#but hope and specifically Black hope is always gonna be something i champion for
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Girl ... *Sigh* i feel bad for our man đ he can't even post a pic with a woman without people in a frenzy. I think his pic with Teyana was just for promo for their upcoming work. But girl, have you seen the comments on his page? Lol. I know some people on here also think it's possibly a PR relationship in the works but dammit, at least y'all are sane and haven't lost y'all shit đđ my chest is gonna hurt the day he really pops out with someone but i doubt he'll even post about it seeing as how people react to a pic with a celeb. It sucks being a celeb. And I'm still very happy his career is taking off but i hope he has thick skin because people are hard on him. And... Lastly, i know so many women were bothered about him liking white women. Well if this is something more than just a business pic they should just be happy it's a black woman đđ i want Thuso and only Thuso but beggars can't be choosers. Lmao.
To quote one of my best moots, "Heavy negro sigh" đ€Ł
I woke up today so confused on what was happening. Smdh. The more I saw, the more I had to keep scrolling. All of this....is based on rumor and fan conjecture.
Cant say I'm surprised. People aren't gonna be satisfied until they find something to "get him on". Its like they have to find his Unforgiveable Sin to show that he's pandering. If it's not liking yt women, it's being an industry plant, or posting purely for PR stunts lol. I aint kicking shade to no one, everyone's allowed to feel as they feel.
Me? I'm a proud homeowner in Delululand and I juss dont understand the hate for him. It's much easier to say they juss dont like him or dont like that so many women seem to love him than try to wish ill on him. Or want his star to flame out.
He's a talented, thoughtful actor in his early 30s out at a benefit that raised millions of dollars for BLACK businesses.
Id rather appreciate that and appreciate that he comes outside despite being an introvert and recluse. Thats juss me though đ§đœââïž
#megaminds asks#mega stays out the drama#especially unnecessary drama#at the end of the day#he could easily turn into an asshole like Rege-Jean Page and then we'll never hear the end of that#ppl are gonna dig and spread rumors until they find aarons Unforgivable Sin#and then all the fake fans can finally stfu lol#and as a general reminder this is MY blog#so if you feel itchy take it up with your higher power not me#aaron pierre#nothing can make me hate you bby#i choose to believe in a world where someone like him is capable of loving someone like me#if that makes me stupid or a fake fan or delusional then so be it#but hope and specifically Black hope is always gonna be something i champion for#and on my conspiracy tip#theyve done this to every Black celeb that pops out#nate parker and jonathan majors and damson idris and john boyega and rege-jean page#idk#seems weird we cant enjoy a Black man these days#but thats juss me
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NIKOBRAN kids PT2.
........
Physical appearance of the triplets.
Jet- Black hair, Pin straight. ( Originally I was gonna go with blonde hair , but I realized both nikobran have dark hairs so I wanted them to matchđ„č)
Ice- Blue Eyes. / Sleepy eyes
Symmetrical face ( Exactly like how bran described Niko)
Tall-ish( 1.67~69cm)5'6
.......
-Irina keeps her hair longer ( up to her waist) and always down( as a figure-skater she has to always put it in a bun , so she likes it when it's just down)
-Jas's hair is a bit below her shoulders ( mid back?) She always loves to style her hair. It takes her an hour to style her hair.
-Jamie has a short hair upto her chin. She hates wasting her time on her hair and calls it bothersome most of the time, so she always cuts it short.
.........
Irina is hella competitive in her nature. She absolutely hates being second to someone. Anything she sets her mind to , she's coming out of it as a champion.
Jas is also competitive but she gets bored halfway through. She LOATHE math from the bottom of her heart. She bribes Irina or Jamie to do her homeworks.
Jamie is so thoughtful to others that she'll gladly give ypu her place if she thinks you'd want it. She will help you with anything if it's in her power. She's the type of person who'd call animal shelter if she sees a stray cat or any pet animals ( even though She's terrified of them shit less)
- All sisters are fluent in Russia ( Rai is proud)
- Irina and Jas play Football ( Levi couldn't be more happy) Jamie: " I'm not chasing an inanimate object around đ"
-Jamie is a big swiftie
-Irina doesn't have a specific favorite for a music, she just listen to anything that slaps. ( Lana del rey is her go to though)
-Jas is an Anianator through and through.
.....
Personality wise.
Irina is always the person who's down to do anything. She's that friend that's always hyper. She gets drunk on orange juice type of person. SHE EATS A LOT!Sometimes her and Niko starts singing on top of their lungs when they feel like it. She has that unnerving 6th sense where she knows something is about to happen before shits happen.
Jas need a bit convincing but she's hella funny when around. As soon as she sees Irina or Jamie agreed then she's down. She hates being separated from her sisters, and always demands a recharge aka group hug. She loves way to deep and gets hurt easily. * Irina had to punch a few waste of space people and gets suspended from school. With Jasmine of course since she's the first to throw hands when provoked *
Jamie hates being in a crowded , loud places. She'd rather go to a museum. Her only exceptions are to a concerts. Irina and Jas have to practicly get on their knees to convince her to go places. Jas being stubborn uses her charms and she agrees. ( Niko always calls her little bran)
.....
Their Fear
Irina is afraid of failure , losing, commitment
Jas is afraid of insects , losing people
Jamie is afraid of cats/dogs , crowded places.
......
Ok I'm running out of ideas đ. Again this is just a silly thing that's making me happy and not serious đ«¶đ».
I hope you enjoy đ«¶đ»
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Winter in Kansas [80s AU] 2/2
previously: Bruce managed to sit on the bed for a full five minutes, hands held carefully in each other and breathing slowly, heart steadying, before he locked it in place.
And he left the room, footsteps quiet as he could make them on the carpet, and went back downstairs.
--
Clark wasn't there, but his parents were. Jon was in front of the TV drinking a cup of coffee while Martha hovered behind him, both talking about expected snow before they saw Bruce
âHey honey, can I getcha something?â She asked.
--
Bruceâs mother had been dark-haired, like him, not blond and graying like Martha. It helped. Even if he'd been hoping to catch Jon.
â...I was wondering if I could ask some stuff outside?â he said softly.
Snitches get stitches. But these two knew. He was just entering the circle. Just confirming.
--
The two of them shared a look. Like they knew exactly what this was about.
Jon sighed and set his coffee down before getting it of his chair. âSure, Bruce. Lemme just get my shoes on.â
--
Bruce nodded, waiting patiently and not making more sound than he absolutely had to for the few moments it took.
He saw the look. He knew what it meant, too.
At the very least, he wouldn't have to ease into this.
--
Once Jon had his dirty, mud-caked boots on and a thick jacket, he stepped outside and held the door open for Bruce to follow.
âSo whaddya wanna ask about, son?â
--
Bruce followed, and stepped out into the field behind Jon.
He waited until they'd walked a little before speaking, hoping the crunch of his boots and the Kansas wind might hide his words from someone else.
â...how much can he hear?â
--
Jon turned to face Bruce and hesitated, his face hard to read.
âPretty far last he told me. I donât know the specifics.â
His voice was low too.
He gestured for Bruce to follow him. Lead him to one of the tractors, climbed on, and started it up, but then climbed right back down. He talked only loud enough for Bruce to hear over the constant rumble and shake of the machinery.
âMore noise makes it harder for him as far as I know.â
The tractor was loud, but it didn't have the same bite as cars flying past on the freeway when trying to walk down the street. He could bear it.
--
â...so that's the only way to get privacy? Clutter the sound?â
--
âI wouldnât think of it like âgetting privacyâ, Bruce. Clark isnât trying to hear everything for the next mile. Itâs just background noise for him. He tries not to pay attention to it. Itâs only when he hears things that worry him that he pays attention, or his name.â
â... Think of it like⊠standinâ in the middle of a freeway. Your friend is right next to you talkinâ, but not raising their voice. You canât really make anything out unless you hear something like your name, or maybe âhelpâ. Words you pay more attention to without even thinkinâ about it.â
--
...he listened, and nodded, but all the same--
All the same.
â...you called me a big name out east,â Bruce said. âWhen we met.â
--
âYeah,â he shifted a little on the tractor to get more comfortable. âI know about Wayne Industries. Know what happened to your folks. Was all over the news.â
--
...he nodded, then. Okay. Jon had some context, then--
âI asked a girl out last month and three gossip rags picked it up,â he said. â...my friends tell me private stuff.â
And Clark could hear through walls.
--
Jon sighed, âAre you worried heâs gonna go around telling everyone everything?â He asked, sounding like he had this conversation before. âBefore you knew about it, did he go around doing that?â
âHe keeps everything he hears to himself.â
--
âThat doesn't mean they trusted him with it,â he said. Looking down.
He wasn't⊠angry. And it didn't come out angry.
But he couldn't stop sounding tired.
Everyone, always listening in. Always hearing about him without him being the one to say it.
Even in Kansas. Jon knew. No chance to say things for himself.
--
Jon sighed, âNo. Youâre right.â
â... But it ainât fair to blame Clark. He never asked for any of this. When it first started he used to lock himself in closets or hold his head underwater for⊠way longer than anyone was comfortable with. Donât think he slept for at least a week.â
--
âI'm not trying to blame him,â Bruce said, and⊠he wasn't lying.
It almost surprised him. He wasn't trying to spare this manâs feelings.
â...I'm trying to find a work-around.â
--
âYou know what the best work-around Iâve come up with?â Jon said, looking down at Bruce.
âAskinâ him when not to listen.â
--
Bruce looked up at him, expression confused.
Did Jon announce when he had private conversations?
--
Jon just shrugged down at him.
âSometimes you just gotta take someoneâs word.â
--
Okay. He would.
âThat include taking his word he can't control it?â
--
Jon nodded, âI know you werenât around to see it, but my boy went through hell just trying to deal with it. Heâs a lot better, and I imagine heâll keep getting better, but right now⊠thatâs all you can really do. Take his word.â
--
The sharp parts of Bruceâs reply seemed to sail right over Jonâs head. Maybe the tractorâs noise hid the edges in his words. He didn't know.
If there wasn't any way to do it, though, then Bruce had⊠no other questions to be answered like this.
--
Or maybe Jon just didnât have the energy in him to respond to it. He looked tired, like this song and dance had happened one too many times.
âThat all?â
--
...he nodded. But still, he asked, âcould I make a phone call?â
--
âSure,â Jon said, and reached to turn off the tractor. But first--
âBruce?â
--
Bruce looked up at him.
--
â... You could do my boy a whole lotta harm with the power you have. And while I canât force you to do anything, I will ask that you keep this to yourself.â
And then he turned off the tractor.
--
âMr. Kent,â he said, eyes and voice too steady for a sixteen year old. âI knew he was weird two months ago. I take care of my friends.â
He climbed off the tractor with him.
--
âIâm glad to hear that.â Jon said, and climbed off after him.
He lead him back inside and to the phone that hung on the kitchen wall.
--
Bruce thanked him quietly, and took the phone off the rack to dial.
He didn't have a tractor or anything else but the TV to hide his conversation, but still, he spoke softly into the receiver, enough that the Kents on the other side of the room wouldn't get more than a few snatches of conversation.
â...have the address already? ...okay. Thanks. Bye, Alfred.â
Hung up again.
Shuffled towards the couch.
â...I realized I forgot something, so Alfredâs going to send it in a few days,â he said, assuming that was fine but informing them out of politeness all the same.
--
âOkay.â Martha said, and did pass a look to Jon, who just gave her a nod.
They had a talk.
It was fine.
⊠There was still no sign of Clark.
--
Clark, he figured, was probably still in his room. He hadn't heard or seen anything to suggest otherwise.
So there was only one thing to do, in the handful of hours left before dinner.
He went to the guest room and dug through his bag, pulling out a clasped wooden box, folded with hinges, and headed to Clarkâs bedroom door. And knocked.
--
It took a moment, but Clark did open his bedroom door.
The light was off and his eyes were a little puffy, like heâd been crying but stopped a short while ago.
He hesitated, but did step aside a little to let Bruce in.
âHey.â
--
Bruce stepped in.
âSo,â he said, skipping through pleasantries. âYou are: stronger, faster, and have better hearing than me. And you can fly and reportedly burn people with your eyes.â
He sat on the floor without ceremony, and unhooked the box to let the game pieces all fall out, and reveal the pattern underneath.
âSo, the next question is: do you know how to play chess?â
--
Clark flicked on the light out of habit whenever someone came inside.
â... Kinda?â He said, watching Bruce plop down on the rug. Like the question confused him.
--
Bruce nodded, starting to set up the chess board. âKinda? You know how each piece moves?â
--
âYeah.â He said, and sat down across from him.
--
âCool. You fine if I take black?â
--
âGo ahead.â Clark shook his head.
--
Bruce took black and made the first move.
And they played chess.
--
Clark knew enough about chess to play, but he was by no means any sort of champion.
Eventually though, he did ask; âAre you mad at me?â
--
âDid you do anything I should be mad about?â Bruce asked, mostly focused on going easy on Clark and playing at his level.
He wondered if he could get this game to a draw.
--
âBe a freak.â He said bluntly.
--
â...â Bruce moved one of his pawns.
He has secrets bubbled up inside of him that he doesn't need to pour out. They aren't his to give. If he can find distaste in Clark overhearing secrets accidentally, he can't console himself in spilling them full-knowing.
So instead, he says, âI've met worse people.â
--
Clark just sighed, like what Bruce said didnât mean anything.
But he didnât say anything and continued to half-heartedly play chess. After each move he would pull his arms into himself, hugging them, like out of the two he was the most vulnerable even if it was anything but.
--
...Bruce watched. Saw Clark tugging his arms in on himself. Saw him curled between moves.
â...what are you so scared of?â he asked. Finally. When it was clear things weren't getting better.
--
âEveryone,â he said.
â... After the- the shooting, and whenever Iâd do something that no real person should be able to do, Ma and Pa would sit me down and remind me that I needed to keep it to myself. That I had to be a ânormal human teenagerâ, even if it was just an act, because what if someone told the wrong person. What if they came swooping down in helicopters to drag me out of the house and go seal me in some secret underground bunker somewhere to stab me with needles.â
âAnd I try. I try but itâs hard. I run too fast and hear too much. Itâs like Iâm constantly holding my breath and I can never breathe because if I did someone will hear and drag me away.â
--
âŠ.
Bruce nodded.
âYeah,â he said. â...that'sâŠâ
God.
God.
He hadn't expected to hear that.
Hear that fear out of Clarkâs mouth. The same raw level of fried nerves that knotted in his shoulders and let him wanting to scream, but unable to.
â...IâŠâ God. Fuck. He's spent one day in Smallville, away from Tommy and the pap, and he's falling apart like Gotham was a mould desperately trying to help him hold his shape. âI'm scared of everyone, too.â
--
Clark was trying not to cry again. His eyes were glazed over. He wiped at them before anything could come out and looked over at Bruce.
âWhy?â He asked, confused.
He didnât know of all the things his friend was scared of.
--
To be fair to Clark, it was a very long list.
âEveryone in Gotham knows me,â he said, face the same carefully controlled expression he usually had when he was trying to explain something on their homework, or when speaking to the teachers and adults. â...and they know what I'm worth. I wasn't kidding about kidnappings. They've happened before.â
â...I bribed someone when I was ten. To stay with Alfred,â he continued. â...they wanted to take me away. There's a lot of people who are counting down until I'm eighteen and have access to the money. A lot of people want it.â
â...I just want my family back. And to not feel like every street I walk downâs going to have a mugger with a gun on it.â
...he looked up, and met Clarkâs wet eyes with his own, darker, exhausted ones.
â...it sounds nice. To have a friend I don't have to worry about being shot.â
--
Clark finally managed a little bit of a smile.
Friend.
â... Sorry. I didnât realize having so much money would be such a problem. But it makes a lot of sense. To me that whole⊠life⊠just, they show it on TV like itâs anything but a problem. Donât have to worry about the crop doing well or the cows dyinâ to depend on whether youâre gonna have to cut corners and stuff.â
âI try ân do what I can with what I have to help out. Heavy lifting. Lookinâ for engine problems where Pa canât see. That kinda stuff. I tried to convince them to just let me fly to Gotham too, to cut on bus faire, but they said no.â
He made his move and swallowed.
âI wanna help people, Bruce. Thatâs why I went to that house and ended upâŠâ
Clark didnât finish his sentence.
âBut whenever I do I just get scolded. And Iâm scared that someone will find out itâs me, and then thatâd be the end of it.â
--
Bruce listens.
He's still watching Clarkâs eyes, and his mouth, and he can't imagine this boy doing what they say he's done.
âKent,â he says, with steel in his tone. âI would've given anything for someone to get in the way and burn the man who killed my familyâs arms off.â
--
Clark smiled a little.
Validation.
âŠ
âI don't regret it. At all. If it happened again I'd do the same thing. Even though I'm scared of being taken away. It'd be worth it, I think.â
--
Bruce picked up one of the chess pieces he'd captured and threw it at Clarkâs head.
âDon't be stupid.â
--
It connected but Clark just let it.
âHuh?â
--
Bruce gave him a glare, though it wasn't a particularly intense one.
âYou can't do it one time and get taken away so the next guy has a clear shot,â he said. âSo next time, don't get caught.â
Geez.
--
He blinked, âSo like⊠do it and run? They'll still see me though and tell the cops.â
--
âNo, like don't do it so they know you're an alien,â Bruce said, like it was obvious. âAs much as they deserve their arms burned off, it might get suspicious.â
--
Clark gave him a look. âAs soon as they shoot me and I don't die they'll know something is messed up.â
--
âThen wear a mask,â he said, leaning forwards, an odd light in his eyes. âBe so alien they can't imagine you're who you really are.
--
Clark looked a mix of shocked and excited. âLike⊠a comic book hero?â
--
Bruce wasn't sure what the expression on his own face was. âSure?â
--
⊠He made his move and didnât say anything for a few minutes.
âI used to pretend I was one when I was little. I think thatâs why I learned to fly before, yâknow, all the other stuff.â
What kid didnât want to fly?
--
...Bruce looked down at the board and quietly moved his piece, too.
â...I lied to you before. About where I'm going when I'm eighteen.â
--
Clark looked up at him but definitely wasnât mad.
â... You know where you wanna go?â
--
â...I wanna learn how to hunt people down,â he admitted, head low.
--
â... Like⊠a detective?â
That didn't seem bad or even a little out of character for Bruce.
--
âŠ
âMaybe,â he said. He didn't really have a word for what he wanted.
But Clark used to pretend he was a comic book hero�
Bruce dropped his gaze again.
â...I found a cave, when I was a kid,â he said. âI fell inside while walking. I used to pretend I lived inside it. A monster. Who would come out and hurt the people who deserved it.â
âŠ
âIt's stupid, now.â
He was stupid.
But he was still going to go.
Going to find someone dangerous and powerful, and say teach me how.
--
âThat's not stupid.â Clark said, taking his turn.
â... Well, maybe the eating part. But wanting to track people down and make them pay isn't stupid. It's what we're doing now kinda. Looking into the Court of Owls.â
--
â...yeah,â Bruce said. Nodding. â...do you think weâll find them?â
--
â... Iâm not sure, honestly.â Clark admitted. âI feel like weâre finding something deeper but I dunno if itâs the Court of Owls.â
âJust gotta keep digginâ to find out.â
--
...Bruce nodded.
He took a breath.
â....you're in check, by the way.â
--
âOh.â
He made his move.
âŠ
âYouâre going easy on me.â He smirked.
--
âYep,â Bruce said, moving a piece on the opposite side of the bored and giving Clark time to escape. âDon't feel bad. I've been playing Tommy for years. Only recently started to give him a run for his money.â
--
Clark huffed, âI donât feel bad. I know youâre way out of my league.â
It took him a few seconds, but he made his move.
--
...he moved another piece.
â...does that bother you?â
--
âMaybe a little,â Clark thought.
But Bruce didnât even like guys. He knew that after seeing what happened with Tommy.
âNah,â he said instead with a smile. âIâm just glad you put up with the redneck from Kansas.â
--
Bruce huffed.
âWhat's that got to do with chess? You guys not play board games out here?â
--
Clark gave him a look.
âDo Kenny ân Pete look like theyâd play chess?â
--
âKenny ân Pete look like they play tic tac toe,â he said.
--
Clark let out a laugh that could have melted a room.
âYeah, basically.â
âŠ
âGod. Iâm sorry about them.â
--
Bruce gave him a confused look.
â...that they have big mouths?â He said. Because, yeah. He was sorry for that, too.
Or was it a flawed intimidation tactic? Hazing?
Not speaking to him for half the day?
--
âYeah. Big mouths and I think they were just trying to throw you off. Maybe they were kinda mad I made friends back in Gotham and then brought them with me? Theyâve been my friends for a long time. Probably know more about me than my parents in some cases.â
--
âThey shouldn't have thrown you under the bus like that,â Bruce said, and that was all he could say about them without saying anything cruel.
He moved the chess piece.
--
âYeah Iâm-- Iâm pretty pissed at them right now.â He sighed, watching the board.
âReally thought youâd hate me.â
--
â...â yet again, he found himself asking, âwhy?â
...Clark kept saying that. âI thought you'd hate me.â Why was he so certain? WhyâŠ
--
⊠Clark shrugged.
âI dunno. Iâm not a super interesting person or anything and then you throw the whole âalienâ thing into the mix. Itâs just-- it seems easier to just⊠hate? I dunno.â
He made his move.
âIâm dumb.â
--
âŠ.yeah. Bruce nodded. âYeah. You are, huh.â
He moved in kind.
â...I take care of my friends.â
--
Clark smiled.
âMe too.â
Made his move.
âSo just let me know if you need to move something really heavy.â He joked.
Kinda.
--
Bruce nodded.
âI'll get you renovating the manor grounds in no time.â
âCheck, by the way.â
--
He scoffed and watched it happen.
âThat a job offer, Mr. Wayne?â
--
â...I can pay ya under the table, but it might damage my reputation,â he said.
--
He looked confused, âWhy would that damage your reputation?â
--
Bruce looked up. â...it's black market activity,â he said. âWhich is fine on a small scale, but if I was paying someone Iâd have to report it.â
--
âOh, I see what you mean.â He snorted.
--
âŠhe managed a smile about it. âYeah. I don't exist on a small scale.â
--
Clark didnât say much to that, and made his move.
⊠Eventually their game would end and it would be time for dinner.
--
Bruce would go downstairs, and eat with the Kent family for dinner. And--
...and try to not feel strange. Or an outsider. But⊠it wasn't impossible, in a strange way.
...he knew Clarkâs secret, too, now. And it made it easier to slide into a place like this.
Insular.
--
Maybe things were easier for now. They did certainly seem easier for Clarkâs parents, and as they started to sit down around the dinner table Jon would ask; âEverythinâ good now, gentlemen?â
And Clark would look over at Bruce and then smile a little and nod.
--
Bruce nodded, âyessir,â andâŠ
It was nice. Even with knowing Clark might hear anything.
Somehow, he still felt a little more free.
--
They had a nice dinner. Jon asked Bruce things occasionally, mostly about how Gotham was, how he liked it. He didnât ask about parents or business. Just typical kid stuff like school and how it was going. They avoided talk of Clarkâs incident completely.
Things around the Kent house were extremely ânormalâ considering. It was like⊠bizarre interlaced with normal, and now that Bruce was in on it they didnât need to worry.
After dinner Jon asked Clark to come help him get one of the tractors out from a mud hole it was stuck in, and if Bruce watched he would see Clark lift the front up and simply back the whole thing up.
--
...and Bruce would watch. From the porch, regular, hot tea in a mug. And he would watch Clark lift the tractor and say nothing.
His friend was an alien. And he wasn't sure, exactly, why he was taking it so well.
...when they came back in, they watched TV and got ready for the night. And⊠Bruce wondered, faintly, if Clark would hear if he had a nightmare tonight.
But he didn't.
Not tonight.
--
Clark could, but⊠Bruce had nightmares semi-frequently. It wasnât polite to encroach on that or bring it up, so he didnât.
Trust that heâll give you privacy.
That morning the sun would rise and the day on the farm started even earlier. Jon was up and out of the house before the sun was up and when it did finally rise breakfast would start to be made.
Bacon and eggs with toast.
âŠ
When Bruce came down Clark wouldnât be there.
--
Bruce found he hadn't been given a time to wake up, and so he woke on his own--fatigued still, but only in the way of waking up in new places--with the clock saying an hour earlier than when he usually woke at school. It was still a dark, and he lay in bed, enjoying the ability to not have to get up immediately. He started his way downstairs when he began to smell food and an unusual amount of sun (in other words: any amount of sun) hit his windows.
âGood morning, Ms. Kent,â he began with, obviously. â...Clark sleep in?â
--
âNo I think heâs up already.â Martha said. âHe likes to sit on the roof when the sun comes up. Heâll come down soon now that youâre up.â
âHow dâyou like your eggs?â
--
âScrambled dry,â he said, and⊠didn't have to question how Clark would know he was up.
âOkay.â
--
Martha nodded and cracked open the eggs for his breakfast. âYou sleep okay?â
There was a small thud on the front steps before the door opened and Clark came inside wearing little more than pajama pants. It would be the first time Bruce had seen him in less than two layers.
It became obvious why.
He was⊠kind of jacked.
He didnât look cold either despite the temperatures outside.
--
...what the fuck.
But Bruce kept his mouth shut. His heart sped a little, but slowed again a moment or two later.
â...morning.â
--
âMorninâ.â Clark mumbled, scratching his stomach and instantly rooting in the fridge.
Two cups.
âYâwant OJ or milk?â
--
For eggs?
âOrange juice,â Bruce says, watching him.
--
Clark shook up the OJ and poured Bruce a glass before handing it over to him, but he went for milk.
âMind puttinâ some bread in for toast? âN get the butter out, please.â Martha said, and Clark did as he was asked without complaint.
Martha plated Bruceâs eggs and handed them over, then pulled the towel off the plate in the middle piled with bacon. âHelp yerself.â
--
âThanks,â he said, startled out of his observations for a moment, and--
He was watching two things, a little lost in them both, but at least they were all in this one place. Just--on one hand, caught in the mundanity, in a mother asking her son to pull out the toast and bread, and on the other hand, a small thing in the back of his mind which informed him that Clarkâs stomach muscles twisted every time he moved his arm.
He waited until he was joined at the table to even think about eating.
--
Clark made some toast and put it on a plate for them to grab from and by the time he sat down too his eggs were finished.
Sunny side up.
He thanked his mom as he sat down and started to dig in.
âJust cover the bacon back up when youâre done, Iâm gonna run out and help your daddy.â Martha said, taking a sip from her coffee before leaving the two eating on their own.
--
Bruce started to eat as Clark joined him, thanking Ms. Kent again, andâŠ
âŠ
âYou always sleep without a top here?â he asked, losing his shit completely with a straight face.
--
Clark was busy shoving a strip of bacon in his mouth. âUh-â He chewed and swallowed.
âYeah. I like the sun on my skin when I get up.â
--
Oh. Okay. There wasnât anything wrong with that, so he just--nodded and got his own piece or two of bacon.
And kept eating.
â...plans for today?â
--
Clark shrugged a little and put some ketchup on his eggs before breaking them up. âDunno. Usually I hang out with Kenny ân Pete on my days off, butâŠâ he glanced up at Bruce.
âNot feelinâ that anytime soon.â
âŠ
âThought about just⊠flyinâ around for awhile. Havenât been able to do that in Gotham. But thatâd leave you here unless youâre fine with coming.â
--
Bruce was ready to tell him he was fine with just reading a book for a while, but--
â...with coming along for flying?â
--
âYeah. Iâd carry you. Like, itâs fine if youâre scared though. Itâs pretty weird. But figured it was impolite not to offer.â Clark said, pushing runny egg mess on his bread and eating it.
--
Bruce stared at him like he was crazy.
âTake me flying,â he said.
--
⊠Clark grinned with a mouthful of toast and a bit of ketchup on his lips. âO-kay.â
--
He was stupid and (buff, and Bruce wanted to lean over with a napkin and shove it on Clarkâs lips to get rid of that dumb ketchup) absolutely intentionally being dense, because who didnât want to fly, even if you had to be carried?
But instead, he said, âShut up and eat faster,â and started shoveling his breakfast down in kind.
--
Clark grinned and did just that, shoveling his food down and eating toast and bacon before standing up and chugging his milk.
Shirtless.
He put the plate in the sink and wiped his mouth with his hand.
âDress warm, it gets cold.â
--
Bruce felt something in his stomach flip, and he nodded, running back upstairs to tug on his winter boots and add on another layer and his heavy coat. Clarkâs borrowed winter hat. His good gloves.
And he was ready.
--
Clark got dressed too and then met Bruce back downstairs a moment later. He opened the door out to the porch, stepped off the front step and⊠float there, spinning around as if in water to face Bruce with his hands in his pockets.
âPiggyback or in my arms?â
--
âArms,â Bruce said, not wanting a piggyback--he was sixteen, not a kid, after all. It didnât matter if Clark could carry him fine.
--
âOkay.â
Clark hovered close again and reached out, hand going around Bruceâs waist and pulling him close. He pressed himself against Bruce and locked his hands around the small of his back. Waited for Bruce to position his hands how he wanted.
⊠He might have been enjoying this a little too much.
âReady?â
--
...somehow, Bruce didnât realize he was going to be held like this in Clarkâs arms. He knew theyâd go around him, but--face to face, he guessed he hadnât expected, and found his face close enough to smell Clarkâs neck as he wrapped his arms around his shoulders securely.
Even through his heavy layers, he could feel Clarkâs body, unusually warm against him.
Despite having just drunk orange juice, his mouth was dry. He told himself it was nerves.
âReady.â
--
Clark smiled at him and then looked up.
And they started to rise, slow at first. Clark kept his grip firm and make sure Bruce didnât slip, and soon they were over the roof of the the farmhouse. He started to fly away from it, legs angling as if to âpushâ away from the farm.
Over the empty fields.
--
Once they were up in the air, Bruce⊠forgot.
He forgot about a lot of things. About how he was sort of uncomfortable being this close to anyone, or how he was fully clothed and Clark was half undressed in his PJs, or what was going on back home.
There was nothing under his feet. It was just-- a moment. A moment of disorientation, and realizing the air was cold and sharp with wind, and how empty the air was around him. That flying was just falling interrupted.
And Clarkâs firm chest against his own was the only thing the world that felt stable at that moment.
He wanted to see the fields. The farmhouse. The long shadows, stretching over the yellow, frost-bitten fields.
But before that, before getting lost in wonder, staring-- he tightened his grip on Clark, and held himself close against him.
--
It was nice to be held so tightly by someone who wasnât his mom or dad. He couldnât even recall a time that had ever happened before. He kept people at an armâs length for his own safety, and even when he did let them in there was still that fear of rejection. But last night Bruce had insisted and insisted that he wasnât mad, that they were still friends, that it didnât change anything.
When he got to the point he wanted and started to fly backwards gently, to really get in the whole view of the farm, he looked back down at Bruce with that award-winning smile.
âWhaddya think?â
--
âItâs big,â Bruce called back over the wind.
But he couldnât⊠think of anything else to say about it. And maybe the new-day sun in his eyes said enough. The way it hit his ghost-pale face in the way it never could reach in Gotham.
There werenât skyscrapers here. The long shadows ran only along the ground, far, far below them, cast by regular-sized objects, not buildings made by giants.
And the sky was in every direction he looked.
Big.
Blue.
Beauti--
--
Maybe looking back on this day when he was older would be when he said he started to love Bruce Wayne, but right now he still didn't quite realize it. Even as he looked down at the other boy rather than the scenery, watching how the light illuminated his pale skin and tired, sharp eyes. There was a fierceness to Bruce he had never seen from anyone else. Fierce and ironclad in everything he wanted to be.
âYeah, it is.â Is all he said though, and would slowly continue to hover backwards, getting further away, then go a little left towards the trees that marked their property.
You could see the roads. The buildings in the distance. Cars driving along. Birds flew beside them a safe distance away.
And somehow Clark shined just like the sun, curls blowing in the wind and arms secure around Bruce's waist.
--
Bruce didnât say much while they were up there, focusing on breathing in the cold wind and staring down at all the world below in a way heâd never really been able to before.
Not like this. Alone and secure, without airplane walls around him.
(Even if he wasnât alone at all.)
...but Clark would still be able to hear his heart beat, strong and excited with the world below, pressed against his bare chest with just the coat between them.
...but Gothamite he mightâve been, Bruce still could only stand the cold against his face for so long before his cheeks started turning pink and windburnt.
--
Clark might not have been able to feel the cold like Bruce, but he could see it.
âGonna start going down.â He warned, and did just that. A slow descent left and downâŠ
⊠and they were back on the porch, feet touching down.
--
A little wobbly, Bruce pulled away once his feet touched the floor-- not because of anything bad, but because as soon as the wind wasnât rushing him anymore, he realized he desperately had to wipe his nose, or it would drip out everywhere.
âTissue,â he mumbled.
--
Clark was⊠a little hesitant to let go, but as soon as Bruce pulled away he let him go.
â... Oh! Yeah, c'mon.â Clark said, arm leading Bruce back inside.
There was a tissue box right by the door.
--
Bruce hid his nose in his face until he was able to get to the tissue box and snatch one out, blowing his nose.
âDanks,â he said.
--
âNo problem. I forget that's a thing that happens.â
Clark's skin hadn't changed even a little.
Chalk that up to another power; resistance to cold.
--
Bruce noticed Clarkâs immunity, but didnât say anything about it really. He just focused on blowing his nose, and once he was done, rubbing his cheeks to warm them up again.
â...you never get sick or stuff, either?â
--
âUh,â Clark began as he walked to the kitchen to make something warm for Bruce.
âNot since I was little. Mom says when I was a baby I struggled a lot. Like I couldn't breathe. But I don't really get cold anymore. I can't get burnt. Can stick my hand right in a fire and nothing. Can grab hot pans.â
âIt's like--â he shrugged. âInvulnerability?â
--
...Bruce had honestly just been wondering if Clark was affected by bacteria at all, but⊠that was a lot more than heâd asked for.
â...not anything?â
--
It was nice to just⊠talk about it with someone. Sure his friends knew, but⊠they always asked him weird questions about it. Like if he looked at people naked.
âWell getting shot hurt, but other than something like that? Nope.â Clark put on some water for tea.
--
...Bruce didnât question it, even if he did watch Clark a little longer, lingering.
...he realized now that he looked at Clark, that⊠he didnât have any marks on his skin.
Not a mole. Not a freckle. Not a paper-thin scar.
And heâd been shot.
â...I canât tell at all,â he said, maybe a little breathless, watching Clarkâs back as he filled the water.
--
âRevolver hit me here--â he said, turning and pointing at his face. âShotgun hit me here--â he pointed at his arm and chest.
âGave me a black eye and broken nose and a lot of cuts. But they healed pretty fast. No scars or anything.â Clark shrugged. âWorst anyone's been able to do too me. I've fallen out of trees and moving cars and jumped out of two story windows and mostly been fine.â
He gave a sheepish smile.
--
Bruce found his arm going up to his neck, fist tight, and tried not to think about the hole that heâd seen punch through his mother.
He had scars on his arms right now. He had cuts healing right now. And Clark had jumped out of buildings and been shot and leapt out of moving cars--
âWhy did you jump out of a moving car and a two story window??â
--
Clark laughed, âWell the car thing was I saw a dog and I was like⊠five. Really gave my folks gray hair for that one. And I jumped out of my bedroom window when they grounded me once and didn't quite have flying down yet. But I landed okay!â He gave Bruce a dumb grin and thumbs up.
--
Bruce buried his face in his hands.
--
Clark just laughed again and pulled the kettle off the stove to pour them both some tea.
âGenius alien from beyond the stars.â He joked.
âReally though Iâm justâŠâ he shrugged. âJust a kid on a farm who canât get a date or pass his driving test, or⊠yâknow.â
--
He didnât know. But he nodded anyway.
âYeah,â he said. And he wanted to say he was just normal, too.
But he could get a date, and wasnât a farm kid, and could drive, just not legally.
âŠ
â...wanna be lazy normal and just watch some TV?â
--
âHell yeah.â Clark grinned and handed him his tea.
--
...the first day or two had been rough, but it grew easier with each passing day.
The Kents didnât ask him about his family. They just⊠brought him to the table. Clark did alien things, and human things, and mostly reading-and-TV things.
They had a Christmas tree, and bit by bit presents appeared under it as the Christian Holiday grew closer. And, to Bruceâs relief, one such present arrived in the mail with a little bit of time to spare.
Heâd been invited to Christmas parties before, but heâd never really celebrated with his family that he could remember--what he did remember was mixed up with Chanukah somewhat, with how young heâd been at the time. And though he was fairly sure the Kanes celebrated both, they only really invited him for things like Pesach and Sukkot.
So it was⊠the first time heâd really seen a family Christmas in person, rather than through every movie and pop culture magazine in the world.
...it was much quieter than heâd been led to believe, when the day finally did come, and he wondered, briefly, how the Kents had managed to tell Clark about a magical flying man in the sky when he was a child, or if theyâd let him know Santa Claus was a fictional character to avoid accidental alien imprinting.
--
The day Christmas arrived there was a bit more of a set time to get up, but things still moved the same as they had been.
The sun rose and Jon tended to the cows, but then would be inside for the remainder of the day unlike his usual sparse appearances throughout. They made pancakes for breakfast and waited until everyone was sat around the table together to eat.
After breakfast was time for presents, a few under the tree for Clark, some for his parents, andâŠ
Martha handed a little box to Bruce too.
--
...it was nice. It was still approximately like a regular day, which was a little strange, but it was nice. He ate the breakfast with his usual appreciation and followed to the livingroom around the tree once it was done, watching.
Bruce took the little box with a quiet âthank you,â and smiled. Most of the gifts around the tree were for Clark, but that was fine.
...After a bit of confusion, Bruce had brought his presents down a day or two before. One for Jon. One for Martha.
Two for Clark--one of them being the little package that had arrived in the mail a few days earlier.
The first three presents Bruce had picked out while in Gotham, asked Alfred to purchase and wrap, and had brought them on the train himself on the way to Smallville.
He hoped they were fine.
...for Ms Kent, before knowing her name, heâd gotten a blue sapphire necklace with matching earrings. Not especially expensive, so it wouldnât feel condescending or she couldnât find things to wear them with. Not so cheap it looked bad coming from him.
For Jon, itâd been a little easier.
High quality black leather gloves with a matching sidebag.
⊠and for Clark, heâd⊠for the first present, heâd simply gotten him an autobiography of one of the muckrakers whoâd lived through the mob wars of the 20s and 30s.
...it was the second present, in a much smaller box, that had Bruce anxious.
--
Jon and Martha kept insisting that he didnât have to get them anything of course. They were very impressed by the gifts though, Jon giving a rather genuine smile and Martha leaning over to give him a hug in thanks.
Clark really liked the book too, and it actually took him a moment to put it down and pick up the second present that Bruce had given him.
âAnother one?â He asked, a little surprised while pulling off the wrapping.
--
Bruce nodded and⊠looked down a little.
...inside the box, there were what looked to be hearing aids. Pale, thin, and mechanical.
â...theyâre sound blockers,â he said softly. â...you said Gotham was too loud for you. And what you said about three miles, I figuredâŠâ
âŠ
âYou donât have to use them.â
--
Clark clearly didnât know what they were before Bruce said anything, but then the realization hit him.
â... Oh. Wow, Bruce.â He said, pulling them out. âThatâs⊠really cool.â
âHow do you put them on?â He asked, already trying.
--
Oh.
Bruce brightened a little, and shuffled closer, sliding until their knees knocked together.
âHere,â he said, taking the first one from Clarkâs hand and brushing away his hair to get a good view of his ear.
He slid it in carefully, looping the hook that made it appear so much like a hearing aid over Clarkâs ear.
âNo one should question it, since it looks like a regular thing.â
--
Clark leaned in closer to help him and⊠maybe kinda stayed there a little longer just so he could be closer to Bruce while he helped put them in.
âThis is really cool.â He said again, voice quiet.
âFinally gonna be able to sleep.â He laughed, a little joking and a little not.
--
Bruce smiled a little, glad Clark liked them so much. âThey working?â
--
He went quiet and focused, a smile spreading over his face. âI canât hear the cows.â
Martha looked like she might start crying.
--
Bruce grinned wide, something warm spreading through his chest.
âYou like them?â
--
âYeah. I really do.â Clark grinned.
âŠ
He leaned over and pulled Bruce into a hug.
--
For a moment, Bruce was startled, freezing up in the sudden hold.
...then, he leaned into it, closing his eyes, and finding himself melting into the hold.
--
⊠Clark found he really didnât want it to end, but⊠his parents were right there. So it had to. But while it lasted he held Bruce tight and whispered out another âthank youâ before pulling away.
âWish you woulda had those when you were younger.â Martha smiled and Clark laughed.
âYeah, really.â
--
Bruce smiled and edged away from Clark again, opening his own present quietly while the others talked.
...he felt a little better, now, knowing the gift was well received. That it wasnât a bad idea.
...soon enough, though, January would come, and the hearing aids would be really put to the test as their return to Gotham grew closer.
--
Bruceâs gift was⊠less impressive, butâŠ
âI know it ainât your style, butâŠâ Clark grinned.
It was a baseball cap.
A baseball cap with âSMALLVILLEâ embroidered across it.
âLeast itâs somethinâ to remember us by.â Jon chuckled.
--
Bruce sighed deeply, eyes rolling up to the ceiling, and flipped the hat up to destroy his hair style by putting it on.
âYou know what, Kent,â he said. âAt least itâs not John Deere.â
--
Clark grinned and roped his arm around Bruce to give him a side-hug.
âŠ
January would come eventually though, that was for sure. Clark would hug and kiss his parents goodbye and they would tell Bruce they loved having him, to come back any time. He was always welcome in their house.
Then it was a bus ride back to Gotham and Clark definitely packed his new hearing aids.
--
...he wasnât sure why he was the one struggling to not get emotional once the Kents drove away, and he found himself in the bus seat, staring at the seat in front of him.
...but he was. For the first few minutes as the bus pulled out of the station, Bruce just⊠curled up in his seat and worked to keep his breathing steady.
And they headed back to Gotham.
âŠ
He wouldnât wear his âSmallvilleâ cap with him as they reached their destination late the next day, though. Heâd return to the borrowed snow cap, and hide the âsmallvilleâ one deep in his bag so that it couldnât be seen.
...and as they returned to the dorms, he had a weight of dread in his chest that he wasnât unused to, butâŠ
It hadnât been there the last two weeks.
And knowing Clark could hear his heartbeat just made him more anxious, now, about keeping secrets.
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Oblivious Actions Part 2 of 2
Revali x Reader
5827 words (hey you asked for a big boi so)
Part 1
Thank you for your patience! I really love how this turned out, even though I suck at endings. Critiques and any typo finds are appreciated if I missed anything. Anyway, enjoy!
Music filled the air, the stable was lively, and full of chatter. Understandable, considering it wasnât everyday the Champions would grace the common folk with their presence. Many travelers were already making their way up the bridges to Rito Village, in anticipation for the Champion celebratory party set for that night. Around Rito Stable, workers had begun lighting up amber lanterns, in preparation for the sun setting in a few hours. A few Hylians were walking about. One Sheikah was playing his instrument by the campfire, humming a familiar tune, while others watched and danced along. Rito and Hylian children zigzagged between the large, wooden crates, painted with the Hyrulean crest. A worker with a maroon tunic was stirring a large pot of stew, its savoury aroma filling every part of the woods. The winds rustled through the dancing trees, creating its own, cutting melody. However, the chill was not felt from within.Â
Inside, the curtains by the stable entrance were half drawn, people lounged around tables, talking and eating. Warm, yellow light illuminated the room, the lanterns occasionally flickering. Workers and guests clattered about. A few men in the corner were on their third pint of ale, while a few Rito women were giggling from across the room, staring at a particular Rito and Gerudo.Â
He hadnât bothered to wear his blue scarf, even though he adored it (and he would never say so out loud), he found that its emblem attracted much unwanted attention. Urbosa, on the other hand, had her sky blue skirt on, draped across the stool she was sitting on. It was the figure of a Gerudo so far into the Tabantha Region, combined with her Champion status that attracted attention. So in essence, it was her that negated any efforts Revali made to stay away from the crowds. He leaned back in his seat, staring at the ceiling restlessly, waiting for her to be finished with the last of the lingering fans.
With a flick of her wrist, Urbosa finished writing her name across the piece of parchment. The black ink at the tip of the quill soaked into the paper, leaving Urbosaâs cursive name in large letters. A thin and lanky Hylian man took it excitedly.
âT-thank you, Chief Lady Urbosa maâam! Really! Truly! This means a lot, Iâm going toâ I mean⊠my kids are gonna love this.â
The Gerudo gave him a kind look and tilted her head, her emerald eyes gleamed. There was not a sliver of annoyance or mocking on her face. âItâs not a problem at all, sir. I find it encouraging whenever people come up to greet and support us. Donât you think, Revali?â
Although the blank, wooden image of the ceiling was very entertaining, Rito pried his gaze away and narrowed his eyes at the two of them. The man was rocking back and forth on his heels, hugging two pieces of paper to his chest. One, already autographed with Urbosaâs loopy handwriting. The other, blank and waiting. His posture was jittery and nervous. The Hylian was switching his gaze between the Rito and the quill on the table.Â
Ugh.
âWhy yes, Champion Urbosa. Itâs always nice to meet the adoring fans.â Revali enunciated the end of the sentence carefully. He continued with a regal tone. âEspecially, since weâve wasted the last hour of our free time watching you write the same word over and over. Theoretically speaking, we have greatly supported the ink business with our presence alone.â He leaned forward, speaking directly to the Hylian. âHowever, I think weâve taken enough of this gentlemanâs time, so why donât we send him on his way. After all, Iâm sure there are more actually important matters that we all need to attend too.â He flicked his wing in a motion towards the stable exit.Â
A beat of silence. Then, the Hylian started to sputter, his cheeks reddening. âO-Oh... oh-oh yes, yes! Of course! Iâll justâŠâ he took a shaky step back, â...be on, my, way, then. Thank you very much for your time!â He shuffled outside, nearly tripping on the step out the exit.Â
Letting out a huff of air, the Gerudo Chief muttered under her breath. âInk business...hilarious as always, Revali.â He let a smirk cross over his feathered face, âYes, I already knew that, thank you.â
Revali turned his gaze back towards the ceiling, finding comfort in the fact that all the pestering fans were gone. Urbosa rolled her eyes. âWould it kill you to be nice? Or at the very least, polite?â He scoffed.Â
âI donât think having to endure lines of mindless devotees is part of our job description. Last I checked, I was chosen for my masterful skill set and bond with Medoh, not my penmanship.â Â
She gave a tired sigh. âWe both know thatâs not the point, itâs about inspiration and giving people hope.â
âIf people are so eager to have my name on a piece of paper,â he picked up the quill the Hylian had accidentally left on their table, âthey can write it out themselves. By this point most people have the ability to spell, correct?â
The two continued their idle banter for a bit. The conversation at this point was mostly out of a lack of other things to do, as no food or drink had arrived yet. Then, another Hylian approached their table, cheerfully.
âExcuse me, Champions, I haveââ
âOH for the love of Hylia!â the Rito interrupted, âIâm afraid Iâm not in the mood to deal with whatever requests you have for me.â He held his head towards the ceiling, exasperated.Â
âSo pardon my bluntness, but why donât youââ
âRevali,â Urbosa interjected.
He looked back towards her, a sarcastic response already at the tip of his beak. That was when he caught a glance at the Hylian woman in question.
She was holding up a wooden tray, dark and stained. A large pitcher sat on top of it, and she balanced two cups on either end. Her leather cap sat lopsided on her yellow hair. The symbol of a horse etched onto the fabric of their hat and tunic. The look on her face was that of confusion.
âOh.â
The stable worker cleared her throat with a forced cough. âUm, you ordered the apple cider, right Champion Revali?â She set the cups down without waiting for a response. The Rito fixed his eyes on his drink, mumbling. âYes, thank you Lucile.â At least, thatâs what he thought her name was. He couldnât bother to remember all of [Name]âs friends. The bronze colored liquid swirled in his cup.
Attempting to lighten the mood, Urbosa quipped in. âIt wouldnât be very responsible of me to let him get drunk, lest he become even more dramatic than usual.â She exchanged a quiet laugh with the waiter. Revali clicked his tongue. âI am in no need of your motherly supervision, Urbosa. Besides,â he laid his wing across his chest, theatrically, âIâm sure I can handle my drink much better than anyone here ever could.â At that, Urbosa gave a wink towards the waiter, whispering something about ego.
After pouring their drinks, the Hylian that was probably named Lucile put the pitcher back on the tray. âAlright, well, call for a refill when you want it. And donât worry about the price or anything. [Name] said to put the rupees on their tab.âÂ
At the mention of their name, Revali perked up. âWait, Lucile, I noticed I havenât seen [Name] around yet. Are theyâŠ?â he let his voice trail off. Itâs not like he cared that much, he was just curious. He hadnât seen them all day. Itâs not like he was looking forward to their interactions or anything. Yeah, curious, that was the word.
âIf youâre referring to your little get together later, theyâre still on for that.â Lucile gave a warm and knowing smile. âThe place is busier than usual, thanks to you guys. So itâs âall hands on deckâ if ya know what I mean.â She gave a quick nod outside, where a savoury aroma was starting to swirl its way inside. âTheyâre making your on the house dinner right now, so just wait a little bit longer.â Lucile tucked her blonde hair behind her ears, and picked up the tray. âOkie dokie, then. Iâll be seeing you.âÂ
The Rito allowed himself to look outside. The view was partly obstructed by the purpleish curtains on either side, but the unmistakable glow of embers and flickering firelight could be seen. Craning his head forward a bit, he caught a glimpse of a coffee colored boot in front of a cooking pot, tapping along with the music. Huh, only one stable worker he knew would still be dancing along to the music despite working all day. Revali thought back to that time when [Name] would force him to sing along with the sparrows, just to annoy him. Or how he would invite them to Warblers nest to listen to the Rito kids chirp their tunes. I wonder how theyâre doing, have they been working all day? Have they taken a break yet? I know Iâve been caught up with Champion duties, but maybe tonightâ
âWandering eyes kill, little Rito.â
Snapping back into reality, Revali quickly blinked and turned to face Urbosa. There was a calm and almost pitiful tone in her voice that he wasnât exactly thrilled to be at the end of.
âAh, my apologies. I should have asked for your permission to use my sense of vision.â
Unbothered by his comment, she kept the smirk on her face. âYou know, Iâve never seen you laugh so easily until the other day.â He let out a loud scoff. What was that supposed to mean? Am I not allowed to express emotion on duty? Perhaps I should don the same stupid expression as that little knight.
âWell, perhaps thatâs because everyone else in the group is boring.â
Urbosa leaned forward in her seat, letting her elbows rest on the table. âLet down the act, Revali. Everyone can see the big picture but you.â
âWhat are we even talking about?â
â[Name]â
âUh-huh. Right, I think it would save us both time if you bothered to be specific in what you mean.â He lifted his wings in fake surrender. âWhat about them? You insulted by their choice in flower crowns? â
Putting his wings down, he went for his drink. Taking up the cup of cider, Revali lifted it towards his face, using it as an excuse to not continue further into the conversation Urbosa so clearly wanted to have. Urbosa let out a huff of air. âLook, Iâm just trying to compliment you two. You really are a cute couple.â
Instinctively turning to the side, Revali spat out his drink wildly. His coughing fit caused the surrounding conversations in the stable to trickle into curious whispers. A few other Rito in the back were giggling. Thankfully, he hadnât sprayed anyone as no one was in range. He wiped down the front of his clothes and part of the table with his wing. He cleared his throat and half stood up, addressing the people that were looking at him quizzically. Revaliâs voice raised in pitch and his speech quickened.
âAHEM! Wow, that was absolutely appalling and disgusting. I canât believe the staff would be so careless as to let a dragonfly swirl around in my cup! I WILL be sure to speak with someone later concerning the cleanliness and hygienic practices of this place. So...yeahâŠâ he let his voice echo in the room for a few more moments before sitting back down completely. Urbosaâs hands were folded as if in prayer, but her fingertips were pushed in front of her lips, as if to keep from laughing.
âGreat save.â
âShut up, will you? What in the hells did you just say? Couple? I think youâre clearly misreading things.â
She let out a short laugh. âWell, the fact that you reacted so enthusiastically says otherwise.â Â
âWhaâwhatâŠ?â He shook his head quickly. âUrbosa, whatever you think you saw the other day isnât what you think. [Name] and I are very obviously not dating, or seeing each other, or whatever your proper terminology is.â
âYou both are very obviously into each other. You always hang out, you have cute banter. Youâre dating, no?â
âNO!â He quickly shushed her comment, lowering his own voice and glancing around to see if anyone else was listening in. âThe answer is NO because I donât even like them that much. Theyâre very stupid, and unattractive, not to mention a Hylian. Theyâre an acquaintance at most. Maybe a friend.â He propped his own wing on the table and rested his beak on it. âOr close friend. A confidant...orâagh! Point is weâre not whatever you think we are!â
Urbosa let out a huff of air, letting her shoulders slump. âFor a Rito, you are quite blind.â
He went for his cup again, fiddling with the chipped white paint that decorated the side. Revali didnât bother to look up at Urbosa, for fear of unconsciously communicating something with his eyes. âFine, then. Please, enlighten me into what I am so blind to.â
She furrowed her brows in confusion. Was he seriously not getting it? âYou and [Name] seem to talk and visit each other all the time, considering you even know the staff here. You both have known each other since childhood, no doubt youâve formed a bond. Both of you were so incredibly flustered just being in each otherâs presence yesterday. Also,â she held up her head to imitate Revaliâs posture, âYou look pretty too!â Does that comment ring any bells? Come on, Revali. And this is only the stuff Iâve seen in one day.âÂ
Shocked and speechless, Revali let the silence between them settle for a bit. He considered her argument, thinking over what to say next. âOK fine, I tolerate them. Sure. That doesnât mean it happens both waysâŠâ
The Gerudo Chief looked as if Revali had just told her that the current King of Hyrule was five stacked cuccos. âThey practically invited you for a date earlier.â
âBut, we do that all the time.â
âYou do!?â it was Urbosaâs turn to be shocked.
âWait,â Revali narrowed his eyes, wheels turned in his head. Did that time he invited [Name] to watch his archery practice count? Or when [Name] had baked him a fish pie when he came to visit them even though they were sick? Wait, wait, no. Friends do that all the time, thatâs absurd. Yet, he couldnât ignore the incessant fluttering in his stomach whenever he thought about braiding their hair...or laughing beside them...orâ ah! What did it all mean? He scrunched his face in confusion, lowering his voice to a whisper, âHave we already...what does...are we dating?â
Urbosa held the bridge of her nose with her fingers, sighing. âEveryone with eyes can see it. You are.â
Revali practically squaked. âWEâVE BEEN DATING?â
âYes.â
âOh, youâre... dating Urbosa?â
Both Revali and Urbosa whipped around in unison to face [Name], who was standing behind them holding two hot bowls of spicy meat stew.Â
Spirits bless his quivering soul, [Name] was here. There were still droplets of cider on his clothes, his braids were probably all frizzled from the trip down here. Was what he was wearing too formal? Too casual? Maybe he should have worn something more colorful. Hold on, was [Name] wearing their hair differently? When did they start wearing that yellow ribbon? It looked nice...should he say something? What was that new leather pouch on their belt, did someone give them that? Why all these changes? Are they seeing someone? Well it would be fine if they were...considering they were just friends. Right, they were friendsâ Wait a moment, did they just ask if he was dating Urbosa??
The Gerudo Champion, ever quick to regain her composure, was the first to respond. âUnfortunately, no. Iâm afraid Iâm a bit out of the Rito Champions league. We were talking about something else.â
The slight tension in [Name]âs shoulders relaxed, just barely noticeable. They chuckled, setting down the stews. âAh-ha, well thatâs good. Hylia knows Revaliâs much more trouble than heâs worth.â
The Rito in question, who had still been sputtering over the several revelations he had come across over the last few minutes, finally regained the ability to formulate words. â...What? Hey! Iâm right here!â
âOh, sorry about that!â [Name] leaned down to face him, âI didnât see you there. When youâre sitting down, youâre even shorter than usual! â To further add to their quip, [Name] booped the tip of his beak with the end of a spoon. The feathers on his neck poofed up from embarrassment, though probably no one but him noticed. After placing napkins and silverware on the table, [Name] gave a deep, exaggerated bow. Their leather pouch hung out, half-open, revealing a few colorful hair ribbons. âEnjoy the meal, and thank you for staying with us, esteemed Champions,â their words were more of a tease towards Revali. âJust holler if you need anything, Revali! Iâll see you...later.â And with that, [Name] strode back outside, the brisk breeze fluttering the edges of their maroon tunic.
Revaliâs thoughts were racing. Mainly centered around one word.
Whywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhywhy
Urbosa looked at Revali, a twinkle in her eye. âTruly, you are made for each other. Theyâre the only one Iâve seen with the ability to actually make you shut up.â
Ignoring her comment, the Rito continued to stare at [Name] as she bantered with the other guests and workers outside. Then, he exhaled quickly, muttering comments that would make any mother click their tongue. Attempting to alleviate the tension, Urbosa asked, âCan I ask you a question?â
Quickly rebuilding his walls, Revali let out the usual quip. âYou just did, but you have my permission to ask a secondary one.â
âDo you believe they like you back?âÂ
He rolled his eyes. âUgh, spare me your useless fledgling gossip and prattle. What are you going to do, exchange handwritten love letters between us? Unfold the schoolyard drama? Maybe later we can skip around in circles as we talk about our crushes before bedtime.âÂ
She rolled her eyes. It might as well be an exercise when around Revali. âHow about you answer the question?â
He turned away, looking outside and watching the dancing trees and people. â[Name] and I have been friends for years. I think Iâd know if we had mutual feelings.â
Taking a napkin and placing it on her lap. She focused on enjoying her meal. âOh but you do. Youâre both clearly head over heels for each other already. Considering you're already basically dating.â
Turning back to face her, he started sputtering. âWait, wait. Letâs back up, shall we? If weâre, as you said, basically dating, does that mean they know this? Do...do they already consider me their significant other? Do they know weâreâŠâ he lowered his voice again, gesturing at himself wildly, â...you know.â
Urbosa slurped her stew, but held Revaliâs gaze. She enjoyed its warmth and savory smell for several, several, several long seconds, still looking Revali in the eye. He spread his wings, exasperated. âYour condescending stares arenât improving the situation.âÂ
Finally, she finished her sip, giving a satisfied sigh. The spicy taste tingled in her mouth. âMmm. Delicious. [Name]âs cute and a good cook. You have good taste.â
âDid you just make a pun?â
âPfft, like you havenât done that before?â Revali responded with a grimace.Â
The Rito asked again, âCan you just please take this seriously and help me with all this? You should already be flattered that Iâm even bothering to continue this conversation with you. I donât just babble about [Name] with anyone. So just...tsk...I donât know, grace me with whatever wisdom you have.â
Urbosa raised an eyebrow, âOh? Why should I? Iâm not your mother or anythingâŠâ She flipped her velvet hair and looked away dramatically. Seems the Ritoâs personality rubbed off on her.
Revali rolled his eyes, âAre you really going to make meââ
âYes.â she said bluntly.
âWell, Iâm notââ
âHm?âÂ
âI saidââ
âWhat?â
âCan youââ
âYes?â
Revali sat there, eyes narrowed. Seems there was only one way he was gonna get her to talk. Urbosa gave a hearty laugh, her chocolate smooth voice echoing through the room. She kept her eyebrows raised, looking at him expectantly. After letting out another sigh, the Rito grumbled, barely opening his beak. âCan you please help me with all this...â Urbosa cupped a hand around her ear, a smirk plaster on her face. Revali quickened his speech. â...ugh youâre insufferable...considering you are the closest thing to a parental figure in my life and youâre more of an expert in this than I am, please tell me what in the hells I should do about [Name]âTHERE! Happy?â
She started chuckling again, laughter must come easy for her. Shooting him a wink, Urbosa mused, âI think thatâs satisfactory. Was that so hard?â
âVery.â
She snorted. Leaning back in her seat, she jeered him further. âAlright, maybe I wonât let you crash and burn this cute relationship of yours, considering itâs my responsibility to look out for all the little children in my life.â Revali scoffed.
Before he had the chance to nag her further, Urbosa continued. âSo, Revali, from my own expert deductions on your whole,â she moved her spoon towards him in a circular motion, âsituation, Iâve concluded that youâre both idiots.â He grumbled and shot daggers at her.
âThank you. Very helpful.â
âYouâre welcome. Now,â she set down her spoon, âListen close and listen well, Revali. Youâre both in the same boat here. [Name] didnât react that badly at the prospect of you going out with me. However, their eyes immediately lit up when I clarified that you were not, infact, taken. Â
âThis means that they also donât realize the obvious fact that youâre dating each other. Yet, they reacted with a hint of jealousy, so thereâs no question theyâve got it for you.â Revali shifted in his seat, but allowed her to resume.
âThey were completely oblivious to Darukâs earlier comment about you being cute together. Yet, theyâve continuously made moves that suggest they really like you. Did you see their face when you put your wing around them yesterday?â She sighed. â Who knows what other signs youâve both been oblivious to all your lives.â Finally, she leaned forward and pointed a finger at Revali.
âYouâre both too lovestruck to see how lovestruck your loves are for you.â Then, she went for her drink, sipping it slowly.
Taking her silence as a cue to speak, he asked softly. âAlright, so what do I do?â
âI donât know,â was all that came from behind the cup.
He practically squaked again. âWhat? But? You just? Whyââ
She held up a finger to shush him. âThe best I can say is that you should probably openly confess so thereâs not anymore confusion between you two fools. How, where, and when? Well thatâs entirely up to you. Maybe at the party tonight you can whip up something.â
The likelihood of someone like [Name] showing up to a party filled with stuffy nobles, pestering fans, and overall loud people seemed slim. From experience, Revali probably thought [Name] would spend the night in the woods or something, searching for wildflowers. âI can assure you thatâs not going to happen.â
Urbosa gave a final shrug. âWell then, good luck.â She went back to eating the rest of her meal.
Revali cast his eyes to the floor, deep in thought. What was he gonna do?Â
Several minutes passed, and Urbosa basked in the rare occurance of the Rito Champion's silence. Thoughts and anxieties swarmed his head like bees to a courser honey comb. Then, the wind swept past the curtains and through the stable entrance, fluttering something under Revaliâs foot. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw a feather. It was a familiar deep blue, bordering on indigo, the edges were stroked with white. The color and hue was unmistakable.
Losing one or two happened everyday, sure, but what was peculiar was that this particular feather was that it seemed to be from a fledgling. The white marks faded to grey slightly, indicating the not yet fully formed colors of a young Rito hatchling.Â
Tsk. Iâll admit I have youthful looks, but Iâm not that young. Â
Picking it up off the floor, he studied the stiff end of the feather, he was surprised to find it was decorated. A yellow ribbon was wrapped around its end. At one point, it was a brighter, daffodil like color, but now it had faded with time to a more pastel shade. The color matched well.
Why on earth does someone have myâ
Suddenly, Revali stood up, almost flipping the table. âHey!â Urbosa held the table steady. âRevali? Are you alright?â
Earlier, they were wearing a new leather pouch. It was half open, there were trinkets...ribbons inside.
âRevaaaaaaali?â
When they were joking around, they fake bowed. Did this...did this fall out?
âAre you alright? Whereâd you get that feather? Is it yours?â
[Name] kept this? After all this time? That idiot, donât they know about Rito custom by now? Someone might get the wrong idea.
Or the right idea...GAH! Whywhywhywhywhyâ
Breaking his eyes away from the feather, he pushed in his seat and started to leave. âWell, youâve had your free meal, hope your food was good Urbosa. Now I have to go.â Revali started shuffling out towards the exit, hastily shoving the little feather into his own pocket. âIâll meet up with you at that idiotic party later. Right now I need to be somewhere.âÂ
Urbosa started to chuckle. âSo, heading out early to your date?â Nearly outside, The Rito abruptly stopped and turned to face her. Her eyebrows were raised in suspicion. âAnd Urbosa, if you tell anyone at all, and I mean even the slightest whisper in the breeze, about our conversation, I have a bomb arrow nocked and ready for you.â He gave her a death stare, but she just laughed. Â
Her chocolatey voice resonated through the air once more, laughter must truly come easy for her. After shooting him a wink, she smiled.
âGood luck, little Rito.â
- - - - -Â
Ironic, that the Champion of the sky would frequent the area of his first failure. But, the woods had their own calm and beautiful atmosphere, made all the more pleasant when he and [Name] would hang out here through their childhood. Revali knew these trees all too well, from when he first crashed into them as a child to when he practiced his archery in the time before the Flight Range was built.
Walking along the dirt path, he spotted them up ahead. Their secret spot wasnât that secluded, it was by a small grassy clearing within the forest. Tall pine trees swayed in the wind, the setting sunlight was cut apart by the shifting shadows. The rose, orange, and yellow light coated the sky and shimmered through the branches. The bushes during this time of year held small buds, some had already bloomed into more colorful yellow flowers, although most were still a young green. Kneeling on the ground [Name] was shuffling through a leather pouch, spilling the contents on the ground and searching for something among the mess. A few hair ribbons, a spare quill, a comb, empty elixir bottles, and other junk cluttered the forest floor. Sensing a presence behind them, [Name] spun around to find Revali, standing there with his wings folded behind his back.Â
âI donât suppose all that is to help the fertility of the forest?â
[Name] rubbed the back of their neck, brushing aside their hair, embarrassed. âNo, I was just...organizing my things.â Trying to move the conversation away from that, they asked, âSo, howâve you been, Master Revali?âÂ
The Rito brushed his wings against the pocket on his side, where a certain item was tucked away. Tilting his head, he innocently asked, âAre you sure you weren't looking for something just now? We both know you have a habit of being terribly irresponsible.â
[Name] started to formulate an excuse at the tip of their tongue, but one glance at Revaliâs expression told them it would be useless. âAlright, fine. Yeah, I lost something, but Iâll find it later. We donât need to worry about it right now. Why donâtââ
âWhat did you lose?â He didnât mean to come off so blunt, but he needed to know. He wanted to be sure. He needed to remove any doubts from his mind. [Name] gave a hasty shrug.
âUh, just an old trinket. Itâs nothing, really. Itâs just this dumb thing I had as a kidââ
âSo what is it?â
âNothing! OK? You donât need to push it, thereâs no need to concern yourself with itâŠâ their voice trailed off.
âWas it blue?â
Both their hearts stopped. [Name] suddenly looked up into Revaliâs eyes. The looks they both gave each other confirmed their wordless questions. Letting the silence fall a bit longer, [Name] finally dared to whisper.
âHow did you...?â
He reached for his pocket. He meant to do this confidently, to swoop in and present it with flair. Perhaps say a quip like âAha! Of course you kept this. My feathers are of the most dazzling color and quality after all!â Yet, no words escaped his beak. He held out his feather, the pale yellow ribbon hung lazily in the wind. He held it out in front of him, his usual confidence left him. No need to get my hopes up early, just please tell me, if itâs true.
The feather stood between them, shifting back old memories. The sounds were only that of the forest. Crickets softly chirped, and the wind danced through the trees. The sunset trickled through the leaves. Revali let out a cough.
âAh, well....I believe you left this at our table.âÂ
Neither of them made a move. [Name] was just standing there, bewildered, their gaze constantly shifting between Revali and the feather. They rubbed their boot on the ground awkwardly, unsure of what to say. Finally, the Rito started to speak again.
âDid you knowââ
âYeah,â they said. âYes...Iâve known about the whole Rito culture thing since when we were kids. You exchange feathers to show that a piece of you is bound to that person for eternity. Then you can, like, braid it into their hair or something? You only do it with your soulmate, or significant other, or whatever the proper terminology is.â Memories started to stir in the back of Revaliâs mind, but they continued, waving their hands in front of them in surrender. âI mean, when I first asked you for it, I had no idea about the custom. I just thought it looked nice,â they rubbed the back of their neck, their cheeks rosening. âWhen I got back to the stable, some elderly guy told me about it. But I didnât have the heart to throw it away or anything. I just kept it under the floorboards so no one would find it.Â
âAh, but tonight there were so many people, plus the Champions⊠I thought it would be safer on me.â They gestured to Revali, âAnd, of course, I was wrong, hahaâŠ.â They let their shoulders slump. âGoddess above, Iâm sorry, this is so weird huh. I didn't want to tell you in case you...took it back. I probably should have, I donât have the right to keep something that should be sentimental...butâŠâ
Their voice trailed off. Revali continued to say nothing. Taking this as a cue to say something more, [Name] added, âIâm sorry, obviously when we were kids you didnât mean anything that way. I should have told you sooner.âÂ
His heart was racing. Well, both of their hearts were. Taking in their words, Revali could feel his stomach start to flutter, the winds played with the end of his braids. Still holding the feather in front of him, he extended it towards them shakily. âWell, take it. Itâs yours.â
They looked up from the ground in shock. âR-Revali! Donât feel obligated to do anything just because Iââ
âAnd thereâs a comb among the junk youâve littered on the forest floor, correct?â
They took a step back. âWait, wait. Does this mean youââ
He suddenly took their arm and twirled them around, facing them away from him. âYes, now sit down already. Iâm not gonna do this standing.â
His feathers were poofed out, from the mixed emotions of pride, embarrassment, and adoration. Plopping [Name] in the grass, he went over and picked out the wooden comb among their belongings.Â
Seeing [Name] about to churn out more excuses and questions, he held up his wing to shush them. âShut up will you? This is long overdue.â He sat down behind them, the grass prickling against his feet. Revali started to carefully undo the yellow ribbons in [Name]âs hair. Softly, they asked âSo for you, how long? When we were kids? Teens?â
âA while,â he simply stated. âIt just took me some time to really accept it I suppose.â Silence overtook them once more, though its atmosphere was much more pleasant and warm. Parting their hair into sections, Revali started to lighten the mood with a quip.
âDid you know weâve already been dating over the last few years?â
âWhat?!â
âYeah, youâre pretty much an idiot for not seeing it. I mean, all those times weâve been in each othersâ company. I donât know how youâve gone this long without realizing.â
They laughed. âMaybe the idiot Rito Iâve been hanging out with rubbed off on me.â
âMaybe.â
Finally, he placed the feather within their hair. After braiding it halfway, he twisted the yellow ribbon with it, and finished off the braid. The colors of his feather and the ribbon matched perfectly.
âIs it done?â
Before he could give an answer, [Name] brushed their hand against their hair. They both sat there, in the grass, for another eternity. Suddenly, [Name] turned around, and planted their lips on his beak. After releasing him, they stared into each other's eyes for a moment. âHeh, Iâve been waiting a long time to do that.â they mused. âWhatâs with the look? Should I enlighten you on the Hylian custom then?â
His feathers were now fluffed up mainly from embarrassment, but he regained his composure at their smile. âIâm quite aware of what a kiss is. Itâs just that Rito have something better.â
Revali wrapped his wing around the back of their head, moving it gently towards his. Pressing their foreheads against each other, they both smiled, half flustered. His soft face tickled their skin, but they smiled for more reasons than that.
âThis works too.â
âOf course, Iâm an expert at this sort of thing.â
A beat, and then they both laughed. The sun was almost completely swallowed by the horizon . The Rito Champion was probably going to miss the party, but it didnât matter. He was busy with more important matters, anyhow.
#botw#breath of the wild#legend of zelda botw#loz botw#revali x reader#botw fanfiction#revali#revali botw#urbosa#urbosa botw#rito#rito botw#rito stable#botw x reader
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Digimon Kizuna thoughts
All spoilers will be under the cut!
Fresh off of Tri when Kizuna was announced, I wrote up some hopes I had for this movie. Without looking back at that list, I'm pretty sure this movie managed to not hit any of the things I wanted off of that list - but I'm still walking away completely satisfied. The characters, the story, the setting all feel like completely natural progression from how I remember them, it manages to tell a compelling story in a fairly short movie, the animation and designs are drop dead gorgeous. It's clearly a labor or love and I'm thankful for everyone who worked on it. In some ways it leaves me wanting more - I'd love one more entry with the 02 group as a focus, and I think there would be a lot of value in an entry that focuses more on Digimon intigrated with the human world rather than yet another story about kids discovering Digimon. But if this is the last time we see these twelve in this form, what a way to go.Â
This is absolutely stream of consciousness writing while Iâm on my second watch through of the day (In lieu of livetweeting - Iâll spare my followers that much lol). Is it rambling? Absolutely. It may or may not be of interest, but I thought it would be something fun to do regardless. If you decide to read, I hope you enjoy!
----
Tom Fahnâs Agumon is noticeably a bit lower pitched even compared to Tri, weather he canât take his voice up as much or if itâs a different portrayal Iâm not sure but it still fits him really well - Tentomonâs voice feel slightly different too. Funny enough Gabumon is somehow lighter and more childish than his original portrayal, but it also fits him well.
Both Tri and Kizuna have such a weird process to their casting - They got back actors that as far as I can tell havenât done much if anything since their days on Digimon, theyâve gotten back actors for side characters with bit parts. Theyâve hired new actors that seem to take the original voice into account and take their own spin on them, and then they hire actors with absolutely no regard for how the original sounded to the point that it just plain conflicts with the established character. Itâs all over the place and itâs weird.
Johnny Yong Bosch's portrayal seems slightly different from Tri, maybe he's playing him slightly older, maybe it's the slightly different personality, maybe I'm imagining it. Something about it reminds me of Doug Erholtz's portrayal, which is an added bonus when JYB was already one of the best of the recasts. Minutes in and I'm completely sold on Nicholas Roye's Matt as well, it sounds like a natural progression from his Adventure voice.
In a vacuum Griffin Burns is a decent Davis, but he's one of the recasts that immersion breaking because not only does he sound nothing like Brian Donovan, but his take on Davis is higher pitch than Donovan's so it's impossible to hear him as older. The fact that Donovan was supposed to reprise his role is just salt on the wound. With the insane amount of delays that this dub got, they surely could have brought him back onboard... It's a  shame that 2 our of 3 roles I've heard of Burns have been a replacement of another actor, hope he can get more roles where he can shine more. On the other hand, Bryce Papenbrook as Cody is brilliant casting coming from his 02 voice for what little we get to hear of him.
Yolei didn't sound to great in her video message, but by the time we see her in person her VA has gotten into the role and captures her really well. Hawkmon sounds fine enough, but I'm way more upset than I should be about Armadillomon's voice considering he doesn't have many lines. A recast was mandatory here, and 'medium-deep southern accent' should honestly be pretty easy to replicate but what we got was horrific. What casting director knew enough about the characters to know that Hawkmon had a British accent but not enough to know what an armadillo sounds like??
Mimi is just straight up Sakura now! I actually thought Kate Higgens would have made a great Yolei, kinda funny to see her here as Mimi now.
Not only did Agumon's "Polly want a cracker?" line slay me, but there's something about Tom Fahn's portrayal that really hits me, even though he's not even my favorite Digimon. It hasn't even been a long time since I've heard it - Tri wasn't that long ago, and I just rewatched Adventure/02 within the past few weeks, but hearing him made me a bit emotional, ha. Same thing happened with his first appearance in Tri, and that was after having seen it in Japanese and knowing what was going to happen!
The opening battle is like a complete screw-you to Tai's arc in Tri with Greymon smashing into buildings and Tai completely unfazed. I'm here for it, lol.
The remastered Digivolution sequences are nice but in true nostalgia fashion I kinda prefer the originals, haha.
Izzy's computer is counting down a 'time rimit'.
Agumon says something to the effect of âArenât I always hungry?â and I don't feel like itâs a reference/jab at Tri, but it got a chuckle out of me anyway.
Tai's classmate is blatantly voiced by JYB too, ha.
Matt gives his location as 'inside the restaurant' when calling an ambulance which seems... not helpful. Love that Tai's reaction to a girl collapsing is a confused "Is she drunk?"
An article on Tai's phone is written in perfect English and he gets message from the name Izzy specifically so I'd assume this is a change for the US release. Subtitles would have been perfectly fine but it's a nice effort to keep immersion.
"The ol' Izz-master" Iâm so, so glad they got Jeff Nimoy to write this script, bless Toei.
Only 4 of the Digidestined participating in the battle against the Digidestined is kinda disappointing until I realized that it was a throwback to Our War Game - TK and Izzy get to participate more this time around! As per usual Tentomon (Kabuterimon) manages to sneak in a hilarious line here.
'Lime Magazine' just doesn't have the same ring to it...
TAI'S MAGAZINES...
Tai calling Agumon 'little buddy' is the second scene to hit me right in the feels.
Matt is the only one to reach out to the 02 kids during the movie, I wonder if he felt guilty about what went down in Tri and kept in touch with them a bit more since.
Seeing Kari and TK tied up in a dark room like that is actually one of the more shocking scenes in the movie. That could have ended very differently if this was a different movie...
Meiko shows up for literally one scene with Meicoomon which has... interesting implications. This movie retroactively makes her more tragic as well, as even if she didn't sacrifice Meicoomon there's a chance their partnership would have dissolved anyway - almost a complete lose-lose, there was no way for them to be happy together.
Himekawa is also retroactively more tragic as it's possible she would have been able to see Tapirmon again here - one shows up in the crowd shot!
Honestly this is the movie Himekawa deserved - she was a really interesting character that got wasted and underused in Tri, and while Menoa parallels her in a lot of ways her stoicism just isn't as interesting and Hime's decent into madness was.
L'il Joe has black hair now?
I'm pretty sure Menoa doesn't say "Oh shit" but honestly I'm gonna pretend she does.
I mentioned on Twitter how Leomon doesn't die in this one because he never showed up, but there's one fighting an Eosmon in what I think is Osaka and he doesn't die, and GOOD ON HIM, HE BROKE THE CYCLE!
Omnimon having limbs sliced off got an audible gasp from me.
Matt ACTUALLY got to curse in this movie, character development!!
"Just one thing: Meow" I had to pause the movie, I lost it
Story wise, theme wise, character wise I get it, but mad Sora got screwed over in this movie. Would have been nice if 'To Sora' was included inside of the movie at least.
I still don't like Agu and Gabu's new evolutions, but they did feel really earned and a natural extension of the plot. What better way to spark an evolution than such a huge sacrifice? Izzy's perfectly timed 'prodigious' was the icing on the cake, coming at such a fitting emotional moment and possibly being the last time we'll hear it from Izzy.
When the Eosmon start disappearing all over the world there's a shot of an exhausted lone Numemon who had clearly held off the Eosmon with all the poop that is strewn about. THAT is the next story I want to see.
Unfortunately this movie is in the Tri School of Only Using Champion Level. It's actually pretty inexcusable that we we don't see WarGreymon and MetalGarurumon one more time, but even the other characters should have gone up to Ultimate if not Mega for one final sendoff. I wish we could have seen them truely fight as a team once more, even just for fanservice.
My strongest complaint with the movie itself is that it just kinda... ends. The ending is super emotional, but it just skips ahead afterwards and says 'things are going to be ok!' and ends. I would have liked to see the rest of the kids once more, seeing how they handle the fallout or how they might support Tai and Matt - or maybe a little about what Tai and Matt have taken away from this whole things. Just felt like we needed an extra couple of minutes.
Will we see these particular versions of these characters again? From what I can tell this movie did well in Japan and itâs trending pretty well on Amazon, so who knows. I hope if we do, itâs because the writers come up with an idea they really believe in and not just for the sake of a sequel. But if not, Iâm definately greatful for what we have.
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Americaâs Got Talent: Season 15 - Auditions 1
Hello, and welcome to my reviews/countdowns for âAmerica's Got Talentâ, Season 15! I'm Mashitandsmashit, but you can call me Mash or Mashit for short...
So with AGT turning a decade-and-a-half old, some changes are bound to be made...I guess I'll just get them out of the way real quick...
1: Heidi Klum has officially returned to the AGT judges' desk, and yes, I will admit that after the boredom I endured from What's Her Name and That Other Chick last year, her quirkiness was sorely missed...
2: Sofia Vergara will be taking the other seat, and while she can be likable and entertaining, they probably just hired her because they wanted a chick with an even funnier accent than Mel B.
3: Due to a certain virus flying around, some of the auditions will be held remotely, like every other âliveâ show on TV right now...In fact, a handful of them have already been uploaded to Youtube, but I'm not sure whether or not they'll air these auditions on TV, so I'll hold off on reviewing them for now...
Anyway, it's not like we have anywhere to be these days, so let's get right down to tonight's premiere...
Here's my first act ranking for Season 15!
10: Archie Williams. The act that felt more like a Golden Buzzer than the ACTUAL Golden Buzzer, and the act most likely to win the whole season so far...And he's at the bottom of my list...Not that I don't see the value in him, his singing was very nice and all...BUT it was far from the best singing I've heard, including from old brothas like him...Indeed, when Simon said he will never forget this audition, it's pretty obvious what the reason is, and raw talent is not it...That being said...this is one case where I might be willing to throw the act a bone specifically BECAUSE of the sob story! In fact, I don't think I'm even gonna complain about this guy making it all the way to the Finals! Because you know what, as rubbish as the results on this show can be a lot of the time, even the worst results in the show's history don't even hold a candle to the injustice that this man had to suffer for all of these years! I'm at a point in my life where my mortality has hit me hard, giving me an existential crisis over not having accomplished anything significant that I would have liked to in life, and feeling trapped in my current situation, unable to improve it! I can only imagine what THIS guy went through, having the prime years of his life stripped away from him and thrown in a cage over something he didn't do! A LOT is owed to this man, not the least of which are those 37 FREAKING YEARS of his life back! But since that is a tragic impossibility, I guess the LEAST we can give him is his time in the sun on this show! And we won't let that sun go down on him! ...Even if he's by no means the best...Will he win? Probably not...But he'll probably go far either way...And maybe he can even legitimately earn some of it by improving his voice or performing an original song...Who knows...? (HOO, boy...That's a HELL of a review to open this season with!)
9: Double Dragon. I didn't know the Lee Brothers had successors! Where's the coin slot? I wanna beat up some Black Warriors with these ladies' singing and choreography! Anyway, this was entertaining, if rather gimmicky...We'll see if these ladies can pick a song choice I can take a little more seriously next time, or if they go all out on the silliness! ...Honestly, I'm kinda rooting on the latter!
8: Voices of Our City Choir. A choir getting the Golden Buzzer? STOP THE PRESSES! But seriously, I do see potential in this group...There were a few aspects to this act that we haven't seen in previous choirs, like the (very catchy and enjoyable) original song, the instruments and the choir leader actually singing with them (in a very unique singing voice, no less). I'd rather avoid another Detroit Youth Choir situation, but seeing that this IS Terry's Golden Buzzer, and the hosts' GB picks have consistently made the Top 3 AT LEAST every time...again, save for that old burlesque dancer lady...I'd say these people have the potential to keep that streak going...Then again, Angel City Chorale had similar draws to them, and they never did that well in the votes...The whole numbers factor usually only works for kids, because parents are more likely to vote than OTHER relatives...So between that and the comparisons made between this act and Archie, it's a tough one to call...We'll just see what develops as the season goes on...But if nothing else, maybe it's time to break that streak...
7: The Pork Chop Revue. We've seen dog acts, bird acts, cat acts and even a rat act, so who's to say we can't add pigs to the animal trick collective? I guess when you get down to it, it's pretty much another dog act but with pigs...And I probably wouldn't even say that pigs are the most difficult animals to train, as they're actually quite intelligent...But this was unique and different enough for the time being, and both the gigantic mother and the little baby pig stole the show...and everyone's hearts! That'll do, pigs...That'll do...
6: Ryan Tricks. I would like to take this moment to coin a new AGT term: The Shin Lim Effect! Basically, it refers to the shadow that has been cast over all magicians on this show by a certain other magician, hence the name...Because of it, all magicians that compete on this show will inevitably be compared to You-Know-Who...It's not exactly a fair comparison, but it does set the standard for what is expected of all magicians from here on out...This man, for instance, did a trick that was far from the most mesmerizing or head-scratching...BUT, he still made me wonder what made this trick possible, and as mundane as that sounds, it IS the highest of compliments you can give a magician! The only answer that could hurt his credibility is if Howie and Simon were plants...But I've long since stopped assuming that they do those things...I'm not ENTIRELY sold on him yet, but he is likable enough that I'm willing to give him a chance...
5: Broken Roots. These guys were easily the most interesting singers for me tonight! I look forward to seeing how they improve with a little more practice...
4: Muy Moi Show. Just when you thought you'd never see a more insane sideshow act than Bir Khalsa...This guy did everything short of hanging something off of his eyelids! He even put his shirt back on! That's almost a cardinal sin in the eyes of the female judges! All I have to say is, I look forward to seeing what he does with a bigger budget!
3: BAD Salsa. Is it wrong that I almost wondered if they were former V.Unbeatable members? I mean, they certainly had the acrobatic abilities! This takes the whole dance duo genre to a new level, so I guess it's no surprise that it's from India!
2: Vincent Marcus. I wish I had Eminem and Jay-Z singing my nursery rhymes back when I was little! I never watched Vine, so I'm not aware of this guy's earlier work, but he seems like a pretty funny guy! Question is, will he make good progress like Greg Morton, or will he be taken out prematurely like several other acts of this nature...? Who knows? But I hope he does well, because this was certainly one of the more memorable acts so far...
1: Malik DOPE. Looks like my dream band consisting of Tokio Myers, Brian King Joseph and Marcin Patrzalek finally has a drummer! I'm not sure if this guy blew me away to the same degree that those other guys did (yet), but I do love his moves! I see a lot of potential in this act, especially when he gets enough of a budget to add some special effects or something...(PS, I'd probably pick Courtney Hadwin to be the lead singer...I'll call them the Sounds of Chaos!)
Overall, a pretty solid opener to the season! Even the weakest acts (not counting the rejects) had something to admire, and that's always good!
Next week, Simon's apparently got the Golden Buzzer...And I figure that it's only a matter of time before his GB wins the show, so we'll see if this is the year...I just hope that WHATEVER kind of act it is, it's deserving enough to go all the way to the Finals as I'm sure it will inevitably either way...
So I guess I'll see you then...Assuming anyone else will be posting here with me, after the total silence I got at Champions a few months back...
Still looking into that podcast...
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Three: Act I
"Dragons?!"
 Seungwan shrugged off the invisibility cloak as she stared completely horrified at the scene before her. Just a few distances away, a large lizard-like dragon, with black scales and razor-sharp bronze spikes portruding on its tail, thrashed wildly against its metal cage but the iron shackles tethered around its limbs prevented it from escaping. Sensing that its efforts were futile, the dragon unleashed a fiery breath towards its captors. Thankfully, those humans managed to escape the blast and avoided getting roasted to death. Unfortunately, the surrounding foliage within fifty feet away got burnt to ashes. It was a terrible sight. "That's the first task?!"
The Ravenclaw gaped incredulously at the half-giant standing beside her. For the record, Hagrid didn't seem quite perturbed. In fact, he looked fascinated to have witnessed that magnificent display of power from the beast. "Oh don't worry about 'em, Seungwan. They're seriously misunderstood creatures." The horrendous dragon roared into the night sky and its sound shook the very earth that Seungwan wondered if it reached Hogwarts too. If the students even remotely knew that a freaking dragon was being smuggled inside the castle grounds. "Although, I have ter admit that Horntail is a right nasty piece of work."
 "You're joking right?" The blonde shook her head in denial. Hopefully, this wasn't some kind of twisted dream. Maybe the dragon was just for show. Some scare tactic to convince the Triwizard champions into abandoning the tournament or just a weird display of power from the joint forces of the great wizarding schools in Europe. Either way, Seungwan was scared shitless. Dumbledore wasn't kidding about the fact that this tournament really weren't for the faint of heart.
 "'Course not Seungwan. Tis' a matter of serious business. That's why I called ye here to warn--" Hagrid wasn't able to finish his statement because the dragon suddenly breathed out flames and aimed its attack towards the direction where they stood. "Incoming!" Both Seungwan and Hagrid dropped to the ground when the fire blazed above their heads and completely missed them. A charred beetle fell dead just a few inches near the Ravenclaw and by the looks of it, the poor insect wasn't able to survive the flames and was incinerated beyond recognition. The smell of burnt flesh permeated through the air and lingered in her nose. It's safe to say that Seungwan won't be forgetting that scent anytime soon.
 Once the coast was clear, they rose from the ground and dusted off the dirt from their clothes. Seungwan felt uncomfortably warm, like the heat from the flames clung to her skin and caused her to sweat. Her blonde hair was sticking out in all the wrong directions and Hagrid, bless his soul, good-naturedly patted it down and tamed it with his large hands. "Anyways, the dragons just arrived this morning. Seulgi's brother helped shipped them ter Hogwarts. Didn't she tell ye that?" The half-giant sounded like he was speaking to a toddler and maybe he was, considering their great difference in height, but Seungwan didn't let that bother her since she had more things to worry about. Like the fact that Seulgi withheld such a vital information from her.
 "No she didn't. Seulgi didn't tell me a thing." Seungwan said through gritted teeth. When she gets the chance to see her best friend, she will definitely strangle that Hufflepuff to death. Of course, she'd have to face Sooyoung and Yerim and maybe brave through the barriers of the whole student body in order to even touch Seulgi. Damnit! Why did this have to be so difficult? Suffocating the Hufflepuff would've been so much easier if she wasn't adored by everyone.
 The half-giant remained oblivious to her growing frustration as he fidgeted in place. That's when Seungwan noticed something rather unusual. He combed his hair and his clothes were neatly pressed with no visible wrinkles anywhere. His eyes kept on darting around the surroundings almost like he was searching for something. Hagrid was certainly acting odd.
 "Hagrid~~~"
 Both of them froze at the sound of a melodic voice echoing through the forest. Hagrid nervously glanced at Seungwan and sent her an apologetic smile. "I think it's time for ye ter go. It's getting late." He coughed awkwardly and the blonde narrowed her eyes at the suspiciousness of it all.
 "Hagrid. Are you seeing someone?"
 At her deduction, the half-giant gasped in shock. He looked like a deer caught in the headlights and it looked like his entire life flashed before his eyes. If the situation wasn't so dire, the Ravenclaw would've laughed. "How did ye know that I'm seeing Olympe?" He whispered, sounding completely scandalized, but immediately realized his error and his eyes widened in horror. "I shouldn ter said that." He groaned in annoyance at his accidental confession and clamped his mouth shut, determined not to reveal anymore secrets.
 Now, it was Seungwan's turn to be surprised. "You're courting the Headmistress of Beauxbatons?!" Really. Hagrid and Madame Maxime were going out? Seems like a hard pill to swallow. The Ravenclaw took a few moments to let the information sink in before she tapped her chin deep in thought and voiced out her approval. "Not bad. I wish you could've told me though. I'd be a great wingwoman."
 "What'ser wingwoman?" Hagrid looked confused and Seungwan would've taken the liberty to explain but they were pressed for time. By now, the voice sounded like it was getting closer and closer and it seemed like they only had a few minutes to spare.
 "Nothing. Anyways, did you bring her something to give?" Judging by the blank expression Hagrid sported, he didn't and it took all of Seungwan's will not to berate the half-giant. She rubbed the growing headache on her temples and breathed in and out to calm her growing nerves. Geez! It wasn't even her date but she was already getting this anxious. "Seriously? You brought nothing? Not even some flowers or chocolates?"
 "I didn't know ter was some courting etiquette I need ter follow." The half-giant, for the record, seemed pretty clueless and the Ravenclaw felt sympathy for him. He was probably as nervous as she was and her nagging wasn't helping alleviate his worries. She decided to soften her approach and help her friend have the best night of his life.
 "First rule of dating Hagrid. You always bring a gift on the first outing."
 Seungwan bent down and grabbed a few rocks on the ground. With a small flourish of her wand, she transfigured the pebbles into an elegant bouquet of white lilies. She uttered a few spells and tweaked the bouquet here and there before she was completely satisfied with the appearance. It was magnificently presentable. Madame Maxime would surely adore this simple gift. It's amazing what a little magic could do to perform miracles.
 "Give her these." She handed the flowers to Hagrid then proceeded to adjust his clothes to a more aesthetic fashion so that he'll look irresistibly attractive to the eyes of Madame Maxime. She also dished out some dating advice to guide the half-giant with his date. "Don't forget to compliment her every now and then. Women like to be wooed with sweet words." She smoothed out the lapels of his collar and fussed over the dirt that somehow lodged into his hair. Once she was satisfied, she took a step back to observe his appearance. Hagrid looked pretty dashing. Seungwan felt her heart swell excitedly, like a proud mother about to send off her son to his first day of school. It was ironic since Hagrid was pretty much older than her. "Most importantly, never forget to be yourself. She will only like you more if you're being genuine."
 "Thanks Seungwan." Hagrid bashfully bowed his head and flashed her a grateful smile. He pulled the Ravenclaw into a warm hug. He sniffed and it seemed like he almost wanted to cry. Awww the big fluffball. Seungwan felt herself melt in his embrace. This adorable sweetheart of a giant. "Yer a great friend for helping me."
 "You're gonna nail this date Hagrid. Madame Maxime will see just how much of an amazing person you are." Seungwan tried her best to reassure the half-giant as she patted him good-naturedly on the back. When they both pulled away, the Ravenclaw grabbed the invisibility cloak from the ground and proceeded to wrap it around her body until only her head poked out. "Have a wonderful time!"
 "Hagrid~~~"
 They both turned towards the direction of the sound and Seungwan decided that it was time to leave. "I should get going." With that, she trudged away from the forest and headed back to the castle. Hopefully, Madame Maxime takes a liking to Hagrid because if anyone deserves a happy ending, it's him. May their date sail smoothly without any hitches along the way and may they enjoy a pleasant night in each other's company.
 ***
 Sooyoung clutched the piece of parchment in a vice-like grip, more specifically the Arithmancy exam her professor graded just this morning, and glared at the right topmost portion of the paper where the big fat D- was written in bold red ink. She failed another test she didn't study for. What a surprise.
 Having good grades in Arithmancy wasn't really a requirement for most jobs in the wizarding world but in order for one to qualify for Auror training, one must have outstanding grades in all subjects, something she failed to do. Her professor adviced her to take a remedial exam if she ever hoped to receive a passing mark but there was no way in hell she'd do that. It was a complete waste of time and she had other things to worry about, like starting fan bandwagon for Seungwan to increase support for her best friend and launching a smear campaign for Rosé in an effort to discredit her. Ain't nobody got time to do some extra studying.
 Sure, all she was doing wasn't contributing in solving the issue but she believes in ignoring the problem until it completely goes away. This unhealthy coping mechanism helped her countless of times and it certainly won't fail her now.
 Crumpling the parchment into a useless ball of trash, she threw her test results away and walked down the path that lead straight to the castle grounds. She still had Flying lessons next and she was running quite late. Her mother would be hella pissed when she finds out Sooyoung failed another exam but what her mother doesn't know won't hurt her. The Slytherin planned to keep this a secret after all.
 "Right! First order of business is to get to class."
 With that, she headed towards her intended destination. The memory of those atrocious test results were already buried deep within recesses of her mind and completely forgotten. It's better to move past and move on for nothing good ever resulted from wallowing in self-pity. There were more important things in life than slaving over grades. Sooyoung vowed to do better next time but for now, she still had a class to attend.
 Little did she know that her failures would come back to haunt her in the future.
 Rosé was going to the owlery with the intention of sending a letter to her father when she noticed a piece of crumpled paper on the ground. She sighed in frustration and rubbed the growing ache in her head. What's with people littering the immaculate premises of the castle? Have they no care for the environment at all? Did they know that for the past few years, there had been a significant increase of carbon footprint and one of its contributing factors is the rapid rise of wastes. The Beauxbatons girl picked the trash and had half the mind to properly dispose it in a garbage container when she decided to see its contents.
 A large D- printed in red ink was the first thing that greeted her when she smoothed out the creases on the paper. Upon further study, she realized that the paper was, in fact, an Arithmancy exam and this embarrassing failure only belonged to Park Sooyoung. The same girl who pranked Rosé a few days ago with a Mimbulus Mimbletonia and the very bane of her existence.
 "Interesting..." Rosé mumbled to herself as she tapped her chin, seemingly deep in thought. So Park Sooyoung was academically weak in Arithmancy. Maybe she could use this information to her advantage. After all, she needed a little payback for what that blasted Slytherin did to her. There was no way she would allow that slight to her pride be forgotten.
 Staring at the crumpled parchment in her hand, a brilliant idea flashed into her mind. Maybe she could embarrass the Slytherin girl publicly in front of her friends. There was no way Sooyoung would be able to recover from that huge humiliation. Yes! Such a brilliant. That stupid idiot would think twice of crossing the line.
 Rosé closed her eyes and inhaled the fresh scent of the wind breeze. Revenge had never felt so sweet. It seems like all her lucky stars have aligned and provided her with this amazing opportunity of getting back at her arch enemy. She will surely not let this chance go to waste.
 Vengeance is at hand.
 ***
 "Wannie!"
 The Ravenclaw was wandering along the halls of the castle when she heard someone calling out her name. She had the sneaking suspicion that the voice belonged to a certain Hufflepuff friend of hers and when she turned around, her hunch was right. Seulgi was waving enthusiastically in her direction before barreling through the throngs of students just to reach the blonde and engulfing her in a tight hug. Seungwan refused to return her warm greeting because she still remembered her friend's betrayal. The audacity! How dare Seulgi hug her at a time like this?
 "Why didn't you tell me about the dragons?" The Ravenclaw hissed in under her breath as she dragged the Hufflepuff somewhere private where no one would be able to eavesdrop into their conversation. Once the coast was clear, she demanded answers from her friend. "Did you purposely plan to leave me in the dark? I wasn't expecting this atrocious act from you Seul." Okay, maybe she was just making assumptions and it crossed her mind that Seulgi might have a reasonable explanation for withholding this vital piece of information from her but what the hell, the pressure from the tournament caused her to become irrational. She can't help but be paranoid.
 "I don't know what you're talking about?" To her credit, Seulgi did a great job of looking confused. It almost made Seungwan backtrack but she remained steadfast. Maybe her friend was just a great actress and had convinced everyone of her innocence but she wasn't fooling the blonde.
 "Really? Coz' Hagrid just showed me a terrifying Hungarian Horntail last night and he said your brother, who is a renowned dragonologist, helped ship them to Hogwarts." Seungwan crossed her arms and waited for her friend to realize. It took a few moments and when everything dawned on Seulgi, she furrowed her brows and appeared confused again. Certain topics seem to register late in Seulgi's mind and the Ravenclaw couldn't blame her. The Hufflepuff had the tendency to become distracted.
 "But I'm pretty sure I told you though. After all, I was the one who informed you that Hagrid was looking for you." Seulgi dug deep into the recesses of her brain in order to recall that certain kind of memory. She remembered going to Hagrid's hut and bonding with the half-giant about magical creatures. Maybe there was a certain point where Hagrid asked Seulgi to pass a message to Seungwan but the memory was fuzzy now, it's hard to recount it accurately.
 "You know what? Nevermind." Seungwan ran a hand through her hair in frustration. The slow pace where this conversation was heading was beginning to take a toll on her patience. Seriously, why does she even bother? What did she hope to accomplish by having this talk with the Hufflepuff? "Just forget about it."
 "Okay!" Seulgi grinned cheekily and remained blissfully unaware of everything else. It's times like these that her obliviousness was astounding. The frustration Seungwan felt for her best friend faded away. How could she stay mad when the Hufflepuff looked so positively innocent. "Anyways, have you made plans on how to deal with your dragon yet?"
 "I don't know." Seungwan shrugged nonchalantly, as if the tournament wouldn't be starting in the next few days and the idea of fighting a dragon seemed like wishful thinking. "I kinda want to go with the flow, you know? Just wing everything at the last minute." Man, what was she even doing with her life? The other competitors were probably formulating a concrete plan to combat the dragon yet here she was, avoiding her problems and ignoring it for as long as she can. She was certainly not living up to the Ravenclaw reputation.
 "Tsk tsk! You need to devise a better approach than that Wannie." Seulgi shook her head in disappointment. It was unlike her friend to be this lax. Seungwan was a meticulous person and knowing her friend, she probably had everything mapped down to the last detail. Always forming a contingency system whenever things don't occur on purpose. Seungwan was a planner. She had a systematic approach on things so it was quite surprising that the blonde still hasn't set an objective until now.
 "I know." The Ravenclaw felt her shoulders slump when she leaned against her best friend for support. All the fighting spirit she had was slowly dwindling away. Seulgi was right. She really needed to do better. The problem was that her mind wouldn't come up with something remotely useful. She was stuck in a mental limbo. It also didn't help that the pressure she felt from being the Hogwarts champion affected her in more ways than she would ever admit. She was tired of keeping up with appearances. All she wanted to do was crawl in bed and sleep for centuries without having to deal with other people for the rest of her life. Her social quota has reached its limit. She didn't know if she could still handle her brazen admirers and cult followers. "Can I turn back time and undo my decision of joining this tournament? This sucks."
 "I feel you Wannie but don't worry. I know something that can help you with your dragon problem." Seulgi declared confidently before taking hold of Seungwan's hand and leading her back to the castle halls where they had to brave the currents as the students moved in raging waves just to get to class. The blonde didn't have the energy to complain and just allowed herself to be dragged. Thankfully, the people parted like the Red Sea and allowed Seulgi to pass. It's amazing how her friend possessed control over the whole student body like some kind of weird puppet master.
 They climbed the Grand Staircase and Seungwan was fairly out of breath when they reached the seventh floor. Seulgi turned towards the left corridor and stopped before an empty wall opposite the tapestry of Barnabas the Barmy. The Hufflepuff checked the vicinity for the presence of other students and when she found none, walked past the wall three times looking like she was deep in thought. It was a weird sight and the startling secrecy caused the Ravenclaw to grow concerned for her friend. "Seul? What are you doing?" Though her worries were unnecessary because the once empty wall became nonexistent was replaced by a large iron door that suddenly appeared like magic. It seemed like a passage towards a secret room and at this point, the blonde felt suspicious.
 Could this be?
 No, no. There's no way Seulgi could've found that room.
 The Hufflepuff grabbed the knob and twisted it. Seulgi flashed Seungwan a brilliant smile. "Shall we?" The door squeaked open when they both entered and the Ravenclaw marveled at the sight of a rather large room assembled like a practice arena. It was equipped with winged fire-breathing reptilian dummies and shelves of books about dragons. In the middle of the room, there stood a magnificent statue of a Hebridean Black poised for attack with its razor-sharp claws suspended midair. With a dramatic flourish of her hand, Seulgi announced in a proud voice.
 "Welcome to the Room of Requirement."
 Wait. What?
 Seungwan's brain short-circuited. This is impossible. So this place has been situated here all along? That fateful night where she snuck around Hogwarts, she was pointlessly wandering the ground floor when she should've been searching the seventh floor instead. God! What a pathetic use of her efforts. Sure, she managed to discover the Mirror Erised in one of her nightly escapades but that wasn't exactly her main goal now, was it? Damnit! To think she had to endure all those bullying from Sooyoung and Yerim for failing to find the Room of Requirement when she should've just asked Seulgi for its location all along. Geez! She was such an idiot!
 "The trick to finding this place is to be very specific about what you're looking for. Based on my experience, other people can enter the room and see what you're doing only if they know how the room is being used." Seulgi gushed obsessively as she ushered her friend inside. She made a grand gesture of introducing Seungwan to the various items inside the room and pointing out its uses. "Kinda like right now, I needed a private space to study about dragons and you were permitted entry because you also shared the same need. Had you been seeking anything else, you wouldn't be able to find this place."
 "That's... interesting." The blonde was speechless. This room was wonderful. Had she been really missing out this whole time?
 "I know right? From now on, you could use this place as your training ground. You could learn different strategies to combat your dragon. The Room of Requirement is well equipped to your needs!" Seulgi beamed with so much enthusiasm that it was infecting. Even the Ravenclaw couldn't help but share her positivity.
 "Hey Seul. I found a small passage about Norwegian Ridgebacks and---" Joohyun, the last person Seungwan expected to see, emerged from one of the wooden shelves holding a rather large tome in her grasp. When she saw the Ravenclaw, she stumbled back and gasped in shock. Her mouth gaping like a fish out of water and the blonde would've found the sight funny, if she wasn't so busy being surprised herself. The Slytherin recovered immediately and schooled her features into neutral expression when she regarded Seungwan. "Oh... you're here."
 "What do you mean you're here? I should be the one asking you that considering you knew of the Room of Requirement's location and you never even bothered to tell me!" Seungwan felt scandalized. First, Seulgi kept silent about the dragon task now this? This is double betrayal at its finest and it left her appalled. At this point, she was completely infuriated. Joohyun was the last person she expected to do something like this. "You knew! You knew I was searching for the Room of Requirement! You even caught me sneaking out that night yet you never said anything!" The Ravenclaw advanced towards the Slytherin, like a predator prowling its prey, until Joohyun dropped the book from her grasp when she got cornered to the wall by Seungwan.
 Everything else seemed to have blurred away and even Seulgi's presence in the room went forgotten when their eyes met. Joohyun squirmed under the intensity of Seungwan's gaze and she felt breathless at their close proximity. She tried very hard not to stare at those plump lips but in the end, the Prefect was still weak and was helpless to look away. "Do you have any idea how many times Sooyoung and Yerim threw me under the bus for this? I literally had to lick my wounds for a month."
 The Ravenclaw's tone sounded huskily low and it sent shivers down Joohyun's spine. Seungwan never showed this intimidating facet of her before and it was making the Prefect lose her mind. Merlin's beard! Having her this close was dangerous. It took all of the Slytherin's willpower not to succumb to her intoxicating scent.
 "A-Are you..." Joohyun swallowed the lump in her throat and cursed herself for stuttering. She never gets nervous in the face of intimidation. It seems like the blonde was the only person to bring out this new side of hers. She twiddled her fingers, taking a few moments to gather her courage and when she finally did, stared deeply into Seungwan's eyes. "Are you mad at me?" Her own voice seemed foreign to her ears. It sounded small and very hesitant, like she couldn't bear the thought that she might've given the Ravenclaw a reason to hate her, and for the love of God, she wouldn't know what to do if Seungwan did hate her.
 Seungwan froze when the simple yet heavily loaded question was uttered. Was she mad at the Prefect? A little frustrated maybe but never mad. Hating Joohyun was wishing for the impossible. It's like asking the blonde to loath adorable bunnies. She cherishes the Slytherin a little to much for that. "I'm not." The Ravenclaw took a step back and hung her head low in shame. "I don't think I have the capacity to ever be mad at you, much less hate you."
 The Prefect was staring at her now, eyes wide with wonder and amazement, and it awakened something deep within the recesses of Seungwan's heart. It just occurred to her that Joohyun possessed such enchanting pools of brown orbs. Huh. Were her lips ever this luscious before?
 "Ahem!"
 Their little charged moment was interrupted when Seulgi pointedly coughed. Returning back to reality, Seungwan separated herself from Joohyun and moved a few spaces to put some good distance between them. Having Joohyun within such close proximity did something to her heart and caused her mind to go haywire. It was better to stay away from her for now just in case that weird tension appears again. She couldn't afford to get distracted. The tournament was only a few days away and she needed her complete focus if she wanted to survive the first task.
 "If you're done arguing, can we get started with the lessons now?" Seulgi looked almost apologetic as she fidgeted awkwardly from where she stood. Seungwan nodded in agreement and shifted her attention solely on the Hufflepuff. She missed the dazed and flustered expression Joohyun assumed. "As I was saying, you could use this room as a practice area. Joohyun and I could teach you a few spells that you can use to combat that dragon. Since the tournament is only a few days away, you better prepare yourself for the tasks to come."
 "I still can't believe you guys hadn't told me this sooner." Seungwan crossed her arms as a pout settled on her lips. This was unfair really. She could've used the Room of Requirement for one of her little experiments. Hopefully, she could try out casting some offensive spells without worrying about destroying the whole school.
 "It was for the best. You wouldn't be able to keep this a secret from Yerim and Sooyoung. If those two found out, they'd be tranforming this place into a frat house in a heartbeat." Joohyun casually stated and the blonde found no fault in her reasoning because she had a point. Those demonic duo, without a doubt, had the ability to turn this beautiful sanctuary into a raving mosh pit. It's better to keep this secret hideout within themselves.
 "Wait. How do you even know what a frat house means?" Seungwan asked the Prefect. As far as she was concerned, her friend was definitely a Pureblood and there was little reason for her to indulge in anything muggle related. Why would the Slytherin concern herself with such terms?
 Joohyun simply rolled her eyes in response. "Really? That's the thing you're most concerned about?" There was a subtle teasing smirk visible on her lips. She looked pretty amused and the blonde figured that she must be in a playful mood. "You need to set your priorities straight Seungwan-ah."
 There was something unique about the way Joohyun called her. Sure, she uttered the name Seungwan-ah countless of times, usually out of fondness more than anything else, but now it sounded different. It was stated with ardent admiration like how one usually does when talking to a loved one. But maybe it was just her imagination. Joohyun was just naturally affectionate like that. There's no need to put more context into that innocent gesture.
 "I agree." The creepy smile that slowly crept on Seulgi's face sent warning signals towards the Ravenclaw. She had the sneaking suspicion that her friend was planning something stupid, something catastrophic that would doom them all. "Which is why a little duelling match will be conducted between you and Joohyun so that both of us can properly gauge your abilities in martial magic."
 See? What did I tell you? Seulgi was definitely cooking some tricks up her sleeves!
 "What? That's not fair! We all know that Joohyun's an expert in martial magic. Why do you think she excels in Defense Against the Dark Arts?" Seungwan started to protest but a hand gently rested on her shoulder. She shifted to see that it was the Prefect who was smiling at her in reassurance. Something stirred within her heart at the sight of that breathtaking smile. The Ravenclaw wondered why she was so mesmerized by it.
 "Don't worry Seungwan-ah." In a flash of light, gone was the reassuring smile on her lips as it was replaced by a teasing smirk. Her eyes flashed dangerously and the aura she exuded changed. Joohyun looked powerful and confident. Definitely not the person you should mess with. Oh god! Her competitive side has awakened. "I'll go easy on you."
 "No time for complaints now Wan. Get in position." The Hufflepuff barked an order and the Ravenclaw begrudgingly took the direction opposite from the Slytherin. Seungwan squared her shoulders and took out her wand. She practiced some flicking motions with her wrists before she adjusted her stance until her weight were equally supported by her feet.
 Joohyun mainly took a step back and stood sideways. She maintained an elegant posture, eyes focused and chin held high, and she consciously protected the areas of her body that were exposed for attack. It looked like she knew what she was doing, as if duelling was a hobby she frequently engages in. That was Seungwan knew that she was in for a great fight. Joohyun will surely give her ass a serious whooping. Seulgi shouted the signal and the Ravenclaw was the first to attack.
 "Expelliarmus!"
 Red sparks erupted from the tip of her wand and sailed towards Joohyun. The Prefect merely smiled, as if she was expecting that kind of attack, and casually deflected the spell by dodging sideways. Seungwan was caught off guard. How in the heck did Joohyun do that so fast? The blonde was pretty sure she had a quick reaction time too and casted the Disarming spell in a heartbeat. There was no way anyone could've avoided that. Joohyun was something else.
 Seungwan was too busy marvelling at the display of battle prowess that she failed to notice the silent incantation uttered by Joohyun. "Stupefy!" She felt the sensation of weightlessness as she was thrown across the room when the spell made its impact. The air was knocked out of her lungs and searing pain blossomed on her chest when she landed on the floor with a hard thud. Her eyes landed on the ceiling and she spotted white spots dancing around her field of vision. Wow! Joohyun was relentless.
 She literally took Seungwan's breath away.
 ***
 Later that night, when they've covered every topic in Defense Against the Dark Arts and Charms and their heads were literally drilled with various spells, Seulgi went to the kitchens to smuggle some food while Joohyun and Seungwan remained in the Room of Requirement, both taking a breather after their endless duelling.
 It was such an exhausting day and Seungwan realized that Joohyun could be pretty ruthless when it comes to martial magic. The Slytherin even knew some spells not commonly known to wizardkind. Maybe her impressive magical prowess had to do with the fact that she came from a prestigious Pureblood family and she was provided with adequate resources to practice complex spells. Either way, Seungwan was impressed. Joohyun didn't seem like the delicate flower she originally thought. She could be pretty dangerous when she wants to.
 "Merlin's beard Joohyun! I've lost count of the times I lost to you." Seungwan rubbed her sore shoulders as she approached the Slytherin who was casually chilling on the floor, looking absolutely smug with her numerous victories. She lay on the ground exhausted like a useless sack of potatoes and naturally rested her head on Joohyun's lap. A small pout settled on her lips as she regarded her friend. "I've probably broken way too many bones duelling you than I ever did with Quidditch."
 "You did great though. You're quite adept at wordless magic." The Prefect donned an smile as she affectionately ran her fingers through Seungwan's smooth blonde tresses. The Ravenclaw sighed contentedly and leaned closer to her touch.
 "Damn right I am!" Seungwan had an arrogant smirk on her lips and perfectly casted the Patronus Charm without muttering the incantations. A silvery wisp emerged from the tip of her wand before the familiar sight of her magnificent Nightingale patronus flew around the room and left threads of argentine traces in its wake. It briefly landed on Joohyun's shoulder and tenderly nudged her cheek before taking flight once again.
 The Slytherin fondly stared at the spirit guardian and light-heartedly commented. "It's good to know that birdy is here to join us." She giggled in amusement when she noticed the frown on her friend's face as the girl seemingly took offense at her joke. Joohyun would never tell but she truly cherishes times like these, holding Seungwan close and talking about the universe as the world fades into oblivion. She'd give anything just to make this moment last a little longer.
 "Birdy seems a little lonely. She needs a companion. Why don't you try casting the charm?" The Ravenclaw grinned cheekily at the smug Slytherin, who merely declined her challenge. She scoffed and rolled her eyes in mockery. "Yeah, that's what I thought."
 "I just don't want to set myself up for disappointment." Was Joohyun's excuse. The Patronus Charm was a ridiculously advanced magic, something she could only hope to accomplish in the future. It was quite amazing for Seungwan to become adept with a difficult charm at such a young age. She was just impressive like that. Gifted in more ways than one.
 "Just admit that you can't cast the spell."
 "You're right. I don't know how."
 Both of them lapsed into a comfortable silence with Joohyun casually twirling the strands of blonde locks with her fingers and Seungwan sighing contentedly under her caresses. A few moments passed before the Ravenclaw broke the silence with a whisper. "It is said that Patronus forms are subject to change if the caster undergoes an emotional upheaval of some sort, like falling in eternal and unchanging love." The blonde closed her eyes and sunk deep into her thoughts. She had forgotten everything long ago. Only the memories of Joohyun's touch remains. "Can you imagine a love so pure and everlasting that it changes you?"
 The Slytherin froze in her seat. The question sounded innocent enough but she knew that there was a deeper context to it. Yes, she could imagine that kind of love. It came in a form of radiant smiles and warm hugs. It came in a form of enchanting laughter and mesmerizing eyes. It came in a form of lingering touches and silky golden hair.
 Love came in a form of Seungwan.
 "No." The lie easily escaped from her lips but when Joohyun gazed at the sight of a lovely girl resting contentedly on her lap, she knew that she stopped fighting the inevitable long ago. In the end, there was no escape. She could only accept the mysterious works of fate. For the universe may burn to ashes and the world reduced to oblivion but there's no place she'd rather be than here.
 Right beside her.
 "You'll come to the tournament right? You'll come and watch me compete?" There was a hint of desperation in the Ravenclaw's tone. Seungwan rarely resorted to begging not unless it was necessary. She must truly want Joohyun to be present that day. "You won't ditch me for your beloved potions?"
 "Of course." The Slytherin readily agreed for how could she deny such a simple request from Seungwan. Joohyun could give her the world if she wanted to. She ran her fingers through those blonde locks for one last time before uttering a vow and secretly swore to herself. "I will be there whenever you need me."
 Always.
 ***
 "Bets taken! Bets taken here!"
 Yerim shouted on the top of her lungs and waved the tickets high in the air as she moved through the throngs of people aiming to take the front row seats to get a better view of the action. "Step up folks! Who fancies a flutter on today's bloodbath?" A couple from Slytherin were locked in a passionate embrace as they snogged publicly and completely blocked the way. Yerim cursed under her breath because seriously, why is it always her who always stumbles upon this awkward situation? Horny teenagers practically existed everywhere! It's an insult to those who remain single.
 "Smart money's on Bogum to survive! Place your bets!" The Gryffindor literally shoved the couple away and proceeded to advertise the betting pool to a few eager customers. Pulling open the small trunk she was carrying, she tucked the money inside before handing over some gambling tickets to three Slytherins. "Ten-to-one for Rosé. There you go! Don't forget to support our Hogwarts champion Seungwan!" Gambling was an illegal activity of course but the resident Gryffindor didn't care for it was such an exciting day at Hogwarts.
 The first stage of the tournament was about to commence and the selected champions would each battle a dragon in order for them to successfully advance to the next task. No one knew the outcome of the competition and there was a possibility of blood being spilt today. That's why everyone was buzzing with excitement. They were eagerly anticipating for the drama.
 Inside the champions tent where the competitors waited, Seungwan paced restlessly as her mind kept on imagining different scenarios about how her encounter with the dragon would conclude. Ten involved her either dying or getting burnt to ashes. All of which didn't end well. Suddenly, she heard a static ringing echo across the whole venue before the booming voice of Dumbledore announced to the audience.
 "Your attention please. This is a great day for all of us!"
 The atmosphere inside the tent was quite tense. Bogum kept on cracking his knuckles while muttering a few words here and there. His eyes shifting back and forth as if he was anticipating an ambush. On the other hand, Rosé sat primly on her designated cot and stared numbly onto the distance. Amongst the champions, she seemed to be the only one who appeared calm and unbothered but her constant fiddling with the robes was a telltale sign that she was nervous too.
 "Each of the three tasks involves considerable danger. Please keep your seats at all times."
 Seungwan found herself wandering towards the back portion of the tent. For a brief moment, she considered escaping and running the fuck away from here but then she realized that she couldn't do that. Too much was at stake and a lot of people were relying on her. She couldn't afford tainting the reputation of the Ravenclaw house.
 "This will minimize any risks you may be exposed to. I'm sure we wish all our champions the greatest of luck."
 "Pssst!"
 The Ravenclaw noticed a silhouette of a person standing behind the tent flaps. With her curiosity piqued, she moved closer until she could clearly decipher the whispering. "Pssst! Seungwan! Is that you?" Her heart leaped with joy for she'd certainly recognize that voice anywhere. She came just as she promised. She didn't ditch Seungwan for those stupid potions.
 "Yeah. It's me Hyun."
 She heard the Slytherin sigh heavily before speaking. "How are you feeling? Okay?" The blonde didn't deign a reply for she would be lying if she said yes. She was far from okay. Her stomach churned anxiously and her hands trembled in anticipation. It seemed like she was standing on the edge of a cliff and preparing to take the plunge. She wasn't ready for this. Was it too late to back out yet? "The key is to concentrate. After that you just have to..."
 "Battle a dragon?"
 There was a pregnant pause, some palpable tension in the air, before Seungwan was suddenly engulfed in a bone-crushing hug. A mixture of lavenders and fabric conditioner overwhelmed her senses until all she could think about was Joohyun. Her chest tightened as her heart wanted to burst out from its cages. She buried her face on those smooth raven tresses and basked in her warmth. "Oh Joohyun." Holding her like this caused all Seungwan's fears to vanish.
 It's like the magic of the Prefect's touch sparked every cell in her body which calmed her troubled mind and soothing her distraught soul. Suddenly, facing that dragon didn't seem so daunting anymore. There's no need to be afraid. Everything will be okay as long as Joohyun was there for she was the lifeline to anchor Seungwan back to reality.
 There was a flash of bright light and the magic disappeared.
 "Ah! Young love." Seungwan and Joohyun jumped apart when the infamous Rita Skeeter entered the Champions' tent and created quite a fuss. Bogum and Rosé stood in alarm at the unwelcome intrusion and adopted a defensive stance. It seemed like no one was happy to see the Daily Prophet journalist. "How... stirring." Rita arrogantly waltzed inside, as if she wasn't breaching private space, and motioned for her assistant photographer to follow. There was a wicked gleam in her eyes when her gaze landed back and forth between the two. "If anything goes unfortunately today, you two might even make the front page!"
 "You have no business here!" Bogum jumped to their rescue and intervened before everything escalated. While Rita was distracted by the Bulgarian superstar, Seungwan surreptitiously moved in front of Joohyun to shield her friend from unwanted attention. The journalist seemed like she was out to wreck havoc and the Ravenclaw wanted to protect the Slytherin from all of that. "This tent is for champions... and friends."
 His gaze landed on Joohyun and for a moment, Seungwan thought she detected a hint of affection swimming in those brown eyes but it was gone as soon as it appeared. The lighting was probably playing tricks on her mind and maybe it was just her imagination. A menacing sneer settled on her lips before Rita responded. "No matter. We've got what we wanted." In a grand dramatic gesture, she flicked her blonde hair and sashayed her way out of the tent with her lackey obediently following her.
 The Ravenclaw released the breath she'd been holding when that little confrontation ended and turned to check over Joohyun. "Are you okay?" The Slytherin merely nodded in relief and sent her a grateful smile "I'm fine as long as you're here." That simple statement alone caused the rapid beating of her heart to increase its pace until it felt like it would burst. Joohyun had a way with words and Seungwan didn't know why it greatly affected her so.
 The doors open and Dumbledore entered the tent followed by the rest of the school heads. "Good day champions! Gather around please." He gestured for the competitors to take their positions and they all circled around him while Madame Maxime and High Master Karkaroff hovered behind their favored students. The Hogwarts Headmaster unlatched the little pouch attached on his belt and removed the knot. "Such a shame the Head of the Ministry of Magic couldn't join us this fine morning."
 The Slytherin stiffened like a rock at the mention of her mother. This odd behavior seemed unlike her. Seungwan reached out to clasp their hands together and sent Joohyun a reassuring smile. Everything will be okay. The words went unspoken but remained understood nonetheless. Joohyun felt the tension slowly ease away until she could finally breathe again. Yes, everything will be okay because Seungwan was there. The Prefect figured that there was no need to be afraid.
 "Now you've waited, you've wondered and at last the moment has arrived. The moment only three of you can fully appreciate." The Headmaster opened the pouch but noticed an extra head within the room and frowned in confusion. "What are you doing here Miss Bae?"
 "Oh um... Sorry I'll just go." The Slytherin Prefect, to her credit, at least had the decency to look sheepish. "Be careful." She spared Seungwan one last glance and proceeded to exit the tent. Never once did Joohyun look back and it seemed like a she took a part of Seungwan with her.
 The Ravenclaw only stared as she left for she was unable to look away. Shaking away the distractions, she blinked twice before allowing her gaze to study everyone in the room. Rosé was deep in thought while Bogum also watched Joohyun go. There was something glinting in his eyes, some barely repressed longing, and it caused Seungwan to frown in displeasure. She didn't like the way Bogum stared at her friend. Maybe it was just her protectiveness kicking in.
 "Right let's start. Champions, please kindly put your hands inside the bag. Mister Park, if you will..."
 Dumbledore held out the pouch to Bogum and gestured for him to reach down. Smoke billowed out from the container and the Bulgarian superstar winced as soon as he took out a little dragon with golden streaks. The creature shot rounded balls of from its nostrils and singed Bogum's gloved hand. The Headmaster marveled in delight. "The Chinese Fireball! Fantastic!"
 It was Rosé's turn and she picked out a dragon with smooth copper scales with black-ridged markings and short horns on its head. What stood out from the creature's appearance was its sharp fangs that could probably cut through rocks. "The Peruvian Vipertooth, poisonous bunch. Really quite notorious for its craving for humans." Dumbledore shook his head before turning to the Ravenclaw.
 At this point, Seungwan felt dread creep up her spine. Only one dragon remained and if her hunch was correct, she'll be battling the nastiest creature of them all. She reached down and internally winced when her thumb got pricked by something spiky. When she pulled out a small black lizard-like dragon from the pouch, the creature glared at her and barred its fangs as a threat. Of course! Of course she just had to pick this monstrous creature! What rotten luck she has. "The Hungarian Horntail. Ooohh nasty!" Dumbledore whistled appreciately and sympathetically patted the poor Hogwarts champion on the back. Great. Thanks for the moral support professor! You've done a wonderful job in alleviating my anxiety. Seungwan couldn't help but inwardly grumble in sarcasm.
 "These represent very real dragons, each of which has been given a golden egg to protect. Your objective is simple, collect the egg" Dumbledore stared directly into their eyes to emphasize the gravity of the situation. The Ravenclaw nervously swallowed the lump in her throat. She was in for the fight of her life. "This you must do for each egg contains a clue. Without which, you cannot hope to proceed to the next task. Any questions?"
 When he was met with silence, Dumbledore pursed his lips in anticipation. "Very well, good luck champions." Then he addressed Rosé. "Miss Park, at the sound of the canon you may--"
 Whatever he was about to say was drowned by the cannon firing abruptly. Cheers erupted from the stands and the audience practically started chanting Rosé's name. Dumbledore briefly closed his eyes and sighed heavily then gestured towards the exit. The Beauxbatons girl paused for a moment to take a deep breath before raising her head up high and strutting out of tent confidently.
 Seungwan watched her go and the pit in her stomach seemed to grow as more time passed. Right. She gave herself a little pep talk. There's only one goal. You only need to collect the egg. In order for that to happen, she has to sneak around, avoid confrontation with the Horntail, and steal the egg. Alright, she could do that.
 How hard could it be?
 ***
 "Stop worrying. Seungwan will be fine."
 Joohyun stopped clenching her figners and turned to address Seulgi, who seemed preoccupied with eating her popcorn as she scanned the arena. For a moment, the dread latched onto her heart seemed to lessen but only just a little. "How'd you know? How could you possibly know that she won't be torn to pieces or get burned to ashes?"
 "We taught her everything we could these past few days and prepared her as best we can. Besides, Seungwan is a clever one. She can handle herself." The Hufflepuff smiled at her friend and squeezed her hand in reassurance. The Slytherin briefly glanced at their intertwined fingers and accepted the comfort her friend offered.
 She could only hope that Seulgi was right. Seungwan wasn't usually mindful with self-preservation and jumped recklessly into chaos whenever the opportunity presented itself. Joohyun lost count of the times she had to patch the wounds the Ravenclaw got from Quidditch. She really wished that Seungwan would remain safe this time and survive this tournament relatively unscathed. Taking a deep steadying breath, the Prefect loosened the tension on her shoulders and steeled her nerves. "You're right. Seungwan will be okay."
 A lot of people came to watch the competition today and the arena was completely packed. Some of the students brought banners to show support for their favored champion.  The Slytherin glanced around and realized that two of her friends were missing. "Where's Yerim and Sooyoung?" She turned to ask the Hufflepuff. Seulgi merely shrugged and munched her popcorn. Where she got the food, Joohyun would never know. Maybe she asked the house elves to cook up some delicacies for her. After all, nobody could resist Seulgi's innocent charm.
 "Yerim's busy making money by creating a betting pool." Sure enough, the Gryffindor flitted along the throngs of people selling tickets and collecting gambling money. Wasn't that supposed to be illegal? Joohyun decided that she didn't wanna know. "As for Sooyoung..." The Hufflepuff pointed at the opposite side of the arena right where the Beauxbatons folks were situated. A lone Slytherin stood in a sea of blue, holding a placard that said Rosé sucks! Down with the bloody Blondie! "She's launching a smear campaign against Rosé." Sooyoung adopted a smug smile as she basked in the glares she received from the Beauxbatons students.
 Joohyun pursed her lips in disapproval. That stupid girl will cost them house points and make Slytherin lose the house cup! Sooyoung was hell-bent on creating war between the two schools. The Prefect scowled in frustration as she mumbled under her breath. "Good lord, give me strength not to strangle that idiot."
 "Two of our champions have now faced their dragons and so each of them will proceed to the next task." Dumbledore announced in a booming voice then resumed. "And now our third and final contestant."
 "Oh look! It's starting!" Seulgi excitedly pointed towards the cavern entrance where the Hogwarts champion slowly emerged. Joohyun naturally followed her line of sight and held her breath in tense anticipation. This is it. The battle has begun. She could only hope that today wouldn't end up in a bloodbath.
 Seungwan stood by the mouth of the cave and surveyed the surroundings for presence of threats. The crowd was cheering her name but she couldn't care less for her mind was preoccupied elsewhere. She studied the jagged rocks and almost choked on the foul scent of sulfur that permeated around the arena. Her eyes zeroed on the golden egg sitting atop a huge boulder just a few distances away. Right, no sign of that blasted Horntail and the egg was unguarded. She was good to go!
 The Ravenclaw made a run for it, putting to good use her inherent swiftness and flexibility as a Quidditch seeker, as she moved with featherlight steps that only the crunching sound of pebbles was heard across the arena. Almost there! Seungwan huffed. The egg was within reach.
 A fast blur moved within her peripheral vision and Seungwan was too late to notice the creature advancing upon her. She suddenly felt the sensation of weightlessness as the spiked tail of the dragon hit her path and sent her flying to the air. Argh! She fell to the ground heavily and groaned when searing pain erupted on her shoulder. The rough impact broke her arm and rendered it useless. Now, she was left at a great disadvantage.
 "Joohyun?"
 It took the Slytherin a few moments to tear her eyes away from Seungwan and shift her attention towards Seulgi. The Hufflepuff was grimacing but she still managed a strained smile when she gestured at their intertwined hands. "You're cutting off my blood circulation." Sure enough, she was right. Her fingers looked pale. Joohyun immediately released it and Seulgi visibly sighed in relief. She quickly apologized but her friend merely shrugged it off. "It's okay. I understand."
 Their attention returned to the tournament, more specifically on the injured Ravenclaw who was clutching her broken arm as she stumbled and fell around the arena. The Horntail let out a terrifying roar, which shook the very earth, and blasted a stream of fire towards the Hogwarts champion. Seungwan was forced to retreat behind a large boulder. The spectators leaned closer in tense anticipation to get a better view of the action.
 Joohyun clenched her fists so hard that her knuckles turned white. "She's hurt Seul." She pursed her lips at the sight of a wounded Seungwan, with blood dripping profusely from the gash on her forehead and tainting her blonde hair with scarlet liquid. It took all of her willpower not to jump into the arena and gather the Ravenclaw into the safety of her arms.
 "She will find a way Joohyun." Seulgi patted her back in reassurance and the Slytherin Prefect couldn't take it anymore. Her mind formulated a plan and she could only hope it would help the blonde. She cupped her hands over her mouth and shouted on the top of her lungs.
 "Your wand Seungwan! Your wand!"
 Seungwan felt the intense heat on the rock's surface and realized with growing dread that the dragon's flames were slowly melting the stone with its extremely high temperature. Under normal circumstances, she'd be impressed upon knowing this discovery but right now, she was busy trying not to die. Crouching down the small gap on the ground, she took out her wand and summoned her broom. "Accio Comet!" She didn't know if the spell worked but she'll worry about that later.
 Steeling her nerves, Seungwan took off from her hiding place and scrambled around the rocky path. "Depulso!" She casted the blasting charm midair and it hit the dragon square in the chest but it only managed to anger the beast. The Horntail flapped its wings and launched another stream of fire. She was unable to avoid the attack in time and ended up having her robes scorched. Seungwan crouched behind another boulder and smothered out the fire on her clothes. Glancing at the sky, her heart leapt in joy when she saw her broom already soaring towards her. Yes! There was hope! She could still survive this tournament!
 Wiping the blood and grime that obscures her vision, Seungwan took a deep breath and closed her eyes. She planned on jumping into her broom and using her flying skills to her advantage. Timing was crucial for success and she couldn't afford to fail for her life was on the line.
 Three
 The dragon emitted a mighty roar and its vibration could be felt all over the arena.
 Two
 The audience lapsed into a worried silence when they realized that the tournament that was slowly turning into a bloodbath. Would the Hogwarts champion survive? Will they be witnessing the very first death on this dangerous task?
 One
 The Ravenclaw opened her eyes and hurled herself to the air with great effort. A scream of joy escaped from her lips when she successfully landed on her broom and expertly maneuvered it pass through the obstacles. Her fingers traced the familiar outlines of the wood and she sighed in relief. Finally! She could fight the dragon on equal terms.
 Be brave Seungwan.
 You can do it!
 The Hungarian Horntail was fiercely protective of her egg and was not easily persuaded to leave the ground despite the Ravenclaw's numerous attempts of provoking it. Writhing and twisting, she regarded Seungwan as though she was an annoying fly that she's longing to swat. The creature kept on furling and unfurling her wings but seemed too afraid to move far from the egg. Her spiky tail thrashed at Seungwan but she is too high to reach. The Horntail finally reared from the ground, spreading her great black leathery wings at last, and Seungwan took her chance.
 She dove towards the golden egg before the beast can react and tucked it safely within her injured arm before flying off from the arena. The dragon roared in defiance and broke free from its iron shackles. Flapping its great leathery wings, the beast burst through the crowd. Its spiky tail completely laid waste on one of the wooden tents as she chased the Ravenclaw.
 Joohyun helplessly stared as Seungwan and the Horntail disappear from the sky. The whole place became deathly quiet as the crowd waited in tension. She didn't know why but she felt an awful sense of foreboding, like something bad was about to happen.
 Suddenly, the memory of her unfortunate experience in Divination class flashed into her mind. How her tea leaves depicted a bird. It dawned on her that the animal was probably referring to Seungwan. Maybe Joohyun was grasping at straws here but she couldn't deny the fact that the two were connected, considering that Seungwan's Patronus was a Nightingale and she came from a house that symbolized a raven. Both of which were obviously birds.
 There was also the grim.
 An omen of death.
 Dread latched onto her heart when she realized the possible implications of her theory. This could mean that Professor Trelawney's predictions were true and Seungwan was in mortal danger. Dear Lord please don't let it be her! Joohyun closed her eyes to calm the raging turmoil of her soul. Seungwan was out there injured and on the brink of death. Joohyun needed to leave. She couldn't just sit around and wait for the tournament to end while her friend was fighting for her life.
 "Where are you going?" Seulgi grabbed her arm and prevented her from escaping. She adopted a stern glare and frowned at her friend in disapproval. It was unlike the Hufflepuff to be this serious. "You can't leave Joohyun! The others will notice." She hissed under her breath and gestured at the people gathered around the arena who were gradually witnessing the Slytherin cause a commotion.
 "Let me go Seul! You don't understand." Joohyun yanked her hand away from Seulgi's vice-like grip but it was useless. The Hufflepuff kept a firm hold. She felt the stares directed upon them but she didn't care. All that matters now was Seungwan. She'd never forgive herself if she was too late. "I need to find her. I need to keep her safe!"
 "Seungwan will be fine! She will find a way!" The Hufflepuff, noticing the unwanted attention they were receiving, smiled apologetically at the spectators before dragging her friend away and leading her to someplace private. They climbed down the wooden stairs and exited the arena. When they reached a grassy field, Seulgi confronted her friend and scolded her for her recklessness. Surely no one would be around to eavesdrop on them.
 "Have you completely lost your mind? You've made quite a scene back there! Whatever happened to keeping it a secret?" Seulgi crossed her arms and demanded an explanation. "What would people say when they see a respectable Slytherin Prefect like you disrupting the tournament and cheating the rules just because she wanted to save some girl? I know Seungwan is our friend but damn Joohyun! You need to keep in mind that she's also the Hogwarts champion."
 "I don't care what they say! Nothing else matters but her!" Joohyun moved to take a step but her path was blocked by Seulgi. A scowl marred her features. She didn't like her friend's interference. "Move away Seul or I wouldn't hesitate to cast a curse on you."
 "No! Not until you explain why you're so hell-bent on chasing after her!" Seulgi didn't move an inch and remained adamant. Joohyun sighed and proceeded to recount everything back from the unfortunate Divination class and how the omens on her tea leaves foretold a warning.
 "Do you understand now Seul? Do you understand why I need to go after her?" Her voice sounded shaky and the tremors in her hand only increased in intensity. If the omen was right, God Joohyun hoped it wasn't, then she was only seconds away from losing Seungwan. A lone tear cascaded down her eyes when she realized just how helpless she was. Seulgi was taken aback. Joohyun never cried in front of her before. She knew that her friend despised showing vulnerable side. "I need to find her for my heart will never know rest if I don't."
 The Hufflepuff took a moment to process the information. Joohyun was right. She was always right. Seulgi was wrong to doubt her in the first place. "Go! I'll cover for you!" She stepped out of the way and ushered her friend to leave. She understood the gravity of the situation and knew that time was their enemy. Joohyun sighed in relief. "Thank you Seul!" With that, she took off and headed towards the direction of the castle.
 She could only hope that she wasn't too late.
 ***
 Seungwan was flying high speed across the great expanse of the Black Lake with the golden egg tucked safely under her injured arm. Her mind was currently devising a plan on how to defeat the dragon once and for all. "Come on idiot brain! Think!" The Hogwarts castle seemed nearer now and the Ravenclaw needed to shake off the tailing beast.
 With a great roar, the dragon shot a trail of fire in her direction, one that she was unable to avoid, and completely scorched her broom which sent her falling down sixty feet from the air. She lost hold of the golden egg as she was careening towards absolute death. The Hungarian Horntail dove after her and sent fiery blasts which thankfully didn't hit her. The blue waters of the lake neared and Seungwan braced herself for the impact
 When she hit the water, it felt like she was bulldozed by a thousand trucks and crushed like a useless bug. All the air has escaped her lungs and she was starting to lose consciousness due to the significant amount of blood loss. The dragon dove on the water and searched the deep for its prey. Upon seeing the Ravenclaw, the beast relentlessly paddled its limbs and swam after her. It seemed like the Horntail was hell-bent on getting its revenge. Seungwan remained helpless as she drowned. Her limbs ached from exertion and her whole body felt numb. Maybe it was time to stop fighting and just succumb to the water's cold embrace.
 This is it.
 She was going to die.
 She was stupid enough to enter this dangerous tournament and now the consequences of her actions came back to haunt her. Her body will be buried in this lake and she will be reduced to oblivion. After all, the abyss lurks and the deep will always claim its victims.
 This is it.
 She was going to die.
 Her name will never be remembered. She will never bring honor to the house of Ravenclaw. She will never prove that Muggles deserved wielding magic too. She will never live to see Yerim's pranks, never successfully teach Sooyoung the Patronus charm, and never be there to support Seulgi when she becomes a famous Quidditch player. She will never be able to thank Joohyun for their friendship and never get to tell her friend that she was the only Pureblood who cared.
 She didn't even get the chance to say goodbye.
 This is it.
 She was going to die.
 Seungwan closed her eyes and allowed the darkness to consume her.
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THE BASICS:
Full Name: ĐĐžĐșŃĐŸŃ ĐŃŃĐŒ aka Viktor Krum
Label:
Nicknames: Krum
Birthday: August
Birth Place: Bulgaria
Gender: Male
Sexual Orientation: Heterosexual
Occupation: Student/Professional Seeker
Alignment:Â Neutral
[[MORE]]
INTERIOR:
Blood status:Â Â Pure Blood
House:Â Durmstrang Wand: 10 1/4â Hornbeam, Dragon Heartstring
Boggart: The maze, more specifically one of the hedges swallowing him
Patronus:Â Shark Pets:Â Â A black owl named Ash
Moral Alignment: chaotic neutral
Tarot Card: the hanged man
Goals / Desires: to make the Ballycastle Bats and to make peace with the surviving triwizard champions
PHYSICAL:
Height: 6â0
Weight: 172 lbs
Eye Color: brown
Hair Color: dark brown
Clothing style:Â a mix between sporty and a more fitted style https://pin.it/ixadixa3vgb6x7
Left handed or Right handed: Left handed
Distinguishing Features: n/a
Tattoos or scars: a Chinese Fireball dragon half sleeve tattoo https://pin.it/dj7ipo75cthyrv
FAMILY:
Parents: Ivan and Anastasia Krum
Siblings: n/a
Children: n/a
FAVORITE:
Book: Quidditch Through the Ages by Kennilworthy Whisp
Movie: Resident Evil
Food: Tikvenik, a Bulgarian dessert stuffed with pumpkin and walnuts
Flower: he doesnât know anything about flowers
Season: winter
Animal: sharks
Memory: being selected as the youngest ever national Bulgarian player
THIS OR THAT:
Cats or Dogs: dogs
Mornings or Nights: nights
War or Love: war, heâd go to war for love
Smoke or Drink: both
coffee or tea? coffee
writing or reading? reading
THOUGHTS:
Death Eater coming back: he will be ready to fight them if they try to harm him or someone he cares about
Enemies coming back: he will also fight them if they attempt anything
Loved ones coming back: He would be overwhelmed
Love At First Sight: he doesnât believe in it. Maybe attraction at first sight, but love is something that takes time.
One True Love / Someone You Will Always Love: he hopes itâs true but he has no proof one way or the other.
QUESTIONS:
What is their family history like? How does it affect them? How do they feel about their family? How does their family feel about them? The Krums are a long line of well respected quidditch players, there was always pressure for Viktor to succeed and bring honour to the name. At first he detested quidditch because of this, but it soon became his escape. His father was very strict and never really showed outward signs of love or affection. His mother showed more.
who were their first love and do they feel the same now as they did then? Heâs not sure heâs ever been in love. Heâs had several girlfriends but theyâve come and gone. Right now though he canât stop thinking of Zaya
Do they believe a person can redeem themselves from mistakes in the past? It depends on the mistake and how they try to redeem it
What scares them? Being under the imperious curse again, and never being good enough for his father or anyone who cares about him.
How do they feel about death? Have they been significantly affected by it? He feels like death is inevitable, so you may as well make your mark while you can
What is one thing in their past theyâre ashamed of? One thing theyâre proud of? Ashamed of what he did to Cedric (the cruciatus curse) but proud of his quidditch career, and how far he made it in the triwizard tournament.
Pride, envy, gluttony, lust, anger, greed and sloth. If your character was a seven deadly sin, what would they be and why? Probably a combination of Pride and Anger. He is confident, powerful and always presents himself well. But just under the surfaces bubbles a rage where his first instincts in many situations is always to fight.
What is their goal? To do as well as he can in life and if he needs to fight when the time comes he will
Do they believe Voldemort is back ? Of course
PICK THREE:
lyrics that describes your character best
Could I have your attention, please?
It's time to tap into your tragedy
Think you could use a new abuser
Close your eyes and listen carefully
Imagine you're stood on a beach
Water gently lapping at your feet
But now you're sinking, what were you thinking?
That's all the time we have this week
Before the truth will set you free, it'll piss you off
Before you find a place to be, you're gonna lose the plot
Too late to tell you now, one ear and right out the other one
'Cause all you ever do is chant the same old mantra
Bring Me the Horizon
Back off I'll take you on
Headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong
Headstrong we're Headstrong
Back off I'll take you on
Headstrong to take on anyone
I know that you are wrong
This is not where you belong
I can't give everything away
I won't give everything away
Trapt
Dirty laundry is piling in her room
She's got her secrets, yeah I got mine too
I don't care about what you did
Only care about what we do
Dirty laundry
Looks good on you
All Time Low
quotes that your character lives by âPower is powerâ. âHard work beats talent when talent doesnât work hard.â âFight me bro.â
fictional characters that your character can relate to Number 5, the terminator, Johnny Lawrence, Jon Snow
people who have changed your characterâs life immensely His parents, Voldemort, Zaya
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Doubts, Fears and Acceptance
Thanks for the support as always, @breeachuu! As before, i think i got carried away, heehee! I hope you like it!
Summary: Still shaken by the shock of reality Remire Village cause on him, Wolfram canât help but feel completely out of place in FĂłdlan, with the only person he could call friend being the one he was scared of the most. But perhaps with understanding, he might come around and actually get along with everyone...
Commission info HERE and HERE!
______________________________
Wolfram could still feel his hands stinging with how much force he used to grip his weapon.
The tingling sensation that burned the tips of his fingers as he fired magic left and right, under Byleth's command, still brought shivers down his spine. It had been three days since the incident at Remire Village, but it was still too soon.
Everything was still much too soon.
The smell of burned flesh stuck into his clothes like thick mud, refusing to be washed off no matter how many times Wolfram rinsed them. Black death, championed by an armored skull that could only be rightfully called the Reaper, brought destruction to wherever its gaze pierced.
It was only by the intervention of the Heart of Immortals that the Death Knight could be stopped, though it brought Remire Village little consolation -- its inhabitants had already been cursed with either madness or eternal solitude. The results of the inhumane experiments they were victims of would drag them down for as long as they lived, until the beyond of death.
Wolfram's stomach turned, making him unable to lie still. "Urk-" he shot himself up, covering his mouth with both hands. "No good -- if I keep thinking about it, I- I won't..." he sniffled, trying to keep his siblings' words to heart. The agony of taking a life, even if one that had been plagued by madness and anguish, was nothing like he ever thought it would be.
Truthfully, it was as though he had never taken this into consideration in the first place. The reality of war had always been something so distant to him -- something out of the stories his mother, father and siblings used to tell him as he grew up. Stories of how their continent was founded, about the millennia of history his own Mother witnessed; about the cursed future whence his elder siblings came from.
Scary bedtime stories he never truly managed to take it to heart until he had to experience it for himself; and his own experience could barely scratch the surface of the anguish and suffering Cynthia and Meliodas had to go through while they were even younger than Wolfram was at that moment.
Tears welled up the half-manakete's eyes, his shoulders shaking so badly he could barely keep his hands in place. That tiny, dark and lonely room did not help in making the boy shift his line of thought -- if there was no one there with him, he might as well simply break down.
It wasn't as though he could simply ask, either. The first person that came to mind to help him cope with these terrible, terrible feelings would be none other than Dimitri. The kind boy who first accepted Wolfie without question, wanting to simply deepen their bond as well as to help him without asking for anything in return. The selfless prince who took the brunt of his fellow House leaders' distrust simply to defend Wolfram's claims of amnesia. The fastest friend Wolfie had ever made, or so he thought.
'Crush their skulls.'
'Kill them all.'
Shivering, all Wolfram could do was wrap both arms around himself lest he broke apart, there and then.
Even after uttering these dreadful words, Dimitri wasn't seen for quite some time after the battle had been over. In truth, Wolfram hadn't seen the prince ever since then, though he did overhear Dedue and Byleth reporting Dimitri's arrival in the monastery a while later.
Wolfie was just so scared.
Everything in this world terrified him.
Rhea's constant presence; the wild, unstable power tapping against his own whenever he approached the cathedral or the audience chamber.
These horrible enemies they've been up against -- experimenting on people? Rejoicing in watching them slaughter each other? Manipulating them into infighting simply to prove a point? Wolfram's never heard of this!
And now... Dimitri. The boy Wolfram had latched onto like a newborn duckling. As the main reason for his summoning to this world, Wolfram had to stay beside Byleth, it was true. But Dimitri would, more often than not, also be there with them.
Being with one meant staying with the other, as well. They shared a bond that easily surpassed one of student and teacher: they were comrades in arms.
Would Wolfram be able to keep upholding his duty of staying with Byleth if it meant being beside Dimitri? After seeing and... and hearing him like that? He spoke as though he were possessed! And although Wolfie hadn't seen the prince since, he couldn't shake away the feeling that the darkness released that day from Dimitri's heart was only a taste of what was to come.
Could he control his unshakeable fear he felt whenever he remembered the boy he thought of as his first friend?
"This isn't good, my thoughts are spiraling." He huffed, hearing his own voice echo inside the room. Suddenly, a memory of one of his Father's stories made the half-manakete blink in surprise. "Oh, yes! I remember Father always used to tell me about how Mother took a longer time than a human did to process her feelings... and that every time she did so was during a long, uninterrupted flight."
He grabbed onto the locket he always carried with him -- hidden inside were his most prized possessions as well as his dragonstone. "I'm gonna stretch my wings. I'm sure I can clear off this fog... I kinda wanna call Aquilo to come with me, but maybe we'll attract much attention if it's the both of us." He monologued, wanting to share this conversation with someone instead of with himself. Before stepping outside, he checked his bandana just in case -- boy, was he glad he did, for the moment he set his foot out of his room, he almost bumped into Dedue. "W-whoa!"
"Careful." The large young man held Wolfie's shoulders lest he fell from the startle.
"Dedue! Are you only just returning to your room? But it's so late!"
"Yes; I have been tending to His Highness. He refuses to rest, so it is my duty to accompany him until he does so."
Wolfram flinched. "Dimitri..."
Dedue tilted his head to the side. "Is something the matter? Perhaps you should return to rest, Wolfram. As you yourself said, the hour is late."
"Um," Wolfie fidgeted, lowering his gaze. "C-can I talk to you for a bit? I was gonna stretch my wi-eeegss. My legs. I was gonna stretch my legs for a bit, but I actually wanted to talk to someone. Is now okay? I mean, I know it's late and all, but-"
"Breathe." Dedue lifted his chin as he himself took a deep breath, compelling Wolfie to follow. "If you are alright with me, then I do not mind talking, no. We should move away from the dorm, however. I do not wish to wake the Professor or a student up."
"O-of course! Thank you, Dedue. We can just stroll around 'till the greenhouse and then back? I don't wanna take much of your time."
"That is reasonable, yes, though do not concern yourself over my time or the lack of it. We shall talk until you are satisfied."
Wolfram wanted to smile at Dedue's kindness, but his heart was still much too heavy about the subject he wanted to discuss about: Dimitri, of course.
As they walked, the silence stretched on, however. Dedue raised an eyebrow. "Did you not wish to talk?"
Wolfram jumped out of his skin, fighting back the tears. "How- how are you still doing so much for Dimitri after- a-after that day?"
"I am unaware of any specific day you are referring to." Dedue's puzzled tone made Wolfram raise his teary gaze to the tall young man.
"T-that! That day, in Remire! Dimitri said- he did- he was so scary- I was-" he sobbed, quickly lowering his face. "So scared...!"
"His Highness was not different from usual. I seem to have heard a few of the other students voice such complaints, though they puzzle me: He was not different from how he had always been."
"Wh-what? How can you say that? It was like he was a completely different person! He was talking about killing with such a- such a CRUEL way! Dimitri's not like that!"
"His Highness is a kind man who would step in the middle of a volley of lances to save a complete stranger, even though his body was so much smaller than such stranger's." Dedue hardened his chin, turning his gaze to the moon. He looked at it as though it brought him fond yet bitter memories. "He is above most men I have ever met in my lifetime. His kindness knows no bounds. A bright light shines inside of his heart, and, as any light, it casts shadows inside of him, as well. He is plagued by these shadows like any other man fights with the duality within himself. However, unlike the common man, he has many a duty to perform. Many a face to wear. Dimitri is kind at heart, as he is shadowed -- but he does not allow others to approach that wound, and it festers." He looked down at Wolfie, his eyes reflecting the moonlight. "I will stay by his side through anything, no matter if shadowed or bright, for what I know of him is what binds my loyalty to him. If you do not share the same belief, I will not force you to. Neither would His Highness."
Wolfram felt warm tears streaming down his face, itching the corners of his eyes. "Dedue-"
The loyalty he inspired! The caring way only someone who deeply trusts someone else would use... Truly, Dedue was a kind, soothing soul.
"I seem to have spoken too much. You were the one who wanted to talk."
Wolfram shook his head, a smile finally making its way to his lips after Naga knows how long. "Uh-huh. Thanks for saying all of that. It made me feel a bit better."
Dedue smiled fondly. "I simply spoke what I felt on the matter. It is still something you must decide on your own."
"Mhm," Wolfie nodded, drying his face with the back of his hands. "Thanks again, Dedue."
The following morning, Wolfram tiptoed through the grounds towards the training grounds. Although Dedue's words DID make him feel better, he was still too shaken to meet Dimitri head-on. Instead, he decided that he should gather intel -- to hear other people's opinion regarding Dimitri and what were their thoughts about Remire.
Of course, the first one Wolfram found at the training grounds was none other than Felix, who was always willing to hone his skills with the sword.
"You here to train?" The swordsman asked after a few mock thrusts at the training dummy. "The techniques you know are really interesting, so keep me company." He gestured his head to a wooden sword placed right beside the entrance.
"Um, I actually wanted to talk-"
"Talk with the blade in your hands!" Felix jumped, holding nothing back in trying to hit Wolfie.
"W-whoa!" The half-manakete jumped out of the way, quickly taking the sword to protect himself. "If I manage to knock you down, will you answer my questions?"
"Hah!" Felix sneered. "I won't be knocked down by you again, newcomer. I've watched your footwork closely and now you'll need to work twice as hard to even try to bring me down."
Wolfram parried an attack, immediately countering. "Fair enough... Close combat isn't my strong suit anyway." He muttered as he scooted away from Felix's range. "Then I'm just gonna straight up and ask: what do you think of Dimitri?"
Felix's stance stiffened. "You saw who he truly was back there at Remire. He's a boar who only charges ahead without thinking about the destruction around him. It's good that you saw it while you're still new: now you won't carry stupid misconceptions about how he was a completely different person in the past or some nonsense the others keep saying." He breathed out all at once, shaking his head as he stood upright. "Associating with him will only bring you pain."
Wolfram relaxed his fighting stance as well, though his shoulders were still stiff. "But... that's the complete opposite of what Dedue told me-"
"Hah! That guy's too blinded by loyalty or whatever. He's stuck on a person who died four years ago while ignoring the mindless monster that took his place. I won't be fooled by that princely mask he wears: a wild boar will be a vicious animal no matter how much it tries to hide it." He groaned. "I'm done with this, now I don't feel like training anymore." Felix threw his practice sword on the ground, walking at quick steps past Wolfie towards the exit.
"Four years ago... Did something happen?" Wolfram whispered to himself long after Felix was gone, his brain taking everything it had to process everything it had heard. "Light and shadow -- a kind man plagued by duty and darkness..."
The boy felt his shoulders finally sag.
"I gotta go talk to him."
It didn't take much guessing to find out where Dimitri would be. Wolfram simply followed Byleth's presence (even though it was still early for lessons) to find that it led straight to the blonde prince. Before he could call out to them, however, he noticed how crestfallen Dimitri looked and chose to stay quiet instead.
"Professor... I...I'm sorry you saw that side of me in the village. It must have been quite a shock to you and the others." Dimitri's voice was strangled, seeping with regret. "I'm mortified by my behavior. When I saw the chaos and violence there...my mind just went completely dark."
Wolfram gasped, quickly hiding himself. It wasn't good to eavesdrop, but...
Byleth reached out for Dimitri's hand, taking it within both of hers. "I felt the same, though I must admit that you weren't yourself." She said in a warm voice, making the tension seemingly leave the prince's body.
"I always strive to keep my emotions at bay, but... Sometimes the darkness takes hold and...it's impossible to suppress. It just shows you how lacking I am... I have much to learn." He said between shaky breaths, making Wolfram clutch his chest.
It was just as Dedue had said.
Dimitri was fighting a losing battle within himself.
Wolfie's eyes burned with tears as he hit himself mentally for even feeling afraid in the first place. Everyone has their troubles! Everyone has their deep, dark fears and secrets. Dimitri was a single young man with too much on his shoulders and it didn't feel right for Wolfie to ever doubt him like that.
It didn't feel right to listen into their conversation either, but when Wolfram was about to step out to leave, he heard Dimitri gasping loudly, as though plagued by a sudden illness.
"Ugh... Gah... My father...my stepmother... Four years ago, they lost their lives to those flames." The words were shaky, his breathing uneven. Byleth held him by his shoulders, the only support he had lest he fell on his knees. Wolfram slapped both hands over his mouth to muffle his own sobs. "I'll never forget... I still remember their faces. Their screams. The tortured last moments of every person who died that day..." As Dimitri confessed, it got increasingly harder for Wolfram to breathe, his own legs shaking.
Byleth never hesitated to give Dimitri her support. "You don't need to say this if it brings you this much pain; but if you do want to let it out, I'll always be here for you." She said softly, stealing a choked sob from the prince's throat.
Wolfram ran away as fast as he could while still keeping quiet, the urge to bawl his eyes out too much to bear. Once he ran far enough, he allowed the tears to fall, realizing he cried loudly for all who could hear, though his feet never stopped.
Only when he arrived at the stables did he stop, but only so he could throw himself into Aquilo's cot, using his friend and mount's wings as a hiding place for him and his tears.
Needless to say, Wolfram arrived late for that day's classes, though he felt completely refreshed.
He sneaked beside Dimitri, bowing a silent apology to Byleth, who was pointing at a diagram at the blackboard. "What did I miss?" He whispered almost playfully, fighting against a shy yet proud smile.
Chuckling, the prince scooted closer, lowering his head so as to whisper the contents of the class to Wolfram, pointing at his own neatly written notes.
Wolfie breathed with relief, glad that he managed to approach Dimitri so readily. Relaxing his body, he scooted closer until his shoulders touched his friend's. "I think I'm gonna need you to explain this to me later, is that okay?" He said in a low voice.
"Of course, I'll be glad to help." Dimitri smiled readily, no signs of the tears Wolfram had listened in on earlier that morning.
"Thanks," Wolfie turned to his own open notebook, "and sorry." He mumbled more to himself than to his friend, taking it upon himself to stay beside Dimitri for as long as his mission allowed him to.
Apparently, apart from the month's mission -- to investigate an abandoned chapel for missing students -- the Officer's Academy would also hold a ball. It was a tradition, it seemed, to hold these kind of festivities at that time of the year: something about it being the anniversary of the Monastery.
One couldn't neglect their training in favor of partaking in festivities, of course, but the entire atmosphere around the Monastery felt different, whether the students were focused on one matter or the other.
Even more so for Wolfram, who was still struggling to even remember everyone's names and original affiliations. As a student, he had to uphold his first and foremost duty of, well, studying. Yet, as a young man, he couldn't help but look forward to the ball. He wasn't a stranger to such events -- his family had very close ties to the rulers of Ylisse, after all, so they had attended a birthday ball more than a few times during his life -- but precisely because him and his mother weren't used to being around in large crowds, he was a tad antsy about it all.
Take now for an example: he was at the library, trying to uphold his student duty, but his mind was wandering, thinking about this or that decoration he saw being carried around by the servants. He couldn't help but wonder what everything would look like and what kind of people he was going to meet.
The more, the merrier, for sure! Though maybe not all at once so he wouldn't be overwhelmed...
A loud thud startled the boy out of his soul, making Wolfram jump on his seat. A large stack of books seemingly appeared out of nowhere, but that was just Wolfram's mind playing tricks on him: there was a small girl behind the stack, who had dropped them all in front of him and now was hidden behind its massive length.
"Um...?" Wolfie stretched his neck to the side so as to look at Lysithea in the eyes. "Are you alright, there? Those seem to be a lot for you to carry-"
"You can stop with the worrying right there -- I'm not a kid; I can take care of myself and lug my own books around, thank you." She divided the stack into two, then into three, placing them in order of subject. "Besides, the reason I came here was to talk about you, Wolfram."
Blinking, the boy tilted his head to the side. "About me? Oh! Are you gonna help me decipher this exercise? How did you know I was stuck?"
"What? No! I didn't." She frowned, making a sour face. "Though I can help you out, of course; but after I say my piece."
"Oh, okay, I can listen." Wolfie pushed his notebook to the side, resting both elbows ont he table to as to give Lysithea his undivided attention.
The girl narrowed her eyes. "Was your hair always that color? I'm not trying to pry or anything, but I must know about, well, your Crest. Or Crests." She whispered the last word as though it meant something terribly big.
Of course Wolfie knew what Crests were since they've been a constant topic of discussion during classes. But apart from Hanneman being utterly disappointed at finding out Wolfram bore none during his very first week there, the boy considered that topic as good as dead when it concerned himself.
Increasingly confused about the connection Lysithea made with his hair color and Crests -- or lack thereof -- Wolfram frowned so deeply it made the girl gasp.
"If it's too painful, you don't need to answer. I don't know how much you remember or if your lack of memory is actually a result of it, but..."
"Wait, wait; you're saying you think you know the reason for my amnesia?"
"Well, I theorized something, yes, but I can't say anything for sure without talking to you first, can I? So here I am. You could tell me everything or nothing; I'll only pry for a long as you let me. I wouldn't want people to ask me about this kind of stuff, either."
Now he felt plain bad for deceiving everyone like this. There was no amnesia to diagnose! "Oh, um- I guess first I gotta say that I was born like this. I think. I'm pretty sure."
"Huhh..." Lysithea crossed her arms, leaning her back on the chair.
"And that I also don't have any Crest. Or Crests." He said in his usual tone, which made the girl jump on her seat to shove her index in front of his lips.
"Shush! Don't say that so loud!"
"Uh? Crests?"
"Ugh, yes. Anyway, what do you mean you don't have a Crest? You can't possibly-"
"You can ask Professor Hanneman about it? He practically dragged me to take the Crest test almost as soon as I arrived."
"And it came back negative?" She threw herself over the chair again, her frown deep. She messed with a tuft of her white hair, comparing it with Wolfram's. "It can't be... But even Edelgard..." She mumbled, surely not for Wolfram to hear, though he heard it anyway due to his sensitive ears.
"We cannn go check right now if you want." He said tentatively with a hint of doubt. "We're close to Professor Hanneman's office anyway-"
"No, I- well, that's tempting- but... no, I'm sorry about all of this. I'm just going to focus on my books for now, okay? Show me the thing you had trouble with earlier so I can explain it to you now."
"O-okay..." Confused but now about to try to understand, Wolfram counted his blessings, considering he wouldn't need to lie more to cover for his failure at appearing amnesic.
As the day of the ball approached, so did the Blue Lions' collective interest in their representative for the White Heron's Cup: Dorothea. Since she was originally from another House, her appointment to represent the Blue Lions brought a little discord amongst the students, though the judges didn't seem to mind it: Dorothea was a Blue Lions student at that moment, so that was what mattered.
More and more students could be seen practicing their dancing steps throughout the academy as opposed to combat training.
Of course, combat was never neglected, but the rapid growth of dancing youths taping their toes all around the monastery was staggering.
One particular evening, after the lecture was over, some students gathered around to talk. Mostly the ones originally from the Blue Lions, though Raphael, Caspar, Dorothea and Ignatz also mingled with them.
Mercedes, Annette and Dorothea huddled beside Ingrid, allowing the girl no escape from their plans of doing a make-over for her on the day of the ball. Raphael and Caspar agreed that the most they were looking forward to would be the yummy food there, exchanging a very heated fist bump to seal that moment.
Ashe and Ignatz fidgeted on their toes. "I'm kinda nervous about it," Ashe confessed. "I don't know about this noble kind of dance -- the only dance I know is the one from the common folk, but I'm sure I can't use that there, can I?"
"I confess I'm not confident on my footwork, either..." Ignatz agreed, adjusting his glasses.
"Oh." Wolfram blinked. "Oh yeah. I don't know anything about ballroom dancing. I'm pretty sure I've never done it before in my life, especially after seeing so many people practicing all over the place."
"Oh, well, I can teach you all how to dance!" Annette puffed her chest cheerfully. "I love dancing!"
"Oh, that would be wonderful-" Wolfram and Ignatz started at the same time, but Caspar intervened.
"But then what about on the day itself? You're not gonna dance with all three of them, are you?" He crossed his arms. Annette let out an exclamation of surprise.
"Well, I don't see how I couldn't change partners..."
"No way; and what're the other two gonna do while you're with one of them? Isn't it better to just invite one already? Here, I'll keep Wolf, you can choose between the other two."
"Huh- weh?" Wolfram looked at them as though watching a sports match, suddenly pointing to his own face. "You're inviting me to the ball?"
"Sure, why not? We gotta get to know each other better anyway since we're classmates, and seeing as neither of us knows how to dance very well -- though my dad tried to have that beaten down on me for a long time -- I'd say we make a great pair, hah!" Caspar threw his head back in laughter, proud of coming to that conclusion by himself.
Surprised and flattered, Wolfie smiled widely. "Okay, we can do that, yeah! Thanks for inviting me, Caspar!" He grinned, receiving another one in return.
"You're welcome! Thanks, too!"
"You can always come to the lessons, too, Caspar..." Annette jabbed, smirking.
"Thanks, but no thanks. I have two left feet and I made peace with that already. But if you think Wolf here isn't a lost cause, you gotta teach him so at least he's the two right feet one! That way we'll match!"
"Huh? But wouldn't having two right feet be as bad as having two left ones?" Raphael scratched his chin in thought.
"Whatever!!" Caspar threw his hands in the air, laughing loudly. His contagious laughter soon set the rest of the group off.
"You know... There's no telling where life will take us after we leave here. If only we could find a way to come together again, just like this..." Dimitri said after the mirth had dissolved into smaller giggles, enjoying the pure warmth being around these friends made him feel.
Dedue smiled, bobbing his head to the sides. "A fine notion, Your Highness. Perhaps five years from now?"
"Five years from now?" Dimitri mused at the idea for a moment before remembering something. "Ah! That's when Garreg Mach Monastery will be holding the millennium festival."
Wolfram had heard about this festival -- it was supposed to be the day Garreg Mach Monastery would complete one thousand years. Surely a party to remember!
Oh, how exciting! And it would be within the time he had agreed to stay, too! Wolfram couldn't help but wonder how his and his classmates' lives would change in these five years...
Well, surely not as much as his own life did the day he stepped into FĂłdlan, right?
Surely!
True to her word, Annette did give Wolfie, Ashe and Ignatz a few pointers regarding ballroom dancing, which made all three of them feel less nervous about the notion of it all. That only added to Wolfram's workload, but that didn't bother him in the slightest -- in fact, it excited him. He did nothing but learn ever since he arrived, so he was looking forward to every new interaction if only to help him grow as a person.
The day of the ball, although the students still wore their uniforms to attend, the atmosphere felt different -- as well as did the girls. They dolled themselves up to shine in the ballroom while most of the boys wore a wide variety of hats, as though they were peacocks trying to attract the right one for them.
Wolfram was amazed at the craziness of some of the hats (one was just 15 hats stacked together in a very shaky tower) so much so that he bumped on his partner before realizing he was there since Wolfie had been looking up instead of down to Caspar's short stature.
"Oh! There you are!" They said in unison, grinning. "Ready to hit the floor?" Caspar took Wolfie's hand, already pulling him to the center without waiting for confirmation.
"W-whoa, wait!" Wolfie tripped on the polished floor, though Caspar's strong grip on him didn't let him fall. "I suddenly forgot everything Annette taught!" He said in a panicked voice.
Caspar threw his head back in laughter. "Then it's my two left feet against yours! Let's see who wins!" He put a strong arm behind Wolfie's lower back, clearly taking the leading stance.
"You're leading? But I'm taller-"
"You're the one who said you don't know nothing! Let's just dance, alright? Here we GOOO!" He yelled atop of his lungs, deafening out the ambient music as he started spinning the both of them around as though they were a pair of whipping tops.
"W-wahhH!" Wolfram yelped before full-blown screaming, dissolving into a loud laughter. They bumped into couples here and there, but ultimately only came to a stop after slamming into a nearby wall.
Which led them into being expelled from the ballroom for the entire duration of the dance in less than ten minutes.
"HAHHH, THAT WAS FUN!" Caspar gurgled a laugh as they were being escorted out, nibbling on a salty treat he had taken on their way out.
"Hahaha!" Wolfie dried one tear from laughing so much, his abdomen hurting. "I can't believe we got kicked out! What're gonna do all evening?"
"Let's just kick around and do something! We can ask Raphael to smuggle some food out of the party for us or something. Ohhh, we can explore the monastery!"
Wolfram already knew most of the Academy by heart since he stretched his wings every other night, making sure to fly really high so no one would spot him. But seeing from the sky was MUCH different than exploring by foot.
"I love exploring! Let's go!" He pulled Caspar by the hand, being eagerly followed.
If his new friend weren't so loud, they would've managed to sneak around most of the monastery unnoticed -- even as Caspar tried to muffle his own laughter he let out a loud pig-like noise, which only set Wolfie off as well.
Needless to say, they were expelled out of the Faculty Office as well as the Goddess Tower in a single night -- Seteth had them 'marked for dead', his own words. Being with Caspar might be a 'bad influence' for Wolfie, but he was too busy having fun to care. He was such an interesting guy to hang out with, Wolfram couldn't wait to spend more time with him!
After the eventful ball -- from Raphael eating contest, Caspar and Wolfie's antics as well as Dorothea's absolute KILLING it at the White Heron Cup -- the Blue Lions House was the talk of the entire week throughout the campus, for better or for worse.
Their expedition to the abandoned chapel was scheduled to happen sometime in the next following days, though that didn't stop Wolfram from surveying it from the sky at night as he had been doing for the past few weeks.
A dreadful presence itched at the corners of his consciousness, making him shiver despite being quite used to the growing cold weather. He saw shadows of people walking in and out of the chapel, but the most worrying part wasn't the people -- it was the large scaled beings whose tails swished in the dark.
They didn't feel like shape shifters, though. Giant lizards? Ah! Perhaps the Demonic Beasts he sometimes heard of during classes? "Oh, no! Those people are in danger!" He gasped midair, quickly turning around to return to the monastery. "Byleth- Professor Bylethâs gotta know about this!" He dived deeply, cutting the air.
Although it was the middle of the night, the alarm of Wolfram's report (he covered the part about him being flying in the middle of the night as an excuse to let his wyvern 'stretch his wings') made most of the Knights of Seiros on duty to step up into positions. Byleth had Wolfie wake Dimitri and Dedue up so they would get the rest of the class, though they would only be deployed once dawn broke, a few hours from then.
That gave them the time they needed to prepare and gear up. Wolfram could feel his hands shaking as he readied his weapons, though he felt much better knowing that the enemy this time around wouldn't be people, but monsters.
Although he could still understand what they said, it was much less difficult to fell a monster than to do the same to a person.
Clutching his locket, Wolfram threw a light prayer to Naga before departing, following the rest of his class from the sky, on Aquilo's back.
With the sunlight, the picture became much clearer once they arrived at the chapel -- the shadows of people he had seen were students being pursued by the demonic beasts.
Once again they had to rescue people from being killed, but this time not by their fellow men, which was a relief. Fighting these beasts was scary, yes, but not as nearly as being under the overwhelming pressure of the Archbishop.
These beasts had nothing on Rhea, whose power could easily topple over their own with the simple lift of her tail, or at least so believed Wolfram. The battle was still hard-fought, however, since they were hardy monsters -- their scales were rough as were their defenses.
But fall they did, one by one.
The students were rescued as quickly as possible -- Byleth made use of Wolfram's wyvern to make him fly throughout the map so as to pick the students up while the rest of the students drew the beasts' attention. A truly splendid work of action from their Professor's part if Wolfram could be so bold.
Yet, something unexpected and unprecedented happened right before Wolfram's eyes as he was about to reach for the last student, a bright redhead girl who had been hiding behind Jeralt for the past minutes.
It happened so fast Wolfram had barely any time to react.
One minute Jeralt was there, patting the girl's head, saying that everything was going to be okay.
On the next one, he was falling on the ground, a dagger stabbed so deeply on his back one couldn't even see the blade anymore.
By the time Wolfram processed what was happening -- death, death again! Death again! -- a crazed scream came from behind as Byleth activated the Sword of the Creator to reach Monica from afar, to no avail.
She simply disappeared into a smokescreen, under the protection of a powerful mage.
Wolfie was so devoid of action it made Aquilo land on the ground so as to stretch his neck backwards to check on him.
What... had just happened?
#fire emblem three houses#fe 3h#dimitri alexandre blaiddyd#byleth#dimitri fire emblem#dedue#my writings#fodlansona#yuki's commissions
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Exchanges and Compromises - Chapter 3
Crime Alley, Seven Years Ago
The instant 13-year-old Jason Todd saw the blood rushing out of the girl that his buddy had just shot, he knew it was wrong. The shopkeeper of the shop they were robbing was doing the right thing, pressing on the wound hard while screaming at the phone with EMTs. Hopefully the girl would make it - so Jason hoped as he chased after his buddy Chris. His 'buddy', air quotes included. Chris had promised that the gun would be empty. Instead it spat out a bullet right to the girl's chest.
They had ran, scared. But Chris was no match for Jason and he caught up easily.Â
"You promised the gun would be empty, Chris! You said it was all about the money!" he growled as he punched Chris, again and again and again. "You lied!"
"Stop it, boy!" an adult voice barked, caught his arms, and bodily lifted him up.
"I'm just...!" he sputtered. "He-- he shot the girl and I'm... I'm... he shouldn't hurt anyone ever again!"
"Yeeeah..." the cop who hoisted Jason away drawled, "...doesn't look like he can hurt anybody now, does he? Dispatch, get me the medic to the alley a few blocks from the shop..." he added, calling into his walkies. "The girl will be okay, kid."
"It's not... he shouldn't..." Jason swallowed around the lump in his throat. "She's someone's daughter..."
"Ain't we all. So how about you come with me, now..." the cop was not threatening. But Jason knew better. Gotham City's cops are not to be friendly with, not especially for people like him. Not especially when he looked like he'd been beaten up on top of having beaten up someone else.
So he dodged the cop and hightailed it out of there, ignoring the yells and skipped left and right and up the fire stairs and into opened windows and door and get out the other side. He was still huffing and puffing, trying to catch his breath, when he realized that he'd made good gains on the cop - obviously too rotund and not designed or trained to do a little jogging.
It had been nearly three months since his mother died and left him alone to fend for himself. Yesterday, he had gone and actually helped someone - a pretty black-haired lady - from attackers. He had bricked one of the stealthier attackers that the lady did not see. She then taught him how to punch in a way that would not hurt his wrists - in case there are no bricks in the future where he would find himself in the same situation.Â
He had not used the punch on Chris, largely because it was rather specific and Jason was rather frantically angry while he was punching Chris. The woman had said that the punch would eliminate evil from within someone. Or was it immortality? Regardless, he was pretty certain that Chris was not immortal - he seemed pretty shocked and in pain from Jason's punches.
He wondered what would happen if he'd punched Chris and it had been the 'evil' in him that got away. What would evil look like, Jason pondered inwardly. Would it look like an ugly monster, or a shiny pretty devil? Or is there no evil and just Chris himself? Would Jason have killed Chris if the 'evil' turned out to be his soul? What would that make Jason, then - evil, too?
Jason finally slumped down as he leaned on the walls, feeling the immense weight of his remorse. It was his fault. He shouldn't have agreed with Chris to rob the convenience store. But he needed money, and convenience stores would always have money. It was supposed to be empty, too, and it was his fault that he didn't check to see if the store was empty or not.
"You have seen the error of your ways, I presume."
He would have jumped in surprise if he had not recognized the voice. The lady again. The black-haired, pretty lady from yesterday who rode a really fancy motorcycle that she had left in an alley - unlocked and didn't even occur to her that someone could haul it away within seconds. It was until Jason saw her fighting a good dozen of people in ninja suits - the comical movie ninja uniforms in all black and head scarves and all;Â not actual stealth suits like the history books would describe - that he realized that this lady was not concerned for her bike. She probably could beat up whoever-stupid-enough-to-take-the-bike to pulp.
Much worse than what Jason did to Chris.Â
"The girl... she shouldn't have gotten shot. Chris was just... He just did it for the sake of it..." Jason muttered. A drop of tear fell from his eyes, and he brushed it off brusquely. "I'm not... she didn't even do anything..."
The lady stood in front of him, bending a little to look at his face. She was still quite young - probably about her early 20s. Her eyes were green, Jason noted, looking rather crystalline even in the dim lighting of the alley. "You are pure at heart, boy, but your journey cannot begin here." she said. "Come! Let us clean you up and perhaps get some calories into you. Allow me to lead that good heart toward its righteous place."
A small voice in the back of his head warned him that there are bad people who would take young children like him - boys or girls - and sell them off to be prostitutes.
But then again, what difference would it make for him, anyway? He was already selling himself some. Maybe with this woman as his pimp, he would at least get some form of protection.
He was still worried, even after a week of lavish and luxurious hotel rooms across the Eastern Seaboard, in which the lady - Talia, that was her name - had set him up in while she "tends to business." He was not being sold, yet. Probably was still being groomed to be sold to the highest bidder or whatever.
Either way, Jason tried hard to mind his manners. This lady could be his meal ticket out of hell, --or the embodiment of Charon and would personally deliver him to Hades. Whatever. Things looked nicer than back in Gotham, anyway. There were plenty of books and internet and reading materials for him to spend his time with; and then food and nice clothes that looked simple, yet he knew each piece would have paid his old apartment's rent for a good several months. Plus the travel. Jason knew that he would need something called a 'passport' to get out of the country; but he never seen or know whether he has one or not. The travel used private jets, he and Talia would simply walk through a private airport, get into a private jet, and off they go. Jason only knew where they were because the pilot would call out the name of the airport and country they would land in before actually landing.Â
When they finally arrived at where Talia claimed to be 'home', a small child of about three years of age toddled toward her gleefully just as they went past the massive front door that Jason tried so hard not to gawk on.
"This is my son, Damian," Talia introduced. "You shall teach him the ways of the world out there, yet under no circumstances will you take him in person out of these gates; am I clear?"
After the lavish and luxurious things he had seen in the past two weeks, Jason had come to a conclusion that Talia is a very, very rich woman. Her warning about not leaving the gated complex that is located somewhere in Africa sounded quite logical to Jason. Hell, even if this place is in the middle of Manhattan, Jason knew he still would not want to get out; not especially with a toddler. Not unless they're in a fully armored vehicle with about a dozen of armed guards, maybe. "I get it." he replied. "Where shall I start?"
Talia nodded. "First, we dine. And then you may rest for the remainder of the day. Tomorrow morning, you shall start your training. I would also prefer my son's caretaker to be adept, not just smart."
"Sounds good to me." Jason remarked. "Thank you, for everything. I mean... for trusting me and all..." he added, feeling a little embarrassed at his lack of manners.
Talia's glare at him seemed a little sad. "Once upon a time, Jason Todd, I had wished for someone to be the ultimate warrior; the strongest of them all... My Champion. Alas, he was not to be. And then you walked in to my life." she said. "You shall be the strongest of them all, and teach my son to be strong at all cost, yes?"
"Definitely." Jason nodded, looking at little Damian - black haired and green-eyed, just like his mother. "We're gonna be good buddies, aren't we, Damian?" he asked the little boy. Damian lifted an eyebrow in a near perfect imitation of Talia's haughty glare, changed the glare's direction toward his mother, and back at Jason.
"You shall be more than buddies, Jason," Talia gave him a wry smile. "For now, let us dine. Father might join us later for supper.â
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Pop Music and Feminism: How Pop Celebrities except Taylor Swift and Beyoncé use their platforms to fight against social justice
Over the past years, there has been a growing norm of sexual assault and harassment towards women within the music industry or from other mainstream media. Such cases of women harassment have led to the development of various organizations, both locally and internationally, to root for women empowerment within societies. Consequently, female artists within the music industry have stood up against multiple cases of abuse and harassment directed towards them and their counterparts. They have been standing up against the vices through the music songs that they are writing and singing or through making use of the societal positions they are holding to influence others towards standing against the vices. Taylor Swift and BeyoncĂ© are two of the most well-known musicians when it comes to Pop culture and Feminism areas. However, there are a large number of other female artists who are using their voices to do the same thing â inspire and empower young girls all around the world.
Musicians like Janelle MonĂĄe, Halsey, Grimes, FKA Twigs and Kacey Musgraves have been in the frontline in this battle in multiple ways; they have promoted feminism and girl power within the music industry through their songs and various initiatives they have championed. They have also been using lyrics and their person to encourage equality and discourse within society. They have been writing songs that are aimed at allowing women to express their anger and dissatisfaction confidently, show their pride as women and well as advocate for their freedom within the society.
Grimes
As one of my personal favorite artists of all time, Grimes's uniqueness and boldness really help her to get a place in the music industry nowadays. Her album sales or singles sales are not really pleasant, but she is considered one of the critics' favorites, especially when she released her album "Visions". The story behind the album "Visions" was described as completely dark. Two of her best friends died and she experienced an unforgettably horrible sexual harassment that made her scared of men for a while, which also created one of the greatest song of all-time "Oblivion". The message of this song is extremely important for the women nowadays because it talks about something that most women have been through. Pitchfork named this song as the second best song of the decade, which is also the best song of the decade as a female leading song. NME ranked this song number 229 of 500 Greatest Songs of all time. What makes this song so special is the message and her expressions. It is absolutely amazing to see Grimes's whole process of getting through her terrible nightmare in this song. She started this song by expressing her fear of men. "Cause someone could break your neck, coming up behind you always coming and you'd never have a clue." ("Oblivion" Grimes 2012).
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That was not the only time Grimes decided to do something for women. Back in 2013, when she officially finished her Grimes World Tour, she spoke up against Sexism publicly. âIâm tired of men who arenât professional or even accomplished musicians continually offering to âhelp me outâ (without being asked), as if I did this by accident and Iâm gonna flounder without them, or as if the fact that Iâm a woman makes me incapable of using technology. I have never seen this kind of thing happen to any of my male peersâ (Grimes, 2013). While she was defending herself, Grimes actually pointed out an very horribly interesting situation for women in the music industry. She is a singer, as well as a producer, director and song writer, which is considered exceptional talented. Nonetheless, she claimed that men who are not even good at producing music would âoffer helpâ without even asking Grimesâs opinions. This is not the first time that a celebrity talked about women in the music industry are underrated and are seen as âtoysâ being controlled over by men. Not all of them are brave enough to speak about it because may ruin their careers. Take Kesha as an example, she and Dr.Luke, a considered professional producer, had gone through a lot in the court. Kesha claimed that Dr.Luck had sexually offended during her early years of her career (which is the era of her albums âAnimalâ and the EP âCannibalâ). It took her years to confront to this and unfortunately Kesha did not get a glorious victory. Taylor Swift is dealing some similar problems recently with the 2 owners of her previous record company Big Machine Records. Female artists in the music industry have to work harder than male artists to get a place, and will still be underrated by them. Grimes may not influence or change the situation, but is definitely a great try and provided references for women who are planning to step into this music business industry.
Grimes is always bravely outspoken, and this is why I always believe she should have a higher place in the music industry for her to be able to make a real difference with her powerful thoughts and her fearless heart.
Janelle MonĂĄe
During an interview, Janelle MonĂĄe stated that she wrote the song in response to the threats that were directed towards her rights as âa woman, as a black woman, and as a sexually liberated woman.â During the interview, she mentions various lines within the particular song such as âBlack girl magic, yâall canât stand it, yâall canât ban itâŠâ she proceeds to quote the next line which states that âwe gave you life, we gave you birth, we gave you God, we gave you earth.â Such lines are seen to be motivating women by reminding them of their worth in the society as well as how prominent their existence is to the community (Dworsky, 34). As a result, she is seen to be advocating for womenâs empowerment and respect for women within society. Through her song âDjango Jane,â Janelle MonĂĄe is seen in the video to be tackling interdisciplinary concepts of feminism that are embodying feminism, racism, and sexuality. In this track, Janelle MonĂĄe talks about the power of a woman in conjunction with her accomplishments. The truck is promoting feminism and girl power by giving the women in the society strength, courage, power, and ability to stand against the vices that are channeled towards them.
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Janelle MonĂĄe, in another song, features another female âGrimesâ in the producing another song titled âPynkâ in this song Janelle MonĂĄe is sonically, aesthetically and lyrically articulating a vision of women liberation as well promotion of equality among all races within the society. Within the song, Janelle MonĂĄe creates an environment where cis men are seen to be developing jealousy for not being established women. This she does by empowering women through the song by singing that, âcause boy, itâs cool if you got glue, we got the pynk.â All through the music video, Janelle MonĂĄe is also seen to be paying homage to feminism being distancing women from boys as she gives various incidences where the two populations have different abilities (Dworsky, 34).
She as well motivates and encourages women by telling them that their abilities are way more superior to those possessed by men. She encourages women to live the best life they have always desired and also to ensure that no one comes between them and their happiness. Janelle MonĂĄe as well takes to various social media platforms where she engages her followers on various issues that touch on equality and discrimination of the minority groups within the society. This is also an indication of various ways in which Janelle MonĂĄe is promoting feminism and girl power within the music industry.
Moreover, Janelle MonĂĄe featuring Erykah Badu recorded a song named QUEEN, in the song she is seen to be promoting women empowerment in various activities and ways. An interview, Janelle MonĂĄe stated that the song was meant to encourage and motivate anybody who is suffering or had suffered marginalization, inclusive of the oppressed women of the society. She uses the song to provide hope to the marginalized group within societies that they are not limited to specific achievements. Still, instead, they as well bear the ability and capability to realize their goals for life. According to Janelle MonĂĄe, through the video for the song, the major marginalized group highlighted in the video are women. Therefore the song QUEEN is seen as a tool for advocating for and promotion of feminism within the music industry and the society at large. This is evident from the lyric of the song that states, âthey call us dirty cause we break all their rules down, and we just come to act a fool, is that all right? (girl thatâs all right).â Thus the lyrics for this song are, in particular, advocating and supporting feminism and girl power within the society and by far the music industry.
Halsey
Halseyâs accomplishments in the music industry is unquestionable. Although she may not be a huge superstar like Taylor Swift or BeyoncĂ©, her contributions in womenâs rights are remarkably incredible. She has been actively engaged in a large number of activities that are about fighting for equal rights, as well as actively expressing her opinions on multiple social media like Twitter and Instagram. She is gradually taking over the name of âNew Feminist Iconâ in the past few years.
Last year, one of the most fascinating moments in the 2018 Womenâs March was when Halsey delivered an incredibly stunning and empowering speech called âA Story Like Mineâ. In the poem, Halsey tells about her best friend Samâs raped experience and how horrible it was dating back at adolescence, she also tells about her personal stories with guys that she used to be in relationships with. Unfortunately, these stories were not really pleasantly developed. In the last part of the speech, Halsey started to raise up awareness and started to express what was on her mind. With honesty, bravery, anger and power, she marked herself as a phenomenal real girl warrior. She had provided so many inspirations in the speech. The day after she gave that speech in New York City, she went trending on Twitter, as well as the hashtag #WomensMarch2018. She also put her attitude and her thoughts into her music. When she wants to fight for LGBT rights, she released "Strangers" featuring Lauren Jauregui, a girl she asked to collaborate with because she was part of the LGBT community, and she rejected Katy Perry because she is not one of the community. She also released a single this year, which is called "Nightmare". It is an very aggressive and somehow powerful anthem. Some people may criticize this song because of the genre makes it sound like a violently abreact and the lyrics are too angry. This was actually her intention. She made several pop songs and those so-called âradio-friendlyâ singles which she proved that she has the ability to please the general public audience. However, she chose to release a punk rock single, which is unlikely to be played by a large number of radio stations. The track "Nightmare" is a great to show her attitude, and a great way to fight against those who are being toxic to women. Therefore she made this track sound aggressively dangerous, including straightforward lines like ""Come on, little lady, give us a smile", No, I ain't got nothin' to smile about", as well as "I've been polite, but won't be caught dead, Lettin' a man tell me what I should do in my bed". ("Nightmare" by Halsey)
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Halsey is still rising up, and I believe more and more women and girls will be empowered by all of her movements that she dedicated to.
FKA Twigs
FKA Twigs, as well through her song Papi Pacify is also seen to be advocating for and promoting feminism within the music industry and by extension, the society at large. She expresses the power of female beauty and how important, beautiful women re to society; she mentions that all women are beautifully beautiful in their distinct ways. FKA Twigs also stresses sexuality in her song, where she advocates for the respect that the women sexuality deserves from their male counterparts. The video of the song contains various scenes where she is physically abused by a man when performing her song; she is seen not to be dwindled by the harassment and abuse directed to her by the man. Instead, she pushes forward into finishing her performance (Derbas, 188). The scene ends by showing how FKA Twigs got physically overpowered by the man, and this particular scene is seen to be promoting feminism by portraying the picture that men physically abuse women. They get overwhelmed despite their efforts of resistance, and this is because men are physically advantaged compared to women. Therefore, FKA Twigs wrote the song intending to encourage and motivate women not quickly to give in to the demands of their oppressors, but instead, they should stand against such persons for they as well have rights that should be respected. This move is seen to be promoting girl power and feminism within the music industry and the general society.
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FKA Twigs also champions for girl power and feminism in her track named Figure 8, where she is seen to be advocating for equality in the society through respect of rights of women and other oppressed populations of the society. Having been subjected to various acts of racial abuse and oppression of her sexuality, she states in the lyrics that âlet me live, through you vice, mass appeal, I feel in ten breaths itâs a miracle if we are still alive.â She goes ahead and says that âyou can control me, but only when I tell you to.â FKA Twigs uses this song to encourage women and the oppressed in the society that they are in charge of various happenings that go on in their lives, and they can control whatever injustice that is done to them (Derbas, 190). Another incident where FKA Twigs is seen to be promoting feminism and girl power is through her song called âIâm Your Dollâ. The video of the song has an incident where FKA Twigs is using a doll to represent the beautification of women; this is meant to pass to the women that they bear the responsibility of shaping their beauty to whatever standard perfectly suits them. The involvement of the female doll in her video was meant to bringing the picture that taking away the autonomy of women against their consent is a way of violating the rights of women.
Lastly, FKA Twigs uses her song named âIn Timeâ to address various people who, at one point in time, tried to have a troll on her and other women. In the song, she tells these people that they got a damn god heart for having a troll on her as well as the women population at large. Other than Janelle MonĂĄe and FKA Twigs, there also exist several female artists who are promoting feminism and girl power within the music industry and society at large. An example of such artists as BeyoncĂ©, who though her songs are seen to be passing feminism messages to her listeners across communities.
Kacey Musgraves
Another women in the industry who has a fearlessly outspoken mind is Kacey Musgraves, a beloved country singer who won several Grammy awards and created a number of hits. She is also one of the criticsâ favorites because of her lyrics contain both simplicity and bravery in every song. However, the only difference between Kacey and other women I had mentioned in this research paper is that Kacey is the only one who claimed was not a feminist. âI just write about life. It's not a girl power thing. I guess I am an opinionated woman, so maybe I could be perceived that way, and that's also not a bad thing to be. But [my music's] not intended to be that. It's just about people, really. And me." (Independent Woman, Published Jul 03, 2015 by Stuart Henderson). She declares her statement, but this does not make her lyrics less empowering.
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Kacey is always highly praised by music critics because her rebellious honesty, including Pitchfork, Billboard and Rolling Stone. Honesty seems to be the key to open her heart, and also a key to help open other womenâ minds. One of her most controversial songs is âFollow Your Arrowâ. âIf you save yourself for marriage, you're a bore,If you don't save yourself for marriage, you're a whore-able personâ (âFollow Your Arrowâ), the lyrics are straightforward and genuine, and also easily be resonated. She came from a small village in Texas where women are mostly living their lives within different kinds of stereotypes. Instead of growing up in a big city and having strong and powerful slogans to fight for Girl power, Kacey escaped from her hometown and wrote about her truths. To her, maybe it is just like a dairy, but to the world, to those who had been in the same situation or are right now living in that reality, it really helps them to open their hearts since it resonates so much. âIf you can't lose the weight, then you're just fat, But if you lose too much, then you're on crack, You're damned if you do and you're damned if you don't, So you might as well just do whatever you wantâ (âFollow Your Arrowâ). The song âFollow Your Arrowâ covers more than just one thing. It contains almost all the controversial things people in the country music industry are not dare to talk about. She covers religions (âIf you don't go to church you'll go to hellâ), LGBT rights (âkiss lots of boys, Or kiss lots of girls, If that's something you're intoâ), Womenâs rights, which are mostly equal rights. Somehow she managed to put all these information in one song and releases it to inspire people. It had won several big awards including Song of the Year for Country Music Awards at 2014. Rolling Stone ranked this song number 39 on its list of '100 Greatest Country Songs of All Timeâ. Billboard also listed this song as the second best song of 2013. Those well-known music critics recognized her lyrics and I believe whoever listens to this song will gasp in admiration. What I personally love about this song is that it sounds like an attack, an attack with attitude mixed with aggressive and soft emotions. She is probably the bravest woman in the country music industry of this decade who were not scared of telling the truth.
Conclusion
There are so many more musicians like these brilliant women. Some of them may not be famous, but without a huge fan base does not mean that they are not doing good enough. What makes their power so important is the message they are trying to give, and the community they are trying to influence. I hope the world will have more Taylor Swift and Beyoncé to help women stand out, and the fighting of equal rights will finally comes to an end.
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Creatures of the Night (Part 1)
Roger Taylor x Reader
BoRhap!Roger Taylor x Reader
Fic Summary: You're a videographer, and you get the opportunity of a lifetime as you're invited to direct and film the News of the World documentary. But you don't expect to fall for the photogenic drummer.
Fic Note: I've been thinking about this for a few months, really - ever since I was about to complete my last fic. Now that it's complete, here it is! There's only three parts to it, which I know it's short compared to my last fic, but hey, sometimes there's not as much story to tell. This is a shorter, more intense one. That being said, the chapters are gonna be longer than usual. Hope you enjoy it! I'd love to get some feedback since I haven't really explored this mature, more wild side of the band. And if it's the first time you're stumbling upon my writing, hello and welcome! I have a masterlist in my bio with a huge, long Roger fic called Bed of Roses, and a few requests and challenges - the one for the song Ocean Eyes is a personal favorite. I can't put the link here or Tumblr will make this post disappear - I'm sorry.
Chapter's notes: HELLO EVERYONE im quite proud of this story and i hope you enjoy it as much as i did. its inspired on the documentary so theres a bunch of bits and pieced from there here. not much to say now, so here it goes!!
Words: 4.7k
Warnings: mentions of sex, drug use, cursing
Part 1 - Waxing Moon
The first time you ever saw him, you knew you could never forget his face.
It was the prettiest face you've seen, alright, but that didn't seem to capture it just right - it sounded too childish, too mundane. His face was different - his skin reflected the light beautifully, like marble, little imperfections only adding to the texture, making it more interesting. You wanted to photograph him.
But he was even better being filmed, the way he'd smile when thinking about what to say, the way his messy, bleached hair bounced back the light and burnt the film made him look angelical, a halo around his head - you couldn't wait to see how it looked on the cutting room.
You were a videographer on Tiswas, a dumb gig you've only accepted cause it payed better than your last one, but it was good for your portfolio - Sally James, the host, was unbelievably beautiful, and you had almost no supervision, so you could easily film her in a more cinematic, artistic manner, something you'd never be allowed to do as a cameraman on television news - or cameraperson, as people said uncomfortably when they realized you were a woman operating the camera.
It took awhile for people on TV news to take you seriously - a tiny, young women in oversized clothing and hair pulled back in the middle of old, strong man - but you were their best videographer before you were even hired, getting the job after selling them footage from Woodstock when you were only 19. In the middle of a stoned, drunken haze, you were still cold blooded enough to film the whole festival, almost getting lost from your friends as you tried to get clear audio, doing more artistic work as you filmed during an acid trip. Your parents would kill you if they knew you took your expensive video camera to the festival, but it got you a job.
And what a job. It was you the editor in chief chose to film the signing of the Beatles Agreement, and you followed George Harrison around as he tried to find the room where all the Beatles agreed to end the band that you loved maniacally during your teenage years, trying not to shake as you filmed the reaction on the streets. You wanted to scream along all the desperate girls in their mid-twenties.
But back at Tiswas, the very short interview was cemented in your memory as one of your favorites just because of him. You knew who Roger Taylor was before you've filmed him - you saw his face on the videos for Queen, but you didn't really care for him or the band, really. You almost liked them in their Killer Queen days, just because you loved glam rock, but you felt indifferent to their opera rock - you felt like Bohemian Rhapsody was a bloated mess, and it's success only made the band go on with their overly edited stuff.
But during the lighting test, still makeup-less, a bit shy, having to promote an album alone, probably thinking about flirting with Sally - dazed and confused, photogenic and beautiful - that was the first time you really saw him, no distractions.
So when you got home, a year after the interview, to a voicemail inviting you to direct a documentary for Queen's News of the World Tour, you thought of him, his bright smile permanently marked on your film, even before you thought of the logistics of the job.
A week later, you met the only other crew member that would help you do your job - Josh Barnes, another twenty something videographer that didn't have a portfolio as impressive as yours, but did have a messy curly hair and odd clothing, so he grabbed your attention. You were informed you'd share hotel rooms during the tour.
But Josh wasn't the only one grabbing your attention then, cause that was the day you met the band and the tour crew, and you could swear the band members forgot your name as soon as you told them, Roger only spending a fraction of a second longer looking at you once you were introduced. You wondered if he remembered you.
They set up to perform one of their singles, We Are The Champions, so you can have some footage of them on studio, and you can't help but enjoy the melody, glad it was simple - you could only hope you enjoy the rest of the songs they play on tour, or else it would be a painful gig, since you'll be filming their every rehearsal and every show for the next few months.
You feel like you're being watched by some of the people higher up than you, people that definitely could still fire you on your first day, so you're quick to establish a dynamic with Josh, explaining what you intend to do that day and delegating him tasks.
But once you two go inside the recording booth, where the band is talking and waiting for you to start filming, you realize there's no room for two people to work - one of you would keep appearing on the other's footage. So you tell Josh to stay outside and clear your throat to get the attention of the band.
"Can you take your places? I'm trying to decide how I'm gonna film this", you say, and they exchange glances before getting to their places - you were sure Freddie held a laugh. You knew you were considered bossy, but hell, you always got the job done flawlessly, so be it.
"So Freddie and Roger can't move, since the drum kit and the piano are too heavy to move around quickly", you said, more to yourself them to the rest of the band. "Brian and John, can you lean on these amps?" you ask, and they do as you tell them.
"Sorry for bossing you around already. As a director, that's basically my job. But, if you pay attention, now you're all forming a triangle on the room, so I can fit you all in a well composed shot if I stay behind any of you", you explain, and Roger raises his eyebrow to Freddie, almost asking for confirmation - you heard that Freddie was more of a visual artist as well. He nodded lightly back at the drummer.
So you position yourself behind Freddie's shoulder and start a countdown, so the band understands you're recording. They start playing, and you walk along them - Freddie was looking down as he played the piano, so the lights weren't as flattering, and Brian and John were done with their bits once you focused on them, so you were quick enough to film Roger, basically doing a 360 around him.
You filmed him as you were in front of the drums, and then started to go around them. You wish you had Josh along with you so you could do some closeups - his hands twirling the drumstick on his left hand, the cigarette hanging from his lips, his profile against the black foam covering the walls. But you didn't have another videographer, so you had to do a very conscious effort to stop filming him and go back to Brian and John, now playing their instruments, while you're still dazed by his strong scent - cologne and cigarette smoke, even stronger once you were behind him, his shorter hair on your viewfinder.
You were happy to get his profile later, as they sang the vocals, and a few closeups of his long fingers twirling the sticks in the middle of closeups of John strumming his bass, contre-plongées of Brian on the guitar and shots of Freddie playing the piano against the light.
"She's very decided", you heard Freddie say once you were all outside the recording booth, a small distance between you as you packed. "I like her", Roger said, his voice much raspier than you remembered. "Feels like she knows what she's doing", he completed, and you smiled as you zipped your equipment bag shut.
The other day on studio, you felt like Roger was being funny specifically for your camera - ordering a coffee with one and 3/7 sugars, and saying a song sounded great since his part hasn't been recorded. You watched him tense up as you kneeled down beside him on the mixing desk, turning his face away from you.
It didn't help your work that the whole band was camera shy. John was sweet, and was able to give good answers even in the most improbable interview situations, like the time you interviewed him on a car. Brian was quite honest on his answers, unlike Freddie, usually sarcastic, and Roger, who never really properly answered what you asked. But in every candid shot you tried to get, every spontaneous moment, they shut down, still not used to your presence.
Roger was more open to you and your camera once he was drunk, posing with his bottle of wine with John by his side on studio, giving proper answers to your questions on the album's launch party, a glass of champagne on his hand.
He got used to having you close to him eventually, since one of your favorite angles to shoot was the view from behind his shoulder when Freddie was not on the piano, trying to fit in the small space between Roger and the gong behind him. Roger was tense at first, feeling you mere inches from him, but relaxed as you got used to each other's movements, a choreography where you knew the moments you should go a little further away from him so he could turn to the side and sing, a natural flow developing between the two of you.
Once, during your lunch break, you were talking to Josh when you heard music, so you dropped your sandwich, got your camera and ran to the rehearsal stage in mere seconds, only to find Freddie on the drums and Roger on Brian's guitar, the Red Special, and as soon as Freddie saw you - the camera already on - he almost stopped drumming, but he went on as you and Roger nodded together in encouragement, smiling at each other once Freddie drummed, and you quickly turned your camera to capture Roger's smile again, taking a few seconds to remember you should try to properly compose a shot, moving around to include John on the foreground.
You were happy no one was checking your work but Josh, because it would be embarrassing - you did film Roger more than you should, having as much footage of him as you had of Freddie, the frontman, the one in a gloriously sparkling Paco Rabanne leotard instead of hidden behind the drums.
But Roger was just so goddamn photogenic - his shyness in front of the camera appearing in form of joking around once he realized you were filming, pretending to pick his nose, showing his tongue, taking his robe off dramatically in the dressing room.
It was him on the center of the frame when you filmed without thinking much - in every shot of the band discussing during the rehearsal, or in shots of him and Deacon driving there, or even when you filmed candid moments; it was almost as if you responded unconsciously to his movements, always focusing on him.
You were torn between just thinking that Roger was a good model and actually being attracted to him. You only realized how frustrated he got you once you were already on tour with them, in America.
He sent one of the roadies to tell you that he and Freddie would rehearse Get Down, Make Love. You were in your shared room with Josh, and you'd usually sent him to film this - it wasn't super important, just some extra B-Roll - but he was napping, snoring soundly. Poor guy stayed up later than you, since you gave him the task of organizing the footage and taking care of the equipment. He almost never complained, a sweet boy that always did as you told him, always looking a bit too pretty on his shorts and band shirts, always too respectful to openly flirt with you, but always giving you the space to do so, reminding you he was single in every opportunity he had - nearly boring, but cute, nearby and accessible.
One time you were truly pissed with him - he only caught audio of the band arguing once you were not around to film it, forgetting to take the lens cap off - and he apologized and apologized, never even talking back at you.
So you didn't wake Josh up and went to the venue, across the street from the hotel, to find them already playing.
At first, you got them on wide, but without the lights, it just looked flat. So you started filming closeups.
Roger pouted in concentration in an extreme closeup you did, and you realized your breathing was heavy, right as you watched him lightly rub his lips against the mic groaning "Get down", his face only dimly lit on one side, and you subconsciously pressed your thighs together, kneeling on the side of the drum riser. You took a deep breath and forced yourself to zoom out, your hands a bit shaky as you got up and walked to Freddie, so you could film him and calm down.
But you were so frustrated, you just needed someone to touch you and to be touched as you wanted, needed to touch Roger, but you didn't knew anyone on the cities you were visiting.
That night, you stayed up as Josh organized the footage and the equipment, putting new film into the two cameras with his long fingers - quite similar to Roger's. Once he was done, you decided to take a quick shower, and left the bathroom still wrapped in a towel, the first move you made on him.
That was the first night you fucked Josh out of desire caused by Roger - the first of many.
You couldn't flirt with Roger - he had a gorgeous girlfriend and pretty groupies everywhere you went, so he definitely wouldn't care about you, who never wore any makeup or looked twice in the mirror before going out.
So you enjoyed some careless sex with Josh, and you enjoyed his friendship - you went to the movies together and he asked for advice on his career from you.
You two had agreed on going to a carnival, and he challenged you to climb the ferris wheel before the staff called the cops. It was fun to do these things on tour - you'd never see anyone from any town ever again.
But before that, you needed some footage of Queen's after parties, so Josh followed you around as you tried filming the band having fun, but the only one being more receptive was Roger. Surprisingly, there was no girls around him, but that was probably just him being smart - you could bet he sent home the midwestern girl he was going to fuck as soon as he saw the camera, not wanting to get caught cheating on his girlfriend.
Eventually you had enough footage and called it a day, and told Josh to go organize the footage before you left. "Are you coming with me to the room?" he asked. "No, I'm getting a drink. I didn't enjoy the free booze as much as I should have until now", you said, and he smiled in response before leaving.
"Y/N", you hear a too well-known voice say as you lean on the bar. Roger is walking towards you.
"Roger" you answered, and turned to ask for a drink. But Roger's hand on top of yours distracted you.
"Didn't thought I'd see you in an after party", he said, leaning into the bar as well. You've been this close to him before, but never without your camera between you. You were not used to see him like this, raw, with no viewfinder intermediating the rays of light between your eyes and his, your lips and his. It felt like a step closer to touching.
"What do you mean? I always come", you answer, trying to play it cool, as if you weren't moving your gaze from his eyes to his lips oftenly.
"Yeah, but you're always behind that goddamn camera of yours", he says, and looks at the space behind you, checking to see if you're alone. "And there's always your minion breathing behind your back", he tells you.
"Didn't thought you were watching me", you said, shrugging.
"It just feels fair, considering it's your job to watch me", he says, then looks to the rest of the party. "It's quite voyeuristic, if I may say so", he says, and you laugh.
"Never thought of my job with a sexual undertone before", you lie, tapping your fingers against the bar.
"Really? I actually started to enjoy the feeling of your eyes on me", he smirks, and you feel the blush on your cheeks. Touché.
"Just looking for a nice shot", you answer, looking away from him.
"That's a pity. I guess you're not interested in having a good time with me, then", it's his time to shrug.
"Define 'a good time'", you ask, and he smirks. You quickly think of Josh, waiting for you in your room, but a brief second - and a quick flash of Roger's smile - is all you need to shut the thought off.
"Open your mouth", Roger tells you, and you frown, confused. "Here?", you ask, and he laughs. "Yeah, here", he answers, looking for a small ziplock in his pocket. "Just trust me, alright?", he asks, and you open your mouth lightly.
"Tongue out", he tells you, and you do so. You watch as he picks up a small paper square with his fingertips. "Are you okay with it?", he asks, and you nod a yes.
So Roger's index soon touches the tip of your tongue, leaving the small piece of LSD there to dissolve. He quickly does the same, and calls the barman, ordering Perrier water, which the barman quickly pours in two glasses. Roger passes one of them to you, and raises his glass for a toast.
"A good time", he says, and you repeat it, receiving a quick smile from him before the two of you chug the water down.
It doesn't take very long before you can feel the effects on your body - lights get more intense, and time seemed to slow down a bit. You saw Roger's pupil dilate, and he pulled you to the dance floor.
His touch felt like lighting, electricity gluing your skins together, and he pulled you closer to the sound of Don't Let Me Be Misunderstood, the castanets looping on your brain, Roger's eyes turning completely blue, his hair shining like the sun, blinding you, and you just needed to dance because there was so much energy contained inside of you, and every time you felt him touching your skin, you felt more energy accumulating, and if you didn't dance it out, you would burst into spontaneous combustion.
Yet you needed to feel his skin against yours more and more, and you pulled him closer so could feel him, his smell, his saturated colors, and you ached for his touch, turning around and dancing with your back glued to him, his hand wrapping around your waist to keep you there, close, the loud music bonding you together, melting the two of you against each other, buzzing through the air.
"I fucking hate this song!!" Roger screamed into your ear, but you couldn't stop dancing for a second, so you kept moving, grinding your hips against his.
"Hey, c'mon, let's find my room so I can pick a decent song", Roger managed to say, his breath burning your skin, but you enjoyed the feeling and craved more of it, more of his touch.
"But I can't go somewhere quiet!", you told him, still dancing to the playlist full of shitty hits. "I'll sing to you", he said, and you considered, still dancing, now to Feels Like The First Time.
He started screaming the chorus, and that was good enough for you, so you followed him to the hall. You kept dancing maniacally as he tried to remember his floor, eventually being guided there by one of the crew members, trying to ask where his suite was as he sang high notes to the rhythm of the Foreigner song to keep you satisfied, dancing alone in the hallways.
Once you got to his suite, he turned the radio on, and Immigrant Song has just started. You both started screaming - his voice almost in harmony with Robert's voice coming through the radio - and he jumped into bed, offering you a hand so you could jump along. You did, and you jumped in bed, the water mattress squealing under your weight as you babbling the lyrics, random words coming out of your mouths about ice, snow, midnight suns and Valhalla.
It was followed by Dark Lady, and you kept jumping and screaming on his bed for hours to every song that the radio played, stopping only when you realized you were hoarse, the Stairway to Heaven intro giving you time to recover your breath.
Roger jumped out of bed to get you a bottle of sparkling water on his mini fridge, and you sat down, feeling the effect of the drug passing. He opened the bottle and had a sip before passing it to you. After giving him a weak smile, you drank half of the bottle in only a few seconds. He layed by your side.
You put the bottle down on the ground and lay down with him. His pupils are still big, but smaller than the last time you noticed, so the effect is getting weaker on him too.
That doesn't stop him from lifting his hand, moving it closer to your lips, his warm hand encompassing your cheek, his thumb brushing over your lower lip.
You don't resist the temptation, moving your own hand to his hair, his teased strands tickling your palm before you entangled your fingers on them.
He slowly pulls you closer to him, and you never saw the blue of his eyes in such close proximity.
Cause you were never this close to kissing him before.
And a glimpse of sobriety hits you - you're about to kiss Roger Taylor in the middle of an acid trip.
That's not how you want it to go; it doesn't feel right, now that you really thought about it.
"Roger, this is not right", you say, and he freezes. "It feels right to me", he says, staring deep into your eyes, relaxing, getting closer to you again.
"It's not that I don't want to kiss you, or sleep with you. I do", you blurp out, almost regretting it, scared of rejection even as he's leaning in for a kiss. "So what's not right?", he asks, frowning.
"I don't want to fuck you while we're tripping. It's gonna be fucking terrible", you say, and he laughs. "I mean it, though. I want it to be good. I'd rather not have you than have you like this", you tell him, and he laughs again.
"You're really that decided, aren't you?", he asks, and it's your turn to laugh. "I guess I am", you say.
"Since we're not fucking, or even kissing, can I still touch you? Your arms, your hair. I'm not tripping as hard, but my skin is itching. I need to touch you", he says, and you nod.
So, with Roger's callous fingers brushing against your soft skin and his husky voice humming Led Zeppelin, you fall asleep.
-
The sunlight makes you see red before you even open your eyelids.
You feel cold, the AC too strong for your liking - Josh wouldn't change the temperature, he knew how you liked it.
So you opened your eyes to find yourself on an empty bed, much bigger than yours. The only sound in the room comes from someone brushing their teeth.
Roger Taylor is only in a towel, wrapped low around his hips, leaning into the sink, his signature halo of hair now wet.
You let out a scream.
The memories from last night hit you at the same time he turns around and looks at you, concerned.
"Hey, you alright?", he asks, and you nod, feeling your legs ache from the exercise you had, jumping like mad for hours.
"Yeah, just couldn't remember everything at first", you said, and he looked down at himself. "Oh, don't worry. We didn't do anything. You had some interesting reasoning behind it", he said, and you blushed.
"Roger, I'm so sorry. All this has been so unprofessional, thank God there's not a show today", you say, and he interrupts you. "It's alright, Y/N. There would be nothing for you to do anyway, since I've spent the morning locked here", he said, and you gasped.
"All morning? What time is it?" you ask, and he points to the clock. "Three in the afternoon. Relax, you said it yourself, it's a day off", he shrugged, and went back to the sink.
"Josh is probably concerned with me, doesn't even know where I am", you murmured. "Is he your boyfriend or something?", he asked, and you nodded a no. "So there's no reason for all this. Besides, the whole crew probably saw you with me, so there's a huge chance he knows your whereabouts", Roger completed.
"God, and we didn't even do anything", you say, getting off bed. "I'm sorry for all this, Roger. I'll go to my room", you said, looking for your shoes. "God, I haven't had such an intense trip ever since Woodstock", you said to yourself, and Roger coughed. "Since when?" he asks, and you repeat, looking at him. "Woodstock", you say, proud, and he walks toward you.
"There's no way in hell you're getting out of this room without telling me this story", he said, and you smiled.
You told him about Woodstock, and the Beatles, only stopping so you could take a quick shower on his bathroom, putting on some of his clean clothes. He wanted your company, and you never realized how lonely he could get, never getting to know anyone who had a more interesting life than his.
He ordered room service for the two of you, a weird pizza full of pineapples, and you took it to his balcony, watching the twilight over the Badlands National Park, a breathtaking view you couldn't believe you were getting to experience, just like you couldn't believe you were experiencing listening to Roger Taylor complain about pineapple on his pizza. "I hate the Midwest so much. How can you fuck up pizza with fucking fruit? I expect this in California, not here", he complains, and you laugh at him.
He looks at you, and for a moment you see him as saturated as you saw last night, his blinding hair and deep blue eyes. "I have an idea", he says, putting his plate to the side and going inside the room.
He comes back with a Polaroid in his hands, and you instantly cover your face. "I don't like to be photographed, thanks", you say, but he kneels down in front of you, trying to get to the same level as your eyes.
"C'mon Y/N, it's just fair. You're filming me all the time!!" he complains, and you sigh. "That's my job, Roger".
"Hey, hey, it's fine", he says, moving your hands down and away from your face. "I just want to see you the way you see me", he tells you, positioning the camera so he can watch you through the viewfinder, his free hand moving a strand of your hair behind your ear.
"I just want to see you", he whispers, letting the camera slowly move down as he caresses your cheek with the hand that was on your hair.
He brushes his thumb over your lower lip again, and this time, you lean into him.
And even though you're sober, you could swear you feel the same electricity connecting you as his plump lips move against yours.
---
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@rogers-rhapsody @six-bloodyminutes @x1975sos
#roger taylor x reader#roger taylor#ben hardy x reader#ben hardy#roger taylor smut#roger taylor x you#roger taylor fanfic#roger taylor fluff#ben hardy x you#ben hardy smut#ben hardy fluff#ben hardy fanfic#queen fanfic#bohemian rhapsody fanfic#borhap fanfic#creaturesofthenight#roger taylor imagine#ben hardy imagine#queen imagines#bohemian rhapsody imagine
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Iâll Take It
Request:Â Hi! Can you please do a Harry x Reader imagine where the reader (Ravenclaw) is in love with Harry and often gazes at him from afar but is quite shy so she never really tried to get closer to him. He also have feelings for her but never confessed them, and Ron occasionally teases him about that. Since Harry was chosen for the Triwizard Tournament, she is very scared that something might happen to him and just like everyone, she thought he was killed by the dragon during the first task. (1/2)
I would like the imagine to take place at the Yule Ball with prompts 25, 56, 78, 121. (I hope itâs not too much and sorry for the double ask!) Thank you so much!!! â„â„â„ (2/2)
25. âI thought you were dead.â
56. âYouâre hiding something from me.â
78. âI think Iâm in love with you, and Iâm terrified.â
121. Dancing together
Pairing: Harry x Reader
The morning light shone through the windows from the Transfiguration class, basking the room in a bright, warm color, even though the temperature required scarves and gloves inside as much as out of the castle. Against the will of his eyelids, Harry fought to keep his eyes open. The sleepy daze his bed had cast upon him didn't seem to have the intention of going away, not after the long hours he spent thinking about how to crack the egg, but he couldn't help himself. She looked amazing.
Not that she didn't every day, but today specifically seemed as if everything about her looked good. She wore her school uniform with her Ravenclaw tie, her Y/H/C hair adorned her features and the light from the windows made her skin glow. Nothing different from any other day, and yet, it didn't look the same, it didn't feel the same. He couldn't tell if Y/N had changed or if it was him who did, but in the past few days, he caught himself staring whenever she was in the room. His eyes always wandered back to her without his consent.
"Drooling over Y/N is gonna lead you nowhere, mate." Ron spoke up a little louder than necessary, making a few heads turn in curiosity.
Harry's hand instinctively reached for his mouth, but as fast as he brought it up, he put it down on the table, giving Ron a killer glare. "I'm not drooling." To Harry's dissatisfaction, the smug bastard just grinned and shrugged, letting out a sarcastic sure.
The feeling of being watched stopped him from making a snark remark. He searched the room in pursuit of the one staring and to his surprise, his eyes met Y/N's, who quickly averted her gaze to her desk and let her hair hide her face.
She probably was staring due to Ron's very loud, very unnecessary comment, so he didn't think much into it at the moment; though he would duel on it long past midnight, staring wide-eyed to the canopy of his bed.
+++
The walls were covered with ice, the night sky made its appearance on the ceiling as usual, and the dozens of tables that replaced the everyday long ones for each house made for wonderful decoration; and yet, somehow, the moment the Boy-Who-Lived walked in through the doors of the Great Hall accompanied by one of the Patil twins, - Y/N didn't really know which - he was all she could pay attention to.
Even though his messy mop of black hair wasn't any different than any other day, his efforts to appear well-dressed were in his clothes. They were simple black formal robes, but it looked especially good on him somehow.
Feeling a poke on her arm, she turned her head to David Rogers, one of her fellow Ravenclaw colleagues, with whom she had come to the ball with. They hadn't planned it to be a date, it was more of a backup plan for if none of them had been invited or invited someone, but they were friends despite it all.
"Is something wrong?" He asked worried, they had been sitting for quite some time now and David couldn't help but notice her off behavior.
"No!" Y/N replied shaking her head vehemently. "Nothing wrong at all."
"You're too bad of a liar for your own good." It was his time to shake his head in disappointment. "You're hiding something from me, spit it."
"I'm not hiding anything, what could I possibly have to hide?" She persisted, maybe if she was stubborn enough he would give up.
But that answer only caused an arched brow from his part. "If you're gonna spend the entire night ogling Potter, at least try to be discreet." The phrase seemed like a reprimand, but his tone revealed the tease. "I'm gonna go grab something to drink, and you should go talk to him." As he stood up and disappeared into the crowd, Y/N was sure she wasn't going to see him again that night.
"I'm not ogling anyone." She muttered to herself.
She scanned the room for Harry, thinking that maybe it really was time to take David's advice and do something about it, to find him on the Champions table. He was talking to Krum when she decided to approach him, and when she did, it was as if Harry knew she was coming, for his eyes landed on her as soon as she was close.
"Can I talk to you?" He seemed surprised at that, with wide eyes he nodded and excused himself from the table to follow Y/N outside.
They alongside by the Black Lake, in silence. Harry waiting curiously to what she could possibly want to talk to him about, and her, trying to think about how she was going to tell him what she had mustered the courage to.
"I thought you were dead." Y/N began unsurely, Harry's brows furrowed, but he said nothing, afraid it would make her retreat. "During the first task, I mean."
"I'm sorry?" He tried, not quite certain of what to say. She let out a chuckle.
"I've been bottling this up for so long that now I don't know how to tell you." She stopped so abruptly that Harry had to take a few steps back, now facing her. Looking him in the eyes, she took a deep breath. "The thought of you being gone made me realize that maybe, I didn't just have a silly crush on you."
If it weren't so dark - something to which Harry was very grateful for - she would probably have noticed the flush of red that tainted his ears. He looked down, trying to get himself together and before he could even look up, she continued.
"I think I'm in love with you, and I'm terrified." Her stare was fixed on the lake, she didn't have the courage to look at his face now. "Your life is constantly on the line, but I don't want to feel so helpless as I did when I thought you were gone." She had her arms wrapped around herself, not because of the cold, but to try and protect her from whatever came next.
"Y/N?" He half whispered, making her take a glance at him. He was fidgeting and didn't seem to know what to do, and that brought some kind of relief to Y/N. The way he decided to approach the situation took her by surprise, he enveloped her in what seemed to be a very clumsy and awkward hug, but it managed to melt away her worries. She placed her arms around his waist and his body, that was stiff under her touch, relaxed.
"I think this is a time as good as ever to say that I really really like you." She laughed against the crook of his neck, where she had laid her head, and felt the goosebumps appear on his skin. "I hope that, even though I'm a menace to my own life, you'll take me?"
She smiled and squeezed the hug lightly. "Dance with me." The tune coming from inside the castle could barely be heard from that distance, but they swayed in the rithm anyway.
The end of the song finally came and that was when Y/N brought her lips next to Harry's ear to say a single word that sped up his heartbeat and brought a smile to his face.
"Gladly."
#hp imagine#hp drabble#hp oneshot#harry potter imagine#harry potter drabble#harry potter oneshot#harry imagine#harry drabble#harry oneshot#harry x reader#harry potter x reader#hp#harry potter
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Hi, I hope youâre doing well!! I was just wondering if you read comics? If so could you recommend some/ how to start getting into them? I want to start reading them, but itâs so stressful trying to figure out where to start. Also I love you blog!
Hi there! youâre all manners of sweet and kind thank u my advice abt approaching comics is going for solo runs first, this is how I, personally, did it and itâs way easier than jumping in on team books, or worse events bc they tend to be messier and need more bg info and pre-existing knowledge than a comic that focus on just the one character; I also feel itâs good to start with current or at least recent comics, you can always read the old stuff when youâre better acquainted with how comics work and which characters, artists and writers you like (or can tolerate).
actual recs under the cut because this got so long
i was gonna do a whole list of mcu charactersâ solos because most people entry point to comics rn is superhero movies, and hmu if you want that, but instead I think Iâm gonna rec you some good comics that are either separated enough from main marvel continuity as to be intelligible without extensive info gathering, or I just think theyâre great and worth a bit of confusion (part of starting out reading comics is not knowing fully wth is going on sometimes, but stiking with it for some good art or for characters you love -Iâm not gonna go so far as to say for good writing bc thatâs just not realistic):
if you like yourself some spider-people:- silk (2015) and vol 2 (2016) are my absolute favorites- Iâm not very much into spiderman but I read renew your vows  and itâs lovely, itâs just not a main universe comic itâs an au where things are as, imo, they should be with ye old web slinger, and itâs good for getting your feet wet in the huge pool of spider-man comics;- I love miss jessica drew (spider-woman) but her solo isâŠâŠ. questionable if someone has a good jess drew intro rec pls tell me so I can pass it on, - miles morales has been written badly in more ways than one but I love him so I suffer, I can direct you without scruples only to his novel tho, absolutely lovely and not written by brian michaelbendis lmao- anya corazon is a really good character that marvel loves to forget it has, letâs not make the same mistake;- black widow 2014 and 2016 and bw: the name of the rose are all good comics (I know technically nat isnât a spider person but like nothing about spider-womanâs powers screams âspiderâ either so..
for wakanda Iâd say good recent start-ups would be: - black panther (2016), - black panther: world of wakanda (w/ a lesbian couple as protag), - and rise of the black panther (ongoing)
some non x-men team books that are easier to approach as a beginner imho:-young avengers vol 2 (vol 1 has its moments if you want to start from the beginning with them but a lot of it involves the civil war arc and stuff.. also some characters die, the art is less good and I want to protect people from 17âs yo cassie langâs nipples poking through her shirt.. I wish someone had protected me tbh) -I want to rec some Runaways but besides the current run (which is alright) thereâs a lot to be said against the writing in most of the rest of them maybe vol 1? to have the origins pinned down-I feel like after a small read through of what exactly the hell was going on with secret wars you could approach A-Force vol 1 and the first half of vol 2 (the second half ties in with civil war II and Iâm not touching that mess) and that and avenger world and sometimes secret avengers to me are good avengers books-she hulk 2014 and totally awesome hulk are my greens of choice but if you want an intro to bruce banner idont actually know, sorry-for the asgardians: thor 2014 and itâs follow up mighty thor, thor: god of thunder, angela: asgardâs assassin and its sequel angela: queen of hel, and loki: agent of asgard are my pick of this crop-we also have Fun here at marvel comics on occasion and both patsy walker aka hellcat and squirrel girl are nice in their own way although the latter isnât really my thing
some follow up on the young avengers:- hawkeye (2013) an absolute fan favorite, good to discover that actually clint barton was a good character itâs that the avengers movies are just bad and hate people with disabilities- a couple of follow-ups to that (x) (x) and the kate bishop solo all pretty nice- america chavezâs solo (Iâm just here to suggest gay comics, thatâs almost all I read really)
I want to rec Champions to people but frankly itâs just a long series of event interruptions and bullshit interspersed with a couple of nice moments so far, so Iâm gonna rec you some kids that are in the champions and have solos I havenât already mentioned:- kamala khanâs book is probably my favorite ongoing series at marvel right now about any non-mutant char, I cannot say enough good about it,- nova is nice,- miles morales (spider-man) and amadeuscho (totally awesome hulk) are also there but Iâve already mentioned themalso in this house we love and respect elektranatchiosand any other attitude just isnât tolerated.
on to the x-men, gotta love those guys, you just gotta:- like I said I prefer to tell people to start from recent comics but with the xmen thatâs so difficult? itâs been 10+ bad years for them because of the movie rights situation and just marvel being shit in general, so my one recent team book to approach the x-men is prob x-men â92? because its based off of the xm animated series so you donât have to straightaway deal with some mutant plague, eugenics plots, and other catastrophic events, but you can still get to know more of the char we all love - I want to say generation x vol 2, itâs not a good starting point for anything really but I love it so so much I had to mention it even tho it was cancelled and Iâm still angry as hell about it.
the solo situation is better. Iâm gonna be able to breathe without tasting my own bile while I type this, hurray!-all new wolverine follows laura kinney as she takes up the mantle from logan-iceman, good solid comic abt coming out and ice puns, who doesnât like bobby really-jean grey, yes sheâs a teen girl in this, yes itâs weird and I hate de-aging characters but itâs nice to see her train with different mutants, struggling with the incoming phoenix force and her adult selfâs shadow, not really great entry point to jean grey but id read it anyway-if you were into the 00âs xmen movies like me, or at least a normal personâs amount the phoenix recently returned and with her adult!jean grey, it was a good book for me and good if you want to later start reading the actual phoenix saga (which is a lot of material so starting small with this might help) -I love wandamaximoff and despite what theyâve done to the maximoffs in order to bring them into the mcu (was it worth it for that result btw? really?) her recent book was good and I genuinely loved it -stormâs solo is so good, youâre gonna fall in love with an het ship and youâre not gonna regret it either-rogue and gambit, is ongoing and itâs good to get a little acquainted with these characters but mostly itâs about explorign their relationship
Iâm sure Iâm forgetting a lot of good x-men content atm but I canât stop thinking I need to mention that there are ongoing series you could pick up its just.. I hate them.. some started out promising (xmen gold, astonishing xmen), but theyâve not developed in good directions imo, but I still feel they should be mentioned, thereâs also a weapon x comic if you want to go for a more bloody kind of book and xmen blue if you like time displaced teens or something? god its bad
jeez this is so so long and guess what? I havenât even finished yet.. thereâs some excellent indie comics out there and with those you really donât need to worry abt knowing any 30 years old lore or anything you pick them up and they explain themselves like any other normal media out there, I know, be still my heart:
- lumberjanes is my absolute favorite, a little corny, but so much fun and cuteness and if I could go back in time Iâd give it to my little bi self so sheâd know sheâs not alone and anything I feel that ways about has a special place i my heart js
- Motor crush, there really isnât any other comic book with a black lesbian as protagonist out there that I can think of, good if youâre into motorcycles but if like in my case that threatens to put you to sleep, it also has a sci-fi streak and solid character work, you wonât regret giving it a try
- moonstruck, cute non-white gay werewolves and other mythological creatures are there, I feel this cathers to me specifically every time I open it?? bless
- Hi-Fi fight club or heavy vinyl (they changed the title) if you want a period piece thatâs fun and cute and gay (I meant it about me reading only gay comics as you can tell)
- saga, for a space, well ya know.. saga I feel that I can describe it as romeo and juliet in space with added racial commentary except they donât kill themselves, I have to say not my favorite but you might stick with it for the characters, I sure do
- the wicked + the divine, I feel very much the same about this as I do about saga, only this is mythology based so like.. I sold my soul to it, but please do tread with care thereâs a lot of deaths in it and so many of these dead people are gays and/or poc.. Iâm none too pleased about it and Iâd understand anyone not wanting to pick it up, I mean the deaths are basically in the premises of the books but that doesnât change the end result..
lastly like I said dc is not my area of expertise but Iâve been following with pleasure both batwoman and green lanterns, and mr miracle was an amazing comic so I thought Iâd mention them
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Good morning, and I hope you all prepared yourself for this inevitable gripe-fest thatâs about to occur! Thatâs right folks, I am Back On My Bullshit and ready to rant! Itâs been so long since Iâve been this intensely irritated about something, but I guess Sailor Moon season 3 wanted to remind me what this was like. Hysterically, theyâre even keeping with the theme of 2017 thatâs been ongoing since Atelier Shallie: I get it, youâre trying to market as a light-hearted fun adventure, but you canât fuck up your heavy plotline on purpose because youâre trying to maintain an image goddammit!
Letâs start with this: season 3 is, by far, the best in the series so far. Uranus and Neptune are spectacular characters, I finally get to see Pluto in action, and Saturn...god, weâll get to that, but best. No contest. They even salvaged Chibi-Usaâs character. Chibi-Usa! Who was among my most disliked characters by the end of season 2! She came back and was great! That shouldnât have been possible, but here we are. The Professor and the Death Busters actually seemed entirely unique, and were a huge step up from previous villain groups.
But youâll notice I started using past tense there. Yes, unfortunately I have to use past-tense. Theyâre still better than the others, but no longer as interesting. Itâs another issue of excellent setup but terrible resolution. At the end of the day, the Professor is just infected by some virus monster, and his motivations are as vacuous as any enemy that came before. Unleash strong nebulous evil force, ???, profit. For such a goofy and fun character, his motives...pretty much didnât exist. Iâm all for the whole parasite thing to establish drama, but itâs going to be a lot less engaging than if a character had their own agency and motives. Itâs like my issue with the âLusamine was just infected with Nihilegoâs toxinsâ argument. It removes Lusamine as a character entirely, and insists that what we see was not a person, and their actions had no bearing on anything they personally wanted, itâs just things that happened. And thatâs way lamer than having the character be in control and acting for their own ends. For the professor, itâs unfortunately just the infection working toward infecting the entire planet.
Which leads to other, major issues. (1) Why is the holy grail there at all? It canât be designed for this inter-dimensional virus creature. So whatâs the point? (2) If there was no point in that, what was the point in Uranus and Neptuneâs quest? I guess if the Messiah they were looking for got it, things would immediately turn in their favor, but... (3) Whatâs the point of the Silence? Why is this a thing we have a name for? I had assumed the whole time that there was precedent for this. Like, someone knew what was going on, approximately, because something similar happened before. Given they know what to do to combat it, it seemed like everyone had an inkling of what was going on, but were lacking in specifics. But this nonsense about a Messiah of Silence? Itâs just a virus. It might not even be sentient, beyond manipulating the sentience of those infected. I doubt the virus is like âAh yes, the Messiah of Silence, who will draw us into this world so we can do vague but evil things to it.â None of these elements make a lick of sense anymore. They were cool as a setup, but I feel like itâs wasted potential. Especially considering that the outer scouts gave you the optimal setup already.
...you know, before we even started watching this, Callie told me that Hotaru would be my absolute favorite. And when we finally get there, what do they give me? A sickly child, who tends to dress all in black, has burns all over her body from an accident she was in, idolizes an athlete who was also sickly in his youth because precious, just wants to make friends but has weird blackout moments where people around her get hurt so they shun her, and has turned around from being almost completely closed off from the world to making close friends with Chibi-Usa and the sailor scouts. Sheâs the best. Easily my favorite. Not even a contest. Well, turns out, sheâs Sailor Saturn, and the Guardian of Destruction. Can apparently blow up planets, so...thatâs awesome. Her weapon is apparently even called the Glaive of Silence, or at least thatâs what Michiru had called it at one point. For the latter part of the season, the outer scouts are basically shitting themselves, knowing that they either manage to kill Hotaru before she awakens as Saturn, or the world could be destroyed. Obviously, since the other scouts are friends with Hotaru, it creates that conflict again between inner and outer planet scouts around an âends justify the meansâ approach, or the altruistic âWe have to save everyoneâ mentality. And thatâs great! I love that setup. Iâm all for this kind of conflict, and how it hits harder because Chibi-Usa and Pluto are on opposite sides. Excellent setup!
...terrible execution. Hotaruâs issue wasnât that sheâs Saturn, silly! Itâs that sheâs also infected with the virus, and becomes Mistress 9! Sheâs a vaguely evil mastermind trying to summon the nebulous Pharaoh 90 virus, which is apparently a planet from another dimension?, into this world to infect the whole planet and...not really destroy it, but eliminate all life or make everything a host for its virus self? Which Mistress 9 and the Daimons may be a part of? Objective unclear; listen, why not roll with Hotaru as the final boss? If Saturn is so intense and terrifying, thatâs a better angle. You keep building the conflict for Chibi-Usa and the inner planets vs. the outer planets, and your resolution is easy to make a happy one since Chibi-Usa and Hotaru are friends. The outer scouts can still insist this has to go with conflict, but ultimately itâs the friendship the inner scouts developed with the Messiah of Silence that causes her character to make an active choice to keep things as they are, and avert it. Iâm all on board for Uranus and Neptune acknowledging that there was no Messiah of Light, and that the good ending had to come about from their own actions. Thatâs fantastic. But you know what wouldâve been also great? If there was no messiah for either side. If the whole Messiah thing was just both sides trying to pinpoint a champion with the power and ability to carry out their own goals. Give the professor an honest reason to want the world to reach its end, and youâve got the ideal setup: a father who manipulates his child to destroy the world for his own ends, massive conflict among the two groups of scouts, a positive and happy resolution with Saturn through connection and friendship, and a legitimate reason to seek the grail and to have a name and concept for all this stuff since it happened in-universe.
We do not get that. Obviously. I wouldnât be here if we had. Instead, we run with the virus angle, the grail calls Pharaoh 90 to their world, and the only thing that wins the day is that the Professor and Usagi call to Hotaru and get her to awaken as Saturn, who then blows up the virus planet. (1) Not Chibi-Usa? The one pretty much designed to be the point of connection for Hotaru? ...alright. (2) This couldâve been avoided by just...not handing over the Grail, Usagi. Callie said Uranus and Neptune were being jerks for fighting Usagi over her decision here, but theyâre super in the right. Had you not done that, the human connection still wouldâve made it to Hotaru, only the death virus planet wouldnât have been called, and Saturn wouldnât have had to die and be reincarnated, which is really my biggest issue here.
WHY IS HOTARU A BABY NOW?! I HATE this reset-button shit, and Iâm having trouble thinking of a time Iâve been more upset by it. Hotaru is the best character for me, bar none. The struggles she has going on, the difficulties sheâs faced, and her entire arc being about establishing those connections and making friends to overcome loneliness and fear, all of it is excellent. And their resolution? Their big way to fix this? Letâs have her die and come back as a baby who is fine now. Also her dadâs memories are all gone, except for the ones about how he has a kid, so no one will even know the difference! Hooray! Fuck you. Fuck you, thatâs stupid and awful. You not only killed the best character, which is something thatâs happened to Iâm pretty sure everyone in the series at this point and they got better from, but you reincarnated her as a baby so thereâs no hope to get this character back even. All in the name of âWe had to have a happy ending for this character, so we just got rid of all the bad stuff that happened to her.â Itâs lazy, itâs stupid, and itâs a complete rejection of a far more interesting conclusion where Hotaru gets to recover and move on. Not to mention, if Saturnâs so damn strong, bringing her back as a completely healthy baby means sheâs gonna be absurd. Haruka and Michiru were already stronger than the inner scouts by a noticeable margin, and Saturn apparently had enough power to make them terrified of her just waking up, even when they had Pluto on their side. Keeping the injured version of Hotaru not only keeps the difficulties she had and her character in tact, but also serves as a limiter. Sheâs not an instant-win condition; she has physical limitations and isnât always going to be at full strength. But no, baby version now. Maybe because sheâs younger sheâll be weaker or canât use her full power or something arbitrary like that.
I am so goddamned salty about this. I get really attached to my favorites, and this seriously feels like weâve just removed the best one. I know sheâs alive. I know a lot of traits are probably going to stay the same, and when she inevitably comes back and is a regular scout I will love her to death. But this is such a bad way to handle the resolution for this characterâs conflict. Now if youâll excuse me, I have a figure to find.
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Wrestle Kingdom 12 preview
This is set to start around 2am Eastern time Thursday morning and go maybe five or six hours, so llllletâs get ready to make bad decisions about our sleep schedule!
Kazuchika Okada vs. Tetsuya Naito - Naito defeated Kenny Omega to win the G1 Climax tournament in August, earning the right to challenge for the IWGP heavyweight title here. Okada has held the title for 564 days, far and away longer than any other reign with this championship.Â
Okada vs. Naito was famously supposed to headline Wrestle Kingdom 8, but fans turned on the idea. In the end, the intercontinental match (Shinsuke Nakamura vs. Hiroshi Tanahashi) went on last, forever putting a footnote on what was supposed to be Okadaâs first Tokyo Dome main event outside of Tanahashiâs shadow and Naitoâs first Dome main event period. Four years later, both men have earned the respect they were denied then. So itâs morbidly amusing that fate has yet again cast doubt on whether Okada vs. Naito is âreallyâ the main event, thanks to the buzz surrounding Jericho vs. Omega. Obviously Okada and Naito have something to prove. Again.
Okada had a hell of a year in 2017. Kenny Omega tends to get most of the press for the three matches that Dave Meltzer rated six stars or better, but I watched all three and frankly Iâd give Okada just a smidge more credit for those performances. Itâs also worth noting that Okada had epic matches against other opponents, like Katsuyori Shiabata, Minoru Suzuki, and EVIL. The manâs a wrestling machine, and while heâll never be my sentimental favorite in NJPW, heâs got my confidence as the man who makes the belt feel important.
Naito did pretty well for himself this past year as well, although Iâd argue thatâs more from a storytelling and entertainment standpoint. Little things like his treatment of the intercontinental title belt and his interplay with his stablemates have added that little extra something to his game. The Japanese audience already loves him but itâs getting easier to for the rest of us to get into his head, and see what the appeal is.
Either man can win here. If Naito wins, itâll be the much-delayed Tokyo Dome coronation that heâs been chasing for four years, and a proper milestone in the ascendance of Los Ingobernables de Japon as a key faction in the company. If Okada wins, it will be his 9th consecutive successful title defense and his second consecutive title defense at the Tokyo Dome; he looked unstoppable after last yearâs show, and now heâd be practically godlike. The only thing for sure here is theyâre going to fight and fight for like half an hour, and theyâll leave it all in the ring.
Kenny Omega vs. Chris Jericho - Omegaâs IWGP United States championship is on the line. The match is no-disqualification, which is itself interesting because itâs already pretty hard to get disqualified in New Japan, suggesting that these guys are going to go far beyond the carnage that usually gets a pass.
The backstory here is that Omega got his old buddy Don Callis a job in the commentary booth, and then Callis helped his old buddy Jericho get in touch with New Japan to put this match together. So itâs the battle of an NJPW guy who leads the hottest faction in ROH against a longtime WWE guy, and the guy who made it happen is now VP of Impact Wrestling. Weird.
Jericho is specifically here to try to do his own version of the Connor McGregor/Floyd Mayweather fight that generated so much buzz and money. To that end, the buildup to this match has been extremely heated. The two of them have barely coexisted in the same building for more than five minutes without beating each other senseless. Jericho has vowed this will be Kennyâs last match in Japan. Weâve been assured this will not be about getting star ratings or match of the year votes--it will be a brawl.
These guys had me hooked in with the press conference. I donât really care who wins, but youâd figure it has to be Omega unless theyâve got something else lined up for Jericho later in the year.
Hiroshi Tanahashi vs. Jay White - White is challenging for the IWGP intercontinental title. This is kind of cool for me because I got into New Japan when White was still a rookie jobbing in the openers with the plain black trunks, and then I watched him say farewell before going on excursion, and now heâs back with this wacky new âswitchbladeâ gimmick. Itâs pretty incredibly to think of him advancing to the #3 match on the biggest show of the year, so itâll be interesting to see if he can deliver the goods.
Tanahashi is hurting. Aside from the torn biceps heâs been working through since the summer, heâs got a knee injury too, and thatâs on top of all the usual wear and tear to a top wrestler in a Japanese group. Ideally theyâd let him gut it out for this one night, put the other guy over, and then send him the fuck home to heal up. But if NJPW or Tanahashi were going to make such a rational decision, they wouldnât have booked him for the G1 Climax last year. So this could get excrutiating to watch, especially if Tanahashi just wins and therefore is set up to keep defending his title through the next couple of months.
Iâm a Tanahashi fan and I hope he can deliver a good match, but I gotta root for White to just win quickly and decisively to give the poor guy a break.
Cody Rhodes vs. Kota Ibushi - This was booked to be a defense of the ROH world championship but Cody lost it to Dalton Castle a few weeks ago.
You can look at this match as a sort of consolation prize, in that both guys were viewed as top choices for Kenny Omegaâs opponent on this show until the Jericho thing came up, and now theyâre pitted against one another. The problem with that is that neither guy has much in the way of upward momentum. Cody is primarily an ROH guy, and there seems to be no interest in putting him in line for an IWGP or NEVER title. Similarly, Ibushi is a free agent, and the issue with him has always been that NJPW will only push him so far without a contract. So itâs hard to buy that the outcome of this match matters. Maybe they can defy expectations or steal the show, but as it stands Iâm just not worked up about it.
As far as predictions go, Iâm vaguely leaning towards Cody.
Minoru Suzuki vs. Hirooki Goto - Suzukiâs NEVER openweight championship is at stake, as is the hair of both participants. The winner of the match gets the title; the loser gets his head shaved. Additionally, Suzukiâs henchmen in Suzuki-gun and Gotoâs associates in CHAOS are barred from ringside, to prevent the usual clusterfuck finishes that happen with Suzuki-gun matches.
This could go either way, although a Goto loss would be pretty humiliating and send his storyline in a very dismal direction. After weeks of just trying to get this match, Goto really needs to get the last laugh.
Marty Scurll vs. KUSHIDA vs. Will Ospreay vs. Hiromu Takahashi - This is a four-way match, and the first man to score a fall on any of his opponents will win Scurllâs IWGP junior heavyweight championship. Basically the minute Scurll won the title, the three previous champions all demanded a title shot, so he offered to face them at the same time. Not sure that was such a bright idea.
This will surely be an entertainingly flippy diversion form strong style and big mean guys. Iâm not sure it matters who wins, but I gotta pull for my man Hiromu and his cat Daryl.
Davey Boy Smith, Jr. & Lance Archer vs. EVIL & SANADA - Evil and Sanada won the 2017 World Tag League tournament to earn this shot at the IWGP heavyweight tag team championship, held by the Killer Elite Squad (Smith & Archer). You know itâs gonna be a mean guy match when one sideâs best line is âEVERYBODY DIESâ and the other sideâs best line is âEVERYTHING IS EVIL.â I smell a title change coming.
5-team gauntlet match - This is for the NEVER six-man tag team championship. The gauntlet starts with two trios wrestling a normal six-man tag match. Once a fall is scored, the losers are eliminated and another team comes out. This continues until the final team enters the match, and the winners of the final fall get the title. They did this kind of match last year and the teams entered at random except for the champions who got to enter last, so I assume thatâs the rule here, too.
The teams are:
Bad Luck Fale & Tama Tonga & Tanga Loa (the defending champions, representing Bullet Club)
Tomohiro Ishii & Toru Yano & Beretta (representing CHAOS)
Michael Elgin & Raymond Rowe & Hanson
Ryusuke Taguchi & Juice Robinson & Togi Makabe
Zack Sabre Jr. & Taichi & Takashi Iizuka (representing Suzuki-gun)
A title change seems inevitable, since the NEVER tag belts are the hot potato of the promotion. Of the fifteen guys in the match I think Ishii is the most protected, so I tend to favor his team to win, although Sabre is overdue to get some gold.
Itâs worth noting that War Machine (Rowe and Hanson) are wrapping up their New Japan commitments and are widely expected to be reporting to WWE soon, so I wouldnât bet on them to win here.
SHO & YOH vs. Nick Jackson & Matt Jackson - Roppongi 3K (Sho/Yoh) are defending the IWGP junior heavyweight tag team title against the Young Bucks (Nick/Matt). The Bucks are so dominant in the junior tag division, and 3K is still so new, that a win for the Bucks will accomplish absolutely nothing. Thereâs an opportunity here to help make 3K into the future of the division, so all we can do is see if theyâll take it. I expect weâll be seeing these teams trade the belts for many years to come, but I donât think itâll happen just yet.
New Japan Rumble - This will most likely be on the pre-show. Itâs a gauntlet battle royal, with wrestlers entering the match at one-minute interval; eliminations can occur via pinfall, submission, or exiting the ring over the top rope to the floor.
This is typically used to get people on the show who arenât otherwise booked, so Iâd expect to see:
Satoshi Kojima
Hiroyoshi Tenzan
YOSHI-HASHI
Yuji Nagata
Jushin Thunder Liger
Tiger Mask
Yujiro Takahashi
Hangman Page
Leo Tonga
El Desperado
TAKA Michinoku
Chase Owens
Gedo
Jado
ACH
Yoshinobu Kanemaru
Manabu Nakanishi
David Finlay
Yoshitatsu
New Japan usually brings in some old-timers and joke entrants for this thing, so you never know whoâs coming or how many participants there will be. I could imagine some of the Young Lions being in this, but if so theyâll just get clobbered so it kind of doesnât matter. Typically the winner is someone credible but not necessarily in line for a push, so that has me thinking Liger or Kojima could come out on top. But really, whoâs to say if Billy Gunn shows up at the last minute and shows us all who the ass man really is?
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