#it’s normal to find them more interesting? ​it has been since the dawn of time?

[goldensunset]

wow that person from my last reblog was right! completely insane takes in the volo tag lol

[jenanigans1207]

What I wanted so badly was for Mary to learn about her boys from Cas. Like that night where Cas finds her when she can’t sleep and she expresses that she just doesn’t know anything about her sons since she missed so much?? All I wanted was for Cas to sit down with her at the table and just start telling her about them. Basic stuff at first: their favorite foods, their sleeping habits, the stuff he’s just observed by being their passenger for years.

And then I want him to say something totally Cas, like “Dean always wears more layers but that’s because his body naturally runs two degrees colder than Sam’s. But that’s normal for him and not indicative of any illness, so it’s nothing to worry about.”

And as they talk, it starts to get a little deeper, and Cas tells her more. He tells her about what she missed, about all the horrible things that happened to her sons and how they coped; how it changed them. And he tells her about Sam, he does, but really it ends up being all about Dean.

He’ll tell her about how Dean clenches his fists when he’s upset, even as he tries to keep his face impassive. About how Dean drums his fingers on the steering wheel when he’s anxious. He’ll tell her about Dean’s nightmares, about the ways he’s chosen to cope. He’ll tell her how to know when to approach Dean and when to give him space, how to gently acknowledge what he’s feeling without pushing him too far.

And with every word he says, Mary’s curious head tilt from when she’d seen them hug in reunion turns into a bone deep type of certainty. Because Cas is telling her things that only someone who paid special attention would notice. He’s telling her things that only someone very, very close to her son’s heart would know.

Cas will tell her the cliff notes of what they’ve been through; will tell her how the whole world looked to Dean and he rose to the occasion over and over again. He’ll tell her about Dean’s doubts in himself and then vehemently declare them as wrong and explain, at length, why. He will tell her about the people Dean has loved— the people who loved him like he was their own— and lost. He will tell her about Bobby, Ellen, Jody, Donna, and Charlie. He’ll tell her about Claire, too, and how Dean stepped up.

And the whole time, Mary will have this realization that oh, she may not have been around to guide and protect her sons, but there was always someone there to care for them and support them when they needed it. She will realize that she and John may have left them, but they were never alone.

But more than that, there was someone there for Dean. Someone picking Dean over and over again while Dean picked Sam, or the world, over himself. There was someone fighting for Dean when he wasn’t fighting for himself. There was someone who saw Dean, and loved him unconditionally.

Sitting across from her, at the asscrack of dawn, filling her in on all the things she missed was every mother’s dream: someone who loved her child with the kind of devotion that would break the world. And from the sounds of the stories she was being told, it did break the world. Someone whose love is entirely untainted and comes without any strings attached.

It’s so clear to her as she listens to Cas talk that Cas loves Dean with no expectations. That loving Dean is something he just does, like he doesn’t know how not to love Dean, like the possibility of not loving him never occurred to Cas. He loves Dean in a way that Mary knows can and will soothe Dean’s sharp edges and battered heart. He loves Dean in the kind of pure way that tells Mary that it will continue to endure and overcome everything without ever diminishing, even the littlest amount.

Mary, through tears, will tell Cas how she always told Dean that there were angels watching over him. And before Cas can make some comment about Dean being the Righteous Man and the interest of most of Heaven, she will place a hand over his and give him a motherly look that will convey all the things she’s not sure how to say— and the things she’s not sure Cas is ready to hear yet. And Cas will flush and look away, mumbling about how her son is very special to him.

And when she pulls him into a hug and murmurs thank yous into his shoulder, she will be comforted in the knowledge that her sons turned out to be wonderful men, and that they managed to stay together through everything. She will be comforted to know that no matter what happens, no matter her shortcomings as she tries to fill a role she never meant to leave, Sam will have Dean and Dean will have Cas.

And this time, when Cas tells her that she belongs here, she will believe him. And she will tell him that he belongs here, too.

And when Dean wakes up a few hours later and wanders in to find Mary and Cas still chatting over the table, he’ll be surprised— but pleased— to find Mary looking more at ease. He’ll be pleased when she gives him a warm hug and pats him on the cheek and tell him with all the sincerity that only a mother can muster that she’s glad that he met Castiel. And when Dean agrees, a little confused, Mary will just smile at him.

“I always said I’d like a third son.” She says, “so give him a reason to take our last name, won’t you?”

And Dean will splutter and turn fifteen shades of red as he steadfastly doesn’t look at Cas but mumbles something that suggests he’s not against the idea at all.

And Mary will laugh again and wink at an equally red Cas before heading towards the kitchen like “Cas said waffles are your favorite, so I hope you’re hungry!”

[ozzgin]

Yandere! Sea Monster x Reader

In the spirit of Mermay, I come to you with a slightly different approach: an octopus hybrid, dwelling in the dark depths of ancient waters. :) Hopefully close enough to the sea monster you imagined, @wally0117

Content: gender neutral reader, male yandere, monster romance, reader likes sharks (a lot); inspired by The Shape of Water and My Octopus Teacher; photo from Whalebone Magazine

He’s always been aware of humans, naturally. Observed them from the beginnings of time, from the very first rudimentary attempt of a boat that crossed his waters. Though he can only guess how these creatures exist, how they breathe, how they move. What arrives in his depths is always a corpse of some sort. Bloated, decaying carcasses, rarely intact, whether chipped by fish or by time. Everything else is left to his imagination.

Until today. The fish are restless, the currents are stronger. Something must be happening above, stringing him along curiously. His many legs sway in tandem, opening and closing, as he investigates the source of interest. His pale white eyes narrow to a mere squint, unused to the light of the surface levels. At last, he finds it: a human.

Yet this one is unusual. Intact - save for the bleeding wound - and unlike the washed-out, cadaveric blue tint he’s normally accustomed to. He notices a twitch of the limb and it dawns on him: this one is still alive.

You wake up with a violent cough, thrusting out the leftover liquid that had invaded your lungs earlier. You clearly remember drowning, so how did you end up on shore again? The answer reveals itself rather quickly: a monstrous creature, albeit humanoid for the most part. The upper half resembles a man, but the torso ends in thick, enormous tentacles, now flopped onto the sand, surrounding your body. You search for the creature’s face, framed by translucent tendrils that seem to replace what you’d expect as hair.

“Thank you”. He scans your features and remains silent. Does he even understand human speech? After a moment of consideration, he looks ahead, surveying the water, then returns to you, giving you a nudge. He most likely wants to know how you ended up in that situation to begin with. “That’s, well…”

Conveniently enough, the monster has brought you back to your little camp, so you reach for your backpack and pull out a book. Of course, no words can ever replace the image itself. With renewed enthusiasm, you open your encyclopedia and turn it towards the man, showing him a photo of a sand tiger shark, tapping on it excitedly. “I was looking for sharks!”

Ever since the bizarre, life-saving encounter, you’ve been returning to the same spot most days. And without exception, the monster will be waiting for you in one of the neighboring caves. Judging by the pellucid, pale skin and his reluctance to be in the light, you guessed early on that he might be a creature of the depths.

One that has been around for a long time, it seems. Once he understood your interest in sharks and other aquatic animals, he developed a liking to play guide for you, silently touring you through forests of kelp, hidden caves, labyrinths of reefs and hills. He knows where the animals linger, and they don't scurry away when you approach. You've never dreamed of being so close to them, staring into their eyes and tracing their fins as they swim past you, unbothered and relaxed. The monster will gaze at you from a distance, amused by your passion.

On ground, you’ve begun your own little experiment: can the octopus creature learn sign language? You didn’t need long to discover how intelligent he is, mimicking your gestures with flawless ease, instantly memorizing the meanings, the connections, the implications. He seems to be terribly delighted by this newfound tool of communication, often asking you questions with earnest curiosity.

Ah, yes, the questions. It makes sense that he’d want to know more about humans, though his interrogations are rather…particular. Specific. It’s less about humans as a whole, and more about you. How long have you been swimming here? How deep can you actually swim, with or without aid? Might you have a family waiting for you back home? A mate, perchance? No? Interesting.

"My vacation will end soon", you sign with pursed lips. He tilts his head. "Leaving?" his webbed hands gesture, somewhat uneasy. You nod. You can discern a glint of melancholy in his eyes. Eventually, he resumes: "Would you like to see my home?" Your eyebrows raise in surprise. His home? Down there? Was such a thing even achievable for a human like you?

The plump suckers attach themselves to your skin, one resting over your mouth. "Do you trust me?" You cast one final glance over the underwater abyss, a black hole trapping all light and matter. You shake your head in approval. Without hesitation, he plunges over the cliff, pulling you after him and into the yawning void of darkness. His form glows eerily, and his movement is swift and elegant. You can tell this is his land, his territory. You would've been dead a long time ago.

He releases you on the wet stone, inside the air pocket of a cave. You need a few moments to overcome the wave of claustrophobia pressing against your lungs. As you catch your breath, you recall your long path from the surface. It would be impossible to make it back out again without your friend. A cold shiver runs across your spine. "Have a break, and I'll show you everything else afterwards", he gestures with a smile. "How long will it take? I don't want to walk back at night", you explain.

Silence. You stare into his empty orbs, awaiting a reaction. There's not a sound, not a gust of wind, not a shred of light. "You're not going back", he finally answers.

You see, he's done a fair amount of research himself. He doesn't need an encyclopedia to figure you out: how you breathe, how you move, how you exist. In fact, he is rather confident in his ways of helping you adapt to a life spent together. He would've never brought you down here if he wasn't certain of your survival. His grin widens in anticipation, a strange warmth enveloping his innards at the mere thought of it: a future with you in it, right here. However, one question remains, a cheeky, perverted detail that has been on his mind from the moment he met you, yet he could never investigate it properly.

How do humans mate?

[m4rv3l-girl]

Mind Games

Erik x Y/N

Erik didn’t know she was telepath. He has a very active imagination…

Requests Open!

Warnings: Mentions of sexual themes

Only a few weeks had passed since the introduction of Erik Lehnsherr to Y/N. The introduction had been brief but left an aura of lingering tension between them. Y/N couldn't help but notice how Erik's eyes find their way toward her in a room full of people. What Erik didn't know, however, was that every thought in his head was available to her like an open book.

Y/N's mutant ability? She could read minds, and Erik's was a particularly loud one-borderline inappropriate most of the time, to say the least. He thought he was subtle, but his inner monologue told her otherwise.

Tonight they were in the kitchen, alone. The others had all gone off to bed and only the two of them were left behind in the silent space bathed in the soft, indirect light from above. Erik stood by the counter, drinking his coffee without really tasting it while Y/N leaned against the island, stirring a cup of tea.

They spoke of everything under the sun but his mind was elsewhere.

"She's beautiful." "She probably doesn't even like me, though." "God, what I wouldn’t give to kiss her-”

Y/N stifled a smile. She'd gotten used to the whirling chaos of Erik's thoughts, full of admiration and compliments with the stray thought that, more times than not, could have turned the kitchen ten degrees hotter. Tonight, though, was different, and Y/N could feel it even before Erik's next thought echoed in her head.

“She has such gorgeous lips. I bet they’re soft…bet they’re good at-..No, no don’t think that.”

“But, then again….she’d look good on her knees. Looking up at me. Her mouth around my-”

Y/N's spoon clattered onto the counter, breaking the silence. Erik's eyes snapped up to hers in surprise.

"Sorry," she muttered, tucking back a laugh. She looked at him and saw the faintest flush on his cheeks. He hadn't any idea she'd just heard his most intimate thought.

She'd been playing this game, concealing her skills from Erik for weeks now. She found it amusements-end that, with quite a frequency, his mind veered off in dangerous directions. It wasn't that she didn't like him- quite the opposite. He was magnetic, charming in a brooding sort of way. There was attraction between them, mutual in its forging, though only Y/N was cognizant of both sides.

But standing here, her mind traipsing further down a road she probably shouldn't follow, Y/N knew it was time to show her hand. "Erik," she said, breaking the comfortable silence. He raised an eyebrow, setting his coffee cup down. "What is it, darling?" She hedged, watching his response closely. His brow furrowed with concern, probably misreading the seriousness in her expression.

Y/N took a deep breath. "I'm a mutant, like you," she blurted out, and he nodded, expecting her to continue. "But my ability… is that I can hear people's thoughts."

Erik blinked at her, bewildered at first, then realization dawned on him. His mouth opened, though nothing was heard coming from it. She could practically see gears turning in his head. All that stuff he had been thinking for the last couple of weeks piled onto him in one second.

"She heard. everything?!" "Oh God, shit. Oh, hell."

His face flushed red as he stared at her, mortified. "You- you've been,” "Listening to you?" Y/N finished for him with her lips twitching into a grin. "Yeah, I have."

Erik groaned, burying his face in his hands. "Dear God, I thought I was being subtle." "Not even a little, Erik." Y/N couldn't help it and burst out laughing. It was a rare sight, the ever-composed Erik flustered like that.

He peeked at her between his fingers. "And you've heard…. Everything I've been thinking?" "Mm-hmm," Y/N replied nonchalantly, taking a sip of her tea like this was the most normal conversation in the world. "You've had some pretty interesting thoughts, Erik." Erik looked like he wanted the ground to swallow him whole. "Darling-”

Y/N stepped closer, her eyes sparkling with amusement. "Relax. It's not like I didn't already know how you felt."

He blinked at her again, this time less with embarrassment, more with curiosity. "You did?"

"I've known since the first time you walked into the room," she admitted, softer then. "And, for the record, I don't mind your thoughts. I kinda like them."

A small smile turned up the corners of Erik's lips; his embarrassment was quickly replaced with one of more confidence. He closed the space between them, stepping closer to her. "You could've told me sooner, love."

Y/N shrugged, placing her cup on the counter. "Where's the fun in that?”

Erik laughed, his hands tenderly reaching out to lay on her hips. "I just can't believe I spent weeks making a fool of myself inside of my own head."

"Oh, you were doing just fine out loud too," Y/N teased, grinning back up at him.”

He smirked, his hand lifting to brush a strand of hair away from her face. "Well, since you already know what I've been thinking, there's no point in hiding it anymore, is there?"

Y/N felt her heart skip a beat as he leaned in, his voice dropping lower. "You've been driving me insane, darling. Every time I see you.”

Y/N's breath caught, her mind buzzing with the proximity. "You could have said something." "I'm saying it now," Erik murmured, his lips inches from hers. "Unless you've changed your mind?" "Not at all, dear," Y/N whispered, closing the distance.

Their lips met in a slow, heated kiss, and for once, Erik didn't have to say a word. But Y/N was more than happy to hear every single, dirty thought running through his mind.  She knew it was going to be a hell of a lot more fun now that the game was out in the open.

[everestgale]

Do you have any headcannons for your human designs of the voices, and would there be a different story to them (like if they have lives and jobs), or are they still just the voices of TLQ but as humans?

Sorry for taking a while to reply, I kept forgetting to actually write it all down (т v т)

The answer is: human voices are a part of a separate, post-New and Unending Dawn AU, where The Long Quiet is so sorrowful and longing after he killed the Heart of the Shifting Mound that he decided to unravel himself into a new world, created in the Princess's image, spinning his physical body into the world, his heart into the (human) voices, and his mind/memories into (human) vessels (since The Shifting Mound is gone, he has to essentially reconstruct them from his memories).

Yes, this AU also has human vessels because I've wanted to design how Princesses would look like if they were regular people ever since @/lavb-b did this for Prisoner, but I could never find proper motivation to sit down and design those. Voice brainrot has been very strong and very real (т v т)

And if you're wondering if this is how the idea of human voices started, the answer is absolutely not, it was originally just a funny design exercise, but I love coming up with silly in-universe reasons for my dumb ideas to exist, so this is now one of my AUs.

Tangents aside, it is a completely separate story from the usual post-canon shenanigans, human voices actually have zero solid memories of anything that happened before. For all intents and purposes, this is a different world, and so none of these people went through the horrors of the Construct; all they have is some vague subconscious feelings, gut instincts, nightmares, visions, but nothing solid or concrete that ties them to their Construct lives. At least, until I actually decide to make this AU into a story, I have a couple of ideas that I might explore in the future, or I might just leave this a silly modern slice-of-life AU, who knows!

As for specific headcanons, I actually don't have a lot of specific details planned or figured out since I'm only just now figuring out how even my regular post-canon world works, haven't had the time to really figure out what's going on with the human AU yet. But! Have a couple that I can remember off the top of my head:

Stranger pairs (Stubborn-Broken, Cold-Paranoid, Smitten-Skeptic, Opportunist-Hunted, and Cheated-Contrarian) are all siblings, with Cold-Paranoid pair being adoptive siblings. Maybe Cheated-Contrarian pair too, I'm not entirely sure yet.

They are all range between early 20s and mid 30s age-wise. The youngest of the group are Contrarian (definitely the youngest), Hunted, Hero, and Paranoid, probably in that order. The oldest are Smitten, Cheated, Skeptic, and Opportunist, though I can't decide if Smitten or Skeptic should be the oldest-

The younger side of voices (Contra, Hunted, Hero, Paranoid, Cold) are all university students (Contrarian is in uni because Cheated, his older brother in the AU, never did, so of course he had to /lh). The older side is... doing something. I haven't figured that out, but they all sure do have regular jobs and are trying their best to live a normal life. The universe (me) has other plans for them ^^

All voices do know about each other, at least vaguely (having them be five sets of siblings helps with that), but they are not as close of a group as they are in regular post-canon, due to age gaps and general lack of proximity. That does NOT mean that I'm not gonna put all these guys together into The Situations™

So yeah, those are some general ideas I have about my human lads, I probably have some specific headcanons for individual voices, but if I were to list them all here, this post would be like 2000 more words /hj Though if you are interested in a specific character, feel free to send another ask, I will try to write my vague ideas and headcanons down!

Thank you for asking, and I hope you enjoyed reading my random AU ramble!

[stu-dyingstudent]

kid/academy/pre-genin Sakura Haruno fic recs

To be honest, there aren't many kid or academy Sakura fics out there, at least that I can find, and most of which are actually time travel AUs. Now, the tricky thing with it is that most of those tend to start where Sakura is quite young, but by the end of the story she is a genin. So, it gives me the difficult decision of whether of not I should include those on this list (I haven't decided).

Anyway, the other difficult aspect of fanfiction about a young Sakura is the writing itself. There has to be a good balance of childishness and eloquence to ensure that the writing is not just truthful to the character, but that it also flows with the story. These are some of the ones I like!

Started: 2024.07.25

Last Updated: 2024.09.28

note: feel free to check out my master list which has a bunch of Sakura Haruno fic recs (all organized)!

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Satori (Between the Lines) - Jaylene || ffn || gen || T || academy AU || complete

While attending the Academy, Sakura's field experience assignment with the Konohagakure Intelligence Division ends up being more valuable than she'd ever guess.

Sakura lands herself working in Torture & Intelligence??? From the very beginning Sakura has been pegged as a "paper ninja" where she is constantly praised for her intelligence, so Satori (Between the Lines) is academy Sakura putting these skills to use. Super good read and includes characters we don't normally get to see in fics!

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Time Flies Like An Arrow - Katlou303 || ao3 || gen || K || time travel AU || complete

Sakura traveled back in time with the intent of changing everything, but something went wrong, and now she's four years old having nightmares about impossible monsters and losing friends she has yet to meet.

Time Flies Like An Arrow is probably the most interesting take on a time travel AU I have ever read. Sakura ends up going back in time to when she is 4 years old and not even in the academy. The only thing is, she has no clue that this is the second time she's living this life and her mind is still one of a child.

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Two Minds (are better than one) - Lesemaus16 || ao3 || gen || Tobirama as inner AU || complete

Tobirama doesn't generally object to being reborn. He does object to being stuck in the mind of a little girl, though.Sakura grows up with a grumpy voice in her head, telling her to train more.Tobirama's influence on Sakura might very well change the story. Or maybe not, who knows.

note: I think this might actually take place during the genin days, but I have to check since I can't remember.

Tobirama is such a great character (so refreshing) and his interactions with Sakura in this are gold! I hope one day Kishimoto will release some side stories about him and other characters from his time as we really don't know that much about them tbh.

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New Day Dawning - IncompleteSentanc (Erava) || ao3 || narusaku || T || canon divergence || complete

One day, while visiting the grave of Nohara Rin, Obito stumbles across a young girl terrifyingly like her. He decides to ensure she doesn’t meet the same fate.As for Sakura? Sakura had no idea what she was awakening the day she went to visit her parents graves - but she never looked back. One way or another.(Feat. Sakura raised by Obito and the Akatsuki, and her eventual return to Konoha and all those she left behind)

Sakura is brainwashed and manipulated, but loved by notorious killers nonetheless. Incredibly well written and I won't lie when I say that the ending took me a bit by surprise. Also, I should warn you that this does take place over a long time and thus Sakura does not remain a child for the whole thing, but I just really wanted to put New Day Dawning on this list (just read it).

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In Another World - eleventheeggo || ao3 || gen || T || orphan Sakura AU || ongoing

What if Sakura was an orphan instead of Naruto and Sasuke? A story about a socially stunted girl who has a thirst for knowledge and is surrounded by softies who love her all the same.

Orphan!Sakura is not something I knew I needed in my life! She is so precious and it's great to watch all of these characters come together for her sake. In Another World also discusses ROOT a bit, which you know I love, so I can't wait for the story to get there.

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Your Move, Instigator (draw your weapon and hold your tongue) - Laysan_albatross || ao3|| third war extended AU || complete

“We are still under wartime policy,” the recruiter had told her parents. He had an envelope in his hand. He sounded sorry. “She has two parents who are successful ninjas. We would be remiss to overlook her potential based upon that alone.” The Third Shinobi War never ended. Konoha needs more soldiers, grabbing anyone who can fight, especially those who can't say no.

I feel like one of Your Move Instigator's biggest strengths is that it truly gets across the innocence (or loss) of these characters. They themselves don't fully understand what they are doing or why. They are just children following the orders given to them by adults, even if that means taking the life of another. In the beginning, Sakura even recalls times of her spelling and grammar being corrected in her reports along with other childish things. Konoha has shown themselves of not being above dispatching young children to fight, but this story just brings that devastation to new light.

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cut the head off the snake - itsthechocopuff || ao3 || T || time travel AU || complete

when eighteen-year-old, post-war Sakura is thrown back into her tiny, pre-Academy body, she makes a decision. she'd had a childhood once already, and this time, she's more interested in Not Dying when the inevitable shit hits the proverbial fan. so she will work harder, care less, kill more, and smile when she's done. and hey, if she ends up reviving an extinct nature transformation to attract the most corrupt, power-hungry man from her timeline, all the better for her, right?

Probably one of the best time travel AUs out there!! Also, we get to see ROOT!Sakura in here, which I love in addition to Sai (my baby). I know I said it's incomplete, but it's only missing one chapter so you still get plenty of story. Anyway, definitely check out cut the head off the snake!!

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Not so imaginary - FangirlJo || ao3 || gen || T || ghost Tobirama AU || incomplete

Haruno Sakura was 5 when she realises her imaginary friend was not so imaginary at all and resembles the Second Hokage by a lot. Like a lot a lot. In which Senju Tobirama is Sakura's Ghost Sensei. Things change, chaos ensues and Tobirama is once more reminded with the reason he doesn't have kids.

Damn, I just really love Tobirama as a character. This guy rocks and deserves more story time (justice for Tobirama!!).

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Ground Zero - TheIzzatron || ao3 || gen || T || third war extended AU || incomplete

Desperate times call for desperate measures. If this means forcing weapons into the hands of children, then so be it.

A young Sakura is taken advantage of in her parents’ absence at war and is enrolled into the academy's "accelerated" program. The complete unfairness of the situation is skillfully conveyed throughout the story. Sakura is left to wonder why she too isn't learning about flowers and history like Ino? Why Ino isn't learning the fastest way to kill her enemies? The characters and their emotions are so well done that you truly feel just how cheated they are. They aren't heartless, they are children. Highly recommend.

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Inherited Will of Fire - jokergirl2001 || ffn || T || gen || sakura can see ghosts AU || incomplete

She always knew she was a natural at genjutsu but what she didn't know was that being a natural meant she had some immense talent when it comes to spiritual energy. Well at least that's what the cheerful raven haired boy who apparently drowned himself on purpose said.

I only just started reading this now, but Inherited Will of Fire is super cute! Academy Sakura finds she is able to see ghosts after stumbling upon Shisui shortly after the Uchiha massacre.

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One Change in the Story - Aingeal98 || ffn || T || gen || time travel AU || ongoing

It wasn't supposed to be like this. She was only supposed to go back five minutes in time. Instead, Sakura wakes up in a dark room surrounded by people wearing black cloaks with red clouds on them. The worst part? She doesn't have a clue who she is.

Praying for One Change in the Story to be completed!! Sakura lands herself back in time with the mind and body of her four year old self. With Pein being the first one to find her, Sakura's new life purpose is to be the Akatsuki's weapon. Similar to New Day Dawning, Sakura doesn't stay a child for the entirety of this fic, but I still think it is a notable mention. Sakura slowly loses herself to her new roll and in a sense becomes the embodiment of a ROOT agent. It was interesting to see Itachi's internal battle with the situation and Konan's guilt. However, even with Sakura bound to Ame, there are children back in Konoha who have an itch that a pink-haired girl named Sakura is someone important.

edit: recently updated!

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Old Man by the Bar - Varmint || ao3 || T || gen || academy AU || complete

All it took was one school teacher's decision for the reality of Konoha to be altered in a way that no one could have imagined. Follow Kiba Inuzuka, Sakura Haruno, and Chouji Akimichi as they grow as individuals, friends, and ninja. All with the help of that grumpy old man with all of the cool war stories.

The way this fic is genuinely so good and I almost never see people talking about it is criminal! The interactions between the kids are truly great and there is so much character growth among them. Kiba, Sakura, and Choji really just started off as a group of misfits thrown together for an assignment, but even though it was a complete disaster they grew to appreciate the relationship formed.

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Y'all, please send me some good kid/academy Sakura fics!!!! Or write one...

[bloomingskullz]

I don’t think I’ve ever fully talked about how much I love Io as a character.

We knew from the beginning that Io was a villain but that doesn’t make them evil for the sake of it. Their reasons for wanting to watch the world burn are justified in their eyes because of what happened to them.

Their past is such a major component in Ios story and we only know a small portion of it. They got betrayed by her lover, their sparrow, after being promised death if turned. But they got a fate that’s worse than death to them. Io now as to live life as the enemy, as the one thing they hated, all because their sparrow couldnt handle it.

After those medal bars locked behind Io it was like whole world had turned its back on them. They are a bird they were made for the sky and sun and now they were below the dirt never being able to feel the warmth again without pain following.

Io was alone, maybe not physically but emotionally and physically they were, for decades. They didn’t even know about the treaty or how long ago the war they fought it ended. The only time they saw people was when the birds came down to use them. Their only interaction was of more hurt from those they once fought for.

And this affects Io in every possible way. They constantly talk about how the sun has betrayed them, a fact that they can’t get over. Constantly flying til the suns up. Taking every moment to use their wings. To feel like they’re normal again.

When Io had people they could trust again they wanted nothing more then to be back there, cause for the longest time they didn’t have that. They didn’t have anyone they could run to. To be able to call a friend. To call someone more. They derailed their own mission to find Cavity cause they deeply wanted their friend back. They tried so hard to find Dawn again, the first time since their sparrow they could love again.

And then their lover betrayed them again. Sides with the bird counsel again. Left them without the sun again. When they thought they could have two allies they were brought back down to one. One who shares a similar fate and anger as them. Anger being the only thing they can seem to count on.

And while Io is angry at the world they are also scared and try to cover it. We saw that with Asher. He knows where Io came from. Knows they were locked away and how that’s effected them. As used that to make a joke of putting Io back in a basement. Io backed away tho. They were scared to be away from the sky again. Scared that they won’t feel the pain the warmth brought with it anymore.

But they covered it up with angry at Asher. Trying to play it tuff when knowing that if Asher tried anything Io couldn’t stop them. They are at the hands of another counsel. The counsel of the thing that ruined their life, to try and avenge it.

Io would pick death over being what they are now if they were given the chance. They’ve made that so clear with asking to die should they turn. Saying death would be better than what they are now. But so long as their lungs fill with air and someone’s bloods runs through their veins they will make the birds feel every ounce of pain they have felt.

I’ve been brainrotting on Io since they were introduced and their story is so interesting and means so much to me.

[kibasniper]

well, i turned 31 this past april on the twenty-first. i might as well make my annual post. i've been meaning to make it for days.

i didn't celebrate my birthday on account of there being nothing to celebrate. i've been away since then for personal reasons. i haven't really felt much of an interest in much of anything. i think it'd be nice to unload some of the things happening in my life and discuss them, but i can't. all i can truly say is the current legal system is very flawed, and justice is hard to obtain, especially with the burden being on the victims of severe violence - even when the proof is *obvious.* it's been nearly a decade of it. another ongoing case is making me lose sleep. i don't fall asleep until it's dawn or sunrise. i haven't slept at a "normal" time in years. i live in a place where nearby church bells ring at the top of almost every waking hour, and they once heralded something beautiful, but now, they're a constant, downtrodden clamor, a reminder of what was and what could have been. it haunts me. los angeles has no angels in its county. i wish i never came here, and now, i can't leave. my hair is starting to thin and fall out, and more gray hairs are sprouting. i have to keep searching for lawyers, just as i've done for the past year. it does make me tear up to fathom the next course of action because i'm the only one capable of assisting. i feel like i've lost several years of my life. i'm not the person i used to be, who i'm sure you could find somewhere else hundreds (or even thousands) or pages back, someone who was more excitable and giddy and ready to talk on a dime. i've become more withdrawn, more introverted, and declined opportunities to speak with others because i simply can't. any typing heard, that isn't in regards to particular work, at home is met with comments. i've had to leave my small studio to get any personal work completed, even if it's cold. oh, but it's sunny fucking california where the weather never changes. i wish everything would change, but i must make do with the current situations. i fear what will come in the next few months if i don't help find representation. i've received many rejections without proper reasoning because these damn attorneys just don't have to explain themselves for every declining email. i think i've prattled on for long enough. i don't have much to say. i'm sure this post, re-read by me once now, is brimming with vitriol, but i suppose that's the point. anyway, i have to return to my attorney search or else, the judge said there is a possibility the case will be tossed, making everything from the past two years in this matter for nothing.

[glitterandmoondustofficial]

And Onto Further Stillness

Chapter 30

Notes:

Characters: Gale, Yrelia Rating: Mature Warnings: Sex, some language Notes: I can't believe I managed to finish this on Jan 1 when the equivalent date is in this chapter. This has been in and out of drafts for a while. I really just wanted to show some scenes from in between times during the actual game. Hopefully y'all enjoy!

Gale hummed as he stood at the stove, making coffee for his sleepy fiancée. She had started sleeping in as of late, especially on his days off. She would mumble to him that she wanted a few more minutes of cuddling, grabbing his arms around her and fitting against his body perfectly. Gale couldn’t be happier. Yrelia? Sleeping in? And cuddling until he decided to slip out of bed? It was unheard of seven months ago!

Hells, it’s been over a year since they had met and he wouldn’t have dreamed of Yrelia settling down for a night and not waking up at the crack of dawn to hunt or fish or get everyone ready to move on, but she was! She really had become comfortable enough in his tower to relax and allow him to take care of her.

He heard a yawn and bare feet walk into the kitchen. His smile grew as those footsteps approached him. Yrelia wrapped her arms around him from behind and kissed the back of his neck. She squeezed him and let out a sigh.

“Good morning, my sun,” he greeted. “I do hope you were able to sleep well last night.”

She hummed. “I did. Our bed was so comfortable and you were so warm that I couldn’t possibly tear myself away until you promised me coffee.”

“I’m thrilled that you feel that way. It’s finally time you allow yourself to sleep in a bit.” She hummed again and then pressed her lips to the back of his neck. ��Today is a special day.”

“Is it?”

“It is Hammer 1, you know, my love. Wintershield is today.”

“Ah,” she said and pulled away, “that is why you are home. I thought you had decided to stay home because of the weather outside.”

“My lady, I am offended.” He grinned when she giggled. He turned and embraced her. “Today is a day of reflection and resting. Everyone is home with their families, enjoying comforts and,” he grinned, “kisses?”

She laughed and kissed him. “Well, I definitely like that last part.” She kissed him again.

Gale pulled her in and deepened the kiss. A little morning heavy kiss was the easiest way to wake up his darling beloved, and he knew she agreed when she giggled and wrapped her arms around him. Just a nice morning between the two of them, soon to be husband and wife. He couldn’t possibly love her more, but every day he did. He loved her so intensely and so ardently, he hardly knew he had it in him. Yrelia had changed him with her love for the better, and because of her, his own love had reached a new level. Such devotion and dedication. Such warmth and care.

To think that two years ago he was at his lowest and a year ago he was finally giving in to his self sacrificial thoughts. He had fully believed that it was impossible to find someone who would love him so earnestly, so purely. Someone who genuinely…wanted to spend time with him.

Gale sat in front of the cooking pot with a book. He silently read while checking the food every so often. He may not have the spells that he used to, and he was hardly what some might call an “adventurer,” but if there was one thing he could do, it was scrounge up enough ingredients to make a meal. Still, he wished they had protein. Garlic, onion, and potato soup was all well and good, but what he would do to have even a few slices of bacon.

His fellow adventurers seemed to make no move to help either him or, at least, find some sort of animal to add to the meal. Astarion obviously had no interest in normal food, vampires weren’t exactly known for their taste of potato soup. Gale wondered if that made it obvious to the others. No one seemed to have mentioned it, so they were either ignorant or simply didn’t care. Either way, it wasn’t exactly Gale’s problem.

Yrelia was…wait, where was she?

He scanned the camp, looking to see if she was anywhere. She wasn’t. Had she run off? That would have been foolish. Outside of that prism that Shadowheart held, there was no hope for them. Yrelia would no doubt be turned into an Illithid if she had decided to leave the group. A pity, she did seem rather kind, and Gale would be lying if he said if he didn’t find her attractive. Scrappiness and all.

He jumped when something was plopped down beside him.

“Figured this might help with dinner.”

Gale blinked at Yrelia’s voice. So she hadn’t run off. She had been…Gale’s eyebrows shot up when he stared at a dead fawn. It wasn’t terribly young, it didn’t have spots and wasn’t that small. He’d say about six months old, if he put any thought into it. He wasn’t going to do so, as he was just presented with fresh meat.

And the body of the fawn was pristine. It was as if it had just laid down and died peacefully. No sign of struggle or injuries. Perhaps it did.

“Wonderful,” he said. “Where did you find this?” He looked up at Yrelia.

“Oh, well, I saw a few deer out in…” she made a gesture, “...in that direction. I always felt guilty choosing fawns but we don’t exactly have room to carry around an adult amount of meat.” She shrugged off her bow. “Hopefully this will suffice for a day or two. If not I can always try some rabbits.”

She hunted this? With such perfection that it didn’t look like it sustained any injuries?

“Thank you,” he felt himself saying, trying not to show his shock to her. “This is exactly what we needed. Now I just need to find a way to take apart the fawn and-”

She let out a little laugh that was…cute. “Gale, I’m not going to make you dress it. I’ll do that.”

“You…have the knowledge to do so?”

She laughed again and Gale swallowed. “I do. I was a hunter before all of this. It’s something I’m actually good at. I’ll make sure to save the bones for us to have a heartier soup next time.” She smiled in Scratch’s direction. “And of course, one for him.” She sighed.

“I appreciate this,” he said, starting to relax. “This is exactly what I needed.”

She grinned and Gale’s heart thumped. He felt the ice around his heart crack with the thump and he felt a semblance of warmth from the lowest ember. He chastised himself. The first sign of kindness and his heart gets excited. What was it thinking? Well, it wasn’t, because it was his heart, not his mind telling him that getting excited over a smile was something to laugh at. He really had been in isolation for far too long.

“I should be thanking you,” she said and his eyebrows twitched. “You just started cooking for everyone. That was kind of you. Usually I’m the one who cooks at…home, so I wasn’t expecting someone else to volunteer to do it.” She smiled again. “Let me start on parting out the meat and bones, it shouldn’t take too long.” 

“Ah, thank you,” he thanked her again. He swallowed as she picked up the fawn and started to walk away. “And if you don’t mind…” she looked at him curiously. His loneliness creeped forward, forcing him the words out of him. He caught them at the last moment and instead of saying “please, come sit and have a real conversation with me. I want to get to know you,” he said, “perhaps we can share recipes?” Gods, how mortifying. It really was astounding how stupid he could sound sometimes.

Her brows rose before she settled into a smile. Gale’s heart thumped again. “Alright. Company sounds nice, and I’d like to get to know you better.” She turned and started to walk away before he could comment any further.

“Hmmm,” Yrelia hummed and pulled away, “you’re thinking pretty loudly, Gale. What’s on your mind?”

He stared down at her and kissed her nose. “I was thinking about when our friendship started to blossom.” She smiled. “I had no idea of what we would become. To think I would fall in love after…” Yrelia reached up and brushed his hair from his forehead. He closed his eyes at her touch. “You’ve made me indescribably happy.”

She smiled. ““Indescribably?” My, that’s quite the change for you.” He chuckled and kissed her. “But I understand,” she started again. “I never thought that anyone would ever come to cherish me the way you do.” She kissed him. “I’m still getting used to it, if I’m honest.”

“Not to worry, darling.” He smiled and kissed her forehead. “We have the rest of our lives ahead of us. That’s plenty of time for you to become accustomed to my overflowing love and devotion.”

She giggled. They kissed. “I love you,” she murmured to his lips. “So much.”

“I assure you that the feeling is mutual.” He gently pressed his lips to hers, closing the centimeter gap between them. “Now,” he chuckled when she leaned into him dramatically and kissed his lips, “I believe I promised you coffee.” He laughed as she kissed him again. “And I don’t want to ruin our holiday morning without coffee.”

“Oh, alright,” she giggled and pulled away. 

She stretched, her back making, what Gale could only surmise due to the satisfied expression on Yrelia’s face, a most pleasing crack. She walked towards their stools at the counter, the ones that had really made Gale realize that she was in his tower permanently. To think he’d be picking out furniture so casually with someone he loved. He would have never guessed a few years ago. Not when…

Gale turned and removed the coffee carafe with boiling water off of the stove and started to dutifully make the perfect blend just for his beloved partner. 

“So,” Yrelia started and he could hear her grin in her voice. “I have a question.”

“I will answer whatever question that you have for me, my love.”

She let out a soft giggle. “Good, because I have a fun one.” He raised his brow. “When did you realize you had feelings for me?”

He hummed. “Such a question,” he teased and she giggled, “why do you wish to know?”

“You did say this holiday is a day for “rest” and “reflection.””

He grinned. “Ah, that is true.”

Gale was sitting outside his tent, his eyebrows scrunched together in concentration. He sounded out words, as if he was back at Blackstaff Academy and he was some ten year old apprentice, ignorant to the way of the Weave.

He sighed and looked around the camp. Wyll was cooking and Karlach was talking to him with a grin, Lae’zel was sharpening her sword (again), and Astarion was sewing some fabric.

He sighed, looking away, just in case anyone caught him looking around. He did it casually enough, as he didn’t want anyone to know that he wasn’t interested in anyone else but her. Gale dared to steal a glance in her direction. Yrelia was letting her hair down in front of her tent while Shadowheart spoke to her. They spoke softly enough that he couldn’t hear. Her hair fell from the braid, rolling off her shoulders like deep, dark water. He sighed, trying to fight his too indulgent thoughts of how the tresses would feel in his fingers. 

Ugh. What was he doing? Now? And in his condition? Mystra had cast him aside over a year ago, the last thing he needed was to…feel attraction for someone new. Not in their current position or condition. Especially in his position and condition. He hadn’t told her about the orb, only that he needed artefacts that were thick with the Weave. He was uncertain whether he should tell her or not. She was so kind, so sweet, but part of him was certain that she would cast him out, just as Mystra had. Someone’s kindness could only go so far, and he had been hiding something incredibly important from her. 

He could never expect mercy and sweetness from her if the topic was the orb. Not from anyone, really, but especially from her. Someone so…

He scoffed and turned his focus on the opulent book in his hand. His old spellbook, the one he couldn’t read anymore. He tried. He tried so damn hard, but the runes were foreign, the words were complex. It was as if he hadn’t written them with his own hand. He turned his gaze to the small, black book to his side. “Book” was probably an overstatement. It was just a small thing, a pathetic thing that had been made for taking simple notes. Definitely not something a respected archmage would use for his spells. It was something some teenagers would buy and then never use because they simply bought it with a promise to actually use it this time. 

The damn thing clung to his blood like nothing else. And rain. Especially mud. The amount of times they’ve been stuck in combat in the rain was far too many than what was acceptable.

He saw the shadow of someone approaching and looked up from his book. He blinked when he saw her sit down next to him wordlessly, with a bottle of wine and two tin cups in hand. He swallowed, closing his former life, his former glory.

“How can I help you, Lia?” He preferred calling her by her nickname. It felt familiar, close, as if they were home, having a glass of wine in his tower. Getting tipsy and sitting close, the flush on her nose and cheeks, the smile of her lips so inviting.

Stop. Stop! Don’t think like that. Don’t think about her like that. The orb was unstable. If he felt any sort of rush of feelings, of excitement, it could cause irreparable damage. He was physically attracted to her. Who wouldn’t be?! Her long eyelashes, her freckled nose, her skilled hands. He’d be more surprised if someone wasn’t attracted to her! 

“Well, I figured it was about time I provided the wine,” she said. “It only seemed fair.” She offered him a cup.

He took it, his fingers brushing against hers. He swallowed at the touch. She seemed to not notice, or maybe she didn’t care. It was just a simple touch, nothing more.

“I appreciate it,” he said and watched her pour wine –which probably wasn’t any better than anything they’ve shared before– into his cup. He sipped the barely palatable wine and then sighed. “I must admit,” he started, letting his boldness take over, “I’ve come to enjoy our time together.”

A stunning smile grew on her lips as a warm giggle came from her throat. Gale felt his heart drop to his stomach and then quickly up into his throat. He listened to her giggle and watched her warm expression. This whole time, behind her sad eyes, her courageous demeanor, and her kind attitude, she had the sweetest smile. She had the warmest laugh. 

Oh, dear gods, Gale absolutely had feelings for her. Actual, real, romantic feelings for Yrelia Rosewood. 

He tightened his grip on his cup and swallowed. Damn it. How could this have happened? How could he have allowed his heart to take control and not his mind? He really did not need to be doing so…again.

“The feeling is mutual,” she said and sipped from her wine cup. “It’s nice to have a friend in all of this.” She looked up at the starry sky. 

Gale let out a soft breath. “Friend.” Something he had very little of. Actually, it was something he really had none of. Aside from Tara. “Yes,” he said quietly. “I feel the same about you. You are…” the only friend I have right now, “…a wonderful friend.” 

She turned her gaze back to him and that sweet smile was on her face again. It made his heart jump in a way he didn’t recognize. It was…gentle. Like a caress of his heart, something so soft and gentle, but with purpose. He was hopeless. How could he feel this way, after everything? He didn’t deserve to feel this way. She was far, far too sweet for him and his mistakes.

And he knew that if and when he told her of those mistakes, she would surely want nothing to do with him and his wine.

He sighed, he would stay in her presence just a little longer. He wanted to be the reason for her smile for just a little longer.

“I don’t recognize that one,” she brought him out of his thoughts. She gestured to his old spellbook with a curious smile.

He clenched his teeth before relaxing. “Oh? This old thing? Just simple notes. I had picked out the book when I was young and had just entered Blackstaff Academy. I…”

Gale watched Yrelia sip her coffee. He pressed his fingers into his own mug. She looked so different from that time. It wasn’t just her longer hair, her healthy weight, or her bright, firm skin. It was more than that. She looked like home. When he looked at her, all he saw was comfort and love. Their time defeating the Absolute, what he saw in her was adventure, vigilance, determination.

It was fast and passionate and desperate. Her fingers tugging on his hair, her skin marred with marks from his teeth, fingers gripping her thighs as he buried himself between them. He tasted the way she said she loved him on her lips, begging him for release. Their relationship was new and fresh. It had been so long since he had tasted someone’s skin, and he would do whatever she had wanted so that he could continue to do so.

Now…

Now it was folding laundry while in the middle of a debate about whether it was appropriate to tell another professor that their findings were “unsound” and that they perhaps need to “actually put forth the appropriate amount of brainpower to not succumb to frivolous thinking and biased opinions”.

It was holding her hair back after she had contracted some random stomach bug. It was grocery shopping in the too early morning so that she could have the first pick of everything. It was convincing her that, “yes, darling, we do need that expensive bottle of wine to celebrate the fact we survived the impossible.” Starting to wash the dishes before she can, so that she could have a break from her post traumatic cleaning episode. Making the bed so she had clean sheets to fall asleep on. Distracting her with a glass of wine and a plate of cheese so that he could jog upstairs and fold the laundry without her realizing. 

And it was the warmth in his chest when she looked so touched as he presented her with a bouquet of sunflowers. Her hair curling around his fingers as he applied her deep conditioner in her hair so she could come to bed quickly. Lazily kissing her as they woke up in the morning. No urgency, no desperation, just a soft “good morning, I love you, what would you like to do today?”

“You’re really thinking hard this morning, beloved,” Yrelia remarked as she smiled up from her coffee mug. “Tell me what’s on your mind.”

“You are,” he answered, “we are.”

Her smile grew. “Having regrets about our domestic life?”

“Of course not,” he answered even though he knew she was teasing him. 

“Do you miss it?”

“What would I miss?”

“How we used to be, while we were adventurers.” She smiled and set aside her mug. He walked over to her and kissed her forehead. “The passion? The fire? How we acted like it would be our last day?”

“Not at all,” he said with a grin and she grinned back. “My love, I would do absolutely anything just to clean the dishes with you.”

“Wow! Admitting you want to clean with me? What a large step in our relationship! Your mother would be so proud!”

He grinned and took her face in his hands. He kissed her nose. She laughed as he started to kiss her all over her face, his name coming from her lips as she tried to calm down his kisses.

Gale stared at the bed that he and Yrelia were sharing. Their packs and belongings were missing. Their bed was made perfectly, the bedding tightly clinging to the bed as if professionally done. Not a single strand of hair was on the nightstand. Everything was gone and perfectly tidy as if neither of them had ever touched the area.

Yrelia had definitely been here. 

He looked around and saw no sign of any of their packs and belongings. He shifted in his robes, desperately wanting to change out of them and into his comfortable loungewear. The door to the room opened and he heard footsteps quickly approaching. He felt his arm being pulled and had no choice but to follow. 

“Come with me,” Yrelia ordered, not looking back at him as she stomped forward. 

“L-Lia,” he called her name as he looked at the determined look in her eyes. “Where are you taking us? Where are our belongings?” Had she cracked under pressure? Was she so terrified that she threw out their packs? “Are you alright? I know that there’s unbelievable pressure on you right now, but you can tell me anything. I will listen to your every word!”

As he was questioning her and her motives, he barely noticed that she was leading him to the other half of the tavern. She marched up the stairs, pulling him along, ignoring each of his questions, and then standing in front of a door. She reached into her pocket and he heard the jingling of a key. 

“My love, what on Toril are we doing? And-whoa!”

Yrelia had practically yanked him into the room she had just unlocked, proceeded to kick the door closed, and then locked it again. She threw the key onto the table in the room and approached him with purpose. 

“Yrelia, I’m not sure I appreciate thmmmphhh.”

She had pulled him in by the collar of his robes and cut him off with a kiss. A very messy, wet, heavy kiss. She had pulled him against her, her hands in his hair, letting his half updo down. “Stop talking and kiss me,” she demanded and then kissed him before he could respond. 

He wasn’t used to such urgency from her, nor was he used to the manhandling. He was far more acquainted with her gentle, sweet side. Even her timid side that had formed over the years of not a single touch on her skin. But he understood exactly what was happening now. This could be their last night amongst the living, their last night together before the inevitable. He’d be damned if he didn’t make messy, needy, desperate love to her. 

She started to undress him. The laces of the robes were untied, unlaced, and hung loosely at his side. They broke the kiss long enough so that he could lift her shirt off of her and toss it aside, leaving her chest bare and so intensely tempting. 

They threw off the outer layer of his robes haphazardly and she quickly started to pull off the under layers while he buried his face in her neck, sucking, biting, kissing her skin with such desperation that he didn’t realize he had it in him. She threw off his shirt and unlaced his breeches. He kicked off his shoes and peeled off her pants. 

He stepped back to the large, inviting bed, pulling her along with him. She turned them and laid on the bed, staring up at him with an aroused flush, messy hair, and swollen lips. He stared at her for a brief moment, taking in her naked body. Her glazed over eyes that held him within them. Gods, she was absolutely gorgeous, and she was his. His love, his paramour, his beacon of light through all of this darkness.

She held out her hand, asking him to join her. He placed his hand in hers, not breaking eye contact, allowing her to pull him onto the bed. He crawled over her, holding her gaze, breathing in her breath. “I love you,” he murmured. “Gods, I love you.”

She let out a breathy laugh. She reached up and traced his lips with her fingers. A wild look shone in her eyes and a small smirk grew on her lips. “Show me.”

Gale breathed deeply, nuzzling the top of Yrelia’s head, calming down from their high. He pressed his fingers into her hip, and with the other hand he pulled the blanket further over her. She hummed tiredly, her skin marred and slick with sweat. She was outlining his scar from the orb with her index finger. It made him feel like he would be alright.

“My love,” he called lightly.

“Hm?”

“That was…exhilarating. Unexpected, but exhilarating.”

She laughed. “I’ll take that as a compliment.” She pulled away from him and sat up. She kissed his lips softly. She sighed, still smiling. “I suppose we should have done this sooner.”

“A private room? That does seem obvious in retrospect.” He reached to her face and rubbed her cheek with his thumb. “But, better late than never, I always say.”  

She grinned at him. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” 

Yrelia reached to him and brushed his hair away from his face. The smile on her face was soft, warm, so absolutely gentle that Gale was asking himself how she could ever stare at him this way. “A bit different from our last “last night alive” isn’t it?”

He chuckled. “A smidge.” He loved the look in her eyes. The one that said that she loved him. “I know we’ll survive this violent round.”

She grinned. “Do you?”

“I’m sure of it. I’ve seen what you can do, Lia. You’ve done the impossible. I wouldn’t want to be the one betting against you.”

She giggled. “I like your confidence.”

“Well, you know me, I’m oozing with confidence.” She snorted at him. “Overconfidence according to many. Delusional to most.”

“Oh, don’t listen to them. I think you’re great.” He smiled. “Still, I’m glad that you’re optimistic. It makes me less…anxious.”

“Seems like I’m doing something right, then.”

She blinked. She leaned in and rubbed her nose against his. She pressed her lips against his upper lip. “You’ve done a lot of things right, Gale of Waterdeep.” She kissed him fully. 

Gale let out a content sigh. 

Huh. 

“Content.”

Yes. That’s right. He was content. He was happy. He was in love, he was happy, and he wanted to live. This was entirely new territory, he wasn’t quite sure what to do with himself. He was so deeply in love and he was truly happy for the first time in what seemed like ages. 

And it was all because of her. 

Yrelia pulled away and smiled at him. “You’re in a good mood,” she said. “I guess the sex was that good,” she teased. 

He laughed. “It always is, but, yes, I am…happy.” Her smile softened. “I am content with my life, with who I am. It’s a new feeling, but a welcome one.”

“I’m glad.” She kissed his forehead. “And that means I don’t have to threaten you tonight.”

“Threaten me?” He questioned. “Was our night together going to take an unexpected turn, my love?”

She chuckled. She pressed her fingers to his chest, on his bruising from the orb. He let out a sigh, understanding her meaning. “Shall I give you my lecture anyway?”

“Oh, I think I have it figured out.” She grinned and kissed him. “I have no plans to use the orb, love.”

“Good, because I love you.” She kissed him. “And I would be quite angry with you.” She kissed him again. “And I would never forgive you.” She kissed him again. “And I would miss you desperately.” She kissed him again. “And I would cry a lot.”

“Well, we certainly can’t have that.” He accepted another kiss. He smiled when she rested her forehead on his. 

“You also owe me dinner.”

“I believe I owe you multiple dinners.” She grinned and laid on top of him. “I swear to you, I have no plans to use the orb. I will not abandon you.” 

She blinked and her brows twitched in surprise. She melted into such a touched and loving expression. “You really know exactly what to say, don’t you?”

“It’s one of my finest qualities, if I do say so myself.”

Gale slowly rubbed her back as she laid on top of him. She traced his face with a content shine in her eyes. He sighed wistfully. This could be their future. This could be their normal. Long nights, tangled up in each other's arms, sweet nothings kissed onto skin. He had decided not long after he spoke with Mystra, but now he knew for certain: he was going to ask Yrelia to marry him. He would ask her to come home with him, he couldn’t bear to part from her. 

He took her chin in his fingers, practically desperate to taste her. “My love,” he murmured and she smiled, “may I?”

“May you, what?”

“Kiss you.”

She blinked before settling into an adoring smile. “Of course you may.” He pulled her in and kissed her. “You know, my beloved, you don’t need to ask to kiss me. You can just do it. I promise I won’t protest.” They kissed again. 

“Sometimes the mood calls for decorum, my lady.” He kissed her. “But I will take your advice to heart, as it bleeds for you.”

Yrelia brushed his messy hair away from his face and then kissed his nose. “Well, I would hope so. I do expect frequent kisses from my boyfriend,” she said with a soft giggle. 

Gale’s nose scrunched in disgust. “Lia, please don’t say that.”

Her brows shot up in surprise and her eyes widened with an anxious glimmer. “Oh. I-I’m sorry, I didn’t…” she frowned. “I thought…But are we not…?” 

Gale’s brows knitted together in confusion before realizing that he spoke without thinking and that what he said sounded really, really bad. “Oh, no, my love. That’s not…darling, of course we are.” He groaned, “Lia, my meaning, before I idiotically put my foot in my mouth, was that we are in our thirties. I think we’re a little mature for those titles.”

She let out a relieved sigh. “I see,” she mumbled. “But what am I supposed to call you then?”

“Partner is perfectly fine.”

She relaxed, the anxiety in her eyes fading away. “Booo. I don’t like it.” She leaned in and kissed him with a small smile. 

“Dearest, what is wrong with that? It’s perfectly acceptable for an adult relationship.” He accepted another kiss.

“It’s too impersonal. Nothing cute or romantic about it.”

“Plenty of couples call each other their partner, my love.” He kissed her nose. She hummed. “I’m sure we could find something to compromise on.” He kissed her lips. “Lover? Beau? Companion? Significant other?” 

With every word her smile grew. “You really don’t like being called my boyfriend.” He groaned at her. “I suppose you wouldn’t like me saying that we’re dating either.”

“Courting.”

She snorted. “Oh, I love you so much, you silly man,” she said fondly and then kissed him. “How about this?” She kissed him again. “We can figure out what to call each other after this is all over.” She kissed him for a third time. “Over dinner, or, maybe, after dinner.”

“Hm, I do like the sound of that.” He grinned when she kissed him. His heart felt light for the first time in years. Truly light. He was in love and he was happy. When this was all over he would propose, and he was sure things would only blossom from there.

Gale smiled as he lounged on the couch with Yrelia in his arms. She laid atop him comfortably as he read a book. She was nuzzling his jaw as his left arm rested on her side, his hand on her hip as it held the book. 

This was their norm. Quiet mornings as they laid together. Gale would read a book or grade essays while Yrelia was curled into him. She liked being quiet, she always had. He knew it was from her past, no doubt being told to keep silent too many times, but he knew that she just wanted to enjoy comfortable silence with him. 

It was nice. 

He used to prefer to keep to himself, not wanting anyone to disturb him while he was reading or researching. Now that he had her, he couldn’t possibly imagine not reading around her or grading papers or…anything really. 

He couldn’t imagine his life without her. Well, he tried not to. He knew exactly where he would be without her. He would be a cloud of Netherese dust without her. Who knows what would have happened if he had detonated the orb in that Mind Flayer colony. When he thought back on it, he knew it wouldn’t have been anything good. 

He closed his book, his heart filling with a sadness he had tried to avoid these days. He wrapped his arms around Yrelia, holding her against him tightly, resting his cheek on her head. 

“Everything alright, my love?”

Gale opened his eyes and found them blurry. “I was thinking about the orb.” She didn’t respond. “And how I was tasked to die.”

“And thank the gods you didn’t listen to that order.”

“I don’t think the gods were involved in that decision,” he chuckled. “You, however…”

“Best thing I’ve ever done was convince you that your life is worth living.” She kissed his jaw. “And convince you that I love you.”

“Yes, admittedly, that was a rather large part of the reason I listened to you.” She chuckled at him in response. 

Gale stood in Moonrise Towers, after the battle with Ketheric. Everyone was talking. They were cleaning armor, eating food, wrapping wounds, and trying to find somewhere to rest their eyes. Everyone’s spirits were up, aside from Shadowheart and her crisis of faith. 

Gale was…numb. Even the illusive crown was but a distant thought. He was alive when he shouldn’t be. He was tasked to die by his goddess and he defied her. He had wanted to sacrifice himself, to die to save everyone, earning respect and forgiveness, but he didn’t. He didn’t because…

“Gale,” Yrelia called softly. He turned his gaze to her. She stood in her casual wear; her armor off, her hair down, and body cleaned from the grime and blood. She wore a concerned expression on her face. A slight frown, worried eyes. She stepped towards him, setting aside the bottle of wine in her hands, leaving it behind without a second thought as she approached him. “Are you alright?”

“Yrelia, I…don’t rightly know.” Her frown grew and she reached towards his face. He took a step back even though he really didn’t want to. He longed for her gentle touch. “My lady, you’ve bathed and I am covered in gods know what. I’d hate to dirty you after what you just went through.”

“Dirty? Gale, beloved, I don’t care about that,” she said and stepped up to him, her concerned gaze growing, but also that determination that he loved so much. 

He hesitated when he tried to take another step back. His heart begging him to just allow himself to feel his beloved’s touch. “Yre-” he stopped short when she wrapped her arms around him in a tight embrace. He stiffened in her arms before relaxing and wrapping his arms around her. “Lia,” he whispered. “I shouldn’t be here.”

She took a deep breath. “No, you should be,” she said firmly. “You should be here. You deserve to be here.” She pulled away and took his face in her hands. “I’m so happy you’re here.” She pulled him in close and kissed him softly.

He swallowed, his throat tight. He begged himself not to cry, as her chapped lips brushed against his. He pulled her in, burying his nose in her hair. He held onto her tightly, the world around them fading away. He didn’t care about whoever watched them and he didn’t care about Mystra’s upcoming disapproval. All he cared about was that he was alive and he was with Yrelia. He hadn’t wanted to die, he wanted to continue his journey with her. 

“Thank you,” he murmured to her. 

“You don’t need to thank me,” she whispered and rubbed his back. “I love you. I want you here.” She pulled away and smiled up at him. She reached up and brushed a tear off of his cheek. “Pretty selfish of me, isn’t it? Potentially condemning the world because I love you.”

He let out a wet laugh. “Perhaps, but I was just as selfish. More than you, if we’re being honest.” She grinned at him. He kissed her. “I love you.”

“I love you, too.” They kissed. “Why don’t you clean up and we can find somewhere to lay down? I’m sure it will help. One can’t feel terribly great with unknown gunk in their hair.”

“Is it that terrible?”

“A bit.” They chuckled quietly at each other and kissed again.

After Gale bathed and left his robes to soak, he approached Yrelia. Camp was secluded away from the celebrations. The heroes of the day were far too tired for drinks and merriment. Their group had formed some odd connection beyond the tadpoles. Were they friends? The months spent together had definitely created a bond between them. He knew that everyone cared for Yrelia in some way, and he knew he would do what it took to protect their scrappy team.

There was a respect that was between them all, and when Gale wasn’t feeling gods awful, he appreciated it.

Yrelia was stretching, doing her nightly routine before bed. She sighed and rubbed her hip where it had been crushed. Bedrest had been ordered by Shadowheart after that whole ordeal, and they had made camp for days without progress. He remembered how guilty she had felt, despite most of them assuring her that she needn’t be. 

“Good, you’re here,” she turned and looked at him. “And, even better, you’re clean.” She reached out for him. She grabbed his elbows and squeezed, before sliding her hands down to his hands and holding them. “To be honest, beloved, I’m too tired for most things tonight. As are you, I assume.” 

“Yes,” he breathed. “I’m exhausted in a way I don’t think I ever have been before.”

“Then let’s sleep.” She started to pull him into her tent. He ignored the looks that his companions were giving him. Some eyebrow waggling, some teasing sneers, but he didn’t care. All he wanted was to lay in her arms.

And she welcomed him into her arms. She pulled him in and rested her cheek on his head. She ran her fingers through his hair with one hand that was wrapped around his head, while she rubbed his side with the other hand. She pressed gentle kisses into his hair, and she softly whispered that she loved him. 

He buried his face in her neck, breathing on her skin. His heart was begging him to talk to her, to thank her, to express how much he loved her, but his mind was slow and sticky. He felt as if heavy weights were attached to him and pulling him under the sea. He desperately needed sleep, but he wanted to lay in her arms in the quiet of night. In her tent, with no light shining in. Where their music was their heartbeats, and their warmth was each other. 

“Beloved,” she whispered, “go to sleep.”

“I’ll be alright,” he said and kissed her neck. He rubbed his arm with her thumb.“I need to feel your embrace longer.”

She huffed a laugh. “There are more days to come. More days where I will happily hold onto you,” she said softly. “For now, rest. I will be here when you wake, I promise.” She squeezed him gently. “I am happy you’re here, my love. Thank you…for choosing me.”

Gale hummed as he stood, staring out of the window into the street. The snow was piling up quickly, no doubt it would be past his shins if he walked out into it. He considered not leaving the tower for a few days. He could just spend his holiday in his warm home with his beautiful fiancée.

He could hear her in the sitting room folding blankets. He sipped his cider as he heard her sing to herself. Some song that he didn’t recognize, but it was comforting all of the same. He had heard Cyr sing it to little Lia, which meant Yrelia had sung it to him. So it was a lullaby that she hadn’t lost the words to.

They had plenty of blankets, many of which Yrelia had collected. It was intriguing to watch her spend money, now that she had it. When they first started to collect money during their adventure she had kept it close to her, only spending it on products they needed. Food, bandages, pain potions. Then it grew to armor and weapon upgrades, elemental arrows, enchanted daggers. 

Now she had an incredible amount of gold. Their companions gave up most of their portions to her. Shadowheart kept most of hers at Yrelia’s insistence, but everyone else had no qualms giving up their portions. She was careful with it, but Gale assured her that he didn’t believe she would run out of her money.

He smiled. 

She would say it was their gold, not hers. That they were partners, a couple, soon to be married, and part of marriage was sharing income. He had told her it was still her gold and that he had no intention to take any of it from her. It had become his mission to convince her to spend money on herself, with a side mission of assuring her she should not feel guilty about doing so.

She had started slowly. Some hair pins here, a new pair of shoes there. Then it grew to perfume, wine that was actually worth the money, little trinkets that she never could have afforded when she was on her farm. The first time she had bought a pair of earrings for herself was worth celebrating. 

“What are you smiling about?” He heard her from behind him. She wrapped her arms around him, pressing her hand into his chest. 

“I am simply reminiscing, my love.”

“Oh?” She hummed. “And what about? Our adventure?”

“Yes. I was thinking…” he trailed off and she hummed again. “How we’ve changed.”

“Ahh.” She pulled away from him. He set aside his cider and turned to her. “I suppose we have changed since then, haven’t we?” She smiled. “Especially since we first met.”

“Yes, I was insufferable then,” he grumbled.

“Nooo, I thought you were cute!” She laughed. “I had a big crush on you,” she teased and kissed his lips.

He sighed with a smile. “I admit, I started to develop feelings for you quickly.” He sighed again. “But I couldn’t act on my feelings, no matter how desperately I wanted to.” 

“Alright, Gale, you are more than capable of doing this,” he muttered to himself as he stared at Yrelia from across camp. He simply wanted to speak with her. Maybe even to just…flirt with her. More. They had done quite a bit of flirting lately. It felt…good, despite the fact he couldn’t actually do anything. He was losing sleep over his feelings for her, he couldn’t stop thinking about her. He had thought that he would never find someone to love more than he had loved Mystra, but even a simple crush on Yrelia Rosewood was more intense than he had ever felt.

He wanted to run his fingers through her hair, he wanted to take her dancing, he wanted to invite her to his tower, make her dinner, and just kiss her until they were both seeing stars. He hadn’t realized until it was far too late that he was in very, very deep.

Yrelia was combing her hair with a calm look in her eyes. She blinked when she looked over to him and then smiled at him. Ugh, that went straight to his heart. He would do anything for that smile. His heart raced for her as she combed her damp hair. She had just come back from the nearby river…which he presumed that she had bathed in that river. He swallowed, trying not to think of that particular scene. Definitely do not think about that. Do not think about that.

He turned around, to stop looking at her, begging himself to not act like a damn teenager. He gripped at his chest, desperately trying not to look at her or think about her naked body with water dripping down it slowly. He groaned pathetically at himself, praying to whoever listened (because it definitely wasn’t Mystra) to just calm down the orb as it thrummed. He heard quick footsteps and then felt hands on his back, rubbing gently.

“Gale,” Yrelia called his name, pressing her hands into his back. “Do you need an artefact?” She asked with a bit of urgency, and he realized he was hunched over. He gritted his teeth and grunted at her. “It’s alright, I have you,” she said, trying to soothe him. She produced a ring with an onyx stone. He didn’t recognize it, but he also didn’t particularly care at that moment, as she placed it in his shaking hand. “Use it,” she whispered. “You’re more important than some silly ring.” 

He let out a breath at her words and then absorbed the Weave from the ring. He breathed deeply as Yrelia gently rubbed his back. Gods, this was humiliating. He made the damn orb go off because he couldn’t control his thoughts of her. He slowly cracked open his eyes and stared at her. Her brows were knit in concern and there was a slight frown on her face.

She stared at him with her blue eyes, and he could see his pathetic reflection in them. His every hope that he had seen in her started to fade away. How could he ever possibly think that they could be anything when the gods damned orb was in his chest? Her sweet smile, that he had begun to believe was for him, had given him too much hope for the future.

“Better?” 

He let out a heavy breath. “Yes,” he cleared his throat. “Thank you.”

“You don’t have to thank me,” she said with a smile. She adjusted their positions so they were sitting more comfortably. When did they come to be on the ground? “I care about you,” she said and his heart thumped. “I would hate to lose you.”

Gods, they were so close. He could just lean in and brush his lips against her own. He was certain she would taste as sweet as she was. What he would give to taste her. 

But he couldn’t.

He didn’t deserve to. He didn’t deserve her. 

“Thank you,” he said again and she blinked. “I’m alright now.”

She blinked again before quickly retracting her hands from him. “Oh, sorry,” she apologized with a slight flush. She anxiously wrung her hands together and avoided his gaze. 

Ugh. Damn it. 

“I should be the one apologizing,” he breathed out and reached for a nearby waterskin. He drank it before letting out a breath. He cleared his throat as he set it aside. “We have precious few artefacts. To be the one destroying them when we so desperately need them-”

“You don’t need to apologize for that,” she said. He frowned. “Besides, we all have our quirks. Two special diets, two exploding chests, a woman who’s a worshiper of Shar, an alien; we need to stick together and take care of each other, if we plan to make it out of here. I’ll provide you with as many artefacts as you need to keep you going on.”

“Thank you,” he said once again, genuinely meaning the two words. He glanced at her hands. She was still wringing them anxiously. He reached out and took one of her hands in his. “I’m quite fortunate to have someone like you during this time.” She smiled at him and her gaze— oh my gods, her gaze— was so warm. 

This was what he wanted that night. To just sit with her, to just be alone in their own world while they sat in the dirt together. She squeezed his hand and he felt his heart speed up. 

Wait. 

His brows knitted together and a frown form on his face. Had he…and had she…? He had been keeping it a secret. Poorly, but he had. So had he told her?

“I know that look,” Yrelia teased him. “What are you thinking?”

“I wasn’t aware Astarion had finally told you about his vampirism.”

A very awkward and somewhat uncomfortable expression grew on her face. Oh, he did not like that look in her eyes. “It wasn’t so much that he “told” me. Well, not at first…” she touched her neck with her free hand. 

Gale stared at her before he felt…anger. Some form of protective behavior that he hadn’t realized he was capable of. “He bit you?!” He let go of her hand and took her jaw into his hands, inspecting her skin for puncture wounds.

Her eyes widened and a flush spread on her face. “Um, yes, he did. It’s…kind of…” she sighed. “I woke up with him hovering over me and…” she sighed. She placed her hands over his and Gale processed what he had done. He started to pull his hands away from her face, but she put pressure down on them. “I’m alright,” she said softly. 

His gaze lifted from the very bruised part of her neck to her face. He took in a deep breath and let himself calm down. They stared at each other and Gale realized that they were close, that he was cradling her face, and that he really wanted to kiss her. He briefly glanced at her lips before remembering…he couldn’t remember how to kiss. Thirty five and unable to kiss.

How mortifying. 

He sighed and pulled his hands away from her face. He sat back and away from her lips. “I’ve decided on a new lesson that I will be more than happy to teach.”

She blinked and looked away from his lips. She cleared her throat. “Oh?”

“A spell.” She smiled curiously, a soft look in her eyes. “Sunlight.” He grinned as she laughed. 

Gale threw another log onto the fire as the winds started to pick up outside. Snow quickly blew by, it was sudden and fast. How was he supposed to plan for anything if the weather can change this quickly?!

“Beloved,” Yrelia called from bed. Her face was flushed from drinking more cider than usual. “You have that crease in your brow.”

“This weather is awful,” he complained. “I’m thinking of writing a strongly worded letter to the wizard in charge of weather predictions and informing them of how entirely unfit they are for the job. You know, we wizards are supposed to take our jobs seriously, Lia.” Yrelia slid out of bed and started walking towards him. “We are lectured and trained from a young age, through long lessons on pronunciation, proper somatic handwork, and even how to use a staff offensively.”

Yrelia hummed as she pulled him into bed. “Mouth work, handwork, and staff work? That is some proper training!” She pulled him on top of her. “I think I’d like to know more about this training of yours.” She grinned up at him. He blinked and her grin grew. “You walked right into it.”

He sighed. “I realize.”

“And you should kiss me.”

“I should.” He kissed her. “I love you.”

Her smile softened and she reached up and cupped his cheek. “I love you, too.” They kissed. “Now, my fiancé , I believe I made a request, and you wouldn’t deny me what I want on a holiday.”

He chuckled. He nuzzled her nose. “Never.”

“Tell me, my fiancé,” Yrelia hummed on their first night on their way home to Waterdeep. Gale was sitting on the bed while she let her hair down. She smiled and walked over to him. His heart leaped as she said the words. 

“Yes, my love?” He took her hand and kissed it. 

She smiled. She stepped up to him and took his face in her hands. He wrapped his arms around her and rested his chin on her chest, looking up at her face, ready for anything she had to say. Her smile grew. “Did you propose so I wouldn’t call you my boyfriend anymore?” 

He blinked before blushing. “It is unkind to tease me like this, Lia.”

She snorted. “Oh, but you are so fun to tease.” She giggled and kissed his forehead. “And now I have the rest of our lives to tease you. Seems like a good life to me.” She kissed his forehead again. Gale grinned and tears formed in his eyes, so unbelievably happy to be with her. She nuzzled his hair. “I love you, Gale. I can’t wait to start our life together.”

“I feel the same, Lia.” He accepted her kiss. “If we had champagne, I’d open a bottle.”

“We’ll find some when we’re in Waterdeep.” She started to push him back onto the bed. “Until then, I think there’s a few other ways to celebrate.”

He laughed and grabbed her hips as she straddled him. “I believe you’re onto something, my love.”

“Beloved,” Yrelia mumbled as Gale curled into her. He hummed and palmed her bare stomach. “Get some sleep.”

He hummed again. “Just a moment longer,” he murmured. “I need to feel you for a moment longer.”

She huffed a laugh. “I love you.”

He smiled. “I love you, too.”

[crowdusk]

One Piece reviews: 1138-1140, part 2

If you want to read the summary points from my review of all three of these chapters, you can find them here.

Ok, onto chapter 1139! Mountain-Eater

We cut back to the Romance Dawn trio and Rodo, who are still in the castle looking for the key to free Loki. Rodo helpfully reminds us that “freeing Loki would be a terrible crime,” one that the Strawhats will probably get in a lot of trouble for soon, and that probably only Jarul knows where the key actually is. This last part, again, seems kind of interesting given how shifty we saw Jarul being about the whole Harald-death-sword-through-the-head thing as the only survivor apart from Loki. 

Meanwhile, Zoro’s still stressed out about Luffy’s promise and carefree-ness and is trying to keep him in check. And to be honest, I get it. They barely made it off Egghead, they’re in a country of super strong warriors, and they’ve heard nothing but terrible things about this Loki dude. It really isn’t the time for Luffy to be rushing into things impulsively because someone mentioned Shanks. But on the other hand, Zoro should know that Luffy’s going to do his thing and he can’t stop him. And besides, when has Luffy been truly wrong about someone? 

They get to the throne room and see it’s really messed up by the battle of Harald’s death. There are even three huge gouges on the wall that look like gigantic claw marks, which I know people have theorised might be from Loki’s devil fruit form. They spot the magic circle on the ground, with Nami remembering reading about demon summoning in another country (Brook’s visit to Harahettania comes to mind as what she’s probably referring to). In terms of what this tells us, it feels like a pretty pointed indication that this circle is also used to summon or move ‘demons,’ i.e. Imu’s direct soldiers in the form of the Five Elders and the Holy Knights. As we know in One Piece, people are often gods and demons – it’s something that comes up again and again – and those at the top of the world right now are no different. Luffy thinks hard about where he’s seen this before and can’t remember (goddamnit Sanji would remember perfectly, hence why he’s not here). But before they can keep pondering, we hear a voice from someone saying they’ve been hoping to meet Luffy. 

At this point, I screamed because it was Gaban (yes we don’t get his name straight away but I mean, the hair and the glasses) and I love to be right. We learn he’s called Sir Ya and he’s a former pirate, and he explains he felt some “very abnormal haki” coming from the castle earlier. This makes me think that the magic circle uses haki, which would explain the black lightning effect when it’s being used. I wasn’t sure how much to read into that because Oda’s not even that clear with it when it’s used for conqueror’s haki, but I think it makes sense. We know the main ‘magic’ systems in One Piece are devil fruits and haki, and I don’t think Oda’s going to introduce actual magic or a third new system at this point (in fact I think he said something about never wanting to introduce magic, at some point). 

To me this seems to be something that goes beyond a normal devil fruit, so either it’s some kind of godly devil fruit (like Luffy’s) that Imu uses and has expanded to an incredible degree, or it’s haki and we’re actually going to learn a lot more about what haki actually is, including a huge range of ‘technological’ uses of it that have been forgotten since the Void Century. I’m definitely leaning heavily towards the latter, because given Imu’s power, I don’t think they would limit themself to the use of just a devil fruit. I think they have incredible knowledge and technology in their possession, which they’ve used to infuse themselves with power, and that they can share with the people serving them. It’s probably something like will and life force so strong that it can actually stop someone from aging, as we saw with Saturn, but when removed from the ‘host body’ will remove all its effects and leave their body as old as it's supposed to be. The fact that the Elders didn’t seem worried about the sea in Egghead, and that they could be sent back to Marie Geoise by being overpowered by even stronger haki, supports this for me. 

Of course, he could just mean that Shamrock has a very strong presence and he noticed that upon his arrival in Elbaph. Regardless, I still think haki technology is going to be very important soon, and the magic circles are an example of it. 

Gaban explains that he’s Ripley’s husband and Collun’s father, confirming that he is Collun’s biological parent at the same time. I’d say I’m surprised, but this is One Piece we’re talking about. Before we can think too much about that, he goes on to say “love is free!” and calls himself “the preacher of love,” explaining that there have been many mixed races across history. I’m firstly interested in the declaration that “love is free,” because there are many layers in that one simple phrase. Love is, of course, materially free – you can’t buy it. But love is also free in the sense that it is boundless, abundant, and doesn’t follow rules or restrictions. And what is One Piece literally all about? Freedom. 

Our main character himself is an embodiment of freedom, and the way in which he expresses and shares that freedom is through caring about other people. Luffy is so free because he has so much to share, because he loves people and connecting with people, because he refuses to follow the rules of what society and the world are supposed to be like. Gaban is, on the surface, talking about love in the sense of partnership and intimacy because that’s his personal connection to the concept, but the man’s been to Laugh Tale. He understands the importance of freedom, and that’s why what he’s saying about love isn’t just some hippie preaching. He knows what it means materially, for the world. In fact, him talking specifically about mixed races tells us exactly that. That throughout history people defied the social order and loved who they wanted to love, and defined freedom for themselves that way. 

I’m very curious about his comment that those “blended people” didn’t tend to last long, too. Is that because of other people’s prejudice? Was the World Government against it because they feared people uniting beyond racial differences? I think it’s probably a mix of those two things, but this is coming up as a big theme in this arc, so we should keep an eye on it. His comment also goes against what Ripley said about there never being cultural exchange, because clearly there was, if certain people were living together and building mixed communities. 

He also says he loves “other people causing trouble” and that “secrets are born to be spread.” Again, what jumps to mind for me is the secret of the Void Century and everything the WG tries to suppress, and of course the idea of causing trouble and disrupting the status quo, which we know needs to happen for the world to reach a new dawn. Gaban, worried about this situation,  asks Luffy what his plan is if releasing Loki causes big problems. But Luffy is unbothered even when the old man tells him that only Shanks was able to stop the prince (presumably, even Gaban himself couldn’t despite being Roger’s left hand man, although maybe he just didn’t want to get involved or something). I wonder whether Loki has very advanced observation haki and future sight, meaning that equally good skills (and maybe even observation killing haki) are required to defeat him. 

Seeing Luffy with Nami and Zoro leads to Gaban flashing back to butting heads with Roger over the captain being reckless and childish, adding yet another mark to the tally of people being reminded of the pirate king when they meet Luffy. While he was reluctant to help at first, this convinces him to get Rodo to uncover the treasure room. We cut to the feast in the village, where the other giants are talking about Scopper’s strength, calling him “the pirate king’s left arm.” Side note, I love that Jinbe is actually fully the crew’s wise uncle who actually knows things because he has so much experience. It’s even funnier because Brook is so much older but knows nothing whatsoever about the recent decades, so Jinbe’s functionally the oldest member of the crew. 

Meanwhile, Luffy and co enter the treasure room under the throne, with Gaban declaring that “exploring’s [his] thing.” I can’t help but compare him to Rayleigh, a depressed alcoholic who spends his time gambling and then in prison for gambling so that he can make more money to fuel his habit, while leaving his beautiful wife for months. That makes it sound like I hate Rayleigh – I actually love him very very dearly, it’s just funny to me that he’s one of the most powerful and legendary men in recent One Piece history, and that’s how he’s chosen to live his life (although Luffy did inject some life back into him). Gaban, in comparison, is having the best time – exploring, having adventures on Elbaph, living with his also beautiful wife, probably teaching his kid some moves. Good times. 

We then get a classic ‘test’ scenario in which Gaban challenges Luffy to take the key from him, ostensibly in order to gauge Luffy’s character, strength and abilities. I do enjoy these moments in stories. We end on the reveal/confirmation that this Mr Ya is indeed Scopper Gaban, the left hand of the pirate king.

Chapter 1140: Scopper Gaban

We start with Gaban teasing Luffy and co about getting the key from him, and successfully provoking our captain into fighting him. Zoro remembers Collun mentioning his dad being a strong pirate, before we immediately see the evidence of this. Gaban seems to have pretty advanced observation haki, since he’s able to dodge Luffy’s grabbing-gatling without much effort, and move fast enough to hit him too. 

In fact, he hits Luffy with the giant key imbued with armament haki, and the black lighting seems to imply he probably has conqueror’s haki and is able to imbue it into objects, as Luffy learned to do in Wano. We see him clearly testing Luffy not just in terms of strength and fighting ability, but riling him up in order to see how Luffy feels about Shanks, how he feels about Roger’s straw hat, and his general character. What feels especially important here is that he’s observing and looking at Luffy’s relationships and bonds – what moves him, what’s important to him. We see this when Zoro steps in to block Gaban’s big attack, and the old man thinks “he’s got a good crew.” And the final confirmation seems to come when Luffy shifts into Gear 5, and Gaban recognises the Nika form, “all in white.” 

Some aspects I find interesting here: Luffy still regresses into a kind of childish protectiveness and behaviour whenever Shanks is mentioned, despite his huge growth as a leader recently (especially in Wano). Part of this has been that Luffy has had to learn to think about other people and the consequences of his actions as a captain, but here we see him acting more selfishly again when it comes to Shanks. I don’t think this is inherently a bad thing, since the crew is strong and of course trusts him and his instincts. But I think there’s a process of equilibration happening here, with Luffy and his recently awakened devil fruit. We know that Zoan fruits have a will of their own, and that they can completely take over users if their will isn’t strong enough (like the guards in Impel Down). 

Considering how recently Luffy awakened the Nika aspects of his fruit, and how powerful this fruit is, I wouldn’t be surprised if there’s a bit of a tug-of-war going on internally for our dear captain, where the devil fruit’s will is influencing his own, and therefore influencing his behaviour. Again, since Luffy’s desire for freedom is in line with the devil fruit’s I don’t think this is a bad thing, but I do believe that it’s shifting him towards ‘freer’ decisions and behaviours, which includes freedom from responsibility. Gear 5 in general has seen him become more childlike and free, and it’s important to note he spent a lot of time in that form in Egghead. This is further supported by the fact that on Elbaph, his Gear 5 form has horns fused into his head, like an ancient giant. I’m not really sure why that is, but it could be because Luffy is becoming more integrated and melded with his devil fruit, which then naturally takes on aspects of the environment he’s in. 

Whatever the case, it’s clear that this arc and going forward are going to see Luffy needing to find a way to retain control over his devil fruit and gain mastery of Gear 5 so that it doesn’t take him over. This is going to throw up some very interesting challenges especially when it comes to this balance between responsibility as a captain and leadership figure (which he’s had to accept as a role even though he didn’t want it in Dressrosa), and how deeply he needs to maintain his freedom to be himself. 

Gaban then gives up the fight once he sees Luffy and Zoro get serious, before stopping Rodo from telling them who he is. It feels like he’s confirmed Luffy is who he’s been expecting (the new joyboy/holder of the Nika will), confirmed Luffy’s feelings about Shanks and the hat, and seen Luffy’s crew and their relationship. He knows they have important things to do, like freeing and dealing with Loki, so it isn’t yet the time for him to talk to them properly as a member of Roger’s crew. I’m also pretty sure he knows it isn’t freeing Loki in and of itself that’s a problem (he might even know the truth of what happened with Harald’s death), but that it needs to be done by someone who can actually befriend and get Loki on side, which could only be whoever holds the Nika fruit. 

He definitely has information about where they need to go next (there’s been some suggestion he might have been the navigator on Roger’s crew since he was the one who told Roger they’d located Laugh Tale), and I’m sure we will get that at the end of the arc. But of course, there’s going to be a lot of chaos first. We see him remember Shanks visiting and, in a very similar comment to Jinbe telling Ace he wouldn’t protect Luffy unless he actually liked him, implies he’ll make his own judgment of Luffy and whether he will help. And as he leaves the Romance Dawn trio, we see him smiling. 

We then cut to the Walrus School, where the children spot Gunko’s arrow-bird, and we see the two Holy Knights land somewhere nearby. She makes a “call” which essentially involves creating a magic circle that summons other Holy Knights. As a point of note, the way Oda draws the ‘shadows’ of the knights appearing in the circle, and previously the Elders too, is very similar to the kinds of shapes we saw when Saturn was getting the life sucked out of him by Imu. This makes me think that whatever this magic technology is, it’s the same thing as Imu’s powers, whether they come from Imu or Imu has just mastered them to the highest extent/has the most control over them. On top of that, we see that the circles can quite literally summon people directly without their knowledge, so presumably they work as portals that can be reached through to pull other Holy Knights through, or that people can ‘walk’ through by themselves. 

The two Holy Knights that appear are St Sommers, who we are also told is from Ju Peter’s family, and St Rimoshifu Killingham. Both are first presented, in classic Oda fashion, as being silly in their own way. Sommers because he’s in his underwear looking like an old stoner, thanks to Gunko’s summoning, and Killingham because he a) looks like a cute cartoon animal with rounded features and b) because he’s stressing about oversleeping like the white rabbit from Alice in Wonderland (and me on a workday). Of course, knowing Oda, these motherfuckers are probably ridiculously strong, on top of being, well, deeply evil. The sillier or more plain the character design, the harder he’s going to hit you with their actual skills and behaviour later. 

I’m especially expecting Sommers to be extremely strong, given his outfit once he’s dressed, and the fact that he just looks like some guy (think of the admirals). We see that he has a tattoo of what looks like a circle with points, and a flame on the outer edge, and that his full outfit is covered in medals (probably from committing a lot of genocides). He has a rose theme going on, which we might see is linked to his devil fruit, and mentions that they’ve been working on the food situation in Marie Geoise (I’m very happy that the Revs are still holding it down). 

With Killingham, we get introduced to another name from the 20 original Celestial Dragon families – Rimoshifu. I haven’t seen anyone come up with a meaning for that name, so there might just not be one, but he’s clearly a Kirin Zoan fruit user in his hybrid form. His name is a pun on the word ‘kirin’ and he even has the awakened white cloud-scarf. Interestingly, he wears the bubble helmet of the Celestial Dragons – something that we haven’t seen any of the other Holy Knights wear, and seems to have some kind of sleeping problem. 

Kirin are a creature from ancient Chinese mythology which have been adopted into other east and southeast asian mythologies and cultures. They have features similar to Chinese dragons, usually with the body of a goat or deer and antlers as well as one or two horns (Killingham seems to have just one). Kirin also became associated with giraffes around the 15th century, when the Ming treasure voyages reached East Africa. They are generally seen as very powerful and auspicious, although it is said that their appearance heralds either the imminent arrival or death of a sage or great ruler. Knowing Oda’s love of including mythology, I’m sure he’ll incorporate this into the arc, but there are many options for what that could look like. Loki or Hajrudin are good options for rulers (even Luffy if we stretch the concept), while a sage could be Jarul, or even Gaban. 

Something else interesting to me is that both Sommers and Killingham are introduced as Saints, like other Celestial Dragons we’ve met so far, but this highlights even further to me that Shamrock and Gunko don’t use that title. It could just be inconsistency or a visual preference from Oda, but you never know. There could be something interesting going on, particularly since it seems heavily implied to me that Gunko may have been invited to join the Holy Knights but wasn’t born in Marie Geoise. 

Sommers and Killingham tell Shamrock he’s going back to Marie Geoise to help with the chaos that’s been occurring since the Reverie (I love to hear it), before asking why they’re in Elbaph. The next comment made my eyes zoom in, because Sommers casually asks “what were you doing in this unaffiliated country? paying a visit to Harald’s grave?” – yet more evidence that Harald was closely connected to the Holy Knights/the upper levels of the WG, and that he was absolutely part of their pacification strategy before his death. 

We then get more of their plan explained, which is pretty simple. Kidnap the children and take them back to Marie Geoise to incapacitate the Elbaph warriors. They complain that since only people with “the mark” can use the “abyss pentagrams,” they’ll have to physically sail back. This tells us more about the mechanics of the magic circles. Firstly, the magic involved, whatever is it, is called “abyss.” Secondly, it probably does come from Imu, who can enable other people to use it by giving them a “mark,” which is probably some infusion of their power in the form of a tattoo, in a similar way that the Five Elders’ demon forms seem to come from being infused with the abyss power. This probably also grants the Holy Knights some level of demonic power, with Shamrock’s sword Cerberus potentially being an example of that. 

Lastly, Shamrock says “with your powers, you can make it into a game!” which instantly reminds me of God Valley, and the twisted games of the Celestial Dragons. Hunting and kidnapping children? Let’s have fun! Of course, it’s unsurprising given who they are, but it does work well to remind us that these people are cruel and incredibly powerful bastards, no matter how silly they look, that they consider everyone else to be insects to trifle with, and also that there is a connection to the past that I’m sure Oda is going to reveal more about soon. We’ve already had many links pointing back to God Valley recently, with of course the reveal about Shanks and Shamrock, as well as the Figarland family being highlighted in general. And this is a section of the story in which I believe Oda is going to start telling us more about what the Celestial Dragons actually are, what Marie Geoise is like and how it’s structured, how they live and what happens there. So it would make sense that we will also return to God Valley, which we were told was a regular example of the kinds of things they do for sport, with the implication that the islands chosen aren’t random and that these events serve a purpose of genocide before literally disappearing the islands. 

I can’t wait to see what happens next, especially with Loki and Luffy probably freeing him! Hopefully I can do these a bit more regularly soon but let me know if you have any thoughts.

[rob1ns-liv1n]

Hi! You’re finally back!! I love your Bridgerton brother reader so much omg! I have so many ideas but one is that reader is really good at singing and playing but nobody in the family really know. And one day they hear him play and sing and are amazed.

Three Times The Bridgertons were Haunted and One Time They Weren't | Brother! Reader!

A/N: that's so sweet, thank you! you actually just made my day. i actually play piano so this was really fun to write. if you see any underlined words, those are links for the songs that the reader is singing/playing. you can play them if you want to have a more immersive experience. anyway sorry this took so long, but here's the request :]

Ever since you could remember Daphne had always been the musical sibling. As soon as she could talk she was given piano lessons every day after her normal schooling schedule. Your mother knew that suitors had more interest in girls with musical talents, so she believed it best to begin Daphne's lessons as early as possible. When Eloise came of age, she was meant to learn the piano as well. Unfortunately for mama, she was more interested in her diaries. Instead of trying to learn, Eloise played terribly on purpose in order to get out of lessons. After a month, mother decided that she wouldn't force any more of her daughters into music lessons for fear of another Eloise situation.

And so Daphne remained the glorified musical sibling. That is, until (Y/N) Bridgerton was tasked with disposing of Daphne's old assignment books at the age of 12 years old. Daphne, who was fourteen at the time, needed space in her sheet music drawer and with you being the good younger brother that you are you offered to get rid of her oldest books. However, you never planned to throw them away. You were going to keep them for yourself.

Later that night, when everyone had gone to bed you tip toed into the sitting room holding the treasured books tightly to your chest. From then on your nightly musical sessions became your most precious secret. It continued to be that way for five years until one fateful night when Daphne and Anthony had gotten up to make themselves warm milk.

Anthony took a slow sip from his milk jug, "We've been bested by a stove."

"Cold milk is much more refreshing anyway." reasoned Daphne.

"I suppose-" Anthony paused abruptly staring towards the door. "Do you hear that?"

Daphne set her jug down and opened the door an inch. Faint piano reverberated through the hall. Anthony, who was now leaning on the door, shot his sister a confused look, "Could it be Hyacinth?"

"No, the piece is sounds much too advanced." whispered Daphne. "Hyacinth has only just started playing, it must be someone else."

Anthony slowly inched towards the kitchen door, intent on sneakily uncovering just who was up a this hour playing piano. Unfortunately for him, the kitchen door did not in fact agree with this plan. As soon as Anthony began to open it, the old wood squealed obnoxiously like a petulant child and the piano came to an abrupt halt.

After watching her brother completely annihilate their chance to properly sleuth, Daphne rushed ahead to the drawing room and hastily opened the door-

-to find the room completely empty.

"Anthony, it's empty."

"What?"

"It's empty. As in there is no one in the drawing room."

"There must be a reasonable explanation..." Anthony's eyes lit up. "Perhaps they are hiding!"

"Hiding? But-"

A chill swept through the air catching the siblings by surprise. A sense of déjà vu came over her and she gasped in realization.

"It's a ghost!" Daphne continued, undeterred by Anthony's perplexed expression. "I recognize the signs. Ghosts are drawn to music, they cause cold winds and they are known to act only between midnight and dawn. It's a ghost. I'm sure of it!"

"And where exactly did you come across this information?"

"A novel....."

"A novel?!"

A mournful moan echoed through the room. In less than a second the door was slammed closed by Anthony's shaking hands.

"So...this novel....."

. . .

It was nearly a week later when two more of your siblings discovered the elusive "ghost" haunting the Bridgerton Estate. Gregory woke up from a nightmare in distress and with Hyacinth's room being so close to his he managed to wake her up too. His sister was not happy to be woken up, but her beauty sleep came second when an upset Gregory was involved. As she was trying her best to comfort him, the pair heard someone humming. Rain pounded steadily on the roof of the estate making the humming seem hypnotizingly sweet. Gregory looked up at his sister in confusion.

"Who do you think that is?"

Hyacinth tilted her head towards the gentle voice. "I don't know. Maybe it's that ghost Anthony keeps mumbling about."

The soft humming filled the silent room as Gregory slowly calmed down. Eventually his sister grabbed a spare blanket from the end of the bed and the two settled on the mattress together, enjoying the hums of their ghostly performer.

...

A single lit candle burned pathetically as the taunting sound of silence permeated Benedict's room. He had been trying to sketch for quite some time now, but despite his most focused effort; his pencil would not seem to budge. With a twitch of his eyebrow Benedict rose from his seat and flung his pencil at the wall nearest to him. Which just so happened to be the wall he shared with his dearest brother, Colin. Benedict dragged a hand over his face in exasperation hoping to God, or anyone really, that his oh-so-caring brother would not awaken. But as the sound of shuffling came closer to the artist's bedroom door it became apparent to Benedict that God was not, in fact, a merciful father.

"Brother?"

"Yes?" Came Benedict's squeaking reply.

The door opened and the younger Bridgerton stepped through with a glare leveled at his older brother. "What in the world are you doing up this late?"

"Nothing, actually. I couldn't sleep so I tried sketching. But then I couldn't even do that!"

Benedict glared at his discarded sketchbook as he continued, his frustration building.

"Now I've spent over three hours sitting in front of this damned fire losing my mind while I try to sketch at least one single drawing that is decent enough to call art."

Belatedly, Benedict realized that he had been yelling, but before he could apologize Colin stepped forward and grasped his shoulder.

"I know you must be frustrated Benny, but maybe tonight's just not your night. And it doesn't have to be either." Colin pinched the artist's cheeks. "There's always the morning."

As soon as his younger brother's hands left his face, a heavy weight seemed to lift from Benedict's shoulders. "I suppose your right. Till morning then."

"Till morning."

"Until then," began Benedict, a small smile dancing on his face. "You're welcome to stay here by the fire. I know how cranky you get on these kinds of cold nights."

Colin simply rolled his eyes before grabbing what he knew was his elder brother's favorite blanket and settling on the sofa closest to the fire. An indignant squawk left Benedict as he stared dumbly at the criminal who had just stolen from him. "Y-you can't have that blanket."

"Why not? You invited me to your room and I am without a blanket. It's only fair."

"Only fair? But that's my blanket." reasoned Benedict. "Surely, you of all people understand how important it is to me."

Despite the strength of Colin's will, he could not handle seeing his brother look so dejected. If he didn't know better it would almost seem like he had just burned the Bridgerton estate to the ground rather than steal his brother's favorite blanket. With a heavy sigh the young boy fluffed out the blanket and sunk down to the soft rug that sat between the sofa and fireplace. Benedict caught on and settled down next to Colin, pulling the blanket over himself as well.

As the two began to doze off the faint whisper of a piano wafted through the room. Distantly, the two boys wondered why Daphne could possibly be up so late. In the morning, they would realize that Daphne was not home.

. . .

"Alright, I assume we all know why this family meeting was called?"

Anthony in front of his assembled siblings as they sat in the drawing room. You glanced around with a sheepish look of uncertainty, "Why exactly was this meeting called?"

"The ghost problem." Anthony began to pace, pausing only to lock eyes dramatically with each and every one of his siblings. "For the last year, we have all encountered signs of ghost activity. Me and Daphne first discovered the apparition playing the piano just past midnight. Then, Hyacinth and Gregory heard it humming. And Benedict and Colin were put to sleep by its most recent piano performance. Am I missing anything?"

The siblings collectively shook their heads, except for one.

"Good. This all circles back to the reason why I have summoned you all in the first place. Tonight we must partake....in a ghost hunt."

"A ghost hunt?" scoffed Eloise. "Really?"

"Yes, really! It is our duty to protect this house. Even against threats that we cannot see."

"Fine, so long as I get to search with (Y/N)."

"That can be arranged. Now-"

"Actually...I don't think that will be necessary." You clear your throat sheepishly as your confidence withers under the curious looks of your family.

Anthony quirks a brow, "and why is that?"

"Well, see that is....um that...well, because I'm the ghost."

Silence overtakes the drawing room. Your siblings think clearly think you're joking, but there's just one thing that might convince them. You walk over to the piano and pull out the bench before taking a seat. The moment your fingers greet the ivories everything falls away. You play each of the three songs your siblings heard and try not to laugh as you hear their shocked gasps echo in the drawing room. A part of you know that there will be a lot of questions after you finish your "concert," but for now all you have to do is focus on the next note to play. The other stuff is a future (Y/N) problem.

.

.

.

.

.

BONUS SCENE:

The whole family claps for you as you finish playing. Well almost the whole family, with the exception of the oldest brother.

"While I am impressed by your musical prowess...I wasted money on a book about exorcisms for this!

And there were no refunds..."

[accidentally-in-fictional-love]

📖 🥺 🩹🍭? Oooor 🙏🏻🍭

45 Minute Friends - Lester Billings/Reader

Warnings: Gender neutral reader, no use of Y/N, nothing else this time other than those sad eyes QwQ

Wordcount: 5391

Summary: When your meetcute turns into a surprising but nice friendship with the handsome man at the grocery store you frequent, you find yourself not ever wanting to know what he looks like without the smile that drew you in in the first place.

Notes: Even though he was in the list, I was still so surprised when I got this one! Did not expect any Lester but I'm so glad I got him because once again I have rebuilt a man from scratch to make him my own hehe so I hope you guys like this one~ 💗💗💗 (And if there's any demand for a sequel, wellllll... 😏)

Every Thursday like clockwork he was there, getting groceries between the minutes of 5:15 and 6PM. The first couple times you'd bumped into him had been random, just you rushing to the store for something for dinner or grabbing something you were low on last minute - usually you preferred getting in during the early hours of the morning when the place was empty - but after the third Thursday of noticing him grabbing a bunch of sugary breakfast cereals and a big tub of ice cream to pile along with the more adult things in his cart, your curiosity was too strong to resist wondering if you could see him again. He wore suits, a working man, and he took his health seriously despite the treats, although once in a while he did tend to hang out a little too long amongst the dessert counter where all the cakes were on display.

He was tall, very handsome, and there was something so comfortable about him you decided as he grabbed a box off the shelf and flipped it over to read the nutritional values. You sucked in a deep, encouraging breath before pushing your cart down the aisle, pretending to be interested in the many different brands of pasta before stopping and staring at the one on the top shelf where he was standing. ‘Excuse me,’ you asked politely, pretending like you hadn't just found the perfect excuse to finally talk to him, ‘could you please pass me that box? If it's not too much trouble.’

His height came very much in handy as he easily grabbed it and handed it over, and you flushed before you noticed the ring on his left hand as it held the box; ah, he was married, so much for your meetcute. ‘Big dinner coming up?’ he asked casually when he saw your cart, which was packed enough to last you the rest of the month since you knew you'd be too busy to visit weekly for a while, and you just shook your head with a nervous laugh.

‘Oh, no, just that time of the year again, gunna be swamped from dawn til dusk for a while,’ you told him as you tossed the pasta in, even if it was something you'd never eat normally you were still going to buy it after this. ‘How about you? I take it your kid has a sweet tooth?’

He laughed back, and even though it couldn't be your dream meetcute you still felt a blush dust over your cheeks. ‘All three of them, actually, don't tell my wife but I think they got it from me.’

So that explained him staring at the cakes. ‘Don't worry I won't,’ you promised, your hand over your heart, and he looked back to the box in his hand before going for it and offering you a handshake.

‘Lester, Lester Billings,’ he introduced himself as you shook, your name falling from your mouth rather ungracefully when you saw how his hand enveloped your own. ‘I think I've seen you around here before, do you live nearby?’

‘20 minutes out of town, but I like the prices here, so it's worth the drive,’ you admitted easily even though your crush was still technically a stranger, but he just whistled at the long drive and moved onto the sauces.

‘I'm in town, but if I don't go right after work I'd never get the chance,’ he confided right back while picking up a jar. ‘Have you tried this brand before? Rita, my wife, introduced me to it last year and we haven't gone back.’ He handed you the jar before grabbing his own before you could answer, and you hadn't even heard of it before as you just shrugged and took his word for it, it also joining your increasingly expensive haul. His phone went off then, and he pulled it out and let out a quiet kid-safe curse before typing a reply back. ‘Sorry, forgot the party started at 5:30, thought I still had an hour, it was nice meeting you!’ he said as he headed off for the register, his food toppling over with several crashes in his hurry, and you couldn't help but grin as you grabbed your favourite pasta as well as a second bottle of sauce before continuing on your own list.

You really weren't able to go back again until work had died down, your cupboards getting bare from all the late nights of having just enough energy to cook, eat, and pass out until your alarm. Now that you knew he lived in town you couldn't help but look for him as you drove to work, but you put an end to that pretty fast after you swear you saw him in casual clothes and nearly ran a red light. You spent that time instead getting your crush under control, your mother didn't raise a homewrecker that was for sure, but when you finally were able to return and you spotted him checking out the watermelons you couldn't help but wave when he glanced up. He smiled wide at you and pointed at the one in his hand, it was huge and he was over the moon about the find, and you couldn't stop the smile and blush that followed as you rolled over to him without a second thought.

‘Free from work?’ he asked as he finished his checks, and you realized it'd been a while since you indulged and started the hunt for your own.

‘Finally, it's been a nightmare,’ you breathed exaggeratedly, which earned you another laugh.

‘It’s been the same for me, Thursday is the only night I get to come home on time just for this.’ He settled on a melon and was about to put it in his cart when he quickly stopped you from picking up your own. ‘Whoa, that guy's not ripe yet, here, my wife sent me this after last time,’ he said as he swapped out the melon for his phone, and he swiped through a bunch of photos before pulling up a visual guide on how to choose. He pointed at the one you were about to grab on his screen before taking your hand and finding a better one, the shiver running up your arm hopefully not giving you away. ‘This one should be better, it'll last you longer too if you aren't eating it all tonight.’

‘By myself? Hell no!’ you blurted out before you could think of something more suitable to say, but the resulting laugh was so loud and full of life that you couldn't help but giggle along with him as he supported himself on your shoulder. 

‘Sorry, I don't mean to offend,’ he chuckled as he picked up his suggested fruit, placing it in your cart for you without you even asking, ‘forgive me for assuming you were unavailable.’

‘No no, it's fine,’ you quickly said before you could say the same to him, he didn't need to know about your crush, ‘thanks for the recommendation, it's been years since I took the time to actually get one of these and not just the packaged slices.’

‘Every time they're in season we get one, my kids could eat most of one on their own, I swear.’ He considered getting a second before deciding against it, they could space it out you figured, and he started to head for the next thing before turning back to you. ‘You coming? It's been a while since I had some company on one of these, makes it less boring,’ he offered as he waited, and your heart skipped a beat as you hurried to catch up to him.

You talked about random things as you shopped, him mostly about his kids and how much his youngest looked like his mother, you about whatever you could think of so it wouldn't be so one-sided. You learned that he and his wife were highschool sweethearts, started dating then and got married when they were both in their early 20s, and that it'd taken them a while but finally their firstborn had been gifted to them by the time they were almost in their 30s. As such he spoiled his kids rotten, loved them all immensely, and he revealed to you that he planned on taking them to Disneyland once summer vacation finally came. You could tell he was excited about it, maybe even more than his kids were going to be, and your crush turned to something more as you finally reached the dessert counter.

He didn't linger since you were with him, so you sneakily stopped to check out the cheesecakes. ‘Oh, they have Caramel Pecan! I might have to grab a slice after that nightmare of a month,’ you wondered aloud, and you saw the way his eyes shone as he stopped and joined you.

‘My kids do love chocolate…’ he trailed off as he examined the flavours, all of them enticing him, and you smiled as you waved over the worker.

‘Excuse me, could I get a slice of this one?’ you asked as you pointed to your choice, Lester still deciding on his own with childlike wonder that made you suspicious it wasn't just his kids who liked chocolate.

‘I'm sorry, only the full sized cakes come in that flavour, the slices can be found over here if you'd like to try another one?’ she apologized, and you couldn't fight the frown as you glanced at the slices but didn't see any you wanted. 

‘I'll take the Caramel Pecan and the Chocolate Fudge Supreme,’ he then said as soon as you went to tell her it was fine, and you looked up at him as he gave you the warmest smile you'd ever seen in your life. ‘We're having another party this weekend, maybe you can join us, have a slice,’ he offered, and when you nodded you then found yourself with his number in your phone along with his address.

His house was nice and the front yard was covered in toys, loud music drifting from the backyard as kids screamed in delight and parents talked over them as best they could. You held the dish you'd decided to bring at the mention that it'd be a potluck a little closer to your chest before knocking on the door, almost missing the sign taped to the wall above the doorbell. It told you and their other guests to head around back for the party, and you followed the path to the side gate and headed to where all the voices were coming from. 

He had a huge pool that was currently filled with kids and their friends, some of the adults hanging out by the deep end as others were crowding around the grill, and you searched for him in this sea of strangers until you spotted him exiting through the back door, the cheesecakes in hand. You grinned as you rushed over to help, but you stopped when an auburn-haired woman walked up instead, taking your Caramel Pecan from him and making a face at it before placing it on the table along with the other treats. You stilled, halfway to him as he waved off her disgust with a laugh, and you felt yourself become self-conscious; you enjoyed his company, and he was fun to talk to, but you didn't belong in this part of his life, no, you were his friend among the aisles from between 5:15-6PM, you shouldn't be there-

‘Hey! You made it!’ You stopped mid-turn at the sound of his voice, a smile plastered to your face as he jogged over, and you wouldn't tell him but he really did look like a dad in his casual clothes, it was a good look on him.

‘Hey, yeah, something came up so I just wanted to drop this off on my way,’ you lied, and his smile turned to disappointment as he glanced back at the party.

‘You sure you can't stay? The food's almost ready, we were gunna get out the protector and watch a move on the side of the house while we ate,’ he told you almost sadly, and you were about to decline when the woman from earlier walked up next to him and looked you over. ‘Rita, this is the one I was telling you about, my new friend from Walkers,’ he announced as she linked her arms through his, and she wasn't at all like he described as she glanced up at him so fast he missed it, but you didn't.

‘Charmed, I take it you're staying for dinner?’ she asked, and she didn't sound nearly as nice as he made her out to be.

‘I, uh…’

‘You were just telling me what you wanted, burger or hot dog,’ he cut in, looking hopeful as you held your bowl of potato salad a little tighter. ‘We also have sausages and some vegetarian options, if you'd prefer?’

‘A cheeseburger sounds great,’ you finally replied, and he nodded before calling over to someone named Tommy by the grill to toss on two more for you. Rita let go as he led you to the table so you could set down your bowl, and everything looked delicious as you gazed over the spread, completely entranced by what you planned on grabbing before he held you out of the way of a bunch of running kids. You thought he scolded them for running and to be careful, but honestly you didn't hear anything as your face was pressed to his chest, his hands warming you more than the sun as they rested over your back and arm.

‘Sorry about that, you know how kids get,’ he chuckled as he let you go, and when he asked about how red you were you quickly blamed it on the sun so you could hide in the shade a safe distance away.

You ended up staying til dark, the food so delicious that you couldn't stop until you were full, and your Caramel Pecan cheesecake was even more delicious as he handed it to you while his wife scowled in the background, jealous over nothing. You knew you'd never make a move on him, seeing him around his family was enough to fully kill the crush, but still you couldn't leave as you sat in the grass and watched horror movies with the rest of his friends once the kids went to bed. The speakers couldn't be too loud, but that didn't stop everyone else as they had a great time, and when you stopped by the pool to enviously check it out, you found yourself splashing along with the others when he pushed you over the edge, jumped in, and encouraged everyone else to join, which they all childishly did.

You didn't hang out outside of shopping, the party would have to be your only exception, but you still had fun with him as you met up in the parking lot every Thursday after that. He shared his favourite recipes with you when you were looking to try something new, and was always ready to grab something off the top shelves for you while you grabbed stuff from the lower ones, bad back he explained after too many spills trying to keep up with the kids. You became close enough to openly talk about your jobs and your weeks, more invitations to parties offered to you every time you met, it seemed he was just really that social, but you found excuses for every one of them to his growing disappointment; you still saw Rita glaring at you when you looked at him, and you didn't want to start anything when your intentions for talking to him were nothing but pure now. 

As you were checking out, he offered for you to join them for movie night, this one would be a smaller gathering in case you didn't like the crowds, and you just laughed and declined as always. ‘It's not the crowds,’ you reassured him as your stuff was rung up, Lester bagging all of his own since you'd let him go first. ‘I'm just… not one for parties in general.’ It was a boldfaced lie, but you'd rather lie to him than get him in trouble with his wife just by being there.

‘It's not a party, it's movie night,’ he insisted, and he held the extra large bag of assorted salty snacks up high to tempt you. ‘C'mon, you told me you had a rough week, one round of cards with my kids will cheer you up, and since it's movie night you can pick your favourite to join the lineup, what do you say?’

That sounded wonderful, if you were to be completely honest, and you just sighed dramatically before grabbing a big bag of chips from beside you to add to your remaining items. ‘What's your family's stance on Stephen King?’ you asked as you pulled out your wallet, and he just grinned widely as the last of his bags was stuffed into the cart.

‘Too scary for me, but my eldest loves him.’

You nearly crushed your poor bag of chips by the time you got to his house on Saturday, a bottle of your favourite soda tucked under your arm as well just in case he didn't have it and so you'd be able to drive home later. It was already starting to get dark since you wanted to give them time to have dinner together despite him saying it started early, and you could already hear a movie going on on the other side of the door as you knocked. You waited a moment as the movie was paused, and a little boy who couldn’t be more than 8 opened up and stared at you before calling back over his shoulder that you were finally there, putting extra emphasis on the ‘finally.’

You heard Lester laugh before he stumbled into view, and he welcomed you in with a bright smile as you held up your chips and drink. ‘You're late! We saved you some dip, had to fight these animals back with a stick to keep them away from it,’ he teased as he brought you to the living room, his kids piled onto the floor with pillows and blankets while a few couples, more of his friends, took up the couches, the loveseat empty and waiting for you. 

‘Daddy, we saw you eat a bunch!’ the boy, apparently his middle child, cried out as he hit his legs while he passed by, his body bouncing energetically on his pillows as he then flopped back down, and Lester just shook his head in denial before reclaiming the spot next to his wife, his youngest going from her lap to his the moment he was settled. The movie was resumed, your chips on your lap as you tried to ignore the heat from Rita's gaze that he somehow didn't notice, and you only got a few in before the middle one noticed you had something different. ‘Did you bring enough to share with the class?’ he asked smartly as he turned and stared up at you from the coffee table, his eyes purely on your chips and those alone.

‘Shaun-’ Lester said warningly, he’d had enough snacks already apparently to not let you enjoy yours, but still you waved him off and held the bag out. He thanked you and grabbed two big handfuls, his eldest, Denise, or Deni everyone called her, glancing over before you just relented and passed it down, ready to try out that dip you almost missed out on instead, one of his friends handing it to you and stealing one final chip's worth before going back to his beer. It was damn good, you could see why it was almost completely gone, and this he did notice as he called your name before a very loud action sequence nearly drowned him out.

‘Want me to make more?’ he asked as you chowed down, and when you shook your head politely so as to not trouble him, everyone else loudly exclaimed, ‘Yes!’ at the same time. ‘Okay, okay, it's Annie’s bedtime anyway,’ he conceded as he stood, the movie not paused this time as he brought his sleeping youngest upstairs. You watched him go in the reflection of the TV stand packed with trinkets and knick knacks and photos before watching the movie, and when he returned he pressed a kiss to Rita's forehead before heading for the kitchen to make more dip. When he returned everyone was instantly ready for more, but he made sure to scoop a fair amount into your bowl before placing it on the coffee table, since you had missed out after all. You thanked him quietly and went back to eating, your chips returned to you before he sat back down, and it was almost criminal how damn good of a combo they ended up being.

You weren't able to get to your movie since you'd arrived so late, but you were promised first dibs for the next one as long as you showed up on time. You promised, and everyone but Rita waved goodbye to you as you headed out, the kids devouring the last of your chips in front of the TV again.

The next Thursday that came around you were running late, a detour from work to Walkers making you come closer to 5:48 than your desired 5:15, but no matter where you looked you couldn't find him. You felt almost disappointed when you remembered that summer vacation had started, he was probably in California by now, and you hoped he was having a good time as you passed by the dessert counter and noticed that slices of Caramel Pecan were now available.

You didn't see him the next Thursday either, but you didn't know how long his vacation was going for, judging on how excited he was it probably wouldn't be for just a few days, and again you hoped he was having fun as you grabbed yourself a new watermelon using the same guide his wife had sent him.

On the third Thursday you felt worried, he should be back by now, but you didn't think it proper to go to his house and see if his car or the family van were there, that felt much too personal for just a 45 Minute Friend. You felt that, but the temptation was strong when you passed by the pasta sauces.

On the fourth Thursday you figured enough was enough, something was wrong, and you piled your food into the back of your car and tried not to speed to his house. His car wasn't there but the van was, maybe he'd had to switch his grocery day to some other time thanks to work, and you felt embarrassed but you'd rather find out from Rita than text him about missing him. You approached the front door and saw lights on inside, but there was something heavy in the air as you raised your hand to knock; there was a lack of happiness radiating from the house, no sounds of the TV drifting through the door, the yard had been cleaned up, something just felt off. 

You took in a deep breath and knocked, and you saw Rita peek through the window's curtains before the door was unlocked. ‘Finally come to collect?’ she snapped as she glared through the gap, and your brow furrowed as you tried to figure out what she meant.

‘What?’

‘You can have him, I'm done with this,’ was all she said before she slammed the door in your face, your confusion turning to concern as you knocked again.

‘Wait, what're you talking about? Is he okay? Are the kids okay?’ you demanded to know, and as soon as you asked about them the door opened once more; her hand slapped you hard across the face, your eyes wide in surprise as you touched your cheek.

‘He doesn't live here anymore, try any of the fleabag motels along the highway,’ she all but yelled before slamming the door again, and you raced back to your car without another word.

You spent the rest of the night looking for him but was unsuccessful, his car nowhere in sight as you checked every motel and hotel on your GPS, the stinging on your cheek not going away as the sun set and darkness swallowed up everything.

You tried to check out the store every night after that, keeping a worried eye out for him as you bought only a couple things so you wouldn’t just be loitering, although it seemed like the dessert counter worker was now used to your friendship. She called out to you as you passed, your eyes scanning every which way as you slowly turned to face her. ‘Haven’t seen him around lately, he feeling alright?’ she asked concernedly, and you could only shrug, you were just his friend, after all.

You kept up your search for a week, Thursday coming by again as your snacks ran out and you did have to get some real food like a real adult, and you were in the middle of turning down the pasta aisle when you saw him standing there and staring at the jar of sauce in his hand. ‘Lester!’ you started to call out in pure relief, but when he heard your voice and turned to you, you only saw the saddest pair of eyes you’d ever seen in your life; the smile was gone, buried underneath the sorrow, he was just barely holding it together, and you ditched your cart right there and you quickly jogged over. ‘Hey, is everything okay? I haven’t seen you in over a month.’

You didn’t want it to sound like you’d been waiting for him, but if it did come across that way he didn’t notice as he looked back down at his wife’s favourite brand.

‘Haven’t had time to come, been trying to secure an apartment from my hotel,’ he confessed, and when he blinked a tear ran down his cheek. ‘Haven’t been very hungry, anyway…’

‘What… I mean, why did-?’ You couldn’t ask it, not when the pieces were starting to fall together, and he didn’t clarify anything as he nearly dropped the jar; you just barely caught it, his hand covering his eyes for just a moment as he bit back a sob, and when you put it back on the shelf you found yourself comfortingly rubbing his back.

‘I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have come, it’s been so hard since…’

‘It’s okay, do you have a list? I think I remember what you usually get, let me help you,’ you offered, and when he looked at you you felt your heart clench so much your knees nearly gave out. ‘Shopping’s more fun with some company, right?’ He nodded, and you skipped the rest of the aisle entirely as you tried to remember what you’d seen him get in the past. It was slow work, he kept lingering around certain things like the cereal and kid-targeted snacks, your heart hurting more and more the closer you got to the desserts. He didn’t even look at them, and you quickly asked for two slices of Caramel Pecan while he avoided staring at all the chocolate flavours.

He went to pay when you were all done, but he was low on cash, no cards in his wallet to go with them, and you understood that all his money must’ve been going towards the hotel as you pulled out your own wallet. ‘Please, I can’t ask you to,’ he mumbled, but you just placed your hand on his as you forced a smile.

‘What else are friends for?’ you asked, and he silently let you pay as he packed his stuff into as few bags as he could to save you a few cents.

Your groceries were completely forgotten as you then helped him pack them into the trunk of his car, fast food wrappers littering the floor of the backseat, and you didn’t comment on them as he obviously looked embarrassed about it. The sky rumbled as you unloaded the last bag, and you should’ve really run back inside, but you couldn’t leave him as he got into the front seat and just sat there, staring at the wheel. You opened up the passenger door and sat down next to him, his eyes glancing at you before he patted your hand, his thanks just barely out of his mouth before he finally broke down.

He sobbed openly in the privacy of his car as he covered his eyes again, his shoulders shaking and his weeping only enhanced by the rain as it turned from a light drizzle to a storm within moments. You just let him cry, ready to wait until he was able to speak, small waves blown across the pavement in front of you as other people hurried to their own cars, his cart slowly rolling away in the background. It took a while but finally he was ready, and he didn’t look at you as he wiped his eyes and sniffed.

‘Rita asked for a divorce, said she wants full custody,’ he confessed as the thunder roared above, and the pain in your heart turned to a pounding as you felt not sadness but anger overtake you.

‘That’s bullshit!’ you shouted, but you controlled your voice when he recoiled. ‘Sorry, but you’re an amazing father, where the hell did this come from?’

‘She thinks I was cheating on her, wouldn’t even tell me who she thought it was,’ he told you with another sniff, and you felt your cheek sting again as you recalled the look on her face as she slammed the door in yours. ‘I would never, I love- I loved her so much, and my kids-’ He broke down again, and you refused to even attempt to hold yourself back as you leaned over the console and pulled him into your arms. He melted into them, crying on your shoulder as you whispered comfort to him, patted and rubbed his back, his grip on you so hard that it hurt but you didn’t care.

‘I won’t let her do this, you know I work at a law firm, I’ll message everyone I know to help with your case,’ you swore, and he just shook his head against you.

‘Why would they side with me when she tells them what she thinks?’ he mumbled, and you backed up so he’d look at you.

‘Because I know who you are, and I will not let you lose your kids.’

His eyes looked between your own as a single tear fell, and if your crush was still there you might’ve wanted to kiss him, but that wasn’t what he needed. No, you meant every word that you’d said, and you were going to make good on it for him because he was your friend, and you would not ruin this more for him when his feelings were that that mattered right now. You were his friend, and you loved him like that, and he could see that you were serious as he hugged you again but didn’t cry, his voice so broken and soft and unlike the lively energy you’d gotten to know over your grocery trips.

‘Thank you,’ he whispered, and you didn’t nuzzle into his neck as you placed your hand on the back of his head.

‘I don’t have much, but for now I can at least offer you my couch, if you’re tired of hotel rooms?’ you said softly, and when he went to object you just smiled as your own tears fell when you blinked and stared out into the rain. ‘What else are friends for?’ you repeated, and when he sat back to rub his eyes again his smile was there, just barely hidden under the pain; there was your friend, there was Lester.

You didn’t know how this story would end, but you knew that it wouldn’t involve him losing everything, not if you had anything to say about it, that was for damn sure.

[ridiasfangirlings]

Sarumi teacher/student au: Fushimi is sorta popular with the students due to his good looks. Yata is confused by this cause he thinks their teacher is an asshole. Yata fails an exam and needs to be tutored by Fushimi and soon he realized "Wait, maybe they're onto something." (also Fushimi hates idiots so the students try to show off their smarts to get his attention but Yata is the one that gets a chance to get close to him since he's the idiot that needed to get to get a tutoring session lol)

Imagine Fushimi as like the school’s number one bachelor and everyone thinks he’s so pretty but also his personality is terrible so the bachelor thing kinda makes sense. Maybe this is like a college setting and Fushimi is the youngest professor ever, he’s the same age or even younger than some of the students in his class. Some students resent this until they’re actually in his class and it becomes clear that Fushimi’s a genius, though a lot of students probably hate him even more after that because he’s such an uppity brat. He’s still oddly popular despite this, imagine there are students who want to take his class just because they think he’s so attractive only to discover that Fushimi is a total taskmaster and all his classes are super hard. 

Poor Yata is a student who ended up in one of Fushimi’s classes because he needs computer science as like an elective and registered late, all the normal easy classes were full so he ended up with Fushimi. Yata’s definitely one of the students who dislikes Fushimi at first, like this guy is so young (though maybe Yata’s totally unaware that Fushimi is in fact younger than him) but he’s such a asshole. Fushimi probably doesn’t make Yata’s life any easier either, because Yata is the slowest kid in class and tends to zone out when Fushimi’s lecturing so he becomes Fushimi’s favorite student to tease. All these girls in Yata’s class are like you’re so lucky Fushimi-sensei gives you so much attention, Yata’s like how the fuck is that lucky I hate that guy. The other students are also confused how Yata gets so much attention anyway, because Fushimi hates idiots so the rest of the class is always trying to show off so sensei will notice them and yet he’s way more interested in taunting Yata.

Yata ends up flunking an exam and Fushimi is selected to tutor him, imagine Fushimi complaining that if this idiot can’t pass his class that’s not Fushimi’s fault and dean of students Munakata just smiles pleasantly and says since this is Fushimi’s course who better to teach a struggling student. Yata isn’t happy either, all these people in his class are envying him and Yata is just dreading having to spend more time with Fushimi. They meet in Fushimi’s room for the tutoring session and imagine this is the first time Yata’s been alone with Fushimi. At first Yata’s just trying to keep from grumbling out loud in Fushimi’s face, Fushimi is being all curt and not very helpful as he explains the questions Yata missed. As they continue though Yata does his best to understand and starts asking more questions, Fushimi answers easily and it dawns on Yata that isn’t this guy sort of amazing, he knows so much. Being close to Fushimi like this too Yata can kinda see why all the girls like Fushimi, like wow his skin is so pale and those long eyelashes and blue eyes…and then he totally misses a question Fushimi asked and Yata’s blushing and fumbling as he tries not to admit that he was distracted by his teacher’s good looks. 

Of course now Yata is in full Can’t Catch Me Gay Thoughts mode, he keeps finding himself staring at Fushimi during lectures and getting distracted by thoughts of how Fushimi is actually pretty good-looking and then he has to like smack himself in the middle of class. Imagine Fushimi just looking at him dryly like anything you want to share with the class Misaki and Yata shakes his head quickly because he’s afraid if he opens his mouth he might accidentally say something he’ll regret. Their tutoring sessions are extra difficult now too because Yata’s starting to realize that yeah, Fushimi’s an asshole but he’s also pretty cool and Yata likes listening to him talk. One day he walks in on Fushimi eating a Caloriemate because he skipped lunch, without even thinking Yata’s like that’s no good for lunch you need nutrients, here I brought my bento with me you can have it. Somehow this turns into Yata bringing Fushimi lunch every time (and complaining when Fushimi picks the vegetables out) and he’s totally unaware of how this looks to everyone else, that Yata Misaki is getting private tutoring sessions with the hottest teacher in school and bringing him homemade lunches.

[threebooksoneplot]

you're baaaaack <3 haven't even listened to the new ep yet but I was just reading chapter 9 to catch up and this bit has got me reeling

I was slowly realizing that vampires were much bigger participants in this world than I’d once thought. How many times did the average human cross paths with them, completely unaware? How many deaths, obliviously reported as crimes and accidents, were really due to their thirst? How crowded would this new world be when I finally joined it?

it sent me to a world where stephenie had an ounce of curiosity about the universe she's making. *could* there even be that many vampires without the world going into crisis?

in the books we get the feeding-frenzy action of edward then james's bloodlust, newborns in seattle which are noticeable enough to be on the news, and volturi "fishing" trip which i always assumed was a daily thing.

do we ever find out how often non-vegetarians feed? could it actually be hidden by people just going missing?

the biggest clue we get about how long they can go without feeding is that in midnight sun when edward is talking about how jasper is struggling more than the rest of them, he was thinking this interesting quote:

“It had been two weeks since our last hunting trip. That was not an immensely difficult time span for the rest of us. A little uncomfortable occasionally—if a human walked too close, if the wind blew the wrong way.”

which implies that 2-3 weeks is a normal length of time for the cullens at least, but it doesn't really state whether this applies to human eating vampires or not. I feel like breaking dawn has more quotes about how often the human eaters are leaving to go hunt, but I've always thought that they (human eating vampires) probably go maybe once or twice a month. I also think that the vampire population probably grows with the human population. I'm sure that all the murder/missing people would still be pretty noticeable. a lot of suspension of disbelief is required here—G

yeah we do think this incredibly interesting to think about and is definitely something I personally love to see explored in fic/meta!!!! reading bree tanner also makes you think a little harder about all of this, too. so it's kind of fun to now be throwing her doomed-by-the-narrative-ass into things—shannon

[chimachapterbooks]

Worriz’s Challenge

Eris perched on a rock and gazed down at the ground far below, her brow knitted with concern.

Just as she had for the last six days, she could see Wolves prowling at the base of the cliffs that the Eagles called home. Now and then, one of the Wolves would look up at her, flash a savage grin, and give a short howl. She did her best to ignore the taunts. But this was becoming a concern.

Ever since the battle for CHI had begun among the tribes, the Wolves had been encroaching on Eagle teritory.

Normally, the Wolf pack was constantly on the move. But this pack was acting like they were here to stay. They were noisy, messy, and threw loud parties late into the night so that none of the Eagles could sleep.

It might have just been a little inconvenience, except for two things: One, the Eagles needed to be able to fly down to the ground to find food, and the Wolves were making that dangerous to do. And two, it was almost time for the Eagles to get their monthly share of the powerful CHi from the Lions, and Eris was sure the Wolves were here to prevent that from happening.

if only we could find some way to make them go away, she thought. But how?

Just then, Eglor flew by. He was very excited, and kept shouting, "I've done it! 've done it!" All the Wolves looked up to see what the commotion was about.

"Shhhh!" warned Eris. "What have you done?"

But Eglor was too excited to speak quietly. "I've perfected a machine that can hurl an Eagle all the way from one end of the forest to the other, faster than any beast that runs or flies. From now on, instead of flap, flap, flap to get from one place to another, it will be zip, zip, zip!"

"Zip, zip, zip?" said one of the Wolves, laughing.

"Sounds more like flop, flop, flop to me!"

Eglor wheeled in the air and looked down at the Wolf.

"Ha! With my machine, any Eagle could outrace a Wolf by twice the speed. That's just scientific fact. There's not even the teeniest, tiniest, most microscopic room for doubt."

"Want to bet?" growled Worriz. The pack leader had wandered over to see what the rest of the Wolves were so interested in. Now he eyed Eglor with a mocking smile.

"Eglor, don't." Eris tried to hold her friend back.

"No good can come from arguing with the Wolves."

But Eglor's pride as an inventor was at stake now.

"Yes, I do want to bet!" he announced loudly.

"All right, then," said Worriz. "I'll bet you I can make it to the far end of the woods faster than any Eagle launched from your machine. If I win, you Eagles give up your share of CHI to us this month."

"And if you lose," said

Eglor, "you go away and leave our nesting area alone!"

Eris slapped a wing against her forehead. What had Eglor just gotten them into?

"Deal," said Worriz. "We race tomorrow ... That is, if you can find someone foolish enough to challenge me."

"Tomorrow?" stammered Eglor. He suddenly sounded a bit nervous. "Now, see here, the machine works— know it does—but it hasn't been fully tested yet, and there are still a few things—"

The Wolves howled with laughter. One of them said,

"You know what they say about Eagles—all flash and feathers."

"If you want to back down, bird," Worriz sneered,

"then I guess-"

"'ll do it!" Eris interrupted him. "I'll race you!"

After she had said it, she could hardly believe the words had come out of her beak. But the Wolves were getting under her feathers with all their insults, and maybe this was the one way to get them to leave their nesting grounds for good. Besides, Eglor was a great inventor. If he said his machine could make her go zip, zip, zip, then it could.

"All right then," Worriz snarled. "Tomorrow. Dawn.

Be here."

The Wolves turned to talk amongst themselves.

Suddenly, Worriz looked sharply back up at Eris. "Oh, and one more rule," he snapped. "No help from the Lions, right, Eagle? For this challenge, you fly solo."

All the Wolves laughed.

—————

"It doesn't work," said Eglor sadly. "I don't know what happened, but it's not working."

"What do you mean?" asked Eris, in shock. "You told the Wolves there wasn't the teeniest, tiniest room for doubt."

It was the middle of the night. Eglor had taken Eris to see his machine, which consisted of a catapult with a bowl at the end attached to a much bigger metal apparatus by tightly wound springs. When Eglor triggered the contraption, the bowl would be propelled forward and anything inside it would go flying... at least, in theory.

But now the inventor Eagle didn't look so sure.

"When I tested it this afternoon, it worked fine," Eglor explained. "But then I started practicing tonight with things actually in the bowl, like bunches of apples, and . .. well, look for yourself."

Eris looked. There were smashed apples splattered all over the floor of Eglor's workshop. The machine just hurled them straight down at the ground.

"So if I get in this thing tomorrow morning. . . no zip?" she asked.

"More like splat," said Eglor. "We'll have to call off the bet."

"We can't," insisted Eris. "We'll lose our CHI to the Wolves, which will hurt the balance in Chima, and the Wolves will stay down there forever! I have to win the race... somehow. I just have to."

——————

"Did you do it?" whispered Worriz.

Wilhurt, another Wolf in the pack, nodded. "It was easy. I used a bellow plant to float up the mountain and then tied it down. I got to Eglor's workshop, and broke off part of his machine. Then let the air out of the bellow plant little by little so I could float back down. That Eagle won't be zipping anywhere, boss."

"Good," Worriz said with a wicked grin. "All that Eagle CHI is practically ours. Hey, maybe we'll challenge the Bears and the Gorillas to races, too. Let the Crocs fight battles we'll get all the CHI we want the old-fashioned way: We'll cheat."

——————

By dawn, Eris had a plan ... sort of. It started with not telling Worriz the machine didn't work. The second part involved getting some help from someone she would normally stay far away from.

Skinnit the Skunk was actually a very nice animal who didn't have an enemy in the world. But no one really wanted to spend any time around him because ... well, he smelled really bad. It wasn't his fault. But no one wanted to risk keeping him company and maybe winding up smelling terribly, too. Still, Eris had always made an effort to be polite to him.

"Skinnit, can you do me a favor?" she asked, talking to him from high up in a tree.

"Me? Really? You want me to do you a favor?" Skinnit replied eagerly. No one ever asked him to do anything other than go away.

"That's right," said Eris. "It's nothing hard. I just want you to do ... that thing you do at a certain place and a certain time."

Skinnit frowned. "You mean you want me to make a stink?" he asked. That was what he did best, but it always made other animals run away. Why would Eris want him to do that?

"Just trust me," Eris reassured him. "You'll be doing something nice for all the Eagles."

"If you say so," Skinnit answered, smiling. "But you had better hold your beak—it's going to get smelly around here!"

Eris grinned. "Thanks, Skinnit," she said. "I knew I could count on you." With that, she flew off. She had a few more non-rule-breaking favors to ask of some old friends.

———————

After making a few more stops, Eris was ready for the start of the race. She perched in Eglor's lab, waiting for the signal to start. Down below, Worriz was crouched down, ready to run.

"You might as well hand over that CHI now, bird,"

Worriz called up. "It's as good as ours!"

"We'll just see about that," Eris shouted back down.

She glanced over at Eglor, and gave him a wink. The inventor Eagle looked very nervous, but he nodded back.

One of the Wolves stood at the base of the rock spire, holding a palm leaf to start the race. A moment later, he waved the leaf high in the air, and the race was on!

Eris leaped out from Eglor's lab, flying as fast as she could, so anyone looking from below would think she had been rocketed out into the sky. Worriz was running at top speed, too, hoping to put some distance between himself and the Eagle.

As she soared above the canopy of trees, Eris did her best to keep an eye on Worriz, even if she could only see him for a few seconds now and then. She knew the Wolf would would take the fastest path through the forest. In fact, she was counting on it.

In the woods, Worriz was feeling confident. The pack had blazed a new trail through the forest lately, one that made getting from one end to the other a snap. All he had to do was follow the scent the vehicles had left and he couldn't go wrong. He put his nose to the ground, took a big sniff...

... and he almost fell over! His nose was full of an incredibly horrible smell, so bad it made his eyes water.

He shook his head, trying to make the odor go away. But it didn't. It was so overpowering that now he couldn't smell anything else. Worriz knew there was only one animal in the forest who could make a smell that bad.

"Skinnit!" he howled.

Off to the side of the path, the little skunk ran away, disappearing into the trees.

"All right, I don't need my nose," Worriz

grumbled to himself. "I can remember the path .. sort of. I know there were trees ... and a big rock... and some dirt... hmm...

Worriz picked a direction that looked right and started to run again. At one point, he glanced up and spotted Eris through the trees. The Eagle was falling behind.

All he needed to do was put on an extra burst of speed and he was sure to win.

Just then, he heard an enormous rustling in the woods ahead. It sounded like a huge herd of creatures on the move. But there were no sounds of foliage tearing or ground being ripped up the way he would have expected. As he rounded a bend, he discovered why: It was a tribe of Gorillas in their massive Gorilla Machines. But instead of smashing through the jungle the way the Wolf Vehicles did, the Gorillas were being extra careful not to disturb anything as they passed.

The Gorillas' respect for nature meant that they had to move very slowly in their huge machines so they didn't accidentally trample any flowers or even weeds.

"Come on!" Worriz growled. "Hurry it up!"

Three of the Gorillas stopped right in Worriz's path.

"Hey, Wolf, why are you in such a hurry?" said the first Gorilla, looking down from the cockpit of his huge vehicle.

"Yeah, you have to savor every minute of life, the way you do a really good banana," said the second.

"Maybe you just don't see it," said the third. "You Wolves always have your noses to the ground, and you don't look up to see the sky!"

Over Worriz's protests, the Gorillas proceeded to tell him all about how much better life was when you were in tune with all of nature. Even worse, all the other Gorillas stopped to listen, nodding their heads and smiling. It felt like forever before they finally finished and moved on, their machines going even slower than before.

When the Gorillas had finally passed, Worriz ran faster than he ever had in his life. He was heading for the quick-moving river that flowed through this part of the forest. If he dove in and let the waters carry him, he could still beat Eris. Sure, he wouldn't technically be racing. But so what? The only thing that mattered to him was winning!

He was just about to dive into the river when, from behind the trees, a bunch of small figures appeared in his path. Worriz nearly skidded to a halt. He couldn't believe his eyes. Nearly two dozen teenage foxes were blocking him, all smiling and yipping and jumping up and down. Because as everyone in Chima knew, teenage foxes thought that the Wolves were the coolest animals in the forest. Especially the Wolf Pack leader, Worriz.

"Look, it's Worriz!" cried one.

"I told you he was coming!" squealed another.

"Wow, look how cool he is!"

"I just have to get his autograph! I have to!" Before Worriz knew what was happening, he was being mobbed by the teenage foxes! They were tugging at his fur, running back and forth in front of him, and begging for his signature.

"We're your biggest fans," said one of the foxes breathlessly. "You're the coolest Wolf in Chima!"

"I won," said the Eagle. "So pack up your pack and move on."

But Worriz sneered. "Ha!" he said. "That's what you think. Your Lion pals aren't here, so you can't prove you won the race. Looks like your CHI for this month is ours. Hand it over!"

Eris shook her head, a knowing grin crossing her face. She pointed up at the sky. A whole flock of sparrows was circling overhead, cheering wildly for Eris.

"I don't need the Lions to prove I beat you," she said.

"Those sparrows saw the entire race. It's over, Worriz."

Worriz smacked his head and groaned. Even with cheating, he had still lost to the Eagles! "Fine," he grumbled. "You got lucky this time. But next time, mark my words, you won't be so lucky!"

Eris chuckled. "It wasn't luck," she said as a sparrow came and landed on her hand. "Don't you know by now? I have lots of friends."

[ahoneesan]

realized ive somehow managed to play and complete a decent amount of games so far this year. here's some very quick thoughtsa about em, listed in rough chronological order of when i last touched em

rabbit n steel - super super fun, but i wish there was a little more variety open right from the start. very nice to have after burning myself out on ffxiv proper after the expac release. only unlocked the first new class, id love to jump back in if i had ppl to play w

sonic frontiers - theres definitely something, something in here but it is saddled with strange/offputting game direction choices that dont do it any favors. i guess it is nice that theres a fuck hard epilogue for sickos who want it but going straight into it after beating the game normal style was incredibly frustrating. i hope sonic team takes another swing at it (and they kinda did already, see shadow gens blurb below)

okami - fucking awesome. ive been craving an oot-style zelda since around or before totk launch, this was the perfect game for that craving. kamiya you motherfucker you just make good ass games.

rise of the golden idol dlc 1: sins of new wells - wonderful one-sitting expansion. really interested in where things go from here as this wraps up the few hanging threads from the end of rise proper. these devs are masters of the dread that dawns on you when you begin to see the truth behind the puzzle.

sonic generations - played this back when it came out originally, still pretty good! i feel like there are some advances since this that makes the stage design in this game feel a liiiittle dated, and going back to origin point of Classic Sonic Tee Em definitely makes some of this game hit differently. anyways, the real take away is ATTENTION SONIC TEAM I DO NOT WANT TO DO MINI CHALLENGES IN YOUR GAMES. PLEASE MAKE GOOD LEVELS AND LET THEM STAND ON THEIR OWN. DONT MAKE ME PLAY 30 SECONDS OF GAME THREE TIMES IN ORDER TO PROGRESS. GODDAMMIT.

shadow generations - its.... good? just like, good? all the way through? hello? can sonic games be like this? i still have my gripes and its not a 10/10 or nothin, but like fuck, for sonic team this is a Towering achievement. locomotion feels nice, stages are Really good, overworld is fun to move around in and the lil challenges in it are fun, writing and performances and animation are all solid. still dont want to do mini levels at all. to me this is the true bane of current sonic.

monhun wilds - i wish i wanted to play this game more lol. i mean i do! but like, i have my arkveld/gore mixset and my gore greatsword, and i can turn tempered arkveld into a fine paste in 5 minutes. that said i am massively looking forward to the title updates. really hope i find something to pour some more time into in this game in april

monhun generations ultimate - now this is a game that fucking has Things to Do in it. i'm like 60(? 70?) hours in now, in deep village high rank, and fuck me there are still SO MANY MORE MONSTERS. its nice to have a monhun that is truly overflowing with gameplay during the lull in wilds.

bowsers fury - fun! experiment of "what if course clear mario in open world?" and i think they come up with some fairly interesting ideas inside of that. there are also plenty of frustrations too, leading me to say: i still prefer total sandbox mario. but im glad to have played this before the switch 1 is entirely out the door.