#i was kinda going for the idea that it’s instinctual for tank to go to gabe for help

[penumbra-mayhem]

Instinct

Tank is struggling after the Inversion, and there is only one person they can go to for help.

(I hc Tank with a stutter, more on that here.)

————————————————

“Hey,” Tank murmured as they settled in the dew-coated grass, “It’s b-been a wwhile…mmmy b-bad.”

The waking sun unfurled its rays in languor. Mourning doves stirred, greeting the light with their periwinkle coos. 

A small, cocky smile cracked across Tank’s face. “B-B-But, in mmmy defense, y-you haven’t reached out either, so…” Deflating, they hung their head and muttered, “…b-bad joke, I-I kn-know.”

Tank fiddled with the bundle of wild rosemary in their hands. They’d picked it on Sam’s land and tied the sprigs together with a strip of fabric from an old shirt. Such a pathetic offering. Why couldn’t they have brought something nicer? Why was everything they did so thoughtless?

No planning. No forethought. Just instinct.

“I-I hate t-t-to come t-t-to you wwith all mmmy shit, b-b-but I-I don’t have anyone else t-t-to t-talk t-to ab-bout this,” they explained, “Everyone I-I kn-know wwwas there. And they wwere all actually in-inside, actually d-dealing wwwith that shit and I-I wwwas just…”

Tears bubbled up in their vision. They gnawed at the raw flesh on the inside of their cheek, trying not to take their pain out on the gift in their hands or the grass around them.

They were made for destruction. It came more naturally to Tank than anything else; it was easy and safe, in its own way. There was certainty in knowing they had the power to tear everything apart. If they had been there, at least they could have used that proclivity to protect people.

“WWWhy wwwasn’t I-I there?” they whimpered, “Fuck, I-I feel guilty that I-I wwwasn’t there and-and then I-I feel guilty for wwwwishing I-I had b-b-been.”

How selfish of them. How utterly pathetic. 

“If I-I had, I-I could have at-at least fought wwwith them. I-I could have d-done something, in-instead of-of fucking n-n-n-nothing.”

Tank was at constant war with their emotions—always had been. They could do little to control them and nothing to stop them. But still they fought, trying to breathe deep and ground themself with their senses.

As they raised a shaking hand to clear their face of tears, the scent of rosemary bloomed in their nose like the breaking dawn.

It eased the onslaught within them, somewhat. 

“I-I got off easy. So I-I’m trying t-to b-b-be there for everyone. The p-pack. Sam. MMilo and Asher and-and David. Their mmmates. V-Vincent and his. I-I’m trying to rep-p-prioritize. I-I have t-to. I-I came so close t-t-to l-l-l-l-l—fuck,” they took a few shallow breaths before blubbering, “…l-l-l-l-losing e-everyone.”

The doves gathered in the boughs over Tank’s head, cooing them into a calmer state like a gentle chorus. They sat above like a crown of mourning, the weight of which was familiar, and in that familiarity was some sort of comfort.

“I-I wwwasn’t there. I-I shouldn’t b-b-be l-like this. I-I should b-be strong. I-I should b-b-be their rock. B-B-But I-I’m n-n-not. Shocker,” they sighed, bitterness sinking its fangs into their tone. 

“I-I’ve torn the in-insides of mmmy cheeks t-to shreds,” they admitted, “I-I can’t st-top checking everyone’s l-l-location on mmmy phone, it-it's b-b-becoming...obsessive. And I-I can’t go p-p-practically anywwhere wwwithout Sam.”

That morning had been difficult. Sam had offered to accompany Tank, not even knowing yet where they were headed. But they insisted on going alone, assuring him they’d be back in a couple hours and that they’d keep their location on. They couldn’t let him hear all of this. He was already dealing with enough. Far more than they were.

“WWhenever I-I l-l-lose sight of him, it-it’s l-like…it-it’s l-l-like wwwhen wwwwe l-lost the l-live feed. L-L-L…l-l-l-like I-I wwas suddenly on strings. MMMy mmmmovements wweren’t mmmy own, it-it wwwas all animal, all in-instinct. I-I wwwas shifted and sp-printing b-b-b-before I-I had even p-p-processed wwwhy.”

The morning air was steadily growing warmer, yet chills ran through Tank’s body. Tears muddled their vision. When they spoke, their voice was barely audible:

“I-I’m having n-n-n-nightmares…of-of the wwwward. That godawful st-tatic feeling it-it filled mmmy t-t-teeth wwith wwhen I-I b-b-bit at it-it. The fucking carnage I-I saw wwwhen it-it finally l-l-lifted. The b-b-bodies...if-if you could c-call them that. The b-blood. Asher’s b-b-blood, c-c-covering him and-and David and-and Sam.”

Sam.

“Fuck, I-I’ve n-n-never seen him l-l-look at-at mmmme l-l-like that b-b-before. Grab at-at mmme l-like that b-b-b-before. L-L-Like he wwwas dr-drowning, l-l-l-like he wwwwas s-suffoc-cating, and I-I-I wwwas his l-l-l-last t-t-t-tank of-of air.”

The nightmares always ended with him. Relief juddering through his body. Terror flooding down his cheeks. Anguish clawing out of his mouth. 

“B-B-B-But I-I-I wwwwwasn’t there!” Tank shouted, startling the doves from their perches in a cacophony of whistles. 

“SSo I-I sh-shouldn’t f-feel this wwwway. I-I-I sh-shouldn’t b-b-be having these d-damn dreams and-and th-these th-thoughts and-and th-these ffffffeelings. B-B-B-But I-I-I am…I-I’m hurting, d-d-dad. And-And I-I-I d-don’t kn-kn-know wwwwhat t-t-to d-do.”

Tank crumbled, every tear they’d fought against and tore at and bit back since the Inversion finally breaking through. All the while, Gabe’s gravestone sat before them, providing them shade from the sun now glaring on the horizon.

[shoot-i-messed-up]

OK SO @galaxy---ghost and @wajjs you guys asked for it! Here are my current (albeit prettied up) notes on my premise for a time loop Superlantern fic:

We open with Clark having just come back from Hal's funeral to his empty apartment. And he's just kinda sitting at his table, and it really really hits him then that Hal is just gone.

Then a mysterious cloaked figure appears and tells him to fly around the planet in the opposite rotation to rewind time before Hal Jordan's death so he can save him, which Clark obviously objects to because that makes no scientific sense, but he knows about magic, and there's something about the cloaked figure that makes him instinctively want to trust them. The cloaked figure tells him that they can give him a little push to help him access the Speed Force so this is possible (and yes, this is how I'm going to justify that little superpower from the Christopher Reeve movies). The cloaked figure, however, warns Clark that they're trying not to get caught interfering with mortal affairs, especially to this extent, so 1) they can only help Clark go back up to a relatively short time before Hal's death (like, say, the day of or like 3 days before, haven't decided yet), 2) Clark can't tell anyone about the time loop or he might alert the higher forces that something is fishy, and 3) the higher forces might even start to suspect that something is up even if Clark follows those first two rules, so the quicker Clark can prevent Hal's death, the better, but the cloaked figure is aware this might take more than one try.

So, the first chapter is Clark going through the first several loops. He is, of course, a very smart man, so he tries many different strategies, but they all somehow fail in one way or another. As for why Hal keeps dying, I'm imagining that there's some big supervillain teamup that doesn't seem to be targeted at Hal, but every single loop, Hal either gets killed by one of the supervillains or sacrifices himself to save someone else and/or the greater good. However, as Clark is going through the loops, Clark starts to spend more and more time with Hal and gets to know him way better than ever before. Like, they've known each other for like 10+ years at this point, this is post-Spectre Hal, but they've never really sought each other out like Clark is doing now. Yeah you guessed it: Clark is slowly developing a crush on Hal.

now, I'm not 100% about the structure of this part, but here's what I'm thinking. We kinda jump forward a bit here and there as Clark continues to try to save Hal's life, but sometimes this comes at the cost of other people dying or the whole world dying if Hal doesn't sacrifice himself, etc. Barry, actually, being connected to the Speed Force and all is also starting to suspect something is fishy because he starts to get a feeling of deja vu, like Batman did in The Batman 2004 TV series (thank you Overly Sarcastic Productions for reminding me of that surprisingly good Clock King episode). And now, Clark has been going through the time loop dozens of times by now, if not hundreds, and we clearly see he's really been Going Through It. Worse, the loop right at the end of this chapter had Clark so desperate to save Hal, he actually tells Hal about the time loop. Hal, of course, believes him because superheroes have had wayyyy wackier shit happen to them than that and Hal even believes Clark about Hal's certain doom thing, but Hal still consciously makes that choice to sacrifice himself for the greater good. That loop, Clark is terrified that him telling Hal about the time loop means that he can't use the time loop anymore, but he flies up to fly around the planet backwards again anyway. The cloaked figure doesn't immediately appear to give him that little push through the Speed Force like they did in previous loops, but Clark keeps on flying because he needs this to work. and then, gasp, a cliffhanger until the next chapter!

The second chapter is Hal's POV. It's the beginning of the loop, but to Hal, he's just up at the Watchtower, having just come back from space duty and put back on Earth duty again, so he can stick around with the Justice League for a while. He's just chatting with Barry and/or Oliver, catching up before a regular Justice League meeting, when Superman superseded busts through the doors, looking extremely bedraggled. Everyone there, especially Batman, is concerned, and they're especially baffled when Clark zeroes in on Hal, tackles him into a hug (Barry probably almost stops him because he is 100000% faster than Clark and Clark definitely is concerning everyone), and bursts into tears. Everyone is like "uhhh..." especially Hal, who looks toward Bruce and Diana with panicked eyes like, "uh?? this is your best friend? what is going on?? help me???"

Now, from there, I'm not really sure what I want to have happen. Possibly Clark believes/worries that this is the last loop before the cloaked figure gives up on him or gets caught by their mysterious higher forces. I'm thinking this can either go one of two ways: either

1) Clark comes clean to everyone about the time loop, and the entire Justice League rallies to save Hal from certain doom, which thematically completes the lesson that Clark does not need to carry the weight of the world on his shoulders, and neither does Hal, or

2) Clark aims to have as much time as possible with Hal before he dies for real this loop, which carries way more angst + fun potential, but perhaps less thematic potential. I'm thinking Clark bursts into tears on Hal's shoulder, and then Clark spends the next 24 hours or however long the time loop is, like a guard dog around Hal.

If I go with the second option (which I would rather, since it seems more fun and, honestly, less corny than the first option), I would still have to figure out a way for Clark to figure out how to time loop his way out of Hal's certain doom.

Anyway, at some point, Clark does figure it out, and the cloaked figure appears again and thanks him. Clark talks to the cloaked figure and calls him Hal, because he thinks they're the Spectre version of Hal somehow. However, it turns out it's actually Helen Jordan II (her The Spectre 2001 version), who is now the teenage ward of Materna Minx, and is being kept away from mortal affairs by the higher forces as she grows up. She's been keeping an eye out for her beloved uncle, even though she knows he--and most people in the universe--can't really remember her, and she's really glad Clark was able to save him because she wasn't able to herself. Clark doesn't really remember her either until she brings out a little wooden figurine of Green Lantern out from under her cloak, and then he suddenly remembers a flash of whittling a whole set of figurines for her birthday.

I'm not 100% about whether or not I want Hal to reunite with Helen here after his prevented death because I had a plot bunny idea with Helen Jordan II that I borrowed from for this fic idea.

So anyway yeah! That's my Superlantern time loop fic idea muscle arm emoji x 100

had an idea for a time loop superlantern fic. i’m lowkey going crazy. not even about the fic just in general. why do i keep having fic ideas and not finishing my wips.

[whumpitisthen]

hello i am here to ask about your oc grim. i am not zi

Hello not zi i am so excited to introduce you to my rat bastard!

Grim is literally the Grim Reaper. Like actually. He is also a vampire! A very dramatic, thespian, sadistic, scary individual. He likes going on murder sprees. He likes causing problems on purpose and annoying people, as he finds joy in being virtually untouchable by most others on the account of being a deity. He especially likes bothering people who are also powerful and like bullying the weak, but who are not quite powerful enough to talk back and banter with someone who can kill them in a second with the single touch of a finger. Oh yeah, he can kill by merely touching someone, he just enjoys carnage a lot more! It's more challenging and fun to go up one against a thousand, and way more traumatising for those who witness his slaughter in person (Auden. Auden is forever scarred). He does occasionally perform the Kiss of Death i guess, as he is a romantic and simply can't help being slimy and gross about it. A gentle death, all things considered, to die from a kiss

As for appearance, i have been working on a drawing of him, but the issue is that ive worked on it for so long that every time i look at it i hate it more, so its just in perpetual limbo forever. BUT, until i finally post it, i can just describe him!

He has very long silver, near white hair he keeps in a messy ponytail that starts off decent, but gets worse as the day goes on bc hes feral and rabid. He is in all long, flowy black clothing, as he has to stay on theme. Usually a long coat and tall boots, as that is his 'work' outfit (i.e. the stuff he wears to do war and murder and death and crimes) as well as a mask resembling some kind of an Animal's skull. I haven't actually chosen what kind of animal (or maybe i have? I think i landed on a canine skull) but i do actually have some sketches of actual animal skulls i made for ideas that i can show :3

I also thought about having it be like a plague doctor type deal with a bird skull instead but i already have The Doctor (another bastard character of mine), and if anyone, they should have the honor of wearing a mask like that

He also of course has a big heavy scythe, and black tendrils of smoky magic surrounding him when hes extra rabid, which cloaks him and makes him look like the cursed shadow of a dead animal, possibly a hyena if you take into account his unhinged cackling. Only when hes in the mood for killing murder and homicide, otherwise hes mostly shadow magic free

He wears a lot of silver jewellery, which does in fact burn him as he is quite the unholy creature of night; he just doesn't care. If asked about it, hell say its cause he likes how silver looks. (spoiler: the real reason is that he is Absolutely a masochist but you didn't hear that from me, that chapter is still in the works o_o) He has one hand thats just completely charcoal black, and he has black markings running across the skin of his entire body up to his chin, and there are two reasons for that:

When he became the embodiment of death the black magic possessing him cursed/burned him and now he just Looks Like That

I find tattoos incredibly hot, especially covering the neck. Very attractive

Hes also like. A tall guy. For a human hes big lanky tall, like 2 metres (thats around 6'6 apparently) however hes also usually in Hell, and demons can grow to all kinds of insane heights, be it rly tiny or hugely massive. Despite that, even demons triple his height built like a tank and weighing about as much find him to be incredibly unnerving, and instinctually become wary and careful around him. He has that effect on people he's in one room with; some kind of magical aura that causes even the wildest forest around him to become deathly silent upon his arrival. but he's also just kinda. Infamous. Like its hard to find someone who doesn't know who he is, its like trying to find someone in europe or the us whos never heard of jesus or god before. You could maybe find a few people like that, but its very unlikely. So not many walk up to him ready to obliterate him, however much they may want to. He likes looking down on people as much as he likes looking up at massive shit brick houses trying their damnedest to stare him down and assert dominance, not really succeeding. He prides himself on being the most menacing thing around, and not only regarded with fear by the weakest, but also awakening rare terror inside the hearts of the strongest, who aren't used to being on the recieving end of Anything bad. He almost finds it more fun than dunking on those that are already at the bottom of the food chain.

Hes also just a silly goofy guy :) just a silly smiley guy :) its probably why so many interpretations of the grim reaper have a human skull for a head :) its cause hes so silly and so smiley :)

Not Even God Will Be Able To Save You If You Manage To Truly Ruin His Mood :)

And as a last little fun fact, he has a tendency to just. Show Up. Just spawn next to you. Behind you. You could blink and congratulations, suddenly hes in your face and youve died from a heart attack. He just kinda appears, and then hes there. Like imagine youre a big scary demon lord, in a massive mansion, locked behind many walls and doors, guards patrolling every corner, feared by many. you walk into your very safe bedroom, ready to relax. And hes just. there. No one saw him enter. No one will notice when he leaves. Hes just laying on your couch like an asshole, reading your diary. What do you even do about this

You can read about him in Auden's story! He is one of Auden's whumpers! He's gonna be in the forefront in the newest chapter im writing (as well as another surprise mystery guest that will finally be introduced 👀) so be ready for that releasing any time between tomorrow and two weeks from now :-)

[brandwhorestarscream]

Cryptoid Seeker SS courting Megatron by bringing him his enemies (injured from capture, not dead. Still fun to hunt).

I imagine seekers having a specific ritual for non-seeker mates. Maybe zooming around, doing general Arial feats, bring their mates the injured enemies as an offering (similar but dulled down version of the seeker to seeker wing offering)?

Btw, the zooming and offering thing is found in Falcons. That, or they bring them Shiney things. But eh.

I also feel like cybermorphs courting would be super stupid. Like a wasps. Like, sitting on the ground, staring right at their desired mate, making a very specific buzzing sound kind of stupid. That, or maybe something like a white pufferfish (who draws weird geometric patterns in the sand to attract a mate). Imagine both. Megs draws a circle thing, sits in the middle, and stares at SS. That'd be hilarious.

Maybe some hidden horror with some mantis like behaviors? But combined with some wasp behavior, resulting in a bite to the neck cables that numbs the mates senses, making them unaware enough not to hold back? That'd be fragged up.

Or even? Some hidden secret that only seekers get affected in a different way than most. Like, they end up with seeker eggs that hold the cybermorphs eggs inside? And when the eggs do the explody thing, the cybermorphs are the squishy inside, having already combined with the seekerling to make this super parasitic version that makes housing one 10x worse.

Sorry for the long rant. I love the cryptiods.

Do not ever apologize for going on long rants, they genuinely make my day so much better 💖 first of all I love everything you've put here, but BEFORE ANYTHING ELSE!

I need to know more about the seekerling-cybermorph crossover. Tell me everything. Like the inside of the eggs, I wanna know every little detail about it. When you say the explodey thing, do you mean the cryptid seekerlings rupturing from their egg sacs early and seeking host in nearby fuel tanks? Cuz that's not always what happens with them, and is in fact an emergency defense mechanism to maximize survival chance. Usually they just carefully break free of their shells when their development is complete. So, tell me about these eggs, squishy cybermorph filling, I need to know! Gimme every. Single. Detail 👀 cuz like. All my mind is envisioning is like. A two layer egg, whetein the baby cybermorph is the center, kinda like the yolk, and an individual baby seekerling is in the outermembrane, and. Obviously that's not what's happening 😅 but super parasitic babies that are 10 times worse? I need to know!!

Also just, hear me out 👀 I love all these courtship ideas, but I'd like to pitch something to make it even funnier. Cybermorphs are very recent development on Cybertron in the grand scheme of things, and have only been around for a handful of generations (probably less than 5). Megatron is from the very first gen, so consider: even he doesn't entirely understand courtship. It's entirely instinctual and the logical part of him doesn't understand these weird urges. Like... what about this weird vibration/frequency he's giving off is attractive? The weird geometry, why is that considered attractive? He's a stranger to his own biology--the entire planet is, really--and secretly he's rather frustrated and embarrassed about it. He tries to match Starscream's energy, but what can he do for someone that can cross the entire planet in only a few megacycles? He can't just leave his hive and go gallavanting around just to impress the potential sire of his future children. Maybe he turns to tactics and battlefield prowess to impress him; it's a good thing too, because Starscream loves some good bloodshed 🤭

I'm also super down for the numbing bite. Cryptid seekers already spit venom, and the cybermorph biology is largely underdeveloped, so honestly either of them could. Maybe Starscream is venomous, Megatron is poisonous XD maybe he produces some kind of intoxicating pheromone that dulls the senses or hypnotizes, as a queen variant 🤔 or maybe it's a toxic, addictive aphrodisiac? Maybe he can produce multiple varieties! Something that releases inhibitions and makes his partner go hard, fast, and uncaring, with fertilization being the only important thing

Regardless. Terrifying parasitic Megatron and Starscream being fuck buddies that coparent? I love it

[youandthemountains]

Karate Kid/Cobra Kai survey

No one tagged me but i wanted to do it bc i wanna talk cobra kai and nothing is true, everything is permitted, know yourself & follow no one etc. etc.

It's the year 2021 and you're obsessed with The Karate Kid. How are you feeling?:  it's cringe as hell but you know what!!! in @deputychairman's fine words, the cringe is the point!! i am so thankful i finally watched the karate kid trilogy, has been a net positive in my life!! love an earnest weirdo who tries and won't be bullied into submission!!! love making an effort to understand why people are the way they are!! also esp after watching the macchio torture porn movie with the oddly comforting 90s commercials, i do get why you get stuck on a past that made more sense to you even as it makes you progressively more incapable of engaging with the world as it is now.

Did you grow up with TKK or are you new to the series?:  I had heard of it, and heard of Miyagi-isms but had never watched it bc honestly I associate 80s movies with my brother and his girlfriend insisting I watch a ~classic~ and being bored out of my mind. But I wish I had watched this one then!

We gotta do the basics. Favorite character:  Lol well, I think this comes as a surprise to no one, but Daniel, Mr. Miyagi, and Kumiko

Favorite ship:  Lawrusso! Although I've enjoyed reading well-written version of Daniel/anyone, it all depends on the writer. I feel weird about ~shipping the youths but I think Samtory & Sam/Aisha & Aisha/Tory are all delightful. Also Daniel/Johnny/Amanda has got some of the best writers in the fandom writing for them.

Underrated character: OH where to start - Kumiko my beloved, Chozen (sorry I'm a stubborn Chozen stan I have no idea when and how this happened I just think there's so much unused potential there), Miguel (I feel like he gets lost in all the other characters storylines, like he's a vehicle for everyone else's stories while his own storylines just kind of sputter out), Chris (he switched sides and is one of the only characters who was never comfortable with the instinctual aggression at Cobra Kai and pretty immediately apologized but he gets like no story? classic), depending on which fandom we're talking about, Aisha, Sam and Tory (but honestly they're great characters and people really and truly find any excuse to hate a teen girl. Yasmine and Moon I get because they're really non-entities as characters, they literally just exist to be the Mean Girls and then wrestled into submission as the Hot Girlfriends.) Shannon - I feel like she gets constantly dunked on or written as this evil party girl, but I think she's interesting! Robby clearly loves and trusts her despite how tumultuous it was growing up with her and she did absolutely mistreat him through neglect, but when help was offered to her via rehab she took it and made an active effort to engage and try and apologized for her mistakes and embraced change. I think that's really hard to do and really admirable, and I love that she still kept her feistiness and sense of humor throughout.

Underrated ship (don’t say therapy, lol):  Underrated ships are my raison d'etre! Some of my favorite non-lawrusso Daniel ships:

Daniel/Chozen - my white whale, I know he had sexual relations with that man. I just know it.

Daniel/Kumiko - not super underrated but they're the most tender star-crossed missed connection, I really think they're the kind of love where you're comforted just knowing that there exists someone in the world that really knows you

Danielle/Ali - thanks to @iamtheremin's fics, I'm eternally craving the lesbian karate kid. god. icon.

Daniel/Jimmy - fully thanks to @klovenhooves writing it beautifully, the concept of them as tennis partners progressively drawn to each other lives in my head rent-free

Johnny/Daniel/Shannon - also thanks to @idontknowkaratebutiknowcrazy's great writing and WHAT a threesome. Gives you an absolutlely delightful peek at what Johnny/Shannon were like and they combine the full force of their Party Blondes on an unsuspecting Daniel. incredible.

Daniel/Ruben - thanks to @ted-imgoingmad's fascinating new fic, just unbearably heartbreakingly gentle with a Daniel that's trapped in a different toxic relationship

Samtory - thanks to lesbianbean's incredible series!!! Honestly I had not thought of it before but then she went all galaxy brain on us and woof. and then of course @cobra-sigh just made it better and better

Wax On, Wax Off or Sweep the Leg?:  sweep the leg just because I'm stronger with my legs than my arms.

Which of Daniel’s dumb little outfits is your favorite?:  he's a fashion icon, how's a girl supposed to pick just one. the powder blue ruffled prom suit is just, absolute king shit. the black tank top & hachimaki with the shirt tied around his waist? butch icon. the soft comfy sweatpants from KK3? it's what he deserves.

Character from the films you most want to return, who’s not Terry Silver: Mostly everyone's come back already haven't they? so, Jessica and Mike Barnes. oooh Freddy Fernandez - I'm curious about the only guy who was kinda friends with Daniel.

Scene that lives in your head rent-free: from Cobra Kai? bloody unhinged Daniel shooting Johnny a wide-eyed look just before murdering his abuser and the little nod he gives Daniel back, and also the way Daniel's soften and when Johnny joins forces with him against Kreese.

From TKK - Daniel sitting next to Mr. Miyagi and comforting him after Mr. Miyagi's father died and giving him the most upset, sympathetic, and loving look in the whole series while Mr. Miyagi silently tears up. I love them so much

Will Anthony LaRusso ever be relevant?:  Lmfao I fully think the writers have completely forgotten he exists. Did they cast a different actor for him in s3 or did he just grow and look totally different?

You live in The Valley and are forced into the karate gang war. Which dojo do you join?:  No gang wars! I join Topanga and the love and peace kid. We've already learned the gang wars never actually solve anything, just kick the can down the road!!

What’s your training montage song?:  I cannot think of any hype songs at all right now

It’s the crossover event of the century! Which TV show are you combining with Cobra Kai for an hour-long Saturday night special?:

uhh Leverage because that's what I've been watching. They're tipped off about the corrupt DA in Encino and eventually find out about this gang war funded by DynaTox and join forces. Let's go steal a high school karate tournament!

Tagging: @firstaudrina @keybladeofsteel @issa-wasteland @deputychairman @miyagifangdo @leohtebewunden @jknip2 @bobakick @childishzombiejellyfish @mindlessbehavior2011 @likethegardensofbabylonn @banzai-larusso @jenpsaki @anicety @shewritesdirty @dancinbutterfly @padraigendragon

[justkending]

Used to Be Overlooked. Chapter 20.

Summary: Steve Rogers was walking down the streets of Brooklyn after finishing a mission. The goal was just to take some time to clear his mind along the city streets, but when he runs into a gorgeous young lady that looks extremely familiar… How can he go about moving on? Who is she? What does he know her from? Was that memory even from this decade?

Pairing: Steve Rogers x Reader (Rosalyn Ember/ Y/N ?)

Word Count: 3200+

Warning: SLOW BURN. Soooo slow, but sooooo worth it...

A/N: Ya’ll... I took a major twist in this chapter. I was thinking how I wanted this story line to go, and figured I’d spice it up a bit. Well, here you are. Send me your thoughts. I really want to know what you think about it...

Chapter 20:

“Well, good morning sunshine,” you greeted Bucky as he came into the kitchen.

It was just you and Wanda in the kitchen so far. Everyone else was still sleeping or realizing they had a hangover, and found themselves not wanting to get out of bed quite yet.

“Ugh,” Bucky grunted waving you off as he made a b-line for the coffee pot.

“Someone’s not having as nice of a morning as us Rosie,” Wanda giggled taking a sip of her coffee.

“That’s what you get for drinking the amount you did.” you laughed with her.

“You drank just as much,” he mumbled.

“You had the rougher stuff, “ you lied since Wanda was there. “And hangovers don’t really affect me,” you said walking over and refilling your mug. You leaned in whispering to him once you were closer. “Plus, I heal faster remember. Kinda making hangovers non-existent.”

“Lucky ass,” Bucky groaned sending you a playful glare before taking your spot at the table. “Where’s Steve? I figured he’d be up at the same time as you.”

“Not sure. His door was shut so I thought he was still sleeping,” you answered taking a sip of the sweet sweet caffeine juice.

“Steve doesn’t sleep in,” Bucky said raising an eyebrow.

“He went for a run, I think. I saw him out and about before coming in here,” Wanda spoke up.

“A run sounds nice actually,” you said standing up from where you were leaning on the counter. “Wanda, do you have a tank top I can borrow?”

“Yeah. There should actually be a couple of extras in the guest bedroom you were staying in. They may fit better.”

“Perfect. I’m going to finish my coffee and then I’ll go.”

“Go where?” Steve said coming in taking out his headphones. He sent you a sly smile that made one instantly appear on your face. He was wearing a new pair of sweats and a zip up sweatshirt that was opened showing off the extremely tight, dry-fit shirt underneath.

“For a run. Heard you went out for one, and it sounded like a good idea,” you smiled putting the mug down, now forgotten.

“I can come with you if you want,” he said getting closer and standing on the other side of the island you were against.

“No, no. I’ll be fine. I don’t want to make you run any more than you already have,” you waved him off coming around the counter.

“It’s fine doll. I think I can handle it,” he smirked placing his hands on his hips.

“Really? You up for another 10 miles?” you said mocking his posture and standing in front of him.

“10 miles!” Wanda and Bucky both spoke up.

You turned to look at them over your shoulder.

“What? I like to run. I’ve built up an endurance,” you shrugged sending a smug grin before turning back to Steve who was just grinning knowingly back at you. “I’ll be fine,” you laughed.

“I have no doubt in that. Just figured you would want the company,” he shrugged grabbing an apple.

“Eh, I usually start the day off with a quiet run. Helps get me started for the day. Besides, I’d like to see the grounds for myself,” you said crossing your arms.

“Whatever you say. I could be your personal guide if you want though,” he said smiling.

“You’ll be too much of a distraction,” you winked before heading for the doorway. “I’ll be back in 40 minutes,” you waved.

“40 minutes?” Bucky said almost spilling his coffee. “10 miles in 40 minutes?”

You just rolled your eyes playfully and laughed at him. “I’ll be back later.”

___

Sure enough, there was multiple tank tops to choose from in your guest room. You kept your leggings on from last night, threw on a light running jacket that was slightly cropped and zipped it up halfway. You also found a pair of headphones in the night stand of the room and quickly plugged them into your phone. Tony Stark sure knows how to accommodate his guests.

You did a few stretches before taking off playing your 70’s playlist. That was one of your favorite music decades. Especially for pumping yourself up and getting a good energy for working out.

You decided to take the more scenic route since getting out and running in areas with as many trees as the compound had was hard in a city like New York. Ok, not too hard, but it sure as hell didn’t feel like you were running in the city.

There was a nice forest area that had a wide running path. Most likely for the trainee agents, and maybe even The Avengers themselves to run along.

It was nice and calming as well as safe feeling. Nine and a half miles in and you hadn’t even realized you were breaking a record with your time at 38 minutes because of how at peace you were in this environment. I mean you were in the Avengers home. No one could get in unless they were invited.

At least that’s what you thought until you saw something move out of the corner of your eye along the tree line.

You slowed down your pace, and removed one earbud from your ear turning to the blur that you saw. You squinted wondering if your eyesight was messing with you. Tilting your head and taking a single step closer, you didn’t notice anything weird, and shrugged it off. You went to place the headphones back in your ear and hit play on your phone and took a few steps forward ready to start your stride back up.

What you saw standing in front of you about 30 yards up is what made you freeze all over again.

You let out an audible gasp, and dropped the headphone bud making the wire that was attached to your phone fall towards the ground.

“No,” you whispered to yourself in a breath that was knocked out of you at the sight.

__

“Hey, is Y/N back yet?” Bucky asked coming behind Steve who was looking out one of the large glass windows into the yard where you had left out of.

“No, not yet. She should be back soon though. If not in the next few minutes,” he said never breaking his concentration from the view.

“I don’t know man. Maybe she was bluffing about that 40 minutes,” Bucky joked.

“I run 13 miles in 30 minutes. She’s not too far off from me,” Steve smirked at his friend before looking back.

“Ok, but you have super serum, she just has-” Bucky said trying to come out winning the argument, but just getting a look from his friend. “Ok, fine. She probably can do it.”

“You jealous Bucky?” Steve chuckled.

“I’m not jealous. I-I, I’m-I’m-” Steve sent him another look. “I’m not jealous, I think I’m just shocked.”

“Yeah, well. She tends to do that to people,” Steve nodded at the window. “But really though, she should be done soon. It’s been almost an hour. Even if she were bluffing, I think she would still be done by now.”

“Yeah you’re right,” Bucky said looking out the window, and concerned now. “Maybe she did a few extra miles. Should we go find her?”

“Nah, I’ll do it,” Steve waved off making his way to the elevator. “Go ask Tony to see surveillance so I can try and figure out where she ran off to. It’s a big piece of land. She could be anywhere.”

“Are you sure that isn’t just another way of asking me to stalk her via video camera?”

“That’s exactly what I’m asking you to do, so yes,” Steve said stepping in the elevator and send his friend an annoyed look.

“You know what I mean-” Bucky started, but the doors shut. “Screw it. He knew what I meant,” he waved off headed to find Stark. “What did I mean?” he asked himself.

__

“No.”

The figure in front of you took a step forward, and an evil grin appeared on his face.

As reflex, you took a step back, but didn’t get far as there was a wall-like body keeping your from retreating.

Instinctually, you whipped around ready to fight, but two hands grabbed you quickly on the forearms keeping them from being used as weapons. You grunted against the hold and tried to wiggle free, but it was useless. The giant who had a grip on you wasn’t using just impressive human strength. This type of power was inhuman.

“Let me go!” you shouted wiggling and successfully kicking your legs just far enough to hit his knee cap and making his hold lessen as he fell to the ground. He grunted in pain, and you immediately took the opportunity of weakness to run around him.

Once again, you didn’t get far as another strong hand grabbed your arm pulling you back hard to where you fell to the ground with a thud. Without a second thought, you kicked again and started moving to get up again.

What you weren’t expecting was a needle to be pushed through your skin, and injecting something cold into your veins. You hissed at the pain as you turned back to see where it came from.

You made eye contact with the same man you were originally running from. You had come to know him very well, and not in a good way.

Fear filled your eyes, and as reflexes started taking over, you pushed to get up and run again. This time no one fighting you.

You got about 15 feet out before things started darkening, and feelings in your muscles started to disappear.

“No, no,” you mumbled as your legs started giving out, and you stumbled trying to move forward. “No, this can’t be happening.”

You collapsed to the ground on your knees and started breathing heavily as the fear and realization of what was to come washed over you.

Soon everything felt heavy, and you couldn’t hold up your body anymore. Everything went limp including your eyes, and you couldn’t move.

For a few seconds you could hear still.

“Grab her quick. We don’t have much time before they notice her absence,” a deep voice that you remembered all too well spoke up.

“Yes boss,” another voice you knew spoke up.

“And don’t injure her anymore. I need her completely stable for later,” he commanded.

“Of course boss.”

You felt someone pick you up and throw you over their shoulder. You let out a huff of air at the movement even if it was involuntary. So much for not injuring you. That toss was going to leave a bruise for a minute even if your body healed itself at a fast rate.

“Dear sweet Y/N, I told you I would find you,” the first voice said, and you could feel them raising your chin with their finger. You couldn’t open your eyes, but you didn’t need to know who the monster behind this was. You could feel the smug grin on his face just by the tone in his voice. You knew that voice from your nightmares.

He dropped your face gently, and next thing you knew. Everything was black. No sounds, sights, or feeling.

___

“Hey, any luck?” Bucky asked running up to Steve who just ran around basically the whole compound in search for you.

“No. Nothing. Not a single trace,” he huffed placing his hands on his hips as he turned trying to examine his surroundings hoping you would just appeared behind him.

“Well, Stark said he ran surveillance, and he’s just waiting on the video. Said it was something we need to look at, and he needed to see us pronto.”

“Why? What’s going on?” Steve asked now even more concerned.

“I don’t know, but by the way Stark acted… It isn’t good. We need to hurry,” Bucky sighed walking back to the compound with Steve close in tow.

__

They reached the meeting room Tony told them to go to and found him, Nat, Banner, Sam, Wanda, and Vision there.

“Why is everyone-” Steve started taking in the company.

“It’s bad Cap. Come look at this,” Tony interrupted raising a tablet.

Steve didn’t hesitate and rushed over to watch whatever was pulled up.

It was you running along one of the trainee paths on the forest line. You were going a pretty decent speed when you stopped suddenly, and looked sharply to the side. He saw you hesitate and take out a headphone as you leaned closer to look at whatever caught your eye. When you turned back around he saw you freeze completely. You dropped the earbud and it looked like someone had sucker punched you in the stomach. You took a step back in fear.

“What’s she looking at Stark? Where’s the other angle?” Steve commanded in Captain mode now.

Tony took the tablet and clicked a few buttons that pulled up a double screen that showed the other angle of what you were looking at.

“Who is that?” Bucky mumbled looking over Steve’s shoulder.

“Keep watching,” Nat instructed making the men look at her nervous. She nodded, and they looked back at the screen.

You stumbled back as the other man made a subtle advance. What you didn’t see was the ginormous man that had snuck behind you waiting for you to do that exact movement. You smacked into him immediately turning around. You didn’t hesitate to defend yourself, and Steve felt a little relieved at that. That was until he watched the man catch your arm making it harder for you to move. But you quickly retaliated and started kicking, and knocking the man as you caught him really hard in the knee. He fell to the ground, and you started running the other direction.

Hope sprung in Steve’s heart as he thought you were out trouble. Yet again, why would Tony still be stressed about it if this ended well. He kept watching waiting and hoping for you get in the clear, but he saw the man you had frozen from earlier was already close behind. He came up behind you pulling you back so forcefully that you fell to the ground causing dust to appear around you.

Steve wanted to reach in the camera and fling that man so hard against a tree, and show him how he felt about that small little act. Of course that anger only grew when he was him inject you with something that made you cringe. You pulled away quickly, and started making yet another run for it. Once again, you didn’t get far. This time, you were your own downfall as you stumbled to the ground trying to grasp what was happening.

“What happened? What did he inject her with?” Steve growled watching the screen knowing no one had the answers, but that didn’t stop him from asking.

“We don’t know yet. Keep watching,” Banner sighed running a hand through his hair as he watched from another tablet.

Eventually, you went completely limp and you were no longer conscious. The giant you kicked out earlier came over and threw you over his shoulder harshly. Making Steve glare harder at the screen. A smaller more fragile looking man came over and started talking to the taller man who injected you.

Steve could tell who was calling the shots in this, and it was clearly the man you showed the most fear toward. His blood started boiling even more when he used his index finger to lift your head and whisper something to you. No one laid a hand on his girl. No. One.

He hadn’t realized he was breathing heavily and clutching the tablet so hard it was seconds from breaking until Bucky took it out of his grasp.

“Easy there bud,” he whispered handing the tablet back to Tony before patting Steve’s back. “Breath-”

“Where’s the rest of the video? Where did they go? Where did they take her? What other cameras do we have in that area?” Steve started spouting ignoring his friend.

“They somehow knocked out any cameras that lead them to where ever they took her. I’m assuming the only reason they didn’t have these one’s taken out, was because of how hidden in the trees they were,” Tony explained.

“There has to be footage of something leaving the compound that wasn’t supposed to. That or-” Steve started.

“We know. We’re working on it,” Nat sighed.

“Well work harder! We don’t have time!” Steve shouted getting wide eyes from everyone. Nat just giving him a look telling him to take it easy and not to try her. “Sorry,” He apologized easing his tightened shoulder just slightly. “I-I don’t know what-”

“It’s fine. You care for her and you’re worried about her,” Wanda spoke up. “Hell, we care for her too. That’s why we are going after her and are here to help,” she said sending a reassuring smile.

“What’s the next move?” Steve sighed loudly sending a nod to Wanda before turning to Banner and Stark.

“I think as we wait for further intel, we may need to let everyone else in on…” Tony dragged out hoping Steve caught on.

“No. That’s not our story to tell,” Steve refused immediately.

“It may not be, but if they don’t know the background on it, they can’t really help Y/N if they go in blind,” Tony slipped, but not unconsciously. Steve sent him a warning glare that could kill. “They need to know everything if they want to help her the best they can. I have a feeling this has to do with her ‘little secret’,” Tony whispered the last part as he stood closer to Steve.

Steve still standing strong and sending daggers at Tony. The rest of the room quiet, knowing something was up, but not pushing the tension that was building. That is until Sam spoke up oblivious to the body language Steve was giving Tony.

“Who’s Y/N?” he said quirking an eyebrow.

Steve, Tony, and Bucky looked his way. Tony sighed looking back at Steve who held eye contact with Sam.

Bucky placed a hand on Steve’s shoulder giving a small squeeze.

“Tony’s right. They need to know. Y/N can figure it out when she gets back, but if we don’t let them in… There may not be a Y/N to tell the story,” Bucky said sadly, but truthfully.

Steve was now staring at the wall contemplating it. Then he realized he didn’t have time to really think about it. Time was of the essence. This video was from over 20 minutes ago so that means they could be far gone by now. He shook his head out of his thoughts and looked down before looking back and forth between Bucky and Tony.

“Fine,” he huffed. “But keep working on those surveillance videos. The faster we find out where they went, the faster we get her back.”

He turned to the group who all had their mission faces on. They knew something was up, and their worlds were likely to be changed. It was part of the job. All you could do was take it, and learn how to work with it. Steve stood a little taller as he started to address the team.

“Avengers. There’s something you need to know about Rosie.”

Chapter 21

Used to be Overlooked Tag:

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If I tagged you and you aren’t normally on my tag list, I thought you would enjoy the story. Fair warning, it is a slow burn so we will get to the bottom of the issue later, but the burn is what makes it soooooo sweet. I’m really excited for this series, and would love your feedback:) Thank you!

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[bakurakaboom-blog]

Starbomb Ch. 5

Fandom: BNHA Pairing: Bakugou x Uraraka Genre: Romance and Comedy probably Chapter Summary: Bakugou has a weird dream about Uraraka and cannot bring himself to face her. Hurt, Uraraka tracks him down at his favorite arcade and attempts to at least play a game with him. A/N: I’m continuing this on this blog. Btw.  

Bakugou opened the door to his dorm room, and on his bed, a matured, exceptionally voluptuous Uraraka lied curled up with her long, brown hair sprawled across the silky red sheets - waiting for him. She wore his t-shirt and his socks and his underwear! How did she even get ahold of something like that?

"Hey, Katsuki," she sang as she yawned.

What? Katsuki? Only his family called him that.

His body acted on its own as he lifted her shirt and pulled down her shorts. His hands began to roam her body with reckless abandon.

"Oh, Katsuki," she sang in a different pitch.

"Haha. You like that, huh?" He would never say something like that!

Her reddened cheeks and frequent, happy gasps made her look like an idiot to him. And as sweat dripped down her face, he followed each drop with his eyes down to her giant, open smile. Drool gathered in the corners of her mouth. Even as his hands wandered to squishy places, his stare fixated on her face before he lowered to kiss her with an astounding thirst.

His hands wandered for certain spots.

Touching right there caused that kind of note.

And down there caused that kind of note in a different octave.

He played her like an instrument. As he groped her, her voice inched higher.

"You're the best, Bakugou," she managed to moan.

That situation escalated into new, rhythmic motions and from there into ecstatic sensations that he had yet to feel through combat with a fraction of the physical exertion that he ever put into training.

Then, he felt the most pleasurable explosion he had ever unleashed.

When Bakugou woke up from the apparent dream, he realized that he ruined his sheets. "What the fuck was that!?" he yelled.

Uraraka had tried to interact with Bakugou earlier the following day. She attempted conversations with him, and she even tried to compliment him. To no avail, he shot her down. He had shielded his face from her all day by either turning his entire body away or burying his head in his crossed arms. His actions caused her to check her face a few times in the mirror.

Midoriya may have done that a few times in the past, but he certainly never growled while doing so. Plus, Midoriya would always at least attempt conversing with her.

When she finally saw Bakugou's face after class, every inch had reddened to the hue of his crimson eyes as he twitched and convulsed with what she thought to be hatred. He must have been outraged with her. Following her glimpse of his profile, he about-faced and walked in the opposite direction.

Before his shift in demeanor, they had civil interactions. On the days of their late excursions to see Kotone, they met in the gym for an even later night workout. Then, suddenly, he vanished from her routine. Maybe she complimented him too much, or maybe she poked fun at him too much.

She tried to replay the past few days to see what she may have done wrong.

By the time the weekend arrived, she had noticed her gut feel heavy and a bit emptier. When she passed by Bakugou's dorm room, she lingered near the idea of knocking and confronting him for a chance at rekindling their delicate friendship. If she waltzed up to his private quarters, then he'd almost definitely lash out at her for invading his personal space. That wouldn't work.

Since they lived on the same floor, she overheard Kirishima invite him to an arcade. While she could have brought Iida and Midoriya along, she knew that would be fighting the fire with oil. Bakugou hated them. Instead, she opted to go alone.

On the way there, she assured herself that she wasn't stalking Bakugou. Rather, she practiced some investigative field work to understand her allies. If she could somehow find a way to cooperate with the most stubborn and callous person in her class, then maybe she'd work towards an S-rank cooperativeness grade one day.

No, she didn't have to justify her actions. Genuinely, she wanted to be on good terms with her partner. Just a few days ago, she would tell anyone if they asked that she had made progress.

Uraraka stopped to gulp down a lump in her throat. While she would not be as naive as to assume that she captured Bakugou into a friendship, she mourned his company.

Her family had sent her a bit of spending money. Putting aside the money that she bought had plagued her conscience. Plus, what if this was the wrong arcade?

Nearly an hour passed, and she checked over her shoulder every moment. Maybe she should have invited her friends. If Midoriya were there, then she wouldn't feel like she had squandered her money. However, as she dug through her bag for her final token, she held out hope that Bakugou would show up and make the entire effort worthwhile.

She climbed into an alien-killing game located in a secluded booth and began to load her last token before the black curtains ruffled and ash blond hair poked through. Her already alert eyes grew and glimmered as her heart nearly leaped from her chest. "Bakugou!" she cheered as she eagerly pulled his arm towards her.

A tingling sensation rose to her face as she grinned. All that waiting was worthwhile after all.

"What?" said Bakugou. Of all the games in the building, he played that one the most. And, of all the times he visited that cheap arcade, he had never seen Uraraka there before. "What the hell is going on?" This encounter had to be some intervention.

"Come! Play this with me. Don't tell me that you think I'm gonna beat you," challenged Uraraka as she pointed at Bakugou's face with her free hand just like she rehearsed.

Somehow, his depraved sexual dream dissolved into nothing when he laid eyes on Uraraka's untainted, rosy cheeks. A girl like that couldn't possibly make a face like the woman in his nocturnal fantasy. He sprang at the chance to banter back and mischievously smirked, "Beat me? At Planet of Devastation: Vile Panic Strikes Back? Think again, round-face."

Uraraka showed her teeth when she grinned until she could hardly see through her elated eyes. So then, they had regained their peculiar bond like nothing ever happened. If she could withhold her curiosity of why he acted the way he did, then she just knew that they would have a pleasant time.

Picking up her last coin, she pushed it into the slot. They could enjoy that one game together.

The game began.

A slight notion of doom settled into Bakugou's chest as soon as he sat down next to Uraraka. A unique type of nervous energy rattled his limbs for a few moments before he gulped. Their shoulders grazed each other, and the sudden contact beckoned for him to glance over at her black tank top.

Then, again their shoulders brushed when she leaned over to take a shot at an approaching virtual enemy.

Once more.

Bakugou would have destroyed the toy gun in his hand if he had any less restraint. Grounding his teeth, he cursed upon looking at the score, "Shit." If Uraraka had have worn something that didn't reveal the eye-catching cleavage of her feminine chest, then he would have won. He would have voiced that excuse if it weren't a potential future weakness of his that she could exploit. The fact that he gave a speck of a shit about her fashion choice endlessly irritated him.

By the images of his dreams, he knew what lied beneath that thin cloth anyway.

"Ugh," complained Bakugou. He acknowledged that he shouldn't have allowed his mind to wander back to his NIGHTMARE. Retracting his arm closer to his body, he attempted to keep an adequate distance.

Uraraka thought to herself with authentic disappointment, "I didn't think you'd hold back." A frown dropped onto her face.

Regardless, she couldn't even play a rematch, for she had spent her last coin.

When he didn't respond, she jumped at the opportunity to excuse herself. If she had to admit her poverty in front of him again, she'd probably die. Forcing a yawn, she said, "I was thinking about heading back to the dorms. I'm kinda tired, ya know?" She stretched her arms into the air. "Maybe that can be our rematch for the Sports Festival."

If she wanted to go, then she probably shouldn't have said that.

Bakugou, who, at the time, withdrew into his thoughts to understand what went wrong decided that he rather cover her with his overshirt. And why the fuck did she have to stretch like that? Didn't she know that her breasts bounced when she did that? She pulled that shit in his dream, too.

He shook his head to rid his thoughts and instinctually growled at the flippant remark. "This isn't a fucking rematch. I'm gonna kick your ass for saying that later. Plus, that win is bogus without another round," he grumbled as he shoved coins into the slots. "If you take this seriously, then stop yawning."

"Okay," she agreed as she bit her bottom lip and nodded with a small smile. Uraraka saw that he paid without any snarky remarks, and when the realization hit her, she didn't know how to react. She wouldn't be able to pay him back if he asked - maybe with the few tickets she won. If she thanked him, then he'd probably immediately jump out of the game.

Meanwhile, she noticed her heavy breathing as she glanced over at him with a buoyant heart and a glittery sensation in her cheeks. Maybe she needed to think a little less.

As he slaughtered her in the following round, Uraraka witnessed an amazing combo of 100 kills and joyously squealed, "You're amazing, Bakugou!"

He stopped pulling the trigger and froze in place as his eye twitched and mouth contorted into a tight frown. She moaned those words in his dream. Maybe the two Urarakas had more similarities than he initially thought. Shaking his head again, he reminded himself of the context, and when he narrowly escaped with a victory, he noticed her wide-eyed, obvious stare linger on his face.

Her eyebrows furrowed as she frowned once more. "Sorry. Was that too much?" she asked. "You keep making that twitchy face."

Taking off his black over-shirt, he threw it at her. "No! I'm fine! I just haven't played this in a while, and these cheapskates need to turn up the AC," lied Bakugou.

"Really? I'm actually a little chilly. I shouldn't have worn something so thin. So, thanks, I guess," replied Uraraka as she stuck out her tongue.

"Then hurry up and put it on!" he urged. His shoulders rigidly hunched with each word.

She jumped at the sudden gravity in his growl. "Wah? Put it on? Are you sure?" However, she dressed in his edgy, skull t-shirt. At least, she felt a little warmer. Pleasantly melting into her seat, she raised her eyebrows when she noticed Bakugou shove more coins in for another game.

"Best 3 out of 5, round-face. I'm going to murder you."

"Okay," she nodded as she stifled verbal gratitude and grabbed her toy gun.

Kirishima passed by a few games as he searched for Bakugou. He had suddenly disappeared. Over the past few days, he noticed that Bakugou seemed a lot more flustered and would lash out at anyone around him. Twitchy and boisterous, he even yelled at Kaminari the day before. Then, when they went out to the arcade, he kept his distance and played games alone for the most part.

Something changed, and when he spotted Bakugou across the room in a shadowed booth of his favorite game, he began to stride towards them. That was until he noticed his companion - a girl!

So that was why Bakugou ditched their sparring sessions for the gym on some nights. Maybe they worked out together. Kirishima honestly thought he had taken an interest in Uraraka, but he hadn't seen them converse all that week.

When Bakugou emerged from the game, Kirishima gasped and subsequentially ducked when he caught sight of the girl. She was Uraraka! Covering his mouth, he pumped his fist. "Alright, Bakugou!" he cheered under his breath.

Wait. Did they switch shirts?

Oh man, Kirishima invited Kaminari to come along, but if he wanted today to go smoothly for his friend, he would have to cancel. So, he texted him, "Hey, Bakugou bailed, so let's go to the shitty place closer to the dorm instead."

Meanwhile, Uraraka tried to think of an adequate excuse to get out of revealing her empty wallet to Bakugou. However, he pointed at game after game and shoved coins from his pocket into the slots. She figured that he enjoyed having a punching bag since she had virtually no talent with video games. Maybe something with hand-eye coordination like Dance Dance Revolution would have been better, but she couldn't picture Bakugou playing something that embarrassing.

Bakugou heard Uraraka giggle to herself. Why would she giggle? Was she having fun?

He had no reason to pay mind to what she wanted to play. He had a strict routine of games that he played every time he visited that particular location, but he noticed how fast he burned through his stock of coins. Since Kirishima ditched him, he needed someone to help him get the maximum amount of tickets.

That would be his excuse for letting her stick around. Though, he curiously awaited every second they spent together.

They wouldn't be able to play his typical final game. He noticed her eye the skeeball. They wouldn't get a lot of tickets from that, but if she were good at it, then maybe they could get enough for an adequate prize.

Without warning, he loaded his tokens and turned back to her. "This is really fucking easy, so if you don't get any tickets, then I'll kill you."

Careful not to acknowledge that he willfully paid for her, she raised her eyebrows at his eagerness to play. What a success that day had been. They played together all day like friends would. Even though he cursed and swore at every opportunity, the atmosphere kept a smile on her face. With a spring in her step, she grabbed a ball with the palm of her hands and melodically rolled it up the ramp and directly to the center.

"Jackpot!" alerted the machine as it spat over 1,000 tickets out.

"What? Look, Bakugou!" shouted Uraraka as she jumped and grabbed his arm. "I got the jackpot on the first try!"

Their cheeks centimeters apart, Bakugou scratched his collarbone as he urgently smothered a growing smile until he proudly smirked. Allowing her to hang onto him for a few moments more, he wondered why he didn't want to attack her.

Racing heart, euphoria, and a bit of nausea - that's what he felt with Uraraka by his side.

His palms dripped with sweat. Although they certainly could not continue playing in their position, he failed to push her way and instead groaned, "Alright, round face, keep rolling. We're gonna run out of time."

When she separated from him, she hesitated to continue playing and pulled at a strand of her hair. Maybe she got ahead of herself, for she could have sworn that she saw him smile, too.

Uraraka nearly screamed and cried when she noticed the time on her phone. The cafeteria closed half an hour before. Desperate tears gathered in the corners of her eyes as they stood around the prize booth. Quickly, she wiped her face before saying, "Well, this was fun, Bakugou. We should do this again sometime. Maybe I'll actually beat you at something besides skeeball," she laughed before twirling around to the exit.

His firm hand gripped her shoulder and jerked her back. "Where the fuck do you think you're going?" growled Bakugou. "We're going to the same place."

She gasped and pointed to a green shirt that looked like the skin of green grenade. "Bakugou, that's perfect. Did you see that?"

Bakugou narrowed his eyes at the article of clothing and slammed his tickets on the counter. "Give that to me!" he demanded. The cashier handed the t-shirt to him with a lofty sigh. "Uraraka, hurry up and get something. I don't want to stay in this dump anymore."

"Me? Uh," Uraraka stammered. "Okay. I want that necklace with the star." Pointing to the yellow, Mario-esque, chubby star on a silver chain, she sucked in her lips to prevent a prevalent smile. She knew not to thank him.

The heroine's stomach growled on their way out the building. She dangled the chain in front of her face and gave herself a victory sign. A token a friendship and triumph hung in her hands. Not every day and certainly not everyone got a chance to befriend the class pugilist. Maybe she felt a little too excited. Her heart hadn't calmed for a while.

Then, again, she was probably just hungry.

As they walked down a darkening city street, neon lights shined on the various storefronts. If only she hadn't spent her money at the arcade, then she'd be able to at least stop at a street vendor.

Bakugou made a turn away from the direction of their school.

In turn, Uraraka stood at the crossroads and watched as Bakugou continued into the shopping district. He glared over his shoulder and said, "Stop standing there like a fucking idiot."

He would never admit this, but Uraraka had bonuses that came along with her useful quirk. He found appeal in the way Uraraka's hair curved around her round face, and the melody of her laugh pleased him as well. Her energetic and passionate adulation boosted his gaming performance, too. Their proximity gave him a rush especially on the off moments their arms bumped into each other.

As he walked, he enjoyed the warmth of her stare on his back.

Rubbing his neck, he figured he had many rational reasons to keep her by his side.

Uraraka sweat bullets the entire stroll to the restaurant of Bakugou's whim, and when she pointed out a familiar, Japanese restaurant, he scolded her for thinking she had any choice in the matter before he entered the traditional style building anyway.

"Don't tell me you're fucking broke. This is the cheapest damn place on the block. I guess poor people like you have to ask for food," Bakugou taunted as he pulled out his wallet that had just enough money to cover her as well. However, being the sadistic guy that he was, he wanted to hear her beg. After all, he already said that he'd take care of her one day. If she wanted to be stubborn enough to reject that offer, then he would have to push her until she came crawling.

Smirking, he glanced up and expected his intimidation to get through to her. Sure, sweat jumped from her glistening face, but her pensive stare furrowed in the direction of her bag. Her permanent blush at the tips of her cheeks paled in comparison to the fluster that he imagined. Why didn't his taunt affect her? He realized that she had run out of money back at the arcade.

A bright, toothy grin popped onto her face as she revealed her plan in the form of a small ticket. "It's okay, cuz I've got some coupons!" she boasted. In fact, she hardly heard Bakugou's rant about her poverty. Holding up two fingers, she added, "2 for 1. I got a whole bunch, so get whatever you want. I got one for a free dessert, too."

Bakugou then wondered how he could ever win over someone as independent as her. He censured with a scoff, "Fuckin' mooch."

Standing up, she dropped everything she held onto the table and lowered her head. "Bakugou," she muttered in a low, shaking voice. "I know you paid for the games we played together because I ran out of money. I was really happy that we could have lots of fun together. And, I know you said you'd pay for me when I got older. But, I don't want that. Quit bullying me for not being able to buy the things that I want."

When Bakugou witnessed her try to leave their booth, his chest wrung and he reluctantly blurted, "Don't tell me you dragged me to this shitty place just to leave me here." He had doubted he could debilitate her that easily, yet there she was - abruptly fleeing from him.

Even though she needed to wipe her face, she knew that doing so would let him know of the tears that fell from her eyes. "I'm trying to be a pro hero. I'm doing my best, and I'm gonna use this damn coupon," she demanded before she plopped back down into her seat.

That side was the girl that Bakugou wanted to see.

He smirked at the fruit of his berating. After all, how many people got to see the gutsy face of Uraraka?

When the waitress came around, Bakugou ordered, "Give me the mapo tofu."

"Me too!" added Uraraka before she corrected her urgent and passionate outburst. "I mean, me, too!"

"How plucky," thought Bakugou as he averted his gaze to the window beside them. He stared at her reflection instead, for looking at her directly on caused his heart to race too fast to the point that he hardly felt like stuffing food into his mouth. In fact, in that moment, he hungered for days like that with her over everything else.

"I'm sorry for blowing up like that," Uraraka apologized. "I should have thanked you earlier, but I was afraid that you'd get mad and leave."

Bakugou had no response. Her thanks meant nothing. Alone, her gratitude neither angered him nor pleased him.

"Now, I'm not gonna back down. I'll tell you whatever I'm thinking because no matter what you're probably gonna get angry, right?" Uraraka laughed as she sipped on the water that the waitress served to her. For that spicy meal, she would probably need a lot.

No, he felt obligated to pay for her as long as she stayed by his side. As she spoke, he shifted from side to side in his seat. He wanted to be with her because he found her company more enjoyable than exploding objects and enemies. These sentiments failed to come to fruition in his silenced mind. Instead, he focused on his growling stomach.

After they had finished eating, Bakugou abruptly snatched the coupon from under Uraraka's nose and threw it across the room while she chugged down the rest of her water.

The anti-gravity girl wondered if he harbored rancor against the ordeal after their "heart to heart." Maybe she held a one sided confrontation with him instead of the breakthrough conversation that she imagined. Bending down, she retrieved the small, crumbled ticket from beneath a table. When she returned, she asked, "Hey, Bakugou, why'd you do that?"

Quickly, he snatched the small sheet of paper from her, blew it up, and then rushed out the building with a frightening shade of blood red illuminating his face.

"What?" she shrieked. What was she supposed to do? That was her only way to pay. Maybe she had another coupon or enough cash to cover her part. She gulped as her trembling hands navigated the pockets of her bag. Why would he do something like that? This predicament was her fault for getting close to Bakugou.

If he used this whole day just to make a fool out of her, then she had no reason to hope for a better friendship. Her chest tightened as tears came to the corners of her eyes. The stress in her heart worsened over her thoughts and memories with Bakugou rather than her monetary dilemma.

The waitress approached her and bowed, "Have a good night."

"Wah?" Uraraka gasped, "I didn't pay."

"Your boyfriend paid for you," explained the waitress. "Young love is tricky like that I suppose."

Boyfriend? Did she mean Bakugou? Before she could think to correct her, Uraraka made eye contact with Bakugou through the window as a grin burst onto her face. He had been waiting for her. She carelessly allowed her residual tears to fall from her eyes as she watched him turn away. Darting down the aisles and out the door, she wanted to hug him, but she knew that would be a straight ticket to a sordid scorn.

Instead, she clasped her hands together behind her back and tried to catch up to him. She noted in a sing-song voice, "You waited for me, and you paid. Thank you a lot. Today was amazing! I had lots of fun."

He tried to pick up the pace so that she didn't see his heated face. "Don't think anything special is happening. I don't want to be seen with people that miss curfew. And," he stammered with a brief pause. "I only had that kind of bill, and I didn't feel like waiting for the change, so consider yourself lucky."

"You're the meanest good guy I know," Uravity pointed out as she stroked the star chain that hung around her neck.

"I don't give a fuck what you think."

Uraraka mused out loud as she looked to the sky, "I hope we have more days like this, you know? Only, next time I'll make sure I can pay for myself. Maybe I could even pay for a meal for you." Of course, she knew that she would have to ride the Bakugou rollercoaster a few more times before she could handle nausea and stress of it all. However, simply hanging out with him outweighed his volatile idiosyncrasies.

"You're never going to fucking pay for me! I already told you how things will go after we get," the blond began until he trailed off because, for some stupid reason, he felt as if reminding her of their future marriage exposed a desire that had dug deeper into his mind than he could handle. With all his might, as he panted and seethed, he could not force out the word "married."

Something inside Bakugou grew as he gulped, and he didn't know how to kill it. However, the next day he had a lot more gusto in his work out.