#i think once i let go of being a perfectionist and focused on shapes it was a lot more fun but ahhh still so hard to make shapes seem fun

[pommancy]

Huevember 5 Solution Nine

[the-bloody-sadist]

Hello, sorry if this ask is awkward. I've come upon many of your works and they've always pulled me in. Thinking it over, I realize that I bleed my perfectionist issues into my writing and make all my characters OP or stereotypical or generally boring. How can I stop being scared of writing "human" characters? Is there a way to do that?

You don't have to answer this. You can delete this ask if I'm being weird here. Thank you for taking your time to read this, though.

From Juni.

This is not awkward in the least!!! I'm very happy to hear the questions, especially on writing! That's something I know a lot about, even if I don't believe myself capable of applying all of my knowledge in the best ways possible for some of my own works. Still, character psychology is my favorite topic.

What I would say is the most important thing (and I'm a perfectionist as well) is to realize that the more flaws a character has, the more relatable they are. The less flaws they have, the more unrealistic they are - thus unlikable or un-relatable.

To address the certain types you mentioned specifically, I'll try and use examples. For instance, if you have an OP character, the best way to make them interesting is to give them an emotional weakness. If it's Saitama from Once Punch Man, who can literally defeat any threat in a single punch, give him a friend, and then make that friend the threat, that friend the villain, whether the friend is a traitor or an unwilling participant to another villain's plans. What's he gonna do, then? Not be OP and kill him in one punch.

For OP characters, the trick is generally to make the conflict more complicated and emotional. Since I'm character-focused as a writer, the way I might do an OP character is to give him a fragile personality type. Extreme contrast to his OP-ness is interesting, it adds a direct opposite.

Opposites are the best trick to making any character complex.

If you have issues with stereotypical characters, you can use this same method. Did you make a jock character? The kind that stereotypically bullies the weak kids, has multiple girlfriends, is a player, etc? Make him a crybaby. Make him sensitive. Make him a bully of kids that remind him of himself. Maybe he can't keep girls because they expect him to be tough and cool, but then he has a breakdown over something small and they laugh at him. Cheerleader stereotype? Usually vain, obsessed with being a ringleader? Give her self-hatred so extreme that she can't even look at herself if she's not wearing layers of makeup. She hates being popular, but does it out of necessity for her own survival in the school, or else she'd be bullied, and she can't deal with that.

Typically the problem with stereotypes is that we've seen them so much (thus the label) that we no longer care about them when we see them. If you give us something that we can empathize with, relate to, or feel bad for them over, you've made progress!

Being worried about writing 'human' characters is usually a reflection of your own fear of your own flaws. You have to allow a certain amount of vulnerability with yourself when you write, including trying to let characters adopt traits from you. Almost every one of my own characters has something (many things) related to me that they deal with, whether habits or trauma types or fears or mental illnesses. That's why I'm able to write them that way! So honestly, if you're a perfectionist, try writing a character who's also perfectionist. If they want to be perfect so badly that they show none of their flaws, give them an arc where it bottles up so much that it eventually bursts out somehow.

In the end, there are quite a few ways to spice up a character. For me, I most often go to trauma. It's my passion, obviously, but it holds a lot of weight. When a character has past trauma, it shapes everything that they are in the present.

I have books I use that indicate common traits of different traumas or backstory events if I struggle with some (The Emotional Wound Thesaurus by Becca Puglisi and Angela Ackerman is the best, and I recommend all of their other thesauruses as well). This helps me if I get stuck, though I've used it so much that it's old hat by now, and my own experiences most often inform my characters'.

If you want deeper thoughts on the matter, feel free to ask me any other questions you have, or take a look at the Positive and Negative Traits Thesauruses from those authors! They have sections in the beginning of all of their books that give the most excellent breakdowns of how to create a perfectly flawed character and how to make the audience care.

Thank you so much for the ask - much love to you!! <3

[brandwhorestarscream]

please tell me about crystal city, what happens to it?

WOOOOOO LETS GO 🥳

Ok, SO! I have spent way too much time thinking about this. Crystal City is one of my favorite things about transformers simply from a world building standpoint because it's fascinating

My idea for Crystal City is that it is one of the 13 major citystates of Cybertron, and this one was made by Quintus Prime. In the pantheon we've crafted, Quintus is a the secondary god of life. He was the only one of the 13 that could create life from nothing, same as Primus could, tho his power was considerably lesser. Quintus shaped life from many materials, not just pure metal. That's where Crystal City comes in--he rose a civilization made of beautiful reflective crystal, and his citizens were crystalline mecha. They function exactly the same as all other Cybertronians, but their bodies are made of crystal. They're reflective and sparkly and beautiful; Quintus was something of a perfectionist, so his creations and his city were beacons of light and wonder.

...unfortunately, their being made of such a different material made them rather delicate compared to their cousins. Death by shattering was the most common worry. Having limbs break off and crumble if faced with a significant amount of force was also a possibility. So the crystallines mostly keep to themselves, very rarely leaving their home, and outsiders typically aren't invited in just because of the safety concerns.

Now! For Lustre!

In Hindsight's 5th timeline, the big bad is Unicron and a sparkeater apocalypse (I can explain that later if you want). Cybertron has been reduced to a wasteland in the wake of millions of sparkeaters, and any survivors struggle to make ends meet and avoid being eaten.

This timeline (once Arcee and Galvatron arrive) primarily follows the Acolytes, who are basically chosen servants pf the gods that tended the temples, handled ceremonies, and had devoted their lives to the pantheon. Lustre is one of the 12 Acolytes (any guesses as to which Prime doesn't have one? 🤭), a crystalline that serves Quintus Prime. They're a geneticist who focuses primarily on breeding the crystal flowers of the city, producing mutations for the aesthetic, for medicinal purposes, to discover new genomes, etc, etc. Seeking out new expressions of life, if you will.

[dammitadolfnomorecake]

Rage Fire Institution

Accelerating. 37.

Maki had to admit that once everyone had arrived, painting was kind of fun, or at least fun enough to smile and laugh with the others. With limited numbers Li had cut his cheer squad down, Silva and Fleur in his ranks, along with one friend of Stella’s, one friend of Anthony’s, and one of Li’s friends Maki didn’t know that well from class as he wasn’t in the same class. Unlike their friends in the research team, the cheer team’s approach to painting was more laid back. Lucian and Camden turning into perfectionist monsters, hyper focused on making the research teams banners the better and creating a competition between the teams over who’s looked best at the end. Maki couldn’t care less. He found himself a corner and stayed put until Li dragged him over to work on the big banner with him, Fleur and Tatsumi. Tatsumi forced onto team cheer squad whether he liked it or not.

“Prof, how did you manage to get paint of your cheek again?”

Watching Fleur and Tatsumi, Tatsumi smeared more paint on his cheek as he tried to wipe it off. Fleur snorting lightly as Maki ducked his head. Tatsumi seemed a like child being scolded by his mother and Fleur was acting as if they were old friends, causing something in him to feel unsettled. Picking up the rag they were using for blotches, Fleur lined Tatsumi up

“You’re making it worse. Seriously, stop. Hold still, I’ll get it… You’ve got it on your hand”

As Fleur wiped Tatsumi’s cheek, Tatsumi sat still

“Thanks, I guess I’m hopeless at painting”

“Nah, you’re just messy. You could be like Li”

The pair looked to Li. Somehow he had every colour they were using splattered on his clothes. Li grinning

“It’s called art. I’m thinking of making this a look”

Fleur rolled his eyes, Maki trying not to watch the way his hand gently scrubbed at Tatsumi’s cheek, but failing miserably as he did

“You’ve got some look happening, but I don’t think it’s going to be the next fashion trend”

“Says you. Help me out, Tatsumi. I’m rocking this, aren’t I?”

Tatsumi nodded, earning him a flick with the rag from Fleur

“Don’t go encouraging him”

“No, he nodded, so it totally counts. Besides, Maki’s got more paint on him than I do”

Nope. He was not getting dragged into this. As far as Maki was concerned he was doing just as good of a job as Li was

“Oi. No. Don’t go bringing me into this. I didn’t want to paint in the first place”

Licking his thumb, Tatsumi leaned over the banner, Maki jerking back when he realised his friend’s hand was coming for him. Tatsumi laughing at his action

“You’ve got paint on your face too. Hold still”

Maki couldn’t let himself be seen with Tatsumi wiping the paint off his face with the thumb he’d just licked… though it might have been alright if they didn’t have an audience

“I’ll get it myself”

Li elbowed Maki

“Don’t be like that… umm, Prof, your knee’s in the paint”

Tatsumi looked down, Li was right, his friend sitting back immediately leaving a leg shaped imprint in the paint. Fleur pinched his nose as he shook his head, his tone tired

“Really, all this over a little paint. Maki, go lend Tatsumi a pair of your pants. There’s some in your locker, right?”

With how Fleur was fawning over Tatsumi, Maki was surprised he was being nominated, a tad snarky in his reply

“You don’t want to lend him a pair of yours?”

Fleur rolled his eyes

“Some of us aren’t tall like you freaks. My pants are going to look stranger than yours. What are you getting pissy over? It’s just a pair of pants. His are going to get stiff to walk in once that paint dries”

Tatsumi brushed off Fleur’s concerns

“It’s honestly fine. I’m more worried about the banner”

But Fleur had a logical counter argument

“And what about if you get paint on another banner? Go change your pants. Maki, take him to change his pants”

As Li started snickering, Maki smacked him with the back of his hand

“Don’t you go laughing. You’re just as likely to get paint all over another banner”

That promptly shut his friend’s laughing up

“Oh, fine. I won’t make any jokes about the omega mothering the group. This is the most paternal I’ve ever seen Fleur”

It was also the most paternal Maki had seen his friend. Still, Fleur cared. Maki knew he was only on the cheer team due to being his friend, yet Fleur had still made the choice to participate

“Don’t blame it on his dynamic. Fleur is his own person, omega or not. Dynamics don’t mean shit if you’re a shitty person. I don’t see you offering Tatsumi a pair of your pants”

“That’s because the love machine is saving having someone in his pants for that special person”

Maki smacked Li again. His friend’s big mouth was going to make him think about things he didn’t want to

“Shut up, you idiot. It’s not like that at all. I’m never lending you my clothes ever again. Tatsumi, come with me. I have a pair that should fit”

Tatsumi raised his hands as if surrendering from the conversation

“Thank you for the offer, but I’ll head back and change in my quarters. I’ve also organised lunch so I need to pick it up while I’m at it. You three are in charge while I’m gone”

Quickly shaking his head, the alpha didn’t know why he wanted to go with Tatsumi. Tatsumi was an adult, but seeing him fussing with Fleur had done something to him that he didn’t quite understand. When he thought about it, Tatsumi had seemed a little strange after they’d hugged. If his friend was uncomfortable with him hugging him but okay with Fleur’s fussing, then maybe he’d done something wrong? Then again, Tatsumi had been prepared to wipe paint off his face with his thumb… Maybe he’d upset his friend by saying no? In that case he had to apologise properly as soon as possible

“I’ll come with you. It’ll be hard to carry back enough food for all of us”

Wiping his hands on his already paint smattered pants, Tatsumi shook his head

“It’s fine, I spoke with the canteen this morning when I picked up breakfast, so it’ll be on a trolley for me to collect. You stay and have fun with your friends. I’ll be back soon, guys”

Maki felt disappointed by Tatsumi’s polite refusal of his help. He’d let him help with the banners, but why not the food? Tatsumi’s tall form catching everyone’s attention as he passed. So what if he needed to change his pants? Maybe Li had embarrassed him into saying no with that whole comment about someone he liked being in his pants?

Li wasted no time as Tatsumi left their group. Watching until he deemed their friend was far enough away, his best friend grabbed him by the arm

“Right, spill. I know you’ve denied it before, but are totally crushing on the Prof, aren’t you?”

Too busy watching Tatsumi, Maki’s brain needed a moment to register what Li has said, Maki didn’t get why he suddenly felt panicked or what Li was getting at, spluttering

“What? No. What are you talking about?”

Looking to Fleur for back up, his friend nodded, his tone somewhat soft yet scolding at the same time

“You’re making it obvious”

Maki prickled at the accusation, his heart starting to feel as if it were racing

“But I’m not crushing on him, he’s my friend”

Fleur rolled his eyes, gesturing as he replied

“Dude, you were totally glaring just now”

“Yeah, well, you were the one wiping paint off his face”

Maki’s defence didn’t help him. If anything he’d just made the situation worse. Sure, Tatsumi might have looked cute with paint all over him… cute… cute? Since when was… why was… cute?! Getting up, Fleur stepped over the banner, sitting down on Maki’s free side. The paintbrush slipped from the alpha’s hand as he malfunctioned. Fleur asking softly

“Uh, Maki? Look, we aren’t teasing you, but how did this happen? We thought you two were just tight? If you’re dating, we want to support you”

“No. No way…”

Tatsumi was his friend. He couldn’t be crushing on his friend. Tatsumi had a lot going on… and he… he was always there. He’d brought them breakfast because they couldn’t train… He’d arranged all of this… Tatsumi was an omega… but his friend first. So what if the Professor looked cute with paint all over him like a child… they were friends… He’d… friends… they were…

Li said his name softly

“Maki?”

Maki needed out. Getting to his feet, he wasn’t being subtle as he took off towards the locker room. He couldn’t like Tatsumi like that… then why was… why did he have to realise now that he was jealous of Tatsumi and Fleur? Why was he even jealous to begin with? Tatsumi was friendly to everyone… but… but he’d seen Tatsumi’s scars… so didn’t… didn’t that make him special? Didn’t he want to be special to Tatsumi? Didn’t he want Tatsumi to… to treat him like he treated no one else?

Throwing open the locker room door, Maki made it as far the bench in the middle of the first two lines of lockers before running out of steam. He’d hugged Tatsumi. He’d hugged him before his head could keep up. He’d gone straight to Tatsumi’s arms knowing Tatsumi would comfort him over the competition. Burying his face in his hands, he didn’t know what to do. He… he’d already had such thoughts of Tatsumi in bed. What he’d like. How he’d be. The feel of his muscles under Maki’s fingers. He’d scared himself right then and there, vowing nothing was going to change between them because they were friends. He’d stopped sneaking out as often. He’d stopped going to Donny’s every Thursday night… He couldn’t remember the last time he’d gone. They were together every day. Tatsumi had used him, then tried to make it up to him. How could he… how could he have feelings for his tutor? And why did it all have to make so much sense in his heart? The sadness he felt that once the competition was over they wouldn’t be spending as much time together. Why he got annoyed when everyone asked him how Tatsumi was. Why he wanted to be the one Tatsumi always came to and relied on. He wanted to be as important to Tatsumi as Tatsumi was to him.

“Maki, hey, are you okay?”

As Maki raised his head to look at Li, something wet hit his hand. Raising his hand to his cheek he realised he was crying. Li immediately jumping to concerned friend mode as he strode over to hug Maki

“Hey, I’m sure it’s not that bad”

It kind of was…

“I think I like him… oh, god, what if hates me now?”

“Tatsumi would never hate you”

“I’m not meant to like him. I didn’t know… I didn’t understand”

“Did you really not?”

How could Li ask such a question?

“What’s that supposed to mean?”

“You two have been tight for months… I thought maybe and then you two acted the same and then today with Fleur…”

“But he’s my friend! Shouldn’t I have realised sooner?!”

Li patted his back

“You’re not great with the love thing… but I think it’s kind of obvious now, right? You’ve always kept everyone at a distance, but even when he was just your annoying babysitter, you still started talking more and more. Always complaining about his nagging?”

Because Tatsumi had been a giant pain in his arse… Maki groaned heavily

“But why wasn’t it obvious before? Before all this? He’s going to… we’re working so hard. He’s working so hard for me… I can’t have feelings like that for him”

“Why not? Because he’s an alpha? Since when did you care about that? He’s good looking, he’s cooked for you, and you’ve met his mother. The only thing left is marriage”

Punching Li wouldn’t solve anything, even if it would have made him temporarily feel better. The alpha shaking his head

“You don’t get it…”

“Then explain it to me. He doesn’t have a lover does he? Why not confess?”

Li was being too pushy, Maki couldn’t take it, pushing his best friend back

“Because he’s been through a lot! Okay. He’s been through a lot and the last thing he needs is a friend who’s got feelings for him! He trusted me not to! I’m just some kid to him. I haven’t been in the military! I don’t know anything! He would never had had a moments time for me if I hadn’t been useful to him!”

His own words cut right through him. He forgave Tatsumi. He got mad when Tatsumi would get mad at himself for manipulating him. Tatsumi had come clean but promised only to tell him everything once the competition was over… Did Tatsumi really trust him as much as he said he did?

“What do you mean by that? What did he do?”

Li’s question was innocent enough. Any friend would worry for another on the back of what Maki had just said. Maki snapping

“He used me because I can pilot and he can’t. He pushed me into the research wing because he needed someone he could control. He lied to me and manipulated me all because he needed a pilot. What’s better than the loser you have to take care of all of the time and can hold that over him? He played me against myself until I… until I realised”

His best friend let out a low whistle

“Fuck… I missed all of this. Then how… how are you two even talking? Does he know you know?”

Maki felt ashamed. His scattered thoughts were so callous, but couldn’t seem to stop himself from feeling as angry as he was confused

“He does. He apologised. He’s helping me because he got me into this situation. He realised his own plan backfired. He probably doesn’t even care…”

“He wouldn’t have apologised if he did care…”

“I can’t like him, okay. I can’t. This isn’t how this all works. You can’t suddenly decide you like someone”

Li sighed sympathetically

“I wish it were that easy. You can’t help you catch feelings for”

“I can when it’s him. I told myself I wouldn’t betray him”

“It’s not betraying him to like him. Betraying him would be forcing your feelings onto him or forcing yourself on to him. You didn’t force yourself on him, right?”

Maki felt mortified. He had forced himself on Tatsumi!

“I made him hug me. This morning… when I saw my banner I… I panicked and I hugged him”

Li snorted at Maki’s panicked confession

“That’s not forcing yourself on him. It wasn’t sexual, was it?”

No. He’d wanted comfort from Tatsumi, not to drag him off to bed

“What? No. I wouldn’t do that to him!”

“Exactly, because you care about him. You care about how he sees you. If you don’t want to tell him, I’ll help you keep it a secret, but you were kind of obvious when and Fleur were talking”

Maki groaned

“Do you think he noticed?”

Li nodding

“I do, but I think it’s alright. He’s not used to Fleur so probably thought it was something between you two. Are you sure you can’t tell him how you feel?”

“If I do… everything changes. Our plans change. My graduating with you changes. He’d send me off to do my training, but the whole time…”

Li continued his sentence when Maki trailed off

“You’re worried he’s going to worry about you too much?”

Maki deflated entirely, shoulders slumped as he looked at his boots

“How can I? He’s… he’s got so much going on… not just with me but his friends and his mother… and… and the plan… the plan was to do my time here and graduate. If I tell him I like him, then what? I graduate and leave him behind? I tell him I have feelings for him then just leave? Or I push my graduation back and you have to go alone? We would never be friends again. I don’t want to lose him as a friend… If I can graduate and leave, maybe these feelings will pass? Maybe I won’t feel the same way when we’re not together every day?”

Li finally conceded

“I guess that makes sense. I’m terrified that we’ll stop being friends once we get on the battlefield. I guess everyone is scared of something. How are you going to deal with it?”

He couldn’t tell Tatsumi. Their friendship might be alright, other than him having upset Tatsumi earlier, but it’d never recover from his confession

“Ignore it… all I can do is ignore it. We have the competition to think of. You know, he’s still got a lot of secrets but he promised he’d tell me them all after the competition. Do you think he will?”

“I think if he said he would, then he will. I thought he was a good guy, and now you’re telling me he’s not”

Li sounded defeated. Tatsumi had sort of become an idol to Maki’s best friend. Maki shaking his head

“No, he is. I think he is. He always gave me the chance to speak up about everything and the option of another teacher. I think maybe not being able to return the military is the worst thing that could have happened to him”

The alpha would never tell his best friend that Tatsumi’s squad died in front of him. Even if he was angry, he had no right to be divulging such personal information. Li sounded broken hearted for him

“If he had, you two probably never would’ve met”

“Yeah… but it’s not about me. He’s… he’s had a rough time having to leave because of his accident. I think he really found himself in the military and then found himself cluelessly back here. He’s been through so much. I want to be there for him, but not if my feelings are only going to hurt him. I can’t cross this line between us”

“At least this afternoon should take your mind off things”

Maki raised an eyebrow at Li. How was the afternoon with Tatsumi supposed to take his mind off Tatsumi?

“What do you mean?”

“The pilot scramble. You’ll be too busy in a mech to think about anything else. We’re on the same team too”

Maki knew nothing of the pilot scramble or what Li meant. He doubted that it’d take his mind off Tatsumi… but maybe he could at least pretend to be normal? He only had to make it through the rest of the afternoon, then he could return to his quarters and come up with an action plan on how not to act on his feelings. Pretending to know, Maki strained a smile

“I’ll be relying on you”

“See that you do. I want victory. If we don’t win, I won’t be happy”

Tatsumi would have said the same thing. His heart hurt to think he’d have to keep Tatsumi at a distance. But if he couldn’t, he’d loose one of his closest friends and he absolutely couldn’t do that

“Alright, let’s head back out. Thanks for listening, I was kind of panicking”

“Man, you’re still panicking, but it’s alright, Li’s got your back. Operation “Tatsumi won’t find out” is now in progress.

[animeyanderelover]

If I remember correctly, you once wrote that William would either fall for someone who is exactly like him or the complete opposite. But what if they are somehow both? Like they have this perfect image at work and in public, but once they are alone they turn into lazy gremlin who just wants to lay in bed and eat snacks? (If you've seen anime Himouto!Umaru-chan, they are someone like her). I can only imagine Will's shocked face after seeing their personality change like that lol

I didn’t see that Anime. I’m currently watching Kuroko no Basket. But I like this. This reminds me a bit of myself😂.

Tw: Yandere themes, obsessiveness, stalking, controlling behavior

Hardworking yet lazy

📒William was never someone who striked for a partner in the first place. He met his darling on accident though, they were apparently an acquaintance of the one William was supposed to collect the memories from. So by watching them, he also watched, not on purpose, his darling. And every other grim reaper would have laughed and said that they were the spitting image of William. The same stoic expression, the same pair of glasses and an almost butler-like yet harsh way of choosing their words. And they were a small perfectionist, not a single spot could be dirty in their surroundings.

📒And William appreciated that attitude of yours. He doesn’t think very high of humans, he orders them in different categories. And you were definitely someone who deserved in his eyes the right to live. You were persistent, calm and polite yet knew when you had to go stricter and push a bit harder. He only watched you one day, but the tidiness which seemed to be very important to you and the way you were able to analyze things and find solutions impressed him.

📒William would start looking here and then after you in the human world, sometimes watching you working overtime which was very appreciated by him and yet he also worried himself a bit that you would one day have a breakdown due to all the stress. At first he was a more polite stalker, if you can call it that. He didn’t watch over your private life, only when you were working and you had an almost iron grip on your co-workers, demanding the best from them and yet seemed to know when they needed some rest which made you also act encouraging and kind to them when needed. This way of knowing the human nature and being so observant of the body language of others left a deep impression on William and the longer he stalked you, the higher he respected you.

📒And so after a couple of weeks he decided for the first time to follow you home. He wanted to deepen his research a bit about you and find out what exactly you liked and hated. You kept it pretty subtle about your preferences of food and personal likings in public and he had started to plan to approach you very soon and needed to know about what exactly he could talk to you and spark a good conversation.

📒So he followed you late at night, since you had spent a lot more hours on the projects than needed, to your house. A small and nice cottage, the plants in the garden very well nursed and cut into perfect shape. From what he could see through the window you seemed to keep your house tidy, very much in that matter. Everything seemed normal at first.

📒That was until you stepped into your room and suddenly let yourself slump into your bed, suddenly starting to complain about your goddamn tiring day of work, opening your night desk which was filled to the brim with sweets and snacks, wrapping yourself up in blankets and starting to munch snacks, not caring that the crumbs landed in your bed. Your room seemed in general like a complete different world in comparison to the rest of your house. Clothes were laying carelessly in every corner, trash was sprawled on the floor and the bed was a messy mess.

📒To say that William was shocked would have been an understatement, he was standing completely dumbfounded there, his face just saying:”What just happened in here?” He had never expected to see this. He had expected you to be working even at home, but you seemed to have troubles even leaving the bed and changing your clothes into something more comfy. Your wardrobe looked by the way like a bomb had exploded in it and William had this suspicion that a few of those pieces hadn’t been washed in a while.

📒William can only be fascinated with your sudden personality switch. It’s like as soon as you leave the house, you’re getting possessed by someone, tired and hunched over form suddenly straightening up and this determined and analyzing looking expression crossing your face. He would also feel a bit conflicted about this. William doesn’t appreciate laziness that much, especially since you lack a lot of hygiene in your room, wearing clothes that haven’t been washed in weeks. On the other hand you’re always working dutifully and get your job done which is why he can’t really complain that you lack motivation at work. Because then you absolutely shine.

📒It’s in a way very lovable for William to see those lazy and complaining side of yours, even though he would never show that too openly and scolds himself mentally every time he catches himself thinking of it as cute. To a degree he would be even a bit released since he was worried you would work even at home on your work, skip sleep or taking a short break which is needed for a human like you. But it turns out that you do take rests and don’t do anything at all at home. The only thing he can and will complain about is your ignorance of cleaning your own room, washing the clothes and throw all the trash away, not to mention the left over food in your room before it rots or insects are getting lured in by it.

📒William would try for the most part to start a normal relationship with you at first, not wanting to go through the unnecessary paperwork. It would be very interesting for him to approach you one day whilst you work and get to know this determined and focused side of yours which never seems to stop about their work. He knows he’ll have to build a lot of trust so you will ever be able to show him your other side.

📒He would try to adjust his behavior a bit, gaining your respect by just being the hard worker he is whilst also trying to discover if your more lazy side is slipping through at all whilst you work which won’t be the case. You live a perfect undercover life.

📒William knows that you will never show him this side of you think he won’t appreciate it. William is a bit annoyed by this side of yours, most likely because he’s a bit concerned about your health which you seem to neglect a bit due to it. But he also won’t force you to change too much since you get your work with pure perfection done. He would most like it just try to push you and bring you to cleaning your room at least once in a while. It’s rather hard to motivate you when you’re home. It is a sign for him that you trust him and feel comfortable around him since you at one point don’t try to hide your true nature anymore, but he can’t say that he’s a bit annoyed by this.

📒In the end it might just end with him cleaning up your room and washing your clothes since it bugs him. So on the one hand he’s worried that you’ll overdo it when you get outside the house, but it also annoys him that you don’t do anything at all once you’re home. Dear god, what are you doing with him?

[summonerscenarios]

Hey! I wanted to say that I absolutely love your writing! You always put so much detail into the scenarios you receive, and they always come out absolutely amazing. I’ve definitely read over a few of them tons of times before, including a matchup you did for me- If you can, I was wondering if you could do some sfw dating HCs for Behemoth with a S/O who loves to cook and bake? Thank you so much in advance, by the way! And keep up the great work!!

Thank you so much! The extra work is definitely worth it and I’m honestly so glad that you like them enough to read over them more than once~! Here’s something sweet for a sweet boy for an even sweeter requester~!

-------

Honestly Behemoth with a partner who loves to cook? It’s a match made in heaven if anyone’s ever seen one! He thinks that it’s so cool that you love to make this kind of stuff regardless of your reasons - you just do it for fun? That’s awesome! You cook as a profession? Even more amazing!! You just got hungry and ended up making a bunch of tasty things in the process? Both cool and relatable and Behemoth will let you know exactly that! He loves hearing you talk about what you love making the most - if you like sweet or savory, spicy or mild - the look on your face talking about your passions just has him absolutely smitten and if you’re the type to get carried away talking you’ll find him with his chin on his arms watching you talk like it’s the most endearing thing in the world (just heart eyes alllll over the shop)

When you head into the kitchen if the urge to make something strikes, don’t be surprised if Behemoth follows right behind you like an excited puppy, eager to see what you’re going to make. He loves watching you work if you’ll let him, finding a seat out of your way while you zip about the kitchen. The closer you get to finishing up the more excited he gets - you can tell because you can hear his tail bouncing against the floor, getting increasingly faster once he catches a whiff of the whatever delicacy you’re cooking up. He isn’t shy to tell you how excited he is to try your food either! He likes trying to guess what you’re making before you’re done. Sometimes it’s obvious and other times it’s harder to guess, especially with more complicated dishes; he’s got a keen smell for certain kinds of food and Behemoth gets pretty giddy when he gets it right.

He immediately perks up if you ask him if he wants to help and he’ll jump in before you even tell him what you’re making excited to help out. He’s clumsy but absolutely willing to learn, and listens to any and all instructions you give him with a surprising seriousness. Whether you want him to just bring equipment and help you set up or want him to get in on actually cooking with you so long as he can work with you to make something delicious he’s game! He’s a surprising perfectionist when it comes to baking/cooking - he focuses a lot on the details and this goes tenfold with any kind of decorative baking. The look of concentration of his face trying to make shapes with the icing is absolutely adorable and you don’t have the heart to point out that his tongue pokes out just a bit as if it’ll give him the balance he needs to get it juuuuust right.

I’m telling you now your samples are not safe while Behemoth is in the kitchen - he absolutely will try to sneak tastes throughout the cooking process because they just smell so nice and they look so good! More than once you’ve turned away for one second and by the time you turn back your tray is already missing two treats and Behemoth is trying to act inconspicuous looking everywhere but at you hoping you don’t spot the (blatantly obvious) crumb trail. Seeing how much he enjoys your food it’s hard to get mad at him, though you inform him that a lot of these things will taste even better once they’re actually finished as a means to convince him to hold off on eating anymore until they’re in the oven and ready to be eaten.

With that being said though once it is done Behemoth makes sure you always get the first taste! He wants you to be able to appreciate the fruits of your labor (plus if he helped you make it he wants to know if you liked how they turned out - your reaction is honestly really validating). He loves feeding you, holding up different pieces for you to try and getting to see your reactions to certain dishes firsthand, but he gets flustered when you try to feed him something in return. He definitely won’t turn it down though - the food somehow tastes even better when you guys get to eat it together like this.

[eccentricpony]

Hello dear! I kind of did a spin on this request, and the story starts around the time of their first meeting and shows the progression into a romantic relationship. Mildly inspired by Tenma’s home screen quote to practice a kissing scene.

I think it’s a good blend of angsty, spicy, funny, and fluffy, but you be the judge! I am quite fond of this piece, and I hope you are, too!  <3

Bad First Impressions

Despite your best efforts to suppress it, a dramatic sigh rumbles past your lips. And to think that you had actually looked forward to working with Tenma Sumeragi. You had watched his performances in a few teen dramas and found his ability to be quite impressive, and he was highly lauded among other actors in your professional circle for being the consummate professional and perfectionist. More like pretentious and pompous.

“…and you there-“ the haughty redhead pointed towards a mousy looking boy sitting at a diner table on set.

“Uhh, B- Bill?” the mousy boy responded meekly.

“Yeah, sure – no one just stares at the person across from them without saying anything at all. It’s creepy and weird. That goes for you, too, guy with the glasses.” He moved an accusatory finger towards Bill’s dining companion. “Haven’t you guys ever heard of “peas and carrots”? I mean, this is amateur hour stuff that you don’t even need any skill to execute…”

“Can you just close your mouth and do some work, Sumeragi?”

You could hear a pin drop in the spacious sound studio. The cantankerous teen star whipped his head towards you with a pointed glare. You were an up-and-coming actress in the teen drama scene, and although you were a year older than he was, his acting resume was at least three times the length of yours. Sure, you were pretty, and you seemed passably talented, but you had a long way to go before you could even reach the echelon of his level of expertise. And you had the audacity to criticize his judgment??

“Excuse me?!” His eyes raked up and down your form, sizing you up in an attempt to appear intimidating. The manner in which you nonchalantly rested your hand upon your hip, head-cocked and eyes rolled; it was utterly disrespectful to him, a major authority in the industry, not to mention disrespectful to your fellow actors, to the very sacred space of-

“And to think that I had heard you were a competent leader…” you continued in a jaded tone. There was a visible flare in Tenma’s cheeks, the fury sizzling behind his eyes red hot.

To his credit, he certainly had a high level of talent, but that gave him no authority to degrade his teammates, whether they be fellow actors or the key grip. You weren’t normally this abrasive, but charming teen cutie Tenma was a self-important bully who was surrounded by “yes” men. This suave schoolboy star needed a wakeup call. The scandalized celebrity opened his mouth to commence a tirade when the director stepped in.

“Now, now, please folks. Let’s be civil…” Pinching the bridge of his nose, he glanced between you both with a pleading look.

With a final sour stare in your direction, Tenma transformed back into TV’s favorite high school hottie with a heart of gold.

“Yes, of course,” he replied, and you also nodded in consent. Everyone placated Tenma, endured his toxic attitude because he brought them money. But one thing was for sure, you had no intention to relinquish control to tyrannical Tenma.

Japan’s Newest Sweetheart

Tenma rushed down the street, tipping the brim of his hat further down his forehead, his alarming speed drawing attention from passersby. But he couldn’t slow down now; it was only a matter of time before Igawa caught up to him and asked where he was going, and why he was going by himself, and what was he looking for after all, and a number of other questions whose answers he would very much prefer not to explain.

With the convenience store in sight, he quickened his pace until he reached the threshold, throwing open the door with a tenacity that startled the cashier. Returning upright from where he hunched over his newspaper, the shopkeep threw a cautious eye to the young man at the doorway, wearing a suspicious amount of accessories and panting like he was running from the law.

The ginger on a mission performed a quick visual sweep of the displays until he located the object he desired. Bounding forward, he approached the magazine rack and flipped open the arts & entertainment periodical to the index. …page 31…

Rifling through the flimsy pages of the gossip rag, he at last reached the article which he had sought. There looking up at him was a page-wide spread of you, armed with an impossibly charming smile and a sparkle of mischief in your eyes. The page opposite of your come-hither headshot bore the headline “Japan’s Newest Sweetheart.”

It was infuriating. You were a nobody – barely any experience at all, and certainly not in anything particularly noteworthy – yet you were the one pushed to the forefront of advertising. His eyes flicked back to your picture once, twice… I mean, it was a good photo.

Ignoring the manner in which his throat seized when met with your 2-dimensional gaze, he directed his attention to the article. His eyes tripped along the words, “captivating new series… “ “character growth and development…” – aha! He spotted his name among the text and focused on the containing paragraph.

“blah, blah… he’s a true veteran in the industry…” Tenma puffed up like a rooster at this remark. Damn right, I am. He continued to read your commentary, mouth silently forming the shape of the words, scouring each sentence for more well-deserved praise. You went on to describe the characters, their struggles and how the cast related to their roles… One line in particular raised his brow. Tenacious young man?? Young man, what? She’s like, one year older than I am! He rose his head, appalled that you would speak of him like a child. He turned back to the print, reviewing the sentence a second time. She’s not even a whole year older, we’re practically the same age. He bent his brow in concentration. He counted back from your birthday. Yeah, totally not even a year old. Tch. He chose to ignore the fact that he recalled your birthday so quickly and glowered down at you while you beamed right back up at him.

It was undeniable that he was pissed off due of all the attention you were receiving when he was the lead. Possibly because… well, maybe you did deserve it. He had come to respect your acting ability over the past few months, in particular your impressive ability to become truly immersed in a role.

But maybe also because…. well, you looked good in this spread. Like, really good. Your smile was intoxicating; why didn’t you smile at him like that?  On second thought, maybe it was for the best that you hadn’t. His hardened exterior would likely dissolve, and he’d be a stuttering, fumbling mess. Scanning your features, he noticed that they airbrushed away a tiny birthmark on your face. Or maybe it was a freckle?  And they did something to your eyebrows, they just looked off. Why would they even do that? They were perfectly fine eyebrows…

“Hey, buddy, are you going to buy that or not? This ain’t a library.”

Tenma’s head shot upright, dazed for a few moments before he comprehended the words spoken to him. His tense fists gripped the wrinkled magazine tightly, fragile pages strained and starting to tear. Loosening his hold, he spared a final glimpse at your face before neatly closing the pages and smoothing out the bent cover.

“Uhh, yeah. I am.”  

Sliding his shades further up his nose with his pointer, he coolly ambled to the checkout area and lay the gentleman’s digest upon its surface. The material refused to remain flat after its recent abuse, leaving your shirt and neck visible beneath the dog-eared pages. The employee recognized the article right away.

“That new actress is really something, huh? They say she’s going to be the next big thing.”

Tenma scoffed but offered no discourse, handing over the required yen.

“Pretty cute, too,” the young worker added as he slipped the purchased item into a plastic bag.

“Yeah, whatever,” Tenma huffed heatedly, snatching the illustrated booklet containing your first big media premiere and returning to the sidewalk to await Igawa.

Salty to Sweet

“Don’t they teach you how to stay on task in Middle School? Or are you in High School?  Your lack of common sense is misleading…”

“Funny,” Tenma retorted caustically, though more annoyed at himself than you. He had been finding it challenging to focus as of late since he bought that magazine and he kept screwing up on the same damn lines. His short fuse was growing ever shorter with every butchered word.

You could see that Tenma was downward spiraling; the spark he always carried behind those big, vibrant eyes was fading fast.

“Look, why don’t you try something else…” you started, preparing for opposition.

“What?” the taller boy began, with no small amount of skepticism. Ignoring his sour attitude, you stood opposite him and continued in a calm tone.

“Try talking to me about something you really like while staying in character.”

“Talk about something I like?” Tenma replied incredulously. “What am I, six?”

“Sometimes I wonder, with the way you hide your vegetables under your mashed potatoes during lunch, so no one notices you throwing them away.”  You smirk knowingly, pleased with the look of surprise on your fellow actor’s face.

“You saw me do that?”  Tenma stared at you with a look of both wonder and bewilderment. He was certain no one could see him do that, and you sat at another table entirely! How on earth could you have been paying close enough attention to him to spot that, unless…

“Everyone knows that,” you deflected quickly, the rosy tint on your cheeks belying your innocence in the matter. “So what are you going to talk about?” Your bitter scene partner rolled his eyes. As a veteran in the industry, he felt pretty foolish having you talk him through basic acting exercises. Yet….  There was no question that he was struggling with the script, and no better ideas came to mind. With a sigh of defeat, Tenma offered the one outlet that came to mind.

“Bonsai…” he mumbled in a barely audible tone.

“What was that?” you ask, leaning it. Your close proximity fuels a steadily growing warmth along the back of his neck. He takes a sudden step backward and repeats himself louder.

“Bonsai! Are you deaf?”

“Bonsai, huh?” You smile with amusement. “Well, that’s something you don’t read in all your magazine interviews.”

“Reading my interviews, are you?” he responds dryly, but his stomach does a flip. He thinks back on the magazine he has featuring you, kept privately stashed away in a box under his bed. The thought that maybe you had a magazine featuring him tucked away somewhere in your bedroom causes chills that ran down his broad arms and shoulders.

“Nevermind that,” you grumble, brushing a stray hair out of your face. “Well, bonsai it is, then. Whenever you’re ready.”

You spend the next few minutes listening to Tenma ramble on about bonsai pruning, the proper tools to use, and even the proper light, pH and moisture levels to ensure optimal bonsai health.  Despite the fact that you now know more about bonsai trees than you would have ever cared to know, it seems that engaging, dynamic Tenma has returned. He comes to a full stop after finishing a discourse on bonsai diseases; his head now feeling clear, he’s convinced that he can recite his lines without hesitation.

“That was really good,” you commend him honestly, mirroring the pleased look on his face.

“Naturally,” he boasts in a cocky tone, feeling confident following his flawlessly delivered bonsai monologue. “It’s amazing how pleasant you can be when you’re not yelling at me,” he jibes, looking rather pleased with himself. You raise a brow at his renewed brashness, but you’ve always been quick on the trigger.

“It’s amazing how handsome you can be when you’re not scowling,” you reply with a smug expression, reveling in the crimson darkening his cheeks.

“Flattery will get you nowhere,” he mumbles with an air of mild embarrassment irritation, rubbing the back of his neck which is now damp with sweat.

“Who says I want to go anywhere with you?” you shoot back with a patronizing smirk before turning your attention back to the script. “SO, where were we?” you inquire loudly before he can get a word in edgewise. Thumbing through the marked-up pages, you see in your periphery that he is doing the same.

“Scenes 12 and 14 we did, 17 we did… no need to go over scene 28…”

“Why are we not practicing scene 28?” Tenma inquired in a cheeky tone. He knew exactly which scene 28 was: the kissing scene. You hadn’t gone over it yet, in read-throughs or on set. After you had just bested him in a mini battle of wits, this would be a great opportunity to even the playing field.

He had performed at least a dozen kiss scenes; it was old hat for him by now, and he knew for sure (not that he had googled your TV and film credits or anything) that you had never performed one. He was certain you’d flounder in search of a clever comeback, then, admitting defeat, blush profusely and outright refuse to do it.

“Fine, let’s do it.” You were no fool, and Tenma Sumeragi couldn’t bluff to save his life.

If Tenma wasn’t youthful and in great health, he might fear he were having a heart attack. Words seized up in his throat, and he could only manage a curt nod. He walked in a small circle, shaking his limbs as he often did while getting into character. He could do this, this was nothing. He had kissed, like, at least 12 girls before. 12! That was more girls than most men kissed in their entire lifetime! Wasn’t it? He couldn’t really think straight. With a long breath in, and out, he reformed his strategy.

He would perform a star-worthy kiss, absolutely knock-your-socks-off amazing, and then swagger out of the room while you were still swooning and dazed. His ego swelled a bit at the thought of leaving you desperate for another kiss, but his blood ran fast and furious at the thought of… well, actually having the kiss.

“I’ve seen the way you look at me,” you started in the tone of your character’s persona, the sudden smoldering look in your eye plucking at his every last nerve.

“At lunch, in the hall… even waiting for the bus.” Slowly, you crossed the floor towards Tenma’s frozen form. “You’ve given me flirty smiles, you’ve given me teasing winks, but there’s one thing you have yet to give me...” His pulse pounded in his ears as you leaned in closer, far closer than you had ever been before. His eyes flicker anxiously to your mouth, his breath held tightly in his throat.

“A kiss” you purr, biting your lip with the thrill of anticipation. Your lip bite just about crushes any dignity that remains in Tenma; tracing the lines on your lips with a wanton stare, it takes him a few seconds of feeble gaping before he remembers he has a line.

“Come and get it,” he whimpered, his line in a tone more befitting the token band geek than a smooth high school hunk. And get it, you did.

His script is lost to the floor as you press your lips onto his, his body rendered both limp and tight all at once. He did not expect this kind of kiss from you. Or maybe it was because he was used to a stage kiss, with twenty people watching and instructions from several individuals on how to hold his mouth at just the right angle for the camera. This… this was a kiss kiss. Your soft mouth was moving fluidly against his with such hypnotic, sweet caresses that he was convinced that he had never truly kissed someone before now. It was humbling but delicious; he had no control, and he couldn’t care less.

He couldn’t contain the small whimper of disappointment you drew from his throat when at last you pulled away, slyly wiping your reddened lips with the back of your hand. Tenma watched you with a mixed look of shock and awe, as though you had just miraculously materialized from thin air. Practice was over.

“Don’t lose that script,” you called over your shoulder cheerfully as you exited the practice space. “I think you could use another review of that scene.”

The Premiere

The Interview

You: …and it’s been bittersweet, but we’re both ready to move onto new projects. Isn’t that right, Tenten?

Interviewer: Tenten? That’s adorable, is that your nickname for Tenma?

You: Yeah, I call him Tenten because to me, he’s a ten out of ten. [You place an overly-dramatic kiss on his cheek]

Tenma: [Feigns a gagging sound while seated beside you, but reciprocates the kiss] That is a heinous lie, by the way, on both counts. [Tenma’s ability to poke fun at himself is refreshing, his overall manner humble and gracious, demonstrating his tremendous growth from child star to the consummate professional actor.]

Tenma: Actually, one of my fellow trou- uh, one of my friends at the Mankai Company, Kazunari, gave me that nickname.

Interviewer: The Mankai Company, that’s right! You’re putting on a production soon, aren’t you?

Tenten: We are! I’d love to give you the details of our production if you could publish them alongside this article.

Interviewer:  Absolutely. [Turning to you] And do you usually attend Tenma’s performances? I know both of your schedules are rather hectic these days, with all the job offers you’ve both received following the highly successful final season of your most recent television drama.

You: Yes, absolutely; I attend every one.

Tenma: In the front row, every performance. [He links his arm in yours, speaking with a tangible sense of pride]

Interviewer: I’ve noticed you have at least a half dozen bonsai trees in your apartment. Is that a mutual hobby?

You: Well, it’s our thing. I mean, it’s his thing really, but it’s kind of both our thing now. [You smile at Tenma with affection]

Interviewer: And, I’ve been meaning to ask - that framed script on the wall there, is that a keepsake? Or a valuable script from one of your favorite films perhaps? [The interviewer gestures to the worn script hanging above the mantle, protected and held in place by a thick pane of glass, bearing a large penned “SCENE 28”]

Tenma: Yeah, it has a…  special meaning. [Your boyfriend contributes, glancing into your eyes with a knowing smile that only you two could understand]

[shining-red-diamond]

Ch. 19: The Elephant’s Trunk

Cast of Characters//Ch. 1//Ch. 2//Ch. 3//Ch. 4//Ch. 5//Ch. 6//Ch. 7//Ch. 8//Ch. 9//Ch. 10//Ch. 11//Ch. 12//Ch. 13//Ch. 14//Ch. 15//Ch. 16//Ch. 17//Ch. 18//Ch. 19//Ch. 20//Ch. 21//Ch. 22//Ch. 23//Ch. 24//Ch. 25//Ch. 26//Ch. 27//Ch. 28 (coming soon)

Words: 0.8k

Pairing: ATEEZ OT8 x OCs

Genre: Adventure, Pirate AU

Rating: PG-13

Warnings: small accident, blood, slight angst

A/N: Italics means they’re speaking Korean

The ship landed in India within a few hours, but the crew decided not to head out until the wee hours of the morning as to avoid being noticed. San and Celestia spent the entire evening in their bedchambers before going to bed. Everyone else stuck to mapping out the coordinates according to the area surrounding the sacred symbol of the country. It was a bit of a struggle without San’s aid, but Hongjoong managed to figure out where to start according to the notes provided in the old map.

“It’s heavily populated in the surrounding area,” Hongjoong said, “so we’ll have to stay out of sight as much as possible.”

“I’ve already made sure the security systems can’t detect us sneaking into the tunnels,” Phoebe replied.

“I double checked our path. We won’t be going anywhere near the walls of the place. Thanks for checking, Phoebe.”

“It’s not in the Taj Mahal?” Mingi asked.

“No,” Hongjoong said. “The maps point to a tunnel starting from across the river. They lead to tunnels underneath that open up to something. We won’t be going into the building itself.”

“Let’s just hope we don’t get fried this time,” Taeran groaned.

“I don’t think we’ll have to worry about bombs,” Dahae added as she was looking through a large book. “If our path does end up being near the site, there’s a chance we’ll run into some monkeys.”

“Why monkeys?” Yunho asked.

“These aren’t cute little Capuchin monkeys. These are much more vicious.”

Hongjoong double-checked the map. “Our path doesn’t go near it, just underneath. However, we still need to take our precautions as we go.”

The crew then finished getting supplies together for the next part of their quest. Dahae checked with San and Celestia to see if they had everything they needed, Dinah took some painkillers to ease her cramps, Hongjoong finalized any notes with Yeosang and Seonghwa, and everyone else strapped on their boots. Grace-Anne wanted to pack a snack, but Dahae stopped her and reminded her about the possibility of attracting the monkeys.

Once Yunho had activated the camouflage shield, the crew headed out into the tropical climate. The weather was hot, but no sign of sunshine. Stone gray clouds blanketed the morning sky. The crew headed straight for a jungle area where a large tree trunk was said to be marked with an elephant’s head, according to the maps. Dahae hoped that it meant the head was a drawing and not a huge skull.

Journeying into the jungle was a little troubling beginning with Mingi getting his foot caught in a vine and falling face first, making Taeran stop to cut him free. Yeosang kept wanting to stop and cut pieces of different plants to study for medicines, which earned him hand swats to get him away from them. Dinah started cramping again and nearly lost her temper at Wooyoung for something minor, and then Yunho started his complaints of the weather being too hot and getting tired of carrying the maps (he was only carrying one).

“Would you guys knock it off already?” Hongjoong snapped.

“Sorry, I forgot my painkillers,” Dinah sassed back as she tried to stand back up from doubling over.

“I’m not talking about your lady cramps. I mean, just stay focused right now.”

His eyes met Dahae’s, and the look she gave him was all he needed to chill out. He knew he shouldn’t get upset over a small inconvenience happens, but he couldn’t help if he was short with his crewmates. He hated that he was such a perfectionist at times, and it caused him to get into arguments with them. Hongjoong liked to keep a schedule, however, he had to constantly remind himself that it’s not a homework assignment that needs to be due by a certain day at a certain time.

“Let’s…keep going,” the captain managed to instruct as he calmed down.

Not even two seconds later, he trips and falls against something hard, causing him to land in a kneeling position. When he stood up, he noticed his blood was dripping onto a cut tree trunk. As he looked closer while checking to find the source of the bleeding, he noticed how oddly shaped the age rings were. They formed weird shapes almost to mimic an animal’s head.

“The elephant’s trunk,” Dahae figured it out as she pulled out a rag. “This is our entrance.”

“And all it took was for the captain to pancake face first into it,” Dinah chuckled to Grace-Anne. Dahae shot her look, and Dinah shut her mouth.

Yeosang inspected the trunk, his gloved hands detecting any sign of an opening until his foot slipped on something slippery, and he landed on his butt. A cold, stone covering had given out underneath Yeosang and went tumbling down a set of stone steps.

[readingsbylibramc]

birth chart reading for @isannnz

hello! welcome to your reading. I’m gonna give you a quick overview of what I’m going to analyze about your natal chart. feel free to ask me anything if something isn’t clear, of course. you’ll find out your dominants’ influence on your persona, your physical appearance, impression on others and the way you approach the world; your ego, identity, the real you; your reactions, your desires, inner emotions; your way of expressing your feelings, your mind and ideas; your desires and approach to love; your energy tank, instincts and temperament; in-depth analysis of each house with their rulers and analysis of heavy aspects; love life + soulmates/karmic partners interpretation; your relationship with your friends; your family life; your approach to career and work in general + possible jobs suggestion; your style, fashion sense analysis; life purpose and past life description; basic transits’ analysis to describe your current mood and, last but not least, your secret skills, how to make the most out of your soul and manifest what you desire based on your birth chart.

🦋 chart shape, dominants

your chart is a seesaw shape. your life focuses on different ideals and interests, often constrasting between each other. from one side, this gives you the ability to be adaptable and find solutions easily. on the other hand, you may struggle with balance; for example, you might find yourself dedicating your life to your relationships, neglecting your ego or viceversa. you need to learn how to harmonize these energies.

your dominant planets are the moon, mars and uranus. you are a very assertive person, you have big goals for your life and you are hard-working enough to achieve them all. yet, you're also very sensitive, and you may end up having frequent mood swings.

your dominant sign is aquarius. you're eccentric and rebel, you don't like being told what to do. you're very considerate of others, as you focus more on the development of a group rather than your persona. that's because you want the people you frequent to be as open-minded as you are. aquarius people are capable of elaborating different ideas in a short amount of time; hence, you either overwork yourself, or you're not able to keep up with all your ideas, leaving projects unfinished.

your dominant element is air. in your life, you adore seeking for knowledge of any kind. you may be interested in studying different subjects, from those you study at school like science, maths, literature etc. to more unconventional ones, such as astrology, psychology, criminology and so on. you enjoy interacting with people; even if you’re not that sociable, you’ll still be interested in their point of view and their ideals, as you see it as a way to expand your own mind. you’re also interested in vintage, and you may have a retro aesthetic or just like history in general.

🌎 ascendant in cancer, 18° / 2nd decan ruled by the moon and pluto

with your ascendant in the sign of cancer, you appear way more sweet and approachable than your aquarius moon, which is obviously very beneficial for you. being a water sign, cancer risings individuals are very intuitive and emotional, and that is exactly how you approach the world. you rely more on your 6th sense rather than logic, and mixed with your cancer sun you're extremely empathetic. you can read people's mood very well, it's easy for you to understand whether someone is sad, angry, happy... because of that, you always try to make people feel at ease, you're always kind with people, and that makes you extremely likeable. also, since cancer is ruled by the moon, you're probably a very genuine person. it's hard for you to hide your real emotions, and even if you wanted to hide them you wouldn't be capable. you could also have frequent mood swings. you have a strong sense of family and comfort to you, and hence it's extremely essential for you feel at ease to truly be yourself. let's suppose you're with a group of friends, and they suddenly bring someone with them that isn't very nice; you would probably get very stiff, and your mood would immediately go down. you also tend to be like a mother / sister to others, you hardly ever have superficial bonds. physically, since cancer is ruled by the moon you may have very round and big features to you; you could have big, watery and round eyes with perfect lashes, a button nose, plump lips... in addition, you may be petite or average height, and you could bloat easily.

cancer mars conjunct cancer ascendant: your approach to the world is spontaneous, you don't like thinking before acting. you don't really do this with malice, though; you're just very honest. even though you appear really confident to others, you may find yourself feeling a little insecure. that comes from the fact that you're a perfectionist, even though you want to be perfect to show it to others rather than for yourself. hence, you feel pressured. even though you may appear as rude, once you get to know someone you truly care about you're willing to control yourself, just for them. that's how far you'd go for someone you love. phisically, you may have strong, almost masculine features: thin lips, thick eyebrows and lashes, broad shoulders, sharp nose...

cancer jupiter conjunct cancer ascendant: this is another placement that I find extra beneficial considering your uranus dominance. you're very benevolent and supportive of others, you're probably the type of friend who would do anything to help their mates, and you'd do also defend them if necessary. you are fun to be around, you have a nice sense of humor and people just love being around you, you have this particular charisma to you that makes everyone want to stick around you. you're extremely fun to be around, and you may also be very sociable, or at least you have the potential to be. you're probably very lucky, you may come across extremely beneficial opportunities in your life, and that's actually your way to achieve the best success you could ask for. you need to step out of your comfort-zone and challenge yourself in what life offers you. it was all meant to be, but with jupiter in this position you mostly attract beneficial situations for you.

🌞 sun in cancer, 6° / 1st decan ruled by the moon

this is the most emotional cancer decan. even though you may not show it due to your heavy mars and aquarius influence, you’re actually very vulnerable and sensitive. you may be a crybaby, as crying is a way to vent your emotions. you may even overreact, and be considered too dramatic. you’re extremely moody; you could be all happy and relaxed with your friends, then suddenly you get sad, or even angry. it’s hard to deal with this, especially because your emotions are quite intense. this could make you argue a lot with your peers. even though it takes you a while to find someone willing to stay, when that moment finally comes you’ll embody cancer’s best trait: that is, you’ll become a ‘mother’ to your friends, lover etc. you have a very nurturing soul, you have a knack for affection and care, and you could even get kind of clingy, even though you may feel limitated to give your love to someone else. cancer is a cardinal sign, hence you may be the one to take initiative, yet you do it undirectly. you’re probably the passive-aggressive type, even though this may be mitigated by your dramatic and impulsive aquarius moon. you’re most likely also quite patient, even though you don’t forgive easily. once someone tries to take advantage of you, it’s over for them.

🌙 moon in aquarius, 20° / 3rd decan ruled by uranus and venus

with the moon in aquarius, you must be very unpredictable. you’re the type to change your mind often, probably because you’re constantly coming up with new thoughts and theories since you’re so intellectually active. you seem emotionally cold, and you may actually be like that. in your case though, I see that with your heavy water energy, you feel so much all at once that at one point you need to detach from reality to calm down. even though you have troubles showing this side of you, you’re deeply quite sensitive. you’re very creative and intelligent, even though you may risk to waste this potential of yours; in fact, I’ve noticed that most aquarius moons tend to put their intelligence aside because they’re way too rebel to keep up with it. it’s such a shame. perhaps, in school you didn’t really push yourself to the max, or overall you don’t give all of yourself to things that are not of your interest. you’re only a perfectionist with things you care about, and this could make you waste some of your potential. this placement, considering that it’s also conjunct your neptune, makes you extremely spiritual. you may have some sort of psychic talent, or at least you’re just very intuitive. you’re interested in finding out the truth in the world, and you’re willing to dive deep to uncover it.

aquarius moon opposite leo venus: there are contrasting feelings in your relationships with others; after all, your leo venus wants to commit to someone and be loyal to them. on the other hand, your aquarius moon wants to be free. you don't want to feel tied to someone, you still need your independency. those two desires of yours probably contrast each other, stressing you out. you want a calm, almost boring relationship, but with this placement you can't seem to have one. your feelings and self-esteem may depend a lot on your relationships, not only with your lovers, but also with your friends. if someone isn't loyal to you, you immediately start blaming yourself. in your life you may lack intimacy, and while it may make you feel better at first, based on the rest of your chart you actually need someone on your side. you can't do everything on your own. it's very challenging, but you need to find someone that projects your ideals of love. if you need a free-spirit, go look for one. it may take you a while, but if you learn all the lessons you need to learn from your breakups, you'll be able to live a peaceful life with your spouse.

🗣 mercury in gemini, 15° / 2nd decan ruled by mercury and venus

mercury is in its natural place in gemini, your whole chart flows very well! you have great problem-solving skills, you are extremely intelligent and astute. when you were younger, you probably used to be the winner at games like hide-and-seek. this placement also enhances your thirst for knowledge of any kind, you want to learn at least a little about anything, from science to foreign cultures. yet, since you want to learn so many things all at once, you may lack precision and be a little bit superficial. on the other hand, you're a fast learner and with all of your water placements you may also be very intuitive. you may often find people predictable, but in reality you're just ahead of them. you're also very open-minded, even though you still rely more on logic, not like your sister sign is sagittarius. yet, it's easy for you to be flexible in your day-to-day life, you don't have to follow a schedule to have everything under control, even though you may often suffer from stress and headaches due to this lack of organization. you may have a very youthful and positive voice, you just give off good vibes, you know?

gemini mercury conjunct gemini saturn: you can come off as cold by the way you speak. when you're speaking to someone you're not close to, you choose your words more wisely and patiently; with your friends, on the other hand, you take off your mask and you just act the way you feel to. you may also be the type to give dry answers, such as 'ok', 'alright', 'good' and so on. your tone is calm and placid, while your voice sounds quite youthful, but still with a note of steadiness. you're funny, but your humor is more sarcasm-based. you're not intimidated easily; even when someone tries to argue with you, you don't back up from it. you may dive deep into your mind to find the right answer you to your problem. even if it takes you some time, you manage to find a solution. a downside to this is that you may lack patience.

gemini mercury opposite sagittarius pluto: you may become a bit manipulative. you probably don’t even realize it, though, as you have the ability to make people do what you want them to do. you probably love being right, especially during arguments, and you always manage to be so thanks to your skills. your words are like knives for others, they can truly cut deep through their ego. you’re direct and blunt, as you just say what you have in mind with no filters. you can develop a provocative attitude without even realizing it, which can obviously cause you conflicts. you need to be more careful about how you communicate your ideas, otherwise you could seriously damage other people’s self-esteem. on the other hand, if you acknowledge your flaws and work on them, this can actually turn into diplomacy. take advantage of your interest in your inner self to find out how to be a bit more gentle in choosing your words.

❤️ venus in leo, 15° / 2nd decan ruled by the sun and jupiter

with leo venus you're very picky, as you have high expectations for your future partner. you always try to be at your best state, and you want those who surround you to be perfect too. it's hard for you to fall for someone, as you take everything in consideration: personality, physical appearance, fashion sense... it may look like it is too much, but once you find the right one that truly satisfies your standards, you're in for a long ride. you'll want to travel, live your life in the best way possible with the person you love. you look at them as if they were the brighest star in the sky, and you want to be seen like this as well. you may even be a bit clingy, but your partner needs to be aware of that. they can't repress your need for affection. you see love as a way to revive your inner child, you feel younger when you're in love. even though you want someone fun and outgoing, you also need someone ambitious, hard-working and generally serious when it comes to committing. there's no room in your life for flaky people.

☄️ mars in cancer, 20° / 3rd decan ruled by the moon and neptune

in life, you have the need of feeling grounded and stable. you want to feel secure, and that makes you think deeply about your decisions, you don’t rush them. you think deeply about what to do and / or say, you are very cautious. this sense of being careful makes you quite indecisive, especially since you also have your sun in the sign of cancer, this energy is even stronger. you may change your mind often, or perhaps it takes you a lot to finally make a decision because you kept changing your mind. you tend to try and be collected whenever someone is getting on your nerves, but your feelings are extremely intense to totally bottle them up. you either get slightly passive-aggressive, and hence you could get very sarcastic and call them out indirectly, or perhaps you just lose your temper and face them angrily. possibly, you could even be the type to bottle up all of your feelings, until you explode all of a sudden. that can also make you more furious than normal, as you have all these repressed, strong feelings inside of you that were screaming to get out. you’re also extremely protective of your loved ones, especially of your family.

cancer mars conjunct cancer jupiter: you are driven by a strong sense of justice that makes you want to discover the truth. you hate lies of any kind, you want sincerity from those around you and you're the first to be constantly honest. you value your freedom a lot, your life motto is most likely 'live and let live'. you think everyone should live their lives by their own standards, without feeling afraid of being judged or criticized. you're a very pure and genuine person, you hardly ever judge a book by its cover, and you're also extremely open-minded. you're thirsty for knowledge of any kind, you're always up to learn something new. you may also be interested in foreign languages and cultures, as well as philosophy, literature... anything that can teach you something new about the world. you may be quite impulsive, and when you get angry you tend to be very blunt. you may say things that hurt others, as you're brutally honest, even though that wasn't your intention. you may also appear as flaky, since you don't like feeling tied to something or someone. you could often change your favourite colour, food, singer... you despise boredom, and your need for freshness may also manifest in your relationships.

🏡 houses

your 1st house is in cancer. the first house rules the exterior, while the moon, cancer’s ruler, rules the inner part of yourself. that means that the way you look depends on how you are inside; if you’re sad, you may have this very depressed look not only on your face, but also in your eyes above all. or perhaps, you could be the type to be what you eat, so you could gain weight easily as soon as you don’t eat clean. you could also be quite weak, you don’t really have high stamina, you’d rather sleep than work out, but being physical active is extremely important for you. you come across as someone very shy, and you most likely are, even though you give off very good vibes, you don’t look intimidating but rather cute. you come off as someone very kind and warm, people probably look up to you for your manners. you also have mars and jupiter placed in this house: you tame dying before making the amount of experiences you want to have in your life, hence you could even be impulsive sometimes. you’re the type to always be up to crack a joke or anything that can make you and others smile, yet when someone gets against you, it’s over for them. you have quite of a sharp tongue, you’re pretty blunt and straight-forward. in fact, you may often get in troubles due to your impulsiveness, which may be misunderstood.

your 2nd house is in leo, with also your venus in this house. your self-esteem depends on matters like money, possessions, as well as your influence on others. you may feel confident when you’re praised and spoiled with compliments and material things, you may enjoy being in the spotlight as it increases your self-confidence, even though you’re quite shy so you don’t feel very at ease. you feel confident when you’re able to earn money and you’re financially stable, and hence you probably felt guilty as a child to ask your parents for money for example. you probably love luxury, you aspire to become very wealthy, live in the house of your dreams, etc. you could also dream of becoming famous. and actually, with this placement, you could make money from leo-related matters, and hence being in the spotlight, creativity (especially theatre / drama), comedy, etc. venus here indicates that you seek long-lasting relationships. you're very romantic, and this fixed influence gives you high standards for your partner, you stay back from players. you look for someone you can always count on, and that is willing to support you through thick and thin. it may take you a while to find someone worth to be your lover, but once you find them, you'll always be loyal to them as long as they're respectful. you're also the type who likes to be spoiled by their lover, and wants to make lovely gifts as well. these gifts don't have to be expensive, even homemade things are fine. for example, you may melt at the thought of your significant other to take their time and do something exclusively for you, like baking a cake or writing a poem. little gestures that show you their love. in a potential partner, you also care about how they present themselves. I'm not necessarily talking about conventional beauty, but more on a self-care side. you like people who smell good, have a nice fashion sense and maybe people that are quite conceited too (obviously not to the point of narcissism).

your 3rd house is in virgo. you’re very precise and polite in the way you express your thoughts. you’re probably very careful to grammar, vocabulary etc… you love looking and being knowledgeable. you’re more of a logical type rather than an intuitive person, you hardly ever do something only out of curiosity. you’re very cautious about the decisions you make, and hence it could take you some time to finally choose something, but that’s because you just don’t want to regret anything. you think deeply about your choices, and most of the time they turn out to be right. you’re strongly opinionated, but you may be a bit too harsh when you express your ideas. sometimes you could even hurt someone, as you’re extremely honest. you don’t like sugar-coating your words. you’re also very intelligent and hard-working, and you can’t stand messy things. you’re probably very neat, you like having schedules and you may even keep an agenda / diary where you keep track of your appointments and other things you have to do.

your 4th house is in libra. your physical home was probably very pleasant and beautiful; you may have a conventionally beautiful family, or at least they’re particularly attractive and charming. your house may also be very well-designed and elegant, doesn’t matter how big it is. you probably see your parents as ideal, they are your role models and you look up to them. perhaps, it could be that you felt misunderstood, maybe your parents were a bit materialistic or lacked empathy, but overall you had a great childhood, you have a good relationship with your parents and siblings if you have them. it could also be that you dated lots of people when you were a teen, or at least you had lots of friends. you certainly have lovely memories of your early years, and your parents most likely have a good relationship too.

your 5th house is in scorpio, with also your pluto being here. your hobbies most likely include self-expression of any kind, anything that you consider private is told through your creativity. also, with scorpio in this house, you may as well be attracted to darker hobbies like astrology, tarots… possibly, you may be into thriller or even into horror. you may also like psychology, criminology… this type of things that are able to stimulate your mind in some way. you could possibly want to be a risk-taker, deep down. also, you want to become a master in what you like, and hence you tend to go extreme to become perfect. you may dedicate a lot of your spare time to your hobbies, for example, even if you have to work. your romantic relationships may be very intense, you could attract particularly jealous or even obsessive partners in your life. some of them may be painful, but they’ll be essential to become mature and grow up into a better, wiser person. in addition, I see you as the type of person who doesn’t like showing off their partner. you probably keep both your love interests and hobbies personal, you only talk a little about them to your close, trusted friends, especially with your pluto in this house that makes this energy even stronger.

your 6th house is in sagittarius. you are most likely very dedicated to your routine; you could have some workaholic tendencies, you feel the need to be perfect at whatever you want to do in life. in fact, you probably don’t realize that you work more than you should, as you have fun at work and you also like taking care of yourself. if you’re into working out, you could be the type to workout everyday even if it’s not necessary because it makes you feel good. or perhaps, you could literally skip your sleep just to finish a book you started writing. you’re used to work hard, and hence you most likely do it with pleasure if it involves something you love doing. you try to be very productive in your day-to-day life, even though you don’t mind including fun and relax in your routine either. you may have a ‘light’ work, that is you could turn an hobby of yours into a job, or perhaps you’ll make lots of friends or even lovers on your work place that will make it more pleasant for you to go to work. you may also be very lucky, you could easily get jobs that offer a nice income for example. your health could also be pretty good.

your 7th house is in capricorn, with also neptune sitting there. this placement makes you very patient with other people, you could be the type to give other possibilities to others for example. capricorn in the 7th house may also manifest in a lack of romanticism in an individual, but I don’t think it’s totally your case. I assume that you are quite romantic, but exactly because of your romanticism, you tend to get very picky. you want your partner to meet your ideals of perfection, and hence you may often end up not dating anyone, or being let down by your own lovers. actually, you could even be afraid of love, especially because there could be a lot of karma around your relationships. you could have to experience lots of hardships throughout your love life, but they’ll help you become more mature. it’s also recommended to get married after your saturn return with this placement, hence after your 27/28 years. you may in fact attract partners that could be quite moody and unconventional, probably very emotional as well. with neptune here, you tend to idealize your crushes/partners way too much, to the point that you create an image of someone in your head that turns out to be the opposite at the end. you ignore your partner’s flaws as they seem perfect to you, so be careful to that.

your 8th house is in aquarius, with also your moon placed there. you could possibly have an unexpected yet barely painful death, or perhaps someone in your life has died / will die all of a sudden, you may often experience scenarios of this kind. possibly, you could even die due to electricity, and or at least it will be a very fast death, I don’t see it being violent or turbulent at all. or maybe, you’re surrounded by unpredictable events of loss of any kind in your life. that is, it could also happen with your money. it’s important not to risk too much with this placement, especially with gambling, or you may end up getting in serious problems. you’re fascinated by the occult, and you may even be/been able to talk to dead people. you’re very intuitive, and it’s easy for you to read through people’s words. you may as well have prophetic dreams. you tend to preserve yourself, even though it’s hard for you to repress your emotions, as they’re too to intense to bottle them up. you absorb people’s feelings like a sponge, there’s no way that you won’t instantly understand their real emotions. overall, you tend to overreact a lot; you have cancer's sensitive energy on one side and 8th house’s mysterious, almost scary vibe. dealing with these emotional burnouts may be stressing to you, as you totally get caught up in them. even if it looks like you get to know other people often, you actually don’t let others know you. you only open up to people you’re sure you can trust.

your 9th house is in pisces. this is definitely a nice placement! the result is that you’re probably extremely open-minded and imaginative. you hardly ever have have prejudices, you don’t judge a book by its cover. you’re extremely opinionated, and combined with your virgo 3rd house you’re constantly looking for the truth. you hate it when people say something wrong for example, you can’t help but correct them. you could also be religious and believe in a god. philosophy, literature and poetry are also a part of your many interests. in addition, you’re most likely also into foreign languages and cultures. you could travel a lot, or perhaps with your pisces in the house cusp you like travelling with your mind. you probably literally create stories in your head, you’re extremely imaginative. a good advice would be not to waste this talent of yours; you could actually make your fantasies concrete and express them through creative outlets: books, drawings, songs, choreographies… basically, it would be a waste to only keep them for you. you may also learn about more creative topics rather than school subjects.

your 10th house is in aries. with your 10th house cusp in the energetic sign of aries, you need a career that allows you to be independent, you probably prefer working alone than in groups. or perhaps, you actually aspire to become a boss, a ceo, someone people look up to, and if you work hard you may actually become an influential person in your work place / field. you aspire to be successful and you want to be wealthy thanks to yourself only, and you may actually develop some good luck in your career life. your future job may also require something related to physical action, and hence you may have to move a lot for your job, perhaps you may pursue acting to include something creative that also requires you to move. the sun here also makes you gain a reputation for being responsible and mature, you have a strong charisma and you probably seem very put-together to others.

your 11th house is in taurus, mercury is also placed in this house. you could possibly attract people with taurus traits, and hence your friends could be quite stubborn and possessive, but also very loyal and responsible. they could possibly be wealthy, and they could have some artistic, creative interest and / or talent just like you. you may have some trust issues, you’re careful about who you trust, and hence you’re quite cautious about who you befriend. your long-term goals include financial stability, you may be quite materialistic as you enjoy wealth. yet, I assume that thanks to your water placements you’re not as work-focused as other earth placements, you actually also value emotions and feelings too. I feel like you probably have very big goals and dreams that you want to come true. mercury in the 11th also indicates that you may often befriend people, you may be very sociable and make friends easily or perhaps you just attract lots of people in your life.

your 12th house is in gemini, with also saturn and the sun sitting there. the 12th house is the house of fears and gemini rules over communication, and hence you could be afraid to approach others, you’re very shy. you don’t like speaking in public either, same goes for expressing your opinions. you’re always afraid that people may judge you for your ideas, your interests and for the way you speak. on the other hand, you’re a quite spiritual individual. during your sleep you probably get to have lots of meaningful dreams, even though you may sometimes not remember many of them, or even none. it’s a skill of yours that you’ll be able to embrace once you finally wake up spiritually. as I’ve already mentioned above, you could have prophetic dreams and, with gemini’s presence in this house, spirits, angels and other higher entities may try to communicate with you through your dreams or subconscious. you may also be the type to talk non-stop when you’re drunk, and you may even have a habit of talking to yourself. the sun is also here: this is kind of a tricky placement, as the sun rules the self, the ego, and the 12th house rules fears. you could be afriad of being too confident, of feeling worth it, or even just by being in the spotlight. perhaps, you have stage fright. this fear of embracing your persona makes you very insecure, even though you probably don’t show it. also, since your 12th house is the house of dreams, you could often make dreams that involve yourself. you hardly ever dream of someone else, and if you they’re probably your lovers, possibly your friends. due to saturn’s influence in this house, I assume it could be hard for you to fully embrace these spiritual skills of yours. in fact, you may be a bit too pragmatic to embrace your spirituality. I think you’re already working this out since you’ve booked an astrology reading to discover more about yourself, but remember that you should definitely try to get more in touch with your soul! even doing simple stretching, meditation or yoga can help give you some space to think about your identity, your wants and your needs. you may also be a religious person or have any kind of higher belief. the 12th house is also the house of fears, and since saturn is here you may be afriad of authority, like the police for example, or anything that appears to be much bigger and more supported than you. it may also manifest in fear of not being organized, and also fear of money / success loss.

❤️ love life, soulmates

in love you attract capricorn, aquarius, virgo, scorpio and pisces placements and/or traits. your future spouse will most likely have virgo traits or placements. they’ll be very similiar to you: secretive and hard-working, but also with a warm, loyal heart and a hidden insecurity to them. you may meet them at work, or perhaps even abroad. perhaps they could be foreign, or maybe you're going to meet them on vacation or even at college. your children will most likely have strong scorpio traits: they’ll be very smart and intense, but also very sensitive deep down. also, they’ll be extremely intelligent and more mature as time goes by. they’ll also have a tender side to them, but that is often overshadowed by their seriousness.

👶🏻 family life

your father is a very fiery, impulsive person, with a short-temper. he could have even been quite violent with you during your childhood, and he might have a bit of a childish behaviour, even though I don't really think it's your case thanks to your libra ic. deep down, he’s actually kind of insecure with his role as a father, but he may hate to admit it. he may have aries, cancer, sagittarius or scorpio placements in his chart. your mother, on the other hand, is slighly more submissive. she’s mostly a peaceful and emotional person, even though she most probably has a passive-aggressive behaviour. she could be conventionally beautiful, or at least she likes taking care of herself. she may have libra or taurus placements in her chart, as well as pisces. if you have siblings, they’re probably very peaceful and intelligent. they may also be very kind, as well as organized. their rooms probably look immaculate. they could have virgo or gemini placements in their charts.

📊 career

you’re a very ambitious person, and hence I don’t see you being the type to scrap projects. especially with your aries midheaven, you’re motivated to complete your works in order to show that you’re able to succeed, you want to be the best in what you do. I can also see you being a good therapist, psychologist, possibly even a doctor of any kind, even though I’d avoid practical and boring jobs if I were in you. your strong cancer energy struggles to be cold-minded at times, and hence working in a stressful environment could be dangerous for you and for your mental health, as you may absorb others’ negativity and stress. actually, I feel like the most suited career for you would be something that allows you to be in charge, to be your own boss as you know what’s best for you. you may also do well as a teacher or professor, or perhaps you could work as a journalist or as an interpreter or translator, anything that has to do with foreign cultures and languages.

👕 fashion sense, style analysis

keyword for your wardrobe: black. every leo venus loves black, it's probably my favorite love story. after all, it's such a versatile color! it can be both badass and classy, how can I blame you. you may also have a thing for anything that looks luxury and high quality; you probably enjoy wearing designer brands, especially in your belts and bags. you may also like wearing fitted clothes, even just simple skinny jeans or tight tops. aside from black, you could as well use white and bold colours like gold, hot pink etc. also, you may as well be into pastel colors, and you could like following fashion trends.

👁 past life, life purpose

in your past lifetime, you used to put your spirituality aside for a while to focus on finding out your identity here on the earth. you learned how to be responsible, healthy and stable on the earth. you know your values, and they’re already very grounded, you’re very mature from this point of view. in this lifetime, you now need to get more in touch with your spirituality. you need to get close to your higher self, and you may actually be quite skilled at it; probably you may interpret your dreams, you could be interested in religion, what’s beyond the world, and you’re most likely also interested in astrology and other occult matters. you’ll finally be able to reach happiness and fulfill your soul when you start having awareness of your soul’s purpose. since you’ve booked a reading, I’m sure you’re already on the right path, so keep going this way.

🤔 major transits analysis / june 8th

with transit mars in your first house conjunct your natal mars and jupiter, in these days you could be feeling more confident and assertive, you probably are motivated to achieve your goals more than usual. yet, you need to be careful because you could also be quite impulsive, so you may end up saying things that you don't actually mean out of anger, and therefore you could end up arguing with others. you could also take decisions without thinking, so be careful to be rational with this transit.

🧿 manifest what you want, secret skills

with your water placements, you probably have a 6th sense. you’re able to manifest what you want if you subconsciously predict it, even though it may be hard. you’d have to get in touch with your higher self to do so, and hence I would suggest you to light up some candles and meditate for a bit before manifesting, in this way it will be way more effective. you may manifest something while daydreaming, for example. or perhaps, you can also try listening to your own affirmations while you sleep, as you won’t be consciously aware of that. it’s probably the most effective way.

and this it!! thank you again for booking a reading, hope it resonated with you :)

- libramc xx

[undead-notunreasonable]

Happy Draco-O-Ween || Part 19 of 31 ||

"Please, you must tell me more about these airplanes you saw, I'm completely fascinated by them!" Vlad tepes called out to Dracula from his seat. A gentle snipping sound could be heard within the room, filling the silence with its slashing sounds. A hand came to the base of Vlads skull, forcing his head downward. Another snip.

Count Dracula walked toward the mirror in his living room, carrying a cup of blood as he watched his former lover having his 500 year old locks being cut off by a professional stylist. While he admired it at the time, it was much better that he adhered to the modern age of fashion & haircuts. His face were warm with admiration as he gazed at the man before him, enjoying the way he looked with his new transformation. The cut were showing of the angular jaw that Draculas fingers had once traced in the dark privacy of a bedroom. "Later, I'm sure we don't want to bore our employee with something as trivial as modern technology." He gave a half laugh, coming across as sincere.

But the hair dresser, a slim thing in torn acid wash jeans, a band tee, ginger bowl cut, and a nose ring, merely flashed a weak smile at his clients, focusing more on the task at hand. Truth was, he wasn't really ever listening to any of his clients, they were just meaningless conversations to pass the time to make customers feel more comfortable rather than sit in an awkward silence for 20 minutes to an hour. That's not to say that he wouldn't listen at all. Sometimes he would hone in on someone's conversation due to there being juicy gossip or a scandalous affair. Most of his clients were rich folks, they always had something to spread, be it money, words, or legs. This client though nothing really major, just a rich man helping a friend back on their feet. He wanted a haircut that was distinguished but young. A simple short back & sides, with a little more on the top to play with. Both vampires saw their revolting rotting corpses within the mirror, saw how old their bodies really were. That didn't matter to them right now, they could see each other just how they were when they were alive.

The hairdresser couldn't see that though, he just saw two middle aged men who seemed to have a few feelings lingering between them. He wondered if they knew that or whether it was some weird older generation thing where they still saw it as shameful thing to feel. "Head up please." He commanded, beginning to add the final touches of product to give the longer areas more of a waves texture.

Vlad looked up into the mirror, still the same rotting corpse but with a shiny new hairstyle and a humans fingers wobbling it about in shape. Humans clearly made more effort with their appearance these days. "What do you think?" His eyes met Dracula's within the mirror.

Count Dracula walked across to the other, perching himself on the edge of a table so that he came face to face with him. Longer fingers stretched out to hold the man's chin, all eyes on him. "I see someone as beautiful as the day I met him." His eyes turned gooey as he leaned toward him, pressing a kiss to his lips.

Oh, they are lovers, thats cute thought the hairdresser. It was nice to see an older generation of gay couples, being free to be who they are. Though he half wished the man would really give criticism on the cut but he supposed kind words to a lover meant he'd done a good job.

"Let me just check the back for you." He whispered down to Vlad, rising to his feet once more to join the hair dresser at the back of the seat. "Here, hold this." He instructed for the slim man to take his now empty cup. The red haired man held the cup against his stomach, letting his client observe his work. Draculas fingers lightly tugged at the small few strands that rest on Vlads neck. He gave a little nod in recognition, then reached for the scissors that rest on hairdressers table. He snipped off the tiniest of strands, and stood straight, meeting the hairdressers gaze in the mirror. "There. My apologies, I'm ever the perfectionist." He shared a wide smile, slapping him on the shoulder, and tightened his grip so the other couldn't move. He looked a little panicked at that. "That'll be all, thank you." Scissors swung open, hanging by a single finger until another held them straight out, and blade met throat. Dracula didn't let the human fall, instead, he made him stand up & watch himself bleed to death, his blood, his life pouring seemlessely into the cup Dracula made him hold, even as it overflowed onto the floor.

(Note: if you're going to a killer, always have wood floorboards with a varnish on the top. Much easier to clean up.)

Vlad sat there, elbow resting on the arm of the chair, fingers pressed into his cheeks and a look that was completely unphased by the horrific sight before him. Dracula took the cup from the dead man's hand and finally let him sink to the floor. Vlad turned in his seat to look at the dead body "It's a shame you killed him. I quite enjoyed the silence of the man. Humans love the sound of their voices these days, that sometimes I wish I had the gift of being Deaf." He twisted in his seat to look down at the victim, letting out an unsympathetic sigh "He really did do a good job on the hair do."

Dracula wasn't even bothered by Vlads nonchalent address of the ever growing cold corpse of their hairdresser. Instead, he rest against the wall next to the mirror, one hand bloody from murder, the other holding out the now overfull cup of here "Here, drink this." He ordered as he stared out ahead of him, lost in thought. "Did you bring me back to life? After my torture and death? Was it you who created me?" It was a question he hadn't dared to ask himself in a very long time. He looked almost distraught with it.

Vlad took a long swig of his freshly drawn drink, smacked his lips as if he were trying to decipher what kind of wine he'd been handed before replying in a most assured voice. "No. I did not create you. The vampire that made me, I begged for you to join me too."

"What?" Draculas voice wavered in shock at the news, he'd begged for this to happen?

Vlads hands raised with palms up, a sign of mercy for his silence so he could explain "We were losing the war, my most trusted advisor and the love of my life had been kidnapped by the Turkish. I didn't know what my next step would be. You don't know this but I used to plot and vent my anger in a cavern in the deepest woods of Wallachia. One day, that day, the cavern spoke back. It told me to lose but that I would win everything a thousand times over, that I could ruin those who set out to ruin us and come out with even a scratch. I was desperate to get you back to me. I didn't know what I was signing up for exactly but I asked whatever was in that cavern to find you, to make you the same as myself. I couldn't be without you. You deserved that justice too." Another long swig.

"It was your decision? You decided to break my heart into shatters when I hear they have decapitated Vlad III & placed his head on a spike? You decided I should come back and let me go home to my Mother only to kill her with a need I did not understand, to go and find my wife with my child, fighting everyday this vile hunger until I just couldn't bare it & I slaughter her?! I was going to be a father and you stole that from me!" Dracula snarled at the other, funny how ones image of someone can change so swiftly.

"It wasn't your child." Vlad snapped back, tone deathly serious.

Dracula shivered as though someone had walked over his non existent grave.

"She always fell for stable boys it seemed. I'm sorry to tell you this after so long but clearly she always found something appealing about a roll in the hay. Don't bark at me." Vlad raised his finger like a man commanding a disobedient dog. "You're a smart man, Omor. Think about it. Think how long you and I were gone at war, barely a few weeks home & you could feel the small curvature of life within her as she announced she was with child?"

Dracula looked almost defeated. So many years he'd spent quietly tormenting himself for killing both wife and unborn child just to satiate his unyielding hunger. Now, he knows that his wife was never his to begin with, not even his own flesh and blood. "Why did you say nothing?"

Vlad held out the cup of blood, Dracula looked like he needed it "For selfish reasons entirely. We were winning the war at that point, you were on form with all your plans of action, I couldn't risk my advisor losing that, I couldn't risk upsetting you."

"Would you have told me? Even if we had won the war?"

Vlad looked intensely at his lover, pausing a moment before replying "A little while after the celebrations. But I would have hoped she would be honest with you, I'm not a messenger."

"You're a warlord." Dracula huffed his laugh, quoting something he'd said centuries ago.

"Could you have still loved her despite her affair? Despite the child not being yours?" Vlad took a sip from the glass, seeing that Dracula didn't partake himself.

"Of course. I would be butchered the man who slept with her but I loved her entirely. I would've loved that child as my own. People didn't need to know." Dracula looked less like the terrifying creature the world had come to know but more solemn and vulnerable with the news, so heartbroken.

Vlad hated seeing someone to strong, crumble. He threw himself out of his seat, placing their shared cup of blood onto a table, and cradled the man he adored in his arms. "I'm sorry you had to hear the news but remember, this was centuries ago. We have a future to work at together now. It's you and I." He cradled the vampires face in his hands for a moment longer before sharing a deep kiss, trying to repair the small shatters of Count Draculas heart.

Do remember, the corpse of a dead hairdresser lies on the floor during their embrace. These are not loving creatures.

[iguessishouldbethankful]

what do you think the sf team does in their free time? like... when they have a "day off" and get to relax? ♥️🐦

You ask me this and you don’t specify which generation of the team. SMH. Lmao I know you meant the current main one but I feel the need to kinda explore a little with all three gens? Let’s see how this goes.

Star Fox 1st Generation: (of note, it’s interesting how all of them but Pigma had established families)

James McCloud - Smoker, suave, not as energetic as his wigmate, Peppy. And yet, he had enough in him to keep following his friend around. But honestly, James interested were more quiet and work oriented. A workaholic. Mind always on the team and the responsibilities he took on. Almost a complete perfectionist with a calming nature. His hobbies outside of work were few, and most were made with spending time with Peppy, Beltino, Pigma, the Greys and their families. Forming a taste for alcoholic beverages with Peppy, and appreciating the retro military look of space ships with Pigma, and the techno babbles of Beltino. Honestly, it still surprises him that he was able to find a wonderful wife in the end considering how work oriented he was, and focused. Vixy was possibly the only thing that kept him focused outside of work the most until she passed away. Then it was just Fox. And their times together were mostly focused on military history, documentaries, a continuous path of learning and studying. It was fulfilling and relaxing for James.

Peppy Hare - A much younger Peppy would be a spry little thing. More in shape, physically stronger and beaming to high heavens. And of course, a young husband and father like James. For his free time, besides catching up with the Toads and the Greys, Peppy would usually just spend time with Vivian and little Lucy. Before them, he was mostly into bar hopping with James around Corneria’s capital. Dancing with the single ladies and flirting. He was much better at it than James, honestly. He’s also a really good dancer. But once he tied the knot with Vivian and had Lucy, his world became just the two of them outside of work. He’d take them to picnics and spoil both with flowers and stories and nothing but his time to give to them. He’d even read his newspaper out loud so Lucy would know what the subjects were. She loved the voices he’d make. His family was everything…

Pigma Dengar - First time I’m thinking about this fool before he went to the dark side. And honestly, I can easily see him being more relaxed on his own. In the hangar after a hard day’s work upgrading Arwings with Beltino’s help. A good pack of cigarettes, a deck of cards, a handful of dice or maybe online gaming to keep his mind off things. Hell, I still see him being the kind of guy that would sit down with the kids and show them how to gamble honestly. Fox, Lucy, Slippy and Bill… And both Bill and Lucy remember the nasty little betting tricks too. Pigma was very much into gambling and taking bets on his off time too. He would get a lot of money, lose a lot of it, but in the early stages, it calmed him. Working on older models of ships helped him too. It’s rather unfortunate that this is where Lucy got some of her fascination for old model space ships, because of the magazines and books Pigma would let her look at. Modding was a big part of his younger life and he enjoyed that before joining the team. It… went away when things got worse.

Beltino Toad - I headcanon that, even if Beltino wasn’t part of the team, he was still a very important external force that helped out a lot. Especially with Pigma. So I will count him into my headcanon piece. He’s into making little machine toys. Like making little machine creatures and devices. To him, it keeps his mind sharp and there is always a new project on his table to go home to that isn’t an all consuming one. In fact, it’s one he could share with Slippy when he was old enough to walk. It helped with the two of them bonding and getting into other geeky stuff. Hell, Beltino was the type of father that would get into anything Slippy wanted to get into, so after that, he was a goner. Trading card games to video games, even modding them on the computer and making his own became his hobby as much as Slippy’s. In a way, spending time with his family was his way to relax.

Star Fox 2nd Generation:

Fox McCloud - I see Fox as being rather similar to his father in many ways. At first, he didn’t have as many hobbies that were formed on his own. Most of them were things he got into with his friends, Slippy, Bill and Lucy. With Slippy, he actually tried watching some of the cartoons but instead he was into more live action fighters (similar to Power Rangers). And with Lucy, he got into model kits of space ships. He has a few still. Whereas with Bill, he got into sports like baseball and handball. Hell, all four of them were into playing against each other in any game. But once his father died, Fox became more sullen and quiet. His interests were more work focused with the occasional gaming with Slippy. His shell started to break after the war however. So gaming is something he’s into now, as well as reckless space racing which, much to Peppy’s dismay, is something he got into with Falco. And meditation. That he learned with Krystal.

Falco Lombardi - This bird has no chill. Joking, he does. Falco’s free time is dictated by what he feels like doing. Besides trying to not be the worst gamer in the team–and that doesn’t exactly relax him at all but he keeps doing it. But what he does enjoy is watching cartoons with Slippy. Funny enough, they both have an unofficial established bond over ‘anime’ series such as Dino Ball Z and Sailor Papetoon. Something about the sailors legs, man… Ahem. But out of everything, Falco is into anything that will give him a sudden rush. Flying for any reason, races, pushing his own limits in the cockpit. And outside of his Arwing, well… Falco is reckless due to him wanting that rush continuously. From bar fights to even amusement park rides. Not the best of hobbies, to want to feel the danger behind his actions, but it’s something he became addicted to in a way. Staying cooped up somewhere will only make him more aggressive due to ‘my thoughts won’t stop, I need to drown them’ so he needs to keep moving.

Peppy Hare - In comparison to his younger self, a much older Peppy is much more sullen. Quiet, always looking after the younger team. His free time is usually dictated by what he needs to show them–trying to find the patience to guide them when anything sparks off. But when things are quiet, he finds himself mostly contacting old friends such as Beltino and Pepper, especially after Vivian passed away. Sometimes he’d contact Lucy, ask her how the cadets are doing, how she is doing. However such things aren’t as often as him sitting down with either Fox or Falco to chat with them. And even then, strangely, he seems to bond a little more with Falco at times, taking the time to pry open the avian. Why? Just a hunch. They have quite a bit in common without either of them knowing. He’s also very much fond of tea. Don’t bitch at him about his leaf water, leave him be!!

Slippy Toad - Listen here. Slippy is a bucket of hobbies. When he’s not working on machinery, making new inventions for his team, guess what he’s doing? This guy is making games on his computer for fun, testing them with Falco on the side (because he knows the difficulty curve Falco secretly needs to get shit done in a game, and if Falco is able to complete a task, the games is way too easy). When not making or playing games, he is having forum/server discussions with some of his online friends about cartoons and shows he’s into. He will actually share this with Falco a lot if it’s something the avian is into as well. He will also get into online trading card games and goes into bidding wars over certain real cards that are mega vintage. He also has a toy figure collection he keeps around in his dorm on the Great Fox (most of them are at home with his dad though). He’s also into music. All of the music that slaps in the Great Fox? That’s all Slippy. Bless him. Lastly, one more thing. He owns a ukelele. He knows how to play it. That is actually the mostly relaxing thing he can do for himself when he does feel absolutely anxious. Just sit somewhere quiet, away from everyone and string away.

Krystal - She’s a bit more simple in comparison. Used to living on her own in the wilderness, most of her free time consists of returning to Sauria to help restore the planet as much as she can. Empathy work is also something she truly enjoys doing when the recipient permits her to do so. So far, Fox and Slippy permitted her to work on some of their mental wounds. And yes, taught Fox how to meditate and relax in the silence as she found out Fox was never comfortable being alone. Out of the entire team, she’s possibly the one that’s most comfortable being herself.

Star Fox 3rd Generation:

Marcus McCloud - Unlike his father and his grandfather, Marcus is actually much more active when it comes to fun. A bit of a sports jock when in school and the Academy, he very much enjoys exercise to keep himself in shape and to keep his mind off things that can get under his skin. He enjoys gaming as well, but nothing compares to Skipper and Abby. Still better than Falco though, lmao.

Abigail Hare - Possibly the edgiest out of the team. She’s into reading books because of her mother, Lucy, and most of them are dark and spooky. Why? No dad, it’s not a phase. She also enjoys cartoons and is into retro space ships like Lucy (and got to drag her father into it as well). Now, the one thing her and her little brother, Valentino Hare, share in hobbies is that they both are actual super into healthy foods. This is mostly due to the shared rabbit disease passed down by mothers in Vivian’s bloodline. After Lucy passed away, Falco helped his kids to get into a much better diet and it became a shared thing between all three.

Skipper Toad - The oldest of the Toad siblings. He had to fight his way to stay relevant and boy, he’s merciless when it comes to his energy. Non stop, naturally caffeinated young man. From video games to schematics for lunch, to learning how to hack into different systems and databases to get information in a more proactive manner, he’s pretty much into many things that keeps him busy all the time.

Falco Lombardi - Like Peppy, he’s much older now, mellowed out, widower and a father of two. Abigail is his oldest, Valentino is his youngest (and that one stays on Corneria under the watchful eye of General Peppy). Ever since Lucy passed on, he’s been much more attached to his kids than ever, constantly checking on Valentino while with the team, and making sure the new team is able to stand on it’s own two feet. He finds it amusing how he’s the ‘gramps’ now, even though he still gets guidance from Peppy along the way. Sometimes Fox as well, but most of their conversations are just casual updates on how the new generation is doing. Honestly, he’s still kind of reckless, mostly to keep Marcus on his toes and to teach Abigail how to fly much better than what the Academy taught her. Honestly, the new team itself is his free time. He’d trade his place in there for nothing in the universe.

[my-happy-little-bean]

The Road Trip - Chapter 4

pairings: logicality (platonic or romantic, depending on how you view it) words: 2682 chapter warnings: angry confrontation (not complete physical violence, but the threat of one), implied toxic familial relationships, brief conversations on life/death chapter summary: in which patton learns what the grand canyon really is.

< previous chapter << first chapter

[read on ao3]

[masterlist]

---

When Patton woke up,  he was covered in a blanket

and the Grand Canyon was outside his window.  

“What the…”

“Breakfast?” he heard Logan ask beside him. He blinked, rubbing his eyes and pulling his glasses down from his messy hair. 

“Are we– ?”

Logan had a smug smile on his face as he set his iced coffee in the cupholder between them.

“Couldn’t sleep.” 

Patton broke into a big grin. 

“ Logan!” he squealed. He leaned over to give Logan a hug before being pulled back with a slight jolt. He yelped, looking down to see that his seatbelt was on, and it was stuck. He frowned, pulling on it. He tried to reach Logan for another attempted hug, yet found himself in the same spot. 

“Allow me to assist you–”

“No, no! I got it, just–”

“Patton–”

Eventually, Patton—after giving it one final pull—unbuckled his seatbelt and gave Logan a hug. 

“ Thank you, ” he mumbled in Logan's shoulder. “I can’t believe you– and you just–”

“I know.” 

Patton squeezed Logan a little tighter. 

“Thank you, thank you, thank you. ”

He then felt something wet on his shoulder and he smiled. 

“Aw, Lo!” He pulled back slightly, giggling as tears started to form. “Well, if you’re going to cry…”

“I...that would be your bowl of milk and Lucky Charms .”

“Oh shoot– !”

 ---

After changing into a fresh shirt, Patton stepped out of the car. He felt the warm air beat on his face, a gust of cool air accompanying it. 

He took a deep breath of it all. 

"Wow," Patton murmured. They parked so close to the canyon and it seemed so...so present . He tried his best to feel the same. "It's just... wow ."

"It is quite the marvel, yes," Logan hummed, going over to stand at his side. He sounded as mesmerized as Patton was. He cleared his throat. 

"Alright, now for the discussion of our itinerary–"

"Itinerary?" Patton echoed. Logan nodded, pulling a piece of paper out from his pocket. He unfolded it, smoothed it against his chest, and then held it out in front of the two of them. 

"I wrote this up when we got here whilst you were asleep," Logan explained. "It is not very extensive, it was based on a quick Google search and a phone call. However, it should give us an adequate outline of possible activities we may pursue today." 

"Oh, Lo!" Patton squealed. "You didn't have to do all of that for me!"

Logan looked at Patton for a brief moment in an almost indescribable way before clearing his throat and facing his stare back down at the paper. 

"Well, I did not want to waste a single moment of your time, Patton," he finally said, handing Patton the paper. Patton broke into a small smile as Logan cleared his throat. 

"Anyway, I have a few options that you may choose from; but if it is alright with you, I wish to give you a recommendation once you are done reviewing the choices."

Patton read through the list, his eyes scanning over everything Logan wrote. He giggled at the footnotes (he used footnotes ) and closed his eyes to think about what it would feel like to do each and every thing with him.

Then, his eyes focused on one line. He looked up at Logan with a wide grin and pointed to it. 

Logan returned his smile. 

"Precisely what I was thinking."

 --- 

The feeling of climbing inside a helicopter was a feeling Patton was sure he’d never forget. 

“How is this even a thing? Helicopter tours? ” Patton whispered excitedly to Logan as he put on his seatbelt. 

Logan couldn’t help but laugh. “In all honesty, I am new to the phenomenon as well; only discovering it when I came across the website whilst doing research for the itinerary. It is apparently a very popular service.”

“Oh my God, this is really happening.” Patton looked over at Logan with a sudden realization. “How is this a thing we can afford?”

Logan shrugged. “There may have been an...ulterior motive behind keeping spendings to a minimum.”

“ Logan,” Patton gasped. 

“Check your seatbelt again,” is all Logan said before starting a conversation with the pilot. 

Patton giggled, tugging on the strap and slipping on the headset. He looked outside the helicopter window with wide eyes. 

He was staring at the Grand Canyon. 

And he was in a helicopter. 

“We’re taking off in a few minutes,” he heard Logan say through his headset. He grinned. 

“Copy that!” he chirped. Logan rolled his eyes and looked out his own window. 

In the corner of his eye, however,  he saw Logan’s hand move a bit closer to his. 

Suddenly, the pilot began moving some levers and pressing some buttons; and without warning, Patton felt himself being lifted up. 

“Oh my gosh, oh my gosh–”

Patton felt a sense of giddiness and fear mixing in his chest as he inhaled sharply, looking at his window and realizing that he was above the ground.

And then suddenly, he’s above the clouds.

“ This is amazing!” he couldn’t help but shriek over the loud whirr of the helicopter. He held onto his seatbelt, smiling widely at Logan, who just nodded at him. 

Patton looked out his window once more, a rush of adrenaline shooting through him as the helicopter flew a bit closer to the canyon. He saw spots of warm reds and oranges fill his vision as the helicopter weaved itself through the vibrant landscape. Below him were various forms of plant life and a river that seemed brighter than any river he had ever seen before. 

And there were people , to his surprise. There were some hiking along the terrain and some even kayaking. 

They all moved with such purpose; like they were on the greatest adventure of their life;

like they just knew why they were there.

Patton then looked at Logan with a small smile. 

And now, so did he. 

“Patton!” he heard Logan say as they were swept higher into the air. “What did you want to say?”

“What?!”

“You wanted to yell something at the Grand Canyon!” Logan said again, a bit louder this time. “What was it?”

A pause. Patton broke into a wide grin as he looked out his window to see the adventure he had waited a lifetime for.

And then he took Logan’s hand. 

“You’re just gorges!” Patton finally yelled, squeezing Logan’s hand with a loud laugh. “The Grand Canyon is just gorges!”

A beat of silence passed until–

Patton’s ears were suddenly filled with laughter, coming from every direction. Rich, honey-like laughter surrounded him like a blanket; his own safe haven. 

And when he looked over at Logan once more, (a sight he could spend the rest of his life looking at,) he saw that Logan was laughing;

still holding his hand.

 ---

Patton took a deep breath of fresh air and opened his eyes.

Logan had taken him everywhere after the helicopter ride. They ate lunch at a restaurant that gave them an aerial view of the Grand Canyon, they bought a few souvenirs (or at least, Patton bought one very tacky shirt); they even hiked for a few hours. Logan made sure that the Grand Canyon—a wonder Patton waited for so long—followed them everywhere they went. 

One of the last items on the itinerary was going to something called the Skywalk; a glass bridge shaped like a horseshoe that extended out over the rim of the Grand Canyon. Surprisingly enough, it was the part that excited Logan the most. 

Every step Patton took across the Skywalk felt like he was walking on air. The glass floor beneath him was a bit daunting at times, but it could never scare him because Logan was still holding his hand. 

Patton noticed that Logan didn’t stop holding his hand the whole day. When they walked out of the restaurant, when they were hiking, and even now. 

Patton didn’t know what changed,  but whatever it was, he certainly didn’t mind. 

Holding Logan just felt so...right.

( He felt right.)

“ Logan… ” Patton’s words came out as a hushed whisper as he walked towards the railing, leaning against it and letting the air breeze past him. 

“I know.” Logan squeezed Patton’s hand. “It’s simply breathtaking.”

Patton sighed, his chin in his hand as he took in the sight in front of him. 

“I can’t believe I’m really here ,” Patton murmured. “I have never even made it past the parking lot.”

“Well I am glad you are finally here,” Logan said with a small smile. “It’s...nice.”

“Nice doesn’t even begin to describe it,” Patton laughed. “To think, this all started on the day I got the worst news of my life.”

Logan chuckled to himself. “And now we’re here.”

“Here we are,” Patton echoed quietly. They stood there in silence for a little while, each of them grateful for their moment of solitude. The attraction itself was rather empty, with most people wandering back indoors to escape from the inevitable nighttime chill. 

However, Patton felt warmer than he ever had before, watching the sun slowly set on his final leap of faith.

“You know, my dad said he went to the Grand Canyon when he was fourteen,” Patton said absentmindedly, his stare still focused on the sight in front of him. “He said it was one of the most perfect experiences of his life. And so, naturally, when we made plans to go, he wanted it to be exactly the same.”

Patton chuckled. “Maybe that’s why we were never able to leave the car.”

“Was he a perfectionist throughout his life?”

Patton lightly scoffed. “Perfectionist doesn’t even begin to describe him. He knew he wasn’t given as much time as my mum and...well, he always resented everyone for that. Not even just Doctors; everyone.” Patton sadly smiled. “He knew he’d be gone by the time I was eight.” 

Logan just stared ahead wordlessly.

“When he found out, he married my mum right away,” Patton continued. “They were both young, and...it wasn’t the happiest marriage.” He shook his head, almost in disbelief. “But he was so determined to have the perfect life for all the time he had left.”

Patton sighed. “And when I finally came around, he...he tried to make us a part of that.”

“That…” Logan closed his eyes with a deep breath. “I don’t know what to say.”

“I never knew either.” Patton looked at the warm landscape in front of them, which was basking in the colours of the setting sun. “Maybe it just proves how crazy this– this timer can make people; the timer we’re all stuck with from the moment we get here.”

Logan huffed. “ ‘Crazy’ is a bit of an understatement.”

Patton laughed quietly. “I think once we get our time, we are just filled with so much...expectation. Like we expect to do so much, get so far. But at that point, it’s kind of already late, right?”

Logan frowned. “Late?”

“Well, we’re told how it all ends at practically the beginning of our life. What else are we supposed to do if our time is cut short before we can even begin to grow?”

“This is a far more bitter approach to life than what I am used to hearing from you, Patton,” Logan said quietly. Patton smiled. 

“I guess,” he replied. “It’s...well just talking about my dad really puts my life in perspective, you know? So much of what has shaped me came from the fear that I’d end up like him. There was this...expectation that I had to achieve everything and give so much until I...I don’t know, die, heh.”

Patton lowered his head. “I used to think I knew what it was all for; what being unconditionally giving was worth. I expected to be given time, and…well, I expected a perfect experience.”

He then took one more glance at the Grand Canyon and sighed. 

“But it’s just gorges,” he finally murmured, biting his lip as his face suddenly grew hot, the threat of tears slowly closing in on him.

Suddenly, he felt Logan’s thumb slowly brush against the side of his hand. Patton looked up to see him looking back at him. 

“You’ve given enough,” Logan whispered, leaning forward ever-so slightly. “Perhaps your time was just meant to give you peace.”

Patton blinked, tears blurring his vision. 

And they were suddenly so close. 

“ You.”

Patton pulled back immediately, the word cutting through the air between them like a knife. Logan stiffened as Patton turned around. 

Behind them was a man, almost Patton’s height. He was wearing a black blazer with a bright yellow button-up underneath it. On his head, was a bowler hat. 

“Hiya!” Patton chirped nervously, not noticing how pale Logan suddenly was. “Um, is everything okay?”

The man said nothing. Patton’s smile fell as he tried to keep the conversation afloat. 

“You know, you kinda look familiar– didn’t we meet you at the carnival?” 

The man blatantly ignored Patton, focusing his attention towards Logan instead. 

He took a step forward. 

“I bet you don’t recognize me,” he hissed at Logan, “ do you? ”

Patton froze, not being able to move from his place on the sidelines of this confrontation. He watched helplessly as the man approached Logan slowly. 

“ Do you remember who I am?! ” The man suddenly yelled, causing some people passing by to stare at their little party. Patton looked at Logan nervously, who stood firmly in his place. He didn’t say a word, which made the man laugh.

“Ah, so now you have nothing to say,” the man growled. “Or maybe you really don’t remember me. Both possibilities would be such a surprise coming from someone like you. ”

“Hey now,” Patton said, the feeling in his legs suddenly returning. He quickly moved in between them. “I– I think there’s been some misunderstanding, sir.”

“Misunderstanding?” The man echoed darkly, laughing once more. “I think I would be able to recognize the man who couldn’t find it in his steel heart to save my son.”

Patton’s blood ran cold. 

“...What?”

“Leave,” Logan finally whispered. “I could call the authorities on you.”

“More abuse of power, I see!” The man clapped his hands together with a sarcastic grin. “How very typical of your kind.” 

Suddenly, the man roughly pushed Patton aside and grabbed Logan by the collar of his shirt.

“I could end you,” he snarled. “Do you know how long I’ve been waiting to run into you again, Mr. Fray?”

“Hey!” Patton exclaimed, trying to reach out to stop him. “Leave him alone!” 

The man ignored him, his grip on Logan tightening.

“I implore you to not do something you might regret,” Logan gritted out. “I know this is not what you want.”

A beat of silence. 

“You don’t know anything,” the man said as he let Logan go roughly, just as Patton rushed to his side. “And you don’t have any right to make a decision on what I want.”

Patton quickly held his hand, whispering, “Are you okay?” 

Logan said nothing.

The man stared at them both and narrowed his eyes, which were quickly shadowed by his hat. 

“The only thing I’m grateful for is that you have to live with the grief forever,” the man sneered. “And in hindsight? I see that you were right about one thing.”

The man then turned his back on them, showing a glimpse of a cold stare over his shoulder.

“ I would never want him to be like you.”

Patton watched with wide eyes as the man walked away, then looked over at Logan; whose face was suddenly shrouded with shadows casted by the darkening sky. 

His heart began to race as the man’s words echoed back in his head. 

“Steel heart.” 

“Abuse of power.”

“Make a decision.”

“Live forever.”

“I would never want him to be like you .”

Patton’s breath hitched as it clicked.

“Y-You...you’re a–”

And then, Logan let go of his hand.

---

next chapter >

[today-we-will-survive]

Eyes On Me

Pairing: Jimin x Reader

Genre: angst

Word Count: 1.2K

Requested: anon

A/N: I’m sorry this is so late! Thank you for being so patient with me and I hope you like it 💜

“Everything’s gonna be fine, Y/N,” Jimin utters as his lips ghost over yours. “You’re going to do amazing, just like always.”

“But this is the biggest venue we’ve done yet,” you say, pulling back to look into his eyes. “There are so many people out there.”

“Don’t worry about them, baby,” he says and lifts a hand to brush a strand of hair back off your cheek. “We’ve done this so many times already. Just keep your eyes on me. Like always. Alright?”

With a shaky sigh, you nod your head and Jimin smiles fondly before placing a kiss on your forehead, his lips lingering against your skin. “I love you, Y/N. You know that?”

“I know,” you reply. “I love you too.”

“Jimin, Y/N, you’re on in three minutes.”

The two of you step away from each other letting the stylists surround each of you, making last minute adjustments to your outfits, hair and makeup. Then, he grabs your hand, intertwining his fingers with yours, and pulls you through the dark maze of metal beams beneath the stage. You can hear the muffled sounds of the performance going on above your heads and the screams and cheers of the thousands upon thousands of fans out in the audience.

It’s not just the size of the crowd that has a rock forming in the pit of your stomach, it’s the fact that whoever made the setlist decided to put your dance collab toward the end this time and, though Jimin would never admit it, you know he’s exhausted. You definitely are.

You feel the rock getting bigger as the two of you stand on your platform below the stage and wait for the song to end. Neither of you speak but you feel Jimin’s fingers brush yours in the darkness. You don’t know if it’s to reassure you or himself, either way, you squeeze back and take a deep breath as the song ends and the crowd goes wild.

“Alright, send them up,” a woman to the side of the platform says into a headset and you grip Jimin’s hand tighter.

Just then the lift starts moving. Jimin’s fingers grasp yours harder and with a quick tug, he pulls you against him.

“Just keep your eyes on me, alright?” he asks, his breath fanning your face.

You lean forward, placing one last kiss against his mouth before the two of you emerge on the stage, the embrace being the starting position of the dance. You see the thousands of army bombs sparkling blue against the black and you try not to think about the fact that each one of those is a person—and that there are thousands more without army bombs—all with their attention focused on you.

Sure, you’re an idol. Sure, you should be used to this kind of fame and attention, but your muscles are fatigued, your head a bit foggy from how hectic the day has been and your performances haven’t even been as grueling as Jimin’s have. You know he’s in worse shape than you are.

The music swells to a start in a sweep of strings and your arms weave into the air, matching Jimin’s as you move with the music. Suddenly, one sultry beat has the two of you pushing apart and then the dance continues. You try to pull inspiration and energy from the crowd, which has fallen silent as they watch mesmerized while the two of you move on the stage. You think back to practicing in the studio with Jimin, the late nights of doing the routine over and over, always with extra little brushes of hands and lips to make you blush and giggle. None of that now, though. Both of you are perfectionists, each lost in your own world even when you meet again.

Your limbs feel a bit like jello and you dread the flip coming up at the end of the bridge. You’ve never fallen before but the nerves always hit you the worst right before it.

As it approaches, you make your way to the side of the stage opposite from Jimin, your eyes glued to him where he stands, blonde hair in his eyes, his chest heaving and his skin shimmering with sweat in the blue lights. You’ve always been entranced by the boy but there’s something even more captivating about him when he’s dancing, and being able to experience it up close is something you wouldn’t trade for the world.

The time comes and you surge forward, eyes still focused on Jimin until the last second when you push off the ground. You twist through the air, your hair whipping behind you as you arc then absorb the landing by tumbling onto your knees and up again. Perfect.

You were concentrating so hard during your flip that you didn’t even hear the collective gasp made by the crowd or notice that the music had suddenly grown quieter. But then you turn to face Jimin again and you freeze. He’s on the ground his hands grasping his ankle, his face pressed against his knee as two stage hands try to get him to stand up.

“Jimin?” you utter between heaving breaths.

The lights go out, plunging the entire arena into darkness and you suddenly feel hands on your arms and shoulders, pulling you back off stage. You can only comply blindly, the shock of seeing your boyfriend buckled in pain too much for you to form any thought other than Jimin Jimin Jimin.

Only once you’ve made it backstage do you pull away from the people leading you. “Where’s Jimin?” you ask. “What happened? Where is he?”

“Y/N, in here!”

You whip around to see Taehyung leaning out of a doorway and quickly make your way through the crowded hall toward him. As you get closer, you hear Jimin’s pained cry, causing ice water to rush down your spine.

“Jimin?”

He’s there, laying on a stretcher on the ground, his hands pressed to his eyes, his mouth twisted in pain as a medic cuts his pant leg open carefully. The man pulls back the material to reveal his ankle already swelling and and changing color.

You stumble forward, falling to your knees and grasping the sides of your boyfriend’s sweaty head in your hands. “Jimin,” you whisper as you press your forehead against his. “It’s okay, baby. You’ll be okay.”

“I screwed up, Y/N,” he sobs. “I let everyone down. I let Army down. I let you down.”

“No you didn’t, Jimin,” you say and sit up so you can look him in the eye. “It was an accident, alright? You’ll be okay. Army will understand. If they love you, they’ll understand.”

“I’m so sorry, Y/N,” Jimin whimpers.

You don’t know how to respond so you try to let your actions speak for you, pressing your lips to his cheeks, his temples, his nose. You try to kiss the tears away, try to give him some sort of reassurance as the medic bandages his ankle. “It’ll be okay, Jiminie. I promise.”

[writerbee-ffs]

Tutor Session

So I got this request sent from @hyejooismybaby AND I most definitely wrote 2 versions 😂😭✨

Here’s version 2 ! This is more like asshole vibe turned lowkey sweet Erik !

Hope yah enjoy 😊!

✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨✨

“Wake up. Z. Sis, I swear if you don’t wake yo ass up.” Your best friend, Aziza, mumbled as she gave little taps to you shoulder. “Biiiiiitch.” She drug out before you popped your eyes open realizing you had missed about half of the African Studies lecture.

“Damnit.” You groaned gathering your laptop and books. “Why’d you let me sleep so long.”

“Now sis...” She side eyed you as you both walked out of the double doors. “Somebody had to take our damn notes.

Grabbing your tablet quickly from your bag, you looked over the emailed notes Aziza had sent to you and then you remembered why you feel asleep in the first place. It wasn’t that you were tired but the it was the subject at hand that had put you in your temporary coma. “Fucking language.” You mumbled as your eyes were still training on you iPad walking through the yard. “There are like 1000 plus African languages and Professor Pike thought IsiXhosa would be the best to teach us.” You were beyond irritated because this was the main reason you were on the verge of failing your African Studies course.

“Zazie, just get a tutor.” Aziza suggested as you both made it to the campus cafe. “Fine ass Pike has a whole roaster of tutors near his office.” She shrugged as you both swiped your IDs. You definitely had to remind yourself to ask your friend how the fuck she knew that considering you two had never been to Pike’s office together.

“I don’t think I need a tutor, A. Maybe I just have to study more-“

“And stop falling asleep.” She laughed. “It’s hard enough actually listening to Pike instead of daydreaming about his chocolate ass.”

“Hoe, he could be your daddy.” You scoffed waiting in like for you green machine smoothie.

“Exactly.” She winked. “He could be annnnnd so could they.”

You followed her gaze to the ‘Anything but Holy’ Threesome or that’s what you heard girls around the campus call them. First up was T’challa. You had heard he was the most serious out the three. Though he had his roaster of ass you’d had only heard good things about how he treated women and pretty much everyone. Then there M’Baku. The big and tall ass niggah that only wore a smug look on his face. You had heard he was somewhat nice but he’d make you feel stupid all at the same time especially anyone that annoyed him. Lastly there was Erik. Erik was the ‘fuck boy but I still wanna fuck him ass’ type niggah. Bitches fell at his feet and other niggahs knew what the fuck it was when he was around. He was a complete dog.

“Ew.” You rolled your eyes as you both made it to a table. It wasn’t that you had an issue with them, it was just the fact that they walked around like Gods and it was purely annoying.

“Ew?” Aziza looked up from her phone. “Sis, say what you want but they are fine.”

“Whatever.” You laughed taking another sip looking at your watch. “Shit!” You popped up grabbing all of your things forgetting about your 3 o’clock class.

“Slow down, bitch!” You heard Aziza call before your body collided with something hard.

“Damn girl.” His deep voice spoke looking down on you. “Watch where you going.”

Fucking Erik. “How about you move away from the damn exit. Big body ass just blocking shit.” You groaned picking up all your books and papers.

“Ah she’s feisty.” M’Baku chuckled as he watched you struggle.

“If you were watching what you were doing you wouldn’t have ran into my big body ass, princess.”

“Leave her alone, cousin.” T’challa rolled his eyes grabbing some of your things for you. His nice ass.

“Whatever.” You just focused on your belongings thanking God that they had left but not before M’Baku mumbled something and you heard Erik’s comment.

“Nice ass though.” He shrugged.

*****

That was it! You had failed your IsiXhosa language test and you were fed up. You couldn’t fail this damn class. Partly because the perfectionist Virgo in you wouldn’t allow it and most definitely because you were at this college on a full ride.

“So about that tutor...” Aziza mumbled as she looked over a your test. “Pike’s office after class?”

Nodding your head you couldn’t wait for class to be over. You couldn’t help but to let your mind wander as Professor spoke.

The second it was you zoomed towards Pike’s office looking at the list of names. I guess everyone was barely making it through the class, considering there were only 2 names left. There was no way you were going to be tutored African language by some white girl, call it the black in you but that was a no go.

“N’Jadaka Udaku?” You frowned struggling to say the name on the list.

“Well I mean at least you know he’s authentic.” Aziza snickered behind you as you wrote your name and number on a sheet of paper, slipping it into the mailbox with his names over it.

“Now we wait.” You groaned following your friend to the dorms so you brush up on your language and not look like a complete idiot.

Hearing your phone sound off, you realized you had once again fell asleep. “Damnit.” You mumbled scrambling to find your phone and check the message.

‘This is N’Jadaka, ur tutor. Meet me at the library @6. 2nd floor.’

4:45 pm. The clock read as you sat up on your bed rubbing the sleep from your eyes. “Well lets get this over with.” You mumbled to yourself.

It hadn’t taken you long to get out of your dorm and to the library. You’d thrown on a plain black T-shirt and leggings and your was in your normal half up half down hairstyle. “2nd floor.” You mumbled heading towards the elevator looking at your watch. 5:30 pm. You were early.

Making your way to the study rooms, you settled on the room that was ducked off because you were going to need to concentrate hard. Taking out you books and supplies, you sat there waiting on him.

“What’s up, princess?” Erik. You rolled your eyes taking him in as he watched you with a smirk. His black long sleeve made it hard to deny that this man was in shape and definitely had the body of a gawd! His sweats hung low off his lower half but hugged him in all the right places. You were so caught off you had forgot to speak until you heard him clear his throat.

“I’m meeting someone, Erik. Now can you go?!” He’d looked at you for a moment before sitting down anyways. “So what part of I’m meeting someone don’t you under-“

“Igama lam ngu-N'Jadaka, princess.” He interrupted pulling out his books and his student ID for confirmation.

“What?” You questioned. “You have to be fucking with me.” You palmed your face before settling your eyes back on him. He was already watching you with a devilish grin as your mind processed the information. He was probably use to people doing this. You’d realized that he was the one you were waiting on. “I have to get another tutor.” Hopping up and packing your bag, you felt his hand grip your wrist.

“Sit down, princess.” He looked. “And I won’t ask again.”

You most definitely sat your black ass back down. Grabbed your book and got to fucking work. Study sessions with Erik....

******

Your study sessions were coming to an end with Erik due to you passing all of your language based test. Although he was an asshole, he was one of thee best tutors. Erik had made you pass all of your tests and you even had a B in the class.

You were meeting up with him at his apartment to finish up some last minute work from Pike and needed some help. You didn’t really need the help but you wanted to see him.

“N’Jadaka?” You called out stepping into his apartment ,which wasn’t locked, looking around for him.

“Told you don’t call me that shit, princess.” He mugged you coming from the back. “Ngaphandle kokuba igumbi lokulala.”

You rolled your eyes knowing exactly what he said. Since he’d been teaching you IsiXhosa he would talk to you sometimes in the language. Well mostly flirt.

“But it’s your name.” You beamed completely ignoring the last part. “Your given name that I happen to like.” You and Erik has become closer over these past few weeks which you liked but also made you nervous due to his rep. Yeah he was still an ass but he was also brilliant, funny, kind (at times) and fine as hell. You’d learned that he used his real name N’Jadaka for his tutoring sessions so bitches wouldn’t want to be paired with him because it was him, which made sense. Erik had also considered IsiXhosa to be his second language.

“Yo?”

“Huh?”

“Ready to finish up this work?” Nodding your head, you sat on the sofa getting comfortable as he watched you.

“Stop being creepy, N’Jadaka.” You smirked.

“Kodwa ulungile.” He grinned looking at you as you unexpectedly blushed.

“Just help me with this.” You tossed the work at him. “I didn’t get some of them.” You lied.

“You’re a bad ass liar, princess.”

“Are you going to help or not N’Jadaka?” You scoffed as you slightly slid your feet onto his lap.

“Real comfortable, huh?” You couldn’t do anything but shrug as you began to work finish up your work.

“Shit.” You mumbled looking at the time. You’d feel asleep. ‘What the hell?’ You questioned feeling something hard wrapped around you body as you woke. You relaxed once you realized it was Erik’s arms slung around your waist. “Erik, I have to go.” You hummed attempting to get out his embrace.

He stirred for a moment before finally getting up and going into the back. “Wait a second, princess.”

Placing your sneaker on your feet and then your jacket, you stood by the door as you waited for him. You heard his heavy footsteps walking towards you with a slip of paper.

“You forgot to translate this, princess.”

Pushing your glasses up on your face, you down at the paper before looking up him. “This isn’t mine.” You handed the paper over. “So you’ve been tutoring others.” You clutched your heart fake hurt.

He handed the paper over to you again. “Get serious, princess. Read the shit.”

All of it was in IsiXhosa which didn’t shock you but this wasn’t any type of schoolwork. Reading the paper a smile began to form on your face. Ndingakukhupha, uZazie? You read the last line.

“Ewe, N'Jadaka.” You beamed looking up at him as he watched you. “About time, niggah!” You laughed.

“Had to see if you was feeling me, princess.”

✨✨✨✨✨ IsiXhosa Translations ✨✨✨✨✨

ngaphandle kokuba igumbi lokulala : unless it’s in the bedroom

kodwa ulungile : But you’re beautiful

Igama lam ngu-N'Jadaka, princess: my name is N’Jadaka, princess

Ndingakukhupha, uZazie?: Can I take you out, Zazie

Ewe, N'Jadaka: Yes, N’Jadaka

[futile-latty]

Never Leave These Eyes (Part 1)

Music.

It was a word so short, yet held many different meanings. Music could be soft and sweet, music could be loud and hard, maybe even both. Music wasn’t just something people listened to, it was a belief collected together to create something catchy and interesting. Of course, no one really notices the complexity and intensity of music. The lyrics that send shivers down people’s spines are overlooked, the interesting noises that spark new creative flows are too.

However, no one understood music more than Peridot Redwood.

Named after a gemstone, Peridot was a rather interesting piece of humanity. Short, messy and triangular blonde hair laid upon a short body (4’7) equipped with lime green eyes, fair skin and curves: her appearance caught anyone’s eye. However, what truly gets people thinking about Peridot was her personality. A perfectionist at heart with ambitions so impossible you’d call her crazy if you ever met her. Who wouldn’t? She was just a rambling, complex brat with a mighty ego. But then again, she had the one thing keeping her going. Her passion, her love, her life was all for the thing she adored the most. And that was music.

Unfortunately, today was not the best day for Peridot. More importantly, London was not the best place for Peridot. Coming from St Austell, a small town in the south west of Britain, she wasn't used to huge crowds with a heavily diverse population. Back in her home, she was used to people looking the same. Pale skin, brunette or blonde hair and bodies just as tall as her. Now, there were people from all different shapes and sizes. Well, if she was moving in, she had to get used to it.

She was newly crowned as an adult a few weeks before, finally reaching the age of 18. Now that the celebration was over, a new wave of hellfire had to flood her soul and burn her back into depression. University. After this, she could go back home, and live out her life peacefully and the exact way she wanted it to. She wanted to be a musician. Bassist, drummer, guitarist, vocalist; she didn’t care what she was gonna be, considering all the instruments she played anyways! She just wanted to play what she wanted to play. However terrible this part of Britain was, it was going to help her life substantially.

Deciding to dress up casually, she put on a white, unzipped hoodie with navy blue jeans and a red shirt. Outside the university were thousands of students, all cramming through the gates and into the main building to sign up for clubs, retrieve their room keys and numbers, and say goodbye to their parents. Waiting in the car by herself, she envied the kids with parents that actually cared. Her mother wouldn’t come even if she tried to convince her, and her dad… Her dad isn’t to be talked about.

Having saved up after retrieving her full license, she bought a small black Vauxhall Corsa to get her from A to B. She never used it much, only really using it for long distance journeys, like this one. However, it seemed broken and thrashed compared to some of the other cars in the parking space. A red Ferrari with wide lights that just screamed “Buy me! Buy me!” to anyone that came across it. Of course, coming out of it was a posh, short girl with a dress so tight Peridot feared for her life. The girl, unlike Peridot, seemed rather excited about heading into what should be the worst few years of her life. Right behind her was a businessman, with slicked back brunette hair and a tall - definitely 6 feet - body that made Peridot seem like an elf. Looking back at the entrance, she decided now was the time to get off her ass and face this new challenge in her life.

As she opened her car door and took a deep breath, she remembered what she was told by her friends.

“Don’t give up, Peri. We’ll believe in you, no matter what.”

Their belief would fuel her.

____________________________________________________________________

Oh god, the stress was astounding. Voices - SO many FUCKING VOICES - and bright lights to light up the already well-lit hallway. She could barely hear the introducer talk to her and pass her key. How tall were people in London? Was she just an oompa-loompa?! If it weren’t for coffee, she would be so dead. The dark, bitter taste soothed her body: it was as if some sort of rich liquid was hugging and relieving her body from the pain from the past hour. But then she had to put the cup down and mess her feelings up.

The apartment complex she was staying in was the lowest quality of them all, with scratched oak floorboards and random holes at the bottom of the walls (probably from rats). There were two bedrooms, one bathroom with a single shower, toilet and sink, one living room with an already working TV and a kitchen right next to the living room. It wasn’t perfect, but it was affordable, and that’s what matters. Two bedrooms… That meant she had a roommate. Someone who, for the rest of her time here, she was going to be with. God, she hoped for a nerd like her. Someone who rambled on about Camp Pining Hearts and complained about Bethesda’s lack of new quality games. Someone she could relate with. In fact, the person she related to the most had just sent her a message, causing her to immediately open her phone.

“Peri!” Her phone rang, reminding Peridot of who she was talking to.

“Hey Amethyst.” She smiled, thankful that her best friend had remembered to contact her in this desperate time of need.

“So, how’s Uni so far?”

“Horrid. And I haven’t even had my first lesson yet.”

Amethyst chuckled at that, releasing that adorable snort she always executed so cutely when she laughed.

“Hah! Wait, when do your lessons start?”

“In 2 days, on Thursday.” Peridot grunted, deciding to move from her current position to the bedroom. On the way, she tripped on one of her two suitcases, landing face first on the bed. Her already messy blonde hair only worsened. She turned to meet the phone, and got a good look at Amethyst’s new makeover. Brown skin, purple eyes and dyed white hair. Amethyst was nearly the same height as Peridot, however, she was much thicker and attractive than the other slim girl.

“Alright then. Looks like you’ve got your hands full at the minute, so I’m gonna leave you to unpack. Sorry for the short little call. Bye!” She waved, before hanging the call up.

“A-Amethyst, wait!” Peridot shouted, before realising she was too late. Immediately, she grunted and slammed her fist on the comfortable single bed, leaving a mark from the impact. Once again, her joy was gutted like a fish. Could anything good happen to cheer her spirits? Oh, wait a minute, what was she thinking? She had something good right underneath her!

Jumping off the bed, she immediately grabbed one of her jet black suitcases and ripped it open, revealing a stash of the things that matter most to her:

Her books, the ones she hadn’t read yet

Her PlayStation, something especially close to her

The musical instruments she had promised to master: A keyboard, disassembled drum kit, acoustic guitar and bass guitar.

She didn’t have the time for the drum kit, however, she could try and tune her guitar. She picked up the large wooden structure and let her fingers strum the 6 strings, telling her which notes were out of place. After some loud strumming, she switched to a chord. Then another. And then another. The chords fused with each other perfectly, creating a smooth yet melancholy tune for her, and only her, to enjoy.

In fact, it was so immersive, she never realised that the apartment door had opened.

A body monolithic compared to Peridot came through the door, revealing her black “Avenged Sevenfold” hoodie and blue sweatpants. Very short blue hair covered up the new woman’s eyes, but that didn’t stop Peridot from looking closer at her face. She stopped playing as she focused more on the girl’s body, ‘She’s… Stunning’ she thought, not noticing the girl’s glare headed straight her way. Panicking, she hid away her guitar and stood up, walking up to the entrance of the home.

What could she say? Peridot was never very good at socialising, which is why her struggle was so prominent in this situation. ‘For fuck sake, just speak before she thinks you’re a weirdo!’ She shouted at herself in her head, finally deciding to spill something out.

“Peridot.” She exclaimed, putting out her hand for the girl to shake. “My name’s Peridot, and I’m gonna be your new roommate for as long as we’re here. It’s nice to meet you.” She added, rather monotonously.

“Lapis.” The other girl quietly let out, taking Peridot’s hand before walking away to the other closed bedroom, suitcases being dragged behind her. Peridot stood still for a few moments, not expecting the woman to release such a condescending glare at her. She wanted more information - no, she needed it. Not only was this new ‘Lapis’ an absolute stunner, she was strangely shy and blunt. The lack of clarity of this new girl was astounding, and it filled Peridot with dread. What if she was sharing an apartment with her, only to find out she’s crazy, or weird, or all of the above! But then again, she didn’t seem like the most sociable person. Maybe that was just her personality, and Peridot was looking too far into it. She decided to take action, walking to Lapis’ room.

She looked into the open door, seeing the blue-haired beauty bend down to unpack her things onto the bed. Very dark clothes, Peridot noted. She fake-coughed, capturing the much taller woman’s attention.

“Do you need help with anything?” She asked, her lips trying to smile and failing. Lapis only shook her head, showing signs that maybe she just wanted to be left alone. Not wanting any of that, she stepped closer into the room, causing Lapis to jump slightly and turn around to face the shorter blonde.

“Listen, I don’t need your help with anything, okay?” She angrily yet quietly told the now guilty nerd beneath her. “I know you’re trying to make friends, and that’s fine, but I never really wanted a roommate. So, please, if you could just refrain from talking to me, that would be great.” She huffed, arms crossed and shoes impatiently tapping on the floor. Peridot gulped, intimidated, then nodded, turning so she could walk away. Lapis turned around, getting back to what she was doing previously.

Peridot just felt terrible. She was acting clingy to a stranger. A fucking stranger. If the loud, violent voices didn’t make her feel bad, this certainly did. The mysterious Lapis now haunted her, and apparently was leaving her too, since she was walking to the door. Just before witnessing the exit, Peridot spotted what seemed to be a pained expression on her roommate’s face. The door slammed shut as Peridot laid back into the bed, hearing the footsteps slowly fade. She wanted to get things right, she wanted redemption.

No matter what, Peridot Redwood was going to find and eliminate the problem with Lapis.

[rewritetheself]

How To Overcome Resistance: The Anti-thesis of Productivity and Dreams

At the start of the day when it's time to get out of bed until the end of the day when it's time to get back in, we all get trapped in the embrace of Resistance on a daily basis. The concept of Resistance was created by Stephen Pressfield in his book, The War of Art, and much like the standard definition describes the intrinsic feeling of preventing ourselves to work on the things that we know would benefit us.

Why it exists

I'm sure we all can identify times they've felt strong resistance against being productive. And it's easy to wonder why it happens. The reason this happens is simple. We're lazy.

Or maybe it's better just to say that our brains are lazy. To be fair, the brain has its work cut out for it: receiving, processing and prioritizing massive amounts of sensory information plus being the, for lack of a better term, brains of the operation of keeping your body functioning and by extension keeping you alive. With all the work the brain has to do, naturally, it makes sense it would try to conserve resources by cutting corners wherever it can by ignoring irrelevant information and automating tasks and routines you regularly do.

Usually, this works great. We don't have to waste precious cognitive power wondering if there's more dust in the air than usual every time you walk through the house or which leg you should use first when you put on pants. But, other times the brain tends to ignore or automate actual important things because of our bad habit of doing them: like staying in bed and hitting snooze 5 times when you should be getting ready for your day or watching movies when you should be working on a project.

It is easier to just follow your established habits rather than use willpower and have to focus on manually being productive.

And that's why any time you should be doing something productive, you always feel some form of tension followed by that voice in your head saying things like " I can do it after I finished this episode." or "I'm just not in the mood to work on that right now." which makes you procrastinate or just avoid doing the task at all.

Characteristics of Resistance

The best metaphor for Resistance is this:

If your goal is a tree, resistance is the tree's shadow.

This helps you remember two things:

That one cannot exist without the other. Regardless of what stage you are in your life, as long as you have a goal to accomplish, you will experience resistance.

That the bigger the goal, the stronger the resistance. Just like how a shadow's shape and size are influenced by the tree it is cast from.

Don't let these facts intimidate you though. As we will always say:

Every problem has at least one solution. It's just a matter of finding and applying it.

The key to overcoming resistance is that you simply need to use the brain's own automation system and create a habit of overcoming resistance. This is ideal especially because you will always encounter Resistance throughout your life.

The Process

There are three steps you can use to overcome resistance:

Recognize it

Resistance will first appear as a physical/mental discomfort when you think of your goal. This makes you associate the goal with discomfort. Afterwhich it will take advantage of your mental weaknesses to rationalize why you shouldn't do it.

Example:

If you're easily discouraged, resistance will convince you that the task is too hard and you shouldn't even bother.

If you're a perfectionist, resistance will convince you that you need to refine your skills or study more before you even attempt doing the task in order to avoid making mistakes.

Question It

What about the goal are you resisting? Is it the overall goal itself? Is it some aspect of when, where or how you are trying to accomplish it? Or is it the aftermath of completing it?

Example: You may hate cooking at home because it's so much work to clean up after you're done.

Evaluate your choices

Your choices being:

a) You can change your thoughts (effective)

b) You can change your actions (also effective)

c) You can change both (super effective)

d) You can change neither (no effect)

If you want to change how you think about the task to overcome resistance, you can:

1) Focus on the parts of the task you enjoy.

Example: You may like smelling the delicious aromas of food while you're cooking.

2) Focus on the reward you get for completing the task (intrinsically or extrinsically)

Example: The satisfaction of having an organized space after cleaning or a treat you may reward yourself with after completing a task.

3) Challenge your assumptions about how you can achieve your goal. Is there a more fun way to accomplish it?

Example: Playing a sport to get exercise instead of just going to a gym

4) Think about all the outcomes you'll get from partially completing the task, completing the task, and not doing the task at all, then decide on what to do.

How will future-you feel about the choice you make?

If you want to change how you do the task to overcome resistance, you can:

1) Combine the task with something you enjoy doing.

Example: Listening to music while you clean or treating yourself to a piece of your favorite candy for every page of a book you're reading.

2) Do the task more mindfully (focusing on one action step at a time rather than the task as a whole). This is great for bigger projects, after all, how do you eat an elephant?.....one bite at a time.

3) Automate the process of achieving your goal (kind of like we're doing with making the habit of overcoming resistance). Keep doing the process regularly and eventually, it will become a habit.

4) Change whatever factor of the goal that you're resisting. Whether that is how you're doing it, where you're doing it, the tools you're using, etc.

Example: Working out at home where it's quiet and private instead of at the gym where it's loud and crowded.

To end off, I will clarify that overcoming resistance is not a quick, easy habit to develop. It takes consistent, deliberate effort but once you get it, there will be nothing that will stop you from going to accomplish what you set out to do. In fact, once you've mastered overcoming resistance, resistance itself can become a guide for you to determine how beneficial a goal is. This can serve as an extra motivational boost to help you achieve your goals.