#because somehow this team still have very good reputation | Explore Tumblr posts and blogs

mixelation · 11 months ago

Text

oh yeah i wrote this last night

“No,” Shisui said, flatly. “Absolutely not.”

He still maintained his proper at ease pose, feet apart and arms folded behind his back. It was a stark contrast to his rather blatant words.

“I recognize you have a very… strong interpersonal relationship,” Minato said carefully. “But like all our shinobi, Tori knows how to behave professionally when on missions.”

“With all due respect,” Shisui replied, “if she wasn’t a problem, you could hand her to any other captain.”

Minato’s lips thinned. He had wasted so many years believing Tori was the most personable member of Team 4, and now look what he and Kushina had allowed her to become. Now that he needed to temporarily pull a fuinjutsu master for ANBU, it was becoming clear she’d somehow ended up on the shit list of several key ANBU members. She was as bad as Itachi in terms of reputation, except she had to clout within ANBU to command respect.

He could just put Kushina on this mission, but her personality was wildly unsuited for ANBU. Tori was theoretically a much better pick. She could be incredibly discreet when she wanted to be.

Shisui’s dark eyes watched him, waiting for a reply. Unlike any member of Team 4, Shisui was not openly judging him for his decisions, or the fact that he’d just let Tori piss off half of ANBU and done nothing to intervene.

“Uchiha Itachi recommended you,” Minato said finally. “He believes your skills would complement, and that despite your differences, you would be able to read each other well, despite never having run a mission together.”

He could tell Shisui was fighting hard to not react, like a good ANBU.

“Perhaps Itachi should captain this mission then,” Shisui said finally. “They have an excellent mission record together.”

“You know I can’t assign them together,” Minato replied.

In theory, he could, because he could do whatever he wanted as Hokage. But now that they were dating, he didn’t want to throw them together into a high-stakes mission until after they’d had some trainings on workplace romances and run a few easier missions together, if they wanted to explore that. Romantic feelings and missions could be a disaster for both the mission and the relationship.

(Kushina would be so upset if they broke up.)

Shisui took a deep breath.

“If you force this,” Shisui said, steely eyed, “I will consider resigning from ANBU.”

Wow, Minato thought. He hadn’t thought they’d disliked each other this much.

“I will take your opinion into consideration,” Minato said, and then dismissed him.

Minato distracted himself with some more mission assignments for an hour, but he inevitably came back around to the Tori problem.

The unfortunate truth of the situation was that he did have to build an ANBU team around her, rather than carefully pull the best agents from a range of different candidates.

The mission was a rare invitation from the Water Country Daimyo. He wanted a certain political enemy eliminated, but all three of Kiri’s own attempts to assassinate the mark had failed, because the mark had somehow turned his home into a maze of fuinjutsu barriers and traps. So the Daimyo wanted Konoha to infiltrate, kill only the mark and his two partners, and also not leave any evidence a foreign ninja had done this so he didn’t have to explain anything to the Mizukage.

The fuuinjutsu requirement, along with baseline ANBU requirements, meant literally only Kushina and Tori could reliably do this, and Kushina was horrible at being subtle.

Could he maybe move the mission out of ANBU and widen his pool of other teammates…? No, it really had to be ANBU.

What if he just did the mission?

Kakashi walked into the office to find Minato with both hands in his hair, glaring at the current ANBU roster. ANBU Jaguar would be perfect for this, actually, except Tori had brought Jaguar to Book Club the time Bounty Hunter Kakuzu had inexplicably shown up.

“Have you also been speaking to genin?” Kakashi asked, dropping a folder onto Minato’s desk.

Minato stared up at him helplessly. That was right; he’d asked for the newest Jounin Sensei to turn in their six month report on their genin teams in a tad early so they could discuss entering them in the Chunin Exams this round.

Team 7 must have really done a whammy on Kakashi if he was the first to turn his in.

“ANBU is sort of like speaking to children,” Minato said, and Kakashi dropped into a seat across from him to listen to him whine.

“Just make Itachi deal with her,” Kakashi said when Minato finished. “Or are you afraid their relationship will turn them into a vortex of toxic behavior likes of which ANBU has never seen?”

“Something like that,” Minato replied. He absently picked up a pen and jotted down a note to himself to tell them they had to do workplace romance training so he never had to deal with this again.

Then Minato said, “I really thought Shisui was a good fit. They’re not friendly, but they’re civil at Book Club.”

“Ah, it’s because Shisui is intimately aware she’s a manipulative little monster,” Kakashi said. He settled back further in his chair and crossed his legs. “He used to get weird about having to work with Itachi too.”

Minato sighed and tapped his fingers on the desk. He should have a conversation with Tori about being more pleasant. Except if he used that wording both she and, more importantly, Kushina would yell at him about being anti-feminist because… something something women were expected to be kind and gentle where men weren’t.

He just wanted her to not use her teammates as psych experiments…

“Hey,” Minato said, eyeing Kakashi up and down. “Do you want a break from your genin?”

Kakashi, currently fiddling with a pen, froze.

“It’ll only be a couple weeks,” Minato said. “I’ll stick them with someone else and tell them it’s an evaluation for candidacy to the Chunin Exam.”

Kakshi looked less than convinced.

“I of course enjoy my cute little ninja sibling,” Kakashi said very slowly. “But only in my personal time. When there’s other people to point her at.”

Minato could force the issue and just assign Kakashi to the mission. But he was trying so hard to get people to get along on their own. That was his philosophy as Hokage.

Of course, sometimes people just didn’t want to get along, and then he had to use other tactics.

“I’ll get you Jiraiya’s current manuscript,” Minato offered. “And just think: it’ll be really, really funny.”

Kakashi looked more considering.

xXx

Tori stared down at the mask on the desk. Her eyes rose, meeting MInato’s. They had a certain dewey quality to them that almost made him feel bad.

“Why would you do this to me?” Tori asked, sounding betrayed.

“Wow,” Kakashi said, putting a hand on a hip. He was a nostalgic sight, in full ANBU uniform again. “Usually people are overjoyed to work with me.”

Tori made a face like she didn’t believe this.

“It’s just like any other mission,” Minato assured her. “Just with a couple extra rules.”

Tori reached hesitantly for the mask.

“If you make me ANBU Songbird,” she said, turning it over in her hands, “I am going missing-nin.”

“So,” Minato said blandly, “a stricter behavior code is part of your temporary ANBU assignment–”

“Maa, it’s a Nightingale,” Kakashi interrupted, completely undermining Minato lecture on how he should technically give Tori several demerits and send her off to a psych eval for her joke. “Which I believe is a songbird. Suborder Passeri, right?”

Kakashi had definitely looked this up beforehand, specifically for this.

“Why would you do this to me?” Tori repeated.

“I was being sensitive,” Minato defended. “You went on for a very long time about your ancestor Nightingale, and it was available.”

Tori stared at him, clearly confused.

“The statistician?” he tried.

“Florence Nightingale?” Tori said, sounding mildly scandalized. “She’s not my ancestor!”

Minato could have sworn Deidara had referred to this Nightingale person as “one of Tori’s people” to explain the strange given name. Maybe he hadn’t meant she was part of Tori’s family after all…?

“No one gets to choose their own mask,” Minato said, backtracking. “I try to allow people to turn down temp ANBU assignments, but we really don’t have anyone else with the required skillset.”

Tori scowled down at the mask some more. Minato would at least hear her out, if she decided to give an actual argument for not wanting to run an ANBU mission, but she didn’t offer one up.

“Maa, I’ll try to fill the rest of the team with people you haven’t personally harassed,” Kakashi said. “Although that’s not a long list…”

Tori held the mask up to her face experimentally, then pulled it away.

“Do you sterilize these between uses?” she asked.

“Yes, of course,” Minato said. “But, um, that one’s been in storage for years. I’d clean it again.”

“Don’t worry, my cute little sister,” Kakashi drawled, “I will teach you in the way of mask hygiene.”

Tori shot Minato another pained, betrayed look.

“He means that as your captain, he’ll brief you on how this works,” Minato said. He almost reassured Tori that Kakashi really was one of their best. But she already knew that.

Kakashi swung an arm around her shoulder and walked her out, listing tips for cleaning her mask and borrowed armor as he went.

Minato watched them go with conflicting emotions. Kakashi and Tori… made each other behave worse, in public. It was heartwarming when he looked at them as young people he’d mentored: their mutual interests brought each other out of their shells and they enjoyed each other’s company. It was also kind of a nightmare when he thought of them as soldiers under his command. He trusted both of them to reel it in once the mission started, but Tori’s orientation would almost definitely end with more names on the list of ANBU Tori had personally harassed.

Ah well. It would be character building for whoever they ended up harassing.

#reborn au #my writing

156 notes · View notes

leahsgf · 1 year ago

Note

hey!! i love your writing omg, could you please try write some relationship headcanons for jackie x reader? thanks <3

dating jackie taylor headcanons

pairings. jackie taylor x reader

finally writing for my favourite character!! to say i got carried away with this is an understatement…i’m apologising now! thank you so much for this request!

for the entirety of her life jackie had been battling with almost two versions of herself, who she truly is and who people perceive her as. it was drilled into her, the need and ‘importance’ to have an uphold a reputation, to be a leader, an example.

but she also has a huge heart and wanted nothing more than to give in to her deepest desires, and unlearn the way of thinking that her parents had pretty much birthed her with.

this would definitely be something that complicated and blurred the lines in her relationships in both platonic and romantic form. she fought off her feelings for you for the longest time, instead allowing herself to settle for any boy that looked in her direction - convinced that it was what was ‘normal’ and that nobody truly loved their boyfriends, they just put up with them. she distanced herself from you massively, which strained your once close bond and had a huge impact on everyone around you, including the dynamic of the team and the way you played.

the tension between the pair of you bubbled up to the point that it was uncomfortable to even be in the proximity of one another, and the team decided to take matters into their own hands, confronting you both and refusing to play until you smoothed out whatever feelings you both were experiencing.

which is what led to the confessions from both sides and the beginning of your relationship.

when you first started dating, jackie was still very much reserved and preferred to keep the fact you were dating private, and only have the team know at first.

(who’s only issue with it was that they now all owed each-other considerable lumps of money after way too many bets)

if you were on the team too, there would literally be a ban on you guys from being within eachother’s eyeline in practices because i mean there’s only so many times you can take a soccer ball to the face and brush it off as anything other than you were too busy staring at jackie to be paying attention to anything else.

jackie would also be incredibly protective over you on the field, in both practice and in games.

if you weren’t on the team, you may as well be. you’ll be sat in the stands for everything, even if it’s just them running over drills. you sit in the same place every time - jackie somehow had an exact seat reserved for you year round, you were almost too scared to ask exactly how - so every time she needed a little hope, or silent reassurance, she’d look your way, and you’d be there.

“my little good luck charm”

one thing about jackie is that she is quite literally the most loving being on the planet. and she will not hesitate to show you it. she loves to be held by you, clinging to you almost like a koala. to hold your hand as you drive together, and playing with your rings as you talk about anything and everything.

jackie loves to take pictures of you, and a lot of them at that. no matter how long you’ve been together, best believe she’ll be pointing her finger at you, insisting you stand still because “you look so pretty” and grinning behind the flash of the camera at any given moment. she’d always been that way, for as long as you’d known her. you guys literally had a physical documentation of practically your entire lives together, from the first day in daycare when you had paint smeared across your face and four year old jackie was half laughing, half trying to eat a crayon on the stool next to you, to each of your date nights when she would stop a passer by and ask them to snap your picture, whilst the pair of you posed, completely and utterly wrapped up in each other’s love.

one day, she would gift you a huge photo album, full to the brim with every single picture you’d ever taken together, and her little annotations of what she was thinking about you in them.

alongside her love for the physical, she loved to do lots of little things to show her love for you like this, whether that be picking up your favourite food whenever you were feeling down, or slipping little notes and doodles through the gaps of your locker for you to read in between classes.

simply being around jackie lifts your mood. she knows exactly how to make you smile and is incredibly sweet and affectionate. she knows you completely inside and out and is your biggest comfort without even realising it.

jackie would say she loves to share your clothes, you would say she loves to steal them. there are endless items of your wardrobe that you’re convinced are gone forever until she walks into the room wearing them randomly. you don’t mind it though, they look cuter on her.

she always buys you more to make up for it.

she also loves to match with you in any way possible, whether it be through matching necklaces, or even just the same sock colour.

she is the one who says ‘i love you’ for the first time. she blushed furiously and actually cried whilst doing so, even more when you said it back, and she still blushes like crazy every time you say it to her.

you heal and bring out a huge part of jackie that she had always repressed without even realising, and are literally ‘her missing piece’ as she calls you. you complete eachother, and balance each other out in ways that are completely indescribable. you also help her see what love is supposed to feel like, and what it has been all along.

over time, you slowly stop hiding your relationship, waiting until she was ready even though everyone could already tell you guys were together.

she’d wait for you after every class, and walk you to each one, her hand in yours.

she’d help you choose outfits for parties, and loved to show you off at any given opportunity.

jackie has your entire future planned out. she always has done, from your college dorm to your future apartment together. she could ramble for days about it and would even make boards if she could.

you wake up with her sprawled out flat on top of you every single morning without fail, no matter what position you fall asleep in. she is also an incredibly light sleeper, specifically when it comes to you touching her. you have to go to the bathroom or get water in the middle of the night so slightly shift her arms off of you? she will absolutely be sat wide awake waiting for you when you return, her eyes somehow even wider and an almost pout across her face.

her favourite thing in the world was to kiss you. to coat your face in her cherry flavoured lipgloss as she planted a trail of kisses from your forehead, down your cheeks to your jaw, leaving a couple on your neck before making her way back up again, pressing one final peck to the tip of your nose before eventually reaching your lips, as if it were a routine. which it was, she did the exact same every single time. one time, you thought it would be funny to turn away from the last kiss for just a second.

she sulked with you for WEEKS. you spent a stupid amount of money on ridiculously extravagant flower bouquets to make up for it.

#yellowjackets #yellowjackets x reader #jackie taylor x reader #jackie taylor #jackieshauna #jackie taylor headcanons #headcanons #fluff

275 notes · View notes

through-rosey-glasses · 2 months ago

Text

PWHL Teams and Which Taylor Swift Era They are in

My sister and I were talking about how Minnesota Frost is clearly in their Tortured Poets Department Era, and that inspired the rest of this post. This is just a fun little thing I did, please don't take it too seriously or personally.

(Also for swifties, I used the old versions of album covers as it refers to that era. Red TV is totally different than Red ya know.)

Minnesota Frost:

Currently in their The Tortured Poets Department Era. Basically messy despite being on top of the world. The album came out after the raging success of Taylor Swift in her Era's tour and winning her fourth album of the year at the grammy's. This new album brings out snappy lines targeted at fans and revelations at how Taylor Swift didn't live up to the ideal many fans had of her. In Minnesota we had the recent firing of the favored general manager and drafting of a controversial player. You can't convince me that Ken Klee wasn't blasting But Daddy I Love Him, as he made all his messy decisions.

Boston Fleet:

Speak Now was a Taylor Swift era filled with spite and determination. The whole album was written by Taylor Swift alone, partially because her ex and some critics accusing her of not being a proficient writer on her own. After losing the Walter Cup, the Boston Fleet have the confidence that they can make it far and the determination to be better. (I also think spite comes naturally to Boston, not like they need a motivation or something.) This era is very youthful but honest, and I think that energy would be great to see in Boston next season. Someone blast better than revenge.

Montreal Victoire:

A personal favorite of mine, the Red Era of Taylor Swift had it all. Heartbreak, style, chaos, parties, love. This era was also risky and complex, Taylor Swift blended country and pop, bringing critical acclaim and a wider fanbase. Montreal has had a fun, but chaotic summer. Their draft picks are a fair mix of old and new. (With that wild Kessel pick) Their name and logo got rave reviews. People see the the good foundation the team has and are waiting in anticipation for what's to come.

Toronto Sceptres:

Reputation is a come back era, and Toronto has something to prove. Following a devastating injury to a star player, the team wasn't the same during the playoffs. This season they are going to have to show that they are still that team. Reputation is a fan favorite album and I have found Toronto to have the strongest fanbase. (They sell out most often and have the largest social media presence.) The team knows they are good and they have the support, they just need to rebuild.

Ottawa Charge:

Folklore is an era of surprising change. During Covid and following the cut short run of Lover, Folklore was an unannounced reinvention of Taylor Swift. It wasn't an intentional change, but one forced by the way of the world. Ottawa needs to find its grove and step into its own again. I haven't heard much from Ottawa on anything really, and I hope its because they got some cool alt indie surprise on its way.

New York Sirens:

Listen I am not only picking 1989 because it has a cool New York aesthetic. This is the era of leaning in and giving it your all. When Red didn't win album of the year, Taylor Swift decided to move to New York and reinvent herself. New York was last in ranking last season, but got first in draft. They have been working off season with insane draft picks and that somehow it worked out trade with Boston. New York has the star power, the New York city life, and the rebranding to help turn them into something new.

#natalie posts #pwhl #boston fleet #Minnesota frost #toronto sceptres #new york sirens #ottawa charge #montreal victoire #taylor swift #this was just a fun way to spend a saturday

21 notes · View notes

soobadnoonecanstopher · 1 year ago

Text

Can I Stay? (A Baekhyun Story) Part 11.

Pairing: You x Baekhyun

Rating: M (Mature Content)

Word Count: 6.8K

Warnings: the most dialogue I've ever put in a single story, wtf. A chapter that would not behave.

A romance between two adults with an unspecified age difference between them, an English story that uses the word Noona for lack of another word in English that carries the same feeling, if you don’t like this, then don’t read this story.

Tag List: @andimoon @his-mochi-cheeks

Links: Part 1, …. , Part 10, Part 11, Part 12

You had taken your usual seat opposite the familiar faces of this elite management team at the big round table. At the head of the table, in his usual spot was President Byun who smiled a friendly greeting when you walked in and did your best to return it.

That smile that you forced, right in the face of the President of this company whose rules you’d trampled on, right in the face of the loving father of the man you’d shamelessly fallen in love with; that smile felt about as dirty as anything you’d ever done.

Ever done to someone as unsuspecting and undeserving as President Byun — someone who’d only ever shown you respect, faith, and genuine encouragement as you fought your way to get to the position you were now.

You’d always considered yourself different. You’d always held yourself to a high standard of cleanliness and perfection at work; that you were somehow not the same as some of the others who’s rumored shameful stories had been whispered from lips to ears in the secluded hallways and secret corners where the gossip brought out the worst in people — both the subjects and the sharers.

But now —

You looked across the table at the eager smile of Manager Hwang with the uniform, unnaturally colored Hollywood teeth that filled his mouth and took away whatever was left of his humanity. He wagged two sculpted eyebrows at you and that smile widened when his eyes did. You’d heard he’d often use his influence and power on some of the fresher interns that came in. You’d always avoided the man not only due to the reputation; but you didn't like the way he looked at you. And still you’d always thought you were somehow better than him, deep down inside you always felt it before.

But now — were you just the same? Did he get away with it all because he preyed on the weak ones; the ones without power and without influence? Unlike you who’d set your sights high on the Prince of this very kingdom?

Your meeting was starting, you could see the chairs beginning to fill up and the clock on the wall told you there was only three minutes until it began.

You’d kept your eyes on the doorway, desperate for and also dreading to see that familiar head of hair. You’d realized too long after you’d left that stairwell that you didn’t have any of your meeting materials with you, having left them behind with the desperate pleas of the man you ran away from.

There was a minute left. Throats were being cleared. The rustling of papers was settling and chairs shifted as they were pulled up to the table. Your mind was beginning to enter into some very slight panic the closer you came to having to begin this meeting without any of your supplies in hand.

“Miss Manager?” An unfamiliar voice called out beside you and you turned toward the sound. You knew her face. This was the assistant friend that Baekhyun had shared a meal with alone. Her smile was sweet and her face was pretty. The rumors that they looked good together were spot on. You could see it too, as much as you wish you couldn’t.

“Assistant Byun had to step away, but he asked me to give this to you. I think he is not feeling well.”

You didn’t blame him for running away. You’d done it to him too.

You raised your eyebrows in question, feeling entirely too drained for much more than that.

“I’m Assistant Cha,” she lifted a hand to lay over her chest, “or just Sunny. It’s lovely to meet you, by the way, I’ve heard so many good things.” Her voice had a soft ring to it. Her compliment felt genuine and you heard notes of sunshine and rainbows that danced on the cadence of her voice. Your nose caught a light fragrance of something fruity when she dipped her head. She looked so pretty and she even smelled pretty. You smiled robotically from underneath your own little stormcloud, thanking her for the bag.

Where did he go? The worry for him overshadowed that gratitude that you felt that he’d somehow still managed to consider your well-being despite the turmoil that he must be feeling right now. The echoes of his desperation played again inside your memory; the way he held on to your hand as he begged you for clarity. Of course he would be upset. You’d left him back there without any answers at all. You didn't even have any answers for yourself.

Everything you needed for this meeting was inside this bag. You could get through it now; thanks to Baekhyun. You could put aside the upset inside of your chest for an hour and go through these motions. This you could manage. You didn't have any solutions for anything else, but this you could do.

They called this an Idea Sesh. A silly trendy name for a round table discussion in which each person presented their fresh new ideas that would revolutionize the world. By world they meant the company and by revolutionize they meant add a few zeros to the profit margin.

Your mind grasped on feebly to every other word. It wasn’t your finest hour. You closed your eyes and inhaled a trembling breath and you hoped nobody needed you to be inspiring or amazing today because you just did not have it. They all spoke animatedly when it was their turn, bouncing thoughts and replies off each other. You sat in your seat ruminating in your mind without the benefit of any other perspectives to help you out.

Should you ignore it and pray for the problem to just go away on its own? You hadn’t been caught yet, you could just continue on as you had been doing, walking on a tightrope extended between two skyscrapers bracing for the next swift wind to send you careening to your death. You had already found out that the man had next to no self control when it came to you and you…you were just so very weak to him in every way. Clearly this wasn’t working. It was only a matter of time.

If the close proximity was the problem; if the two of you were working side by side every single day in a closed space with all of the lust and desire and temptation that came along with the closeness, what were your options?

Should you just resign? Just turn and run away? Wouldn't that be the most thorough solution? Definitely not a financially sound decision to make. You didn't even have anything else lined up. You’d lose everything you had built. It would all have been for nothing.

Should you fire him? On what grounds? Legally, someone had to have done something wrong to be terminated. There was a procedure for that. There had to be evidence and well, Baekhyun hadn’t done a single thing that you could write in that line on the FD0651 - Termination of Employment form. Lord knows you've done plenty. Could you fire yourself?

You heard your name and it nagged and bothered you; like a fly buzzing around your head.

Should you end it with him? Should you give him up and tell him it was over? You would have to lie and tell him that you just didn't love him anymore; or maybe you never really did. You’d had your fun and you got your fill and now it would be best if you both went your separate ways. Would he even believe you? Would you even survive that? Just the thought of that made your chest constrict. The idea of that grabbed ahold of your throat and squeezed down hard enough to break.

All of these sounded bad.

A gentle hand placed on your forearm brought you into the present and you were up. You were caught by your own inaction and you looked around at the curious eyes that watched you with passive smiles on their faces. You replied quickly with an apologetic smile and you did your best to clear out the acrid taste in the back of your throat at the idea of letting go of the sweetest love you had ever known.

You had to blink a few times for your eyes to focus on the words printed on the papers in your hands. As you began reading, you recognized the very particular pattern of phrasing that Baekhyun used in his writing.

You recalled working on this with him at your home. You were speaking out loud and he was typing on your laptop as you both sat on your loveseat. There were several ideas listed here and you remembered you hadn’t gotten through all of them in a single setting as you had both foolishly been otherwise occupied. As you read on, between the third and fourth point; your mind flashed hot with the memory of you straddling his waist; his fingertips digging in hard enough to leave marks as he slipped inside.

The man was so impossibly intertwined with everything that even reading from this paper had your mind struggling to extract him. It was no wonder you couldn't keep your head on straight around him. The sex had been part of the work. You’d been a damn fool to mix the two.

You made it through your part but just barely, hearing the quiet uncertainty in your own voice for the first time in years had you hanging your head in disbelief that you could sink this low.

You spent the rest of the time avoiding the curious eyes of a few half-interested managers, who eventually gave up and likely attributed your odd behavior to just an off-day.

The meeting was adjourned. It was over. Nobody sought you out for a friendly chat. Your performance did not come anywhere close to meeting your own standards and you received no reasons from anyone else to linger behind.

Your phone was empty of any notifications of any new messages that might tell you where he had gone.

Your feet carried you down the long hallway of the 11th floor to the north end and you cautiously pulled the doorway open to that stairwell; your silly heart wondering if you might still find him inside in the exact same place that you had left him.

But it was empty, of course.

You took the stairs down and even with such careful deliberately slow steps you still found yourself at your floor too quickly. You didn’t feel ready to be here. You still had no messages or missed calls waiting on your phone. Where had he gone?

Still, your feet carried you back.

When you entered your team’s section they paid you very little attention. If they noticed it was odd that you traveled alone, they gave no signs of it.

It took you two steps toward your office for you to realize that your blinds, which had been open all day long, were all closed. Your door which had also been left open much of the day was shut and that room that sat at the end of your journey had been closed up tight like a tomb.

A whirlwind began to blow inside of the hollow your chest and your legs had stopped moving forward.

The bag you carried felt suddenly too heavy and you let it sag and rest lightly against the floor. The air that you pulled into your lungs so carelessly now felt too heavy and sticky to come back out but you forced it. A rough exhaled breath clamored and clawed and clung to the edges of your lungs; fighting the entire way out and you closed your eyes until every single bit of it was gone from your body and you felt lightheaded from all of the effort.

You tightened your grip around the handle of that bag and you heaved with all of your might, lifting it back up to your waist level; pushing your stubborn feet into that next step and you inhaled another sickening breath inside of your lungs, forcing yourself through this so you could get to that door.

You would find him inside. That place; your place, was his only refuge.

Just outside of your door, you caught the eyes of Sandi and lifted a hand to point with your quiet question. “Is Assistant Byun inside?”

She nodded her head, holding her tongue and stifling whatever curiosity she had in her eyes.

“Sandi, I will be in a meeting. No disruptions, please.”

“Yes ma’am,” she called out and you tried your office door knob, finding that it was unlocked.

A beam of light flooded into the dark room when you entered. Just as quickly as you came in, you closed the door behind you. It was so dark inside that there would have been no way to conceal your arrival even if you were trying to go unnoticed.

The window shades were pulled down and the room was as dark as one could make it in the middle of the afternoon during office hours in a building that was very much not asleep.

You knew he was in here but your eyes had not adjusted in time before you heard a small sound.

The sound of a shaking human breath pulled in deep. The sound of that breath being held.

“Baekhyun?” You whispered.

Your eyes were adjusting and you could make out the shape of him seated with his head down in his hands on the couch that sat in the middle of your office. You caught some motion. You heard the sibilance of the fabric of his suit when he pushed himself to stand up on two shaky legs.

You reached a hand out for the light in the wall and lightly grazed over the smooth plastic switch with your fingertips; somehow hesitant to press hard enough to turn them on the more your eyes began to take in with the limited light that seeped through the cracks in the blinds. His hands moved to push something white into his pocket and there was the sound of something terrible in his voice as he cleared his throat, opened his mouth and forced out a single word.

“Noona,” he said through a stuffed up nose and a thick upset obvious in his voice.

He inhaled a raspy breath to speak again. It might have sounded like exhaustion, but you knew he had been crying. The sound of it pulled against your esophagus as your stomach dipped hard.

“I’m — sorry I missed the meeting. Did it — go okay?”

His words stuttered on their way out. He was forcing himself to speak through it. How long had he been this upset for? And all alone too. Your arms itched to reach for him; your hands begged for the warmth of his back. Regret surged inside of you; hot and vile. Your words in the stairwell, the hasty retreat from him as he begged you to stay and talk to him. You knew he was a sensitive and sweet man; it was part of why you loved him so completely. You should have tempered yourself. You should have tried harder to control the situation so he didn’t have to be feeling this pain right now.

“No,” you answered his question with quiet honesty.

Baekhyun cleared his throat again. “Oh,” he said; offering no follow up except for his quiet breathing.

“Can I turn on the light?”

“Okay,” he said after a long pause.

You flipped the switch; flooding the room with harsh fluorescent lighting that he squinted through even though it looked like he had his eyes closed when you turned them on.

He looked about as upset as you had felt inside for the past hour. Maybe you were better at hiding it but you could also feel what he was feeling. The close call in the stairs; the rash emotions that surged through your body; the self blaming and self hatred that made you feel sick. His nose, lips, eyes, cheeks were all pink and he slowly inhaled deep and licked his lips before you saw the signs that he was going to say something.

“Noona,” he began, his flighty eyes shifted around the floor space never once looking up into your waiting face. “Noona, what can I do — how can I fix this?”

He had been blaming himself, of course. You swallowed and closed your eyes. There was a tremble behind your eyelids that seemed to keep you from being able to close them comfortably. Behind your eyeballs and all around your brain felt like a jumble of static. You shook your head back and forth. This wasn’t his doing.

“You didn’t break anything, Baekhyun.”

His eyes closed up tightly and he tilted his head back; inhaling slow and deeply as he moved his jaw back and forth, clearly taking some exception to your response.

“But I — I made you go in there. I’m the one who can’t control myself, I’m the spoiled fucking brat —” He had been in here blaming himself for everything. A misplaced martyr without an audience to entertain his false beliefs or to set him straight.

“No. You aren’t,” you openly and quickly disagreed with him, purposefully lowering your voice in hopes that he would understand that while the closed door and closed blinds gave the illusion that you were both free to speak, this office wasn’t actually that soundproof.

You dropped it even lower still; almost to a whisper; taking two steps closer to where he stood in front of the couch. “You and I — we both played an equal part. We both stupidly gave in, we always give in to each other too easily, Baek. It’s obvious that something needs to change.”

He had his eyes down on your lips as you spoke and his tongue darted out before he spoke again, much quieter this time, having realized what you had also known; that this was not the kind of conversation that the rest of the office needed to witness.

When he spoke again, his words sounded desperate; more of the same pleading tone that haunted you all through your memories of that stairwell. He was looking at you now, at last. His desperation had pulled the deep brown of his eyes well into your own and the burden of those eyes pleaded and begged against yours. You felt choked by it.

“Tell me what to do. Tell me what I can do so you don’t say what I’m terrified you are going to say.”

You knew what he was afraid of. You’d actually considered it for a moment. It sounded horrible. You weren't a cruel woman. You loved him so much that this; that him being so upset at the mere thought of a break-up, was nearly unbearable for you to take. So you were quick to set him right. You had to be quick to stop this look on his face.

“I’m not going to do that. I don't want to do that.” You shook your head and closed your eyes, trying to rid yourself of the feeling that surged through you when you thought of losing him forever. You couldn't maintain eye contact. He was watching your face so closely as you spoke of these terrible things.

You heard him inhale a deep chest filling breath and on the exhale you heard the first real bits of a change in him. It was the sound of relief. It coated you in warmth to hear. This is what had upset him; the possibility of losing you. Just as you had balked at the idea of losing him. This was the sound of his fears abated.

“I did consider it for a moment, that we should b-break—u-up” you felt your own voice crack through the burden of having to say it outloud with your own mouth. The last word didn’t even come out with any sound.

“You can’t even say it,” he said in a quiet response. In his voice was a new sound that pushed his words out. You could hear the hope on his tongue, taking all of those bad feelings in him and pushing them away like he was just waking up from a dream.

“I can't even think of it. It makes me sick,” you inhaled to speak under your breath and you felt the lightest touch of his soft fingertips graze over the back of your hand that hung at your side.

You pulled your hand away, desperately needing this man not to touch any part of you right now so you could get through the rest of this conversation and accomplish something that brought you closer to a resolution. You knew very well that the problem was far from solved. If things stayed as they were, you’d both find yourself in trouble again and again.

“But--”

He inhaled a sharp breath through his nose when you flinched away from him.

“But?” The alarm was back on his voice with this one word.

“We can't keep this up. Baekhyun something has to change, we cannot do this anymore.” You said it with conviction. It was still somewhat flimsy but you’d already made up your mind and there was no going back now. You were simply out of any other options.

His body mirrored your flinch when your strong declaration was out.

“Wait, what is this? I thought you said you weren’t going to — we aren’t breaking up, right? I won't accept it.” His voice had lifted in volume and he took on a confrontational tone. It was too loud and you lifted a hand in front of his face, motioning a palm downward with your eyes wide.

He dropped his words to a whisper, “please don't take yourself out of of my life.”

“I mean this here. In this office. Side by side. Just me and you. Working together. I don't think we can work together anymore, Baekhyun.”

It took a long while of him watching your face for the realization of what you meant to sink in. And when it sank, it made a splash. He was whirling in place as your words worked through his whole body. Agitation rolled over his shoulders and down his spine and his feet steadied his balance through the change to keep him upright. Baekhyun understood now.

“Are you firing me?” He pulled his arms up across his chest, and he took a step back and away from you. His eyes had hardened and narrowed as he absorbed your meaning. His brows furrowed and his body tensed all over.

This was hard. You felt your own body react and lifted a hand, needing to somehow defend your words and what you actually meant by them.

“I can’t fire you,” you said, “not officially. It’s not like I can write ‘I fell in love and, whoops, I just can’t seem to keep my clothes on around him’ as your official reason for termination.”

He was watching your face closely again and slowly and little by little you watched as the tension in his body lessened. His shoulders relaxed and his arms sagged.

“But—” you inhaled another breath, biting down on your bottom lip as you emphasized the words you were saying. “But, we have got to separate the work from the — sex,” the last word came out in a scandalized and nearly inaudible whisper.

“Do you know what popped into my mind during the meeting today? As I was reading off ideas… between points three and four—” you lifted an eyebrow and your mouth hung open as a flush filled the surface layer of your skin, “when we were writing it…between three and four…”

Baekhyun lifted a hand to his face, lightly touching over his parted lips with his fingers.

“Oh,” he mumbled from under the fingertips. His glassy eyes had a little tremble in them.

“Yeah,” you said through gritted teeth and a pointed look in your eyes.

“Shit,” he said as he bit down on his bottom lip and turned his face away from you.

“Yeah.”

You looked at him and he looked at you and you both stood like a pair of statues glued to the floor of this office. Even though you had technically never had sex in this here, the sex itself had been so very intertwined with the work, it felt impossible to ever truly separate the effects he had on you from any of the work you produced together.

You were right about this.

And he knew it. His next words seemed a lot like acceptance.

“So I’m getting axed for sleeping with the boss. Isn’t it supposed to go the other way? Shouldn’t I be moving up, not being kicked out?”

“You can move up. I’ll find you something better than an assistant.” You shrugged. You meant it. You’d already thrown out all of your professional ethics when you started sleeping with your assistant. You weren’t about to start following the rules now that you had to find some new place to send him. You’d send him someplace grand. Someplace with a little bit of respect that came with a title perhaps. Just the idea had a small smile forming on your lips.

Baekhyun wasn’t waiting for you to decide now, instead he was moving through the room; reaching for the bag you’d left by the door when you came in here. He lifted it to the small table he usually occupied in the corner of your office and was digging through it for something.

You watched curiously as he smiled at last and pulled out a single sheet of paper and closed in on you with a bright smile on his pretty face.

Your curiosity pulled your eyes down to the sheet he had just placed inside your waiting hand and on that page was a resume.

You saw in the upper corner the pretty smiling face of Sunny, his friend, Assistant Cha who had delivered the bag for him when he was unable to. As you read through it, his fingertip pointed to the picture of the girl in the top corner.

“She is good. She’s smart. She’s very quick and insightful. She’s talented and her current assignment is expiring in one week. She’s not being renewed which means she is available.”

You tried to ignore the tiny sting you felt hearing the man list off so very many compliments as you read through her resume. She was indeed younger than him without nearly as many internships or accolades as Baekhyun’s resume had boasted. But he had indeed been an unusual case.

“Should I?” You had to admit, you had grown to trust Baekhyun’s judgment after working with him for months and he wasn’t one to build someone up without facts and personal experiences to back it up.

“Also she’s not a man.” He said with a little tilt of his head and a teasing smile building on his face. It caught you off guard and you shot him an incredulous look.

Did he just…?

Your eyes narrowed in response and you dropped focus on the resume with a genuine scoff.

“—the hell do you mean by that?”

He tilted his head again, this time in the opposite direction and his teasing smile widened.

“You have a history, Noona.” He extended his hands outward, obviously referring to himself standing right in front of you as irrefutable evidence to make his point. He was shaking his head back and forth with his lips pulled tightly — oh, the shame of it.

You knew he was only joking but it still irked you, clearly this was its intended effect. You reached out and swatted him as roughly as you could with the flimsy paper and he giggled lightly and backed out of the way, evading the smack easily.

“Excuse me? You kissed me first. If anyone here has a history—”

You had rounded your desk and pulled out your chair, glancing through your computer for the company directory, scrolling by the names of several people, some that owed you a favor or two, that might be looking for a talented individual. “We should definitely avoid placing you with any ladies. Especially older ones. Let’s check for openings. How would you like to go into advertising? You can work with Ben.”

As you scrolled, Baekhyun had taken his spot behind you, leaning over your shoulders to look at your screen.

“So is this why you were having lunch alone with Sunny the other day?”

You were scrolling rather aimlessly, searching for the perfect match but your mind was dwelling on the smiling photo of the girl on that paper that sat on your desk.

“Uhh,” he said as he pulled the resume toward him and looked down at it for a few seconds and he looked at your face for a few more seconds with a smallish tick of his head, almost as if he had picked up on something in your voice with your question about Sunny. You were pretty sure you had kept all of the words as neutral as possible when you asked. There was no way he picked up on anything you didn’t mean to imply with the very innocent and simple question you had just asked him. Maybe you had been too casual when you asked and the ultra casual tone had looped back around to sounding suspicious.

“Kind of. I knew my detail would end soon and her contract is ending very soon. I wasn't sure it would work out like this though. I didn't realize you were going to fire me. I’ll have to warn her about your temper. Why did you say the word alone like that just now? Was it significant that we ate lunch alone?”

Damn him.

You shrugged in response. Casual and not that invested in this. This was the aura you were channeling and trying your absolute best to portray.

You had to close your eyes and inhale a breath. It was less than casual of you. He made a little questioning whine from the back of his throat when he noticed.

“What was that just now, Noona? Something is weird.”

Maybe you should send him to Chet’s office.

“Nothing is weird,” you said. You clicked on an opening with Sophie Choi and Baekhyun reached down before the page loaded and pressed the back arrow on your keyboard, sending your browser out of the job working side by side with his mortal enemy.

“Did it bother you that I ate alone with her? Noona, were you jealous?” He had his hands on your shoulders and he was shaking you back and forth in his excitement about the idea that you might have been jealous seeing him eating lunch with another woman.

“I’m sending you to Sophie Choi’s office.” You clicked on the same link and he was laughing harder now as if his little theory had somehow been validated by your petty reaction.

“Wait, how did you even know? I thought you ate lunch outside that day. I didn't see you in the cafeteria.”

His teasing mood seemed to have passed and he was looking down at you with genuine curiosity on his face. What should you tell him? The cafeteria was on a different floor from where you had supposedly been and you had absolutely no reason to have walked by and casually seen the two of them.

“I heard some of the office girls talking about you and her eating lunch alone together in the bathroom. Just some silly gossip. They said you both looked good together.”

His eyebrows furrowed and he pulled his face into a scowl.

“Is that — a thing that happens when two people just eat lunch? Is that normal?”

You shrugged, rolling your eyes a bit as a sort of defense before you opened your mouth to say your next bit, “If it’s you, it is. I’m not sure if you know this but you are quite popular with the office ladies. They even mentioned me and you.”

You knew you shouldn’t have said it. It was just a little too painful to talk about with him but your stupid mouth had taken on a mind of its own and the words were already out. Maybe deep down you actually wanted to tell him about it.

When he heard you he gasped quietly.

“Oh shit. What did they say? Are they suspicious of us? Do they know?”

You looked into his wide and panicky eyes and your lips pulled into a small smile as you lifted your hand to lay it lightly over his cheek. “Oh they had a lot of opinions but don't worry, they definitely don't suspect a thing.”

“Why? What did they say?”

You shook your head back and forth, “they said a lot but most of it was that you were way out of my league. I’m too old for you and would be pathetic to even dream of it. And mostly I should know my place.” You felt the smile you had on your face turning just a little bit sad but you couldn't help it.

When you were done listing all the things you had heard that day Baekhyun was quick to respond.

“They’re fucking idiots,” he said. His eyes dipped lower to catch yours when you looked away from him he sought you out again, “all of them. They’re wrong.”

“Yeah, I know,” you said, pushing the smile out of sad smile territory as best you could, you shook your head lightly to rid yourself of the feeling. “It just felt kinda bad when it happened though.”

You felt him then, his arms wrapped around your shoulders and he pulled you into his warmth and his security, slipping one arm between you and the chair and you sat there feeling just a little bit trapped by the hug, but feeling much more comforted by it.

“You should have told me when it happened. Why do you keep so much to yourself when you have me. You're not the manager of this relationship you know. You don't have to be strong with me.”

The physical contact felt too nice and your rational mind was instantly alerted to one more change you needed to make.

“Baek, do you think we can manage one more week of you working here? That way you can be here for the wrap and you can even attend the wrap party, those are always so much fun. But there is one thing I think we need to do…or not do.”

“Of course,” he said with his tight grip around your shoulders loosening some. He was shifting his position and he stood up and leaned his butt against your desk. “I told you I’d do anything.”

“No more sex,” you said quickly and you held your breath, expecting some sort of a response from him. None came so you kept speaking.

“None. Not while you are working here with me. I’m simply unable to focus on the work when I think about you in that way. And maybe if we just completely take it off the table of possibilities we can get through one more week of working together.”

“No sex?” He asked.

“None,” you agreed. “Not while you are here.”

You’d expected something from him. Anything, really. What you got was a light shrug of his shoulders and a nod of his head as if the man was completely unphased by your new condition. I mean, really it was only a week. When you considered the length of your brand new relationship though, and the sheer amount of sex you both had had together already, it felt to you like it might last a decade.

“We’re still dating though right? I can still call you and kiss you and hold you and maybe we can even go on a date.”

The man was surprising. You’d struggled with this part in your own head but he seemed to be taking it very well. It really wasn’t that big of a deal, and maybe this really would work for best.

“You took that very well,” you remarked and he laughed in one breath that puffed out of his chest.

“Baby, I just spent the last hour and half absolutely convinced I was getting dumped by the love of my life. Instead I got fired because my super sexy girlfriend cannot keep her hands off of me, which is very flattering in some weird way. I can handle a week. Won’t this be a normal thing for us anyway? You are a woman with cycles and all that.”

His little speech pulled a smile to your lips. Only baekhyun could pull this kind of happiness out of you. He was right. You were the one being unnecessarily dramatic about one week of abstinence. Maybe you were the one with the problem all along.

Your mood felt lifted. Your faith and love in him was substantiated again and again and you couldn’t help the way you rose up from your seat and rushed toward him. You heard the smallest of surprised grunts when you collided into him and wrapped your arms tightly around his middle, burying your face into his neck as you squeezed down tightly.

His arms wrapped tightly around you and you felt the security inside them. His face was close to where you’d tucked your chin over his collarbone and when he dipped and turned into you he inhaled a breath from within your hair, it went on for long enough to completely fill his lungs.

“Why didn’t we have the blinds closed all day? This is nice,” he said with his face tucked deeply inside of your hair.

“We would have had sex on the desk,” your reply was muffled by his dress shirt.

“We would have had sex on the desk,” he said flatly and in full agreement. It brought a small chuckle out of you.

“Does the ‘no sex’ start right away?”

You nodded your head up and down so he could feel it.

“What is our definition of sex? Kissing, touching, anything over the clothes is allowed?”

You inhaled a deep breath, smelling the way his cologne mixed with the warm scent of his skin. God he smelled good. You weren’t sure how much of his questions were joking and how much he was really trying to get away with, but you knew that once his hands got on you you wouldn’t be able to hold yourself back.

“Middle school textbook heavy petting and Bill Clinton’s definition of what doesn’t count as sex is allowed too?”

He had to be joking. It pulled another laugh out of you.

“Nothing you wouldn’t do in church or in front of your grandmother.”

His hands rubbed over your back now, slow circles running over your skin. You knew this embrace also had a count-down timer on it.

“Yes ma’am,” he whispered over your head and you pulled your face back and away from him just enough for him to do the same as you both looked into each other's eyes for what felt like much longer than should be allowed.

You felt the light fingertips land lightly below your chin and his thumb caressed gently over your bottom lip and he leaned into you. His lips parted over your own and he kissed you so carefully. You could feel his restraint. You returned his kiss you matched the restraint. The pull back from his mouth was slow and anguished though and despite the holding back from both sides you fully recognized the look of desire you saw deep inside those brown eyes and you knew you weren’t alone in being dramatic about the week to come.

“We should go,” you said as you closed your eyes briefly and clenched down on your jaw.

He nodded his head and swallowed. You backed away from him and took away all of that warmth you’d stolen from his body with you.

“Let’s go tell the team this is your last week so all the girls can cry.”

[To be Continued]

Links: Part 1 , ……, Part 10, Part 11, Part 12

#exo #exo fanfiction #exo smut #baekhyun #exo fic #exo scenario #baekhyun smut #baekhyun fanfic

92 notes · View notes

scoops-aboy86 · 9 months ago

Note

We see a lot of chubby Steve/weight gain post-high school but I think it would be interesting to see some fics where he’s still in school. Maybe he has to give up sports due to the concussions or something?

You're right and you should say it!! I have a bit of that in my love spell no go AU, before Starcourt happens and Steve goes full trauma-fueled must be able to protect everyone I know mode.

So... might not be what you were hoping for but I wrote an almost 3k addition to that fic, during the part where Steve is still at Hawkins High. Swim is over for the year (and Steve avoids his pool now), and while he's still on the basketball team he's also smoking weed (helps with the nightmares, getting enough sleep, better mood, etc.) and snacking more. He's in the starter belly stage but has no complaints.

Part 1, (YOU ARE HERE), part 2, part 3, part 4, part 5, part 6, part 7, part 8, part 9, part 10, part 11 of the love spell no go au

The weed he bought from Munson is a godsend, and Steve wonders why he hadn’t thought of it before… only to remember that Nancy wouldn’t have approved. (Although she’s not a priss, exactly, she had barely even touched alcohol since the night Barb died. Until Halloween.) But he can sleep through the lonely nights now, which is worth even that hurtful pang of realization—that maybe, Nancy hadn’t been very good for him.

(Sure, she had helped him study. And his grades had improved. But sometimes, too, she would smile and say, “You’re an idiot, Steve Harrington.” It had been cute at first, before Barb, when the smile had still been real.)

Whenever he thinks about that, or feels particularly lonely, he digs into his stash for a quick smoke out his bedroom window—never by the pool, not anymore. He gets into the habit of snacking after, even if it’s while doing his homework, because even when he’s a little bit stoned it’s somehow easier to focus on shit when he’s doing something else at the same time, and chewing works.

(Nancy hadn’t liked it when he’d fiddled with his pencil or a rubber band or a Rubix cube or anything while she’d quizzed him with flashcards, even though he’d tried to tell her it helped. She’d fussed at him about it until he’d just… stopped.)

Other times, he zones out in front of the tv while working his way through a sandwich or a bag of chips or a sleeve of Oreos. Or takeout, a lot of the time, because his culinary skills pretty much stop at sandwiches, up to and including scrambling an egg for a breakfast sandwich. But a man cannot live on scrambled eggs alone, he’s learned that the hard way, so pizza or burgers or pasta in cardboard containers it is.

It’s not just the munchies. After a while Steve gets into the habit of just… eating. It's not like his parents are around to notice, and Dustin and the other kids he babysits sometimes (for all that Mike protests that they aren’t babies and don’t need a sitter; what they do consistently need, however, is rides) don't care as long as he springs for enough that they can have some too. No one at school would dare say it to his face, and somehow it still doesn't manage to fully tank his slightly flagging reputation, but Steve is definitely starting to put on weight. He doesn’t care.

He starts going to parties again half for a change of scenery, half for a change of food options. Pizza still makes a frequent appearance, but there’s popcorn and flavors of chips that he doesn’t usually buy and various kinds of snack mixes. (His favorites are anything that include M&Ms.) Sometimes, there are even cupcakes or cookies. He doesn’t dance, doesn’t even drink all that much and sticks to just beer when he does, never the punch. Most of the kids who come to these parties are there for the booze and the makeout opportunities, but he turns up to people-watch, bopping his head in time with the music if it's a song he likes, and park himself by whatever food the party has to offer. Sometimes Steve buys from Eddie if he's there, offers to share joints with him that Eddie, still wary, turns down. When the food runs out, Steve leaves.

Tonight, though, Tammy Thompson just will not leave him alone and he’s at a loss for what to do about it. She’s been talking his ear off about wanting to move to Nashville and become a country singer the entire time he’s been working on this extra large pepperoni and sausage with black olives—not his first choice, but it’s still hot enough for the cheese to stretch whenever he picks up the next slice, warm tomato sauce and grease dripping down the front of his polo more often than he can always catch with a napkin.

“Did you want some?” he asks at some point, to be polite and hopefully indicate that he doesn’t care that she’s trying to tell him something.

He can tell immediately that it doesn’t work, because Tammy lights up from simply being addressed, even though her answer is, “Oh, no thank you, I’m a vegetarian.”

“Right,” Steve mumbles, and crams nearly half of his next slice of meat-laden pizza in his mouth. Maybe if he talks with his mouth full. “More for me, then.”

The words come out muffled, but she still beams and offers to grab him something to drink, jumping up and scampering off before Steve even has a chance to respond. He sighs, downs the rest of the beer he’s been nursing, and takes the new one she brings him without saying thank you. Between the next pieces of pizza he pops it open, chugs it, and belches; she puts a hand on his arm.

For a moment, at that, Steve feels a faint stirring of interest. He likes his food, did even before dropping swimming and picking up weed, and well before it started to show. Now that it has, he feels comfortable in his softer body. Good. And maybe… maybe he could handle dating someone who doesn’t mind how much he likes it. He imagines Tammy running her immaculately painted nails over his skin, places he’s noticed have been getting more sensitive lately, and suppresses a shiver.

“Could you pass me that bowl of M&Ms over there?” he asks, testing the waters. Yeah, he could probably reach it if he stretched, but he’s starting to fill up and doesn’t feel like putting the extra pressure on his stomach. He sits back a little in his chair instead, shifting to get comfortable and laying a hand on his belly where it bows out over the waistband of his jeans. “Sorry, just, you know. Big appetite lately.”

“Oh, that’s okay, I don’t mind,” Tammy says with a giggle as she fetches the bowl for him. “Besides, you’re an athlete! I’m sure you’ll work it off in no time on the court.”

And yeah, no, that vague interest curdles immediately. As far as Steve is concerned, the only parts of himself he wants to get rid of are all in his head—the heartbroken parts, the nightmare and trauma parts, the desperately lonely and needy parts. But he’s not so lonely that he’ll hook up with a girl who’s willing in spite of how he looks, because what else could she possibly be interested in? His personality?

He barely even has one. King Steve has always been bullshit, Nancy was right about that much.

Through the crowd, he spots curly hair and a flash of dark leather—Eddie. Good, he’d been hoping to buy more tonight, and this is as good an excuse to exit this conversation as any.

Steve grabs a handful of M&Ms to shove in his mouth and flips the lid of the pizza box closed, handing the bowl back to Tammy and taking the box with him when he stands. “Well, enjoy the rest of the party,” he blurts. “I’ve gotta go see a guy about some drugs. Bye!”

As he makes his escape, some girl that he thinks he might have class with or something just about shoulder-checks him, but he’s solid enough that she ends up stumbling from the impact instead. The glare she gives him could peel paint… which is actually kind of refreshing, after enduring Tammy’s simpering for the better part of an hour.

To Eddie’s perpetual frustration, now that Steve Harrington has started buying weed from him he can never seem to be free of the guy. Case in point: the “Hey, Munson, wait up!” that follows him to the backyard of tonight’s house party slash business venture.

He waits until he’s down the patio steps before whipping around, prepared to glare and snap an impatient what do you want, Harrington, but ends up staring at a pizza box that’s being shoved in his face.

“Pizza?” Steve says.

Eddie blinks at the box, then at the boy holding it. “This isn’t your party. Doesn’t that mean it’s not your pizza to offer?”

“It might as well be, I’ve eaten most of it,” Steve replies. “No one seemed to notice, that makes it fair game.”

Once, Eddie had been selling at a party and been bitched out for touching a single cookie, because those were for guests. He wants to scowl, but then his gaze flicks down to the partly open box and sees that there aren’t many slices left, eyes fixing on the evidence dripped down the front of Steve’s shirt and the way it’s… tight, across his middle. “You ate all but three slices of an entire extra large?”

He’s not sure what answer he expects to get. Maybe something like Of course not, dickhead, or maybe just, What, like it’s hard? But all Steve says is, “Yep.” And keeps looking at him with those sweet hazel eyes that seem bight and not too clouded by alcohol.

Still, Eddie is wary. “Okay… You first.”

Steve just shrugs and pulls out a slice, taking a bite before Eddie snatches it out of his hand. “Hey!”

“Just making sure it wasn’t poisoned first, sweetheart,” Eddie retorts, sneering for the excuse to call a pretty boy sweetheart in semi-public, butterflies stirring in his stomach at getting away with it. “Don’t worry, the rest is all yours.”

“Who’s tried to poison you?” Steve asks in a perplexed tone, folding the last two slices together to make a pizza sandwich and tossing the empty box onto the deck. Still following Eddie, because of course this is Eddie’s life. Love spell was a spectacular failure, but he’s still got the boy of his dreams following him around like a lost duckling because he’s got drugs. Fucking fantastic.

And Eddie doesn’t want to get into the whole thing—those rumors from when Eddie had been in seventh grade and Steve had been in sixth, for all that they’re both in the same grade now, about some kid who’d been sent to the ER from a bad reaction to itching powder. There were variations where it had gotten in his eyes and nearly blinded him, or on his food and made his throat swell shut, or in his underwear and turned his dick so red his balls fell off. In reality, he had only gone to the nurse with a bad rash and hadn’t even been allowed to go home, but it left a goddamn impression.

He doesn’t want to get into it, not if Steve either doesn’t remember the rumors or hasn’t connected them to his present day self, so he just rolls his eyes and says, “Are you looking to buy or what?”

Steve immediately brightens a bit, like a golden retriever spotting someone holding a tennis ball. “Yeah, I smoked the last I had before coming here but it’s already worn off I think.” And takes a big bite of his two pizza slices.

So Eddie leads him to a darker nook around the side of the house for the deal, trying not to stare at the way Steve’s cheeks bow out while he chews, like a damn chipmunk. It’s cute. He’s kind of angry that it’s cute, that there’s still a part of him that lights up when Steve looks happy, satisfied, content—and right now all of those boxes are checked.

“Want to smoke a little now?” Steve offers, once he’s paid and taken the baggie one handed, popped the rest of the food in his mouth, licked his fingers clean, and pulled out a pack of rolling papers. And Eddie pauses too long before answering, long enough that Steve takes the lack of refusal as a yes.

Which Eddie should correct, because he usually says no to that sort of thing, especially when he’s at parties specifically to sell. He’s turned Steve down before, even; it’s like the guy has a whole thing about offering whenever he plans on lighting up asap. Eddie knows better to fall into that trap.

But it’s a nice night. The weather is mild for spring, business has been good, and Steve licks his lips to get the last traces of pizza sauce before his tongue darts out to wet the paper and finish rolling the joint. Nice and tight, like the denim hugging Steve’s ass and thighs tighter recently. So Eddie sticks around, breaks his rule and tries to keep his face clear of any evidence that he is fixated on the few degrees of separation between smoking and kissing, heart hammering the entire time. He tells himself it’s a one time only thing, but knows he might be lying. Recognizes how addictive this could be.

“Thanks for being here,” Steve says after passing the joint back and forth a few times, his eyes glazed and drooping. “Really needed this tonight.”

“That’s what I’m here for, man,” Eddie replies. He’s leaning against the side of the house practically shoulder to shoulder with his crush, and the high washing over him is really taking the edge off the jagged yearning in his chest. Like, he still wants, but he’s happy just floating in the present moment, content with the indirect sharing of spit. And this is… This is okay.

Surprisingly okay.

It throws Eddie for a loop because it’s at odds with the whole King Steve image. The whole puppet master persona that isn’t a bully, but can with a few words cut someone down socially to where the bullies could reach them, if they so wish. Popular kids at Hawkins High walk around with their noses in the air like they’ve never smelled a fart and refuse to start now, but this is the guy they turn around and start brown-nosing. King Steve isn’t nice, he’s used to being waited on. Kings do not say thank you to the court jester for simply carrying out his profession.

Just Steve, though, is different. Just Steve is chill and finished most of an entire huge pizza while mostly sober, is filling out his clothes even better these days in Eddie’s opinion, and currently looks the most at peace he’s ever seen a person. No walls, no guard… Just Steve.

Okay, that one split joint had gone straight to his head, god damn.

“Well, I’m gonna take off,” Eddie announces, and can’t tell if he’s said it too loud or not. He pushes off the wall with a shake of his head. “You snagged pretty much the last of my inventory, so I’ll just get out of here before someone starts handing out the torches and pitchforks.”

Steve chuckles. “Like any of those guys in there know how to make a torch,” he scoffs. He manages to say it in a way that almost makes Eddie lean in. Makes him feel like he’s been let in on some sort of inside joke, like they could but those losers couldn’t.

Which is—Okay, so Eddie does in theory know how to make a torch, he’d looked into it for one of his earliest homebrew campaigns, but Steve Harringnton? The very idea of Steve whipping off his shirt, tying it to a branch, soaking the end in something flammable, and lighting it up is something out of fantasy. Out of specific fantasies that he has had. It snaps Eddie out of the hazy bubble of they that Steve had somehow created with just a few words, and holy shit. Was that one of the side effects of his wonky spell, or was that Just Steve?

“Yeah, sure,” Eddie scoffs back, putting more distance between them even though he does want to lean in, dammit, but he wants Steve to want it too. Even though it’s on the tip of his tongue to ask the guy if he has a ride home, or if he wants to swing by the mom and pop ice cream place on Main for desert or something; Eddie has been practicing swallowing down urges like that since he’d hit adolescence. “Find me next time you need to top up your stash, Harrington.”

He walks away fast enough that if Steve responds he doesn’t hear it, heading for the back gate that he’d left the house for in the first place. His van is parked strategically nearby for a quick getaway, just in case the party got out of hand and a neighbor called the cops.

And if his dreams that night feature a completely relaxed Steve Harrington chewing on never ending slices of pizza and that blissful look of peace on his face, his lips shiny with spit and grease, it’s not like Eddie is ever going to tell anyone.

Tag list (comment to be added): @hotluncheddie @8em-em-em8 @anaibis @connected-dots @lawrencebshoggoth

#love spell no go au #wg steddie #chubby steve harrington #eddie munson #mentions of past stancy #tammy thompson #i have nothing against tammy but she is very much pursuing steve because of the love spell more than anything else #pre-relationship steddie #this fic will eventually be up on ao3... i just want to finish it first

31 notes · View notes

ivanttakethis · 7 days ago

Text

Post Season 39 - Cassio’s Log

————————————————————

Cassio had been dodging calls and messages from Alien Stage production since they left the complex to go to the hospital with Tov.

It was a struggle to simply decline the calls and swipe away the messages rather than tell them all to fuck off, especially when Tov coded again in the emergency room.

But they were just delaying the inevitable.

Production wanted a meeting, and Cassio knew it would be about Tov.

The only thing they hadn’t anticipated was that members of the production team would commandeer a conference room in the hospital and mandate a meeting so late at night.

No matter.

Cassio didn’t need to prepare.

As they made their way to the conference room, Wren’s words about Tov echoed through their mind.

“All you can do is be there for her now.”

I plan to. They thought. That much I can promise.

Cassio pushed open the double doors and all eyes turned to them. Some they recognized well, others they’d only seen in passing.

Enok, the lead producer, sat at the head of the table, with three underlings flanking him on each side. Six in total.

A seven to one fight, if things got ugly.

He smiled at them with all three rows of his teeth, cheap and plastic. “Cassio, thank you for joining us on such short notice. Please have a seat.”

Enok’s insincerity was almost as potent as his cologne.

Cassio swallowed a gag.

The only open chair was at the other end, opposite him, forcing eye contact.

An intimidation tactic, no doubt.

“Good evening, Enok. Everyone.” They said with a nod, taking the seat without hesitation. “So, what is this meeting all about? The message you sent was marked as urgent.”

The six underlings looked to Enok, expectant.

He sighed and stippled his hands, “Well, there’s no easy way to say this, Cassio, but you need to pull the plug on that pet of yours.”

Cassio kept their face placidly neutral, tilting their head slightly to one side, “And why would I do that, exactly?”

“It damages the brand and reputation of Alien Stage as a competition.” He said. “There can only be one winner each season.”

One survivor, is what he meant.

“Tov didn’t win. Her medical emergency during Round 30 disqualified her.”

“Round 30 was over at the time of her… event.” Enok said, because he was too much of a coward to call it what it actually was.

“The round isn’t over until the loser is shot dead. That’s not what happened here.” Cassio countered. “Besides, it’s rather hard to pull the plug on someone breathing on their own.”

What they wouldn’t have given to take a picture of Enok’s beady eyes wide with surprise and confusion as his plan unraveled, “S-She’s awake? So soon?”

A drop of blood in the water.

Cassio grinned, canines flashing, almost predatory.

“Yes, Tov is still very much alive. Her prognosis is very positive. The only way to kill her now would be euthanasia, and that’d cause quite the controversy. Wouldn’t you agree?” They asked. “I’m sure the pet-human rights activists will take that kind of news well.”

And by “well”, Cassio meant they would firebomb anything and everything tangentially related to Alien Stage.

Truthfully, they couldn’t care either way.

Watching Tov grow more and more devastated with every loss over the course of Season 39 had radicalized them, for lack of a better word.

As much as they still loved their job as head costume designer, a new sense of resentment toward the machine behind it was metastasizing.

The condition was likely terminal.

Enok quickly composed himself, plastering on a smile that was somehow even faker than the last one.

“Oh, come on Cassio. Her recovery doesn’t have to make it to the news.” He said, his drawl slick like oil. “We can just say that your pet was checked out of the hospital so she could pass peacefully with you at your home.”

We? They almost laughed.

The fact that this cretin thought Cassio was going to do anything he suggested was hilarious.

“I’m afraid that won’t be happening.”

Enok’s face fell, as did the temperature in the room. “And why is that?”

Because fuck you, that’s why.

“I have big plans for my human.” Cassio said instead.

“Big plans?” He chucked humorlessly. “Your pet is a loser, regardless. And once Season 40 starts, she’ll fade into obscurity just like the rest of the losers did. She is of no value to you.”

No value? Cassio bit back a sneer.

Enok was practically begging for a fight.

But he wouldn’t get one.

Not yet, at least.

“As Tov’s sole guardian, I am the one who decides when she is no longer of value.” They said, as measured as they could manage. “And that day hasn’t come yet.”

They pushed away from the table and rose to their feet, “Now, if we’re done here, I have a comeback to plan for.”

Without waiting for a reply, Cassio pushed open the doors and strode out of the room.

Vultures and cowards, the lot of them.

I don’t need their support or approval for Tov to live.

Against all odds, she’s still here.

As long as she’s alive and fighting, I’ll fight for her too.

We’re not going anywhere.

And if Alien Stage wants to get in our way, then so be it.

————————————————————

“Cassio: That's right motherfuckers that's right you bitches my fucking competitor is still alive you cant defeat me the house of cassio and tov is impenetrable to the forces of the shifting tides

The Alien Stage PR team currently panic damage controlling in the wake of S39: shut the fuck up” — a summary by @lookatmysillies

Basically, Cassio has had enough.

It’s been building over the course of the season, but Alien Stage production telling them to kill Tov to protect the competition was the straw that broke the camel’s back.

They’re about to learn why you should never get between Cassio and their human.

The impenetrable House of Cassiopeia will not be taking this lightly lol

Tagging: @starry-skiez @rockwgooglyeyes @chevalperd @apple8ees (if you want to be tagged/removed from the tag list lmk!)

#alien stage #alnst #alien stage oc #alnst oc #alnst oc: tov #alien stage oc guardian #alnst oc guardian #alnst oc guardian: cassio #alien stage fan season #alnst fan season #alien stage season 39 #alnst season 39 #alien stage season 40 #alnst season 40 #tw euthanasia #tw heart attack #tw hospital #cassio’s log #tov’s log

7 notes · View notes

fincalinde · 1 year ago

Note

random question friday: what sport do you think lxc would play?

Random question Friday I answer several Tuesdays later! This fox cannot be tamed.

So lucky for you this happens to be a subject near to my heart and those closest to me are at dire risk of having it outlined to them at any given moment that LXC is without a doubt a tennis player. Here are my reasons three:

Tennis is a sport associated with wealth and social status. It has traditionally been a sport of the middle classes and above, which I have been informed is also true in China and is one of the reasons for the tennis boom there in recent years. As the leader of a prestigious clan, LXC is at the pinnacle of his society and in a modern AU would therefore participate in such sports.

Tennis requires extraordinary mental discipline. When you're on the singles court you have to solve your own problems and your own mental strength is vital because there's no team playing around you and every single point counts. That mental discipline is not a million miles from the kind of discipline required to become a truly powerful cultivator making maximum use of their talent.

Sexy Wimbledon whites.

I happen to love tennis so I'm aware I have a shocking bias, but I think it's just two keen interests I have happening to fit together surprisingly well.

As a bonus, this is my opinion on professional playing styles for the tennis AU I will never write but have bored on about privately for the past three years:

LXC - your classic elegant all court player, the most powerful one-handed backhand on the tour, as much as he enjoys singles in his heart of hearts he never has more fun than when he's playing doubles with a good partner

JGY - counterpuncher, scrambles like you would not believe, literally never knows when he is beaten and has pulled out more wins from match point down than any other player, has a completely undeserved reputation for gamesmanship via taking bathroom breaks and medical timeouts as a strategy (EVERYONE DOES IT)

LWJ - technically an all court player but drifts into pusher territory a little too often because he likes to hit perfect shots until his opponent makes a mistake - however when he does step up to play offensively, beware

WWX - loses points he should win because he's hitting tweeners for the lolz, gets seriously injured playing doubles with JC and changes his playing style drastically to shorten points, becomes serve and volley king and still hits tweeners and underarm serves whenever he wants, literally the worst doubles player known to man

JC - offensive baseliner constantly being berated by his mother (coach) to COME TO THE NET and can never volley as well as WWX does, hugely outstrips WWX in ranking after the Incident and is constantly paranoid that without said injury WWX would always have beaten/outranked him

NMJ - servebot, breaks rackets on court, has been defaulted from matches for rage hitting balls, is the toughest prospect out there on grass and hugely respected for it, retires early due to health and becomes his brother's very ineffective coach

NHS - defensive baseliner bc that's the farthest position from the balls shooting at him at 200kmph, hasn't even cracked the top 200 and all his tour-related costs are covered by NMJ, has won a couple of doubles titles where NMJ did all the work, still somehow makes more in endorsement deals than most of the rest of the cast put together

#ask #testblog-54 #you don't know how deep this goes #when i say i have an entire tennis au i mean it #and i am not a casual fan #i am a super mega nerd fan #zewu-jun en super dude #han vinner opens her og opens der å herregud!#(deep cut joke entertaining only to me)#if anyone does want me to expound on tennis au i will do so #just know that you ask at your peril #roquen's xiyao tennis au

79 notes · View notes

wuffgang-ameowdeus-moozart · 1 year ago

Text

spiritual sequel to this <3

He gulps, his adam's apple pressing against the broken bottle. For a second he is transported back to an eternity ago, when he and Nance had still been together. The weird freaky loner was suddenly imposing, a real threat that could be enacted upon at any moment. His heart is beating too fast but he knows it isn't just out of fear. First Jonathan Byers, now Eddie Munson. He clearly has a type.

And then he thinks: no. And he simply refuses.

See, Steve has learnt over the years that he is very good that. Refusing. His parents commanded him to maintain an upstanding reputation, rebellious and neglected as he was he obviously refused, and somehow they never found out about the parties he used throw in their residence. Tommy and Carol - his closest friends since kindergarden - told him again and again to drop Nancy, and he refused. Billy almost killed him because he refused to let him harm his kids. Robin told him she was a lesbian, so he refused to have romantic feelings for her and now she is the best friend he has ever had and his literal soulmate (platonic with a capital P, of course)

So he remembers how disappointed Lucas looked when he didn't see any of his friends - or even his sister - on the stands. He remembers how much fun Lucas always has playing D&D, how his eyes shone when he talked about Eddie and his awesome campaigns. He remembers how much of a jackass Jason Carver - who somehow managed to become team captain - had been back when he'd first started basketball (and from what Robin tells him, he only got worse). He hadn't even instigated this particular bout of violence by insulting Munson's little brother who had recently disappeared and been presumed dead (his insides still try to tear themselves to pieces in shame every time he thinks about that) so he doesn't need to feel guilty.

Suddenly it is much easier to focus on the ugly raw desperation in those eyes instead of their warm brown color. The strong grip on his arm is nothing but uncomfortable (and no, definitely not in that way). Eddie's self-care routine must be awful judging by the chapped state of his lips (no, the fact that Jonathan Byers did not own a single moisturizer when he'd had a crush on him does not come into play here. Neither the fact that Munson's lips are very close to his). And, most importantly, he must be an awful person because not only did he steal Steve's kids away, but he doesn't even do the bare minimum and properly take care of them. On the contrary, he had the audacity to turn Dustin and Mike against Lucas. Who had been best friends since before middle school.

(Steve doesn't even have to actively suppress any details this time. He remembers how Lucas tried to hide his disappointment when Steve and Robin had been the only ones from their little gang who came to congratulate him. The thought alone makes him angry enough that the only thing he can see is red.)

Dustin pleads for Eddie to let go and it is even easier to ignore how "weirdos who look like they haven't slept in a week and can absolutely kick his ass" seem to really do something for him while not feeling the other's warm breath against his face. They have a short discussion that ends with them leaving Eddie behind for now. Alone. Doesn't feel too good, huh?

It's not like he thinks that Eddie committed the murders. The tremor in his voice and tears in his eyes remind him of his own first few days after finding out about the upside down, and he doesn't think that Dustin and Mike would be so blinded by their adoration that they'd miss the fact that the dude they worship is a literal serial killer, nosy little shits that they are. And sure, the guy doesn't deserve to have the entire town call him a satanic serial killer and chase him like a wild dog. And sleeping in a fucking boat can't be really comfortable.

However.

Eddie is also the reason that Lucas had to celebrate his victory with a bunch of strangers he didn't feel comfortable with. Eddie is the reason that Lucas isn't here right now, where Steve can keep an eye on him. The upside down is making their move once again and Hopper is dead and Joyce is gone and at least Mike flew away into safety (please be safe) but Max is gone and Lucas is gone and he has to take care of Robin too and also fucking Eddie Munson who is the fucking reason their group isn't complete right now and he can feel his nerves fraying and he is losing his fucking mind.

So maybe he resents Eddie for being able to befriend the kids without having to go through multiple traumatic experiences with them. Maybe he resents how obsessed Dustin and Mike are with him even though he doesn't even care for them. Maybe he resents how Lucas' disappointment reminds him so much of when he still searched for his parents after a good game: that stubborn glimmer of hope he couldn't erase even if he knew how foolish it was. Maybe he resents how Eddie never felt the need to pretend to be someone else, how he was always loud and weird and a freak and stood to it no matter what people said. Maybe he resents Eddie for being another person he has to look after even though he is the eldest (it is his responsibility to keep everybody safe but he isn't sure he can do it and why is Eddie allowed to be scared when Steve has also seen death and blood and guts and Eddie is just as close to the kids and he's even older than him and it isn't fucking fair). Maybe he is just tired and terrified and fucking mad because they don't fucking deserve this. Eddie was the one thing that made school less unbearable for the kids, and the upside down had to come and taint that, too.

Well, it doesn't matter either way. This isn't about him. This is about Robin and Nancy and the kids and now also Eddie Munson. Maybe he doesn't like him, but that doesn't matter. Because he is the protector, and it is his job to keep everybody safe, and he has already failed way too often. Protection - the right to live and not be ripped into pieces by terrifying monsters from another dimension - isn't something that has to be earned.

The door falls shut behind them. The last thing he sees are wide terrified eyes.

He can't stop thinking about Lucas and Max.

#stranger things #steve harrington #eddie munson #steddie #robin buckley #lucas sinclair #the party stranger things #st season 4 #stranger things drabble #steddie drabble #stonathan #jonathan byers #dustin henderson #stobin #pen.#babysitter steve #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things fic

78 notes · View notes

bones4thecats · 3 months ago

Note

Hi can I have seperate scenarios in this request where Captain Ginyu, Burter, and Cui, just so happen to meet Emo! F! Human! Reader in the Namek Saga while she's with Bulma and the gang or even somehow gets seperated with the group on accident. If you still have the time when you see this request.

(Hope that the request isn't too much for you.)

DBZ w/ F-Emo-Human! S/O Headcanons

Characters: Captain Ginyu, Burter, and Cui Requester: @silkyshulks A/N: I decided to just do this with them having an S/O that was a powerful human (and emo) that also served with Frieza as one of his highest-ranking helpers (specifically a Regent, or a right-hand). It just made more sense to me. That and I haven't watched the Namek Saga in quite a while and need to re-watch DBZ here soon... But anyways, hope you like this and have a glamorous rest of your day/night, Silkyshulks! ⚠️ Spoilers/Trigger Warnings for: Mentions of possibly child abuse (nothing to bad though) and fighting (??) ⚠️

What I based the Reader's appearance on: Outfit - Makeup - Marks

╔══════════════════════════════════════════╗

╚═════ Captain Ginyu ═══════════════════════════╝

💟 When Ginyu first met you, he was surprised with how powerful you were within Frieza's army. Despite being a mere human, you had a lot of power, enough that prompted the tyrant to promote you to his Regent, in other words his main second-in-command

💟 You held your position highly, using it against any other soldier who tried to put you down. And it didn't help that you always looked emotionless and cold whenever you walked around

💟 Ginyu and you had a surprisingly healthy bond, and that always shined when you served together. He would be busy getting his team to practice their poses and train whilst you were delivering orders to them from Frieza, much of it being their schedule and where they were needed

💟 While he normally gets busy, he does enjoy having some time to relax with you. It mainly consists of you silently sitting on his lap as you would draw on his skin with your temporary markers, he did have a reputation after all

💟 Ginyu also gets confused when you would spend quite a bit of time perfecting your makeup for that day, though it normally was the same eyeliner, and how you would make sure your outfit was perfected. But, he was a warrior, so who was he to judge?

💟 Unlike what many other members of the Frieza Force believe, Ginyu is a very good partner, whether you're married or not. He always finds time for you and he listens, even as he trains, his ears are open for your meek rants

💟 He has offered you a place in the Ginyu Force, but you just turned him down, saying your place belonged delivering news and defending your fearsome Lord. And while Ginyu was dead-set on getting you to join, when he saw you smoke another powerful fighter, he lightened up

💟 Not because he feared you... psh! Why would he fear his S/O? It's a lie, he fears your anger like he fears Frieza's

╔══════════════════════════════════════════╗

╚═════ Burter ════════════════════════════════╝

🌀 You two had a rockier start than the others. Burter is literally described as 'very arrogant, boastful, and tends to talk down to his opponents', and when he saw how blank you looked, he made his thoughts on you obvious

🌀 As a fellow strong warrior, though you stayed out of the field for quite a while, you merely raised your hand, showing off your spider-web markings. He cocked his head as you blasted him, resulting in him flying backwards and into the wall, making a dent as the now-dazed fighter groaned in pain

🌀 Unfortunately for you, Frieza needed your skills of manipulation and physical attacks to take over another planet, so he sent you and Burter together while the rest of the Ginyu Force went to another part of the planet - despite their annoyance of not being able to do their poses correctly -

🌀 It was after that mission that the Blue Hurricane then began to seek you out more, wanting to train. You would just roll your eyes before walking away to find Zarbon to speak too. And that was how his emotions emerged, watching you speak to Zarbon happily while you would naturally stare into Burter's soul before leaving

🌀 While it took a while, and when I say a while I mean a while, to finally ask you out, he was surprised with how different you were in private. You always seemed so done with everyone and cold, but you really cared about the few close-individuals you had, including this certain blue alien

🌀 Burter doesn't seem like he would, but I can see him enjoying watching you gather your outfits, whether they were formal-looking or not, and seeing you put on your makeup and basically style yourself up. It was kind of like a therapy for him in a way

╔══════════════════════════════════════════╗

╚═════ Cui ══════════════════════════════════╝

🐟 Cui and you met early on in your services under Frieza, and he was extremely jealous that you, a mere human, a being he could squash with one blast, was promoted to be the Emperor's right-hand!

🐟 And, in all honesty, he was intimidated by you as much as the next soldier. The way you looked just scared him. You always looked so glum and ready to kill, and the way you would dress and decorate your face freaked him out. He was used to others looking odd, but this was a level he had never encountered in his life!

🐟 The only reason he had ever spoke to you was because Frieza had demanded Cui to deliver a message to you and get the findings you came up with. And while he was acting like a pissed-off child who was just told they couldn't get a lollipop by their parents at first, he did eventually begin to see how gentle you truly were underneath your dark-look

🐟 You proved that true when, instead of insulting or yelling at the tiny-and-very-young alien who brought you files, you just pat them on their head and told them to go to your chambers and grab themselves a plush from your bottom drawer. He watched the child run off with a gleeful smile on their face while you continued typing an encrypted message to Frieza's father, King Cold

🐟 Cui called your name and couldn't help but ask you a question that nagged at him for the past few minutes of silence;

"Why were you so kind to that child? Normally higher-ranked authorities just push them around."

"I condemn those who would offend a lower-ranked soldier, nonetheless a child, for no reason. It's a show of how pathetic and weak they truly are, regardless of placements in this hierarchy."

🐟 Cui just nodded and grabbed the finished files you handed him before rushing out of the room and towards the main office of your leader. One question nagging in his mind; why was his stomach churning at the thought of you treating a child... especially one that looked like both of you... so kindly?

🐟 He was going to need to speak to the medic afterwards

#Dragon Ball #Dragon Ball Z #DBZ #DBZ Villains #Dragon Ball x Reader #Dragon Ball Z x Reader #DBZ x Reader #DBZ Villains x Reader #S/O! Reader #GN! Reader #Human! Reader #Captain Ginyu #Captain Ginyu x Reader #DBZ Burter #DBZ Burter x Reader #DBZ Cui #DBZ Cui x Reader

17 notes · View notes

geeky92 · 6 days ago

Text

Top 20 WORST Sailor Moon Episodes

Anyone who follows me knows that I LOVE Sailor Moon, and after rewatching all 5 seasons of the 90s anime, I can honestly say that it holds up…mostly well. However, with a 200-episode long anime like this, there’s bound to be a few stinkers in there, and here are my Top 20 picks for the worst episodes.

“Dishonorable” Mentions:

Usagi’s Confusion/Usagi’s Bizarre Training/The Snow, the Mountains, Friendship and Monsters/Mako, the Ice Skating Queen (Episodes 36-39)

These four filler episodes, which take place after the Princess Reveal, all essentially have the same plot, with Kunzite coming up with a lame scheme to expose the Moon Princess through some convoluted scam or contest. Even more baffling is how Usagi and her friends all manage to fall for the same trick four times in a row! And yet…I still find them genuinely enjoyable. They’re all objectively stupid episodes, but they’re so much fun at the same time! There’s a so-bad-it’s-good kind of charm to them. 20. Become a Prima: Usagi’s Ballet (Episode 145)

Honestly, I have no idea what kind of message this episode was going for. Its conflict was so forced because of a ballet instructor’s unprofessional nepotism! Seriously though, Fish Eye had every right to be angry at that ballet instructor because the latter basically used him, and yet we’re somehow supposed to feel bad for the ginger ballerina, just because she has a crush on the instructor (even when Fish Eye was objectively the better dancer)? Oh, and Mamoru fatshaming Usagi at the end was totally unnecessary!

19. Learn How to be Skinny From Usagi (Episode 04)

Kind of an obvious choice, because almost everyone hates this episode, and rightfully so. It’s got a very harmful and misleading message about how women should exercise to stay “beautiful” rather than to stay healthy, and it has a mean-spirited undercurrent of everyone deciding to body shame Usagi for no reason (including her own family)! The only reason I have this one at #19 is because it was only the 4th episode of the very first season, and the writers were still trying to find their footing. So yes, this episode is awful, but I can at least understand why it turned out so awful.

18. A Guardian’s Realization: Strength Lies Within a Pure Heart (Episode 127)

It’s no secret that S is my favorite season of the 90s anime, but even I can admit that it isn’t perfect. Case in point: this episode right here! Now, I know episode 126 has a very polarized reputation amongst fans, but I felt it was a perfectly serviceable way to wrap up the anime’s Infinity Arc. This however, feels like a tumor that got added on at the last second! Sure, the Sailor Team throwing a farewell party for Chibi-Usa was really sweet, but it proved to be pointless in the end, considering that the very next season would heavily focus on her! Seriously, if you skip this episode entirely, you wouldn’t miss a thing! That’s how pointless it is.

17. Making New Friends: Chibi Moon’s Adventure (Episode 104)

Yeah, unfortunately we’ve got another S episode on the list, except this one’s probably even more irritating than the last one. Usagi and Chibi-Usa both get invited to a tea ceremony, where they make complete asses of themselves and spend most of the episode screaming and yelling at each other. This episode’s also notable for having a scene of a random little boy sexually harassing Chibi-Usa. Look, Toei, if you wanted to show us how gross and immature little boys can be, there’s much better ways to do that! Also, you really shouldn’t be playing up sexual harassment as comedy, especially if the sexual harassment is aimed at a 9-year old child!

16. Umino’s Resolve: I’ll Protect Naru (Episode 32)

Umino might just as well be one of the most polarizing characters in the entire 90s anime, and…well, with episodes like this, you can see why. His entire behavior in this episode is toxic and downright creepy, from following Naru home from school to waiting outside her apartment past midnight! It doesn’t help that Usagi actively encourages Umino to pursue Naru, after Naru made it very clear that she only likes him as a friend. What’s even worse, is that Umino never gets punished for his behavior! Yeah, despite everything he does in this episode, Umino gets rewarded by becoming Naru’s boyfriend. Personally, I thought the ending of episode 26 was good enough confirmation of UmiNaru, because this one just makes it really hard for me to ship them.

15. Awaken the Sleeping Beauty: Mamoru’s Distress (Episode 69)

Now, I’m not as bothered by the “breakup arc” in R as so many other fans are, since most of the episodes in that arc either don’t dwell on it too much, or are just inoffensive at best. This one, however, infuriates me because it has Mamoru using poor Unazuki to get Usagi to hate him! I know that he was haunted by terrifying visions of Usagi’s death, but that’s still no excuse to toy with another girl’s feelings in order to get your ex to stop pursuing you. That’s just skeevy and cruel! The thing is, I don’t even hate the 90s anime version of Mamoru, but this is by far one of his worst episodes.

14. Magic of Darkness: Esmeraude’s Invasion (Episode 76)

With a foreboding and sinister-sounding title like Magic of Darkness, you’d think this would be a more mature and serious kind of episode (like episodes 70-75 all were). Well, sorry to be that person, but this title is a lie! It’s okay to have a more comedic and lighthearted episode as levity from the more serious stuff once in a while, but using a character like Esmeraude for that type of episode feels incredibly jarring. Especially since Esmeraude in the 90s anime was first introduced to us as a darker, more sinister version of the Specter Sisters. Worst of all, is that the Monster-of-the-Day in this episode has both powers and a design that can only be described as: The Writers’ Poorly Disguised Fetish.

13. Artemis’ Adventure: The Monster Animal Kingdom (Episode 79)

Ever wondered what Luna’s Worst Day Ever would be like if it were less funny and more mean-spirited? That’s this episode in a nutshell. Moving on!

12. Luna’s Discovery: The True Face of Yaten (Episode 178)

Whew, boy! This one was bad. I think this post sums it up best.

11. Usagi and the Girls’ Resolve: Prelude to a New Battle (Episode 89)

Many Sailor Moon fans seem to forget this episode even exists, and you wanna know what the plot of this one is? Well, I can’t exactly say, because the truth is, it has no plot. It’s literally just a 20-minute clip show and a glorified preview of Sailor Moon S. Though, the good thing about this episode is that it comes at the very tail end of R (right after the real season finale). So you could easily skip this one, and move right ahead into S.

10. I Want a Boyfriend: The Luxury Cruise Ship is a Trap/Dream of a White Dress: Usagi Becomes a Bride (Episodes 12 and 16)

Now, the reason why I have these 2 share the #10 spot is unfortunately because of one single character: Rei Hino.

A lot of people already give Anime Rei unnecessary amounts of hate for dating Mamoru between episodes 15-35, when 1.) It didn’t even get that much focus, and 2.) Usagi and Mamoru weren’t even a couple yet at that point! These episodes however, don’t do her character any favors, because they exaggerate her negative traits to an absurd degree. This is especially painful for me, because Rei happens to be my favorite character in both the manga and the 90s anime. So yeah, fuck these episodes for making my fave look bad.

9. Aim for an Idol: Minako’s Ambition (Episode 175)

So, according to this episode, it’s perfectly okay for a toxic fan to stalk and harass their favorite celebrity as long as they have the excuse of being very passionate about photography. Great message, am I right?

8. Artemis is Cheating? Enter the Mysterious Kitten (Episode 133)

Oh, boy, this one. Where to even begin? This episode just sucks because it feels like a long, ongoing joke where everyone is unrealistically stupid for the sake of the plot! Not only that, but it has one of the worst lines ever in the entire show.

Artemis: I can’t believe Luna’s acting this way!

Mamoru: Well, if you’re gonna stare at other women, don’t do it in front of the one you’re in love with.

MAMORU WOULD NEVER FUCKING SAY THAT! I mean, I know he has his flaws in the 90s anime, but even there he would never encourage that kind of behavior behind Usagi’s back! Again, this is wildly out of character for him even in the 90s anime, especially after everything he and Usagi have been through together. Also, why did you have to introduce Diana so late into the show, Toei? We could’ve avoided so many bad sitcom cliches if you had just introduced her in the Black Moon arc, like the manga did!

7. Protect Mamoru: Ninja Usagi’s Jealousy/The Secret Mansion: A Menu of Love for You (Episodes 136 and 142)

Alright, so I’ve already mentioned episodes that show Mamoru at his worst, and I’ve mentioned episodes that show Rei at her worst. Ever wondered what Usagi’s like at her worst? Well, look no further than these two duds! These episodes take Usagi’s jealousy to very toxic extremes, from slutshaming her friend for letting Mamo stay at her grandfather’s shrine, to trying to pick a fight with an old lady! Who even thought these episodes were a good idea anyway?!

6. Clash of Dreams: Minako and Makoto’s Broken Friendship (Episode 154)

What a lazy and ill-conceived episode this was! It was already bad enough that these Inner Senshi power-up episodes happened way too late during the Amazoness Quartet portion of SuperS, instead of the Amazon Trio portion like they should have! However, unlike Ami and Rei, who both ended up with really good SuperS power-up episodes (despite their poor timing), Mako and Minako were not so lucky. They don’t even go through an arc where they awaken their new powers on their own, Artemis just flat out tells them to awaken them! Worst of all, is that so much chaos could’ve been avoided if Chibi-Usa had just told them that the hot preschool teacher they’ve been fighting over was already married!

5. Pegasus Disappears: Wavering Friendship (Episode 157)

This episode had SO much potential to be interesting, and yet it falls completely flat, mostly because of the way Pegasus and Chibi-Usa’s relationship is written in SuperS. See, in the manga, Pegasus doesn’t spend most of the Dream arc hiding his soul away in the confines of Chibi-Usa’s bedroom. He was trapped and needed the Senshis’ help right away; but because Sailor Moon had its manga chapters released monthly (at the time the 90s anime was airing in Japan), Toei of course had to write in a bunch of fillers for the anime to kill time. However, this resulted in a major problem for the SuperS season as a whole: The fact that Pegasus would constantly keep his life a secret from Chibi-Usa to the point where it got ridiculous! Again, this post really sums it up best.

4. Aiming for the Top: The Pretty Swordswoman’s Dilemma/Believe in Pegasus: The Four Guardians’ Super Transformation (Episodes 139 and 143)

I promise you all, these are going to be the last SuperS episodes on this list, so bear with me. Now, these 2 episodes share the #4 spot for both different and similar reasons. The different reasons are that one’s about excusing child abuse, and the other one pretty much highlights how helpless the Inner Senshi in this season are without Pegasus. The similar reasons? Well, because the former involves Tiger’s Eye trying to seduce a little girl, and the latter involves Fish Eye trying to seduce a 10-year old boy. Worst of all, those moments are actually played for laughs, which is…a really big yikes, especially for an anime primarily aimed at children! I mean, I like Fish Eye, but his actions in episode 143 can make it very difficult to sympathize with him afterwards.

3. Seiya and Usagi’s Heart-Pounding Date/Invitation to Terror: Usagi’s Night Flight (Episodes 181 and 188)

For me, these two episodes really show how much the 90s anime dropped the ball with the Shadow Galactica villains. In the manga, they were serious threats to our heroes and didn’t mess around when it came to taking the star seed of every Sailor Senshi they could find. The 90s anime however, had them bumble around for 98% of the 5th season, taking star seeds from random human victims instead of just focusing on taking star seeds from actual sailor senshi!

Worst of all, is that despite coming close to achieving their goal, Iron Mouse and Aluminum Siren never seize the opportunity to actually extract the star seeds of all the senshi they’ve successfully trapped! Instead, they use all that time to gloat and taunt the senshi until it’s too late. Worse still, is that in episode 181, Galaxia can apparently appear in the human realm at any time, but it takes her until the last 7 episodes of the season for her to actually do anything!

2. Chibi-Chibi’s Mystery: The Big Noisy Chase (Episode 186)

Much like Esmeraude’s Invasion, the title of this episode is a deceptively interesting one. Obviously, a title like Chibi-Chibi’s Mystery would have you think that the episode might add something to the lore and reveal something important about Chibi-Chibi, but alas, that is not the case. Again, I don’t mind it when an anime uses light-hearted fillers as levity from the more serious stuff, but the problem is, NOTHING HAPPENS IN THIS EPISODE! I mean, episode 89 didn’t have a lot going on either, but at least that one got fans excited for Sailor Moon S. This one just has no reason to exist at all! In fact, I think Big Noisy Chase is a very appropriate subtitle, because this whole episode’s nothing but pointless noise!

The Shining Power of a Star: Chibi-Chibi’s Transformation (Episode 187)

So, when I think of “bad episodes” from a TV show, I usually think of episodes that are: badly written, poorly paced, too mean-spirited, or just really annoying in general. This episode ticks off ALL those boxes for me! Seiya basically forces Usagi to join the annual softball tournament at her school, her friends act like major jerks to her, the Holy Moon Chalice being introduced to us this late in the series made no sense, and Chibi-Chibi’s big reveal as a Sailor Senshi was very underwhelming compared to how the manga did it. How this episode even managed to be the 2nd Top-Rated Sailor Moon episode on IMDb is way beyond me!

#top 20 #ranking list #sailor moon #sailor moon classic #sailor moon r #sailor moon s #sailor moon super s #sailor stars #sailor moon sailor stars #worst episodes

6 notes · View notes

littlemisssquiggles · 9 months ago

Note

I'm not sure if you heard the news yet but rooster teeth is getting shut down by Warner Bros and Warner Bros is trying to sell RWBY off to another company at the moment

I hope that the people working at rooster teeth are able to get jobs or have jobs that they can help tie them over till they find new work for a while

And maybe if we're lucky when it comes to RWBY some company will maybe pick them up this year and will possibly get volume 10 by the end of next year or the year after that we'll just have to wait and see I'm not sure if they're still doing RWBY beyond that they were planning to do to cover some stuff that was happening with long and I but I hope the future for this franchise gets better and that this isn't the end

Hi there anon-chan. Yes, I have heard the news about RT shutting down. Heard it as soon as it came out yesterday. I just don’t have much to comment on the matter since I’m still pretty much processing it.

I mean, I’ve been hearing certain-certain Youtubers making bold statements about the end of RT for quite some time now; given all of its recent scandals. But even then, I still sorta wished to hold out on the belief that what they were saying wasn’t entirely true.

I mean, I know RT has definitely been under fire for a while but that was mainly due to the actions of some of the folks that were working in the company. And even then, I was of the opinion, that all the problematic people bringing the company down would just be removed, leaving RT itself to basically rebuild its reputation and get back in the good spirits of both its fans and potential investors; y’know what I mean?

Bottomline, I didn’t want to believe the possibility of RT shutting down since I thought they would’ve been able to make a comeback somehow. At least when it comes to RWBY.

I’ll be frank with you m’fam. Outside of RWBY (and maybe Red Vs. Blue and Camp Camp; even though I haven’t caught up on those series since their earlier seasons), I have no other personal investment in RT.

I mainly followed RT for RWBY and the members of the CRWBY who worked on it. And even now, in light of the news of its upcoming shut down, I’m more concerned for what the future of RWBY will be beyond RT.

In respect to the CRWBY, I’m genuinely not that worried for them finding work since they’re all very talented creatives who are very, very good in their craft. So I definitely have high hopes for them scoring new work after RT. No doubts about that.

I have heard about WB trying to sell RWBY though; and this is where my main concern lies. I am worried about who RWBY will be sold to next or whether anyone will pick up the IP at all. I know some FNDM members like to hype up RWBY as this big deal series. However, the reality is, outside of the FNDM, RWBY honestly isn’t as well-known as some folks may think. Especially when you consider the fact that all the negatives of RWBY are talked about just as much; maybe even more so than the positives of it.

In the realm of potential buyers for RWBY, I don’t have high hopes for this because, isn’t this not what happened to GenLock? Who do we blame for the fall of that IP? RT or WB? Didn’t they not “sell” GenLock over to HBO and they ended up butchering the hell out of its second season?

Either way, I don’t want the same to happen to RWBY. It’s already butchered enough by the way RT and its showrunners have been handling it since V3.

My one saving grace is a tweet from Dillon Goo. Apparently, he’s an animator who formerly worked on RWBY back in the days of Monty. Yesterday on Twitter, he expressed interest in purchasing the rights to RWBY to continue the series along with his team.

I don’t know how serious he is about this but I have seen some of his work and it’s actually quite good. I would rather RWBY go to the hands of someone who worked on the show and seems genuinely passionate about continuing the series and its story as opposed to it going to some mega-money corporate conglomerate who are only interested in making money off the franchise and don’t really give a rat’s ass about its story or appealing to its fanbase.

As a long time fan of RWBY, all I want is for the series to be given to someone who actually gives a shit about RWBY.

Not just as a franchise name but as a story with characters and a world they genuinely enjoyed and wished to continue and expand upon out of a genuine love for it.

Whether that’s continuing from where the original CRWBY Writers left off or rebooting the story from the ground up, I just want RWBY to be handled by creatives who care about it and want to tell a good story with it.

No senseless pandering that serve nothing for the story or appeasing the “woke crowd” or whatever!

Just telling a genuinely GOOD and CONSISTENT story with these characters and the world they live in.

I rather RWBY be handed over to a fan whose got the money, time and most importantly, the drive to keep the story going rather than another who just wants to milk it for its “brand”.

Ironically, this is what RT has sadly been doing with RWBY for the past couple of years. Since the dawn of its existence, RWBY has spawned books, comics, manga, videogames (console as well as mobile), its own movie (albeit it’s a crossover) and even its own Japanese anime adapation. All these different novelties that were supposed to help expand the world of Remnant and look how far it got it?

Pretty much nowhere because we got all of this expanded material for RWBY and we’re still nowhere close to finishing the main core story from the OG 3D animated series.

Speaking of, regarding the fate of RWBY Beyond, I’m not sure myself anon-chan. I was of the naive notion that since RWBY returning to RT and the debut of RWBY Beyond were announced prior to the news of RT’s shutdown that the company would still move forward with this move and it would mark the official send off for not only RWBY but the company that made it as well. That’s what I was hoping for and what I’m still hoping for since I don’t recall their being an official date for RT’s shut down.

We know the company is dead, we just don’t know the date of the funeral, basically. So until that time comes, I’m gonna innocently hope we still get to see RWBY Beyond before RT shuts down.

I can live with RT shutting down and even RWBY ending if RWBY Beyond is treated as the official final chapter to the story. But that’s just me.

~LMS (2024)

#squiggles answers: rwby #rwby beyond #rwby #rt news #roosterteeth

19 notes · View notes

andivmg · 7 months ago

Note

it almost feels like you could say anything bc the community is so dead atp😭 but then every so often a story gets picked up by the React Bro side of the internet which is.. unideal

yeah but i think what most people don’t understand is how intimidating it really is talking about it all. especially since i’ve been away from everyone for so long and how everything was when i was in the community. like y’all weren’t there😭😭😭.

we were all so paranoid about our personal lives getting leaked or speculated on too heavily. like there are some relationships i had (romantic or otherwise) that i thought would never see the light of day bc everyone was so private about everything all the time. and for good reason honestly, because covid was still a thing at that point. like all the fans were at home with nothing better to do than obsess over the lives of their favorite content creators. everything we said and did was so closely monitored it was overwhelming. i think i still feel some of that inside of me. like that fear that anything i say can and will be used against me somehow, even though i’m not a public figure anymore and i haven’t been for a while. that shit sticks with you.

i also have to keep in mind that my boyfriend very much still is a public figure and some of the things i say or do could reflect poorly on him. and that’s not something i want either like i don’t want people to be able to tell him shit about me or use my shit against him. like him and i are a team now and he’s going to be a content creator for the foreseeable future, and he wants me in some of that content so i don’t want people associating my drama, from before he and i even met, with him. like i can do whatever with my own reputation idc but i do keep him in mind a lot whenever i feel like being messy, bc this is someone i want a future with yk?

also there are a lot of people that i still have respect for that would inevitably end up getting dragged into the conversation because they were either around or involved in some way and i don’t want them to have to revisit any of it just bc i was feeling talkative.

so yeah it’s very complicated and i hope i explained myself well here as to why i’m hesitant to share a lot of things

#andianswers

9 notes · View notes

transingthoseformers · 1 year ago

Note

Sorry this got long. This idea is fun though.

All of the DJD have just accepted that Ultra Magnus is Their Autobot and Minimus is making an effort to make small talk during his monthly information exchange phone calls with Kaon. He does a lot of traveling alone and the DJD are similarly isolated so they are each others very limited socialization circle.

Kaon it turns out is a bit of a gossip and Ultra Magnus attempts to respond in kind by exchanging small bits of gossip about things he overhears as well about the Autobots without revealing who he is discussing. Kaon is thrilled because he knows all the Decepticon relationship drama and the Autobot is new and fascinating fodder. This leads to Ultra Magnus making a point to listen into others discussions and somehow befriend Hot Rod who knows everybody it seems and is much more social than he is so shows up to chat about things which Ultra Magnus carefully listens to.

Tarn, who has decided Magnus is his rival at this point eavesdrops on his and Kaon's gossiping and upon hearing of this racer who keeps popping up and leaning on Magnus's desk and touching his arm and fluttering his spoiler he realizes instantly and viscerally hates that this is clearly flirtation. And he is not having it.

He makes a point to listen in as well and takes notes seething and fantasying about murder not realizing he's jealous.

Ultra Magnus has actually wanted advice on something with Hot Rod, so when Tarn picks up in a snit, he thinks it is the perfect opportunity. Magnus had been assigned to work with a small crew with Kup and an adjunct of sorts to the Wreckers. He doesn't have experience in small command structure but Tarn does. So he asks for Tarn's advice and Tarn at first intends not to but senses this could be a weakness so all purring menace he offers Magnus advice mentioning verbal praise and if necessary like with Kaon physical comfort and cuddling can be good for morale and team bonding. He also mentions a shared aocial activity. For him weekly worship sessions but Magnus believes this to be "game nights" that Kaon mentions.

Tarn basically helps Magnus make some friends.

Ultra Magnus becomes known due to Tarn for offering very sincere but stiff hugs that have made many people cry. It confused Whirl so badly during the first time he developed a Pavlovian response of going limp during scheduled Magnus Hugs and Verbal and Physical Validation sessions.

Hot Rod thinks it is hilarious but has sniffled a bit during Cuddle Time. The Wreckers with Magnus get an interesting reputation.

Tarn still hates Hot Rod from afar and the second he hears a hint of a friendship with Drift convinces Magnus that clearly Hot Rod has feelings for him and it should be encouraged. Magnus feels this may be an inappropriate involvement in his subordinates lives but Tarn is determined and the two of them clumsily matchmake Driftrod and eventual Dratchrod to rid Tarn of competition.

They have also, without Tarn realizing it, started to have lovely weekly discussions about law, philosophy, music, and the Autobot Code and Towards Peace which Magnus has memorized to make sure he can join these discussions on equal footing.

The rest of the DJD know him by name and if they encounter him on neutral planets greet him. Which actually happens with his squad running into Kaon and Dominus. Kaon brightens at the sight of him and knows Hot Rod immediately. Mostly from Tarn's murder/conspiracy board they all got used to and were betting which way it would go until the match making was successful.

They get a drink, and Minimus slips up, saying something just like himself, and Dominus has a horrifying realization at the same point Tarn walks in and instantly focuses on Magnus and is vaguely threatening to Hot Rod who keeps frowning at him until he brightens and pegs him as "that guy who smuggled me into Nyon". He's strangely delighted to see Tarn and says he'd never expected to be able to thank him for the "whole, making sure I was born thing." This reveals a bit of Tarn's outlaw backstory when he helped save a whole nursery of newborns. This makes the DJD members gape, and Minimus looks at him admiringly. Hot Rod offers to buy them all a drink and uses Drift's cars to do it.

Hot Rod calls him out on the matchmaking and thanks him because he knows Magnus didn't come up with it on his own. He also talks wistfully about maybe all of them getting a drink together once the war is over, which throws them. Though Hot Rod says once it is settled, they'll all be one people again, eventually, right? They're only enemies until it ends.

They part but the DJD are a little off their game especially Tarn who is still reeling from Magnus smiling at him for remembering his order and, out of habit to one up him and drawing from dramatic old stories he enjoys, pulling out his seat and act more like a suitor than a rival of sorts.

In this world this DJD learn of the war ending from Magnus who messages them that leadership is needed to help settle the Decepticons who were taken by Galvatron, that Megatron is missing, and there is a ceasefire and representation is needed. The DJD immediately rush to Cybertron and the Decepticons are not rounded up but instead huddled into one part of the map and the Autobots the other while Tarn terrifies everyone into order under Soundwave, his, and Starscreama argumentative leadership and focuses on revovering Megatron who is missing.

This is also when they play catchup and learn things like Optimus being dead (good riddance), the world got renewed (positive), and Hot Rod is now a Prime (what). Rodimus goes and meets them since Bumblebee is a bit intimidated with Drift (who they still don't recognize hovering behind Rodders wide eyed). They act formally in front of the others but once alone the DJD who are all awkward fucks have like two friends out of their coworkers and they are Magnus and Hot Rodimus by proxy.

Drift is understandable panicking over his Conjunx to Be inviting the DJD to his ceremony "if the war doesn't erupt in the next couple weeks" and excitedly telling them about plans to go after the KOC which intern Forestock is interested in and about asking "Drift's old doctor crush" on a date. Helex wishes Drift luck which he just sort of nods at receiving.

Dominus-Vos is not having a good time meanwhile when he receives a ping from Prowl.

Magnus accidentally by dragging Tarn into it and Tarn wanting no interruptions tracking down Megatron gets a formal ceasefire because Tarn now instinctively has to one up Magnus and his treaty choices have to be examined and dissected. Bumblebee is startled but thrilled. Starscream and Prowl are vaguely horrified. Rodimus is used to this. Soundwave is strangely impressed and hopeful by the Decepticon motivation and law already being considered and the fact Tarn is actually acting like a respectable member of command.

Then the neutrals arrive and nobody likes them. Pettiness and spite have always been great unifying forces for Decepticons and they prefer their familiar enemies to the NAILs by a long shot.

A exhausted rMegatron and a revived Optimus are both taken to the temporary shared housing of their factions to find a very different arrangement.

Ah yes, Mags is The DJD's Autobot. Delightful

Omg aww yes. Yes they are. Monthly information exchange phone calls sdgfsdf.

Yesss, Kaon is just eating this drama up, and Mags is funneling more to him

Ah yes, Tarn. Rival. Mags is your rival, suuuure. That's why you're jealous of Roddie.

awWWW YES HE'S ASKING TARN FOR LEADERSHIP ADVICE YES

Ok Tarn that's some pretty cool advice I expected worse for some reason, fUCK YES MAGS IS UTILIZING SAID GOOD ADVICE

WHIRL NEEDS THOSE HUGS SO MUCH

cuddle time has broke me. That's one of my favorites cliches in my internal plotlines because it's adorable as hell.

Of course, Tarn shipping Driftrod (and eventually Dratchetrod) because he wants his perceived competition out of the way. And TarnMags are doing said shipping together, aww.

oooo possible accidental dates?? OWO?

That's adorable, yes! He's Their favorite autobot!

oh minimus, oh Dominus, yes. Yes

Something just clicked for Roddie and he's great for it. And of course he's using his sugar daddy's Drift's money. That's so sweet.

Tarn, again, is having so many emotions about this.

YES, IT'S MAGS WHO TELLS THEM. MAKES SENSEEE

I'd be lying if I said I hadn't considered scenarios where Tarn (and maybe the whole DJD) were made officially part of decepticon command

Rodimus is the one goddamn extrovert the DJD knows well and it's hilarious.

You know the more here I sit and think about it that's fucking hilarious.

"Me (decepticon to autobot, M) and my fiance (autobot, M) are getting married in three weeks. I just learned that fiance is planning to invite the fragging DJD, who are apparently his friends, to our wedding. Am I going to die or some scrap????

Awww yes.

oh no, not a ping from prowl

Sdfgds. Yes. they accidentally-ed their way into this beautiful mess, w.

Careful don't let Starscream and Prowl agree too much, that's how we get situations.

He is! Tarn is acting pretty well, all mecha called Tarn considered.

Then the neutrals arrive and nobody likes them.

This tends to be the trend in most fics and some canon I see.

Omg yes that's adorable

Yes Meggsie and Oppy have woken up to an interesting world indeed

34 notes · View notes