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thegoodprincess · 3 years ago

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Together We Are Apart, but Apart We Are Together | KTH Ch. 6

Author: thegoodprincess

Pairing: Kim Taehyung | Original Female Character

Genre: romance, fantasy, action, forbidden love, human KTH | angel of death OC, supernatural au

Word Count: 2.6k [series, ongoing]

Rating: N/A

Warnings: None

Summary: After admiring a handsome boy from afar, an Angel of Death reluctantly rescues him from his own demise. As a result of going against her better judgment she inadvertently invites him into her world.

Together We Are Apart, but Apart We Are Together

Chapter 6. Name For a Face

“Tigers die and leave their skins; people die and leave their names.” - Japanese Proverb

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While I was awaiting his return, I finished up the remainder of my tea. It had gone a bit cold since it was first poured. Nevertheless, I still drank it, savoring the sweet flavor as it slid down my throat. I decided to lay down on the sofa to rest my sore body. Sinking down into the cushions and staring blankly up at the ceiling, I wondered if I should have went to retrieve the boy’s wallet instead of Malachi. I didn’t want his willingness to help to be misinterpreted as him enabling my own foolish actions. Otherwise he would have been just as much at fault, if we were to find ourselves in the midst of chaos. He had always been eager to assist with whatever trouble I had found myself in, ready to bare the burden with open arms. It sometimes felt like he was too loyal to me, like he was just blindly complying to my wishes. I didn't want him to help me because he felt he had to, but because he wanted to. In turn it made me feel guilty about how I treated Malachi, as if I was exploiting the nature of our friendship.

Lost in the guilt-ridden thoughts of my conscience, it hadn’t even occurred to me that I had closed my eyes. I had fully intended to stay awake until Malachi returned, so I reluctantly opened them. However, I found it to be a struggle to keep them that way. Fatigue was starting to set in as I tried desperately to blink the sleepiness out of my eyes. The calming effect of the rose tea paired with the soothing sound of the logs crackling in the fire created a comfortable ambiance for me to relax to. Eventually my limbs began to feel heavy and my breathing slowed enough for me to finally lose the battle against the Sandman. Just like that, I readily drifted off into the unconscious.

It felt like Malachi was gone for quite some time before I was awoken by a small crashing noise that emanated from in front of the fireplace. Looking drowsily in the direction of the sound, I squinted to faintly make out Malachi readjusting a drying rack I had set close to the fire to dry the boy’s clothes. Through blurred vision I saw him carefully hang the articles back into their positions on the bars, spreading them out to ensure they dried properly.

“That damn thing needs to be moved. Why would she set that cursed thing right there? Stupid human boy and his stupid human clothes. What if I had fallen into the fire and burned my as—,” he whisper-yelled to himself irritated before he realized he had woken me up. “My apologies, I did not mean to wake you.” He bowed his head embarrassed of his crude outburst. I stretched and yawned, feeling the muscles in my back strain from the movement before sitting up. “It’s fine,” I waved my hand with blithe disregard for his unnecessary apology. “How long were you gone? I fell asleep waiting for you.”

“Not long.”

I rubbed the delicate skin around my eyes to get a better view of him. That’s when I took in his whole figure. Looking towards his legs I noticed that his pants were thoroughly soaked all the way up to his shins, from no doubt trudging around in the snow. “Oh my gosh, are you okay? You’re soaked. Here sit in front of the fire to warm up.” I quickly scrambled off the sofa and offered him my seat.

“I can assure you I am quite alright. I am nowhere in the condition you were in earlier tonight.” He assured with a sincere smile while taking a seat next to me. I awkwardly sat back down again.

Suddenly remembering why he left, I anxiously inquired, “Did you find it?”

“Yes.” He simply answered pulling it from his robe. The leather of the wallet was cold and stiff from getting wet. “And it did not take me long, it was just buried deeper than we originally thought. The snow has picked up quite a bit since we last left.” I held the wallet not ready to open it as he continued. “I also disposed of the gun and the patch of ice he fell through, you will be pleased to know it froze back over.”

“That’s good. No evidence. Do you think the old man will report the boy’s involvement.”

“No. I already took care of it.” I furrowed my brows confused. “I took the liberty of tracking him down and wiping his memory.” Malachi explained.

“Oh. Thank you. I didn’t even need to ask.”

“Yes. Well, you are lucky I am the best,” Malachi facetiously boasted. I rolled my eyes.

“What about the gun man?”

“Did I wipe his memory? No, I want him to live with the guilt until it consumes him.” The expression in Malachi’s eyes turned unnervingly dark. “And I doubt he will anonymously report the boy’s death. Not unless he wants to involve himself with the authorities or worse get caught by them. He will probably try to go about living his life as if nothing ever happened.”

“That’s horrible. But it’s good for us, I guess. Less of a mess to clean up. Not that I haven’t already jeopardized enough for us as it is.” I ashamedly spoke looking down at the floor.

“You are too hard on yourself.” He frowned concerned.

“I have to be. I can’t make mistakes. Especially when they effect those I cherish most.” I said looking purposefully at him.

“Ha, even a divine being such as yourself is allowed to make mistakes. And for as long as you allow me, I will always be there by your side to help you fix what is considered broken. Even if that means going against the rules of our nature.”

“Yes, but you said, if the consequences were dire then I was to take respons—,”.

Malachi promptly held a hand up to stop me, “I am well aware of what I said. However, if your actions do not bode well, I will still remain faithful to you, and only you.” He chided. He then took a second to soften his voice before continuing, “Allow me to clarify. It is my choice, and I choose to help you not because I feel it is my duty to do so, but because I want to help you. Why will you not understand that? We are as thick as thieves, even when that means cheating death,” he quipped. And with that he chastely kissed my forehead to put my guilty thoughts at ease.

I decided to steer the conversation away from my self-scrutiny, and brought our attention back to the wallet in my hands, “Did you look in it?” Immediately after the question left my mouth, adrenaline started to surge through my veins. I was well aware of the spike in my heart rate and the perspiration gathering on the nape of my neck.

“No, I thought I would let you do the honors.”

“Oh. Okay.” Nervous, I turned the wallet over in my quivering hands and reveled in the feeling of physically holding the piece of leather. The movement made it hard to undo the snap closure, and my slightly sweaty palms were doing me no favors as they slid against the leathery texture. Finally after a brief struggle I was able to open it.

There inside his wallet were some clear card holders with one containing a card with a small picture of him. Holding it closer to my face I realized it was his driver’s license. To the right of his picture, in printed text was the one thing on my mind that I had been wondering for months, his name. “His name is… Kim Taehyung,” I read aloud smiling. “Taehyung.” I repeated again letting the two syllables roll around in my mouth. I wanted to keep repeating his name like a mantra, giddy with excitement that I finally knew it.

“Well, now that you know the human’s name, I would advise you check on him. Speaking of which, I am surprised to not find you with him now. Why is that?” He eyed me suspiciously.

“I was waiting for you. He’s safe in my bed. I could hear the steady pace of his heartbeat from out hear.” This was a half truth, I also wanted to avoid the temptation of staring at his sleeping form. “You, however, were out there in the snow looking for something I needed, cold and alone. I was worried.” I may have been preoccupied with the probability of the boy’s, no Taehyung’s, life; but that didn’t mean I was any less concerned about Malachi’s wellbeing.

“Ah, so you do care,” he teasingly joked.

“Of course I care about you. You’re my friend.”

“As are you.”

“Thank you.” I sweetly hummed the sentiment for the fifth time tonight.

He nodded as to convey that it wasn’t a problem. “It was my pleasure little bird.” He patted me on the head. “You should check on the boy and get some rest.” He nodded towards my bedroom door.

“I will. I suggest taking a warm bath before bed. Goodnight Malachi.”

“Thank you for the recommendation. Goodnight my dear.” He said as he got up and walked towards the bathroom.

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After Malachi had left to run a bath for himself, I decided to put out the fire. I could instantly feel the temperature of the room drop several degrees. While blowing out the last candle, I looked towards the window. Through the glass I was able to clearly make out the moon. Its light that penetrated from outside was more than enough for Malachi to see when he came out to go to bed. As I made my way over to my bedroom door I counted my steps until I reached it. I walked with one foot directly in front of the other with my arms out to the sides of me, as if I was walking on a balance beam. I know I must have looked somewhat silly, but it was all in an effort to prolong the inevitable, as well as simultaneously calm my nerves. I ultimately didn’t want to seem too eager to see Taehyung. Finally reaching my door I briefly hesitated before turning the knob. I then walked through the threshold and quietly closed the door. Once the lock softly clicked into place, I leaned my head against the wood and took a few slow breaths in order to prepare myself. I didn’t want to look in his direction just yet because I knew once I saw him it would be difficult to look away.

Over on my bedside table was a candle that I wished to light. Using the moonlight, I repeated my odd ritual from earlier, deliberately looking straight at the floor as I made my way over. Except this time I made sure to walk with normal footing. I would have been mortified if I had tripped and potentially disturbed his sleep.

Placing Taehyung’s wallet on the table, I opened the drawer and blindly felt around for a box of matches. After a few failed attempts, I finally grabbed ahold of one. I plucked one match from the container and struck it against the side of the box. Not wanting the flame to go out, I quickly touched it to the tip of the candle wick and flicked the used match to put it out. Almost immediately my senses were flooded with the rich earthy musk of amber and sandalwood. Closing my eyes, I took a brief moment to appreciate the comforting aroma. The candle’s flickering light intimately lit up the small area around my bed causing our shadows to bounce on the wall. I then leisurely turned my head and saw him.

Tucked into my silk sheets, he laid flat on his back with his whole body, from the neck down, hidden under the blankets. I watched him sleep peacefully as I sat on the floor and knelt near the side of my bed. From under the silky blankets, I could make out the subtle yet steady rise and fall of his chest. If I listened close enough I could hear the sound of his soft inhales and exhales. Continuing my gaze upwards, it landed on his neck and the pretty curve of his jaw. From there I was met with the sight of his beautiful face, his expression passive. Slumber had made his features look innocent. The moles that were on his cheek, lip, and under his eye reminded me of the stars that sparsely dusted the sky on a cloudy night. They somewhat reminded me of a constellation and it briefly dawned on me that if I were to connect them, would I be any closer to navigating my zealous yet enigmatic feelings for him.

Against my pillows his head rested delicately. His hair was almost fully dry. A few locks in the front of his head curled around his face, while the rest fell elegantly onto the pillow like a halo. Its golden hues were complimented by the iridescent pearly sheen of my pillow case, and the sight created a picturesque scene worth committing to memory. I couldn’t help but be enamored by him. He looked otherworldly, almost like an angel. He could have very well been one of the ones that I had come across when I visited Heaven from time to time.

Finally able to touch his face in a way that wasn’t correlated to life threatening peril, I gently brushed my knuckles against his cheek and tenderly traced his jawline with my fingertips in curious fascination. Mesmerized by the feeling of the suppleness of his warm to the touch skin, I pondered how I got so lucky as to be this close to him, while also being able to reach out and touch him. It was almost intoxicating. And what was even better, is that now I had his name to go along with his face.

“So your name is Tae-hyung.” I whispered each syllable slowly more to myself than him, dramatically emphasizing the pronunciation of both. I smiled at the new found knowledge. “It suits you.”

Not long after admiring his sleeping form, I began to feel like my conscious reality was fraying around its edges. Walking a few feet on my knees to the end of my bed, I took a cotton blanket slewn messily over the end of the bed post and draped it over my shoulders. In my drowsy state I placed a gentle kiss against Taehyung’s forehead. I then turned to blow out the candle after my rash display of affection, but saw something that I thought was peculiar out of the corner of my eye. For what felt like a split second I could have sworn I had seen a brief flash of very faint light emitting from around his head in the dim candle light. However, I attributed it to being a trick of the light, after all I was exhausted and my blurry tired vision wasn’t the most reliable at this exact moment.

Taking one last longing look at his face in the moonlight after blowing out the candle [as if this would be the last time I saw him], I rested my head against my arm and was lulled to sleep by the rhythm of his calm breathing, hopeful for whatever tomorrow brought us.

#taehyung fanfiction #taehyung fanfic #kim taehyung #taehyung #taehyung x oc #bts fanfic #bts fanfiction #bts supernatural au #bts army #v fanfic #Youtube

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nmcconnellportfolio · 5 years ago

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Saving Marion Crane: Women in Horror and Fanfiction as a Revolutionary Act of Reclamation for Women Writers

A Research Paper on women in the horror genre and the creation of the literary zine The Story of a Beautiful Dead Woman

Everyone knows the story of Marion Crane; a young woman who skips town after stealing a large sum of money, so she can help her lover divorce his wife, only to find a motel and met her end through gaining the attention of one of the most famous horror villains in cinematic history: Norman Bates. Marion Crane, whose famous moment of dying in the acclaimed psychological horror film Psycho (1960) was the embryo to one of the constant tropes that make up the horror genre; the death of a beautiful, sexual woman. Marion Crane, who was designed to merely act as the false protagonist, written to die so the real story of Psycho – the story of Norman Bates and his beloved mother - could be told. With the creation of Bates Motel in 2013, the genre of horror has evolved and grown between the fifty-three years that separates the texts. In between this stretch of time, we have seen the horror genre (especially the genre of slasher horror) – be characterised with horrific acts of violence (both physical and sexual) against female characters. And interestingly, during the fifty-three years, the internet was born and the wide-accessibility to reproduce and recreate and retell texts from mainstream culture, to recreate these texts as fanfiction, was born. Fanfiction, in particular, which is predominantly created by women to fulfil desires that are not given acknowledgement or satisfaction by mainstream popular culture. Fanfiction which allows readers to become creators and engage critically with horror texts, as so to remediate them into narratives that fulfil the audience’s desires better.

Women (and Female Sexuality) in Horror.

Looking at the wide range of the literary and academic sources regarding the representations of women in the horror genre, the majority of academic sources have noted the underlining theme of misogyny and gendered violence within horror – Psycho (1960) only being one example amongst many. What’s notable is that like fanfiction, the slasher horror genre has been ignored and considered lesser deserving of academic attention – on the basis that it was exploitative, that the domain of the horror genre belonged to low-brow culture (Trencansky, 1990, pp. 64). This is especially relevant since the literary zine I focused on is a retelling (transformative text/fanfiction piece) about one famous film, Psycho (1960), which in particular is considered to be the cinematic piece that birthed a specific branch of horror cinema, known as the slasher film; where the violent deaths of female characters are a common aspect of the genre. In a survey that examined over 57 slasher films, Gloria Cowan and Margaret O’Brien noted that female sexuality often leads to death in slasher films – that women portrayed as sexually active were more likely become victims of the killer than chaste women or men in general (Cowan and O’Brien, 1990, pp. 194). Andrew Welsh followed up with another survey in 2010, noting that while sexuality in general was a factor of death in slasher films, female characters depicted as sexual were more likely to die and were depicted with longer death scenes as punishment for that sexuality (Welsh, 2010, pp. 770). With the passage of twenty years, it’s illustrated that the brutal deaths of women in horror is still a common aspect to horror cinema.

Another aspect that interlinks with the punishment of female sexuality is the punishment and Othering of non-traditional masculinity. Referring back to Men, Women and Chainsaws, Clover had proposed that male audiences are forced to identify with the surviving female victim, named the ‘Final Girl’, as she kills the villain – even through while the thought of female protagonists being supported is progressive, it should be noted that the Final Girl is often presented as chaste and often presents herself as more masculine in comparison to the female victims (Clover, 2015, pp. 40) This is especially important to understand in the dynamic of whom she has to survive and ultimately kill. In a study focusing on the presentation of masculinity in horror cinema, Rieser noted that famous villains – such as the famous Norman Bates from Psycho (1960)– may be presented as monstrous because they do not fulfil their roles as men; that they may be virginial (Michael Meyers from Halloween and other examples) or non-gender conforming (i.e. Buffalo Bill from Silence of the Lambs) or convinced that they are a woman – as in Norman Bates and his persona, Mother (Rieser, 2001, pp. 374). So even with the theory of women successfully fighting back against their killers, the subtext of negativity about the feminine – that only masculine means of power can be considered powerful, that feminine men are monsters – still exists in horror.

Fanfiction and Women.

Fanfiction, when the research is not properly done, is characterised as either shallow and badly-written sexual fantasies written by teenage girls or acts of copyright violations that disrespect the texts creators and devalues the text itself. However, I would make the argument that if art is a conversation between the consumer and the creator, fanfiction is the response to when culture does not fulfil the desires of an audience. The principle of fanfiction, as discussed by culture theorist Henry Jenkins, is that ‘once television characters enter into a broader circulation, intrude into our living rooms, pervade the fabric of our society, they belong to their audience and not simply to the artists who originated them’ (Jenkins, 2012, pp. 333). And one particularly interesting aspect to fanfiction is how the majority of fanfiction participants are female audiences that become women-writers, one study proposing that fanfiction could be the ‘result of the need of the female audience for fictional narratives that expand the boundary of the official source products’ (Peeples, Yen and Weigle, 2018, pp. 258). This is especially important when you consider that there are female audiences who watch and consume horror films and may even be paradoxically felt to be spoken to by the text (Trencansky, 1990, pp. 64).

Fanfiction, an activity that is about the circulation and active critique of original texts amongst communities of fans (Jenkins, 2012, pp. 331, is all about being able to indulge in desires and fantasies that mainstream society cannot fulfil, all under anonymous identities that separate the writer’s real life from their writing (Peeples, Yen and Weigle, 2018, pp. 259). But at its heart, fanfiction is seen as a form of participatory culture, a culture that has flourished with the birth of the internet which allows for creators that may be gatekept out of traditional spaces (i.e. the exclusion of female and minority creators in Hollywood or traditional publishing) to write texts that defy the narratives upheld in popular culture – even (and perhaps, particularly) about the narratives of gender and sexuality in horror. Fanfiction, as Henry Jenkins famously said in a New York Times interview, is a ‘a way of the culture repairing the damage done in a system where contemporary myths are owned by corporations instead of owned by the folk’ (Harmon, 1997).

Case Study: A Fanfiction.

To look at how fanfiction can act as an act of remediating and reclaiming male-focused horror stories for female creators and female audiences, it’s important to now focus on the praxis of fanfiction by examining three fanfiction pieces posted on Archive of Our Own – a website and server space created by the Transformative Works. By examining the two transformative texts in their relation to their original texts, we can see how fanfiction is a method of participating in the creation and recreation of culture. The first text, “so close (just the two of us)” (Espeones, 2018), the fanfiction rewrites the Halloween series with Michael Meyers (the masked villain of Halloween) being depicted as the victim of stalking to Laurie Strode, the final girl of Halloween now depicted as a killer and stalker. By inverting the violence once put upon Laurie, by rewriting the original story into a story of female-perpetrated violence against a male victim, the story could be calling to Clover’s idea that ‘gender is less a wall than a permeable membrane’ when it comes to the presentation and dynamics of gender in storytelling (Clover, 2015, pp. 46). This switching of moral roles between antagonist and protagonist within, falls under one of the ten categories of how fans rewrite original texts, known as moral realignment, where such fanfictions deliberately ‘blur the original narrative's more rigid boundaries between good and evil’ (Jenkins, 2012, pp. 221).

The second text, “A Deal’s a Deal – Freddy Kreuger x Reader” (summerdayghost, 2018), is a fanfiction where the reader is encouraged to insert themselves as an insert into the story, where they gain the romantic interest of Freddy Kreuger, who helps the reader gain revenge on the people who bully them. This sort of fanfiction, self-insert fanfiction, is the most controversial within fandom – falling under the category of personalization – which is about fulfilling the desires of both writers/readers to embed themselves directly into the story rather than identify with another character (Jenkins, 2012, pp. 227). However, this fanfiction could theoretically be considered a form of escapism and also a rebuttal against Rieser’s theory of feminine men as monsters. Personalization fanfiction texts asks readers to rehearse unconscious ideas about romance and courtship, askes the readers to give themselves permission to feel desire and fantasise in a safe space through identification of a fictional stand-in (Knobel and Lankshear, 2007, pp. 160). More particular, instead of the text identifying feminine desires as deserving of punishment and having female characters act in passive ways and also identifying Freddie Kreuger as a monster, the fanfiction places the reader in the position of loving the monster and aiding him in the crime – and having the monster love you back, without hurting you. These two fanfiction pieces merely being two amongst many ways of rewriting horror texts to ‘better speak to the audience's cultural interests and more fully address their desires.’ (Jenkins, 2012, pp. 333).

Conclusion/Discussion.

While the representations of women and female sexuality in the horror genre, we see that the horror genre – and cinema and television, in general, has a long way to go. If the horror genre does not punish women for sexuality or force them to abandon femininity to survive – the same way that Lady McBeth of Shakespeare was forced to cast away for womanhood for power, it makes monsters out of men that do possess femininity. Which is why the rise of fanfiction is so important – to claim these texts as our own, women-writers have the freedom to reclaim outdated narratives to tell new stories. Even in mainstream cinema, the 2010s have being subject to a renaissance of horror cinematic pieces such as The VVitch (2015), the Babadook (2014) or Hereditary (2018); The VVitch about a Puritan woman caught in the paranoia of a witchhunt and whom becomes a witch herself, The Babadook being a fable where the monster acts as an allegory for grief and the terrors of motherhood and Hereditary being the story of mental illness and familial trauma through the perspective of a family falling apart. All capitalised by the creation of Bates Motel, a television adaptation of Psycho (1960) where the text is transformed to have Marion Crane – the woman whose death gave birth to slasher horror – survive and leave the hotel unharmed. All these texts show the direction of horror bending towards feminist storytelling, towards perspectives once erased in cinema and actively celebrated in fanfiction communities.

References

Clover, C. (2015). Men, Women, and Chain Saws: Gender in the Modern Horror Film (pp. 21-64). Princeton, NJ: Princeton University Press.

Cowan, G., & O'Brien, M. (1990). Gender and survival vs. death in slasher films: A content analysis. Sex Roles, 23(3-4), 187-196. doi: 10.1007/bf00289865

Espeones. (2018). A Deal's a Deal - Freddy Krueger x Reader. Retrieved from https://archiveofourown.org/works/15385824

Harmon, A. (1997). In TV's Dull Summer Days, Plots Take Wing on the Net. The New York Times. Retrieved from https://www.nytimes.com/1997/08/18/business/in-tv-s-dull-summer-days-plots-take-wing-on-the-net.html

Jenkins, H. (2012). Textual Poachers: Televison Fans and Participatory Culture (Updated Twentieth Anniversary Edition) (pp. 215-229, 330-340). Abingdon, Oxford: Routledge.

Knobel, M., & Lankshear, C. (2007). A New Literacies Sampler (pp. 137-165). New York, NY: Peter Lang.

Peeples, D., Yen, J., & Weigle, P. (2018). Geeks, Fandoms, and Social Engagement. Child And Adolescent Psychiatric Clinics Of North America, 27(2), 247-267. doi: 10.1016/j.chc.2017.11.008

Rieser, K. (2001). Masculinity and Monstrosity: Characterization and Identification in the Slasher Film. Men And Masculinities, 3(4), 370-392. doi: 10.1177/1097184x01003004002

summerdayghost. (2018). so close (just the two of us). Retrieved from https://archiveofourown.org/works/16605782

Trencansky, S. (2001). Final Girls and Terrible Youth: Transgression in 1980s Slasher Horror. Journal Of Popular Film And Television, 29(2), 63-73. doi: 10.1080/01956050109601010

Welsh, A. (2010). On the Perils of Living Dangerously in the Slasher Horror Film: Gender Differences in the Association Between Sexual Activity and Survival. Sex Roles, 62(11-12), 762-773. doi: 10.1007/s11199-010-9762-x

#bates motel #fanfiction #psycho #horror #feminism #critical theory #essay

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prairiedust · 6 years ago

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The Folktales of Supernatural

Here is the third and probably last post in my trilogy of the folkloristics, folklore, and folktales of Supernatural. You do not have to read the first and second posts necessarily, but it is a series, so…

Anyways, in Unhuman Nature, Ross-Leming and Buckner gave us a thumbnail of season three’s main arc-- Dean’s imminent hell deal-- in Jack’s perfectest day evaar. However, Dean got to do for Jack what no one was able to do for him when he was living under the shadow of his own death. Instead of taking a joy ride, going fishing (or to the beach, come ON show,) or fine okay spending some time with a girl with daddy issues (come ON buckleming,) Dean took care of business and showed Sam how to take care of the car. When Sam was also undergoing the Trials, they were again racing against the clock. Cas, too, was under the shadow of the Leviathan infestation, and there was very little carpe in the few diems he had left until the creatures destroyed him. There was always the understanding in Unhuman Nature that TFW would be doing everything possible to save Jack, but while Sam and Cas were best tasked with trying to find a cure, Dean knew that what would be the right thing for Jack was not being in the bunker dwelling on his imminent demise, and living is a particularly Dean thing.

It was a wonderful way of retelling this particular series legend, and using that series “motif” in a new way (anyone want to tackle a Supernatural Motif Index LOLOLOL) to do the “what happens when a story is retold” theme.

So, to tie up this trilogy of close readings, I want to talk a little about how the European version of Sleeping Beauty is a good way to understand what else is going on thematically with the trifecta of recursion-retelling-mirroring that’s been going on.

There are very few citations here as the evolution of Sleeping Beauty is more or less accepted as general knowledge now-- the concept is explored in Folk and Fairy Tales 2nd edition, edited by Martin Hallett and Barbara Karasek. It’s also on Wikipedia, if you’re into that.

CW for discussion of the non-est con to ever non-con and other unsettling themes that are nonetheless perfectly ordinary in folklore.

Sleeping Beauty was once considered to be perhaps one of the most wholesome of the Grimms’ fairy tales, but (in pop culture at least) the shine is starting to wear off. I was playing the Ellen edition of Outburst with some people I didn’t even know about a month ago and one of the “clues” was “Sleeping Beauty” and as soon as the guesser put that card up on her forehead, a guy shouts out, “That story is about sexual assault, fight me!”

Which makes this particular “folk tale” a neat way to show how folklore, or storytelling and retelling, is such a good frame for season 14.

I mentioned in the first post of this series that Sleeping Beauty is a great example of the intercycling of folklore and literature-- oral tales can become literary works, and vice versa, and they can comment on one another in surprising ways.

Let’s start with one of the most recent iterations of the Sleeping Beauty story and a move from one kind of text to another-- Disney’s 1959 animated movie, “Sleeping Beauty.” I know a lot of readers on here will know it-- and we’ll work our way down to the centuries-old bones of this tale.

Right off the bat, we get a really great (and subverted!) example of that “rule of three” 2/1 pattern I already talked about. The king and queen invite three “good fairies” to their daughter’s christening. They are even called “good fairies” by the herald as they enter on a sunbeam, so you already know there’s gonna be a bad one. The first fairy, Flora, gives Princess Aurora the gift of beauty. The next, Fauna, blesses the baby with the gift of song. Before fairy #3-- Merryweather-- can bestow her gift, Maleficent arrives, totally pissed that she hadn’t been invited but cool as a frozen cucumber, casually lies about her reason for showing up and then curses Aurora to prick her finger on the spindle of a spinning wheel and die on the evening of her 16th birthday. Merryweather uses her turn to alter Maleficent’s curse, as she does not have the power to nullify it: Aurora will fall into a deep sleep that only “true love’s kiss” can awaken her from. In hopes of protecting her from the curse in any way shape or form, King Stephan orders every spinning wheel in the kingdom to be burned, but the fairies say that this will not be enough so they sequester her in the woods under the alias Briar Rose, and they all live as peasants, eschewing magic and raising her in almost total isolation so that Maleficent can not find her to work the curse. Neat. Briar Rose gets into mischief anyway, gads about the forest singing like a klaxon, meets a prince named Phillip who is having Adventures in the Woods, falls In Love™ with him despite some now-creepy hand-grabbing. Later the fairies tell her not to worry about mysterious forest dudes and traumatize her by telling her that her entire life has been a lie, and then inexplicably send her home to the palace for her 16th birthday celebration despite the fact that the whole reason for hiding out was to keep Maleficent from being able to find her. Maleficent discovers that Aurora is at the palace, games the anti-spindle situation by luring Aurora up to a tower to a magical spinning wheel; Aurora pricks her finger on the spindle, and Bob’s your uncle. The good fairies put everyone in the castle into a deep sleep (so that while they are waiting for some weirdo to fall in True Love with a sleeping teenager, eugh, the people she knows (aka JUST MET) will sleep with her so that they won’t be upset by the complete failure of their plans) the fairies realize that Prince Phillip, the guy that Aurora has been betrothed to since she popped out of the womb, is one and the same as Mysterious Forest Dude that she fell in love with, and they send him to Aurora’s castle. Maleficent imprisons him, the fairies help him escape, he tears through a thorn bush that Maleficent creates as an impediment, kills the witch, and wakes Aurora with a chaste kiss. It’s fine, they met once, it was only a kiss (IT WAS ONLY A KISS), and this was 1959. So, that’s the Disney text in a nutshell. Folklorist Kay Stone says in her book Some Day Your Witch Will Come that while Disney had been called “a ‘Master of Fantasy’ in fact Disney removed most of the powerful fantasy of the Marchen and replaced it with false magic.” While her criticism of the Disnified Grimms tales is explicitly feminist, the criticism stands as Disney’s product is far divorced from the folk “originals.”

Most people are familiar with the Grimms’ written version of “Sleeping Beauty,” or “Little Briar Rose,” as they titled it when they published it in their first collection. This is the version that Disney partly modeled their story after. I won’t retell it, I’ll just discuss differences between the two versions, so please go read D. L. Ashliman’s translation here. It’s short. And. It turns out that the German “folk tale” that the Grimms brothers harvested is more than likely based on a story that was published by Charles Perrault in France which re-entered the Germanic oral tradition at some point. In this version, there are thirteen “wise women” (as opposed to fairies) in Briar Rose’s estimable father’s kingdom, but he only has twelve golden plates for them at the celebration of her birth, so he only actually invites twelve wise women (which is a hilarious commentary on what the lower classes thought of the nobility, am I right? Heaven forbid you don’t have enough fancy plates, quelle horreur or rather wie schrecklich or whatever the German equivalent would be.) Again, after eleven blessings, the evil crone who was disrespected barges in and curses the princess to prick her finger on a spindle (not the spindle of a spinning wheel, though) and die at fifteen; The next-eldest of the wise women modifies the curse and dad has all the spindles destroyed. Fifteen was apparently too young for a sexual awakening in 1959 but it was fine in 1812. Also, there were no shenanigans in the woods-- Briar Rose grows up a princess. She finds an old woman illicitly spinning in the castle one day and wants to try it, pricks herself with the spindle (the German version never specifies where) and her sleep is so profound that the entire castle falls asleep with her. A massive thorn hedge grows up because neglect, and eventually conceals the castle, and all that is left of the kingdom is a legend. Many other princes met agonizing deaths in that thorn hedge trying to get to Briar Rose but one day Her ACTUAL Prince shows up. The thorns turn to blossoms, he sails right through, kisses the girl, and as she wakes up so does the whole castle. The tale is over with an “and they lived happily ever after” ending.

Charles Perrault, the Frenchman who wrote the version of “La belle au bois dormant” or “The Sleeping Beauty in the Woods” that the Grimms’ informant possibly retold a hundred years later, has seven good fairies invited to the shindig, because everyone assumes that fairy number eight is dead or too ill to travel or senile or whatever. Here you can see that this isn’t an error made because a king was afraid of committing a faux pas and not from being afraid of the “bad” fairy, but because no one bothered to check on the old woman and find out what the reality was. You know what they say about what happens when you assume. So this time a young fairy steps forward and changes the curse, and instead of violently burning all the spinning wheels and spindles, the king merely outlaws their use. When the princess is sixteen or seventeen, (French nobles apparently had a little more childhood than German peasants,) she finds an old woman spinning in a tower who has remarkably never heard of the spinning ban. She hands over the spindle and the princess pricks her hand, and faints dead away. The king puts her on a bed of gold and I’m gonna quote Ashliman for this next part: “When the accident happened to the princess, the good fairy who had saved her life by condemning her to sleep a hundred years was in the kingdom of Mataquin, twelve thousand leagues away. She was instantly warned of it... [and] set off at once, and within an hour her chariot of fire, drawn by dragons, was seen approaching.” She puts everyone in the castle to sleep and this time the thorn hedge is actually a privacy fence that sprouts up under the good fairy’s magic. A hundred years later, some prince is having Adventures in the Woods when he sees the tops of the castle towers from a distance. One of his retinue tells him there’s a pretty girl inside, so he goes to check it out. Bruh, the brambles part for him magically, but allow only him, out of all of his party, to enter. He doesn’t awaken this princess with a kiss, but by the mere act of falling down beside her and being so genuinely and enormously in love with her that she wakes up on her own. Ol’ Charlie’s story is not over by half, though. They talk for hours, Perrault has a lot about eating and getting dressed and then they nap together a little, and finally get married. The prince’s mother is an ogre, however, and wants to eat her grandkids, Dawn and Day. Where does this come from? Why is it in here? What the actual heck? And it gets crazier from there. The prince becomes king and rides forth to wage war in a distant land, and the queen actually tells her steward that she wants to eat the little girl for her dinner. He tricks her by hiding Dawn and serving the queen a lamb instead. Next day, she wants to eat the little boy. He tricks her again by serving her a baby goat. Then, she wants to eat her daughter-in-law and they serve the evil queen venison. Then one day she hears the voices of her erstwhile entrees in the castle, discovers that she had been tricked, and prepares a cauldron full of venomous reptiles to throw the three innocents into to their deaths. The prince-turned-king shows up just in time and his mother is so beside herself with rage that she actually throws herself into the vat instead. So, yeah, weird stuff. Stuff that the Germans left out, or forgot, or decided that there was no “moral” that they wanted anything to do with. Was Perrault out of his damn mind?

WELL AS IT TURNS OUT, Perrault was actually retelling a Neapolitan folk tale that had been collected long before by a fellow named Giambattista Basile. He called the story “Sun, Moon, and Talia.” There is some evidence that it predates Basile, but most folklorists start there because the problem with oral tradition is that it’s rarely written down (ba-dump-tsss.) So we can definitively pick up the European version of Sleeping Beauty in Naples, Italy, in the early seventeenth century, when this mid-level clerk and author writes down a whole bunch of “nursery tales” and then dies. One of the stories he writes down is called “Sun, Moon, and Talia.” And I didn’t want to talk about it much before, except that I think understanding that Perrault seriously sanitized Basile’s story is the perfect illustration of “what happens when a story is retold.” In Basile’s story, to which I’m linking an okay version here with a content warning for rape and for the fact that they linked that painting “Nightmare” to the story, http://www.mftd.org/index.php?action=story&act=select&id=3364, Talia the princess is not cursed, but her father’s scholars tell her fortune and say to the king that she would “incur great danger from a splinter of flax.” He forbade flax (from which linen is made) from entering the castle. So in this version, it is the material, not necessarily the method of transforming it, that imperils the princess. Yes this is a giant metaphor for sexual intercourse and/or loss of innocence. Nonetheless, she comes across a woman who is spinning flax into thread, wants to try it, and gets a splinter under her nail. She falls down dead. The king is heartbroken, shutters the castle, and leaves her propped up on a throne. Some time later, another king comes across the castle, explores it, sees the dead Talia who seems to be weathering her death remarkably well, and has his way with her. I can only imagine what ran through Perrault’s head when he came across this. “Sacre bleu!!! Non, non ma petite chere, this will not do. A true king would never!” or something like that. ANYWAY, Basile’s story is still the frame on which Perrault based his literary fairy tale, for Talia gives birth to twins, a boy and a girl, Moon and Sun, one of which sucks the splinter out of her finger, and she awakens. The king finds her but keeps her a secret. The king’s wife (he has a wife!) sends for them, and then to get revenge on her husband she orders the children cooked and served to him one day, but again there is a switcheroo and the cook uses lambs instead, and later it all comes out and Talia marries the king and Basile’s moral (vastly different than that of Perrault) is “Those whom fortune favors find good luck even in their sleep.” I don’t know if that was written in “sarcasm gothic” or not.

The bones of all of the stories are the same, but in each iteration something has changed which makes a huge impact on the overall themes of each telling. First, Perrault drops the rape of Talia, and slides the villain role over to the prince’s mother and makes the rape-king a virtuous prince to erase the royal philandering and necrophilia, and there is no kiss at all. The Germans bring the kiss back, weirdly enough, to somehow reach back through Perrault’s chivalrication to the sexual component of Briar Rose’s awakening-- it might be the imagery of the spindle, which in some cases is a big rod typically dropped between a spinner’s knees to make the yarn or thread, or it could be the completely bonkers idea that just kneeling beside her bed would not be enough to break the kiss (but then again, why wouldn’t a test of virtue be enough? Indeed, in the Disney version, the three fairies arm Phillip with “the shield of virtue.”) In Basile’s version, Talia dead, not sleeping, and in the Disney version there is the totally weird seclusion until young adulthood (that weirdly enough hearkens to the Irish legend of Deirdre, a woman who was betrothed to the king of Ulster and was sequestered to both preserve her innocence and thwart a dire prophecy but who still managed to run off with another guy and cause an epic war) and they rename the princess Aurora, which is Latin for Dawn, which is the name of her daughter in the French version. It’s all very intermangled.

Did other stories with similarities come from a single stalk, an ur-story like the Great Hunt may have? D. L. Ashliman in Folk and Fairy Tales: A Handbook tells us that Grimm and other folklorists believe that these SB stories are the vestiges of myths (132) such as the story of Brunhilde, who was put to sleep with an enchanted thorn for reaping a warrior favored by Odin. Or does this particular metaphor just crop up in cultures everywhere through synchronicity? In the Japanese folktale The Matsuyama Mirror, a young girl is given a mirror by her father, who tells her that whenever she is sad she can look in the mirror and see her mother, and eventually the mirror’s symbolism thwarts her evil stepmother, much as in the story of Snow White. Is there an even older story that connects these two?

I chose these four versions of Sleeping Beauty because for one thing this story was mentioned in the text of The Scar, they are clearly family, and the American/European versions are the most familiar to me (and I assume at least the American audience of Supernatural) so it easy to demonstrate this “digging down” to get to the seed of a story-- in this case the sterilization of the Sleeping Beauty story is an excellent metaphor for a powerful trauma weathering and being repressed-- or healed-- over time. Many scholars have noted the sexual symbolism of the spindle, which if you’ve never seen one is a rod of varying lengths with a round weight at the bottom, and in hand-spinning, typically a spinner hangs the spidle between their legs and it can pump up and down as it spins. Even the later versions of the story that feature spinning wheels have a spindle on them, and it is an unmistakably phallic component of the rig, coupled with the pistoning action of the spinner’s foot on the treadle to spin the flywheel. So hm. However, not all spindles are sharp enough to possibly prick a hand or a finger, and in the original “Talia” it is the flax splinter that inserts itself into her flesh. At any rate, it’s a metaphor for sexual penetration retold for an audience that has increasingly moved further and further away from being able to see (or is unwilling to acknowledge) sexual subtext.

Jack’s perfect day was bittersweet, but was also unmistakably idyllic and idealized, almost Disnified, although the magic was still unmistakably powerful. The scene by the river, where Jack explicitly invokes the memory of John, should also illuminate scenes from the series’ past, such as Dean’s dream sequence where he was fishing off of a dock, or where rogue angel Daniel was fishing when he was found by Castiel and Hannah. Fishing is a motif, if you will; it’s been featured in the show before. Jack’s eventual death is one of the show’s tale types. Dean, Sam, and Cas have all been through it-- as Cas says in The Spear, it’s “something of a rite of passage.” But we’re being told this story again from a point of view that was almost tragically abbreviated the first time-- when John trades his soul for Dean’s in In My Time of Dying, we got very little of what it means for a parent to sacrifice themselves for a child. Likewise, the other times that TFW faced their dooms, they had (albeit under duress) volunteered themselves. Jack was an innocent. Dying is perhaps the ultimate loss of innocence-- it certainly was for Talia. So by stripping away the halcyon glow of the river scene, we get to the bones of where the “under threat of impending death” tale type originated in the series.

This whole season so far has been the most clever way possible to do a “retrospective.” It’s not a sign that a show is tired, but that it has reached a point of self-reflection that very very few shows ever get to.

I have to wonder if this way of painting season 14’s arc through a constellation of motifs-- through callbacks as hysterical as the Scooby lunchbox full of pressurized gas in Mint Condition to returning characters as poignant as Lilly Sunder’s appearance in Byzantium, to thematic parallels to past seasons-- is going to continue into the second half of the season. We will know quickly, as the stakes have been raised after Dean’s repossession, whether Dabb and his writers continue to use the motif index of the show, or if this retrospective period is over and we’ll be covering new thematic ground. I will say, this theme has been tied up pretty neatly with the mid-season finale, that while Castiel essentially stepped into the Jack’s Fractured Fairy Tale much the same way that the way the good fairy modifies the evil fairy’s curse in Sleeping Beauty, that choice could shift everything in his mythos over to “beat the devil” which is another favorite SPN story, Tale Type 210a or whatever (and is irl ATU 330: The Smith Outwits the Devil and hopefully would be 330C which is the kind of “Devil Went Down to Georgia” classic American and African-American story.) (Imagine the SPN Tale Type Index starting with “1-199 - Origin Stories - 1a Burning Wife, 1b Burning Girlfriend, 1c House Burns Down, 2 Demon Blood Fed to Infant” and etcetera… anyways.) And we know that Cas and Sam are going into Dean’s headspace to get him, so there’s the rescuing forces storming the sleeping castle trope (remember the “sleeping” patron in Rocky’s Bar?) getting resolved potentially. But I do believe that this focused close reading brings to light a “healing trauma” theme that the history of Sleeping Beauty makes explicit. It is not the only reading of the show to do that, but again, if I could describe Dabb’s era with one phrase it would be “There’s no such thing as too much meta.”

See y’all Thursday night!

#the folkloristics of supernatural #the folklore of supernatural #the folktales of supernatural #spn meta #sleeping beauty

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millennial-star-gazer · 6 years ago

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Tantric Flames(reupload from previous accounts): Chapter: 5

Tantric Flames

Originally for Nalu Week/Fluff Week/Lovefest 2017 (on previous accounts)

Genres: Romance, Humor, New Adult Fanfiction

Nalu Lovefest 2017 Prompts: Lust, Stockings/Lingerie, Sweets (Implied) Dreams(Implied) Games and Roleplay (Kind of Implied in Form of Teasing )

Vera's March 2018 Prompt Challenge: Fantasy/Creatures (which fits since Fairytail is a fantasy series and Natsu' species is dragonslayer/ Demon hybrid in this fic that's slight AU. Though this might technically still be true for the overall series since he's an etherious demob/wizard capable of using both fire dragon slayer magic and of his curse power). (On previously accounts)

Upcoming Nalu Love Fest 2018 prompts: Kiss/Makeup (kind of) Playful, Desperate, Unbearable, Estatic ,(Implied) and Teasing

Pairing:Nalu (Natsu x Lucy)

Rating: M for language, steamy and mature adult sexual content (all consensual) in these and future chapters. Reader Direction is advised.(You've been warned!)

Summary: One look, one smouldering hooded gaze, one word, one fiery kiss, one magnetizing touch was all he needed for her to completely unravel at his mercy alone, succumbing to the sinful temptation of her inhibitions, his love, his feral passion, his raw, insatiable desires, his "Tantric Flames". Originally an Submission (slight Au) for Nalulovefest 2017 (on previous accounts) in which Natsu gives his mate a tantric massage-after much persuasion- she won't soon forget when it turns into so much more. Also previously featured in Nalu Week , and Fluff Week with first two chapters on celestialgeekmage accounts .

Chapter 5: Kiss From A Dragon's Flame: Part 2

A/N: Here's Chapter 5! It was originally part ( of what would been a longer chapter 4) but has since been split in two. Though more extensive than last chapter, the of the main story text most likely sits around a word count of within the 5,000 range excluding the preliminary information and A/Ns. All in all, hope you enjoy both chapters regardless. Without further ado, here it is!

Disclaimer: I don't own Fairytail which belongs to the one and only Hiro-sensei instead!

Read More Here:

1.Tantric Flames

A. Tumblr

Chapter: 1 (Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179863946153/tantric-flames-reupload-from-cosmicdragonwizard/amp?)

Chapter: 2 (Click Here:) (Or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179863946153/tantric-flames-reupload-from-cosmicdragonwizard/amp?)

Chapter: 3 (Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179864756428/tantric-flames-reupload-from-previous-accounts/amp?)

Chapter: 4 (Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179871908778/tantric-flames-reupload-from-previous-accounts/amp?)

Chapter: 5

Chapter: 6(Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/183149105838/tantric-flames-chapter-6-despojado-stripped)

Chapter: 7(Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/185033161848/tantric-flames-chapter-7-what-belongs-to-a-fire)

Chapter:8 (Click Here): (or here:https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/188352271948/tantric-flames-chapter-8-tantric-art-of)

Chapter:9 (Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/624402662880854016/tantric-flames-chapter-9)

B. Fanfiction (Click Here:) (or here:https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13114990/1/Tantric-Flames-reupload-from-cosmicdragonwizardaccounts)

C. A03 (Click Here:) (or here: https://archiveofourown.org/works/17063882/chapters/40123739)

2. The Draconic Demon Within

A. Tumblr:

Prologue and Chapter: 1 (Click Here:) (or here:https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179816192273/the-draconic-demon-within-reupload-from/amp?)

Chapter: 2 (Click Here:) (or here:https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179816192273/the-draconic-demon-within-reupload-from/amp?)

B. Fanfiction (Click Here:) (or here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13113898/1/The-Draconic-Demon-Within-Reupload-from-cosmicdragonwizardaccounts)

3. Grey Days

A. Tumblr (Click Here:) (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179767381833/grey-days-reuploadfrom-dragon-shield-maiden/amp?)

B. Fanfiction (Click Here:) (or here: https://www.fanfiction.net/s/13112482/1/Grey-Days-Reupload-from-dragon-shield-maiden)

4. The Rest of My Writing

A. Master Fic Rec Post (Click Here): (or here: https://millennial-star-gazer.tumblr.com/post/179665258923/master-fic-rec-post

Legend:

Italic: Song Lyrics/Quotes (or flashback dialogue)

Bold: First Person Thoughts

Bolded Italics: Empathized Word

Bolded Italics (Within and Outside Bracket) including for author's side notes also known as (A/N:) within brackets (though none for side-notes in this chapter ).

"Kiss me beneath the milky twilight

Lead me out on the moonlit floor

Lift your open hand

Strike up the band,

and make the fireflies dance silvermoon's sparkling

So kiss me"

(Sixpence None the Richer: Kiss Me)

(So there are two quotes that I found really fit the mood of some particular scenes in these chapters this time around— sue me lol!)

"Luce? You all right there sweetheart?"

Natsu's gentle call of Lucy's name broke through her self-ranting.

"Yeah, just thinking . Again I'm really sorry Natsu" She muttered, averting her eyes from the fire wizard's probing gaze in favour of staring down at the floor. "Guess I got carried away."

Carried away? Carried away?! Talk about the most obvious understatement of the goddamned century!

"Nah come on, don't be like that. No need to apologize weirdo," Natsu soothed with enough tender patience colouring his tone when tapping his forehead lightly against hers for the blonde to feel weak in the knees. " I promise ain't mad. "

"You're not?"

"No, I swear . I mean sure I was initially a little annoyed with at first, but it's all good now, right?" Cheer up!"

"I guess you're right..."

"You see? So smile silly! You know how much I love it when ya' do!"

Natsu lightly bumped his nose against Lucy's before depositing a chaste kiss on the tip sending a rush of warmth through her veins; enough for her spirits to be lifted.

"Yeah, you're definitely right," Lucy reiterated again , a small smile tugging at the corner of her lips. "It's no big deal—no use being so glum over something so minor really."

"Exactly! And it's like I said," Natsu concurred in a sunny voice. " The reward is well the worth the wait— promise."

"That you did and I believe you."

"Good. And sides' , it's not like I was exactly complainin' about the quality of the hand job per say" he added , salacious words tugging the corners of his lips upward into a wry smirk; with a suggestive waggle of eyebrows thrown in for good measure. "Considering how you never fail to impress. It's just really hard to concentrate on being romantic with a raging hard on, am I right?"

"Mhmm.. i suppose even though it just so happens that I am clearly not a dude ," Lucy fired back in a light quip; no real bite to her words with a roll of her honey-brown eyed eyes. "But a lady sans dick— so not sure how that world apply to me . Either way, just goes to show how much of a horn-dog - not to mention pervert you are."

"Dragon sweetheart, you mean to say I'm a horn- dragon" was Natsu's way pf pointing out his soulmate'd minor error through a light correction; when a hand caught hers trying to bat at his shoulder with lightening reflexes. "Not dog- I'm a dragon slayer, remember? Well, fire demon-dragon slayer hybrid to be exact, but you get my point—hence the whole 'horn-dragon' title thing; which I won't deny. As for me being a pervert, you love it and you know it."

"Oh I do, do I?"

"Yeah, you do. Plus, ya' also think I'm a total bad-ass— it's cuz I am."

" Badass huh? Well, well, don't we think very highly of ourselves today?" challenged the summoner in a goading trill . "Though would you say the same even during those times when you're grovelling to Erza, begging her to forgive you for all the buildings or large swaths of forest you nearly leveled in your destructive path on jobs?"

"Well..I... hey.. wait no fair Luce!" Natsu feigned a whine , flashing her the most adorable "puppy dog" eyes that she swore could thaw out even the most iciest of of hearts. "Ya' know I'm not always the bravest guy when it comes to avoiding Erza's wrath! You of all people should know how scary she can be sometimes! And yet here you are teasin' me about it! You're no fun—no fun at all!'

"Yes, I do know and I'm plenty of fun" Lucy countered , a lighthearted , almost tounge-in-cheek kind of lilt to her words. " You tell me all the time how 'fun and awesome' I am to be around—especially as a girlfriend. Not that I'm complaining."

"That I do. and I'm glad you're not cuz I'll never grow tired of repeating it any more than you do hearing it—specially' when i mean every of word I say ."

"That makes me happy to hear."

"Good, I'm glad."

Natsu gave the hand he was still holding a little squeeze; all in all just enough for Lucy's heart to thump in her chest at his touch .

"Aw, you're really quite sweet when you want to be, aren't you?" She gushed, pure affection radiating from within. "Oh and it turns out that you are pretty badass afterall."

"Yeah, I am,—but I can't take all the credit, now can I?" His voice was tender, so cozy and warm like a flickering campfire when raising her hand to his lips for a lingering kiss oh so gentle Lucy very nearly swooned; as if the fact that her heart patterned in her chest wasn't already enough. "I got an incredibly beautiful and intelligent woman for a mate by my side—my irresistible princess."

"Oh, how you flatter me so" Lucy lilted, a light dusting of pink spreading across her cheeks . "I honestly don't know what I did to deserve someone as amazing as you."

"Yeah? Well, as much that does genuinely make me feel all warm and fuzzy inside to hear you say that Luce and believe me when I say it does" came his resounding hum, words thick with the reverent awe of a cured, blind man seeing the stars for the first time . "I still think I can top that. I still don't know as to how in the hell I was ever lucky enough to have an amazing woman like you ever fall into my life— much less claim you as mine. My heart, my home, my beautiful angel, my princess, my queen, my goddess, the love of my life —you're literally one of the best things that's ever happened to me . Like winning the lottery— only better ."

"My God, is the charming-but - rough- around-the-edges salamander being sentimental? " Lucy chimed , not bothering to suppress her giggle. "Not that I don't appreciate it."

"Yep, guilty as charged" said salamander in question let out a throaty chuckle; the glimmer of affectionate mirth sparkling in his emerald eyes filling her entire being with a cozy warmth—neither new or unwelcome. "I honestly can't help it when I'm with you. Especially considering how I managed to snag the best mate/queen a hybrid like me could ever ask for."

"Aw— You're doing it again! Best not to let Gray hear you or who knows what could happen?"

"Yeah, snowcone will probably never let me live it down, but I honestly ain't that worried."

"Yeah?"

"Yeah, guses I'll just have to sock him in the face if he can't keep his damn mouth shut."

"Hmm... well that definitely sounds like something that you'd do but moving on." Lucy prompted, not only trying to broach a new subject, but also taking a genuine keen interest in the all effort Natsu put in setting up their date . "Looks like you've been pretty busy putting everything together our date. Why don't you tell me what you did? I wanna know ."

"Yeah sure, glad you asked !" Natsu replied eagerly . " Okay, so I after left you to relax this morning, I made my way outside cuz' to find Gajeel afyer happening to catch a whiff of his scent comin' in and wanted to see if he'd be interested in helping me 'borrow' a massage bed.

"was totally gonna go for it too until Levy came rushing out-probably overheard us talking or something .She told us that it wouldn't be nesscary when I could always rent a bed, that Laki even had one of her own lying around back at Fairy hills and would probably even be willing to lend it to me if I just asked . I ended up gettin' Elfman and Gajeel to bring the bed back here for me so I could focus on setting up everything else. Mira and Lisanna suggested those scented lacrima-incense candles you probably saw on your way in to set the mood. Plus apparently they're supposed to soothe the senses, you know give off the whole relaxing vibe which I have to admit do actually smell pretty nice—though not as nice as you . "

"Anyways, I can see that I'm going off bit on a tangent—but I digress. Now, where was I? Oh yeah! Bisca and Alzack let me borrow their fairy lights along with teas lights to use since they figured it would really add to the whole 'ambiance ' or whatever as they said. Now as for the music we're hearin', it's apparently been set to play through a pre-selected playlist of a variety of songs your spirits told me you'd enjoy which Freed and Levy were nice enough to help me hook up to the speakers plus inscribe with Motion- sensor and other kinds runes linked specifically to your magic signature for it to not only kick in as you came down the stairs, but also stay in this room to make everything feel all the more intimate . All in all, quite the team effort if I do say so myself. Hell.. even Evergreen and Laxus of all people-who knew he could be such the romantic?- thought throwing those rose petals in would be a nice touch!

Oh and Cana, Laki and Erza sent me off in the right direction of the shops where I could find the oils and lotions plus some other goodies with the Happy and the other exceeds help which we'll get to later. Course' once that was all said and done, I did have some extra free time on my hands to kill in between waiting for the bed to be brought down before the set up was complete."

"Yeah? That right?" Lucy's wry voice broke in to quip after Natsu finished, lifting a questioning brow." Not that I don't greatly appreciate what you're doing and everything which I'll also have to remember to thank everyone else for their help in setting up later, but did this extra free time involve a scuffle with Gray after the stunt you pulled?"

"Erza told me as much, after she made a point to elaborate on exactly what you'd been up to when you weren't getting things organized for our date. Said you were running around town, setting off and I quote "the most horrendous of stink bombs", not to mention lighting a bag of literal dog shit mixed in with the feces of horse, donkey, cow and Vulcan on fire at Gray's door backed by Romeo and Happy as your accomplices. Just to char his pants clean off by launching one of several fireballs at his ass when he was chasing you down. The next thing she knew the you two were rolling around on the floor punching m each other on the way in. So, what I'd like to know is if any of this true?"

"Oho— you heard that, huh?" Natsu let out a low cackle that was almost diabolical. Not to mention the wide grin was spreading across his lips to boot ." Nothing gets past you, does it Luce? But to answer your question: yes, what you heard is all true."

"Which begs another: why?"

"You mean other than for shits and giggles?"

"Yep, believe that's what I meant".

"Okay so well... ice-prick started it!" He burst out, aggrieved voice lifting into a ppetulant . "He apparently got the brilliant idea to have me super into downing this really nasty concoction a few days ago. Said it was this brand new, special kind of fire- whiskey brew that I'd probably love. So I tried it all excited and everything , only to find it was really rancid sour milk mixed with flour and garlic-talk about disgusting! Next thing I know I'm makin! a beeline for the nearest sink desperately trying to rinse the nasty taste out of my mouth!

"Okay , fair enough— I can see why you 'd be pretty miffed . That all ?" Lucy placated, clearly enjoying her boyfriend's tirade . She found his recounting of the day's past events to be oddly amusing—classic salamander— anyone who knew him well might suppose. "Or is there another reason?"

"Yeah, course' there is Luce. Honestly, the nerve of that guy bargin' on us like that the other day," Natsu grumbled with a hint of Lucy thought was possessive resentment she could detect in his otherwise petulant tone. " He should know better not to interrupt a dragon , demon— hybrid in my case- when's they're in the middle of having sex with his mate! Not to mention the fact that no one else but me ,gets to see you naked now that we're officially soul-bonded in every sense of the word— well okay no one else cept' Happy who doesn't really count since he's family and doesn't care . But either way, it's all part of the unwritten code of being a good bro and the rules that go along with it. You remember, don't ya?"

"Yeah, I remember," Lucy responded, trying to suppress the shudder threatening overtake her frame more from the pair's less-than-pleasant run-in with Gray than the tantalizing memory of their erotic coupling or anything else. He had inadvertently made the untimely mistake of entering the wine cellar at the most inopportune time only to catch a glimpse of Lucy in the nude straddling Natsu in the chair, legs draped over either side; who made a point of pressing said female against him so as to shield her from view of wide eyes while shooting a pointed glare overhead at the intruder . He then took it upon himself to lift Lucy out of the chair in favour of moving her to restake his claim on said female against the door being shut .

Needless to say the poor poor ice demon-slayer— no doubt scarred for life— was sent packing shortly upon hearing Natsu's infuriated, shouted threats along the lines of "come for a good show did ya? Freakin perv! ," "you better keep your mouth shut if you know what's good for ya droopy eyes", and "or else I swear to God, I will literally give the most lopsided buzz cut of your life with my fire magic if I so much as hear ya utterin' even a single word about seeing my woman naked!" between panted grunts in time with hard-hitting thrusts striking true .

Lucy on the other hand, would have very much been red in the face if she wasn't already too far gone amid the throes of earth-shattering ectascy to care or her hot-blooded dragon-demon- hybrid prince's rough voice urging her to "focus on me - and only me Luce . That's right sweetheart. You just worry about how good I must feel inside you and I promise I'll take care of ya for us both ." It was only after the fact-mind-blowing sex aside-that the blush already staining the celestial wizard's cheeks darkened a few shades only when she paused to reflect back on the incident which Natsu noticed.

"Blushing yet again, I see," He noted, letting out a hearty chuckle bursting at the seams with so much fond mirth that Lucy's heart fluttered. " I know you're probably a little scarred from Gray accidentally walkin' in on us in a comprising position— but there's really no reason to still be embarrassed when all that's passed now . I will say that I do find your blush pretty damn adorable—makes you all the more endearing than you already are in my eyes . And yeah, I know I tell ya' this a lot, but I always mean every word of it and will never get tired of reminding you."

"Thanks Natsu, that's always nice to hear," came Lucy's bashful remark of sincere praise. She still found the whole scenario of Gray catching her in the act with her horn-dragon-sex-fiend-of- a-boyfriend as if they were right out in the most scandalous of public spaces-(like say the magnolia library for instance - by pure happenstance a little awkward. Still, she couldn't help but be tickled pink by his compliment." It was just a little awkward being caught quite literally with our pants down by Gray—well in my case It was that casual-but chic little rose -corset tunic- -mini dress I was wearing before you ripped it off me of it which would have been a huge hassle if I didn't have an extra pair but you get the picture."

"Yeah, I bet," Natsu sympathized, rubbing the back of his neck with a sheepish grin." I was kind of embarrassed myself when that happened. I mean I wasn't really that fazed bout the stripper seeing me me naked- dude's pretty much seen me like that loads of times- but a small part of me was kind of nervous wondering in the back of my mind what would happen if Wendy came down to help him bring up booze , seeing how she's like a little sister to me and I didn't want to scar her eyes. Not to mention, I was worried bout one of the visiting pretty-boy pansies and that troll from blue Pegasus-save ren- would somehow overhear us, and make a beeline for the stairs, in hopes of catching a glimpse of you without any clothes; cuz they tend to see pretty much any situating as an excuse to hit on everything that moves. And like I said I don't want anyone else but me seeing you like that. Though if it's any consolation, you and me both know Gray isn't the type to blackmail people for stuff like this."

"Valid point."

"And besides, I'm pretty sure he's just pissed at the fact that he wasn't the one to nab a spot as sweet as hours for him to get laid first." He followed up with a lazy, purr, words lifting the corners of lips being lifted up into a wolfish smirk ." and I’m talkin’ the most mind-blinding blowing sex you could ever hope to ask for with a wild dragon as a mate . Plus, I'm pretty sure that we both know how much I rocked your world by the way you screamin the name of yours truly the other day."

"Yeah, you were pretty fantastic," Lucy's voice sounded more coy than timid now in her airy giggle when peering through the fringe of her lashes. " I've heard other dragonslayers and their mates often rave about how the spectacular a 'romp in the hay'—foreplay included — always is with each other— especially when it's of the makeup or jealousy variety . The latter of which a prime example of just how especially powerful you are when you're riled up—you were on fire!"

"Hell yeah, I was!" Natsu more gloated than crowed,chest puffing out in a cocksure show of pride. "Combine superhuman stamina with the already-higher-than-your-average-human libido of a territorial and protective dragon, who's all fired up after havin' to deal with dipshits that don't know not to try to mack on what isn't theirs , and you're in for a especially good time. I should know— you won't believe how much it turned me on from just hearing all those delicious sounds from all the pleasure- not to mention orgasms— I gave ya."

"Well, you definitely didn't disappoint if the other day was any indication to go by. Speaking of which, how did I perform? I should hope you got just as much as I did out of it— seeing how I care about your experience just as much as my own ."

"Beyond amazing— you were phomenal Luce" Natsu sang Lucy's his mate's exultant praises, leaning in to distribute a fond little peck on her waiting lips so light, that her heart gave a delicate little flutter."You always are."

"Thanks Natsu— always glad to impress. So," Lucy prompted, words dripping with dry amusement. "Now regrading the other alleged prank you pulled. Wanna tell me why I heard rumours of you lurking around the other onsen bathhouse this morning?

"What? You mean that? It's nothing really ," Salamander gave a little wink, while flashing Lucy a conspiratorial grin which exposed the glint of his canines. " Just thought it'd be fun to spice the next bath time up for my fellow bros by dumping a tiny amount of itching powder into the pool. Should be just enough for em' to really feel a difference."

"So it was you."

"Yep, couldn't help myself. Ain't I a stinker ?"

"You're something all right."

"You're damn straight I am. Course' when that was all said and done, I had way too much idle time on my hands." Natsu feigned a whine, bottom lip jutting out in a pout the celestial mage couldn't help but find adorable . "You don't know how much it sucked Luce, being bored out of my mind while waiting for you, bored out my mind, sitting there, twiddling my thumbs, bidin' my time and counting the minutes until I could finally see that beautiful face of yours when you turned up for our date."

"Aw, that's so sweet!" Lucy crooned , voice lifting into a taunting, but good natured lilt. "Not to mention cute! Dragon boy was bored waiting for me— how precious!"

"Oi— don't call me that like I'm some kind of hatchling!" Natsu objected,burning heat rising in his cheeks— though there was no real heat to his words. "I ain't precious or cute! I'll have you know that I'm a ferocious dragon-Demon hybrid, a dragon-demon-hybrid !"

"Oh, I don't doubt either of those things" Lucy countered, a glimmer of light-hearted mirth dancing in her honey -brown eyes. "But I also think that doesn't stop you from being so damn precious."

"Yo, what did I say about calling me precious?" huffed the fire wizard, no real bite to his words."Looks like I'm gonna have to teach you a lesson Lucy— I'll make ya' eat your words."

"Oh you are, are you?" Lucy trilled in a sing-song voice. "I'd like to see you try—though I highly doubt you can."

"Oh really— that so? Well then, challenge accepted, " Natsu shot back, words now merely a soft mumur sending a shiver of anticipation rippling across Lucy's skin; He was bowing his head to seal his lips over hers a second later, stealing whatever else she planned to say along with her breath a in a series of delicate little taps; one, two , than three. One hand came up to cup her cheek, the other to rest on the side of her neck when her fingers wrapped around to clasp his wrists at the same time. Natsu's lips much like his magically-heated digits stroking soothing patterns along her skin, were so soft, so smooth, so gentle and sweet moving against hers, that she couldn't help melt into the kiss.

The dragonslayer slayer didn't release his princess yet however, not without his lips coaxing gently against hers until he drew out a euphoric sigh of bliss. Natsu's kisses always had some sort of mystical effect on the celestial mage , those of a searing intensity enough to set her soul on fire, those of a more gentle nature able to turn her bones to mush. His every touch-even the most of casual— was more often than not, enough to practically make her heart skip a beat, not to mention weak in the knees . It was at that exact moment in time Lucy realized - not for the first time- right then and there that she would always belong to her fierce Dragon-etherious, her heart, her soul; not to mention the exploration of form's contours forever his.

And I couldn't be happier...

"Woah... you did it again— swayed me with the spellbinding power of your kiss."

Lucy's voice was no more than a breathy murmur, high off the euphoric afterglow of post-kiss bliss after Natsu pulled back just enough to rest his forehead against hers.

"Yeah, I've been told I tend to have that effect on people" he rumbled, his warm breath against the celestialmage's skin sending goosebumps rippling through her nerves. Not to mention Lucy could tell by the content hum in his words that he was basking in the after-glow as much as she which made their intimate moment they shared all the more perfect. "And by people, I mean you. Either way, still doesn't change the fact that I'm always gonna have a major soft spot for ya 'Luce— ferocious dragon-demon I may be. In any case, really hope you like what I got planned."

"I do—thank you Natsu," came Lucy' words of warm gratitude before leaning in for another quick kiss. His lips then broke away to shower feathery- light kisses all over the outline of the astral mage's face wet and sloppy enough for a airy giggle to bubble up from out of her throat.

"God, I love you and I love kissing you " Natsu's gravely undertone was nothing short of reverent behind his rambles after drawing back just enough to speak. "And havin' you in my arms, and holding your hand, talking, laughin with ya—pretty much everything really."

"Thanks Natsu, I feel the same way and love doing all of those things with you too," Lucy echoed in an giggle, with a warm affection for this man that resonated through her bones.

"That makes me really happy to hear, Luce. I mean I've always known it to be true since the day we hooked up but still makes me feel all warm and fuzzy inside every time I hear those sweet words coming from your pretty mouth."

"I'm glad."

"Did I mention how much I love your hair up like this?" Natsu complimented for which he clearly had no qualms about laying on thick the genuine sweet talk which was enough for her heart to flutter . Not to mention his fingers skimming along the contour her cheek when he reached to tuck another errant strand of hair behind her ear with a touch so gentle where sparks raced that she shivered at the intimacy.

"I mean I really like it in other hairstyles too no matter what— but this one really frames your gorgeous face which I’ll never get tired of waking up to each morning."

"Aw—you're being awfully sweet right now!"

"Thanks Luce! Oh and one more thing: I seriously love how those panties make your ass look," He tacked on with a hint of cheeky admiration when leaning over Lucy's shoulder to sneak a quick peek of the view beneath the hem of her kimono . "Yep, definitely like what I see."

"Why Natsu , are you checking me out?" Lucy speculated, voice lifting into a coy-kind-of lilt that she knew was enough to bait her brazen boyfriend into replying.

"Well princess, you know I ain't one to lie to ya," Salamander drawled, flashing her the wickedest of panty-dropping grins, the kind that showed off the glint of his sharpened canines that she swore could melt any poor, misshapen soul with an affinity for the opposite sex-men and women alike- into a puddle-mass-of hormones—herself included.

Especially when he looks at me with those half-lidded onyx -green eyes of his.

"...Since that's never really been my style— so yes, I am. It is a nice view after all."

"Well, I should certainly hope so— I do work pretty hard for this body afterall."

"That you do, Luce" Natsu concurred , words laced with a roguish purr topped off by a wink that made Lucy's heart skip a beat for good measure."and it shows—very sexy".

"Thank you Natsu—you're too kind".

"Thanks Luce—so are you!"

"Thanks and now I think would be a good time to bring up your shoddy attempt of what—you call— an intimation of my voice earlier" Lucy feigned a light reprimand, though there was no real heat to her words."Not your finest work if I do say so myself."

"Please—My impression of you was spot on" Natsu countered in faux dissent though his emerald eyes sparkled with mirth. "And you know it. Some one really should give me a medal right now for how amazing I am at it."

"I dunno... your impression of what you think I sound like leaves much to be desired" came the blonde's reply, words dripping with what could only be described as wry. amusement. "Still not a fan."

"Beg to differ! Oh, how you wound me woman!" Was all Natsu had to say in response, clapping a melodramatic hand over his chest as if her lighthearted words were the equivalent of a direct shot straight through the heart; though it was all for show for the sake of tongue-in-cheek banter she could tell. "How am I ever gonna recover from such a devastating blow?"

"I'm sure you'll live, you big drama king" Lucy quipped with a mild roll of the eyes before shifting the topic to a new subject of focus . "So what's on the itinerary for today? Mira said you had a lot planned today?"

" Oh yeah — you bet I do!" Natsu crowed, words practically bursting at the seams with unbridled enthusiasm. "I got an amazing scheduled packed with romantic activities for us to enjoy together on our date!"

"Oh yeah? Tell me more!"

"Okay, so besides the message some of the girls and Freed thought a nice soak in the bath infused with what's apparently supposed to be 'the finest natural herbs in Firore' and champagne for the two of us would a real nice way to treat ya'and I couldn't agree more!

"Ooh you're right, that does sound really nice!"

"Course it is. It's actually how I found time to do the thing with the itching powder" Natsu admitted with a bit of a sheepish laugh. "Sorry Luce, you know I can't help myself sometimes!"

"Course you can't" Lucy deadpanned, slapping a hand against her forehead. "Ugh, it's official—I'm the mate of a deviant ."

"Yep , though you also forgot to mention that I'm a drop dead sexy badass with plenty of natural charisma ."

"Oh, I did, did I?"

"Yeah, though pretty sure I'll be able to find a way to jog your memory in case you forgot."

"Oh yeah? Prove it ."

"Oh I will, Luce— just you watch".

"Well do it then."

"With pleasure".

He was capturing the celestial mage's lips in a feather-light kiss so sweet that it seemed to have the intended effect of turning her bones to mush a result.

God.. does Natsu really know how to kiss...

"Remind me again" Lucy groused in pretend exasperation when the fire dragon was pulling back a second later ." How is that you always manage to persuade me into changing my mind with just a simple kiss?"

"Duh! It's cuz you love me weirdo!" came Natsu's reply in an affectationate sing-voice, mussing hair atop her crown lightly with his hand all the while; which somehow always enough for her heart to flutter."and the fact that I'm a fantastic kisser certainly doesn't hurt."

"That you are" was what Lucy had to say in a agreement, honey-brown eyes sparkling with vibrant affection. "Top notch".

"Thanks Luce—you're an amazing kisser too!"

"Aw thanks! So the guild's doing throwing another movie night later," Lucy divulged ."Levy happened to mention it at breakfast earlier."

"Ooh awesome!"Natsu trumpeted, for which Lucy could practically hear how psyched he was resonating through his every word. Movie nights at the Fairytail were always a massive hit with every single member-her and the firebreather included— which he was always revved up by; seeing how such an event promised an evening entertainment of a high caliber second only to the low-key quality time best spent one' soulmate along with family and friends from within and outside the guild.

Not to mention, plenty of laughs and mouthwatering cuisine, both of which those in attendance were partially jazzed by -especially one Salamander with his voracious appetite, The blonde realized with an internal wry smirk to herself .

Dude practically devours everything in sight during guild events like these.

"I love those!"

"Good— I'm glad you enjoy them so much" Lucy approved, for which she couldn't help but not to genuinely validate his enthusiasm. Not to mention , find not only said boyfriend's keen anticipation infectious, but also entertaining." I do too. Plus the lacrima flick that was selected should be one you really like."

"Oh yeah? Natsu effused, sounding curious, even more taken by the lure of an all-around great time . " What're they showing tonight?"

"One of the Hobbit movies," Lucy replied with nonchalant enthusiasm."So not Twilight."

"Sweet! The one with the dragon? Such a good movie! Can't say same for that 'Twi-shit' though." The corner of Natsu's lips turned down in a show of contempt, indicating he was less than impressed by said vampire novels . "Can't believe that some lady somewhere got it into her head that it'd be a good idea to write such a lame series where it takes at least 3 books for some confused teenage girl to choose between a sparkly vampire and moody werewolf. What's worse is some talentless Hollywood hack deciding to go and turn it all into a crappy series of movies just to make a quickbuck ."

"Yeah, well,"snickered the celestial mage. "You have the undying devotion of a crazed bunch of 13 year old fan girls to thank for that-myself included when I was that age. Back when I thought Twilight was somehow among the best YA literature had to offer."

"Ugh... remind me, what did you ever see in that crap?"

"Dunno really.. So you interested in coming to the movie tonight?"

"Yeah, of course!" Natsu declared in earnest."Who else am I gonna park on my lap in my arms and steal popcorn from while we watch the movie? Well besides Happy."

"Guess I'll take that answer as a yes which is great especially considering how appealing the first part sounds," came Lucy's thoughtful observation, words dripping with put-on earnestness she knew he would would able to see right through; all while trying not to become sidetracked by his fingers grazing along the being wound around the nape of his neck. "the second part though... not sure if I approve of you mooching off my popcorn."

"Oh please like you're one to talk missy," Natsu hinted, lips breaking into that trademark, infectious grin of his lighting emerald eyes that was a little too cheeky for her heart to handle. "I seem to recall a certain gorgeous blonde of mine freeloading off the popcorn along with the Malteasers I bought when seeeing the movie with Happy, Gray, Erza and some of the others a few weeks back.. You know, the one with all the zombies. You remember, don’t ya?”

"of course I do you dork! and that was a communal snack pack you got for us to share with Happy you dork" Lucy objected with a put-on scoff that seemed to suggest defensive indignation." And you know it! With some of the money that I pitched in on top of yours no less and all this in spite of your whole and I quote 'I'm buying some of the snacks tonight-don't even worry bout ' it Luce. You can always pay or go Dutch with me or someone else another time' spiel. That is until I insisted on 'going Dutch then ' out of fairness and being a good mate since you paid for dinner during one of our last dates but whatever! And besides, it's not like I mooch off you that much anyways."

"What can I say? I like to provide for my mate and little buddy from time to time" Natsu boasted, voice coming out a little too pleased with himself to see any reason ." Just the kind of stand up guy I am— I suppose. Not that I don't appreciate you going Dutch with me even when you didn't have to—or how adorable you sound when you try to imitate me Luce. Though for the record you totally do sometimes steal my snacks from time to time just so we're clear ."

" I do not!" The summoner fired back, another small noise of offence sounding in her throat.

"Yeah, sure, you don't weirdo," Natsu let out a hearty chuckle, vibrations of which resonating through his chest.

"It honestly doesn't happen that much."

"Oh! So you're saying that you don't mooch off me that often , are you?! That's definitely news to me then!"

"It doesn't but when I do steal food that's only cuz' it's a habit I picked up after being around you for so long. Got it?!"

"Sure, whatever you say sweetheart. Glad I could be such a positive influence on you though and tell ya' what," Natsu proposed to said "snack-moocher' who couldn't help but secretly focus on the cozy warmth of his hands now casually resting on her waist. " I'll gladly let ya' mooch off ' some of my popcorn if you promise to let me steal bits of yours in exchange . That and plenty of kisses while you're in my arms for the movie tonight."

"Works for me—we have ourselves a deal!" was all Lucy could say after she no longer could be bothered to keep up the original charade with her pyromaniac before they were exchanging another quick kiss that was brief, but nothing short of sweet. All in all enough to make her heart pitter-patter.

"Okay, I'm definitely even more hyped for the day we're spending together that I was already was before!" Natsu crowed, unable to contain his excitement."Not only am I thrilled about this date, but I also get to kickback with our friends and you in my arms later too! How awesome is that?!"

"Yeah, it's definitely gonna be a fun night!" Lucy concurred, just as enthusiastic as he. "One question though ."

"Yeah, what's that?"

"Just something I have on my mind I'd like to share -that's all ."

"Okay, shoot".

"Have you given any actual thought as to what might happen if Erza and Jellal wind up in the other bath while the itching powder is in the filtration system? May not turn out so well for you if they do," Lucy followed up with an inquiry, thoughtful words laced with a dry edge; only to burst into a fit of giggles when the pyromaniac's face visibly turned pale at the implication behind her words.

"Uh no, didn't cross my mind actually" Natsu chuckled, words oozing with a "I-am-so-screwed-if-they-find-out-kind of vibe giving his trepidation away. Not to mention the tight grin plastered all over his face. Lucy noted with a sardonic smirk. Dude's practically sweating bullets-poor guy. "Though I'm sure it can't be all that bad if they do, right? I mean it's not like there's a chance Erza will skin my hide, bust my balls or anything like that. Be a real shame if she did since I really like my dick— the ideal kind plenty of guys would kill for actually."

"I agree, you won't hear me complaining that's for sure-though not entirely sure how we got on the subject on how impressive your dick is."

"Probably cuz you're not only talking' to a dude with that universal he has along with practically every other guy , but also a dragon with an crazy high sex drive and superhuman stamina-specially when it comes to sex-that's really proud of his dick for obvious reasons."

"Yes, though I think we've pretty much already established why that is 'for obvious reasons' like you said."

"Aw thanks Luce— that makes me really glad to hear ya' say that! It's just I love what I can do with it, ya know? I mean it'd really suck if I couldn't fuck or get myself for a week because of an injured you-know-what. Especially cuz of the first part seeing how fantastic the sex with you always is. "

" Definitely don't disagree , but you and your dick references-my god. You can be quite proud, when you wanna be , don't you? Dragonslayers and their egos— not to mention libidos. I swear that both of those seem to skyrocket through the roof once they find their mates . And As if they weren't high enough already— not that I'm complaining. Anyways, I'm sure your dick will be fine."

"I hope so."

"Don't worry I can always help you find a place to lay low for a while if your hypothetical prediction of Erza coming after you does come true ."

"Yeah, I just might have to take ya up on your offer if shit does hit the fan—probably gonna take you and Happy with me too. That way Erza can't go to the most obvious people for answers on where I'm hidin and neither one of us will be bored."

"Whatever works, I'll do."

"Great! Anyways, enough about my dick for the time being. Now's probably bout high time for us to get on with the rest of our date."

"Agreed—let's do it."

"Awesome. How bout' we get you ready for your massage then, yeah?"

"Sounds good— I'm really looking forward to it!"

"Same here!"

To Be Continued

fic tag squad: @writer-appreciation @fuck-yeah-nalu @soprana-snap @phoenix-before-the-flame @nunnatheinsanegerbil @mautrino @rougescribe @goddesofimortality @phoenix-before-the-flame @nalufever @petri808 @thecelestialchick @nalu-natic @superdomo360 @pyroandtheprincess @rayhneatess @nothingbutwordsstuff @petri808 @thecelestialchick @chiire @nalufever @shootingstarssel @chamilsanya @rougescribe @lover-of-the-light117 @rougescribe @narutoyaoifan

A/N: Hope you all enjoyed the latest chapter! The writing process took me a couple months at least to churn out this chapter in its entirety when I originally wrote it- but I'm pretty satisfied with the result. Now to take care of some housekeeping.

1. First things first, I just wanted to make it clear that Natsu was fully given affirmative consent by Lucy during the whole scenario of being on the verge of ravishing her against the massage bed (before even getting to the massage first. as intended). He wouldn't have proceeded if either one of them didn't or would've stopped if consent was withdrawn at any time in case that wasn't already established. Same goes for Lucy, since it wasn't a matter of Natsu not wanting to have sex (he did), but rather him also being worried about spoiling the romantic mood if the order of how events proceeded was out of order .(Pretty sure that as much as he loves having sex with Lucy, he'd also care about the other aspects of the relationship including the feelings of his mate.

Not to mention , he'd be just as mutually invested in the pleasure, feelings and overall experience of sexual and /or romantic encounters of his partner as much of his own ). Neither of the two are the type to make sexual advances on someone without consent which Hiro-sensei established (even in the Stone Age Omake). Yes, I'm well aware of that controversial page in that Nalu comic from January 2018, which I loved overall-final page included except said page that had the fandom up in arms. I ultimately wish Hiro had tackled that particular bottom panel differently, though it wasn't sexual or malicious . Nor he'd condone such actions regarding where the drawing was on Lucy in real life which made it easier to live with in the end. I also would like to point out that I like Hiro, would never write scenes glorifying non-consensual encounters. Whew, glad to have gotten the main part of this off my chest.

2. Anyway, what I would like to bring up next is the fact that Nalu has pretty much been confirmed to be canon in the manga/anime though the ending of the final chapter was left open-ended. Not to mention, it's no surprise to any fan that both Natsu and Lucy both have sexual awareness which means they are capable of experiencing sexual attraction along with the other kinds—especially those that come from being in love or having feelings that transcend beyond platonic boundaries (all which have been depicted in the series). It could also be very well possible that both may have sexual experience, but not very much in the department of romantic relationships. Keep in mind that being sexually experienced is not always an indicator of the romantic relationship kind with sexual intimacy.

(This isn't to say the two are never interconnected by means) In other words, one can have sexual experienced without having much in the way of the romantic department, though obviously they can gain even more of the former from being in romantic relationships where sex is a component. That being said, there isn't really that much of a focus on the possible sex lives of the characters in Fairytail, leaving room for interpretation. (Course Natsu and Lucy are completely compatible as a couple—especially due to quasi-romantic gestures even as friends. There's also the possibility of their relationship being explored further in the potential continuation of Fairytail since the ending of the final chapter left it open for a sequel and Hiro himself mentioned he would like to return to the FT universe (perhaps through a official continuation of some) in addition to his other projects at some point!)

3. At no point were the two belittling anyone's feelings—it was all lighthearted banter.

4. Lucy does have a permanent mating mark on the juncture of her neck near her collarbone put on there by Natsu through a bite. It signifies Natsu consensually claiming her as is (without being abusive or treating her like property) and their unique, eternal bond. (Just in case anyone was wondering!)

5. In this particular fic (like many others), one of the aspects dragonslayers and demons—including some etherious presumably- share in common is having one person (or group of people for the polyamorous though it doesn't apply to Natsu or Lucy since they both prefer monogamy) they're destined to become eternally bonded to for life and beyond in every sense of the word— their mates a.k.a soulmates. Demons however, also consider their mates/soulmates to their queens or kings for which Natsu would obviously consider Lucy to be both (mate/soulmate and queen) since he's a hybrid of a fire dragonslayer and etherious demon. (I think this fact has already been well established throughout the fic so far along with heightened libidos plus their protective and territorial/possessive instincts—without being abusive or viewing their soul-bonded as property mind you- among other traits. And yes, obviously there would be other dragonslayers who have mates with Levy being Gajeel's as one such example). Anyway, it's been a concept and common-but quality-trope I've always loved since reading Inuyasha fics and becoming a Nalu shipper which has greatly inspired my own creative writing in fanfiction over the years. Same goes for demons having queens from from the fantastic plethora of Nalu/End.l.u fics that I'm also a major sucker for including those written by the amazing @mslead and Kytrin.

All right, that's pretty much it in the way of housekeeping for now. Though just a reminder that particular steamy Nalu scene I've been mentioning in will now be in chapter 6— guaranteed! Chapter 6 of Tantric Flames will be also up after I have chance to finish writ and formatting it . All right guys, that's it for now!

Once again , hoped you all enjoyed the most recent installment of Tantric! Don't forget to let me know what you think by leaving a review/comment and feel free to check out of the rest of my writing!(See above closer to the top of post and bio for links if on Tumblr and my fanfiction author page if on there and possibly archive of our own if I can get it all sorted out once I receive my invite ). Special thanks to all my friends, followers, mutuals, readers and everyone who has been supporting me so far— really means a lot! Until next time, take care!

#fairytail #ft fanfiction #nalu #natsu x lucy #natsu dragneel #lucy heartfilia #tantric flames #reblog #review #millennial-star-gazer #millennial star-gazer writes

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lrgcarter · 6 years ago

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Reconsidering the Eldar

This post continues my desire to publish writings I am preparing for a website looking at the second edition of Warhammer 40,000. This page comes from a series that describes the early incarnation of the setting, and examines what was then known about the Eldar. There are references to pages I haven’t published yet, but I’m sure you can cope with that.

***

The Eldar are often summarily described as Space Elves. They have slender limbs, pointy ears, and an irredeemable racial-superiority-complex. As Games Workshop purposefully created the 41st millennium as a parallel to their Warhammer Fantasy setting, the appearance of Space Elves was almost a contractually required certainty. Throw in Tolkien’s use of Eldar as a name for his own elves and the comparison between these two races stands on solid ground.

Closer inspection, however, reveals how superficial these similarities are.

We have seen that everything in the 40K setting allows you to play out your favourite scenes from other media. It would be a mistake, however, to view the game as nothing more than a patchwork of plagiarism. Into every aspect of the game, the authors poured their pride and professionalism. They strove to make their world their own, working each ingredient into something recognisable yet simultaneously fresh. While each army can be described in terms of easily accessible tropes, these entry points always lead to deeper ideas and more complex world-building.

The amount of work put in by the authors is most obvious in their development of the Eldar due to the complete emptiness of the elven concept. Beyond pointing to an art-nouveau aesthetic, how can we describe the modern elf? They are personifications of the idea that things were better in the past, that modern techniques do not compare to those of yesteryear. Elves warn that the young should unquestionably obey their elders, that the rich should not dally with the poor, that people should not mix with those of other races. Elves justify all by claiming descent from mythical faerie; fictional ancestry which would be completely irrelevant even if it were true.

Our authors were tasked with turning this empty and hateful concept into something that appealed to people under the age of retirement. They did this by turning the clichéd story of the Eldar upside down.

The standard twentieth century elf story was as follows; the elves lived in elite paradise, something happened to remove them from their privileged state, then those that remained grew embittered with life. These elements exist in the Eldar story, but have been reordered with greater social awareness. The Eldar believed they existed in paradise, their hate and elitism led to their destruction, and those who remained acted as a despisable warning not to repeat their mistakes. This rearrangement removed the illusion that elves are sympathetic victims worthy of emulation, and instead shone light on all that made them reprehensible.

The following extract from the original Codex Eldar (page 14) gives brief but concise insight into their fall:

“In those times… all Eldar pursued their inclinations according to their own will, indulging every whim and investigating every curiosity…

Slowly but surely the worm of pride began to eat away at the Eldar race. They thought all secrets theirs to uncover, all pleasures theirs to partake. Heedlessly they plundered the precious resources of their marvellous minds… Exotic cults sprang up all over the Eldar domains, each dedicated to a different aspect of esoteric knowledge or sensual excess… society became increasingly divided… corruption turned quickly to wanton abandon… blood flowed through the streets amidst the bestial roar of the crowd.”

While every aspect of humanity’s fictional history has been explored, the Eldar’s story has always remained evocatively vague. It is often claimed that this is to keep parents happy, that the fall of the Eldar involved sexual and violent excesses unsuitable for the eyes of children.

We believe, however, that this is itself a somewhat childish interpretation of the text. The idea that ‘esoteric knowledge or sensual excess’ refers exclusively to sex cannot be taken seriously without defining sex so broadly as to encompass all human activity.

We prefer to interpret Eldar pride as touching upon all aspects of their lives. Any thought perceived by an Eldar would have been held as exceptional. If the thought was exceptional, then why not act upon it? Any who objected to an Eldar thought would be preventing society from being all it could be. No matter what the cost to others, an Eldar would always be justified in doing whatever they want, saying whatever they want, and taking whatever they want. Far from being confined to the acts of gangs and sex-cults, it is easy to see that such ideology would poison recreation, education, politics, law, industry, military, religion, and every other element of culture. Without any sense of social responsibility, all would pull in opposite directions and tear the world apart. For the Eldar, this metaphor would become far too literal.

As Eldar culture destroyed itself, their exceptionalism and intolerance was mirrored in the Warp. Every toxic word added to rising storms in that other-world, the same storms that would sever all links between the human worlds and plunge them into a true dark-age. The anguish and entitlement of the Eldar became so real in the Warp that it coalesced into a single being; a new demonic god named Slaanesh. The birth of Slaanesh ripped a hole in the fabric of reality, destroying the Eldar’s planets and wiping out almost all the Eldar.

We contend that the common consensus remains correct. The fall of the Eldar did involve sexual and violent excesses unsuitable for the eyes of children. Unfortunately, these are the same sexual and violent excesses that the leaders of our real world seem determined to force upon them.

Reading the original Codex Eldar today, it is hard to ignore that the Eldar are less Space-Elves, and more Space-Americans. Current affairs in the United States have unpleasant parallels with the final days of the Eldar. This, in turn, casts Slaanesh in quite a different light. Usually depicted as a seductive god of pleasure, it is easy to mistake Slaanesh as being unfairly vilified by the chaste and puritanical Imperium. Understanding the full context of Slaanesh’s creation reveals the true shape of this vile and sociopathic creature.

The armies available to Eldar players are those who foresaw the oncoming calamity and took steps to avoid it. Here we see American analogies also. Some ran to the furthest edges of the galaxy, forsaking modernities that they believed would cause the fall and in doing so becoming a faction of space-Amish known as Exodites. Other Eldar became extreme survivalists, building space-bunkers known as Craftworlds that house planetary populations of preppers. Eldar civilians are trained to join their military at a moment’s notice, much like the Minutemen, Eldar scouts owe as much to American Rangers as they do to Tolkein’s, and the Eldar’s harlequin clowns are parodies of the much maligned MTV video jockeys.

In creating this Space-America, the authors might have realised they were being somewhat on the nose. The subtle pill being easier to swallow, they hid their social commentary behind a healthy dose of Celtic imagery. While the authors probably referred to original Celtic sources, there is no doubt that the rising star of Slaine in 2000ad would have influenced this decision.

Regardless of how you interpret the fall of the Eldar, the in-game consequences cannot be denied. The birth of Slaanesh destroyed the Eldar, and as a result ended the warp-storm that had engulfed the galaxy. Warp-space settled enough for the Emperor to sally forth and reunite humanity. The Eldar were all but extinct, and the age of the Imperium had begun…

#eldar #W40k #second edition

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gabriel-gabdiel · 4 years ago

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Keit-AI! Tomoyuki x Seiko Chapter 19: The Birthday Gift

Keit-Ai is back, baby! This is the chapter where Tomoyuki realizes his feelings for AU Seiko.

The rest of the chapters of my original story based on a plot from 4chan are available here. Enjoy.

First | Previous | Next

Love was a variety of attitudes, states, and feelings that ranged from interpersonal affection one would have for his kin (like loving your mother) to pleasure (loving a meal).

It was an emotion of strong personal attachment or attraction to something or someone else, including yourself (self-love, which wasn't necessarily narcissism).

It could either be platonic or romantic, with platonic love referring to chaste, non-sexual affection while romantic love was all about the sum-total physical and emotional attraction to a person (not to be confused with lust).

There were others who alleged that love was a virtue that represented human affection, compassion, and kindness in one word. It was an unselfish, benevolent, and loyal concern for the good of other people.

Love also caused selfishness to happen, when one felt possessive, controlling, or otherwise jealous because of an object of affection's actions or behavior.

It could even lead to hate or feelings of betrayal from those scorned or lacking of love; feelings that were about equal in passion but far more twisted and negative.

But love itself was neither selfish nor negative.

It could even refer to actions that were affectionate and compassionate towards one's self, fellow humans, and animals.

Indeed, what exactly was love?

***

Keit-AI! Tomoyuki x Seiko

An Anime-Inspired Original Story from 4chan's /a/ Board by Abdiel

Original Idea by Hataki.

What is love? (Baby don't hurt me...)

Disclaimer: This work may reference copyrighted material, the use of which has not always been specifically authorized by the copyright owner. It is believed that this constitutes a fair use of any such copyrighted material as provided for in section 107 of the US Copyright Law. All copyrighted material referred to in this work belongs to their respective owners. All rights reserved.

***

Chapter 19: The Birthday Gift

***

Tomoyuki Yamamoto opened his watery eyes after the alarm on his bedside (it was just his cellphone on alarm mode) went off with a particularly loud rendition of a techno beat.

He groaned, yawned, and scratched his stomach, his mind still half-asleep.

He then blinked and stared blankly at the cellular phone on his hand, the gears in his mind finally turning.

'Oh,' he thought. 'It's June 24 today.'

Today was his birthday.

His mouth flat-lined like a heart monitor detecting the unbeating heart of a dead person, not knowing how to react.

He should be happy and all, but the bleary memories of yesterday came flooding back, souring his mood.

He remembered his pseudo-confession to Miku Machida, recorded by Aya Fubuki through her cellphone then played right in front of (Non-Alternate-Universe) Seiko.

Tomoyuki then recalled that he originally "confessed his love" to the Iincho (Class Rep) as a ruse to distract Kazuhito Sugata from Aya's own attempt at confessing her love to him (Kazuhito).

Damn. His arm was still a bit sore from the arm bar Sugata did to him.

He groaned.

He wanted to forget. He wanted to dig a hole in the ground then bury himself inside it for a hundred years or so.

For some reason, his fake confession embarrassed him more than the corny "sext" messages he sent AU Seiko.

Huh.

His birthday was the least of his worries.

***

At the gates of Maehara High, before the late bell rang...

Because he dreaded going to school today, Yamamoto ended up almost late again. And he knew what that meant.

"Hi hi!" greeted what-ser-face with the twin ponytails from behind him, skipping in a leisurely pace. "How ya doin', Cherry-kun?"

"Hmmm? Why did you say 'Hi' twice?" Tomoyuki asked, rubbing the rheum and tears off of his bleary eyes before yawning.

"Well, we say 'Bye' twice too, don't we?" the girl explained.

The Cherry Boy blinked before hitting his closed fist over his palm.

'Goto! This is Goto!' thought Yamamoto, finally remembering the name of the eternally late girl in front of him. Yukari Goto. From Class 2C. His first (unrequited) love.

Only she could come up with an answer so stupid but somehow make sense!

Yukari looked like she was about to say something else but she then waved at something over Tomoyuki's shoulder. "AYA-CHAN! I'm over here! Come get me!"

Goto then got conked on the head by Fubuki, the Class Rep of 2C, a minute later. "DUMMY! I'm not your mother! Stop making me fetch you and go to school on time!"

"OWIE! But Aya-chan...!" whined Yukari. "Hey, did you know I was running with toast in my mouth like in anime but I ate it so now it's gone? Also, I forgot where I was going with this."

With a harrumph, the motherly Class 2C Iincho pulled the ditz away by her ponytails, eliciting more cries of, "OW, OW, OW, OW...!"

However, as Aya did so, she faced Tomoyuki, their eyes meeting.

"Hello, Yamamoto-kun," greeted Fubuki with a single wave of her hand.

"Uh, yeah. Hey... F-Fubuki."

The late bell then rang.

"You better get going. You're already late," Aya then said with a flat expression on her face and without taking a second look at him.

Tomoyuki gulped hard.

He had half the mind to go to the school boiler room and hide there for the rest of the day. Or even go home altogether.

How would the Class 2B Iincho, Miku, react to him now?

Or how about the Class 2B Yankee, who was scary when mad and almost broke his arm? Or how about the Class 2B Amazon Queen, who had also twisted his arm to submission?

The mere thought of the dreaded confrontation made him wheeze. His asthma was acting up again.

His cellphone then rang to indicate he just got a voice mail.

"Happy birthday, Cherry Boy!" was the message he received from AU Seiko. "Still a virgin, aren't you?" she added in true Amazon Queen fashion.

Tomoyuki withheld a laugh. He texted back, "How'd you know it's my birthday? I haven't even told the you in my universe about it."

She replied, "Oh, Miku-chin was already preparing stuff for her best friend's birthday today and I caught wind of it. Help me out in getting a gift for the you in my universe, 'kay?"

"No prob," he messaged.

Then, with a puff from his inhaler, he braced himself and entered the classroom for Section 2B.

He was still late though, so the teacher had him stand in the hall with pails of buckets on each hand as punishment.

What was this, the Eighties? No one did this anymore.

Some birthday this turned out to be.

***

In between the first and second classes of the first period, once Tomoyuki was finally allowed inside the classroom...

"Hey, Cherry Boy!" was the greeting Tomoyuki received from the Seiko in his universe. "Still haven't popped your cherry yet, haven't you?" she added in true Okamoto fashion.

"Shut up, Okamoto," he fired back, concealing a grin. Was this déjà vu?

Speaking of which, he then got a text message from AU Seiko, which he wanted to read but couldn't because Non-AU Seiko was currently in front of him.

"Aren't you going to answer that, Cherry Boy?" asked the Amazon Queen.

He cleared his throat. "M-Maybe later."

He should've known better than to think that Seiko would hold a grudge against him. Maybe her good ol' best friend Miku had told her about his birthday and explained the "dust up" from yesterday?

Tomoyuki's arm ached in remembrance of the Yankee's scary outburst. He'd have to deal with the harem master sooner or later (preferably later).

However, if Kazuhito really were that into Miku, then who was he (Yamamoto) to stop their love from blossoming? He should let them develop their love.

Having Machida and Sugata end up together was something that worked to Tomoyuki's advantage. Right?

Jeez, what was Sugata worried about anyway? This was the "Cherry Boy" he was angry at. The eternal best friend. The guy with the Friend Zone Harem.

At any rate, he finally went face-to-face with Miku Machida.

"Hey, Machida! About yesterday..." he began after mustering the courage to talk to the girl he faked a love confession to.

"...."

Tomoyuki was just about to thank his best friend for covering his back and explaining everything to Okamoto when she turned away and excused herself, saying she had to use the restroom.

Now that reaction brought back memories.

Yamamoto sighed and asked Seiko, "Is Machida still mad at me for... y'know? Yesterday?"

Seiko responded with half-lidded eyes and a knowing, smug grin.

The Cherry Boy exhaled, one hand scratching the back of his head, as he looked at the floor. "B-But she still told you about... (how it was a fake love confession)!"

Okamoto nodded, still smiling.

"So I don't need to explain myself, right?"

The Amazon Queen shrugged.

"COME ON! Stop fooling around and tell me straight out what happened!" said Yamamoto.

Seiko snickered. "My, my. That's quite the spine you've developed, Cherry Boy! I never knew ya had it in ya!"

She slapped Yamamoto from what was supposed to be his back but her hand instead strayed to his buttocks, resulting in a crisp smack.

As the whole class stared back at the two, a red-faced Tomoyuki sat back down on his chair while a blushing Seiko ended up leaning on the wall and staring at her nails as though they held the secrets of the universe within them.

After their classmates shifted their attention elsewhere, the two then looked at each other for a minute before they burst out laughing.

Wow. Happy birthday to him! The Seiko of his world just reenacted one of his role-play fantasies while sexting with the Seiko from another world!

***

After recovering from their shared moment of hilarity, Tomoyuki felt a soft tap on his shoulder.

Miku had returned.

"Looks like you two lovebirds are having a good time, huh?" she said with a half-smile and a light touch on his shoulder.

"M-Machida, I...!" Yamamoto stuttered but stopped.

Maybe now wasn't the best time to bring up... stuff. From experience, whenever the Class 2B Rep was mad at him for something, he couldn't talk to her for weeks.

Perhaps it was better to give her some space and allow her to broach the subject rather than bring it up constantly. Like a true best friend would. "Let sleeping dogs lie" and whatnot.

The Iincho then smiled, adjusted her glasses, and told the Cherry Boy, "B-B-Before I forget: Happy birthday, Yamamoto-kun!"

"...Oh. OH! Uh, thanks. Shucks. Thank you for remembering," he said, bowing at her and scratching the back of his neck even though it wasn't itchy.

It was just like Miku to forget about that embarrassing display yesterday, selflessly remembering that it was Tomoyuki's birthday today without him having to bring it up.

"Wait, WHAT!? IT'S YOUR BIRTHDAY TODAY? Jeez, Cherry Boy! Why didn't you tell me?" Seiko started before her outburst answered her own question.

Yamamoto could only palm his face and hide it as the rest of the class found out it was his birthday.

'Jeez, Seiko-chan. I love you, but you have a big mouth. Read the mood!'

Tomoyuki could only "grin" a wriggly looking mess of a smile and bear the resulting flood of polite halfhearted well-wishes from his classmates (that he wasn't really close friends with unlike Machida and Okamoto) when the dreaded trio of Matsuda, Ishiguro, and Kanemoto caught wind of the news.

His three original bullies. And with no Sugata to "protect" him from them too, seeing that the Yankee was now mad at him for his fake love confession to Miku.

Kazuhito was absent as usual (lucky for Tomoyuki but also unlucky for him at the same time). Then again, what was actually unusual was Sugata going to school for multiple days straight. He almost completed a whole school week this time around.

Like vultures to a carcass or crows to a cornfield without any humans or scarecrows to ward them off, the three buzzards circled the Cherry Boy. In this case, the scarecrow should've been Sugata.

'Damn it.'

"Hey, Best Friend Cherry Boy! What's up? Heard it's your birthday today! Happy birthday!"

Matsuda the huge-headed, donkey-toothed giant from the basketball club slung a lengthy forearm over Tomoyuki's shoulders, who shrugged it off.

"You don't look too happy that it's your happy birthday today, Cherry Boy," a sniggering Kanemoto took note. "Maybe you want our class to throw you a party or something?"

"Hey! Stop bullying my best friend here, Kanemoto!" Matsuda "told" off the pretty boy, choking back his laughter. "It's his birthday and he'll cry if he wants to."

"Happy birthday to you! Happy birthday to YOOOOWCH...!" the thick-muscled gorilla man known as Ishiguro began to warble the birthday song in accented English, clapping along every line when something... or someone... stomped on his foot. "HEY! What gives, Amazon Queen!?"

"Whoops. Sorry about that. My foot slipped. My bad," said Seiko, who despite her claims to the contrary, continued to step on Ishiguro's foot, digging her heels onto the tips of his uwabaki (indoor shoe) until he laid off of Yamamoto.

Tomoyuki dabbed a handkerchief over his sweaty temple and whispered to the Class 2B female sports star, "Th-Thanks, Okamoto. But you didn't have to."

A sneering Matsuda then told Seiko, "What is this? Are you protecting your new boyfriend now? Are you cheating on Sugata?"

The Amazon Queen looked Matsuda in the eye, smiled, and asked, "What's the matter, big boy? Scared of a li'l banter in return? Jealous that even Cherry Boy can get a girlfriend before you did?"

The entire class "Oooh"-ed at that one.

A slack-jawed Matsuda turned towards his compatriots for support, but only Ishiguro remained by his side. Kanemoto had already turned his back on the pair, muttering, "Whatever. This is getting stupid. I'm leaving."

"H-Hey! Wait for me, Kanemoto!" said Ishiguro, who followed suit.

However, Matsuda wasn't quite done. To save face, he told the impassive Seiko off. "I was only kidding earlier, but you've been awfully buddy-buddy with Cherry Boy as of late. Maybe you do like him."

Even Yamamoto, who had a strong aversion about being humiliated by the mouthy basketball varsity jock, took exception to what he said. "HEY! Lay off Okamoto. We're only friends!"

Meanwhile, Seiko could only roll off her eyes and ask, "And what about you, Matsuda-san? You're only brave when you're facing off against an asthmatic or a girl. Like Cherry Boy. Or Aya-chin."

This made Matsuda flinch and almost raise his hand on the Karate Club President, only for the rest of 2B to call him out on the sensitive subject.

"LEAVE SEIKO-CHAN ALONE! She's the captain of her club. You're barely a rookie in yours!"

"That's right! What's with your high-and-mighty attitude? Just because you hang out with Kanemoto and all..."

"He's at it again! He's going to hit a girl again."

"Oh no. I knew he hit the Class 2C Rep on purpose. Yikes."

"Jeez. What a total creep. Disgusting."

"Stop being a bully, Matsuda! You almost got kicked out of school before!"

"Read the mood, you clueless jerk!"

"He should be expelled. Pick on someone your own size."

"Someone call the teacher. Matsuda is causing trouble again."

"Lay off the birthday boy! Can't he have his birthday in peace?"

"Hey, leave Okamoto and Yamamoto alone! They're the stars of the Sports Fest! We won because of them, especially Cherry Boy! Greet him a happy birthday and leave it at that!"

That last outburst was uttered by none other than a member of Kanemoto's Judo Club, a big burly guy with a tan who could give the gorilla-like Ishiguro a run for his money in terms of being "swole".

Actually, several of the voices from the crowd (aside from Amazon Queen fanboys and fangirls) were Tomoyuki's teammates during the volleyball competition.

Like the tall, goofy girl with big glasses or the silent girl that looked like a sadist (no offense to her). Or the cap-wearing soccer goalie jock that did all those last-minute saves in their volleyball match against Class 2A.

...Yeah, Tomoyuki was terrible at remembering names.

Yamamoto looked over at Machida, who smiled at him and said, "Isn't Seiko-chan amazing?"

Tomoyuki smiled back at Miku and replied, "Yeah. Yeah, she is."

With a harrumph and without a goodbye, Matsuda left the classroom.

He didn't come back even after classes resumed under Miss Aso, their short and cute female economics teacher with a funny country bumpkin accent and a forehead that was more of a "fivehead".

The Cherry Boy slipped in another "Thank you," at the Amazon Queen, who winked at him and said, "No prob. Happy birthday again, Yamamoto-kun."

"That's the best birthday present ever," he joked, which made Seiko go silent, pout, and then practically hiss at him, "Nope. That's not it. That's not your present! I'll get ya something else! I promise!"

'...O-kay?' he thought.

***

Around recess, Yamamoto finally found the time to read the text message that the AU Amazon Queen sent him outside of her perfunctory birthday greeting as he walked to the cafeteria.

"Cherry Boy! Cherry Boy! If you were Yamamoto, what kind of birthday gift would you want me to give you?" AU Seiko texted.

Well, well, well. Great minds thought alike. That was two in a row.

"Sex," he joked.

"How about I give him a swift kick to nuts so hard even you'd feel the pain in your dimension?" she replied tongue-in-cheek. Or at least he hoped it was a tongue-in-cheek reply.

"Sure, but I don't think the other me will appreciate that," he texted back.

"COME ON, Cherry Boy! Aren't we supposed to share our deepest, darkest secrets with each other to make our AU selves fall for us? Get with the program!"

"Don't ask me! I don't know what I'd want for a present. Food, I guess? Maybe a date with you?" was his attempt at coyness.

"D-Date!?" Yes, she actually typed that out, including the implied stutter. "Look, Cherry Boy. The Yamamoto-kun I know was just mad at me for calling him Cherry Boy too, so don'cha think a date's a bridge too far for us to cross right now?"

"...Fine, I guess. I'd love to have a date with you though. Or the Okamoto in my universe," he replied.

"Then ask me out!" Seiko messaged. "The other me, I mean!"

"But you... the other you... already dumped me several times! Gave me a black eye the first time! And that one time when I thought we had a date, it wasn't actually a date!"

"Well, fine! But if I were her, I'd want you to ask me out!"

"You're not her though! Not exactly. You and her have been through different... stuff," he replied, remembering how he hid from her the fact that at the end of the Sports Fest volleyball tournament, Non-AU Seiko reminded him of why he fell in love with her in the first place.

The way she looked so cool as she almost rallied a comeback against Class 2A by her own stubbornness. The assist he did for that final spike that almost made it had the Amazon Queen not pushed herself hard in the relay, leaving her far too exhausted to get that point.

An experience he didn't share with AU Seiko, who seemed (or was actually) so far away from him right now. Like he was talking to the actual Seiko's shadow. Or reading messages she sent months ago.

A different person altogether.

AU Seiko was still Seiko but different. Could he really be satisfied with conversing with an apparition of his crush when the real thing was right in front him, talking to him, and actually acknowledging his presence for once?

How could a distant version of Seiko who was so far away he could sext with her without consequences the next day even compete? He might as well have talked to a chatroom bot, imagining it was the Seiko of his world.

As cruel a description of AU Seiko as that might sound.

"...Y'know what I mean," he finished his message lamely.

"No, I don't. Call me and tell it straight to my face, Cherry Boy."

He resisted the urge to roll his eyes, mumbling under his breath, "For the last time, Amazon Queen. I'm not going to ask you out on a date on my birthday," while typing the same message to Okamoto's other self.

He then bumped into the worst person he could bump into while saying those words.

Seiko Okamoto herself, standing there in all her sporty, tomboyish glory.

"O-Oh. H-Hey, Okamoto. Wassup?"

Oh dear. Did she overhear him?

"What's this about a birthday date, Cherry Boy?"

Shit. 'She looks pissed,' Tomoyuki thought, his mind going into overdrive to find the right words to say to clear up the confusion.

"Um..."

His mind went blank at the mere thought of them dating, though.

Shit, shit, shit. 'Say something, you idiot!' he told himself, flinching as the taller girl's hand hovered over his face, remembering the black eye he got from her.

Stupid AU Her. Now Non-AU Her was going to get the wrong idea!

"...So you wanna go on a date with me? Fine. You got a date! With me! For lunch! H-HAPPY BIRTHDAY, B-BAKA (D-DUMMY)!"

What.

Wait, what!?

That was the last thing Tomoyuki expected Seiko to say.

But she still said it before grabbing hold of his hand and leading him away to the nearest table (just like "good ol' times" when they were on the run from his own bullies).

***

After they've bought and/or brought their food with them to the lunchroom, the smiling bespectacled (Section 2B) Class Rep awaited Tomoyuki and Seiko on one of the tables of the cafeteria, waving her hand at them.

"Yamamoto-kun! Seiko-chan! Over here!" she beckoned them to come join her.

"H-Hey, Machida!" stuttered the Cherry Boy, waving weakly back at his girl best friend.

Wow. Small world. Or at least, small school.

"Oh. It's you, Miku-chin." The Amazon Queen deflated, her shoulders slumping down in defeat(?).

Tomoyuki exhaled in relief, (reluctantly) letting go of Seiko's hand. "Oh, so that's what you meant by a lunch date! I was worried there for a second..."

"...L-Look, if you want, we can have a d-d-dinner date instead," stammered Seiko, looking less statuesque than usual with her drooping gait and twiddling fingers. As though she were a sad giraffe.

Yamamoto patted the taller girl on the shoulder (something he couldn't even imagine doing just a month ago) and said, "You don't have to force yourself to date me as your idea of a birthday present, Okamoto. I appreciate the thought, though."

The Amazon Queen pouted, which made the Cherry Boy's heart go aflutter and his body... stiffen. Harden. Um, freeze. Yeah, freeze.

The three classmates then sat together at one table, just like usual.

Apparently, in the heat of the moment, Okamoto forgot that they usually ate lunch together at that table anyway. So much for their "date" on his birthday.

Yamamoto shook his head. He was taking the song lyric, "It's my birthday and I'll cry if I want to" too literally.

Tomoyuki then decided to take things positively and pretend that he was Archie Andrews, with Seiko being his Betty Cooper and Miku being his Veronica Lodge.

Or maybe not, since the Student Council President Mana Otonashi was more the rich girl type like Ronnie than Class President Machida, who had no equivalent Archie Comics character (a female Dilton Doiley, perhaps?).

Maybe his other self had more of a Ranma Saotome and Akane Tendo type of romance filled with fiancées and suitors galore? No wait. That was more Kazuhito's shtick with his in-real-life harem.

Yeah, and Seiko was Sugata's Akane with they way the two bickered like an old married couple.

...Dammit, he was getting sidetracked. At least in the parallel world where AU Seiko resided, AU Tomoyuki had a Seiko and a Miku who was in love with him.

It was as if AU Tomoyuki had taken Kazuhito's place as a harem anime lead.

How happy a birthday that Yamamoto must've been having. Meanwhile, the Tomoyuki that was having such jealous thoughts had a Miku who friendzoned him as soon as they met and a Seiko who was in love with her childhood friend.

Like a protagonist in one of those netorare (cuckold) or NTR anime shows.

Dammit, he was born in the wrong dimension!

But he really should stop his bad habit of calling his unrequited or rejected feelings for Miku (or any other girl) as ending up in the Friend Zone.

The Friend Zone was as stupid a concept as the Tezuka Zone from the "Prince of Tennis" manga.

The Tezuka Zone was a technique that somehow made the tennis ball spin in such a way that it seemed like it was getting sucked back to Kunimitsu Tezuka, the owner of the impossible move, like metal to a magnet.

The Friend Zone was a concept made up to make socially awkward people feel better about the fact that someone didn't like them back. That they wanted their beloved to be happy.

However, as Miku reminded him after rejecting him as soon as he first confessed to her that he wanted to be more than just friends, 'If someone doesn't like you, stop chasing after them.'

He remembered the 2B Class Rep's epic Anti-Friend-Zone spiel like it was yesterday.

She told him that no girl could ever be attracted to his sadness and insecurity. No girl could ever come to save him from his cruel life like in movies and anime.

No woman would ever spend time with a guy who couldn't even get his act together.

Also, men weren't entitled to having sex with a girl by being "nice" to her in exchange for sex. As though their niceness had a hidden agenda.

This was the truth. The only way out for Tomoyuki's "Cherry Boy" status was to improve himself.

Yamamoto could either make the best out of what he had or live the kind of life he had right now without complaints of having no girlfriend.

He might not be the handsomest or fittest kid in Class 2B or Maehara High, but he could still improve himself. Learn to not be as socially awkward as he was durin first year. Dress better. Go running to improve his breathing capacity through cardio.

Machida insisted that even though he'd been rejected time and time again by many a pretty girl, he had the chance to get a girlfriend by becoming a better version of himself.

She told him to stop acting like an edgelord teenager, wallowing in his own misery.

According to her, no girl found this appealing, and the closest anime/manga example of an attractive edgelord was Uchiha Sasuke, who had dark good looks to match all his brooding and DARKNESS.

In real life, women wanted physically and mentally strong men who were confident and healthy the same way men loved beautiful and lively women with personality who weren't crazy screaming banshees when the going got tough.

Yamamoto really did owe Machida one when it came to helping him stop acting like the lonely virgin loser creep he was in the past that earned him the nickname "Cherry Boy".

Indeed, it wasn't, "Getting a girlfriend will make my life great," but instead, "Having a great life will get me a girlfriend!" That was the mindset he should have going for him.

He understood that. He got the concept.

Easier said than done.

Even now, there were still times when he felt like he was being friendzoned nonetheless, even though he understood no woman owed a man love and affection after he "went out of his way" to be nice to her.

It took him quite sometime until he accepted his best friend Miku as nothing more than a friend.

***

Tomoyuki's brain then snapped back to reality.

Grinning from ear to ear, Miku greeted, "Happy birthday, Yamamoto-kun!"

He scratched the back of his head and grinned. "Thanks, Iincho. You already greeted me, though."

"I don't exactly have a birthday present for you, but..." she trailed off, and he immediately waved off her hesitation, reassuring, "I didn't ask for one! It's perfectly fine! See, even Okamoto didn't get me anything!"

This led Seiko to squawk, "HEY! You were the one mumbling about birthday dates and whatnot! I actually humored your request!"

"Okay, okay! That was MY BAD! I'm sorry, Amazon Queen," he said with a chuckle.

Then, as he chewed on a bite of his curry pan and downed a can of ice coffee, he felt goose bumps rise all over his forearm. At the thought of Okamoto willingly going out on a date with him. Wimpy ol' him.

Who would've thought?

The Cherry Boy spared Seiko... the real flesh-and-blood Non-AU Seiko that he could talk to in real life instead of just on the phone... a glance.

Seiko's sparkling eyes met with his. "Whatsamatter, Cherry Boy? Is there something on my face? Food? A booger, perhaps?"

"Uh, no. Nothing." He looked away from her and exhaled.

'Dammit, she looks so gorgeous in real life,' he thought, remembering weeks of sexting and exchanging lewd pictures with AU Seiko. With no payoff.

Because the Seiko he could touch and meet wasn't in love with him. She was right in front of him but she wasn't the Amazon Queen that was actually in love with him.

'Focus, Cherry Boy! Focus!' he told himself using that embarrassing nickname of his to snap his head back to reality. 'Eyes on the prize.'

Miku coughed primly, squirming on her seat a little. "Anyway, instead of a tangible gift, I want to give you food for thought." She looked down and twiddled her thumbs. "Just like old times."

Tomoyuki himself looked at his own twiddling thumbs. 'That's right. We used to have a lot of these weird talks before I managed to get into Seiko's inner circle.'

"Is this like the zombie cat thing?" he asked. He remembered that strange conversation he had with the 2B Class Rep about some guy and his zombie cat who was alive and dead at the same time and how it somehow tied to multiple universes (he personally didn't get it).

"Oh, so you do remember our talk about Schrödinger's Cat!" Miku giggled and clapped. "My birthday present for you is kind of like that, but this time it's alleged proof that multiple universes exist. It's the perfect thing to add to your screenplay about lovers from parallel universes."

Tomoyuki then turned to see Seiko looking back and forth at him and the shy Miku. He half-expected her to wink and give him a thumb's up sign in approval of what she thought was progress between his "romance" with Machida.

However, this time around, she only stared blankly at them. Like the third wheel in their group.

The prospect of making Okamoto jealous made his heart skip a beat, only for him to beat the feeling down, traumatized by his presumptuousness with his first (unrequited) crush, Yukari Goto.

At best, Seiko was probably just bored. Or confused. 'I certainly am.'

"I have no idea what you two are talking about," interjected Okamoto with a mouthful of hamburger before almost choking and washing the food stuck in her throat down with a can of soda.

Yamamoto then blinked. "So what is it you wanted to talk about? A dog that exists in the fourth dimension or something?"

The bespectacled girl smiled, her hands forming a steeple in front of her while the light of the nearby bulb made her glasses glint. "Not exactly. I'm talking about the Mandela Effect."

Tomoyuki and Seiko exchanged glances at each other then back at Miku.

"The what effect?" asked Okamoto flatly. "Is it like Axe Effect?"

"The Mandela Effect," Machida repeated with a pout, nibbling on her own melon pan like an embarrassed cartoon mouse.

She then gulped her food down, steeled herself, and searched for the right words in her mind to simplify her explanation of the speculative science concept.

"It's named after Nelson Mandela. You know who that is, right? Yamamoto-kun?" she practically pleaded.

"Uh, it's that African Political Figure guy, I guess. Right?" asked Tomoyuki.

"Right! Close enough! Do you remember him being the first black president of South Africa in 1994 after being released from prison?" she asked. "Well, if you thought that, you'd be wrong! Mandela died in prison in the Eighties!"

The two tilted their heads to the side in unison, which made Miku palm her face.

"...Okay, here's a better example. You know how the Berenstain Bears children's books are spelled with an s-t-a-i-n?" Machida brought up. "Well, they aren't! They're actually spelled with an s-t-e-i-n! They're the Berenstein Bears!"

The pair... who both had passing grades in English proficiency tests at best... shrugged at the 2B Class Rep. She might as well have brought up how a German or French book title was spelled differently in another dimension. They honestly had no idea.

"Okay, fine!" yelped Miku with a harrumph that still appeared adorable on her. Like a puppy harrumphing. "You know the Kurosawa Akira movie known as Ran?"

The two nodded because both have heard about the movie. After all, Tomoyuki was a cinemaphile and Seiko loved samurai and yakuza movies.

"Well, Ran never existed beyond storyboards that Kurosawa himself painted meticulously! Many people swear up and down that the movie exists, but it doesn't. It was never made or funded!"

"Ooooh!" chorused Tomoyuki and Seiko, with the former stating, "But I could've sworn he made that movie! I remember seeing its trailer! It was supposed to star Katsu Shintaro! The guy who played Zatoichi!"

Okamoto chimed in, "No, no! That's the guy who played Takeda Shingen's Kagemusha in that Kurosawa movie about him! The one funded by Hollywood directors! I have that on DVD!"

"Kagemusha" literally translated to "Shadow Warrior", but in this context it meant "Doppelganger" or "Body Double".

"No, no. That's a popular misconception. Rumor has it that George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola were interested in funding Kagemusha after it went overbudget, but that ended up false and Kurosawa-sensei instead cut several scenes from his original screenplay to save money," corrected Yamamoto.

"Oh okay. My bad," said the Amazon Queen with blinking eyes and a shrug. She then theorized, "Wait, maybe people kept mistaking Kagemusha for Ran, that's why they thought Ran was an actual movie!"

"Perhaps, Seiko-chan. Perhaps." After finally getting the reaction she wanted from her friends, Miku smirked, looking like a smug, naughty child. "Or maybe a huge amount of people somehow had collective false memories because these memories weren't false at all!"

"What'choo talkin' 'bout, Iincho?" asked Seiko with pursed lips and narrowed eyes before covering her mouth to suppress a burp.

Machida wagged her finger and said, "I told you! The Mandela Effect! Proof that other dimensions exist! We 'misremember' things because we're actually crossing dimensions. The thing we originally remembered is true in another dimension but untrue in the dimension we're inhabiting!"

She turned towards Tomoyuki. "Isn't that fascinating? Isn't it the perfect thing you can use in that screenplay you're trying to write, Yamamoto-kun?"

Indeed, the Cherry Boy couldn't help but cup his chin with his forefinger and thumb. "Y-Yeah, that might work. I can imagine it now. What you misremember in one world can end up true in another."

In fact, Yamamoto had long talks with AU Seiko on that very subject, from pro wrestling to websites to differences in video game console names. "Thanks, Machida. This is the best birthday gift ever!"

"I'm so happy!" cheered Miku, who almost grabbed hold of Tomoyuki's hands but stopped short, so their hands sort of hovered over each other as though they were holding an invisible ball.

"Where'd you hear such a tall tale anyway?" asked Tomoyuki.

"Where else? I read it on the Internet," said Miku.

"Hooray for the Internet, then! INTERNET BANZAI!" cheered Yamamoto.

Seiko frowned (...Or pouted? Maybe that was just Yamamoto's wishful thinking), and stuck her tongue out at the two best friends. "Jeez. You two space cadets have blasted off into your own world, I see. Don't forget to write, ya NERDS!"

The two blushed and "let go" of each other's hands that weren't even in contact with each other in the first place.

***

Later, when the Cherry Boy finally had time to check his messages (after quickly browsing the Internet to read up on Akira Kurosawa's "Ran" and the Class Rep's "Mandela Effect" theory on EBO)...

"But my other self still taught you how to play volleyball anyway, right? If a date won't work, then ask her to hang out with you instead!" was the last message Yamamoto got from AU Seiko prior to his lunch "date" with the Amazon Queen of his universe.

"What about you? How will you get the Tomoyuki in your world to take notice of you?" was the message he was about to send her had the real Seiko not "interrupted" their chat earlier.

The unsent message was saved on his phone. He decided to finally send the message now.

Instead of responding through text, AU Seiko gave him a call.

"...About time you wrote back." He could hear the sullenness of the other Okamoto's voice from the other line.

"What's the matter, Amazon Queen?"

"I offered you... the other you... a date and he refused! How could you?"

"...Ouch. Sorry, I guess?"

Huh. Déjà vu. The same thing happened with him and Non-AU Seiko.

Perhaps their parallel worlds were merging, just like how they tended to according to Machida and her cockamamie theory about how movie misquotes and common misconceptions were memories from another dimension.

"Why did you refuse me, Cherry Boy?" AU Seiko asked Tomoyuki.

"I guess my other self is... um..." Okay, so why did he refuse Non-AU Seiko again? "Yeah, he did it because he thought it was the honorable thing to do and he probably considered the help you gave him in the Sports Fest as the perfect birthday gift already."

"Ugh. You two and your martyr complex. Honestly."

"Huh? Come on, man. How is that being a martyr?"

AU Seiko sighed. "Are you sure he refused because of that? Maybe Yamamoto-kun refused because I was being too pushy. Maybe I offended him again! You know how sensitive he gets! You're him!"

Tomoyuki thought for all of two seconds and said, "Nah! You're always pushy anyway, so what's the difference now and your pushiness from before?"

"Shut up, you," was her reply to the backhanded reassurance. "I'm still lacking a birthday present for your other you, Cherry Boy."

This got Yamamoto thinking. The Mandela Effect was still fresh in his mind, coupled with the hours upon hours' worth of interesting differences between his world and AU Seiko's world.

"Say, how do you spell 'Berenstein Bears' in your dimension? With an '–ein' like in Einstein or an '-ain' like in 'Spain'?" he asked Seiko.

He got the expected response of, "What are you, my English teacher? I have no clue how to spell that. Who in the world are Berenstain Bears? Some sort of gaijin (foreign) mascot?"

"Okay, no, scratch that." What was the example Machida gave him again? Oh yeah, Akira Kurosawa's Ran. The film that was never made in his world. Could it be...?

"Here in my dimension, we have an urban legend of Kurosawa making a historical epic funded by George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppolla. However, when I researched about it on the Internet, it ended up being untrue. There was never any film like that."

AU Okamoto paused. "...So you're asking me if this movie exists in my world?"

"Yep," said Tomoyuki. "Since in your world, Michael Jackson became white, Kurt Cobain died, Mayweather and Pacquiao have yet to fight, and Japan is suffering from some sort of financial crisis since the Nineties."

"I see where you're going, but I have no idea how this solves my problem of getting Cherry Boy a gift for his birthday. Do we have time to chat about this?" she asked.

"Just research about it on EBO (Encyclopedia Britannica Online)."

"You mean Google."

"Google exists here too."

"Oh right. Your world's Wikipedia, then?"

"Yeah, yeah. Just look it up on your universe's EBO."

"All right, all right. I'm going to the library now! Happy?"

After a few minutes, she concluded, "So Ran does exist in our world! Huh. Old movie. Made in 1985. I wasn't even born yet when that came out. How about that."

Tomoyuki couldn't help but gasp at the revelation.

"Yes, of course! It makes perfect sense," he said, his cheeks feeling tight from all the grinning he was doing. "After writing the screenplay for Ran, Kurosawa couldn't get this film made at all because of the lack of willing producers! Kagemusha had a troubled production. The only evidence of Ran's planned existence was his detailed painted storyboards about it."

His breathing went even faster. He could barely contain himself. If he breathed any faster, he might end up having an asthma attack. Or a heart attack. "Aren't you amazed, Amazon Queen? Machida was correct! The Mandela Effect is true! It's confirmed!"

"The what effect?" she asked.

"Long story," he answered.

He could almost "hear" the blank stare that she couldn't direct at him. "Well, now what? Should I buy Cherry Boy a copy of this film or something?"

He then asked, "Was Kagemusha ever made in your world too?"

"Yep, we have that movie too."

"And was it funded by George Lucas and Francis Ford Coppola when it got short on funds?"

"Who are those people?" She continued reading the Wikipedia article for Kagemusha. "Wow. The guys who made Star Wars and The Godfather funded this film? That's kinda cool. Kurosawa-sensei really is a world-renowned director!"

"And it starred Katsu Shintaro, right?"

"...Seriously, Cherry Boy. I don't know their names!"

"Fine. The guy who played Zatoichi the Blind Swordsman."

"OOOH, he was that guy, huh? No, it was some other guy."

"What other guy?" Tomoyuki asked.

"Uh... let's see here... I'll check on Google. His name is Nakadai Tatsuya. It says here the Zatoichi guy pissed Kurosawa-sensei off and was fired from the job."

"Really? Unosuke from Yojimbo played the Kagemusha and Shingen? But it was supposed to be...!"

From there, AU Seiko's tone changed, rising up in pitch. She almost sounded downright girly, for once.

"Hey, I remember renting this movie out while searching for manly samurai films to binge watch! It was so cool! I first saw it on TV, but they cut some scenes to censor the violence, so I just bought the DVD!"

After hearing the silence from the other line, the other Okamoto prompted, "Cherry Boy? Earth to Cherry Boy? Do you copy? Over."

Feeling like Sherlock Holmes or Conan Edogawa when he was about to deduce the identity of the culprit or solve a mystery, Yamamoto finally figured everything out.

"In our world, Kagemusha underperformed at the box office because Kurosawa-sensei went overbudget, was forced to stick with Zatoichi even after he pissed him off by bringing a camera crew to record how he directed his films, and he ended up with a disjointed movie because he had to cut out several key scenes from his original screenplay to save money. And Ran was never made in this universe because Kagemusha flopped!"

"...Wow," said AU Seiko.

"I know," wheezed Tomoyuki before taking a puff from his asthma inhaler.

"Well, that's great and all, but I still have no idea what to give Cherry Boy... I mean, the other Cherry Boy... for his birthday present."

"Talk to him about Kagemusha and Ran," said Yamamoto. "Talk to him about the same stuff we just talked about. Take it from me, he'll love the idea of an alternate world where Ran was never made because the makers of Star Wars and The Godfather weren't able to fund the complete Kagemusha script. Oh, and pitch to him what it would've been like to have Zatoichi star as the Kagemusha and Shingen!"

"But I only watched Kagemusha! I haven't seen Ran," complained a(n uncharacteristically) pensive AU Okamoto with what Tomoyuki presumed was an unseen lip bite.

"Perfect! Then invite him on a date to watch Ran with you! At one of those theaters showing old matinees or at your apartment's TV through DVD!" said Tomoyuki.

"Baka! He just rejected a date from me!" she protested, sounding the girliest he'd ever heard her speak. She almost seemed like she was Non-AU Seiko talking about Non-AU Sugata (when Sugata wasn't around) with how high her voice pitch was right now.

"Trust me, it's the best present he'll ever get. A date with you and the chance to watch Ran again, which is probably a masterpiece. I'm certainly jealous of him."

***

Satisfied with how his conversation with the other Seiko turned out, a smiling Tomoyuki sauntered towards his shoe locker with confidence in every step.

His power walk turned into a moonwalk shuffle after he spied with his bugged-out eyes one Kazuhito "Yankee" Sugata. Looking around for something. Or someone. Someone who hadn't popped his cherry yet, for example.

Apparently, the Yankee wasn't as absent as the Cherry Boy had previously hoped.

'Shit. Sugata's actually here? But it's already dismissal time. Why'd he even bother coming to school?' were the thoughts running through Yamamoto's head as he turned around and began practicing the better part of valor.

He ended up bumping into a certain raven-haired (dragon) lady. The Class Representative of 2C and the best friend of his first unrequited crush (or even first crush ever): Aya Fubuki.

"...Ow."

"Ah! Fubuki! Sorry about that!"

Aya turned around, her long hair twirling after her, the scent of her perfume wafting into Yamamoto's nostrils. Reminding him of Mongolian barbecue and yakiniku (grilled meat), of all things.

Not that she smelled like meat, mind you. She was as fragrant as a summer blossom.

All the same, he ended up between a rock and a hard place.

He then remembered how Sugata almost broke his arm yesterday, so he appended that he was instead between a steep cliff and a sheer drop to his doom, with jagged sharp rocks below.

So he took his chances with the cliff, since he was used to being verbally abused by said cliff. Also, he had higher chances of survival there.

"H-Hey, Fubuki! N-Nice weather we're having, huh?" he greeted, not knowing what else to say to his tsundere (or perhaps bipolar) tormentor for most of his first year in high school.

He winced, expecting a verbal beat down from the 2C Ice Queen, only to be greeted back by a smiling visage he thought he'd never see again from Aya.

Because ever since their confrontation regarding their "rumored" dates, she never smiled back at him that way (even her smile when she "forgave" him for his transgressions looked different).

Another wave of nostalgia then hit the Cherry Boy like a tsunami after Aya batted her eyelids at him, her face facing downwards but her eyes looking upwards at him.

She was always so cute. It reminded him of why he asked her out in the first place.

Her long legs. Her long hair that she wore like a cape. Her fiery temper that belied her actual sweetness. Like the spicy meals they had on their dates she refused to acknowledge ever happened.

She then said softly to him, "Long time, no see, Yamamoto-chan," with a smile and a wink before turning around and skipping away.

He froze, a flood of memories of dates at yakiniku restaurants bursting to the surface of his mind. All because she called him by a name that she never called him when he first confronted her about all the dates she denied they had.

'So she remembers all our dates after all...?' Yamamoto thought while staring at how Fubuki's svelte figure shrunk into the distance as she traveled to the end of the hall.

This was before he turned around and saw a certain someone he intended to avoid, evade, and escape all this time: Kazuhito Sugata.

Of course! Just his luck, right?

He lost his grip with the cliff and he was about to have a "date" with the valley below.

Tomoyuki pivoted to the other direction (or on the same direction where Aya made her exit), thinking he could pretend he didn't see Kazuhito at all and escape his fate.

He resisted a shudder after Sugata grabbed hold of his shoulder from behind. Ah. His fate was sealed.

"Cherry Boy! Happy birthday!" said Kazuhito before he gave Tomoyuki a friendly slap on the back that almost had him coughing up phlegm.

"...Eh?" Yamamoto blabbered after recovering, hearing the Yankee say the last thing he expected him to say. "Uh... thanks?" he added, his eyes narrowed and blinking, his body stock-still, waiting for Seiko's crush to, um, crush him. Pun unintended.

10 long seconds passed them by. The Cherry Boy then dared to ask, "Weren't you mad at me?"

Sugata flashed Yamamoto a cocksure grin and wrapped an arm around the shorter boy's neck, making him flinch. "Yeah, 'coz I thought you were being a two-faced snake in the grass, saying you'd play matchmaker for the Class Rep, only to end up in love with her too."

Tomoyuki attempted to shrug off Kazuhito's invasion of his personal space but couldn't, which prompted him to ask, "W-What changed your mind?"

The Yankee responded, "Iincho told me the truth. That you already confessed to her before and she turned you down hard, saying she can never see you as anything more than a friend."

This made Yamamoto's shoulders slump down low enough to escape Sugata's grasp. "Ehehehe. Yeah, that sounds about right."

Kazuhito scratched his cheek. "She also said something about you making that confession as revenge for the joke we pulled while you and Amazon Queen were eavesdropping on us, but from what I remember, didn't you interrupt the other Iincho from 2C from saying something?"

Tomoyuki wiped the bullets of sweat on his forehead. "I dunno whatcha talkin' bout, Sugata," before taking out his inhaler to get a puff of medicine from it.

The last thing Tomoyuki wanted was for Seiko's crush to figure out that Fubuki had a thing for him, rendering his embarrassing and traumatizing confession/distraction to Machida moot.

"HEY! Cherry Boy! Are you okay?" asked Kazuhito, who shook Tomoyuki's shoulders for attention. "You look... pale. Was it something I said, dude?"

Yamamoto forced a smile. "No, I'm all right. I just had... flashbacks, that's all."

More like shell-shock, but of course he wouldn't want to exaggerate.

Surely, World War II veterans would have a word or two with him about using the word "Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder" over something as trivial as middle school romance or high school blues.

Thank goodness the Yankee was so dense that he still hadn't realized that Aya was about to confess to him around that time.

Even better, thank goodness Sugata wasn't throttling him at the moment!

***

Wow. What a day his birthday turned out to be. Holy crap.

Feeling a bit chipper in terms of mood for a change, Yamamoto worked his entire shift at the convenience store without once feeling sorry for himself for having a boss that didn't greet him happy birthday because, well, that resume listing his birthday was for archival purposes only.

He did treat himself to a cupcake then went outside and blew an imaginary candle flame over it before eating it.

Okay, now he felt kind of sorry for himself.

But he accomplished so much throughout the day though.

He talked to Sugata and "made amends" with him (or maybe the other way around), saw a glimpse of the "old" Fubuki he used to date, got his AU self a date with AU Seiko, Miku forgave him for false-flag confessing to her and almost making her repeat her Friend Zone Spiel to him, and (most importantly in his mind), the Seiko in his world invited him for a date as his birthday present (a pity date, but still).

He had half the mind to text Megumi Minagata as well, but he decided to let sleeping dogs lie.

Him bragging to her that he got one girl down from Kazuhito's harem would probably lead her to tell him he was stupid and that he was asking for heartbreak if ever Seiko decided to finally confess to Sugata.

Maybe she was right but it was better than the limbo he was in right now.

The two best friends Yukari Goto and Aya Fubuki were finally out of the harem picture. Only Miku Machida and (maybe) Mana Otonashi left to go. Soon, Sugata and Okamoto would have their crossroads.

Then maybe, if Seiko were rejected by her childhood friend, then she'd look at Tomoyuki the same way she looked at Kazuhito. Or the same way her AU self looked at his AU self.

If.

He then got a text from AU Seiko, no doubt tripping all over herself in thanks for his deductive reasoning that led to her super-duper gift to his AU self.

The smug Tomoyuki smiled even before he opened his mail.

He himself was grateful for how AU Seiko served as his inner window into the mind of the actual Seiko. Now all he had to do was turn actual Seiko into AU Seiko.

A Seiko who was... in love... with...?

His thoughts stopped short upon realizing what sort of mail he had just opened.

A video. A cam rip of something.

He must've opened the attachment by accident. He scrolled back to the original message. It read:

"Hey, AU Cherry Boy. You were right. My Cherry Boy couldn't stop talking about the making of Kagemusha and Ran all throughout his birthday when I told him we'd have a movie date. I couldn't keep up with him. Kind of felt sorry how my present for a date blew Miku-chi's present. Something regarding a postcard about the Friend Zone or something? Was it an in-joke between the two of them? Now she's kind of giving him the cold shoulder. Did she friendzone him or something? But still, thanks for the tip! It means a lot to me. I'll straighten things out with the two of them though, I promise!"

'That's my girl,' he thought. This was vintage Seiko. Unwilling to trample the happiness of others for her own happiness.

His heart couldn't decide whether to sink or jump out of his mouth at the post script of her message.

"P.S. Happy birthday, AU Cherry Boy. Don't think I forgot about you! I also heard how excited you are about Ran, since it doesn't exist in your world. I owe you a lot in getting me and Cherry Boy together. So here's my thanks. My birthday present to you."

Gulping, Tomoyuki finally opened the attached video and watched it, his hands shaking in excitement. And other indescribable feelings.

He watched the whole thing. All one minute and fourteen seconds of it.

It was... Ran. Or rather, the trailer for Ran. A movie that wasn't supposed to exist in his universe. Just like how a Seiko that was in love with (the other) him didn't (yet) exist in his reality either.

It looked like Ran was obviously on some sort of soundstage (must've been a dream sequence). Like the ones found in Tokusatsu (Special Effects) children shows.

It didn't look hokey though. In fact, it left Yamamoto breathless. All those colors. Those powerful images.

However, the way everything was filmed, staged, and presented had the earmarks and fingerprints of Akira Kurosawa. His sublime masterpiece that didn't exist in his universe but did in AU Seiko's universe.

A nonexistent movie whose trailer he alone in his universe had watched. And for AU Seiko... for that Seiko... she probably didn't even think twice or thought that it was a big deal at all for her to do.

She didn't even realize how special that video she just recorded off of her phone from YouTube or Nico-something was. She was completely clueless of its significance.

He smiled. "That idiot."

Her careless kindness had charmed him once again.

A teardrop fell on the screen of Tomoyuki's phone then rolled off its screen.

He then felt a wave of shame wash over him for even thinking that AU Seiko was but a shadow or doppelganger of the Seiko of his universe. Her "Kagemusha".

How dare he think that way. For shame.

This AU Seiko from another universe... there was no one like her. Not just in his universe but hers as well. Or maybe even in the multiverse.

Every last existing Seiko from different universes could be an exact replica of her and she'd still stand out. Because she was the one Seiko in all existence that he...!

More tears dropped on the screen, and he had to close the flip phone and wipe his eyes dry.

At this moment, he realized the tragedy of contacting Seiko's other self. A version of her he could never have. A version of her that her Non-AU self could never be.

Wait. This was it.

This was what love was. True love.

And it hurt so much.

This aching feeling of longing for someone above anyone else, including himself, for someone so carelessly considerate as AU Seiko... his Seiko... couldn't be mistaken for anything else other than love.

This was the best possible birthday present he could get from her.

***

To Be Continued...

The birthday arc is done and over with. Now let's move on to other important arcs.

As a side note, the Mandela Effect meme existed way earlier in Tomoyuki's universe than in our universe (Seiko's universe).

Farewell, Abdiel

#keit-ai #finds a way #fictionpress.com #tomoyuki x seiko #keit愛 #akira kurosawa #ran #kagemusha #what is love?#baby don't hurt me

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kindcstguardian · 6 years ago

Text

Name. Hatsune Mikuo. Date of birth. ( Age: 20 / Star sign: ). Sexual orientation. Bisexual. Languages. Japanese, Korean &&. English. Blood type. AB - Height. 175cm Weight. kg. Occupation. Idol.

PLAYLIST

Oh no! / Marina and the diamonds Applause / Lady Gaga Mic drop / BTS Little game / Benny

「 V ❥ Idol ; Mikuo ／ ᴵᶠ ᴵ ᶜᵃⁿ ˡⁱᵍʰᵗ ᵗʰᵉ ʷᵒʳˡᵈ ᵘᵖ ᶠᵒʳ ʲᵘˢᵗ ᵒⁿᵉ ᵈᵃʸ 」

Default verse / Human / 21 years old

The idol currently works with the company named ᴠᴏᴄᴀʟᴏɪᴅ industries.

His stage persona is the ’cute type’: the one who has it easy to cry or be flustered due a compliment. Which couldn’t be further away from the truth —everyone that has met him know his true face, that all is just an act because otherwise that pretty face of his would go to waste with his rotten personality.: Mikuo is a cocky, sarcastic and cruel with words. One could label him as a spoiled brat for short.

He’s known to reveal his true colors to non-fans, though.

「 V ❥ Android ; Mikuo ／ ʷⁱˡˡ ᵗᵒᵐᵒʳʳᵒʷ ᵃʳʳⁱᵛᵉ ᶠᵒʳ ᵃ ᵈʳᵉᵃᵐˡᵉˢˢ ᵒⁿᵉ 」

Rather than being a mere program that can be used to sing a variety of themes and songs, languages included. He is an android idol that blends perfectly in the human world, in fact, not many know he is actually not human — the company went as far as to design organs that act like human’s.

「 V ❥ Synthesizer ; Mikuo ／ ⁱᵗ'ˢ ᵃˡˡ ᵗᵒᵒ ʳᵉᵃˡ ᵗᵒ ᵇᵉ ᶠᵃᵏᵉ 」

Synthesizer / AI.

Interactions remain inside an electronic device ( say phone, desktop, laptop…). He’s capable of singing in japanese, english and spanish with the right master—but careful, if you are the master and make him sing in a way he dislikes: he will ᴅɪᴛᴄʜ you by uninstalling himself.

( V02 — ᵍᵒⁿⁿᵃ ʰⁱᵗ ᵗʰᵒˢᵉ ᵇᵒᵒᵏˢ )

Highschool verse / Human / 17 years old.

Part of the music club, Mikuo had been offered the position of president or vice-president on many ocassions but have rejected each offer whenever it was brought up, living happily with just taking part of it.

Still, his talent had been recognized by an idol entertainment industry thus he has been taking dancing and singing lessons. He’s already in the approval list, all he need is to finish highschool—and keep his act of cute prince or else with his genuine bitter and rotten personality he will lose potential fans.

( V03 — ⁱ ʷᵃⁿᵗ ᵗᵒ ᵏⁱˢˢ ʸᵒᵘʳ ⁿᵉᶜᵏ )

Monster prom verse / Incubbus / 22 years old.

To be added.

( V04 — ᵒᶠ ᵇˡᵘᵉ ʰᵘᵉˢ ᵃⁿᵈ ˢᵒᶠᵗ ʰᵉᵃʳᵗᵉᵈ ᵗᵘⁿᵉˢ )

DDLC verse / Human / 18 years old.

President of the music club, Mikuo has an extremely bright future when it comes to it given he also provides covers in MeTube.

But despite this, he is not quite sure whether he will dedicate his life to that as people have been telling him. Maybe a music teacher? He’s good at point out what others need to improve and can play a variety of instruments.

「 V ♡ Mysme ／ ᵃ ᵈⁱᶠᶠᵉʳᵉⁿᵗ ʳᵉˢᵘˡᵗ 」

Mystic Messenger / Human / 21 years old.

Mikuo despised his mother and his step-father, unless he was forced to visit Korea, he went as long as to pretend he had no mother or her side of the family was alive, even.

But upon hearing news that she was sick, his ever so caring father made him take a break from work. Nevertheless, a sudden hiatus from one of the most famous idols was in all news, all over the place—rumours were invented from left to right but were dismissed quickly by lawyers of his.

Once his plane landed in Korea, a sudden message arrived to his phone with a strange text wanting him to follow that direction and whether this was a scam, a kidnapping attempt or something dangerous that no logical person would do—he went for it. Sunglasses covering his face, beanie hiding his natural turquoise hair and using a black-mask, Mikuo found himself there within half an hour.

Now as part of the RFA with connections like the ones he has, the party is bound to be successful. All he regretted was that he introduced himself in the chat as someone happy-go-lucky, oblivious and cheerful because his personality was another subject.

( V06 — )

Fantasy or Eldarya / Muse / 106 years old.

To be added.

「 V ♡ MCL ; Mikuo ／」

Amour Sucre / Human / 18 years old.

To be added.

( V08 — ʷᵉ ᵃˡˡ ʰᵃᵛᵉ ᵃ ᶠʳᵉᵃᵏ ˢⁱᵈᵉ ʷᵉ ᵈᵒⁿ'ᵗ ˢʰᵒʷ )

Mutant verse / ? / 21 years old.

Mostly for Avenger, X-men, Heroes and etc. interactions.

Mikuo can, through kissing someone, transform into the other person while gaining their most recent memories if it was a short and chaste kiss. He can imitate perfectly the other party and he’s capable of turning into them in any given chance from that point in the future.

As any other mutant, he has a faster healing hability than normal humans among speed and resistence.

( V09 — )

Undertale Post-Pacifist / History teacher / 26 years old.

To be added.

( V10 — )

Lovesick verse / University student / 21 years old.

To be added.

( V11 — )

Lovesick verse 1980’s verse / Student / 18 years old.

To be added.

「 V • Xiaolin ; Mikuo ／ ᶠˡᵒʷ ˡⁱᵏᵉ ʷᵃᵗᵉʳ ˢʷⁱᶠᵗ ᵃˢ ᵗʰᵉ ʷⁱⁿᵈ 」

Xiaolin Showdown / Former Dragon of Water / 22 years old.

To be added.

「 V • PJ ; Mikuo ／ ᵗᵉᵃᶜʰ ᵐᵉ ᵃ ˡᵘˡˡᵃᵇʸ ᵗʰᵃᵗ ʰᵉᵃˡˢ ᵗʰᵉ ˢᵒᵘˡ 」

Percy Jackson &&. the olympus or Demigod verse / 21 years old.

His mother still proved to be a horrible and disgusting woman, whereas other children had been protected through hiding their real identities from them—his mother straight up told him he was son of Apollo which caused his life to be turned upside down: being attacked or stalked by monsters that never genuinely caused harm or provoked situations he could not handle.

As soon as Mikuo was of age, he moved away with his step-father whom he considered his actual father and loved more than his biological mother. Currently living with him in the outside of the city, the mint-haired works as a music teacher not to disappoint his Greek father and not to waste his talent. Furthermore, he is also studying to become a nurse and is part of the infirmary stuff at the school he works in.

Working in a school, he realized, also helped him spot demigod kids and inform authorities from the half-blood camp about their existance and protect them while they reach them.

「 Ludere deorum ; Mikuo ／ ⁿᵒᵗ ᵍᵒⁿⁿᵃ ʷʳⁱᵗᵉ ʸᵒᵘ ᵃ ˡᵒᵛᵉ ˢᵒⁿᵍ 」

Kamigami no asobi / Muse / Physically looks 21 years old.

Due being a cocky muse whom only blessed those he thought of worthy rather than those who had the talent but lack of inspiration, Mikuo was also sent to school under Zeus’ orders among many other minor deities and creatures with impact in the human life.

「 V • BNHA ; Mikuo ／ ᵏⁱˢˢ ⁱᵗ ᵗᵒ ᵐᵃᵏᵉ ⁱᵗ ᵇᵉᵗᵗᵉʳ 」

Class 1-B / 16 years old

Quirk: Mikuo through kissing someone can absorb both their pain and heal them through a certain degree due still learning how to control his quirk. The only downside is that his lips alone touching someone does not work effectively—only through saliva contact proves to work faster.

Originally, he did not want to be a hero. If anything, he wanted to be an antihero—but somehow he was persuaded ( by his father ) not to follow that path thus resulting in taking the exam and joining Class 1-B. Albeit he understand the pointless rivalry with Class 1-A, he does not partake in it.

— TAGS.

「 Mikuo Hatsune ／ 𝘐 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘧𝘰𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘦 𝙖𝙥𝙥𝙡𝙖𝙪𝙨𝙚 」

「 Mikuo Hatsune ／ MUSINGS 」

「 Mikuo Hatsune ／ VISAGE 」

「 Mikuo Hatsune ／ MANNERISMS 」

「 Mikuo Hatsune ／ ROMANCE 」

「 Mikuo Hatsune ／ MUSIC 」

「 Mikuo Hatsune ／ CRACK 」

✘ · ♡（）

✘ · Gumi ♡（‘ᶜᵃᵘˢᵉ ᵃˡˡ ᵒᶠ ᵐᵉ ˡᵒᵛᵉˢ ᵃˡˡ ᵒᶠ ʸᵒᵘ· ᴬˡˡ ʸᵒᵘʳ ᵖᵉʳᶠᵉᶜᵗ ⁱᵐᵖᵉʳᶠᵉᶜᵗⁱᵒ��ˢ ）

• Mikuo & Gumiya • / ( ᵀʰᵉʳᵉ'ˢ ᵃ ᵗʳⁱˡˡⁱᵒⁿ ᵃˡⁱᵉⁿˢ ᶜᵒᵒˡᵉʳ ᵗʰᵃⁿ ʸᵒᵘ )

• Mikuo & Akaito • / ( ˢᵗⁱᶜᵏ ‘ⁿ ˢᵗᵒⁿᵉˢ ᵐⁱᵍʰᵗ ᵇʳᵉᵃᵏ ʸᵒᵘʳ ᵇᵒⁿᵉˢ ᵇᵘᵗ ᵃ ˡᵉᵉᵏ ʷⁱˡˡ ᵐᵘʳᵈᵉʳ ʸᵒᵘ )

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hope-for-olicity · 8 years ago

Text

Always a Bridesmaid 3/?

Thanks so much for all the lovely comments and reblogs - I am beyond flattered and grateful for all those who took the time to read my story.

Thanks so much to @mel-loves-all for the beautiful edit and to @almondblossomme for proofing! The previous chapters and this one are available on AO3.

I've enjoyed writing this story so much it's going a bit longer than I originally planned - I hope you don't mind :) It will now be longer than three chapters.

Chapter 3: I Choose You

July 2017

Central City

“No, I’m not bringing a date to Sara’s wedding Mom. We have already talked about this. Besides, if I brought a date, he’d have to entertain himself. I’m a bridesmaid remember.” Felicity glared at her phone hoped her mother could feel it in Las Vegas.

Her mother had been on her case basically since she found out about Sara’s wedding to find a date. She kept reminding Felicity that wouldn’t always be a bridesmaid if she occasionally went on dates. And lately her mother had begun to bring up the fact the clock was ticking. Felicity was in her late thirties and Donna wanted grandbabies.

Felicity didn’t have the heart to tell her mother she was never sure she wanted children, so she didn’t hear any clock.

“Listen Mom, I know you mean well but I have to go. Remember I’ll see you in a couple of weeks. I booked us rooms at the Star City Hilton.”

“Felicity, I just want you to be happy.”

“I know Mom. But I’m happy now so can we drop this?”

“Okay. Talk soon. Love you.”

“Love you too Mom. Bye.” Felicity hung up the phone.

She knew her mother meant well but she never wanted to get married, just to be married. And her mother was right, Felicity had not made marriage a priority. She had spent her twenties establishing herself and opening her own company she was proud of the life she had created.

She was happy on her own but she couldn’t deny that thinking of Oliver Queen made her just a little bit happier. Not that she was telling her Mom that.

Since seeing Oliver in Star City last month they had begun to talk more. First Oliver connected with her through social media: Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and then it just became easier to text. And she had to admit that the more she learned about him the more she liked him.

Felicity didn’t tell Oliver or Sara but she had looked into the savings of possibly moving Smoak Technologies to Star City. And the more she compared, she couldn’t deny that it made sense for her professionally and personally to consider moving to Star City.

None of this was getting any work done and if she wanted to enjoy her time off at the end of the month, she wanted to be ahead of the game when she left. She decided to go get a coffee and come back and focus on the plans for the quarter in her R&D Department.

She stood up from her desk only to see Oliver poking his head in her office.

“Hey, I didn’t see an assistant so I thought I’d just see if you had a moment.” He gave her the charming Oliver Queen smile.

“Oliver! What are you doing here?” Felicity could feel the joy bubbling up within her.

“I had to come to Central City for business related to the cafe. I wasn’t sure if I would have time to see you so I didn’t mention I was coming.” Oliver began to saunter into her office. “But as my meetings finished early I thought I would stop by and see if you were available for dinner this evening?”

“Yes. I mean yes, I’m available for dinner. With you. This evening.”

“Well, that’s great.” Oliver felt like he had a permanent smile on his face.

“Yes, great!” She agreed.

They stood there smiling at each other with goofy grins for a moment.

Oliver began walking backwards to the door, not breaking eye contact. “Okay, it’s 3 o’clock now, what time should I come back?”

“How about you don’t come back?”

Oliver smiled dropped. “But I thought…”

“Yes!” Felicity interrupted. “You thought right. I just meant why don’t we just leave now. We could grab a coffee and go for a walk before dinner. I mean, if you want to?”

“Yes. Yes, I want to.” Oliver nodded and smiled.

“Well, most people left early today as it’s a Friday in July. No reason, their boss shouldn’t also.” Felicity smiled. She’d come in on Saturday to finish up her work. She was not passing up this opportunity.

“Absolutely.”

*****

Oliver was so glad he had worked up the nerve to stop by Felicity’s office. They had become friendly since her trip to Star City but he didn’t want to be presumptuous and push her away.

He had had a couple of serious relationships in his lifetime, almost got engaged once but he’d never felt this way. This head over heels, want to be with you always feeling. He had heard about it but he really thought it was a fantasy portrayed in books and movies. Not something real people experienced. Yes, he’d had a crush on Felicity in high school but it had nothing on how he felt for grown up Felicity. She was amazing.

Oliver was so grateful to have her in his life again, he would do whatever it took to keep it that way.

They spent the afternoon talking about life since high school. Mainly focusing on experiences building their businesses. Felicity really understood why the cafe was so important to him. And why all the little things mattered. He explained why he was hesitant to run for Mayor and leave more of the business on John’s shoulders. But they both agreed, now that they had spent so many years building a strong foundation they didn’t need to be as focused as they were when they began.

“It’s really nice to talk to someone who totally gets it.” Oliver looked at her. “I mean, of course I’ve talked to other business owners but they don’t feel the way that I do and I know we have two completely different businesses, we seem to have the same beliefs.”

“I know! My business is highly competitive with other technology firms so I haven’t had the opportunity to have conversations like this. But this has been my life’s work, so of course I take it seriously. It’s hard for other people to get that.”

“Exactly.” Oliver nods.

“My mother called this afternoon. She really doesn’t understand that I am happy. That it is possible to be happy and unmarried at the same time. Which is funny because she’s not currently married. I get flack for it in press related to the company too. The tabloids are always insinuating I’m involved with someone I’m trying to do a deal with it. It’s frustrating.”

“I hear you there too. I’m running for Mayor and my campaign manager has said several times under his breath this would be easier if you were married with a young family. As if I say poof and that happens?! He actually said voters might not trust me because I’m in my late thirties and not married. It makes me sad that people still believe these stereotypes.”

Felicity stops dead in her tracks. “Oh my God Oliver! I didn’t even think of it! We could have been photographed this afternoon in the park. Could this hurt your campaign? I hadn’t even considered. You have been so kind to me. I don’t want to cause you any problems.”

Oliver puts his hands on her shoulder and begins to rub little circles to calm her down. “Hey, there is no way you are going to hurt my campaign. Don’t you worry about that and if someone did take our picture, I’m proud to be seen with you Felicity Smoak. The fact that a woman of your caliber is willing to spend time with me. I am flattered.”

“Okay, now you are going too far. Of course, I would spend time with you and I feel just as lucky that you are spending time with me.”

“Good.” Oliver reaches for Felicity’s hand and she gladly gives it. “Why, don’t we grab some dinner now. I’m getting hungry and sadly I have to head back to Star City after.”

They had a lovely meal at Felicity’s favourite hole in the wall Italian restaurant. Before they knew it, it was time for Oliver to head back to Star City.

After Felicity picked up the bill, she insisted as it was her city, Oliver offered her a ride home. She nodded, more than a little sad that their evening was over.

Oliver pulled over in front of her building and Felicity couldn’t resist she leaned over and kissed him on the cheek. She moved back just a little to say “I really want to say thank you for today. I had a wonderful time and it was so nice to get to know you better.”

Felicity began to pull away to get out of the car and Oliver said “nope.” And before she could even think they were kissing. At first Felicity was too shocked to react but that didn’t last long. The kiss quickly went from chaste to passionate. It was a kiss almost twenty years in the making, they had a lot to make up for.

*****

The next morning Felicity was woken by her vibrating cell phone. She crawled out from under the covers reached for her cell phone and glasses at the same time.

“Hello.”

“Felicity, I’m so, so sorry.”

Felicity put her glasses on looked at who was calling. “Oliver?”

“Yes, I’m sorry if I woke you but I wanted you to hear this from me with a sincere apology.”

“Oliver, you are scaring me. What’s going on?”

“You were right to be concerned about someone taking our photo yesterday. Because they did and we are on the cover of the Starling City Chronicle with the headline “Mayor Handsome wooing biggest fish yet to Star City.” I want you to know that, I had nothing to do with this and I’m going to demand they print a retraction.”

“Oliver calm down, I believe you. But just to clarify you haven’t asked for a retraction yet, right?”

“No, but only because their offices aren’t open yet and I want to yell at someone rather than send an email. How dare they, Felicity?”

“Well, maybe it would be better if you didn’t ask for a retraction.”

“Felicity I’m confused. This is clearly a lie. Why shouldn’t I ask for a retraction.”

“I just think we should talk for a moment about what would be best for your campaign. You see, there is something you don’t know. After you mentioned wooing business to Star City as it is cheaper for them to operate there than in Central City, I began looking into possible moving Smoak Technologies there. I didn’t mention it because it hasn’t been decided yet. BUT I think it might look bad if you say the headline is not true and then I move there. It would be better for your campaign if this were true, don’t you think? You snag the big fish! Would probably give you a boost in the polls?”

“Felicity, you might be moving to Star City?”

“That’s what you took from that? But yes, I might be, probably am going to move to Star City. Don’t freak out. This isn’t because you kissed me last night. Like I said I began looking into this for business reasons when I came back in June.”

“But you might move here?” Oliver could not keep the hope out of his voice.

“Yes.” She smiled into the phone.

“I’d really like that. Just so you know.”

“I think I’d like it too.” Felicity smiled. Oliver really knew how to make her feel like the most special person in the world and it was a feeling she was not going to get sick of. “So, how about you just let the headline stay but say no comment if asked. I have a meeting with my board this week and this was already on the agenda. I’ll tell them I met you for more information.”

“Sounds good. And just so you know, you just made my day.”

Before she could think better of it she said “I wish I was there. There would so be more kissing.”

“Oh, there will definitely be more kissing. When do you come to Star City for the wedding?”

“Eleven more sleeps. I arrive on Wednesday, July 26th. I’m staying at the Hilton in case you were wondering.”

“I was wondering. Eleven sleeps is a long time.”

“It is. But we will keep in touch before then.”

“Definitely.”

“Well, I best get ready for the day. I’ll text you later.”

“Looking forward to it”

*****

July 2017

Star City

Felicity drove to Star City this time instead of taking the train, so therewas no need for a pick up. She checked into the hotel and sent two texts. The first to Sara.

Felicity: I’m here! Just checked into the hotel.

Felicity: Let me know if you need anything and when is a good time for me to head over.

The second to Oliver.

Felicity: I’m here!!

Oliver: Thank God!

Felicity: Why did something happen?!

Oliver: No!!! It’s just it’s been two sleeps, too long since I’ve seen you.

Felicity: Aww. Want to come visit? I have to go to Sara’s soon for wedding stuff but I have some time.

Oliver: On my way

Felicity: Room 320

So, eleven sleeps turn out to be too many to wait and Oliver came to visit Felicity last weekend in Central City. This teenage excitement, as they both referred to it was new to both of them. They were taking things slow - meaning lots of kissing and making out but no sex. Oliver was the hold out on the sex. He told Felicity he wanted her to know she was special and he would wait. The problem was Felicity wasn’t sure how much longer she could wait. Something she planned to discuss this weekend.

There was a knock on her door. Wow that was fast she thought.

“Thank God you are here! I missed you…” Felicity opened the door. “Mom.”

“I missed you too baby girl! We are going to have such an amazing weekend.” Donna came into Felicity’s room. “In the end, I’m kind of glad you don’t have a date. We have a lot of catching up to do. I missed you so much!”

Felicity was still standing holding open the door when her mother came back to hug her. She hugged her Mom back. She had missed her. It’s just that Oliver was on his way over and she really didn’t want to explain that too her mother.

“Felicity why is your door open?” Oliver was standing in the door wearing jeans, a fitted blue t-shirt and a black leather jacket.

Felicity looked at Oliver over her mother’s shoulder. She smiled sympathetically. There would be an obstacle to the kissing they had planned.

She pulled away from her mother. “Mom, do you remember Oliver Queen? We went to high school together.”

“Yes, I think I remember the name. Hi Oliver, I’m Donna Smoak, Felicity’s mother.” Donna smiled as she openly checked Oliver out.

Oliver watched Felicity turn every shade of red possible. She looked so mortified it was almost worth Donna’s flirting but really, he had to show her some mercy.

“Hi Donna, I was just meeting with Felicity about,” he glanced at Felicity guidance and settled on “business. We need to talk about business.” He could see from Felicity reaction he made the right choice. Not that he was ashamed to tell people that they were seeing one another but they hadn’t talked about that yet.

“Oh. So sorry. I thought Felicity was on vacation.”

“Don’t worry Mom, this won’t take long. I’m waiting for Sara to text me back and then we can head over to her place.”

Donna looked like she understood but Felicity knew Donna was probably a little hurt.

“Sounds good. I’ll just go freshen up then.”

“Great. I’ll swing by and get you in a few minutes.” Felicity walked her mother to the door and shut it behind her. The moment she turned around she was in Oliver’s arms. She wasn’t even surprised it felt so natural.

They stood in the middle of room kissing until they needed air and then Oliver started to kiss down her neck and near her ear. “I missed you.”

“I missed you too” moving her neck to give him better access.

He moved back to her lips and the kiss began to deepen. Felicity knew she going to have to cut this off soon for both their sanities. They didn’t have time for satisfaction.

“Oliver,” he continued to nip at her lips. “Oliver, we have to stop. I have to check my phone.”

He groaned and pulled back. Oliver had to admit his idea of no sex was seeming worse every time they met. Perhaps, they were going to have to revisit the idea. They were consenting adults after all and sex was healthy. He smiled.

“I’m not going to ask what that smile is about because I suspect it will not aid in me getting to Sara’s!” She winked at him.

“So, are we keeping this,” he gestured between them, “a secret?”

“Honestly, I wanted to leave that up to you but I thought we should talk about it before we tell my Mom and lose control.”

He moved close to Felicity and slipped his hand around her waist as stood in front of the mirror reapplying her lipstick. “Well, I would like to tell everyone, now. I mean, even complete strangers. But if you want to keep quiet, we are new, so I understand that. Also, if we go public, we will really be going public due to the press paying close attention to both our lives.”

“And I think that’s my problem,” Felicity turned around to face Oliver. “I like how this is our thing. It’s just you and I figuring things out, without pressure. I like having you and this all to myself.”

“And I like you having me,” he leaned in to kiss her and she pulled back.

“I love kissing you Oliver but I just fixed all this.” She drew a circle around her face with her finger. “And I need to go to Sara’s.”

As if on cue Felicity’s phone vibrated, she held it up to show Oliver, Sara’s name on the display. “Hey Bride to be! I’m here! Are you home?”

“Yes, just got home. Spent the day with Laurel doing last minute wedding things. I need you. I need a drink. I need to talk about something other than the wedding. Nyssa is out with a friend. Come be my friend.” Sara said desperately.

Felicity smiled. “I’m on my way and I’m bringing reinforcements - wine and Donna.”

“Donna?! Your Mom is here?”

“Yes, and she can’t wait to see you.”

“Well get your butts over here!”

“See you soon.” Felicity hung up with Sara and turned to Oliver. “The bridesmaid is needed.”

“I wish you were my bridesmaid.” Oliver pouted.

“Poor baby. I promise, I’ll find a way for us to sneak away tomorrow for a bit. Don’t forget I suffer from the same I want to be with you always sickness. So, I literally, feel your pain.”

He smiled. “Oddly, that does help. Love that I’m not in this alone.”

“Definitely, not alone.” Felicity leaned and kissed him on the cheek, then quickly wiped the lipstick off his cheek.

“Can I offer you and Donna a ride to Sara’s? I’m just thinking with the wine you might not be driving.”

“That would be great.”

“Let’s go get your Mom.”

“My hero,” she smiled at him.

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