#customer facing stuff too so EEK

[cubeg1rl]

🐝

[genshinology]

𝐍𝐎 𝐌𝐀𝐓𝐓𝐄𝐑 𝐖𝐇𝐀𝐓, 𝐈𝐓'𝐒 𝐀𝐋𝐖𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐘𝐎𝐔. zhongli

(requested by anonymous.)

content; zhongli x gn!reader. historical au to modern au (ig we could say that liyue has been modernised and like teyvat has been shifted into powerless realm without elements (please, bear with me and my stupid imagination ANSBHIQWKNDK)), reincarnation au, soulmates au, not really angst or fluff but like zhongli misses the reader and it shows, mentions of character death. wc; 1.6k (not proofread, let’s gaurr)

a part of my 800 followers event + *gasps* finally i am back to actual writing?!?!?! and get to continue this event??? HAHA ik this is so not my tradition of being inactive most of the part this year eek (btw, i have finals for like the next two weeks, so expect this blog only filled with queued stuff, etc.)

it was raining.

the day zhongli found you back on liyue past, dark days, where he was still the geo archon - all powerful, and craving the power from his people in the archon war, still under the name of morax - zhongli could not understand how you, a mere human without a vision, caught his attention in more ways than one.

sure, he believed that he knew you through guizhong, one of his old acquaintances, but he still could not comprehend how he could seek joy and calmness whenever you were around him, despite him still did not wander around with the body of his human form, zhongli. and how content you were when you knew that he was morax, not a passerby that casually tried to hit up on you.

it was raining, when he saw you working hard, a trait he found himself adored when it came from you, you were his everything back then, until he remembered how dread it was; one day, when the archon war finally came to its end, and news of you died tragically during the battle between gods, along with his close friends.

he could not imagine how helpless you must have been, without the power he often accompanied you whenever you said you were going out to catch up with the outside world. zhongli blamed everything on himself, how he was not able to protect the one people he cherished the most, you.

it was raining, once again, when he found you running towards katheryne, complained something about nearby monster attacks so that the adventurers’ guild could take the problem into their hand.

zhongli remembered how you thanked the receptionist, eyes gleaming with hope. the one emotion that he remembered back hundreds of years ago that was reserved for him. the one emotion he would trade his life for, because the hopefulness in your eyes was the one thing that kept him alive, the one thing that made him determined to be a better god, and he thought he was being deceived when he turned twice to properly look at your figure.

(yes, zhongli was no longer a god that oversaw liyue, but at times like this, he remembered how he was not really a gentle god to begin with, and the presence of you in the old days gave him hope for him to be kinder and wiser, and, he would not hesitate for a brief second if someone asked him how to be a respectable god (because zhongli, more often than not, was asked this question a little bit too much by the other gods and archons alike). he would, surely, answered those questions that you, the little human that he swore had sunshine upon you, was the one that brought the best out of him.)

zhongli could not believe when childe introduced you to him. (it was funny how he met you through his close friend, again.) you were helping xiangling at the wanmin restaurant, and as a regular there, he could not believe that it was really you. the same smile, the same height, the same face, even the same walk, and your kindness in serving other customers, even him, were all still the same. the y/n that he knew, the y/n that he wanted to protect, the y/n that he loved. it was still you, and zhongli knew that deep in your heart, you also sensed a familiarity when you approached him. it was weird, but you managed to introduce you to him, the new part-time worker at the restaurant and that this was your side income.

zhongli was wise, and smart. he, at that time, decided to not being too attached to you, although he assumed that he was actually immune to the death occurrences around him, since he learned that it was inevitable. all mortals he befriended with, all would only go and leave him alone, like how he always be.

but he could not deny the ache in his heart when he longed for your presence and attention, especially when you said you would be going back to your hometown, far away from liyue, and for once, zhongli reminisced the second, most bittersweet goodbye from you, and worst yet, he never knew when you died for a second time. all he knew was you admired him from afar from hu tao, and zhongli regretted his choice back then of not welcoming you into his heart once again.

it was a raining night, where cars and buses bustling around the busy city. the horns from afar, the colourful lights, the coffee in his hand, the droplets of rain that stained the café large window. all things, somehow, made him focused more on the memories of you, and the thousands of emotions that came along with them.

“may i sit here for a while?”

zhongli gave the person a brief nod, not really paying attention due to the fact that he was so deep in his thoughts, before he could feel the sense of familiarity to the person beside him.

zhongli never acted recklessly, often forming his own thoughts of consequences before doing anything, but he could not hide his shock when the person in front of him met his eyes, and, for a fleeting moment, zhongli knew it was you. he just knew.

if soulmates were real, he was so sure now that you were his.

you halted for a moment, part of you was awestruck by the manly aura that radiated off of him, but you could not ignore the tinge of sadness that suddenly overwhelmed you.

“have we.. have we met?” the simple question coming from you was more than enough to make his heart shattered into pieces, not because of the disappointment of you not recognising him - of course you couldn’t remember. you had been going through many stages of life cycles, and he would forever stuck with one - it was the fact that you thought you knew him, almost made the urge to pull you into his arms ten times stronger than ever.

the way zhongli kept on being silent made you quickly realised how off the question was, especially if you had just met a stranger in a downtown café. “wait, i’m sorry for sounding stupid. it’s just - i thought we know each other before but i may be wrong,” you sent an awkward laugh. “and i’m sorry if i am interrupting your personal space, that the rain is pouring and i could not catch the last bus and my umbrella is kinda broken -

“it’s fine, y/n.”

you almost dropped your phone at that. so, you had met. but you could not remember where.

the sadness inside you amplified the more you tried to shrug it off, his voice worsened your confusion to the negative feeling inside you, but, somehow, the more you held eye contact with this beautiful man in front of you, the more relieved you felt.

the sense of familiarity was not something you could ignore, with the fact that the man in front of you could technically be a bad person didn’t even come across your mind. “i know this might sound dumb, or stupid, or both but like - where did we meet?”

“somewhere, and i believe we were close at that.”

thousands of questions surged your mind, how could you forget a person that was close to you? the way you knew he wasn’t lying made your insides felt more relieved. who was this man? and why did you feel so sad? and relieved?

“the name’s zhongli,” he introduced himself to you.

the name struck you once again, but zhongli decided that this was all too much for you by reading your body language. even after centuries had passed, you were still the y/n he knew. “your umbrella broke?”

“i, uhh, yes,” you felt like you were sharing too much information on this guy who you barely knew, but the way he gave you the most gentle smile coming from a man made you knew that you could trust him. it made no sense, how you were not making any sense even in your own thoughts.

“let me offer you a ride. it is late and dangerous.”

you didn’t even doubt him and his words. something about him made you felt safe, and you thought you were the one who acted weirdly in front of him, but you figured that he didn’t mind. perhaps he had always been nice just like this.

“thank you, zhongli,” zhongli sent a small smile, one which pulled the strings of your heart. was this love at first sight, or you were actually close with him before? it was absurd, but you decided not to care with the intrusive thoughts.

either way, your gratitude made zhongli unknowingly blinked his eyes. those were the last words you said at him both times he met you. now, he swore he wouldn’t let you go again, with no responsibility of a god on your first life, and no treatment of platonic relationship with you on the second, he just knew that in this life, he would cherish every moment with you once again.

both of you decided to watch the rain after zhongli treated you with a drink, and, ironically enough, it was the most beautiful, and calming night you had ever seen.

all rights reserved © genshinology 2022 strictly on tumblr only. any form of wrongdoings under the copyright law is strictly prohibited.

[bookcub]

You might’ve answered this before (sorry if you did!!) but are you studying something specific for libraries in grad school? I worked briefly as a library page trying to decide if I wanted to go to school for library sciences before deciding it was too customer facing for me, but the job I’m in has no real growth and horrible pay and so I’m glancing at libraries again 😭😭 I like libraries in theory but I’m having a mid-20s Panic and seeing you talk about school has me thinking (tho I would probably have to go back to school while working a 9-5:30…eek!!)

ANYWAY this ask is so long—anything you might wanna say to someone considering grad school for library stuff?

Ooo I haven't talked about this much but I am happy to answer your questions! I am specifically taking classes that would help me as a children's/teen librarian and I would have more of a front facing job and that aspect is appealing to me, however, I can tell you about some of the other fields available that potentially would have less patron interaction in day to day work.

(please take this all with a grain of salt, I am far from an expert and

First off, cataloging/collection development. Depending on the library, the duties are different, but these are the people in charge of making sure the materials are properly added into the system and categorized.I feel like this field often gets overlooked and it is crucial to libraries as a field because if the items aren't organized, no one could find them. They also have a hand in buying and ordering materials, often working with other librarians about making sure certain materials are available for patrons. I don't know a lot about the specifics of the job but I would look into this if I were you.

Second, there are libraries that aren't public, like academic, medical, or law libraries (etc). Again, I don't know much because I've always been interested in public libraries, but these places would have the advantage of serving a specific community and could potentially be more interesting for those less interested in public facing jobs since you would be more likely working with colleagues than complete strangers. I would look into options like those as well.

As for general advice. .. .mmmm I have mixed feelings on library school. Because I do value education but omg it is so expensive to go to grad school and the classes are really hit or miss on whether they feel important and beneficial to how I want to function in the workplace. So I would look really carefully at cost of programs, what courses are required for library students, what concentrations are available, and choose classes wisely!!!

I would also talk to local librarians, look at articles about librarians (it isn't all positive, there are very important issues around libraries and librarians rn). I think it is helpful to be informed about the field you are entering into. I do think I would have ended up in the same program I did but I do wish I had looked around a little bit more before selecting it.

Please let me know if you have any more questions, I would be happy to give more insight! Best of luck and fingers crossed to a higher paying job!!

If any other library students or librarians or library workers want to add or correct me, please do!!

[ettawritesnstudies]

Thank you!!! I kind of started developing it in this ask but I've had some more thoughts on it tonight and I'm thinking it would follow a duo who are moving out to a new job together in a far away city, and it's a roommate out of convenience sort of situation. Rent is high and they don't do the same type of work but they're going to the same place and they happen to know each other through a friend-of-a-friend-of-a-friend network, so they throw their stuff together in a moving van and head out. They get along, at least in the couple of passing interactions they've had, but they're not friends or anything and as far as they know they don't have a lot in common. The plan is to just tolerate and ignore each other as roomies once they survive this whole 26 hours in a cramped cabin thing. Both are kind of hoping to take turns driving and spend their breaks sleeping and listening to music through headphones. But they end up chatting and as the conversation and the road roll on underneath them, they realize both of them have ghosts they're trying (and failing) to outrun and start to relate to each other.

I think the first one is going to be a horse-girl who grew up in this little rural community but it's becoming stifling. She's eeked out her degree from the community college while working retail at the local Walmart with the annoying people from her high school, and armed with a diploma and four summers worth of savings, she's trying to get away from her crazy family and this dead end town where everyone knows her name and everyone's asking what she's making of her life. She doesn't know yet but she'll figure it out somewhere that's not here. Her name is Winnifred Armstrong but her family calls her Winnie and her friends call her Fred. She's the sunshine half of the grumpy X sunshine dynamic, only the friendly personality is a defense mechanism of living in a small town where if you act up, word gets around quick and you can't sully your family's good name because everyone knows the Armstrongs, and also working retail. She's got a killer customer service "karen from church cornered me at the library" voice but underneath the learned and practiced hospitality is just simmering rage.

Henry was another kid who went to her high school but he got out and went to a well known private school and did pretty well for himself all things considered. His mom's been bragging about how he got a job out of his internship all summer and she's in Ms. Armstrong's book club, and they're both nebnose matchmakers who set up this whole thing. He's trying to live up to all the expectations of his family and his community who see him as "the smart one who made it" but he's saddled with way too much student debt for a degree he kind of hates. Hey it makes good money in a boring 9-5. He can figure out what he's doing with his life off the work clock once he gets out from under the thumb of his micromanaging parents. He's the grumpy half of the sunshine x grumpy dynamic but mostly he's just autistic and a socially awkward nerd who's really missing his college friends.

It won't be a romance necessarily but more of a "falling into friendship" coming of age story, learning how to find unlikely allies and grow up and grow into better people together, with the ambiguous ending of "Now they're living together and facing a bright but uncertain future... now what?"

got any short stories you’re excited to write once you have the free time for it?

Hey Katie!

My mind's been dwelling on ghost stories a lot recently but I don't have any kind of concrete plots, only vague vibes about road trips and leaving behind your sleepy little hometown and the friends who you know are transitory but you can't help but get attached to anyhow and the friends you make out of necessity that you can't help but feel you've outgrown

coming of age ghost stories in short but idk what to do about it. Not enough room for braining about story when I've got to find apartments, do insurance paperwork, transfer banks, and find a car in the next week ;-;

[dunnswrld]

brainrot incoming....imagine while they're traveling they obvi eat out alot and go to many restaurants where they find reader a bartender/server and they can't help but fight over who can talk to you more...yk?

THIS EEK! also ik i didnt include wee man and preston it’s just that im not really requested to do them so i just wrote for the main people im requested to do.

all the guys went to hooters just to film random stuff they did. the whole idea was just to make themselves look like fools in front of pretty girls.

while they waited for their waitress steve-o might snort salt and pepper and have to hold back throwing up cause he really didn’t want to embarrass himself in a hooters. his red face and closed mouth gagging had the whole table laughing. rick of course filming steve-o on a smaller camera.

all the guys were being loud and rowdy like usual, johnny’s laugh booming through the restaurant as other customers looked at their table with a annoyed expression. 

rick was smiling because they were actually getting good footage, he thought the idea of filming in a restaurant would be bad because of many factors but it was going really well surprisingly.

but that idea went down the drain as soon as you walked up to their table.

“hi boys im yn and ill be your waitress today. can i get you guys started with any drinks?”

your orange shorts and practically skin tight top had every guy at the table fall silent and just admire you, everyone but rick and jeff of course. only because they knew how to keep it in their pants

“ill take a miller light.”

“yeah ill have the same thank you.”

the rest of the guys watched closely as you scribbled down their drinks, they were taking in how nice your hair was, how smooth your skin looked, and how lovely your sweet smile was.

“anything for you guys?”

all the boys began to stammer until bam- the youngest out of all them- spoke up over all the mumbling sentences being spoke.

“ill have a rootbeer.”

“cant handle the real thing yet?”

“uh- no ma’am.”

half the table couldn’t help but laugh at bam’s sudden manners, ma’am? he had barely just met you and he was already whipped.

“yeah he’s just a baby. only 20! so he legally can’t have any, sucks right? but anyway im actually 23 and will have a beer.”

bam kicked ryans leg from under the table for ratting him out that he was only 20. the kick caused the silverware on the table to jump up. ryan trying to keep the best poker face infront of you as he could, getting kicked in the was a very tough kind of pain.

“ill have a beer too.”

a very smiley chris said as he looked over others at the table to see you. his smile reminded you of a kid in a candy store so you couldnt help but give him a small nod with a smile.

“one beer for mr smiley.”

you said earning a giggle from chris, his cheeks flushed a red.

“are you on the menu?”

you looked up from your notepad to see the boy with the buzzcut make the silly pick up line that earned several scoffs from his friends at the table.

“unfortunately not, but beers are.”

“yeah that’ll do too.”

you then looked up from your notepad after writing the last guys order signaling you were ready for the next orders.

“i’ll have just a beer sweetheart.”

“just a beer for the cowboy got it.”

johnny couldn’t help but laugh, he was glad such a pretty girl like you had a sense of humor.

“two beers for us please.”

you looked over at the blonde man who had just spoke, a brown haired boy next to him. the brown haired boy didn’t look a day over 19 and his rosey pink cheeks didn’t help that factor.

“what year were you born in sir?”

“uh- me?”

“yes you, you don’t look a day over 19.”

“‘76 miss.”

“you sure got a baby face for being 26.”

you trusted the boy and wrote yet another order of beers. and when you looked up from your note pad you saw the whole tables eyes on you, other than the nice two gentlemen who ordered first.

“well i’ll make sure they get those out for you boys quickly.”

a rush of thank yous was heard from the table, each boy wanted to be the first to say it to you but instead they all said it in union together.

when you walked away rick and jeff quickly hursted out laughing. the rest of the table knowing exactly why they were laughing and rolled their eyes at them.

“you- you guys were like a bunch of vultures circling their pray but except being vultures you all are virgins!” 

jeff said in between laughs, his sentence only making rick laugh even harder than he was before.

“im so glad i got that on camera!”

[sunsetcurve]

learn to love without consuming (1/4)

fandom: knight squad relationships: arc / ciara, minor or one-sided arc / oc and ciara / oc word count: 4,603

a/n: eek. it's finally here. if you follow me here you know that i've been working on this for a few weeks (months?), but the idea has been sitting in my drafts for basically forever. almost since i watched the show to begin with. the recent resurgence of the ks fandom prompted me to dig this back up and gave me the motivation to actually try and finish, because fuck it! i love my babes and i want more of them.

so quick note is that this picks up pretty soon after the season 1 finale but disregards basically,,, everything that happens in s2. s1 and the finale proceed the same way except prudy never finds out ciara's secret, so she and warwick don't know at the moment. this chapter was initially gonna have more scenes that drove the plot/romance arc but once i got upwards of 6k with a few major scenes left i decided it would be best if i split the chapter up, so for now it’s just a lot of me trying to work around the convoluted knight squad lore to establish my own. i know that's not exactly what everyone is here for, but i promise things on the romance/action front will pick up soon. i'll place warnings as detailed as i can get without spoiling in the tags and notes as i go, but just anticipate fairly significant violence by chapter 3.

anyway! i have talked enough. the title is from thus always to tyrants by the oh hellos, the rating is t for swearing/violence, there are three more chapters that are in the process of being written, and reviews are like crack as far as i'm concerned. i really hope you like this! thanks for reading <3

dedications: this fic is first and foremost for @ciara-knightly, who is not only my amazing beta but also the whole reason this fic exists. she helped me so so much with the development of the plot and worked through it with me even way before i decided to really start writing it, and i wouldn’t have been able to do this without her. all of the notes she left after beta-reading were so so helpful and really made this whole fic make sense so basically i owe her my entire life. she inspires me to be a better writer all the time and i love her. everyone say thank you shona!!! also tagging my lovely friends and some people who have expressed interest, who are in no way obligated to read this; @juliesdahlias @mistyskiesrambles @dr-rigatoni @willexs @taylorswiftrulestheworld @onplanetmars @neshatriumphs @zackmartin @julies-molinas @soni-dragon @yagorlemmalyn @hopefulbeautifulfool @cactus-con @waterisntreal @onetwothreefarkle @bitchmilsky

summary: “Now that Ryker isn’t a threat anymore, the councils are supposed to resume as planned, and Astoria is set to hold the first one two weeks from now.”

“Okay,” he says slowly. “That sounds exciting.”

Ciara nods. “It is! I finally get to meet some of the other nobility, and actually get to be involved in Astorian politics for once. But my dad won’t let me go without an escort,” she says, and then hesitates. “Which is where you come in.”

read it on ao3

The morning before training that day, Arc is testing his skills against a heavy bronze padlock when Ciara enters the squad room and drops a brown paper bag on the table in front of him. 

“These,” she announces as he raises an eyebrow at her, “are for you.”

He pulls open the package and is instantly greeted with a rush of warmth and the smell of vanilla. “Dragon puffs?” he says, half in awe. It’s a clear bribe, but he can’t help but shove a sugar-coated sweet in his mouth anyway. They’re an Astorian original and possibly the best thing he’s ever tasted; he’d tried them once at a bakery near the castle and hasn’t stopped thinking about them since. 

“Okay, what do you want?” he says then, words muffled around the cream and pastry.

Ciara pulls a face at his manners, but still manages to blink innocently at him. “Can’t I just do something nice for a friend?” she tries, but it’s half-hearted.

He swallows and grins at her. “Nice try, Princess. Your dessert deliveries always come with an ulterior motive.”

Huffing a sigh, she sits down next to him. There’s this subtle air of anticipation lingering around her, one he can only sense based on how in tune they are after so long of being teammates. The two of them have this easy way of reading each other now; they’ve been spending more and more time together, something having shifted in their dynamic after the battle against Ryker. He can’t quite place what it is, but he knows it’s only brought them closer. “Do you know what the Council of the Five Kingdoms is?” she asks finally.

He shrugs. “Sure. Nobles from each kingdom used to have a big ball every year to talk trading and politics and other boring stuff…”

“Except there hasn’t been a council since Ryker’s invasion, because the kingdoms have been isolated and preoccupied with their own safety,” she finishes for him. Her fingers tug at the lacing of her leather gauntlets; she’s nervous, but he still isn’t sure why. “Now that Ryker isn’t a threat anymore, the councils are supposed to resume as planned, and Astoria is set to hold the first one two weeks from now.”

“Okay,” he says slowly. “That sounds exciting.”

Ciara nods. “It is! I finally get to meet some of the other nobility, and actually get to be involved in Astorian politics for once. But my dad won’t let me go without an escort,” she says, and then hesitates. “Which is where you come in.”

Arc chokes on his second dragon puff. “You want me to be your escort,” he says flatly, once he’s finished coughing, “to the Council of the Five Kingdoms?” Normally he’d jump at the chance to spend a night dressing up and eating castle food. But the council is a decidedly different scene; there’s a set of formalities, politics underlying everything, and too many chances for him to expose his lack of knowledge when it comes to Astorian customs. Not to mention that Catalias’ royals will be there. He doesn’t know if he can stomach looking them in the face, knowing what they did to Seagate.  

Ciara grimaces. “Look, I know it’s not exactly your thing, but my dad won’t let me go alone. And this really means a lot to me.” Her eyes are pleading, and Arc feels his resolve chipping away.

“Can’t one of your actual guards go with you?” he tries. “Or, Prudy or Warwick or someone?”

“I’ve already talked to my dad about it,” she explains. “You’re the only Knight School student he’d let protect me, because you already proved you could when Ryker invaded. Besides, if something were to happen…you’re the one person who knows I can handle myself as Ciara.”

There’s this brief stretch of silence where Arc works his bottom lip, and Ciara looks as though she’s debating something. “Also,” she adds finally, with the soft flicker of a hesitant smile, “I thought it might be fun to go with you.”

Arc blinks at her, caught off guard by the admission. There’s this sudden buzz in his chest that he can’t push away; in truth, he doesn’t like the idea of her spending the night with someone else either. Maybe, by some miracle, this will actually be a good thing. “Alright,” he relents. “I’ll be your escort.”

Ciara’s face breaks into a grin. “Yes! Thank you!” She throws her arms around him, and he’s shock-stilled, a rush of warmth flooding through him as he hugs her back. When she pulls away, her eyes are shining with excitement. “Okay, I’ve gotta go tell my dad you said yes, and there’s a million things to do, but I’ll see you at training later. You are the best.”

“I expect dragon puffs for life!” Arc calls after her as she disappears through her passageway. He leans back into the couch, lightheaded, and in that moment, he realizes abruptly that there’s almost nothing he wouldn’t do for her. 

And he is so completely screwed.

*

Two weeks later, Arc is standing outside Ciara’s bedroom, waiting for her to finish getting ready.

It feels odd to be out here in the open. Generally his visits to her chamber are accompanied by an air of secrecy, but tonight, he’s a guest in the castle. He’s dressed like it, too, decked out in the guards’ typical formal wear: pressed brown pants, a white shirt laced up the front, and a navy leather jacket trimmed in gold, with Astoria’s crest on one shoulder. He looks kind of dashing, honestly.

Despite the confidence boost his new look offers him, his hand keeps drifting to the hilt of his sword. It’s sheer force of habit; he only associates this brewing sense of apprehension with battle, and his muscles are responding in kind. He’s glad, at least, that he turned down the other guards’ offer to lend him one of their ceremonial blades and instead has the familiarity of his own. Hopefully he won’t need it, but it’s a steadying presence all the same.

“Almost ready!” Ciara calls from inside, and Arc carefully unclenches his fingers from around the leather grip of his sword. He has to keep it together tonight; she’s made it clear how much this means to her. The last thing he wants to do is embarrass her in front of nobles from all five kingdoms.

Well, four, he reminds himself. Seagate won’t be attending. There isn’t anyone left to represent them. 

The thought makes his stomach twist. 

He’s saved from having to dwell on it by the sound of Ciara’s door unlatching. “Better prepare yourself, Princess,” he teases, leaning against the wall, “I look pretty good, and the last thing we want is for you to get too smitten—”

He breaks off as she emerges from the doorway, all the air in his lungs leaving in a sudden rush. He’s trying hard not to be the cliche of a guy scraping his jaw off the floor at the sight of a pretty girl in a dress, especially not like this, with Ciara—but he can’t help but think that it’s ridiculously unfair of her to come out looking like that. Her dress is a pale blue, falling gently off her shoulders and cinching at her waist, and her tight curls are weaved with strands of gold and tied into a low knot, some of them falling loose to frame her face. There’s a crown of gold leaves and rosebuds settled in her hair. 

“You...um…” Arc searches for his voice, “you look amazing.” His mouth feels dry.

Ciara smirks and reaches up to adjust the collar of his uniform. “You don’t look so bad yourself. I’m definitely smitten,” she jokes, like it’s nothing for them to be flirting openly. It should be nothing. Except his skin burns where her fingers brush against his neck, and he suddenly wonders if she can hear his heart pounding.

He clears his throat. “We should probably get to the ballroom.” 

She nods. “Give me your arm,” she says, looking at him expectantly. When he raises an eyebrow, she continues, “You’re my escort, remember?” 

“Oh, right.” He lifts his arm obligingly, his cheeks warm.

“I really wish we’d had more time to go over Astorian customs,” she breathes as she takes it, more to herself than anything. “Between training and helping with preparations, I’ve been so busy…” His nerves must show on his face, then, because she squeezes his arm gently and amends, “Sorry. You’ll be fine, don’t worry. Just stay close to me, okay?”

“Not a problem,” he grins without missing a beat, and Ciara scoffs and shoves him, the smile tugging at her mouth taking all the bite away from it. 

They can do this, he thinks. The two of them have kept up appearances for each other for months now, have fought and trained and battled Ryker together. They’re Arc and Ciara, unstoppable duo. One little party should be nothing.

As they make their way down the hall towards the ballroom, flanked by guards, Ciara lowers her voice. “When we get there, most of the nobles should be inside already. The herald will announce my father first, then us, and then each of the other three kingdoms. We’ll be beside the thrones as they come in—you’ll stand by me, left side—and once they’ve all been announced, we can leave the thrones and mingle. Bow to each of the rulers as they come by.” 

They had, at least, practiced his bow. Arc swallows back the dread in his throat; all he has to do is stand beside her and greet the other royals, it’s easy enough. For a moment, they linger outside the entrance to the ballroom, until an official-sounding voice announces the King. “We’re next,” Ciara whispers to him, eyes glinting with excitement. “You ready?”

He nods back at her, and the voice calls, “Accompanied by Sir Arc...Princess Angelica of Astoria!” They step into the ballroom, greeted with applause. Arc doesn’t think he’s ever been in a place this lavish; the walls are white, accented in deep gold, and the floors are polished to a gleam. The ceiling looks hand-painted, ornately decorated in constellations and swirling designs, and crystal chandeliers dangle over their heads, casting a golden glow over the whole room. He tries not to look too awe-struck. 

They make their way to the platform on which the thrones rest, Ciara nodding and smiling and waving at the other nobles as they pass. She stands next to her father, and Arc takes his place on her other side, placing his hands behind his back and trying, for all the world, to look like he belongs there. He wonders suddenly if he’s stood too close to her, and if it would make things worse for him to shift over now, and if his indecision is showing on his face—

And then, almost imperceptibly and hidden from the ballroom’s view by the folds of her dress, Ciara reaches over and links her pinky with his. It’s a tiny gesture, a friendly reassurance, but Arc feels a tide of warmth swell in his chest all the same. He lets his gaze flit to her for just a moment, and her lips are graced with a small smile as she tugs his finger gently. 

His breath hitches, and he fights to keep his face a passive neutral as the herald announces the next kingdom and he turns his attention back to the doorway.

“Presenting King Hugo, Queen Luciana, and their son Prince Isaac of Catalias!” 

Arc’s stomach turns as the couple enters, trailed by their son, all three of them swathed in lavish red and gold. Their reputation precedes them; he knows little about the prince, but the king and queen are infamous for their hoarding of wealth, their favorance of the rich nobles and landowners of their kingdom over the common people. Arc knows them best for what they had done to Seagate. 

His hand twitches for his sword, but he fights against the instinct.

True to form, the two have a haughty look about them, all starched clothes and stiff smiles as they bow to Ciara and the King. The two of them return the greeting with Arc following their lead—grudgingly.

“I am so pleased you could join us tonight,” the King smiles, a little tight-lipped. “It is high time that Astoria and Catalias united again.”

King Hugo nods back. “I couldn’t agree more. The honor is ours.” 

Arc detects a veiled sort of tension between the two of them, hidden well underneath the cordial formalities. He glances at Isaac, whose eyes are trained intently on Ciara even as he and his parents move to greet the other guests. Something about it is unsettling.

He’s so focused on Isaac that he almost misses the herald’s announcement of the next kingdom. “Queen Damyanti, and her children Princess Aadhya and Prince Kavan of Khurjan!”

Queen Damyanti is the picture of elegance, draped in silver silk that almost seems to glow against her dark skin. Aadhya looks around fifteen, with the same deep eyes and regal expression, and Kavan must be ten or so. He grins toothily as the three of them approach the thrones and bow.

The King’s expression is much warmer now. “Queen Damyanti. It has been too long. I trust Khurjan is doing well?”

“Not quite as well as Astoria, perhaps,” she replies, and it’s teasing, no sharpness to it. “This ball is absolutely lovely. Princess Angelica, you look so beautiful. Just like your mother. I was so sorry to hear of her passing.”

Ciara’s eyes go soft. “Thank you, Queen Damyanti,” she nods back. “It’s wonderful to finally meet you.”

“You as well. It’s a shame your sister couldn’t make it, but hopefully we’ll all gather again soon.” She gives a small, departing nod and joins the rest of the nobles, Aadhya giving them a bright-eyed smile and Kavan waving enthusiastically as they follow her. Ciara laughs. 

“And finally...King Jesper of Vysalt!”

Arc is confused for a moment; he wonders if he had remembered the name of Vysalt’s king wrong. Then a young man with a head of dark curls and a smattering of freckles against tawny brown skin enters, his crown just slightly crooked. His eyes are wide and dark, and a jagged, white scar cuts across his cheekbone. He can’t be much older than they are.

“He’s the king?” Arc whispers to Ciara under his breath as Jesper makes his way over to them. “How old is he?”

Her expression twists a little in sympathy. “Seventeen. He wasn’t supposed to inherit the throne so soon. His parents were killed when Ryker’s army took over his kingdom.”

Arc isn’t sure what to say to that. He knows what it’s like to lose everything to Ryker—he can picture the flames every time he shuts his eyes. But he hadn’t known about Vysalt or the fate of its royals. They had been close allies with Seagate at one point, one of the only other kingdoms without much wealth, and their king and queen had been known for their generosity. 

Somehow Arc had thought the damage had been done to Seagate alone, but now he wonders how the other kingdoms fared, if they suffered just as much. If any of them came out as unscathed as Astoria did.

“Your Majesties,” Jesper says as he bows, and there’s a note of pity in the King’s expression as he returns the gesture. Arc can only imagine how he feels about someone so close to his daughter’s age having to run a kingdom on his own. 

“King Jesper. How are you doing?” 

It’s a more personal question than he had asked the other royals, Arc notes. Jesper smiles easily; it’s soft, highlights his deep dimples and makes his dark eyes glimmer. “Well, thank you. Vysalt is recovering with time. As am I,” he adds, voice quieting for a moment.

The King nods back. “That’s good to hear. Let us know if there’s anything Astoria can do to help.”

Something flickers in Jesper’s expression, hard to read and gone so quickly that Arc wonders if he imagined it. The young king bows again before moving to join the others, but not before he catches Arc’s eye and smiles warmly. It surprises him—the other royals had hardly given him a second glance—but he returns it with one of his own. Beside him, Ciara lifts an eyebrow, her expression a mixture of amusement and something else he can’t place. 

“What?” he asks quietly, and she shakes her head, glancing away. 

“Nothing.”

He wants to pry, but the King is clearing his throat, getting ready to address the room. The chatter dies down as all eyes turn to him.

“My fellow Astorians,” he says in his deep, booming voice, sounding more formal than Arc has ever heard him, “and my guests from our neighboring kingdoms...I am honored to welcome you to our castle, and so pleased that we could all be in attendance tonight.”

Not all of us, Arc thinks, but no word of Seagate comes up. 

The King continues, “For decades, our kingdoms have been isolated and divided by Ryker’s armies. We have long suffered under his forces, but his threat is gone for good. Thus, tonight is more than a council; it is a symbol of our victory, a symbol of our unity as we move forward and rebuild. So enjoy yourselves! After all, we have so much to celebrate!”

To Arc, the sentiment feels hollow. He got his revenge, and of course he’s glad that Ryker can’t hurt anyone else, but it doesn’t change the fact that Seagate is in ruins. It feels suddenly difficult to celebrate with the weight of his village’s absence lingering in the air around him. The rest of the partygoers don’t seem to share his hesitance, though; the room breaks into applause and cheers, several of the guests raising their goblets jovially. 

Ciara gives him a subtle nudge, jolting him out of his thoughts. “Now we get to mingle,” she grins, leading him off the throne platform and towards the crowd. 

He follows dutifully as she heads toward the table where the other kingdoms’ royals have gathered, Astoria’s king staying behind to greet the other royals. Queen Damyanti is in conversation with King Hugo and Queen Luciana, but she doesn’t seem entirely pleased about it, and Jesper and Kavan are laughing at something Aadhya has said. Isaac hovers next to them, looking like he’d rather be anywhere else. He has his father’s golden hair and clear blue eyes, but the frown on his face is entirely his mother’s.

It disappears, though, the moment he sees Ciara approaching them. “Princess Angelica,” he greets her, with a little too much enthusiasm for Arc’s liking, “I’m so honored to finally meet you. You’re even more radiant in person.” Before she can say anything, he takes her hand and kisses it swiftly. Arc narrows his eyes.

Ciara gives a forced-sounding chuckle and curtseys, pulling her hand back. “Thank you, Prince Isaac. I’m glad you could make it. Allow me to introduce Sir Arc, my guard and escort for the night.”

Arc bows—and if he never has to bow to another pompous royal again, he thinks, it’ll be too soon—and Isaac offers him a dismissive sort of half-smile. Any further interaction they would’ve had then is thankfully avoided by the other royals noticing Ciara’s arrival.

“Hi, Princess Angelica!” Aadhya says brightly, with a neat little dip of a curtsey, “I’m Aadhya.” When Ciara and Arc begin to return the gesture, she waves her hand with a tiny scoff. “Oh, you don’t have to do that. Formalities. Just come sit.” She returns to her chair and pats the seat next to her, and Arc decides right there that he likes her.

Ciara takes the offered chair, and Arc takes the only other open spot, in between her and King Jesper. As Ciara launches into conversation with Aadhya, Jesper turns to him. 

“Hi,” he says, a small smile tugging at his lips. “I’m Jesper.”

Arc bites back a laugh at the unnecessary introduction. “I know who you are, Your Highness,” he replies lightly.

“I know. I was just trying to give you an opening to tell me who you are.”

Oh. That’s unexpected. There’s no prerogative behind his words, no assertion; Jesper’s grin is almost bashful, his voice easy and bright. He doesn’t sound like a king, just a seventeen-year-old boy trying to flirt. Arc can’t help but return his smile.

“I’m Arc,” he says. “Normally I’m a student at Knight School, but I’m the princess’s guard and escort for the night.” 

“Wait,” Aadhya pauses her conversation with Ciara to lean over and look at him, “You’re the Arc who defeated Ryker?” 

“I helped,” Arc says with a shrug, and the princess’s eyes go wide. She turns to Ciara.

“Were you there too?”

“I was—” Ciara pauses for a moment, “hiding. I was hiding. Arc got me to safety.” 

He grins a little at her, tongue between his teeth, knowing it must be killing her to hide what she was actually doing. She narrows her eyes and kicks his leg under the table in response, a silent shut up. He lifts his eyebrows, like, I didn’t say anything, and she rolls her eyes in an entirely non-subtle manner. 

Across the table, Queen Damyanti is watching their exchange with a raised eyebrow, Arc notices belatedly. She has a mildly amused look on her face, but doesn’t say anything about it. Instead, she states, “Battling Ryker face-to-face must have been quite the experience.” 

“What was it like?” Prince Kavan asks eagerly from beside his sister.

Aadhya elbows him. “Kavan,” she hisses, but Arc just grins.

“No worries. It was…” he trails, trying to think of what to say and suddenly aware that all the royals’ eyes are on him. He shifts in his seat. “It was scary, obviously. He had the Armor of Astoria, and a whole army with him, and most of the Astorian knights under his spell. But, y’know. We Knight School students are pretty formidable. We all took him on together. Wouldn’t have been able to do it otherwise. I wasn’t half as scared as I would’ve been without my squadmates watching my back.”

He glances at Ciara, who smiles softly and nudges his foot, gentler this time. Jesper has that same unreadable look on his face and Aadhya has her chin propped in her hand, her expression amazed, but Queen Luciana gives a snide sort of scoff. 

“It’s a wonder it took so long to defeat him, then, if a group of students cut him down so easily,” she says. “Perhaps Ryker was never as great a threat as we all made him out to be.”

There’s a cut of silence across the table in which Jesper visibly stiffens. “With all due respect, Queen Luciana, Ryker’s attacks were devastating. Or have you forgotten what happened to my parents?” he demands, without any respect at all. His eyes are blazing. 

“I’m merely pointing out that the only real damage done was to the less...fortified kingdoms,” she sniffs. “Ryker only breached Catalias’s walls once, and he was driven out rather quickly.”

“Well, not every kingdom has Catalias’s resources.” Ciara sounds like she’s choosing her words carefully, frustration masked well behind them.

King Hugo gives a huff of a laugh; his blue eyes are cold. “My dear princess, you have no cause for indignation. Astoria lost the least to Ryker, what with your,” he waves a hand, “magic bubble.”

Ciara opens her mouth but falters, brow furrowed, and across the table, Queen Damyanti speaks up. “Nevertheless, Ryker was still a formidable enemy to all of us. We were only prepared for his attacks because he targeted Seagate and Vysalt first. And Seagate’s destruction is a clear example of his power.”

“Oh, even you can’t argue that Seagate was rotting long before Ryker got to it, Damyanti,” Hugo replies swiftly, and Arc’s breath catches in his throat. Queen Damyanti shrugs in agreement, her expression passive; Arc almost stands up, but Ciara’s hand on his leg underneath the table stops him. 

“Don’t,” she hisses, just barely loud enough for him to hear, “Let me handle this.”

Though as it turns out, she doesn’t have to. Before she has a chance to speak, Jesper is already bristling, his voice sharp: “As if Seagate’s corruption justifies the destruction of its people?”

“It’s thieves and criminals, you mean?” Isaac scoffs. “Seagate was a wasteland. The kingdoms are better off.”

The words ring in Arc’s ears, alongside the pounding of his blood. They sound painfully similar to what Ryker had said to him on the mountain—rats and thieves, I did the five kingdoms a favor—and he thinks fleetingly that he’s going to be sick. He’s always known that Seagate was looked down on by the other kingdoms, but hearing them say so casually that what happened, the flames and the destruction and all of the death, was deserved—

“The people were only thieves and criminals because Catalias took advantage of them,” Jesper argues. “I hope I don’t have to remind you that it was your government that poured money into the gangs of Seagate for their own profit and allowed them to stage a coup in the first place.”

The words are deadly and cold, but Arc feels a flash of admiration for Jesper; the king has no obligations towards Seagate, and yet defends it like his own. King Hugo’s gaze hardens. “You’re blaming Catalias for Seagate’s problems?” he says with a derisive laugh. “If anything, Ryker’s attacks only revealed that Seagate was a kingdom full of people that weren’t worth saving.”

“That’s enough,” Ciara says abruptly. Her hand tightens on Arc’s leg, and he can no longer tell if he’s the one trembling or if she is. There’s this burning fire behind her eyes; she looks, Arc thinks briefly, the same way she does in battle. “What happened to Seagate was a devastating tragedy, and I won’t let you treat it as otherwise. Those who disagree aren’t welcome here.”

It’s a weighted statement, one she doesn’t entirely have the formal authority to make, but no one dares to contest it. A heavy silence settles over all of them. Arc doesn’t know how long he can sit there with all the heat under his skin; he doesn’t remember when his hand found the hilt of his sword, only that he’s gripping it tight enough that the leather bites into his palm. He wants to stand up and tell them that none of them would be here if it weren’t for him, a thief from Seagate. In truth, the only thing holding him back is Ciara. In a battle between her steady hand and the storm in his chest, she wins without even trying.

He doesn’t say anything or look at her, but her gaze flits to him for a moment and she just knows, standing up. Before she even opens her mouth, Isaac is on his feet too. “Going so soon?” he asks. “Would you care to dance, Princess?”

She looks at him coolly for a moment. “I would, actually.” And then, she turns to Arc, offering him her hand, “Sir Arc, dance with me?”

Arc blinks up at her and takes it as he stands. “Absolutely, Princess,” he says, letting her lead him away from the table and glancing back only long enough to catch the dumbfounded expression on Isaac’s face.

[badsext]

🍭🌶 Could I request something sweet and spicy where Robert Sheehan tries to boost a shy, soft reader's (f) self-confidence? Thanks!

Masked Hearts: Robert Sheehan x Reader (fem)

Author’s note: Thank you for the request! I decided to to experiment with acknowledging the pandemic in this fic. Because the reader is shy, I thought it would be interesting to incorporate masks and social distancing. Not trying to be flippant about masks and social distancing (which is really important). It’s just fantasy. I hope you like it.

____________________________________________

The fridge is empty except for a few condiments. Of course, you already know this, but you are so hungry, you go through the motions anyway. Then you reach for the crackers in the pantry and shove one into your mouth. It’s stale, but you choke it down as punishment for running out of groceries during a pandemic.

You start weighing your options. A grocery run would require you to buy the food, bring it home, and cook it. By then your empty stomach would never forgive you. Delivery would also take too long. No, you needed to eat immediately...or as close to it as possible with minimal social interaction.

You take a quick shower, brush your teeth and throw on some of your more decent casual clothes: a plain black tee shirt and the only pair of jeans you don’t hate. Your reflection in the mirror looks tired and stressed. ‘Why do I even try?,’ you mutter to yourself as you rearrange your hair. ‘Well, here we go,’ you sigh, stretching the blue medical mask across your face. You can hide so much behind a mask, for someone as shy as you it is a blessing in disguise.

The restaurant is eerily quiet. With the restrictions eased, every other table is blocked off with an ‘x’ made of yellow tape and the same yellow tape has portioned off the floor every six feet. There is nobody in line so you step up to the tape closest to the cashier. You order the usual through the plexiglass in a voice you’d consider loud to compensate for the layers of materials between your mouth and her ear. “I’m sorry, can I have that again?” You raise your voice, but she still can’t hear you. The third time you are literally shouting and it is so painfully awkward you could die. ‘This place needs a fucking ordering ap!’ You scream inside your brain. She punches in some buttons and finally hands you an empty cup signaling the end of your torment.

You fill the cup with soda and sit down. There is a maskless man eating at a table directly across from you. He notices you and looks up from his food. You panic. ‘What is he looking at?’ Then in an instant you recognize him. ‘What the fuck is Robert Sheehan doing at this shitty restaurant right now?’ You try to calm yourself, avert your eyes. ‘He’s just a person,’ you reason. ‘He needs to eat too.’ You open a takeout menu and hold it up to hide your face in spite of the mask you are already wearing. Your eyes peer stealthily over the top. ‘He’s still looking at me. Why is he still looking at me?’ That’s when you realize that you are literally the only two customers in the restaurant.

He smiles. His green eyes sparkle like precious gems and the sunlight bounces off his messy bun of shiny brunette curls like gold. ‘Wow, okay he is even better looking in person.’ You hear a number being called and realize that it matches the one on your receipt. You suddenly recall where you are and the reason you are here. Still, you hesitate to get up and retrieve your order. If you stand up and walk up to the counter he will get a get a full view of your body, the cursed sack of meat that you are so helplessly trapped inside.

“Miss, your food is ready.”

‘Shit!’ Now you have to get the food or he’ll think something is wrong with you!

You walk up as inconspicuously as possible, like a vapor on a crest of wind. ‘Goddamnit, why didn’t I order this to go?!’ You curse your lack of foresight, grab the tray and return to the same seat across from Robert Sheehan, deciding it is less awkward than changing seats to avoid him. The savory sent of grilled chicken sandwich and seasoned fries permeate your mask to make your mouth water. But you can’t just chow down like an animal, Robert Sheehan is watching. You check again and it seems he has moved on, scrolling his phone instead.

You sneak a fry under your mask and hear the sound of muffled laughter. Mortified, your tear ducts start to sting. Robert’s smile drops as he sees the effect he has had on you. His eyebrows scrunch together in regret and his hands wave frantically as he shakes his head. “I’m sorry,” he says, breaking the silence. “I didn’t mean to laugh, I just thought that was cute,” he explains, with his hand to his chest.

‘Cute?’ Your mind starts spinning. Still low on blood sugar, you instinctively reach for your drink, poking the straw under the mask to have a sip. Rob stifles another laugh and again shows his remorse. Then you watch as he appears to have a few stern words with himself.

“It’s okay,” you manage to eek out. Rob looks relieved. A smile forms under your mask and an idea pops into your head. You unwrap the plastic knife and fork on your tray and begin slicing your sandwich into bite sized pieces. You stab one, twirl it around on your fork and pop it under the mask. Rob giggles, flashing his teeth. Encouraged, you lean back in your chair and rub your tummy like Winnie the Pooh.

He picks up his sandwich and makes it “laugh” by flapping the bun up and down.

You cary on this way, eating and joking around at a distance until your plates are empty. This is definitely not like you, getting silly with a virtual stranger. It usually takes months before people get to see this side of you, but after breaking the ice, Rob’s attention feels good.

He puts his mask on and comes up to your table.

“Thanks for having lunch with me.” He says, pulling a small bottle of hand sanitizer out of the pocket of his low waisted pants. “Want some?”

“Yeah, thanks.” You say holding out your hands. He squirts some of the clear liquid into your hands, then into his own before putting it away. You have several bottles of this stuff in your purse, but none that have been warmed against the thigh of a bonafide celebrity.

“I’m Rob.”

You introduce yourself. You think of mentioning Misfits or Umbrella Academy, but you worry it might wreck the mood.

“You’ve got something on your...” He points to your mask.

“Oh, haha.” You laugh nervously, turning away to dig though your bag, pop a mint, then turn around wearing a clean identical mask.

“Brilliant quick change. I didn’t see a thing.” You offer him a mint. He takes it and slips it under his mask with a wink. “You want to get out of here?”

Your body tingles at the prospect. You nod, trying to conceal your dizzying flood of emotions. “Where should we go then?”

“Well, there’s really not much open. I was planning on heading back to my apartment.” You explain, trying not to sound too obvious while simultaneously hoping he takes the bait. All of this is, of course, way out of your comfort zone and there is a part of you cringing into oblivion.

“Well, it’s a nice day, why don’t I walk you home.” He souds persuasive, not insistent; optimistic, not cocky.

“That sounds nice.”

He holds out his sanitized hand and you take it. The contact of your skin against his activates a primal desire within. You take to the street, the warm California breeze gently follows. Your steps start to quicken as you approach the front door. You reach into your bag to find your keys. Rob’s arms encircle your waist from behind. You turn to him, holding your keys in one hand and sliding the other down the length of his body from his chest to the growing bulge in his pants. He inhales sharply. You turn back around to unlock the door. He grabs your ass with both hands.

Inside the apartment Rob rips off his mask then reaches out for yours. “Ah ah ah,” you scold, instinctually dodging out of the way. “We mustn’t violate CDC protocol.”

Rob begs. “Oh come on, just a peek?” You remove the mask, revealing a shy little smile. Rob comes near, brushing your hair away from your face and pressing his lips to yours so soft and deliberate.

Update: Smut filled 🌶 Part 2

@elliethesuperfruitlover @bubblyani @chipster-21 @vinawyatt @chokemerobert @bitch4bagels @bi-satanist @helena-way07 @punknatch @ettyskellington @deadlynyghtshayde @dandycandy75 @renegadesheehan @ringpopdust @neon-caskets @courtneytarynofficial @ur-honey-child @yeetskeetbuddy

[yuerikoko]

Only Time Will Tell - Kirukiyo

Chapter 1 - Where Peace and Love Once Ruled

T’was a jolly, fresh morning like usual. The city’s marketplace was bustling with people. Little children ran and played on the street, and merchants were in their stands, offering the best deals they could make. Of course there were customers bargaining for better prices, and some were fighting each other for the best-quality products.

‘The usual.’ Kirumi thought as she smiled as she trotted along the market.

She decided to have a little look around, seeing if there was anything else of interest she could buy for her employer.

Oddly enough, not even the elegant pottery, the exotic animals or any other commodity from other lands caught her attention. She frowned, and continued looking around, before her eyes landed on a curious-looking stall. It was filled with whimsical gadgets and inventions, ranging from little toy-like automatons, to literal dragons of bronze and steel that would mercilessly set its path ablaze.

“Come one, come all! To the great Miu Iruma’s gadget fair!” The vendor shouted with extreme pride.

Kirumi laughed as she jogged over to the stall. The inventor, Miu, turned around to face her customer, smiling as she slumped herself down onto her stall. A mechanical dragon perched on her shoulder, looking relaxed as she rubbed its neck.

“Ah! Seems like I’ve gotten a new customer, eh? Now what would ya like from the magnificent Miu Iruma?” She began.

“Oh! Well, could you possibly show me some of the best stuff you have?” Kirumi politely asked. “My knowledge in mechanics is quite terrible.”

“Sure thing, cunniling-“

“Miu! What did we talk about?” Another woman yelled from the back of the inventor’s stall.

“No dirty talk in front of customers...” she whined as she rolled her eyes. Kirumi gently tapped at the inventor, who had almost forgotten about her customer.

“Eek! Sorry, that’s my wife. She helps control what comes from my mouth.” Miu explained.

“It’s fine. Anyways, about the gadgets.”

“Oh shit I totally forgot.” The inventor muttered before turning to get something. It looked like a pocket watch.

“So anyways here’s the least expensive one of the bunch. I call it, the Pocketwatch of Fate! What does it do, you may ask? Well, it basically counts the time left until you find your soulmate. One ring means you’ve met ‘em, two means it goes well. Laugh at me all you want, but it actually works! I’m telling ya!”

“Alright, alright, I’ll take your word for it.” Kirumi replied. “It’s fascinating, really, but how much does it cost?”

“10.”

“Alright.” Kirumi smiled as she handed over 10 copper coins. The inventor snatched them, before pounding the watch on her counter. Kirumi awkwardly smiled as she picked it up and left.

The afternoon sun scorched through the marketplace as maiden continued walking along, eyeing each stall closely for a good deal. After she had bought whatever groceries necessary, she decided to head to a little cafe back in the square to have some lunch.

It really didn’t take too long to find it; a little terrace that sat right next to the market. Ivy swirled around its columns like vibrant green snakes. Birds even settled their nests on its edge. Just like the market, the cafe was full of people, so much so that some waiters tumbled over trying to serve food.

She sighed and decided to go back with an empty stomach. Meat can’t stay fresh for long, and she didn’t want Ouma to get upset.

As she prepared to walk home, however, she felt someone- or something crash onto her. She stumbled, falling to the ground as her groceries spilled out of her basket. She also heard the sound of something small and metallic dropping, presumably the pocketwatch.

“Oh my, pardon me! I didn’t see you there!” A masculine voice said, sounding quite genuine.

“Oh no, it’s fine!” She replied, turning to look at the eyes...

Of the most handsome yet beautiful person she had met in her life. Wow.

His long, lustrous hair was as dark and shiny as the clearest rivers under the night sky. He had golden eyes that shone brighter than the sun, both of which blinded her with their beauty. She also noticed that he wore a silver pendant around his neck.

“Lady, are you alright?” The mysterious man asked.

“I-I’m sorry.” Kirumi replied calmly as she got up. She then turned around to see her spilled basket, gasping before proceeding to frantically pick everything up.

“May I help you?” The gentleman asked, reaching out his hand.

“There is no need, but if you insist, please do so.”

The stranger nodded as he crouched down to pick up some fallen vegetables and a piece of wrapped meat. As he was almost done, however, he caught a glimpse of a shiny, golden object at the corner of his eye. He already had an idea of what it was, but needed confirmation. So he asked:

“Lady, did you happen to purchase the infamous Pocketwatch of Fate from the renowned inventor, Miu Iruma?”

“Yes, and why do you ask?”

“Well I believed this is yours?” He said, grabbing the watch and handing it over to her.

“Oh well it is. Even though I intended to buy this for someone else. But thank you again, kind stranger.”

“Your welcome. And just so you know, you could just call me Kiyo.”

Unbeknownst to the two of them, the moment he handed it to her, the exact second their hands met...

Two gentle rings were simultaneously heard. To be specific, it was one ring coming from two sources:

The pocketwatch on the maiden’s hand...

...and the silver pendant necklace.

“W-Wait!” Kirumi thought, “If what Miu said was true, and one ring signifies the finding of one’s soulmate, could that possibly mean...”

Once the ringing stopped, the two strangers looked at each other, eyes widened.

“Kiyo, that pendant necklace- is it- do you know what is the meaning of this?”

“We were destined for each other..”

At this point they didn’t pay attention to the crowd of people staring at them. They were too caught up in their discoveries to even care anyway.

“Kiyo- I- I’m sorry.”

“Why-”

The maiden stood up and walked away, before stopping on her tracks and turning to him.

“I’ll be honest here: I won’t curse the universe for pairing you and me. Actually, I consider it quite a blessing to meet someone as beautiful and kind as you are. It’s just- I can’t let anyone take my heart yet. No. Not even a magical item that has the ability to find one’s soulmate can distract me from the busy life I have. So until we find time to grow closer, plan our lives and maybe eventually, get married and raise a family, this is goodbye.”

The maid sadly sighed as she turned around and continued walking away. The townspeople began to disperse as noon shifted to evening. Kiyo stood there, speechless. He respected the fact that she wasn’t ready to make love with anyone, nor did she have the time for it. It’s just that...

The woman he fell for, who was also his soulmate, didn’t even tell him her name.

——

Chapter 2 coming soon!

[madtype]

Cabaret Club Czar Training - YUKI (Part 1)

i'm slowly working on transcribing every training sequence from yakuza 0's cabaret club czar minigame - figured i'd start with our first hostess, yuki!

highlights: - yuki giggling like a weirdo - majima getting emotionally decimated at multiple points by a completely oblivious yuki - yuki (excitedly): i... don't have any hobbies!!! - both of them being a little bit dumb and mean, bless their hearts

full transcript under the cut!

---

MAJIMA: Okay, let's do a little conversational training.

YUKI: Y-Yes... Thank you for your help with this!

M: What's up, Yuki-chan? Ya nervous or somethin'?

Y: N-No, I wouldn't call it nerves. It's more like... battle butterflies!

M: That so? Well, I guess that's encouraging enough. Alright, ya ready to pretend I'm a customer?

Y: Y-Yes...

Y: H-Hello, customer! I-I'm Yuki! I look forward to a fun conversation with you!

M: Uh, you sure you've got this?

———————————————————————————

M: Okay, well, let's start with an easy topic. Tell me 'bout some hobbies of yours.

Y: S-Sure. Hobby talk... Um... So all I have to do is tell you about them, right?

M: Yup. Come to think about it, I don't know much about you either. Let's use this little practice to get better acquainted, eh?

Y: Hobbies, okay. Let's see here. Hobbies... Hobbies... Ah!

M: Got anythin'?

Y: Yes! I... don't have any hobbies!

M: Hey, hey, if you wanna be a hostess, that kinda talk ain't gonna cut it. You just flatlined the whole conversation.

Y: But, I really don't have any hobbies... Oh! I doubt it counts as a hobby, but I do write in my diary every day!

M: A diary, huh? That's a great start, actually. What do ya write about in it?

Y: Oh, just boring stuff like what happened today, what I should make for dinner, how my bonsai plant's growing... That kinda thing.

> Little details work.

M: You got an eye for detail then, Yuki-chan. That suits you just fine.

Y: Wow, Majima-san, you actually give people compliments?

M: What? 'Course I do, when they deserve 'em.

Y: Really? But Majima-san, I don't think I've ever gotten a single compliment from you.

M: Well, that's because you... Well, you're... Nevermind.

Y: Oh, you mean I don't deserve any compliments, is that it, Majima-san? You sure have a way of putting your foot in your mouth!

M: Hey, I ain't said squat.

> Bonsai?

M: Wait, wait, back up a bit. Bonsai?

Y: Huh?

M: Wouldn't you think that tending bonsai would count as a hobby? I bet your older clientele would love hearin' you babble on about that.

Y: Oh, I see! You're right, that might work. Majima-san, you're a lot sharper than you look.

M: ...Are you sayin' I look dumb, Yuki-chan? Anyway, why didn't ya mention your bonsai hobby in the first place?

Y: I-I only have about eight years' experience with bonsai, and in the bonsai world, that makes me a nobody. A more experienced hobbyist would just laugh at me.

M: Hmm, I see. Well, I think it's pretty amazin'.

> Yeah, boring...

M: Hmm, yeah, a boring diary like that's just gonna deflate some libidos... Not a great conversation starter.

Y: Wh-What's that supposed to mean? I may not be the most entertaining or glamorous, but you don't have to insult my poor diary!

M: Shouldn't you worry more about me insulting you than your diary?

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

M: ......

Y: ...... (heh)

M: ......

Y: ......

M: You really clam up when the guest stops talkin', don't ya?

Y: Y-Yeah, I guess I do. It's just, I feel like it would be impolite if I just started talking all of a sudden.

M: Impolite? That ain't the right idea at all. Our customers are here specifically to talk to girls, Yuki-chan. You've gotta lead 'em in with some topics.

Y: B-But I... I don't have a clue what I should talk to them about! What should I do if it gets quiet?

> Try to smile a bit.

M: If a conversation's running thin, just put on a nice smile. A woman's tears can cut like a knife, but the steel of a smile is a thousandfold stronger.

Y: Y-Yes! I understand! I just have to smile a bit, right?

M: Yeah, give it a go then.

M: ......

Y: [smiling awkwardly] ...Hmhm. Hmhmhm.

M: ...?

Y: [nervously] Hehhehhehheh... Hehheh... Hahahahaha...

M: Whoa, Yuki-chan, let's put the brakes on that one.

Y: Huh? Why? I was just trying to smile like you told me...

M: Sorry, Yuki-chan, my bad.

Y: What? Why are you apologizing?

> Try to compliment them.

M: If you're drawin' a blank on somethin' to talk about, try a compliment. Ain't a man in the world who would turn down a compliment.

Y: A compliment? Like, say something nice about his face or something?

M: Yeah, his face, his voice, maybe his personality? If he looks even a little well-off, try sayin' something nice about his clothes, his shoes, or, hell, even his watch.

Y: Wow! Now I... Majima-san, this is the first time I've felt like I can really look up to you! I guess you don't wear that janky eye patch for nothing!

M: Wait, is that your idea of a compliment?

Y: Wh-What? I was trying really hard to compliment you... I-I'm so sorry.

M: Hoo boy... The road to success is gonna be long and bumpy for you, Yuki-chan...

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

M: Let's see, what else is a good conversation starter... Do you have some kinda talent, maybe? Eh, on second thought, scratch that...

Y: Wh-What are you talking about? Even I have something I'm good at!

M: Oh, no kidding? Okay, what is it?

Y: Um, well... I'm... O-Older people do tend to like me...

> Older gents, huh?

M: Hey, ya see, everybody's got a hidden talent. That'd make you perfect for the older clientele.

Y: Oh, maybe you're right. I was always my grandpa's favourite, so I bet that's why I can speak a little more naturally in front of older customers.

M: Hey now, why didn't ya tell me sooner? We can't be lettin' a talent like that go to waste, Yuki-chan.

Y: Majima-san, I'm sorry. But thank you!

M: Then it's decided. Yuki-chan, you're gonna be our older customer specialist. Every grandpa who walks in here is gonna get assigned to you!

Y: Whaaat? I'd like to talk to some younger clients too...

> That's a talent?

M: Hmm, can you even call that a talent?

Y: Well, I suppose it's not exactly a talent... But sometimes the older customers give me candy, even if all I do is sit next to them doing nothing!

M: That's... amazing, but you should prolly try to take care of your customers instead of sittin' there like a mute.

Y: O-Ohhh. I-I'm sorry. I'll be careful, I'll be careful...

M: (Yikes. Come to think of it, it might be how green she is that's makin' her so endearing to the old gaffers.)

> You're a grandkid type.

M: I see, so the old guys fancy you, do they? I suppose ya do seem a little like a grandkid.

Y: R-Really? I'm not so sure about the grandchild part, but I was always my grandpa's favorite.

M: Makes sense. But that's actually a big plus in our line of work. I could let you handle all the grandpas who roll through the doors.

Y: Ah, thank you. But it would be nice to get a break from the grandpas every once in a while...

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

M: Alright, let's change gears. Why don't ya tell me about a weakness you've got, instead. Anythin' come to mind?

Y: Weaknesses? I have a lot of those...

M: Why does that not surprise me?

Y: Hey, don't be rude!

M: Heh, I'm just messin' with ya. Well if you've got a lot, how 'bout ya pick one for me. Anything's fine.

Y: Let me think... To be honest with you, I-I guess I'm not very good at talking to men.

M: Eh? If you're no good at talking to men, why the hell would ya work in a place like this?

Y: Um, that's, uh... it's because... Oh, I know! It's because I'm not good at it! I thought I could get used to talking to men by working here!

> Y'know, I'm a man too.

M: Yo, you do realize... I'm a man too, right?

Y: Oh, that's true. But Majima-san, I can talk to you just fine.

M: Haha, and why's that? 'Cause I'm such a supportive and considerate guy?

Y: Haha! I don't think so. I'm probably okay with you because you don't seem like a man at all.

M: Hey, what the hell does THAT mean!?

Y: Eek! I-I'm sorry!

> You're lying!

M: Oh come on! You're lyin' through your teeth! You're a real terrible liar, Yuki-chan.

Y: I-It's not a lie! I-If you're sure it's a lie, let's see you prove it, huh!?

M: Damn girl... What've you got to hide, anyway? Listen, it's fine if you've got secrets, but if you wanna last here, ya gotta learn how to hide 'em better than that.

Y: Heheh... I'll work harder at that.

---------------------------------------------------------------------------------

M: Okay, I think that'll do it.

Y: Th-Thank you for the lesson.

M: Sure thing. Good job.

[fatefulfaerie]

Coming Home

So people are starting to self-isolate for their health, and of course that means I’m going create content to make their lives just a little better! Whether you are separated from friends or family and/or sick I hope my content makes things a little brighter.

Here’s some Fullmetal Alchemist Brotherhood for now. Three tiny one shots. Can be taken as one or three. So...a three-shot? Post-canon but before that one picture :). Will maybe try to get some Zelda stuff out ahead of “schedule” but we’ll see. She says as if she had a schedule in the first place.

Stay safe, be kind and considerate to others, all that good human being stuff.

“Rockbell Automail, how can I help you?”

“Um…”

Ed snickered away from the phone.

“Yeah, I’d like to make an appointment,” he continued with his signature smug smirk.

“Are you a returning customer?”

“…no.”

What a lie.

“So, a consultation then?”

“A week from today,” Ed said. “Three o’clock.”

Winry was surprised at how forward he was, yet she scheduled it anyway.

“Okay, you’re in the books,” she said, closing the pen while holding the phone on her shoulder with her head.

“Oh, I almost forgot! What’s your name?”

Ed smiled and leaned back in his chair, placing his right foot on his left leg in a relaxed position. With a casual tease, he started,

“You might know me as the Fullme—”

“ED!” She exclaimed, Ed leaning away from the loud noise with a chuckle.

“You jerk!” He heard her say once he returned to the transceiver. “I wrote that in pen!”

“Wait,” she heard, just right before she was about to cross it off. 

“Keep it,” he said before hanging up abruptly and bursting out in laughter, Winry simultaneously letting out an excited inhale with wide eyes.

“Alphonse!”

——————————————————————————————————

Winry clasped her hands as the train came to a stop, puffs of steam billowing around the steel plating until they cleared.

Her long, blonde hair had been blown by the exhaust, yet now it settled, dangling upon her shoulders. 

She stood right where she last saw him, the exact spot that he disguised a proposal as a desperate exclamation of the “laws of equivalent exchange”. She wondered if all alchemists were so set in their ways and words.

Then again, Edward Elric likely didn’t know of any other way to say it.

She maintained the anticipation in her heart as people started to step off the train, greeting them with a soft smile while still leaning her head left and right to get the first glimpse of him.

And, of course, he was the last to appear, his flamboyant nature to make every entrance his and his alone not quite lost. 

Edward beamed a great big smile at the sight of Winry.

He stepped off the train and didn’t stop, his bag releasing from his fingers as he walked to Winry like only she mattered.

His bag could fall to the tracks for all he cared.

Winry giggled as he approached, Edward bringing both his hands to her cheeks.

“How’s your le—mm…”

With a downward tilt of his neck he had captured his lips with hers, Winry returning the gesture by going in her tiptoes and placing a hand on the back of his head.

She withdrew as she came back down, Winry pursing her lips with a gaze angled slightly downward. It was as if she was trying to contain a laugh.

“What?” He asked with a chuckle.

Ed looked to his right, doing a double take before he registered their audience in his mind.

“Oh,” he said, his face bluing and paling as he seemed to shrink down, hunching over with his arms hanging down.

Before the couple was Pinako Rockbell, Mei Chang, and Alphonse Elric, all with mouths popped open in shock.

“Who knew that two months in the West would make Edward Elric such a romantic?” Winry asked, running her fingers through his hair before rearranging it the smallest ways.

“Only for you, my dear,” he grumbled.

“B-brother…” Alphonse stammered.

Ed perked up immediately, scratching the back of his head.

“H-hey, Al.”

“How come we never do that!” Mei exclaimed pointedly at Alphonse with her hands on her hips.

“Whoa,” Alphonse said, holding his hands out. His face was burning red. “H-hold on.”

Pinako paid them no mind, pacing towards Edward and Winry.

“It’s about time you came home,” she said. “I don’t want to see you and your brother continue your father’s nasty habit of staying away.”

“You know I couldn’t stay away for long,” Ed replied as Winry took notice of his bag, grabbing it before returning to his side. “I guess you could say that my life is here.”

“I see,” Pinako replied before starting a walk off. “Come now, Mei, let’s finish teaching you how to make that pie.”

“Alphonse’s favorite pie!” She exclaimed as fisted hands squeezed her cheeks, the light in her eyes so big that it almost washed out her surroundings. “Are you coming, Al?”

“Yeah, I’ll catch up in a bit,” he said, prompting Mei to walk along the path with Pinako.

He looked to his brother with a warm smile, both with golden eyes that teased tears. 

All this time and Edward still knew to treasure how lucky he was to have his brother. After everything they had been through, to hold him in the flesh was something he hoped he’d never take for granted.

So, no words needed to be said as they hugged each other, the presence of the other such a familiar comfort even when they let go.

“I hope you didn’t have to much fun in the East without me,” Ed said.

Al gave a small laugh, his shoulders going up and down with a shrug.

“Nothing I can’t recall.”

“Good,” Ed said.

Winry handed the bag to Ed before they started walking along, Ed slinging it over his shoulder.

They watched Alphonse run to catch up with Pinako and Mei, Winry surprised by the sensation of Ed’s left hand entangling with hers.

She looked to him, yet his focus was on the horizon, that determined gaze he would get when he knew he would win a fight or when he was about to clap his hands together to perform alchemy.

Only now it was softer, his eyes brightened by the sunny day, those golden eyes catching light in such a mesmerizing way.

“Granny has been calling me Winry Elric ever since you left,” Winry said as they strolled along the path. “She refuses to address me by anything else.”

Ed smiled to himself.

“Why would she call you that?” He teased.

Ed’s smile released further when Winry purposely and playfully bumped into him.

“That’s all you’ve got?” he retorted.

“I didn’t bring my wrench.”

“You might need a whole stash if we’re getting married.”

“Already taken care of, pipsqueak.”

——————————————————————————————————

Winry grabbed a wrench from the tray beside her, running her thumb up and down its’ edge with a smile.

This was the wrench she had used when she first built his automail appendices, the arm and the leg that were taken because he loved his mother and brother so much.

She looked to him now, laying on his bent arms with his hands clasped behind his head, staring at the ceiling.

The strength in him was truly in his care for others, how that never faltered, never degraded due to fear. His love, all love, is what makes humans greater than their sins, their lust, their greed, their gluttony, their envy, their sloth, their wrath, their pride. Edward knew well that to forget love and compassion was the greatest sin of them all. 

So, to have his love was the greatest blessing Winry could ever hope for.

Perhaps young and naive to some, that young boy he once was knew little of the world and its’ rules, performing the taboo with only one consequence in mind. Some might warrant him a monster for attempting human transmutation, damning his brother’s body and his own limbs just to see the life in their mother’s smile.

Yet, there are far worse monsters than those who value, above all else, life.

There was, after all, no equal trade for life. Unparalleled are the bounds by which it portends, for miles and miles, infinite reaches to foreign places. The truth is, that life could only come from love, and vice versa.

Winry shook her head, pulling her out of the trance.

Using the wrench, she tightened the mechanisms, Edward repositioning his head to comfortably look at her.

“You’re beauti—AAH!”

He sat up straight at the sensation.

“WINRY, I SWEAR TO TRUTH!”

“Sorry,” Winry said. “I may have gone too far.”

Edward’s head fell back onto the pillow with a sigh.

“You were saying?” She prompted with a smirk.

“You’re a real piece of work,” Ed said, grumbling, his forearm on his forehead.

Winry’s expression grew into a smile as she adjusted his automail’s tightness.

“And,” he started, blushing. “You…y-you’re beautiful.”

Winry started to blush as well.

“As beautiful as any human can be, n-not that there are laws to dictate—”

“Do male alchemists know anything about talking to girls?” Winry interrupted, replacing the wrench in her hand with a screwdriver

“Probably not,” Ed replied, relieved that he was stopped from blabbering on.

“If our Flame Alchemist is any indication,” she said. “I’d have to agree.”

Winry sat back in her chair.

“How does that feel?”

“Better,” Ed said, sitting up completely and testing slight movements of his leg.

Winry stood up, collecting her things.

“If I don’t get to my room soon, Granny will tease me for the rest of my life.”

“You mean the rest of her life.”

Winry chuckled.

“Sometimes I feel like she’s going to outlive us a—EEK!”

Edward had suddenly grabbed her by the waist, giving her no choice but for her to surrender to his hold, them both falling to the bed.

“Ed!” She yelled, laughing as he tickled her with a mischievous grin. “Ed, stop!”

He stopped immediately, her back now flush against his chest, his hands hugging her waist.

“I love you, you know that, right?” He asked near her ear.

She turned herself to face him, cupping her hand at his cheek.

Winry kissed him deeply and passionately, Ed matching if not surpassing the desperation.

“Does that answer your question, pipsqueak?”

“Will I ever live that down?”

“Not until you drink milk.”

Edward grumbled indistinguishably as Winry stood up to leave.

He sat up with a thankful smile as she neared the door, his eyes full of love. He couldn’t stay mad at her long.

Winry opened the door only to see Alphonse about to knock at it, Winry raising her eyebrows in surprise.

“Hi, umm,” Alphonse said, lowering his arm. “Could you keep the noise down? Some of us still have sleep to catch up on. You know, being a suit of armor and all.”

“It’s been two years, Al,” Ed said dryly, unamused.

“Still…”

“I was just about to leave anyway,” Winry said, assuring him.

“Yippee,” Alphonse said unenthusiastically as he walked off. He did sound tired.

Winry gave Edward a peck on the lips where he sat on the foot of his bed.

“Goodnight,” he said out of the kiss.

“Goodnight, Fullmetal Alchemist,” Winry said, closing the door behind her and departing.

[petri808]

Coming of Age

@nalulovelovefest -Day 4 Unbearable  Rated M- NSFW

Just another day for the friends as Natsu and Lucy walk into the Fairytail guild that morning to check the job board.  She had insisted on taking an easy job without him to make some extra spending money, but as soon as they reach the board to peruse the offerings, Gajeel gestures at Natsu to talk.  That was a bit odd, they weren’t close, and usually their dealing were to throw jabs at each other.

With an eye still on Lucy, Natsu crosses his arms expecting a fight, “what is it, metal head?”

“I heard your birthday is coming up, how old are ya gonna be?”

“Why?” Natsu pauses as he calculates the years, “I think 21.”

A wide smirk crosses over Gajeel, “in that case, how’s your relationship with bunny girl?  You guys still just friends or what?”

“She’s my best friend that’s all,” narrowing his eyes, “since when do you care?”

“Gehe!  Guess no one’s told ya about a slayer’s 21’st year.”

Natsu cocks his head to the side, “do I get a bigger party or something?”

With a hearty laugh, he slaps Natsu in the shoulder and starts to walk away, “well something’s gonna get bigger!”  

“Oi!” Natsu calls after him, “What the hell do you mean?”  But Gajeel keeps walking and laughing at a joke only he knew the answer to. Muttering obscenities at the iron slayers back, Natsu almost didn’t realize Lucy had come up behind him.  

“What was that all about?”

He freezes and turns to her voice, “beats me,” shrugging his shoulders, “said something about a slayer’s 21stbirthday and wanting a bigger party.”

“Bigger party,” she tilts her head slightly, “you want a bigger party?”

“No, I’m cool with hanging out with just you actually.  I don’t need anything special.”

A slight blush falls on Lucy’s cheeks, “well um, speaking of that.  I found an easy mission I’m gonna go do so I can buy your gift.  I should be back in a 2-3 days,” showing him the flyer for waitress help, “the tips are usually good here.”

Since it wasn’t anything exciting, she expected Natsu to simply wish her luck, so she was a bit surprised when the slayer’s demeanor slipped into irritation.  “I don’t know if I like that idea,” his brows furrowed. “Guys give you bigger tips cause they’re checking you out.”

“So?  Isn’t that kinda the point?  It’s not like they get anything else from me.”

He scratches his head in confusion, since when did he care about Lucy taking waitressing jobs?  “I’m sorry, I don’t know why that came out like that.  It’s fine, maybe I’ll take something easy too.  Are they looking for waiters, I could help ya out?”

“Hmm,” Lucy re-reads the flyer, “it’s doesn’t specify only females, so I don’t see why not.”  Looking back at her friend, “but are you sure, cause you could probably find something with action instead on the board.”

“Nah.”  His trademark smile making an entrance, “I could use the extra cash too.”  Natsu holds out his hand, “faster we get there the more money you can make.”

“Okay,” she smiles and takes it, “having company will be less lonely too.”

Or maybe not.  While Natsu always made their missions livelier, and sometimes embarrassing, this was the first time that Lucy actually started to worry about her friend.  Only a day into the job and she had started talking about going home.  It seemed that his little comment back at the guild had just been a preview of what was to come.  First, it was just glaring at the male customers from a distance, then it turned into taking the tables with guys on them before she could.  Was Natsu trying to keep her away from them?  

When she’d question it, he acted like she was just imagining things and flash his grin.  When she mentioned the word jealousy he scoffed, what did he have to be jealous of?  It was true, it’s not like these customers were going to steal her away or even did really anything to deserve the insinuation except look in her direction.  Eventually it became, he ‘sensed’ foul motives from the men, whatever the hell that even meant.  All she knew, is it was killing her tips and getting on the managers nerves.          

So, by the time they reached their motel room on the second night, Lucy confronted the slayer. “Natsu, you are totally not acting like yourself.”

“I don’t know what you’re talking about.”

She crosses her arms, “I know what protective  Natsu looks like and this is more like, I don’t know, a possessive and jealous Natsu instead.”  He huffs and looks away as she fires question after question at him. “What was it that Gajeel told you? What is so special about your birthday? How is it related to being a slayer? Why would he say you’d want a bigger party?  It has to mean something.  Is it embarrassing and that’s why you won’t tell me?”

“He didn’t tell me anything I swear!  I figured he was just trying to get on my nervous, you know how he is.”  Natsu reaches to uncurl her arms, “I’m sorry, I don’t know why I’m acting weird.  Stuff comes out of my mouth before I can think…”

Rolling her eyes, “that’s not new.”

“Okay I deserved that crack, but seriously, you know I wouldn’t do anything to hurt you or make you sad on purpose.”

Lucy’s body slowly relaxes, “I know you wouldn’t…”

“You’re my best friend,” he leans his forehead to hers, “can’t fault me for being protective over that.”

With a sigh, Lucy’s hand moves up to rest over his heart, “just please try to be nicer to the customers tomorrow Natsu.  I really want to give you a nice gift, but I can’t if I don’t make enough tips.”

“Okay.”

That night, as soon as the dreams took hold of the slayer, he was sent into a situation hotter than any fire he’d ever consumed.  It was like every wet dream, wanton desire, and covetous thought he’d ever had of his best friend was manifesting into an eroticism that would shock the most perverted of minds and there was nothing he could do but indulge in the fantasy. Natsu’s body craved every touch this dream woman was giving him, hungered to taste her flesh, to suckle at her mountains and traverse her hidden valleys.  Dear god, he thirsted for…  her blood!

So, startled by the physical aspects of the dream, it had actually woken him up in a panic, afraid that it was real.  Flushed with sweat, his sheets soaked through and lightly singed, clearly Natsu had been experiencing something.  He quickly checks the other bed in the room and while she had kicked her blankets off, probably from a rise in room temperature, Lucy appeared to still be asleep. Thank goodness for small favors.    

He’d had a few fantasy dreams about a certain celestial mage, but never of this magnitude before.  If he licked his lips, the taste of her skin was still fresh, her scent was still heady, and his fingertips tingled from touches that weren’t even real.  What the hell was that all about!   This was Lucy he was dreaming about!  Lucy! Natsu shudders from the very idea of doing to her what he had in the dream.  It didn’t matter if the imaginary one begged for it.  She wasn’t real, there was no way in hell he could just take the real Lucy…  ‘that’s what Gajeel was getting at!’  “Ugh…” he drops back onto the bed, ‘bastard could’a warned me!’   Too afraid to go back to sleep, Natsu opts for a cold shower instead and maybe a bit of handled relief.

Once the bathroom door closes, Lucy takes a chance and partially opens her eyes, but as soon as she hears the shower turn on, and could gauge about how long he would be, they pop open and she sits up.  For about an hour the celestial mage had stayed wide awake, unsure of what to make of her best friend in the other bed, and with no clue as to what to do.  With the amount of twisting and moaning Natsu was doing, it didn’t take a lot of imagination to guess the kind of dream he was having.  And she’d be a hypocrite to chastise him for something she herself has had on occasion. But what had worried her, was when the temperature in the room had started to feel like a raging bonfire and even in the dark, she could see heat waves coming from his body.  Frankly, if it had carried on for too much longer Lucy would have had to wake him up or flee in fear of a real fire bursting forth from the man.

First the weird behavior at the guild, then the restaurant, and now the slayer was having erotic dreams?! Lucy had no idea if this was a normal occurrence for Natsu, but considering Gajeel’s comments, maybe these were all tied together somehow.  But as what?!   A few minutes later the shower turns off and Lucy quickly dives back under the covers, positioning her arm in a way to hide her eyes from view but still keep them a little open.

When the door opens, her heart skips a beat as the slayer appears in the frame with just a towel wrapped around his waist and outlined by the glow of an overhead light.  ‘Stop it,’ she groans internally, ‘it’s not the first time you’ve seen him like…. Oh, Mavis help me!’   As he simply walks over to his duffle, drops the towel and begins to put on a new outfit.  Bending down to pull on his boxers, the muscles in his ass and thighs flexing…  Lucy knew she should close her eyes but damn it they weren’t cooperating!  Suddenly, his foot catches on the leg part.  He stumbles, body twisting slightly and revealing what she knew from Erza’s smut books to be… ‘EEK!’   Lucy barely catches the scream that bubbled up in her throat.  

But not quickly enough. Natsu’s head whips around, eyes trained on Lucy who squeezes hers shut and forces her breathing to still.  “Are you awake Luce?”  He could’a sworn he’d heard something…  Her breathing seemed typical, eyes closed, body motionless, but something had changed.  Pulling up his boxers, he tilts his nose and takes a deep inhale.  Yes, her scent was definitely a little headierthan usual and now that he was firmly aware of it... Natsu runs a hand down his face, he was probably going to regret this, but he quietly walks over and lifts the blankets as gently as he could to release more scent….  And it hits, as soon as he lifts past her waist the scent becomes too potent.  He drops the blanket uncaring if it woke her and rushed back to the bathroom, locking himself in.

Lucy’s eyes fly open, what the hell just freaked Natsu out?   She looks down at her body, nothing was different about her than when they’d gone to bed.  For all intents and purposes, she was sure he thought she was asleep.  Unable to simply ignore the situation anymore, she sneaks up to the bathroom door, listening for any cues that might help her unravel the mystery.  But what she hears was certainly eye opening.

Through hushed tones and mumbled jargon, things like mate, horny,and sex were spilling from Natsu’s lips.  Instincts kicking in, can’t do that to her….  Who the hell was ‘her’?   She wondered, did Natsu have a crush she didn’t know about?  Scent, triggered…. A cold sweat settling over the spirit mage, scent, what scent?   And that’s when the rug was pulled out. After a noisy exhale on his part, that frankly sounded like a deep moan trying to be suppressed, Lucy, fuck, I want you so bad…  She clasps a hand over her mouth, as if the embarrassment of seeing him naked wasn’t enough, but he wasn’t done yet.  Ashamed, doesn’t want me…. Asuka… kiss….

Oh, Mavis he thinks I don’t like him!   It’s true that in that long-ago moment, when Asuka was telling them to kiss she’d gotten cold-feet, but…. I’ve gotta fix this somehow!   Swallowing her embarrassment and steeling her resolve, Lucy gingerly knocks at the door.  “Natsu, please come out of there.”

She hears him suck in a breath before responding.  “I can’t do that.”

“Yes, you can,” doing her best to hide her anxiety while still sounding normal, “Natsu, I think….” she deeply exhales, “I know what I want to give you for your birthday.  It’s something money cannot buy.  So please,” voice cracking, “come out here so I can give it to you.”

Natsu cringes away from the door, his suspicions now confirmed that she had been up, she’d probably heard him, oh crap had she been up through the dream too!  All of his fears were coming to fruition and he was trapped in the bathroom!  His eye flit over to the small window, maybe I could break out of here….  Gah! I can’t run out on her like that! But how am I supposed to face her!

The longer Natsu remained silent, an anxious Lucy starts to pace as doubt-fueled concerns slip into her mind.  Had she been wrong about it all?  But he’d said her name and she was sure there wasn’t any other Lucy’s around him.  Then again, she could have mistaken the context of his words…  Holding back the tears, “alright I’m sorry, I won’t push you.  Maybe, I was wrong about how you felt about me after all.”  She turns her back to the door as a few tears leak down her cheek and her hopes dashed like a wrecked ship against the shore. “I’ll just see you in the morning.”

Now he’d gone and done it. Natsu could smell the salt of her tears, heard the whimper behind her words.  He hated when Lucy cried, his blood boiled whenever someone made her cry, and now, I’m one of those bastards…. But he could fix this.  Slapping himself in the face, this was for Lucy, goddammit!   The girl he’s always wanted, and it seems she wanted him too!  Grow a pair and go comfort your woman you idiot!   He growls at himself, I know, I know!  and throws open the door.

The loud bang of the door slamming open, makes Lucy jump but she doesn’t turn around.  Part of her wanted to run to her bed and dive under the covers, but the other half wanted to know….  

Hands snake around her midsection, nails dragging across the taunt surface and sending shivers all throughout her body.  Whispers, heated with amorous intent fill her ear, “why would you think I wouldn’t want you…” Moving to the other ear, “do you have any idea how much I’ve wanted you for years?  It’s been unbearable at times, but I respected our friendship.”  

“Y-Years?”

“And now this instinct crap is making that damn near impossible.”  He weaves a hand up to her throat, tilting her head to the side. “Now do see why I was afraid to come out?”  Letting his canines drag against her skin and relishing all the little quivers it gives her. “Is this what you want Lucy?  Even now I’m barely able to hold myself back from just taking you as my mate whether you…”

“Do it,” she blurts out. “That’s what I was gonna tell you. My gift to you… i-is me.”

He straightens out, “Wait, what?”  

“You’re right, I was afraid of ruining our friendship too but,” Lucy turns around in his arms and punches his chest, “you big idiot, of course you’re the only one I’ve ever wanted!”

That’s all he needed to hear.  A reverberating growl sends a heated tremor straight through Lucy seconds before she found herself pushed up against the wall and her night shirt being yanked over her head.  Natsu latches onto the nape of her neck, licking and suckling at her pulse point. The feeling of his sharp canines ghosting over her flesh had Lucy mewling and moisture saturated her panties as a result.  Natsu grins at the added scent she was giving off and slides his hand into the fabric, oh it was soaked!  

More groans leach forth from the frazzled woman as his finger, then two slips into her pussy. While his other hand toys with her breasts and his mouth works on her neck, those fingers test the waters, curling, pumping at differing speeds to see which pulled the greatest reactions. Natsu was like a cat loving on a new toy and all of Lucy’s vocalizations only fueled his actions.  He pulls his face back to observe the contortion of hers, pumping even harder to increase her cries.  Natsu licks his lips as a new idea rolls into his brain.  

He slides his hand out of her panties and pulls away from her.  Lucy’s about to throw a fit when he suddenly drops to his knees, cuts the offending fabric away and hoists her onto his shoulders.  “What are you….”  a slurry of expletives gushes forth and she grips to his hair when his mouth consumes her pussy.  Leave it to Natsu to devour her like an all you can eat buffet.  

It was his turn to moan and salivate over the delicacy, lapping up all her sexual juices before it could flow past his chin.  “Fuck… tastes… yum,” his mouth too busy sucking on her clit or tongue rolling the little bud to worry about sentences.  Natsu slides his fingers back in to her pussy, pumping at a rapid pace and that sends Lucy’s body arching, legs clamping around his head just to keep from falling off.  

All the stimulation was pushing Lucy past the point of no return.  “Natsu you’re gonna make me cum!” but her cries were falling on deaf ears, for he was too engrossed in his ministrations.  Her scents, her taste, her cries, all mingling and clouding his mind in a euphoria of its own.  “Nat…suuuu!!!”  it was only when Lucy’s body stiffened and was practically strangling him with her thighs, that he realized….  Something arcane takes over his mind and while Lucy is in the throes of the orgasm, his canine nicks her outer labia.  She flinches briefly, but with a few flicks of his tongue to seal the tiny pin prick, it was almost like nothing had happened.  If anything, those additional strokes by his tongue against her overly stimulated folds gave her a few more electric jolts and he made sure to slurp up any excess flow of moisture.  

“Y-you bit me didn’t you,” she pants, unable regulate her breathing at the moment.  

He shifts her legs off his shoulders, “Mmhmm,” was his only response because he was too fixated on completing his conquest, scoops her back up and drops her onto the bed.  

“But why… does it have to do with…”

“Don’t know, brain just told me do it.”  Crawling over her body, “no goin back now Luce,” he grins and burns off his boxers. Lucy flinched the instant his body flared up, even closing her eyes….  Eh?  No burning pain!  She opens them to see his cocky smile, “guess there was a reason for it after all.”

“Could’a warned me! Oomph!”  Natsu seizes upon her lips and smothers anymore complaints from the blonde with passion laden kisses.  Trailing them along her jaw line, nibbling, teasing, testing for sweet spots until the heady aromatics wafting from his mate’s body give up their secrets.  Lucy’s natural pheromones were changing, melding into a combination of her florals to his smokier musk driving his inner dragon even wilder.  He moves lower to suckle at her breasts, placing love bites around the pillowy flesh, his hands caressing the rest of her body, curving with the swell of her hips, and molding along the firm flesh of her abdomen, as visions of filling it with his seed take hold.  

Natsu almost howls from the images of a pregnant Lucy carrying their child dancing in his mind. Fuck yes!  Lucy will be a perfect mother, he just knows it!  Wow, why hadn’t he thought of this sooner!  Coveting her lips once more, his pelvis shifts and centers, pressing his cock against her folds.  She mewls its welcome, arching her body and weaving her legs over his thighs to apply pressure.  So, Natsu lifts his hips and lines up.  With unspoken cues, she nods, biting her lip in anticipation of the pain that may come and he’s not blind to them, sending warmth to his cock for added heat to soothe the muscles.  The last thing this dragon wanted to do was cause his mate pain.  

Slow and measured, he pushes through Lucy’s walls, cringing whenever her face contorts even just a little. She appreciated the gentleness of Natsu’s actions, even the heating gesture for it was helping to relax her. Once seated as far as he could go, Natsu caresses her cheek, smoothing his thumb over the silky skin, and placing chaste little kisses upon her lips.  “I love you Luce…”

She smiles, returning his kisses, “I love you too.”  Readjusting her frame, when Lucy feels it’s a more comfortable angle, she grinds her hips to show she’s ready.  Through half-lidded eyes and with a purr in her tone, “now slay me oh dragon.”

Cocking an eyebrow, “you are so weird Luce, why would I slay my mate?”

Oh, brother.  “Never mind,” she chuckles, “I meant, fuck me Natsu.”  And as if to drive the point home, bucks her hips roughly.

“Well why didn’t you just say so!”  

With measured thrusts, Natsu rocks into Lucy, pumping with the support of his legs and hips.  She plants her hands against the headboard to keep from sliding backward, bending her body as his arcing trusts begin to lift upwards.  Over and over he pounds into her.  But he wants to go harder, and this position wasn’t giving him enough leverage.  Frustrated, Natsu stops for a moment to catch his breath then sits back on his haunches.  He grips her waist, with her legs hanging over his forearms, and impales her again.  

Lucy gasps at the deeper reach it provided as his legs, now acting as springs, allows for unrelenting thrusts, burying his cock into her core.  She arches her back, using her arms to hold up the curvature of her spine. But that position wasn’t going to last very long so, she flails above her head for a pillow and shoves it under her lower back.  One problem solved, Lucy is reduced to holding her breasts down from all the bouncing to solve another.  

When Lucy looks up at her man, his eyes are closed in concentration and his face was contorted. Any other time, the weird expressions would make her laugh, but if her cries were any indication, she was probably faring no better than he.  The room was turning into a sauna, no flames yet, but hot as hell.  Things were definitely heating up, literally and all Lucy could do was hold on for the ride.    

All of his grunts were starting to sound shakier along with some of his thrusts and after her own experience of it, Lucy realized he was probably close to his climax. “N-Natsu...  you should slow down…. If you’re close to…”

“I know,” he pants. But her pussy was like a drug milking the slayer for everything he was worth.  Natsu just couldn’t stop.  “You feel… too fucking good…”  

His legs were starting to shake, so his hands lend support, pulling her body towards him as his hips drive forward.  Heat waves were visible now, even in the dim lighting provided by the bathroom.  She had a feeling the flames wouldn’t hurt her, and damages to the room would be bad, but it’s not like she could stop him now. Fuck, she didn’t want him to stop. Natsu was showing her all the constellations every time she closed her eyes!  

Natsu’s onslaught grows ever more erratic and his voice hits a new octave as a garbled version of her name spills out along with gibberish when he reaches his orgasm.  Jagged thrusts of his hips follow as his seed spilled forth into Lucy’s womb, her own muscles palpitating against his shaft to make sure every drop is extracted.  “Wholly fuck!” he breathes out and falls over onto Lucy when the last pulse left him sent.  Natsu didn’t even have the energy to pull out.  

She let him catch his breath before rolling his heavier body off her and before he became dead weight.  Of course, he whined about it, having gone from the virile slayer who needed to mollify his instincts right back to the goofy slayer she’d fallen in love with. Natsu scooched right back over to straddle her side and rest his head amongst her boobs.  Lucy chuckles and runs her fingers though his hair.  They can talk about the whole mate thing in the morning but for now,

I guess he deserves a break after doing all that work….

[sassysweetstories]

Diamond in the Rough // 4

Summary: you’re an androgynous woman who has a rather groggy voice. due to your social anxiety and shy nature, you refuse to let your beautiful, sexy voice free. that is until you do something that might lead you down a dangerous path.

Ship: Shawn Mendes x Fem!Reader, Harry Styles x Fem!Reader

Warnings: angst, swearing, vulgar words, fluff, fighting, smut etc.

Notes: none of these gifs are mine, credit to the owners.

Tagged: @bailey-hoover @kiralivelove @thalia-prior-of-ravenclaw@anamcg317bellasett @queentiffanyyy @archer-whovian-violinist@beingmadinwonderland@princessisabelle19 @violence-and-velvet @lachicadelamanzana

Third P.O.V

Almost two weeks pass and Shawn has yet to give up much to (Y/n)’s dismay. She just wants him out of her life, away from her bubble and to just focus but once she thinks he’s gone, he pops out of no where with those big stupid chocolate brown eyes of his. That morning (Y/n) sat in the recording studio, jotting down notes and intonations when Shawn and Andrew walked in. She doesn’t even try to hide her disgust anymore, finally owning the voice she’d been given. “I thought we were meeting in private, Andrew. Don’t you know that children aren’t aloud to play in the studio.” 

Her comebacks are viscous at this point, not a care in the world and though Shawn should hate hit, it riles him up even more. Even turns him on when she’s so snarky. Andrew ignores their childlike bickering even though he takes pride in how much she’s grown and sits in the lounge chair with a fake huff. “He said he wanted to watch us go over some music stuff and he doesn’t have a meeting until later. I said he could check it out.” 

(Y/n) rolls her eyes again before picking up one of the guitars, strumming carefully until the rest of her crew walk in. She wasn't going to be quiet anymore, a new kind of grit taking hold of her life all thanks to her anger towards Shawn, not that she'd ever admit it. Apart of her is not ready for him to listen. Not just because he’s a great artist with plenty of background in music but mostly because she can’t deal with his judgment anymore. She’s gotten too much of it in her life, too fed up. 

Especially when it came to dating. ‘Boys will never look at you romantically’, ‘you’re too masculine’, ‘you’re not feminine enough’, ‘who would date a woman who looks more like a man than her man?’ They all said. But she loved her voice, loved how unique it was compared to other musicians and didn’t mind male pronouns at all. She was done living by other peoples rules and expectations. “Let's warm up with Lock Me Up." She says to the musicians, smiling as the drums start with a heavy cadence. For a fleeting moment, she forgets all about Shawn's existence. 

“Time to listen, to my confession I’m much less than I wanted to be,  wanted to be.  You shine a light on my, dark side but you don’t care what you see. Overjoyed, Over you, Over night, That’s what you do Why don’t you lock me up  with joy and kisses Lock me up with love?” 

She kicks the microphone holder up to her hand, quickly attaching it to the stand in one fail swoop. The action makes both Andrew and Shawn gape. He sees it now, the same fire and passion Andrew first saw the night of her performance. An untapped potential, an energy that’s just waiting to burst. Hurt and hidden behind a wall of bad memories. He watches her, almost spell-bound as Olive sways back and forth, guitar in hand as she watched her friend flourish. A face filled with pride. 

When the chorus hits, all the musicians sport wide smiles, completely enjoying the borderline musical that’s taken shape in the studio. Shawn pulls out his phone to record the moment, one he doesn’t want to forget despite the tension between the two of them. She just looks so good he can’t help himself. She is so independent and in touch with herself, it takes his breath away. He posts the story to his Instagram and then saves the video for later.

When the song ends she’s already sweating and the adrenaline never comes to a stop. Her smile is bright, beautiful beyond anything Shawn’s ever seen and it’s absolutely contagious. He can’t withhold his cheeks from tightening. When he posts the video to his story, he doesn’t think much of it. (Y/n) wanders off to grab water and her phone blows up. Shawn Mendes tagged you. The notification popped up. It’s a video of her singing, a damn good one at that. Apart of her wants to be mad he posted without her permission but it wasn’t a big deal, didn’t think much of it until she scrolled down the comment section. There are the cute ones that she adores, the compliments that make her heart flutter. All of a sudden, her joy vanishes. Almost instantaneously the good is gone, ripped right out of her grip. 

“Don’t worry, ladies. There’s no way Shawn would go for someone who looks like that.” 

“Me: *laughing because Shawn would never find her or whatever she is attractive*”

“Diamond is hot and all but she’s not feminine enough for me.” 

“That’s cool that they’re friends. He’d never date her though, not looking like that anyway.” 

It was never about him. Sure he was a pain, also strange with his personality but she’d never hate him. But automatically assuming he’d never find her attractive because of her androgynous features broke her heart. Nobody knew how many people who had told her that exact same thing. “Your shoulders are just too broad.” They’d say. Or, “My friends give me shit because you look more like a guy than I do.” Or, “Why don’t you dress more like a guy? You are a guy right?” She tosses her phone to the side, a tear escaping from the corner of her right eye. The liquid seems to burn against her skin as a different kind of tired pain churns in her heart. Grabbing her book, she does the only thing she knows what to do best. The lyrics come like a tsunami, crashing down on her and she willing caves in, letting it consume her lungs entirely. When she’s done, a voice catches her attention. 

“So (Y/n), we’ve got big news for you.” Andrew says from the other room and it forces the young woman to get up from off the dirty floor. Shawn is long gone by the looks of it and there’s a pang of sadness in her chest, not that (Y/n) will admit it. She didn’t mind him watching her sing. “The VMAs is coming up in two weeks and they want you to be the main performance!” He says with a wide grin. Derek and Olive pat her shoulder with pride while her stomach churns with worry, along with a jumble of other emotions. “So I was thinking we could do ‘Hold Me Back’-” She shakes her head, cutting the older man off with a growing smile. “No. I’ve got a better idea. We do that and then a cover of a song.” She pauses for a moment as they start to bubble up in her head. “And I’ve got just the song.” 

Shawn’s P.O.V

When I got home, I hadn’t expected my sister to still be there. She said she had plans with some friends so it made me wonder as to why she was still present. “Hey Alliyah, whatcha still doin’ here? Thought you had plans?” She turned over her shoulder with a smile, one I knew all too well. “I’m hanging out with the girls later but until then I was catching up on some of Diamond’s feed.” Diamond? Oh no. She continued, “Oh my god, I can’t get over how pretty she is, I mean, she can pull it all off! And her VOICE! EEK! Have you listened to her music or talked to her much?! I saw her on your Instagram! Also, WHY DIDN’T YOU TELL ME YOU MET HER, YOU JERK!” I grab a drink and listen to her ramble on and on. But the more she spoke, the more I realized that’s how my fans spoke of me, this connection to music to artist to fans. And my baby sister was apart of that as much as anyone else. “Gooodddd, I would do anything to meet her!” And in an instant she went back to her phone, watching (Y/n) with a wide smile. In that moment, I knew I’d have to ask a huge favor. 

Your P.O.V

I’d been practicing all week for my performance, doing interview after interview and getting a custom made suit for the VMAs. The more I thought of it, the more giddy I became. This was the performance of a lifetime, something I’ve only dreamed of. Everything had been moving along together nicely until I ran into the one person I was trying to avoid for the rest of my life. Shawn. “Hey, (Y/n). Look-” He says, shyly. Fiddling with his jacket nervously. “I know I’ve been an awful person to you and I have no right to ask you of anything but my baby sisters birthday is coming up and uh- she really loves you and your music. Like a lot. I was wondering if you could perform for her on her birthday. Look, I’ll pay nicely and-” I sigh, ready for the conversation to be over with. “Sure. I’ll do it. Your sister sounds very nice.” I hate to admit that the grin on his face was nothing but contagious. “Thank you, thank you, thank you so much! That means so much to me-” 

I cut him off, accordingly. “I’m not doing this for you, Shawn. I’m doing this for your sister. And you don’t need to pay me. I don’t want your money. Just send me the details” I’m already up and out of the room before he can detest to any of the statements I’ve made. I won’t admit it, but it hurts. There’s a pang in my chest at the thought of us being friends and working together maybe. But after his awful first impression and continuous foul treatment, I didn’t see any point in putting effort in him. I get an email the next day about his house location and the plan for sneaking me and my team in unnoticed. The night comes sooner than I planned but I’m actually quite excited to meet Aaliyah and her friends. The more Geoff and Andrew talk about it, the easier it feels. It’s like a mini concert, a test run for the bigger thing down the line. This feels much more intimate though and I want this to be perfect. 

Andrew takes me and my team through the back, going completely unnoticed from the crowd. We pass a slit and I attempt to get a good view of what I’m working with. Maybe six girls, one of them wearing a birthday crown. They chat happily while the adults take their time to their chairs or stand off leisurely. My heart thumps in hopes to make Aalliyah happy and I ignore the fear that thumps lowly in the bottom of my stomach. This is for her. I watch as Shawn takes the microphone, catching everyone’s attention. My team is already set up behind the curtain, awaiting for his signal. “Hey everyone! I’m so happy you all could come to celebrate my baby sisters birthday. You’re getting so old, Liyah. Now it’s my time to give my present to you. Happy Birthday, sis. Hit it guys!” 

Third P.O.V

Shawn steps off the stage and (Y/n) takes the reigns. When he looks back at her, he nearly falls over from her beauty. Aalliyah and her friends scream louder than anyone would have predicted and Shawn couldn’t help but chuckle. The guitar begins and Shawn can’t keep his eyes off her. “Happy Birthday, Aalliyah. This is for you.” She says softly and his sister giggles along with her friends. The young man doesn’t notice when she stops playing, too entranced by her voice to focus on much of anything that’s not her. She puts down her guitar and makes her way over to the young girls, greeting them first before the rest of the room that only seems to gravitate towards her. “Who’s that, sweetheart? She has a lovely voice.” Shawn’s mother says to him, pulling his attention away from her for the first time that night. 

“Oh! That’s (Y/n) (Y/L/N), also known as Diamond. She’s a new up and coming singer that Aalliyah loves. Andrew’s her new manger so we see each other often.” The woman taps her head, eyes wide. “Oh! I heard her on the radio the other day! I thought it was a man singing but goodness gracious she has the voice of an angel. That’s very sweet of you to get your sisters favorite singer to perform for her birthday.” He smiled down at her before glancing back at the long androgynous figure that’s captured everyone’s attention. The girls get together for a group photo and Shawn’s heart flutters at the sight of Aalliyah almost crying with happiness while her idol grins down at her. “Are you gonna introduce us or do you think Alliyah will beat you to it?” His dad asks him and before he could answer, his little sister ran up to their parents with a smile that seemed to outstretch her face. 

“Mom, Dad, this is (Y/n) (Y/L/N), also known as the one and only Diamond.” (Y/n) blushed crimson as she shook their hands. Her voice was enchanting, smooth and warm like honey. “It’s an honor to meet you, Mr. and Mrs. Mendes. I thank you both for giving me the opportunity to perform for you guys, especially for such a momentous occasion.” The young woman towers both his parents and yet she makes them feel warm and comfortable. “You have an incredible voice, my dear.” Shawn’s dad says with a smile that (Y/n) know’s is genuine. They chat for a while and his mom seems to have latched onto the younger woman, refusing to let go as they down wine and laugh. Everyone migrates to her and Shawn feels a pang of jealousy, not wanting to share her to the world. Their eyes catch across the room and (Y/n) excuses herself from the group to meet him. 

Before they reach one another Harry Styles grazes her elbow catching her attention. (Y/n) can’t help but smile up at the gorgeous man. “Hello love, names Harry.” She introduces herself and she can’t seem to pull herself away from his intoxicating nature and suave. “You didn’t! Oh my god!” He laughed as she grazed his shoulder, continuing the story. “I did! Oh my gosh, she was so pissed the rest of the night..” Harry giggled loudly, scooting closer to her frame until they were inches apart. “I have to head out but I’d love to continue this conversation sometime. Maybe in a more comfortable setting.” The young woman smiled before exchanging numbers with the handsome singer. He pressed his plump lips to her cheeks and (Y/n) couldn’t help but swoon before meeting up with Shawn. 

“Thank you for tonight. My sister is gonna remember this for the rest of her life.” He says quietly, leaning against the railing as he glanced back at her flushed cheeks. Shawn noticed her third glass of wine had made her a little soft. The action is distinct since their love / hate relationship. She actually looks at ease. “Thank you for giving me the opportunity. She’s a very good kid. I enjoyed it a lot and your parents seem lovely. I uh- I came to say goodbye. My team and I are leaving for the night since I need to be up early for interviews and such. See you later, Shawn.” He watches her almost in a trance, bidding his family farewell. That night he only thought of her. 

Things felt different. Maybe they always were different. (Y/n) couldn’t stop thinking about how Shawn looked last night. How pink his cheeks were and how plump his lips became the longer she drank. Must be the alcohol.. She thought stupidly to herself. She knew it wasn’t anything she had that night to make her think such unholy thoughts. The way his shirt was almost too tight for his toned body. He looked like a god and his chocolate brown eyes made her knees weak, not that she’d ever tell him. That morning she grabbed her lyric book and followed Andrew out to the car, listening intently to her schedule for the day. In between the car rides, she jotted new lyrics and hummed different ideas to her crew who nodded along happily. Five interviews back to back, they had finally returned back to the hotel, taking picture after picture with fans. 

The young woman was more than thrilled to be alone for a little while before her phone buzzed. Groaning, she answered it with a fake tone. “Hello?” A honey like chuckle respond on the other line, a voice that was so distinct it made her shiver. “Hello love, miss me? I was wondering if you wanted to get together tonight if you were free?” (Y/n) grinned from cheek to cheek before replying calmly despite the fact her heart was beating out of her chest. “Uh- yeah! I’d love to! Dinner at your place or what were you thinking?” He chuckled lowly, eliciting a shiver of anticipation. “You’re brilliant ya know that. That’s exactly what I was thinking. I’ll pick you up at eight, love. And sweetheart, dress like yourself.” He hung up swiftly and the young woman pondered before smiling. 

Your P.O.V

I had tried on ten different outfits, one looking worst than the last. “Ughhh, I don’t know what to do!” I huffed, obviously anxious and worried for the date, which is in an hour.. Olive ransacks my closet, cussing. “Damn girl, you’ve got clothes for days! We can find something that’ll work.” Before I know, she pulls out a button up, jeans and a bad-ass brown leather jacket. I nod in approval before changing, heart thumping out of my chest. And before I knew it, his car pulled up with a loud brake screech. “Go get ‘em tiger.” Olive said to me with two thumbs up. “You look gorgeous, love” He says smoothly and I can’t help but rake my eyes up and down his body. He looks absolutely sinful and I want a bite. “So what did you concoct tonight, darling.” I watch as the hairs on his arms raise, all because of me. 

We get back to his apartment which is beautifully lit with candles and there’s a strong aroma of pizza and vanilla candles. A strange but inviting scent that only pulls me further into his humble abode. “Make yourself comfortable, love. I’ll grab the food. You pick a movie.” I take off my jacket and scroll through a few movies until I settle on one that satisfies us both. After a few minutes, he lowers the volume so we can talk. “So what exactly are you looking for? You’re a performer. You understand how hard it is for people to communicate and make relationships so what are you looking for?” He sighs, leaning into me and I feel myself tense with excitement as he mutters, eyes bright and entrancing. “I’m just looking for someone who could keep me warm at night though something down the line would be lovely.” 

I gulp and take a leap of faith. “What are you doing tonight then?” I expect him to pull away in disgust or react negatively as most usually do but when he pulls in closer, resting his hands between my thighs, my breath hitches. “You, hopefully.” Our eyes connect again and I do the unthinkable. I press my lips to his roughly and moan when he does the same for me. His large hands are everywhere, tugging and pulling me closer to him. “How ‘bout we take this to the bedroom, baby-girl?” I nod against his lips before kissing down his neck. The lower I go, the louder he groans. “Fuck, (Y/n)..” He grabs my hand, tugging me into the other room. We giggle and kiss one another on the way, easing whatever nervousness I possessed before. I rip open his shirt and press thick kisses along his skin, smirking as he moans. All of a sudden he turns me over grinding his lower region against mine and I can’t help but cuss lowly against his ear. “You like that, baby-girl. Fuck, I can’t wait to ravish you..” 

The next morning I awake before him and leave a note on the table. Had a great time. Hope we can do this again. Sorry I had to dip. My manager called last minute. Until next time, love ;) I slip out of his apartment like a spy, attempting to be as incognito as possible. My whole face is covered and my movements are precise as I slip into the studio completely unnoticed. Olive, Derek, Andrew and a few of my other friends are there. And.. unfortunately Shawn. Olive and Derek are looking down and nobody makes eye contact with me except for Andrew and Shawn who both look pissed. “W-What’s wrong guys?” Shawn’s gaze drifts down to my neck before turning away, almost in disgust. “This is what’s wrong..” Andrew says with an exhausted sigh before showing me pictures on Twitter. They’re of last night.. Clear pictures of Harry and I kissing.. 

(I hope you guys liked it! PLEASE COMMENT!) 

[ancientbooshartifacts]

Vince & Dream

Author: FecklesslyFine

Year: 2010

Rating: G

Pairing: Vince/Sandman

Hearing the Nabootique's doorbell jingling was an exciting enough event in of itself, and one usually looking up from his copy of 'Cheekbone' for, but today, Vince Noir was even more rewarded than usual for his selfless act of raising his eyes from the hallowed glossy pages. There wasn't a teenage girl looking for Luke Kook standing before him, nor a jazzy freak only interested in flinty old elbow patches. There also, thankfully, wasn't a heroin-addicted turkey, a hentai tentacle rape monster, a Geordie nutjob, or even a Welsh person. Instead, there was what could only be described as... a god. Vince felt his eyes almost liquefying at the sight before him. Normally, this might be considered a bad thing by some, but to Vince, this was a compliment of the highest order. His eyeballs didn't melt for just anybody, thank you very much. The first thing he noticed was the contrast. Black and white. The man's skin was of such a pallor, he looked like a china plate, with blue ornate swirls beneath his skin pumping equally blue blood towards his heart. His eyes were dark and seemingly endless; with no discernible pupils, they seemed feral and distant. Two stones in a drift of fresh snow. Vince's eyes slid downward, his gaze moving slow as hand-pulled taffy. The customer's legs seemed to go on forever, encased in tight, high-waisted black jeans that were surely vintage 80s denim, because they didn't do such a perfectly subtle, acid-washed grain that way anymore. His blacker-than-Manic-Panic-Raven-Black hair put Robert Smith to shame-- made Siouxie Sioux look properly amateur. It seemed to defy gravity, just like his... cape. Or was it a trench? Hard to tell, with the way it was gently undulating in the still air of the shop. Also, it-- and the man-- didn't seem to have a shadow. Huh, Vince thought. That'll be well trendy in a few weeks, no doubt. Regardless of its apparent disregard for physics (which Vince was perfectly fine with, really-- sod all that multiplication stuff, or whatever), the cape's high, sharp collar complimented the man's high, sharp cheekbones perfectly. Vince swore to Bauhaus that he'd never again doubt that goth was in style. He had to actually put a hand to his chin and check his mouth wasn't open and drooling. "Alright?" He said, faintly at first, then overcompensating by blurting, "Welcome to Naboo's Nabootique where we sell lots of useless rubbish for ridiculous prices but would really appreciate you buyin' sommat anyway so I don't have to sell me favorite hairdryer to pay the rent because you really don't want to see what I look like without a proper diffuser. Ahem." He coughed delicately, finding his proper voice again. "Can I 'elp you, mate?" Eek, maybe that wasn't his proper voice at all. Sounded a bit too gravelly and Cockney. Bollocks. There was a moment in which the two men stood and regarded each other, though one maybe was a little more overzealous in his regarding than the other. "I'm looking for a... business associate of mine," the tall man said, a somewhat conspicuous pause between the first and second halves of his sentence. Vince bit his lower lip for a minute, pondering something. "Y'mean, Naboo?" The tall man looked relieved at this suggestion. "Yes. I am looking for Naboo. "Oh! Why didn't you say so? Naboo's out for the day," Vince said, thinking quickly. "He's, em, tending to his upside-down rutabaga patch. In Calcutta. Goes every Wednesday, takes him all day just to get there." It was a lie, of course.

Thing was, he'd skimped on the Root Boost today, trying to save the dolphins by using less aerosol, only to be later thwarted by Howard informing him that they no longer made aerosol cans with the bad gasses that hurt the Boyzone layer in the atmosphere, whatever that was, and anyway, that had absolutely nothing to do with dolphins. So, needless to say, his hair was lacking its usual height and circumference. He needed another chance to make a first impression on this tall, dark, handsome stranger. Naboo would probably be upstairs readying his afternoon hookah and Hula Hoops anyway, so no harm in making sure the man would be back again. He and his hair would be prepared, next time. "Ah," said the tall man, looking about the shop-- well, presumably he was looking about the shop, it was hard to tell with those eyes of his. Vince swore he saw stars twinkling in the lining of the man's cape-- genius application of glitter, that. "Well," the man continued, looking back at Vince, "Could you tell him that Morpheus would like to speak with him? I will call on him again tomorrow." Vince nodded somewhat vacantly. He was aware there was something of a dazed grin plastered across his face that didn't seem to have any intention of budging while the man was still in the room. "Morpheus. That's a well interesting name. Mine's Vince." He slid off his perch on the glass counter-top, holding out his hand to be shaken, or perhaps kissed. "Vince Noir. So's it just Morpheus, like Madonna?" Morpheus blinked slowly, as if he was trying to understand the question. "No," he said after a moment, porcelain brow marred by a furrow of restrained confusion. "The singer with the unusual metal apparatus on her busom? No, not like her..." He shook Vince's hand anyway, and his fingers were longer and cooler and thinner and paler than Vince's own stubby, pink hands, and Vince suddenly wondered if that's how Howard felt next to him-- oafish, ruddy, and clunky. "Riiight," he trailed off, wondering if this bloke wasn't just a bit off his nut. "So where'd you get that cape?" He tried again, taking a different tack. "I've been thinking of an anti-gravity pair of Chelsea boots for ages, but I reckon that's even more genius than anything I thought up."

Morpheus tilted his head a little, reminding Vince of a cat, then looked down at his garments. "What? This old thing?" He met Vince's gaze again-- well, presumably-- and Vince detected a hint of a grin at the corner of his mouth. First smile he'd given since he entered the shop, and though he clearly has been rocking the distant, brooding look since birth, Vince had to admit, amusement looked good on him. Knowing he wasn't going to get any more out of the man than that, Vince sighed, crossing his arms with a wry grin. "Alright, well I don't blame you for not telling, but I'll have you know, I'm friends with just about every reputable clothier and designer this side of St. Petersberg, and I will find out." He just hoped that St. Petersberg was enough far away to make that claim impressive. "I wish you luck," Morpheus inclined his head ever so slightly, before drawing himself up to his full height. "I must go now, but please do not forget to pass along my message. I will be back tomorrow." He paused, before adding, "It was a pleasure to meet you, Vince Noir. Do take care." Vince could only nod and smile as Morpheus turned to leave-- the man had put 'pleasure' and his name in the same sentence, after all. The clomping of Howard's sandals on the stairs reached his ears, and by the time Howard had reached the bottom, the jingling of the door was already fading. "Who was that berk?" Howard asked, after taking one look at Vince's dazed visage, then glaring out the window at the retreating back of the tall, dark man. Instantly, true to form, he was all puffed up and irritable like a nubby-legged, piebald pigeon. Normally, Vince would have outright laughed at him and made some only-half-teasing disparaging remark, but all he could do now was give a dreamy sigh, hopping back up onto the counter and swinging his crossed legs against the glass. "I dunno," He smiled blissfully, staring past Howard in a distinctly fashion-related reverie. "But wasn't his cape just fierce?" "Yeah," Howard said, flatly. "Just fierce."

[cutepresea]

Memoria: Summer Jobs

If you want to blacklist these, you can use either the tag #xdu memoria scripts or #xdu scripts

Reminder  that these are copied straight  from XD Unlimited itself, so any grammatical weirdness, mistranslations,  and/or mischaracterizations are  not my doing.

In-game Summary: “Chris and Maria wind up helping out at a restaurant, but serving customers while in bikinis wasn't in the job description.”

Maria: "Hey, could you help me put on some sunscreen?"

Chris Yukine: "Huh? Put it on yourself."

Maria: "Well, I can get my front just fine, but getting my back is a lot trickier."

Chris Yukine: "So just squirt a bunch of it back there and hope it sticks, then."

Maria: "But what if it winds up all uneven?"

Chris Yukine: "Mariaaa..."

Maria: "I'll help you do yours in return. In fact, why don't I do you first?"

Chris Yukine: "Eek! C-Careful with those hands! Th-That tickles!"

Maria: "Oh, you're ticklish, huh? You don't look the type."

Chris Yukine: "Huh? What's that supposed to mean?"

Beachgoer: "It's the Noise! Everybody, run!"

Maria: "What?!"

Chris Yukine: "Ugh. We'll talk about this later. We need to take care of this!"

Chris Yukine: "I can't believe the Alca-Noise would come out this far..."

Maria: "Maybe it's a coincidence, maybe not. Either way, their luck has run out now that we're here."

Chris Yukine: "Yeah. Let's get this over with."

Chris Yukine: "Eat this!"

Maria: "Wait, Chris! Watch your line of fire!"

Chris Yukine: "Ack! Shoot, it's heading right for that building-- Dammit, I can't stop it!"

Chris Yukine: "...So, why did we end up here?"

Maria: "Should be obvious why, surely?"

Maria: "We were lucky that the Noise didn't hit the restaurant, however the goods near the front got destroyed, so..."

Chris Yukine: "Oh don't tell me you want us to work here to pay it off The owner told us not to sweat it."

Maria: "But it'd just feel wrong if I didn't pay them back somehow. Oh, but you're okay to leave."

Chris Yukine: "No, it's my fault they got destroyed, so I can't just leave."

Chris Yukine: "Forget about that, though, that's not the issue! What's with these outfits they have us wearing?!"

Chris Yukine: "Isn't a swimsuit under an apron just kinda weird?"

Maria: "Oh please. It's nothing to get worked up over."

Chris Yukine: "It is if you ask me!"

Maria: "I do this stuff all the time in photo-shoots. You're just being too uptight about it."

Chris Yukine: "Being an idol really warps your perception of what's normal, huh."

Maria: "Enough moaning. We have to get customers back into the restaurant."

Beachgoer A: "Yo, those waitresses are hella cute."

Beachgoer B: "I'm feeling kinda hungry now. How about we drop in and grab a bite?"

Maria: "Hi there! Come on in and have a seat."

Chris Yukine: "S-Spoken like a pro..."

Matron: "We've got four guests for table three! Could you go and get their orders?"

Chris Yukine: "Yeah, yeah. I'm on it."

Hibiki Tachibana: "Four super-sized yakisoba! No, scratch that. Five, please!"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "Oh, and one grilled squid."

Chris Yukine: "Ack! What are you guys doing here?!"

Tsubasa Kazanari: "Well, when we got back to where we thought you were, you were gone, along with our stuff."

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "You should have given us a call."

Chris Yukine: "Crap, I totally forgot! My bad."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "But I have to say, you look good in that outfit."

Hibiki Tachibana: "It's a pretty bold choice of clothes."

Chris Yukine: "It's literally an apron on top of a swimsuit!"

Maria: "Here's your order. Five fried noodles and one grilled squid. Oh... When did you get here?"

Tsubasa Kazanari: "I heard Alca-Noise appeared. Sorry we didn't make it on time."

Maria: "It worked out in the end, so don't worry. But enough of that, would you mind helping me out?"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "How did you end up here?"

Maria: "The restaurant got damaged during our battle."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "I see. Then I wouldn't mind helping out."

Hibiki Tachibana: "And you can count on me, Hibiki Tachibana, to eat everything you've got on the menu!"

Kirika Akatsuki: "Could it be... Are you paying for us, Chris-senpai?!"

Chris Yukine: "I'm not treating anyone to anything!"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "Nom, nom, nom... This roast squid is pretty good. I'd like seconds."

Hibiki Tachibana: "I'll have another two helpings of the super-size noodles, please!"

Chris Yukine: "You finished the first five already?!"

Chris Yukine: "I knew there was a black hole in your stomach, but geez..."

Maria: "Nice work out there. Here, you've earned yourself a breather."

Chris Yukine: "Oh, it's ramune soda. What're you giving it to me for?"

Maria: "The lady who runs this place says it's a gift for your hard work."

Chris Yukine: "Nice. I was getting a bit thirsty."

Maria: "She certainly seemed happy about receiving double her usual sales."

Chris Yukine: "Well, we're out here attracting all these customers, so duh."

Maria: "You've become a lot less timid than you were in the beginning."

Chris Yukine: "Oh, shut up."

Beachgoer: "Eeek!"

Beachgoer: "It's the Noise!"

Maria: "Again? What's going on here?"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Chris-chan! Maria-san!"

Maria: "Oh, it's you. I thought you already went home."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "You should always be on standby, just in case."

Maria: "As ever, you're a lifesaver."

Chris Yukine: "If it weren't for those damn Alca-Noise, I wouldn't have to be humiliated like this..."

Chris Yukine: "I'll make them pay for this!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Chris-chan, that look on your face is kinda scary!"

Kirika Akatsuki: "Sh-She's thirsting for blood..."

Chris Yukine: "Phew... That's much better."

Tsubasa Kazanari: "You let off some serious steam there, Yukine."

Chris Yukine: "No, I didn't. I just dealt with the cause of the issue."

Maria: "In any case, both the customers and shop are unscathed."

Chris Yukine: "But you really looked the part back at the restaurant. Do you like stuff like that?"

Maria: "That's not really it."

Maria: "If I've made up my mind on something, I'll give it 100%. That's all."

Chris Yukine: "Yeah, yeah. Well done you."

Hibiki Tachibana: "But all's well that ends well, right? I got a load of yakisoba and some other food as thanks."

Kirika Akatsuki: "We should have a party once we get back!"

Shirabe Tsukuyomi: "I can't wait."

Chris Yukine: "You've still got space for more food?! Won't you get a stomachache?!"

Hibiki Tachibana: "Don't worry about me, my belly will be A-okay!"

Chris Yukine: "Not in the morning, it won't!"

[thefinalcinderella]

DIVE!! Book 2 Chapter 9-SUMMER VACATION

Full list of translations here

Last time on DIVE!!: There should be a spinoff about the training camp.

“Even if you said that you have three days off, excluding coming here and going back, you only have one day to play around fully.”

“We’d looked forward to this day, so we want to spend it nonstop, as much as possible.”

In response to that request, the next day Shibuki, together with Kyouko, led the two to a nearby waterfall, where they spent the morning dripping. Kyouko, who worked at the neighborhood supermarket, had also entered her one-week summer vacation today.

For Tomoki and Youichi, they were having their summer vacation for the first time this summer, and for Kyouko she was finally having her summer vacation. However, Tsugaru’s summer was quicker to escape from than that of Tokyo’s, and though the hot weather lingered during the day, there were no swimmers in the sea because of the jellyfish that had already appeared there. Until a short while ago, even the children who played in the sea until they burnt black weren’t seen much, having moved their turf to the rivers and the mountains, or possibly catching up on homework at home.

In a child’s mind, did the waterfall have the image of “a little sad-looking place?” The area around the waterfall wasn’t very big, and it was always quiet. On this day as well there were only two girls sketching in the shade of rocks and an old person hanging their fishing pole down from a large rock in a stream.

“Wow, look at those birds!”

“Wow, look at those fish!”

“Wow, look at that dead body—”

They gave the frolicking Tomoki sidelong glances as they tread upon the wild path surrounded by bushes, and before long the whooshing roar of the waterfall brushed against their ears, which turned into a thmp-thmp sound as they got closer, and as they approached even farther it turned into a rumbling sound. The four stared at the powerful performance swooping down to the waterfall lake from the steep cliff.

“If Coach Fujitani was here, he’d say something like, ‘Know the mind of the waterfall.’”

“The old man wouldn’t say that. Well, nowadays he’s been overpowered by Asaki Kayoko’s American ways.”

Tomoki and Youichi snickered.

They watched the waterfall for a while, then they turned their backs to the roaring, the sound of water becoming a steady BGM as they went towards the stream.

The wind that blew on the stream was refreshing. Sunlight filtered through the green leaves, sprinkling a clear emerald color on them as they sat on the rocks of the stream.

“I can’t stand it anymore!”

Tomoki kicked off his shoes and socks, and shouted, “Just a little bit--!” as he dived into the stream that was only ankle-deep. No one followed after him. Kyouko turned to Youichi and eagerly asked him questions like, “Did you see any celebrities?” and “How many times have you gone to Disneyland?” Shibuki stared at his girlfriend’s profile with a bitter smile. It was an nonstop day, just as he had wished.

They had their fill of nonstop-ness and returned home, where they had their lunch of chilled soumen (1), and everyone was struck by drowsiness in the tepid early afternoon.

The four laid down side-by-side on the tatami mats, and had a pleasant afternoon nap for about an hour.

It was already two when they woke up. Tomoki suddenly spoke like he just thought of something.

“Hey, let’s go to the cliff where Okitsu-kun always dived from.”

As its name suggested, it was definitely a very precipitous cliff.

It was a separating wall that cut off the sea and land.

The cliff didn’t let the rough, scattered wave crests come near even a little, and its tip pierced the sky at its highest—

“Is that twenty meters…?”

They walked for forty minutes from Shibuki’s house before finally arriving at the cliff, and stepped onto the rugged scaffolding that was laid down, so different from the platforms. Looking down at the sea that heaved far below, Tomoki and Youichi, who were supposed to be used to heights, held their breaths all at once, and lost their words for a brief moment. The magnetic field of the world shook unsteadily, as if the very earth itself lost its stability.

“It feels somewhat spooky. How long have you been diving from here?”

“Since I was thirteen. In the past, when the eldest son of the Okitsu family turned fifteen, it seemed that for a while they were taken to this cliff for their coming-of-age ceremony, but my Gramps broke that custom and dived from here when he was fourteen. He seemed to have stirred up plenty of disapproval, but in my father’s generation that custom had completely disappeared, but I wanted to surpass Gramps and dive here at thirteen.”

“Thirteen…that’s one-year younger than me.”

Kyouko’s provocative voice came from besides Tomoki, who was gulping deeply. “Do you want to try diving?”

“What?”

“Cut it out.”

Without listening to Shibuki, Kyouko walked forward until she was just a step away from the empty space, and crouched down at the tip, hugging her knees.

“Three years ago, when I started to go out with Shibuki, he made a declaration to everyone in the village. He announced that if there was anyone who wanted to steal me away, they should come here, become his opponent and dive from here.”

“Awesome~. That’s so cool.”

“Definitely.” Kyouko replied bluntly to Tomoki, who was looking at Shibuki with eyes of respect.

“Everyone was interested, even me. Though because of that, anyone who wanted to steal me away still hadn’t said anything yet. Apparently when stuff like that was said after a guy like that appeared, they were laughed at by Aya-san. Well, when I think about it now, Shibuki was still just a kid, but I still feel embarrassed about that.”

“So in other words, even now no one has appeared yet? No one else dived from here?”

When Youichi broke into a smile as he said that, Kyouko nodded and said, “Yep,” seemingly reluctantly.

“No one has dived here. Until today.”

“Until today?”

“When I heard that friends from the Tokyo diving club were coming here, I was really excited. I thought that that time might finally come, and that I won’t end up blushing every time I come here.”

Kyouko’s eyes were filled with expectation. Youichi skillfully avoided them and turned around to Tomoki.

“If that’s the case…”

“What, no way!”

With Kyouko’s gaze pouring onto him, it made the bottom of Tomoki’s eye twitch.

“We have to do it from here?”

“Because you’re divers, right? Surely, you feel good about it.”

“That’s just assuming things…”

“It’s alright, it’s lower than bungee jumping. Only there’s no bungee cord attached.”

“Eek!”

Compared to Tomoki who was completely backing away, Youichi was calmer.

“Thanks, but no thanks. If I get injured now, then the two weeks of training camp would all be for nothing. If I do dive, it’ll be after the Olympics, and after I check the depth of sea bottom with my own eyes.”

Kyouko raised her chin up. “Aw, that’s too bad,” she laughed. “But you, you’re pretty smart, aren’t you?”

Was it his imagination, or did Youichi’s cheeks turn slightly red?

Changing the topic quickly, Kyouko said, “let’s go back” as she stood up, her purple skirt flapping in the air.

“It’ll be dinner time at the Okitsu house soon.”

On the way home, Youichi bought up all of the fireworks from a small candy store, in order to have a firework display after dinner that day. The faces of Miyuki, Misaki, Minami, Kyouko, Shibuki, Tomoki and Youichi, which were illuminated by the dim lights of the fireworks, all resembled those of innocent children. A wind disturbing the night air extinguished the light of the candles, from firework to firework, and when the relay for stopping the spark from being extinguished began, everyone became more and more electrified, acting desperate as though they were protecting something tremendously important.

“Somehow, when we do stuff like this, it’s like we’re just ordinary friends.” Tomoki casually murmured while he drew pictures and characters on the board of darkness in front of the fireworks. Beside him, Shibuki and Youichi casually nodded, but if it was looked at from another perspective, it usually indicated that how much that they didn’t have the relationship that allowed them to be ordinary friends.

The end of the fireworks was always lonely.

Even if the fire was used up first, even if the fireworks were used up first, it was all unsatisfactory in the same way.

“Ahh…” Then they broke up suddenly while becoming silent, and Tomoki, all worn out from the excitement, fell asleep within ten seconds of returning to his room.

“Do you have a moment?”

It was after that that Youichi brought Shibuki out to the porch where the smell of gunpowder still floated.

“I want to confirm this once.”

Youichi got straight to the point.

“Do you know that the new semester starts in four days?”

“Oh, I’ve never counted, but it’s really in four days, huh.”

“You’re saying that you’ll be coming back to Tokyo in four days.”

“…”

“You’ll also be returning to the MDC.”

“…”

“What?”

“Today, where we went…”

“Ah?”

“The first time that I flew from that cliff, I was definitely only thirteen, but it was long time up until then.”

Am I just dodging the question, or is there actually some kind of connection? While knitting his stout fingers on his knees, Shibuki falteringly spoke. From the darkened windows of the Okitsu house where the lights were quickly turned off in succession, and only the flickering dim dots of the fireflies in the shade of the grass could be seen from the porch where the two were sitting.

“In the beginning, I dived from one- and two-meter cliffs, like Gramps told me, and when he died I walked for hours on my own, trying to find a convenient cliff…once I cleared a height, I pursued techniques next. Gramps did indeed teach me the basics from the first to sixth groups, but I could only do up to 1½ somersaults. Because when Gramps died, I was still only around eight years old. I recklessly practiced the 2½ from then on, by myself. I might have hurt my back because of that, but it couldn’t be helped. I wanted to go higher, do more amazing techniques. It was our instinct to aim for the top like that. I challenged new things, failed at them, challenged them, failed at them…I dived because of that most amazing feeling when I finally succeeded.”

But then Shibuki laughed without any power.

“But Asaki Kayoko told me that the 3½ is impossible for me now. There are athletes somewhere in the world who can compete overseas without doing 3½.”

“…”

“I can’t do the 3½. I can’t strive for amazing techniques. So now, honestly, I can’t see what I’m going to do for the future.”

To Shibuki’s bitter confession, Youichi only murmured, “I understand,” and cast his eyes down. Although he was too timid to say more than that, he understood Shibuki’s feelings so well that it wasn’t really possible to put it in words.

The surging of his heart when tackling new techniques. And the sense of accomplishment when he was able to do them. Divers seeked that moment of ecstasy that makes them feel like they wanted to roll around, and so would put up with the painful and cold practices. If they had been robbed of that…

“Even I don’t know what will happen if I’m in your position. Something like this could happen to anyone someday.”

Youichi’s voice became gloomy, and in order to show that this was never someone else’s problem, he spoke about something that, until then, he had hesitated over whether or not he should tell it to Shibuki.

“It seems that Asaki Kayoko intended to teach Tomo the 4½.”

“4½?”

Shibuki murmured, flabbergasted, and then repeated it again a few seconds later. “4½?”

“Ah, when I first heard of that, I thought there was something wrong with my ears. Even Tomo himself didn’t really accept it. But during the Beijing training camp, it seemed that he gradually came to feel that way. I guess he truly felt that he couldn’t catch up with the rest of the world if he stayed as he was.”

“4½…is that even possible?”

“Even if I used up everything to my full strength, it would be impossible for me. I know my own limits. However, I don’t know Tomo’s limits. If he could pull off a technique that I absolutely couldn’t do, I might have to quit diving.”

“…”

“But even so, I still might not quit.”

“…”

“Well, I won’t know until that time comes.”

Raising his arched eyebrows, Youichi looked into Shibuki’s face.

“That time might have come for you now. Of course, you’ll be the one deciding for yourself, but I just want to say one thing. I want to dive with you again. At the competition, it was the first time that I had so much fun, and the first time that I felt so frustrated. I want to do that again.”

The sound of fireworks came from somewhere in the distance. The sounds could be heard, but the petals of gunpowder couldn’t be seen. While the night quietly grew late, the matches beneath his feet, the sunflowers in the garden, and the towels hanging on the fence—that black mouth swallowed up all of those lingering summer scents.

To Shibuki, who currently seemed inclined to be swallowed up together with them, Youichi couldn’t press the answer here any further.

“Well, for now there are still four days left. So, take your time thinking about it. But, whatever you decide to do, you should call Ooshima-san. He seemed to be really depressed.”

“He’s depressed?”

“When you decided to pull out, he cried in front of the old man. He wanted to let you go to Beijing because it was a rare opportunity, but he couldn’t do it when he thought about your future. I don’t really get it, but it seems like that Ooshima-san himself, during his athlete days, had a lot of bitter feelings. I guess there was a lot of different factors. Then, after that…”

Leaving Shibuki puzzled, Youichi stood up and came back with his backpack in his hand, which was left in the hallway.

“I have something that Asaki Kayoko entrusted to me.”

“What is it?”

“You’ll know when I give it to you.”

What appeared from the backpack was a B5 envelope, and when he opened it after receiving it, there was a videotape and letter inside.

Shibuki’s fingers shook as he ran his eyes over the label on the video.

“Okitsu Shiraha IN 1937”

Translation Notes

1. Soumen are thin white noodles.

Next time on DIVE!!: The real canon ship of these novels.

[tradingprotools-blog]

[GET] KNOWWP 2017 WP Training PLR - Lifetime Reseller Membership

http://www.tradingprotoolsnews.com/2018/08/22/get-knowwp-2017-wp-training-plr-lifetime-reseller-membership/

Almost a year to the day, we purchased a popular private label rights collection of WordPress training videos... As we sell a lot of our own WordPress plugins and found customers also needed training (and because we know the WordPress tutorial/training market is a huge, profitable niche), it seemed like a great idea to buy 'em, build a membership site and help people build their blogs properly... The plan was simple: Set a low, one time fee, help a ton of people out & make some easy cash! However, after handing over our money for the videos (it was around $200 bucks) and downloading all them, we were truly shocked! The video quality was horrendous, the narrator's accent made them impossible to follow and to make it worse, 80% of the videos showed old versions of WordPress and were out of date... We junked the lot! It was frustrating, we were down a couple of hundred bucks and the membership idea was dead in the water... It was time to go back to the drawing board and start again, but after searching high and low for better videos (without success) we were left with just one option... Bite the bullet and make our own! (Problem was we didn't have the time to do it ourselves!) The solution... We contacted one of the top video tutorial makers online and asked him to make an entirely new collection for us - It cost a fortune (this guy charges a thousand bucks an hour for finished video), but the end results were worth it. We had a killer collection of videos... But... EEK! we needed to recoup the $10,000 they had cost us!!! To make matters worse we were waaaay behind schedule with other launches so at the point the videos were ready we didn't have time to build or promote a new membership site. So like any self respecting marketers we offered the videos with private label rights and they sold like CRAZY! Demand was so high the offer sold out within days and we were flooded with requests to make more videos covering advanced WordPress topics - We did and those sold like crazy too! Both collections were made Product Of The Day and ranked #1 best sellers in the JVZoo network! Kinda nuts... but we never got round to building a membership site figuring enough people had PLR so they'd likely do it themselves and the videos would finally get the audience they deserved. But what's all that got to do with you... And why are we here right now? Well... HOUSTON WE HAVE A PROBLEM... It turned out that for many PLR buyers, putting the videos into a member area, delivering them to end users and 'doing all the complicated, technical stuff' has proved to be a real sticking point. For some it's lack of technical expertise, others are short on time to do it all themselves and the rest seem to have been put off by the cost of doing it all together (let's face it building a membership site from scratch isn't exactly cheap no matter what system you use to do it). Everything came to a head when we even noticed a lot of our PLR buyers were promoting our offer as affiliates rather than promoting their own offers... When we asked why it became apparent people wanted a simpler easier solution... Sales page : http://www.knowwp.com/