#i usually have that issue with coloring words instead of italicizing them but i get it đ
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"Why not you? There's- there's no reason for you not to- have support from people when you need it most. So what if you're a 'stranger'? You're still a person, and- you're still you."
Kiyuu answered. It was just like her, to care for everyone, especially for those who seemed to not have anyone in their corner caring for them at all. She felt a small sense of obligation to them, yet a genuine will to see their smiles again, to be important to people.
"And now that you aren't such a stranger, even if I don't know a lot about you yet, I'd really like to! I really want to be your friend... Ah- is that too forward-?!"
She continued, trying yet still failing to really properly articulate everything she was thinking in the moment.
"'Why you?' I dunno. Just felt like it. Is that not a good enough reason?"
Yuuto scoffed. He stared for a moment, then just groaned quietly.
"I guess... I get it a 'lil too. Spent my whole life feelin' like that before here. Suspect you 'ave too. But heres the thing; we have a fresh start now. We're free. Do all the things you were too scared to do before. You've gotta really try to make things better for yourself. You have a chance now. Use it. Do it while you can."
He finally said. He shrugged, as if it was an obvious deduction, and in some ways, to him, it was. It came to him so naturally, he knew that here was where he belonged. Where he'd truly be alive. And even though he guessed Yuna was more aligned with Kiyuu's perspective in these circumstances, it was true for everyone, he was sure of it. And although he'd be a bit of a hypocrite to say the same thing directly addressing Kiyuu, he was sure she got the message anyway.
Meanwhile, Aros' attention was caught by the rose staff on Yuna's arm. It had lost some of its petals, having lost one more a moment ago. He wanted to know how it was connected to her overblot, to her phantom. If all of the petals were to fall, what would happen?
He refocused, and clear his throat, before responding.
"A life should never be lost to the succumbing to one's emotions, no matter who the victim, no matter how the death. I'll admit now, that this fact was only my reason to come. However, being here now, my reason I have stayed... Is simple really. I am not heartless. I am aware of your struggles, and it is within my capacity to help you. So why shouldn't I? Unfortunatly, this is not as common of a perspective as it should be, I personally think. You deserve to be treated like the person that you are. More importantly, you deserve to be heard. To be seen".
A notification flashes across phone screens everywhere throughout NRC. The radio podcast, NRTea has gone live once more!
"Hello, hello, dearest listeners! And welcome to another episode of NRTea, the hottest tea party on sages island! I'm your host, Chamomile-"
"and I am Earl Grey"
"And oh boy do we have a story for you today! Take it away, Earl!"
"...alright.
As of late, there have been brambles spiralling up and encasing parts of the Ramshackle dorm. The brambles themselves seem generally harmless, as do the roses that fall from them, but if you prick yourself on the thorns, it would be quite an unpleasant sensation, so I'd suggest exercising some extra caution when visiting for now."
"Yup, yup! If you've got a friend or two living in the dorm out there, go check on em and make sure they're doing okay!"
"I know I myself must check in on my dearest companions soon..."
"Well that's it for now! We've been your hosts, Chamomile-"
"And Earl Grey,"
"And this has been NRTea. Stay thirsty, dear listeners!"
The stream continues on for a bit before cutting off, though.
"Hey... James?"
"Yes?"
"Y'know how Yuna has been locking up lately and stuff? Says she's been super sick recently."
"Mhm... It's quite concerning, if I am being honest. I haven't seen her for a while..."
"...I wonder if Yuna is alright. I hope she doesn't get hurt with all those brambles."
"...Me too, Lewis. Me too."
(â¨YUNA OVERBLOT STUFF YAHOO!!!
-â¨mod, @night-raven-miscellany. Technically James and Lewis, too, but I haven't been adding them fhdjfj)
Kiyuu stared down at her phone with a frown as the podcast ended. She didn't say anything, prompting Aros to speak up from behind her.
"...Lucky you haven't been over there for a while, isn't it?"
He spoke, giving Kiyuu a faint smile, leaning in just a little closer while dabbing a makeup brush into the eyeshadow pallette in his hand, before applying it, making slightly quicker movements than previously, already being able to tell what Kiyuu was thinking.
They both knew the signs by now from even just a glance. With the context the podcast had accidentlly given... Something bad was about to happen. That much they could tell.
His expression morphed back into a frown as he watched how Kiyuu's face seemed to go through a cycle of conflicting emotions, confirming what he'd thought.
"...Yuuto's close by, though. And he definitely won't hesitate to head straight for Ramshackle once he suspects something's happening..."
There was more silence, only disturbed by the quiet sounds of rummaging through makeup and supplies from Aros. They'd been in the middle of testing out some makeup samples Aros had been sent for a promotion when they'd decided to tune into NRTea's podcast in the background.
"...Would you like me to quickly finish applying your makeup before we go?"
Aros offered, picking up an eyelash curler, and tilting Kiyuu's head up gently with his pointer finger.
"But-"
"Ah- Let me finish now. If you're worried about time, I'll change up our plan, do something quick, yet effective, instead. Don't stress out more than you need to. It won't do you any good."
"Mmh... Okay then. I'd- really like that. Thank you..."
Kiyuu conceeded softly, a silent exchange of gratitude from Kiyuu between them, Aros nodding in response, expression neutral as he continued.
"...Heh. I bet he's real excited right now. I worry a lot for him when he does this sort of thing, y'know. Just doing whatever he wants with no consideration to anyone else's feelings..."
Kiyuu mumbled, an underlying bitterness that she never quite felt wholeheartedly in her voice.
"That's just how he is. The only thing for us to do now is help them both out, hm?"
"Ah- right..! Yuna, I heard their name was, I think... I hope they're alright..."
"As do I."
Aro's commented as he stood, reaching instinctively for his hand mirror, handing it to Kiyuu as he hastily, yet still neatly, tidied up his supplies.
"Satisfactory?"
He asked, turning his head around to gauge Kiyuu's opinion.
"Yeah! More than, for sure."
Kiyuu agreed, handing back the mirror. She felt a little better now, the familiar feeling of her makeup calming her nerves ever so slightly.
After a few short moments she stood, hastily reaching to fix up her hair into a more practical fashion.
"Okay! Okay. Let's go! We shouldn't waste anymore time."
She announced, projecting bounds more confidence than she actually felt.
"Yes, let's. Perhaps we'll even arrive before anything too disastrous occurs on either party's end..."
Aros responded. Though somehow, they both doubted that much of a miricle would happen for them today...
#{ ooc //#also sorry this reply kinda is bad im like. lowk abt to explode irl rn so might not be too coherent or decently written but idk#< NO ITS OKAY OMG !! DONT EVEN WORRYYY#on MY end ik i keep being told to not apologise but i js have to say that YESTERDAY WAS THE 2ND TIME MY PHONE EXPLODED ON ME-#-WHEN I WAS TRYNA WRITE A REPLY#well like not rly exploded its js been giving me static and shutting down randomly and not turning back on uh . a lot lately SO ... yeah ..#i usually have that issue with coloring words instead of italicizing them but i get it đ#< oh no yea it happens 2 me 2 w colours 2 ITS BOTH OF THEM SHDFSJ...... </33#hsdhjsd my words are NOT cooperating w me tonight... weeps ... throwing ur apology back at you this is NOT IT chat.... </3#yolo-ing it today babeyyy - i say as i scroll upwards to read over it again......#imcrying i saved this 2 my main's drafts by accident and was panicking for like SO LONG THINKING IT ALL DELETED ITSELF CZ I CLDNT FIND IT..#- }#aue's asteryn#asteryn kiyuu#asteryn aros#asteryn yuuto#twst#twst oc#twst ocs#oc rp#oc rp blog#twst yuusona#yuusona#twst yuu oc#yuu oc#twisted wonderland#disney twisted wonderland
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something sweet
Pairing: Bucky Barnes x Reader
Summary: Bucky canât stop thinking about the cute nurse in the Tower. She, on the other hand, doesnât seem to be that into him.
Warning: reader being under a lot of pressure, some language perhaps
Word Count: 3.7k
A/N: Well, fuck me this is long. Iâm actually scared itâs gonna be boring but I genuinely hope itâs not. Some of this dialog was pretty therapeutic for me to write actually so this fic is a tad close to ma black empty heart. This was for @sgtjbuccky âs End of Year writing challenge and I hope Iâve done the prompt justice, Salina. Thankâs for letting me participate :D Please leave some feedback if you like what you read!
* italicized parts are flashbacks
âYouâre a punk.â
âJerk.â
âShut up.â
âYouâre the one out here whining like a baby, maybe you should shut up.â
âDo you need reminding why Iâm âwhining like a babyâ? I didnât shoot myself, thatâs for sure.â
Steve rolls his eyes, arms crossed in front of his chest. âI had it under control. No need for you to play the hero.â
âYeah, right.â Buchy scoffs. The movement makes the wound on his bicep - no, correction, it makes his whole damn body sting like a bitch. He winces slightly and a groan rumbles up his throat. âIt sure didnât look like it. Forgive me for trying to save your life.â
"I don't need you to save my life."
âDonât play the hero, Steve.â
âIâm serious. Thank you, but no thank you."
Bucky sighs. Bruises, black and purple blotches, scrapes and gashes litter his body and if he werenât in so much pain, and under the influence of the strongest, most useless painkillers in Bruceâs possession, heâd deck his stubborn as fuck friend in the face. The only thing giving the brunette some sort of satisfaction is that Steve doesnât look much better than him. Just with one bullethole less.
Bucky doesnât mind being injured.
In a twisted kind of way, every hit he takes in the field frees him more than it weighs him down. He takes every cut, each drop of blood, every twinge of pain, the ripped skin and the scars and he tries to get better because, at this point, itâs all he can do.
But that still doesnât mean he opens his arms like Jesus and welcomes rains of bullets or a storm of flying knives to hit him full force. He doesnât have a death wish. Anymore, at least.
But this time, this injury, is Steveâs fault. And Buckyâd rather die than not take the chance of annoying the righteous, golden boy, Iâm-the-standard-come-try-getting-on-my-level Captain America.
âArenât you at all worried about me? I could be dying. I could be dying and it would be your fault.â
âYou can call it payback for Coney Island if you want.â
âAre you kidding me?â Bucky huffs indignantly, âItâs been seventy fucking years. I lost an arm and am about to lose my life, I think thatâs enough.â
âOf course Iâm kidding.â With a sigh that revealed nothing but exhausted irritatioin, Steve fell down next to him on the bed. âStop being such a diva about it, youâve been through worse.â
âYou li-â
âI hope Iâm not interrupting.â
Buckyâs head whips to the side and instantly, he grimaces again. Eyes flying shut, he gently re-adjusts the ice pack on his right thigh. He hears footsteps coming closer and his posture straightens a little.
âYou two look like you got hit by a plane.â
He opens his eyes to see a woman wearing a white, light coat looking down at a clipboard in her hands. A lovely shade of lipstick colors her lips, which are curled up in a teasing smile, in a beautiful tint of rose. The womanâs eyes flicker over whatâs in front of her quickly and even the stupidest person in the universe could tell that she seemed to be more than just an expert in her field. Her legs are spread slightly in a confident, stable stance, soft locks of hair framing her face which - Jesus Mary and Joseph - gives him a whole new reason to feel weak in the knees.
âHi, Y/N.â Steve lifts his hand and gives her a little wave, as much as the gash on his forearm allows.
The woman, Y/N, looks up from the clipboard and grins. Buckyâs heart stutters in his chest. ââSup Steve.â
âOh, you know, the usual.â Bucky looks to his side and furrows his brows at the lopsided grin on his blond friendâs face. How on earth does Steve know her and Bucky doesnât? He gets injured tons of times more often than the man jumping out of airplanes without a parachute (a fact that, in retrospect, should definitely worry him more) and heâs never met her. Buckyâs eyes narrow and the mechanics in his left arm whir slightly as he clenches his fingers to a fist.
âSergeant?â
âWhat?â
Theyâre both looking at him now, with equally anticipating expressions. Y/N mustâve said something because she re-adjusts to clutch the clipboard to her chest and clears her throat.
âI was asking if youâve obtained any other serious injuries aside from the bullet wound on your bicep. Iâve seen a few cuts and scrapes, do you need me to take care of them right now or do you want to wait for Doctor Cho?â
âYou- You want to look at my wounds?â
âOh, uh, is there an issue?â Y/Nâs eyebrows raised as she looks at him, taken aback.
âWha- oh, no thatâs not- I didnât mean it to sound like that. Thereâs no issue. I...â he quickly explains, yet again reminded of his injuries when pain shoots through the backs of his thighs as he hastily scoots forward a little.
Y/Nâs confused frown morphs back into genuine concern when he flinches. Something inside Bucky cramped painfully at the urge to make that expression disappear. She of all people, someone as breathtaking as her, shouldnât be concerned about someone like him.
And then, she takes a step closer.
Buckyâs eyes widen. Simultaneously, he leans back. She notices it instantly and stops in her tracks, a helplessly puzzled expression on her face. âDonât you want me to take a look?â
His breath hitches in his throat imperceptibly at her proximity. Buckyâs quick to realize that having her touch him when heâs already making a fool of himself without her hands on him wouldnât be the best idea. He feels his heart thumping heavily in his chest as he shakes his head slowly.
âNo, no itâs fine. Iâm fine. Peachy. Perfect.â Internally, Bucky cringes hard.
Get your shit together, fuckâs sake.
The image of that white, fluffy cat thingy spreading its arms in a âWhat the fuck are you doingâ kind of way flashes through his mind and for a split second he clenches his jaw.
Steve next to him almost successfully stifles a laugh.
Y/N takes a quick step back and nods. âOkay, Iâll... Iâll tell Helen to hurry.â
She shoots Steve a look of complete and utter confusion, who in return replicates the exact pose of that damned cat Buckyâd just been thinking about, before turning around and leaving the room.
Bucky sharply lets out a breath he didnât even know heâd been holding in the first place, deflating like a balloon filled with too much air. âOh my god...â he mutters under his breath, over and over again, voice tainted with disbelief.
âWhat on earth was that?â Steve regards his friend with raised eyebrows. Buckyâs slumps forward, the ice-pack scrunching weakly, wedged between his abdomen and his upper legs, and both of his hands, one silvery metal and the other tanned flesh obscuring the view of his face.
âThat was me being you.â His reply is muffled, just like the low whine he lets out right after.
Buckyâs eyes are focused on the long glass wall separating the kitchen from the living room. Itâs only Steve and him sitting on one of the grey, soft couches, the former flipping through a book, glasses perched on his nose.
The blond glances at him out of the corner of his eye. âQuit it, will you?â
âQuit what?â
âYou know what I mean. Quit it. Itâs creepy.â Steve focuses his attention back to the black ink on the bookâs pages.
âFuck you, youâre creepy.â
His friend lets out a breath. âSheâs not interested. Quit it.â
âMaybe you should change the record, I think itâs broken,â Bucky says dryly, flopping down on his back, flinging one leg over the backrest of the couch. He doesnât tear his gaze away from the glass wall, or rather, whatâs behind it.
Steve doesnât deign to look at him. Instead, he simply pushes the glasses, as useless and unnecessary they may be, up his nose and continues reading.
Some of the team members are sitting around the dining table, chattering and laughing faintly. Thereâs Natalia. Wanda, Sam, Tony. And Y/N.
To Buckyâs chagrin, Steve had told Sam about what had happened that day he first saw her. Ever since then, there isnât a day Bucky doesnât see Y/N around somewhere.
And itâs torture.
He canât seem to be in the same room as her without embarrassing the fuck out of himself and quite frankly, itâs annoying. Steveâs and Samâs giggles in the background donât help at all. He constantly fumbles for words, acts insanely clumsy and, according to Tony, looks at her âwith hearts flying out of his stupid eyesâ. In his defense, he canât exactly help it though. Her presence is addicting. Sheâs smart, makes him laugh (which isnât an easy feat to achieve), smells like heaven and has a smile and laugh that threaten to make his knees buckle over every single time.Â
Buckyâs so into her, Steveâs started to call Wednesdays âWhinedaysâ because Bucky has been using the blondâs free day to his whiny advantage.
Of course, all of this would be a hell of a lot easier if she were into him too.
The only issue: She isnât.
At least thatâs what he thinks.
Y/N never fails to amaze and confuse the crap out of him. She flirts with him and shoots him down the second it looks like he might make a move. She touches him sometimes, gentle brushes of knuckles against knuckles or a soft squeeze to his bicep, but as soon as he steps a little closer, sheâs jumps back like he just attempted to slap her. It sort of puts a damper on the rapid beating of his heart.
Bucky heaves out a sigh and closes his eyes, raising his hands to rub them over his face.
âAre you coming tonight?â
âTo Tonyâs rooftop soiree? No, thank you.â Bucky tilts his head to look at his friend.
âYou might enjoy yourself. Once in a while, you really should show up.â Steve says it so nonchalantly and so smoothly Bucky has to furrow his brows. Ever since the brunet had joined the team, heâd been largely given the control over when and where he wanted to go. It was a well-known fact that the former Winter Soldier disliked parties for many reasons and most people had accepted that not ten horses could drag him near big crowds. And Starkâs parties were infamous for their loudness and for being on a whole other level of anxiety-inducing. Almost everyone had accepted his wish to not be forced to attend events like that, except for the Captain.
âNo,â Bucky replies, a finality in his voice that wouldâve put an end to most conversations. Most.
Thereâs a pause. Then, Steve pushes out a sigh and puts a colorful, completely scribbled over piece of paper to mark the page in his book, setting it down on the table. He shifts his sitting position so that his whole body is now turned into the direction of his sprawled out friend.
âI know youâre strictly against parties. And I respect that- I do.â Steve says with more urgency when Bucky snorts. ���But this time, itâs not that big of a deal. There arenât many people invited, just some field agents, the team and a few others. Itâs a small event. I know you can handle that.â
Out of the corner of his eye, Bucky can see Y/N leaving. Sam waves at her just before she exits the room. His mood instantly darkens a little. With one smooth movement, both of Buckyâs feet are planted on the ground and he sits in an upright position. âQuit it, Steve. Iâm not interested.â
âGo out with me. Just once. One timeâs all. Whaddaya say, doll?â
âBucky, I...â
Serenity settles in the tower the second the little party on the rooftop starts.
Itâs how Bucky likes it.
Calm. Quiet. Peaceful.
All the commotion he dislikes with a passion is safely up on the roof, far away from the living quarters and anywhere Bucky wants to be at anyways. He likes being by himself. Alone but not so lonely, wandering the seemingly never-ending hallways of the more than large building absentmindedly, until the never-ending hallways end and his absent mind decides whether to go left or right or straight ahead. Buckyâs discovered many things about the tower that way. Empty rooms that mightâve been discarded since the day the structure had been built, storage spaces, rooms with unused training machines and high windows that give a breathtaking view of the city Bucky calls home and also not.
Heâs discovered many things on walks like these but, still, heâs nowhere near having discovered everything.
Tonight, heâs somewhere on the seventh floor.
He walks with the shadows dancing around him and tranquility following wherever he goes. Gaze lowered, his footfall is silent as a catâs. Bucky knows his way around darkness like the back of his hand. After all, itâs where heâs spent most of his life. Out of sight. Surrounded by cold, calculated silence and darkness.
Left. Straightforward. Right. Right. Left.
The only source of light is the low gleaming neon emergency exit sign at the end of the hallway.
Right. Straightforward. Straightforward. Left.
Thatâs when he hears it.
Bucky stops in his tracks.
Furrowing his brows, he strains his ears, listens into the darkness. Thereâs nothing at first but then the soundâs back. Itâs far away but if thereâs one thing Bucky can rely on, itâs his hearing.
The brunet follows the sound, hearing it rise in volume with every step he takes and every corner he rounds. Delicate notes conjoined in a gentle melody wrap around him the closer he gets until theyâre all he can hear and all he can feel, and he stands in front of a door thatâs slightly ajar. Thereâs no light peaking through the slight crack.
Who on earth plays a piano without any light?
The melody still floats around his head and curiosity takes the better of him, prompting him to quietly push open the door.
Like countless other rooms in the building, this one has floor to ceiling windows. The city lights illuminate the room eerily and throw long shadows across the floor, but the view is something to die for.
Just like the person Bucky notices in the room next.
âIâm sorry, I donât think I can...â
âNo, donât apologize, I shouldnât even have...â
His breath hitches in his throat when he recognizes her and heâd very much like to hit himself for the stupid, loud gasp that leaves him because it startles her and cuts of the beautiful melody. Y/N whirls around and looks at him with wide eyes while Bucky takes a step forward and raises his hands reassuringly. As soon as she recognizes him, she lets out a deep breath.
âJesus, Buck, you almost just gave me a fucking heart attack.â
âSorry, doll,â he smiles, sheepishly. âThat wasnât my intention.â
âWhat was your intention then?â she sounds amused and her heartbeat is still going a little too fast and Buckyâs thankful she doesnât seem to think he was creeping on her or anything. Â
âDefinitely not scaring you,â he grins and takes a few tentative steps closer to where she sits at the piano. Itâs the only thing in the room and for a split second, Bucky makes a mental note to ask Tony if he even knows that this room exists. âDid you walk here in the dark?â
She shakes her head and points at a flashlight lying next to her on the floor.
âWell, I hope youâre proud of yourself,â she says, âUsually, people donât have an easy time sneaking up on me.â
âJumpy?â
âJust very attentive. You wouldnât stand a chance when my guard is up, Barnes.â Y/N looks up at him teasingly when heâs next to her and scoots a little to the side, making space for him on the piano stool. Bucky sits down and the stool creaks precariously under his weight. Y/N giggles softly at the skeptical look on his face. Buckyâs heart shoots to his throat at the sound.
âIf it breaks, youâre buying a new one, beefy man.â She snakes her arm through his and pulls him a little closer. Itâs a close fit, Buckyâs ass is half on the stool and half off but he canât and would never want to complain about being so close to her.
âDid you just call me fat?â He feigns offense and feels his heart jump in his chest when she giggles again.
âNo no no, youâre all muscle, sweetheart.â She says, a wide grin on her face as she squeezes his bicep teasingly. âI like it.â
âReally.â Bucky looks at her with a raised eyebrow and a lopsided, silly smirk on his face. âWell, arenât you something sweet.â
On the outside, Buckyâs surprisingly calm. On the inside, however, heâs freaking out. Y/Nâs so close and sheâs calling him sweetheart and giggling like a literal angel and if Bucky doesnât get up and run away right now, heâll probably be stuck on her for all eternity. Not that heâd mind, but his heart can only take so many rejections.
Y/Nâs only reply is a soft smile and she rests her head on his shoulder as silence settles once more. Bucky lets his eyes wander over the piano. Sheâs been playing mere seconds ago but whatâs notably missing are the notes.
âHow long have you been playing?â
âSince I was a child,â she replies, gently pressing down the keys while she talks. âI used to practice every day but now I only do it once in a while.â
âWhy?â
âI guess Iâm just too busy now. Being a nurse is more stressful than one would think.â She pauses for a moment and Bucky thinks she hesitates before continuing. âItâs not just physically, you know? Mentally, itâs no walk in the park either.â
Sheâs not looking at him, instead, sheâs fixing her gaze on the black and white keys of the piano.
âI think youâre handling it amazingly,â he confesses, looking down at her.
Y/N chances a glance up at him, seemingly searching for something in his eyes. Perhaps sheâs looking for a glint that reveals dishonesty, something that signals her that heâs making fun of her for being so weak. When she finds nothing, though, because why would Bucky be dishonest to her of all people, another sigh leaves her.
âThanks.â Her reply is a faint whisper that he surely wouldâve missed if his hearing wasnât so advanced.
âYou know,â he lifts his right hand to touch her arm that is linked with his left, âif you need someone to talk to... I just- I- Iâm here if you need anything. I just want you to know that.â
All of a sudden, tears well up in her eyes. It catches Bucky off guard. It was supposed to be sweet but apparently, heâd said something wrong. Heâs about to apologize but she cuts him off.
âGod, Bucky, I know. I know... Thank you so much.â She buries her face in the crook of his neck and Bucky can feel her tears dripping hotly onto his skin. âIâm sorry I shouldnât even be crying right now. Itâs so stupid.â
Her sniffling and stifled sobs break his heart into millions of pieces. âItâs not stupid, Y/N.â He disentangles his arm from her to wrap it around her shoulders, voice urgent and leaving no room for protest. âItâs natural. Besides, Iâm no one to judge, you know that. Iâm a mess.â
âYouâre one of the strongest people I know, Buck. If anyoneâs a mess here, itâs me,â she says. âI mean, I feel guilty even being around you sometimes because all I want is to talk to you because I know youâd understand but itâd make me feel so fucking guilty. Unloading all that crap on you that literally sounds like a luxurious vacation compared to what youâve been through.â
Y/N lifts her head to look at him and Bucky sees the streaks of tears on her cheeks. He canât help but reach up and cup her face in his flesh palm, softly brushing over the skin of her cheek with his thumb. âStop. You hear me? What happened in my past is the past. Iâm not suffering anymore, thanks to everyone around here. Youâre suffering right now. And Iâll be damned if I let my past stand in my way of helping you. Do you understand?â
She squeezes her eyes shut and Bucky feels her leaning into his touch. His heart skips another beat. âYou know what else?â he says after a short pause. Y/N hums, opening her eyes to look at him questioningly. âYou help me too,â he murmurs. âJust... you. I feel better when youâre around. You help a lot.â
A wet chuckle bubbles up Y/Nâs throat and she lets her head fall forward, a wall of hair shielding her beautiful face from his eyes. She wraps her fingers around his right wrist and Bucky swears to all the Gods and the devil down below that he feels her lips pressing to the palm of his hand. âCharmer.â
âNah, darlinâ. Just beinâ honest.â
Itâs in another moment of silence they spend in each otherâs arms that he realizes something. âHold on, is that why you said no to going out with me?â he asks tentatively, because itâs such a stupid thing to ask in a situation like this. Y/Nâs cheeks blush in an adorable rosy color.
âIâm just not really doing this stuff right now. Itâs not you, please believe me.â
Instead of answering, she shrugs in embarrassment. âMaybe.â
Bucky chuckles in disbelief. âRight now, I donât know if I want to kiss you or shove you off a bridge for thinking I wouldnât want to listen to you.â
âCan I pick?â
Quickly, he leans forward and presses a kiss to her forehead, before pulling her into a bone crushing hug.
Y/N squeals in surprise at both actions and laughs while wrapping her arms around his torso.
The city lights give the room and eery glow and large shadows wrap around them like a blanket. Theyâre in a room on the seventh floor in the Avengers Tower while everyone else is up on the roof partying but Buckyâs never been happier than with her in his arms.
And he doesnât think thatâll change anytime soon.
#bucky barnes x reader#bucky x reader#james buchanan barnes x reader#james bucky barnes x reader#bucky barnes x nurse!reader#bucky x nurse!reader#james buchanan barnes x nurse!reader#james bucky barnes x nurse!reader#bucky barnes#james buchanan bucky barnes#james#buchanan#bucky#barnes#the winter soldier#marvel#avengers#steve rogers#captain america#mcu#salinaswritingchallenge
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MY SELF-EDITING PROCESS.
The thing about being a writer these days is that, even when youâre gearing up to release a book that youâve worked your ass off on, you donât really get a break. Besides promoting that book, youâve got to be one step ahead to keep career momentum going. You should be brainstorming new story ideas, drafting another book, hopefully in edits for yet another different book, etc etc.
Last week, I started the third round of revisions on the sequel to Civil Blood, Accidental Evils. This book was really difficult for me to write, but that ended up being a blessing, because it helped me perfect my self-editing process. Iâm a super type-A person when it comes to this part of the writing journey, and Iâve been told my editing system is an organized dream. This post will be solely about my own revisions - I will write a whole separate post on how to incorporate beta feedback in the future.
1. PRINT AND READ.
I canât stress enough how important it is to print out your draft, put it in a binder, and read it like a book. There is just no way in hell you can really catch the little errors and the flow of the story when youâre reading it out of the word doc on the computer screen. Now, Iâm lucky in this respect - I have the resources to print for free. I understand itâs not easy for everyone to do this step. But it canât be overstated that for my self-editing process, itâs essential. The rest of this process doesnât work without a printed version.
I would also recommend trying to read this in a different place than where you wrote it. Donât read it at the desk you write at. Go outside, to the library, to a coffee shop - put yourself in a different headspace. Put yourself in a place where someone would be reading this book. It will open you up to errors and help you pull yourself away from the project and see it more objectively. Donât know why. But it works.
2. COLOR-CODE NOTES.
Told you, Iâm type-A af.
With this book, I went IN with revisions. Mainly because the first couple drafts of this book were really really fucking hard. I (wrote a blog) about how second book syndrome and sequel slump are a very real, very tough thing. I needed a system to help me rein in all the plot strings and name changes and...ugh, flashbacks. Anyways. Hereâs the color code I use:
RED: a red tab means thereâs a total rewrite that needs to happen. Either I changed a plot point, or itâs cringey, or it no longer makes sense.
ORANGE: an orange tab means thereâs a formatting issue. A rogue comma or extra indentation, or a word that is usually capitalized (Chosen) or italicized (bruja) that isnât.
YELLOW: a yellow tab indicates a storywide adjustment. When you start writing a sequel while getting beta feedback and editorâs notes, you have to make storywide adjustments every once in a while. For example, everyone used to call Papa, Ephraim. Even his grandkids. My betas for CB said that was weird and they didnât get it. I agreed. So in this book, I had to tab EVERY SINGLE TIME River, Nova, Willow, or Sparrow called him Ephraim and fix it.
GREEN: a green tab means there needs to be clarification. Whoâs speaking? Who are we talking about here? Oh, thatâs the first mention of Autumn in this book, who is Autumn and what does she look like? Wait, this is a new character. Why and how and who? Clarify.
BLUE: a blue tab means we need to elaborate. Itâs different than clarifying. In the spirit of mystery, I like to throw things into the story in the voice of the character and let its meaning come out on its own throughout. Unfortunately, that can be confusing, and itâs only apparent once I go back and read. If it pulls the reader out of the story, itâs not worth it just to be mysterious. Gotta elaborate so the reader isnât harping on it.
Now again, this book is the book where I perfected my self-editing process. I did NOT do this with Civil Blood, mainly because I didnât own this many colored tabs. I had like, light blue and dark blue that I found in a drawer at my day job. I marked where there were changes to be made with those tabs and then circled them in red pen and wrote notes in the margins. So you donât have to do it exactly this way. Whatever you have, use it.
3. GOOGLE DOC âEDITâ FEATURE.
This is something I do for the first three drafts of the book. Once I read through the physical copy and make my changes, I reopen the doc. (I keep a different doc for every draft, as you can see below.)
I go up top to the âeditingâ button in google docs, and change it to âsuggestions.â What this does is, instead of deleting a word when I try to delete it, it crosses it out in green and replaces it in green.
The reason I do this is because it helps me keep track of the amount of edits I have for the story - which I like because I like quantifying my hard work. It also helps because if you decide you donât want to change that after all, you just deny the edit and it goes back to normal.
Once you get to your fourth draft, you should be pretty confident in your changes. And if youâre not, youâve got three other docs without all the changes.
I also do a weird thing where I will do major rewrites in a totally separate doc with the chapter title and âRewriteâ as the name.
That way if I change my mind halfway through, I still have the original section. Doing a large change with the âSuggestionâ feature is not recommended, because it gets really messy in the doc.
4. ACCEPT CHANGES.
When you close a doc with suggestions, a number pops up to show you how many changes you have to make.
Again, I like keeping track of the number. But then I accept all the changes, plug in all the chapter rewrites, and finalize the draft.
5. THEN WE WAIT. A WHILE.
Ideally, 4-6 weeks. Which sucks. A lot. But again, the longer the amount of time away, the more objective you become. This is very important! Pull yourself out of the forest for a bit so you can see the trees for what they really are.
6. WE DO IT ALL OVER AGAIN.
And again, in perpetuity, until youâre ready for beta readers. How do you know? You will when you are. Trust me.
And thatâs how I self-edit my books. Do you have any other helpful tips? Do you think any part of this is overkill or unhelpful? Let me know!
#fiction writer#writers blog#writers of tumblr#am writing#writer woes#writers be like#ya fiction#ya paranormal#ya thriller#young adult#am editing#self editing#yaauthor#ya horror#writing a trilogy#civil blood#debut novel#ya spec fic
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Hey Vespertine! This is a strange question, but most of my posts are pretty long, and sometimes, I wonder if people are scanning over the long posts and not reading them because of all the plain text. I try to divide everything into paragraphs, so there's some white space every few lines, but maybe I could be doing something else to make people more inclined to read them? Bolding, or something? Do you have any tips? Cheers!
Hey, Anon!
Let me reassure you first, I promise itâs not that strange of a question, and you are great for taking this concern where you have - to accessibility instead of being angry your posts arenât being read. Thatâs a frustrating situation you have going on, but youâre looking for logical solutions to a suspected problem instead of taking it personally. Thatâs hard to do, please know how awesome you are for that. This could, indeed, be part of the problem. There are some other factors Iâll get to momentarily, but letâs address this visual factor. Itâs always hard to be fully accessible to everyone, as no single thing is ever going to work for everyone. All you can do is be aware of the things that tend to work for many and listen when mutuals express problems. Since no one has said there is a problem, youâve got to rely on what you know is often helpful. Using formatting to help break up longer text is one of those things!
However, overdoing it can create a similar issue all over again, making it difficult to focus on and read. It can be difficult to find a happy medium, but there are some basic rules you can go by while you feel out your process on this.
For non-RP posts...
If your long text is in a non-RP, not in character format, such as a headcanon, meta, or other such post, be aware of the sections present in it. What makes this easier is practicing good paragraph breaks. A paragraph should usually be six sentences, but various other rules can either extend or shorten a paragraph. Without turning this into a grammar lesson that sucks some of the fun out of RPing, you should stop one paragraph and begin another when there is a subject change or other, organic-feeling break, like refutations such as "however."
This makes it easier for you to identify a sentence you can use as a sort of header. (I'll be doing it in this post and do it on many of them, as an example of what that looks like.) Sentences in which you are stating a fact or topic etc. you'll be addressing below, you can bold. You can even use the indent feature on shorter paragraphs in which you are giving additional, not entirely necessary, information you could think of as "bonus material."
Doing this can visually break up the text and help people stay focused on it, while additionally helping them to follow along and process the information. You can also follow some of the suggestions for RP reply posts below for this as well.
As for RP posts, that sort of formatting is going to be awkward.
RP posts should flow like a story, whether they are one line or as lengthy as it gets. Colors are generally a bad idea as they can be a serious issue for those using screen readers, as well as those who have issues triggered by vivid coloration. Excess spaces between words and bolding or italicizing words at random can also be inaccessible to some.
So, what can you do?
I've seen RPers insert an icon every so many paragraphs, as well as using a divider when there is a major scene change (think time forwarding or writing two muses in one thread when they're in separate places). If you like using icons, this could be a good way to break up text that isn't either distracting or making it difficult to read and follow along with.
That thing I mentioned about the paragraphs? Do that in RP replies as well. This can help you prevent every paragraph from becoming a literal wall of text! Additionally, varying the length of both paragraphs and sentences helps keep things from becoming too uniform. Allow for a shorter paragraph in between longer ones, and things like a standalone sentence and other, more thematic type writing like this.
You don't want to overuse this, but there are many instances in which a stand-alone sentence works for both impact in your writing as well as breaking up text for readers. It can be humorous, as in having an obvious statement follow up on one made in the paragraph, "like a liar" style. It can be angsty or dramatic, like following up a paragraph in which your muse is speaking of how much they love the other muse, waxing poetic in their thoughts about how beautiful and wonderful this muse is in every way possible. Your standalone line being something like, "If only they could be told," "If only the words could be found when around them," "Maybe, someday, it'll be the right time to say it," or even, "It might make them a different person, but -your muse- wishes they loved themselves half as much as he/she/they do."
Do you like to write out some of your muse's internal monologue? If you do, it can be used similarly. In most instances, separating it from the body of the text is the best idea for maximum impact and making it better for writing partners with reading difficulties. Again, this can be used humorously, as foreshadowing, giving information on the sly, drama, angst, and romance. The applications and interest points are limitless here as well, and it's fun to do for you.
The major difference with putting down a snippet of your muse's thoughts is that you'll designate it using formatting. Many people use italic for this, just as many use symbols (please, do not use symbols that make it difficult for those using screen readers, such as repetitive use or those that are not commonly found on a keyboard) to denote the opening and closing of the thought, but you could also use bold, bold and italic, italic and a symbol, or if you know none of your mutuals will have difficulty with the colors, you could make the thoughts one color. If you're going to opt for a color for this, please make it a color, not multiple colors, and pick one that will be visible without causing eyestrain. Because this might be less intuitively obvious, make a post updating your mutuals that you will be denoting thoughts using whatever color, and be sure you have it in your rules somewhere so that newcomers will know as well.
You can also help break up text by using emphasis normally, not as an aesthetic. There are many bits of questionable writing advice from traditional writing that have come into RP, one of them is the idea that one should never use bold or italic. Unless you are excessively relying on this sort of emphasis instead of making tone otherwise clear, there is nothing wrong with using them. Especially not in RP or other purely creative, hobby writing in which some of the things appropriate for professional writing only come off as wooden. So, if it feels natural to you to use emphasis, in and out of dialogue, go for it! It could be helpful in providing subtle breaks in what you're writing.
I mentioned varying sentence length earlier but didn't elaborate on that. It's exactly like what I was talking about with varying paragraphs, though. Try out fluctuating sentence length to create a more naturally rhythmic flow to your writing by following long sentences with shorter ones, and the other way around. This makes writing more engaging and easier to follow along with.
Alright, so, there are some places to start that might be helpful! Now, I'm a little concerned that this seems to be a consistent problem for you and have another suggestion to make based on that.
Do you feel like it is more than half of your replies that are being skimmed? If it isn't just one person, this might be an issue of differing interests and/or RP styles more than anything you are doing or not doing. If most of your writing partners are writing significantly less than you and you're getting the impression that they're only looking for action and dialogue they can respond to, it might be time to consider mutuals who are more similar to yourself. It seems like it is possible that you have grown into different writing interests and styles that no longer mesh with what they're doing.
Totally fine that there is a variety of ways to enjoy RP, but if you're only interacting with those who have a significant difference here, you are not going to be enjoying RP as much as you could be. You might want to assess what RP length category you fit into, then begin looking for blogs that are also in that category, as well as beginning to only accept new mutuals who are. Maybe you were para or multipara when you first started out, focusing in on things your muse could directly interact with, but now, you're more on the novella end and interested in writing things the muses cannot immediately know or react to.
Some muns remain happy with the same style and objectives for their duration in the hobby, others change as they're involved in it for longer. Either way is fine, but when we are interacting with someone we don't fit with well, particularly if we once did, we're inclined to try to make it work as we require. That might look like paring down or simplifying writing, it might look like skimming writing and only replying to what stands out as something that can be acted upon. In the end, someone isn't going to be enjoying themselves.
I'm not saying you should try out nothing different and see what happens, that you should, instead, simply drop all your mutuals and get new ones. Only that this could be a relevant factor for you to examine, and that finding some mutuals who are more aligned with the way you're wanting to RP could at least test this theory. It's frustrating when you've put a lot of effort and creativity into your writing only for it to be ignored, I want you to have as many possibilities for why this is happening and how to fix it as possible!
I hope something helps! Just remember to try your best to keep things as accessible as possible for your writing partners. If you're in doubt, ask someone you know you can trust to tell you the truth, and if possible, ask someone who does have challenges you do not. Always listen if you're told, whether you have asked or someone sends you a message about it, that something is an accessibility problem. Try out some of the suggestions and any ideas you might have come up with, and consider whether you might be writing with people who you don't pair up with so well any longer.
#answered#anonymous#rp problems#rp advice#rp help#thread length#skimming replies#formatting#accessibility#queued
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1, 3, 4, 5, 12, 14 (gimme the salt!), 18, 19, 20
munday styles and preferences ( accepting // @tnottâ )
1. What types of threads are your most favourite? â The long running ones where thereâs a fairly involved plot happening that leads to mutual character development. Theyâre harder but infinitely more rewarding, imo.
2. What types of threads are your least favourite? â Mindless fluff that doesnât really go anywhere. I like it every once in a while, and sometimes you just want something sweet and lowkey to take your mind off something. But if itâs all I ever write, I will get very, very bored.
4. What is your favourite thing about your muse? Why did you pick them up, what do you want to explore? â The main thing that draws me to Clark is his kindness, and the fact that this man who has incredible powers chooses to help people simply because itâs the right thing to do. I also like the exploration of him as someone whoâs too alien to be human, but also too human to be alien. Itâs a really interesting dichotomy. Then S&L came out and tossed on Clark as a father, which was kinda the last nail in the coffin for me in terms of picking him up as a muse. (Iâve briefly written L&C Clark before, but he never lasted long.)
5. What is your least favourite thing about your muse? What makes them difficult to write, or interact with? â In terms of his character, sometimes I do have the issue where heâs just so fundamentally good that I struggle to find his character flaws. He definitely has them, but I kinda have to dig deep for them at times. In terms of the universe, sometimes my lack of familiarity with the rest of DC makes it a struggle to click with other muses right away.
12. Does your descriptive writing change with each muse, do they influence the way that you narrate and use language? â Not really? The main thing Iâve noticed changing my writing style is whether a thread is in present or past tense.
14. What is your opinion on formatting, editing and icons within the community? How do you style your own, do they differ from muse to muse? â I love how many times you can sit through this rant from me :P though I fully support people having a certain aesthetic for their blog and graphics if thatâs something they enjoy, generally the RPC has taken it way too far, and a lot of the popular aesthetics are just baffling. Formatting with ten spaces between every word, random phrases bolded or italicized or a different color, with excessive use of fancy fonts... itâs just impossible to read. If you spent more time on those superficial elements than you spent actually writing, I think your priorities are very much in the wrong place. (And in my experience, that level of overformatting is often covering for weaker writing.)
As for icons, what used to be a quick reference for a characterâs facial expression or a quick way to set the tone of a reply are now often just an incomprehensible mess of colors. It adds nothing and I truly donât know why so many people are willing to spend time and energy and even money on something so hideous. I also have a personal hatred of coloring PSDs. There is simply no way to create a universal coloring that will work on every image, even with adjustment layers. Itâs genuinely easier and more productive to simply learn how to effectively color for yourself instead of slapping a mishmash of random effects onto a picture and convincing yourself it looks good.
Anyway. I usually make my own graphics, but will sometimes use premade icons or gifs if I find something I like. I like each blog to have its own icon style, just a simple shape or border, but I havenât settled on something I like for Clark yet.
18. What draws you to roleplaying as a hobby? What do you find fun? â The storytelling! You get to play out these cool plots and explore awesome characters with other people. Itâs just really fun to get invested in something like that.
19. What kind of writing partners do you tend to merge well with? Do you like people who communicate, or more impulsive personalities? â Communication is a must, definitely. I click best with people who are laid back, easy to talk with, good writers with strong characterization. I also click best with people who I can tell are just as invested in what weâre writing as I am. If it feels like youâre bored or not really into it, thatâll probably spread to me.
20. Has this hobby changed your life at all? Your mood, your outlook, or your friendship group? â Definitely. Iâve made friends, and since I donât really know anyone where I live thatâs been a tremendous lifesaver. I also feel like Iâm a better writer and collaborator as a result.
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you say you're picky about who you follow, can you explain more? sorry if I'm bothering you!
 You arenât bothering me. I started answering by explaining what makes me decide not to follow, but it came out pretty negative. Instead, this is what makes me want to follow, or to take emphasis off of what is honestly just a number, what makes me want to write with you. Under a readmore for length and unpopular opinions and a healthy amount of venting, probably.
 Quick disclaimer - not everyoneâs blog is for everyone. Itâs okay for people to have different preferences and styles, and my preferring âxâ doesnât make âxâ any better than âyâ or vice versa. Iâm not plenty of peopleâs cup of tea either. Please keep in mind that weâre all just here to have fun.
 I follow people who write genuinely. Any sort of purple prose, even constantly saying âthe femaleâ instead of a museâs name, or â(gemstone) (synonym for eyes)â, is a turn-off. I like people whose posts arenât composed by playing pin-the-tail-on-the-thesaurus, and who donât bold/italicize/underline every other word, use weird spacing, or use strange glow fonts or scripts. This detracts from the emotional punch that a reply should be because now I have to decipher whatever the heck it is you are trying to say. I like people with themes that are easy to navigate and easy to read. Links that are easy to find and colors that contrast (light text on dark background or vice versa) are wonderful. I love when people focus on the content of their writing rather than trying to shoehorn in headache-inducing effects or âfancyâ words that only serve to make their writing stiff and robotic.
 I write a lot of dark content, but Iâm aware of a subset of roleplay culture that believes writing about a subject automatically equates to condoning that subject in real life. I appreciate people who recognize that exploring a subject in a fictional, harmless avenue with consensual partners in properly tagged and read-moreâd posts is a perfectly normal and appropriate way to process feelings or past experiences with these dark subjects in a safe and controlled manner. Otherwise, all of us Naruto fandom folks would be advocates for child soldiers, child abuse, torture, murder, and so on. If I see anything in someoneâs rules along the lines of âI wonât talk to you/interact with you if you roleplay x subjectâ, Iâm not interested.
 I like roleplay blogs that write! I like seeing a personâs writing on the first page or two without having to click through dozens upon dozens of pictures, gifsets, or other ooc posts. I donât like seeing whitewashing (a white faceclaim for an obviously non-white muse), or lots of negativity/drama. There are a couple other red flags for muns but they are quite specific and I wonât get into them here.
 I like characters that are fleshed-out and well-developed. Some ooc-ness is not a big deal to me, itâs more about the effort you put into your portrayal. An in-depth about and/or verses page is very appealing. OCs with consistent, plausible histories are very appealing. I often see histories with huge gaps or information that doesnât make sense. If your OC shinobi absconded from their home village, they are a missing-nin - a criminal - and cannot simply immigrate to another hidden village and be accepted with open arms. Stacking a plethora of disorders onto your muse then being unable to adequately explain how these issues affect them shows me you donât really understand your character or the seriousness of psychological disorders (one example - fears =/= phobias). I love OCs with muns who genuinely think about all the ins and outs of their characters and develop a valid and credible background for them. If youâre an OC who follows me and suddenly gets a couple of anons asking nitpicky questions about their history, thatâs probably me!
 I tend to prefer blogs with a single character over a multi-muse. I usually only follow multi-muses if I know the mun personally beforehand or if your muses are particularly intriguing.
 I prefer writing with characters I know! I love AUs so I am one hundred percent happy to roleplay with an unfamiliar character provided they have verses I can latch on to. It can be a struggle if youâre an anime blog without much of an about page. Or you might also be an awesome Naruto blog, but if Gaara has no chance of interacting with you except in an AU (which is the case for many characters from the Founders Era, or various minor non-Suna characters), Iâm hesitant to approach unless you have some kind of verses page or approach me with an idea.
 Here are some things that donât matter to me - whether or not you use icons, whether you use regular vs. small text, who else you roleplay with, what genres you like to write, how long youâve been writing, what pairings you like, and most details about you as a mun, in general. Iâm here to write with other people who are here to write, and want to do that in the most enjoyable, fulfilling way possible.
 This all might paint me as an unfriendly dick, but when it comes down to it, itâs a nice feeling being able to recognize every single person on your dash and have an idea in mind for how to roleplay with them. At the end of the day, itâs all just numbers. Iâm still happy to roleplay with folks Iâm not mutuals with in a more casual manner, and sometimes those small interactions can lead to long-lasting relationships. As always, folks are free to message me for whatever reason, either through asks or IMs.
#I may regret posting this tomorrow because it's a bit venty#but anon you ended up opening a can of worms & I didn't expect to write all this#anon#ooc#psa#important
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So I saw your post about your favorite story being mubfats and how you have a Deaf character who was cannonically Hearing. You said you had to change things to fit his life as a Deaf person. What did you change?
Okay, prepare for a loooooong list!
1. Â
In episode 1 alone, we have many things:
A.)Â
Canon: Yuuri stares out the window. Hears Victorâs voice. Turns to see him walking by, and flushes a bit from seeing his idol.
AU: Yuuri is staring out the window. Victorâs red and white jacket catches his attention from his peripherals. He turns to see him walking by, and flushes a bit from seeing his idol.
B.)
Canon: Yuuriâs mother knocks on his bedroom door and tells him to help shovel the snow. Heâs been holed up for who knows how long, moping in embarrassment over a social media upset.
AU: Yuuri cannot hear, but he still deserves privacy. His parents installed a strobe light to act as his doorbell ever since he was young. They push a button outside his door, which causes the bright light to come on and flash repeatedly. They agreed upon a 10 second window. If he doesnât open the door, they can come in.
C.)
Canon: Yuuri skates to the music and makes mistakes at the beginning of the episode. Complete with falling. His dog just died. He panicked and binged unhealthy food before the competition. His anxiety got the better of him. He finished last with over 100 points away from Victor who was in first.
AU: Yuuri is emotional over the loss of his dog and comforts himself with too much food. The distress causes him to forget what his coach is wearing. He and his coach developed a cueing method. Yuuri cannot hear the music, but by memorizing the timing in conjunction with the music, he can perform alongside it just fine.
He neglects contact lenses because skating without them leaves the audience a fuzzy mess. It also makes it so he doesnât have to see them. Itâs like heâs alone and it puts him under less stress.
His coach would wear bright colors so Yuuri could still spot him from across the rink. He forget the color, missed the cue to start, and the entire routine was just a mess of falling and disjointed timing.
D.)
Canon: A kid, also named Yuri, yells at him after heâs found crying in the bathroom over his loss, and tells him to give up and that heâs an idiot loser. Yuuri considers quitting thanks to those words and loses his love for skating, which spurs him to want to find it again.
AU: Said kid has a thick, Russian accent and Yuuri couldnât hear his insults, nor Lip-Read his poor pronunciations very well. Basically, anything the kid said went over his head. His doubts over his own abilities come from his anxiety and not the vitriol from a 14 year old.Â
2.Â
A.)
Canon: He cross-trains in ballet like always and without issue.
AU: His ballet instructor learned JSL for him. She bought a large speaker and had him lay against it while she blasted the music he would perform to. It allowed him to become familiar with the pounding beats and made it easier to familiarize himself with the timing. In the fic, he did many dance competitions with her as his coach. Long before he made figure skating his career goal.
B.)
Canon: Victor, who is Yuuriâs new coach, coaches Yuuri. Talks to him and suggests things. The usual coach/student relationship in the beginning.
AU: Victor, who becomes his new coach, learns that he is Deaf after 3 weeks of Yuuri passing as Hearing very well. He decides that he wants to learn one of the Sign Languages Yuuri has learned. Either JSL or ASL. He asks the ballet instructor for advice on which is better. Both Yuuri and Victor learned English from American tutors. She told him that familiarizing himself with ASL was best because the alphabet mimics the American English one, which has only 26 characters. In Japan, they have over 50 characters to learn and as he didnât know any Japanese, it would be easier for him to learn ASL.
He proceeds to start taking online courses to surprise Yuuri with, and takes to bodily rearranging him instead of standing behind the barrier shouting orders. They use Twitter messenger. Send each other texts. Pull up notepads on their cellphones when having discussions. Or pass the laptop back and forth with an empty document, each writing something for the other to see. One Italicized and the other Bold.
3.
A.)
Canon: Yuuriâs sister calls him during the Rostelecom Cup and tells him that Victorâs poodle is at the vet and that she might not make it. Yuuri tells Victor to go back to Japan and be with his dog(because Yuuri didnât get to be with his own poodle before he passed away).
AU: As Yuuri cannot hear, we need to consider other ways for him to still take phone calls. And then it hit me! Skype. FaceTime. These, which are used for interviews or for seeing family across the globe, can be used by those who need to Sign as a form of communication.
B.)
Canon: Yuuri just wakes up and la-di-da. Goes about his days.
AU: He has the vibration on his cell turned up to the max, and uses it as an alarm to wake up. It vibrates the entire bed, and he usually holds it under his hand while sleeping.
4.
A.)
Canon: Got a poodle because his idol Victor got one. Named said poodle Victor. Went to America for 5 years and didnât see his poodle the entire time he was gone because he never traveled back home. Was sad when Victor died during the competition at the beginning of the story.
AU: Victor the Poodle was Yuuriâs Deaf Companion. Yuuri could not bring him to America when he went to University/Prestigious Ice Rink because Victor was too big for the dorm rules. Didnât go home ever until he graduated, so he didnât see said dog for 5 years. Dog died, Yuuri cried.
B.)
Canon: Yuuriâs family and friends talk and joke a lot. Life is good. They run a hot spring and inn.Â
AU: The family and friends learned JSL for his sake and even when he was gone, they kept up their practice. They were signing faster and better when he finally came home, and he was touched. Especially since their town only had 7 D/deaf and HoH civilians.
C.)
Canon: Yuuri speaks, screams, and hears without issue.
AU: Yuuri had to go through intensive speech therapy for both Japanese and English. Not to mention taking JSL and ASL on the side. And despite all of this, when heâs around a new person, he still struggles to Lip-Read, and it takes time as they get to know one another for him to better predict their lip movements and pronunciations.(Thatâs why his friends and family learned specific SL for his sake.)
Main components were changed around in his life. I felt it was important to show how he had to used different methods to get similar reactions or happenings as Canon!Yuuri did. Of course his end result ends up being different than Canon.
Took a lot of studying, but it was enlightening, fun, and worth it. ^-^
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Yuna bit her lip as another petal dropped from the staff.
"...I see..." She started, unsure of how to progress. "But... Why me? A... A total stranger?"
She pondered a moment... What did they even want from her, then?
Saving her? That was what they were saying, yes, and... And she supposed she could not doubt that there was an internal desire to be helped, but...
Or perhaps if they gathered enough information about her, it could serve as blackmail! Or... Maybe they just wanted to speak with her to learn about her in general? It was an attempt to at least somewhat placate her, after all.
"I..." She started, but it was clear she couldn't quite find the words to continue.
A notification flashes across phone screens everywhere throughout NRC. The radio podcast, NRTea has gone live once more!
"Hello, hello, dearest listeners! And welcome to another episode of NRTea, the hottest tea party on sages island! I'm your host, Chamomile-"
"and I am Earl Grey"
"And oh boy do we have a story for you today! Take it away, Earl!"
"...alright.
As of late, there have been brambles spiralling up and encasing parts of the Ramshackle dorm. The brambles themselves seem generally harmless, as do the roses that fall from them, but if you prick yourself on the thorns, it would be quite an unpleasant sensation, so I'd suggest exercising some extra caution when visiting for now."
"Yup, yup! If you've got a friend or two living in the dorm out there, go check on em and make sure they're doing okay!"
"I know I myself must check in on my dearest companions soon..."
"Well that's it for now! We've been your hosts, Chamomile-"
"And Earl Grey,"
"And this has been NRTea. Stay thirsty, dear listeners!"
The stream continues on for a bit before cutting off, though.
"Hey... James?"
"Yes?"
"Y'know how Yuna has been locking up lately and stuff? Says she's been super sick recently."
"Mhm... It's quite concerning, if I am being honest. I haven't seen her for a while..."
"...I wonder if Yuna is alright. I hope she doesn't get hurt with all those brambles."
"...Me too, Lewis. Me too."
(â¨YUNA OVERBLOT STUFF YAHOO!!!
-â¨mod, @night-raven-miscellany. Technically James and Lewis, too, but I haven't been adding them fhdjfj)
Kiyuu stared down at her phone with a frown as the podcast ended. She didn't say anything, prompting Aros to speak up from behind her.
"...Lucky you haven't been over there for a while, isn't it?"
He spoke, giving Kiyuu a faint smile, leaning in just a little closer while dabbing a makeup brush into the eyeshadow pallette in his hand, before applying it, making slightly quicker movements than previously, already being able to tell what Kiyuu was thinking.
They both knew the signs by now from even just a glance. With the context the podcast had accidentlly given... Something bad was about to happen. That much they could tell.
His expression morphed back into a frown as he watched how Kiyuu's face seemed to go through a cycle of conflicting emotions, confirming what he'd thought.
"...Yuuto's close by, though. And he definitely won't hesitate to head straight for Ramshackle once he suspects something's happening..."
There was more silence, only disturbed by the quiet sounds of rummaging through makeup and supplies from Aros. They'd been in the middle of testing out some makeup samples Aros had been sent for a promotion when they'd decided to tune into NRTea's podcast in the background.
"...Would you like me to quickly finish applying your makeup before we go?"
Aros offered, picking up an eyelash curler, and tilting Kiyuu's head up gently with his pointer finger.
"But-"
"Ah- Let me finish now. If you're worried about time, I'll change up our plan, do something quick, yet effective, instead. Don't stress out more than you need to. It won't do you any good."
"Mmh... Okay then. I'd- really like that. Thank you..."
Kiyuu conceeded softly, a silent exchange of gratitude from Kiyuu between them, Aros nodding in response, expression neutral as he continued.
"...Heh. I bet he's real excited right now. I worry a lot for him when he does this sort of thing, y'know. Just doing whatever he wants with no consideration to anyone else's feelings..."
Kiyuu mumbled, an underlying bitterness that she never quite felt wholeheartedly in her voice.
"That's just how he is. The only thing for us to do now is help them both out, hm?"
"Ah- right..! Yuna, I heard their name was, I think... I hope they're alright..."
"As do I."
Aro's commented as he stood, reaching instinctively for his hand mirror, handing it to Kiyuu as he hastily, yet still neatly, tidied up his supplies.
"Satisfactory?"
He asked, turning his head around to gauge Kiyuu's opinion.
"Yeah! More than, for sure."
Kiyuu agreed, handing back the mirror. She felt a little better now, the familiar feeling of her makeup calming her nerves ever so slightly.
After a few short moments she stood, hastily reaching to fix up her hair into a more practical fashion.
"Okay! Okay. Let's go! We shouldn't waste anymore time."
She announced, projecting bounds more confidence than she actually felt.
"Yes, let's. Perhaps we'll even arrive before anything too disastrous occurs on either party's end..."
Aros responded. Though somehow, they both doubted that much of a miricle would happen for them today...
#đŚnrm yuna#yuuto over here being all like âwtf when did i become a shoujo protagonistâ after that monologue he pulled out of his ass AHAHA#he GETS IT DUDE đđ§đ§đđ§#<â¨hes so real for that actually tbh#do u ever have the problem of tryna make 1 word italic but then it turns the entire paragraph italic on mobile???#its lowk tweaking me out so bad bcz then i have to save the italics 1 at a time and it takes me so long to scroll back down cuz it lagsđđ#<i usually have that issue with coloring words instead of italicizing them but i get it đ#also sorry this reply kinda is bad im like. lowk abt to explode irl rn so might not be too coherent or decently written but idk#shrugs
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