#could be the tin pin universe versions for all we know

[lilypadpanda]

You ever think about how, in KH3D, according to dialogue and the Flick Rush Minigame, Joshua not only brought the main gang to Traverse Town, but several Reapers as well.

And then apparently just...has them do The Reaper’s Game, complete with timers and missions, just because.

[jungshookz]

cream a little dream of me; knj

➺ pairing; kim namjoon x reader

➺ genre; lveb!universe, you’ve been asking for this and i’m finally here to tell you that this is smut! nsfw! 18+! oral sex (receiving)! dirty talk! namjoon has a dirty mouth and y/n is into that!! y/n’s a great listener and namjoon is very into that!! also frosting is involved somewhere 

➺ wordcount: 8.9k

➺ summary; y/n has a wet dream about namjoon and yoongi just wants to help his best friend get laid. 

➺ what to expect; “it’s not a big deal or anything, but, uh... when were you planning on telling me about that nice little dream you had two weeks ago?”

➺ optional reading: here’s the link to la vie en bonsai if you haven’t read it yet or if you just want to experience the story all over again! 

                                      »»————-　☁️　————-««

to say the least, yoongi is… confused.

in the three years that he’s been friends with you, he likes to think that he’s seen every single one of your emotions

but this?

this is different somehow… yet he can’t quite put his finger on what’s so different about it... 

he’s seen elated y/n

he’s seen devastated y/n

he’s seen infuriated y/n

he’s seen stressed out y/n

but this y/n?

the starry-eyed and constantly looking like you’re day dreaming y/n?

he can safely say he’s never seen this version of you before and it’s a little concerning because now he has no idea what the protocol is 

even back when you guys were in university you practically never daydreamed during lectures

you were always focused on the professor and whatever powerpoint was playing on the screen with a concerning amount of intensity 

one time, yoongi put his hand over your eyes just to be funny and you nearly snapped his wrist off

“okay, seriously?” yoongi waves his hand in front of your face for the fifth time in half an hour before shaking his head gently, “what’s gotten into you?”

you blink quickly when you snap out of your little daze, looking at him and setting the bowl of batter down on the counter before checking out the damage you’ve done

you’re supposed to fold this batter

not whIP it

now it’s ruined and you’re going to have to start all over!

“i don’t know what that batter ever did to you, but you might need to take it down a notch before you sprain your wrist…” yoongi trails off, leaning over a little and wondering if he can get away with dipping his finger in for a teeny tiny taste

sure, he might get salmonella or whatever from ingesting raw eggs, but it’ll be worth it 

“also, what are you even making?” he frowns, gesturing to all the items splayed on the counter, “because there are like ten different things going on here-”

you look around the kitchen before reaching up to scratch the back of your neck

you... don’t really have an answer for him 

there’s bread dough over here 

three bowls of frosting (chocolate, cream cheese, buttercream) over there

some chopped up peaches on the cutting board

the puff pastry is de-frosting in the fridge

there’s a pie baking in the oven at the moment

you just finished greasing up a mini cupcake tin

and don’t forget about the bowl of batter you’re currently whipping the life out of

(let the record show that you have no idea what you’re making. you have no clue what this batter is for. and why’d you take out your set of food-colouring dye??) 

you just needed to let off some steam and this is the only way you know hoW

“isn’t this great? working out in the comfort of my own personal gym…”

both you and yoongi look over towards the kitchen door when you hear jin’s voice ring through namjoon’s laptop from the living room

yoongi perks up in interest when you suddenly scurry over to spy at namjoon through the crack of the door before he gets up to follow you 

“yeah, easy for you to say-” namjoon grunts as he pushes himself up off the ground so he can clap his hands together quickly before his palms land back on the ground in a solid thump

he thought push-ups were already awful as is so he wasn’t very pleased when jin told him to start doing them with claps in between each set

also, jin has access to a full-blown gym in his house, but namjoon doesn’t have any access to actual weights so he’s had to resort to using jugs of water instead

it’s actually working out pretty well!

he took the sweeper part of the broom off and then used a lot of duct tape (and patience) to tape the jugs to both sides of the pole

he felt like he was mulan from that one part of the movie except mulan is probably physically stronger than him 

“you know, i’m surprised he hasn’t smashed his face against the floor yet...” yoongi snorts as he continues to peer at namjoon over your shoulder

he waits a couple seconds for you to respond but frowns when you let out a short little sigh while keeping your eyes glued on your sweaty boyfriend

...

see?!

you’re doing it again!!!!  

you have your bottom lip tucked in between your teeth and your eyes have gone all lidded and hazy

your grip around the edge of the door is really tight and your knuckles are going kind of white 

good god

yoongi narrows his eyes suspiciously before jabbing your shoulder roughly, “hey. what are you thinking about?”

you shake your head a little too quickly for his liking before turning back around and brushing past him to get back to the counter

huh

okay

something’s up for sure

he doesn’t know if it’s good or bad or whatever but he’s going to find out

your cheeks and the tips of your ears are a little flushed now which is even more interesting

what could possibly be going on in that little noggin of yours?

“tell me what you were thinking about.” yoongi sits back down on the stool as he stares you down across the counter, “y/n- look at me.”

“i’m not-” you glance up at yoongi for a quick second before looking back down, “nothing!” you mutter, your arm starting to move faster as you continue whipping the mystery batter 

yoongi immediately points to the ball of dough sitting a couple feet away from him, “tell me what you were thinking about or i’ll eat that ball of raw dough right noW-”

“-!” you set the bowl down before scrambling to move the dough out of yoongi’s reach

he’s eaten raw dough before (it was raw cookie dough and he took bites of it every time you turned to face away from him) which resulted in him suffering for like 48 hours and you’re not taking any chances

“you can’t keep secrets from me.” yoongi deadpans, “aren’t we best friends? don’t you trust me?” he bats his lashes at you before pushing his bottom lip out in a pout, “because i certainly trust you… and you, out of all people, should know how hard it is for me to trust someone…”

your eye twitches 

you know he’s only saying all of this to butter you up so that you’ll inevitably give in and tell him what’s going on... and you hate that it’s actually working... 

look at that face!

those cheeks!!!

those eyes!!!!

“i…” you trail off, biting the inside of your cheek as you contemplate whether it’s a good idea or not to tell yoongi what exactly’s been going on with you lately 

if you tell him, he’ll stop bugging you about it

then again, if you tell him, he might keep bugging you about it 

but he’s already suspicious of you so it seems like you don’t really have a choice...

this is really a lose-lose situation, if you think about it 

...damn. 

“hey, do you remember that time you were crying really hard and i made you feel better by telling you that i kind of sort of loved you...?” yoongi mentions casually while inspecting his nail beds, his eyes flickering up towards your face for a quick second to see your reaction 

he bites back a smirk of success when he hears you let out a sigh 

ha HA 

hook, line, and sinker bABY 

“okay, fine, but-” you slam the bowl down on the counter before placing your hands on your hips, ”it’s a secret. between us!” you gesture for him to come over to you

“god, finally-!” yoongi nods enthusiastically and hops off the stool before scurrying over to join you at the other side of the counter

you lift your hand up so the side of your mouth is covered and yoongi reaches up to wrap his fingers around your wrist, grinning excitedly as you whisper something into his ear 

…

…

…

yoongi’s jaw drops

holy shit

no wonder he hasn’t seen you act like this before! 

this isn’t elated y/n or disappointed y/n or excited y/n 

a new player has entered the ring

this is HORNY Y/N

“you… little… horndog!” yoongi cackles with glee as he claps his hands together wildly, “you, y/n y/l/n- you had a wet dream?!” 

you feel your anxiety spike at how loud yoongi’s being and you make a gesture to try to get him to use his inside voice but he doesn’t seem to be paying any attention to you at all right now 

“wow...” yoongi laughs lightly, crossing his arms as he looks up towards the ceiling, “i mean, welcome to puberty, i guess. a bit of a late start if you ask me, but either way i’m actually pretty proud of you for basically creaming your-”

“shh!” you quickly shove a spoon into yoongi’s mouth and he spits it out immediately

it falls onto the counter with a clang

to be honest, you actually don’t remember too much of the dream

flashes of namjoon’s head in between your legs and his strong arms wrapped around your thighs pinning you down pop into your mind every now and again to taunt you

but other than that

nothing!

it’s just that joon’s been working out a lot lately (jin’s trying to get in better shape because of one photo where the shadow made it look like he had a double chin and it traumatised him) so it makes sense that he’s turning into an actual beefcake now 

the other day you accidentally busted a bag of icing in your hands after squeezing it too hard because you were watching namjoon doing bicep curls with the milk jugs 

his arms just….,,. 

you want to bite into them

or dig your nails into them

or just look at them!

you would be perfectly content with just staring at them 24/7!

now, the issue here is that you...

you don’t really know…

you don’t know how to initiate things with namjoon

it’s awkward!

…on your end, that is

since getting together, you and namjoon have had plenty of heated make-out (and slight groping) sessions but you always end up chickening out as soon as you feel things starting to escalate 

you just get nervous that you’re going to do something wrong and it’ll pop the love-bubble you guys are in right now!! 

and you really don’t want to pop anything!! 

and namjoon, being the sweet, kind, caring, considerate, wonderful, absolutely flawless boy he is, never has an issue with it because his number one priority is making sure that you’re comfortable

he’s totally okay with moving at your pace! 

but after the last couple of times where you’ve left him high and dry, you notice that he either a) puts a pillow over his lap almost immediately and tries to change the subject or b) waddles off to the bathroom for a ‘pee break’

you feel awful knowing that you’re blue-balling him but you don’t want to take things further if there’s even a slight possibility of you ruining things 

so... yeah! 

your only stress reliever has been baking which isn’t new

you’ve stress baked before but this is a nEW type of stress baking

this is the most chaotic level of stress baking there is because everything’s just a disorganised MESS  

“you know what, it actually makes sense now,” yoongi reaches up to stroke his chin in thought before nodding to himself, “you’ve been acting so weird lately that i thought i did something wrong- and it turns out you’ve just been excruciatingly horny this entire time-”

“lower your voice!” you hiss, hurrying over to the door to make sure namjoon’s not listening in to what should be a private conversation if yoongi wasn’t so damn loud 

he may be in the living room but who knows how far your voices can travel??

you peek out to look at poor namjoon who looks like he’s just about ready to pass ouT from exhaustion

he lets out an almost animalistic growl as he pushes himself up off the ground one last time and you feel a tingle in your southern region

if you were a cartoon character there would be gigantic hearts pumping out of your eyes, your tongue would roll out of your mouth like a red carpet, and a horn would be blasting aooga in the background 

“okay, well - you can’t not tell me about what happened in it.” you turn back around to face yoongi, “give me all the details!!!!” he wiggles his brows as he leans down and folds him arms atop the counter, “and get real nasty with it because i haven’t had sex in months-” 

“no way!” you scoff before crossing one arm over the other to make an ‘x’ sign at yoongi, “no! i don’t remember anything.”

“you’re lying to me.” the smile on yoongi’s face drops and he scowls at you, “you totally are!”

“am not! it’s true.” you chirp, nodding satisfactorily when yoongi doesn’t respond

good 

the topic has been dropped and now you can focus your attention back on this weird, runny batter you’re still beating the life out of 

“...what about if i guess?”

you pause

oh

oh no

you don’t like that idea at all

you don’t get a chance to shake your head nO before yoongi starts listing out all your possible wet-dream scenarios

“he was finger-fucking you.”

“you were sucking him off?”

“he was eating you out!”

“69? you on top? or was it him on top? …no, it was probably you on to-”

“a classy combination of tongue and fingers? ooh, quick question- how quickly did dreamjoon find your g-spo-”

“missionary! can’t go wrong with good ol’ fashioned missio-”

“doggystyle? cowgirl! reverse cowgirl? or was he kind of, like, spooning you from behi-”

“ooh! plot twist! you gave him the strap-”

“butt-stuff! butt-stuff?? butt-stuff but the plug had a tail on- oh-ho, it was butt-stuff, wasn’t it-”

“something with a belt? something with cuffs? something with leather?”

“roleplaying! he was a sexy gardener with a big ol’ hose and you were just an innocent wittle twree-”

“was he rawdogging you?”

your eyes immediately widen and you look up at yoongi for the first time since he started rambling, “wha- WHAT is that?!”

rawdogging??

that sounds like it’d give you carpet burn for some reason 

“sex without a condom.” yoongi states as if it’s the most obvious fact in the entire world, “duh.”

god

boys are so

boyish!!!!

“why not just say that instead??” you ask incredulously, tilting your head

yoongi snorts, “well, because rawdogging sounds way hotter-”

your face screws up immediately, “does it really, though…?”

yoongi pauses before his face lights up, “aha! so dreamjoon WAS rawdogging y-”

“crude!” your entire face is bright red at this point and you hurry over to the fridge to grab a bag of frozen blueberries out of the freezer (for what purposes? you have no idea.)

“you think i’m being crude?” yoongi scoffs, “i think you’re being a prude. okay, lemme see what else i can think of-”

“yoongi, literally no one asked you to list-” 

“were you grinding on his-” yoongi pauses again, “you know, like dry humping?” he hums before pushing himself up off the counter and placing both his palms flat on the surface of it, “i mean, i guess i can see why that’d be hot, you know, with clothes being restrictive and all- oh! were you getting off on his thigh? because a couple of girls have done that to me before and it was actually pretty hot AND since namjoon’s dna consists of 80% plant he basically has tree trunk thighs-”

“okay, i don’t remember too much-” you grab yoongi by the arm to yank him back in so you can whisper in his ear again

yoongi listens attentively 

…

…

…

you clear your throat before shoving yoongi away to make it seem less suspicious if namjoon just so happens to come into the kitchen at this very moment 

“surprisingly simple, but it does the trick, that’s for sure…” yoongi hums as he strokes his chin thoughtfully, “damn. i hyped it up way too much. that’s actually a pretty boring dream compared to what i’ve dreamt about, now that i think about it-”

you can’t help but roll your eyes as you open up the bag of blueberries

…what did you pull these out for again?

“well, what’s the problem?” yoongi frowns, “you guys are already dating. just go up to him and ask him if he wants to do stuff. if a girl told me that she creamed her panties because of me, i’d be ecstatic!”

“stop saying it like that-”

you feel a little weird talking about this with yoongi

he’s always been comfortable telling you about his sex life but you prefer to keep your intimate details private

it’s not that you don’t trust him or anything, because obviously you do, but… you’d feel more comfortable if you talked about this with a girl-friend, you know?

guys just don’t understand! 

“i don’t know how to…” you shift in your spot, “ask.”

yoongi scoffs in response and crosses his arms, “y/n- namjoon is a man. men are simple. do you remember the other week when you invited me over for a breakfast and you dropped the spatula on the floor?”

you nod before tilting your head curiously, “…why?”

yoongi clears his throat

now he’S the one who looks slightly uncomfortable

“well...” he clears his throat, “namjoon was wearing sweats and i swear i wasn’t purposely looking- my eyes just happened to be looking downwards in that general direction naturally-”

“yoongi-”

“the man’s dick twitched in his sweats when you bent over, alright?” yoongi blurts out and your eyes immediately widen, “my point is: men are simple- painfully simple creatures. so... just ask him!”

you frown

just ask him??

was he even listening to you??

you just told yoongi you didn’t know how to ask namjoon and his advice was for you to ask namjoon

that’s like taking someone who doesn’t know how to swim and immediately tossing them into the OCEAN with a punctured life-ring

“god,” you roll your eyes before flicking your wrist at him, “just forget i told you!”

“hey!” yoongi gawks and shakes his head, “i can’t forget! now my only purpose in life is to get you some head-”

“jesus christ-!”

you jump ten feet into the air like a cat that’s just been sprayed by water when the kitchen door suddenly swings open and a sweaty namjoon stumbles in

“i think there’s sweat dripping into my contacts-”

“namjoon!” yoongi spins around in his stool and props his elbows up on the counter, “what a coincidence! we were just talking about you, my man…”

yoongi looks over at you with a cheeky grin and you shake your head stiffly before turning to get the jug of water from the fridge for namjoon 

“oh yeah?” namjoon huffs as he places his hands on your hips from behind, sliding past you to grab a clean glass from the dish rack, “what about?”

“just about how…” yoongi looks back at you quickly and you shoot him a glare

he wouldn’t… 

would he??

(he absolutely would.)

any word of your conversation and you’ll skin him alive

“-hard you’ve been working out lately!” yoongi chirps, “i mean, it looks like you were trapped in a washing machine-”

“oh, god. trust me, it’s so not worth it, i’m in so much pain-” namjoon winces and shakes his head, “you’re welcome to go and take my place if you want-”

“absolutely not-” yoongi snorts, “first of all, it’s the holidays, and everyone knows you don’t work out during december. also, you couldn’t pay me a million dollars to do a push-up. i’m perfectly happy with my somewhat doughy centre.” he pats his tummy with a happy hum and you can’t help but giggle

silly boy

namjoon laughs lightly before pausing to chug down some water, “i wish i could say the same. unfortunately, jin’s not giving me a choice-”

“sweaty!” you whine when namjoon suddenly wraps an arm around you from behind before kissing your cheek and he frowns playfully when you swat at his forearm, “and sticky…”  

“relax, i’m about to hit the shower-” he nudges his nose against your cheek before pulling away, “and then i won’t be sticky and i’ll smell like peaches-”

“i should probably go, too.” yoongi gets up from his seat, “i just ordered my dinner and it’s going to arrive at my apartment in like half an hour.”

“wait!” you hold a finger out before turning to open up the cupboards for a tupperware box, “take some pie with you…”

                                     »»————-　☁️　————-««

“still coming friday?” you ask as you watch yoongi put his shoes on

you asked yoongi if he would be interested in helping you decorate the apartment on friday (aka you told him he didn’t have a choice and that he had to come and help you whether he wanted to or not)

“mhm.” he glances up at you, “still ordering pizza?”

“mhm.”

you reach down to pat the top of yoongi’s head gently just because you want to and pauses in the middle of tying his laces to reach over and jab your stomach

“i know the main focus is decorating the place for christmas but i think you guys are going to love the nature documentary i picked for us to watch while-” namjoon chimes in but shuts up quickly when you and yoongi exchange knowing glances, “what?”

yoongi looks back up at you with a raised brow, “…does he really have to join us?”

“no choice.” you shrug casually and namjoon’s jaw drops

wha-

“oh, hold on-” yoongi gets up off the ground before patting his pockets down with a frown, “i think i left my keys in the kitchen… can you go and get them for me?”

you nod before turning to hurry to the kitchen

you don’t want him to get another parking ticket

it’s only after you disappear into the kitchen that yoongi swiftly pulls his keys out of his back pocket with a jingle

namjoon opens his mouth to say something but yoongi quickly holds his hand out to shut him up

“야 남준아- 어제 니 여친이 니 꿈 꿨데~ (y/n had a sex dream about you).” he chirps and gives namjoon two firm pats on his surprisingly firm chest before his eyes widen in surprise, “어우 딴딴해 운동 열심히 했나보네! (woah, you really have been working out! good man.)”

“yeah, i-” namjoon chokes, “wait, wha-”

“y/n, i found my keys! my bad!” yoongi calls out and gives you a thumbs up when you come out of the kitchen, “see you losers on friday!”

he gives namjoon a grin and a light punch to the arm before swiftly turning on his heel

namjoon’s eyes are as wide as saucers as yoongi shuts the front door behind him and he blinks rapidly before turning to look at you

you tilt your head at him curiously and namjoon swallows before offering you a sheepish smile

oh, boy.

                                     »»————-　☁️　————-««

namjoon hasn’t been able to think straight since it was revealed to him that you had a sex dream about him.

it’s been an entire week that he’s learned this new piece of information and it’s been weighing verY heavily on his mind!!

when he wakes up his first thought is gee i wonder what y/n dreamt about

when seokjin’s rambling about god knows what the only thing in his mind is gee i wonder what y/n dreamt about

the last thing he thinks about before he goes to bed is gee i wonder what y/n dreamt about

and then his imagination conjures up what could’ve happened in your sex dream which is very dangerous because he has an overly-active imagination 

it sucks that he doesn’t even know the details of the dream because stinky yoongi ziPPed off before he got a chance to squeeze the truth out of him!!!

and he hasn’t mustered up the courage to ask you about it because… how is he even supposed to ask you about it in a casual, non-confrontational way?!

he doesn’t want to embarrass you or anything like that!!

the only reason why he’s only slightly nervous about the whole situation because he doesn’t think he… oozes sex appeal?

so it was more than surprising to find out that you had a naughty dream about him

he’s like 90% leg and 10% dimple for crying out loud

and it’s not like he hasn’t done anything before, because he has, but it’s just different because it’s… you.

you’re his girlfriend and if he flubs this up the first time around then it’d be even more embarrassing than if you were just some random girl!

“말해줘여어 (you have to tell me).” namjoon whips around from where he’s standing by the tree, cradling the box of baubles to his chest, “you have to!”

“싫어 (nah).” yoongi shakes his head, tossing a kernel of popcorn into his mouth only for it to bounce off his cheek and onto the couch

he purses his lips before kicking it under the coffee table

it’s fine

the dust bunnies will get rid of it 

“말해줘여어! (you have to tell me!)”

“야 안돼 (no way).”  

namjoon clenches his jaw and sets the box down onto the floor promptly before balling his hands into fists and setting them on his hips, puffing his chest out

...

“아 왜여어어어~ (why not??)” he whines, deflating and resisting the urge to stamp his foot and throw an actual tantrum

“아니 비밀이라고 했으니까 그렇지! (it’s not my thing to tell! and i can’t betray y/n like that-)” yoongi shrugs as he keeps his eyes glued on the screen, “by the way, you didn’t even choose a cool nature documentary. what are we even watching?? the guy’s been talking about seaweed for the past ten minutes-”

“what do you mean it’s not your thing to tell??” namjoon scoffs, not even paying attention to the fact that yoongi just insulted his favourite nature documentary about plants in the ocean, “형이 먼저 말 꺼냈잖아! (you were the one who told me that she dreamt about me in the first place-!)” he snaps

“잠깐만 (wait, wait-)” yoongi sits up quickly, a couple kernels of popcorn rolling off his chest and falling onto his lap, “일주일이 지났는데 아무��도 안 했단 말이야?? (are you telling me that you… it’s been a whole week and you haven’t done anything about it??)”

namjoon shrinks down before reaching up to scratch the back of his neck, “노 코멘트 (…no comment.)”

“킄 정말로? (really? wow.)” yoongi snorts before shaking his head and leaning back against the couch, “both of you- i mean, both of you deserve each other, seriously-”

namjoon resists the urge to flop down on the couch dramatically, “아니 뭐라고 말하는 거예요 (well, i’m sorry, what am i even supposed to say-)”

“아우 그러지좀마 걍- (you don’t have to say anything, all you have to do is-)”

“yoongi!” namjoon and yoongi look over when you stick your head out around the kitchen door, “cream cheese or vanilla?”

“vanilla, duh.” yoongi raises a brow

you should know by this point that he prefers vanilla frosting over cream cheese!

halfway through the documentary you decided that you were going to make a carrot cake

(and yes, part of the reason why you made that decision was because you were bored of the documentary and wanted to do literally anything else, but you’ll never admit that to namjoon in case it breaks his heart)

namjoon stays quiet until after you disappear into the kitchen again and then he turns to face yoongi with both of his hands clasped together, “말해줘요오! (you have to tell me, c’mon!)”

“말해주면 제발 다른 거 보면 안 될까? (if i tell you, can we watch something else?)”

namjoon scowls

“아 됐어요 도와줄 거라도 있는지 확인 해볼게요- (fine, forget it. i’m gonna go see if y/n needs any help.)” he steps over the boxes of decorations on the ground before turning to look back at yoongi, “부엌에서 필요한 거 있어요? (you need anything?)”

“아니 (nah.)” yoongi responds before shoving a handful of popcorn into his mouth, “oh! actually, see if y/n would be willing to make little carrot cupcakes instead of a whole carrot cake. holding a tiny little cupcake in my hand makes me feel like a giant.”

                                     »»————-　☁️　————-««

“knock, knock…” namjoon knocks on the kitchen door quietly before pushing it open, “everything going okay in here?”  

he smiles when you look up from the bowl and beam at him, “hi!”

“hi-” he comes in and shuts the door behind him, “you need any help?”

“help? from you?” you giggle lightly and shake your head, “i’m good.”

ever since he accidentally poured salt into your batter that one time he hasn’t been allowed to help you

:-//

“yoongi changed his mind, by the way.” namjoon gestures back to the direction of the living room, “king min would like cupcakes now.” 

your shoulders immediately droop and you gesture to the already greased cake-pans sitting on the side

what a waste! 

“hey, don’t shoot the messenger!” namjoon raises both his hands in defence before shrugging, “the man wants what he wants.”

you resist the urge to go out there just to throw the cake pans at yoongi

you’re definitely going to force him to wash everything for you later 

“also... you’re just doing this to get out of watching the nature doc, aren’t you?” namjoon wraps both his arms around you from behind and leans down to prop his chin up on your shoulder

you could’ve helped with the decorating, but somehow everything looks better when namjoon does it 

he hung a big red bow on your front door and it looks great! 

you pause in the middle of shredding carrots before letting out a nervous chuckle, “whaaat? no...”

“it’s about the types of plants in the ocean!” namjoon points out, “is that not cool?? plants are cool.”

you shake your head no almost immediately 

not cool

two and a half hours of someone talking about grass that lives in salty water?

not cool at aLL

“how’s the decorating going?” you ask, giggling lightly when namjoon nudges his nose under your jaw before planting a kiss against your neck

“it’s going fine… yoongi isn’t helping, obviously. i handed him one bauble to hang and he hooked it on the collar of his hoodie and told me he’d do it later.”

“mm.”

a brief moment passes where the only sound that can be heard is the carrot you’re shredding against the grater

namjoon purses his lips as he thinks about what yoongi just said to him 

...

ah

fuck it

“hey, can i ask you something?” namjoon sighs, smiling in delight when you suddenly turn your head to press a sweet little kiss into his cheek

“mhm!” you turn back, continuing to grate away

“it’s not a big deal or anything, but, uh... when were you planning on telling me about that nice little dream you had two weeks ago?” namjoon asks cockily, biting back a grin when he feels you freeze in his arms 

it’s at this moment that the fact that you had a wet dream about him has finally sunk into the depths of his brain and now he’s actually feeling... really good about it 

you had a sex dream about him

what’s not to love?  

he can almost hear the alarms wailing in your head

and now that he’s got the ball rolling- he’s not as nervous as he thought he’d be!

as a matter of fact... this could be fun.

“w-” you clear your throat quietly and the half-shredded carrot drops into the metal bowl with a muted plunk, “i- what dream? i didn’t have a dream about you.”

he knows you’re trying to play it cool but he can see how tightly you’re gripping the grater and he can feel your ears getting hotter against his cheek 

“i never said the dream was about me.”

oh, shit

you messed up

“so...?” namjoon moves your hair to the other side before leaning in to plant a warm kiss under your jaw, “this dream that you had… about me. tell me what happened in it.”

you swallow thickly, the gears working overtime in your brain as you try to come up with some kind of an excuse to get yourself out of this situation

you know that now isn’t the most appropriate moment to be thinking about this but you’re 100% going to slaughter yoongi the moment you get a chance to 

the secret ingredient to make these cupcakes taste good will not be love

it will be BLEACH 

you can’t believe he ratted you out like that!!

how embarrassing!!

“you were-” you cough, “um, you were… you… we…”

oh boy

this is already a train wreck

this is exactly why you didn’t want to tell namjoon about it!

because you know yourself and you knEW you were going to get all flustered and twitchy bringing it up

“well, i was-” you pause, “i was sitting on- sitting on the counter-”

“this one right here?” namjoon’s hand leaves your waist to pat the surface of the counter lightly and you nod gingerly, staring down at his obscenely pretty fingers, “what else?”

“that was it.” you blurt out, “the end!”

namjoon steps back a little and spins you around quickly before pressing you up against the counter, “what else, y/n?”

he traps you in between his arms and you fight the urge to explode into a million bits 

oh god

okay

just tell him!

just SAY it

it’s time to get it over with!!

“you were…” your eyes flicker downwards and your nose scrunches slightly

you really don’t want to say it but you don’t think you can back out at this point because you’ve already said too much 

“…eating me out.” you force out before averting your gaze and looking off to the side  

you really wish there was a better way to say that because the phrase eating me out just sounds so… in your face, you know?

namjoon swallows thickly

so you had a dream about him eating you out?

“y/n, there’s really nothing to be embarrassed about, i promise-” namjoon laughs lightly when he notices your entire face starting to go red

you let out a particularly pathetic whine before leaning your forehead against his chest and gently shoving at his (firm) abdomen

“what’s the problem?” he asks, rubbing comforting circles into your back, “i think about you, you know.”

“you’re just saying that…” you mumble, reaching up to pinch the bridge of your nose, “you’re lying...” 

“no, i’m serious!” namjoon pulls away to look at you, “i… i think about you. i think about things.”

you blink twice 

he thinks about you

he thinks about things 

he thinks about you?

he thinks about things?? 

…what kind of things does he think about?

“y-you do?” 

“of course i do.”

“oh.”

a moment of silence ticks by 

“i think about a lot of things, y/n.”

“like what?” you look up at him, the corner of namjoon’s pretty mouth curling upwards

“you really wanna know?”

“yes.” you respond a little too quickly before clearing your throat quietly, “…please.”

“hm.” he smiles, “as polite as always-” 

you gasp in surprise when namjoon suddenly lifts you up and plops you down on the countertop in one swift movement and your stomach flutters at how effortlessly he just did that

wowie

he places both hands flat on the surface on either side of you before looking up at you with his head tilted slightly

you keep your hands folded in your lap, nervously picking at the worn edges of the sweatshirt you’re wearing (it’s namjoon’s coffee-coloured sweatshirt that you ‘borrowed’ from him) 

“mostly about fucking you into the headboard.” namjoon confesses, a smirk twitching at the corner of his mouth when he notices the way your eyes flicker

oh

you definitely seemed to like that idea

“i think about your fingers pulling at my hair when i have my face in between your legs...” he hums, trailing a finger up from your kneecap to your thigh, “i think about how pretty you’d look bent over the counter for me. i think about the sounds you’d make, how soft your moans and gasps would be… i especially like thinking about you moaning my name. i think about you riding me wearing nothing but that cute little apron of yours - you know, the one with the little honeybees on them?”

“apron’s in the.. in the washing machine.” your breathing’s become a bit more shallow and you haven’t blinked in nearly a minute so it’s safe to say that he has your attention

“you know… i think you know what you do to me when you walk around wearing nothing but one of my sweatshirts and a pair of panties, or when you come out of the shower wrapped in a little towel because you ‘forgot’ your clothes in the bedroom…” namjoon murmurs lowly, “and don’t think i don’t notice the way you look at me whenever you suck frosting off your fingers.”

“frosting?” you whisper, namjoon nodding as his eyes flicker down to your lips briefly

your tongue pokes out to swipe over your bottom lip for a split second 

“that’s right.” the metal bowl scrapes against the counter as namjoon drags it over and you jump in surprise at the feeling of the chilled metal bumping up against your bare thigh

“you think you’re so innocent, don’t you?” namjoon chuckles lowly, lifting the spatula up before swiping some frosting off of it with the side of his thumb, “you think i don’t know what you’re up to?”

“i don’t…” you trail off, going cross-eyed when namjoon’s hand comes closer only for his pointer finger to tap at your bottom lip

“you do. open.”

you’re just a little thrown off because namjoon’s never... you’ve never seen him like this before

he’s never spoken to you like this before

he’s never looked at you like this before 

you’re certainly not complaining, of course 

“you taunt me because you like to-” you can’t seem to break away from namjoon’s gaze, the side of his pointer finger hooking underneath your chin as he pushes his thumb into your mouth, “i know you do it on purpose.”

almost immediately, the taste of sweet vanilla frosting washes over your palette

“you want me to think about you, don’t you?” namjoon swallows a groan when you start sucking, your cheeks hollowing slightly as your tongue swirls around his thumb to make sure no frosting gets left behind, “you like the thought of that? like leaving me high and dry because it forces me to use my own imagination?”

(admittedly, yes. a little part of you likes the thought of you completely consuming every corner of namjoon’s mind... just a little part, though.)

you nod slowly in response with glazed over eyes and namjoon clenches his jaw 

fuck

he flattens his thumb down on your tongue to get you to open your mouth a little more for him and hums contently when you do so obediently

a thin line of spit stretches from your tongue to namjoon’s slick thumb as he pulls his hand away and you don’t even get a chance to register whatever that moment was before he’s leaning forward to slant his mouth over yours

namjoon kisses you purposefully, pulling you closer to him as you fist at his shirt tightly 

he savours the faint sweetness of the frosting left behind on your tongue and can’t help but smile when he hears you whimper

“can i tell you something?” namjoon pulls away only to start sponging kisses to your neck and you tilt your head to the side for him

“uh-huh, y-yeah-” you nod quickly, slinging an arm around his neck to keep him close while the other hand grips at his shoulder

your eyes roll to the back of your head for a split second and you can’t help but quietly mouth an ‘oh my god’ to yourself because you never knew it could feel this good to have your neck kissed

“i think it’s hot as fuck that you had a wet dream about me,” namjoon groans lowly and you immediately feel a zing! of electricity travel straight down south from the sound of him speaking to you in such a deep, gravelly voice, “and you definitely don’t have to be shy about asking me to touch you… because i’m very willing to do so.”

“i want you to- w-want you to touch me-” you stutter, feeling your cheeks warm from hearing those words come out of your mouth, “want it so bad-”

your eyes pop open when namjoon suddenly pulls away and you frown, instantly missing the feeling of him being pressed up so tightly against you

“lift your hips-” namjoon pushes the bowl of frosting to the side before tapping two fingers on your upper thigh, “-up off the counter.”

?

your brows knit together in confusion

why would you-

your eyes widen in realisation when it dawns on you what exactly is happening here

“w-what-” you glance at the (for the most part, closed) kitchen door frantically before looking down at joon, “but yoongi’s in the-” you turn back and jump in surprise when you see that namjoon’s face is right in front of yours

you’re practically nose to nose with him

“i know.” namjoon leans in to give you a quick peck before pulling away with a particularly smug grin, “so you’re just going to have to stay quiet for me then, aren’t you?”

you WHAT

“why don’t we get these off, hm?” namjoon hooks a finger into the waistband of your shorts and gives it a gentle tug

you look at the door once again and then back at namjoon, who offers you an innocent little smile as if he didn’t just suggest going down on you on the kitchen counter with your friend in the room next door

okay

think about this!

think about this with your logical brain and not your bonk horny brain

would you rather see your very hot boyfriend’s face in between your legs or would you rather send him away so you can continue making a cake for your very picky friend?

…

you plant both palms on the counter before raising your hips a little, namjoon grinning in victory before yanking your shorts down in one go

if you would’ve known this was going to happen today you definitely would’ve worn a sexier pair of panties

white cotton is boring!!!

also you know this is the wrong time to be thinking this but you’re wondering if it would be possible to rope yoongi into a shopping spree at victoria’s secret next week because you’re going to need better looking panties if namjoon’s going to keep springing these spontaneous sessions on you

“cute.” namjoon hums, poking at the little blue bow that sits at the centre of the waistband

your breathing stills as he slowly lowers himself to his knees in front of you and you feel like your heart is about to beat out of your chest at the sight alone 

“soaked right through…” namjoon observes quietly, turning his head to press a kiss to the pillowy flesh of your inner thigh, “i’ve barely touched you, baby.”

you jolt in surprise when he runs his thumb slowly up your slit through the thinned fabric of your panties, though he stops right as he’s about to reach your clit

so close yet so, so painfully far

you nudge him with your foot, “you’re teasing.” you swallow thickly, namjoon offering you a boyish grin as he tilts his head, pushing his bottom lip out in a mocking pout

“aw… am i?” he coos, and you shiver when he leans in to press a kiss over your clothed clit, “i’m sorry, darling… that must be so hard for you…”

“and you’re being mean.” you murmur, namjoon chuckling to himself as he pulls your panties down your legs

“am not.”

“are too.”

“am not.” namjoon perks a brow, pushing your thighs apart gently, “take it back.”

“no wa-!” your back immediately straightens as if a jolt of electricity just shot straight up your spine at the first feeling of namjoon licking one long stripe up your centre, and you fight back the urge to snap your legs shut

that’s.,., new!

very new

very new feeling

you’re certainly not against it and it’s not a bad feeling 

it’s just…

new

“good?” your breath wavers when namjoon hums against you, your eyelids fluttering shut at the feeling of his tongue slowly pressing in deep, “hm?”

namjoon slips his tongue in between your folds before sliding it flat and straight up to your swollen clit, grinning to himself when you finally give in to pleasure and lie back on the counter

you whimper, rolling your hips down towards his mouth as he drags his tongue over your slit in repetitive strokes before flicking his tongue over the top of your clit

it’s too much and not enough at the same time, your legs instinctively starting to squeeze shut around him

“nuh-uh, baby…” you find that you can barely move, namjoon’s fingers digging into your thigh as a warning as he keeps your legs open, “keep them spread for me.”

namjoon watches your reaction intensely, finding pleasure in the way that your chest rises and falls quickly and in the way you twitch every now and again

from here, he can see the way your brows furrow and the way you bite and tug at your bottom lip in a poor effort to keep yourself quiet 

“you can use your words like a good girl, can’t you?” namjoon teases, two fingers rolling tight little circles into your clit as he watches you, barely blinking, “tell me how good it feels…”

“good- ungh, feels good-” you whimper, hips bucking up against his fingers desperately

namjoon looks down to see you practically dripping onto the counter

jesus 

he would’ve done this a lot sooner had he known you’d be acting like this from his touch 

“fuck me,” namjoon groans suddenly, and all of a sudden it seems like everything’s moving ten times faster than before, “you look so fucking hot right now-”, he wraps his strong arms underneath both your thighs before yanking you closer to him, practically burying his entire face in between your legs

your right leg gets hitched up over his shoulder and you quickly sit back up, digging your fingers into the soft strands of namjoon’s hair as his tongue laves back and forth against your folds

your back arches and you tilt your head up towards the ceiling, namjoon instinctively pushing his clothed crotch against the bottom part of the counter for some kind of relief 

he’s so painfully hard from just hearing you hold back moans and watching you squirm and twitch 

you remind yourself to loosen your grip on namjoon’s hair because you’re worried that you might accidentally rip some strands out and leave him with a bald patch, but namjoon obviously doesn’t seem to mind as he doubles his efforts and starts to lick and and suck with tremendous fervour 

“fuck, you taste good-” he curses, his right hand sliding underneath your sweatshirt to cup your bare breast before he pinches and rolls your nipple in between his fingers

he drags his tongue down to circle around your tight hole and you jerk immediately, “oh my god-” you pant, overwhelmed by all the different feelings your body is experiencing at this moment, “that feels so-”

your bum is teetering on the edge of the counter at this point because namjoon’s basically pulled you off of it and you reach down to grip at the edges so you don’t fall off 

“gonna cum?” namjoon murmurs, eyes locking on your face almost immediately as he feels you starting to squirm underneath him 

he really wants to watch you cum

“j-joonie, god, don’t stop-” the arm wrapped around your waist tightens around you and your eyes roll to the back of your head as he continues his torturous onslaught of pleasure, “i-i- nngh- namjoon-!”

“i’ve got you, baby… you can cum…” namjoon feels himself twitch in his sweats upon hearing you moan his name like that 

the thought of gagging you with your own panties to mute your moans briefly flits through his mind but... he wants to hear you moaning his name over and over and over again 

he wants to make you scream for him

when it happens, you practically bite your bottom lip off trying not to cry out in ecstasy

namjoon has to hold your trembling thighs open to keep them from snapping his head right off

your hips buck lazily as you quiver around namjoon’s hot tongue, your body glistening in a sheen layer of sweat as you bask in the slow, rolling waves of ecstasy

you lie back down against the counter, chest heaving beneath your sweater as you stare dazedly up at the ceiling

oh, wow

you watch as the ceiling fan whirrs around and around and around

you feel like you’re not physically here right now 

like your soul left your body and you’re just floating in the air like a bunch of particles 

“-!” you twitch when namjoon carefully wipes you off with your panties before setting them onto the counter next to you 

you slowly prop yourself up onto your elbows so you can look at him, feeling your cheeks flush when you see that he’s looking right at you 

you’re not sure why you’ve gone all shy again as if his tongue wasn’t licking you out ten seconds ago 

“hi, pretty girl...” he smiles, his dimple popping up in his right cheek, “welcome back.” he jokes, rising to his feet while keeping your right leg propped up onto his shoulder

he turns to give your ankle a kiss before gently bringing your leg down and helping you sit up

“that was really something...” you wrap your arms loosely around his neck as he grasps your hips before leaning down to give you a sweet little kiss 

“oh yeah? did i live up to dreamjoon?” namjoon teases, reaching up to tuck a strand of hair behind your ear before pinching the apple of your cheek 

“you did a much better job than dreamjoon.” you hum, and it’s only then that you’re aware of the very prominent bulge pressing into your centre, “but i... i wanna make you feel good, too…” you murmur, namjoon biting back a groan when you nudge your bare centre against him, a darkened splotch now staining the front of his sweatpants  “and…” you lean upwards to whisper something into namjoon’s ear

...

...

holy shit

yes please

“yeah, shit, we can definitely do that-” namjoon hates to admit to how horny he is but he can’t help it when you go around saying stuff like that to him, “we-” he pauses suddenly, eyes going wide in panic, “oh, shit!” 

“wh- what??” you look around the kitchen frantically before grabbing the closest thing to you as a form of defence (a silicone whisk) 

“friggin’ yoongi-!” namjoon hisses in pain as he adjusts himself in his sweatpants, “i forgot about yoongi-”

okay

a little weird of him to be thinking about yoongi while he’s touching his- 

“oh my god, yoongi!” you hiss quietly, hopping off the counter with wobbly legs 

namjoon hands you your shorts and you quickly wiggle into them before pulling your sweatshirt down  

you completely forgot that yoongi was in the room right next to you guys and that last moan of yours wasn’t exactly quiet

and you know that yoongi might not have a lot of knowledge when it comes to baking, but you’re sure that he knows enough to know that practically screaming namjoon’s name out loud isn’t a key step in achieving a fluffy cake batter 

“we weren’t doing anything!” 

the two of you stumble out into the living room and you file through your brain to come up with some kind of a logical excuse as to why you’re hot and sweaty and why namjoon’s hiding his lower half behind a kitchen towel and how in the world those two facts are related to his precious carrot cake cupcakes

you pause when you notice that yoongi’s nowhere to be found 

?

the documentary’s still playing on the TV, the boxes of tinsel and baubles have been completely abandoned, and there’s nothing but a blue sticky note sitting on the couch 

taking a nap in my car. text me when you guys are done being horny. also - you’re welcome. 

christmas with cee 2020 masterlist

🎁what would you like from ceenta this year? 🎁

[playtwewy]

Idk if anyone else has talked about this (if so, I have not seen it) but I find the idea of Rindo as a proxy, especially in comparison to Neku, and his relationship to Joshua, fascinating to think about.

Because with Rindo, he is a proxy in the same way Neku was in the Game three years ago, but he does not have that connection in narrative with Joshua the way Neku did nor is he told explicitly that he is a proxy by the end.

(I'll put my rambling under a cut lol)

[Also spoilers for both games and their secret reports]

Of course, this is because Neku has a mutual relationship with Joshua. They've interacted far beyond what those boundaries should have been since Joshua actively participated in his own game as an illegal player. He talked with Neku and, in terms of character arcs, you could argue that twewy is as much about Joshua's growth as it is Neku's, and we are constantly reminded of their connection throughout the game.

In ntwewy though, its not ever revealed to Rindo that he is a proxy, that he was chosen by Joshua to represent all of Shibuya and his desire to preserve it from purification. Its the reason, hinted at in the secret reports, Kubo gave Rindo the Replay pin when he could have, theoretically, chosen anyone. Although its also hinted at that Joshua could have also given it to him? (I dont think we ever know for sure since Mr. H doesn't)

But what about Rindo makes him Joshua's choice for proxy?

We know from the secret reports Rindo has a powerful imagination as did Neku (altho yes I know the lore makes neku extremely op) otherwise he probably wouldn't have been able to use the pin or even been summoned into the UG.

But is there anything else?

Well, I think so.

I think, just as with Neku, Joshua chose him because he saw himself in Rindo.

But what is my evidence for this?

It is stated over and over again in the secret reports that, in contrast to Neku, Rindo's soul isn't going through any growth while in the current version of the Reaper's Game.

We find out later what is leading to this:

And I think, while Joshua doesn't have the indecision that Rindo does, I think he also has/had a problem with taking responsibility.

He stays his own decisions several times in the favor of games or risk, with his Conductor over the fate of Shibuya and as well as his final duel with Neku. He spends several days to possibly a week in an alternate universe playing tin pin, almost seeming content to avoid the outcome of the mess he's left behind. There's this line:

and, while not a ton of evidence, I think the conclusion that Joshua avoids responsibility is a little valid, okay?

But my interpretation that Rindo and Joshua are possible parallels to each other leads me to have a small theory behind Joshua absence in ntwewy.

It is stated in the secret reports and by Kubo himself that those of the Higher Plane are not to interfere directly in the game.

But its interesting that Kubo still interacts with players in the UG and has direct contact with Rindo at points despite the fact that he is an Angel and tasked with Shibuyas destruction (kinda similar to how Joshua partnered with Neku is week two even though it was illegal lol). This is in contrast to Joshua, who is absent the entire time until right before the games conclusion.

We also know from the secret reports that the Higher Plane is lax when it comes to Kubo because of the divisiveness of Shibuya's destruction, so it makes sense they would be lenient towards him to ensure it.

Mr. H also states that he is forbidden from interfering this time around and I think we all have come to the conclusion that this is because of the events of twewy. And I think the same is held true for Joshua. It seems likely given his previous actions, the Higher Plane would have forbidden him from direct contact in this game except for choosing the proxy to represent him.

Just as the Reaper's Game Rindo plays is rigged to favor Shiba's will, the game Joshua is playing against Kubo is biased towards the latter.

But back to the subject of responsibility - I believe, as Rindo made the decision given to him by Haz to accept responsibility in exchange for a chance to save his friends and Shibuya, Joshua made his decision not to interfere with the Game and accept responsibility for whatever outcome it provided, whether or not it was what he wanted, or what insured Shibuya’s survival.

Its also interesting that the secret reports bring up Haz's interference as a way to draw Joshua to action.

And I think it could be because Joshua had accepted Shibuya's fate and had still stood by his decision despite a bleak outcome.

Anyway, I say all this to say that Rindo and Joshua have a fascinating relationship. And even if my interpretations are inaccurate, I think there's some thing to be said that Joshua at least had to trust Rindo to an extent and also tried to repay him by helping Shoka, and yet they have never really spoken to each other.

I dont know, the fact that there is someone out there with a connection to Joshua who doesn't even know the extent of it, kills me, and id like to think there's even more under the surface.

[romanceimp]

Relflections

hello, hello,

welcome to the dark side... this is my second collab with bnharem. Please, please, read through the rest of the collab list HERE. I am so grateful to be working with so many other talented writers and artists on this. Special shout out to @doinmybesthere for beta reading and for @kuso-deku whom I dedicate this piece fror giving me the Mirio brain rot...

TW: NSFW, 18++++ Villains, dub-con moments, sex, violence, YANDERE MIRIO, two crazy people, inter dimensional travel, killing, mentions of blood, dirty talk, some cum play

Around 7000 words

Breaking news: We have yet another report to add to the slew of attacks this month, this comes just days after we broadcast rumours of villains running rampant over the city. This spate of attacks has put the entire metropolitan area at a standstill, road closures and damaged property making it difficult for commuters to get to work in the morning. Road maintenance endeavour to do its best to keep the city running, but it seems futile when these attacks continue to increase. The entire city was brought to a standstill by the mysterious villain who has still not been named, but reports show they are nothing like we have ever experienced before. Where are the heroes now? Who will save us from the terror overwhelming our city? Every day the crime toll continues to rise and we have no one here to protect us. The Hero Public Safety Commission assured us earlier in the week that the crime rate would go down, that the top Heroes are out there protecting our city, but if so, where are they? Is it really safe to go out anymore, who can we trust? Would you put your life in the hands of a Hero today? When they have proved our streets are no longer safe. We still have no information on what is going on, or who is involved but we must remain observant. We will continue to report the latest news as we receive it, but for now, we must implore you to heed the warnings of the city-wide curfew that is soon to be implemented. If anyone has any information on these occurrences in the city please send them to us or contact the police, you can remain anonymous. The safety of our citizens is what is most important, stay vigilant and don’t go out unless it is absolutely necessary. One thing we know for sure: we can no longer rely on Heroes to protect us. The streets of our once-great city are no longer safe, we are no longer safe.

You flip off the television and rise from your seat on the couch. Your roommate and the object of your affection had already left for the night. Mirio would never obey that curfew, not as long as there were people he could be saving. That’s Mirio for you… always being the hero, even if he’d lost his quirk ages ago. But ever since the onslaught of new villains, and heroes turning to the darkside you’re patching him up more than normal… He returns with wounds more serious now, the scars abundant on his once smooth skin. He is becoming a reflection of the ruin and carnage that floods the streets. This is why you had come up with, planned out, and prepared for a way to fix everything. You could never stop him from being a hero, it was who he was… but you can get his quirk back… 

You check your pocket one last time… it’s there, wrapped in that small blue handkerchief. You examine the strange item one last time, careful not to prick yourself with it by mistake. It’s shaped like a sewing pin, only slightly larger. One prick, that’s all it takes, one prick and it will absorb the power from the first thing that it touches. Then one more prick, and the next thing it touches will absorb the gathered power. One chance, that’s all you have. 

You grip the chain around your neck and pull the locket out from inside your shirt. You read the engraving on the back, as you always do, and you smile. 

Come back to me ~ Mirio

It had been a gift, something to help you when you were learning how to use your quirk. The going part had always been easy, it was the returning from your travels that had been difficult. You open the locket, one side is a watch, the other a mirror. You check the time and write it down to the second on your arm in biro. 

7:43. 26 PM

You have 8 hours exactly and you fear you’ll need much more time than that. But your quirk’s limits are not forgiving in the slightest. A second longer and you’ll die. 

You take a deep breath, eyes now focussing on the mirror side of the locket. You’d returned this way ever since Mirio gave you the locket, but never once travelled forward through the mirror before. You meet your own eyes and start to feel the familiar pull, your face turning that strange shade of blue. 

Please let this work. Please, take me to Mirio. 

The gravity in the mirror builds and you can feel the surging power of your quirk. You feel yourself meet your reflection, becoming one with it for a split second before you’re absorbed to the other side of the mirror. 

You land in a darkened alley. The smell of stale beer and piss invading your senses, making your head swim even more than normal. The thickness of the summer air does nothing to help. It doesn't matter how many times you use your quirk, it always leaves you dizzy, disoriented. But that was to be expected when travelling to another dimension. Your quirk was dubbed Mirror Image, it allowed you to travel to different dimensions by looking at your own reflection. 

You check your pockets again… it’s still there. The “quirk extractor”, that’s not really what it was called but you’d forgotten the actual name of it. It had taken trying quite a few different dimensions to find something like it. It was very possible that you might never find that place again. You had to treat this like it was the only one in existence, afterall, it was the only one in this existence. But where exactly was this existence?

You blink, vision clearing and you examine the alley. It looks like a regular alley, slimy brick walls, dumpster, broken liquor bottles. A few people walk past on the main street, their laughter echoing off the alley’s walls. A lightbulb buzzes over a shut metal door. But there was no Mirio. The plan was to find a mirror Mirio, a Mirio that had never lost his quirk... extract this Mirio’s quirk and bring it back to your Mirio, the Mirio you loved. 

You had done enough dimensional travel to know that every version of the self was weirdly connected. That’s why you had travelled forward through the mirror he had given you this time. You had hoped it would bring you to another Mirio, since the mirror had never failed to take you back to him… even if you were in a strange corner of the universe. But alas, it was like travelling through any other reflection. As usual, you stand in an unknown location, trying your best to figure out where you’ve ended up. 

You kick a stray tin can in frustration as you walk towards the more populated streets. You laugh at your own stupidity. You knew the real reason you were doing this. Maybe, this act of love, retrieving his stolen quirk would change his mind. Maybe he would take back what he had said all those years ago… the words that would never stop ringing in your ears.

You’re standing on the sidewalk, trying to decide which way to go when the sound of rusty hinges snaps you from your thoughts. You turn to look back down the dim lit alley. A man with shaggy blue hair exits the building, his red eyes gleam and your heart drops. It’s hard to see but you’d know his face anywhere, he’s practically taken over your city, Shigaraki Tomura. Take a few steps to where you’re concealed by the wall of the building. He speaks to someone who is still inside the building. You angle your head to try and hear over the busy street. “They’ve just been getting in the way is all, and I need you to get them out of the way… see?” 

Why did your quirk take you to Shigaraki when you had specifically thought of Mirio? The streetlight’s shadows help to hide your shape. You peek around to see who he is talking to. Your breath hitches in your throat as you see the tall blonde exit from the building’s wall. Mirio. You watch as he leans his shoulder against the brick from which he just emerged. He looks taller, stronger, and still has his quirk… would your Mirio have looked like this if his power had never been robbed?  His grey tshirt is pulled tight around his body and his usually done hair is ungelled, almost messy, bangs hanging just above his eyes. “That’s easy, you have anything actually worth my time?” he jokes. Shigaraki looks unamused, eyes closing in annoyance.

 “Just do it, and don’t make it so messy this time… you tend to leave a trail wherever you go,” Shigaraki scolds. Mirio grins, but it’s not the same warm smile you’d grown to love, this smile is darker, more sinister. “I’ll take care of it boss, sheesh, you worry too much,” he rolls his shoulder on the wall until his back is flush against the brick. He pushes off of it and heads towards the end of the alley. You panic as he heads your way. “It’s that hotel on the corner of Roosevelt and Third,” Shigaraki screeches after Mirio who gives him a wave of his hand. “If you weren’t so useful I’d kill you,” Shigaraki adds. Mirio’s laugh bounces off of the alley walls. “You could try,” he calls as he rounds the corner, just passing you as you crouch near some bags of garbage praying he doesn’t notice you. But he passes you, languidly walking towards the destination he was just given by Shigaraki Tomura. That’s when it hits you… by going through Mirio’s mirror, you have found yourself a mirror Mirio. An exact opposite to the man you know.  

The thoughts are swirling around in your head but there’s no time to sort through them… you have to follow him. You slowly rise from your hiding place and melt into the crowds of people. It’s lucky that Mirio is so tall, it makes him easy to follow from a safe distance away. The crowded main streets turn to less populated side streets and you have to maneuver accordingly to stay well hidden. Mirio approaches a building with a neon sign that spells out HOTEL in red letters. A glowing arrow points to the double doors at the front of the building. He hurries up the steps before slipping inside.  

You follow close behind to make sure not to lose him inside but leave a long enough gap so that it isn’t too obvious. Upon entering, you’re met with the old red carpet that should have been replaced twenty years ago. Dust clings to the fabric of the sofa and cobwebs dangle from the antique crystal chandelier. The floor is well polished however, reflecting the lights that hang from the ceiling. It’s strange that there’s no clerk at the desk but a few people piddle about the lobby. A man makes eye contact with you, furrowing his brow in confusion. A woman in a short, low cut dress slips her hand below another man's belt and whispers something in his ear. No one blinks when Mirio makes a beeline down the hallway to the left. This was not an ordinary hotel. You walk calmly after Mirio and peer down the long dark corridor. There’s not sight of him but you watch the door at the end of the hall close. There. The lights in this section of the hall are off and everything seems quiet, whereas the hall to the right was lit and loud. Sounds of pleasure and partying spilling from underneath each door. You curse Mirio for walking down the more sinister path and follow begrudgingly. 

The hall is dark save one room where hysterical cries seep out. You don’t want to know what was going on and instead keep your eyes trained on the small bit of light that pours from the window inside that end door. Upon closer inspection there is a coating of condensation on the glass. This must be the pool. 

You retrieve the quirk extractor from your pocket and remove it from it’s wrapping, careful not to prick yourself.  You slowly open the door he had gone through just moments ago. You slid inside the door slowly and carefully, making more sound than you would have liked, but it can’t be helped. Any sound easily bounces off the water of the glistening blue pool. The smell of chlorine is overwhelming and you start to realise that there aren’t very many good hiding places in a place like this.... And Mirio is nowhere to be found. You grip the quirk extractor as you hear a door towards the back of the room slam shut. Another exit… your footsteps echo far more than you would like for them to as you head towards the door. 

“Gotchya.”

The voice startles you. Your grip on the quirk extractor falters, coupled with the way you jump… you watch as it slowly descends into the water, effectively pricking the pool. The ball at the end of the extractor emits a green light as it sinks to the bottom. “You idiot!” you shout before you can think better of it. Mirio steps from the wall and quirks an eyebrow up at you. “Me idiot? You’re the one following me with the stealth of one of the 3 stooges.”

He looks even more dangerous up close. A long scar descends from his chin down his neck. And while his eyes are the same colour, there’s a glint in them which your Mirio lacks. He’s faster as this version of himself, and you don’t have time to think before your back is against the cold tile wall. “So gorgeous, gonna tell me what that thing was and why you’re following me… or will I just rip the answers out of you one by one.” You’re too confused watching as he looms over you. His expression is half pleased, half irritated. You inhale to speak but the words don’t come. The smile on his face right now… it’s the expression of someone who has killed and enjoyed it. It’s never something you could have pictured to play across Mirio’s face and it jars you. A chill runs up your spine and goosebumps prickle on your arms. He’s terrifying but also so beautiful. 

One of his hands moves up to grip your throat as he growls, “I’m waiting, bitch.” You flail as his grip tightens, scratching your nails into his arm in hopes that he will let go.  “Please Mirio, I-I’m sorry.” His grip loosens suddenly but his hand stays around your neck. “What did you call me?” You cough and inhale, then meet his eyes. There is a familiar curiosity within his gaze but it’s joined by something else, that same strange glint. Is it amusement or something much more sinister? You can’t put your finger on it. “Mirio, your name is Mirio,” you murmur. A sly smile crosses his face as he moves closer to you, his hips pinning yours to the tile. “Yes, but how do you know that?” 

You stutter, trying to find the right words, a sigh haphazardly escaping your lips as the heat from his body becomes intoxicating. “You been sent to spy by the heroes?” You shake your head and try to wiggle free, but only succeed in grinding against him. A low laugh bubbles from his throat as he pins your wrists above your head with one hand and stills your hips with his other. “That’s real cute, but not gonna get you out of trouble with me…” His eyes flick down your body then back up. “Quite the opposite actually,” he teases. Your face feels warm and your eyes dart down and away. “Aww you’re so shy now, makes me wanna eat you up.” Mirio tilts your chin upwards so you’re looking at him. His eyes have softened slightly. “Just tell me,okay? I don’t wanna have to hurt ya.” There's a strange pleading in his tone, a sincerity you didn't expect. “We know each other, Mirio… well sort of,” you match the tone of his voice. A smirk breaks on his face, “are you my stalker?” You roll your eyes, he still had a sense of humour in this universe. It’s nice to know some things never change. 

“No, no we’re friends, but I know a different… you.” He blinks before his eyes narrow. He starts to speak but you continue to explain… about your quirk, the Mirio you know, and how you’d planned to steal his quirk. You show him your locket, the engraving. He still seems suspicious as he turns it over in his hands, examining it. “You’re a crafty little liar, I’ll give you that, had this made and all, but now I’ll have to pull the truth out of you, and like I said, I really didn’t want to have to do that to you.” “Wait… I can prove it, just let me use the mirror… then I’ll leave you alone.” Mirio looks you up and down again before opening the locket and holding it out for you. 

You focus on your reflection and watch as your face turns that strange blue black colour. Guilt seeps from your mind and travels down your spine as you’re pulled towards your reflection. The quirk extractor was sitting at the bottom of the pool, now carrying within it the power of chlorine… You hadn’t helped Mirio, only discovered a dark side to his existence… which wasn’t all that bad it seemed. He hadn’t harmed you at all, just threatened you slightly and even then it had seemed he was teasing and flirting more than anything. Your Mirio had never flirted with you… on purpose. The pull of the mirror became stronger and there was a strange sadness, a feeling that you would miss this version of Mirio. This version of Mirio was void of the sunshine that the original Mirio held within him at all times, but this Mirio seemed to see you. This Mirio had given you more in a few seconds than the original Mirio had in years. You shut your eyes as you began to fall into the mirror’s reflection. The original Mirio’s words that he’d said to you that day still hanging heavy in your heart. You laugh at your own pathetic nature for the second time today. You fantasies of Mirio were just that… just fantasies. In all universes. 

A hand pushes you backwards away from the mirror. The impact is so strong you stumble, but the same hand catches you and pulls you into him. You gasp for air, your head reeling from being ripped from the portal. Mirio holds you close, rubbing a hand up and down your back. “I’m so sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you, I just- I didn’t want you to go.” His voice is riddled with guilt, shaking slightly. You fist your hands into his shirt, gripping the fabric as you struggle to stand. “Whoa whoa, hey,” he consoles as he sinks to his knees, bringing you with him. He wraps his arms around you and pulls you into his lap. “I really didn’t mean to- I’m sorry,” he murmurs. “I’m okay, I’ve just never been pulled from a portal before,” you stutter. His thumb brushes over your face temple. “You remember your name?” You state your name and he repeats it, “Y/n… I love it.” A smile plays on your features, cheeks heating once again upon hearing the compliment. “Hey, what’s 2 + 2?” 

“4,”

“Damn, well I guess you’re a math wiz.”

Your eyes flutter open and he smiles, “there she is.” You squeeze your eyes shut then open them once more in an effort to stop the room from spinning. “Are you gonna kill me now?” you drawl. Mirio pouts, “well that depends, are you still gonna steal my quirk for other me?” You laugh and roll your head away from him. “I can’t, it’s in the pool now, it’s absorbed the fucking power of chlorine.” Mirio laughs, “well whose fault is that?” You look up at him, there’s an intensity to his gaze when you meet his eyes. Your heart hammers against your chest… “yours.” You start to sit up, his arms still cling to you. “You’re the dummy who let go just ‘cuz I scared you.” You hum considering his words, “you don’t scare me Mirio.” 

His arms relax around you and you move to lay down on the tile floor. Your back relaxes against the floor and you move your arms over your head to rest your head in your hands. “You should be afraid, I’m a whole different me, sweetheart,” he remarks. He moves to lay next to you, mimicking your position. “You’re still Mirio,” you sigh, your eyes taking in the blank space of the ceiling. “You don’t know the things I’ve done, my body count, nothing.” “You’re still Mirio,” you insist. Laying like this you can hear the echo of your words bouncing off of the water. “He’s lucky, other me… to have a girl like you.” His last few words are whispered, failing to bounce around the room. They hang over you, adding weight to the atmosphere. “Ah well, the Mirio in my universe doesn’t see it that way,” you deflect. Mirio rolls to face you, his head laying in the crook of his arm. “I know we don’t know each other… not really, but it’s strange, I feel like I’ve known you forever.” You turn your head to look at him. His eyes are practically on fire now, that small glint having grown into a flame. “In a way we have, I know a version of you… what I’ve come to find is every universe has overlaps of some sort… you and the Mirio I know will share some things… memories even.” Mirio’s face lights up, “yes exactly, I feel like I’ve seen you in a dream or something…” You shrug, “it’s possible.” Mirio smiles, it’s a familiar smile, a sincere happiness that the Mirio of your universe wears often. Much different than the smiles this Mirio had even just a few moments ago. 

“Why are you a villain?” you ask him. Mirio clutches his chest in mock pain. “That hurts, sweetheart… Just because I don’t accept the truths the rule makers of our world have given me… that’s what makes me a “villain”?” You narrow your eyes, “I meant more that you’re a hitman working for Shigaraki Tomura.” He laughs, “heard that did you? Guess you were following me for longer than I’d realised.” He pauses and moves closer to you. “I have no problem getting rid of a few people who won’t contribute anything of value… most lives are a total waste, I’m merely an exterminator… getting rid of the bad to make more space for the good…” He says it so casually that it makes chills run up your spine. “So does that make you the good or the bad?” He laughs again though this time he is less amused with your question. “I’m just a sacrificial pawn, sweetheart… can’t be good to make space for it.” 

You reach out and touch his bare arm. His skin is hot against his fingertips. “You didn’t hurt me… when you thought I was lying, you can’t be bad…” He smiles, “That’s just because I see how good you are and I want to protect that… protect you.” His hand begins to mirror yours, stroking up and down your arm with light fingertips. “If you can see the good, then that makes you good.” 

His fingers grip into your arm and he pulls you closer to him. He reaches for the back of your neck when he notices the smudge of ink on his hand. He examines your arm and finds the numbers. “What’s this?” he asks. You sigh, “it’s the time I have to go…” He pulls your face closer to his, your noses almost touching. “You can’t stay?” You shake your head, “Only for 8 hours, else I’ll be torn apart by the universal pulls… I’m not really supposed to be here ya know,” you joke. Mirio’s face falls, “Can you come back?” You shrug, “I can but the time I can stay is deducted every single time I return to a universe until I can no longer visit anymore…” Mirio’s thumb rubs soft circles into the flesh of your cheek. “What should we do then?” he asks. You smile sadly before sitting up. You give him an impish smirk. “Well, there’s a pool, I say we swim.” 

You start by removing your top, slowly peeling it away and discarding it to the floor. Mirio follows, taking off his grey tshirt. His figure is chiseled, each muscle toned and defined. You start unbuttoning your trousers when you feel the heat of his chest flush against your back. “Can I?” he asks as his hands rest on your hips. You nod and he slowly pulls your pants down your legs. He helps you step out of them before throwing them towards the growing pile of clothes. “You’re so beautiful,” he murmurs into your skin, trailing kisses up your thighs. You grab his face with two hands and pull him to standing. “My turn,” you smirk, looping your fingers in his belt loops and pulling him towards you. You undo his pants, kissing down his chest. Savoring the taste of his skin. He groans at your touch and you feel the heat pooling low in your belly. His pants removed his stands only in grey underwear, while you remain in your bra and panties. 

You teasingly move away from him and stand on the first rung of the ladder in the deep end of the pool. You look back to where he stands, calling him to you with your gaze. He groans as he moves towards you. “I’m really holding back you know,” he growls, pressing his chest against your back, his a. “Why hold back? You can have whatever you want… Just take it, make it yours.” Mirio trails his lips up your neck, ready to suckle a mark into your skin, when you add, “if you can,” and step off the ladder into the blue water. 

As soon as the water touches your skin you’re swimming towards the other side. You hear Mirio dive in after you and know that this has all been futile. He grabs your hand and slings you gently towards the wall. He places both of his hands on either side of your body, pinning you. You wipe the water from your eyes before wrapping them around his neck. “You caught me so fast… I thought you’d chase me around more,” you provoke. He shakes the water from his hair and moves his body closer to yours. “Chasing you is a waste of fucking time right? I want to have you,” he growls. You open your mouth to say something but are silenced by his lips on yours. 

The kiss is needy, sloppy. He kisses you like he’s starving, finally being fed. His tongue draws circles around yours before sucking it into his mouth. You moan into the kiss and he responds by pulling you closer, grinding on your clothed cunt with his hardening cock. He moves to run his tongue along your bottom lip before nipping at it. You sight into the kiss, turning your head to deepen it. You pull away a wry smile on your face. Mirio’s pupils are blown, that unfamiliar glint in his eye now having a name for it, desire. 

“Miri, I want you,” his hips stutter against yours upon hearing this. “Fuck princess, I won’t be able to hold back anymore if you keep looking at me like that.” You pepper kisses to his face, tasting the chlorine on his skin. “Don’t hold back,” you whisper, “I trust you, you’re good to me, I’m yours if that’s what you really want.” His breath shakes upon hearing this and he presses his forehead to yours. “Mine? All fucking mine? Like this me?” You nod and kiss him again. This time you catch his bottom lip and suck it, pulling on it just to hear him moan. 

He helps lift you to where you’re sitting on the edge of the pool. He peels your panties down your legs before spreading them. He kisses one of your thighs before massaging the other. “So fucking perfect,” he praises, “all fucking mine.” He trails his hand and mouth up the inside of your thigh. He spreads your folds, drinking in the sight of your bare cunt. “Fuck, you’re perfect,” he sighs. “I’m gonna make you forget about any other versions of me, you’re going to be all mine.” He presses a kiss to your clit, “gonna be all fucking mine, princess.” 

He drags his tongue, slow, up your slit and circles it around your clit before sucking on it gently. You stifle a whine and you can feel him smiling in pride. “That is princess, lemme hear those sweet sounds.” He does the same move again and this time you don’t hold it in. Your sounds of pleasure echo around the pool, bouncing around and finally landing back on your own ears. But you don’t hear them, as you’re too lost in the pleasure. Mirio grips the wall of the pool with one hand while the other comes up to rest on your lower abdomen. His thumb starts rubbing soft circles on your clit while his tongue circles your hole. “Tastes so fucking good,” he growls and then shoves his tongue inside. The muscle is hot, wet, and he slowly begins to add more pressure to your clit while tongue fucking you. You’re completely overcome with a mind melting pleasure as you fall back onto your elbows, your hips grinding against his face. You aren’t sure how, but you can already feel that familiar knot forming in the pit of your stomach. You’re close and Mirio seems to know as he picks up the pace. “Cum all over my face- wanna taste you-” His permission was all you needed and soon you’re clamping down around his tongue, calling broken syllables of his name. He kisses your cunt as you come down from your high. “Such a good girl for me, cumming when I say.”

He lifts himself out of the pool and removes his underwear. He’s thick, incredibly so and long. The head is red, leaking pre cum. You groan at the sight, cunt aching to be filled. You reach for him, pulling him on top of you. He kisses you, deep, passionate, with lots of tongue and teeth. You can feel his cock, thick and hard pressing into your thigh. He ruts his hips into yours, his cock sliding along your thigh. “Please,” you beg. He growls and flips you to where you’re on top and he sits pressing you to him, cock wedged between the two of you. You grind against him in anticipation. “Please Miri,” you plead. He lifts you and in one swift move, you’re impaled on his cock. 

You cry out, and it echoes back to you. The stretch is incredible, a pleasurable, dull pain that makes your eyes roll into the back of your head. He carefully thrusts up into you, and you crumble, burying your face in the crook of his neck. “I don’t wanna hurt my baby,” he coos, body stilling. You shake your head, “no it feels good, y-you're just so big.” He laughs darkly, “you love the pain, don't you?” He gives another thrust to test your reaction and this time he can feel it. Your pussy dripping down his cock.He looks down, eyes blowing at the sight, “fuck baby look, I’m not even all the way inside…” You look down and moan, his cock is a little over half inside. It’s too big to fit all the way. “You cute little cunt keeps throbbing on my cock, and when she does, she drools.” He wipes up some of your combined juices with his thumb and rubs into your clit again, just as he had before. Then he starts to move. 

He starts slowly bouncing you in his lap at a gentle pace, but soon his eyes change and his thrusts become harder and faster. “I’m sorry princess, but you feel too good, I need more of you, need all of you.” Mirio fucks into you harder, his cock so big he hits every spot inside of you that makes you weak with each thrust. Your cries become louder and more desperate. His cock kissing your cervix with each thrust causes you to disintegrate in his lap. The lewd sounds of his hips smacking into your ass fills the pool. Mirio’s eyes flick down and he growls. “Look at that baby, ‘m all the way inside now, doing so good, so fucking perfect taking every inch I have to give. God you’re fucking made for me.” You sink your teeth into his neck in a desperate effort to stave off your orgasm, to savor the moment you’d waited so long for. The moment where you and Mirio Togata become one. But it feels too good, the pleasure so intense that you’re pushed over the edge again, clenching tightly around Mirio’s fat cock. “Fuck baby, do that again, milk my cock for me while I fuck you into my shape.” 

His thrusts become sloppier but he manages to continue to hit all your spots, driving his cock into you at a bruising pace. You’re shaking in his lap, body convulsing from your last orgasm as another starts to build. “Fucking hell baby, you’re so fucking perfect, and you’re mine, all fucking mine.” His hips start to stutter but his pace quickens. “I’m all yours Miri, yes, I’m yours,” you moan. He pulls your head towards him and kisses you with that same hunger as before, teeth gripping at your lower lip and him sucking on your tongue. You moan into his mouth as your orgasm washes over you, white hot. It’s too much and sends him over the edge. “That’s it, milk my cock, milk my fucking cock,” he pants, pouring his cum deep inside you. “I’m gonna get you pregnant, gonna make you mine forever,” he growls as his hot ropes of cum still paint your walls. 

Your body is shaking, the post orgasm cold mixed with your wet body has goosebumps prickling your body. He pulls his cock out and groans at the way his cum drips from your hole. He smiles, “you’re even more beautiful now that I’ve claimed you.” You smile against his skin. “I feel more beautiful,” you reply. But Mirio’s words ring in your ears. You sit up quickly but wince. “I hurt you, I’m so-” “No, that isn’t it…” You lay your head in the crook of his neck. “The longer I’m here in this dimension the weaker I become… but I’m okay, don't worry.” You nuzzle into him, trying to steal some of his warmth. He caresses your back, “I wish you could stay…” “I-I have to go back, we can’t be together forever, even though it’s all I want,” when you finally say the words you start to cry. Mirio wraps his arms around you. “You’re cold,” he says. He helps you up holding your hands, “can you stand?” You nod and he walks you back towards the shallow end of the water. He eases himself in first and then takes your hand to help you do the same. 

He cradles you to him, “but you can go back to other me, and when you make love to him, you can just think of me… we’re the same.” You look into his eyes, face pleading, “that’s just it Mirio, you aren’t the same at all… he will never love me.” Mirio’s face darkens, anger, pure anger resides in his features. “Why not?” You take a deep breath. These were the words that haunted you from the moment the other Mirio had spoken them. “He told me, I will always love you, but I will never, ever, love you like that.” You whisper this secret to him.

Mirio can see it, the weight you’ve carried in your heart. That Mirio might save people all day long, be an actual hero, but he’s the one that’s more fucked… evil. Breaking the most perfect girl he has ever known into small pieces. No, Mirio could never let such evil exist, even if that evil was technically himself. “I’m gonna kill him,” he vows as he cradles you protectively. 

Your eyes widen, and you grip onto his face. He looks at you, smiling. “Miri, do you really want to be with me forever?” He nods and kisses you, “more than anything, you’re mine now, I’ve claimed you, you belong to me.” “I belong to you,” you echo and press your forehead against his. “I think I know a way,” you inform, the grin breaking over your face. He awaits an explanation with wide eyes. “You can come back to my world with me.” Mirio narrows his eyes in confusion, “won’t that kill me? Like it kills you?” You shake your head, “no… that just has to do with the limitations of my quirk… I’ve brought someone back with me before, the only thing is… that there’s already a Mirio in my universe, which could technically throw time and space out of balance. But there’s a small window where it wouldn’t… and if you really want to kill him… then there would only be one again.” You smile and hold his face, peppering it with kisses. “You can kill him and take his place!” 

You’re met with Mirio’s grin and another sloppy kiss. “I knew I was right about you, you’re perfect.” You both climb out of the pool and dress in your clothes again. You put the locket around your neck and open it focussing on your reflection. For the first time, holding the mirror, you don’t feel the weight of the other Mirio’s words. This Mirio, now your Mirio, has filled the void that the Mirio of your universe put inside your heart. You wonder now if you’d really loved him all this time or if it was a disguised hatred and rage. You’d always found blood somewhat disturbing but now you were excited to see it. Excited to watch the man who hurt you bleed out and be destroyed by the man you loved. Excited to watch him die. 

 You grip Mirio’s hand in yours, finger interlaced. “Just don’t let go, no matter what, okay?” Mirio kisses your hand. “I won’t, swear,” he confirms. 

Your face begins to change and you feel the gravity sucking you back into your reflection, but this time, you won’t be returning to him alone and in pieces. You’ll be returning to him whole.  This time… it would be him lying in pieces on the floor. 

[voicefromthecorner]

This unnamed friend story is one we only get related to us by Another Day Neku. But I've always said I'm not typically one to assume information like this exists for its own sake. I don't think this is just a random sad side story for our counterpart protagonist just to give him a bit more motivation to be concerned about Hanekoma. I think this is being shown to us because it's relevant to our Neku as well.

Ultimately this is all a matter of interpretation. Reviewing evidence to look for contradictions, corroborations, or relevant information that lacks either:

One of Neku's opening lines of the whole game is that he doesn't "get" people. "Never have, never will"

When Rhyme dies, Neku feels a sense of deja vu for a specific event, but due to his lost memory, he can't remember what it is.

When talking about the Udagawa tag, Neku says he'd often go there after school, but he doesn't mention how he found it.

In response to a specific question by Joshua about having friends, Neku turns away and dismisses it, specifically saying "I never met anyone fun to be around"

This Neku is driven massively to help Hanekoma, partly out of a fear that he could lose him too and out of a sense of guilt. Hanekoma's fate is a mere case of paranoia here, but when Shiki's life was definitely on the line in our Neku's universe, something he bore the blame for in his own head, his determination to save her was relentless.

We don't know much about either Neku's backstory, though I made a point (that could be nothing) that it seems like Another Day Neku has a happier home life. Obviously there are a number of more explicit differences with him and the world at large, but his insights here do show a very similar point of view and history to our Neku.

Secret Report 12 states that Neku was unable to respond accordingly to CAT's "Enjoy the moment" message because of "past trauma".

This leaves us with two possibilities:

Our Neku never had this friend and his sense of deja vu may have come from somewhere else, possibly even the loss of a parent. He had a different life that led to him finding the mural his own way, but he's still Neku Sakuraba at heart. His friendship with Shiki and opening his world to other people led to him discovering the value of both friendship and community for the first time. Another Day Neku contrasts him by having had a taste of friendship in his past that gives this Tin Pin obsessed version of him a bit more depth as a Neku who had and lost something our Neku discovered in our story.

Our Neku's backstory overlaps with Another Day's version here and this lost friend is an untold part of our Neku's story. It was the source of his deja vu when Rhyme died and the memory of it reinforced the guilt and fear he felt for Shiki being his entry fee. He's largely repressed or lives in denial of the event out of shame, sadness or guilt, which possibly helped to motivate his anti-social worldview. His journey in our game was a rediscovery of friendship as well as the discovery of broader community and its value, having previously tied himself down to one friend and nobody else. Another Day Neku contrasts him with a pre-existing friendship with Mr H and an investment in Tin Pin that led to the differences between them and the divergence in their stories.

So what conclusion do you draw? As I said, I think being told this has a main story purpose and I think the evidence points more to this being a piece of our Neku's backstory that we find out in Another Day. It's interesting though. I like how it's not clearly all one thing but the pieces are there for us to put together as we see fit. But, y'know, "The world as one person sees it is tiny..."

I think it's also an interesting insight into Neku's views and understanding of friendship, especially looking at the situations of his partners. He didn't support the idea of Ai and Mina lying to each other. Shiki had a friend with the same strong shared interest as her. Joshua was a new friend for Neku that agreed and related to him. And Beat was someone who felt guilt and shame at causing the death of someone close to him.

Of course, I'm late in saying all of this, so I'll feel pretty foolish if it's confirmed one way or another in A New Day or NEO.

And obviously, this friend hasn't been seen and remains a mystery, but it has to be wondered if he didn't end up in the Reaper's Game after his death.

[megatron-fucks]

This is part an epilogue for Repayment in Kind that might actually get posted on AO3 sometime, but in case it doesn't I want it to exist somewhere. It has a bunch of little details that I'm obsessed with.

Law of the Peacemakers universe but the only thing you really need to know are Megatron/Optimus/Starscream live together and that Megatron's one friend is Rung.

Post-war Cybertron; TFP with IDW influences. Megatron & Impactor's complicated relationship post-war, some public humiliation singing.

He heard Impactor's voice raise from the room behind them - "know the one! It's like... uh, there's a part about Wheeljack. No, that's not right, we made that version up. Megatron! How does the song go?"

Rung snorted, despite an admirable attempt to hide his laughter.

"You know the song! da-da da da-da da daaaaa and something else, and then it's like-" he slid the balcony door open with some struggle and leaned heavily on the frame. The room behind him was a bright haze of light and warmth compared to Iacon's cold skyline. Past Impactor's limbs, Megatron could see Optimus watching from the couch, and Starscream strewn lewdly in his lap half in recharge. "Something about arsenic."

Megatron did indeed know the song, although he hadn't thought of it in aeons. Even when the two of them had actually been friends, they rarely got overcharged enough to sing together. "What could possibly have brought this up?"

"Your Prime," oh he liked that: your prime, "wants to know what we did when we were- we weren't- y'know. Back in the day."

Ah. "Mostly we worked," Megatron told Optimus, past Impactor's shoulder. "The rest of the time, we drank."

"I hear there was occasional revelry," Optimus said. From this distance, Megatron couldn't quite read his expression.

Impactor smacked his hands together, as if trying to wake himself up. "How does it go? Working in the dark or uh..."

Pinned under the gaze of the room, Megatron had a rare moment of weakness. "When you're working your way in the darkness-" a heavy hand grabbed him, startling his battle systems online, but Impactor was only leaning on him for balance as he stumbled out onto the balcony. "If you vent your tanks on me, you're going over the railing," Megatron warned him.

"in the darkness," Impactor repeated, and for a moment Megatron remembered him as he was. As they both were. "Deep in the spark of the seam..." One off-cycle after a cave-in, stumbling out of a bar together after drowning all their anger and grief and fear, how the words had just poured of them. How dark a time that must have been, if even Impactor felt the need for poetry to describe it. "Where there's a..."

Megatron couldn't help but continue with him. "Where there's a mine or a hole in the ground," with Impactor's gravelly voice joining his, it was easier to let the melody carry him along, "that's what I'm heading for, that's where I'm bound. Look for me under the lode and inside the vein..." and then he looked away from Impactor, and saw the room full of mechs watching him.

"The copper, the clay, the arsenic, and," Impactor stumbled along for a few more seconds, "and uh, tin, isn't it?" He lurched suddenly for the railing, but didn't quite vent once he was leaning over it. Megatron stayed safely out of reach until Impactor pushed himself back up with a sheen of coolant on his helm and glazed optics. "Who was I with that night?" he asked, still staring down the side of the building. He waved a hand somewhere around his helm, and tilted another few degrees. "Good with a drill, never smiled. What was his name?"

Optimus took blessed mercy on him and came to extract Impactor before he made Megatron do anything more foolish. "I'd offer to put you up," Optimus said as he pried Impactor loose, "but Thundercracker and Skywarp have already claimed the spare berth." He gave Megatron a warm glance over his shoulder as he led Impactor away, closing the door as he asked, "Do you remember your address?"

The world went quiet and dark once more. Megatron could feel his face flushed with energon, as if he'd been the one drinking all night. "I have a friend like that," Rung said softly. "Or not a friend, I suppose. Someone who used to be." Megatron slid the balcony door closed once more, but lingered a moment where he was. Behind Rung, giving him a fraction of privacy in which to speak. "It's a strange feeling, isn't it? To be tied to someone you so fundamentally disagree with; no longer loving them, but unable to act as though they mean nothing."

Megatron returned to leaning beside him on the balcony, looking out over the view once more. "It is." He wondered if he should comfort Rung but the doctor didn't seem overly upset. Just pensive, as always. "There was a time when we endured a great deal together. Bonds forged in adversity do not easily break."

"I suppose that's one thing to be said for war," Rung said. "There's no shortage of adversity." Megatron froze, not knowing whether he should laugh, and Rung looked up at him with a wry smile. "Without the war, how many of us here would know one and other?"

He would certainly have never lived with Starscream and a Prime if not for the war. Orion Pax, maybe. In a better world.

---

(Megatron and Impactor are singing Cousin Jack.

I didn't include it here, but I've also got a draft of a scene where Optimus says that the Wreckers are very fond of singing The Chemical Worker’s Song, specifically the part about "every day you're in this place, you're two days nearer death.")

[ichika27]

TWEWY 07

“Like a bolt from the blue... it’s time for an anime review!”

Not exactly an anime review but more like a reaction post but I dunno what other word would rhyme with “blue” that’d fit. Also I hate that I only realized i could’ve used that line as an intro the entire time and forgot about it until recently. It’s a reference to the game and it sorta fits! *sigh*

Anyways, we’re finally at the finale of Week 2! Spoiler warnings for the game as usual.

The two argue as Neku confronts Joshua once again about his murder and the fact that Joshua is an illegal player. Joshua was able to talk Neku into at least holding off the fight as Neku won’t survive without a partner.

I remember back in the game they did have arguments but it wasn’t super bad and Neku rarely confronts Joshua about the memories and instead opts to wait and gather more info. I guess they had to change that cause they can’t just leave everything to inner monologues and a few actual convo. They had to hurry after all.

Upon getting their first mission in a while, Joshua explains stuff about the routes again as they went on their way. He also explains the different types of Noise: ones that are caused by negative emotions from the RG and those that are under the command of reapers. Noise don’t attack reapers normally but Taboo Noise which is the 3rd and uncommon kind does.

I knew this was gonna happen but they made it look sadder with showing them struggling. I still feel bad for them cause they were really nice people. Sota’s last words to Neku is him telling Neku to not give up and win and get Shiki back.

Joshua wonders why Neku is upset and Neku finally gives his speech about how other people are important. Yeah, Josh... he’s changing.

Uzuki is pissed that Neku and Joshua - players - helped her and Kariya out when the taboo noise were attacking them. Kariya tells her to calm down and thanks the boys.

In the anime, Neku decided to help cause he didn’t wanna see anyone else die. In the game he mentions wanting to help the reapers cause he knew it’ll piss them off lol.

The duo reach Udagawa and finishes their mission. I like watching Joshua use the beams when fighting now. I like him as a game partner cause they were so useful lol.

The mission for the last day: defeat Minamimoto who is in Mark City (I looked it up and its apparently the real life name of Pork City. I guess they can use real names now). Their only way up is through the stairs (in the game it was an elevator and you go to every floor, right? Or was that just in Another Day... it’s been a long while since I played it so I’m not sure anymore).

Also, hello there Beat! They really don’t get a proper fight against Beat, huh? Also, still no Noise!Rhyme. When will they show her? Don’t tell me they took out that plot. Also, this means technically Rhyme’s screentime got shortened in the anime.

It was pretty dark on the way up but Uzuki and Kariya turns on the lights to help the boys as a thank you for earlier. They don’t want to be in debt to the players.

The place is acting strange, too because of the noise and Joshua mentions it’s distorted due to it being the “imaginary space” - a parallel world closer to the world of noise. I guess this is their way of explaining the noise plane, then?

Neku gives Beat the pendant back when they finally reached the rooftop. There’s less complaining from Beat in the anime unlike the game where he asks why Neku is helping him by giving it back. Beat then leaves afterwards.

Time to confront Minamimoto! Minamimoto mentions something about “that time” and Neku gets another flash of memory about his death. Ah! They animated this part! The scene looks close to the way it was shown in the game, too!

Neku is now convinced it was Minamimoto who killed him hehe.

The battle begins and the place “breaks” and they end up fighting in this dark void like area where the platforms are these floating shards. In the game it was just the rooftop if I remember correctly but this is exciting to watch, too.

Also, for those who played the game I ask, you guys remember Neku and Joshua’s level 3 fusion attack? Where they hurl this giant meteor from outer space towards the enemy? That wouldn’t make sense if they did that in the anime, right? I mean a meteor how would they--

They had the shards from that dark plane come together to form a giant meteor-like ball and used it to crush Minamimoto.

They actually fucking did it. They made it make sense in the anime! I’m just amazed holy crap! Sadly it doesn’t end there with Minamimoto making a last attack (we all know what it actually is).

*sigh* Minamimoto just explodes into light in this version unlike in the game where he recites the digits of pi. Another thing they had to rush so they can’t have him do that, I guess?

Joshua: “I thought you couldn’t afford to lose. Give up on yourself and you give up on the world.”

This scene! Finally animated! This pose... ah, similar to the game!

Joshua pushes Neku away from the line of fire and Neku falls from the roof as he watches Joshua get hit. Neku feels awful as he thought badly of Joshua the entire time and now Joshua is gone.

Neku wakes up and the conductor tells him he won but at the same time, since Joshua is an illegal player, Neku has to play for a third time.

Finally, Week 3 next episode, everyone! Ah, so close to the finale. They have like, 5 episodes left, right? I wonder how they’d adapt “A New Day” in this...

--

(I never thought I’d still be upset when we lose internet connection when it happened yesterday and I realized TWEWY will have a new episose uploaded soon)

Ah! There’s a lot of stuff cut out from Week 2 and while I’m still sad about those, the scenes they were able to adapt from the anime were pretty good! The level 3 fusion surprised me so much lol.

I guess it’s goodbye to Joshua for now until the end of Week 3 comes. I wonder if the world he went to still has Tin Pin? lol that said alternate universes are a thing in the story so we could think of the anime as one of those AU wherein things happen too fast and many things from the original game world don’t exist. I hope Joshua gets to experience Tin Pin while he’s away. In the game Josh doesn’t come back until later cause he was too busy playing a kid’s game. Let the guy have some fun!

Speaking of the finale, if they end up adapting “A New Day” (which they have to considering they made the anime to promote the sequel which comes after the “A New Day” scenario) it means the “ending” to the main game isn’t the actual ending. Aww and here I was hoping that maybe, just maybe they could have “A Lullaby for You” play at the end. That song is really good and it fits! Although they might not considering they didn’t carry that song over when they ported the game on different consoles.

Alright... til next time!

[firefield]

David Bowie - Glass Spider Live In Montreal ‘87

From the Loving The Alien box

DB on audience expectations: “I guess that they come along to see whether I’ll fall down or something. I really don’t know. I know that they get what they consider is a really good performance. I think that over the years I’ve proved that I do my best to provide them with some new vision of musical information on the stage. So I think there’s probably that element in it, but I couldn’t go any further than that. I really don’t know what they want from me. I’ve never really been able to write for them. I’ve only written and performed that which interests me. So essentially they have an agreement with me and that’s great. I mean, I’ve lost audiences many times over the years, and they’ve come back for one reason or another. Ive sort of got that mutual agreement with them. If it’s not going very well then they stay away. Which is fair enough, you know.”

This tour was my first live DB show so it holds plenty of memories. Still, I skipped the 2007 DVD/CD from EMI, so I had only heard boots up until this box set inclusion. This triple LP, sounding fabulous as expected, was originally mixed by Bob Clearmountain and remastered in 2018 by Ray Staff. All instruments are balanced well, and overall I’d argue this is a better show than it gets credit for. Sure some of the spoken-word dialog breaks a little silly in parts, especially with no visual, but there are some pretty deep tracks in here. Absolute Beginners, All The Madman, Sons Of The Silent Age, Time and more. For all the movement and choreography that was expected of them, the band is very tight, tempo conscious, and extremely professional. The NLMD tracks rock as they should and remind that the original album’s production was a little tepid in that regard. Funny, hearing this version of Bang Bang, all I can think of is Tin Machine. I think DB telegraphs his future consciously as well as unconsciously in many ways.

This tour was an intense undertaking for it’s time and it’s influence is still impactful today on large venue productions. It was also packed with oddities. Bowie himself talked about the stress he took on as “dangerous” and it’s physical toll was obvious to his colleagues. The tour alternated between indoor and outdoor venues which offered unique challenges with the set itself and tricky audio considerations. There were crew injuries and a death, both from falls. A fan drowned in the River Boyne trying to swim to get backstage access to the Slane Castle show. There were multiple rioting situations and police clashes, one in Rome that had DB singing through tear gas. And on June 16th, a bomb scare forced their plane to return - which turned out to be a ruse by the local police chief to secure an autograph - about which Bowie said “that could only happen in Italy!” DB became engaged to one of his dancers, Melissa Hurley, during this tour, as well as fending off a false allegation of sexual harassment after a show in Dallas - a grand jury clearing him of all charges. Carlos Alomar suffered a serious leg injury that required a change in his character for the stage show/narrative - a “mad, limping Mad Max reject” as Alomar described it. Bowie claimed he was exhausted even before the debut of the show, so the ritualized burning of the Spider set after the last show in New Zealand had to be heavy. “It was so great - we just put the thing in a field and set light to it. That was such a relief!”

As is somewhat typical in the DB universe, fans were thrilled, critics were harsh - but that see-saw continues to move and now you’ll often hear fans dump on this stuff while critics dig deeper and pin a change-of-heart broach to their chests. Wherever you find yourself, there are some wonderful live interpretations of great songs on this record, and it’s legacy serves as a reminder that as effortless as David Bowie can make his craft appear, there is back-breaking and potentially soul-crushing hard work underneath.

[pandoraimperatrix]

brvceselina replied to your post “I’m in a bad mood and I want to write fluff people Please send me...”

gotham!verse batcat where bruce tries to teach selina how to cook would be super cute :´) (maybe around s3??)

Baby BatCat | 2k | Fluff | Same universe as Four Names for Love | Read on AO3

Bruce looked over his table when he heard Selina stir, she had climbed over his window around eleven and basically ignored him, walking straight to the sofa and falling asleep face down almost immediately.

Two years ago, maybe less than that, Selina ignoring him like he was a piece of furniture would have hurt, but after living with her he learnt a lot, and that sometimes ignoring him would be her way to show intimacy. In her world Selina had to be always hyper-aware of her surroundings, ignoring something or someone meant carelessness, meant danger, meant harm or even death. He knew she could have crashed anywhere else, his house was far from being the more convenient place for her to take a catnap, far away from the dark alleys where she pranced. He always wondered how she managed to get to the mansion by feet. No wonder she was so tired.

She hummed softly, eyes still closed, he rested his chin on his hand, looking at her, the research all over his desk forgotten.

Selina sighed, one hand pushing her curls from her eyes.

“Stop staring, you weirdo.”

Bruce’s chair squeaked when he jumped surprised, he turned his gaze away and tried to mask his reaction with a fit of coughs.

“What?”

“Geeez.” She made in a judgemental tone, her eyes were open when he dared to look at her again, her face had a red mark made by the sofa, he felt a jolt of fondness. “I’m hungry.”

“I think there is still bouillabaisse in the fridge.”

“What?”

“Bouillabaisse.”

“Bless you.”

Bruce had to bite the insides of his cheeks to not laugh at the face she was doing.

“It’s soup. Fish soup.”

It might have been the light but she looked slightly green.

“Why do you choose to live like that, kid?”

“I thought cats liked fish.” He mumbled.

“What did you say?”

“Me? Nothing. What do you want to eat? I could make you a PBJ sandwich.”

“No thanks. Last time you gave me something made with a green bread and it tasted like dirt.” And yet she ate the entire matcha bread sandwich that he actually had made for himself before she invaded his house uninvited again. “Don’t you have any pizza?”

“They don’t deliver here and it’s” he looked at his watch “three a.m.”

She looked so sad he actually felt his heart break.

“We could make it.” He blurted.

She straightened her back, attention grabbed, but she still didn’t look convinced.

“Do you know how to make pizza?”

“You’ve eaten more complicated dishes cooked by me.” He retorted slightly offended.

“Yeah, but you had help from your butler before.”

“I did not!” Now he was far from being slightly to be full offended.

She stood up from the sofa and walked in his direction until she was leaning over his desk.

“Prove it, then.”

Bruce swallowed hard, Selina noticed that his Adam’s apple was beginning to show.

“Alright.” He stood up too and she drew back a step, he was a couple inches taller than her now, how the hell did that happen?

He had such a decided look on his face as he pushed his sleeves to his elbows and marched to the kitchen that she had to press her lips hard to stop the smile trying to colonize her face like he had done with her heart.

 She jumped on the counter and watched as he separated the various ingredients from the cupboards.

“Regular pizza dough will take forever because you have to let it rise for at least an hour, so we’ll have to make a different version. It doesn’t taste as good.”

“As long it’s eatable… What will be the toppings? Do you have any cheese?”

“Let me see…” She averted her eyes blushing softly when he bended over to look farther inside the fridge and a silver of his lower back appeared beneath his ever-present black turtleneck jumper. “I think we only have feta… I think we could pair it with some cherry tomatoes, olives and spinach.”

“You are not putting spinach on my pizza.”

He sighed.

“I’ll put on my half of it.”

“As long as I don’t have to eat it.” She answered and then added in a lower tone “spinach on pizza… Ridiculous.”

Bruce pretended he didn’t listen, hiding his smile to not show how he actually enjoyed their banter.

“Right, I have everything but the tomato sauce, I think that’s on the pantry. I’ll be right back.”

Selina’s belly made a hungry sound. She took a piece of the cheese Bruce left on the counter. It was white and smelt more milky than greasy. She put in her mouth. It didn’t taste bad, but she still preferred good old yellow American cheese.

She was on her third piece when Bruce was back with a mason jar.

“It’s homemade by Alfred.”

Selina shrugged. It was all the same to her. She didn’t even was sure about the difference between tomato sauce, tomato soup and ketchup.

“Let’s get it started.”

“Are you sure you know you’re doing?”

“Yes. Do you want to learn?”

“I’m not really the cooking type…”

“Come on, Selina. It’s fun. I promise you.”

She still looked unsure but jumped off the counter and took off her jacket, hanging it behind a chair as she went to wash her hands on the sink. Selina’s body shocked against Bruce’s when she gave a little jump of surprise when she felt him tie an apron behind her.

“So you won’t get flour stains.” He said, so close and the goosebumps had nothing to do with her jumpy reactions.

Selina just hummed in agreement and Bruce walked away, she supressed the urge to sigh. Despite Bruce’s insistence that they were boyfriend and girlfriend now they haven’t kissed or done anything like that since the day on the roof, and it wasn’t like she wanted to. She wasn’t weird! But sometimes he would look at her and she felt heat brewing inside, or he would touch her hair softly or caress her hand and she would let him.

“Don’t you need to read from a recipe book or something?”

“Uh uh” he made absently organizing the ingredients before them in a line “I have the recipe here” he taped his temple “my mom taught me.”

“Oh…”

“She wasn’t the greatest cook, couldn’t make anything complicated or fancy, but she did a lot of voluntary work abroad before she married my dad. She joked that she was a chef in all kinds of college kid’s cuisine.”

He almost never talked about his parents, and she could only imagine how painful it could be.

“Bruce… You don’t need to do this. I can have the fish soup.”

“What? No. Let’s do it! It will be fun.”

Selina looked at him for a while, searching any signs of deceit, then she gave him a small smile.

“Show me.”

“First you have to mix the water, the flour and the baking powder for the crust.” He poured the water slowly in the bowl with the four and the baking powder “we start mixing with a spatula and then we can use our hands.”

“Urgh, it’s sticking on my hands!” She complained.

Bruce grinned.

“Needs more flour.” He poured a little more on her hands. “Be gentle. If you work the dough too much it will be too heavy.”

“Alright, geez.” Kneading the dough made her thing about her cats, how somehow they would offer her their bellies to trick her into petting them only to get a bite or a scratch.

“Now we use a rolling pin to stretch the dough.”

“Can you do that spinning thing with you finger like a cartoon?” She teased.

“I can try… But we might ending have to explain why there in dough on the celling to Alfred.”  

“You mean you might have too.”

“Would you betray me like that, Selina?”

“You’re so naïve…” She said in a mocking baby voice. “it’s cute. But also dumb.”

He gave her a large smile.

“So you think I’m cute?”

She scoffed, but her face was bright red.

“That is what you get from what I said?”

“Well, you did say I’m cute.”

“I said that you ignorance was cute and also that you are dumb.”

“You say mean thing about me all the time, Selina, I filter most of it.”

She really looked amused by that.

“Where is this sass coming from?”

“I learnt from the best. Now, let’s put the dough on the pan.”

They giggled as they moulded the dough into a round shape, their fingers competing to press the loft material to the tin pan.

“What now?”

“Alfred’s red sauce.” He said struggling to open the lid. “This stuff is really good.”

Selina rolled her eyes and took the mason jar from him, opening effortlessly.

“It’s just tomatoes.”

“Nothing is only just, Selina. And Alfred this sauce from scratch, he even grows the tomatoes himself.”

“You can get ketchup for like tree bucks.”

“You will get it later.”

“Whatever. How do I put it on the pizza? Just pouring?”

“No, use a spoon.” He handed her on. “And spread it evenly.”

He watched transfixed as she worked. Her brows furred, the sliver of the tip of her tongue out in concentration.

“Done.”

“Now the cheese. I think we can just crumb it with our hands.”

They did the work and Selina stole a few more pieces. She was licking her fingers when he finished their task with the cherry tomatoes and olives, the spinach on his side of the pizza and sprinkled oregano.

“Now all we have to do it put it inside the oven and wait.”

“It wasn’t hard.” She admitted. “But I still think buying one ready is better. I don’t even have an oven.”

“But making it is more fun, isn’t it? And if you like it we can make more often when you visit.”

Maybe it was the way he looked at her, so hopeful, or how he went out of his way to make her happy, but Selina felt warmth pooling inside her. She welcomed herself into Bruce’s personal space and raised a hand to his chin

“You got a bit of flour…”

Bruce first looked at her with eyes opened wide, his eyebrows almost touching the roots of his hair, but as her hand lingered, he relaxed, and cupped her hand against his face, his lid trembling shut.

“Selina…” He sighed her name.

“Yes?” She answered softly.

He opened his eyes, still holding her hand.

“Can I?”

She swallowed hard and nodded wordlessly.

Bruce dipped to meet her in the middle, her lips were soft and warm as he pressed his against them gently. The kitchen was filled with the comforting smell of baking pizza. They parted and Bruce opened his eyes to find her, huge, green so dark. She threw her hands around his neck and kissed him again, it was different from the other times, she was tentatively moving her lips over his now. His hands went to her waist as he tried to keep up, but he was scared he would do something wrong and she would never kiss him again. When he noticed that he had been frozen she already broken the kiss again. Her brows furred in confusion, she was detaching herself from him when he leaned into her in a desperate move tried to capture her lips again, but his miscalculated move made their teeth clink painfully.

“Ouch.”

“I’m sorry. I’m so sorry!” He exclaimed horrified.

But when he looked at her she didn’t seen annoyed, and one hand even remained on his neck playing with his hair as she rubbed her mouth with the other before they exchanged a look and fell in a fit of giggles.

“Did I hurt you?”

“No, you dum dum. I’m fine.”

“I just… I have never…”

“I know. Me neither.”

“You know what would help?”

“What?”

“Practice.”

Selina playfully rolled her eyes and walked out from their embrace.

“Isn’t that pizza ready already?”

Bruce sighed.

“Yeah, I think so. Let’s eat!”

 Selina smiled at her seven years old daughter as she devoured a slice of homemade pizza. Then rubbed off the flour stain on her chin.

“What is it, mommy?” Asked Helena noticing her mother’s eyes become distant and watery.

“Nothing, honey. I just remembered something.”

“Something sad?”

“No. It was something fun.”

“So why are you sad?”

“I’m not.”

“Mommy…”

Selina sighed.

“Alright. You will get it when you grow up but, sometimes, the nice memories are the ones that hurt the most.”

“Oh… Because you miss those times?”

“Exactly, you are very smart. Now, you can have just one more slice, you already had plenty and Holly will be hungry later when she comes back.”

“Can I call Babs?”

“Didn’t you see each other earlier at school?”

 “Oh my god, Dick! No! Dad! Tell Dick he can’t put chocolate on the pizza!”

“It’s my pizza, Lena! You don’t have to eat it.”

“But you are desecrating the sanctity of pizza!”

Dick and Selina groaned.

Alfred who was sitting with his cuppa, watching and forbidden from helping snorted.

“Goodness, Miss Helena!”

“Ignore her, Alfred. She got her flair for dramatics from her father.”

“How come I am the one getting insults?” Mumbled Bruce “Dick is the one putting candy on pizza.”

“Thank you for defending me, B.” Said Dick in a mocking offended tone.

“See! Dad gets it!”

Selina smiled at Dick.

“I think Dick’s pizza will taste good.”

He hugged her by the waist grinning.

“So you’re both weird.” Said Helena failing in hiding her jealousy.

“Said the girl with spinach on her pizza.” Retorted Dick.

Alfred sighed loudly.

“Can you stop judging each other tastes and just finish this? You said you would make dinner tonight and I said yes as long as everything was clean afterwards, but I’m starting to think you will find a stupid reason to fight and leave my kitchen in chaos.”

“Geez, Alfie!”

“Yeah, you have such little faith in us, Al.”

“I just happen know each and every one of you very well.”

A little ball of dough hit Alfred on his forehead.

“Oops.” But Bruce didn’t look sorry at all.

“That’s it!” Said the butler getting up.

They all screamed and laughed as Bruce tried to run away from Alfred. Selina coming to Bruce’s aid and the kids taking Alfred’s side as pizza night turned into food fight night.

[sixth-light]

Chekhov’s Garden Shed

For the last four or five years, the RoL fandom has had a masterpost of Chekhov’s guns/unanswered questions from the series – the last version, with links to the original, can be found here. Past contributors include @deviantaccumulation, @the-high-meggas, @maple-clef, @uncommonsockeater​, and @flannelgiraffe, as well as others who I have doubtless forgotten. [If that’s you or someone you know, please speak up!]

Ben Aaronovitch has indicated that he views the various open questions of the series as less of a set of ‘guns on the mantelpiece’ (which must be taken down and fired before the series is finished) and more a ‘garden shed’ of things he thinks might be useful one day but could also end up rusting in the back after getting buried under other things. The fun is finding out which is which. (Thanks to @ilikesallydonovan for originally reporting this and chasing down the link!)

So, without further ado, here is the renamed Chekhov’s Garden Shed Of Stuff That Might Come Back Later. It’s separated into Answered Questions, Partially-Answered Questions, and Things Still Buried At The Back Of The Shed. I enthusiastically welcome comments, corrections, and missing items. Contains spoilers for all published RoL-related material including the novellas, comics, online snippets, and interviews with the author. A mirror of this version can be found at Dreamwidth – I will try and keep it updated as I update this one.

ANSWERED QUESTIONS:

·        What the fox said to Abigail in WuG It was warning her about Chorley’s involvement with/interest in Skygarden. 

·        Peter’s father needs a few thousand for dental work; his mum is very keen to get the money so that he might re-launch his career. They’ve already done a gig (beaucoup money) for Ty. Will this be a vulnerability for Peter at some point? Apparently not; his dad’s band do regular gigs for the demi-monde, his dad has his new teeth, and Ty doesn’t seem to have been involved at all. Peter just has to live with his parents being better-informed about his work and new world than he might like! 

·        Will we see Awa Shambir again? Her of the suspiciously expensive hijab to be cleaning the offices (of a front organisation for an evil wizard) in… Goodbye Awa Shambir the Somali cleaning lady, hello Lady Caroline Elizabeth Louise Linden-Limmer, surreptitiously aerial scion of nobility. 

·        What was Molly doing in the tech cave? Is she on facebook/twitter/tumblr/a cooking forum? Looking up recipes? Has she discovered online shopping? Molly is active on Twitter gossiping and swapping recipes; it’s not a secret from either Peter or Nightingale, they just pretend not to know. 

·        Is that watch Nightingale gave Peter going to have any future relevance? Peter and Caroline had a watch-off in The Hanging Tree which Peter won, and the practitioner habit of wearing mechanical (and hideously expensive) watches enabled Peter to identify Chorley as the Faceless Man. 

·        Who is Mr. Nolfi’s mother? Where did she learn magic? and Have any other Newtonian wizards continued to practice in secret and/or trained apprentices in other parts of the country, without telling Nightingale? (Broader: was Nightingale mostly wrong about being the last wizard in Britain or really, totally, 100% wrong?) and What about the “female affiliates” of the Little Crocodiles? and How many wizards did Wheatcroft actually train and where are they now? Most of an answer to all of these: there’s a long-standing tradition of women practicing and teaching each other Newtonian magic dating back to before the founding of the official Folly. Mr Nolfi’s mother and the ‘female affiliates’ of the Little Crocodiles could well have come from this tradition. And Nightingale was totally utterly wrong about being the last wizard in Britain. Practitioners exist trained by ‘hedge’ wizards and witches, trained by Little Crocodiles, immigrated and bringing other traditions with them…that cat is not only out of the bag, it was never even in it. C.f. Patrick Gale and co. in Detective Stories and Lies Sleeping. However, many Little Crocodiles never really learned magic at all, or managed to brush it off after university as unimportant – unfortunately for them, Martin Chorley targeted them as tools and bait.

PARTIALLY-ANSWERED QUESTIONS:

·        What happened at Ettersberg that caused magic to disappear? Answered in various interviews: magic didn’t disappear at Ettersberg as an objective thing, but a lot of practitioners were wiped out by the war and the Nazis, as well as a lot of genii locorum and other fae and magical people. Nightingale over-indexed on this because he was depressed and traumatised, and the magic ‘coming back’ is a combination of a new generation of gods, fae, and practitioners growing up, and Nightingale noticing the ones who were there all along.

·        Where are the notes Peter was promised? Peter has a deal with Nightingale about getting questions answered in return for magical progress; we haven’t seen him look at any old wizard’s notes specifically but he doesn’t seem to be waiting on them. 

·        What was Nightingale doing in the 70s that he managed to miss the original FM’s adventure in Soho? Working with the Met, apparently - he was called in when Woodville-Gentle got his at Lady Helena’s hands, but too late to determine whether it was magic. Seems like he just wasn’t paying enough attention to what was going on around him!

·        What was Peter doing after he left school and while he was a PCSO? Why did he have problems during his A levels? Why did he join the police? Peter flatted and worked retail for a while after he left school (possibly while he was at school, too). We still don’t know what happened with his A-levels or what led him to join the police. 

·        Outwith the Met, does the Folly answer to the Home Office (or higher)? There are hints at that (cf. Walid in RoL), but nothing more and Who is Nightingale’s boss/who does Postmartin send his files to?  No direct answer to who they answer to beyond what we already knew, but we learn in THT that they have their own source of funding and aren’t an official part of the Met. Nightingale does not appear to have any direct supervisor beyond the Commissioner (or presumably they would have been informed/called when he was kidnapped in Night Witch). 

·        How do “Hedge Witches” practise magic; how does it differ from formal Newtonian magic and will we get to meet any? Are “Hedge Wizards” simply rusticated Newtonian wizards, or do they also have informally-developed skillz? Per the one we meet in Black Mould: hedge witches and wizards have informally-developed skills rather than just being rusticated Folly wizards, but how close their magic is to the style Peter is learning, it’s hard to say (because it was a comic.) Others are probably from the female tradition, ex-Newtonian wizards, etc – it’s a mixed group.

·        How old is Postmartin, exactly (Peter thinks he looks older and frailer than his Dad, who’s in his 70s, but that’s just his guess)? How did he get that job, and is he ‘just’ a civilian affiliate, like Walid, or something else? Who does he answer to, and what happens if/when he needs replacing? What’s his twitter handle?! Postmartin served during the Korean War, so must have been born between 1928 and 1936 (per @sparrow-wings) - he’s currently in his 80s, as it’s late 2015 in current book time. His Twitter handle might be “dyingforafag” (who Molly is chatting to in Body Work). 

·        What sort of experiments were the Nazis doing with vampires? (Do we want to know? Proooooooooooobably not.) and Can the Rivers be killed, if they’re badly injured enough far enough away from their river? What happens then? We found out in Lies Sleeping you can use ‘tinned vampires’ to kill and hurt genii locorum and discomfit practitioners, so that’s…you know…fine. Rivers can definitely be killed in general, c.f. the former Lugg whom the Methodists got to. It’s only functional immortality.

·        What’s the deal with Mr. Punch when Peter’s leaving London at the beginning of Foxglove Summer? Is he coming back? Is it only Peter who senses him? If so, why? and How are Lesley and Punch connected? And What powers does Lesley have now aside from face-changing, if any? Martin Chorley was trying to murder Punch, who was a god of chaos and vengeance, in order to 1) gain magical power 2) ????? 3) glorious white supremacy. Lesley agreed to help Chorley to get back at Punch, but may still have some connection to him, having survived possession by him; she certainly has magical powers of her own now, being able to change her face at will. They wanted Punch powered up so he’d be a better source of magic when taken down. Punch was still pinned to London Bridge, but was freed by Peter. He can be talked down by his daughter Walbrook, but for better or worse, he’s out and a player in London’s magical ecosystem. Let’s hope Peter’s right and he plays an important role in it.  

·        How and why did Isis become immortal, since just marrying a River doesn’t appear to do the trick? Kelly tells Tobi Winter in The October Man that sometimes the partners/spouses/better halves of Rivers do just pick up immortality, although even she as an elder River doesn’t know exactly how or why that happens. Probably it’s what happened to Isis. Why it hasn’t happened to George McAlister is an open question.

·        What does it mean that Michael Cheung is ‘the new guy in Chinatown’? and Is there something going on with Guleed (PLEASE NO) or is she just picking up things about the demi-monde via her friendship with Bev (…and others)? Michael Cheung is the latest of a long line of people who have responsibility for any magical shenanigans in London’s Chinatown, so 1) the Folly/Nightingale don’t have to worry about it and 2) Chinatown doesn’t have to be offended by their attempts to worry about it. He’s dating Guleed and teaching her cool martial arts magic. Whether she has other demi-monde contacts is not yet clear.

·        Who is Chorley’s mole within the Met?  Probably not Seawoll, Stephanopoulos, Richard Folsom, Guleed, or Carey, due to the security practices put in place during Operation Jennifer. But if not any of them….then who?

·        How/why the fox knows about [Skygarden and Chorley], (and why it would tell Abigail) According to Abigail, the talking foxes view themselves as secret agents, and someone like Chorley would naturally draw their attention. Why they do so and who they think they should be reporting to is still unclear (but may be elucidated in the Abigail novella).

STILL BURIED IN THE SHED SOMEWHERE:

·        What about the paintings of Molly and a blue-eyed elderly man who looks like Nightingale that Peter found in the coach house?

·        Are there really werewolves or just creepy magic trackers called werewolves? (I’m waiting for them to turn up.)

·        Why does Fleet have a captain of dogs? What do her dogs do? (Is this related to the werewolves? Were-dogs?)

·        What’s the actual connection between Wheatcroft, FM1 (Woodville-Gentle, if that’s him) and FM2? Did he train them both, or did W-G train FM2? NB: Unlikely to be directly answered now Chorley is dead.

·        What’s up with Abigail’s apparently useless protection charm?

·        Is there a special reason that Nightingale is called The Nightingale? (+ is he strong/good at magic because of hard work or something else.)

·        People I’d like to know more about: Nightingale’s uncle, David Mellenby, Nightingale’s family.

·        How much do senior officers in the Met really know about the Folly/Nightingale/magic? Is it well-known that Nightingale has been running the Folly since the 1940s?

·        How did Nightingale learn the language Father Thames speaks?

·        How much does Nightingale and/or Walid know/suspect about the deaging thing? How much of this aren’t he/they telling Peter?

·        How did Walid and Nightingale meet?

·        Are there aliens?

·        Was the 1911 decrease of odd magical activity in Herefordshire linked to Molly?

·        Why does Seawoll dislike Nightingale so viscerally?

·        Did Peter really drop architecture because of his draughtsmanship or was it something else? Is it related to why his chemistry teacher wrote that letter to the newspaper?

·        How active is the ex-wizard grapevine, really? Is the FM connected to it at all?

·        What was the Faceless Man actually planning on doing with his Crossrail lair? Why build it so close to the Folly?

·        What happens if one river tries to userp, unseat or in any way properly fight another? Are the results ‘mythic’?

·        Was Emma Wall really a waste of space? As a character she is a bit of a smoking gun - red herring, or something else? She was living next door to our two, and *in* one of the flats where… stuff was being put. Any happily waltzed out on d-day. Peter never really got a chance to speak to her - but Lesley did, and was the one to dismiss her from suspicion. Which is suspicious (to me)!

·        Although we found out after that he’s been around for much longer, Nightingale said that Father Thames was definitely the same person in 1914. So presumably they met then… In what circumstances?

·        Are fae genetically different to other humans? Are they human? What about changelings (like Zoe in FS) - and will she get in contact with Dr Walid? NB: Dr Vaughan is getting some genomes sequenced, so answers to this question may be forthcoming....

·        What did Lesley say to her family about what happened to her face? Do they know about magic?

·        Just how much of an age gap is there between Peter’s parents?

·        Why did the Virtuous Men blame the British for Ettersberg? What was the agreement between them that Nightingale was referring to?

·        Postmartin made a show of wanting to get Peter alone to have a ”big” talk with him. Yet, the discussion we, the readers have witnessed was relatively small. Nightingale only arrived to The Eagle and the Child an hour later. What was said between Postmartin and Peter in the meantime?

·        Peter’s narration at certain points (like Chapter 14 in Moon Over Soho) waivers between past and present tense, and he is occasionally referring to events in (presumably) later books. Just what point in the future is Peter actually narrating these books?

·        When Nightingale got an infection in MoS, how did Walid know? Did Molly phone him and do her Nightingale’s being an idiot silence, or was he just visiting anyway?

·        What does Molly do on her days off?

·        When Nightingale doesn’t go to Peter’s parents’ for Christmas, did his not wanting to leave Molly excuse have any truth to it, or did he just say that so Peter didn’t realise that Nightingale planned to work (and so Peter didn’t feel he should be missing his own Christmas to help)/ he had a reasonable excuse to not go to Peter’s family’s Christmas celebrations?

·        (tongue-in-cheek) What would have happened if Peter and Lesley had given Molly a Heston Blumenthal cookbook?

·        What’s the deal with Lady Helena (and Caroline) - are they connected to Chorley and/or Lesley’s face being healed?

·        What does Caroline want to escape from? What was she doing posing as a cleaning lady at the County Gard offices? 

·        What do the Virginian Gentlemen want, and how connected are they with the American government?

·        What’s their specific definition of a ‘shade’? 

·        When and how did MI5 learn about magic, and do they have any practitioners of their own?

·        Was Christina Chorley a practitioner, possessed, or something else? 

·        Who sold and bought Molly, Foxglove, 'Charlotte' (the Pale Nanny), and 'Alice' (the Pale Lady)? Where were Foxglove, Charlotte, and Alice before they were put in the oubliette and rescued by Woodville-Gentle and then Chorley? Where is the fifth girl who was with them before they were split up?

·        Is it important that Walbrook is also Isis of London? Are there any other Isis-figures in the UK and Europe (aside from Isis who is married to Oxley, and is probably an Isis of Oxford?)

·        Are there any other non-Mama-Thames tidal Rivers? What exactly is Lea’s relationship with Mama Thames, as they see it?

·        What WAS Chorley's master plan, aside from ‘become Merlin, Profit!’?

·        How is the Difference Engine linked to magic, and why? NB: May be answered in ‘False Value’, which is about computing to some degree

·        Who or what is killing talking foxes (as Peter discovers in The Furthest Station)? Why?

[meganmazing]

fics i read while on vacation

I went to australia to visit family last week, and boy oh boy are layovers and delays a joy - especially when you are not a person who easily sleeps on planes. To cope, I ended up downloading a bunch of long fics and binge read them all. The hardest part was just picking a few (lol) of what I read for this list.

Here are some of the ones I loved the most. They’re mostly cherik but there’s also a klance, a drarry, and a stony or two (or three) because those pairings are like my comfort food when it comes to fanfiction, and I needed that the past two weeks (hello, canceled flights and difficult support staff). These are also all rated either Mature or Explicit, so if that’s your thing, join me. This is a long one.

As always, if you want more recs from a whole host of pairings and more nonsensical gushing about why I love them, check out my bookmarks on my ao3: megamazing. All links below go to the ao3 version of the work. Click the titles for the link even if the little line doesn’t show up under them. And don’t forget to leave kudos for the authors and share the love!

CHERIK

No Longer in Silence by Black_Betty  26k  Rating: E

It has been eight years since Charles has seen Erik. Eight years since they parted under unkind circumstances and Erik went off to sea. The boy he once knew is Captain Lehnsherr now and they are as known to one another as strangers, and yet--Charles finds that eight years has done nothing to diminish the feelings he had when he was 16 and in love.

It's unfortunate then that Erik doesn't feel the same way.

(Persuasion AU)

The writing in this is incredible, truly. It’s in Charles’ perspective and the emotion coming from him throughout this one kills me in the worst and best ways. And Erik, my utter love. It’s based on Persuasion, so it’s Jane Austen, so you know damn well that there will be misunderstandings galore, and yet...

I usually avoid non-powered AU like the plague, but I gave this a shot and I am so, so glad that I did. Regardless of whether you like/know the story it’s based on, you will fall in love. It is heartwarmingly romantic, and still earns it’s rating in the end. This is a forever-rec, fit for everyone, and i will be shouting it from the rooftops forever.

Tessellation by nekosmuse  116k+  Rating: E

He had been following Xavier's career for years. He had read and reread and reread again everything the man had written. He had tried, on more occasions than he could count, to recruit Xavier into the Brotherhood, but each request for a meeting had been denied. Aside from his work, no one knew anything about Xavier. Not what he looked like, not the full extent of his power--though from what little they did know, he was by far the most powerful telepath in existence--and not what his intentions were.

The man was a recluse. As far as Magneto knew, Xavier had never once stepped foot outside his impenetrable Westchester manor. And now he was scheduled as the keynote speaker for the largest pro-mutant conference in the world.

This is the novel length cherik AU fic you didn’t know you needed. To be fair, I do not read many fics involving Genosha, but I may be reconsidering my preferences after this one because I WAS IN LOVE. It deals not only with all the romance/love/fluff/banter I adore with cherik, but it really gets into Charles and his disability as well as his relationship/history with alcohol. The relationship feels so genuine and believable that I was smiling and aching for these two by turns. I also love Emma in this? More Emma in fics, please.

Mutually Beneficial Transaction by Pookaseraph  41k+  Rating: E

In his sophomore year at Columbia University, Erik, feeling slowly strangled by his mounting college debt, places an add on a sugar daddies website. He doesn't know exactly what to expect from it, but when he's contacted by a man named Charles who seems less creepy than the other people who have responded to his profile, he decides to give it a shot. Charles is nothing like what he expected, and Erik finds himself slowly falling in love with his sugar daddy while trying to find out exactly what caused this amazing guy to buy his emotional and sexual intimacy when he clearly deserves so much more than that.

Pulled straight from the highly emotional comment I left on the fic immediately after reading: “This story is fucking fantastic. In every way. I usually steer clear of non-powered AUs, but holy shit I am so glad I clicked on this one. I'm in love with their love and you wrote this so fucking beautifully my emotions are all over the place. I will rec this until I die. All the love and kudos to you <3″ Here is me, holding up my end of the rec’ing bargain. I was in A State after finishing this story, if you couldn’t tell. The relationship between our boys here is so complicated and vastly different from what I've read before.  

If you are looking for sexy humor and angst for days, then look no further. I wanted to hug them both, constantly. They needed it.

Urban Legend by toesohnoes  10k+  Rating: M

They say that if you stand in front of a mirror and say his name three times Magneto will appear. Charles has never believed in urban legends and he's never been capable of turning down a dare.

Urban Legend was downright mesmerizing. It reads kind of like a campfire story (but with M rated bits, so maybe not one for the kiddies), and the atmosphere it created was elegantly creepy. Because i came in already loving Eric, part of me was rooting for him and Charles, while the other half was screaming for Charles to GTFO.

You Know My Name by dvs  11k+   Rating: M

Erik and Charles are spies with something in common.

Look. I know this isn't a Man From U.N.C.L.E. fic, but it gave me MFU feels and it does the Cherik relationship beautifully, so it pretty much has it all. Erik is Bond, Charles is charming, and I am craving more of this universe. It’s fast paced and from Erik’s POV, and tbh I just found the whole thing dangerously sexy. Plus, the plotty bits were right up my alley.

Tale As Old As Time by madneto  44k+   Rating: M

Charles is a bibliophile living with his stepbrother in a remote village. Erik is a lonely prince with an affliction he doesn't know how to control. Logan is the greatest hunter in the whole world.

Pretty much what it says on the tin. If you've seen Disney's "Beauty and the Beast" you know pretty much exactly what you're getting into. Lots of fluff.

So, you may or may not know I love Beauty and the Beast. And yet somehow, despite that, I wasn’t totally convinced that I was going to love this fic. WRONG. I was so wrong to doubt. It was everything you want out of this kind of AU, while still holding true to Charles and Erik. The story feels very much like it’s own thing, which is so important to me in AU stories. I also love the way the author played with mutations and the curse. I desperately want to give more specifics, but I feel like it would spoil things? Which is weird for a AU this well-known, but I really felt like this author made it their own.

Final quick mention: Love Runs Out by ikeracity   24k+   Rating: M

Just yes. This is one of my absolute favorite modern!AU with powers fics. It's just so sweet and loving and it makes me happy. Apartment complex neighbors, a whole host of mutants, and a community center that made me smile so much. You need a good, fluffy read every once in awhile, okay?

STONY

Rom-Commed By Fate (Or JARVIS) by leashy_bebes   14k+   Rating: E

The best thing about being an Artificial Intelligence is the ability to parse, filter and modify the things people say until you've got the cause to do exactly what you wanted in the first place. Or, in which JARVIS cock blocks Tony into having an actual relationship.

This has everything I love about stony in one form or another, and I was so jazzed to see that I hadn’t already read it! How I missed it, I have no idea. Steve’s characterization in particular really hit the nail on the head for me. It is so sweet (I am seriously understating the fluff here, trust me you will melt) and sexy, and like I said before, we all need some good, happy fics once in awhile. Break up the angst-fest with what I pretty much consider required reading for fans of stony. It’s like a little taste of everything there is to love, with minimal angst.

JARVIS is an honorary Avenger in my book, and I love the Avengers fam dynamics. Fight me.

Any Other Way of Loving by brandnewfashion  27k+   Rating: E

In which Steve is bad at dating, Tony isn’t, and neither of them are as subtle as they think.

I have re-read this one multiple times. Not even on purpose, just because I keep gravitating back to it somehow, and I love it more every single time. It’s fake dating, but is it? Totally. Maybe. Our boys are a bit slow on the uptake. I love their dialogue in this one. Bants for days. I will die on the hill of Tony Stark, and this fic has great Tony POV. Also, great pinning on both ends. (that sounds dirty, but I don’t actually mean it that way this time)

The Last Love Song of Anthony E. Stark by jibrailis   42k  Rating: E

After contracting an Asgardian virus, Tony starts forgetting things. And people. And Steve.

So if you read that summary above, you can probably guess that this one is not fluffy. There are wonderfully heartwarming and heart-wrenching moments that make you feel all the things, but I don’t think I would call it fluffy. It’s Tony POV all the way, and that makes the pain even worse! This story is so good. The writing is spot-on, and the style of storytelling had me hooked.  

Wanna feel pain and sadness and read a really moving story that has a genuine plot? What if I told you that there are also sexytimes, and pinning, and on-point jokes and moments that hurt my heart and melted it at the exact same time? Not convinced? Asgard roadtrip. With Loki and Sif. Also, Steve loves Animal Crossing. Did I mention the sexytimes?

Specifically, I found the way that Tony dealt with everything happening to be completely accurate for the character, and the same goes for Steve, Loki and Sif. And stony low-key feels until they are very much no longer low-key. But the memory loss hits you harder every time, and the aspect of unreliable narration absolutely killed it.

DRARRY

Reparatio by astolat   17k+   Rating: E

Draco snorted. “I’m not reduced to penury. I want something considerably beyond money, and I rather think you’re the only one can give it to me.”

“You want the Invisibility Cloak,” Harry said, flatly. He’d half expected as much; it was the only thing he had that Draco could want—

“Don’t be stupid, Potter,” Draco said. “I want my reputation back.”

It’s that thing that looks like fake dating, but is really, really not. You know what I’m talking about. It also looks like friends with benefits, but who are they kidding? Not me. Barely even kidding themselves, and even then it’s not for very long. Draco and Harry banter fuels me. This one is Harry POV, and it’s very well done. Draco is also cunning and strategic, which so many people tend to drop off in favor of just making him just a sassy prick, and I was so here for all of that. Pretty sure Harry was too, deep down.

The one thing that had me going, hmmmm, is that Ron and Hermione are not together, but there is no drama there so it’s really not a big enough deal to make me put it down. No character bashing, which is a must for me.  

KLANCE

Don’t Break Connection, Baby by princedeadend   38k+   Rating: M

Keith works part-time as a phone sex operator and receives a prank call from Lance. This does not go as planned for Lance. Thus begins the adventure of our dear sweet goofball continuing to call Keith to fuck with him (but not like fuck fuck with him...at least not yet). And y'know, eventually having legit conversations with him and getting attached and growing on Keith. Summaries are not my strong point, alright?

aka the phone sex operator fic no one asked for

Maybe no one asked for it, but I certainly needed it. This was one of those “why-not” clicks for me, since I don’t usually go for this kinda thing, but WHERE HAS THIS FIC BEEN ALL MY LIFE. I loved every second. The humor, the banter, the perfectly written sexytimes, and the awkwardness you just knew was gonna happen the minute you read the summary, were gorgeously timed and executed.

This is a rom-com in fic form, but a bit more graphic. Lance and Keith being happy and smile-y with each other is my kink. This fic also reminded me that phone sex is a great, great thing indeed. Not to mention, Lance has a bit of a praise kink? Sort of? Say what you want, I’m here for that.

[boredom-reigns]

I can't really speak for the Versus-XIII stuff that's in this trailer but for the TWEWY stuff...

Shibuya:

Nomura had already said in an interview that apparently the Shibuya in the secret trailer is not the TWEWY Shibuya we know of.

—Is Sora in the world of the World Ends With You?

Nomura: It does look like it. But there's more meaning in the fact that it is not Shibuya (written with kanji), but Shibuya (written with katakana). Also, Sora promised Neku and the others in KH3D that he would meet them in Shibuya (written in katakana), but that doesn't mean it's directly connected to this movie. (source)

I think what Nomura was saying here is that the Shibuya that Sora was in isn't the Shibuya that we know in main game TWEWY but rather an alternate Shibuya. This alt-Shibuya is most likely still in the TWEWY verse, seeing as the concept of parallel worlds exist in TWEWY, with the existence if Another Day with Tin Pin Shibuya. It could never be real life Shibuya mostly becaus eof the 104 building, which is actually 109 in real life Shibuya.

Because of what Nomura said, I'm going to scrap main game-Shibuya from the possibilities...

Crack theory: Sora may not be in main game Shibuya but Another Day Shibuya and we're gonna have a Tin Pin Slammer minigame yesss

Okay, actually thinking about it... That theory could be plausible. I mean, in Tin Pin Shibuya, it seems like Tin Pin-Joshua (or I guess, Rainbow) still has some authority in the place and has some degree of omniscience... I mean, he had this line about Shiki's true appearance (though that may just be the game doing some fourth wall breaking) and also he didn't seem too peturbed about main game-Joshua appearing. I feel like even in that parallel world, Joshua is still the Composer and therefore still has power. However, the main problem with this theory is this Joshua has no reason to bring someone from a whole different universe to his own world.

And so, thinking of other possibilities, the only other alternate Shibuya we know of is the KH:DDD one. Well, the one mentioned in that game. If my understanding of what happened there... KH-Shibuya has been attacked by Heartless and fell into darkness just like what happened to Destiny Islands in the first game. Because of that, Joshua collected the dreams of the other main cast then it manifested as bodily forms in the Sleeping World of Traverse Town, which was made from his dreams (along with a portal of Rhyme's dreams??) which Sora enters.

While it makes most sense for Sora to enter KH-Shibuya because that's the Shibuya of the KH-versons of the TWEWY gang lives, there's also some problems.

First off, KH-Shibuya has fallen into darkness. It's been destroyed. I don't really know where the KH-TWEWY gang went at the end of KH:DDD. They said they went back to Shibuya... Maybe Joshua has found a way to fix it?

Maybe the plot of Sora in KH-Shibuya won't just be him playing some version of the Reapers' Game. Perhaps Joshua also brought Sora there to help them fix Shibuya and its Heartless problem. We know that ordinary weapons cannot affect the Heartless and we don't know if psychs affect them either seeing as we only saw Neku and the gang fight Dream Eaters. Not only that, seeing as Joshua is an all-powerful being who creates the rules of Shibuya, why couldn't he just erase the Heartless? There's some parts of the Shibuya destroyed by Heartless story that we're not sure about...

However, we can probably confirm some parts of this because of the trailer. First off, there are no people, RG or UG. Even when Neku woke up in the UG, there were people passing by him. Also, Shibuya is filled with a lot of people, day or night so the time isn't really an issue. There are no people in the scramble crossing, which supports the idea that a lot of people got erased because of the Heartless. Second one is the time. All events in TWEWY happen in the day as the Game Master can choose to forcibly end the day. However, Sora wakes up at night. This can be alluding to Shibuya having fallen into darkness.

So yeah, I'm kinda thinking that Sora is stuck in a Shibuya that has fallen into darkness and the possible occupants are only the main TWEWY gang and maybe perhaps Mr. Hanekoma as well as some Verum Rex characters if the Shinjuku Riku is in the same Japan. Or maybe it's a whole different world.

Shinjuku:

As for the whole Shinjuku thing... I'm not really sure seeing as this part is most likely coming from the whole FF Versus-XIII thing rather than TWEWY. Well, imo anyway.

But if we're going to connect it to TWEWY, it's mostly connected via the whole New Day scenario in the Final Remix (Final Remix, just like KH games???). Shinjuku has been erased... but what Shinjuku?

Now this is where we cannot be sure.

Because if Nomura isn't going to use main game-Shibuya, then how will he incorporate the A New Day storyline into KH? Unless... He's going for different verses. What if Sora is still in the KH-verse but in the Shibuya world located in the KH-verse. Riku, on the other hand, is in another universe, maybe the main TWEWY verse, with the erased Shibuya?

The problem now is Yozora's existence in that Shinjuku, which rules out main game TWEWY verse. Riku's most likely in a verse where Verum Rex exists or maybe the Verum Rex world which looks like Shinjuku (because apparently one of the buildings in Shinjuku looks like one of the buildings in FFXV which is connected to Versus-XIII (idk much bout the whole Versus-XIII and FFXV thing so... sorry)).

If Yozora does exist in main TWEWY verse (for some damn reason), then maybe we're going for some KH:DDD stuff again. Sora is in Shibuya UG while Riku is in Shinjuku RG. I'm kind of thinking that maybe the Shinjuku that was "erased" is only UG Shinjuku and not RG Shinjuku? Honestly I'm not sure anymore.

...

TLDR: best bet is Sora in UG KH-Shibuya (which has fallen to darkness) and Riku in Verum Rex world or RG Shinjuku.

Also, maybe Nomura's gonna go for Square Enix worlds for KH4 to contrast the pure Disney worlds of KH3?

...

...let's be honest, we TWEWY fans just want some new TWEWY content even if it's in a different franchise lol

(where's our TWEWY2, Square)

WHY IS EVERYONE SLEEPING ON THIS

BIG KINGDOM HEARTS 3 SPOILERS. I’m going to explain the connection between Riku and Sora in that last trailer and TWEWY. 

So Sora wakes up in Shibuya. 

There’s plenty of posts going around pointing out that this is TWEWY’s Shibuya. I mean, if the 104 isn’t obvious enough I don’t know what is. This is def TWEWY Shibuya. So there’s Sora in Shibuya.

And Riku? Riku’s in Shinjuku. 

That’s the Tokyo Metropolitan Government Building in Shinjuku. If that wasn’t obvious enough, there’s also Yozora, who is very obviously a Square Enix product and Square Enix is headquartered in Shinjuku. Okay, that second point is a bit of stretch, but what I’m trying to say is that Riku is in Shinjuku. 

Great! But what does Shinjuku and Shibuya have in common?

Well, they are right next to each other, real-life.

But more importantly, from the ending of a New Day in TWEWY Final Remix …

Why is nobody talking about this? This. Is. Clear. Evidence. TWEWY is on to something. KH3 is on to something. I don’t know what this means in the end, but I just wanted to point this out cause I haven’t seen a single post about it. 

If Shinjuku was erased, where is Riku exactly? If Shinjuku isn’t erased, will it be? What is the connection with Yozora and an erased/not-erased town? Who is Coco in all this? What about hype-girl? Also, Neku is dead at the end of Final Remix. That’s partner candidate right there for Sora (he doesn’t need Riku). Nomura, what are you doing???

[ceciles]

drafter summer 2017: allergic reactions, song birds

Last summer Marie hauled me, for the last time, to one of the terrible parties she'd been invited to. It featured loud rap music that lacked the artistry of Kendrick or the fun of Chance, more like Chicago Drill if it were being broadcasted from a tin garbage can. Random straggling people yelling, or dancing, or urging you to drink in a dimly lit place where no real conversation could be had. this is the sort of party someone would yell "it's lit!" and then steal all the hosts cheap dark liquor from the cupboards. not even a jersey shore party, an imitation of a jersey shore party smack in the middle of the Midwest.

 We went to the attic so she could see the loser she was sleeping with, or "dating," i would tell my mother over the phone in my revision of what happened that night since I would nearly die, in about a second.

 We go up in the attic and I feel a hand clasp my face. A total stranger- in his hand he had some sort of peanut-y munchies, and force-fed them to me as soon as I walked in. I heard sirens go off in my head- red alert red alert, and in a fury flung myself to the bathroom to spit out the peanuts (in private, don't want to cause a scene) and vigorously wash out my mouth, face & esophogaus until any protein or trace of the allergan was scoured from my system.

 going into anaphalyctic shock is scary. it's expensive. it's a plethora of things and a reminder that the universe continues to spin chaotically out of my control, and i'm mercy to other people who are just as stupid& rash as i am.this guy was a total stranger. but what are the odds? who goes around with a fist ful of peanuts and shoving them in people's faces at a party? who does this happen to? and me, in particular, the girl with the peanut allergy?

 i yell to marie "he fed me peanuts!" knowing it would take her a minute to even remember that i'm allergic, knowing it would take even longer for her to realize what a big deal it was.

 i half expected her to say, "whatever" "get over it" "oh, grow up."

 stupidly, i walked home and thought about what I had to do. marie texted if she needed it come home and i didn't reply, instead thinking about who i needed to invite over to watch me on the offchance this wasn't melodrama and i was really dying.

 i showered and thought about the other times i'd had an allergic reaction in recent history. it's expected and scary as a kid to have reactions, as an adult it's embarassing and usually the result of carelessness. people would ask me about it and then ask if i'd carried my epipen, and i'd have to seriously think about where i'd left that thing. worse, i'd often be hesitant to ask hosts or waitresses if something had nuts in it. especially if someone were at risk of being offended if i didn't eat it. worse still, i often nabbed food off of other people's plates and generally ate carelessly, and it wasn't until it hit my gut that i realized i may want to double check. the kindest thing someone did for me once is when an ex-boyfriend brought my epipen in his jacket pocket when we went out to dinner because he knew he'd be ordering something with cashews that night. i once made a boy wash his mouth out before he kissed me because he'd eaten ben & jerries. that was the most shameless thing i'd done in my life.

 I texted back, "no, go ahead to the clubs it's fine." Any civil human being would've seen past my niceties and stuck around, you know, because even the worst person would feel a little crummy if it was their doing that put me in harm's way and then death's, while they were out dancing. But Marie was not and so she did not care.

 I texted the ROTC boy i knew. "Hey, can you come over?" He arrived and took care of Katie. Katie was Marie's cousin, who had tried to hang out with us but had gotten too lit before we'd even gotten to the trashy party. When I said, "no, AJ, she's okay. I'm the one dying."

 "you're the last person I'd expect to be taking care of. I thought I was here for katie."

"nope, it's me."

"well what's wrong?"

"i'm having an allergic reaction to peanuts. i didn't swallow anything but i want to make sure my throat doesn't close and i don't sieze--"

"holy shit what are you doing eating peanuts if you're allergic?"

"it wasn't- that's not what happened. one of marie's friends gave it to me."

"and you still ate it?"

"well no. he put his hand over my mouth and-"

"that's fcked up"

"you're telling me"

"and where's marie?"

"the clubs i guess"

"holy shit"

"it's not a big deal"

 Shooting the shit kept me calm while my face swelled.

 One day when I was bored in economics I had written out extremely elaborate funeral plans, if I were to die. if.

It went something like this: Closed casket. Everyone walks in, and sits down. The casket pops open- i'm not in there, where am I? a projecter descends on the ceiling and a prerecorded version of me yells in my best oprah voice, "check under your seats!"

everyone's panicked expecting to see a different dismembered limb under their seats, but i'm not under there either. what is? bees.

the bees whip everyone into a frenzy so they can know exactly what i feel like at any one of these million parties they drag me to. what they don't notice is the projector rolling up, and a crystal ball descending. look a little closer, and it's not a crystal ball, it's me, covered in a billion mirrored jewels. someone hits the lights. music starts playing.

it's too damn catchy to be weirded out, everyone starts dancing. i'm the literal belle of the ball. my body is lowered and i get to crowd surf one last time into my casket.

i am later put on a ship and given a viking funeral on lake titicaca...

I sit thinking about this and laughing to myself. AJ was not somebody i could rattle this bizarre schpeel off to- he didn't have a morbid sense of humor, or any sense of humor at all as i was concerned. AJ was forged and serious. I'd only seen him laugh at people getting hurt- dumb bitches and assholes were funny to AJ. when i was patient he resembled the salt of the earth- i doubt he gave me the same luxury when he thought about me, if he thought about me.

he was one of those people you cannot reason out of their ways because they weren't reasoned into them in the first part. i imagined taking him to an art museum and having him complain about how toddlers can do the modern stuff. it's true, but you're not supposed to say that.

 I was no pretty picture at this point.

despite not being able to play I nabbed ellie's guitar and tried to noodle. Knew at least three notes- at one point I could play Wild Thing by the Troggs, felt accomplished enough and quit. I think that's how Hendrix got his start. Learning one simple song and throwing in the towel, because well, good nuff.

 AJ said, "I can play guitar."

"Play me a song."

 He grabbed the neck. AJ is a big dude with stiff fingers- caloused from working in cement for a summer job and ROTC. the guitar looked so comical he held it delicately. like the hulk drinking tea.

AJ then proceeded to play guitar worse than me. The strings sounded muffled and muddy, he stumbled and paused and continued this for an unbearable amount of time. Like clay his finger pads gummed up the strings, and in his other hand his nails nearly broke the body.

 "not too shabby!" he beamed. "do you know this song?" as if it wasn't the terrible playing, but my lack of a grasp on music & culture that made the notes indecipherable.

and the terrible playing continued.

"AJ you suck what is it that supposed to be?"

"I'm yours by Jason Mraz"

"... that doesn't sound anything like Jason Mraz."

"are you deaf? pull it up on youtube and I'll play along."

 I did pull it up on youtube and leaned into the sofa while AJ continued to fumble. he would not sing. he would not back down. It was funny, I took a video. AJ in his salmon shorts and boat shoes, his bad ROTC haircut, his head like an easter island statue. He was no song bird.

 katie woke up and stumbled into the living room. aj escorted her off to the bedroom again. I said, "hey, i think i'm okay, you can go home now."

 i wondered if the song choice meant anything. i wondered if the hair, that had been gelled before he had came over, and the cologne patted into his neck, meant anything. i wondered what he thought he'd come over for, if he hadn't fully read my text.

 i couldn't read stone so i couldn't read AJ. i'd only witnessed three expressions on his face: a neutral, with pressed lips and slow moving eyes. an anger, which was the same as the neutral but his brow dented in at the bridge of his nose. and laughing. which was differing than being happy or joyous or celebratory. laughing, with those solid eyes and teeth.

 with a name like cecilia i'd be serenaded all the time. it could be unbearably awkward, like when people sing you the happy birthday song and you suddenly don't know what to do with your hands or where to look. do i snap my fingers and wiggle when my gym teacher bellows simon & garfunkle in middle school? it could be a very nice thing, like when i'm with a new group of people and someone begins to hum it in a conversational lull. it could be a funny thing, like when i'm biking and a friend whips his head out of his car window to yell the lyrics at me.

 Musicians flitted in and out of my life. The nomad quality of some creative people.I thought about the other people who serenaded me outside of AJ, who failed at it miserably now. There was Amelia. There was Paul.

 Amelia was no gypsy, her retro pin curls, her blouses tucked into levis, her face that was all smiles & black rim glasses. A career in costume design ahead of her, she cared for others ardently, sweetly. Amelia would describe a mothering instinct in herself that I saw as something different- a certain calm afforded by knowing most things were going to be okay. Ringing reassurance. In the all-girls dorm she sat in the desk under her lofted bed and learned Cecilia by Simon & Garfunkel, and she'd sing to me. Strumming on the ukelele. I'd watch and feel my oven of a heart preheat.

 Amelia would live vicariously through my turbulence, I would covet the moments of reprieve afforded drinking tea in her apartment, watching her bake, listening to her worries, her southern family history, her ROTC boyfriend, her gentle humor. If it were anyone else I'd feel like I'd be putting them out. Amelia was a lifetime. Amelia was midnight on a thursday in a lowlit dorm lilting and laughing through a song learned for a friend, mock-dying of embarrassment when said friend (me) would bring a flask to a Shakespeare play.

 Amelia knew my heart the most. She'd been well acquainted with Paul, my person, who would play guitar for himself but not in my presence.

 It was nice to watch someone like Paul engrossed in their art, playing and focused, but it wasn't for my sake. He snagged the guitar and layed on the floor. He snagged the guitar and would play for the cat, who watched intently, who moved his head or pounced or shook his tail at certain loud or interesting bits. I watched him play bass at church. Lutherans who drank coffee in the middle of mass- or service, they call it, i guess. Paul would more often watch me do homework than he ever saw me draw.

 I thought about Jake, my most wild and concerning month long fling. An after thought, if that. He spray painted over his guitar and invited people to write on it in sharpie- my addition being "the fda recommends adding a little hot sauce to that bad boy" and my favorite being "municipality." it was so funny, who writes only "municipality" on something so permanent and punk-y? amid lyrics about dying or dirty jokes or signatures? He played for me Nirvana on his gross kitchen floor, suddenly got wound up, anxious and manic like a cocaine addict, and smashed the instrument to pieces. That would've been funny or a show in front of a group, maybe, but it was just me, sitting on the counter wondering if I need to call the police. or maybe an ambulance.

 i maybe should've just called an ambulance instead of AJ, that night, too. or the police, to arrest the dude who nearly killed me.

 the door opened and in came a party: marie, the dude, a whole herd. AJ was suddenly one of them. who were these people? marie's dude flopped over our couch and his foot came swinging, knocking our side table over.

 Enough time had passed that I realized I was only going to die of AJ’s guitar playing, and that the swelling felt in my cheeks wouldn’t get to my throat. "well, i'm done. i'm going the fuck to bed. goodnight fuck-os." and i went the fuck to bed.

[carp3n0c73m]

Frozen in Memory: People, Activities, Objects - Chapter 3

My entrée into the theatre was met by a short, dimly lit hallway with foot-traffic-faded carpet worn thin by years of constant ingress and egress by performers and technicians. There was a small pile of packages on the floor to the left of the door, deliveries no doubt, accepted and signed for by someone who had since become absent. The door closed behind me with a heavy click and I stood still for a moment to allow my eyes to adjust as the faint light of day was shut out and I was bathed in the yellow/orange glow of several naked incandescent light bulbs. 

Immediately in front of me, down two steps on a small landing stood a man with his back to me. Unlike the previous dead man (for this one was quite obviously dead as well, if indeed the thing in front of me ever lived in the first place, meaning that I suspected him, as I had suspected de Gaulle, to be some sort of a composite facsimile or amalgamation of facts and images, possibly taken from my own mind and projected or drawn into physical being, though by who and for what purpose I know not), I did not instantaneously recognize him, having never seen a photograph of him, because he lived long, long before photography had been discovered by we crafty humans, though I knew who he was intended to be within the space of a few seconds. 

He was dressed in simple clothing, little more than a square of linen fabric that was pinned along the seams with a belt wrapped around the middle. With the speed of a crocodile rocketing out of a billabong to seize a tasty unsuspecting wallaby in its greedy jaws and drag it down to the depths to be enjoyed at leisure after drowning had taken its course, the word "chiton" came to the forefront of my mind. I knew that's what his attire was called, the typical dress for a man of ancient Greece. When I was in the sixth grade my class had studied a unit all about the Ancient Greeks and this was one of those words that just stuck with me. Chiton for men and peplos for women. I half expected him to be wearing sandals merely because that is the archetypical image that immediately came to my mind when I conjured up the concept of "Greek philosopher", however I also recalled that it was thought that most ancient Greeks abhorred shoes, especially at home, so I was not surprised to see that this man was barefoot. 

"You know it's actually appropriate that I would meet you in a theatre," I heard the words escaping from my mouth. "For years I contemplated writing a Masters thesis about how the Back to the Future trilogy was a modern example of your Unities being observed and respected." 

I don't know what I expected him to say, if anything, but I suppose that was my way of letting Aristotle know that I was familiar with and respected his work. He turned to face me at the sound of my voice, a slight smile on his bearded face and a profound curiosity and intelligence glittering in his eyes. He replied with what sounded like a question, though it was in Ancient Greek and I didn't understand the words. He raised his eyebrows inquisitively and then he raised his hands to chest height to display what he there held. I saw that in his left hand he held a coffee mug filled with hot water that read "Espresso Ergo Sum" on it and in his right hand, a live scorpion, wriggling as it dangled from its cruel tail. 

Language facilitates communication in many situations, but none was necessary here, either to communicate that he was offering me both of those items for inspection or for me to reply energetically that I had no desire to possess either of them. He then shrugged his shoulders in a gesture obviously meant to communicate indifference, the Ancient Greek version of "No biggie" and he then proceeded to place the scorpion into the steaming water, holding it gingerly by the tail. The scorpion writhed at first as it was lowered to the vessel, sensing the heat, but it visibly relaxed upon entering the water, its claws slowly opening and closing as if enjoying its little dip. And it was not scalded to death, nor did it drown, but rather inexplicably splashed around and seemed quite content, all the while being dunked in and out of the water like a tea bag. 

 ARISTOTLE was STEEPING a SCORPION.

 I gave him a thumbs up with a smile that I hoped communicated "More power to you, dude!" and was elated when he raised his left hand in the air and waited expectantly, giving the universal signal for "give me a high-five, son." And high five we did, though it wasn't until after it had already transpired that I realized that in order to execute this friendly maneuver, he had let go of the coffee cup that he was holding in his left hand and it stayed suspended in the air, patiently waiting for him. 

I wondered momentarily whether or not this version of New York had a higher than Keystone Earth concentration of helium or if the atoms here were simply more hostile towards gravity, contemptuously showing their disrespect and ire by randomly allowing themselves to slip gravity's jealous bonds. Aristotle turned away to grab a small metal box off of the ledge behind him and when he turned back I saw that it was a small tin of biscotti. He opened up the lid, pulled one out, and put it into his mouth like a cigar, flawlessly imitating the magician from the marquee whereupon he winked at me once. He then nodded at me with a smile, inviting me to take one for the road. As I started to reach in, I did not find any more slightly burnt and always mildly disappointing coffee accompaniments, but three playing cards, different from the ones I already had in my pocket, but no less familiar to me. 

As I put the cards with the others, Aristotle gestured with his head back and to the left, giving me the "Get out of here, you big guy!" signal and he stepped to the side, grabbing the coffee cup full of what was now no doubt scorpion tea. 

It was at that instant that there came a deafening reverberation from further down the stairs and around a corner that snapped my attention up and turned my head towards the source, the sound waves bouncing wildly in every direction off of the concrete walls. It was a noise that I had heard hundreds of times thanks to movies, but only a handful of them have been in person. It was deep and guttural and savage and scary as hell. Like an ostentatiously large chopper motorcycle with holes punched into the exhaust pipes revving with sickening, chest rumbling fury in the Lincoln Tunnel just ahead of you, the call rolled over Aristotle and I. It was the unmistakable sound of a lion roaring. 

I looked back at the philosopher and saw that he was unconcernedly eating the biscotti that he had used as a prop cigar with a rather disappointed look in his face (and really, he was eating his biscotto - it always bothered me how English had a tendency to pluralize things that were already plural in Italian - ahem...paninis!). He made eye contact with me and shrugged his shoulders in what could have either been "Good luck" or "Whatever", but both of which contained an undercurrent of "Better you than me, yo." I did however take his apparent lack of concern as a good omen and decided to press on. I reached for his hand and he seized mine and there was an awkward yet satisfying frenzy of an attempted secret handshake which neither of us knew that left both of us stupidly grinning.