#i guess i made that choice kind of awkward. anyway

[hero-dualies-3]

going to try out vaguing :)

[agroteraa]

I Wanna Be Your Dog

Oliver Quick x f!Reader

My fic masterlist

Summary: Oliver's memories of one of the evenings at Oxford, where you began getting closer. And a night in Saltburn, where you try to be dominant with him.

Actaeon series spin-off, taking place between Artemis and The Wrath of the Stag.

Warnings: smut, dom!Reader, sub!Oliver, switching, oral, penetration sex.

Word Count: 2,8K

It was another spring party at Oxford. All the young people were chatting cheerfully with bottles and glasses in their hands in the slightly dim light of the dormitory's common room. Felix and Oliver were almost lying relaxed on the couch and had been silent for some time.

“Now, can you eenie, meenie India or Annabel, and take one fucking home? Because they look miserable,” Oliver suggested softly.

“Eenie, meenie, miny, moe. Catch a tiger by his toe. If he squeals, let him go. Er..." Felix seemingly forgot the text of the counting-out rhyme, but decided to finish it as soon as possible and make a choice anyway, "You're out, boy scout!"

The choice fell on Annabelle. He happily pecked Oliver on the cheek in gratitude, which made him grin widely. Oliver liked being praised. Especially by those who were important to him. Felix quickly jumped up from the sofa and, lightly slapping the contented girl on the ass, and went off with her upstairs.

“Well, what the fuck, mate? I’ve been chirpsing her for about an hour. I wanted at least a hand job...” the guy Annabelle left said in disappointment.

An hour. What did he know about waiting. How about almost a whole year, mate? Oliver smiled indulgently to himself. And anyway, how shallow that guy thoughts and desires were.

“I know. We all want a fucking handjob, mate. Get yourself a title and a massive fuck off castle.”

That where it was hard to argue. A title and a massive fuck off castle had never harmed anyone in life yet.

"Hey, here I am! And where is Felix?.." you were surprised when you returned from your dorm room and sat back down on the sofa, only this time next to Oliver alone.

"I don't know really," he shrugged, smiling, "I think he’s decided to go have some fun on his own."

"Hmm," you pursed your lips, not really surprised, but still, deep down, a little upset that Felix was acting like that again. You guessed where and why he might have gone, but decided not to focus on that thought right now. Besides, you'd already poured another bottle of your drink into yourself. There was some silence in the air. Before that, you had fun talking to the guys, mostly Felix, and you had never been alone with Oliver for long, especially at parties. You clenched your bottle tightly like a social lifebuoy.

Oliver was even beginning to interest you a little, just a little, but you still had no idea what and how to talk to him in private. He still seemed more like Felix's shadow. But at the same time, being face-to-face for at least a short time, you felt like you had to tell Oliver something meaningful, something deep... as if you should be giving away to him some of your secrets. You were vaguely disturbed by this feeling, as now you were just in the mood for small talk only.

"Um... so… how’s your study going?" you asked, not knowing where else to start a new separate conversation with him besides studying.

"Pretty well," he replied a little awkwardly, embarrassed by your close presence himself. Before that, Felix separated you on the couch, but now he wasn’t a bother anymore. Oliver definitely liked this intimacy, even though he was obviously not used to it yet. But one gets used to the fine things quickly. And Oliver was greedy for all the new truly fine things in his life.

"And yours?"

"Yeah, too," you took a small sip from the bottle, trying not to look him in the eye. At the same time, because you felt awkward and because these blue eyes have been looking at you so piercingly lately, as if they were drilling right into your soul. You couldn't tell if it was embarrassing for you, or if it was some other kind of excitement. Maybe both.

"And what about yours..." Oliver was interrupted by one of Felix's many friends, Chad, who plopped down on the arm of the sofa next to you.

"Hey, Y/N! I finally got to the party on your campus! How are you?"

"Oh, Chad! It's been a long time, it’s like you've disappeared somewhere. Have you really been studying so hard lately?" you both laughed loudly at this very bold assumption of yours. You continued to communicate, actively exchanging the latest news. Over time, you felt guilty a little. You turned to Oliver and smiled at him. He smiled back understandingly. His face visibly saddened when you turned back to the blond guy. He began to examine the empty bottom of his plastic cup, twirling it slightly in his hands. How should he get Y/N's attention? He didn't know. He had to come up with a plan. What would he do, what should he say, so that you…

"Hey, Oliver! Did you have any classes with Mr. Wharton?" you asked with interest, involving him in your conversation. He exhaled a little as he realized that you weren't leaving him in the middle of this party, where he felt like a stranger without Felix and you. You looked at him with a warm smile, and something inside him finally clicked and fell into place.

"Er, yeah... that oddball. He constantly comes up with fruit analogies for everything and even sometimes speaks on their behalf while holding them in hands."

"Ah, have you seen that too?! Y/N, I told you, he's an old weirdo! Only you are attending the wrong classes!" exclaimed Chad, and you all laughed merrily. The conversation was going well, and Oliver was incredibly happy about it. He didn't feel lonely anymore because of you.

But in return, some feelings that he had only vaguely suspected until this moment began to awaken inside him. You didn't stop drinking, and at some point, Chad put his arm around you and started lightly stroking your back. You giggled without giving it much thought, especially under the influence of alcohol. But Oliver saw perfectly well how Chad looked more and more into your eyes, lowering his gaze to your lips and lightly licking his own. It was very subtle, but Quick noticed it all. The way his hand keeps stroking your back, gripping you tighter and tighter. Oliver saw it all perfectly well, because he wanted to be in that place himself.

No, rather, he didn't really want to. He had long imagined your first kiss when you were fully conscious, willing and not under the influence of some alcohol, when you were too much mellow-minded. And he wouldn't let your kiss with Chad happen now, in this state, nor ever.

Sometimes it seemed you and him were very different. He could see through everything, and sometimes it was like you notice none of what you really should. How could you not understand that this Chad wanted to take you upstairs just like Felix did with Annabel?

You were kind and open, maybe even too friendly, oh, Y/N. Oliver was drawn to you like a moth to a fire. You were quite a complete and content person in your own right, and this was very attractive to the many-faced Oliver, who was still struggling to find a place in this life, especially here, in his first year at Oxford.

And it seems that he began to realize that he had found his place next to you. And he wanted to take this place like a guard dog, protecting it and you from all the adversity and guys like Chad.

You didn't forget about Oliver and wanted him to feel fine and less lonely, even hardly knowing him, even having so many friends and acquaintances here, even in the midst of fun of the party. You showed towards him attention and care.

Yeah, he would like to be your dog, he thought now.

Fortunately, you got up soon, freeing yourself from Chad's embrace and going to the bathroom. Great. Oliver had been carefully observing the situation in the common room all this time, so he immediately got up from the sofa and sauntered into the common kitchen, where India was smoking, still slightly displeased that Felix had not chosen her.

"How’s the party? " Oliver asked politely, grabbing a can of beer from the fridge.

India rolled her eyes, twirling a cigarette in her fingers, "What do you need?"

"Me? Nothing. But that guy has been looking at you half the evening without stopping," he nodded towards Chad and winked, "Just saying."

"Isn't he hanging out with Y/N?"

"No, he doesn't sleep with his buddy Felix's old friends. So, the way is clear."

"Oh, are they friends with Felix?" India narrowed her eyes. That was good, she needed some male attention right now, especially from those whom Catton Jr. might become jealous of. Thus, the girl went off towards her chance.

When you had returned to the common room, you saw Chad and India flirting with each other on the couch, and the girl did not let go of her hands off him. Okay. That was unexpected, but okay, it was a student party, after all. You shrugged your shoulders and started thinking about where you could sit now.

"Everyone seems to be having fun with each other tonight," Oliver, who happened to be next to you, shrugged sympathetically. Indeed, everyone around was busy with their own lively conversations, and someone was already far from just "talking".

"To singles?" he offered a playful toast, and you agreed with a grin, "Apparently so!"

"Cheers!" you clinked your drinks, continuing to talk a little more relaxed with each other. So, that how you started getting closer from that evening, and you began getting to know the real Oliver. At least that was what you thought at the time. He looked at you with a shy smile of a complete adoration as you were telling your stories full of joy and tipsy giggling. His eyes were shining like two starry sapphires at that moment.

If a guard dog wants to protect the peace of its owner and scare away other dogs, then it must inspire fear itself. Maybe sometimes not very intentionally, but instill just a little fear and sense of power even to its own master. Oliver wanted to be a good guard dog.

He would take this place next to you.

* * *

And he took it.

Now he was hovering over you, pinning you between his arms, leaning on your bed in your bedroom in Saltburn. It was the middle of the night, and finally not a single one inhabitant of this house could bother you right now.

Oliver thought all day about how he would continue his way with you at night, along the way remembering the evening of that party in Oxford, where you finally began to get closer. He looked down at you rapturously, biting his lip and breathing heavily, still not believing that all this was really happening. Not just right now, but in general, everything.

His blue eyes were gleaming with utter delight in the dim.

"What else does my sweet Y/N want?" Oliver asked you, recovering his breathing.

He bent lower, and a chain dangled from his neck, swaying slightly. The metal heated by the warmth of your bodies tickled your lips slightly. You lifted your head and gently but firmly catching the chain with your lips.

"Mm-hmm," Quick mumbled with curiosity. You smiled, gritting the chain with your teeth and began to shake it slightly from side to side. He opened his lips excitedly, inhaling sharply.

"Am I your doggie today? Oh, I'm more than willing to be, sweetheart," he said in his deep sexy accent.

He wanted to add "now and always," but didn't. Oliver was afraid that if he showed how willing he was to obey you, he would lose your interest. He was used to changing masks, adapting to different situations and someone's needs. He was an awkward and shy nerd when you first met, and that was largely true, because of his deep core nature and the new posh environment at Oxford. Fortunately, he had successfully joined Felix's company and was able to relax a little. And here in Saltburn, he almost felt like the master of the situation.

If you wished, he would always be that sweet, shy and awkward guy for you, if only you were truly happy about it. But he had learned that he interested and intrigued you mostly when he showed a more powerful, dominant and somewhat even dark part of himself. And that made him really pleased, because you viewed him the way he hoped to be in his own deep wildest dreams.

And yet, he still wanted to be your dog, an obedient dog who would do anything for you. In a sense, he was. And today he decided to demonstrate you that in more obvious way.

"What do you want me to do? I'm all yours," he leaned back next to you, belly up. Oliver smiled playfully. Right now, he was a tiger who had been caught by the toe with his own permission.

Biting your lip, you straddled him, sitting on his thighs. After enjoying this view, you ran your hand from his navel, sliding your fingers up the groove between his prominent muscles. Oliver exhaled sharply. You stopped at his neck, grabbed his chain, and pulled him to you. Now the guy was in a sitting position, he looked at you adoringly while his hands slid over your waist.

Without letting go of one hand from the chain, you slowly rose and began to descend on his cock. Oliver hissed with satisfaction, "Yes, my dear, just like that..."

"I didn't let you talk," you pulled the chain slightly, smiling slightly.

"Oh," he said in surprise, but gladly began to obey you, nodding in agreement.

You began to move slowly on his things, while Oliver's strong hands supported you with ease, guiding you, leaving hot prints on your skin.

His hands were all over you as his lips feverishly kissed everything they could reach. Finally, he reached for your lips, covering them with a hot kiss full of saliva, admiration and arousal.

When you broke the kiss, you said, a little hesitantly, but still firmly enough, "Take your hands off, next time you touch me when I tell you."

Oliver smiled enthusiastically – you learned quickly from his example, apparently. He liked the hint of his own power and dominance reflected on himself now through you.

He obeyed your request, although it was getting harder to fulfill it by every passing minute. He wanted to touch you again, guide your body and push it harder on his hard needy cock. It became unbearable after a while, and he whined a little. He looked at you a little pleadingly, but you nodded no.

He kissed your breasts again, but in response he got "Do not touch at all."

"Only I can now," with these words, you ruffled his hair and pressed harder against his shoulders. He groaned at the inability to touch you at all, it was a new sensation, or rather, its absence.

You grabbed his hair, and he put his head closer, burying it in your hand. It was the only chance to touch you in any way. Oliver closed his eyes and inhaled noisily through his nose. He didn't even mind if you squeezed his hair even harder, hell, maybe even poked his face into the sheet, where he would inhale the scent of your arousal. If you had forced him to lick it off, he would have willingly obeyed, as long as you continued to press his face to the bed, clutching his dark curls. He even imagined doing the same with the bathtub you were lying in lately. In his bathroom. This thought turned Oliver on even more.

Degrading him, talking him down, pulling his hair or chain harshly - he would not always like to be in this role, but he would like to give you that opportunity from time to time. If only you'd asked. And even if you hadn't asked. Because it was you. And because he was like that.

Reaching the peak almost at the same time, you dug your nails into his back deeply, which made Oliver's eyes darken slightly and starry at the same time. With a pleased moan, you released your grip and sank down onto the pillows. But that wasn't all of it, and you decided to play the role given to you to the very end.

Clutching his soft dark hair, you moved his head to your thighs. He looked back at you with hazy from own rapture eyes.

"Please," you said softly, still not being able to be dominant enough. But this sweetness and dissimilarity from his own, even in a situation where you could and should do it, but asking instead, drove Oliver crazy to his limit. He attacked you with a growl, delivering all the pleasure he could possibly give to you that night.

* * *

Oliver was lying with his arms around your lower back, his head resting on your stomach. Quick looked faithfully into your eyes. His face reflected the moonlight of the deep quiet night that was now in Saltburn.

You stroked and scratched him behind the ear, he rubbed his nose contentedly against your smooth belly skin.

"Is my mistress happy?"

"Yes," you laughed, starting to play softly with his hair.

"Then I am happy too," he said, closing his eyes and rubbing his cheek against your soft belly, "Now and always."

[gaiathemexicanbeauty]

Imagine: Mike is back at his mall security guard job, and reader works at the support desk, but more specifically; is in charge of the lost and found.

1st time was because he found an forgotten phone (or something), and was told to take it to the lost and found, where he first met reader.

Then he starts being extra vigilent when walking around, looking for any item that looks misplaced or lost, no matter how unimportant, just as an excuse to go to the lost and found to talk to reader

(Ive never done this before, so sorry if i did anything wrong!)

lost and found | mike schmidt x reader

word count: 1.2k

warnings: none! just a nice little fluffy piece about a sad sad man lol <3

to the asker, i hope you know that i saw this in my inbox and literally squealed, i was waiting for someone to drop a mike request

i hope that this is to your liking, i was going back and forth trying to decide how to start this off and coming up with tiny little ideas to add

also this probably goes without saying, but i have never worked at a mall nor interacted with mall staff if i can help it so if anything sounds off, feel free to correct me

to anyone who also writes on tumblr, pls tell me how you avoid using y/n, i tried to work around it as much as possible but some times just called for it

you hold your polite (albeit strained) smile to the blubbering woman walking away, unsure what to do with yourself as whoever she stands with rubs her back in comfortable circles. another lost wedding ring, gone to the test of time as long as the mall shall live: it's not that you didn't feel bad but after wedding ring #120, you kind of start to get used to the routine of things. lost and found wasn't your first choice when you first started working here but as long as you were getting a paycheck, you weren't going to complain. your side of the mall was rarely visited anyway, giving you the opportunity to do plenty of people watching when you weren't rummaging through piles of lost sweaters and purses.

you let out a quiet sigh once the customers are gone, sitting back in your seat and picking up the book you had once been reading; not like there was anything better to do. fully immersed in your book, you don't even notice the footsteps coming up to the counter. "um, hey." you jolt a bit at the sound of a voice, your gaze snapping from your book to whoever is standing only a few feet away. you have to hold back your reaction when you meet his eyes, tired but trying their best to look interested; it takes you a second to realize this is security and not another customer. "shoot, sorry." you mumble with an awkward smile as you sit up, resting your book in your lap to give the man in front of you your full attention. "how can i help you?" with a thin-lipped smile, he holds up a purse; from the looks of the logo on it, it's obvious this is designer.

you whistle as you take the purse from him, examining it with raised eyebrows. "well, you don't see this everyday. someone should come back for it, thanks." you say, flashing a grin at the security guard as he gives you a much more genuine smile. "no problem. if i had known lost and found got to see stuff like this, i would have put in to work over here instead." he says with a chuckle, folding his hands in front of him as he leans on the counter. "oh, we don't get interesting stuff that often, i promise you." you say with a roll of your eyes, putting the purse behind the counter; anyone in their right mind would come back for this thing. "enlighten me." before you can say something, the security guard outstretches a hand to you with a smile. "i'm mike, by the way. i work security." he says as you shake his hand, raising your eyebrows at him playfully. "(y/n). to give you some insight into how very little happens here, try and guess how many gachapon toys i have behind this counter."

and just like that, you've made a friend; not that you'd admit that mike wasn't sore on the eyes this soon. you just found it easy to talk to him considering you had never seen him around up until this point. after your first meeting, mike would regularly stop by whether he had something lost to leave with you or not: if you were lucky, he would even join you for lunch or walk you out at the end of a shift. little by little, you couldn't help but anticipate his arrival, the same relaxed smile always on his face much unlike the first time he'd approached you.

it's been almost a month by this point, you've had so many lost items deposited to you that after a while, throwing things away or reselling them (specific orders from your boss who was rather shocked at how many items you had in the back room) was required after a certain amount of time: not like anyone came back for them anyway. today was no different than the rest, the sounds of buzzing conversation in the distance from the more crowded areas of the mall. you pop the gum in your mouth as you paint your thumbnail a light-yellow color, scrunching your nose a bit at the smell of the nail polish. you blow softly on it, your eyes glancing up to scan your surroundings. what you see nearly makes you laugh. mike is walking over, seemingly at his normal pace before something catches his attention; whatever it is, you most definitely can't see it. when he stoops down to inspect it, he makes a face that you can only decipher as him being slightly annoyed. he catches you looking at him, an embarrassed smile on his face as he makes the rest of the walk of shame over to you when he realizes he's been caught.

"well, what is it this time? a broken watch? some cap with an unexplainable stain on it?" "what kind of person do you take me for? i'm just a faithful employee trying to do my job." mike says as he extends his arms with a playful smile, making you role your eyes as you abandon your nail polish to look up at the man in front of you. you close your eyes as you hold out your hand to him expectantly, waiting for him to drop something into your palm; after how often he came around, you made it something of a guessing game as to what mike was going to bring out. surprisingly, it's small, definitely plastic from the muted sound it makes when it lands in your hand. "it's a toy." "warm enough. you can open your eyes." you start to say something, opening your eyes and inspecting the item in your hand before you pause.

a small, plastic cat sits on a swing, it's paws holding on to the small chains attached to a brightly colored tab; it's obvious you could hang this off a shelf. your cheeks redden a bit as a sheepish smile grows on your face, pushing a piece of hair behind your ear as your other hand holds it up to inspect it further. you'd never actually stopped at the capsule toy machines yourself, starting your collection only a few weeks after starting your job when they popped up so frequently at the counter. "you like it?" you blink at mike as he smiles fondly at you, one hand propping his chin up; you swear you can see a hint of smugness in his gaze. "it's..yeah. it's cute." you say, unable to help the way you giggle a bit as you hang the toy on the edge of the counter. "good. better hope no one come's looking for it." he chuckles softly, his eyes dropping from yours for a moment as you stare in delight at the newest addition to your collection. "i wouldn't give it to them anyway. not knowing you got it for me." mike's lips part a bit in shock, a scoff of disbelief leaving him despite the smile on his face as you smile up at him knowingly. he tries to defend himself, stuttering to say something before you're called by one of your coworkers. "duty calls." you giggle as you rise from your seat, pretending not to notice the way mike is still trying to recover from being caught as you make your way over to your coworker, a smile tugging at your lips.

SECOND ONE SHOT IN A WEEK HOLY MOLY THIS IS NEW to the asker, i hope you enjoyed this, i tried to add my own little spin to things just to give it that little extra romantic flair lol BUTTT i hope that all of you are having a good rest of your day/night/afternoon and stay safe! :D

[bunji-enthusiast]

A True Scourge — Scourge The Hedgehog

Note || He is very cool me thinks.

WC || 1,033

Sypnosis || He finds himself warming up to you.

“Take it easy-”

“OW!”

He winced, shrugging his shoulder after you had made the wrong move in applying the bandage. You glare at him, then let out a pitying sigh. Sometimes you really question what kind of choices you actually made that earned you a place alongside the rebellious hedgehog. “You gotta stay still, impatient ass.”

Scourge turned around to refute your comment, then saw the meaner glare you could possibly display toward him. “Got it.” He murmured, looking back ahead as he sat still with the most possible amount of patience he could muster in spite of all the pain coursing through his lower left half of his body. He wondered what would happen after this, even then he still couldn’t wrap his head around the fact you were actually helping him.

Not turning him away, especially even with how he had behaved toward you in recent events. Scourge counted himself lucky that you decided to actually help him. “Hey… uh, why are you even helpin’ me anyway?”

You paused in your steps, taking the time to finally wrap the last part of it to seal it off and allow it to be free without falling apart. His arm and abdomen were heavily injured, how that happened you only have a hint of an idea why. But that was not your problem right now, with another prolonged sigh, you picked up his leather jacket and set it by Scourge. 

“Well, friend or foe,” You begin, swinging your legs over the ledge to align yourself next to Scourge. “You were injured, I simply couldn’t let it go untreated.”

But me?

You gotta be outta your mind. 

Scourge’s brows furrowed in thought, lips lifting to reveal his rather sharp teeth as a frown was displayed on his face. Rather unusual in comparison to his usual smile that he so often displays in the company of others, not just you alone. Something must be bothering him very badly if he’s left without any rhyme or reason to actually speak in turn now. You were starting to get a little worried about his drawn out silence. 

He leans forward, hands leaning against the thresholds of his legs to support his shifted position. “Too many things happened at once, guess I got too confused.” He admitted, hand now going against the back of his hand, scratching it in his demeanor of slight embarrassment. Scourge never really was one to share any of his personal feelings or issues, but it was this small and momentary thought that had slipped out of his mouth.  

You chuckled warmly, patting his back to reassure him it was fine. Scourge let out a huff, deflating into his spot as time went on. 

“You're pretty confusing sometimes man.” You spoke, breaking the awkward tensions that resided in the air. He let out a hum of acknowledgment at your words, one of his ears flicked along in action. A spotty habit residual to something he had done very often when he was alone by himself during his days in trying to take over Mobius. Scourge wasn’t well supported, and nothing of the sort could be said the same about his father.

Even in this lifetime or any other, he will never know that love. 

“I get that alot.” He scoffed, waving his hand off about the idea. 

But he was pretty content in this kind of love, no matter what it may be named. He didn’t want to lose you again, or ever in this lifetime of his. Something he hated to admit aloud, so he appreciated the works of a dear mind. Emotions were a fickle and complicated thing he never gave much thought to, always too busy throughout the days to even actually face or confront them head on. 

Now that he was here with you, it was something entirely different. Unique and kind, not anything too fast. It made Scourge take a step back, and evaluate himself. Hell even in spite of his attitude it wasn’t something he could just replace so easily, but he really did appreciate you.

Scourge has a feeling you know that too. 

“Oh wow!” He perks up at your notable excitement, eyes filled with amusement and curiosity. So he asks, “What’s got you worked up sweetheart?” Scourge raises a brow with a chuckle escaping him. You point up to the sky, full of shimmering stars and beautiful shades of blue and purples. In words alone he couldn’t describe the mere majesty of the sight, but he was all the better that he was able to accompany you for such a thing. 

“Normally this doesn’t happen very often..” You murmur, a sweat drop trailing down your face. “But I'd try to take a picture of it when I can, except I don’t have my camera with me.” You explained, holding out your hand as you spoke within animated gestures. Scourge nods, letting out a hum of agreement. 

“Pretty sure your eyes are all ya need.”

You turn to him, eyes filled with surprise at his words. “Now that is not the Scourge I know.” You grin, turning to lean towards him at a slight angle. Scourge winces, leaning back as he holds up his gloved hands in surrender. 

“Now listen,” He groans, almost coming out in a growl, “Don’t expect this to happen often, I am not that kinda guy got it?” He admits, cheeks blushing with a fury you never expected to see. You couldn’t help but let out a laugh, returning to your usual position as you were getting sore. Your shoulders deflate in defeat, no longer being able to find the words to continue the conversation. 

“The wind feels nice.” You sigh, reveling in the breeze. You felt a sudden jolt crawl up your arm, feeling warmth seep into your cold-ridden body. 

“Scourge?” You spoke, feeling warmer now thanks to him. He pulled you in close, nuzzling against the top of your temple in a means of warmth. He let out a forlorn growl, somewhat embarrassed he even did this in the first place. You certainly didn’t expect this to happen at all really, but it felt nice.

You ain’t bad..

Not at all.

[ghosttotheparty]

‘hey, how’d it go?’

‘uh. not great.’

‘shit. tell me.’

‘ well, it started kinda fine. she kept, like, looking at my neck, but she didn’t say anything. but we got along pretty well.’

‘ did you hook up?’

‘ well. we were going to. but it was… i don’t know. weird.’

‘weird awkward?’

‘yeah. like it just… jesus, i don’t know. it felt wrong? but not, like, wrong wrong, just. weird.’

‘sure.’

‘it was like we didn’t know what to do.’

‘how far’d you get?’

‘we made out. but when i went to take my shirt off, she said— i’m not exaggerating— oh my go-od.’

‘jesus, steve.’

‘yeah. honestly i don’t even know why i fucking bother.’

‘what do you mean?’

‘ i dunno. guess i knew i’m fucking ugly now, i guess i just kinda… i don’t know. hoped it wasn’t that bad. but i’m an idiot, so.’

‘jesus, steve, shut the fuck up.’

‘huh?’

‘you’re not— fuck, there was so much wrong with all of that, oh my god.’

‘eddie.’

‘no— okay, alright. steve. you’re not ugly.’

‘she recoiled, eddie.’

‘okay, well, cindy alden is a bitch. i remember her from school, she’s always been awful. don’t laugh, i’m serious, she’s terrible.’

‘okay, eddie.’

‘you’re not ugly.’

‘i’m…’

‘steve. you’re not ugly. your scars are cool.’

‘think you’re the only one that thinks that.’

‘well my opinion is the most important, so.’

‘okay, eddie.’

‘look. your scars are metal as fuck. even if you don’t think so.’

‘…’

‘when you see my scars, do you think they’re ugly?’

‘wha— no, of course not.’

‘so why do you think yours are ugly?’

‘…i dont know.’

‘have you actually looked at your scars? taken a really good look?’

‘i don’t really want to.’

‘look at them. now.’

‘eddie.’

‘come on, stevie, humour me.’

‘…okay. i’m looking.’

‘have you noticed how they, like, kinda swirl a little bit?’

‘…noticing that now.’

‘don’t they kinda look like storm clouds?’

‘…’

‘steve?’

‘yeah. a little bit. guess that’s… kinda cool.’

‘and the colours? aren’t they pretty?’

‘you’re trying to make me feel better about myself.’

‘yeah. i am. aren’t they pretty?’

‘…yeah. i guess.’

‘and our scars match. that’s pretty cool. they’re like friendship bracelets.’

‘some fucked up friendship bracelets. but yeah. it’s kinda nice that i’m not the only one.’

‘you’re not ugly, steve. even with your sick-ass scars, you’re ho— you’re so cool.’

‘yeah? you think i’m pretty, eddie?’

‘…anyway. don’t worry about what cindy alden has to say. you’re good. and you’re not an idiot.’

‘okay, eddie.’

‘don’t okay, eddie me, i’m serious. you’re pretty smart, steve.’

‘okay, maybe i’m not an idiot, but i wouldn’t go so far as to say i’m smart.’

‘well, it’s a good thing i’m not asking you, isn’t it? don’t sigh at me. you’re smart.”

‘eddie, i don’t mind being the dumb one of the group, it’s fine.’

‘no, it’s not, steve. you’re not the dumb one. just because you’re not a science nerd or something doesn’t mean you’re not smart.’

‘in what way am i smart?’

‘you’re observant as fuck, steve. i’m serious, you are. dustin and robin told me about how they only realised the russian code was coming from hawkins because you were the only one that recognized the music in it.’

‘…’

‘we only figured out we could communicate from the upside down because you heard dustin. no one else heard him.’

‘you guys thought i was crazy.’

‘yeah, until we heard him too, and then i thought holy shit, this guy’s got ears like a fuckin’ bat.’

‘…’

‘you knew how to drive that rv right away.’

‘didn’t have much of a choice.’

‘what i meant was that you’d never driven an rv before.’

‘…‘s true.’

‘you’re really smart, steve. you’re… resourceful. and intuitive, and observant, and it doesn’t matter if you don’t know science-y shit.’

‘…okay.’

‘and even if you weren’t smart, it wouldn’t matter. you’re more than your body and brains, stevie.’

‘what else am i, eddie?’

‘jesus, where should i start? …okay. you’re really sweet.’

‘sweet?’

‘so fucking sweet, steve, you’re one of the nicest people i know. even in high school, you were nicer than the other douche bags. and now you’re… you’re kind, steve. even if you’re being bitchy. you’re kind, and considerate, and patient when you need to be.’

‘…okay.’

‘and you’re… you’re funny. i know all the kids make fun of your jokes, but i laugh at all of them.’

‘thanks.’

‘you’re a good friend.’

‘am i?’

‘remember what i said about you being observant?’

‘yeah?’

‘i swear you can walk into a room and just… know. like, if anything is wrong, you pick up on it immediately, it’s insane. and you always know exactly what people need. you’re… safe.’

‘…safe?’

‘yeah. safe. everyone’s totally comfortable around you. the kids fucking adore you.’

‘really?’

‘yeah. the other day we were hanging out while you and robin were at work, and erica sighed very loudly and complained that she missed you.’

‘erica said that?’

‘erica fucking sinclair said, and i quote, i miss steve.’

‘…that’s really nice.’

‘you’re a good guy, steve, seriously. you’re selfless and brave and kind, and i love how you look after everyone, and how your eyes light up when talk about your sports, and how you get all mushy about the kids when they’re not around, and—’

‘…’

‘look. you’re, like, the best. and it— it breaks my fucking heart to hear you talk about yourself like you’re some piece of shit.’

‘…’

‘steve?’

‘…’

‘fuck, are you crying?’

‘…no?’

‘fuck, steve, i’m—’

‘eddie?’

‘yeah?’

‘i… i have to tell you something.’

‘what is it? are you okay?’

‘…i’m falling in love with you.’

‘…what?’

‘i’m sorry, eddie.’

‘no, don’t hang up, stevie— you’re— are you sure?’

‘yeah. i’m sure.’

‘but you… what about the girls?’

‘i was… i was trying not to— to fall for you, but you… fucking christ, eddie, you’re so…’

‘so?’

‘so good. you’re so perfect.’

‘fuck.’

‘im sorry, eddie.’

‘don’t apologise, stevie, i’m— i’m in love with you too.’

‘…say it again.’

‘i’m in love with you, too.’

‘holy shit.’

‘are you okay?’

‘i’m okay. i’m… can you come over?’

‘…to yours?’

‘or— or i can go to yours, i just— i wanna see you.’

‘you do?’

‘i wanna… i wanna kiss you.’

‘fuck. fuck, fuck, ow, okay, i’m—‘

‘what just happened?’

‘i fell off my bed, i’m fine, i can be there in a few minutes.’

‘are you sure?’

‘holy shit, steve, yes, i’ll be right over.’

‘okay.’

‘okay.’

‘wait, eddie—’

‘yeah?’

‘…i love you.’

‘fuck. i love you too. i’ll be right there, stevie.’

‘okay.’

[bunnakit]

my stand in ep 2 thoughts, feelings, etc.

alright i wanted to write this up nicely but it took me... two hours to get through the episode bc i kept stopping to write notes, so i'll do my best i guess.

weird thing about me is when i watch shows and write notes for these posts i always write the notes on napkins? i have like 5 different notebooks in arms reach at all times but i really like scribbling on a napkin for the true unhinged effect.

anyway blah blah reminder i'm just a silly dude on the internet, idk shit about dick, i just like to say shit, don't take me too seriously.

also please DO NOT leave novel spoilers in my reblogs, tags, or replies without some kind of warning label. please? it seems to happen with every show i write meta for and i LOVE that people get hyped but there's no way for me to avoid it when it's in my notifications like that.

some before the actual episode stuff; after learning last week that some of the kinnporsche people worked on this it really becomes apparent, especially in the style of the intro.

the music choices also seem a bit reminiscent of kinnporsche (and a little bit of not me) which i really enjoy. it feels kind of familiar and comforting.

immediately i loved how soft this episode started, the slight stubble on each of them, the way joe speaks so softly as if afraid to shatter their little bubble of peace, etc. i also love that the show doesn't skirt around the topic of sex and the fact that sometimes sex is awkward and clumsy, especially with a new partner and doubly so when it's your first queer partner.

and then the peace was shattered with ming kissing his back yet again. ouchies.

"will tong be at the set?" he's just not even trying to hide it. he basically said 'yeah ur great and all but tong????' but DAMN if poom isn't the absolute king of microexpressions.

at this point i can't really tell if tong is being a spoiled prince (derogatory) or if he's tired of acting in general? judgement withheld until a later date.

and then we jump into this actress being a parallel to ming and OOF OUCHIES MY ORGANS. she's a fan of tong but has to "settle" for joe - just like ming. and yet joe takes the time to be kind, to soothe her worries and put her at ease, because he has a heart of absolute gold. "it's her first movie but she was left to drown by the male lead." it's ming's first love and he has been left to drown in it.

mek's acting is really endearing. this is my first exposure to him (ive seen some of his social media and really like what he stands for as a person) and i'm instantly drawn to his performance. he also pulls off a great balance of adorable/sexy.

OOH THE SHOW SAID BISEXUAL OUT LOUD. A WIN FOR THE BI'S WE LOVE TO SEE IT.

i personally find ming's jealously hilarious. what a little caricature of toxicity.

anyway, it seems to me that if ming could get over his feelings and enjoy what he has in front of him he could be part of and enjoy a very sweet family, as it does seem tong IS giving him love, just not the exact flavor he craves.

the cut to joe's training made me laugh. little oat lore dump but my bio dad was actually a stunt man for movies (which is another part of why i was so excited for this show) and i can promise you nothing like this was part of it. what do i know, though, maybe things have changed since the early 2000s lol.

(no, they're probably not any movies you know, aside from maybe wild wild west [1999]. he mostly did westerns, historical docudramas, and historical fiction.)

ANYWAY AGAIN. with this little glimpse into ming's home life we get to see that he's very accustomed to doing what he wants and getting what he wants, which makes a lot of sense when applied to his almost obsessive behavior regarding tong - and now joe. i did absolutely LOVE linin and her sassy independence (minus the 'i can buy anything i need'.)

but... girl... did you just spray perfume in your mouth?

your actions are strange and unsettling. i like that in a woman.

ugh getting into ming venting his frustrations on joe's body. listen. liiiisten. while toxic without prior discussion... i'm into it. it may or may not be one of my favorite tropes in fanfic. toxic and unhealthy as fuck and i'm here for it.

AND THEN DAMN POOM THOSE NOISES. ACTING FOR YOUR LIFE BBY -- and the SNEEZE AT ORGASM LMAAAO oh i hope that's a running bit for some comedic relief.

because we then make a SHARP pivot into "then stop me" and there's so much potential for pain and self loathing there, for joe to think "i can't blame ming, i didn't stop any of it." i'm sat.

a little side bar, but i'm enjoying the fact that while there is discussion of topping and bottoming as a narrative device there really aren't any stereotypes here. i think on a surface level people would think "oh joe is the top" (pit babe style) and the show said no actually he isn't. love that for us.

"you can even move in haha jk" but the thing is, not jk, because joe would do that for ming - for anyone - bc that's the type of person he is.

[i had to stop and have a lil snack here]

hold up is this wut out drinking with them? OH SHIT IT IS. OKAY. it didn't give us much but at least it's a little connection to him finally. we knew joe knew him from his first life, just didn't really know how.

"i missed you" and when was the last time someone missed joe? not who he's replacing or the space he's filling, but HIM?

love ming's goofy ass locking the door and going inside just so he can make a dramatic ass appearance like he's 'the other woman' or some shit LMAO.

"what's in you to make me jealous?" quite possibly the worst dialogue tree choice ming could've picked.

[joe's emotional well being -45]

[everyone hated that]

"don't be so full of yourself" something joe has never been a day in his life. "you're just a stand-in." he knows. it's not something he ever forgets.

but after all that toxicity we have ming back home, seeking out joe's food for comfort, and we finally get to see him interact with his sister. i LOVE that she knows the importance of being a little silly as a treat, one of my biggest life mottos. we also get to see more of how ming is surrounded by love that he misses out on bc of his own wallowing and self sabotage.

oh, the homoeroticism of sparring with your bestie.

[everyone liked that]

oop- joe is wearing the shirt ming borrowed while sol is wearing a shirt with the word 'fantasy.' i'm good, i'm fine, gwenchana, gwenchana.

ough. sol with too many eyes on him and none of them sincere and joe with nothing but sincerity to offer but remains invisible. oof ouch.

enter ming with more religious imagery to match last week's cross scene. something something the sin of greed? confessing your sins? coveting - idk man, i don't have any religious trauma, my family let me just do my own thing.

but with ming knowing joe's true feeling every toxic thing he does is going to be 1000x more painful and i'm here for it. bring it you fucked up little guy.

"we can't mess with each other's privacy" don't mess with MY privacy. "you can't mess around with anyone else" emphasis on YOU, not we.

and then it's driven home what a romantic joe is, both with his workout heartbreak poetry and this little lady and the tramp noodle moment. this man, again much like pit babe, wants to be domesticated so bad.

and i know we all have hated on ming, that's the point, he's been a caricature of a toxic relationship spelled out in neon letters --

but when was the last time ming laughed with someone like this?

ok im exhausted, i'm falling into bed to read fanfic, but i'm absolutely in love with everything this is doing so far. i haven't written anything as in depth as this since last twilight (pre-betrayal) so it's really nice to feel insane again.

[cptn-m]

One Piece chapter 1119 Review and Analysis

Confronting Wano’s lingering prejudices in the cover story is a pleasant surprise. I wasn’t sure there’d be a way to do it in the near-wordless cover stories, but Oda’s taking it on anyway. This choice helps retroactively justify the slow start to the story because of the contrast it creates with all the people heaping praise and assistance on them in the early installments. I did have, looking at this, a thought about Wano’s culture. Some comments are quick to call out the country’s citizens for not learning from the monster they created in Orochi by blaming blood instead of individual, and I myself was pretty hard on Hiyori on that point back when the arc ended. But we have to remember, the purge of the Kurozumis happened when Orochi was a child, and the man died at 54. So have these kids learned from what happened to Orochi? Hell no, they weren’t around for that. Even Hiyori wouldn’t have seen the events Orochi lashed out over. And yes, there may be older people alive who witnessed the full cause and effect, they might be forgiven for not passing that down fully to their kids considering what’s been happening to them for the past 20 years. You have to solve issues of life and death before people are able to ease their focus toward social problems. Hopefully Wano is now at the point where they can start doing that.

Mars’s “defeat” on the sea below is something I think could have been choreographed more clearly. Like, the concept works, but it’s spread over so many pages that it looks more like Bonney, Sanji and Franky push Luffy into Mars for an extended struggle before he flies away. Given that the final push seems to be Luffy fully inflating, what was the point of what the others were doing? I think this should have been something more like the launch of a cannonball, where the three hit Luffy simultaneously back near the ship and he flies out and hits Mars full force, carrying the launching power of their attacks. You could still fit the back and forth around using Haki into that in roughly the same number of panels, and the motions of it would actually make sense. Turning things that seem like the should be quick hits int physics-defying pushing struggles is nonsense when the anime does it to draw out scenes, and it’s nonsense when Oda does it too.

But luckily, this one kinda awkward clash actually isn’t the finale of the arc just yet. The Sunny’s group is being held up, presumably by Nusjuro, and the other Elders aren’t giving up yet.

I’m worried by Atlas’s moment though. That thought to Lilith about York’s monitoring feels really ominous for her survival chances. Are all the good Vegapunks really going to die together on Egghead? I wonder if Atlas and Lilith will work together to take York out of the World Government’s hands as well, ending them all in a blaze of glory. That would be a sad; they’re fun characters, and I really like Atlas’s design. Normally with Oda you wouldn’t worry about this kind of thing, but with Shakka and Pythagoras gone and Edison implied to be down and out as well, it’s starting to feel more likely.

And don’t think I didn’t notice his lack of fear about hitting the water after. It doesn’t outright confirm anything – we’ve seen a lot of Devil Fruit users make big risky jumps over open sea in the past – but it’s definitely an interesting addition to the evidence.

(Also the concern about the spat-out Cipher Pol agents “dying on impact” is pretty funny considering they’re only here after surviving the even bigger fall from the Labophase basement, but I guess the Marines on the ships wouldn’t know that.)

There’s the mystery of what makes the time right for EMET now, presumably the same thing Roger was “too early” for, but putting toegether the dots, what was it that made it seem like the time could be right 200 years ago. Have there been multiple opportunities to do whatever the One Piece was intended to do, and all we’re seeing is the one that works?

As ready as I am to see Elbaf, I’m also not going to complain about Egghead taking the extra few chapters it needs to totally put a bow on things. A climax for the remaining Vegapunks. The big escape for the Sunny’s group. A final smackdown on Saturn for all he put Kuma and Bonney through and the definitive last word of the broadcast are going to be worth it in the long run. Will the Elders be allowed to achieve their objectives of capturing Punk Records and the Mother Flame, or will Atlas/Lilith/Stussy perform one final, sacrificial act of sabotage and make it so everyone loses?

With break week nigh again, I’m going to drop volume 2 of my rewrite project at some point in the next seven days, either when spoilers would normally hit or when the official release would be on a chapter week.

Reminder that you can read this review and more on my Wordpress.

[crepes-suzette-373]

Whole Cake Island comments

I'm late to this party, so what I'm posting here is probably old news to everyone, I just want to unload my thoughts.

I've read enough creator interviews to know that sometimes manga artists do things just for the heck of it with no deeper reasons. That's why I often hesitate to read too deeply into the scenes, but it's still there anyway, so I just want to react/ramble.

1) This arc repeatedly says that Sanji's brothers are supposed to be emotionless/heartless. Somehow despite that, they still burst into heart eyes when they see Nami. All of them!

If they're heartless, but they still do this, then what does it feel like for Sanji who isn't "heartless"?

It's to the point that Chopper goes "Are you sure you're not Sanji" at Yonji, and Yonji can't stop ogling at Nami's wanted poster. And they all say they want to take Nami home once the stupid wedding is over with.

Like, those 3 can normally kill people and clobber that poor helpless maid without even twitching a single curly brow, but Nami can still make them explode into heart eyes...

Maybe this is just a joke to laugh at, like "hahaha the quadruplets all have the same taste". Or maybe this was meant to show that deep down the other Vinsmokes aren't that heartless after all. Still...

2) I find it kind of strange that Sanji's injuries under the "skin mask" is drawn to look like the "joke" swollen face Luffy often gets when Nami beats him up for being dumb:

I mean, this scene with Pudding and the scene before that, when Sanji just got clobbered, I'm assuming they're both supposed to show his vulnerability. Then why make it look like the silly swollen faces that are usually meant for laughs and gags?

Compare that to the much more serious injured face Luffy has when Sanji beat him up, or way way back in the Skypiea arc when Sanji faced off Eneru.

If the in-plot intention is just to have him Sanji look so severely beat up that he needs a mask to hide it, why not draw him with the "serious" injured face?

My conspiracy thought was that sensei did that on purpose to make the scene with Pudding look either weird or awkward so that we can't take it seriously.

Like, now that it's all over we know it was a big nothing, but maybe during its initial run this specific art choice was a hint? Especially because later when Pudding revealed the trickery, she made fun of it. Something that probably can't be done with a more serious injured face.

3) Nami gave up so easily because...? She's someone who had literally done the exact same thing in almost the exact same way back in Arlong Park. She has also experienced being on the rescuer side with Robin, where they all eventually find out that there's something suspicious going on.

But somehow this time she took Sanji completely at face value and backed off in a very emotional way. Does it not even occur to her that something might be fishy again? And it's Luffy who saw through the nonsense and is completely not buying it.

Luffy, who is so clueless that he was dead-shocked to find his dad is Dragon, even though Garp already flat out told him so.

I mean, maybe because of the manga's tight schedule, sensei had to run this quickly to heighten the drama/stakes. Maybe there isn't a long plot game being played, and I guess I have a hyperactive imagination, but with a certain slant it can look like Nami gave up because she got heartbroken/jealous of the wedding.

When the group split up and the Sanji Rescue group was leaving from Zou, Zoro and Usopp said this:

They're all still there, the whole group heard it.

Oh no, maybe Sanji is on board with it. And then they actually meet Pudding:

Oh no, she's cute and he did go heart eyes at her. They then find Sanji, but he acts like this:

Oh no, maybe he does want to do the wedding for real after all.

Nami's reaction is such a classic "misunderstanding drama" reaction in romance novels.

4) Generally speaking, I feel like the wedding sham feels like something straight out of romance novels.

The leading lady gets closer to the leading man, then out of nowhere he turns out to be secretly a Very Important Person. His horrible family show up to threaten the leading lady, and he saved her at the cost of himself. Dramatic roller coaster and misunderstandings ensue, often including arranged engagements and/or almost-weddings.

This plotline really hurts my heart (poor baby Sanji), but at the same time I'm so baffled at how it all unfolds, because parts of it honestly kind of reminds me of telenovelas that my mum used to like to watch. Pretty sure I've even seen a couple permutations of this plot with vampires and whatnot during the supernatural romance craze in the Twilight era.

[goose-duck]

♡Our World♡ (pt. 3)

Killer x Reader

In this part reader takes Killer shopping :D

Killer from One Piece but he's in our world and meets u

Pt 2 Pt 4

~~~~~~

I woke up still in Killer’s strong arms. It's now late morning, around 11:30. I look up at him and stufy his face…it's beautiful. He has a sharper facial structure but his sleeping face looks so soft. I raise my hand up to his face, gently brushing some of his hair out of his face and smiling at him. He's real…he's really here…and in my bed…wow…how did I even manage this? I guess the universe said I deserve something good for once. How kind, thanks universe.

He starts to stir awake after feeling me move his hair. I smile up at him as he opens his eyes, “good morning…” he's a little groggy and confused but smiles at me too, “good morning.” He shifts a bit, letting me go and sitting up in the bed. “How'd you sleep?” I ask while following him in sitting up and stretching. I feel his eyes on me as my shirt lifts a bit when I stretch. He then pokes my stomach and I let out a small shocked noise and give him a playful glare. “I slept well.” He says, giggling under his breath at the sound I'd made when he poked me. I reach over to poke him back but instead of the reaction I wanted he just smiled softly at me. I groaned and gave him an annoyed look before getting out of bed. He soon follows, getting out of the bed and following me out to the kitchen.

In the kitchen he gives me an awkward look, remembering my severe lack of food. I look back at him, realizing he probably doesn't want to eat the crap I've grown to get used to. I give him an award smile before speaking, “uh…I don't really have food…I'm sure you remember…I uh…hm…uhhhh…you're already dressed. Give me a few minutes, I'll go get dressed and we can go buy food….and buy you some more clothes since I don't think you want to wear those the whole time you're here. He nods, “okay, I'll wait here then.” He leans against a wall in the kitchen and watches as I leave to my room to get changed. 

I decide not to bother with trying to look good, it doesn't really matter, just a quick shopping trip. I throw on some decent clothes and stare at myself in the mirror for a few seconds, I can only sigh when I see my hair, not willing to even brush it right now…maybe later…I should shower later…that's always so much work…I sigh again at the realization it's been even longer than usual since I've properly taken care of myself. My joy for life has slowly been dying, I haven't really talked with anyone in a long time, I've just been alone…suppose it takes the fun out of being alone when it's not a choice. 

I leave my room, putting a smile on my face which becomes more genuine when I see Killer still leaning against the kitchen wall. “hey..” I say a little sadly due to my earlier thoughts. He seems to notice this but choses not to comment on it, just nodding at me instead. I notice he has his helmet on and give him an awkward look, “uh…I don't think you can wear that to the store…” I understand it makes him more comfortable, however society won't be too comfortable seeing a big buff guy in a helmet. He rocks his head to the side a bit confused but takes it off anyway, trusting me. I still have some masks from the mask mandate a few years ago so I go grab one and hand it to him, “wear this instead. You'll scare less people…not that I think you're scary…but…I think you understand.c” he nods, “yeah, I get what you're saying.” he puts the mask on, it covers the lower half of his face while his bangs cover the upper half.

I start walking towards the door and he follows behind me. I slip my shoes on, I'd intentionally tied them loosely when I first wore them so I could do this…sure they fall off sometimes but at least putting them on takes a few seconds less. Killer puts his shoes on and gives me a nod, silently telling me he's ready to go. 

I push open the door and step out onto the front steps and feel extremely dizzy…I stop suddenly and hold my head. Killer gives me a worried look from behind his shaggy blonde hair and reaches a hand out for me. Before he can touch me I move away a bit and plop down on the ground a bit roughly. He pulls his hand back and knees down, “what's wrong..?” He asks, confused and concerned. I can only groan in response. This seems to worry him a bit more, prompting him to check if I'm sick but putting the back of his hand on my forehead. I gently grab his hand in both of mine and hold it in my lap, trying to collect myself, closing my eyes and breathing, using his hand to keep me connected to the world while I can't. He sits on the ground with me, allowing me to do what I need to as he quickly understands this isn't the first time I've dealt with this.

After a few minutes I sigh and open my eyes. Looking down at his hand I rub it with one of my thumbs before letting go and standing up. “Sorry about that…” I awkwardly apologize even though I know I shouldn't, it wasn't my fault. “Don't apologize. Are you okay?” He kindly asks, still giving me that worried look and resting his hand against my lower back. “Yeah, I'm fine.” I give him a soft smile, “let's go?” I ask, just wanting to go get food and clothes for him and forget this happened. He nods at me, noticing immediately that I didn't want to talk about my health at this time.

I walk over to my car and unlock it, getting in the driver's seat and waiting for Killer. He soon gets in the passenger seat and puts his seatbelt on, remembering what I'd taught him yesterday. He nods at me once the seatbelt is secure and I start driving. On the way to the store I asks me about a few things, such as street lights, things about my car and other cars and a few other bits of information one might want to have while in an alternate universe.

Eventually we get to the store. I wanted to park close to the entrance but there were no spots so we ended up parked pretty far away. I'm annoyed by this and it shows. After I park I sit in the car for a second before unbuckling my seatbelt, Killer doing the same soon after. Before I can get out he puts a hand on my shoulder, “Are you sure you're okay?” He asks me, not wanting to make me do something I don't want to just for his comfort. I nod at him, putting my hand over his, “yeah, just…having a bad day…it's not your fault…just…health stuff…” he nods at me in an understanding way. I don't know if he has personal experience, either with himself or someone else but he seems to get what I'm talking about without further explanation.He takes his hand off my shoulder and I get out of the car and start walking over to the store, him following close behind like a body guard. 

Once in the store I go straight for the food, picking up some breakfast foods and some other things likes fruits and vegetables. I skip getting drinks because most of what I actually already own is drinks so I don't need more. I also buy some sweets, just some cookies and a cake mix to make with Killer later if he's interested…or if I even remember I bought it. Killer follows me around holding the basket for me. I'd handed it to him right after I picked it up and he didn't question it, how convenient for me. 

I then walk over to wear the clothes are. “Grab whatever you want, okay?” I tell him and he nods in response, handing me the basket of food items. The basket is heavier than he makes it look and I struggle to hold it, opting to set it on the floor and just keep a close eye on it. Killing gives me a confused look when he sees I'm not strong enough to hold the basket of foods, there's an undertone of concern but after seeing my earlier health struggles he decides it's probably related to that and just heads for the clothes. 

While standing around intensly watching my floor food a man comes up to me and strikes up a painfully awkward conversation as I shoot down everything he says. He starts to get too close for my liking so I push my basket away with my foot and glare at him. He doesn't seem to get the message so I directly tell him I'm not interested in talking to him. This seems to piss him off. It gives me a weird thrill to know I've upset him, I still however feel this deep-rooted worry that he'll hurt me in some way. He starts making a ruckus that gets Killer’s attention but seeing the look on my face, one of mischief he decides not intervene yet, instead just watching closely. The man sees the look on my face and goes to slap me, luckily for me he's rather scrawny so I just grab his wrist. It's a little scary but I like the adrenaline flowing through my veins, I don't have energy often but adrenaline gives me some for a while and I take full advantage of it, even if it does nothing but get me in trouble.

The man pulls his arm away from me and I give him a conniving little grin, “didn't like that? Don't try to hit me then.” I smirk at him, knowing i’ll be fine as I'd noticed Killer watching us. I trust Killer will step in if I need him to and he trusts me to handle this situation. I like feeling trusted, even if all he's trusting is me to not let my joy of causing trouble get out of hand. It's clear Killer is keeping a close eye on the man’s actions, he has no trust this guy won't do something, but he trusts me to handle it. I like someone who doesn't just take me for my health problems but can see I find joy in things like this. This behaviour shouldn't be encouraged, however if it's going to be there it should be put to good use. It seems Killer understands this, probably from having to deal with Kid in his world.

The man tries to attack me again so I use my palm and push up against the bottom of his nose, making it bleed and making him stumble back confused. Killer decides now is the time to stop this, walking over with an armful of clothes. He looks at me, “lets go.” he then picks up the basket and begins to walk away, not waiting for me to follow but expecting me to do it, hoping I'm mature enough to know when I should stop. I take one look back at the guy with blood now dripping from his nose then speed walk after Killer, not wanting to lose him in the large store. Once I ketch up to him he gives a look, the same one I'd imagine he’s given Kid many times when he's caused trouble. His look then morphs into relief when he sees I followed him as he'd hoped.

Killer slows down a bit to allow me to take the lead. I walk over to the cashier and start putting things on their convairbelt thingy. Killer just watches me to this before putting his clothes down too. I take the now empty basket and put it on the stack nearby. I then come back and pull my card out of my back pocket. I didn't bring my whole wallet, just the card, it's much easier…mostly because I need to clean out my wallet, it's full of receipts. The price of everything is about $350 and I look stunned for a second before inserting my card and putting in my pin. My pool digital wallet…it's so dead…I'm not in dept yet but I have a solid $12 left. Child me would be excited, but now I'm just sad.

The cashier had bagged our things so we can just pick them up. I take the lighter bags while Killer takes the heavier ones, he gives me a soft look as he watches me try to carry everything. He takes the bags from me and snickers at me as I give him an offended look. “let me hold those for you.” he says, causing me to give him a slightly more dramatic offended face, “let me carry one?” I ask, wanting to feel helpful. He laughs under his breath, “alright.” he hands me the lightest bag. I side eye him but take it anyway, beginning the trick back to my car parked so far away. Killer doesn't seem to mind the walk but I suppose he's used to having to walk everywhere while I sit at a desk watching cameras all day.

I pop the trunk and put my one bag in and tell killer to put his bags in too. He puts everything in the trunk then backs away from the car a bit, looking at the popped trunk. “what?” I give him a look, not understanding why he's so interested in it. He just shakes his head, “need any help?” I shake my head, “nah, I've got this.” I grab the edge of the trunk and slam it shut. “see, I'm so strong!” I giggle at my own shenanigans. He smiles at me under his mask and pats me on the head, “very strong, Y/N.” he then gets in the car and waits for me to join him. I quickly get in, a bit more pep in my step, ready to get home and spend more time with the masked man…well, I suppose he's not masked when we're at home…or uh…my home.

Once we get back to my house Killer doesn't let me take any of the bags, not believing I can walk up stairs and hold anything. I call him rude but don't fight him on it, instead giggling. Once in the door killer seems hesitant to walk on my hardwood floors with his shoes on. I give him a confused look not understanding at first before I pick up on his thoughts, “it's okay, you can just take your shoes off after you set everything down…uhhh…put the food on the dining room table for now and put your clothes in your room. He does exactly that, putting the food on the table and taking his clothes my room.. my room? Isn't he supposed to be in the guest room? Is it that ugly? Eh…I don't really care, sleeping with him last night was nice, he's warm…I am not warm. 

He comes back and takes his shoes off, watching as I kick my shoes off yet again. I walk into the dining room kitchen combo and start putting the food where it's supposed to go. Killer takes off the mask I gave him and leaves it on the counter by the back door. He doesn't help me put the food away, but I didn't ask and I didn't want help anyway. We just chat while I do this. 

About half way through I get dizzy from walking back and fourth and just stop in the middle of the kitchen holding a peach. I squeeze the peach a bit, trying to get a grip on myself as my vision blurs. Killer stops me, quickly taking the peach from me and setting it down on the counter. He then takes my hand and gives me a worries look. I squeeze his hand and start breathing a little heavier before leaning against him. He puts a hand on my back to further support me as I start to sink down a bit, trying to safely get myself to teh floor. He helps me get down and sits on the floor with me. I lean against him completely, almost in his lap, prompting him to actually put me in his lap, making me easier to hold onto. I lean against him, I'm in pain, my head has this intense ache, it's unbreable, it's not pain but it's so sickening I can't handle it. Killer rubs my back and continues to let me squeeze his hand as hard as I want.

After a few minutes my body untenses and I relax againt him, causing him to look down at me. The smile etched in his face shakes a bit, he's worried, his mouth refuses to show it but his eyes clearly show his concern. I try to look up at him but I start to get dizzy again when I move my head so I stop and drop my head back to where it was. I feel something against the top of my head, it's him, his mouth, his lips, he's trying to comfort me, giving me a soft kiss on the top of my head. I wonder if his lipstick is in my hair now or if it'd all rubbed off last night. I let out a soft hum, telling him quietly that I'm okay. He hums back, a silent acknowledgment that I'm still there with him and conscious.

After a few minutes I start to move a bit, the dizziness subsiding enough I can look up at him. As he feels me move he removes his head from on top of mine, he looks down at me and I look up at him, his smile softens a little and my flat expression lights up a bit at the sight of his face. He gently squeezes my hand, “gonna be okay?” he asks softly as if his voice would hurt me if it were any louder than a whisper. I nod at him, laying my head against his chest a again for just a moment, giving the middle of his chest a quick kiss of appreciation before sighing and pulling away. “I'm okay, Killer…” I say, giving him a slightly tired look. He responds with a small nod and a soft, “okay.” he begins to rub the palm of my hand like he had last night and I look down at his hand holding mine, I smile a bit more. “thank you.” I say softly. He lets out a huff but nods.

A few minutes of sitting in comfortable silence later and my energy is back for now. I get up from his lap and with some help from him I'm standing again. This time he doesn't wait for me to ask, he just starts helping me move groceries, “tell me where things go and I'll put them there, you should sit and relax.” I do as he tells me to and sit down at the dining room table and start directing him on where the food goes, asking him to keep the box of waffles out so we can have breakfast after. He does exactly as I tell him and soon enough all the food save for the waffles is put away.

I stand up to make the waffles and he gently pushes me back down, “I'll do it, don't worry.” he tells me. I give a questioning look, wondering if he’ll know what to do with the frozen waffles. He looks back at me after opening the box of waffles realizing he's never seen premade waffles before, “uh…these are waffles..?” “yeah?” “how do I..?” “you see that thing?” I point at the toaster and he nods at me, “yeah?” “put one in each slit and push down on the bit in the front.” he nods and does as I say and gives me a look like that's the weirdest thing he's ever done in his life. I just give him a smile in response to his confusion. 

He jumps a bit when the waffles pop up. He goes to grab them and I throw a nearby napkin at him. He quickly stops and looks at me like I'm crazy. “unplug it first.” “what?” i point at the wire and he looks at it, “pull it.” he unplugs the toaster successfully, I clap, it comes off a little sarcastic but I'm trying to be nice. He realizes something else, “where are the plates?” I make a dumb face, “oh.” “well?” “the cabinet above you.” he opens the cupboard and grabs two plates. He puts two waffles on each plate. He remembers where he put the syrup so he goes and grabs it, putting some on his and setting his plate on the table. He then puts my plate in front of me and hands me the syrup so I can put as much as I want on. I decide to drown my waffles…as per my usual. He looks at me like I've just murdered his captain, I look back at him like a little dastard knowing that bothered him. He sighs and gives a soft look, “waffle murderer.” he jokes. I start laughing as he hands me a knife and fork and sits down in front of his waffles.

We both eat silently, I figure he's usually quiet when he eats but I'm just being sure I don't choke…I'm really good at getting hurt I've noticed, choking included. After we both finish our waffles he takes our dishes over to the sink and sets the in the sink, giving my dish pile a glare, “do you ever wash your dishes?” I look away from him and pretend I didn't hear him. He sighs and starts doing the dishes. I suddenly turn around looking a bit shocked he's doing my dishes for me, “what are you doing?” “the dishes you won't do.” I give an awkward laugh, “oh, right…sorry..” he gives me a bit of a sad look, “you don't need to apologize for everything, it's okay…this stuff wouldn't be effecting anyone other than yourself if I weren't here…” he softly says. I think about that for a bit, “I think I'm apologizing to myself..? Like, I feel like I've done something wrong even when I haven't exactly…does that make sense?” I question to both myself and him. He nods, “yeah, it does..” he looks a bit sadly at the dishes before snapping out of it and continuing with his washing.

As he does this I go on my phone and play some games. He soon finishes up the dishes and looks over at me, “what's that?” “a phone.” “what's it do?” “more than I can be bothered to list off.” “I get the feeling you couldn't be bothered to read off a list of two things.” “you're right, however this thing actually does too much for me to say it all.” I giggle a bit and he does too. He comes over and sits beside me at the table once again, “how about you show me then?” I nod, “alright..” I start telling him about different things my phone does and I show him some games, even teaching him how to play Minecraft a little bit. He seems to be intrigued by this, enjoying learning about my phone.

Eventually I ask him if he wants to take a picture together and he gets really excited, only rich people get to take pictures in his universe, he finds it extremely cool that anyone can just do that whenever here. He's excited to have his first picture taken. I pull him in and snap a selfie with him. I quickly bring up the photos app and show him the picture, he seems very happy with it, asking if there's a way he can have one to keep. I nod and print off the picture for him and hand it to him. He smiles softly at it and puts a hand on my head, rubbing it at bit, “it's beautiful…” “hm?” “this picture…I won't ever lose it…” “I can print some smaller versions and put them in lockets so we both have ones if you'd like?” “yeah, that'd be nice…” he continues to softly smile at the photo while I print off some smaller versions and put them in two heart lockets. I hand him the sliver one and put the gold one on myself. He gently holds the small locket, smiling at it, “thank you…” “of course” I smile back at him and put a hand over the one holding his locket. He looks at my hand, letting go of the locket and taking my hand into his own, bringing it to his lips and kissing my knuckles.

“you're very sweet…I'm happy you're the person I met when I came to this world…”

“I'm happy I met you too…it's only been two days, but I feel so much more alive than before…”

“like I'm your reason to live or something?”

“yeah…maybe…some sort of hope…that I can be alive…and that all the work i put into living, it's not all for nothing…”

“it's for you..”

“it's for you.”

[jumpthatjump]

wip, spoilers for infinite wealth

Gonna start posting work in progress fics here. I'm hoping it motivates me to finish them.

Title: Hawaii...2! Pairing: Eiji/Ichiban Word Count: 600 Rating: E, for now Part one of ? Summary: The two of them are re-doing a Hawaiian vacation--properly this time. (First thing: getting shave ice)

Notes: This is nice boy Eiji, and maybe a little sad boy Eiji since it's post game. Eiji stared at the shave ice menu, confused. “This is what you wanted to show me?”

Ichiban had been excited on their trip back to Hawaii--a do over, he had said, just the two of them, he had promised. Going around on a real Hawaiian vacation with none of the bad stuff– hopefully, he had added with a sheepish smile. 

And one of the first places they went was Matsumoto's shave ice, to which Ichiban pointed to the ‘Ichiban Special’ being offered. 

“Isn't this cool?” He took out his phone and held it out to him. “Take a picture of me and the menu.” Then his eyes widened like he just got a great idea. “No, wait!” He took Eiji by the shoulder, guiding him to stand next to him. “The both of us!”

Pressed up against the other man's side, Eiji barely managed a passing smile. It still felt awkward how easily Ichiban forgave him for everything, how he would endlessly offer kind, supportive words anytime Eiji felt guilty and protested.

That's why this is a do over, Ichiban had said earlier with a smile, while Eiji had insisted,

That's not how things work!

And Ichiban gave him an easy reply of, Well, it's good enough for me.

Remembering that exchange, Eiji sighed. If Ichiban was going to do all this for him, for them, then he could try as well. 

He shoved his hands into the pocket of his hoodie. “I guess if I saw my name on a restaurant menu, I'd want to try it, too.”

“Exactly.” Ichiban grinned, pleased at being understood. He put his phone away. “What flavor do you want?” The full list was over 30 choices long. “There's so many!”

Eiji glanced at him. Ichiban was squinting, eyes roving over words like Li hing mui, Lilikoi, and Pickled mango. He looked serious. They could only choose one flavor, after all, and he had to make it count, apparently. Eiji looked lower, unable to not get distracted by the other’s attire. Ichiban’s shirt was not the same one from before, this design a simple white sea shell pattern this time, but the rest of it was still a bright vibrant red. 

…What flavor was red?

Ichiban nudged him, an elbow touching his. “Let's get something blue. You like blue, right?”

He did. The shirt under his gray hoodie was plain blue. But he gave him an amused look anyway. 

“I don't think you're supposed to choose based on your favorite color.”

Ichiban’s eyes widened like he had been insulted. “That is exactly how you choose! At least, you know,” he rubbed at his neck, “for the first time you try something new.”

“I hope you’re not thinking about coming back to try every flavor.” Ichiban grinned at him, and Eiji sighed. “You would, wouldn’t you?”

“We gotta get Blue Pineapple.”

There were other blue choices, like Blue Raspberry, even Ramune. “We don’t have to make every choice Hawai’i-related, you know.”

Ichiban shot him such a sad look, that Eiji immediately back peddled, but he tried to sound casual about it. 

“But I can see the appeal. It’s not every day we can do this.”

“I know it’s touristy,” Ichiban said in a way that made it clear that he was enjoying every moment of this. “But there’s a certain charm to it, especially when you share it with those you care about.”

Eiji went quiet at that, because he was not going to get emotional over shave ice, and he nodded in agreement when Ichiban went up to the counter to order. 

[goldendoodlerlockerlove]

I’m a huge Multishipper and find the merits of almost any Ship for Bob’s Burgers. I’ve seen so many good content for so many lovely ships!! Here are some of my favorites (and the blogs that produce the best content for these ships):

Tina/Josh is so underrated, in my opinion. The show did make it so they’ll never be canon (probably), and Josh didn’t get nearly enough screentime, but I think they’re adorable. I loved them so much in Linda-Pendant Woman, with Tina pulling a Prince Charming and trying to find who Josh’s bandaid belonged to. And their Fresh Feed kiss!! Tbh, I kind of ship them the most (please don’t come for me) and they’re super cute. But the show’s most likely not going to do anything else with them. They have a ton of potential, and I wish they spent more time fleshing Josh out as a character. If they had, this ship had the potential of being as good or even better than some of the other ships with Tina. I also definitely headcanon Josh as Bi. That boy is not straight in my opinion.

Tinimmy is such a classic, I adore it and all of the lovely content that @drawthethingdoppelganger and @jimmyjrsmusoems have put out. These two are the absolute Tinimmy Queens, so if you want Tinimmy content, go to their blogs immediately!! It helps that this ship is basically canon, and Jimmy Jr. is such an awkward dork 😭 He doesn’t know how to express his emotions, but he does care so much about Tina despite what some people say 😒 It’s so frustrating when people always put J Ju down because of one episode (V For Valentine-Detta). Yes, it was a jerk move, but he’s a flipping middle schooler!! And it wasn’t even that bad, anyway. And one bad move doesn’t erase all of the lovely things he’s done for Tina. Like finding her Barrecklace and saying it made him think of her?? Wanting to do a Sky Kiss with her?? Agreeing to go on a date to Pie in the Sky even though he’s not really a fan, and inviting her on a completely genuine date to Fro-Yo Mama?? Come on, these two are adorable. And they deserve a coffee date sometime if DT’s recent art is anything to go by. I also headcanon Jimmy Jr. as Bi sometimes and a heavily closeted Gay boy other times. It kind of depends how I’m feeling, pffffft. @br1ghtestlight has headcanoned him as Aro/Ace, and that’s a fun and valid interpretation too, but I usually feel as if he does have some sort of interest in Tina romantically. I’m not sure. I guess it depends??

Zekina is so cute even though I don’t ship it as much as the other two. Zeke wanting to take Tina on a date to the aquarium and then out for tacos is just so adorable!! But it always annoys me so much when people say that Zeke is obviously the better choice for Tina and is always nicer to her and always has her best interests at heart. Like, Zeke is a sweetheart, but he’s had his moments of not being great to Tina. He’s a teenager just like Jimmy Jr. He’s not obviously the better choice for her just because he suggested that date of tacos and touch tanks. Zekina is lovely, and I respect anyone who ships it and makes content for it. I definitely see the appeal. But people really need to stop coming for Jimmy Jr. Yes, I will keep yelling about this forever 😭 Anyway, if you want some of the best Zekina content, you must go to @theangrypomeranian’s blog right now. You should absolutely read Baby Steps!! I started it but haven’t gotten far because of the length, but everyone should go read it and support them!! @br1ghtestlight has also written a Tina and Zeke fic (though they might just be platonic there) that I still haven’t read yet, but everyone should go read that too.

Zeke/Jimmy Jr., aka Zesto (not sure if that’s their actual ship name, but it should be) is great. It has so much potential, and I ship it a ton. I tend to ship Tina/Josh and Zeke/Jimmy Jr. the most, not because of Jimmy Jr., but because those are the ships I just enjoy the most and I think have the best potential/chemistry. But plenty of other ships have lovely potential and chemistry too!! Anyway, these two can be read equally well as platonic besties, but them being together romantically intrigues me. It would be a ton of fun, I think. They would definitely be a chaotic couple, but a cute one. I mean, Jimmy Jr.’s reaction when he thought Zeke would start going to a different school?? He was so stressed!! And Zeke always wanting to wrestle with J Ju as a sign of affection? And agreeing to do things like help J Ju get a chicken nugget in his mouth? I love.

Genecadero is adorable and @dianadeadwing has made such cute artwork for them. Gene doesn’t have many ships, and I probably enjoy this one the most. It’s definitely a rare pair. Gene deserves a cute romance with a sweet partner!! It’s weird to me when people sometimes say that Gene is too young for that when the show already tried giving him a straight relationship with Courtney. Yes, they broke up, but still. The showrunners are clearly open to giving Gene a relationship. I love the idea Diana brought up of Peter not-so-subtly having a crush on Gene and Gene just not getting the hints. But I like to think he becomes super lovestruck and a super doting partner when he’s older.

I’m cheating and putting Gene/Alexis (I came up with a super cute ship name for them now now I can’t remember what it is ☠️ Does anyone want to help me come up with one??) on here, because I was like “Welp, if others don’t want to give Gene many ships, I’ll make one myself!” I’ve grown very attached to Alexis as an OC, and I’ve suddenly realized he has similarities to Alex 😭 I imagined them both as being voiced by Thomas Middleditch, their names are similar, and are both kind of nerds. But I think that’s where the similarities end. I definitely wanted Alexis to stand out as a character, and I think he’s still different enough from Alex. Anyway, I can’t help but talk about these two, they make my heart sing. I will never get tired of making content about them or just rambling about them like here.

Gene/Sasha is such a rare pair, and the enemies to lovers potential?? Amazing, actually 🤌🏼 If this ship wasn’t so rare, I think it would have Louigan potential, tbh. I love the idea of these two talking more and bonding, because let’s be real, Sasha is 1,000% not straight. Just look at him. Their ship also kind of reminds me of Dipcifica from Gravity Falls, with the rich kid potentially opening up and becoming a better person thanks to someone else’s influence. I just love a good Enemies-to-Lovers romance, and the potential they have for banter is immaculate.

Ahhh, Roudise (aka Louwheeze, which is an incredible ship name), is just the cutest thing on earth, I adore it. I love a good Friends-to-Lovers, and I think I just have them on the brain because of Roudise Week. They’re just adorable and basically canon like Tinimmy. I probably ship them the most?? They just make me happy. I love how Rudy brings out Louise’s softer side, and Louise helps bring Rudy out of his shell. Their friendship is precious, their potential romance even more so. I just have a lot of thoughts about these two, they make me happy. Also, Louise slapping Rudy after kissing him in Bob, Actually sends me every time. If you want some of the best Roudise content, go to @ltwharfy and @devilh0rnsinc. Their Roudise content is just so lovely!!

Louigan!! This ship is great too. I don’t understand why people who ship it get blocked. There’s so much potential there!! Again, Enemies-to-Lovers is one of my favorites. And their potential for banter?? Amazing. Incredible. No notes. If you want the best Louigan content, you must go to @babsvibes immediately. I started reading Stacy’s Cardamom, which is basically her Magnum Opus. I haven’t finished it yet, but it’s incredible and everyone should go read it. She’s truly the Louigan Queen and got me interested in this ship in the first place. And she was kind enough to invite me onto the Louigan Discord, which has been an absolute blast (even though I hardly share anything Louigan on there ☠️). I want to change that and make more Louigan content. I have a lot of ideas. Y’all better watch out if Louigan Week happens again next September 👀 Louigan Week was also amazing this year!! Everyone show Babs some love for running that incredible event.

Louissica is cute and has potential. I feel as if it’s quite similar to Roudise as a cute, charming Friends-to-Lovers. But Jessica just needs to appear more and be more developed as a character, because she just hasn’t appeared enough for me to have as many thoughts about this ship as all of the others I’ve listed so far. I loved them hunting for that Wharf Monster together, that was such a fun side plot. And them bonding at Louise’s sleepover when she’d driven everyone else away.

BOBLIN. If there’s a ship from this show I love the most, it’s Boblin, no contest. There’s a reason my very first ask to DT was Boblin-related. But I’ve rambled about them enough, so I’ll try to keep this short, pfffffft. They’re an example of a couple that’s as close to perfect that I’ve ever seen. They’re so sweet you’ll get a cavity, they’re domestic, and they’re ancient as hell muppets. What else could you want?? I love how their love stems not just from huge, loud, romantic gestures. It also stems from more quiet, subtle moments. Like Bob massaging Linda’s feet. Or Linda deciding to give Bob a quiet night in for his birthday, because she realized he’d enjoy that the most. Or Bob making her a heart-shaped pancake on Valentine’s Day. You get the idea. If you want the best Boblin content, then @jimmypesto is your girl. She’s written some of the best BB fics I’ve read, and the way she writes Boblin is unmatched. She’s such a talented writer, it’s insane. She’s also written a ton of Boblin smut, if that’s your thing!!

Frondbrose is wonderful. These two also have such good chemistry and banter, it’s insane. Their Enemies-to-Lovers potential is insane. I wish they were canon so bad. They definitely need to interact more. Mr. Ambrose showing his softer side for Mr. Frond is just so adorable to me!! This man would be the epitome of “I hate everyone, but I don’t hate you 😌” They make me all giggly. I can’t get enough. They’re definitely the type to have Hate Sex once and then deny it ever happened 🤣. But everyone would know the truth.

Tedmort is so cute and has so much potential. I love it. I think Teddy and Mort’s friendship is precious already, but a potential relationship between them?? The wholesomeness meter would be off the charts. They can be an ancient muppet couple like Bob and Linda!! Mort would treat Teddy 1,000% better than Denise, but tbh, anyone else would treat Teddy better than Denise. If you want Tedmort, then @keepyourhornson-spyro is the person for you!! They’ve written some lovely Tedmort fics that everyone should read.

Marshmallow/Nat has such potential, and there should be content about them!! It just seems like such a fun ship, and I think being with Marshmallow would help Nat get over her ex-girlfriend. These two also share a similar vibe of just coming and going as they please, and “being truly free” 😌 I still love that Marshmallow is canonically Trans and Nat is canonically a Lesbian. They’re wonderful.

Hemita is a canonical rarepair, which I didn’t think was possible, but here we are. I think they’re so cute and definitely good for each other. Susmita asking out Henry in Morse Code?? That was adorable. We need more moments of these two being cute. I love them.

Barryl is such a rare pair and has won me over so much. There’s just something that makes sense about these two being together that’s difficult to describe. There’s something so sweet about Becky being able to find love after being unlucky with Jimmy Jr. Darryl would be such a sweet boyfriend to her, and she would be such a sweet girlfriend in return. They would be so cute holding hands and listening to the Frozen soundtrack on repeat. Sure, to ship them, you need to ignore Rosa, but she was only in one episode anyway. I gotta shout out @theangrypomeranian again for basically creating this entire ship herself. Amazing.

Arnlee is such a gigantic rare pair it’s insane, and they’ve definitely won me over too. They’re so cute!! They’re just two socially awkward kids who would work really well together. They deserve to have some sort of side plot where they bond. I would love that. @devilh0rnsinc made the cutest art of these two together for @ltwharfy, and that was what officially won me over. That and @ltwharfy’s adorable fic about them which everyone should go read.

I might cut myself off there, because this post is insanely long. But it just goes to show how many lovely ships there are in this fandom. And they’re all valid. Seriously, can we please just respect each other and who we ship??

Anyway, there’s a little something for everyone in terms of ships, and I just love that so much. Everyone needs to check out all of the blogs I mentioned for some lovely content❣️They’ve also just been so sweet and welcoming towards me, I can’t stress that enough!!

[cadet-aviator]

Discipline choices (1)

This event affected me more deeply than I realised at the time, perhaps. I think I was mostly impressed and a little proud, that the Admiral knew me and wanted to talk to me, and not to any of the other cadets. Of course I was also very pleased that my appearance had been in order and that I performed that awkward bow well. I also felt the kind of boyish satisfaction of having achieved that all by myself – without the guidance or even support of my parents. 

I’m not ashamed to say (now) that when I got home, I got on my knees again and repeated my new little drill routine. It made sense – I was trained to obey, and being on my knees felt like the epitomy of obedience.

Like before, I never felt that any of this was strange. I was a cadet and of course I would be taken in by real military men. All my drill training and all those hours ironing my shirts and polishing my shoes had been for that: to be allowed to belong.

But I had not considered joining the army, any army. I was a good student, I felt most at home in things like history and languages, on the rare occasions when I was asked what I wanted to do after school I usually said something like Law, or International Relations – in line with what I knew my parents did. 

So that was confusing. Joining that Elite Cadet Camp would mean a serious involvement in military training. Other cadets were quite keen to go. They saw it as a first step towards a military career, a place to get noticed, if you wanted to be selected for the Military Academy. That was not what I had in mind. Besides, I wasn’t even a Malay national. Joining a foreign army could compromise my citizenship. 

Immediately, I received a colourful folder in the mail – the ins and outs of that Elite Camp. Three-week courses and Six-week courses. Stuff to make boys into men, and all that. Adventure, the great outdoors, lots of discipline and rules and regulations and potential demerits, but a solid programme, by the looks of it. Truly ‘Elite’. 

But was this something I could turn down? I was a cadet, and so technically subordinate to orders. Could the Admiral force me? If I declined, would that damage my school grades?

I talked about it to Dad. 

He was kind, as always, but also suprisingly straightforward about it. ‘You don’t have to do this, son, even though I can see it’s quite a thing, to get a recommendation from His Excellency.’

He could see, of course, that I was seriously confused by this. He seemed to hold my own cadet-arrogance against me, in a subtle way, as if to say: ‘We’ve had to put up with this bizarre love of uniform of yours for months now, so I think you need to put your money where your mouth is, and go and play soldier for a few weeks, see if you like that.’

He didn’t say that, but that’s what I heard anyway. 

What he really said was: ‘I can’t tell if you’re really meant for a military career, but everything you’ve done so far seems to indicate that there are lots of aspects of the military that agree with you. I guess you’ll have to see for yourself if there is a next step for you.’

 ‘You have been invited to go to Army Cadet HQ and get a briefing on what this camp is all about. Perhaps you should just go and hear what they have to say?’

Which was reasonable. And I did as he suggested.

(All images AI generated)

[dmwrites]

The Beetlejoest was lost. Not that Joe was any better, really, but Beetlejoest hated being on the same level as Joe with anything, so you could understand how this was annoying. Joe had gone to the mangrove forest of the witch Shelby, to ask her for some mangrove roots and wood. He hadn't realized the time of night, the fool, and Beetlejoest had taken over, said fuck the system, and went into the thick forest himself to just yoink some roots for himself. However, the fog in and around the forest was thick, and within a few minutes, the Beetlejoest was hopelessly lost.

“Stupid fog.” The Beetlejoest muttered, hitting the side of a mangrove tree with a stick he’d found. “Stupid Joe, wanting mangrove roots. What, is normal wood too good for you, you hipster? I’ll fight the fog, that’s what I’ll do. Intimidation is the only way to get what you want, ya hear that, fog?”

“You can’t fight fog, you miserable shit.” A voice, airy and echoing, came from the fog.

“Ahh! Wha- who’s there? This ain’t my ex-wife, is it?”

“What? No, I don’t think I’m your ex-wife.” A tall figure stepped into view. The being was slightly translucent, although the Beetlejoest could still see that the figure wore a faded yellow sweater, with a peculiar blue stain. “I’m Ghostbur. Who are you? And have you seen a blue sheep around?”

“Ah, well, see, me here, I’m the Beetlejoest, in no way affiliated with Joe Hills, thank you very much.” The Beetlejoest adjusted his suit and stuck out a hand. Ghostbur tried to shake it, but since they were both ghosts, they just had an awkward moment where their hands went through each others. “I haven’t seen or heard a sheep, much less a blue one. Can’t see a darn thing in this fog.”

“Well, if you see one, it’s name is Friend, and it fucking ran off.” Ghostbur started to wander off, but the Beetlejoest ran after him.

“Wait! Wait! I would normally time you out and make you read the rules, and cursing is one of them, but beggars can’t be choosers! I am lost, and I need help getting out of this dumb forest! I can help you find your sheep, first, of course, I’m not a monster, just a ghost, a Beetlejoest doing the beetlemost, if you will.”

Ghostbur turned to look at him. “You talk so much, yet say so little. But I guess I also don’t have a choice, so come on then.”

The Beetlejoest opened and closed his mouth in surprise and outrage, but decided to wait to strike his revenge and followed the taller ghost.

“Friend! Friend! Come back I have some nice wheat for you!” Ghostbur called into the fog.

“What kind of name is Friend, anyway?” The Beetlejoest grumbled crossly. “Did you have to be 2014 tumblr quirky or something?”

“You must be American- you remind me of that annoying American guy with the onesie. Came into my house and put American flags up. I burnt them, naturally. You’re not Connor in disguise, are you? He’d be the type to get lost in fog.” Ghostbur sneered.

“No, I am The Beetlejoest through and through.” The Beetlejoest said. “But if you wish to speak on the American flag, did you know that-”

“Shut up, I hear baa-ing!” Ghostbur interrupted. “Friend? I have some wheat! Come here!”

And out of the fog came a fluffy blue sheep, which looked calmer then both of the ghosts combined. Ghostbur hugged it in relief and tied a lead to it.

“Right, so, I helped you, now will you help me find my way out?” The Beetlejoest asked.

Ghostbur laughed awkwardly. “Well, I’m afraid that I’m now in the same boat as you. I am also lost. I don’t even know how I got into this forest in the first place.”

The Beetlejoest looked at him in surprise. “How can you not know how you got here?”

Ghostbur frowned, a puzzled look on his face. “I don’t know. I wasn’t here, and then I was.”

“Well, where were you before, then?” The Beetlejoest asked.

Ghostbur shook his head. “I’d rather not… don’t worry about it, alright? I’m sure if we walk in a line, we’ll find an end. Where? I don’t know.”

So, with no other option, they walked. They made for quite a crew- a black and white ghost in a pinstripe suit, a ghost with a yellow sweater, and a blue sheep. They walked through the fog, avoiding mangrove trees that came out of nowhere and ignoring the whispers. And eventually, somehow, they emerged from the fog and were right in front of Shelby’s house.

“We did it!” The Beetlejoest said. “I’m back where I was. I don’t know how, but we did it!” He went to high-five Ghostbur, but found the man gone, the sheep as well. All that was left was a bit of blue substance on the ground, like a rock or something. The Beetlejoest picked it up, and as he did, the first rays of sun peaked over the treetops, and Joe Hills took his place. He held the blue substance in his hands, not a solid or a liquid, but something else entirely.

“Well, thanks Ghostbur. And Friend. Sorry we didn’t get to say goodbye.” Joe said. He pocketed the blue stuff, and took the nether portal nearby back home. He could just use something else in place of those mangrove roots. He didn’t need them that badly.

[ask-javi-the-grafaiai]

The night encroached around the tower and festivities where closing up. Javi stretched his arms and yawned. He was much more tired than he had thought. It made sense, this was the most constant interaction he has had in quite some time. Javi sleepily bumbled over to Jobca, who looked rather disappointed. Those plans for hunting where far more awkward here than back at his home. He'd have to try again some other time. But for now, it was sleeping time. For Javi it was, Jobca took the role of watching over him as he didn't sleep. Javi felt concerned over that, but he was a new species he's never met. That was probably normal for him. Cuddled up into his tail, Javi closed his eyes.

After a few uncomfortable moments of trying to actually fall asleep, Javi would slip into a dream. He was at the Temple of the Eternal Fight, a place Javi visits often. He stood underneath a large painting of the two Gods that protected Enigma Island. One of the stray hand of Arceus known as Arctera and the light devourer known as Necrzoma.

Javi looked around at his surroundings in confusion. "Why am I back home? I could've sworn I was at the tower."

Jobca very quickly piped in, pushing Precious to the side, "Weeell, you looked super uncomfortable trying to sleep. You took an hour to actually sleep sleep. I figured it would be better if you where home for your rest! There was nothing going on back there once you where out anyways."

"You... counted the time it took me to sleep?"

"Don't worry about that. You're feeling good yeah? Seeing all those mostly kind folks hanging out with you was a blast. I even got to scare a few guys sick! It was a fun time."

"Yeah, I had a good time." Javi pulled his tail into himself, keeping the fluffy end of it close to his chest, "The night's over now. Guess that means I should go back to my usual business."

Javi could sense Precious playfully roll her eyes at his last comment. He flashed a small smile, tensing up for a moment. Arctera above, he really needed some alone time now. Javi wondered if letting Jobca stay at his house like this really was his best choice. But he wasn't about to force a foreign pokemon to live out on their own. It wasn't all bad, maybe this change would be what he needed. A good prayer was sure to keep his fortune and wishes afloat.

Javi and Jobca are back from Dragonspiral Tower. Asks will resume as normal.

[taiyaki-translations]

Happy Charm - Educe 9

Season: Spring Characters: Eichi, Subaru Translators & Proofreaders: taiyaki-translations, citrinesea, toujokaname

Eichi: What she and I are here to do is to protect the treasure from you guys.

It'd be boring to get the treasure that easily, don't you think?

Subaru: ......

Eichi: Please don't glare at me like that. I apologize for raining on your parade just when you were about to find the treasure.

Subaru: Nah, I'm not glaring at you. 

I heard from Yellow Kid that there might be another puzzle to solve at the place where the treasure spot is.

I didn't expect Anzu and Eichi-senpai to be here, though. 

…Anyways, I know there's a treasure here, so all I need to do is to defeat both of you, right? 

Okay, got it. Give me the mission, quickly! 

Eichi: Fufu, how spirited.

(Sorry, but I can't let you win this time. I'll give him a tough mission.)

(Something like those question-type missions they had when they met up with Kazehaya-kun and Takamine-kun. I'll give Subaru-kun a problem he can't solve.)

(That way, he'll have no choice but to back down.)

Now then, for this mission —

Subaru: All I have to do is beat two of you in a row while playing rock paper scissors?

Eichi: ...Rock paper scissors?

Subaru: Um, Anzu said rock paper scissors, is that wrong? 

Eichi: I mean...

(It seems like in a fit of panic, she ended up saying rock paper scissors…) 

(What should we do? Even if he needs two consecutive wins, there’s still a strong luck factor involved in this game.) 

(But taking the mission back will just increase his suspicions, won’t it…)

…Yes. As Anzu-chan said, you have to win twice in a row at rock paper scissors. That is the mission.

Subaru: Is that really okay? It doesn't seem like you had enough time to discuss it? 

Eichi: It might just be that we're a bit nervous since we're participating as guests.

Subaru: Hm~? Well, okay. …So who am I gonna go against first? 

Eichi: Well, I guess I'll go first.

(I'll beat Subaru-kun here and get him to give up on the treasure... at least, I hope that's how it pans out.)

Subaru: Al~righty, let's go then, Eichi-senpai! 

Eichi: (Now that he's come here at such an awkward time, the only way to stop him would be…)

Subaru: Rock paper scissors—! 

Eichi: —Go! 

Subaru: Ahaha ♪ I have scissors, and Eichi-senpai threw down paper. …I won this round, didn't I? 

Eichi: Yes, as expected of you, Subaru-kun. 

…Though it's a bit early for you to be feeling like you've won. 

Subaru: I know, I have to win twice in a row. 

Eichi: Well then, I'll leave the rest to you, Anzu-chan. 

Subaru: I won't hold back, Anzu! 

Let's go, Anzu! Rock paper scissors— Go! 

Eichi: Subaru-kun has paper, while Anzu-chan has rock… 

Looks like we lost. 

Subaru: Yay~☆ Now I can look for the treasure, right?

…Mm? What's that, Anzu? …Three rounds?

 Huh~? I wish you had told me that earlier~ Didn't you say before that all I had to do was beat two people in a row?

......

…Anzu. Is something bad going to happen if I find the treasure chest here?

'Cause you're acting weird. Eichi-senpai aside, you're completely different from usual.

Since you were called by the staff, it meant there was some kind of trouble, didn't it? 

Eichi: …It's going to be difficult to keep hiding this. Anzu-chan. Maybe it's time to tell the truth?

Subaru: A staff member forgot to put something in the treasure chest, so Anzu came to put it in a few moments ago? 

But if our team found what Anzu put in, it might look like cheating, so you tried to find a way to stop me?

Why didn't you just say so? If you told me what was going on, I would've just given up the treasure graciously, y'know? 

If it didn't work out here, I could just find another treasure, right?

Eichi: Anzu-chan didn't want to get in the way of the fun you were having treasure hunting.

I believe she wanted the treasure hunt to continue, without you being aware of the fact that the staff made a mistake behind the scenes.

Subaru: Hm~ That's just like Anzu. But we don't want to have a treasure hunt that makes things hard on her.

Well, it might have been difficult for you to tell us, though. 

Somehow, it's been like that all day~...

"Sorry for bothering you"? 

Nah, you weren't a bother. You were thinking of us when you hid the truth from me, right?

Sure, I'm a bit bummed that you didn't just tell me. But that doesn't mean I'm mad at you. 

…I do think it's unfair that Eichi-senpai is the only one Anzu's sharing secrets with, though.

Eichi: It's just a coincidence. I simply happened to have more opportunities to speak to Anzu-chan than usual. 

Anyway, it's time for us to leave this area.  

Subaru: That's right! I have to get back soon before we run into someone from another team. 

Oh? 

Ah, Yellow Kid and Junjun found the treasure! 

Oh… There seems to be a hint to another treasure chest inside that one. 

I was sent a picture of a strange bronze statue… 

Eichi: …Isn't this the bronze statue in front of the coffee shop by the station?

Subaru: You know about it, Eichi-senpai!?

Eichi: I do. I'm quite certain I saw it at the site that Kazehaya-kun and Takamine-kun were recording at today.  

Subaru: In that case, I'll contact the other two and tell them to meet us in front of the station ☆

Oh right! Anzu and Eichi-senpai know where other treasures are, right? 

Eichi: No, the only thing I've helped with is the treasure chest at this location. Anzu-chan as well… it seems like this is also the only one she knows of.

Subaru: Well, help us find another treasure chest then! Apparently, we can ask people in town for advice if there's something we don’t get! 

Eichi: I don't have any urgent business today, but is it alright for me to come along? 

Subaru: Eichi-senpai, you seem to know a lot, and I have a feeling that you know some things I don’t! 

Besides, this is a treasure hunt, so it's more fun if we search together ♪

Eichi: …I see. Since you were forced to give up the treasure here, I'll work with you.

Previous | Directory | Next

[kachikirby]

GranEssex Chronicles: Chapter 20 -  Social Butterfly

It has been a few days since Erhard joined the crew of the GranEssex. Fettuccine had left to go back to her division, though they still kept in touch when they could. Right now though, Meta was at a lost to do as Kurabe was off ship at the moment and she didn't leave behind any orders for him. He was left completely to his own devices, which was a strange feeling for him. No missions to take, he already completed his training for the day and the people he usually interacted with were busy. Meta frowned and sighed, knowing that there was something he could do, something that Kurabe kept telling him to do.

"...I guess I should try socializing..."

Maybe he could check on Erhard? No, it might be busy, too. He had no choice now. His best bet was the newer recruits. Vul seemed easy enough to talk to.

"Guess I'll start with him and work my way to the others. That is if I can even find him."

That was the problem with Vul. He never really knew where he was. However... the bird strangely seemed to almost always know where he was.

"No matter. I'll find him eventually. For all I know he might be standing outside my room right now." He let out a sigh as he hopped off his bed and walked out his door.

"Do you usually talk to yourself or is that a just in your room type of deal?" A bird like voice said as soon as he stepped outside.

Meta stared at the source of the voice, which just happened to be the bird he was looking for. "...Why were you outside my room?" Meta asked, ignoring the fact that he heard him talk out loud.

"I asked you a question first. Isn't it rude to just ignore it?"

"...It's an in my room thing." He immediately blushed the moment Vul suppressed a laugh in response to that. "And what about you?" He quickly replied.

"I was just walking by when I heard you mumbling."

"But why did you listen in?"

Vul pointed at his ears. "Not like I can help it when these ears of mine pick up even the smallest sounds."

"I thought so, but you could've simply just ignored it and walked away!"

"I was, then you said you were going to look for me. So being the nice guy that I am I decided to not make you look for me."

This made Meta feel even more embarrassed. "So why did you want to find me anyway?"

The puff looked down. "...sensei wanted me to socialize more so I thought it would be easiest to talk to you first..."

"Alright then. So, what do you want to talk about?"

"...I don't know."

Vul laughed. "No wonder she told you to learn how to socialize. Let's start off small, what kind of things do you like?"

"Training and reading."

"Beyond all that man. Everyone knows that much about you. What's something else you got? Do you like swords or do you just seem them as just tools? Do you enjoy flying? Stuff like that."

"Well, I like swords, of course, and I love flying."

"See now we're getting somewhere. Now to really get a conversation, you need to go into detail. Tell me why exactly you like all those things."

"Well... um... I like swords because they're cool and they remind me of sensei."

"What else? What types of swords do you like?"

"Is there a point to all this?" Meta asked, slightly annoyed.

"Ah ha! There it is. You see, that's a common misconception. Not every conversation needs to a have a point. Simply talking about whatever can be more than enough at times. Besides, you're already feeling less awkward around me now, aren't you?"

"...yeah, I think so."

"Then keep talking. You'll find that people will listen to you more if you are invested in the conversation. So, I ask again, what types of swords do you like?"

"Short swords, mainly because they work the best with my height and fighting style. Beyond that I like the designs of ninjato and katanas. I also like great swords, though they aren't a sword type I'd personally use." Meta replied, surprised that I was actually easy for him to say all of that.

Vul chuckled. "I see you're the type that becomes a chatterbox when you have a subject you like."

"...Perhaps. What about you? What do you like?"

"I like collecting pipes, like the one I have in my mouth. They remind me of my pappy."

"So, you smoke?"

"No, it's all for decoration. The only thing that comes out of this pipe is bubbles."

"I see..." The youth had been told multiple times by his mentor that smoking is unhealthy and that he shouldn't do it.

"Besides, unlike you I don't use magic to fly. I need to keep my lungs in good shape or else flying would be a real pain in the rear."

"Is it true that your bones are thin, too?"

"Yeah, my species naturally has thin bones. It means were light creatures straight from birth, though our bones are much more fragile than the bones of other creatures."

Meta nodded. That was something he learned from his mentor. Many bird type creatures and monsters had thin bones to make them light enough to fly.

"What about you? You don't have any bones, right? How does your body even work?"

"I don't fully know myself. From what sensei said, our bones are just pure cartilage, making us very flexible."

"I think very flexible is an understatement. You could probably fit yourself under any crack in a door."

"If I had the right Copy Ability, probably."

Vul blew out a few bubbles. "How often do you even use Copy Abilities?"

"I technically use them whenever I fight. However, I'm using them in a way that makes me not need to inhale and swallow something first."

"Besides the ones you use, do you really use any other Copy Abilities?"

"...not really." He uttered.

"What are you being so quiet about? It's not like there's anything wrong with not using a lot of those abilities. I don't know much, but some of those abilities seems highly situational."

"It just makes me feel like I'm not reaching my full potential. Like I know some of them are definitely very situational, but then some I see sensei use them and I question that. Like she uses ESP to read the minds of others."

"Let me ask you a question. Do you have any actual interest in using ESP?"

The youth sighed. "Not really. The only thing it would really be good for is getting back at her."

"Then don't worry about it. It's as my pappy once told me. You'll receive more results if you actually like what you do. I mean look at you, you're better with lighting magic than anyone else I've seen use it. Not to mention you're easily one of the best fighters here."

"Yeah, that's true. I prefer to use lightning magic compared to others."

"Besides, do you really think you'd successfully mess with the captain even if you did have ESP?"

"...I wish I could..."

"Well, I know of a way to mess with her."

"Really?" The puff perked up in interest.

"Well, it's easy, in theory anyway. Next time she calls you cute or something, return the compliment."

"Why?"

"Well, would she expect it?"

"...Probably not." The youth then blinked. "...wait, that's what she said about flirting! Are you saying to flirt with sensei?!"

"Giving someone a compliment isn't the same thing as flirting ya goof."

"...it isn't?"

"No, where'd you get that idea?"

"...it just sounded similar to the advice that sensei gave me to combat Fettuccine's flirting."

"Well, it's not. Your only other way of getting back at her is not reacting to her. But I think my first suggestion would work out more easily for you."

"...I'll try that out then."

"Well, good, though you're gonna be waiting a while to do that. She's gonna be gone until tomorrow."

"Oh, did she go on another mission?"

"No, just the one she's on is like in another part of the galaxy."

"I see..."

"So, you're stuck with me, unless you want to go out searching for someone to join us."

"Well, sensei wants me to learn to interact with people more. So, I think that would be a good idea."

"Then get searching. You were lucky I just happened to be walking by."

"Would you like to come with me?"

He tilted his head in questioning. "I already was."

"I thought so." He said as he walked off.

"You don't know where to begin do you though?" The bird asked.

"I'll figure it out myself!"

"Well, I would hope so, would defeat the purpose if you didn't."

"I do!"

"You don't need to convince me, just actually go out and do it."

"I'm already going!" He said, now quickly walking away.

"You do know that's a dead end, right?"

"I know that!"

"Look, let's just head to the cafeteria. No doubt you'll find someone that wants to talk to you, considering how many fanboys and fangirls you have."

He blinked. "...I have fans?"

"Of course, you won that tournament. Practically everyone looks up to you after seeing how strong you are."

"...I see..."

"I'm not surprised you haven't noticed, considering how you're almost always on your own or training with the captain and vice captain."

"I don't do that all the time!"

"Right. You're also talking with that cotton candy friend of yours on the communicator, too."

"Why does everyone know about that? Whatever, I'll follow your suggestion. Let's go to the cafeteria."

"I always happen to hear you when you are." The bird replied as he followed after the puff.

"...I'm not going to pretend to know what I'm talking about, but are you interested in me or something?"

"What tipped you off?"

"Well, you always somehow being near me for one. Two, you're happy and have been happy ever since we started talking."

"Well, you're right. I am interested in you."

"...Would you like to be friends then? Like officially or whatever."

The bird chuckled. "You mean we aren't already?"

"Fair enough." Meta replied, slightly smiling.

---------

Soon, they reached the cafeteria which was of course packed.

"Well, who looks easy to talk to?" He wondered to himself.

"Hey, don't look at me!" Vul said.

"I wasn't. Hey, that's Crate over there, right?"

"Yeah, it is! And it looks like she's sitting by herself!"

"Well, I guess I'll talk to her then. Let's go." The bird nodded as he followed him to the dog.

"Um... hey, Crate." He uttered.

The giant boxer looked at Meta and smiled. "Hello there."

"Um... is anyone sitting here?" He asked.

"No." Meta nodded and sat down next to her.

"So... how are you?" "Hot. I just got done training."

"You should drink a lot of water then!"

"I've drunk 3 gallons of water."

"I... I see..."

"My species drinks more water than most because of our size and fur."

"Ok. What about ice cream?"

"I'm allergic to dairy, otherwise I would be eating a large bowl right about now."

"Pretty sure they have vegan flavors." Vul said.

"I've tried them, didn't care for it."

"Or water ice?"

"I don't know what that is."

"They're snow cones but better."

"Maybe later then."

Meta nodded silently. "So, what kind of things do you like?" He then asked.

"Hmm, I like poetry."

"Poetry? Interesting? Would you care to share a few poems with us?" Vul asked.

"Oh, well if you insist." She then cleared her throat. "They fight like heroes. All of their threats get taken down to zero. Like them I wish to be a hero. I'll work hard to not be a zero."

"That's quite good."

"Thank you." She then looked at Meta. "Not that I mind, but is there a reason you're here?"

"To...talk with you." He uttered, slightly embarrassed.

"Ok then. What about?"

"...I don't know..."

"Sensei, wants him to practice socialization." Vul explained.

"Ok. So, talk then, if you want to."

The youth nodded, but then looked nervous.

"Just act like you're talking to the cotton candy lady." The bird sighed.

"She has a name." He grumbled. "Crate, what else do you like?"

"Well, I like helping village whenever I can. Does that count?"

"I guess so..."

"I also like marshmallows. It's fun to squish them before eating them."

"Marshmallows are good." The puff replied.

"...that's strangely funny coming from you." Vul chuckled.

"Why? Because everyone compares Star Warriors to marshmallows?"

"Yeah."

"Well, fine then. Crate, do you train with anyone? You always seem to be on your own."

"I don't train with anyone."

"Why not? Even I spar with other soldiers."

"No one wants to spar with me."

"I've offered to spar with you before though?"

"I rather not burden you..."

"I'm the one that offered though."

"Still! I just feel bad for asking someone like you!"

"Why?"

"I'll just hold you back!"

"Uh, how? It's sparring. It's to both of our benefits."

"Just stop questioning it, ok?"

"Uh... alright."

Both Meta and Vul looked confused at that response.

"Are you ok?"

"I'm fine." Crate's mood seemed have taken a complete 180, confusing them more.

"Well, alright." Meta looked at Vul, who seemed to be thinking the same thing as him. "Well, if that's all, we should get going." Meta then said.

"Wait, I have a question for you now. What do you think of sensei?" Crate suddenly asked.

"Well... I have a lot of respect for her. If I'm going to be completely honest, I would be dead if it wasn't for her."

"Ok, I see. I think she's inspiring."

"Yeah, I think so, too. She's so brave and strong, but she's also kind and gentle."

"Yes, she's definitely a good leader."

"I hope to become someone like her someday." Meta sighed as he got up. "Well, I guess we'll see you later, Crate."

"Wait, a minute!" Crate suddenly said.

"What?"

"Um... would you... like to walk around the ship for a while?" She asked nervously.

Meta looked a bit surprised, but didn't see anything wrong with that. "Sure. Are you fine with that, Vul?"

"Well, as long as we talk during it, you'll still be getting socialization practice."

"Yeah, I know. Are you fine with doing more walking?"

"Yeah, sure."

"Alright, come on then you two." Meta said as he started walking. The duo nodded and joined him.

---------

As they walked around Meta noticed something about his new companion. "Crate, you must be excited about walking, aren't you?"

"Oh, that's because I haven't explored much of the ship!" She then paused. "How did you tell?"

"All Star Warriors can sense emotions." He replied simply.

She seemed to hesitate for a moment. "All emotions?"

"Yes. Joy, sorrow, anger, calm, love, even combinations of those emotions."

"I see..."

"Why? You seem a bit concerned by that."

"Oh, it's nothing."

"Well, alright." Meta replied, deciding to just drop it.

As the group walked around, Crate spoke up again. "Do you know if sensei has any set schedule when she returns from a mission? Like a ritual?"

"Not really. She usually returns whenever she feels like. If anything, she's almost always back before nine PM. But sometimes she comes back after, but usually she's good at getting home before then."

"Does she do anything when she returns?"

"Depends. Sometimes she goes straight to bed, sometimes she gets in some training. She doesn't really have a schedule; she just does whatever she wants."

"Is there like a most likely schedule, though? Like does she shower or eat or go straight to bed."

"I wouldn't know. Why are you so curious about it?"

"I think I'd like to ask her a few things."

"Like what?"

"Private matters."

"Like what kind?"

"It's private for a reason you know. You never know if there's a spy around."

"A spy? I sincerely doubt we have any of those."

"But are you sure about that?"

Meta frowned. "Are you sure that there is one?"

"There might be. You never know."

"In other words, you don't actually know. Crate, you need to stop being so paranoid." The puff told her, giving her a look of suspicion.

"O-Oh right. You're probably right. I'm just nervous about the possibility of one."

The youth stared at her for a moment, but then sighed, as if to accept that answer. Meta then stopped, looking around.

"What's up?" Vul asked.

"I sense someone, hey, whose there?" He called out.

From behind them, in the hallway, a strange humanoid wearing... what Meta could only describe as a disastrous marriage between traditional kimono and modern clothing sauntered out, holding a folded fan to their lips, as if it was some kind of stage performance.

"Who are you?" Meta asked, not really sure about what he was looking at.

"Ah, finally! I was wondering where I could get some service here! Do you know how long I have been walking around here to get some semblance of a welcome? Here, take my coat."

What confused Meta even more was that the man only made the motion of taking off a coat before tossing it to him, essentially taking nothing off.

"I repeat, who are you?" Meta asked again, even more confused. Vul was just as confused as well.

"Just a wandering traveler." He bluntly replied.

"Wandering travelers don't just end up on a military vessel. Who are you?"

"That..." He posed strangely, covering one of his eyes with his fan. "Is up to you to figure out, young man."

Meta glared at him. "Just give me a straight answer."

"Impatient, are you?" He mumbled, fanning himself for a moment before sitting seiza style in front of the group and slamming his fan down on the ground. "My name is Shinkiro. I am merely a visiting performer. It is good to meet your acquaintance, O crabby Prince of Shadows."

Meta just stared at him. "Hello."

Shinkiro equally stared and sigh. "...tough crowd I see. You're a lot crankier than the Lady of Shadows described you."

"If I'm cranky it's only because you took forever with answering my question. And how do you know my sensei?"

"Anyone at the main base would know Z's little girl." He bluntly replied.

"Do you enjoy not giving straight answers? Whatever, so you are an Organization member then? Why are you here?"

"Does a member of the Organization need a reason to be on an organization ship?"

"I suppose not, but normally one does have a reason."

"...fantastic. Because I honestly don't remember why I came here."

"...How?"

"How does one forget something?"

Meta sighed. Talking to normal people was already a challenge, this is just even more of one. "Shinkiro, was it? What species are you? I've never seen anyone like you before."

"Glad you asked. I am what's known as a Chaogean." The three soldiers all looked at him questioningly.

"I don't think I've read about that one."

"I shouldn't be surprised you are confused, because not many people have apparently heard of us." Shinkiro uttered, tapping his head. "Tell me. If you were able to gain strength from your conviction, what would you think?"

Meta looked confused. "What do you mean by conviction?"

"Your conviction. Your belief. Your faith. Something you believe wholeheartedly and use as your drive for life."

"I get that, but what does that have to do with my question? I asked about Chaogeans."

"It has very much to do with us Chaogeans. Our powers come from our convictions."

"So, every Chaogean has a unique ability then?"

"Exactly."

"What's yours then?"

Shinkiro grinned. "My conviction is..." He paused, likely for dramatic effect. "The world is a stage, and the people are its actors!"

Meta however was unimpressed. "Meaning?"

"Do you really want to know?" The man uttered.

"I have a vague feeling that you will regardless of what I say."

Shinkiro, however, looked dead serious as he said that. Meta sighed.

"Just tell me please. I'm tired of not receiving a straight answer."

"It's easier to show you." A strange marking then began to appear on his eyes. "I, Shinkiro, command you to reveal at least 5 of your secrets!"

Meta didn't say anything, confused as to what was happening. Vul on the other hand... "I actually like the taste of fried chicken, I'm afraid of heights, I don't know how to tie shoes, I'm allergic to garlic, and I once blew up a shed with a makeshift pipe bomb."

Seeing this, Shinkiro explained. "I can force anyone who makes direct eye contact with me to follow any order I give them."

"I see...Why didn't it work on me then?" Meta asked, patting the back of an extremely embarrassed Vul.

"Perhaps your conviction is somehow stronger than mine." He then scratched his head. "Though that's strange. Usually, it would appear as a suggestion then."

"It did. I hear a voice suggesting I do it, but I didn't have the inclination to actually do it." Meta said then he looked at Crate. "What about you?"

"Oh me? I blinked when it happened, so I guess I'm just unaffected by it."

"Perhaps."

"No, your little big dog friend is right. Eye contact is a necessity for my power to work."

"Is that so? That seems a bit like an oversight." The puff uttered.

"HA! Excellent wordplay young, crabby prince of Shadows."

The youth stared in confusion at those words.

"You said oversight and his ability relies on sight." Vul whispered so only Meta could hear.

"Oh, I see." He whispered back.

"Yes, it is an oversight, but like how an actor can have a wardrobe malfunction, not everything can be controlled all the time."

"Yeah..." Meta knew that feeling too well.

"But it's fine, for an actor can get through anything with effort." He then laughed, making Meta internally question if all members of the Organization were this eccentric. The images of his mentor flashed through his head, making him come to a definitive answer to that question.

"...of course they all are." He thought.

"So... what is my conviction?" Meta asked.

"That's something for you to figure out on your own. But a word of advice, what you seek may not be too far away from you."

"...I see..." The youth uttered.

"Well, it was nice meeting you crabby prince. Till we meet again!" Shinkiro said, dramatically hopping away on one foot.

"...well, that was weird." Vul said after the man was out of sight.

"Weird is normal around here." Meta said under his breath.

"Well, where to now?" The bird then asked.

"Crate, have you been shown where the armory is?"

"No, I would like to see it."

Meta nodded. "I'm surprised you haven't yet. It was one of the first places sensei showed me."

"Well, the ship was quite busy at the time I joined, so I didn't get to see it."

"I suppose that makes sense. How about you, Vul? Have you been there?"

"Briefly. I didn't stay for too long because I thought it would be better to have a proper guide in there. As for why sensei didn't show me, she apparently had something more important to worry about."

"Yeah, that makes sense."

Vul then paused. "If you don't mind me asking, what was the important thing?"

"Me. She was helping me cope with watching allies die in front of me."

Both his allies stared in shock.

"Hm? What's wrong?" Meta asked.

"Are... you serious...?" Vul uttered.

"Serious about what? Me watching my comrades die?"

"Yes, did that actually happen?"

"Do I seem the type to lie about something like that?"

"No! Just... it feels unbelievable..."

"It's probably also because there were no reported casualties on the mission a few months ago."

"Well, it happened. And what do you mean unbelievable? We're soldiers, death is common in this profession. I learned that the hard way."

"How did it happen if there was no report of it?"

"Not everything gets reported. Especially when it happened with another divisions crew. The updates you get here publicly only relate to combat division personnel. Full details are for the captain and vice captain as well as those involved only."

Both Vul and Crate seemed to jump back a bit at that somewhat angry reply.

"Now come on. We have an armory to look at."

The duo looked at each other before following along.

---------

As they walked along, one of the allies spoke up again.

"So can you tell us what happened?" Crate asked.

"I can."

"Will you then?"

"No." He replied quickly.

"Better just drop the subject, Crate." Vul whispered to her.

She silently nodded. "Well, what would you like to talk about?"

"Literally anything else."

The duo seemed to sigh at that.

"Then how about you decide on the subject. You need to learn to socially interact, right?" Vul said.

"I don't need to learn, I need to get better. But fine. Vul, what weapons do you like?"

"Same idea, mate. As for my preferred weapons, it's the crossbow."

"Anything else?"

"Anything with range, honestly."

Meta nodded. "Why a crossbow specifically?"

"It just feels a lot more accurate and faster to use than a bow and arrow."

"True, on average crossbows are far superior, especially in a one-on-one scenario. Though that's not to say normal bows don't have advantages. With crossbows you can only fire one arrow at a time. Regular bows can fire potentially up to five, maybe even more arrows at a time. Which in turn makes them slightly better for dealing with a crowd."

The bird chuckled. "You know a lot for someone so obsessed with swords. But yes, I can use both if needed."

"I'm interested in all types of weapons. Swords are just my favorite. Do you have any method of fighting up close?"

"Fists and using a knife."

Meta nodded. "That's good. What kind of knife? I can give you recommendations if you want to try a new type."

"A standard army knife. Any recommendations would be great."

"For you, I suggest a Barong Machete. They cover a good distance and are good for wood cutting as well as cutting down foes. Multipurpose."

"I see. I'll have to look into getting one."

Meta nodded. "Crate, what about you?"

"Oh, I don't use weapons. My fists are strong enough."

Meta frowned. "Bad idea. Fighting hard to hand fine. But you should look into wearing gauntlets. It'll increase your damage output and keep your fists guarded."

"I see... can you help me pick those out?"

"Of course."

Crate smiled. "Thank you."

"What about you?" Vul asked.

"I can use spears, staffs, axes, bows, gauntlets. Practically any standard issue weapon. It's when we get to more...unique weapons where my expertise is more limited. Items like fans or nunchaku, I can use them but not as well as more standard weapons."

"And swords?" The bird asked with a grin.

"That goes without saying." He grinned back.

"Come to think of it, why do you love swords so much?"

"They are straight forward. With other weapons there's various factors that go into using them. Not with swords though. Regardless of type, all swords follow the same principle. Stab and pierce. No fancy gimmicks, no immediate advantage or disadvantage. Just a simple blade, and it's up to the user to use it to its full potential. A sword is malleable, fitting for almost any scenario. Much like a Star Warrior."

Vul blinked. "Wow, I didn't know swords were that variable."

"Of course. Regardless of the Era, intelligent civilizations have always used swords."

"And here I thought it was because sensei used them." Crate uttered.

"No. Even before I met her, I liked swords. I was already accustomed to them, even if all I had were rusty swords I took from the bodies of thieves that tried to kill me. A sword was a sword."

"I see. I just thought you did with how much you seemed to respect her."

"No. I respect her greatly that much is true. But I'm me, not her."

"Of course. Now, what do you like about her?"

"That's an odd question, considering I expressed my admiration for her earlier. But I like mostly everything about her."

"Ah... my mistake. Is there anything you don't like about her?"

"Not particularly. It annoys me when she picks on me, but I don't necessarily dislike it either."

"Why don't you dislike it?"

"Because it comes from a place of concern. She cares about me, I know she messes with me because she cares. I might get annoyed at her, but it never goes beyond annoyance."

Crate was silent.

"Anyway, we're here." Meta announced.

"Meta, what's in that room over there?" Vul asked.

"Hm? Oh, that's the ship's reactor. The door is password protected."

"I assume only the Bukisets, the captain, and vice captain know?" The bird then asked.

"Pretty much."

"I understand the captain and vice captain, but why the Bukisets?" Crate asked.

"They do maintenance." Meta said as if it was common knowledge, which it was supposed to be.

"I see."

"I bet the captain told you at point. What is it?" Vul asked.

"I don't know." Meta said seriously.

"Really, I would of thought that she would tell you."

The puff shrugged. "It is what it is." He then replied, keeping his knowledge to himself. He found it amusing. "Now come on, let's look inside the armory now." The group nodded and entered it.

---------

Upon entering the room, the duo noticed one thing about the room.

"It's hot." Vul stated, sweating like a turkey in summer.

"There's a giant furnace in here. We make our own weapons, so of course it'll be hot. Don't worry, we won't be here long."

"Good..." Crate panted.

"Now get looking. The sooner you see everything the sooner you can leave."

They nodded and began to walk around.

"There's so many weapons. I know we're the combat division, but still..." Vul commented at his surroundings.

"Yeah, I was surprised at first as well." The puff replied.

"Can we leave now?" Crate asked.

"If you're done looking, yes."

"I am. Can we go? I can feel my sweat having sweat of its own."

"Ok, then we can leave."

The moment those words left the puff's mouth, both of his friends practically sprinted to the door, making him stare at them in confusion.

---------

After everyone left as fast as possible, the puff heard another voice.

"Hey, Meta, I've noticed something." Vul said.

"What is it?"

"For someone who's not much of a talker, you sure are good at leading others."

"Really?" The puff asked.

"Yeah, I mean you're getting us to do everything you say right?"

He chuckled. "Yeah, I guess."

"Will you be taking over this division in the future?" Crate asked.

"I don't know. I'd rather focus on the me of now instead of the me of then."

"Well, if people are calling ya the Prince of Shadows, wouldn't that be the case?" Vul questioned.

"No? I don't see what a nickname I had no say in having has to do with anything. She was called the lady of shadows before she became a captain. Titles are just titles, nothing more."

"It implies you're her successor."

"No, it doesn't. If I end up being her successor, it's because I choose to be, not because people expect me to become her successor. I'm my own person. I decide what I want for myself."

"Then would you want to be her successor?"

"I just said I don't know. I'm young. I have a lot to learn before I consider taking her position.

"I see..." Vul uttered.

"What about you Vul? Do you know what you want to do?"

"I thought about being a captain once in a while, but I think you're much better at that."

"Perhaps. But Captain Vul has a nice ring to it, don't you think?"

The bird hummed upon hearing that. "Yeah... yeah... that sounds good."

"What about you, Crate?"

"Oh, I haven't figured that out yet!" She replied nervously.

"That's fine. There's no need to be nervous about it."

"Are you the same way, Meta?"

"Again, I already said I don't know what I want. I still have a lot to learn about the universe."

"Have you talked to sensei about it?"

"Of course I have. She told me literally what I've been telling you two. I have my whole life to figure out what I want."

The duo nodded.

"So, what about relationships?" Crate suddenly asked.

"What about them?"

"Do you have anyone you're interested in?"

"In what way?"

"Do you have a girlfriend?" Vul said bluntly, making Crate blush.

"I have female friends. yes. I don't see why that matters."

The bird laughed. "You are so naive... are you dating a girl?"

"No."

"...really? Not even that cotton candy friend of yours?"

"She's my friend, nothing else to it."

The bird grinned. "Are you suuureeee?"

"Yes."

"Doesn't seem like it." He chuckled.

"You can think whatever you want."

"I think that he is that oblivious..." Crate whispered.

"No kidding." Vul whispered back.

The puff looked confused. "Well, whatever. What about you, Vul?"

"Admittedly, I'm not too interested." The bird shrugged.

"Fine. You Crate?"

"...nope."

"You sure? You hesitated a little, not even Meta did that."

"I don't have one!"

"Yeesh, not even Meta was that defensive. There's definitely someone now."

"You're just imagining things!"

"That's enough, both of you." Meta commanded.

Both of them became quiet.

"Good. Now Crate, where else haven't you been?"

"How about you just take me to a place you like?"

Meta sighed and shook his head. "Fine. Follow me."

The duo nodded and followed after him.

---------

They came to a very narrow hallway and a closed, blocked off passageway.

"Meta, what is this place?" Crate asked as they arrived.

"The airlock." He answered simply.

"What's the airlock?"

Meta and Vul both looked at her with a confused expression.

"The airlock. It locks the air. It keeps us from being sucked out into space. All massive space battleships have one."

"I see. So, if this opens, then we'll get sucked out into space?"

"Not exactly. Behind this door is a bigger glass door. If that opens, then we'll get sucked out."

"Have you ever been beyond that door?"

"No, because then there's just outer space."

"Really? You think Kurabe would have you do some training there."

"No? There's no gravity out there. That would be counterproductive to the weights I wear during training. Plus, while I can breathe in space, not everyone can. Sensei treats everyone fairly. Sensei might put us through intense training, but she's not a savage. She would never put someone in a scenario where they could die just for training."

"...debatable." Vul grumbled.

"Have you been put in a deadly scenario while training?"

"Well, no."

"Then it's not debatable."

"You sure, though? She can be a drill sergeant with her training." Crate said.

"I said she's not a savage. She has never crippled anyone or gotten someone gravely injured during training. Being a drill sergeant is normal behavior for a drill sergeant. Because that's what she is."

"Are you sure she hasn't crippled anyone?"

"Yes. I've been here longer than both of you. I'm friends with someone who has been here longer than me. We both know that no one has ever gotten crippled by her. You can even check sensei's public record. It'll say the same thing." He then cleared his throat. "We're getting off topic. I took us here for a reason."

"Why's that?"

"Because look out the window. The view outside is beautiful."

Both Vul and Crate turned to the window and the youth was indeed right about that.

"I like to come here and watch the stars move by."

"I can see why. The view is beautiful." Vul uttered.

Meta nodded. "Vul. Do you think I've gotten better with talking?"

The bird chuckled. "If you ask me, I think you made a bit of progress today. But don't get frustrated if you think you're going too slowly. Just keep at it."

"Right. If anything, that strange man from earlier was good for talking practice."

"Yeah. Especially if you're gonna deal with all kinds of nuts in the Organization."

"I have a feeling I'll be dealing with nut jobs no matter what happens in my life." With that said, Meta turned away. "I'm getting tired. I think I'll call it a day."

"Fair enough, I'm pretty sure dealing with that Cha... whatever drained you enough." Vul laughed.

"I trained for eight hours. So yes, I'm fairly drained." He said with a smile.

"I'll see you two later then."

"Yeah, see ya later. Meta. Hope you have a good rest." The bird replied as their dog friend waved as well. With a smile, the puff returned to his room to rest.

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Toyhouse Page for Shinkiro