#me and my mum were talking about Pokémon plushies

[moron-hassaikai-and-more]

Magne: -yeah I’ve spent more on smaller things.

Spinner: you have?

Magne: yes. Yeah the uh-…purple Galarian things

Spinner, laughing: indeedee?

Magne: yeah!

Spinner, still laughing: I hate that I knew what you meant straight away, there are so many purple galarian Pokémon!

Magne: *laughing as well*

[pinkhairandpokemon]

♘ - a memory of their sibling (for Hop :3)

———

The memory starts out in a dark room.

You can see a young boy with long, violet hair, scrolling through what looks like a tablet of some kind, the pale light illuminating his face. In the corner of the room, you can see a dim orange light, emitting from the tail of a small Charmander curled up on a round Pokémon bed.

Leon’s eyelids are visibly drooping, and he seems about ready to put his tablet down and crash for the night- until the click of his bedroom door makes him raise his head.

A tiny figure shuffles into the room. It’s Hop- who looks maybe about four or five- clutching a fluffy Wooloo plush close to his chest and wearing a blue onesie.

Leon raises a brow, sitting on the edge of his bed as his little brother approaches him. There’s worry on his face once he notices the toddler is sniffling, burying his face in the back of his plush.

“Hopscotch?” Lee says, opening out his arms to his brother. “What are you doing out of bed?”

“I-I had a nightmare,” Hop cries, quickly rushing into the older boy’s arms. Leon scoops him up with ease, setting him on the bed beside him and keeping a comforting arm around his shoulder.

“Hey, hey, it’s okay,” Leon gently shushes him, hugging the boy close. “It was just a dream. Do you wanna talk ‘bout it?”

“You- you-” Hop hiccups and fumbles over his words between sobs. “I dreamed that- that- that you left on your journey- and- and you got lost and never came back- and people were saying a big, mean Pokémon ate you-”

“What?” Leon chuckled lightly, comfortingly ruffling his brother’s hair. “C’mon Hop, you know that’d never happen.”

“B-But- But-” Hop clutched tightly onto his brother’s Charizard-themed t-shirt. “You’re really bad with di-directions and get lost all the time!”

“Okay, that’s true,” Leon admitted, sheepishly rubbing the back of his head. “But, I’ll have Charmander with me when I go-” As if on cue, the tiny Fire-type lizard crawled across the floor and sat at Leon’s feet, looking up at him and his younger brother with round, cerulean eyes. Leon leaned down to give the reptile a gentle scratch on the head. “So no matter how lost I get, with this chap by my side, I’ll always find m’ way back.”

Leon lifted Charmander into his arms, being mindful of its tail flame as he set it down on his lap. The small fire lizard gave Hop a curious sniff, before sticking its forked tongue out and gently licking his tear-stained cheek. The small boy giggled, setting down his plushie to give Charmander light scratches on the side of its scaly face.

“You gotta take good care of Lee when he goes away, okay Charmander? You can’t let any monsters eat him or kidnap him!” he told the orange reptile firmly, and it responded with a soft croon and a nod, nuzzling its warm snout against his tiny hand.

“I promise that once I set out from Wedgehurst, I’ll video call you and mum every night, okay?” Leon swore, giving his little brother another reassuring, soft pat on the head. “I’ll tell you all about the adventures me and Charmander go on, and you can even watch us sweep the floor in our gym matches on the telly!”

Now that the young boy was calm, Leon stood up and hoisted him into his arms, moving towards the door to take him back to his room. Charmander followed close behind, his tail providing enough light to see through the dark hallway.

“You’re gonna be on the telly?” Hop asked, gold eyes wide with wonder.

“Yep!” Leon slid open the door to Hop’s room as quietly as possible. He placed his little brother down on the small bed that was just big enough for him, and tucked the blanket over him. “How about this- you promise to watch my battles and cheer me on, and I promise to not get lost.”

“Okay, I promise!” Hop replied, tugging his blanket up to his chin.

“Good,” Leon chuckled, giving his brother one last pat on the shoulder and tucking his Wooloo plush in with him before standing back up. “If you need anything else, just come get me.”

“Night night, Lee…” Hop mumbled sleepily, yawning before nestling into his pillow, his plushie wrapped securely in his tiny arms.

As Leon turned to leave the room, Charmander at his side, he looked back and smiled fondly at the sight of his little brother beginning to doze off.

“Good night, Hopscotch.”

The memory ends with him closing the door quietly, the light from Charmander’s tail flame fading out.

———

[megan-loves-surveys]

#38.

1) What is your favorite room of your living space? Why? My room, cos all my stuff is in it.

2) What do you wear when you are lounging at home? Depends on the time of the year - in summer I wear shorts and tank tops, in winter comfy pants and a sweatshirt or hoodie.

3) Do you sleep with one blanket or many blankets? I have a duvet and that's it, anything more and I'd sweat to death no matter what time of year it is.

4) Slippers or socks? I get super cold feet so I always have big fluffy winter socks and ugg boots on in the colder weather. Sometimes (like right now) even that's not enough and they're still cold :/

5) What do you do right before you go to sleep? I set my Pokémon Sleep app to sleep mode to track it xD

6) Do you fall asleep right away, or do you need something to help you sleep? like music, drugs, sex….: It has to be quiet, if I can hear people talking or music somewhere I won't be able to fall asleep. And it has to be not too warm, I sleep far better in winter than in the summer.

7) What is the FIRST thing you do when you wake up? Look at what time it is.

8) Breakfast or no breakfast? Depends.

9) What do you usually have for breakfast, if you do at all? Toast or cereal/muesli.

10) Do you watch t.v. in the morning? Cartoons or news? No, I'll usually just put on a YouTube video of some sort.

11) Shower or bath? Shower

12) Do you make the bed every morning, or just leave it? I make it cos I have loads of plushies that I need to set up on it xD

13) What helps you get going in the morning? Just getting out of bed and getting ready.

14) Do you set an alarm or wake up another way? Alarm, but most of the time I wake up naturally before it even goes off. The only time it actually wakes me up is when I've been super tired.

15) Do you have any rituals you perform before you leave your home for the day? Not really.

name: Megan. birthdate: July 13. birthplace: Auckland. current location: Auckland. hair color/eye color: Blue & purple / green. height: 5'3". boyfriend/girlfriend?: Yep, together for 2 years. siblings?: None. living arrangements: I live with my Mum, but my boyfriend and I live on the same street xD pets: None.

[ <> * % # CURRENTLY <> * % # ]

date: June 28, 2024. time: 3:39pm. hair: It's just down. listening to: Ayumi Hamasaki - I am... (Acoustic Orchestra Version) on tv: It's on downstairs but I dunno what's on. talking to: My Mum, she's in the hallway nearby cleaning the cupboard, lol. # of people on buddylist: - cd in player: I'm shuffling a playlist. people in your house: 2. makeup: None.

1. What is your Name: Megan.

2. What color pants are you wearing right now? Black.

3. What are you listening to right now? The above Ayu song, it has 1:30 left to go cos it's 5:42 lol.

4. Do you wear pajamas to bed? Yes, when it's cold.

5. What was the last thing you ate: Yoghurt.

6. If you were a crayon what color would you be: Purple.

7. How is the weather right now: It was sunny before, but the sun is gone now, it's dull. It's also quite cold.

8. Last person you talked to on the phone? Someone at work.

9. The first thing you notice about the opposite sex? Their face.

10. Do you like the person who sent this to you: -

11. How are you today: I'm good, it's a public holiday so no work.

12. Favorite Drink: Water or Starbucks frappe.

13. Favorite Alcoholic drink: Jim Beam or Malibu.

14. Favorite Sport(s): Wrestling.

15. Hair Color: Blue & purple.

16. Eye Color: Green.

17. Do you wear contacts: No, I have glasses.

18. Siblings: None.

19. Favorite Month: July.

20. Favorite Food? Mac & cheese.

21. Last Movie you Watched: Hmm... not sure.

22. Favorite Day of the Year: Christmas Day.

23. Are You too shy to ask someone out: Depends.

24. Summer or Winter: Summer.

25. Hugs or Kisses: Both.

26. Chocolate or Vanilla: Chocolate.

27. Something nice about the person who sent this: -

[ Infos ] Name: Megan. Do you like it?: Not really. Nicknames: Mox Girl, MG, Mox, Moxxy/Moxie, Shorty, Meg. Age: 36. Birthday: July 13. Sign: Cancer. Location: NZ. Status: Taken. Crush: My boyfriend and Jon Moxley lol. Virgin?: No. Natural hair color: Blonde. Current hair color: Blue & purple. Eye color: Green. Height: 5'3". Birthplace: NZ. Shoe size: 5. Bra size: 16D lol.

[ Family ] Parents: Margaret & Mike. Siblings: None. Live with: My Mum. Favorite relative: My Mum & Dad equally.

[ Favorites ] Number: 13. Color: Purple. Day: Saturday. Month: July. Song: Right now it's Angelina Mango - La Noia. Movie(s): Hmm. Food: Mac & cheese. Band: Five or Blue. Season: Summer. Sport(s): Wrestling. Class: Computers/IT. Teacher: - Drink(s): Water & Starbucks frappes. Veggie: Potatoes. TV Show: Raw, Smackdown, Dynamite, Big Bang Theory etc. Radio Station: - Store: Converse outlet store. Word: Online, it's probably "lol" or "lmao" xD Animal: Cats. Flower: Tulips. State: NY.

[ This Or That ] Me/You: You, cos you're saying that so that means me lol. Coke/pepsi: Coke. Day/night: Night. Aol/aim: This survey was made like 20 years ago, wasn't it? LOL. Cd/cassette: CD. Dvd/vhs: DVD. Jeans/khakis: Jeans. Car/truck: Car. Tall/short: Tall for guys, short for me. Lunch/dinner: Both. NSYNC/BSB: BSB, but I like *NSYNC too. Britney/Christina: Britney, but Christina is great too. Gap/Old Navy: Old Navy. Lipstick/Lipgloss: Lipgloss. Silver/Gold: Silver. Alcohol/Weed: Alcohol, I don't smoke weed.

[ Love and Relationships ] Do you have a bf/gf?: Yes. Do you have a crush?: Yes. How long have you liked him/her?: Years. If you're single…why are you single?: - How long was your longest relationship?: Over 2 years. How long was your shortest relationship?: 9 months. Who was your first love?: My boyfriend. What do you miss about them?: He's still with me xD

[ The Past ] What is the one thing you would change about your life: I wish I had money to travel and go to wrestling events. What is the biggest mistake you've made in your life?: Hmm. Last thing you heard: A song starting. Last thing you saw: Discord. Last thing you said: "Oh" to my Mum, cos she was saying something about looking for something and it was right in front of her lol. Who is the last person you saw?: My Mum. Who is the last person you kissed?: My boyfriend. Who is the last person you hugged?: My boyfriend. Who is the last person you fought with?: Not sure, prob some random at work. What is the last song you heard?: Atomic Kitten - Nothing In The World

[ The Present ] What are you wearing?: Black yoga pants and a purple Seth Rollins sweatshirt. Oh, and winter fluffy socks and ugg boots. What are you doing?: This survey, listening to music and posting on Discord. Who are you talking to?: Nobody at the moment cos my Mum went back downstairs lol. What song are you listening to?: 愛し子よ- ルルティア Where are you?: In my room. Who are you with?: My Mum is downstairs. Are you online?: Of course. How are you feeling?: Alright. Are you in a chatroom?: No.

[ Future ] What day is it tomorrow?: Saturday. What are you going to do after this?: Prob go play something on Steam. Who are you going to talk to?: Depends. Where are you going to go?: I might go see my boyfriend later. How old will you be when you graduate?: I already did, years ago. What do you wanna be?: Hmm. What is one of your dreams?: To travel. Where will you be in 25 years?: Who knows.

[ Have You Ever ] Drank?: Yes. Smoked?: Cigarettes, yes. Weed, no. Had sex?: Of course. Stolen?: No. Done anything illegal?: Probably. Wanted to die?: No. Hit someone?: Jokingly, yes lol.

[ Other ] Do you write in cursive or print?: No clue. Are you a lefty or a righty?: Lefty. What is your sexual preference?: Bi. What piercings do you have?: None. Do you drive?: I have my learner's, but that's about it. Do you have glasses or braces?: Glasses. Did you like this survey?: Sure.

[ Physical Appearance ] What do you most like about your body?: My hair and my boobs. And least?: My stomach. How many fillings do you have?: None. Do you think you're good looking?: I'm average. Do other people often tell you that you're good-looking?: Not often, but it happens lol. Do you look like any celebrities?: Not really.

[ Fashion ] Do you wear a watch?: I have a FitBit if that counts. How many coats and jackets do you own?: No coats, but I own a leather jacket and a bunch of hoodies. Favorite pants/skirt color?: Black, blue or purple. Most expensive item of clothing: If shoes count, then my Converse collection. I have almost 20 pairs xD Most treasured?: Of my clothes? Again, Converse if shoes count. Otherwise, my entire wrestling shirt collection cos a lot of them you can't buy anymore. What kind of shoes do you wear?: Converse lol - the only time I don't wear them is at work where I wear heels and when it's super hot, cos then I'll break out the flip flops instead xD Describe your style in one word: Casual.

[broccoliboix5peepeeman]

Can I request a platonic traffic light trio/Kiri🟥Kami⚡Deku🥦? Like,🥦is going out w/ friends.🟥⚡Simply wished🥦's hangout to go well & then off to do their own thing. But when🥦is back, he's in tears. Turns out,🥦's "friends" are still the same bullies they were back in🥦's school days. 🟥⚡Being the good, true friends & best bros they are, proceed to provide🥦w/ a very much needed comfort, reassurance & support. (For context, this is a Quirkless AU where 🟥⚡🥦are college roommates) TY ILYSM

Ohmigosh yesssss!! (sorry this took so long) _

'Hey, Mido-bro! Going somewhere fancy?' Eijirou paused his game of Mario kart to turn and look over at his flatmate.

'Yeah! I must say you're looking absolutely Gucci today, my good man.' Denki agreed, wiggling his eyebrows suggestively. 'Ten out of ten would bang.'

'Kaminari-kun, stop!' Midoriya squeaked, hiding his blushing face in his arms. 'You don't mean that and anyway, It's not a big deal!'

Eijirou looked him up and down, before raising an eyebrow. Midoriya was wearing a green suit that matched his hair; the top buttons of his shirt were open - he had likely given up on trying to fix his tie and discarded it - showing enough of his chest to make a simple man like Eijirou swoon. Even the chunky red shoes were endearing…

In a certain light.

'Bro, you are looking manly as heck! What's the occasion?'

Midoriya slowly lowered his arms until they were in front of him. He tapped his fingertips together and looked away, almost embarrassed.

'A few friends from school are in town and they wanted to meet up at that fancy restaurant downtown.' He laughed nervously. 'I'm probably gonna just get garlic bread or something because it's super expensive, but yeah. I think it'll be fun.'

'That's great, man!' Denki flashed him a bright smile. 'I went there for a date once and let me tell you, the garlic bread?' He blew a chef's kiss. 'Très magnifique!'

'Yeah, but he can't just have garlic bread!' Eijirou looked at him, scandalised. 'Mido-bro is our resident beefy boy and needs more than bread to sustain him!'

'Kirishima-kun, it's okay-'

Eijirou dug his hand in his pocket and pulled out two 10,000¥ notes. Both Denki and Midoriya stared at him with wide eyes, but Eijirou just shrugged and held the money out to Midoriya.

'Treat yourself, dude!' He smiled, but his friend shook his head.

'No, no! I couldn't possibly!' He exclaimed, frantically waving his hands in front of him. 'That's way too much money!'

'It's fine, really.' When Midoriya remained apprehensive, Eijirou got up from the sofa and physically placed the notes into his friend's hand. 'Have fun, Midoriya.'

'I'll pay you back!'

'No, you won’t!' He sang. ‘It’s on me.’

'But-'

Before they could start bickering, the blaring sound of Mario Kart's Coconut Mall started blasting from the TV and Eijirou whipped around with a shocked cry.

'DENKIIIII!!!'

His friend turned to smirk at him, albeit his eyes flashed knowingly and in an instant, Eijirou realised the reason behind it. Anger and betrayal turned into awe.

Oh Denki, you beautiful specimen of manhood! 

With a grin, he ran forward, leapt over the sofa and bounced onto a cushion, before picking up his controller and racing to catch up.

Several minutes passed before the door behind them shut quietly, signalling that Midoriya had left. The two of them then smiled knowingly and bumped shoulders.

'Yo, man! Can you lend me 20,000¥ too?'

'Sure, bro- Wait… What for?'

'I wanna get more Pokémon plushies.'

Oh…' He thought about it. 'Sure!'

🔴🟡🟢

Denki wasn't sure exactly when he fell asleep on Eijrou's shoulder, but he was definitely sure of how much it had hurt when the two of them woke with a start and bashed their heads together when the front door slammed shut.

He rubbed his forehead and groaned as they both turned around to find Midoriya in the doorway, illuminated only by the light of the glaring TV. His friend didn't seem to notice them though, too wrapped up in his own mind as he fell back against the wall and slid down onto the floor.

'Midoriya!' Both Denki and Eijirou exclaimed, rushing over as their friend bent his knees up to his chest and rested his head on them. When they reached his side, Denki heard soft sobs and noticed how Midoriya's shoulders shook with every breath.

He then noticed how his suit was stained and ripped in some areas. He shared a look with Eijirou, both concerned.

'Hey, Midoriya.' Eijirou reached out to touch him, but his friend flinched away. 'It's okay, it's just me and Denki. You're home now. Are you hurt?'

Denki bit his lip when Midoriya slowly lifted his head to look at the two of them.

'Kaminari-kun, Kirishima-kun?' He sniffled, before moving to wipe his red-rimmed eyes with his sleeve. 'I woke you up, didn't I? I'm sorry.'

'Don't apologise, dude!' Denki shook his head. 'Are you okay? What happened? Were you mugged?'

'No.' Midoriya's voice was hoarse and he stared straight ahead, eyes watery. 'Well, yes, but not by some strangers.'

Their friend swallowed heavily and sighed, lip quivering. 'I should've known better really. I thought they'd changed. I thought uni would've made them kinder, but I was wrong.'

'Wait, are you saying your friends from school did this?' Eijirou asked, eyebrows furrowed.

Midoriya bit his lip and nodded.

'When we were at the restaurant, they were fine. They were being nice and they asked about my degree and whether I was enjoying it, but as the night went on, they started making jibes until they were being straight up rude. I didn't want to cause a scene because we were in public, but when they started laughing about my mum, I paid my share and left, but they cornered me outside and… Well… seven on one was never going to be a fair fight anyway. Got a few good hits in though.'

Denki blinked dumbly as he processed what these so-called friends had done, while Eijirou frowned.

'I'm calling Todoroki, Uraraka and the rest of the crew.' The redhead made to stand. 'They're not getting away with this.'

'No! Kirishima-kun, wait!' Midoriya surged forwards and grabbed onto his arm. 'Don't, it's okay. I'm okay. Can we just… Forget about it, please. I don't want to give them any more reason to hate me.'

'Why do they even hate you in the first place?!' Denki found himself blurting out. When Eijirou shot him a look as if to say 'dude', he shrugged. 'What? It's a valid question! You two are the nicest guys I know.'

Eijirou muttered a quiet 'bro' but Midoriya just sniffled out a laugh and let go of his friend's sleeve to wipe away more tears.

'I've asked myself that for years, Kaminari-kun.' His laugh came out as a choked sob. 'I mean, I've always mumbled a lot and used to obsess over heroes and stuff, so that probably just… made it easier for them to pick on me, I guess?'

'Midoriya, no.' Eijirou crouched back down and clasped his friend's shoulder. He initially jolted at the contact, but slowly accepted that the touch was kind. 'There will never be a valid reason for what they did. You have to believe that.'

Denki watched as Midoriya stared at Eijirou for several moments before nodding stiffly. His friend then pressed the heel of his palms against his eyes and shrunk in on himself once more. Eijirou sighed at the action and looked at Denki, pleading for help.

Not wanting to disappoint his friends, he scratched the back of his head to rattle his brain for answers. He wasn't good at this, neither of them were. Usually, Midoriya was the one who inspired others and helped them talk about their feelings. It was unfair to now ask Midoriya to give himself his own pep talk!

'Why am I so stuuupid!' Denki moaned into his hands, his revision notes were a mess around him. 'The information's just not going in!'

'Don't say that, you're not stupid!' Midoriya smiled brightly at him. 'You just haven't found the right method yet.'

'What do you mean?'

'Well, you've been using mind maps for the past few weeks and you haven't been able to take any of this in, just like the flash cards last year.' Midoriya started to mumble and Denki tried his best to follow along. 'But when we did that activity with the plasticine a few months back, you got it practically straight away!'

His friend beamed at him in a way that made Denki instantly feel at ease. 'Play by your own strengths, Kaminari-kun, not what’s expected!' 

He clicked his fingers and grinned at Eijirou before turning to look at Midoriya.

'Hey, dude.' He spoke gently, albeit with a hint of playfulness. 'Me and Eijirou were about to play some Dream Daddy and we need your expertise to woo our man.'

'Dream Daddy?' Midoriya raised an eyebrow and looked at him quizzically. His face was blotchy and dried tear tracks stained his cheeks, but Denki definitely preferred that to a still-sobbing Midoriya.

'It's a dating sim!' Eijirou barked out a laugh.

'A wh- what?!' He squeaked. 'N- Not happening!'

'Come on, Mido-bro!' Denki pouted with big eyes. 'Please? It's not the same without you! We need you and your big brain to reel in our perfect daddy!'

Eijirou nodded frantically and mimicked his expression. The two of them stared expectantly until their friend sighed, resigned to his fate. His frame relaxed slightly and a small smile made its way onto his face.

They missed that smile.

‘Okay, fine! Just... Stop saying daddy.’

‘No promises.‘ He winked, eliciting a snort from Eijirou.

However, before either of them could say anything else, Midoriya suddenly threw himself forwards and wrapped them both in a hug, knocking their heads together as laughter fell freely from his lips.

'Thanks, guys.' 

[skippysartq]

Yokai - Ushiten Fic part 1

"It has been rumoured many generations that a very special Yokai live here in this part of the shrine. His name is Tendou Satori the fire beast Yokai.

He was known as strange person that lived just outside of the village all by himself at 16 as his family had left one day, leaving him behind with any word.

It is told that he defended the village, with his fantastic Sword skills, from a beast that went rampaging and exploded with the beast in a blaze.

Some have claimed to have seen him in the dead of night only one night every 3 years, roaming around looking for something but no one ever know what.

So that's why we have this festival on that very day every 3 years to honour his sacrifice and bravery to protect the village."

A multitude of small hands clapping together, everyone's eyes wide in awe at the story behind the Fire beast Yokai festival "That can't be true." the child sitting next to me says leaning back on his hands. I turn to look at him, scruffy Grey with black tipped hair and brown eyes stares back. "You don't believe it do you.. Uh?" he points to me, before I speak quietly.

"Ushijima Wakatoshi." I answered his unspoken question. "And I don't particularly believe it unless I was to see him, but it is a nice story regardless." I finished my reply to him as his face lit up. "Alright everyone you can go to lunch now." the kindergarten teacher called to the class of children riled up from such a exciting story, most of them would probably try to go find the Yokai on the day of the festival tomorrow.

"Oh, My name is Semi Eita. Nice to me you Ushijima." we stand up to follow everyone outside, we shake hands. My face remains the same as it always is. Semi's head tilts to the side giving me a confused look. "You don't smile much do you Ushijima?" he asked as we made our ways to the playground near by the shrine as they were on a school trip to learn about the special day. "Is that a problem?" I asked he only smiles more as we walk around just talking. "Nah it's okay, you don't have to smile for someone to tell weather you are having fun." he started again. "Sometimes all you have to do is just look in their eyes and you can just tell what they are feeling." I nod as a response, still walking not knowing where we are going.

I thought for a moment. 'Maybe Semi will be my friend.' and I got the courage to ask. "Would you like to come play Volleyball with me Semi?" I asked hopefully, looking at him still beside me. His eyes widen from what could only be excitement and shock. "You play Volleyball too." he said yes he was shocked. I nodded again. "Then yeah let's go Ushijima!" he says taking my hand and running over to the slab of concrete near the shrine. Ushijima a pulls out a Volleyball from his bag and throws it over to Semi.

The two of them had as much fun playing with a volleyball as they could with only two people. Soon it was time for them to leave. "It's time to go home. Hey Ushijima do you want to hang out at the Festival tomorrow? We can meet at the Shrine." Semi says walking with me ask we both began walking home.

"Are you curious about The fire beast Yokai?" I asked turn to him hold keeping a hole of my backpack. He slightly nods. "Actually yeah, I just want to prove whether he is real or not." Semi says at matter of factly. "Okay Semi, I'll see you there then." Semi smiled back at Me and pointed out. "Wow you can smile Ushi!" Semi grins more.

*The next day*

"Come on Wakatoshi! We are leaving now!" The voice of my farther called from the door were him, and my mother and grandmother stood waiting for me to put my shoes on. I follow them holding grandma's hand to the shrine where the festival is being held. It was all so pretty, the design of the decorations that were flames and pretty red flowers made it feel so warm, lights strung up alone all the food stalls and games glowing a orange and yellows.

The street that always seemed to empty, was now so lively, there were people everywhere. "Wow isn't this lovely?" Grandma looked down at me in her pretty pink flower pattern kimono, with matching Flower pin in her grey hair. "Yes it is." I responded simply to her as we all kept walking avoiding the others around us some other children running around laughing together. Soon my mother chimed in, "Why don't we get something to eat, Wakatoshi what do you want?" she asked, it was always easy to answer, because I always chose my favourite food. "Hayashi Rice." I say with out hesitation. "Oh but you all ways have that, what about something different for once dear." Grandma stopped in front of me. "But I like it!" I tell her, she only sighs chuckling. "You will get sick of it one day if that's all you eat Wakatoshi-chan." she warned, I stare at her mentally telling her I wasn't going to change my mind. "How about this. We will try find a stall that sells it, while you go play some games with you dad. Okay and if we can't find it, we'll get you some tokoyaki balls instead, okay." my mother says again. I gave up nodding to her and dad takes my hand from Grandma and we walk away to some stalls there are all kinds of games to play. Ring toss, water balloon filling and dart games too, all with toys and plushies most of which were themed around the festivals purpose. Some were Pokémon and all kinds of Anime characters, and some were sports mascot including the Mascot for volleyball, I have lots of those at home. But there were also The beast from the story and a plush toy that looked like the hero with his sword. "Ushijima!" I heard a voice behind us, my dad and I both look over our shoulder to see, Semi running through the crowd with a lady beside him. I wave to him and the eventually join us. "Hello, Semi!"

"Oh is this a friend of yours Wakatoshi?" my dad looks to Semi. "Yes we meet at the shrine yesterday." I tell him simply. "This is the friend you wanted to meet Eita, do you want to go play some games with him, if that's alright with his dad?" a tall lady with grey hair similar to Semi's says directed at my dad, who smiled telling it was fine. She walks off after telling him where to meet after they were done. Waving goodbye.

Soon we walked around together. Dad pointed out to a few games and we played them, and well all I can say was that either of us ever won at any of them, but it didn't upset me at all. But Semi lost his temper at some before we moved on to the next. "One more game before we will go find you mother and grandma okay?" he says to me, I smile up at my dad, nodding.

We got to the last one we wanted to try and we won, I got a bag tag of the volleyball mascot. Because you can never have to much of a one thing. And Semi got a plushie of the fire beast. Soon we met back up with Mine and Semi's mum, they got to met and exchanged contacts. Grandma took my hand walking away from my mum and dad as I heard them raise their voices at each other.

"Oh, can we go to the shrine now to, see if he will show up!" Semi says to his mother excitedly. She chuckles telling him he can and he takes my hand saying we would be back soon. We made our way over to the shrine where we were the previous day. "Here we are." he says, it's a lot quieter here then down the stairs to where the festival ground is. "It is quite pretty from up here." I speak my mind he nods smiling happily. We sat at the top step looking down. We sat in silence for a few minutes before he spoke again. *Third pov*

"Do you think the Yokai will actually show up?" Semi asked before Ushijima could answer a rustling from a nearby bush made Semi go quiet again. They both turn to the sound when a small figure stepped out of the bushes that surround the kids. They suddenly stand in that they might have to run. blinking for a moment, and standing there was another boy in front of them. The boy in question, had short straight red hair, large dark eyes. He was skinny and fair skinned, that looked almost white in a dark purple kimono. He stood back in shocked to see the other boys and Semi getting scared hid behind Ushijima.

"H-hello, Who are you?" the small voice of the strange looking boy sounded. He looked scared as well.

The olive haired boy decided to step towards the red head and Semi only Gasped letting go of him. "Hello, I'm Ushijima Wakatoshi." he says and held out his hands to the other. He looked at him Ushijima's hand and then back at his face before reaching out his hand out too. Ushijima flinch a bit at his touch, "Your hands are so cold." Ushijima says holding the skeptic boys hand in his own gentle hand, shaking. The unnamed boy went to pull it away again, but he Ushijima holds it tight. "It's okay I don't mind." he seemed to have relaxed after those words were spoke and he smiled a bit too, "Okay, Wakatoshi-kun." the boy spoke, which Ushijima returned a gentle grin. 'His voice his kind of pretty.' Ushijima though to himself.

They shake hands and let go, when he noticed Semi lingering behind the taller boy. Staring curious and cautiously at Semi with his Cherry eyes he looks back to Ushijima with out a word, both his hands held to his chest defensively looking nervous. "That's my friend." he say to the skinny boy, and going over to Semi grabbing his hand and leading them to each other. "Uh, hi I'm Semi Eita." he holds a shake hand out to the redhead, seeming unsure of him. The boy breaths in glancing up at Ushijima. "Semi Semi!" He smiled to tell him it was okay, and his eyes widen more then they did naturally. "What's your name?" Semi asked the boy shaking hands with each other. He looked like he didn't want to answer, but breaths in deeply muster the courage to. "M-my name is Tendou Satori." his voice quiet but we had both heard him clearly.

"L-like the Fire beast Yokai?" Semi exclaimed, holding out the prize he won from earlier. The boy claiming to be Tendou, eyes widen again but seemed to understand still. "Uh, yes. Well I'm not at the age I was when I got that name." Tendou explains, opening up a little bit to the other children. Tendou stuck his hand out to the plushie and pat its head like a cat. "Wait if your really him, why do you look like a child? Weren't you 19 when you defeated the Beast?" Semi shuffled to sit closer to the other. "Uh, I don't know what happened? This is the first time this happened to me." "Yeah and you look nothing like what people say you looked." Semi says starting to get excited to talk to Tendou. Ushijima smiled to himself as they sat together he opened his mouth to say something about that too but Semi kept talking so he didn't talk. The two talking about all kinds of things under the light of the moon.

Ushijima sat listening to the two talk and pulled out his games prize looking at it and pulled out a pen from his pocket to write his name on the bag tag smiling to himself when done. Talkative Tendou looked to Ushijima as the conversation between him and Semi died down. "Hey Wakatoshi-kun, what's that you have?" Tendou asks pointing to the tag. "Oh, this is a Bag tag of the Volleyball mascot." he answered handing the tag over to the other so while could look at it better. "Oh, this looks cool. But."

"What's Volleyball?" he asked again. "It's a cool sport we're you can't hold or carry the ball and you hit over the net devising the two teams of 6 playing. And the team on the other side of the net tries to stop the ball from hitting the ground otherwise you team gets the point." Semi explains for Ushijima, who only nodded in agreement. Tendou hands the bag tag back to Ushijima, and he places it next to him on the ground instead of back into his pocket.

Soon though a voice from the bottom of the stairs called, startling us all and Tendou hid away, as the lady from before was walking up. "Eita, it's time to leave now." Semi's mum as she came into view. "Do I have to?" Semi wines to his mum, but she only laughs and tells him to say goodbye. He waved as he was dragged down from the shrine. "See you at school Ushijima!" I stayed quiet waving back until he was gone out of site. Ushijima blinks, glancing around back to where Tendou hid, poking his head from the pillar. "Who was that?" Tendou asked slowly making his way back to him. "That was Semi's mum, he had to go home now." Ushijima told him blankly.

"Why did Semi Semi have to leave?" Tendou's head tilt to the side. His red hair falls with his head movements, he continued toward Ushijima standing in the light of the moon, together. "Because we have school tomorrow." Ushijima says bluntly to the red head. Tendou's eyes looked up to Ushijima, before frowning looking away fiddling with his fingers.

"But I don't want to leave." Ushijima stares at his feet. "Why is that Wakatoshi-kun?" Tendou cox his head to the side with one brow raised. "My mother and farther are always fighting about something, sometimes it's over silly things like purposefully not going to look for a Hayashi Rice stand for me." He exhaled the started again.

"Hayashi Rice is my favourite dish, I ask for it every time." he sighed lifting his head again to Tendou, still playing with his fingers.

"Oh. I'm sorry that happened Wakatoshi-kun." Tendou gave him a sadden expression stepping closer. "What about you Tendou. What's your favourite food?" Ushijima asked simply. Tendou gladly answers. "Chocolate, I think it's called. I had gotten offerings of all kinds but I liked the chocolates the best." He smiled at Ushijima, who took a mental note to get Tendou some chocolate on his future visits to the shrine. It was silent for a few seconds before Tendou spoke up again. "Wakatoshi-kun, do you think you could come back tomorrow, to see me again?" the skinny, shorter boy questions fumbling with the waist tie from his Kimono, facing away shyly. Ushijima was taken back a bit. No one, but Semi, had asked to see him again. He didn't have many friends so it was a nice feeling, to hear Tendou say. "I will try my best to Tendou!" Ushijima took a step towards the other, reaching and taking a hold of both his hands, and the sudden action shocked the timid boy. His head whipped back to Ushijima who only smiled lightly back.

Both of them standing in the moon rays, and shining down on them. Tendou's eyes lighting up at the site of the other in front of him, staring in awe as the moon highlighted the olive hair and brown eyes of... His friend? Something of which Tendou never had in his previous life.

"Pretty" they both whispered together, enchanted by the sites of each other.

Ushijima could feel a heat raise to his checks when he noticed he was staring into the sweet, cherry coloured eyes of the little Yokai boy, for longer then was normal.

It's only raised further to his ears when he felt their hands squeeze together as their fingers had intertwined. Tendou's gaze followed the others eyes down to their small hands and a flash of pinky red rest on his face. Ushijima's eyes glancing up at Tendou, his eyes stuck in a trance with glittering red staring back. Mouths agape at the sites of each.

Tendou's lips curled upwards giving the biggest smile Ushijima has seen from him that night. "You promise to come see me again!" was the last thing he heard from the swaying red hair, cherry eyes and fair skinned Yokai boy, "Yes." as the next thing he heard was the voice of his parents yelling from the start of the stairs.

He looked down to them, just like always. He sighs, turning to look back at Tendou. But to his surprise Tendou was gone from sight. The hands he was hold close to him disappeared from his grips. Letting a gasp out of shock.

"Tendou?" he frowns, searching around, a little tight feeling in his chest with a loss of breath. "Wakatoshi it's time to leave!" his mother called. 'But I don't want to leave.' he though looking to his parents waiting on him for moments, staring back and forth over his shoulder waiting to see if he was really gone. But there was no sign of the dazzling face he stared into moments ago. With a quiet exhaled he forces himself to trudged down the stairs letting his grandma take his hand as they left the Shrine.

Staring back sadly to atop of the stairs. That was the last time he saw the other boy.

[dandelliongirl]

New year

And a new decade!

Wow, what an original title.

My Christmas vacation was amazingly cozy. I spent the 23rd-27th of December at home with mum and dad. On the 23rd me and mum went to the flea market to buy yarn and thin knitting needles for my bunny plushie project. We also found an adorable winter themed PowerPuff Girls duvet cover that I got to have in my bed for the holidays.♥

On Christmas Eve I got to watch morning cartoons on mum’s new sofa in my soft Oodie. We spent Christmas Eve traditionally having rice porrige for breakfast, going to take candles to the graves, going to the sauna and having a delicious dinner of smoked fish, salads, roast, mashed sweet potato, fried carrot and parsnip, and a dessert of home made gingerbread ice cream. Then we watched From all of us to all of you and handed out presents. My photo book was a big hit and made both mum and dad tear up. They both loved their moomin themed presents as well. I got Jamie Oliver’s VEG cook book, a radio for my summer house, a face wash from the Body Shop, and some gloves that got mixed up with dad’s at some point. Now mine are pink and mum has a purple pair. My dad also got me a 100 square meters of protected forest that will by law be kept in its natural state forever, which is an incredibly magical and special gift. ♥

On Christmas morning we woke up to the most beautiful snowy landscape and a calm little snowfall. Me and mum shovelled the driveway and went for a really long magical walk to the beach and around our area. The beach was full of little lanterns and candles burning in the snow. In the evening I started knitting my bunny plushie with the instructions found on the book I got at grandmum’s place. Mum helped me get started but I made her entirely by myself. By January 19th she already has a face too, with only a few details missing.

On Boxing Day me and dad drove to see the cousins and mum went to see granny and grandpa. It was really good seeing my cousins again for the first time since I think last Christmas (?), and dad’s cousin visited my aunt that day as well, so dad and his sister got to see their cousin as well. Me and my twin cousins finally made a Whatsapp group, which will make keeping in touch a lot easier.

On the 27th I came back to the apartment to spend some time working on my projects (and play some Sims..). My guy came back home on the 28th and we opened the rest of our presents. We got some cute kitty mugs and some (less cute) moomin pillowcases. I got new socks from my guy’s grandpa and my guy got me the brick oven bakery and the pizza delivery set of Sylvanian Families! ♥ My guy loved his Otamatone and we’ve had a lot of fun with it. ♫

We spent the day before New Years with my twin cousins who came over. We went to a trampoline park and Burger King, and played some Smash Bros Ultimate and Mario Kart. Then we spent about 4 hours until 2 am playing Overcooked. One of the twins works at a fast food restaurant so he was really damn good at coordinating our team. We decided that we would only accept 3 stars and had to spend a lot of time on some of the stages, but it was a blast. My guy is really bad at communication and team work though (heh, sorry) so it sucked for whoever was on his side. My cousins left on the morning of New Years Eve, and our friends came over around 6 pm. We made pizza, talked, went to see the mayor’s speech and watched the fireworks. For once the weather was completely clear and comfortably warm so the fireworks were a lot of fun. After midnight we spent the rest of the night until 6 am playing a quiz game, cards against humanity and Overcooked. I’m so glad I went back to work on the 7th and not on the 2nd.

My New Year’s resolutions this time are to continue working on my crafts and finish at least 2 of them, to only buy recycled items (apart from a couple things that I’ve planned on and needed to buy for a while), trying to spend a plastic free July (no single use plastics or plastic packaging), continuing my photo project with at least 3 photoshoots, working on my grimoire and finishing at least 12 pages, continuing to play the piano and get better at reading sheet music, spending the coziest and witchiest summer at my cottage/summer house, reading/listening to books and stretching/body care. A lot of these are things that are already habits and a part of my life so they aren’t that big of a deal even though the list is long. Mainly my resolutions are there just to push me to continue creating. I have set a date around midsummer/Litha to check my progress. So far piano has definitely already fallen behind so I need to try and pick that back up real soon. I have my new pile of sheet music books to start with.

So my winter has been filled with cottage visits nearly every weekend. At Christmas we went for a bonfire and carols. We have been feeding lots of little birds, walking in the nature and even went ice skating last weekend. This winter has been almost entirely snowless and very warm, and the birds are already singing and starting to nest even though it’s only January. There is no snow on the lake ice so last weekend my mum, dad and I had a perfect private skating rink with some magical sunshine and beautifully frosted trees. These are the moments that make winter worth it even though the lack of snow makes everything so dark, which makes me so incredibly sleepy. Luckily the days get about 7 minutes longer every day. It’s already almost light out when I leave work. Only 3-4 more months until we get to spend more time at the summer house, and soon I’ll be out there on that lake on my SUP board. That place truly heals me and helps me remember what's important in life. Nature is always beautiful no matter the weather, and everything over there has a purpose, unlike in the city.

Almost all of my apple seeds sprouted, and every one of my first saplings has already died from what I suspect is the lack of light. Some of the second batch are still alive, and I’ve got a third batch to plant. Hopefully those will make it to be planted outside. I even picked up a board from our cottage shed to make a windowsill in the kitchen for the saplings.

My guy and I have been enjoying our second playthrough of the Witcher 3, this time on the Switch. I love laying on the sofa all warm and cozy in my Oodie and working on my crafts, or putting photos in an album while he plays. Our PC playthrough was tedious because I had to sit down and do nothing through hours of gwent or side quests. Now I get to lie down and work on my own projects during the side quests. The PS2 era graphics do bother me a bit, but the story is immersive enough and the cutscene quality is not reduced too bad.

The first 2 weeks of work have been pretty decent. I’ve even had a couple of good days. ☼ I’m about to start a rough spring of trainings for both staff and teachers, which will be mentally exhausting, but I will try to keep myself busy with hobbies, and enjoy the coming spring to the fullest. January has already flown by, which is both exciting and scary. As for working out, this spring I’ve got a lineup of body combat, the occasional 45 minute guided meditation class (which I love because last week we had a body scan meditation and that’s my favourite type), HIIT ‘45 whenever I can leave work early to go to class, and ballet.

Yesterday we celebrated grandad's 90th birthday. Lately I’ve been really sad thinking about my aging grandparents. I recently went through my old post cards because I’m planning on making some crafts with them, and while doing that I found all of granny and grandpa’s letters and post cards and got some very emotional flashbacks to my childhood and the stories grandmum used to tell me. After a few glasses of cognac grandpa gave me a really emotional and sweet speech about how proud he is of me and how he remembers the time the swing in their yard broke down from under me and the times he taught me how to ski. He has truly taught me to never give up and be resilient in everything I do. I love my grandparents so much and I want to try and spend as much time with them as possible. It is so unfair that we never get enough time to spend with all the loved ones... Regardless, happy 90th birthday to the best grandpa. ♥ ♥ I love you so much.

Speaking of family and celebrations, I was asked to be a bridesmaid to my friend whom I've known since kindergarten. It is an incredible honor and I really can’t put into words how special it is to have someone who’s known me since I was 4 years old - and now she’s getting married! I will do my best to make her day special, but it is a lot of stress and pressure on me - especially as I’ve never planned a wedding and I’ve only been to 2 in very recent years. Her other bridesmaid got engaged the same week as she did so they are both planning on getting married the same month. We’ll see how that goes, and if one of them has to postpone their wedding or not, but regardless the other bridesmaid won’t have as much time and focus for my friend as I will since she’ll be planning her own wedding at the same time.

I think we only have 61 or 62 days until Animal Crossing New Horizons, and still no AC direct. Instead we’ve had a Pokémon direct and a Smash Bros direct.. If preordering seems worth it and/or there is a Switch console bundle I’ll take the 20th of March off work to go get it in the morning. We were planning on taking a trip to Japan this spring but we’ve postponed it until the autumn since the Super Nintendo World will be opening in the summer, and my guy can earn some money at his summer job.

Me and my friend were going to have a photoshoot today but the weather isn’t great (it’s very windy) and she had a weird stomach bug last night so we postponed. Instead I’m trying to finish up some odd to-do list jobs so that I can start preparing for Imbolc. It’s coming up so fast, but that’s also very exciting. ☼