#but since this question was directed at me I can at least put my UT knowledge to good use o/

[bonetrousled]

please please please please gawd tell me more about ur pap being the knight theory OR if u would so pls direct me to where u talked abt it before. u have truly GRIPPED me w this

OH GOD I HAVE SO SO MUCH OK. so i DO have the papyrus powerpoint HERE which has a section on that a little more in-depth and i will say i am not the first to come up w this idea but personally it's the only option that makes Complete sense w no holes to me. this is all going off the concept that papyrus is likely younger here bc sans asks kris to hang out w him. my ramblings under a cut bc im about to go fucking CRAZY

the knight, by people that have seen him already, is always referred to w he/it pronouns. papyrus and sans are the only characters that fit the he/it bill (both of them are referred to with it/its in the lost soul fight, nobody else is referred to this way)

there is NO way that kris OR susie could have made the dark worlds in chapter 1 and chapter 2. the dark world had to have been opened AFTER noelle and berdly got to the library (since their books and stuff are open) but BEFORE kris and susie arrived, crossing all of them off potential dark world opener lists. also up until this point kris didn't even Know how to open a dark world

there's the closet in the library that states that "a very large person could easily fit inside". papyrus could have potentially been hiding in there and waiting for others to come to open the fountain. additionally in ut he says that there's no skeletons in his closet- except him sometimes

but then the question of motive comes up. Why would he do that?

so far from what we've seen in deltarune, papyrus is an asocial shut-in. given that the main core of other characters hasn't really been altered, we can also assume what he wants MOST is to feel important and be liked, like in undertale. combining these two aspects leads us to someone who can't bring himself to socialize with others in the real world, but DESPERATELY wants to feel necessary and admired.

the whole deal w the dark world is wish fulfillment, at least as i see it. susie gets a cool outfit with spikes and makes friends, she has her own room with her own style, etc. berdly gets a cool, nerdy sci-fi outfit and is put in charge, and even gets to have a heroic moment towards the end of chapter 2. noelle gets to tell her true feelings to a mother figure and gets to spend time with susie. so if you get what you want most in the dark world, it would make COMPLETE sense for papyrus to not only be spending time in them, but opening more fountains to spend as much time in them as possible.

plus, what have we seen the first two chapters thus far? EVERYONE important and in-charge LOVES the knight. all they do is talk abt him and how awesome he is. double tying in this aspect of wish fulfillment to the weird, perfect nature of hometown- people who didn't really get a chance at life are still alive, everyone is happy, that sort of thing. papyrus is the ONLY main character out of all of undertale that NEVER gets what he wants. every other character gets some sort of completion to their arc, some sort of resolution and closure, they meet their goals, they achieve something. by the end of true pacifist, papyrus doesn't get ANYTHING. his friend count is still stagnant, he never proves himself, or gets any sort of important role (he only becomes the ambassador if you DON'T want to). putting two and two together here, it would make perfect sense for papyrus to finally get his moment- by his own hands.

plus, and this is just a little obvious here, but if you become what you want the most in the dark world, and papyrus wanted to be in the guard- what would you call a member of a royal guard? a knight.

alongside the weird, vague hints that papyrus must have had SOMETHING happen to him in his past and that he wasn't always a great guy (very adamant about how people can change, the "I'M A PRETTY BRUTAL KIND OF GUY" line, the way he admits to you in aborted no mercy that he was going to blast you to smithereens) and we NEVER get resolution/explanation for that (or any of the other weird shit he says [see powerpoint]) i feel like there's just too much setup here for any other option to make sense to me. papyrus is also just very obviously toby's favorite character from ut, he's the only one he ever commissioned art for just to have and he clearly really enjoys writing him and doing stuff w him. anyway ummm im insane :) *grins*

[missholoska]

i remember seeing you say napstablook strictly goes by they/them, where does it say this ingame?

it’s not so much that the game outright says that, because I don’t recall that being the case for any character, but they/them are the only pronouns used to refer to Napstablook in-game:

(there are more examples out there but I don’t wanna make this post 800 miles long)

in fairness Napstablook has been referred to as he/him outside of the game - that’s still the case in this old kickstarter post about the alarm clock from 2013 - but a more notable example was in the Undertale art book, which was later corrected! if you wanna see for yourself compare the photo of Napstablook’s description halfway through this post (super hard to read in that quality, but zoom in enough and it does say ‘him’ a couple times) to the screenshots in this post, but the fact that it was considered a mistake worth fixing is pretty clear in saying that he/him pronouns are not how Napstablook should be canonically/officially referred to.

this part isn’t directed at you anon but while I’m on the subject, I’ve seen some people try to argue that they/them pronouns were only used to be gender-neutral because Napstablook isn’t important enough to specify, but... they aren’t a character you’re meant to project your own vision onto in any way? (not that I agree that Frisk and Chara should still be viewed as self-inserts by the end of the game, but that’s a tangent) Napstablook has their own theme, personality, home, family, job, likes and dislikes; their character isn’t left to interpretation any more than other established characters like Papyrus or Muffet, so I don’t see why their pronouns should be treated differently.

(and to be clear none of this is meant to dismiss pronoun headcanons made by trans and/or non-binary people; I think for cis Undertale fans such as myself, acknowledging these characters’ canon pronouns is the bare minimum level of respect, and if I can help clarify things like this I’m happy to do my part)

[shoichee]

Hi, congrats on 100!! Could I please request 27 for Kasamatsu? Thank you very much, and good luck on your finals! :D

Kasamatsu x Reader

27. “If we get caught I’m blaming you”

Word Count: 4416

prompt list here

Note: the Replace novel starring the Kaijō team was a HUGE inspiration for this, and dear anon who requested this, I hope you’re still around;; I’m sorry it took so long EEEEE But yes! I did okay on my finals anon! I hope you’re doing well too~

@knb-kreations

»»—————　☼　—————««

“If we get caught, I’m blaming you.”

“Look it’ll be quick… n-no one’s here as far as I know.”

“B-But…”

“J-Just… be quiet for a s-second, okay?”

“H-H-Huh?! Ah…”

Huh? Kise stopped himself before leaning closer to the edge of the building, slightly doubting his ears. Wasn’t that Senpai’s voice? With someone else…? Alone?

“Oh come on, why are you even block the wa—oh, ohhhhhh, are there any cute girls nearby?—”

“Shh,” Kise hissed, harshly waving his hand over Moriyama’s face to give a signal to stay quiet. “Listen…”

“A-Are you done, Kasamatsu-san…?”

“I-I-I… uh, just…um…”

Kise and Moriyama shared a look of shock… then registration… and finally a look of that spelled nothing but trouble. Immediately, they both simultaneously crouched to squat and share their “realizations” together in hushed whispers.

“Quick—when was the last time Senpai talked to anyone outside of basketball?”

“Hmmmmmm, certainly none of the girls I’ve tried to approach.”

“No, that’s obviously not what I meant!” Kise said, facepalming. “Anyone in your year that he’s been talking to? Maybe anyone in class?” Moriyama continued to hum in deep concentration before he lifted his index finger in a “eureka” moment.

“He’s been talking to (y/n)-san in the hallways recently!” he quietly exclaims, pounding his fist against his open palm to emphasize. “Though their conversations have sounded nothing remotely romantic. No charm, I say.” He struck a pose after to imply that he himself was the charismatic individual.

“.... Right,” he deadpanned, expecting nothing less from his quite… eccentric upperclassman. “Welp, now that we narrowed it down who he might be talking to, I don’t wanna spy on them… but I’m really curious if it’s really this (y/n)-san you mentioned.”

“Well,” Moriyama pouted with a grumble. “One peek wouldn’t hurt.”

“I guess you’re right…”

Kise cautiously scans his surroundings and gauges the situation “clear” to slowly peer from behind the corner of the building, where both of them had been seeking shelter from for the past several minutes. Moriyama follows suit, poking his head out just underneath Kise to see.

Kasamatsu’s back mostly covered your figure, but the view of what was happening did not slip by either Kaijō players’ eyes. He had his arms partially around your head while you were pressed up against his chest. You were gripping onto his loose blazer on his sides to presumably stabilize yourself while Kasamatsu was… fiddling with something on top of your hair? Even so, there’s no denying that the both of you were currently very, very physically close.

“Look… d-does it really take that long to take out petals from hair strands?” you mumbled, looking up at Kasamatsu’s face while trying not to move your head to avoid disrupting his “handiwork.” “I can do this myself....”

“W-W-Well, you can’t risk yourself being unkempt when you go back to class.” Kasamatsu gave a poor attempt at trying to lecture you, judging from his stammers and the way he slightly turns his head to the side to avoid your curious scrutiny. “It’s more thorough this… way. It’s the w-week where these blossoms fall rampantly… you have to be careful where you’re walking under…” In turning his face slightly towards Kise’s and Moriyama’s direction, his exposed flushed face puts the cherry blossom trees around them to shame.

So that’s what he was doing. Kise narrowed his eyes in pity at his captain, and Moriyama expressed a similar expression at Kasamatsu’s struggles. The poor captain’s hands were shaking non-stop. Not only that, he’s been darting his eyes everywhere since you’ve been gazing up at him from below. No wonder he’s been standing there unable to quickly pluck off the petals.

“Should we leave our captain alone to let him lead his own destiny?”

“What are you even talking about, Moriyama-se—”

“W-Whoa!! What a(l)e you [guys doing] he(l)e? Why a(l)e you sneaking a(l)ound (r)ike that?”

Kise and Moriyama instantly whip their heads behind in a panic, seeing a curious Hayakawa jogging up to be with his teammates, and the both instantly pounce on the poor rebound player to slap desperate hands over his mouth.

“Sh-Shhhhhhhhh!”

“Mrmpgh—?!! Lef—What [is going] on?”

“Hayakawa-senpai, please—just be quiet for a sec!”

The ruckus causes Kasamatsu and you to break out of the oddly intimate moment to face towards the direction of the sudden noises. After looking at each other questionably, albeit briefly and with stiff eye contact, there was an unspoken consensus for you two to investigate behind the corner of the building. Imagine both of you guys’ surprise when you two see a tangle of limbs between the Kaijō starter players. Kobori somehow arrived prior, separating poor Hayakawa from his two assailants.

“What… What the hell are you guys doing?!”

“Kasamatsu-senpai!! Is it t(l)ue [that you] and (y/n)-san a(l)e da—mrmf—!”

“Ahaha… we didn’t expect to see you here, Senpai~” Kise smiles with a slight grimace, hand still firm on Hayakawa’s mouth.

“It must be fate, yes surely!” Moriyama confidently speaks, flipping his fringe. Both Kise and Moriyama drop Hayakawa and straighten themselves up. “How else would we encounter such a situation as unique as this?”

“Why are you all here?” Kasamatsu sputters indignantly, but everyone (except you) saw how horrendously red his face was. You peek out from behind his back curiously, noting how Kasamatsu did a 180 in his personality compared to whenever he spoke with you.

“Kasamatsu-san… are they your teammates? You seem very close with them.”

“That’s—”

“Now, now, Kasamatsu-san… we’re only here because we were concerned where you went is all,” Kobori reassures a flustered captain. Kise only stares at him incredulously, but it seems that Kasamatsu, as usual, buys into Kobori’s naivete.

“I see…”

“Wow… the fact that your entire group came to look for you is very sweet of them,” you chime. “They really care for you, Kasamatsu-san…” When you elbow him at his ribs playfully, he immediately straightened himself like a plank.

“N-Nn.”

“Well… it’s almost time for class, so I have to go, see you all!”

“W-Wait, your… uh, hair, um—”

“I can get out the rest of the petals in the restroom, but thank you for trying! I’ll see you later!”

“R-Right…” He puts up his hand in a shy wave as you dash away, but he immediately drops it once you are out of the vicinity to hound on his teammates. “Were you watching this entire time? And stop with the looks—that’s creepy as hell!”

“Sooooooo…”

“Senpai, could it be that you and…”

“Kasamatsu-senpai! I’m (l)ooting fo(l) you!”

“N-N-No!!” he denies, ready to hold an iron fist to stop their antics, but Kobori gently holds onto his raised arm.

“Alright, let’s calm down a bit,” Kobori reasons with a placid smile. “I’m sure we’re all a bit curious because you hardly talk to anyone outside of basketball, right?”

“Kobori…”

“Have you heard of the prerequisites of the key elements of the blooming spring, Kasamatsu?” Moriyama asks, immediately drawing confused looks towards the 3rd-year.

“Moriyama-senpai, we have no clue what you’re talking about,” Kise says, asking the question that’s occupying everyone's mind.

“The key elements…! In the season of new birth, to enrich the experience, they are ‘hanami,’ ‘plums,’ and ‘spring cleaning!’ Of course, the prerequisite to these would be…”

“Please stop—”

“... to have a cute date.”

“... This is ridiculous,” Kasamatsu says irritatedly. “I’m going to class.” He immediately speed-walks to the adjacent building, leaving a scheming group behind.

“You know, if it’s true that he does like (y/n)-san, shouldn’t we help him? It’s the least we can do for our captain,” Kobori suggested.

“That sounds too troublesome,” Kise frowns, averting his gaze to also start to walk away, but Hayakawa immediately latches to his arm to pull him back.

“Don’t be (r)ike that! We have to do this as a team effo(l)t!”

“How did it become like this?!”

“Well…” Moriyama audibly ponders, stroking his chin. “If we make this successful for Kasamatsu, perhaps this can be a template for our own love lives! A sign that we will meet our fated ones this spring!”

“Yes, yes! Mo(l)iyama-senpai is abso(r)ute(r)y (l)ight!”

Oh god, Kise mentally sighs. What has he gotten himself into?

———

“Why are you guys surrounding me like that? Did you not hear me say that we have to change quickly? We can’t have the lockers for long today, considering that the janitor will come to do their routine clean-ups.”

“According to my online research,” Moriyama states, “this mint-scented deodorant will guarantee mutual attraction from the person you like.”

“Wha—?”

“Ignoring what Moriyama-senpai said,” Kise elaborates, scratching his head. “Is it really true that you like (y/n)-san? Otherwise, they’ll keep getting the wrong idea, senpai.”

Kasamatsu gapes like a fish, pulling his shirt collar as he starts to sweat and flush.

“Kise! Be a bit tactfu(r)! You do not unde(l)stand how to app(l)oach this!”

“What’s there to understand, Hayakawa-senpai!? It’s better to be direct about this, or otherwise we’ll be doing this for nothing!”

“Kise may be right,” Moriyama muses. “To be honest gives a feeling of a fresh start in the spring. Kasamatsu, you should follow this example and leave all the baggage behind to obtain a new start.” Kasamatsu could only stand there glued to his spot as his teammates continued to corner him, blocking any possible route to the locker exit.

“I… I…” he gulps. “Th—... that’s… I… like…” His voice dwindles to the softest whisper, but it easily resonates throughout the locker room, where the team had fallen silent in straining to hear and hang onto his every syllable.

“So you do like (y/n)-san,” Moriyama exclaimed, the first one to break the silence. “I see, I didn’t think they were your type.”

“H-Hey…?! Can you not say it like that!?”

“You can’t distort the truth, though. Anyways, you should chat with (y/n)-san nicely.”

“I already do!!” Kasamatsu half-shouts, but he immediately bows his head down shyly. “Wh-What’s a… good topic, you think… to talk to (y/n)-san…?”

“Huh? Just normal topics,” Kise replies, not sure what Kasamatsu meant by the question.

“What’s… normal?”

“Just talk to them like you’ve always done, senpai.”

“Y-Yes, but… h-how can I talk to hint that I l-l-l-like… never mind this is hopeless—”

“Ask them to come watch ou(l) next match [and have] (y/n)-san chee(l) fo(l) you!!”

“N-No! Anyone would run away from that!”

Their conversation was suddenly interrupted when the locker doors opened with a bang, with a very weary janitor standing with his equipment on standby. With a flurry of apologies to the janitor, Kasamatsu recovers himself and ushers everyone out before bidding him a good evening. Walking out of campus several minutes later in silence, Kobori breaks the silence.

“Why don’t we help you, Kasamatsu? Maybe through different methods you will find the best way to ask for a date. Perhaps asking for a cup of tea would be sufficient…?”

“I’m not gonna involve myself with this! No way in hell!”

“Senpai, so you’re just gonna wait and let it fester—u-uwah?!” Moriyama immediately sprays the mint-scented deodorant down Kise’s back to silence him before turning back to Kasamatsu with a straight face.

“What if someone else steals (y/n)-san away for their own elements of spring? After all, it is the perfect atmosphere for them to communicate with the person you like with pickup techniques, with high chances of success.”

“N-No way (y/n)-san would just go along with a random stranger!”

“Who knows? Maybe they’re more suave and have that particular charisma that they’re secretly weak to.”

“Moriyama-senpai, you might be going too far…”

“Kasamatsu, he’s right though, if you hang around (y/n)-san more, not only would you learn more about them, but you’ll protect them from potential unwanted people.” Kobori’s calm voice rang louder above the clamors of the starter players, and everyone immediately looked to Kasamatsu for his response. Kise mentally sighs at how Kobori always manages to misinterpret Moriyama’s words.

“Fine—but only to make sure (y/n)-san will be safe! Don’t get any funny ideas!”

———

Praise. Make them laugh. Praise. Make them laugh. Say something interesting. Say something interesting. Praise. Use a normal topic.

Kasamatsu stands at his usual spot, waiting for you to leave class and meet up with him after school. Only this time, his hands grow clammy, his thick brows deeply furrowed as he wills himself to stop shaking. His teammates spying on him from behind the hallway corner certainly wasn’t helping him either.

“I told you, there’s no way I’m gonna involve myself with this!”

“Come on, Kasamatsu,” Moriyama sighed, shaking the mint-scented deodorant on hand. “We talked about this yesterday. You agreed to this, remember?”

“It was to make sure no one weird bothers (y/n)-san! Why do I have to go along with this?!”

“So you’re fine if I hold (y/n)-san’s hand in the name of destiny…”

“To hell with that!—argh—you!”

Moriyama immediately sprayed the can on the captain’s neck, watching his spine jolt and jump before he was met with an intense glare.

“You’re the captain, right? Come on, you have to show us how it’s done. We all want to see the ways to push the boundaries of romance. Who would lead us if you don’t?”

“What kinda—”

“I ag(l)ee with Mo(l)iyama-senpai! Take the (r)ead, Kasamatsu-senpai!”

“Wouldn’t Kise be someone better to learn from if you wanted to learn how to hit on people?!”

“Senpai, I’ve never done such a thing in my entire life.”

“Kasamatsu, I’m sure Moriyama is just telling you how much we all admire and look up to you. Naturally, we want to see how our captain fares in these situations. Besides, as a team, if something happens, we’ll be there to cover up for you.”

“Well… if you put it like that Kobori… all I have to do is talk to (y/n)-san… right?”

“That’s the spi(l)it!”

“... Kasamatsu-san? Helloooooo…?”

You wave a hand repeatedly over his face, and he immediately blinks and flinches back when you pull him back to the present. He’d been standing still for the past five minutes.

“I-I-I-I…”

“Are you okay? You’re all tensed up… if something’s bothering you, wanna talk about it?”

“W-W-Well… wh-what’s… up.” Normal topic, normal topic.

“Well, nothing much really,” you say, smoothing out your blazer. “I got out the petals but barely made it to class in the nick of time!” You laugh at your own recollection, and he immediately flames a radiant flush.

“N-nn.”

“Is it me… or is our captain…. really, really stiff right now…”

“Shhh.”

You perk up at the noise and slightly tilt to the left of Kasamatsu to discern the source of the hushed whispers… only to spy a conspicuous group of basketball players. You merely raise a brow at your discovery, but you return your attention back to Kasamatsu before he notices your change in gaze. The Kaijō teammates were too busy shushing each other to notice your attention on them.

“Ah, yes! Kasamatsu-san, you just had your trigonometry test right? Those identities and proofs are always so difficult to remember… how do you think you did?”

“G-Good.”

“Wow, that was too quick of a response! I didn’t know you were that confident about it—obviously not a bad thing if you studied for it.”

“N-nn.” Come on, say something interesting. Interesting topic. Something you like. “U-U-Uh… w-weather…?”

“The weather…?” You look outside the window in confusion before you make a face of realization. “Oh! Like how’s the weather?”

“N-nn.”

“Well, it has been a bit windy with all those branches and leaves flying around, but I think it accompanies the refreshing atmosphere of spring very nicely, don’t you think?” You turn back to face Kasamatsu, who’s been slowly bowing his head down gradually more and more the entire time to avoid scrutiny.

“N-nn.”

“You’ve been… really quiet since lunch. I’m serious, if something happened… is there anything I can do to help?”

“Kasamatsu, take advantage of the elements of spring! The elements of spr—”

“Moriyama-senpai, shut… up…!”

“Hey—what are you—?”

“Wait!! Kise! Don’t push, [or else] we a(l)e gonna fa(r)(r)—!”

“Shit—”

Right on cue, the gradual leaning weight from the three players on Hayakawa at the bottom gave way, and everyone tumbled out smack dab into plain sight. Kobori was the only one who managed to break his fall and stayed behind the corner, holding onto Kise in a failed attempt to stop him from exposing his presence. Kasamatsu breaks out of his shy stupor and turns around to see awkward smiles and chuckles.

“Y-Y-You guys—?!”

“Ahaha… sorry Senpai… the floor was a bit… slippery?”

As Kasamatsu forgets about you in dropkicking Kise, you note how the other upperclassmen had their own little quirks in interacting with the captain. Seeing how assertive and gutsy he was compared to talking with you makes you feel unbelievably warm. Little did anyone know, you held a hand to your face as you turned away to let out a chortle before you collected yourself again.

“Ah, I guess I’ll be going now! Your practice will start soon right? I’m sure your friends were only waiting for you… Well, I’ll see you tomorrow, Kasamatsu-san!”

“W-Wait—” Kasamatsu drops Kise from his collar before he turns to you, but in making eye contact he immediately loses courage again. “I-I-I… s-see… you.”

“Of course!” You give a close-eyed smile before you leave.

“You missed the opportunity to set up the atmosphere,” Moriyama sighs, staring wistfully at the mint-scented deodorant. “Was the mint scent not enough?”

“It was going fine until you crashed in!”

“Now, now, there’s always a next time…”

As the upperclassmen continue to bicker and banter (mostly one-sided from Kasamatsu’s end), Kise, who was dropped on the floor by Kasamatsu moments prior, silently stares at the direction you left. Did you leave because you knew how embarrassed Kasamatsu was from that incident?

———

For the next few days, Kasamatsu has been quite clipped with you, reduced to mere “nn’s” and “no’s” during your conversations, and Kise doesn’t know whether you’re just as oblivious as Kobori or whether you’re ignoring it to spare his remaining shreds of dignity. He mentally sighs at how oddly persistent Moriyama is about this even though the captain refused all of his ridiculous “suggestions” every time.

“I believe Moriyama is trying to help out Kasamatsu as a close friend,” Kobori had said, when Kise grumbled about his tenacity. “He just wants the best for him.”

Even so, Kise still heaves a sigh when he sees Moriyama and Hayakawa with an agitated Kasamatsu, knowing that whatever is going on won’t be smooth-sailing. He had no choice but to join them when Kobori sneaked up on him to sling an arm around his shoulders and called over the trio.

“Huh… what’s up with Kasamatsu-senpai?”

“Ou(l) captain is af(l)aid [because someone] da(l)ed to app(l)oach (y/n)-san (l)ight now!”

“Huh? Is that really a problem?” Kise shoots a tired look at the rebound player, but Moriyama solemnly sends a gaze to where he assumed was where you were at right now.

“I knew my online research would come in handy…! Someone also has the knowledge of taking advantage of the perfect atmosphere! Look at the intimacy shared between the two…! The undeniable auras exhibited by them, and elements of spring they embody together!”

“What the hell! No way!” Even through the denials, Kasamatsu looks visibly distressed about the possible “new revelations” between you and what looks to be a close companion of yours.

“I’m gonna have to agree with Senpai on this one, Moriyama-senpai.”

“(R)ook! They finished ta(r)king and (y/n)-san waved them [off with] a smi(r)e!” Kasamatsu whips his head at the speed of light to see you sending them off with the smile Hayakawa spoke of as your friend exits the campus gate. At his dilemma, Moriyama gently nudges his arm to encourage him to go talk to you.

“... According to my online research, talking under sunny weather with a fresh scent is the formula to having the desirable spring experience.”

“Oh shut up, will ya?” Kasamatsu mumbles half-heartedly, but he slowly walks in your direction before he stops to turn back. “You better not interrupt.”

“We [will be all] the way back he(l)e to suppo(l)t you!”

With a final sigh to expel his nerves, he gives a nervous smile to his teammates before coolly walking until you turn to face him once you hear his footsteps. Almost immediately though, his calmness easily dissipates into thin air once again, and his teammates only look on in dismay and worry from afar.

“Er…” Come on, just be direct. Talk normal.

“Kasamatsu-san?”

“Y-You were… d-datin—I mean t-talking, with… someone…”

“Oh, you saw? Yeah, I asked them to meet up with me here actually.”

“Is… that so?”

“Mmhm, I asked for their notes to compare to mine because I feel like I can’t get a hand on the subject sometimes.” Kasamatsu finally finds his voice for the first time in a while when the conversation finally re-enters familiar platonic territory.

“Was it… trigonometry? I did, um, do well on it last time, so…” Normal topics. Normal topics.

“I know,” you laugh. “You told me that a few days ago, remember?”

“W-W-Well…” He coughs to clear his throat and find his voice. “Y-You could’ve… a-a-asked—er…” You patiently wait for him to try to finish his sentence, and out of the corner of your eye you accidentally made eye contact with Kise from the distance.

Kise didn’t expect for you to notice the group even from a sizable distance away. He stayed still for a few seconds to make sure the shared eye contact wasn’t a fluke. Seeing how Kasamatsu was standing there like a statue again, he puts a flat hand next to his lips to discreetly mouth out:

He’s jealous.

To his surprise, you caught onto his cues, giving a subtle yet playful smile of your own before you carefully mouth out:

I know.

The others don’t seem to notice the secret exchange, all too focused on the poor captain bowing his head down out of extreme shyness. Kise doesn’t even know why he’s doing this, but perhaps Kobori was right that it’s only right for the team to help out their hardworking captain.

“Ah, Kasamatsu-san?”

“N-Nn?” He lifts his head up abruptly at the call of his name, and he turns red from mortification at the realization that he stood there like a dunce for the past several minutes. He doesn’t even have time to react to you stepping closer to him with an outstretched hand, and he stands motionless as you slightly fiddle with his cropped hair before you pull out a vivid cherry blossom petal.

“Remember what you told me?” you muse. “That ‘you can’t risk yourself being unkempt?’ After all, you’re right… it is the week where these blossoms fall rampantly… Must I also remind you to be careful where you’re walking under?”

At this point, Kasamatsu is sputtering like a broken engine, his mind barely functioning enough for him to think about putting a hand over his face in a desperate attempt to cover his frenzy.

“I, um, I…”

“Ah… can I ask you something first instead, Kasamatsu-san?” you gently interrupt him, and he flits his gaze back to you before staring at the ground again, and you took that as silent confirmation. “A-Are… are you free to go cherry blossom watching this weekend…?”

He snaps his head up in shock, only to see you slightly pink after that slight stutter in your question. It was your turn to avoid looking at his face.

“N-nn, I’m-I’m free.”

“Ah, that’s great…!” You muster your own courage to hold his clammy hands at his sides. “Can I ask to confirm if this is a romantic date between us?”

“Y-Yes,” he says in a hurry and you only laugh at his shyness. But his piercing eyes focus on your figure before he frees his hands from your loose clasp and reaches out to you, albeit with a slight shake in his hand still, before he clumsily takes out a petal from your hair. “It was… stuck.”

“See?” you shyly tease. “I knew it shouldn’t take you long to take out petals from hair.”

He completely lost his cool in front of you again.

You didn’t really care though… not when he looked absolutely endearing with the onslaught of petals settling on top of his head and shoulders to complement his flushed face.

———

Bonus:

“So are you two dating now?” Kise asks you. You both coincidentally met up at a hallway intersection the next week.

“Well, I think that’s a bit too fast,” you inwardly laugh. “You know how he is more than anyone.” Kise gives a light chuckle of his own before he asks you the question that’s been on his mind for a while.

“Hey (y/n)-senpai, how did you know Kasamatsu-senpai liked you?”

“Eh?”

“It was pretty clear from that time last week that you knew how he felt.”

“Ah… well, remember when he was… trying… to tidy up my hair? When you all spied on us?” you say, continuing when Kise gives a slightly sheepish nod. “It felt… different from how we normally talked. I’m sure he felt it harder than I did. I’ve always been nervous talking to him, but… seeing him so flustered and shy like that made me connect the dots, and then, I became more at ease and knew to be patient, realizing that he does hold a degree of feelings for me. I just didn’t know when was the right time for us to take it a step further.”

“I see. Yeah, that makes sense.”

“I must say, please send my thanks for the rest of the team. I think without you guys, this wouldn’t have happened as smoothly… or quickly.” At your words, Kise only sweatdrops as he remembers Moriyama’s antics, Hayakawa’s over-enthusiasm, and Kobori’s good-natured naivete.

“I’ll… send your regards to them.”

“... Why do you look so hesitant?”

———

End note: the cherry blossom falling season only occurs in the first to second week of April, which would conflict with the timeline of this scenario IRL. The Japanese new school year also coincides with this week, and as 3rd-years, Kasamatsu, Moriyama, Kobori, and the reader would be college freshmen instead. If I wrote it in terms of “last year” with the 3rd-years as 2nd-years, then Kise would still be in Teiko. So for convenience sake… ignore the “realism” in the setting for this :^)

[ms-m-astrologer]

Saturn in 2021

Note: this one’s long.

Saturn’s 2021 Timeline:

Friday, January 1, 2021 - Saturn at 1:37 Aquarius

Sunday, February 14, 17:02 UT - Saturn enters pre-Rx shadow, 6:53 Aquarius

Wednesday, February 17, 19:08 UT - Saturn/Aquarius square Uranus/Taurus, 7:14 (7 degrees 14 minutes)

Sunday, May 23, 08:10 UT - Saturn stations retrograde, 13:31 Aquarius

Monday, June 14, 22:01 UT - Saturn Rx/Aquarius square Uranus/Taurus, 13:07 

Sunday, October 10, 01:19 UT - Saturn stations direct, 6:53 Aquarius

Friday, December 24, 07:17 UT - Saturn/Aquarius squares Uranus Rx/Taurus, 11:05

Saturday, January 1, 2022 - Saturn at 11:54 Aquarius

Saturday, January 15, 2022 - Saturn exits post-Rx shadow, 13:31 Aquarius

This planet, folks, is The One to pay attention to. Its transits affect everyone, without fail.

Saturn in Aquarius is just as strong as Saturn in Capricorn: both signs are ruled by Saturn, although it must share Aquarius with Uranus. And that brings me to The Three Big Deals of 2021, namely, those three squares between Saturn/Aquarius (strongly placed) and Uranus/Taurus (in its fall).

It always makes me scoff when I hear or see people say that Aquarius is a leftist, revolutionary sign. The 40th President of the US, Ronald Reagan (devil take him), was an Aquarius - he was revolutionary, all right, but in a decidedly conservative and reactionary direction. What Aquarius is (among other things), is ideological. It’s a fixed air sign; its opinions are set, and nothing will change its mind. Expect a lot of demands to adhere 100% to this or that orthodoxy. No shades of gray allowed; all is black or white.

The squares between Saturn and Uranus, according to Michelle Perrin in the 2021 Llewellyn Daily Planetary Guide, show that

We are turning a corner into a new age without really realizing we have left the old one behind, creating a time where new paradigms are no longer relevant but a new social order has yet to congeal into anything solid.

This particular square, with Saturn 270 degrees ahead of Uranus in the Zodiac, is a “Last Quarter” square. We’re turning away from what was hatched and brought to fruition after the Saturn-Uranus conjunctions of 1988 - we’re tearing down old structures that don’t work any more - and we get to do all that, without having a strong sense of where we’re headed next. (Namely, the one-and-done Saturn-Uranus conjunction, at 28:01 Gemini, on June 28, 2032.)

(If you were alive way back in 1988, think back to what was going on at the time in terms of larger cycles finishing and starting. The conjunctions were all in late Sagittarius: 29:55, 28:47, and 27:49.)

Saturn in Aquarius has particular challenges and lessons for us all to learn. The following is a synthesis between Isabel Hickey (Astrology A Cosmic Science), Steven Forrest (mostly The Book of Earth), and me.

“Tests of ownership. He who has no desire to possess has no fear of loss.” This is of course a very Taurus thing, as the sign is too apt to equate material stability with security. Uranus’ transit through Taurus is determined to demolish that misconception, and this year he’ll have some help from Saturn. We know we’re messing up here, when we give “too much power to money and security.”

“Test of true humility and lovingness. Denied the love sought in this lifetime until the spiritual bookkeeping is balanced.” Leo is all about himself being The Star, while Aquarius counters with “you’re only one star in a whole universe full of stars.” Can we shine without making it all about us? Overweening egos are due for a smackdown. Conversely, we can become too overwhelmed by “stage fright,” and refuse to share something that humanity desperately needs.

“Test of outgoing desire. Desire nature is extremely strong and until that is brought under control there is much suffering and pain.” Such a pitfall for all the fixed signs - not getting one’s own way 100%, but instead having to compromise, adapt, adjust, etc. - but especially for Scorpio. This may also manifest as needing to get over the typical Scorpio broody gloominess, into a more positive frame of mind.

“Test of responsibility. The soul must accept the responsibility of regeneration and be about the Father’s business.” I’m pretty sure what “Issy” meant was that we have to stop trying to keep up with the Joneses, and start trying to help our fellow humans. But there’s another danger here, namely the stereotypical Aquarian detachment from emotions. The sign can be too cold, and that eventually begets sociopaths.

When Saturn travels between 1:37 and 6:53 Aquarius: placements will receive a one-and-done aspect from transiting Saturn. Examples: Ms M’s natal Mars/Aries will receive a one-and-done sextile; Ms M’s natal Juno/Leo will receive a one-and-done opposition. (Like it matters if she’s single!?!)

When Saturn travels between 6:53 and 13:31 Aquarius: Saturn spends most of his time here, not only for 2021 but going a couple of weeks into 2022. Any placements affected by this will get three separate aspects. The first one will bring a situation to our attention; the second, retrograde aspect will give us further insights into the situation; the third and final aspect will allow some resolution, if we work for it. 

(This part is making Ms M apprehensive, since it’s going to trigger her natal fixed grand cross: Asc/Scorpio, Venus and Desc in Taurus, both squared by Ceres and Uranus in Leo, and by Pholus in Aquarius. Empty nest?)

Even more fun is that transiting Uranus/Taurus will be wreaking havoc at the same time. It will travel between 6:48 and 14:49 of Taurus in 2021, and as you can see it overlaps the same degrees as Saturn. If you have fixed placements between 6:53 and 13:31 (that is, anything in the signs Taurus, Leo, Scorpio, or Aquarius), there is some hard work in your future. Even if it’s for something better to manifest, and even when we know that intellectually, we’re still reluctant to let go of control.

This also goes for mutable placements (the signs Gemini, Virgo, Sagittarius, or Pisces) between 21:53 and 28:31; Saturn and Uranus will semi-square (45 degrees) or sesquare (135 degrees) that placement, making for a lot of frustration. You won’t be able to wiggle out of consequences, as easily as you normally do.

If you have placements between 6:53 and 13:31 of the signs Aries, Gemini, Libra, or Sagittarius - lucky you! You’ve got some flowing energy between Saturn and that placement, and although it doesn’t guarantee a less painful time, you’ll at least have an easier time coming to grips with it. (Trine Ms M’s natal Mercury/Gemini/8th - astrology will get her through this!!)

In The Book of Earth, Steven Forrest starts out every description of transiting Saturn aspects, with the words “Growing pains.” That description is perfect. The stakes are a little higher, and the process more complex, than simply getting physically taller, though. Steven says that during “Saturn times,” we need to intentionally select a challenge, then give it everything we’ve got. The reward is that we move forward to the next maturational stage; if we refuse, we end up trapped in the past. Here are a couple more quotes from the Saturn section of Steven’s The Book of Earth.

“Saturn is not narrowly about old age; it is simply about whatever is the next step for us.” Growing up, in other words. As I have said on this blog many times before, the “only” thing that happened to me during my first Saturn return, was getting married. That was still a big deal in 1987: I assumed a different societal role (remember Saturn’s association with the 10th House), in a very traditional way (natal Saturn in Sagittarius). Perhaps it is because, as a small girl, I had four Crone figures in my life; perhaps it’s all the Aries in me, trined by my natal Saturn - but I wasn’t afraid, instead embracing the new opportunities.

“Saturn is not bad - but it is quite fair to say that it is hard.” My guess is that this is the one that frightens many 20-somethings - not to mention people who are much, much older and ought to know better. “Hard” does not equal “bad”!

Saturn in Aquarius is all about (1) knowing your own values and (2) living up to them. Anybody else’s approval, or disapproval, is completely irrelevant - and we need to accept that, even if “anybody else” doesn’t. We need to question authority, and also what’s known as “conventional wisdom.” We need to work on becoming more “authentic.” And we need to become comfortable with some solitude (2020 has been a great training ground for that), without isolating ourselves emotionally. There are a few people at least who will understand and accept you; get off your ass and put yourself in the way of finding them.

[p---ink]

Stark Contrasts: Chapter Three

Author’s Note: Hello all! For those of you following this series this is part 3 in my Tony Stark Fan-fiction. Part one is here, and part two is there. So sorry for the late update by the way. Writer’s block is a bitch. But I refuse to post something I don't at least like a little bit. That being said, I loved writing this chapter. Honestly if I can get just one person to read this and say they like it, I’ll be so grateful. It’s full of “angst”. I still use that word lightly, because to me it’s a drama instead of a story that makes you feel dread or anxiousness. Anyway I really hope you guys enjoy it, because this one took me a while. 

Summary: Upon finding about you and Tony’s romance, Edward Stark loses it. Pepper Potts steps in to help mediate the situation. 

Warnings: Angst, Language. No smut this time, sorry. :(

Song: Cry by Cigarettes after Sex. 

Word Count: 8.8k

Parts: one | two | three | four | five

Chapter Title: Mother Knows Best

 The concept of silence was made by man. We know this, because the world around us is never truly silent. You could argue differently though, because in this moment it felt like time stood still. You couldn’t even hear the sound of the clock ticking, as it rang loudly throughout the quiet room. Even the sound of your heart beating rapidly against your ribcage, fell on deaf ears. The one thing that was apparent to you however, was the rage behind Edward’s cool facade. Though it didn’t make a physical sound, it screamed louder than any noise had ever made.

You stopped embracing Tony and stepped away from him.  “By all means, please don’t stop on my account.” Edward chuckled. 

“I thought you were asleep.” Tony admitted, as if his thoughts helped the situation. He didn’t say it in an apologetic or shameful way, more so just stating a preconceived notion.

“Would that have made a difference?” Edward questioned, furrowing his brows inquisitively. “You know believe it or not, I felt guilty for leaving my girlfriend all alone in an unfamiliar town.” He stated, turning towards you and putting emphasis on the word unfamiliar. “When I heard your taxi pull up, I decided to come down and make sure you arrived safely. Can’t say I wasn’t surprised to see such a beautiful declaration of love.” He relayed his thoughts and actions as if he was telling a close friend a funny story. 

“Edward, we—” You start to explain. 

“We?” He interrupts, smile dropping for a second. But as quickly as it disappeared, it was back again. He began shaking his head in disbelief as he repeated the word ‘we’. “So you guys are a ‘we’, now? This is too fucking rich.” He laughed.

His grin was so wide, it almost looked genuine, and had you not known the story behind this reaction, you would of thought his joy made him look even more handsome. Right now, however, all it did was scare you.

“You know. I always thought it was weird how close you guys were.” He confessed, waving his finger in a playful ‘you-got-me’ kind of manner. His voice was sickeningly sweet, and it made your stomach churn. “But I told myself, that it was a good thing my dad liked my girlfriend so much. You know some people can’t say the same. Man was I foolish!” He exclaimed, looking between the two of you. While you gnawed at the inside of your bottom lip and averted your gaze away from Edward in shame, Tony rolled his eyes and scoffed at the display in front of him. 

“Dad tell me” He started again, pausing for a second to meet Tony’s eyes. “This is why you needed me at my desk right? So you could fuck my slut of a girlfriend?” If the words themselves didn’t make you wince, the tone they were laced in certainly did.

“Watch your mouth, when you address her.” Tony snapped through gritted teeth. 

Edward quickly threw his hands up  in defense before saying, “I’m sorry dad, you’re absolutely right. I should have said your, slut of a girlfriend. Please forgive me.” He smiled, watching his father’s fists clench. When you grabbed one of Tony’s hands, and whispered a ‘calm down’, Edward lost it. He focused on the way your chin rested on his father’s shoulder as well your hand on his a little too long. 

“How long has this been going on?” He asked coldly, abandoning the amused act. It stayed silent for a moment, and since he didn’t address a specific person, you took it upon yourself to answer. You felt you at least owed him that.

“A little over—” you try to answer, but your attempt is short-lived. 

“I was talking to my dad” He snarled, raising his voice and a hand to silence you. Turning his attention back to Tony, he repeated his question. “How long has this been going on?”

“Does it matter?” Tony quickly retorted, growing tired of the way Edward had been talking to you. 

“You know what, I think it does.” Edward challenged, eyes turning into thin slits as he looked his father up and down. “I deserve to know when this all started.” He said as if it was a matter of fact

Tony scrutinized him for a second, contemplating on whether or not he wanted to be mature or petty. He chose petty. “Fine. Since you insist on knowing all the juicy details: I’ve wanted her since the first day we met.” He revealed, shocking both you and Edward. “Now you do the math.”

  Now really thinking about it, Edward gradually stood from his seated position on the stairs. He tried piecing everything together, but it was hard because when he was home, he really wasn’t present. The evidence was still there, however, and even a blind man could see it. How could he have missed those longing stares from across the room? The lingered touches that Tony would press against the small of your back. He somehow even managed to dismiss the way the room would go quiet whenever he walked in. The way Tony whispered to you secrets that would make your thighs clench. What innocent thing could he be saying that would make your body react like that? As you two watched anger consume him, Tony gently pushed you behind himself before Edward spoke again. 

His nails had a grip on his palms so tight, you were sure they left blood, or at the very least dents. His chest, was rapidly rising and falling, as if he was having trouble keeping air in his lungs. His jaw produced a slight bulge, that was a direct result from the way he fastened it shut. “Dad.” He growled, his carefree demeanor now long gone.“How could you? She was mine.”

“See that’s your problem Edward. She doesn’t fucking belong to you, or anyone else for that matter.” Tony corrected, matching his son’s hostile energy. “And if you really cared about her, maybe I would have never had the chance to fuck her.” Your brows furrowed at his choice of words, and you gave him a sideways glare. He was purposely trying to evoke a reaction.

He got what he wanted, because as soon as he said it, Edward moved like a blur as he crossed the room to connect his fist with Tony’s face. He caused him to fall to the ground before catching himself with his palms. You gasped, and dropped to the floor beside the fallen Tony, who was now licking a busted lip. 

“I hope she was worth every minute.” Edward spat, kneeling down to clutch his father’s collar.

“Every second.” Tony teased, finding a smirk under the sting he felt from his lips. Edward delivered another punch, this one landing on one of his eyes, then another that found its way under the side of his chin, leaving only a few seconds between each blow. Had you not pushed yourself between them he would have left his father’s face a bloody and swollen mess. 

“Stop!” You shriek, holding your arm up to shield any further blows. He did stop, but you two held each other’s glares. His hand was still fixed in an attack position, and thats when you began to soften your features. You realized that he was seriously considering whether or not he wanted to hit you as well. Before you just knew he wouldn’t harm you, but seeing the look on his face now you weren’t so sure. Was that how bad you had hurt him? 

Edward decided against striking you. Though his father had been taking his hits like a champ, that would quickly change as soon as Edward laid a finger on you. Fire burning in his eyes and a serious conflict within, he stood to collect himself. “You’re dead to me, Y/N.” He stated, lowly. You wanted so badly to say ‘I’ve been dead to you for a long time now’ but decided that now wasn’t the time. 

He began straightening the wrinkles from his shirt and running his long digits through his raven black hair. “I’ll send for my stuff.” Was all he said as he took a step over both you and Tony, walking away in search of his keys.

“Better send someone quick, before they have to sort through ashes!” Tony shouted, rolling to his side to pick himself up with your aid. Edward neither spared him a glance, nor another word. 

When you heard the door click, you helped Tony readjust. Once he was put back together, you pulled your hand back as far you could to deliver a solid smack to his arm.

“Ow” he wailed, grasping the area you hit. “Haven’t I been hit enough today?” 

“No. Why did you have to act so childish?” You asked, demanding an answer.

Still rubbing the sore spot on his arm, he looked down at you with a blank expression.  “He deserved it.” Was what he said in an indifferent tone.  

You rolled your eyes, before saying “Even if that’s the truth, he was upset and he had every right to be.”

“No Y/N, he didn’t.” He said slightly raising his voice, and talking with his hands. “How he could even call you his girlfriend after all of this time, is beyond me. He doesn’t get to be upset.”

“Tony we violated his trust.” You cried, searching his frustrated face in hopes of finding a sliver of empathy for his son. 

“Edward is a self-serving jackass, who relatively no one can trust. Do you really think he holds weight in this matter?” He countered, raising a brow. In realization that his face was now forming bruises, you asked these next questions.

“You have all of the answers don’t you? Was this all worth the black eye and busted lip?” You ask, gesturing towards his face.

“Absolutely.” He answered referring to both questions. “I’d do it again if it meant seeing the look on his face.” He stated proudly.

“You’re impossible.” You grumble, as you walk away to grab a dampened rag from the bathroom. 

“Edward’s the one who’s impossible!” Tony shouted from the other room.

You rolled your eyes for what felt like the tenth time tonight at his comment. “Why is he being so immature?” You mumbled to yourself, before walking back to the foyer washcloth in hand. You found him in the family room instead, studying a younger photo of Edward. He did feel guilty, he was just to proud to show it. You sighed alerting him of your presence. He instantly reacted by sitting the frame back down on its floating shelf, clearing his throat and pretending that you didn’t just capture him longing for the days when Edward was at the very beginning of his youth. You decided to play his game, choosing not to mention his shame, but still acknowledging that it existed. That was enough for you. To you it meant he was a good person. 

“Come here” you quietly say. He sauntered over to you slowly, reaching down to take the cloth from your hands. You playfully jerk it back from him, before giving him a fixed look. Pushing him down on the nearest couch to stand between his legs, he holds onto your waist to keep you steady. The cool washcloth dripped water down your arm, as you reached up to nurse his bruises. Apparently Edward had been wearing a ring, because a cut had formed just above Tony’s brow. He winced when you pressed the cloth over the mark to clean it. You couldn’t help but feel guilty, feeling to be the cause of this all.

“Did you mean what you said earlier?” Tony asked breaking the silence.

“What did I say earlier?” 

“You said you love me.” You could tell he felt insecure, and your prolonged answer only made it worse.

“Of course I did silly.” You say, pecking the tip of his nose, literally kissing his worries away. “And what about you, did you mean it when you said you’ve wanted me since the first day we met?”

“Every word of it.” He smirked. You grinned back, finding comfort in his words. It didn’t last longs though, as tonights events kept replaying in your mind. 

“So…where do we go from here?” You asked softly, voice just barely above a whisper. Had you not been standing right in front of him, he would have missed it.

The cloth covered one of his eyes completely, so he looked at you with the free one. But even with no eyes, he would be able to sense the worry in your voice, and imagine the worry on your face. He cupped the hand that was on his cheek, and kept his other hand on your hip. 

“We just wait, The hard part is over now.” He assured,  leaning in to plant a kiss to your forehead, then your nose, before settling in on your lips, tugging your shirt to deepen it.

After you finished up his face you guys prepared to go to sleep. It was the first night since your being together where you weren’t afraid of being caught. You laid in bed, and thought of his words as you forced yourself to sleep. You wished you could believe them, but knowing the man that Edward was, you knew tonight was nothing compared to what was to come. 

__________________________________________________________________

“You slept with his girlfriend, and you have the nerve to tell me to calm down?” Was what you heard when you woke up. A few days had passed since Edward found out about you two. You were trying not to think about it too hard, but life had other plans. You wiped the crust from your eyes, and slowly sat up to yawn and stretch, focusing in on the conversation unfolding downstairs. 

“Tony, among all of the morally fucked up things you’ve done, this has got to be the worst! And Stark Industries used to cater to the advancements of industrialized weapons.” Pepper. That voice belongs to Pepper. You thought.

“Okay Pepper, you’re being a little dramatic. The weapons are obviously worse.” Tony said, in a fed-up tone. You carefully let your feet hit the floor to silently go eavesdrop from the top of the banister. 

“We both know that’s not the point.” She said bringing her voice down an octave. 

“Then exactly what point are you trying to make, Ms. Potts? Why are you here?” Tony retorted. He spoke in hushed tones, but the annoyance in his voice was clear.  

“I need to see Y/N, so—”

“No.” Tony quickly interrupted, but Pepper continued.

“—So we can figure this mess out.” She cried. 

“Hell no Pepper, I’m not letting you bother her with this bullshit.” Tony bit.

“Edward is really upset!”

“Unfortunately, I am all out of fucks to give about Edward’s feelings.” 

“Tony, look at what he’s threatening to put out.” You could tell she was showing him something, you just didn’t know what “If this reaches the public people are gonna start piecing these things together, and realize it has to do with you.”

“Pepper.”

“Let me speak to Y/N.”

“No.” At this point you began making your way downstairs, curious as to why she came all this way. You liked Pepper. You met her after meeting Tony. They had been separated for months. Despite Tony’s horror stories, she was always nice to you. Perhaps the divorce helped her find herself, because the Pepper you met was nothing like the one he described. 

“Y/N! Please come down!” You hear Pepper yell from the foyer. 

“Pepper, are you out of your mind? For crying out loud.” Tony cries upon seeing you descend. He was facing the staircase, hands on Pepper’s shoulders trying to urge her out of the door. Her back was turned, until she followed Tony’s line of sight, spinning to focus her smoky blue eyes on you instead. 

Her golden blonde hair was done up into her typical tight ponytail. Makeup light, consisting only of a simple peach colored lipstick and mascara. She wore a tan pencil skirt, white blouse and safe nude pumps. As per usual, Pepper was perfectly primped, not a gold lock out of place, save her bangs and a few intentional strands that cradled her face. If only her appearance could match her attitude.

She fully turned her body so that her attention was on you. “Y/N, please tell me this whole thing isn’t true.” Pepper pleaded.

“I’m afraid it is Ms. Potts.” You reply, sheepishly, suddenly feeling ashamed again. To have Pepper disappointed in you, felt worst than getting caught by Edward himself. 

“Jesus.” She sighed, closing her eyes shut and pinching the bridge of her nose. “You two, have royally fucked yourselves.  Take a look at this.” She stepped closer to you with an iPad in hand, dragging a skinny finger across the screen to reach the content she wanted you to see. She came to a stop and handed it over to you once she reached a page that looked like an article, or at least the rough draft of one. It was clearly about you and Tony, as the entire thing talked about Edward dealing with the betrayal of two people closest to him: a person who gave him life, and a person whom he gave his love. He was the victim, and though he did not put a name to his betrayers, they were clearly the decorated villains. It was very well-written. He even added parts to the story that not even you knew happened. 

Tony watched you panic. He watched the worry lines etch themselves in your skin. He snatched the iPad from your wandering fingers, and then he watched confusion take the place of worry. “You have to get ready for class. Besides, Ms. Potts was just leaving.” He firmly stated.

“What? No Tony. I don’t think it’s a good idea for her to go to school today.” She suggested as Tony handed her the device back. “We have to figure out what we are going to do about this.” Was what she said as he gently pushed her out of the house, and closed the door in her face.

He was really upset with her for upsetting you. Maybe he was also upset about Edward, but he felt his son couldn’t do any real harm. However, he knew you felt otherwise.

“Don’t worry about him.” He assured. “Eddy is just throwing another tantrum.” 

“Another?” You questioned, both worry and confusion working hard to dominate your features. “What are you not telling me?”

“Stop worrying. That’s what I am telling you.” 

“How can I not? Tony you keep telling me not to be worried, but you and I have seen what he can do when he’s upset.”

“Yea well I taught him how to do it. His ‘power’ comes from me, and I can assure you that. Everything will be fine.” He assured once again.

You blow out hot air threw your nose, frustrated with his naivety. He was really acting like the problem didn’t exist. “I have to get ready for class.” You stated, flicking your hands in the air as if to brush off his words before stomping away. 

“Baby?” He yells from the foyer, as you retreat up the stairs.  

“What Tony?” You yell back, once you make the bathroom. 

“Are you mad at me?” He whines.

“Yes!” You scream.

“Well, I love you!” You can practically hear the grin in his voice.

“Fuck you Tony.” You yell, mocking fake agitation.

 “Sure, but we have to wait until after you get home from school.” Well at least he learned his lesson from last time. You think to yourself, smiling as you get ready for the day. 

_________________________________________________________________

It felt like days had passed as you watched Professor Maxwell drone on and on about quantum mechanics. In reality, it had only been about 4 hours since you left the house. This was your last class of the day, so of course he had to drag it on.

You sat alone in his huge lecture hall, half-heartedly scribbling down notes. Though you were easy to get along with, and many people thought you were cool and nice, you found it hard to make real friends with your peers. You attended a prestigious university and most of them came from different backgrounds. Of course, for the most part, there was nothing was wrong with that, but it did make it harder to find common interests from time to time. It wasn’t like you didn’t have any friends though, just not in this particular environment. This fact alone helped you excel in your studies and passions. You found with no social distractions you could get more done. Right now however, you were more distracted than you had ever been.

You kept thinking about Edward’s article. You kept thinking about Edward. You really hurt him. But Tony was right, Edward had been hurting you since the beginning. It still didn’t make it okay for you to cheat, let alone sleep with his Dad. Preoccupied with your self-guilt, you didn’t notice the dings that sounded off around the quiet auditorium. Gasps, and soft whispers, followed, as people looked at you, but you were far too focused on your own problems to pay attention to theirs. You weren’t too focused to not hear the professor signal the end of class though. 

Shoving your laptop in your bag, you sprung to your escape. Bursting through the grand oak doors of your university’s science hall, you rushed to be the first in line at the school’s popular little cafe. Grabbing their pastry of the day became your favorite ritual. 

You leaned down to take in all of your choices. The warm yellow light of the display case illuminating your face. You could hear a faint buzz coming from it over the humming of the espresso machines, the overplayed pop songs, and the chatter from your fellow students and locals that frequented it. Coming here was peaceful. It was much like the library would be to someone who needed to focus. You found the busyness of the world relaxing, because no matter how many problems you faced, everyone else just kept moving.  

You thought about how you were gonna treat yourself. Maybe you would have an apple strudel today. Or perhaps a blueberry cannoli? Peach scone? You decide on the strawberry shortcake, it was a classic and to die for. You pointed it out to the pastry clerk, and he was happy to go and prepare it for you. 

“What, your sugar daddy not giving you enough sugar at home?” You heard a voice ask from behind you. You mentally groaned and rolled your eyes at the sound of Amber. She was a girl from Edward’s past that had a personal vendetta against you for reasons unknown. They were long done before you entered the picture, but Amber must of felt otherwise. 

You turned around to greet her, and as always you were astonished by her appearance. She had these catlike hazel green eyes that could burn a hole through steel. A strawberry blonde curly mane cascaded down her shoulders. She also had a natural sun-kissed golden tan, and she stood at a tall 5’11. She was gorgeous. Why she was still hung up on Edward, you would never know.

She had with her, Cassie, a faithful fan of hers who couldn’t form her own standing opinion . She kissed Amber’s ass so much you were surprised to find out she didn’t live in her toilet. She also brung Jasmine one of her new recruits, a petite mousy-like sophomore. Jasmine was okay, but she was a try-hard in constant need to of approval, hence why she hung out with Amber. 

“Hi Amber.” You smile, mustering up your last bit of fucks to give. You were too tired to acknowledge the meaning behind her comment, but not too tired to throw her a bone. 

“Hi Amber.” She mocked, slurring your words. “You had everyone around you eating out of the palm of your hands, but I knew your goody-two-shoes act was just that: an act.” 

“What are you talking about?” You asked, heart dropping to your stomach. You hoped she wasn’t talking about what you thought she was. 

“So you can’t read now? Let me say this slowly so you can comprehend.” She cleared her throat for a comedic effect before she spoke again. “Edward finally let the rest of the world know what a gold digging slut you are!” She smirked, throwing out her hand to Jasmine who wasn’t paying her any attention. “Jasmine!” Amber shrieked, causing the poor girl to jump. She quickly recovered from her incompetence, and scrambled to pass Amber her phone. Amber passed it to you, careful not to take her eyes away from yours. She didn’t want to miss the face of a girl who’s life was about to fall apart.

On the phone, was the same article Pepper had shown to you earlier, only this time it had been updated with even more lies spread throughout. Edward played the part of an unsuspecting, loving, and caring son/boyfriend, who was blindsided by the treachery of his beloved father and girlfriend. 

Again no names, but if it wasn’t already obvious, people knew it was you now. You looked up to Amber, a smug look playing on her features. It didn’t unsettle you as much as she wanted it to. What unsettled you though, was when you looked around the cafe. All the noise and chatter had all but come to a cease. The humming from the coffee machines, the overplayed pop song, and the buzz from the display counter were all that could be heard. They were waiting. Waiting for an answer. Waiting for your reaction. 

No. You thought. I am not gonna give this bitch or anyone else the satisfaction of my reaction. You tighten your jaw, and turn to pay for your pastry, now in a hurry to leave the shop. 

Amber was not having it. “So you have nothing to say?” She scoffed loudly. “I am clearly talking to you.” She harshly grabbed your shoulder to turn you around. 

You were ready to throw hands but before you could you were promptly cut-off by someone else.

“Leave her alone Amber, before I fuck you up.” They commanded. Everyone’s necks snap to investigate the source of noise. Eyes land on the pink-haired girl at the back of the cafe. She had chosen a cozy little corner booth, where she could kick her feet up to watch all of those around her. 

“Excuse me?” Amber sneered.

Nao, if you remembered her name correctly, swung her feet out of the booth to make her way through the crowd. She came to stand in front of Amber’s frame, before she addressed her again. “Let me say this slow enough so that you can comprehend” You smiled, as she borrowed Amber’s words from earlier. “I said: ‘Leave her alone Amber, before I fuck you up.’”

“What are you gonna do to me Nail?” Amber challenged, feeling quite good about herself for the joke she made. 

“It’s Nao, but you knew that already, and you don’t want to try me” She warned. 

“What could possibly be worse than sleeping with your boyfriend’s dad?” Amber asked a little too loudly for your liking, she earned an uncomfortable laugh from Jasmine, and a cackle from Cassie, who playfully tapped her shoulder in approval. There were also a few scattered snickers from other people in the cafe.

“I don’t know, maybe you should ask all of those married men, who you slept with over the summer.” Nao suggested, eyes wide mocking innocence. “If they don’t know, their children and wives might.”

‘Ooo’s’ and ‘ahh’s’ erupted throughout the quiet space of the cafe. Someone whispered, “Did she say ‘men’, as in plural?”

Amber looked like she had seen a ghost as Nao looked her up and down, daring her to spill another word. Cassie took the dare.

“Nao, that’s not true! And even if it was it’s none of your business you nosy little cunt.”

“Don’t get me started on you Cassie. We all remember that time you sucked off Bryson Kidd, for a bag of hot Cheetos and a kiwi strawberry Arizona.” She said as she twisted her neck to look at Cassie’s mortified expression. Then her eyes traveled, landing on Jasmine,  who shook her head as if to say she didn’t want any part of this. 

Nao let her be, then turned to address the rest of the room, “Anyone else?”  She asked, gruff voice now coated in honey. She continued her scan around the shop, trying to bait people. This was fun for her, she knew they were scared. They knew she was a revered tech major, at the top of her class. Her know-how with computers wasn’t the reason she knew about Amber though. She wasn’t invasive like people thought she was. She was just quiet and observant. 

Nao continued her rant, “Are we all forgetting that Edward Stark has slept with at least half the women in this room alone? Mind you while he and Y/N were still in a relationship.” She looked around, disappointed in her peers. She caused some of the women in question to avert their judgy gazes away from you, mumbling profanities about Nao being a snoopy bitch. Nao turned back to Amber, who was still hot from embarrassment. “Where were your words of judgment then Amber?” She said leaning in to whisper in her ear. “Oops my bad. I shouldn’t expect you to say anything to him while his cock is stuffed down your throat.” 

The light pink that dusted Amber’s cheeks, deepened to a crimson that spread across her entire face and neck. She huffed, and turned on her feet to excuse herself from the cafe, Cassie and Jasmine both hot on her trail.

When they were gone, the conversations around you picked up again as people tried not to stare. 

Nao, finally turned her attention towards you. The smile you sported throughout her entire show dissipated as you realized she was about to tear into you now. She stepped closer, and closer to you, instantly making you shy away. When she was close enough to examine the pores on your face, she took out a crinkled 10 dollar bill, that she handed to the cashier. “I’ve got this one.” She declared, smiling in reference to your strawberry shortcake. The clerk handed her the bag, which she handed to you before taking a step back. You could tell she struggled with personal space.

“Thank you” You start. “But why did you do that?”  

She knew you were referring to Amber. “You never bother anyone Y/N. You’re always so nice. If you ever need me, just give me a call.” She motioned to your phone, “May I?”

“Oh yea, sure.” You say, before handing her your unlocked device so she could type in her number. While she input her contact information, you took advantage of the temporary distraction to really survey her features.

She was Japanese,  you remembered that from the icebreaker you had in a shared class a year ago. Brown freckles, that looked like constellations were sprinkled along her rosy cheeks. Long lashes, fluttered every time she opened her eyes to blink. And as mentioned before, she had pink hair, a wavy pixie cut to be exact, that sat on her head like a fluffy cloud. She was tall, but not as tall as Amber. Lanky, with long limbs. Bushy black eyebrows sat above her honey brown eyes. Her nose was so small, you wondered how she could breathe out of it. She, like Amber, was very pretty, only in a “non-traditional” way. 

You had a girl-crush. You were giddy by the fact that a strong woman came to your aid, batting for you like that. When she looked back up at you, you realized you were staring, so you ripped yourself out of your daze of admiration. “Thank you again. Also thank you for this!” You exclaimed, lifting up the brown goody bad. 

“Its no problem. Enjoy it. It’s almost as sweet as you.” She smiled at you widely before turning to leave.

What a great way to start off your Monday. 

__________________________________________________________________

“Tony I’m back!” You called throughout the house. Your echo was the only thing to greet you back. Must not be home. You thought to yourself.

You sit your keys in the dish next to the door, kicking your shoes off, deciding to worry about them later. Grabbing yourself a bottle of wine, and a glass to pour it in , you drift into the living room. You take your seat in your favorite chair, ready to kick your feet up and relax. 

“Hi.” Pepper says behind you, making you spill your grown-up juice on the seat beside you, as well as on Tony’s equally expensive rug. You knew that neat-freak was gonna lose his shit. 

“Pepper!” You squeal, “Why didn’t you say anything when I called out earlier?!”

“I didn’t want to startle you.” She explained rushing to grab some club soda and a dish rag from the kitchen. 

“How is this any better?!” You yell, as she reenters the room, falling to the rug to clean out the stains. She threw you a spare cloth and handed you the soda to tackle the spreading splotch on the couch. 

“I don’t know! Give me a break for at least trying.”

“How did you even get in here?” You ask, vigorously scrubbing into the fibers of the couch. 

“Y/N, I used to live here.” You abruptly stopped as she continued. At the mention of it, you cringed at how awkward this might have been for Pepper. You were Tony’s new plaything, while she was his old one. Not to mention the fact that you also had been with her son. 

“I forgot.” You sigh, before apologizing. “I’m sorry for all of this Pepper. This must be really strange for you.” The spot on the couch was now faint, so you abandoned your previous efforts. 

Satisfied with the removal of her designated stain as well, Pepper stood from her knees to occupy the seat opposite to you. “Nonsense dear.” She replied, giving you a tight smile. “Sit, please.”

“Where’s Tony?” You ask as you do as she says. She must have some idea, since she was here but he wasn’t. 

“On his way to get this article pulled. I can imagine he’ll want to confront Edward as well.” Pepper informed you, crossing her legs to get comfortable. You let out a huff of air, seeing as the last time they saw each other, it didn’t end quite well. “Speaking of Edward, he’s the reason I’ve come to see you. We have to talk about this.”

“Not to be blunt Pepper, but what else is there to talk about? Everyone already knows about it, how much worse could it get?”

“That’s the thing. It will only get worse if you two continue your affair. Edward is talking about filing an injunction against Tony. He could lose his position as CEO of Stark Industries.” You eyed her in disbelief. You knew Edward was capable of being vindictive, just not this much. 

“Can he really do that? Is what I have with Tony that serious?” You were genuinely concerned.

“Ordinarily CEO’s don’t get removed because of their personal relationships, but because you and Tony have something different, I believe Edward has a fighting chance.” She paused to exhale as she surveyed your features. “Tony’s face is plastered everywhere in the world. He is Stark Industries, and a lot of his success comes from his fame. To be associated with such a scandal could prove very harmful to the future of this company.” She finished. 

Just like Edward worked hard to prove himself to Tony, Tony worked harder to prove himself to Howard Stark. He risked everything, putting his all into Stark Industries. Erasing the blemish of  its past with weapons of mass destruction, he had successfully turned it into a clean, and sustainable energy industry that had proven just as, if not more, successful than its predecessor. He also dabbled in AI, robotics, and non-lethal ways to disarm enemies. You would not be the reason that all got thrown away. Still you couldn’t help the sinking feeling in your gut.

“So I have to just stop seeing Tony?” You asked, internally pulling yourself together.

“I wish I could say it was that easy, Y/N. But we both know Tony won’t just stop seeing you.”

“So what do you suggest I do?” You asked her now slightly agitated. 

She sensed your irritation, but elected to ignore it, opting to continue her use of a soothing voice instead. “I understand you have an internship in France. I’m also sure that Tony, knows about it. Correct?”

“Yes. What about it?” You ignore the fact that she knows this despite not telling her. You had long given up on how Pepper acquired her information. Perhaps Edward had mentioned it, but you couldn’t see why it would be of interest to him. 

“Well Tony can’t know where you’re going. So how would you feel if I told you, I could pull some strings to get you an all-expense paid internship somewhere else?” 

“What’s the catch?” You ask sighing. This was all too much to process. 

“Instead of leaving in May, you’ll have to start preparing things now. You’ll need to leave as soon as possible so that you can get settled in by next week.” She quickly replied.

“Next week?” You gasp. “That doesn’t give me enough time to prepare. What about my course-load and credits? And my family, my friends? What would I tell them?”

“I already have everything handled.” She said raising her hands in a ‘calm-down’ kind of way. “Also, if you decide to leave you’ll need a place to stay for the time-being. I would offer my home, but Tony is too smart to not look there. You’ll need to stay somewhere he won’t find you until we can get you shipped out.” 

Is she for real? You thought to yourself. “Wait, you’re really serious about getting me to leave.” You say, through a pained chuckle.

“This is what’s best.” She simply replied, pursing her lips. 

“What do you get out of this Pepper?” You ask deciding now was the perfect moment to let your frustration boil over. “I mean, Tony is your ex, and I am the on who cheated on your son with said ex. You should be happy that Edward is about to ruin us. Why should I trust you?”

“Well first, let’s have the Tony conversation, it clearly makes you feel guilty.” She said drawing in a sharp breath. “His and my relationship was over before it even started. We were supposed to remain friends instead of lovers, but we ruined that with marriage. There are no hard feelings, so I don’t care who he’s with, even if it’s you. Now, on to Edward.”

She sat up in her chair to clasp her hands around her knee. “I am the reason he is the way he is. And for that, I apologize. In all honesty Y/N, I always liked you. I saw myself in you, and I still said nothing as I let him ruin you. I felt that you would be good for him. I ignored the fact that he wasn’t good for you. Guilt has consumed me, and the only way I see fit to redeem myself is to do my part in making sure he doesn’t ruin his father and you. I am trying to help.”

You wanted to believe her, but you still had your doubts. “How do I know this is all the truth? This whole injunction thing could be a ploy to get me out of the picture.”

Her patience was thinning. “If you want to risk it, then go right ahead. But don’t forget who you’re dealing with here. Edward has promised to stop if you leave. At least this way, everyone gets to keep what they worked so hard for. That article can do serious damage to your future career and Tony’s current one. And Edward will not stop until he’s satisfied.” 

At this point Pepper had said all that she came to say. So she stood to leave, but not before saying one last thing. “Tony doesn’t know I’m here. I’d like to keep it that way. Also, you don’t have much time to think about this one dear. The longer you stay, the more you risk. Contact me once you’ve made your decision”

You looked at her with your eyes full of sorrow. Pepper’s eyes could only offer you sympathy. You really wanted to believe she was telling the truth. But if she was, you had a lot to think about. You wished someone else could make the decision for you.

__________________________________________________________________

“Sweetheart!” Tony shouted, voice booming off of the walls. “Did you spill something on the rug?!Wait the fucking couch too!” 

How the hell did he see that, we scrubbed the shit out of those stains. You think to yourself, without answering him.

You could hear him as he stomped up the stairs, searching the rooms to find the one you were in. He found you in the laundry room, folding his and your clothes. “We have a housekeeper you know.” He reminded as he leaned against the doorway amused by the sight before him. 

“She’s a little weird, I saw her admiring my panties.” You answered weakly. 

He shook his head, as if you were the one being absurd. “That’s not weird, I do it all the time.  Anyway, did you spill wine downstairs?” 

“Yea sorry.” You reply. He could tell you were a bit off, since you didn’t laugh at his joke. You hadn’t even looked at him since he arrived. 

“Are you okay?” He asks stepping a bit closer. 

“I’m fine.” You responded, absentmindedly folding one of his shirts. 

“You’re lying.” He stated, pretty sure of himself. “If this is about the article, I got the publisher to pull it. It’s gonna be played off like a rumor.”

“It’s not about the article.” You sigh.

“So it is something. What is it?” He pressed, placing a hand over your folding ones to get them to stop

You knew he wasn’t going to give up, so you decided to just get it over with. “I had a talk with Pepper today.”

“Not this shit again.” He grumbled dropping his hands to exit the room. 

“Tony listen. She made a few good points.” You say following him as he strides away to his bedroom. 

“I don’t care about the points she’s made Y/N. I told you that you have nothing to worry about.” He countered, sounding exhausted. He had been exhausted since that night with Edward. 

“If that’s true then why did you go see Edward today?” 

“Who told you that?” He asked, spinning around to eye you suspiciously

“You just did.” You watched his face change from curiosity to awe. It was rare for you to outsmart him. “If you’re not worried, why were you there.”

He turned back around to loosen his tie, before saying “I don’t have to have this conversation right now.”

You exhaled loudly, frustrated with his stubbornness. “Either we have this conversation now, or we never have it.”

“What is that supposed to mean?” He asked in an amused tone. 

“It means, you should say all you want to say to me now, before I leave.” You answered. This got him to turn back around and face you. 

“Before you leave? What kind of bullshit has Pepper been spewing now?”

You pause and think before saying another word. You had already said too much. He wasn’t supposed to know you were leaving, let alone that Pepper was even here. If you were gonna do this though, you didn’t want any words left unsaid. That was your reasoning behind what you would say next. “She thinks it’s best if I leave.”

“Leave? For what?” He asked closing the distance between you. 

“Edward is calling for your removal as head of Stark Industries.

“Oh that? I'm not worried about that. Like I said, it’s another tantrum and it will blow over.” He stated, pushing a strand of hair behind your ear. 

“Your son throws huge tantrums Tony. And this one doesn’t seem like its gonna just blow over. This is really serious, and Pepper feels like he has a fighting chance.” You state, ignoring his fingers that wandered along your skin. He always tried to use sex to take your mind off of things.

“A fighting chance? On the grounds of what? That I stole his little girlfriend.” He teased, grabbing your lower back to pepper kisses along your neckline. 

“Quit it, this is serious.” You whined, shoving him off of you. 

Sighing from both rejection and frustration, Tony lowly replies “It’s really not.” 

“You know what, maybe not to you, but I will not let you throw away your entire legacy. I’m leaving so you don’t mess your life up.” You bite, frustrated with his indifference. You began making your way to your old room to go and pack your things.

You were almost in the door until Tony harshly gripped your wrist, whipping you around to face him. “Who are you to make that decision for me? Huh? You don’t know a fucking a thing about this.” He barked, tone getting more aggressive the longer he spoke. “Who cares about Edward and his little temper-tantrums. Even if he takes the company, at the end of the day, I’m still filthy, fucking, rich. And if I wanna have you, I’m gonna have you. You’re mine. No one else is gonna tell me different.” He spat. 

“Let go,” you said, flinging your wrist free of his grip. Once free, you immediately began to back away. Tony’s glare weakened once he realized how badly he overreacted. He had began to succumb to all the stress that this was all causing him. He took it out on you, which he immediately regretted. You would be a damn liar though, if you said hearing him speak that way didn’t make you sexually frustrated. But you had a face to uphold in that moment. He needed to think you were mad at him. “What happened to me not belonging to anyone? You think because you’re ‘filthy, fucking’ rich’ you can just make me yours?”

Tony let his guilt show, “Kitten, you know that’s not what I meant.”

“Goodnight Tony.” You say, as you slink in to your old room, the one you and Edward used to share.

“Wait, please.” He begged, taking a step forward. 

You slammed the door shut before he could reach inside, sliding down the cool wood until you reached the floor. He began knocking against the door, pleading with you to open it so that you could talk things out. Tony was not a man in need of much, so to hear desperation overtake his emotions left you wrecked. 

You immediately began sobbing into your shirt, doing your best to muffle your cries. You did not want to leave, but you could not be the reason his life’s work got flushed down the drain. 

He would be over you in no time. You would get over him as well. That’s what you had to keep telling yourself as you texted Pepper your decision to leave. 

__________________________________________________________________

Jerking awake after your fight, you realized that the sun had gone down. You checked your phone, and saw that it was almost time for you to leave. Pepper would be over to pick you up soon, so you quietly got up to pack, careful not to alert Tony if he was near. 

You packed light. Very light. Everything fit into a bag that you could carry over your shoulder. You were only taking the things you felt absolutely necessary, like your toothbrush, underwear, a few outfits, and anything else that you could fit into the small bag. Pepper insured that she would take care of the rest. You informed of her of your fight with Tony. She was disappointed that you let him know you were leaving but she expected it from you, which is why she never told you exactly where you were going. 

You had to stay with someone else until your departure, because it would be easier to keep the secret of your destination away from Tony among other things. Now the problem lied in where you would stay. He knew all of your friends. He had even met some of your closest family members through Edward. And as Pepper mentioned before, you couldn’t stay with her, because it would be one of the first places he checked. You thought of Samuel and Elise from your favorite restaurant, but decided against them because you didn’t know where they stayed, nor did you have any way of contacting them. 

Maybe Nao. You thought, before shaking the idea out of your head as quickly as it came. There is no way she would let me, we just met and she didn’t mean her offer literally. 

But if she didn’t mean it, she wouldn’t of given me her number. Plus, Tony doesn’t know her, so she’s perfect. You silently debated with yourself. You were desperate so you shot her a text pleading your case. You gnawed at the inside of your cheek. You weren’t one to really ask people big favors like this one, so you were nervous. 

Nao replied back not even two minutes later, offering you an invitation to bunk with her for as long as you needed. You immediately shot her a thank you and continued your packing. 

You had to move quickly before you changed your mind. Everything that Tony got for you would remain here. Not having much money to your name, you could have sold it and made yourself a pretty coin, but that wasn’t the type of woman you were. Besides all of it meant so much to you, everything had sentimental value, just because he had given it to you. You decided to display every single thing he ever got for you on the bed and floor. The shoes, the lace, the bags, clothes, etc. When you came across the jewelry that he got you, it proved to be a challenge. Every one he had purchased on very special occasions, like your birthday, Christmas…Valentine’s Day. You thought when you came across the destroyed remains of the Cartier bracelet he got for you that day. ‘My heart belongs to you, T.S.’  You wanted to take it. You desperately wanted to take it to have something that reminded you of him, but seeing as the small plaque itself probably cost him thousands you decided to leave it. Rubbing the cold metal between your fingers one last time, you set it down. 

You thought to leave your phone. Tony had it replaced it for you when you lost it in Italy  on one of your trips. You weren’t certain about whether or not he would trace it if he was really desperate. Okay now I’m being ridiculous. He doesn’t care about me that much, you thought, before placing the device back in your pocket now heading to the door. 

Even while touching the knob you were careful. Making the slightest sound could set him off to your presence. He was a pretty light sleeper unless he was blackout drunk, so you weren’t wrong for your caution. Turning it slowly, opening the door even slower, you slipped through it once it was wide enough.

“Y/N” you heard him murmur from behind you. At the sound of his voice you stifled a squeal of surprise. When you turned to confront him, determined to make your case for leaving, your eyes had to travel down to the floor where he resided. You saw him fast asleep, back against your doorway. Had he been there since your fight? Your thoughts were interrupted when you saw the flashing of lights outside, signaling that Pepper was there. You were starting to unravel. Tears did not threaten to leave your eyes, they promised. As they spilled down your cheeks you shook them away along with your weak thoughts. The sight of Tony at your doorstep almost made you drop your bags and forget all your previous worries. 

Almost.

  A/N: Please do not claim my work as your own. Please leave a comment, a like, and reblog, it honestly really means the world to me when I get comments. 

[starr-fall-knight-rise]

Humans are Space Orcs, “Workout.”

Forgive me for being short today, But I have a Russian test in less than an hour, and it is on numbers which is the most excruciating part of this language lol.

Hope you all have a good day :)

The human pulled to a stop huffing and puffing, hands on his knees as he took in great big breaths. Krill could see ribs through his skin as the great bellows expanded and then contracted. Sweat slicked the skin as the body desperately tried to cool itself.

“Heart rate 165.”

The human straightened himself out coughing once or twice to clear his throat, reaching out and wiping his face with a towel.

He threw the towel over one shoulder and stretched the large muscle groups in his chest, stomach and back pulling tight.

Sunny leaned against the wall just to their right both sets of arms crossed over her chest, “So, what is this supposed to be fore. Is this like a dominance thing or something.”

The human wiped his face again and raised an eyebrow, “IT’s exercises,  Sunny. You know so I can be fit enough to pass the UNSC PT exam, or perhaps so that I can do my job better, or maybe because I look better whenI’m more fit.

Sunny turned her head to look at him, her eyes scrunching down a little as Krill went to take notes on a clipboard.

“You mean…. You didn’t just grow to being that size?’

The human glanced down at Krill incredulous, “IS she serious? Do the Drev like, not have to work out?”

Krill shook his head, “Drev do not have subcutaneous fat deposits like humans do. Any acquired deposits are stored below the carapace between the connective tissue, padding them down and giving them more protection.”

Sunny looked between them in confusion, “Wait, hold on…. I’m confused.”

The human towelled off his hair, “I have to work out to look like this sunny. IF i don’t use it, I lose it.”

She turned to look at Krill.

He tucked the holo-pad under one arm, “You see, Sunny. Humans are meant to adapt. They can adapt mentally, and they can adapt physically. The body changes to match the requirements of its environment. Sometimes this takes years to do, for instance if you take a light skinned population of humans and put them somewhere with a lot of sun, and keep that population in complete isolation, after a few generations, the skin will darken to compensate for the increased UV light. However these things happen on a smaller level. The body fluctuates to adapt to the amount of physical work which is required.”

The human nodded, “Exactly. Running strengthens the heart, and it increases the hemoglobin in my blood, so that I can run for a longer time with more oxygen. If I were to stop running, I would loose all of that and have to work back up.”

Sunny stared at him incredulous, “So, you have to force your body to be able to perform correctly. Like, It can’t just DO what it needs to do, but you have to convince it over years of training to be able to do what you want.”

The man shrugged, “Well anything sucks when you phrase it like that.” He turned and motioned them to follow, “Historically, humanity was evolved in an environment with little food. We ate a diet heavy in proteins, fiber, and natural carbs from fruit. Fat is an essential part of a human’s diet, but it is relatively difficult to find in nature because of this, the body adapted to make humans love and crave fatty and sugary foods for energy. Well since well into the twentieth eighteenth century, fatty foods were becoming commonplace, and easy to get our hands on, but the body wasn’t aware of that, so it continued to treat these new fatty foods the way our bodies would have treated them back when we were hunter/gatherers storing every last bit up for use later.”

Sunny followed after in fascination, “I see, so now you have…. Too much of a food that your body craves.”

The human looked over his shoulder, “You got it, and the body doesn’t know when to stop storing fat. It’ll just keep going. So if I were to sit on my ass all day eating chips, I would lose the muscle and I would get bigger as fat deposits were stored up for energy.”

Sunny shrugged, “What is the problem with that?”

The human tapped his chin lightly, “A few things, I guess. For me, at least, if I were to just stop working out, I wouldn’t be able to do my job as well, I wouldn't be able to run as far, or to jump as high, or to lift as much. And lifting myself up in a pullup would be impossible, and considering the amount of times we have all almost fallen off a cliff or had to haul ourselves up rope, you would think that would be a bad idea. Not to mention that the larger you are the harder your heart has to work as the blood supply is forced to expand, and since you aren't working out your heart it gets weaker but has to do more work, which --in turn-- increased the risk of heart issues. Compounding all that I wouldn't be able to sit in a cockpit or pilot a jet properly.”

Sunny shook her head, “That seems like a very… annoying model. You can never just relax. You always have to work to keep your body where it should be. And the amount of self control you have to have….”

The human laughed, “You have no idea how much self control  I need when a box of doughnuts gets in my way.” He sighed, “Keeping my abs as been a real struggle, but the UNSC drilled some self discipline into me when I was still young.”

“So you weren't always this big.”

The human snorted, “no not in the slightest. In fact, I was so skinny, you could see my heart beating through my rib cage.

Sunny grimaced.

“Yeah I know, kinda gross. Those are your two directions. If you don’t work out your either super scary skinny, or you get a bit big. If you’re working out right you get muscles.” He turned around flexing proudly for them to outline the lines of his biceps, chest and stomach.

Sunny would have rolled her eyes back into her head, but she supposed, now that she knew he had to work for it, she was at least somewhat proud of him.

“Ok, I have a question  then.”

“Shoot.”

“Can you get bigger?”

More laughter, “Oh yeah, totally, but I’m not THAT dedicated.”

They were just coming around a corner when the commander skidded to a halt eye to chest with an absolutely massive human.

Even sunny stepped back in surprise.

This human was large enough to look sunny in the eye, with shoulders about as wide as her, and a chest that looked like it could have benched a small car.

It was almost comical, a moment ago Sunny had assumed that the commander was a large human.

“Wow there big mean. I’’d rather not get steamrolled today, thanks.”

The large human glanced down at the commander.

“Sir.” He grunted before stepping around and walking up the hall.

Sunny watched him go, “What do you have to do to get that big!”

“You practically have to live at the gym.”

They turned the corner walking into a large room, with strange machines of unknown use.

ANd in here there were humans of all sizes and shapes, but most of them absolutely massive. Those who lacked height, did not lack muscle.

Male humans, female humans, all of the above.

A tiny female human stood at one of these machines carrying a bar on her shoulders with enough weight that sunny assumed it might crush her. Instead she squatted down to the floor and stood back up.

The captain blinked, “Holy shit.” He motioned towards her, “She squats more than me by the way. You see these guys are insane. I work out to maintain, these guys do it because its their hobby.”

Krill floated upwards to whisper in sunny’s ear, “For the muscle to enlarge, the fibers must tear open, and then the body comes back and repairs the tear to withstand the pressures that tore it in the first place.

Sunny stared at Krill incredulously, “So you're telling me, they just…. Tear themselves apart to get like that.”

The Commander left them standing in place walking over to the wall and jumping upwards, catching his hands around a black bar welded to the wall, the muscles in his back, just below the shoulder blades flexed as he pulled himself upwards, the muscles in his shoulder blades rolling under the skin.

They continued to watch as the commander did his set, a little bit of everything for demonstration purposes. Getting off one of the leg machines, one of these large female humans walked past sitting where he had just sat reaching out pulling out the peg and and bringing the weight almost to the bottom of the plates.

The commander leaned in, “See her, she could probably crush your skull using just her legs.” He sighed, “Man, I only WISH I could be that  badass.” He looked up at sunny, “Sometimes I come here just to knock myself down a peg.”

Across the room, one of these massive humans was hauling a huge bar lined with weight on either side up over his head like it was nothing.

“You see that, that would probably invert my spine if I tried to do it.” “Must you be so graphic?” Krill wondered 

“Yeah, because that’s how much of a wuss I am.”

Looking around, Sunny wasn’t convinced entirely of his status as a wuss. He had all the requisite muscle groups of, even the largest humans, and more than some. There were great swatches of the human population who,even here, were missing some things. 

A few of the humans had large arms, ut small legs, small legs, but large arms, no chest, or  chest and no abdominal muscles.

Yes sure, he may have been smaller than their largest, but he WAS well rounded arms, chest, stomach, legs, back and shoulders.

She found herself surprised at the smug satisfaction in comparing her human to the other humans.

Sure her human couldn’t bench THAT much, but he also had better legs, so there.

“You ok, Sunny?”

She turned her head to look at him.

“Just thinking.” She said 

He shrugged at her and returned to his work. 

It’s hard to be a human.

They have to work for everything they have, especially when it comes to their body. 

[lover-of-skellies]

Oof- definitely missed that. I know this isn't int the list but.... Can you do one like a fluff thing, but with cuddles in warm blankies and sharing icecream and hot coco? With papyrus? QwQ im sorry but its cutee.

Ye, of course, dude! Since you only mentioned Papyrus, I assumed you were talking about the classic UT one and I wrote this as an "x reader" kinda thing :p I hope that's alright!!

-

"HUMAN, ARE YOU SURE YOU REALLY WANT THIS? ICE CREAM WHILE IT'S BLIZZARDING OUTSIDE DOESN'T MAKE MUCH SENSE TO ME."

Smiling at the sound of your skeletal boyfriends' voice, you made a soft sound of confirmation and stole a quick glance in his direction, "Yes Papy, I'm sure I want it." From his spot in the open doorway, the lanky skeleton sighed, a bowl of your favorite ice cream in his hands, "ALRIGHT, IF YOU INSIST. I SWEAR, YOU MAKE JUST ABOUT AS MUCH SENSE AS MY BROTHER, SOMETIMES."

You snorted, your lips curling in amusement as you raised your mug of hot cocoa and took a small sip. Crossing the room and taking his seat on the sofa beside you, Papyrus offered you the bowl, only seeming to relax minutely when you took it from him. Setting your mug down, you scooped up a spoonful of the frozen treat and playfully raised an eyebrow at your boyfriend, offering him the spoon, "Hey Pap, you want some of this? If you don't take some now, I'm gonna eat it all by myself." Papyrus arched a brow bone at you, tilting his head, "WELL, IF YOU'D LIKE TO SHARE SOME WITH ME, I WOULDN'T BE OPPOSED TO-"

Perfect. You cut him off, leaning closer and stuffing the spoon between his teeth. As he registered what had just been done, he shot what could've been the most unimpressed look you'd ever seen in your direction, plucking the spoon out of his mouth and pointing it at you, "REALLY, HUMAN? WHAT DO I LOOK LIKE TO YOU? A BABYBONES?" You shrugged, completely shameless as you grinned up at him, "Well I mean... no, not exactly. Not when you're so much taller than me. You've definitely got a cute face though, so excuse me for forgetting, I guess."

His cheeks began to glow a light shade of orange and he rolled his eyes, offering you your spoon back, "YOU'RE INCORRIGIBLE. I SEE NOW WHY YOU AND SANS GET ALONG SO WELL." You chuckled, taking your spoon from him and taking a bite of your ice cream before replying, "Well, isn't that a good thing? At least we're not fighting all the time."

Papyrus leaned back in his seat, humming in agreement, "YES, I SUPPOSE YOU'RE RIGHT ABOUT THAT, AT LEAST." Gradually becoming completely fixated on the MTT program that was on tv, he grew quiet. You chose to enjoy the brief silence, eating your ice cream and lightly leaning against him; for being a man made of bones, there was something oddly comfortable about cuddling up to him, and you couldn't quite put your finger on what it was.

Maybe... the feeling of safety and security it gave you? Or perhaps, how despite whatever position you were in, you'd never been uncomfortable? His bones somehow never scraped or jabbed at you, and though that in itself was small, you definitely appreciated it.

Finishing your ice cream, you set your now empty bowl aside, picking up your partial mug again to sip from the not-so-hot cocoa. Making sure not to accidentally bump into your mug, Papyrus shifted, gathering a blanket that had been draped over the back of the couch. You knew what he was up to, and you were happy to oblige, setting your mug down and cuddling up against his side. He was delicate about wrapping the blanket around the both of you, slipping his arm around your waist and holding you close to himself as he leaned down to press a skeleton kiss to the top of your head.

Your cheeks became flushed and you couldn't help but smile sheepishly, turning to grab the collar of his shirt, effectively preventing him from moving. Before Papyrus got the chance to question you, you tilted your head back and leaned up a small bit, stealing a kiss from him and mumbling, "God... whatever I did to make you love me, I don't regret it at all. I love you, Papyrus... so much."

Despite his blush darkening, your boyfriend offered you a wide yet shy smile and gently touched your face with his free hand, tracing the tip of his thumb over your cheek, "I LOVE YOU TOO, HUMAN... D-DON'T YOU EVER FORGET THAT, ALRIGHT? IT'S VERY IMPORTANT." Expression softening, you leaned into his touch and sighed, feeling completely at peace, "I know... I won't, Papy. I promise."

[symeraid-s]

My 2020 Awards (Music & Anime)

Music

Song of the Year: xaa-xaa – Horror This is the most played song on my playlist this year and it’s deserved. It’s just a really great song with one of the best intro’s of the year. Kazuki’s voice is perfection.

Honourable Mentions:

SID – Siren This one could technically be considered SOTY, but I thought that Horror deserves it a bit more. Still, Mao’s vocals give me chills

Taemin – Criminal It’s definitely one of his best songs and one of this year as a whole. And you know… it’s Taemin.

MY FIRST STORY – Underground Has a cool beat and great vocals. I also adore the lyrics.

QUEEN BEE – BL Probably has the best beat/Bass-line of this yea. Also showcases Avu-chan’s range.

Artist of the Year: xaa-xaa (Horror, Happy Wedding, Reito Ningen) I love this group. They constantly put out Bangers only and yet always end up under my radar. But this year, with the rest of the J-Rock scene being kinda dead, they really stood out. All of their songs landed on my playlist this year, so they really deserve it.

Honourable Mentions:

Kenshi Yonezu (KANDEN, Campanella, Canary) This guy is just one of the most interesting Japanese artists currently active. His Stray Sheep album is also really good.

Stray Kids (gods menu, Back Door) This year, Stray Kids really took me over. They had two very well directed Comebacks with amazing Music Videos.

TWICE (More & More, I Can’t Stop Me, Cry for Me) I didn’t really care for them in the past years, but they really delivered good music.

Super Junior (2YA2YAO, Burn the Floor, the Melody) TIMELESS was my favourite album of the year and the tracks we already got for the Renaissance sound really good. The Sub-Units (especially D&E) also had good comebacks.

Best Music Video of the Year: Stray Kids – gods menu This music video is a piece of art. There are no unclean cuts or weird jump-cuts, the Transitions are really fluid and the editing in general is just genius. Even if somebody doesn’t like Stray Kids, they can appreciate this video.

Honourable Mentions:

Stray Kids – Back Door Has the same great editing as gods menu, but there is one(!) unclean Cut. But it does have my favourite shot of the year.

Xaa-xaa – Horror It’s really well made and basically a Horror movie in cue with the music.

QUEEN BEE – BL Has a really creative production design and colour scheme and some really nice transitions.

BUMP OF CHICKEN – Acacia This is just a Music Video straight out of Nostalgia. And it’s animated by Studio BONES, so your argument is invalid.

Dance Performance of the Year: Taemin – Criminal First of all: It’s Taemin. This man can make everything look effortless, no matter how hard it actually is. And dancing with your hands tied is really f**king hard! Let’s just cut this short before I actually get into a five page long analysis about why this choreo is so amazing and just say: It’s one of the best K-Pop choreos of all time.

Honourable Mentions:

Super Junior – Burn the Floor Probably has one of the coolest concepts of this year, but isn’t perfectly executed. The combining of classical and modern elements is really interesting though.

Stray Kids – Back Door It’s energetic and has one of my personal favourite choreo elements of the year. 

BTS – Black Swan A cool choreo, but appears to be a bit overproduced. Still, that MMA performance blew me away. It’s also sad, that it got overshadowed by Jimin’s solo dance in the MV.

Dreamcatcher – Scream It’s one of the coolest Girl Group choreos and one of the few, that actually reserved a spot for a missing member, by replacing her with a masked dancer (take notes, EXO!)

Rookies of the Year: E’LAST (Swear, Tears of Chaos) They had one of the most interesting debuts this year, but got massively overlooked. The Comeback they had a few months later was definitely better executed and actually great, but was still overlooked. E’LAST really deserves more attention, please listen to them. If you don’t, them you could at least watch one of their dance covers of Black Swan, gods menu or Criminal.

Honourable Mention:

GHOST9 (Think of Dawn, W.ALL) They also had a really interesting debut concept, but their Comeback was a bit weaker.

Most Underrated Comeback of the Year: E’LAST – Tears of Chaos It’s a really amazing song with great styling, but was overlooked, because the group is from an unknown label and the stages were partly cut, since they couldn’t afford full promotions. Still, please check it out.

Honourable Mentions:

CIX – Jungle People somehow didn’t like this song and I can’t understand it. It definitely had one of the best breakdowns this year.

ONF – Sukhumvit Swimming This song needs more than one listening to like it, but it’s honestly one of the funniest/ most nonsense Comebacks of the year.

Super Junior D&E – No Love D&E is probably one of the best subunits and the song just slaps.

ONEUS – TO BE OR NOT TO BE It has an amazing build up, but the refrain is a bit weak. The Breakdown is the best of the year though.

Most Underwhelming Comeback of the Year: BTS – Dynamite Honestly, the Instrumental of Dynamite is really great, the execution of the rest is just… questionable. I still don’t understand, why this couldn’t be a Korean Comeback. About a year ago, they insisted that they were Korean artists and that they would not release and English song, but look were we are now. And I don’t even want to start on the Autotune. Jimin sounds like a chipmunk and I wasn’t able to pick out the difference between the rest of the vocalists. This could have been a Jungkook solo for all I know. With a better execution, this could have been a good song, but how it is, it’s just a stale earworm.

Honourable Mentions:

BTS – Black Swan It’s kinda the same problem. The Autotune is obnoxious and makes the song too forgettable. Without it, it could be great.

Super M – 100 It could have been better, but sounds a bit phoned in. There’s also a lot of questionable styling.

VAV – Made for Two Similar to Dynamite it also has a great instrumental with a weak execution, but it’s still a nice send off for Baron to the Military.

EVERGLOW – La Di Da The chorus and bridge are really good, especially the chorus, I love this chorus. But sadly the verses and rap fall flat. The rap-part is also slightly obnoxious.

Worst Comeback/Song of the Year: BLACKPINK – HOW YOU LIKE THAT I’m sorry, Blinks, but I really don’t like this song. The lyrics are all over the place, it rehashes the same formulas musical and video wise and the worst part is: It sounds like four songs stitched together. I kinda like the bridge, but the rest of the song is actively obnoxious.

Honourable Mentions:

BTS – Respect The entire 7 Album isn’t really good, but this song is just annoying. The way it starts really grates my nerves and, come on guys, this is basically a Cypher, when did you forget how to do this?

BLACKPINK feat. Selena Gomez– Ice Cream Whoever green-lit these lyrics deserves to be fired. Selena Gomez also sticks out like a sore thumb.

TREASURE – MMM Just… just… No! YG, go home, you’re drunk!

IZ*ONE – Secret Story of Swan The chorus is probably the most obnoxious one, I’ve heard all year. The Music Video is also a technicolour nighmare.

Anime

Anime of the Year: Jujutsu Kaisen This Anime has just really amazing Animation, some of the best animated fights of 2020 and, damn, the characters are engaging. Sukuna really seems like he could be one of the new greatest Manga/Anime antagonists. Park Seonghoo really proofed himself to be a really great director, so now it’s pretty clear, that Crunchyroll is to blame for the train wreck God of High-School turned out to be.

Honourable Mentions:

Attack on Titan the Final Season As a Manga-reader, I really appreciate that MAPPA is not censoring anything from the Marley arc. They really proved, that they can hold the torch from WIT.

Fugou Keiji: Balance Unlimited It’s just a really well made Mystery show, with interesting main characters, but not for the reasons Tumblr says.

ID:_Invaded A really interesting Sci-fi original Anime, with probably one of the coolest protagonists this year.

Moriarty the Patriot One of the most underrated Animes of the year, but Saito Souma really gives an amazing performance.

Opening of the Year: Fugou Keiji: Balance Unlimited (SixTONES – NAVIGATOR) It’s just a really cool song, with a very nice verse. The full version also has a really cool rap-part. It’s just a really well made OP and, even though the Animation isn’t the best, it really hits all the right notes. I also like how in sync with the Song the Animation is.

Honourable Mentions:

Moriarty the Patriot (Tasuku Hatanaka – DYING WISH) Just has a really nice intro and build-up, as well as good high-notes.

God of High-School (KSUKE feat. Tyler Carter – Contradiction) It certainly is the best animated OP of the year, but goes a bit too hard with the Techno for me.

Attack on Titan the Final Season (Shinsekai Kamettechan – Boku no Sensou) It fits the new tone of the season surprisingly well and yeah, it’s basically a banger.

Jujutsu Kaisen OP 1 (Eve – Kaikai Kitan) The song is pretty standard, but it looks really pretty and there is a panda running on a rooftop, so…

Ending of the Year: Jujutsu Kaisen ED 1 (ALI feat. AKLO – LOST IN PARADISE) This is one of the few Anime songs that actually gets me to stand up and dance. The Animation is pretty adorable and, damn, the final chorus hits way too hard in the full version, holy shit. I liked ALI fine for Wild Side (the Beastars OP), but this song really knocks that out of the park. This really is a band I’ll keep an eye out for.

Honourable Mentions:

Fugou Keiji: Balance Unlimited (OKAMOTO’s – Welcome My Friend) This was my ED of the year, before we got LOST IN PARADISE. It has a great intro and I really just adore the song.

ID:_Invaded (MIYAVI – Other Side) It’s really boring Animation-wise, but the Cologne Cathedral may be in it, so that’s a plus. On the other side, the song is really awesome and hits way too hard. I swear, this entire Anime is just a MIYAVI fan convertor.

Haikyuu!! To the Top!! 2 (SPYAIR – One Day) It’s a really nice song, certainly one of SPYAIRs best, there is only one problem: You just don’t hire SPYAIR for an Ending!

The Great Pretender (Freddy Mercury – The Great Pretender) I mean, it’s Freddy Mercury! How can you not like it? Also, the Animation is cute.

[kryptsune]

I'm creating my own au for undertale and would like a couple tips. How'd you do it? Your's is so cool!

🌼AUs are super fun to make! I am glad you are tossing yourself into it. I saved your ask for last so I could really try to give clear advice and examples. I am not sure what AU you know of mine (there are like 16 of them at this point). People have told me before that UT is dead so why keep doing stuff for it? Because I enjoy it! That’s all. 

The truth is I make AU not because I feel like I need to fill an entire multiverse but because I just love telling stories. It’s what I do. It is not a formula either. Some of the AU I made I started with design alone and built a world that would satisfy those design elements. Others it was the story that I needed to build the world around. 

I know a lot of people really enjoy my AU that I have put out and that is so cool, honestly. The thing is that the main AU or story that is so near and dear to my heart goes under the radar, Underworld. That story is massive and honestly when I was building up how my Fellverse would work there were a lot of disjointed ideas that would pop into my brain so it’s something I had to sift through and I wanted it to be different. That’s my biggest goal when I do my AU or world-building. Sure the concept can be similar but are the details and the core of the world different? 

As an example, I started wondering why Underfell characters specifically are obsessed with gold and gold accents. Well, I decided that in order for the story to work the way I wanted I had to change Hotland quite a bit. No more MTT hotel, the lab is off-limits and hidden and things like that. The largest one, however, is the gold mine. They use it as currency so where did they get it in the first place? Of course, since it’s used as payment in the original game it couldn’t just be free for all. I make it so that silver is more of a precious resource than gold and it’s owned by the “criminals” in the world.

Enough of my Underworld rambling X’D sorry I just really want that story to pick up.  Worldbuilding and by extension AU building are one and the same. The most important tip I can give you is to organize and write everything you are thinking of, down. Some of it you may scrap but at least you are building a foundation. Now it depends on how you start thinking about your build. If you start with characters start asking questions about their backstories, maybe their environment, why do they wear what they wear? 

If you are starting with the story or main plot you can ask more questions about the society of the place, what is their day to day? At the end of the day, it’s all about asking questions. When I make my AU even if it has that Undertale skin on it. I try to make it so that if I want to I can change some things around to make it original (Which I do because I do want to do my own original stuff as well). 

Ask all the questions you can, follow that thread, and ask even more. Write down everything you are thinking about even if it doesn’t make sense. You will have to solve plot holes and mess things around and that is fine! 

Cayn, my Swap Sans and Gin, my Swap Pap, are rarely talked about. I have been working on their world and I haven’t been satisfied with any of it BUT... one of the asks that I got was about if I had any G-Sans boys. To answer that question directly, yes I do. Every single AU has its G-Sans varients.  But I just didn’t know what to do. My G-Swap, Pepper, I sat staring at for a long time. I didn’t know what I wanted. How he was supposed to be. I didn’t even have too clear of a picture of Cayn, to begin with. Then I followed a thread which led me to flesh out both Cayn, and Pepper and gave me even more to work with so... it’s not going to happen all of a sudden. Some of the ideas or answers can take hours or even months. It is a rollercoaster of a process.

As a writer and storyteller though that is half the fun. Enjoy your work and what you are trying to do with it. Even if it’s based off Undertale or Steven Universe, it doesn’t matter. You love it and it’s given you the drive to create. That is the most precious gift at all. If you need any help specifically feel free to ask. I’ve written so many of these that I can probably at least point you in a direction. Thank you for the ask! 

[coldbloodedcreator]

Touch

a little gift for @luminescentlyricist ! i just... have some intense clown brainrot. also, excuse how jumbled and weird it might be at the end, I was passing out (still am) while writing it and im too excited to share it to revise much. fandom: homestuck (oc oriented) characters: othamo oculus (oc), jezakk imetat (friends oc) length: 1426 words pov: 3rd person (jezakk)

touch.

that was one way othamo would communicate with jezakk.

a pat at the shoulders to access where the smaller was, a grab at his arm to signal he needed help walking. he could be a bit rough but usually never meant to harm jezakk, told by the small apologizes that muttered from his lips. he could be verbally affectionate — but they were rarer than jezakk liked. he understood, though. being verbal about feelings was hard. jezakk couldn't get a single sentence out without his voice stuttering and cracking, no matter how hard he tried. he admired how flat his matesprit could keep his tone. sometimes he wondered if he could ask othamo how to control his voice - as othamo was one of the few troupe members who spoke with no rises in his voice at all, and spoke at a moderately quiet level compared to everyone else. but he doubted othamo would, or that it would work for long.

jezakk's internal dialogue was interrupted by a tight grip as his arm. claws dug into his flesh and jezakk had to quickly brief a glance towards his matesprit, before giving his vice gripped claws a gentle pat. "Uh," jezakk sort of grumbled low, to his best ability. he still held his claws over othamos, resisting the urge to try and pry them off. even if he tried, othamo would likely just grab on at a different section of his arm. "hEy.. cOUld yOU Uh... rElAx A lIttlE, Oth?" he sort of stammered. his eyes flickered back and forth from the emotionless grin on his matesprit's face to the near wall, his shoulders tense. luckily for him the claws relaxed and jezakk could feel the blood start to return to his arm. "i gEt yOUr nErvOUs-" othamo blunted overspoke jezakk, claws digging in once more. "im n⊙t nerv⊙us." he grunted. jezakk could hear othamo's breath hissing through his irregular, pin prick teeth, his smile much more open than his resting one. jezakk was near convinced that othamo grinned when he was nervous, and that othamo was a nervous wreck at all times. which wasn't rather farfetched from what jezakk had gathered from previous drops of othamo's cool facade, or the comments he made, but jezakk could hardly tell when othamo was being sincere or not. he couldn't even tell when othamo's rage was genuine. jezakk's eyes landed at the floor, where he could just barely see his foot tapping against the cold cement. he near became fully absorbed with his nervous leg bouncing before an idea sparked in the back of his mind. "hEy, I hAd An IdEA..." he could feel othamo's claws loosen more, before they eventually relaxed and let go. jezakk gingerly touched at where the claws had sunk in and left indents, feeling the small bumps. there was a few greasy smears of the oils from othamo's marionette strings that made jezakk briefly grimace. "what is it?" jezakk could've sworn that was more of a demand than a question. the way othamo's raspy voice spoke was a bit unnerving at times. othamo had told jezakk that when he was younger, he didn't start talking till he was around 6 or 7 sweeps old, which at first sounded somewhat ridiculous. but ... it did make some sense. "I wAs thInkIng.. AbOUt hOw yOU strUgglE wIth shOwIng AffEctIOn?" jezakk tried to word this in the kindess way possible. he could see othamo's eyebrow quirk out of the corner of his eyes. "whAt If I shOwEd yOU A wAy tO dO It wIthOUt wOrds?" "y⊙u mean asl?" for once his voice changed at the end, but went deeper instead of higher. it still registered as a questioning tone, but a grumpy one. "yEAh! wEll, Uh, nO, nOt cOmplEtEly, bEcAUsE.. yOU knOw," he gave a few vague hand movements, even though they'd go unnoticed. "yes. because im blind. i kn⊙w." it almost sounded like a sigh coming from him. jezakk frowned.

"AnywAys. wEll.. I knOw yOU lIkE drUmmIng yOUr fIngErs On stUff, sO mAybE sOmEthIng wIth thAt?" jezakk could see othamo's smile growing more forced, signalling a zone out on othamo's end. jezakk jabbed an elbow at othamo and he straighted up again. he gave no apology for his brief lack of consciousness, simply giving jezakk a smile. "... hOw dOEs thAt sOUnd?" "h⊙w d⊙es what s⊙und." jezakk sighed, pinching the bridge of his nose. sometimes his matesprit was so goddamn stubborn. instead of making a mistake like last time where the question spiraled out of control, he just gave a small shake of his head. he reached his claws forward, placing them on othamo's shoulder gently. underneath the three different layers othamo tensed up at the touch. after a brief few seconds to let othamo's shoulders relax did jezakk drum his claws against his matesprit, giving a reassuring smile. "I lOvE yOU." jezakk said gently. he could feel othamo's blind gaze near bore through his skull. the taller's claws drifted forward, resting against jezakk's arm. he drums his fingers against it much gentler than expected, almost lost between the sweater fabric. this caused a wide smile to form on jezakk's face and a gentle flush fill his heart, and he lowered his hand. a few moments passed before othamo moved his hand to jezakk's face and drummed there as well. othamo's smile had visible softened. it was almost like his icy exterior melted away, revealing the personality that jezakk knew as his matesprit. othamo slowly crouched - trying to avoid popping his knees, as he understood the sound wasnt very desirable - and quickly after engulfed jezakk into a hug. he pulled jezakk close as a loud purr begun to rumble from deep within his chest and he nuzzled his face against jezakk's shoulder. his claws drummed rhythmically against jezakk's back, over and over, as he gave the tinkerer a squeeze. jezakk was rather surprised, but also quite elated, at the sudden affection. his cheeks turned lilac as he wrapped his arms around his matesprit, placing his chin on othamo's shoulder. his own claws gently rolled against othamo’s back, able to feel the scutes that decorated the spine of the puppeteers spine. it was a nice feeling. a few minutes pass, and they depart from their embrace. othamo remained crouched for a little bit, simply facing jezakk. the smaller purpleblood didn't move, as othamo still his claws on his shoulders.

"hey jazzy." "hm?" he blinked, tilting his head as a force of habit. "want t⊙ kn⊙w s⊙mething?" othamo asked, grin still present. jezakk lets out a soft chuckle. "sUrE, whAt Is It?" "when i think ⊙f y⊙u, i d⊙nt try t⊙ imagine the bits and pieces put t⊙gether ⊙f what y⊙u might l◎‿◉k like. i think ⊙f the stars. ⊙r at least my mem⊙ries ⊙f them. i used t⊙ marvel at the night sky, enam⊙red by them. they were s⊙ beautiful. y⊙u remind me ⊙f th⊙se stars, jazzy. s⊙ bright, interw⊙ven int⊙ the cl⊙uds ⊙f stardust."

a long pause came from jezakk. he stared at othamo, unable to find words. eventually he found a smile and another giggle leaves his lips. "Oth... thAts sO swEEt. I dIdn't knOw yOU wErE A rOmAntIc." othamo gives a playful nudge, leaning back onto his heels. "d⊙n't get t◎‿◉ c⊙cky ab⊙ut it, ⊙r else i w⊙nt tell y⊙u my pent up l⊙ve p⊙ems at all." othamo holds a genuine smile though, shoulders lax. he leaned forward and gently pressed his cold nose against jezakk's before giving the tinkerer a drum on the shoulders, and then standing straight. his previous fears seemed to have long since left him, his matesprit bringing his mood up significantly. othamo's smile can only widen more as another troll pops into jezakk's practice tent - where the two trolls currently were. he could hear the troll mutter something about "i knew id find you here" before informing the puppeteer his show was to begin soon, and othamo gives a simple nod. he looked to jezakk's direction once more before leaning down to place an affectionate kiss on jezakk's forehead, murmuring a few soft words and then making his way out. he paused at the entrance of the tent, glancing back again. he reached to the nearby beam and gave it a drum, smile perked. and then he leaves, vanishing into the bright big top to preform. jezakk could only watch, grin soft and his heart still beating firmly in his chest.

othamo could communicate verbally with jezakk, too. and boy does he love when he did.

[raendown]

Pairing: MadaraTobirama Word count: 4753 Chapter: 9/? Summary: Not all wars are fought on the battlefield. Some are fought at the conference table, with whispers in the shadows, or even in the bedroom.

In a world where the Senju and Uchiha traditional lands were too far apart to have ever made them enemies, Butsuma and Tajima are the ones who come together and sign a treaty of peace. Madara isn’t happy to have his life signed away for him in a political marriage to strengthen the bond between their clans. He is even less happy to have Tobirama make assumptions of him from their very first night together. What follows from there is a journey of healing, of learning, and finding the places to belong in the places least expected.

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Chapter 9

The effects of sleeping so little almost every single day must have been getting to him even more than Tobirama realized if he wasn’t able to sense one little child approaching him on a nearly empty avenue. Actually, after looking down a second time Tobirama stopped walking as he realized that this was not a child who had appeared as if from thin air but a grown woman whose body had apparently decided to stop growing just after reaching three feet tall. Her limbs were all too short, legs bowed as if she had spent her formative years on horseback, and her head was just a little too big for her body. Despite that she walked with the ease and confidence of a well-trained shinobi and her chakra, now that he was paying attention, felt sharp and ready. This was not a woman to underestimate.

“Can I help you?” he asked. Blunt questions were always best, in his opinion. No point in standing on ceremony when it was clear the other person had come armed with a specific agenda.

“You could help yourself,” the woman grumbled and Tobirama nodded with some exasperation.

“A friend of Madara's, I take it?”

She didn’t bother to answer but her lack of denial was enough for him. “I wanted to come meet you for myself and I must say, the rumors are all true. You certainly are a tasty young thing, aren’t you?”

Tobirama nearly choked on his own tongue while spluttering.

“I can’t even be half your age!” he managed to get out in a strangled voice.

“Pah! You might be only half baked but I’m still allowed to use my eyes!”

“What exactly do you mean by rumors? What rumors?” Tobirama looked around at the empty street, almost worried there might be others watching them, though he couldn’t say why he found that idea so worrisome. It would hardly have been be the first time his movements had been monitored.

“Surely you’ve heard them?” the woman at his feet declared. “Every woman with working eyeballs in this clan has been whispering about how good looking you are since the day of the wedding – and not a few of the men as well. I mean, sure, looks aren’t everything. But they certainly don’t hurt either, if you know what I mean!”

Rubbing at the bridge of his nose, Tobirama mumbled under his breath, “I have trouble believing that.”

“Then you should get yourself in front of a mirror. I hear my dear old Madara has a rather nice one over the vanity in his bedroom, perhaps that one?”

He let his hand fall to give the woman a reproving look. For a shinobi with chakra as refined as hers that had been the exact opposite of subtle. She didn’t even have the decency to look sorry for her suggestion either, giving Tobirama the impression that he probably didn’t want to ask exactly what she had meant to imply by it. He let the subject fall to one side as they turned down a shady avenue and gave his attention to the small group of children passing them by with raucous laughter.

“I’ve known the lad since he was about their size, raised him more than his own father did.” Tobirama looked over to the woman now trundling along by his side and paused when he saw the reserved expression on her face. “He’s a blustering fool but there’s a heart of gold underneath all that hair and if I thought you were hurting him deliberately I would have already fed you your own spine. But you’re not. You’re both caught up in a situation you don’t like and neither one of you knows how to get the other one settled down but if at least one of you would just send up a white flag – something small! – you’d both have a much easier time of it, you know?”

“Yes, I do know.”

“So get to waving, then, you soggy muffin! What in hell’s name are you waiting for?”

Tobirama huffed. “You’ve got a lot of nerve for a woman who hasn’t even bothered to introduce herself to me yet. For all I know you could be an escaped mental patient berating the first idiot stupid enough to let her approach them. Although I suppose that doesn’t say much flattering about me either.” He wasn’t sure if he felt insulted or a little triumphant when she tilted her head back to roar with laughter.

“My name is Susumu and oddly enough I think I like you, young’n. I hope I’ve never killed anyone who meant something to you.”

“Ah. I hope the same.”

“Not likely. I’m a grumpy old crust and I’ve never liked many people.” Her words put a reluctant smile on Tobirama’s face and he settled on feeling proud.

“Then I shall take your approval as a compliment,” he told her. She nodded magnanimously in approval.

At the end of the avenue they turned another corner and Tobirama opened his mouth to bid this Susumu a good day since this was where he was supposed to meet Kagami for their first official day of training. He was stopped by the sight of Madara with a hand on one hip and the other waggling a stern finger, face pulled down in to a disappointed expression that had poor Kagami toeing the ground with shame. Tobirama’s first instinct was a wave of protective anger.

He was grateful, later, that he followed his secondary instincts instead and paused to listen before jumping in to the situation.

“It was just a stupid prank,” Kagami muttered in the direction of his shuffling feet. Madara snorted over him.

“Perhaps you meant it that way but what you did cost that woman a lot of money in wares. She’s a civilian, she relies only on the wares she sells for income and you’ve just taken that away from her. Can a civilian simply pick up an extra mission to make up for a loss in pay?”

“No, Madara-sama.”

“So what do you suppose she should do now?”

Kagami sniffled and looked away, properly shamed. “I-I don’t know.”

“If you were an active shinobi I would ask you to pay for those wares but you don’t make any of your own money yet. Should I ask your mother to pay on your behalf?” Madara lifted one eyebrow at the boy’s panicked expression. “No, I didn’t think you would like that either. Which means I’ll have to pay for them myself. So now you’ve caused trouble for two different people.”

“Well I…I didn’t mean to! I’m sorry, Madara-sama!”

His expression softening, Madara knelt down to Kagami’s level. “Intentions are all well and good but actions have consequences. I know you only meant to set off that flash powder as a prank but next time I want you to think about how your action will affect others.”

“Okay.” Kagami clasped his hands together and leveled his clan head will the single most potent set of puppy eyes that Tobirama had ever seen. “I am really sorry.”

“Don’t look at me like that, brat, I practically raised Izuna. You think a good puppy face will crack me?” Almost as if to contradict himself Madara pushed himself back to his feet and ruffled the boy’s hair.

“He’s a good egg,” Susumu murmured from the corner of her mouth.

Tobirama wasn’t sure if she meant the boy or the man but either way, in that moment, he had to agree. When they came upon the scene to find an angry Madara he had expected the sort of explosive temper that anyone working around the administration tower got to witness all too often. He was pleasantly surprised to discover Madara did understand tact and that he was surprisingly good at speaking in a way Kagami’s young mind could understand. Not many people with a temper that quick would stop and take the time to explain why the actions had been wrong.

Whatever reply he might have made was set aside when Madara spotted the two of them there and lost all color in his face. Something about seeing Susumu and Tobirama standing next to each other appeared to horrify him. That was definitely something that deserved a little exploration.

“Sensei,” Madara called with a cautious tone. “What terrible things are you up to today?”

“Just the usual. Poisoning my cupcakes, subverting government officials, and having a lovely chat with your young husband here.” Her smile was benign but the mischief in her eyes was all too easy to read when she looked up at the man beside her.

“If I get accused of treason,” Tobirama informed her in a flat tone, “I’m bringing you down with me.”

“Oh I do like you.”

He warily looked away and found Madara watching their exchange thoughtfully. It was hard to tell whether he was more worried or pleased by the idea of them getting along and he never bothered to say anything to make it clear, shaking his head as he delivering one last absent swat up the side of Kagami’s head.

“Came to take the brat for training?” he asked instead. Tobirama nodded. “He came up with a few interesting ways to keep himself entertained until you got here.”

“So I overheard. We’ll have a talk about that.”

Kagami drooped. “Aw man, but I already got in trouble!”

“I never said I was getting you in trouble, Kagami, but we will definitely still be talking about this. Even if it’s just tips on how not to get caught next time.” Contrary to what some might think, he did understand how an expression as blank as his delivering such words might be startling. Nothing about him really screamed ‘I have a sense of humor’. He understood perfectly well why Kagami gaped in surprise before laughing outright and jumping over to hug him around the waist.

The look of utter shock on Madara's face was still extra satisfying, though. Tobirama tried not to appear too smug as he very carefully did not meet his husband’s eyes. Maybe that would show the other man he wasn’t quite the stodgy, formal block of ice that apparently most Uchiha thought him to be. With a soft pat to his new student’s head Tobirama gently pushed him away and murmured that they should head over to the training field so they didn’t waste too much of the time slot he had it booked for.

He only made it three steps away, however, before Susumu caught up to him dragging a frantic looking Madara by the wrist.

“Mind if we tag along?” she asked.

“Do you need a refresher course in the basics?” Tobirama shot back. “This is our first time officially training so I hadn’t planned much more than running him through the basic forms to see where his strengths and weaknesses are. We won’t be doing any actual learning until later.”

“You’re interesting and you don’t strike me as the sort to take shit from anyone. I think it would do both of us a world of good to see you in action.” Susumu tugged on Madara's wrist once before letting go.

Rubbing at his abused limb, Madara glared down at her. “I’d like to say for myself what’s good for me,” he grumbled.

The rest of them ignored him and Tobirama pretended not to see the pout that followed. If ever he had wondered how this man became such good friends with his brother it was obvious now.

While having two spectators hadn’t exactly been part of his agenda it also wasn’t anything he hadn’t had to deal with before. It took a bit to convince Kagami that showing off for their audience would only result in having to run the same drills over and over when the distraction caused him to mess up but after a while Tobirama managed to put anything outside the two of them away from his mind to concentrate on the task at hand.

His analysis was much as he’d expected in some areas and quite the opposite in others. Kagami was physically quite fit and ready to be molded in to a good little soldier but he lacked the discipline usually found in the children of front line warriors. His chakra reserves weren’t very large yet, unsurprising considering his age, but while he didn’t know very many jutsu yet he did show a natural aptitude for molding his natural gifts when Tobirama took him through beginner drills like holding a leaf on his forehead with only chakra while performing physical tasks. All in all the boy had the makings of a skilled shinobi, all he lacked was a deeper knowledge and further training.

Focused as he was, Tobirama very nearly managed to forget about the two watching from afar. Almost. With just a small bit of his chakra infused to focus on his pupil it was hard to entirely ignore two such bright signatures so close to his own. Still, he relegated their presence to the back of his mind until he was finished going over with Kagami the first few weaknesses they would address in their training, ending with a tiny smile as reward for the boy’s patience and good behavior.

Considering their interactions so far it was no surprise that Susumu once again spoke up first when Tobirama approached them.

“Not bad, sugar, not bad at all. I’m curious to see what you’re like in a real fight, though.” She grinned at him but before he could reply Madara groaned beside her and threw a punch that she easily dodged.

“Please no,” he begged. “Please do not embarrass me. I do that just fine on my own, you always say so.”

“Aw, come on little one! You can’t tell me you’re not just a little bit curious!”

Tobirama canted his head to one side, curious. “Is this your way of challenging me to a spar?” he asked. Susumu propped her hands on both hips, striking a pose that would have been much more impressive if she were at least taller than young Kagami. What did give her an imposing edge was the light in her eyes and the warning crackle in her chakra.

“Scared?” she taunted.

“Of you? I don’t have enough data to be frightened. By the look on Madara's face I believe I should be wary but there’s really only one way to tell, isn’t there?” Her energy was surprisingly infectious; Tobirama found himself lifting one eyebrow in a challenge on his own.

He wasn’t very sure what to make of the worried look on Madara's face, uncertain if it was worry for him or for his teacher or even for his own sanity, so he looked away and smiled when Susumu clapped her hands together with childlike glee. She beckoned Kagami over and told him to stay off the field then came forward to offer Tobirama a hand. When he shook it she winked up at him and squeezed his fingers tight enough that his bones creaked in warning.

“You should have said you were scared,” she warning him. “I might have gone easy.”

“And where would the fun be in that?”

“Oh ho ho, feisty.” Her chakra was practically bursting at the seams, running through her veins like wildfire in such a way that Tobirama found himself grinning in return.

Kagami immediately began to chatter in his clan heir’s ear while the two combatants set the parameters of their spar. Then Tobirama tuned the rest of the world out with an easy efficiency that he hadn’t been able to achieve before without something like this to focus on. Susumu would be a formidable opponent, he could already tell that before either of them had made the first move. He was probably not going to win this spar. But that wouldn’t stop him from giving his all; it had been much too long since he had a proper sparring partner whose patterns he did not already know by heart. The summer season was fading in to autumn yet the air around them was still warm enough to excuse the slight hint of an excited flush on his cheeks that would have belied how much he was suddenly looking forward to this.

With a mocking bow that only bent his spine a single inch he gestured for Susumu to come at him. She did so with teeth bared and fists raised. As they danced around each other his mind automatically began to catalogue advantages and disadvantages, predictions that formed and fell away as he analyzed her movements. What advantage he gained from his height and easy access to her head she made up for in her own easy access to his knees and the ability to get up inside his guard for easier blows against his trunk. Any awkwardness born through her condition was made up for with heavy training and an impressive knowledge of how to use her own body. Not a single step was wasted, every movement deliberate.

And the kicks. Her kicks were absolutely deadly. For a tiny woman she packed quite a lot of power behind her feet each time she launched herself in the air, fending off his blows with both hands as she spun like a top to deliver devastating attacks that came close to breaking straight through his guard several times.

It rapidly became clear that, although Tobirama was holding his own for now in taijutsu, this was not an area that would grant him an easy win. There was always the chance that his high stamina might outlast hers but that wasn’t something he wanted to rely on without knowing her limits better. The next time Susumu came spinning towards his head he used the rebound of their clash to launch himself backward, taking advantage of those few precious seconds of separation to run through a quick set of hand seals.

Susumu did manage to dodge his water bullets, which wasn’t a surprise, but that wasn’t his main attack anyway. A smirk flitted across Tobirama’s face at hearing the crack of her head against the earth wall he threw up in the path of her dodge. Even if all she did was laugh and throw a massive stream of fire in his direction it was still more than worth it. Tobirama covered his escape with the only thing he could, a spinning wall of air that served no offensive purpose but had saved his life more times than he could count. His preference for water jutsu didn’t do him any good when there wasn’t enough water at hand quick enough and he’d already thrown most of the nearby pond at his opponent with the water bullets; poor foresight on his part, a mistake to throw himself in to the fight with such enthusiasm without planning ahead. He was allowed to get excited as much as the next person.

“Three different elements!” Susumu’s voice called over the scattering of fireballs she was using to keep him distracted, unable to retaliate while he was busy dodging. “I have to admit, I’m impressed!”

“I’m flattered you consider only half of my arsenal impressive,” Tobirama called back with a hint of smugness.

As he’d thought they would, his words gave her just enough pause that he was able to body flicker away. She spotted him when he appeared on the other side of the field but wasn’t able to react fast enough to stop him from pulling at the bandages he habitually wore around his wrists to expose a seal. It was only a simple storage seal, nothing like the still unfinished hiraishin he’d been working on, but what made it truly impressive were the changes he and Mito had spent hours poring over until they were able to seal physical objects in to human skin rather than paper.

The sword he pulled out of what must have looked like thin air was something he knew the Uchiha had been salivating over from afar for generations, a blade very few Senju had ever had the affinity to wield properly, and Tobirama found just a little smear of pride in the way Susumu’s gaze followed the weapon as he spun it in one hand.

“Now it’s a party,” she cackled. Tobirama rolled his eyes. “The Raijin no Ken, I was unaware it had a new bearer.”

“I’m just full of surprises,” he called back dryly.

“Let’s see how many more you’ve got up your sleeve!”

For all that the sword was rumored to make its bearer invincible, however, it soon became clear that Susumu needed no such gimmicks to augment her own power. With nothing more than the standard kunai in her holster she was able to meet and parry every attack her threw at her, dodging strikes of lightning with the ease of a young maiden following the steps of a barn dance. It was twice as frustrating when Tobirama realized she was only playing with him. No matter how hard he tried or what trick he pulled Susumu met every move without even having the decency to look harried by his efforts.

Finally there came a moment when something shifted between them and Tobirama wasn’t sure how he knew but the way his opponent fought had changed and something about that told him the end was coming, she had gotten tired of playing. Their spar was about to end. As a last ditch effort he brought his fingers together in a rapid set of seals and brought one hand to his mouth.

Susumu knocked his hands apart with one foot, the momentum of her kick carrying her body around for the other foot to crack against the side of his head and send him careening sideways. The world flew by in melded colors, both ears ringing from the blow, and by the time Tobirama was able to right himself he found Susumu standing over him with a feral grin and a blade to his throat. He blinked once and fell still as soon as he felt cold steel against the tenuous skin over his thundering pulse.

“Gotcha,” Susumu cackled. A triumphant laugh bubbled up between her lips only to fade away when she saw the mischievous sparkle in his eye. Tobirama winked and then opened his mouth to release the fire jutsu she thought she had interrupted, a short puff of flame that hit her square in the face.

It did little more than singe her eyebrows, of course, he wasn’t stupid enough to fry the face off such a powerful ally, but that wasn’t the point. The point was that he could have fried her face off if this were a real battle and from the mixture of delight and consternation in her expression it was obvious that his opponent understood that. Susumu jerked upright with her free hand already patting around her face to assess the damage. Upon finding only a few hair follicles missing she tossed her head back and laughed so hard Tobirama worried she might drop her kunai in his leg.

“Brilliant!” she crowed. “Who won the fight? Who knows! Both! Nobody! You cheeky little slice of cheese!”

“If I might get up now?” Tobirama murmured, trying to keep his satisfaction in check. He accepted the hand that was offered to him and Susumu stepped away from where she had been standing over his legs to make room for him to right himself again.

Then he almost went tumbling back to the ground as Susumu caught him in the hip with a ‘friendly’ punch that was perhaps a little too enthusiastic.

“Knew you’d do good but damn that was a neat little trick at the end. You, you’re a good egg too, aren’t you? Five elemental releases! I haven’t seen that outside of our clan in quite some time!”

“Nonsense, the Nara have at least two who’ve mastered all the elements.” His protests had less to do with modesty and more to do with his obsessive habit of keeping all shared information correct. The Nara did in fact have two women who were capable of doing as he did, although both of them were well older and had taken longer to master the abilities. Tobirama mostly attributed that to their habitual laziness more than anything else.

“Still impressive,” Susumu allowed and he nodded in acceptance.

Before he could say anything else Kagami came stumbling across the field with Madara trailing behind at a much more sedate pace, both of them wearing differing degrees of awe on their faces. “Sensei! Sensei that was amazing! You’re so cool! Will you teach me how to do that? I want to spit fire in baachan’s face too!”

“Who are you calling baachan!?”

“You’re old!”

With an offended shriek Susumu turned to chase Kagami, who sprinted away across the field in terror. Obviously she could have caught him in less than a few seconds but, probably just to entertain herself, she chose not to augment her speed and instead pattered after him around the torn up training grounds, leaving Madara and Tobirama standing awkwardly together. Which, Tobirama realized after taking another peek at Madara's face, might actually have been the entire reason she chose to play chase with a child.

His husband was looking at him with the closest thing he had seen to actual hesitation on the man’s face in all the time they had known each other. While they might not have any history of getting along Madara did have at least a couple qualities that Tobirama was able to begrudgingly admire, one of which was the confidence he exuded in his every move, the way he chose a path and walked it without allowing doubts to slow him down. It wasn’t clear what he was doubting at the moment, his own misinterpretations or one of the rumors Tobirama usually pretended not to know about, but really all that mattered was the lack of hostility in the way he shuffled just a little closer.

“You really can use all five releases,” he murmured. “You mentioned it in passing and I meant to ask but then you sort of steamrolled over me with some other stuff that…well I got distracted. I can only react to so many things at once.”

Tobirama wanted to say that if he’d known Madara found that interesting he would have brought it up before. Except he knew it wasn’t true. If he’d known anything that Madara found interesting he would have spent the last couple of months burying whatever that thing was under as much dirt and rubble as he could find and maybe asking Hashirama to grow a tree over the grave. Only their recent interactions could be seen in any sort of positive light and even then he would call most of their exchanges cautionary at best.

He wasn’t sure what made him say it. Maybe the childish need to stick his proverbial tongue out at the man for treating him so poorly when he didn’t think he’d deserved it.

“I’ll let you know if I think of anything else about me that you might find impressive.” As soon as the word were out Tobirama wanted to cringe and take them back. For all the bad blood between them Madara had been oddly less than confrontational lately and the last thing he wanted to do was ramp up the antagonism between them again. He was relieved when Madara let out a single bark of laughter.

“Do that. Whatever other surprises you’ve gotten hidden up your sleeves they have to be more interesting than listening to Hashirama babble on about his stupid plants.”

Tobirama quirked up one side of his mouth in a smile that he hoped revealed nothing of what he was actually thinking about. It had been a long time since he met someone who preferred him over Hashirama in any sort of way, his brother being much warmer and easier to befriend. Even without his other triumphs that single innocuous sentence was enough to make this a good day in his books. It was always nice to be appreciated.

With his first session training Kagami going off without a hitch and the pride of having impressed Susumu, clearly an influential part of Madara's life and a strong member of the Uchiha clan, impressing his husband and making him laugh was unexpected icing on the cake of an already good day.

[slusheeduck]

The Way You Keep Me Guessing: Coco Teacher!AU

[Arc 1]

Arc 2: [Together] [A Talk] [The Visit] [Time] [Shot] [Dropping In] [Penultimate]

Chapter 8: Crossroad

             “It’s not the movies, but…hope this makes up for yesterday, chamaco.”

               Héctor waited for Miguel to turn around before offering him an apologetic smile to go with the fruit cup he held out to him. He relaxed slightly as Miguel took it without hesitation, already pulling a chunk of melón verde out as they walked back to the apartment. Héctor watched him for a moment, hands in his pockets.

               “I really am sorry, Miguel. I—”

               “It’s fine. Tía Imelda told me everything. Do you want my pineapple?”

               “Qué?”

               “My pineapple; it makes my mouth itchy and…”

               Héctor shook his head, stopping in his tracks and setting his hand on Miguel’s head to stop him as well. “No, not the pineapple. Tía Imelda told you…everything?”

               Miguel shrugged. “I mean, I kinda already knew, but she said that it’s been a long time since you’ve seen your mamá, so you lost track of time.” He dug out a grape, rolling it nervously in his fingers before looking up at Héctor. “I mean, I was a little worried when you didn’t call…”

               Héctor swallowed. Oh, he hadn’t even thought of that; calling when he’d gone anywhere had become second nature since Miguel had moved in, and he’d left his phone at home like an idiot. “Ay, Miguel, I…”

               “Bu-ut, I mean, not that much. I mean, you just went to that café you and Tía Imelda always go to, yeah? And I wanted to stay up until you came back, but she told me I had to go to sleep. And then you were here this morning so it was fine.” He popped the grape in his mouth, relaxing again. “So you don’t need to apologize, Tío Héctor. We’ll go to the movies later.”

               Héctor pressed his lips together hard. Okay. Okay okay. So he hadn’t heard everything. That was…well, it’d be a hard thing to talk about, but at least he got to tell Miguel himself. That was a good thing. Probably.

               He glanced down as he saw a pineapple spear being waved in his general direction, and he smiled at Miguel as he took it, then ran his free hand through his hair. “Why don’t we sit for a minute, chamaco?” He nodded at the low wall behind them. “Fruit tastes better when you’re sitting outside, anyway.” He sat down on the edge of the wall, hand automatically going out to make sure Miguel didn’t topple over as he hopped up. “I…I actually had a really interesting talk with Mamá yesterday.”

               “Was she nice?”

               Héctor’s eyebrows rose at the defensiveness in Miguel’s question, and he laughed a bit. “Sí, sí, she was very nice.” He took a bite of pineapple, chewing for a moment before adding, “Does she seem…not nice to you?”

               Miguel squinted. “I guess not. She kept trying to kiss me like Abuelita does.”

               Héctor chuckled. “Mamá likes to make up for lost time with kisses and presents. Whenever she visited, I always looked like I had the chickenpox with all her lipstick.” He smiled as Miguel laughed, then took a breath. “Anyway, I talked with her yesterday, and…there’s some stuff I want to talk to you about from that conversation. It turns out, Mamá has a friend who lives over in Morelia, who’s an agent with a record label. And…she wants me to talk to him, to see if Ernesto and I can get signed on with them.” He paused, glancing over to gauge Miguel’s reaction. “If we get signed on, that means they’ll make CDs of our songs, and being musicians would be our full-time job. Está claro?”

               Miguel nodded. “So…you’d stop being a teacher?”

               “Yes, exactly.” Héctor fiddled with his pineapple chunk. “But…that also means that I’ll probably be travelling a lot. Ernesto and I would be touring a lot.”

               “That’s fine. I don’t mind travelling. We went on a road trip last year and I didn’t even get car sick like Abel did, so…”

               “You…wouldn’t be travelling with us, Miguel.”

               Miguel froze for a moment, and he looked up at Héctor. For the first time in the conversation, Miguel looked hurt. “What? Why?”

               Héctor rubbed the back of his neck. “Well, for one, it’s not safe. And two, you still have to go to school, and I wouldn’t have the time to homeschool you.”

               Miguel frowned, then he gave a little huff. “I guess I could stay with Tía Imelda, but…”

               Héctor grimaced. “Not…quite. Since she and I aren’t married, she’s not your guardian. So…”

               “So then marry her?’

               “I wish it was that easy, chamaco. What’ll probably happen is you’ll…go back to Santa Cecilia.” Héctor’s stomach twisted as Miguel sent him a look that bordered on panic.

               “What? So are you not adopting me?”

               “No, no, I am! Cálmese, cálmese.” He went to set his hand on Miguel’s head, but pulled it back as Miguel ducked away, inwardly cringing at the fierce look the boy gave him. “Escuchamé, Miguel. It would just be for a couple years. A-and we’d have so much more money. I’d be able to marry Tía Imelda, we could get a big house—maybe even in El Distrito, who knows!—and then we could be a real family.”

               Teto, I know I said I’d visit, but soon, mí corazón, I’ll have plenty of money. And once I come get you, we’ll have a big house in El Distrito and be a real family!

               Héctor froze as the words rang in his head, heart flipping in his chest. Had he really said that? But…no, this was different. He had a plan. It really would only be a couple years.

               He wouldn’t…he would not be like his mother.

               He blinked a few times, coming back to himself as he noticed the look on Miguel’s face—he hadn’t seen that sort of skepticism on a kid since he’d first brought Miguel back home. He swallowed.

               “Look, Miguel. I know it’s not ideal,” he said quietly. “I…I get it. I really, really get it. Getting moved from place to place…es pésimo. It’s…” He sucked in a breath. What was the best way to approach this to an eight-year-old? “That’s what happened to me, when I was growing up. And I never, ever want that to happen to you. But…look, your papá wanted to give you the world. And if I can do that…if I can earn enough money to get us a stable home and everything we need to be an actual family, then…then I think it’s gonna be worth it. Even…even if it’s hard right now.”

               He let out a quick, wheezing breath as he finished, then watched Miguel with wide eyes. For several minutes, the kid did nothing but turn his empty fruit cup over in his hands. Was he in shock? Was he thinking? Would he agree that it was a good idea? Would he lash out and say that it was unfair and why would Héctor even think something like this was a good idea?

               Was it bad that a small part of Héctor hoped he would do the last one?

               “Miguel?”

               This time, Miguel let Héctor’s hand land on his shoulder, and he sniffled before he could stop himself.

               “You said you weren’t ever leaving again.”

               “I’m not…I’m not leaving. It’s not…I’m still adopting you. And when I’m not touring I’m going to be right by your side. A-and then in two years or so I’ll just stay home and song-write.” He squeezed Miguel’s shoulder. “It’ll take a little longer than planned, but it’ll be worth it, Miguel. I promise.”

               Miguel didn’t reply, but as he looked up, his thoughts were plain as day on his face: You promised we’d go to the movies, too.

               Héctor’s eyes flicked over Miguel’s face, and he felt himself wilt. It was worth it. It had to be. Good things always came with growing pains, right? They just had to get through it. The both of them had been through so much already, it should be easy.

               Maybe.

               Héctor ruffled Miguel’s hair. “Well…tomorrow, it’s just going to be a talk. The agent, he might not even like me. He might think I’m too scarecrowish for songs that don’t include wizards and yellow brick roads.” No reaction from Miguel. Héctor pressed his lips together hard, then put on a smile as best he could as he got to his feet. “And it’s not until tomorrow! We can still go out today. Maybe we could still catch a movie, o-or we could stop by the park…”

               Miguel silently hopped down from the wall, tossing his cup into a nearby trash can without looking at Héctor. After a moment, he quietly asked, “Can we just go home?”

               This was a mistake. It had to be; no one was happy with this.

               But…but they would be.

               After all, just think of what he could give Miguel if he had the kind of money a pro. Think of how wonderful and comfortable his family—Imelda, Miguel, Mari, whatever other kids popped up—could be if he just grinned and bore it for a couple years. And Miguel…he was a smart kid. He’d get that he wasn’t being strung along. It was just some discomfort for the greater good. He’d see that.

               But even so, he wasn’t about to argue that it was really awful in the moment.

               He set his hand on Miguel’s head, ruffling his hair gently. “Sure, chamaco. Let’s head home.”

~

               Discos Fénix was…a lot less glamorous than he’d expected.

               Granted, he hadn’t really been sure what he expected out of a record agency. Maybe some gold-tinted windows, or at least some fancy modern architecture. He squinted at it as he took off his helmet, still half-convinced that the nondescript boxy building he was at was the right address.

               However, he didn’t even have to check the business card again; the trilling “Teto!” was confirmation enough that he was at the right place. He took a breath, tucking his helmet under his arm as he turned and smiled at his mother as she came out into the parking lot. She looked surprisingly professional today in a plain white blouse and black pencil skirt, her hair piled onto her head in a carefully haphazard way. She immediately pulled him into a tight hug.

               “Ah, mi corazón, I’m so happy you made it,” she said with a bright grin. “And is the motorcycle I’ve heard about? Qué chido! You already look like a rock star!” She gave him a wink as she stepped back. “All you need now is the record deal to go with it.”

               “Ah…gracias, Mamá. But today’s…just talking, isn’t it? No deals?”

               “Well, that’s what Andres says, but I get the feeling things might progress a bit more than that. After all, he already knows how talented you are, mijo.” Mari ushered Héctor inside, sending a wave to a bored-looking security guard as they walked in. “This is the son I was telling you about!” she said to him, pointing at Héctor as they entered the lobby. Héctor squirmed a bit.

               “Please tell me you haven’t been telling everyone in the building about me.”

               “Why shouldn’t I? I’m proud of my son!”

               Héctor knew he should be glowing at those words, but…they felt a little more hollow today than they had in the café. He couldn’t put his finger on why exactly, but it seemed more performed today. Or he’d been too messed up a couple days ago to notice the performance.

               But it wasn’t worth worrying over. After all, he couldn’t really say anything here anyway. So he merely shook his head as he stepped into the elevator with her, then let himself be ushered out into the hallway when they got to the fourth floor. She stopped in front of one of the many identical, dark wooden doors, a bright smile on her face.

               “Don’t be nervous, mí corazón,” she said, reaching up to pull him own and pepper his cheek with kisses. “You’ll charm him before you even start talking.”

               Héctor gave her an awkward grin. As if that was the reason he was uncomfortable. But there was no time to say anything before the door opened and a short, pleasant-looking man in neat, casual clothes smiled up at them.

               “Pasen, pasen,” he said, waving them in as he stepped back, then gestured at Héctor’s helmet. “Ah, I see you ride. I had a little moto back when I was your age, too. Here, just set that by the door, then we can start talking. Do you want anything?”

               “Ah…no, no gracias.” Héctor glanced at Mari as he set his helmet down; she made her way through the office as if she owned the place. But then, he didn’t really expect anything less from her. He followed, quietly sitting in one of the very nice chairs at the desk. “And, uh, thanks for seeing me, Alex. Er…Señor Hernández?” He jumped at the loud laugh that came out of the other man as he sat.

               “Alex is what my American clients call me. Apparently Andrés Alejandro Hernández Madroñero is too hard,” he said with another chuckle. “But you are a friend, so you’re more than welcome to just call me Andrés.”

               Héctor gave him a little smile. “Well, gracias, Andrés. I do really appreciate you taking the time to see me.”

               Andrés waved his hand. “Don’t even worry about that.” He leaned forward, leaning his elbows on his desk. “I don’t know if you know this, but your mamá has been singing your praises since the first time we met. And hearing your demos, I can see that you’ve earned her praise.”

               Héctor glanced at Mari. “Have you really talked about me that much?” he asked quietly. She grinned.

               “Of course, mi corazón. I can’t keep talent like yours a secret.”

               Héctor half-smiled, though he couldn’t quite tamp down the curl of discomfort in his chest. After all, Ernesto had said the same thing whenever Héctor’d thought of bowing out of the music scene. He didn’t have long to compare them, though, before Andrés cleared his throat.

               “Now, Héctor, why don’t you tell me about your musical background?”

               “Well, I was classically trained in guitar and piano, and I studied music theory at l’Universidad d…” He trailed off as Andrés laughed and shook his head.

               “No, no, not that. No offense, my friend, but no one except fangirls cares about that.” He leaned forward, brow furrowed slightly. “No, tell me about the music.”

               Héctor drummed his fingers on his knee for a moment. “Uh…well, Cruz y Rivera is me and my friend, Ernesto—which, um, sorry he couldn’t be here today.” He couldn’t fight the glance toward his mother before he looked back up at Andrés. “Something came up. But we try to bring together traditional music styles with modern ones. Ernesto’s a big fan of rancheras and boleros, and I try my best to channel Carlos Santana when I perform, so we do our best to mesh both of those into something beautiful and fun.”

               Andrés nodded. “And have you released anything?”

               “Por supuesto. We have a recording set-up in our apartment, and we’ll do some live sessions on YouTube.”

               “You have a YouTube?”

               “It’s where most people find us.”

               “How many followers?”

               Héctor puffed out his cheeks. “We…just hit 60,000 a couple weeks ago, I think.”

               Andrés raised his eyebrows. “That’s good. You’ve already got a fanbase, then.” He smiled up at Héctor. “That definitely means you’ve got something special.” He turned to his computer, clicking a few times. Music burst out of the speakers; it took Héctor a moment to realize it was one of their songs.

               “This one, I think it’s called ‘En calquier caso’?”

               “Close. ‘Dices cualquier cosa.’”

               “That’s it, thank you. Now, this one is a hit just waiting to happen.”

               Héctor gave a wide smile, sitting up in his seat a bit. “I’m proud of it, actually. A-and it’s one of our most viewed videos.”

               “Well that’s no surprise. Now, is this you singing?”

               “No, I barely sing; Ernesto’s the one with the decent voice,” he said with a chuckle, then held up a finger as a guitar solo started. “That’s me. I write most of our music, too.”

               Andrés gave Héctor a knowing look. “And that is a much more important skill to have. Sure, a nice voice and a nice face is fine—not that you don’t have a nice face, of course, but those things don’t always last. Being able to make music out of nothing, though, that is a skill that will get you very, very far.” Andrés raised his eyebrows. “But you have to get your name out there first. So, here’s what I’m suggesting: we sign Cruz y Rivera on for a five-year contract with Discos Fénix. That’s…about two records, and so two tours.”

               “Two tours?” Oh. That was…much more than he’d initially been considering. Héctor swallowed, then added, “Is it…um, how much travelling would there be?”

               Andrés leaned back. “Well, I can’t tell you for sure. But you’re guaranteed a full tour of México and a few big cities in America. I’ll shoot for Brazil too, if I can.”

               At that point, was it even worth going home? “That’s…a lot.”

               “I know, I know. It’s going to be exhausting. But! Think of all the opportunities you’ll get. And besides, you’re not even thirty yet, right? So you’ll bounce back like nothing.” Andrés smiled. “And, once you put in those five years, I can promise you that you’ll be able to hole up somewhere nice and write songs for the biggest stars around.”

               Héctor pressed his lips together hard. Five years. Miguel would nearly be fourteen by the time this was done—and there was no way he could adopt him if he was constantly gone. And Imelda…would she wait that long to get married? He supposed they could just get married now, and then Miguel could stay with her instead of going back to Santa Cecilia. But…it was still so long…

               But…think of the money. He could buy a house—a nice roomy one. Imelda would get all the lovely, expensive things she always sighed over when they went out—and the school could get a very nice donation from a certain ex-teacher that’d take care of all the maintenance and supplies that were needed. And Miguel! With this kind of money, Miguel could take any music class he wanted. And he could even have a university fund set up so he could study abroad or even at El Conservatario! Not to mention the other kids that would be coming along. Wasn’t that the kind of life he wanted for his future family?

               And not just the family he was making now. This was a guarantee to keep Ernesto and Mari around as well. He really could get everything he wanted, just at the expense of five years. That…that wasn’t so bad of a trade, right? Just five…short years…

               He shook out his shoulders, getting himself back into the present. “Can I…can I see the contract?

               “No need to,” Mari chirped. “I helped Andrés write it up for you. It’s everything you’d ever need to move on to a bright new life.”

               Héctor frowned. “I still want to see it.”

               Andrés chuckled even as Mari looked wounded. “Smart boy,” he said, leaning over to open one of his drawers. “Here’s some free advice, no matter what you end up doing: always read the contract. Even the small print.” He took a glance at his watch as he resurfaced, a thick stack of papers in his hand. “Though…the way we’re doing this is a little…untraditional. So if you could have an answer by tonight, it’d make things a lot easier for the both of us.”

               Héctor’s frown deepened as he took the papers. “What do you mean, ‘untraditional’?”

               “It normally takes months to get an appointment with Andrés,” Mari said, lowering her voice to a whisper. “But he’s dedicated the whole day to you!”

               Héctor swallowed, eyes widening as he looked up at Andrés, who cleared his throat.

               “Mariana, since you already know what’s in the contract, could you go wait outside for a moment?” he said, giving her a pleasant smile. “I’ll send Héctor right out when we’re done, I just want to make sure he understands everything.”

               Mari blinked, then glanced up at Héctor before giving her biggest smile. “Of course I don’t mind. I suppose you are a little too old for your Mamá to hang around for a signing.” She pulled Héctor over to pepper kisses to his cheek, then got to her feet and made her way out with a trilling goodbye. Once the door was closed, Andrés took off his glasses and rubbed his eyes.

               “Look, Héctor,” he said before Héctor could ask anything. “You’re a grown man. You should know what’s going on.” He looked up at him. “Your mama worked terribly hard to get to know me over the past few months.”

               Héctor blinked. “Are…are you dating her?’

               “No! No, no, I’m happily married,” he said, shaking his head with a laugh before he leaned forward. “Let me tell you something: this industry is built on relationships. And I don’t know how she did it, but she found her way to every event, every dinner, every conference I’ve been to in the past few months. I thought she was playing the game for herself, but…well, I was moved when we finally got to talking and she could only talk about you. Told me about how you played guitar since you were a kid, how you and your friend started your channel and even managed to tour, everything. She was so proud of you.”

               Héctor swallowed, once again drumming his fingers on his knee in a nonsense tune as he processed that. “That…that’s very nice to hear, thank you.”

               Andrés nodded. “You should know she loves you very, very much.” His brow furrowed, and he bit down on the end of his glasses. “But like I said before, this method of signing isn’t typical. And it’s definitely not fair to my other clients if I spend too much time on you and your friend.” He quickly added, “And don’t think this is a pity conference just because your mama worked so hard. After hearing your music, I can tell you would make hit after hit. You especially make magic happen with that guitar of yours.”

               “Thank you.”

               Andrés nodded, setting his glasses back on. “Obviously I want you to look through the paperwork. But, honestly? If I were you, I’d jump on this chance now.” He looked over his glasses. “You probably won’t get a chance like this again, Héctor. Not everyone is lucky enough to have a mother who loves her son this much.”

               Héctor’s heart pounded in his chest. Was this even real? One day to decide where he wanted his life course to go? And what about Ernesto? Well, that was a stupid question; Ernesto would tell him to do it right now, that the contract didn’t matter and this was their step toward becoming the men they’d dreamed of, to having the life he’d always wanted with his friend and his family. He could practically hear him in his head, whispering, “Come on, Teto. You’ve just got to seize your moment.”

               Slowly, he picked up the pen…only to drop it as his phone went off.

               “Sorry, sorry!” he apologized quickly, digging in his pocket to pull his phone out. “Sorry. My primo’s staying with me and he gets nervous if…”

               He went silent as he looked at the screen. Oh. It wasn’t a call, it was an alarm. He squinted at the screen, and his heart dropped to his chest as he saw the words “SOCIAL WORKER VISIT – 4 PM” in big letters on the screen. That was today?! He jumped up to his feet.

               “I-I…Lo siento, Andrés, but I-I have to go. Right now. I’m sorry,” he said, nearly tripping as he turned to the door.

               “So soon?” Andrés asked as he stood up.

               “Sí! It’s…I have an appointment I have to go to!” His fingers slipped over the helmet as he tried to pick it up.

               “Well, if you get the chance, call me later tonight,” Andrés called. “I can’t keep this opening for you forever!”

               Héctor barely heard him as he opened the door, trying to figure out how he was going to pull this off. It was about an hour drive home if he was quick, so he should be able to get there just in time. Could he afford a few minutes to call Imelda? No, probably not, it was better if he just…

               “Ay, mijo, what’s the rush?” Héctor nearly toppled backward as Mari took his arm. “So? Did you sign?”

               Héctor swallowed, looking back at her and shaking his head. “No. I have to get home. I forgot I have a home visit for Miguel, and the social worker will be there at four.  I need to—” He trailed off as Mari waved her hand.

               “Just call and have him come back later. They understand these sort of things, I’m sure.”

               Héctor went still, just barely keeping his jaw from dropping as he stared at Mari. She…she had to be joking. “You…sorry, did you just suggest I reschedule a home visit? In the middle of an adoption?”

               Mari shrugged. “I’m sure you wouldn’t be the first. Just say that something important came up. Or a family emergency happened, if you’re desperate. I’ll vouch for you, mijo, don’t worry.”

               “And you…you think that’s okay?”

               Mari shrugged. “It worked when Elena was taking care of you.” She chuckled. “It took forever for me to get to the court date to sign off the guardianship, I was so busy that year.”

               Héctor stared at Mari in utter disbelief, stomach curling uncomfortably. Static filled his head, drowning out his thoughts. Through the noise, he tried to tell himself that she was kidding, or that she was just trying to keep him there in a bid of desperation, but…no. Her face was too open and genuine; she actually thought this was an acceptable option, and the realization that she had always been like this sucked the air right out of his lungs.

               Ernesto was right. Tía Victoria was right. Tía Elena was right. He’d tried so hard to block out the times they’d told him that she loved herself more, that she didn’t really take being a mother seriously. But now he was seeing it himself, and it was so much worse than he ever thought it would be.

               But there was no time to be hurt. So he pulled his arm away and stood up straight. Just because she couldn’t be a parent doesn’t mean he couldn’t.

               “I’m not signing.”

               For the very first time he could remember, Mari’s composure dropped. She looked as if she’d been slapped, and she sent him a look of panic before putting on a stiff smile. “Ay, Teto, qué gracioso! You always were a funny boy.”

               Héctor kept his face strong. “I’m not signing, Mamá,” he repeated. “I…look, I know I said I wanted to record for years, but…things are different now. I can’t put my life on hold for five years; Miguel needs me.” He swallowed as he rolled his helmet in his hands. “I appreciate what you’ve done, but I can’t. I’m sorry, Mamá.” He turned toward the elevator, but stopped as he heard a choked noise from behind him.

               “So you’re just…you’re just throwing a chance like this away?” Héctor turned around and automatically shrunk back as he saw the look on Mari’s face. For the first time, his mother looked angry—nearly as angry as Tía Elena had whenever she whipped out la chancla. He instinctively flinched back as she walked up to him. “Héctor. You are far too talented to be holed up in a school. And I…I worked so hard to give you this chance. You think it’s been easy? You think you can just waltz on up to someone and ask them to please, please, just take a listen to your son’s music? It took ages, Héctor, and now…are you really that ungrateful for what I’ve done for you?”

               “Mamá, I am grateful. And a few years ago, I would have jumped at this chance.” With a bit of effort, he stood up straight, looking down to meet her eyes. “But Miguel needs a family, and I promised I’d be there for him.”

               Mari shook her head. “He has family. Elena’s other boy, he was planning on taking him in, wasn’t he? And he’d be surrounded by everyone at the shoe shop. And you can still adopt him! Five years is nothing, Héctor. You can visit and then have a nice home ready for him.” She stepped forward to set her hand on his arm. “Escúchame, mi corazón. Think of everything you could give him if you just…”

               “Think of all you could’ve given me if you’d just been there!”

               The words burst out of Héctor before he could stop them, and he immediately covered his mouth, eyes wide as Mari stared at him in shock. He’d never, ever talked back to Mari, much less yelled at her. He almost apologized.

               But then, what would he even be apologizing for? “Sorry for wanting a mother who was around”? No. No, this kind of family dynamic ended with him, right now.

               He swallowed and steadied himself as he stood tall, taking advantage of her stunned silence to talk. “Mamá…I know you did the best you could,” he said. “But…but I don’t want my kid to live the way I did. I don’t want him to know I love him from letters and presents, I want to be there for him. I want a home, one that’s mine and that I wasn’t just…just dumped into.” His voice broke, but he pulled himself together to add, “And I’m really sorry if you can’t see how important that is. For me and Miguel.” When Mari didn’t reply, he let out a soft breath. “I’ll…I’ll see you, Mamá. I’ll write soon.”

               He turned and started walking back to the elevators, but slowed as he heard a sniffle. He glanced over his shoulder, heart twisting as he saw the look on his mother’s face. For the first time, she looked…fragile. Her eyes shone with tears, and her lips trembled as she stared at him. It was the most genuine emotion he’d seen from her, and for some reason that made him profoundly uncomfortable yet unable to turn away.

               Mari wiped her eyes with her fingertips, dark eyes focused hard on him. “I’ve always loved you, mijo,” she said, voice shaking. “I have always wanted the best for you. Nothing less.”

               Héctor sighed softly. He glanced at his watch, then took a few quick steps back down the hall to stand in front of Mari. “I never doubted that. Not once,” he said, unable to stop the sadness that colored his voice. He leaned down, giving his mother a kiss on the cheek before stepping back. “Goodbye, Mamá. Write me when you can. I’ve got to go.”

               And with that, he turned and headed straight for the elevators, ignoring every temptation to look back at her. They both knew the truth now: it was too late. Too late for her to have a son to show off, too late for him to have the kind of relationship with his mother he wanted. Too late for her love to mean anything more to him than a nice sentiment.

               But it wasn’t too late for Miguel. And, by god, he was going to be the kind of parent he’d always wished he’d had. He just had to get to the apartment first.

~

               By some miracle, he didn’t get stopped for speeding or into a wreck as he sped home, and he pulled into the apartment’s parking lot just in time to see Elena Martinez—easy to spot in her bright yellow suit—walking up to the front door. He swerved into his parking spot and nearly faceplanted off his bike as he tried to throw himself off of it.

               “Señora Martinez!” he called, causing her to stop as he ran up to the door. “Don’t…don’t go in yet!”

               Her eyes were wide, and she automatically took a step back as he approached. Why…oh. His helmet was still on. He quickly took it off, taking a deep breath as she let out a laugh.

               “Oh, Héctor. Sorry, I didn’t recognize you with that on.” She looked at Héctor curiously. “Is something wrong?”

               “No! No, nothing’s wrong. Just…” He let out a breath, running his hand through his hair as he gathered his thoughts. “There was…a little bit of a family emergency.”

               “Dios mio, is everything okay?”

               “Sí sí sí, everyone’s fine. Just…I need a few minutes to check in with Miguel. Is there any way I can have just five minutes before you come up?”

               She smiled, then checked her watch. “Well, I have a little wiggle room today. How about I come up at 4:15? Would that be all right?”

               “Perfecto. Muchas gracias.”

               “Of course.” As Héctor started to go into the building, she added, “Oh, and Héctor?”

               He stopped and turned, eyes wide. “Sí?”

               “Call me Elena, not Señora Martinez.” She smiled. “I’ll be up in just a few minutes.”

               Héctor smiled, nearly going limp from relief, then entered the apartment building. He took the stairs two at a time—earning a grumble from Chicharrón somewhere around the third floor that was promptly ignored—and reached the apartment in record time. He paused for a moment, gathering himself.

               Qué día.

               He still had to figure out how to best tell Andrés that he wasn’t signing the contract. And how to tell Ernesto that he wasn’t signing the contract. And, of course, he had to unpack everything that had happened with his mother, which was going to take a while and possibly a therapist and definitely a long phone call to Tía Elena.

               But that could all wait. For now, there was something much more important.

               He’d barely gotten the door unlocked before it burst open, with Miguel launching himself right at Héctor’s middle. He stumbled back with a laugh, automatically hugging the boy to him.

               “See, I knew all that noise was you! I heard the motorcycle and Tía Imelda wouldn’t believe me but I told her.” Miguel looked up at him with a big smile, but it slowly began to fade. He let go of Héctor and stepped back as he asked, “So…are you leaving?”

               “I…”

               “Dios mio, Miguel, I step away for two seconds and…” Imelda walked to the doorway, eyebrows raising in surprise as she saw Héctor. “You’re back already?”

               “I told you, Tía Imelda.”

               Héctor automatically ruffled Miguel’s hair as he looked up at Imelda with a half-smile. “It, uh, well, my phone reminded me that we had a home visit today. Past me knew I’d forget, I guess.”

               Imelda’s eyes widened, and she covered her mouth. “That’s today?” She pressed her thumb to her brow. “Dios mio, with your mother and the spring fair, I…”

               “Tranquilo, tranquilo, diosa.” Héctor finally pulled away from Miguel to set his hands on Imelda’s arms. “I ran into the social worker downstairs, she’s gonna come in a few minutes. We’re fine.” He rubbed her arms as he kissed along her hairline. “Everything is going to be fine.”

               Imelda pulled back, brow furrowed. “But what about the record deal?”

               “I’m calling him back tonight. But…” He looked between her and Miguel. “But I’m not signing.”

               “What?” Héctor looked down at Miguel in surprise. “But you could’ve been a rock star!”

               Héctor half-smiled. “And let Profe Gustavo take over the estudiantina for five years? I couldn’t do that in good conscience.”

               “Five years?” Imelda whispered. He nodded.

               “Mm. It’s too long.”

               “And…how did your mother take it?”

               Héctor sucked in a breath, pressing his lips together tightly. “She…well, that one is a long story.” He ruffled Miguel’s hair again. “Tell you what, once this visit’s over and I’ve given Andrés a call, I’ll tell you both all about it. And you, chamaco, can show me that song I’ve heard you plucking at over the past few days.”

~

               For all the fuss at the start, the visit itself went outrageously smoothly. There was a little explanation about Ernesto moving out and Imelda had to have a little conversation about her new status as future guardian, but in all, Elena Martinez said that they should be in the clear, and Héctor would be getting more information in a few days.

               And now, after the stress of the day, Héctor found himself on the roof of the apartment, phone in hand and breathing in the cool evening air. Miguel had been practically buzzing to show off the song he’d written, but Héctor had asked for just a few minutes to call Andrés about the contract before that. And he was going to do it soon, but for now, he took the time to breathe in the cool evening air and enjoy a moment of stillness.

               Qué día.

               The conversation with Mari still hurt, but not as much as he’d expected it to. He’d known for a while that this was the kind of person she was, even if he hadn’t admitted it, and he’d known he’d never get what he wanted from her. Not…that he really needed it. He already had someone who’d given him everything a mother could give.

                Vaya, he really needed to call Tía Elena.

               But Andrés first. He pulled the card from his shirt pocket, squinting at the numbers in the dying light. It’d be quick, he’d apologize for wasting his time, and…

               “Imelda said you’d be up here.”

               Héctor jumped, and he turned around to see Ernesto walking out onto the roof. He automatically got to his feet, tucking the card back into his pocket.

               “Hola, Nesto.” He gripped his right arm, unsure of what else to say. Given the way Ernesto seemed to be looking at everything but Héctor, he was in the same boat. “Um. I’m just…if you want to sit for a minute up here…?”

               “No. I’m just staying for a minute.” He pulled a stack of cash from his pocket, silently counting out the bills before he held them out to Héctor. “Here’s my rent for the month. From now on, you’re on your own with paying it.”

               Héctor glanced down at the money, then up at Ernesto. “So you really are moving out?”

               “You waited until my stuff was practically gone before asking?”

               “I mean, you can be a little dramatic.”

               Ernesto rolled his eyes. “Yes, I’m moving out.” He looked away as he shrugged. “You’ve got your life plan, I’ve got mine, and they’ve gotten more and more different over the past year. I don’t think either of us really have a place for the other now.” The words sounded rehearsed, but then, they usually were when he got serious like this.

               Héctor swallowed. Ernesto…wasn’t wrong, but still. He’d been around for so long that he couldn’t really think about what life without his best friend would look like…even if they weren’t, strictly speaking, best friends these days. He stuck his hands in his pockets.

               “Where are you moving to?”

               “Just outside Guadalajara. My friend Carlos—he’s downstairs—he lives out there and I’m going to stay with him for a bit.”

               “Nice, nice. It’s a good city, you’ll like it.”

               Ernesto nodded, still not looking at Héctor, and they fell into a long, uncomfortable silence. Just as Héctor was about to say he needed to make a call, Ernesto asked, “So how did the meeting go?”

               “I’m not signing.” The words came out with surprising ease; he’d been prepared to circle-talk his way around it in his original plan to break the news. Ernesto nodded, unruffled.

               “I had a feeling you wouldn’t. You never liked touring. How long did they want to sign us on for?”

               “Five years.”

               “Five? Ay, one of us would have killed the other.” Ernesto shifted. “How’d he take it?”

               “I haven’t told him yet. I was just about to call.”

               Ernesto’s eyebrows rose. “Do you still have his card?” Once Héctor pulled it out, he took it with a smile. “Look, just because you don’t want it doesn’t mean the chance should go to waste. I’m not suddenly getting saddled with a family; five years is nothing.”

               Héctor blinked, then smiled as he stuck his hands in his pockets. “Adelante, Nesto. If anyone could make a solo career work, it’s you.” He paused for a moment, then added, “And I think you should show him that song you’ve been working on. It’s good.”

               Ernesto’s carefully maintained expression dropped, and he looked genuinely shocked. “You…heard it?”

               “You never put up the foam, of course I heard it.” He smiled. “More like that, and you’ll end up throwing my songs out.”

               “Basta.” Despite the way he waved his hand, he looked genuinely touched. Héctor’s smile widened before he pressed his lips together.

               “You were right. About Mamá,” he said softly. “And…I think I always knew it, but…” He looked up as Ernesto took a step forward, setting his hand on his shoulder.

               “Escúchame, Héctor. I know…I know what I said a few days ago, but you are nothing like her.” His mouth pulled back into an almost-smile. “You’re already doing better than both of our parents. I think you have a shot at…at actually being a decent parent. If you remember to pay the rent on time.”

               Héctor smiled, relaxing immediately at the assurance. “Gracias, Nesto. That…it really means a lot.”

               “I know.” Ernesto stepped back, staring at Héctor for a moment before he held out his hand. “I’ll text you what the agent ends up saying later tonight, okay?”

               Héctor looked down at Ernesto’s hand, then took two steps forward to throw his arms around Ernesto in a tight hug instead. “If he doesn’t sign you on, he’s a hack,” he said, giving him a squeeze before letting go and giving Ernesto a big smile. “I fully expect to see your stupid face all over México in a couple years, bien?”

               Ernesto blinked, clearly caught off-guard with the sudden display of affection, but gave Héctor a smile in return. “And I’ll try to carve out some time for your wedding.” He pulled out his phone, already dialing the number on the card. “Anyway, I’ve got an agent to call. Hasta pronto, Héctor.”

               Héctor gave a wave just as Ernesto turned back to the doorway, letting out a breath as he disappeared down the stairs. But, just as Ernesto’s footsteps faded, a second set came rushing up, and Héctor gave a wide smile as Miguel ran out onto the roof, guitar in hand.

               “Tía Imelda said we should come up and check on you, but she’s being so slow,” Miguel said breathlessly as Héctor walked up to him. “Are you done with your call? Can I show you my song?”

               “Por supuesto, chamaco, my evening’s all yours,” Héctor said with a laugh. “Come on, I think there’s just enough room over here for the three of us.” As he guided Miguel to the spot, he looked down at him. “Are you loosened up?”

               Miguel nodded, shaking out his arms and shoulders to demonstrate.

               “Perfecto. But I think you could be a little looser. Why don’t we pull out el grito?” He took a deep breath, then let out a loud grito. Miguel joined him, trilling out a cry that was just as loud as Héctor’s. They both stopped and turned, though, at the third voice that echoed out from the doorway. Héctor grinned.

               “Was that a grito from La Directora?” he asked, raising his eyebrows. Imelda shrugged with a smile as she walked over to them, his guitar case in hand.

               “Well, if everyone else is doing it, I figured I might as well give it a try.” Her dark eyes glinted as she looked up at him, standing up on her tiptoes to press a kiss to his lips. “Sorry to keep you waiting, cariño, but someone needed to grab your guitar.”

               Héctor gave her a bright smile and a quick but enthusiastic kiss as he took the case. To think, he’d thought being away from this was a good idea. He cupped her face as he looked down at her, thumb brushing her cheek.

               “Why don’t we get married right now?” he asked softly. “Just run down to the courthouse before it closes.”

               “Well, aside from the fact that the courthouse is closed, I don’t have a ring, and you still haven’t even met my parents, I think we at least need to tell our soon-to-be son what’s happening,” she murmured, then took Héctor’s hand and kissed his palm a few times. “Then we can discuss what a bad idea that is.”

               Héctor smiled, leaning down to kiss her forehead. “Fair enough.”

               He took her hand and pulled her over to their spot, smiling as he saw Miguel carefully tuning his guitar. “Hey, chamaco, before you start, there’s something I wanted to tell you. Well, that Imelda and I wanted to tell you.”

               Miguel looked up, brows furrowed. “Is it bad?”

               “No, no! It’s not bad at all. It’s…” Héctor smiled at Imelda, then looked back at Miguel. “Well, Tía Imelda and I are…we’re planning on getting married.” To his surprise, Miguel rolled his eyes. “What? What’s wrong, Miguel?”

               “Well, I already knew that. You made her shoes,” he said matter-of-factly as he continued tuning his guitar. “Everyone knows what that means.”

               Imelda frowned slightly as she sat down on Miguel’s other side. “Am I the only one who didn’t know that shoes mean an engagement?” Héctor gave a smile and a shrug.

               “Well, now you’re qualified to be a Rivera.” He caught Imelda’s hand as she shook her head, pressing a kiss to it. “And now you’ll know what it means when Miguel makes someone shoes.”

               Miguel made a face. “No way. That’s gross.”

               Héctor laughed. “Well, that’s a long way away.” He opened up his case and pulled out his guitar. “Now, chamaco, let’s hear that song you’re writing.”

               Miguel wasted no time in strumming out his little tune, and the night passed wonderfully with Héctor helping him, with several duets between them and even a few songs coaxed out of Imelda. In all honesty, it was the happiest Héctor had been in a long, long time. He had his family. He had more music than he’d ever dreamed of.

               And finally, finally, after all these years, he didn’t need to worry about saying goodbye.

~

Fin.

[From both me and @im-fairly-whitty, thank you all so, SO much for joining us on the ride that is Teacher!AU. It’s been an incredible year and a half with all the stories, asks, drawings, and friends that have come from this AU. Thank you for sticking out long hiatuses and for being so understanding when we needed extra time. Thank you for your enthusiasm and likes and reblogs. And of course, THANKS SO MUCH FOR READING!!

The main storyline is closed, and the AU as a whole will be after an epilogue from Wit and a fun little side-story from myself, but our inboxes are open to any questions, thoughts, or post-mortem findings. Once again, thank you for joining us, and hopefully we’ll see you again on some of our other projects!]

[sophtopus]

Okay many people have not read Toby’s Long Tweet about Delta Rune

http://www.twitlonger.com/show/n_1sqn3p9 See that URL? It’s the official link. Here is the full transcript copy pasted from the Tweet. I won’t put it under readmore because people tend to scroll past that. Past the break line is Toby’s own words. Deltarune is it’s own world. It’s NOT related to Undertale. This is exactly what he said in point 1 of his post. It’s also something he had worked for 7 years (earliest file was 2012). This game was more difficult to make compared to Undertale. Toby also doesn’t know when he’ll ever finish Deltatune. That’s why he released this demo to share with us. I cannot stress how important it is to be patient with the artist/author and let them do whatever they want. If Toby wants to create something new, LET HIM! Trust the Dog that he’ll make something interesting! Repeat TLDR: Deltarune is NOT Undertale!!! No matter how many similarities they have, they are NOT the same. Insisting that it’s the same will just rob you of enjoyment. It’s all in the first question. Scroll down for the rest of the transcript.

Here are my thoughts on Ch 1 of Deltarune. This should answer some questions.

It's October 4th. The DEMO (first chapter) of my game is supposed to come out on Halloween. Actually it was done a little while ago but I'm waiting for the translation to be finished. I feel like I should address what I think people will think before the game comes out. Of course, if I'm all wrong about this, then I just wasted my time, but... QUESTIONS I PREDICT PEOPLE HAVE 1. "Is this a sequel? What's going on?? I'm scared..." Please don't worry too much about that. Actually, I'm worried if people worry too much about "what it is," they might not be able to properly enjoy it... (laugh) I will say that basically, what you're seeing here is not the world of UNDERTALE. UNDERTALE's world and ending are the same as however you left them. If everyone was happy in your ending, the people in the UNDERTALE world will still be happy. So, please don't worry about those characters, and that world. It will remain untouched. To rephrase that, DELTARUNE's world is a different one. With different characters, that have lived different lives. A whole new story will happen... I don't know what you call this kind of game. It's just a game you can play after you complete UNDERTALE, if you want to. That's all. 2. "I have questions I want to ask about the story..." There's a lot of questions I'd like to answer, too. That's why I have to make the game. Please wait until then. 3. "When will the next chapter come out?" This is a difficult question. When I made the demo of UNDERTALE, I made it to prove to myself that it was possible to make a whole game alone (with some help with the art). Because I was able to make it in a few months, I felt that I had proved that it was possible. However, making the demo of DELTARUNE... took a few years. So, given the length of the rest of the game, and how long I'd be willing to spend on a project (7 years maximum) I think the answer is that it's actually impossible to make this game. Lots of things make this game harder to make than the last time. - The graphics are much more complicated and don't play to my strengths (black and white battle graphics were easy...) - The battle system is much more complicated due to multiple characters (I'll write about this later) - The overworld and other sections are more complicated due to multiple characters - Having multiple main characters is much harder to write especially introducing everyone properly in chapter 1 - The entire town had to be created correctly on the first try to set up properly for the rest of the game And further things outside of those: - Trouble starting tasks/concentrating and general difficulty paying attention - Travelling / other responsibilities like translation/ports - Self-doubt / burnout regarding the creation of the game Essentially it's not possible to make this game as one person (and Temmie). However, it MIGHT be possible to create the game if I'm able to make a team. So I'm going to try making a team. Because I really want to make this. But I may not be able to succeed because I have no experience successfully directing a team and I have no idea who I'm going to work with. Since I haven't started assembling the team yet I have absolutely no estimation of its completion. It could take up to 999 years depending on the efficiency level. By the way, I currently plan to release all of the chapters at once after we complete them. I'm not sure how long that will take. You'll buy all of the chapters at once as one purchase. That'll be the only option. I'm not doing pre-orders because I don't like those. It just seems like the best way not to burn anybody. Price is unknown. It depends on how long the game is, and how much it costs to make... I don't know anything about what consoles, etc. it'll come out for because by the time it comes out we might be on Playstation 14 or something. So... in short, I have no idea. 4. "Is this the game's final design? Will you change anything?" It's possible I could change things. This is basically a demo. I might even change this first chapter before release depending on how development goes. This is really an excuse to talk about the parts I think had issues. THE BATTLE SYSTEM: I think the battle system could be explained better. I had a super duper long explanation of things here but really it boils down to: 1. UT's system is incompatible with multiple party members but I wanted to do it anyway because it's cool 2. I'd like to make it so for pacifist players, characters won't have to "defend" so much Oh. The people who tested the game thought that the TP system and animations were cool so it's not all bad. By the way, did you notice that getting close to bullets makes enemy attacks end faster? It doesn't work for every attack, but... EVERYTHING ELSE: I thought everything else was OK. Actually some parts were kind of lazy, like finding the key pieces, but oh well. The UI had some things that could be changed too. When making a game, there's so much to do you have to draw the line somewhere. That's why I need other people to help me (laugh) Oh, and I have no plans to add more content to the first chapter. 5. "Will there be multiple endings?" No. No matter what you do the ending will be the same. (Honestly most games are like that, but for some reason it feels really oppressive to say here...) I think that's part of the reason why the ACT / FIGHT system feels so vestigial in this one. Oh... I'm just talking about the battle system again... 6. "I found some kind of bug, will you fix it?" Hopefully an e-mail for that exists on the website by now. Or, it would be better if you could tweet it with #deltarunebug . That would really help us and make our lives easier because tweets are easier to ignore than e-mails 7. "Can I be on the team?" I'll ask you first!!! (Total silence) 8. "What's the progress on the rest of the game so far?" 0%!!! Nothing!!! I've done nothing!!! I mean, I've done some songs and written the whole story, but... Since no programming or final art has been done, it's best to just think of it at 0%. 9. "Will you do a Kickstarter?" I still haven't finished that damn Alarm Clock, are you kidding me? There's no way I'm doing a Kickstarter this time. 10. "The game doesn't work" / "I don't like the game" / "Will there be a version for (platform)?" Because it's a free download I'm surrounded by a forcefield that destroys all complaints and platform requests. There might be more platforms for the DEMO but I don't want to make any promises. (At the very least it'd be nice to do something for the people who bought the game on console.) By the way at the time of writing I haven't even rendered a Mac version whatsoever at all. I hope I can release it... (laugh) 11. "Can I buy the soundtrack for Chapter 1?" Yes! You can buy it at [ http://tobyfox.bandcamp.com ] And other forms of distribution will be in the works too. I'm writing this in the past so I don't know what I just said. 12. "Any closing remarks?" (No one asks this, but...) Thanks for playing my game. I hope you liked it. For the past 3 years I've been waking up in the middle of the night unable to go back to sleep because I've been thinking about the scenes that happen in the game. Even though so many details are still hazy, I really want to show you the things I've been thinking about. That's really my only reason for making this game. If I don't show you what I'm thinking, I'll lose my mind. (It was actually a totally selfish motivation...) By the way, I was really worried at first about making this. The expectations for my next work would be really high, so high that I knew that no matter what I did, I felt like people would be underwhelmed. If you played "UNDERTALE," I don't think I can make anything that makes you feel "that way" again. However, it's possible I can make something else. It's just something simple but maybe you'll like it. See you in ?? years... OK? Don't forget.

[fatal-error-blog]

I sure have! And I’ve been getting a uh, few questions about it throughout the day XD I wanted to get home first to answer these so I didn’t have to sneak-type at work :P So here we go!

First off I gotta be honest with ya’ll - I knew this for a while now XD As luck would have it I ended up being at the livestream where CQ shared this info with a few of her Patreons. There’s a hilarious story attached to that night that makes me look silly and I’d definitely like to tell that story another time XD But yes, I’ve known for a while now! I loved the ideas she had back when I heard it for the first time and I’ve loved it ever since. I remember getting chills the first time I learned about it. I think this was back when either The Beginning/prologue or Chapter One was still being posted (so it’s been a good while!) but by the time I had found out about the ending of Ask Error I had pretty much decided on how I wanted the story to end and what all the story elements leading up to the ending of A Fatal_Error has Occurred would be. Some stuff like side comics were still being worked out but the core story itself and the direction I wanted to go in was pretty much set in stone...ish. So if anything, I felt very relieved that my story didn’t coincidently end the same way as hers XD Thank goodness for that, because I probably would have had some reservations about completing the story if it had. Also I just wanted to end on this note: Can we just take a moment and appreciate how wonderful and generous it was of CQ to share that information with everyone? We all know she’s been through a lot, especially for those of us who were around when she was in full-work-force on all of her UT content all at once and when we could all tell she wasn’t in a good place. She didn’t have to tell us now or at all, and I’m sure telling us what she did took her back to a place that was hard for her, just to be able to share what she could and offer some closure that we weren’t entitled to have, but she gave it to us anyway.  So be sure to send lots of good and positive vibes her way! And don’t bombard her with questions about everything. I’m sure if she wants to elaborate more on things or answer questions she’ll put that information out there if/when she’s ready to. Always remember to be kind and respectful! It’s the very least we could all do for her.

[ruffsficstuffplace]

And The AWRD Goes To... (Part 28)

Friday evening, Weiss got out of the ICU.

She lay in her new bed, alone in the spacious room, just a handful of tubes attached to one arm this time, no sound but the hum of the machinery, echoes in her head of what the doctors and nurses said while she was slipping in and out of consciousness from a drug-induced haze.

“… Patient is prone to swift and dramatic swings in mood...”

“… Semblance may activate in times of extreme emotional distress, or perceived danger to self and others…”

“… Highly destructive… treat with extreme caution… potentially lethal to both user and others if left unchecked...”

She couldn’t get up, her ribs hurt, and unlike Nick, her Aura could only heal so much damage so quickly.

She didn’t have access to her scroll, for fear that news of the aftermath, or even her attempting to talk to others might set off another episode, cause her semblance to reactivate and who knows what to happen to her, her surroundings, the staff.

And honestly, given her personal experiences, she couldn’t blame them for the extreme caution.

She could only really use a remote to toy with the temperature, the lights, open and close the curtains so she could decide whether to stare out the beautiful, vibrant world beyond the walls of her room as conscious and aware as she could be, or sit in complete darkness with nothing but the lights of the machinery, maybe pump some more painkillers in if she wanted to drop back into that barely-conscious fog.

The latter seemed like the better, less painful option, so of course Weiss chose the former, reflecting on where it had all gone wrong, what she hadn’t done right, how she’d royally screwed things up this time, independent of her family’s infamously fickle luck.

Nurses came in regularly to break her out of her thoughts. They were kind, caring souls, understanding, well-spoken, and educated about her condition and so many other matters, and she could feel the warmth, the sincerity behind their reassurances and well wishes. But she could also see the carefully measured responses, the swift and graceful redirection and dodging of her loaded questions, like professional dancers weaving their way across a treacherous stage.

“Yin and Yang, two opposing forces existing at once in perfect harmony... nurses like that are just one of the many reasons I do not like being stuck in hospitals,” Nick had once said, a sentiment that Weiss shared wholeheartedly.

Now, though there was nothing she could do but wait, wait for the next nurse to come along to record her vitals and get a bead on how she felt, wait for someone decide what in the hell her fate was going to be, wait for who was going to come through that door next.

It opened, Weiss looked up.

“Lower, vnuchka.”

Weiss looked down, and found Freya carefully slipping into her room, a smile on her lips, but the wrinkles on her face deeper than they usually seemed, the slate blue of her eyes looking more gray than anything else.

“Good evening, Weiss,” Freya said as a nurse followed shortly behind her. “Feeling like complete and utter shit, I’m assuming?”

“Yep, but at least it’s better than nothing,” Weiss muttered. “You know the old saying in Mantle...”

“Suffering is how you know you live still, that there is still yet more to live for,” they both said in Vox.

Freya smiled as she stepped up, the nurse quietly and discretely pulled up an ornate chair beside Weiss’ bed for her. “It still surprises me you speak the words so well,” she said as she clambered up the seat, perched on the side of Weiss’ bed. “It’s been over a decade since Nick taught you that, hasn’t it?”

Weiss smiled back, if only a little. “What can I say? They really do help get through hard times...” she sighed, and looked away. “Kind of like right now...”

The nurse began to speak up, Freya held up her hand. With silent, meaningful looks, the nurse bowed and left the room, Freya reached out and touched Weiss’ arm, the one without tubes running from it. She waited for the almost silent click of the door closing, before she spoke.

“Weiss… this will pass, just like every other dark period of your life.”

“Yeah, and things will get better for a little while, they’ll look on the up and up, then I’ll find some way to screw it up all over again, it’ll all go straight to hell in a hellbasket, and the shitty cycle of never-ending suffering that is my life will start anew!” Weiss cried, her arms shaking as she balled her hands into fists.

Freya frowned, and gently squeezed her arm. “Weiss...”

Weiss sniffed, tears welling up in her eyes as she looked at Freya. “Grandma… before I was born, you, grandpa, and the doctors all tried to fix me, didn’t you…? But why does it feel like I was still born broken…?”

Freya pulled out a handkerchief from her pocket, gently dabbed Weiss’ eyes dry. “Not broken, Weiss: sick. You’re just sick, and you’re going to get better, just like I did, and just like your mother did...”

“But what if I don’t, huh?!” Weiss snapped, a fresh round of tears pouring from her eyes. “What if I never get better, what if I’m just permanently sick, till the day the universe decides it’s finally gotten tired of having me around?!”

“Then we’re all going to love you, and take care of you, and be here for you, just like we always have, just like we are right now, just like we always will be…” Freya said as she gently shifted about, and hugged Weiss.

“It hurts, Grandma...” Weiss whimpered.

“I know it does, Weiss, I know it does...” Freya whispered, tearing up herself. “But it’ll pass, it always passes, I promise!”

“No, my ribs—your hugging—it hurts...”

Freya swore in Vox then pulled away, eyeing Weiss up and down. “Sorry, vnuchka! Better now...?”

Weiss coughed, and sniffed. “Getting there...”

Freya wiped her eyes with the back of her hand, then held Weiss’ arm again. “Here’s something to apologize, then, Weiss...”

Weiss eyes widened as she saw Freya start to glow slate blue, her own body a lighter shade. “Grandma…?”

“Silence, please, Weiss...” Freya whispered as she closed her eyes. “Grandma needs to concentrate...” she muttered, before she recited in Vox, “For it is in giving to others that we gain true wealth. Through this, we become a paragon of generosity and mercy to soothe our shared suffering. Greater than we are alone, I relieve your soul, and by my shoulder, ease thine burden.”

The pain rapidly faded as a warmth flooded Weiss’ body, the distress and gloom she felt washed away, her tears gradually slowing down till they stopped altogether.

Freya let go, her movements careful and slow, taking in deep breaths, and exhaling them as long as she could.

“Are you okay, grandma?” Weiss asked as she carefully put her hand in Freya’s.

“I’m fine, Weiss...” Freya said as she quietly as she entwined her fingers around Weiss’ own. “I’m just old… really, really fucking old.

The nurse returned some time later, apologizing profusely as they explained that it was 9PM and visiting hours were over. Freya and Weiss bid their farewells and made their goodbye kisses on both cheeks, before the nurse helped Freya out of the room, her movements quite a lot slower than when she entered.

“Would you like a cart to take you to the transport hub, Dr. Schnee?” the nurse asked.

“The cart, yes, to the hub, no,” Freya replied. “Per chance, would you happen to know if Director Lashkari is in tonight?”

The nurse nodded. “That she is, Dr. Schnee. I would assume you would like to schedule an appointment with her?”

“Yes, please, and thank you.”

Elsewhere, in Haven, Nick was in his office arguing with some senior Haven students over a project proposal.

“Look, I understand the necessity of it—believe me, the old-fashioned versions were some of the most valuable commodities you could ever have on an expedition where you’ve been out in the wilds for months, you want to keep morale up, and keep people from doing something desperate, or worth much more trouble than those.

“But I’m sorry, I can’t, in good faith, allow your research to be about the effectiveness of giving active huntsmen subsidized subscriptions to premium pornographic CCT sites, and how that might help contribute to reducing stress, and avoiding potential mental health and morale issues out in the field.

“I think it’s worth exploring, honestly! But you’re going to run into problems as soon as you try to get the Atlesian Council to sign off on this, and unfortunately, it’s all four or nothing.”

He and the group of assorted logistics, IT, medical psychology, and HR majors continued to argue and debate, until their time unfortunately ran out. Nick bade them farewell and good luck with figuring out a new project proposal as they packed up or returned their presentation tools, before he shut the door behind them.

He sighed as he pulled up his scroll, found that Focus mode had already expired, and the flood of requests, direct messages, and notifications resumed in earnest. Nick quietly thanked his former students who had designed a sorting algorithm for his device long ago as he checked the only item in the “Priority 1” tier:

A message from Akko.

His eyebrows rose as he read their plans, frowned as she mentioned Weiss, before he nodded and sent them a message back: “Sure, you all go right on ahead, I’ll even help set it up on Saturday. Hell, I’ll just call Snowie and say I’m staying over for tonight, we can all ride together tomorrow morning so I can get Rose and Cavendish briefed, show them the sights.”

He sent it out, moved down to the much more populated “Priority 2” tier.

Ding!

He was in the middle of reading about “potentially suspicious movement of large fleet of cross-continental transport airships in Solitas wilderness” when a brand new P1 pushed it back down. His eyes widened as he saw it, before he sighed, and opened his messenger again.

“Scratch that, kiddos, Uncle Nick’s working for the weekend. Looks like you’ll have to get there yourselves, but I’ll tell Snowie for ya,” he said to Akko.

To his daughter, he sent this: an emoticon of a generic, four-man team of huntsmen; “AWRD”; an emoticon of a Mistral airship; a custom-emoticon of their home in Hoshiko; a bright shining sun; a calendar with the word “SAT” on it; and a cartoonish “X,” followed by custom-emoticon faces of himself and Weiss.

Snowie’s response were emoticons, also, of a check-mark and a heart.

Nick sent a heart back, smiled and wiped a tear from his eye, before he put his work face back on and started sending automated messages, cancellations, and apologies to everyone else he was supposed to meet that night.

Back at Ōkuninushi, a motorized cart stopped in front of Dir. Lashkari’s office. Freya let the nurse escort her through the waiting room, and to her office proper, where they found the llama Faunus busy in the middle of a video conference call, her whole body obscured by floating holographic screens.

“… And there’s my emergency appointment,” Lashkari said. “My apologies, everyone, I wish you much luck with this endeavour; please send me a report come morning, and I will add my input to it.”

The host sighed. “Very well… good day, Dir. Lashkari.”

“And good night to everyone,” Lashkari said, before she shut off her projector. She deliberately looked higher than she needed to, pretended to scan the room, before she looked down and smiled at Freya. “Ah, hello, Dr. Schnee! I almost didn’t see you there,” she said calmly.

Freya’s mouth twitched, but she kept the polite smile on her face. “And hello to you too, Dir. Lashkari! I hope I wasn’t intruding much on your business,” she said as she was helped into one of the chairs across Lashkari’s desk.

“Ah, it’s really no problem, Dr. Schnee.” Lashkari said, before looked at the nurse. She bowed, and silently excused herself, Freya and Lashkari waited until the latter remotely locked the door behind her, before their postures quickly relaxed.

“You know, Lambchop, one of these days, I really just ought to stay outside your door, have you actually looking around and wondering where the hell I am,” Freya said.

“Please don’t, Frosty: it’s hard enough to find you even when I know you’re in the room with me,” Lashkari replied flatly.

Frosty glared at her, before she sighed. “I need a favour from you.”

“Is it getting your granddaughter released early?” Lashkari replied. “Because I’m afraid I don’t have nearly as much sway anymore this high up on the chain of command, and the people that do don’t have the personal experience of watching a supposedly bedridden and securely confined patient falling past their window, followed shortly by their accomplices and the escape rope.”

“You know she’s only going to get worse the longer she’s in here...” Freya muttered.

Lashkari sighed. “I know. But much as I’ve tried to convince them that steel-toed boot or crystal-glass slipper, a Schnee will walk as soon as they’re able to, they insist on keeping her behind a glass case. Frankly, I can’t blame them—and before you rail on me, if it was still my decision, you would have already been on an airbus heading back to Hoshiko with her.”

“But surely there’s something you can do!” Freya cried.

“That I can,” Lashkari replied. “But it’ll come at a cost, and and a great one at that; I’m sure you know how thin a rope those at the top walk, what sort of safety net will convince us to risk losing our balance.”

“Name your price.”

“Poppy owe you a favour?”

“Better yet: Nick.”

Lashkari looked wary. “Are you sure they’ll be able to do it?”

Freya shot her a look. “Lambchop, let me ask if you a question: if Nick came up with a total stranger, tossed you a loaded gun, and told you to shoot them, would you?”

“Yes, because I assume he would have a good reason to make me to do it, as he did every other time he’s asked me to do something that was questionable, at the least.” Lashkari replied as she pulled out her personal scroll, fiddled with it for a moment. “No guarantees, all right?” she said as she slid it over.

“Please, Lambchop,” Freya said as she started reading. “Since when have we ever dealt in absolute certainties?”

“Since we agreed never to call you ‘short’ to your face?” Lashkari replied flatly.

Freya’s ears and tails twitched. “True, and if you had actually done that, I would have replied that I’m not short--”

“--This whole world is just biased towards freakishly tall people, like myself,” Lashkari finished, allowing herself a small smile.

“Exactly,” Freya huffed. She slid back Lashkari’s scroll, and the two of them started negotiating.

“Alright, that should settle it,” Lashkari said as she closed her personal scroll, slid it back into her skirt pocket. “You should see some results as early as eight tomorrow, though realistically they’ll probably agree to release her by Monday.”

Freya sighed. “Good enough, I suppose… call me a nurse and a cab to get me back to Haven, won’t you, Lambchop?”

“Will do, Frosty,” Lashkari said, before she did just that. “Oh, and Frosty?” she asked afterwards.

“Yes?”

Lashkari’s eyes softened. “No more aura transfers in the next couple of weeks, alright? Three at a minimum, six to be safe; I hate to sound like a broken record--”

“--But I’m probably going to actually end up killing myself for real this time, I know, Lambchop,” Freya said, before she gave her a warm look. “Thank you, the concern is appreciated, honestly.”

Lashkari sighed. “You know, times like these I really understand what my mentors meant by ‘Once you become someone’s doctor, you’re always going to be their doctor...’”

Saturday morning, approximately 7:00 AM in the city of Mistral.

At the city’s public airship docks, Diana cringed as she, Akko, and Ruby passed by yet another delivery of live hogs, goats, and other assorted livestock coming in. “I’m really starting to see why you insisted we skipped bathing this morning...” she muttered as she pulled her suitcase away from the snout of a curious goat.

"Don't worry, Diana, you'll get used to the smells long enough!” Akko said as she hauled several duffel bags, some filled with books from the library, the rest with her belongings plus the Shiny Rod. “Or maybe your brain will just start learning to shut your nose off whenever you're near here by habit, but either way, it won't always be this bad!"  

“Thank you for the comforting thought...” Diana replied sacrastically.

“You’re welcome!” Akko said, oblivious.

Diana opened her mouth, but closed her mouth immediately after.

At Ōkuninushi, Weiss sighed as she was wheeled down the halls of the hospital, to one of the transport hubs on the side. “Thanks for getting me out of the hospital again, Grandma...” she muttered. “Sorry you had to do it twice in the same week.”

“Think nothing of it, Weiss, you just focus on getting better,” Freya said as she walked beside her. “Excited to see your mother and brother again...?”

“Well, yeah!” Akko replied. “I mean, I had really hoped the reason we were going home wasn’t as bad, but it’ll be good to see them again, especially after this super crazy, super awful first week we’ve been having.”

“Kinda tipping between sad and relieved Akko, Ruby, and Diana won’t be coming with us, though,” Weiss said. “On the one hand, I want to talk to them and finally tell them everything, on the other hand,  it might not be such a good idea when we’re in such close proximity to each other and can’t get any sort of distance.”

“Hey, did you tell her we’re going back to Hoshiko?” Ruby asked.

“No, actually,” Freya replied, “I wasn’t sure about if you’d be released today, so I didn’t want to get anyone’s hopes up only to have them dashed. Maybe we’ll just make this a pleasant surprise.”

“We could totally make her a get-well video with Whitley and Aunt Snowie!” Akko said. “That’ll cheer her up.”

“Yeah, that’d be nice...” Weiss muttered, smiling, before she noticed the vehicle waiting for them. “Private airbus ambulance? Really...?”

“It was the only way I could afford all three of us, sorry,” Ruby said as she, Diana, and Akko found a spot in the flat, unfurnished “free seating” section of a passenger airship, thankfully without animals.

“Look on the bright side, vnuchka: at least we’ll be together,” Freya said as nurses helped Weiss inside.

In two different parts of Mistral, two very different airships set off to the skies, both with passengers unaware of the impending collision.

[fambamweekly]

11 questions:

so I’m going to quote @s-lay-ing on what she posted as an explanation bc it makes more sense then how’d I explain it LOL

“So in this tag game you’re supposed to answer the questions that the person who tagged you made AND then you have to make your own questions that the person you’ll tag should answer. Idk if that makes sense but yeah”

yeah it made sense, at least to me! anyways, THIS IS SO LATE IM SO SORRY, but i got you. thanks for tagging me by the way <3 lovee. also, going to do my tags first bc my responses are really long. I’m tagging: @hanwooz @gywhd @woozidimples @lovelykimseokjin @with-woozi @thegayhope @adoring-woozi @tswoondere @spasticstars  and all you other followers reading this! tag me so i can read your replies, and i hope you enjoy reading mines!

here we goo.

1_ recommend me a song/songs you’ve recently really really liked

hope you don’t mind, it’s all korean songs bc that’s all I basically listen to but def Seventeen’s Don’t Wanna Cry, which you prob already listened to since you were excited for their comeback (just like me and they did not disappoint) and please by black6ix. literally addicted. please tell me if you (or anyone else reading this) listens to it and what you think!!

2_ put your music player/iTunes on shuffle, the first 22 songs are the songs you’d perform in a concert, how is it? (Again, no need to list all the songs if you don’t want to but 👀👀👀) 

Oh my LOL tbh i’ve always wanted to answer something like this, call me crazy but let’s see. first song’s Oh Na Na by K.A.R.D so that’s lit. Another song but it’s a vietnamese pop song so that’s still lit. Slowing it down to One Direction’s Change My Mind, great slow dance song. CANT GET OVER YOU BY INFINITE YES. YOU AND ME BY ASTRO YES YES. K.A.R.D’s rumor hella lit. Super Junior’s Stars Appear, ayee another great song. yeah, overall, I think my concert would be hella lit with a nice balance of slow and hype songs LOL

3_ selfies or photos taken by someone else? (Not going to lie, I don’t like taking selfies so I’d rather someone take a pic of me 😂) 

wow, we are total opposites LOL i’d rather selfie. it’s awkward having someone else take a pic of me, i can judge myself by myself LOL.

4_ recommend me a movie 

Unaccompanied Minors omg if you watch it you seriously need to tell me SERIOUSLY. seriously. please tell me. please watch it. it’s like a comedy but its literally sooooo cute and gooood.

5_ the idea of thinking that in order to be successful in music you must get the approval from the west (specifically the us and europe): against or in favor of? (I’m not even talking kpop wise it’s just there’s a south american singer who has been on the business for YEARS yet just now she got some recognition due that she was nominated to a grammy or sth like ??????)

honestly, depending on your definition of success. i think as long as you have a fanbase, no matter how small, the support you receive still means your successful, even if not approved by majority, as long as others still enjoy it.

6_ would you open your own store? If so, what would you sell? 

i would if i had the money, and i would prob sell kpop stuff honestly.

7_ food you just cannot eat

hmm. i love all food LOL i cant eat the same food multiple times in a row though. it gets old for me.

8_ pre 2000 music or past 2000 music? (Pre 2000, I can almost count with my fingers how many artists from this millennium I like, legit) 

def past. i’ve really only listened to past 2000.

9_ you have the opportunity to create your own Just Dance kpop song list, which songs (based on the choreo) would you add? (No need to create the whole list but like, which songs must be on the game?) 

oooo you got some good questionss LOL uhh ooo that’s tough lets see. sorry sorry by super junior gotta be on it, a classic. gee by girls generation, also a classic. infinite’s be mine. seventeen’s mansae. shinee’s ring dong. all classics.

10_  if you were offered the chance to live the life of a kpop star during their comeback for two weeks (week prior the cb and the week after, with rehearsals, going to interviews, music shows, variety programs [obvi you wouldn’t participate on them but you must go with the rest wherever they go] etc) and all that jazz…would you go through the experience? 

uh HELL YEAH. who wouldn’t i mean. that is the dream.

11_ you can create your own 'best of’ album with your 15 favorite kpop songs, which songs would you add on it?

dang my dude i cant. just 15??? oh no. let me see.

in no particular order of favs:

seventeen’s: dont wanna cry, simple, laughter, dont listen in secret, woozi’s version of downpour

infinite’s: man in love, cant get over you,

astro’s: you and me, again

big bang’s: lets not fall in love, bae bae, loser

black6ix’s: please

shinee: hello (oh my a classic), replay

im pretty sure there’s plenty a more b ut that’s from the top of my head. I hope these answers provided some us for you, it was so enjoyable to fill out, you got some good (hard) questions! LOL thanks again for tagging me! i had fun :)

aight here goes my qs:

1. who were your first 5 kpop groups that you’ve got into?

2. have you watched kdramas? and if you have, top 3? and if not, top 3 osts?

3. what’s your favorite thing about your bias?

4. what’s your favorite thing about your best friend?

5. current fav group? current fav song?

6. what do you do in your free time? when you’re bored.

7. what’s a song that you can replay over and over again?

8. what’s your go to songs when you’re sad? maybe list just 3?

9. who are your number 1 fans? be in friends, family, online, people that support and encourage you.

10. if all your favorite kpop groups were performing your fav songs but all at the same time and in different locations, which one would you go to see for what group and which song?

11. pulling a generic question but if you had the power to go anywhere right now, would it be a where or a who? or even, a who and a where LOL.

hope you enjoyy answering these questions, i would love the read your replies! tag me so i cann!