#at the moment but HOPEFULLY you get the jist

[legendofmorons]

Sick day (Twilight)

This is the second place prize of my 300 follower event for @mickleloaf

Pairing: Twilight x Reader, chain & reader

Rating: G

Summary: You've under the weather, so of clothes the boys take care of you as best they can.

Warnings: being ill,

Other: If I missed anything please let me know! And mickleloaf of this isn't what you envisioned please let me know.

-------

You leave the doctor's office with a packet that contains your diagnosis, symptoms, and how to care for yourself. Thankfully, your hyrule has free healthcare, so all you've got to do is go buy some over the counter meds and try to take it easy.

And also find a way to eat your food in a liquid form if possible. Maybe a blender or protein shakes?

Definitely soup.

Possibly smoothies?

You'll figure it out.

You find Twilight and Time waiting for you outside the building, both men having their arms crossed as they lean against it. Their conversation is quiet, but you can tell it's pleasant.

Twilight sees you first and flashes you a smile. "Hey, darlin'."

You wave, deciding it's not worse trying to use your voice again if you don't have to. It's so hoarse it's hard to hear anyway. Not to mention that it hurts.

"Are you feeling worse?" Time asks, pushing off the wall and closing the space between you.

He sets the back of his hand on your forehead. "You're warm.... You can have another dose of fever medicine in about an hour. We should get you back."

"He's right. Did the doctor give you anything to help?" Twilight asks, reaching out to take your hand gently.

You hold up the packet in answer.

"Oh- I can't read that. Does it have instructions?" Time asks, squinting at the words.

You nod, cracking a smile as you watch both him and your boyfriend try to read the words through sheer power of will alone.

It's sweet that they're ignoring the several severe changes to the language since their time.

Also, very silly.

But it's just very them. They are always taking care of people. Especially their loved ones.

"Can- well... Maybe Wild can help." Twilight suggests after a pause, "His time is the closest to yours in language and all."

You nod again. Hopefully, Wild can tell the others what to do. Even if it isn't perfect, he should at least get the jist.

"Let's head back. Wild's making your favorite soup." Time says, "We'll ride this 'bus' again."

"Time you sound so old." Twilight says with a grin, "Just say bus."

"I did."

"Okay. Let's just get (Y/n) to a bed. Poor thing could use some rest." Twilight says, squeezing your hand in affection.

You rest your head against his shoulder for a moment before straightening back up. Now, the task of getting two ancient heroes back to the hotel you're staying at by using modern transportation. This is fun.

You pass the packet to Time and grab your phone to pull up the bus app with the schedule, route plotting, and your digital prep-aid card.

They follow your lead and restrain themselves from outright gawking at all the things they're unused to.

Every few moments, one or both of them will look to the packet again, brows knitting.

-------

Once you've navigated through the trials that public transportation brought, you finally make it to the room you're sharing with Twilight, Wild, and Wind.

You collapse onto the bed you're sharing with Twilight, thankful that Time is handling, giving the packet to Wild. You just want a break.

"You want some water, love bug?" Twilight asks, watching you with sympathy as he shifts his weight.

You nod. Water is good. Even if swallowing hurts, it's better than being dehydrated on top of all of this.

Twilight goes and grabs your water bottle before filling it and bringing it back to you. "Here you go, darlin'. Careful now. I don't want you to spill it, I know you don't like wet clothes."

You nod, flashing him a thankful smile. You take the bottle and uncapped it before taking a swig.

You wince as you swallow, but it's over quickly. You know this is just how it is for right now.

You readjust to be sitting under the covers, eyes roving the pastel walls of the hotel.

"Alright. So this says (Y/n)'s got - two things real wrong with their throat. I think it says Tonsil-pain? Anyway, their voice might be hard to use. They might run hotter than usual, and their throat is going to hurt. A few other things I don't quite know... oh, and a list of medications that will help are on here." Wild explains, brows knitting as he puzzles out the words a little further.

The others all share a look, and then their gaze shift to you. The way they all seem worried is touching- but you know that with modern medicine, you'll be okay.

They don't seem to understand that, though.

"I'll see if I can't ease the pain, at least." Hyrule says, "They look ready to keel over if they weren't sitting."

"Good idea." Wild says with a nod.

"You need more blankets." Legend says firmly, pulling a comforter out of the room's closet. "Take this."

You blink at him. You're a little chilly, but this is not what you had expected. You'd expected playful teasing.

You do appreciate this, though. It's sweet and it's very nice to know he cares.

Legend and Twilight each take a side of the new blanket and spread it over you gently.

Twilight presses a kiss to your temple while he's bent down.

You smile at him as he straightens back up.

"I made tea." Hyrule says, bringing over a chamomile based tea.

Hyrule has fixed it, so you will at least drink it. If you like tea, he's made it how you like it. If you don't like tea, he's made it taste bearable.

"Thank you." You manage to croak, throat thoroughly protesting use.

"Save your voice." Time says gently.

Hyrule smiles at you as he hands you the tea. Knowing he's used Faerie magic to make it better for your throat. Short cuts to healing and all that.

"Anytime, (Y/n)." The traveler says, pressing a hand to your shoulder before falling back to sit on the other bed.

Twilight sits down on the empty side of the bed, paying special attention to make sure he dosen’t jostle you too much.

"Wild and I aren't going to find the medications your doctor recommended." Warriors says from where he's been watching over you.

"Be careful." Twilight calls as he watches both knights leave.

You just look around, taking another sip of the tea. It's- nice to be taken care of. The way the boys all come together to make sure you're okay is- well, you wouldn't call them anything but family now.

"Do you want anything else?" Wind asks, legs swinging from where he sits on the room's dresser.

You shake your head. You don't want anything else, really. Two of the boys are out to grab you some medicine. The others are all here watching over you. And Twilight is holding your had gently.

Of all the ways to be sick- there are certainly worse.

Time just starts cleaning up from tea and such, making quick work of any mess.

"Would you like to watch something?" Sky asks, sort of aware of television and how it works. But the concept still seems to confuse him.

You nod, giving a grateful smile. They're all so considerate.

Time brings you the remote and goes to start figuring out how the shower works here - this is the first shower tub combo he's seen in the modern world.

You pick your favorite channel and turn the volume to your preferred sound level.

After you set it up, you take another drink of tea before settling in for a more permanent position.

The boys settle around the room. Wind stays on the dresser while Time and sky take the couch. Four, Hyrule, and Legend take the other bed.

Twilight's just squeezing your hand in his gently.

When you look at him, he looks so soft- so genuinely in love. It's amazing.

You take a slow, deep breath and take this moment in. The whole thing.

And yeah, you still feel gross. Your throat still hurts. And the exhaustion still rests in your bones. But, you aren't alone.

And between the tea, the warmth in your heart, and the careful care of your friends- you know you'll get better.

-------

You are asleep when Warriors and Wild retrun with the medications that your doctor had suggested. Which leaves someone the task of waking you.

Which no one wants to do - you seem so peaceful as you sleep.

But Twilight takes the role, gently shaking your shoulder as he says, "(Y/n)? C'mon darlin'. You gotta get up."

You open your eyes, giving a soft rumble of displeasure. Which unfortunately does agitate your throat.

"We have your medicine." Warriors says, holding up a bag from the drugstore nearest to you guys.

You nod, pushing to sit up in bed.

Wild gives you the medicine, figuring you'll be able to give yourself the proper doses since he can't quite figure it out.

So you take your medicine before passing it back to Wild and taking the offered bowl of your favorite soup from Time.

Twilight presses a kiss to your cheek, "I hope you feel better soon, (Y/n)."

[fantrollology]

Walking it Back: PT 1

Characters: Fledge, Alaska

Word Count: 2,103

uhhh i started this over a year ago! i sit on things for a while. id like to get better at writing stuff more consistently but idk im happy w how it came out! hopefully u will not have to wait as long for part 2.

if u read it ummm ty! <3

---

“Hm.” The girl's eyes studied an unremarkable intersection on the floor of the exam room, avoiding the gaze of the doctor standing a few feet from her, who pressed the door closed behind himself following his greeting. Her fingers played with the paper pulled over the examination table.

“Something the matter?” While his tone seemed as genuine as she could gauge, the question made her regret acknowledging the misnomer at all. He set a bag down on the counter across from her and brought out his clipboard from under his arm.

She shook her head.

“Please, it’s alright. What’s up?”

“Uhm,” she paused. Her feet pressed at each other gently over the side of the table. “No one calls me that anymore.”

“Oh, well what do people call you now?” he flipped to the front page of his clipboard and leaned gently against the counter, facing her.

“Uh, Fledge.”

He smirked. “That stuck, huh?”

She shrugged. The little hexagon where the tiles met remained interesting.

He shook his head at his clipboard.

“General Drakon is so cavalier about that sort of thing. I wouldn’t be surprised if everyone thought that was your actual name if he was the one to introduce you. Still though, surviving this long?” He let out a little laugh. “That’s a lifelong nickname now, I’m sure.” 

He looked at her as if he were going to wait for acknowledgement, but then continued. 

“I’m not much of the nickname sort myself but, hey, I think I’m willing to make an exception for you.” He scratched something onto the clipboard.

“Okay.”

He tucked the clipboard back under his side and lopped himself down on the office stool. Its momentum gently wheeled him into the range of Fledge’s downturned line of sight.

“Do you remember me?” he asked.

She let him slide his way into her vision and then quickly found another spot on the floor to look at. She shook her head.

“That’s fine.” He waved a hand. “I’m Dr. Alcess Alaska. I conducted your entry psionic evaluation a few sweeps ago. Couldn’t have been more than an hour or two.”

Fledge nodded.

“I’m here with you today to talk about a project proposal.”

Fledge nodded.

“So, you’re aware how even though you’re stationed here, you’re actually a member of the Imperial Psionic Corps, yes?”

Fledge nodded.

“I’m aware you’ve had some training, but do you know much about what they do?”

“A little.”

“What do you know?” he asked, in an attempt to coax a more-than-two-word response from her.

“They’re…” it felt exhausting for Fledge to even think of saying a full sentence. She breathed out. “They’re all psionics, and they do stuff for the fleet.”

“That’s the jist of it, yes.” 

“But,” he raised a finger, “They’re all very specialized psionics, not helmsmen or telekinetics or simple mind-readers. They receive individual training for their abilities.”

She knew that, of course. It was the whole reason she was a part of it. Still, she nodded.

“There’s a standard timeline for progression through the IPC’s induction, but after doing your entry evaluation I found that there’s a lot of potential with your abilities that I think deserve more unique attention.”

He started to say something else, but then cut himself off. He studied her floorlocked gaze, how her fingers crushed the paper between them.

“Fledge, do you know much about psionics? Your psionics? How they work, I mean.”

Fledge shook her head.

He drummed his fingers on the clipboard for a moment before scooting across the room to grab his bag from the counter. He opened it on his lap and set a couple things on the counter as he rooted through it, then wheeled back over to Fledge. He then reached back in and pulled out a colorful plastic brain and a small container containing a few plastic lobes. He removed the lid from the container and set it on the examination table next to Fledge, then set the bag on the floor and lifted the brain from his lap.

“Alright, so, stop me if I say anything you already know. Okay?” He waited for her acknowledgement this time, a barely perceptible nod, and then removed a blue lobe from the back of the brain, that Fledge could now see was held on with a magnet.

“This is the cucular lobe. All trolls have one, but in psionics, it’s a little larger. The shape and the other lobes it has contact with can affect the sort of abilities a psionic has and how they might control them.” Fledge watched keenly as he set the small, normal lobe on the table, and picked up a larger piece of the same color from beside her. “This one is more like yours.” The strong magnet clicked the lobe into place at the rear of the brain.

“See how it curls up past this,” his finger dragged along the brain, along marigold yellow and crimson red plastic; “the occipital lobe, and over to this one? The parietal? This is why your abilities are affected by touch, why you can ‘feel’ electromagnetic energy the way you do.” He offered her the brain. She let him pass it to her and immediately began picking off the other lobes and letting them snap back into place.

“You have what we call a material-responsive M-Type ability,” he continued, watching her play idly. “You can manipulate, but your abilities are moreso characterized by their sensitivity, your extrasensory perception, rather than their ability to make drastic physical changes. More typical of ceruleans, but yours have a certain versatility, and there’s a lot of potential I believe could be accessed through some implants and, of course, appropriate training.”

He took another piece from the container, a long, thin, curved, grey piece. He held it up.

“This is a type of foci. There’s several different kinds; you may have seen other IPC members with the foci behind their ears; those are the most common. This one is an implant and mostly invisible once installed. They allow for the observation of lobe activity, enable additional cerebral pathways, and can be used to enhance psionic ability in a number of ways.” 

He gestured for the brain. She held it out to him and he snapped on the piece, which curled from the front left of the organ back and over the cucular lobe. He withdrew his hands.

“I believe that, by using enhancements to magnify your psychic perception of electromagnetic energy, you can better control the ability. Instead of blowing up televisions and feeling static, you could…. turn the lights on and off, you could…”

---

A shot fired through the skull of the troll in front of her, spattering green viscera across the dry ground at Fledge’s feet.

She hadn’t been paying attention when the olive stepped forward and raised her weapon. Some fleet officer had been talking to whoever these trolls were about whatever they were doing-- a mutiny, maybe? -- whatever. It wasn’t Fledge’s turn. Fledge knew what the signal was, she knew how aggressive these trolls were allowed to get, and she knew what she was meant to do when either of those conditions were met. She just hadn’t done it without her gloves before. The thought had distracted her. Her hands dropped from rubbing at the nodes embedded in her wrist as the body thwapped to the ground. She didn’t need to look to know the sniper's barrel was already shoved down into the dirt, the more experienced soldier berating them— Stop, that’s what she’s for.

C’mon fledgling. Pay attention. Be here.

One pulse. Forward, 170 degree arc. This will dispel incoming psionics and ballistics, but will dissipate after about three metres.

A strong enough magnetic field through the brain is enough to disrupt regular synapse operation and cause seizures. One at the door, two on the balcony. Close the circuit, an invisible spherical tie around their head, and then release. Her fingers twitched about in front of her. It was a shot of air through her nerves, crawling down behind her eyes and across her body like a cool drink of water. Her eyes hunted around for another to show themselves. When none did, her fingers ground into her palms, deaf to her surroundings until a hand met her shoulder.

“That was good. Quicker on the pickup next time, maybe,” the officer quipped while she examined the damage, then started walking, letting her hand slip from Fledge’s shoulder. “Let’s see if whoever is inside is more reasonable,” she hummed.

Fledge followed as the others behind her dealt the finishing blow to the incapacitated troll near the door, another that fell from the balcony. Her mind began to warm again. She lifted the edge of her jacket, touching the bit of green flecked onto the edges. Would that wash out?

---

Alaska waved a hand as if to catch an answer from the air “...move ferromagnetic material. Just… apply magnetic fields and induce current more deliberately, precisely.”

She turned the brain gently in her hands, her thumb ran over the implant. A piece of metal in her head?

“We wouldn’t start with the foci, since your brain is still developing, but it would definitely be a part of this at some point. For now, I think it’d be best to do more research first. Like, where and how exactly do you feel electromagnetic energy?”

He raised a hand as her mouth opened. Ah, one of those not-question questions.

“I’m sure it’s hard to explain,” he continued, “but we can observe it. Before we can enhance, we would get you some peripherals, external gear to gauge what we can.” He gestured over his arms, his clipboard now set beside her on the table. “That will allow us to finely examine the activity of your culural lobe and its relationship to your movements and nerves. I theorize that down the line it might end up being beneficial to install internal receivers in other places too, since your perception is very likely beyond what’s processed by your CL, but that can wait.”

“I have some reading for you here…” he bent down from the stool and pulled out a packet from the side of the bag. She set the brain in her lap to take it from him. “One of the documents goes over the details of this specific project, but I also included some information on focii and some articles on other MRM psionics.”

“And this—” he reached over and tapped the corner of the packet, where a small, stiff card was paper-clipped to the front. “—is my contact information, so you can message me for any follow-up questions you might have.” He smiled and his hands returned to his lap.

“Of course, if you have any questions for me now I’d be more than happy to answer them.”

She nodded slowly as she thumbed through the pages. Diagrams of brains, titles containing words she knew, others she didn’t. She had questions, she was sure, but she didn’t know what they were or how to ask them.

“None right now?”

She shook her head, not looking up from the packet in her hands.

“Alright, well if anything comes to mind, you reach out, okay? Then, when I’m back next perigee, we can go over everything again, and make a decision.”

“I’ll do it.” It seemed so obvious to her. This was why she was here. Whatever doubt she had could be addressed later.

“I like the enthusiasm,” he chuckled, “but I won’t have time to start until next perigee anyways. I’ll be ready then if you’re still on board, okay?”

“Okay.”

“You can keep the brain, if you want. I have another.” She didn’t know if she wanted it or not, but he decided for her as he lifted his bag from the floor and wheeled his chair over to the counter to put the rest of his things away.

She followed suit with her new belongings and clicked the lid back onto the container of spare lobes. The clear box fit nicely into her jacket pocket, and she tucked the packet under her arm as Alaska had done with his clipboard. The brain stayed in her hands.

She hopped off of the examination table. Her thumb ran over the implant that curled around the organ. A fleeting thought, or maybe one of those questions she didn’t know how to verbalize, tried to etch its way to the surface, to piece itself together in her mouth, but got cut off by the doctor’s voice as he opened the door for her.

“It was good seeing you again, Fledge.”

[go-to-the-mirror]

in honor of pride month, I'm curious, how did you realise you were queer/trans? what was your awakening and at what age did that happen? I'm scrolling through your blog and having a gender crisis rn, so if this is weird, just ignore it.

It's all cool, mate. Hopefully you uhhh. Well the questioning doesn't end quickly but hopefully it gets less "aaaaaaa" and more "ahhhh" if you get my jist.

Right, so I realised I was queer... around 11 or 12? I never really thought I was straight, though. I just guess I didn't really pay attention to that sort of thing. When I did I just thought that it made sense, you know. Why would I only fall in love with one gender? That just doesn't make sense to me. Anyway update I'm aromantic.

Trans specifically was 13, during lockdown. I discovered Jammiedodger's youtube channel and was like "huh maybe i'm nonbinary," but I figured I wasn't for a couple months.

Joined a discord server and introduced myself as my deadname and she/they pronouns, and then immediately met a whole bunch of trans people who mostly referred to me by my username (Dolphin) and they/them.

The next day I changed my pronouns to they/them, and made my server nickname something along the lines of "Dolphin has come to a realisation." Eventually someone asked me what it was, and I said it was that I'm nonbinary.

Gender is weird. And confusing. And idk if this is gonna help because my realisation moments for being queer were kinda just a bit odd, you know.

But the thing is that it doesn't really matter how you realise, or whatever. It doesn't matter if you think this is a right thing to feel or wrong. The most important thing of all of this is that you feel happy, and that you feel comfortable in your gender, your presentation, etc.

So yeah :]

[stellanimarum]

It was a surprise to Jaskier to see the room like this, he hadn't been in any of the Thirteen's rooms before - why would he after all. He admired the aesthetic for a brief moment, it wasnt important right now but he still wanted to make note of it.

"Sorry for disturbing you. Wondered if you would like to have a sleepover?“ He spoke with a small sheepish grin. Fallon would hopefully get the jist from the question.

Fallon opened the door and leaned against it spotting Jaskier.

She wasn't in any armour but instead simple but expensive green nightdress that just skimmed the top of her thighs.

That little fabric however just exposed how bruised her legs and arms were. Training never left perfect skin but there was more than normal wear and tear. Still she didn't seem to pay it much mind as she looked Jaskier up and down before wordlessly opening the door wider and letting him in. Closing the door behind them.

Fallon's bedroom was filled with fabric. Rugs layering the stone floor. A canopy covering her bed that was pushed into the corner to make a cozy retreat. Armchairs and sofas covered in pillows. Six blankets were easily spotable just at first glance.

It was warm and cozy. So unlike the woman Fallon portrayed.

[mechazushi]

Salt Kick {a Sk8 the Infinity story} [Renga]

Preamble] I'mma be honest with ya'll.... I don't like how this turned out. I made this almost three? years ago I think? and I just.... some parts of this feel off. I hadn't finished Sk8 the Infinity ( I still haven't, mainly because I had watched all the crack vids on YouTube before I watched it so I already had a jist on how it goes. I just wanted to have the ability to say I watched it and finally figure out what scenes went in what order. I stopped at the beach episode, I know what comes next and I still can't bring myself to watch 😭) But I had enough of a hyperfixation to push this out. Much like giving birth, the more you make, the easier it gets, so consider this my first child that had me completely unprepared for the amount of labor I was about to go through and might of screwed up the initial parenting on. I will say this... I only really hate it because Reki feels out of character, but that's because I sacrificed his development to push a more Langa focused story (its entirely from Langa's perspective) I only threw in a few lines on his end because I wanted to imply that the pinning might be mutual without outright saying it until the end, but I hate how I handled it. That being said, this will not be getting a rewrite. I passed GO and collected the money years ago and this is how it will be staying. Hopefully, I will have finished the show before I write the next ones.

Notes] Nothing here to worry about, really. Just Renga. And Kissing.

Summary] Langa develops the worst salt tooth, but can't find anything to satisfy it. Can he figure it out before it drives him into an asylum, or is he past the point of no return already?

Can somebody who's in the Sk8 the Infinity fandom read this because I want this peer reviewed before I put this on Ao3.

++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

From the moment Langa woke up, he felt off. He wasn't sure what it was about exactly, just… nothing clicked into place inside his head this morning. Which, if you knew him, is pretty much par for the course. He went through the motions. Got dressed, got his bag and school work together and met his mom at the table for breakfast.

"Morning Langa!" his mother, Nanako chirped, plateing something from a pot that was simmering on the stove."You ready for another day?"

"Morning." he said simply, sliding into his seat at the table, his brain seeing it only fit to process the bare minimun today.

"Now, I know you're a little hesitent when I try cooking new things, especially first thing in the morning, but taste tests show that this might accually be pretty good!", she said, confidently putting down a bowl of congee in front of Langa, cooked in chicken broth and served with eggs, bacon, and sauteed mushrooms, arranged like how a ramon bowl would. Langa, absent of mind, started spooning the meal into his mouth.Wait. Hold on. This was... good. Not that his mom ever made anything truly horrible; anything she made was, for the most part, edible. It was...just... missing something? He reached for the salt shaker, dusted his next spoonfull with it, and...

THERE. Right there. That's what this was missing. What he felt like he was missing all morning. Salt. He was just salt deficent. Which was odd for the amount of junk food he injested on a daily basis. Langa then preceded to almost violently shake the salt over his bowl of food.

"Wow. I know I forget to season things sometimes, but I thought it was okay?", His mother said, somewhat astonished at the speed her son was shoveling the now overly salted breakfast into his mouth currently. Langa paused and looked up at her, taking a second to think about what she just said.

"Oh! Sorry, I'm just… Really in the mood for salt today.", he said.

"I can see that.", Nanako quietly chuckled. The meal was quickly wrapped up, with the mom needing to head into work and Langa to school. Before he left however, he snagged a bag of potato chips of the top of the fridge, not stopping to see what flavor they were. Langa grabbed his skateboard and raced to his spot by the lampost, eagerly awaiting his… well, to be honest… he couldn't really think of Reki as a friend anymore. It had just been a few months after the race. The one against Adam… The one after Adam, too. And a WHOLE lot of other races afterword as well. Fun, personal ones. Just between Reki and him. Gun to his head, Langa would describe them as… almost… intimate. Crusing through the hills and tracks, the morning light or the evening dusky atmoshere blanketing them…just the two of them and whatever bubble of a world they found themselves in whenever Reki and Langa skated together, oblivious to everyone and everything. Maybe you wouldn't even need the gun to get him to say it.

' You might have to with Reki, though.' Langa thought as his personal ray of flaming sunshine came cruising down the sidewalk.

"GOOOOD MORNING LANGA!" Reki cheered, power sliding to a stop in front of him. They did their morning fist bump ritual and proceeded to cruise down the hill toward their school, with Reki leading the way. This was how it almost always went, Reki in the lead and Langa not far behind. Unless he had a trick he though he could pull off that would impress Reki, Langa almost never pulled ahead. Content to let the impressively red-headed high schooler light the path forward. Just the two of them, skating infinitely together. Langa popped open the bag of chips as Reki managed to land a rail grind in his somewhat restrictive school uniform. How he managed to fit his hoodie of the day under the jacket, Langa will never know.

He knew Reki didn't think of himself like this, but Langa always found him to be impressive and talented . He was always aware of how Reki's skateboard building skills were amazingly inventive, since he was the proud owner of a truly custom board. He felt Reki's talent was practically unmatched, next to Oka's of course. But Oka more or less just filled in paperwork and managed inventory, he hardly completed the boards he started nowadays. It was Reki's eye for detail and constant desire to improve everything that made all of Dope Sketch's boards unique.

That was another thing about him. Constant determination. It never mattered what it was applied to, Reki could always set his mind to the grindstone for it; you know, when he wasn't being completely scatterbrained and actually had motivation. Langa could go on forever about all the hidden strengths he thought his skating buddy had, but he knew Reki wouldn't hear them.

'Getting Reki to accept a compliment is like trying to teach someone to ollie for the first time' Langa chuckled at the thought, 'It takes a few tries, but it gets though. I know.'

After everything their friendship went through, they promised each other that they would get better about talking to each other. Not letting feelings bottle up and fester and making attempts to communicate genuinely. Neither one wanted to go through that feeling of loneliness and abandonment ever again. This was mostly for Reki's benefit, but Langa guessed he would have to lead by example if he was ever going to get Reki to open up in the first place. Speaking of open, he put a chip in his mouth and recoiled.

"BLAAA, wasabi flavored." he said, disappointed.

"You OK?" Reki said, turning to look at him.

"Yeah, I'm fine, just picked up my mom's wasabi chips by mistake. You want them?"

"Yeah, sure. Could use the wake up this morning.", Langa sped up to hand off the bag to his friend.

"Do you think we've got time to stop at a vending machine before we head in?" Langa asked.

"Why? Didn't get the chance to inhale the whole fridge today?" Reki said jokingly, pouring the contents of the bag in his mouth and wincing.

"Ha, ha, very funny. Just felt like something salty before class." Reki's presence had managed to distract Langa from his cravings for a short while, but the chips had caused his brain to hop back on its unyielding track.

Which, of course, got worse as they neared the school grounds and heard the final bell for class

"Whelp, guess thats a no!" Reki laughed.

Langa groaned, thinking that this better not somehow ruin his day.

The pair sped to class and, by a miracle, both of them made it in without repercussions. The two sat down and settled in as the teacher walked in to start the lesson.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

The day went by as you would normally expect. Take notes, change classes , raise hands or duck questions depending on if they could answer them or not. You would think that the day would pass by uneventful, right? Yeah... about that.... This was Langa's third class period, and this salt addiction of his was really starting to grate his nerves.

'Only one more period, then lunch. Few more minutes and I can have all the salt I can get my hands on. I can survive until then. RIGHT?', Langa panicked in his head.

This wasn't just bad, he felt like he was shaking.

'Maybe I can play this up and head to the nurse's office. There's a vending machine along the way, I think?'. At this point, he lost all capability of paying attention. 'No, That's stupid. I'm not going to let this control me.' Langa felt a little tap on his arm and looked at his classmate.

Reki held a small piece of paper between two pencils, held like chopsticks. Langa took the note quickly, as the teacher turned around. He opened it up and read it.

"U OK?"

"Need Salt :(" Langa scribbled quickly before taking two pens and, in a similar fashion, snuck the note back to Reki.

Reki shook his head and handed the note back again, this time writing "THAT BAD?!? BRUH." Langa couldn't believe it either. Cravings never got this bad. He actually couldn't remember the last time he HAD a craving.

While running memories through his head, an important reminder popped in the forefront of his mind. He had packed a snack in his bag for emergencies. This was days ago so he wasn't sure what they were, but Langa would take anything at this point. As stealthily as he could, Langa leaned forward and tried to sneak his hand into his bag that was hanging off the hook connected to his desk. It was so tantalizingly close.

Now all he had to do was find what should seem like a snack package. Books, notepad, erasers, more notepads… There! Langa pulled out a small bag of… something. He had Reki tell him what they were and had practiced pronouncing it several times. Jagar…something. All he could remember was that it was made of potato and, most importantly, was SALTY.

He tried to open the package as quietly as he could, but it made a bit more noise than he was comfortable with. Had Langa been his right mind, he wouldn't have be comfortable with this at all. It's amazing what addictions can do to a person, cause this stopped being a craving the second he stepped into class. Reki caught onto this as well, looking at Langa like he had lost his mind.

"Dude?" He mouthed, wondering why Langa thought now would be a good time to risk it all for food. While this was Langa we're talking about, the craving had just become too much. Langa was so close. He forced himself to clear his throat loudly as he opened the package the rest of the way. This little maneuver earned him some strange looks from class and teacher alike, but thankfully no one interrogated him about it.

Reki threw his head back in dramatic disbelief as Langa tried his best to shake out some sticks from the pouch. A couple of sneaky handfuls later and Langa felt another tap on his shoulder. Reki made a pitiful attempt to persuade Langa to hand him some as well. Langa looked around the room nervously, wondering if he should take the chance. Looking back, Reki had turned on the puppy dog eyes on full blast, causing all doubt to be cast from his head. Of course he should. Just because he's severely salt deficient, doesn't mean he should leave his friend out to starve.

Langa shook a few pieces into his hand under the desk. They had to wait for the teacher to turn around, which was taking forever. For a moment the teacher turned around to write on the board. He waited half a second to make sure he wasn't going to turn around, stretched his hand out and-

"Mr. Reki. What do you think you're doing?" The teacher called.

Well, shit. The happiness Langa felt by not being found out was immediately replaced with fear as he nor Reki had an excuse on hand to give the teacher.

"Well?" He said, waiting with an air of exasperated patience.

"Aahh, erh… uhhh?", Reki uttered, floundering for a response.

"I was… asking him a question." Langa belted out in defense.

"And why didn't you direct the question to me instead?", The teacher replied, questioning the legitimacy of the answer.

"Because?… It was a… dumb question?" Langa replied, shrugging into himself. The teacher sighed as threw his head back in aggravated contemplation. The air was thick with tension as the two waited for a response, wondering if today would be merciful. The teacher drew his head back into position and decreed,

"Whatever it is that you're doing, stop it. Do it again, and I'm holding you both after class.", pointing to the two of them before turning around and resuming teaching. Langa and Reki let out a sigh of release after which they exchanged the handful Langa was holding onto and didn't acknowledge each other until passing period.

"Okay, are we going to talk about what happened or…?" Reki said, leaning against the locker neighboring Langa's as the snowy bluenette changed out books in his book bag.

"I wanted a snack, I got a snack. Just… not used to sneaking in bites in class."

"Yeah, as much as you eat, you know better than to pull that kind of shit during class. What is up with you today?"

"I don't know. I'm just… really salt deficient today.", Langa replied, shutting his locker and walking away.

"No, that can't be it. You're not acting like you're deficient, you're acting like a crack addict jonesing for another hit. I know I shouldn't really be concerned, but I'm getting concerned." Reki said, hop-walking to catch up to Langa's long legs. Over the din of the bustling hallway, the pair heard Reki's text alert go off on his phone, causing the two to momentarily pause to see what it said.

"Oh, cool! Joe just sent over a game plan before we head to 'S'. Looks like we're meeting up with Shadow at the restaurant and carpooling over." Neither of them had to work that night, so after a change of clothes and dinner at Reki's, meant a long, glorious night of high-octane fun and excitement with the whole group!

"Sounds great! Can't wait to get out of here.", Reki said, looking up and catching Langa's smile.

+++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++++

"Come on! We're going to be late!" Reki yelled, blazing down the smooth sidewalk.

"I don't know why you're worried. Its not like they're going to leave us behind.", Langa yelled back

"Shadow's the one driving and I wouldn't put it past him!", the redhead shouted back, pushing forward for more speed. Langa threw his head back and laughed, thinking that it does sound accurate.

"Maybe you shouldn't have done such a good job washing the dishes!", Langa retorted.

"After you ate mom out of house and home? It was the least I could do!" Reki threw back with a laugh in his voice.

The two continued to speed down the sidewalk onward to their destination without a care in the world, despite the desperation in Reki's tone earlier. Langa started to feel more like himself than he had all day. Nothing felt more grounding than skating behind his friend, his partner, his infinite companion. It was moments like this that he caught himself thinking things differently… about the two of them. Langa wasn't unfamiliar with thinking that, maybe, he and Reki could be… more than friends. Langa thought it was unavoidable at this point.

The two of them and been through so much, taught each other so much. He had long since came to terms with him thinking like this, feeling this want, this…longing? Yeah. You know what. That's what this was. Longing to tell Reki, to show Reki, that deep inside… Langa loved Reki. Again, he felt it unavoidable. Felt like that this was what he felt all along. Ever since the night at the skate park where they made up. The two hadn't ever said anything explictitly to each other, but it had come up in conversation once or twice that Langa might be into guys differently than most others.

To him, He felt Reki was trying to say the same thing too. With his preferred phrase being "Straddling the fence about it." Langa was never sure though, with his brain always coming around and saying that it's just wishful thinking. That Reki didn't want to say anything controversial, or it was just his way of trying to show support to Langa. He wasn't sure, and in the end just figured he'd play it safe. It wasn't like he wanted to change what they had, just thought they could make it a... special brand of better? Yeah, that sounds... right?

"Man, this salt kick is messing with my head if I'm thinking like this." Langa thought.

The friends finally made it to the restaurant a little later than they were supposed to, but found out there was a saving grace waiting for them.

"Joe went to the bathroom, since it looked like you two were going to be a little late tonight." Cherry mentioned, leaning on the side of Shadow's new van. The surprising reasoning behind the decision to carpool tonight.

"Sorry!" Reki laughed, "The dishes sorta piled up on me tonight. "Nice van Shadow! Looks very roomy."

"Thank You! Its technically the 'company' van, but my name's on all the paperwork and stuff. And another thank you for ACTUALLY appreciating it, unlike SOME people!", He said, pointedly nudging a small, occasionally bratty catboy.

"It's pink and it's got fold down seats. What's there to compliment?", said Miya Chinen, the brat in question.

Like most nights, these two started to argue like they do every time they get together. Everyone began to ignore them as they waited for Joe to come out so they could leave. Which, if the time frame was anything resembling the situation of Joe coming out of the closet about his feelings to Cherry, this could take all night. And with the wait, came the resurgence of Langa's salt deficiency. He bounced around on his toes as Reki and Cherry talked about new board designs they've seen. Suddenly, Langa quietly excused himself and went into the restaurant looking for something. The Sia La Luce might be a fancy Italian restaurant, but it wasn't above salt shakers at the table. However, these were fancy crystal shakers and Langa was pretty sure Joe wouldn't look too kindly hearing about Langa swiping away with one.

But he has bought take-a-way here on nights when he or his mother didn't feel like cooking. There was a counter close to a side door where you pick up your food after you ordered it. And if he was right, there should be a container full of paper salt packets they throw in as a courtesy. Making sure no one was looking; which, how could there be, the restaurant was closed. He leaned around the counter and grabbed a small handful before booking it out of the building. As Langa jogged-walked back to his group of friends, Joe finally emerged from the mysterious depths that was the men's bathroom.

"Great! Everyone's here and we can finally leave!" Shadow grabbed Miya by his jacket, tossed him in the van, and slammed the door before the now rabid child could retaliate. Cherry locked his bike and everyone piled into the comfortably roomy van.

The group finally arrived at S. The place seemed absolutely thrumming with energy tonight, almost bordering on sensory overload. Had someone come up to a younger Langa and told him that this place would become one of his most favorite spots on the planet, he would have considered them crazy. The wild flashing of the light, the pounding of music and voices, the heavy scent of… everything. One would have a hard time placing a scent, let alone describe it. And the night air, whipping up everything into a frenzy on the moutain. This place was the definition of free and untamed, and Langa loved it. He was itching to hit the race strips, but there already seemed to be a line for the top. Reki asked Joe and Cherry to reserve them a spot as the pair signed a waiting list, then the longtime friends hit a different path to the factory.

While the factory was considered part of the race track, that consideration only applied to the upper levels. The ground floor had plenty of debris and obstacles to pull tricks off of. Langa and Reki blew most of their collective energy grinding on the broken rails and kick-flipping off old wooden boxes. None of this was of course safe, but then again, when has that ever stopped them. As Langa popped off junk left and right, not caring about what the tricks were, just happy to be in the air, he was interrupted by a stranger.

"Hey You! You're the one they call Prince, Right?" A blonde, thin gym rat looking man in ripped jeans and an equally ripped sleeveless white denim jacket approached the pair in the far corner of the building.

"Yeah, I guess." Langa replied plainly, stopping his board to face the guy. "Prefer Langa though."

"Heard you're a good racer. One of the best around. That true too, 'LaNgA'?", the newcomer mocked, clearly showcasing how new to these parts the stranger was.

"Depends on who you talk to. Why?" Langa already had an idea what the stranger wanted. It's what all people new to "S" wanted, a beef with the legend that went against Adam and won. Honestly, this was already considered tiring, nearly turning onto outright obnoxious. But he was Canadian, it was polite to ask. Who knows, maybe he would get a break this time.

"I challenge you to a beef with ME!"

Nope.

Langa sighed in disappointment loud enough to attract Reki to his position.

"Oh, balls, not another one." Reki whispered to his friend. Knowing how tired his friend was of this and proceeded to take over the conversation.

"Look man, I know you want this to be personal and all, but we're signed up to go next on the track." He said, gesturing to the two of them. "Either you race against the BOTH of us, or you wait. And it's a long line tonight, by the way."

"Fine enough. It's not like it'll matter anyway, since you'll both be eating my dust!" the blonde asshole laughed.

Langa and the stranger shook on it, (again, He's Canadian), And the pompous douchebag walked off to take his place at the starting mark.

"Can't ever just be a nice night, can it?" Langa moped.

"Ahh, the cost of being talented… Wouldn't know what that's like!" Reki laughed, nudging Langa playfully and racing him to the starting mark.

The three of them, as well as others, took their places at the starting mark. The tension began to run high as everyone was waiting on the final signal light to drop. Lights flashed green as honed, practiced reflexes took over all the skaters as the beef began, with the main three in question taking a big chunk of the lead for themselves. Langa blasted out front of everybody, sacrificing style over speed in the hopes to make it a quick race. Only to see the stranger pulling up rapidly behind with Reki in the back, phasing in and out of their combined dust trails. Langa and the stranger began fighting for dominion of space on the high, sharp turns. Trying not to get too close, as at this speed, getting either board too close to each other would surely result in a wipe out.

'This guy is better than he looks.' Langa thought. He took a second to dance his board over some rocks that would have caused him to crash, just to see his opponent kick flip off a boulder and gain the lead.

'Of course this wouldn't be a problem, if I actually got my head in the game!' He screamed to himself.

Over a hundred of these races, against hundreds of skaters, professional and otherwise, and this one is practically kicking his ass because he can't stop thinking about salt! Langa pulls out a stolen salt packet from his pocket, only to lose it to the tailwind of Reki passing him as well. Reki had seen Langa pull it out and, thinking it was important, managed to snatch it from the air. Upon closer inspection however, threw Reki into a fit of laughter.

"Still going on about THIS?" He yelled back. "Well, if this is that important to you, guess you're going to have to catch me for it!" Reki turned on his board and angled his body in such a way to gain a burst of speed.

Langa made it a point to ignore the irrational part of his brain that kept saying he had more in his pocket and used the indignity of the situation to fuel his need to regain the lead. Popping over a bush, chaining the jump onto a ledge that lead to a short grind and using the momentum to launch himself from a tree branch over a small cliff, all linked together to form the most impressive retake of a gap in the history of "S". The order was now having the stranger being in the lead with Langa and Reki being neck to neck, if only for conversational purposes.

"Head back in place yet?" Reki playfully catcalled.

"It will be after I win!" Langa confidently declared back.

"If you lose, I'm taking your illegal salt stash away!" the cocky redhead wiggled the snatched salt packet threateningly.

Langa just snorted and continued to try and over take the talented new guy, finding it disappointing in himself that the threat was motivating. Having skated through this track so much he could do it blindfolded, Langa knew that the finish was only half a kilometer away. And at the speed at which the finalists were going, it was arriving frightfully soon. As they were coming out of the final turn, Langa gained enough momentum to fully flip himself over his opponent, rightfully gaining back his lead. The joyous moment was soon dissipated as the stranger, feeling indignified at the reality of the moment, had decided to pull out one last trick up his sleeve.

Reki's hackles began to raise as he saw the newcomer pull something out of his pocket. Langa couldn't see and Reki wasn't about to find out what it was. He could only manage an incoherent shout of warning before he sped up and rail grinded around the stranger to tackle his friend out of the way. As Langa looked back to see what the was doing that had caused Reki to warn him, the redhead was bent forward as his hands locked around Langa's waist in a defensive position. The combined momentum caused the two of them to slip out of control and break the railing to their right.

Langa's initial panic was swayed by the fact that he had been in this situation before. This was like Adam's Love Hug all over again. Langa took charge of the moment, righting his boardsin air and made his friend place his feet in line with his. He managed to land the board on to a beam under them and had to keep the balancing act up as they rail grind down its length. Their hands instinctively fell into the unmistakable tango position and held each other close, causing the wind to be sliced past their combined closeness.

As they reached the end of the beam, Langa planted a foot onto it and used the other to launch the board in front of the two of them. Reki pushed off as well, using whatever momentum they had to circle langa around to fling him into the air and toward the main track. Langa grabbed the board and tossed it down to the metal walkway, planting his feet solidly onto it. Keeping the momentum going, he turned to face Reki and guided him back onto the board, barely keeping them both upright as the skateboard zoomed past the positively stunned strange.

This is how they won. The two of them, absolutely inseparable since they met, just as so passing the finish line into the gathered crowd. All were cheering for their dramatic upset. They slowed their skateboards to a stop as the partners looked at each other, faces visibly showing the shock at what had occurred.

"Did you… just… Love Hugged me? And save me with it?" Langa asked as he stared at Reki, stunned by the experience and finding himself refusing to let go of his hand.

"Uhhh… yeaaah? Maybe? Look, all I saw was the asshole was reaching for something and I panicked and,-"

"Hey! Its… okay. You're… okay. We're both okay… Thanks to you." Langa professed soothingly, taking Reki's other hand in an attempt to ground them both. They tried to take a breather, but with the crowd closing in, along with the stranger starting to riot at his unexpected loss, the friends were starting to get overwhelmed. Along came the rest of the friend group, with Cherry and Shadow doing crowd control and Joe dealing with the stranger causing a fit. Taking the chance to slip away, Langa led Reki outside the old factory to a metal bench at the far wall and sat down in between other people. Langa started to rub his face in his hands. "That… got crazy there, right?" mumbling

Reki straddled the low bench, laying his board over his knees and nodding his head. "Honestly, yeah. Didn't know I had it in me to pull.. whatever that was off." Reki went on to fiddling with Langa's board and inspecting the trucks for damage.

Langa just sat there, watching Reki with unfocused eyes. His mind drifting back and forth, between the last five minutes and to the stash of salt in his pocket. To holding hands with Reki and back to his addiction to salt. Lapping between those two trains of thought, like waves on a beach. Almost like the salty water he soaked in on his vacation that he shared with Reki. Like how he and Reki liked to pass sauce containers on a skateboard when they shared a salty chicken nugget meal. Like when Reki passes his tongue between his teeth when he's concentrating on fixing his board. Similar to what he's doing now. Those teeth that are brushed with salt… crystal… toothpaste. Oh no.

"Heeeyyy… Reki?" Langa asked tentatively.

"What's up?" Reki chirped, looking up from his skateboard maintenance.

"Do you… still use salt crystal toothpaste?"

Reki craned his head back in disbelief. "Aww Ma gawd, LANGA, salt again! Are you hoping it'll fix something in your head or is this considered a last resort?" Langa just shrugged as he weighed his options. If he followed through on this absolutely crazy stupid idea of his, this would totally change the course of their friendship, for better or for worse FOREVER. BUT, this might be the one thing that cures him of this obnoxious salt kick, if he's RiGHT. Thus, the risk.

"Reki, would you mind if I… did something potentially…stupid?"

"Depends. Does it involve me?" Reki replied, innocent of Langa's intentions

"Yes." However, at the rate his brain is degrading from the lack of salt intake, this might just have to be a risk Langa will have to take.

Langa scooted closer to Reki, straddling the bench as well. He took his friend's face in his hands. God, he was so nervous. Langa could barely look him in the eyes. Those beautiful, incandescently golden eyes. The ones gazing into his, filled with innocent confusion and... awe? Before his nerves completely blew a fuse, Langa used his thumbs and pulled Reki's headband over his eyes as he dove onto his lips. He was gentle with it, not wanting to do anything to completely scare Reki, but hopefully enough to see if Langa wasn't crazy.

Crazy to think that this was what he was craving all along. The kiss lasted less than a second, with Langa only briefly making contact and just lightly sucking on Reki's lower lip. If Langa was in his right mind, he would have broken this off. Took his hands off his friends' face and apologized. But... he wasn't. Langa was not in a logical mindset in the slightest, for the smallest, slightest taste of Reki's lips was everything and more.

It was everything he was craving all day and everything he didn't know he was. Salt with sweet cherry chapstick mixed with spices from dinner earlier and… just… Reki. Some sort of flavor that couldn't be described, only named. Something so explicitly wild and spicy and sweet that it could only come from a source just as superb as the taste itself. Langa immediately swiped another kiss, this time whispering his tongue over the bottom lip again before forcefully pulling himself back from his friend. He did it. Langa kissed his best friend. Someone he vowed to skate forever with. And now he's gone and thrown a potential wrench in the mix.

Reki leaned back as he lifted the headband off his eyes. All they could do was stare at each other, expressions filled with more shock and awe than ever before. Cheeks were turning hot and red at the realization of the moment, and all they could do was just breathe and stare. A lifetime had passed between them before Reki decided to be the first one to break the silence.

"Sooo, uhhhh…. Was it everything you were looking for tonight?" He said, sheepishly. Surprising Langa by not turning and running for the hills.

"Would you believe me if I said… yes?" Langa turned his head away, not sure what to do with himself at this point. He was honestly shocked that they were still talking.

"Honestly… not really." Reki said with shocking confidence. Langa whipped his head back up, wondering why, of ALL responses, he would say that?

"To be fair, that kiss was kinda short, so I can't really believe that you actually tasted anything. Sure you don't wanna… try again?" Langa was stunned. Stunned that his friend, the one that always said that he 'wasn't sure', didn't express that he was interested in him EVER, would say something like that so casually.

"But… I thought…" Langa said. Confused, but grateful at the miracle that landed in his lap.

Reki righted his headband before taking a breath and spoke, "Look. I know I talk about girls a lot, and that I've been 'straddling the fence' about this. But that kiss...and everything that happened tonight and maybe during some moments that we've had together over the past month or so just... made me realize that... I'm not as much on the fence as I previously thought. And I want you to know that this... is okay." Reki took one of Langa's hands and brought it over the skateboard and held it, curling the blushing bluenette's fingers into his and lightly stroked his thumb over the knuckles.

"So… is this an open invitation to… try again?" Langa muttered, leaning in close to Reki. Their foreheads almost touching.

"Well, yeah! Gotta be sure and all. Else you're going to screw up your taste buds devouring salt packets all night!" The two of them quietly laughed at the thought before leaning closer in, sensing another intimate bubble world forming around them and this moment. Just the two of them, all over again and again. Langa rubbed his nose next to Reki's, hoping to indicate that he would like another kiss. Reki got the hint as they started to lean closer to each other and-

"I get this is probably a first time for both of you, but could you not? It's disgusting." Miya said. He was the only other occupant on the bench at the moment and was playing on his switch while chilling in the now shockingly brisk air.

"I'm… sorry?" replied Langa.

"exCUSE YOU?" screeched Reki.

"It's not that I'm against you two getting together or anything, but can you really not find a better place to do… all that? I'm trying to concentrate here." Miya said, drawing his hood over his head and returning to his game.

"Well, tough luck pussycat! I'm going back for another round." Reki almost threw his skateboard from his lap, He indignantly grabbed Langa's collar and went back to kissing him forcefully, pushing his "Prince" down flat on the bench and crawling onto his lap. This essentially traumatized Miya, especially after Langa joyfully started to reciprocate.

"JOE! CHERRY!! SAVE ME!!!" the child screamed in terror as he ran into the surprised arms of his (unofficial) surrogate parents that had just turned the corner, looking for the oblivious pair. Joe picked up Miya and held him close, wondering what could cause him to scream like that, Cherry began scanning the tree line, preparing to take his board and swing for the fences when he found the violator, only to see Reki and langa committing a mild case of public indecency.

"Are they-?" Joe said first, finally seeing the familiar red and blue mass on the bench.

"It appears so. Honestly? About time." Cherry replied, putting Carla down.

"Make them stop!" Miya whimpered, shivering in disgust and looking away.

"Avert your eyes kid, it's only going to get worse." Joe shifted Miya to one arm as he and Cherry walked away and back into the building.

"Should we warn Shadow?" Cherry asked.

"Na. With the way those two were going at it, he'll find out soon enough."

The three of them went out the other side, up the path to the top and left the intertwined teens to their now and forever present need for privacy.

[letthylightshine]

What has my day been like?

Good Afternoon, friends! I am going to let you all know what my day has been like. First of all, my sleep was sweet but my schedule was completely off. The weather has been affecting my sinuses so bad. My nose has been running and stopped up for almost a week now. Its contradicting because the weather in the past two days have been in the 60's. Why is it so cold in my house? I have been making arrangements to keep it warm. I've got my spaceheater going in addition to the AC Heat.

So, I am a FT Wife to Carlos Ramirez. My days consist of cooking for him and I, cleaning the house, organizing anything I can get my hands on, sleeping & napping, studying Spanish, reading my bible, praying, personal hygiene, and now blogging and social media. All these things together are like a Full-Time job. And now I am looking for a job because I am desiring an increase in my living standards. Hopefully, I can get a job that is for me and I will be able to simplify some things for Carlos and I. Carlos and I are both independent people. If we can do it ourselves, we will do it. And that even narrows it down to fixing our own vehicles because Carlos is Mechanic.

However, in the past few years I have been quite fascinated by the: "Hi, we are calling you about your cars extended auto warranty!" phone calls because who would have know that car warranties came with such convenience. I'll have to tell you all about it later. Let's get into my day!

"You may not believe, but you will see my power." - Jesus

This morning, my day began at about 7:00AM. I woke up to achy, stuffy nose because of the sudden weather change within the past two weeks. Fall seems to be transitioning out and Winter is transitioning in. In my most recent 5 years, I decided: "I like winter because its not so bad on the body. Plus, I can dress cute with my winter clothes - layers, scarves, boots, flannel button downs." Do you get the jist ?" I am going to have to see how this winter is going to be. As I stated, the past two days have been in the mid-60's, which is good, but its still quite cold for me. My husband, Carlos, is from Mexico. He's told me how, in Mexico, they don't experience a Winter Season. Atleast, not where he lives in VeraCruz. I'd much rather live in Veracruz at this point, but he's enjoying the stability he's gained in Estabas Unidos. So, I don't rush it but I have said: "I'd like me a Mexico Original home in the suburbs of Mexico or atleast on some nice land." With the curvy brick- style shingles. Yes!

Carlos is funny and he loves to tell jokes here and there but last night got me! He said, "You're working on the roof with me tomorrow?" Half serious/Half joking I said, "Yes!" very seriously. Meanwhile, I said: "Yes!" at maybe 8pm in the night. I have not really been out of the house, especially in the morning time, in a long while. Plus, its "cold outside." I believe I answered too soon. I woke up about 7AM and I was like : "Yes! New day. (I was sleeping on the love seat in our bedroom. I had fell asleep there after my shower.) Now, it's time to get in bed and have the real sleep." Moments later, Carlos' alarm goes off at 7:30 AM.

He's like: "Mi Reyna, despierta! Wake up! We are working on the roof this morning! Let's get ready!" I am like: "Oh no, I was just playing when I said yes." So, I layed back down. Carlos began getting ready. Friends, my nose was stopped up, sinuses congested, throat mildly sore - Can we say it may have been the end of the world considering the circumstances! Carlos has to basically peel me out of the bed like you use a spatula to scramble eggs when you forgot to put a little oil or butter on the skillet! Mama wasn't ready!

So, I got up! I was upset! But, I got up, brushed my teeth, put on clothes, and we were out the door. We had to go to Collierville for his work today! Carlos work sites vary from Arlington, Cordova, maybe Memphis, Millington, Covington, or Southaven - all in Memphis and surrounding areas. Today we went to Collierville. These houses are nice and beautiful too. They are brand new houses - some are for sale and others are still new construction or under construction.

This Morning began to be a beautiful day after I finally got up! We drove towards Collierville and I started having faint memories of my days when I used to be in Collierville and East Memphis with my friends. It was sweet memories and maybe I also teared up but it was nothing compared to the NOW. We stopped at the corner store for gas. Carlos offered to purchase me something from the store. Carlos is so kind, caring, and nurturing. He's awesome. I love him! I ordered me a Sausage, Egg, and Cheese Biscuit with a V8 Vegetable Drink. Talk about good! It was delicious! The biscuit was perfectly soft, flaky, and mouthwatering. I tore that biscuit up! Carlos got more coffee, LOL. He'd just had coffee at home, but I guess, "When you gotta go, ya gotta go!"

We arrived at his worksite. I began to become a little nervous because I had not worked with Carlos in a while. Especially moving those heavy shingles, as he asks me to assist him with. And thats exactky what he needed me to do. I have been meditating on the verse that says: "Do not be greedy for money and appreciate what you have." I have been appreciating God blessing me to be a Stay-At-Home wife. So, Carlos asking or making me come to work with him this morning really put me a little on edge and out of my normal routine. I said NO to helping with the shingles today. It's as though the Holy Spirit said, "Carlos should have called his boss and requested emergency back-up since he was the only person working. I did not sign you up for this and you're allowed to say no." So, I said no. I felt a little bad for my honey but alls fair in love! He accepted my NO and got to work. So, I decided to pray for us so that we can have a good day with our great expectation. After praying, the Sun came out and I swore I could see the Father's face. It was well with my soul.

Then, I'd remembered that I'd been having knee pains. The neighborhood was a pretty good size to walk around, even offering a walking trail. Do you know what I did? Got to walking!

Listen to a favorite of mine:

Yes, you all - I began walking this really bad knee pain off. I did not understand where it came from but I did realize I have not been exercising as much since it got colder outside. This was perfect timing to begin building my motivation to walk in my own neighborhood. As I began to walk, the pain slowly but surely began to go away. I am going to keep on walking until the pain is no more. I am going to have to manage it throughout the winter. I have to get back motivated to exercise all together.

Once I had enough walking, I rested in our van, took a nap, and woke up to Carlos asking for more assistance with those heavy shingles. This time, I said: "Yes, my love!" You all, I could only do so much. Then, it began sprinkling! "Yes!" I shouted in my mind because I did not need Carlos to get frustrated thinking that I did not want to help. Neither did I want the Lord to think the same. So, I prayed like Elijah that it would not rain, LOL. My prayer was: "Lord, please don't let it rain today. And don't let it rain for 3 years. And keep hydrating the Earth and its inhabitants. Amen." I had to show that my faith is strong and unfaltering. Then, it began to rain harder! Ha, sometimes you gotta be happy and joyful even when you don't get what you've asked for. Its possible with gratitude!

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

I'd like to share the story of Elijah and the Prayer Of Rain:

Elijah was a man with a nature like ours, and he prayed fervently that it might not rain, and for three years and six months it did not rain on the earth. Then he prayed again, and heaven gave rain, and the earth bore its fruit (James 5:17-18).

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

It began to rain even harder. I got so happy and I am sure Carlos did too because then we could go home and spend some quality time with one another, which is rare in the afternoon time of most days. Carlos usualy gets home after the sun has gone down. So, we packed up all the tools - nails, ladders, nail guns, and more. Then, we headed home. Our day was adventurous because we received what we did not expect - but the flowers need the rain, so it was good. And we need the rain to replenish the harvest. Take a good look at the fields, the harvest is ready!

We got home, cooked dinner, and I am now relaxing and concluding my day! It was short but sweet. Carlos is outside looking at my vehicle. Its been a tiring day so relaxation is needed.

Thank you very much for reading! Until next time....<3

[ducktracy]

I am curious to know how you came to like Daffy and Porky so much. :-)

HMMMM... a myriad of reasons (because nothing can ever be simple huh?) but i think the biggest is just "i relate to them and think they're funny"

there IS something funny about saying you (in a general sense) relate to LT characters since they're so often vehicles for gags and humor BUT I DO HAHA. i relate to Daffy's overzealousness and always living at every extreme/a little TOO passionate and emotional, as well as always social and a little annoying, and i relate to Porky's very oblivious/gullible but good-hearted nature, being stubborn/persnickety and Just Kinda Weird and unintentionally eccentric in general LOL. i guess that's a very bare bones example but i'm also scratching my head here like wait...... how DO i relate to these 85 year old barnyard animals who just blow each other up... but i do! they're my buds

AAAAND when i got into LT i originally wanted to get into it for Bugs (THAT WORKED OUT WELL HUH) but got sidetracked and binged all of Bob Clampett's work first, and since Clampett's first 4 years of filmography were nothing but black and white Porky (and the occasional Daffy) cartoons i got attached to them very quickly through that; i thought the fact that these cartoons were in black and white and so DIFFERENT than what i was used to was really fascinating and that fascination has always stuck with me. i'm definitely apologetic of a lot of Porky cartoons i know are bad/mediocre but i love anyway HAHA i'm just really entertained by him in general. Porky's general existence is genuinely fascinating and hilarious to me (and not in a "haha look at the funny pig stutter" way, but more so "i think the way Porky carries himself and acts the way he does naturally is absolutely hilarious and a joke in itself, even when its not intended to be") and the same can be said for Daffy too, though much of my fascination from him comes from actual things he does and says rather than just merely existing

LIKE. a few weeks ago i watched Ali-Baba Bound which is a not very fantastic Clampett-Porky cartoon (racism aside), but i found myself going "oh my god, Porky said 6 lines in this short instead of 2!! he made a reference to Blondie and i understood it! THIS IS FANTASTIC!" and had to pause and ask myself what i was even saying. that usually goes for most mediocre Porky cartoons with me

Daffy i'm much more picky about because i'm more passionate about him/maintaining the depictions i like most so to speak, but i've just always really resonated with him (not counting the later Chuck Jones/Friz Freleng versions because that makes me look terrible and not what i have in mind when i say that HAHAHAHA). he's my favorite cartoon character! i've gone into it in depth before and will again when i can articulate it more clearly but i can relate to him a lot, and i've always been taken in with his charisma/social nature and fascinated by history

AND LIKE. they're my brand at this point, everyone knows me as That Porky and Daffy Guy (including my co-workers, the first Zoom meeting i ever attended my coworker said "i didn't recognize you because you weren't a duck!") and i don't see my interest fading anytime soon

my interest in LT isn't purely for Porky and Daffy, it's the history behind it and the people who made these characters so great more than anything, BUT with that said...i'd be lying if i said the reason why i watch 90% of modern LT media wasn't because that Daffy and/or Porky were in it in some capacity

when in doubt:

[desiredcaramellatte]

Here’s the jist. I won’t be writing, probably for a while. I don’t have the motivation nor time for it as of the moment. All my requests will remain in my inbox and, hopefully, I’ll get back to writing some time in the future- I just can’t pick up a pencil or keyboard and start writing right now.

I hope all of you are having a good day, and thank you for checking out my blog! I really do appreciate all of the support from such a wonderful community! C’yall later!

[know-the-way]

Alright, I'll bite, what's your headcanon for Faustus/Zelda/Edward?

*cracks knuckles* Okay, we’re gonna start with Edward.

So we know Faustus was Edward’s mentor and that they had a shared respect for each other (at one point in time, at least). I imagine this relationship began and blossomed through Edward and Faustus’ formative years in the academy and - when you grow up with someone, especially when you are coached and guided and vice versa, it tends to forge a pretty strong bond.

Now, the things we know about Edward as a character in canon are, quite frankly, really boring. A golden boy who did no wrong and became a martyr after overcoming adversity to enter a cishet mortal marriage? BOR-ING.

But imagine this… Edward really valued Faustus’ mentorship. For the longest time, he looked at him as his hero with stars in his eyes. He taught him so much, supported him, molded him, and challenged him. Every time Faustus walked into the library to join him in research and discussion, Edward brightened. He couldn’t wait to tell him all his ideas and hear about his. It meant everything to Edward to have (what felt like) a brother. He adored him.

Then, his younger sister comes to the academy and suddenly, Zelda and Faustus are getting close. Edward can’t really understand why, but it bothers him. Why does it bother him? He loves his mentor, he loves his sister… so what is the problem? Like he gets it… Zelda is magnificent and beautiful and intriguing. His sister is an absolute prize. It just… they used to confide in Edward separately and now they seem to be confiding in each other. It’s just different, that’s all. He notices that Faustus starts speaking more of her during their study sessions, even though that’s kind of he and Edward’s time to talk, but whatever. And like sure, they always got ready for Lupercalia by having a boys night at Dorian’s and now Faustus would rather snog his little sister in the hallways instead, but okay. It’s not like he needs him, not like it hurts to feel cast aside and unimportant after years of near-inseparable friendship, not like he’s jealous…. Is he jealous?! Satan, fuck… is he???? Why, though????

Then, one day when he and Faustus are studying like old times and Edward finally starts to feel at peace again, Zelda walks in the room and he sees his best friend’s face brighten like the sun. And he realizes… Faustus is in love with his sister. Which means… oh no… he used to get that same look on his face… for Faustus. Oh NO.

Now, there’s nothing wrong with having feelings for another man. He’s had plenty of trysts with his brothers in Satan before. (Sisters, too, but anyway.) The Dark Lord encourages us to live authentically, so long as we continue to serve him. But… oh, he doesn’t think Faustus feels the same. No, Faustus feels that way about Zelda. And he… can’t… He can’t lose his friend by telling him the truth, but he equally can’t watch his little sister be the object of his affections when it burns like a hot knife to his heart.

And he knows Zelda doesn’t love Faustus. He asked her. Maybe her face turned a little red when he did, maybe she looked down shyly for a moment and a smile crept up her face… but then she turned her chin up and told him in her haughtiest voice that her heart belonged to the Dark Lord and how dare he suggest otherwise.

So when Faustus confides in him that he plans to ask for Zelda’s hand in marriage, the absolute bite with which Edward says no is entirely justified. Zelda does not love him. And… you know… if anything, Edward’s protecting her. Who knows when Faustus will get bored of her, too, and move on to the next pretty thing that catches his eye?

Yeah, you know what? Actually, Faustus is fucking villain. A manipulator. A deceiver. Making Edward fall for him and then going after his sister. How did he not see before? What a cunt. Like yeah, he really loved watching Faustus manipulate and deceive other people, that was always really cool and endearing, but you deceive Edward? You kick his heart like a football? Jail for mentor! Jail for suave, good-looking man with a voice like velvet for ONE THOUSAND YEARS!

Yeah no, not only can he not marry Zelda, he’s gonna take all his fancy teachings and surpass him to the high priesthood. Play stupid games Fausty, get stupid prizes, m8! Take that.

Meanwhile, Faustus is out here like, “If you wanted me to fuck you, you just needed to ask, like it’s chill or whatever, the coven orgies exist for a reason. Me, you, and Zelda could’ve found a quiet corner and you two could’ve shared. Like???? But oh yeah btw my heart does belong to your sister ‘cause she’s way more interesting than you and makes me chase her, but then she lets me devour her like a bear emerging from his winter slumber and I kinda like that, so… “

And Edward’s ultimate “fuck you” is when he doesn’t tell Zelda that he said no to Faustus asking for her hand. So when Faustus distances himself, Zelda is confused and hurt, which turns to resentment, which she then confides to her dear older brother. And “oh, big brother is here to protect you, love you, cherish you. We have each other, that’s what matters, right? Yes, we’re a team, aren’t we? Bolster me and support me with stars in your eyes, sister, and we’ll both go to amazing places together.”

And Faustus… well, maybe he will finally feel a fraction of the pain Edward felt as he watches Zelda’s attention and love and adoration go to Edward instead. Not so nice when the person you want most likes another more, is it? How ya like them apples, bitch?

TL;DR - Full homo, my own personal headcanon is that Edward is a jealous wank who didn’t know how to process his feelings and his biggest feeling for a long time was that he really wanted to be topped by his mentor. And when that (perceivably) couldn’t happen, he metaphorically topped him instead.

This was all over the place, but hopefully you get the jist. A couple more folks asked about this, so next up is Faustus (if anyone cares, which you shouldn’t and probably won’t, it’s garbage anyway 🙃✌️).

[amethystpath-writes]

Part 2 of the Villain who Faked His Death to Become a Hero/Sidekick!

Here’s the 1st part :)

@igotthesmellofbooks who requested a continuation, and @poisoned-by-royalty who prompted the first. Also, @whatwhumpcomments as per usual :) Alright on with the story now!

***

Usually, Villain could ignore his fear of walking into the old capitol building by simply admiring the way it looked on the inside. Even the outside had some kind of haunted beauty to it, but that was exactly why he couldn’t stand to be in there now. This place was haunted. Haunted with all of the people he killed for the Boss. 

Villain couldn’t help but wonder if there were people in the lowest levels now- if they were being tortured for information, or tortured just for the hell of it. The thought was terrifying, and Villain would have liked to stop thinking about it altogether, but how could he continue to consider himself a hero if he did that? He had to acknowledge his faults, had to acknowledge what horrors he committed. Otherwise he was just as bad as the Boss.

“You didn’t really think we wouldn’t figure it out at some point, did ya?” The Boss clapped Villain on the back, stubby fingers digging in between the nervous and sore muscles of Villain’s shoulder.

He groaned, more so at the pain than anything, but otherwise said nothing.

“I mean, really, boy.” The Boss laughed, pushing his fingers impossibly further into Villain’s person. He felt like crippling in that grip. “You are the strongest damn thing I know.”

Thing? I’m still human.

The Boss finally let go of Villain and he released a heavy sigh. Although, while the Boss’ hand was there, he hadn’t been thinking about the dreadfulness of his surroundings. But again, Villain deserved to be swarmed with the negativity of his actions, didn’t he? Even if everything Villain did was forced, he could have spoken to Hero about getting help so, so long ago. This was his fault.

“-sending men out for years, and no one, no one has been capable of the things that you are. You know how many buildings I’ve gotten away with destroying because of you. Incredible. Incredible!”

They were going to the Discussion Chamber, Villain was sure. He didn’t look forward to it. He said, “If you send me on another mission, you know I won’t do it without trying to leave again.” Perhaps it was a stupid statement, but the Boss would be awful stupid if he hadn’t thought the same thing already.

“Oh, I know that. But I also know this...” He smiled and Villain felt his stomach drop- as if it could drop any further than it already was. “You faked your death, kid. And I’m going to hold that over your head. You know how?” 

The Boss’ hand was on Villain’s shoulder again, stopping him in the hall they were walking down.

Deep breaths. Deep breaths. Just keep breathing, Villain. That’s it. In and out. In and out. Maybe he should have been listening to what the Boss was saying, but it was likely just a bunch of threats. He already knew this jist of it; Villain faked his death, which meant he wanted to live. But the Boss couldn’t kill him because he was valuable to the operation. So, instead of killing Villain, he’d just threaten to tell everyone who he was- an old threat, but a good one, especially now that Villain had a bigger secret to hide.

“Let me call Hero. Let me tell him I’m okay. Please, Boss.”

“What would I get outta that? Huh?”

Villain said, “I’ll work with you. No- no...” What was he trying to say dammit! “If you don’t give me this, you’re going to have to do to me what you do to everyone else who is forced to walk into this building. And by the time I crack, I’ll be broken. Who knows if I’ll even be able to do what you want?” He explained further, “But if you let me have this- just this one call- I’ll do as you wish. No struggling, or even arguing. I’ll be one of your men.”

“Tempting, but you forget that I still have leverage over you.”

He shook his head. “You don’t.” Villain watched that look of suspicion rise on the Boss’ face, then proceeded. “I have you for protection. Even if you did tell everyone who I am, what I’ve done for you, I’ll be under your roof. You won’t risk putting me out there. So, no. You don’t have leverage; I do.”

The Boss smiled, laughed. His shoulders jumped with each sound that bubbled from his chest and throat- a guttural and choking sound if you asked Villain. “It’s rare some kid outsmarts me. This is why I can’t afford to lose you.” Another laugh. “I’ll give you one minute on the phone.” The chuckles ceased in the next moment, all amusement gone. “You say whatever you want, but remember who you work for now.”

***

“Who is this? Where is Sidekick?” Hero’s voice warmed Villain’s heart. He took a deep breath, which sent Hero into a frenzy. “Oh my god. Oh my god, it’s you. Where are you? Where are you?” The last sentence was very punctual.

“I don’t have long. I’m safe. Nothing bad is going to happen, but listen to me-”

“Villain-”

He shushed the hero. He had less than a minute now. Glancing at the Boss, Villain took as deep of a breath as he could in two seconds. “I was afraid before we left; I know you saw it, and I know you know I have a dignity problem. That’s besides the point.” He couldn’t think. Couldn’t think, couldn’t think, couldn’t think. 

How many seconds left? Dammit, it doesn’t matter! 

“Remember how you asked where my family lived? They’re on Altipoc Street. A pretty scrambled name, I know. It was named after a tribe of Native Americans that-”

“Time’s up.”

“Tell them I’ll fix their radio when I can,” Villain said with a tiny chuckle he barely managed. There. That’ll make it sound reasonable to the Boss.

The phone was ripped from Villain’s hands. “I said that’s enough!”

On the other end, though Villain couldn’t hear it as he was shoved into a wall, Hero was yelling, asking what the hell was going on.

Villain scorned himself in the meanwhile, face hot against the wall, waiting for the Boss to come beat the crap out of him as he’d undoubtedly want to after Villain took advantage of a few extra seconds. If he hadn’t spent so much time thinking, he could have given Hero more clues. Hopefully Altipoc- ‘a pretty scrambled name’- would be enough to catch onto. See, Altipoc unscrambled was Capitol- as in the Capitol building Villain was in now. The radio hint might have been less clear, but Hero was smart. Surely, he could figure it out.

“You went three seconds over the time I gave you. That’s two seconds I would usually say you need to make up, but”- the Boss laughed- “I think you’ve given me enough.” He held up the phone, and the realization dawned on Villain.

“No. No, Boss, please. Leave him alone.” Villain hadn’t thought about network tracking. They would be able to find where Hero was whenever he took the call. They’d find him and track him down, use him against Villain. “He has nothing to do with this operation. You can’t-”

“Oh, but my boy, he has everything to do with you.” The Boss held the phone over his shoulder, no longer in need of it, and said, “Take it. Do what you need with it- if anything. I don’t know how these things work. Don’t need to. I have fellas to do that for me.”

Villain jerked against the wall, trying to peel his head and shoulders away so that he could launch at the Boss. Never had he felt so blatantly defiant until now- until his love was at risk. This was going too far.

“What can I break easily in two seconds that can heal rather easily?” The Boss hummed while Villain fought harder. “Ah, I don’t know. How about we go with a finger? I’m sure pinkies heal fast, right?”

Without being able to stop it, Villain’s head was dragged back, then cracked against the wall in front of him, his body falling limp just a second later.

Worse than not being able to help himself, Villain couldn’t help Hero. He was the reason Hero was in danger. Maybe he truly was a villain, after all.

[supernaturallyginger]

FILM NOIR BABEY????? pls pls tell me about this omg

ahh thank you guys for asking <33

This wip is in the VERY early stages. The document is practically just a list of ideas at the moment haha

But here’s a summary of what I have in mind:

Basically, it will be Battle Tendency but told in the style of a 1940s noir film.

Joseph is a junior private detective working under his Uncle Speedwagon. The story will be told from his first person perspective and be written like noir narration.

One day Speedwagon disappears. Joseph then has to his way through Speedwagon’s open case in hopes to find him. Speedwagon’s case notes list a bar where a woman can help. Joseph starts his search there and meets Lisa Lisa who runs said bar (which is a front for some more shady under the table stuff that detectives let slide in exchange for information.)

There he also meets Caesar, who becomes his foil (and love interest I guess.) They work through case together bumping heads constantly at first but slowly realizing they perfectly balance each other out. Caesar, of course has a dark hidden past, attempts to hide it. But, just like in canon, he ultimately ends up sacrificing himself for Joseph and the case.

That’s the main jist of it. Some other fun stuff I’ve thought of is Suzi Q would be singer at the bar. And Smokey would be another junior detective who works with Joseph and he advises Joseph to not take the case since it’s so personal.

Hopefully I’ll actually get to work on this one day. I’m obsessed with the concept!

@vadeofspades @cassthecri

[peterspideyy]

lies | part two

part one is here

summary- harrison confronts you on what he knows about tom, and it ruins you both

warnings- swearing, angst, crying, mentions of cheating

————

“o-okay,” he looked at you, already seeing the pain that is going to come once he says what your lover is doing, “t-tom is cheating on you.”

harrison looked away from you when he spoke. he couldn’t bear to see your reaction. but, he soon looked up once he heard, laughter?

“funny prank harrison. come on, wheres the camera? tom, love, you can come out now.” you joked, looking around for cameras and tom. but, when you looked back at harrison, there was no sign of ‘haha pranked you’ in his eyes. he was dead serious. your face dropped insantly. your throat closed up, as your brain rattled with confusion.

“y/n, i’m not joking. look.” harrison spoke, shaking while showing you photos of tom texting another women. a women who wasn’t you. a sob rattled out of your body, as you completely broke down.

harrison was soon to wrap you in his arms, stroking your hair as you cried heavily into his chest, crawling at his shirt which had a massive wet stain. neither of you cared though.

harrison felt some relief wash over him. hiding this from you, was the most biggest things he ever had to do. but, that relief was soon replaced by hatred. he despised that tom could ever do this to you. harrison and tom both know how much cheating has affected you. ever since your dad cheated on your mum, a part of you has never recovered from that moment in your childhood. so tom doing this, only brought back memories from that. harrison hates tom.

“hey guys! i’m back. sorry my meeting ran over.” tom shouted from the front door. you froze in harrison’s chest, going unnoticed by him. you started to breath in and out quickly. you didn’t want to speak to him. or even look at him. but, he was walking towards you both.

“why did no one reply-oh my god, y/n, darling what’s up?” tom hurriedly said, rushing over to help you calm down, but it only caused you to cry more.

“mate, back off.” harrison gritted, pushing tom away from you.

“harrison, what the fuck? she’s my fucking girlfriend!” tom replied, anger laced in his voice.

“am i?” you whimpered, causing tom to look away from harrison, confusion written over his face. it’s as he didn’t just leave her.

“what are you on about, love?” tom whispered, bringing his hand up to wipe away your tears. but, you forcefully pushed it away, standing up and moving away from him.

“don’t fucking love me,” you screamed, tears flying down your face, “do you have any idea how fucking done i am with you right now?!”

“y/n, what the fuck is going on?” tom replied, soon becoming angry at your actions. you scoffed. he had no right to be angry.

“i know tom. i fucking know.” you spat, staring at him in his eyes. if looks could kill, tom would be on the floor right now.

“k-know what?”

“don’t fucking play dumb with me, tom. i know about your fuck buddy. what, you think i wouldn’t find out?!”

guilt soon washed over tom, as he realised what you know, “h-how did you find out?”

“it doesn’t matter how i fucking found out! all what matters is, i know.”

tom couldn’t think straight. he hated hated that he did this to you. he regrets everything. he tried to grab your hand, “look at me, darling. please.”

“fucking let go off me!” you screeched, flinching away from tom’s desperate touch. you couldn’t touch him, without feeling sick in your stomach at how he has grabbed someone else. your breathing became ragged, as your body shook uncontrollably.

“n-no y/n, i-i’m sorry honestly. i-i don’t know w-why i did this. honestly. i’m s-so fucking stupid.” tom growled, tugging at his hair.

“yes you are tom. you are stupid. i-i wanted to marry you. i wanted a life with you. and this is how you repay me?!”

“o-oh god, y/n p-please let’s talk about this. i love you-“

“no tom,” you turned around, pointing your finger at him, “you never did love me. if you did, you wouldn’t have done what you did. would you?”

“i-i.” tom couldn’t speak. he’s fucked up, bad.

“exactly. i-i’m done tom. i’m done with your bullshit. i’m done with your love. love which has obviously been a big lie. i’m done with you. pack your shit, and leave.”

“please, we can make us work. w-we always do.”

you shook your head, “there’s no us tom, there never was.”

you looked up from the ground, meeting tom’s gaze, your breath hitching as you did. never have you ever seen tom so broken. so upset. you wanted to forget about this, and wrap him in your arms. but, this isn’t a happy story where after the boy breaks the girl, they still end up together. real life doesn’t work like that.

“leave.” you whispered, pointing at the door.

“p-please y/n, l-let me explain, i-“

“no tom, i don’t need to hear your pathetic excuses anymore. i’m done. now, leave.”

tom breathed in heavily, looking over at harrison who was sat on the couch the whole time. tom knew it was harrison who told you. he hated how not only did he loose you, he’s lost the respect from his best mate. he hates this.

“y-you deserve so much better than this. than me.” tom sobbed, grabbing his coat, before opening the front door. he stopped, looking behind to meet your eyes, before mouthing ‘i’m sorry’. you looked away. you couldn’t bear the see him anymore. you heard him leave, closing the door softly behind him. closing the door, to your love to each other.

2 weeks later

“hi y/n,” tom smiled, gesturing you to sit by him, “thanks for meeting me.”

you smiled back, slightly, taking a seat by him at the bar. you only agreed to drinks. not a whole course meal.

last night, harrison called you. of course you still kept in contact with him, after your’s and tom’s breakup. even though, harrison and tom were still close mates, a part of harrison could never forgive what tom did to you. but, he hated seeing how heartbroken tom was. apparently, he hasn’t been good these past few weeks. not sleeping well. not eating well. you get the jist. so, harrison thought we could both meet up. to talk. so, tom’s best mate forced him to have a shower and now, here you are.

“so,” you spoke, taking a sip of your drink, “what do you want to say to me?”

tom breathed in heavily, “i-i know nothing i say will ever make you forgive me after what i did to you. i hate that i did that to you. i promised you i would always love you and never hurt you. and i failed. of course, i still love you so fucking much. but i hurt you. and i’m so sorry.”

you nodded, taking in tom’s words, “your right tom. you did hurt me. and a part of me still loves you too.”

“can’t we just forget about this, a-and move on?”

you wish you could say yes. it was on the tip of your tounge. but, you couldn’t bring yourself to say it.

“i want to belive you, i do, but i’m sorry tom. no. y-you broke me. i could never be with someone who does that. you know my past with cheating, and when i told you, you promised you would never do that. and you did. so no tom. we can be friends, maybe. it might take me a while but, hopefully we can stay friends.”

tom looked at you, nodding his head. he understood that he lost you. but, he couldn’t let you go easily.

“y/n,” he whispered, taking your hands in his, and rubbing his thumb gently over his knuckle, “i-i never meant to hurt you. belive me. i wasn’t thinking straight when i did this. p-please y/n, come home-“

you shook your head, taking your hands away from tom’s grip, “i hope you find someone, who makes you as happy as i did.”

you finsihed your drink, standing up out the seat while tom did the same. tears were spilling down his cheek, once he realised you’re going. and you’re never coming back.

“i-i understand. i’m sorry.”

you sighed, thinking if leaving him was a good idea. shaking your head, as to tell yourself it is. you brushed away tom’s tears with your thumb, before leaning in to kiss his cheek softly. pulling away, you smiled at him one last time, before turning around to walk out of the restaurant.

————

a/n- thanks for reading part two! all the response i got from part 1, was amazing so thank you🥺

————

tags- @nerdy-collector-festival @chaoticpete @lovely-geek @jackiehollanderr @thollandx @cyrusandhiscollaredahirts @retrobhaddie @theamuz @greatpizzascissorstaco @fantastic-fans @delicateslover @peterparker-rickybowen-mybabies

[cheuwing]

First of all: Thank you very much for your metas! I have a question about the role of Greg in tjlc. What exactly is he doing? Is he a good one or a baddy? Any space for Mystrade in tjlc?

Hello dear,

Thank you so much for your message! I was surprised to receive a question after such a long absence (a very nice surprise!). I don’t know if you’ll read my answer; hopefully it will find you well. :)

It is a very interesting question... I haven’t rewatched every single episode with a focus on Greg (I might do it later!), so feel free to take my view with a pinch of salt.

First of all: I adore Gavin Greg Lestrade! He is such an amazing, complex character in the series. I believe it is clear that Greg is on the good side. Actually, I think each character mentioned on the rooftop scene as targeted by Moriarty is explicitly good: John Watson, Mrs Hudson, Greg Lestrade. (Every other speculation is fair game, but these three are unquestionably good) The show never questions their loyalty either. Greg might be disgrunted sometimes, but he’s always there to help and support Sherlock (the “maximum back up” scene at the beginning of TSOT comes to mind). Furthermore, he is the very first one who talks about Sherlock’s side: “Sherlock Holmes is a great man, and I think one day, if we're very, very lucky, he might even be a good one.” To me, these elements prove without the shadow of a doubt that Greg is, in fact, good.

Also, according to Sherlock:

That’s all the proof I need! x)

Now, regarding Greg’s role in TJLC... My personal opinion is that he serves as a mirror. Typically, a mirror for Sherlock:

detective, keen on solving cases,

clever,

good coat, and similar clothes in general,

quits cigarettes at the same time as Sherlock (showing their matching patches in ASIP), both are seen with - unlit - cigarettes in their mouth in s3,

willing to bend the rules a little bit to solve his cases - namely by calling a “consulting detective”,

blunt and a bit ruthless (his introduction scene in which he is uncomfortable, possibly annoyed, in front of the media and deadpans “Don’t commit suicide” while Sally plays Watson’s role as social facilitator)

solving a case or saving a friend is more important than taking credit,

a bit of a drama queen (... that “maximum back up” scene comes to mind again xD),

lovely interactions with John in which they tend to be very honest and a bit arseholy (”NOT REALLY”)... (also: taking care of him and bringing Sherlock memorabilia in Many Happy Returns), a few moments of them working perfectly in sync (that action walk shot in HLV)

... among other things!

Interestingly, I think it’s fair to say that Greg is associated to John in some aspects (public servants, caring arseholes, both of them striving to guide Sherlock on the side of the angels, mindful of Sherlock’s emotions & thoughts process... Betrayed by their wives. Even on a visual level: action walk in HLV, shooting scene in THOB, in which, hilariously, even though John shoots second, he manages to catch his target => metaphors!!!)

I personally believe that Greg serves to show how a real, uncomplicated friendship with Sherlock (or John, for that matter) would work. He has no problem hugging him when he comes back (something John is unable to do, because he is overwhelmed with too many conflicting emotions... also, they’re not alone). Talking about emotions and such is easier between them too (Greg doesn’t hesitate to ask about John when Sherlock brings Molly for the case). They still bicker, argue and even play jokes on one another like John & Sherlock do (Lestrade never hesitates to film Sherlock on his phone, or to force him to wear a security blanket). Same goes between John & Lestrade: the friendship is much smoother/more wholesome than with Sherlock, because no one has to rein desire/unspoken emotions in. I mean, as @just-sort-of-happened highlighted it in this post: Greg provides a contrast to John's attraction to Sherlock.

So there you go: to me, Greg is a mirror for Sherlock and his interactions with both John & Sherlock serve as a contrast between the wholesome friendship that could be and the complicated relationship with lots of hidden desires, unspoken things and general sense of constrinct that these two have.

I also believe that Greg is a sort of mentor to them? He is the one who guides onto the right path, the one who is concerned, who is proud (his proud daddy expressions give me life), and I guess, who experiences things first (he has already worked on the cases before he presents them to Sherlock - and usually has failed -, he shoots the hound first - and fails -, he was married before John - and... you get the jist). I feel like Greg will start his grand relationship before Johnlock and in a sense, will show them the way.

As for the grand relationship in question... I love Mystrade. I really do. If it becomes canon, I’d be very happy. (Also, I could totally see Mark Gatiss thrilled to pose with Rupert Graves, his crush from Maurice, as his fictional lover ^^). Greg has been associated with John enough that I could see their relationship as a mirror for Johnlock. (and I certainly love this trope in fanfics!) I would be more than satisfied with Mystrade (also... if it happened after years of queerbaiting issues? two gay couples? with Gatiss, creator of the show, playing a character in a homosexual relationship? That could be pretty cool).

However, I have to say that I’m not really convinced it will happen in the show? It seems to me Mycroft is very much presented as an asexual character, or, at the very least, someone who doesn’t understand sex at all (the allusions with Lady Smallwood show how uncomprehending he is on the subject, and not just in a ‘gay man approached by a woman’ kind of way. Contrast with Sherlock in ASIP, being able to say ‘women are not my area’, ‘I know it’s fine’ and ‘while I’m flattered by your interest....’). In Sherlock’s mind palace, Mycroft serves as “the mind”, cold, logical, rational, in contrast to John “the heart”, emotion-focused, soft. In the Mayfly Man deduction, Mycroft insists on intricate planning, intent... whereas John focuses on sex right away. Thus, I personally see Mycroft as very remote from the concept of sexuality.

I personally see another likelier (in the context of the show) love interest for Greg: Molly Hooper. If Greg is an obvious mirror for Sherlock, Molly is an obvious mirror for John (I mean, very explicitly... And also at the wedding). There is already a history of interest between the two, at least from Greg’s part. Remember the gaping mouth at Molly’s dress at Christmas? How the camera framed them as a couple at the wedding, while Tom was obviously discarded as a serious lasting boyfriend for her? To be fully honest, I would probably be slightly annoyed at Molly’s character development if she goes out with another Sherlock mirror, but... It would make sense. She said it herself: she has a type. And I’d argue that Greg is a much more wholesome mirror for Sherlock, and he’s obviously interested in her. I think the writers already paved the road for this romance, so it seems likelier to me. I guess we will wait and see :)

To sum up => I ADORE Greg Lestrade. I hadn’t explored my thoughts on him for a long time before I received your message and had the perfect opportunity to do so. It is a joy to study his character and role in the story. To me, he is unquestionably good (like Mrs H & John). He is a fascinating mirror for Sherlock, and a great friend who shows what an uncomplicated friendship with John & Sherlock would look like. I’d definitely be happy to see Mystrade on screen (and these versions of Mycroft and Greg would certainly work well together! I think Greg would love to tease Mycroft like John does sometimes -> cue to hilarious expressions). I personally don’t think the writers would go there, but who knows? That could be very satisfying. I think a likelier mirror for Johnlock will be provided with Molly/Lestrade. Either way, Lestrade might very well be the one to show John & Sherlock the way to love. I’m curious to see how they will show it :)

Hopefully this will be a satisfying answer. Take care, dear! (And feel free to share your thoughts with me on the matter :) )

[a-crimson-lion]

A (Hopefully) Reasonable Response

For @kiricookie .

[Read this if you want the following ramblings to make any sense.]

(Sorry this is so hecking long and all over the place, I just wanted to be thorough.)

[Manga Spoilers and Movie Spoilers Ahead]

I’m gonna do things a little differently here.

For starters, I’m gonna not gonna be addressing the fandom at large, because the fandom at large won’t be able to give me an answer.

I’m just talking to you, kiricookie. Because it’s your post, and you deserve to know what people (like myself) think of it. Just letting you know right now, and this is with absolutely NO sarcasm: I won’t be rude. I’ll do my damndest to not be rude.

Because you didn’t go and make that post and share it with the entirety of the world wide web just for it to get ridiculously crapped on without so much as a glance.

So, I’ll read it. I’ll think about it. And I’ll give you my thoughts. You don’t have to read them if you don’t want to. But common courtesy makes it so I leave the opportunity. You deserve that much.

You probably already know what this is about anyway. So I’ll start with something… unexpected, at least coming from someone like me…

...you’re right.

To be more specific, you’re right about Tenya. You’re right about how his split second decision to murder Stain should be concerning and in fact is concerning. You’re right about how he’s the most prone to lose his control and how his emotions get the better of him. You’re right about all that.

*Internal wince* Now, if you don’t mind me going into other details…

I’m not saying anything that spurnned on Tenya to murder the Hero Killer was in any way justified; it wasn’t. It never could be, it never should be. Murder is wrong no matter how the hell you look at it, and even if you have no choice but to go through with it, you shouldn’t be happy that you had to take someone’s life under any circumstances. But looking through Tenya’s perspective for a moment… he lost a brother, in a way. He lost a hero. Someone extremely close to him, who inspired him and others, who did nothing but good in any way he possibly could. And then he got cut down by someone who Tenya only knows as the antithesis of good and now his brother can’t do any good, or at least not as much as he used to.

Again, that doesn’t excuse attempted murder. In a morbid way, it’s sort of the logical extreme of when we saw Tenya at the start of the series: he immediately writes of Izuku because he only sees him as a hindrance and recognizes his own shortcomings after the fact. He immediately guns after Stain because he did something unforgivable in his eyes, and recognizes his own shortcomings after the fact.

In the heat of the moment, Tenya is prone to failure. He is prone to misjudgement. We’re talking about the same guy who decked his best friend because he was about to do something borderline illegal. The entire point of Tenya is to showcase the distance between what he wants to be and what he actually is, and the steps he takes to get there.

But yeah, the murder plot was a tad… oh who am I kidding, a HELL of a lot of overkill.

But circling back to why we keep scrutinizing Katsuki about his mannerisms while we keep praising Tenya from sunrise to sunset… I can’t speak for all of us Bakugo antis, because I know some of us have legitimate reasons for disliking him and the others are butthurt record players on repeat that you mentioned, but I can at least give out my reasoning behind it.

We don’t talk often about Tenya having a murder episode because he never tries to do it again, and he legit tries to improve and avoid anything similar happening again.

After the Hosu incident, Tenya admits that Stain was right about him, and he resolves to not be a screw up from then on out. He makes an effort to be a better class representative, a better example than what he had been setting before. He doesn’t deck Izuku just because “hE aNgY” during the Hideout Raid arc; he doesn’t want Izuku to make the same mistakes as he did, because everyone else was worried about Tensei, Stain, and Tenya, but Tenya was so dead set on “righting a wrong” that he ignored everyone around him and nearly got himself killed for it, and if things were any worse in Hosu, Tenya might not have been the only one dead. For all intents and purposes, that’s what Tenya thinks is happening again when the Bakugo Rescue Squad suggests tracking their friend down.

And like you mentioned when Tenya offered to lend an ear to Izuku when the Shie Hassaikai incident was tearing him apart from the inside, that’s the progression coming full circle. Tenya realizes that there are other people in the equation that he needs to listen to and that need to be listened to, otherwise they’ll do something completely ludicrous and get themselves and/or other people hurt in the process.

And the thing is, Tenya only needs to have his “Oh f***” moment once. And it’s barely brought up again, which puts out of the audience’s minds.

(Sidenote, while you’re “heroes not killing is weak” thing kinda came out of left field with me, I actually agree. A whole lot actually. Just so you know.)

The thing about Katsuki is that everything supposedly “wrong” with him… is still kinda going on to some extent. Sure, the people at UA have thicker skin and are willing to brush him off or call him out, but that doesn’t change the fact that some of his behavior is… highly concerning.

Personally I tend to avoid the Episode 1 suicide baiting (“avoid,” not “ignore”) because it was forever ago and it is repetitive, but I still think it needs to be addressed to some degree. In any case, Katsuki’s actions throughout the series are what get me and others to not think he’s exactly hero material. In any team exercises, he often puts himself at the forefront (not without reason, but still) and tends to shy away from tag-teaming unless his back’s against the wall. Despite what the Joint Training Arc would claim, Baku did most of the heavy lifting on his own, with little to no actual teamwork, though that’s more of a narrative problem than an in-universe problem. Even his teamwork with Izuku is still shaky at best; he keeps yelling at him, berating him, and telling him to do his best just so he won’t screw Katsuki over.

Say what you will about Katsuki’s “unique” personality, it may fly with his classmates, but realistically speaking, it’s gonna be a problem for when he does get into Professional Hero work. Can he be rude and snarky on professional business? Absolutely. Does he have to scream at his partner(s) whilst making them feel like they’re at the bottom of the barrel? Eh…

Before I commit to your last paragraph, I wanna bring up something. We can both agree that Tenya lost a hero when Tensei was attacked, right? We can both agree that his decision to ignore everyone and go in guns blazing was terrible, 0/10, wouldn’t recommend, right?

Okay. It’s not to the same degree, but… Katsuki has done something similar.

Katsuki lost a hero too. His name was All Might?

And what did Katsuki do well after the fight was over. He didn’t talk about it with anyone. He dragged out his childhood friend so he could rough him up, because fists is the only way he knows how to deal with his disconnect of societal expectations and, as AO3 would attest, Katsuki is complete s*** at feelings.

Katsuki did the same things Tenya did, albeit to a lesser degree. They both lost a hero. They both didn’t talk about it to anyone. And in the end, they both tried to hurt someone in order to alleviate their pain. The aftermath is… admittedly lucky for both parties.

So, about your last paragraph before the GIF… do you wanna know why antis (at least like me) keep bringing up Katsuki’s previous mistakes. It’s less so because they ever happened, or even because Katsuki did them. It’s more so because despite what the narrative and most of the fandom may think, Katsuki’s mistakes are never treated as such, at least not substantially. Eraserhead doesn’t even bother giving Katsuki a pep-talk about his behavior on the first day, or at any time he’s there to witness Katsuki acting like a jackass. All Might doesn’t stop the training exercise when Katsuki nearly kills a fellow student, which he was aware of being a possibility but it’s fine so long as he dodges, and it isn’t even addressed properly afterwards. In the Final Exams, Katsuki hitting his partner and later being dragged out the gate doesn’t bar him from passing, like say, Hanta; while Katsuki did contribute more, it doesn’t change the fact that his initial uncooperative behavior wouldn’t fly in the Pro Hero world, and he made himself a liability in those last few seconds against All Might. Even him losing the Provisional License Exam isn’t as big of a deal, because Katsuki gets to learn about a really important Quirk, no one’s grilling him like, say, Izuku is getting grilled, and not having his License and getting an additional day of house arrest spares him a potential “maybe strength isn’t everything” ass whooping from Mirio. I could go on a bit longer, but I think you get the jist.

Now, I’d absolutely LOVE it if society didn’t royally f*** up Katsuki’s perspective the way it did, but the problem is that the narrative has absolutely no intention of showing or admitting that Katsuki’s perspective is problematic. Ever since Deku vs Kacchan 2 decided that was enough development for Katsuki, he is always in the right, 100% of the time. Any opposition is few and far between, and will often be seen in the wrong anyway despite the legitimate concerns a person like Katsuki would present. Sure he can tell a kid not to look down on people during the Remedial Course arc, but when the Cultural Festival comes around he immediately decides to look down on the other classes. The fact that a majority of UA hates Class 1A is some grade-A bulls***, but the speech Katsuki gives to 1-A is also bulls***.

It essentially boils down to “F*** everybody else and only do things for yourself.” Because that’s what heroes are supposed to do…

That aside, Katsuki needs help. He needs therapy, anger management, and someone who won’t take his s*** just because he’s a so-called natural born leader with a flashy Quirk, because that’s what canon essentially boils down to. Any time Katsuki takes the lead, at least in my eyes, it’s less so because he’s a legitimately good leader and more so because the narrative has decided he’s the only one who should be taking charge.

I want Katsuki to improve, even if I personally have given up on the prospect of that happening. The problem starts when the narrative continually insists that Katsuki is more or less in the clear and is totally fine when really, he isn’t.

Izuku needing help is obvious and valid, but Katsuki needing (and getting) help is valid, too. Now if only the narrative could pick up on that.

And as for that last bit of your post… really, I can only speak for myself. As strong as Izuku is, as much as his opinion matters in this entire debacle, I can’t help but feel like Izuku is more blinded by nostalgia more than anything else. He still wants a connection with someone he’s known since childhood, and I can respect that, but the thing is, Katsuki spent nearly a decade telling Izuku, intentionally or otherwise, that he didn’t want the same thing. This continued from the time Izuku tried to help Katsuki out of a river all the way until after the Sludge Villain incident. And society had a hand in that bulls***tery, Katsuki was never the only culprit, but he was still a prominent one. And I don’t know about you, but nearly two years is probably not as long as you’d like to think it is, because that’s how long that it’s been since the overplayed, overrepeated suicide bait. And even ignoring that, two years isn’t enough of a gap between the near decade of societal degradation Izuku had to suffer through.

I don’t hate that Izuku is so forgiving. I hate that Katsuki isn’t willing to accept or consider it in any meaningful capacity. I hate that in a world where Tenya Iida, Shoto Todoroki, Kota Izumi, and even Gentle Criminal exist, that Katsuki has to be the contrarian because of his damn pride. And again, society f***ed up on that end, but that doesn’t stop the fact that Katsuki has actively refused to pursue other options, instead staying on the first and foremost thought of “blast it,” with his Quirk or his voice, unless he’s in combat, in which case it becomes “blast it but don’t be stupid about it.” Because Izuku’s forgiveness has worked before for the benefit of others. What does Katsuki get from Izuku’s forgiveness he doesn’t even fully accept, other than another obstacle he sees that needs to be beaten?

Yeah he’s still 16, yeah he’s a teenager and therefore still has the time to grow proper, but you know who else is 16? Tenya Iida. Shoto Todoroki. Two prickly, borderline asshole characters who also received gradual growth, faced setbacks and proceeded to grow past them. Meanwhile, Katsuki is still just passing the halfway point. I’m not putting that on Katsuki, but if Hori really wanted us to root for him, he shouldn’t have displayed that characters like Tenya and Shoto are able to develop overtime at faster rates than Katsuki can, and as much as I can keep playing the society card, Katsuki wasn’t the only one bombarded with high expectations. Shoto, Tenya, Momo, and potentially Mina all come from backgrounds wherein high expectations were expected of them; Shoto grew up in a confirmed abusive household for crying out loud, and we’ve seen him trying to grow past his issues.

Katsuki has yet to demonstrate anything similar. After Deku vs Kacchan 2, he’s still yelling Izuku’s ears off, or throwing his mask like a ninja star because comedy, or trying to fight a big time villain again because he still actually hasn’t learned to take a loss. Maybe it’s because he internalized most of his self-hatred and projected it onto Izuku so long, but I really can’t say for certain. The change doesn’t have to be night and day, but it can certainly be more substantial than what we’re getting now, and that alone disappoints me. And I’m sorry to say it, but the wait for Katsuki to finally grow beyond his excessive asshole tendencies and graduate to decent asshole is draining on me, and no longer a big contributor to me keeping up with the story (Izuku is a big contributor to that, because I’m basic).

Changing each other probably wouldn’t be advised, but their dynamic and their issues with and independent of one another should still be addressed. I have a big issue with “win to save, save to win” because of this, actually. Katsuki has to give a s*** about people, sure, but Izuku doesn’t need to focus more on winning when he already wins enough as is. It’s a false equivalence that further justifies the worst parts of Katsuki. That obsession with winning, with never falling behind in the eyes of society, only further fuels his need to put others down and push his physical capabilities to the maximum while he puts his emotional spectrum on the backburner. And the “friendship” he has with Izuku isn’t gonna change that, because again, Katsuki’s primary concern is surpassing One for All, surpassing Izuku as the Chosen One. He has yet to display any major concern for Izuku beyond the extent of his Quirk usage in the main series. The closest thing we’ve gotten was a look of shock on his face during Heroes: Rising, and this was in response to Izuku suggesting that he pass One for All.

On that note, Izuku cares about Katsuki, as a person, as a rival, and as a friend, and he has displayed this time and time again. Katsuki has only shown care for Izuku as an obstacle, as a challenge he must overcome and one he wants to overcome without hindrance. He has yet to show any semblance of care for Izuku beyond that with meaningful context, believe it or not. And quite frankly, I’m getting sick of people wanting to bring Katsuki on board just because Izuku is giving him the benefit of the doubt when he arguably hasn’t done anything proper to earn any of Izuku’s trust. I know Izuku’s not weak, I know he’s sound of mind, but Katsuki is not a rational subject for Izuku. He has known this boy since childhood, he has seen what he is capable of, and his optimism keeps him in a favorable light. That is incredibly noble of Izuku, and I commend him for it, but I cannot stand by the decision when Katsuki’s attitude towards Izuku and his actual contributions to Izuku’s journey don’t show anything direct or substantially reflective on Katsuki’s end.

...but that’s just me. The hell do I know anyway?

And if you actually bothered to read this word vomit… thanks.

-Crimson Lion (18 August 2020)

[iaintyourbro]

I wonder if the reason why Cle~rith fans getting desperate with twisting facts is because most of their romantic moments are in midgar ,since midgar was in the pt1 and there’s non to them now only small parts ohh & GS date the moment they worship ,C beating A , A going to the FC then her death but i wonder if A death will actually happen the part 2 Because i’ve seen some people say the devs may change the plot and A death will happen differently (1/2)

so maybe A death will happen at the end of last disc in the remake , but remind me again when does the moment C say to T “it you opinion that matter.” I’ve CAs downplay this moment that the devs will remove it just like how most of their moments do you think the devs will remove CT moments in favor to them cause they’re hoping for that right now , i really thought it was too good to be true that many CT moments were added in pt1 since T was irrelevant until A death in OG (2/2)

Hey there! Thanks for the ask! This ended up much longer than I expected, so I’m going to add a Keep Reading for everyone’s sanity.

First I’ll talk about the scene where Cloud says this line Tifa. This happens when you go to the Northern Crater and Sephiroth creates an illusion of the Nibelheim vision. At the time, you don’t know it IS partially true, but it’s based on how TIFA remembers it. Sephiroth knew Cloud was there, but since he never revealed himself to Tifa, he used this to his advantage.

Cloud is holding strong saying he knows what Sephiroth is doing, and that the guy who runs out of the mansion won’t be him. Zack runs out - and Cloud is like I don’t care, this is Sephiroth’s illusion. I know I was here. Then Sephiroth also is like “okay... fine... I got a picture.” (He doesn’t say that exactly, but you get the jist)

Tifa then can’t respond, because she knows he wasn’t there. Cloud notices she starts to waver on this and says that her opinion is the only one that matters.

Here’s the exact lines that Cloud says:

However, Tifa can’t confirm anything now. Sephiroth did exactly what he wanted to do. This is what actually breaks Cloud. When he realizes that Tifa can’t remember him being in Nibelheim, seeing what Sephiroth is showing him and telling him, his mind breaks, and the illusion of Cloud Strife is broken with it. This allows Sephiroth to get the Black Materia and throw Cloud away like a used puppet, which is exactly how Sephiroth sees him.

This is an extremely powerful scene. You don’t get resolution on what most of this means until you go to The Lifestream later one and Tifa helps Cloud rebuild his mind. 

This is the first time that it’s obvious that Tifa is very important to Cloud. This is probably why it’s discounted. Anything that’s showing anything where anybody is important to Cloud other than who they ship him with is not real. 

If you replay the OG and pay attention, there are moments that show Tifa is important to Cloud. They are very subtle and NOTHING as obvious as what you see in Remake, but they are there. There are also comments from Barret and Aerith hinting at Cloud’s hidden feelings for Tifa. 

Barret when you first get back to Seventh Heaven after the first bombing mission asks if he wants to see his little baby (I thought this was funny).

Barret on the way to Sector 5 makes a comment about them after Cloud is trying to make sure Tifa isn’t scared. “You two can do this later.”

If Tifa and Aerith aren’t in your main party when you get to Costa Del Sol, Aerith will make a comment to Cloud when Tifa says she wants to go swimming about him getting crazy ideas and melting that cold exterior, and then she runs off with Tifa. 

But the OG was NOT romantic. I think it’s comical that so many people see all this romance. I replayed it recently. Any romance is very subtle. This game has like 5% romance, 95% crazy shit going on. 

Okay, LTD stuff: The Midgar scenes people refer to that I can think of are Cloud laughing with Aerith on the roof (which was removed from the Remake and given to the Avalanche crew), being imprisoned so Tifa hears about the date Aerith promised Cloud, causing some LTD drama, also removed, Aerith running after Tifa instead of Cloud - also replaced with Cloud going after Tifa. The last one is used to say that Cloud didn’t care about Tifa. So, they made sure to cover that one. 

Aerith HERSELF has helped to end the LTD. Her entire resolution was a nod to the OG plot - she gives foreshadowing on her death, on Cloud not being Cloud, and various other aspects. She tells him he can’t fall in love with her because even if he thinks he has, it isn’t real. They laid it on heavy there. Aerith HERSELF doesn’t seem interested. She’s absolutely more interested in what’s up with Zack. She built up the entire time you’re going through the Collapsed Expressway in Chapter 9 to ask Cloud if he had any SOLDIER buddies. 

In any case, the Northern Crater scene will be one that slays people. It was emotional in seeing it in text and polygons, but with voice acting and HD, you’re gonna see crying, fear, and see Cloud slowly breakdown in HD.

Now on to Aerith’s Death

So, I strongly believe that the main plot points of FF7 OG will be the same or similar in FF7 Remake. The devs themselves have said they are not going to divert from the story. However, that doesn’t mean that things won’t be added or tweaked. They added 30+ hours of content to a 6 hour portion of the OG. They moved scenes around, reworded things, and in some cases, removed scenes. But EVERYTHING they did only added to the main plot points. 

The Sector 7 plate still falls, no matter how hard you try to get there and stop it. Tifa still goes to Don Corneo and you have to save her, Cloud still falls in to the Sector 5 Church, President Shinra still dies, Aerith is still captured by Tseng.

The main aspects to drive the plot forward still happened. What happens in between those things is what is different, but ultimately, the main points are the same.

The things added or modified didn’t impact these aspects. If anything, they added to them. For example, having Barret get stabbed by Sephiroth served as a nod to the original idea to have most of Cloud’s friends actually die. This was changed to have just Aerith die. Sephiroth stabbing Barret also served to fuck with Cloud. Barret is revived because we all would have burned down SE HQ. (No, he’s revived because there’s quite a bit that would have had to change story wise, such as Corel and all that.)

Adding Sephiroth in early is enhancing the original story. There were instances in the OG where Cloud heard Sephiroth talking to him, but you didn’t know who it was. The “In my veins flows the blood of the Ancients.” is directly from the OG, at the same time. It’s when you’re going to Elmyra’s house. They just enhanced that scene. They’re building up the mental breakdown of Cloud slowly, so by time it happens, you will also feel like you’ve been mentally broken down by Sephiorth. It makes it much more powerful than hearing a high pitched sound and a random line of text appear on the screen.

I think that Aerith knows she’s going to die, just like she eventually seemed to know in the OG. I think Zack coming back is going to be part of that. I’m going to guess that he’s somehow going to help her. She will still need to be in the Lifestream at this point to make everything work. 

Do I think that the entire event will be the same? No. I think it will still happen at the Forgotten City. I think Cloud may completely go nuts and your party will need to stop him from killing Aerith himself, like he almost does in the OG. I’ve seen theories saying HE will kill her, but I don’t know if they’ll go that far. I think Sephiroth will still kill her. I’m not sure it’ll be the same exact way, but I’d be very surprised if they changed the scene too much.

It’s a really powerful scene. I don’t think it’ll be JUST Cloud looking at her. I think that’s why they’ve built up the relationship with her and the others - especially with Tifa. But I definitely think she will be killed in a very similar way in order to keep the horror of the original scene... and I think initially she’s going to survive it. That’ll be the whole illusion, but she’ll die pretty quickly after that. They’re going to fuck with us and make us think she’s going to survive it. 

I do think that Zack is going to come and “get her.” I think that Cloud will have interactions with Zack and Aerith to try and prevent the AC scenario of extreme guilt. Zack will definitely have a much bigger part than he did originally (which was almost non-existent in the OG). 

In order for them to properly follow the FF7 story, Aerith has to die. 

The other option is to have her die at the Northern Crater, which is originally where they were going to have it happen, but I’m not sure how that would fit at this point. Tifa is the key to breaking Cloud for Sephiroth. Sephiroth knows he can manipulate Cloud by using Tifa against him. Aerith wouldn’t do much additional in this scene. She doesn’t know Cloud. It also would require that Aerith dies to add to the grief the party is feeling. Cloud needs to be broken down, and Aerith is part of that breakdown. 

So I think she will still die at the Forgotten City. I do think that you’ll have more interaction with her after she’s in the Lifestream, but through symbolism. I think that Tifa will talk to Aerith when she falls in to the Lifestream. 

Everything that builds the skeleton of the FF7 story will be there. It’s just how powerful it will now be and how much will be added.

This turned out REALLY long, but I had fun writing it.

Hopefully I answered your questions!

[glowingstaranon]

The first real post from the glowingstaranon admin.

So...hi! Man, a lot got revealed, huh?

I'm making this post because, well, a lot of stuff happened on this blog during rp sessions recently, and I figured that we're in deep enough now to warrant some kind of explanation.

I'm the person who writes for this blog as the character of 🌟 anon. You can call me mun if you like. I have another online alias, but I'm not quite ready to reveal that yet. These things take time.

As the people following this blog and the rp sessions with @ask-your-monsters probably know, 🌟 anon is a fictional character made specifically for rp sessions. They didn't start out that way though. 🌟 anon started out as just a way to distinguish myself from the other anons that would drop questions in the ask boxes of ask-your-monsters and that blog's admin's headcanon blog, @monsternightfunkin. 🌟 anon becoming a character with their own backstory and characterization was something that happened over time, and I've been making up the backstory for them as I go.

I'm making this post because, well...I'm having a lot of fun writing for the character, and I'm having a lot of fun with this blog! I'm probably going to use it more often now to post things that aren't just long rp sessions - things like art, random facts about 🌟 anon that I come up with off the top of my head, and (hopefully) asks from other people!

At this point, I have the basic jist of their character figured out. Before we get into that though, I want to establish a couple of things:

When I, the admin, am talking on this blog, I use purple text. If 🌟 anon is talking, they'll talk through white text with quotations - "Like this." If 🌟 anon is doing an action, it will be written through white text without quotations. Now that that's out of the way, it's character description time:

Most (if not all) of you know this, but in case you missed the reveal - 🌟 anon is essentially an eldritch entity masquerading in a human skinsuit. That's not the most accurate way to describe what they are, but it is the easiest. Their true form is a black, inky-looking silhouette covered in glitches. The silhouette isn't always in the shape of their normal form, but it can be.

Their true form can be as tall or as wide as they want it to be in the moment. In some cases, it can also have more than one pair of eyes.

As for their normal form, 🌟 anon looks human most of the time. I imagine them wearing a little vest - I'm working on a design for them, so look for ward to that at some point. While they're in their normal form, 🌟 anon stands at about 5'6" - they're fairly short.

🌟 anon can be very...intense. They mean well, but they can get too carried away if they're not careful. They're not really used to living with other people though - they've lived in solitude fending for themselves for most of their life. They're working on it.

They don't like people knowing that they're a monster unless they tell them first - if a potential friend of theirs finds out about their monster status before they're ready to tell them, they'll be devastated fear for the worst. This is why they almost broke down crying after they shifted and attacked Neo in self-defense, and why they were so nervous while trying to patch things up with the others.

I usually use they/them pronouns for 🌟 anon, but they're honestly cool with any pronouns. They pretty chill about that kind of thing.

🌟 anon has a pretty good grasp on their powers, since they can do things like shift at will and teleport, but they don't have complete control over things like glitching. If 🌟 anon isn't doing well mentally, that'll reflect on their physical form - if they're really depressed for example, they'll glitch consistently. They're also prone to having brief glitches in they're surprised or caught off-guard.

As has been demonstrated, 🌟 anon will not hesitate to defend and protect the people they care about. They're incredibly protective, sometimes to a scary degree. They'll get carried away and seriously hurt or even kill someone who hurt one of their friends or loved ones if nobody tries to stop them.

And, since they're a monster, yes, they can go feral. It's not quite the same as one of the lems going feral, though.

If any of you have questions, my ask box is open! Feel free to ask me anything. You can ask 🌟 anon things too, if you want - they're open to questions.

Thanks for reading.