#maru is a little shit confirmed

[primalvessel]

“don’t just stand there, looking at me.” // from nero!

The Miqo'te's head tilted, ears tucked back and arms folded across his chest but otherwise he did indeed continue to just stand there, looking at him. For a moment.

"Okay," he agreed after giving it some thought and he promptly settled into a crouch instead.

[peachy-skies-writings]

Found - Sebastian (SDV) x Reader

You can find on ao3 here.

Summary:

Sebastian x f!Reader where you reminisce about each of the other heart events during the 10-heart event. I suck at writing summaries. But it's cute and it's fluffy and it's here.

----

A/N : So I did a thing. I haven't really written in a while but I just kinda got annoyed that everything is smut on here and on ao3 so I just decided fuck it I'm going to write some fluff.

Might do some more. I won't be taking requests for the time being . I have a full-time job and uni so for now, no requests but I might be open in the future.

Please let me know what you think? I haven't written in a while so any feedback is great :)

Not proofread!

----

To think that it had been less than a year since you had moved from Zuzu City to a little farmhouse in the middle of nowhere had your head spinning. An impulse decision made after the death of your grandfather that could have gone either way. Bile rises in your throat as you think of the anxiety you held in your chest back then.

The uncertainty. The risk. The excitement.

Up until recently, leaving behind Joja Corp and Zuzu City was still something you thought that you’d grow to regret. Farming was a tough life - your knees bruised, your back aching, and your fingers sore from the hard graft. The people of Pelican Town seemed to eye you as you walked into the town with an air of suspicion. After all, who would leave their well-paid corporate job in the big city to come work on their dead grandfather’s run down farm?

Those eyes on you made you feel that your choice was a mistake. Every crop that didn’t grow, every seed stolen by a bird, every fruit or vegetable that looked just a little bit wonky was confirmation enough that you were not meant for this.

The only person who seemed to believe in you was Robin, the local carpenter. You’d stop by occasionally and pass along excess wood that you’d collected while tidying up the overgrown farm. She always greeted you with a warm smile and asked how you were getting along. At first, you thought it was just out of being polite but, as you grew to know her, you realized she took a genuine interest in your work. You met her family too - Demetrius, her husband, and her children, Maru and Sebastian.

Sebastian.

You smiled thinking of him, looking to the man on your right. There he was leaning against his motorcycle and taking a drag from a cigarette. The smell of smoke pulling you into another reverie.

—

The sun was starting to set one day in the early spring and you were making your way to Robin’s house to drop off some extra wood. As you got to the mountains, you saw him standing there, looking out into the flowing river, smoking and paying no attention to the world around him. Almost lost in thought.

You sighed. Sebastian was an enigma to you. He was so closed off. Attractive as hell but you just couldn’t get much out of him. He spent most of his time in his room. You didn’t think you’d ever get the chance to actually meet him.

“Mom’s out at exercise class.”

Turning your attention back to the house you go to open the door, only to find it’s locked.

“Shit.” you exhaled.

You jump upon hearing Sebastian’s voice behind you, dropping the few logs you had.

“Oh, sorry…” He mumbled.

“No need, I’m just a little jumpy with it starting to get dark. Sorry for throwing logs at you.” You excused him, as you picked up the logs at his feet, and placed them beside the door for Robin.

“It’s okay.”

You smiled at his forgiveness and looked at him, gawking at him for probably longer than you should. He was relatively tall, with deep brown eyes that felt like they were looking into your soul. His hair, dyed black, seemed to always be in his face, as if he was trying to hide from the world. You wonder what colour he is naturally - is he ginger like his mother? You haphazardly guessed yes, with the splatter of faint freckles over his nose. What a cute nose, he looked-

“Um… you’re standing in front of the door and I need to get into my house. I have a WoW raid organised.”

You were snapped out of your staring.

“Oh shit, yeah sorry!” You stepped aside, mentally punching yourself for being so caught up. You could have blamed it on how tired you were from planting crops all day - yeah, that was plausible.

He laughed, a sound you didn’t think you’d heard from him before. It was a small one, close to a giggle, like he was embarrassed. Oh, he definitely caught you staring. He walked towards the door, hand on the doorknob. The breeze sent a waft of tobacco along your way with the undeniable smell of bergamot and green tea as he passed you. It was intoxicating.

“Your raid awaits, goodsir. I’ll take my leave.” You decidedly laughed along with him, trying to banish away the embarrassment by acting as if you could be a World of Warcraft character.

“Thank you, my lady.” He chuckled as he stepped into the house, watching you walk away as he closed the door behind him.

You smiled the whole way home. Good to know he is up for general silliness, you thought to yourself.

The next time you saw him was a few days later, working on his computer. Tapping away at speeds you’ve never seen someone type at. You had knocked on his bedroom door and heard a disgruntled, “Come in…”

“Hey, sorry to interrupt you. Your mom said you’d be here.” You said quietly, hoping not to intrude on anything.

He looked up for a second and offered you a small smile.

“Oh hey, gimme one sec. I just need to finish something.”

You awkwardly just stand there, holding the frozen tear you’d found in the mine.

You’d come to drop off some quartz that you found in the mine to Robin as she really liked it and wanted some for a project she was working on. When you’d opened your backpack, she noticed the frozen tear underneath the quartz you’d collected.

“Sebastian likes those.” She said, “He’s in his room if you want to show him it. It’s a really pretty one.”

Her eyes looked at the door to the basement, gesturing that it was okay for you to go down. She smiled at you. At the time you had thought nothing of it but, looking back, you’re pretty sure she’d hatched a plan to get the both of you to talk.

“I’m popping to the store, do you want a drink or anything?” She asked.

“No, thanks. I’ll just go see Sebastian and head off.” You said, walking towards his bedroom door.

Sebastian finished what he was doing and began to speak, “Sorry about that, I just needed to finish what I was working on. What’s up?”

“I was just showing your mum what I’d found in the mine and she said you’d probably like to see this.” You said as you pulled the frozen tear out of your backpack.

“Whoa! A frozen tear? These are really cool. I’ve always wanted one but I’ve never got far enough down in the mines to grab one.”

“You can have it.” You blurted out without thinking.

“W-what? Are you sure?”

“Yeah.” You breathed out, “I’m sure.”

“Thanks!” He placed it on his desk as a beep came through the speakers of his PC.

“Ugh… that was an IM from Sam… I guess he wants to hang out now…Ugh, I don’t really feel like going out today.”

Just as you’re about to speak, Robin enters the room.

“Oh hi, Y/N!” She turned to Sebastian, “Sebby, I know you don’t like it when I come in here… but I ran to Abigail at the store and she said she was looking for you.”

He sighed, “Did you tell her I’m working?”

“I did but she said she’d probably stop by anyway.”

With that, Robin left you alone with Sebastian once again.

“Ugh no one takes my job seriously… Does everyone think I’m just surfing the web or playing video games all day?”

Curiosity got the better of you and you asked, “What are you doing?”

“I’m coding, I’m a freelance programmer.” He sighed.

“Oh cool, is that your career goal?”

“I’m trying to save up to move out of here, probably to the city or something. If I’d gone to college, I’d be making six figures by now, I just didn’t want to be a part of the system.” He mumbled, seeming almost embarrassed.

“That’s cool! I understand not wanting to be part of the system, that’s why I left my corporate job.” You beamed at him, and he smiled back, looking at you like you’re the only person on the planet. You could get lost in his eyes for days. Those eyes, he gazed at you like you were the most amazing find in the mine, a priceless diamond. It made your cheeks flush.

“Well, I should get back to work.” He said, snapping himself out of it and breaking the tension. “I need to finish this by tomorrow.”

You nod and leave, waving your goodbye.

—

In the present day, Sebastian is standing looking at the lights of Zuzu City, your former habitat. Swirls of gray smoke dance around him. He looks at you and tilts his head, breaking your train of thought. He’d definitely just caught you staring at him and daydreaming… Again.

“Whatcha thinking about?”

“Oh… just… the first time we played Solarion Chronicles...”

—

A few weeks went by and you were in a steady routine.

The crops were growing and your farm was starting to flourish - and you were wondering why you even questioned yourself in the beginning. Business was booming and you were starting to feel much more comfortable as a farmer. Maybe you could even branch out to animals. Marnie always said you were welcome to train with her if you decided to.

On one late summer afternoon, you had made up your mind. You were going to get chickens.

“Hey Robin!” You smiled as you walked through her front door, “I got some materials for you - I was wondering if you could build me a coop?”

“Sure thing! Here’s the blueprint for your farm, tell me where you want it?”

You pointed to a spot on the blueprint and watched as she made her notes. As you handed over your materials, Robin began to speak, “You’ve been giving a lot of frozen tears to Sebby.”

“Oh - I… I mean nothing by it, I just know he likes them.” You spoke, worried that Robin had guessed that you have a teeny tiny bit of a crush on her son.

“Oh, hey Y/N! Thought I heard you.” You heard Sebastian’s voice coming from his bedroom door. You could have sworn your heart stopped for a moment. He recognised your voice?

“Oh hi, I’m just asking your mom to build a coop for me. I’m getting chickens soon!” You smiled.

“Nice!” He said, before he started to turn away.

Robin coughed.

As if a lightbulb had gone off in Sebastian’s head, he spun back around to you and asked, “Oh yeah um, Sam and I are playing the Solarian Chronicles… we need a third. Do you want to join?”

“I’ve never played before.” You said, looking down. It’s not that you hadn’t wanted to play, you just didn’t know anyone back in Zuzu City that wasn’t too up their own ass to play it.

“I’ll teach you.”

You looked up at him and nodded, worried that if you spoke you’d subject him to only sounds and not words.

After successfully defeating the Necromancer, Sebastian began to pack up the game, with Sam having to run home because of his curfew, you stayed behind alone to help.

As you were picking up the figures from the game and handing them to him, Sebastian smiled at you. “Y’know it took me three or four attempts to beat my first scenario. You did great.”

“Thanks, I had a good teacher.” You giggled back.

You looked up at him and saw his smile grow wider. He stood there, looking proud and like you were the only person in the world again. Your heart skipped a beat for the second time that night.

Yoba, you were a goner.

—

He ruffled his hair at the back nervously and laughed, “Mom really wanted us to get to know each other, huh?”

“She really did.” You giggled back.

There was a comfortable silence for a few moments as you both smiled to yourselves. Sebastian took another drag of his cigarette and blew it into the sky.

“Looks like it’s going to rain.” He thought aloud.

Your mind brought you to another memory.

—

Autumn came and so did the rain. It gave the valley a sort of glow, with the way the sun gently reflected off the wet surfaces. Most people were hidden in their homes.

“Thought I’d find you out here.” You sighed as you made your way to the end of the pier.

“Y/N? I’m surprised to see you out in all this rain.” Sebastian said, surprised, moving his hood to see you better.

You stepped closer to him, allowing him room to speak some more. You’re not sure why but you could feel that there was something else he wanted to say. He didn’t seem to be in the best of moods so you waited patiently for him to open up to you.

“Look at those dark clouds over there. I hope they head this way. Joba, I like this weather. It makes everyone disappear. People make me so anxious.” He mumbled, pulling his hoodie sleeves, further over his hands.

“I get it. I get anxious around people too. It’s why I almost jumped out of my skin when we first met.” You laughed, trying to bring a little humour into the conversation to cheer him up.

“Ah yeah, I remember that.” He laughed with you, before stopping and, in a serious tone, the most serious you have ever heard him, he said, “ I don’t feel anxious around you though.”

You smiled at him, deciding that words weren’t needed. You placed a hand on his shoulder, choosing to ignore the electric feeling you got when you touched him. This wasn’t the time or place.

The clouds Sebastian spoke about a few moments before had made their way over, causing the drizzle to turn into heavy rain.

“We’re going to get soaked. Here,” He gestured towards you, pulling out an umbrella, “there’s room for two.”

That was it for you. Even when he felt bad, he still cared about you and your wellbeing. You were pretty sure you were in love with him.

You stopped by to see him almost every day after that, with it getting to the end of Autumn quicker than you expected. One day he’d even bought you flowers, something you didn’t quite realize held the weight that they did until Sebastian nervously asked if you understood what it meant.

You’d been casually dating since, meeting up as often as you could and stealing glances across the table on the Friday night get together that you had begun to join with Sebastian, Sam and Abigail.

A month later you were making your way to the mines to grab a few more ores to upgrade your tools. Sebastian was sitting outside on his motorbike, ready to ride away.

“Hey! I was just about to head out. Hop on, I want to show you something.”

You furrowed your eyebrows for a second, “Do you have a spare helmet?”

“Oh shit, yeah - in the garage.”

You quickly open the garage door and grab the helmet, placing it on you as you walk back over to the bike.

“Safety first.” You said, knocking on the top of the helmet that sat on your head.

Sebastian shook his head and laughed, “Get on, you weirdo.”

You climbed onto the motorbike and wrapped your arms around Sebastian’s waist, heat rising quickly to your cheeks. You could smell the bergamot and green tea from his aftershave, and you couldn’t help it but to be surrounded by his signature scent, letting it envelop you as you rode into the night.

—

And that’s how you ended up here, staring out into the bright lights of Zuzu City, leaning against his motorcycle.

“Zuzu City looks so small from here. When you live there, it seems huge.” You sigh, pushing yourself off from the bike, walking towards the edge of the cliff.

“Yeah…”

“It gives me a strange and sad feeling looking at it like this. Like I’m just a tiny speck.”

“The city used to draw me in, but… I’m finding myself happier at home in the valley now.” Sebastian said as he walked closer to you.

You turned to look at him and noticed that he was playing with his hands nervously. His gaze was on the floor and you took a step forward inquisitively.

“Sebastian… are you alright?” You asked, concerned.

“Y/N… I don’t usually bring girls to this place… anyone really. In fact, you’re the only one… You, um.. You get what I’m trying to say, don’t you?”

His nervousness was palpable. You could almost hear his heart beating in his chest… or was it yours?

You smiled at him, walking towards him, closing the gap between the two of you, resting your hands on each of his cheeks. Tobacco, bergamot and green tea filled your senses, a scent that had come to mean comfort to you. Home.

“I think I do.”

His arms wrapped around your waist and he pulled you closer to him, eyes glancing briefly at your lips as if waiting for permission. You smiled softly and closed the gap between the both of your lips, giving him a gentle kiss.

To think that it had been less than a year since you had moved from Zuzu City to a little farmhouse in the middle of nowhere on an impulse decision made after the death of your grandfather. A blush rises to your cheeks as you think of the happiness you have found.

[marunalu]

Maru, in your opinion, how do you think this fight between AFO and Bakugou will be from now on, since AfO technically only avoided fighting in this chapter

Honestly Im not sure anymore since bakugous plot armor is thicker then any of the other characters together...

From a logical standpoint bakugou shouldnt be able to have any chance against afo since not even endeavor, hawks, all might, or hundred of other pro heroes could defeat him, but we are talking about hori here! If hori wants bakugou to win he will find a way no matter how stupid it is! Just look at bakugous horrible written "death" and even more horrible resurrecction! I still cant get my head around who greenlighted that shit! 🤣🤣🤣🤣

That being said, I still dont think bakugou will win. I think he will give afo trouble (which is already idiotic enough) but afo will have an other ace up his sleeve. What I do hope is that afo will finally mention little tsubasa and explain what happend to him (and hopefully confirm my theory that originally it was supposed to be bakugou and not tsubasa).

[spacecakes20]

Begin Again

(Chapter 5)

Chapter 6: Sebastian, Band Practice

Sebastian had taken a smoke break outside of the Stardrop Saloon. It was a lot colder at night in spring. The cool nights were the most enjoyable for him; like the crisp air did a good job of clearing his head. It also helped calm his nerves, especially when he needed a break from social interactions. He loved his friends, he did, but he always felt so drained by the end of their outings. Taking a long drag of his cigarette, he released the smoke with a slow exhale.

     Friday nights were usually spent with Sam and Abigail at the saloon. It was the same almost every week; almost routine. This night, however, was different from the trio’s usual gatherings. Sam had invited the new farmer. Sebastian wasn’t sure how to feel about that, but he didn’t object to it either. She seemed nice enough, and the two didn’t give off the best first impression. Perhaps this could help them redeem themselves. He wasn’t expecting her to show up early. Wasn’t mentally prepared to be alone with her. He didn’t know what to talk about, and he didn’t want to just sit there in awkward silence. So, he did what he knew how; offered to play pool with her. He wasn’t sure if she was lying when she said she’d never played before. There was no way she was a novice. Sure, she still lost, but it was the closest he’d come to losing in a long while. Perhaps it was beginner’s luck. Or maybe she was a quick learner. Ether way, he was slightly impressed.

      Sebastian was brought out of his thoughts by the sound of a door opening. He didn’t look up to see who it is. It was probably Shane or Pam calling it a night and heading home, probably shit-face drunk. It was late, and those two were usually the last ones to go.

      “Oh, I wasn’t expecting you to still be out here.” That voice didn’t belong to Pam or Shane. Looking up, he saw it was a very sober Luna.

      “Yeah,” Sebastian answered dryly. “Just needed a smoke.”

      She nodded, “Well, it’s getting late, so…” She trailed off.

      “I’ll walk you home.” He said, not thinking about the words coming out of his mouth.

      Luna looked taken aback, “No, you don’t have to.” She was fidgeting with her hands, not quite looking at him, “I wouldn’t want to inconvenience you.”

      Sebastian had flicked his cigarette butt to the ground, crushing it with his foot, “It’s fine.” He shrugged, “There’s a short cut through your farm to my house.”

      She lifted her eyebrows at that realization, “Well… if that’s the case.”

      The two began their walk together, only the sounds of crickets filling the ambiance of the night. Sebastian was never one for conversation; with new people especially. With Sam or Abigail, he’d usually let the two of them do the talking. Thankfully, he didn’t have to start the conversation; Luna had cleared her throat before giving him a look.

      “So, I was right?”

      That only just confused him, “About…?” He glanced at her from the corner of his eye, and she looked downright smug.

      “You did go easy on me.” She said, “You played completely different with Sam than you did with me.”

      “I mean…” He rubbed the nape of his neck, “You still lost.”

      She simply hummed, face never changing, “But you’re not denying it this time.”

      The two were coming up to the bus stop, which meant they were close to their destination. “I can neither confirm nor deny.” He said dryly, humoring her.

      They finally made it to her farmhouse, the two standing at the foot of Luna’s stairs. Looking around the land, it was still a mess of trees, rocks, and weeds. However, there was a clear plot of crops located near one of the closest lakes. In the dark of night, he couldn’t quite make out what kind of crops they were. This was probably his first time on the property since Luna moved in. He used to use the back path as a handy shortcut on the way home all the time when the place was vacant. He, Abigail, and Sam would even hang around the property to smoke weed, easily out of sight of their nosy parents. It felt a little odd standing on the farm grounds now, knowing someone now lived there.

       “Soooo…” Luna eyed Sebastian with curiosity, “Where’s this short cut of yours?”

       He pointed toward the back-way headed north with his thumb, “Just take the back path till it leads you to an opening with a house surrounded by mountains. It’s pretty hard to miss.”

       Luna stared at him blankly, as though she was working through the information in her head. “Isn’t that… Robin’s place?” She tilted her head in confusion. The gesture was kind of cute.

       “Yeah?” He sounded equally as confused before he realized who he was talking to, “You didn’t know? Robin’s my mom.” Come to think about it, he can’t recall if he’d ever been upstairs when Luna visited. He was sure he did that intentionally. He was trying to avoid her not too long ago after all.

       “Oh!" She seemed surprised, "You’re Robin’s kid?” 

       Sebastian chuckled, but it sounded almost bitter, “I know. We don’t really look alike.” Wouldn’t be the first time he’d heard it. “Are you adopted?” Or, “Do you take after your father?” Were normally the follow-up questions. He braced himself for the inevitable.  

       “Oh no, that’s not it.” Luna tried to reassure him, catching him by surprise, “It’s just…” She bit her lip. She seemed to do that a lot. Perhaps she did it when she was thinking her next statement through. Finally, she said, “When Robin said she had a son, I thought he’d be a teen. I wasn’t excepting both of her kids to be adults. She still looks so young.”

       Sebastian stared for a minute, processing what she just said. That was a first he’d heard that one. It was a bit refreshing, honestly. “Oh,” He responded flatly. Then, with a bit more mirth he said, “I’ll tell her you said that.”

       Wait, “both of her kids”? So, she had already met Maru. That wasn’t too surprising. Maru was excited after hearing about the new farmer moving into town. He wouldn’t be surprised if she was one of the first townspeople to introduce themselves. Maru had always been the more outgoing and extroverted of the two siblings. She always made socializing look so easy. She and Luna would probably get along much better; it wasn’t too hard to picture.

       “I had fun tonight.” Luna’s voice brought Sebastian back to the forefront of reality. She tried to bite back a yawn but to no avail. She looked at him, looking almost embarrassed, “I should get going.” She gave him a small wave before making her way up the stairs. Before she made her way into her house, however, she turned to him with a smile. It was one of her smiles that made her eyes sparkle, “Good night.” She said simply.

       “Yeah,” He said back, stuffing his hands into his hoodie pocket, “G’night.”

       He watched her disappear into her house, a light she turned on shining brightly through the window. He wordlessly made his way through the unlit trail, slowly making his way back home.

                                                           ...

There was a buzz that sounded far away. Sebastian paid it no mind at first, the cozy embrace of sleep keeping him comforted. The buzz had stopped, but only for a moment. This time it sounded louder; almost closer. With a groan, Sebastian opened his eyes, vision still blurry from the remnants of sleep. Looking around, he realized the buzzing was his phone. He picked it up, only to be blinded by the vividly colored screen. He had to blink a few times before his vision adjusted to the light and came into focus. Four missed calls and 24 different text messages. Great. Scrolling through his phone, all but one of the texts seemed to be from Sam. His missed calls were also all from his overzealous blond friend.

        The first text started simply: You still on for band practice? Perhaps because Sebastian didn’t answer for an hour, the ones after that became a bit more obnoxious.  

        Sam: Seb? U up yet?

        Sam: Hello?

        Sam: Hello?

        Sam: Hey!

        Sam: Seb?

        Sam: Wake up sleeping beauty!

        Sam: We haven’t practiced in forever!

        Sam: Call me!

        Sam: R u ded?

        The texts just continued in an endless stream of meaningless blabber. Surly his friend must have been board. Rolling his eyes at Sam’s ridiculous impatience, he checked his other message. It was from his latest client, asking for updates on his newest project. Shit, he’d almost forgotten about that. It was due in just a few days. Going back to his text from Sam, he decided his impatient friend could stand to wait just a little bit longer. After one long stretch, he got out of bed and headed straight to the bathroom. After relieving himself, he brushed his teeth and took a shower. Getting dressed in his usual dark attire, he finally shot Sam a text.

        Sebastian: Stop spamming me -_-

        He pocketed his phone without a second glance and made his way up the stairs. At the top, looking to his right he notices his stepdad, Demetrius, wasn’t present in his lab. To his right, his mother also wasn’t attending the front counter. Perfect! He swiftly made his way into the kitchen. No Maru in sight ether. So far so good. He went straight to the coffee maker, pouring his favorite blend along with some water, and turned the machine on. It felt nice to have the house to himself. There was no one there to berate him for sleeping in too late or ask him a million questions before he even had his morning (but really afternoon) coffee. His peace couldn’t last forever, though. He felt his phone buzz again, and he inwardly groaned.

        Sam: Omg!

        Sam: Ur alive!

        Sam: Praise Yoba!

        Sebastian rolled his eyes at his friend’s dramatics and placed his phone on the counter. He poured himself a cup of coffee and took a few sips. He saw his phone buzz to life again, but this time with an incoming call. He didn’t even have to check the name to know it was Sam. With a flick of his finger, he answered.

        “Seb!” Sam yelled on the other line, making Sebastian wince. It was much too early for all this noise. Okay, it was two in the afternoon, but still.

        “What Sam,” Sebastian answered as calmly as he could manage.

        “Did you forget? It’s Saturday!” Sam sounded exasperated, making Sebastian feel a little guilty.

        “I overslept.” He said.

        Sam sighed on the other line. After a beat, he sounded more chipper, “Okay, listen! I’ve got some news!”         

        “Uh-huh.” Sebastian took a long sip of his coffee.

        “But I’m not telling you until you show up for practice though! ‘Kay?”

        “Sam…” Sebastian’s voice had a bit of a warning edge to it. “I’ve got a deadline coming up.”

        “Please!” Sam sounded distraught, “It’s really good news! I promise I won’t ever ask you for anything ever again!”

        Sebastian sighed, a ping of guilt stabbing his chest. This would be the second Saturday in a row where he skipped out on band practice with Sam. Coincidentally, it was also because he was working too close to a deadline. He did need to get his work done, but he would feel even more guilty about leaving Sam hanging for the second week in a row. Guess he’d just have to pull an all-nighter. Again.

        “Fine.” Sebastian sighed out, defeated. He almost didn’t hear the whoop, on the other end.

        “I knew you loved me!” Sam said.

        “I wouldn’t go that far.” Sebastian rolled his eyes at his friend’s antics. He was grateful Sam wasn’t there to see his ghost of a smile.

        “Alright!” Sam ignored him, “I’ll see you when you get here! Bye!” He hung up the phone without waiting for Sebastian’s response. He sighed to himself. His friends never seemed to understand that he had a job that was just as demanding as any other. Sebastian would never call if he knew his friend Sam was on the clock or visit Abigail if she was in the middle of her online classes. He just wished his friends would do the same.

        Just then, he heard some mumbling and giggles, the sound growing closer to the kitchen with each footstep. Sebastian looked up from his steaming cup of joe and was surprised to see Abigail, of all people, with his younger sister Maru in tow. They didn’t notice him right away, the two of them laughing at some unheard joke, before looking up in his direction. The two girls looked surprised to see him standing in his own kitchen.

        “Oh, hey Seb,” Abigail said with a wave. She sounded off, but he couldn’t quite put his finger on why. Did she look… nervous?

        “Um… Hey.” He waved dumbly, unsure of what to do with himself. “What are you doing here?”

        Abigail, if possible, went paler than usual. Her sea-blue eyes darted to Maru’s amber-brown ones, as though looking for an answer to his simple question. Maru was the one to speak up, “Oh, Abby just wanted to see one of my latest inventions.” She said simply, “It’s just a prototype now, but she wouldn’t stop asking me about it.”

        “Yup.” Abigail agreed, a bit too quickly actually.

        “And the time just got away from us sooo…”

        “We decided to grab lunch!” Abigail finished for Maru.

        “Oh-kaaay…” Sebastian wasn’t sure how to respond. It was a little unusual to see Abigail at his house, not there to see him. He didn’t even know she and Maru were even friends. He placed his unfinished coffee mug on the counter, grabbed his phone, and stuffed it into his pants pocket. “Well, I won’t keep you two.” He said on the way out of the kitchen, “I should get going.” He gestured to the coffee maker with his thumb, “There’s some coffee left if you want some.” And with that, he made his way out of the kitchen. He’d ask Abigail about this later, but for now, he needed to go see what all the fuss was about with his buddy Sam.

(Chapter 7)

[merrybandofmurderers]

first lines

tagged by the wonderful @mrs-theirin!! are y’all ready lmao

rules: list the first lines of your last 20 stories (if you have less than 20,  just list them all!). see if there are any patterns. choose your  favorite opening line. then tag 10 of your favorite authors!

apologies in advance for the inconsistency (so few of these are dragon age lmao) but you really get to see my range i guess

COMPLETED

Lost Love (Is Sweeter When Its Finally Found): Nezumi returns after a few years. Give or take. After a certain point, Shion stopped counting the days. Reunion would come or it wouldn’t; either way, Shion couldn’t do anything about it. He turned his attentions to other priorities, time passed, and eventually, Nezumi was back again.

Hope Is a Bright, Beautiful Thing: After their victory over the death Star, the Rebellion returned to their base on Yavin. They could not stay long, now that the Empire knew of their location. But it would take a while for the Imperial army to muddle through the aftermath, so the Rebellion took some time to savor their first real victory.

Surprising: Marus flopped down onto the cushions. “I can’t believe it.”

For Know My Crime Was Cruel, And All My Pain Deserved: Dorian did not know what he expected of the man being hailed as the Herald of Andraste, but a towering elven mage in intimidating armor was not it. He was flanked by a massive Qunari, a bearded human warrior, and a scrappy-looking elf. All regarded Dorian with suspicion.

The Time Has Come To Be Alive (Time Will Not Unwind): The first thing Dorian learned about the Herald was that he did not like being called the Herald.

Where We Will Thrive: They left their last fight—consisting of twelve bandits and three bears—rather worse for wear. Blackwall and Lavellan were bruised, battered, and spattered with blood. Sera had slipped and fallen in Maker knew what. Dorian… well, Dorian would just have to burn these robes.

Through The Ashes In The Sky: Groaning, Dorian dragged himself back to consciousness. The entire left side of his body was a bruise; he was fairly certain his wrist was broken. His mouth tasted like ash and his eyes burned. “Maker’s ass,” he croaked.

The Revolt Inside Me: Gwythren wakes in darkness. But no, not total darkness. There are torches. Gwythren can see the glints on the damp stone walls and iron bars. A dungeon.

WIPS

A Company of Heroes: Dear Dad, Before you burn this letter, let me say I’m sorry for leaving the way I did. I’m sure you were terribly angry when you woke up and found my bed empty and one of the horses gone. I know you didn’t want me to join the Inquisition, but I still feel it’s the right thing to do.

In Heart’s Drumming: Jain raises neir head from the ground. Hair falls around neir face, torn from its bun. Blood drips down neir cheek. The sounds of battle slowly, choppily, filter back into neir hearing.

I Feel Sun: The night was warm, and Skyhold’s courtyards were filled with revelers celebrating the defeat of Corypheus. The Inquisitor moved among them—laughing, dancing, sharing drinks—letting them worship their fill. Cassandra watched contentedly from Skyhold’s entrance, before she turned and headed out to the garden.

Feathers and Scales (working title): Andreios personally assured the Tuuli Thea of Karl’s loyalty. To be proven wrong is the worst kind of hindsight. Still, he cannot imagine how much worse it is for Ailbhe. He glances to the man in question standing next to him. Zane granted Ailbhe leave from the execution, but he refused. With his sister proven a traitor, he likely felt he had more to prove of himself.

The Taste of Hope: When Angharad first notices she is pregnant, it is because her bleeding is late. Her mind balks at the realization, tries to excuse it—it’s been late before, there are so many justifications. She tries to keep it a secret, but of course the Immortan discovers her; he keeps careful tabs on all of them. An invasive once-over by the Organic and it is confirmed.

Such Great Heights: Warren doesn’t want to do this. A scream is building behind his teeth, and heat itches in his veins. He wants so badly not to fucking do this. But when he made a last ditch attempt to convince his mom this was not a good idea, she rubbed her temple like she was scraping together every last bit of patience and just said, “Please,” and she looked so fucking tired that Warren shut up.

Nona: Some nights, she comes to me. Her face alight with vicious triumph, dark eyes warm, approving, loving—of me. Before I met her, no one had ever looked at me that way. She pulls me into the tender embrace of her body, wrapping like pale moonlight around me. Her sweet, cool scent clouds my senses, her breath hot on my ear.

Life Is A Highway (working title): My mother is Diana, as my father is fond of saying. When I was little, my bedtime stories were retellings of the old myths. On the ceiling of my nursery, my father painted the image of a dark-haired woman pulling the moon behind her chariot—the same champagne color as Mom’s Mercedes.

ORIGINAL WORK

Fire Prevention: She doesn’t think she might be in over her head until she’s crumpled over the toilet, heaving up lunch. Even then, it’s a momentary thought. When the regurgitation subsides, she flushes the toilet, washes her face, brushes her teeth. As she steps back into the kitchen, her father’s mantra rings in her head: “When shit happens, shit’s gotta get done.”

Hell’s Half Acre: RJ had been walking for an hour when it started raining. “Come on!” he shouted at the sky, disbelieving even as the clouds opened above him. “Isn’t this a fucking desert? Why now do you decide to rain?” The heavens did not deign to answer. The rain didn’t even do anything to cool him off. It fell, warm and steady, in swollen drops.

Into the Eye (working title): The sea winds whipped around Soona’s body, as she clung to the slick rock of the cliffs. Her hair was pulled from its tight bun and lashed across her face and neck. She could barely see, having to make her way by instinct and feel alone. Her limbs trembled as she panted against the rough stone, heartbeat loud in her ears.

Objects in Mirror are Closer Than They Appear: The usual routine consisted of Luther knocking off work, dropping by the grocer, launder, library—whatever destination was necessary for the day—then coming home and making dinner. Justin would either be there, poring over texts at his desk, or would arrive home from class just as the meal was ready to be put on the table. But today was different.

favorite line: have say it’s The Revolt, my tranquil oc fic. i’m still very pleased with it and love the style; i think it’s the right combination of dramatic, enticing, and evocative

tagging: @kirkwallgremlin, @thegingerjedi, fuck i can never remember who all writes; if you see this and wanna do it, feel free to say i tagged you

[azure-steel]

@primalvessel​ said: coffee. our muses getting frisky in the kitchen, early in the morning. NSFW Prompt List - ACCEPTING

He’d woken up earlier than the alarm, and a quick glance at the digital clock next to the bed confirmed as much. A whole hour before he simply had to get up and get ready for the day ahead. Cloud drops his head back into the soft warmth of the pillow before habitually gazing at the body curled up next to him. 

Maru was still sound asleep, the faint flicker of a single ear a clear signal that he was, in fact, dreaming. He looked so sweet and comfortable laying there with his head nestled practically right under the blond’s armpit, and Cloud would have liked nothing more than to just hunker back down and lay there with him for that remaining hour. 

But, as the disgruntled furrow of yellow brows would suggest, he needed to pee... and quite urgently too. 

A satisfying morning whizz and a hot shower later, Cloud pads into the kitchen, earlier than usual of course so with very little rush to him, wearing nothing but a pair of loose fitting boxer shorts and a towel around his shoulders to protect him from the irritating drip from hair still damp from his morning grooming routine. And from there on in, he goes through the usual motions; pouring fresh water into the kettle, popping it back on its stand and flicking it on to boil, collecting a mug from an overhead cupboard with one hand and retrieving the small coffee jar with the other. He dumps a spoonful of the granules into his cup, stands there and stares at it for a few moments as though it were the most interesting thing in the entire world before he decides to add another healthy spoonful. 

Nothing beats a good strong coffee first thing in the morning. Though sometimes, the way Cloud likes to make it, he has often been accused of making it a little too strong for some. Tifa had suggested once or twice that it could very well be a viable substitute for the gasoline he pumps into Fenrir. The woman did like to exaggerate sometimes...

And then it was just a waiting game for the kettle to do its thing before he’s able to taste that first hot drink of the day, so he just leans against the countertop, his face pressed up on one side by a single palm while he stares so intently at the kettle as though that action in itself would make the thing boil faster. Apparently mako infusion didn’t grant one those sorts of super powers. 

During Cloud’s ‘leaning time’ he senses another body enter the room, and absently he turns to acknowledge the company, that was until the sight elicits a soft, albeit exasperated sigh followed shortly by a roll of the eyes.

“Maru... you’re naked again...” the blond grumbles, going back to his staring contest with the kettle, that was before he felt a pair of curious hands snake around his waist which caused him to stand a little straighter against the work surface. 

“And~?” came the flirtatious hum of the smaller man behind him. “You did say my sex appeal goes up when I’ve no clothes on, remember?” 

There’s an eager nip at his shoulder blade made with little pointed teeth as those hands sneak a little lower, the Miqo’te’s fingertips teasing lightly at the waist band of Cloud’s underwear, and yet, despite the ex-merc’s initial protest not once does he try to stop him. 

“Well yeah, that’s true, but we ain’t the only ones who live here,” he explains dully though not without the accompaniment of an amorous breath which escapes him when those hands slip beneath the fabric and those sharp kisses find their way to that sensitive spot he liked on the side of his neck. Of course Cloud is compelled to tilt his head, along with the fluttering of long blond lashes, to allow the man better access as opposed to halting his pleasurable ministrations in their tracks.

“So? What’s up, Cloud? Scared of getting caught this time?” Maru responds, his breath hot against Cloud’s throat and he could tell just by the tone of his voice that he was sporting what could be the filthiest shit eating grin. 

Cloud hums his approval of the statement then, coupled with a devilish grin of his own as he feels the hard press of Maru’s manhood against his ass while the feline’s hands slipped over his own already semi-hard shaft. 

“You are so bad...” he whispers though not without a hue of arousal to his tone. “... it’s a good job you’re cute, yeah~?” 

[mystery-star]

Threshold of Space - Chapter 1 To Pass or not to Pass

Pairing: Spock x OC

Warnings: swearing, mentions of death

Words: 6246

All Parts: 

Chapter 1 | Chapter 2 | Chapter 3 | Chapter 4 | Chapter 5 | Chapter 6 | Chapter 7 | Chapter 8 |  Chapter 9 | Chapter 10 | Chapter 11 | Chapter 12 | Chapter 13 | Chapter 14 | Chapter 15 | Chapter 16

If you want to be added to the taglist, let me know!

Please do not repost my work on other sites or platforms!

-

With a deep frown, the brunette stared at her fellow cadet who had just passed out in the captain’s chair.

“I guess that’s it then” Carissa’s fellow helmsman muttered to himself “The simulation is over” he got up with a shrug

“Wait a moment” she called “This may be a simulation, yes. But if this was real, you couldn’t just get up and leave”

“And what do you suggest we do, Wiley?” he asked

“We need an Acting Captain”

“We have no First Officer”

“Then we vote” she said “But quickly” she added, glancing at the screen to the many Klingon vessels

“If you’re so eager to complete this damned thing you do it” Carissa shrugged as some others murmured in agreement

“Is there anyone else who wants to take charge?” no one said a word “And is anyone not happy with me taking over?”

“Do whatever you want, Wiley. The examiners will stop this scenario now anyway since Evan is out, so better hurry if you want to shine”

“Then I shall take over until they declare that it is over. Now get back to your post” with a shrug, David did as she ordered. It felt strange to have that much responsibility and she was glad that this was only a simulation.

“Yes, Captain” he said mockingly as he sat back down “What are your next orders, huh? Shall we all go to a corner and cry?”

“A bit more seriousness. We are under attack” she replied and turned around to the Communication officer. “Jackson, can you reach the Kobayashi Maru?”

“I’ll try” he said and gave an affirmative answer a couple of seconds later

“Good. Ask them if their transporter is working, if not tell them to evacuate their ship”

“The Klingons would continue to fire on the pods”

“I know. But I am sure they won’t waste their time to follow all of the pods. Besides we can beam them aboard like that. Now do as I say or it’ll be too late”

“We can’t save everyone” she nodded.

“But we can try to get as many out as possible. We should start a diversionary maneuver. Let’s give these Klingons a nice taste of our Phasers.” she rubbed her hands and prepared everything before turning to the fellow helmsman

“Take evasive actions, 60 degrees to the right”

“But their shields are up, firing on them will be of no use”

“Do you think I am blind? I know that, I only want to distract them a bit to give the Maru time for the evacuation so that we can beam them aboard later on. Jackson, let us know when they are ready and sent off their first pods”

“Yes, Ma’am” Carissa couldn’t help but smile. Although she had never wanted to be Captain, it was nice to be addressed so formally. “They’re ready” Jackson informed them only two minutes later.

“Very well. Tell the transporter room to lock the signal on as many pods as possible and beam the people inside aboard”

“The Klingons are firing on us” David shouted

“Keep diverting” Carissa told the other helmsman “Let’s make it difficult for them to get us. Jackson, keep in contact with the transporter room and tell them to keep us updated as on how many crew members they could rescue.” he confirmed and did as requested.

“Shields at 47 percent. Three more hits like the others and we’re dead”

“Inform that Kobayashi Maru that we might not be able to save everyone. Maybe they should use shuttlecrafts, so that we can beam them aboard quicker and needn’t lock signals on different pods”

“Captain, they want us to stay and rescue them” Carissa bit her lip. Of course, they wanted to be saved. But they had to understand that there was no sense in staying to get them killed as well.

“Shields at 19 percent”

“That’s it. We have to leave. Head back to… the nearest space station.  Transporter room, how many people could we save?”

“48” Jackson told them

“That’s not too bad” Carissa muttered more to herself “Inform the Starfleet Command we’re heading back to the station and that we could only save 48 crew members of the Kobayashi Maru” she wiped some sweat from her brow with her sleeve

“Captain, one of the ships is following us”

“Shit” she could feel the blood leaving her face “Faster. Give us everything the Trainor has”

“Aye, Aye” Jackson said but after about a minute later, his mien changed “Ma’am the Warp drive failed. We’re only running on impulse now” she got even paler.

“The Klingon vessel’s slowed down to sublight speed as well and seems to be getting ready to destroy us”

“Fuck” she took a deep breath. Although she understood why it had been programmed that it won’t work like you wanted and add complication after complication, she made a mental note to have a serious word with Spock for scaring and challenging her that much. Somehow she wished the examiners would stop the simulation so that she could get out of here.

“What now? We can’t get away and they’ll destroy us”

“Hail them. Hail them!” she shouted in panic. Jackson merely nodded and pressed some buttons

“They don’t answer”

“Then send them a message that we surrender”

“What are you planning to do?” she licked her lip

“We’re trying to bait them by telling they can have the ship. Once they lower their shields to beam on board we fire everything we got at them”

“That may work” David mused.

“No it won’t” Jackson said bitterly “Still no answer”

“Tell them we can have the ship, which means they can get to the station without being noticed. Try it on every frequency we’ve got. They need to answer!” she got up and pressed a button on the arm rest of the Captain’s chair

“Crew of the USS Trainor. We need to evacuate the ship” she repeated the order before sitting down at the helm control “That applies for you as well. Out with you” she told the bridge crew. David and his friend got up, the rest remained seated.

“I’m still trying to reach them” Jackson explained. “But I’m pessimistic about it” another thundering noise and blinking lights told them that the Trainor had been hit again.

“The shields are down. The next hit will destroy us”

“Leave too. I’ll try to distract them a little longer” she took David’s seat and tried to dodge a little

“That won’t work with impulse drive”

“I know. But I can’t just sit here… and I ordered you to go and save yourself”

“What’s going on?” she heard a slurry voice behind her and Carissa saw Evan getting up slowly

“Well you passed out and I took over the bridge and as it seems we’re all gonna die now. We’re evacuating the ship” she told him “Go and get a rescue pod” he looked at her and nodded. However, he didn’t make it out because the Trainer was it one last time and all lights went out. Carissa had failed them and they all died. Shortly after the door opened and Admiral Foster stepped into the room.

“Cadet Cook.”. Evans, who was talking to David, wanting to know what had happened, looked at him

“Did I pass?”

“Yes you did pass. Pass out!” he showed him to follow with a simple head movement. “The rest may leave. Except for Cadet Wiley. You’ll come with me as well and wait in front of my office” she hung her head and got up after a nod. It seemed like she was in trouble. She shouldn’t have taken over like that. When they were going to the Admiral’s office Evan shot her angry glares more than once. Now she wished she had just followed David’s lead and left the simulation after his friend got unconscious. Once they reached the office, Admiral Foster told the male cadet to go inside before turning to her and ordering her to wait here. With a nod she leaned against the wall and let out a sigh. She really was in trouble. If only she wouldn’t be punished for what she did. It seemed like the only logical thing she could do had this been a real situation. Although, if a cadet passed out during a written exam, you couldn’t take over for them either. So it had to be a violation of the rules. But David should be here too. He was the one who had been defiant all the time and left his post before he was relieved off duty.

“Cadet Wiley” at the sound of the familiar voice she turned to see Spock, a professor and her boyfriend, coming towards her.

“Professor” she commented, smiling and holding herself back from touching him since they could be seen “What are you doing here?”

“Admiral Foster had let me know that he wanted to speak to me about the programming of the Kobayashi Maru scenario. As it seems, a cadet succeeded in finding an option which I have not considered and therefore not programmed. I would ask you what you are doing here but seeing that you have been participating in the simulation I can only conclude that Admiral Foster wanted to speak to you as well. The reasons for this, however, must be unknown to you as well”

“Yes, Sir” she said “But is an option missing good or bad? I mean isn’t it a bad sign if someone managed to… I don’t know reach the limits of the simulation?”

“It is neither. But once the addition programmed, this option may provide a whole new scenario, which would theoretically increase the chance of effectively winning by 6.3 percent”

“And what kind of addition are we speaking of?”

“I was told that Cadet Cook tried to hail the Klingons upon being alone with one of their ships. But that could not happen since I have not made an interaction with the enemy in that situation available yet” now she actually smirked

“It seems like you’re misinformed. No offence. I was the one who tried to contact the Klingons. Not Evan” he raised an eyebrow

“I must admit, I did not expect that. Since it was Cadet Cook taking the test, I figured that it had to be him as Admiral Foster did not say any names. May I ask how it came you were the one to order hailing the enemy ship?”

“Oh… Evan passed out just after we realized there suddenly were nine Klingon ships and that they started firing on us.”

“He has lost consciousness? But that would have resulted the examiner in ending the simulation”

“Well they didn’t… I mean as soon as I realized that Evan was out, I told the others they had to stay in place until we were told that it was over… so uh… it happened that I became Acting Captain and gave new orders” again he raised his eyebrow

“Then the examiners have decided to see how you were doing until the end. Now I believe I know the reason you are here. Admiral Foster must want to discuss your performance with you”

“What?” Carissa shrieked “Do-do you think they marked me?”

“It is possible. However, given the fact that you were not actually designated to take this test, I believe that they will not make this an official evaluation unless you choose to. But you did show great quality by taking over charge in such a situation” she shrugged

“But are you not mad that I… well… broke your simulation?”

“As I said, what happened is neither positive nor negative, it merely showed that I did not consider all possibilities, cadet”

“But there must have been other cadets that tried to contact the Klingons?”

“There were, but that is something I have thought of. However, you were the first one who managed to be alone with only one of the Klingon ships. It is only logical that the Klingons will behave differently when they are on their own”

“So you could contact them at the battle place but not when you’re further away because of the different reactions?”

“Exactly. As long as they have back up, Klingons would never negotiate and merely tell us their conditions for our surrender. Provided the fact they choose to not just destroy us without giving us a chance”

“This means when Jackson said we received no answer from the Klingons this was because the simulation could not provide any?”

“Correct”

“And do you think it is likely they would have agreed to take over our ship and beaming on board?”

“I would say so. While I cannot tell you how high the chances are exactly, I would estimate them to be about 73 percent, depending on how damaged the USS Trainor is at that point. However, the chance that they would kill your crew once they are on board is at 96.2 percent”

“Well I did not actually plan to let them take over the ship, Sir. I just wanted them to lower their shields so that we could fire at them and destroy them”

“That sounds logical and the chances of success are about 81.5 percent”

“So you’re saying I could have done it if you had had already programmed the option to contact the Klingons when…” the door opened and Evans walked out

“He’s asking for you” he said, not sounding very happy and shot an angry glare at her. It was not her fault he passed out, so why was he hostile towards her? After all it was his idea and request to be an actor in this simulation.

“Cadet Wiley, please come in”

“Coming, Admiral” she informed him and turned back to her boyfriend “See you later, I guess?” she asked quietly

“If I am not obliged to make the modifications right away, yes” she nodded and entered the office.

“Cadet Wiley” Foster said with a smile. Maybe Spock was right and he wasn’t mad at her after all? “Is Instructor Spock already here?”

“Yes, he arrived some minutes ago”

“Could you ask him in as well?” this made her heart sink. What if he had found out about their relationship? Or had he just heard the rumors and thought there was more to it? She’d rather be in trouble for taking over during the test. Because if he found out about the relationship id didn’t only affect her but Spock as well. She nodded and did as she was told. Her boyfriend entered and closed the door

“You have asked to see me, Admiral?”

“Indeed. I take it you know Cadet Wiley?”

“I do. She is in one of my classes” the Admiral nodded.

“Good. And you know she was supposed to take part in Cadet Cook’s Kobayashi Maru scenario?” Spock nodded “However, he passed out after mere minutes into the simulation as more and more ships arrived”

“And Cadet Wiley took over. I have been told already”

“Yes. That is the reason you are her. Because I wanted you to see her performance and tell me what you think the result would have been. After all she has tried something that was not programmed”

“Of course” he crossed his arm and when Admiral Foster showed them a video of the simulation, starting from the point where Evan passed out, Carissa wanted to drop dead. She couldn’t help but throw occasional glances to either of the males, to find out what they were thinking. Oddly, she got more information from the Vulcan’s stoic mien than from the older man. Finally, the tape ended and the brunette breathed out in relief. “Interesting” was her boyfriend’s only comment.

“What do you think would have been the outcome had she managed to contact the Klingons?”

“I am sure they would have agreed to take over the ship after Cadet Wiley told them of the opportunity to get into the station unnoticed. As for the planned destruction of the bird of prey, I cannot say if it would have succeeded before the USS Trainer would have been destroyed.”

“Alright, thank you, Commander” Admiral Foster nodded at him “I would now like to talk to Cadet Wiley alone and have a word with you again afterwards” Spock agreed and left the room.

“Am-am I in trouble because of what I did, Sir?” she asked carefully.

“You are not. Captain Thomas wanted to stop the scenario once your fellow cadet was out but when I saw that you were taking over I told him to wait. I wanted to see how you would react and I must say I am rather impressed. We had two similar cases where the cadet taking the test either left or passed out. But no other participant of the simulation had the idea to finish the mission in their stead. You showed a great sense of responsibility and your performance was indeed impressive, especially when you consider that you decided everything spontaneously since you had no time to prepare yourself for the scenario”

“So you are saying what I did was right?”

“Yes. And therefore the other examiners and I have decided to evaluate your performance if that is your wish”

“This means you will mark me and make it official?”

“Exactly. And I strongly advise you to let us do this for all I have seen you could actually pass. If not, what do you have to lose?”

“You are right, Sir” she smiled “Then I would like you to evaluate me. Although I don’t think I would ever want to be Captain. It is too much responsibility”

“No one says you have to become Captain just because you passed the Kobayashi Maru scenario”

“Oh right”

“Very well. Then I will inform the other examiners and inform you about the outcome as soon as possible” she nodded with a smile.

“I don’t need it immediately” she assured him.

“Alright. That is it from my part, Cadet Wiley. You may leave”

“Thank you, Sir. Goodbye” she nodded at him and left the room, throwing a short smile at Spock as he got called inside.

-oO0Oo-

“How was the simulation?” her best friend and dorm mate Nicole asked as they were on their way to Diplomacy class the next day “Did Evan kill you all?”

“Actually I killed us all”

“How that? Did you do something wrong?”

“No” she grinned and told her the story and her friend laughed

“So you not only brought the test to its limits but you probably also passed the whole thing?”

“Yeah”

“Instructor Spock must be fuming”

“He’s Vulcan” Carissa only said

“Right” she chuckled “But if he lets you fail his class you’ll know why”

“I don’t need him for that. I can fail by myself” she sighed. She just couldn’t get the knack of it and hated almost everything about the subject. The only thing that made the lessons bearable was the fact that Spock taught them.

“For heaven’s sake. Just go and get help. It’s of no use if you fail”

“I-I really don’t want to bother him” besides, when they started their relationship they had agreed they wouldn’t talk about anything that related to the courses so that she would not be in an advantage.

“He’s our teacher. He is obliged to help” Carissa shrugged

“I’ll see” they arrived at the classroom and talked to other classmates. Suddenly Evan appeared, angrily tapping Carissa’s shoulder.

“What did you do?”

“What? About yesterday?”

“You just took over!”

“So what? I thought if this was real that was supposed what someone should have done”

“You stole my chance”

“Look, if this had been real we couldn’t have just waited until you were conscious again. I am sure the examiners wouldn’t have paused the scenario if I had done nothing”

“I swear if you benefit from my attempt, you’ll pay”

“Mr Cook. I hope you won’t make these threats come true or you will be in serious trouble” they heard Professor Bennett’s voice behind them and shot a quick glare as he walked past the flock of cadets to open the door. Evans glared daggers at his classmate

“Your lover may have saved you this time. But I will find ways” he whispered in her ear before leaving.

“Oh God. Is he now claiming too that you have something going on with Bennett?”

“Yeah”

“Just because of your grades? Or because he’s mad?”

“No idea. But someone needs to be on top of the class. I can’t help that it’s me in most classes…”

“Well I need to admit, your grades are not just top of the class. They’re perfect almost every time. Not that I’d believe the rumors but I can understand that they think like that.” Carissa shrugged.

“Just let them talk. I don’t care. I know the truth and so do my friends” technically, her friend’s didn’t know the whole truth. Although she wasn’t dating Bennet, she still was in a relationship with another professor.

“That’s the spirit. As long as no one suspects you’re actually liaised with a professor” she felt her heart bumping

“Exactly” they entered the classroom and sat down.

-oO0Oo-

The rest of the day flew by and before she knew it, Carissa was trying to complete some homework when she saw a new message. This must be her results from the Kobayashi Maru and her heart made a leap. A part of her wanted read it now, but she decided against it, wanting to finish her homework first.

“What’s this? Got a love letter?” she was asked

“Nothing” she replied, not wanting to brag that she completed the Kobayashi Maru. But she knew that should she pass, sooner or later everyone would know. And she was quite afraid of Evan’s reaction.

“Why don’t you read?”

“I can imagine what it is. And I want to finish this first” she looked at her friend before focusing on her essay again. But Lucie just crossed her arms

“Fine, then I’ll hack into your account and read the message myself”

“Stop this” she hissed.

“Oh come on, Carry, I want to know what it says. Is it really from Admiral Foster?”

“Yes. As the name says”

“Please?” she looked at her friend with puppy eyes. Carissa sighed and read the document, ignoring her friends, exited shrieks and handclapping.

“How old are you exactly?” she shook her head but grinned. The grin disappeared when her eyes scanned the evaluation “Oh my God. Oh my God” she couldn’t help but shriek

“Good news?”

“Yes. I passed the Kobayshi Maru scenario”

“Wait what? When? How?” once again she found herself telling the story, this time with a broad smile. “That sounds fantastic. You’d make a perfect captain”

“I’m not so sure. I’d prefer to be more of an advisor. Then I don’t need to be the one making a decision”

“Fair enough” she squeezed her shoulder “Oh Carry, I can’t believe it. Not many pas this simulation. And you weren’t even prepared”

“I think they took that into consideration as well”

“What are we even sitting here?” Lucie asked and put her PADD away “Let’s go and celebrate” Carissa shrugged, throwing a glance at her essay. She would finish it later as she probably couldn’t concentrate.

-oO0Oo-

In the next morning she regretted her choice. The moment she walked into Spock’s classroom she realized that she had forgotten to finish her essay. Trying to hide in her seat, she took out her things and stared at the table. Her head only snapped up when the lesson started.

“Your essays from last week have been graded” the whole class gasped.

“Will this grade be official for the semester grade?” a classmate asked

“No, but it is for you to see how you are doing” he took a bundle of papers “please hand in your new ones within the next five minutes.” Carissa kept getting more and more nervous and she opened the corrected document. She stared at the numbers of her essay and let out a sad huff 37.7 out of 100. Nevertheless she felt a slight smirk appearing on her face, after all Spock was the only professor who used decimal places. Sluggishly, submitted her unfinished essay and raised her hand to tell the truth.

“I uh… couldn’t finish it” she admitted. The Vulcan only cocked up an eyebrow “It’s just… I’m not trying to justify anything but I got this news and well…”

“That news being?”

“Kobayashi Maru?”

“What?” Evan exclaimed “Don’t tell me you passed. That was cheating”

“Cadet Cook, I do believe this is no concern of yours” Evan mumbled something she didn’t get. “Please see me after the lesson, Cadet Cook. There is something I wish to discuss with you” obviously he must have heard what he said. Carissa bit her lip to hold back a smirk. “With you as well, Cadet Wiley” he said. When he started the lesson, she let out a small sigh of relief.

-oO0Oo-

For the remainder of the lesson she couldn’t help but dread the end of it. It really sounded like she got into trouble. Once the rest of the class was allowed to leave, Evan threw an angry look at Carissa as Spock told them to sit down in the first row.

“Cadet Cook, I expect you to explain your behavior towards your fellow cadet, Miss Wiley”

“It can’t be that she got to do this Kobayashi Maru. It was my test, not hers. This is not fair.”

“Your anger towards Cadet Wiley is out of place since none of this is her fault”

“She should have just kept her mouth shot like she always does. She stole my chance”

“Mr Cook, is it Cadet Wiley’s culpability that you lost consciousness during the simulation?” Evan shook his head and opened his mouth to speak but got cut off “Then I can only emphasize how inacceptable your behavior towards her is and I demand you to stop this. Else I will be obliged to inform my superiors of this case” Evan glared at her and she wished Spock had just let it be. He had probably only made it worse with his lecture.

“Evan look, I am sorry” she said “I never meant to steal the show or whatever”

“Then why did you take charge?”

“I just wanted David to wait until it was over officially. But let’s assume this would have been a real situation and your Captain passed out. Would you do something or just sit there and wait?”

“But it’s just a damned simulation. That’s the fucking point”

“There is no need for such foul language, Cadet” Spock reminded him “Besides your classmate is correct. It could have been real. Then everyone expects you to show responsibility, even if you are not a Captain. Cadet Wiley did exactly that and I daresay this is the reason that she has passed. Though her splendid approach must have had something to do with it as well” why, oh why couldn’t he just shut up? Did he not see he was making everything worse? Carissa wanted to be anywhere but here.

“Teacher’s pet” she heard Evans mutter and she clenched her fists. It probably wouldn’t have affected her that much if it had been any other professor. Luckily her boyfriend kept quiet this time and the brunette had the impression he did not even know what the words meant.

“Professor” she said, looking at Spock “thank you for your help but I think I can handle him by myself. He’ll just be mad at me for a little time but it will pass. After all we never had a problem before”

“If you say so” she nodded. “Cadet Cook, you are free to leave” Evan jerked up and wanted to storm out of the room “But be warned. If I hear of any other nastiness towards your classmate I will take action as I cannot tolerate such behavior” he stared after him until Evan left the classroom and closed the door before he turned to his girlfriend

“That wasn’t necessary” she mumbled

“He had no right to treat you like this. Besides, his hatred towards you is highly illogical because none of what happened is your fault”

“Well tell him. He’s just…”

“Acting out of fierce emotions”

“Yeah” she chuckled “dead on”

“However,” he continued “I wanted to talk about your latest essay, cadet”

“The one I forgot?” she asked shyly

“No, not that one. The one I have corrected”

“Oh right. But… am I in trouble because I didn’t finish the other?” he raised an eyebrow

“This is your first time neglecting homework, thus there will be no consequences. In case it happens again, you will need to complete supplementary work or any other form of compensation”

“Okay, thank you Sir” she breathed out in relief. “And what about the other essay?”

“I could not help but notice that your essays are getting and getting worse. If you do not change something you will fail this course”

“I uh…” she swallowed “I don’t really get the hang of this”

“Are you trying to say that you have difficulties in understanding the subject?”

“A bit more maybe. I’m clueless” she admitted

“And why did you not consult me?”

“I-I thought… when we got together” she looked at him “you said that we mustn’t talk about topics that are related to classes and all. So I tried to teach myself by reading books. But that didn’t help”

“I would have gladly taught you anything you wanted to know if you had just asked. Just because I am with you does not mean that I would not tutor you if necessary. When I said this, I meant that I cannot tell you more about the exams or any other matters that could give you an advantage”

“Well, I guess I didn’t want to bother you”

“Bother me? You would not be the first cadet I am tutoring. Moreover, I am teaching advanced topics to cadets who wish it.”

“So this means you will help me?”

“That would be the only logical thing to do” she nodded with a bright smile

“Thank you”

“But I will contact a few of your classmates as I have seen that some others seem to have troubles as well”

“Sure. It’s better to learn in a group anyway. Besides, then I won’t feel so strange when it’s just us. I mean, then it doesn’t feel like you don’t waste your time on me”

“Carissa” he said softly “Any time I spend with you is not wasted” she giggled at his sudden informality.

“And why again did you think you can’t be romantic? This might be the cutest thing anyone’s ever said to me”

“Then I suppose it is good to hear that telling you this simple fact has made you feel happiness”

“Of course it makes me happy. And do you know what else makes me happy? Being with you” since this was now getting a bit strange when she sat at a desk and he was standing in front of her, Carissa got up as well. A part of her wanted to touch him but they were in a classroom and anyone could come in any moment so she held herself back.

“Are you getting ready to leave?”

“Maybe”

“There are only 6 minutes and 23 seconds left until the next class starts. So maybe it would be best if you headed there. My next cadets should arrive soon as well”

“Oh sure” she said, grabbing her bag. “See you around I guess? Or at the tutoring?” he nodded

“I will let you know when I have gotten into contact with the other cadets to let you know about time and setting for the tutoring” now she couldn’t help but place a hand on his arm

“Thank you”

“I see no point in thanking me since this proposal bases on logical conclusion and thoughts”

“It means a lot to me anyway” she replied “so thank you” she gently squeezed his arm before pulling back and leaving the classroom.

-oO0Oo-

Much to her surprise, Evan actually left her alone. Sure, he mentioned the matter another few times in the following days but he seemed to have calmed down after a week. Carissa had the impression that word about her success at the Kobayashi Maru scenario had gotten around and she had the feeling as if everyone from her year who wanted to take the test wanted to have her on board. Since she found it a good way to learn more about the life on the bridge, she mostly agreed, unless she didn’t like the cadets at all. She was a little surprised, when suddenly someone a year above wanted to have her participating in her test. And after that, also a few other people from years above hers asked her to join them. If she was honest, Carissa didn’t like the attention too much. Somehow she had the feeling as if she was something like a mascot for them.

One day, as she was sitting outside, an older cadet plopped down on the bench next to her

“You’re Clarissa Riley, right?”

“Carissa Wiley” she corrected. He wasn’t the first one to get her name wrong.

“Well anyway. You’re the one who somehow beat the Kobayashi Maru test. How did you do it?”

“I just made the right choices” she replied “and as you might have heard, I wasn’t actually supposed the test. I took over”

“So you cheated?”

“Hell no”

“But I heard the test had to be reprogrammed after you took it”

“It didn’t had to be reprogrammed. They only had to add another feature. I just was unlucky enough to be the one to find out. But I was told, if the feature had been there, my chances of surviving would have been quite high”

“Nevertheless, you passed”

“So what?”

“I heard you’ve taken a liking to take part in other cadet’s test”

“Yeah?”

“Would you to me the honor to join me for my attempt?”

“Okay, why not? When?”

“In two days at 11AM. You know where.” only after he left Carissa realized that she didn’t even get his name.

-oO0Oo-

Only about half a minute after the simulation had started, she regretted her choice to participate as an actor. He seemed too confident of himself and didn’t take it serious at all. Obviously she wasn’t the only one who wanted to slap him.

“So what are we gonna do about the Klingons?” Carissa asked, suppressing a sigh

“Oh just leave it all with me, sweetheart”

“Excuse me?”

“Three more Klingon vessels are approaching”

“Alright. Inform the Med Bay to take all the injured from the other ship”

“Shouldn’t we do something about the Klingons first?” Carissa wanted to know, already sensing they would be destroyed any minute.

“Captain, love, you forgot the Captain”

“You can’t be serious, Captain” she sneered “We could die any moment and all you can think of is your title, which you don’t even have by the way and won’t get if you continue like that”

“I didn’t invite you here to be such a spoilsport” he pouted. She was that close to choking him. “But you are right, we could die any moment” he walked over to her, placing a hand on her shoulder. She glared at the hand as if she could burn a hole into it. “So why not…”

“Captain! Shields are only at fifty percent. Maybe we should fire back?”

“Nah” suddenly the power went out

“This can’t be, we can’t have lost already.” Carissa said. Or were the examiners fed up and stopped the simulation? Suddenly the power came back on.

“Oh no, don’t worry, sweetie. Now the real fun begins.” he said with a smirk as he plopped down in the Captain’s chair again and bit into an apple. “Open fire! Let’s send this bastards to hell”

“Jim, their shields are still up”

“Are they?”

“No”

“So what are you waiting for, sweetheart? Destroy them” the cadet called Jim said and winked at her “The sooner this is over, the sooner we two…”

“Captain!” she protested “I hope you know that I have a boyfriend” she blurted out. This actually was the first time she mentioned this to anyone. If only no one asked questions… with a sigh she did as he requested and locked target on the birds of prey. It all went smoothly and not even a minute later all Klingon ships were gone.

“Now we can start the rescue mission” everyone started at him as Jim got up “Let’s sum this up… we have destroyed all enemy ships, no one on board was injured and we can now save the crew of the Kobayashi Maru” Carissa stared at the buttons in front of her. She had participated in more than 18 simulations in the past months. And it had never been that easy. Something was wrong. No one ever managed that much. The simulation went off and the participants were allowed to leave. After stepping outside, she saw Spock marching past her, looking puzzled if not irritated. Suddenly Jim’s behavior towards her during the simulation. He had touched her and flirted with her. She could have slapped herself, he must be jealous. If that even was a thing among Vulcans…

-

Next Chapter

[displacedprincess]

Willpower || Elena & The Gargoyles

@carvedfromlivingstone

Backdated: January 19th

Summary: The gargoyles smell a change in Elena’s hormones, Elena weaponizes a loaf of bread and calls bullshit.

ELENA

“Felipe! Raf!” Elena called out, practically kicking the door open to Goliath’s. “Where are you bitches at? I’m gonna fight you!”

This, of course, was said in the same playful tone she used when she threatened to kick Naomi, Isa, or even Goliath’s ass. No asses would actually be kicked, however, her little gargoyle brothers absolutely owed her five quid or a Chippamunka’s milkshake each. 

“I told you that guy Maru was crushing on was gay!” Elena exclaimed, doing a little happy dance. “As a bisexual, my queerdar is spot on. I have been deciphering the sexuality of humans a lot longer than you kids have. You’re welcome.”

GOLIATH

As all of the gargoyles were currently in the kitchen, none of them saw her come in. They all certainly heard her, and Goliath simply grinned as Raf and Felipe both groaned. 

“Bite me, princess, we already agreed he was probably gay,” Felipe yelled back, grabbing an orange slice and preparing to throw it at the older girl when she came around the corner. Cesar reached over and snatched it up first, tossing it in his mouth while giving the younger gargoyle a look that said ‘Don’t you dare’.

“But that’s good to have it confirmed, right Maru?” Raf said. Ever the peacekeeper, that one. Maru, of course, had his face practically glued to the screen of his laptop and had missed all of this.

“You’re just in time, joya,” Goliath called out. “Lunch is almost ready.” He gave her a smile as his daughter stepped into the room, leaning in to press a kiss to the top of her head in greeting.

He stopped midkiss, eyebrows furrowed.

Wait. He couldn’t possibly- she wasn’t- was his nose on the fritz? Was this a side effect of aging?

Cesar had caught his bewildered look and Goliath motioned down to Elena with his eyes. ‘Smell her’ he mouthed. It’d be good to have confirmation.

“Oi, no greeting for me?” Cesar grumped while giving Goliath a subtle nod.

ELENA

Elena grinned at the gargoyle she now affectionately (teasingly) called abuelito when he was acting particularly like an old man, and launched herself at him. “I could never leave you out, Cesar!”

The princess was, of course, oblivious to the eye conversation going on about her. 

“Papá, what’s for lunch?” She asked as she pulled away from Cesar. 

GOLIATH

With her attention diverted, Cesar sniffed at the princess’s hair and gave Goliath a similar wide-eyed look to the one he’d been wearing not a moment before. Shit. It wasn’t just him.

Felipe had picked up on the two elder gargoyles eyeing each other and gave them both a questioning look. Cesar dismissed him with a wave of his hand while Goliath kept Elena distracted.

“Aggressively Scottish food, I promise you’ll hate it,” he joked. Just act like everything was normal, Goliath. Be cool.

“Princess, come sit by me and we can throw stuff at Maru until he looks up and you can tell him about his crush,” Felipe ordered, pulling out the bar stool for her and ignoring Cesar and Goliath’s glares. When Elena got close, he ruffled her hair up just enough to be annoying and so he could smell her over the cooking food without getting too close. 

His eyes also flew open and he looked back at Goliath and Cesar, mouth falling open. They silently told him to shut his trap.

ELENA

“Ooh, sounds fun! I never realized how fun having three little brothers would be.” God, fucking with the boy’s was the best. Thinking nothing of Felipe’s request, she sat next to him and began to peel an orange to throw slices at Maru. 

She shot Felipe a glare as he messed up her hair, only half as annoyed as she looked, then tossed a slice into her mouth. Only to immediately spit it out. 

“Ick! Aw, man! Every orange I try to eat lately is nasty.”

GOLIATH

"Just recently, huh?" Felipe asked, and Cesar kicked him under the table hard enough that the younger gargoyle went stiff to try and keep in his yelp of pain.

Raf had seen all of this go down, and while the curiosity was killing him, he didn't want to get too into Elena's space. While Elena was distracted with trying to distract Maru, Raf looked at Goliath meaningfully and pointed to Elena under the table before gesturing with his open hands. The universal sign for 'What's wrong with Elena?'

Goliath turned so his back was to Elena and his side was just in view of Raf, appearing to be checking on the food cooking away. But instead he was tapping a hand against his lower stomach with wide eyes. Raf's eyebrows furrowed in confusion. She's…. Hungry?

ELENA

“Moon Market must not be able to get good batches in right now.” Elena added, pouting. She did so love oranges.

Not to be dissuaded from distracting Maru, however, Elena quickly stood up and scurried over to him. She threw her arm around his shoulder and put on the greatest show of her life. 

She gasped, horrified, and pointed to his screen. “Maru! I am scandalized. I’ve been in a German dungeon, and that is not what they look like.”

GOLIATH

Maru had actually been working on a program he'd been tinkering with. It wasn't much, but he was hoping to set up something that could be used to keep the remaining gargoyle clans around the world in contact so long as they had access to the internet (and these days, who didn't?). He had not been paying attention to the silent conversations going on around him, to the rest of clan bouncing Elena around like a scented teddy bear.

He was not aware there was anything to hide.

Which was why when she shocked him out of his trance and he took a sharp breath to snap at her for being a brat, he stopped, sniffed again, and said blunty "Why do you smell pregnant?"

"Elena's pregnant!?" Raf gasped as Felipe and Cesar both smacked their foreheads with their open palms. Goliath looked like he wanted to dangle Maru and Raf both off his roof by their ankles. While the sun was up.

ELENA

Maru’s quip shocked Elena into genuinely gasping, dumbstruck at the notion that she would ever be-- 

“Oye pendejo!” She shouted, picked up a loaf of bread in its little bread plastic and, wielding it like a club, smacked him with it repeatedly.  “I’m going! To kick! Your ass! If you ever! Spread some bullshit like that around! Understand!?”

She beat him a few more times with the bread for good measure before tossing it in Felipe’s general direction. “Goliath, you need to buy bread.”

GOLIATH

Well, life with Elena was certainly never boring. She even managed to catch Cesar and Goliath off-guard, and that was nearly impossible.

"Oi- hey!" Maru yelled, ducking and covering his head. "Stop hitting me you crazy princess!" he barked in Gaelic, wishing more than ever he had his wings to protect him. Raf was the one who rushed around to stop her, grabbing her hands and gently pulling her away. He was the last one to get a sniff of her, and he could recognize the weird smell of a woman who's hormones were all over the place. There had been enough human women at the castle when he was growing up that even he could recognize the smell.

He looked at Goliath, panicked, which was when their dad finally stepped in. "Don't beat your brother with a loaf of bread, Elena," he said, though his voice was a little too soft to be properly scolding. "What Maru means is your scent is… different."

ELENA

Elena was not finished with Maru, oh-ho-ho, no. For saying something as idiotic as why do you smell pregnant, Maru deserved a proper ass beating. How can he say that!? After the pregnancy scare she had while Mateo was in the underworld that she never told anybody but Naomi and Goliath and Mateo about, that Maru’s ignorance of if entirely his own fault, that he should definitely know about despite Elena never telling him, how could he say that?

“Let me at him before I bite your hands off, Rafinha!” Elena growled in very colloquial Avaloran Portunhol, reverting to her truest native tongue in her rage.

At Goliath speaking up, Elena stopped struggling against Raf and looked over her shoulder at Goliath. “Previously unsaid sentences in human history.”

She flipped her hair over her shoulder and crossed her arms over her chest, glaring hard at Maru before she turned to properly face the rest of the clan, rolling her eyes. Pregnant. Seriously, Maru? 

“Yeah, well, that’s not a very funny joke. Especially after Halloween before last.”

GOLIATH

“What happened the Halloween befo-” Felipe started, but Goliath silenced him with a wave of his hand. He did know what had happened, and knew how frighted Elena had been. 

This was… not going to be a fun week for anyone.

“Mija,” he said gently, taking one of her hands from where they were crossed together and holding it in both of his own. “I think we need to see your doctor.”

Six out of six gargoyles agreeing was all the confirmation Goliath needed, but Elena needed a human doctor as well.

ELENA

Elena was not pregnant. She refused to be pregnant, and therefore she wasn’t. The great pregnancy scare of 2018 took any last shred of ‘I will tolerate pregnancy’ out of her. So, no. Her fatigue, nausea, and super light periods that were absolutely periods and not spotting, did not mean she was pregnant. Because she couldn’t be pregnant. Because she refused to be. Therefore, she wasn’t.

She stared at Goliath with a look of betrayal, because how dare he entertain that she would possibly be- and she just stared at him for a long moment before she shook her head and laughed.

“Gargoyles have a crazy sense of humor, this really isn’t funny. No, nope, I’m not. I’m not pregnant, I’m on birth control.” That she doesn’t ever remember to take. “And Mateo uses condoms.” Usually.

“I’m not stupid.” Elena insisted. “I’m not stupid.”

GOLIATH

No, she wasn’t. But she was pregnant.

Felipe opened his mouth, but this time it was Cesar who glared him quiet. Unfortunately, Maru was out of range. “Six gargoyles smell baby on you, yes you are,” he said, still annoyed to have had his work interrupted. Raf leaned over and punched him - hard - in the shoulder. “What the hell-christ!?”

“He means pregnant, not stupid, by the way,” Raf added, trying to help and failing. “You’re not stupid.”

The look Goliath gave them all was unimpressed to the highest degree. “Okay, none of you are allowed to talk anymore,” he told them as he gently ushered Elena to the living room, away from the rest of their tactless family. He sat on the couch and nudged Elena down next to him.

“I wouldn’t joke about this,” he said softly.

ELENA

Elena sat next to him only because she was twenty-five years old, which was far too old to petulantly refuse. One could also say it is too old to beat your brother with a loaf of bread, but Maru had had it coming.

She shook her head, she’d deny this even if it killed her. “I’m not pregnant, I can’t be. I refuse to be, and if my body betrays me like that right now I’ll - well, I can’t death threat my own body, can I? The same energy remains though.”

She pulled her legs up onto the couch and wrapped her arms around her knees. 

“I don’t want to be pregnant, so I’m not.”

GOLIATH

That’s really not how it worked.

Goliath could only exhale long and slow through his nose, rubbing Elena’s back gently. “Then go to the doctor and prove us wrong,” he offered. “I’ll go with you and you can rub it in my face immediately if you’re right.”

If Goliath was right - and he was - then he’d be on hand to comfort his daughter. 

ELENA

Elena really didn’t see why they were sooooooo sure she was pregnant. Like...she was a human! Maybe they got the scent markers all mixed up because they’re different species. 

Yes, yes that was it. 

But you know what, fine. She’d humor her old man and the rest of the gargoyle clan, and go to the doctor. And prove them wrong. 

“Fine.” Elena held up her hands in surrender. “It’s okay, I can go by myself. If I’m pregnant — which I’m not — you don’t want to be the person who came with me to find out.”

She checked her Apple Watch and sighed. “If I leave now I’ll have time.”

GOLIATH

Actually, he did want to be there, because he knew Elena’s reaction wouldn’t be a calm one, but he also wouldn’t pressure her. Instead, he leaned in to kiss her forehead and stroke back her hair. “That’s my girl,” he said warmly. “I’ll pack some food for you to eat on the way. And text me later, alright? I’d say call, but I’m probably going to be busy kicking some sense into your brothers so I may not reply.”

(If Goliath heard a hissed ‘Shit’ and three sets of footsteps bolting out the kitchen door as softly as possible while Cesar snerked, then he didn’t point it out.)

ELENA

She nodded, now a little concerned that maybe Goliath was right. Wait, what? No, don’t think like that Elena. Will it away, will it away. 

“Yeah, I’ll— I’ll text you when I get the good news.” That she’s not! Pregnant! That her uterus is STILL not on the market!

Elena stood up and before Goliath did, turned on her heel to kiss him on the cheek. “Te quiero, Papá.”

[katedoesfics]

Under Shadow: Chapter 27

Harvey examined Vincent’s wound carefully. The boy leaned against his mother in the back seat of the Hummer, biting back a sob as Harvey poked and prodded at the leg. Sam, Marlon, and Najia looked on over Harvey’s shoulder.

“It’s definitely infected,” Harvey confirmed as he dug through his make-shift medical kit. “It needs to be cleaned and stitched.” Harvey hesitated. “But I don’t have anything to dull the pain for him.”

“He’s just a boy,” Jodi said, her voice shaking. “He can’t withstand that.”

“I don’t exactly have any anesthesia or numbing creams,” Harvey said.

“I can do it, Mum.” Vincent turned to his mother and smiled bravely. “I bet Dad’s had to do it loads of times.”

“That’s different,” Jodi said quickly.

“Jodi,” Harvey began, hesitant. “If I can’t clean up the wound and stitch the leg, the infection will just spread and -”

“Yes, yes, I know,” Jodi interrupted him. “I know. It will kill him.” She sucked in a breath and met Harvey’s gaze. “Please, just help him.”

Najia turned away and made her way to the cars where the others were gathered, waiting. Shane leaned against their car with a beer in hand, casually talking with Gil. They stopped when she approached.

“What’s the prognosis?” Gil asked.

“It seems pretty bad,” Najia explained. “Infected, the whole bit. We might be here a while.”

“Hopefully not too long,” Gil said. “Can’t be sticking around longer than we need to.” He smiled to Najia. “And we’re so close to finding your gramps, too.”

“Maybe,” Najia hesitated. She was eager to get to the coast, but feared what she may or may not find.

Leah, Marlon, and Sam joined them after a moment.

“You just gonna hog all that beer?” Leah said to Shane, reaching around him and grabbing a can from the back seat. She waved the can in the air. “Anyone?”

Najia, Marlon, Gil, and Sam nodded and Leah passed four cans their way before grabbing one for herself.

“Sure, drink all my beer,” Shane muttered.

“You have a damn twenty-four pack,” Leah accused him.

“Best money can buy.”

“Tell ya what,” Leah started. “When we finish these off, I’ll go back into that store and buy you another case.”

“Big end of the world sale, yanno,” Gil added. “Can get ‘em for nothin’.”

Leah elbowed Shane and winked at him as she brought the beer can to her lips. Shane smirked into his own can as he did the same.

Najia shifted her gaze to her feet, then turned her back on the little group, staring out into the darkness.

“Your grandfather’s at the coast?” Sam asked her.

Najia shrugged. “Maybe. Hopefully.”

Sam sighed. “Yeah. I’d like to think Dad will be there. But who the fuck knows any more in this world.”

Najia hesitated. “What if he’s not there?”

Sam met her gaze and searched her eyes as he pondered her question. Finally, he broke his gaze and drank his beer. “I hadn’t thought that far ahead.”

“Me neither,” Najia muttered, turning to her beer. “That’s the only goal I’ve had in my life over the last couple months. I don’t know what I’ll do if he’s not there.”

“I guess we find a new goal,” Sam said softly.

“Like what?”

Sam’s gaze was on the Hummer where Harvey worked on his brother’s leg. “Survive. Live.”

“I don’t know how much longer anyone can survive this.”

“Then we make the most of it, I guess.” Sam turned back to her and smiled. “Do all the things we couldn’t have done before. Steal beer. Shoot shit.”

Najia smiled. “Those things just don’t seem as exciting when you know there’s no consequences.”

Sam’s lips twisted to the side and he nodded. “I guess that’s true. But I’m sure there are other things, too.”

“Travel the world.”

“Find bigfoot.”

Najia laughed. “See the northern lights.”

“Find Nessie.”

“You and I have very different ideas of exciting.”

Sam shrugged. “It’s a goal, isn’t it? And hey, who the hell knows what’s out there, surviving like we are.”

“Well,” Najia said, lifting her can. “To surviving.”

Sam tapped his against hers. “To living.”

*****

Vincent bravely made it through Harvey’s make-shift surgery in the back of the Hummer. The wound was cleaned, stitched, and wrapped carefully, preventing further damage and infection. Harvey admired his work as the boy rested against his mother in the back seat.

Under Harvey’s orders, they agreed to stay the night in the parking lot to let Vincent rest before beginning their journey once more. They positioned the vehicles carefully in a circle in an attempt to block light from the fire that would drawn in any Shadow People. They gathered around in folding chairs dragged out from the store and continued to drink.

Najia watched as smaller groups began to form. Penny, Harvey, and Maru formed one group across from her, none with beer in hand. Harvey seemed smitten with the pretty red head. When she spoke, he leaned in, listening intently, as if she were an angel whispering a prophecy. But when Maru spoke, Penny’s dimples revealed themselves and she looked away quickly, not daring to meet her gaze, intimidated by her brilliant mind.

Gil and Marlon kept to themselves as they often did, observing their group like two alpha wolves guarding their pack. Demetrius found comfort in Jodi’s company as she looked over her son sleeping soundly. Abigail and Sebastian had found their way to one another, but did not speak much, and Morris sat quietly by himself, seemingly disinterested with the people who had rescued him. Leah and Shane continued to enjoy each other’s company, drinking heavily, while Clint and Gunther spoke casually with one another.

Alex and Sam sat casually beside Najia as the three of them simply listened to the chatter around them. Dusty sighed at Alex’s feet, his face towards the heat of the fire.

“Looks like Shane found some new meat,” Alex muttered.

“We’re not meat,” Najia hissed at him. “Leah doesn’t even like him.”

“Why’s that?” Sam asked.

Najia hesitated. “I might have made him sound like an ass when I met Leah.”

“He is an ass,” Alex confirmed.

“I thought he was your boyfriend,” Sam said.

“He wishes,” Alex said with a smirk.

Sam shrugged. “You guys just seem close.”

Najia mocked Sam’s shrug. “He was just the first survivor I found,” she said. “We’ve only known each other a couple months.”

“I’ve only known you a day and I know you deserve better than someone like that, anyway.”

Najia hesitated. “Thanks, I guess.”

Alex cleared his throat. “Don’t try to flirt with her,” he warned Sam. “She’ll run away again.”

“Sam’s been kinder to me than you,” Najia hissed.

“Maybe more women would be interested in you if you weren’t so arrogant,” Sam accused.

Najia rolled her eyes. “That’s what I keep saying.”

“What’s it matter, anyway?” Alex said. “It’s the end of the world. Sooner or later, we’re all gonna die. Might as well not get attached.”

“I mean, if I could get laid before I die, I wouldn’t complain,” Sam said with a shrug.

“Well, yeah,” Alex agreed with a smirk.

“Unfortunately for you,” Najia said to Alex, “you won’t be getting any from me.”

“Please,” Alex said. “You’re not the only option any more.”

“I wouldn’t be so sure,” Najia said. “I warned them about you, too.”

“Give him a break,” Sam said. “Alex was probably the kind of guy that thought his good looks and suave charm could get him any girl he wanted. He’s never had to deal with a pretty girl denying him before. See?” Sam pointed to Alex. “He doesn’t know how to handle it, so he resorts to petty childish insults to make him look tough and manly.”

“Suave?”

“He’s got jock brain, too.”

“That jock brain,” Alex hissed, “got me a full scholarship.”

Sam leaned to Najia, whispering in her ear. “The best part is he has no idea he insulted himself.”

Najia smiled and looked down at her beer can.

“Whatever,” Alex grumbled. “At least I don’t pretend to be someone I’m not.”

“Forget it,” Najia warned them both. “You’re acting like children. Be nicer to each other.”

Alex slunk back in his seat and turned his gaze to the fire.

“I’m sorry,” Sam muttered. “I wasn’t trying to start anything. I just don’t like the way he talks sometimes.”

Najia sighed. “Me neither.”

“For what it’s worth,” Sam said, leaning towards her once more. “You deserve better than every scum bag guy here.”

“Including you?” she said with a sly smile.

“Yeah, including me.”

“You don’t even know me,” Najia reminded him. “I could be a big slut for all you know.”

Sam shrugged. “I’m pretty good at reading people.” He paused. “Abusive ex boyfriend who dominated your life until this war gave you a chance to escape and start over.”

“Actually,” Najia said with a smile. “I had a very lovely life before all this happened. Single, but I had some good relationships. Good friends. It was just Dad and I, but we did okay. I worked in his shop. He was a mechanic.” Najia turned her gaze away and hesitated. “I didn’t even get to see him,” she said softly.

“I’m sorry,” Sam said quickly. “I didn’t mean to.”

Najia forced a smile and met his gaze. “It’s okay. But I don’t think anyone could look at this war as a blessing or a second chance.”

“Maybe not,” Sam said. “But why not try to find the positives? A little light when we’re stuck in this darkness. Sure, we’ve lost people. But I might get to see my father again. And I got to meet you.”

“I used to think that way,” she said. “It just gets a little harder with each day.”

Sam nodded. “I get that,” he said. “But, we’re all in it together, anyway.” His hand rested on her arm and he smiled.

Najia looked across the fire, her eyes scanning the faces illuminated by the light. She stopped on Shane, meeting his gaze. His brows were knit together and he turned away quickly.

[hobslobster]

04/17

aka, the day the world was blessed with maru ( @dionysusynoid ) - the coolest cat around. happy birthday you wonderful human being! today you turn 22, which is special because the next time you’ll be a double digit age where both the numbers are the same is 33 - a whole ass 10 years away - so savour this coming year! i know that things are shitty and messed up right now (i don’t know what other way i could possibly put it) but i’m hoping for the nth time that you know you don’t have to feel shitty and messed up alone. i’m here for you just like you’re always here for me. your whole world might be shaking really hard and fast, but i can keep you grounded (or at least provide relief if you want to vent). in light of your 22nd birthday, i’ve decided to name 22 things i love about you, so here goes! 

you say you aren’t beautiful and it’s all camera angles, but even when you send me meme-y pictures of you, you still manage to look refreshingly beautiful. it’s a gift, being able to take someone’s breath away THAT fast, so use it wisely queen. 

i like how no matter what the problem is or whose it is, you delve deep and help them thoroughly, it says a lot about your character and is one of the reasons i look up to you. 

you’re a pARTY person and i’m absolutely Not so when you tell me you go out and drink and have fun and shit it makes me happy by association and it’s just really nice knowing you’re happy. 

i love saori. completely unrelated but i do. 

there’s maturity in the way you carry yourself (can’t relate lmao).

you’re really smart??? bitch what??? you’re telling me you’re a science whiz AND a math whiz AND you can help me out with my french work from time to time AND you’re informed of political issues AND who KNOWS what else like does ur back hurt from carrying the intellectual community??

you got opinions and you’re not afraid to state them. plus you can actually support them so!! we love an outspoken queen!!

you consider things from everyone’s point of view, like - you’re open-minded? but that’s not rEALLY what i’m trying to say. although you are open-minded. just, you don’t seem like you’d jump to support one side of the story because you’re the type to hear everyone out and decide?

you genuinely, truly love bts - not a surprise considering what they’ve done for you. but it’s just nice to see u loving them with all ur heart and making gifs and other content. it’s real and it’s you. 

you’re fucking FUNNY. go do some STAND UP COMEDY WHY ARE U ON TUMBLR. when we first started talking it felt like i was dying of laughter every single time u said Anything, like you’re really that perfect blend of smart and millennial humour!

you love hard and you love deep.

i mean i’m pretty sure ur taste in music is gr8.

three words: unapologetic attention hoe. me too bitch, me too. 

you’re insanely talented!! you can sINg like an angel?? your voice is smooth and sweet and it’s lovely to listen to!! also, i think you told me once that you can dance? can’t confirm it but if so, you’re really out here keeping all this talent to yourself huh. 

you have a wide range of interests! kpop isn’t your personality slkdjfldsakj. i feel like being a stan kind of strips you of any other aspects of your identity because you get so invested and hyperfixated on the band(s) you like but you manage to have a lot of different interests and i appreciate that!

it’s selfish to put something about Us in what is supposed to be a little letter for You but i genuinely love and appreciate the fact that you haven’t let our relationship kind of fall flat. there was a time when i didn’t really wanna reach out to anyone a few months ago. i wanted to cut all my ties and just like stop. socializing. idk why but then we talked and i was kind of reminded of why i keep my friends around. we don’t talk often, but when we do it’s never as if we drifted apart or anything. and i feel like i have u to thank for that.

you’re SMALL. lkdsjflkjads being petite is an adorable trait i wouldn’t associate with someone with as big of a personality as yours. it’s cute tho, if we ever meet you’ll make a good arm rest. 

your wheeze laugh. only heard it like twice but it changed my life. it sounds like when i get something stuck in my throat and i’m trying to breathe BUT imagine it 10x cuter and that’s how it be. 

when you’re feeling yourself and are super confident and post selfies!! the mari fandom wants more!! give us the content we deserve. that glow on ur cheeks isn’t highlighter it’s happiness and we’re living!!!

you like me and i like validation so there we are.

you’re a phoenix. things get really fucking bad sometimes, but i’ve seen you get back on your feet every. single. time. it may not be for long, or with much strength, but you find a way to pull yourself out of your own head and i think that’s really, truly worthy of respect. 

you’re just a good person with a warm heart and i love you to the edge of the infinitely expanding universe and back - which, if you think about it, means i love you more and more with every round trip!

xoxo

[honmakurara]

6nin Eito, musically speaking

Disclaimer: this is a post based merely upon my own impressions after Gr8est August cons in Osaka, so please take it as it is ;)

I think I'm not the only one who actually wonders how it would/will be hearing 'old' Eito songs sung by 6 people instead of 7. It's different for sure, because of course it's not just a matter of assigning or splitting Subaru's lines here and there. But it's honestly way better than I thought, even if you can hear that they will probably need some other time to adjust fully to the whole thing. Honestly speaking, who wouldn't?

I also wondered whether the front men would leave the 'Subaru spot' empty between Maru and Ryo or would rearrange it... they did. Now it's 3+3, with Ryo standing in the center, right before Ohkura's drums. Also, each of them follows its own pace on music, hence a few flaws here and there that, I'm sure, will disappear little by little with time.

Ryo might have cried his sorrow and frustration during LIFE~me no mae no mukou e they last performed live with Subaru at Kanjam, but he's currently a very interesting newborn leader in training and he's just so. damn. good. and. cool. He's as awkward as always during initial/final speeches, but he's so genuinely and brutally honest with himself, with members and with eighters, that I cannot help being so fond of this side of him, always. His voice is a certainty, anyway. It's strong and clear, very beautiful and very powerful, soft and caring and sexy and hoarse when required. I felt it close to perfection almost. Of all members, so far he might be the only one with zero flaws when singing and playing his guitars (apart from the little cute moment when he was due to sing something -I guess some short Subaru's part-, and he kinda forgot he had to and he was caught off-guard on big screen with the cutest face ever 'oh shit, was it my turn?' XD). Plus, give him a guitar and he won't be able to stay still on stage anymore. He walked around very often when playing, he even went playing behind Ohkura's drums spot when the stage moved forward during band session (Jukebox-like, if you remember) or to the lateral edges of the main stage. I've never seen him smile and having fun around like he's done during this tour, not even last year during JAM. He seemed very dedicated last year, while this year you feel like he wanna embrace every single eighter and tell them they're gonna be okay because they're taking care and rocking the best out of them, for the fans. I'd dare say Ryo is 'ready', and Subaru probably realized this way long before him.

Had he not been suffering with pain for too long already, Yasu would be exactly at Ryo's level now. Mind, I'm not saying he's not, for you can tell there's almost no difference in skills between the two of them. It's just with Yasu being on semi-hiatus these last months, I guess he also had very little time to catch up with music rehearsals. In my opinion his voice isn't as smooth as Subaru's yet, but he's honestly improved a lot during the last years (we got to hear a lot more of both of him and Maru than in the past, in so many songs) and I reckon he could seriously outshine Ryo, with time. He looks like a little hurricane. In Osaka he was finally able to move slightly more than before, it seems, and he showed us that by being a totall badass with his guitar. He didn't refrain from rocking at his hardest, which is so damn good to see and to hear. Also, he's totally not afraid nor scared of singing Subaru's most infamous and high-pitched lines (like in Omoidama, but not only), which is exactly what we do all need to move forward without forgetting anything of the past. What else can I say? He already gave us proof of what it means being strong-willed, but this time, he's being on a totally another level of determination and, gosh. I'm so proud of him. I'm also very glad he chose Watashi Kagami as his solo song for the Gr8est tour. It's so perfect in every possible sense, so beautiful and so moving.

Maru is the one who, together with Yasu, was assigned to sing most of Subaru's vocal parts with very high tones. Unlike Yasu, though, it sems like he's a bit 'afraid' of the task/legacy he's been given. He's a pro at bass and we saw it once again this year; he's also very good at singing, as usual. I've always been persuaded that Maru probably has the most versatile of voices among Eito, he's capable of doing perfectly with different tones and music styles even though we probably don't notice it enough. However, whenever he sang during Gr8est, I felt like Subaru's absence hit him more than 'expected'. I think he might just need to gain a little more confidence in himself and refine his vocal extension just slightly here and there, because for sure he's already got all the vocal skills required to be a very good Subaru's offspring. I just hope he can let himself go very naturally and very freely, just like he does when doing gags XD

I cannot speak for Sapporo, Nagoya and the venues that are due to come, but in Osaka, Ohkura's voice was not okay. I don't know the reason why exactly, but it seems he's been having longtime problems with his throat for a few months already, and knowing him... well, tbh I cannot help but worry a bit. I really hope everything's okay with him, especially because he tends to worry about others (read: Yasu & members) and pretend everything's okay with himself even when it's not. He couldn't manage to sing most of his highest tones, which to me is a pity because I totally love his crystal clear and melodic voice (I honestly fell for his voice first, long ago...) and, well, I have to say TORN and BJ are not the same without him being at his best ç_ç (I am also very very very much in love with the lines he sings in BJ). I'm not blaming him in any way, though... I'm just so proud. And this does not mean he offered a lazy or poor performance, quite the contrary. Despite the sore throat, he never missed a line and even resolved in lowering the key enough for him to sing every single word till the very end. I could really feel he wanted to miss no word and no sentence at all. He put his everything in everything he sang, he was energetic and very genki, smiling all the time, clenching fists when the meaning of some song was too deep to let go, spreading his long arms as if to embrace the whole dome during Omoidama and so on. So, what he lacked in voice, he put it as strength on stage, and when drumming. Just like Ryo, I've never seen him drum this strongly and powerfully before, not even last year during JAM. You could totally hear the sound of his drums stand over the instruments of every other member, and I was almost bewildered at what I was hearing. You could tell I'm biased saying this and I won't say I am not, but a friend of mine who attended the con and is totally NOT Ohkura biased told me the very same thing when we re-united after the con. We had totally different seatings also, yet we shared the very same impression about Ohkura's drumming. Which is just... freakingly impressive. I swear. He was the only one who performed sleeveless during band session and that's for the best, because when hitting his sticks on drums he looked like he was, I don't know, going to build the new Kanjani8 out of his determination only, almost. Which is so good, but hopefully, he's not alone in this. His speeches were also very long and pretty impressive. He's the youngest, but it's as if he's walked longer and faster in order to keep up with his bandmates, hence gaining some personal and professional maturity I'm very very very very proud of.

Yoko and Hina are some other good certainty. They've never stood out for their musical ability, but no one ever questioned  Shingo's at his keyboard either, luckily. One of Hina's arm was raised up to cheer on Eighters more often than not, just like he did last year and at Metrock. Yoko was slightly nervous when he performed with his trumpet, as if it was his first time, but vocally speaking he showed no tremor at all, even if maybe he'll need some time in order not to be so shy when singing alone. Honestly, I do really love Yoko's voice, and I'd love to hear him even more and being more confident about himself in the future. He took up his trumpet just for Eito's sake after all, and he would have never done nor made it in any other group but this, because they love each other. Bless Eito always. I think that Yokohina got to sing together some Subaru part... I cannot remember when or how exactly (maybe I am wrong?) but it was very cute to hear.

If Metrock and JAM showed us how much Kanjani8 have improved as a band, Gr8est does confirm us that musically speaking they're good at it and pretty balanced even with six members, even with re-arrangement of so many songs having been done in such a tight schedule and harsh conditions. Given these premises, I look forward to see what the future will bring us with their next works; 'Koko ni' as their first new single as 'new group' already proves they're capable of handling a lot. I have faith they can manage even more. Hearing them when performing live is a blessing and it seriously makes you think that no matter the hardships, they can overcome everything and we can, as well; this is basically unchanged from before and I'm so happy that, among the setlist, LIFE is there. The first song of their 'band way' back in 2010, the last one they performed together with Subaru, the one whose lyrics talk so much about Eito's story, the very same one that will always be their own song, more than any other one. Oh no, it's not over yet ♥

[nottsubakiichan]

Love Live! Sunshine!! Season 2 Episode 5 Reactions

precious. both of them.

Oh they’re all in their practice outfits now

leave it to kanan to think about safety first

“Nice n’ warm Pocket warmer”??? HAHAHAHA

So yoshiko will be walking home alone

will she really be alright like that

BYE-NNY

ooh the wind is pretty strong

poor yoshiko

oh this is where she discovers that dog isnt it

this is akin to that dengeki g’s illustration of yohane finding a cat in the rain

OP theme

ahahaha she’s trying to help her get over her fear

oh it opened its eyes

and it doesnt work

and it happens again

that riko bomb

OMG MARI HAHAHAHAHA

THE RETURN OF THOSE EYE COVERS

OH WOW SAINT SNOW HAS A NEW SONG

SOUNDS LIT

MARI AHAHAHAHAHAHHAHAHA

looks like she’s got the attention span of a goldfish

yoshiko is gone too lol

maru chuuni translator :’)

oh yeah yoshiriko’s moms are chummy

ofc she’d leave her phone at their house

this be a fanfic prompt

oh it’s the dog

that kidnapping tho lol

ofc yoshiko would be the one taking care of it

from the looks of it, she’s prepared stuff for the dog

“can’t you tell? it’s a dog.” “yeah.” riko :’(

oh it’s actually pretty cute

riko :(((((((

OMG SHE SICKED IT ON HER HAHAHA

run riko run

that leap tho wow

riko still looks rather uncomfortable

oh so the dog is being cared for here because pets aren’t allowed at yoshiko’s place

i know where this is going

come on riko you can do it

AND SHE SICS IT ON HER AGAIN LMAO

and she actually agrees to take it in

of course the dog can’t eat when the food is outside its cage riko

is that how she’s gonna feed it? pretty clever but poor doggo just wants to be friends with her aw

come on riko just warm up to it

okay she hasn’t run away screaming yet this is an improvement

nice formation

we’re gonna get a new song soon aren’t we

excited to go home aren’t you, riko?

don’t tell me… she’s actually getting attached to the dog??

yohane knows what’s up

aw she’s so excited here riko’s so cute

she got it something? cuuuuute

that giggle. SO PRECIOUS.

riko i know you wanna make the dog happy and all but it cant really play with that toy if you keep it trapped in the pet carrier like that haha

oh my god yoshiko came over

oh my god riko’s actually looking for an excuse to keep it longer

oh my god yoshiko wants the dog back

“Nocturne”??

THAT’S what riko named it???

okay yoshiko wants to call it “Laelaps”????

how is that a greater name it’s not any weirder than “Nocturne” lol

HAHAHA "LOVE LIVE”

oh... oh god

looks like that dog belongs to someone after all

its real name is anko??? lol

both of them look so despaired haha

ooooh first successful contact with a dog good job riko

what’s with the solemn expression kanan

“This will be my last Love Live” :’(((

oh god no now they finally introduce the topic of the third years graduating

how will you handle this aqours… will you follow the same thing µ’s did

what? problem?

what about riko and yoshiko

“emotionally unstable”…?

OH MY GOD THAT’S RIKYAKO’S DRAWING I CAN’T BE MISTAKEN HAHAHAHAHA

AND AIKYAN’S DRAWING

THAT SYNCHRONIZATION THO LMAO

truly quite the pair aren’t they

zuramaru’s impression of yohane :))))

they can’t really concentrate on practice can they

wtf is that line of thinking yoshiko

??????

“We’ll go get the dog back.” Excuse me what?????

isn’t that gonna be illegal

that’s like… stealing private property isn’t it

yoshiko i understand you’re still hung up over that dog but this is madness

riko do something

but she misses the dog too haha :’(

at least she’ll keep yoshiko from doing anything too absurd

okay now this is just trespassing

wrong house lol

will this summoning actually work

oh my god spotted the jig is up

run

in the end they couldn’t even push through lmao

oh my god this is the place in the preview

wtf is she serious about waiting

that’s some dedication

at least with waiting you two will get more time together if u know what i mean ;)

oooh riko needs to go home though

mother’s getting worried

ah so riko left after all?

and it rains

oh she came back? and with food? how sweet

don’t be stubborn yoshiko

and she takes it :)

so riko really did want to see the dog

haha they even synchronize in eating

oh yoshiko gets serious

ah yes ive read about her penchant for attracting misfortune in SID

this is fine. she’s opening up to Riko

she’s aware fallen angels dont exist but she’s doing it as a way to make her bad luck feel less bad

and bc it’s just nice to believe in shit like invisible forces and destiny

so she believes that dog was brought to her by fate

oh the rain stopped. this is new.

“Here. Some Laelaps”?

OH IT’S BECAUSE THE DOG IS NAMED ANKO AHAHAHAHA

love that riko still protests it should be “nocturne”

oh the dog actually came out

well there’s your chance to go grab it and run :))))))))

not that i think yoshiko can actually do that

oh will it notice her

it actually worked??

oh it doesnt recognize her anymore :(((

yoshiko looks so miserable haha :(

aw riko’s cheering her up

“invisible powers” :’’’)

you said it riko

“I, Yohane, hereby certify you as one of my elite little demons!” OMG

is she gonna call her “riri” now come on please

oh she didn’t

BUT THIS IS BETTER THAN ANYTHING I EVER HOPED FOR THANKS

THE SHIP HAS SAILED

congrats riko

SHE CALLED HER YOHANE

both of them are so cute huhu

and we’re back to chika

yoshiko’s way of thinking inspired riko to try approaching shiitake again :”))))

OH SHE FINALLY DID IT! SHE PET A DOG!

i feel so proud of her wtf sdfasdfd

you’re doing great sweetie <3 <3

and this was all thanks to yoshiko

those two are so pure and cute otp material right there

OMG THE ENDING THEME!!

IT’S A YOSHIRIKO DUET??? IS THAT AIKYAN AND RIKYAKO IM HEARING????

THE CREDITS CONFIRM IT OH MY GOD YES!!

OH MY GOD YOSHIRIKO ARE THE FEATURED CHARACTERS FOR THIS ENDING THEME IM IN HEAVEN

SKJFDASFSFSFASDF

IM SO HAPPY WTF THANK YOU SUNRISE SDZFZDSFSFSF

ASDSFTRETRETREGTHRTH

GRTHTRHRTHJYTJT dskjfgslgkpttkp’ewrkt’retw

a

wa

trtereyuu6i76i78itjuyk

that’s it im dead. now i’ve got more reasons to ship yoshiriko

i hope we at least get to see them progress to the nicknames in the later episodes. at least they’re friends now

Looks like I’ll be rewatching this episode for the next two days. My yoshiriko heart has thoroughly been slain. Congrats staff.

[yeah-yeah-beebiss-1]

love live sunshine s2e3 liveblog/thoughts/whatever

this week: we see how yoshiko dies again

wtf chika you’re like spiderman if spiderman shot bad decisions instead of webs

rip in peace shiitake

who the fuck funds and sets up these fucking pop idol tournaments

ruby/hanamaru “get-a-load-of-this-guy-cam”

“wups”

jokes aside, i feel like mari’s english has gotten less wonky since S1

what the fuck chika

is that what the kids are into these days? parasailing fantasies?

i love how ruby’s slowly evolved into a wry little shit over the course of 15 episodes

YEAH MARU GET SOME

oh hey it’s that lady from the original series

the logical conclusion here is that they needed to sneak hanamaru under the table to slap yoshiko’s ass for luck right before she spins the wheel

kanan your emotionally-constipated ass is in no position to be calling people out for being indecisive

“I wish a good idea would pop into my head” how about don’t roll around on the roof you dingus

oh no the chodes who photoshop MAGA hats onto anime girls are gonna have a fucking field day with riko here

SCHOOL IDOL CULB

is that a mikan monorail

oh dear

that girl on the left of the one with the cone looks stoned as shit, i wonder if she gets her weed from nozomi

i’m here for Wholesome Kurosawa Content

aaaaaahhh these costumes are so neat

wait, we’re finally getting the long-awaited ruby center and dia center, and in the same song?

the CGI is getting better even compared to sunshine S1

my mai tonight confirmed for best insert song since mijuku dreamer

SHRED THAT SHIT MARI

...okay, maybe i spoke too soon about the CG

“hi, i’m chika takami, and this is jackass”

jesus christ kanan just snapped a steel handle like it was a pencil

so this is the Happy Party Train the song was referring to

chika you already made a miracle happen in that nobody fucking died

wait are they just reusing stock footage from the kimikoko PV

guess you’ve gotta conserve budget where you can after that my mai tonight insert

okay i can’t say i’m speaking from experience here but i don’t think changing outfits while running is a thing you can do

jesus christ, with the amount of bubbles here, those two girls in the audience blowing them must have lungs of steel

next week: sunrise knows it’s my birthday because we’re finally getting a dia-centric episode

[mejomonster]

So, I’m reading Star Trek Academy Collision Course (I guess cause I’m in too deep), and in a way it’s such a trip because since William Shatner wrote it, these may well be his character headcanons, the things he based his acting performance on (cause really when acting backstory is a huge piece of making things feel real to you). So like, a list of things he thinks of as character accurate: - that Jim has tarsus iv flashbacks (at least when Jim is younger - 100% that spock is capable of lying, learned how so he could investigate shit and accomplish things, and it’s probably likely he kept that skill for his starfleet officer work later on in life - that spock had long fucking hair at 19, presumably his first year at the academy. Long long hair that covered his ears. Apparently kohlinar wasn’t the first time spock grew his hair out. (Aka my own headcanon spock changed his hair a lot pre-enterprise is confirmed). -that the ACTUAL first time kirk and spock meet, the same kirk and spock in love in tos, is when Jim tries to start a bar fight with spock to cause a distraction, but it fails cause spock was up to shady shit and Suprise the guards were actually after him so they both get arrested and handcuffed together, and then promptly Jim flirts, says “kidding” a lot while joking with spock, then once they’re thrown in the back of a police car they finally tell each other their names. So that’s how your boys leaders of the enterprise dorks in love first met? Fucking troublemakers… Breaking the law… meet in a strip club… While being arrested… Get handcuffed together… Wowza. I bet anything bones would have killed to know that, but also I guess that means kirk and spock met before kirk met bones (as far as shatner is concerned). - kirk flirting with 100% everyone, including police, interrogators, bouncers, waiters, to try to leverage situations/be nice is something that started way before the enterprise captaincy. - kirk breaking the law apparently started well before the hacking of the kobayashi Maru (really miraculous that in tos universe kirk somehow gets awarded for his genius hacking there, vs AOS kirk charged with academic fraud) - kirk thinking kisses/sex automatically imply being in love (not super noteworthy but it sure implies he’s got a romantic skew), also thinking orgies/group affection is equally romantic (aka pansexual polyamorous kirk is probably the headcanon shatner has, or at least that kirk is 100% supportive of anyone polyamorous). - not super noteworthy, but spock feels a lot of emotions then gets mad at himself for feeling it (something that carries into who he is in tos). Also while I might personally read spock as interpretable as bi, pan, or gay, id say so far the book definitely has bits that might imply spock is not very attracted to women. Possibly Not At All. - kirk hates authority (which was true in tos actually, and is just reinforced here). - spock meets kirk, because kirk trips and tries to punch him. And as they’re getting arrested Jim asks for help up, and literally 1 minute into knowing picked-a-fight-with-him kirk, spock reaches out and takes his hand to pull him up. This is right after a scene where an unwanted girl keeps trying to touch spocks hand and he desperately tries to prevent her from doing so. Uh, so again I guess, maybe another point for young spock liking men (and trusting kirk really damn fast in my goddamn opinion, for a guy who tried to fight him???).

-also HOW fucking in love with spock must Jim kirk fucking be? Now obviously, the guys into flirting affectionately at EVERYTHING, and loving anyone in a short term way at least to give them some affection and support even if it won't last (it's what he's doing with the short term gf in this book, random strangers, and something true of everyone he's genuinely liked in tos even a little). But uh, does he jump into a relationship with spock right away??? (I don't actually know since I'm only like 50 pages in). But I know in tos, a full 10-15 years after this books timeframe, Jim is horribly unendingly smitten with spock and taking it slower then a tortoise cause spocks a half Vulcan with insecurities around his own feelings, and that culminates in spock BAILING TO TRY TO PURGE ALL EMOTIONS after the 5 year mission, sending kirk into crippling depression and a permanent bad mood until The Motion Picture happens and they act like really bitter exes until they kiss at the end (and presumably married before TWOK, at which point surely it's widely assumed they're together). But like... Fast into relationships kirk... Just fucking likes spock soooooo much... That he's still interested and slowly trying his luck 15ish years later as they serve on the Enterprise together. Like damn, is it even a surprise that kirk would sacrifice absolutely everything in Search for Spock just to honor spocks fucking memory??? Is it any surprise after loving spock so long, that eventually kirk straight up decides overly that to him spock is more important then the many, then any and everything else in the universe? That boy fell in love sooooo fucking hard he... He had no chance... He was gonna be ride or die for life for spock whether spock ever reciprocated or not... Goddamn Jim is so in love...

[arashi-seisai]

Chapter Two: First time Encounters

Disclaimer: I do NOT own InuYasha and all that stuff…..things would have been different if I did . I do own this story line and any and all new characters that will be popping up

A/N: Alright, finally I present Chapter two! Please forgive this poor writer's slowness ;-;

Chapter Two: First Time Encounters

"I….am….going….to…kill….that…cat…" Souta muttered, his voice laced with anger as he pushed himself into a sitting position and laid a hand on his head rubbing in slight pain. Brushing his long bangs from his eyes he glanced around trying to figure out where he was. "Shit….." he muttered under his breath as his eyes were met with wood and climbing plants. 'First I'm going to skin it…..than I'm going to make a nice new bag for Onee-chan….' His internal rant was cut short as he looked up, intending to call him mother to toss down the rope latter. "I….am in so….much trouble…." He breathed as his eyes were not met with the ceiling of the well house…but of clear blue sky and the sun filling the will. He stared, his eyes wide, mind not fully registering what had just happened to him. Slowly he held his hand up, catching a leaf that floated lazily down to him, and then his mind caught up with what had happened. He had just fallen down the well…and it had worked.

Slowly he pushed himself up and brushed himself off and he quickly tried to think of what he was going to do. 'First….I need to get a safe place…..That, CRAP WHAT'S HER NAME?! oh…Kaeda yea….her place should do….' He thought as he examined the wall to try and climb out. Finally he found some good solid foot holds 'Must be Onee-chan's. ' he thought offhandedly as he started climbing carefully. As he climbed he ran through everything that Kagome had ever told him of where everything was. Half way up he had to adjust his weight only now realizing that he still had his backpack slung over his shoulder.

'Alright, I just have to go…..east….no…North….no' Once again, his internal monolog, or as he liked to call it his 'ETERNAL MOVIE!' was cut short as what he was gripping to keep himself to the wall, gave way. With a cry of surprise his arms flailed as he tried with all his might to keep his balance, but it was useless. "SHIT!" he cried out as he felt his body start to fall backwards away from the wall and into air. On instinct he closed his eyes, preparing for the contact with the ground that he was sure was going to hurt.

Suddenly his quick decent was stopped as he was jerked to a halt midair with a grunt of the sudden stop and before he could react any he was pulled upwards and suspended there. "You are unharmed." A deep calm voice said from somewhere in front of him. Slowly he cracked one eye to see who it was. At first all he saw was a mass of white hair and a glint of golden eye. The name 'InuYasha' quickly came to his throat, but died before ever reaching his lips. His 'rescuer's' hair was longer, and more tamed than InuYasha's and his eyes…..his eyes were colder, deadlier and sure as hell more gold than the hanyou he knew so well. On the man's face were a pair of dark, reddish purple stripes that looked more like tattoos. As he quickly studied the man before him he saw that the same marks were on his wrist and over his eyelids, and finally, a crescent moon adorned his forehead. Slowly, and promptly a name flowed through his mind as his eyes scanned the man's attire as well.

"Y-You're Sesshou-maru-sama!" he stammered, swallowing in nervousness. 'Ok Souta….stay calm….focus…..don't let the powerful inuyoukai see how fucking FREAKED OUT YOU ARE!' he shouted in his mind. "Hai." The inuyoukai lord said, raising an eyebrow as his own golden eyes studied the boy.

'He wears strange attire….just like that miko.' He thought off handedly as he looked at the odd haori and hakamas the boy wore.

"Ah…A-Arigatou, Sesshou-maru-sama." He said swallowing and watching the silent lord that held him above the well.

After a long moment Sesshou-maru silently looked at the ningen boy that he held above the empty run down well. A slight frown creased his marble like feature as he discretely sniffed the boy's scent. 'His scent….it's almost just like that onna's! That miko that travels what that bastard brother of mine!' he thought angrily, a low growl pulling from his throat. At the sound of the man growling Souta flinched on instinct but still watched him warily, his eye and face not revealing how terrified he was on the inside. The inuyoukai watched the boy, inwardly bemused at the lack of fear, even though it was obvious.

"SESSHOU-MARU-SAMA! WHERE DID YOU GO M'LORD?!" a young high pitched voice called from the forest around them, causing Souta to start a little and the lord in question to glance to his right.

"I am right here, Rin." He said with an inward sigh, sometimes he took a lot to remember why he kept the loud young ningen onna with him. Turning his gaze back to the boy in his grasp he spoke "Remove all your weapons."

Souta swallowed, gaining strength for his voice "I…I have none m'lord." He said, remembering to add in the honorific, not wanting to be killed just yet.

"Do not lie to me boy." Was the inuyoukai's cold reply, warning etching his words in stone.

"I'm not. I swear I'm not!" he tried to assure the dangerous man before him. Quickly her emptied his pockets, both pants, and jacket. Holding out his hands he showed him that all he had were small things. In his palm lay a few yen, some scraps of paper, two Mars bars, a handkerchief and his house key.

Sesshou-maru blinked and looked at the items. He was able to figure out what the paper was, the square of fabric, though he was confused as to why it was nearly scentless, even the money and key, but the bars of sweet smelling something intrigued him. Souta watched him, seeing that he was examining the chocolate in his hand as he lowered to sit on the lip of the well. "I-It's candy…from my land." He explained lamely as he quickly opened one of them. Sesshou-maru watched him carefully as he moved as he sensed Rin coming closer. Watching with sharp eyes he carefully took the corner the boy had broken off and offered to him. Slowly he sniffed it, checking for poisons before slipping it into his mouth.

Sesshou-maru blinked quickly at the taste of the brown sweet in his mouth, while Souta inwardly prayed that InuYoukais weren't affected by chocolate like regular inus. "It is…..strange." Sesshou-maru admitted finally as the chocolate melted into his mouth.

Souta opened his mouth to speak, but was cut off by a small girl crashing through the brush, causing him to jump slightly. 'I'm going to die from a heart attack if that keeps happening.' He thought ruefully as he watched the small child come up to the tall inuyoukai without even a second thought. "What is that Sesshou-maru? Who is that? Is he my new guard person?" she asked, firing off her questions much too fast for anyone to answer them. But upon examining the taiyoukai's face, he didn't seem to mind.

"It is sweets. And the rest has yet to be seen." Sesshou-maru said calmly, unaffected by her hyper too fast questions. In his cold eyes, if one knew where to look, they would see how he was calculating the situation that had been presented to him. By scent he could tell that this boy was a relative of that miko onna, and maybe, just maybe, he could use this to his advantage.

As the white haired inuyoukai thought Rin approached the lanky boy on the side of the well. "Good Morning. What's your name? Mine's Rin!" she said cheerfully, giving him a toothy smile. Souta blinked and looked down at her before giving her a small smile.

"Good morning….I'm Higurashi, Souta. You can call me Souta." He said as he leaned forward, his arms resting on his knees. Rin smiled brightly and Souta was taken aback at how everything actually did seem brighter when she smiled like that. It was something he never saw in his time. A smile of pure and utter innocence.

Slowly he smiled back. "It's a pleasure to meet you Rin-kun." He said gently. Rin smiled at him, rocking on her heels.

"What's that?" she asked sweetly, her dark eyes on the open candy bar in his lap, the handkerchief spread out under it. Souta blinked, having totally forgotten about it while he watched her and made sure not to make any fast movements around the ever watching inyoukai.

"Oh, this is sweets from my land….." he said as he broke a square off and held it out to her. "Be careful, it'll melt." He warned as she took it. She looked at him with wide eyes.

"Like a candle?!" she said as she sniffed at him. He gave a small chuckle.

"Hai…kinda like a candle, but tasty." He said rubbing the back of his neck. 'This could be a bad idea…..' he thought as he watched her wide eyes grow wider and her face light up as she stuck the square into her mouth.

----------

"Boy, why are covered in the scent of the miko onna that travels with the hanyou InuYasha." Sesshou-maru suddenly questioned, causing both young ningen's to look up at him. Souta stared at him for a moment before slowly answering, confirming what Sesshou-maru already knew.

"She is Onee-chan, m'lord." He said politely as he looked up at him.

"YOU'RE KAGOME-NEE-CHAN'S OTUKO-SAN?!" Rin cried excitedly as she looked up at him happily. Sesshou-maru looked down at him young ward and gave an inward sigh at the sight of her somehow messy face. 'How did she create such a large mess with such a small object?' he thought ruefully. As her hands came up to wipe her mouth with her kimono sleeve he caught her hands, kneeling slowly before her.

"Jaken." He called, not needing to raise his voice.

"Hai, Sesshou-maru-sama!" the green toad youkai said as he scurried to his master's side from the bushes, Souta making a disgusted face at the sight of him.

'I must remember to kill him for allowing Rin to go through the forest alone.' He thought to himself. "A cloth." He ordered in a calm tone.

"Hai!" Jaken said as he fished out an expensive silk cloth to wipe her face with. Sesshou-maru eyed the cloth some, having an odd feeling that whatever it was covering the young child's mouth, would ruin the cloth.

"Here…." He glanced up some as the ningen boy knelt in the grass, his odd straight black haori's clashing sharply with the emerald of it. Carefully Souta wiped Rin's face and hands clean with his handkerchief. "There you go, all clean." He said with a smile as he folded it some and shoved it in his back pocket.

"Arigato Souta-chan, are you really Kagome-nee-chan's otuko-san?" she asked in wonder looking up at him. He gave her a nod and smile

"Hai, I am. And I can tell you…." He paused for effect, pretending to look around "She snores." At this Rin burst into a fit of giggles.

"You're that baka wench's otouko-san?!" Jaken squawked as he looked at Souta in disgust, as if he was tarnished just by being near him. At this Souta's leg darted out, swiftly going between the space that was there between Sesshou-maru and Rin, the rest of his body crouched and balanced. His foot connected with the toad's face harshly sending him flying back. Silently Souta slid his leg back under him glaring at Jaken.

"Never, call my onee-chan that, or speak of her in such a way, her name is Higurashi, Kagome." He said icily.

Sesshou-maru look at the ningen as he stood, Rin going to see if Jaken was alive. The boy remained crouched watching. 'Hai, this ningen could prove very useful…'

A/N: Yay! The end of chapter two! And what do you know, Sesshy and Rin have had sugar!

[pod7]

Summer Anime* 2017 Lightning Review

*Just the shows I watched, of course

I’m leaving out shows that I dropped, so if you remember me talking about a show but it’s not listed here, I was either bored by it or just didn’t enjoy it anymore after a certain point, and that’s really all there is to say~!

Shows Included: 18if, Action Heroine Cheer Fruits, Aho Girl, Boku no Hero Academia 2nd Season, Centaur no Nayami, Classroom of the Elite, Clione no Akari, Gamers!, Hajimete no Gal, Isekai Shokudou, Kakegurui, Keppeki Danshi! Aoyama-kun, Knight’s & Magic, Koi to Uso, Made in Abyss, Nana Maru San Batsu, New Game!!,  Nobunaga no Shinobi: Ise Kanegasaki-hen, Pokemon Sun & Moon, Princess Principal, Teekyuu 9, Tenshi no 3P!, Tsurezure Children, 

Reminder that there are spoilers in the reviews below

18if I didn’t quite get what they were trying for with this show until about half-way through. This felt like more of an excuse to explore and experiment stylistically than to actually tell a story at most times, but because of that it got to tell lots of varied and unusual-for-anime stories, including an episode exploring the culture of the hearing impaired/deaf population of Japan, which was really cool. The ending just ended up being kind of wank, but since there wasn’t really that big of a reveal set up, it wasn’t that disappointing. If you want to see some interesting visual styles and some cool Twilight Zone style reveals, you might give this show a shot. 7/10

Action Heroine Cheer Fruits This was quietly one of the better shows of the season. It had the same framework story-wise as Love Live; girls end up banding together to save a building from being demolished and help support the town by buying into the newest fad sweeping the nation. Only instead of idol groups, it’s “local heroes”, live stage shows portraying sentai and superhero like characters beating villains with the goods and virtues representing the town they’re from. The girls are all really cute, even the really cliché ojou-sama~ Shimura had her moments. I will also give this show all the praise in the world for not only including a handicapped character but also making her a central figure to the plot. The ending of the finale where she is included in the show after working behind the scenes for so long tugged on my heart strings a bit. Plus, there is a not so vague relationship between Misaki and Roko, with Roko probably being my favorite character in the show. It’s not as moe as Love Live and the comedy isn’t as quality as something like Yuru Yuri or Wakaba Girl, but it’s still a great show. 9/10

Aho Girl The comedy reminded me of a mixture of Saiki-kun and Plustic Nee-san; very off the wall slapstick kind of stuff, but still really clever and you could tell there was a lot of love put into this show. I don’t know that I would say I laughed the most while watching this show this season (more on that later), but I would say it’s the comedy of the season for sure. Was really easy to forget the episodes were only 12 minutes long because it was just jam-packed with gags. Definitely a must watch for 2017. 10/10 Boku no Hero Academia 2nd Season I definitely feel like the girl characters are getting more screen time in season 2, which is always good. I still don’t see what people see in Bakugo, even after reading ahead in the manga, I don’t feel like his attitude is “redeemed” or “explained” much at all. Hero Killer Stain definitely stole the show; he’s so grungy and RAW, and Go Inoue delivers Stain’s final lines so passionately he almost had me convinced he was the real deal. Like I said earlier, I’ve read ahead, so some of the moments to come are exciting, but there are also some that I can feel will take up waaay too much time, or even have filler put in, which I’m not looking forward to as shounen manga stretches things out enough as it is. Will certainly get another season, it’s so popular it would be stranger for it to not get a third one. 7/10

Centaur no Nayami It’s been a while since I have read the manga, but I feel like they got many of the voices down exactly the way I imagined them. However, it also felt like there was a lot of stuff that was anime-original, or at least were out of order. As much as I can remember, this was the only anime this season with a confirmed-in-show homosexual couple, and while the explanation to the kids in the scene left a lot to be desired, considering the overlying theme of “zero-tolerance tolerance” towards discrimination, felt kind of odd, and felt like maybe the studio made it a little more conservative than it was in the manga. It was a shame that a lot of the everyday life moments from the manga were cut out in favor of more tropes per minute. What I’m trying to say is that while the show is good, it isn’t the best representation of the manga that it could have been in my opinion. 8/10

Classroom of the Elite This show was almost trash, but was saved by the revelation of Ayanokoji’s true self at the very end. Right as Horikita is seemingly spilling her tsundere guts out to him as well. This, in a similar vein to Kakegurui, was really unintentionally comedic to me. There was zero tension at all, mostly because you could see where it was going in most cases. I think it was a bit cheap to have the solution to how Ayanokoji would win the survival test come from a rule they never mentioned about the classes losing points for guessing other class leaders wrong. It would be like having a multiple choice question A/B/C/D and then saying the answer was E. I also think Kushida was a dud. Every time she tried to buddy up or get closer to Ayanokoji, I kept waiting for him to say “At the risk of you blackmailing me again, I agree.” Especially when she asked him who would he choose between her and Horikita it’s like... gee, do I pick the super effective mark I just procured or the girl who has blackmail on me and is asking me this? I wonder... A show that thinks very highly of itself unjustly. 5/10 

Clione no Akari This was kind of bizarre series; it was pretty obvious from the beginning that a certain character would die or was already dead. It felt like a series aimed at like 10 year olds, in an effort to teach them about bullying through entertainment. I don’t really have much to say about it, it had an obvious message with a miserable ending, I’d say pass on it. 5/10 Gamers! I’m not as enamored with this series as most people seem to be, but it has it’s charms to be sure. Karen and Aguri are really great, and in a close third Uehara-kun, but I’m not a fan of Chiaki and Keita, which is kind of bad considering they are the ones we’re meant to be rooting for. I was also pretty shocked at how well received this was considering it is almost entirely a love-pentagon rom-com; any other series with a love triangle or more seems to be met with “ugh, why does this shit have to be in here.” I suppose if it’s meant to be poking fun at the trope as a whole, then I can see it, but if that’s the case then it was so blunt I immediately dismissed it as being too likely to be the case. Karen is probably my fav in the show, and I was kind of annoyed that the rest of the actual game club didn’t really show up much at all despite the early hype for each member. Aguri is a late favorite, mostly because of how she was in the finale; a person who genuinely doesn’t understand the appeal of video games but is still willing to hang out with gamers and tease them about gaming’s darker sides. 8/10 Hajimete no Gal This was basically what I thought Galko-chan was going to be, but it also had it’s own uniqueness to it. The show knew what it was, and didn’t take itself too seriously, but wasn’t a slouch either; it made an effort to make the characters get to know each other and come together somewhat organically, considering how big the cast was. Obviously I’m drawn to Eri Kitamura’s Ranko; the misunderstood childhood friend with a gay crush on her best friend beating up any guys that try to get in her way is something I can get behind as a protagonist, let alone a side character. I think this show is actually more interesting censored than uncensored because they did it creatively and on-theme instead of just mysterious beams of light or clouds of steam. A fun show if you don’t mind sex comedies. 9/10

Isekai Shokudou The “comfy” show of the season to be sure. A great lesson in evolving narrative as well; it starts of with seemingly one off stories each week, but begins to intertwine the stories of the patrons that come along, which was done quite well. The only real problem with it is that, it’s called a western restaurant multiple times in the show, but almost everything they serve is Japanese; it was a real missed opportunity to introduce food from around the world to the Japanese audience, who would be able to relate even more to the bewildered fantasy characters coming to eat every seven days. That being said, if you just want to relax and enjoy something really just pleasant, or need to make yourself hungry, too, this is the show for you. 10/10 highly recommended 

Isekai wa Smartphone to Tomo ni It’s kind of a misleading title, to be honest; it’s meant to convey how powerful his smartphone is in this new fantasy land devoid of most technology, but it’s actually more that God gave him affinity to all elements that makes the protagonist so OP. If that wasn’t enough, he can also learn all null magic, which is meant to be like character specific spells... He doesn’t even have to be taught them, he just have to read about them in a book and he can use it, which is crazy ridiculous in any other show, but because you are expecting him to be over-powered from the start, it’s actually quite enjoyable, in my opinion. The harem stuff was tedious but at least they acknowledged that a) in a medieval setting and time period polygamy being normal makes sense and b) protagonist is still holding on to his previous world and life’s customs of monogamy, and won’t commit to marrying all of them, not yet, anyway. I don’t know that I’d watch a second season of this to be honest. It would have to go one of two ways; either an actual challenge shows up, or he ends up similar to One Punch Man, and begins working on a way to go home or something. 8/10

Kakegurui I said earlier that Aho Girl is comedy of the season, but that I didn’t laugh at it the most this season. This show (and another) would be the reason behind that. I don’t know if I’m just too jaded for it or what but the fact that this show was billed as “psychological” slays me. How anyone could take any of these characters or situations seriously, in the most obvious hentai setting on the planet, is beyond me. The style and animation was all ready pretty and well done, as were the expressions. It’s hard not to compare it to Prison School visually. My main complaint would be that Yumeko isn’t fleshed out enough; they tried to make her this force of nature type character but so was the student council president, who was far more mysterious (naturally), so she just ended up feeling underdeveloped. Since this probably won’t get a second season, I would have liked for the finale to be more in jeopardy by having the second to last episode end with the “president” denying Yumeko’s challenge with a smile, which would have been devastating to Yumeko. If you would like an edgy version of over the top characters rivaling the Phoenix Wright series that take themselves a bit too seriously, you might give it a watch. It’s hysterical. 7/10

Keppeki Danshi! Aoyama-kun I’ll be brief about this one; it’s basically Sakamoto Desu ga, Tanaka-kun wa Itsumo Kedaruge, and DAYS!! mixed together. Make of that what you will. I loved the coach and the girls’ basketball star character. 7/10

Knight’s & Magic FINALLY another mecha show I can get into! Just had to make it wizardy and junk, I guess. Another show this season where the protag is OP and it ends up being just fine, honestly. A slight complaint would be that they bother to mention how much time passes between scenes multiple times, some of which are “many months” long, yet none of the characters visibly change with time. It kind of reminded me a bit of Arslan, in some ways. I would have liked to see more about the mysterious race that guards the secrets to the mech engines as well. If you’re only kind of sorta into mecha like me and want something different, this is a great show just for you! 9/10

Koi to Uso Really should have dropped this one, but there was just a glimmer of hope now and then that this would actually have an ending. It didn’t though, and now I feel like I wasted six hours of my life. There wasn’t even any big reveal in the finale that would be a hook to get me to read the rest of the story, just “he loves both and well I guess that’s it.” I liked how genuinely awkward the protagonist was; these days in anime they’ll say the protagonist is weird, otaku, awkward, but then he’ll be the least nerdy of his friends, or “borderline weird”, which when he’s with his friends makes him look normal (see Hajimete no Gal), which defeats the purpose. The guy friend who was in love with the protagonist was really interesting, and it felt like they didn’t do enough to make it feel like he would ever actually confess. The show isn’t particularly funny or poignant either, it’s just kind of there. The thing I will remember most about this show is that it had a catchy opening theme. 4/10

Made in Abyss It’s a crying shame that this isn’t a 24 episode season; who knows how long it will be until a second season, though apparently it’s pretty likely to happen. Don’t let the cute characters and pleasant background masterpiece artwork full you; there is some pretty gnarly shit in this show, particularly Mitty, a formerly-human blob of body parts that is functionally immortal, despite her friend Nanachi’s best efforts to put her out of her misery. You get to see, fully on screen, how this 10 year old became a puddle of skin, or basically the eldritch version of a pokemon. It’s fucked up. I honestly had to look away. Still, it’s a great adventure show filled with real peril and very, very dire consequences. My favorite character was Ozen because of how creepy she is but also I love her voice, it stands out from every other voice in the show. 10/10 must watch

Nana Maru San Batsu I have participated in quiz bowl in the past, but it was never this hardcore, yet still managed to have the elitist bullshit attitudes, so I wasn’t too sure I was going to like this one. However, Mari Fukami and Akira Sonohara kept me around. It’s rare to see a girl in a setting like this that is shown to have earnest and ambition separate from revenge; sure, she wants to redeem quiz bowl for her brother so she can play him again, but in general she just really loves it and wants to be better at it. Akira is fantastic, I empathize with them (for the sake of brevity, gender neutral pronouns will be used) on a lot of levels when it comes to games. Whenever I play canasta with my family, they just want to play to the bottom of the draw pile, which, when you want to play multiple games, can take HOURS, so I started playing where I would keep all of my cards in my hand, and then “go out” all at once to end the round. They stopped asking me to play because of it, but it sure was fun to throw a wrench into things while still “playing the game”. Also, Akira is really cute, I really loved the side ponytail wig. ANYWAY, I had low expectations, but this turned out to be pretty good, though there were some points I was skimming through. 8/10

New Game!! Anime of the season. I just can’t get enough of these ladies and their interpersonal dynamics. While things were once again switched around from the manga, it still feels very much like its right off the page, and a lot of that has to do with the fact that Shoutarou Tokunou, the creator of the manga, sat in on script meetings and even wrote the script for some episodes! Which is pretty unheard of I think. He even started bringing a tablet with the script on it to make changes to the script on the fly. I’m really torn on the ending; they just about all but said Rin and Ko are lovers, which was actually more than what happened in the manga, but didn’t pull the trigger. I also feel like Ko leaving is a hell of a cliffhanger, especially considering the anime is basically caught up to the manga already. Tokunou has said that Ko’s time in France will be included in the next volume, so maybe in a couple years there could be a third season? That’s being greedy though; it got a second season, and I was already reading the manga before the anime so continuing to read it won’t be an issue. I just love them so much. 10/10 highest recommendation

Nobunaga no Shinobi: Ise Kanegasaki-hen Continues to be one of the better short form series I’ve ever seen. The comedy is always extremely clever and the historical accounts and the sarcastic take on such revered figures is always great to see. If you are interested in the time period or Nobunaga specifically but don’t take them too seriously you should really be already watching this. 9/10

Pokemon Sun & Moon I haven’t been this into Pokemon for a LOOONG time, and it is 100% to do with this series I think. It’s just so fun and energetic, there’s no world-ending threat (yet), the kids are all just hanging out and discovering new Pokemon stuff together. Lillie is of course the show stealer, and it would be great to see her travel as a full time companion with Ash eventually, since she essentially leaves at the end of Sun/Moon games to become a Pokemon master, just like Ash. I may have missed about 400 episodes of the series, but I don’t remember ever seeing any of the companions as like an apprentice to Ash, so that would be a new take for the series to use I think. I said Lillie steals the show, but Musahi/Jessie is still my number one gal; she is outstanding in this season, and is honestly becoming one of my favorite animated characters ever. Which covers a lot of ground. I know some people are down on the character design and over-exaggerated reactions, but I think, like the Sun/Moon games did for the game series, this was the breath of fresh air that the series needed to stay relevant. Continues!

Princess Principal The finale felt really flat/anticlimactic. They are definitely planning on a second season, or some way to extend the story like a game, which hurt it in my opinion by leaving too many things open-ended. Also seemed really hackneyed to have Princess and Ange just immediately back to lovey-dovey mode, despite Princess telling Ange to never let her see her again after a pretty hardcore betrayal. A begrudging thank you from Princess after being saved and a stern re-establishment of their relationship as mutually beneficial rather than romantic (or extremely platonic) that would build back up to it’s previous height in a continued story setting seems like it would have been a better choice. Best girl was Dorothy easily, for me. She seemed the most like a spy out of the whole group, and was kind of the Dick Grayson to Ange’s Batman; for raw ability she may be a bit behind Ange, but Dorothy has the heart and the willpower to really become a legend in the game, while holding the group together. Even though the show felt like it fell on it’s face at the end, the rest of it was crazy good, especially the episode where they confront the double agent and former classmate. 8/10

Teekyuu 9 Speechless. How do you describe perfection. Mandatory viewing. 10/10

Tenshi no 3P! Despite the pedo alarm sounding on nearly a weekly basis for this show, it ended up not being too bad. It was kind of like Ryo-Kyu-Bu but if all of the girls were professional level athletes already. To be able to play like that at age 7 or 8, and “not know what to do” with it seems really silly, but it’s more of a story about dragging the protag out of his room after becoming a shut-in from bullying. I feel like in the end the protag will end up with the age appropriate older sister, but then again I thought that way with Usagi Drop and Listen to Me Girls! I am Your Father! so who knows where this will go. Not to a second season, most likely. 6/10

Tsurezure Children I’m sure many people on tumblr were aware of this series without actually know the title, so it was nice to see it make the rounds every week with a decent amount of popularity. There’s not really one couple I would pin down as my favorite, it’s all just really clever gag writing that is couple with great visuals, another great short form series. 9/10