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tyrantisterror · 4 years ago

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I did a four part series of trivia posts when ATOM Volume 1: Tyrantis Walks Among Us! came out, and that was pretty fun! You can see that set of trivia posts here if you’d like. I thought it’d be fun to do another now that ATOM Volume 2: Tyrantis Roams the Earth! is out - just one this time, because a lot of the trivia I talked about with Volume 1 still applies.

I’m gonna divide this into two sections: non-spoiler trivia, for things that really don’t give a lot of plot points away, and spoiler trivia, for things that DO give away major plot points. I recommend not reading the spoiler trivia until after you’ve read Tyrantis Roams the Earth!, for obvious reasons, and will put the spoiler trivia under a cut.

Ok, let’s go!

- So if you read ATOM Volume 1, you probably noticed that the book is split not only into chapters, but “episodes,” which consist of four chapters a piece. It’s kind of a nod to how the series owes a great deal of its DNA to various monster of the week shows, with Godzilla: the Series and The Godzilla Power Hour being obvious influences. It also allowed me to pepper in some illustrations and cheesy b-movie style titles into each volume.

- The first “episode” of Volume 2, Tyrantis in Tokyo, pays explicit homage to the giant monster movies of Japan, perhaps even moreso than the chapters that came before it. Given how much Japanese media influenced ATOM - from tokusatsu like the Godzilla, Gamera, and Ultraman franchises to anime like Digimon and Evangelion (hell, the title of this episode itself is a tip of the hat to Tenchi Muyo by way of one of its spinoffs) - it kind of felt obligatory that Tyrantis visit Japan and pay his respects.

- Tyrantis in Tokyo also fits in a tribute to another staple of Atomic Age pop culture: Rock and Roll.

- Kutulusca, the giant cephalopod that appears in Tyrantis in Tokyo, is one of the oldest kaiju in this series, dating back to the first iteration of Tyrantis’s story that I put to paper back in 2001 or so. It’s changed a lot since then, but its fight with Tyrantis goes more or less the way it originally did.

- Old Meg, the giant placoderm/shark, and Nastadyne, the bipedal beetle, both owe their existence directly to Deviantart’s Godzilla fandom. Old Meg originated as a dunkleosteus monster I submitted to a “create a Godzilla kaiju” contest held by Matt Frank, while Nastadyne is based on a Megalon redesign I made during the “redesign all the Godzilla kaiju” phase of DA’s kaiju fandom.

- The second episode, Tyrantis vs. the Red Menace, gets dark as we visit the USSR, which had enough REAL horror with atomic power in its history to make creature features seem a bit defanged by comparison. It’s probably the episode with the strongest horror elements - ATOM’s always been influenced by Resident Evil, and this is probably where that influence shows the most strongly.

- It also features the first fully robotic mecha in the series, the mighty Herakoschei! Its name is a combination of “Heracles” and “Koschei the Deathless,” with the former part being added by its Russian creators to make it seem a bit more international as they offer it to the U.N. in hopes of gaining aid for a very extreme kaiju problem they’ve developed.

- Most of Tyrantis vs. the Red Menace takes place in the Siberian Monster Zone. Its name is a reference to the Lawless Monster Zone in Ultraman, which is such a cool fucking name I wish that I wish I could go back in time and steal it.

- The next episode, Tyrantis’s Revenge, is... full of spoilers, so we’ll move on for now.

- The penultimate episode, Tyrantis vs. the Martian Monsters, is a love letter to MANY different sci-fi stories that involve life on Mars, though the most prominent of them is of course The War of The Worlds (one of my top 3 favorite books) and its various adaptations. From its tentacles sapient martians, the tripodal leader of the titular monsters whose name includes the word “ulla” which is uttered by said sapient martians, the plant monster made of red vines, the cylinder-shaped spacecraft the Martian monsters are sent to earth on, the copper-skinned stingray-esque flying martian who shoots lasers from its tail, and the fact that every chapter title in this episode is a quote from the book, the H.G. Wells influence is STRONG.

- The final episode, Invasion from Beyond!, is shamelessly inspired by Destroy All Monsters, although there’s a dash of “To Serve Men,” Godzilla vs. Monster Zero, and The Day the Earth Stood Still mixed in as well. It’s also sort of a tribute to my first “published” bit of a kaiju fiction - a rewrite of Destroy All Monsters that included EVERY Godzilla monster that had appeared at the time, which my middle school self wrote back in 2002 or so for Kaiju Headquarters, a kaiju fansite I’m not sure exists anymore. Invasion from Beyond! is just as ambitious (but hopefully better executed) as my DAM Remake, with dozens upon dozens of different kaiju duking it out, earthlings vs. aliens.

- There were three different documents I made to outline the final battle of Invasion from Beyond! It’s the largest episode of the series so far and more than half of it is that fucking fight. My inner child is pleased, though, so hopefully you will be too.

Ok, that’s all I can share without spoilers. READER BEWARE WHAT FOLLOWS BELOW THE CUT!

JUST MAKING SURE you know that SPOILERS will follow from here on out. Read at your own peril! YOU WERE WARNED!

(I’m gonna start with lighter ones just in case you scrolled too far and want to turn back)

- There’s a number of explicit Spielberg homages in ATOM Volume 2, from a “we need a bigger boat” joke during a chase with a giant shark to the fact that Invasion from Beyond! opens with a group of people flying to an island of monsters to review whether or not it should get more funding.

- When Tyrantis appears in the first chapter, I snuck in modified lyrics of The Godzilla Power Hour’s theme song. “Up from the depths”... “several stories high”... “breathing fire”... “its head in the sky”... Tyrantis! Tyrantis! Tyrantis!

- The two rock bands in Tyrantis in Tokyo have real life inspirations ala Gwen Valentine, albeit a bit more muddled than hers. The Cashews are inspired by The Peanuts (see what I did there), while The Thunder Lizards are a mix of The Rolling Stones, the Beatles, Buddy Holly, and the Big Bopper. I wanted The Thunder Lizards to be more akin to the myth of a famous rock and roll band than the reality - less the real Beatles and more the Yellow Submarine cartoon version of them.

- The song The Thunder Lizards write for Tyrantis was written to fit the tune of “The Godzilla March” from Godzilla vs. Gigan, though ideally if someone made an actual song of it it would be its own song. I got the idea from Over the Garden Wall, which used the Christmas song “O Holy Night” as a a starting point for “Come Wayward Souls.”

- Perry Martin, UNNO reporter and peer of Henry Robertson, is a nod to Raymond Burr, with his name being a combination of two of Burr’s most famous roles: Perry Mason, and Steve Martin from Godzilla King of the Monsters (1956).

- Dr. Rinko Tsuburaya is a few homages in one. Her name comes from Rinko Kikuchi (who played Mako Mori in Pacific Rim), while her last name is obviously in homage of Eiji Tsuburaya. Her being the daughter of an esteemed scientist is inspired by Emiko Yamane from the original Gojira.

- Nastadyne’s Burning Justice mode is named after a similar super mode from various Transformers cartoons, though it’s more directly inspired by the Shining/Burning Finger super move from G Gundam.

- Martians sending kaiju to different planets via shooting them out of cannons (with or without cylinder spaceships around them) is another War of the Worlds shoutout. So is martians living on Venus after their homeworld was made uninhabitable, actually.

- Kurokame’s vocalizations are described as wails in explicit homage to Gamera. His name can be translated as either “black tortoise” (a reference to the mythical guardian beast Genbu, which can also be construed as a Gamera reference thanks to Gamera: Advent of Irys implying Gamera and Genbu are one and the same) or a portmanteau of the Japanese words for crocodile and turtle - “crocturtle.”

- Burodon’s name is just a mangling of “burrow down.” It also sounds vaguely like Baragon, who Burodon is loosely inspired by. AND, since Burodon is sort of a knockoff/modified Baragon, that kinda makes him a reference to various monsters in Ultraman!

- The final battle of Tyrantis in Tokyo is sort of a hybrid of the finales of Ghidorah the 3 Headed Monster and Destroy All Monsters.

- The Japanese kaiju teaching Tyrantis the art of throwing rocks at your enemies is both a joke on the prominence of rock throwing in Japanese kaiju fights AND the tired trope of an American hero learning secret martial arts from a Japanese mentor ala Batman, Iron Fist, etc. In this case, the secret martial art is throwing rocks at people.

- When introduced to Herakoschei and its pilot, we are told that the strain of piloting this early mecha is so intense that many pilots have died in the process, with the current one passing out on more than few occasions. This is of course a Pacific Rim homage - sadly, no one invents drifting.

- Herakoschei’s design is a loose homage to Robby the Robot and Cherno Alpha, because big boxy robots are cool.

- The Writhing Flesh and ESPECIALLY Pathogen are both hugely influenced by Resident Evil and The Thing. Giant body horror piles of raw flesh, tendrils, mismatched mouths and limbs may be a bit outside the main era of monster design ATOM homages, but they fit the themes and bring a nice contrast.

- I came up with Pathogen long before Corona but MAN it definitely feels different in 2021 to have a giant monster whose name is a synonym for disease driving other creatures crazy in a quarantine zone than it did when I plotted out the story in 2016.

- The chapter title “Hello, Old Foes” is a riff on “Goodbye, Old Friend”

- Minerva, the kaiju-fied clone of Dr. Lerna, is meant to be an homage to Attack of the 50 Foot Woman, which is a genuinely good giant monster flick. I am sure many of you will also believe I included her because I’m a pervert whose into tall women, but you’d be wrong! I included the seven foot tall Russian mecha pilot Ludmilla Portnova because I’m a pervert whose into tall women. Minerva’s inclusion was just coincidental, I swear!

- Since Promythigor is a play on the archetypal ape kaiju to contrast Tyrantis as a play on the archetypal fire-breathing reptile kaiju, their fight has a lot of nods to King Kong movies. Promythigor attempts the famous jaw-snap maneuver of Kong (with less success), J.C. Clark paraphrases the “brute force vs. a thinking animal” line from the King Kong vs. Godzilla American cut, and Tyrantis slides down a mountain to knock Promythigor off his feet in a reversal of Kong doing the same in King Kong vs. Godzilla.

- Tyrantis sliding down a mountain on his tail doubles as a Godzilla vs. Megalon homage.

- Though Promythigor is the archetypal Ape and Tyrantis the archetypal Fire-Breathing Reptile, I think it’s fun to note that in some ways, Promythigor is the Godzilla equivalent in their matchup, and Tyrantis the Kong. Promythigor has a slight size advantage, was scarred by humans performing unethical weapons technology, and is associated with violent explosions. Tyrantis is a good-at-heart prehistoric beast who humanized in part by his unlikely friendship with a human woman.

- Of course, in the context of the famous quote from the American cut of King Kong vs. Godzilla, they remain in their archetypal lanes. Promythigor is the more intelligent of the two (though not necessarily wiser), and Tyrantis is in many ways a brute reptile. Their battle is a rebuttal of sorts to the assertion that Kong is the “better” animal because he is closer to human. Promythigor’s near human creativity and emotions don’t make him the kinder/more benevolent monster, but instead fuel a very self-centered and destructive attitude that makes him the far more dangerous threat. On the other hand, Tyrantis, who is less intelligent, limited in communication with others by his reptilian mindset and instincts, and simple in his thoughts and desires, is nonetheless a sweet creature that is easily dealt with when others consider his animal needs and mindset. There’s a quote from Hellboy I love that probably sums up all of my writing thus far: “To be other than human does not mean the same as being less,” and that’s what the matchup between these two in particular tries to illustrate: the “less” human Tyrantis is nonetheless more benign than the “more” human Promythigor.

- Kraydi the psychic lizard began life as a soft sculpture I made of the Canyon Krayt Dragon from The Wildlife of Star Wars. The sculpture didn’t look much like the illustration, but I liked how it came out, and so I made it an original monster named Kraydi (see what I did there). Figuring out an explanation for that name in ATOM’s world was possibly the most difficult kaiju naming task in the series, but it worked out in the end.

- Kraydi and Promythigor having psychic powers is a result of my time on Godzilla fan forums in my middle school years. Most of the forums had OC kaiju battle tournaments, and SO many of those kaiju had a wide array of beam weapons and psychic powers just to win the tournaments by beam-spamming and mind controlling their foes into oblivion. There’s a special kind of rage you get when your original creation is beaten by “Fire Godzilla” because he has a genius level intellect and the power of unstoppable telekinesis. Kraydi began as (and still is I suppose) my attempt to do a psychic kaiju well, while Promythigor’s villainy being tied to psychic powers being forced on him is sort of my passive aggressive commentary on people foisting powers on a monster without any real thematic reason for them.

- Henry Robertson and Dr. Praetorius chewing out the laziness of people giving kaiju completely unaltered names of mythic beasts will probably be seen as a jab at the Monsterverse and/or the numerous writers in the kaiju OC scene who do the same, but it’s ACTUALLY a jab at my past self, who had DOZENS of kaiju whose names were just Greek mythological figures verbatim. There are dozens of kaiju named Hydra, Scylla, Charybdis, Chimera, etc., past me, try to make the names stand out! Oh wait you did. I mean, don’t pat yourself on the back too much, you still went with “Mothmanud” as a canon name and never came up with something better, but, like, good on ya for trying I guess.

- Dr. Praetorius takes his name from the evil mad scientis in Bride of Frankenstein, who basically has all the wicked traits that Universal’s Frankenstein downplayed in their take on Dr. Frankenstein. Ironically, ATOM’s Dr. Praetorius is a bit less evil than his fellow mad scientists in ATOM. I really like how his character turned out, he surprised me.

- Isaac Rossum, the pilot of the USA mecha Atomoton, is named for Isaac Aasimov, whose robot stories are to robot fiction what Lord of the Rings is to high fantasy. His last name is a reference to Rossum’s Universal Robots, which is where the word “robot” came from.

- The unfortunate pilots of MechaTyrantis in ATOM Volumes 1 and 2 are all nods to Jurassic Park. John Ludlow = John Hammond and Peter Ludlow, Ian Grant = Ian Malcolm and Alan Grant, Dennis Dodgson = Dennis Nedry and Lewis Dodgson.

- A good way to pitch Invasion from Beyond! would be “what if the staff and monsters were able to fight back when the Kilaaks tried to take over Monsterland?”

- Ok, here’s a fun joke that no one will get but me because it requires a very specific chain of logic based on some obscure and loosely connected nerd bullshit. There’s a rocker in ATOM’s universe named Sebastian Haff, right? One of his songs, “Darling Let’s Shimmy,” is referenced right before a mothmanud larva emerges from the ground in both ATOM Vol. 1 and 2. Ok, so, in the Bubba Hotep, an aging Elvis impersonator named Sebastian Haff claims he is actually the real Elvis Presley, having changed places with the real Sebastian Haff as a sort of Prince and the Pauper deal that went wrong. Got that? Ok, so, in UFO folklore, a common joke is the theory that Elvis didn’t die, but was rather abducted by aliens (or he actually WAS an alien the whole time - the whole “Elvis didn’t die, he just went home” joke in Men in Black is a good example of this). Ok? Ok. So, in ATOM’s universe, we can surmise that their equivalent of Elvis, whose name is Sebastian Haff, WAS abducted by aliens, and that his song “Darling Let’s Shimmy” is subconsciously influenced by his repressed memories from his time aboard the Beyonder spaceships, which is why it accidentally awoke a Mothmanud larva in Volume 1. There’s a lot of bullshit jokes I put into ATOM, but this is perhaps the bullshittiest of them all.

- One of the most common bits of feedback on ATOM Volume 1 I got was “I kept waiting for something to eat Brick Rockwell, he’s such an asshole.” And I had to smile and go, “Oh, yeah, guess he never got his, huh?” the whole time without letting on that he was going to die here all along!

- Dr. Lerna and Brick Rockwell’s nature as foils to each other is probably most apparent in Invasion from Beyond!, where both are given fairly similar situations - a nonhuman approaches them with a solution to a global crisis - and react to it very differently. I worry that some people may think they both made the same choice and got different results, and that that’s hypocrisy on my part, but I hope I wrote it so you can see how their choices and situations actually differ in key ways, and why their decisions, while similar on the surface, are ultimately very different, and thus result in almost opposite outcomes.

- So, when I planned out this book in 2016, I swear I didn’t know about the Orca from 2019′s Godzilla King of the Monsters. Having the plot hang around Dr. Lerna deciding whether or not to use a sonic device to rouse all the kaiju to save the earth was not INTENDED to be a Monsterverse reference - it came about from me looking at Pathfinder’s take on kaiju, who are all explicitly influenceable by music, and thinking, “Oh, wow, music and songs DO have a major connection with kaiju in a lot of media, I should do something with that.” Whem KOTM came out a few days after Volume 1 came out I realized I was kinda fucked here, because the comparison was definitely going to be made, but I’d also set this all up already and you can’t just change suddenly to avoid looking like a copy cat and make a good story, so... I dunno, I leaned into it a bit, but it is what it is.

- While most people will probably think they’re a reference to the Reptoids of UFO folklore, the Reptodites are more inspired by the Dinosapien of speculative evolution fame and, even morso, by the Reptites from Chrono Trigger. Me wanting to avoid the “lizard people control the government” conspiracy theory trope is one of the main reasons why Reptodites have this non-interference clause with humanity.

- Lieutenant Gray is a bunch of different humanoid aliens rolled into one - a little Hopskinville goblin, a little classic gray, a little this one weird alien with five-fingered zygodactyl hands, etc.

- There’s some Beyonder Mecha in this volume that are basically kaiju-fied versions of the Flatwoods Monster. The species that built them ALSO engineered the Mothmanuds, because connecting Mothman and the Flatwoods Monster is fun!

- Pleprah is, obviously, a one-eyed one-horned flying purple people eater.

- Tyrantis’s brush with death, in addition to being so very anime, was inspired by my dad outlining how mythic heroes often have to travel to the underworld/land of the dead before they can finish their journey. It’s one of the plot points that I’ve had planned for this series since middle school.

- I’m sure some will view it as hackneyed and corny, but as a person who’s battled with depression for decades, having Tyrantis’s choice to live be the big heroic turn of the finale was very important to me. Tyrantis incorporates elements of a lot of imaginary friends I made as a kid, and in many ways he’s kind of the face of my more positive side in my head. He’s been telling me to choose to live for a while, and while maybe to an outsider it may seem hackneyed, it’s just... very Tyrantis. He chooses life and kindness in the face of pain and struggle. That’s Tyrantis.

- Tyrantis’s powered up form is called “Hyper Mode,” which is another Gundam reference. Originally it was a lot gaudier and involved him turning gold like a fuckin’ Super Saiyan. I opted for something a little more toned down here.

- Also, speaking of KOTM references, I decided to make Hyper Mode Tyrantis’s final duel with Pathogen be a sort of foil to Burning Godzilla’s final bout with Ghidorah in KOTM. Instead of ravaging the city, Hyper Tyrantis’s pulse of energy rejuvenates his fallen allies, and as a result he is “crowned” not out of fear for his supremacy in the wake of killing a powerful enemy, but in gratitude for his kindness. See? Leaning into it!

- And now I can finally reveal that Yamaneon is ATOM’s equivalent of The Monolith Monsters - that is, a kaiju that is also a mineral. I took the “strange continuously growing rock” thing in a very different direction, though, as unlike The Monolith Monsters, Yamaneon is actually alive.

- At various points in the pre-writing process, either Promythigor, MechaTyrantis, or both were going to die fighting Pathogen. I ultimately decided to let them both live, with MechaTyrantis even getting his flesh and blood body back, because I think it’s more interesting and thematically consistent that way. They get a chance to heal their wounds by changing their ways.

- The Great Beyonder and Dorazor both almost didn’t make the cut, as I felt they didn’t have the same pull as villains that Pathogen, Promythigor, and MechaTyrantis did. But then I thought that could actually be the gag - build them up as the final boss, only to have Pathogen take their crown. I want to explore post-face turn Dorazor a bit more, though. We’ll have to see about that in a later volume.

- Volumes 1 and 2 make up what I call “The Ballad of Tyrantis Arc” for ATOM. I call it that because Tyrantis’s storyline in these two volumes was patterend after Chivalric ballads like Yvain the Knight of the Lion. Tyrantis, a heroic warrior who is kind but dumb of ass, learns of strange goings on outside his home and investigates. During his journey into the unknown he falls in love with a powerful woman, whose favor he tries to win. Through happenstance he is separated from his love and, distraught, wanders around fighting various foes to prove his worth, before finally returning to his love a better hero. Invasion from Beyond! could even be seen as a sort of Morte d’Artur, with Tyrantis and a bunch of other kaiju heroes (including Nastadyne and Kemlasulla, who are built up as Hero Kaiju of Another Story) take part in a huge battle that threatens their idealic kingdom (of monsters).

- Volume 2 isn’t the end of ATOM, but it’s designed to work as an ending if you want to tap out here. As a reader I feel a definitive ending is important, but as a writer I’m always tempted to revisit my beloved characters, so I feel giving closure while leaving a few doors open for possible future adventures is a good compromise between these positions. There will be more ATOM stories, some (but not all!) following Tyrantis and Dr. Lerna, but if you want to know that Tyrantis and Dr. Lerna get an ending and the resolution to their arcs such a thing promises, here you go. An ending, if not THE END.

#The Atomic Time of Monsters #A.T.O.M. Trivia

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laughsinthiccc · 5 years ago

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Spin the Bottle /// Kirishima Eijiro

NOTE!

I’m actually kinda happy with this X_X Took forever to do because my stupid peanut brain decided a writers block was what i needed during quarantine ...

Anyway! Short and Sweet, Might do a follow up? I say that a lot though don’t i ... T_T

Alright, Hope you all enjoy! Sending love and good luck to everyone!

////////

Paper laid strewn about on the fluffy comforter of your bed, your fingers threaded through your hair in frustration as you stared down at the notebook within your lap. A frustrated groan left your lips as you fell back onto your pillows; your hands slowly sliding from their spots in your hair to rub your temples in annoyance.

"I'll never finish this …"

As you took a deep breath you attempted to ease the aching pain in your hand from the hours of scribbling away in your notebook, the joints releasing a rather loud, satisfying *pop*, as you went from one finger to the next.

Sitting up you stared at the mess you had created over the past few hours and winced, you didn’t realize it was that bad.

As you hopped off the bed and began picking up the crumbled and loose paper off the floor, your phone buzzed: going against you're better judgement you toss what trash you had within your grasp into the bin near your desk and swiped your phone from your side table.

It was from Mina.

Her text simply asked you to go to the common room, a small kiss emoji at the end.

Picking up what trash was left on the floor you toss it in the bin and begin making your way to the common room, instant regret washed over your system as the sounds of loud, howling laughter echoed within the halls. Stepping into the common-room you're met with Bakugo chasing after a shirtless Kaminari, a rather annoyed looking Iida following close behind.

Your eyes followed the trio for a while until you're pulled from your stare.

"Hey there Hotstuff! I knew you'd come down here!" Mina's excited voice rang in your ear, a smile formed on your lips as her arms locked around you.

"Well I wasn't doing anything too important … So, may I ask why-"

"Its better not too … I don't even know why he's shirtless."

You too began conversing as you walked to the couches and you noticed a good amount of your classmates were seated in a circle, some sat on the couches that were pushed a bit further out to fit everyone else.

Your eyebrows lifted in confusion as you turned to glance at the woman next to you. "Uh … What's going on?"

"Well, it was my idea of course … Spin the bottle!" A large grin on her lips as she pulled you towards the group. "Well take a seat!"

"I … How bout no?"

Her loud groan of annoyance caused some of the people in the circle to turn, excited smiles on their lips as they caught sight of you but; one sharp, toothy grin, took all of your attention.

"Y/N! Hey! Come join us!" His arm flew up and his hand waved you over, a rather innocent gesture most of the time but at the moment you had to look away in fear of staring for too long.

There stood Kirishima, a tall, tanned wonder; a large grin on his lips, and completely shirtless.

The heat that settled within your cheeks only grew in intensity as his loud gravely laugh rang through the air, swallowing the lump in your throat you glance towards Kirishima.

"S-So, uh mind telling me why … you're shirtless Kiri?"

Sure it was kinda usual for his top half to be barren, especially during training but something just felt different. His smile grew and his head threw back as he laughed even harder, you and Mina were able to find comfortable spots within the circle of your classmates before he was able to respond to your question. Him being the only reason you sat down to play anyway …

"Well, Kaminari and I actually lost a bet!"

Your eyebrow cocked up in concern but, before you were able to question, Bakugo walks back into the common-room followed by a sweaty Kaminari and an annoyed looking Iida. Everyone busts out into fits of laughter as the Trio sit down within the circle, and after everyone's laughter calms down to quiet giggles, Jiro offers to spin the bottle only for Mina to cut in.

"How about Y/N? They just joined in so we should give them the first spin, right guys?" Her voice saying a lot more than her words let on, everyone smiles and she hands the bottle to you.

"Alright, whoever the bottle stops on you have to kiss."

Your nerves made your hands shake as you sat the bottle down, and as you spun the bottle on the floor you felt a pair of eyes bore into your skull. Glancing up you caught Kirishima's eyes, his quickly flicked from you to the bottle and his cheeks reddened but; they grew darker as the sound of the bottle's spin slowly stopped.

What a coincidence, It landed on Kirishima.

Mina was the first to start howling with laughter, as you and Kirishima shared wide-eyed stares Bakugo huffed in annoyance. His elbow connected with Kirishima's side, he grumbled something to him and flicked his head towards you; Kirishima jumped up from his spot on the floor, with a heavy blush on his cheeks and a small grin, he made his way over to you. He stopped right behind you and extended his hand in which you shakily accepted; keeping a rather good hold on his hand as you stood you felt the word fall still as his hand squeezed yours.

The moment felt so much longer than it actually was, the kiss being too short for your own liking but with the state of your racing heart you didn't think you'd stay on your feet if it lasted any longer. The tips of his ears down to his shoulders was covered in a deep blush as he quickly scurried away from you, a large absolutely stupid grin on his lips as he sat a bit further away from the group; but you, were still standing there. Absolutely gone inside of your own little world, but you felt stares digging into your form so you quickly found a spot on the floor.

As the night flew by you had watched your friends stand and retreat to their rooms for the night, and as you began to do the same your eyes caught sight of Kirishima once again. His spikey red hair stuck out from near the kitchen counter, as he stood and caught your gaze you both spun around, you retreated to your room and Kirishima stuck his head in the freezer in a bad attempt to cool off his rising body heat.

You had ran back to your room, your back hit the door and you slid to the floor; hands covering your face as you stared at the floor.

Just thinking of the red haired hero-to-be made your cheeks glow with a soft red hue and your body to begin rising in heat. As your thoughts began running around franticly trying to toss some sort of sense into your sudden change of view of your friend, all you could really think of was his smile.

Until your thoughts are interrupted by a soft Knock from your door.

Jumping from the floor and throwing a hand to the handle you slowly crack open the door and your eyes meet a familiar set of Crimson Orbs.

"H-Hey! Didn't think y-you'd answer so quickly um …" His hand flew to the side of his neck, his knuckles already growing white with the tensing of his fingers. Pulling the door open further you send him a nervous smile as he stumbles over his words.

"I actually stopped by to see if y-you'd be free Friday evening …?" His cheeks flushed as your eyes widened at his question, before you could reply to his offer you heard faint chuckling from the hallway but, before you could lean forward and look around Kirishima had threw his arm up and blocked your vision.

"Kiri what the hell was-" He cut you off with a loud cough.

"That was um … just some rats ya know? Yeah they better run away-" His eyes flickered from you to the side and his lips curled into a small frown. "Before I get them."

His gaze flickers back to you and his frown quickly forms into a large toothy grin, the sight making your nerves calm and your own smile to widen. It wasn't till then that you noticed how incredibly handsome he was, sure you already knew he was handsome but the way he looked at you and the smile he gave you just made your heart flutter; your cheeks began to flush as you stumbled over your response.

"U-Uh yeah, so F-Friday? Right?" His smile seemed to grow and his cheeks began to glow a bright red, his excited chuckle at your response made you both begin to laugh, the energy surrounding the both of you quickly turned from its previous awkward feeling to a comfortable one; one that made the twisting nervous feeling in your stomachs subside. Which gave Kirishima a rather large boost of confidence.

His hand that was previously rubbing his neck had long since fallen to his side, and as your laughter begin to subside he stepped closer to you, raising his hand to cup your cheek. His eyes searched your face for any resistant, any hesitance, but there wasn't any. His lips pressed against yours softly, the feeling of his lips against yours made you smile into the kiss. Pulling away a bit too soon, you both stared at each other, your cheeks were flushed and your lips curved into a smile.

"S-So .. That was -"

"Awesome" You both said in unison, which made your faces flush into a dark red. Before he dropped dead from pure nervous stomach twisting, he gave you a small bow.

"I'll see you Friday then! U-Uh, Goodnight.."

He turned away and began walking off, you were still standing in your door way thinking over what had happened - for the second time that night - and you were glad to say, you actually looked forward to finishing out the week.

#kirishima eijiro #eijiro kirishima #Kirishima x Reader #Eijiro x Reader #Kirishima Eijiro x Reader #Eijiro Kirishima x Reader #MHA #Kirishima #Eijiro #BNHA #My Hero Academia #Boku No Hero Academia #MHA x Reader #BNHA x Reader #My Hero Academia x Reader #Boku No Hero Academia x Reader

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juno-dearborn · 4 years ago

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a meditation upon worms // self para

“Trust no team. Lay low.”

The gift fell from the sky not long after she and Franklin decided it was best to go their separate ways. She almost missed the small, unassuming silvery casing against the dense, muggy steam still clinging to the forest floor, the sun reclaiming the rain the storms had soaked the earth with the evening before. She read the note first (Always read the card before the gift, Nikita, her mother would scold her on birthdays, it’s rude to open the present first), unfurling the paper carefully between her fingers. It was a simple, standard text, one she was sure every other tribute received, but she could almost imagine Surya’s handwriting behind it, something elegant and swooping, her tone cautionary. (She had never seen Surya’s handwriting. It was something like her mother’s in her mind’s eye, too.)

She let out a breath, crouching down to examine her present rather than focus on the timing of it. Franklin wasn’t a threat. Right? He would have killed her back there if he was. She had a deeper, lurking feeling it was bigger than Franklin, though, and rather what she and Jeannie were planning. But didn’t the run in with Franklin only prove her point? If he’d been an enemy, a trained enemy, she wouldn’t have stood much of a chance alone.

From the container she drew a small, gleaming fishhook. She turned it over in her hands, examining it closely-- it occurred to her this might be the first time she’d ever touched a fishhook. There was a small eye at its top for fishing line, and it dropped down into a J-shape with a wickedly sharp barb at its end. Nikita was no expert, of course, but she knew, hypothetically, how fishing worked. She knew where to find a river. And the emptiness of her stomach hardly stayed by berries and awful mushrooms begged her to try.

She reached into the bottom of the package, and as if an answered prayer to her thoughts, she came away with a small pack of trail mix as well. A grin spread across her face so wide her cheeks ached. She tore it open, using all of her self control to only allow herself a handful before folding the packaging down to fit the rest into her pocket for later. “Thank you,” she told the treetops. Carefully, she detached the parachute, then wrapping her hook in it to not cut herself. ___

It didn’t take long to find the river again. It seemed to run the length of the whole Arena, she was finding, just South of the town. The landscape sloped ever so slightly toward it, making it easy to find when she was near. She skirted the banks for some time, careful to not slip on wet rocks into the storm-swollen waters, until she finally came to a bend where the water slowed and she could see the shadows of fish darting below the glassy green surface. She had fish and a fishhook, but it then occurred to her that she was missing other crucial pieces to the equation as well if she wanted to catch anything at all. First, fishing line. Biting her lip, she turned on her heel slowly, surveying her surroundings with a freshly critical eye. A few ideas passed through her mind (Sapling wood? Too stiff. Braided moss? Not durable. Spider web? Wake up, Nikita), but only when she huffed in frustration and cast her gaze to her feet it struck her. A shoelace. She knelt down, picking at her boots with attention she hadn’t yet given them. There was something shoelace-like on them, cinching them tight to her feet. With an experimental tug, she grinned as she discovered it pulled free. Within seconds, she had several feet of fishing line, and after her other shoe, several more. She attached the hook, which brought her to the second component: bait. She considered, at first, fishing without any. It might be worth trying, perhaps, but she doubted her own skills and makeshift fishing setup would be doing her any favors. Her second thought was her trail mix-- but what kind of fish liked peanuts and chocolate? It struck her much faster this time, and she could have kicked herself with how obvious, how goddamn stereotypical it was. Worms. Goddamn worms. They were everywhere in this Arena, especially this morning, brought to the surface by the night’s rains. She didn’t have to look hard or far, and as she collected the squirmy, earth-colored creatures in her right palm, she was reminded of rainy days on the playground, when picking up worms was a badge of honor. The competitive would collect them, the gentle return them to the earth, the cruel chase other children with them. Nikita had always picked them up and observed them, simply curious. She’d been told they had eleven hearts, that they could survive being cut in half, a death sentence for any other creature, and grow back just as strong and resilient. She’d often wondered if the ones she was holding were on their first, second, eighth, fifteenth lives. Could they live forever like that? Unfortunately, her worms today had a sadder fate than existential contemplation. She deposited them on a large rock by the bank for relative safekeeping as she fished, kicked off her shoes, and waded out into the river with her shoelace-worm-hook contraption. She took a moment to scrub her skin clean of the dirt and sweat of the past three days first. After rinsing out her hair, washing her face, she felt her head was clearer, her mind more focused. She’d gotten this far, what was a little fishing? It took several tries to get a cast right, out into the waters where she could see the fish moving stealthily, always just in her periphery. Then, several more to perfect her own stillness, so as not to scare the prey away. The better part of the late morning and afternoon was spent like this, trial and error, but she found, once she forgot where she was, why she was doing this, it was almost peaceful. By the time mid-afternoon struck and another rainstorm threatened overhead, she had three modest fish on the bank (though she’d never admit to how many had gotten away, not in this life). As she untethered her hook and replaced her shoelaces, her shoes, and gathered her belongings, it felt as if she was re-armoring to return to the Games. She had a meeting to host, a team to unite. And if they did it right, they could be cut in half but never die.

#a meditation upon worms #self para #125 #day 3 #ruleandtask #Catch a fish #Use a sponsor gift #Swim or bathe in the lake or river #1057 words

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cynicalrainbows · 5 years ago

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The Next Best Thing Chapter 9

Anne tells her the big news over lunch.

Cathy is eating lukewarm school pasta; Anne has a Mary lunch.

(Anne is the only person Cathy knows who has three sorts of school lunches- what they call Jane lunch, Mary lunch and Fancy lunch.

Usually- when things are normal-ish, when she’s just at home like normal and it’s Mary’s job to take her to school, she gets a Mary lunch, which means whatever sandwich Mary has made in a rush, in between feeding Baby Catherine and getting herself ready and checking Anne is wearing school uniform and not her Ninja turtles tshirt (although sometimes Mary forgets to check the last one).

Mary lunches are mostly ok, except that they’re usually a bit squashed....although once Mary was SO tired from being up with Baby Catherine she forgot to put in a filling and Anne had to pretend to the other children on the lunch table that she’d just asked for bread and butter that day.

(They didn’t look like they believed her.)

The other end of the scale is a Fancy lunch, and there’s only two times Anne gets one of those: either after the Mary lunch has been especially bad (or when she gets secret lunch option number four- which is actually no lunch at all because Mary forgot to pick up bread, or picked up the bread but forgot the making-the-sandwich part or remembered the bread and the sandwich making part but forgot to put it in Anne’s bag) and their teacher has called Anne over to ask, in hushed tones, Is Everything Alright At Home?

The other time is after something else has slipped a bit (once when Mary was sick, Anne didn’t come to school for two days) and the ‘chat’ has turned into a phone call.

And that’s when Anne gets a Fancy lunch.

Fancy lunches are never the same but always ten times nicer than whatever anyone else has for lunch that day, because no one actually makes them, Anne’s mum orders them from a special company who spend all their time just making fancy lunches that can fit into a lunchbox- tiny wraps with fancy fillings skewered on cocktail sticks and rolls of rice and seaweed in pretty patterns and little individual quiches.

The only bad thing about them is that they never last for more than a few days and then lunch making becomes Mary’s job again and it can be a bit disappointing to suddenly get a squashed marmite sandwich instead of the fancy lunch-in-a-box you were expecting.

Jane lunches are sort of in the middle of the two, Cathy supposes.

They’re never as fancy as the Fancy lunches (Jane doesn’t seem to shop at the places that sell quinoa and lemongrass) and they’re not exciting really, just sandwiches and fruit.

Then again, they always always have things that Anne definitely likes in them, whereas there’s nearly always a bit of the Fancy lunch that she has to pick off and set aside because she doesn’t like it, like the truffles that didn’t look or taste at all like chocolate.

They’re never as pretty as the Fancy lunches either but Jane does things like cutting off the crusts and peeling the apple and cutting it into slices that Anne’s mum never seems to want to do when it’s her actually fixing the food.

(It makes the food taste nice.)

The best thing about Jane’s lunches is that she never gets cross if a bit of it doesn’t get eaten, apart from to ask if Anne wants something else next time. She never gets ‘I don’t know why I even bother paying for nice things for you’ angry like Anne’s dad did when he found out about the uneaten truffles-that-were-really-mushrooms.

And if she’s done any baking- and Jane bakes a LOT- there’s always a biscuit or a little piece of cake or a pastry twist wrapped up carefully in greaseproof paper, ready for Anne to split in half and share with Cathy in return for all the times that Cathy shared her own food on no-lunch days.

Cathy doesn’t have packed lunches now that she’s with Catalina but she has sometimes wondered what they’d be like and she figures they’d probably be closer to the Jane lunches than the Fancy lunches.

Oddly enough, the thought does not make her feel all that disappointed.

Anne tells her the Big News right away, because she can’t keep secrets, and the big news is that Anne’s getting to have a sleepover for her birthday.

Cathy asks when and Anne says that it’ll be on the Saturday coming because that’s when her birthday is going to be.

Cathy knows when Anne’s birthday is- she has it written down in the furry purple My Secret Diary that she got for Christmas, because there’s a section to write down things about your friends, and she has Anne written down first because she’s her best friend- and she feels a bit guilty, like maybe she should have remembered.

Anne doesn’t seem to mind though.

Anne says that when she asked her mum the night before what she was doing for her birthday this year, and could they go to Splash Zone again like last year, her mum had nodded and said YesMaybeAskDaddy (which is how she answers lots of things).....and then she’d sat up, and she’d put down her glossy magazine and checked something on her phone and her eyes had gone very wide.

So instead of SplashZone- because now there isn’t time to book it before the weekend, Anne’s getting a sleepover party.

Part of the treat is the sleepover, according to Anne, and part of the treat is meant to be that she doesn’t have to share the sleepover with Kitty, even though Kitty lives at Anne’s house most of the time.

Anne says she doesn’t mind sharing her bedroom but she IS glad Kitty isn’t going to be at the sleepover.

According to Anne, Kitty hasn’t been much fun at all since Uncle Edmund dropped her off and she won’t play anything that Anne wants to play anymore, even when Anne offers her usual chocolate button bribe, and it turns out it’s VERY hard to play even easy games like chase when it’s only you.

Actually, Anne isn’t sure if she should be cross about this or not because it’s not just that Kitty won’t play Anne’s games, she doesn’t seem to want to play anything at all: she just clings to Jane’s skirt, waiting for her to finish whatever she’s doing and sit down so that she can she can fold herself up small in Jane’s lap.

She clings to a handful of Jane’s shirt with one hand and only raggedly old Pink Kitty with the other, like she’s afraid someone is going to take one or both of them away if she lets go, sucking her thumb and not saying a word.

And when she isn’t silent- which is honestly most of the time, according to Anne- she’s having huge screaming tantrums over stupid things like cleaning her teeth or putting on her pajamas. Cathy finds it hard to imagine Kitty- who was quiet as a mouse nearly all the time, even before Edmund- even raising her voice once let alone screaming but Anne assures her that it’s true.

She says that it’s giving her a headache.

Her mum and dad and Mary are officially Losing Patience, which is why Kitty is going to be with Jane for a bit.

Officially, it’s as part of Anne’s birthday treat, but Anne thinks they were planning it anyway because she heard Mary complaining to her mum, and then she heard her Mum talking on the phone to someone about being At The End of Her Tether, and she kept shaking her head and looking over at where Kitty was curled up in a little ball on the edge of the sofa, not even watching the tv (although Anne had specially foregone Rugrats for the boring baby program about the baggy pink cat because Kitty liked it).

Or, Kitty used to like it.

Now she doesn’t seem to like very much at all anymore.

Mary and Anne’s Mum and Dad don’t seem to mind Kitty being extra quiet but they do mind the tantrums- and the way Kitty has started waking up in the night crying and disturbing everybody when Some People Have To Work In The Morning Fergodsake, and the way the Reception teacher has started to call home because she’s ‘concerned’.

Jane calls round too when she hears that Anne’s dad has taken away the Barbie Kitty got for promising not to suck her thumb anymore, and says they all need to make allowances right now, whatever that means.

She and Anne’s mum drink cappuccinos- because Anne’s mum has a special expensive new machine that makes them- and Jane talks about reassurance and sense of security and unconditional love, while Anne’s mum talks about discipline and consequences and legal custody.

Eventually Anne’s mum tells Jane that she’s not a social worker anymore so she needs to stop acting like one, and that Kitty isn’t a baby any more and they need to stop coddling her, that maybe Edmund was right about some things.

And then Jane goes home.

So Kitty won’t be at the sleepover, Anne says. It’ll be just her and Cathy- and Anna.

Cathy tries to smile and look pleased that Anna’s invited too- it’s not that she doesn’t like her, exactly, it’s just that for Anne’s first sleepover, she’d rather it was just them.

It’s a bit easier to be properly happy when Anne tells Anna because Anna looks excited but also a bit surprised too- as if she’s not expecting to be asked. That makes Cathy feel better. It reminds her that Anna really isn’t out to steal her best friend, which is something Catalina reminds her of whenever she seems to need it.

‘Really?’

‘Yeah, my mum said I could have two friends.’ Anne nibbles the crust of her sandwich (peanut butter) delicately, trying to make the edges of the bread straight.

‘I’ll ask Mutti when I get home- she’ll say yes, she’ll be happy I’m making friends-’ Anna beams. ‘I used to have sleepovers back home- back in Germany. With my old friends.’

‘Cool!’

Cathy takes another bite of soggy school lasagne and wonders why Anna always has to bring her old home into everything.

It’s sort of interesting to hear but it also makes her wonder if there’s anything that Anna hasn’t done or seen before everyone else.

She wants to ask what German sleepovers are like but then she doesn’t.

(Whatever they’re like, they’re probably a hundred times cooler than whatever English sleepovers.)

#the next best thing #six #six the musical #six the musical fanfiction #sixfic #six fanfiction

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puella-peanut · 10 days ago

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Bloodgames

While some cultures considered thirteen to be unlucky, in Wolf's experience it’s been much the opposite. Perhaps that is why he so readily agrees to the terms of the contract—the ones both on and off the page, if the fine print of Silver's eyes have been interpreted correctly.

After all, Silver is just another benefactor in an illicit line of patrons. A baker's dozen, some might say.

"So," Wolf says, after Silver's lawyer departs, leaving them to the bottle and the blood—

"All this over a ruined reputation? Surely a wealthy foreigner can find other ways to seek revenge."

Something—someone?—has brought this disheveled old American with offshore accounts to these rank Bangkok slums. Revenge simply the bandage to nurse some long festering wound.

Silver's eyes flicker. It’s just the lights. Perhaps.

”All this…” He takes another shot. “There was a boy. Before you."

Ah.

That’s all for later though, if Wolf remains interested—and benefitted enough—to inquire.

“Yeah? And what about after?" He too has losses to recoup.

Silver smiles at the cheek; in challenge it seems. Or something close enough. But whether that is for Wolf or Silver himself well—

"That remains to be seen."

...

Written for Baker's Dozen (1) a prompt I did not fill when the All Valley 100 Word Drabble Challenge was running. I will be continuing to fill in my unfilled prompts until they are all complete, and post them here and on my A03 as usual.

#terry silver #sensei wolf #cobra kai #in which peanut chases paper cuts #silverusso #silverwolf #sweep the leg

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slurrmp · 4 years ago

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not another info sheet.

sasha o’neill (stargate sg1)

BASIC INFORMATION

FULL NAME: sasha maria o’neill PRONUNCIATION: SASH-ə MEANING: defender, helper of mankind REASONING: named after her mother’s grandmother NICKNAME(S): sash (most common), ash, asha, kid PREFERRED NAME(S): just her full name or sash BIRTH DATE: october 20th 1972 AGE: 33 (as of season 9) ZODIAC: libra GENDER: female PRONOUNS: she/her ROMANTIC ORIENTATION: biromantic SEXUAL ORIENTATION: bisexual NATIONALITY: american ETHNICITY: white CURRENT LOCATION: colorado springs, cheyenne mountain LIVING CONDITIONS: a little apartment in the city, but will mostly stay at jack’s home. TITLE(S): miss

BACKGROUND

BIRTH PLACE: san francisco HOMETOWN: fairfax SOCIAL CLASS: fairly wealthy, but not exactly rich EDUCATION LEVEL: almost finished college FATHER: angus o’neill (deceased) MOTHER: maria o’neill (nee barnes) (mia) SIBLING(S): none BIRTH ORDER: only child CHILDREN: none PET(S): a pet gold fish named bruce, however, is too busy with work to actually have the dog she always wanted. OTHER IMPORTANT RELATIVES: jack o’neill (uncle), sara o’neill (aunt), charlie o’neill (cousin) (deceased) PREVIOUS RELATIONSHIPS: max turner (four years), jonas quinn (two years), cameron mitchell (??) ARRESTS?: when she was a teenager and her father passed away, and her mother basically disowned her - sasha rebelled against her aunt and uncle, doing petty crimes such as shop lifting and grand theft PRISON TIME?: spent two nights in the county jail for stealing a car from the mayor

OCCUPATION & INCOME

PRIMARY SOURCE OF INCOME: working for the sgc SECONDARY SOURCE OF INCOME: it’s really disguised as working for the air force TERTIARY SOURCE(S) OF INCOME: she writes a column in the local paper APPROXIMATE AMOUNT PER YEAR: uhhhh couldn’t tell you, but it’s enough to live comfortably CONTENT WITH THEIR JOB (OR LACK THERE OF)?: very much so PAST JOB(S): worked at a fast food chain until she was 17, then worked for a supermarket (but was caught stealing & was fired) SPENDING HABITS: she knows what she loves and will always buy what she needs MOST VALUABLE POSSESSION: her father’s dog tags, which she constantly wears around her neck

SKILLS & ABILITIES

PHYSICAL STRENGTH: she was a cheerleader in high school before her father passed - moving into senior year of high school, sasha locked herself away from others and herself - which meant that she wasn’t as physically fit as she used to be. she was never overweight, but she couldn’t do a cartwheel to save her life anymore. however, joining the sgc - she’s managed to gain back her fitness and once again can do that cartwheel. OFFENSE: no DEFENSE: yes. her fighting style is more protect her body than anything else. SPEED: she’s not incredibly fast, but if something is chasing her, she has the will to go faster. INTELLIGENCE: rather intelligent, however, it is less mathematical smart and more historical smart. ACCURACY: she grew up in a military family, she’s very accurate AGILITY: after working back her fitness, sasha’s very good at climbing walls and leaping across tall buildings. STAMINA: it’s fairly good but no where near as good as it should be TEAMWORK: she depends on her team to survive and they depend on her to keep them alive TALENTS: can translate a different language within an hour, rather good at the piano SHORTCOMINGS: she’s judgemental, snippy and can be rather short with people. all in all it’s that o’neill charm LANGUAGE(S) SPOKEN: english, german, russian, dutch and japanese DRIVE?: yes JUMP-STAR A CAR?: yes CHANGE A FLAT TIRE?: yes RIDE A BICYCLE?: yes, badly though SWIM?: yes PLAY AN INSTRUMENT?: kind of, without practice she loses her skill PLAY CHESS?: no (daniel’s trying to teach her though) BRAID HAIR?: yes TIE A TIE?: yes PICK A LOCK?: yes

PHYSICAL APPEARANCE & CHARACTERISTICS

FACE CLAIM: alyssa milano EYE COLOR: brown HAIR COLOR: brown HAIR TYPE/STYLE: there’s almost a different style each year. season one: short and almost in a bob. season two: it has grown out more and now reaches her shoulders - curls. season six: it was shaved almost completely off. season three, four, five, seven, eight, nine and ten: it remains at shoulder length and wavy. GLASSES/CONTACTS?: only for when she’s reading DOMINANT HAND: right HEIGHT: 5′2″ WEIGHT: 60 kg BUILD: athletic EXERCISE HABITS: spars with teal’c once a week, while also uses the gym equipment at the sgc twice a week SKIN TONE: pale, but is able to tan rather easily TATTOOS: one on the back of her neck and one on the left side of her lower back PEIRCINGS: both lobes, including seconds, has her nose pierced as well MARKS/SCARS: there is a birthmark over her left hip. a scar just on the right side of her upper lip (which she got when she fell over on the driveway of her family home when she was six), a scar through her left eyebrow - which eerily is like jack’s, however, it was given to her on a mission NOTABLE FEATURES: her eyes and the mirroring scar in her eyebrow, just like jack. USUAL EXPRESSION: she is beaming most of the time - bright and bubbly expressions CLOTHING STYLE: very modern, loves a crop top and low cut jeans, but while she’s on base it is the typical sg uniform. blue fatigues mostly, considering the green makes her look sick JEWELRY: nothing too fancy considering her line of work, a couple of rings and bracelets ALLERGIES: peanuts, bees BODY TEMPERATURE: a normal body temperature DIET: she’s lived with jack for most of her life, it mainly consisted of bbq steak and when she was old enough beer. donuts, and snacks. PHYSICAL AILMENTS: continuously breaks limbs, but nothing too serious to bench her from off world work.

PSYCHOLOGY

JUNG TYPE: enfj ENNEAGRAM TYPE: the achiever MORAL ALIGNMENT: chaotic good ELEMENT: air PRIMARY INTELLIGENCE TYPE: logical-mathematical APPROXIMATE IQ: 124 MENTAL CONDITIONS/DISORDERS: struggles with ptsd after the death of her father and the events that have occurred in her life so far SOCIABILITY: very out going and loves to meet new people EMOTIONAL STABILITY: she’s been hurt so many times that sasha has started to pull away from anything emotional lately, so not good, but she hides it well with her outgoing personality OBSESSION(S): making sure that everything is perfect, making sure that missions will go correctly and nothing bad will happen. PHOBIA(S): tight spaces, spiders, flying, ADDICTION(S): none DRUG USE: none ALCOHOL USE: limited, loves a good beer every sunday afternoon PRONE TO VIOLENCE?: if push came to shove

MANNERISMS

SPEECH STYLE: she’s very articulate with her words. when the occasion calls for it, she can speak in a rather professional manner. but when she’s around friends or family, she won’t talk quite as stiff ACCENT: very clearly a west coast accent QUIRKS: she bounces a lot when she’s excited or even happy. it’s absolutely because she’s the shortest of the group and it makes her feel tall HOBBIES: reading is a big one - basically what she does to escape the ‘real world’, mainly romance and comedy novels because horror/sci-fi and action is what she lives on a daily basis HABITS: she has a habit of biting her lower lip, usually when she’s thinking or worried. NERVOUS TICKS: bounces her leg up and down when nervous, she will also pace a lot DRIVES/MOTIVATIONS: one is absolutely to save the world from the goa’uld, while the others is her family and her friends FEARS: losing said family and friends. she has a terrible habit of latching onto people she’s met - which isn’t good in her line of work. however, it helps her POSITIVE TRAITS: loyal, strong willed, will fight for her family NEGATIVE TRAITS: falls in love too easily, tries to see the best in everyone - which usually gets her into trouble SENSE OF HUMOR: very dry, it’s that o’neill sense of humour though DO THEY CURSE OFTEN?: on and off CATCHPHRASE(S):oh for crying out loud

FAVORITES

ACTIVITY: reading ANIMAL: fox BEVERAGE: beer BOOK: pride and prejudice CELEBRITY: brad pitt COLOR: pastel brown DESIGNER: vera wang FOOD: fried rice FLOWER: sunflower GEM: diamond HOLIDAY: christmas MODE OF TRANSPORTATION: mini cooper MOVIE: sleepless in seatle MUSICAL ARTIST: elton john SCENERY: snowy day next to a fireplace in the city SCENT: lavender SPORT: football SPORTS TEAM: 49ers TELEVISION SHOW: simpsons WEATHER: winter VACATION DESTINATION: bora bora

ATTITUDES

GREATEST DREAM: to see the goa’uld destroyed and to have her family safe GREATEST FEAR: to lose the planet and her family MOST AT EASE WHEN: things are going the right way, no matter the scenario - could be in the middle of a mission, but as long as she knows what’s she’s doing, sasha can breeze through it LEAST AT EASE WHEN: everything is going wrong, mainly when missions stuff up. as well as when she has no control over a situation WORST POSSIBLE THING THAT COULD HAPPEN: one of the alternate world’s reality, becoming her reality. the goa’uld taking over the world and enslaving humanity BIGGEST ACHIEVEMENT: finally getting into college BIGGEST REGRET: losing her daughter MOST EMBARRASSING MOMENT: it’s not everyday that you come face to face with a new species, it’s also not everyday that you decide to trip UP stairs when coming to greet them, falling flat on her face and breaking her nose BIGGEST SECRET: max and sasha were expecting a baby - but they were not compatible and the baby died during the first trimester, she never told anyone besides janet TOP PRIORITIES: her job and her family

#ch. sasha o'neill.#promise that you'll never find another like me.#* & MEET MY OC'S.#stargate

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jinjojess · 5 years ago

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DR Kirigiri Vol. 5 Summary Part IV

Back to our regularly-scheduled shenanigans.

< LAST PART | NEXT PART >

Chapter 1 The Mania of Existence: Libra Girls’ Academy - Samidare Yui

Now that we’ve checked in with everyone who didn’t get much screen time last book, let’s get back to seeing what Samidare is up to.

Turns out she, Tsukiyo, and Nazuna have been in the small circular room for...well, Samidare isn’t actually sure how long, since there aren’t any clocks around. It’s felt like hours, but it might have only been tens of minutes.

“I’m hungry... I’m thirsty...” Tsukiyo had been crouched in the corner of the room for some time now, deliriously mumbling about what she wanted. “I need to go to the bathroom... the bathroom...”

“If worst comes to worst, you can just go over there. We’ll forgive you,” I called in response.

“No way! If it came to that I’d kill you and myself! Who do you think you are, looking down on me like this? You think you’re better than me because you’re a little better at holding it in? I don’t take orders from you!”

“That’s not what I meant...”

Feeling exhaustion on a spiritual level, I decided to ignore Tsukiyo’s angry outburst. Trying to engage her right now would just wear us both out.

Instead, Samidare sits down at the desk and uses a pencil and sheet of paper she found inside to draw a map. She’s going to figure out the mystery behind Libra Girls’ Academy, dammit.

Nazuna watches over her shoulder as she jots down everything they know so far and occasionally offers some input. Her observations are so astute and point out so many things that Samidare hasn’t even considered that she begins to worry that Nazuna is actually better suited to being a detective than her.

They discuss what transpired right when Samidare came to, going once again over how she woke up, found Takezaki’s body, and saw the caped suspect. Nazuna asks what the caped figure was doing, and Samidare reports that they were just kind of...standing there...menacingly...and holding a steel pipe (the murder weapon according to the challenge card). When Nazuna asks, she explains that the suspect didn’t attack her, but that makes sense since Samidare is the detective assigned to the case and cannot be harmed. She’s apparently filled in the other two girls about how Duel Noir work, and while they didn’t believe her at first, as they’ve all been sitting in this room together, both of them have come around.

Nazuna confirms once again with Samidare that Takezaki was actually dead, and Samidare says that yes, she’s sure. She didn’t just check her pulse using her wrist, she actually checked her neck, and there’s no drug to mask that pulse as far as she’s aware. Besides, Takezaki’s body was already cold, so there was no way she was still alive.

Nazuna tells her to hold up for a second, did she just say that the body was already cold? So in other words, she wasn’t freshly killed just before Samidare woke up?

Yeah, Samidare admits, that makes sense.

In that case, Nazuna continues, the suspect’s actions make even less sense. The killer standing over the body when Samidare woke up would make sense if Takezaki had just been murdered, but the actual killing must have taken place at least an hour beforehand for the body to already be cold. So what the hell was the culprit doing during all that time?

Samidare supposes that perhaps they were setting up the trick? If she woke up too early, they might not be able to prepare everything, so they’d have to hurry.

However, Nazuna points out that it would be silly to try and run around doing that while carrying an iron pipe, and even more importantly, to not try and impede Samidare in any fashion. If Nazuna were the caped culprit (which I’m not entirely sure she isn’t at this point), she’d have tired Samidare up, or blindfolded her, or something to reduce the risk of her seeing something she shouldn’t lest she wake up before the expected moment.

Yeah, sure, Samidare admits, she guesses that tracks.

Still on a roll, Nazuna posits the question of why the culprit wouldn’t restrain Samidare if they had such ample opportunity. Her hypothesis is that it’s because they didn’t need to. And under what circumstances would they not need to? If the trick had already been prepared. So then, the logical path to follow would be to assume that by the time Samidare even ended up in the room, the trick was already in place.

Nazuna’s just out here laying down the logic, and it’s very much hurting Samidare right in the ego.

She just keeps going, too, concluding that if the trick was already set up by the time Samidare even got there, then that wouldn’t explain why the culprit was hanging around for an hour or more at the scene of the crime. Samidare asks what they were doing then, but smarty-pants Nazuna hasn’t figured that out yet. She’s sure it’s an important clue, though.

Begrudgingly, Samidare puts on her thinking cap and reviews what happened when she woke up. That’s when it hits her: the first thing she remembers is the caped culprit staring at her!

...Though what that means exactly she isn’t sure, so she tells Nazuna to see if she has any ideas. Naz begins walking around the desk, looking at Samidare, suggesting that maybe the culprit had done something to her? She doesn’t see anything out of the ordinary...

“My glasses!” Samidare cries, and explains that when she first woke up, she had a short Velma episode where she couldn’t make out much while she fumbled around for her glasses. Nazuna asks where her glasses ultimately were, and Samidare answers that they were nearby on the floor. They agree it’s possible that the culprit may have removed them, but that doesn’t answer why they were staring at Samidare. It’s not like they would have needed to check to make sure her glasses were off.

“Maybe it’s because your face just looks that awful when you’re asleep?” Tsukiyo cuts in from the Peanut Gallery.

She was still crouching in the corner, with a nasty smirk on her face.

“True, I don’t have a lot of confidence in how I look when asleep, but that has nothing to do with this!”

I suddenly remembered that back in junior high, one of my classmates had secretly taken a photo of me sleeping while we were on a field trip. She’d showed it to me later, but I’d been shocked at my open jaw and fully exposed stomach...

“Or maybe they were wondering when your stupid face would wake up, hehe.”

“Ah!”

In a moment, all the puzzle pieces fall into place in Samidare’s head. Tsukiyo yells at her for yelling, but Samidare just tells her that she’s exactly right.

“You’re admitting you’re a stupid face?”

“No, not that. Why the culprit was staring at me. They were waiting for me to wake up!”

She goes on to explain that if they follow Naz-chan’s line of thinking, the trick was already set up before she arrived. However, it probably needed to be triggered, and Samidare herself was likely the catalyst. Nazuna seems a bit confused, so Samidare explains in more concrete terms: for the trick to activate, the culprit probably needed her to chase them. When she began to pursue, it was likely going all according to keikaku--Samidare wasn’t really chasing the caped culprit, she was being led.

That explained the part that she couldn’t figure out earlier too, about why all the doors were left open as the culprit was running away. It also means that the culprit vanishing into the thin air and the corpse disappearing were also intended to be seen, since the culprit would want Samidare to witness the elements of the trick.

Not to mention it explains what Black Cape was doing in the room originally: they were waiting for Samidare to wake up.

She briefly wonders why the culprit would wait rather than tap her on the shoulder or something to wake her up sooner, but maybe it was to increase the chances that Samidare would give chase. If the culprit had roused her, she probably would have noticed and been a bit more skeptical of the scene.

“I unwittingly fell directly into the culprit’s trap,” Samidare concludes, to which Tsukiyo yells that yeah, they been knew! Who else but some weird pervert would trap a bunch of high school girls for their own pleasure?

Well, Junko for one... Actually, no. Checks out still.

Tsukiyo is less concerned with this nonsense and more focused on finding a way out. She’s progressed now to hugging her knees.

Samidare admits that they’re still not quite at that point yet, but Tsukiyo’s already busy having another breakdown. As far as she’s concerned, they’ve made zero progress. She cannot be in here a second longer, so she needs to know how to get out NOW. If she misses one day of violin practice, it might as well be three days’ worth of work down the drain. Does Samidare even understand that? Get her out of here!

“It’s okay, Tsukiyo-san.” Nazuna sat beside her, gently wrapping an arm around her shoulders. “I’m sure we’ll get out soon, okay?”

“Sniff... Naz... I’m scared... Do that thing you always do... please...”

Tsukiyo put her head between her knees and began to shake.

Nazuna reached up as if to pat Tsukiyo on the head, and began to comb through her hair with her fingers, parting the strands for her over and over. After a few minutes of it, Tsukiyo calmed down, and her trembling stopped.

me, reading this and putting a hand over my gay little heart: Oh...?

Samidare admits mentally that if they’re stuck here without food and water for nearly a week, they’ll definitely die. That might actually be what Black Cape is trying to do, intending to win the Duel Noir by letting the clock run down.

She’s got to think.

If they want to survive, she needs to get her little gray cells in gear.

If Kirigiri-chan were in this situation, she’d just keep pressing forward. That’s the greatest weapon a detective has--her tenacity.

Of course, if Kirigiri-chan were here, she’d probably have already figured out what was going on.

“If I tell you this much, you should get it, right Yui-oneesama?”

It’s just like she always said. If I thought over the evidence hard enough, I’d find some kind of clue.

Let’s review it again.

Samidare mentally tallies the facts: they aren’t trapped here by accident, they’re here because it’s where the culprit wants them. That means that the culprit had to know they were going to come into the room.

...You know, I’m just saying, I remember Nazuna insisting that we all come see Takezaki’s body.

Sadly, Samidare forgets about that. She does remember that they came back to investigate the body though, only to find it had vanished into thin air. Why did it disappear? And how? If they can figure that out, they should also stumble upon a way to escape.

The body vanished from this room, so there’s got to be some kind of clue here.

Isn’t that right, Kirigiri-chan?

Reaching further back, Samidare confirms that Takezaki Hana was indeed dead in this very room. She remembers the blood pouring out of her head staining the rug. Yet right now, there’s no sign of a corpse anywhere. And moving it out of the room would take a not-insignificant amount of time and effort. Samidare considers the wheeled trolley she used to escort the Virgin Mary statue--that’d be a way to easily move the body. You could cart it out and hide it somewhere in about ten minutes or so.

The other, more pressing issue, is the lack of any bloodstains. Cleaning a rug is not a quick fix, and how could you clean it so well that there was absolutely no evidence left behind?

Samidare gets up to examine the rug, noting that she’s not finding any wet spots or discoloration. Though it’s a red rug, it’s not blood red, so you should be able to see if there’s any bloodstains on it. (Kitayama-sensei, are you making DanRon blood color jokes again?)

Confused, Samidare muses to herself out loud about her hypothesis so far: you’d need a lot of time, water, and detergent to clean up that much blood, but there’s no evidence of cleaning having even happened.

“If you had specialized tools, you could clean everything perfectly within about an hour,” Nazuna said, running her fingers through Tsukiyo’s hair.

“An hour, huh...”

However, Samidare rules this out, since she’s pretty sure finding Nazuna and Tsukiyo and setting them free didn’t take an hour. Next they consider the possibility that the Committee could have provided a special cleaning machine that could have taken care of the bloodstains faster than they’d expect, but Nazuna points out that in that case the culprit would have to ensure that Samidare wouldn’t come back to the room in the meantime. (Also I’m pretty sure something like that would be listed on the Duel Noir Challenge Card?)

She’s got a point, Samidare admits. It’s pretty unlikely that the culprit would spend more than five minutes moving the body and ten minutes cleaning, max. Was that even realistically possible?

Nazuna, appropriately given that Celes has been indirectly mentioned in this book, suggests that maybe the culprit rolled up the rug with the body in it, moved it, and then laid out a new rug. Samidare is ready to go along with that until Nazuna herself points out that the trick likely would be something that wouldn’t be affected by whether or not the victim bled everywhere. They both agree that cleaning up a bloody corpse is not something that can be done in a matter of minutes.

Next Samidare muses that perhaps the trick is on a grander scale than they might have anticipated--what if the entire floor of this room could be flipped over like a coin? Something similar to how Norman’s Hotel was on a giant lazy susan? Then you could dump the body and have a nice clean floor for Samidare and the others to find.

Nazuna’s not so sure about this, asking about the other furniture in the room. If the desk and chair aren’t attached to the floor--which they aren’t--then that suggests that the floor didn’t just flip over. Samidare counters that you could wait outside with a different desk and chair to set up within a few minutes after the flip, which Nazuna agrees is possible.

Riding the high of having a working theory, Samidare goes to examine where the floor and walls meet to look for gaps. Those will give away that the floor can be flipped over!

Yay, Samidare!

...There aren’t any gaps.

There isn’t even any evidence of gaps that have been since filled.

Samidare’s pretty bummed that her idea didn’t work out, but she figures that it makes sense that the Committee wouldn’t recycle tricks she’s already seen. *cough*unlikeKodaka*cough*

Nazuna tries to console her by saying that she at least feels like they’ve made some progress. Now they have a better idea of what kinds of tricks to consider being in play. Samidare says that yeah, the Committee is pretty extra when it comes to their murder tricks, and she sits back down with a sigh.

She may not know what the trick is exactly, but there’s got to be some kind of clue hidden in what’s happened so far at Libra Girls’ Academy.

Samidare reviews the things she’s thought were weird since she woke up:

Black Cape was standing over her when she woke up. Solved: They were waiting for Samidare to wake up and witness the trick.

She wasn’t wearing her glasses when she woke up. Solved?: To slow her down and buy Black Cape some time to get a head start?

All of the doors were left open. Solved?: To make them easier to chase?

After Black Cape went into the coffin room, the door wouldn’t open when Samidare pulled on it. It did open after some time passed.

Black Cape disappeared from the coffin room.

Nazuna and Tsukiyo were tied up inside the coffins.

The key to unlock Nazuna and Tsukiyo’s restraints was around the neck of a Virgin Mary statue in the chapel.

When the three of them went back to the room to check on the corpse, it was gone.

They got locked into the room that used to have the body in it.

According to Samidare, the most relevant issue is probably #4. How did Black Cape manage to keep the door locked despite there being no lock? They couldn’t have been holding it closed since they were gone the second Samidare stepped into the room. That really was a mystery.

Maybe there was a set up in the room that made it so that the door couldn’t be opened while it was doing its thing?

For example, like how elevator doors can’t be opened when the elevator is in motion...

Hold on a tic, Samidare thinks, getting up to go examine the door.

Sure enough, it’s a sliding door on a track. It’s set up to close on its own unless you pull it all the way to the end of the track, in which case it will stay open. There’s no handle, only a divot to put your fingers in so you can pull the door. No sign of a lock or a keyhole.

So how the heck is the door being kept shut?

Since the track isn’t on the inside of the room, the logical assumption to make is that it’s out in the hallway. Black Cape could trap them inside if they put a pole or something in to stop the door from being able to slide on the track, but is that really what’s going on? The door to the coffin room was locked just like this one, and there was no evidence of anything blocking the door.

Is the track for this door even out in the hallway? The coffin room door didn’t have it on the hallway side, so it must have been in the room. If this room and the coffin room are identical in all other ways, why are the door tracks on opposite sides? And why bother to do that?

Is it possible that the door track isn’t in the hallway OR inside the room for both of them?

Where did the door go when it was opened?

Thinking about it like an elevator makes it pretty obvious: the doors go into the wall, or more accurately, into a space in the wall specifically for the doors.

And if that’s the case...

“Are you okay, Samidare-san?”

“I feel like I just realized something important. But it’s usually not me who’s doing this sort of thing, so I’m a little light-headed to be honest...”

“Get it together! You’re a detective, aren’t you?” Tsukiyo said, looking up. “We’re counting on you...”

“S-Sure.”

I stepped away from the door and began to circle the room. I’d found a clue, but how to proceed from there? If I were Kirigiri-chan, I’d put it all together immediately. I felt a pang of frustration at my own stupidity. The nerve of some talent-less hack like me, pretending to be a detective...

I suddenly remembered what Kirigiri had said to me when we last saw each other.

“Mind the Scales.”

Neither Nazuna nor Tsukiyo had the Scales as their zodiac sign, so I could probably rule them out as suspects. So where was the culprit who had that sign then?

The Scales...

Wait.

No way...

“Hey, do either of you know about horoscopes?”

“Huh? Do you mean like zodiac signs?” Nazuna asked.

“Yeah. The ones they put on the news in the morning and stuff.”

“What girl doesn’t like horoscopes?” Tsukiyo said. “Why, do you want to know your fortune?”

“No, not that. What’s the name of the Scales sign in English? Do you know?”

“Sure. It’s Libra.”

“Ah!”

“I knew it!”

Nazuna and I cried out at the same time.

“Right...that’s it! I get it! The secret of Libra Girls’ Academy. And the reason why both Black Cape and the body disappeared, and the reason we’re stuck in here!”

Sometimes, you translate a thing, and then more gets added later that paints you into a corner, but such is life, I suppose. Anyway, see you very soon for the next update!

P.S. Did you find my foreshadowing pun in this update? うぷぷぷ…

< LAST PART | NEXT PART >

#DR Kirigiri #DRK5 summary #DRK5 #translation #long post

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khrsecretvalentine · 5 years ago

Text

KHR Summer Exchange 2019 for @khrkin

Notes: KHR Secret Summer Holidays 2019! For Fran (@khrkin), who asked for terrible comedy and found-family (and 1827, which I unfortunately didn’t manage, sorry ;o;).

From @kyogre-blue to @khrkin

~.~.~

The Special Investigation, Containment, and Discipline Committee, Namimori branch, was supposed to investigate, contain and punish supernatural crimes — hauntings, possessions, curses, use of magic in illegal affairs, as well as monster attacks. Ghostbusters, pseudo government version, basically. Sawada Tsunayoshi, terrified out of his mind, had received a full course of training on all those things during new hire orientation… the “orientation” that was just a shaky home-made video and a powerpoint slide with clipart zooming onto the screen.

Anyway, apparently all those scary things did exist.

However, dealing with them… was not what they actually did, day to day. In his three months at the Committee, Tsuna hadn’t seen a single supernatural thing outside of his coworkers.

He had seen a distressingly high number of stalkers, serial killers and scammers though.

“Don’t worry, Tsuna-kun!” Sasagawa Kyoko, the secretary, receptionist and nanny of the team, comforted him when he tried to bring up the subject. “It’s summer now, and we’ll have more real work. Summer is the season for seances and ghost stories, after all. That’ll stir up the spirits. Lots of people going exploring too, in all kinds of places, waking up all kinds of things… I’m sure it’ll pick up soon!”

That wasn’t comforting.

…Let’s start at the beginning.

Sawada Tsunayoshi, also known as Dame Tsuna, age 18, had completely bombed every university entrance exam he’d taken — as expected. His middle school crush Kyoko found him crying behind the school building on graduation day, completely without future prospects. With the kindness that had made him fall for her in the first place, she gave him her handkerchief and listened to his sobbed complaints.

“It’s okay, Tsuna-kun,” she said, after he calmed down. “I know a place that’s always looking for people!”

That place was the Special Investigation, Containment, and Discipline Committee, Namimori branch.

Kyoko and her brother Ryohei had been recruited after they ended up involved in a supernatural incident. It wasn’t a kind of “you know about us, so now you must join” thing. They could have forgotten all about it and gone home to their normal lives. Although the Committee did not have anything as nice as actual memory alteration, they did have a substance that could blur recent memories, which was given to most witnesses.

Ryohei refused. Punching ghosts or whatever was apparently too exciting. And Kyoko followed his lead.

Frankly speaking, Tsuna hadn’t really believed in this stuff. He figured that this was the designated ‘loser’ group that was changed with wild goose chases and hoaxes — someone had to deal with the citizens calling in hauntings and such, after all, even if it all turned out to be squeaky windows and leaking pipes in the end.

Most importantly, it was a job that didn’t care about his qualifications and didn’t require any competence test. As long as he could escape being an unemployed waste upon society, Tsuna would take anything.

He… did not expect his boss to beat him up on the first day, or one of his coworkers to have a shape-shifting bamboo sword that could cut through sheets of solid steel. Or the weird foreign kid, who might have been a coworker but Tsuna wasn’t sure, to be able to generate lightning out of nowhere. Or his other, other coworker who may or may not have been possessed.

But it was still a job. Tsuna would take anything, including all that.

The current job market was scarier than any ghost.

…Probably. Final judgement pending actually seeing a ghost.

~.~.~

Just as Kyoko said, summer was the season of ghost stories and seances. What this meant was that the police, the fire department and sometimes even government agencies that didn’t like naming themselves would transfer over cases from concerned citizens who were absolutely sure they were being haunted by the spirit of their great-grandfather, a jilted office lady who hung herself at the abandoned building a block over, or a famous serial killer. (Why did people like trying to call up the ghost of Jack the Ripper so much anyway?)

Kyoko and Yamamoto, the only two employees with basic social skills, were on the phone without rest, using their friendliest, most soothing voices. Meanwhile, Tsuna and Ryohei were given links to videos of exorcism ceremonies and some very realistic looking Shinto priest robes, sewn up by their intern Haru. Thus equipped, they became… con artists on a government salary.

Gokudera had also been offered a costume, but he insisted on trying to prove the concerned citizens’ worries unfounded through the power of science — even if Gokudera’s idea of science included “energy fields” that could not be detected by modern instruments, which left “imprints” that carried an “echo of the deceased’s biopatterns” blah blah, and other things that sounded no less creepy than just calling it a haunting.

Gokudera’s success rate dropped to an all new low, along with his salary.

It was the usual combination of dumb job and crazy coworkers, just in sweltering heat.

And then, Tsuna tried to perform an… exorcism (scam) at the new Nonohana Building downtown.

The building had been suffering from a number of creepy rumors, which came to a head when several bored employees had a few too many drinks after working overtime, did a seance (of course), and then ended up in the hospital one by one after mysterious accidents (of course).

“Na-mo-ta-mo-ra-su-ro…” Tsuna chanted pure nonsense while walking through the motions roughly approximating an exorcism. The paper ropes at the end of his stick rustled as he swung it back and forth. Nearby, the building owner and several other figures in business suits watched with expressions ranging from worry to desperate hope to outright boredom. One of them was filming with her cellphone. Tsuna sweated a little more than usual, under the heavy priest robes.

Thankfully, he didn’t trip this time — that was always hard to explain away.

The air felt a little strange, as Tsuna knelt and completed the fake exorcism. And his stick — currently serving as a scam prop with paper ropes tied onto it, but in actuality a collapsible nightstick he had been given as self-defense weapon — was almost uncomfortably hot in his hand. It made him hesitate and get up only slowly.

Before he could lift his head, the nearby peanut gallery gasped collectively. When Tsuna looked at them, they were all staring at something on the high wall of the lobby, behind the reception desk.

Tsuna turned.

“Hiiiiieeee—!”

There was dark red, blood-like substance flowing down the smooth surface of the wall. There was no indication where the hopefully-not-blood came from, as it seemingly appeared out of nowhere several dozen feet up. It didn’t flow straight down like a proper rust stain either. The red smears thickened and thinned, and curved — into what looked entirely too much like writing.

PAY

—It said.

“M-Mr. Sawada!” the building owner whimpered. “Wh-what…”

Tsuna also did not know what. With trembling hands, he fumbled through his robes and pulled out his cellphone, hitting the speed-dial for the office.

The call did not go through. What came from the speaker was instead an almost cliche horror movie mix of sounds — a screech, static, and a long moan-like clicking. The screen flickered and showed Tsuna’s wallpaper, only to glitch and twist until there was something like the shadow of a screaming face among the pixels.

Tsuna wanted to pass out. He really, really wanted to pass out.

His terrified shrieking — as well as that of the gathered businessmen — was drowned out by the clatter of the storm shutters descending across all the lobby windows. The suited clients, er, concerned citizens scattered, running in several directions in a futile bid to find some way out of the lobby that was suddenly in lockdown. Tsuna’s legs trembled too much to follow them.

It was suddenly the real deal?! Unfair! Illegal!!

…Hauntings were, in fact, illegal. They had rules about them. Tsuna couldn’t remember them now, but they were definitely in the rulebook. (He had thought it was kind of funny at the time, but he definitely couldn’t laugh about it anymore.)

“Mr. Sawada! Mr. Sawada, do something!” one of the suits wailed, suddenly grabbing onto him.

Do something? Like what?!

The lights flickered disconcertingly, taking on a red glow. There was the sound of static and an air raid siren echoing across the lobby, almost loud enough to drown out the sobbing and the screaming.

Between the half-light, darkness, and eerie red backlight, a figure appeared near the blocked off doors. Shapeless under a swathing cloak, it turned slowly toward those that had been pawing hopelessly at the shutters, prompting a new round of screaming.

Now, there was even a… ghost? Grim reaper?

Tsuna was so terrified that he mostly just felt numb.

Some of the other businessmen had been frantically pounding the elevator button up, and their prayers were unexpectedly answered. With a quiet ding that was almost drowned out by the chaos — why were there sounds of thunder?! — the thick doors slid open, and blessed, pale light flooded out of the elevator cabin.

Everyone who hadn’t been standing by the elevator rushed toward it. Those that had been already there tumbled inside like knocked over bowling pins. The suit who had been clinging to Tsuna followed suit, dropping him like last season’s designer boots and sprinting toward the salvation elevator with a speed that belied his impressive salaryman drinking belly.

Naturally, Tsuna very much wanted to follow. But when he tried to do so, still staring fixedly at the cloaked apparition slowly approaching, the hem of Haru’s carefully sewn robes tangled his legs.

With a yelp, he splattered across the polished floor. His attempts to either scramble to his feet or just scramble away on all fours were impeded by those same robes, leaving Tsuna faceplanting a few more times. The cloaked figure approached slowly but unrelentingly.

“Hiiiieee—! S-s-stay away!” Tsuna squealed.

In pure, mind-numbing panic, he threw his baton at it.

What happened next could only be considered an act of providence, proof of the divine — or that the universe had a terrible sense of humor. Tsuna’s aim was and had always been atrocious. He really couldn’t even hit the broad side of a gym.

And yet, with a dull thud, the nightstick planted solidly into the center of the ominous figure’s hooded… head? It bounced off and clattered away somewhere in the shadows, but Tsuna had no mind to care about that.

Along with the ability to aim, he also lacked any sort of arm strength, so logically, getting hit by something he threw should have not been worth noting. But the cloaked figure swayed and, unbelievably, toppled over into a heap of fabric and… limbs?

Legs in jeans and sneakers, completely normal-looking arms… With the cloak bunched up carelessly, the true nature of the ‘menacing figure’ was revealed.

The lights were still flickering, there was still a horror movie soundtrack of noises echoing through the lobby, and the exits were still all blocked. But Tsuna didn’t have the mood to ‘appreciate’ that any longer. Slowly and carefully crawling over, he used two fingers to pull back the hood of the cloak. Beneath was… the face of a completely ordinary young man, maybe a couple years older than Tsuna.

“Oh, Madam President, isn’t that your youngest?” the suit, who had clung to Tsuna and then heartlessly abandoned him, had come back and peered over his shoulder with interest.

Tsuna had a truly annoying premonition.

In a while, they would indeed confirm that this young man was the building owner’s youngest son, skilled with computers and going through a rebellious phase. Since this building was quite modern, everything was controlled through electronic systems. Painting something invisible on the wall to leave an outline for the rust-colored liquid to fill was also simple, if you were creative. He had apparently planned to lock all the executives, their assistants and Tsuna in the elevators for a while to give them a good scare, then let them out without too much harm.

So basically, a horror-themed family dispute, the kind of thing no one even wanted the cops to be involved in, much less some dubious government committee.

…There were actual hauntings, zombie outbreaks, and monster attacks out there. Tsuna had been assured of this point.

However, this was not one of them.

~.~.~

It was late night, and the Committee office had been slowly emptying. Even Kyoko was already packing up. Before heading out, she stopped by Tsuna’s desk, where he was mournfully pecking away at a report regarding the latest joke of an incident.

He was mourning his overworked brain, his lost youth and innocent dreams, and also his sore eyes from staring at the computer screen for so long. At least this incident had been minor enough that only Deputy Chief Kusakabe would be checking his report, not the actual Chief. Reports to the Chief had to be written with a brush.

“Don’t stay too late, Tsuna-kun,” Kyoko said, patting his shoulder kindly. “You can finish in the morning.”

“Deputy Chief said it has to be in his inbox first thing tomorrow,” Tsuna said gloomily.

Kyoko’s lips pursed disapprovingly. “For such a minor incident? He’s just giving you a hard time because you’re new,” she said, huffing. “We should make a complaint!”

“It’s okay, it’s okay,” Tsuna assured her quickly. “It’s just so that I learn the ropes!” He appreciated Kyoko’s willingness to stand up for him — truly worthy of his first crush — but this level of… what couldn’t even be called hazing wasn’t even worth mentioning, for someone who had been thoroughly bullied all through his school years. This was just actually doing his work, not having his shoes hidden or his books torn up or anything like that.

“…Well, okay,” Kyoko conceded after a moment. “But tell me if it gets too much, okay? I’ll see you tomorrow.”

“See you tomorrow!”

Once she had stepped into the elevator, drops sliding shut behind her, Tsuna let his waving hand drop and slumped in his not very comfortable office chair with a groan.

He had always received abysmal scores in composition, but this was far from Tsuna’s first time writing a mission report, so it wasn’t like he didn’t know what to do. Even if there remained a 50-50 chance that Deputy Chief Kusakabe would send it back to him for corrections, that was still an improvement over his previous 4 out of 5 returned as unacceptable.

Tsuna was really just dragging his feet and procrastinating too much, partly out of embarrassment. He had actually gotten caught up in that prank and believed it. None of the others would have fallen for it, he bet. But mostly, it was taking so long out of boredom. Writing reports… was really boring.

Sighing, he sat up and went back to typing.

Half of the lights in the office had automatically turned off once the motion sensors no longer picked up anyone around. With almost all staff done for the day, the only sounds were the clicking of keys from Tsuna’s desk — and muffled cursing from Gokudera’s, where he was supposed to be working on his own report, along with a formal apology to the owner of the construction site he’d blow up instead of ‘exorcising’.

Tsuna had already been almost done anyway, and once the main recounting of events was done, the more formulaic closing sections came to him with the ease of practice.

His head snapped up in surprise at the sound of an office chair skittering back. Not his chair — Gokudera’s.

His coworker stalked around the row of desks with a scowl and a slouch that any delinquent would have been proud of. With the Chief absent, Gokudera had even dared to wear his regulation black suit unbuttoned, with his tie pulled loose. Frankly speaking, he terrified Tsuna only slightly less than Chief Hibari and Chrome in one of her kufufu moods, so Tsuna made every effort to remain very still, in hopes of being overlooked.

No such luck. It was precisely his desk that Gokudera shambled his way over to, and when Tsuna failed to look at him in a timely manner, he kicked snappishly at the legs of his chair.

“Hey, new kid!” Gokudera barked.

“Y-yes!” Tsuna spun around, spine ramrod straight and his gaze somewhere to the left of Gokudera’s head.

Unexpectedly, a phone was thrust at him, making Tsuna fumble as he tried to take it, missed, and finally clutched it in his sweaty paws. “This is… my phone?” he realized. How did Gokudera manage to get it? Tsuna thought he might have left it on his desk, or maybe in his bag, or… Well, he wasn’t sure where he’d left it, but he hadn’t handed it over.

“Getting hacked by some amateur, that’s just embarrassing,” Gokudera grumbled. Sticking out his lower lip in a way that was probably meant to be intimidating but would be more sullen to anyone except Tsuna, he looked off somewhere to the side and rubbed the back of his neck. “I put in some actual security for yah. And a couple sensors for fluctuations in od, in case you finally manage to run into some actual deviations in ambient true energy.”

“Like a ghost sensor?” Tsuna guessed, mostly because he wasn’t sure what else Gokudera could be talking about.

“Don’t call it something so unscientific!”

“Hiieee! Yes! Yes!” Tsuna squeaked, ducking his head and trying to hide behind his newly modified phone as Gokudera snapped at him.

Clicking his tongue irritably, Gokudera turned and shambled away, perhaps back to his own report and apology letter that were still waiting for him. He was exceptionally brilliant, Tsuna was aware, so a few updates to a phone wouldn’t take him long, but the fact that he had taken the time to do it…

Tsuna smiled down into his lap, fiddling with the device.

“Th… thank you, Gokudera-kun,” he mumbled.

His didn’t have the guts to raise his voice, but in the quiet, empty office, there was no doubt Gokudera heard him.

~.~.~

Sasagawa Ryohei and Yamamoto Takeshi returned the next day, making the office much livelier. Ryohei had been on helping look into recurring disappearances of hikers on the ominously named Death Mountain, while Yamamoto had been sent to the beach regarding a supposed sea monster attack.

Both of those definitely sounded like better assignments, so it was no wonder the more senior agents snatched them up. …That being said, Tsuna was aware that his pathetic stamina and physical capabilities wouldn’t have been up to running around in the mountains, or even out in full sun on the beach. Ryohei and Yamamoto, being sports club types, were far more suited to those kinds of missions.

“So was it a real one this time?” Kyoko asked when she stopped by her brother’s desk that morning. Since it wasn’t a private sort of conversation, naturally everyone listened in.

“Nah,” Ryohei waved one hand wrapped up in bandages like always. “They all just kept getting lost to the extreme. Only thing out there was piles of beer bottles. I made a few groups help cleanup, and since they all made it back, everyone calmed down about the place.”

Kyoko laughed, bright and cheerful. Tsuna, two desks away, sighed. Typical for their office, really.

Pushing off from his desk, Yamamoto rolled over in his chair. He spun around to face them smoothly and said with a grin, “Mine was real.”

“Oh!” Kyoko gasped excitedly, and even Gokudera, who detested Yamamoto fiercely, leaned closer to listen in.

Yamamoto’s smile widened as he began to narrate. “There really was a sea monster, tentacles and everything. It was a kind of mutant octonus thing, but also with lobster pincers. It swallowed a bunch of people and a few boats, and when it spit them out, they were covered with goo… very gross.”

“Mutation? From pollution? Radiation?” Gokudera muttered to himself.

“It’s good that it spit them out,” Kyoko said. “Were they okay?”

“Oh yeah, they were fine,” Yamamoto said. “I mean, grossed out, but fine. It turns out… somebody dropped an ice cream cone into the water, and it really liked the taste, so it was looking for more. Once it figured out where to look, it mostly just kept eating ice cream trucks…”

Kyoko laughed again, but Tsuna could only groan internally and palm his face.

Really? A real life monster, and it just… wanted ice cream? Why was his job like this? Why was the world like this? Ice cream?! What about the hunger for human flesh! What about revenge against mankind! What about invasion of the sea dwellers! Manga had lied to him!!

Even when the monsters were real, the cases were still ridiculous.

…Well, at least he was getting paid. The benefits were also good.

Their gossip time came to an abrupt end as Yamamoto spotted something behind them and quickly sat up straight, his expression serious and professional. A quick glance confirmed — it was Deputy Chief Kusakabe, coming over from Chrome’s… office, or maybe cell, Tsuna wasn’t clear. In the presence of an authority figure, everyone quickly turned to their desks and computers, trying to project an image of productivity and focus.

Their attempts weren’t very good, but Kusakabe didn’t seem to notice. He wasn’t like the Chief anyway. Although he was certainly stern, he had always been patient with Tsuna’s many, many, many screw ups.

Trailing behind him was Chrome. Tsuna blinked in surprise — it was rare for her to leave her area.

“Sasagawa,” the Deputy Chief called out. “Your status?”

“Yes! I’m extremely good!” Ryohei sounded off without hesitation. “Ready to go any time!”

Kusakabe nodded. “Good, then come along,” he said. “The rest of you, don’t take any cases today. Stay at the office and hold down the fort. I will contact you if the situation changes.”

He didn’t explain what that meant, walking off quickly with Chrome and Ryohei in tow. When the Deputy Chief’s figure vanished into the elevator, Tsuna glanced at the others. “W… what situation?” he wondered. “What was that all about?”

“Are you dumb? There must be something big going down, if the Deputy’s taking Dokuro out,” Gokudera said snappishly.

“Sounds like it,” Yamamoto agreed, somewhat pensively. Agreeing with Gokudera earned him a sharp glare. “And we’re on standby, so I guess we should be ready to help, if it comes to that.”

The earlier cheerful gossip mood had all but dissipated, and everyone began to turn back to their tasks with a lingering sense of tension, even as Kyoko quietly wondered whether to let Lambo know. Tsuna cursed internally. With the current state of things, Deputy Chief Kusakabe had almost certainly had no time to read his report. If he’d know it would be like this, he wouldn’t have bothered staying late yesterday to finish it!

~.~.~

The weather recently had been sunny and very suitable for summer, but by afternoon, thick gray clouds had overtaken the sky and wind battered in strong gusts against the windows. Although it was still early, typhoon season had begun.

After lunch, Kyoko read out the weather forecast. “Meteorologists were taken off guard by the sudden appearance of the storm front rolling onto the Kanto coast…” she said distractedly, her eyes skimming the text on her screen. “Expected to make landfall around sunset… Category is not yet determined… I’d say we should head home a little early to make sure we’re not caught out in the storm, but with the way things are… what should we do?”

The Special Investigation, Containment, and Discipline Committee, Namimori branch, wasn’t a large group to begin with. With the Chief, the Deputy Chief and even Ryohei out, everyone left was about the same age and with little difference in seniority. When it came to making a decision, they could only exchange uncertain looks, no one willing to take on the responsibility.

After about a minute of silence, Kyoko accepted that there would be no answer. “Okay,” she said. “Deputy Chief didn’t say we needed to stay late, and we don’t have a night shift to begin with, so let’s have one person stay until closing, and everyone else can head home early. Who lives closest?”

Ah, Kyoko-chan really was amazing, Tsuna thought.

“Probably me,” he volunteered. “I can stay.”

It was summer, so it wasn’t like sunset was at all close to the normal end of business. It would be windy, but he’d make it home fine.

…Or so Tsuna told himself while foolishly smiling at Kyoko. Things like logic and actual thinking were not involved.

Since meteorologists had completely failed to predict this storm coming in at all, why did he think they’d be able to predict when it would arrive? By five PM, it was so dark out that the few passing cars needed headlights, even hours away from sunset. The sky was a roiling gunmetal gray. When Tsuna stepped outside, he was nearly blown off his feet by a gust of wind, and his backpack was shoved up so hard that it hit the back of his head.

Stumbling along with a series of yelps lost on the wind, he managed to grab hold of a lamp post and clung for dear life.

There was no one else out on the streets, because every other person in Namimori had more sense than Tsuna. Aaah, why did Kyoko-chan’s smile have to be so cute and wonderful? Why did he have to go and try to act all reliable? Bemoaning his own foolishness, Tsuna squinted against the wind and tried to get his bearings. There was nothing to do but hug the buildings and stagger off in the direction of the train station.

However, Tsuna only made it a block over before a hand clamped onto his shoulder and he was suddenly dragged into a narrow alley between buildings.

“Hiiiiee! Take my wallet! Take my bag! Take anything, just don’t kill me!” he started begging immediately, throwing his arms over his head and cringing away.

But the presumed mugger, or maybe human trafficker, or maybe serial killer made no demands and didn’t hit him. After several long moments of silence, Tsuna dared to peek out, trembling.

What greeted him was infinitely more terrifying than a petty crook. Or a human trafficker. Or a serial killer.

It was his boss.

“Ch-Ch-Chief!” Tsuna stuttered helplessly.

Hibari Kyoya stared at him with the same blank coffin face as always, somehow still faintly exuding an aura of violence and murder. Unlike usual, his suit jacket was missing, and his tie was askew. He was also soaked, even though it hadn’t started raining yet.

“Phone,” Hibari ordered sharply. As Tsuna scrambled to obey, he added, “Call Kusakabe.”

“Y-yes! Right away, sir!” Tsuna blurted out, fumbling as he went through his pockets. Where had he put it? Oh, he better not have lost it. He’d be losing his life next…

Fortunately, his work phone turned up before Chief Hibari could lose his temper and give him another beating that was precisely short of putting him in the hospital. This was, Tsuna felt distantly aware, completely illegal and abuse of an innocent subordinate. But even Deputy Chief Kusakabe had just said it was “training,” and since Tsuna only saw the Chief once a month at most, it was still preferable to… shudder, returning to the job market.

It was only with his phone in hand that Tsuna realized it was continually beeping and vibrating as some kind of alarm went off. Given the juvenile punk font of the notification on his screen, Tsuna could guess this was Gokudera’s ghost sensing app.

He couldn’t tell how its metrics are supposed to work, but the weird typeset certainly looked threatening. It was also annoyingly hard to dismiss.

“J-just a moment, sir!” Tsuna squeaked, darting a nervous glance at Hibari.

The Chief was no longer paying him any mind. Hibari’s attention was on the main street outside their little back alley, and his expression was subtly furrowed. “Hurry up,” he ordered shortly, lifting up one of his tonfas. The other was notably absent, along with his belt and one of his cufflinks. “It’s here.”

…What was?

Down the street, a manhole cover was suddenly thrown into the air as a geyser of water burst up from underground. Then another, and another, and another, geysers burst up one after another, moving down the street — toward them.

“W-what the…” Tsuna muttered, staring in shock. The phone in his hand blared an alarm, louder and louder.

Water was flooding down the street, crashing against the buildings and sweeping away anything that had been left outside. But as the wave rushed past their alley, Chief Hibari inexplicably… lifted his tonfa and struck out at it.

The force of his blow parted the water halfway across the street, revealing the asphalt and the painted lanes — and making Tsuna’s eyebrows climb in shock and some horror. He’d known their Chief was strong, but this was just shounen anime levels of ridiculous. Thank goodness he’d apparently held back when beating up Tsuna. Thank you, Chief, you’re so merciful!

Something moaned unhappily, and waves twisted around to bear down on Hibari.

Great. So it was a water monster.

Hahaha… ha…

Frantically, Tsuna pounded on his phone screen. He could barely tear his eyes away from the spectacle of his boss fighting a wall of water that continually reformed under his devastating attacks, but somehow he finally managed to hit the contacts and the Deputy Chief’s entry.

“This is Kusa—”

“Sir! Sir! Sir! Chief is here! And fighting! And water!” Tsuna wailed without waiting for Kusakabe to greet him.

“We’ll be right there,” Kusakabe said with an unnatural degree of calm. Presumably, they could track his phone’s GPS to fight out where ‘here’ was.

Tsuna did not pay this or the end of the call any mind. Screeching, he threw himself aside just in time to avoid a lashing water tentacle that struck down the alley. The heavy industrial dumpster which took the hit in his stead was dented into a rough V and was thrown free of where it had been chained down.

This was it, the real deal. A real monster or supernatural phenomenon or ghost or whatever. Tsuna’s internal whining about his boring con artist job had finally been answered.

And now he was going to die for it.

But before the next water whip could turn Tsuna into another rough V shape, Hibari forcefully punted him aside. …Well, no. Despite the pain, all his organs were still intact, so it wasn’t that forceful, really. Ah, Chief, so merciful…

“Useless!” Hibari barked, but he didn’t have the attention to spare for the glaring that usually accompanied such a pronouncement. Although he was still fighting with relentless intensity, even a useless wimp like Tsuna could see that he was being forced back step by step.

Distantly, he considered drawing his own weapon, but really, what good would it do?

And in the middle of the chaos, it began to rain.

It came down suddenly and heavily, almost blinding Tsuna. And even though the volume of water added shouldn’t have made any difference yet, the wave blocking the alleyway and advancing on Hibari swelled and reared up.

‘Oh no,’ Tsuna thought, just before it crashed down over both of them, completely disregarding Hibari’s last attack.

Blub, blub, blub — a few bubbles sprang free before Tsuna managed to clamp his mouth shut. The underwater currents sent him spinning head over heels, and he was vaguely surprised that he hadn’t been thrown into any of the buildings. The alley had been narrow, after all, and despite having lost his bearings, he thought that he had already floated quite a ways. When he tried to pry his eyes open, he couldn’t see anything at all.

A pale hand shot out of the dark water and grabbed hold of his jacket collar.

It was Hibari. He glared at Tsuna, then twisted — and somehow, in defiance of all laws of physics, hurled him away. Before Tsuna knew what was happening, he shot out from beneath the surface and crashed onto a ledge a couple stories up. Rain was pelting down in full now, driven by gusting winds. Rolling onto his hands and knees, Tsuna scrambled up to the edge and looked down at the flood water that ran along the streets.

“Ch… Chief!” he called out. “Chief!!”

He needed to do something! But he couldn’t do anything! Tsuna wailed helplessly.

With an ear-splitting screech, a car skidded around the corner down the street. It sent sheets of water flying, making Tsuna realize with some surprise that the flooding was not nearly as high as he had expected. It was only just above a person’s knees. Even accounting for a strong current, how in the world could Hibari have been swept away…?

Right. Supernatural monster thing.

Even before the large black car had jerked to a stop, the rear door was flung open and Chrome, looking tiny and delicate as always, jumped out onto the rainy street. A long trident appeared in her hand — Tsuna felt sure she hadn’t been carrying it inside the car, since how could she have moved so smoothly with it? And then, just as she landed on the wet asphalt, Chrome… turned into a man.

Okay.

Twirling the trident over his head, guy-Chrome (??) slammed its tail into the pavement, and a shockwave rippled out all the way down the street.

The rain was sent flying. The water was sent flying. Tsuna was sent flying, barely managing to stay on his ledge — the fall was the kind that killed normal people.

There was a long silence as even the storm was momentarily halted.

Then, something landed on top of Tsuna’s head with a wet plunk and bounced off. It wasn’t rain. Left wiggling helplessly on the ledge was a single ordinary goldfish.

It wasn’t single for long. A veritable torrent of goldfish soon followed it down, covering the entire street in piles of flopping little bodies. The largest pile stirred, and Hibari rose up out of it, looking particularly murderous and also entirely too threatening for someone with fish in his hair.

“Kufufufu,” guy-Chrome laughed mockingly. “No need to thank me, ‘Chief’. How could I possibly leave you to struggle on your own with just your meager power? Kufufu…”

Tsuna’s first thought that guy-Chrome clearly wanted to die very much, but that didn’t seem to be the case. Without giving Hibari a chance to brutally murder him, guy-Chrome swiftly turned back into normal Chrome, his creepy laughter still echoing in the air. Chrome looked at the Chief wide-eyed, clutching the trident’s shaft to her chest.

Hibari, waist-deep in goldfish and under the pleading stare of a cute girl, gritted his teeth and, kicking his way free, stalked toward Kusakabe, who had emerged from the large black car’s driver’s seat.

“Deal with this,” he ordered Kusakabe, passing by Chrome without a look at her and stepping into the still open rear door of the car. The car door slammed shut behind him.

Then, it opened again, and Ryohei was unceremoniously flug out, followed by another slam.

Wordlessly, Kusakabe pulled out his cellphone and began to make arrangements.

Clearing his throat, Tsuna called out, “Um… Excuse me? Could someone… help me get down?”

~.~.~

The next day, the Chief did not come in and the Deputy Chief was away as well, probably handling some kind of cleanup and explanations to their superiors. Regardless, the office gossip circle reconvened with impunity.

“It’s so sad,” Kyoko sighed. “Those poor fish… I don’t think I’m ever going to be able to look at those festival stalls the same way again.”

It turned out that the water monster, which drew in a storm and flooded several locations across Namimori, had been created out of the accumulated resentment of all the goldfish that had been flushed down toilets over the years. Many of them had come from the summer festivals and the traditional dish scooping booths. Kids and couples and who knows who else would win themselves a goldfish in a bag, only to realize they didn’t actually want one after they got home.

So down the toilet the fish would go, and its little resentful goldfish spirit would haunt the sewers, schooling together with its countless wronged brethren. Until they had enough to make an entire monster.

Tsuna didn’t know whether to laugh or cry.

“Hahaha… yeah, same,” Yamamoto agreed. “I’m just sad I missed it. But hey, good on Sawada for having his first real encounter, huh? So how was it? Exciting?”

“Uh… I wouldn’t really call it that,” Tsuna said. “Did you think it was exciting, when you had your first, uh, encounter?”

“Yeah! It was great!” Yamamoto said, laughing.

Uncharitably, Tsuna enforced the ‘crazy adrenaline junky’ label in his mind. He’d suspected as much. After all, Yamamoto was good looking, popular, and talented. Why else would he stay at this kind of job?

“Did you even do anything?” Gokudera asked dubiously.

“I… called Deputy Chief Kusakabe?” Tsuna said, thinking for a moment. “I think Chief lost his own phone, so we had to use mine.”

“That’s good!” Kyoko encouraged. “The first I went out on a case I just got kidnapped…” She laughed self-deprecatingly.

Feeling daring after facing death by monster the day before, Tsuna patted her on the shoulder and offered her a smile in return. “Let’s work hard,” he suggested.

“Yeah!” Kyoko agreed brightly.

The warm glowey feeling of camaraderie sustained Tsuna through the day and writing this time’s incident report, which was more nerve-wracking than usual, given the need to avoid putting anything that might make the Chief look not absolutely terrifying and invincible. Tsuna felt he did pretty good at that, so it was utterly unfair that the Chief appeared anyway, as if summoned by the mere thought of him.

Instead of striding straight from the elevator to his office like usual, looking neither left nor right as if his minions, er, employees didn’t even exist — which was how both sides preferred it — Hibari paused mid-step and took a sharp turn, heading for Tsuna’s desk.

Tsuna watched him approach in mute shock. So did everyone else. It was only when Hibari came to a stop slightly further than necessary from him that Kyoko, Yamamoto, Gokudera and Ryohei remembered to snap their heads away and furiously pretend to be busy and not eavesdropping with their ears pricked.

Naturally, Tsuna wanted to turn away too, but he didn’t dare. Jumping to his feet, back ramrod straight, he saluted instead. “Ch-Chief!"

He also didn’t dare to ask what Hibari wanted.

The silence stretched on.

”…You,“ Hibari said finally.

"Yes!” Tsuna sweated intensely.

“Are you quitting?"

The question was blunt and simple, but also so unexpected that Tsuna only stared at his boss in confusing. "Am I being fired…?” he wondered.

“No,” Hibari said.

“Um,” Tsuna said. “Then… also no…?”

The Chief pinned him with an unreadable (terrifying) look for far too long, before finally nodding sharply. “Good,” he allowed. It was glowing praise for Hibari, and Tsuna had no idea what to do with it. Turning on his heel, his boss strode away just as abruptly as he had come, leaving Tsuna feeling like he’d managed to escape death — as usual.

“Great job, Tsuna-kun!” Kyoko said, giving him a thumbs up. He returned it numbly.

“Yeah, great job! You didn’t ditch like the last three new guys!” Yamamoto said. Rolling over, he threw an arm over Tsuna’s shoulders. “Now you’re one of us for real!”

…Oh! Was that what it had been about?

Well, it was true that a normal person would have probably run away screaming after their first encounter with a real supernatural being. Probably, the Committee had lost many recruits that way. Tsuna also… somewhat wanted to run away.

But the hazard pay was very high.

And, frankly, the monster was still better than a job interview. At least it didn’t stare into his soul and demand, in various ways without pause, that he justify his place in society and his right to exist.

Even though it was equal parts ridiculous and terrifying… he thought he just might like this job.

~.~.~

#kyogre-blue #khr #khr!#katekyo hitman reborn!#hitman reborn #Katekyoshi Hitman Reborn #gift #exchange #summer #holidays #story #fanart #fanfiction #drabble #vongola #submission

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bob-artist · 6 years ago

Note

How do you keep your ferrets entertained? My girls are never interested in toys beyond tunnels and occasionally, a box of shredded paper or bubble wrap

My ferrets are still young (Tux will be 4 in a couple months, and Kit/Miss Rudy will be 3), so it’s a little easier to keep them entertained because they’re still in that stage where they get super excited about small dumb things. That said, they’ve definitely settled down since their baby days, which makes me kind of sad, lol. But like, today I stacked a bunch of cardboard boxes against the front door to keep out a draft, and I shoved some old skirts next to them to keep them in place, and of course the ferrets dismantled my setup and then had a blast playing in the skirts for like 20 minutes.

They’re also all close to each other in age, meaning they have similar energy levels and really enjoy playing with each other. Any game they play usually becomes 1000x more exciting to them when all three are involved, though sometimes they aren’t all in the mood to play - or Kit goes too crazy and the other two nope out of the room - or Miss Rudy stalks and harasses Tux to try to get him to play when he just doesn’t feel like playing rough. XD

My ferrets currently have a lot of space to run and a lot of built-in things to play with. Their actual favorite toy is the living room sofas, because they can build forts with the cushions and play hide-and-seek games under the upholstered flaps around the legs. (The chaise in my new condo doesn’t have flaps ;_; so I’m going to try to drape a throw blanket and maybe construct something flappy for underneath when I finally finish moving.)

I don’t play with them as much as they play with each other, because I have a job and they don’t. ^_^ But when I do, they seem to have fun.

I’m just gonna try and list all the “toys” and games my ferrets have access to, so y’all can get ideas for whatever is feasible to add to your setup:

“Toys” my ferrets have:

Sofa with movable back cushions and upholstery flaps

Throw pillows (fun for wrestling and going for pillow rides)

Random clothes thrown on the ground

Clothes I’m currently wearing (Miss Rudy loves my hoodies)

Towels (magic carpet rides!)

Blankets (for burrowing or billowing up so they can play under - just make a habit of never stepping on blankets on the floor unless they are PERFECTLY flat, so you don’t step on anyone who might have gone to sleep inside)

A heavy rug with fringes and one corner folded over (their favorite makeshift tunnel)

Actual tunnels

Clean+safe packaging items from groceries (I throw them on the floor and leave them for a day or two so the ferrets can play with them before moving them to the recycling. Stuff like tea boxes, cardboard bottle holders, clean empty bottles, etc.)

Shopping bags - paper/plastic/cloth (I like to fluff out plastic grocery bags and place them upside down (aka “crumbly home”), and the ferrets jump on them and crush them)

Old stuffed animals (for wrestling - I make the stuffed animal “fight” them, or for them to steal)

handmade knitted balls and jingly toys (from ferret shows/cons/shelter events)

ping pong balls

ball pit

dangly cat toys (they can only play with them if I’m playing with them; they don’t get to stash them)

cardboard boxes+packaging from mail order items (just don’t leave them unattended with packing peanuts, even the water-soluble kind, and avoid styrofoam inserts too)

bubble envelopes (just cut off the adhesive edge if it’s exposed - that glue can be SUPER strong even after it’s used)

a slinky (they use it as a tunnel and go :V V: at each other from either end, or I occasionally send it down the stairs for them)

hard rubber pet toys (for stealing/stashing, inspected regularly)

“goodie bags” (I take a cloth bag or container and stuff it full of old clothes and other random crap so the ferrets can dig it all out)

big bowl of water (for playing and splashing, a fun bathtub game, you can also include hard toys in the bowl - or gently running water in the tub - not all ferrets enjoy water games of course)

crumpled paper balls

my neglected half-packed suitcase from whatever my last trip was :/

school bags/tote bags (just make sure there’s nothing inside that’s unsafe for them or that you don’t want ruined, like erasers or phone accessories)

shoes (Miss Rudy loves my barely used indoor gym shoes and shower sandals -_- but don’t let them chew/lick the heels of outdoor shoes)

foraging toys (stick a healthy/not-too-messy treat inside something where they ferret has to work to get it out - like inside the aforementioned goodie bag. Can also use kibble if your ferrets are kibble-fed)

3- or 4-gallon garbage cans (I insist they aren’t a toy, but the ferrets disagree)

a Pet Threads flounder bed (I have one in the ball pit, so it becomes part of their ball pit games. Any covered/cave-style fabric pet bed would do.)

dig box (I don’t have one but my pet sitter does, and I plan to make one in my new place)

my arm (for wrestling, and chewing if you’re Miss Rudy XD)

guests in the house who are familiar and comfortable around ferrets but are only around occasionally (fun for ferrets to chase and stalk and interfere with at every turn XD)

me just being busy and trying to perform a task (again, fun for ferrets to chase and stalk and interfere with at every turn ;_; )

forbidden whole prey (they occasionally sneak food out of the cage without my permission, and if it’s a relatively non-gross piece, I let them play with it for a little while. They like to take turns stashing it, and chasing whoever is carrying it - and it seems like an actual game rather than just food stealing, because they often wait for the others to chase them before running off and stashing it. Just make sure to throw away anything that gets too decomposed, and clean/disinfect. This is a pretty gross game that I don’t really recommend; it only happens in my house by accident, but they just enjoy it so much. -_- )

FORBIDDEN ROOM (aka a brief supervised field trip into a room that’s safe but normally off limits)

#ferret info #ferrets #ferret #replies #iamanemotionaltimebomb

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chronicfangirling · 6 years ago

Text

At that place (2 of 2)

Pairing: Jungkook x Reader (feat. Yoongi x OC, one-sided Jin x OC) Genre: Fluff/Angst, long-distance relationships, pining exes, idol problems, double/triple dates, GIRLFRIENDS (please appreciate female friendships more) Words: 9119 Requested by: Anon

Can i request a jungkookie scenario based on their song i like it pt. 2? A fluffy ending pleaseeeee or whatever you decide. Thank you. ❤

A/N: Writer’s block defeated! Better late than never?

pt1. | pt.2

You woke up to Saren putting the final touches to a complete breakfast spread. After weeks of having to make do with toast and jam and whatever you can scrounge in the pantry, you blinked, almost certain that it was a mirage. Stacks of fluffy buttermilk pancakes, strawberries in sweet cream, sunny side-up eggs, seared sausages, fragrant steamed rice… you've been dreaming of eating all those things again. Saren took a platter of perfectly crisped, thick-cut bacon from the counter and waved it in invitation. You pounced, grabbing a strip of bacon in each hand, and biting them alternately.

Mayu returned from her jog, the morning paper in hand. With purposeful strides, she sat down on the table across you and said proudly: "You're back, my dear."

"Yes." Saren nodded, tugging at a lock of hair framing her face, smiling sheepishly. "I'm sorry for being pathetic."

"You were pretty pathetic," Mayu agreed. "But it happens to everyone. Though this loser stint of yours has made Y/N has swear off toast for the rest of her life, it seems."

The older women looked at you and you shook your head in a panic. "No, no--I'm fine!" You were well aware that the way you clutched at fistfuls of bacon undermined those words, but you didn't want her to think that you were obliging her to make breakfast. "I like toast with jam and butter... and also, I'm glad you're feeling better." The last part sounded like an afterthought, but it was true that her uncharacteristic behavior had been concerning.

"Well, don't worry, because those loser days are over," Saren declared. "I'm giving up on Kim Seokjin."

You scrunched your nose thinking, that it wasn't as if they had a relationship anyway, but you caught those less-than-kind thoughts. Just because there wasn't a relationship, doesn't mean her feelings weren't real. They were simply unrequited.

"Good!" Mayu raised her mug of chai latte and clinked it with Saren's coffee. "I didn't like seeing you exert so much effort for that stuck-up pretty boy anyway!"

Saren shook her head. "For once, I tried my best, and I have no regrets. I used to never take chances when it came to love because I was too scared of being rejected. Rejection does hurt... but it's bearable, you know? It was a lot worse, not knowing what it would be like and being terrified to make any moves."

"I guess an old dog can learn new tricks after all, if our sempai could learn this in her ripe old age," Mayu teased, dodging when Saren threw a bit of pancake at her. You laughed, but didn't join in the ribbing--you had only known them for a few months, and weren't comfortable enough yet to do so. Still, this house had been a good place to take refuge in after your heartbreak and you hoped you would soon reach that level of camaraderie with them.

"Seriously though, I feel a lot braver now." Saren said. "And when another chance, another possible love comes along, I won't even hesitate--I'll try again."

"What?" You dropped a sunny side-up egg on your lap and winced; thankfully not breaking it. Gingerly poking at it, you muttered: "You'd still try again?"

Saren slipped a spatula under the egg and transferred it to a saucer with the yolk intact. "Of course, Y/N. What's there to life but to keep trying?"

Mayu made a face as you retrieved the formerly fallen egg and started digging into it. "But..." You frowned at Saren. "You got your heart broken! What if that happens again?"

"Then it happens," she said, taking an egg for herself and putting it on top of a bowl of rice, then sitting beside Mayu. "It's worth the possibility of finally finding love, isn't it?"

You watched her sprinkle soy sauce on her egg before mashing it into the rice. "Wasn't it Einstein who said 'insanity is doing the same thing over and over and expecting different results?'"

Saren shifted to lecturer mode, her voice deepening from its usual tone. "First of all, nobody's sure if this quote was actually misattributed to Einstein, although he does have a stronger claim to it than the other candidates. Secondly, this quote should be taken within the context of the scientific method, wherein controlled variables will naturally result in the same set of results. And lastly..." she reached across the table to pat your head, though she was shorter than you and had to strain. "Love isn't exactly rational, our dear baby."

"Sempai!" Mayu cried with exaggerated fervor. "You've truly had an enlightenment." She laughed while Saren whined about her cool moment being ruined.

"'Baby...'" you murmured, patting where she had patted your head. It was strange, but not entirely unpleasant, for you to be showered with this kind of affection, when most of your life, you hadn't gotten so much. Just like your ex-boyfriend Jeon Jungkook, Kim Seokjin was probably too accustomed to receiving so much love that he didn't appreciate it anymore, but for you...

You smiled at your roommates--Mayu was trying to feed Saren strawberries in apology, but Saren continued pouting. You didn't think it would be easy to do, this trying again thing, but you would at least have to think about it.

***

"Jungkook..." You stared at your ex-boyfriend, flanked by his older group members, as they stood at your porch. Yoongi wasn't a surprise, but even Seokjin had come with them again. Before you could stop yourself, you had already smoothed your hands over your hair, which was thrown in a messy bun--you didn't expect to be seeing him today--or on any day--after all.

"Hi... we have a lot of schedules in Tokyo so we're staying for a while." He gave you a small wave but made no move to step forward.

Yoongi side-stepped him and asked: "Is Mayu at home?"

"Yeah... umm, come in." You belatedly waved them into the living room. Mayu peered over her books and color-coded notes covering the coffee table and gasped in surprised delight at the sight of her boyfriend, gathering all her review materials and dumping them on the beanbag in the corner, which was already littered with Saren's novels. She tucked herself under his waiting arm as she led him to the loveseat. "I didn't know you're coming over."

"Surprise?" he shrugged, a pleased grin plastered on his face.

At that moment, Saren skipped in the living room, her long lace skirt whirling around her, her prized silver tea caddy engraved with cherry blossoms nestled in her hands. "Our baby, do you want chocolate chip cookies or peanut butter cookies with tea..?" She froze when she saw the guys, nearly dropping the tea caddy.

"Ah... you look nice," Seokjin mumbled, looking a little taken aback. After all, Saren had been taking extra care of her appearance, saying that pretty dresses and makeup can be like armor for women, especially after having been hurt. As you tugged self-consciously at the large black hoodie you had thrown over your worn yet comfy gray leggings while your visiting ex was in designer clothing, you had to consider that her idea had some merits.

"T-Thanks," Saren stammered in response, looking a lot more taken aback herself. "Umm, we were about to have tea, would you like some too... you guys?"

"Both," you said. "For the cookies."

"Yes, please." Seokjin replied. Yoongi nodded.

"If it's not too much trouble," Jungkook added.

"I'll help you," Mayu offered. "Y/N, you stay here with the guests."

"Me..?" You looked round at the 'guests': Yoongi who was pouting that his girlfriend had disentangled herself from his arms, Seokjin who was smiling shamelessly as if he weren't responsible for the current awkwardness... and Jungkook, who gazed at you with wide, innocent eyes. "I'm helping too!" You dashed after your roommates into the kitchen.

"Ah, but it's rude to leave your guests unattended," Saren remarked, as she measured delicate leaves into the teapot and arranged the cups on the tray while waiting for the water to boil.

"They're not my 'guests,' they're Mayu's guest and his companions," you retorted, leaning against the counter and not being very helpful.

"One of my guest's so-called companions is your ex-boyfriend, who doesn't seem to be happy about being an ex at all." Mayu pointed out. She was preparing a separate pot with dark, roasted leaves.

"Yah..." you pouted at your roommates. "It's not like that!"

"Look at our baby acting cute," Saren giggled.

"I wasn't!" you denied. But you caught yourself pouting again, so you set your lips in a straight line. For all the good that did--Saren still giggled as if she thought you were a precocious child. "And I thought we're giving up on trying to chase after relationships that don't mean anything."

"That's just me and Seokjin." Saren shrugged and moved on to pulling out sheets of freshly-baked cookies from the oven, plating some and setting the rest on the cooling rack. "That was just me, one-sidedly hoping... but there was nothing there."

"You and Jungkook on the other hand..." Mayu cocked her head at you. "There's still something there."

You silently watched your roommates brew the tea, and you could've let that thread of conversation die... but something compelled you to talk about it. "I just... don't want to misunderstand... that I mean something when I'm nothing." When their heads turned toward you, you dropped your gaze on your white-knuckled hands grasping the kitchen counter.

"You're not like me." Saren said. "You mean something."

"Hey! Just because you didn't mean anything to Kim Seokjin doesn't mean you can't mean something to someone else." Mayu turned from Saren to you. "And if you don't want to be with Jungkook, then that might be for the best. But don't use what happened to Saren and Seokjin as an excuse to deny your real feelings... nor the possibility of Jungkook's."

"I... I..." Stuttering, you tried--and failed--to make a coherent protest.

Mayu and Saren exchanged looks, the former shook her head with a chuckle and the latter smiled at you and squeezed your hand. "Well... think about what you want, alright?" Saren took the tray with the two tea pots, leaving you with the plates of cookies, but she waited for Mayu to lead the way back to the living room. For all her apparent calm, your roommate still wasn't completely confident to face the man who had thoroughly rejected her after all. Yet she took the seat before Seokjin, looking like the picture of poise as she poured tea into the cups, despite the slight tremor of her hands. "Here you go," she presented the first cup to Seokjin, as the oldest one among the guests. "This is a very special tea variety."

Emulating her, you took the seat before Jungkook and handed him a cup as well. "Y/N... thanks," he took the cup from you, starting as your fingers accidentally brushed against his, as if the simple contact had affected him as much as it always affected you.

"You should try it too, Yoongs, though I got you hojicha as well, you don't exactly have a subtle palate," Mayu teased, offering a cup of the dark tea to her boyfriend and settling in the loveseat with him.

He smirked, but his sharp eyes had softened as he gazed at her over the cup. "You know my tastes well."

"What a pretty, vivid color," Seokjin observed, swirling the cup. His eyes widened as he brought the cup closer to his lips. "And so fragrant!"

"It is so." Saren nodded, taking her own cup of tea.

Seokjin took a sip and sighed in wonder. "This is different from all green tea that I've had before."

"It's gyokuro," Saren explained. "It develops its special flavor and aroma by growing covered in the shade."

"I see. It blooms in the shade unobserved and then surprises you with its loveliness, how dangerous." He smiled at her, a little too charmingly, and you couldn't help but think, *how dangerous.*

Saren dropped her gaze to her cup and Mayu sneered at him. "I'm sure you didn't come here to talk about tea."

Saren gaped at her best friend's thinly-veiled hostility, but quickly recovered. "Obviously, Seokjin came here to accompany Yoongi who wanted to visit you."

At her words, Yoongi choked on his tea. "That's kinda cute," Mayu chuckled.

Turning red, he cried: "This wasn't my idea!"

"A grown man shouldn't play hard to get," Saren tutted.

You snickered, but Jungkook blinked at you with those clear, round eyes. "It really wasn't Yoongi's idea."

"Ah, I was the one who said we should come over." Seokjin set down his empty cup and raised a hand.

"Why?!" Mayu blurted out.

"What man wouldn't want to be in the company of such lovely ladies..?" Seokjin declared in his typical flirty manner, but he caught himself and looked round; at Mayu, who glared at him; at Saren, who blinked at him in disbelief; and at you, who winced. *Acting like this was what made Saren misunderstand... it wasn't just her fault.* Yoongi sighed under his breath and Jungkook reflected your own wince.

But then Saren laughed, with a feigned shudder. "How greasy! How can you guys live with this guy?" she asked Yoongi and Jungkook, dropping her voice to a conspiratorial whisper. "Doesn't it get embarrassing?"

The tension dissipated with Yoongi smirking and Jungkook nodding emphatically. "He's seriously so embarrassing!" Jungkook stressed.

"Yah!" Seokjin protested. "What do you mean by 'greasy,' and 'embarrassing?' I'm totally charming and a point of pride for our group!"

"There he goes again, ugh!" Jungkook shuddered.

"Have some shame for the younger ones," Saren teased.

"Well, if she's going to be like that..." Mayu shook her head, smiling wryly. "Seokjin, don't embarrass my boyfriend, he has a way cooler image than you," she chided, but her tone was jesting, her animosity calmed when she saw how her best friend had responded in such a lighthearted manner.

"So aside from being embarrassed by this shameless one, what have you guys been doing?" Saren asked.

"I want to know too," Mayu said. "Yoongi never talks about work."

"I do tell you about work, but I don't want to talk too much about it." He wrinkled his nose.

"Since I'm your girlfriend, you should talk to me about it more."

"Since you're my girlfriend, I'd rather talk to you about other things." His arm draped around her shoulder and pulled her closer. "Like how you're doing or your own work. I find you very interesting after all." Mayu elbowed him lightly, her cheeks flushed.

"Well, isn't he greasy too sometimes?" Seokjin griped.

"Oh hush, it's cute." Saren said.

Seokjin and Yoongi talked about their current schedules in Tokyo at your roommates' request, while you listened idly and drank tea. It took a while for you to realize that Jungkook was watching you in silence.

"What?" you whispered, not wanting to interrupt your friends' conversation.

"Nothing..." He smiled tentatively. "It's just... I thought you didn't like tea."

You gaped at him, surprised that he had even noticed. To hide your shock, you refilled your cup and blew away the steam. "I didn't before. But Saren and Mayu drink it all the time, so I got used to it."

"Even on cold days, you wouldn't drink it, you'd rather drink cola or even iced water," he mused.

"Well, I guess I've changed." You were nearing panic with how your heart started thudding in your ears, so you grabbed a peanut butter cookie and pushed the whole thing in your mouth so you wouldn't have to talk.

"But... you still like peanut butter cookies as much as chocolate chip cookies, and you still stuff your mouth with food when you're nervous." He chuckled as your purposeful chewing slowed. "Even if some things changed, I still want to believe that you're the Y/N that I know... from the happiest times of my life."

"That's..." You nearly choked on your cookie, searching for a retort, but this wasn't the cocky, international Kpop star Jungkook who couldn't seem to care less about your break-up. In fact, this was more like that shy golden boy who seemed unaware of his own sparkle. The same one you fell in love with...

The Super Mario theme pierced through the heavy air and Seokjin answered his phone. Mayu and Yoongi rolled their eyes at the childish ringtone and Saren merely smiled. "Hey, Dongwook. I thought we wouldn't be needed for two hours? Ah, okay..."

"I guess that's our cue..." Yoongi mumbled.

Mayu gave him a smile that looked rather tight, but she also gave him a tender kiss. "Call soon."

"We'll meet again soon." he promised, squeezing her hand.

"Good luck with today's schedule," Saren said to all of them, with no particular attention to Seokjin. She cleared the tea set and plates into the tray and started to head to the kitchen.

"Oh--thanks for the the tea and the cookies!" Seokjin called after her.

She looked back over her shoulder and started to say something, but instead pressed her lips together and nodded politely. At another time, she would be overzealous about asking Seokjin's opinion and pressing homemade food as affection, but it looked like she was serious about keeping her distance.

"Umm, hey, Saren--!" Jungkook's cry stopped her in her tracks again. "Umm, well... is it okay..." he smiled sheepishly. "To have some of the cookies?"

"Yes!" Seokjin chimed in. "They were good."

She laughed lightly and winked at you. "You're going to have to ask Y/N about that, since I made them for her." Handily foisting the guys on you, she carried the dishes back to the kitchen.

Jungkook shook his head at you, "Y/N, you don't have to--"

You shook your head in turn. "Just wait here... for the cookies." You went into the kitchen, all but pushing Saren from the sink to do the washing.

"Are you sure this is okay?" you asked Saren as you washed the tea set and she set aside the cooled cookies into separate jars and into a box for the guys. "Aren't you even a little angry at Seokjin for rejecting you?"

"I am angry," she confessed. "Even though I realize that the same way I couldn't help like him, he couldn't help not like me, it still makes me angry."

"So why would you welcome him into our home again?"

"Because to welcome him into our home means to welcome Yoongi and Jungkook into our home... means to support Mayu and you."

You finished the washing and faced her. "Mayu maybe, but me...?"

Saren smiled knowingly at you. "In any case, it's better for everyone that I don't hold a grudge against Kim Seokjin. Who knows, we may even become friends one day."

"Friends..." you mumbled. After Jungkook had broken your heart, being friends was the last thing you had wanted to do. You had only wanted to make him regret everything.

You returned to the living room and handed the box of cookies to Jungkook, who said: "Y/N... thanks. I... I'll see you...?"

"I... yeah, I guess." You shrugged, turning away. But when you heard his retreating footsteps, you looked over your shoulder to watch him get in the car driven by Dongwook and ride away with his colleagues.

The next day, you saw Mayu sneer then chuckle as she checked her SNS. You saw a selfie of Seokjin holding a paper cup of green tea latte and wearing a smile for his fans, and Yoongi's obscure post with a tumbler of konacha and cup ramen, and knew which post drew those respective reactions. Jungkook didn't make a post, but he did text you.

JJK: "I understand now why you like peanut butter cookies. The subtly sweet, slightly salty, crunchy cookies are good too, in a different way. I guess things don't always have to be soft and saccharine to be nice." Y/N: ":)"

You had agonized over how to respond, but ended up with a blandly smiling emoji. You found yourself disappointed when he had no follow-up messages--you understood that your response wasn't very inviting, but you hadn't wanted to come across as desperate and over-eager... much like before...

Back when you were a couple, you were the one who had tried, maybe not your best, but at least you had tried. Why was it that you were still the one with so many regrets?

***

(One week before the breakup)

Your calls went unanswered once, twice--maybe five times--that by the time that Jungkook picked up the phone, you screamed: "Who's that girl in that picture?"

You heard him hiss "hush!" and hurried footsteps--the background sounds of their upcoming song, his groupmates' chatter, and staffers calling them to lunch died down after a door slammed. "What picture?" he mumbled, his voice reverberating in a way that made you think he had shut himself in a closet.

"The one on your SNS!"

"I didn't upload any pictures."

"Are you really going to pretend not to know about it?" you demanded.

"Y/N..." he sighed. "I have no idea what you're talking about."

"That girl--" you spat, "--tagged you in a pic looking all cozy! I'm not allowed to post pictures with you or to tag you, but it's fine when she does it, is that it?"

You heard him sigh deeply. "You know what, I'm tired. I was working--"

"So hanging out with girls in parties is working now?"

"You know going to those things is also part of our job!" He actually raised his voice at you, and you were taken aback. Perhaps he realized it, because his tone returned to normal. "She's the daughter of one of the company directors... it doesn't mean anything."

"She keeps showing you off to everybody! She obviously wants it to mean something!"

"It's not like that--"

"I don't know if you're stupidly innocent or you're so sly that you can act like you are!" You knew that you were starting to sound like the unhinged jealous girlfriend, so you bit your lip to prevent more accusations from spilling and took a noisy breath. "That girl's after you. So many girls are... and I... I can't even do anything to stop them!"

Instead of comforting you, Jungkook protested: "You're not supposed to do anything to stop them! You're supposed to trust me."

"Trust you? When you go around hanging out with other girls when they're daughters of directors?"

"... And what do you mean by that?" His tone was stiff, as if his jaw was clenched.

"I don't mean anything. Did you really do something suspicious for that to mean something?" you sneered, with grating disingenuousness.

"Y/N... I'm tired and you're angry. I'm going to hang up now before we both say something we regret."

"Jungkook!" you screamed. "Jeon Jungkook, don't you dare hang up. Or else--"

His voice was barely above a whisper, but cutting just the same. "Or else, what?"

"... Or else I'm going to break up with you!"

"Do whatever you want," he muttered. "That's all you keep doing anyway."

"What? That's not true... Jungkook! Jungkook!"

You never wanted to breakup, but you didn't really have a choice... At that point, Jungkook just seemed to be waiting for you to do it anyway. You had pettily thought that breaking up through text would cause him the most pain of all. But you found out that the only thing more painful than a "Let's break up" text message was to get a mere "Ok" in response.

***

You looked round at the three idols standing on your porch again. "You're all here. Again."

"It's like you don't want to see us, Y/N." Seokjin pouted, clutching his chest in mock hurt.

"It's not that, it's just..." It's just that I'm wondering why I'm seeing Jungkook a lot more now than when he was actually my boyfriend... "Come in," you said, suppressing a sigh as you stepped aside and let them through the door.

Mayu had been waiting for her boyfriend in the living room this time. She stood up and walked over to him, but kept herself at arm's length, a teasing grin playing on her lips. "Yoongi."

He raised an eyebrow at her and didn't reach for her either. "Mayu."

For a few seconds, they stared each other down in their weird tsun-tsun face-off game. He cracked first, looping an arm around her waist to draw her into a slow, passionate kiss. Your face burned and you glanced away, only to meet an equally flushed Jungkook's eyes. Both of you coughed and turned away from each other, and you could've sworn you saw Jungkook swallow hard.

To dissipate the tension, you called out: "Saren, Saren--umm, could you help me make tea?"

"But Y/N, we just had lunch--" Saren paused when she saw the guys taking seats in the living room, nodding at each of them. Her glance didn't even linger too long upon Seokjin. "Of course. I'll be right back." She waved you off when you made a move to follow her.

"We shouldn't let her do all the work," you murmured.

Mayu, who had disentangled herself from Yoongi to glance at Saren, shook her head and whispered to you: "Easier for her than to stay here. in awkwardness."

Saren returned with tea, several slices of Camembert cheesecake for the guys and buttery shortbread cookies. "I feel bad that you had to go through the trouble," Seokjin said, even as he ooh-ed over the cheesecake.

"I guess he's not so shameless after all," Mayu murmured.

"It wasn't much," Saren said. She handed him a box from the tray. "By the way, you said you wanted some of that gyokuro, so I got a box for you when I went to the tea shop to restock."

"Thank you! You're so thoughtful, I'm indebted to you." His eyes crinkled as he smiled, and her smile was melancholic as she dropped her gaze away, her cheeks pink.

"I take it back." Mayu muttered, leaning back on the loveseat that she shared with Yoongi as usual.

Yoongi rubbed her arm soothingly. "So there's a reason why we're here..."

"Oh, it wasn't because you missed me?" she gasped in mock outrage.

"It's related to that, babe." His hand caressed her arm lazily now, with more sensuous movements. "We've been nominated in this event... what's it called?"

"Gold Disc awards," Jungkook supplied helpfully.

Both Mayu and Saren gape at that. "You've heard of it?" Seokjin asked. Saren nodded.

"You impress me more and more, you know?" Mayu patted Yoongi's cheek and he smiled a giggly gummy smile, practically nuzzling against her hand.

"We're having an after-party at the Sky Lounge. You're coming." His declaration was followed by a far less confident question: "Umm... right?" You nearly snorted over how whipped he was.

"Of course," she agreed. "I wouldn't miss it for the world."

Jungkook took a deep breath and his next words tumbled out in a rush: "You too--Y/Nyoucangoright?"

"Umm, what?" you asked, though you had heard him. You had... but you weren't sure that you heard him right.

"Could you... come too?" he bit his lip, his endearing bunny teeth peeking through.

"Me?" You blinked at him. It was unprecedented, for you to come along to one of his fancy work events--you hardly got to go to any events with him, period. But he was looking at you with such wide eyes, that it almost seemed that he sincerely wanted you to come. "I, umm--are you going?" You turned to Saren in desperation.

Her grip tightened around her tea cup, and you realized she wasn't sure if she was part of that invitation and then you weren't sure either. You felt like kicking yourself. "Y/N... I... I don't think I'm supposed--"

"Oh, but it will be fun!" Seokjin interjected. "We hired a sushi chef and a tempura chef, and an open bar with wine from five different countries."

"I see... I may have to work then though, so... I'll have to check. Excuse me." She smiled politely and collected the empty dishes on the tray and took them to the kitchen before heading upstairs. By the time she returned, Dongwook had come back for Seokjin.

"Well, I'm off now, I just dropped by to say hi and give the invitation," Seokjin said.

"Before going on prowl for the girls of Tokyo, huh?" Mayu snorted, her words having a little more bite than mere teasing. It seemed to you that she could never fully forgive the man for rejecting her best friend, even as she deigned to have him around as one of her boyfriend's colleagues and friends.

Seokjin chuckled wordlessly and didn't deny the accusation. He looked at Saren and noticed that she was carrying her purse and had a light coat over her dress. "Oh, are you going somewhere?"

She nodded. "Yes... I need to go to work for a while."

"Teacher, it's not even your work day!" Dongwook cried. "You should take a rest, go on some dates--you look pretty enough to go on a date right now!"

She giggled uneasily. "Maybe some other time."

"I'll introduce you to some guys," Dongwook offered eagerly. Mayu raised an intrigued eyebrow at you and you dropped your mouth open in exaggerated shock.

"Thank you for the consideration," Saren said, without agreeing, and walked ahead.

"Yah, which guys do you know besides us... and other idols..." Seokjin frowned.

"Well, she seems to like idols." Dongwook grinned and cupped his mouth to whisper to Seokjin, but all of you could hear him. "If it all goes well, you don't have to be burdened anymore, right Seokjin?"

"Huh?!" Seokjin's brows furrowed even more.

But the junior manager had run after Saren then: "Teacher, wait up! We'll drop you off at work!" Seokjin followed them, shaking his head uncertainly.

"Well, A for effort, Dongwook." Mayu smirked. "Idols make such terrible romantic prospects though," Mayu remarked, drawing an offended grumble from her own idol boyfriend. She slung her arms around his neck and winked at him. "Of course, there are exceptions..."

It didn't go unnoticed to you, Jungkook's silent, stricken gasp at Mayu's words. But you didn't have much time to dwell on it, as Mayu and Yoongi started playing a movie and invited both of you to join them.

After an afternoon of hanging out with Jungkook and your mutual friends--which was remarkable in that it felt unremarkable, as if you were getting used to it--you spent the evening revising a paper for school, and then you were getting ready for bed. You had already switched off the main light and switched on your night light when your phone rang. It was Jungkook. You composed yourself, sat on the edge of your bed, and answered: "Hello?"

"I'm sorry," he said.

"... Eh?" You wrinkled your nose. "For what?"

"For having been a terrible boyfriend back then."

You hesitated. "You weren't.... terrible, per se..."

"If I wasn't, then why did we break up?"

You had no answer to that question.

"I didn't mean to make you miserable."

"But I wasn't."

"Huh?"

"I wasn't..." You had only said that out of an instinct to be polite, but repeating the words, you realize now that they were true. You had become increasingly frustrated towards the end of the relationship, and that frustration was still fresh in your mind when your paths crossed again, and you couldn't help but treat him with hostility. But your relationship wasn't what made you miserable, it was how it ended. The fact that it ended. Now that your anger over the breakup had dissipated, but you could be honest... you had never regretted having been with Jeon Jungkook.

"Really? But..."

"Even when I couldn't hold your hand, it was nice to walk beside you. Even when I couldn't post pictures with you, I liked taking pictures with you."

"I--I liked those things too!"

"I'm so glad to hear that. Because for me, even when it wasn't always good, there were still moments to be happy about. It seemed like a miracle, that the person I like had agreed to be with me, you know?" you chuckled, more to yourself. "That's why sometimes, just knowing in my heart that I was the one who was with you, even though the world would never know... it made me happy. That Jeon Jungkook was with me... more often than not, it was enough."

"Y/N..." His breath sounded ragged over the phone and you were glad that he couldn't see you cover your nose as it started to get runny while your eyes started to get wet. "There's something I should--" A firm voice in the background cut him off, calling for him and the other members of his group.

"Well, I guess this is goodbye..."

"But Y/N--"

"You've worked hard, Jungkookie," you sighed. "You've always worked hard..."

***

Saren may not have been active on SNS any longer, however she still had friends who were. As soon as you opened your feed, out popped a picture uploaded by the guys' junior manager, Dongwook, wherein he tagged Saren. It was from their academy's cultural exchange festival; Saren had pulled out the big guns--a furisode kimono patterned with cherry blossoms--and Dongwook had captured her in blooming glory. You would've suspected that they were getting suspiciously close, but you knew that Dongwook was now dating another one of Saren's students, thanks to her earnest matchmaking. Dongwook had been completely unsubtle about returning the favor and seemed intent to sell your roommate to any eligible men of his acquaintance. Judging from the reactions to the picture, he was doing well on that front. "Liked by Jaehyung, Mark, Myungsoo.... who are these guys?"

"This is quality." You grinned and liked the picture. It was then that you noticed the tag that said: "You and JJK liked this." You frowned as you clicked it, starting to overthink why your ex-boyfriend was going around liking your very single roommate's picture, only to be distracted when you saw that among the reactions was a '<3' from Seokjinnie.

You made a beeline for Saren, who was curled in the bean bag in the living room, nestled in her books littering the cushion. "Guess who--not just liked, but hearted--your picture?"

Saren looked up at you questioningly, and you could clearly see that she had no clue what you were talking about--she was too transparent to hide her emotions. Far be it from you to pick at a wound that seemed to be healing slowly, but surely, you said: "It's me, I did, your picture was amazing, and the way you looked in that kimono was just... wow, amazing!"

Saren's hand hovered over her phone--and to your relief--she stopped and gave you a wry smile. "Alright, what do you want? Is there something in particular you want for dinner?"

"Nothing, can't I give my sempai a compliment?" You shrugged. "But... doesn't mentaiko pasta sound super good right now?"

"Doesn't it?" she enthused. "You know I'm glad you like it, since Mayu hates it but there are days when I crave it. She'll have to make do with the leftover gyudon from last night." Saren skipped to the kitchen without checking her SNS.

Your sigh of relief turned into a yelp, when your phone vibrated in your hand. You checked the screen and your heartbeat started accelerating when you saw Jungkook's name. "Umm..."

"Hey, Y/N."

"Hi."

"How are you doing?"

"Good..." You tucked your hair behind your ear, as if he could see you.

"I see. That's... good." You could almost see him messing up his hair in the way that he did whenever he was nervous.

As if... I'm just projecting... "Yeah... um, how about you?"

"Good. Busy, but good. We had a lot to do in Korea, that's why we haven't been to Tokyo in a while."

"Okay... I mean, that's expected. You guys being busy."

"Yeah..." The other end of the line fell into total silence, as if he had stopped pacing.

"So... why did you call?" Lest he think you were telling him not to call, you quickly added: "I mean, is there any particular reason...?"

"Yeah, actually I'm calling about that event. You know... the after-party?"

"What about it?"

"Just wanted to ask if you were coming..."

"Yeah... you guys invited all three of us, right?" You bit your lip. "Unless you don't want me to come--"

"I want you to come!" He yelled. He seemed to realize this, because his next words came out in a whisper. "It's just that you never did say if you could come, you know..."

"Oh... sorry." You untucked and retucked your hair behind your ear and sat primly on the couch. "That's bad form isn't it? Not confirming promptly."

"That's fine, that's fine," he said. "As long as you're coming."

"I am."

"Well... we don't have free time before the event, so I'll see you there."

"See you."

When the call ended, you sighed. How nice it would've been if you could've been this way while you were a couple--Jungkook bringing you to places and having him act like he actually wanted you there. But now all you were is an awkward failed couple tangled by your friends' relationships.

***

(Twelve months before the breakup)

It all started during a trip to Tokyo with your camera club. It was through the club that you met him, and you were certain that you could do nothing more but nurse a crush on him from afar, but it was the shining Jeon Jungkook himself who came to you. He was sweet and talented and humble, and despite his shyness, he was always friendly towards you, asking about your photography projects and drawing you out of your own shy shell. It was impossible--it would be a miracle that one such as Jeon Jungkook would return your feelings--but the way he acted made you feel that it was a possibility.

"W-Would you like to come with me?" you asked him as he slung his camera bag on his shoulder. "I know a nice place to take photos..."

"I was planning to go to Akihabara--"

"Believe me, this is better!" you insisted. You almost grabbed his hand, but managed to stop yourself and snatch at the strap of his camera bag instead.

"W-Wait, Y/N!" He nearly tumbled as you pulled him to the sidewalk, but he allowed himself to be pushed into the taxi you flagged down and went with you.

When the taxi stopped, you flung open the door and tugged him to alight after you. He nearly tripped, but he froze in a half crouch when he took in the sight before the two of you. "Wha... is--is that Tokyo Tower?"

You nodded.

"But... I've never seen it look like this before!" he marveled.

"They call this the Diamond Veil...it's a special style of illumination," you explained.

"It's like a nighttime rainbow..." his whisper trailed off into an awed sigh.

"We could get closer but I thought you might find this point more interesting." You tucked your hair behind your ear and lowered your gaze, too shy to risk meeting his eyes. "You... wanted to do long exposure for this project, didn't you? You can see the trails of the cars and the images of the people passing by..."

"You're right, this is a great spot for what I want." From the corner of your eye, you could see him unpack his tripod and set up his camera. "This view... it's so perfect to share with someone special."

"That's why I brought you here..." you mumbled, half to yourself.

"Huh?" Jungkook looked up from his viewfinder and turned to you.

You started--you never expected him to hear you! But Jungkook was looking at you now... And he was here with you now, sharing this special view. So you confessed: "That's why I brought you here! Jeon Jungkook, I--I like you!"

"Huuuh?!--" he gasped, but his breath of disbelief caught as you pulled at his hoodie to kiss him. Your heartbeat thundered in your ears, and your held breath burned in your lungs, but his soft, sweet lips calmed you, and when you pulled away, it was slow and deliberate, gazing into his eyes for an answer.

"Y/N..." He stared down at you, his lips still parted in surprise.

You realize then that he hasn't said anything in encouragement, nor even agreement, and you started to step away. "Sorry--!"

He didn't say anything then, no confessions nor declarations, but his arms wrapped around your waist as he pulled you closer and kissed you. And that was how you found yourself with the shining Jeon Jungkook as your boyfriend. A boyfriend who often seemed more trouble than his weight in gold.

***

"I'm glad you talked me into coming along," Saren told Mayu. "It was worth it just to see this..." She gave you a sidelong glance, her eyes wide and bright.

"What?" You patted your hair, feigning unawareness at how good you looked with your braided updo and black halter-neck mini-dress.

The three of you were seated on the plush leather seats of a sleek black car sent by the guys. It was probably just Yoongi sending the car to take his girlfriend to the event, but the suited chaffeur had also looked for you and Saren, and Mayu had linked her arms with both of you... And now the three of you were on the way to the event.

"Our baby cleans up well, doesn't she?" Mayu winked at you.

"Hey!" you cried. "That's implying that I'm normally a mess!"

"What she means is that you're exceptionally pretty tonight." Saren clutched your arm and smiled up at you.

"Thank you..." you murmured. "Umm... you're really pretty too..." With a dainty floral headband in her wavy hair and blush-pink, chiffon gown, your roommate reminded you of a fairy.

"How about me?" Mayu grinned.

"You already know you look sexy," you grumbled. Mayu's wine-hued gown had a plunging V-neck and clung to her slim figure, and more importantly, she oozed confidence in it. "Yoongi's going to drool all over the club."

"Not as much as Jungkook," she snickered. You frowned, but before you could protest, the car stopped in front of the club and the chauffeur opened the door to allow the three of you alight. Mayu walked to the front desk, and said: "We're going to the party."

The woman raised an eyebrow. "May I see your invitations?"

"We don't have them," Mayu explained. "But we should be on the guest list."

"Sure." She rolled her eyes and nodded at the bouncer.

You had cowered back and Saren squeezed your arm tightly, but Mayu merely held up a finger at the imposing man. "Hold that thought, mister." She placed a call on her cellphone. "Well, hello to you too, sweetheart. I'm actually outside right now, and you wouldn't have been kept waiting if we had an actual physical invitation--I told you it would be troublesome."

In less than a minute, Yoongi had rushed out of the club, shouting: "Let her in!" Regaining his composure, he sauntered up towards her. "And... the others too," he added belatedly.

"So thoughtful," Saren quipped and you laughed.

"Y/N, is something wrong?" Jungkook stood at the doorway, looking out of breath. "I heard Yoongi..."

You shook your head and smiled in what you hoped was an assuring manner. When he gawked at you, you didn't know if you had failed at being assuring, or your look was having the intended effect on him.

"I'm so sorry, I'm so sorry..." The woman at the front desk bowed repeatedly, face twisted in contrition. Mayu gave her a small smile and nodded at Yoongi.

"You're not angry?" he asked.

Mayu shrugged. "She was just doing her job."

"You're so... reasonable, you know that?" he gushed, looking positively besotted. His smile turned cat-like as he looked her over admiringly, in *that* clingy gown.

"You guys should've told me they were here!" Seokjin took one long look at Saren and a short breath. "You're beautiful." Somehow you could tell that this wasn't one of his meaningless compliments--he gazed at her with wonder, as if seeing her for the first time.

"Thank you." She smiled, her cheeks pink and graced by that elusive dimple.

"You... you have a dimple." He still sounded breathless. "I-I never noticed. How..?"

"Yeah... it doesn't appear often."

"That's so cute." His eyes turned into crescent moons and his voice cracked as he giggled.

You frowned. Seokjin is acting... weird...

"Save some of your compliments for the rest of the ladies here," Saren teased. She walked past, waving at Dongwook the manager, and completely failing to notice the arm that Seokjin offered. He appeared startled, but followed after her.

"You know that you're so hot, right?" Yoongi smirked at Mayu as he offered his arm.

"I do... but you should always tell me, anyway." She took his arm, and to your surprise, he kissed her with no regard for the fact that they were in public, before leading her to your table at the VIP area.

You were about to follow, but Jungkook all but blocked your path. "You--!" He took a deep breath. "You look... really good."

"Umm, thanks," you muttered. "You too." There was never a time that Jeon Jungkook didn't look good, but with him wearing a classic black suit, it was definitely worth mentioning.

He mumbled what sounded like thanks and presented his arm almost at your face. Awkwardly, you took it, and you saw him gulp as he adjusted it to a more natural angle.

When the two of you reached the table, Dongwook was standing between a familiar man and Saren, making them shake hands. Standing behind her, Seokjin crossed his arms over his broad chest, a rare frown on his face. "Nice to meet you," she said, her voice getting softer, something she did when faced by someone attractive, you know by now.

"It's good to finally meet you," the familiar-looking man said. You were quite sure he was an idol, or at least some kind of celebrity. "Dongwook has talked a lot about you."

"Oh no..." Saren bit her lip when she realized that she had muttered that out loud. "I mean--what kind of things?"

Laughing, he winked in response, and Saren flushed--either in embarrassment or something else.

"Ladies, this is Park Jaehyung. His band has promotions in Japan right now." Dongwook gestured at the man who nodded at you and Mayu politely, then turned back to Saren. "And these are Mayu and Y/N, but you don't have to shake hands with them because they're not available for dating, unlike my teacher--"

"Dongwook!" Saren cried.

Dongwook clapped a hand over his mouth. "Oops--I mean..."

"Dongwook?" Mayu prompted.

"Yes?"

"Shush." At Mayu's command, he nodded obediently. She nudged Saren forward, and your eldest roommate glared at her.

Jaehyung looked round at the rest of you, his eyes catching ever-so-slightly on Seokjin, and said: "Well... I hope you all enjoy the rest of your evening."

Saren looked ever-so-slightly disappointed, but inclined her head. Seokjin sent him off with a cheerful wave and invited her to sit; she took the seat beside Seokjin, but you saw her eyes linger upon Jaehyung's retreating back--and him looking over his shoulder in turn.

Jungkook all but deposited you into the seat next to Saren and sat beside you, squaring his shoulders as he set his elbows on his knees--you couldn't help but feel that he was boxing you in the table. The gesture annoyed you less than it should've. Jungkook popped open a bottle of champagne and poured it into flutes--and in a breach of protocol, offered the first one to you. His older groupmates didn't call him out on it, however; Seokjin led a toast and Yoongi ignored the champagne in favor of beer.

"I love this song," Saren commented, swaying slightly to the music.

"It's very romantic to dance to," Seokjin pointed out. She glanced towards Jaehyung; who was also swaying to the song.

Seokjin held out his hand, about to continue what he had meant to say, but Saren had turned to you and Mayu questioningly. "Hey, do you think...?"

Mayu winked at her. "A wise woman once said: 'What's there to life but to keep trying?'"

Despite Seokjin raising a puzzled eyebrow at both of you, you encouraged Saren with a single word. "Go."

Saren beamed at both of you. "May I take some of this?" Saren seized one of the chilled champagne bottles by the neck. When no one protested, she poured two flutes, excused herself and walked towards the bar. Seokjin's eyes widened, and he squared his broad shoulders as if every muscle in his body had tensed.

Despite her straight-backed posture and purposeful steps, you had seen her hands shaking and uncertainty in her wide eyes. You could all see her offer a flute to Jaehyung and when he shook his head, she nodded and turned to leave. Seokjin relaxed in his seat. But Jaehyung picked the flutes out of her hands, set them on the counter, and took her by the hand, leading her to the dance floor.

"They look good together," Mayu commented.

Both you and Yoongi nodded in agreement, but Jungkook shrugged. "They're alright..." He gave Seokjin a sidelong glance.

"Was she always this lovely?" Seokjin mumbled.

"Of course," Mayu huffed, startling him as if he hadn't meant to pose that question aloud.

"Of course she was, huh..." Seokjin gazed at the dancing couple and you saw him swallow hard. The song wound down to the last few lines, and he stood up and adjusted his suit before starting to walk towards her.

"Seokjin-oppa!" A simpering girl clung to his arm--she could've been any one of the many girls that hung around Seokjin, you couldn't tell them apart. "Are you busy?"

He opened his mouth to respond, but before he could say a word, Mayu cut in: "He isn't."

"Yay! Let's dance!" She dragged him with her, ignoring his stammered protests. His neck craned as he tried to glimpse Saren, but she was too preoccupied with Jaehyung, who raised a finger and smiled shyly, obviously asking her to another dance.

Yoongi's brows were drawn in concern. "Seokjin is..."

"Well, he's busy dancing. We should dance too." Mayu grabbed both his hands and Yoongi allowed himself to be led to the dance floor, even as he protested that he didn't slow dance.

To cover the awkwardness of being left alone with Jungkook, you reached for the wine bottle to pour yourself another drink. But he snatched both bottle and glass from you, before he stood up and bowed. "May I have this dance?"

"Yes... " you replied.

In the one year that you were Jeon Jungkook's girlfriend, you had never been his official date to any events, you had certainly never worn a fancy dress and danced with him in a trendy club... you couldn't even hold his hand in public. And yet right now, you were doing all those things, and Jeon Jungkook was looking at you in a way that, if he had only looked at you that way before, would've prevented any sort of breakup from happening in the first place.

"You really are beautiful, you know?" he said.

"T-Thanks..." You caught yourself before you could stutter more and tried to continue the conversation: "Mayu helped me pick this dress. And she also did my make-up, you know I'm hopeless with that--"

"You look really good today, but I meant... you're beautiful all the time," he clarified.

"Jungkook..."

"You know, Seokjin found it to be such a turnoff, the way Saren earnestly pursued him. Whether it's because he's tired of that reaction from women, or because he has some old-fashioned ideas about relationships--it repelled him." He shook his head. "And I thought it was so pitiful, to be rejected even as you put your whole heart on the line as she did."

You dropped your gaze, feeling those words hit a little too close to home.

"But I was wrong."

You looked up.

"What's truly pitiful is to not value that sincerity, isn't it? To throw away that sincerity gifted to you, or to never be sincere in turn." His voice gained strength... and certainty. "I played it safe all this time, never letting you know how much I felt for you, nor how much power those feelings gave you over me. I didn't want to be that pitiful person who'll only get dumped after being so sincere."

"Jungkook--"

"Even if you should reject me, I want you to know, sincerely, that I love you. I never stopped loving you. And that was my biggest mistake--not showing how much I loved you." He cupped your cheeks and planted a soft kiss upon your forehead. Your eyes fluttered shut as you relished the warmth of his lips. All too suddenly, that warmth was gone, his arms had released you, and when you opened your eyes, Jungkook was bowing to you and leaving the dance floor.

You gawked after him, frozen within the turmoil of emotions he left in his wake. Anger was the easiest to process--how dare he do this? How dare he make you responsible for what happens to your relationship again? Whether it was becoming a couple or breaking up, why did it always have to fall upon you to make the move?

So what? A tiny voice whispered in your heart. Is that so important? More important than being honest about your own feelings?

You looked around as you walked to your table: Saren was sitting at the bar with Jaehyung, both of them all smiles and laughter as they posed for selfies; Mayu was wrapped in Yoongi's arms, still swaying to another romantic song, and Seokjin was sitting at the table and sipping wine in silence, seemingly oblivious to the usual admirers thronged around him. "Hi... do you know where Jungkook went?" you asked.

"No..." he stared at you for a few moments, looking like he wanted to tell you something. Before you could ask him what it was, your phone vibrated, alerting you to SNS posts that you might be interested in. Yoongi's and Mayu's separate posts were pictures of their own hands, each wearing one of a couple ring set. Saren didn't post anything, but was tagged in a cute selfie with one Park Jaehyung. And Jeon Jungkook...

JJK: "If we could meet at that place and begin again..."

You gazed out the wide windows, at the illuminated tower, as colorful as a nighttime rainbow.

Seokjin started to speak. "Y/N, do you think--"

You pocketed your phone. "Sorry Seokjin, there's somewhere I have to be. If you'll excuse me..."

Rather than his usual bright and charming smile, the curve of his lips was subtle and wistful. "Of course. You should go while you still can." His gaze darted from the SNS app on his own phone, to the bar.

"Sorry," you repeated, returning his faint smile.

Aggressively flagging down a taxi as soon as you exited the club, you plead with the driver: "Shiba Park--please hurry!"

You didn't want to be like Seokjin, throwing away that chance for love only to second-guess it too late.

While I still can... as long as I can... I'll go to you, Jeon Jungkook.

***

You found him at the tree-lined avenue with the clear, perfect view of Tokyo Tower. You were sure your footsteps were loud in the stilettos that you were unused to walking in, but Jungkook didn't realize your presence as you approached him from behind until you had taken his hand. "Y/N...?" he murmured, before he had even glanced down at you.

"Let's do it."

"Huh...?"

"Us. Let's begin again."

He beamed at you with shining eyes and nodded. You both turned to the tower, and moments later, the lights switched off.

"I'm glad," he said. "Doesn't that mean that we'll finally be together forever?"

"No." Jungkook's head snapped back to stare at you and you smiled at the worried look on his face. "That's mere superstition. We won't be together forever after watching Tokyo Tower's lights shut down. But we'll be together forever because we love each other and we'll make it work this time... won't we?"

"We will." he promised, squeezing your hand.

***

(Four weeks after the new beginning)

Sprawled on top of the covers of your made bed, you scrolled through your phone.

Sarensaku is in a relationship.

"Omo... aren't you going a little fast, sempai?" you chuckled as you clicked *'Like.'* "But I'm glad... that Jaehyung's a good guy." Then you continued scrolling.

IshiiMayu checked in Hanazono Onsen. YoonGi posted a status: "Hot springs are the best for relaxing."

"A hot springs trip together, that's going even faster!" You clicked 'Like' for both posts.

Seokjinnie posted a photo: "#hanakotoba"

It was a photo of a pond, covered with pink lotus blooms. You tilted your head, surprised that he didn't post a selfie and searched for the meaning of lotus blooms in your browser.

"'Being far away from the one you love,' huh... Why did you stay in Korea for your break then, stupid old man?" you sighed, clicking 'Like' for sympathy. "But even in Tokyo… it will be too far."

You were about to put away your phone when it buzzed with a message.

JJK: "Guess where I am?" Y/N: "Aren't you supposed to be boarding?" JJK: "Nope... I managed to snag an earlier flight." Y/N: "Do you mean... " JJK: "I can see it now. I'll wait for you there. At that place. ;)"

"No way, what a stressful surprise!" you cried. But you hopped off your bed in excitement and quickly pulled on your prepared outfit of a cute knitted sweater and a pair of skinny jeans that fitted you just right and fluffed out your hair as you flagged down a cab to take you to Shiba Park.

As he promised, Jungkook was already waiting for you there, standing in the central walkway. Even in his oversized hoodie and facemask, you could recognize him.

Jumping up and down, he waved at you with both hands. "Y/N!" he called.

You giggled at the sight of him--he looked like a big kid. "Hey!" you couldn't call out his name in public, but you waved back, matching his enthusiasm.

He met you halfway and shamelessly ducked to peck you on the lips. You pouted up at him, teasing: "What, you can't even steal a proper kiss?"

Pulling you into his arms, he kissed you deeply, making you tingle all over. When he released you, you blinked at him, speechless. He smirked with pride, and before you could slap his arm in retaliation, he grabbed your hand and started walking.

With his free hand, he snatched off his mask and flicked his hood down, exposing his face.

"Ah.. " you started to point that out, but he pulled you closer. The other people in the park started whispering and pointing, trying to be subtle, but they were obviously noticing him walking with you. "Kookie, I know you don't get mobbed here unlike in other places, but they--they're going to know... about us--"

"Let them," he declared, grinning. "I want them to."

"But... is it really okay?" you asked.

"Sure--just take responsibility." He waved his phone at you.

You reached for your own phone and found the notification of a relationship--with JJK's profile that had just been made public.

You pressed 'Confirm.'

Y/N is in a relationship with JJK.

#NetworkBangtan #kwriterskollection #bts scenarios #bts reactions #bts jungkook #bts imagines #jungkook fanfic #Jeon Jungkook #jungkook imagine #jungkook #BTS #bts fic #bts request #bangtan #kpop #kpop fanfiction #kpop imagines #mine: bts scenarios #At that place

89 notes · View notes

morfinwen · 6 years ago

Note

28, 37, 41, 43, 44, and 50 for all OCs :)

RIP anyone on mobile, here’s a “read more” for the rest of you:

28 - What are some of their guilty pleasures?

Reagan - Dumb phone games, some she’ll download just to play once then remove forever.

Chris - Action paperbacks, the kind with paper-thin characters, plots that fall apart if you think about them for more than two seconds, villains as realistic as a Saturday morning cartoon, etc.

Angie - Her abiding love for the Disney movies she watched as a child goes beyond what most adults will admit to. She wore out her old video cassette of Cinderella, and takes very good care of the stuffed Winnie-the-Pooh bear she’s had since she was a baby.

Neal - There’s this one soap opera he’s kept up on since he was nine years old. No one can know.

Elarin - She loves cheesy pop love ballads. No matter how ridiculous or sappy they are, if it's got a catchy tune, she’ll be humming it under her breath for weeks. HK-47 confirms this was a trait she had even back in her “terror of the galaxy” days, which has led to some interesting mental images for both Elarin and her friends.

Meaghan - She has a collection of various animal figurines she’s collected from all over the place, from all different manufacturers and planets. Most of them are brightly colored and made of cheap materials, almost none of them are realistic. About the only thing all of them have in common, besides being goofy imitations of animals, is that she likes the way they feel in her hands.

Leah - Fancy Lads Snack Cakes. So sugary you can feel your teeth rot when you bite into one. So packed full of preservatives they’ve lasted as long as she’s been alive (which also means most of them are at least slightly irradiated). Whenever she finds a box somewhere, though, she’ll pick it up and hide it somewhere, for when she’s having a bad day.

Avery - There have been various incidents across Kirkwall that have occurred suspiciously close to times and places Avery and Varric were left unattended for lengthy periods of time. Avery doesn’t regret a single shenanigan, but that doesn’t mean she’s going to admit her involvement to Aveline.

Ash - If, hypothetically speaking, Ash ever watched a romcom or chick flick -- which, given the general low quality of many of those types of films, he is definitely not likely to ever do -- he would only do it somewhere private, where if some part of the movie might by happenstance make him tear up, he could keep his emotions to himself and not have to deal with the judgment and opinions of others. All purely hypothetical. You have no evidence.

Lanzo - Reality TV. It’s ridiculous and melodramatic and over the top and not realistic in the slightest, but he can get sucked into watching it for hours. What else is he going to do during the daylight hours?

Connie - Chasing sticks. It’s not fetch, it’s more like catch. With himself.

Aidan - Musicals. Even the silly ones with pointless plots and unbelievable characters.

Nate - He used to love Skittles.

Q - Some animated show that he watched a lot of when he was a kid. Absolutely refuses to speak of it to anyone. He has copies of his favorite episodes saved on his laptop in a password-protected folder with a misleading name, just to make sure no one learns about it.

Niner - Yarn. It’s not that werecats have anything against yarn -- many of them are just as entranced by it as Niner -- but batting a ball of colorful yarn around on the floor is not part of Niner’s image.

Amanda - Self-describes her drinking habits as a quest to replace all internal fluids with Coca-Cola.

Ian - Twinkies. He knows they’re terrible for him, but it’s a road trip necessity. He had a minor freak out when Hostess went bankrupt and they stopped being sold for several months.

Lauren - The occasional cigarette, when she is extra stressed or angry and nothing else will calm her down. If she's particularly self-controlled, one pack will last two weeks. She is usually not quite that self-controlled.

Kira - An older teen romance werewolf movie. She knows it’s dumb, but the lead male is just. The cutest. The dreamiest eyes. His smile. His hair ...

Darcy - Chocolate covered marshmallow cookies. Dipped in peanut butter.

Susanna - Susanna is too young to have guilty pleasures. If she likes something, she likes it, and refuses to be ashamed about it.

37 - Do they like glitter?

Reagan - It doesn’t bother her, but no.

Chris - Giving someone a card with glitter on it is one of Chris’ ways of getting petty revenge on people who haven’t done anything bad enough to merit serious comeuppance. He’ll always add a little extra, in such a way that the recipient won’t notice beyond “wow, there’s a lot of glitter on this card”.

Angie - Not particularly.

Neal - No.

Elarin - Not usually, but sometimes a girl just needs to feel sparkly.

Meaghan - Doesn’t care either way.

Leah - Sure, in small doses.

Avery - I don’t think they have glitter in Ferelden. If they did, she’d love it, but mostly for petty revenge like Chris.

Ash - Ugh. No.

Lanzo - He has a glittery tiara that says “DIVA” that he wears sometimes when he's drunk. When he’s sober, its tendency to get everywhere irritates the heck out of him.

Connie - No.

Aidan - Eh.

Nate - No.

Q - No.

Niner - Won’t ever admit it, but has a certain fascination with anything shiny or sparkly.

Amanda - When she was younger, she did. Nowadays she’s just slightly more likely to buy a glittery card than the average person.

Ian - He would, except he seems to have extraordinarily bad luck with it.

Lauren - With as many siblings as she had, there was always something leaving glitter everywhere when she was growing up, so she’s developed a dislike of it.

Kira - Yes.

Darcy - No.

Susanna - No interest.

41 - Have they ever broken a bone?

Reagan - Once, broke her arm falling out of a tree.

Chris - A few, while playing sports.

Angie - Never.

Neal - If asked, Neal might talk about the one time he got his collarbone broken while playing football in junior high. He will not mention the other times he had a broken bone in his childhood. His parents get angry with him when he talks about those.

Elarin - Considering all the violent conflicts she’s been involved in, she’s suffered serious injury on multiple occasions, but even without amnesia she couldn’t tell you offhand how many of them involved broken bones.

Meaghan - Same.

Leah - Pre-War, she broke a couple fingers playing sports. Post-War … she lost count a long time ago.

Avery - A few. She also leads a conflict-heavy life, but she keeps to the back and lets her better-armored friends take the charge.

Ash - Slipped and broke his ankle one winter. Most boring winter of his life.

Lanzo - Not since becoming a vampire. Vampires can break bones, but it’s significantly less likely.

Connie - No. Werewolves are also tougher than humans.

Aidan - Phoenixes, on the other hand, have light bones that break more easily. The longest he’s gone without breaking something is eight months. (Fortunately, phoenixes also have methods of healing faster).

Nate - Broke his left arm once, and his left leg on a different occasion. The latter event was the one that put an end to his skateboarding/rollerblading days and kickstarted his interest in video games.

Q - He’s suffered a lot of batterings, thanks to riding a bike professionally -- mostly scrapes and minor cuts, but also more than his fair share of broken bones, he’s sure.

Niner - Probably not? When asked, she claims not to know what bones are, and shows no interest in learning. Q is 88% sure she’s joking, but … it’s Niner.

Amanda - Once, broke her leg very badly during an investigation.

Ian - Once, in college. He got lost on his way to class, and thought he was walking down a different set of stairs on the other side of campus -- ones that didn’t require you to be as mindful of where you put your feet.

Lauren - Answered.

Kira - Broke her collarbone once.

Darcy - No.

Susanna - Two fingers, one toe, her ankle, and one hairline fracture in her arm. Considering how much energy Susanna puts into doing everything, it might be a bit surprising she hasn’t broken more.

43 - Have they ever drunk underage?

Reagan - As a small child, she wanted to try her aunt’s wine. Janet figured allowing her a taste would put her off of it for a while, and it did. Reagan never drank again for years, until some very determined coworkers convinced her to accompany them to a bar after work.

Chris - He was at a few parties in high school where there was drinking going on, but he never had any himself.

Angie - Nope. No interest, no opportunities.

Neal - His dad’s idea of “male bonding” was making his twelve-year-old drink an entire can of beer while watching old videos of him playing high school football. Neal threw up shortly afterward, which did nothing to improve his relationship with his father, but it did mean he never “wasted” his beer making Neal drink it again.

Elarin - Never really had the opportunity, and wouldn’t have taken it if she had.

Meaghan - Ditto.

Leah - Someone spiked the punch at one school party Leah attended her sophomore year of high school. Before she’d had more than half a cup, her not-yet-boyfriend Nate warned her about it, and offered to see her home, as the friends she’d come with were not put off by the spiked punch.

It was a warm spring evening, so they walked home very, very slowly, talking about everything going on in the world and what they hoped to do to change things for the better.

Avery - I’m not sure if Ferelden has a drinking age. If it does, then no, but not for want of trying -- so many adults seemed to love alcohol so much, young Avery just wanted to know why, but the mean bartender never let her try any.

Ash - Nope. His dad took him to his favorite local pub shortly after Ash’s twenty-first birthday, and gave him a lot of advice on the topic.

Lanzo - If the concept of minors even existed when Lanzo was born, it was a very different understanding. He grew up drinking alcoholic beverages with pretty much every meal.

Connie - Disliking the taste of alcohol and/or being more susceptible to it are not so common among werewolves as to be a distinctive trait, but for some reason are more likely to be true of the average werewolf than the average human. For this reason, among others, there wasn’t much peer pressure or opportunity for underage drinking.

As an adult, Connie’s tried a variety of different drinks, all of which taste vile to him.

Aidan - No underage drinking, though he did visit a couple speakeasies during Prohibition.

Nate - A little in college, mostly just a friend offering him a taste of theirs. Once at a party he picked up someone’s mixed drink by accident and drank the entire thing. Apparently, Nate’s a great dancer once he loosens up a little.

Q - Not by British standards.

Niner - Werecats leave their immediate families when they reach physical maturity, usually in their early teens, and will travel for a while with others of the same age. One of the other werecats in Niner’s group discovered an abandoned bottle of whiskey on the side of the road, and gave it a try. His reaction was so strong everyone else in the group had to give it a try as well. None of them liked it.

Amanda - For a short period of her teenage years, Amanda rebelled against the strict rules and high expectations of her mother by engaging in various transgressive acts, such as sneaking into bars with fake ID and attending parties where alcohol was available. She was very careful never to get drunk, as she knew there would be serious consequences if her mother ever found out.

Ian - He accidentally drank some of his dad’s beer once as a kid. Like Reagan, it was enough to put him off of it for years. He tolerates some mixed drinks, but he’s still not super-fond of alcohol.

Lauren - She was raised Catholic, so she had wine with her first Communion in grade school. Apart from that, her parents permitted their children to have a single glass of wine at dinner on certain special occasions, once they were double-digits. Like most of her siblings, Lauren didn’t like the taste of it, but it made her feel very grown-up to ask for some. There was also a lot of competitiveness between the siblings, so once one had a glass, all the rest had to have it too, lest they be “shown up” by the others.

Kira, Darcy, Susanna - Nope.

44 - What is the first thing they do when they wake up?

Reagan - Check her phone.

Chris - He has a whole system that starts with getting up, making the bed, getting dressed, brushing his teeth, making breakfast …

Angie - Opens a window.

Neal - Wakes up gradually to the smell of coffee -- sets his coffee maker to start automatically in the mornings.

Elarin - Goes back to whatever she was doing before someone made her go to bed.

Meaghan - Meditates.

Leah - Helps whomever is making breakfast, or starts it if no one else has.

Avery - Mornings are difficult for Avery, so once she’s awake she just lays in bed for a while, until she feels better or something forces her to get up.

Ash - Makes tea and goes outside to watch the sunrise.

Lanzo - Has a drink.

Connie - Showers, if he has to work. Picks up the nearest book and leafs through it until he's fully awake, if he doesn't.

Aidan - If it’s rainy, and it usually is, he’ll get up, get dressed, and find some breakfast. On the rare occasions it’s sunny, goes outside, climbs onto the roof, and watches the sunrise for as long as he can.

Nate - Doesn’t sleep anymore. Back when he did, he would check his phone first.

Q - It takes him a while to fully wake up, so some mornings the first thing he does once he’s awake is make tea, other mornings he’s halfway on his way to work before he can be considered “awake”.

Niner - Food is the only thing on Niner’s mind when she wakes up.

Amanda - She uses the radio for an alarm, and her preferred daytime radio program starts a half hour before she has to get going, so she’ll lie in bed and just listen, letting herself wake up more gradually.

Ian - Wakes up to his alarm, hits the snooze button one too many times, gets up in a panic and drinks as much coffee as he can before leaving for work.

Lauren - Takes a cold shower.

Kira - Bury her head under her pillow, groan, then very reluctantly get up.

Darcy - Get dressed.

Susanna - Run downstairs for breakfast.

50 - Are they good at remembering significant dates? Anniversaries, birthdays etc?

Reagan - She’s not terrible at remembering. Whether she’ll do anything for it is a different matter.

Chris - Yes, but he’s not above getting it wrong or ignoring it if he feels it’s called for.

Angie - Always. In fact, there have been occasions where Angie has recognized a significant date for someone in her social circle and honored it appropriately without that person having any recollection of telling of her that such a date even existed, let alone when it was.

Neal - For the people he cares about, yes. Otherwise, probably not.

Elarin - Dates of personal importance, to her or those close to her, yes -- though mostly by setting up alerts to remind her and other, more subconscious methods. Otherwise she has trouble remembering what day it is.

Meaghan - She’s pretty good at remembering, unless something very serious comes up to distract her.

Leah - She’s good at remembering the actual date, but between all her responsibilities, the incredibly low likelihood of coming across any accurate calendars, and the fact that the Commonwealth’s weather patterns have changed a lot since she was growing up, she might not realize an important date has come up.

Avery - For Avery, recognizing the occasion is more important than getting the date absolutely right, but she is decent at recalling dates, and she makes a point for those to whom getting the date right is important.

Ash - As soon as he learns about an important date for someone who’s more than a casual acquaintance, he writes it down in his personal calendar/address book. You would really have to work to aggravate him enough not to send you a birthday card, once you’re in the book.

Lanzo - Yes, but after this much time, he occasionally mixes up what day is important to what person. Especially awkward when he confuses someone in the house’s birthday with the birthday of, say, one of his wives.

Connie - With a little effort, he can. He has a calendar with every important birthdate written down on it.

Aidan - Nope!

Nate - He remembers all important dates for his immediate family, and a few for his extended family. Otherwise, not really.

Q - Yes. Not really a benefit to him at present, seeing as most of the significant dates he remembers are for his ex-girlfriend and terrible aunt and uncle.

Niner - Vaguely aware of approaching holidays. Otherwise, can’t even tell what day of the week it is, or even what the days of the week are. She’s almost certain “Wednesday” isn’t a real word.

Amanda - She tries, but she gets so involved in her work that it can slip her mind until it’s too late. She really does put in an effort for her closest friends and family.

Ian - Answered.

Lauren - The only important dates she can really remember are those of her family and Ian’s family.

Kira - She only has to hear it once to remember it. Now if only that worked for her history tests …

Darcy - Has been known to forget when his own birthday is, so that would be a no.

Susanna - Not particularly, though she has on multiple occasions surprised people by remembering an important date they were sure she’d forgotten.

Long enough for you? Thanks for asking, though! Still fun working through these. Most of these, anyway. (Poor Neal ... )

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seiya234 · 7 years ago

Text

It started with a bag of potato chips.

Namely, a bag of artisanal potato chips Mom had gotten for them (for Mabel) (for them) at the farmer’s market that week. They were pickle flavored, made their entire room reek of dill, and came in a handmade paper bag. Before the Transcendence (before he had died) (no) Dipper usually let Mabel have the potato chips in favor of the soft pretzels Mom bought at the market for him and Dad.

But Mom had forgotten the pretzels (forgotten that he was still there) (no, just forgot that he could still eat), leaving only the potato chips.

No one had summoned him all day and he and Mabel had quickly realized that it was…. best that he not follow her to school. He could have gone to the Mindscape, could have danced in the dreams of a thousand sleepers, gone from Pisa to New Delhi to Nome just because-

The chips haunted him. As soon as he realized he couldn’t have them he wanted them more than anything else on the planet. It was dumb-part of Dipper knew this-to obsess over freaking potato chips. Perhaps it was his new nature, his new form of being. To want, to hunger, endlessly.

Also to his now far superior senses, they smelt impossibly good.

He looked at the clock (you don’t need to).

3:08 (20 seconds, 14 milliseconds, the feel of the earth slowly turning on its axis, the whirl of a body in motion around the sun-) PM. Mabel would be home soon and then she could give him some chips and he could put this whole stupid day behind him.

Mabel sighed with relief as she exited the building. Another school day done. She began the long walk home and once again tried to tell herself it was because she liked being outside and not, say, because her bus driver was a poop butt (be nice) and wouldn’t let her on his bus anymore.

She used to like school. School was where her friends and art class were. But they had had to cut art class this year because of dumb budget thing. And yeah, Mabel did art stuff all the time at home but that wasn’t the same as actually getting to go to a special class for it every day. How was she going to learn new things now? Dipper had rolled his eyes at her and just told her to use YouTube but that wasn’t the same. And as for friends-

Mabel blew out a raspberry. She was half way through the school year. She should be used to this by now. Used to not having Cherry or Eddie or Christina talk to her any more. Used to sitting alone at lunch, to having her teachers look over and pretend not to see her raised hand. Thanks to one or two…. thingies from Dipper at the beginning of the year, no one made fun of her or messed with her anymore, outwardly at least.

They just ignored her now. Oh, and left notes in her locker, notes which made her feel dirty just to read, notes that sometimes had an adult’s handwriting on them.

(She read each one then threw it away. Her parents couldn’t do anything about it and she was scared what Dipper would do if he knew.)

Mabel kicked a rock in her path and sighed. Used to be, her and Dipper would take the Alcor Express to Gravity Falls and spend the afternoon at the Shack. Soos would make her Magic Milk, Melody would do her hair in a million tiny braids, and both of them would show her and Dipper the new attractions they had made. After Paz and Grenda and Candy got out from school, they’d come over too, and they’d all chase Dipper through the yard until dinner time in Piedmont. But Mom and Dad had made them stop, saying they didn’t want them hanging out with strangers two states away.

(“But they aren’t strangers!” she had cried. “They’re our friends and we love them!”

Mom had pursed her lips and Dad had sighed. They gave each other one of those long looks that they thought Mabel was too stupid to understand. Finally, Dad said, “We will try and stop at Gravity Falls on our way to Seattle in January. Meet this Mr. Ramirez. Then we will discuss this further-”

Mabel opened her mouth to argue, but from the looks on her parents’ faces, she knew she shouldn’t push it.

Also that they expected her to break the news to Dipper.)

She blew out her breath in a big raspberry and stepped over a branch on the sidewalk. Remember.

Remember to be nice. Remember to be fair.

Remember that this was hard for Mom and Dad too. Remember that she could have made things a lot easier for herself if she had just lied about Dipper at school. Remember to remind Dad to set a place for Dipper at dinner tonight.

Remember, no matter how hard she had tried to forget, the scream Dipper let out as she saw him burn from the inside out.

Her steps sped up.

Remember to think about everyone but herself. Remember to not think about how lonely she felt, and no she shouldn’t feel that way, she talked to the girls on the phone all the time, be fair Mabel.

Was she running now? Yup, Leftie and Veronica were definitely running now.

Remember how tired she was. Remember how much Dipper relied on her for everything. Remember to try and control her emotions somehow by the time she got home because now Dipper could tell when she was upset and she didn’t want to try and explain why she was upset. Remember to stop being so upset, to stop being such a big weenie crybaby, because Dipper had it so much worse than her and she shouldn’t forget that and she needed to be better she needed to be nicer she needed to not

To not remember the mean, ugly, snarly thing in her chest that felt like it was going to claw its way out at any second.

Mabel swallowed the scream that was welling up in her throat as she finally saw the front porch of her house. She took a moment by the front door to calm down. She thought about kittencorns and snadgers and a snadger riding a kittencorn through a rainbow explosion in the Gumdrop Duchy, and that did the trick. Somehow, she managed to pull a smile out of her brain pocket.

Besides, there was that bag of fancypants potato chips Mom had got for her at the Farmer’s Market waiting for her inside.

——

Finally, finally the door opened to their bedroom and Mabel came in. He tried to ignore the way her aura was muted and damp, deep ugly puce and magenta and sqarporple. The way she threw her horse backpack to the ground instead of placing it lovingly on her papasan chair, like she did last year.

The crick she was getting in her neck from constantly looking down.

He wished he was ignoring it because it would hurt Mabel to draw her attention to his awareness of her dejection, but honestly, it was because dissecting her emotions would delay the delivery of potato chips from Mabel’s hands into his mouth.

“Mabel!”

She tiredly smiled. “Hey Dippinsauce.”

He went on. “My favorite Mabelrooni!”

“Hi.”

“Mabellina!”

She raised an eyebrow, a skill she had learned at age seven and refused to teach him (not that he needed her to do that now) (no, stop it Dipper.)

“Whoa there broseph,” she said, picking up the potato chips. “I thought we agreed- no talking like each other because that’s weird and like, we’re twins but not like, horror movie psycho twins.”

Despite the need surging through his system, Dipper shuddered. “Like that one convention last month,” he said.

Mabel grimaced. “Yeah.”

He knew how many individual grains of salt were on each chip. He knew how many chips there were in the bag (57.) He knew that there were chips from four separate potatoes in the bag, and that said potatoes came from a factory farm in Idaho and not from a backyard in Piedmont as was claimed by the proprietor. But the pickles and pickle juice that flavored the chips were handmade, that much was true. It felt like his stomach was going to crawl out of his mouth to get at the chips.

It probably felt like that because that bad boy was currently trying to squeeze its way out. Dipper frowned, and gulped hard to push his stomach back in place.

Mabel had grabbed the bag.

Mabel had opened the bag.

Mabel was saying something or the other but she always blathered on for a bit after school it wasn’t that important what was important was chips in his mouth now-

“Mabel, can I have the potato chips?”

There. That was polite. Ish.

Mabel smiled. “No offence Dipperino, but I’ve been looking forward to these all day. But I don’t mind sharing! We can do ‘one for me, one for you,’ and make it even even!”

Dipper frowned slightly. “Yeah but I’ve been waiting for them all day. I’d reallylike the whole bag if that’s okay.”

His twin’s smile wavered, but then re-fixed itself. “I’m sorry Dipper. Normally I’d let you have them all to yourself since I know… I know it gets lonely during the day. But I was really looking forward to these.”

“Well, so was I.”

“Well, me too! Can’t we just share? Like we used to do all the time?”

“N̦͉̝̼͈o̴̦͖̭̺͇̮!̣̼” The force with which the word came out of his mouth surprised him, but he kept on going.

“You don’t understand Mabel. I spent forty minutes today tracing the history of each and every potato that went into that pack- and I didn’t even want to! It just happened! Dad came in here to vacuum, and he walked through me, and I didn’t even notice because I was so busy thinking about the chips! I don’t wantto want them but I do! So just. Give them to me? Please?”

Dipper was really upset, she could tell. And he was right. He had a rough day. She should stop being selfish and give him the chips. Be a good sister and all that. Besides, there was some Lays and peanut butter to dip them in downstairs. Ignore the hot, mean, ugly snarly thing screaming in her stomach.

She opened her mouth to say okay, she extended her hand to give him the bag-

Mabel clutched the bag to her chest and snapped out, “No!”

Her brother had gone still, stiller than a person could ever get.

“What do you mean ‘no,’ Shooting Star?”

Ohhhh no he wasn’t going to get her with that trick.

It was the mean snarly thing in her stomach that spoke for Mabel, the mean snarly thing that had been born when she woke up in a dark, pink place, that had only continued to grow since then.

“I mean no! I’m… I’m tired too Dipper! I know this is harder for you, but haven’t you ever thought about that it’s hard for me too? I’m tired of… Of giving you everything! Just this once won’t you let me keep something for myself?”

The room in Dipper’s vision turned red, every single thing in his sight a shade of throbbing, angry crimson.

“It’s hard? For you?! At least you’re not dead!”

“Dipper you aren’t dead though-”

He laughed, and the glass of Mabel Juice she had poured for herself got lumpy and gross like old milk.

“Tell that to Mom and Dad! They had a funeral for me remember? There’s a stone and everything!”

“You are alive-”

“Ń̛ót̴͝ ̡to̶̧ ̧t̢h͘ę͠m̷͜!̀̕”

Dipper had burst into flames at that last part, but before she could remind him to put himself out, he kept talking.

“They walk through me even after you tell them I’m there. They visit my grave once a week even though they… they know I’m there with them. They’ve stopped worrying about my allergies. And you know they haven’t told Grandma Lorie and Grandpa Lou about… about me, not like they would have told Grandma Shermie. They don’t correct people when they say I’m dead, not like you do. They… Mark and Anna-“

“Mom and Dad-“

“They… they forget about me sometimes.” Dipper paused. “Well, maybe not forgetting all the way, because in the back of their minds is the constant thought about the Son They Lost and Mabel don’t look at me like that I’m just saying what’s there…”

He pointed a claw tipped finger at her.

“They don’t set a place for me at the dinner table any more Mabel! Haven’t you noticed that?”

“Yeah, but you don’t eat so why does it matter….”

Too late Mabel realized that she had said the wrong thing.

Dipper looked at her.

She was aware, for the first time in a very long time, of his black eyes, of the ears that grew more pointed and long with every passing day.

Fingers tipped with claws that were twitching.

Maybe she should be scared (and she was, a little bit) but this was Dipper. This was her twin, her bro-bro. And no matter how many arguments they had, she had never lost one yet. And while there would be time to apologize later, the key in arguing with Dipper was not letting him get a word in. Once you did that, he’d use his dumb “logic” and “sense” and, worse of all, “facts.”

“You’re tired of being overlooked? Of being treated differently now? Of having people look at you and think of bad things only? Well so am I.”

Mabel put the bag of chips down on the bed behind her, out of Dipper’s line of sight.

“You know; I can’t remember the last time you said ‘thank you.’”

The aura of menace that was building around Dipper shorted out.

“What… what does that have to do with anything?”

The hot snarly thing was still in her chest, screaming in anger, but at this point Mabel just felt tired.

"Dipper.... Dippindots. I spend like, almost my entire day doing stuff for you-"

"No you don't, what about when you're at school and sleeping-"

The look that Mabel gave him shut Dipper up immediately, jaw clicking audibly shut. She went on.

"Since you can't or won't show up for Mom and Dad, I'm the only way you three can talk to each other- and it's not just me telling them what you've said! They've been telling me... mom and dad stuff. No, it’s not that, it’s-"

She shook her head, "They've been telling me adult stuff and expecting me to deal with it for them and I know they don't mean anything bad by that but it really makes my head hurt and-" Mabel blew out a breath. "Then I got to decide what won't hurt your feelings, what you need to hear, and how you should hear it."

"I-"

"There's only so many scrapbooks and macaroni pages I can make to deal with this Dipper!"

Her eyes narrowed. "You have been looking at my 'Mom and Dad Stuff For Dipper' book right? I leave the pages open for you-?"

Dipper was silent and that alone was all the answer she needed.

“Wow. Great. Fantastic.” Mabel didn’t recognize the voice that was coming out of her mouth, all adult sounding and snarly and mean. She looked down into the bag, at the potato chips waiting for her.

“You know what? Fine. I’m done trying for you-“

(no, no Mabel you don’t mean that)

(she did mean it though. Not for always and forever, but for here and now, Mabel Anna Pines was done with this)

She put a hand in the bag.

“Mabel.”

She pulled out a chip.

“Mabel, I thought I told you those chips were mine.”

Mabel put the chip back and Dipper sighed in relief… only to see her grab out five chips and shove them all in her mouth.

The sound that came out of Dipper’s mouth wasn’t human.

Human voices didn’t shatter car windows four blocks away and make ears bleed.

Mabel pushed through and pulled out another chip.

“S͎t̯̱o̞p̤̩̯̥̱̯͘”

His twin froze. Dipper could still see the rise and fall of her chest, the trembling of her arms forced to stay in one awkward place.

He reached out.

He grabbed the bag of potato chips- and he could touch them! He could have t͈̜͙̣͕͚̥́h̢̠̱͚ḙ̴̲͔̜͚m̦̬̥̘̳̞̯͠.

They were his and they were his and he ate them all in front of his sister’s eyes, ungraceful shovels of chips into his mouth, one, two, three handfuls and they were gone.

They were the most utterly disappointing things he had ever eaten. They didn’t live up to the day long hype in his mind... but they weren’t rotten or gross either.

They were just potato chips, and looking at his sister’s face, they tasted like ashes in his mouth.

#transcendence au #seiya writes!

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