#i usually see the ones being suspended and crossing to other sections when i like. go to manila

[viovio]

if i could do architecture i would design it so it could make sense but this is all deep underground in a cavern and the platforms that already are underground where the station is would be suspended above the ones i made. anyway all the main lines that go into london connect here where Farringdon station is at the north of the financial district

oh fuck that's so cool...... I couldn't do architecture too but I love to make room and house layouts from time to time. I already know about underground passageways for roads but this is so intricate :0

[blxetsi]

Hi there! I love your work!! So I know this sounds a little niche but, could we get headcanons for a reader in a polyamorous relationship with Hange and Miche please? Hope you’re having a really good day!

NO BEXAUSE IVE BEEN WAITING FOR SOMEINE TO REQUEST POLYAMOROUS STUFF OMGGGGG 😭 ty for your service anon it means a lot 😔🙏

hange and mike dating headcanons (canonverse)

zoë hange x gn!reader x mike zacharias

warnings: polyamorous relationship, and titans ??, reader is kinda innocent ?? like just easily wound up

also this is going to be SO fucking long and focused on hange for the first long bit sorry !

btw this isnt rlly dating headcanons so much as backstory, how you met, and shit leading up to actually getting together i went so fucking overboard and went the complete opposite way of what you asked ill do a part two with ACTUAL dating headcanons if youd like anon just tell me and ill do it

- i think you wouldve worked for garrison originally

- in season one when hange started the experiments on sawney and bean thats when you would've met them

- you had been a big fan of their research studies for a while, so being in front of someone you thought was so cool was a little nerve wracking

- you had just became newly appointed as a captain for a garrison squad, being one of the youngest recruits to get the position, which also meant some people thought you couldnt handle the job

- you were good at telling others what to do, and guiding them when needed, you took over the leader role very quickly, you had to if you wanted to keep the position

- although you thought you were a good leader, others didnt

- specifically older members of garrison who thought because you were so young, youd be naive

- and since you were a garrison captain, you worked closely with hange and moblit during their experiments

- any request they made for supplies or anything, went through you and youd get it for them

- they needed more help ? youre requesting three soldiers to the experimentation zone immediately. anything they needed you helped with, because you liked helping

- hange had quickly grown fond of you, they were so thankful that you were so willingly to have your squad help them. you remember the brunette grabbing your hand and saying "thank you for your dedication to this project and to science !" while bowing multiple times

- as unsanitary and childish as it was,,, you didnt wash that hand for a day

- hange saw how some members of your squad treated you, and it may have irked them a bit

- causing them to rant to moblit while writing down research data

- "hange." "i just dont get it, why dont they say anything ? theyre so nice so why dont people respect them like they should-" "hange !" "what ?!" "youre writing down captain l/n's name on your page !" "so what ?!- wait what" this causes a night of bickering between the two of them 😐🤚

- when sawney and bean died hange was devastated. you had grown to like the section commander as a friend and respected them greatly, so to see their hardwork and research all go down the drain was hard

- you immediately went into leader mode and started ordering your squad around "listen up ! i want this whole perimeter checked and searched for any evidence to help us find out who did this." a couple members groaned, and one man, who was in his early thirties made a comment about it. "theyre just stupid fucking titans. we're supposed to kill them, not keep them alive for some freak to experiment on them."

- yknow,, looking back on it maybe you shouldnt have went off on them the way you did, but you did because not only was the man questioning your authority and orders, he was blatantly disrespecting a section commander. "i am your captain. i am your leader. you will respect me, and you will listen to me. you either do i say or youll be suspended and taken off my squad immediately. and that goes for everyone ! do i make myself clear ?" you shouted. the man who had talked back raised his eyebrows, youd never once yelled or demanded things be done in a manner like this, and it clearly shocked him when you stood up for yourself.

- a bunch of murmurs came from your squad and you dismissed them, but not before stepping in front of your soldier in front of everyone. "between you and me ? you should be discharged for not only your blatant disrespect and defiance to me for months now, but also for your innapropriate and degrading comments about section commander hange. you wanna pull some shit like this in the future, not just to me but to anybody ? you should kiss your position in garrison squad goodbye, since youre too childish to keep your thoughts and opinions to yourself. now grow the fuck up and go do what ive asked please." the man looked scared as he stared at you, no one had seen you act like this before, his jaw clenched as he nodded and walked off, the rest of your squad dispersing with him

- you didnt notice hange calling your name until you felt their hand on your shoulder. you turned around and saw their sympathetic gaze on you. "thank you for defending me. are you okay ?"

- you rubbed the back of your neck and answered. "honestly ? i feel kind of bad, like i embarassed him or something." the survey corps leader tilted their head back as they laughed. "youre so kind y/n, but im proud of you." the comment, although lighthearted, struck a cord with you

- a couple days later you were requested to meet with not only the section commander but commander smith, as well as your superior, dot pixis

- the meeting only lasted about thirty minutes, but hange had boasted about not only your leadership skills but also your knowledge and ideas on various sciences. erwin decided to offer you a position to work under hange, and dot pixis agreed to have you transferred to the survey corps if you agreed.

- did your decision have to do with your crush on hange ? maybe. would you ever admit it ? no.

- pixis explained to you that youd be honorably disharged from the garrison regiment before being moved to the scouts' headquarters in trost

- you surprisingly got along well with others there. working in hanges squad was fun, and even though you were demoted from a captain back to a cadet you didnt mind

- hange had offered to share as much knowledge as they could with you, which led you to be in their office (as messy as it was) after work hours

- and thats where you met mike

- well, got to know him

- hange introduced you two when you first joined and the first thing the section commander did was NOT shake the hand you held out for him but to lean down and sniff around your hair and neck

- your face felt hot as you stuttered over your words, thrown off by his,,, unique, greeting

- hange and laughed and lightly pushed him away, before explaining to you that thats just what mike did

- back to being in hanges office

- for nights on end youd stay up together in their office, two chairs huddled beside one another while you read through books of research, not just from hange but from published scientists and anthropologists too

- mike had started joining you two only three days after you and hange started

- he would stay quiet, but would sit next to hange making them be sandwiched by the two of you

- after that you started to notice him more often

- down the halls he'd send you a small smile, which you brightly returned

- sometimes he'd be in charge of training that day, and he would wordlessly help you position your arms to properly block or punch when sparring with other members

- then he started bringing tea when he would come and listen to you and hange discuss different theories, articles and information together

- you didnt even know the two were dating until you accidentally walked in on them in hange's office

- they werent doing anything dirty, just giving each other a kiss, but you had walked in on them with a stack of papers captain levi told you to give to hange.

- you kinda,, stood there, slackjawed, while the two pulled apart slowly to look at you. hange had a mischievous grin on their face while mike just gave you a blank stare

- you dropped the papers. the stack of documents levi tasked you to give to hange. you dropped them. How Embarassing.

- your face began to feel hot not just from seeing them but also because youre embarassing yourself by dropping the papers and just standing there like an IDIOT

- "uh,,, i- captain levi said to give you those documents you requested." your voice cracked at the end making you wince

- "you mean the documents that are spread out on my floor now ?" hange asked. you looked between them and the floor, then at mike, then back to the floor than back at hange. "yes." you said, and you could feel that warmth in your face spreading to your ears now too. "im sorry." you exclaimed, your voice sounding strained as you quickly walked backwords and closed the door in front of you

- you started avoiding hange and mike after that, and became hyper aware of everything that they did. they were TAUNTING YOU 🙄 you could feel it

- instead of small smiles in the halls, after you started ducking your head down when you saw mike, he would now give you head pats when you crossed him

- hange would let their hand linger on your shoulder or side as they shuffled past you during meetings or experiments, and would come closer than usual when handing you documents

- mike would give you teasing smiles when you got your ass handed to you during sparring

- and finally you were fed up ! did this count as workplace harassment ? you didnt know but you wanted answers ! so you went to the source, hange's room after dinner

- you didnt bother knocking, you just walked in with your eyes closed

- hange giggled, "what are you doing y/n ?" "making sure im not walking into something i shouldnt be seeing, section commander." "by that do you mean the kiss mike and i shared ?" "yes." "well we're not kissing right now." they said, and you peaked one eye open to be sure they werent lying, and they werent !

mike stood up from his chair and slowly made his way past you, closing the door. you took a deep breath before throwing all of your word vomit on blond and brunette duo. "so i dont know why you guys think teasing me like this is fun, but it isnt. it makes me flustered and nervous and feel weird and im not sure if it counts as abuse of power but i dont like it so it needs to stop." you huffed in a big breath of air after saying all of that, and hange rested their head in their hands.

"y/n do you have a crush on me ?" they asked. their voice was soft but they still had that stupid smile on their face. you could feel your face getting warmer by the second. your mouth opened and closed but no words came out.

" i uh, im gonna leave now." you turned around but hit something hard, and looked up at mike looking down on you, a smirk on his face. he put his hands on your shoulders and turned you back around to hange, walking the two of you over to their desk. he gave you a slight push, causing you to put your hands on the desk and lean on it, while mike kept his hands on you to keep you from running.

hange leaned into you, your noses barely touching. "i only ask because, mike and i have grown very fond of you." they said. you nodded a little bit, the tips of your noses brushing against each other.

"yeah well, id be a little sad if my superiors didnt like me, that would be kind of bad." you replied.

"can i kiss you ?" they asked.

and now is when your brain really stops functioning. thoughts fill your mind of mike and his relationship to hange. are they actually together or is it a friends with benefits kind of thing ?

"i uh, i cant kiss you." you replied, a bit breathlessly caused by both section commanders.

"why not y/n ?"

"well i'm not a cheater, or a homewrecker. i mean i assume that you and mike are together so, im not going to kiss someone in a relationship." you stammered out. this was making you very nervous, butterflies errupting in your stomach. you knew they were just teasing you, goofing around to make you flustered, but a part of you hoped youd be able to kiss hange, and maybe mike for that matter.

they chuckled a bit, before their brown eyes looking behind you to mike's towering form. "honey, can you tell y/n its okay if they kiss me ?" they asked. mike let out a small laugh through his nose before leaning down.

"only if y/n promises to give me a kiss afterwards." he whispered. he pressed a faint kiss to your temple, and you shivered from the contact. he was warm, very warm, and even though it was such a small amount of contact it did so many things to you.

you gulped before bringing your eyes back to hange. you looked to their eyes, and then to their lips, and continued that pattern silently in hopes theyd understand. you didnt want to be teased anymore ! you wanted something to happen.

hange got the hint and smirked, before leaning in again and lightly brushing her lips against yours. theirs were soft compared to mikes chapped ones, and the kiss was so slow, so innocent, it had you leaning in for more. it was a slow, lazy kiss, a kiss to test the waters, it helped calm your nerves, but also made your nerved explode with heat.

finally the researched pulled away, and put their hands on your cheeks, squishing them to pucker your lips, before giving a kiss to your forehead, nose and lips one last time. they let go with a soft smile on their face, and a blush of their own.

you could feel mike press his body down against yours, making your knees buckle slightly. he took his right hand off your shoulder to place it on hange's cheek, thumbing over the red pigmentation. he then turned your head up and to the side, before giving you a kiss of his own. this one was a bit more dominating, hard. his chapped lips scratched against your own but you didnt mind. in a weird way it made you feel at ease, having him take control of it, the same way hange did but his was just more, needy.

he pulled back with a shaky breath and looked at you before looking at hange. "so y/n," hange began. they stood up and made their way around the table, mike pulling himself and you up straight so hange could sit on the edge, pulling you in to stand between their legs. being sandwiched in between mike and hange made you so aware of them, and even though you were very new to something like this you felt weirdly safe and secure. "mike and i genuinely care about you, and we want to be with you the way that we're with each other. would you like that ?"

honestly, how could you say no ?

thats it again im sorry the anon who requested this you did not get what you asked for 😭😭😭😭 hope u all enjoyed requests r open stay safe

[thespritepepsi]

Chapter 1, divorce

Harvey thought he knew what heartbreak was, but he was wrong.

Harvey had given every ounce of himself to the farmer, he dropped all his walls down and had been vulnerable, and it had paid off, the famer had asked for his hand in marriage; they were blissfully happy together, but everytime he had asked about children, all she said was "not now, the farm takes up too much time and energy." Harvey understood, but he still asked twice more before letting the matter drop completely, he knew when the time was right, she would ask herself to start their family.

But the time never seemed to come; they were well off, all the community upgrades she had worked for had been completed, she even helped Robin build a house for Pam and Penny, but she never brought up the subject of having a child. Still Harvey was determined to be content in his new life with his wife.

Seasons passed much like they had when he was single, although he made sure to tell the farmer how much happier he was at her farm than his old apartment, she always smiled and kissed him when he did this, and their intimate life was as good as the very first time every time, he had no reason to be unhappy, and he assumed his wife was as happy as he was.

Until one night early into summer.

Harvey was awoken by a soft knock on the farmhouse door, he was startled, all manners of medical emergencies flashing through his mind as he hurriedly put on his robe and glasses and quietly, as not to disturb his sleeping wife, ran to the door.

"Hello?"

"Good morning Doctor Harvey."

It was Mayor Lewis, oh Yoba, what was wrong? Who was hurt? Who could possibly be out this late getting hurt?

"What's the matter, mayor? Is it a medical emergency? Harvey stepped out onto the porch and softly closed the door, "tell me it's not one of the children?"

"Oh no, no emergency Doctor, everyone is healthy as can be" Lewis slipped his thumbs into his suspenders and pulled a bit, " I was just out picking up the shipping items, and well... there's something here for you."

"For me? What could it be?"

Mayor Lewis pulled out a thick creamy envelope with the name 'Dr. Harvey Moore' stamped on it and held it out in front of himself a bit, the moonlight catching on the just-dried ink.

Harvey took the envelope, "what is this?" He inquired, holding the parcel like it was a rehabilitated bird about to fly out his palms; Mayor Lewis shifted his weight from foot to foot, looking everywhere but at him, "well, um, Doctor, I think it's best if you take that on inside and give it a read, that's all I can say."

Harvey looked puzzlingly at the mayor, he knew what was inside the envelope, but wouldn't tell him directly what it was, could he have used too many medical supplies, and the clinic was going into debt?

"Thank you Mayor, I'll read this right away, have a good day." He murmured, turning to go back inside, as he shut the door, he thought he heard the mayor sigh.

Harvey sat down at the kitchen table, the light from the stove bathing the room in a soft orange glow; he carefully opened the envelope with the letter opener and pulled out the thick papers.

There, in big official letters were the words "DECREE OF DIVORCE" Harvey gasped out loud, further down was the Mayors signature, and even further down was the Farmers; Harvey's heart skipped a beat, maybe even two as he traced the familiar handwriting, that was hers all right, it matched the writing on the little notes she would slip in his doctors jacket, or in his lunch; tears slipped down his face as the read the official words, the famer had applied for divorce yesterday, based on the date following her name.

Harvey didn't know what to do now, this was a total shock, he crept back into their room and pulled his duffel bag out of the closet; as quietly as he could, he stuffed all his clothes inside and zipped it shut, he looked at his small room connecting to the bedroom, all his model airplanes and his shortwave radio were set up there, he didn't know how he could get his things without waking up the farmer, and by Yoba, he couldn't bear the thought of her waking up right now. Harvey hastily scribbled a note asking her to box his things up and send them to the clinic, before hastily leaving the farmhouse and letting his tears spill in earnest.

The next two days passed and the divorce was finalized, he stayed exclusively at the clinic, going through the motions of physicals and paperwork; living off coffee, too few hours of sleep, barely eating and crying.

Then one day, as he was at the front desk, Maru had gone to lunch a few minutes before, when the bell above the door tinkled, he looked up and his heart sank, it was the farmer; arms loaded down with boxes and looking like she would rather battle a monster infested mine floor than be there.

The farmer carefully sat the boxes down on the counter, and came around through the doors to stand near him; Harvey moved slightly away and crossed his arms. "I brought your planes and your radio set up," the farmer said quietly, looking at him to meet his eyes "Harvey, I--" Harvey shook his head and held up a hand.

"I, I can't even look at you, please, spare me anymore pain."

The farmer nodded swallowed thickly, "Goodbye Harvey." She said before rushing out the door.

†****************†

The fall dragged on, Harvey kept to himself, settling back into his post-married life routine, although he would occasionally go to the saloon and have a beer, something he knew he shouldn't do, being the only physician in town, but the nights when he lie in bed, and the thoughts of his failed marriage threatened to keep him awake, he went to the saloon for a nightcap.

One rainy night though, he was laying in his bed, when the after hours clinic buzzed, he rushed downstairs to find the farmer holding up a barely conscious Shane, both of them were soaked through. "He needs help," she implored, "he's had so much to drink, I found him by the cliffs, I'm afraid for him."

Harvey rushed to Shane's other side and put his shoulder under his other arm, together they half walked, half dragged Shane into a clinic cot, fully in emergency mode, Harvey barked at the farmer, "You need to wait in the lobby." Before turning and bringing his full attention back to the semi conscious man in front of him.

Later, Harvey went out to the waiting room, to find his ex wife sitting in the chair closest to the door, legs bouncing nervously and her eyes downcast; "I pumped his stomach and gave him fluids, he's in rough shape, but he's going to make it," the farmer sighed and sagged into the chair, looking like a wet, disheveled harvest day balloon, "thank Yoba." She breathed, then she stood to face him, Harvey continued, "I'm more worried about his mental health right now though, it's good that you brought him in when you did, or we would have a far more serious problem on our hands. I'm going to refer him to a therapist friend of mine in the city."

The farmer nodded, " I'm sure that's what he needs, thank you Harvey."

" Can I see him?"

Harvey looked a little dubious, " alright, but just for five minutes, he's going to need to rest, it's late, and he needs to stay overnight to replenish the fluids he's lost"

The farmer walked back to the sectioned off part of the clinic and kneeled down next to the cot, Harvey couldn't help but overhear their quiet conversation.

"Hey there Chicken Boy"

"Hey Farm Girl"

How you feeling?

I've had better days

Harvey says he can get you help, if your willing to take it, that is

I may just take him up on that

You're an asshole

And you still keep me around

I plan too, for a long time

Harvey cleared his throat and stepped around the divider

"It's time to give him some rest now"

The farmer nodded and turned back to Shane, smoothing his hair and dropping a kiss on his forehead before rising to leave; the small tender moment was not lost on Harvey and his heart wrenched, remembering a time when she touched him so sweetly.

†*****************†

Summer gave way to fall, and Harvey was living his life pretty much how he had before his marriage to the farmer, still popping into the saloon every now and then, 'everything was fine' he'd tell himself , and even he started to believe that. Until one night in the saloon.

He had been there nursing a drink when the farmer came in, as he turned around to see who was arriving, the farmer was scanning the faces in the crowd, her face lit up in a grin to see Shane at his usual spot and drinking a sparkling water; she took a step inside before her gaze landed on him, and she blanched, her lovely smile gone, she even took a step back, half turning to leave before steeling her resolve.

Hey Gus, can I have a beer here please?

As he slid the frosty mug to her, she turned and offered it to Harvey.

"I don't want your gift" he said.

"You're going to need it" was all she said before going to Shane, who wrapped an arm around her waist and pulled her in for a kiss on the mouth, the farmer giggled and kissed him back; Harvey's hand drifted toward the beer.

"Can I have everyone's attention please?" The farmer shouted over the talking voices and the playing jukebox, when all eyes were on her she looked at Shane and got down on one knee, producing a mermaids pendant from her pocket, Shane turned blushed a deep red, his surprise almost audible, before he said "I accept!"

The whole saloon burst into cheers and everyone converged on the couple, voices overlapping with cheers and congratulations, Harvey downed the beer in a few gulps, turns out she was right, he did need it.

[creampuffqueen]

Just Like This | Chapter One

Summary: Rayla and Callum have been best friends since elementary school. Now, years later, Rayla is discovering new feelings for her best friend. The only problem: she's about 99% sure he doesn't think of her in the same way. Not willing to risk their friendship, Rayla continues to hide her feelings for Callum. How long until the truth comes out?

a/n: Hey everyone! Here it is, the greatly anticipated Rayllum high school au! Please please please reblog this, because Tumblr won't show this post in the main tags due to an affiliate link! Anyway, I hope you all enjoy!

Word Count: 3372

Warnings: Language

Read on Ao3

~~~~

Sunday, September 30th, 2020

Katolis Supermarket, 5:31 PM

“Who wrote this list?” Rayla complained loudly, stalking behind Callum at the grocery store, shaking the piece of paper in his face. Her fellow sophomore was pushing a cart around, eternally focused on the task ahead.

“Well, Claudia suggested it, but everyone else added on,” Callum replied, not even looking at her. Stopping in the middle of the isle, he grabbed a 12-pack of soda and loaded it in the cart. “What’s next?”

Looking over the extensive list again, Rayla frowned. “Uh, it says… ‘those little animal cookie things with sprinkles, you know the ones’.”

Callum finally turned to look at her, a wide grin on his face as they both said “Soren,” in unison.

“Jinx,” Rayla giggled, “You owe me a soda.”

“Okay… just take one from the pack when we get home?”

Both teenagers continued through the store, Rayla getting bored of walking and hanging off the front of the cart, laughing as Callum made a big deal of struggling to push them around.

She supposed they should be hurrying. Evening was approaching quickly, and soon all their friends would be over at Callum’s place to study. Callum had dragged her off to the grocery store to get snacks for their cram session, considering she lived only a street over and had a car.

“We’re all going to be sick by the end of the night,” Rayla sighed, loading more snacks into the cart.

“Well, at least we’ll be awake,” Callum, ever cheerful, turned his head around to grin at her.

At his smile, Rayla felt her heart give a small wayward flutter, though she squished it down quickly. Tonight was important; she needed to pass this test to keep her grade up, and it wouldn’t help if she spent the entire night mulling over how cute her best friend’s smile looked.

“Yeah,” She chuckled, trying to pull herself back to the present. Keep it together, Rayla.

They got their unhealthy amount of junk food, collectively winced at the price, bought it anyway, and set about loading it in the backseat of Rayla’s car.

In no time at all Rayla was driving, Callum reclining in the passenger seat. With the radio cranked up, neither felt the need to talk, content to sit in the comfortable silence.

It was hard to believe that they’d been friends for eight years now. Rayla could still remember the first time they met like it was yesterday.

She was eight years old, in second grade, having just moved to a new school after her parents left on a military tour and she went to live with her uncles. Her first day of school had gone off without a hitch.

That is, until she met Callum at recess.

Content to play by herself, Rayla had been making use of the free time by pretending to build a fort under the slide. While pretending to hammer in nails, she noticed a small group of kids nearby. Two boys and a girl.

While she couldn’t make out all the words, the body language she saw was more than enough. The bigger boy, a head of blond hair, was pointing at the smaller, brown-haired boy, and laughing. The girl, black hair tied in two pigtail braids, was looking between them, unsure of what to do.

Curious eight-year-old Rayla snuck up, for she’d always been good at sneaking, and listened in on the conversation.

“Soren, shut up, he’s going to cry!” The girl said.

“Oh, so little Callum’s a crybaby now?” The boy, Soren, taunted.

“I’m not a crybaby, Soren!” The other boy shouted, though he couldn’t hide the sniffle at the end of his sentence.

“Oooh, Callum’s crying! Who’s gonna help him, his dad? Oh wait-”

Soren didn’t get to finish his sentence.

Well, she thought as she sat in the principal’s office twenty minutes later, Runaan will be happy to know that I’m learning something in my karate class.

All four kids were in the office, sitting in chairs in front of the desk. Callum and the other girl, Claudia, were both still sniffling from residual tears. Soren, fresh from the nurse’s office, was holding an ice pack over a rapidly blackening eye.

The door opened, and in came the principal, shaking her head with a sigh.

“You three again?”

“We didn’t do anything!” Soren shouted, voice whistling through the new gap in his teeth. Oh yeah, she’d knocked a tooth out as well. “She started it!”

“Well you were being really mean to that other kid!” Rayla protested. She and Soren glared at each other from their respective chairs, accusatory fingers pointed straight out.

“I wasn’t being mean, I was just joking!” Soren explained, “Callum’s my friend!”

“Well Soren, what you said was really mean-” Claudia interjected, but the boy, who Rayla had learned was her brother, interrupted.

“Callum, you know I was joking, right?”

“Well…” Soren’s face fell as Callum dropped his gaze to his lap. “It did kind of hurt my feelings, Soren…”

“Wait, you’re friends?” Rayla exclaimed, glancing curiously between both boys. “I thought he was bullying you! And my parents and uncles always said you have to stand up to bullies and-”

“I’m not a bully!” Soren shouted. Voices began to rise between them again, and the principal was forced to interject.

“All of you, quiet down. I’m going to talk with you each individually, and we’ll see what happens then. Callum, come with me. The rest of you: play nice.”

In the end, Rayla got suspended for two days for fighting, and Soren got one day for bullying. Despite the massive lecture Runaan and Ethari subjected her to, Rayla couldn’t help but feel like she’d done the right thing in the end.

When she returned to school, she was surprised to find Callum approach her at recess, a little paper bag clutched shyly in his hands.

“Sorry my friends and I got you in trouble,” He said, passing the bag to her. Opening it, Rayla’s face split into a huge grin at the sight of two tart-things waiting for her, filled with jelly.

“Soren’s usually pretty nice,” Callum continued, “But he doesn’t know when to stop talking. If you hadn’t stepped in, he would have said something mean without thinking, I’m sure. So you kind of helped both of us, in a way.”

“Oh. Well, you’re welcome, I guess. And thanks for the tarts.”

She was about to turn away and enjoy her spoils, but then Callum kept talking.

“Do you want to come play with us? Me and Claudia are pretending to do magic, and Soren’s a knight. You can do magic with us, if you want.”

Well, this game was certainly right up her alley. “I’ll play,” Rayla conceded, “But only if I get to be an elf.”

Callum grinned broadly, pointing to where the two siblings were playing. “Of course.”

~~~~

“The snacks are here!” Rayla called into the house, arms laden with shopping bags. Callum shut the door behind them, similarly burdened with the case of soda.

The pounding of feet sounded overhead, and several heads poked over the stairwell to glimpse the pair in the kitchen. “Finally!” Soren cheered, racing downstairs to try and rifle through the bags Rayla was carrying.

“Not yet, you lump,” Rayla scolded, pushing past the senior boy, “We’ve got to get upstairs at least.”

“Thanks for going to get snacks,” Claudia called, and her thanks was echoed by the other kids there. Callum and Rayla both shrugged, and made their way upstairs to the game room, where they’d all be studying.

Sitting on the various bean bag chairs and couches, the rest of the study group cheered when the food and drinks arrived. Andromeda, Callisto, Ram, Skor, and Marcos all leapt up to snatch the snacks they wanted. When everyone was sitting again, food in hand, Callum gave a dramatic clearing of his throat, turning all the heads in the room towards him.

“So, uh, thanks for coming over. Hopefully we can all actually get some studying done, since, you know, that’s what we’re here for.” He fixed a firm glance on the two couples in the room. “Ground rules: no making out in my house, don’t be super messy, and also please actually study. Soren, no idea what you’re doing here since you’ve already taken this history class, but okay.”

The older boy shrugged, taking a big gulp of his soda. “Moral support. A welcome distraction.”

Callum clapped his hands together once. “Okay then. I actually made a schedule for this, and if we follow it, we can cover all of the sections by… midnight, I think. 11 pm if we work really fast.”

“You made a schedule for studying?” Callisto asked in disbelief. Andromeda laughed, throwing an arm over her partner’s shoulder.

“Yes, I made a schedule for studying, I think it’s going to be very helpful!” Callum defended, crossing his arms over his chest. Even talking with the other two people, his green eyes somehow still managed to find Rayla’s.

She met his gaze, just for a second, heart pounding, before she looked away again. “Well, guys, if Callum wants to make a study schedule, good for him. Let’s just get started; I really need to pass this test.”

“Since when have you been worried about grades, Rayla?” Skor snorted, reclining in a beanbag chair, dumping spicy chips into his mouth.

“Since I’m in four extracurriculars and if I don’t pass, I don’t play.”

“Try-hard,” Soren coughed from his seat. Rayla just flashed him her middle finger, eliciting wild laughter from the rest of the room.

“Guys,” Callum whined, “I’m trying to be productive-”

“Okay, let’s start,” Claudia said, placing a gentle hand on Callum’s arm. It took everything Rayla had not to glare at the other girl, biting back the unwarranted flash of jealousy.

That’s all in the past. We figured it out.

Usually, she could forget just how close Callum was with Soren and Claudia. But then, something like this would happen, and she’d be reminded that before he met her, it was the siblings who were his best friends.

Having known them his whole life, it was no surprise that he’d developed a massive crush on Claudia in middle school. And he never shut up about it.

His confession at the end of seventh grade had very nearly torn their friend group to shreds. He wanted to ask her to the end of year dance, and when Claudia accepted he was ecstatic. Rayla had been happy for him, and just hoped that when they started dating, they wouldn’t be weird about it and make her and Soren uncomfortable.

But as it turned out, Claudia only thought of Callum as a friend. When she told him, Callum was crushed.

Rayla could still remember opening up her front door to see her best friend standing there, tears streaking down his face.

“Rayla, I just- I can’t believe how stupid I am-”

She pulled him into a fierce hug, and didn’t relinquish her grip on him until his mother came to pick him up. At school the next day, nobody could stop her wrath as she stalked up to Claudia and demanded answers.

“How could you?! You know how Callum feels about you, and you led him on anyway!” Rayla shouted.

“I didn’t want to hurt his feelings!” Claudia insisted, “And I do know how he feels and I didn’t want him to get the wrong idea-”

“No, I know what flirting looks like, and you led him on! He believed that you felt the same way!”

Claudia looked on the verge of tears, and some sick part of Rayla was glad for it. Let her feel bad for her actions, let her feel the same way Callum was feeling.

“Look, I’m really sorry. I didn’t mean to hurt anyone’s feelings. I just… I don’t see Callum in that way.”

“Then why’d you keep flirting with him?” Rayla’s voice was dangerously low. Their shouting match had attracted a small audience in the school cafeteria.

“I…” She was at a loss for words.

“You know what?” Rayla snapped, “Save it for someone who cares. Explain yourself to Callum, not me. It’s him who needs the apology.”

The next few weeks were tense. Hardly any of them spoke to each other. Even though Soren was in high school and had nothing to do with the drama, he still sided with his sister, like Rayla knew he would.

Things worked out. Slowly, but surely, they worked out. But not without a lot of tears from everyone involved, a lot of yelling, a lot of accusations. Things worked out.

But even after Claudia and Callum were on speaking terms again, he decided to ditch the dance. Rayla, who never was going in the first place, was more than happy to offer up her couch for a night of movie watching and junk food eating. And sure, Claudia’s Instagram photos were cute, but for Rayla, nothing could beat the fun she was having with her best friend, right here.

Rayla was pretty sure that was when she’d started to fall in love with him. Or, more accurately, when she realized that she already had fallen in love with him.

However, confessing your love to your best friend after a recent heartbreak seemed like a bad idea. So she kept it to herself.

Which, she supposed, was how she found herself here, three years later, still madly in love with her best friend who was none the wiser, getting jealous over a relationship she both knew was purely innocent and also she had no claim over anyway.

Cool, Rayla, very cool.

Shoving down her stupid feelings, Rayla listened as Callum went over his plan for the evening. Review through chapter 2, take a 15 minute break, review through chapter 4, continue pattern until they got through all the chapters they needed.

The plan was met with a loud groan of complaint from Soren’s end. “Callum, why are you even doing this? You literally have a photographic memory.”

“Well, you guys don’t, so really I’m helping all of you!”

“I mean…” Rayla snorted, “Soren does have a point. Why are you so worried about studying, Callum?”

The teenage boy scratched at his neck awkwardly. “Well, uh, it’s kind of embarrassing, but… I’ve only skimmed for answers this entire time. I need to actually read the passages to remember it.”

Rayla just rolled her eyes. “Callum. Everyone on earth just skims for answers. We know you’re all goody two-shoes, teacher’s pet, but chill. You’re going to be fine.”

“How are you so chill, Rayla?” Callum demanded, “Weren’t you just freaking out, like, two seconds ago? Hello, Miss I’m-in-every-sport-imaginable?”

“Changing the subject!” Rayla declared loudly, “Open up the textbook, Callum!”

~~~~

“Time check,” Ram moaned from where his face was pressed into one of the beanbag chairs, “How much longer?”

“We’re at-” Callum attempted to respond, but was cut off by a yawn.

“Chapter six?” Rayla asked, though she wasn’t too sure herself. All the words were beginning to jumble together on the pages. At some point her notecards had gotten mixed up, and random dates and events were scattered all over the room.

“No, the time,” Ram complained. The other boy sat up, brushing his shaggy white hair from his eyes. “What time is it? My curfew is 11:30.”

Callisto grabbed their phone and took a glance. “11:15.”

“Ok, let’s review,” Callum suggested. However, the entire room gave a loud groan of complaint.

“My brain is melting!” Soren cried, dramatically tossing his head into Marcos’s lap. His boyfriend rolled his eyes at his antics, though he threaded his fingers through the other boy’s blond hair.

“Soren, you don’t have to take this test tomorrow!” Claudia snapped, “Don’t start whining!” The girl looked almost ready to start pulling her hair out.

“Alright,” Andromeda sighed, “My mom’s calling; she’s probably here to pick me up. Thanks for this, Callum. If I find a quizlet I’ll send it in the groupchat, okay?”

“Yes!” Skor cheered, “Quizlet is my lifesaver!”

“Pass me some Doritos, Rayla,” Callum muttered in quiet defeat. Rayla hummed in agreement, grabbing the chip bag from the pile of snacks nearby. Her friend was so tired that he didn’t even complain when she took a couple for herself.

One by one, the room began to empty. Callisto’s dad came to pick them up, Ram agreed to drive Skor home, and Claudia, Soren, and Marcos piled into Soren’s little car to drive off into the night.

That just left Rayla. And Callum. Alone.

“Place is a mess,” Callum sighed, taking in all the damage. Although they’d started out pretty clean, as the night wore on everyone got lazier and started just piling the trash where they were sitting. Crumbs spilled over the carpet, and empty soda cans rolled about.

“Let me help clean,” Rayla offered, “I mean, some of the mess is mine.” She gestured to the notecards spilled everywhere. Her mind was a bit fuzzy from exhaustion, but she was pretty sure she and Soren had started throwing them at each other at one point.

“No, it’s fine-” Callum sputtered, but Rayla just rolled her eyes.

“Let me help. Then we can both go to bed and you won’t get in trouble for the mess.” She left no room for argument, and started gathering up all the garbage and stuffing it in the empty grocery bags.

They worked in companionable silence, just tidying up the room. Rayla knew his house well enough to know where everything went, and tossed out all the garbage and swept up the lingering crumbs. Soon enough, the room looked nearly spotless again.

“See, fast!” Rayla chuckled. She glanced at her phone. “Just in time, too. Runaan’s asking where I am.”

Callum surprised her with a sudden hug, catching her off guard for a moment before she returned it, trying to calm her fluttering heart.

It’s just a hug. Friends hug all the time, don’t get all excited.

“Thanks for coming,” Callum said, a tiny bit breathlessly, “I know you were worried about the test and I wanted to help, sorry it got kind of out of hand.”

“You… organized this all… for me?” Rayla hoped her face wasn’t as red as it felt.

“Well, yeah,” He laughed, “Even though you probably didn’t need it. You know all the material really well.”

“Only thanks to you, and you know that,” Giving him a friendly punch to the shoulder, Rayla couldn’t contain her grin. “I do feel better prepared, though. I’ll pass. If my brain doesn’t turn to mush first.”

“You’ll ace it,” Callum assured her, “I’m sure of it.”

His green eyes were so bright. And his smile so genuine. Rayla returned it, albeit with less enthusiasm. “Thanks.” Her voice sounded stupidly high-pitched, even to her.

He held her gaze for another long moment before glancing down, at the buzzing phone in her hand that she hadn’t even noticed, too caught up in staring. “You should go. Get some sleep for the test tomorrow, huh?”

“Yeah,” Rayla breathed, “You too. I’ll see in English tomorrow.”

It was an effort to leave the room. To walk down the stairs, quietly so she wouldn’t wake his parents, and out the front door. To open up her door and get in the car, turn the key in the ignition.

The entire street was silent. That’s how it always was, she supposed. The first to arrive and the last to leave. A glance up told her Callum was staring out his bedroom window at her, watching her leave.

With a heavy sigh, Rayla put the car in reverse. Pulled out of the driveway.

She wasn’t naive. Callum had always been big on physical contact, and it had never meant anything more than he cared. She wasn’t willing to put her heart on the line like that, not when she was sure he didn’t like her that way.

Rayla was a risk taker. Always had been. But this? To risk the relationship she already had with her best friend? That was one risk she would never be willing to take.

~~~~

a/n: Poor Rayla! I would like to apologize to everyone in advance; the pining is not going to get better for a LONG TIME

Tag List: (comment to be added or removed)

@hipster-rapunzel

[kryptsune]

Tell us more about the mythology of Yokaitale, or perhaps even what specific versions of Wonderland inspired Wonderfell (like did you take anything from the 2 American McGee games at all?)

🌼 Wonderfell is a fun one. I take inspiration from way too many adaptations to list here but yes you are correct I am a huge fan of McGee’s interpretation so that does creep in. If you noticed Chesh has a hoop earring. That is definitely inspired by that version. I don’t take too much from the Disney version since... I know this is controversial but I don’t think it’s the best adaptation. It gets the usual Disney family-friendly treatment. Which is fine I still love it but if you know me I like things a little more... mature. 

I was also inspired by games like Alicemare, IB, Yume Nikki. It doesn’t make sense now in the context of the fic but it will. Wonderland has always suspended the real and the surreal and I definitely play with that concept a lot. Things are not always as they seem. 

I always felt like Undertale initially was an Alice in Wonderland variation from falling down a hole into a magic world, to a cast of colorful crazy characters, to having to sacrifice or grow in some way along the journey. It’s why I made Wonderfell because I have always seen Sans as a Cheshire archetype and not just because of the grin. It’s more like his abilities. The Cheshire cat can disappear and re-appear at will. It’s not a direct one to one but his teleportation abilities are very similar. Pap has always embodied the Mad Hatter for me especially with his fascination with puzzles instead of riddles. 

I also really wanted a more fun and colorful take on UF stuff. I am really tired of Boss always being angry or Red always being abusive... or I don’t know that characterization that made me make my own version (Underworld AU) in the first place. Or god... them being just a shit post. I know it’s nice to have those every once in a while but I always felt the missed opportunity to actually make them something other than cardboard cutouts. In my opinion, I feel like a lot of my boys have taken on a life all their own. It’s why I am using them in my original work.

Yokaifell? Well, it kind of stems from some of my favorite anime of all time, Kamisama Hajitemashita being one of them. There is just something really cool about yokai lore because I always make the joke that if you go to Japan anything can and will kill you. There are so many yokai to work off of too so that's where the inspiration comes from.

{READ MORE FOR LENGTH PURPOSES}

Mythology wise my Yokaifell lore post goes into quite a bit but the things that I have not mentioned in that is how the world works outside of the main story. 

As I continue to develop Souly Damned I have been wanted to add more and more of the things that have influenced my storytelling so they kind of cross over in ideas. The realm of yokai in this instance is a separate realm (I do know they are spirits but just bear with me). You can think of it as another dimension separate from our own but still accessible. It is possible for mortal souls to enter the spirit realm but souls are kind of the key here. 

Normally humans just walk through the gates and never end up in the realm because they don’t believe in the realm or its inhabitants. Those that can see have the realm's magic buried within them and the more they worship/believe the more that influence grows. In the majority of my work, I ascribe to the idea that the eyes are the windows into the soul so the more magic you have the more vibrant your eye color. 

Since Yokaifell is set in modern-day most humans have normal eye colors. Basically, magic = key in this lore. Now you may be wondering why my Frisk, little out of her element bean that she is, is able to run through the gate. She starts off as a normal unsuspecting human who is lost in the forest whom Ryou accidentally lures. Usually, he does that on purpose to mess with humans but in this case, he is just playing his koto and relaxing. Since the town that Frisk moves to is more in the mountains the people there are very in tune with the old ways. They even warn her not to go into the forest because of it. She just doesn’t listen since she doesn’t believe in magic or superstition. 

 The yokai in my lore can only be seen by those with magic in their soul unless they drop the veil. Obviously being a foreigner she has 0 idea what Ryou is trying to tell her when she first encounters him. That is until he imparts just a sliver of magic on her soul so that she can actually understand the language. But... uh... whoopsie. Humans with magic are rare and that makes them incredibly yummy to the yokai around the area. This creates a chain event where she ends up in the spirit realm and because of Ryou’s mistake she is able to pass through the gate like one of them would. The oni chasing them ends up smashing the gate they came through and there you are... she is stuck which you can already gather is dangerous. 

Ryou and Kuro are two yokai you don’t really want to mess with because their past history is seeped in blood. They both despise mortals for some unknown reason. One that is revealed further down in the spoiler section. How they went from practically killing mortal and yokai to laxer is also kind of a question mark. Kuro is able to quell his rage by serving the kami (in this case Asgore) while Ryou... uh... ok he doesn’t really handle it all that great. He is just a very salty boy. 

Like my lore for Souly Damned lower level of yokai can not just jump to the mortal realm whenever they want. There is a hierarchy established and fortunately, Ryou and Kuro are pretty high up there so they can interact to some degree. I have that outlined further in the lore post.

 I will say that in order to explain this I have to toss up a spoiler warning for anyone that does not want to see it. {THERE BE  SPOILERS AHEAD}

So... spoiler time but Ryou and his brother Kuro used to be humans at some point. This was centuries ago but they both died when a rival village tried to eradicate their own. Kuro being the proud warrior went off to fight, leaving his little brother to watch over the rest. Unfortunately Ryou never actually sees his brother again and yeah... it’s sad to say but he dies on the battlefield. Ever since he was a child he wanted to be a warrior. He dies fullfilling that dream.

Ryou though being younger tries to fend off the attackers but he is eventually mortally wounded and left for dead. He bleeds out as the snow starts to fall again which is why his design not only incorporates red but also the snowfall aspect, especially his human guise. 

In that time there was more magic and yokai roamed freely. The souls were far stronger and because of both Ryou and Kuro’s deeply held emotion that affects their souls eventually calling out to the Kami... they are then reborn as yokai in the process. Ryou as the mischevious Kitsune and Kuro as a gashadokuro samurai. So it’s established that humans can become yokai but it's rare as the centuries progress. It takes an incredibly strong soul coupled with some kind of deep emotion which could be anything from rage to love. 

[mythgirlimagines]

Just in time for this week’s Tuesday, I have a special little talentswap! Speeding her way into your inbox with her delivery in hand is Myth, the Former Ultimate Delivery Girl.

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BACKSTORY AND TALENT

As the third and youngest daughter of two restaurant owners, Myth more or less grew up in her parent’s restaurant, known as “Heart’s Kitchen”. Unfortunately, it‘s safe to say that Myth lacked the cooking skills of both her parents and older sisters. However, her true ability lies in physical stamina and running speed, which makes her the perfect person to conduct deliveries, while her parents and sisters are busy cooking and waiting tables. Being part of both the track and gymnastics club at her school really helps with delivery speed and traversing the dangerous parts of the massive town that she lives in. To this day, Myth has always been able to deliver her parent’s food in 30 minutes or less, no matter how far or dangerous the intended location is. It’s safe to say that she has interacted with various colorful personalities in her high-speed career. 

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RELATIONSHIPS

Wyre Anon, Former Ultimate Tailor

As the owner of “Ripped Seams”, only the greatest tailor shop in all of town, Wyre holds the honor of being Myth’s first ever customer, and is Myth’s best friend to this very day. Despite being rough and tough, Wyre’s craftsmanship when it comes to their famous suits is truly unparalleled. Ever since they first met, Myth knows exactly what Wyre’s usual is: high-grade yakiniku that’s light on the sauce so Wyre’s high-class suits won’t get stained. Sometimes though, Wyre wishes Myth could take a break once in a while. Wyre may stay up all night perfecting the seams on their suits, but Myth is truly on an entirely different level. 

Outfit: Glasses, tanned overcoat over a white dress shirt and an orange bowtie, matching tan pants, brown loafers.

Anon Scar, Ultimate Barista

Scar, or “The Supreme High Lord of the Liquid Realm“, as she is called on the job, runs the atmospheric and esoteric “Witch‘s Brew”, a coffee shop famous for its horror aesthetic and the fantasy personas that all the staff have on the job. Scar and Myth regularly cross paths, for they both have jobs in food service and similar workaholic personalities, much to the concern of the people around her. Sometimes, when Scar’s hands are tied, she entrusts Myth with delivering her fresh and hot coffee and pastries to customers all around town. Myth’s speed and efficiency means that the coffee/pastries arrive at the door still hot. 

Outfit: A black hooded cloak, smudged-up eyeshadow, purple gloves, mask, scarf and boots from original design. 

Fusion Anon, Ultimate Samurai

Living on the rural outskirts of the large town, Fusion lives in an old-fashioned temple with his younger brother, parents, and paternal grandparents, who also happen to be samurai and the last surviving members of his once-prestigious clan. Fusion usually spends his time training with his family members, and this has worked up quite the appetite in him. Myth delivers Fusion his daily fix of 10 full bento boxes. Myth also learned that, despite Fusion’s large and threatening appearance and talent, he is very friendly, loyal and protective of others, a bit like a father. Fusion thinks Myth has the potential to be the perfect kunoichi. 

Outfit: A large afro tied into a man bun, a white haori, bandaged-up arms and hands, blue hakama pants with a brown scabbard that houses his longsword, white socks, brown sandals. 

Fusion Anon II, Ultimate Revolutionary

Having once lived in the poorer parts of the town, Fusion II has led a rebellion with her fellow lower-class brethren against the corrupt government, and now it is one of the nicer parts of town. Fusion II regularly sees Myth delivering food around town, and views Myth as a slave to her job, and just wishes Myth could chill out and take a break. But she couldn’t deny that Myth’s stunts are awesome and her food is delicious, especially the veggie sliders. Myth remembered when the town was a dangerous slum that she had to parkour around, and internally thanks Fusion II for making her job easier. 

Outfit: Black leather jacket with shoulder spikes, ripped jeans, a red megaphone clipped to her belt, spiked boots that add to her height, sunglasses and undershirt from original design. 

Just Anon, Ultimate Thanatologist

Because of Janon’s talent and appearance, you would expect him to be somber and emo, and you would be right in that assumption. But as hard as Janon tries to come off as an angsty and cynical jerk, he has a soft spot for children and regularly stays beside them and comforts them in their death-related grief. Myth regularly delivers last meals to people are planning to die soon, so she definitely saw Janon at his job. Janon would never admit it, but he is seriously concerned about Myth’s work schedule One look at Myth was all it took for Janon to know that Myth will die from overworking herself.

Outfit: A black skeleton themed hoodie and matching face mask, black eyeshadow, formal wear from his original design.

Sparkle Anon, Former Ultimate Priestess

Having grown up raised by overly religious folks, Sparkle was fed information about the Holy Book day after day and is very knowledgeable regarding virtues, vices and history of her religion. Sparkle has also managed to convince people of various other fates to convert to her own fate, and is hailed by the town as a kind and charismatic soul. Sparkle’s loud voice really helps her in her religious sermons and other events that she was asked to host. Myth regularly delivers Heart’s Kitchen’s food to Sparkle in the priestess’s off-days, with the restaurant’s famous fluffy bread being Sparkle’s personal favorite.

Outfit: A priest’s cassock with a sparkly rosary necklace, blue slip-on shoes, glasses from original design. 

Egg Anon, Former Ultimate Card Shark, and Wet Sock Anon, Former Ultimate Gunslinger

Residing in one of the most crime-ridden and seediest sections of town, Egg and Wet Sock are feared entities in the town’s underground crime ring, with Egg being the brains and Wet Sock being the brawn. Myth regularly has to watch her back or else the Freak Twins will jump from the shadows and do cursed things to her order. Without even missing a step, Myth manages to parkour and dodge any accosting and shooting attempts by the Freak Twins and get the order delivered on time, much to the irritation of the diabolical duo, who just wants the busy delivery girl to stop sapping illegally-earned money out of them.

Outfit: White dress shirts, brown vests, black pants, black heeled boots, glasses from original designs, Egg’s vest buttons resemble card suits and Wet Sock has brown holsters that house black pistols.

Curious Anon, Jr. Ultimate Drummer

Having been suckered into joining a garage metal band that was eventually named “Ruined Petals”, Curious is renowned by metal fans for their straight face and stoic demeanor despite their wild fashion and fast-paced drumming.Despite thier passive personality, Curious is renowned by their bandmembers for being the heart of the band and the glue that holds the band together. Curious’s bandmates regularly orders Heart’s Kitchen’s famous spicy wings and Myth is always there with their order. They regularly order the wings to watch Curious eat them with utensils and without even flinching.

Outfit: Hair that reaches past their shoulders, elaborate makeup, black head bandana, open black vest, white chest wraps, black gloves, black ripped jeans, spiky black boots. 

Anon Nerd, Former Ultimate Pinball Wizard

With an unparalleled win streak and an equally unparalleled temper, Nerd crushed previous pinball records in every arcade that he has ever been to. Rumor has it that he destroyed a pinball machine for losing a game the first and only time in his life. Because Nerd pours most of his time into pinball, he regularly forgets to eat, so Myth always delivers him small food packages that Nerd always incinerates with his scouter in response. Nerd always tries to incinerate the irksome delivery girl with his scouter, but Myth’s inhuman speed and parkour skills means she always escapes unscathed. 

Outfit: A black polo shirt with an obnoxious 90s-esque pattern, blue jeans held up with white suspenders, brown shoes, scouter from original design.

Eldritch Anon, Ultimate Statistical Analyst

With statistics dominating his life, this petit prodigy would never do anything that would result in at least a small chance of death. This has resulted in him never leaving the small apartment that he lives in, for fear of his safety. His apartment neighbor took pity on and had Heart’s Kitchen’s food delivered to him. Because Eldritch stays in his apartment doing statistical calculations at all times, Myth couldn’t really get much of a read on him. Eldritch witnessed Myth’s fast running speed and parkour stunts, and seems to be fully convinced that Myth isn’t even a human, but rather a superhuman alien. 

Outfit: His original outfit but with math badges as opposed to conspiracy badges.

Dream Anon, Ultimate Drill Sargent 

Dream works at the “Solar Flare Boot Camp”, a fitness camp dedicated to future army soldiers. Dream’s infectious optimism and energy motivates the soldiers under her care, and they want to serve and fight for the country, if it means coming back to see the adorable smile of Dream. Dream regularly orders large amounts of food for both herself and her soldiers, which Myth manages to carry and bring to the gym without any signs of struggling. Upon seeing Myth clear the camp’s obstacle course in record speed, Dream knew that Myth had it in her to become a competent soldier. 

Outfit: An army helmet, a standard camo-colored army jumpsuit, black sunglasses, brown army boots.

Iris Anon, Jr. Ultimate Racer

Dominating the national racing circuit with her trademark race car known as “Haley”, despite her young age, Iris’s contagious energy and dorky optimism have garnered her a fanbase, even outside of the racing circle. Myth regularly goes to Iris’s practice ring to send her food. Iris looks up to Myth, and can often be seen attempting to do the stunts that Myth can do. Unfortunately for Iris, while she is graceful when she is in a car, the same can’t be said for her skills outside of that, for she is superbly clumsy. 

Outfit: A galaxy printed jumpsuit and helmet that matches her car, a blue scarf with a couple of yellow star patches, yellow gloves and boots, the helmet has lots of cracks and dents. 

Purple Anon, Ultimate Mangaka

Purple is famous for her serialized manga, most notably “Ultraviolet”, a dramatic and tragic manga series centering around the newly crowned heiress to the throne reversing the effects of the cruel reign of her parents. Spending most of her time in her studio, Purple always has Heart’s Kitchen deliver her food, for she gets so wrapped up in her work, that she forgets to both eat and sleep. The few conversations Myth had with Purple were confusing, to say the least, for Purple is not only painfully shy, but she also speaks with rather archaic terms that Myth has trouble understanding. 

Outfit: A black overcoat over a white dress shirt and a purple ribbon, a purple skirt, leggings and shoes from original design.

This series centers around the adorable (but simultaneously hardcore) delivery girl interacting with the odd and colorful denizens of her enormous town.

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PERSONALITY

DeliveryGirl!Myth is a hardworking girl, who would stop at nothing until the assigned order is right where it needs to be. She is energetic and athletic, being both a part of the track team and the gymnastics team at school. Myth almost never takes a day off, and doesn’t really have any hobbies apart from the before-mentioned sports teams. She is married to her career and has zero time for idle chitchat or romance. Despite being burdened with such a large workload, Myth manages to stay positive and manages to make enough time to get the deliveries in on time, regardless of how many orders are thrown at her.

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APPEARANCE

DeliveryGirl!Myth has shoulder-length brown hair with swept-up bangs and glasses. DeliveryGirl!Myth wears a white and pink cap with Heart’s Kitchen’s logo on the front, a pink track jacket with blue stripes on the sleeves over a white shirt with a “1#” logo on the front, blue jean shorts, long white socks and pink and white sneakers. 

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So now that this week’s talentswap is finished, let me know what you think of this AU! In the meantime, have fun and stay safe!

-Fusion Anon

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Very nice! And can confirm, Wyre looks good in suits ^_^ ...and it took be a while to realize where the talents were from XD

[pomrania]

Fantasy space

Spelljammer is a cool setting. Unfortunately, it was first written in 1989, for 2E D&D. I'm not going to require anyone to read old sourcebooks, even if they're really cool once you remove the old-edition-mechanics from them, so here's an overall summary of how it works. Additionally, there were some things I didn't like in "official" Spelljammer (like clerics not being to regain higher-level spells in a different crystal sphere), so it just makes sense to write out my version of things. (To clarify: everything I put here is consistent with “official” Spelljammer, to the best of my knowledge. If there is something I didn’t like, then I simply did not include it. There are also other things which I did like, but I did not include here because they were too specific for a general overview, or because I forgot.)

1. Fantasy space follows different rules than real-world space

We're not playing a sci-fi game, we're playing a fantasy game, after all. I'm putting in a brief summary of everything here, so hopefully it will make sense. Further sections give more details.

Planets happen inside wildspace, which is kind of like space-space but it isn't a vacuum. Each planetary system, with its planets and wildspace, is encased in a crystal sphere. The various crystal spheres are surrounded by the Flow, which is flammable and also prevents dimensional travel.

When in wildspace or the Flow, everything has its own air envelope; the air inside this will not vanish, but it will get used up and go bad. The larger the thing, the larger the air envelope. Large enough things have their own gravity, and the effects of its gravity reach as far as its air envelope.

2. Wildspace

Wildspace is what you get between planets. There is very little there, other than asteroids (which may or may not be inhabited), other ships, and wreckage (which may or may not have already been picked over). Most space travel happens in wildspace, because the things to travel between are closer together.

You will not die from imploding if you are thrown unprotected into wildspace. You will however probably die from suffocation once all your air has gone bad, since wildspace does not have atmosphere, but you will have some time to be rescued or find air before that happens.

3. Crystal spheres

A crystal sphere contains a planetary system. Inside of it are planets and wildspace; outside of it is the Flow.

The shell of a crystal sphere cannot be damaged by any known means. If you want to get through it, you need an opening. These openings happen naturally, and they seem to be at random. If you do not want to wait until an opening happens nearby, you can use magic to make an opening happen where you are. Sometimes this magic is built into a ship, but that makes the ship more expensive.

4. Phlogiston / the Flow

(The "proper" name is "phlogiston", but I'm going to call it "the Flow" because a) that's easier to write, b) it is synonymous in the sourcebooks, and c) I don't know how to pronounce "phlogiston".)

The Flow is what you get between different crystal spheres. It is luminous and rainbow-coloured, and also extremely flammable. If you light a fire while your ship is in the Flow, you're going to have a bad time. If you light a big fire while your ship is in the Flow, like if you're trying to cast Fireball, you are going to have a very bad time. Even if you're fireproof, and if your ship is made of things that don't catch on fire, chances are that your friends and your cargo are not also fireproof.

The Flow provides as much light as an overcast day. This is good because if you need to see, you do not want to light a candle or a torch if you enjoy not being on fire.

The Flow prevents any dimensional travel or access. If you have a Bag of Holding, you will not be able to access its contents while your ship is in the Flow. You will not be able to teleport, go ethereal, or summon creatures from other planes.

The Flow can preserve things. If you run out of breathable air while in the Flow, you go into suspended animation, and then wake back up once you have proper air. This preservation only lasts while in the Flow. Sometimes there are ships floating around in the Flow, where all the ship's air has gone bad, and everybody on board is in suspended animation. They could be there for days or months or years or decades, and nothing would change for them. If you have to be thrown off your ship and left adrift, try to have it happen while in the Flow. You will start to suffocate as your air runs out, but it will not kill you.

The Flow has its own currents. If you know them well, or are lucky, you can arrive somewhere faster than anticipated. If you make a mistake, or are unlucky, it could take you a very long time to arrive.

5. Gravity planes

If something is large enough then it will have its own gravity. "Large enough" in fantasy space is significantly smaller than you might think. Gravity points "down", instead of "towards the centre" (unless you are dealing with a spherical planet).

The larger something is, the farther its gravity will reach. If two different large objects come close enough that their gravity fields interact, then the gravity angle of the smaller object will change to match the gravity of the larger object. This can be extremely inconvenient if the two objects are ships, you're in the smaller ship, and "down" is now "sideways" and everything has fallen all over the place. Because of this, if two ships come near each other, the smaller one will generally turn so that its "down" is pointed in the same direction as the larger ship's "down".

Gravity in fantasy space is a yes-or-no kind of thing. You are either within something's gravity field, or you are weightless.

6. Air envelopes

The larger something is, the more air it carries with it. If you go in space just with your own body, you will have enough air along to survive for a little while, but not for as long as you would probably like. If you go into space with a large object like a ship, there will be a lot more air.

The air around something is called its air envelope. The size of an air envelope is the same as the size of its area of gravity, if it has a gravity field. If you can fall, then there is air available, even if that air might have gone bad. Things that are too small to have gravity still have an air envelope, but it is smaller than the air envelope of something that is large enough to have gravity.

When you breathe, you use the air in the air envelope which you are in. If the air envelope is small, then you will run out of usable air sooner than you would like. If the air envelope is large, then it will not be a problem for a long time. A ship generally has enough air to last its crew and passengers for a couple weeks or months, depending. If there are more people in an air envelope, the air will go bad faster. If there is a fire in an air envelope, the air will go bad faster.

There are ways to keep the air fresh for longer, some of which are plants and some of which are magic. It is possible to have it so that the air never needs to be replaced, but usually something goes wrong along the way.

7. Ships that travel space

"Officially" they're called spelljammers, but I just call them "ships".

a) Helms

Space is large [citation needed]. Normal ways of getting from one place to another, even very fast ways, are impractically slow when it comes to travelling in space. There are several ways of powering a ship fast enough to make space travel feasible, but helms are by far the most common. A helm gets a ship to go fast and also gets it to go where you direct it to go (which might not always be where you want it to go, but that is why navigators are a thing).

A helm is a chair with ship-go-fast magic added to it. It can be transferred between ships, which is good because it is expensive. In order to use a helm, a spellcaster sits in that chair, and that both powers the ship, and lets the spellcaster mentally direct the ship what to do. This uses up their magical energy for the day. A spellcaster can only helm a ship if they're full up on magical energy before they start.

Helms are designed so that a ship will automatically slow down from space-travel-fast when it approaches something large enough that it would hurt if they collided. You can still run into things, but it will be at a speed where you have time to try and move somewhere else if you want.

b) Ship varieties

There are many different types of ships in space. Some of them aren't able to go space-travel-fast. These are mostly used to go short distances, like to transport stuff between big ships and places where the big ships can't land, or for space combat, when nobody can go space-travel-fast anyways. These are generally smaller ships that are more agile, but they can also be larger ships where someone didn't or couldn't put in a helm.

Many ships in space look like a cross between a water-ship and a fish or insect. This is because that is cool. There is almost always an open deck, since air won't escape the envelope, so there's no reason to close everything in.

These are a couple of different things people might want in their ship, which is why there are so many different designs:

more storage space

more agile

harder to damage

more weapons

needs fewer people to crew it

able to fit into more places

able to land on ground or water

fits someone's standards of a good-looking ship

easier to repair

costs less money

((Black lives matter, and trans rights are human rights.))

((Also posted on Pillowfort, here.))

[four-loose-screws]

FE8 Novelization Translation - Chapter 3, Section 2

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———————————

I call this a “section” because it is not a separate part of the chapter in the book, but divided from the rest of the chapter by a scene break.

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Chapter 3: The Stolen Bracelet

Eirika's army continued to stealthily march west. Once again, they were not once attacked by Grado soldiers along the way, granting them another brief moment of peace and quiet.

When they reached the end of the mountain road, they saw a large forest in front of them. From afar, the tree leaves were so thick they looked not green, but black, proving the forest’s old age.

"That is the Za’ha Forest.” Seth pointed at the trees and explained. "Once we pass through it, we will arrive in a town called Serafew. From there onwards, we will be in Grado territory… and Renvall Castle will be right before us."

"We're finally almost there. And I will be able to reunite with Brother…" Eirika said, voice full of excitement. But her words were cut short when something strange came into the edges of her field of vision.

Something was glowing and moving towards them from between the trees. She could not tell what it's true form was, but it sent a chill down her spine. "Seth, what is that? Ah, there it is again…"

As they continued closer the forest, and they were able to catch a better glimpse of that figure and another among the trees, they couldn’t believe their eyes.

The first looked like a rotting corpse. It wriggled through the trees by dragging itself along with stiff, awkward movements. The second was a giant eyeball, emanating a faint light as it floated through the air.

Both were grotesque, unnatural beings that none of them had ever seen anything like before.

Seth ordered the entire army to halt. The horses neighed uneasily, and their bodies were shaking. The soldiers also slowly began to shiver, one by one.

“What are they? They cannot be… human... but also not animal…?” Eirika asked.

"This is my first time seeing anything like this as well. It appears that powers we know nothing of are at work here in this forest…”

“Is there a road that goes around it?”

“Unfortunately, there is not. We can go back the way we came and choose another road, but that will take time.”

Eirika bit her lip. She wanted to rescue Ephraim as quickly as possible, meaning she couldn’t agree to turning back around down the mountain road. “Then we have no choice but to go straight through this forest…”

“Let’s go.” Seth ushered his horse to begin moving once again. 

But before he could even take a single step, a young man appeared. He had orange, wavy hair, and was coming towards them. Eirika recognized his clothing as that of a monk. He was still young, but looked suited to be a clergyman. 

When Seth stopped his horse, the monk called out to him in a worried tone, “Travelers, the path ahead of you through the Za’ha Forest is very dangerous. I am sure you can even see that from here. Unnatural creatures are roaming about within it, so It would be best if you turned back.”

“It is very urgent that we reach our destination quickly. Whatever it might take to do so, we must go through this forest.” Eirika answered.

The monk’s expression clouded. “Is that so… Then there is nothing else I can say. Please hurry directly south, and be careful not to become surrounded by these creatures.”

“We will.... But what is going on inside? What in the world are they…?”

“Monsters.” The young monk said with a sigh. “I apologize. I haven’t introduced myself yet. My name is Artur, and I am a monk. My monastery ordered me to purge this land of monsters. However, there are too many for me to handle all on my own…”

Eirika couldn’t believe her own ears.

She’d only ever heard about monsters in books, which explained that they existed long, long ago as the Demon King’s servants when he waged war upon the continent. However, when the Demon King was defeated, they were supposed to have vanished along with him. Was it even possible for them to appear in this age?

“Monsters are a thing of legend, aren’t they?”

“It is understandable if you do not believe it. But they are real, and wandering this forest. And they are not only here. I’ve been told that, recently, there have been sightings of them in every region of this continent.”

“What did you just say…!?” Eirika was in complete shock.

However, the unbelievable was happening. And not just as a response to the Grado Army’s sudden invasions… something much bigger and terrifying was happening across Magvel.

She wanted to ask the young monk to tell her more, but there was no time.

“Lady Eirika! A monster is coming this way!” Seth shouted.

Eirika froze. The giant eyeball monster was floating towards her.

She was already used to fighting human opponents, but she had no idea how she should fight something like this. Her entire army started to panic.

"Please leave this to me." Artur said. He turned towards the monster without hesitation.

Eirika broke out in a cold sweat. There should be no way that a young man with such a small build, without a weapon in his hands, could put up a fight against a monster...

But that which she couldn't believe happened before her very eyes.

"Leave this land, you impure beast! It is not yours to claim!" Artur said in a harsh tone that was the complete opposite of the one he'd spoken to Eirika with, then raised one of his hands.

A light so bright that it blinded Eirika formed at the tips of his fingers.

Artur swung his hand towards the monster, throwing the concentrated ball of light at it.

The light flashed, and in the moment that Eirika was blinded, the monster’s body disintegrated without a trace.

Members of the church can follow one of two paths. Some, like Moulder, are given staves with which to heal, while others learn offensive light magic. In contrast to his kind outward appearance, this young man seemed to be a wielder of the latter.

This sight filled Eirika with courage. Though these creatures may be monsters, they were not enemies that could not be damaged. They could be fought and defeated.

"All units, attack! Provide back up for Artur!" Seth yelled and dismounted his horse. Those who'd trembled at first sight of the monster returned to their usual calm.

"Go!" Ross shouted, causing Franz, Vanessa, and several others to assume a battle stance. Moulder held his staff up with one hand, preparing to immediately heal anyone who may be injured. Colm and Neimi also steeled themselves for battle, staying close together with their weapons in hand.

"There is a river to the south!" Artur called out to everyone when he saw that they were finally ready to rush into the forest. "Just beyond the river is a village. A friend of mine should be there, guarding it all by herself. Please do your best to help her!"

"Understood.” Eirika nodded. “We'll leave her to you, Vanessa!"

A pegasus knight wouldn't need to cross the bridge, and could fly over the river in a single swoop. 

Vanessa guided her pegasus to lightly take off into the sky.

The monsters continued coming as if they were bursting out of the ground. They would even cast long range surprise attacks every so often from around hidden corners.

However, Eirika’s army did not falter. Though the foul odor of the monsters made them feel sick, fortunately, these enemies were that much easier to cut down than human foes.

The central figure in the fight was of course Artur. His light magic was more effective at hitting the monsters' weak spots than swords and lances. He took no time to rest, aiming light magic spells at the oncoming monsters one after the other.

However, because his defenses were weak, Eirika and the others had to wield their swords and support him as his guard. Though they did not have any time to exchange words, they soon picked up on how to synchronize with each other’s movements. 

They defeated the monsters trying to block their path one after the other, and were able to continue south.

The bridge suspended over the river was a very small one. It looked like it might break if everyone used it to cross, so the axe unit cut down a tree to use as an impromptu bridge, and everyone decided that those who could move freely would use it.

Eirika led the group across the tree bridge and looked for the village that Vanessa had flown towards.

"Over there!"

Everyone followed Artur's directions until they were finally able to see the entrance to the village.

Vanessa’s pegasus was in a grassy patch, resting her wings. Nearby was Vanessa, talking to a girl they did not know.

'Is that the friend Artur mentioned?' Eirika approached them.

Vanessa's face showed a rare expression of bewilderment.

The woman noticed Eirika’s presence, and went on guard in an instant. 

Eirika quickly forced a smile, wondering if the woman had mistaken her for a monster.

The woman then said in a flat, calm voice, "Excuse me, but are you alive?”

"...Huh?"

"I question that because revenants have invaded this area. They even entered the village a little while ago."

"She was burning them all black just now.” Vanessa said with a disturbed look on her face.

Eirika was so amazed that she could not respond, so the woman continued speaking.

“Of course, I was able to avoid being put into any danger. Why? Because as a prodigy, the differences between living creatures and the rotting corpses of the reanimated were obvious with just one glance.”

The girl had a very odd way of speaking. Eirika now understood why Vanessa had looked so troubled.

Eirika asked in confusion, “Um… Are you… Artur’s friend…?”

“Yes, and my name is Lute. I am an unparalleled mage with superior talent, however, you have no reason to be nervous. I am not only intelligent, but also have a great personality.”

“U-Uh… um…”

"Now that two other living beings have come to me, I cannot stand idly by any longer. I shall leave this village and fight with you. Such minor monsters are as helpless as babies before my magic. Ah, I apologize, that was offensive to babies."

"...Um…"

"Please stay calm. I am a prodigy. Now let's go." Lute walked away at a brisk pace.

Eirika and Vanessa stared at each other.

"Is she really… the friend Artur mentioned?" Eirika asked.

"I think so…"

Regardless, they tried to return to the battlefield, just for a crazed scream to assail their ears.

It was Lute.

"What!? The battle's almost over already!? I didn't get a chance to shine!" She said irritatedly with her hands on her hips.

Artur rushed straight up to her. "Are you okay, Lute!?"

"Oh, hello, Artur. You should know that just by looking at me. And you are okay as well, yes?"

"I am. This group saved me."

Since the battle was over, everyone had gathered together.

They all formed a circle around Lute and Artur. 

Eirika said, "No, you're the one who saved us! Thanks to you, Artur, we were able to defeat all of the monsters. Still, I thought creatures like monsters only existed in legends…"

"Remnants, Mogals, Bonewalkers, Mauthdoogs, Gargoyles, and Baels... “ Lute rattled off the different types of monsters. Her voice actually sounded a bit excited. "The monsters that were told of in ancient texts are all being resurrected, one after the other. The world is in danger. Though I may be a prodigy, I do have a limit when I am on my own. I'd like to travel together with you, and vanquish the monsters that are reappearing across the continent. What do you think about that?"

"Take me with you as well, if you please." Artur cut in. "My order was not only to defeat the monsters roaming these woods, but across the continent. Please allow Lute and I to go with you."

"Yes, of course! I think it will be reassuring if you are with us."

They still didn't know anything about Lute, but they'd already seen Artur's true power with their own eyes. Increasing their number of allies who could wield offensive magic was a very welcome idea indeed, considering the future ahead of them.

Her army had grown once again. Eirika thought of what Seth had said about her ability to draw people to her, and it made her happy.

She still didn't know if she really had such a power, but for the journey ahead of them, it

 certainly was reassuring to gain more allies they could trust.

"Lady Eirika…" Seth called out to her in a grave voice. He seemed to want to talk to her about something. 

She broke away from the circle to stand privately with him.

"Since we arrived here, I have considered retreating back to Frelia." Seth's words came as a total shock to her.

They'd finally made it to the end of the long mountain path and through the old forest. Serafew was just ahead of them. Was turning back even an option at this point?"

Seth saw her expression and continued talking, though it clearly pained him to do so. "I know how you feel. But now, in addition to Grado soldiers, even monsters have started roaming the lands. Such a situation is too harsh for us."

Seth was not the kind of person to be scared by the sight of monsters. There was no doubt in Eirika’s mind that he’d thought a lot about this proposal.

And Eirika herself felt unsure, too. They’d managed to defeat the monsters in the forest, but they knew next to nothing about how powerful the monsters that would appear before them next time might be. They might end up in a situation where they were no match at their current strength.

The one factor that kept her heart from being fully swayed was, of course, her brother. The more difficult their battles became, the more she worried for her brother’s well-being.

If the monsters had made it to Renvall… then Ephraim would be forced to fight not only the Grado Army. In that case, no matter how strong he may be, they couldn’t be optimistic.

“...Please allow us to keep pressing onwards.” Eirika hardened her resolve and looked up at Seth. “I understand your judgement very well. But I am really worried about Brother. It may be selfish of me to put everyone in harm’s way… And the thought that I might be doing so pains me, but I…” Eirika couldn’t finish her sentence. She looked down at her feet.

Seth was silent for a moment, then said, “I understand. We will do as you say.”

“Seth...”

“I will protect you, Lady Eirika.” His words were powerful. 

Eirika was surprised. The moment the thought crossed her mind that she might be blushing, she became even more nervous. Her breathing sped up, and she looked away from him.

“Prepare yourself!”

A sudden loud voice called out that made Eirika jump.

A person flew out from among the trees. She was a young woman who looked to be about the same age as Eirika, and held a long staff in her hands.

"Evil beasts, I will not allow you to do as you please! I, L'arachel, will send you back to your world of darkness!" She waved her staff around, but stopped when all eyes fell on her. "...Huh? What happened to the monsters? Weren’t all of you being attacked by monsters? I noticed you were in trouble from atop the cliff and rushed over here, but…”

“Um, we already defeated all of them…” Eirika answered.

The girl responded by raising her staff into the air once more and yelling, “What good fortune! You were surely blessed by the gods! But it’s a shame that they didn’t last a little bit longer. I wanted to show you all a splendid performance! I knew it was a bad idea to take a detour. We should have come straight here.”

“If we’d come straight here, then we would have gone straight off the cliff!” A new voice said. When Eirika looked for the source, she noticed a man with a large, flashy cloth wrapped around his forehead, who was coming up from behind the mysterious girl.

And further behind him was a giant man with a stiff beard. “Gah ha ha, it’s too bad, innit, Lady L’Arachel?!” The giant said with a laugh that shook the air.

Eirika took a step back and asked, “Um… Who are you?”

“Me? Well, since you asked, I am of the great Theocracy of Rausten! My name is…”

“Hush, you cannot tell them, Lady L’Arachel!” The bearded giant spread out both his arms and stepped in front of her. He gestured strangely and dramatically while arguing, “You are a very special person! You cannot give away your identity in a place like this!”

“Oh, that’s right! How careless of me! Thank you for reminding me, Dozla!”

“‘Tis nothing, My Lady!”

“In times such as these, it is much sweeter to leave quickly without giving one’s name. Fare thee well, strangers! If fate wishes it, then let us meet again!”

“Let’s go, Rennac!”

The woman and the giant disappeared between the trees, their footsteps somehow both soft and loud at the same time. The young man they’d called Rennac shrugged his shoulders if to say “Good grief,” and chased after them.

There was a long pause during which no one could say anything, questioning “What just happened…?” to themselves in unison. 

The one to open her mouth and break the silence was Lute. “What weird people. My powers of observation saw right through them. They are unquestionably very weird people.”

“So are you!” Colm whispered. When their eyes met, he looked away and corrected himself. “It’s not just the monsters! Even the people in this forest are weird. There must be a poisonous gas leaking from somewhere, don’t you guys think? Everything is weird here! I can’t wait to get out! Let’s go!”

Regardless of whether or not there was poison or anything else of the sort in the forest, it would indeed be best not to stay for very long.

Eirika’s army continued further south, leaving the Za’ha Forest behind them.

[idga-buck]

use somebody || six

pairing: harry x plus-size!reader

word count: 2,700

warnings: mentions of sex, douchebaggery, and shitty attitudes toward women

summary: this thing with harry is about to take a turn as long as his friends don’t get into his head

challenge: @baezen​‘s the Other Guys Writing Challenge

gif: @sebastiansource​ (I know it’s TJ, okay? There is 9 minutes worth of Harry in Spread and not a lot of gifs to back it up, so suspend your disbelief)

Back in the Present

“Marissa’s pissed at me, so-“

“Maritza,” Harry corrected mindlessly and Nikki waved him off.

“Whatever… I’ll be over,” he looked around the open aired dance floor for a few seconds before selecting a hiding space, giant smirk on his face. “there.” Harry didn’t bother looking. “Don’t let them get too close.”

“Sure, man, just-“ Harry didn’t have to finish his sarcastic drone before the last of his friends had disappeared between writhing bodies. He was avoiding a woman he exploited and Harry had no moral obligations to help Nikki stay invisible so he could keep playing his dangerous game. Finding wealthy women and using them for sex and a comfortable place to stay as long as the sex was still good. It wasn’t the most honorable living, but the guy hadn’t fallen into the six figure modeling contract he expected when he stepped off the bus from Kansas. “Sorry, Dorothy,” Harry scoffed.

“Dorothy…” your voice had Harry scrambling to find you behind him, relieved to see your face and to see you in a good mood. “How many girls you got on the hook, Harry?” You were teasing him and he would welcome that on any holy or unholy day.

“Just enough,” he responded, taking hold of your arm and shuffling himself closer to you rather than pulling you towards him.

“I’ll bet,” you laughed and he felt the overwhelming urge to kiss you right then. He probably would have too, if Marcus with his beautiful dark skin and his velvety voice hadn’t slid in just to disrupt him. He started to introduce himself, but Harry jumped in, speaking over his friend and reclaiming the power position as he made short and meaningless introductions for you. You smiled, but took a step toward Harry and it didn’t go unnoticed by either man. Harry tossed his arm around your shoulders proudly, more than pleased with the impressed smirk on Marcus’ perfect face.

Another voice jumped into the fray, pulling your attention, as your friend Maritza came barreling through the crowd, visibly upset. She’d just seen Nikki’s ass hanging out over his jeans while pinning someone new to the side of a jacuzzi tub and was making no efforts to hide his sluttiness from the strangers around her. You shrugged and let her pull you away from the men, sympathizing as best you could, but Harry could tell you were as annoyed by the situation as he was. Like middle school, but worse. Horny Patron soaked middle schoolers.

“So,” Marcus crossed arms and nodded to where you’d disappeared, knowing smile on his face. You don’t know anything. 

“Shut up,” Harry grumbled without letting his friend speak and turned away to find the bar, unfortunately finding Nikki in the process.

“Hey, have you seen-“

“Yeah,” Marcus laughed. “And she’s pissed.”

“She’s always pissed at stupid shit,” Nikki insisted while stripping off his sweater in the middle of the party to flip it right side out again. In true Nikki fashion, he took his time doing so, pausing to wink at a couple girls caught ogling him. Classy. 

“Because that’s what you do,” Harry pointed out. “Stupid shit. I mean, this is a new record. Kicked out in a week?”

“Three,” Nikki corrected, making Marcus laugh and clap him on the back of the head.

“So who’s next, Don Juan, got yourself another pretty woman in need of her own Julia Roberts?” Marcus probed, wiggling his eyebrows while he surveyed the party scene as if looking for clues.

“I thought Julia Roberts was Pretty Woman,” Nikki tried to defend himself.

“Yeah,” Harry piped up, “but you’re the whore.” Nikki’s very fake laugh was aggressive, but not as loud as Marcus’ real one. Soon their attention was turned to Harry, whose sudden silence was easily noted.

You’d emerged from whatever corner Maritza had you in and without your friend in distress, Harry was ready to get back to you.

“Harry’s the one with a mark,” Nikki teased, clicking his tongue against the inside of his teeth and Harry wanted to punch him for it. “Hear she’s got expensive taste though.”

“It’s not like that,” Harry insisted.

“It should be,” Nikki’s hand on his shoulder, stopping him as he tried to leave. “I wouldn’t roll around with all that, but-“

“Hey, now!” Marcus was quick to smack Nikki at the base of his skull.

“Shut up,” Harry snapped, but even Marcus came to your defense and he was pleased. Not all the guys he hung out with were terrible. It made him feel less terrible too.

“I’m serious man,” Nikki urged again, rubbing the back of his head and ignoring everything else. “She could buy out Marissa-“ there was no point in correcting him again. “Like that,” Nikki snapped his fingers and laid his hand on Harry’s chest, like they were having a heart to heart. “Play your cards right,” Harry shook his head no. “Think about it. Quit the job you hate, get a nicer place, import another Bolivian tree frog or whatever you’re into-” What an ass. Harry threw his arms up to shove Nikki away, but the wannabe model persisted. “Seal the deal, man, girls like that…” he shook his head and Harry frowned at it. “She’d be lucky to have a face like this wanting her,” Harry pulled away but Nikki was quicker, shooting up a hand to cup his jaw and squeeze his cheeks.

“I’m out of here.” He pushed past his friends, ignoring the continued encouragement and annoying conversation as he slipped through the crowd. He knew where to find something better. And a much better ending to his night if everything went well. He wanted to talk to you again, hang out again. He definitely wanted to kiss you again. More if you’d allow it.

You looked happy to see him and after three random encounters that always left his chest feeling heavy and his pants feeling betrayed, it was really all he could ask for. After informing him that his friend was a tool, to which Harry emphatically agreed, you two lingered on the topic of their short lived relationship. He’d seen you at her place a couple times over the course of Nikki’s scam and despite the messy ending, he was thankful to have had those chances to get even closer to you.

Once you were stretched out on the couch, making yourself at home, when the couple in question got into a fight that led them into another room for some screaming followed by loud make up sex. Harry stumbled upon the scene accidentally, but was driven directly into your side without hesitating. You laid next to each other on the ridiculously deep modular sectional, heads meeting in the corner of the L shape with your legs tossed out perpendicular to each other. He mimicked an awkward grunting noise that made you laugh and you responded with an exaggerated sigh that was pornographic on all counts, he had the semi to prove it. Not wanting to act on it in the middle of a stranger’s giant sunken living room, Harry laughed it off. Soon both of you were moaning loudly and obnoxiously in the hopes of embarrassing your friends into finishing quickly, but it didn’t work. Your stomachs ached, full with laughter, and soon enough, you -inspired by elation and the gentle warmth of amusement- had rolled over to kiss Harry right there. Without pausing to question the gift, he grabbed at the back of your neck and tried to maneuver his body under yours, but slid off the sofa as a result of his wiggling. You giggled at him and stayed on the cushions above him, while he stayed seated on the floor, leaning back into the corner of the sectional to kiss you again. It was slower and more focused than before and soon both of you were lost in it. By the time Nikki and Maritza emerged from whatever sex closet they’d just destroyed, your hand was under his zipper, rubbing him gently over his boxers. Harry had murder in his eyes when you jumped back, pulling away your wet lips and soft hand at the sound of their vengeful moaning- returning the favor for their friends at the worst possible moment.

The next was a dinner, small and remarkably classy for a shit like Nikki to pull off. Over cheese plates and fruit bowls and wine he’d probably never get again, Harry got to know the people in your circle better. They all smelled like money and he smelled like the CK One his grandmother sent him two Christmases ago. It was cheap next to them, but again your presence pulled him out of the sense that he didn’t belong. Your dry humor and willingness to call someone out for being ridiculous was the best part of the night. At least until he found you just outside the bathroom and pushed you back in for a moment alone. He kissed you hard and eager and your fingers curled around the embroidery on the front of his best shirt. You stayed like that, hushing each other as he pushed your dress up over your thick thighs until someone knocked and Harry’s fingers froze between your legs. In a moment of teasing bravery, he pushed hard against you, hoping his fingers would land in the vicinity of something good. Mid sentence, asking whoever it was for a few more minutes, you gasped and dug your nails into the back of his neck. Found it. The interruption left, but the moment was quickly closing in around him. Are we doing this? He’d asked hopefully. Not here. You were pulled out of dinner early by a phone call and Harry kicked his tires when he finally left, the night taking a swift nosedive after you were gone.

Harry would have liked to revisit that moment or any of the ones before it. Talk about going somewhere private so as not to be interrupted like usual. But you were too annoyed at your friends’ naivety and he let you vent. It sounded like you’d seen it happen to more than one of your friends and he was just thankful they weren’t all with Nikki. He was sure it would kill his chances, just by association. A cute guy with nothing, but his smile, charms his way into a big open floor plan and a cozy bed. After a couple months of endless sex and pricey accommodations, feeling like the real California king and not having to worry for anything, he’d find some extracurricular activities and engage until he was caught. Your friends were the ones left to foot the bill, emotionally and physically. You calmed yourself down quickly and apologized for shitting on his friend. Harry said it was fine and he meant it. 

He liked you. It was simple enough. He liked talking to you, liked imagining what it would be like to get you naked again. You made him laugh and made him nervous in ways he didn’t expect. He’d really liked kissing you and while admittedly not great at reading women, he’d bet you liked kissing him too. It was sort of a risky move, but he didn’t have any others so when you didn’t turn down the friendly hug he went in for, he swallowed the minuscule amount of pride he had left. Go for broke.

“Is your house ready?”

“Ready for what?” You laughed, pulling out of the hug, but keeping on hand on his ribs. If it was an attempt to keep him at arm's length, it backfired. He loved the feeling of you touching him so freely. You looked surprised that he recalling all the work being done and he hoped it sounded sincere, not creepy.

Harry recited what he remembered. Taking you back to a hotel, not your house. Then later, the first time you reconnected post awkward morning jilting, Harry had taken you back to a friend’s place. He also learned it was because a pipe burst in your master bathroom. After fighting and winning a drawn out claim with your insurance company, you’d been staying with Sherrie while you waited for fresh plumbing and new hardwood floors. When the damage had professionals tearing into your walls anyways, you jumped at the opportunity for a fresh layout and knocked down the wall between your kitchen and the rest of the house. That old college friend, Darius, offered up his kitchen as inspiration for the redesign and that was how Harry found you again. Over an expensive meal, he realized exactly how picky you were when it came to kitchens and he listened intently to everything wrong with your friend’s. Too commercial. Too impersonal. The soul of the home shouldn’t look like that. Harry offered the only plausible conclusion. Your friend Darius was a vampire, soulless and in need of many easy to clean surfaces. For the blood, of course. You’d been frozen in the warm candlelight and the seconds you took to process his joke felt like hours, but when you finally broke out into a laugh, a big one, Harry felt like he’d won a gold medal.

You were still listening to him go on with details from your own life, but he was running out. At least you weren’t running away.

“You remember all that?” You asked and Harry nodded, more than a little proud of himself.

“I listen,” he shrugged like it was nothing, but it wasn’t nothing. He had selective hearing, especially when it came to women. A habit he’d resigned himself to never breaking and always having to play catch up in a conversation. That’s how they ended up in arguments and how he was left looking dumb, nothing to say to someone who -to his knowledge- hadn’t said anything that required memorization. But he was really trying with you. Maybe the sting of a recent break up and her cruel words about his cavalier attitude had spurred him on. Being compared to his buddy, Nikki, was the nail in the coffin. He was trying to do better, be better. You were the first person to test his new efforts on and as he shamelessly glanced down to your chest, he didn’t mind the position he was in. “You’re easy to listen to,” he added and it felt more like the truth. You had a natural way about you and it made him feel like you were close friends after only just meeting. He felt it at Taix too, where it should have been awkward and stilted platitudes, stale get to know you questions. It wasn’t like that. He didn’t even know what you did for work, but he knew it had to be good money and that he’d call you if he ever got into a fight with his landlord. You seemed able to pull the best out of people without backing down or letting them walk all over you. It was hot. And sweet. Just like you.

The party was still ongoing and somewhere in the back of his mind, Harry registered that Garrett’s accent had slipped from some heavy northern english brogue into something offensively resembling Jamaican. He wasn’t bothered at his friend’s proximity and had no desire to look for them. Not when your hand was still on his ribs, absentmindedly thumbing the space just below his nipple. Your touch was both grounding and incredibly distracting. It took a lot of effort not to sound too eager when he asked to see the changes in your home. He had no idea what it looked like before, but he was very invested in this renovation project and was dying to see the results. He’d even ask for a tour of the whole place… stay too late, maybe pour a drink like he’d been there a hundred times just to make you laugh at him again. You were visibly thinking, milling the idea around while his hands slipped to your shoulders, thumbs resting against your collarbone.

He took his time leaning in, but when your fingers dipped under the waist of his jeans to pull him in closer he lost all restraint. Kissing you was way too good and if you said no now, Harry thought he might die. It’d been years since a girls lips got to him like this. The first wasn’t enough. Not he was being driven mad by all the build up, the accidental run ins, the inside jokes. He felt like a teenager again content to make out until his lips turned blue, terrified of what came next and whether or not he would be any good at it. You’d pulled away again and looked up with him, some unreadable glance that had him on pins and needles awaiting the final blow.

“Wanna get out of here?” you smiled suggestively.

And that gold medal feeling was back.

[legendofzeldaalinktothepast]

Opalescent Tides - Chapter 8

Previous Chapter // Next Chapter 

(tw for drowning in the beginning) 

Pale fog surrounded Pearl. Her ears were clogged, her body suspended and light; she held her breath for an unknown reason, but feared what'd happen if she found out why. The fog thickened until she was surrounded in nothing but solid white. Pearl’s body trembled. Before she knew it, she could no longer hold her breath. She gasped for air and salty water filled her lungs.

Pearl clutched her chest and cried out in pain, but the water muffled her voice. With each passing second, Pearl’s consciousness slipped away until everything went dark.

Pearl bolted upright with a gasp. Her body clammy and drenched in sweat, it took her a moment to process where she was. She gripped the bed sheets tight, grounding herself as she steadied her breath, slowly returning to reality and assuring herself that, yes, she was in her room, and could breathe.

Once her breath was back to a steady pace, she flopped down onto the pillows and glanced at the clock on her dresser. 6:32. She had a couple hours until she actually needed to get up. Normally Pearl would take advantage of that… but the sweat covering her body made her feel sticky and disgusting, and the sickness from her nightmare lingered in her stomach, so she reluctantly pulled herself out of bed.

Pearl made her way across the hall, making sure to tread carefully in case Garnet was still asleep; but she heard footsteps in the kitchen and relaxed, continuing at her usual gait until she reached the bathroom.

As Pearl brushed her teeth, she refused to look at her reflection in the mirror. She knew she'd have those hideous bags under her eyes. It'd taken hours to fall asleep that night; at most, she'd gotten four hours of proper rest. Even without her sleep deprivation, she never found herself a beautiful sight to look at; with her nose too big for her face, a body so formless and flat chested she looked like a brick, it only soured her mood. Only once she’d finished brushing and rinsed her mouth did she look at the mirror, and even then, she merely glanced long enough to smooth out her hair.

Pearl grabbed a little silver box on the edge of the sink. Removing the lid, she retrieved a small, brown ring and slipped it onto her thumb. She stroked the smooth material with her index finger; Garnet had once told her it was made of solid tumbled sardonyx.

It had been a birthday gift from many years back, when Pearl was still recovering from her amnesia... Ever since then, a day hadn't passed where Pearl didn't wear the ring. The thought of forgetting Garnet again made Pearl sick to her stomach; but as long as that ring was on her thumb, she felt safe.

Pearl made her way back down the hallway. She could smell coffee brewing in the kitchen; as someone who preferred tea, she was never a fan of it, but the scent always made her feel right at home. Her mood immediately brightened just a touch as she spotted Garnet at the counter.

"Morning." Garnet said. Pearl opened the fridge and looked to see what she had to work with: not much, but they did have some fresh blueberries that Rose had given them the other day.

"Good morning." Pearl finally responded. "Do you want me to make pancakes?" The thought of food made her stomach turn… Normally she was bright and ready to eat breakfast upon waking up, but after that little nightmare -- even if it had mostly faded from her memory, and she could only remember the strange sense of anxiety that accompanied it -- food was the last thing she wanted. Still, Garnet was never good in the kitchen, and Pearl knew she’d probably enjoy a change from her usual routine of jam and toast.

"Always." Garnet said with a wink. She lifted herself up onto the counter and crossed her legs, taking a sip of her coffee. "I can't believe it's already Saturday. This week went by pretty quickly.”

"I think so, too." Pearl lied; in all honesty, this week had felt more like a month. She searched the fridge for pancake ingredients; blueberries, eggs, butter... 'I hope we have enough flour.' she thought, closing the fridge and heading over to the cabinet.

"Do you have any plans for tonight?" Garnet asked, setting her mug aside. "I want to go to the mall. Our sales have been decent this week, and I'd like to splurge on something nice..."

Pearl bit her lip. Throughout the week, she'd debated telling Garnet about her plans to meet with Amethyst... But every time she tried, a mixture of shame and guilt welled up in her chest. After how much Garnet had comforted Pearl these past few weeks, she’d started to worry she was asking a little too much. Besides, she had no way to even explain the situation without it sounding sketchy and incredibly vague -- which it absolutely was.

"I was planning to visit Amethyst, actually." Pearl responded as she stirred the pancake ingredients together. "But I won't be offended if you go to the mall without me. Maybe you could invite Bismuth?”

"That’s true… Or maybe all four of us could hang out together. I think Amethyst and Bismuth would get along pretty well." Garnet suggested.

"Hm, I think I'd prefer if it was just the two of us tonight." Pearl said, turning on the stove and greasing a frying pan with some butter.

"Ah, I understand." Garnet smiled knowingly, and Pearl’s cheeks flushed. Still, Garnet’s assumption was less embarrassing than the reality of the situation, so she let it be.

"D-do you want two or three pancakes?" Pearl hoped to change the subject.

"Just two." Garnet said. Once she'd finished her coffee, she slipped down from the counter and made her way into the living room. Garnet retrieved her comb and a couple of neon scrunchies, and stood in front of the body length mirror as she parted her hair into two sections.

Pearl poured a ladle of pancake mix onto the sizzling pan. With a spatula in hand, she leaned against the counter and watched as Garnet styled her hair in two puffy little pigtails. Pearl smiled; she always found it charming when she did cutesy hair styles like that. She normally kept her hair in a ponytail for convenience, but every now and then she'd do pigtails or braids, and would always decorate it with colorful hair clips, scrunchies, or bows.

Pearl remembered the pancake and quickly flipped it; thankfully, it was the perfect golden brown color she always aimed for. The more time that passed, the more the residue of her nightmare began to fade. By then, she’d almost forgotten about it altogether. 'Maybe I'll have some pancakes after all...'

* 

The sun descended over the ocean; as she waited, Pearl periodically checked the leather watch on her wrist. It was a few minutes past seven already. The more time her mind had to wander, the more her anxiety bubbled up in her chest, and she began to regret not bringing Garnet along.

"Hey, girly-girl!" a familiar voice called, snapping Pearl away from her thoughts.

"Good evening!" Pearl responded, tucking her hair behind her ears.

"Where's Garnet?" Amethyst asked, shoving her hands into her skirt pockets.

"I decided not to bring her along..." Pearl fidgeted with the collar of her shirt. "She's had a lot on her plate lately, and she wanted to spend tonight with one of her friends, anyway."

Amethyst smiled in a way that made Pearl's heart flutter. "That's fine with me. Do you wanna go for a swim?"

Pearl glanced down at her purse. “Oh, uh, I hadn't considered that! I didn't bring a swimsuit or a towel, so..."

’Oh, right.’ Amethyst thought. She’d forgotten humans had special clothing intended specifically for swimming. Why exactly they were so particular about these things, she failed to understand. "No biggie. I was just gonna go for a quick dip. But I won't swim too far or anything.”

"That's fine with me." Pearl relaxed her shoulders. "Perhaps I’ll dip my feet in, though…”

“Nice!" Amethyst said. And with that, she waded into the shallow water, clothes and all.

Pearl gave her a puzzled expression. "You're swimming in your clothes?"

Amethyst snorted. "You want me to take them off?"

Pearl cupped her hands over her mouth. "No! Goodness no, I just -- don't normally see people swim in their clothes, that's all. But there's nothing wrong with it, I suppose... it's just... a bit strange?"

"Alrighty then. I'm fine with being strange." Amethyst smirked, continuing into the water until the surface reached her chin. She let out a sigh of content; maybe her transformation would be a little less painful this time around, now that she was surrounded by plenty of chlorine-free water.

“So…” Pearl removed her shoes and stepped into the water. It was quite warm, and far more pleasant than she’d expected. Rolling her jeans up as high as they could go, she stepped forward until the tides just barely grazed her knees. “There was something you wanted to talk to me about?”

Amethyst’s expression softened. “Yeah…” she said, scratching the back of her head. Amethyst glanced up at the dimming sky before she continued. “So… You remember what you told me about the other day? How you lost your memory a few years ago, and how last month, you saw something that wasn’t real?”

Pearl swallowed a lump in her throat. “I do.” she responded after a moment of hesitation.

“Well…” Amethyst paused for a moment, as if trying to figure out her own words. Pearl’s anxiety rose with each passing second.

"You... you aren’t the only one." Amethyst began. "I also lost my memory. Something happened around a month ago, and I can’t remember anything before then. Not who I am, or where I come from, or why I’m here… Just my name.” Amethyst said. Pearl’s eyes widened.

“But that’s not the important thing…” she continued. “What I really wanted to say is… What you saw last month was real. It wasn’t in your head.”

Pearl’s expression fell. “What on earth are you talking about?”

Amethyst glanced up at the sky once more. ’Why does she keep doing that…?’ Pearl wondered. It almost seemed as if she was waiting for something... She looked up, too, and spotted the full moon hanging in the golden summer sky.

“Fuck -- !” Amethyst yelped out, causing Pearl to jump. Before she could ask if she was alright, Amethyst fell backwards into the water with a splash.

“Amethyst?” she called. No response. ’Oh no…’ Her heart pounded. She’d never been confident in her swimming abilities -- so for a moment, all she could do was pray that Amethyst would return to the surface… But the longer she waited, the more certain it seemed that something wasn’t right.

“Amethyst!” Pearl called out again. Fearing what’d happen if she waited any longer, she plunged herself into the water.

It didn’t take long for Pearl to spot that head of lavender hair. Swimming closer, Pearl gripped her by the shoulders and tugged her upright and towards the surface. Once Amethyst’s head was above the water, she took in a gasp of air.

“Are you alright?” Pearl urged, cupping Amethyst’s cheeks. “What happened?”

“Sorry ‘bout that.” Amethyst said, brushing a strand of seaweed away from her forehead. “It caught me by surprise, and once I went under, the water felt so nice that I didn’t wanna come back up, heh…” Amethyst blushed, glancing aside. “Didn't mean to scare ya."

“What caught you by surprise?” Pearl urged. “Did you step on...” Pearl trailed off as she caught a glimpse of Amethyst’s hands, and her heart nearly stopped in her chest. Her fingers were webbed together, her nails resembling something more like talons; and as she cast her gaze downward, she spotted a very familiar, very beautiful, shimmering and opalescent tail.

Amethyst wasn’t sure what to make of Pearl’s expression; her skin turned pale, her eyes were wide, and her mouth was slightly ajar. Pearl looked at her hand and fidgeted with the brown ring on her thumb before turning her gaze back towards Amethyst.

“It’s happening again, isn’t it?” she whispered.

Amethyst’s heart dropped down to her stomach. “No - no no no no no, it’s not! I mean, it is, but it isn’t what you think.” Amethyst cupped Pearl’s cheeks, but the latter immediately jerked away from her. Amethyst clasped a hand over her mouth as she saw a slight claw mark on Pearl’s face. “I’m sorry…” she whimpered.

“T-this is some sort of joke, isn’t it?” Pearl backed away, balling her fists at her sides. “I-I’m not sure how you did it, but--”

“It’s not a joke! I swear on my life, Pearl!” Amethyst insisted, tugging on her hair. “I don’t know why I’m like this… I don’t remember anything. I don’t even remember what I used to be. All I know is that… I lost my memory like you did. So I thought… Maybe…” Tears welled up in Amethyst’s eyes. “I thought maybe you were… I thought you were a mermaid, too, okay?" Her voice cracked, and she buried her face into her hands. "I know that's stupid of me. A-and I think I knew deep down that you'd react like this... I really just wanted it to be true. So this is my fault."

Pearl’s expression softened. Her fear, and a small hint of anger, still lingered in her chest… Yet at the same time, seeing Amethyst like this broke her heart. Extending a hand, she cautiously approached her and grasped her shoulder. Her soft skin now had a slick, scaly texture. She fidgeted with the ring on her finger for a moment, taking in a long, deep breath.

“Well… I can tell you for certain that I’m not a mermaid.” Pearl began. “But… Perhaps there’s more to my story than I’d initially considered.” She sighed again. “You don't have to be sorry about this, though... I'm just more confused than ever, and a little shaken up, but... I think I'll survive."

Amethyst didn't respond. She feared that if she spoke, she'd be unable to hold back her tears anymore. Pearl seemed to pick up on this; she reached for Amethyst’s hands and gave them a squeeze, running her fingers across those sharp talons and webbed skin. It simultaneously intrigued and disturbed her. But the more she looked at Amethyst’s shimmering tail, the more her fear dissolved away. Pearl turned her gaze up to meet Amethyst’s eyes; only now did that alien look in them begin to make sense. Her heart racing, she suddenly pulled Amethyst into a tight embrace.

At first, Amethyst tensed; but then she allowed herself to close her eyes and melt into the display of affection.

“It's going to be alright.” Pearl whispered. “I promise, your secret will be safe with me.”

Another silence fell between the two. They simply held each other tight, listening to the lapping of waves and chirping of crickets.

“This is gonna sound stupid…” Amethyst finally spoke up. “But like… are you sure you’re not a mermaid?”

Pearl giggled against Amethyst’s hair. “I have no reason to believe that. I mean, I clearly have two legs now, don’t I?”

“Yeah, but…” Amethyst began, but decided against it. She wasn’t sure how to explain a lack of monthly transformation without bringing up Rose… “I guess I'm still holding on to that stupid idea that it might be true... I still don’t know what the hell’s going on, you know? I don’t know why I became a human… I don’t even know why I’m here.”

“At least you’re not the only one.” Pearl said, squeezing Amethyst even tighter. “Sometimes, I feel the same way. Even if it’s for a slightly less… mythical reason.”

Amethyst chuckled. “Yeah, guess so.”

“But now I can’t help but wonder…” Pearl pulled away from the hug and looked Amethyst in the eyes. “Rose knows about your secret, doesn’t she? Do you think you can trust her with it…?”

Amethyst blushed. “Oh, yeah, totally, pfft.” Amethyst waved a hand dismissively. Just talking about Rose right now was making her feel guilty. “Like, she was kinda freaked out when she found me, and I had a lot of explaining to do, but uh, she’s doing a good job keeping my secret. Greg and Steven, too. I actually kinda snuck out tonight. She didn’t want me getting myself in danger, but… I wanted to keep my promise to you.”

Pearl chuckled softly. “You know you could have just told me about this, right? You didn’t have to put yourself in so much danger… I might have believed you if you told me the truth in a convincing way.”

“I’ll keep that in mind next time.” Amethyst stuck her tongue out.

Pearl rolled her eyes. “Anyway.” she continued with a sigh, gesturing to her wet clothes. “I would like to head home before I develop hypothermia. Would you like me to take you back to Rose’s house?”

In all honesty, the thought of facing Rose right now made Amethyst’s stomach turn. “No, I uh, might spend the night here. Rose is gonna be pissed that I snuck out, and I’m not ready to deal with that.”

“Nonsense. I won’t let you stay out here where you could be seen!” Pearl shook her head. “If you don’t want to see Rose tonight, I could take you back to my apartment. Garnet is out for the night, so it’ll just be the two of us.”

Amethyst blushed. “Aw, geez… You sure? I don’t want you to worry about me.”

“I’ll worry far more if you stay out here overnight.” Pearl said. “I insist. Should I carry you to my car? Or are you able to… Grow your legs back?”

Amethyst snorted. “Man, if only. You gotta carry me if you really wanna take me home with you.”

“That’s alright.” Pearl said. And just like that, she scooped Amethyst up into her arms. With a grunt, she carried her out of the water and onto the beach, making her way through the woods and into the clearing where her car was parked.

As skinny as Pearl was, Amethyst had honestly expected her to struggle carrying a heavier woman like herself… Of course, the slight strain on Pearl’s face didn’t make it look easy, either, but they made it all the way to the car without stopping once.

She placed Amethyst in the front seat, adjusting her scaly fin so that it lay comfortably on the ground -- pausing for a moment to admire the way it shimmered in the moonlight -- and then buckled her seatbelt for her.

“Damn, you’re stronger than you look.” Amethyst remarked.

“I do a lot of lifting at my job.” Pearl winked. “I’ve lifted antiques far heavier than you.”

“I can tell.” Amethyst blushed a little.

Pearl shut the door and walked around to the other side of the car; after climbing into the driver’s seat, she shoved the key into the ignition and started it up. They made their way out of the woods and back to the road.

As Pearl drove, Amethyst noticed a little door in front of her. “What’s this?” she asked.

“Oh, that’s the glove compartment.” Pearl said.

Amethyst tugged it open and saw that it was filled to the brim with papers, tiny bottles of various liquids, and dozens of stray bandages… but not gloves. ’Weird.’

After she grew bored of her newest discovery, she closed it back up. Her attention shifted over to the little cardboard shape hanging from the mirror; it had a strong, floral scent, and was shaped like a cat’s head.

“Oh, do you like my air freshener?” Pearl said. “Garnet found it at Hot Topic last week. She really loves Hello Kitty.”

Amethyst only understood a fraction of that sentence. “Yeah, I like it. It smells pretty nice.” she said, leaning back against the seat again. That uncomfortable, slightly painful sense of thirst began to tingle at her throat… Hopefully the ride wouldn’t be too long. If she didn’t get herself in some water soon, she feared it’d be just as painful as her first transformation.

Soon enough, they reached the thrift store-apartment, and Pearl pulled into the parking lot. “Alright…” Pearl glanced outside to make sure nobody was nearby before she took her keys out. “It doesn’t look like too many people are out right now, so we can probably make it inside without getting caught…”

“Worst case scenario, we tell them I got stuck in a costume.” Amethyst snorted.

Pearl gave a huff of amusement. “True, but I’d rather avoid confrontation altogether. I’m a terrible liar.”

She slipped out of the driver’s side, hurrying over to Amethyst’s side and lifting her out of the passenger seat. She nudged the door shut with her hip, making her way across the parking lot as quickly as she could -- which wasn’t very quick, at least while carrying Amethyst -- and fumbled with the key in the door for a moment before it clicked.

“Thank goodness…” Pearl whispered. She pushed the door open and hurried inside, locking it behind them once they were both safe.

“Alright...” Pearl let out a sigh of relief, setting Amethyst down on the floor so she could catch her breath. “I don’t think anyone saw us.”

“I hope not.” Amethyst rubbed her neck as she felt a twinge of pain in her gills. She really needed to get some water soon. “So uh, not to rush you or anything, but where’s the bathtub?”

“Upstairs, unfortunately.” Pearl said.

“You don’t have to carry me anymore. I know you’re strong, but still.” Amethyst smiled reassuringly. “I can drag myself up while you get the water started, ‘kay?”

“Are you sure?” Pearl said.

“Positive. It’ll be faster than making you carry me up the stairs.”

“Well… Just call for me if you change your mind.” Pearl headed straight for the bathroom. Bracing herself, Amethyst gripped the edge of the stairs and began to heave herself up, step-by-step. It was, admittedly, more difficult than she’d thought it’d be… But soon enough she had reached the top, and could hear the distant sound of running water. Gritting her teeth, she made her way down the hallway and towards the bathroom. Once she was there, she lifted herself straight into the bathtub and flopped right in.

“Is the water warm enough?” Pearl asked.

“It’s perfect.” Amethyst slouched down as much as she could, and let the water run against the gills on her neck. The faucet had only been running for a minute or two, so she had to shift around to get her body completely damp. And like magic, the aches in her body began to fade. “Ahh… Thanks so much, girlie.”

“Of course.” Pearl said with a smile. “Is there anything else you need? Anything to eat or drink?”

“Nah, this tub of water is all I needed.” Amethyst groaned happily, flapping her tail against the side of the tub.

“Alright, alright…” Pearl sat down on the floor, tucking her legs beneath herself. She let out a long, deep sigh of relief, letting her head fall back against the grey tiled wall. “What a long day…”

“Yeah, tell me about it.” Amethyst said, resting her elbows on the side of the tub.

The two of them sat together in silence, listening to the sound of the running water. Amethyst noticed Pearl chewing her nails down to the nub. It was something she’d often caught Greg doing when he was nervous… Another weird human habit. Hoping to calm her down, she rested a hand on her shoulder -- making sure to keep her claws retracted.

Pearl glanced back at her. “Hm?”

“It’s all gonna be okay, girlie.” Amethyst whispered. “I promise. I’m gonna go back to being human tomorrow, so you’ll only have to deal with this for one night… And even then, we’re gonna try and find out more about… Whatever’s going on.”

Pearl smiled warmly. “Thank you, Amethyst…” She reached for one of her hands and gave it a gentle squeeze. “I know I seemed pretty shaken up earlier, but… I truly am glad I--”

Pearl tensed mid-sentence as she heard footsteps down the hallway. “Shit…” she whispered, rising to her feet. “I think Garnet’s home.”

“You home, Pearlie?” an unfamiliar voice called.

“...And Bismuth’s with her.” A blush spread across Pearl’s cheeks.

“Oh, shit.” Amethyst slouched down in the tub until the water reached her nose.

“Here, just -- ” Pearl grabbed the shower curtain and pulled it shut. “There. If anyone comes in, keep this closed and don’t make a sound.”

“You sure that’ll work?” Amethyst raised an eyebrow.

“Of course not.” Pearl huffed. “But what else can we do?”

“Good point.” Amethyst mumbled.

“Regardless, I’m going to say hi to Garnet and our guest. Hopefully neither of them need to use the bathroom…” Pearl wrung her hands nervously. She glanced back at Amethyst one last time before heading out and pulling the door shut.

[mediaeval-muse]

Book Review

The Night Circus. By Erin Morgenstern. New York: Doubleday, 2011.

Rating: 4/5 stars

Genre: fantasy

Part of a Series? No

Summary:  The circus arrives without warning. No announcements precede it. It is simply there, when yesterday it was not. Within the black-and-white striped canvas tents is an utterly unique experience full of breathtaking amazements. It is called Le Cirque des Rêves, and it is only open at night. But behind the scenes, a fierce competition is underway—a duel between two young magicians, Celia and Marco, who have been trained since childhood expressly for this purpose by their mercurial instructors. Unbeknownst to them, this is a game in which only one can be left standing, and the circus is but the stage for a remarkable battle of imagination and will. Despite themselves, however, Celia and Marco tumble headfirst into love—a deep, magical love that makes the lights flicker and the room grow warm whenever they so much as brush hands. True love or not, the game must play out, and the fates of everyone involved, from the cast of extraordinary circus performers to the patrons, hang in the balance, suspended as precariously as the daring acrobats overhead.

***Full review under the cut.***

Overview: If a book is fairly popular, it’s more likely than not that I’ll end up reading it years after the hype dies down, and this is precisely what happened with The Night Circus. I’ve had a copy on my shelves for years, but I decided to finally pick it up after making my way through a string of non-fiction books. I really enjoyed the atmosphere Morgenstern creates, especially the dreamlike quality that her prose evokes. But while most of the fairy tale elements worked for me, I do wish she had dome more by way of characterization for the two main protagonists and plot. Even so, this book was memorable, and so it earns a 4 star rating from me.

Writing: Morgenstern’s prose has a dreamlike quality to it. The entire novel is written in the present tense, which I usually dislike, but in this case, it felt appropriate; present tense, for me, tends to keep the story at arm’s length, but for something like The Night Circus, that uncanny distance actually enhances the feeling that the circus is not quite real or that it has secrets that we, the readers, are not privy to. In other words, the present tense lends an air of mystery that worked in this story *because* so much of the circus revolved around dazzling, mystifying and tricking patrons into thinking magic isn’t real.

That being said, I do think the periodic interruptions in which Morgenstern describes the experience of the reader going to the circus felt jarring. Every so often, Morgenstern has a section narrated in second person, with phrases like “you make your way to the tent” attempting to immerse the reader in the atmosphere. While these sections were wonderfully written and evoked the senses in pleasing ways, I ultimately felt that they distracted rather than complimented the story.

However, I really did adore Mogenstern’s creativity and imagination. I loved the attractions she envisioned for the circus, as well as its black and white color scheme. Instead of feeling gothic or threatening, the circus felt rather elegant and inviting while still maintaining and air of mystery. In this way, I think Morgenstern struck a nice balance between alluring and unsettling, one that doesn’t drive people away but ignites their curiosity.

Plot: From the summary of the book, it seems as though the majority of the plot will revolve around a “fierce competition” between star-crossed lovers, and while that narrative was present, it often faded into the background for me. The “competition” never seemed to pose a threat or create suspense - there was not really a strong back-and-forth pattern of one-upmanship that challenged the characters to push themselves and their abilities. Instead, the details of the challenge are rather foggy, so even the competitors don’t know the rules or the consequences, and they don’t seem to feel constrained or imprisoned by the competition in any way. I think this could have worked better for me if the whole challenge started competitive but then became forgotten in favor of the two romantic leads outdoing themselves for the sake of making one another happy, and while there was some of that, it didn’t feel like it was much of a guiding thread throughout the book.

I did think that the plot about Bailey and the red headed twins was better constructed, even if some readers found it uninteresting. Even though it was simple (Bailey wanted to get back to the circus and find the girl he had met years ago), Bailey clearly had goals and conflicts that influenced his decisions, from feeling constrained by his family’s expectations to the uncertainty of his future, and I think his arc complemented the main plot nicely - Bailey felt trapped by everyday life, and the circus served as an escape, whereas the circus is a kind of gilded cage for Celia and Marco.

That being said, I do think Morgenstern’s attempt to make the “moral” of her book about the power of stories and storytelling rather ham-fisted. Morgenstern clearly has a love of storytelling herself, and the whole book is an exercise in the power of storytelling, but I don’t think stories had a strong enough presence in the narrative itself to make the whole point of The Night Circus about those topics. Instead, I think the secondary theme of “the future is unwritten” to be much more compelling, and I think the conclusion of the novel should have ended on that note rather than Widget agreeing to tell a story.

Characters: While this book follows a number of characters, the summary primarily focuses on Celia and Marco, two “magicians” of sorts who are thrust into a competition by their mentors in order to prove whose method of doing magic is superior. Celia is more intuitive, performing magic through her “natural abilities,” while Marco is more studious, using things like signs and anchors to guide his magic. Aside from these defining qualities, I didn’t find either of them very memorable. Celia supposedly had the tendency to lose control of her emotions (and magic), but we never really saw that manifest in ways that were threatening to the competition or the people around her. Marco is also somewhat of a blank slate; he’s organized and works hard, but that’s about all I can say about him. I didn’t quite see what qualities attracted the two to each other, much less why they fell in love other than they admired one another’s magic.

Their mentors were a bit more interesting in that the had contrasting personalities. Celia’s mentor (her father), is overbearing and egotistic, whereas Marco’s mentor is reserved. I liked the mystery that surrounded Marco’s mentor and the way his emotions never seemed to get the better of him until certain points. Celia’s father, on the other hand, was a bit annoying and cruel.

I did enjoy reading about the other protagonists, Bailey and the red headed twins (Poppet and Widget). I thought that Bailey had enough external pressure to make his goals and desires feel real. Poppet and Widget also complimented each other nicely; though they are twins, they felt like separate people rather than a duplication of one another, and I liked how they were inquisitive, playful, and caring.

Supporting characters were also incredibly compelling and memorable. Chandresh, the proprietor of the circus, is eccentric, and I loved reading about his house of curiosities and his lavish midnight dinners. Tsukiko, the contortionist, has an appealing attitude that is simultaneously warm and matter-of-fact. Isobel seems like she would serve the role of the jealous lover, but I liked that she was warm and found a home with the circus. Herr Thiessen, the clock maker, encourages others to see the circus with wonder without becoming dangerously obsessed. Other members of the “circus board,” such as Mme. Padva, the Burgess sisters, and Mr. Barris, were also interesting to watch as they left their thumbprints on the circus.

Other: This book didn’t have a lot of worldbuilding (if that’s the appropriate word for it) in that none of the magic systems are fully explained, nor are we told who or what the mentors really are, but I don’t think these things were needed. The lack of full clarity enhanced the sense of mystery about the circus, and in some ways, this book was more “magical realism” than full fantasy.

I do think, however, that the ending to Celia and Marco’s story was rather unfulfilling, in part because it relied on the performance of a kind of magic that I didn’t quite understand. I think it would have been fine if the two had simply disappeared together and their “souls” (or something) still hung around the circus, so readers get the impression that they’re together, but the details aren’t quite clear. The matter of controlling the circus also seemed convoluted, and I’m not convinced that the magic required to do this was seeded into the story ahead of time, so it felt somewhat random. As a result, the ending seems to require us to understand how separate types of magic work, but the details of these systems throughout the book are vague, so the sudden specificity at the end feels strange.

Overall, though, this book was memorable and enchanting, which made up for the shortfalls. I still enjoyed it immensely, and I think Morgenstern is a phenomenal storyteller.

[retrauxpunk]

Rain, I ask you: ALL the quarantine asks!

Animated character that was your gay awakening? not really an ‘awakening’ so much as a ‘hint’, but Azula from Avatar: the Last Airbender ... yep

Grilled cheese or PB&J? GRILLED CHEESE

What show/YouTube video(s) do you put on in the background when you when you don’t have anything to watch but you want something on? I don’t really experience this mood, but my go-to watch is the vlogbrothers YouTube channel

Your go-to bar order, if you drink? if it’s a low-key/work outing, lager or cider (esp the ones with non-apple fruits too); if it’s getting more serious (lol) or with closer friends or a more celebratory mood: vodka with sparkling apple juice

What’s your favorite pair of shoes that you own? these Doc Martens that are white with red hearts got ’em with my first ever full time design job paycheck. i did not take care of them well so they’re super scuffed/beat-up and very much not Perfectly White ... but they’re still comfy as heck, i still love the design, and they’ve lasted 3 years so far, let’s see how much longer we can make it ... also i think they’re a limited edition so i likely won’t get my hands on any replacements...

Top three cuisines? my cheap-ass answer would be, like: East Asian, South-East Asian, Western European ... but my non-shit answer is... Japanese, Chinese, Italian (ftr i’m not a seafood fan ... i just love the ramen and non-seafood stuff that japan makes hehe)

What was your first word as a child (that wasn’t a variation of “Mom” or “Dad”)? i have no clue

What’s a job that you’ve had that people might be surprised to find out you’ve had? cold-calling strangers to ask them to do market research phone surveys (y)

Look up. What’s directly across from you? the kitchen

Do you own any signed books/memorabilia in general? i have a messenger bag that i got signed by Jeph Jacques of the Questionable Content webcomic that i once adored ... and I think my boyfriend has gifted me a signed Matthew Reilly hardcover.

Preferred way to spend a rainy day? curled up indoors wearing something cosy, reading and eating something delicious. playing animal crossing lol. aaaaand listening to music, a good podcast, watching stand-up comedy, drawing, getting intoxicated...

What do you get on your bagels? What WOULD you get if you had access to anything you wanted? occasionally the standard smoked salmon and cream cheese, but i slightly prefer the meat to be, like, prosciutto

Brunch or midnight snacks? ehh fuck it, both???? both!!

Favorite mug you own easter limited edition waitrose mug, squat and round and yellow, painted/shaped like a very round chick. a Borb,,,,

What coffee drink would you describe yourself as? i actually thought about this and, uh, peppermint mocha. not for everyone, slightly weird, never fitting in with the regulars/being a default, but???? obviously awesome?? also: about 65% on the mainstream/hipster scale

Pick a song lyric to describe your current mood (and drop the name and artist!) The Wombats is the artist. lyrics are either “Let's dance to Joy Division / and celebrate the irony / Everything is going wrong, / but we're so happy” from Let’s Dance to Joy Division or “the edge of nowhere’s such a beautiful place” from Emoticons

Fruity or herbal teas? herbal but i agree with @queenofslime, black tea is the best

What’s that one TV show that you’re a little bit embarrassed to watch but you still like nonetheless? ...do i experience embarrassment about what i like to watch on TV? i don’t know if i do, because i watch relatively few shows ... and have relatively little shame? maybe???

That book you were forced to read for class but actually ended up enjoying? ftr i wasn’t bitter about this before reading, i had no preconceived biases against, and i was pretty open to liking it -- The Namesake by Jhumpa Lahiri

Do you match your socks? if they’re of a really nice design then yes always, if they’re of a more standard/generic design then ... not necessarily

Have you ever been horseback riding? yes a few times ... on the last time which was like five years ago ... the lady said i was a natural and asked if i’d ridden much before, which was. flattering. and yes this is a Brag.

What was your “phase” when you were younger? (i.e., Mythology Nerd, Horse Girl, Space Geek, etc) didn’t have much of a hardcore phase but i was pretty much always into fantasy ... oh wait yeah i did! i had a spy phase :)

Have you ever been to jail? to closed-down ones, yep

What’s your opinion on Lazy Susan’s (the spinning tray in the middle of tables)? pretty great idea unequivocably, right?

Puzzles? i tend to enjoy riddles/lateral thinking puzzles, i am impartial about jigsaw puzzles. i enjoy escape rooms.

You can only have one juice for the rest of your life, what is it? apple ... but elderflower if i’m feeling reckless (y)

What section do you immediately head for when you walk into a bookstore? young adult ... or stationery

What’s one thing you’re trying to learn/relearn in your downtime right now? Russian language :( it’s going не так хорошо

Who’s your go-to musical artist when you’re feeling upbeat? not sure if i have a go-to artist so much as go-to playlists i’ve made but some good ones are The Wombats and Bastille 

Where could someone find you in a museum? mammals/birds in natural history

What’s that one outfit in your closet you never get the chance to wear but want to? i swear i was talking about this recently but i clean the fuck forgot what it was ... oh yeah, i have this short-sleeved black minidress festooned with silver buckles/buttons and also featuring decorative suspenders ... which, yes, does make me look like a sexy military officer,,, anyway it’s pretty badass and somehow it hasn’t occurred to me till now that i can just wear that every day now if i want? ftw i do get the chance to wear it, it’s just a little bit Extra so i get self-conscious. i’ve worn it a few times though. including to work. because fuck it, right? i didn’t become a graphic designer to be shy about sometimes looking like a prototypical emo/scene kid-turned-adult??? (ftr i was never an actual emo/scene kid. i lacked the requisite guts, commitment of feeling, and permissive parents.)

Rainbows, stars, or sunset colored clouds? sunset-coloured clouds :)

If you could own any non-traditional pet (dogs, cats, fish, rodents, etc), what would it be? how about a shapeshifting feathered dragon that could range from, like, two thirds of a foot long (20cm) to sit on your shoulder, to ... the size of a massive draft horse? (but longer and thinner)

Do you have more art on your walls or more photographs? photos, though if i didn’t live with a partner, it might be art

You have to get one meme tattooed on your body, what meme is it and where does it go? i’ve already got a meme tattooed on my body ... a private meme i have with my boyfriend, one on each leg (left: outer side, just above knee; right: outside, a few inches above the ankle)

Pick a superhero sidekick to hang out with ?????? is this a sidekick to a known superhero, or a superhero to act as your sidekick? also i don’t know? who are the standard heroes? i’m not up to date on this.

Lakes, rivers, or oceans? rivers or oceans

Favorite mid-2000s song i can’t decide a favourite, it’s too stressful, but one that i like is Rob Thomas’s Little Wonders

How do you dress when you’re home alone? either a t-shirt and PJ pants, or a dress (usually short-sleeved/sleeveless minidress)

Where do you sit in the living room (we all have a preferred spot, and you know it)? on either side of the couch haha

Knives or swords? BOTH but ok swords.

A song you didn’t think you’d enjoy but ended up loving hmmmmm like all of Linkin Park’s first three albums with some exceptions? hahahah

Pick an old-school Disney Channel Original Movie i don’t think i.....know any????

Are you a “Quote that relates to the photos” caption-er, an “explanation of where I took the photos” caption-er, or a no caption kinda person when you post pictures online? explanation, though on instagram quite often the photo and caption are unrelated

Name a classic Vine there’s only one thing worse than a rapist...

What’s the freezer food that you stock up on when you go to the grocery store? dumplings! as in the gyoza type.

How do you top your ice cream? that ‘magic’ chocolate sauce that hardens into chocolate. that stuff. i watched those ads all childhood long but my parents were immigrants and therefore very thrifty so we NEVER bought it iirc and then in my adulthood i got it a bunch of times. but now i live in the uk and can’t find it. and forgot it existed. and have never seen it anywhere.

Do you like Jello? the kind that’s served on a plate as a dessert? meh. the kind that are found in asian grocery stores as individual fruit-flavoured serves in little plastic cups? YES 

What’s something that you don’t have a picture of that you wish you did? future stock prices? LOL ... or i’m gonna go with @queenofslime‘s answer again -- how others see me. it’s a great answer.

How are you at climbing trees? not............ good. i mean, i like climbing, but i have absolutely terrible upper body strength. i did bouldering for a couple months but only stuck to the first like... three out of nine difficulty levels.

[pleasesingtome]

marianas trench—Phantoms album review

After Rhythm of Your Heart (not on Phantoms) and I Knew You When and Only the Lonely Survive all came out, I really wasn’t sure which direction they were going next but I loved it.  Here are some thoughts on Phantoms.

Track 1: Eleonora

A great opening and very signature Marianas Trench.  It’s reminiscent of their other ballad-like intros like Astoria, Ever After, and Masterpiece Theatre 1.  It really sets up the concept album feel and paves the way for the numerous Edgar Allen Poe references throughout the album but with its title and with its reference to The Raven (”on a midnight dreary...”).  Eleonora, written while Poe’s wife, Virginia, had just started showing signs of illness, details a story of finding love without guilt and moving on after the loss of a previous love.  Just as Eleonora is speculated to be somewhat autobiographical, it is believed that Ramsay references the work to draw parallels to his own experience with his fianceé.  It reminds me exactly of the intro to Astoria with its sense of longing.  Ramsay stated that the album sounds like a haunted house and the concept is living in a house haunted by a past love and that feel is apparent from the start with Eleonora.  

Rating: 10/10

Favorite Lyrics: all of it (it’s only about a minute long)   Eleonora, speak.  It grows so quiet on widow’s peak.  

Colors: purple, orange

Track 2: Only the Lonely Survive

Probably my favorite song off the album and my favorite song at the moment.  Nice transition from Eleonora into Only.  This fall, I read Virginia Woolf’s Mrs. Dalloway and Michael Cunningham’s The Hours and the theme of this song instantly reminded me of Clarissa Dalloway’s desire for passion and excitement with love.  Cunningham’s Clarissa remarks that she wants a “doomed love,” one separate from the life of comfort she had previously led.  She wants a love that’s messy and complicated but passionate.  Only the Lonely Survive describes this kind of doomed love, a star-crossed love, a love that both parties know will end tragically because they’ll burn each other up eventually.  But that’s okay.  That’s the point.  They can find anyone else and have a safer kind of love, but they choose to indulge in this doomed one because love is danger and tragedy and only the lonely will survive anyway.  I’d rather hurt here than be happy somewhere else.  I will say, though, that every time I hear the high note on “out alive,” I expect it to be held for longer.  Idk, it feels like one of those notes you’d really milk and it always kinda shocks me when it just ends.  

Rating: 10/10

Favorite Lyrics: honestly I would get any of these tattooed on my body but probably the last chorus

And I know a love like this will end in tragedy 

You know every kiss suspending gravity

Hurts like hell to love this well

But no one fell the way we fell

We’ll burn alive

But only the lonely survive

Colors: purple, pink/magenta, dark blues, yellow-orange

Track 3: Echoes of You (ft. Joseph Robert Manning Jr.)

Packed with Poe references here:

Never given into madness—not a direct quote but a subtle reference to how the narrator of The Tell Tale Heart begins his tale

Chamber door—reference to the raven rapping at the chamber door

And of course there’s “repeating from the beating of your tell tale heart” in the chorus.  

And a Steven King reference:

I thrust my fist into the post.  I still insist I see the ghosts—From IT

A very “pop-y” song.  Another signature of Marianas Trench is songs that have bridges/interludes/sections that have a completely different feel from the rest of the song.  They usually do it with opening or closing songs so when I first heard this song I thought maybe it might be the album final (that comes later, though).  To be honest, I think i like the bridge more than the rest of the song.  The transition from the Echoes of You part into the “can’t stop myself from falling now.  Who said—you said—don’t look down” was very unexpected and seemed almost out of place at first but it’s done pretty well, not choppy or anything.  The transition back into the Echoes of You feel is amazing, though.  They do it with the Steven King line mentioned earlier and it’s beautiful.  Love how the song ends, too, with “corner of my eye” becoming “corner of my mind” and the note fading upwards.  

Rating: 9/10

Favorite Lyrics: You inhale ‘til your lungs get sore but that’s not who I am anymore and but the notes of an old mistake still ring louder every day

Colors: purple, gray, blue-gray, orange, black/navy, pale blue

Track 4: Don’t Miss Me?

I ghostwrote this song.  Marianas Trench went back to 2016/2017 and pulled all the pettiness and bitterness I felt and put it into a song.  It’s a post-breakup “I miss you” kinda song, only it’s worded in a “wow it’s not like I miss you or anything hahah I’m totally over it I’m not thinking about you at all anymore.........but do you still miss me?......just kidding I don’t care” kinda feel.  A fun song, also pretty pop-y.  I really like it because of how relatable it is and also because like I said, the feel of the song is just very...fun.  A break from haunted house feel, but still a good song.

Rating: 8.5/10

Favorite Lyrics: I’m just a drink away from honesty so who knows what’s true?

Colors: orange, yellow, bright blue

Track 5: Wish You Were Here

Reminds me a lot of the 80s-inspired songs off Astoria.  It sounds like a mix of Burnin’ Up, This Means War, and Shut Up and Kiss Me.  It’s a fun song and also very pop-y.  Similar feel to Don’t Miss Me?  I love the verses but the chorus is kinda meh to me.  I think the issue was that “I’m trying to get up now now now now now now now” reminds me too much of that one song with Justin Bieber “I won’t give up na na na” and it was especially off putting the first listen.  Please tell me I’m not the only one who heard that.  The song is growing on me, though.  

Rating: 6.5/10

Favorite Lyrics: Mirror mirror on the wall who’s fairer?  Can you save me from today’s night terror?

Colors: orange, green, bright blue

Track 6: Your Ghost

Well the haunted house reference is painfully apparent now, huh?  I like the theme of feeling haunted by someone you once knew because their ghost is lingering and you just can’t seem to escape it.  It has the same general theme as Echoes of You in that both songs are about someone’s traces still lingering after they’re gone and about not being able to escape them.  The chorus starts out with the singer running from the ghost, trying to escape and be free.  But then he sings “I won’t give up your ghost,” a reference to the phrase “give up the ghost” but also stating that even though he’s being haunted, he can’t bring himself to let go.  

Rating: 7/10

Favorite Lyrics: You never seem to manage just to disappear

Colors: purple/taupe/mauve, red-violet, orange, purple-gray

Track 7: Glimmer

I just wanna say that I love the theme/imagery/idea of these lyrics about burning too bright that you can’t see the glimmer.  It’s like how the sun’s glow prevents us from seeing the stars during the day.  I love the the idea of there still being a glimmer of their love left but they both burned up too hard/too bright to see it—it’s like the sad aftermath of Only the Lonely Survive.  The chorus reminds me of One Love from Astoria and I honestly really love it (although every song on the album pretty much has the same general theme as One Love).  Love the desperation in the bridge with the repetition of “can we forgive and forget” and love the sense of longing that the chorus has.  

Rating: 8/10

Favorite Lyrics: I throw my head back, heart under attack straight through the chest like a thunderclap

Colors: purple/lavender/orchid/lilac, magenta/pink, yellow-orange, gold

Track 8: I Knew You When

Another One Love/longing-esque song.  I love everything about it but the chorus.  The thing about Marianas Trench songs is their lyrics are absolutely beautiful and the songs are absolutely packed with wonderful lyrics.  The chorus of I Knew You When is more on par with the current trend where choruses kinda just consist of the title song being sung with vocal effects over and over again.  With how the verses sound, I would’ve expected a different kinda chorus and I think there was so much potential for an amazing chorus instead of just “youuuuuuu youuuuuuu.”  It kinda works in Don’t Miss Me? but not as much in this one.  The lyrics in the verses are beautiful, however, packed with poetic imagery like the “summer twilight ricochet[ing]].”  Sophomore year me ghostwrote this song too.  The idea that you’ve loved someone too long to move on painlessly is just too relatable, especially the “I knew you when” theme of knowing someone way back before everything went wrong.  

Rating: 8/10

Favorite Lyrics: I thought time was supposed to heal; it don’t do shit but keep you feelin’

Colors: navy, teal, purple, blue-gray

Track 9: The Death of Me

One Love but also Who Do You Love? vibes and the “before you go, before you go” part of the chorus reminds me of the chorus of Fix Me (”And I still feel all the things I did before”).  The song is very lush and filled with a swell fo longing, very reminiscent of the songs off Fix Me, specifically Skin and Bones and Fix Me (my favorites off the album).  I think that’s part of why I like this song so much.  There’s a real sense of pain that comes through in the chorus.  The vocals really convey that sense of sadness and desperation and it’s amazing.  

Rating: 9/10

Favorite Lyrics: 

I would give you anything if I had anything to give left But the phantoms here will never have their fill I would tell you "I don't miss her" Cries of love reduced to a whisper But the truth is that her ghost It haunts me still (Haunts me still)

and I would love you if I could

Colors: red, orange, navy, gold

Track 10: The Killing Kind

Another signature Marianas Trench finale.  The Killing Kind did not disappoint and brought back themes from previous songs, specifically Echoes of You and Eleonora, with a splash of Astoria.  Another signature of Marianas Trench endings, which they utilized in Echoes of You: multiple melodies/themes/interludes.  In love with the dark and deep tones of the opening that then morph into the main theme of the beginning.  More Poe thrown in there with “nevermore to leave here” (a reference to The Raven, once again).  The build up to the Astoria sample at the climax is best described as orgasmic, a complete release of tensions that culminates with a satisfying and familiar theme.  After the build up and explosion, Echoes of You comes back in.  The part that comes in afterwards, however, is amazingly ominous and really brings back the haunted house feel of the album and the dark tone of the beginning of the track.  Nice connection to Ever After’s Stutter with the “one for the memory, two for the pain” play on “one for the money, two for the show.”  The best part of the Killing Kind, however, is the ending where the theme from Eleonora comes back in and the music and vocals swell and die continuously until the big swell to the final high note on “Eleonora.”

Rating: 10/10

Favorite Lyrics: Here and now, if this is it, can’t get out from under it.  Nevermore to leave here, nevermore to leave here and if madness overtakes us both then nobody would be alone

Colors: maroon, purple, yellow-orange, gold, navy, red

Overall: 8.6/10 but I think the really good songs on the album really overshadow the lower-rated ones so it’s more like 9/10.  This is the only album I’m gonna be listening to for a while. 

[kuroo-tetsurou-is-perfect]

The Playground's Novice Manager

Comin at you with ANOTHER HAIKYUU LN TRANSLATION

This one is about the new first year manager for Johzenji.  Her name is Runa-chan and she is a sweet little bean who must be protected.

Story under the cut, enjoy~~~

Johzenji High School was in the middle of a bitter fight.  It was the Spring High Volleyball Miyagi prefectural deciding tournament, and their first opponent was a team that had only recently made a name for themselves, Karasuno High School.      

Johzenji had some strong and unconventional opening moves in their attack, but their opponent had bared their teeth in return.  Then came the moment that they tried to imitate the synchronized attack that Karasuno demonstrated, and completely failed, losing the first set.  And now they had their backs to the wall in the second set.  Johzenji's typical clever schemes and surprise attacks were beginning to show signs of impatience, and soon their plays became out of synch.      

Recieves, scoring, serves, and spikes all continued to land out.      

Six people on the court, and each one was spinning his wheels and getting nowhere.  Like a shirt that started off on the wrong button, they were completely unable to connect right.  If they kept on like this without being able to shake off this block, the point gap would only widen more and more--.    

Clenching her small fist in the Johzenji cheering section on the second floor of the gymnasium stood a girl, the team's young manager, watching the match.  She was a first year named Kuribayashi Runa.  She had just barely joined the volleyball team, and she didn't understand what was going wrong, why they weren't scoring points.  That being said, she knew the players' impatience and irritation could be painfully bad.     

Then, she saw her senpais' faces change.     

She could see the director calling for a time out.  The setter, Futamata, smacked the ball hard across the net.  Then the ball crossed the end line, and the whistle blew.  Kuribayashi worriedly watched them gather around the bench, exchanging mutual encouragement, then suddenly narrowed her eyes in confusion.     

"......What?"     

The bench looked odd.  The director wasn't there, and her senpai manager, Misaki, was standing before the players and starting to say something.  After the court changed sides, the bench was distant from the Johzenji cheering section, so she couldn't hear Misaki's voice, but--     

"Senpai is, scolding them....?"  

******

Which day of which month it was, she had forgotten, but she remembered that it was the day that they started wearing summer clothes to school.  She had just advanced in her homeroom course, though it felt like only yesterday she was taking her entrance exams......but that was hardly a surprise anymore.  She had stopped comparing the school regulations and subjects one by one to her middle school experience as well.  From the high school buildings, to the lessons, to the new teachers, she had gotten used to all of them, and high school had lost its fresh taste. But Kuribayashi Runa found herself enjoying the everyday routine of Johzenji High School in its own way.

That day, that moment in early summer after school, Kuribayashi was getting ready to leave for home when she peeked into her locker and noticed something, her head tilting to its side.

"What's this?"

A classmate, who she had promised to walk home with,  called out, "Runaaa, what's the matter?"

"My jersey isn't here."

"What happened, did a bully take it or something?"

"Nah, I probably forgot it in the changing room after P.E.....I think.  I'll go grab it.  You'd better go home without me."

"Aww, you sure you don't want me to wait?"

"It's fine!  If it's not in the changing room, I'll have to spend time looking for it, and I don't want to keep you waiting that long," Kuribayashi said, waving goodbye to her classmate.  The collar on her brand new summer clothes rustled as the sound of her running feet echoed in the hallway.

The uniforms and bags of the go-home club, the jerseys and practice clothes of the exercise club--the school entrance was packed with students as Kuribayashi weaved through them past the school store, which was preparing to close, to the gymnasium.  She faced a closed iron door, the sounds of bouncing balls and calling voices emanating from within.

"Ready and.....hngh!"

After putting all her body weight into opening the heavy front door, a ball came rolling right through the opening.

"Huh?"

The colorful blue and yellow ball collided with her feet.  She paused a moment, but no one came to retrieve it.  Was it okay to take the ball to whoever had lost it?  Or no, maybe it would be better to just leave it as is.  Uncertain whether she was allowed inside, Kuribayashi stood in front of the entry door, nervously peering into the gymnasium.

There was a green net suspended from the ceiling separating the gym into two parts.  The opposite side of the room was for basketball, and her side, with a net sandwiched by people tirelessly pursuing a ball was for volleyball...probably?  That's what it looked like they were playing, though it seemed different from the way the boys had played when they were messing around in her gym class.  There was a more serious feeling to it, so it was probably the school team.  Everyone's voices were really loud, and it was a little intimidating.

The ball probably belonged to those people.

Kuribayashi picked up the ball at her feet that no one had come to retrieve.

Then again, the atmosphere didn't exactly lend itself to her calling out to anyone, so she ended up holding the ball in her arms and watching the club activities.

The rubber soles of shoes made squeaking sounds as they collided with the floor, a sound different from ordinary shoes.  Maybe that's why the way they moved was different too.  Everyone was moving with their whole bodies in big motions.  What was the word for it?  Dynamic, that's how they were moving, dynamically.

"Not too long ago, they ranked in the best four at the Interhigh, you know."

She quickly turned toward the voice that addressed her, to find a female student wearing a jersey right beside her.

She seemed like an adult, probably a first or second year senpai.

"Ah, umm, that's really amazing," Kuribayashi responded straight away, though truthfully she wasn't exactly sure what "Interhigh" meant.

But she had said something about them being the best, so that must be an impressive achievement.  Or so she thought.  But at her response, her senpai in the jersey adopted a strange, delicate look on her face.  "......Yeah, they've gotten strong."

That face wasn't the face of someone who was happy about the strength of their own team.  Kuribayashi worried that maybe she had said something wrong, and, flustered, tried to come up with a word or two to backtrack and cover up her mistake.

At that moment, a ball came flying through the space between them.  It was fast.  At the same time a boy of large build also came flying after the ball.

"My bad!!"

He didn't exactly jump gracefully--it looked like his face was about to collide with the floor, like an unflying paper airplane taking a nosedive to the ground.

".........!"

Without saying anything, Kuribayashi stiffened as right in front of her, the ball went up in the air with a thwap.  Then in a big arc, it flew toward the net.  The boy she thought was going to fall on his face somehow managed to make a soft landing and quickly rushed back to the net.  Before he landed, did he hit and send it back?  It must have happened right before her eyes, but she still didn't understand how it happened.

Her eyes followed the back of the running player who continued with the rally as if nothing had happened, and she muttered, "That was amazing......"

"Are you curious?"

"Eh?"

"Right now we're recruiting for a new manager.  If you're curious, want to join on a trial basis?  I'm the manager right now, but since I'm a third year I'll be retiring soon."

Kuribayashi quickly looked to her senpai making an out-of-season canvassing attempt, then back to the court.  The strong-looking, and a little scary-looking boys were jumping around chasing after the ball.  Flecks of sweat could be seen flying and scattering from their hair.  School had only just gotten out, and they were already soaked with sweat.

Kurobayashi felt a little out of place as the only one in the gym still in her school uniform, and she handed the ball she was holding over and said apologetically, "But I don't even really know what sport this is......"

"Huh?  What they're playing right now is volleyball, you know what that is."

Kuribayashi, flustered, looked back toward the court one more time.

This was volleyball?

"But the volleyball we play in gym class has more people... umm, five I think?"

"Six," her senpai corrected without a pause, and Kuribayashi flushed in embarrassment.  If she didn't even know how many people were supposed to be on the court, how could she possibly become the manager?

Her senpai manager continued.  "Usually, volleball does use six players."

"So this is... not usual volleyball, then?

At Kuribayashi's words, her senpai smiled.  "This is practice.  They're doing their two-on-two training."

Volleyball was typically six-on-six.  What they were doing now was practicing with two-on-two, in order to widen their range and change the extent that they relied on each other for support.  It also made them chase the ball more assertively, and taught them to look for more opportunities to make spontaneous attacks, she explained.  However, watching the team members jump and tumble about while chasing the ball, one couldn't help but get the feeling that they were just romping and playing around.

"They remind me of the kids in my neighborhood with the way they're playing," Kuribayashi said.

At her frank words, her senpai giggled, but then her face changed to that same delicate expression she had before.  "Exactly.  For these children, this is their playground."

"Playground......?"

It wasn't as though Kuribayashi was unathletic, or that she had poor control over her body; but then, she wasn't part of any sports club either.  Every time she was asked to join a club, rather than declining up front, she would just decline to answer.  But somehow, talking to her manager senpai now, she had a feeling that she wanted to hear more.

With everyone on the team working hard to their utmost extent, she wasn't really sure if just a hunch was really enough of a reason to join, but she turned to her senpai and, with no further consideration, said "I'll try it," and completed her club entry registration to become the new manager on a trial basis.

Thinking over it, she had already more or less gotten used to school, and maybe it would be good to try a new thing, or maybe it was just that she was feeling a little fickle with the change into the new summer clothes.  Whatever the reason, she knew she wouldn't regret the decision.

******

If she thought that joining the club on a "trial basis" was going to be easy-going, she was wrong.

The job of a manager involved management of the club budget and maintenance of the equipment, coordinating the rotation the gymnasium, keeping track of the score, keeping track of the practice times, picking up balls and taking out balls, et cetera.  From routine tasks to supporting the team, she hardly had time to take a breath.

And of course she couldn't neglect to properly learn the rules of the game.  Even though there were lots of things she didn't know, she had lots of help from third year manager who recruited her, Misaki, and each day she was able to manage somehow or another.

While she was tackling the jobs of being a proper manager well enough, there was the small matter of figuring out how to deal with the club members.  The boy's volleyball club members, not to mention the female manager, all tended to communicate by bantering like grade-schoolers, and it left Kuribayashi completely baffled.

Still not used to it, Kuribayashi was quickly getting ready to leave for the day, when as though aimed at her, several balls rolled her way.  One by one she picked them up and tossed them back to the captain, Terushima, and the other club members with him.  "Thanks, Runa-chaaan!" they called back to her, laughing.  They really were a little scary.

Afterward she understood; they must have been throwing the balls to the helpless Kuribayashi on purpose, just to watch her feeble form and laugh at her.

Other than just the volleyball club members, the members of other clubs were scary too.

When she was carrying heavy things, like the water jugs and such, she would hear, "Runa-chaaan, let me help youuu.  I'll take it, I'll take it~" and Terushima would come and grab whatever she was holding.  Occasionally when that would happen, a passing girl from the basketball team would glare at him for some reason.

"Terushima, aren't you the captain or something?  You don't seriously have to carry the water jug yourself, right?"

"Shut up!  I want to do it, so back off!  Runa-chan is different from you lot, she's weak!"

"What's that supposed to mean?!  Terushima you seriously piss me off!"

While listening to her senpai's exchange, Kuribayashi could do nothing but curl up and apologize, "Sorry, sorry," over and over again.

Some days were especially different from the usual, and she would wish that they wouldn't think of her as an obstacle, but on the days when they were really intolerable, Misaki would break in and stop them.  But it seemed like Terushima didn't listen seriously.

******

Some months later, on a day after the summer uniforms were retired because of the cold, it was after practice.  Kuribayashi was in the corner of the gym shining a ball, when Terushima came over with a wide grin and called out to her.  "Runa-chaaan, let me escort you home, we can walk together~"

"Eh....."

Trying to think of a way to refuse him without being rude, she stood there with rag and spray can filling both hands at a loss for words, when Misaki came to her rescue.

"You guys are always doing things like that, cut it out before you scare her.  She's our precious recruit, too....  Just ignore them, Runa-chan.  Come on, let's go."

"R- Right......"

"It's not like we're trying to scare her.  I just said I'd escort her, that's all!"

Ignoring the sulking Terushima, Misaki started helping Kuribayashi tidy up balls.  But Terushima, completely undeterred, cut in front of the managers again and peered into both their faces.

"Ummm, so lately, I've been thinking.  I'd really like to eat onigiri made by Hana-san and Runa-chan!"

".....If you're hungry, why can't you just go to the school store and buy something?"

"I don't want the school store onigiri though!  The vendor changed this year or something, even the bread isn't as good now!"

Terushima seemed very proud of his complaints about the taste of the school store food, but he must have realized to some extent that his secret intentions were completely obvious, because it didn't take long for him to run away to his teammates.  While lightly glaring at his receding form, Misaki muttered, "....When Okudake-kun was here, this sort of thing never happened."

"Right, he was one of the third years."

All of the third years retired after the Interhigh, all except for the manager Misaki alone.  Misaki stayed on with the players, since she didn't have a kouhai to replace her, and without a successor she could hardly abandon the team.  Perhaps she decided to stay on until the Spring High because she was a little worried about Terushima and the others that remained on the team.

Misaki took a ball in her hands, and as though remembering something that had happened long ago, said, "Yeah.... We weren't quite as strong as we are now, but everyone played seriously, like they meant it.  Ah, but the second years now, during practice they really do play to their best."

Adding a few more words of explanation, Misaki's face reminded Kuribayashi of the day she first saw the volleyball club.  "They've become strong," she said with that same delicate expression on her face.

Kuribayashi asked without thinking.  "...The way things were before, was that better?"

"Huh?"  Misaki was a bit taken aback, then she turned her eyes toward her boisterous team members.

Last year's Spring High, the time that Terushima and the others joined the club was the same time that the coach changed. The old Johzenji that operated with fortitude and sincerity couldn't boast any spectacular achievements, but that suddenly changed explosively.  Maybe the style of the new coach just meshed well with the character of the new club members.  Either way, they won and advanced through the tournament with great force.

Then they lost the steadily accumulating foundation of the third years with their retirement, and Misaki had the feeling that the style of just going with the flow might be dangerous going forward.

"Oi!  Everone, over here!"

On the court, Terushima tossed a ball into the air and called the rest of the team members together.

"All right, let's play some dodgeball!"

"Yeah!"

They were supposed to be tidying up.  Or so she thought before they all moved to keep playing, utterly stunning Misaki, who groaned, "Ugh, what now...."  Before the club members, spearheaded by Terushima, could go any further, she called out to them. "Hey!  Hurry and clean up this mess.  We have to get the gym closed up...."

"Heyyy, we're not just playing around.  Whatever you end up doing, if you have the mindset of practice, it can become practice you know!"

"Don't give me any of your childish arguments."

Noticing Misaki's less-than-pleased face, the other club members, grumbling complaints all the while, finally started tidying up.  The basketball team was already going home, calling "Later~" and waving to their acquaintances on the volleyball team.

"The volleyball club is always the last to leave," Misaki scolded, then turned to look at Kuribayashi slightly smiling on the side.

"It's true, they sometimes act like grade schoolers, or even kindergarteners.... But when you see these kids play, it's so fun it's ridiculous.  I actually really like them then."

Kuribayashi was taken aback.  Even though Misaski had never actually said, "the way before was better," she complained and grumbled about the current club members so often.  The words "fun" and "like" come out of her mouth now was something Kuribayashi never thought she would hear.

"Fun, huh...?" Kuribayashi asked without thinking.  Misaki asked her a question in response.

"Runa-chan, don't you think club activities are fun?"

"....Well, a little, but there are a lot of scary moments," she responded honestly, without thinking.  To explain further, she continued, "Um, when I was in grade school.... The boy in the seat behind me would always tear his eraser to pieces and throw them at me, and I would always worry--if he threw something other than bits of eraser at me, what would I do?  It made me nervous all during class, and lately I've been feeling the same way I felt back then....  Ah, not that erasers are going to come flying at me, but...."

"Sigh.... they really do always give off that feeling, don't they?" Misaki said with a wry smile, glancing over to the club members to make sure they weren't messing around.  After a little while, she asked Kuribayashi.  "Runa-chan, you haven't seen an official match yet, have you?"

"Eh, um, that's right."

Kuribayashi joined the club after the Interhigh.  The one time she actually saw a match, it was a practice match with a neighboring high school, and she hadn't really gotten a grasp of the rules yet.  The next time Johzenji was set to appear in a public match was this October, during the Spring High representative deciding tournament.

"If you saw them play, I don't think they'd scare you."

"....Is that so?" Kuribayashi asked doubtfully.

Misaki looked back at her and nodded.  "Yeah.  I think so."

After they had finished tidying up and left the building, it was completely dark, and the evening wind was uncomfortably cold.  At the time she had joined the club, it was still pretty light out at this time.  Kuribayashi fastened her jersey all the way up to the top.

"Bye everyone."

"All right, don't catch a cold."

Kuribayashi dipped her head at Misaki, who was waving goodbye, and then with quick feet hurried down the walk home.  She was going to get home early, eat a meal, take a bath, then she'd have to work on her literature homework.  But she couldn't go to bed late, she had to make sure she was in time for morning practice.  She was wondering what other people used their time for as she walked, when she heard loud voices coming from behind her.

"---are you serious?  Nah bitch that was you!"

"The hell it was!  You're the one who's so full of yourself."

Evidently Terushima and the other boys on the team had come outside.  Outside of club activities, they were always shouting like that.  It wasn't that they were actually quarreling, she knew they weren't serious, but the rough way they talked still scared her a little every time.  So much mental strain...

Hearing their boisterous voices draw closer, Kuribayashi subconsciously held her breath, as though perhaps by stopping her breath her body would disappear too, but sure enough they quickly found her.

"Oh hey, Runa-chaaan!  Are you okay on your own?  We can escort you home if you want!"

"Um-m, no, I'm fine on my own."

"You sure?"

"Y- yes, I'm good.  Thank you though."

"Tchhh, boringgg.  But if I bug you any more, Hana-san will yell at me again.  Whatever, see you tomorrow!"

"Ah, yeah.  See you tomorrow."

Bouncing and waving goodbye, the matched set of jerseys receded into the distance.  Calls of "What the hell was that?" and "Shut up!" could be heard from the group, as well as the sound of someone getting hit with a bag.  As she watched their shadows disappear into the darkness, Kuribayashi thought.

It felt like she just collided with a small typhoon...

It wasn't like she always felt completely unwilling to deal with them, but at the same time she wondered about this group of constantly running around and yelling boys; how could they possibly be different during a match?

If she saw them play, would she really think they're not scary anymore?  And why?

In an official match, what would be different than the usual?

While walking down the road filled with the sound of autumn insects, thoughts of the matches she hadn't seen floated through Kuribayashi's head.

******

The 30 seconds of time out went by in the blink of an eye, and the whistle calling the players back to the court sounded.  When she saw the condition of the players returning from the bench, it soon became clear that that mere 30 seconds had been an invaluable 30 seconds.

No longer did the players' faces show signs of impatience and irritation, but rather a new sense of resolve.

The game had resumed.

They were at a disadvantage, but you couldn't tell from the way the frivolous club members' plays once more started to get into gear.  Johzenji's staple reckless and free attacks, no matter where they came from or who hit them, were starting to stick, and they were once again playing wild and free.

The point difference of 11 to 17 from before the time out started to shrink bit by bit.

She wondered what Misaki said to them.  Her teammates were all playing without hesitation, and able to do as they pleased on the court.  The reckless and thoughtless attacks from before were no more.  They were thinking, and making sure, and then moving and outwitting their opponents all over the place, making sport of Karasuno's attacks.

Then it was 20 to 24.

At a four point spread, it was Karasuno's match point.

For Johzenji there really was no turning back; if they chose a safe, steady attack here, they were done for.

Four people on the court started moving at once.

It might become their very last play, and they chose...once again, the synchronized attack from before.  It was the same play that they tried to imitate during the first set,  using a copy of their opponent's killer technique to take them down!  Or so they must have been thinking, again trying to copy that same technique.

The setter Futamata's toss went to the left, and the one who came in to hit it was the ace, Terushima.

With only one blocker on him, Terushima spiked it.

The ball flew, hitting the ground extremely close to the end line.  Karasuno's team members all turned to look over their shoulders at the point of impact.  The line judge raised the red flag--it was out. 

Come on, come on, come on, Kuribayashi had been thinking with her eyes fixated on the match, forgetting to even breathe.  It was only when the whistle blew indicating the end of the match that she finally exhaled.    

"You've gotta be kidding...."

It was reckless, but they were a team that never backed down from doing as they pleased.  During the entire match, Kuribayashi hadn't once felt scared of them.  They were like completely different people, all serious and cool.    

When they came to do their greeting to the cheering section, she clapped as hard as she could, but when she saw their faces contorted with seething rage, her breath caught in her throat, and she realized she was wrong.    

".....Nope.  This is the scariest they've ever been."    

The other first year club members in the cheering section all got up together and started descending to the ground floor.  There was nothing for the defeated party to do but leave.  Kuribayashi also hurried to stand up.  Then she took one more look at the court, at the figures of her teammates leaving it, searing the image into her memory, before turning on her heel and following the rest of her club members.    

Coming out into the first floor hallway, she saw the players, then the coach, and finally Misaki walking towards her.  Kuribayashi, unable to say anything, silently stood behind the first year members.    

"Ah, Runa-chan."    

She may have been hiding, but Misaki found her and rushed over to her side.  She handed the scoreboard over to Kuribayashi and quietly said, "From the next match onwards, you have the reins, Runa-chan."    

"Right...."   

"Are you still scared?" Misaki asked.  Over her shoulder, Kuribayashi could see the her teammates drenched in sweat.  Their bodies were still stiff with fighting spirit, and they walked in silence with a sense of seething excitement still radiating off of them.  Compared to the usual boisterousness, these were like completely different people.   

Good work today--or no, it was a good match--but no, any words like that would just be flatly refused, would just be wrong right now.    

Right now, to even think about losing was--   

Kuribayashi, without averting her eyes from the backs of her teammates, said in a small voice, "No.  .....Next time, we'll definitely win."   

That thin voice, concealing a strong spirit, startled Misaki for a moment, then she tightly pursed her lips and nodded.    

"Yeah."    

She clapped the new manager on the back.

"Let's go."    

"Right."    

The two managers followed their teammates, and together they left the gymnasium.

[regrettablewritings]

How You Met AU: Rafael Barba

Lifted from this ship meme

He’s back again, you thought, staring at the sharply-dressed man sitting at the bar. Every so often, he took a sip from his glass of scotch, never looking up from the papers strewn about before him. He was nearing the end of his first glass after only ten minutes – that meant the case wasn’t going too well. You preferred not to think of it as stalking, seeing as you worked at Martelli’s and he frequented the place enough for you to recognize his tendencies, but you tried to give yourself some leeway by considering what you knew from the news: That ADA Rafael Barba, notorious for taking on difficult cases and nearly winning all of them, had become a participant in one such situation that was already proving to be one of the harder types. Of course, the news wasn’t the source that allowed you to acknowledge how attractive he was – you did that all on your own, watching at a distance. Or by managing to catch a quick glimpse of him whenever you came by to serve him, rare as that was. The news couldn’t tell you that his eyes were a shockingly lovely shade of green, or that his profile displayed a sharp, yet handsome nose. The news would never show you that if he was particularly deep in a case, he would remove the jacket of one of those snappy suits and strip his top layers until he was down to his shirt and suspenders (of which, you wanted nothing more than to snap). The news couldn’t show you the way those pretty eyes of his focused on his paperwork, scanning each and every word before those slender fingers of his would guide a pen across one section or another to circle a particular word or phrase. No, that was all on you.

You and your stalkerish tendencies, you thought bluntly. That earned a mental elbow to the brain, telling your own mind to shush itself. You watched as he placed his now empty scotch glass on the worn, wooden counter. He’d be wanting another, you knew. Which you know because you’re a creeper. You had half a mind to perform the mental elbowing again, had you not been distracted by the small, odd feeling of victory you felt when you saw him order yet another glass. Though part of you wondered if there’d even be enough room for the grilled tilapia he’d ordered. Speaking of which … “Hey, (L/N), you mind graciously taking time out of your nigh-daily creeping and actually helping out?” You whipped around, panic setting in. “Sssshhhh, you jackass!!” you hissed at your coworker. Daniel, the chef, huffed with bemusement. “Just statin’ the obvious,” he grunted. You made quick work of speed walking back into the main kitchen. “I know, but still!” you insisted. You pointed a thumb behind you, back where ADA Barba was. “But what if he heard you?!” Daniel shrugged. “Then I s’ppose I would’ve made one more move than you. Either way, not my problem. Order up: Grilled tilapia with a side of string beans.” He plopped a plate holding exactly that on the pickup shelf. Your hands twitched; it could only be for the man outside. Not a lot of people typically ate at this place at this time of night. “Uh … Danny? That’s Sylvia’s job; I just clean tables, ‘member?” “Sylvia called off. Said she had a migraine the side of an elephant’s ass.” “Bullshit, both to her saying that and to her actually having a migraine,” you rejected. You then scoffed, “She’s probably just hungover, call her again and tell her to stop trying to get other people to do her job for her.” “That may be,” Daniel admitted with a roll of his eyes. “But even if I did, she wouldn’t be here before that tilapia makes it to the table. Because you’re gonna give it to ‘em long before then. Now quit trying to throw me off, I got other crap to do.” You crossed your arms. “Nobody else even ordered, Daniel.” “All the more reason for you not to get sidetracked and to just give the guy his damn food before it gets cold.” He slapped the metal counter with his spatula to show that he meant business and wasn’t going to take any more of your dillydallying. Well, shit. You’d felt so confident (albeit irritated) when you’d first stormed over and snatched up the plate. It was all you could do to keep the platter leveled just enough to keep the string beans from flying off.

You’d felt so insistent in the beginning. You mentally scowled at yourself for being so juvenile. It was bad enough to partake in some weird and creepy double standard of gawking at a customer you found attractive from a distance; it simply rubbed dirt into the wound that you were letting that effect your ability to actually do your job properly – even if it technically wasn’t the exact position you’d been hired for. And what better way to prove yourself competent and clear-headed than to actually do the damn job without a speck of worry?

This had been your thought process as you strutted out the kitchen and through the threshold leading into the main dining area. But just as soon as they came, they evaporated. The sight of ADA Barba, hard at work with his pen scrawling along the papers, reminded you of the nerves you had. And suddenly, the plate felt heavy in your arm. It threatened to leap out of your hold and send itself shattering to the floor, directing everyone (what few there were)’s attention to you. Including ADA Barba, who would most definitely think something foul of you for not only startling him, but for ruining his meal.

No, you sternly told yourself. Not today, Plate-Satan… . Plate-an. You were going to suck it up, march over there, and do literally the easiest thing you could’ve done all night! … Aaaaany second now.

It was honestly part-miracle, part-actual will that you didn’t drop the meal as you neared its destination. But nearly nothing could stop you from nearly thudding the plate against the counter. Granted, it could’ve been your anxiety convincing you that you had all but smashed the dish down. But then … he turned. And you could no longer hear anything but the sound of your heart beating inside your skull. While this wasn’t the first time you’d seen them, this was certainly the first time those beautiful, beautiful eyes of his were focused on you. And they didn’t appear to be scowling at you as you thought they would, or even staring at you with perplexity over how obviously strange you were coming off as. You were lucky to consider that look as one of courtesy. But, of course, your infatuation told you to read far more into it than necessary. “D-dyouneedanythingelsesir?” you blarbed. You wished for nothing more than for a meteor to crash through the ceiling and strike you down in that moment. But alas, no such natural phenomena befell Martelli’s, nor you. It was probably for the better, however, as ADA Barba still seemed predominately unfazed. “No thank you. But I appreciate the offer,” he said. You gulped heavily.

“Good,” you practically gasped. You forgot when your fingers started to wring themselves nervously before your apron. “Pleaseenjoyyourmeal!”

You swore to yourself that you weren’t running, or that your footsteps weren’t stiff. But you knew that something about the way you retreated was abnormal, given how Daniel was smirking at you from the doorway leading back into the kitchen. You tried to pay him no mind as you made a beeline to a fridge. You placed your scorching face against the cool metal and groaned.

“Wooowwwww,” Daniel teased. “I haven’t seen moves so smooth since my middle school dance on the cusp of puberty.”

“Shut the fuck up,” you groused. “I thought you had shit to do anyway.”

“I did. It just so happened that watching you nearly crap yourself talking to that guy was on of ‘em.”

“Fuck you.”

“I thought that’s what you wanted him to do.”

++++++++

You didn’t watch him for the rest of the time he was there. You couldn’t bear to do so. You were beyond thankful when another coworker arrived for their shift, thereby freeing you from having to provide further contact with the object of your infatuation and cause of your humiliation.

… So why was Erica coming back to you and insisting that you go pick up the tip he’d left at his eating spot once he was ready to go?

“He insists that it’s because you were the first one to serve him,” she shrugged. Shit.

You tried not to think about how awkward you must’ve looked, glancing out from the back before actually making a move. He was gone, but sure enough some green paper money was visible. It was only as you neared it and removed the glass it had been sitting under that you recognized it as being a decently generous tip for a bar of all places.

Usually, to get a $20 tip, one might have to show a little skin, act a little flirtatious. You were pretty sure essentially vomiting up words and acting a fool wasn’t regular good cause for such a generous donation.

It was then that you noticed that the benevolent attorney had left you one last thing. There, also held in place by the scotch glass, was a napkin with writing on it. It was in red ink – the same red ink he’d been using to circle and underline on his notepad earlier.

You weren’t sure what possessed you to handle the tissue so gingerly, as though it were some great treasure instead of a completely disposable paper product. But what mattered more was how you handled it as you observed what was scrawled upon it in clean, swirling cursive:

I can’t imagine it’s any fun just *watching* somebody eat. Maybe next time you’d like to join me? – Rafael Barba You blinked once. Twice. You narrowed your eyes, scrunching your face inward as you brought the napkin closer and then away. But the message stayed the same.

This … This had to have been a joke, right? You glanced at the door, knowing what nonsense there was in assuming ADA – pardon, Rafael Barba would still be there. You were pleasantly and completely surprised to see that he was, in fact, just composing himself after placing his jacket back on and positioning his bag on his shoulder. Even from where you stood, you could see the lovely glint of his eyes. He smiled at you. Not a courteous one as a customer could to any member of the waitstaff – a kind, warm, sweet one, if a hint wobbly at the upturn. As if he were nervous. And then … a wink. The sound of your heart thundering in your ears and the subsequent blurring of your vision from the rush of blood made you miss the exact moment he departed, but the effect took its hold of you for quite some time after that. Even as you cleaned up and clocked out, your thoughts were stuck on that moment, the napkin, everything. Should you tell somebody? Who should you tell?

… Well, wasn’t that a silly question?

++++++++

Sonny Carisi glanced at his phone the moment he felt it vibrating in his pocket. He had been waiting on a message from Rollins, but he was happy enough to hear from you. You will not *BELIEVE* what just happened, dude, you’d messaged your friend. He couldn’t help but smirk. Unfortunately, it was noticed by somebody else. “Gee, I hope I wasn’t called here at last minute just to see some cat video or whatever,” Rafael Barba snarked as he waltzed into the precinct.

“Nah, I wish,” Sonny said, sliding the phone back into his pocket. “Were you havin’ a good evening?”

“Was,” Rafael sighed, trying not to furrow his brows with irritation. “I finally gave that bar you’d been going on about a try.”

“Oh?” Sonny asked, placing his hands on his hips. “Which one?”

“Martelli’s.” “Really? My friend works there, I oughta tell her to keep an eye out for ya!”

[kat-astrophic-todd]

when the night had veild the pole

@silverhawkeye221 asked for: Alfred shoots Joker in the head

Also on AO3

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Alfred Pennyworth was a man of good.

Every minute of his life he had attempted to be a man of honor, a man of justice, a man of good.

He started out young and naïve, playing on the theatre, so many decades ago he barely remembered the stage. But, sometimes, if he closed his eyes just right and caught a whiff of petrichor, he felt the thick velvet of the curtain, the nervous actors whispering right before getting out and playing their part. He could feel his heart pounding in anticipation, the feeling of the tights covering his thighs, the dread of going blank midsentence and starting to improvise. For a golden instant, he could feel it all. And just as soon, it would all be slipping through the cracks of his mind, back to that specific corner in his memories.

He had always differentiated every part of his life, so many years gave him time to process it. To treasure the best parts, to bury the ugly ones.

Sometimes, he would be working in the kitchen, thinking about nothing in particular and feel a change in the air, a creak on the ceiling, and instinctively reach to where he would have carried his gun, a lifetime ago. It was funny, indeed, how the tiniest of stimulus could trigger the memories, the pain, a completely different Alfred Pennyworth.

Some nights, usually when galas took place in the manor, he would look up the staircase and be sure Martha and Thomas Wayne would be descending, hand in hand. In more than one occasion, Alfred would stare at Master Wayne and feel almost horrified by the lack of that characteristic moustache, moments before realizing it was his boy at whom he was looking. Those memories stung.

But some memories would tear the old man to shreds. They would carve and burn and claw their way through him. They would make his knees buckle and his skin prickle. They would make the tears feel like acid on his cheeks, blind him with pain for a few seconds. Sometimes he would serve coffee to the man he had raised and discover himself already preparing hot cocoa for a scrawny, very tiny boy. He would dust the abandoned bedroom (intact, like a macabre museum of the past) and see him stomping his way into the room, telling Alfred all about his classes because Alfred, we’re reading Hamlet and I think I like it, but everyone’s just crazy, amiright?. And then he would stop and bend over and try to get past the urge to puke on a dead child’s duvet.

His dead grandson’s duvet.

And he would run to bathroom that hadn’t been used in years and throw up and let the pain run him over once again.

He would walk into a room where Master Bruce and Miss Barbara would be talking and feel the reflexive there’s no need to stand up, Miss Gordon almost leave his mouth. He would swallow and not meet Master Bruce’s eyes, because he would feel it. He would see it. And god knows the poor man had suffered enough.

He watches, every night, as a man who’s his son (by definition, by fate, by right) stands in front of a glass case (a reminder, a torture, a trap) and then walks away, dresses up as a flying rodent to save a city that doesn’t deserve the sacrifice. He sees a father and a son, too hurt to talk, too afraid of losing each other once again (but that’s what they do, the chasm between them turns a little rockier, a little bigger, each night.)

He sees an exceptional young woman that has been pushed to change her life, to work harder to keep up with the others. Someone, who has a gifted mind that makes her the biggest threat in the family. A fighter, a warrior, a woman who can no longer stand, but stands up for herself.

So, when Alfred Pennyworth prepares to leave the manor on an unremarkable Tuesday eve, there isn’t really much to think about.

He checks his holsters, palming the guns, and tucks away the silencer in his coat pocket. The walk is uneventful, peaceful, he feels comforted by his decision of avoiding vehicles. There’s something cathartic in having to do everything himself.

He almost feels stupid for having wasted all this time pondering the possibility, trying to hire people to do what he knows he would do better. Not that he’s going to take pleasure in it.

But he’s sure he’s going to enjoy the light coming back to his grandson’s eyes, the lightness in Miss Barbara’s. He’ll enjoy letting them know they don’t have to worry about their next patrol, anymore. They won’t have to wake up sweaty and in tears, wondering for some agonizing minutes if everything had been real. If it had happened again.

He would do that for them. He would provide that comfort. It was the least he could do.

The warehouse is filthy and dark. Neon lights in shapes of smiles and guns are the only thing illuminating the space in red and green tones. The clown is cackling. Alfred’s waiting.

The henchmen are retreating to the nearby warehouse, where they, no doubt, have their accommodations. The only one left around is the unfortunate Miss Quinn, who leans over the madman.

Alfred’s patient, that’s something the British intelligence appreciated about him on his missions. He makes himself comfortable in his hideout. He prepares his gun and screws in the silencer. He checks the magazine and the chamber. He checks twice for the safety mechanism.

The sun is rising when the clown shoves the woman to the floor and kicks her without holding back. Alfred’s blood freezes in his veins and watches as that excuse of a man kicks her again and shouts at her to get out of his face.

The list of people benefitting from his, soon to take place, assassination grows by the minute.

The clown sits back on his desk, taking notes frantically and pulling at his hair every few seconds. He’s murmuring and crossing out scribbles, a collection of knives carefully ordered on the table. The only thing ordered in the table.

Some of the knives are still bloodied.

Alfred Pennyworth is a man of good, but he’s been also a man of war, a man of life. He’s no stranger to taking lives, to placing the safety of thousand before the survival of one killer. He has been awarded with the highest honors for serving his country.

But when he shoots the gun, twice at the head, twice at the heart, he realizes there’s no biggest reward than protecting his own family. Than protecting his adoptive city.

He lets the body bleed out. The blood will be good proof of what has happened in this unimportant Tuesday night, where an unimportant deranged killer has been put down. History will not remember this. Will not remember an authorless kill.

He takes the Polaroid from his pocked in his gloved hands (nothing personal, a mere camera that nobody would miss from a lost property section in a Central City library). He takes the picture and leaves it near the knives, and then takes one of them and starts to cut off the right hand.

It’s when he has completely cut it off and laid it on the table when he sees it. The scribbles, the photographs, the scheme that would have involved each and every one of his family members. Plans of torture and murder.

Alfred doesn’t let it get to him. Maybe in a couple of days, he’ll let himself feel the fear, he’ll let his mind wonder what would have been of his son, of the children, had he not decided to continue with his plan.

He’s careful not to step too much on the blood with the boots he got in a shelter for old homeless people in Star City. He cuts two strands of hair and puts them in two separate plastic bags. Then, he drags the body by the armpits and takes him to the back door.

It takes him more time than he would like to admit, but he’s not a lad anymore.

The months he’s been planning the deed have let him study his target. He was fairly acquainted with him, that’s true, but meticulousness was always required. Alfred shoves the body in the truck of one of those hideous purple 4x4 and ignites it cutting some cables. He drives very slowly and avoiding any other vehicle. His own warehouse is not very far.

He introduces the body extremely carefully into the hydrofluoric acid inside the plastic container. Alfred picks up a duffle bag from a corner and starts changing into one of his regular suits. The madman is still disintegrating when he gets closer again and throws the clothes inside.

When he leaves the warehouse, far enough from the crime scene that they won’t discover it in a few hours, he’s still wearing the shelter’s boots.

He walks at a normal pace, covering his face with his favorite trench-coat until he nears a populated zone. Then, he takes off the boots and throws them in a dumpster (the garbage truck won’t take long to do the route in this neighborhood). He takes off the plastic bags covering his feet, too, and puts them in his pocked after putting on his dress shoes.

It’s 4 AM when he finally gets off the bus in Old Gotham and then takes a taxi to the fields surrounding Wayne Manor. He tips the driver generously and proceeds to take the Batcave entrance.

Master Bruce finds him at 5:33 AM, dusting off the T-Rex suspended by the ceiling.

“Oh, Master Bruce, I see you’re finally awake,” the butler hums.

“How are you functioning at this unholy hour?” Master Bruce groans, the moment reminding Alfred of every time he begs for just five more minutes, Alfred. No, no! Don’t pull the curtain-

“I can assure you, Master Bruce,” the old man huffs, descending from the ceiling and unclasping the harnesses, “That this is a perfectly holy hour to be awake for us, normal human beings.” He places a hand briefly on his son’s cheek, smirking. “Breakfast will be served at six o’clock.”

He hears the defeated sigh behind him and lets himself enjoy the moment. He feels a tangible weigh being lifted from his shoulders. He has some writing to do.

  ᴥ

  Dear Master Jason and Miss Barbara,

 By the time you read this, you will, most likely, have already heard the news. I assume you may have also noticed the strand of green hair attached to this letter.

I will not apologize for what I have done. I could not simply ignore all the pain and trauma that man has caused to this family, to my family. I do not seek after your forgiveness or approval.

I wanted you to know who did it and why, to know you can stop looking over your shoulders, wondering what he might do next. I wanted you to know this old man did it not only for the both of you, but for the people who were going to be next on his list. The mothers and fathers, and children that were going to suffer and those who were going to die.

I am no stranger to murder, I was, after all, in the army. So this was not a sacrifice for me. Do not think for a moment that this will bring me despair.

I only hope I can see a smile again on you faces when you see me. I only hope you do not look differently at this old man when he hugs you.

Having said that, I am not asking from you anything you are not willing to give. I will understand if you do not immediately burn this letter and the biological proof. I will understand if any of you tells Master Bruce.

After all, what I did was illegal, but someone had to finally do it. Someone with the skills, someone too old to care for what happens to him.

I have lived a long and happy life. Whatever you decide to do after this letter, I only wish two have a long and happy life, too.

 Yours truly,

Alfred T. Pennyworth

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If you liked this prompt, you can ask me for one on my writing blog @anchinoe