#even if they wanted to hang out with me it'd be suspicious like why me. what do you want. spit it out.

[nebula-nonhuman]

Do you know that feeling when it seems like people are a bit too excited about your presence (suspicious) and getting to know you (inherently dangerous) so you're like "I feel like I must run away from this social circle lest I experience what it feels like to be torn open by wolves. Metaphorically."?

[sillygoofyqueer]

If you want to lean in on Shen Yuan’s obliviousness, perhaps he doesn’t realize Bing-ge is courting him, until Bing-ge successfully nabs him and declares it so.

(Bing-ge does do the crow courting behavior you mentioned first, but while secret transmigrator Shen Yuan accepts and reciprocates the gestures he doesn’t actually get it).

It’s not until Bing-ge pulls out a scroll listing all the ‘accepted’ betrothal gifts (aka, every item Shen Yuan stole), and the return gifts (aka everything Shen Yuan give him) that what’s going on suddenly occurs to Shen Yuan. (Look up Guo Da Li and Hui Li ceremonies).

Shen Yuan thinks Bing-ge is blackmailing him into the marriage, by making the thefts seem like gifts, but it’s wholly unnecessary as who could say no to Binghe?

For other thoughts I had:

A) Consider Shen Yuan having a “fan” made out of his family’s shed crow feathers, that he hides behind.

B) Perhaps Bing-ge finds out Shen Yuan is only half demon when he is able to break out of a demon trapping array with spiritual energy. (A trick Binghe has never seen anyone else pull off before).

C) In Airplane’s original draft, Shen Yuan’s character was meant to be a sort of foil to Binghe. He’s another half demon but with far less power (he’s no heavenly demon, and his spiritual cultivation potential is only good, not genius level) and a more stable upbringing.

Maybe Shen Yuan’s crow family even settled in the human realm because of a beef with some demon lord too, making the human realm more accepting (another inverse of Bing-ge who was rejected by the human realm for his heritage).

HAHA, sorry, I love the idea that Bing-ge has kept this whole ass account of just...every little thing that has ever been stolen or given by Shen Yuan, and I can feel the feral excitement radiating off him when he's like, "and I've got RECIEPTS that we've been courting each other!!" He's so so smug, and Shen Yuan is just in that bird-like shock where they just sit there and stare as if he's bluescreened. He's actually offended that Bing-ge thinks he needs to be blackmailed into marriage because "anyone would be lucky to marry him" A) OH MY GOD, SHEN YUAN WITH A HOMEMADE FAN is an adorable idea. I haven't figured out what his robes look like, but it'd be so cute if like, the first time he's trapped, he begrudgingly turns to half-human form and whips out this gorgeous fan (Bing-ge's jealous because who gave the demon this fan and why hadn't HE given it to him??). Despite being what some would call a half-feral demon (he isn't), he actually radiates class thank you very much due to his human roots from before his transmigration (he was an internet gremlin, but I like to think he had a wealthy family that taught him that etiquette he needed for formal situations). B) He is undeniably surprised when Shen Yuan eventually breaks through the array and is like "fun hang out, thanks for not killing me!" and just disappears with whatever he was trying to steal. Bing-ge's like "oh my gawd, just like me fr" and needs to find out everything ever possible about him or he's going to lose his mind. C) Oh my god, I'm madly in love with foils, I love that idea. They're similar in so many ways and yet there are certain differences between them that wildly change who they are as people. From a reader's perspective, Shen Yuan understands this. From the perspective of a character? It's absolutely insane that he's comparing himself to the Luo Bing-ge like the emperor could ever be compared to this crow demon. (It also brings me to the question, what on earth is Airplane doing in this AU, if he's there at all?). The idea of the crow family settling in with humans to escape from a demon lord is sooo good because then, when Shen Yuan is being courted by this emperor, it's hard for them not to feel suspicious of it all!!! {part four! Part one, part two, part three, part five, part six, part seven!!}

[woso-dreamzzz]

Rival V

Hardersson x Teen!Reader

Part of The Big Adventures Universe

Summary: Gooner to Gunner

Arsenal coming calling for you a few weeks after your seventeenth birthday. You've been playing professionally for Linköping since you were fifteen, following the under-seventeen Euros, as their second choice goalkeeper.

You always knew, much like your mothers, that you didn't want to stay in Sweden your whole career. It's off the back of completing your final matches as the Under-seventeen team's captain in a round of friendlies that you get the email.

You're mucking around on your laptop, aimlessly typing something out for one of your classes when you switch tabs to your Momma's emails.

It had been terribly easy to crack the password (your and Morsa's birthdays put together) and you made sure that she didn't know you were logged in. It's not like you had been planning anything malicious but it was Momma's email that was connected to the Amazon account and you were just too impatient to wait to see what surprise she had ordered to celebrate your tenure as captain for the youth team.

You had been tracking the package for days now and just so happened to spy this new email at the top of the list.

You frown. It's got your name on it. You're not eighteen yet so all of your professional stuff comes through either Momma and Morsa and-yes, Morsa was cc'ed into the email too.

You click on it. There's nothing wrong with that, you think to yourself, because it's about you anyway. There's no harm in finding out what it was a bit early.

Your eyes skim through the email, your heart stuttering in your chest.

It was a contract proposal.

The same position, second goalkeeper, but for a hell of a lot more money.

At Arsenal.

You glance behind you.

Everywhere you've ever moved, your framed Leah Williamson shirt ends up over your bed.

Always.

Even when you gained so many more world class player's jerseys (Tia Tana, Alexia, Keira Walsh, just to name a few), Leah's one always ended up over your bed.

Your door swings open and your hurriedly close the tab, writing more nonsense for your schoolwork.

"Morsa!" You exclaim," Knock!"

Morsa laughs. "Sorry, princesse, I don't realise I was raising such a moody teenager."

"I could have been naked," You scoff.

"This early? No chance. I just came up here to say that dinner's ready."

"Dinners ready or it's nearly ready and you're using me to set the table?" You're wise to Morsa's tricks.

"We ordered in. Dinner is actually ready."

By the time that you've washed your hands and made it downstairs, Momma and Morsa have made space for you to slot between them.

You try to keep quiet for a little bit but the email you've just read makes you antsy and anxious.

"So..." You say finally as the show you're watching finishes and your Morsa starts flicking through the channels to find something new. "How was work?"

Momma frowns at you suspiciously. "Good. Why?"

You try to be casual. "No reason. So...no funny email chains? Nothing interesting?"

Momma turns to look at you fully. "What's going on with you? What have you heard?"

You shrug. "Me? Nothing."

She watches you with narrowed eyes. "Magda, what have you told her?"

"Me?" Morsa's got a slice of pizza hanging from her mouth. "Why do you think I've told her something?"

"She's acting suspicious. Just like you do when you know something you shouldn't."

"I haven't told her anything. I've barely seen her all day. She came straight home from training and shacked up in her room to do schoolwork."

Momma is still staring at you as she fishes her phone out of her pocket and flicks through her emails. Like you, it doesn't take her long to find it.

She sighs - long and drawn out and she rubs her temple with her fingers. "I don't know how you found out about this before me but-"

"Please! Please! Please! Please, Momma!" You're kneeling on the ground in front of her, hands clasped together. "I'm nearly out of the contract with Linköping. Please! It'd be such a good opportunity!"

"Whoa, whoa," Morsa says quickly," Slow down. What's going on? Pernille, huh?"

Momma sighs again, turning her phone over to Morsa. "Arsenal is interested in her."

Morsa skims through the email, her eye twitching slightly. She looks at you and says," No. If you want to go to England, we can see if Chelsea will take you."

You sigh just like Momma did. "Morsa, please! I don't even like Not-Wolfsburg! I'll play so good at Arsenal, I promise!"

"First of all," Morsa says," You're seventeen. You have got to stop calling Chelsea Not-Wolfsburg. Second of all, you're seventeen. In what world is moving to England a good idea at the moment?"

"For football!" You exclaim, standing on your feet and grabbing at her hands. You know Momma will support you in anything you want to do, including this. So it's just Morsa (who would probably prefer it if you joined fucking Spurs than Arsenal) that you have to convince. "Morsa, please! I...I'll give it my all! Please! Arsenal's the goal!"

"I thought Wolfsburg was the goal."

"It is!" You say," But that's the long term goal! Wolfsburg will be sure to watch me if I play in the WSL!"

"Wolfsburg was watching your Momma when she was still at Linköping," Morsa points out," Why can't you stay at Linköping?"

"Morsa!" You're getting a bit annoyed now. "Wolfsburg the club I want to retire at! Arsenal for Leah and Aunt Lina and Aunt Stina. Barcelona or Lyon, maybe, for Tia Tana or Daan. And then Wolfsburg!"

That causes a small smile to tug at Morsa's lips. "No Bayern on your list?"

"It's in the maybe category like Barca and Lyon! Don't change the subject! Who knows when an opportunity like this will come up again? The national teams will be sure to watch me properly too, if I'm playing in England!"

Momma laughs. "Magda," She says," Just put her out of her misery, already."

You look between them. "Huh?"

Morsa stands up, drawing you up into a hug. "Of course you can sign for Arsenal, princesse."

"Really?"

"Yes."

●～●～●～●～

You end up back in London for the first time in years within the month.

A picture goes up on social media on the day you come in to officially sign. You shake hands with the manager and pose for the photo, holding onto your new jersey.

It's probably your most prized possession now with your favourite number on the back - you're challenging yourself to clinch the first keeper position within two years.

At Linköping, your last name was on your shirt.

At Arsenal, it's your first name.

Abruptly, you're brought back to a blurry memory of sitting on the floor of your house before the move to Bayern, when you ran your fingers over Alexia's name, when your Momma explained that some of the best had only their first names on their jerseys.

"There she is."

You look up and then back down bashfully.

Leah Williamson walks up to you. She's older now, than when you first met her all those years ago. She's retired from football - just like your mothers - but she still works in the sector, one of the coaches for the women's team.

"Hi."

"You look good in an Arsenal shirt," She says," Even better now that it's not mine."

You don't know why you say it but you do," I still have the first shirt you gave me. Momma and Morsa got it framed for me."

She grins at you, clapping you on the back. "I had you pegged for a Gunner the moment you wandered into our dressing room." She breathes in deeply. "Let me just take a moment. This is a nice full circle moment for me."

You laugh. "Me too."

[penkura]

knowing [2/8]

Summary: Sanji knew you were the one the moment he met you.

Pairing: Sanji x Reader

Warnings: None really. Normal One Piece stuff I guess.

Note: uhhhh chapter two hype I guess lol.

[Ch. 1]

Nami noticed something weird after you all left Skypiea. You and Sanji being weirder than normal. She was constantly trying to push you two together, she wanted to see a romance on the Going Merry, and the two of you were her best bet, if anything ever happened.

Which she thought never would because you acted so shyly and Sanji acted like he didn't know what he was doing anymore around you. It was painful to watch, and she tried to get Robin in on it, but the older woman just smiled and said she should let potential love take its time. Nami hated that she was right, but every time you all approached a new island, she would do her best to pair you and Sanji up as buddies. Whenever it worked, you'd come back for a girl's night and be swooning over what a gentleman Sanji was, how he wouldn't let you carry a single bag or buy anything yourself, he did everything. You swore up and down he must've done that or would do that for any girl, but it didn't make you feel any less special.

In fact, once you arrived on Skypiea, Sanji had found flowers to give you three girls. Nami and Robin both received red ones, you were the lucky one to get a blue flower, which you later gushed to Nami that it matched his eyes. You were so gross with how head over heels you were for Sanji, but she really wanted to see you two together.

That's why Nami found it odd that you and Sanji seemed to spend more time apart after your return to solid ground, er…to the water anyway. You still would help him with cooking when Sanji let you, and he'd hang around you some evenings on the deck while everyone relaxed, but Nami didn't think anything much was happening outside of that.

Zoro, however, knew differently. He'd noticed real differences in how you and Sanji were around each other after leaving Alabasta. You had seemed slightly nervous when Robin ended up joining your crew, especially when Sanji was all too eager to welcome her, commenting briefly on how beautiful she was. Zoro watched you hover around while Usopp interrogated her, like you were just as suspicious of Robin, but for different reasons, and he thought you were being a bit ridiculous about it.

It's not like you and Sanji were together, right? He could do as he pleases and flirt all he wanted, you'd just have to suck it up and deal with it despite your feelings.

Well he thought so, until that evening when he heard you on the lower deck with Sanji after everyone else had gone to bed.

"Gosh, I felt stupid, I wanted to just hug you and tell Robin you're mine."

He heard Sanji laugh, Zoro thinking you were just messing around or possibly drunk. It really wasn't like you to say something like that when you were sober and in the right mind.

"You could have. I don't think anyone would have believed you."

"Nah, Zoro would have. You forget he's the one who's known me the longest."

"Hmm, that's true. You are the one who said to keep the flirting up though."

Hearing you sigh loudly and say that was true, Zoro could only assume you fell backwards on the deck or were leaning back to look at the stars. He heard Sanji offer to take you back to the girls bunks, but you mentioned you were next on night watch so you'd just stay, it wasn't long until you and Zoro had to swap anyway.

Not hearing anything more from either of you, Zoro leaned over the crow's nest just enough to see why you'd both become silent, catching you leaning into Sanji's shoulder with his arm around your waist.

So that's why she acted so jealous.

Zoro never said a word, having figured out you and Sanji were keeping your new relationship a secret for now, likely in case you decided it'd be better to stay friends.

Skypiea almost seemed like a test for the two of you. After landing and finding the beach where Sanji gifted you girls flowers, you ended up separated due to the laws of the place, Sanji with Luffy and Usopp while you were with everyone else. You weren't too worried, even as you stayed behind on the Merry with Chopper while Zoro, Robin, and Nami went exploring. The two of you were attacked of course, and until Chopper sounded the whistle for Ganfal to come help, you'd be able to keep your enemy back despite the damage Merry suffered. You ended up with a stab wound through the shoulder from Shura's Ordeal of String and burned your hand while trying to put out the fire on Merry, Chopper nearly in tears helping you with your injuries after he helped Ganfal too.

Sanji was just glad to see you were all right when he, Usopp, and Luffy finally reunited with the rest of you. He took note of the bandages on your shoulder and hand, pulling you aside while everyone was preoccupied with other things, asking you what happened if you were really all right. You told him what happened and reassured him you were perfectly fine, giving him a smile while he lightly hugged you and said he was glad, stealing a quick kiss and leaving you a blushing mess while he went to work on dinner again.

The next day you ended up following Zoro through the forest, Sanji demanding he watch you closely and Zoro just rolled his eyes before telling you to hurry up. He kept you safe while he fought the enemies he did, and once he and Robin had been injured by Eneru's attacks, you did your best to protect them while Nami went with the false god in her attempts to stop him.

You didn't know what happened with Sanji until Usopp jumped down from the giant gold ship with him, and you were shocked by how injured he was, he looked like he'd been electrocuted more than once and it terrified you.

Once you all were safe with the Skypieans and Shandians, once Sanji was awake and had Chopper replace his bandages, you did the same as he had before and pulled him away from everyone to make sure he was really okay. You asked him multiple times, your voice getting a bit more strained each time even when he said he was fine, you were trying so hard not to break down crying to him.

"I'm sure I'm fine, trust me. I'm standing aren't I?"

There was a soft smile on his face while Sanji watched you fight back tears. He'd not seen you cry before, and hated it would be his fault for having gotten injured, but he knew you were just worried about him.

"I…I know, I just…you're absolutely–"

"I'm sure, [Y/N]-chan, I promise."

Sanji pulled you into a hug, which you returned as you couldn't hold back anymore and started sobbing into his bandages (you'd have to apologize to Chopper later). While you cried, Sanji quietly hushed you, saying everything was all right and he was definitely okay. He stroked your hair and apologized for worrying you, explaining he was protecting Nami and Usopp though you didn't need an explanation, you just somehow knew already that he'd been trying to protect your crewmates.

Zoro didn't mean to overhear your crying and Sanji quieting you, but he'd been sent by Nami to the exact spot she saw you drag the blond off to in order to bring you both back to prepare to leave soon. When he'd walked over, you'd just started sobbing and Zoro thought for a second Sanji did something to hurt you, he was ready to skewer the blond, until he heard him shushing you and explaining what had happened.

"It's okay, shh. I'm sorry I made you worry."

"I'm just…just g-glad you're all r-right!"

"Shh, I know. You need to calm down now, okay? Don't want anyone thinking I did something to make you cry."

Zoro heard you agree, and you started to breathe a little easier and your sobs went away soon after. He didn't have time to get far enough away before he heard Sanji say you two should rejoin everyone, so he stayed in place. Once you both stepped back out from behind your hiding place, the three of you stared at each other, you and Sanji holding hands while Zoro almost set a glare on him.

"A-ah um, Zoro what are…when did…why…"

"Nami sent me to get you two," he looked at your hands again before going back to glaring at Sanji, "We're leaving soon."

You nodded and now both boys were glaring at each other, it stayed like that a few minutes more before Sanji spoke up.

"Listen, moss head. If you tell anyone about us, I'll–"

"I'm not gonna say anything unless you hurt her. She's like my sister, so you better be good to her."

Turning to leave, Zoro didn't miss how shocked you and Sanji were, you'd half expected him to tell you that you needed to tell the rest of your crew sooner rather than later, but he didn't even do that. Just told Sanji not to hurt you or he'd basically be dead before he knew it. Sanji expected more of a fight, so he was even more shocked when Zoro just walked away, telling the two of you to hurry up or you'd become the newest residents of Skypiea.

Even after you left he kept his word, he didn't tell a single person, even as Zoro watched Nami try to pair you and Sanji up again and again.

He wondered how she was missing the obvious signs you two were together.

+!+

Robin was the next to find out about you and Sanji being an item. She didn't mean to, but it was after you all had saved her from the World Government, after you toppled Enies Lobby and brought your dear friend and archeologist back home to your little family. When you all had separated at Water 7, when Robin had been taken in by the government, Sanji took the lead on trying to get her back, eventually you all were together again at Enies Lobby, entering several battles to bring her home.

While Sanji and the others took on CP9 members, you again took to taking down lower members, this time Navy Men with the help of Galley-La and Franky's comrades. Those same groups helped you get back to your crewmates, to the Merry who had come to save you all, before you tearfully bid farewell to the ship that had been your home the last couple of months.

Once you made it back to Water 7, while you had to wait for a new ship to be built, you all took time recovering from your battle wounds and exploring the city a little more. Most of your time was spent with Zoro and Nami during the day, trying to help the former find a new sword and Nami taking you and Robin sometimes shopping for various items. You tried a few times to check in on Usopp, wanting him to return to you all, but every time you did so, he either had disappeared from the spot you saw him or you'd back down from talking to him. At least knowing he was alive was enough for you for the time being.

You absolutely would have spent more of your time with Sanji, but the two of you agreed to wait until a few days later, to keep suspicions off you from the rest of your crew. Eventually the two of you ventured out to the city on your own, you both left the rest of your crew for the day at separate times, meeting up elsewhere to throw them off.

Unfortunately for you, although it worked to start, Robin caught sight of you and Sanji when she was entering a shop with Nami. She didn't think too much of it until she noticed the two of you holding hands and the lovesick smiles you gave each other as you walked through the market.

Oh, I see then.

Robin decided she would keep what she saw to herself, at least that was her plan, until she heard Nami say "I knew it" when she saw you two herself.

Luckily you didn't hear her, and Nami suggested she and Robin quietly follow you to see what was going on. Robin wasn't going to agree to it, but Nami grabbed her by the arm too quickly.

She hoped you'd forgive them.

+!+

"Here, this is for you, mon cheri."

"You shouldn't spend your money on me, Sanji."

Giving you a smile, Sanji shook his head, telling you that he wanted to get this little gift for you, it wasn't a lot, but he thought you'd like it. While you were going through the marketplace, he ended up pulling you down an empty alley and giving you a small box. You really didn't want him to spend any of the money Nami gave him on you, you had your own, but it was still sweet of him to think of you!

You opened the box after a bit of back and forth with yourself about Sanji spending money on you already, but you let those thoughts go once you saw it was a simple little heart shaped charm on a silver chain. You smiled softly while Sanji blushed about it scratching the back of his head in embarrassment.

"I just…I thought you'd like it so I bought it…you don't have to wear it or anything, it's no–"

You cut Sanji off by throwing your arms around his shoulders in a hug, which he returned with his around your waist, though he was a bit confused until you looked up at him with a smile still.

"You're the sweetest thing in the world, I don't deserve you."

That comment and your sweet smile got to Sanji in an instant; eyes turning to hearts, face bright red with a grin, while he snuggled his face up against yours.

"Don't say that!! I'm the one who doesn't deserve you!!"

Giggling, you pulled Sanji even closer to you and kissed him, only stopping when you heard a voice yell "We caught you!"

For a moment you thought it was Marines and they were going to chase you and Sanji through Water 7, until you realized you knew that voice all too well, and you both looked to see Nami and Robin at the other end of the alleyway.

"When did this start?!"

"Uh…"

"And why didn't you," Nami pointed a finger at you, while you hid your face in Sanji's shoulder, "tell me?!"

"Nami," Robin placed a hand on the younger girl's shoulder with a smile, "Let's give them a moment and maybe they can explain things to us."

The two stepped away with Nami saying you had better not run because she wanted every detail possible about when and how this happened. You didn't move a muscle, still hiding your face in Sanji's shoulder while he kept you close and stroked your hair to keep you calm. Eventually, he laughed a bit and it made you look up at him.

"What?" "Guess our secret's out," Sanji gave you a smile while you pouted a bit, tucking a bit of hair behind your ear before kissing you, "Let's go talk to Nami and Robin then, all right?"

[romanarose]

Puzzle Pieces: Part 3

Ben Miller x Fem!Reader

Join my taglist : Masterlist

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Part one; Part Two:

Series: Read is dating Tom and he's not kind to her. Luckily, Benny always is.

Summery: Tom make you feel bad about your dress

Warnings: Toxic relationship (reader and Tom), body shaming, shaming reveling clothing, beginning of emotional cheating type thing.

Immersivity: Afab reader, fem reader. I guess maybe its implied reader is thick? But you know the 2000's everyone was called fat for literally everything lololoool

********************

Ben and Santi were dding tonight. Santi picked up Frankie and his lady, Mel, and Will and his wife Laura got in Ben's truck and went to pick up Tom and his girl. Ben volunteered to get them, earning him a side eyes from Will who was suspicious, but Ben insisted he just thought you were cool. He didn't tell Will he thought you were the coolest, prettiest woman he'd ever seen and that he thought Tom didn't treat you good.

You were excited. Tom actually invited you to hang out with his friends! He rarely did that, even when later you'd be on snapchat or facebook and see the other guys brought girlfriends... It was fine though, because you were new. Sure, you were living with Tom... but the Mel and Laura had known the guys for years instead of a few months with you. You had to earn it.

So, you found a nice dress in your closet, and did your make-up all nice, wanting Tom to show you off the way Frankie and Will did. After hearing Tom yell upstairs to hurry up, you clip a bow into your hair for extra measure and skip downstairs, your smile grows when you see Ben. Ben was always nice to you. Not that the others weren't! It's just you and Ben got along easy.

"About damn time!" Tom says in a way that sounds like he's joking, but always makes you feel confused, like he isn't. 'It's just a joke, babe' he'd tell you constantly.

"Sorry!" You did a little spin, showing off the dress. "Do you like it?"

"Yeah" He said, chugging a beer down before leaving. Will cleared his throat, so Tom added on. "You look great! But... I thought we were giving that one to goodwill? You said it was too small."

You can feel your excitement deflating. "Oh... um, well I changed my mind... I didn't say it was too small though... I just never got the chance to wear it."

He rolls his eyes, that playful look still on his face but it made you nervous. "Oh, I guess that's my fault for never taking you nice places"

Were you fighting? You couldn't tell. You smile big, trying to keep peace. why was this so hard? "No! No baby that's not it. I just mean it's not my go to, you know? But I think it'd be nice for tonight." You reach a hand out to his shoulder.

Laura chuckles nervously, "I love the dress! Next time you me and Mel should coordinate. I'd don't dress up enough either." Laura was wearing jeans and t-shirt.

Tom turned to you. "Yeah, you should've coordinated with the girls."

"That's not what I meant, Tom." Laura glares at him.

"Well now you can look over dressed because we're just going to the corner bar."

You can feel embarrassment burning at the back of your eyes, throat feeling tight. You couldn't tell if you were being joked with or made fun of. "Well you wouldn't tell me where we're going!"

"Because I didn't wanna hear you bitch about it not being nice!" When turned to you, there was a flash in his eyes you didn't like. He grabbed your hand on his arm and took it off.

Ben watched as Will took the most subtle step forward. "Hey man, relax, there's no need to yell at her."

When he turned to the other, the glint in his eye was gone and his smile was back. "Relax babe, it's just a joke. Of course you'll look nice." He kissed your head, hand on your hip keeping you still as he gestured everyone out the door. "C'mon lets have a good night."

When they were on their way, tom turned you too him. You look up into his eyes, seeing the softness you loved in him, the strength, the traits that made you fall in love. He held one arm around your waist, the other at your shoulder. "You know I love you, right?"

"Yeah, I know. And I love you."

He nods, smiling. "Good girl." Tom's hand reaches for the boy clipped into your hair. "Let's keep this at home, okay? It's a bit too... preschool teacher."

You tried not to look hurt as you let him take it out, placing it on the counter.

Ben watched it happen. He watched it all happen, the ways Tom tried to knock you down, to play hurtful things off as a joke... But then he saw Tom take that bow of oh your hair, the pretty bow Ben thought you looked so beautiful in, and he was done just watching.

"Hey, I gotta piss real quick." He jogs up the front steps, Tom passing him the house keys to lock up after. Once inside, he found the clip

*

At the bar, they found the table with Santi, Frankie and Mel. Mel told you how hot you looked, making you smile which made Ben smile too. Ben couldn't tell you you were hot, even if he thought it.

"Oh! Hey," Ben called your name. "I think this fell out of your hair when you were leaving."

He pulls the bow out of his back pocket, walking up to where you were sitting with Tom's arm around you. Ben smile softly, trying not to give himself away as he watched you beam up at him as he fastened it into your hair.

"There we go! Beautiful, don't you think, Tom?"

Tom's voice was clipped and short. "Yeah. Beautiful."

He felt Tom's glare and several other eyes on him as he walked all the to the other end of the table but he didn't care. Someone had to treat you right, and it wasn't Tom.

********************

THANK YOU FOR READING!!!!

I love my sweet benny boo <3 hope to start his part in the leather and lace universe soon.

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[faededaway]

You're hanging out at your friends place, a sleepover after not meeting for months. You're doing a little bit of everything, trying to fit in months worth of activities in one day.

You've played games, sung songs, painted a dozen frames, crocheted, cooked, ordered in, and even cut and dyed someone's hair.

You're down to one last activity before calling it a night.

You wanted to dress up and take some pictures together. You all brought your fanciest, sluttiest dresses and shoes just to hang around the house.

Yours was a backless black mid-calf satin dress with stripper heels that spent each day since it's purchase underneath your bed.

“I lovvvee your accessory!”, your friend who was getting dressed right next to you cooed at you.

You thought she was referring to your rings and thanked her. She hummed and went out of the room.

When you stepped out of the room, all eyes were on you. A lot of the friends wore cheeky smiles, a little too suspicious for your liking.

“I know I look different, but do you have to stare at me like that?”, you patted down your dress shyly.

“Hm, girl, we're just taking you in! Why don't you give us a twirl?”

You don't think much of it and do as asked. You're in a pretty dress, and you feel pretty, so why not?

You hear multiple heels clicking on the floor, running up behind you.

“Okay! Stand just like that!”, a friend of yours holds your shoulders and makes you face away from them.

“Is something wrong with the back?”

“Oh, no!” a chorus of various no's are heard all around. “It's just really pretty.”

“Do you wanna see? I'll take a nice picture.”

You agree and stand still. After a while, your friend shows you the picture. The thing you see makes you take a seat.

You don't say anything for a while as embarrassment makes your head spin. You're friends fill in the silence.

“Gotta say, this is a new way of breaking the news to your girlies. It's got his kiss on it and everything.”

“It's just a fan thing!”

“She did not do this on her own!”

“So, we're assuming she's dating him?”

“Better than assuming she'd use her expensive ass lipstick for this shit! I just know he's wearing it too. Bet he doesn't know how to take it off!”

“You guys planned it right?”

“Look at her face! She just found out!”

“Hey, don't be too mad at him. It's pretty. No scribbles or smudges. Perfect spelling.”

The only thing you say is, “help me take some more pictures so I can torture him a bit.”

-

Later, your boyfriend receives a picture of you in your backless dress with your back arched.

The cherry red writing on your body stands out on your skin as it reads, “Hawks' cumslut <3” signed with his kiss.

If it's any consolation, you also see various headlines and pictures of him wearing your lipstick. He really didn't know how tough it'd be to take off.

[maryonmega]

Twin Stars - Chapter 17

Stewing (what sense?)

The hiking went pretty run-of-the-mill from then on. Except that, this time, you were the one attached to Stardust's hip. You saw the other three from the original party talk among themselves, and didn't need to hear the words to know. That was fine, you didn't exactly care, either. 

 

The Universe had forced you to follow that whim against your will, but, this time, you'll dare to face it again even if the thought of it penetrating your skin and reminding you that you're it's puppet terrifies you. If Madame already did something with what she sees is another story. You saw that she's not imune to redirection. You just have to up your game untill it becomes a footnote. 

 

Maybe it's because of familiarity mixed with how long ago it has been, but, hiking feels almost like mindless work. It's not suspicious to cling to your sibling after finding out that they hurt himself, and it's not weird that you still dislike how they started treating their body as disposable. Nothing to see here, leave me alone. 

 

It'd be over in a few more days anyway. It was fine. They would have more chances to have long hikes later. Just not in this specific trail. 

 

On the second to last day, when the group knows the trail will be over the next day (and you can't keep blocking your brother-in-law), the Kid Bonnie declares that two campfires will be made and doesn't elaborate. 

 

You help the siblings set up the fires. You make two circles of dirt and smaller rocks - the first time you did that, you had to explain it's getting too cold to put them out at night without waking up with numb fingers and toes, so the circles are to avoid causing a forest fire. Right now, Bonnie deemed your collective work acceptable and shooed you both away so they could do some sort of surprise. You have your doubts about how surprising it will be when the scent becomes notable but respects their wishes nonetheless. 

 

You go back to sharing with Mirabelle that night. The lidded pot stays lidded at night. 

 

The group hangs around for a little more time, and you don't participate. You're too tired. Too sober too, but solving this is not an option. All you can do is get off trail to try and rest. 

 

...

 

Ha, for someone who took going back to climbing trees as a chore, doing it now sure sounds nice. 

 

You pick one. One almost out of leaves that couldn't offer cover from even a breeze, let alone rain is snow. One that you couldn't hide on no matter how hard you try. 

 

It's ok because you're already hidden enough! What better disguise than a metaphorical truth and a quick Change to get rid of physical evidence? 

 

And, if croissants are an evidence, Loop would want to avoid trees like they own one money. Another layer, it seens. 

 

You pat the tree like a friendly stray animal, and climb. 

 

With your hat back at camp, the sun and wind touch your face unrestricted. Like in Bambouche, like-

 

Ow, migraine. 

 

No thinking about where else. 

 

...

 

Why do you feel so tired? You chose this. Wanted, even. Why does climbing down feel like a chore right now?

 

You really can't just enjoy a good thing, can you?

 

Grin and bare with it, Loop Sisyphus. Grin and bare with it. Grin and bare with it. You'll survive. 

 

You climb down, and take a second to remember why you're hatless. Grin, Loop Sisyphus, you still have to finish the trail. 

 

Noon comes soon enough, and the surprise is revealed: stew. You could see it coming, but still makes easier to keep the smile on your face. Bonbon seens entusiastic, it's cute. And, something warm in a cold noon sounds nice. 

 

"Another case of boring but delicious, Boniface?"

 

You hold back a reaction. Something similar happened after the loops? How did Stardust react? You doubt that very strongly, if Odile feels well saying that so casually. 

 

You don't need to do so for much longer. Bonbon gasps at her like it was a personal insult. And, to them, it might as well have been. 

 

"It's not boring! It's a hunter's pot made in camp! It's the opposite of boring!"

 

You blink at Bonbon. 

 

"Hunter's pot?"

 

"Some people call perpetual soup." Nille is the one to answer you this time "It's a type common in inns. When did you even learn that, Bug?"

 

Bonnie smiles in a way that's reminding you of a fish head.

 

"After we left Dormont. Some people are happy to show other ways to stop meat from going bad."

 

You see something flicker on Pétronille's face, but she disguises it too fast for you to actually read. 

 

"Well, you better show me some day, Bug."

 

You see her pat Bonbon's hair, and only after that lunch actually starts.

 

You fill a bowl. 

 

This thing (hunter's pot, hunter's pot, hunter's pot) was made with a lot of care. You can read that so clearly that if this was a play you'd complain of how unsubtle everything is being. 

 

But it's not. It's just Bonbon, wearing their heart on their sleeve as always. Even if not always knowing how to deal with that. 

 

A child's voice echoes through your head. About how they've been thinking so much about what's making them upset they didn't realize others were upset too. 

 

... Hum. 

 

You thought you were over this. 

 

Your heart aches. 

 

Guess not. Guess seeing them as different people wasn't the magical cure you hoped for. 

 

You eat quietly. At least, if you scoop with small enough breaks, nobody expects you to talk. 

 

You remembered a fish head. When you brought the spoon up, something on you almost expected fishy taste. It didn't come, of course. It makes you feel like you might cry nonetheless. It's good, and the sheer care poured on it, on something that you're allowed to partake...

 

Bonbons are so similar, aren't they? Showing care with anything but words. No wonder you Siffrin would have trouble, taking words at face value as you Siffrin does. 

 

You hope to... to... 

 

You hope that your hat and hair are enough to not show your tears. 

 

The sky is darkening when your group reaches the next city. 

[underthe-redhood]

our last chance

- a/n: it's mentioned that the reader is the daughter of bruce and selina, but it's never mentioned that she's biologically related, so you could definitely interpret it as her being adopted by them!

7. step one: arm’s length

- synopsis\\ you watch as dick runs off after batman betrays him for the last time, causing the family to fall apart. after an explosion, and a time machine, with a speedster to help you, you have one last chance to stop history from repeating itself.

• word count: 2,252

• masterlist

you sat in your room staring at the grey clock hanging on your wall. it was ticking away towards noon, and you had yet to go downstairs. you'd been up for a few hours, but you couldn't bring yourself to go down there until you were sure you were ready to start step one. you and bart agreed that to start things off, you needed to distance dick from barbara because the less attached he is the less everything will hurt should you fail to stop the affair.

     but how? you were gonna start by getting in the way of them spending time together, which you didn't think babs would mind too much. and you were planning on pushing him close to his other friends like kori and wally. but, would that be enough? you got up from your desk and walked over to your bed to lay back down. you couldn't stay in your room forever, you were on a time limit.

     maybe you could try what bart does and plan as you go? it sounded new, and it sounded uncomfortable. but it worked for bart, so maybe it'd work for you? either way, nothing would get done if you stayed in your room so you got up went to find dick. it wasn't quite noon yet, so you started by checking the kitchen. as you assumed, he was sitting there eating cereal with tim.

     "hey y/n," tim said as you walked over to them and sat next to him.

     "hey timmy, are either of you doing anything today?"

     "i have plans with wally, why what's up?" dick said.

     "nothing really, i just have a boring day ahead of me," you told him. "is bart coming with you?"

     "bart?" tim asked, confused as to why you were bringing him up. you had to remember that at this point in time you'd seen him maybe once or twice in passing.

     "yeah, flash's grandson right?" you said smoothly, then looked back at dick.

     "i'm not sure, why?" dick asked. he was eyeing you suspiciously. you'd already let it slip to him that you'd hung out with bart once. you didn't wanna mess anything up for yourself.

     "if he's gonna be there, can i come along too?" if not to watch how dick is doing, you at least wanted to hang out with bart. even with all the time you'd already been spending with him, you kinda just wanted to see him more.

"since when have you liked hanging out with bart? i didn't even know you knew him," tim said, also suspicious now. you kinda forgot to think about how were you gonna explain it to him.

"neither did i," dick said, leading you further into a corner where you'd have to explain yourself.

"well i don't, not yet anyway," you said, it was a lame response but what else were you gonna say.

"and you want to because?" tim continued, if you were gonna take an interest in one of his best friends then he was gonna find out exactly why.

"he's cute," you blurred out. cute? well, you'd officially screwed yourself over. dick's eyes widened and tim's mouth was slightly open in shock.

"you can't date him"/"bart's off limits", they both shouted.

"keep your voices down before someone hears you, jesus! that's not how i meant that," but was it? "so can i come or not?"

"absolutely not," dick said. you saw this coming the second those words left your mouth.

time to say something else that was gutsy, "if bart is there i'm coming. i'm not gonna date him, so you don't have to freak out," you said.

"in that case i'm coming too," tim chimed in. "i wanna make sure there's nothing already going on between the two of you." maybe winging it wasn't gonna work out too well for you.

~~~~~

     "i thought you were planning on going somewhere," you said to dick, unenthusiastically.

     "the batcave is somewhere," he said, tossing a batarang up into the air and catching it.

     "somewhere out," you clarified. you turned your attention over to tim who was sitting on the ground, lost in thought and mumbling to himself. "are you okay?" you asked him.

     "i just don't get what you see in him," he started. you'd been waiting for wally to show up, hopefully with bart, and you were all bored out of your minds. "i mean, he's bart!"

     "glad to see you think so highly of your best friend," you said sarcastically.

     "you know what i mean," he said. "do you even really remember what he looks like? how can you be sure he's actually cute?" he whined.

     "timmy, i meant that in a friendly way i swear!" you were hoping the speedsters would show up soon and end this conversation.

     "what does that even mean! besides, what makes you think he's even gonna show up," tim said. he had a point, but only because he didn't know what you knew. you were sure bart would show up to see you and dick, but you couldn't explain that.

     so instead, you just went with another lame excuse, "he'll probably show up because he knows you're here." as you finished saying that, another realization crossed your mind. bart didn't know that you'd accidentally called him cute. he was gonna get grilled by tim, and maybe even dick, without really knowing why. you'd tell him, but how do you just casually tell someone you called them cute to your brothers?

     you decided bart was just gonna have to manage, you'd make it up to him somehow later. thankfully, the zeta tubes finally glowed and two lit up figures stepped out. "hey dick," wally greeted. "i hope you don't mind that i brought bart along, he kept pestering me about seeing tim because apparently seeing him all the time at titans tower isn't enough," wally sighed.

     you smiled, bart pulled through just like you knew he would. you could always count on him, and that meant more to you than you could express. bart smiled at you and sped over to where you and tim were and dick and wally started a conversation of their own. "hey bart," tim eyed him.

"hey tim?" bart raised an eyebrow at him, then turned to look at you hoping you'd say something to at least clue him in on what might be about to happen.

instead, you gave an apologetic look as tim continued, "what a coincidence seeing you here."

     bart looked like got what was happening, "well i knew you were gonna be here," he said. and that seemed to be enough for tim. you may have slipped up, but at least he thought it was one sided.

     then dick called out, "hey we're going on a donut run with barbara and artemis, do you want anything while we're out?" from the stairs.

     you replied with, "no we're good!" and tim looked over at you disappointed.

     "i wanted chocolate donuts," he said, but dick and wally were already in the elevator shaft.

     "i'll go tell him," you offered, and took that chance to leave as well. you went back to the manor, but the two of them were already gone of course. you paced around up stairs trying to think of a plan. maybe if you caused a fake scene or whatever then you'd be able to call batgirl to it and get her away from dick?

as bad as you felt about keeping him away from his girlfriend, you needed to keep them at arms length for his own good. you went back down to the batcave where tim and bart were now nerding out together. "i wasn't able to catch them, but maybe you and bart could just meet them there?"

"aren't they going on a double date? it'd be awkward if we just showed up for donuts," tim said.

"so then call stephanie and make it a triple date," you suggested.

"what about bart?" tim asked, and you replied maybe just a bit too quickly.

"bart will be fine!" you said, which made tim look at you weirdly. he then looked over at bart who only agreed with you. "plus it's not like dick is gonna mind, he always says the more the merrier," you added.

"yeah i guess," tim said as he pulled out his phone to call stephanie. he started walking back to the manor and called out, "i'll see you later." he probably assumed bart was going to home and you were thankful he actually left instead of staying to watch and make sure.

but then it hit you, "can you zeta back to central city and then run here? wait do you know how to get in without using the zeta tubes?" you said to him.

"yeah, i've done it a couple times with tim. but why do i need to leave and run back?" he asked, confused.

"because knowing dick he's gonna come back and check the zeta tube records and he's gonna get suspicious if he sees you never left even after tim joined them," you explained.

"why not just lie about dating or something, wouldn't that make it easier to sneak around for this plan?" he asked, and it took you a hot second to realize he was being fully serious.

"bart, that's sweet but have you met anyone in my family? you wouldn't live to help me with the second step," you said.

"you're exaggerating, right?" he asked oh so innocently.

"after living with damian i'm not so sure that i am," you told him. "if we ever date we'd have to keep it a secret."

"if we ever date?" he asked with a teasing tone and you immediately became hyper-aware of what you'd just said. at least it was salvageable.

"well i just, uh you know, like hypothetically," you stumbled all over your words.

and with that he shook his head with a quiet laugh and zeta'd back to central city. he then showed back up a couple minutes later and the two of you got to work. you walked over to the bat-computer and pulled up barbara's location.

who knew bruce's stalker habits would one day help you too. "maybe i can anonymously send her phone a random location in gotham and get her to show up?"

"won't she be able to eventually trace it back to the bat-computer though? how would you do that?" he asked. that made you think, and after a few moments you finally had a solid idea.

"okay so i think i have a plan, you should go to the café that they're at. if you can beat them there, which you probably can because tim is with them now, then you can tell me when you see babs look down at her phone and i can send a fake bat signal that looks real enough for her to take it seriously and show up, but also enough like a glitch for her to think that's what happened when she shows up to an empty alley.

"what about dick?" bart asked, which was reasonable but you didn't think you'd have to worry about it.

     "if we're fast enough then babs will tell him she had to dip and i bet she's gonna tell him she can handle it on his own and that he should stay with the others. i really don't think she's gonna go out of her way to spend time with him right now, which kinda makes this easier for us," you told him.

     "okay yeah, that makes sense," he said. "so should i run over now?"

     "yes, and hurry," you urged him. he sped off and about a minute and a half later you got a text from him.

bart: okay, she's sitting down at one of the booths  

i'm standing awkwardly at the bus stop across the street

          oh wait she's looking down at her phone!

     as soon as that text popped up you hit the button on the bat-computer that sent the signal. and then immediately canceled it. although you couldn't see it, barbara had a look of confusion on her face that was soon followed by a look of relief. as sad as it was, you were right. she was glad she didn't have to spend the day with dick, and so she took off.

bart: she's grabbing her jacket and getting up

          i think your plan worked!

you: yes!

         you should head back here before the others show up and see you

     he left you on read but about a minute and half later you were met with a gust of wind and bart. "so now that we have some free time," he smirked, "let's go back to what you said earlier."

     "what i said earlier?" you asked him. you were hoping he wasn't referencing what you assumed he was.

     "if we were to date," and somehow his smile grew just a little bit more.

     "it was just a hypothetical, i swear!" you said. he'd gotten his flirty personality from wally, no doubt. it was oddly likeable. but you just saw him as a friend, you were pretty sure. you just happened to sometimes say some silly things. that's all.

     "uh huh, whatever you say," he teased. but at this point, you were smiling too. well, you were smiling until you felt your phone buzzing. you pulled it out to see,

     INCOMING CALL: dick :3

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dm me to be removed or fill out the form in the masterlist to be added!

[jadethest0ne]

What’s your favorite Donnie/ Raph dynamic out of all the iterations? Sorry if this question doesn’t make any sense lol

Makes perfect sense, and it has a very easy answer for me:

TMNT 1987 has my fave Donnie-Raph dynamic!

One might think it'd be Rise of the TMNT, but while I do enjoy Raph and Donnie's dynamic in that, and I did create a whole comic with the two of them, it's more of a love of what could be more than what we actually see in the show, because there are very few scenes and episodes in that series where the two of them team up.

In fact, there are very few interactions, scenes, or episodes with the two in most iterations, unfortunately. Despite that, the two remain my favorite duo in TMNT (more on why that is over here). But out of all the iterations, it is in 1987 that we get perhaps the most interactions and team ups between the two of them. And it's not just the amount of time we get to spend with the two of them together, it's also the quality of the interactions, too.

Throughout the series the two are often shown hanging out, tag-teaming in fights and sparring matches, and even teaming up to play pranks on Leonardo and Michelangelo.

There's many moments where they agree with each other or side with each other if there's a disagreement in the group. For instance in "Splinter Vanishes” the team is forced to go their separate ways. Raphael and Donatello disagree with splitting up and want to stick together, even though the others (and Splinter) insist that they do. Then you have Season 8′s “ H.A.V.O.C.” arc, where there's a team of other mutants that seem like allies, and the two of them want to side with the new mutants while Leonardo and Michelangelo are suspicious of them (the mutants end up being antagonists, but this is just another instance where the two have similar opinions and stick together).

They’re just portrayed as being a good team who work well together, despite having rather different personalities.

And that’s another thing that I find interesting about them in this version - how their personalities differ somewhat from other versions and how those personalities bounce off each other in this iteration. I've talked a bit about this, and what I like in regards to how their dynamic is portrayed in another post. But specifically what I find interesting is that in this version, Raphael is actually a lot more cautious and self-preserving, while Donatello is the one who is rash and runs into trouble.

Raphael's personality in the 1987 version is very much a sassy, wise-cracking jokester. He'll definitely egg on a fight that he's confident about and taunt the enemy a lot, but he knows when to back out of a tough situation. Meanwhile, Donatello is very smart and level-headed, but very prideful, and it's that pride that gets him to bite off more than he can chew. In numerous instances he's gotten himself and the others in trouble because he's so sure of his abilities that he doesn't see when things start to go wrong because "he can handle it".

What's cool about these seemingly clashing personalities, is that the two end up grounding each other. Raphael will be the one to point out when Donatello's schemes or inventions may have some downsides. Granted, he does so via sarcastic jabs at Donatello's expense, but nonetheless, he's also there to help out when things inevitably go wrong. And despite his reservations about Donatello's plans, he very often turns to him when things go south. He's very sure of his brother's ability to out-think a situation.

On the flip side, Donatello will often look to Raphael for comfort or assurance when he is worried or scared. There are lots of instances of him clinging to or hugging Raphael when he's nervous, and it's very sweet (more screenshots over here).

Overall, I wish there was as much focus on this duo in other iterations, and it's because there's so much content with them in '87 that it makes it one of my faves.

I’ll close out this ramble with a list of a few of my fave Don-Raph episodes from the 1987 series:

Back to the Egg - Michelangelo and Leonardo get shrunk to toddler age, and Donatello and Raphael have to be older brothers to the two younger ones. This is my favorite episode of the whole ‘87 series!

Raphael vs the Volcano - an invention by Donatello makes Raphael think he's dying, so he throws caution to the wind and goes on various heroic escapades. Donatello has to fix his mistake and save Raphael from his own brash actions.

Combat Land - The turtles are invited to test out a new battle-themed amusement park and to fight its robot creations. However, it might just be a scheme to destroy them.

Dirk Savage: Mutant Hunter - Leonardo and Michelangelo get kidnapped by a villain who is trying to control mutants, and Raphael and Donatello have to work together to save them.

Thank you so much for giving me an excuse reason to talk about my favorite duo :3

[setagaya-division]

Elliot's Thoughts on Sendai Division

Ryūzō Mizutori

"Professor Ryu is... well, he's very "demanding", to say the least. He doesn't allow any sort of disruption or disturbance in his class go unpunished. I lot of the students hate him, or, at the very least, don't have many nice things to say about him. I don't know if its cause he's quick to hand out punishments, or because he always seems to give out random quizzes with no explanation or warning. I'll admit, he's caught me off guard a couple of times with that, but I still manage to do... fairly well on his tests."

"Aside from that, Professor Ryu is one of the few professors in the Academy who doesn't try to stop me from hanging out with Mina-san. Plus, he always seems to step in with some of the other students are... giving me trouble. He seems scary, but... I really think he's a nice person, deep down."

Takumi Wakaba

"P-Professor W-W-Wakaba is a nice man, but... I really do not like his class! Everyday, it's always the same thing: running around the track, or playing dodgeball! And I'm always the first one to get out! And when I do, the professor always lectures me about not having enough 'youthful spirit or energy', whatever that means. Plus, he has a bad habit of using his kendo stick on me! Doesn't he realize that that isn't motivating me, so much as it is hurting me?!"

"I know he hates it when I skip his class, but I can't help it! I'm really not good when it comes to P.E.! Plus, that class always gives the bullies an excuse to hurt me! I really don't like it! I'm just grateful Mina-chan is there with me. Otherwise, it'd be a lot worse."

Kotono Ohara

"Professor Ohara is one of my favorite teachers in the Academy! Even though I don't participate in her class, I do like to stay behind and ask her some questions. This doesn't make me very popular, but... well, I don't think anything I do will help me with that. But besides that, Ohara-sensei also sometimes lets me hide out in her office when I want to skip P.E., or get away from some of my... bullies. She's a really nice woman... even if she does sometimes have a habit of canceling class, for some reason. Besides that, I still do enjoy when she does teach class."

"But... I'm a bit worried about her and Mina-chan. For some reason, Mina-chan is a little suspicious of Ohara-sensei. I've tried asking why, but she's surprisingly tight-lipped about it. Whatever it is, I hope she and Ohara-sensei can work out whatever differences they have."

Kiya Kara

"Wow... I didn't think my professors would actually form a team together to participate in the D.R.B. I wonder what their reasoning is. ...Wait, does this mean we'll have to face each other?! Oh no! I really don't want to have any of my teachers! It's already bad enough Maki-sensei is in this, but now even more of my teachers are joining! I just hope we don't have to face them first!"

[doodle17]

Did you ever say the story on Raz proposing to lili? If you haven’t, can you tell it

OMG I HAVENT YET ABSLSJSKSBKS

Part of the reason I guess, is I kind of wanted to get an ask like this for it actually lol. Cause at the time, I felt like I was post to much Raz 'n Lili stuff so I took a break. So I guess I'll tell it here now!

Basically, Raz was technically still on Camp Councelor duty, but it was late at night, most of the campers were asleep, so he invited Lili over to hang out. (At least that's what she thought 👀)

The two just quietly wondered around the camp, talking about all the summers they spent there, and when they first met. To which Lili started calling him "tree sitter" jokingly for most of the night. Although she did get suspicious of Raz, wondering why he was suddenly feeling so nostalgic.

"Just thought it'd be fun to do while we're here." He'd keep saying, which irritated her a bit, because she was 99% sure this was an elaborate scheme to prank her. So she just shrugged it off. She could just beat him up for it after, anyways.

Later that night, the two sat together on the docks by the lake, which made Raz bring up the asylum.

"Oh, yeah. I remember that place." Lili said looking up thoughtfully. "Shame it's off limits now, huh?"

"Yeah, heh. Remember what happened there?" He asked her.

"HA, Yeah. You got ambushed with sneezing powder and blew your brains out."

"And...?" He asked expectantly.

"And.... what?" She said bluntly.

Raz looked surprised and laughed nervously.

"It's also where we had our first kiss? Don't you remember?"

Lili did, in fact, remember. She rested chin on her knee longingly.

"Of course I remember, jerk! It was only one of the happiest moments of my life!"

Raz laughed, putting an arm around Lili.

"Don't get to sappy on me just yet Agent Zanotto! I still have one more question to ask you." You could tell from his voice he was obviously trying to hide a smile. Lili sighed heavily and turned to face him. "Alright, what is it?"

Raz was trying his best to hide his excitement, but he couldn't help but have the biggest grin on his face. He propped on leg on the dock, and let the other dangle over the water. He took her hand and let out a deep breath.

"Agent Lili Martindale Zanotto," He began. "What the hell-" Lili whispered, as she was struck with a sudden realization.

"You, who have gone on countless missions with me, saved my ass way to many times to count, and has dealt with my crazy family for many years..." He laughed to himself a bit, before clearing his throat and resuming his serious speech.

"Anyways, I know that this probably isn't exactly the place you would want me to ask you this, and I know for a fact you're probably going to kick my ass for it, but..." He wasn't even trying to hide his smile this time.

"Agent Lili, would you be willing to spend the rest of your life as my forever partner? Will you become Agent Lili 'Aquato'?" He looked to her expectedly, with a slight smile on his face.

She stared at him. She looked frozen, her eyes wide and her mouth agape. Raz furrowed his brow.

"Lili?... Are you alrig-"

"YES" She interrupted.

"Like- Yes you're alright or-"

"YES I'LL MARRY YOU!" She proceeded to tackle him, knocking the wind out of Raz.

"HOLY SHIT- LILI-"

They both ended up falling in the lake lol. And waking up a few campers and Coach so that was fun. But Yeah! That's the storyyy 😬👍

Im probably gonna draw some of the scenes eventually if I feel like it, but for now, here's the proposal story :)

[dying-isnt-good-for-your-health]

He had detransformed through the rift, leaving him with only his ecto weapons he had grabbed on the way (Unless he wanted to reveal himself, like an idiot. He didn't know if he had a version of himself here like Freakshow has).

Most of the clowns were going after the costumed guys viscously as they laughed, though Freakshow was standing off to the side, clearly confused at the situation.

He walked over to the only reason he was there, and tapped him on the shoulder. Freakshow looked down at him, before recognization washed over his face.

"Phantom?" He asked, not because he didn't know it was him, but because he probably shouldn't be there.

"Hey Freakshow," He started, "So I don't actually know how to get us back, so, I dunno, don't try anything until the fights over? Or I will skin you myself." He was proud of his threat, it was heavily inspired by Skulker.

"I'm not going to 'try anything'," He hissed in a rather offended tone, "There's nothing to gain here."

Danny rolled his eyes and sat down behind a concerning looking crate next to them. They watched the fight, but he couldn't even tell who Freakshow was rooting for, because he cheered every time someone was hit, which was often.

At several moments it would look like the clown hoard was winning, but then the costumed people would gain the upper hand. The costumed people (Bats? Birds? The hoard were calling them strange names), were severely out numbered by about 3 to 1, but they were winning most the time.

Danny narrated like a sports announcer, and Freakshow made the occasional remark. The fight lasted a long time, probably a few hours, but neither had a watch, so he was really just guesstimating.

All of the hoard was knocked out, but only one Bat/Bird was down, and he was still very conscious.

"Great!" Freakshow yelled, drawing attention to himself, "Can I go home now?" All the Bats/Birds froze.

"Another?" A distorted voice yelled, it probably came from the red helmet man, but Danny was busy hiding.

"I did not attack you, I simply wish to be returned to my universe." He said. Danny imitated him with his hand.

The group stared suspiciously, probably, Danny couldn't see.

"Why didn't you attack with the other Jokers?" A different voice asked, Danny couldn't tell which one it was, though.

Danny snorted at that, and he could practically feel the eyes snap to his hiding place. Well, he just outed himself.

"Sorry, sorry," He said through laughter, because he is anything but impolite, "It's just, that's a stupider name than his." He pointed at Freakshow as he left the safety of the likely-explosive box.

"I could kill you now." Freakshow glowered. Danny smiled brightly.

"But, you won't."

"Are you really willing to bet your life on that?" His voice was not threatening(though it was intended to be), it was more like a genuine question.

"No, but they think you'd kill me," He gestured to the tense group of (maybe) heroes, "And you hate being predictable."

He paused to see if any of the vaguely flying tripods would speak or act, when none did, he continued.

"It'd also be kinda anti-climactic for me to die right now, since nothing interesting is happening back home." He added, "Also, if you killed me," He paused for dramatic effect, "My family would find you."

Freakshow gave an exasperated look.

The wingless winged animals stared at the pair.

The pair in question continued bickering like two children (Even if only one of them was actually a child) who hate each other being forced to hang out because their parents are friends.

After the first time Freakshow escaped jail and caused the whole Reality Gauntlet fiasco, Danny has decided to keep constant tabs on him. He wasn’t going to be caught off guard by the ringmaster’s revenge plot a second time.

So when Freakshow was suddenly dragged through a glowing tear in the air, it barely took any time for Danny to arm himself and follow the magical trail after him.

He hadn’t been sure what to expect on the other side, but it certainly wasn’t this.

A huge group of creepy clown bastards facing off against a group of teens and young adults led by a man in bat costume.

Ugh, this was going to be a nightmare. He fucking hates clowns.

[casspurrjoybell-22]

The Art of Sin - Chapter 23 - Part 2

•Winter Azraethe (Incubus)

*Warning Adult Content*

"Dammit, Xyrin. We agreed you'd lay low," Nikoli glared at the new arrival.

"And I thought it would be obvious that that included not revealing yourself."

"Wait, so you knew?" Noir frowned, followed by the rest of us suspiciously looking between the two.

So much for the tension being gone.

Nikoli's secrets just seem to keep getting uncovered.

"Er, well, yes. He's an old acquaintance you could say and he was in a bind."

"I'm hiding out from my lover," Xyrin practically boasted, grinning madly and waving his hand dramatically.

"Although we're madly in love, he'll rip out my guts again if he catches me."

I caught the word 'again' and looked at Xyrin, concerned.

I wonder what happened between the two.

"Don't tell me you're here because of a fling," Nikoli groaned.

"I thought you were in actual trouble."

"I am in trouble," Xyrin replied, looking offended.

"You don't know what this guy is capable and he's not just some fling. He's..." he snapped his mouth shut, a slight tint to his cheeks.

He quickly laughed off.

"Anyway," he said, moving the conversation in a different direction,

"This is the only place he'd never think to look. I mean, seriously, me? Staying at a vampire's home? And that vampire being Nikoli? No one would think I'm that crazy."

I was confused, as were a few of the others.

"Why does being a vampire matter?" I hesitantly asked.

"Um, well," Tate began, obviously having figured out what type of creature he was looking at.

"His particular breed of demon was almost completely wiped out by vampires and the rest were..."

"Enslaved and kept as pets," Xyrin finished, not even batting an eyelash as he looked at Nikoli, sending him a wink. 

Nikoli nodded, an uncomfortable expression on his face/

"Xyrin, at one point, had been owned by me."

He quickly raised his hands in defense at our shocked faces, talking fast.

"However, I took him away and released him when it was safe so that no one else could capture him." 

He hesitantly glanced at me, worry clear in his eyes as he analyzed my reaction.

"I did not and still don't ever want to own another person."

Although I knew this, the fact that Nikoli was trying to dispel any misconceptions for our sake calmed me.

He wasn't that type of person who would own someone else, I wouldn't be who I am now if he was.

"Yes, yes," Xyrin waved his hand, taking an empty seat and piling food on a plate, ignoring the judging stares at his lack of manners not to mention lack of clothes.

"Nikoli was a great 'owner.' Honestly, my life is less easy-going than it was when I was his pet. Makes a guy miss being pampered," he laughed.

"So, for now, I'm just gonna crash here till the coast is clear."

With that, he dug into the food.

We all turned to look at Nikoli, speechless.

He mirrored our expression, shrugging helplessly.

"I did say if he ever needed anything."

Awkwardly, we all went back to our food.

When it looked like everyone was almost done I cleared my throat.

"Um, Nikoli?"

He, as well as the others, looked at me, Xyrin having a piece of sausage hanging from his mouth.

"Um, well, I was wondering if it'd be alright to test the extent of my teleportation ability? I've gotten pretty good at using it here and wanted to see if I could try to go where we went shopping?"

Everyone but Xyrin frowned, concern written all over their faces.

Although the memory of my former, now dead, client remained, it was one of the few places I and Nikoli knew the location of.

I didn't want to chance the forest that surrounded the manor, especially after Tate nonchalantly informed me of some of the creatures that roamed it.

I had to suppress a shudder at the memory, grateful I hadn't run into them despite Tate telling me they didn't venture near the manor.

Nikoli hesitated before nodding.

"If you think you're ready."

I smiled, relieved and he continued.

"Though, to be safe, keep your phone on you. I'll also drive to the city just in case you don't end up where you want to."

"I'll go with you," Ire practically shouted before blushing, realizing how loud it came out.

"What? There's supposed to be a three-day sale of exotic... produce." 

"More exotic than what we already see?" Noir asked with a chuckle and Ire grinned mischievously.

"More exotic as in unless you know the right people you won't know of the sale's existence."

"Hmm well, as long as the food tastes good, I don't care if it's exotic."

We all laughed at Lycus's response.

"As expected, he doesn't think outside of filling his stomach."

"Hey. Shut it, Bain."

Lycus couldn't seem to keep an angry face as Bain stuck out his tongue and playfully flicked him before shoving the last bit of food into his mouth.

I was excited.

I figured Nikoli wouldn't deny my request.

Though, in all honesty, I could've done it regardless of what he said... if I really wanted to that is but there was a part of me that wanted that approval.

I'd never cared for praise but I wanted to get these powers under control to show Nikoli and everyone else I could handle it.

More than that, I wanted to prove it to myself. I might have been broken once but I was mending.

Even if it was one step at a time.

[upon-sunflower-trails]

ACE VENTURA X READER chapter 16

warnings: brief mention of blood, kidnapping, forced marriage/wedding, unwanted contact, attempted manipulation

ace sighed, scratching his head. well, public records confirmed it. milton fieldpool, only child of arthur and rebecca fieldpool. he'd never been institutionalized nor medicated, but files said when he was 14 his doctors tried. their attempts were somehow denied, and milton had little to no medical contact for the rest of his life.

ace checked the clock frantically, wondering when you would be back. he hadn't been back to the restaurant on account of the scene he had caused. surely it'd be any minute now...

and then an hour passed as though it was nothing.

ace turned to an anxious callie in his passenger seat, scratching her gently behind the ears.

"it'll be alright, callie... y/n's old enough to take care of themself..." ace muttered, petting the kitten as he watched intently out the car window.

fake-checking his invisible watch, ace sprung out of the vehicle suddenly. "alright, it's been long enough! y/n must be in trouble! let's go, callie," ace announced, quickly picking up the cat before marching away to search for clues.

ace stopped at a peculiar alley, a certain scent wafting from the darkness. ace treaded carefully into the passageway, looking around suspiciously. eventually, he reached a blood crusted spot on the concrete.

ace's face went white with terror, breath quickening. he plucked a short strand of brown hair up from the same spot, sniffing it before deciding to taste it.

ace recoiled in disgust, animatedly spitting at the taste. "eugh- YUCK! what kind of cheap hair gel is this?!" ace cried. he thought for a moment, realizing what this must mean.

"milton had told y/n that he wanted to look more like me... and from what i could see of him, he attempted this killer 'do," ace explained to the kitten in his arms, slicking his hair back slightly.

callie mewed at him, pawing at his face. ace huffed quietly. "something happened to y/n... and i'm sure that milton is behind it. if we don't act fast callie, then..." ace trailed off, not wanting to speak possibilities into reality. 

he gathered all the evidence he could before returning back to his car, heading to the police station as fast as he could.

you stood practically lifeless at the alter, breathing heavy and palms clamming up.

milton was desperately trying to figure out why his rented priest had cancelled last minute. a wedding based off a dark-web officiator wasn't exactly how you imagined your big day.

all you could do now was laugh despairedly at your situation. sure, you could hang on for as long as you could, but how long until the stockholm syndrome kicks in? how many more days, months, even years until you completely forgot about life away from milton? and would you eventually be brainwashed enough that you forgot about...

you squeezed your eyes shut. it didn't matter anyways. there was no way out of this. ace couldn't rush in alone- he would surely be killed. and milton's hypnotic powers... you were designated to believe that he could take out a police force. but then, you wondered to yourself, why hadn't he hypnotized you into loving him?

you figured there was no better time than the present to get your answers. ever curious, that trait may be wiped from you once you begin to fall under milton's manipulation.

"milton..." you croaked out weakly. he instantly snapped around to look at you, eyes brimming with adoration just from hearing your voice.

he rushed to your side, grasping your hands desperately. "what is it, my sweet?" he cooed, bringing a palm to your cheek. your first instinct, of course, was to flinch away. milton's soft expression turned dark for a moment before he forcefully grabbed your face, smile returning to his face as you made eye contact.

you cleared your throat, chalkiness coating the inside. "um... wh-why haven't you used your... amazing hypnosis powers on me?" milton stared at you sympathetically, now holding your face with both hands.

"oh, oh my darling..." he purred, dragging his left thumb over your bottom lip. you wanted to scream, cry, kick- anything to get away from him. but you withheld yourself, instead pretending to succumb to his advances.

"so many things you don't yet understand... let's just say that i know deep down you want me... i don't need to use my hypnosis to reveal that. all i need is time," milton growled, going back to his phone as he snapped away from you. "if only i could get a damn priest!"

your breathing returned to its shaky pace, your bound limbs begging to thrash about in order to escape the situation. you blinked hard, thinking about the only reason you were here in the first place.

i just need to ensure snuffy's safety. then, maybe... maybe my life will have amounted to something.

finally, you heard milton let out a triumphant squeal.

"oh, my beloved! finally, finally! within fifteen minutes, our officiator will have arrived! i had to venture off of the darker side of the internet, but... i'm happy to announce it's a priest nonetheless! if they object to our holy bounding under such circumstances..." milton giggled darkly to himself. "well then, perhaps they won't be getting out of here alive, either!" he continued his twisted, joyous laughter as he stroked the back of your hand with his calloused thumb.

he sighed, leaning his head onto your thighs. "oh, my darling..." he sang, nuzzling his face into your warm skin, "i can't believe i get to finally, truly make you mine."

as your heart thrummed in your chest out of terror, you heard a knock on the heavy oak door.

you knew at that moment your final innocence would be revoked.

[worldismyne]

The Longest Sleepover Ch 10

Summary: The first year of school did not go as planned for Harv and he’s never felt more alone. That is, until a loud kid from the saga studies course decides they’re best friends now.

(Year 1 AU, Harv deals with homophobia, Finn is oblivious.)

Series: Warrior U

Pairing: HarvFinn

Rating: T

Ao3 Link

Harv woke up early that morning and left Finn curled up in his burrito of blankets. He needed time apart from Finn to sort out and bury his feelings. He ate his breakfast in silence, the morning sun casting the kitchen in a bleak grey light. He shouldn't wish for things just because they'd be convenient for himself, especially if it put his hosts in an awkward position. After he finished his meal, he stared at his empty plate like a man who'd committed someone to the grave. The occasional caw of a crow was hardly a comfort as he forced his heavy limbs to add the dishes to the pile in the sink.

"What's gotten into you?" Harv jumped at the sound of the witch's voice.

"Is there anything that needs to be done today?" Harv asked. "I'd like to get it done before Finn wakes up."

"See, now that's more like it!" Leenan collected her morning coffee. "I was starting to think you weren't really serious about the job." Harv's shoulders sagged a bit, still too tired to put on joyful airs. "There's a few potion ingredients I'm short on at the moment. Some of them can be picked from the garden, but one of them is... free range." She eyed the warrior's long hair suspiciously. "How flammable are you?"

-

Finn came downstairs after waking up to a cold bed and an empty room. It shouldn't have been so bothersome, after all he had spent most of his life waking up this way, but it was unsettling none the less. Harv had promised to wake him the next time he slept in, and yet here he was eating breakfast at mid-morning by himself. His mother, already dressed for the day, assured him nothing was wrong.

"Sweetheart, you can't expect him to be attached at your side every waking moment." Leenan chided.

"Why not?" Finn prodded his half-finished brioche. "It's not like he has anything better to do. Besides, he's still my guest. The whole point of him coming here was to spend time with each other." Leenan had always known her son craved other's approval more than she did. It was a phase every child went through. What concerned her was how quickly Finn was trying to rewrite the nature of his friendship with Harv. He usually only resorted to storytelling when something was bothering him. She took a seat across the table from him.

"It'd be a little difficult for him to find other things to do if you kept him busy, wouldn't it?" Leenan asked. Finn gritted his teeth and sloppily heaped a knife full of marmalade onto his bread.

"I'm not 'keeping him busy', I'm hanging out with my friend." He slammed the knife down. "Is it really so hard to believe that I finally have a real best friend that likes me? Best friends do things together all the time."

"...Not all the time dear." Leenan said.

"How would you know?" Finn dumped his scraps in the waste bin, his appetite lost. "You've never had a best friend."

"Finnegan!" Leenan stood up from the table. "You keep taking that tone with me, and you won't get to play with your friend at all today." She was only trying to help him, but the look he gave her was borderline scathing.

"You can't do that." Finn lingered in the doorway; his mother unwavering. "What we do is nobody else's business; not Beatus, or his dad and certainly not you. I thought you wanted me to be happy." Her expression softened a bit, even in the face of Finn's defensiveness. Others had tried to intervene already; he just didn't want to listen.

"I do want you to be happy."

"Then why is it so bizarre that I am?" Finn snapped back.

"I just don't think it's a good idea to pin all your happiness on one person." She said. The tension eased from his body, now feeling less attacked. It was still frustrating to hear over and over that people were worried about him when there should be nothing to worry about. "I don't like seeing you this anxious. Your friend should be able to run errands without you acting like he's abandoned you."

"I'm not-" Finn bit his lip. "It's not like that... I know I... I am anxious. It's just... I can count on one hand all the times I've seen him smile. It doesn't seem fair." Especially when he was saying things like Finn liked him more than he liked himself. He couldn't just force Harv to like him the way he did either, no matter how hard he'd tried. Knowing Harv had a tendency to try and run from his problems wasn't helping Finn feel more secure either. The best he could do was talk himself out of these anxious thought cycles. "I know he'll come back; I just wish I knew where he went."

"He just went outside." His mother sighed. "Maybe, instead of snapping at your poor mother, you could try asking."

"Sorry." Finn said. His mother hugged him, running her fingers through his hair, still a mess from sleep.

"And I don't think your friend would appreciate you assuming he's unhappy here." Finn nodded into her shoulder. It was hard for him to put into words in a way people would understand. It's not that he thought Harv hated being around him. He just wished Harv was as happy as he was when he was around. "Not everyone shouts joy from the rooftops like you do." It would just be easier if the people around him would stop saying that joy might go away.

He pulled away from his mother with a puzzled expression. Something was clucking outside, and the sound was getting closer. He cautiously entered the front room just as Harv opened the front door.

"Bwkaw!" A bright orange bird climbed from Harv's shoulder to his head. It danced on the top of his skull in a happy circle before settling for a good sit. The furs around Harv's shoulder were a little singed, but otherwise he seemed intact. A smoking beak started to comb through Harv's locs, looking for a good place to start cleaning.

"Hey now, what did I say about the grooming?" Harv said. He gently pushed the bird's head away from hair, only to be outmaneuvered again.

"...mother..." Finn said, catching Leenan the moment she set foot outside the room. "You neglected to mention he was running errands for you."

"Why should that matter?" Leenan shot back sheepishly. "Besides, it's for you too, you know we're almost out of Phoenix feathers. Now just wait right there, I'll get the tweezers." Harv had offered Finn a passing greeting, but otherwise had his handful trying to keep the affectionate bird from nesting on his head.

"Harvey, you didn't need to bring back the whole bird." Finn sighed.

"But it's so sweet, I didn't want to hurt it." Harv said. The dopey thing puffed up its chest with pride as its head flopped backwards against its own back. Thin waves of heat radiated off its feathers, as if a bird could blush.

"Get that thing off your head before you hurt yourself." Finn crossed the room, ideally looking for something to keep the fire bird at a safe distance.

"But it's harm-" The minute Finn made eye contact with the Phoenix he was engulfed in flames. Harv's hand shot up, closing the little beak barehanded. Finn coughed out a puff of smoke, his clothes ashed over and his bangs singed. "...less."

"To you, maybe," Finn dusted off his clothes with disgust, "but not us. And certainly not the furniture." He gasped, rushing to douse a small flaming throw pillow with leftover wine from the night before. He then had to smother the flame on the tile floor. The phoenix looked down on him smugly. "He's doing it on purpose."

"It's a she I think." Harv looked up at the preening bird.

"Even worse."

"Finn..." Harv couldn't help but be amused, even though Finn's face was pinched into a tight scowl. "Are you jealous of a bird?"

"NO!" Finn hurriedly tidied the mess the mystical creature made, his face flushed from embarrassment and the sting of a close flame. It shot off tiny flames when it laughed. If birds could laugh. "I'm not jealous, I just think wild animals should be outside!" Harv couldn't help but find the way Finn huffed afterward cute, even if the bard smelled of burnt lavender. "It's already set a couch on fire." A quick bite of the Phoenix's toes shook him out of his thoughts.

"Where's your mom?" Harv started wandering toward the study.

"Oh no you don't." Finn grabbed Harv's sleeve. "One spark and half of mother's work could explode." Again the bird tried to smother him in flames. "Take it outside!"

"Okay." Harv grabbed the bird by her chubby body and walked out as Finn held the door open. "Come on, we'll wait in the garden." Two sapphire eyes glinted at Finn over Harv's shoulder with pride.

-

Hours later, Harv was still getting caught up with chores. Finn had collected some biscuits and tea, ready to enjoy his gawking from the garden, but an orange speedbump was keeping him from setting foot outside.

"It's still out there." Finn grumbled as he leered out the kitchen window. The tailless Phoenix would follow Harv around like a little duck, but was always quick to rush to the back porch if Finn so much touched the handle. "Evil little thing."

"I think it's quite handy." Leenan laughed as she stole a biscuit from Finn's tray. "Imagine how much easier it'll be having one in our front yard instead of hunting it down every year?"

"Mother, don't even joke about that." Finn said. "Think of your roses."

"My roses will be fine." Leenan shook her head. "You can see him cleaning out the shed just fine from the window." Finn let out an aggravated sigh. "It's not like you were planning to help him." Finn mumbled a few incoherent complaints. His tea had gone cold, and Harv had barely talked to him all day. It was his first time wearing his new clothes too, and all Finn could catch were glimpses through the dirty glass.

"I'm going to try the north balcony." Finn picked up his tray and marched out the kitchen, much to his mother's growing concern. She had no problem setting up wards to keep magical pests out, not that her son had seriously tried asking for one. Rather he seemed quite focused on getting the best view of, in her opinion, just some guy doing ordinary things. Finn, who'd complain any time she kept the crystal ball focused on a rival garden for too long because it was 'too boring'. While she had her suspicions as to the cause of her son's change in behavior, she couldn't fathom why. At this point, she was a little afraid to ask.

-

It had been difficult for the bards to find rehearsal space. While all three had played for a live audience before, few people liked hearing the same half-finished songs ad nauseam. Shad and Beatus's hostel room was too cramped, and Finn detested playing outside if he could help it. If Harv was watching, he wanted everything to be perfect, even if it was the first time the three had played together in months.

Finn had reluctantly pointed them in the direction to his mother's shed. It was far enough from grass for Finn to feel comfortable with leaving his harp oil out and far enough from the house to avoid any magical artifacts. Mother's things had a habit of ending up in the wrong hands when visitors were left unattended. Harv's doe-eyed Phoenix had thankfully given up for the evening, waddling back to her nest with a heavy heart, and allowing Finn to finally go into his own backyard again.

The interior of the shed was dusty with plenty of standing room. Chairs from the patio had been cleaned off and brought in for them to use along with some dated linens. Sunlight fought through years of dirt to illuminate the wooden interior. With more time, they could have set up lights or some kind of drapery, but Shad hadn't given them prior notice their original space wouldn't work out.

They still couldn't agree on a name, and Finn was the first to propose playing first and worrying about the name at a later date. The group stumbled through Shad's first choice for a song. Each sour note causing Finn to glance up nervously at their audience of one. It wasn't like he never played for someone before. He'd done plenty of concerts for the palace in the past, but he'd never played this badly in front of someone before. Shad was off rhythm and he suspected Beatus was putting minimal effort as a form of protest over the song choice. He always hated playing anything with lyrics.

"Man, you're really off today Finn." Shad shook his head.

"Can we just play it through once today." Finn shifted uncomfortably at the feeling of blue eyes on his back. "We can worry about everyone's notes at a later date."

"I wouldn't be a very good friend if I let you keep playing badly." Shad said with a wry smile. The blond flushed, fists clenched tight around the frame of his harp. They were all accomplished musicians, anything they played together casually would sound fine. Not perfect, but fine. "What's the rush?" The rush was sitting five feet away from them, picking at his nails because they couldn't get four bars in without stopping. Finn would sooner eat his belt than admit that in front of everyone.

"I have to sleep sometime." Beatus said. "We all do." Finn thanked his lucky stars that for once Beatus was being a pain in his favor, rather than against. Shad shrugged, washing his hands of the other's performance and promised to hold his tongue until the end.

Finn started them off with a few plucky notes, finding the beat set by the drums. He let muscle memory take over, glancing up to catch Harv's full attention. While the warrior was tired, he offered a shy smile, only to cover it up with his hand. He couldn't mask the crescent creases above his cheekbones, and then Finn heard the bum note he played from getting distracted. Shad clicked his tongue, but said nothing. Finn spent the rest of the song struggling to fall back into the music with flushed cheeks.

Once the group started playing, Harv could relax a little, knowing that it was more appropriate for him to watch them when they were actively performing. Watching people perform was a perfectly normal thing to do. No one would blame him for watching the member he knew the best out of the group the most. It just so happened that Finn made the most interesting faces while he played and had taken his gloves off for once, all things that anyone who knew him would notice. From what he could tell, things were proceeding exactly how most rehearsals go. The other bards acted like it was business as usual and Harv applauded himself on how perfectly normal he was being about watching his cute friend get frustrated over playing the wrong note.

[descendant-of-truth]

Tags from @ladylolalilly:

#…what the christ is this games intro?

I don't know if screenshots can truly do it justice but I'll try

(footage taken from IGN's "First 17 Minutes of Pokemon: Let's Go, Pikachu")

So, Pikachu (or Eevee) jumps out of "your" television with no prior establishing shots, climbs on you, gives you a lil sniff that makes them decide you're Cool, Actually, (or maybe they recognize you?) and then hops right back into the TV, where you follow them seemingly without hesitation:

Then you pick the language you want to play in, and it takes you right into the standard Professor Oak Exposition... with a twist.

"Hey, you. You're finally awake. You were trying to cross the border of reality, right? Same as me and that Eevee over there"

I haven't played Skyrim I just saw the opportunity and had to take it

Anyway, the same Pikachu is there when you wake up, and they hang out next to Professor Oak as he gives you the all-too-familiar "welcome to the world of Pokemon" speech. Except this time it seems to actually be happening instead of just being there for the player's benefit.

(OAK STOP BRINGING THE WHOLE FOREST INTO THE POCKET DIMENSION)

I have no idea why he does this, but it'd be easy to just say "he was experimenting with a transporter one day and things got kinda wacky" if not for... the other stuff that usually happens in these sequences.

Trace showing up here as functionally just a character model whose name is chosen by you is a very standard practice for Pokemon games, but since it was just established that we literally walked in here, I have. questions.

Questions like "why is there a physical representation of Trace here" and "did Trace exist before the game started or did we just alter his memory as to what his name is"

Bouncing off of that point, we also get to choose what we look like and what our name is. We have two base options, and a neat thing about this game is that it has multiplayer, so a second person can pop in any time and they show up as whichever character you didn't pick. Weirdly, no one acknowledges the second person, but Trace will recognize you as his friend no matter what you pick, which brings me back to a similar set of two theories:

Both of these kids existed beforehand and you simply nope one of them out of existence, causing everyone to forget them

The world did not exist before you got here, and you're shaping its details as you go along

Both of which are some wild Kingdom Hearts-type plot points, I'm gonna be real with you

(Also Oak WHY ARE YOU FACILITATING THIS. ARE YOU EVEN THE REAL OAK)

Once you're done with all that, you follow Pikachu/Eevee into the Suspiciously Screen-Shaped Light, while Oak hypes up your new adventure.

You enter the light, and...

...you wake up in a lower-poly version of your room from before, in your new body. You look around, confused, and within the next few seconds, Trace announces that he's coming in.

Naturally, you don't recognize the voice, and you just traveled between dimensions at the behest of a pokemon, so you understandably look a little freaked out when he barges up the stairs.

Or at least, that's what's implied by what Trace says:

But, sadly, he immediately brushes it off and starts rambling about how excited he is that the two of you are going to be given a pokemon from Professor Oak that day.

As far as I'm aware, this is the last time the setup of the game is really brought up. Your game-specific partner pokemon latches onto you immediately, presumably because they chose you before you even arrived here, but that's about it.

And it's absolutely bonkers to me that they chose the open the game this way, even if I can sorta understand the thought process. "Aw, wouldn't it be cute and fantasy-fulfilling for the kids for a pokemon to leap out of their screen and bring them into the world of their favorite game?" Which is exactly how it's presented, it's all very whimsical.

But the implications of it are INSANE and not something the game thinks about for even a second, which in turn makes it really funny

The Let's Go games are so cute that it almost makes you forget that you're running around in someone else's body and lying about your identity to their best friend wherever you go

(Granted you didn't MEAN to hijack this random kid's life but I have serious questions about the Pikachu/Eevee that dragged you here. Why can they travel through dimensions via television. What made them choose you. Are they secretly the real gods of their world)