even want to.” 

“Don’t matter if you want to,” she replied, somewhat clipped, “You can tell him as it’s happenin’ now or you can start showin’ more and let the camp try to piece it together. One’s better than the other.” 

“...I know,” you replied with a sigh, “Oh, I know. I just...I don’t know how he’s going to react.” 

“Well, you can’t keep hidin’ it from him.”

She was right, and the idea of letting the camp make a game out of guessing the father sounded like a nightmare. Especially if the truth came out that way. 

“I’ll tell him,” you replied, sounding somewhat resigned. “Tonight if I have to.”

                                                           *** 

With how your nerves were, you spent another dinner sitting somewhat solitary at the edge of camp, food slowly going cold after you had forced down a couple bites. With how long you had been keeping this a secret, you knew you had plenty of time to beat yourself up over it. Yet, with the truth out and having someone outside of yourself knowing it, it felt like those thoughts had been kicked right back up. You were an outlaw, running with a group of outlaws. What were you supposed to do with a kid?

You thought for a moment about Jack, how tired Abigail seemed and the concern she had over his well-being was constant while living in the gang. Jack had gotten sick in Colter--and he did seem better now, but…

If something like that were to happen again, how would a newborn survive that?

“You not eatin’ anymore or what?” 

Your shoulders jumped slightly, Arthur’s voice like metal grinding against metal in the moment. He was the last person you wanted to see, yet you knew he was the only one you should be talking to in the moment. It still didn’t stop the somewhat alarmed look that crossed your face, his own expression tightening in confusion as he let out a small huff. 

“What’s gotten into you lately? More skittish than a wild horse.” 

“I…” Well, it was now or never. “Come sit a moment, will you? I need to talk to you.” 

The confusion on his face only worsened. “...What about?”

“Just...something that’s been happening lately.”

He seemed to relent at that, stepping over a couple dead branches before he made his way toward where you sat. There was a touch of relief that you didn’t have to convince him further or just blurt it out while he was standing there. Arthur sat down next to you, knees almost touching. 

“Listen, I ain’t the best shoulder to cry on,” he said, glancing toward you, “You’re gonna have to just tell me what’s goin’ on.” 

Oh, you knew.

“I…” you started, feeling like your heart was in your throat, “I know we both don’t seem to want to even talk about it, but you...you remember that night we had a couple months ago?”

“...Yeah,” he replied after a moment, leaning forward to rest an arm against one of his knees, “Look, if you’re gonna tell me that you didn’t...that you regret it, you really don’t need to tell me. I get it. I should’ve been more in control, it shouldn’t of happened.” 

“No, no. It’s--it’s not that, I…” you let out a breath--was that you saying you didn’t regret it? “Shit, I don’t even know how to say this. I started...feeling strange, and most everybody knows about this stomach thing I have and…I think I’m pregnant.” 

You almost couldn’t bring yourself to look at him, those tremors in your hands coming back somewhat as you tried to keep them clenched in your lap. That part of you that had been denying that for months desperately wanted to reach out and pull the words back into your mouth, keep them shut behind your teeth for another period of time. Still, upon raising your gaze, the somewhat wide-eyed yet distant look on Arthur’s face told you all you needed to know. 

“Are you sure?” he asked after a moment, “Are you sure that you’re...that it’s…?”

“The doctor looked at me like I was an idiot when I asked him if he thought I was expecting, so I’m pretty sure.” 

It was at that point that Arthur bent forward, pressing the heels of his palms against his eyes. You had imagined his reaction in a number of ways. That he would get angry and storm off, that he’d deny it as much as you had been for as long as you knew about the baby. Though, seeing him almost slumped over in defeat? That wasn’t quite what you had been expecting. 

“How the hell are we gonna take care of a baby?” he asked after a moment, your brow furrowing. “Dutch’s got us way out east, all that money we lost, he’s got me workin’ tooth and nail to get enough to get back out west…” 

“Well, I…” you started, but trailed off as you realized you didn’t have a proper answer to that. It was a question you had been asking yourself, much as you shoved it aside again and again. 

“I can’t…” Arthur replied, rising from where he was sitting. For a moment you feared he might actually storm off like you had been expecting, but he only seemed to approach one of the trees within the space you both occupied, his tense back turned toward you. 

“I’m scared too,” you admitted after a moment, letting out another quick breath. “Frankly, I’m terrified.” 

“I should’ve known better,” he replied after a moment, shaking his head as he turned back toward you, “I had sworn off...doin’ that sort of thing when...I-I lost my son.” 

“What?”

“Couple years ago--long time ago, really. I...I met a waitress, we had a night together and she fell pregnant with a little boy. My little boy. Tried to be there for them, and it worked for a couple years--one foot in and one foot out. That ended. Some...no good bastards killed ‘em both over some robbery for ten dollars. I was with the gang when it happened. Came back to two crosses outside the house…” 

A pit of sadness filled your stomach as he spoke about his son, something you had no clue about. Much as he tried to keep his composure, you could tell he was struggling to get the story out. Trying to imagine turning up outside that house to find…? Christ. 

“I can’t let that happen again. I don’t know if…” 

“It could be different this time,” you replied, gathering yourself to a stand. You weren’t completely sure where the certainty was coming from. “It’s not just you and me. Jack’s probably the most protected member of this gang, you think the others wouldn’t do the same for this child?”

“This even what you want?”

“...I don’t know,” you admitted, hugging your arms to yourself. “I don’t know, I’m still just...trying to realize that this is happening in the first place. I’d been denying that it was for...a while.” 

“How long you known?”

“A couple months.” 

“Couple months?”

“I’d been denying that it was happening,” you snapped, shaking your head. “Thought if I’d ignored it long enough, it would turn out to be something else. My family treated their children like horse shit, I don’t even know how to interact with Jack half the time. I’m scared, I don’t know how I’m going to be as a mother. I fear I’m going to be like my own.” 

“My pa hated me,” Arthur replied, causing you to glance toward him, “Switched between usin’ me for beggin’ and tellin’ me how useless I was. Thing is, I know that’s bad, and you do too. I don’t...I don’t think you’d end up like your mother.” 

“I guess…” you replied, sniffling in a breath as you let out a heavy sigh, “Shit.” 

“Yeah, you can say that again…” he muttered, pushing himself off the tree as he walked closer toward you. “We’re...we’ll figure this out, just…” 

“No offense,” you started, glancing down toward your feet, “I was not expecting a we in this situation.” 

“What, you implyin’ it’s not mine?”

“You’re really asking me that? No, of course not.” 

“Then I got some responsibility in this, too,” he replied, “I’m not gonna leave you alone, I’m not Marston.” 

“John and Abigail have their own unique situation. We’re...we’re not even together. Spent months not even wanting to talk about that night.” 

“I know,” Arthur replied, his tone dropping to something more somber, “I just...with what happened that mornin’, I’d assumed that you regretted sleepin’ with me. Hell, I broke my own word about that.” 

“...I didn’t know how to react, and how quickly the whole thing was brushed aside I just had no idea what was going on in your head.” 

“...Guess it don’t matter now,” he replied around a sigh, “I’m sorry. If I’d been thinkin’ for a second I would’ve seen this comin’.” 

“You...you don’t need to apologize. It was mutual, unless my memory’s lying to me. I liked you before then, had wanted something from that and maybe it was selfish of me to have acted without thinking when I saw the opportunity.” 

“I wouldn’t have done any of that if I hadn’t felt somethin’ too,” he replied, shaking his head, “Guess we weren’t thinkin’ this would happen.” 

“Yeah…” 

You let the conversation linger in the air for a few moments, but were surprised to feel the weight of his hands on your shoulders, rubbing your upper arms soothingly for a moment as he seemed to think. 

“Anybody else know?” he asked, meeting your gaze. 

“Just Grimshaw. She found me in a state earlier and guessed it.” 

He nodded his head lightly, seeming to accept that as he gently squeezed your arms. 

“We’ll figure this out,” he repeated, “It’s a...damn lot to take in, but...we’ll figure it out.” 

“Yeah. Yeah…” you replied, giving a soft nod of your own, “I’m sorry I didn’t tell you sooner.” 

“It’s fine,” he replied, dropping his hands, “It’ll be okay. Just...please try to eat more. That’s concernin’ by itself before I even knew…” 

“I’ll...I’ll try,” you said around a soft huff, “The stew just doesn’t sit sometimes.” 

“Not the first time…” he muttered, a part of you relieved to see at least a touch of humor in him with everything that had just happened. You offered him a small grin. 

You knew this was far from over, but at least the news was out. You could carry on from there. You would both figure it out, you just had to trust that.

[fire-the-headcanons]

Follow the Beacon Raven—Quiet

[Link to Masterpost]

[Apparently I didn’t post the last few chapters on Tumblr? Use the masterpost to make sure you don’t miss anything]

[also hi, not dead]

The truck door opened with a solid click and let cold sea air wash through the cabin. Raven followed her brother out onto the gravel with an irritated shiver. She hissed quietly through her teeth. They're making us soft.

It had been almost as difficult to sleep on Summer's flat, even wooden floor as it had originally been to sleep on the spongelike mattress.

Summer yawned, stifling it behind her hand but drawing the attention of her mother. A familiar grin crept over Claret's face, identical to the one Summer wore when about to provoke someone. "Aww, I'm sorry, sweetie. Did you want to sleep in on the first morning of your first mission?"

"Mooooommm."

Professor Mesánychta's oft-repeated don't worry, that's how they show affection echoed in Raven's head. Seeing them with their parents actually made it make sense.

"You know that's contagious, Sum," Huang yawned as well, distorting his words. "Who's up for some fishing?"

Raven eyed the machines bolted down to the truck beds with a scowl. …They did look a bit like fishing rods.

"You're the worst," Tai grumbled, grabbing a bundle of straps and tossing half to Summer before shaking his out and shrugging it on.

Harnesses. Raven's gut clenched.

"In all seriousness, each person on a line needs a spotter," Huang said, looking at her and Qrow.

"Raven, will you spot me?" Qrow asked quickly.

She hesitated. Hang over a cliff or sit with Huntsmen? Which was worse? Then again—he was probably just trying to keep Misfortune away from the trucks, where more could go wrong. "Sure."

He nodded, accepting a harness from Mrs. Rose. She immediately turned her attention to Raven, however, explaining how the winch worked and how to keep the ropes from getting tangled.

"This is pretty straightforward work," Huang said, giving Tai enough slack to walk out toward the edge, and Raven copied his motions carefully. "Try not to fire on the cliff—we're trying to avoid eroding it here, and the damage adds up. Absolutely no ice Dust, it's hell on the rock, but stick to your blades in general."

Qrow nodded, riveted.

"Lastly—do not drop your weapon. Recovery is a big enough pain when the water's warm."

"Right." He glanced over the other tools in the truck bed and grabbed a short cord to tie the hilt to his hand.

Huang nodded approvingly. "Better safe than sorry."

"Hmm, you've got a point," Summer muttered, unclipping her gravity arrow and securing it to her belt before slotting in a spare. Fire Dust glistened through the clear window in the side.

"See ya!" Tai shouted with a manic grin, latching his shield-sled to his shoe and hopping backward off the cliff. A moment later the line tightened, metal clanged against stone, and a small skreeeee of rage cut off half-formed. Summer and Qrow yelped and followed.

Claret smirked at Huang with a quiet chuckle the three wouldn't be able to hear. "Oh, yes, they're so miserable."

He raised his hands in mock surrender. "I'll admit, they're taking it well."

In spite of her apprehensions around working with two professional Huntsmen—from Anima, no less—but mostly they and their children had distracted each other, content to let the twins quietly observe. With all of her teammates at the very edge of earshot, she braced for the inevitable shift in focus. Just stay calm and say as little as possible.

"So…what made you want to become a Huntress, Raven?"

Oh. Maybe she should have lied to Summer, before. "I wanted to stay with Qrow."

"His idea?" The Huntress asked, amused. "He was certainly quick to volunteer you to stay up here and do the boring work."

"He…" What would Qrow say? Her mind went blank.

…What would Summer say? "…I… dislike heights." There, put that way it wasn't even admitting weakness. "And Qrow doesn't mind them. He's just trying to be nice."

"Oh. That's sweet. …You two must be very close."

Raven nodded. She could do this. She could play along.

"I guess we won't have any of you trade off then." Oh, thank gods. "Well, what do you think of Huntressing so far, then?"

"Um…" she glanced at the edge of the cliff, where the three lines swayed gently and laughter echoed from below. "…Is this what you really do?"

"Oh—don't worry, there's not always so many cliffs involved."

"N-no—I meant—" Every Huntress she'd seen before coming to Beacon had been desperate, injured, dead. Expendable tools of people too weak to fight for themselves. "I thought it would be… harder?"

"You've been talking to Taiyang," Claret smiled, fiddling with the winch to give her daughter more line. "Don't get me wrong, there's plenty of Huntresses that go out looking for trouble. "Well—you went on some of Zelenia's expeditions, right? There's always something out there to hunt down or study—but yes, most of Huntress work is just… maintenance."

Huang nodded from his seat in the other truck bed. "These fledglings are no threat to us. But if someone untrained with their aura tried this, it could turn deadly fast. Add in the icy conditions and it's not really safe for Signal's students either. So we step in, because we can."

"What about bigger Grimm?" Raven countered.

"If you're doing your job right, you won't have any young and stupid Grimm that get big enough to be a threat. As for what wanders in from the wilds…"

"The old ones are smart enough to stay away from humans, at least when we don't weaken ourselves by attacking each other. And you should always have an idea of what's in the area."

"If you ever end up in a fight you're not prepared for, something went wrong a month or more ago."

"…What do you mean?"

Claret smiled again. "I'm sure by now you've heard Summer and Taiyang crack at least one joke about migration tracking."

Raven nodded.

"The Kingdoms spend a lot of resources keeping an eye on any large herds of Grimm that form." She turned out toward the ocean and pointed at the horizon. "You see those buoys out there? There's a listening station bolted to the seafloor under each one. Warns us if anything too big gets close to the island, gives us time to call Vale for backup if we need it. There's stations all over the mountains too, same thing, and the Kingdoms are putting them further and further out into the wilds every year."

"I suppose your farm would have been pretty far from any of the Kingdom's guard stations if you were growing something illegal, though," Huang added, too casually. "It makes sense you wouldn't know."

Adrenaline surged through Raven's veins, turning the world sharper and colder. "No—we grew—rice. It was just rice, and—" Of course she'd get them caught for the wrong thing—they'd be captured and discovered for sure—

"You're not in trouble!" Claret exclaimed. "They obviously threatened both of you—you didn't have a choice—" she froze for half a moment, repeating softly, "…you didn't have a choice."

"What do you mean?"

Huang cleared his throat with a different sort of hesitation. "…Apparently, Qrow let slip that the two of you had to keep watch for each other at night because the others would attack you. I hope I'm not the first person to say that's not normal."

That was pretty unlucky. At least if this is what killed them, it wouldn't be entirely her fault.

"You and your brother are safe with us. If you need help, or protection, we're here for you."

A trap. Like Professor Mesánychta's attempt to get her to confess everything to a doctor at Beacon. "We grew rice." She threw as much certainty into the words as she could.

The Huntress nodded, almost sadly. "It's all right. We just want to make sure you have somewhere else to go when the school year ends."

Raven didn't want to think about it. No, they didn't have a plan, and Qrow would have an unlimited number of threats and excuses to keep them in Vale and away from Vanta.

And he'd be right. His Semblance was no better now than when they left camp.

Maybe the Huntresses didn't have a reason to hurt them—yet—but they didn't have a reason to help, either.

"Why?"

Claret stared with a frown. "…Summer and Taiyang care about both of you. They appreciate what you've taught them, and they know you're struggling."

What we've taught them. Maybe she had underestimated how useful they were to their teammates.

Qrow laughed from below, and Raven held tight to the winch to lean out over the ledge to see, ingoring the way her stomach turned over.

"SIGnal POINT is FALLing DOWN," Tai sang, pushing away from the cliff on the half-beats and crashing back against the rocks in time to the song. Smoke and flames burst from under the shield clipped to his boots as it smashed through the fledglings' perches. One of the larger birds gave a high-pitched squawk as it flattened, and Qrow laughed again.

"…Seems to me like he's happy here," the Huntress murmured.

Refusal would be suspicious. They had let too much slip, and there really was nowhere else to go. "I'll talk to him about it."

***

"You kids are too good, that was supposed to take all day," Huang said.

"That wasn't so bad, was it?" Ms. Rose asked, taking Tai's hand and pulling him back onto solid ground.

Tai shrugged out of the harness and tossed it back into the box. "Ehh. This probably could have waited another month."

"There would be too much rain in another month," Claret pointed out, "and it shouldn't wait three or four more."

Tai shrugged sharply, unable to argue with that but still unhappy with it.

"Why did you want to become a Huntsman?"

"I want to do something that matters," he declared, accepting Summer and Qrow's harnesses and tossing them in with his own before popping the lid closed and latching it. "Not gonna stick with this kid stuff forever."

That didn't match what Claret said—and the Huntress took Raven's silent glance as a question. "There are, of course, some people who go out looking for trouble."

So that was the difference. All the Huntsmen that tracked down Vanta and Bones, that ambushed the tribe in the wilds or waited in villages that couldn't possibly afford them—

Something foul rose in the back of Raven's throat. "But—this does matter."

Qrow's mouth fell open.

"Well, yeah," Tai admitted, shrugging. "It's just boring. I want a challenge." With a teasing grin, he added, "Are you worried about me?"

She knew when she was being baited and so said nothing. Tai shrugged and turned away, giving her the chance to shoot Qrow a scathing glance behind his back.

"Let's get these back to the school," Huang said, gesturing for the twins to follow him back to the truck they arrived in.

"Everything go smoothly?" Qrow muttered, clambering in and offering a hand.

She nodded and took it. "You?"

"Fine."

Outside, Huang slammed the tailgate closed. Raven twisted at her vambrace. "…Mrs. Rose says this is what Huntresses do most of the time. Not the cliffs, the…cleanup."

"Really?"

Huang laughed, and the two nearly jumped. "You've been talking to Summer and Taiyang too much."

"But—" Raven frowned. Were they supposed to talk to them less? "They're our teammates." Or were they supposed to be talking to people outside of team STRQ more? Ugh—trying to learn the right things to say for just two people was hard enough.

He waved a hand, sliding into his seat. "Just an expression. I was the same at their age… desperate to get out there." The truck rumbled to life, crunching ice and rock as it started forward. "Too often people don't see the value in the little things until after we try to take on the world. They'll learn as they get more experience."

And what if they're killed before they learn?

Raven shook herself silently. It's not our problem. We're smart, we'll—damn it, we'll go HOME. They'd return, kill Vanta and Sanguin, take over the tribe, and teach the Huntsmen it wasn't worth coming after them. The children of Bones Branwen shouldn't have too much trouble with that—they'd only have to kill three or four to get the message across.

When both the tribe and the Huntsmen feared them, they'd finally be safe.

***

"I must have told him three times, 'Stay on the path.. Okay?' Then I turned around to get Summer out of her car seat, and when I looked back he was up to his knees in mud."

Tai froze, halfway out of the other cab, gaping at his father. "Are you telling them the—"

"Oh, I remember that," Claret said, thoughtful. "We never did find that shoe."

"He had them for two weeks! They were brand new!"

She giggled with a snort just like her daughter's, though Summer was currently trying to hide a smile from Tai.

"Are you two going to be this embarrassing all week?"

"I'm your dad, that's my job!"

Tai groaned in that exaggerated, joking way. "Let's just get out on patrol so you have to be quiet."

"Ah, you wound me!" he gasped, hanging the keys back on the wall.

"It's going to be dark soon," Summer said. "We really should get going if we're hiking to the cabin."

"You don't want to drive there on the second day of your first mission?"

"You're never going to let that go, are you."

"Hmm…" Claret smiled. "Ask me next year."

Raven followed them from the warehouse, out the eastern side of the fort. Half of one wall served as the local Huntsmen's base of operation, separate from the school—which apparently in a town this small just meant storage.

"Uncle Azraq?"

At the other large door—the main school entrance—a Huntsman froze on the threshold, head snapping toward Summer's voice, and his eyes widened.

"Uncle Az!" Tai shouted, and the two of them ran forward to hug him.

"Hey!" His eyes flicked past Raven, toward the other adults, only briefly. "How was your first day?"

"Ehh, nothing crazy. How was your mission?"

"…Just a false alarm," he lied, tension running under his voice.

"Aw, dang. Hope it didn't waste too much time."

"At least now you can meet the twins!"

"Of course," he replied, and they stepped aside to let him past. His gaze stayed trained on their teammates' parents, though, and he walked right past her—

Qrow stood with his head bowed, hands hanging limp at his sides. A knot of unease tightened in Raven's stomach as the Huntsman stopped right in front of her brother and spoke with a gentle voice.

"It's good to see you again."

Next Chapter: Qrow—Doesn’t Change Anything

[visionsofus]

I suggest the song "Where the Shadow Ends" by Banners for your mixtape fic. It's beautiful and melancholic, but also hopeful. It's given me a lot of inspiration for WandaVision fics lately.

Ahh thank you so much for this song!! I totally get what you mean with it being kinda sombre but also hopeful! It’s captured so perfectly in the lyrics too. Sorry it took me a while to get around to this - but better late than never ✨

Track #12: Where The Shadow Ends by BANNERS 

| read on AO3 here | mixtape playlist | send me an ask with your song/prompt request |

synopsis: Wanda falls ill at the compound and Vision panics. Surprisingly, her illness gives them an opportunity to talk about their feelings. Wanda comes to terms with putting faith in her feelings and in Vision. 

All things considered; Wanda probably shouldn’t have gone to the gym when she did. But Steve had offered to help her with some of the new equipment the compound had ordered in and Wanda knew she pushed herself harder when faced with his superhuman training schedule.

She didn’t feel too bad at the beginning of the work out, going through the motions of warming up. She worked out most days because if she didn’t her body suffered after missions. So, she persisted even when she was tired and her muscles were sore, and apparently, even when it was pouring with rain. She’d quickly regretted her decision to go on a run despite the threatening grey sky. By the time the rain had started Wanda was too far into her run to turn back and had stubbornly refused to call anyone at the compound to come pick her up, instead walking all the way back as her wet shoes started to rub blisters into her heels. Thanks to an hour in sopping wet clothes, battling a harsh wind all the way home she’d woken up with a temperature the past two mornings.

But when she’d checked her temperature a few hours ago it seemed the fever had finally broken, and she was so restless that she didn’t hesitate to accept Steve’s invitation. A mistake she was going to pay for.

The warmup had her feeling a little woozy and lightheaded but not terrible. Things quickly went downhill as she started her usual activities. Just as she picked the dumbbells up to start on her triceps a sudden wave of dizziness hit her full force. Wanda vaguely remembered Steve calling her name as the dumbbells hit the floor with two resounding thuds and she promptly passed out.

Vision was stuck in a research spiral when he distantly heard the Compound AI say his name.

“Currently fetching recent message from Steve Rogers,” the robotic voice said from the speaker in the ceiling and Vision tilted his head as he listened. “Wanda has passed out in the gym, please prepare first aid.”

Vision didn’t give the AI the chance to repeat itself, launching himself out of his seat and phasing through the wall. He was used to quick thinking, easily able to make split second decisions based on a variety of possibilities, but this was something different. He didn’t thinkhe just moved. Within seconds he was phasing through the floors of the compound arriving in the basement with such force that his feet split the tiled floor on impact.

“What happened?” Vision asked with such fervour that he might have reprimanded himself for snapping, were he not so taken aback by the sight of Wanda’s limp body in the Captain’s arms.

“We were ten minutes into our workout and she just dropped to the floor,” Steve explained not hesitating to hand Wanda over to Vision’s waiting arms.

“She has a fever,” Vision said as he gathered Wanda up, holding her close so he could support her head against his chest. She was burning up, her breaths coming in short bursts that concerned him. How had her temperature gotten so high and why hadn’t any of them noticed her getting ill? Most of all, how had he let it slip his attention?

“You get her upstairs while I get a drip.”

They both started up the stairs, Vision trying not to jostle his unconscious cargo, too concerned to try phasing, even if the stairs were frustratingly slower. They parted ways at the ground floor as Steve hurried to the med bay and Vision continued to Wanda’s bedroom.

He kicked her door open with his foot and brought her over to the bed. As he set her down atop the navy covers, lifting her up to slip another pillow under her head, Vision wondered if it might have been better to just take her straight to the infirmary, or better yet, the hospital. But Wanda was notoriously unpredictable when it came to waking up in unfamiliar environments and had taken out a wall the last time she had passed out and woken up in the infirmary. Her own space was better, for now. Vision brushed her hair off her sweating forehead and Wanda groaned softly, shivering in her feverish state and reaching for the bed covers.

“No, no,” Vision murmured pulling Wanda’s hands away as she attempted to pull her covers up over her. She might be feeling cold, but Vision estimated her temperature was nearing 39C. While he waited for Cap to return with the drip Vision hurried to and from the kitchen and her bedroom, carrying with him a bowl of water and a cloth. Distracted, he managed to spill about a quarter of it along the hallway. He was just laying the cloth gently atop her forehead when Steve arrived in the doorway, IV equipment in hand.

“How did she get this fever?” Vision asked as Steve set down the mobile frame and hung the bag of liquid from the top. It was rare for illness to travel around the compound when so many of them were unable to fall sick, though there were far more serious conditions that could cause fever.

“She got caught in the rain on Wednesday, must have caught a cold from that,” Steve replied connecting the tubing and handing the other end to Vision as he prepared the needle. “She didn’t tell you?”

“No, she didn’t tell me,” Vision murmured, stoutly ignoring the little part of him that disliked Steve knowing something about her that he didn’t. He instead focused on finishing the IV, taking a little bit of tape from the first aid kit to secure the tubing to Wanda’s bare arm.

It wasn’t really a surprise that he hadn’t known of her rainy run. In the last week Vision had barely seen Wanda, something he found absurd because he lived just down the hall from the room they were currently in. And, well, the rest of the team often described them as being ‘attached at the hip’. Unfortunately, it seemed Wanda was excellent at making herself scarce when Vision tried to be near her these days. She was clearly trying to set a boundary, which Vision would understandably accept, if only he could understand what it was for. There had been no big change between them that he could identify, if anything they’d been getting closer, but it was as though she’d decided she didn’t like spending time with him anymore.

“I should have told her to go easy with the exercise,” Steve said, more to himself than anything, but Vision silently agreed.

Vision sighed quietly and perched himself next to the unconscious Wanda, removing the cloth from her head and submerging it in the basin once more. “She needs to look after herself,” he murmured, “or at least let someone else help her.” Vision avoided meeting Steve’s eyes following this admission, knowing that behind thissomeone else meant himself.

He wrung the cloth out and returned it to her scorching skin, delicately wiping at her cheeks and neck. Though she seemed more peaceful now and her breathing more regular, he was still on edge. Hopefully the fluids would start to do their job and her temperature would come down, but if this continued through the night, he’d call a doctor.

“And are you alright?” Steve asked, he’d retreated to the wall and was leaning against it now with his arms folded. “You were fairly shaken up down there.”

“Yes,” Vision replied quietly, not wanting to speak too loudly lest they wake her up before her body was ready. “I don’t like seeing her like this.”

Steve hummed thoughtfully. “And everything is alright between you two, other than this? It’s like she runs out of the room whenever she sees you these days.”

“I do not know if everything is alright, I thought things were maybe changing between us, but then she began avoiding me,” Vision sighed, tucking Wanda’s hair back from her face. As he did so she stirred slightly, her head tilting into his touch. She mumbled something incoherent.

“She’s been through a lot. A connection like the one you two seem to have,” Steve cleared his throat, “uh this intimacy I suppose, could be scary and unfamiliar. I could be wrong, of course, I’m just speaking to what I’ve seen in the last few months.”

Vision didn’t reply and continued wiping at her forehead. He often spent more time watching than talking, he spoke when it was of value and only with Wanda did he find himself speaking freely. To have Steve identify this insight about their relationship made him realise that he wasn’t the only one monitoring the interpersonal connections of his teammates.  

When he didn’t reply Steve pushed himself off the wall and headed for the door. “She’ll probably be hungry when she wakes up, and you know what they say about chicken soup and the flu. I’ll go to the store.”

“Good idea,” Vision said absentmindedly.

He sat with Wanda quietly for another half hour, replacing the basin of water once and continuing to cool her forehead down. At one point he had to stand to put the blinds down as the late afternoon sun started to hit the side of the compound and streamed through her windows, casting them in a golden light. Otherwise, he was simply content to sit by her side for the first time in a week without her scurrying out of the room or pretending like he wasn’t here.

He rested his chin on his hand and gazed at Wanda’s shelves and the growing collection of items she’d collected on their travels to personalise her room. A snow globe from Atlanta, a framed picture of the team from their first big mission together, a newspaper clipping, one of the few that spoke kindly of her.

“Was I wrong,” he murmured to the air, “to think we were becoming something more?”

“Vis?” Came Wanda’s quiet voice and Vision was surprised to feel her fingers brushing his knee. He turned to her to see she was blinking blearily up at him.

“You’re ok,” Vision assured her instinctively, moving closer to lift the cloth from her forehead. “How are you feeling?”

“Like crap,” she muttered thickly. “Can I have some water?”  

“Just a moment.” Vision stood and sped out the room and to the kitchen where he hurriedly filled up a glass and was back at her side in seconds. She managed a soft smile when he reappeared, the first smile he’d seen in a week, which almost had him stumbling as he returned.

He offered his hand to steady her as she sat up a little and took the water from him. When she leant back once more, her eyes were on him darting about his face and he quickly schooled his expression to be free of the worry nagging his heart.

“Is there anything else you need?” Vision asked.

“No,” Wanda sighed sleepily, “just rest I think.”

“Would you like me to leave?” Vision nearly kicked himself for saying what he feared out loud, for providing such an easy opportunity to let her push him away again.

“No.”

“You don’t sound sure.”

In silent response Wanda turned her head away from him and bit her lip.

“You’re ill and tired, we shouldn’t have this conversation right now,” Vision said, aware of the fact that he was buying time for himself before she could give him the answer he feared.

“Please don’t be angry,” Wanda said and then so quietly, Vision thought he had imagined it, “it’s for the best.”

He’d been ready to stand and leave the room but at this took one of her hands in his, squeezing it in what he hoped she took as reassurance. “I am not angry at you, I could never be angry at you. I am worried.”

“But I’ve been avoiding you without explanation,” Wanda huffed raising her free hand to rub the sleep from her eyes.

“Well, I suppose there is that,” Vision relented, “but please know I would never be angry at you for wanting space, I admit I was hurt but if you could explain things to me, if there’s anything I’ve done that you haven’t liked—”

Wanda laughed, or it sounded like something close to a laugh, coarse and cynical more than anything. Vision stopped mid-sentence and looked down at his hands. Distantly, he registered the sound of the front door opening and closing – Steve was back just in time.

“I should go,” Vision said sadly, standing up to leave, “Steve will bring you some soup.”

“Wait no,” Wanda said sitting up and her hands flying out for him. “I wasn’t laughing at you, I swear.”

He could tell she wasn’t lying and slowly let her pull him back down to the bed. Wanda slowly leant against the pillows once more, this moment of exertion had evidently taken it out of her. She closed her eyes even as her hands remained tight on his arm. “The fact that you think you could ever do something I don’t like, is ironic, that’s why I laughed.”

“Ironic?” Vision asked.

Wanda sighed quietly and moved her hands from his arm to his hands, holding them tightly as though prepared to stop him from walking out again. “You want me to spell it out, huh?”

He said nothing.

“I owe you an explanation I suppose,” Wanda said and despite how peaky the sickness was making her look, her cheeks gained a little more colour as she spoke. “You’ve been too good to me, the best part of my days is when I’m with you, I pulled away to see if what I was feeling was real. I thought if I could go a little bit without you then maybe what I was feeling wasn’t that serious,” she jerked her chin to the IV stand next to her, “but my assumptions were correct.”  

“So,” Vision began raising his eyes to meet her unwavering gaze, “what you’re saying is…”

“I’m falling for you and I’m scared about what that means for us,” she said and took a deep breath, “and of losing you.”

“You cannot lose me if you don’t have me,” Vision replied, “and perhaps youcan put aside your feelings. I, however, cannot.” It was true, if this week had taught him anything it was that he needed her in his life, by his side and if she let him, as something more.

Wanda’s eyes shone happily for a moment before she seemed to reign herself in. “I thought I could stop how I’m feeling,” she murmured, “I thought it was for the best, I thought I could protect myself.”

“We could protect each other.”

“Until one of us isn’t there,” Wanda said cynically, “I know this isn’t the kind of job we get to retire from.”

“Is that not more reason to pursue this, while we can?” Vision asked leaning closer.

Wanda didn’t have an answer to this, and Vision felt as though he had said enough for her to think about. He stood up, keeping a hold of her hands for as long as he could before he was forced to let go, stepping away.

“I will go and see if your soup is ready.”

Steve sat with Wanda while she ate the soup, her mind doing backflips over her conversation with Vision.

She wasn’t expecting Steve to be so forthright with his questioning, but he asked her as soon as she finished eating. “Have you fixed things between you and Vision?”

Wanda tried not to let her mouth hang open in surprise. “Not yet,” she muttered letting her spoon drop against the bowl and pushing it towards him.

“I’ve never seen him scared before today, you really gave him a fright.”

Wanda didn’t reply, letting the information sit with her even as the guilt began to fester.

“I don’t say that to make you feel bad,” Steve said, as though reading her mind, “I’m telling you so you know how much he cares about you. I mean he’s a synthezoid, Wanda, we used to worry he wouldn’t feel things and now the problem is him feeling too much? Do you not feel the same?”

Wanda stealthily avoided this question, she hadn’t even confessed the full extent of her emotions to Vis, she wasn’t about to let Steve in on her closely guarded heart just yet. No matter how much his counsel usually helped her. “I just feel this great wave of darkness waiting just beyond our horizon,” she said quietly, afraid to admit the brewing shadows she’d been feeling for months now. “Like something big is on the way, something we can’t stop.”

Steve’s brows furrowed at this, but he persisted. “Wanda, you of all people know how much your own mind can be your biggest enemy,” he said, “so is that really reason enough to ignore the light? Avoiding sad emotions doesn’t necessarily make us feel happy, so what makes you think running from happiness will stop you ever being sad?”

When she was still quiet, he pushed further. “You’ve had more darkness in your life than anyone should, but here’s an opportunity to add a bit of light to those shadows, are you really going to say no?”

She opened her mouth to answer but this time didn’t have the opportunity as Vision phased through the wall, pausing when he saw he’d caught the pair deep in conversation.

“I didn’t mean to interrupt,” he said quickly, but Cap was standing up, taking the empty soup bowl with him.

“It’s ok, I was just leaving.”

Vision pressed his hands together as he walked around her bed hesitantly, keeping his distance. “I wanted to check in on you before bed, are you feeling better?”

“Much better,” Wanda said, but she still felt a little feverish and like she might need to sleep for a week.

“I am glad to hear that,” he murmured, rubbing at the back of his neck, “if you need anything in the night I’m just down the hall.”

“Can’t you stay?” Wanda blurted out before she could lose her nerve again. “Please?”

“If that would help,” Vision replied, and Wanda swore he turned away to hide a smile. When he looked back at her she patted the bed, gesturing for him to join her.

He was careful not to jostle her as he laid down, and Wanda openly admired his grace even as he shyly avoided her gaze.

“I admit I probably wouldn’t have slept tonight; I’d just keep coming in to check your temperature,” Vision conceded as he lay his head against the pillow and Wanda turned to face him. Then, more hesitantly, “Please don’t push me away without warning again.”

“I promise,” she replied without hesitation. “Perhaps I wasn’t sick because of the rain, maybe it was more complicated, like my heart giving up a little when I stubbornly tried not to listen to it.”

Vision chuckled. “I think the rain definitely didn’t help, but your heart makes a good point.”

Wanda smiled tugging the pillow further under her head and placing a hand under her cheek. She scrunched her nose at Vision, unable to stop smiling and extended her hand in invitation. He accepted, bringing one of his own hands up and intertwining their fingers, kissing the back of her hand tenderly.  

“And have you decided to listen to your heart?” He murmured, kissing her hand to punctuate the question.

“I have a very stubborn heart,” she relented, “I couldn’t ignore it even if I tried.”

“I’m glad to hear that,” Vision said smiling at her and shuffling closer.

Wanda pushed back against his chest and Vision immediately halted. “Wait.”

“What’s wrong?”

“You’ll get sick.”

Vision laughed. “Wanda, dear, I am a synthezoid, you couldn’t pass your illness onto me even if you wanted to.”

Wanda tilted her chin up at the challenge. “Well in that case.” She pulled him close and pressed her mouth to his as she’d wanted to hundreds of times. As though in celebration, the lights flickered out and the door slammed shut, submerging them in darkness that had Wanda laughing in embarrassment at her magic’s overreaction. Now cast in shadow, the only light was the soft glow of the mind stone atop Vision’s head, and the faint gleam of his eyes in the night. She used them as guidance to kiss him again, and again, and again. Finding no reason to stop until she felt him smile against her mouth, pulling back a little so that their noses were still brushing and the breath between them was shared. She was done with running from this, not quite sure how they had ever been able to hold themselves back from each other.  

[angst-fairygodmother]

I loved your latest SVU Carisi fic! I would love something with Barba, please! Maybe something where he asks a coworker (either a detective or someone from the ME's office) to an event, either because he's lonely or embarrassed to go alone again.

A/N: Can I just say, I appreciate how general these prompts are for SVU because they really give me the room to go where the whim takes me? Because I do (not that I don’t love prompt lists, but this style just works for me with this fandom). I hope you enjoy the direction that this one ended up. Also, I watched several Barba episodes and a bunch of clips for “research” and that was a hole I was not planning to end up back in, but I still love him, apparently. Not quite as much as the first time around, but enough. Word Count: 2804 Tagging: @writefasttalkevenfaster

“Mr. Barba! What brings you to my dark little dungeon corner of the world?” you asked, smiling brightly as the ADA strolled into the morgue like it was Central Park at noon.

“Y/N, please. How many times do I have to tell you to call me Rafael, or at least drop the ‘Mr.’ We’ve seen each other’s worst, there’s no need to be so formal,” he said, returning your smile with a small one of his own and a rueful shake of his head.

It was true that you and Rafael had known each other for years, since your school days when your stubborn and shameless self had wormed your way into the DA’s office, allegedly as part of a research project for school (a story that didn’t hold up when you never left). And he, still a young, brash ADA (not that the brash part had changed or ever would), had largely been stuck dealing with you as you poked through records and cases and pointed out all the places that they could have done better with handling the forensics of things. They never chased you out, because it came in handy over time and you had a charm that made your Nancy Drew nosiness, as he had nicknamed it, more amusing than annoying. By the time you had graduated, you were practically a part of the inner circle at that office, and it was easy to leverage that (along with your shining grades of course) into a prime position as a medical examiner.

Of course, the most valuable thing you had gotten out of all of it was still the friendship of Rafael Barba. He’d encouraged you through exams and romantic breakups and personal stresses without blinking and you’d done as much of the same for him as you could. He’d poured your inebriated ass into more taxies than you could count and sent you just as many hangover-cure breakfast deliveries. You’d laughed together, cried together, held each other up when the world seemed to be trying to crush you.

And still, at work at least, you insisted on calling him “Mr. Barba.”

“We have, but you’re also the one who talks about the need to keep professional lives separate.” You shrugged with a smirk. “Besides, it amuses you how much me calling you ‘Mr. Barba’ makes you squirm.”

He rolled his eyes. “I brought lunch.” He held up a familiar paper bag, no doubt containing sandwiches and raspberry turnovers from your favorite diner.

“Not dignifying me with a proper response I see,” you teased. “And bringing me food. Either I’m in trouble or you’re trying to bribe me for a favor. I hope it’s the first one, it’s always more fun.”

Your smirk widened and you waggled your eyebrows at him, waving him over into the little lounge area outside your office and pouring two paper cups of tepid coffee. He silently passed you your sandwich, hoping that you didn’t notice the light blush creeping up around his ears, or his quick intake of breath as you bit into it and moaned involuntarily. You both chewed in silence for a while, and you tried to just enjoy his company, as you usually did. But there was a strange tension in the air, unsettling the comfort of the silence and putting you on edge as you waited for whatever he came to talk to you about.

“Alex and Yelina’s tenth anniversary is coming up,” he said finally, trying to hide the strain in his voice, even though he knew you knew him well enough to notice it anyway.

You nodded silently, a sympathetic grimace on your face. You knew how much it had stung to him to attend the wedding and watch his childhood best friend marry his first love.

“They’re having a charity gala to celebrate. And personally invited me to go.”

You sucked in a hiss through your teeth. “Ouch.”

He nodded dejectedly. “I can’t say no to them. But I don’t know if I can get through the evening.”

“I could write you a doctor’s note. Fake some sort of illness preventing you from…I don’t know being in that large of a crowd or something?”

He laughed, and you smiled at the sound, knowing that it meant things weren’t quite as bad as they could be, and you didn’t need to break into your secret bourbon stash to fix them.

“Actually,” he said, buttoning his jacket and then immediately unbuttoning it again, as you often saw him do before a particularly difficult argument in court. “I was hoping you’d come with me, as my plus one. It’d really help to have a friendly face that I know can hold their own against the vultures.”

You sat in stunned silence for several minutes, staring at him. Your mind raced. Had he just asked you on a date? And if so, did you want to say yes?

When you didn’t answer, he shifted awkwardly, clearing his throat to get your attention. You jumped, startled out of your thoughts by the noise.

“I don’t want to impose; you were the first person I thought of. I know it’s not really your scene. I shouldn’t have asked,” he said, waving his hand dismissively, as if to tell you to forget the whole thing.

“Oh. Sorry, it took me a minute. I guess I just didn’t expect it. I thought you’d ask Olivia or someone, you know. I’d be happy to go with you though. I’d love to, really,” you started at the same time, leading the two of you to be talking over each other like fools.

You both stopped, you trailing off more than his abrupt end, and then you locked eyes and you giggled. After a few seconds of delay, he joined your laughter and soon, there were tears in your eyes and he seemed to be struggling for breath as you took absolute joy in the ridiculousness of it.

“Honestly Raf, I don’t know why you even questioned it,” you said when you had gotten yourself under control again. “Of course I’ll go with you. What else are best friends for?”

“Oh thank god,” he breathed, relief evident on his face.

“So how fancy are we talking? Am I going to need formal wear, or will a nice cocktail dress that covers all the bits be enough?” your eyebrows wiggled again and he chuckled.

~

The night of the event, you were just putting the finishing touches on your appearance – making sure everything was perfect down to every hair in the right place, but not like you tried too hard, wanting to seem like this was not as big of a deal as you had slowly worked yourself up into thinking it might be – when a knock on your door alerted you to Rafael’s arrival. When you answered, you were momentarily stunned, a tux shouldn’t seem all that different than his usual three-piece suits, and yet…

Luckily, he seemed just as thrown off by your appearance, and the pair of you just stared at each other.

Finally, you broke the spell, gesturing lamely behind you. “I just have to uh, grab my bag, and then I’ll be good to go.” You tried to smile at him, but you were pretty sure it came off as more of a discomforted grimace.

And why shouldn’t you be discomforted? All this time, there had never been anything between you (though you would be the first to admit that you had found him attractive when the two of you met). And now, suddenly, you couldn’t look at him without feeling that fizzy, almost nauseous twist in your gut, the flutter of your pulse at the sight of his smile, the overwhelming desire to absolutely wreck his perfectly styled hair and pressed lapel as you pulled him close and ran your hands over every inch of him in a sensuous war for dominance. You tried to tell yourself it was just the occasion, the fact that he had asked you to be his guest to an event that clearly meant a lot to him, and that it really meant nothing. If you could maintain the lie for long enough, you pretended to believe, everything would go back to normal.

The car ride over to the event hall was short, the time filled with a primer on the various important people (both politically and to him) that would be at the party. Most of it was information you already knew, but still, you let him talk, knowing that it made him feel calmer. And then you were linking arms with him, hand delicately wrapped around the fold of his elbow and walking through the grand arching doorway.

“Thus, into hell,” you muttered too low for even him to hear, forcing a smile.

Introductions were made, hands were shook, the air next to cheeks were kissed. You had not yet met the couple of the hour, but you felt like you had met the entire rest of their world, dragged into mind-numbing small talk about stocks and board meetings, policies and constituents (where they were numbers and dollar signs and goals rather than people). At some point, you were separated from Rafael by some women who were absolutely determined to drag you into their conversation about some community center building charity and the related press benefits of visiting the construction site. They all flinched and tittered uncomfortably when you pointed out that their manicures would get ruined and they’d just be interrupting the professionals actually doing the work and wouldn’t it be better to just do a ribbon-cutting photo op when the project was over?

Finally, you managed to extricate yourself and found Rafael by the bar, sucking down a bourbon like no one’s business. He turned to the bartender as you approached and already had a vodka soda waiting when you reached him.

“My hero,” you said taking a deep drink. “Don’t ever leave me alone with those people again.”

“That bad?” he asked, eyes dancing as he smiled at you over the rim of his glass.

“I think I felt my soul exit my body. Twice. Why are you drinking so heavily already?”

“Alex and Yelina just arrived. I managed to duck them, but not before I got to bear witness to the whole…loving couple photo op.”

“Oh. I’m sorry Raf. Still, if they’re here, we should go say our hellos. The sooner we do the sooner we can blow this popsicle stand, yeah?”

He grimaced and finished his drink. “I suppose you’re right.”

He turned to walk away and you tugged him back to face you.

“Wait, here,” you said, reaching up to fiddle with his bow tie, fingers skimming his throat in the process and you swore you felt him flinch at the contact. “You were crooked,” you explained.

~

“Rafael!” Yelina said, smiling brightly and pulling him in for a hug. “I’m so glad you could make it!”

“I wouldn’t miss it for the world, you know that,” he said, smiling at her in a way that made a soft twinge in your chest that you tried to pretend wasn’t jealousy.

“Congratulations, both of you,” he said, patting Alex on the shoulder.

“And who is this?” another woman in the crowd, who you thought had been introduced as the wife of some other senator but you hadn’t been paying that much attention, said, gesturing to you. “I mean I know this party is doubling as a charity gala, but you didn’t need to bring an example case.”

“Excuse me?” you snapped, glaring at her.

“Oh you know what I mean darling. It’s not an insult, just stating facts that you obviously don’t belong. It’s little signs, you really do look…fine. But the hair, the clearance rack clothes, and when is the last time you had your nails done?”

“Y/N is one of the most brilliant medical professionals in New York City,” Rafael cut in before you could respond, curling his arm protectively around your waist. “And not that it’s any measure of character, looks fantastic by the way. But it’s an organic, genuine beauty so it’s no surprise that you don’t see it Mrs. Johnsville. After all, you haven’t seen your own genuine appearance in, I’d guess twenty years? Or maybe it’s jealousy causing you to say such spiteful things to the most incredible person in the room. Either way, I’d suggest you stop, before someone brings up your husband’s scandals and causes a scene.”

You turned your head to stare at him, lost for words. There was a not-so-subtle threat in his words, but that didn’t matter to you in light of the things he was saying about you, or the adoring way he said them.

He turned back to his old friends. “Alex, Yelina, I hate to do this, but I’m not going to stand around and let someone insult my date that way. So we’re leaving, but maybe we can get dinner sometime soon and catch up.”

“Of course, Rafi,” Alejandro said, his polite political host smile edging its way toward a smirk. “The four of us will have to do that.”

~

“I’m sorry, Y/N,” Rafael said, sighing as you both sat in the car. “She had no right to speak to you that way. I…”

“Stop, Raf. It’s not your fault. And you jumped in like a knight in shining armor, no harm done.”

“Are you sure?”

“I mean, I’m a little disappointed that I got all dressed up for you and I didn’t even get to dance…” you stuck your lower lip out in an exaggerated pout that made him laugh. “But I’m sure you’ll make it up to me somehow.”

“And for having dinner with Alex and Yelina and I. Assuming you’re willing to. Which I totally understand if you’re not.”

“I was wondering if you were going to bring up that invitation,” you laughed. “And of course I’m willing. I’ve told you before, and I’ll say it as many times as I have to to get it through your skull, I’ll do anything for you, Raf.”

Suddenly you had a brilliant idea and you looked over at him with a grin.

“Uh-oh, I know that look…”

“You know what’s better than dancing and wining and dining when you’re dressed to the nines?” you said, eyes aglow the longer you thought about it.

“What?”

“Being dressed to the nines to eat greasy diner burgers! Let’s go to Hank’s!” You grabbed the hand that rested on the center console in both of yours, pulling it close to you and batting your eyelashes pleadingly at him.

He groaned and shook his head. “Alright.”

~

“You know,” Rafael said, shifting nervously as he walked you to the door of your building. “There was a bit of a wreck in the middle, but all in all, this wasn’t such a bad first date.”

“Is that what this was?” you asked, heart skipping a beat as your both stopped on the steps.

“Would you be mad if I said yes?”

“A little. I mean, you could have told me sooner. I would have done way cuter shit all night.”

He laughed, looking at you softly. “I don’t need you to do cuter shit. You’re perfect the way you are.”

“See, shit like that,” you waved your hands around in frustration. “I don’t have a good comeback compliment for you because I wasn’t expecting it. You threw me off my game, charming bastard.”

“Y/N…”

“If this was a date, I believe a goodnight kiss is traditional,” you smiled.

He leaned in, close enough for you to smell the cologne he wore and the alcohol he’d had earlier and the spearmint breath mint he’d picked up from beside the diner’s register when he’d insisted on paying. His lips brushed lightly against yours but he quickly pulled away, just enough to look you in the eyes.

“You’d better not be calling that my kiss,” you teased.

“Are you sure about this, Y/N?”

Sighing in exasperation, you did as you’d imagined earlier and grabbed him by the lapels to tug him closer and press your lips to his. He sighed against your mouth, bringing one hand up to cup the back of your head gently and hold you closer, the other arm wrapping tightly around your waist. Your lips parted, opening up to him and your tongues danced together like it was what they were designed for.

Gasping for air, you both pulled away, and he pressed his forehead to yours.

“Thank you for tonight,” he whispered.

“Night’s not over, yet,” you answered with a shrug.

“What?”

The words felt inevitable, but right, as they worked their way through your throat.

“Do you want to come upstairs, Raf? We can watch a movie or…dance…”

[iohourtime]

Kiokuya (The Memory Eraser) Review - With Spoilers

Since I read the book, sort of followed the filming progress, and read a bunch of interviews (that all sounded the same after a while), I should finish off by writing a review for the movie itself! 

Thanks to the pandemic, I was stuck at home watching Netflix for 7 months, so I’ve watched all sorts of movies & TV; sadly most are in the average to crappy category. To me, Kiokuya was probably in the average to slightly above average category. In other words, there are elements I like and there are things I feel the movie can improve on.

The review is a bit long since apparently I have a lot of thoughts about the script.😅 I pretty much summed up my thoughts in the “theme” section. If you are interested in the book / movie differences & things from the DVD visual commentary, I included those in the script & characters section. (Movie Walker included highlights from the visual commentary here.) . If you want to discuss the movie but don’t want to put spoilers on Twitter, leave me a message.

Theme:

The movie’s main theme is obviously about memory. If a memory is making your life miserable, or even stopping you from living, is it better to erase it? Or do all memories, even bad ones, shape you as a human? If someone’s memory of you is gone, are you killed in their minds? If you think someone is better off forgetting you, do you have the right to ask Kiokuya to erase their memories of you? Are the memories gone forever? If you have the power to erase someone’s memory, what are your responsibilities? And to some extent, what are the criteria to evaluate each request and what due diligence should you do before you accept this task? These were the questions the movie wanted you to ask. You know because the movie kept hitting you on the head through the dialogue! That’s probably my main complaint about the movie.

I didn’t study film so I don’t know the theories, but I think being heavy handed at telling you what you should be thinking is like listening to a textbook; it robs the audience of the chance to experience and internalize what they saw, and as a result, they are less able to connect emotionally to the film. That’s not to say people are not moved by the movie and empathize with the characters. I feel that it had more to do with the actors than the script though.

I think the cinematography was generally nice. I liked how they used the drone shots to film the beautiful Hiroshima scenery. The sunset scene was beautiful. The music did not seem intrusive. Other than that, I’m not sure I have more to say. (Fine. Yamada looked good in the plaid shirts and his hair was on point.)

Script vs Book: (Spoiler alert from here on!)

Kiokuya, the movie, was an adaptation of a “horror” novel of the same name. Although there were horror elements, mostly because Kiokuya was kind of a shadowy figure, even the novel itself was focused more on humanity. The original story was divided into 4 parts; the first 3 parts were really 3 separate short stories that explored different reasons people have for wanting their memories erased. The final part was about Kiokuya herself. The Ryoichi character simply served as a bridge between the stories. Here’s a brief description:

Kyoko - A while ago, she was attacked in a dark alley but was saved at the last minute. Even though she was unharmed, she developed a crippling phobia of the dark, so she locked herself inside her home at night and was not able to live a normal life. She and Ryoichi were kinda but not really dating, and Ryoichi, being a typical guy, figured he could fix her. Kyoko tried everything but as a last resort, she asked Kiokuya to erase her memory of the attack. Since her relation with Ryoichi was based almost entirely on overcoming the phobia, she forgot him too. Through this incident, Ryoichi remembered how Maki had her memory erased when she was 5 or 6 - she saw her mom confessing to her dad that she had an affair with her uncle. Kiokuya might have erased Maki’s memory a second time when she was 10-12. Finally, he realized he “forgot” about his year-long investigation of Kiokuya with Takahara & others. It seemed like he was doggedly pursuing Kiokuya because he felt violated more than his undying love for Kyoko. In his own words, he didn’t try to rebuild his relationship with Kyoko again after she forgot about him. There was nothing stopping him, so his feelings towards Kyoko were not that deep.

Takahara - He was a 30 year old ikemen lawyer, though like the movie, he was dying. The chapter focused on his touching friendship with his assistant. Takahara was also close with Nanami, a suicidal, 17-year-old daughter of a client who became very attached to him. When Takahara found out Nanami planned to kill herself after he died, he asked Kiokuya to erase her memory of him so that she would live on.

Misao & Kaname - They were childhood friends and Misao started crushing on Kaname. She confessed and was rejected, but after that, they were not able to be friends like before. She figured if she erased everything about Kaname, they may be able to start over and become friends again without the awkward feelings.

Maki - Ryoichi thought Maki was looking for Kiokuya to erase some unpleasant memories. Then he found out she was Kiokuya, who inherited her ability from her grandfather. In the end, Maki confessed to the burden of being Kiokuya and Ryoichi told her he would support her and that she didn’t have to do it alone. Maki decided to erase anything Kiokuya related in his memory, but their friendship remained intact. Oh, Maki was 17 in the book and also had a crush on Ryoichi. She erased his memories many times before. Like in the movie, she also would like Ryoichi to love her just once, although he never ever saw her as anyone other than his annoying little sister. 😅

The director of the movie, Hirakawa Yuichi, also wrote or co-wrote the script. While the movie stuck to the themes of the novel, the motivations were completely different. Kyoko and Misao were both rape victims, Takahara now wanted to protect his young daughter from the sadness of his death, and Maki was herself kidnapped by a psychopath when she was a kid. I guess Hirakawa needed to pump up the drama and felt the stakes were not high enough for a 2 hour movie? There is always some uneasiness with using rape and trauma to move the story along. I guess there is a difference between this and the usual example of “fridging a female character”, i.e. kill a love interest of the hero to motivate him on some journey. Ryoichi was motivated by being erased and he actually gradually realized he should not push for restoring Kyoko’s memories if it was her wish. He only found out what happened to her at the end of the movie. Considering their relationship in the movie was a lot more serious, they couldn’t really use the phobia of darkness reason. However, it would also take something really big for Kyoko to want her memory erased while not talking to Ryoichi beforehand. Anyway, I really don’t see a way out of this.

For Misao though, I didn’t think they needed to make her a victim of the same serial rapist, especially when they use the same reason as the book for erasing Kaname. I suppose they need to explain why Nanami (and later Ryoichi) was looking into them? But they could just have the doctor referred the case (who appeared to be breaking doctor-patient confidentiality?! Just me?) In fact, the whole Misao / Kaname storyline didn’t really do much other than allowing Ryoichi to find out from Kaname that Kiokuya was a young girl.

Maki’s childhood trauma was also a bit excessive. I can’t see it as anything other than to get Ryoichi out to Hiroshima to talk to Grandpa. While finding out mom was “dealing with” uncle would be traumatic for a young child, it might not be dramatic enough for a movie.

Ryoichi & Maki’s origins were also changed. They were now raised in Hiroshima and moved to Tokyo to attend university. The only reason was to place Grandpa-Kiokuya in Hiroshima after the bombing. While I liked the grandpa scene, was it necessary? They already covered the “Kiokuya after WWII” with the interview with the elderly woman. I think they could still keep Grandpa, since he was Kiokuya (and ironically suffering from Alzheimer’s) but maybe just skip the elderly woman part and use those minutes to build Ryoichi & Kyoko’s relationship! 

Upgrading Ryoichi & Kyoko’s relationship to being engaged gave him more incentive to look for Kiokuya, but all we got to see was 1 proposal scene and some snapshots, which made it harder for us to understand the loss Ryoichi experienced when Kyoko forgot him. Ultimately, I feel that more time should be given to the “before” times. They don’t even need that much. If done effectively like the movie Searching with John Cho, 5 minutes or so of clips would be enough to get us to care more. I’m not saying people won’t care, but it’s true that there are people who didn’t quite feel it. Yamada basically had to sell it with longing looks at Renbutsu, so how deeply you feel for them depends on whether you buy it or not.

Takahara’s story might have been changed because of who they cast. Also, Takahara & Nanami’s relationship in the book was kinda weird, considering Nanami actually loved him and she was 17 while he was 30. I definitely cannot agree with how Movie Takahara wanted to erase his daughter’s memory to spare her the pain of losing him. It reminded me of that Black Mirror episode where the mom put in a blocker to shield her daughter from bad things. It ended up messing up the girl & broke their relationship. Young children are resilient and the sadness would eventually change into something else, which would shape their characters. Also, just because she forgot her birth father didn’t mean she would suddenly get along with her stepfather. I won’t even get into the whole consent thing. It was a good thing Maki did not follow through.

Less good was what Movie Maki did to Ryoichi & Kyoko though. When I found out Movie Ryoichi & Kyoko were engaged instead of “pre-dating” like in the book, I was quite worried they would have Movie Maki erase Ryoichi from Kyoko’s mind for selfish reasons. I was hoping that maybe he got erased by mistake, but unfortunately, the script did go with the jealousy angle, which made Maki extremely unsympathetic.

In the visual commentary, they said they rewrote the ending because it didn’t fit. Maki erased her entire existence from Ryoichi's mind as penance for what she did. (I think initially, they were going with the book ending where Maki just erased Kiokuya from his head.) In the end, the actual cut used in the movie was more ambiguous - they “left it to the audience” to decide how much Maki erased and whether Ryoichi & Kyoko got a second chance at happiness. (The director said it ended on a hopeful note. Take it how you want.)

It’s unclear if Movie Maki erased Ryoichi’s memories more than once, but Book Maki had done it many times. Even though Book Maki seemed more responsible with her powers and didn’t slip up like Movie Maki, she did wipe part of Ryoichi’s memories without his consent. Ryoichi said that she didn’t have to do this alone and she could lean on him, so why didn’t she? Also, losing all that memory got to have some long term effect on him, right? In the movie, it was worse because Maki took the “easy” way out by erasing herself. Yes, she was punishing herself, but shouldn’t the more courageous thing to do was to own up to what she had done and work for Ryoichi’s (& Kyoko’s) forgiveness?

Speaking of Ryoichi’s forgiveness, I actually saw some viewers calling Ryoichi a cad for telling Maki that he would always protect her and be by her side to protect her. Apparently they seemed to think he was in love with Maki and forgot all about Kyoko. Well, I think in that moment, there were 3 things going on: 1) Takahara told him that it was better to forgive and that there will be justice in other ways, 2) he understood why it was devastating to Kyoko to remember what happened and 3) Maki was like his little sister. His immediate desire to comfort his friend overrode the anger and betrayal he might have felt. Had Maki not erased his memory around 2 minutes after, who knew if they would have a more substantial talk? He didn’t even have a chance to talk to Kyoko. (I suspect Maki would have tried to “spare him” by erasing his relationship with Kyoko as well. He still ended up at the cafe because he could remember physically going there a lot.)

Overall, I think the movie was a bit unfocused due to some extraneous storylines and having too much exposition, which was a disservice to some of the characters. It failed to show how their relationships build, like Ryoichi & Takahara became buddies over what seemed like a week! I wish they trimmed a couple of the minor stories and used that time to go deeper on the main lines.

Characters / Actors:

Yoshimura Ryoichi (Yamada Ryosuke)

I was watching the movie and halfway through when it hit me… Yamada’s Ryoichi was… normal? I mean obviously quite good looking in the boy-next-door kind of way, but Ryoichi was a regular, run-of-the-mill university student, who was normally an optimistic and forgiving but happened to be dealing with heartbreak at the moment. Seriously, if you’ve watched Yamada’s other works, his characters are usually kind of comedic, sort of pathetic, occasionally brilliant, psychotic, or… non-human. (Very odd roles for a Johnny’s actor.) He probably has not been this normal since the 24Hr drama. He still cried a lot, so that’s familiar.

OK, let’s get back on topic. Since Book Ryoichi functioned more as a character that connects the short stories rather than a real character, I didn’t have hopes for the movie version. Surprisingly, Movie Ryoichi came across as a real person and I did care what happened to him. While we didn’t get to see how Ryoichi & Kyoko were in happier times, he was able to convey the longing and slight awkwardness in their interaction when he tried to talk to her after. Similarly, in the scene where he learned of Takahara’s death, you could tell what was going through his mind even though he said nothing. Same with the final “confrontation” with Maki. Even though he didn’t say much, his eyes conveyed the emotions subtly: the longing, shock, confusion, etc. Overall, he was quite subtle and natural. As the articles say, he managed to “suppress his aura” and played an average guy. I hope he can play more of these subtle types of roles in future. (It is unfortunate that a lot of people have preconceived notions about Johnny’s actors, to put it politely. It’s like the reverse of the “fan blinder” that we sometimes get accused of having.)

Now there are some discussions as to whether he overacted in the crying scenes. The main “crying” scenes were probably 1) confession to grandpa in Hiroshima, 2) in the rain, and 3) reading the letter. I’ve seen people say he overacted in either 1) or 2).

When I first watched the Hiroshima scene, I did feel that his crying may have been a bit much because I was watching the movie with just Japanese subtitles, so I missed an important detail: Ryoichi told his mom he was going to Hiroshima to confront his past. When you consider that Ryoichi had been carrying the guilt for “causing” Maki’s kidnapping for 15 years, it was totally reasonable for him to prostrate himself in front of Grandpa. He would also be relieved when Grandpa told him the statute of limitation was over and he should forgive himself. As an aside, according to the director in the visual commentary, Yamada cried in the first take of the scene. Hirakawa said “Aren’t you crying too much?” Yamada said “OK, I’ll do another take without crying.” However, when the Director was cutting the movie together, he suddenly saw Ryoichi’s mental journey and ended up using the first take because it was the logical conclusion to the closure he got.

In the rain scene, he just learned about Kyoko’s attack. Knowing how much hurt she endured and how he did nothing to support and comfort her, he was still in a state of shock when he got knocked down. Then the dam burst and he cried hysterically. That seemed quite reasonable to me. I was more shocked that nobody checked on the guy who fell on the pavement and was crying. Pedestrians were cold! So I don’t really understand the objection to that scene. Maybe they thought this was something that happened a while ago and/or he didn’t love Kyoko that much, so he wouldn’t be that emotional?

I don’t think people have issues with the letter scene? Narratively, it made the most sense since he was close with Takahara, who was literally speaking to him from the grave via the letter. Oh, they talked about filming the letter scene in the visual commentary. Yamada was just reading the letter in silence and they added in Takahara’s narration in post production. Since he wanted to save the emotional outburst for the real take, he did not dare to look at the letter during the rehearsal.

One last thing, Yamada and Yoshine spoke in Hiroshima-ben when they were talking amongst each other. I have horrible listening skills and while I think he used some slang or phrasing, his accent still seemed mostly Kanto. It’s like if I call a bunch of people “wankers” with a Canadian accent; it doesn’t make me sound English. Maybe someone can tell me just how well (or not) he did.

Kawai Maki (Yoshine Kyoko)

I have only watched Yoshine in the drama Stay Tuned and I liked her there. She played this airhead character who could be super annoying if the balance was off, yet she came across as likeable. I think she portrayed Maki very well in this movie. Of course, I knew she was Kiokuya going in, so even at the beginning, you could see some of her subtle reactions to the Kiokuya discussions. I really liked her chemistry with Yamada - they felt like they could have been lifelong friends. While she played the annoying little sister part quite well, you could also see the pain she felt when she had to make difficult choices like erasing Nanami’s memory. Throughout the movie, you could sense her regret for what she did to Ryoichi. Her emotions in the final scene were also very raw. While Maki’s characterization was problematic, Yoshine was really good at playing that character and you might even be sympathetic towards her. Also, I feel that her Hiroshima-ben might be more on point? Some people didn’t buy that she was in love with Ryoichi the whole time. I thought the flashbacks made it pretty clear but I’ve also read the book, so there’s that.

In the visual commentary, they were talking about their various acting styles. Yoshine said she carried her emotions with her even after the director shouted cut. So when she was shooting the last scene, she was still crying furiously afterwards. Yamada said she was like an acting monster - she could get right into the emotions even during the table read. It was funny how different she is from Yamada and Renbutsu. They are the flip-the-switch type - when the director yells cut, it was like they woke up from a dream into a different world. She also apologized to Yamada when they were watching the scene where she confessed to selfishly erasing Kyoko’s memory of Ryoichi.😅

Takahara Tomoaki (Sasaki Kuranosuke)

I have not seen Sasaki’s other projects, so I had no idea what to expect. His Takahara came  across as pretty charming, easy going, and playful, though you could feel his love for his daughter and the hard decision he had to make. He also had a natural chemistry with the other cast and was very believable. While I disagree with what Takahara wanted, Sasaki’s acting as Takahara made sense. I don’t know what more to say. It is probably expected since he is a veteran and is generally well regarded as an actor.

Sawada Kyoko (Renbutsu Misako)

I have only seen Renbutsu in Hagaren. I liked her character there. I also liked how Yamada decided to break the ice with her back then by asking if she has any friends. (She had more friends than him. 😅) To be honest, there wasn’t much for her to do in this movie, although I think she was believable as the very confused Kyoko. She was apprehensive about Ryoichi in the “after” scenes, who was honestly coming across too strong. I don’t think Ryoichi & Kyoko really had crackling sexual chemistry based on the proposal scene, but they seemed like a cute couple. They were pretty cute together in the behind-the-scenes featurette when they took the “dating photos”. I wish those dates were included in the movie.

Conclusion:

As you can see above, I have some general issues about the script but I think the actors elevated the story. The movie could have been better if it streamlined some of the storylines. Right now, it was trying to go for a deeper message but the stories themselves were a bit too superficial to accomplish that. I suppose the problem was that the original novel was more like an anthology of short stories dealing with memory, so it was hard to create a through line for a movie.

[sashas4t]

A Guide to Russian Novices: Ladies

With all the hype for the future of Russian ladies figure skating thanks to Akatieva, Zhilina, Samodelkina and co. I decided to make a guide to Russian novices for anyone who is interested. 

2006-2007

Okay, technically these young ladies are already juniors but there is no JGP this season so many of their names are probably still unfamiliar to you, in addition, I really like a few of them and I need others to join the hype!

Sofia Samodelkina - Placed fourth at Junior Russian Nationals last year and won the Junior Russian Cup Final. if you watched Junior Russian Test Skates you will probably know Sofia and why I was really looking forward to her entrance at the JGP. Sofia has a pretty consistent 3A in her resume, as well as planned 4S! But jumps aside, it is her skating that I really enjoy. Her step sequences are flowing, matched to the music and she makes sure to throw in good performances and expressions in between every element. 

FS - https://youtu.be/bFY9HLyPGRw (she manages to change character between the calm and elegant “Snowtorm” to the excited and dramatic “Masquerade” very fast and perform both roles well. I literally love this program so much despite the music cut).

Birthday: February 18, 2007

Coach: Sergei Davydov

Sofia Muravyeva - my second-favorite junior (behind Usacheva and just ahead of Valieva and Samodelkina). Her results aren’t as amazing as her peers but oh my god is she expressive! I actually started really liking her skating two years ago, mostly because I enjoyed her programs and appreciated her lovely skating skills and spins. Her recent move to Plushenko seems to have done much good for her though, as her program components and interpretation of the music have shot up to the top of the junior field. Also, her dresses are simply exquisite.

SP (this season) - https://youtu.be/0B90QyVDkUU (yes, choosing Ne Me Quitte Pas for a junior was probably a strange decision, but her skating! Her skating is beautiful! Her expression is beautiful! Her spins are beautiful!)

FS (this season) - https://youtu.be/QtoiWwebdVQ (ignore that one spin fail please)

“Primavera” - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=cvXvAqDKaB0

Birthday: August 4, 2006

Coach: Evgeni Plushenko

Elizaveta Osokina - she gained a lot of attention (and deserves to gain more) because of her amazing performances at Russian Junior Test Skates. Liza’s SS are definitely some of the best in the junior ladies field, and her programs are choreographed excellently. In addition, she has great spin positions, lovely and dynamic jumps and good expressiveness. Definitely one to look out for:

Test Skates SP - https://youtu.be/XW3znd9pDyg?t=367

Test Skates FS - https://youtu.be/aKmczpiH2tI?t=341

Birthday: December 18, 2006

Coach: Elena Buyanova

Adelya Petrosyan - also a pretty well-known junior. Adelia won the third stage of the Junior Russian Cup this season, and placed sixth at Junior Russian Nationals last season. She has really great spins, amazing flexibility, fast skating, and wonderful attention to detail. I especially enjoy the fact that all her programs have been very different from one another and yet, she manages to perform them all well. Her short programs from the this season and last season are particularly enjoyable:

SP (this season) - https://youtu.be/3W9sQeDb1CA

SP (last season) - https://youtu.be/wHY6riHJMWI

Birthday: June 5, 2007

Coach: Eteri Tutberidze

2007-2008

Sofia Akatieva - most likely going to be the “star” of this generation. She recently won two stages on the Russian Cup Stage, and was the silver medalist at Junior Russian Nationals last year. Sofia will probably fight with Kamila Valieva and Sofia Samodelkina for the title of “junior champion”. She gained a lot of attention in the past few days for landing a 3A+3T in the short program and a 3A plus two ripponed 4Ts (one in combination with a +2T). Besides consistent quads and 3A, Sofia is considered to be a pretty “full package skater”.

SP (this season) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vZoWpdvAFkc

FS (this season) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=mwKsV-BYufo (here’s the clip where she lands 2 4Ts with rippon and a 3A)

Birthday: July 7, 2007

Coach: Eteri Tutberidze

Elizaveta Berestovskaya - participated in the first season of Ice Age Kids and won first place. Liza is mostly kown for being very expressive and for having landed several 4T in practice and in competition.  I enjoy her dedication to performing a program even despite any mistakes and she is definitely a very charming skater. My favorite programs from her include:

FS - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Nu-D65MMUU0 (she fell on the opening 4T, but the rest of the program is great!)

Ice Age Kids version of her FS: https://youtu.be/smedb7kmNjI?t=84

“Apres Toi” - https://youtu.be/MGnaJfkBaAM?t=89

Birthday: December 8, 2007

Coach: Sergei Davydov

Veronika Zhilina - recently just won silver at the fourth stage of the Russian Cup. She’s pretty well known for her wonderful jump technique, with a deep outside edge lutz and minimal peroration on all toe jumps. In addition, she has 3A, 4T and 4Lz in her arsenal. Her quad toe loop, in particular, is very impressive for the effortlessness of the entry and the height it gets. 

SP (this season) - https://youtu.be/07VUrNLUpdc

Birthday: May 15, 2008

Coach: Evgeni Plushenko

Alina Gorbacheva - recently just won third place at the fourth stage of the Russian Cup. She actually just came off of an injury apparently, but from watching her skating you could not tell. I especially enjoyed her short program last season, you can see her musicality shine through her skating.

SP (last season, notice how the beginning of the program is completely structured to the music) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r18tJDCt2GM

SP (this season, lovely skating, very lyrical and mature for her age) - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oLd9Lldq4KQ 

Birthday: July 23, 2007

Coach: Sofia Fedchenko

Elizaveta Kulikova - participated in the second season of Ice Age Kids and made it to the finals. Very mature for her age, and she has pretty good skating skills and spins. Honestly, I find some of her performances from Ice Age to be more captivating than those in competition, but I think it’s more the fault of choreography (I think her programs are ice age may have been choreographed, or at least bits of it were, by Averbukh). 

Just watch her rendition of Meditation at only 11 years of age, simply beautiful - https://youtu.be/uk5KaCwx3-M?t=79

And another charming skate to “Doctor Zhivago” - https://youtu.be/gaAGAiH_jBc?t=105

Birthday: February 2, 2008

Coach: Sergei Davydov

2008-2009

Sofia Titova - won first place at the Junior Championship of Russia last season. She’s moderately well known for her powerful jumps. Her skating is very fast, but I feel like work could be done to improve flow or emotional connection. Nonetheless, a talented individual with possible quads or 3As in the future to look out for in the future. 

SP - https://youtu.be/rVacchcirtQ?t=84

FS - https://youtu.be/jY-t0vtwHjg?t=4

Birthday: January 27, 2009

Coach: Evgeni Plushenko

Ksenia Melkumova - participated in the second season of Ice Age Kids and won third place. Ksenia is my favorite from the novices, because of how expressive she is and her amazing skating skills. She struggles with jumps still, but if one were to purely evaluate skating of Russian ladies, she’d be way up there. Here are some of my favorite performances from her:

“Crack of Doom” - https://youtu.be/u1xAftGyM88?t=60 (this is literally crack, it makes absolutely no sense whatsoever, but the pure amount of joy and expression she puts into it makes it amazing).

“Fire Dance” - https://youtu.be/G-jW9pAuJAw?t=78 or the competition version - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lcSp_7gr3js&t=96s

“Comme Toi” - https://youtu.be/bZd5qFvTrug?t=46

To be honest, all her performances at Ice Age Kids were great, I just found these to be more interesting or captivating.

Birthday: May 1, 2009

Coach: Igor Lyutikov

Lyubov Rubtsova - participated in the second season of Ice Age Kids and won second place. She used to be coached by Sergei Davydov, but is now under Eteri Tutberidze. Also she landed 3A a couple of months ago. I’m not a huge fan of any of her programs, but here are her programs from last season.

SP - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=stedggF0akc

FS - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HeN7ECECj_o

This program from Ice Age Kids is pretty nice too - https://youtu.be/r2sp_kLPJz4?t=52

Birthday: February 2, 2009

Coach: Eteri Tutberidze

2009-2010

Sofia Dzepka - won third at the Junior Championship of Russia last season. I also really like Sofia’s skating and she’s probably my second favorite (behind Melkumova). Her skating skills are great and her jumps look to be pretty great too (I especially love the spread eagle - 2A - spread eagle). I really enjoyed her programs last season (though the step sequence is the same for some reason?):

SP - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M7xMzFVl9N4&t=3s (she did fall on the 3F, but this is the video with best quality sorry)

FS - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d6iFNR49GSQ

Birthday: August 7, 2009

Coach: Elena Buyanova

Sofia Shifrina - placed sixth at the Junior Championship of Russia last season. I haven’t be super impressed by her programs so far, looks like her basics are good though.

SP - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vA6m_N91dhM

FS 1 - https://youtu.be/wcVJGVsAQCg (gorgeous costume!)

FS 2 - https://youtu.be/Czv--DKj5Qg

Birthday: August 11, 2009

Coach: Svetlana Panova

Anastasia Marasanova - won second at the Junior Championship of Russia last season. Fun fact, I didn’t even know about her before taking on this project! However, I actually really enjoy her skating, it’s very fun and expressive. 

SP - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d7b_yXJxuZ8

FS - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Gn3biVzeFPA

Birthday: October 27, 2009

Coach: Olga Efimova

2011-2012

Elena Kostyleva - a prodigy. She’s still very young, but so very talented! She has 3Lz+3Lo too. Jumps aside, I actually find just her skating very charming, though she does lose some stamina in the second half, she’s only 10, so that’s not an issue at all. 

FS - https://youtu.be/A0ErWmUPUkM?t=303

These are only the skaters who have gotten some of the best results, but I had to cut out introductions for a ton of other super talented skaters. Others that I think have great potential include:

Maria Paramonova

Maria Dmitrieva

Sofia Vazhonva

Maria Zakharova

Anyways, have fun discovering new novices to care about! I hope this project shows everyone that the future of Russian figure skating won’t be just a jump fest, but a strong competition with many skaters who have superb artistry and skating skills.