#in fairness my half asleep posts are my most popular ones

[lunarthecorvus]

I was a few days ago years old when I realised that some of our tumblr posts get posted on other social media. My posts consist mainly of my half asleep thoughts, and someone took their time to post it somewhere else, like huh-

[almightyhamslice]

Queen Bouncelia redesign!! I might sound like a broken record here but I feel like the bros rlly missed a lot of potential with her! She presents herself as a kind angel of a character, but she's the Naughty Ones' mother and she was a part of Sir Dadadoo's conspiracy-- she was aware of his plan and was ok with raising her children to be an army. I think that's so interesting but she's just a plain good guy who dies in the game!!! not fair. Maybe someday we'll find out she's not rlly dead n we'll understand what her deal is?

My AU differs from canon in that Bouncelia was actually a fully active mascot in the resort, allowed to interact with the public in two character greeting areas: an extravagant castle and a trampoline park. She was very popular with young girls back in her prime. She was a very charismatic person and had a sense of warmth and comfort to her that many of the other mascots lacked.

She and Sir Dadadoo were always somewhat warm towards each other, they'd meet during evenings, between the end of Bouncelia's shift and the beginning of the resort's curfew, when Dadadoo would be active. They'd spend most of their nights together. He would often muse to her about his plans of escaping the resort and going out into the real world, and she was enthralled. Soon enough, she began scheming with him and working out a proper plan. Sir Dadadoo figured they'd need an army, so he invited Syringeon to help him create his own "subcases" (or rather, mutants). After lots of trial and error, it was decided that Bouncelia and Dadadoo should create the mutants with a combination of both their DNA, and so Bouncelia agreed. Though they were initially both very clinical about the creation of the Naughty Ones, Bouncelia grew attached to them and doted on them. They were a family after all, in a strange kind of way.

Of course, everything went wrong when Bouncelia and Syringeon were caught. Management realized Dadadoo was the mastermind and would be unreasonable and unpersuadable, so they sought to target his cohorts in hopes they'd all gang up on him (under the threat of their lives). So, they did, though Bouncelia begged and pleaded management to spare his life and the lives of their children. Management heeded her request, but in a very twisted way. Syringeon was ordered to sedate Sir Dadadoo and the naughty ones, and seal them inside Queen Bouncelia's pouch using givanium entrapment, stitching and fusing her pouch shut. The hope was that the Naughty Ones and Dadadoo would slowly suffocate and starve, but the Naughty Ones were desperate to survive and began to cannibalize each other like fetal tiger sharks do (please don't look that up if you're squeamish!).

Queen Bouncelia couldn't be allowed to know that this was meant to slowly kill her family members, so was put on a heavy dosage of sedatives while the resort was still active. The function was twofold-- the drugs clouded her mind so she wouldn't realize what danger they were in, and they kept her from jumping around and potentially ripping her pouch open by mistake. Bittergiggle, her most trusted friend, was tasked with delivering her medicine every day; however, they never knew what the true purpose of the drugs were.

Post attempted rebellion, Bouncelia still tries to keep a kind and warm demeanor, but everything is so scrambled now. Thanks to the steady supply of intense sedative drugs, she always feels half asleep and half awake, finding difficulty in telling dreams from reality. Not so much a perpetual hallucination (though she is likely prone to hallucinating as well), moreso thinking on a completely new and almost alien plane. Things she says make sense through word associations in her head, but are nearly indecipherable to outsiders other than Bittergiggle.

I love her so much. I'm going to cry if she's literally just dead in canon n the skeletons in her closet were like, accidental lol. I had lots of fun designing her especially her mask n cape! Also I really don't think the scepter is magic I'm sorry that's just jumping the shark for me lol.

[saintsenara]

Would you ever consider writing Ron/Hermione? Like, as the main ship of the fic?

thank you very much for the ask, anon - and you've definitely brought up something i have been thinking about myself...

obviously, i'm on the record as a paid-up romione defender, and i certainly think that the two of them deserve a far greater fandom presence as a couple than they currently have. i've never vibed with any of the usual non-ron partnerships hermione tends to end up in [although i am much more amenable to ron in other ships - i love a bit of ronarry and i love a bit of dron] and i do share romione fans' exasperation with the way romione-as-a-couple are treated in a lot of fandom discourse, whether because of the impact of the films or because they get in the way of other popular pairings.

and i've definitely thought about some vague plot outlines for romione-centric fics. i'd like to see a version of half-blood prince from hermione's perspective, because her scheming how to get at ron [the mclaggen plan makes me howl every time] is iconic, and i'm obsessed with the potential from so many of the romione missing moments we get hints of in canon, especially the evenings ron and hermione spend alone in gryffindor tower while harry's off on his schemes [and especially the bit in deathly hallows when they fall asleep in grimmauld place holding hands]. i think there's great potential for a big post-war romione epic too - not least because i think ron would be excellent at guiding hermione through the relationship she'd have to rebuild with her parents once she restored their memories.

my issue is that, to be quite honest, i have to be in a certain mood to want to write hermione - and i find it quite difficult to write dialogue etc. for her which doesn't just sound insufferable. while ron has always been my ride-or-die, she's a character i've never vibed with [i have a very low tolerance in real life for all of her most... striking traits] from the very first time i read the books. she's fine as a background character in one year in every ten [the wip I'm writing in which she currently appears] because she's perfect for the genre: it's a murder mystery and she's a lawyer, so her turning up to be pedantic about things is exactly what i want. but i'm not sure i've got the writing chops yet to produce something which centred her which would do her justice as a fully-rounded character - with her good qualities [which i do recognise there are many of! especially her unbelievable loyalty!] given just as much space as her more negative ones - and i don't think it would be enjoyable or fair for anyone for me to write some dogshit in which hermione's just a shrew.

but, you know, never say never... i enjoy reading romione, i enjoy writing female characters as real people, i enjoy anything in which ron features... who knows what the future holds.

[i can promise you won't catch me writing dramione though.]

[zee-has-commitment-issues]

I'm 100% stealing this from @pagegirlintraining

AO3 wrapped (writer’s edition)

I had a long year, so I didn't get to write as much as I would have liked to, but we still got a ton done.

1. How many words have you written this year? 180,453 words.

2. How many works did you publish this year? Somehow the answer is eleven.

3. What work are you most proud of (regardless of kudos/hits)? Reckless Abandon. Hands down. It took so much time to plan and so much energy to write and I am so proud of it. I'm writing the ending of the first draft right now and I'm sad to leave it behind.

HOWEVER I also very much enjoyed The Last Time, which is my Nilcent fic. I think just in terms of quality, this is one of my most beautifully written fics.

4. What work of yours has the most hits? The fics I have with the most hits is Reckless Abandon, but I think that's because it's the only one from this year that had more than one chapter.

5. What work of yours got more feedback than you expected? Dress Up As ! I wrote that in like 30 minutes while half asleep and then didn't edit it, so I didn't think anyone would read it at all lol. It's not my most popular fic by any means, but more people read it than I thought would.

6. Favorite title you used? Wilhelm's Frog Addiction because it's so ridiculous. It implies that Wilhelm needs a rehab for frogs, and I think that's great.

7. If you use song lyrics, which artist’s songs did you pull from the most? I used the title of The Last Time from a Taylor Swift song, but I think that was the only one.

8. Pairing you wrote the most for this year? Wilhelm/Simon Eriksson with 9 out of 11 fics being about them or containing them in some way. (damn thats an unfortunate statistic)

9. Favorite pairing you wrote for this year? Obviously Wilmon. I feel like that's a given at this point.

10. What work was the quickest to write? Dress Up As... again, I wrote it in 30 minutes while half asleep💀

11. What work took you the longest to write? If we rule out the one that's multi-chapter for fairness sake, then the fic that took me the longest to write was probably Not Entirely Screwed (But Almost). But take that with a grain of salt.

12. How many WIPs do you have in your docs for next year? Two or three that I actually plan on finishing. I have others that are started, but I don't know if I have enough plot to actually get through them.

13. What’s your longest work of the year? Reckless Abandon, containing 123k of my 180k words this year 💀

14. What’s your shortest work of the year? A Fool Proof Guide - 507 words.

15. What WIP are you taking into next year with you? Finishing Reckless Abandon! One chapter to edit and an epilogue to finish writing, and then it's done. I just can't finish it in the two days I have left of the year 😭

16. What’s your most common “Additional Tags” tag? Simon Eriksson Loves Wilhelm, followed by Wilhelm Loves Simon Eriksson

17. Your favorite character to write this year? I simply cannot answer this. My mind has been so consumed with Reckless Abandon and the switching POVs that I literally cannot choose one.

18. What’s one pairing you want to explore next year? I think I might like to write more of Felice's platonic pairings next year. I feel like I neglect her because I don't really ship her with anyone.

19. Which work of yours have you reread the most? The Thing In The Mirror. It's kind of a love letter to my grief, so sometimes I go back and read it when I'm feeling down.

20. How many kudos in total did you get this year? 2,754

21. Which work has the most comments? Reckless Abandon, but again, it's the only one with more than one chapter so that makes sense.

22. Did you do any collaborative works this year? Not this year! Maybe next year. Dani and I don't write "together" per se, but we do bounce a lot of ideas off each other, so if that counts then yes, but nothing plotted and written and posted together.

23. Did you write any gifts this year? I did! I wrote for YR Week, which wasn't a gift, but an event. And I wrote a Christmas gift for Nic!

24. Did you receive any gifts this year? Yes yes yes! A beautiful, perfect Christmas gift from @pagegirlintraining I enjoyed every word of it.

25. What’s your most common category? M/M

26. What do you listen to while writing? Not much, actually. I have the Reckless Abandon Playlist, but I only really used that when outlining.

27. Favorite work you wrote this year? For the sake of not repeating myself, out off the ones I haven't mentioned yet, Isn't That Your Thing? and Patience Is A Virtue are my favorite little crack fics.

28. Favorite line/passage you wrote this year? Oh jesus, that's impossible. I don't think I can choose just one. I can give you one that makes me think "holy shit I can write" though:

This piece of work — the one staring Stella in the face — was a revolution made of oil paint. 

29. Biggest surprise while writing this year? I can write smut. And people don't hate it somehow.

Thank y'all for a fun year. Can't wait to see what my brain does to torture us all in the next one.

[osakaso5]

Iori Izumi OFF/TRAVEL Rabbit TV: OFF/TRAVEL@KYOTO

Riku Nanase: So this is the famous Uji Byodoin Omotesando!

Iori Izumi: Nanase-san, I'm going to have to ask you to settle down.

Iori Izumi: Every time you get too excited, your chances of tripping over your own feet increase.

Riku Nanase: Since when do I trip over my feet!?

Riku Nanase: And of course I'm excited, since I get to walk around such a historical part of town!

Iori Izumi: I suppose you have a point, there.

Iori Izumi: But since we were nearly unable to come here, thanks to a certain someone, I'd like you to mind your conduct.

Riku Nanase: You're not still mad that I nearly got us on the wrong train, are you?

Iori Izumi: I am.

Riku Nanase: Ugh, we got here fine in the end!

Riku Nanase: You're the one who mentioned that Uji is on the way to Nara, and made me assume that taking the train to Nara would get us here!

Iori Izumi: Uji is in Kyoto. If we got on a train to Nara, we'd just be leaving Kyoto entirely!

Iori Izumi: Good grief... Did you even check the timetables I sent you?

Riku Nanase: S-sure..! I took a quick look!

Iori Izumi: You should've read them properly, not quickly.

Riku Nanase: Geez, if it was that important, you should've just tell me where we need to go.

Iori Izumi: You...

Riku Nanase: What?

Iori Izumi: ...You looked like you were having fun buying the tickets, so I thought I'd trust you with that task.

Riku Nanase: So you're saying you'll trust me, as long as I'm having fun?

Iori Izumi: I... suppose. You're constantly working yourself to the bone as our center, so you could use the occasional breather.

Riku Nanase: Ahaha! You're not one to lecture others about working too much, Iori!

Riku Nanase: Let's forget all about our fight from earlier, so you can relax a little, too!

Iori Izumi: Haha... Fair enough.  

Iori Izumi: I'll try my best to have fun, then. Why don't we find souvenirs for our teammates and the people from our agency? This time, we won't be doing it for our Seven-irs project.

Riku Nanase: Ahaha! Sounds good to me!

Iori Izumi: Luckily, this place seems to have plenty of places to buy souvenirs from. What should we try first..?

Riku Nanase: We bought something for Sogo-san and Tamaki at Shojuin Temple already, but didn't you also buy something for yourself?

Iori Izumi: It was a good luck charm for Nii-san.  

Riku Nanase: Whoa! You went behind my back for that!?

Iori Izumi: Went behind your back how!? I just planned ahead, like I always do, because I wanted to do something nice for my brother!

Riku Nanase: Yeah, well, I thought about getting Tenn-nii something, too!

Riku Nanase: It's just that the temple was so pretty, it made me feel lightheaded...

Iori Izumi: It was a beautiful place, that I won't argue.  

Iori Izumi: It was very artistic... Even though it had been built in a Japanese style, being there felt like I was visiting a different country altogether.

Riku Nanase: Those heart-shaped windows were cute!

Iori Izumi: They were certainly very unique. I can understand why the place is so popular with girls.

Riku Nanase: Do you think our manager would like to see some of the pictures we took there?

Iori Izumi: I'm sure she would. It might also be a good idea to post those pictures on Rabbistagram.

Riku Nanase: I'll send them to her right away! "Hey, look where I went with Iori..."

Iori Izumi: Do you have to narrate everything you type?

Riku Nanase: Oh! I didn't even realize I was doing that!

Iori Izumi: How unaware can a person be..?

Riku Nanase: ...Whoa, she replied right away. She wants to know if you're having fun, too!

Iori Izumi: Wait, you sent that to our group chat.

Riku Nanase: Maybe you should read your messages more often?

Iori Izumi: You keep treating this like it's a grade school field trip...

Riku Nanase: Oh, so you are having fun! Good!

Iori Izumi: What's good?

Riku Nanase: That you're having fun.

Iori Izumi: ...You said you didn't have many memories of going somewhere with your friends, because you didn't get to participate in school excursions often.

Riku Nanase: Yeah?

Iori Izumi: I was never sickly like you, but, er... I didn't exactly have many close friends, so this sort of thing is very new to me, as well.

Riku Nanase: ...Uh-huh.

Iori Izumi: W-what I'm trying to say is... I am having fun on this trip.

Riku Nanase: Ahaha! You didn't have to say that in such a roundabout way!

Iori Izumi: I think it was logical more than anything else.

Riku Nanase: Okay then, Mr. Logical. Can you find us a shop that we could buy good souvenirs from?

Iori Izumi: Don't call me that...

Riku Nanase: Why not?

Iori Izumi: I don't like it...

Iori Izumi: ...In any case, we should make sure that what we buy isn't too similar to our Seven-irs purchases.

Iori Izumi: Choose something strange to bring back home if you have to...

Riku Nanase: Sure... Ah, how about these keychains!?  

Iori Izumi: Those look way too strange..!

Riku Nanase: You think so? I think they're cute... Look, there's something growing on their backs!

Iori Izumi: ...Are these the kind of designs people buy nowadays..?

Iori Izumi: It appears I still have much to learn about marketing...

Riku Nanase: ..? What are you mumbling about over there?

Iori Izumi: N-nothing.

Riku Nanase: Really..? ...Anyway, it's good that we could get to Kyoto with a bullet train, so Mitsuki and Tamaki didn't have to sit through a scary plane ride!

Iori Izumi: Right, because they fear heights.

Iori Izumi: Though Yotsuba-san nearly had to skip this trip anyway...

Riku Nanase: Oh yeah! It's a good thing you tutored him every day, so he passed all his exams!

Iori Izumi: My sleeping schedule would be a mess if I had to start waking him up in time for supplementary lessons.

Iori Izumi: Honestly... If the prospect of failing his classes makes him that emotional, he should start paying more attention in class.

Riku Nanase: He was crying and yelling: "You can't leave me behind!"

Iori Izumi: Heh... Right.

Riku Nanase: He was probably the most excited about all of us coming here.

Iori Izumi: I could say the same about you. You played games with him until the dead of night, and blamed it on insomnia.

Riku Nanase: You knew..!?

Iori Izumi: Of course I knew. You have no awareness of your surroundings when you're playing. We could all hear you from across the hallway.

Riku Nanase: What..!? Then we must've been really noisy! I'll have to apologize to Nagi and the others later...

Iori Izumi: I believe Rokuya-san was wearing headphones and watching anime at the time, so he was fine...

Riku Nanase: How do you know that!?

Iori Izumi: On the morning of our departure, he kept quoting the show half asleep.

Riku Nanase: You're always so sharp, Iori..! I should really step up my game, since I'm a year older than you...

Iori Izumi: No one expects you to be the smart one, rest assured.

Riku Nanase: Why you..!

Iori Izumi: I'm kidding. I expect plenty of you, Riku Nanase, center of IDOLiSH7.

Riku Nanase: Hehe...! Thanks, Iori!

Riku Nanase: Expect me to find good souvenirs, too!

The End.

Translator’s notes..? 

next up, Gaku’s Marie Mariage Rabbit Chats! 

[a-simple-imagine]

Run Away With Me

Synopsis: Every moment shared with Charlie Weasley is an adventure all it’s own. How you wish to spend every moment together and all it takes is to run away. 

Pairing: Charlie Weasley x fem!reader

Words: 6.3k+

A/N - Every year I post a story on my birthday and today’s the day I turn a year older. Usually these stories are pretty sad but this year I wrote something a little softer so here is my birthday present for you guys, I hope you enjoy it. 

1. A Stolen Kiss

A bright-eyed and clueless young student, excited to be attending a school of magic. Nobody else in your family had magic so it was a big surprise when you received a letter alongside a weird lady who looked like she just stepped out of the early 1920s. Sat between your parents, the older woman explained the entire situation much to your excitement and your parents' confusion.

 Diagon alley had been your first experience of all things magical; it had been like stepping into another world instead of just any old street in London. There were book shops lined with all kinds of books, some were bigger than your head while others were tiny. A shop that sold weird and kinda gross jars full of who knows what. There was a place that only sold brooms but according to the list you had read like a hundred times, first years weren't allowed their own brooms. You spent what felt like a lifetime at Madam Malkin's Robes for All Occasions getting fitted for robes. Your parents were utterly fascinated by all the different styles and kept asking questions that made the experience so much longer than it really needed to be. You'd never had a pet before, but after a lot of begging they let you pick out a cat; he was a small Persian cat. Not quite a kitten but not quite fully grown. Checking off each item as you went along, you were exhausted by the end of it. There was even enough time for a trip to Florean Fortescue's Ice Cream Parlour where you had enjoyed a cone of strawberries and cream with sprinkles on top. All that was left on your list was a wand. Peeling gold letters rested over the door of a shop that read: Ollivanders: Makers of Fine Wands since 382 B.C. Stepping inside it was a tiny little store with no costumers. Thousands of narrow boxes lined the walls all the way up to the ceiling. It didn't take long for the weird old man to give you a wand that felt warm in your hand. Unlike the other disasters that came at the result of you waving various wands, a stream of red and gold sparks shoot out the end of this one like a mini firework. The wand chooses the wizard whatever the hell that meant. All ready and packed for Hogwarts, you were really giddy to go. Your mother cried as she waved you off to boarding school but you couldn't sit still. The train ride took hours and it was a little lonely considering you didn't know anyone but as soon as you entered the castle you knew it was exactly where you were meant to be. The building was massive and practically oozed magic and mystery through each brick. The pictures, much to your surprise, were moving on their own. Hogwarts had four houses and each student had to sit on a tall stool, put on a funny talking hat which would decide ultimately where they belong.

The very first friend you made was Nymphadora Tonks but only because she was in all of your classes and by some twist of fate you always ended up seated together. She was a sweet girl with pink hair and a talent for mischief. There was never a dull moment with you two. Then there was Charlie Weasley. Ever since that brisk day in October when he had ridden in clumsily on his white horse to save the day, the two of you had been the best of friends. You were still getting used to all your different classes. Potions class, however, was proving the most difficult. Too many ingredients and types to get used to. Not to mention Snape was just... mean. The task had been to prepare a simple Wiggenweld Potion; a powerful healing potion that can be used to heal injuries, or reverse the effects of a Sleeping Draught. The book was open on the desk as you carefully followed the instructions until.... poof. All the confidence you'd gained since arriving disappeared as Snape scolded you in front of everyone for messing up. Charlie had swooped in to take the blame landing himself in late-night detention. On the other hand, you got to leave with your tail between your legs and a few house points shaved off the total. And yet even his small act of kindness wasn't enough to capture your affection at least not at first. For the little version of yourself was infatuated with another Weasley. An older Weasley.

The nerves of a handful of students could be felt by anyone sat in the great hall for breakfast. Tonks is sat beside you running butter over a piece of toast. Stifling a yawn, Charlie takes a seat across from the two of you sporting a jumper of Gryffindor red and gold.

"Good morning," You flash your cheeriest, half-asleep smile bringing your spoon of Cheeri Owls to your lips. "Nervous?"

"A little," He was looking especially pale today suggesting he was more than just a little.

"You should be," Tonks perks up. "It's only the last game of the season and all hope rides on the seeker,"

"No pressure then," Charlie huffs out a dull laugh. The boy excelled in his position as the Gryffindor seeker but there was no way to determine how he'd play today when he was carrying the hopes and dreams of his teammates and entire house.

"You should eat something," You suggest, pushing a bowl of assorted fruit forward. There was little you could to make him feel better except take his spot but that wasn't allowed. You also probably wouldn't be that good. "Might make you feel better?"

"I'm too nervous to eat," He insisted but he still took an apple; rolling the red fruit between his palms.

"Win or lose you're still number one in our heart, right Tonks?" Elbowing her gently, you shovel another spoonful of 'O' shapes into your mouth.

"Sure," she shrugs. "If you want we can jinx the other team's seeker? I've been practising."

"Or... how much time do we have? I can get one of the older students to brew some Felix Felicis." You play along. "Nothing like a little liquid luck to win a game."

"You both know that's not allowed," Charlie took a large bite of his apple.

"When has Tonks ever cared about rules," Sometimes you wish she did care, you probably wouldn't have ended up in detention so many times alongside her.

"Thanks but no," he took another bite. "We have to win fair and square."

The conversation drifted from nerves to lost spells and planned practical jokes. Charlie seemed to relax a little the more he spoke. Maybe all he needed was a distraction to cheer him up.

"We need to take a trip to Hogsmeade" Tonk announces. "I'm out of dungbombs."

"Urgh- you and that silly joke shop." You can't help but roll your eyes but it was all good-natured. Despite hardly ever buying anything yourself, you spent an awful lot of time at Zonko's infamous little joke shop. "I could do with a trip outside the castle though. You should come too Charlie and maybe... you could ask Bill if he wants to come?"

"You're still gushing over Bill," Now it was Tonks turn to elbow you playfully, her lips curling up into a tantalising smirk.

"I do not gush over him," you state firmly, brows knitting together in a frown. You didn't appreciate being made fun. Bill was older, wiser and always made time to show you kindness. He made your little heart flutter whenever you saw him and Tonks took every opportunity to tease you about it. "I just thought It'd be nice is all. Wouldn't you agree, Charlie?"

"If you want him to come, ask him yourself." He responds, taking a large gulp of his juice.

"She won't because she has a crush."

"I don't have a crush Nymphadora- stop it," It was infinitely more embarrassing talking about this with Charlie sat at the table. "Don't ask him then, I don't care."

"Yes you do," Placing her arm around your shoulder, she pulls you into her side. "Because you're in love-"

"I am not!" You snap, pushing out of her grip.

"I'll see you guys later." The two of you share a look as Charlie disappears without another word. It was probably just pregame nerves.

"You know what? I think I'll get some frogspawn soap too and put it in the prefects' bathroom." Typical Tonks.

You'd come to learn through your time at Hogwarts that Quidditch was the most popular sport among wizards. And each house had their own team who compete for a trophy and bragging rights. Today was the final game thankfully. Gryffindor vs. Slytherin. Apparently, it came down to these two a lot. As the Gryffindor team filter out of the changing rooms, you slip inside to find Charlie sitting on a little bench.

"Guess who?" You sing-song, slapping your hands over his eyes but only briefly. He turns to look at you with an almost sour expression.

"What are you doing here?"

"I came to support you," you reply soft, offering a smile he couldn't even see as he turned away.

"You're not supposed to be in here," Had you done something to upset him? Surely not. This was the first time you were seeing him since breakfast so there hadn't been a moment for you to mess things up and yet, his voice held an icy chill.

"Guess Tonks is rubbing off on me?" You jest, looking around the room. It was empty apart from you two. Bags and clothes scattered across benches or half shoved into lockers. A chalkboard stood in the corner with drawings you couldn't understand. "I just wanted to see how you were doing before the big game, is all. We were worried about you."

"You were worried about me," He repeats slowly, looking up at you. "I thought you hated quidditch."

"I still do," Your shoulders rise in a little shrug. "It's silly. Doesn't matter how hard the team works or how many goals it's pretty much all decided by how good the seeker is so why even have goals?"

"Score enough goals before the snitch is caught and anyone could win," He perks up. "You just don't understand how good and exciting it is."

Your lips curl up in appreciation for Charlie Weasley and his love for quidditch. It didn't possess the sparkle that came along when he talks about dragons but it was still nice to see him liven up. "Then go out there and show me how exciting it is,"

You stand under the spotlight of his gaze as he seemingly takes in your choice of attire; wearing the Gryffindor colours with pride to show your support. You even let Tonks paint your face after she promised not to draw genitalia. "Do you really think we're gonna win? What if I mess up and everyone hates me?"

"Then you mess up and everyone hates you," You shrug a little. "But that's not gonna happen and you know why?" His head shakes slowly. "It's because you're the best seeker at this school Charles Weasley." You place your hands on either side of his shoulders. "And I believe in you."

"How does that help me?" With your index finger under his chin, you force him to meet your eyes.

"Because I'm never wrong."

"That doesn't sound right." He tries to look away but you stop him.

"But it is," You offer a reassuring smile; one full of determination. "You've got this Charlie. So come on before you miss the game entirely."

The cheers outside were seemingly growing louder by the second. With a deep breath, Charlie stands up, grabbing his broom. "You're staying to watch, right?"

"Of course. Tonks is up in the stands too." Taking his hand, you lead the way out of the tent. "Consider us your good luck charms." Charlie brings the both of you to an abrupt stop before you even reach the opening of the tent, pulling you back to him. "What's up?"

The peppering of freckles that covered Charlie's face was even more vibrant against the rose pink blush. You squeeze his hand a little hoping it makes him feel better. And then it happens. The crowd grows silent in your ear but only for a moment as Charlie's surprisingly soft lips crash clumsily against yours. "For good luck," his whispers; his hand slipping from yours as he leaves you dumbfounded.

"He okay?" Tonks asks as you return from your trip.

"Yeah... still nervous," You reply, sitting down beside her. "It's his first big game after all."

"Are you okay?" The crowd erupts into cheers as the Gryffindor team flys in first. You're almost too embarrassed to look for Charlie; worried about what you might find so you keep your head down. "You look like you've just seen a troll or something?"

"Mhmm," you hum, forcing yourself to watch the Slytherin team as they enter. Why had Charlie kissed you? Did it mean he liked you or was he just messing around? Your head swirled with possibilities.

"You want a sweet?" Your friend offers as the game finally starts. It takes you a second to register but you smile, reaching into the little bag she was holding only to come to a stop.

"They're not gonna burn my tongue off or something are they?"

"No," Her chuckle sounded a little too innocent but you trust her for some reason. Taking a piece of confectionery out of the paper bag.

"Charlie... kissed me." You announce, throwing the sweet into you mouth; face scrunching up when they turn out to be sour. Ten points to Slytherin as they take the lead.

"He what?"

"He... kissed me."

2. Together

Who was Bill Weasley but a distant playground crush after that day. And your time of classrooms and magic lessons came swiftly to an end; how bittersweet it felt to leave a place you loved dearly. A once naive little girl stepping into the unknown now called the Wizarding World Home. Now you would go on to be a healer which was simply a magical doctor although your parents strongly disagreed with the comparison. However proud they were of you there would always be some part of them that wished you had chosen to become a lawyer or 'real' doctor.

Bathed in the warm embrace of the setting sun, you ponder the tranquility in a bed of green grass. The youngest Weasley lay beside you, struggling to keep still as often children do. She was similar to her brother in that way who now paced back and forth a mere few steps away. The invitation had been for dinner but you arrived a little early. The burrow was always such a welcoming place like stepping into a home you used to live in many moons ago; it was cosy and warm and there was no doubt that many lived there. You found your house to be almost the opposite, it always looked like nobody lived there. Immaculate. Polished. Cold.

"Will you stop pacing, you're making me nervous." You call out to your boyfriend, opening your eyes only to squint at the bright light. "What's wrong with you?"

Charlie comes to a stop as you sit up; Ginny mimics you in sitting up but the boy's eyes stay on you. The longer he stared, the more the pit in your stomach grew; what exactly hid behind his blank expression. He normally possessed such a playful warmth but it seemed to have vanished as of late. Plucking a stray purple flower, you enclose it in the palm of your hands. "You know I love dragons right?"

"Of course," Since meeting him, he had probably managed to slip dragons into every conversation you had ever had. It was at a point where you knew far more about dragons than you ever really cared to know. Many found his obsession annoying because that's what he so obviously was, obsessed but you found it enticing. Charming, even. Opening up your hand, a small butterfly with deep plum-purple wings flutters into the air and onto a giggly Ginny's nose. The innocent glee of a child; how those days were gone for you. "What's that got to do with anything?"

"Promise you won't be mad?" It would be foolish to make such a promise when there was no way to guarantee your reaction. Whatever it was must be bad, if he was this worried. Your shoulders rise a little then fall.

"I make no such promises- just tell me."

Charlie took a breath that travelled on the wind to your ears before he blurted out.  "I'm moving to Romania."

"Okay," Is your first reaction while your brain tries to make sense of something it didn't want to hear. "Wait- what?"

"Charlie is moving away to work with big scary dragons," Ginny announces playfully, baring her little hands like claws.

The once small pit grew into a mighty black hole of uncertainty and sadness that threatened to swallow you whole. There had been conversations shared between friends of Charlie wanting to move away to a foreign land, just to finally see a dragon but you had never taken it at face value. Always so convinced it was but a dream rather like those of when you were little and you wished to be a vampire. Technically back then you didn't know they actually existed but still, even now it was never going to come true. Eyes cast upon the second eldest Weasley, he kicks up the grass with his hands buried in the pockets of his pants. "It's the nearest Dragon reserve."

That was something you already knew but it didn't make the decision, at least in your eyes, any less confusing. Instead, it prompted water to well up in your eyes for this was something that affected not only him and his family but your life too. "I... I don't know what to say,"

"Hey Ginny, can you go check if dinner's ready yet?"

"No- why can't you do it?" The bark behind her words was very in character for the fiesty young Weasley. Blinking away the tears, you plaster on the best smile you can muster.

"If you go check on dinner I promise we can play a game later, okay? Exploding snap maybe?"

"Really?" She eyes you suspicious probably because it was a promise you had broken before. Not always for the right reasons but this time it was genuine. Charlie clearly wanted this to be a private conversation or perhaps he was just saving you for the inevitable moment where she asks why you're crying. Ginny scrambles to feet when you nod and skips off towards the gravity-defying house. It still amazed you that the building hadn't fallen yet. Rising to your feet you brush yourself off.

"You know I want nothing more than to work with Dragons and this is the only way I can do that," There was no mistaking the serious tone that came along with his words. It didn't matter what you said there was no changing his mind but you wouldn't do that anyway. It seemed cruel to even try to get him to give up on something so precious and you would never want to do that to him. "I have an opportunity to do something I love and I won't waste it to get some boring job at the ministry."

"I don't expect you too..." You wanted nothing more than to tell him to stay; beg him even. You were fighting against the selfish little devil that was stabbing you in the heart. It was a dull, deep pain in your chest. You wanted Charlie to follow his dreams, you just never expected them to not include you. "It's just a lot to take in."

"I know," The red-headed boy walks ever so slowly over to you, taking both hands in his. His hands had always felt a little rough ever since Hogwarts. You used to complain back then and insist he needed to moisturise but over time you had grown fond of the familiarity. How you wished this tender moment could last forever because it very well might be your last. You're caught off guard when he yanks you forward. You stumble into his chest where he wraps his arms around you like the big teddy bear he was. You breathe in every inch of him like it was the last time. The intoxicating aroma of an early walk in the woods; that fresh earthy smell that really makes you appreciate where you are. You could almost picture the pine trees.

"I feel like I'm losing you," Your words but a whisper, lost on the breeze.

"You're not," His grip around you tightens and suddenly your in the air, spinning around. "You could never get rid of me that easily.

"Charlie," You fight back a smile as you return to the ground; burying your face in the nook of his neck. "What's gonna happen to us?"

"About that-"

"Because I don't know if I can do the whole long-distance thing? So do we break up?" The tears threaten to fall once again as you pull back to get a good look at him. You never wanted to forget the emerald of his eyes or each and every freckle that called his body home. The unusual scare that adorned his eyebrow that was always amusing to look at. If that was his true purpose to break up with you then there would be no stopping the tears when they finally burst through the damn.

"No, I-"

"Because that's a little mean Charlie, you could have at least waited until after dinner. Should have done it first actua-"

You words become mumbled by the palm of his hand which he's placed over your mouth like a seal of protection. "Shush for a minute."

It's hard to resist so you simply don't; sticking your tongue you deliberately lick the palm of his hand but it seems to not phase him whatsoever.

"I'm not breaking up with you, silly," You meet his gaze. "I was kind of thinking you could come with me?"

Reaching up, you yank his hand away. "To Romania?  You've got to be joking."

"Why not?"

Did you even know how to answer that? There were so many reasons why one should not just up and leave to go live in a completely different country with the boy they dated through high school. "I can't just up and leave my family- my mum will be devastated."

"I'll talk to her about it," Charlie hums softly, placing a delicate kiss upon your forehead. "Your mum loves me and she wants you to be happy."

"Dinner's Ready," For such a small girl, Ginny had one big mouth. There was no mistaking her call. However, this whole situation now felt a little... off. Could you even sit through dinner without it all becoming weird?

"We're coming," Charlie yells back; offering up his hand which you reluctantly take and he leads the way back to the house. "You want to be a healer right? You could do that in Romania."

"I guess," You weren't exactly worried about not finding a job.

"You don't have to decide right now," He tells you before you have a chance to speak up again. "Just think about it. I mean the invitation is there and for what it's worth, I'd really like you to come."  

3. Creeping doubts

It took a lot of convincing but despite everything you decided to follow Charlie into the Unknown. Your parents weren't thrilled with the decision but they respected it; they were just worried about what would happen if something went wrong. And as their only child, they would obviously miss you. A lot of time was spent at the burrow that summer before moving to Romania; you were beginning to feel like an honorary Weasley only with the experience of having been a muggle for the first eleven years of your life. It was but a three-hour flight to Romania and your mother had sobbed at the airport. It made you think back to your first time stepping onto the Hogwarts express, leaving your parents behind to go to a magical boarding school in Scotland. It was a peculiar thought but a nice one. One you wished to cherish. Now in a foreign land with no support system behind you other than a boy you had been dating for years, you were ready for a new adventure. And there was officially no doubt in your mind that you would do just about anything for Charlie Weasley.

"It's not much," Charlie sets his suitcase down on the table. "Best I could do, for now, I'm afraid."

"It's fine," It was an old apartment in a building full of what you assumed were muggles. There was a small living room area with an ugly pea-coloured couch nestled against one wall. Beside it was a small coffee table and on the other side of the room was a TV, you weren't convinced actually worked. Then there was the kitchen which was attached to the living room. It had a fridge, a cooker and some cupboards. The only other room was a bedroom that literally only housed a bed in at the moment, then there was a door that leads on to the bathroom. It definitely wasn't much but a crappy apartment was just part of the experience, right? At least that's what you were telling yourself. "it'll feel like home soon enough," You had everything you needed to make this place feel like home right in your suitcase; oh the joys of magic. Patting yourself down, you search for the key to easy unpacking. "Uh... have you seen my wand?"

His head shakes and wears an amused grin. "You remembered to bring it right?"

"Yes," you huff. "I was gonna unpack," Falling back against the wall, you slide down onto the floor which you imagine hasn't been cleaned in a while considering the dust. "It's gonna take so long without my wand- which may actually be in the suitcase now that I think about it."

"Did you forget I'm a wizard too?"

"You do it then," You drop your head back against the wall. "I'm starving."

"actually have you seen my wand?"

You giggle to yourself "You're an idiot,"

"Hey- you lost your wand too." His shadow lingers over you as he comes to join you against the wall. Taking up a seat beside you, your head falls to rest against his shoulder.  

"Can we get pizza? I saw some of those leaflets when we came in so we could order some?"

"Whatever you want, my love."

As time ticks on the pizza box is left discarded in the kitchen as the two of you retire for the night. Who knew not actually unpacking but simply thinking about it while eating pizza on the dirty ground could be so much work. You struggle to hold back a yawn as you snuggle up to him trying to absorb as much of his body heat as you can. All that lay across the two of you were a blanket and this building was next exactly the warmest. "Do you think we'll be okay? "You ponder aloud; it was a question that had been on your mind since agreeing to follow him to Romania. For not many people stay together with their high school loves. What if things fall apart now that you're in the 'real' world? What if this was all just a huge mistake?

"What do you mean?" Always such a simple boy; you wonder how he deals with his anxieties. Did he actually not know what you meant or was he merely putting on a brave face? A once proud Gryffindor suggested that he always looked to be brave above anything else.

"Do you think we'll be okay?" You repeat as if that somehow answers his question but it must have done something because even in the darkness you can just tell he's smiling.

"You worry way too much." Charlie laughs.

"You don't worry enough,"

He lays a kiss upon the top of your head, his hand moving up and down your arm. "It used to be the other way around."

"I was young and reckless back then. "How you missed the days where you ran around the halls of Hogwarts with reckless abandon. Well, not entirely reckless that was more Tonks but things had definitely felt simpler back then.

"You're still young and reckless now, I just have to hear you stress about it afterwards." Charlie taunts, pinching your arm. You recoil at the sharp pain.

"Shush."

"Being in Romania doesn't change anything," He expresses; his voice sounding louder in the quiet darkness. "I loved you back home and I still love you now. I'm really glad you decided to come with me."

Hoping to distract yourself from every worrying thought that clouded your brain you decide it's time to change the subject. "Are you nervous about tomorrow?"

"Getting to work with Dragons all day every day? that's like dream come true."

"A dangerous one," Dragons were perhaps the most vicious creatures around other than humans. As captivating as they were and as much as charlie adored them, you couldn't help but worry about his safety. It seemed no matter the topic this evening you'd find a way to stress yourself out.

"I'll be fine, I'll have you there to patch me up," That he will for you had taken on the role as a healer willing to help out with all the injuries that inevitably come from dealing with dragons. You wouldn't admit it but you weren't quite convinced you were up to the task; you had never actually dealt with dragon-related injuries so this was like diving headfirst into the ocean when you only just learned how to swim in a training pool. "and if not- well, we had a good run."

"Don't joke about that," Nuzzling against his chest, you finally let your eyes close. Today was the start of forever with the one and only Charles Weasley and here he was joking about his ultimate demise.

4. The perfect day

It's peculiar how life can just fall into place. Your odd little world of dragons and leaky apartment buildings just became the norm. You had come to love your work at the reserve, Dragons were actually incredibly cool up close. Not to mention getting to see Charlie work with them after years of never shutting up about them was truly a sight to behold. Every day, it was like taking an excited little boy to his first day of school. His eyes simply lit up whenever he was at work although it was hard explaining his injuries to the neighbours when they were being nosey. You also had to be careful when using magic since you were basically living with muggles and it would be a headache if they ever found out.

With your site blocked by a thin piece of fabric, Charlie guides you carefully forward with his hands skillfully placed upon your arms to steer. This was the first day off the two of you have shared in a long time. Little information was given about your destination other than it being a surprise. With Charlie that could mean just about anything which wasn't always a good thing but you trusted him enough to believe he wasn't leading you into a dragon's den or something. A gentle breeze nipped at the skin of your neck and the ground felt soft under your feet. The gentle singing of a symphony of birds filled the air and the sun beamed down with remarkable easy. All this suggested you were somewhere withdrawn in nature. Charlie had always been one for the great outdoors. There were countless times you had found him sneaking in or out of the forbidden forest back at school.

"Am I going to like this surprise?" You inquire; your anxiety building with each step. You would much prefer to simply know what was going on rather than experience some dramatic reveal especially today of all days. Every year the boy seems to forget that he agreed not to make a big deal.

"I sure hope so," You practically slam into him as she comes to an unexpected standstill. "Because I don't think I can return it."

"Return what? Oh god- can I take my blindfold off?"

As the flimsy fabric skims the length of your face to settle loosely around your neck, your eyes take a minute to adapt. You don't know quite what you were expecting but this was not it. Before you stands a small cottage surrounded by nothing but a wide-open field full of a rainbow of wildflowers. It was a beautiful little house with as much charm and beauty you'd expect from a place out in what seems like the middle of nowhere. It could be described as the perfect place to settle down.

"Surprise!" He was redder than a cherry tomato when he stepped into view. Both arms in the air as a sign of celebration but you were just rather... confused? Whose house was this and why had he brought you all the way out here?

"I don't get it?"

"We've been here for a while now so I thought we should get our own place or like, a better place. One where we don't have to worry about anyone else." His confidence appeared to develop with each word but his face was still powdered in a deep shade of pink. S this was your house? He'd decided to up and move without even consulting you? "So I got us a little cottage in the middle of nowhere. It kinda reminds me of the burrow only, y'know, smaller."

"It's ours?" His excitement is clear on his face and he quickly takes your hand. Pulling you along with him. "And that's not all."

"There's more?" Surely a whole house was enough. You were quite proud of Charlie for picking such a beautiful little place. Come summertime, you could already see yourself sitting among the flowers painting little pictures. You also wouldn't have to worry about muggles. Coming up on the front door, your boyfriend delivers you a little golden key. And with just a tiny degree of fear about what could be on the other side you unlock it. Much to your astonishment and disappointment, nothing is behind the door except the hallway leading inside. Charlie enters first and even as you follow, you half expect someone to jump out.

"I know I agreed not to make a big deal but how could I not?" He opens a door at the end of the hallway that leads to the kitchen. It's not a massive space but it's assuredly not small either, the whole place was already furnished but you recognise the surprise was truly what sat on the table. It was a two-tier cake covered in blue frosting including the words Happy Birthday scrawled across the top followed by your name.

"You... baked?"

"Mum sent it actually," Charlie chortled lightly as he wanders up behind you. Tossing a package of red with multicoloured polka-dots onto the table. "Sent this along too. Reckon it's a jumper or something."

"That was nice of her," You weren't sure of how to react to it all. Birthdays had never really been your thing but you appreciated that Mrs. Weasley had gone out of her way to make you something special.

"And from me..." He trails off and the sound of tiny tracks echo off the walls attended by an adorable yelp. Up to your feet slides an ash grey puppy who was more legs than anything else. It had bright blue eyes and floppy ears.

"You got me a dog?"

"I got us a dog- thought we needed a pet around here. I debated getting a crup but that'd be a disaster if your parents ever decide to visit." Crups were notorious for their dislike of muggles. You never understood why but he was right in his decision. The gesture was sweet but rather odd all things considered but still you smile. It was hard to be mad at something so cute and you weren't just talking about the dog. The puppy sits at your feet, wagging its little tail a mile a minute. There was no denying how adorable it was and at least it wasn't a dragon. Or a murtlap for that matter, those things were ugly. "You don't seem happy... do you not like him? I can take him back?" Kneeling, your hand drifts over the soft fur of the puppy's head. In response, the dog jumps up in an attempt to lick at your face. Your smile grows as you try to get away. "I think he likes you."

"What's his name?"

"Whatever you want? He's a Great Dane by the way." The puppy had calmed down a little and you stare as you ponder the perfect name for an ash grey Great Dane. "How about... Arlo?"

"Arlo?"

"Mhmm," You hum standing up straight. "And I'm plenty happy if not a little overwhelmed. You know how I feel when it comes to my birthday."

"I do," He nods casually. His palms snake around your waist drawing you flush against him "But I never want you to forget that someone cares about you- that I care about you so bloody much."

"I know you do," You give him a quick peck on the lips. "And I'm thankful for that and for all of this."

"Arlo is the perfect name, Happy Birthday" Your lips connect in a beautifully slow embrace that fills your body with warmth and as he pulls away, his forehead comes to rest against yours.  The dog barking as it explores the kitchen. "I'm just so grateful that you decided to run away with me."

[octo-cutie]

Red Strings and Things

Prompt: You and your soulmate are connected by a red string on your pinkies which appears once you meet each other.

Summary: Tooru is concerned about the increasing number of his peers that have found their other half. After a brief meltdown, Tooru realizes that his string has become visible. Now the only question is who? And once he finds her, is it really his other half?

Pairing: POV Oikawa Tooru x f!Reader Genre: Fluff, little bit of angst,  a little toddler violence Warnings: Deliberate misspellings in the beginning because Oikawa and Iwaizumi where 6. Neither of them knew proper grammar and Iwaizumi had just lost his front tooth. Violence from Iwaizumi (Pushing, hitting, throwing things at Oikawa)

Side Note: I’ll be referring to Oikawa as Tooru because I’ll be referencing his mom and his sister a lot.

This is my contribution to the Soulmate AU Collab for Celestial Archives! I love love love this AU with all my heart and I secretly believe in the red string theory anyways....

It was his sister who had explained to him why the vermillion string was tied snugly around his left pinky finger. He hadn’t been older than 6 when she pulled him into her lap as she played with his hair one Sunday afternoon in the summer. There was a calming breeze in the air and the temperature that day was just right for blue popsicles in the sun.

“Everyone has one of these strings tied around their pinky finger that connects them to their soulmate.” She had said picking up his hand and holding it up against her own. Tooru looked at their hands (his were signifigantly stickier than hers) as his older sister held them together and saw the cotton fibers of his vermillion string slightly blowing and bending in the wind.

“Wahs a solmat?” He asked as popsicle dribbled down his chin. His sister was quick to wipe it up with a napkin as she explained it in a way only a 6 year old could understand.

“A soulmate Tooru, is the person who shares the other half of their popsicle with you. Except you’ll share a lot more than just a popsicle you silly goose.” She said giving him a sisterly squeeze.

“But we shared a pohsisle” He said with a pout. “Are you my solmat?”

“No Tooru I’m your sister. We shared a popsicle because there was only one left.” She said as she picked him up. Tooru curved his mouth into a large smile.

“Is it Iwa-chan?!”

“I don’t think so goose. If he was than you wouldn’t see your string anymore.”

“Oh.”

That night while everyone else was asleep, Tooru climbed out of his bed and made his way towards his school bookbag and dug out his crayons and paper. In his short span of 6 years he knew plenty of people and according to his sister this string wouldn’t disappear until he met his soulmate. So it wouldn’t hurt to make a list of people he knew.

It wasn’t his parents, or his sister, and it wasn’t Iwa-chan. It couldn’t be anyone in his class either or his teachers. But it was very difficult to count all the people he knew with only ten fingers. At his little desk he sat working in his notebook until his parents found him asleep with the glitter glue in his hair, and a marker surrounded by a puddle of drool.

Later that week Tooru and his best friend Iwaizumi Hajime were in the living room watching a kids television show. It was far too wet to go out and explore like they had originally wanted to but this show about trucks was incredibly captivating. As soon as the commercial break aired, two pairs of little feet flew down the hall towards the bathroom to relieve themselves after inhaling large glasses of lemonade.

“Hurry up dumb face! The thows gunna thart thoon!” Iwaizumi said through his lisp caused by his recently lost front tooth. Tooru blew a raspberry back at him as he washed his hands in the sink. Reaching over to turn the faucet off, Tooru noticed the vermillion string that was darker due to the water that had run through its fibers.

He carefully jumped off the stepstool and opened the door to a grumbling Iwaizumi who promptly dragged Tooru by the arm back to the pillow fort they had spanning the contents of the living room.

“Iwa-chan! Wait I have a question!” Tooru exclaimed as they climbed through the tunnel they had set up to make it seem more like the train station they watched on television.

“What ith it thoopid-head?”

“Don’t call me stupid! I have a question about your solmat string!” Tooru said with tears in his eyes. Iwaizumi was always his hot headed best friend but words hurt ok?

“What about it?” Iwaizumi asked situating himself on his stomach and munching on some of the crackers they had taken from the kitchen. Tooru began to fiddle with the knot at the base of his finger as he asked is question.

“Is it still there?”

“Of couthe it ith. Itths thill bright pink!” Iwaizumi said holding his pudgy toddler fist in the air as he stuffed his face with more crackers. Tooru couldn’t see it but then again only the individual or their soulmate could see it.

The conversation ended there as the colorful ads where now replaced with the post-commercial jingle which brought their eyes back to the screen. It was distracting from the difficult world of soulmates which continued to plague his mind.

It continued to bother him into the next couple months now that he was in first grade. He was part of the big kid group at school because he could tie his shoelaces and he knew how to read short chapter books. His handwriting, according to his teachers, was so similar to a girls that they had accidentally begun to call him Oikawa-chan like they had with his sister.

Iwaizumi had laughed at his predicament one to many times before Tooru pushed him out of his seat with a loud huff. The only thing it did was earn Tooru a spot in the corner during recess while Iwaizumi got to go play outside.

Instead of crying like he usually would, Tooru used this chance to think about the girls in his class. He knew most of them (if not by name then by some other part. Like cookie girl who gave everyone cookies when she had them) and he couldn’t recall seeing their strings. He’d gotten in trouble the other day when he swore on his Alien pajama set that he’d seen Izuna’s string and had tackled her to the ground only to realize that she had colored her nails red with a sharpie.

He’d spent a lot of time in the corner that day.

It was frustrating to Tooru that he couldn’t find his soulmate when it seemed like everyone else had. Though in reality his teacher had already explained to him multiple times that most soulmates don’t find each other right away.

“It just takes time. I still haven’t found mine and I’m 24.” She said with a bright smile. Tooru’s eyes bugged out of his head and he started to wail about how he’d never find them.

First grade was interesting in that aspect....

As the years progressed, Tooru slowly became less and less concerned with his soulmate and his string due to the increasing popularity that was coming his way. Once he’d entered middle school, he and the rest of his male counterparts had started to notice their female classmates as more than just friends. He’d even started up a relationship towards the end of his 3nd year in Junior High with a lovely girl named Sora who shared his love of volleyball.

His first love had been short and sweet. They had bonded together over volleyball, and spent their lunch times and weekends playing together or watching volleyball tournaments much to Iwaizumi’s chagrin. It wasn’t until the last week of school that Sora had come to him with large tears welled up in her eyes.

The tell tale sign of her now visible burgundy string only told Tooru what he’d known from the start. They weren’t soulmates.

Tooru had congratulated her with a large fake smile and given her his best as he headed off to practice. But he couldn’t help but feel the annoyance itching at his skin. It wasn’t fair! How had nearly two-thirds of his classmates already found their other half?!

Iwaizumi noticed the attitude that Tooru was throwing around the court that day. His warm up serves were more aggressive, he’d snapped at both the coaches and had been forced to sit out for an entire practice game due to his attitude. As he watched one of the first years, Kageyama, replace him as the setter for the last game his mood only worsened.

“If you hadn’t lost your shitty temper with the coaches you wouldn’t have had to sit out.” Iwaizumi grumbled as the two of them picked up the stray balls that had wandered away during practice in the now mostly empty gym. Tooru merely grunted and bent over to grab a ball at his feet.

Unfortunately another hand reached downwards too...

“Oikawa do you maybe think you could help me with my sets sometime?” An eager Kageyama asked as he wrung his fingers together. Tooru looked up from the ground with a darkened look in his eyes before lunging at the poor unsuspecting kid as a growl ripped through his throat.

“YOU GET OUT OF MY FACE! I WILL NOT BE REPLACED BY A-”

A terrified Kageyama was rescued from the hands of an angry Tooru by means of Iwaizumi who barreled the two of them into the wall. Kageyama took this chance to run off before he was attacked once more.

“SHITTYKAWA GET A GRIP ON YOURSELF!” Iwaizumi hollered into his friends face as he gripped Tooru’s shirt. Angry tears welled up in Tooru’s eyes as he pushed Iwaizumi away from him and buried his head in his arms as choked sobs left his body.

“I’m one of the only people who hasn’t found their soulmate.” Tooru choked out much to the chagrin of Iwaizumi who scoffed.

“Really?! This is what’s made you so shitty today?! Dammit I thought you had a real issue.” Iwaizumi growled as he threw more volleyballs into the carrier. Tooru wiped his eyes and looked at his bug loving friend.

“It is though Iwa-chan! It’s a real issue! Even you’ve met yours!” Tooru snapped pointing at Iwaizumi’s bubblegum pink strand that had appeared a little less than a month ago.

As much as Iwaizumi wanted to berate him for having unnecessary tears over something that everyone experienced in life, he sighed and found himself comforting his idiot friend instead.  

“It takes time shit-head. You’ll find them eventually.” was all he mustered before pulling the setter up from his crouched position and pulling him towards the gym storage room.

Iwaizumi pulled and pushed Tooru through the school and back towards their homes while the boy moped towards the sky. Iwaizumi pushed him up the steps and knocked on the door. A few moments later, Tooru’s mother opened the door.

“Oh hello- Tooru what’s the matter with you?” She asked pulling her son and Iwaizumi into the house. With a quick apology for intruding, both boys began to remove their shoes and Iwaizumi explained what had happened.

“Tooru you know well and true that finding your soulmate is more than a matter of waiting for them to show up. It also takes the maturity of the heart and the maturity of the mind. This is a perfect example of why you haven’t seen your string.” His mother scolded. Iwaizumi nodded along with every word that left his “auntie’s” mouth.

Tooru merely trudged upstairs and into his room with a huff and a harsh closing of his door.

His room was still dark from turning the light off before he left for school and his bed unmade from running out of time. Letting his backpack fall off his shoulder her slumped onto his bed and stared absentmindedly at his pinky finger.

He could see the vermillion strands bounce slightly with the pulse of his heartbeat underneath his skin.

His mother was right though, he thought as he drifted off to sleep. Someone with his emotional maturity skills was bound to wait a long time for their string to appear.

Tooru’s mindset completely changed once they entered high school a few months later. His looks and his charming personality were a massive take with most of his peers and he quickly developed a fanbase that followed him everywhere. They packed the stands at the volleyball games and inflated his ego tenfold.

“With all these lovely fans of mine why bother with a soulmate?” Tooru announced at a study session with Iwaizumi and two other boys they’d met on the volleyball team, Hanamaki Takahiro and Matsukawa Issei.

“Fuck you and your fanbase.” Iwaizumi grunted as he kicked Tooru gently in the ribs while texting his girlfriend.

“Leave me alone Iwa-chan!” Tooru said with his dramatic ass laying on the ground. Matsukawa threw a piece of popcorn at his head.

“No he’s right. Your fanbase is obnoxious.”

“Not you too Mattsun!”

But Matsukawa was right in the sense that the obnoxiousness of

Tooru periodically began to date members of his fanbase here and there not really caring when they broke up with him due to him neglecting them for volleyball.

It wasn’t until his third year when his current girlfriend shrieked and smacked him in the arm that he realized his life had changed.

“You didn’t fucking tell me you found your soulmate already you jerk!” She snapped before running off in tears. Tooru blinked in complete confusion before looking down at his string. It still sat there visible to him but...

Wait-

“IWA-CHAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAN!!!!” Tooru shrieked as he sprinted across campus to find his best friend. The thudding of his heart beneath his ribcage only heightened with the belief that his string truly had been revealed and he was closer to finding his soulmate.

Unfortunately for Iwaizumi who had been having a rather romantic moment with his girlfriend, found himself groaning out of annoyance at Tooru’s loud and heavily breathy interruption.

“What the fuck do you want Shittykawa?! I’m kind of in the middle of something!” He called out not facing the trembling, hyperventilating figure of his friend. With a kiss to his girlfriend’s cheek he sent her off with a gentle love-tap on her forehead and a promise to see her later before dragging a babbling Tooru off.

“Ow ow! Let me go Iwa-chan! It’s important!!”

“It better fucking be you fucking cockblock.”

“Can you see my string?” Tooru blurted as he shoved his pinky finger into his friends face. Iwaizumi blinked before looking at his friends newly visible string.

“I- I can see it. This is what was so fucking important?!” Iwaizumi growled as he gripped Tooru’s wrist and crossed his arms. Tooru gaze burned with a fire that Iwaizumi only ever saw on the court when they were a singular point away from the winning one.

“It means I found them! I found them!” Tooru cried out in happiness cradling his hand and walking off with a lovelorn look on his face.

Iwaizumi rolled his eyes and texted his girlfriend to meet up with him again before lunch was over.

Tooru couldn’t concentrate the entire rest of the day. He stared absentmindedly at the string on his finger and spent the rest of his class doodling what he thought his soulmate looked like or what they should do for their first date.

His instagram now showed off to his friends and fans that he was infact on his way to finding his love and the texts bewteen his mother and sister about it only fueled his excitement. For his fanbase however, the sight of the string caused many girls and even some boys to hate the color of their own strings that now were clearly not a match to the vibrant vermillion color.

But the question everyone wanted to know was who had triggered the appearance of his string? And why had it taken them so long to find him?

Unfortunately for Tooru it seemed that although the universe had finally thrown him a bone, his search for his other half continued to plague his days in high school. His peers who had their strings exposed matched each other but not to his. For three years he focused solely on Volleyball and finding the other half of the red vermillion string that now dangled freely from his pinky finger.

“I don’t even know when it showed up! Kimi-chan just smacked me across the arm and I ran off to find Iwa!” Tooru exclaimed when yet another person asked him if he knew who it was.

No he didn’t. Yes he’d asked around. No he didn’t have any positive leads. The same three answers to the now most commonly asked questions that he heard aside from questions about volleyball.

The search only grew colder and colder as the end of the year grew closer and closer. With the loss to Karasuno at the Inter-high semi-finals eating at the strings of his heart, he threw himself into his studies and watched the match between Karasuno and Shiratorizawa with anger and resentment towards his former teammate and his rival Ushijima.

The loss of Shiratorizawa to Karasuno nearly made him smile after years of ridicule by the universe. To watch the miniscule look of despair cross through Ushijima’s usually stoic face alleviated some of the pain that he felt of not being on the court.

As he and Iwaizumi cleared out of the stadium he felt a sharp pain in his pinky finger, almost as if the string around his finger was tightening. Using his height to his advantage he whipped his head around to see a head of h/c hair walking away from him pulling at her right pinky finger....

That bore a familiar vermillion string.

“Excuse me! Please I need to get through!” He called out shoving people out of the way trying to reach the angel who had seemingly evaded him for years and years and years.

‘She’s here. She’s here. Just one more step. Faster! Get to her! Please!’ His brain screamed at him as he reached out for the elbow hidden beneath the Orange and Black of Karasuno Highschool. The contact of his hand with her elbow cause both of them to jolt with an extreme burst of energy causing her to turn around with her large e/c eyes looking at him with extreme awe. Swallowing slowly the girl looked at Tooru with stars in her eyes.

“Are you...”

“I think I am...”

Tooru moved his hand from her elbow to connect their hands finally joining the dangling parts of their strings together for the first time in a beautiful heart shaped knot. The vermillion color that had once nauseated him now amazed him as he tentatively wrapped his arms around the frame of his better half for the first time. Tears welled up in both sets of their eyes as they held each other tightly.

“I thought everyone was humoring me about my string.” She whispered as she inhaled through teary eyes. Tooru stroked his hand through her hair inhaling the slightly peachy scent mixed with a hint of cream.

“But you’re here now... I’ve found you after all these years. My name is Oikawa Tooru. I’m a third year at Aoba Johsai.”

“I’m L/N Y/N. I’m a second year at Karasuno High School.”

They finally separated and looked at each other with bright beaming smiles. Joining their hands together, Tooru led the girl out of the stadium with the premise of their first date of many to make up for the years they’d spent separated.

To Tooru, Y/N was truly his other half. Her personality complimented his in every aspect. He’d learned that her hobbies included watching volleyball, charcoal art, and babysitting her new baby brother. She’s allergic to pine nuts, and wanted to visit the Amazon Rainforest to sketch exotic animals before going to University for Primary School Education. She had tried out for the volleyball team but had to quit during her first year because her brother had been born.

He told her of his dreams to play volleyball on the professional level and about his nephew Takeru. He shared his fears and insecurities about the Karasuno volleyball team specifically Kageyama. He couldn’t stop himself from spilling information that even his closest friends didn’t know. It was like she already knew everything about him and like he knew everything about her.

As Tooru walked her to the bus station, Y/N asked for a photo together.

“I don’t want to wake up and find out it was a dream.” She confessed shyly as they exchanged numbers and waited for the bus. Tooru’s already fluttering heart increased as he held her warm hands in his.

“It’s not a dream. We’ve finally found each other and I will always be at the other end of this string. We may be separated now but we have our whole lives ahead of us. One day I’ll be playing professionally and I’ll have you by my side every step of the way.” He explained, “Of course if you’ll have me.”

“I will Tooru.” and with those words, she placed a lingering kiss on the swell of his cheekbone. It was natural for her and his response was a flavorful kiss on the forehead.

“A kiss on the lips is what we’ll get when we meet again.” Tooru murmured into her hairline. The sounds of the bus approaching pulled them apart and they separated once again, the knot coming undone.

The string had never felt so heavy on his finger now that they had left each other, Tooru thought as he walked home with a content smile on his face and his hands in his pocket.

A few years passed and the correspondence between the two was still flourishing as though they had only just met. Quick texts turned into hour long conversations and phone calls turned into falling asleep on facetime. When he was offered a position on the San Juan Men’s Volleyball team in Argentina he immediately went to visit a jewelry shop.

Tooru called Y/N and arranged for the two of them to meet at a fancy restaurant. The weight of the end of their strings lifted as they knotted together once more and Tooru announced the news that he was heading to San Juan.

“Before I go however, there is one thing I need to do. I want to marry you Y/N. We’ve only just found each other after years of being separated and it’s like I’ve finally been given a drink of the coldest water to soothe my aching body. You’re my other half. The better part of me. And I can’t let you go again.” Tooru confessed on one knee with the black padded ring box opened to show a perfectly carved ring with a tiny ruby heart.

A squeal and a thump confirmed his answer as those around in the restaurant watched the newly engaged couple hold each other tightly.

The wedding was set for later that winter before Tooru had to leave for Argentina. As they joined hands for the first time as a newly wedded couple, Tooru watched as the vermillion string turned bright gold.

As he danced with his new wife and held her close he whispered a tentative ‘I love you’ and forgave the universe for all the hardships he’d gone through.

After all, there’s always more to life than red strings and things...

________________________________________________________________

So I know that my contribution was added much later but I had experienced some personal issues and this laid dormant in my drafts for a while. Thank you to @elixhirs for the beautiful banner and to @toorusushijima​ for hosting the collab by @celestialarchiveshq

[tundrainafrica]

Title: Sugar Rush

Summary:  

Marley brings the celebration of Halloween to Paradis. Hange and Levi go trick or treating with their child for the first time and start to realize how much the world has changed since the war.

A Halloween piece for the Levihan spookfest, one year late. (I hope you’re still accepting them.)

Written for @levihanweek. to cap off Levihan Angstober. Happy Halloween everyone!

Link to cross-postings: AO3

Notes: For people who read "Rough day," this domestic fluff piece is set in the same universe. I just wanted to contribute a Halloween piece for the Levihan Spookfest. I am one year late though.

"Happy Halloween!" Hange chimed as she entered the kitchen and plopped her already dolled up kid down on the table next to her. 

"So what are the tacky decorations and costumes for?" 

Hange was wearing a full body suit of the colossal titan while Luke, their five year old child was wearing a mini armored titan costume. A part of Levi wondered how people of Paradis had so easily forgotten the attack of Shiganshina that titan costumes existed and were actually being sold. He had seen a few people in titan suits on the way to the market just that morning. 

"These are all to scare away the spirits!" Hange explained.

"Of dead people?"

"Of dead people."

"It would be nice to be visited by some ghosts. Wouldn't you want to see Erwin or maybe even Moblit again?" Levi had seen enough death in his life that the holiday which Marley introduced to them which was supposed to them did not seem as scary as the people were painting it out to be. The idea of the dead people visiting felt almost desirable for that hardened soldier one who'd seen too many people die.

"But daddy, ghosts are scary! They can kill you!" Luke said as he walked towards Levi.

What are they teaching this kid in school? "What if those ghosts were daddy's old friends? Do you think they’ll kill you?" Levi bent down to face his son only to see the boy looking utterly confused.

Levi only had to look back at how they raised him to understand why. Despite his parents background, the boy was raised with what they have considered too peaceful an upbringing. The closest thing to a blood bath he had seen was when Hange so enthusiastically pulled out his baby tooth just a few months ago. Levi was not sure though if the kid had been scared of the blood or the strong reaction of his mother. 

"Levi, get dressed. It'll be our first trick or treat."

"I'm ready already." Levi walked to the balcony room where he had let his old survey corps cloak hang out to dry after thoroughly washing it. 

"You're wearing that?" Hange asked, raising one eyebrow in disappointment. "Isn't that a bit too lazy?"

"Let me try out this new festival of yours and if it's any fun maybe I'll try harder next time." 

Levi and Hange both lived towards the center of Paradis since Hange was closely working with the government to help the island catch up to its peers. They had agreed to use the holiday as an excuse to see parts of the new Paradis they had not seen in a while, having rented a space in the outskirts for a few days. Hange had seen her fair share since she was back and forth from the ports and the center due to work. Levi on the other hand barely visited the outer cities, having spent his time keeping the household running and raising Luke while Hange worked full-time.  

They made the thirty minute walk to the outskirts where Hange concluded was the start to the most time efficient route with the highest possible yield of candy, that looped all the way back to their rented bungalow.

It turned out the strategy of the former commander had been almost foolproof. One kilometer in and Luke's bag was almost half full.

"Hey man, your survey corps costume looks pretty good!" 

Levi looked to the voice behind him to see a teenage boy in a titan costume. 

"Did you make it yourself?" The teenage boy continued. 

Levi looked to Hange as if to ask "Who made our costume?" In fact, Levi had just wanted to walk on, ignoring the teenage boy. It had been less than a decade since the end of the war. With the quick advancement of technology, it felt like more of a century ago to Levi. That instance only reminded him what people saw as a soldier uniform's long ago has been reduced to a costume prop.

"I did actually. What do you think?" Hange asked 

It was a blatant lie.Technically though she did design the new uniform when the war against Marley started. Levi thought to himself. 

"Well you got the colors of the wings of freedom wrong. The blue wing is on the right side not the left." 

                                               Sugar Rush

"Hey Hange, you should monitor how they make the survey corps costume. This is slightly pissing me off," Levi muttered as they started to get to the denser parts of town. 

"Well, with a port to run and research to do, I don't really have time to monitor holiday costume designs."

Although there were many people in titan costumes, there were also a fair number of people donning the survey corps cloak, a few in garrison uniform, and fewer in the military police. Although the survey corps had a rocky start, towards the end of the war against Marley, they were painted to be the main hero, their stories told in bars, restaurants, wherever people would listen. It was only natural that clothing manufacturers got on wind with the popularity. 

But they got it all wrong. Levi thought. He turned to Hange to see that she was just slightly amused at it. 

As they walked on, they passed by a park where a group of kids in survey corps cloaks were playing. 

"I'm Levi! Humanity's strongest soldier!" One kid said as he climbed on top of a rock.

Levi heard Hange chuckling behind her as he stopped to watch the play between the five kids unfold. 

"No I wanna be Levi!" The smaller kid protested as he tried to pull the larger kid down from the rock.

"You can't be Levi! Levi is big and strong! Mommy and Daddy said so!"

Levi did not know who mommy and daddy were but he found himself interested enough to approach the group of kids. At first, they looked almost terrified to see an adult stranger approach. Levi made an effort to smile though which worked enough at least for them to stay put. 

"Levi can be as tall or short as you want him to be." Levi patted the small kid's head then looked at all the kids. "Kids, make sure to take turns." 

"It's okay! I'm Captain Erwin!"

"I'm Captain Hange!"

"I'm Captain Mike!" 

It's Mee-keh not Maik. "That's good. Don't play too rough." Levi found himself struggling to keep the friendly smile. He walked away from them, quickening his pace with every step, trying to stop the urge to play cop and point out the inaccuracies in their casual game of soldier. 

Erwin and Mike probably would not have minded those inaccuracies but something inside Levi protested the omission on his end. 

"You're not going to correct them?" Hange said as he walked back at her. 

"Erwin and Mike probably wouldn't have cared. Do you mind?"

"No. Not really. But humanity's strongest being big and tall..." Hange widened her eye in emphasis as she gave him a onceover from head to toe. 

“Humanity's strongest might even like that.”

"Daddy did you meet captain Levi? Was he really big and tall?" Luke pulled on Levi's cloak as he asked. 

"He can be as big and tall as you want him to be Luke."

                                           Sugar Rush

"Tell me more about Captain Levi! Was he big? Tall? Was it weird that you were also Levi?"

Hange and Levi had allowed their son to eat a few candies that night. Levi was sure he had at least rationed it well to keep the child happy but prevent a sugar rush. 

Maybe it was when he went to take off his cloak, wash it and leave it out to dry did Hange sneak him a few more candies in. As he looked inside the bag to see everything had been opened and half eaten, he was sure that that could have been the only explanation. 

As Levi snuck a glance at Hange, he could tell she was regretting it. I told you a while ago a handful is enough. 

“Where did you learn so much about this captain Levi figure?” Levi asked, humoring the young boy.

“The teacher tells stories about him. He was part of the Ackerman clan and he could destroy one hundred titans in one swoop.” Luke excitedly yet awkwardly swung his imaginary sword in the air and Levi could not help but note that he would have never swung his blades in that manner. “You and mommy were both soldiers right? Did you get to meet him?”

“A few times.” 

“I told my friends in school that my parents were retired soldiers and they said that the soldiers were playing and eating inside the capital while the survey corps actually went outside and fought the enemy. I think you and mommy were different. Mommy would have done research right? While you were fighting the bad people in the walls right?”

“Maybe I was.” Levi turned to Hange for help. The latter was too busy rummaging through her kid’s bag for candy. Luke did not seem to notice or probably did not care, his eyes were fixed on his father and Levi wondered how long the kid had been keeping it in.

“How was Captain Levi?”

“He was a friendly guy.” Levi answered. He heard Hange snort next to him.   

“Did he ever save you from titans?”

“A few times.” 

 “Then you must know what happened to him? Even our teacher doesn’t know!”

                                                Sugar Rush

It was almost midnight. Only thirty minutes ago did Luke’s sugar rush die down. Soon after though, the young boy had fallen asleep and like on most other nights, Levi and Hange were left alone together. They were going through the pile of uneaten candy of their son, having decided that they had to eat what was left since they had no place to store it without risking an ant infestation.

“Why didn’t you tell him?” Hange asked as she went back to the table. She had checked up on their son just a second ago, making sure she was asleep before she brought up the elephant in the room. 

“Didn’t you hear the kid? If we told him where Captain Levi was, he was gonna tell all his friends. We can’t really trust a five year old kid to keep secrets just yet.”

“And you don’t want people to know where Captain Levi is,” Hange said matter of factly.

“I went for this type of life because I wanted peace.” Levi popped a half eaten chocolate in his mouth. 

“Which explains why you wanted our kid to take up my name instead.” 

“Ackerman never stuck. I’ve always been just Levi.” 

Luke Zoe was the more conservative naming choice. Levi Ackerman had become a household name while the full name of the commander had been known only among those who did the research but her stories were not as blown up as that of the captain. 

Oddly enough, their child had not picked up on both their first names being the same ones as those of the survey corps soldiers. Levi had attributed it to the fact that the boy spent most of his days with him while Hange was at work. The retired soldier had dedicated his time to other things like cleaning, housework, child rearing and tea mixing, having put his bloodier past behind him. The kid saw them as parents, not as the heroes he was hearing about in school. 

I wanna meet a survey corps soldier! They sound so cool! You must know one! Bring me to one. I wanna thank them for their service! Ask them how they flew through the air. I wanna see how big and burly they are.

Or possibly, Luke already had expectations on what they looked like and Levi and Hange just did not fit the profile.  

"Maybe we should buy him a mini survey corps cloak too. It feels weird that the survey corps played such a big part of our lives and we’re not even giving him that,” Hange suggested. 

“And support shitty research. No way.” Levi rolled his eyes as he imagined the erroneous design of the wings of freedom insignia. 

“As someone who has worked on research her whole life, I can sympathize.” Hange gave Levi a consoling smile. The cloak was last used more than fifteen years ago and the more recent designs had probably already overshadowed the one used back when the survey corps was still seen as inferior to the garrison and military police. “Hey, can you eat this gooey colorful one? It sticks to my teeth.” 

“How much more do we have to eat?” Levi emptied the bag on the table. Luke had eaten half of every single candy in the bag

“Maybe your trick or treat route was just a little too strategic Hange.”  

They did not sleep that night.    

[surveys-at-your-service]

Survey #392

“l.a. is where stars come to die”

Do you think there’s anything you did better when you were younger? I think I was a better writer, honestly. Like I've developed in some areas, like being less over-dramatic, but I just think my creativity in wording and such has dulled down. Who was the craziest teacher you’ve ever had? I've never had a "crazy" teacher, honestly. What’s the last thing you got paid to do? Take pictures. What’s the most romantic thing you’ve ever done for someone else? How should I know? Ask either Jason or Sara. Have you ever wanted to model? No. Have you ever seen someone have a seizure? I THINK my sister? Teddy had seizures in his old age, too. What’s your favorite car? I don't have one, really. Do you know any HTML or CSS? If yes, how much? I know veeeeery little basics. LIke, I can change the color of shit and that's about it lmao. Do you tend to care about the lives of celebrities? Why or why not? Only celebrities I really really care about, like Mark. What do you think of the scene style? #aesthetic and I will ALWAYS be envious of the hair. Have you ever told an extremely inappropriate joke? Oh god, I remember one. What is the highest you have been up, other than in an airplane? On a certain faire ride, I wanna say. Is there any hope of you ever seeing your favorite band in concert? Ozzy does want to do another tour at some point, but he's fighting Parkinson's currently, so it's not guaranteed it will happen. Mom and I planned on going to his last one that was scheduled, but the diagnosis cancelled it. :( What is your favorite non-green vegetable? Uhhhhh I guess potatoes. What is your favorite non-traditional fruit? I don't think I've even had a non-traditional fruit. Just basic stuff. Have you ever had Swedish Fish? Yeah, I'm not a fan. What is your favorite origami shape? Birds, I guess. Do you usually take the stairs or the elevator? I pretty much always take an elevator if one's available because my legs can barely handle stairs at all. It's agonizing for me. Do you need a key card to get into the building you live in? No. What was the last takeout food you had? I had a burger from McDonald's a few days ago. Do you take the pickle off your burgers? No, I love pickles on burgers. Do you share a bed with anyone? Just my cat. If you’ve read or watched Harry Potter, which book/movie is your favorite? I haven't. What’s the last app you downloaded on your phone? I re-installed DragonVale. What do you know the most about? Meerkats, Markiplier, and Silent Hill, probably. What TV shows can you not stand? What's that stupid show on Adult Swim, Rooster Teeth or something like that? That shit was so dumb. Have you ever tasted your own tears? I mean not intentionally. Sometimes tears just fall down a spot where it happens. Are your legs hairy? I can almost guarantee to you that I probably have the hairiest legs of any woman you've ever met. Do you like Cheese-Itz? I love them! We don't really buy them though because both Mom and I can destroy a box of them. Have you ever built a sandcastle? I have. Did you ever watch Barney as a child? Yeah, I loved Barney, but not as much as my older sister. She literally "married" him, haha. Have you ever had a pet rabbit? No, but my older sis did as a kid. That poor thing died and Ashley didn't know for THREE DAYS. Mom took it out earlier and I guess she wanted to see how long it took Ash to notice? She didn't take great care of it, so. Are you wearing anything of any sentimental value? Describe? Yes, my friendship ring with Sara. To you, what is especially distracting? Tapping noises. When was the last time you did some major cleaning? MAJOR cleaning? Good question. How do you feel about people who neglect their pets? It sickens me. Have you ever contemplated cheating on anyone? Nope. When are you likely to lie? Probably when I don't want to seriously hurt someone. What is a personality type that you do not like? I hate people who think they know everything, are unwilling to acknowledge their flaws and work on them, feel they're better than others, are closed-minded, sexist, bigoted, racist... What is a personality type that you DO like? I am drawn to people who are empathetic and try to understand and consider more than just themselves, are caring and genuine, philosophical and think deeply, are calm, friendly, good listeners, and have a light sense of humor. Which of your friends is the least like you? In what way? I actually don't know. MAYBE Mini with her being extremely conservative to a frustrating degree and overwhelmingly religious. We diverge pretty strongly in beliefs that are important to me. How about the most like you? In what way? Sara! We have incredibly similar interests and morals, and we both are wild over animals. When was the last time you felt under-appreciated? I'm gonna be completely transparent here, even though it's uncomfortable to admit. I was very unhappy with the literally two interactions a poem I was really proud of got on dA. Like it was one I was trying to get published prior to just posting it there, so it was really disappointing to feel so overlooked when you worked hard on something you felt came out great. Does anyone take advantage of you or take you for granted? No. Are you taking anyone for granted? I sure as hell hope no one feels like I do. I definitely try to appreciate those I have to the utmost. What is one selfish thing that you do? I prioritize my alone time probably too much. How about something selfless? I'm pretty much always willing to listen to people's hardships and comfort them even if my own mental health is in poor condition. What do you like to do on your favorite holiday? Just be with family and really focus on how lucky I am to have them. What helps you fall asleep? I guess really paying attention to slowing my breathing, but that doesn't always work. It takes me at LEAST half an hour to fall asleep, so I struggle no matter what. Is there anyone you wish you were still friends with now? Megan. I really, really miss her. What is a fear you want to overcome? SOCIAL ANXIETY. UGH. What is something you do not like about yourself, with good reason? I'm lazy. What do you usually cry about? PTSD. Do you like pizza better on the second day? No. What do you like on your pancakes? Butter and normal syrup. Have you ever made up your own emoticon? I don't think so. How do you generally meet people? Online in one way or another. Have you ever seen a Broadway show in New York? No. Are you listening to music right now? Yeah, "God Hates Your Outfit" by Jeffree Star lmao. Look, it's catchy. Can anyone in your immediate family play the guitar? No. Have you ever wished to be an internet celebrity? How about a ‘real’ one? No. Like I've actually *loosely* considered trying to be a let's player with my love of games, but I don't even want to *risk* popularity; not that I think I'd get to that point, but still, I don't like the chance. Have you ever been kayaking? No. Do you still live with your parents? Yes. Do you believe you will never get over someone? I think Jason will always occupy at the very least a small corner of my mind. I just deal with loss so poorly in general, but that... that breakup was something. What do you order at Burger King? I don't like BK. Have you ever lived by yourself? No. Pretty sure I never could with my depression. What brand cell phone do you have? It's just a Tracfone, lol. Did you ever have a ‘security blanket’ when you were younger? Yes, my stuffed moose. What is your lucky charm? I don’t have one. Have you ever been in a wedding? Yeah, I was a bridesmaid in my sister's. Do you believe in yourself? ehhhhhh What time does your dad usually wake up in the morning? I don't live with him, so I can't say for sure. He's a mailman though, so he gets up early, I know. Who was the last person/people you were in a car with? Mom. What movie do you plan on watching next? I've been meaning to watch Jacob's Ladder for like... over a year, lmao. It served as an inspirational work for Silent Hill, and I know its reputation is brilliant, so I really want to see it. I just... don't really watch movies unless I'm in the theater. When something really scares you, what’s your immediate reaction? Gasp or go "what the fuck" or something along those lines. I can almost promise a curse word is coming out of my mouth, lol. Using song lyrics, say something to your most recent ex: I don't wanna get emotional digging through the songs that remind me of her, so pass, lol. You can only watch 4 TV shows for the rest of your life. What are they? Meerkat Manor, That '70s Show, maybe Pokemon even if I don't watch it anymore (it could be like a comfort show if I'm limited to four), aaaaand I think Ginga Densetsu Weed. Do you think it’s possible for a rap song to make you cry? ... Yes??? There are a couple that have for me. Does the idea of having a baby at your age scare you? I'm not having kids, sooo I don't have to worry about this. What band has the power to make you cry by splitting up? None. I'd be really upset if some did, but I wouldn't cry. Who is your favourite famous person who isn’t a singer, actor, or athlete? Well, I WOULD say Mark, but considering he's officially an actor now... guess not, haha. Uhhhh. Put him aside and I guess maybe Bindi Irwin. I'm not sure.

[purplesurveys]

1085

survey by -egocentricity-

On Myspace, what was in the last bulletin you posted? I haven’t been on Myspace for well over a decade; and even when I was there I didn’t have any friends added nor did I remember ever posting anything. Friendster and Multiply were a lot more popular.

When and where was the last time you took a picture of yourself? I took a selfie last Saturday in the dining room. It’s of me holding up the vape pen that Andi lent me for the meantime to show Angela, since she wanted to see what it looked like.

Have you ever been scolded by a mall cop? I remember being lightly chided once when I was like, 7 – I was leaning on a glass wall of a store in the mall, so the guard from that store nicely told me to get back up to be safe. Overall, I don’t think I’ve ever exhibited behavior in public that should’ve gotten me into trouble.

How often do you catch yourself daydreaming? Definitely not so much these days. I need to keep being preoccupied with work or other things to do/accomplish since my daydreaming always seems to end with thinking of scenarios that now upset me, like, idk, happier times with my ex. I’m tired of letting that happen and always being upset in the end, so I try to avoid getting lost in my thoughts anymore.

What's your favorite thing to think about as you're falling asleep? Idk about you but thinking in general keeps my mind up and racing lol, so when I’m trying to sleep I do my best to black out my mind so that I can doze off.

Is there anything that you want to do, but won't because you're too afraid? So I went to college with this girl - I believe she’s several batches older - who, as soon as she graduated, set out on a hitchhiking journey across the world. She’s been doing it for four years, and I believe she has finally made it to Europe after being stuck in Kazakhstan for a year due to Covid. She’s amazing and her spirit is so fucking beautiful. She has a Facebook page that I actively follow detailing her experiences; but as great as her journey has been, I don’t know and I highly doubt that I can set out for such a demanding, commitment-heavy challenge myself.

Who was the last person to yell at you? My mom is the only person who does that, but she hasn’t done so in a while.

Who gets up the earliest in your household? The latest? My dad, since his work starts the earliest. I will sometimes hear the car engine purring by 5:45 AM. The latest would be my sister, since she stays up the latest as well. I think she’s up by 8 AM, but she doesn’t show up outside of her bedroom until 10 or 11.

Have you ever had a pet walk across your keyboard while you were typing? No, and I am glad that’s the case because both of my dogs are too big and I fear that they could actually snap my laptop in half.

What political issues do you think deserve less attention/worry? No political issue deserves any less attention than others. Political issues always mean that someone is on the losing end and I don’t think it’s fair to compare and decide which ones can be put on the backseat. 

Anyway, I do believe it’s not so much the issues that should be compared, but the people in politics who are given the spotlight. Here in the Philippines especially, a lot of celebrities want to have their own political careers (and usually win a seat) despite their zero experience and the media gobbles that shit up all the time, which is disgusting. Related to this, I hope the media makes a consicous effort to wipe Trump out of the headlines once he’s out of office.

Which political issues are you most passionate about? I dunno if I can measure that since I’m pretty vocal about a lot of things. What I can tell you is that in the political issues I have a say in, I always side with the marginalized and the oppressed. IPs, POC, LGBTQ+, immigrants, factory workers, jeepney drivers, contractualized employees, activists, student-activists...my heart has always been with them and their cause.

You're going to your favorite foreign country; what landmarks do you go see? I’m not sure if I have a favorite country, but I’m very picky about landmarks in general anyway. I’d rather experience the local life and eat at smaller local places and go to lesser-known beaches and stuff.

What is the longest amount of time that you have spent away from your home? A little longer than a week, and this was usually when I traveled abroad.

Did the last movie you watched have any emotional effect on you? Yeah, so much so that I was unable to finish it and I had to show up at dinner while still fresh from crying.

What motivates you to go to school? Not applicable to me anymore, but I suppose this can be easily rephrased to mean work. Honestly, my main motivation is the desire to have a perfect record at work lol. I’m super neurotic about this and I hate the idea of being absent or late. Money comes second; I rarely buy stuff for myself so I mostly don’t even realize the money coming in to my account every two weeks. Then third is the desire to be good at my job because I do want to get promoted and rack up more positions as I go along.

How much caffeine have you consumed in one day? The most cups of coffee I’ve had in one day is 3, and that was not an enjoyable experience ha. Right now, I’m on my first cup of coffee.

Are you more hyper and up-tight, or laid back and relaxed? I guess it depends on the situation. I can definitely exhibit either, but my behavior will vary based on the people I’m with and/or how comfortable I am in a certain situation.

When was the last time you heard someone talking about you? Around a week ago. My parents were having dinner separately and I heard my name being mentioned in a few sentences.

How did you pick out your last outfit? I wanted an outfit that was chill and easy to carry around, but would still make me look like I put some effort into picking it out.

When buying shoes, what do you look for in the product? I admittedly like brand names, so that’s the first thing I look at. I also like to keep up with what’s trending, so I look at items in a brand’s catalog that I see more and more people wearing. If it matches with my own personal style, then I keep an eye on it/purchase it altogether.

What happened to cause the last mess you made? The last and current mess I have on me is my work desk, which I’ve since abandoned in favor of my bed + portable desk as my new workspace. Idk, over the Christmas break I just ended up stacking up so much shit on the desk until it became a little too cluttered. I’ve cleaned it up here and there to make the space look neater, but there’s still a lot of stuff.

Are you embarrassed to bring people into your bedroom? Not embarrassed; I just find it unnecessary. My bedroom is too small to host guests and the only times I’ve let someone in there is when I had a significant other. I prefer people to stay in the living room.

When was the last children's birthday party you attended? It was my third cousin Isabella’s 7th birthday party at a Jollibee. Her family has been living in Australia for a while, but I guess they wanted to host a party with their Filipino family so they flew back here to stay for a few days. Because she is my third cousin and because she’s been living in Australia all her life, I don’t actually have any sort of relationship with her lmao but I still made an effort to greet her and stuff.

Are you good at reading other people's body language? Yes, to the point that it contributes to my overall anxiety.

If you're sick, do you go to school or do you stay home [usually]? I rarely get a fever so when I do it feels like actual death. For that reason, I usually have to skip the day and focus on feeling better.

Does chicken noodle soup really make you feel any better? I never had it whenever I’ve felt like crap in the past. I don’t really like soup though, so on a personal level I doubt it would have any effect on me.

What is one meal that you like to eat whilst sick? I don’t have a go-to meal because again, I rarely get sick.

Think of the last survey you filled out; did you enjoy it? Sure, it was easy to digest and it’s the kind that you can take over and over again.

Have you ever fed bread to ducks or geese? I’ve fed bread, but to fish in the sea; not ducks or geese since idk if we have either here other than in zoos. In our trip to Mactan in 2010, I remember how we were allowed to pay a certain small amount to get bread from the resort and proceed to feed the fish swimming around in the beach.

Is it hard to imagine you were ever as small as a 1-2 year old? Yeah, I definitely feel that way sometimes.

What set the tone for your mood today? Eh, I wouldn’t say I had an overall mood today, honestly. It was a normal day at work, maybe a little more uneventful than other days; and I was on top of my tasks so there wasn’t anything to dread or worry about. I was just concentrated on getting the day over with and wasn’t strongly attached to any emotion.

Have you ever set out to ruin someone else's day? I don’t think so.

Have you ever felt like the whole world was against you? It happens sometimes.

The name of the last video game you played? Mario Kart 8 probably? It’s been a while but it’s all I play if I do play a video game, so it’s a safe guess.

The name of the last board game that you played? We whipped out my old box of Trivial Pursuit last November when we didn’t have electricity and internet because of the typhoon.

What was the last thing that you told yourself? I don’t remember the last time I talked to myself, but like two minutes ago I was starting to feel sad so I silently reminded myself to think of positive things.

How many times a day do you wash your face? At least once, in the morning before I start work. I’ve learned that cleaning myself up, even if it’s just splashing water on my face, super helps if I want to start working in a good mood.

Do you remember your D.A.R.E. officer's name? I didn’t have one of those, anddd I’m sure we didn’t have that program here.

Someone throws hot coffee on you; how do you react? It’s taken me a whole goddamn week to finish this survey, lels. Anywho... I think out of instinct I would scream out in extreme agony first? And I’d probably spend the first immediate seconds to try and process what just happened. I don’t know if I would fight back because I’m pretty sure the burns would be hurting too badly for me to focus on revenge.

Is there a high school or college that you would rather be attending? I attended one school from kindergarten to college, and I can’t imagine having attended anywhere else. I had one dream university and I ended up attending it.

Have you ever lived in an apartment or duplex home? Yes, both. My parents lived in an apartment for a few months when I was a newborn. From ages 2-10 I lived in my childhood home, which is actually a duplex. The other house belongs to my grandpa’s late sister and her family.

Has anyone ever commented on your weight? Sure, but I care so little about my weight that they don’t really have an effect on me. The most common one I get is to “eat more.”

Where do you stand when it comes to sexual intercourse? Erm not really lmao. Just do it?? Idk. And just make sure consent is mutual and that you aren’t doing it out of pressure.

Name a show from the 90's that you miss? I guess ‘miss’ is the wrong word since I never watched it while it was ongoing, but I do love Friends. I’m excited to see what they have planned for the reunion episode.

Who provokes your sarcastic side the most? Bad co-workers, but luckily I haven’t had to pull that side of me in a while.

Have you ever thought about joining the military? Never.

When you were little, did you ever stare at disabled or "different" people? Being a kid, I probably did but never thought anything of it during those times. My mom certainly would’ve whooped my ass if I tried to comment anything mean or be a smartass.

Could the contents of your bedroom get you in any trouble? The one thing that would piss my mom off are my vape pens. I still have Gab-related stuff in my room that I’m too lazy to throw out, but I doubt I will get into trouble from those anymore because there has been no relationship to speak of in the last four months.

Do weather patterns sometimes have an effect on your health? Not on my health, but on my mood.

If it snows a lot where you live, do you experience cabin fever? It doesn’t, so idk what this would feel like.

When was the last time someone disapproved of something you were doing? Not entirely sure; this hasn’t happened in a while. Admittedly, as a people pleaser, I thrive on doing what people would want me to do lol.

How good are you at getting along with other people? On a scale of 1 to 10, probably a 9? I’m super nice to everyone and in the end it only really boils down to whether I have chemistry with them or not. If I fail to feel comfortable around someone I’m more likely to stay formal, but I do try to be lively and crack jokes with everyone as much as I can.

Do you consider yourself to be approachable? I want to be and I always try to come off as such, but my resting bitchface hurts that chance sometimes haha.

Do you know anyone that's a little emotionally unstable? Uhm, no one comes to mind.

Have you ever felt like you were going out of your mind? Yes.

Has anyone ever suggested that you might need "help"? I don’t recall being told this by anyone before. But with the way I broadcast my anxiety and sadness from time to time, I’m sure people have thought of it.

Do you take offense to things easily? Yeah you can say that. I’ve always been more sensitive than most.

How do you respond to cheesy pick-up lines? As with any pick-up line, I inwardly roll my eyes and move on.

Do you like to give people a taste of their own medicine? It’s such a waste of time and energy for the most part, so no. But if I feel petty, I have no problem doing it.

How was the service at the last restaurant you visited? It was...fine. Nothing to write home about. It was unlimited Korean barbecue and they actually had a system in place where they gave us a link to some internal website they kept, and we could simply order from there to minimize contact with the servers. I will say that I never got the kimchi jjigae I had ordered, but it was fine because I was full by then lmao.

Are you ever jealous of happy couples? No. I mean, I guess I’m reminded of my loneliness when I see couples in public, but I don’t get jealous or angry. I just shake it off and try to focus on myself.

Describe a thought that is sticking with you today? That I can’t wait for Friday.

Lately, who has spent the most time on your mind? I’ve been thinking more of my anxieties than certain people, tbh.

In a car: air conditioning, or roll the windows down? Air conditioning. Though sometimes it’s nice to have the windows down, especially when I’m driving within my village or up a mountain.

When was the last time you did anything to your playlist? I made an angst-themed playlist over the weekend.

Is there a new song or band you've discovered? Massive Attack. Hayley Williams did a super great cover of their song Teardrop, so I checked out the original version which I also ended up enjoying. Olivia Rodrigo too, who I found out is part Filipino yay!

Which teacher gives you the most homework? My Journalism Ethics professor will probably rank the highest on this list.

What type of personality do you find most annoying? Idk, condescending ones maybe? There are a million kinds of personalities lol, but yeah I hate those who make you feel dumb, and feel good about doing so.

How did you hear about Bzoink? If my memory serves me correctly, my 10 year old self just wanted empty about me surveys to answer. Bzoink was always one of the first websites to come out if I searched for surveys on Google.

How long did it take you to sign up for an account - if you have one? I don’t think I ever made an account on there since I was too shy to share my answers.

Are you punctual? Yes, very.

Have you ever howled at the full moon? No.

Have you ever seen yourself on camera? Like if I’ve seen photos of myself??? I would be very surprised if anyone can say they haven’t.

Do you give any consideration to what's said in your horoscope? No.

When was the last time you felt like you were being followed? This has never happened before, thankfully.

[strawberrymeriadoc]

Saturday morning

Merry enjoyed having a bed to himself. Peony would sometimes snuggle with him when he first lay down to sleep or in the morning. On some level, though, Merry missed the feeling of safety and belonging he got from sleeping next to someone. It had been almost a year since his girlfriend, Jamie, had broken up with him. It was funny because he had spent a decent amount of the relationship fantasizing about leaving her. But once it finally happened, he wasn’t prepared. He missed resting his head on her chest and putting his arms around her as they slept.

[To tell the truth, Merry didn’t know if he ever wanted another relationship or not. There was something about being in them that set him into fight or flight mode. For the duration of the relationship. No wonder he didn’t feel like himself during them. But doubt filled his mind: is it just because of my trauma with abusive relationships? Merry knew that he always wanted the closeness of an intense friendship marked by fierce loyalty and love. And that in the past, once he felt such a pull to a person, he’d end up feeling like the next logical step would be to enter a romantic and sexual relationship with that person. He had no choice if he wanted to be that close to someone. Or, at least, that’s what he always thought. Lately, Merry had heard rumors here and there of something called being aromantic. It had come up in passing a few times at the university’s lgbtq organization. But he didn’t want to be that. It’s bad enough I don’t want to have sex with people. Do I have to be wrong about this too?

After pondering all this, Merry felt it was high time to actually get up and start the day. It was Shabbat, so there wasn’t really anything he should do today, but eating breakfast was still a (begrudged) requirement. Merry walked quietly by Pippin’s room and came into the kitchen. For once Pippin wasn’t asleep on the couch and Merry wondered when he would get up as it was already noon. Merry silently hoped that Pippin might want to hang out with him today. He was used to feeling unwanted by Jamie and she would get upset if he suggested an outing, so his hopes weren’t very high. Regardless, it was a perfect day to sit out on the balcony and enjoy some coffee.

Once outside, Merry could hear the chirping of sparrows as well as the sounds of the city. Being Shabbat, it was much quieter than it usually would be at noon, but Merry could still hear the sounds of a plane overhead and a few cars and motorbikes which were somehow the loudest of all. Merry was thankful it was Shabbat. It had been a long week. He spent half his days in the library and the other half cleaning the apartment and just doing the necessary dirty work of making sure life ran smoothly. Merry loathed this kind of busy work most of all. He didn’t want to email his advisor, he didn’t want to get the fridge fixed, he didn’t want to go grocery shopping, he didn’t want to call the pharmacy for the fourth time to make sure his Testosterone prescription had gone through. He just wanted to read his books, write, ride horses, and hang out with his friends. Merry suddenly felt silly for mentally complaining about all these things, even though no one was around to hear it. He half worried that G-d Themself would be angry with him. For not being grateful enough for what he had. Merry didn’t love this relationship he had with G-d. He thought it seemed suspiciously like his relationship with his mother. And as far as he knew, there was nothing in the Torah or the teachings of the rabbis that would support the existence of such a relationship (or, really, for the existence of G-d all together, though that thought also filled Merry with fresh guilt and a feeling of being watched and judged).

Pippin was just waking up from a cozy dream. He half opened his eyes and saw Peony sitting before him, tail wrapped around her paws. She was staring intensely at him. “Up to our judginess early, aren’t we?” he half-scolded her. Peony flicked her tail and continued to look at him, clearly nonplussed. Pippin closed his eyes and thought about what he wanted to do today. Coming up blank, the boy reached for his phone and checked his messages. There was a sweet good morning text from Frodo. And the pictures he posted of the dinner he made last night were fairly popular. He was glad to hear from his friends even if it was just a like on one of his creations. He scrolled through and saw some pictures of lovely handwriting that Frodo often posted. Rosie and her siblings had gone for a day trip to the Sea. Even Bilbo was sharing some photos of his most recent trip to the Lonely Mountain. Pippin felt sad. He really wanted to travel. He was sick of being cooped up in boring old Minas Tirith.

Finally, the boy realized he was quite hungry and made his way to the kitchen. Merry was sitting outside on the balcony. He was looking out and seemed deep in thought and hadn’t noticed that Pippin had woken up. Pippin set to making an omelet. He didn’t hold with coffee like his roommate, but enjoyed a hot cup of green tea instead. As he ate, he thought about Gandalf, his Organic Chemistry professor. Pippin was about to enter his second year of graduate school and as such this would be his first semester assistant teaching. This was all fine with Pippin. Except he had been assigned to assist Gandalf in his Introduction to Environmental Science class. I can hardly stand one class with him, Pippin thought, how am I supposed to endure being his assistant?” Gandalf was an enigmatic figure in the Science Department. He would sometimes disappear for weeks, forcing his teaching assistants to cover for him with no notice. He also had a habit of not explaining his full thoughts to the other members of the department, but Saruman the Chair seemed to manage the department perfectly well despite the wizard’s secrecy. To make matters worse, Gandalf seemed to have a particular chip on his shoulder about Pippin. The boy was one of the finest students in the department despite being a year young for his grade. Perhaps the professor was pushing his pupil because he knew he could handle it. I wish people wouldn't do that, lamented Pippin, why when I’m already doing so well do they keep having to raise the bar? This was really all too much to Pippin. The more he thought about it, the more he became convinced that he wouldn’t be able to make it through the semester, much less the year.

Suddenly the room felt very small and like it was circling rapidly around him. He felt like he couldn’t breathe. To make matters worse, his heart started pounding out of his chest. He wanted to call out to Merry for help but he couldn’t make words come out of his mouth. Pippin could move his arms though and without really knowing what he was doing he threw a pencil that was on the counter at the sliding door. It made a quiet dink sound and clattered to the floor. Merry heard the sound and turned around. He got up and went to the door. He could see Pippin holding his head in his hands. Concerned, Merry came back into the house. “You alright?” he asked. Pippin nodded his head “no”. Merry sat down next to his friend. He didn’t really know what to do but he knew Pippin needed him now. “Hey, it’s alright, it’s ok. Do you want to talk about it?” Pippin nodded his head again. Finally, Merry perceived what was going on. “Here, let’s try this breathing technique together: breathe out for 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8, in 1 2 3 4, hold it 1 2 3 4 5 6 7, out 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8” Merry repeated the set several times.

Pippin started to look a little better. His face wasn’t as pale as it had been earlier and it seemed to do him good to focus on Merry’s breathing exercise. “There you go,” Merry said, smiling gently. Pippin was still not feeling well but he was feeling better. “Was having a panic attack,” he faltered. “It’s alright” Merry encouraged “They just go away with time, we just have to wait it out”. The “we” in that sentence hit Pippin. He didn’t realize before that Merry had committed to helping him with this. “Anything I can do that would help?” Merry offered (as he often did). Pippin hesitated, thinking about what he really needed in this moment. “Could you...would you mind if I held your hand?” he asked quietly. “Sure” said Merry and he stretched out his hand. Pippin took it and gave it a weak squeeze. He used his other hand to hold up his head as the room was still spinning. They sat there for a while in silence.

Merry was happy to be able to help his friend. So often it was Pippin who was helping him. Merry had had his fair share of panic attacks and had spent all of them alone. He didn’t want anyone to have to go through that, least of all Pippin.

After about twenty minutes the room stopped spinning. Pippin sat up and pulled his hand back. Merry waited for his friend to say something or indicate what he wanted to do. “Well, now I’m hungry again!” and with that Pippin stood up and began foraging around the kitchen. Merry laughed. After Pippin had eaten some yogurt with granola he was feeling much more himself again. “Thanks for helping me through that Merry!” Pippin said cheerfully “It meant a lot.” “Oh you’re-you’re welcome” Merry stammered putting his hand behind his head.

[sincerelymarinette]

A Recorded Life - Miraculous Ladybug (1/50)

Words: 1493 Summary: Marinette Dupain-Cheng and her friends are in their final year of Lycee (High School), and they are all 18 years old. Marinette has a very busy life between trying to graduate from school, help in her parent's bakery, and protect France. On top of it all, she is also a very popular YouTuber who creates fashion videos and vlogs. As her popularity increases, she has more to deal with, including how her fans react to everything in her recorded life. Author’s Note: omg. I had this idea from a headcanon I created a few months back and I haven’t really stopped thinking about it. I also didn’t really think I was ever going to post it, but why not give it a shot to see if people like it. This is the first part, so it is really a big introduction to how everything works in this lil AU. If I post more, it does get less introductory and becomes more of a story haha. I have a few more parts written, but it is nowhere near done! Let me know if you would like to see more :)

Will also be posted on Ao3 and Wattpad within the next few days, depending on timing.

NOTE: Canon from season 3 does not apply in this story unless stated otherwise, as this is being written at the time of season 3 being released.

NOTE 2: the chapters are mostly titled like YouTube videos would be. Except for the chapters where a video is not recorded/talked about, so if they look weird, they're supposed to look like YouTube titles!

Next

Are We More Like Ladybug or Chat Noir?

---

"Hey guys, I'm Marinette!" She began the video. "And welcome back to my second channel. You may notice the person sitting next to me..." Marinette gestured. "Alya's back. Like she is in almost every video over here."

Alya smiled and waved. "Hey, guys! Guess what I convinced her to do today," Alya winked. "Well, you probably read the title. We're quizzing to see if we're more like Ladybug or Chat Noir."

"Which I don't totally understand because do we actually know them?" Marinette asked, hoping she wouldn't get Ladybug.

Alya rolled her eyes. "So, if you're from a different country, or have never seen the news, or never even watched a video without me in it, Ladybug and Chat Noir are the superheroes and protectors of Paris. They protect us from the villain Hawkmoth, trying to collect their powers and take over the world. Or something. We only know he wants their powers, we don't know why," Alya shrugged. "But forget about Hawkmoth! Let's take the quiz."

Marinette giggled at her excitement. "Alya runs a blog that follows all things Ladybug and Chat Noir. I'll leave a link on her face, and in the description," Marinette reminded. "First question?"

"When confronted with an Akuma, what do you do? Punch it without a second thought, run away screaming, come up with a plan, or make a pun?" Alya asked. "Wait, I can't tell which one would be Chat Noir?"

Marinette glared at the camera. "He would make a pun," She said, getting a confused look from Alya. "Remember when I had to work with him for the Evillistrator? And when he ran up to me after Puppeteer turned you back into Lady Wifi? Oh my god, the puns!" She groaned. "I would probably," Marinette stopped for a second. She didn't know if she should tell her initial instinct, or try to stay away from the Ladybug answers. "Probably run away screaming."

Alya cocked an eyebrow. "You'd probably come up with a plan to take the Akuma out, Mari, be honest here," Alya said and clicked the one she didn't choose.

"Now, if your best friend was in danger, would you: let someone else save them, find a way to save them yourself, record it for the internet- okay, that one would probably be me if it were anyone but you- call for help, or work with your partner to get them out," Alya asked. "Speaking of, where were you when the Pharaoh tried to sacrifice me to the Egyptian gods?"

Marinette's jaw dropped. "Hey! I told you, I got caught in a time slow bubble. It was terrible!" Marinette defended herself, but little did she know she actually did save her best friend. "Considering Nino would probably be there too, since you really only get in danger when tracking down Ladybug and Chat Noir, we would have to work together to save you,"

"That's fair."

The questions continued and Alya kept calling Marinette out whenever she answered incorrectly. "You got Ladybug; I knew you were more like her!" Alya said.

"Why do you say that? I'm clumsy, and stutter sometimes, and I'm just not like her," Marinette shrugged. "I'm not even like Chat Noir. His confidence is insane, and I'm nowhere near that."

Alya put the phone down. "Girl, you sell yourself short. You're the class president; you stand up for people, you're creative. Those all sound like Ladybug things, don't they?" She raised her eyebrow. "I think that's all we have for today, right, Mari?"

"Yeah, thanks for watching! Other social media and information in the description, see you in the next video!" Marinette ended the video.

She edited out the part where Alya gave her reasons why she was like Ladybug. She cut it off at "Girl; you sell yourself short." Marinette watched the video she was editing for what the hold have been the fiftieth time, to make everything was done right or wasn't dull, but she had to postpone the editing. She set her main channel video to upload, and transformed into her alter ego to meet Chat Noir.

Marinette had a small, contained YouTube channel for a few years. It was popular, thanks to her incredible talent and young age, people enjoyed watching!

"Hey, Chat," Ladybug called when she saw him on the roof, sitting down and laughing. Even though they had been partners for two years, and now older, she still got a little nervous when starting patrol.

"Hey, Bug!" Chat Noir said. "You know Marinette, right? That girl you had me watch over because of an Akuma about a year ago?"

Ladybug nodded. "Yeah...why?"

"She has the best YouTube channel."

Marinette was flattered, but also confused. Chat Noir watched her YouTube? "She's...pretty cool," Ladybug walked closer and sat next to him. "I didn't think you would be one to be interested in a designer."

"Oh yeah, she's so talented! And her videos are great. I love watching the sped up designs and watching them all come together," He gushed. "But her second channel is just as good. It's more relaxed, and I guess you could say her main channel is the more professional side, but the second channel is where she does a bunch of videos with her friends. And look at this one!" Chat Noir showed her his baton, which was somehow connected to YouTube. Marinette recognized the video, as it was one of her most popular. It was the video Nino suggested when he asked "What's in your sketchbook? I've never seen everything, and I'm really curious."

And of course, Alya thought it would make for a perfect video.

Alya was behind the camera when Marinette recorded it, making some comments that would add to the comedic point. "Look, she said this one was inspired by me!" He paused the video and pointed to the design Marinette spent way longer on than she'd admit.

"That's awesome, Chat!" Ladybug said, a smile plastered on her face. She only wished she could thank him formally for all this gratitude, but she couldn't reveal herself. "When I see her next, I'll relay your love."

A smile flashed across Chat Noir's face, and he closed his baton. "Don't worry, milady, my heart beats for only you."

"Charming," She smirked. "Let's go; I've got a thing to do after patrol!" She said and swung her yo-yo. Chat Noir chuckled, but followed anyway.

---

Marinette edited her video until she was sure it was perfect. Even if it was for her second, less popular channel, she wasn't going to put out less than quality content.

Since she got home at nearly midnight after patrol, and edited for an hour and a half, she was exhausted.

Marinette, about to fall asleep at her computer (which she has done before), clicked the YouTube shortcut and set her video to process (and hopefully upload) while she slept.

She was expecting to wake up to her alarm, or the sun hitting her eyes, or her mom yelling that she was late for school. Instead, Tikki was screaming and jumping in an attempt to get her up.

"Something's outside!" She said, pointing to the window. Marinette was hoping it would be morning, but it was still dark.

"Shh," She told the Kwami and slowly got out of bed. Marinette peaked out of the window, not seeing anything. Deciding it was safe, she walked up the ladder and opened the hatch. "Is someone out here?"

It was cold, and Marinette was only in her pajamas, so she wrapped her arms around herself to try to warm up. "I swear...if she woke me up because it was wind, or a bird-" Marinette stopped her mumbling when she heard something move. "Hello? Please, it's too late for this. I'm too tired to kick ass-"

"Please don't call the cops," The black figure landed in front of her.

"Chat Noir? It's the middle of the night! What are you doing here?" Marinette whisper yelled.

Chat Noir looked down at the ground. "I was patrolling with Ladybug about an hour ago, and I didn't want to go home, so I was just walking. I saw something strange in the window and decided to take a look. It was bright red and seemed to be glowing- I thought it was something that wanted to-"

"It was probably just my...cat," Marinette said. "Yeah, he heard something outside and nudged me. His collar is red and reflects some of the lights I have in my room so it wouldn't surprise me if that's what you saw," Marinette nodded, hoping her lie would go unnoticed.

Chat Noir nodded and stepped up to the ledge. "Well, as long as you're safe," He said. "I should be off," He got ready to jump away. "Oh, I don't know if Ladybug told you, Marinette, but I love your videos," He flashed a smile and jumped away.

"Thank you!" She called after him, unsure of if he heard her.

---

Let me know if you would like to see the second part!

[transienturl]

the first half of the ask post you didn't reblog because you're doing them all anyways

Thanks, me!

1. coffee mugs, teacups, wine glasses, water bottles, or soda cans?Option 7, None of the above: highball glass. I looked up the glassware model I like; apparently the manufacturer calls them “nordic cooler glasses.” I much prefer glassware made of glass to any other type, and dislike the ridges/patterns on a lot of drinking glasses. Yep, I’m this picky.

2. chocolate bars or lollipops?Chocolate. I like chocolate’s texture and the way it melts, and I don’t like eating bits of paper.

3. bubblegum or cotton candy?Cotton candy. Bubblegum is gross.

4. how did your elementary school teachers describe you?Uhh… hm. “Smart,” probably, which wasn’t particularly helpful. They probably had a bunch more to say but I don’t remember what anymore.

5. do you prefer to drink soda from soda cans, soda bottles, plastic cups or glass cups?I like this ask post! As mentioned, glass cups. I like how soda cans feel in the hand but the drinking experience is just alright. Plastic is just unpleasant.

6. pastel, boho, tomboy, preppy, goth, grunge, formal or sportswear?I had to google “boho” and I’m still not super clear on what it encompasses, but it seems kinda neat! Also I have no idea what grunge really means. If I had a feminine body and thus felt like dressing up, I’d definitely pick boho out of the google image results of each of those terms.

7. earbuds or headphones?Both; if I wear either for too long I switch to the other for comfort. But I’m at least somewhat an audio enthusiast, so I could go on for a long time here. Ex:

The soundstage of open-back headphones is really unparalleled for one. Apple’s earpods/airpods actually fit me and have basically no microphonics, which usually are a big issue with IEMs for me, plus their resolution on the high end is surprisingly great.

Insert the rest of this discussion here.

8. movies or tv shows?I watch either of these not from seeking them out but from circumstance, but often wind up liking them. I’m one of those people who thinks, “I’d watch that,” and then never watches whatever that was. So I don’t really know which I do or would prefer.

9. favorite smell in the summer?Uh… hm. That’s a really good question. What’s most interesting about it, I think, is just the list of smells people associate with a season. Of course there’s environmental ones like rain, but for summer I assume you have to go with, I dunno, fair food or something like that.

Anyway, no idea! I can’t think of a lot of meaningful smells that aren’t food, honestly.

10. game you were best at in p.e.?I remember enjoying capture the flag a lot. I dunno if I was actually good at it, though. I did have pretty good short-duration speed, so I was a decent defender. I don’t really remember what else we did.

11. what you have for breakfast on an average day?Nothing. (I don’t like most American breakfast foods much, though that’s not why.)

12. name of your favorite playlist?I called it “the playlist which is entirely fire” because why not. Alternately, the playlist with all of my music is just named after me.

13. lanyard or key ring?Key ring; I’m not a… yeah actually that joke would only work for people who went to my high school and follow this blog (hi Xander).

14. favorite non-chocolate candy?That’s also a really good question and I’m positive I have an answer, but I can’t think of it. I eat candy once every like 3 months, so it doesn’t exactly come to mind easily. The candied pecans I just tried are pretty good, though. Insert reference to my halloween fanfiction.

15. favorite book you read as a school assignment?Y'know how there are some things that you remember deciding at one point were your favorite, but don’t remember well enough to properly consider now? A lot of my favorite pieces of media are like that, but I have at least some confidence in the decision I made at the time. Not so much here. I remember thinking with surprise that I enjoyed The Mill on the Floss when I read it in class, so that’s what comes to mind, but I think it’s the wrong answer. I’m pretty sure there are some books I really enjoy that I’ve forgotten were originally for class. Random example that I think is also wrong: The Hobbit. The Giver is pretty darn good, too. Fahrenheit 451. I don’t remember this being the case but we might have read A Wrinkle in Time in a class. Et cetera.

Wait, no, actually, I figured it out: Island of the Blue Dolphins. (Which, actually, goes in the “this might be too much of a childrens’ book to enjoy rereading” category along with Summerland, The Great Tree of Avalon, The Marino Mission, What the Moon Saw, The Secret of Platform 13, and Island of the Aunts, all of which I loved at the time of reading. And potentially also The Book Thief, although I doubt it. Can you tell I like award-winning children’s books, though?)

16. most comfortable position to sit in?With crossed legs or on my feet, which people seem to find weird.

17. most frequently worn pair of shoes?I only have one regularly-used pair of shoes.

18. ideal weather?Still. I can’t stand wind of any kind. A range of temperatures is nice (not too hot; not *too* cold but snow is pretty so I’ll allow a wide range in that direction.)

19. sleeping position?In a ball, or at least partially curled up.

20. preferred place to write (i.e., in a note book, on your laptop, sketchpad, post-it notes, etc.)?I haven’t written on paper in like a decade. I had to recently in order to leave a sticky note on something and had actual trouble making it legible. Essentially everything I write is on this 2013 Macbook Pro keyboard.

21. obsession from childhood?Um… existentialism? The pretend world my sisters’ and my stuffed animals lived in? Popular science topics and things from video game worlds, all of which went into said pretend world? Jet aircraft? Algebra and geometry puzzles? Configuring laptop computers?

22. role model?John Green. People who can communicate/present things effectively.

23. strange habits?I’m sure I have a ton. I’m not going to delay posting this to come up with any, but I’ll think about it. But especially if we’re using western society as the ‘norm’ for the sake of the question, I think there’s a ton of stuff I do that’d surprise people.

24. favorite crystal?Hm. I like the colorless ones like diamond, I guess? I just generally like gemstones, especially in fiction when they have powers. Oh, how’s this: I tend to like crystals that are (semi)transparent, so they have depth to them and change appearance as they’re rotated.

The other weird, mostly-unrelated thing that comes to mind is when I made a necklace for my best friend in elementary school and spent a lot of effort picking out the right sort of pendant, but I don’t think it was actually a crystal. (I often wonder what it would’ve been like if I hadn’t moved; I bet we’d still be close.)

25. first song you remember hearing?Neat question! I have no memory of a particular song being the first. My parents played music a lot when I was little, so a lot of their CD collection makes me think, “I’ve been listening to this since far before I noticed that I was.” The most recent one of those I heard and wrote down was Cathedral of the Pines by Tim Janis.

26. favorite activity to do in warm weather?…complain about the heat? :D Hm, I don’t have a lot of outdoor hobbies.

27. favorite activity to do in cold weather?…complain about the cold? :P I do like to ski somewhat. And I like hot cocoa.

28. five songs to describe you?

Eric’s Song – Vienna Teng

Doubt – Ruby Day

…hm. Looking through my playlists and the #media tag on this blog, there’s a ton of songs that I like, and where that fact tells you something about my taste in music, but it’s hard to find songs whose content particularly tells you something. Let’s just go with songs I find some meaning or relevance in?

Laughing With – Regina Spektor

Rainbow Connection – Kermit the Frog/various covers

Okay, I ran out of songs with particular meaning; let’s finish up with one whose meaning is arguably a lack of particular meaning?

Both Sides Now – Joni Mitchell

29. best way to bond with you?Talking, I guess. Boring answer, maybe, but I think most bonding experiences I’ve had were just two people talking about something important.

30. places that you find sacred?My elementary school? Is that a weird answer?

Other than that… a lot of places, really. Depending how you use “sacred,” I think it could apply in my mind to lots of unique places, especially natural-wonder type things.

31. what outfit do you wear to kick ass and take names?I haven’t got one. None of my clothes are things I’ve picked out to look good, honestly. The thing that makes me feel more “ready to go out and kick ass than usual” is, like, bringing a phone charger with me in case I run out of battery in the process of whatever ass kicking it’s going to be, and that’s not an outfit thing.

32. top five favorite vines?Remember vine? Good times.

1. A Legendary Argument (https://vine.co/v/enUmZjLFgw2/); the “just do it” “no” one

Yeah, that’s it. I don’t know of any other ones.

33. most used phrase in your phone?I… don’t know how to tell. That sounds like a cool thing to figure out but I dunno how to see that.

34. advertisements you have stuck in your head?None, thank god.

35. average time you fall asleep?Too late.

36. what is the first meme you remember ever seeing?No idea.

37. suitcase or duffel bag?I don’t really know what context to think of this question in. Like, is there a time both would be valid options? Anyway, suitcase. Honorable mention: backpack.

38. lemonade or tea?I only like either of these in moderation. Usually I’d say lemonade, but lately I’ve been disliking acidic drinks more than usual, so maybe I’ll say tea. Actually, what I like is chrysanthemum tea, which you can get at dim sum places sometimes.

39. lemon cake or lemon meringue pie?I’ll go with lemon cake. I can only eat a really small amount of lemon meringue. If someone made more of a lemon meringue tart with a really thin layer of lemon (maybe 10mm or a bit less) and a lot of crust and meringue, that could be really good though.

40. weirdest thing to ever happen at your school?If “bad” counts as “weird,” let’s just say it involved sexual misconduct.

41. last person you texted?My dad (a link to instructions to get free in-flight wifi; nothing interesting).

42. jacket pockets or pants pockets?I prefer to put stuff in pants pockets so I have them if I take off my jacket, but then my pants fall down because I have no hips and my pants are all regular-person sized.

43. hoodie, leather jacket, cardigan, jean jacket or bomber jacket?I immediately crossed off everything except hoodie and cardigan. With a different body I’d definitely pick cardigan.

44. favorite scent for soap?Unscented.

45. which genre: sci-fi, fantasy or superhero?Eh, I mean, I think they all have potential. I’d pick sci-fi or fantasy over superhero; print comics have never interested me at all, though I’m sure there’s interesting stuff in there too.

46. most comfortable outfit to sleep in?I feel like it’s just whatever you’re used to, honestly.

47. favorite type of cheese?Maybe fresh mozzarella? Either way, it’s going to be something people who really like cheese would barely count as cheese.

48. if you were a fruit, what kind would you be?If I were a fruit… not to take it too literally, but I can’t think of a better way to interpret it. Um… a ground cherry, because it’s cute and has a place to hide in.

49. what saying or quote do you live by?“Hope is the correct response to the human condition.”

There are probably better ones that correspond to things I live by more, but that’s the one I have a quote for. Guess who it’s by? I’ll give you one guess.

50. what made you laugh the hardest you ever have?Not sure. Show of the Weekend (@outsidextra) definitely wins “hardest laugh that I can remember recently” though.

[feel199x]

○o｡..:* video killed the radio star *:..｡o○

underground rapper!bangchan, radio host!reader

masterlist

a/n: babygirl nation RISE! 

The short, horrible, but undeniable fact was that you were broke. Very broke, broker than broke. And it was unusual job, sure, but people had told you had a very sultry, soothing voice. Okay, one person, but you digress. A late night radio host wasn’t a job you expected to come across while job hunting, but that’s what you had found. You had called them immediately, asking if they had already filled in the position. You gave a large, silent exhale of relief as they informed you that not many people wanted to be up all night and shuffling music for whoever was listening, and whatever unholy reason they had to be listening to the radio at that hour. You had gone into the station, ready for an interview, but instead of sitting and reviewing your lack of a resume- they gave you the job.

At first, you were happy, overjoyed. The ad posted online gave decent benefits and payed well enough to keep you steady. And if your show gained enough popularity, there would even be room for a possibility of a promotion. But as nights turned into weeks, and weeks turned into months, the reason they took you in so quickly became clear. Working nights wasn’t easy, it was far, far, from the difficult level you had imagined it to be. But you still loved your job, even if it messed up your sleeping schedule a bit. It gave you time to work on the work your college classes had assigned, and when you would finish, you would take in callers.

You didn’t get that many, but enough to keep you occupied and awake until your shift was over. But one night, as the night dragged on and on, like it had the planets as chains, someone called. The most of your callers were older men, their raspy, tired voices. Sometimes you got some feminine voices, who always seemed to be sweet and understanding- just looking for someone to talk to pass the time to call you. You had even got your fair share of creeps, but that was few and far in between.

“Caller,” you said, “You’re on the air.”

“Oh,” he sounded almost surprised, “Hi.”

 First time callers were always a bit nervous, and if they got too nervous they would hang up. Even if this one conversation didn’t end well, it would set the tone for the rest of the callers. And the space between would grow farther and farther until the only thing playing was the indie music you had selected.

“Caller,” you teased, “A name would be nice.”

There was a shuffling and a muffling of the voice before you actually gotten an answer, you thought he had hung up when he finally spoke.

 “Chan,” he told you, “My name is Bangchan.”

 “Alright Chan, you sound young. What’s keeping you up this late?”

“Finals. And I’m working on a personal project.”

“Personal project? Please, do tell.”

There was a pause in the line, as if he was contemplating whether he’d like to tell the entire city about his passions.

 “My music.”

 “Music? What type? Are you popular? What’s your stage name?”

 He laughed, and you swore that your heart had skipped a beat. He explained to you that he was in a rap group called 3racha with a couple of his other buddies, and though they were underground, they were doing pretty well in their own realm. And then you talked about anything, and everything. He was in university, and finishing up his last year. But as it was almost time for your  shift to end, you heard silence in the line for a few minutes, and you assumed he had fallen asleep. You smiled to yourself. “Good morning Chan,” you whispered, and with that, you ended the phone connection.

 The following morning you had an 8 am lecture, but as you zoned out and nearly fell asleep, there was only one thing on your mind. The caller from the night before. But finally, you decided that anthropology wasn’t as important as sleep, and dozed off in the middle of class. And, for better or for worse, you hadn’t gotten caught. Mostly rested, you made your way out of the lecture hall and met up with a highschool friend, Woojin.

“Did you eat?” he asked, “Please tell me you ate.”

“Good morning to you too.”

“You didn’t answer my question, egghead.”

“Does three cans of redbull count?”

Woojin gave you a glare and exasperated sigh as he rubbed his temples. He pulled a bakery bag from inside his backpack and threw it at you.

“You would be dead in a ditch without me. You need to quit your job.”

You feigned offense, clutching your shirt as if you had been shot.

“Woojin,” you said in a shaky half whisper, “that hurt. I don’t think I’ll recover this time.”

He gave an annoyed scoff as he started walking without you.

“Hey!” you ran after him, “Stop! Woojin, wait! Why are you running?”

He slowed his pace after you had followed him into the courtyard. You took a deep breath of fresh air in an attempt to stop your heavy breathing. You hadn’t majored in athletics for a reason. “Why are we in the courtyard?”

“I don’t know.”

You shot him a look and he shrugged. You looked around and it looked like they were setting up for a performance. A group of people beginning to gather around the small black stage. You looked around for any fliers or banners to give you a hint as to who performing, but there wasn’t any. You clutched the breakfast food Woojin had given you. You raised an eyebrow to Woojin and he shrugged again, you were about to leave when three boys stepped on the stage, until you heard a familiar voice.

“My name is CB97..”

People were beginning to crowd around the stage, the college students eager for a distraction between their classes. You couldn’t see the boys anymore, and you knew better than to force your way through a crowd of tired and restless college students, more than likely on a sugar rush due to the energy drinks consumed.

“Woojin, you have to put me up on your shoulders.”

 He gave you a face of bewilderment and disgust. “Why?” he asked, even though he knew he couldn’t fight you once you made up your mind, “Please don’t make me.” Even with his begging, he crouched down for you to get on his shoulders. “Hurry up,” he said, “Before I regret it.”

“And we are 3racha..”

 It was him, the one in the center. It couldn’t be anyone else. You watched as they performed a few songs, completely entranced with the flow and sharpness of their words. But as the performance ended, you started to panic. You didn’t know whether you should approach him after his performance, or if it would be weird and crossing some professional line. But before you could decide anything, Woojin was pulling you away.

“Lunch is on you,” he grumbled, “And we’re eating fried chicken.”

 And so you did, but as Woojin happily ate, your mind was somewhere else. You stared at your food, mindlessly playing with it as lunch time came and went. What if that was the last time you’d ever seen him? And what if he never called the station back? All these thoughts and more flooded your mind.

 Woojin sighed loudly and you quickly looked up at him, turning your thoughts away from the rapper. “What is it?” he asked, “What mess did you get yourself into now? Is it a boy, dear god, please let it be anything but a boy.” You threw your fork at him. “It is,” you said very matter-of-factly, “It is a boy.” His expression softened slightly as you explained the situation.

“Just wait until he calls back and tell him.”

“What if he doesn’t?”

“He will.”

 Woojin was always sure of everything, even when you were younger. It was reassuring most of the time, but sometimes it sparked some jealousy in the pits of your stomach. You wished you could be sure of things too. But soon enough, night came, and you were at your shift. You waited eagerly for Chan’s call, so much so that your pulse hurt from the nervousness and adrenaline.

He didn’t call that night.

 But he did the next night, and every night after that for two months. But you couldn’t bring yourself to tell him that you saw him until you had downed six cans of redbull to finish a project that made up most of your final grade.

“I saw you.”

“You saw me? When?”

“You performed at my university. I was sitting on my friends shoulders?”

There was a pause in the line, and you could feel yourself panicking.

“You should’ve talked to me after the show.”

You groaned loudly, letting your head drop into your hands.

“I thought you might’ve filed a complaint with the station.”

 There was a loud burst of laughter on the line and the tension in your soul eased. You were almost finished with your paper, and now it felt like a weird burden and sense of guilt was lifted off of your shoulders.

“I wouldn’t do that. I’ve been listening to your show for a while now, even before I had called.”

 You were surprised to say the very least, and suddenly very embarrassed about the things you had mentioned on the air.

“You should come to my next show tomorrow. It’s in the young wings bar. At six.”

“It’s a date.”

 You were glad that this was a radio show, otherwise people would’ve been able to see your flushed face from the comment you had just made. You made a vow never to drink more than four redbulls in a row.

“It’s a date.”

 You were glad he decided to end the call there, because otherwise, you would’ve definitely messed that situation up. You did a happy little dance in your chair, rolling around the room as you started to play music again.

 You couldn’t wait to meet Chan again, but this time, more formally. The excitement was so good, that you hadn’t even drank redbull the entire day. You were bouncing off the walls, and Woojin was severely annoyed, but luckily more happy for you.

 “You’re like a kangaroo,” he said, “If you greet him with the way you look right now, he’d probably call animal control.” You softly punched him. “I’m just excited,” you said, “Like you with your singing career.” He nodded as the both of you approached the bar. You were a bit nervous, although you have heard about the bar- it was definitely hard to find, because when Chan had said he was an underground rapper, you didn’t know he meant literally underground. You sat at a table, closest to the stage. Soon, the bar began to crawl with people. It was beginning to crowd as people opted to stand when there weren’t anymore seats to be available. The rap group walked on the stage, and as soon as he recognized you he waved, a big smile spreading across his face.

“Hello babygirl.”

 You made an ‘O’ face, trying to avoid people’s curious gazes. Even Woojin was surprised, giving you a raised eyebrow to question your life decisions. But Chan himself quickly moved on, introducing his group. And the performance was nothing but exceptional, you had always admired musicians, but listening to Chan. You could feel the passion he felt, you heard it in his voice and how he gave everything he was- blood, sweat, and tears, into the performance. However, before you anticipated, it was over. You rubbed your hands, as you waited for the bar to clear out. Chan and his group was popular, as they deserved to be, but as time stretched between the end of the performance and the people that almost refused to leave, you grew anxious.

“Woojin,” you said quickly, “What if he doesn’t like me?”

“He’s called your show literally every day for like, two months.”

 Woojin gave you a push into the group of people that were talking to Chan, and they took your sudden burst into the conversation as their cue to leave. He bid you a goodbye, and motioned for you to call him if anything happened.

“Hey.”

“Hi there.”

“Babygirl? Really?”

He smiled cheekily. “Do you want me to say it again?”

“I very much do not.”

You followed Chan as he lead you backstage and into an alley, it was a relief to feel the cool air against your skin compared to the heat that built up inside the bar. The two of you sat against the brick wall and chatted.

“Can I,” he said suddenly, “Can I kiss you.”

Your eyes widened, and before you could say anything-

“Yeah you’re right, I’m so-”

“Oh, shut up.”

You cupped his face, and stared him right in the eye. “Do it,” you urged, “I dare you.” and he did, and it was the best goddamned kiss of your life. It was soft, gentle, and he smiled into the kiss.

“Please don’t talk about this on your show, babygirl.”

[klaineanummel]

unexpected 23/24

Blaine Anderson was just about the last thing Professor Kurt Hummel expected out of a TA.

This is the last official chapter of the fic, as the final one (which will be posted within the next few days) is technically an epilogue and quite short. I hope you enjoy, and I will see you all very soon!!!

The final two weeks of the semester fly by. Blaine seems to have a billion assignments to complete before exam season begins, and Kurt has even more assignments to mark.

They don’t get to spend as much time together as Kurt would like, as the small amount of free time that Blaine has, he dedicates to his children. He gets coffee with Jane and has surprisingly long conversations with Roderick on the phone (though not in person just yet).

As much as Kurt would like to have a little more of Blaine’s time, he knows that this is only temporary. Once exams are over, Blaine will have far more free time, and will be able to divide it more evenly among Kurt and his family. For now, Kurt doesn’t mind taking the backseat.

Besides, it’s not exactly a bad thing to not be as connected during the last few weeks of the semester. Mercedes is definitely on to them, and he doesn’t need to give anybody else a reason to suspect. Not when they’re so close to being able to be together without breaking any rules.

On the final day of classes, Kurt stays behind in his office to fill in Blaine’s, Mercedes’s, and Tina’s TA evaluation forms. He praises all three, more than happy with their performances during the semester. For the most part, their evaluations are identical, as he felt all three performed their TA duties extraordinarily well.

The only difference comes in the end of the evaluation. Where he ticks that he’d be willing to work with Mercedes and Tina again next semester, he does not do so for Blaine. In the comments section he makes up some bullshit about how he feels that, with Blaine’s age and experience, he would be an asset to all kinds of other professors, and it would be selfish to try and hog him. He hopes it’ll work, because he doesn’t think he could take another semester of keeping his relationship with Blaine a secret.

“Hey,” the single word is followed by two short knocks on the door, and Kurt looks up to see Blaine smiling from his doorway. “I thought you might still be here.”

Kurt gestures to his desk. “I was just finishing your evaluation forms.”

“Oh?” Blaine raises an eyebrow and then asks, voice far too breathy, “How’d I do, professor?”

Kurt’s heart skips a beat and his pants tighten a little, just as they always do when Blaine pulls out the innocent student act.

“That’s confidential,” Kurt replies with a sly wink.

Blaine’s lips curve up into a smirk. “I bet I could get it out of you.”

Kurt’s pants tighten just a little bit more, and he clears his throat before saying, “I’ll have you know that I take my evaluation confidentiality very seriously, Mr. Anderson.”

“Sounds like a challenge,” Blaine raises an eyebrow. “You know I can’t resist those.”

Kurt’s cheeks redden and he glances behind Blaine. Seeing nobody he whispers, “Do you have the time to rise to said challenge?”

Blaine grins. “No plans until tomorrow at noon.”

Kurt doesn’t think he’s ever gotten his things together as fast in his life.

“Come on,” Blaine whispers wickedly, hips swiveling sinfully. “Tell me what you wrote.”

Kurt’s hands tighten on Blaine’s waist, trying to get him to stop torturing him and fucking move already. “I told you,” he says, breath coming out harsh as Blaine finally raises slightly on his cock. “That’s confident—ah!” His head falls back against his pillow as Blaine lowers himself back on his cock.

“Please, professor?” Blaine asks, pouting his lips as he continues fucking himself on Kurt’s cock lazily. “I’ll do anything to know.”

Kurt’s fingernails dig into Blaine’s side. “I think you already are,” he manages to say.

Blaine grins. “Come on,” he lowers himself down until he’s chest-to-chest with Kurt, lips a breath away, hard cock trapped between their bellies. “Tell me.”

“Oh my god,” Kurt bucks his hips up. “You’re incorrigible.”

“You know you want to,” Blaine says, grinding his hips down.

Kurt takes a deep breath and then, with all the strength he can muster, flips them over until Blaine’s back is against the blankets and he’s on top.

Blaine stares up at him, eyes wide, pupils blown.

“I told you,” Kurt says, starting to fuck Blaine at a much quicker pace than Blaine was allowing before. “That’s confidential.”

“Jesus,” Blaine groans, arms coming to Kurt’s back.

Kurt grins and fucks Blaine in earnest. They’ve been at this for almost half an hour already, and he feels ready to burst from Blaine’s lazy teasing. He reaches down and wraps his hand around Blaine’s cock, determined to make him come first, even after all of that.

“That’s not fair,” Blaine says. “I was supposed to – ungh,” the worlds garble in his throat as Kurt twists his hand over the head of his cock.

Kurt presses himself as deeply into Blaine as he can, then grins and says, “Serves you right for torturing me like that.”

Blaine gasps and says, “You loved it.”

Kurt stares down at him, eyes wide as the words I love you float through his mind. He presses his lips together, then starts fucking Blaine even faster, hand a blur over his boyfriend’s cock.

It takes less than a minute for Blaine to come after that, and the feeling of his clenching around Kurt’s dick makes Kurt follow suit shortly after.

They’re both sticky messes as Kurt collapses on top of Blaine, cock slipping from his hole as he does. He rolls over slightly but remains close enough to rest his head on Blaine’s heaving chest.

“Jesus,” Blaine repeats. Kurt looks up and finds him staring up at the ceiling. “You’re – Jesus.”

“Well, I don’t know if I’d call myself Jesus, but…”

Blaine shakes his head, but says, “I’m too fucked out to even get mad at you for saying that.”

Kurt grins up at him. “So, I win?”

“Was it a competition?” Blaine asks.

“Well,” Kurt trails his fingers over Blaine’s chest. “You did say you could fuck the evaluation results out of me, and instead you came first and called me Jesus, so…”

Blaine just laughs and says, “Alright, fine. You definitely win.”

Kurt rests his head back on Blaine’s chest, pressing a soft kiss there. “I love winning.”

Blaine brings his hand up to Kurt’s hair, and Kurt takes the moment to quickly slip the condom off his dick, tying it without looking and probably making an absolute mess of it. He tosses it behind him, also without looking, then focuses on the way that Blaine is running his hand through his hair.

“I know you do,” Blaine finally says, and to Kurt, it sounds like an I love you, too.

Only four students take the full two hours to complete Kurt’s (ridiculously easy, if he does say so himself) Popular Music final. Tina has been on her phone for the past half hour, glancing up occasionally to make sure that the single student in her section doesn’t need help, and Mercedes keeps staring at the clock as if that’ll make the time go faster.

Blaine is just staring at Kurt, eyes hungry, and it makes Kurt want to grab the exams off the student’s desks and force them out of there so that Blaine can fuck him up against one of those desks.

He, of course, manages to refrain.

His timer finally goes off, announcing the end of the full two hours, and his TA’s go and grab the exams from the final students. They wish them good luck on any remaining exams as well as a good Christmas break, and then finally, finally, the exam is done.

Kurt grins up at Blaine, who grins back.

“Well, that was spectacularly boring,” Mercedes says, stretching her arms over her head. “Do any of you want to celebrate that all we have left to do is correct these exams by getting some coffee?”

Tina says yes, but Blaine says, “Sorry, Mercedes, but I already have plans with my boyfriend.”

“Yeah,” Kurt says after a few moments. “I do, too. With my boyfriend, not with Blaine’s boyfriend.”

Blaine chuckles and sends him a covert wink.

Mercedes rolls her eyes at the two of them, while Tina whispers, “See, I told you they weren’t going out.”

Kurt shakes his head and grabs his bag, slinging it over his shoulder. “Come on. Let’s drop these off at my office, and then we can all get the hell out of here.”

That evening, as they fall asleep together in Blaine’s bed, Kurt whispers, “Just a few more weeks and we don’t have to hide this anymore.”

Blaine hums. “You sure? I mean, won’t people be suspicious that—”

“Blaine,” Kurt says, placing a firm hand on his chest. “We’re adults, and as soon as we mark all those exams, you’ll no longer be my TA. You aren’t even technically a student in my department.” He kisses Blaine’s cheek. “We won’t have to hide this anymore.”

Blaine sighs contently, wraps his arm around Kurt and pulls him closer. “In that case,” he says, voice gaining back its sleepiness, “I can’t wait.”

[ofthedirewolves]

Author Interview

tagged by @anniebibananie and I’m procrastinating so why not

Name: Maii

Fandoms: Honestly at any point, everything I watch is fair game... right now I’m mostly in the Magicians fandom, but also forever in GOT/ASOIAF. and my ships... 

where you post: Tumblr & AO3 (very rarely ffnet) 

most popular oneshot: So it’s a tie because I couldn’t decide

Our Souls They Intertwine: Deckerstar Soulmate AU, Set during the Golden Eps (Season 2) slight canon-divergence. - > oneshot with the most kudos

or 

Sweet Home Arcadia Bellarke Sweet Home Alabama fusion. Wrote it 4 years ago. Still kind of proud of it.  -> oneshot with most comments

Most Popular Multi-Chapter Story: According to my stats on AO3 it’s 

Right Here With You, Sterek fic I wrote years ago and never wrote the sequel

favorite story you wrote: ... huh I’m not sure which is my absolute favorite but like Top 5? In no particular order.

Far Longer than Forever: Queliot Swan Princess AU Quentin as Odette and Eliot as Derek

Unexpected Bedfellows Klaroline Roadtrip Mystery, Role-Reversal, Enemies to friends to lovers, slight slowburn, witch!klaus and vampire!caroline.  

As You Wish: Jonsa Princess Bride AU - Done for the jonsa exchange and well I’m very happy with it. 

Our Souls They Intertwine: Deckerstar Soulmate AU, Set during the Golden Eps (Season 2) slight canon-divergence, wrote it for @thewollfgang

& #5 is my Queliot Season 4 fix-it

How do we Win?: Queliot Season 4 fix-it, otherwise known as the Gang Storms the Underworld, Eliot/Alice friendship, Margo/Quentin friendship, cameos from different dead people... Could also be known as “the gang actually talks about their issues”  

Part 1 & Part 2

how you choose your titles: Luck of the draw... I honestly don’t know. Sometimes it’s song lyrics, sometimes it’s puns, or a line that fits. 

do you outline: .... depends... sometimes my outline is 16 pgs sometimes it’s just 2 pages of bullet points... and sometimes the muse goes “we’re just gonna wing it”

Complete: I have 27 works on AO3, but one of them is not completed so technically 26. 

coming soon/not yet started: There’s so many...

I am in the process of writing a reddie fic, I have like 7 idea stage queliot fics, I need to finish the supernatural coffe shop au  the ideas vary from proposals to time travel to hedges and then some spies, and one that’s half amnesia/half tlk queliot au.

I will at one point finish my jonsa modern au but my muse is asleep

same with the 5/6 asoiaf prompts I have

do you accept prompts: At the moment no because I have a lot of my own prompts

upcoming story you are most excited to write: ohh good question.

I think either the spy/reviewer queliot or the amnesia/TLK one 

also the last 2 parts of my MHHE

Tagging: @eidetictelekinetic @lynyrdwrites @ohmarqueliot @coldwaughtered @butterflydm @impossibletruths @plinys @itsnotacrimetoloveyou