#i've arrived at a point where i think of three comments as “doing really well” but the time the fics take is just stupid in that context

[teh-nos]

i just want to write some kind of fucked up shit and then finish it and post it and then feel i've done something😭

[stargrillzz]

𝘚𝘩𝘰𝘶𝘵𝘰𝘶𝘵 summary: where he has an interest in a certain pop singer, and he doesn't try to hide it. note: believe me or not i’ve been listening hip hop since Im like 15 y/o, soooo why not do an M&M’s fic?? Let me know if u want part 2! xoxo

The lyrics of Mr Eminem's new song being mostly about you? That was something you definitely didn't expect.

I get so weak on my knees

Lose all control

Damn, her silhouette

So hot

Fuck bein’ a gentleman

I'm going to fuck her instead

The red carpet at the Grammys has always been a dream for you, you had already won a couple of awards, today... you were excited to be the presenter of one of them.

Best Rap Album.

To say you were excited is an understatement.

You've loved this genre of music since you were a teenager, Tupac, Fifty, Snoop...to name the most classics.

The camera flashes were the only thing you saw, accompanied by many voices that stunned your ears just by hearing your name.

"Y/N! over here!" A reporter called you, without hesitation, you approached.

"Hey how are you?" you asked with a big smile.

"Incredible! How are you? I imagine you're very excited for tonight" he smiles.

"Don't even mention it! I can't wait to call the winner on stage!"

"Do you think Eminem is nominated? He's been on everyone's mouth lately with his latest song..."

Here we go.

"Yeah... well, I'm sure he'll be nominated, I mean, he's fucking Eminem, it would be like a sin if he wasn't, right?" You laughed a little awkwardly.

"What do you think about his last song, about his comments towards you? 50% of people are upset calling Eminem a degenerate..." you didn't let him finish speaking.

"Well...I really like him, I mean, I've always been his fan and it's an honor to be named in one of his songs. Plus I also think that...we all know how he's like, if you don't like his way to be, to think, to speak, the lyrics of his songs, just don't listen to it and that's it, problem solved, I don’t see the point in hating so much on something you can just...ignore" you laugh looking at the camera "Just take things more lightly, not everything is fighting and bad intentions."

You finished your conversation with said reporter and simply headed to your designated seat.

On the other hand, a certain blonde boy was also being attacked with questions regarding his controversial lyrics.

"She's here? Shit, I want to see her," the blonde rapper said, showing a small, very small, smile, turning his head around with the intention of catching some sign of the hot pop singer, you.

"Yes! In fact she will be the one to present the award for best rap album!"

"No shit! Damn man she's here" Em turned around and said to his best friend, Proof.

In a few minutes everyone finished settling into their seats and you both were surprised when you looked at each other, just a few seats away.

You were five seats to the right and three to the back, so you caught him every time he turned his head back a little to look and smile at you.

Until, soon...your moment had arrived, you got up from your seat to head backstage.

By the way, when you walked past the rapper, he didn't try to hide the fact that he couldn't take his eyes off you for even a second.

"And the Grammy goes to..." you created some tension "EMINEN!" You blurted out the name more excited than you should have.

The rapper's reaction might not have been very expressive normally, but he couldn't contain his smile when he knew who would be the one giving to him his award. The rapper and his friends got on stage and it was inevitable that you felt nervous as you watched him walk towards you, with a playful look, as if he knew what he generated in you.

"Congratulations," you whispered when he was close enough to you, taking the grammy as you felt the soft brush of his fingers against yours, he did it on purpose.

You didn't expect him to give you a hug.

"That's all I get?" He whispered back to you, keeping your faces close and your noses touching, his hands on your waist pulling you closer to him as if he didn't want to move away from you.

A great bustle from the public was heard, and it took them both out of the small cloud in which they were.

This was definitely going to stir the waters.

You both walked away, while you greeted and congratulated the rest of his friends (Proof winking at you in the process).

"Wow, shit, this is crazy, thank you so much to everyone who made the production of this album possible, Dr Dre, who always had my back, I will be forever grateful...and my god, damn, thanks to whoever the fuck is that put this beauty in that dress..." he turned to look at you and winked "Y/N Y/L/N ladies and gentlemen, the source of my inspiration for Heat Seeker"

Obviously, you blushed.

The entire audience was applauding, probably already starting to gossip among themselves about the little show between you and Eminem.

Like a gentleman he offered you his hand as he watched you walk down the steps of the stage with great caution. "Thank you," you whispered. “Any time” he smiles at you.

´Til the end of the awards you continued to connect glances from time to time, you also noticed how his friends bothered him every time he turned his head to look at you.

"Hey, Y/N! wait!" listen to yourself behind your back. "Hey," you looked at him softly, "whats up?" He shook his head quickly. "I just wanted to…I mean, normally I wouldn't give a shit, but, I wanted to make sure that the song didn't offend you, it wasn't to upset you…" You interrupted his attempt to apologies "Don't worry, I understand it was just the song, I didn't take it personally, actually, I loved it" you laughed. "You did? I'm glad you're not like the rest and laugh instead of being offended." His attempt to hide his smile failed completely.

It just slips away from him.

Just with you.

A few seconds of silence took over the situation, though it wasn't uncomfortable, your eyes connected and you didn't seem to realize that you had been staring at each other. "Uhm, I was about to go to my hotel," you pointed behind you, "I was gonna change for the afterparty."

"Can I go with you?" He asked you, but before you processed the fact that he wanted to go with you to your hotel, he interrupted your thoughts "I mean, just so then we can go to the party together, if you want" he scratched the back of his neck.

You didn't even need to think about it "Yeah, I would like that" you smiled.

The two of you walked together towards your limo, captured by several cameras, so neither of you doubted that tomorrow you would wake up to a bunch of articles about how Eminem and Y/N left the Grammy's together. But none of you care about it.

[thezombieprostitute]

Royal Mess: Almost Perfect

Summary: Jonathan Pine has had a perfect career, except for you, a maid whose klutzy nature makes things more difficult.

A/N: Reader is plus sized and female. No other descriptors used.

Warnings: Injury, Work stress. Please let me know if I missed any!

Part of the Royal Vows AU.

Jonathan had been a butler in the service of King Rogers for almost his entire career. He'd gotten the role after serving alongside Prince Ari during his required military service. He'd impressed the Prince so much that, when Jonathan asked for employment at the palace, it was immediately granted. Since that time, he worked his way up to becoming the greatest butler in multiple kingdoms, if the royal guests were to be believed.

He's appreciated by the royals he serves and even the staff he employs. He's never been too good to roll up his sleeves and help out where needed. He pays attention to the staff and their needs and is often generous with praise. Work at the palace pays very well and Jonathan knows how to motivate employees to do their best.

But right now his face is in his hand as he tries to keep calm about the broken 100 year old vase on his desk. You'd cleaned up the mess but brought him the pieces in the hopes he knew some way it could be repaired. It probably could, but that was beside the point.

"This is the third item this month," he states in a tone that makes your face drop in embarrassment. "At the very least, I can say that's an improvement from the last month. I think keeping you out of the Garden and Ground floors has worked well."

"Thank you, Mr. Pine," you mumble, not trusting yourself to say more.

"What happened this time?"

"I was vacuuming the guest suite, as you ordered. Getting it nice and clean for the Princess of Carga. I...I tripped over the vacuum cord and reached out to catch my fall but...I...I ended up grabbing the cloth the vase was on."

Tears start forming at the corner of your eyes as you recall. You really didn't mean to break anything. You never do. It's been your one saving grace with Mr. Pine. He knows you're not malicious and that you really need the work. Some items can be repaired but always at a cost you can't afford.

He sighs heavily, "are you certain there is no other employment available to you?"

The tears start pouring. "I promise, Mr. Pine, I promise I've looked. But no one else can pay enough for me and my mother unless I spend years either going to school or building a skill with an apprenticeship."

"But that would be years without a steady income," he nods in understanding. "Well, as I said, only three priceless items broken in a month is an improvement." You shrink further into yourself at the reminder of how precious the items you've broken are. "And you are very diligent in your work, not everyone is so dedicated to getting every nook and cranny. So do not worry about your employment at this time."

You let out a sob of relief. "Thank you, Mr. Pine. I promise to keep improving."

He gives a curt nod. "Just please remember to treat every item in the palace as if it were as fragile as a butterfly wing?"

"Oh, that's a good way to think about it, Sir. Each piece is so beautiful but so fragile. I promise I'll get that to work!"

He simply nods again and gestures for you to leave. Thankfully he doesn't comment when you almost trip over your own feet.

It's all hands on deck for the Princess's arrival. Jonathan has been working overtime to make sure the Royal Family doesn't have to worry about any of it. Every member of his staff has their part to play and he's on alert for things going wrong. While it may not be humanly possible to achieve perfection, he will get it as close as he can.

Knowing you don't do well in fast paced, high stress environments Jonathan assigned you to the rooms where the Princess's servants would be staying. You were part of the team helping them settle in and showing them where things are.

The team lead, Arne, was not a fan. He's repeatedly told Mr. Pine that he should fire you and seemed to go out of his way to remind you of everything you've ever broken. When you found out he was leading the team, you gulped and made yourself as small as possible.

When the Princess and her ensemble arrive, Arne directs your team to the servants' entrance where you stand in a line and wait for a box to carry inside.

Your heart drops when Arne hands you one of the bigger boxes with a huff. You almost drop it immediately because of how heavy it is.

"Careful!" he yells as you struggle. "And hurry up. Gotta make sure everyone does their share of the work."

"Yes, Sir," you mumble, finally getting a firm grip on the box.

Trying to hurry without rushing only adds to the difficulty of the task. If you rush, you're more likely to make a mistake but if you're too slow, Arne will yell and make more trouble for Mr. Pine.

You're so focused on your task you forget about the small threshold between the top of the stairs and guest rooms. As you feel yourself start to fall you know you can't drop this box! Not just for the Princess but for Mr. Pine as well! You can't embarrass him!

You're not sure how you manage it but you twist yourself so that the heavy box lands on top of you instead of the other way around. You get the wind knocked out of you but you didn't hear anything break! Well, at least not from the box. You're definitely going to be bruised from this. But you don't let that damper your mood. You saved it!

"Keep it moving!" Arne yells from the bottom of the stairs. "Ain't paying you to rest your fat ass!"

Getting up you try to respond but you breathing is still not easy so you focus on getting the box moved. It's much more of a struggle than before but you're determined.

"Here, let me help," Max, one of your team members steps up. "That had to hurt. Maybe you should sit?"

"No rest!" Arne barks, now at the top of the stairs. "If she can't keep up, she shouldn't be here. Besides, she's got plenty of cushion to pad her fall."

"Sir, it landed on top of her!"

"Well it's about time she learned how to not break anything important."

Trying to ignore the argument you try to get back to work carrying the heavy box. Your lungs are on fire and your vision is getting blurry but you're determined to prove yourself. To not embarrass Mr. Pine. To do your part.

As soon as the box is in place you work your way back down to the truck. Max walks with you, continually asking if you're ok. When Arne tries to give you another of the big, heavy boxes, Max grabs it for you.

"Please, sir, I really think she needs to rest," he implores.

"If she needs a rest after tripping over her own feet, she should be docked her pay!"

"That's not for you to decide," you hear Mr. Pine say. All three of you look to his direction. "Today is supposed to go perfectly but I'm already getting wind of complaints from Her Majesty's staff, concerned about the working conditions of the King's staff."

He pointedly looks at Arne who turns red in the face. "There were concerns about a hurt servant being forced to continue working under threat of losing employment. Which is strange to me because, last I checked, I'm the one who makes those decisions. And I have not threatened anyone. Yet."

"She's not able to carry the damn thing, so why should she be here?"

"Mr. Pine, if I may?" Max approaches. Mr. Pine gives a nod and he continues. "She was given a box that was recommended for two people to carry for safety's sake. She got it up there on her own, after tripping in such a way that the thing landed on her. I think she's earned some rest, if not a visit to the hospital."

Mr. Pine looks to you and finally notices your breathing is off and you look faint. He rushes over to you and starts making mental note of symptoms.

"You will sit," he orders you, walking you over to one of the lawn chairs.

"Please, Mr. Pine," you say between gasps. "I can still work. Don't want to ruin today."

"You have done nothing wrong," he asserts. "If anything--"

His words are cut off as you blackout.

Tagging: @alicedopey; @delicatebarness; @icefrozendeadlyqueen; @irishhappiness; @kmc1989; @lokislady82; @peaches1958; @ronearoundblindly

[lullydoesstuff]

- TOP DYSTOPIAN BOOKS -

Well, since I want to use this blog for personal stuff too and not just for requests or stuff concerning my MANY Demon Slayer AUs, here we are talking about some of my favourite books ever.

I love dystopian ones so these three will be very hard-core, I love the Hunger Games, I love Maze Runner, I love 1984 but these three just hit different.

Let's not lose time and let's begin!

3 - Tender is the Flesh (Augustina Bazterrica)

I decided to start with a book that has arrived in my country just this year, I didn't know about it before and I'm so glad I red it, even if it really disturbed me... do you know what the Promised Neverland is? Well, take it but make it Supersayan. And this is the less disturbing one here.

Plot: Marcos works in the meat industry, he always did but recently a virus started spreading, and animals couldn't be edible anymore so what does the government do? They start searching for vegan replacements? NO! They legalize cannibalism. Marcos has a troubled life, his father has gone mad since this "transition" from animal meat to human meat and his wife left him after they lost their son. He works in the meat industry but he swears to himself that he's not like the others, because he doesn't eat meat.

I know what you're thinking, "but this is a book to bring people close to veganism, it's the whole point"... no, congratulations, you didn't understand ANYTHING. This book is way more complex, this because it's about the line that divides humanization/objectification, and this will be a recurring theme in this post.

This book is full of gore (what did you expect?), graphic descriptions, violence, sexual violence so I don't know if I recommend this book to everyone, it's very short but be aware of this if you decide to read it. In any case, the plot is very interesting and it's very well written.

2 - The Handmaid's Tale (Margaret Atwood)

I'm sure many of you have seen the TV series, I've seen it too and it's one of the few cases I say that the series is better than the book, maybe because the series has a more modern setting and so I can actually be terrified by it.

Plot: the world has been almost destroyed by wars and this caused the birth to decrease to 0, and what happens in America? After a coup a new government is instituted... a totalitarian theocracy where religious confessions that aren't Christianity are banned, let's fucking go, this new country's name is Gilead. In this new world women have an only job: being literal baby machines given to rich families to have children.

This is so damn disturbing because, the insemination thing is wild, the man reads a Bible verse from Genesis, and then he just... does it. It's gross, go check for yourselves, human butchering was nothing compared to this.

We follow June, an Handmaid and we just see how things work in this new... amazing... world... I guess.

1 - Unwind (Neal Shusterman)

This deserves the first place, I've never stopped reading a book I loved because it disturbed me too much. I wanted to support the author, he's very good, so I bought all the other books from the Unwind distology... but I finished the first one and never red the second one, please tell me in the comments if it isn't as disturbing as the first one so I can give it a chance or not.

Plot: in the USA a second civil war is fought, but that's not a war where you shoot people from aontoher country to conquer it, or to oppose the government (well... kinda), it's about reproductive rights, many discussions, many things but in the end people decree that you can't abort in any case (*Lully already screaming and tearing off her hair*) BUT you can... well... Unwind your child if you don't want them anymore. But just when he's from 13 to 18.

What does unwind mean? Basically you give your unwanted child to some clinics that literally vivisection them (yes, the person is awake during the process BY LAW) and give thier organs to people that need transplants.

Now you can easily understand why this is the number 1 in this list, it's the destructive combo between "Tender is The Flash" and "the Handmaid's Tale".

We'll follow the story of Risa, Connor and Levi (and this last one oh my God, I wanted to punch his family so bad), escaping their fate of being unwind.

And yes, that scene comes, yes, you will see a vivisection, and yes... you will feel physically sick and need to throw up after, you'll probably have nightmares and life crisis. Also because... the unwind isn't exactly one of the "good guys".

Ah, dear pro-life people that care about a bunch of unborn cells and can't distinguish a human embryo from a dolphin embryo... Read this book, then change your mind about other people's body and take choices just for yours, because it seems we're going back and not aiming foward as we should.

[sofixt0k]

OPINION ABOUT THE NEW MILEVEN DEFENCE VIDEO ( 3 )

Part Three Her comments / My comments

"Shall we have a sip? If you know, this is just getting started, right? Let's go to Millie, who I don't think we even need to put much emphasis on Millie because I think, I mean, you can super tell that she loves, Mileven always said it early on, she's like the biggest Mileven Shipper in the universe, she said it in premieres when she was asked about Mileven, she also said it a lot in direct on Instagram when she was still in charge of her account and contacting fans more, she also talked a bunch of times about Mileven and how she called him Mileven in comic cons, et cetera. No matter what she looked like, no matter what she said, no matter what she did, he still loved her and that's just the perfect guy.

And how Millie wrote the scripts…gosh, I won't answer all of this. You guys already know what I think, what we think, about Millie's comments about mileven. Likewise this opinion on the video is directed at Bylers, not Milevens. I'm not looking for them to read this and become Bylers shippers, it's irrelevant to me.

Let's go now to Caleb, who plays Lucas. At a comic-con also recently he was asked who he would rather save, Mike or Max, and he said, let's see, I would save Max because I know Mike would choose Eleven over me.

???????, I didn't get the point, anyway, Caleb also said he prefers Elmax because they have a real love, not like mileven, so….

He said it too, that is, Mike would care about mileven, not another character,

“Not for another character”?????????¿?, sorry, I dreamt the last four seasons where he cares about Will, Dustin, Will, Will, Will, Max, Will, Nancy, Will… did I say Will?

-which I actually take the opportunity to bring this up because I was really amused because I saw it in a tweet recently, which is that when season 3 the mineflyer arrives at the mall, Mike immediately grabs Mileven's hand and takes her away to hide with her, and in season 4 when the shootings start at the byers' house, the military, as soon as they hear them, Mike storms off and leaves Will and Jonathan behind.

Sorry, sorry, sorry. We saw the same scene…, talking very seriously. You're talking about the scene where Mike blocks the door with his arm so Will doesn't go out to where the shooting is, you're talking about the scene where he puts his arm over his chest to protect him, like, you know, there wasn't a behind the scenes rehearsal where Finn has his hand on Noah's chest again, like… Intentional, you know?

I don't know why he was forcefully holding hands with him. But well, that's a separate thing, I just found it funny and it's very real. And finally we go to David Harbour's opinion, that in a comic con, if I'm not mistaken, in 2023, he was asked about Byler and he said, let's see, I think it's very clear that Mike loves Mileven, and basically again he kind of fell all the people who said that Byler could be possible.

Second subchapter, analyzing scenes. All the scenes that the Byler shippers see as romantic, or that say, no, this means that Mike really likes Will, that they're going to be a couple, I'm going to tell you, no, better grab it and analyze it on this side. Obviously there are a lot of scenes between Mike and Will, I'm not going to talk about all of them, I'm going to talk about the main ones, I'm going to talk about the ones where they kind of do say like they like each other.

The first one is when Will wakes up in season 1, after he was rescued from the Upside Down, which they basically say that Mike likes Will because when he sees him on the gurney he goes running to hug him.

I don't know. What a shipper Byler said. That we see that as romantic or as a sign that Byler is endgame. Why I haven't seen the first one say that. I've always seen that scene as one of the cutest miwi scenes in the world because after being all season looking for Will even though the “evidence” said he was dead, he never believed it, and it's so cute to see him not sleeping in the waiting room so he could see Will.

Did you see the whole scene? Because literally Dustin and Lucas also hug him, but they don't say that Will likes them, no, no, they just say it about Mike.

Afterwards, in that scene, you can check it out, keep in mind that he didn't see Will, I think a week, I think he was more or less a week lost in the Upside Down, and look he had known Will longer than he knew Eleven at the time.

Yet when he sees him, after not knowing where he was, after he's rescued, he talks more about Eleven than Will.

Yeah, as if, I mean, as if she wasn't literally a girl who showed up out of nowhere with superpowers and helped them rescue Will????, I REPEAT, RESCUE WILL. LIKE, YOU KNOW, THE REASON WHY MIKE DIDN'T CALL AN INSANE ASYLUM TO TAKE HER AWAY.

I mean, Mike gets worried, he's like, are you okay, what do I know, but right away, as soon as he cuts, he starts, we made a new friend, and she can fly cars, and she can do this, and blah, blah, blah, blah, like he's talking super mesmerized about Eleven. When, I mean, his friend just reappeared after almost dying, but yet Mike finds it more important to talk about Eleven than Will."

Yes, yes. The girl says this for sure because she's basically Mike's close friend and she asked him what he thought about the best friend who has been “his best thing” he's ever done and he basically told her that he didn't care that he showed up alive.

[arookinthelighthouse]

Man, I really pick my moments. I have half an hour before I have to clock in so I'm expanding upon this post about a Viago and Grey Warden Rook romance.

I think, much like Lucanis, this would be more of a slow burn romance than something hot and steamy. I also think that it would be dependent on if you save Treviso or not bc that, at least in my mind, would be a pivotal moment that would show Viago whether he can actually trust you or not. And especially for a Grey Warden Rook, it would show Viago whether you're all talk or if you actually do want to help Treviso and stop the Blight. Bc if you don't save Treviso, it gets Blighted and even the canal water is affected by it. If you're a Grey Warden and you don't help Treviso in its hour of need you may as well be the executioner placing Treviso under the guillotine and letting the blade come down upon its neck when it's at its most vulnerable.

So, you save Treviso and Viago has some more respect for you and starts to trust you. What next? Well, I think it's also a good idea to consider what gift you would give him. Bc yes, I say that if you get all the companions a gift it stands to reason a non-companion romance candidate would get a gift too. For Viago, I think maybe some antique poison bottles. Rare, authentic, antique ones. Bonus points if your Grey Warden Rook is also a rogue, perhaps you'd get a special dialogue option from him based on that. Alternatively, I think Viago would also appreciate high quality, expensive, vintage wine. But that's just me (for reference, I haven't read all of Tevinter Nights, just the Wigmaker Job and the story featuring Emmrich. So I'm not 100% sure on his personality yet, I'm waiting for my copy of the book to arrive).

In terms of the dynamic, I touched upon it very lightly in my last post about a Viago romance but I do think there would be a teasing side to him. If he comes to the Lighthouse one day and sees your poison bottles he'll make comments on the poisons and how they couldn't even take out a flea let alone a person. I think there would be a lot of back and forth teasing/banter, especially the more at ease he becomes around you and the more he trusts you.

And don't worry, I've not forgotten about Teia. I think his relationship with Teia is one that could be really explored through this romance. It could go in one of two directions in my mind at least: we finally get an actual poly romance OR Viago decides to move on. I personally prefer the first option more bc I just don't see him and Teia calling it quits and I feel like they'd be open enough with one another to discuss Rook and where things might lead, inviting Rook into their relationship, talking about boundaries and whether Rook is just for Viago or if Teia is also interested in them or not. Just give me a damn poly romance, Bioware! You gave me crumbs when you gave me the Dawn Star/Silk Fox/Spirit Monk poly romance in Jade Empire (and I really am talking crumbs here, there's no kiss or any actual romance other than the three of them discussing it at the temple). I want more than crumbs.

Anyway, I got off track. Where was I? Ah yes, Teia and Viago. I do prefer the idea of them being open to Viago pursuing Rook and him and Teia having an open relationship in those regards. Does Rook know this? No they do not. Not at first, anyway.

The first kiss between Rook and Viago I think would happen before Viago sits Rook down to talk about an open relationship with them and Teia. Viago maybe had been dropping hints and trying to be subtle, assuming Rook would get it. Rook does not, in fact, get it. They are oblivious. And then when Viago kisses them, perhaps in the heat of the moment after a battle or a little sparring match or smth, for just a moment Rook allows themselves to melt into it, live in the moment, really feel it. But then the kiss ends and they're looking into Viago's eyes and they think oh shit what have I done. And they run off and leave Viago hanging.

There would definitely need to be a definitive passing of time between that kiss and when Rook next talks to Viago and/or Teia. I'm thinking maybe you have to finish a couple of main story quests before it can progress so that you can really feel that there's been time for the dust to settle. And I think it would be Teia that actually approaches Rook and starts that conversation. Bc Viago thinks he fucked up (which yeah kinda bc cmon Viago you can't just drop hints you need clear communication you wally) and Rook thinks they fucked up (also yeah kinda bc Rook you could've sorted this out by starting the conversation and communicating too. Bad communication all round here). And I think THIS would be the moment where you can lock in the Viago romance. And much like with personal quests for the companions, I think there's also potential here for you to make a choice. Either be with both Viago AND Teia, or just Viago. Either way, Teia is open and understanding bc she and Viago already discussed this a while back, remember?

I also think after this you could have the opportunity to give Teia a gift too. Either one showing friendship or a romantic one depending on the choice you made. I'm not too sure on what a good gift for her would be, so someone let me know what you think a good gift for her would be (if you've gotten this far, of course. Thank you if you have, btw ❤️).

Again, I don't think this romance would be a steamy one. This one is slow, it's tentative. I think when Rook comes back from the Fade prison, Viago would be waiting in their room for them. And he's fucking pissed. He's passed that they disappeared and that he never noticed Rook still thought Varric was alive. But most of all, he's pissed at himself for not saying anything sooner. For not saying that he loves Rook. And it's killed him thinking that Rook could be dead or gone forever and he never got to say what he wanted to.

Rook will not be leaving their room all night.

[sunnylighter]

Here's some art for my fic, Clear as Mud. AKA, what happens in the post-reboot Archie comics if both Sonic and Silver remember the old timeline and do not explain it to their very confused friends.

It was getting to the point Sally had to physically stop Tails and Rotor from pulling together a murder board.

"Just ask them," she said one evening while playing keep-away with the corkboard and ball of red yarn they wanted to use. "It's not that hard."

"Actually, Sally-Girl, it is," said Bunnie, who wasn't totally willing to go full conspiracy, but not about to stop the boys from doing it either.

"Every time we try to ask, zere is some interruption or ze answer simply leaves us with more questions," Antoine agreed.

Sally rolled her eyes. "It can't be that bad."

"Silver implied I might be royalty the other day," said Amy, throwing up her hands in exasperation. "I need a straight answer here."

"Sonic implied the same thing about Charmy when we were talking about the Chaotix the other day," added Tails. "And he shut Silver up when he started to ask about someone named 'Fiona' with me around."

"For some reason, they think I should be afraid of orcas and thought there was a Freedom Fighter branch up north," said Rotor.

"I don't know who zis Geoffrey person is, but Sonic seems to dislike ze man with a great vehemence," said Antione.

"An' he had Silver help him use what Ah can only assume was a dummy o' him as target practice," added Bunnie.

Even Nichole piped in to say sheepishly, "I may have overheard a conversation that may have implied a debate on if a variation of Metal Sonic might have had a crush on me. I'd like to know a little more about why they would think that."

Sally stared at all of them and was also reminded of a strange moment where Silver had apparently mistaken her for someone named Elias, and then had gotten distraught when he realized she wasn't him. She'd done her best to console him, and would really like more of an explanation for it, but hadn't wanted to tread on what was clearly a sensitive subject. (Her current theory was that Elias was her future descendant, and she hoped Silver's reaction didn't mean something bad happened to him.)

________________

Safe to say, Silver's time period did not exactly give them something to look forward to.

"It used to be worse," Silver told them as he led them down the steps to his friend's lab. The lab's owner apparently had all the equipment they'd need to find another Genesis Portal back to their own time.

"That's not exactly reassuring," Rotor told the psychic hedgehog.

"Well, good to know all that time travel wasn't good for something," said Sonic dryly.

Seeming to miss the sarcasm, Silver nodded and continued, "Yeah, I know that doesn't mean things here still can't be better, but I'm hoping we can change things here in the present instead of having to go back to fix it this time. Well, once the Genesis Portals are all taken care of, at least. But if I happen to make things better here while I'm in the past, I won't complain."

Before the Freedom Fighters could make a comment on that hopeful plan, Silver reached the door to the lab and opened it, ushering them inside.

Inside, a red-haired and teal-skinned human(?) and a golden tenrec with a circular mark on her forehead looked up at their arrival.

Immediately, Tails and Rotor's attention was stolen by the sight of the tech around them, and the two geniuses practically started drooling. "I've died and gone to technogeek heaven," Rotor said in awe, and Tails nodded in agreement as three tiny and cute robotic hedgehogs swarmed around them curiously.

"Vy zank you," said the green man, looking flattered.

The tenrec, however, looked at them nervously and the symbol on her head glowed slightly as she glanced over at Silver. "Silver? Who are they? Why did you bring them here?"

Everyone but Silver and the green man jumped as they heard that question ring out not from the tenrec's mouth but from inside their heads.

Apparently, the tenrec was telepathic.

"They're some of my friends from the past," Silver said to answer her question, apparently used to that way of speaking, and sweeping a hand to indicate them. "Meet Sonic, Tails, and Rotor." He then looked to the Freedom Fighters and said, "Guys, these are my friends in my time. Meet Professor Von Schlemmer and Gold the Tenrec. I wouldn't be able to handle the Genesis Portals without them."

[666writingcafe]

Questions (NB 14A)

A Side Chapter That Takes Place During Diavolo and MC's Impromptu Vacation After The Kingsblood Crucible

Slight NSFW Content Warning

I should have known this was coming. We've pretty much exhausted all other topics of conversations during our time here at the villa. Still, I didn't expect him to broach the subject so...abruptly. We were simply sitting outside and watching the sunset when he glances over at me and states calmly,

"So, you've fucked my butler." I nearly choke on my drink.

"I-Is that a bad thing?" I ask, setting it on the table between us.

"Not necessarily. I just want to know how it happened. He's normally not one to indulge in such pleasures." I pull up my text conversation with Barbatos on my D.D.D. and show it to Diavolo. He gently takes the phone away from me as he reads that particular string of texts between the two of us. When he finishes, he hands the phone back to me.

"I didn't realize you were attracted to each other," he remarks.

"He's a nice-looking man."

"That's all?" I nervously swallow.

"Well...we've managed to bond over metal music in both timelines. In fact, it's what led to it happening the first time."

"Really?" I nod, proceeding to tell him about the events leading up to and after the Severa concert I went to with my version of Barbatos.

"I see," he responds once I'm finished. "The main reason that I asked is because I've noticed Barbatos growing more attached to you. His scent's grown a lot stronger since your arrival, to the point where it seems as though he's not trying as hard to hide it as he once did." He briefly pauses before adding,

"It's also beginning to overpower yours, which is a bit of a shame. You smell nice." Out of context, this would be very creepy, but I know his comment is innocent enough.

"Is he this territorial over you in your timeline?"

"Not usually," I answer. "He was pretty handsy before the concert, but I think that's only because he felt like he could get away with it in that context, if that makes sense." Diavolo nods his head.

"He likes keeping his professional life separate from his personal." We each take sips out of our drinks. "So, obviously Solomon and you are like an unofficial married couple, but what's your relationship like with the others? Is it similar to what you have with Barbatos, or do you merely see them as friends and colleagues?" I swallow nervously. Having the future king of the Devildom wanting to know this aspect of my life is nerve-racking, to say the least. Would he think less of me after this?

"Well...to put it simply, I'm a wee bit of a whore when it comes to them." Diavolo hums lightly in response.

"Wouldn't have pegged you as the type."

"I didn't use to be, but then the exchange program happened, and as I got to know everyone, feelings naturally began forming, and one thing led to another, resulting in me wanting to engage in those activities more and more often."

"Interesting. Is there anyone in particular that you feel the most drawn to?"

"There's three."

"Including Solomon?" I nod my head. "And the other two?"

"Well...there's Lucifer." Another hum, this one deeper and more drawn out. As if he's displeased.

"That's always been a bit of a sore subject between us," I tell him. "In fact, I think that's part of why we really didn't get along at first. I felt like you were taking advantage of him, and you thought that I was taking him away from you." Diavolo sighs.

"Lucifer...he means a lot to me. He's unlike anyone I've ever met, which makes me all the more attracted to him. But even if I'm successful in implementing my goal of uniting the three realms, I doubt there would ever come a time where I'd..." He trails off, appearing to collect his thoughts.

"At the end of the day, I have to consider who'd be fit to rule by my side, and even if I didn't have to abide by tradition, I just don't think he has it in him to be able to do it successfully." Well, this is interesting. I was under the impression that he'd marry Lucifer in a heartbeat if he could. He certainly acted that way in my timeline.

"You seem confused," Diavolo observes. "Is the relationship I have with Lucifer that much different where you come from?"

"In a word, yes." He sighs again.

"The biggest problem is the mark. Its influence is making him act increasingly subservient towards me, and I want my future partner to feel like they're equal to me. If I'm being stupid, I'd want someone to tell me that and help me change my behavior. That wouldn't be possible if I'm constantly surrounded by yes men.

"As it is, it's difficult to find objective people. They're either too afraid or too enamored to stand up to me. My father used that to his advantage. I won't make that same mistake."

"I see." I'm a bit surprised that he's being so open about all this. I mean, it's not like I'm going to tell anyone, not even when I get back home, but still. My Diavolo and I have never been able to get this close. We've had deep conversations, sure, but never about this.

"So, Solomon and Lucifer. Who's number three?" I find myself hesitating to answer. It's not that I don't want to; I'm simply too nervous about his potential reaction to be able to form words.

"It's okay, MC. Just move your head. Sound good?" I nod.

"Is it a member of royalty?" Nod.

"Is it someone from the House of Lords?" Shake.

"Is it one of their servants?" A confused shake.

"We generally treat them as part of the royal family," he explains. "After all, they help ensure that things run smoothly for us." Nod.

"Is it someone that I'd know?"

"Kind of?" Oh, so now my mouth decides to work. Diavolo tilts his head and studies me. A couple minutes later, he gets up from his chair and walks over to me. Leaning over me, he gently lifts my chin up so that I'm looking directly into his eyes.

"Is it me?" His voice is much huskier than it was before, making my heart begin racing. I'm afraid to tell him the truth, but I also know that he's going to see right through whatever lie I tell him.

Might as well be honest with him. It'd be better than the alternative.

"Yes." He smiles softly.

"Good."

Good?

Diavolo's lips touch mine, causing my brain to shut off momentarily. He's pleasantly warm. Makes me all tingly inside.

Even though the kiss doesn't last very long, I still find myself slightly out of breath when he pulls away.

"Strange," he whispers, taking a step back to give me space.

"What?"

"I thought that would have satisfied my curiosity, but I..." Is he getting nervous?

"You were curious about me?" He nods.

"After I first told you about my trial, I had a vision. It appeared as a brief flash of color at first, but when I was able to focus on it, it showed you and me sitting beside each other on thrones. Your behavior at the Kingsblood Crucible proved to me that you'd be more than capable of ruling alongside me, but then I began wondering how we'd even get to that point in the first place. If the House of Lords didn't like me allowing the seven brothers to live here, then in what world would they accept me marrying a human?"

"That hasn't stopped you from broaching the subject before."

"I figured as much, but I still wanted to know why."

"And?" Diavolo takes a deep breath.

"You taste ridiculously sweet. It's awoken something in me, and I find myself wanting more. In fact, it's making it increasingly harder to concentrate on anything else."

Oh. Is this how the others feel about me? It'd certainly explain some of their behavior towards me; I'm like a drug to them. Whether it's due to my powers, my ancestry, or something else entirely, I'm not sure.

But that's not really that important right now.

"Do you want me to enable you, or stop you?" I ask Diavolo.

"I...I don't know." A blush develops on his face, and he suddenly seems unable to look at me. I'm not used to seeing this side of the prince, but I can't say I mind it. It's rather adorable.

"Do you trust me enough to make the decision for you?" He nervously swallows before nodding his head, and I get up from my chair and stand in front of him. Standing on the tips of my toes makes me just tall enough for me to kiss Diavolo.

The next thing I know, I'm sitting in his lap as we practically devour each other. At least that's something that stays consistent across time and space.

I'm sure both of us are going to be littered with marks by the time we're done.

Taglist: @lost-in-time-wanderer, @fuzztacular, @dianedancer18, @sweetbrier2908, @flare-love, @completelyshatteredbrokenmschf, @thunderlightning351, @l3v1chan, @anxious-chick, @5mary5, @expressionless-fr, @tenkobitch, @interconnectedmatrix

[totally-italy]

Honestly, I'm hyped to find another Just Add Magic fan on here, it's one of my face obscure shows, and if you don't really mind, I'd like to rant about the parallels between the original protectors and the main three.

At first glance, the parallels seem obvious. Kelly parallels her grandmother, Hannah Miss Silvers and , although it doesn't match up with the other two, Mama P with Darbie.

However, looking at the shows events more deeply showcases a more subversive take.

First off, I think that Miss Silvers parallels Darbie.

Despite how different the two seem, they are both very passionate about an art, Darbie with theatre and Miss Silvers with piano. They both share the magic with a non protector friend, although in Miss Silvers case, it backfired. They both have a high amount of empathy, and both of them scream neurodivergent to me Darbie with ADHD and Miss Silvers with autism. They also seem more likely to use the magic for 'frivolous' things, it's a novelty to them.

Next up, Hannah and Becky, Kelly's grandmother. They both care strongly about their friendships, and are cautious with the magic as opposed to the others, who use it as a means to an end, or as a fun way to make life simpler. They both are used by Chuck to bring back his sister Rose, even though he was successful with Becky and not Hannah. They both care deeply about thier friends and family, to the point where they sacrifice their own well being.

And my personal favourite: Mama P and Kelly.

At first, Kelly seems like the typical leader character stereotype, but it's later shown that she is the most morally grey of the group. She will do anything, literally anything, to achieve her goals. She's marginally obsessed with magic, and although she cares about only a few people, she would kill for them. Sound familiar? Mama P matches that description, although her and Kelly have different goals, they show ambition throughout the show. Also, when chuck arrived first, during the OCs protectership, he targeted Mama Ps father. When he returned, he targets Kelly's father.

They have one track minds, and can't quite seem to grasp the consequences of their actions entirely.

Okay lol sorry about how long this was, I've been rotating it in my head for a while

Hank you for reading if you did!

Oh my gods, I actually had to start writing this comment before reading the entire ask, but I absolutely agree with your point about neurodivergence, particularly with Darbie, because she gives me such ADHD vibes and, as I was re-watching it this time, I honestly really felt that she mirrors some of my own experiences as a self-diagnosed ADHDer. Also, though I don't know if I actually thought about it as deeply, I really do think that Miss Silvers is autistic and I thank you for bringing it to my attention!

Also, I really agree with what you were saying about Kelly and Mama P because, though I think Kelly she be cut some slack due to her youth and her being literally poisoned by the magic, she is very similar to Mama P and I don't think it is a coincidence that Mama P particularly wanted to teach Kelly. Also, considering how close Kelly is with her grandmother, I think it also makes sense that Mama P would try to manipulate her (and actually succeeded) with regards to the Pluot Festival.

I feel like the connection between Hannah and Becky is a little bit more obscure, but it is definitely accurate, particularly if you consider the fact that, in Season 1, Hannah covered for Kelly but then snitched on her, and Becky did the same thing in the last season, after finding Kelly's earrings. Also, though I don't agree with Becky trying to get rid of the book and I don't feel like Hannah would have done the same, she clearly does demonstrates the same unwillingness for her own friendships to deteriorate and tries to serve as the mediator a lot.

On the other hand, if you remember the first episode in which they created the bitter truth truffles, wherein Darbie and Hannah admitted that they probably wouldn't be friends if it weren't for Kelly, I think that in itself does create a link between Kelly and her own grandmother, since both originally serve as links between their friends.

I honestly really agree with pretty much everything that you said, though I don't think I had actually ever thought about it that deeply, so thank you for allowing me to analyse it further and for sharing your own perspective on it!

For the record, you absolutely do not have to apologise and I have actually made way longer posts than that before (namely my 1347 word rant about Greek Mythology).

If I might ask, have you seen Mystery City and, if so, what do you think about it? Also, have you ever seen Avatar: The Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra?

[canirove]

In The Name of Love | Chapter 31

Previous chapter | Next chapter

Masterlist

"Keys, wallet, water bottle, notebook, pens, tissues… I think I have it all."

"Are you sure?" Silvia says.

"I… Shit" I say when I see her holding my phone.

"I've never seen you this nervous on a first day before. Not even on your very first day."

"Yeah, well… Back then I wasn't dating someone famous and the whole world knew about it" I sigh. Because now everyone knows. 

A few days after the photos in Tenerife were published, someone started to share details about me, sending them to magazines and fan accounts. People now knew my full name, what I had studied and where, what I did for a living, some of my hobbies… And, of course, my age. That had made things escalate quickly, the word cougar being thrown right and left. Though the comments that were hurting me the most, were the ones saying that I should not be teaching kids when I am dating someone so young.

"You aren't doing anything wrong, Val" Silvia says, taking my hand on hers.

"I know, but… I already got some weird looks from other teachers the other day. And I know that the moment the parents see me, they'll start gossiping."

"Then let them. You've been dating Pedri for three years already while teaching their kids, and they all have loved you and said you are amazing. Now because they know who you sleep with you suddenly are a bad teacher? C'mon…"

"People are like that, Silvia…"

"Stupid, that's what they are."

"A bit, yeah" I chuckle. "Anyway, I better go."

"Good luck, Val" she smiles.

"Thank you" I reply, walking towards the door. "Holy mother of Jesus!" I yell when I open it.

"Morning, gorgeous" Pedri smiles.

"What are you doing here?"

"I'm driving you to work."

"What?"

"I wanted to be there on your first day."

"Did you know about this?" I say, turning to look at Silvia.

"I… Maybe?" she replies. "It was supposed to be a surprise."

"Oh, you have definitely surprised me. And given me a heart attack too."

"You opened when I was about to ring. But will this make you feel better?" he says, showing me the bouquet of flowers he was hiding behind his back.

"It's a start…"

"I can do other things to make you feel better, but we don't want to be late" Pedri smirks.

"Idiot" I reply, rolling my eyes.

"Should we go, then?" he says.

"Yeah, let's go."

"And Val…" Silvia says. "Haters gonna hate."

"Did you just quote Taylor Swift?" I laugh.

"She's right, so" she shrugs. 

"Maybe we should listen to that song in the car" Pedri offers.

"No."

"Ok, ok. You are kinda scary when you use that tone" he laughs. "Bye, Silvia."

"Bye, guys!" 

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"It's time" I sigh, picking up my bag and the flowers.

"Everything will be ok, Val."

"It will, yes" I say, trying to convince myself.

"Have I ever told you how proud I am of you?" Pedri says, caressing my cheek.

"I'm not sure…"

"Well, I am doing it now. I am so proud of you, Val. What you teachers do is amazing and people should show you more respect."

"Aww, Pepi."

"It's the truth" he shrugs. "Now go there and show those kids how good you are."

"That sounds like what Xavi tells you before a game" I chuckle.

"It does, doesn't it?" he laughs. "But, again, it is the truth. You are amazing, Val."

"And you are gonna make me cry" I say, hitting his arm.

"Sorry" he smiles. "I love you."

"I love you too."

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"Val! Good morning!"

"Good morning, Beth" I smile.

"The flowers arrived earlier today, uh?" she says, nodding towards the bouquet in my hands.

"And that was him, wasn't it?" Luis says. "He has a really nice car."

"Did he drive you to work?"

"He did, yes. He wanted to be with me on my first day" I say with a shy smile.

"That is so cute."

"I always drive you to work" Luis says.

"Yeah, but because we live together" Beth replies, rolling her eyes. "Anyway, let's go. We can't be late on our first day, can we?"

"We cannot, no" Luis sighs.

As we walk towards the school, many parents turn to look at us. I can see them whispering, nodding, and even pointing towards me. The moment we walk past them they say good morning with their best smile, but then the whispers are back.

"He probably bought her those flowers."

"And she's brought them so we all can see them."

"Her bag looks new. And expensive. I'm sure he bought it for her."

"Watch her start dressing like the other wags. No more Zara for Miss Valeria."

"She should be ashamed of herself. Dating someone so young…"

"Val, hey. Valeria" Beth says, linking her arm with mine. "Ignore them. They are just bored and jealous."

"Exactly. We know you and support you" Luis says to my other side.

"Thank you" I reply, trying to smile and focus on them, on my friends. Though it won't be easy…

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

How did it go? 

Ok

Ok? What does it mean?

It means that it was ok

Val, what happened?

Nothing  The kids are great One of them was wearing your shirt and came to show me with the biggest smile And then he asked me if I could get him your autograph

Cheeky 😂

What did you tell him?

That I would depending on how well he behaved and his grades Same to everyone else

Great motivation 😅

But if it was ok, why are you… off?

I'm not off

Val, I can feel it and we are just texting while being kilometres away

What happened?

Nothing

Val… what did we promise each other?

No more secrets

Ok, fine It was the parents They kept whispering and gossiping as I walked past them It was very uncomfortable, they were making me feel as if I had done something bad

But you haven't

I know, but… It doesn't matter

Val…

It doesn't It was just the first day, the novelty In a few days they will have moved on into something else Like a parent having a fling with another or whatever

Val, are you sure you are ok?

Do you want to facetime?

I'm fine, Pedri I'm going to bed already, I'm shattered  And so should you, you have a game tomorrow

If I don't sleep well and play badly we'll probably lose.

Yes, but I don't want you to lose because you were shit I want you to lose because the others suck

Always so thoughtful 😂

😇😇

But Val…

What now 🙄

I love you 🤍

I love you too 🤍

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"I can't fucking believe it."

"What happened?" Silvia asks me.

"Isabel, I mean, “the mole”, just shared more photos" I sigh.

"What? How? I thought you had deactivated all your accounts."

"I did. But she must have download the photos or something."

"That is so fucked up, Val… Has the people Barça hired said something?"

"That whoever this person is, they are uploading and sending the photos using public WiFi signals and fake emails. That they know what they are doing."

"And do you really think Isabel is capable of doing all that?"

"She hates me, Silvia. She's capable of that and more." 

"Yeah, but… The teenagers are nuts" she says. "They could have hacked someone's account or something and be the ones doing this."

"It has been Isabel since the beginning. What has been shared about me are things only someone who actually knows me and has done it for years can know, and she had access to all my photos through Marc's accounts. It is her." 

"What are you going to do? Because this can't keep going on, and if they aren't able to catch her…"

"I don't know" I sigh. "And that must be my car" I say when my phone pings.

"Val, maybe you shouldn't go to today's game."

"I have to, Silvia. They are playing against Manchester United, Ferran is back, and he's gonna introduce us to his girlfriend. I can't miss it."

"But Val…"

"I have to go" I say, getting up from the sofa and leaving before she can keep talking, taking deep breaths on the lift to calm myself down. Which is what I've been doing the most these past couple of months. Take deep breaths, and cry.

At the school things have calmed down. After just a week, what I had told Pedri would happen became a reality and they moved on into a new piece of gossip, though I still get some disapproving looks. Online, it is a different story.

Most fans are ok with me dating Pedri or don't care. The only thing that matters to them is if he is happy or not, and they can see that he is. But there are others who don't share that sentiment and who are ruthless, constantly overanalyzing every photo of us or just me alone that they find, calling me the most awful and mean nicknames they can think of. 

A couple of weeks ago, someone started to send them photos of Pedri and I together or from when I was at uni and in high school, private photos I had on Instagram and Facebook and that only my friends and family were supposed to see. And, of course, the mean comments didn't slow down. They only got more and more disgusting.

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"Val, hi!" Ter Stegen's wife, Dani, says while waving at me.

"Hi" I smile.

"How are you? Ready for tonight's game?"

"Ready" I say, sitting down. 

Before the season started I promised Pedri that I would watch him play with the other girlfriends and wives, that there will be no more getting tickets all around the stadium. And so far, I had managed to do it, Dani helping me to not feel so out of place. Though with the comments she and the others would get every time they would post a photo where you could see me, the only thing that helped was ignoring or blocking. 

"It feels a bit weird to see Ferran on the other team, doesn't it?" Dani says.

"It does… ouch" I complain when something hits my head.

"Are you ok?"

"Yeah, yeah. I guess someone lost their bottle's lid" I say, looking up.

"At least it was just that and not water. Or worse, beer. I saw that happen in Germany to a friend of mine."

"Oh my God."

"Yep" she laughs.

"Cougar!" someone shouts behind us.

"What the fuck" Dani says, turning around. 

"Ignore them."

"What? They are insulting you, Val."

"They just want attention. The best we can do is ignore them."

"But…"

"Please, Dani. Let's focus on the game."

"Ok, fine. We'll do as you say."

But the insults don't stop. The girls sitting a few rows behind us spend the first half of the game calling me names, making fun of me and throwing me popcorn.

"We should tell security, Val. This is not ok."

"And end up all over the internet like happened years ago? Hell no."

"But you would only be defending yourself from some bullies!"

"Dani, let it go."

"And if I go talk to them? Maybe they will listen to me."

"No, no, no. I don't want you getting involved."

"Val, you are my friend. I can't just sit and do nothing while two stupid teenagers keep insulting you."

"Dani, please" I beg her.

"Urgh, fine. You are looking at me the same way my kids do and I can't say no to that."

"Thank you" I say, trying to smile. And I say trying because a ball of paper just hit my head, the girls laughing like crazy.

━━━━━━❃━━━━━━

"Hello" Pedri smiles, walking towards me.

"Hi."

"Ready to meet Ferran and… Val, what happened?" he says, throwing his bag next to his car and cupping my face while giving me a concerned look. 

"Nothing" I shrug.

"Val, you've been crying."

"No."

"Valeria…" he sighs.

"It's nothing."

"If it has made you cry, it definitely is something. Talk to me."

"But what about Ferran? He probably is waiting for us, the team must be leaving soon and…"

"Don't worry about him now. Tell me what happened."

"It's… it's nothing, really."

"Please, Val. I hate seeing you like this" Pedri says, the way he is looking at me breaking my heart.

"There were a couple of girls sitting behind us, and they…"

"They what?"

"They spent the whole game insulting me and throwing me popcorn."

"And didn't security do anything?"

"Dani wanted to call them, but I didn't let her."

"You didn't? Why?"

"Because I didn't want to make another scene, and those girls only wanted attention."

"They were bullying you, Val. And they made you cry. Because they are the reason why you were crying, weren't they?"

"Yes" I nod. "When the game ended we walked past them and they… they…"

"They what?"

"They were basically calling me a whore" I say, starting to cry again.

"See why you should have told security about them?" Pedri says, raising his voice.

"That would have only made things worse and you know it."

"What I know is that this can't keep happening, Val. It can't! I'm gonna speak with my team, the club and whoever is necessary and put an end to this."

"Pedri…"

"No! I'm not gonna allow my so called fans to keep bullying the woman I love. Enough is enough!" he says. I think I had never seen him this angry before.

"Please don't say anything. Please" I cry.

"What? Are you out of our mind, Val?"

"If you say something it will only get worse. And I… I won't be able to deal with that. Please let it go, Pedri. Please."

"Val…"

"Please" I beg him, hugging him as tightly as I can while crying on his shoulder. "Please."

"I… fine" he sighs. "But if it happens again, you will let me do something. We are done looking the other way, ok?"

"Ok" I say, still not letting go of him, feeling like he is the only thing keeping me from truly breaking apart.

[therantsofawriterrr]

The Umbrella Academy Final Season: My Version

Part Twelve: The Reunion

Overview: Klaus encounters a familiar face on a rescue mission, as the others arrive at Hargreeves mansion to confront the old man. TW: gore, ghosts, mentions of sexy times, i think thats it, tell me in the comments if i missed anything! Pairings: Klaus × Dave A/N: oh my god i finally finished this one yayyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyyy

When Vanya, Allison, and Luther got out of the car outside the Hargreeves mansion, they found themselves hesitating,

"Are we really doing this?" Luther asked the other two.

"Yeah," Viktor replied. "Yeah, we are."

"Hold on," Luther said with narrowed, concerned eyes. "Why are you so in this? You hate Dad. Yet, here you are first in line to see him."

"I'm stuck, okay?" he answered softly. "I'm stuck in an endless argument with him in my head. And I feel like... like the only way I can move forward is if I finally say my piece to him. Do you know what I mean?"

"Yeah," Luther said.

"Just a friendly reminder to the group," Allison spoke up. "The last time you spoke your piece to him, he murdered you."

"I can defend myself now," he said firmly. "Will we able to make it past the front door, though?"

"Well, if civility doesn't work, I'll just rumor their brains all over the wall," Allison said. "Let's go."

As they approached the guards standing outside, a man came forward, looking burly and ominous. "May I help you?"

"Yeah, you can run inside and tell Reggie we're coming in whether he likes it or not," Allison said, hostility evident in her voice.

All three of them waited, relaxed but alert, as the tension built up. The man took off his sunglasses and gave Allison a polite smile.

"Of course, Ms. Hargreeves. Welcome," he said unexpectedly. "We've been expecting you."

Then his eyes flitted to Luther and Viktor as he said, "Luther. Viktor. I'll escort you inside the house. This way, please."

They followed him inside, looking around at the white all around. Some tune was played on a violin, and Viktor's ears perked up. All three looked at the front to find a woman playing it, looking immaculately graceful.

Just as the tune picked up speed, she stopped.

"What a pleasure to finally put faces to names," the woman said.

She carefully kept aside the violin and its bow before turning back to look at them.

"You must be Allison," she said, coming forward to squeeze her arms. "I've heard so much about you."

All of them gave her confused glances as she turned to Luther.

"Luther... my little space boy," she said as Luther's eyes widened a bit. "I finally get a chance to properly thank you for watching over me on the moon."

"What's that supposed to mean?" he asked immediately.

But, she ignored the question to turn to Viktor with a smile. "Dear Viktor. I understand we share a passion for the violin."

"It's more of a love-hate thing for me, but..." he trailed off, not knowing how to respond.

After a deep sigh, the woman said, "Come. Come, sit."

They looked at each other as the woman got up to put her instrument at its rightful place, before they went ahead and sat.

"Is, uh, Reggie home?" Viktor asked.

"I'm sure he's puttering around somewhere. Let's us get to know each other a bit first. I'm Abigail, by the way."

They all gave her polite smiles and she pointed towards the food, encouraging them to eat. "Go ahead. Don't be shy. The chef will be cross if you don't."

Meanwhile, Klaus was groaning about his legs again.

"Benjamin," he dragged out. "Why can't we wait for a car to pass or something?"

"We don't have time for that," Ben replied, shuffling forward despite the pain in his ankles. "She's not safe."

"Fine, then at least let's hotwire a car," Klaus said, noticing the slight limp in his legs. "You're about an hour away from your legs going numb, and not in the good way, Ben."

"Shh. We're here," he whispered, suddenly crouching down to peering over a bush. "Look, I can see her."

Klaus looked at where he was pointing, seeing a woman sitting at the window in a room on the upper floor. But the real problem was the guards with big guns standing on the ground outside.

"Okay, you take the guards, I'll sneak in and get her out?" Klaus suggested.

Ben grinned at him and let his tentacles out walking out, startling the people.

Klaus watched as Ben killed and thrashed many people, waiting for all of them to be distracted. Then, he slowly sneaked in, running into the house and looking for the stairs.

Where have all the good men gone

And where are all the gods?

Where's the streetwise Hercules

To fight the rising odds?

But, there were people inside the house too. They had revolvers, not submachine guns, but it was still just as lethal. He thrust both his hands out, summoning ghosts without a problem and setting them on the men and women.

Isn't there a white knight upon a fiery steed?

Late at night, I toss and I turn

And I dream of what I need

He went up the stairs with a giggle as chaos reigned, ghosts having a field day with so many people to kill. Some ghosts were looking on horrified, while some were laughing and cheering, there were bets going on too, on who was going to go after who.

And at any other time, Klaus would stay to watch and enjoy with them. But, he was busy, he had a mission to do.

He'd hated missions back in the day. He'd always been high and useless. But now, with the power of the dead and more importantly, the power of sobriety on his side, he felt more powerful than the short bursts of control that he had many years ago.

He walked calmly and carefully down the hallway, hoping the room that Jennifer was in was here somewhere. And he did find it. But, he also found a familiar face standing outside, with his revolver out.

I need a hero

I'm holding out for a hero 'til the end of the night

He's gotta be strong, and he's gotta be fast

And he's gotta be fresh from the fight

"What the fuck...?" the man said, blinking at the man standing beside him. He was the man of his dreams. Scratch that, he was the man in his dreams.

Klaus was just as surprised to see the man who was the love of his life. The only person that he cared for and loved more than himself.

"Dave," he said softly and saw the other's eyes widen.

"How do you know my name?" he asked, regaining his composure and pointing his revolver at him again.

"Dave, I..." Klaus was going to try to make him remember but then realized that for him, there was probably nothing to remember.

In this timeline, it was Klaus and Dave's first meeting.

"Okay, okay, look," Klaus said, raising his hands in surrender as he tried to think of something that would convince him to not kill him but also make him come with him. "Um, these people? They're crazy, okay? All they do is lie and deceive. So, how about you join hands with me?"

Dave scoffed, even if his heart raced at his voice. He wanted to believe this guy.

"You're the one lying right now, pal," he said. Dave knew what his name was. He'd had enough dreams about him to know almost everything about him. But he didn't wanna get his hopes up.

"Look, I'm not, okay?" Klaus said, desperation lacing his voice. "Dave, please. Just listen to me. Just trust me."

The last three words sent a shiver down Dave's spine. They were the words that were uttered by him at their first kiss in his dream. Their first time was also prefaced by the same three words. He had a whole love story with this man in his dream and those words were the crux of it.

He hesitated, and Klaus waited for his decision. Then Dave lifted the gun, and Klaus closed his eyes for the incoming shot.

I need a hero (BANG!)

I'm holding out for a hero 'til the morning light

He's gotta be sure, and it's gotta be soon

And he's gotta be larger than life

Larger than life

The bullet whistled past his left ear and hit a man behind him. Klaus opened his eyes and looked at Dave, who was still a bit skeptical, but willing to join hands.

Immediately after, he opened the door, making Jennifer jump.

"Come on," Dave urged.

She went with them both as Klaus rejoiced internally. Dave pushed them both behind him, holding the gun steadily in his hand. But at encountering the corpses downstairs, he turned back with a stunned expression.

"Did you do all that?" he asked.

Klaus shrugged, sending the ghosts away with a swish of his hand behind his back. Ben entered through the door, looking clean for the most part. Dave raised his gun again as Ben stopped with a confused look.

"He's with me," Klaus yelled out, so that the two didn't attack each other.

"What? Klaus, he's with them," Ben pointed out.

"No, he isn't," Klaus interjected. "He's agreed to help us."

"What if he's just acting?"

"He's not, alright, now can we go? Lonnie the llama is tired of blocking the door of the lunatics' room."

They all ran out, Jennifer's hand in Ben's and Dave's in Klaus's.

Back in the Hargreeves house, all four of them were sitting in awkward silence, trying their hands at small talk.

"Must be quite cold in Canada," Abigail said.

"I mean... yeah. It can be," Viktor floundered. "The summers can be quite pleasant."

"And Luther, what about you?" she asked. "What do you do?"

"I, uh, I work in a science museum," Luther answered after gulping down the tea. "I show them around, teach them stuff and all that."

"Oh, how wonderful!" Abigail regaled. "You've all done so well for yourselves. No thanks to your father, I might add."

"I heard that!" Reginald's voice boomed from behind the elder woman. "My chief of security informs me that the tiny hamlet of New Grumpson, Maine, is still smoldering in the wake of your colossal ineptitude."

The big words made the kids roll their eyes as Reginald leaned in to give Abigail a peck on her cheek.

"Reggie, darling, please," Abigail said soothingly, trying to calm him down.

"Tell me everything I want to know now or suffer the consequences," he said, sounding pretty non-threatening.

Viktor's eyes beamed orange as she got up, her power getting activated, "You first!"

Allison squeezed his arm, encouraging him to sit back down and relax.

"Ah, so it's true," Reginald declared. "I suspected you couldn't have done all that damage au naturel. But how?"

"Reggie. Enough," Abigail warned. "Is this really how you treat our guests? Threats and interrogations? Now, sit down, and we'll have a conversation like a civilized species."

"Guess we know who wears the monocle in this relationship," Allison murmured, making Viktor and Luther snicker under their breaths.

They both sat down as Reginald heaved a sigh.

"Tea, darling?" Abigail inquired followed by a, "No, thank you, darling," by Reginald.

"Now, if I may be so bold as to ask," Reginald started. "How did you regain your powers? Why did you destroy the town of New Grumpson? And... what have you done with the girl?"

"Well, it's kind of a long story, but it all started with these cult leaders named Gene and Jean Thibedeau," Luther said, thinking that he might be the one behind the Keepers as well.

"I'm unfamiliar with those names," Reginald said.

"You know what, the real question, is why you would build an entire town to hold a girl prisoner?" Allison asked.

"Her name is Jennifer," Reginald corrected. "And I wasn't holding her prisoner. I was protecting her."

"Protecting her from what?" Viktor demanded.

"From you, naturally," the elder man replied plainly.

"So, she is one of us," Allison said with a scoff.

"I'm afraid not. She's nothing like you. In fact, she's your complete opposite in every way imaginable. And, she has more power than all of you put together."

"Hey!" A guard yelled out as the door opened and closed.

Diego, Lila, Five, and Clementine came inside.

Diego held up a file in his hand and announced, "We need to talk about Ben."

He explained everything to the group, while pointing at the file.

"It's mostly redacted, though," he finished, handing the file to Allison's outstretched hand.

"Oh, great, so we can't read it or see it," Allison said sarcastically, opening it anyway.

"From what I can tell, this document is from our original timeline," Five explicated. "It explains how Ben died. It refers to it as the 'Jennifer incident'."

"But we already know how Ben died," Luther intervened.

"Okay, then. Tell us," Five demanded.

"Well, it was a tragic accident. Ben, our Ben, died because we failed as a team. Nobody was responsible, and..."

Luther trailed off as his face twisted into a perplexed one.

"And what?" Five asked. Then, he turned to his sister. "Allison, how did Ben die?"

"It was a tragic accident," she said, mirroring Luther's words. "Ben died because we-"

"Failed as a team," Luther joined in.

"Nobody was responsible, yet we were all responsible," Diego, Allison and Luther said together. "Ben Hargreeves represented the best of us. Ben was the Umbrella Academy."

They all finished the lines with confused and scared faces, not being able to understand what Five confirmed.

"What kind of sick party trick is this?" Lila asked Reginald.

"Okay, can any one of you remember how Ben actually died?" Five asked. "Anything?"

"Well, I wasn't there," Viktor said.

"Well, neither was I, but the rest of you were," Five explained as Luther, Allison, and Diego tried to recall the mission. "You think you'd remember something about the death of your beloved brother, but you don't."

"What the hell is going on here?" Luther asked.

"Isn't it obvious?" Five asked plainly, turning to Reginald. "Someone's been playing putty with your hippocampus."

"Messing with our memories," Diego concluded.

"As fascinating as this may be, I assure you I haven't the foggiest notion of what this is about," Reginald said.

"You know something, old man," Diego said, walking over to his chair and standing beside Lila.

"You are speculating about the actions of a completely different version of myself from a completely different timeline! That said, it does sound like something I might do."

All of them sighed insufferably at the response, as they fought the urge to strangle the man.

"There may or may not have been a certain clandestine project with a certain clandestine intelligence agency," he narrated.

"Human experiments on the mind," Clementine speculated.

"I should have known," Five murmured.

"Psychological warfare was all the rage in the 60s. But it was only a brief contract. Immensely lucrative."

"So, you can erase memories?" Luther asked incredulously.

"With the human mind, anything is possible, young man," Reginald said proudly.

"If you can erase them, you can restore them, right?" Lila asked.

"With the proper technology," Reginald replied.

"Which you have?"

"Naturally," he affirmed. "I'm sure it's in this building somewhere."

"All right, old man," Five said. "You're gonna put 'em back. Each and every memory that has to do with Ben's death. Because, if you erased the Jennifer incident, that means there was something important enough that you'd take the time to get rid of it."

"I will do no such thing!" Reginald burst out. "We need to track down the girl before it's too late."

"Reggie, please," Abigail interrupted.

"Darling, this is messy work. It could take hours, days."

"Whatever chain of events has been set in motion is ultimately your handiwork. Whatever timeline it happened in, help them. Please."

Her words seemed to do the trick, because he looked at all of them with a defeated sigh.

"Well, then. Let's get on with it, I suppose."

Another A/N: Hello, hello, yes im alive, thank you. This is mostly dedicated to the person who craved the new chapter but its also dedicated to those who waited patiently for it, yall are the real ones. I recently joined uni, my classes are abt to start next week maybe? so thats why i havent been able to post much but now im hoping i get back to it. TUA taglist: @auxiliarydetective @alwayslatetothefandoms (tell me if you wanna be added!) Thanks for reading!!! Likes, reblogs and comments are highly appreciated!!

[bcbdrums]

Soul Eater NOT - part 5 (MAJOR SPOILERS)

Ox, Kim, and Jackie. This felt like a combination of providing neat backstory that did in fact feel valuable, but also frankly a bit of the author living out his lesbian teen fetishes. Let's start with the positives, which are many!

Of the many reasons a person should read the Soul Eater manga canon, Ox Ford is one of them. In the anime he's played more for laughs, but in the manga we get to see his depth (which I won't go into here since this is about NOT). This depth is elaborated on in NOT. But we have to back up first to Kim...

Kim is shown to have arrived at the academy with long gorgeous hair, sailor suit, and sweet disposition that gained her instant popularity. Even a major fan club! But trying to avoid attention, she cut off all her hair and became a bully. She manipulates people and steals from them on the regular, the reason being to try to keep everyone at arm's length so she can keep her secret (she's a witch with healing powers).

Back to Ox... He is just as devoted to her as in SE, and he works extra jobs to earn back the money she steals and return it to her victims in secret! And he tells these people not to hold it against Kim, that she's really a good person and there's gotta be something else going on. Ox Ford, you wonderful human... Anyone who has only seen the anime may find this strange, but once you read the SE manga which gives him a LOT of attention and character development of his own apart from Kim, and you see that all of this is fully in line with the fantastic character he is.

Now we come to Jackie... Poor, confused girl. Presented entirely differently from the spitfire she is in the SE manga. Here, she's a conservatively dressed, straight-edged, rule-following girl and she's already in the EAT class, while Kim is in the NOT class. Her journey is all about wanting to be partnered with Kim, and wondering why she's so fixated on this. Is it love? Is it protectiveness? Is it simply one of those things that's meant to be? Soulmates, as it were.

The long and short of it is, Jackie spots Kim using her witch powers to heal an injured dog. Kim confesses everything, and Jackie agrees to keep her secret if they're partners. It's all very soft and not at all blackmail... And Jackie concludes that protectiveness and a heart for the underdog is her motive for wanting to be Kim's partner. Later in the manga, Kim denounces the partnership but still hangs out with Jackie, which Jackie teases her about. A hinting at deeper feelings?

Comment - overall I really enjoy this bit of backstory, except I think there were a few missteps.

With what we see of Kim's desperation to hide her witch side in SE canon to the point she runs away when found out and joins Arachne, I don't think she'd have simply confessed and given in to Jackie. Besides, she couldn't stand Jackie in the story! I think it would have been more in line with Kim's established personality to have her frankly just killed Jackie after she found out.

I do think the argument could be made that if meisters and weapons are soulmates, if there's truly a best match out there for everyone, that perhaps an instinct is what led Kim to confess and be merciful. But that would be headcanon.

Additionally, we never see Jackie lose her hard edge and turn into the fierce spitfire she is in the SE manga. Not even a hint of this appears in NOT. Again, one can headcanon it happened over time, but it would have been a really great to start to see that shift begin here, in my opinion.

And this is where it comes back to...the author just wanted to write lesbian teen romance (Kim and Jackie are exhibit B... Exhibit A are...the three main characters, who I've yet to mention). Overall though, the story of these three characters was very well done.

[actualbird]

Hi I have been dying to chat about NXX men and their finances or them with money in general, like personally, I headcanon that all of them makes an comfortable amount of money, to live and enjoy their hobbies because I humbly and fully believe that all of them has trust funds, like Luke has an 3 story building from his parents, who are potentially government workers, like why do you specifically need an 3 story building for? And also think about the bills, yeah, for that three story building, plus he's running 2 businesses as a side gig while working as an NSB agent full time.

Next up is Artem, his parents works in the law field, papa wing is literally the chief supreme judge while his mama works as an assistant Dean at a university (forget the name), plus as an law student, I noticed that lots of my peers came from family of lawyers and they are rich af, it sucks being first gen here, but moving on, he has lived quite an comfortable life, especially that he owns an penthouse and several cars (that's my future BTW, I am artem and he is me, just first gen), and he's super successful too.

For Vyn's and Marius's case, I would say that they're already self explanatory, since they are both born with a silver spoon. Considering that they are from generational wealth, old money kind, and nobles too. Now that I've established that all of the NXX boys are trust fund babies and are pretty successful, earns an comfortable amount of money.

I am curious about their spending habits, do you think they start celebrating whenever they get receive promotion or pay day has arrived or gets an bonus or raise, do they budget their finances or just don't even think about the prices, i wonder if they do grocery shopping, I want more domestic content where they do household chores, makes it feel more human. Do you think they pay for memberships and stuff, like those monthly subscriptions, do you think they impulsively buy things, do u think they did part time jobs in uni cuz I could see Luke working as kuya tricycle, I don't know he just give that vibe, while for artem, I want him to work in retail, same with Vyn, marius deserves to work in a fast food chain

And also, I did ask the TIT official server about the salary and current of stellis wayyy back, since I wanted to ask u before but ur box was not open yet but and they said that there isn't any confirmed currency, the closest one we ever got was the one where Artem and Mc were fake dating, and they used USD, and that if I wanted to know more about their salary, they said that i could probably just Google it up to see how much the average worker makes (me and the anon who asked you about their salary are not the same btw)

irt me ranking how much money the boys make

these are very nice headcanons!!!

personally i see all of them having pretty healthy and restrained spending habits. like they'll splurge for special occasions or for treating out rosa, their favorite girl, but that aside they arent doing Big Spending All The Time. i think all of them does budgeting, except for marius, who probably hires somebody else to do that for him LMAO.

as for part-time jobs in uni.....honestly given their backgrounds i dont think any of them wouldve been likely to take a part-time job? luke was busy being in a prestigious research group, while artem and vyn and marius came from very well off families to the point that money isnt really an issue

maybe the real fantasy fulfillment in tot is the fantasy of financial stability.......[falls to my knees]

you wanting to see them in debt is such a funny additional comment kjBKSJKFLSJFDS LIKE. WOE, FINANCIAL TROUBLES BE UPON YE!!

[dorn-queen-of-thorns]

8th chapter of "The power in me"

False sense of security

Worried, Orochimaru and his sidekicks Karin and Suigetsu search the corridors for Sarada. The echoes of the three's hasty footsteps are clearly audible, echoing off the desolate walls.

" Karin, why didn't you pay more attention to Sarada? Do I have to do everything here myself? I think I've been too careless with you and given you too many liberties," says the old Sannin, both shocked and angry. "Have you any idea how important she is as a test subject?" Orochimaru's concern for Sasuke's daughter is reflected in his very peculiar ways.

"Sensei! Please, I take all the blame. I'm worried about Sarada too. I was too careless when I just had to go outside to do something important…” Karin appeases.

Orochimaru can't really ask Karin to wet her pants all that seriously, and that she's been with Sarada most of the time, which the surveillance documents are showing it.

"Well, let's forget that for now and continue our search. Sasuke mustn't find out anything about this incident and should he enter here now, I don't want to be near him”, the odd scientist shows indulgence for Karin.

"Besides, it was my fault to distract Karin from her work," Suigetsu explains the situation, "she was too exhausted and needed a break..."

"It seems you found each other as a team after all. Inappropriately at the worst possible moment. I hope Log has more success with Mitsuki and he doesn't make a similar mistake," Orochimaru comments.

The three split up to look for the young girl. The hidden laboratory built into a mountain is widely spread and Sasuke's daughter can be anywhere.

Karin holds Sarada's old bandage in her hand and there are fine chakra residues from Sarada on it. Normally, with that as a clue, she would find someone within minutes.

This fact means Sarada can't be in close proximity, giving Karin chills. Her concern for the girl sits like a lump in her stomach and she feels nauseous.

But where should she be? Sarada can never have her chakra reserves replenished, this morning's findings show, and even if she did, Sarada cannot perform a jutsu in which she could travel from place to place without an existing Mangekyō Sharingan.

“We slowly searched every area. It's as if she has vanished into thin air," Suigetsu sighs annoyed, "that's not possible..."

Orochimaru ponders Suigetsu's comment, "Maybe you're right about that..."

Surprised and shocked, Suigetsu and Karin look at their master.

Karin raises her objection “Wait! You don't believe..."

Just as she's about to finish her sentence, the alarm sounds on small surveillance units on Orochimaru and Suigetsu's wrists.

Karin adjusts her glasses and a clear change in her facial expressions that radiates relief is noticeable.

"I can track her down again," and all three run back towards the starting point and arrive at the makeshift sickbay or more surveillance room.

Only the fluorescent light of the monitoring devices such as EEG, EKG, respiration illuminates the room, which, however, indicate inactivity. The only sound in this room is the frightening error message of no heart activity on the EKG.

"Where is she?" Suigetsu asks, walking into the room. He looks around questioningly, followed by the other two.

He only notices how Karin pushes him aside, "go aside, Sui...." , she can't finish her sentence. Karin is thrown to the ground with a rattling noise that sounds like shattering glasses and clanging trays.

The sight of two women lounging on the floor is a strange sight, Suigetsu thinks. The little Uchiha girl climbs Karin's chest like a snake. Supple and deadly at the same time. A dangerous combination for the attacker trying to knock her down.

Sakura and Sasuke effectively trained their daughter in taijutsu.

Breathing hastily, the young brat sits on Karin and threatens her with a scalpel. Her 3rd Tomoe is clearly visible in her left eye, her right eye is covered with part of her shaggy hair. Since when does she activated her 3rd Tomoe of her Sharingan? Mitsuki snakes would bring this important information a time ago. A spooky sight that Suigetsu and Karin have seen before if the hair were longer...

A disturbing goosebumps is noticeable on Suigetsu.

The sharp tool touches Karin's throat menacingly close. Although the touch only has to be millimeters, a red trickle is visible on Karin's throat.

" KARIN !!!", says Suigetsu, shocked and worried at the same time.

"Hush, Suigetsu!", Orochimaru admonishes his former prisoner calmly, "Karin's life is in danger. Sarada experiences a mental breakdown at that moment. She is apparently in shock.” Karin looks calmly at Suigetsu and tells him not to intervene now.

"Sarada...little one...it's all right...you're safe here..." Karin says to her soothingly.

Seemingly Karin's words reach Sarada and the girl looks around searchingly and part of her hurt face is now clearly visible...

The three of them knew this sight from her father until some time ago.

Panicked, the violet eye of the Six Paths scans the room and Sarada recognizes the three people around her. A Rinnegan is clearly visible in her eye socket.

Startled, she drops the scalpel on the floor next to Karin's head, cutting a strand of Karin's red hair.

Sarada gets off Karin's chest, horrified at what she was about to commit, roughly tearing her hair.

Crouching, the little girl sits pitifully and her tears flow. It can't all be real! Booming at a high frequency, she still hears that terrifying scream of that frightening giant beast. In her memory, Sarada thinks she can still feel the huge jaws of the 10th grinding and tearing at her body at the same time.

That must be a really bad dream. Right?! , she thinks.

Terrible chills make herself felt before panic. Bad, like the last time when she was so little and her mother watched over her day and night by her bed.

To calm herself, Sarada crosses her arms as if trying to calm herself.

"Where are Mom and Dad???", the desperate sight of little Uchiha tears Karin's heart apart and she carefully takes her in her arms.

"Where are mama and papa ???" She asks again crying, "please. Where are they???"

Sarada looks at Karin with tears. Karin carefully presses her against her shoulder and lets herself cry.

"Great! A second Madara Uchiha with a mental breakdown…” Suigetsu comments dryly to ease the situation.

Three pairs of eyes stare at Suigetsu:

Sarada startled and surprised that a fourth person bears her last name.

Orochimaru and Karin enraged that Suigetsu mentioned the most powerful and most feared Uchiha before Sarada.

" What? How?” asks Sarada, confused.

"Ssshhh… Sarada dear. That's not important now. You have to calm down first and recharge your chakra reserves…” Karin tries to distract her.

"But!... Please Aunt Karin..." Sarada begs her so heartbreakingly for answers to her many questions: The whereabouts of her beloved parents, this horrible meeting with Boruto? ….. Momoshiki? To this disturbing place and this monstrous beast staring at her like an alien from some science fiction stories. And who the hell is Madara Uchiha?

Sarada's inquisitive curiosity is aroused and she has to find a logical answer to everything.

"You will get answers to your questions, Sarada," Orochimaru says calmly, "but first Karin will take care of you. I have to work. We will see us again ..." , and then he disappears.

Sarada sees Mitsuki's mother? Father? Or better guardian? creator?

Whatever, asking afterwards.

"Where is he going?" Sarada asks Karin. Sarada wipes her tears from her face.

"He's certainly busy," Karin replies thoughtfully and assumes that her master is going to Mitsuki.

" Come with me ! It's time for you to take a bath", her foster aunt puts her arm around Sarada's shoulder and Karin takes her to her and more recently Suigetsu's bath, which they both secretly use for a short time together from time to time...

Well Karin and Suigetsu's improvement in their relationship started with that. When, after a heated argument, both used one of Orochimaru's many labs to blow off some steam. A change that appealed to both of them and they both decided to repeat it, several times. At first only in a professional sense to satisfy the physical desire, but at some point Karin developed feelings that she once only knew from Sasuke. Karin considers that things have been going so seriously between the two of them for three or a quarter of a year.

Lost in thought, the fiery red-haired woman fills hot water for Sarada. Karin is the same age as her mother. While her mother looks elegant and beautiful, Karin comes across as freaky, sexy and nerdy. But both are lovely women in their own way.

Comparable to her and Sumire...

Sumire, the elegant, tall, and Sarada, the fearsome and smaller of the two.

"Which bath additive do you prefer? Something sweet like added cherry blossoms or something spicier like orange and cinnamon wood?” Karin tries to lighten the mood and talks to Sarada about something trivial. Girl stuff ...

"I don't care..." Sarada says bored. She had never been interested in such stuff like her friend Chocho was, for example.

Her focus has always been to satisfy and develop her curiosity and her fighting techniques. If only she couldn't impress anyone with her scary looks in some situations. Then with her intelligence and her skills.

She sighs and goes into the warm water. A blessing after the shocking events. Everything that happened a short time before appears to her like a black hole that has sucked in every memory of her.

Dreamy and happy about girl time together, Karin lathers actually Sarada's beautifully shiny hair. It now smells wonderfully of fresh peach.

Sarada's appearance shows the first signs that the girl is developing into a woman. Another feature is recognizable, what she sees new in the girl, Karin notices: A strangulation mark is clearly visible on Sarada's neck. What happened to the poor kid? This observation is new to Sarada's aunt and she would certainly have discovered it at the time of Sarada's care.

Ashamed of this view, Sarada hides her nakedness with her hands. Nobody saw her like that. Well, except mom and dad, but at a very young age. After a certain time only her mom saw her body or was there already someone who got to see this view??? A brief memory flashes in her mind, but then it's gone again. Too short to realize who it could have been.

Red with shame showing on her cheeks, she sinks in the water up to her cheeks. Only her two different pairs of eyes and her black hair come to light.

"And is there someone you like? You must surely have a lot of interested boyfriends, as pretty as you are,” Karin eases the oppressive situation for Sarada.

"I don't know," Sarada gazes impassively into the water, Kawaki's appearance playing in her mind's eye.

Hey Nosie! She hears him say flippantly. Huh? Nosy? You probably mean Bossy!, Boruto joins in this situation with amusement, while Mitsuki just grins at her and thus agrees.

"Where are Kawaki, Boruto and Mitsuki?" Asks Sarada, startled, "shanaroo! I can't leave the three of them alone.” She looks at Karin with concern.

Karin's curiosity is finally satisfied as to what name Sarada tried to say in her delirium.

"Who is Kawaki? ' Karin grins questioningly at Sarada. The young girl looks embarrassed at the water surface, which is full of foam.

"He's Boruto's adoptive brother and a new team member of Team 7," Sarada tries to keep the conversation as inconsequential as possible, "please Karin! Where are they? I'm worried! And I don't have time to sit here quietly. Maybe they're all in danger!" Karin clearly hears Sarada's concern in her voice and stops teasing.

"Mitsuki is here with you . You were both brought here badly injured. I can't tell you where Boruto and Kawaki are," says Karin seriously. Sarada can't hear a lie in Karin’s voice.

" Hurt? Mitsuki and I? But how?” Sarada remembers her memory gap of a few hours. The last thing she remembers is Boruto's huge scar on his chest, which she examined with Mitsuki and a brief conversation with Mitsuki about what happened to Boruto and he was presumed dead for a moment.

"I have to show you something that you're about to find out today at Orochimaru's examination. For that you have to get out of the tub and stand in front of the mirror,” Karin explains calmly.

Sarada looks at Karin worried, but follows Karin's instructions. The red-haired woman helps the girl get out of the tub and wraps a large towel around her shoulders.

Sarada slowly steps in front of Karin's vanity with the bathroom mirror and looks into her reflection. The right side of her face is again covered by her black hair. No change as far as visible. Except that her hair on the right side looks unruly, otherwise it was always the hair on the other side. Nothing alarming so far.

Sarada looks skeptically into Karin's red eyes.

"You have to put your hair aside," says Karin.

Cautiously, Sarada tucks her hair behind her right ear and sees what until recently was a familiar sight to her. Not for herself but for her father.

She stares at the violet Rinnegan and suddenly she realizes that what she thought she was dreaming 2 hours ago, was actually real.

Sarada narrows her eyes and holds the right eye area, just as her father always did when he used a high level of chakra. With her other hand she bangs herself on the sink. Her knuckles turn white from the exertion. Another panic attack runs through her and again she thinks she hears that horrible scream. She will never be able to forget it. Boruto's disturbing visage reappears in front of her. One eye socket bleeding massively, the other eye closed, her best friend tried to squeeze her throat.

Sarada silently thanks Karin for bringing her out of her dark thoughts. "Hey, calm down. It's not that bad,” the adult woman tells her.

Sarada remembers the black hole in her memories.

"How did it happen?" Sarada asks Karin quietly.

"Your father brought you here seriously injured," Karin replies, "and in order to save you, your father had to have you undergo a life-threatening operation. So that you have a chance of survival. Evolving a Rinnegan is just a useful by-product that Orochimaru and I theorized some time ago ."

"So I wasn't dreaming after all... I wish it were like that..." Sasuke's daughter mumbles, lost in thought.

"Come on, let's go to Orochimaru. He'll be waiting for you," says her aunt. Sarada quickly puts on her blue nightgown. She doesn't have anything else here to wear right now. Together they both visit Sasuke's former master.

When they arrive at Orochimaru's laboratory, Sarada recognizes a person she knows very well.

Anywhere she would recognize the boy with pale white skin and white hair tinged with bluish. His golden-yellow eyes stare into space. Is he sad?

She storms towards him and hugs him, reassured to have a friend by her side.

"MITSUKI!", she cries relieved and both just hold themselves for the moment to be able to forget the tragedy around them...

[themathomhouse]

I have to assume you're deliberately misunderstanding prev at this point, but on the off chance you're not I will repeat what they have explicitly said one more time, with some of my own emphasis because tbh Lucas isn't an especially bad example of what I was talking about. He's just the best known on tumblr. He is, however, awful at acknowledging the work his first wife did on Star Wars and how much that contributed to the success of the trilogy, and, exactly like prev said, has tried to take the reins himself in the subsequent years and demonstrated exactly why she was needed in the first place.

George Lucas isn't a bad film editor. He's also the person who wrote the script and directed (the first) Star Wars. I think it's fair and accurate to say that the (first three) Star Wars films are a product of his vision - and where he was inspired and helped by other directors and collaborators, he's actually great at acknowledging their contribution!

With one exception.

Marcia Lucas is an excellent film editor. She isn't the only editor who worked on Star Wars at all, but, as prev said, the team who worked on the films overall win awards for being particularly good - and Lucas himself acknowledges that he's not the best editor or director! He didn't direct episodes V or VI because he is actually capable of understanding where his strengths lie. This is why he hired other people to edit his films!

One of those people was his then-wife. They are now divorced. Likely because of this divorce, and also because the divorce was partly caused by Star Wars, he now fails to tell the story of how the Star Wars films were kind of a mess when they arrived at the editing suite. Marcia (who had also edited his previous films, because she is a professional film editor and an excellent one) understood his vision and also made several changes without which most people who worked on the film say it would not have come together. George had great ideas, the effects would have been great, but it just wouldn't have sparked a phenomenon the way it did without her work. And he himself used to acknowledge this!

Until they got divorced. Which was right as Episode VI came out. And now he doesn't acknowledge her as much as he really should - and if I remember correctly, Spielberg has called him out on this!

Like I said, I actually don't think he's a particularly egregious example. He's someone who usually is great at acknowledging his collaborators and he's often good at acknowledging where he needs someone else to do something because they are better at it. He hasn't made a film that's anywhere near as good or interesting as the original Star Wars honestly in no small part because he actually has taken a producer role or co-writes or generally just doesn't want to be the director as much since Star Wars. Where he has done, like prev said with the tinkering with the original trilogy, and like EVEN HE says about episodes I - III, the result is just not as good as it could have been.

I'm basically commenting here because your misunderstanding of prev comes off as incredibly bad-faith, especially as this post is constantly just tagged as George Lucas in a way that honestly? I don't think is fair. But prev was actually very specific as to what they were referring to with him, and they're right! Like. Famously right. But I'm hoping that I'm wrong about the bad-faith and this will help both you and others see where prev was coming from, as well as tbh maybe people could tag this as F Scott Fitzgerald because that man literally stole segments out of his wife's diaries without telling her until she read it in his published works, that's more what I was getting at.

I've also just spent all these paragraphs giving context to Lucas mostly because of other posts, when what you're saying is that not only do accolades mean nothing, but it apparently also means nothing that he is not actually a professional film editor. The editing team, of which Marcia was part, was composed of people whose entire job is to edit films. That is why he hired them instead of doing it himself.

okay but if you ever see a male creative who had a string of great work and then everything else he did was dogshit, go to the "personal life" part of his wikipedia and look at his relationships. you'll either find a major tragedy he didn't recover from (completely understandable) or, more likely, there was a woman in his life doing uncredited shit editing his stuff or contributing generally and she's not there anymore.

I told a friend about this phenomenon in literature and he called me weeks later like, I remembered what you said about women doing uncredited work when tim burton came up. he made a string of bangers then everything else just was nowhere near as good. the timeline matches perfectly to when he was with this german visual artist (lena gieseke). he's done some good work in collaboration, but if things were dug into I suspect we would find she did a lot more than people realise.

so yeah whenever you look around like wow women didn't work in history, or, women aren't auteurs, or, there just aren't as many great female writers - societal reasons for that aside, half the time they absolutely did.

[despair-to-future-arcs]

Next session…

Okay now time for the next session...

*CLICK*

[09/13/17]

CHIAKI: Hello Sonia, good to see you again - how are feeling?

I've been well, thank you - Peko is going to be waking up tomorrow...

But Fuyuhiko not being here, I'm worry how Peko is going to react, do you think it'll be okay?

CHIAKI: hmm...I think it will be, after all; Fuyuhiko did want Peko to have a life away from the Kuzuruyu Clan so I think this would help Peko.

I hope so too, but I'm worry about Mahiru; given Mahiru was killed by these 2, it... has me worried...

CHIAKI: You seem to be quite empathetic towards others, Sonia.

Right, I know this session is suppose to be for me but I tend to worry about my class and just wanting everyone to wake up; I assure you I will speak about myself, apologies.

CHIAKI: It's fine Sonia, I know you were just worried but as say - Nagi is going to help provide for you along with Masuyo and Hotaru, now let's focus on you - I think we can start with how you became interested in Japan, correct?

Well... I suppose my interest of Japan and it's culture started far before I got into Hope's Peak Academy, I remember my interested started years before then is when I was starting to get into anime.

CHIAKI: Oh right, you mention that anime is quite popular in Novoselic.

Indeed, they started broadcasting them around the 1990's, the first was about 5 sailor scouts that fight crime and are name based on planets which I watch with Gordana when I was 3 years old.

It was so interesting that I started to get interested, honestly I had no idea where it came from and kept watching, it was quite exciting compare to other programs on TV!

CHIAKI: Oh so you always had interest in anime but did you know where it came from?

Not really... in fact, I had no idea where anime came from and figure it was a cartoon produce from Novoselic.

Then suddenly when I was 13 years old, I was given a computer and that's when I discover where anime came from!

...

...

...

Date: Jaunary 24th, 2004

*Sonia was on her laptop as she started to look online*

Wow... so that's where Paranoia Agent came from? Japan?

I remember studying Japanese when I was 9 years old, maybe I can watch some of this in sub or look more into this.

Alrighty then, time to search up about Japan and become an expert!

*Sonia began searching online and studying Japanese culture*

Goodness, there's a lot about Japan I didn't know about; I really want to travel there at some point! Especially doing that toast in my mouth while running to school, catch that yellow rodent or even control a mech like Shinji!

Hm? Wait, what's this...?

*Sonia gets online and finds a site which looks like poetry*

'Spring time - when cherry blossoms bloom they'll soon fall to accept another

Spring passes - then summer will soon arrive see you next time spring season

-Uta Himi'

Is that... poetry? Seems quite an odd way of writing, is this how Japanese write poems? I'll ask about it.

*types down* 'Hello, yes - I read your piece and honestly I do quite enjoy it; sorry to ask but what is that writing, I'm from a different country so I'm curious, thank you for responding.'

And send, I hope the person can get my message...

MAID: Sonia? Dinner is ready.

Oh right, coming! *gets up and heads for dinner*

Well, it must be really late in Japan, I better wait until then...*

'At first the person didn't respond but I assume it was timezones then the next morning I woke up...'

Date: January 25th, 2004

Time: 3:45 PM

Now let's see if the person respond...

Goodness, they did and left quite a comment!

'Hello, thank you very much for the comment, if curious what I wrote it's called Japanese Haiku; it's a traditional poetry and is a three-line poem with seventeen syllables, written in a 5/7/5 syllable count. Often focusing on images from nature, haiku emphasizes simplicity, intensity, and directness of expression.

I was mostly writing about spring and fleeting it can be but I'm happy you found interest in my poem, I'll be sure to write more when I do.

-Uta Himi'

Ah that's wonderful, seems they responded; I really hope we get to talk more; they seem quite pleasent.

*types* 'Certainly, thank you - I'll be sure to follow you; thanks again for responding, Japan has started to interest me - I'm from Europe in a country called Novoselic which has shown anime, I really want to travel to Japan and I was hoping you can tell me more about it.'

*moments later, a comment appear*

Oh they responded more quickly!

'Novoselic? I remember my grandfather giving me some from there, your country's chocolate is really good, I bet it's quite beautiful but I'll tell you all I know; by the way I'm Uta Himi; it's nice to meet you.'

'Likewise, I'm Sonia Nevermind; I'm happy to meet you as well, let's keep talking.'

'After that, I began talking with Uta for years, she mention that she wrote poetry and writing, even speaking about Japanese culture and answering any questions I had - she even became someone I could speak with when having a hard day at school...'