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brokenbeskar · 4 years ago

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Negotiator

Chapter Three of Memories Reforged ( Din Djarin x F!Reader )

Word Count: 5.8k

Summary: You finally make it to Nevarro to cash out your bounty, but end up revealing some details about yourself in the process

Warnings: some talks of gender (Din mistakenly uses the wrong pronouns for you, you correct him later), suicidal ideation (reader was saved from death but wishes they hadn’t been)

A/N: you finally get to reveal a bit more of yourself in this one!!! I hope you all like it! as always let me know if you see any mistakes or anything!

Somehow, you’ve never been to Nevarro. You’ve been to most of the Outer Rim at this point, but you’ve never stepped foot on this volcanic planet. You weren’t really sure what to expect, but two people waiting to greet the insufferable mandalorian you were traveling with, was definitely not one of them.

“Mando!” The unfamiliar man extends his arms out in welcome as the ramp to the ship lowers fully, the shiny mandalorian nodding in response as he descends. “And how's my favorite baby doing?” The stranger leans forward to smile widely at the baby in the mandalorian’s arms and give him a little wave. The baby coos happily back at him, reaching out to mimic his wave.

“It’s good to see you both alive and well.” The woman next to the both of them gives the mandalorian’s shoulder a rough pat, and he nods back in her direction too. Apparently that's the only way he knows to greet people back.

You stand there awkwardly, but mostly surprised. He has friends? People who are happy to see him? You have been dreading every second you’ve had to spend alone with this reflective asshole, how could anyone actually enjoy his company? It's probably the baby. They only like him for the baby. Yeah, that makes more sense.

“And who’s this you have with you? Care to introduce us to your friend here?” You’re snapped out of your thoughts and realize everyone is looking at you, the stranger man giving you a welcoming smile. You start to descend the ramp yourself so as to not be rude, stopping just besides the mandalorian you arrived with.

“He’s here on guild business. We’re splitting a reward.” He nods in your direction, but you're confused. Was he talking about you? Like...he nodded in your direction while talking about you, but ‘he’? It must have been a mistake. You ignore it and don’t say anything.

“Splitting a reward?” The stranger man spits out, shocked. “What for?”

“I ran into him on Jakku. He helped me take down the bomber and we agreed to split the reward in exchange for travel.” The mandalorian explains. You tilt your helmet up to look at him questioningly. First of all, you helped him? Oh he's got it all wrong, he tried to steal the bomber from you. And second, why does he keep referring to you as ‘he’? Suddenly it dawns on you--your helmet. He’s seen what you look like without your helmet, and you're half his size, but despite that he’s picking pronouns based on what your helmet tells him.

This helmet wasn’t made for you, it bears the masculine T shape visor, instead of the more rounded feminine shape traditional in mandalorian armor. It’s really the only distinguishing factor, mandalorian culture doesn’t really care for individuality. It doesn't matter who you are, just that you’re a strong warrior. Hell even all of the pronouns in mando’a are gender neutral. Well, you still don’t like him, but at least he’s respectful.

“Well, if that's the case, lets go inside to talk business. Forgive me for my lack of manners, I’m Greef Karga.” He turns to you, and places his hand over his chest as he introduces himself, before notioning to the woman next to him, “And this is Marshal Cara Dune.”

You nod in return to the both of them, offering your own name readily. “It’s a pleasure to meet the both of you.” The both of them look surprised, confused you just gave your name, and that just confuses you.

“Well, I guess we don’t have to worry about figuring out a distinction between the two of you now, do we?” Karga chuckles out. You just look between the two of them, then to the mandalorian besides you. Weren’t they friends? Did he never bother to introduce himself? That doesn't make sense to you. You decide to let it go for now, you’ll ask him about it later.

You follow as Greef Karga leads the group of you through the city. It’s far nicer than you were expecting considering you know guild operations were being run here. There were bustling shops and children running and playing, the smell of food from nearby stalls filled the air. Colorful tapestries and awnings lined the streets, shops selling all kinds of fanciful wares.This isn’t what you were expecting at all. Cara’s marshal status must be no joke, she must be half the reason this place is running as smoothly as it is. She ends up having to part with your group halfway into town to deal with something. She’s polite when she excuses herself and makes a point to mention that it was nice to meet you before she heads out. She’s nice. Her strong exterior is only strengthened by her winning smile. You wonder how her and the mandalorian met, how they ended up friends.

The rest of your group makes it to the nearby cantina and settle at a table. The baby has fallen asleep in the pouch the mandalorian is carrying. You’re a bit surprised how nice it is inside, it's not a dirty grimy bar, but a more respectable establishment. This was clearly a place of business.

“So,” Karga starts, “I understand you're a guild member, but I don’t recognize you.” He folds his hands together on the table between you.

“My usual outpost is on Carajam.” You explain as you pull out your bounty puck and slide it onto the table in front of you. The mandalorian next to you takes out his several pucks and puts them onto the table next to yours.

“Ahh, I see, Carajam. Quite the hub that one is.” he nods gathering the pucks infront of him, but pausing before he grabs yours. “Unfortunately, I can only cash out one of these.” He holds up the mandalorian’s puck for the bomber up, “So I’ll split the reward for this one between the two of you.” “Cash mine out instead.” You nod in the direction of your puck on the table.

Karga raises an eyebrow at you, “yours? I’m sorry my friend, but there's no difference. The rewards are the same.”

“Check it, they’re not the same.” You lean back in your seat, getting comfortable. Karga looks confused as he picks up your puck instead. He activates it, and looks down at the flickering image in shock. He notions to one of the guards stationed nearby and they appear at his side almost instantly with a holopad.

“How did you get a commission price this high? On such a low level bounty too…” His voice trails off as he navigates through the menus of the holopad.

You just shrug, “Just really good at catching bounties I guess.” You relax even further, leaning an arm over on the back of your booth. Your body language is oozing confidence. He just hums lowly to himself while he continues to fiddle around on the holopad.

“I assume you use a different name for guild operations?” He looks up at you and you freeze. You haven’t had to mention your old alias in years. Your regular contact knows you well enough that you never have to supply it.

“I do. You can take it off my puck.” You try to keep cool, notioning towards the puck still sitting on the table. “It’s a guild bounty, it shouldn’t be a problem.”

“I wouldn’t be a problem if I knew you maybe.” He lowers the holopad and sets it on the table before leaning forward in his seat, “I’m sorry my friend, but this is my first time meeting you, I’ve got rules to follow you know. I need to verify that it's actually your puck, and not a stolen one.” You tense at the accusation, turning the gaze of your visor to the floor beside your booth.

“This is ridiculous,” you spit out, “that's my puck, and that's my bounty frozen in carbonite. Just give me the reward.” You can’t help how defensive you sound. You really don’t want to say it outloud. It’s such a simple thing, but it feels too painful, and quite frankly you're embarrassed. Especially considering the mandalorian next to you. You realize you’re probably coming off as suspicious at this point, but you don't care. There's no way anyone could understand how difficult just saying the name he gave you out loud actually is for you.

“Look, I’m not trying to be difficult,” he reasons, changing his tone to try and sound more genuine, “But I’ll have to cash in Mando’s puck instead of yours if you won’t give me your registered name.” Your whole body is tense now. The confidence that once oozed off of you is gone. Your struggle to give up your alias is obvious to anyone, even with your helmet still on.

Finally you sigh, you can’t afford to lose those credits. “It's Laar Sennar.” You breathe out, quieter than you want. You think maybe it was too quiet for anyone to actually hear you, but then you notice the mandalorian next to you, snap the gaze of his visor to you, and you know he heard. His gaze also confirms your suspicion that he knows mando’a. Of course he does, what mandalorian doesn’t?

“Thank you, Laar Sennar. See? Wasn’t so hard was it?” Karga smiles at you then picks the holopad back up to look you up. “And there you are!” He exclaims when he finds you and looks over your file. The smile on his face fades, and before he says anything you already know what he sees, “Oh, I’m sorry about your partner.” He looks up from the holopad and gives you a compassionate look.

Despite knowing it was coming, it still stings in your chest. Just like your alias, no one mentioned him anymore unless by accident, and even that was rare. “It's fine.” Is all you can muster, but even that comes out short and forced, your hurt clearly audible in your response. You’re making an absolute fool of yourself, are these credits even worth it? You let out the lightest sigh. You’re not even sure it registers through your helmet’s modulator, but that would be for the best.

“Well, now that I’ve confirmed this puck to be yours,” Karga sets a stack of credits on the table in front of you and the silent wall of beskar next to you, and splits them in half, sliding each in their respective directions, “here are your credits. Mando, here’s your reward for your other pucks.” He pulls out some more credits and slides them over to the mandalorian next to you. “Now in regards to new jobs, I’ve got a few options. However…,” he pauses as he shifts his gaze between the both of you, “Perhaps if the two of you were willing to work together again...I’ve got a bigger job I could give you.”

“Bigger how?” The mandalorian next to you speaks for the first time in what seems like forever, and you're surprised this is what makes him speak. Was he actually considering working with you? The thought of being forced to work with him again sounds awful, it would take way more credits than Karga is about to offer you for you to take it.

“Sixty Thousand. For each of you.” You think you choke on air. Sixty thousand credits?! Suddenly working with this shiny tincan of a man doesn’t sound so bad afterall. Karga pulls out the puck and sets it on the table, “It’s not an easy job, you’ll have to work together to make sure he doesn’t escape, or you’ll be chasing him across the galaxy. Bit of a slippery one, this one is.”

“We’ll take it.” You blurt out before you even discuss it with your newly established business partner. Sixty thousand credits is too good to pass up. You look up to gauge his reaction, but he's staring directly at you already. Shit, he’s going to decline it, you just know he is. You should have known, he probably hates being around you just as much as you hate being around him. You are each just a nuisance the other can’t quite seem to shake off. Much to your surprise however, he reaches out and grabs the puck off the table, pocketing it. A silent agreement. He accepted the job. Oh thank the maker.

“It’s settled then! I’m only giving you the one job for now, come back to me when you’ve completed it and I’ll give you new ones. This one might take you both awhile.” Karga smiles brightly at you both. “Regardless, I hope the both of you will stay in Nevarro a bit longer? I can provide lodging if it means Mando here will grace us with his company awhile.”

You go to respond, but ‘Mando’ himself interrupts before you even start, “We’ll only be staying long enough for a supply run. We’ll be gone by sundown. Could you have my ship fueled up before then?”

Karga frowns at that, “Honestly Mando, when is it anything other than business with you? But of course.” He turns his gaze to you, “Well it was a pleasure to meet you, I hope to see you back on Nevarro soon.” He gives you a hearty smile, and you give him a nod in response.

“Likewise. Until next time.” You stand to leave with a wave to Karga and your new hunting partner follows out behind you.

“I’m surprised you seemed so excited to take the job.” He states amusement seeping into his tone.

“It’s like you said, Five thousand credits isn’t enough for a ship.” You shrug back at him. “Looks like we’re stuck together for a little while longer, shiny.” You continue to walk besides him passing through the main road of the city, scanning the shops for anything important. You stop at one shop in particular and start loading up on medical supplies, throwing them onto the counter. When the shopkeep tells you the price, you turn to look at your new business partner expectantly. “Well? You got paid out a lot more than I did.” You nod towards where he pocketed his credits earlier. “You turned in 4 pucks, I only had one.” You remind him. He grumbles something before throwing some credits over to the shop keep, and turning to leave before you can finish scooping up your goods. “You better be pitching in for fuel.” He grunts out as you catch up to him.

“For a trip you would have made regardless if I came along?” You scoff, “Absolutely not.” He just shakes his helmet lightly, clearly frustrated with you. You continue on your way picking up supplies for the trip, there's three of you on one ship now, so you wanted to make sure you were prepared for anything.

---------

“You know mando’a?” He asks suddenly while you're silently browsing a weapons stall, and it completely catches you off guard. You feel yourself tense up at the question, but you hope it's nothing obvious.

“Bits and pieces,” You reply cooly, “As most who know it do. It’s a dying language after all.” You shrug, never turning to look at him as you lean forward and continue to look through the various blades and blasters laid out in front of you. You hope that will be the end of it, but he keeps going.

“Your alias,” He starts, but pauses. You figure he's trying to find the right way to ask you about it, “Interesting choice.” Is what he settles on. You can’t help but let out an amused huff.

“I didn’t pick it,” you confess lightly, and you look ever so slightly over your shoulder to see he's staring right at you, waiting for you to continue. You stand up straight from where you were inspecting the weapons table, “It was given to me. A sort of…” you hum lightly to yourself trying to think of the words to describe it, “A sort of pet name I guess.” You smile underneath your helmet at the memory and turn to leave the weapons stall, deciding against getting anything.

“Pet name?” he questions, and the baby starts to fuss in the pouch on his hip. He pulls Grogu out of it, carrying him in his armored arm. The baby coos lightly as he blinks away the sleep in his eyes. You turn and tap the baby’s nose causing him to giggle, your new favorite habit you can never seem to resist.

“Mhmm,” you finally reply with a nod. “Ner kih laar sennar…” You speak out wistfully looking out at the ashy sky above you, “My little song bird...that's what he used to call me.” You scoff at how ridiculous it sounds out loud in basic, kicking a stray pebble beneath your boot in embarrassment, but the smile under your helmet never fading. You remember the first time he said it to you, how it took your breath away. It sounded so beautiful in his native language, you craved to hear him say it everyday. “When I enlisted as an official guild member it was the only thing I could think of.” You can't help but let out a laugh, you remember it clear as day. Your guild contact had asked what you wanted to be registered under, and in your panic you just--blurted it out. You’ll never forget the way he turned to you in shock, or how relentlessly he teased you about it afterwards. You’ll never forget his confession, when he had admitted how he loved the way mando’a sounded coming from your lips, and how happy he was that was the name you chose for yourself. The name he gave to you.

You’re broken out of your thoughts and back to the present when the baby starts fussing again, whining and reaching out towards something. You turn your gaze toward what he's looking at, and it’s a large, seemingly handymade, frog toy. You immediately rush over to the stall, it's full of trinkets and miscellaneous items, but there were also a lot of things for children. You pick up the stuffed frog and hold it out to the baby in the mandalorians arms. He excitedly babbles and reaches to take it from you.

“You like this one, little bug? You think shiny here should get it for you?” you bounce the toy frog up and down in your hands as if you’re speaking through it and Grogu nearly shrieks with happiness, “yeah? I agree!” You nod and turn your visor to meet the mandalorian’s and you can tell he's annoyed with you. “Well? You heard the baby!” You scold, “Better hand over those credits quickly!” you turn back to the merchant after handing the toy to Grogu and pick out some other children's toys. A small bag of blocks, some wax coloring sticks, and a colorful rubber ball that fits perfectly in your palm. “These too please,” you show the items to the merchant, and start to put them in your bag before something else catches your eye, “ohh! And two of these!” You quickly grab a couple wrapped candy bars, one for you and one for the baby.

If you’re being honest with yourself you don’t really want one, but you know this is irritating him. The fact you are so willing to spend his credits for him without asking, you can feel him seething with anger behind you...and you live for it. You turn to face him, “oh! I’m so sorry…,” you tilt your helmet at him pretending to be sympathetic, sarcasm oozing from your modulated voice, “did you want one too?”

The beskar clad man says nothing, just threateningly towers over you while the baby happily coos in his arms. You can feel the absolute seething anger he’s exuding right now, and you're sure if you were anyone else, you would be terrified. Kriff, you probably should be terrified anyways, you’re about to be alone with this man on his ship for who knows how long, but he doesn't scare you. In fact, the threatening way his visor is burning a hole into yours just fuels you to keep going, “Make that three!” You nod to the merchant and grab another candy bar from the stall, before turning to leave and continue on your way. You can’t help but chuckle to yourself as you hear the shiny idiot curse under his breath before practically throwing the credits onto the merchants table and catching up to you.

“I’m not made of credits.” He hisses out at you.

“Oh, I know.” You nod in agreement. “But look how happy he is!” You motion to the baby who is absolutely thrilled playing with his brand new toy, a luxury he's been lacking for who knows how long now. “He’s worth every spare credit. Aren’t you, Bean?” You wiggle your pointer finger at him but he's too engrossed in his new plaything to notice.

Making it back to the ship, you take the baby from the mandalorian and make a head start to the cockpit while he hands over even more credits to the one who's just finished fueling up the ship. You can’t help but snicker to yourself at your own mischievous behavior as you settle into your seat with the baby in your lap. You really just did that. This man was still a complete stranger to you and yet you just practically spent all of his newfound credits for him. That’s definitely payback for the sudden babysitting job he threw at you on Corellia, you guess you can call it even for now. Besides, how can anyone deny this precious little guy anything? You grab the floppy arm of the frog toy and wave it at the excited baby in your arms.

The mandalorian eventually arrives back into the cockpit with the two of you, irritation still apparent by the way he not-so-subtly stomps his way to the pilots seat. He doesn’t say a word as he initiates takeoff, lifting the ship off the ground and making its way through the atmosphere.

“You’re paying the next time we fill up.” He grunts out as he warps the ship into hyperspace.

“Fair enough.” You nod, continuing to play with the baby in your lap, “I’ve had my fun.”

“Oh, that's what you consider fun?” He sounds far less than amused and you can’t help the chuckle that escapes your lips.

“After what you pulled on me landing in Corellia? Oh yeah.” you nod again for emphasis.

“Trying to humiliate me in front of my bounty wasn’t enough?” He turns his seat to face you.

“Try to? Oh no, I definitely humiliated you.” you correct him, and you’re almost disappointed you still have your helmet on because he can’t see the sly grin proudly spread across your face. He just sighs and turns back towards the front of the ship. “Don’t worry though, I think we can call it even now.”

“Thank the maker.” The utter sarcasm and annoyance he has for you weighs heavy on his words, and more than anything, it only satisfies you further.

“Oh cheer up tin can! Here--,” You rifle through your go bag on the floor next to your seat and pull out the candy bars from earlier. You hold one out to him, “Here's yours.”

“Keep it.” He doesn’t even look at it. Was he really that mad at you?

“Suit yourself.” You shrug and tug off your helmet, tucking it next to you opposite of the baby. You open one and break it in half, giving one half to the baby, and wrapping the remaining half back in its wrapper. The last thing you need is to give this kid a sugar rush while you're stuck in hyperspace. You tuck it back in your bag, along with the one meant for the bitter loser next to you. You unwrap yours and take a bite when you realize--you haven’t seen the mandalorian eat once since you’ve been together. In fact, you haven't seen him take off his helmet at all. “When’s the last time you ate?” You take another bite.

“Last night. While you were sleeping.” While you were sleeping? Kriff this guy is weird.

“What? You don’t trust me enough to take your helmet off around me? We’re business partners now. I’m not going to kill you...not that the helmet would prevent me from doing so anyways.”

“I don’t trust you,” You’re about to make a snide comment back in response as you take another bite of your candy bar, but he cuts you off, “But that's not why.” He never breaks his gaze from the cockpit window. Now you're confused, what the hell does that mean?

“What's the reason then?” You question.

“My creed.” How he manages to answer your questions without actually explaining anything never ceases to piss you off.

“Your creed?” you try to emphasize the confusion in your tone, hoping he will actually explain something to you, but he just nods in response. “What creed?” Maker, he is so absolutely frustrating. You put the rest of your candy bar away, no longer interested.

“The way of the Mandalore.” You’re hoping he will keep going, but you should have known better by this point. You truly have no kriffing idea what he's talking about.

“What? So you won’t take your helmet off in front of me because you’re a mandalorian? That doesn't make sense. I knew a mandalorian, quite well mind you, and I’ve never heard of that before. He took off his helmet all the time.” This is only getting more and more confusing and his short responses are only making things worse.

“This is The Way.” He nods to himself as if he's making perfect sense. Only, he's not making any sense at all.

“Is this...creed...the same reason your friends back on Nevarro don’t know your name?” He nods again. You just stare at him, confusion lined all over your face. This is nothing like any mandalorian you knew. Not that you knew many of them. You knew mandalorians were held by a creed, but you’ve never heard of it being that intense. “So okay…,” you look around the cockpit trying to think of a way to ask more, “I’m sorry, please explain this to me, I don’t want to be disrespectful.” For some reason, that statement is the one he decides is worth looking at you for.

“To call myself a mandalorian, to wear the beskar, I took the creed as a child. Gave up my name, vowed to never show my face to anyone. A creed I must follow if I’m to continue to wear this armor, continue to be a mandalorian. It’s the reason I have to return the child to his kind. This is what it means to be a mandalorian, this is The Way.” He says every word like his soul rests in each of them. This is the most this mysterious man has ever spoken to you, and it’s with such a passion, such conviction.

You’re almost afraid to ask anymore questions. As much as you don’t like this guy, you have a lot of respect for how important this clearly is to him. You know mandalorians are big on tradition, and they each had a pretty strict code of honor, the Resol'nare. To stop following that code, to stop being a mandalorian for whatever reason was to lose your soul, “dar’manda” it was called. But this? This was on a whole other level.

“So...do--do all mandalorians take this...creed?” You try to ask carefully, you don’t want to overstep any boundaries you might not be aware of. This creed he took, it was clearly about secrecy, you weren’t sure if even asking about it might be going too far.

“I thought so…,” He looks back out the window pausing and taking a breath before continuing, “But I recently learned that wasn’t the case.” You nod in understanding, taking your gaze off him and instead to the helmet resting under your arm.

“Thank you...uh for explaining…” You’re trying to sound genuine but you’re pretty sure it just comes off awkward. He doesn’t say anything and you feel like the silence between the two of you is suffocating. You’re used to quiet, it doesn’t bother you usually, but this? This kind of quiet was different and you hated it. Not even the baby was making noise, He was slowly drifting off in your arms, and you’re almost tempted to rile him up again even if it's only to save you from the stifling silence. Almost.

“Your hunting partner,” His low modulated voice suddenly breaks the silence, and you would be thankful if it weren’t for the subject matter, “They’re the one that gave you your alias?”

You nod slowly, still peering at the helmet under your arm. “That who you got the armor from?”

“Yeah.” You nod again and you force a sad smile more at the helmet than the man speaking to you. Hunting partner...you could almost laugh. If only that's all he was to you, maybe it would hurt a whole lot less that he was gone.

The mandalorian finally looks at you again, “Were you...an item?” It’s his turn to struggle in the same way you did, trying to ask his questions without being disrespectful. This time you actually laugh, it barely comes out, but it's there.

“He was my husband.” You finally admit it to him, you aren’t sure why you’re finally comfortable enough to tell him. Maybe it's because of how vulnerable he was about his creed.

“Your husband was a mandalorian?” What a stupid question

“Yes, yes he was.” You gaze out the cockpit window at the smear of stars flying past you in hyperspace.

“That's why you keep the armor?” More stupid questions. Marker, this guy really was a dumbass. You left out a sad sigh.

“His armor is all I have left of him. I wear it to remember him, to honor him.” Your gaze meets the visor already staring at you. The stars reflecting strongly off the top of his helmet. “I will die before I let anyone take it from me. I’ll take this beskar to my grave...a creed of my own I guess.” You shift your gaze to the now sleeping baby in your arms and slowly, gently, stroke the top of his fuzzy head. You haven’t spoken about your late husband out loud in--maker, you don’t even know how long. It hurts. Your chest is aching, still just as painful as the day he left you. “He died a warrior's death. Just what every mandalorian hopes for I guess…” You can’t help but sound bitter. You sigh, “I was supposed to die with him,” You admit. You aren’t sure why you're still talking, it’s not like he asked you. Maybe it's been too long since you’ve spoken about him, you just can’t help yourself, “But he saved me.” You shake your head, and take a deep breath. “I don’t know why he did, I never got to ask, I never got the chance to even argue,” You scoff, “I wanted to die with him...but he saved me.”

The mandalorian next to you just continues to watch you as you pour your heart out. You wonder if he can tell how much it still hurts. How hard it is for you to talk about it, even after all this time. He doesn’t seem irritated, or bored, you can’t tell what he's thinking, but he's not stopping you, so you keep going.

“He was my whole life, my oathsworn, my riduur....” The mando’a doesn’t roll off your tongue in the same way it would when he said it, and maker, you wish more than anything you could hear him say it one more time. Hear him call you his Sen’ika, his cyare, mesh’la, anything. What you would give to hear him speak those sweet words to you again. “I was to stay by his side no matter where he went--and to me that meant even in death. I was prepared to follow him in death...but he took that from me, and next thing I knew I had to find a new life. I had nothing left…”

You look back up to the man sitting next to you, and you suddenly feel sick. You can’t believe you just unloaded all of that onto him. You don’t know this man, you barely met him, you don't even like him, in fact you very much dislike him. Yet here you were, pouring your heart out to him about your dead husband. You feel like there's a blade in your gut, slowly turning as it gets pushed farther in. You’re utterly embarrassed. “Sorry…” You mutter out, shifting your gaze to the cockpit floor. You can’t bear to look at him.

The mandalorian next to you doesn’t break his gaze from you. He must think you’re a fool, an utter fool, spilling your emotions onto the floor of his ship. Weak for letting your sadness sweep over you so easily. You figure he’ll never take you seriously now, throw it back in your face if you make a mistake.

“Thank you.” He nods his visor slowly once, “for explaining.” you never expected to hear your awkward words said back to you, but as awkward as they sounded coming from you, they sound so genuine coming from him. A man who barely speaks. You meet the gaze of his visor once again, before you try to play it cool, feeling way too vulnerable.

“Don’t get used to it.” You let a small smile creep over your face. Maybe this shiny beskar clad man wasn’t so bad afterall. He doesn’t say anything, and silence fills the cockpit once again, but this time it’s not unpleasant. No longer sifling, but comfortable instead.

“She by the way,” you break it, and you look to each other once again, “I’m a she.” You smile at him, “I know my helmet says otherwise, but I’m a she.” He stares at you way too long without saying anything. It starts getting awkward real fast, until he gives you a slight nod and returns his gaze to the cockpit window. What a strange guy. You lean back and get comfortable in your seat, gently stroking Grogu’s cheek while he sleeps in your arms as the three of you warp through hyperspace. ***

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danger-xylophones · 4 years ago

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The Ice General (Captain Rex x reader)

mobile’s fucking with formatting, sorry.

The Ice General is a miniseries following the love story of our one and only Captain Rex and the elusive and confusing Jedi general Y/n L/n. Certain aspects of the character of the Ice General have been chosen by me, the author, as a way to keep my sanity intact.

This is narrated primarily from Rex’s perspective but it will shift to yours now and again.

Words: 2160

Warnings: Mentions of injury but that is about it

{Masterlist}

Taglist: @tararuthven // @questforgalas

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Captain Rex once heard that clones take on the personalities of the Jedi they serve. Now, he wasn’t exactly sure that that was true but the clone captain did believe that certain traits previously dormant could be awakened or amplified if the general they served had similar traits. Case in point: Commander Cody. Rex had known Cody for a long time and as a result, was pretty familiar with the way his vod thought and acted. Cody had always been thoughtful and calculated with plenty of sarcasm and snippy remarks to spare but Rex noticed that his endless wit had seemed to expand upon serving under General Kenobi. The captain noticed it with Commander Wolffe as well though to a more subtle but still heartwarming extent as Wolffe had always been compassionate if a little closed off. His brothers’ changes often left the captain wondering what personality traits he had let show after serving with General Skywalker and Commander Tano.

But, bearing all this in mind, that didn’t mean that Rex could always guess the personality of the general based on the personality of the commander. Such is the case with CC-4290, better known as Commander Fritz of the 205th battalion or the right-hand man of the infamous Ice General.

The 501st was en route to a backwater planet named Elaroth, a dry and miserable mining world ripe for a droid factory if the Grand Army didn’t claim it first. And while the men of the 501st were buzzing with anticipation for meeting the almost legendary general of the 205th, Rex was a little nervous and his orders to keep chatter to a minimum did little to quell the enthusiasm in the air. The general of the 205th was an...interesting character, or so he had been told. In truth, Rex knew about as much about her as anyone of his brothers outside of the 205th-that is to say, he knew almost nothing. He knew that her name was Y/n L/n and that she was a human Jedi who studied under Ki-Adi Mundi for ten years before being knighted shortly before the war. He also knew that she was known for her eery calmness and the ability to see through bantha skrag faster than anyone Rex knew personally. And of course-her tactics. Strike hard, strike fast, and stay out of sight as much as possible-confusion and mystery were the friends of the 205th, how ironic that that would extend to their general as well.

Rex was pulled from his quiet ponderings by the sound of loud, boisterous laughter emanating from next to him. Commander Fritz clad in his blacks and the bottom portion of his teal painted armor was nearly doubled over as he guffawed at some joke a shiny had made. His messy silver hair was in disarray (a constant; Rex was starting to think that it was just the way he styled it) and it had moved to the side to reveal a black tattoo that read ‘Freedom’ in Mando’a on the back of his neck. The captain of the 501st had noticed that most of the veterans of the 205th had the same tattoo but in different locations and it caused a certain unease to arise in his gut. All he could think of was the words of his brother Slick who had spoken about how the clones were just slaves with different titles: they had no freedom. The reminder of Slick only encouraged his wariness of the Ice general. Why would her men all have the same tattoo? Had they gotten it as a way to cope? Was she a monster in disguise?

No, she couldn’t be. Commander Fritz spoke of her with such rapport and admiration. But, admiration can be faked. Rex’s more cynical side countered. He could be court-martialed if someone found out he held any distaste for his general. But, maybe he truly adored her? He had to, especially if what he had seen earlier was a regular occurrence.

When the 501st touched down, they weren’t expecting to immediately be caught up in a fire-fight (though with a man like Skywalker as their general, they were always itching for one) that had them racing to rendezvous with Y/n L/n and Commander Fritz where they were trapped in a ravine with a rock slide slowing their retreat and a droid battalion intent on wiping them out. One of the medics had informed Captain Rex that the Seppies had already gotten to the planet and had built a factory that was producing units faster than the 205th could cut them down. If they didn’t move quickly, they would all die.

The 501st had made it (they were the best for a reason) and together the two battalions were able to push the droids back to a dried-up delta that afforded them the one thing the 205th needed to win; mobility. After that, it was only a matter of time before the droid factory was destroyed by a mixed force of 501st boys and 205th. Though, in the midst of it all, a tank had managed to take a shot at the Commander. It had launched him back and Rex couldn’t forget the way General L/n had sprinted away from Skywalker’s side to get to him. She hadn’t panicked, she hadn’t yelled for her felled commander, she just ran to him and took her spot over his body, deflecting blaster bolts, like it was routine till one of the field medics could get to the silver-haired ARC. Rex remembered how her jaw was set and how still her face was as her arms worked to swing her dual lightsabers. She had looked bored as she stood over the knocked out commander.

And when Fritz had been dragged away, she surged to the front again as though her commander hadn’t been injured at all. It was perplexing. But Rex couldn’t erase the image of the Jedi standing over Fritz’s body, ready to protect it whether he was dead or alive. That was the evidence Rex held onto that contested his theory that Y/n L/n was one of those generals that didn’t care for her men.

Commander Fritz had been alright, just knocked unconscious and a little banged up from the blast and now he sat next to Rex barking out loud peals of laughter and acting like he hadn’t broken two ribs. “Try-try telling that to Ice-I dare ya!” The silver-haired man choked out between chuckles, pointing a hand at the shiny that had spoken from across the fire they had made. Rex felt out of the loop as he glanced between the 205th-ers and his boys who were all sharing varying looks of amusement. What had the shiny said?

“Try telling me what?” A cool, even voice cut through the laughter like a blaster bolt through a calm meadow. In his peripheral, Rex saw Jesse, Fives, Echo, and Kix stiffen up and snap their attention towards the sound. The men of the 205th, however, were far laxer in giving their general their attention (minus the shiny Fritz had been laughing at who had gone pale and stiff). Rex was struck with the realization that General L/n’s tone was no different than the tone she had used when explaining the best move Skywalker could make to help her over the comms. It was a little unnerving.

Y/n L/n was unnerving. She stood beside slightly in front of Skywalker, perched on the edge of the firelight. The warm light kissed the apples of her cheeks but did not quite illuminate her face, leaving her appearance mostly to the imagination. She looked like the physical embodiment of a shadow, distant, amorphous, ambiguous. The only thing keying the men into the fact that she was a real person was the datapad held firmly in her left hand and the rim-lighting on the most dynamic parts of her face. Her eyes were sharp as she scanned over the men though the captain could not tell if she was disdainful of their conduct and lax postures.

“I-uh…” The shiny began uncertainly, looking around to his brothers for help. The veterans were smirking down at the shiny, unwilling to aid him in his struggle while the other shinies looked ready to piss themselves.

“Go on, Boom, tell the general what you were going to say when she got out of her meeting.” Fritz waved his hand to signal the shiny to continue while he sat back with a smug grin. Briefly, the commander’s elbow dug into Rex’s side as he whispered ‘watch this’ out of the corner of his mouth.

Boom swallowed and carded a hand over his shaved head, unable to meet General L/n’s inquisitive gaze. “I...I was just…”

“Go on, Boom, I am eager to hear what has Fritz so amused.” Y/n encouraged in the same even tone though she had slightly cocked her head to the side.

Boom muttered a string of curses in Mando’a under his breath before finally deciding that he wasn’t going to get out of this easily if at all. Still unable to meet the general’s eyes, he summoned whatever courage he had left to at least spare his dignity and spoke. “I was going to ask if you needed a seat, ‘cause I’ve got one right here for you.” And with that, Boom hesitantly patted his thigh. Tension started to descend over the gathered group of clones as Y/n mulled the pick-up line over that threatened to break as a result of Fritz’s barely contained giggles.

Y/n stepped into the light and Rex swore he heard the shiny take a sharp intake of breath, apparently already resigned to his demise. Her face was stoic and entirely unreadable as she faced Boom and regarded him with a swift once over. “Earn some more nicks in your armor, shiny, then we’ll talk.” Fritz and the other veterans lost it. All doubled over in laughter and the softly spoken retort. One of them who sat closest to Boom clapped him on the shoulder, commending him for his moxie. Rex swore he saw Y/n’s lips quirk upward momentarily before she was turning to look at the boys of the 501st who all sat pensively, still more than a little unsure of her.

Noticing the tension in them, she addressed Skywalker over her shoulder. “Skywalker, you didn’t tell me your men were so serious.” Was she teasing them? It was hard to tell.

“Normally they’re not.” Anakin answered, slightly baffled as he walked around to plop down on Rex’s right.

“I think you’re reputation proceeds you, Ice.” Fritz chimed in before anyone else could with a poorly hidden wince as he scooted away from Rex and gestured for Y/n to sit.

“Careful with those ribs, commander, or Bolt’ll have my head-you weren’t supposed to leave the med tent.” Y/n scolded in her still unwavering tone as she looked down at the injured man. Fritz shrugged.

“Eh, you’re the general, General, tell him to can it.” The commander simpered nonchalantly, leaning back on his hands.

“Or, as your general, I could court-martial you for insubordination.” Rex stiffened up, would she really do that?

“With all due respect, General, kriff you.” Fritz bit back with a grin a parsec wide. There was a horrified gasp from what Rex suspected was Echo and frantic muttering from some of the shinies.

Y/n seemed unfazed though as she sat beside Fritz and began pouring over the datapad in her hands. “I mean, you could if you wanted to but I feel I should inform you that I prefer blonds.”

“Damn, what are they up to now, Hyde?” A veteran whistled lowly, reaching around Kix to poke at his brother who was wedged between the medic and Jesse.

“22 to 3, Ice’s winnin’.” The redhead answered back quickly.

“They do this a lot?” Jesse gasped in disbelief, looking to Hyde as he dug a piece of flimsi out of his glove and used some ash to mark it before folding it away.

“All the time. We didn’t start to keep track of who wins the sass-offs till recently though.” Hyde explained.

“I find it relaxing and it makes sure I stay sharp.” General L/n chimed in once again, eyes fixed on Jesse. “I just realized I never asked your names.”

“Fives.” The man in question stated with a lopsided smile. “This is Echo, that’s Kix, and that’s Jesse.” He waved his hand around to each clone as he said their names. Y/n nodded and closed her eyes, muttering their names under her breath in a move Rex recognized as a way to memorize them.

“It’s nice to meet all of you.” Suddenly, Y/n turned to Rex. “And it’s nice to see you when we’re not getting shot at, Captain Rex.” And Rex’s questions multiplied.

Next ->

#captain rex #clone wars #star wars #tcw #star wars: clone wars #danger-xylophones

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jyunshiim · 4 years ago

Text

𝐂𝐨𝐦𝐩𝐚𝐬𝐬; 𝙨𝙤 𝙡𝙤𝙨𝙩 *✬★*’☽* ✬ ⤷𝘒𝘪𝘩𝘺𝘶𝘯 𝘹 𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘥𝘦𝘳 𝘢𝘶 | 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 2

Contains → fluff | angst |

Listen to → Compass & imagination

Word count → 5198

TW →

Chapters → | Chapter 1 | Chapter 3 |

𝗖𝗵𝗮𝗽𝘁𝗲𝗿 𝟮 →

Eventually, you had to depart from Kihyun which broke your heart since you felt rejoice whenever you hung out with him. It reminded you of summer when you, Kihyun and Changkyun used to spend your warm evenings on rooftops and empty fields near lakes, your head on Kihyun’s lap and Changkyun whining to lay on his lap instead. The playful fights between you and Changkyun when you argued who’d be the first to hug Kihyun after your lively evening together. It was nostalgic to think about whilst you waved Kihyun goodbye, his skin gleaming as the sun inched closer to the horizon. His hand intensely gripped at the handle, his unoccupied hand waving you goodbye as the bus jolted again driving to the next stops. Kihyun sighed and looked out of the window again hoping you’d run after the bus waving at him but something did change and you stopped doing it. There was a shift. He shook his head in disbelief and chose to ignore whatever he heard, he just wanted to go home. The vehicle remained stationary and Kihyun looked at the stop he was at and luckily he arrived to the right one so he released his grip from the handle and gripped his bag strap instead and vacated the bus swiftly and stood under the shelter whilst observing the grey, dismal sky. “you must be joking,” he sighs just as the grey clouds become darker and seem to be saturated by rain. He looks in his bag for anything to shelter himself with although there was nothing so he had no other choice but to run to his home which was an additional 3 minute walk. He bolts down the streets as the rain begins to plummet down to the cool concrete. Kihyun looks around and sees a couple under a jacket running under the shelter on the other of the road. He ignores them, he doesn’t have time to think about that right now. Finally, he arrives at the metal gates guarding his front door which he pushes open and runs towards his front door.

He frantically takes off his shoes, tripping over his family’s footwear, staggering into his living room. “Kihyun, you’re soaking! Come here!” his concerned grabs a clean towel and ruffles Kihyun’s hair dry; “you must be so cold! Luckily I made some soup today.” She pats his back. Kihyun couldn’t help but smile at his mother being so compassionate. He smiles and thanks her before going into his bedroom, unbuttoning his wet shirt and leaving them on the floor. He stared at his ceiling; he felt so.. empty? Maybe because he was hungry again but regardless, he grabbed his phone and the blue light beamed onto his face. There were a few messages from you and some messages on the group chat between you and Changkyun.

You: hey! Are you home yet? If you are, do you wanna play later? :]

You: Also isn’t it your friend Hyungwon’s birthday soon?

You: Kihyunnn

Kihyun replies to your messages;

Kihyun: yeah I just got home and it was pouring out there and yeah it is very soon how did you even remember that?

Kihyun: Uhh also for being online, [he thinks for a moment] maybe, my mother wants a family dinner.

You: plssss :< I miss playing with you <3

Kihyun sighs as the pair of you exchange some text messages before Kihyun had to go and have dinner with his family. You sit back in your chair a chamomile and ginger candle lit at your desk next to the bunny plushie Kihyun gave you, the flame dancing the music softly playing through the speakers. You had to study since you have been throwing it off for a while, so your pens and highlighters were scattered across your desk. Your puppy sits near your desk; “did you miss me today?” you pet Lucas before going back to your textbook. You realised prom was also a couple months away and you were thinking to ask Changkyun to be your date to prom, maybe you should ask Kihyun what you should do or maybe even Irene. Sudden fluttering intruded your stomach and you looked at yourself in the mirror diagonal to you and catch yourself smiling. You couldn’t help it. You check to see if anyone is online and of course, none other than Changkyun is in the waiting lobby for a game. Impulsively, you grab your headphones and join the game;

“well well well, look who it is again,” Changkyun’s voice sounded cheerful even through a pair of headphones, “Are you stalking me Dumpling.” He laughs since he knew you hated that nickname but he liked to hear your reaction. “Stop calling me that!” you pleaded. “are you pleading? Are you acting like your little puppy now hmm?” he mocks you. “Oh my god Kyun, shut up and start the game.” You sigh; you felt your heart palpitate slightly, the nervous butterflies swarming your stomach. A few minutes pass by, round after round, the pair of you sharing wins. “ where’s Kihyun?” Changkyun asks. “oh, well he said he was having dinner with his family, did not not message back?” You look at your phone the time stamp reading READ 6:45pm. “He read the message, maybe he’s studying?” Changkyun suggests “maybe I should do that too,” you lean into your chair again, groaning at the workload for school since it was inching closer to your final exams, “maybe we should have a study group!” your exclamation startling Changkyun on the other end. “Hey, we did have one but someone decided they didn’t wanna come,” Changkyun sighs; “yeah that was you, Kyun…” you remind him making him chuckle. “ah yes, of course it was but maybe we should prioritise it now…”

Kihyun was sat with his mother in the living room, his head on his mother’s lap as she gently caressed his hair. Kihyun felt calm. He looked at his phone.

You: what do you think of study group again at Lucky’s Coffee? Like the old days!

You: it’d be good to share ideas and stuff like we did during study period at school!

Kihyun: yeah, that sounds cool :)

That emoticon felt strange

Kihyun went online for a little while to notice the ‘active 45 minutes ago’; a pit fell in his stomach, but it was fine, he wanted to play to relieve some stress. He gripped his controller and leaned back into his leather seat spending the rest of his night alone, playing something. His phone was flashing blue, notifications flooding his screen, which he didn’t see until it finally stopped. After a long session of gaming, Kihyun got bored and sat against his headboard and unlocked his phone and it was none other than you. You were asking to go to karaoke on the weekend with Changkyun and Irene, asking questions about the study group and also a question that stood out the most to him; how do I tell Changkyun how I feel? Kihyun didn’t even know himself so it was hard to give that advice and it was even harder when he had feelings for you, his best friend. He replied to all the messages before laying his head down and facing the wall, the sudden warmth of his sheets embracing him, his body sinking into his mattress as he drifted off very quickly.

The following morning was dismal and rainy. The 6 am clouds loomed over the city, hitting against the window to your room. You woke up to your dog at your feet and your lamp still lit from the night before however not only that, so was your computer on the loading screen. You were waiting for Kihyun but you feel asleep as your body hit the mattress. You read the replies from Kihyun as you roll out of bed and slip your feet into your slippers and stumble tiresomely through the door to the bathroom although your brother was taking his time for the last 20 minutes. “Hurry up,” you groan as you crouch outside the door, your phone sitting at the crease of your hand. You text Kihyun; “Good Morning, wanna grab some breakfast with me today?” you send with a smiley emoji. As Kihyun is drying his hair with a black towel, he grabs his phone off the desk and reads your message, pressing your name and opening the chat log.

“Yeah sure. Where do you wanna go or what do you want to eat?” he replies back. Kihyun puts the phone back onto the desk and finishes getting ready. He decided to wear his white shirt and cream coloured v neck vest that had blue and red strips at neck. He buttoned his cuffs and slipped on his maroon blazer, grabs his bag and heads for the door. It was ten minutes to 8 and Kihyun was on his way to get the bus to get to your house. “No breakfast today?” His mother asks as she sets breakfast for the rest of the family out. “oh um- I promised a friend I would get breakfast with them” he smiles nervously before shoving his feet into his shoes and dashing through the door catching the bus on time. He unlocks his phone and replies to you; “yeah, any café sounds go, I’ll be there soon.” He locks his phone and puts it into his pocket. Luckily today he came prepared and took an umbrella just in case.

You tap some lip tint on your lips, smearing it around with your finger, putting it back into your pouch and back into your bag. You spritz here and there your new fragrance and smile to yourself contently. You see Kihyun outside and you run to meet him outside; “the bus came quick today!” you sounded extremely cheerful today. “yeah, less traffic I guess, I don’t really know,” Kihyun nervously laughs. You and Kihyun walk to the nearest café around the corner and sit at the bar stool seats the look outside; Kihyun gets 2 steaming cups of coffee and two chocolate croissants. “wow, we haven’t met up before school in so long,” you sigh as you sip your piping hot coffee although you hiss at the hot liquid burning your tongue. Kihyun’s jumps and asks if you’re okay and passes you his water bottle to cool the tongue down. “no no, I’m fine thank you,” you take a napkin and pat your bottom lip. “is that a new lip tint you’re wearing?” he asks noticing a new shade. “yeah! I didn’t expect you to notice.” Of course, you wouldn’t, why would I be looking at your lips in the first place?

“look who it is,” Changkyun smiles and drapes his arm around Kihyun “bro, is your phone alright?” he takes it out of Kihyun’s blazer pocket. “nope seems fine to me, why haven’t you been replying to us?” He looks at Kihyun concerned as they walk to class together. “I’ve just been busy with my family, nothing much really plus I felt a bit ill yesterday because of the rain.” He nodded to himself. “ohh fair enough, don’t die on us like that bro,” he squeezes his arm. “how did little puppy get so good at video games?” Changkyun pulls you close to him. Your heart skips a beat and your cheeks flush a pinkish hue. Kihyun notices and his hands bury in his pockets and he clears his throat; “doesn’t her lip tint look nice on her?” he asks Changkyun, Changkyun turning his head with a smile to inspect your new lip tint. “wow, it does look nice on her, can I have some too?” he smirks knowing that it has an affect on you. You nervously laugh, “um no, it was expensive okay?” you scoff jokily. “how about the tint on your lips hm?” he squeezes you from your side. He did not just say that – Kihyun thought. “We can hang out after school if you want?” Kihyun suggests to you, and only you. “Not inviting me are we? I need to get a new moisturiser; can you help me?” He looks at you starry eyed. You nod at him, your cheeks aching from smiling so much; “Well, coffee is on me then I guess?” he pulls you and Kihyun in.

Period 1 – Business studies. It was a class that dragged on for hours yet you somehow loved to learn about different strategies and using statistics. You flip you pen between your fingers, your knee bobbing under the table as you tracked the time on the clock above the teachers desk. 25 minutes to go. You glance out side the glass window of the door and you see Changkyun waving at you, pointing towards the cafeteria – that was his way of saying there all in there today- you tilt your head and he makes his way. “um, ma’am what seems to be so interesting outside that you cant focus on your statistics?” your teacher taps her fingers on her desk. She was intimidating. “oh um no Miss, I just got distracted” you clear your throat. “hm okay,” she looks back at her computer. The bell finally rings and you were dismissed to break; you see your friends and Irene at the table today. “hey! Changkyun and Kihyun got you a drink and a snack, someone seems to be popular,” Irene nudges and whispers into your ear; “so which one will you pick,” she smiles smugly “ what do you mean, they’re my best friends?” you whisper back to her. She sighs and shakes her head, “text me later alright?” you nod in affirmation and look down at the table to see a strawberry smoothie drink and a gimbap triangle on the table. “thanks guys,” you smile at them. Kihyun leans back in his chair next to you and scrolls down his Instagram feed. “you’re awfully quiet today?” you prod his arm. “Yeah, just a bit tired today,” he croaks, “nothing much to be honest.” Jooheon was in your study period today accompanying you since the other three were in their classes. He was working on his music and was working hard to getting the highest grades to get a scholarship to go abroad for his degree course. “psst, hey,” he leans over the table to get your attention. “hm?” your response was instant since he never usually spoke in study periods, “have you noticed Kihyun acting strange lately?” he pouts thinking, “He said he’s been studying a lot so that’s what I assumed, why?” you stop writing and question him. “oh… nothing he just seemed abnormal but if that’s it then I guess now I know,” he smiles “how is university applications going?” Jooheon seemed intrigued. “Well, I got my place into Seoul University and all my other ones too but I’m definitely picking Seoul!” You respond to him certain you’ll go to Seoul. “cool, cool, I’m planning to go abroad to be honest, have you told the others about your acceptances?” he asks and you shake your head. “We promised to keep it until prom.” You nod. “Ruthless, how could you keep it for that long, I’d be so happy to spread the news!” Jooheon’s jaw drops at how good your secrecy skills were, “well, we wanna surprise each other you know?” Jooheon nods, understanding your point.

The basketball court was empty but that’s where you waited for the boys. You take your mirror and your lip tint, dabbing it onto your lips and smearing it with your finger; you reach into your bag for a tissue. “Hey there Dumpling, tissue?” he hands one from his packet. “What the fuck? Where you just watching me?” you elbow him. “watching you put that lip tint on that you said I can’t try? Yeah, I’m jealous you can be just as pretty as me!” His laughter immerses your heart in admiration. “wow, you’re so cocky!” you punch him. Kihyun wonders over, his plaid jacket over his shoulder; he strides over and greets the pair of you. “Hello, Lovebirds,” he glances at Changkyun and then you, “waiting for me? Let’s go.” He walks ahead. “Lovebirds? That’s new, do you see me and Little Dumpling together?” Changkyun shoots a playful look at Kihyun and you. “why would you say that Kihyun?” you fiddle with your fingers, a nervous pit falls in your stomach. Kihyun grabs your hand, “well maybe we should be lovebirds then?” he tried to let his playful side arise. “WOW! Kihyun, do you like her?” his eyes scan his expressions but all Kihyun gave was a side smile, “that was a quick assumption Kyun, jealous because I’m holding her hand?” The atmosphere was tense and almost too tense for you so you changed the subject. “there’s a corndog stall just before the mall we could have some of that or just go to a cheap little restaurant, I really want jjajangmyeon!”

At the shopping complex the three of you went to, you were looking at new jewellery and makeup for prom – especially the more pinky red tones. “This one would look good on you,” Kihyun picked a scarlet red lip tint and handing it to you to try. You already had some on so you turn to Changkyun, who was asking earlier to apply some for some reason, and beckon him over. “lemme try this on you, I already have some on,” you unscrew the lid and move closer to Changkyun. You could feel your heart beat out of your chest and your throat go dry. You elevate yourself, standing on the tip of your toes to apply the tint to his already pink lips although he lowers himself down for you, his eyes that captured the starry night, gazing back at you like you were the stars. “Do my lips look kissable yet?” his husky voice was low, it made you melt on the spot. It was to no surprise he’d say something along those lines – although lately he has been making remarks like this more frequently- but it caught you off guard. “h-huh, what?” you gulp. “Lips, kiss kiss” he moves closer and Kihyun returns to see what was happening and he clears his throat. “Just kidding, do you like the colour though,” Changkyun stands back straight and looks at Kihyun and back at you. “come on then let’s get this, you both must be hungry yall acting weird as hell.” He grabs a box of the shade you tried on him and heads to the tills.

“was he going to kiss you? Did I interrupt or something?” Kihyun asks, his heart aching ever so slightly. “n-no, that wasn’t my intention I didn’t know he’d do that!” you defend yourself. “did he make you feel uncomfortable, I’ll tell him to not make your uncomfortable just let me know and I’ll-” Kihyun was cut off by you; “no, he didn’t don’t worry. He’s not a creep for sure it’s just my feelings making me nervous but thanks for watching out for me.”

The evening went by quickly. The three of you enjoying your time together as much as you couldn’t until the evening came to an end and the departure began. You took the bus home with Kihyun again, his forehead pressed against the cool window pane and his bag between his arms. “are you asking Irene to prom?” you ask Kihyun, his head whipping to you like a deer seeing head lights for the first time. “why? Why do you ask, are we not going together?” his voice sounded upset, almost similar to sounding heartbroken. “oh no, I just thought you guys should because I wanted to ask Kyun to be my date, is that okay?” you sound like you were asking for permission but you didn’t want to sound condescending or rude by just stating it as a fact ‘I’m going to prom with Kyun, you go with Irene’ that’s wrong. “oh um I’ll just go with the boys and Irene then,” he nods and looks away to the busy evening streets. “oh my, really!” the excitement and relief floods your system, “you’re the best Kihyun, I love you so much!”

You love me the wrong way…

School was different now. You and Changkyun have very frequent flirtatious encounters and conversations and everyone began to catch on. Yet, Changkyun didn’t make a move yet. After school, specifically your evening classes you asked Changkyun to wait for you so you could walk home together or grab a coffee, to which he didn’t deny to. After making one last trip to your locker the locker is slammed in front of you making you jump. “KYUN! You scared me fuck sake,” you open it again to get your phone out. You both walk out, talking about whatever you usually talk about until you stop. “Changkyun…” you voice softens and you reach for his arm but he takes your hands into his and just holds it. You gulp before proceeding what you were going to tell him; “Firstly um.. I wanted to say that I-”

“I have feelings for you…”

“…I have feelings for you.”

You stop and nervously gulp and trying to not lose composure, your hands gripping his harder. You couldn’t believe your eyes or ears, did he really say it back? “Hey, don’t freak out but I thought it was obvious enough that I liked you?” he chuckles “who would’ve thought you’d return the feelings.” His hand rests on the back of your neck and you felt your cheeks burn like they were set alight. Your lips quiver nervously; his lips softly left a dainty kiss on your cheek and nothing more. “I wanted to ask if you’d be my date to prom? Is that what you wanted to ask me?” He smiles ever so purely. You nod. “well, today is your lucky day then!” He pulls you in for a hug. What the fuck just happened? He kindly walks you home and your mother sees him; “Changkyun, long time no see, come in!” she invites him in. “Oh thank you but I have to get home to help my little brother but maybe another time.” Your mother frowned. She saw Kihyun as a son but she had a strong liking towards Changkyun since you started high school.

School was different since the day Changkyun confessed to you. You weren’t expecting it at all but there you were, in an empty corner of the study room, with Changkyun next to you and Kihyun sitting opposite you. Whilst you were guiding your eyes across your page with your pen until Changkyun’s hand rested on yours on the table. Your instinctively moved your hand but you looked up at the distraught face as if he made you uncomfortable on accident. He mouthed, “I’m sorry” before turning back to his textbook, one hand resting in his lap; your hand glides over to his under the table and the hairs on Kihyun’s neck rose. He looked up to see you stare lovingly at Changkyun. It shouldn’t have bothered him so much, but it did. You gently pulled his hand closer to you and intertwined your fingers with his. He smiled at you, his hand burying in his free hand although when a teacher walked towards the table, you let go. She was searching for Jooheon; “is he not in today?” Kihyun asks. “no, this isn’t like Jooheon, I’ll ask for someone to phone home,” she stared you and Changkyun down. “work hard Changkyun.” Her voice was stern. Jooheon was actually performing today and no one but Kihyun knew. “He’s performing? Where?” you ask Kihyun. He answers your question before quietly going back to studying and checking his wristwatch.

Changkyun’s name flashes up on your phone and a smile is drawn across your face. You grab your phone and sit on your bed and tap at the screen to reply at the message. He asked when he could you and that Kihyun told him that he’d meet you both there. You sighed, you felt bad for leaving Kihyun out like that although you did try to get him a date – Irene – but it didn’t work out sadly.

A few weeks later…

Prom was surreal. The aura felt surreal. You sat at your dressing table and you twist the lid of the lip tint you bought with Kihyun and Changkyun and tapped it onto your lips and your apply some glitter to your eyes. You add a few more curls to your hair with your flat iron and spirts your perfume and turn around to look at yourself in the full length mirror. As you admire yourself, you hear someone at your door and a knock following it. “Hey Dumpling, it’s 7pm and I’m here to take you away,” he smiles looking down, standing up straight before walking closer to you. “I got this for you,” he pulls out a pink rose from behind him and hands it to you, his hands locking fingers with you. “first of all, that sounded so scary,” you laugh as you push him, palm on his chest but he hold your hand there. “wouldn’t our first dance be like this?” his arm wraps around your waist before your mother walked in and ruined the moment. “you should catch a taxi now by the way,” he points to the door “oh and don’t forget an umbrella!”

You didn’t think an umbrella was necessary so you didn’t take one but you and Changkyun sat at the back on the taxi. You were texting Kihyun;

You: hey! We’re on our way now. Are you there yet?

Kihyun: not yet, I’m waiting for Jooheon but he’s fixing his tie and we’ll leave. See you there

Kihyun hadn’t seen you yet and he knew for a fact it’d be like seeing something so heavenly for the first time. Not long after, everyone was together. The music, the lights, the crowds of people celebrating their final time together all in one room. You saw Kihyun holding a small bouquet of flowers until her saw you walk in hand in hand with Changkyun. Everything went grey and cold and his finger tips numb. He didn’t know what to do with the flowers, so he disappeared into the sea of people and returned, empty handed. You wave at Kihyun and the others and coverse with them until Changkyun and Kihyun went to get; Kihyun started a conversation with Changkyun.

“do you you really like her or is it a one time thing?” Kihyun asked, his tone bitter and dry.

“yea, I would believe so… I do like her?” Changkyun replies back “why do you sound… upset? Were you both a thing?” he questions as he stops what he was doing and turns around, “Is that what this is all about Kihyun?” Changkyun catches on quick.

“did you tell her you’re moving to the states or are you gonna hurt her by telling her last minute?” Kihyun bit down on his teeth hard, inhaling sharply.

“I- I haven’t but I’m sure she’ll understand right, she isn’t one to throw a fit Kihyun,” he puts a hand on his shoulder “It’ll be fine..” Changkyun smiles.

No, that wasn’t the point! Why can’t you get the message!

“I like her Changkyun and you knew I did but you go and confess you like her too?” Kihyun bites his lip drawing a little blood. “but she expressed her deep admiration for me, what else could I do? Break her poor heart?” There was an immediate silence. “Alright, this is in your hands…” Kihyun’s voice was harsh. Changkyun had never seen Kihyun so upset and hurt about something before after their years of friendship… hopefully this wouldn’t break the bond.

After a few hours, near the end of the night, the special event was taking place. King and Queen. “they do this in the states, I’ve seen it in movies-“ Jooheon jumps in excitement. “you’re too excited for this-“ you nudge him “let me be excited!” he smiles. Everyone goes quiet and mutters to each other who they think the winners would be. The girls who tried to get Kihyun’s attention waved at him from a far; “they definitely voted for you,” you scoff “why do you sound so disgusted, am I not worthy of prom king?” his gaze was strong, intimidating almost until he realised and smile to soften the mood. “Well Kihyun of course you are but those girls are trouble…” but during the conversation you were having with Kihyun you both missed the winners. You and Kihyun. As cliché as it sounds, you and Kihyun won. Everyone’s eyes were on you and Kihyun and you could see Changkyun at the back clapping for you, his eyes full of love and a hint of pain. You both received your prizes and from then on everything began to spiral…

“Since we didn’t tell each other where we’re going, let’s say it now in 3… 2...” you count down but you were interrupted by Changkyun. “I’m moving to the states for the rest of my studies.” He blurts out and gulps nervously hoping you wouldn’t think much of it. “w-what-” the smile drops and your face pales. “I’m mo-” he repeats but you stop him. “don’t tell me again, I heard…” you stare at him, eyes pooling. Has your heard already been broken? “why did you confess to me then?” Your dainty voice cracks. “because I wanted to and I knew you were going to do the same but-”

Everything sounded like it was underwater. You heard a faint ‘I’m sorry’ from him. You couldn’t hate him for moving that far, you couldn’t take that distance. Kihyun’s arm wraps around you and you immediately bury your head into his chest. Of course your childhood friend would always be there. “hey, don’t cry it’ll ruin your makeup” Kihyun tries to comfort you. Jooheon and Irene exchange awkward looks; “umm hey Irene should we umm go home?” Jooheon suggests, Irene fake yawns, “Yeah I’m getting tired, see you guys exam week,” She pushes past Changkyun and Jooheon follows.

Changkyun regrets his decisions, he should’ve stayed quiet. You regret yours too. The relationship couldn’t go on but luckily there wasn’t a proper start either. “we can still talk and be friends and despite the fact I like you.. that wont change,” he begins and you look up, your lashes wet from tears, “but feelings change with distance Kyun… sure we can be friends but god..” you tried to console yourself and so did Kihyun. “I’m sorry, I-I don’t know what more I can do…” He gulps. “maybe we should just depart for tonight and let the energy calm down” Kihyun suggested, “I can take you home if you want? He asked you and you nodded. “You can join if you want,” he gave Changkyun the option but he shook his head and said he’ll go alone. Everything was messy and your feelings should’ve been concealed. At least Kihyun was there to comfort you.

And I always will be.

↩ Chapter 1

↪ 𝘊𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘵𝘦𝘳 3

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danzinora-switch · 4 years ago

Text

Typing the Turtles (ROTTMNT) Part 1 - Raphael

This started out as an investigation into the turtles’ insecurities, because one thing the show does so well is demonstrate that they are still teenagers. And being a teenager is a confusing experience - there’s angst, drama, exploring one’s identity, a lot of growth, and overall figuring out who you are. That’s a messy process, too! And we see this mess in our turtles: they mess up, they’re learning, they self-doubt, they have fears and insecurities, but they’re also discovering their strengths and how to overcome their inner obstacles.

So after thinking about all this way too long, here’s my psychological breakdown of each turtle (I’ll be referencing MBTI and the Enneagram, but will include links for more general information on those if you don’t know what I’m talking about).

Raph: ISFJ, 6w5

The Defender, The Loyalist, The Big Brother, did I mention The Defender?

Raph is always helping out the little guy, whether that little guy is Mikey, Donnie, Leo, April or someone else. In the first episode, Mystic Mayhem, Raph is the one who notices poor Mayhem alone and scared, and suggests they should help him. He just met the little furball, and even after Mayhem attacks his face he’s still ready to fight some dog-jogger Yokai to protect him. He’s there when April’s school is attacked by Hypno (Hypno! Part Deux) and when she just needs her fan fixed (Repairin’ the Baron). He’s also there for a myriad of underdogs, such as Guy Flambe (Pizza Puffs). Interestingly enough, that episode also indicates that Raph has taken to moonlighting as the hero Red Angel of Preventing Harm.

Raph at his Worst: What is Raph afraid of? Beyond Mrs. Cuddles. Raph is afraid of being alone. But he also feels strongly empathetic when others are alone: Mikey on a solo mission in Hot Soup: The Game, Mayhem in the pilot, Frankenfoot when he runs away. But why?

If we look through the lens of the Enneagram, Raph wants security and support. The system/structure he is most committed to is their inner circle of family/friends. So nothing must happen to those he loves!

Raph has also demonstrated Worst-Case Scenario thinking when he’s stressed. Alone for 5 minutes in Man vs Sewer? Expect the worst. In Nothing but Truffles, Mikey even flashes back to a Raph lecture about what to do in the event of a: shark attack, vampire attack, werewolf attack, and puppy attack.

That said, when someone does hurt someone he loves, or sufficiently threatens/scares him and/or his support system, all his disaster-planning goes out the window in an effort to SMASH IT LIKE A BOSS! (Counterphobic 6).

He puts a lot of pressure on himself, but it’s not really about failing in big moments (as Leo describes it in Mystic Mayhem and Down with the Sickness, but that says more about Leo than Raph), but more about letting the others down. He needs to open the gateway to the Mystic City or else they’ll lose April forever. He needs to think of something to ask for in the Must Say Yes stage that will please all his brothers and not leave anyone out. And, in Insane in the Mama Train, Raph is the one most affected when Splinter says he’s disappointed. The others were willing to brush it off and apologize, but Raph is aware that they let Splinter down. It’s something worse, and he feels that hurt, deeply.

Raph is also sensitive enough that he sometimes takes things too personally. When Mikey and Donnie have a good idea in One Man’s Junk, he internalizes it as ‘Raph never has a good idea’. Mikey sorts that out the best: “We’re not saying you don’t have good ideas, Raph. We’re just saying we do, too.” It seems to snap him out of self-deprecating funk.

Average Raph: Raph wants to protect those he loves from physical threats, but also emotional ones. That’s why he’s so bad at handling interpersonal conflict. He can’t yell at Donnie in Donnie’s Gifts. He can’t yell at (Mike? Lou? Tony?) in the Pizza Pit because “it’ll destroy him”. He’s super conflict-averse when it comes to those he cares about. He doesn’t want to hurt anyone’s feelings (ISFJ). Mostly this is a kind, caring, compassionate trait, but sometimes the situation needs Dr. Delicate Touch.

He’s the supportive friend and brother. He’s always ready to help out, whether it’s fixing April’s fan (Repairin’ the Baron), rescuing Guy Flambe from Meatsweats (Pizza Puffs) or saving Mayhem from the mirror. He’s encouraging… but sometimes to the point of enabling. In Pizza Puffs he recognizes this the most and literally wrestles with himself over trying to let his brothers fix problems on their own without him there to protect them. Sometimes he can’t help but support his friends even when he doesn’t want to: when he’s volun-told by Mikey to help warm Draxum up to humans, he doesn’t ditch, and when April invokes the Birthday Card to help Warren Stone he honors it. He can be dedicated and loyal to a fault.

He can be a little short-sighted, at times. His team-building exercise in Stuck On You was meant to be a positive, brotherly, bonding experience, but suffered from serious drawbacks. His tenacity in smashing foes is admirable, but doesn’t always get the best results, something Donnie tries to get him to see and think through. But they’re also what makes him a force to be reckoned with. You do NOT mess with Raph’s inner circle and expect NOT to get smashed, hoss! And the fact that his brothers know that he has their backs like this is probably its own form of support and security.

Raph at his Best: He believes in the Mad Dogs the most, that they can be and are heroes. “We’re do-gooders! And what do do-gooders do? They do good! And they do good well.” (The Mutant Menace) His compassion and commitment to protecting the underdog keep the others on track and in line with their goals. He is the rock in the middle of the chaos.

Raph actually has good practical skills: he has the mission calendar that only he seems to consistently stick to, and clearly enough self-discipline to responsibly and reliably sleep with his retainer on every night (Flushed, But Not Forgotten)

He also has the most grounded sense of duty. When they’re watching the skateboarding livestream in Gilbert’s Department store in The Longest Fight, Raph is the one who first investigates what sounds like a robbery, and is the one who cajoles his brothers into fighting the Foot. It’s a ‘look, guys, we have to do the right thing here and prevent them from stealing!’ moment. Pizza Puffs: look, guys, you’re going to have to learn to solve problems without me, it’s for your own good! (He knows that’s what needs to happen, even though he’s at war inside over it).

Raph says: what’s the responsible thing to do? And he’s trying to get his brothers to understand this as well (Pizza Puffs).

Raph Relationships:

Donnie: despite the lack of a full Donnie & Raph episode, they have a few surprising things in common. They each have an episode where they want their brothers to learn something. Donnie, in Mind Meld, wants his brothers to be smarter and plan ahead. Raph, in Pizza Puffs, wants his brothers to use some common sense and be a little more responsible. They both like finding solutions to problems, just one focuses on technical and one focuses on interpersonal problems. Mostly (for right now, though) Raph can be blunt with Donnie. He’ll slap the genius in the face with reality. “Donnie! The mech is REAL!” (The Purple Game). “Donnie, I know you know how to say it. We’re all on to you.” (Air Turtle). This is one turtle with whom he can put his foot down and say ‘hey! Back to Earth, now!’ (I can also see them collectively sharing facepalm moments in the future).

Leo: there are times when Leo’s need to be the best and stand-out attitude clash with Raph’s focus on teamwork (Air Turtle, for example “take your win-at-all-costs attitude somewhere else, Leo, we need to work as a team!”) but they do get to a point where both of their strengths in the group strengthen each other, like how iron sharpens iron. Raph wants everyone to work together as a team, but Leo sees their individual strengths. Without that, we get Raph’s glueball disaster in Stuck On You, but together, we have their greatest moment in Many Unhappy Returns. Leo points out the parts each member have to play, and Raph puts it all together in one big plan to defeat the Shredder. “Trust me, bro.” “I do.” (I’m really excited to see where the show goes with this).

Mikey: the main Mikey & Raph episode right now actually seems to be Repairin’ the Baron, and there’s an interesting clash going on here. Raph believes and supports his system, his family. Draxum has been the mortal enemy of the Mad Dogs and deserves to be smashed. However, Mikey is adopting him into the family. Raph is not immediately okay with this, he has a hard time trying to change his inner world. But he cares about Mikey. As he tells Draxum “I’m still trying to get used to this, but Mikey thinks you’re part of the family. And the number rule of the Mad Dogs is: you always take care of family!” They’re actually very complementary, as Mikey can step in in emotionally charged situations where Raph can’t, and how his adaptability gets through Raph’s need for stability. (It will be interesting to see what Raph does as Mikey grows up).

Ultimately, I’m excited to see Raph grow as he figures out the best way to guide this team and save the world. Home is where the heart is, and he’s got a big enough heart to be the home for a lot of people.

So that’s my (unbelievably cut-down) analysis of Rottmnt Raph! I’m going to save the relationships with April and Splinter for later, since this is already too long. Here are the links to learn more about the ISFJ and counterphobic 6w5 if you’re interested:

https://www.16personalities.com/isfj-personality

https://www.enneagraminstitute.com/type-6

https://enneagrampaths.com/2018/04/09/im-afraid-im-going-to-punch-you-discussions-about-the-phobic-and-counter-phobic-enneagram-type-six/

https://www.crystalknows.com/enneagram/type-6-wing-5

https://thoughtcatalog.com/heidi-priebe/2016/01/mbti-and-the-enneagram-2/10/

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thestupidhelmet · 4 years ago

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What would you say are the core personalities of the six? I don't know if you've made a meta about this already since I'm fairly new here. Love your blog!

Thank you! 😊

I’ve written a few metas on the characters’ personalities or characterizations. But I’ll write up what I interpret their consistent core characterizations to be. First, a preamble.

Unfortunately, That ‘70s Show’s writers had a tendency to forget, ignore, or outright change the characters’ core characterizations, too often introducing new elements -- to serve plot -- that conflict with earlier established personality traits confirmed and reconfirmed by many episodes that followed. This is different than character development, which is grounded often in incremental changes over several / many episodes or even seasons.

Most of these revisions of the characters’ core personalities are negative. Only one I can think of is positive: Hyde’s in “Prom Night” (1x19). The core of his character gets a complete overhaul once his role as Eric’s villainous foil and rival for Donna’s affection is over.

Because of the show’s inconsistent writing, one can pick and choose which consistently depicted attributes are the truly canon parts of a character’s personality. Later in the series, these consistently depicted attributes often conflict. When I write fanfic and @those70scomics, I depicts the characters according to what I believe are their core personalities. Other people can reasonably view their core personalities differently.

Now to answer your question.

Fez

He’s insecure about fitting in with his group of friends and among Americans in general. This insecurity sometimes manifests as neediness with friends and girlfriends alike.

He’s loyal to his friends and generally caring. He doesn’t like hurting their feelings. He’s in touch with his emotions and sensitive, which means he can be hurt rather easily by his friends’ or others’ thoughtless remarks toward him -- or hurt by what he misinterprets as an insult (e.g., Hyde telling Fez he needs to act aloof to attract women, and Fez believing Hyde is calling him “a loof,” which Fez apparently thinks is a put-down).

He’s not defenseless, however. He’s got a quick wit and comes back with cutting remarks of his own or simply cuts off his friends with his catchphrase and its varieties (i.e. “Good day. ... I said good day!”)

He’s passionate, but this passion variously paired with his insecurity, neediness, and sensitivity can cloud his judgement, which causes him to go too far in many areas: dirty jokes, masturbation, pursuit of unavailable girls, eating candy, etc.

He suffers from Nice Guy syndrome with Jackie during seasons 2 and 3. This means he has a sense of entitlement to Jackie’s romantic and sexual affection, and his respectful treatment of her is predicated on the expectation of romantic and sexual reward. Once he realizes that she’ll never reciprocate his romantic feelings, his respectful treatment of her diminishes greatly.

In season one, he’s depicted as insightful to other people’s feelings and motivations. In seasons 1-4, he’s also depicted as romantic and a romantic. He’s a serial monogamist, but he suffers somewhat from toxic masculinity (e.g., calling Jackie little girl when he believes she’s overstepped her bounds) and sexism (e.g., often calling girls whores; once this insult is prompted by a girl who does not put out sexually, which is the opposite of the meaning of whore). With Rhonda, though, this toxic masculinity and sexism seem not to be evident.

He longs for intimacy, whether platonic (men) or romantic (women). See this meta about how the show writes Fez and Kelso’s relationship as near-romantic in later seasons while also (re)affirming Fez and Kelso’s canonical straightness to keep T7S’s universe a heteronormative one.

Fez is obsessed with losing his virginity, but for the first four seasons of the show, the depiction of this obsession falls in line with that of many teenage boys his age. It’s not out of the ordinary. Eric is shown to have the same obsession until he and Donna finally have sex. Further, Fez’s obsession is not so all-encompassing that he can’t put it aside for love. He does so for his love of Rhonda -- until “Everybody Loves Casey” (4x26), where the best parts of his core characterization are destroyed. See my meta The Deterioration of Fez’s Character for details.

My Take: I prefer to write the insightful, loyal Fez who sometimes doesn’t know how far to push a joke. He can be insecure, but he’s also got a strong moral center and sense of what’s right and wrong -- or develops this sense more thoroughly during a given story. He’s flawed but very capable of growing and changing due to his ability to examine his own behavior and love for his friends.

Kelso

In season one, Kelso is a math and tech prodigy who has little common sense and or will power. He’s also loyal to Eric and Hyde and clearly loves them, but his impulsivity and addiction to sexual pleasure drive him to act thoughtlessly. He displays a sense of entitlement but not a pathological one. He’s capable of apologizing for his thoughtless and entitled behavior. See this meta about “Ski Trip” (1x13) for an in depth analysis of Kelso’s behavior during that episode.

After season 1, his math and technology knowledge is gonet. His selfishness and sense of entitlement overshadow his loyalty to anyone (or anything) other than fulfilling his own needs and desires. His lack of common sense becomes cartoonish. He acts maliciously when he feels slighted, which happens when he doesn’t get what he believes he’s entitled to. He relentlessly pesters Jackie verbally and physically for sex when she just wants to sleep. He’s pathologically narcissistic, vain, and dishonest.

During the end of season 3 and beginning of season 4, however, he begins to grow and change. He experiences and express remorse toward Jackie for treating her so badly -- without any expectation of return. His selfishness fades significantly, as does his lying, but neither attribute disappears completely. He’s capable of putting his own wants and desires aside for Jackie’s, but she sometimes has to assert herself more than once for him to do so.

During the end of season 4, unfortunately, he not only reverts back to type, he also becomes worse. He rescinds his remorse and gives Jackie the responsibility for his cheating. He speaks misogynistically about women and her, and is just generally awful. See my metas Jackie Kissing Todd “the Cheese Guy” and Kelso’s Reaction and False Equivalency: Kelso’s “Most Romantic Gesture” Toward Jackie for further analysis.

In season 5, Kelso reaches the peak of his self-entitled narcissism, selfishness, hypocrisy, and possessiveness over Jackie. He interprets Jackie dating Hyde as an act of betrayal and an attack on his pride and self-esteem. He seeks out revenge on both of them, even while trying to “win Jackie back” with the same kind of maliciousness he shows Jackie in season 2 when she doesn’t forgive his cheating within a week of her discovering it.

Throughout the series, he makes unwanted sexual advances toward Donna. He tries to grope her breast repeatedly while she sleeps. He tries to sneak a glimpse of her breasts while she changes, and she’s so sick of his whining that she gives into what he wants (in “Class Picture” [4x20]). The writers intended this scene to be funny, but it’s actually horrific and parallels Jackie’s complaints about Kelso pawing at her and whining relentlessly for sex that she gives in so she can sleep.

He makes these numerous sexual advances on Donna when she’s in a relationship with Eric and when she and Eric are broken up. Yet he when he and Jackie are no longer together, he acts like Hyde has committed a crime against him for being in a consensual relationship with Jackie.

Without Ashton’s comedic timing and likability, Kelso would be unbearable to watch during seasons 1-5. Kelso is funny only because of Ashton’s performance.

But in season 6, Kelso gets another chance at a true character growth arc. He fights his selfish, cowardly tendencies to have a place in Brooke’s life and their child’s (whom hasn’t been born yet). He works hard to prove his ability to be a good father. and himself worthy of Brooke’s love. Even more, he makes an act of utter unselfishness and sacrifice by letting Brooke and their baby go -- to live Chicago with Brooke’s mom -- because that’s what’s best for them, not him.

That being said, he still demonstrates an amount of selfishness toward his friends.

Season 7 again drops him back to status quo -- almost. Brooke is gone. He’s barely involved in his child’s life. He dates Hyde’s newfound sister, in part to burn Hyde. But at least he treats Angie with respect and is faithful to her, as far as we’re shown. So that part of his growth from season 6 stuck.

Throughout all the seasons, he’s shown to have a vast imagination. He fancies himself an inventor or an astronaut. He comes up with some wild -- and some might say insane -- ideas. He’s creative despite not being very skilled.

My Take: I generally write Kelso as a selfish, self-entitled narcissist because of when my T7S fics take place in the series. I also use his lack of common sense as comic relief. But I prefer the Kelso capable of growth and change, the one who is willing to put his own needs and desires aside for the benefit of other people. This latter characterization development has continued in @those70scomics, and I’ve given him major growth arcs in my stories Reflections Through the Glass, Beneath a Shattered Sky, and Those Who Play with Demons (which I have yet to finish writing).

Eric

Eric has a compassionate heart. He cares about his family, his friends, and people in general. But he also suffers deep insecurities about his masculinity thanks to Red’s treatment of him. Eric is more in touch with his emotions, like his mother, and Red has trouble relating to him. Red also worries Eric might be too emotionally vulnerable to survive the real world, which is why he’s so hard on him (see “Hunting” [2x13]).

Because of modeling his dad gives him on masculinity, the clear messages that Eric isn’t masculine enough, and what he absorbs from observing how society expects men to behave, he suffers from bouts of chauvinism. Donna.is regularly the recipient of Eric’s insecurities about his manliness. He often feels threatened by her self-confidence, athletic ability, intelligence, etc. -- because she’s a woman and his best friend / girlfriend / fiancée. He falsely believes her strengths highlight his weaknesses as a man.

But he’s also patient and unselfish with Donna, putting aside his own sexual desires for her need to go slowly or for celibacy (in season 6). He’s supportive of her and all his family and friends, including Laurie and Jackie -- both of whom he has an antagonistic relationship with. He’s very loyal to his friends.

Eric uses sarcasm and his quick wit as defense mechanisms. Some might say he’s a little stunted in his growth due to his continued enjoyment of playing with action figures. He indulges at times in his mom’s infantilizing of him while also trying to assert his adulthood.

He has a specific vision for his future: marrying Donna and having a family with her. This vision, however, does not include a career. He doesn’t seem to be passionate about much else besides his relationship with Donna (and having sex with her) and Star Wars. This is a failing of the writers. Eric’s storylines are so Donna-focused that the show gives little space for what else he might be passionate about.

Eric is very much capable of recognizing, owning, and learning from his mistakes. He can be a total ass, but he eventually realizes his behavior and makes correction.

Donna

Donna is confident, athletic, intelligent, and a staunch defender of gender equality (when written consistently). She’s loyal to her friends. She often puts aside her own pride to protect Eric’s self-esteem. She gets angry at him almost only when he’s earned it. See In Defense of Donna (an essay in eight parts) for an in depth analysis on her relationship with Eric.

When she’s in severe emotional pain, she becomes self-destructive. Losing her relationship to Eric at the end of season 3 and her mom moving to California sends her into downward spiral. Earlier, we see this self-destructive trait in “Eric Gets Suspended” (2x09) when her parents pay little attention to her due to their obsession with the latest fads.

Her parents’ lack of boundaries with her -- exposing her to their marital troubles and making her a pawn in them, as well as not hiding their sexcapades from her -- create a strong sense of boundaries within her.

The state of her parents’ relationship often influences her confidence in her relationship with Eric. She’s afraid sex will destroy her relationship with Eric; but once her parents renew their wedding vows, she has faith enough that romantic relationships can last that she finally feels safe enough to have sex.

She strongly values her independence. She doesn’t want her life and prospects dictated or limited by her romantic relationship with Eric. She witnesses how her dad’s controlling chauvinism stifles her mom’s own independence and dreams for herself, and she refuses to let Eric’s insecurity and chauvinism do that to her.

She’s passionate about writing, both journalistic and fiction, as well as music. She’s playful and forgiving. She doesn’t fit the gender norms of the 1970s. She’s as comfortable playing basketball with the guys as she is decorating a room or gymnasium for an event. She has a mixture of femininity and masculinity, which only Jackie seems to insult her about.

Jackie

At her core, Jackie is a compassionate, generous, and insightful person. She gives far more gifts to Kelso during their relationship than he does her -- despite her always stating how much she wants presents. She gives Donna lots of advice and support during Donna and Eric’s transition from friends to lovers. She continues to give Donna advice and support throughout the series about her love life.

But Jackie can also be very controlling, insulting, and selfish. She’s quite vain, but she’s also insecure about all she acts secure about. See Does Jackie Become Less Insecure about Her Physical Appearance when She Dates Hyde? If So, Why?

Jackie has abandonment issues because of her parents. Her father isn’t home a lot and often shows his love for her through presents. The latter is why she wants / expects to get gifts from her boyfriend(s). She develops a marriage obsession out of wanting a guarantee she won’t be abandoned by her romantic partner, despite that marriage doesn’t actually guarantee this.

She also has a tendency toward self-delusion. She so needs Kelso to be whom she wants him to be that she goes into denial about his infidelity and all the negative qualities of his I described above. Eventually that delusion is broken, only to be replaced by delusions about Hyde. She transfers her feelings of (relationship-)safety from Kelso to Hyde.

Only when Kelso breaks her heart for the final time at the end of season 4 does she break out of this delusion cycle. She fantasizes about what her future with Hyde might be like, but that isn’t the same as deluding herself. Plus, Hyde consistently disabuses her of these unrealistic fantasies and offers her a much healthier and happier potential reality.

Once she’s with Hyde in season 5, she begins growing and changing significantly. Instead of complaining of her suffering as she does, for instance, during her S2-S3 break-up with Kelso, she hides the fact her mom has completely abandoned her after her dad goes to prison. She tells no one her mom hasn’t come home from Mexico.

This is not one of the healthier changes she makes in season 5, but fantasizing away her pain no longer works as a defense mechanism. Instead, she believes she has to face her struggles alone. Fortunately, Hyde discovers the truth and gives her a safe place and, in a very real way, becomes a literal safe place for her himself. (The writers screwed this up for the sake of a season-ending cliffhanger, but that’s beyond the scope of this meta.)

Jackie can be stubborn and determined. She wants what’s best for the people she loves, especially Hyde. She’s extremely forgiving. She doesn’t trust her ability to take care of herself, but she learns that she can (through getting a job, Hyde’s encouragement, her public access TV show, etc.)

She’s a complex character. When people don’t look beyond her surface, they find her easily dismissible. The writers too often wrote her this way during the series. But they also added many layers to her, as I’ve described in this meta.

Hyde

See the following metas I wrote about him:

Hyde’s Core Characterization Steven Hyde: Organic Character Development Steven Hyde: Inconsistent Characterization Hyde’s Character Shift from Season 4 to Season 5 Why Hyde Closes Himself Off More Emotionally in Season 5 Pathological Passive-Aggressiveness: A New Personality Trait Added to Hyde’s Character in Season 5 Hyde’s Potential Career

#That 70s Show #That '70s Show #Jackie x Hyde #Eric Forman #Michael Kelso #Ask #Anon #My Meta #My Essay #Meta #Essay #Core Characterization #Donna #Fez #Jackie #Hyde

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anarchist-soupkitchen · 4 years ago

Text

ooop its a really long essay

A brief list of why the Tories is pretty rubbish

Before we start, I have a few things to say. As this is intended for UK audiences it might be a little difficult for people outside of the UK to understand the wording of certain topics, I will include somethings that need more explanation up here but if I do not include it here, please feel free to ask down in the comments.

Tory: someone who is a part of the conservative right

Anglicanism: the English church’s version of Christianity

This essay is a PERSUASIVE ESSAY this means its BIASED I hope you could tell from the title. This essay is from the view of someone who is white I am not trying to speak over people of colour on issue like race and I encourage you to look at non-white creators within the UK to get views on this matter.

I am pretty armature when it comes to my writing so do not expect something ground-breaking. And with that out of the way, let us begin.

1. The tory party we know today was founded in 1834, you would think that would be plenty of time for its members to grow and shape the party into the best organization it can be. But with the tory party still stuck on the same ideas that Anglicanism is the only true religion, and that queer people should not have rights you would think that the party is straight out of the early 20th century, or still stuck on the same ideas the party was founded upon. It does not matter what side you are on and how your choice to view the tory party, people can agree on the prominent figures inside the tory party from old to recent. An example of a prominent tory of old was Winston Churchill a well know racist who also, coincidentally got us through WW2 when he was appointed by Chamberlin. He fostered such views that white people should govern over the “primitive” black and indigenous people of Africa and that Indian people “bred like rabbits”. To anyone who knows their UK history, 1983 was a very eventually year for politics and the UK as a whole. You now have to wear seatbelts in the front seats of cars, the dismembered victims of serial killer Dennis Nielsen are found in his London flat, unemployment was on a record heigh since the 1930’s and a general election found that Margaret Thacher was to be the next prime minister after a landslide win in the polls. Over the course of her 11-year reign of terror she periodised free-market capitalism and privatised public sectors including transport, railways and mines. Then because she did not like the Scottish government, she through a hissy fit and closed all mines in Scotland. Just like that she fucked up the economy, where in the big mining areas of the past are still experiencing the aftershocks today. I remember my granny telling me how she made up food packages for the miners around town and how it was so devastating to the town’s economy. Everyone was unemployed and starving, even my grandad. These examples really show that the Tories will support people who are the worst in British society if they have the parties’ interests at heart. You would think the tory party cannot get any worse but with modern polices such as pledging to get 50,000 nurses for the NHS while only giving them a 1% pay rise, which is only £7.78 for a low band nurse, by 2023. Or being “tough on crime” even though 96.4 crime were recorded by every 1000 people in 2019. You can see how tough they are about carrying out their polices. Let me tell you my favourite of the lot, Boris Johnston, our current PM, wants to limit immigration by 100,000 people. They want to only let in “the brightest and the best,” what a load of shite. Our immigrants are the backbone of our society doing everything people like the Tories would not even dream of doing. Imagen seeing Boris working in a McDonalds or in your local call centre. That fucker probably has not worked a day in his life. According to the migration observatory, migrants make up 50% of the low pay workforce. Either way you look at it, its abysmal. The government should do more for these people that letting them rot in a McDonalds or in a low paying job. If you have taken time to be a model citizen, train and get your qualifications, possibly learn a new langue to mover over to a shitty wet rock I do not see any problem with the government providing necessities to get you started in your new life. We have got the money.

2. Can I ask you, what side do you think Boris Johnson is on? I will let you think for a moment. The Working class makes up more than half of our population according to the BBC’s class calculator. They say that a government is reflective of the people’s views and I think that is bullshit. Out of the working-class eligible to vote, who do vote, only three in ten vote conservatives. Do you want to know why people in the working class do not vote tory? Because under tory leadership since 2010, 6000,000 more children and their families were forced into poverty. The need for foodbanks skyrocketed 12.3% in the last five years and that is no even accounting for the pandemic. It is clear by now; I have given you enough time to think. “we know whose side Boris Johnson is on- the billionaires, the bankers and the big business.”- labour shadow chancellor, John McDonell. We know the conservatives are very busy committing acts of voter suppression and giving money to their friends instead of caring about you. They are buzzy introducing laws that make it mandatory to have voter ID in order to vote. If you do not make it free people will stop coming. The electoral commissions think 3.5 million voters just will not come back. this is all a part of, “takle[ing] every aspect of electoral fraud”- tory manifesto. It is well known that many rich people have been investing in the party for quite a while. Here is just a few: Anthony Bamford head of machinery in JCB, he gave £12.1 million since 2005. Charles Cayzer owns a shipping tycoon, he gave £480,00. Did you also know, Boris is known to be very generous when it comes to giving back. You’ve probably herd in the news about the conservatives handing out £3mil in contracts to tory owned covid PPE companies over the course of the pandemic. Some of that went to a MP, Nadim Zahawi who is a shareholder in SThree. SThree was given £1mil in contracts over the course of the pandemic. With all the evidence I have given above you’d think the government its rolling in it, I suspect they are but I doesn’t look like it from the outside. They have cut funding to courses drastically, as well as benefit schemes. Like cutting access for eighteen- to twenty-year-olds to the housing benefits. Yet with all the money they been cutting away from services and councils who desperately need it they still have enough money to cough up a commission for a royal yacht named after the duke of Edinburgh, costing over £200 million. Seems sweet does it, name a yacht after the ghoul of Edinburgh, right? You probably know the just of it now, your wrong. Not only is the yacht being paid for by taxpayers, but they are also naming it in honour after a racist. Or how the BBC would phrase his words as “memorable one-liners”. Here is a selection I find quite fitting: “The Philippines must be half empty if you’re all here running the NHS”- while meeting with a Filipino nurse. “If you stay here much longer, you’ll be all slitty-eyed”- he said to a group of British students while on a royal visit to China. My favourite must be “It looks like it was put in by an Indian.”- referring to and old-fashioned fuse box in Edinburgh. He is supposed to be the duke of the bloody place! I really like how one article what I read put it “[Prince Philip] screams out loud what other racists like him have learned how to conceal and camouflage in what they think and project as civilised demeanour.”- Hamid Dabashi.

3. What I find absolutely astounding, is the Tories inability to show compassion to the people who have nothing. If you did not know the vagrancy act among other things crimeless the homeless and rough sleepers, which is by far a very bad mixture with the recent homelessness statistics, homelessness has risen 28% since labour was last in office and if the Tories continue down the path they are now, it is only going to keep rising. What you would find is most shocking is that there’s solutions for the homeless crisis right in front of us, what the Tories must to not be able to see. Layla Moran of the liberal democrats thinks they “must take a more compassionate and holistic approach, starting by scrapping the vagrancy act”. I think that would be a step forward and away from the old ways of prosecuting people for not being as fortunate as the rest of us, but there is something even more simple than that. Repossessing the 200,000 buildings that have been vacant in the UK for more than six months. Not only would that put a sizeable dent in the houses we need, but it also saves space. The UK is small collection of islands and I do not think the Tories can see that. We do not have the land available to just start building everywhere while leaving all those homes empty and unfilled. Its not a way to solve the housing crisis and its certainly not a way to save the money we supposedly need. Even the homes the Tories are building are left dormant because they are too expensive for the area, they are located in. With the way things are going the Tories will have to build more houses than they ever built before, because by 2041 homelessness is expected to doble. That is 400,000 more households if things do not change -a study by heriot-wat university. The evidence suggests that whatever the Tories are doing to end homelessness it is not working. Everything is not as bleak as I just told you though, the conservative has ended homelessness before. In the hight of the pandemic the conservatives got 90% of all rough sleepers off the streets and put them in hotels or hostels. This helped people apply for benefits, find jobs and get some more permanent assistance. People was helped during the pandemic, but when the funding ran out last July, homeless and the rough sleepers in the hotels and hostels where back out in the streets again. Alone and forgotten by the government that promised to end the very crisis they are apart of years ago. Theis shows that the Tories have the money to help the unfortune but they would rather sit on their arses chatting about what colour they should paint the walls of their house. More recently the Torie introduced a law what will fine people for sleeping in doorways. It really shows what the Tories care about, getting linings for their pockets. The Tories have the money to stop homelessness and when it was a danger to them, they stopped the issue what has been so recuing in our politics for decades. They helped the people who so desperately needed it only to chuck them back into the cold when covid-19 was no longer a danger to them.

4. The conservatives fail to keep minorities safe in the society that they created. It is not surprise that the Tories are the most incompetent as ever. A study by BBC radio 5 found that hate crimes have doubled since 2013. An optimist would assume that is great, that there must mean that people have been reporting it more, right? Partly so. Although we have seen a rise in reports of hate crimes, the rate of prosecution has dropped down from 20% to just 8%. And that is just the tip of the iceberg, in a survey of faith-based organizations; the home office found that seven in ten of the employees surveyed has never reported a hate crime to the police where one happened. For a country where we are supposed to be the most tolerable it is no surprise that a big portion of the hate crimes committed are ones where the religion the victim followed played a big part. Our population, like many others, is influenced by our politicians. After Boris described Muslim women in burkas as “letterboxes” in an interview; citizen UK found that there where a surge in hate crime directed to Muslim women where the word “letterbox” was used. Again, continuing with the theme of hate crime against religions, Muslims made up half of the statistics in 2018 – 2019. The biggest spike we have seen in the last few years has been to Jewish people, where hate crimes against them have more since doubled. It is not a surprise since people seem to relate being a ‘good’ Jew to being a Zionist. Other minorities like trans youth under sixteen in England and whales now must go through everything that goes with puberty on top of not wanting to have the body you cuntly have all because TERF’s and conservatives do not think puberty blockers should be available to them. At this point I genuinely think they want trans kids dead, how could you not see that the benefits of puberty blockers far out way the potential consequences. If puberty blockers really where the target they would have taken them of the shelfs completely, but they did not do that did they? They just restricted the rights of an already marginalised group more. Its not just trans kids but the fight for a third gender to finally get recognised is still waging on despite it being a battle since 2018. The government petition has been signed 136,000 times demanding non-binary finally be recognised as a valid gender in the eyes of the law. I hope I can get recognised as well as everyone else. It may not seem a big deal to some of you reading this but it is to thousands. Especially the people who want to go on hormones and medically transition. Because right now I and many other people are restricted and not allowed to get that service. If you are in the UK and you are of age, I urge you to signs the government petition. In other news the conservatives are just now getting to outlawing conversion therapy three years after they announced they would do so. It just shows how the party is not on target. On the topic of not on target let us talk about the increasing number of racial minorities becoming homeless because of lack of funding to their communities. Since the conservatives got into power in the 2010 racial minorities now make up 40% of all homeless despite being only 15% of the current population. It really shows how much they care about anyone who is not white. Yet people like my gran will continue to say they are doing enough for these underfunded communities.

the tory party really has nothing going for them, they are certainly not for the working class, they cannot solve homelessness and they do not give two fucks about minorities. To think anyone would vote form them is just amazing. Its fucking stupid to believe that they are anything but a bunch of rich shites dawdling around and thinking up ways to get more money into their pockets. To end this really all over the place essay, if you vote tory you are a massive twat.

Sources in comments:

#essay #uk #uk politics #uk politics essay #persuasive essay #tory government #tory #left wing politics #conservatism #conservtive #if any reads this well done #im sorry #its long #heehee hastags go burrr

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carewyncromwell · 4 years ago

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AU number 5 please!

5. …Your MC ends up in a romantic relationship with their best friend? (If they do end up falling in love with their best friend in canon, what if they fell in love with a different good friend?)

*glances and smiles apologetically at @cursebreakerfarrier* Ahem.

In most lifetimes, Carewyn and Bill’s relationship went through four stages. In one, however, it went through five.

Stage I: Guardian and Protectorate. When Bill first heard from Charlie about his classmate, the younger sister of the “delinquent” Jacob Cromwell, he immediately felt sorry for her. He couldn’t imagine what it must be like, to have lost an older sibling, and even if he’d yet to meet this girl, the eldest Weasley felt his “Big Brother” instincts twitching. Then Carewyn approached him the following year for help with the Ice Vault, and Bill honestly breathed a sigh of relief. Charlie had said she seemed okay even after what had happened to her brother when Bill had asked him, but Bill was still relieved to see that that did indeed seem to be the case. The young red-haired Slytherin may have been tiny and perhaps a little insecure and soft-spoken, but her eyes blazed with determination, and when they dueled, Carewyn showed immense courage, even managing to win their duel by chucking a potion bottle at Bill’s head and then using the distraction to Disarm him. It was in that moment that Bill decided -- he was going to look after this girl. And so he did everything he possibly could to help her with her quest to break the spells on the Cursed Vaults and save her brother Jacob.

Stage II: Surrogate Big Brother and Little Sister. As the years went by, Bill and Carewyn dealt with the Cursed Vaults together with their other friends and got to know each other better, and Bill soon came to see and treat Carewyn like family. Bill cheered both Charlie and Carewyn on in Quidditch friendlies. Bill even invited Carewyn over for Christmas at the Burrow one year. It soon got to the point that Bill almost filled the role in Carewyn’s life that Jacob once had, in the way that they were rarely seen apart -- and yet, even with that, Carewyn never trusted Bill with all of her flaws and insecurities the way she had Jacob. She never trusted anyone that much. As Carewyn got older and the maturity gap decreased, Bill found himself leaning on Carewyn in a way he never really had anyone else, as well as found Carewyn herself answering his emotional needs by looking after him just as much if not more than he looked out for her, just like she did the rest of their friends. Carewyn counseled him about his crush on Emily Tyler. She offered a listening ear and good advice when he was down. She surprised him with meaningful Christmas gifts and sang songs to cheer him up. Their friends had started teasing the two by calling them the “Papa Bear” and “Mama Bear” of their friend group, and even Bill had to admit, they really weren’t on the uneven footing they’d been on before. After all...Carewyn really supported him a lot more than she ever let him support her anymore...

Stage III: Equals. By the time Bill reached his seventh year, Carewyn had really come into her own as a strong, determined young woman with a brave, compassionate heart and an unbreakable spirit. Despite the two year age gap, Carewyn had more than proven herself Bill’s peer, not just on the dueling field but in leading and protecting others. Bill was proud of how much his friend had grown and truly respected her as a person, but he couldn’t help but notice -- now that they were on equal footing -- just how much Carewyn didn’t trust him or the rest of their friends, even after everything they’d gone through together. Even when she clearly cared so much about him, Charlie, and the rest, she absolutely refused to let them into her heart or help her with her emotional needs. Still Bill was patient and was prepared to let Carewyn open up when she was ready, even after Charlie blew up at her for keeping so much from them and Ben and Merula stubbornly refused to let her just go off by herself without telling anyone. After Rowan’s death, however, Carewyn disappeared for a full 24 hours. When Bill found out, he immediately dropped his Cursebreaking assignment and rushed back to the school to help the others look for her. When she finally emerged after being found by Duncan, Bill fell to pieces, tearing into Carewyn about how he knew full well that “she was a liar,” that she “always lies,” but that it was “only because of how much she cared,” and berating her for being so stubborn that only Rowan’s death could finally make her open up to her friends and trust them with how she felt. Bill was crying the entire time, which wasn’t much of a surprise -- Carewyn crying too, however, took everyone aback. And it was as the two sat on the floor hugging each other and sobbing, right before Charlie and Ben both also descended on Carewyn and Merula hugged herself on the sidelines, that the wall between Bill and Carewyn was finally torn down.

Stage IV: Best Friends Forever. From that point on, Bill and Carewyn saw each other as their best friend. Bill was Carewyn’s second-in-command in the Circle of Khanna, and when the two dueled side-by-side, they could stand toe-to-toe with just about any Dark wizard. After Carewyn joined the Ministry as a lawyer, Bill would pop down to watch her court cases from time to time, and whenever Bill wrote to Carewyn asking for help with an assignment for Gringotts, Carewyn would instantly drop whatever she was working on to help him, even though she’d never really wanted to be a Cursebreaker herself. The two also wrote to each other pretty much constantly and supported each other unconditionally. No one could deny that these two loved each other, even if it was only platonically.

In one universe, however, as mentioned...there were those who suspected that love was much more than just platonic.

Stage V: Lovers. (More under the cut, ‘cause this got long AF. >>; )

HPHM AU Ask!

It all started when Carewyn distanced herself from the Weasleys in 1995, just after the return of Lord Voldemort in the Little Hangleton graveyard. Carewyn came to the austere decision so as to help the Order, since she knew her position at the Department of Magical Law Enforcement could be helpful in the fight to come and her associating with the Weasleys or the staff of Hogwarts at all would give Fudge less reason to trust her. Even despite the logic of the rationale, the loss of his best friend and confidante, if only through not being able to speak or write to her, weighed very heavily on Bill. Carewyn had been one of only two people he’d ever felt he could really rely on for emotional support (the other being Charlie), and she was easily the one he did so most, since she was always so prompt in her written responses and always seemed to know exactly what he needed. Her absence left a hole in Bill’s heart and life, which was soon filled by his new associate at Gringotts, Fleur Delacour. Fleur was very taken with Bill, and soon enough Bill felt romantic feelings budding in his heart for her as well. The two started dating, and the relationship brought some real sunshine back to Bill’s life, even in the midst of the storm to come.

The advent of the Second Wizarding War prompted a lot of people to jump into marriage quickly, as it felt like any day might be your last -- and so, within a year, Bill was all set to marry Fleur. He loved her very much, and she him...but everyone else in the Weasley family was a bit less sure about the prospect, especially Mrs. Weasley and Ginny. But in this universe, it wasn’t just because they didn’t like Fleur. Even Fleur herself was a little startled when Bill popped the question so quickly. But Bill loved Fleur and, he thought, the War would be less scary if he knew she was by his side. Not long after he popped the question, Voldemort’s return was finally made public, and Bill saw his chance to finally -- FINALLY -- be able to see Carewyn again at the Ministry, after she dealt with Fudge’s Educational Decree #23 in court. The two met covertly in Carewyn’s office for the first time in over a year, both almost beside themselves with how happy they were to see each other. Bill and Carewyn hugged for almost five whole minutes, laughing and babbling almost the entire time and squeezing each other in a vice grip. It was the happiest either Carewyn or Bill had been in months.

Bill had expected that his best friend might not wholly approve of his and Fleur’s engagement too. Carewyn, however, although she was taken aback, very quickly showed support. “She makes you happy, doesn’t she?” the lawyer asked through a beautiful, soft smile. “Well...that’s all I could ever want for you, Bill. I know how long you’ve wanted a family...if Fleur can give you that, and love you and care for you...then that’s all that matters.” Bill was encouraged by Carewyn’s words, and yet almost uncomfortable -- maybe he just wasn’t used to positive feedback to his engagement yet, he thought sheepishly. Nonetheless, after Carewyn said she was sure the ceremony would be beautiful and lamented that she probably wouldn’t get to see it, Bill fiercely insisted that Carewyn would have to be there: he refused to start such an important chapter of his life without her. His insistence on her being present did seem to affect Carewyn somehow -- Bill couldn’t quite place how, but she was smiling, at least.

After their meeting, however, Bill found himself a bit less certain than he had been previously. Seeing Carewyn again after so long really got him thinking about how much of a bedrock she’d really become in his life -- seeing her in the courtroom, recalling once again what a brilliant, noble woman she was, finally realizing how hard she’d really been fighting all that time they’d been apart, in complete silence...just like she always had, since they’d first met...it shook him slightly. When had she become so instrumental to him? When did the thought of her not being at his wedding become so terrifying that it made him not want to go down the aisle at all? When did them separating make him feel anguish, knowing that there was a good chance they’d never be reunited again? When had he...become so emotionally reliant on her...even more so than his own fiancee? These questions bothered Bill a lot. He pushed them away for the longest time, but still they persisted. Fleur could tell Bill was upset about something, and yet Bill was too ashamed to admit to her what was wrong. She at one point asked Bill if there was “someone else,” and Bill -- almost panic-stricken by the suggestion -- vehemently said no. Carewyn was his friend, his best friend! They’d been partners, yes, but not like that -- they’d been Papa Bear and Mama Bear at school, sure, but that was a joke! Carewyn was family -- she’d always been family. Not like Fleur soon would be...

That night, finally, Bill had to ask himself -- could he see Carewyn, the way he saw Fleur? Even if he wouldn’t choose Carewyn over Fleur...could Carewyn be someone he could see himself marrying and starting a family with? And at long, long last, Bill had to admit...he could. He could imagine it. He could imagine Carewyn being a wonderful mother -- cradling a red-haired, freckled baby in her arms and singing it a lullaby -- smiling at him with those ruby red lips as he came home -- trailing a hand through his hair as he kissed her. And Bill, his heart both swelling with joy and breaking in despair, knew he couldn’t marry Fleur while feeling so conflicted.

He finally opened up to Fleur about how he felt, leaving off Carewyn’s name the entire time...yet Fleur, insightful as ever, knew immediately who Bill was talking about. Although she was a bit hurt, she nonetheless maintained the utmost grace and suggested they break their engagement. “If after you’ve come to a dezision, your heart iz still mine,” she said gently, “zhen we can pick up where we’ve left off, Bill. And if it iz not...zhen I wish you every happiness.” Bill, still feeling incredibly ashamed of himself for rushing so fast into an engagement before he’d even taken the time to properly address his unexamined feelings for Carewyn, thanked Fleur for her support. She truly was a wonderful woman -- it was unsurprising that he’d grown to care for her so much.

Fleur and Bill didn’t have the chance to break the news to anyone about their wedding being put off before the Order was summoned to Hogwarts to protect it from the Death Eaters that had broken into the school with the help of Draco Malfoy. After the Battle of the Astronomy Tower, Bill got his face slashed up by Greyback and Mrs. Weasley finally accepted Fleur and her love for Bill, even with their engagement having been broken. Late that night, Carewyn received a letter from Tonks about Dumbledore’s death, Snape’s betrayal, and Bill’s injury and without hesitation she Apparated to Hogsmeade, turned into a robin, and flew the rest of the way to Hogwarts.

Carewyn found Bill sleeping restlessly in the Hospital Wing with nightmares. She used her Legilimency to enter Bill’s mind so she could soothe his nightmares of turning into a werewolf and killing everyone he loved and transform them into images of the Burrow, in anticipation for his wedding. But because Carewyn didn’t realize that Bill and Fleur had broken up earlier that day, she didn’t know that Bill wouldn’t have ever conjured up such a dream himself. And so when Carewyn tried to gently coax Bill to head down to the wedding pavilion over to Fleur, telling him that she’d catch up, Bill -- even though he was asleep -- sensed something was off. After a long moment of staring at Fleur’s lovely, smiling face among the crowd of his friends and family, he realized that however happy it was, it wasn’t what he wanted...and so, it wasn’t something he’d conjured up himself. It wasn’t his dream -- it was someone else’s dream for him. Within his dream, Bill turned to Carewyn, his brown eyes full of both love and pain, and said through a weak smile, “...Carey...as always...you lie because you care.”

Carewyn had not expected Bill to instantly force himself awake and -- within seconds -- bring up a hand to clutch Carewyn by the back of the head and hold her in place so he could place his scarred lips, slightly hampered by the bandages covering his face, to the side of her face. It was the first time Bill had ever kissed Carewyn, even if it wasn’t on the lips -- and over time, it would not be the last.

#HPHM AU ask #carewyn cromwell #bill weasley #fleur delacour #honestly I love these two as bffs though #we need more loving male and female friendships that don't turn into romances

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a-student-out-of-time · 4 years ago

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Got to disagree with Review anon on the Yasuke thing. Byakuya might be a jerk, but Yasuke likes to take things too far. I see Byakuya as more of the Chaotic good. He's a jerk, but he still tries to help without going over the line. Yasuke, is leaning betweet chaotic neutral and Lawful evil. He's more of a jerk and tries to force his ideas onto others. He even crosses the line on multiple occasions. He's more of a villian than a hero.

//A fair assessment, but we should also take into account just how different both their perspectives and their approaches to situations are

//I think a lot of people seem to overlook what Byakuya was like in his first appearance. That’s not an indictment on him nor anyone who likes him, especially since he did undergo some pretty serious character development over the course of the series, but we should also keep in mind many of the following facts:

He made it clear from the get-go that he was fully willing to murder and just waited for the right time so he could arrange a murder that would let him win the game.

Repeatedly showed extreme contempt for anyone he deemed part of “the 99%”, seeing their lives as shallow, empty and meaningless. He made it clear to Makoto in his Free Time events that he saw the majority of the human race as disposable.

He purposefully arranged Chihiro’s body in a way to make it look like it was done by Genocider Syo, psychologically cornered Toko to get her to confess that she is Syo after she told him in confidence (he never agreed not to tell admittedly but still), and then admitted he did it just to make the game more interesting and to sus out who would be his biggest threats in the Killing Game.

Ironically, it was due to his beliefs in both his own superiority and his general cynicism toward the group that nearly got him killed. He misunderstood Hina’s motives, entirely bought into her fabricated evidence, and simply couldn’t comprehend the idea that someone would willingly sacrifice their lives for another. And that entire trial blindsided him completely, probably forced him to reevaluate.

Granted, when the others quit the killing game, he stated that he didn’t care if it wasn’t fun anymore and later said that he didn’t care what happened to Makoto, just that he wanted to beat the game and claim the Mastermind’s life. Again, he makes it clear he has no real problem with murder.

//And much of this is explainable by his role in the Togami Family. Byakuya believes wholeheartedly that his hard work and determination to do whatever it takes to win is what allowed him to become the next head of the Family. That left him with an overinflated sense of importance and egotism, though not exactly entitlement. He doesn’t feel like he deserves to be praised just for having the Togami name, but because he earned it.

//That, unfortunately, manifested in a view of seeing games entirely as scenarios to be one regardless of circumstance and seeing others as opponents, mistakenly applying his own sense of morality and motivation to them due to his past experience. He only knew games with winners and losers and didn’t initially see the point in being friendly or compassionate toward anyone.

//None of that means that he’s completely heartless, of course. Byakuya clearly still has a sense of compassion, humility, and respect for others. He grew much closer to his fellow survivors after escaping Hope’s Peak, even if he’d rather not admit it. His motivation to be the best of the best among the Togami Family could also be seen as being partially out of respect for the 15 half-siblings he’d beaten. They had an equal shot at earning the role and a lot of it feels like he wants to respect them, even if they’re part of the 99% now.

//Speaking of, Byakuya makes it clear in DR2 that one of his motivations for stopping Junko is because of how many died during the Tragedy. For a guy that said 99% of humanity was disposable, that’s a huge improvement.

//Byakuya began as a rich asshole who looked down on others because he felt he’d earned his place at the top. I’d argue there is still a level of entitlement there because he was born into the Togami family and that’s why he got that chance, but it’s still an interesting perspective. He changes a great deal over the course of the series into much more of a kind team-player, even if he’s still kind of a dick : P

And now onto Yasuke, who only had one real appearance in Danganronpa Zero and I feel like fewer people have an understanding of his character:

Yasuke is similarly cold and sarcastic, but also a more openly rude, apathetic, and misanthropic person than Byakuya. He insults and belittles Ryouko by calling her ugly and stupid repeatedly, refers to Reserve Course students as sheep, and has no problem mocking people when he feels they deserve it.

However, Yasuke also has a disdain for people who mistreat others who can’t fight back. For example, he stands up for Ryouko when the Steering Committee threats her to get to him. This is also part of the reason why Ryouko says that she likes him, as he doesn’t treat her with fake sympathy due to her condition.

While Yasuke can seem just needlessly cruel and harsh, part of it is due to his need to feel in control of the situation. He doesn’t like people and would rather not have friends or acquaintances getting in his way when he’s trying to reach a goal, DR0 makes it clear that he’s an internally neurotic and emotionally unstable person who tries to stay calm no matter the situation.

His biggest flaw, however, is his need to protect Junko. He knows how dangerous she is and what she’s trying to do, but he also can’t bring himself to let anything bad happen to her. She’s one of the only people in his life who he’s ever felt genuine affection for, something she’s aware of and manipulates to her advantage.

Unlike Byakuya, Yasuke dislikes killing and harming other people, and is noted to hate gore, but he is willing to sacrifice and risk himself and others for the sake of Junko.

//Like Byakuya, much of his can be ascribed to his upbringing. When he was very young, his mother, his only family, was diagnosed with an unnamed disorder similar to Alzheimer's disease, which caused her to forget who her own son was. His mother's doctors forbade Yasuke from addressing her as “mom” or “mother” and he was subjected to neglect, abuse and being treated as a stranger by her because of it. All of which made him very distant and depressed growing up, especially after she died.

//His only real source of support was Junko, who he met in elementary school and who became the closest person to him, even saying she’d never forget about him. Whether or not Junko was truly the despair-obsessed manipulator we know her as back then is hard to say, but she eventually became his girlfriend. She was also the first person other than his mother he cried in front of.

//Shortly after his mother's death, Yasuke began studying medicine on his own. He managed to become an expert physician and a full-fledged neurologist before even graduating from middle school, which is a ridiculous achievement. Junko, of course, used that fully to her advantage.

//Of course, as I said, Yasuke was aware what Junko was planning and, while he wasn’t willing to kill her or harm her, he planned to keep her as Ryouko forever to protect her from the world and the world from her. In the end, after many people still ended up dying and knowing that nothing he could do would stop her, he tried to strangle her to death, which he said was for her sake and his own.

//Ironically, that act is what lead to her becoming Junko again and fatally stabbing him. She suggests that his entire motivation for helping her was his despair and before he dies, Junko bluffs that it was her who was responsible for the death of his mother, but it's left ambiguous if she was actually responsible or just said this to push Yasuke further into despair as he died.

//With all this in mind, I don’t think I’d necessarily compare the two. Yasuke and Byauka are both jerks in different ways, with different upbringings and different perspectives on the world. I think the reason why many people gravitate more toward Byakuya, and even Mukuro for that matter, is because both of them show a greater capacity for positivity and growth thanks to how they interact with the other people in their lives.

//Yasuke never had a support system like that, with his only friend, confidant, and companion for most of his life being Junko. Does that excuse all of his actions or his behavior? No, not at all. Just that it’s important to keep all that in mind.

//I don’t think being nice or being a jerk is enough to label a character as heroic or villainous. Their personality is not as relevant as their actions, intentions, and motivations.

#mod talks #a student out of time #Anonymous

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lumos-solemn · 4 years ago

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F.R.I.E.N.D.S Characters sorted into their Hogwarts Houses

I know many people has already done something like this..!!But I just wanted to do the way I think of them..!!Feel free to comment your thoughts..!!

1. Ross Geller : Ravenclaw

He is definitely a Nerd for his own good like all the Ravenclaws. He is smart and logical. He is also witty and has a good knowledge about things. He gives more importance to the stuffs from book knowledge than practical knowledge. Like the time he freaked out when Phoebe said she didn't believe in Evolution. He is definitely the brain of the gang, Dr Geller.

2. Chandler Bing : Gryffindor/Slytherin

Chandler is, for no doubt, is the most sarcastic and sassiest of the group. Like Harry Potter himself, He always has the most sassiest replies to anyone no matter what. His Tit-for-Tat dialogues and funny jokes can easily sweep people off their feet. He is brave, Playful and also passionate about the things he like. He, without any doubt, makes a really good Gryffindor. But he is also ambitious and hardworking, thus making him a good Slytherin also. He is cunning, resourceful and Self reliant too, some qualities known for a good Slytherin.

3. Joey Tribbiani : Hufflepuff

No one can argue on this. He is the sweetest and cutest person from the whole gang. He is fiercely loyal and protective towards his friends. For him, Friendship always mattered the most. He is so compassionate and open-minded about things. He also doesn't mind if he has to lose something if it costs his friends's happiness. He is genuine and kind and always placed others happiness above everything. He is definitely a Hufflepuff through and through.

4. Rachel Green : Slytherin

She is cunning, ambitious and resourceful like a good Slytherin. She is hardworking and is determined to get the things she wanted. She even tricked Bonnie into shaving her head because Ross was dating her which means she is so cunning and determined. And the way she handled her pregnancy and single mother hood, proves that she is self reliant also.

5. Monica Geller-Bing : Slytherin

There's no way she belongs to any other houses than Slytherin. Monica is indeed the best Slytherin out there. She is bold, resourceful, hardworking, ambitious, perfectionist and is definitely a Slytherin. She wants everything perfect and neat. There's no way she agrees to something which she thinks wrong. She is so competitive and always plays to win. She always wanted to be the best in everything she does.

6. Phoebe Buffay : Hufflepuff/Gryffindor

Phoebe is loyal and kind, like a true Hufflepuff. She is also so compassionate about the things she likes or about the things she believes in. Like in the time, she though her late mother got incarnated into a cat and the time she believed she will die some day just because a psychic said her. But she is also really brave and never stop herself from saying things out loud like a good Gryffindor. She is also witty and smart, but in a different way. She is so brave that she even became a surrogate for her brother and his wife.

#friends #harry potter #hogwarts school of witchcraft and wizardry #hogwarts houses #gryffindor #hufflepuff #ravenclaw #slytherin #chandler bing #ross geller #joey tribbiani #monica geller #chandler x monica #rachel green #phoebe buffay

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trollnobu · 4 years ago

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Kendo AU: Characterisation Notes

So I found some notes on how I wanted to characterise characters that weren't shown all that much in canon because they're, well, dead. We're barely given any info about them or their personalities, so this is just something to keep myself on track when I write them.

They're also all part of a friend circle of their own. I call them Posthumous Pals.

Sabito

▪18, first year university student, studying criminology

▪Hot-tempered, but doesn't hold grudges and forgives and forgets easily. His anger usually comes from a place of concern. Always nagging at Giyū and Makomo for being flighty, irresponsible or forgetful.

▪"Makomo, did you forget to pay your phone bills again" "Oi, Giyū, how many hours did you sleep last night? You look like shit" "Am I your alarm clock? Get up already!" "DON'T TELL ME YOU BOTH FORGOT THERE WAS A TEST TODAY OH MY GOD"

▪Actual Mum Friend. He's a little mad about it, but he cannot stop himself. Considering how often he has to remind them to eat or force them to study...his childhood friends really are useless without him.

▪TSUNDERE

▪Ultimately a nice guy, but his people skills could use work. He can get a bit standoffish and even scary. Still has a better rep than Giyū, though

▪Passionate but overzealous. He can be very overwhelming sometimes and unwittingly intimidates juniors. He used to tutor Tanjirō and his siblings as a side job and ended up scaring them...

▪Very hardworking and driven! He's the kind of guy who has a clear aim in life and probably a 10 year plan on how to get to where he wants to be. It makes him clash with Giyū and Makomo a bit, since they're either too unsure or carefree, but he's just worried for their future.

▪Unwilling straight man of his childhood friend group. Often the sole voice of reason and common sense.

▪Has feelings for Makomo for ages but stubbornly refuses to say anything to keep the status quo (Giyū's tired, send help)

Makomo

▪18, first year university student, studying arts

▪Between fiery, disciplined Sabito and melancholic, disgruntled Giyū, Makomo is the nice middle ground with a serene, gentle temperament.

▪She's probably too calm, if you ask Sabito. It comes with the downside of not taking anything seriously. Makomo has a tendency to brush off her friends' worries. Sometimes it helps temper Sabito and Giyū's anxiety; sometimes it infuriates them. A double-edged sword.

▪Has a hidden impish side. She likes to make fun of both Sabito and Giyū. Giyū gets disproportionately dramatic over it and accuses her of "emotionally profiting off of [his] distress."

▪Despite seeming the least obsessed with kendo compared to her friends, Makomo was actually the one to drag them into it...

▪Can come across as lazy because she doesn't have the same sense of purpose or drive as Sabito. She's also a bit spoiled and likes being pampered. Some might pin the blame on her godfather and mentor Urokodaki

▪Acts like the friendly, reliable onee-chan to her juniors and is the only senior Obanai actually likes but will shamelessly behave childishly in front of Giyū and Sabito. They don't like admitting that they also get childish in retaliation.

▪Of the three, Makomo is the best with people and their assigned PR manager though she can act distant without realising it. Has the kind of face where she always looks like she has something on her mind. People sometimes feel that she's a bit unapproachable because it's almost like they're interrupting something...

▪Gets bright-eyed and very chatty if someone brings up anything relating to arts, sculptures or dancing.

Kochō Kanae

▪18, first year university student, studying medical science

▪Poster child of the Genki Girl trope and child prodigy who makes you question your life's accomplishments

▪Kanae is one of those people who masters everything with little effort. She's not even the respectable hard worker type like Sabito or Shinobu; she just doesn't need to work too hard and still makes it anyway. Has never seriously struggled with anything.

▪Also filthy, disgustingly rich. She's a born heiress to a large pharmaceutical conglomerate and was spoiled by loving parents. Truly born with a silver spoon in her mouth.

▪Very cheerful and kind! She's the sort of person who likes to make children laugh, helps the elderly cross the street and makes sure no one feels left out. Probably visits orphanages and campaigns for environmental awareness or something.

▪Beautiful! Intelligent! Accomplished! Compassionate! How can someone be this perfect?

▪Unfortunately, she's also BIG CHAOTIC DUMB, has no financial sense, naive, incredibly unreliable, can be an obnoxious do-gooder and is notoriously lacking in common sensibilities. Absolutely cannot function in the real world without Shinobu. Even her boyfriend's very first impression of her was "rich idiot without a day job."

▪Everyone thinks "how on earth did Sanemi trick her into a relationship with him?" But no one thinks "how on earth did Kanae trick him into a relationship with her?"

▪Ironically, despite being rather dysfunctional individuals by their own, Kanae and Sanemi seem to have a fairly stable, calm relationship. It wasn't so in the beginning, though

▪More wise than you'd expect, but too bad you'd hardly see that side of her. She's too busy being a disaster.

Rengoku Kyōjurō

Not posthumous, in the sense that he doesn't die before the series but during it, but he's here anyway because he kicked it so quick smh rip ren

▪17, third year high school student, captain of his kendo club and also the star pupil of the Fire Branch

▪Gender-bent version of Kanae in that he's explosively cheerful and full of endless optimism and energy. Everyone fears them when they're together. The genki is too powerful...

▪Big Brother Energy™

▪He's your go-to guy if you have any troubles and need a listening ear, or a helping hand, or honest criticism, or just some advice. Anything you need, he is here!

▪Despite appearing well-adjusted, however, he's not as untouchable as he looks. Like everyone his age, he has some anxiety and fears over the future and impending adulthood. He has a hard time confiding in anyone, though, because he's so used to being the one relied on.

▪Big case of Mama's Boy Syndrome. He'll drop everything for her. Due to her weak health, he really worries about his mother.

▪Because the Fire Branch has close ties with the Water Branch, he sees the others fairly often. He's at his most chatty with Kanae, Shinobu and Sabito (though even Sabito gets worn out after a while) and is one of the few who genuinely likes Giyū, despite his social missteps and bumbling. Makomo and Obanai try to escape at first sight of him; they seldom succeed.

▪"He's like cough medicine. Good for you if you're feeling bad, but best taken in small doses."

▪Between him and Mitsuri, the Fire Branch easily has the most welcoming and encouraging atmosphere of all the dojos.

Kumeno Masachika

▪20, third year university student, studying psychology and sociology

▪Step aside, Kyōjurō, the real big brother is here.

▪He's old and experienced enough to actually have some of his shit together by now. Or maybe university has worn him out.

▪He has all of Makomo's unflappability, but without her flippancy. All of Sabito's responsibility, without his anxiety. Friendly as Kyōjurō without being overwhelming, realistic as Giyū without giving into pessimism and charismatic as Kanae without being unreachable. In short: the most down-to-earth, well-balanced, and least dysfunctional person within a 20 mile radius.

▪It makes him a bit of an odd sight in the Wind Branch, in between Sanemi's hair-trigger temper and Inosuke's obscene screaming. Legends say his calm is to overcompensate for the level of unbridled feral energy in the Wind Branch...

▪In truth, he's the scariest one amongst them if he does get angry. His juniors actually write apology notes to him if this happens, like young children who've just disappointed their favourite teacher.

▪Otherwise, he wins the award of Most Chill. He gets frequently deployed if they need someone to defuse tension. An important duty, when one considers that the Wind Branch is the most competitive, aggressive of the dojos.

▪Speaks a bit dryly, though it feels personable rather than snarky.

▪The dojo master of the Wind Branch is apparently trying to harangue him into being the next, though he's resisting because he wants to "go teach kids or something."

▪Maybe it's only fitting, since the rest of the Wind Branch already gave him plenty of experience at shepherding unruly children.

#kny fanfic #sabito #makomo #kochou kanae #rengoku kyoujurou #kumeno masachika #kny spoilers #i doubt anyone doesnt know rengoku dies but lets slap that tag on anyway for anime watchers #me at masachika: god i wish that were me #kanae really be that 'always another asian better than you' meme #sabito is just tsundere and mum friend. i've broken him down to his bare essentials #kny kendo au #kendo au #...i forgot which tag i was using rip #posthumous pals #thats a tag now

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kookitykook · 5 years ago

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Seven Soulmarks: Jimin (”Stop right there!”)

~genre: soulmate au, fluff, some angst but like just barely, sfw, this is cute as HELL

~word count: 3.8k

~warnings: sadboi jimin i’m sorry

~pairing: hairstylist!jimin x photographer!reader

~summary: At the exact moment of your twentieth birthday, the first words your soulmate will ever say to you appear on the inside of your left wrist. Seven boys meeting their soulmates is more proof that the universe really does know what it’s doing.

See how the other boys meet their soulmates (all interconnected)

Jungkook -- Taehyung -- Namjoon -- Hoseok -- Yoongi -- Jin

~~~~~~~~~

One time at a party, Jimin and his friends had played a game where they all tried to agree on one word to best describe each person.

The word that Jimin’s friends thought best described him?

Charming.

Some of the other contenders had been polite, well-mannered, kind, compassionate. All great words honestly, and Jimin had been incredibly flattered.

Growing up, his mother had instilled kindness in him as one of the greatest qualities he could possess, the thing that would set him apart in this harsh world. Jimin believed with all of his heart that kindness was one of the things that truly made him a man and not a boy.

So to know that the people closest to him saw that in him as well, and believed him to be charming and affable, that made Jimin’s heart swell with pride. He wanted to be charming to those that he loved the most, he wanted to make them smile and feel safe.

So it’s not hard to imagine how surprised he was when his soulmark appeared on his twentieth party.

“I don’t understand,” Jimin murmured, sitting next to his mother in his childhood home. He had come home to celebrate his birthday with his family, taking a few days off from the hair salon he was an apprentice at. “Why is my soulmate scared of me? What do I do?”

“Oh honey, I’m sure it will make sense when you meet them.” His mother ran her hands through his silver hair (which was not her favorite color he had tried, something she had made sure to let him know as soon as he’d walked through the door). “Soulmarks are fickle things. They tell you the first words your soulmate will say, but not the situation.”

“Eomma,” Jimin shook his head, “how can this be any sort of good situation?”

Jimin held out the inside of his left wrist, he and his mother looking once again at the words in black ink that had appeared only half an hour ago.

‘Stop right there!’

The fact that the soulmark even had punctuation told Jimin plenty. Soulmarks were typically ambiguous unless the emotion behind the first words was particularly strong.

Jimin’s mother sighed once again, taking her son’s hand in both of her own and squeezing it tightly.

“You are my son,” she said, giving Jimin that look that said he better pay attention to what she was saying or else. “You are kind and have the biggest heart in the world. Whoever your soulmate is, they are going to be blessed to have you loving them because you will love them fiercely. No matter how you first meet them, that is what they will come to know about you because that is who you are. Do you hear me?”

Jimin nodded, his eyes downcast. His mother reached out and grabbed his chin, forcing her to look at him.

“Do you hear me?”

“Yes, Eomma. I hear you.”

As Jimin rested his head on his mother’s shoulder and let her comfort him once again, he tried to believe her words, he really did.

But the idea of his soulmate being afraid of him continued to fester in his heart.

***

“Dad, I’m home!”

Your father lifted his head from the book he was reading, scrambling to push his glasses back up his nose as they teetered dangerously.

“You’re late.”

“Missed you too, Dad,” you teased, bounding over and kissing the top of his head before tossing your bags in your bedroom. “Traffic was crazy since everyone is coming home for the holidays.”

Your birthday just so happened to land just three days before Christmas, which meant visiting your father one city over was a double celebration of sorts.

“Sorry again that I couldn’t make it back yesterday,” you said as you flopped down on the sofa beside your father. He reached over and threw an arm around your shoulders. “I got a last minute call for a family Christmas card photoshoot and they were willing to pay me big bucks since they waited so long.”

“Big bucks, huh?”

“Oh yeah. I might be able to buy the fancy ramen now with my Christmas advance.”

Your father laughed at that, tipping his head back. You smiled at the sound, happy to finally be home. Ever since your mother had passed, the two of you had been especially close.

“I’ll get you fancy ramen for Christmas, sweetheart,” your father murmured, kissing the top of your head. “So the photography is going well though?”

“Yeah!” you affirmed, smiling wide. “It’s going really well actually. I found this group of aspiring photographers on Facebook and it’s been really great to get some advice from other people in the same position. I’m getting bookings fairly regularly now, too.

“And get this,” you continued, excited to talk about your budding career. “There’s a local animal shelter nearby, and they’re looking for a photographer to help take shots of animals that need to be adopted. It doesn’t pay anything, but they’ve promised to give me credit on every posting of mine. And I get to help the animals, so that’s a win too of course.”

“That’s great!” your father said sincerely, ruffling your hair. “I’m proud of you sweetheart.”

“Thanks, Dad.” You snuggled closer to him, and a few moments of comfortable silence fell between the two of you.

“So are you going to tell me or do I have to ask?”

You laughed, pulling away and scrunching your nose at him. “I’ll have you know I haven’t even looked yet. I wanted to wait for you!”

“Really?” your father asked incredulously. “You? The least patient person on Earth waited to look at your soulmark?”

You shoved at his arm playfully, making him laugh. “Yes, I waited! This is a big deal, I wanted to share it with you!”

“Well come on then, let’s see it. What are the first words my daughter’s soulmate will say to her?”

You took a deep breath as you reached down to the sleeve of your sweater, pulling it up slowly.

You hadn’t lied when you said you waited to look at your soulmark, but it had been difficult.

“Okay, okay. It says …”

‘Wait!’

“Huh,” you murmured to yourself. “That’s … something.”

“It has an exclamation point,” your father pointed out. “Your soulmate must really want to make sure they don’t lose you.”

You chuckled, running your fingertips over the fresh black ink.

“My soulmate,” you whispered. “I can’t believe I have an actual soulmate out there.”

Your father smiled, tucking you into his side once again. “As much as I don’t want anyone stealing more of my time with you, I do hope you get to meet them soon.”

You knew your father was thinking of your mother, who had been his soulmate. The ink on his wrist had faded to white in the wake of her passing.

Your father was the kindest man you knew, you looked up to and admired him with your whole heart.

You could only hope that your soulmate was going to be someone like that, too.

***

2 YEARS LATER

Jimin loved the mornings. It was when he would go on his run, walk his dog Chim (not that he had to worry about that anymore since Taehyung and his soulmate took him on walks practically every day), or just run errands.

Mornings were quiet. There weren’t many people, the dawning of the sun took its time, and everything was … peaceful. And with the colder months approaching, the mornings were extra beautiful, with frost on the grass and that small amount of mist that makes everything seem so magical. It’s when he felt the most calm.

It’s also when he felt the most lonely.

Not that loneliness was a stranger to Jimin anymore — no, it was practically an old friend at this point. Ever since his soulmark had appeared — those awful, awful words — Jimin had kept to himself. Where he was once outgoing, the life of the party, charming in every sense of the word, now he kept to himself. Of course he lived with Taehyung (who would likely be moving in with his soulmate soon though), and he talked to his clients at the hair studio, and he had Chim. But other than that, Jimin didn’t go out. He kept to himself, because if he did that, he wouldn’t run the risk of hurting his soulmate.

She was out there somewhere, and if he never met her, he would never have to hear the one he was supposed to love and cherish say “Stop right there!”

His family and friends tried to encourage him. Tried to tell him that maybe his soulmate was going to save him from some terrible fate, or maybe they were a police officer, or something along those lines.

But they always ended up grasping for straws trying to comfort him, because how could those words with an exclamation point, which was so rare on soulmarks, possibly have a good connotation.

Jimin didn’t think he had a mean bone in his body, but … maybe deep down he was just lying to himself. Maybe all the years of being told he was so handsome and princely and charming got to his head.

All he knew was that he didn’t want to be that person, and he couldn’t stand the thought of hurting or scaring his future soulmate. He would rather deal with the loneliness.

And while taking a quiet stroll through the early light of a crisp, Autumn morning in the park … he thought that maybe the loneliness wasn’t so bad after all.

The frosted grass crunched underneath Jimin’s boots as he stepped off of the path he was walking on to approach the edge of the pond. Mist was rising over the water, seeming ethereal as the sun’s rays pierced through it.

He hopped up onto a nearby rock gracefully, pulling his beanie down further over his ears before shoving his hands into his pockets. A small smile overtook his face as he gazed out over the water.

It was the definition of a peaceful moment. Even if he did wish with every fiber of his being that he had someone special to share it with. Maybe someone he could give his beanie to, or hold their hand tight in both of his own and raise it to his lips to keep warm.

Right then though, a small little yip broke the silence. Jimin jumped, looking over the edge of the rock he was standing upon only to see a small little white dog staring up at him.

“Well hello,” he said with a grin as the dog started to wiggle in excitement. “Wanna come up here?” The dog yipped again. “Well come on then, you can do it.”

The dog’s body continued to wiggle as it prepared to jump up. It tried once, only to just fall short. Jimin laughed, crouching down and clapping his hands together.

“Come on buddy, you can do it. Up, up!”

The dog tried once more and Jimin darted his hands out, catching him just in time to pull him up to the top of the rock with him.

“Good boy,” he cooed, rubbing the dog’s cold ears, to which the dog was very pleased. “You’re pretty cold, aren’t you? What are you doing out here?”

Jimin tucked the dog to his chest and stood to his full heigh smoothly, partially holding him inside his coat. He looked to see if the dog had a collar, which he didn’t.

“Well lucky for you little guy, my friend’s soulmate works at an animal shelter. We’ll get you warm and taken care of, does that sound good?”

The dog’s entire body jumped as he yipped in excitement, making Jimin laugh.

“Alright come on then, let’s go.” He started to take a step to hop back down on the ground, only to hear—

“Stop right there!”

***

You hated the mornings. Especially when it was cold outside. Why would you want to be out and about doing the things when you could be warm in your bed, snuggled up in your favorite blankets on your lovely memory foam mattress? It made no sense to you.

But your photography assignment for the online courses you were taking were very clear in needing sunrise photos. Not sunset, your preferred time of day, but sunrise. Ugh.

So there you were, taking a not-so-lovely-but-very-cold stroll through the park at six in the morning. AKA the devil’s time of day.

“Stupid morning, stupid cold,” you grumbled to yourself half-heartedly, hiking your camera bag further up your shoulder.

The park was practically empty, you only saw one other car in the parking lot and someone could have left that overnight for all you knew.

It was a nice morning for shooting though, you had to admit. You had already gotten a few shots of the frosty grass and the early light through the trees. You just hoped you got an A on your assignment for this nonsense.

You figured you were likely going to get your best shots over by the pond. It was cold enough that there was mist rising off of the water and when the early light rays broke through that, it was going to be beautiful, you just knew it.

Let’s make the best of this, you thought to yourself.

You began making your way towards the pond, cursing yourself for not bringing a beanie or a thicker coat. You couldn’t help but smile a little bit as the brief thought of your future soulmate holding you close for warmth crossed your mind.

You thought about them often — your soulmate. It had been over a year since you had received your soulmark — “Wait!” — and you had yet to meet them. Which was normal you supposed. It took your friend who also volunteered at the animal shelter a year and a half to meet her soulmate Taehyung. There were some stories of people waiting five, ten, fifteen years even to meet their other half.

You could live with that. Not meeting your soulmate for a long time. It would suck, but the payoff would be worth it, you just knew. So you were okay with coming up with little daydream scenarios about them for now until they showed up.

With the quiet of the morning, it was easy to hear the crunching of the grass as you approached the pond. You froze, halfway hidden behind a lamppost as you looked over to see someone jumping up onto a rock half your height right beside the water.

“Holy crap,” you breathed out almost inaudibly.

The young man that had jumped up on the rock was … beautiful in every sense of the word. He was under six feet tall, but his legs seemed to go on for days. His clothes, though thick for warmth, hugged him in all the right places, and even wearing a beanie pulled down over his forehead you could tell he was stunning to look at. One of those people that just knocks you on your ass with how unfairly pretty they are.

You couldn’t pull out your camera fast enough.

Is this stalking? You thought to yourself, pausing as you lifted the camera to your face. No, no way. It’s academic, totally fine … yeah, totally fine.

The boy was positioned perfectly. Hands in his jacket pockets, hip cocked to the side as he looked out over the water right as the sun started breaking through. You could have cried at the perfection of it all as you began snapping away.

His shoulders rose and fell just slightly as he took in a deep breath. You pulled the viewfinder away from your face for a moment just to take him in.

Damn.

You jumped as a dog suddenly barked. You had been so absorbed in the boy that you didn’t notice the dog running up to the side of the rock to investigate the stranger too.

Popular guy, you thought.

“Well hello,” he said to the dog. Even his voice was beautiful, what the actual hell? “Wanna come up here? Well come on then, you can do it.”

Every bone in your body wanted to “awwww” as the dog tried to jump up only to fall backwards and scramble back to his feet with enthusiasm. The boy laughed too and damn if this wasn’t a Hallmark movie.

Cute boy? Dog? Sunrise? Come on.

You were taking pictures like a crazy person and holy crap you are totally getting an A on this assignment and a new portfolio cover.

“Come on buddy, you can do it. Up, up!”

The dog tried once more and this time the boy caught him, pulling him close to his chest as he stood up.

Since the boy was talking to the dog directly now, you couldn’t hear what he was saying from so far away.

The mantra, don’t be creepy, don’t be creepy, don’t be creepy, in your head was fighting with the other mantra, get the shot, get the shot, get the shot.

The second mantra clearly won out as you took slow, quiet steps forward with your camera raised. The shots were stunning, they looked practically photoshopped already, and you knew these would be great for the shelter too.

You were close enough then to hear the boy murmur, “Alright come on then, let’s go,” and start to make his way to step off the rock when the words practically erupted out of you.

“Stop right there!”

To his credit, the boy froze. And you mean he froze. He could have been a statue for how still he became and you could have kissed him for it.

You took a few large steps forward, continuing to snap shots away as quickly as you could. The dog even turned to look at you over the boy’s arm, giving a perfect shot of his silhouette with the sunrise backdrop and the dog looking at your with a little puppy grin that was going to be the cutest picture ever.

“Just a few more,” you murmured, coming even closer to the base of the rock, getting a torso shot. The dog was getting impatient now, wiggling around against the boy who was still frozen.

“Aaaaand … done!” You let the camera drop to your chest, held by the strap around your neck and looked up at the boy with a grin. “Thank you so much,” you said excitedly as he finally turned to look down at you, shock written all over his handsome face. “That was probably super creepy, sorry if I startled you.”

He was towering over you from where he still stood on the rock, which made his silent staring a little bit more intense.

Oh gosh, is he a crazy person?

You cleared your throat, scratching the back of your neck as you looked around. “Sorry,” you managed to say, albeit meekly. “I-I’ll delete them if you want me to. It’s just that the light was so perfect and your silhouette is um … nice.”

You could feel your face turn red as you realized you had looked him up and down without even hesitating you freak. Still he gave you no response. “And I volunteer at an animal shelter over on the other side of town for their adoption photos,” that seemed to get at least a small reaction from him, “a-and with you holding that little guy,” you couldn’t help but grin at the dog, “I couldn’t help but … you know what, I’m so sorry, there’s no excuse for being a total creep, I-I’ll delete them, I’m so sorry.”

You picked up your camera again, turning to speed walk away from the most awkward situation of your life and delete the pictures when behind you —

“Wait!”

This time it was your turn to freeze. You heard him jump down from the rock, clearly setting the dog down as well since it was now running around your ankles and sniffing your leg.

“Wait, please, I’m sorry,” he said from behind you.

With a gulp, you turned around slowly. He was only a few feet away, and up close and on level ground you were struck again with how handsome he was. Full lips, rosy cheeks from the cold, piercing eyes and a jawline that could cut glass … and he had just said the word on your wrist.

Cute boy said the word on your wrist red alert red alert red alert.

“You know I-I’m really hoping I just said the word on your wrist because — w-well because you just said the words on mine,” he stuttered out with a nervous smile that made your heart melt into a puddle of lovestruck goo.

You blinked, opening and closing your mouth like a deranged fish. “You did,” you finally managed to spit out. “You sure did, yes indeed.”

‘Yes indeed?’ What is wrong with you?

“I’m Y/N,” you managed to say after a few seconds of the two of you staring at each other smiling like idiots. The dog was sitting between you as if watching a tennis match.

“I’m Jimin,” he responded.

“Jimin,” you repeated without even thinking, and his entire face practically lit up at the sound of your voice saying his name.

“Y-You said you work at an animal shelter?” he asked, suddenly looking very shy and it made you want to hug him forever and oh my goodness you could because he was your soulmate.

“Yepp,” you squeaked out. “Over on North Main. B-But I don’t really work work there, I just volunteer. It’s small, but good people run it.”

“North Main?” he repeated, shocked. “My friend’s soulmate works there. My friend is kind of hard to miss him, he’s—”

“Kim Taehyung?” you asked, too shocked to feel bad for interrupting. “The singer, V? Yeah! His soulmate is practically my best friend.”

“He’s my best friend! And my roommate!”

“How have we never met?” the two of you said at the exact same time, causing the both of you to burst out into giggles.

“Hey are you cold?” he asked suddenly, whipping off his beanie before you could even answer. His hair was silver and made him look like a prince which made you give him the biggest heart eyes of your life.

Before you could protest, he stepped forward right into your space, making you catch your breath as he ever so gently put his beanie on your head. He smoothed the edges down over your ears, pushing stray hairs away from your face with the utmost tenderness.

His hands froze, hovering over your cheeks as you stared up at him in awe.

“It’s really nice to meet you,” you whispered. “Sorry for making you wait.”

Jimin only smiled, tracing his thumbs over your cheekbones. “It’s okay. We have each other now.”

#bts fanfiction #bts scenario #jimin scenario #jimin imagine #bts #my writing

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lovemesomesurveys · 4 years ago

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Whoa, me doing a bolding survey?

*lol bolding surveys are tough for me because I want to elaborate on my choices, which I did a lot of in this.*

NFP | mediator/idealist You get carried away by fantasies and ideas Always want to be hugged You’re energized by quiet time alone Constantly looking for the best in people People say you’re shy/calm/reserved So open-minded Can’t stop thinking about the future Probably a writer or artist in some way Compassionate and empathetic Insanely good listener Prefer a small group of friends Absolutely hate injustice Easily get lost in deep thought 9/13

ENFJ | protagonist/mentor Expert at communicating with others You’re sensitive and easily offended A natural born leader You strive for win-win situations Everyone wants to be your friend You’re basically everyone’s cheerleader Hate seeing people excluded from things You stand firm for what you believe in You just want everyone to be happy Live for supporting people around you You’d be a great teacher You love to keep your life organized You’re probably an empath 6.5/13

ESTJ | executive/supervisor Incredibly practical about life You naturally step into leadership roles You can be very detail-oriented You’re very matter-of-fact You’re known to be very direct The first to take charge in a situation People say you’re very focused and driven Sometimes you can be too impersonal Strive in managerial positions Driven by results You love meeting and talking to new people You strongly believe in working hard You hate people who don’t follow rules. <<< I consider myself to be pretty rule abiding for the most part and I don’t condone crimes, but I can’t say I’ve never done anything wrong. Maybe nothing too serious, but still. I wouldn’t say I hate people who don’t follow rules, but I have an issue with people who don’t follow certain rules. It’s complicated hence the italicized answer and the need to explain a little further. .5/13

ESFP | entertainer/performer You love to live in the moment You’re energized when around people Avoid conflict like the corona virus You never forget anything Can be materialistic <<< I mean, I like my Apple products and Beats headphones, which are nice and expensive things, yes, but I don’t know if the term materialistic applies to me because of it. I think it goes bigger and beyond that. I’m not consumed with buying expensive things to fill a void or think it can buy happiness. I don’t have to be bigger and better. I don’t want to be flashy. I enjoy the items I listed above, but there’s more important things in life than worldly possessions. You’re constantly changing your mind Way too friendly You could easily be an actor Often the life of the party Not a huge fan of deadlines or structure Independent af Constantly finding the light of a situation Sensitive to the needs of others 3/13

ISFP | adventurer/artisan Tend to hold back your feelings You live an easy-going life You stick to a close group of friends <<< no friends anymore, but I stick to my family, who I’m close to and spend a lot of my time with. That’s how it was when I did have friends, though. I never had a big group of friends and that was perfectly fine with me. Hate long-term planning <<< I have to take things day by day or do short-term goals. Mistaken as “lazy” or “slow-moving” <<< Italicized because they’re not mistaken. You take things at your own pace So considerate to those around you <<< Italicized because I think I am? I sure try to be. Absolutely hate criticism and conflict Sometimes too hard on yourself <<< All the time. You could be an artist or musician You have a special bond with animals Have been called “unconventional” before Learn best with hands-on training 9/13

INTJ | architect/mastermind Everyone go away Very low tolerance for stupidity Small talk = your worst nightmare Have very dry humor Sarcasm is your first language You love researching everything Planning is your favorite hobby Can’t stand salespeople Known to be very blunt Probably could be a doctor or engineer A grammar nazi You like to silently judge people You love to create theories about life 3/13

ESFJ | consul/caregiver You care so much about others Take your responsibilities very seriously <<< Not these past few years like I should, but normally. You have a contagious laughter Tasks are your best friend You’re very family-oriented The most loyal person ever You absolutely hate feeling useless No one would ever call you selfish Probably strive as a nurse or social worker Overflowing with compassion and love Always seeing the best in others You value security and stability for everyone So down to earth <<< In some ways. I’m not a relaxed and stress-free person at all, but I’m also not arrogant or proud. I get along with and can work well with others. I don’t see myself as better or superior to others at all. 6/13

ISTP | virtuoso/crafter Very comfortable with change Easily find the solution in any problem Always want to know how things work Love to be constantly doing something Handle crisis-situations really well Efficient af in everything you do Stubborn when you know you’re right Hard for others to tell how you’re feeling <<< For the most part. My mom is good at it, though. 100% a hands-on learner Could easily be a mechanic or it the military You’re never afraid to make a mistake You dress for comfort more than style Easily bored and unfocused with tasks 3/13

ENFP | campaigner/champion Spotted constantly laughing So much enthusiasm for life Love to start new projects Constantly have a new hobby to do Hate repetitive tasks so much Expert at brainstorming new ideas Not a fan of micromanagers Very quick to understand people’s concerns So much energy Probably a comedian or counselor You’re never afraid to make a mistake Easily motivate people to join a cause Always looking at the big picture of life 2/13

ISFJ | defender/protector Very sensitive to others’ feelings Love to have a routine to follow every day Drawn to facts more than theories Hate the “unknown” in any situation <<< The unknown is generally scary to me, but some things I don’t want or need to know. Always want to keep others safe and sound Safety first You’re always obeying the laws/rules Known to procrastinate on certain things Easily taken advantage of, unfortunately Strives as a nurse or interior designer So detail-oriented and organized You love following traditions Probably quiet as a child 6.5/13

ESTP | entrepreneur/persuader Always seeking to have a good time Bubbly and happy almost all the time Love being the center of attention Like to live in the “now” Sometimes you can be too impulsive Life always seems to work out for you Expert at adapting the life changes Rules suck Very observant of the people around you Could be an entrepreneur or bartender So detail-oriented and organized People are drawn to your enthusiasm You’re a “get things done” person 0/13

INTP | logical/thinker You’re known to be quiet/thoughtful Can be distracted for hours by one thing Always hated group projects <<< Not because I have a problem with working with others, it’s just that group projects always gave me added stress. I didn’t like my grade dependent on other people and vice versa. I always stressed about everyone getting their part done. You find it hard to trust others Serious introvert Have a child-like sense of wonder Hate structure You never run out of things to talk about Can handle criticism pretty well Would strive as a lawyer or professor Will share educational articles with others Could easily win a debate with anyone Just generally pretty smart 5.5/13

ENTJ | commander/ceo Find the most efficient way to do anything Very goal-focused Can come across very assertive Born to be a leader Work hard and play hard Can motivate anyone to do anything Hate repeated mistakes Feel the need to fix everything Allergic to stupidity Never satisfied with your own work It’s so easy to get what you want Probably excel as a lawyer or ceo The word “impossible” doesn’t exist for you 1/13

INFJ | advocate/counselor Fear doing the wrong thing Genuinely want to please and help others Believe in the complexities of relationship <<< Not sure I understand this correctly, but I think so? Love encouraging others to be better Very likely an empath Could be a photographer or teacher Always avoiding conflict and criticism Feel the need to fix everything Really good at communicating with others Take relationships very seriously Sociable and fun but needs time alone too Loves physical contact with people Always the one to give advice to others <<< I used to be. 6.5/13

ENTP | debater/inventor Constantly coming up with abstract ideas Champion at debates Arrogant but also aware of your own faults The most introverted extrovert Getting really excited about sharing ideas Constantly changing your opinions Low tolerance for people but also social You overanalyze everything Known to take a lot of risks in life Picking accidental fights all the time Have probably argued with authorities So freaking clever Could be a detective or inventor as a career 1/13

ISTJ | logistical/inspector Take constructive criticism like a boss You thrive on organization Incredibly responsible You don’t rest until the job is done Actually really good with money Believe things should be done by the book Strive for structure in your every day life Absolutely hate getting in trouble Probably an officer or accountant Literally the most dependable person Sometimes too logical for people Take time to warm up to new ideas Some call you a perfectionist 3.5/13

#personal #text #survey #surveys #bolding #personality types

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insideoutstory · 5 years ago

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Inside Out - Chapter Thirteen

summary: The party ventures to Hawkins Middle to test their plan. They won’t like what they find. word count: 5.5k warnings: n/a

[ masterlist ] [ FF.net ]

Christine—Needed a bigger radio. Gone to AV club. Be back soon.

Christine crumpled the note in her hand as she trudged up the steps to Hawkins Middle School. Her legs were screaming at her to stop moving, just for a while. She was getting seriously tired of all the running around. She was gonna kill Mike Wheeler when she found him.

Walking into the middle school always felt weird. Well, it hadn’t when she was still a student. She was only a year and a half out and already the halls seemed smaller than she remembered. Had she really sat at a desk that tiny in her English class? Or was that desk the same as the one she used now, only shrunken by memories?

That was one thing that made the hallways seem weird. All those memories. Her locker had been down this hallway one year. She remembered getting the zipper of her sweatshirt stuck in the door, and Barb nearly tearing her arm off trying to get it open again. That was the side door she usually left through when it was time to go to the high school for science. There was the athletics department corkboard, still full of photos of the school’s teams. Once she’d stolen a polaroid of Steve off when she thought no one was looking. It was probably still sitting in her desk at home.

The other thing that made it weird was the people. Or rather, the lack thereof. Christine had spent the entire ride to the school thinking of excuses, prepared to run into a concerned teacher who would want her off premises. But there was no one in sight. She peeked into a few classrooms, swung by the cafeteria, only to be met by silence at every turn. No one was hanging around.

She wasn’t surprised to find the door to the AV closet locked. It usually stayed that way until it was time for a meeting. She knocked hopefully anyway, and called through the door.

“Guys? Dustin? Mike? It’s Christine. Anyone in there?”

No response.

Christine sagged, chewing on her tongue. If they weren’t inside the AV room, they must be with everyone else. Besides a fire alarm, there was only one thing she could think of that would get everyone out of class like that. And seeing as a student’s body had been found at the quarry yesterday, she was willing to bet ‘assembly’ was the winning answer.

She made her way to the gymnasium. The distorted bass of the crappy sound system was echoing down the hallway. Knowing she was on the right track, she picked up the pace.

“The school counselor will be available should any of you need to talk,” the principal announced as she drew level with the doors. “But remember. Counselors aren’t the only people to ask for help. Turn to your parents, your teachers, your peers. We can all help each other, and keep Will Byers in our hearts. Thank you.”

Christine peeked through the window, but everyone was already getting up. The crowd stormed the doors, full of indifferent students who would rather be in class than pretend to care about Will. Christine had to scramble back against the opposite wall to avoid being flattened. She inspected the crowd, looking for Dustin’s hat or Eleven’s close-cropped hair. But none of the party was in sight.

“Christine?”

She whirled on the spot, and had to hide her disappointment when it wasn’t one of the kids.

“Oh, uh—hey Mr. Clarke!”

“What are you doing here?” he asked. His pleasant surprise turned stern as he added, “Shouldn’t you be in class?”

“Um…yeah, I know,” she said, running a hand through her hair and inventing on the spot. “But with everything going on, you know, with Will I just…I just wanted to be there for the boys.”

Mr. Clarke softened. He always did, at stuff like that. He was easily one of the most compassionate teachers at the middle school. It was what made him Christine’s favorite.

“I understand,” he said solemnly. “Still, skipping class…”

“My dad already knows. And…well, between you and me, Dustin’s missed curfew a couple times this week. The boys were so sure they were gonna find Will. So, his mom asked me to keep an eye on him, make sure he doesn’t run off.”

“Well, that’s good,” he agreed. “I mean, the whole thing is horrible, but I’m glad the boys have someone on their side.”

Christine smiled nervously. Kids were still rushing out of the gym, no nerds in sight. It was getting harder to hide her panic.

“You don’t know where they are, do you?” she asked fervently.

“Oh! Um…well, I don’t see…They were definitely here—I walked them down to the assembly a couple minutes late—but they could’ve slipped past us. I gave Michael the keys to the AV room, though, so that’s probably where they’re headed.”

“Okay, great! Well, it was nice seeing…”

“Nonsense! I’ll walk with you.”

“Oh…okay…”

Mr. Clarke led the way through the sea of students. Christine was still scanning the crowd routinely, but couldn’t find anyone she recognized. She was so focused she almost didn’t notice when Mr. Clarke spoke.

“So how are things going up at the high school?”

“Hm? Oh, um…they’re good. Normal. Mostly.”

“You’re still enjoying science?”

“Yeah! Yeah, I’m taking physics now. It’s not chemistry, but I still like it.”

Mr. Clarke smiled proudly. “A mind like yours, I’m sure Mr. Austin’s class is no match.”

“I don’t know,” Christine said airily, her mind drifting to a certain head of brunette hair. “Physics has its perks.”

“You know, I remember watching you in biology. You were always staring out the window or—or disassembling your mechanical pencil. That’s when I knew you needed a real challenge. I always knew we made the right call advancing you. One of the best decisions I’ve made as a teacher. Oh, and one of the hardest, mind you. But I’m proud of it. That, and pairing you with Barbara Holland for your first lab project.”

Christine was glad that he couldn’t see her miserable smile. “Yeah. I think that was a pretty good decision too.”

Mr. Clarke continued to talk as they walked to the AV room, talking about their latest ham shack and what kind of students he had in his classes these days. Christine listened, interested but too tired to truly participate in the conversation. It was a relief when they got to the AV closet. He let her be with an enthusiastic farewell, and a promise to catch up when all the craziness had passed. He was just about to leave when he placed a gentle hand on her shoulder.

“I know things have been tough this week. But you’re a smart kid, Chrissy. I don’t think the boys could ask for a better mentor, or a better friend.”

Christine had been too embarrassed to muster a response. Thankfully, her bashful smile seemed to be enough. With a pat on the back, Mr. Clarke headed back for his own classroom.

It was a few minutes before the boys caught up to her.

“Christine!”

Mike skid around the corner first, grinning and out of breath. Dustin and Lucas almost collided with his back. They were giggling as well, impervious to her stern glare.

“Yeah, it’s me. What the hell is going on?”

“Aw man, it was sick,” said Dustin jovially. “We were at the assembly right? And Troy was being an asshole about Will, laughing through all of Principal Sherman’s speech. And then Mike goes up to him, right? And he shoves him over like…!”

“Not at the assembly,” Christine hissed. “I told you idiots to stay at the house! What are you even doing here? Someone could… Eleven?”

She almost hadn’t recognized her. Standing nervously at the back of the group was a small girl with light blonde hair. She wore high tube socks and a vividly pink dress, which looked at odds with her blue windbreaker. Gone were the circles under her eyes, the pale skin that almost showed her veins. It looked like she was actually wearing makeup.

Christine narrowed her eyes at the dress.

“Where did you get that? That’s not mine.”

“It’s Nancy’s,” Mike explained. “We had to go back to my house for the wig.”

“You had to—You went back to your house? Mike! What if someone had seen her?”

“They didn’t!” Lucas assured her. “We were super careful!”

“And it worked, didn’t it?” asked Dustin. “Even you didn’t notice!”

“Alright, if you were going to leave, why couldn’t you just use my clothes?”

“Cause you didn’t have a wig. Duh. Also cause Lucas was afraid to go in your closet.”

Lucas promptly shoved Dustin into the wall.

Christine sighed, rubbing her hands down her face. These kids were easily going to be the death of her. But before she could get too stressed, Eleven walked up to her side. She pulled on the sleeve of Christine’s flannel, and then pointed to her own hair.

“Same,” she said with a soft smile. “Pretty.”

The anger slipped out of her, which was very inconvenient.

“Yeah,” said Christine with a smile. She poked El on the nose, making her jump. “You’re very pretty, El.”

Lucas elbowed Mike, who rolled his eyes. “Can we get on with this now?”

Mike unlocked the door to the AV room, and all five of them piled inside. Just like the hallway, the room seemed smaller than she remembered. There were more electronics piled on the shelves. Mr. Clarke was always acquiring new toys without throwing out the old ones. However, there was one toy that stood out from the rest.

“Holy shit!” Christine was unable to contain a gasp of delight as she saw the radio on the table. She pushed through the boys, ignoring their complaints as she plopped down into the chair. “Holy shit! You guys weren’t kidding! This thing is huge! The signal alone—geez, this thing is a proper, international radio! And with technology like this? Shit, you could pick up walkies, pick up ham shacks, radios. Across oceans! You could hear anything!”

“Yeah,” Mike said sourly. “That’s kinda the point?”

“Come on, Chris,” said Dustin, easing her out of the chair. “You can geek out over the Heathkit later.”

Mike shook his head. “It’s like working with little kids.”

Eleven was ushered into the chair in front of the radio while Lucas locked the door. Then they all gathered around to watch.

“So how does this work?” asked Dustin. “Will doesn’t even have his supercomm.”

“It’s not a manual connection,” Christine explained. She leaned over the radio, powering it up and pulling El’s hand to the tuner. “She navigates the stations herself. Like she’s finding Will’s frequency, not his radio.”

She pulled a piece of paper out of her pocket, unfolding it to reveal another one of Will’s missing posters. She laid it out in front of Eleven, who looked nervous.

“Are you sure you want to do this?” Christine asked.

Eleven nodded stubbornly. She closed her eyes, and began to focus on the radio.

Loud static filled the room. Just like last night, the sound was enough to put her on edge. Something about it sent a shiver up her spine. She couldn’t tell if it was her anxiety, or some sixth sense that knew something unnatural was going on.

“She’s doing it,” said Mike in amazement. “She’s finding him!”

“This is crazy,” Dustin breathed.

“Calm down,” Lucas scoffed. “She just closed her eyes.”

On cue, the light over their head blew out. Everyone except Eleven jumped. Christine fixed the boys with a hard glare in the semi-darkness.

“Will the three of you shut up? She’s trying to concentrate.”

Dustin smacked Lucas on the shoulder. “Yeah, dude. She’s trying to concentrate.”

They quieted down to listen to the radio once more. It was definitely picking up something. There was a repetitive thud or—no, a clang. It sounded metallic, whatever it was. Too steady to be anything human, too slow to be much else.

Christine furrowed her brow. “What is that? Some kind of interference?”

She reached for the dial, only for Mike to grab her wrist.

“I don’t think so. Listen.”

It was quiet. Then a little louder, then a little more, like Eleven was honing in on the sound. In a matter of seconds, it had clarified to a whimper. That was unmistakably human.

“Mom?”

Just the boys’ reaction was enough to confirm Christine’s suspicions. Will’s voice pleaded from the radio, the clanging getting louder around him.

“Mom! Please!”

“No way,” said Lucas, and Christine shushed him again. But they were too frantic to listen to her.

Mike grabbed the microphone, repeatedly jamming his finger on the button. “Will!”

“Will, it’s us! Are you there?”

“Can you here us? We’re here!”

“Guys, stop,” Christine ordered. “Stop!”

“No!” Lucas yelled. Will was still pleading on the radio. “Why can’t he hear us?!”

“I don’t know,” Mike groaned. He jammed his finger on the buttons again. “Will?!”

“Guys, I don’t think it works like that,” Christine pleaded. “Will doesn’t have his supercomm, remember? This isn’t a real connection. There’s nowhere for your voices to go.”

The boys were ready to argue. But at that exact moment, the banging stopped. Will’s voice faltered, and another sound swelled in the speakers. It was…something she couldn’t place. Familiar in the way that crept up the back of your neck but didn’t quite connect in her brain. The only thing she could think to describe it was clicking, but not in the way a machine would. It was the way an animal might, if it was blind or making a call of distress. She racked her brains, trying to think of an animal that fit, but fell short.

The clicking grew into a growl, then a roar, and the boys turned to look at her in fear.

“Chrissy?” Dustin asked weakly. “What is that?”

“I—I don’t know…”

Will’s voice was growing frantic.

“Mom! It’s coming! It’s—It’s like home, but it’s so dark! It’s so dark and empty! And it’s cold! Mom? Mom, please!”

The roar turned into a high pitched screech, and all four of them stumbled back from the radio. They responded just in time. A moment later, the entire Heathkit radio went up in flames. Sparks flew out in all directions, and a cloud of smoke encircled the room.

“Shit!” Christine cursed. She scrambled around the table, pulling the kids back. “Shit, get down! Dustin! Fire extinguisher!”

Dustin was already a step ahead of her. No sooner had the words left her mouth than a stream of white shot at the desk. It kept the flames at bay, but the smoke had already triggered the alarm. Christine resisted the urge to cover her ears. She dove over Eleven instead, as if her body might be able to block her from the harsh, loud noises.

“It’s okay, El. It’s gonna be…El?”

For the second time in a matter of minutes, Christine was too shocked to finish her sentence. She knew that Eleven’s powers took a toll on her, but yesterday hadn’t looked like this. Already, she could see the blood seeping from her nose, the dark veins crawling over her head. Yesterday they’d been purple. Now, they were a dark and alarming black.

“El!” Mike was trying to elbow Christine out of the way. “Are you okay?!”

He and Lucas both let out gasps of concern when they saw her. But Eleven was completely nonresponsive. Her eyes wouldn’t focus on them, like part of her was still stuck someplace else.

“We need to get her out of here,” Christine ordered. “Now. Go! Move!”

She swept Eleven up into her arms, and the entire party fled for the door. The fire alarm was giving her anxiety, but it had its benefits. The whole school had been swept up into a frenzy. With everyone running up and down the hallway, no one looked twice at the nerds sprinting like they were being chased, or the random teenage girl carrying a sick child that didn’t even go to their school.

They had a short argument when they reached bike rack. Christine was reluctant to let go of Eleven, but Mike insisted that his bike would be better to transport El. In the end, Christine relented and gently loaded Eleven on the back of his bike. She slumped heavily against his back and Mike had to steer with one hand, the other holding her arms tight around his waist. Christine rode close behind them, just in case.

The fact that they made it back to her house without any major calamities was a miracle itself.

Christine ushered everyone through the back door, leaving their bikes toppled and askew in the backyard. She swept Eleven back up into her arms and carried her to the bedroom. Then she darted back to the kitchen, grabbing the same supplies as the night before, and returning to take care of Eleven. This was very difficult with the three boys hovering around her. Mike wouldn’t move away from the bed, and Dustin and Lucas seemed to be glued to Christine’s sides. After several minutes urging him to back up so she could wash Eleven’s face, Christine finally snapped.

“Out! All of you! Get out of my room!”

“But, Christine—!”

“Nope! Wait in the living room! You can check the windows, you can lock the doors, you can raid the kitchen, I don’t care! Just get the hell out of my room!”

She had to shove them into the hallway, and slammed the door behind them.

It was easier after that. She cleaned Eleven’s face and tried to get her to drink some water. The problem was, El was still in shock. Her arms hung like deadweight, and Christine couldn’t even change her out of the dress and into something more comfortable. The only time she got a response was when she tried to take off the blonde wig.

“No…”

Eleven couldn’t lift and arm to stop her, but she whined as Christine pulled it from her head.

“I know,” she whispered gently, running a hand over Eleven’s natural hair. “But you’ll sleep better like this. And you don’t want to get blood on it, right?”

She whined again, looking longingly at the wig.

“How about this? I’ll let you hold it, and you can keep it right here. This way if you want to put it on when you feel better, you can.”

The offer was good enough that Eleven summoned the strength to take the wig from her, and hugged it to her chest. It broke Christine’s heart in a way. This tiny girl had superpowers, but the thing she cared about at that moment was keeping the wig that made her feel pretty.

“I’m gonna go talk to the boys,” Christine said, patting the blankets. “Will you be okay for a few minutes?”

Eleven nodded. Or she tried to, but she already appeared to be half asleep. Christine waited until she’d stopped moving, checked to make sure she was still breathing steadily, and then headed out to the living room.

“Is she okay?” Mike demanded as soon as he saw her.

“She’s fine,” Christine assured him. “I told you, it drains her. I think holding the connection for so long was risky, especially after she was pushing it last night.”

She collapsed into the armchair, rubbing her temples. The boys were scattered throughout the room. Lucas was sitting on the couch, his head similarly in his hands. Dustin sat on the floor, his legs in front of him, his arms limp. His mouth was hanging open as he stared into space, like he was still trying to process everything that had happened since that morning. And Mike, of course, was pacing around the room. Christine wasn’t going to waste energy telling him to stop.

At a loss for anything else, she cleared her throat. “Lunch?”

There was no response. But what other choice did she have? So she dragged herself to the kitchen and started making sandwiches.

Christine wracked her memory for the next hour or so, but she couldn’t think of a time the party had been this quiet for this long. She couldn’t remember a time where just Dustin had been quiet for this long. It was unsettling. She didn’t blame them, of course. Not after what they’d heard. But she couldn’t figure out what to say. Any assurance that Will was fine would be sickeningly hollow. She wasn’t prepared to make anyone believe that, not when she could still hear the unearthly clicking in her ears. And she knew the others must be hearing it too.

It wasn’t until later, when the boys had picked apart their food, when Christine had tired of watching them pretend to eat, when she’d taken the plates back into the kitchen to wash, that someone finally spoke.

“Is this seriously all we’re gonna do?” It was no surprise that Lucas asked. “We’re just gonna sit here eating PB and J’s while Will’s somewhere out there being hunted?”

“We don’t know that,” tried Mike.

“Yes, we do! You heard it! I heard it! We all heard it!”

“What was it?” asked Dustin shakily.

“We know what it was. It was the Demogorgon!”

“You said the Demogorgon wasn’t real!”

“Did that thing sound real to you? Cause it sure as shit didn’t sound like anything I’ve heard before!”

“Okay, hold on,” Christine interrupted. She threw her towel down on the back of the couch, hoping she seemed more authoritative than tired. “One thing at a time, remember? We can’t help Will until we know where he is.”

“But we don’t,” said Lucas. “All of that, and we still don’t know! I mean, what was even the point of this?”

“Because El was telling the truth,” Mike said fervently. “We know she wasn’t lying. We know Will’s alive.”

“Yeah, but for how long?” Dustin asked.

It sent a chill around the group, which Christine did her best to push out of the room.

“Focus. First thing’s first. What did we learn from the radio?”

“Right,” Mike agreed. He was pacing again. “What was Will saying? Like home…Like home…but dark?”

“And empty,” Lucas added.

“Empty and cold,” said Dustin. “…wait, did he say cold?”

“I don’t know! The stupid radio kept going in and out.”

“It’s like riddles in the dark,” Dustin sighed.

“He kept calling for his mom,” Christine supplied.

Mike gave her a weird look. “What does that matter? He’s scared. Of course he was calling for his mom.”

“I don’t know. It sounded more like he was talking to her. One half of a conversation.”

“Okay,” Lucas said slowly. “But Will’s mom isn’t missing.”

Christine frowned. That was a point. If Will was…somewhere, and his mom wasn’t, how was she talking to him too? Unless she’d also found a powerful superchild to help her contact “the other side.” She wanted to ask, but she couldn’t imagine how that conversation would go. Was she just supposed to call up the Byers house and ask if Mrs. Byers had spoken to Will lately? She couldn’t even tell her about Eleven. What if Christine was wrong, and she just pushed a grieving mother to the edge? What if Jonathan picked up the phone instead?

“Like home,” Mike was still muttering. “Like his house?”

“Or maybe like Hawkins,” said Lucas.

“Upside down.”

Everyone turned to the hallway, where Eleven had reappeared. The circles under her eyes had faded a bit, but she still looked unsteady on her feet. Her wig was back in place, albeit slightly off center.

Christine would have rushed to her side, but Mike beat her to it. He grabbed her by the arm, helping her over to the couch so she could lie down. Lucas scooted out of her way, wrinkling his nose.

“What did she say?”

“Upside down,” Mike repeated. “Upside down!”

“What?”

“When El showed us where Will was, she flipped over the board, remember? Upside down!”

“Wait, when was this?” Christine asked. “The board?”

“For our campaign. We were in my basement, and she said Will was hiding. Then she flipped the game board upside down. Dark, empty!”

“Do you understand what he’s talking about?” Lucas asked Dustin, who shook his head.

“No.”

“Guys, come on, just think about it,” Mike complained. “When El took us to find Will, she took us to his house, right?”

“Yeah,” Lucas said flatly. “And he wasn’t there.”

“But what if he was there? What if we just couldn’t see him? What if he was on the other side?”

“Wait, the other side?” Christine asked, squinting. “Are we back to the ghost theory?”

Mike groaned. Without invitation, he grabbed one of the magazines off the coffee table. Then he went to Christine’s card table and grabbed the sharpie she’d been using to do flashcards. Uncapping it, he began scribbling over the back of the magazine.

“Hey! I was reading that!”

“Shut up, it’s just an add.”

He scribbled until the whole thing was black, then tossed the marker aside. He tapped on the front of the magazine.

“Look, what if this is Hawkins, and this…” He flipped it around to show them the black side. “…is where Will is? The Upside Down.”

“Like the Vale of Shadows,�� said Dustin, finally catching on.

“Beyond the veil?” Christine asked. “It still sounds like we’re talking ghosts.”

“No, not ghosts. Dungeons and Dragons.”

Dustin held up a finger, running to his backpack. He pulled out a thick black binder, which he slammed on the coffee table next to the ruined magazine. Christine watched as he flipped through pages and pages, all adorned with pictures of large dragons, elves, and dark forests. Involuntarily, she raised an eyebrow.

“You carry your rulebook around with you?”

Dustin glared at her.

“Here,” he said, when he’d found the correct page. “The Vale of Shadows is a dimension that is a dark reflection or echo of our world. It is a place of decay and death. A plane out of phase. A place of monsters. It is right next to you and you don’t even see it.”

There was a heavy beat as all four of them exchanged dark looks.

“An alternate dimension,” Mike breathed into the silence.

“But…how…how do we get there?” Lucas asked.

Dustin checked the page. “You cast Shadow Walk.”

“In real life, dummy.”

“We can’t shadow walk, but…maybe she can.”

In unison, they all turned to look at Eleven. She was dozing on the couch, still half asleep, but her eyes were open.

“Do you know how we get there?” Mike asked, and somehow Christine was still surprised by the gentleness in his voice. “To the Upside Down?”

Eleven shook her head into the pillow.

Lucas groaned, but Christine shook her head.

“Forget about getting there. How do we even find it?”

“Well it’s the Upside Down, right?” Dustin tapped the floor underneath him. “Hypothetically, you open a portal and there it is.”

“Yeah, but what if you open the portal and get the wrong one?”

“What do you mean?” asked Mike.

“Well, we’re talking about alternate dimensions, right? The multiverse?”

The boys blinked at her.

Resigned, Christine walked around to the coffee table. She kneeled next to Dustin and picked up the magazine.

“You’re talking about the Upside Down like it’s the only other possibility. But quantum physics suggests that if there’s more than one dimension, then there’s thousands of them. Infinite dimensions stacked on top of each other. And because they each exist in a relative state, there’s no definitive order to them. Kinda like this.”

Christine held up the magazine. She showed them the front, then the back, then all the pages in between.

“So the front is Hawkins, the back is the Upside Down, and in between you have infinite possible alternate universes. And every time I open the magazine, the pages are moving around. I’ve got no way to know if I’m gonna open up on Hawkins version one, twenty, or seven million three hundred and sixty-seven.”

“So how do we get to the Upside Down?” Lucas asked.

“I don’t know,” said Christine. “That’s what I just asked.”

“You don’t know?” Dustin asked incredulously. “How can you know all of this and not know?”

“This is theory, Dustin! None of this shit has been proven until now. If Will’s in another dimension, it’s the first time in scientific history it’s happened.”

“Then guess! You’re in physics, right?”

“I’m in high school physics! Not quantum physics, dumbass!”

“She’s right,” said Mike. He was looking warily at the magazine. “We need someone who knows more about this than we do. Someone who really knows their stuff.”

“Mr. Clarke,” Dustin answered almost instantly. Lucas and Christine shot him the same disbelieving look.

“Really?” Lucas asked. “You wanna ask our science teacher how to open up a portal between infinite dimensions on the forefront of scientific research?”

“Yeah. Do you have a better idea?”

Lucas turned to Christine, who shook her head. Ideas were something they were fresh out of.

“Okay,” said Mike, slipping back into plan mode. “So we bike back to school and find Mr. Clarke. Then we can ask him…”

“No one is biking anywhere,” said Christine.

“What? Why not?”

“Mike, we just set fire to the most expensive radio AV club has ever owned. Do you want to go back and face Mr. Clarke right now?”

There was a grumble as the boys agreed with her.

“Whatever you want to ask Mr. Clarke can wait until tomorrow.”

“Shit,” Dustin groaned. “Tomorrow!”

“What?”

“It’s Will’s funeral.”

Christine sighed. “Alright. So we go to the funeral, and afterwards…”

“Why do we have to go to his funeral?” Lucas asked. “He’s not dead, he’s in trouble. We can’t waste time going to his fake funeral.”

“And you don’t think it’s gonna look weird if Will’s three best friends don’t show up?”

“Who cares if it looks weird?” asked Mike. “We’ll just say we were grieving and it was too painful to go.”

“No,” Christine said again, putting her foot down. “Look, setting off the fire alarm today was bad enough. We’re not supposed to be drawing any attention to ourselves, remember? Incognito. Eleven has to stay hidden.”

“Then she can stay here with you,” said Mike. “We’ll go to the school, and…”

“Mike, you’re not listening to me. You said there are people looking for Eleven, right? The bad men? And that they have insane resources that could probably monitor even an anonymous tip to the police station and get her caught?”

“Yeah, so?”

“So, don’t you think they’d be monitoring this whole town for weird things? Will is the only kid to go missing in this town for probably like a century. And if the three of you don’t keep up appearances there, it’s gonna qualify as a really weird thing. We go to the funeral, and deal with Mr. Clarke after. He’ll probably be there anyway.”

“What about Eleven?” Mike asked. “She can’t come with us.”

“She’ll be fine here by herself. The funeral will be an hour, tops.” Mike made to argue, but Christine held up a hand. “I will come directly back here, Michael. There’s no adults, she won’t go near the windows, and no one will see her. It will be okay.”

Mike turned to the other three kids. Again, they were out of ideas and options. Lucas and Dustin merely shrugged. Eleven just followed the conversation with wide eyes and no input. Finally, after staring at her for several seconds, Mike sighed.

“Don’t call me Michael,” he grumbled. “What are you, my mom?”

As the planning continued on, Christine couldn’t help but think that she certainly felt like it.

#ocappreciation #fyeahstrangerthingsocs #stranger things oc #stranger things fanfiction #stranger things fic #inside out #chapters #chapter 13

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littlemisssquiggles · 6 years ago

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You know I absolutely adore Yang but I’m the only who’s getting really annoyed with her this volume?

You’renot alone in that regard anon-chan. But at the same time, I’m notsurprised. I mean I think tension amongst the group after the revelation wassomething we all anticipated but even still, what we got still managedto be surprising. Especially the part with Qrow. Speaking of our titular bird dad, I’mactually moredisappointed with Qrow than I amwith Yang. I expected Yang to be pissed. But Qrow… Qrow’s fury threw me for aloop the most especially with the way he struck Ozpin and Oscar.

HittingOscar was one thing but…it left me shell-shocked that Qrow would darelash outat Oz the way he did. I get for him to be peeved like his niece but…Qrow---whatQrow said to Oz was uncalled for.

Ithurt me to see Ozpin’s reaction to what Qrow told him. I wouldn’t be surprisedif Ozpin---or Ozma saw Qrow like a son.

“No onewanted me. I was cursed. I gave my life to you because you gave me a place inthis world. I thought I was finally doing some good.”

“But… youare.”

“Meeting youwas the worst luck of my life.”

Ihated what Qrow said to Ozpin here because you can see how much it stung him. As a matter of fact, Ozpin leaving is becauseof Qrow’s words. Befittingly enough, the guy with misfortune as his semblance wasthe key reason why Oz decided to ups and lock himself away.

Thisis something that I’ve wondered. Ozpin locking himself away---this can’t be thefirst time he’d done this. Is this what Oz did during those lives where hespent grieving and trying to forget the pains of his past?

Did he lock himselfaway inside the deep subconscious of his vessels and just…stayed theirwallowing in his own grief until the vessel ultimately died and Ozma justreincarnated in the body of his next vessel and did the exact same thing again? Ifthat’s the case then that makes it even more disheartening.

Ozmust have suffered from depression (notto actual mental illness but something akin to it) triggered by the loss of hischildren and the former life he had with Salem and he did this for who knowshow many lifetimes. It took Ozpin several years to come out of his depressivestate when he made his duty to the God of Light and mankind his priority togive him a purpose and to distract him from his own misery which I doubt he’sgotten over.

Ittook Oz centuries to come out of his pain while it took Qrow Branwen only a fewshort words to put Oz right back into his depressive hole.

Wow! I’m trying my best tonot be furious with Qrow this episode. I sympathize withhim for being angry over Oz giving everyone the impression that they could stopSalem but…I still think Oz didn’t deserve those words.

Asa man who’s lost all four of his children in a past life, finding Qrow and nurturinghim the way he did. I don’t know what the full consensus of the relationshipQrow had with the version of Oz he met but you cannot tell me that Oz didn’tlove Qrow. Whether it was like a best friend or a proxy son or a mixture of both---you don’t get such a reactionlike this from someone who didn’t care about the person who told them thosewords. What a f***ing mess!

Y’know,as an audience member I had my own fair share of doubts about Ozpin. I alwaysfelt like he was hiding something about his past but I never took it to thepoint where I wholeheartedly thought he was an evil or conniving person likeother fans have done. I mean I’ve toyed with the idea of Oz being different in another life but it always returned to the personhe is currently rather than who he used to be, y’know what I mean?

Ozhas always possessed a compassionate charm about him and it’s the main reasonwhy I liked him as a character.

Evenin doubt, I always held onto the belief that even if Ozpin was revealed to be aliar,there had to be a plausible reason behind his actions and it was those reasonsthat would’ve turned the tides on whether I was in Oz’s court or not.

Needlessto say, after V6 C3-4, I am more in Ozpin’s court than I ever was. When Ozpinheads stand up in favour of the old soul using the hastag #OzpinDidNothingWrong,they’re notkidding. Everything about Ozpin’s actions was justified lastepisode. Anything you could’ve pinned on Ozpin, it all fell back to someoneelse but Ozpin.

Did Ozpindefy the Gods and caused the end of the world? No. That was Salem.

Did Ozpin unknowinglycreate Salem and made her the all-powerful being that she is? No. That was the BrotherGods.

Forfuck’s sake, Ozpin has spent the last lifetimes of his life literally trying torectify the mistakes made by others. And what makes the truth even sadder isthat Ozpin is practically the scapegoat in all of this. He’s the one to getblamed for the actions that Gods and Salem did when all he’s been doing istrying to FIX EVERYTHING! That’s so not fair.

Salem’sactions brought about the destruction of Remnant the first time yet Ozma wasreincarnated in order to help prevent humanity from facing the same fate asecond time when he was practically dead during the first end of the world. Hewas no part of that yet here he is the one being forced to rectify it.

TheGods made Salem immortal and foolishly never thought to revoke her immortalityafter they abandoned Remnant, yet everyone and their mother blames Ozpin fornot telling them this information.

Ozpinhas been shouldering the brunt of these burdens for years. It’s no wonder he chose tonot tell the whole truth. Can you imagine the sheer absolute chaos news likethe existence of Salem and the Gods’ Judgement would cause? It would’ve causedworldwide panic and panic brings forth negativity. And what does negativitybring? The Grimm.

Theone thing that Ozpin was guilty of---the one thing he did wrong was not tellthe whole truth. But in spite of this, I, honestly don’t blame Oz for movingthe way he did. His reasoning behind all of it is justifiable. He did itbecause he didn’t want everyone to lose hope becauseright now, hope is all that humanity has left to thwart thedarkness. It won’t stop Salem but it will keep them going until they figure outhow to stop Salem.

Becauseif they lose hope and give in to their negative emotions, then Salem wins.If humanity loses fate in themselves, it will bring forth the Grimm and theneverything will be lost for good. Salem wouldn’t even need to summon the Godswith the Relics because humanity’s hopelessness would’ve caused their ownextinction for the second time.

Iget why Qrow and Yang would be upset but personally, if I were a character inRWBY and I was with the heroes when Qrow decided to apprehend Oz, I would haveturned on Qrow and smacked some good ass sense into both him and Yang with Yang’sown robotic arm. That’s why I’m happy that a character like Maria is with thegroup.

Mariawas me in that moment. I wouldn’t done the same thing as Maria, albeit I would’vethwacked Qrow for daring to hit a child but I would’ve done my best to remaincalm and think logically in the face of tension. I get that lies and theimplication of false hope without a plan is terrible but…I can’t get mad aboutit not when there was logical consideration behind it.

Iget why Oz never told anyone the truth. I get it which is why it sucks. Ittruly sucks.It truly sucks that even after seeing Ozpin’s past, people still turned on him.Yes I know Oz never told anyone that Salem is immortal and can’t be killed; but…that wasn’this fault?! He didn’t make herimmortal?

Didthey not see everything else?

Didthey not see Ozpin’ssuffering? Did they not see his loss? See his pain? His grief…thefact that he GAVE UP and had to pull himself out of his own grief to focus onthe plan at hand. Did they not see, that even after Oz came up with a plan ofaction to find the Relics and found the Relic of Knowledge, did they not seehis hopelessness afterwards?

Buthere’s the thing that I’m shocked the heroes did not see? Oz knew that Salemcouldn’t be stopped yet…it never stopped him. Oz still came back again and kept movingforward.

Somy curious question is…what made Ozpin regain his hope for a second time? My best guess is that it was the original FourMaidens.

Mindyou, we still have yet to meet the Hermitof Ozpin’s reincarnates. And I’ll bet money that Mustache Ozma, the Inquisitor---theone who discovered the Relic of Knowledge and found out that he couldn’t stopSalem is the one who went onto become the Hermit. Still standing firmly withthat hunch.

I’llbet money right now that it was the original Four Maidens who renewed Ozpin’shope in humanity and inspired him to create the Vaults to hide away the Relicsfor good while creating the huntsmen academies to train the huntsmen.

Ina way, you can also say that it was Ozma who created the huntsmen since hebuilt the academies. Ozma created the huntsmen so that they could give humanityhope in the fight against the Grimm.

EverythingOzpin has done everything in his power to keep hope alive which...makes it’s very sad to see Oz lose hope again.

~LittleMissSquiggles (2018)

#squiggles answers: rwby #professor ozpin #oscar pine #rwby theories #rwby volume 6 spoilers #qrow branwen #Anonymous

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