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jamespotterthefirst · 4 years ago

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Hit the Town (Ethan x f!MC)

Pairing: Dr. Ethan Ramsey x F!MC (Dr. Lilac Allende) Word count: 1.5K Warning: N/A Premise: After enjoying drinks with their friends, they escape to a quick dinner date.

A/N: Just self indulgent crack, don’t mind me.

They stood in comfortable silence as the elevator ascended to their destination, the scent of her perfume embracing his every sense in the confined space. Not surprisingly, Ethan had found himself easily persuaded to abandon the tower of paperwork that awaited him in favor of spending the rest of the evening with her.

As the elevator announced the 20th floor, she moved closer to him, her body fitting so perfectly to his side. “Are you still thinking about work?” she correctly guessed.

Ethan’s arm automatically draped over her shoulders, as though it was second nature.

“I’ve been thinking of nothing but work these past few months,” he confessed in the silence.

Lilac simply nodded. The same could be said for her-- for everyone at Edenbrook-- as the date of its final day loomed closer. That thought alone was enough to send his mind spiraling into a cesspool of melancholy. He forcefully pushed them away, deciding to focus instead on the rather pretty smile she gifted him.

“Let’s not think about work tonight,” she proposed, straightening her posture with a new sense of purpose. Her fingers toyed with the gold pocket square that matched her dress perfectly. “Tonight is about you, me, and how good we look for this date.”

The latter point of her argument was undeniable, at least when concerning Lilac. His girlfriend in the gold dress that clung to her like a second skin had to be the most alluring sight he had ever seen. His eyes traveled down the plunging neckline, tracing the sparkling band of her necklace.

Lilac caught him staring, her smile turning devilish as she pressed herself closer to him.

“Besides, there's so much more you could be doing with your time than paperwork,” she argued in a low whisper, lips pressed against the column of his throat.

Ethan wholeheartedly agreed with that compelling argument, particularly with the one her delicate hands made at the buttons of his shirt. A chill traveled down the length of his body, not from the air conditioner of the elevator but from the captivating, expectant way her green eyes studied him when she pulled back.

“Like what?” he asked anyway.

“Like me,” she returned without a beat in the sexiest murmur he had ever heard.

Ethan grinned down at her, surprised he had enough self control to do even that. “That was terrible, Allende.”

Yet it worked, his body thrummed with an overpowering need to push her against the elevator railing, the unbridled longing buzzing wildly through his veins like an exposed wire. The loud ding of the elevator announcing their arrival, however, interrupted what promised to be a charged and heady kiss.

Lilac took in the lavish décor of the restaurant, rendered even more intimate by the twinkling lights of the city sparkling through the floor to ceiling windows. As the maître d' approached, she hurriedly leaned up to whisper in his ear.

“Ethan, this looks like the kind of place that needs a reservation.”

Her eyes fell on the crystal chandelier adorning the high ceiling and added, “A reservation months in advance.”

Ethan only grinned crookedly at her.

“And given that I just seduced you into this date one hour ago, I really doubt we have one.”

“Seduced me? Is that how you'll get me to do your bidding from now on?”

He would welcome that new development. To his slight disappointment, however, she ignored this question, wide eyes fixed on the maître d' before them.

“Good evening. What is the name for the reservation?”

“Ethan Ramsey.”

The man nodded once. “Of course. Welcome, Dr. Ramsey. If you follow me.”

He turned to lead them into the luxurious dining room. By the time they sat at their private table with an unobstructed view of the bay, Lilac blinked out of her surprise.

“How did you—?”

“I'm friends with the head chef.”

“Of course you are.”

Ethan flashed her another crooked smile, this one taking effect immediately in the adorable blush of her cheeks. His own stomach swooped in response, part of him incredulous that he was really there, on a date with the woman of his dreams.

The waiter arrived and Ethan wasted no time in ordering an expensive bottle of champagne, earning him a curious glance from Lilac.

“What are we celebrating?”

The bravado seemed to fizzle out and Ethan, suddenly self conscious, shrugged. “The fact that we can finally do this openly, without having to hide.”

Her eyes met his, the rosy patches on her cheeks burning brighter. Looking positively touched, she gave him a fond smile.

Lilac did not have an opportunity to say anything else because their champagne arrived, along with a beautiful display of appetizers. At the sight of food, her expression brightened, eliciting a laugh from Ethan.

“I hate seafood but I'm going to try the Ahi Tuna Poke,” she informed him confidently.

Ethan raised his brows. “Why? You know you'll hate it.”

“I want to see if I'll like it now that I'm older and more mature.”

“Mature?” he asked with faux sarcasm.

Lilac stuck out her tongue at him. “You know what I mean. You start enjoying things you once hated as you grow older.”

Ethan considered this in the quiet ambiance of the restaurant. Finally, he nodded his agreement. “I definitely know what you mean. When I was younger, I hated pistachio ice cream. My dad always insisted on buying it and just the sight of it made me gag.”

It was Lilac's turn to laugh, endeared by the story. “Poor little Ethan,” she commented, leaning in to bop his nose with her finger. He would never admit it out loud but it made his chest swell pleasantly. “I always wondered what you were like when you were younger.”

“I was a devil. Remember that story about me blowing up my neighbor's shed?”

She laughed again but shook her head. “No, I mean I've never seen any pictures of young Ethan Ramsey.”

“That's been on purpose, Rookie. They're locked away in Providence, safe from prying eyes.”

Her shoulders deflated at that, the light of the chandelier catching the sequin of her dress. The crestfallen expression, however, did not last long.

“And how do I get access to these adorable pictures?”

“When I die.”

“Or,” she added without missing a beat, her expression brightening in a way Ethan didn't exactly appreciate. “I could just text Alan right now. I bet he'll send them if I asked.”

Ethan glared at her, finding it difficult to remain unsmiling when her playful grin lit up the entire room.

They stared each other down for a long minute before they both sprang into action at the same time, each reaching for their phone.

“Too late,” she proclaimed, her voice giddy. It attracted the attention of a nearby couple but she didn't seem to care. “I'm texting him now and—Oh my God, he's replying.”

Ethan wasn't even sure what he meant to do with his own phone. There was no chance he could ever compete with Lilac's lightning-speed texting.

Finally, a message came in on her phone and Lilac clapped a hand over her mouth. “Oh my God,” she squealed, the sound muffled. “Ethan!”

He knew his father had sent her the pictures he requested because her eyes darted from her screen to Ethan and then back again.

“You were so—”

“Don't say—”

“Adorable!”

Lilac showed him her screen and he groaned.

As she dissolved into giggles, Ethan brandished his own phone at her. “You'll pay for that, Allende.”

“Go ahead,” she challenged. “Nothing you do is going to top—”

“I'm texting your sister,” he interrupted calmly. “For pictures of young you.”

Her laughter halted completely, all traces of humor vanishing entirely. With as much dignity as possible, she shrugged, though the intended effect was ruined by the way she had almost leapt across the table with every intention of snatching his phone away.

Before she could do just that, Ethan began to text.

“I'm going to murder her,” Lilac said passionately just as the server stopped at their table to refill their glasses. He didn't even bat an eye at Lilac's declaration.

“No need,” Ethan said with a chuckle, glancing at the pictures once more. “My plan of embarrassing you backfired since there's not a single bad picture of you in here.”

She rolled her eyes but he could tell she was fighting back a smile. Unable to resist, he gently took her hand in his and brought it to his lips. The private moment between them lingered, their eyes locked on each other’s as though magnetized.

“Thank you,” he murmured.

Her lips were parted, her voice slightly breathless. “For what?”

“For making this night infinitely better.”

Her responding smile was brighter and far more breathtaking than the view of the city behind her.

“It's only just starting.”

_________________

A/N: Told you that was crazy and pointless. I really wanted them to go out somewhere, anywhere in those hot outfits. Thank you if you made it this far!

Dedicated to @takeharryandgo who said “Ethan is the town and MC is going to hit it” in regards to the dress being changed from “Date Night” to “Hit the Town”

thank you @aestheticartsx for pre-reading!

Love you all,

Bree

Also, the Pictagram series: Chapter 10 is taking longer because work is crazy for me atm. I also want to make sure this particular chapter is the best it can possibly be!

_____________________

(Sorry if I forgot anyone)

tags: @openheart12 , @takeharryandgo , @trappedinfanfiction, @aestheticartsx, @aworldoffandoms, @paulfwesley, @myusualnerdyself, @rookie-ramsey, @ohchoices, @colossalpainintheass, @enmchoices, @i-bloody-love-drake-walker, @choicesfanaf, @openheartthot, @octobereighth, @nazarihoe, @utterlyinevitable, @kites-in-our-skies, @maurine07, @schnitzelbutterfingers, @doilooklikeiknow, @snesdudes, @kingliam2019, @perriewinklenerdie, @cinnamonspongecake, @choicesstan1, @queencarb, @ethxnrxmsey, @missmiimiie, @jens-diamondchoices, @adamsdumortain, @mrsramseyy, @apphia12, @kalogh, @lucy-268, @binny1985, @queenbirbs, @honeyandsunfl0wers, @newcolonies, @lilyvalentine, @rigatonireid, @interobanginyourmom, @parkerattano, @custaroonie, @nikki-2406, @lilypills, @chasingrobbie, @nooruleman, @angela8756, @lonely-mxxnlight, @ruinedbypixels, @shadynaturehilariouscookie, @tsrookie, @mvalentine, @professorkingslay, @drakewalkerfantasy, @casey-v, @helloblueeyedcat, @mysticaurathings, @blossomanarchy, @thegreentwin, @togetherwearerapture, @rookieoh, @ramseysno1rookie, @rookiemarsswiftie, @natashajaniphil, @mysticalgalaxysstuff, @hatescapsicum, @choices-lurker, @kiara-36, @junehiratas, @danijimenezv, @macy-ray85, @adrex04, @canigetanawwjunk, @sanchita012, @overwhelminglyaquarius , @scorpiochick8, @skylarklyon, @starrystarrytrouble, @mercury84choices, @drariellevalentine, @ethanrcmsey, @lion-ess24, @aarisa-frost, @kaavyaethanramsey , @udishaman

#open heart #ethan ramsey #ethan x mc #playchoices #my writing #ethan ramsey fanfiction #ethan ramsey x mc #open heart fanfiction #choices fanfiction

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secondgenerationnerd · 3 years ago

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Almost

“Almost--the saddest word in the world”

--------

Zachary should have known. He should have fucking known.

He’d warned them of things not to fall for— undead loved ones calling to them, figures promising riches and pleasure, a baby’s cry. He stressed that last one before they went camping. But this? Demon deals always go wrong. Always.

“Down!” He ducks as Lucy’s iron bat connects with a demon’s face. Connor blasts another away with a sharp cry, the frequency debilitating others in range. Jania and Matt take them down with iron knives. At least he wasn’t a total fuck up. They can protect themselves.

“Zachary, water!”

Ceridian’s order breaks his train of thought. Summoning the water is easy, both them working together to wash demons away. Holy water would be better, but he can’t make that. He’s trying, fuck, he’s trying.

“Little Magician,” The lumbering head demon, Hennal, sneers at Zachary, “You let humans fight your battles for you? I thought your bloodline was stronger--”

The wall above Hennal’s head crashes down, Luca swinging over to the team. They circle up as the demons become restless.

“Velocity, Atalanta, exits?”

“Rob, our exits are blocked with hellspawn. Zachary, ways to take them down, a plan, something?”

“I-I-”

“EARS!” Connor shouts. They jump to the sides as Connor unleashes a cry. They can’t keep this up forever.

“Tell me, little Magician,” Hennal coos, “Did your parents tell you about Nicholas Necro?”

Bile rises in his throat, “Shut up.”

“Did your mother tell you what he tried to do?”

“Z--”

“I said, shut! Up!” The temperature starts to drop, which only annoys the demons more.

“Let’s see if you’re just like your parents.”

Too late.

Zachary understands too late.

Connor disappears first, canary cry cut short as the ground swallows him. Then Ceridian shouts as he’s pulled underneath. Matt yells for Luca, diving to grab his hand, dragged down together. Lucy screams as the rocks rise over her skates before disappearing.

Back-to-back, Zachary grips Jania’s hand as the demons surround them. She has one of her knives brandished, slicing at any demons that get close. Ice spreads out from his shoes, breath coming in short visible puffs.

“Z?”

“I’m here, J.”

“My brother, the others--”

“I know. We’ll find them. Stay with me and you’ll be safe.”

“Safe?” Hennal’s voice makes their skin crawl, “You think you’re safe, son of Constantine?”

“Whore’s son.”

“Bastard.”

“Weakling.”

Jania squeezes his hand tight, “I’ve got your six.”

“Does he have yours?”

Zachary should have felt the energy shift. Instead he’s caught off guard as Jania’s legs fly out from under her.

“JANI!”

“ZACHARY!” Jania’s nails break as she’s dragged across the rocky ground, leaving bloody streaks in the wake. “ZACHARY!”

“JANIA!” He leaps forward, hoping its close enough. Please be close enough—

His finger tips brush against hers, bright blue eyes locking with brilliant green, as she’s dragged under the stones. His name still on her lips.

“No…” Zachary squeezes his eyes shut, tears rolling down his face. Not them. Not his team. Not her…

“Poor little magician. Too slow to save your friends.” Hennal’s words pierce the young Magi’s heart.

“Weakling.”

“Failure.”

“Just like his parents—”

Zachary’s not entirely sure what happens next. Just feels the blood in his veins turn to ice, lungs ripping in half with his screams. There’s fragments he’ll remember later—ancient words he never learned falling from his lips, demons begging in vain for mercy, fire. So much fire. He won’t remember caring about that though. Let the fuckers burn, that’s what he’ll remember.

Even as the flames threaten to consume him, Zachary doesn’t stop.

Not until the demons are piles of ash.

Not until he’s the only living thing in the room.

“ZACHARY!”

“Z!”

“Guys?” Zachary turns towards the footsteps racing towards him. Why’s everything so blurry? Two cracks of lightning come towards him. Why are they so slow? “J…you’re safe…you’re all…”

The world goes black as his knees buckle. At least his friends are there to catch him.

#young justice verse #young justice #zachary zatara #jania west #matt west #luca gordon grayson #connor lance queen #lucy quinn #lucy quinzel

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i-was-bored-so-this-happened · 3 years ago

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Rae Watches Primeval

Season 1 Episode 2 AKA, This Post Has Been In The Making For Multiple Months/I’m Being Very Brave With All These Bugs

If you’d like to be tagged in future Rae Watches Primeval posts, let me know

This is long as fuck, my dudes

Spoilers. Spoilers everywhere.

Gotta love the end of the Previously On though “I lost her. And now I think she’s back from the dead.” THEME MUSIC BUH-DUH-BUM-NEEAAOOOOWW

Also - THEME MUSIC YEAHHHHH

Oh woah I zoomed in to make the image clearer and really I’ve just made it grainer. It’s that Essence of the 2000s

God, I hate the Underground. You know one time someone tried to push me down the escalators at an Underground? And another time when I was little I mis-timed my step and got my foot stuck in the gap and everyone just trampled over me? Hate the Underground

Ah yes, only when the train stops does it become unbearingly hot and all the women start fanning themselves at the same time

hhhhhhhhhh jesus fuck my worst fucking nightmare oh my god

i’ve already been in contact with many insects today so i’m going to be a bit more jumpy at this episode than usual, yes i know the insects around me were mostly plastic, shut up

The guy on the other side of the window heard nothing

Eyup, there are Duncan and Tom

“I swear on my Empire Strikes Back poster signed by Luke Skywalker and Dave Prowse”

I know we make fun of, “I do know what a sacred relic is, Duncan, I have seen Raiders of the Lost Ark” but that is a line I’d spontaneously make up mid conversation with my friends

Wtf is Duncan eating, the video’s too grainy to see

Duncan’s the only one eating, Connor’s brandishing a banana and Tom’s chewing a plastic fork Tag yourself, I’m Tom

I take back my statement of, “I know we make fun of...” because bruh please stop making nerds talk like this, every second sentence is not a pop culture reference

Is it cake? It might be cake

Look at the little bi man, unable to sit correctly. I understand, little bi man, for I, a little bi woman, am also unable to sit correctly

I’ve zoomed back out a bit so Stephen isn’t just squares

Connor. Honey. NO. Take the hat off and the outfit might be bearable ^ The entire fandom @ Connor at any given moment

OH, was that scene just...him finding out where Abby lived? That’s only just clicked right now. Connor why you stalking Abby, how did you even find out where she lives

Or was that him finding the “anomaly” and he already knew where Abby lived?

I’m not even going to mention the lizards, I leave that to @late2000shistoricalreenactment

HH NOPE NOPE NOPE CLICKED BACK ON TO SEE THE SPIDER FUCK OFF

Tom Cruise?

We’re Seven Minutes and Forty Seconds In, Folks. We’re In For a Long Ride

“You can hold my hand if you’re frightened.” “And how is that going to make me feel better?”

How the FUCK DO YOU NOT SEE THAT THING SITTING ACROSS FROM YOU?????

Bro. BRO. You’ve been spraying PESTECIDES everywhere on the UNDERGROUND and you’re just going to EAT the FOOD YOU DROPPED ON THE FLOOR without even CHECKING IT?

This lighting is so very nice to Lucy Brown, she looks lovely

“We should huddle together for warmth.” Is something I actually say to my friends if one of them says they’re cold and it usually works

Ah yes, the Stephen-Abby-Connor love-triangle everyone loved so much

Abby dON’T THROW AWAY YOUR TEA!!! JUST BECAUSE HE MIGHT BE GAY??? GIRL

That is a pitiful tent, even a one-person tent. Can’t even get changed in there

Claudia also getting comfy and sitting incorrectly in Stephen’s chair It is the chair or is it the people sitting in the chair, that is the question

“Human sacrifice, dogs and cats living together, mass hysteria!”

asdkjbhasjhadskjhb Abby took a radio with her?

Not gonna lie, impressive remote-control life-size dinosaur for the two nerdy slackers

Dude is STILL DOWN THERE?? It’s been a whole ass day!!

Nothing came out of your spray can, bruh

Wilhem scream, present and accounted for

SO I...UH...STARTED THIS POST IN JUNE....IT’S NOW AUGUST...WHEN I STOPPED WATCHING I WAS ONLY 14 MINUTES IN....MAKE SURE YOUR SEATBELTS ARE ON

Oh my god since I was last on Dailymotion they’ve added a Picture-in-Picture feature, that’s going to make these posts so much easier to make!! Good going, Dailymotion, my beloved

Oh so potatoey <3

Connor this is why you signed th e OFFICIAL SECRETS ACT

Damn, look at that favouritism. You can’t pick a favourite child, Nick

I do love the soundtrack though, I’ve missed hearing it

“Venom, to be precise.” Then why did you tell her it was poison??

oof i’m gay, lucy brown is really just so pretty this episode

Lester’s hair was so messy in the first season

Boom boom bang bang baby!

Oh no, not the black Lexuses! Lexi? The big black cars!

THERE HE ISSSSSSSSS!!!!! MY BOYYYYYY TOM FUCKING RYAAAAANNNN

I have no gifs of him from this episode, criminal

“They don’t even know what they’re looking for!” neither do you!!! That’s why they’re going first!!

“Well, there can’t be that many types of venomous predator under the Aldwitch.” “You should see the last tube home on a Friday night.” ICONIC

no thoughts

funnily enough, i’ve never really been scared of the bugs in this episode unless i’ve encountered a lot of bugs that day

do the night-vision goggles really work that well when there’s actually loads of light in the room?

Wilhelm Scream Two, Electric Boogaloo

We get to see that that soldier’s bitten and then never hear about him ever again

This might be the most Tom Ryan gets to speak in any episode he’s in....and that is a crime

This cool rotating shot would have been cooler without the cuts

In case you didn’t hear that, as Nick and Stephen are gearing up, Stephen tells Nick, “You wear it well, you look good.” Do with that what you will

Ooohh, synchronised torch-turning-on

god the spider sounds are loud

“Does anyone have a really big slipper?”

hhhh okay the bugs are getting to me a little bit now, i’m going to bed soon, don’t infect my dreams please...

w...Stephen? what was that? I?

ugh i do love the shots that go around and through anomalies

Alright Stevey you don’t have to shout

Arthropleura: *is directly above him*

“Damn.” you really had no plan, huh

i’m sorry i just hallucinated-

a DALEK HAS HIM OH NO

A giant centipede, surplus oxygen, come on, come on [snaps fingers] you should be able to get this without Connor

Apparently when Cutter isn’t there all palaeontological and historical knowledge goes out the window and Connor restores those braincells

Abby, you can run after him, you know.....you don’t have to just stand there without moving.....call after him once and only once...and then not tell Claudia

Remind me one day to make a post about parallels between this episode and 5x04 because there’s at least a couple if I dig

Damn, Stephen, couldn’t you hear those sound effects? They’re louder than your voice!

There’s only fifteen minutes left and in that time Stephen has to nearly die

Well done on walking towards the giant magnet with your metal weapon

And THAT’S WHY YOU TELL CLAUDIA WHAT’S GOING ON, ABBY

“That’s the problem with heroic gestures: succeed and you look wonderful, fail and all you do is leave everybody else a bloody mess to clean up.” Claudia is so very quotable

You heard THAT, but not the giant BUG?

“What happened?” “Had an argument with a bug. Bug won.”

Ah yes, Helen, leave a message with a man and then leave him for dead, great plan

“It’s the kind of bug that’d stick to the kitchen at parties.”

NICK KNEW IT WAS AN ARTHROPLEURA, WHY DIDN’T STEPHEN???

oh god no, not this part, goddamn it stephen

“It’s so much easier to do this stuff when you’re dying.” - Dying man in a long-term relationship asks his colleague out shortly after speaking to his ex-girlfriend [who also happens to be his best friend's wife]

The spiders have had enough, they’re going home

Oh shit! Oh shit I have a shirt the same colour as Connor’s! I found it at work a couple weeks back and bought it! Yo!

Alright! Two days later, I'm back, and I only have like ten minutes to go so maybe this post will go in my queue today!!! Yaaayyy! It only took me...two months...

Oh so now CLAUDIA'S down here too??

dAMNIT

Did they ever explain why there's just...loads of bunkbeds in this abandoned section of the Underground? I can't remember. I don't get it.

Cewl

"If I don't come back, you can have my Star Trek Next Generation Top Trumps" "I'll treasure them" An adorable moment, honestly

"On second thoughts, actually, maybe you should bury them with me."

And he just happened to bring a bottle of...turpentine with him

I mean, I guess he knew there'd be bugs and he was always planning to go down into the underground to them so he brought it with him to keep them away? Or something? I guess?

Ah, yes, the only mention of Connor's panic attacks ever, it was nice knowing you

"Claustrophobia and vertigo on the same day," again, I think this might be the only time either of those things are ever mentioned, much like how all of Connor's allergies are brought up in the first episode but never actually cause him any problems

"Bite me" - Nick Cutter, 2007

Aw, he tried

Eugh, burned bug. Burned bug smells horrible, and that's a big bug

I can't get over how I have the same shirt as Connor now

Something that always bothered me when I was little was that if the bug bit into the bag it would have left holes, so Baby Rae couldn't understand how the venom didn't just leak out of the holes in the bag

I've never seen Buffy the Vampire Slayer...

My headphones keep making a buzzing sound like there's a fly in my room when nothing's playing through them and there is no fly, it's very irritating

It was at this moment in time I realised I'd written "Jenny" in every instance I'd meant "Claudia"

Ah, yes, the convenient amnesia

UGH, Abby's so pretty right here

Stephen is also pretty but like right now we're focusing on Abby

AH THE FATHER-SON MOMENT YESS

IT'S SO POTATOEY AND FUZZY, GOD, THE 2000s

"I don't suppose you'd consider giving me a cool nickname, would you?" *silence* "No."

No, Connor, please, it's better without the hat sometimes, this is one of those times

UGH I LOVE THE ANOMALIES

The Helen Where Are You track is one of my favourite pieces on the Primeval soundtrack, I listen to it all the time

askjhasdkjhsjh the little break that tells you what's on next is included in this recording and apparently Dancing On Ice aired after this episode sdajkhsaskjh

#primeval #rae watches primeval #BOOM BABY #WE BACK #for how long who knows #but i'm here #howarequeue

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thomaslightwoodenthusiast · 4 years ago

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hello everyone!

here is part 2, as promised! also, @liasan-stuff asked to be tagged so here you go! if you ever want to be tagged in any future writing i do, just ask! i’ve never made a taglist, but if that’s something that you guys would like i have no problem with doing one- as long as you let me know you want to be on it!

that being said, happy reading!

sarahxo

➰➰➰➰

Cordelia entered the large room in the Institute that Christopher had chosen to use. She didn’t know why it was so big; this event was only the few of them having some fun together. But it boded well for her plan, considering there was a piano towards the top end.

“Cordelia! Those clothes...well they are certainly a different look,” said Matthew, with a tone of either admiration or surprise; she was not sure. She considered telling him they were Alastair’s but she did not want anyone to be suspicious of anything- should he show, it had to be a total shock. Christopher grinned at her, pleased that her arrival meant they could begin soon.

“Terribly good to see you, Cordelia! Now all that’s left is for Lucie to appear.”

Cordelia was puzzled. “Is she not here?”

Christopher gestured to James. “She will be here, but James knows what she’s doing right now. Unfortunately I cannot quite recall, though I myself have been busy.”

“Preparing your talent?”

“Yes, actually! If you remember, a few months ago I mentioned that I was in the process of developing a new way to send messages via fire. Well, with some extra help I have been able to finalise it! I have not told the others; which is why I am debuting it tonight!”

Cordelia watched Kit’s lilac purple eyes light up through his round spectacles as he spoke. Such an odd eye colour; but so striking. “What extra help did you receive?”

Christopher’s eyes lost their sparkle for a fleeting moment as he looked down. “I do not want to say. James and Matthew do not like who helped me.”

Cordelia wondered if it was Alastair; after all, Kit seemed to get on with him. Though James had grown more tolerant towards him recently. “If you do not wish to say, I will respect that.”

He took a breath. “No, it is alright. I trust you won’t say. It was Grace. She and I spoke once on the subject of science; one day when I was working she had turned up through the window of the laboratory. I cannot recall why or what she was actually doing, but she asked me about what I was doing and when I told her she liked it! She was actually the one who discovered the purpose of that odd stele. I thought I would ask her if she would like to help me with a project and- voilà!” Kit finished, brandishing a piece of paper from his jacket. Cordelia couldn’t decide whether to be shocked, or smile at how sweet it was. If this had been a month or two earlier, her reaction would be different- but after everything with Grace being sorted, she felt better. She did notice one thing, though.

“Kit, that’s only paper.”

“Yes, well, that is what your eyes want you to think. But when pen is set to paper, you will see the magic!”

Cordelia laughed as she walked away and over to James. When he was talking about Grace, his eyes regained their sparkle. He perked up. She almost rolled her eyes internally; Goodness, someone else in love with Grace? But she felt happier about this time. Maybe because the person in love with her was not her husband.

“Hello, Mrs. Herondale,” James said, bowing to her in mockery. “Or do you prefer- what is it again?”

“It’s Miscellaneous Lover number 3 to you.”

James cocked an eyebrow. “Three? Does he have a name?”

“No,” Cordelia continued, “but I believe the Beautiful Cordelia has to kill him. That happens to be the scene we are acting out actually. Kit sent me here because he says you know where Lucie is?”

James made a face not lacking affection. “She’s been with Anna all day. She told her about our little show and Anna immediately took it upon herself to not only take Lucie dress shopping, but to help practise her lines with her because you couldn’t.”

“Oh goodness. Then we can expect the dress to be-“

“A whirlwind of beauty and extravagance?” a voice called. It was Lucie. She had just burst through the doors, Anna following closely behind with a look of pride on her face. Lucie headed towards Cordelia.

“What do you think? Anna had it tailored for me earlier today. It is incredibly accurate to the one you were wearing in the scene!”

“Is that so?” Cordelia smiled inwardly. She adored Lucie’s enthusiasm. Usually, Jesse would be by her side, but he went out with his sister often and tonight was one of their nights.

“This is everyone, isn’t it?” Thomas asked. This was the first time he’d spoken since saying hello to Cordelia. He’d been quite quiet; absentmindedly running his hand over his left forearm, where the tattoo was. Cordelia held back a grin as she put the pieces together. He always seemed to do that when he was stressed or worried- albeit rare he felt that way. But it had been Alastair who had convinced him to show them the tattoo, and knowing what she did now she thought it was endearing that he thought of her brother when he was stressed.

“Unfortunately, yours truly can’t stay. I have something important to attend,” Anna said, gesturing dismissively as if to say she wouldn’t answer any questions.

Christopher frowned. “I did want you here,” he muttered, seeming hurt.

“Oh don’t worry your sweet little face, my brother,” Anna replied, ruffling Kit’s hair. “I have already decided on my replacement.”

“Who?” James queried. Anna left without a word, smirking. After a few seconds, Will sauntered in looking extremely pleased with himself. James and Lucie promptly buried their faces in their hands; he had clearly had a drink or two with Tessa- who, being smart, had not came with him.

“I am to be your judge!” he declared. “Cordelia wins!”

Lucie stared. “She’s with me and it hasn’t even started yet.”

“I do not care. You two will probably be the best anyways; I have little faith in these four. Except you, Christopher. As long as you don’t blow anything up, of course.”

Will winked at Cordelia. The group decided among themselves who would go first; Lucie and Cordelia said they would. James and Matthew were to be next, doing God knows what, leaving Christopher and Thomas.

“I’d like to go last, if that’s alright. Kit, if you want to go last I don’t mind-“

“Nonsense, Thomas! Go last if you wish. I am eager to show you all my proudest project yet!”

Cordelia was feeling bold. She knew no one else would understand why, but she asked Thomas why he wanted to go last.

“Let’s just say...I don’t believe any of you are aware of this talent and I do feel quite nervous.”

Matthew pretended to be offended. “My goodness! What else haven’t you told us? There’s already a secret talent. Give us a hint, please?”

Thomas’s eyes widened briefly as Matthew inquired about what else hadn’t been told to them- not enough for Matthew to notice, Cordelia observed.

“I don’t believe I can without giving it away. It is not something I’ve heard or seen any of you doing though.”

“Can we stop discussing Thomas and his secrets and start letting Cordelia and I perform, please?” Lucie demanded, mouthing sorry to him.

“Ooh, let’s,” Will exclaimed, clapping his hands together excitedly as his daughter and daughter-in-law took the...well, the middle of the hall.

➰➰➰➰

hey guys! so i think i only need to do one more part. i wasn’t sure if i would, but i need to bc the last part is the thomastair heavy part!! i did mention having drunk charles coming in; that may be briefer than i had wanted because i don’t want to make this any more than three parts. mainly because i’m going to be totally back to school on tuesday and i’m going to be super busy with a LOT of testing, and i don’t want to add on to my work load lol. but yeah!! like i said the next part will really (hopefully) get into the thomastair! i have my plan for it ready and i’m going to start figuring it out soon. have fun and i hoped u liked this!

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cogentranting · 5 years ago

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The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes and Mockingjays and Roses

*Warning: Full Spoilers for The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes*

Symbols are an important part of The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes. Symbols are used to mark the identities of different characters, define relationships, and provide thematic links to the original trilogy. The symbols work to create a tension in the story, a question of whether they complement or contrast. Symbolism is used to explore two of the most influential people in Snow’s life: Lucy Gray and Katniss.

The various symbols associated with Lucy Gray are color, music, and birds. Each of these things plays a special role in the story and serves to distinguish her from Coriolanus. In a typical setting, love interests with different symbols could be understood to show how they complement each other-- opposites attract, two halves of a whole, etc. This novel lets the reader play with that interpretation for a large portion of the book; the story questions the relationship between them, wondering repeatedly how strong, or even how genuine, their love is. Ultimately, however, the contrasting associations sets them up for their final conflict and foreshadows the eventual destruction of both of them.

At the first sight of Lucy Gray, she is in a “dress made of a rainbow of ruffles” (24). In her first interview she says “the Covey love color” (53). The Covey are all named with colors. Lucy Gray wears bright colors at all times. The snakes which end up being drawn to Lucy Gray in the arena are bright neon colors. The colors represent her exuberance, her love of beauty, her eccentricity, her freedom to stand apart. But Coriolanus is white. The absence of color, the opposite of all that Lucy Gray loves and represents. However, this symbol for Coriolanus is not prominent in this book. In fact it only really exists in this book in the form of his last name-- Snow. Even that is not the name he goes by. But it is the name that forms his connection with the Capitol and all that it represents: Dr. Gaul calls him by his last name; the Capitol media makes frequent plays on his name; he is associated with the legacy of his family name; in the peacekeepers he is officially addressed as “Private Snow”. It’s also used as the voice of his ambition in the phrase that he and Tigris use, “Snow lands on top” (9). Eventually, when his character arc is complete and he has embraced evil, he switches to going by his last name, as the Epilogue exclusively refers to him as “Snow”. However, to fully grasp that a part of the symbolism of his name relates to the color white requires knowledge of the Hunger Games trilogy. There Snow is represented by his white roses. The roses are present in this book, but they are colored roses. Therefore, Coriolanus being symbolized by white is not a constant in The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes, it’s a progression. It is Coriolanus turning against what drew him to Lucy Gray. While the progression is ongoing, the decisive moment comes when Lucy Gray uses the bright orange scarf he gave her to set a trap for him (or at least so he assumes) (581). The shift is there as he is “betrayed” by Lucy Gray’s colors, and the fulfillment is present in the person of President Snow in The Hunger Games. By knowing the trilogy, the reader knows Coriolanus’s future and can see that he eventually eschews color, choosing the stark white which here sets him apart from Lucy Gray, but will also inevitably mark the violent contrast between him and the Girl on Fire.

The second hallmark of Lucy Gray is her love of music. Her singing is her survival. It’s how she earns her living in District 12. It’s what unites her with her family. It’s how she expresses her emotions. It’s how she attracts attention at the Reaping and how she gains enough favor to win the Games. Coriolanus does not start out opposed to music. In fact, it initially attracts him to Lucy Gray, especially since one of her songs she sings in the Capitol awakens memories of his mother and a song she sang to him that “mentioned loving him” (78). Music is associated with his mother on several occasions, and his mother is the figure who most represents love and goodness for Coriolanus. When asked how he is like his mother he replies that they “shared a fondness for music” but also internally admits to himself that “she liked music, and he didn’t hate it, he guessed” (290). Despite his positive associations with music and his connection with people who love music (his mother, Lucy Gray, and also Pluribus), Coriolanus himself does particularly like music and doesn’t really understand it. He notes that he “can’t really sing” and when he sings the anthem “his singing was more like sustained talking” (127, 129). Beyond lacking talent, it seems that music and poetry are something that he cannot grasp; all the Capitol’s songs “sounded the same to him”, and Livia Cardew mocked him for “his inability to decipher the deeper meaning of a poem” (185). This extends later into the novel when he specifically fails to grasp the meaning of Lucy Gray’s song, which he describes as “nonsense words” and “ridiculous” because he “couldn’t make sense of it” (425, 427). Coriolanus has an inability to understand something that is an essential part of Lucy Gray which represents a failure to connect to her on a deeper level. It also distances him from those characters who demonstrate positive moral character: Lucy Gray, his mother, the generous Pluribus, and Sejanus (who Coriolanus notes had “always been good at rhetoric” (427)). Livia Cardew attributes this to Coriolanus being “self-absorbed” (185). The presentation of this trait within the book represents his moral failings and his rejection of the Romanticism which defines the Covey and the philosophical rhetoric of the Rebels and Sejanus. This puts him at odds with all that the novel holds up as praiseworthy. His attitude toward music only worsens as the book progresses and he finds that he is “weary of the infusion of music into his life. Invasion might be a better word” (445). He feels the way it pushes him away from others and threatens his position. But the significance of the music does not stop with the concept in general.

The novel features the lyrics of multiple songs. Lucy Gray’s ballad is notable for the way it describes her mystery, how it shows Coriolanus’s failure to truly understand or appreciate her, and how it foreshadows his hand in her destruction. However, as he brings about her destruction, she has a hand in his eventual destruction. Lucy Gray is revealed to be the writer of the two songs from the Hunger Games trilogy-- “Deep in the Meadow” (“Rue’s Song”) and “The Hanging Tree”. “Deep in the Meadow” has less prominence in this book. The context is essentially the same-- Lucy Gray sings it as a lullaby to Maude Ivory in the same way that Katniss sings it to Prim and Rue-- so it carries the same weight initially. It is a symbol of peace and comfort and love. These are things which are mostly denied to Coriolanus and things which he rejects by the end of The Ballad, and actively seeks to destroy in The Hunger Games. However, it is eventually used against him, as Katniss’s use of the song-- her gesture of love for Rue-- is what causes the first sparks of rebellion to rise up in District 11. “The Hanging Tree” plays this role to an even greater extent. Lucy Gray writes the song about a moment that Coriolanus is present for and deeply disturbed by (350-351). The song is, on one level, about doomed lovers. Within the song you have Arlo and Lil-- two Rebels whose fate is mourned and romanticized, and whose doom Coriolanus has a hand in, already casting him in the role of antagonist. However, there’s also the speaker in the song. At one point in the narrative, the speaker is Billy Taupe calling to Lucy Gray. With him in the role of speaker the love story of the song is poisonous-- when they can’t be free together, Billy Taupe wants her to die rather than be free without him (487). After his death, the song transfers to be a call from Lucy Gray to Coriolanus. However, his character is entirely antithetical to the song. He rejects the dark romanticism that makes star-crossed lovers appealing, and rather than being willing to “wear a necklace of rope side by side with” Lucy Gray, he tries to kill her, betraying her and everything she and the song stand for. The song could also be applied to another pair of star-crossed lovers-- Katniss and Peeta. In their Games, Peeta tried to save her life-- “called out for his love to flee”-- then they try to survive together-- “I told you to run, so we’d both be free”-- and when that hope is lost they are prepared to die together-- “wear a necklace of rope, side by side with me”-- in order to deny the Capitol its victory and its ownership over them. Despite being the only couple without a literal connection to the Hanging Tree (and being a fake couple at the time of their actions) Katniss and Peeta most truly embody the spirit of the song, which Lucy Gray calls “too rebellious” (491). The song is meaningful on a broader level because it subverts the symbol of the Hanging Tree, which is meant to be an instrument for the Capitol’s control, and turns into a symbol of love and hope for freedom and resistance that would rather die than submit to the Capitol. Katniss later takes this song and transforms it into an anthem for the rebellion. In fact, it’s compared by Lucy Gray and Coriolanus to the Capitol’s anthem, saying it “has authority” like “when [Coriolanus] sang the anthem in the Capitol” (491). Katniss gives it the platform to be the rival anthem that it was destined to be, and she uses it to attack Snow. Lucy Gray haunts Coriolanus through the Hunger Games trilogy through her songs. These songs which are all that remains of the girl he betrayed and destroyed, come back as weapons against him, brandished as symbols of all that he and his tyranny stand against.

Beyond her general association with music, Lucy Gray is associated with birds. Her musical nature makes her a songbird like that of the title and her family is deemed “the Covey”-- covey is a word which means “a small party or flock of birds”. The way she is continually conscious of her appearance early in her time in the Capitol evokes a bird preening, as the ruffles of her brightly colored dress evoke feathers. Coriolanus ends up dealing with birds through his work as a peacekeeper, rounding up jabberjays and mockingjays. While his team member shows an affinity for birds, Coriolanus does not. He specifically notes that while some people “just understand birds” he is certain “that he would never be one of those people” (413). In an immediate sense, this once again signals a distance between him and Lucy Gray. She is a bird that he can never understand. In contrast, Lucy Gray has an affinity for snakes. The clearest counterpart for snakes is Coriolanus himself. His use of poison in this book and the Hunger Games trilogy creates the suggestion that he is venomous (especially when the evidence of his poisoning is found in the sores in his mouth). Dr. Gaul also breeds deadly snakes in the same way that she grooms Coriolanus into the man he becomes. Her snakes ignore him as if he is one of them. And Lucy Gray “always knows where [snakes] will be” (433). She uses her understanding of snakes to her advantage, dropping one down Mayfair’s dress, leaving one as a trap for Coriolanus, and poisoning Treech with one. The snakes in the Games end up drawn to her and soothed by her singing. Coriolanus is drawn to her and her singing in the same way, and likewise is used by her to win the Games. Lucy Gray seems to understand Coriolanus in a way that he can never understand her. However, she may have confused him for one of the non-venomous snakes from District 12, rather than a snake specifically bred to kill by Dr. Gaul. Or perhaps she subconsciously knows the truth about him since she states, “I love all kinds of things I don’t trust… snakes. Sometimes I think I love them because I can’t trust them” (441). Regardless of how his role of a snake attracts Lucy Gray, her role as a bird creates tension with Coriolanus. The wildness of the birds unsettles him. He expresses the belief that they’d be happier in a cage, but both Bug and Lucy Gray believe the birds should be free (418, 421). It reflects Coriolanus’s relationship with nature in general. It cannot be controlled and so he dislikes it. When he first sees the woods he is afraid of them; “the disorder alone felt disturbing” (348). This is a stark contrast to both Lucy Gray, who frequents the woods with the Covey, and Katniss who thrives in the woods. In similar fashion, the plant that Katniss is named for, and which aids in Lucy Gray’s survival (435, 497) grows wild, while Coriolanus’s signature flower, his roses, are domesticated and highly cultivated. Coriolanus likes only what he can control. It’s when he realizes that he cannot control Lucy Gray that he turns on her. This distinction takes on further relevance in his specific response to the jabberjays and the mockingjays

Coriolanus appreciates the jabberjays because they can be controlled easily with a simple remote control. Mockingjays, however, represent the uncontrollable. His reaction to them is immediate: “he’d spotted his first mockingjay, and he disliked the thing on sight” (352). Later he advocates killing all the mockingjays because “they’re unnatural” and “he distrusted their spontaneous creation. Nature running amok” (417). Lucy Gray on the other hand loves the mockingjays. When the mockingjays take up her song “the Covey were all smiles” and Tam Amber asserts “like sandstones to diamonds, that’s what we are to them” (439). Here Coriolanus expresses that what he fears most is that the mockingjays have removed “the Capitol birds from the equation” (439). He deeply believes in the need for the Capitol to maintain control, so something that openly flouts the need for the Capitol’s influence is both frightening and a threat to the beliefs that define him. Coriolanus eventually uses the jabberjays (a symbol of Capitol control) to betray Sejanus. In return, Lucy Gray uses the mockingjays to protect herself from Coriolanus as he hunts her (504). If she survived the encounter, it is because of the mockingjays. With his transformation into Snow complete, he is able to return to the Capitol. When he looks back on his time in District 12, he views Lucy Gray not as a lost love but as a conquered threat. Because Lucy Gray was someone he could not control he repaints her in his memory as someone who manipulated him and made him feel jealous and weak (516). But with his new power Snow is assured that “she and her mockingjays could never harm him again” (516). The memories have been twisted to associate Lucy Gray with mockingjays and in turn with harm done to him, though neither has ever actually harmed him. However, knowledge of the Hunger Games trilogy reveals the clear irony of his statement. Katniss uses the mockingjays to help her in the Games and makes them a tool for herself. They then become a symbol of the rebellion for the very reason that he initially hated them. Katniss comes to embody the things that mockingjay symbolizes and she and that symbol are the rallying point for the rebellion. Because of the Mockingjay that he can never predict, understand or control, everything Snow is and has built is destroyed.

Lucy Gray is a vibrant character that tempts Coriolanus toward a better life and a better way of being. Everything about her symbolizes a potential for good within him in his early years. However, he fully and irrevocably rejects that good. In doing so he commits his first great sin and destroys Lucy Gray. But he is unable to entirely destroy her. In fact, he’s never even sure if he killed her. Instead, she stays on as a ghost girl, her influence haunting District 12. From her influence rises Katniss, the Girl on Fire, like a phoenix rising from the ashes of the songbird Snow killed. Katniss is symbolically linked to Lucy Gray, but at the same time wholly distinct. Through her, Lucy Gray haunts Snow as punishment for his crimes. This link between the Songbird and the Mockingjay represents the way that Snow’s evil paved the way for his own destruction, but more importantly it shows that the things which he rejects and opposes and tries to kill cannot be destroyed. The spark of hope cannot be put out, beauty will not be tamed, and rebellion cannot stay dead in the face of tyranny. Those things were always destined to destroy him. Though The Ballad of Songbirds and Snakes may end with “Snow lands on top,” Lucy Gray is the persistent reminder that “The show’s not over until the mockingjay sings.”

#the ballad of sonbirds and snakes #the hunger games #the ballad of songbirds and snakes spoilers #coriolanus snow #lucy gray baird #katniss everdeen

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jemmahazelnut · 3 years ago

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Motorcycle flight - Chapter three

Summary: Laxus is a biker, and as soon as he discovers that in the city there’s a motorcycle track for enthusiasts where races are organized every month, he decides to go. As soon as he arrives, he will fall in love with that wonderful place, and will meet the handsome green-haired owner. [Freed/Laxus]

Link: AO3

Here you can find Chapter One, Chapter Two.

The ride

Laxus was in a good mood. Finally, the insurance had paid him, he only had to wait a few weeks and then the motorbike would be in his hands again. He couldn't wait for it, even if to tell the truth, Freed let him ride his bike on the track. He had won the race, much to Lucy's happiness, and although Freed had been annoying because he had repeated several times that the credit was all of his bike, Laxus found himself laughing and having fun.

He no longer mentioned the excuse Freed had come to his workshop, but realized that the boy was very open to him. They were very close, lately they always drunk together and even if they didn't see each other elsewhere, Laxus was almost convinced that Freed might like him. Almost, because Freed was nice to everyone. Almost, because Freed still hadn't opened up to him about his private life. He avoided talking about his family, even though he occasionally hinted at him about the problems he had running the track.

But that was fine with Laxus, he just hoped he wasn't deluding himself. Honestly, he was waiting for Freed to take the next step. He thought he was pretty clear with his intentions, had answered his jokes and always chatted with him willingly.

That evening he had just come by to say hello and as usual he was lost chatting with Freed more than expected. The two boys had been sitting at the table for more than two hours, and they were lost in talking about everything and more. Until they heard loud thunder rumbling around the place. The two boys looked up from the table and Laxus looked out the window.

“Fuck” he cursed. Normally he liked thunderstorms, especially the summer ones. At the moment, however, he only thought that he would’ve to return by bus in the rain to his house, crossing the whole city. He didn't use Freed's bike off the track, he already felt quite a scrounger like that. And even if he had used it, he would still have drenched everything.

“Great,” Bickslow commented.

“I'm running home,” Lucy said instead, placing the money on the counter and then going out next to Natsu, greeting everyone quickly. They weren't the only ones, all the people who had come up there had done so on motorcycles and no one was going to get wet. Freed, on the other hand, seemed quite calm.

“Well, I guess I'm going too,” Laxus said, getting up “Magnolia's public services are bad enough, I wouldn't be surprised if the bus didn't even go by” he commented.

“If you want, I'll give you a lift, I came by car,” he said. Laxus thought about it for a moment, in reality he already owed Freed enough for his kindness, but the idea of waiting in the cold and without an umbrella didn’t excite him too much. Had it been a short walk he’d have taken it himself, but so...

“Well, thanks then.”

“Will you accompany me too? I'm a long way away,” Evergreen said.

“Yes, if you wait half an hour the bar closes, so bring me too,” Bickslow intervened. Freed sighed slightly.

��As you like,” he replied and sat back at the table. Laxus sat down as well. “Maybe next time check the forecast before coming here on the bike,” he muttered but he wasn't really upset. In any case, no one would’ve come to the bar by that time, so Evergreen and Bickslow closed five minutes early and then all four ran to Freed's car. Even if they only remained under the water for not even a minute, when they entered, they were all deep. Bickslow was standing next to Freed, while Evergreen and Laxus were behind.

“What a lousy time,” the girl complained. “Will you accompany me first?”.

“If the others are okay,” Freed replied. Laxus and Bickslow had nothing to argue and Freed turned on the headlights and drove off in the car. It was the first time Laxus had gotten into Freed's car, and he was a little surprised to see it wasn't such a nice car. He had expected him to drive one of the latest outings. Apparently, his passion for cars was not as much as that of motorcycles.

The weather, however, was getting worse and worse, and suddenly Freed was forced to slow down to practically a crawl. He reached Evergreen's house and the girl greeted them, running out to enter the house as soon as possible.

“Maybe it's best to wait before continuing,” Bickslow commented, glancing out. He wasn't all wrong, they could barely see where they were going. Freed, however, decided to continue slowly, as Bickslow didn’t live far away and shortly afterwards he too went out.

“Do you want to sit in front? At this rate, I think we'll arrive at your house tomorrow morning,” Freed commented as soon as they were alone.

“Nah, I don't want to go out even for two seconds,” Laxus replied. “And then I feel like I'm in a taxi,” he smiled.

“In fact, I feel like a taxi driver, except I don't get paid”.

“Not that you need it.”

Freed laughed.

“Where exactly do you live?” he asked.

“Near Acalypha square, if you reach it then I'll give you the directions” Laxus replied.

“Oh,” Freed said.

“Yes, I know, it's a bit far,” Laxus commented. “If you want, I can call a taxi,” he then added. Even though it was Freed who had offered to accompany him after all.

“No, I think it would be the same problem. Do you want to wait for the storm to calm down a bit and then I'll take you home? My house is just behind that street,” he explained. Laxus shrugged. He was fine with it. So Freed drove off and continued for a couple of meters, then turned right and parked under cover. The two boys got out of the car and Laxus looked around curiously. They were in the parking lot of a building, probably Freed lived in an apartment there.

He turned to the boy who, however, had his gaze fixed on a car and had a dark look. Laxus frowned slightly.

“Everything good?” he asked.

“Yes. My cousin is here” he just said and then turned to the stairs of the building, snorting. “She's a little... strange girl, don't pay too much attention to her,” he said.

“What do you mean weird?” he asked a little curious to know the girl. He didn't even know Freed had a cousin. To tell the truth, he didn't know anything about his family. He only knew that he had no siblings and that he had quarreled with his parents.

“It's just too hard to explain,” Freed replied as he climbed the stairs. The two boys arrived at the atrium of the building, from there they took the elevator and reached the third floor. Once there Laxus saw two girls outside a door and immediately spotted Freed's cousin. She was probably the green-haired girl drinking fruit juice.

“Finally, you arrived, we were waiting for you” she said in a bored tone.

“Hello to you too” was the response of Freed, who then greeted the blonde kindlier, who smiled and greeted him. Freed took out the keys.

“Nice to meet you, I'm Dimaria” said the blonde, holding out her hand. Laxus shook it, introducing himself, then turned his gaze on the green-haired girl.

“Brandish,” she said without reaching out, then she turned and walked through the door Freed had just opened. “I'll take your bath, I need to warm up,” the girl said.

“Make yourself at home,” Freed commented wryly.

“Obviously. Do you have something good to eat?” she asked bored.

“No”.

“Honey, would you go get something from the fridge? I'm sure Freed has a supply of gummy candies hiding from me,” she said. Freed put his hands to his temples.

“Only you can eat gummy candies at your age,” he commented vaguely irritated. Dimaria giggled.

“You can take them yourself,” she replied.

“That hassle,” Brandish said as she tossed her jacket on the sofa, which Freed got annoyed and moved it from there, hanging it up in part right away.

“Why are you here?” he asked.

“We were in the storm, and your house was close,” she replied as she walked to the kitchen. Laxus looked at the two boys with a bit of curiosity. Brandish apparently acted as if it were her home, and Freed made no secret of his irritation. The girl found no candy, but she took a packet of peanuts and then walked to the bathroom.

“Can you avoid acting like you're at your home?” Freed snapped.

“You said I can do it,” Brandish retorted.

“I was obviously... you know what, do whatever the fuck you want, but you won't sleep here tonight,” he clarified right away.

“We won't bother you and your boyfriend,” Brandish said quietly. Freed was already about to say something but Dimaria put an arm around the girl's shoulders.

“Sorry Freed, I told Brandish to warn you but she didn't want to, considering it a nuisance.”

“I imagine it,” Freed muttered softly.

“Anyway, we're actually here because she has something to tell you,” she revealed. Freed frowned slightly and turned to his cousin.

“Now I don't feel like it,” she said, shoving a handful of peanuts into her mouth. Freed was already about to blur something, and Laxus was a bit on the sidelines without knowing how to behave. Maybe it was better to call a taxi, he really didn't want to make his friend uncomfortable if he had to talk to his cousin.

“Look Brandish, talk and hurry, I'm getting annoyed and I won't hesitate to kick you out of the house just to be nice to your girlfriend,” he said. Brandish snorted.

“What a hassle,” she commented. “Can I use the tub later?” she asked.

“I just hope whatever you have to tell me is worth it,” he muttered. Brandish nodded and sat down on the couch, crossing her legs and gesturing for Freed to go get her jacket. The boy turned to Laxus.

“Sorry, I didn't think she was here. You can sit down in the meantime, can I bring you something to drink?” he asked.

“No, I'm fine.”

“You're nice to your boyfriend and you're not to your cousin,” Brandish commented.

“I'll never be nice to you, and Laxus isn't my boyfriend anyway,” he replied irritably. The blond sat on the other sofa while Freed went to get his cousin's jacket and passed it to the girl. She took it and then reached into her pocket for something, took a paper and pulled it out and passed it to Freed.

“You're welcome,” she just told him. Freed frowned slightly but instead of opening it he went into the kitchen. Soon he returned with three beers and a fruit juice. He passed the last one to Brandish, while he gave Dimaria a beer and Laxus one. The two thanked him, while the green-haired girl just said 'Finally'without receiving any response.

Laxus looked at the two girls and then his gaze fell back on Freed, who had opened the paper and was reading it, darkening his face more and more. He didn't take long to read it and as soon as he finished, he closed it clearly irritated.

“You can use the tub,” he told them.

“I knew it,” Brandish smiled satisfied as she stood up and headed for the bathroom. Laxus was relieved that the two girls had disappeared from the living room. He had nothing against them, but it was all a bit embarrassing. He was silent for a moment in the living room with Freed, until he decided to break that atmosphere.

“You were right that your cousin is weird,” he commented with a smile. Freed smiled back, but it was clearly forced.

“Yes, she lived in wealth and is a bit spoiled and lazy,” he explained. Laxus nodded.

“Does she come to you often?” he asked him, although he was more curious than the piece of paper he had received.

“Occasionally, not very often though. We don't get along so well, but she has a sort of 'friendship bar rivalry' with Lucy. When I lived with her, I saw Brandish more often,” he said. Laxus nodded and glanced at the paper in Freed's hands. “What is it that she gave you? If I may know,” he asked, just not being able to restrain himself. Freed sighed wearily and ran a hand through his hair.

“You can read it,” he said, handing him the paper. “It's an article my father will probably publish shortly. Guess I'll have to call him,” he explained. Laxus took it and opened it. As soon as he started reading, he understood why Freed's mood had deteriorated dramatically.

It was an article against the motorcycle track, explaining how dangerous it was and how bad it was for the boys. How the underage boys found themselves fascinated by that place and frequented it, occasionally driving vehicles they couldn’t get on. And then he was talking about a group of bikers selling weed to kids. Laxus frowned slightly. He had never seen young boys at Raijinshuu, he was sure. He finished reading the article and looked up at his friend.

“Are they lies?” he asked him.

“Not really. Let's say he made connections that have no reason to exist. I know which group of bikers he’s referring to, I kicked them out of the Raijinshuu a few months ago. They have nothing to do with us, but you know… since they go on bikes they are associated with my track,” he said irritably. “Apparently my father has changed his strategy, he wants to ruin my reputation and lead me to bankruptcy like this,” he commented sourly. Laxus didn't know what to say. He honestly didn't even know how he could help him, always if there was a way.

“I guess talking to your father isn't going to solve the situation,” he said.

“Imagine well” replied Freed in a resigned and tired sigh “I'll call him, but I already know what he’ll ask me in exchange for not publishing the article”. Laxus raised an eyebrow and Freed snorted. “He's going to ask me to come back to him, go to some stupid rich party and act like a good son should and… I don't even know why I'm telling you. I don't want to stress you out with my problems,” he sighed.

“You don't stress me out,” Laxus said immediately, perhaps faster than he should have. “Maybe it would do you good to let off steam to someone,” he added. Freed seemed to think about it for a moment, then looked down at the coffee table putting down the beer from which he had only taken a small sip. For a moment he said nothing and Laxus didn't push him, peering at him and thinking what he could do to help him. Unfortunately, however, he had no ideas.

“My parents and I have been fighting for years,” he began. “Ever since I started dating guys. I thought they would get used to it over time, but they never did. Or rather, my mother more or less did, let's say that she tries to be the link between me and my father but… in the end she always ends up taking his side and it's tiring” he sighed.

“I'm sorry,” Laxus said quietly. Freed shook his head.

“It doesn’t matter. By now I’ve put my soul in peace. The problem is, they didn't. My mother calls me every now and then just to hear me, to find out how I am, but she always has to do it secretly from my father. And then... well, there’s the whole story of the track. When I opened it, I did it both to piss them off and to show that I could become someone even without their help” he explained. Laxus nodded without interrupting him, although he already knew that piece of history because Lucy had already told him.

“At the beginning it was more difficult to manage the track, I didn't have many customers, I had to make myself known and invest a lot. I had some savings, and thanks to my surname I was able to get a loan from the bank” he admitted a little annoyed. “So, let's say I was lucky, and I know it. My father reproached me, he called me every day, telling me that he’d make me fail, that I couldn’t tarnish his name in this way and at that point… I put out an article about him”.

Laxus said nothing as Freed smiled bitterly.

“It was a low blow on my part, and maybe I shouldn't have done it, but I haven't thought about it much. I went to the reporter and told my story with my parents. Not all, only some parts. How they behaved with their gay son” he spat almost disgustedly “After that article my father had a couple of problems, but to tell the truth it's not that his companies have gone bankrupt. They had a bit of a breakdown but after a few months everyone forgot about it and everything was back to normal. My father, however, tied it to his finger, and from that moment on he did everything to make me shut up” he said, running his hands through his hair.

“I honestly think this war between us will never end. I also thought about withdrawing my accusations, but I don't think it would make more sense since no one remembers them anymore, and then... it's a matter of principle” he blurted out a little irritably. He stopped and said nothing more, leaning on the sofa and just staring at Laxus for a moment. The blond realized that he should have said something.

“Can't you threaten him in some way so that he understands that he doesn't have to go against you?” he asked. Freed smiled and shook his head in resignation.

“I've thought about it, but you’ve no idea how rich my father is. He has the best lawyers, the best reputation, I literally can't do anything against him.” Laxus didn’t reply, although the story made him nervous. It was obvious, even if Freed didn't want to admit it, that he still felt bad about the way his parents treated him.

“I'm sorry,” he said at that point. Freed shrugged.

“Well, I stressed you a lot and the storm stopped hitting. I can walk you home before it starts raining again” he said, turning his gaze to the windows. Laxus took a look outside. Indeed, even though it was still raining, the roads were probably more practicable.

“I can call a taxi,” he said.

“It’s not necessary. I offered you a ride,” Freed insisted.

“There's your cousin,” Laxus pointed out. Freed shrugged.

“Knowing her she'll be in the tub for hours, by the time I get home she'll probably still be there,” he said casually. Laxus at that point agreed and got up from the sofa, albeit thanking him. The two boys left the apartment and reached the garage and the car again.

The drive home was long and quiet, but as soon as Freed parked in front of Laxus' house, the blond decided to take a confidence that he had never taken before. He put a hand on his shoulder and squeezed it lightly. At the gesture Freed turned surprised to him with slightly wide eyes. Laxus tried to ignore the blush that was spreading across the boy's face.

“I'm sorry for what you have to go through, and I can't help you. But you’re clearly an intelligent and capable man, I'm sure you won't let the track close. And if you need some entertainment in the meantime, I'll be happy to help you,” he told him. The blush on Freed's face intensified even more, and Laxus was almost tempted to lean over and kiss him. Almost, because it probably wasn't a great idea to do it right after what the boy told him. He smiled at him and let go of his shoulder, opening the door.

“Thanks,” Freed said before he left. Laxus turned to him once more.

“Don't worry,” he replied and then greeted him, running to his own building before getting all wet, unaware of the chaos he had caused in Freed's body with those simple sentences.

***

Freed had been thinking about Laxus' words and his strong grip on the shoulder for days. Every time he did it, he felt a certain agitation in his stomach and a warmth in his face, and each time he struggled to lock those thoughts away before they took a turn for the worse.

He looked down at the newspaper and those thoughts were immediately swept away, while he read the article on the front page. In the end, despite the fact that he called his father, the article came out anyway. If he had expected it, they had just fought on the phone yelling at each other as usual. Freed at one point found himself with the call closed in his face and pissed off he threw the phone at the wall and smashed it. The fact had irritated him even more, and only the thought of Laxus had managed to make him sleep.

But now not even the thought of the blond could calm him down. Nor are the calls with the lawyer or the journalist who published the article. Nothing could calm him down. In the middle of the afternoon, when he was tired from all those bureaucratic chores, he left the office slamming the door behind him. He didn't care about the customers who were queuing at the counter, and he badly told Bickslow to get him a beer.

“Arrive immediately” replied the boy a little worried about his friend.

“Do it to me later. Is the track clear?” Freed asked.

“Uhm... no, there are Mira and Lucy who...”.

“Fuck” Freed growled and left the club without listening to the sequel, nervous as ever. He hadn’t noticed Laxus' presence, nor the fact that the blond had observed him a little worried. Freed made for the bike. He didn't care who was running around the track, he needed to let off steam and that was the best method he knew.

“Would you like to take a tour around Oak Town?”. Freed whirled to Laxus, who had a slight smile on his face.

“Look, I'm not in the mood,” Freed said annoyed, immediately regretting the tone he had used. Laxus certainly didn’t deserve that treatment, as indeed Bickslow didn’t.

“Precisely for this reason I propose it to you. You need to let off steam, right?” Laxus asked. Freed looked at him for a moment in silence, while Laxus took the phone from his pocket and turned it towards him, showing him a photo of some waterfalls in the middle of nature. “There’s a nice path and if you like I can take you here” he said. Freed smiled slightly and hesitated for a moment.

“I don't know if I'll be the best of the company,” he admitted.

“That's why I'm here. Come on, move your ass,” Laxus said taking his helmet. Freed at that point found himself forced to accept. Perhaps it was the best idea. He walked to his bike and climbed on it, while Laxus joined him. “And don't be a dick. Just follow me”. Freed smiled and nodded as he adjusted his helmet and exited the Raijinshuu parking lot.

***

The motorcycle ride had given him more vent than he had thought. Driving along the mountain roads was much more beautiful than running on the track, on that he had to agree with Laxus. It was liberating, and the landscapes were really beautiful. Plus, even though they were standing still at the time because Laxus apparently didn't remember where he was going, it was fun to see the blonde pissed off with Google Maps. Freed leaned on the handlebars of the bike smiling amused.

“Have you lived here for years and got lost?” he teased him lightly.

“I was a kid and I haven't been here for years” Laxus justified himself “And up here the signal doesn't even pick up” he growled a bit irritably, picking up the phone, hoping that something would change. Freed chuckled.

“We can reach Oak Town,” he proposed.

“No,” Laxus growled. Freed didn’t reply and for the moment decided to enjoy the view. Since they were stationary in an open space that was to serve as a parking lot in the middle of the mountain, he could observe the valleys below him and the mountains on the other side. He had never been there but he had to admit it was a nice place.

“Fuck you, phone shit,” Laxus snapped and Freed turned to him, noticing how he had given up.

“So?” Freed asked.

“Those waterfalls are buggered in a nowhere to be found place,” Laxus muttered irritably. Freed smiled.

“Is there any other place around here to see?” he asked. Laxus gave him a grim look.

“Here there are so many places to see, there’s only the embarrassment of choice” he replied as if it were obvious.

“Well, then let's go to one of those, if we don't get lost again,” he offered with a smirk.

“Shut up,” Laxus grunted. Freed laughed and followed the blond's example when he put his helmet back on. Shortly after he left and Freed followed him back the way they had come. The journey didn’t last long, in a few minutes they arrived near a lake. The two motorcyclists stopped, parked and then set off towards the lake shore. As Freed walked his eyes widened ecstatic by the sight. He had to admit, Laxus had taken him to a nice place.

The lake was bordered by trees on one side, while on the other there was a shore with boats and a small farmhouse. The mountains that rose behind the farmhouse were reflected in the clear waters of the lake. He saw some ducks swimming in a point not far from there and for a moment Freed stood looking at the landscape, breathing in the fresh mountain air.

“Nice, huh?” Laxus asked with a smile. Freed folded his lips up and nodded.

“Did you come here often?” he asked him.

“Yes,” Laxus said as he walked to the shore side. “In fact, I know everyone, I just hope my grandfather isn't here,” he commented. Freed followed him and the two boys walked quietly and calmly until they reached the small pier to which small rowing boats and pedal boats were tied.

“Can you take a ride?” he asked. Laxus nodded.

“Yes, you can also take a bath, if you dare,” the blond grinned. Freed raised his eyebrows. He knew for himself that the lake's waters were frozen despite the hot weather.

“I don't have a bathing suit,” he replied.

“All apologies,” Laxus retorted. Freed shook his head but didn't reply and the two sat down on a bench. For a while they remained silent, until Laxus began to tell him how he had once 'stolen' a pedal boat as a child and left in the middle of the lake, making his grandfather and all his old friends worry. He laughed at the memory and Freed joined him, and Laxus explained how his grandfather had eventually sent a man to retrieve him. A certain Macao, who had followed him on another pedal boat but without being able to reach him before an hour, when Laxus was tired.

“That man has hated me since that time” Laxus laughed and Freed found himself giggling with him.

“He's not all wrong,” he smiled. “Why were you running away from him?” he then asked.

“I don't remember,” Laxus admitted. “Maybe I had a fight with my grandfather and I wanted to piss him off,” he explained shrugging. “Anyway, if you want to go get something safe to eat, we'll meet Macao and Wakaba, and they'll probably tell you how I got them damned as a child.”

“Oh, so I'm really curious to go there,” Freed smiled.

“I imagined it”.

“For the food, of course. Not for you.” Freed smiled. Laxus didn’t believe him but followed him when Freed decided to reach the farmhouse. The two boys sat outside, and as suspected, Macao and Wakaba were there and greeted him surprised to see him. The two men hadn't changed much, they were flirting with the local waitress, who kept rejecting them politely. Freed and Laxus took two soft drinks, and then spent the rest of the afternoon talking about Laxus' old memories.

***

Laxus and Freed had stopped talking too long, and they both agreed that it would take too long to go home, so they stopped to sleep in the farmhouse, discovering that they had two free rooms. They had dined together on the porch of the restaurant, and between one beer and another they were melting more and more and the laughter increased for stupid reasons.

“I guess you drank too much,” Laxus told Freed, who was tipsier than him and had flushed cheeks and a looser gab.

“I wouldn't say, I drank less than you,” he objected.

“Yes, but you hold up even less than me,” Laxus noted with a smirk. Freed snorted and grabbed a handful of chips and munched on them, having nothing to argue with. After a moment of reasoning, however, he smiled again.

“I wouldn’t say, I don’t miss the words. You can't even remember the movie you saw last week,” he retorted.

“Bickslow dragged me to see it, and it was shit. I removed it from my mind for this.” He defended himself and Freed smiled.

“Nah, you just have a short memory” he laughed and Laxus didn't know why but joined in the laugh. He wasn't drunk, but the alcohol in his body relaxed him. At that point the purple-haired waitress approached them, and she warned them that the bar was closing and if they could go to their rooms. The two boys didn't reply and got up from the table. Freed staggered for a moment and Laxus chuckled at the sight.

“You didn't drink too much, noooo,” he said wryly.

“Shut up” Freed muttered as he walked towards the interior of the room and the stairs. He climbed up to them by holding on to the handrail, walking a little crooked. Laxus would have made fun of him if he hadn't been busy staring at his ass. Eh, it was right in front of him. His instinct told him to reach out, and he didn't know how but he managed to stop himself. Maybe walking cleared his head, the fact is that when he got to the first floor, he had a lot of unchaste thoughts that he struggled to hold back.

Freed turned to him, leaning his back against his bedroom door, probably to stand up. At that moment Laxus realized how the boy's eyes were wandering freely around his body. Freed was really into him. Laxus had had the feeling that he was, but the boy had never been so blatant.

He would have kissed him, but despite the alcohol in his body, he forced himself not to. It wasn't the best time, maybe Freed would regret it the next morning. Laxus started to greet him, but before he could say anything Freed moved towards him.

In fact, Laxus had plenty of time to push him away, because Freed put his hands on his chest before rising to his toes, and paused for a moment before their lips collided. He peered into his eyes and, probably seeing that the blonde hadn't moved away, he pushed forward closing the gap between them.

That was enough to drive out all the rationality that was left in Laxus. He felt Freed part his lips and Laxus instinctively did it in turn, immediately making the kiss wet and making their tongues meet. He felt Freed's hand go up under his shirt and Laxus didn't stop him, in response he put his arm around Freed's waist and squeezed it against him. He felt Freed nibble on his lower lip and Laxus let out a groan, lowering another hand, feeling his buttock.

He knew it wasn’t the right way to do it, that he should have stopped, but maybe because of the alcohol or maybe because he had wanted to jump on Freed all afternoon, Laxus didn't stop. He let Freed wander his hands where he wanted, and in turn felt free to touch the boy's body.

After a while the two boys separated to catch their breath, and stared at each other for a moment, stunned. Laxus realized that Freed's hand was resting on his back under his shirt, and that Freed's thigh had landed between his legs, pressing on something that was hardening. Laxus's hand was touching Freed's ass directly under his pants, with only the fabric of the boxers separating it from the bare skin.

Fuck was going crazy. The desire to go beyond him was more and more, his heart galloped in his chest and he felt his lips burn, while the excitement continued to grow. Freed reached out and placed his lips on his neck, starting to kiss and suck voraciously. Laxus let out another moan as the urge to go through the door and slam Freed into bed grew out of all proportion.

And that's what he did as soon as Freed broke away from his neck. Laxus removed his hand from Freed's pants and looked for the key, entered the room and after closing the door, dragged Freed onto the bed. He didn't even know how but found himself lying on top of the boy, with Freed's hands lifting his shirt and their lips glued together. He no longer wondered if it was wrong or right, he didn't think about it himself. He let their clothes fly to the floor and soon after their bodies joined in uncontrollable passion.

#fraxus #freed justine #laxus dreyar #freed x laxus #fanfiction

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neshatriumphs · 4 years ago

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IX. Soul Mates

Lucy was the first one out of bed and working on things in the room whenever Simon stirred. “She sleeps hard. You won’t wake her,” she said, not facing him. He was startled by her voice, not expecting her, then he looked around, seeing Grace curled up into his side, dried tear stains on her cheeks, blood and dirt in her clothes - and last night came flooding over him like the blood that shed from Samantha’s body. He had for a moment forgotten that everything in his life had been a lie… that he had nothing else left…

“What, do you have eyes in the back of your head or something?” he asked, irritated as he tried to separate himself from Grace without waking her.

“Just the one,” Lucy said, deadpan. He was startled again. Surely, she was joking. Probably had some kind of magic to check on her surroundings.… “Whenever Grace tried to heal what your raid did to my eye, she messed up. It wound up literally in the back of my head. We’re the only three people who know that.” Simon frowned and he came over. She parted the hair in the back of her head and he jumped back with a yelp. Surely… there was an eye! “You think it startled you? You should have seen when I discovered that I was like this.”

“Ugh… Can she fix it?” He asked, covering it back up with her hair.

“I’m used to it now. It gives me an advantage, most of the time and only had my balance and stuff off until I mastered the new me. Besides, I would never ask anything else of her. You saw what happened last night.” They both looked at Grace and Lucy added, “I know that you think you’re the center of the universe right now, but she’s going through a lot too. Soul mates and all that.”

He wasn’t even going to argue with the rest of it. Grace had a bad night, surely. Seeing her live through the pain of being stabbed by a conductor’s dagger was terrifying. But, she hadn’t actually lost anyone, and certainly not the last person she had. “I don’t fucking understand what that even means.”

Lucy sighed and she folded her arms. “It’s sort of like a magical dating engine. The magic looks out into your future and reveals the person best suited for you, and someone tells the royals and nobles. There are oracles whose ONLY job is to prophecy soul mates for them.”

“So, it’s not destiny. It’s just a presumption.”

“No. It’s more than that. Because without it, non magic people… and some magic ones, I guess… they marry whoever, or date whoever. They wind up going through ugly relationships and being hurt or disappointed. These people never have to do that, unless of course something happens to their soulmate, or they aren’t able to be with them. But, after an oracle gives the prophecy, usually, the royals will tether those souls, to draw them together. They call it intertwining their destinies.”

“So, it isn’t a presumption. It’s orchestrated.”

“Look, if you don’t like Grace, I’m sure the Queen will find someone to untether you. She doesn’t like you.”

“No!” Simon shook his head, “That’s not… I’m trying to understand it. understand why my choices in life aren’t my own. Why I’m trapped between being with someone or trying to kill her.” Lucy brandished her weapon and pointed it at him. He flicked his finger and it flew from her little hands. “I obviously didn’t mean right now, Lucy.” He had his hand opened, summoned the weapon back and handed it to her. She stared at him, suspiciously. “What, were you just waiting for a reason to attack me?”

“Things were better when you didn’t exist to us.” She put her weapon away and checked on Grace. “We knew what we were going to do. Now, we have to try to refigure things. Her soul mate is damaged. Tainted by fake magic. That means SHE’S tainted, too. She’s tethered, and even if she weren’t… you aimed to kill her.”

“I didn’t know. Anyway, this is the Queen’s fault. She put me in Amelia’s clutches in the first place by cursing me!”

“I’ll be sure to tell the spirits the next time I pay my respects to my destroyed village.”

He kneeled next to Lucy and she reached for her weapon again. He pushed it right back into the sheath and said, “I am truly sorry… I’m not used to that feeling…”

She sighed and replied, “It isn’t orchestrated, either. Imagine that someone custom ordered a person to be the love of your life, the Queen and the King created the order for you, put it on hold and labeled it yours. So that whenever you finally come to pick it up, you automatically have everything you wanted, and its reserved for you.”

“What the hell is this analogy? What is a custom order?”

“Does… do the Conductor realms really not have markets?”

“Markets? Like… in storybooks?”

“Wow. Okay, how do you get supplies?”

“Raid the One’s realms.”

“For fuck’s sake.”

“Hey! Don’t use that language with me. I don’t care if you use it, but not with me. But, please… what the fuck is a market?”

“We go there with payment. We give them payment. They give us supplies.”

“Wait… So… they just let you take what they have in exchange for something else? Is it like the fair?”

“Sort of… But, there’s usually a price, and we usually have at least an idea of what we intend to buy. Like… say that someone wanted a dress like Grace’s. A person who makes dresses very nicely would make a dress like Grace’s, and the someone could go to them with the amount that they tell them the dress is worth, give them that amount and take the dress.”

“I guess… I don’t understand the work you put into this. Is the dress maker a skilled fighter and deadly wizard? Can they thwart a raid?”

“No,” Lucy said through her teeth. “The dressmaker doesn’t fight. She. Makes. Dresses.”

“How does she keep them if she can’t fight?”

“You know what, forget it. Also, I’m definitely gonna be using the word fuck if I have to explain basic lifestyle to you.” Grace began to stir as Simon was about to give her a piece of his mind, so he went silent. Lucy strummed Grace’s face and Grace settled back into sleeping and drooling. Lucy shook her head. “Gross.”

“I think it’s kinda cute…” Simon said. Lucy glared at him. “So… what did she mean when she said that you’re her heiress?”

Lucy took a deep breath. “That doesn’t matter anymore. She has you now. A real heir will soon come.”

Simon looked deep in thought, “I didn’t come here to take more away from you… I didn’t even… I just… I wish Samantha was here…” He said, tears welling in his eyes as his mind was vividly reminded of how she looked the last time he saw her, that graphic burned into his memory.

“I get that. I wish that my mommy hadn’t been killed in front of me, too,” Lucy said. She had A LITTLE sympathy for him, but only a little. “I have work to do. I’m going to trust you two at least to not make your heir while I’m gone.”

“I’m mourning,” Simon said, with a scoff.

“I’ve heard that’s how people mourn sometimes,” she said, with a shrug. A few birds later, she was gone. Simon curled up around Grace again and he couldn’t sleep, even though he hadn’t gotten any rest when he had slept, but, he at least wasn’t alone. He somehow felt like that was the one upside. The one thing to hold on to. He wasn’t alone.

“I’m going to kill Amelia,” he said, to nobody, as Grace was sleep, Samantha was dead and Lucy had left. He didn’t even realize that the pendant was still in Grace’s possession. That Amelia had heard everything. That she was already about to give the treacherous prince his chance to try.

#AU Infinity Train #Infinity Train #Nesha Fanfiction #Infinity Train Fanfiction #fics #Intertwined by Nesha

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natsubeatsrock · 4 years ago

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The Rewrite of Fairy Tail: Part 25 (Ultear)

Was Last Ages a good idea?

Part of me wants to say that the answer is yes considering Opening 16 having my favorite visuals of any Fairy Tail opening. The clock twitch at the start is one of my personal favorite aspects of the opening and it wouldn't be there if Last Ages didn't happen.

Of course, pedantic issues like that aren't enough to blind me to the weight of what I'm advocating. Ultear is one of my favorite characters in the series. I wouldn't suggest essentially writing out one of my favorites if it didn't need to happen.

But that's just it. Did it need to happen? (Don’t worry, we’ll get to talk about Ultear as a character.)

A good place to start is its place in the Grand Magic Games arc. The reason it needed to happen, as the story goes, is that multiple people need to be saved from situations and the difference of one minute, while also remembering what happened in the alternate minute, was enough to save the lives of multiple people. Most notably, Lucy was able to avoid being killed and Gray wasn't impaled by multiple dragons. It's framed as a sacrifice that caused other people to live.

At the risk of sounding callous, I'm not sure this was really all that much of a concern. For all the people who did get affected by the spell Last Ages, there is one important person who wasn't: Natsu. As sad as it might be to consider our favorite characters dying it wasn't like their actions stopped the Eclipse Gate even after Last Ages. Lucy knew how to stop the Gate, but she didn't destroy it. Neither did Gray, Juvia, Lyon, Meredy, Baccus, Romeo, Macao, Wakaba, Cobra, Gajeel, Wendy, Laxus, or anyone else whose name isn't Natsu Dragneel. It would have been tragic, but the result would have been similar. (An interesting "what if" scenario I may or may not consider.)

And consider the scale of the event in the arc. The entire world was set back by one minute. It's described as innocuous enough that it was barely noticed by most people. Of course, this is juxtaposed with how important it meant to the actual people at the moment. However, consider what that means for the majority of people in the universe. Ultear could have done nothing and it would have as much of an effect for the people within the series universe.

This is, of course, not to say that Ultear's sacrifice didn't matter past Grand Magic Games. This is to say that the idea that this sacrifice changed a lot isn't as true as Mashima would have us believe and that there might not have been much of a need to have Ultear get basically written out of the series.

After using Last Ages, Ultear becomes a part of the time stream, showing up at times when it gets messed up. (At least, that's the explanation I'm going with.) She makes two as her younger self in this form. We obviously need to talk about (read: you're going to read my interpretation of) these moments. But, I want to start with the second moment first and you'll see why.

The second meeting was Ultear's appearance during Wendy and Chelia's fight with DiMaria. Now, there are issues with their interaction in regards to the Third Origin, but that's for other reasons. This wouldn't necessarily be impossible if Last Ages didn't happen. After all, she's doing this in conjunction with the rest of Crime Sorciere. The only reason this comes off as shocking is exactly what she went through Last Ages. As long as they show up and Ultear remains a member, there's no reason for she shouldn't be in the fight. Heck, we may have gotten interactions between her and Gray.

And, with that totally non-bitter transition (I'm actually okay with that), let's talk about the meeting between Gray and Ultear during the Sun Village arc. This is part of a trend wherein Ultear, either implicitly or explicitly, serves as a reminder for the fact that you shouldn't sacrifice your life to save other people, even if you love them. Her sacrifice reminds Gray that he ought to continue living on for other people.

But, and I again recognize this does sound callous, that's stupid.

I mean, it's exactly the kind of message he ought to keep with him, especially in those moments. But, I'm not sure that this is a point that ought to be beating in the ground as much as it was, especially to the point it was in the way it was. In Gray's specific context, it makes symbolic sense that he is saved by her. But, shouldn't Gray already know that from as far back after Galuna Island?

It could be argued that Gray needs to have these lessons reinforced multiple times through his journey as they clearly haven’t sunken in. To a degree, I understand that as a realistic portrayal of depression. But, what happened to “I will seal your darkness away”? Isn’t it possible to have him remember that instead of Ultear sacrificing herself?

And that gets to another thing. What does this mean for Ultear's character? Much of the reason that she's willing to do this at all is that she believes that she is a terrible person at heart and can't make up for what she's done over the years. Therefore, she wants to use her life force to help other people's lives.

I don't think that is in and of itself a terrible motivation for an action like this from a reformed villain who thinks the way Ultear seemed to. I don't even think that she's entirely wrong to think so, considering she wanted to kill present Rogue to stop future Rogue. I could even understand our hypothetical character going through with his or her choice and going on to save a large number of lives, as Last Ages does.

However, this is a Mashima villain. He's stated in the past that he likes to make villains that are more than just evil. While we can talk about how he did with that goal, this feels like something uncharacteristic of his villains.

And even if he wasn't open about his penchant to redeem villains, we'd absolutely know something is up. Jellal was in a similar spot during Nirvana - ashamed of his existence and ready to die - but he ended up being a better (not sure good is the right word) person. Meredy was convinced to become good and even was part of the reason Ultear started to want to change. Flare changes during the Grand Magic Games arc into Sun Village arc. Sabertooth becomes a good guild (not that they should have been evil anyway). A lot of Alvarez Empire arc involves Brandish's struggle of doing good and/or evil and Irene realizes she actually loved Erza before stabbing herself. Oracion Seis joins Jellal in Crime Sorciere (under duress).

In a sense, Last Ages is Mashima's way of saying, "This one's staying evil. They can't change." In another series with another writer, that wouldn't be annoying. With Fairy Tail, this is clearly purposeful. My job isn't necessarily to speculate as to why, but I can't think why that would make sense to him except that it makes the parallel to Ur for Gray. In a world where she doesn't come back to relevancy in the final arc, I might be to accept that as fine. Considering she did come back and that the continued relevance of Crime Sorciere past the Grand Magic Games, it’s not as if I can’t do things with her character if she were to stay alive.

Therefore, I'm actually going against canon in this regard. In the rewrite, Ultear wants to go through with the spell Last Ages but is prevented from doing so. (I’m debating who stops her.) With this, Ultear continues to be an active character during the series. What the circumstances are surrounding her not going through with it and what she does now that she's a part of the series are topics worth talking about. However, I'd like to save those for another time.

For now, though, I feel that it's worth mentioning is that not every villain has to be saved or redeemed. I'm not here to argue that every villain is equally deserving of a second chance, even though I absolutely believe such to be true on some level. Some villains will and should stay evil until the end. But if Jellal is going to struggle to do the right thing, I think Ultear should try to as well.

#fairy tail #the rewrite of fairy tail #ultear milkovich #part 25 #fun fact #this was one of the eariler drafts #i wrote this close to the same time #i wrote the piece on lisanna #that was around the time i realized #i really am going to be rewriting this series huh?#also i'm here before halloween #like i said i would #out of series follow-up to come

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boarix · 4 years ago

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7 Day S.P.E.C.I.A.L.

3. Essential Personnel

Starring: Courier 6 Snowflake, Craig Boone and Rex (Fallout New Vegas (as part of the Wraith in the Ruins AU))

Trigger warnings: canon violence/language/gun use/animal injury/suggestive content

“It’s a shit gun, Snow.”

“It’ll be fine, Bubba.”

“No.” Craig Boone’s headshake was a subtle motion, almost like he was working a kink out of his neck. He held the AMR out toward the courier, “It jams.”

“You mean, ‘it has jammed’.” Snowflake gave the other man his brightest smile, “That rifle has incredible power at long range…”

“I’d do better with mine, closer…”

“Nope, I need you to stay up here. You can see into the quarry, right?”

Snowflake was on a mission to collect the head of an alpha male deathclaw as proof to Chomps Lewis that Quarry Junction was clear as well as a clutch of deathclaw eggs for the ravishing leader of The Thorn, Red Lucy. His optimistic declaration of “two birds with one stone” wasn’t sitting well with his somber companion. Especially once Snowflake had told him the plan.

“The scope is fine. I just don’t think it’s safe for you to have me so far away.”

“Bubba, if shit goes sideways, I’m gonna need room.” He held his large arms out to either side, flexing.

Boone was unimpressed, “Take Rex with you.”

The dog had been intensely sniffing at a crack in the cliffside but trotted over to Boone as soon as he heard his name. The sniper, in turn, absentmindedly shouldered the enormous rifle to reach down to pat his flank.

“Well, I can’t do that. Who’s gonna have your back if we’re both down there?”

Boone pointed over his shoulder, “The mountain.”

Snowflake frowned down at the dog, “I guess so… you wanna come with daddy and go chase some lizards?” While the dog pranced about, barking enthusiastically, the courier did a last check on his equipment.

When he saw that the courier picked up his Blade of the West, (dubbed Butter Knife) Boone frowned critically, “You’re not taking that thing with you, are you?”

“Craig Daniel Boone, please stop nagging me!” He turned away to begin his careful decent from the cliff.

“My middle name isn’t Daniel…”

“It was a joke, Bubba.”

“No. Jokes are funny.”

The plan was simple: using Stealth Boys, the courier would sneak past and count the resident deathclaws while locating the clutch of eggs. Along the way he would deploy frag mines, and then find his own perch to snipe from. They would each take one or two strategic shots to stir the reptiles up, and then eliminate the threat in relative safety. Or as Snowflake had put it, “It’ll be easy! Like shootin’ fish in a barrel.”

After politely telling the dog to stay, Snowflake activated a Stealth-Boy and crept along the narrow canyon and down into the quarry floor. He caught a whiff of deathclaw scat and followed his nose around a particularly large conveyer/excavator, laying mines as he went. Despite his earlier bravado he was still momentarily frozen when he turned a corner and came face to face with sleeping juvenile. He sucked in his breath as the beast grunted and shifted in its sleep. Satisfied that it was going to carry on in dreamland, he peered around its haunch and saw that its brethren were all in a similar repose.

Apparently, it was dragon nap time.

Finally locating the eggs, he removed his shoulder bag and carefully packed them away. As he turned to head back to the excavator he was hit with a waft of the cloying smell of death and rot. The odor was sufficient warning and he dodged to his left as an enormous, sickle-shaped claw slashed through the air; missing him by a hair’s breadth. Abandoning stealth in favor of speed he sprinted toward the conveyor in the hopes that the beast wouldn’t be able to climb up the boom after him. The deathclaw reared back and bellowed, rousing its pack to war.

Shit may have been heading in an adjacent direction.

Not only was the deathclaw able to climb the conveyor belt, it was doing so much faster than Snowflake was. Dodging on the narrow platform while the creature took swipes at him took all of his coordination and he was too hard-pressed to get off a rifle shot. At a certain point he ended up hanging underneath while it tried in vain to poke its claws through the gap between the belt and the steel frame. Glancing down, he could see a rather large gathering of the lizards forming underneath him.

“Well, doesn’t that just rot yer socks…?”

Boone sat waiting for the signal shot. Switching between the gun scope and his binoculars he was muttering to himself in frustration, “Too damn long. Can’t see anybody. Where are you?” It never occurred to him to change position. After all, the courier told him to ‘stay’.

Snowflake watched in frustration as the quarry’s full complement of deathclaws (save for his conveyer belt companion) avoided his mines and settled themselves beneath him, waiting for his arm strength to give out. He briefly considered whistling for Rex, but dismissed it just as quickly. Sure, the dog might have provided a useful distraction, but he might also be hurt and the courier would rather die than let that happen. Desperate times called for desperate measures, “Well, now that I have all y’alls attention, won’t you please consider this?” Letting go with one hand, he grabbed a frag grenade from his belt, pulled the pin with his teeth and dropped it.

Several of them leaped out of the way which triggered the mines which in turn triggered the vehicles and other machinery. Soon the entire quarry floor was flashing and shaking as one explosion after another rocked the very earth.

“Ooopsfuckingshit!”

Boone was confused by the sudden light show. This wasn’t the signal that he and the courier had discussed. The percussive blasts reaching his ears snapped him back to his task and he looked through the AMR’s scope for his first target. The clouds of dust and debris made this nearly impossible and when he finally found a deathclaw to aim for, the gun jammed. Looking down at the useless rifle and then at the hellfire of the quarry, the sniper decided that, regardless of orders, Snowflake needed him.

Throwing the gun to the ground, he half ran, half slid, down the side of the ridge. The sharp rocks rolled up the sleeve of his uniform jacket and cut his arm in the process. Ignoring the wound, he drew his combat knife and sprinted as fast as he could toward were he judged the first explosion came from.

What he saw he couldn’t fully comprehend.

There was what appeared to be a glowing one fighting the few surviving deathclaws. Leaping, spinning and dodging, it was wielding Butter Knife in an expert display of swordsmanship. Slicing at the tendons in wrist, knee and ankle, they brought down several of the beasts, rendering them helpless. Then, to Boone’s further astonishment, they brandished Snowflake’s revolver, sending shot after shot into the open mouths and eyes of the creatures.

When the alpha charged the glowing warrior, they sent out an enormous blast of radiation causing the beast to stager and rear back from the heat. Then, taking advantage of the deathclaw’s exposed throat, they made several slices in rapid succession, the last swing causing the head to come free and fly in Boone’s direction. When the sniper stepped out of the way, the glowing one saw the movement from their peripheral and raised the magnum as if to shoot.

Sudden recognition froze Boone in his tracks as he stared into the unmistakable eyes of his friend. Rather than make an attempt to evade, he threw his arms out wide and flexed his chest toward Snowflake; as if asking him to shoot.

“Boone?!” Lowering the now melting revolver, the glowing courier slammed the remains of Butter Knife into the ashen quarry floor and leaned heavily against it, “What the fuck!”

“What do you mean ‘what that fuck’? WHAT THE FUCK TO YOU?!” Suddenly angry, the sniper yelled back at his friend, “ARE YOU… what… How are you doing that!?”

“Never mind this, did you just… what were you… do you know what it would do to me if I accidentally shot you?!”

“I just thought… that if it was you… I’d be okay with it being you.” Boone was so confused and mentally turned around; he didn’t know what to do or where to look and he stood awkwardly with blood dripping from his fingers.

“I need your help! I can’t do this without you! And that’s… that is not how I want to show my love for you, Boone.”

“You… love me?”

The halo of light around Snowflake had begun to diminish. It was becoming clear that all of his clothes, hair and a good portion of his skin had burned away. Exhausted, he dropped to his knees and would have fallen over, had Boone not rushed to catch him.

The sniper took off his jacket and tucked the other man into it, “What are you talking about?!”

Snowflake smiled up at him and when he spoke, his voice, although ragged, was closer to normal, “You’re my best friend; of course I love ya. You’re my brother, Boone.”

“Oh.” The sniper gave the courier a brief squeeze and looked around at the carnage, “This got messy. Where’s Rex?”

“You wrap up your arm, take some Rad-X and go look for him. I need to just… I have to lay here a minnit.”

After about an hour, Boone returned carrying both the dog (who despite having lost both of his rear cyber limbs, seemed to be pain-free and happy) and miraculously, Snowflake’s pack.

“I’m sorry super pup! Don’t worry; I know Raul can fix you up.” Snowflake was in a fetal position, trying to fit as much of himself as possible into Boone’s coat and his voice was muffled, “Ha ha, that rhymed!”

“Are you… going to be okay?”

“Sure. This isn’t the first time this has happened, you know? Although… I’m always afraid my hair won’t grow back. Do me a favor and don’t tell anyone? People wouldn’t understand.”

“I don’t understand.”

Boone went back up the cliff to retrieve the rest of their equipment (including spare clothes for Snowflake) and then the trio spent the night huddled together. In the morning, Snowflake’s condition had much improved and had even begun to grow back skin.

“Is that where your nickname come from? Why you wear gloves? From the scars?”

“Yes and no.” The courier was surprised and a little excited that Boone would ask him such personal questions, “I wasn’t nuclear for very long yesterday and these burns are… different. It’ll take a little bit but I should regrow most of what skin I lost yesterday. No, these…” he held out his hands and gestured to his face, “are from when I was a kid and my family’s wagon hit a land mine. I wasn’t in it; was riding our big horner, Ladd, alongside. The shrapnel cut me up real bad and I burned my hands trying to pull my brother from the wreck. Other families in our caravan took pity on me and would share their food, but their kids started calling me ‘Snowflake’ on account of all my little white scars.” His smile was forced, “No two alike!”

Boone was quiet for a moment as he studied the courier’s face. When he spoke his voice was soft, “Kids can be mean. Why did you keep the nickname?”

“Well, I figured I’d steal some of their fun by ownin’ it. Sides, ‘a snowflake in the desert’ sounds romantic, right? Who doesn’t root for the underdog?”

“Right.”

“Speakin’ of dogs; which would you prefer?” He gestured to Rex and then the severed head of the alpha deathclaw, “Doggy style or head?”

Boone rolled his eyes as he gathered the dog into his arms, “I’ll carry Rex, thanks.”

“Oh, c’mon, Bubba, that was a joke!”

“No. Jokes are funny.”

#Vault720 #7DayChallenge #fallout fanfic #fallout fan fiction #fallout writing prompts #fallout new vegas #craig boone #boone #courier 6 #fallout companions #theartofblossoming

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rosebrightside · 4 years ago

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Some short Ajay Bhandari x MC drabbles

Inspiration taken from these dialogue prompts by @akp-1327 (they’re seriously amazing, go check them out!)

Ajay Bhandari x m!MC (Lyall Turner)

Fun & Lighthearted #7 - “Sprinkles are for winners.”

“Why don’t we make this interesting?” Lyall proposed.

“A bet?” Ajay raised his eyebrows. “You’re on. Any ideas?”

Lyall thought for a moment before grinning mischievously. “Winner gets to put those rainbow sprinkles on their cupcakes. Loser gets none.”

Ajay’s eyes widened in horror. “How can you say that?! You know I love those sprinkles!”

“That’s what makes it interesting,” Lyall laughed. “But we don’t have to bet the sprinkles if you’re scared you won’t be able to beat me. I totally understand.”

Ajay knew he was being baited. Lyall was wearing that dumb half smirk he tried to pass off as an easy smile that meant he was challenging Ajay. And Ajay wasn’t about to back down now. He scoffed. “Please. I could beat you in my sleep. Let’s do this. For the sprinkles.”

“For the sprinkles!” Lyall cheered, jumping onto the couch for dramatic effect as Ajay went to fetch the controllers. “I will become the Sprinkle Lord!” He brandished the remote control like a sword. “I will lead my sprinkle soldiers into battle!”

Ajay laughed at his boyfriend’s antics. “Not if I become the Sprinkle Supreme first.”

Lyall took a controller from Ajay. “Sprinkle Supreme? What are you, a Star War’s character?”

“That would make me the Supreme Sprinkle.” Ajay paused. “I actually like that better.”

“Well then, Supreme Sprinkle, prepare to have your ass kicked.”

“Don’t count your sprinkles before they sprinkle, janu.”

“I don’t know how to tell you this but that was probably the most ridiculous thing you’ve ever said.”

“I can’t believe I lost,” Ajay groaned. “It’s impossible! Improbable! Inconceivable!”

“Ok, Princess Bride, dial it back with the adjectives,” Lyall said. He bumped Ajay’s hip teasingly as Ajay passed, holding a pan of cupcakes fresh from the oven. “No one likes a sore loser.”

Ajay huffed. “I’m not a sore loser! I just regret picking Rainbow Road.”

“Interesting,” Lyall mused. “You lost on Rainbow Road and the sprinkles you could have had if you won are rainbow coloured.” He gestured with the icing filled piping bag, putting on a philosophical air. “Irony, thy name is Ajay.”

“Why you – !” Ajay lunged and grabbed Lyall around the waist, swinging him off his feet and around the kitchen. “Turn Shakespeare against me, will you? ‘If it will feed nothing else, it will feed my revenge!’” He began poking Lyall’s sides and stomach, making him squirm and shriek with laughter.

“‘Pray you now, forget and forgive!’” Lyall cried between gasps.

“Never!” Ajay moved his hands more rapidly, taking advantage of Lyall being unable to tickle back while holding the piping bag. Lyall retaliated by squeezing some of the icing onto his hand and wiping it on Ajay’s face.

“Now the war truly begins!” he shouted.

The tickle fight rapidly dissolved into a competition of who could smear more icing on who. By the time Lyall stopped the fight so they could still have enough for the cupcakes, both boys’ faces and clothes were splattered with various coloured icing and Ajay was declared the winner. They iced the cupcakes in comfortable silence, broken only by the occasional giggle when they flicked spare icing or crumbs at each other and comments about the piping design. When they were finished, Ajay reached for the rainbow coloured sprinkles, eager to decorate his cupcakes, only to have Lyall swat his hand away.

“Nope. Sorry, babe,” Lyall grinned. “Sprinkles are for winners.”

“I bet I can convince you to let me have some,” Ajay coaxed. He stepped closer to Lyall, one hand ghosting over his waist.

Lyall crossed his arms with a self-assured smirk. “You can’t. I have a will of iron.”

“Well, what if I do this?” Ajay kissed his forehead.

“Nope.”

“What about this?” Ajay kissed a smear of pink icing off the tip of his nose.

A tiny smile twitched at Lyall’s lips. “No.”

“And this?” Ajay placed kisses on both of Lyall’s cheeks.

Lyall was fighting a losing battle trying to suppress his smile now. “Nuh uh.”

“This? Or this?” Ajay peppered Lyall’s face with kisses, trying to kiss every inch of it.

“Nooooo! Ajay!” Lyall laughed, squeezing his eyes shut and scrunching up his nose as he tried to twist away.

Ajay ended his attack with a gentle but firm kiss to Lyall’s lips. Lyall melted into it with a pleased sigh, arms looping around Ajay’s shoulders.

When they pulled apart, Ajay cocked an eyebrow expectantly. “How about that?” he grinned. “Does that get me sprinkles?”

Lyall laughed, burying his face in the crook of Ajay’s neck. “Yes, that gets you sprinkles, you persistent weirdo.”

Ajay smiled and pressed a kiss into Lyall’s hair. “Your persistent weirdo.”

Sweet & Sappy #25 - “C’mere, you can sit on my lap.”

“C’mere, you can sit on my lap.”

Ajay raised his eyebrows at his boyfriend’s words. His eyes flicked sceptically over Lyall sitting expectantly on the couch. “Um, janu, you do realise that I’m around ten inches taller and definitely heavier than you, right? I’d squash you.”

“No, you wouldn’t,” Lyall protested. “I’m stronger than I look, I swear! Remember how I dipped you at homecoming? I can handle it.”

Ajay still hesitated. “I’m not sure that amounts to the same thing.”

“Come on, Ajay! Just try!”

“Please try,” Lucy grinned. “I love seeing my twin proved wrong.”

“Prepare for a Lyall shaped pancake on the couch,” Rory joked.

Lyall huffed, annoyed. “You people have no faith in me. Come on, Ajay.” He patted his knee invitingly.

Ajay could never say no to those big brown puppy eyes. Lyall could get whatever he wanted when he used those eyes. “Alright,” he relented.

Carefully, Ajay lowered himself onto Lyall’s lap, settling his full weight onto him. He felt a bit stupid and uncomfortable. Lyall was quite a bit smaller than him and he could tell that he was crushing him.

“This is fine,” Lyall squeaked, tucking one arm around Ajay’s waist.

“How’s it going, Lyall?” Skye smirked. “Still breathing?”

Lyall shot her a glare. “Yes! Ajay’s not heavy.”

Ajay leaned down to murmur in Lyall’s ear. “You’re sweet, but let’s switch. Your lap is too small for me anyway.”

Lyall’s face flooded with relief. “Yeah, ok. That sounds good.”

Ajay stood back up and they quickly switched so that Ajay was sitting on the couch with Lyall on his lap. Lyall snuggled into Ajay, wrapping his arms around his neck.

“The glorious fall of Lyall’s ego,” Lucy snickered. “The world mourns the loss.”

“And yet I’m being cuddled by my amazing boyfriend while your girlfriend isn’t even holding your hand,” Lyall shot back good-naturedly.

Erin perked up. “Is that a challenge? You guys are going down!” She immediately wrapped both her arms and legs around Lucy in a full limbed embrace.

“This week on ‘Let’s Make Rory Feel Single’,” Rory deadpanned. “Local couples invent a new sport – extreme cuddling!”

Sweet & Sappy #19 - “I’ve always imagined my future with you.”

“I actually wanted to give you something,” Lyall said. His hands were fidgeting and he was shifting from side to side, clearly nervous.

“Ok,” Ajay said, sitting up properly from where he was reclining on the bed. “What is it?”

Lyall’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed. “Ok this is fine, I can do this.” He reached over and took Ajay’s hand. “Ajay, I love you so, so much. I can’t even describe how much. And this may seem strange for me to know because I’m still just a teenager, but I already know that I want to spend the rest of my life with you.” He smiled shyly. “You’re the one for me. I don’t ever want anyone else.”

Ajay smiled back, heart filling with pure joy and love. He didn’t think it was possible to love someone this much. “I feel the same way, janu. I’ve always imagined my future with you. You’re the only one I want.”

Lyall let out a shaky breath, seeming to become more confident. “I’m glad. That makes this a lot easier.” He reached around his bed and produced a small black drawstring pouch. He opened it and tipped the contents into his palm; two silver rings.

Lyall glanced up at Ajay with a blush. “I – I know we’re too young to get married, obviously, and that’s not what I’m asking. So for now I got us promise rings.” His blush deepened. “It’s kinda cheesy and dumb but I thought it would be cute and this way every time I look at my hand I can think of you, but it’s totally ok if you don’t want – mm!”

Ajay cut off his rambling with a kiss. “I love them,” he whispered. “Almost as much as I love you.”

Lyall smiled, resting his forehead against Ajay’s. “That’s a lot then?”

Ajay laughed. “Definitely a lot.” He cradled Lyall’s hand that held the rings in his own. “Janu, this is such a beautiful idea. I love the idea of being so committed to you.”

Lyall beamed. “So you want to wear them?”

“Absolutely. Here, let’s put them on.”

“Wait, I have to ask you properly!” Lyall scrambled to his knees on the bedspread and held up one of the rings. “Ajay Bhandari, will you promise to marry me someday?”

Ajay’s cheeks were starting to hurt from how much he was smiling. “I will.” He took the other ring from Lyall. “And will you, Lyall Turner, promise to marry me someday?”

“I will!”

They exchanged rings, carefully slipping them onto the fourth finger of their right hands. Ajay raised Lyall’s hands to his lips and kissed first the ring and then the bare ring finger on his left hand.

“One day, a ring will be on this finger too,” he murmured, flashing a smile at Lyall. “And you’ll be my husband.”

Lyall’s breath caught. “My husband,” he repeated softly as if in awe. “That sounds amazing.”

Ajay kissed him softly, smiling like the lovesick fool he knew he was. “It does. And I can’t wait until it’s real.”

Angst #39 - “Maybe you should try to tell him/her that.”

“I feel so terrible for how I treated him. The way I just... let myself get swept along with everyone else in blaming him for the accident was appalling. Especially with how close we’d gotten before. I should have known that Lyall would never sabotage anyone like that on purpose.”

“Maybe you should try to tell him that.”��

Erin’s wise words rang in Ajay’s ears. Today was the day. He couldn’t put it off any longer. The apology had gone unsaid for long enough and Ajay would be damned if he let Lyall go one more day without making sure he knew how sorry he was. He only prayed they could move past it and at least be friends again. And hopefully one day something more, his brain added helpfully. Ajay told it to shut up.

Taking a deep breath he grabbed his bag, double checking the contents one more time before climbing out of his car. Immediately as though his eyes were drawn by magnets, Ajay spotted Lyall disembarking the bus, chatting with Skye. He really was gone for this boy if he could spot him from that far away among a decent sized crowd. Ajay shut his car door and jogged to catch up.

“Lyall! Skye!” he called.

The two freshmen stopped, turning to face him. He skidded to a stop and nodded to them both. “Um, good morning. Skye, would you mind if I talked to Lyall alone for a moment?”

Skye shrugged. “Whatever. I’ll see you in homeroom, Lyall.”

Lyall turned back to Ajay, brown eyes full of questioning. “What’s up?” he asked. “Is everything ok?”

“Everything’s fine. It’s just…” Ajay gently pulled Lyall off to the side of the path onto the grass. “I haven’t apologised for how I treated you.”

Lyall shrugged. “Oh, don’t worry about it. Erin told me that you probably felt like you couldn’t take sides because you’re the director. I get it.”

Ajay shook his head firmly. “While that may be partially true, I should have done more to hear your side of the story. I wasn’t as impartial as I could have been. I shouldn’t have believed that you would hurt Jordan on purpose.”

“Ajay, it’s ok,” Lyall said. “Everyone thought I had done it.”

“Just because everyone believes something, doesn’t make it right. You’re my friend and I should have trusted you when you said you didn’t do it,” Ajay said. He looked Lyall in the eyes, trying to show the emotions that he couldn’t speak through his gaze. “I’m so sorry, Lyall. And even though, I know that this isn’t nearly enough, I hope that this can help you to find it in your heart to forgive me someday.” He slung his backpack off his shoulder and pulled out a bulk pack of fruit snacks, holding them out to the younger boy.

Lyall stared at the package for a moment, then burst out laughing. Ajay blinked in surprise. That wasn’t been the reaction he had been expecting.

“What?” he asked in confusion. “You said you liked these fruit snacks, right? I remember you said they were your favourite brand when we were stuck in the theatre.”

“Yes,” Lyall laughed. “They’re my favourite. I love them. Thank you.” He took the package and hugged it to his chest. “You’re too much sometimes,” he said, still grinning. “But I mean that in the best possible way.”

Ajay swore to all the theatre gods, those dimples were going to be the death of him. He looked at Lyall uncertainly. “So you forgive me?”

“Of course! I’m not about to let Danielle of all people come between us.”

Ajay nodded slowly. “But I still feel awful…”

“Then get over here and hug it out,” Lyall ordered, setting the fruit snacks down on the grass and holding out his arms.

Ajay smiled for the first time in the conversation and embraced Lyall gladly. “Thanks for forgiving me,” he said, voice muffled slightly by Lyall’s shoulder.

“Always,” Lyall mumbled in his ear. “Just don’t go doing that again,” he teased.

Ajay chuckled, pulling away. “Promise.”

“But some good did come out of all this,” Lyall said.

Ajay raised an eyebrow. “And what’s that?”

Lyall grinned, picking up the fruit snacks and gesturing with them. “I have real, tangible proof that you do actually listen to me when I talk.”

“Hey!” Ajay protested and Lyall bumped his shoulder playfully as they walked up to the school.

#dialogue prompt are always super inspiring to me for some reason #thanks for the inspiration!#oh my gosh it's scary posting fanfic #i'm so self conscious #high school story class act #ajay bhandari #ajay bhandari x mc #mc: lyall turner #choices #playchoices

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lemoncakepanda · 5 years ago

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Top 50 NaLu Anime Moments {Pt 3}

I am so sorry it took me so long to write this! This week has been a roller-coaster to me, especially since Tuesday. I got so busy, and every time I would log into tumblr, I would only look at my dashboard and have absolutely no energy left to write. Without any further delay, let me show you guys the rest of my top 50, and today we’re covering moments 30 through 21.

Part 2 can be found here.

30. “I’ll be lonely, you idiot!” (Ep 265).

This moment still makes me so emotional. Like... i’ve said this before on my previous top 25 moments, so there’s nothing much to add, but I love this moment because it shows how much Lucy began to rely on Natsu. How much she needed his presence around her, despite always kicking him out and scolding him. And then to lose all that? Just like that? To be filled with such a huge sense of security, the certainty that someone will always be there for you, and to have that ensurance taken away from you? That must’ve hurt. That must’ve broken her heart and it’s no wonder she’s so upset with Natsu when he comes back (again, I get why Natsu had to leave and I’ve already given my thoughts on it, but I also get Lucy’s side) and must’ve stung extra harder bc she’d just lost Aquarius, something she also never thought would happen. But yeah, this is why I like this scene, despite it being sad. It was great character development for Lucy, showed the development in NaLu, and it also pushed the ship forward by giving if conflict and separation, which only resulted in bringing them closer in the future. Also, I also like how Natsu only left a note to Lucy and no one else. She really is his most precious person, along with Happy.

29. “Let’s save the tears for when we win.” (Ep 159).

As a big sucker for moments where Natsu comforts Lucy, this one’s gotta be in the list. Despite being in a team of 5, despite her whole guild being there, only one person came to pick up Lucy and lift up her spirits and that was Natsu. It could’ve been anyone, really. Erza or Gray. But Mashima thought (and I agree) Natsu would make the most sense, because of how deep the NaLu relationship runs, to showcase how they’d grown even stronger since Tenrou Island, and it worked! Natsu, who’d once called Lucy useless to her face, coming up to her and telling her she was amazing, even though she lost? Lucy, who was always so annoyed with Natsu and his fighting, looking up to him with tears in her says saying “i’m all fired up”? That’s the kinda development we strive for.

28. “You’re Lucy of Fairy Tail, aren’t you?” (Ep 23).

I swear, this ship makes me want to scream. And here we come back to a time when Natsu and Lucy were still growing as a team, and still didn’t know each other that well, but already had so much faith on one another. This, I feel, is the first time (after, you know, the tower jump) where it showed that they actually cared and understood each other, mostly Natsu, in this case. Everyone else told Lucy not to cry, not to blame herself because of what her father did, meanwhile, Natsu merely reminded her of who she was. Where she belonged to. And like Lucy said later in the arc, she believed her mother would want her to follow her heart and do what she wanted, and this was probably the first time someone other than Layla showed Lucy that her choice was hers to make, and hers only. Like i’ve said before, what Natsu said, what he did for her here, helped shape Lucy into the person she is today, as well as it’s what also helped Lucy to start relying more on Natsu emotionally, whereas she relied mostly on him physically, to protect her.

27. “Lucy!” (Ep 303).

This moment... is much lower on my list here, whereas it was so high on the first one, but that’s mostly because my opinion has changed, as well as new moments have arrived that I loved much more, and some other moments too I now realize I took for granted, and took a high spot in my list. But nevertheless, it’s still a very special moment. And despite my problems with the animation, I have to admit that I like the desperation in Natsu’s eyes as he holds onto Lucy for dear life, after almost losing her (big sigh bc we know what happens a few eps later); and he even forgets about the other people around them: Mest, Brandish, even Happy! I like how she came first here to him, how he didn’t even hesitate before grabbing her. Now, how he came from that position to groping her boobs with all his might later, I can’t even explain, just... you know... Mashima.

26. Natsu and Lucy versus Jacob. (Ep 299).

Listen, this... this is one of the funniest fights I’ve ever watched on anime. While I like the pacing better on the manga, I really liked the execution of it in the anime, and hearing Natsu and Lucy’s “dirty talk” was one of my dreams coming to life, lmao. Natsu and Lucy once again showing how great they are at teamwork, and why they work so damn well together, how their thoughts align and how their trust on each other plays a huge deal on their victory. Plus, hello, it’s this moment which gives Mavis the inspiration to defeat Zeref, so it’s an extra big moment, i’d say, despite being severely underrated. Still on topic, I liked how when Lucy was undressed in front of him, Natsu was like “how is this supposed to be hell?” and say what you want, but just because he didn’t blush didn’t mean he wasn’t enjoying that view.

25. “Thank you for protecting our future.” (Ep 187).

Not really a NaLu NaLu moment, but still a very sweet NaLu moment. In case you don’t know (and for that reason, you should not be reading this list), the one in the picture is Future Lucy, and what makes this moment so special is that, even though that’s not present Lucy, it’s still his Lucy. He trusts her word completely and understand she effort she’s made, and all the horrors she’s been through, and he kneels down to the ground, craddles her head and presses his forehead to her, to express how grateful he is for what she’s done, and to show that he appreciates her, even if she’s not from his time. And this must’ve meant so much to this Lucy, because she lost her Natsu; she watched him die (the anime even does a little flashback), and she is back at the warmth and the softness only one person could give her, and she thought she’d never have that again. And then there he was, right in front of her, still the same man she’d always known. Still believing in her. Also, a small bonus: present Lucy is watching all this with a sweet smile and a soft blush on her cheeks.

24. “Don’t worry me like that.” (Ep 310).

And now we’re back to me wanting to scream because of these, bc hey... look at this! How come these two f*ckers started a goddamn a relationship and not even realize it? Like, it’s not even possibly platonic at this point in the story! There’s no friendship that can explain this, especially when it’s purposely being parallel with Gruvia, a canon romantic ship, and especially because we know what led up to this moment. And then you have Lucy holding onto Natsu, so relieved that she found him and squeezing him closer to her, despite not knowing what happened to him or what he’d just done, and Natsu whispering her name, listening to her voice once again when he thought he’d never listen to it again, having her so close to him when he thought he’d lost her... and you want me to not ship that? You want to tell me that’s platonic? I can’t even. I literally can’t even. That’s all I have to say about this.

23. “I want a piggyback ride.” Drunk Lucy round 1. (OVA 4).

While I love Lucy jumping on Natsu and wiggling her body onto his during the christmas ova, I have to admit this moment here has a special place in my heart, which makes it higher on the list. Maybe it’s because it was the first time we saw Lucy drunk, and was still a time when we started to really get NaLu moments, and Lucy’s feelings were still 50/50 to us, and then you get this, and Drunk Lucy is all f*cking over Natsu; she has hearts around her when she’s happy because she saw two Natsus, she makes him omelet (how? idk) and wants to feed it to him, is upset when she thinks he rejects it, wants him to make her purr... this alone should tell you a lot, is all touchy-feely with him, and basks in how warm he is, with her eyes closed. And Natsu, my boy... you coulda just run. You didn’t have to stay there and you didn’t have to obey her, lol. I bet he was freaked out because Lucy had never given him this much attention before, so he didn’t know how to deal with it. Always nice to see some Lucy > Natsu action, so let us all thank Mashima for the existence of Drunk Lucy, who makes this more possible than regular Lucy bc she lives in denial, lol.

22. “Beautiful”. (Ep 73).

A classic moment, and one that is immensely loved within the NaLu fandom, and rightfully so! Not only is this the most beautiful tree i’ve seen in anime, but also gave so much more depth to Natsu and Lucy’s relationship, despite being a simple omake. I’ve mentioned this before, but after Phantom Lord arc, there was very little development on NaLu, and most of their scenes together were reapeats of things we’d seen before: them reuniting after the team is separated, working together to solve it, reuniting again, trusting each other, yada yada. Very nice, but still, mostly just friendship and nothing that really stood out. This moment here, where Natsu uproots a tree for Lucy just because she was sick and couldn’t come to see it, then putting it into a boat so it could float all the way over to the front of her house... can be seen as a platonic gesture, and probably was made with that intention on Natsu’s part, but the thing is, these kinda things only happen with them. Yes, Mashima could have given this moment for someone else like Erza or Mirajane, or even Wendy, who was new to the series and probably didn’t even know about this: so why didn’t he? The answer is quite easy, and y’all know it. Development. Growth. Natsu was upset Lucy couldn’t come and join them, didn’t even crack a smile during the whole festival, but he wanted Lucy to be able to, even if he didn’t get to see it. He wanted to make her happy. That’s very special of him, and I think there was already a little of romance there, he just didn’t know what it was, so he just followed his feelings and went for it. Okay, enough gushing and analysing, time to end this list.

21. “What do I look like to you?” round 1. (Fairy Tail: Dragon Cry).

Please, don’t kill me for not having this on top 10, I wanted to put it there, because HELLO, LOOK AT THIS PICTURE, I NEED 911, I- HOW CAN THEY STAND SO CLOSE TO EACH OTHER! MY BOYFRIEND SAW ME GIFFING THIS AND ASKED “IS HE TRYING TO KISS HER” AND I JUST FREAKED OUT, SOMEBODY SEDATE ME! Mashima, what were you trying to do with this? Were you trying to kill us? Like, why does Natsu want to know what he looks like to Lucy? And why he’s gotta stand so close to her that their noses are brushing, just to ask her this? AHSIAHSJJAOSJAAKA, I KNOW THE ANSWER, BUT I STILL NEED ANSWERS! Okay, I was able to calm down a little. I really truly love this moment (love dragon cry in general), and I love how Wendy interrupted them and knew immediately she’d walked into something intimate, the poor thing, lmao, I wish that was me. But really, this is just Natsu taking any excuses he can to stand super close to Lucy even when it doesn’t make sense, because we all know he’s just got it real bad for her.

Will try to post part 4 tomorrow, but no promises. My baby niece is staying over and she takes up all of my free time, lol.

#sorry for any mistakes i've been awake since 6 am #nalu #natsu x lucy #fairy tail #top50nalu

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persephone-damnedqueen · 4 years ago

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Rankin’ the Waifus

I feel like when you’re drunk with friends, you either have the best ideas ever, or the worst ideas. Which is this? Well, at first, I thought this was a fantastic idea, given that @fukae-flwr challenged Drunk Me to do this, until she gave me the rules. . . The rules made it even harder for Drunk Me to do, leaving Sober Me to rise to the challenge, just to prove her wrong. Now, I know what you’re thinking, “Persephone, you have too many Waifus, ranking them is like picking between them is impossible,” but I finally, after a lot of debate, reviewing, and “friendly” discussions, involving way to much cussing and slamming of hands with friends, I was finally able to settle on the list, so without further ado, here are the rules.

1) Only one character from the franchise.

2) They have to be Waifus, not favorite characters (this rule comes in to play a lot later on).

Let’s kick off this list now with the easiest thing, the honorable waifus.

Honorable Mentions:

Now, these are in no particular order, because even leaving them off the top 10 was hard enough.

Lucy Heartfillia: Fairy Tail

This one waifu per series is the only reason why Lucy had to be cut from the main list. Let’s clear something up here, Lucy is Top Tier Waifu, especially in a series with as many Waifus as there are. Lucy has everything, from a fantastic development, to a great personality, to a gorgeous character design, and she definitely deserves more praise in the series than she gets. Sadly, my waifu choice from this series, only barely beats Lucy, but not mentioning her would be a crime.

Rindo Kobayashi: Shokugeki no Souma

Rindo is the most obvious choice from this waifu heavy series. She’s spunky, entertaining, and a glutton to boot, but above all, she’s actually a terrifying opponent to go against, especially since she’s one of the best cooks in the series. I mean hell, she literally uses alligator in one battle simply because she just felt like it, and her being apart of Centrol and having access to as many resources as they do. From the moment she’s introduced, she stole every scene she was in, even if it was just for a panel or two, if that’s not a waifu, I don’t know what is.

Maika Sakuranomiya: Blend S

This is where that waifu rule plays in. Maika is my waifu of the series, not my favorite character; that title is held strong by Hidori, the trap idol who steals the series from the moment they are introduced in episode 8. Maika, and her non-intentional sadistic look, make her the best waifu choice. It’s endearing, and sweet to watch her try her hardest to not be sadistic, but fail making all of us fall in love with her more. Also, who doesn’t love a bit of sadism in their waifus?

C.C: Code Geass

Ah, the waifu who started this whole drunken debate. She’s the classic, Pizza Hut loving, immortal waifu, who is literally unforgetable. The latest addition of her to my massive figure collection only reminded me just how strong of a waifu choice she really is, despite being from one of the oldest series on this list.

Mayoi Hachikuji, Tsubasa Hanekawa, Hitagi Senjougahara: The Monogatari Franchise

Honestly, a solid argument could be made for any of these girls to be the second best waifu. You have Hanekawa, the lovely class president who only knows what she knows, Hitagi, the tsundere who has an unhealthy obsession with stationary, Mayoi, the dead snail ghost-turned-god girl who has literally the cutest bit with Araragi in the entire series, or even Karen and Tsukihi, the Fire Sisters of our main character. Every girl in this series is a valid choice; well all but Nadako. Fuck Nadako.

Now that those mentions are out of the way, let’s get to the truly hard part.

Top Ten Waifus:

10: Homura Akemi: Puella Magi Madoka Magica

Okay, she’s not really 10, but I’m still mad at her, and after a full hour of debate, I still couldn’t justify putting her above any of the 9 other waifus who I wasn’t eternally mad at, so that valid. Homura is such a bad ass, and honestly, one of the more deadlier choices of a waifu, adding on the massive magical girl obsession I have, I physically couldn’t leave her off the list.

9: Brandish μ: Fairy Tail

Ah, Brandish, the Nation Destroyer herself. She’s perfect, in every way, and I’ve loved her from the moment she was introduced in the final arc, and by far one of the standouts of Alvarez. She’s adorable with her unique design, a massive cat obsession, and a stupidly powerful magic. Also, she’s one of the few characters to actually get some development in the entire arc. Mashima didn’t do a lot of good things in that arc, but he did gift the world with Brandish, so I can’t be too upset.

8: Retsuko: Aggretsuko

One of the most relatable waifus anyone could ask for, but what more could I say that isn’t obvious? She’s a Sanrio Red Panda who works in an office, hates her boss, and sings Death Metal kareoke. I know she’s supposed to be an adorable mascot meant as a way to get us to spend money on her merchandise, but damnit Sanrio, did you have to make her this cute?! Ugh, just take all my money already.

7: Minako Aino (Sailor Venus): Sailor Moon

This is where the waifu of the series rule killed me. My favorite character is Hotaru (Saturn), but I wouldn’t consider her a waifu; she’s more of a badass senshi who can literally destroy an entire galaxy with one swoosh of her Silence Glaive. The only three I would consider waifu enough for this list are Seiya, Usagi, and Minako, but after breaking it down throughly with @fukae-flwr, we were finally able to come down to the decision that Seiya, while being fantastic in every way, is not a waifu, and Usagi, while being relatable as fuck and lovable to boot, is and can only be Seiya’s Waifu, leaving Minako, the winner of the debate, and for good reason too. She’s loveable, kind, caring, powerful and the leader of the inner senshi, and S Tier waifu material, so overall, I can’t be unhappy with the outcome of the debate.

6. Android 21: The Dragonball Franchise

Okay, this one was the hardest series for me to pick just one waifu from. With so many choices, from Bulma to Android 18 to even Launch, (remember her? no? It’s okay, even Toriyama doesn’t). I love all most of the Dragonball Waifus, so why did I ultimately settle for for the best Video Game Bae? Simple. She’s a badass who is hot as hell and literally eats people. . . .so a kink basically, but like, can you blame me?

5. Himako Toga: My Hero Academia

A knife wielding, psychopathic, serial killing yandere schoolgirl? There isn’t even a contest, Toga is best girl. Period. I will fight anyone who says otherwise.

4. Stocking Anarchy: Panty and Stocking With Garterbelt

Again, this is another obvious choice as far as waifus go. It was during yet another rewatch of this underrated show that I realized how much I genueinly love Stocking, and she’s clearly the better choice over Panty. Stocking is the sweets loving, emo fallen angel/demon who cusses like a sailor and is into bondage. Yes, I am aware, it’s another kink, but I don’t care, not even a little bit.

3: Shalltear Bloodfallen: Overlord

Yeah, I choose Shalltear over Albedo. Shalltear is best girl, and I’ll fight anyone who says otherwise. I will admit though, that while Albedo is gorgeous and a great choice, Shalltear is a vampire with lesbian tendencies, and that instantly puts her above the virgin succubus. Thank you Lord Peroroncino.

2. Shiro: No Game No Life

When making this list, and talking out all of the waifu ranking, there were two that didn’t budge on the list at all, Shiro, and the number one choice. Shiro is perfect, and even in a series with freaking fox people and Jibril, and that says something.

1. Shinobu Oshino ( Kiss-Shot Acerola-Orion Heart-Under-Blade): The Monogatari Franchise

Meet the Best Waifu in existence. Honestly, it doesn’t matter if she’s in her Shinobu form, or her fully powered vampire form. Shinobu/Kiss Shot is by far the best waifu anyone could have. She’s a freaking powerful vampire that’s gorgeous, and mysterious in her true form, and even in her weaker form still manages to be powerful, snarky, and adorable as hell. Also, her reaction to donuts will literally be the greatest thing in waifu history. Ugh, I love her.

And there you have it. 10 waifus ranked, and it only took three days, three people to rant to, and a shitton of headache pain killers later. @fukae-flwr told you I could do it. Next challenge. . . Husbandos. Oof.

So yeah. . . . Thoughts I guess?

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