#melon soda gate

[tamapalace]

#melonsodagate

[lilac-5ky]

Oh then! Can I request a scenario where Toji eavesdrops on a convo between Reader and Gojo (or whoever) where Reader confesses to having a crush on Toji?

Thank you so much!

Confessions of a Confection Thief (Toji x Teacher!Fem!Reader)

Plot: On a warm summer day, you confess your love for the man once known as the Sorcerer Killer to the man who, twelve years ago, spared his life. What you don't count on is the man in question listening in, nor the consequences of a mere lunch invitation.

Tags: au in which Gojo heals Toji's ass with reverse jujutsu and makes him his bitch, reader is megumi's teacher, parent/teacher relationship, age gap (reader early 30s, toji early 40s), character development!toji, soft!toji, confession, unprotected sex, oral sex (m. receiving), facial, doggy style, petnames (teach', sweetheart, baby, doll), MDNI (obviously)

A/N: You can tell I got inspired since this took me 9k words to develop that feature not only the confession, but the date and the "happy ever after" ehe. Hopefully this was worth the wait!

“Damn machine!” You grunt as you kick at the vending machine’s side, lamenting over the 1,000 yen bill you were just robbed of.

“Let me give it a try.” The man beside you suggests and you clear the stage for him to work his magic. His right hand lifts from his pocket, open fingers coaxing an entire bundle of sodas out without even making contact. What a show-off.

He gathers the cans off the ground and hands you the one that is your favorite, making you wait while he places the rest on top of the vendor for a lucky student to find.

“Isn’t that considered damaging school property?” You raise a brow, yanking the ring close to the tab with a pop.

“Is it?” He chuckles, bringing his refreshment to his lips. “It was already damaged when we got here. Ijichi’s gonna get an earful later.”

“I don’t think that falls under Ijichi’s responsibilities, Satoru. Cut him some slack already.”

“No harm in harassing your cute underclassmen from time to time, Y/N.” He smiles. “You should try it too.”

Right, you mutter under your breath, already regretting your decision to spill your heart’s contents on someone with such little regard for others. Shoko would’ve been a better choice. Utahime, too. You could wait until the weekend, get on the first bullet train to Kyoto, and have a girls’ night out like you used to before life and work got in the way. They’d surely talk you out of the horrible mistake you’re about to commit. Maybe that’s why you chose Satoru. He’s the only one who’d give you the final push down the cliff, and you don’t mind the fall.

“So what is it that you wanted to talk about?” He brings you back to the parching reality of Jujutsu Tech’s grounds, with the sun glinting across every metallic surface and body of water in the perimeter. The heatwave has only begun, and thankfully, the outburst of curses has finally simmered down, or else you’ve no idea how you’d survive abandoned building-hopping with those three rascals.

You take a sip from your soda, the taste of honeydew melon cooling your throat like the sweetest form of redemption. You struggle not to gulp it all down in one go, eyeing the remainder of drinks that have vanished in the horizon—or rather, you have, your steps leading you toward a path of tori gates that itself leads to the school’s Inari shrine. This should be safe. No one comes around these places.

“I have a confession to make.”

Satoru stops in his tracks, awaiting a follow-up that doesn’t come. His sunglasses come off, and a knowing smile slowly creeps up his lips. “I know.”

“Y-You do?” You blink in surprise. What does he know? How does he know? Since when does he know? “Satoru—”

“You’re the one who ate the last Manzu.”

And he couldn’t be any more off the mark.

You sigh. “That’s not it.”

“It’s not? Huh.” He wipes his mouth with the back of his palm after chugging his strawberry-flavored soda. “Guess I’ll have to ask Ijichi about that too.”

“Please don’t torment him for useless things.” You cast your gaze to your feet, kicking a pebble as you speak. “What I want to confess is… my feelings.”

The cicadas come to a stop, leaving space for your words to take root. You are hesitant to move forward, cautiously treading on the shells of emotions you recently began to accept. Almost there, you encourage yourself as Satoru invades your personal space, cornering you against the red gate’s pillar.

“Finally decided to profess your love for me?”

You shove his smug face away and roll your eyes at the notion. “Dream on, Shit-toru.”

He takes a step back, acting as if you just delivered a fatal blow to his heart. You chuckle at his childish antics while shaking your head in disapproval. To think the future of the entire Jujutsu world rests on the shoulders of a conceited guy who makes everything about him.

“Then who’s the lucky guy?”

Your anxiety resumes before it has the chance to fully dissipate. You close your eyes and lean back against the pillar, the familiar name on your tongue feeling foreign. “It’s… Fushiguro.”

“Fushiguro?” You nod. You understand it’s a lot to take in and give him a moment to process it, yet the longer he takes to answer, the more tempted you are to say this was a joke and call things off. “Don’t you think there’s a bit of an age gap?”

“I mean… I suppose there is.” You sound defeated. If even Satoru saw this as an issue, then there’s no reason he wouldn’t. “You think it’s that bad?”

“Bad?” His lips twitch. “The heart wants what it wants, Y/N. Give it a few years, and the difference won’t matter.”

“You think I have a chance?”

“Oh, definitely! I saw Yuji move some of his American-star posters into his room last week, and he didn’t throw any away. Jennifer Lawrence ‘s your age, right?”

Your memory is put to the test as you go through various Jennifers. Is she the one from Friends or the one married to Ben Affleck?

“I think she’s older by a few years.”

“Older?” He snorts. “Well, if it makes you feel younger, then who am I to argue?”

You decide to let his comment slide for the sake of picking on the dissonance in his words. “But what does a Hollywood actress have to do with this? And Itadori—what are you talking about?”

“Y/N, you should get to know him a bit better before confessing, don’t you think?” Satoru says, as he finds your beloved pebble and tosses it in your direction. You catch it with your heel. “The kind of woman he likes; his best friend; the ages of top-paid actors. These things shape up a guy’s adolescence. They’re as crucial.”

By the time he finishes talking, all the puzzle pieces fall into place, and you have to mentally control every joint in your body to prevent it from lashing at him with fury second only to the Curse King’s. Even by Satoru’s dubious standards, this is plain outrageous.

“Are you outta your mind?” You yell, pushing your hair off your sweaty forehead with both palms. “How could you—why would you—what do you take me for?” You fail to put your thoughts in order until you suck in a deep breath. “I would never crush on any of my students, or any other minor, for that matter!” You declare.

Thin white eyebrows furrow in genuine confusion. “But you said—”

“Fushiguro! The man I’m in love with is Fushiguro Toji!”

And not a single soul is left on campus who hasn’t heard your confession, no matter how far and wide or close you think they are scattered.

Toji’s never set foot on these damned grounds without cursing to himself as if the paths his shoes traverse are paved with nothing but shit. Even after all these years, something about marching through the front door just doesn’t feel right. It’s not hatred, that’s for sure. He’s spent more than two-thirds of his life cultivating his loathing for sorcerers to the point where he can tell it apart by taste alone.

No, what’s tainting his palate right now and will continue doing so in the days to come is more akin to chagrin than resentment. It’s failure. A failure that’s branded onto the bare skin of his torso and that he can’t pawn off for as long as he stands, because if a fate worse than death exists, then that’s surviving on a snotty brat’s pity.

Wiping some of his sweat and plenty of his regrets against his pants, Toji remembers his reason for being here has nothing to do with Six-Eyes or his past shortcomings, as he’s here to share the news of his divorce papers finalization with the only person he’s keen on letting know: you.

A decade has passed since he last heard from his wife—his ex-wife who had no qualms about leaving everything behind (her daughter included) and ran back to her parents, never to be seen or heard from again until a hotshot big firm lawyer showed up at his doorstep with a bunch of papers and a platinum-coated Montblanc in hand.

And with that, another overdue chapter was closed, the rest of the pages flipping through the wind. By the end of summer, the goalkeeper in his relationship with his son will be heading off to college, and with Tsumiki gone, Megumi decided he’d grown old enough to slam the door on his face and choose that faux albino sorcerer over his own blood.

It was that very rebellion that roused Toji to reevaluate his lifestyle. He stopped counting the years after the candle with the number 4 became prominent in each birthday cake, but that didn’t stop time from moving forward. He was aging. And while one-night stands do a decent enough job to distract him from searching his scalp for graying hair, the nights he catches himself wishing his bed could stay warm the morning after add up.

None of the silly little girls he fools around with are capable of that, not the way you are. Since that first PT meeting he begrudgingly attended two months ago, a rusty cog in his heart began turning again.

You don’t match any of his previous criteria. You don’t come from a wealthy family and aren’t an airhead either. You live in the dorms because you can’t afford rent in the city, and you are smart enough to have graduated from a big university. You are one of them, but you’re also proof that not all beauty was lost with her.

Toji doesn’t want to screw this up. Just once, he wants to do things right. He waited until he was a free man in the eyes of the law, wore his good jeans on a day when wearing jeans should be considered a criminal offense, and kept enough cash to afford however many side dishes you ordered—assuming you accepted his lunch invitation in the first place.

The jittery, four-eyed guy he ran into on his way to your class pointed him in the direction of the school’s shrine. After a while of wandering around, Toji spots two sets of imprints in the soil, the smaller ones belonging to your heels and the larger ones undoubtedly being that brat’s. Luck isn’t on his side today. His stride overlaps with Gojo’s as he childishly covers the younger man’s tracks, leaving yours intact, and eventually, the sound of clamor confirms his lead.

He strays off the pebbled path and mingles with the shadows of the dense forest, scoffing as Gojo’s shit-eating grin becomes apparent. That beanpole’s standing way too close to you. Toji almost intervenes when you finally push him. A kick to the nuts would do him better, but that’s enough for a tiny smile to rise on his scar. That’s my girl.

There’s no reason to stay hidden anymore. After all, that brat is already aware of his presence. He takes a few steps forward, turning into a pillar of salt at your sudden outburst.

“The man I’m in love with is Fushiguro Toji!”

His hand nearly reaches inside his back pocket to double-check the name on his ID. Looks like some of his luck returned to him. Asking you out just got a whole lot easier.

“Fushiguro Toji?” Gojo twists a finger in his ear. “Doesn’t ring a bell.”

Toji hisses, his fist itching to knock some teeth off his face. That ought to jog his memory, but he holds back, realizing that’s all part of Six-Eyes’ plan. To egg him on into a brawl he can’t win.

“He wiped the floor with your face only a few years back, Satoru.” You sound as irritated as he is. “How could you possibly forget?”

The man folds his arms over his chest, sparing a glare in Toji’s direction as he reclines against the tori gate. “Was it at the arcades? Man, no need to rub it in.”

Your lips part, but no sound comes out. You sigh, hogging the unoccupied pillar with no intention to play his game.

“What about Megumi’s old man won you over?” Gojo gives in. “His kart skills?”

“So you do remember, after all.” You murmur in a low voice. “I don’t know. He’s just… nice.”

“Nice?” Gojo asks with utter disgust painted on his face.

Nice?

You nod, fumbling with the hem of your navy-blue dress. “Hey, Satoru. You know what makes for a good parent?” You don’t let either of them consider their answers. “It’s effort. Not success, but effort. Mister Fushiguro hasn’t missed any of his son’s PT meetings, even when the two of them are clearly at odds.”

Toji feels too guilty to step in and correct you that his priority is to see you. Not that Megumi doesn’t matter, but what’s the point of hearing his son excels in everything he never could for the nth time in a month?

“And?”

You glance at the clear sky. “And you remember those forms Yaga gave us for the kids to fill out? Nobara said her dream was to buy out Daikanyama. You can guess what Yuji’s was. As for Megumi, he left his blank, and when I asked him later, he said that he doesn’t have time for dreams; that his goal is to repay his dad the money he lost from the Naobito deal, so he owes him nothing.”

The two men blink in surprise. “Didn’t think he knew about that.”

“You aren’t exactly a quiet speaker, Satoru.” You shrug. “Point is, he doesn’t know. Neither of them do. Megumi doesn’t know his father attends his PT meetings, and Mister Fushiguro doesn’t know about his son’s dream. Isn’t it funny? They both care about each other but are too awkward to admit it.”

“And you call me twisted.” Gojo yawns. “You wanna act like a bridge between them? Is that it?”

You shake your head. “I wouldn’t want to interfere. Megumi placed his trust in me as his teacher when he disclosed that, and Mister Fushiguro… We are nothing to each other.”

Yet, Toji mentally added.

“You might think it’s crazy, but I think Mister Fushiguro’s heart is full of raw emotion he can’t put in order on his own. He’s not taught how to, and I… I think I could help him out with that; be someone he can direct those feelings to. No, I—” You shake your head again, except this time you do so with a little smile of conviction tugging at your lips. “I want to be that person. I want to be his person.”

Gojo doesn’t say anything for a good while, and you end up nearly as flustered as Toji himself. “Of course there are plenty of other things I like about him! He is funny, charming, has his own house,” your voice drops in volume, “he is very attractive, and we have the same taste in seafood.”

“Sounds to me like you’ve got it all figured out.” Gojo let his hand drop after fixing his sunglasses over his nose bridge. “But you should know, Fushiguro, or rather Zen’in Toji, is a lot more than that. He’s killed more sorcerers in his prime than most curses combined. Not sayin’ that to be a buzz kill, but you should be careful around him, or else,” his tone drops a menacing octave as he peers over his shades, “I’ll have to terminate that relationship myself.

“You get it, right?” He switched back to his usual voice with a lighthearted chuckle. “Wouldn’t want to lose another precious friend.”

Silence reigns between you, and that’s Toji’s cue to walk up. He’s heard enough. The few fallen leaves rustle under his weight, caution thrown to the wind as tiny twigs crunch below his sandals. He’s close enough for you to tell someone’s coming, but not close enough to tell that someone is him.

“Got nothin’ better to do than gossip about others, Six-Eyes?” Toji paces in the middle of you two, his eyes flickering in your direction. He has to brace himself not to smile at how red your face has gotten, his resolve giving way to a suggestive smirk. “Teach’.”

“Mister Fushiguro.” Your smile is shaky, but there. Always there for him.

“Yo, it’s been a long time!” Gojo springs forward. “Came for a rematch?” His hand travels up his neck, rolling his shoulder blades one at a time. “Could use the exercise.”

“I’m done fighting kids.” Toji deadpans.

“Is that so?” Gojo scratches the back of his head. “Your hands must be full with all that jell-o they feed you at retirement house,” he chuckled at his own joke. “What then? Remembered to pay the med bills twelve years later?”

“Satoru!” You object.

“Only if you remembered to hand the Star Vessel cash back.”

“Mister Fushiguro!”

“Money belongs to Amanai,” Gojo raises his volume. “I don’t think she’d want you to have it.”

“Really? ‘Cause last time I checked, corpses don’t talk.” Toji grits his teeth and unwillingly finds himself at the end of your right palm, the other one prompting Gojo to maintain his distance.

Your eyes are round, but the look behind them firm. The same look you assume when you reprimand your students, he bets. His gaze is drawn to your fingers, small and slender as they graze his shirt. You’ve never been so close to him before. If it weren’t for the walking parasite to his left, he might’ve been enjoying the proximity.

Perhaps for the first time in his life, Toji is the one to back away first, clearing his throat with a soundless cough. His eyes remain on Gojo’s while he speaks. “I’m here to take her out.” He stops and considers adding “to lunch”, previous occupation and all, but deems that should be obvious enough.

“You got time?” His tone softens, still bearing hints of the annoyance he failed to submerge.

A single finger pad skims over his chest as you withdraw your hand, slower than you did the other. So cute. He promises to give you plenty of opportunities to touch him later.

“I have an afternoon class, but Satoru can cover for me.” You smile sweetly at Toji and click your heel down on Gojo’s foot. “Right, Satoru?”

He’s inclined to agree, his face lightening up behind his shades. “As long as you agree to grade my papers for the next three months.”

“I’m already stuck grading the papers from when you went to Hiroshima,” you mumble under your breath, your nose scrunching in an expression that’s new to Toji. “Fine.”

“Mister Fushiguro?” You turn to him.

Toji shoots Gojo a stunted glare before his large palm finds its place in the small of your back, prodding you to move forward.

On the way to the car you find yourself making small talk about the weather, and on the way to the restaurant, your getaway is Megumi’s recent success in domain creation. This isn’t the first time you’re alone with him, but with every mile you count away from school grounds, you shrink into an ever-growing bundle of nerves that threatens to unravel on his passenger seat.

You’re in the middle of your third recounting of the kids’ excursion in Saitama when a hand moves to your lap and muzzles your every thought.

“Don’t tell me you’re nervous, Teach’.” Toji says once you’re stopped at a red light.

He’s careful to keep his fingers over your dress, only his thumb looming over the bare skin of your knee. Your glance loses momentum as it travels from his knuckles to his wrist and then his elbow, reveling at the sight of muscles bulging underneath his rolled-up white shirt. You’re glad half of his attention remains on the steering wheel, because if you got to see the other side of his lopsided smile, then you might say something that’s unbecoming of an educator—and you almost do, after his hand drops to the gear stick.

“I don’t normally do these things, Mister Fushiguro.” You admit, preserving some of his leftover warmth with your own palm.

“Hmm? What things?”

“Going on dates with parents—it’s a first for me.”

“Oh? So that’s what this is?” He chuckles lowly, as if the notion were new to him. Other than the few visible wrinkles around his eyes, you wouldn’t guess this man was roughly ten years your senior. “You can relax. Got a long way before the main course, sweetheart.”

Embarrassment flares up in your cheeks at the pet name. You can’t remember the last time you were asked out, let alone called something of that volume. You don’t mind it. If anything, you like the ring.

“Ah, and do me a favor, won’t ya?” His head cocks to the side, tousled black strands falling forward. “Quit callin’ me that.”

“Calling you what?”

“Mister Fushiguro.” He grimaces. “It’s ex mister Fushiguro now.”

“What?” You exclaim with more excitement than you’re entitled to.

It doesn’t go unnoticed. “Check the compartment glove.”

You do as you’re told, discovering a bitten-off subway that’s wrapped around at least four layers of napkins. His sloppy eating habits mustn’t be what he’s so eager for you to see. You nudge it to the side and dig out a few crane toys that are too adorable to be his, and then finally, a stack of creased official documents that you have to separate from the massage parlor flyers stuck between the pages.

You quickly go over the lines, the most notable by far being the words “Divorce Agreement” written in all capitals on the front page. “Is this…?”

He nods. “Got ‘em this morning. Thought you’d take proof over my word.”

“That’s amazing, Mister Fushig—” You bite your tongue. “Looks like you got to keep all your assets, too.”

“All, except that name.”

You remember pondering why, even though Toji was born into the main family, both he and his son left the Zen’in surname behind. Others would kill for a chance to be written in their family registry—but then again, it was just like the Zen’ins to keep clan matters private.

“You can call me Toji until I take on a new surname.” He continues, his voice reflecting his lax smile. “Am open to suggestions.”

You return it, piecing a non-existent strand of hair behind your ear. “Already proposing that I should marry you?”

“Better strike while the iron’s hot,” quietly adding, “figured that should give ya enough time to sort my shit out.”

“What was that?”

He grins as he cups your hand with his own. “We’re here.”

Toji’s restaurant of choice turns out to be a cozy little family restaurant by the park in Nerima. He asks if you’ve been there before, but you shake your head. Having no car means you rarely get to go around Tokyo without Ijichi, the kids, or Utahime whenever she decides to pull a surprise visit. You’re a tourist in your own town.

At this time of the day—neither appropriate for lunch nor for dinner—the tables are mostly empty, and you’re free to choose your own seats. He points at the bar, and you point at the window. He pulls your chair and then plops down on his own, chin quick to balance atop his wrist while he stares off at the greenery on the horizon.

You thought sitting closer to the window would be cooler, but the heat is reflected through the glass. You should have listened to him.

A waiter drops off your menus with a tired smile, patting some of the perspiration off his forehead with a napkin. “Sure is hot today, isn’t it?”

You nod politely and start browsing the list of appetizers. All those nights you spent bent over your tiny desk lamp pile up against you as your stomach lets out a low grumble—overjoyed to be presented with something that doesn’t require a microwave.

“You drink?” Toji waves the wine menu in your face.

“If the occasion calls for it.” Your reply paves the way for his next question. “I’d say a glass of champagne is due to celebrate your freedom.”

He flings the menu at the next table. “Don’t have that here. Maybe next time,” he says, and you almost stand in ovation at the prospect of there being a next time.

“You don’t want anything?”

“Not a drinker.” He doesn’t care to elaborate. You go back to scanning the pages, and you must’ve taken long enough for him to grab onto your menu. “I can recommend you some.”

Your stomach gurgles again, and this time he hears it. His stare lowers over your body, and you shift in your seat, offering him the menu to distract him from your issue. His bottom lip curls in amusement.

“The stake’s good here since their stuff’s from Kobe-hmm,” Toji pauses as he zeroes in on an item that he taps with his index. “The barbecue ribs are the real deal.”

His green orbs spin like pinball in his eyes while he flips through the pages, pointing out what’s good and what sucks, as those are the two main phrases he uses to describe the specialties. This is the most you’ve heard him speak in a row, and admittedly, you miss out on most of what he says taking in his mannerisms.

His surprisingly well-trimmed nails drum on the table when they aren’t shifting to a different page, while his cheek prop up his fist. He makes a habit out of licking his slanted scar at every nasal consonant, and there’s a slight drawl whenever he stumbles upon a foreign word, his thin brows furrowing in uncertainty. However, his most distinctive quirk of all remains the unintentional frown his lips shape; a trait shared with your young protege.

Toji might be a little rough around the edges, but still carries some of that boyish charm.

“So?” He slaps the menu shut.

You suck on your teeth, unable to remember a single specialty. “I’ll have what you’re having. You sound like you come here often.”

He gestures for the waiter to come over. “The kids dragged me here all the time. There’s a park here,” he points outside the window, as if that’s self-explanatory. The image of a little Megumi and a little Tsumiki tugging at their father’s pants to play hide-and-seek makes your heart swell.

The waiter arrives approximately a minute later, and Toji places your orders. You’re apparently having the aforementioned ribs, along with a beef bowl, some chashu, and a few standard vegetable dishes that, for some reason, should not contain any red bell peppers. He chose plenty, but he chose smart. None of these break the bank.

“Why not bell peppers?” You ask once the waiter goes off to fetch your water. Toji scratches his jaw as if he’s got no idea what you’re talking about, until the realization hits him on the head.

“Fuck, Megumi’s the one who hates ‘em.” He curses and motions for the waiter again when you catch his hand in mid-air and bring it down onto the table.

“I’m not a big fan either.”

Your eyes lock with his and slowly dart to where your hands meet, watching as his fingers decisively slip between your own. He forces your wrist to prop against the wood, your knuckles hugging, while he tests out what it feels like to be holding hands. Ever since the only woman he let himself cherish passed away, he’s avoided the slightest illusion of romance, and if you could peer into his brain, you’d see him contemplating how your hands are small like hers—how they’re soft like hers.

They’re just hands; he dismisses the stupid notion that hands can be anything beyond what they appear to be, and yet yours feel special to him. He looks back at what you told that asswipe and wonders if those shards you claimed to see could ever amount to love or if you’d be cut like all the others he purposely hurt. He wonders if you are dumb enough to love him. He wonders if he’s smart enough to love you.

“Here’s the seasoned spinach and the chilled tofu—” The waiter cuts in, and the table clatters after you fail to retrieve your hand. The man makes room for the plates and the glasses, standing there with an awestruck smile until Toji harshly orders him to “Scram”.

Another man with a lousy temper.

Metallic chopsticks replace your hand as Toji transfers about half of the spinach to his plate. “Man, I’m starving.” He declares and wastes no time to dig in.

You follow his lead and quickly forget all about his rudeness as your eyes well up at the euphoric taste that floods your taste buds—your insides sincerely thanking him for each bite that makes it down your throat.

The conversation dies down while you share the appetizers unevenly, with him discreetly claiming the last bites under the guise of asking you whether you’re going to eat that. You don’t mind. After all, he is paying, and he’s ordered enough for your belly to gain that five-month pregnancy bump without your stolen share.

However, when the main dishes arrive, he does the unexpected and takes on your plate first, separating the meat from the bones without your asking. It’s a clumsy way to compensate, but you can’t help but think it’s more of a reflex than a tactic, considering all the times he must’ve had the kids slide their plates his way. You thank him by dropping an extra three chunks of meat on his plate, which he gladly accepts—no returns.

The waiter who didn’t dare approach your table after delivering the ribs comes back with the dessert menus and picks up the dishes. You don’t fuss over your choices for long—Toji decides on chocolate chiffon cake and you on coffee jelly. It is then that you realize your impromptu date is coming to an end, and you haven’t asked him one question about himself.

“So what is it that you actually do?”

No sorcerer who hasn’t heard the name “Sorcerer Killer” exists, yet only a select few know the urban legend behind it has retired—a decisive factor in his deal with Satoru.

“You mean when your little friend ain’t tasking me with his dirty business?” Toji shrugs. “Stocks, mostly.”

“Stocks?” That’s not at all what you expected.

“Takes about five minutes of your time, and if ya get lucky, you’re settled for life. Rest is knowing how to read people and the market.”

Judging by the sound his car engine emits, he must be still waiting for his big break.

“Would you say you’re good at reading others?”

“The market? It depends. The people?” Toji smiles confidently. “Yes.”

“What’s your reading on me then?” You take the bite.

“Hmm.” He rubs his chin while sizing you up. “I bet you were one of those four-eyed nerds at school.” His serious tone makes you snort out loud. “Eighty percent of your experience comes from dating shows, and the other twenty from group dates with your gals. Y’are too damn trusting and find good even in rotten apples, but don’t mind losing a shoe if someone gets on your nerves.”

“Oh, really?” You snicker into your palm and shake your head once he asks you if he’s wrong. “I’d say eighty percent right?”

“Heh, told ya I’m good.”

The waiter interrupts you as he drops your dessert in the middle of the table. He apologizes and points at a few tables away, where a little girl is devouring the last piece of chocolate cake available. Toji huffs in annoyance, attempting to bewitch the cake from the girl’s plate with his glare alone.

“We can share if you want.” You offer him a spoon, which he begrudgingly accepts.

A few spoonfuls and half a dessert later, he points the spoon at the family behind you and asks if you want one. “Kids,” he specifies. “You like ‘em?”

You tap your spoon against your lips. “Would you believe me if I said I see them as walking-talking grading papers? Don’t get me wrong, I love my job and lucked out with our first years, but this was supposed to be a co-teaching gig before Satoru offloaded even the second years on my back.”

“Want me to teach that brat a lesson?” Toji flashes a grin.

“I think his confectionery going missing before he gets to try any is enough punishment.” You smile mischievously. “I can save you some. Wagashi or castella?”

“I’m beginnin’ to like you more by the minute.” He blurts out and perhaps it’s a slip of the tongue because you catch him cocking his eyebrows upward right after.

“I like you too.” You earnestly say. “God, I sound like a teenager.”

“Nah, pretty sure you’re my dream woman.” You both scoff in unison. “Now that’s lame.”

“Yeah, it was.” You hide your blush by pretending to search for the waiter. “Shall we get the check?”

“Thanks for driving me hom—well, back.” You give a little bow, having yet to unbuckle your seat belt.

“Don’t sweat it.” Toji leans against the steering wheel. He looks even more handsome in the late-afternoon light, the shadows that contour his face bringing out his defined jawline and jade eyes. You aren’t prepared to part with the sight. Not when you were just getting accustomed to it, but every word that follows leads to a quicker parting.

“I had fun today.” He nods.

“Let’s do it again sometime.” He nods again.

“I’ll be going now.” He is reluctant to, but nods a third time.

You open the door and step out of the vehicle, your waving turning into a grip as you tug the car door back open. A perplexed look wanes into a full-blown smirk when you ask him if he’d like to come in for a bit.

“Thought you’d never ask.”

Your desk chair looks comically small wobbling beneath Toji’s weight, a long arm draped over the backrest while he gawks at your crouching form, half your body—save for your backside—swallowed by the mini fridge. He hears a lot of rattling. The dorms are quiet after sundown, and with the expulsion of the third years, the sound of empty drawers being flipped inside out (just in case a minuscule bottle of Ramune has slipped between them) echoes throughout the east wing’s desolate floors.

You should’ve grabbed those soda cans when you still had the chance. You consider running outside, but in the unlikely event no one’s gotten to them first, you doubt they’re safe for consumption after boiling under the hot sun for hours on end.

“Damn, kid screwed this one up badly, huh?”

You glance over your shoulder at Toji, who’s going through the scattered papers on your desk, finding the one test Megumi flunked in his entire four-month career at Jujutsu Tech. You close the fridge and pad toward the desk, balancing against the edge to peer at the answer sheets in Toji’s hands.

“Everyone failed that test.” You trace a finger over the bright red 48 mark. “Megumi actually did better than most; rest scored below 20.”

“Of course he did.” Toji scoffs.

He leaves the papers on the desk and quirks a brow as he takes in your image. Your dress has lifted higher up your thighs now that you’re propped on the furniture, revealing a slit that his eyes discreetly follow to where his imagination needs to fill in the blanks. He’s not here to fuck you, he reminds himself. He’s here because you were kind enough to offer him a drink for giving you a lift, but your hands are notably empty.

“What happened to the drinks?” Toji forces himself to look you in the eye, supposing that your eyes existed on the same level as your tits—perfectly delineated under your dress’ square neckline. He hasn’t even kissed you, and he’s already picturing what your nipples would look like sucked between his lips.

He shouldn’t go there. He really isn’t here to fuck you.

“I… forgot to do my shopping this week,” you answer, oblivious to his lewd thoughts. “Sorry, I brought you up here for nothing.”

“It’s fine.” Toji glances at the wall clock. Time’s the greatest excuse. “I should go. It’s getting late.”

And he really thinks he’s made the right call, until your dangling foot pushes against his chest to prevent him from getting up—slowly traveling down his lap while his eyes travel up to your actual ones, picking on a glint he previously missed.

“It’s not right for me to let you leave empty-handed.” Your voice assumes a sultry intonation that contradicts your angelic smile. The spread of your legs widens to reveal a thin white strip that clashes with the dark blue of your dress. He feels a strain in his pants; his conviction is wearing thin. It’s more of a “maybe” now, if anything.

His hand slides from your ankle to your knee, rubbing rough circles that purposely stray away from your sensitive parts. “Whatcha offering, doll?” Toji rasps.

“How’s twenty percent of what you got wrong sound?” Your toes create friction as they curl against his crotch, swaying back and forth. He doesn’t answer. He expects you to go on. “I was a big-time nerd. Got in college with a fully covered scholarship and all.”

His breath hitches as he moves closer to your thighs. “Expected that much.”

“And I did go on a lot of group dates. The girls wanted to meet guys whose names didn’t start and end with Gojo Satoru.” Your heel presses firmly onto his length. He’s big. You can’t tell exactly how big, but you know it won’t take long to have his cock plugged in one of your holes.

“And you didn’t?” Toji asks, rolling the plush flesh in his fingers like play-dough.

“I valued my precious dating shows a lot more.” You feel the stretch of his lips as they lay on your inner thigh, peppering kisses until the lower half of his face disappears past the layers of your dress.

“Seems to me I read ya like an open book,” Toji inhales deeply, growling a low “Shiiit, Y/N” when his nose nudges your dripping cunt, his jade eyes flickering shut while you shiver. You’ve never heard him use your name before—all pretense of respect in the form of his little Teach’s drops the second you start to rut your pussy into his face.

Before his hands can slip into your underwear, you prod him back onto his chair and get off the desk. His glare fades as soon as he watches you kneel in front of him and rest both your elbows on both sides of his knees.

“Skipping dates doesn’t mean I missed out on the experience.” Your smile drips with honey while you palm him on the way to unzipping his jeans.

You tug them down, and his hips wiggle to accommodate you. It’s a lot tougher than you thought, with the tight fabric stubbornly adhering to every muscle of his bulky thighs until it recedes. His boxers come down with greater ease, and your hand finally wraps around his cock, feeling his girth out in your open fist.

“I told you at the restaurant, but I really like you.” You give his length a slow stroke that has him sucking his teeth. “I’ve liked you since the moment I saw you barge into my classroom. I like you so much I think I can love you.”

Toji bends forward and pinches your chin between his thumb and his forefinger, tilting your head until his lips find yours—soft when they fumble around and rough when they part for his tongue to sneak into your mouth. Your delicate fingers insist on pumping his cock as he cups your cheek, ending the kiss with a playful bite across your bottom lip.

“I know,” he grins. “Heard ya talkin’ to that brat earlier.”

You would be shying away if it weren’t for his cock throbbing in your grasp, his swollen tip flushed with the exact same shade of feverish red as your cheeks.

“Eavesdropping isn’t so nice, Toji.”

“I’m not so nice either, but you overlook that.” Toji throws his head back, holding onto his breath, while you drool all over his cock head—clear strings of saliva streaming down the veiny shaft. “Y’know what’d be nice, hah—having that nice little mouth of yours wrapped around me.” Your hand drops to his balls, pink lips eager to fulfill his wish, with your cheeks barely hollowing around the tight fit. “So fucking nice,” he hisses.

His filthy praises are muffled out by his groans, which grow both in volume and in pitch the more inches you manage in your throat, his raspiness fading into the breathiest of moans once your nose tingles his unkempt base. You let go with a plop, air returning to your lungs through heavy pants. Your fists take over instead, appearing beyond puny as they struggle to engulf his hefty girth. Toji’s by far the biggest you’ve had; another of his assets you’re elated to discover.

You steal a lick from the precum that’s glazing his tip and purse your lips together. It’s a bit strong in flavor, but you don’t mind. It’s his.

“I meant everything I said,” you beam. “I still think of you as nice.”

“You’re bound to milk some kindness out of me if ya keep goin’ sweetheart.” Toji jokes, taking hold of his cock. He starts jerking himself to the sight of you, and you may have all your clothes on, but the way you genuinely smile at him, lips glossy from spit, almost sends him over the edge. “You’re so pretty,” he mumbles. “Even thought you were pretty in that—ugh, what was it?”

“Tunic?” You ask, recounting your first meeting.

“Yeah, right. That ridiculous grandma’s tunic you flaunted.” Raven strands flap over his forehead. “Wanted to rip that right off your body and fuck you on the spot.”

His words send pleasurable tingles throughout your body, with the pool in your panties overflowing your thighs. “What stopped you?” Your lips attach to his balls, your wet tongue lapping around until it finds a spot that has him fisting his cock at a faster pace, the tip rhythmically smacking your forehead.

Toji fails to gather his thoughts; his mind is solely focused on chasing after his incoming release. You feel his balls tighten and back away, setting your palms flat against your lap—eyes marveling at how the man who kept you tossing and turning in an empty bed for months on end is about to spill his load all over your face. A man whom you, up until a few hours ago, dreaded would reject you.

“You’re so fucking pretty,” he pants out. “Gonna make you even prettier. Gonna make you into my pretty girl—fuck, all mine.”

“All yours, Toji.” You repeat, lulling your tongue out. “Cum on my face, Toji. Please, gimme your cum.”

And it is that please that gets his cock to spurt his milky cum all over your lips and chin, with only a handful of his velvety ropes making it onto your tongue. He grunts, squeezing the final drops from the tip until it stops twitching. He wipes it clean against your lips and helps you to your feet, taking advantage of your imbalance to hold you by the waist.

“Is there something on my face?” You ask, seeing as Toji blatantly drills holes into your skull.

Heavy eyelashes flutter over his low-hooded eyes. A dark chuckle rings against your skin as his mouth presses against your jaw. “Aren’t ya cheeky?” He licks a portion of his cum off your chin and feeds it to your tongue, all nice and slow, in a heady kiss that brings your bodies closer to one another. Your cunt is still soaked, pulsing around nothing, and his cock is still rock-hard, throbbing against your stomach.

Holding turns into groping as Toji gives your ass a squeeze. “Better not fail Megumi from now on.”

Your teeth clash together as you break into a sudden cackle. “Someone might think you’re only doing this to secure his grades.”

“Among other reasons,” he states.

“Is this how you care for your son’s education?” You humor him. “By seducing his teacher?”

“Nah,” Toji pauses to tug at your dress’ strap. He’s going to have to unzip it if he wants to move things forward. “My kid’s plenty smart on his own. Besides, the teacher’s the one doin’ the seducing here.” He caresses your curves and smiles in triumph once he spots the zipper on the side. “Wouldn’t fuck ‘er if she’d let me go back to my car to jerk it like a responsible man would. Would’ve waited until the second date; buy her something good—you like flowers, right?”

You lift your arms for him to strip you. He leaves you to stand in your unmatched underwear, black lace on your tits, and white cotton around your hips. His tongue darts out, wetting his lower lip. “Is it too late to enroll?”

Your eyes perform a full circle. You almost shove his hands away from your bra when you realize it’s already off. He thumbs at your nipples with his palms cupped around your breasts, refusing to let an inch of your soft skin spill from his calloused, practiced fingers.

“I’m afraid you’re behind the rest of the class.” You go along with his game of role-play. “I’d have to give you private lessons.”

“Sign me up.”

Toji steps back to remove his shirt, undoing his buttons so quickly that you’re certain they’ll fly right off. He discards it on the floor, and you take stock of his physique, inevitably gaping at the jagged scars that span from below his left shoulder to the center of his torso. Your fingers carefully trail over them, as if the violence that caused them still lurks beneath.

So that’s what sustaining limitless leaves you with, you momentarily muse, before your sympathy dissolves into a quarter of a smile. You don’t want him to think you’re pitying him—because you aren’t. Both he and Satoru made their choices, and you refuse to be the judge of their decade-long feud.

His hands return to your waist, while yours meet behind his neck. You kiss again and again, the action of mouths stealing each other’s oxygen repeating until the edge of your desk digs into your lower back. His strong arms smother you like he’s never embraced another before; overwhelming you to the point where you’re moaning despite his cock not being in yet.

“Just so you know, this gonna be a regular thing.” Toji mutters, his green eyes confirming his sincerity in the way he pulls your thighs apart. He doesn’t think he’s never said that phrase before. It’s always the opposite.

He dips a hand into your panties, lathering his palm with your slick, and then strokes his dick. “Not ‘ere for the sex only.”

“You’re gonna stay over and buy me breakfast?” You entertain the idea.

“As long as convenience store Onigiri cuts it. A bit tight this month.” Toji leaves you some breathing space, kicking his pants off his ankles. “A’right. Turn around and arch that back for me.”

A wicked smirk rises on his scar as you face away from him. “I was hoping to fuck you on your little classroom desk, but this will do just fine. You can look back on it next time ya feel swamped with papers.”

“I won’t be able to get any work done!” You protest.

The aforementioned papers glue to your breasts when you prop yourself on your elbows. You glance over your shoulder, catching sight of Toji positioning himself between your legs. You feel him run his cock between your now-bare folds, your panties having dropped in a pool around your feet like tasteless anklets.

Toji kneads your ass with one hand, the other stroking himself along your clenching holes. “You can think of this as my confession.” He trails off as he drives his thick cock into your wet pussy, and he does it slowly enough for it not to hurt, but it’s him who ends up needing a good minute to adjust after he bottoms out.

He knows it’ll feel even better once he moves, but it already feels perfect as is. So warm; so tight; so good that he’s afraid he’ll lose composure and jackhammer into you until the desk legs break.

“Haven’t had such perfect pussy in ages.” Toji grunts, his nails digging sharp crescent moons into the fat of your ass.

He’s had his fair share of pretty girls with empty brains and tight cunts, but yours is something else. Yours, he wants it owned. He wants it to lull him to sleep every night, only to wake up the next morning to the mess you’ve made creaming around his cock all night long. He wants to make you into his personal cock warmer, and he nearly cringes at the thought, until he feels you pulse around him and realizes you probably want that too.

“Fuck me, T-Toji.” You stammer, pulling your body forward only to slam it back on his length.

That’s all he needs to get going. His hips mercilessly slap against your own while he drills his cock in and out with such vigor that he feels it kissing your cervix. The desk bangs hard against the wall, almost overpowering the sounds of your soft whimpers. He forces you to meet his tempo, using the leverage on your ass to cut down on the distance between his leaking head and your puffy cunt.

“‘member what I told ya when I first saw ya?” Toji slows down, his fingers reaching between your thighs to swipe at your clit while his hips switch to languid rolls.

“Y-You mean after you—fuck, put your shoes on my desk thinking it was Satoru’s?”

“Brings back memories, doesn’t it?” He huffs and brings your arm behind your back, pressing down on it. “Remember,” he mouths hot kisses down your nape and shoulder, his palm cupping your entire cunt while your walls flutter around him. “Remember how I said you’re too hot to be stuck ‘ere teaching brats manners?”

You fist at the table, desperately searching in your foggy mind for a memory you can’t seem to find or a place to grip, the only answer you can muster being, “You never said that.”

“I didn’t?” Toji flicks the sensitive nub upward. “Well, not every thought’s meant to be shared, mhm?”

He pops your dialogue bubble by nipping at your neck, his cock scratching an itch that has you writhing in pleasure.

“Shhh, baby.” He coos, the warm timbre in his voice soothing the shrill ringing in your head. “Promise I’ll be more vocal now on. Tell ya all about how good that sloppy pussy’s flooding me, or how gorgeous your cute face looks lighting up whenever ya see me.”

The flames in your stomach shoot up to your heart, beating so loud you swear it punctuates his every word.

“How many times was it?” He asks. “Eight PT meetings in two months? Or ten? Ya think I wouldn’t notice I was the only parent called?”

Your head droops forward. “Would’ve been eleven if you didn’t come today. Wanna see more of you, Toji. F-fuck, wanna see you all the time.”

“And you will,” he detaches from your neck and picks up his speed, keen on having you see starts with the way he thumbs your clit. “Gonna make you cum around my cock every day, sweetheart. Just call me and—ugh, I’ll come runnin’. No need for that PT crap.”

Your bitten lips do nothing to contain your unregulated cries as you tighten around him like a vice—the only coherent words among your long-drawn vowels being “I’m cumming, Toji!” that you scream at the top of your lungs.

Toji begrudgingly pulls out, letting you ride your high alone. If he stays in a second longer, he knows you’ll end up with a nine-month trouble that will escalate into a lifelong problem in the form of paychecks for him and test sheets for you.

He plops down on the chair to cool down for a moment, proudly admiring your stupefied expression, eyes blown out with sheer ecstasy, and lips gasping for air.

“Hey. Are you free tomorrow?”

Maybe you are worth the trouble.

The delightful buzzes in your head are replaced with a series of acute knocks against your door. You barely have time to locate your rug of a dress in the corner of the room and zip it up, hoping the fabric’s enough to keep the marks on your body out of your visitor’s field of view.

“Should’ve known,” you groan, wishing you'd shoved your head in the pillows and pretended you were missing—except, there's no hiding from him. You step outside and close the door with your back, folding your arms over your chest. “What brings you here, Satoru?”

“Mornin’ to you too, Y/N.” His mouth is full as he speaks, rice grains framing both sides of his lips. “How was your date?”

“It was…” you pause, focusing on the plastic convenience store bag he’s holding rather than his eyes, “good.”

“Good, huh?” He grimaces. He doesn’t have to tell you he was hoping it’d fail. “Anyway, came to drop these. Someone left them on your doorstep.”

You peer into the contents of the bag, full of onigiri in different flavors—two that are tuna mayo, two with shrimp tempura, two with salted salmon, and lastly, a spare pickled plum.

Your lips curl into a smile as you pick your favorite from the bunch. So that's your answer.

"Thanks, Satoru." He is surprised you didn't scold him, gladly taking his chance to leave before you speak again. "Wait."

"I was the one who stole your Manju."

[orii-blogs-stuff]

Hello! Am sending a questions about your Ascendence of a Bookworm x Resturant to Another World AU.

Which was you favorite part to write so far?

Has anyone traded goods such as plants or meats from Yurgenschmidt (hope I remember how to spell that) to Nekoya yet?

How well known is the restaurant among the merchants and commoners of Yurgen?

I find it fascinating to think of what the restaurant can make with the plants and meats found in each duchy that cannot be found on Earth.

I like how you managed to show the differences of culture, what the nobles expect to experience vs their real customer service experience, and the way the people who become regulars adapt to it in their own way.

I especially like how you’ve incorporated the regular order nicknames to each person. Once I remember who is who, it’s interesting to think of how the scenarios will play out with those present.

How did you come up for the favorite meals of other characters and do you have a list of them?

Thank you for making this wonderful story. I never thought this crossover would happen but now that it did, it is amazing! Hope you have a great day!

Screams~~!!

I wasn't really expecting an ask but I'm so happy I got one~~!!

Ok so from top to bottom:

My favourite part has to be writing about the Nobles meeting Mestionora, there just this delicious sort of (idk what to call it, karma maybe?) Thing in the air where Nobles are getting treated the same way most of them would treat the commoners you know what I mean, if face of a metaphysical cosmic entity they are *nothing* and the realization of that feels like such a juicy thing to write.

Yes, Mako and his fellow chef Leo are always trying to find ways to incorporate local food from Yurgenschmidt and the other world into their resrurant menu, Rozemyne traded a few fruits and veggies for cacao and coffee beans in the beginning when Alexandria's country gate wasnt connected to the land of sand. Now Rozemyne only imports cacao and about a kilogram or natto every week.

It's a bit of an Urban legend amongst merchants, especially travelling merchants, some don't belive it, others swear they saw it, benno makes a lot of money from all the new exotic foods Rozemyne brings with her to Alexandria and traveling merchants (atleast, the ones who found it) make it a point to find and label all (or as many) Nekoya doors they can find on their way (because food is essential to traveling merchants and their families) tho it's mostly not mentioned in the story itself cuz its a bit irrelevant to the plot (aka: I can't figure out a way to incorporate it without sounding forced it)

Aww thank you~~ ya I'd also love to see what the chefs could come up with using Yurgen meats and veggies.

I haven't made a list of them. Also I put a bit of thought into the names because that's the least amount of effort I could atleast put into the characters, example:-

Shuu - he's a Vtuber, meaning many sleepless nights, meaning he needs a lot of energy boosts to go about his day such as caffeine, so I chose melon soda because melon soda seems to be pretty popular in Japan.

😭😭😭 I am legit sobbing~~!! Thank you very much!! And have a great day as well!

[sckyie]

word count: 1.6k

genre + warnings: angst to fluff; platonic flirting, friends to lovers, touch of insecurities

pronouns used: she/her

a/n: oooooooooooooo sunaaaaaaaaa

You know those stages that happen before you're dating someone? Those awkward, "I'm talking to someone but I'm not official," stages? That's what it felt like with your close friend, Suna. It was always something along those lines but never any action happened.

The two of you were known by your friends how you'd flirt with one another. Constantly using pick up lines and calling each other terms of endearment. It was confusing to your friends with your relationship, your friendship if you will.

There was one rule between you two once you started this platonic flirting. No catching feelings. Simple as that, you and Suna hadn't felt any tinge of romance when you were beside each other. It was easy enough as you'd help each other with setting one another on dates.

That was until you caught yourself. "What wrong with you?" Osamu poked at your cheek. "You haven't touched yer lunch at all."

"Oh, I'm just thinking," You say, snapping out of your thoughts.

"What about?" He asks.

"My stupid crush," You sighed, munching on your bento.

"Heyo!" Atsumu came into the classroom with Suna trailing behind him. He sits beside Osamu and Kita.

"Hey baby," Suna says, greeting you. He pulls a seat to sit beside you  

"Hey," You smiled. "I'm gonna go get something to drink. Did you want anything hon?"

"Just the melon soda please," Suna says, handing you some coins. You turn them down, turning to leave.

"Can I come with?" Osamu asks, knowing something was bothering you. You nod as he followed you out to the vending machines. "Alright what's buggin' you?"

"Nothing," You lied, inserting the coins into the machine.

"C'mon Y/n, spit it out," Osamu crosses his arms.

"Fine," You sighed. "I like this guy and he's been on my mind lately...It's just bugging me how bad I want to confess, but I know he probably doesn't like me. He's my close friend and it'll ruin our friendship."

"Does this guy, say, flirt with you a lot?" Osamu hinting at Suna.

"Yes, it's him," You confirmed, bending to grab the drinks. "We made a rule to not fall for one another. It's hard to not like someone when they flirt with you everyday. Even you saw it, he calls me baby and I can't tell him to stop."

"You could always tell him how you feel, ya never know, he could like you too," Osamu says. You sighed, ignoring your friend's advice, trailing back to the classroom.

"I would never date her," You overheard. Osamu puts his arm out, stopping you from entering. "Y/n is just my friend, I'd never see her as more than that."

"That's Suna's voice," You whispered.

"Oh come on, no feelings at all?" Atsumu says.

"She's too- what is it- clingy? She's always pushy and can't see her romantically.," Suna explained. "Hey, look at this chick."

You pushed past Osamu's arm, entering the room. You place his drink on the desk, returning to your food. Suna had leaned over to show Aran a photo from Instagram, he moves back, draping his arm over your chair. "Thank you baby," He says, taking your drink from the desk. You hummed in response, eating the rice in your bento.

"Hey, Y/n are you coming to the game next week?" Atsumu asks.

"Maybe," You say. "I have to study for the exam coming up."

"Aww, yer not gonna come support your baby," Atsumu teased. You rolled your eyes, finishing up your food.

After school, usually you met with Suna before practice started and before you'd walk home. It was a usual thing, he says some corny pick up line and gives you a hug goodbye after you wish him a good practice. Today however, you were hurt by his words. Clingy and pushy? Were you always so attached to him he started to dislike it?

Suna waits patiently outside the gym like normal but you didn't arrive. He checks his phone, noticing that practice is close to starting. Confused, he turns around and heads to the locker room. "Did Y/n already come by?" Atsumu asks.

"No, she didn't come at all. Wonder if she's okay," Suna deadpanned.

rin rin: hey, you didn't come by today? you okay?

you: yea, just tired, sorry rin

rin rin: it's fine, text me when you get home, yea?

you: gotcha!

You locked your phone shoving it into your pocket. A sting in your chest kept bugging you on your way home. It hurt knowing that Suna doesn't even want to be more than friends. You would've taken the rejection face on but, hearing it behind your back? Was there even a point in this platonic flirting?

After hearing his words of how he felt about you, distancing yourself from him only felt right. For the next few days, you stopped your extra flirting, visiting him after class, and overall, you stopped calling him some cutesy pet name.

Tomorrow was the day of the game, Suna had sat with Atsumu outside at lunch since the classroom was full. "You okay, Suna?" He waves his hand in front of his face. Osamu approaches them as Suna breaks out of his thoughts.

"Hm? I'm fine," He lied. "Just...thinking about..." Suna looked up to see you talking with a male classmate.

"About Y/n?" Atsumu implied.

"Do you guys know why she's avoiding me?" Suna asks.

"Because you said you didn't think of her romantically," Osamu says bluntly.

"What?!" Atsumu looks at his brother. "Y/n likes Suna?"

"I thought it was obvious. The two of 'em flirt all the time, it was bound for one of them to catch feelings," Osamu explained.

"But, she didn't confess?" Suna kept his eyes locked on you. "Why is she avoiding me if I never rejected her."

"Because dumbass," Aran smacked the back of his head. "She overheard you say you'd never date a girl like her. She thinks you're just flirting with her just to do it and that her feelings don't matter."

"Wait why do you two know she likes Suna?" Atsumu raised his eyebrow. "Did she tell you?"

"She told me, those two just caught on by how she's been acting," Osamu gestured towards Kita and Aran. "What are you gonna do now Suna?"

"I...don't know..." He says. You finish talking to your classmate and feel a pair of eyes watching you. Looking around, you spot Suna staring at you, causing you to blush and cower back into the building.

Your mind was racing after seeing Suna. Why was he staring at you? Do you think he knows you like him? What are you going to do?

After school, you headed to the gate, spotting Suna waiting by the entrance. You kept your head down as you walked with the crowd out of school. Unknowingly, you walked on you path home with Suna walking behind you. As soon as it was just the two of you on the way to your house, he decided to break the silence.

"You can't keep ignoring me Y/n," Suna calls out. You stop in place, knowing that voice from anywhere. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Shouldn't you be at practice?" You ask. You kept your back to his voice, not wanting to look at him.

"Coach cancelled, now," Suna walked to you, turning your body to face him. "Why didn't you tell me how you felt?"

"Because...you said," You hesitated answering. "You didn't like me that way."

"That gave you the right to ignore me? Leave me in the dark?" He asks. He sounded condescending.

"I'm sorry I don't want to face rejection twice," You finally looked up and met his eyes.

"You didn't face it to begin with," Suna says, he took notice of your red cheeks.

"It felt like I did, jerk," You say. "Why should I confess if you're only going to reject me?"

"Why do you keep saying I'll reject you?" Suna crossed his arms.

"Because- why wouldn't you?! Stop being confusing. I like you and I know you don't feel the same. So, stop trying to get me to confess-" You were interrupted by Suna cupping your cheeks. He leans down, crashing his lips into yours. At first you didn't know what to do, your hands flew up, grabbing his wrists as he began to deepen the kiss. You pulled away, huffing for air. "I need- air- Why did you kiss me?"

"Was I supposed to let you continue to lie to yourself?" He asks, placing another kiss on your lips. His kisses were lazy but were so soft.

"Rin," You breathed. Suna pulls away, his eyes meeting yours.

"I hate those in between stages," He says. "I hate that whole talking stage. I didn't want to go through that with you."

"But...you told Atsumu," You looked away for a second, only for Suna to turn your face back to his.

"I told him that so he doesn't get on my ass for liking you," He sighed. "I didn't mean it when I called you pushy."

"Or clingy?" You asked.

"Well no, you are clingy- Ow!" You smack his shoulder, giggling at his words. "I like having you cling to me. Let's me know you only have eyes for me."

"Okay, so what does this mean for us?" You muttered.

"It means," Suna lifts up your chin, placing yet another soft kiss on your lips. "I want you to be mine officially. Let's skip all the in between parts, I just want you."

"Hmm," You hummed.

"What are you thinking?" He asks.

"I'll say yes if you let me wear your spare jersey tomorrow," You smiled.

"Deal," He leans down asking for more love but you move your face away. "Hey, what are you doing?"

"Nuh-uh you hurt my feelings, kisses aren't going to make up for it," You turned around walking towards your house.

"I'm not letting you ignore me again," Suna says, quickly grabbing your hand. He whips you around, leaning into you, connecting his mouth with yours. You smiled as his hands snaked around your waist. You pulled away smiling yet still furrowing your eyebrows. Suna rolls his eyes, holding you close. "Shut up, we're cuddling when we get to your house."  

taglist: @amillionfandoms-onlyoneme @just-a-siiimp @d0llpie @elianetsantana

[more-than-a-princess]

Continued from here for @arslivitia​ !

He hardly ever smiled.

Sonia was used to plenty of expressions and emotions from a boy of few words: a glare, an exasperated huff, a snarl, even a quieter tone of deep reflection. Assertiveness and rage seemed to be his primary state of being, even if such tumultuous feelings came from, dare she even think it, a tender place. But Akira Kijima never really smiled.

So it was understandable, then, that she peered at him with curiosity over her leather-bound menu. She'd heard it said in equal amounts of aggravation and coyness that the way to a man's heart was through food, and thus Valentine's Day was all the more important in Japan versus her homeland. Perhaps it really was true, if it settled Akira's usual anger, or fear, or whatever else it was that prompted him to call her an idiot and criticize her so often when she chose to partake in a small adventure away from the iron gates and watchful eyes of Hope's Peak Academy.

She couldn't think of a better present for his birthday: contentment, if not happiness. And if trays upon trays of wagyu beef, sliced pork belly, and marinated chicken were the ways to go about it, the price of a dinner was a small one indeed.

"Did you like it much? The sushi place?" She asked. Truth be told, Sonia couldn't picture him at an elegant sushi restaurant: the sort with very few tables, a bar, and a chef who had perfected his craft for decades. She'd been taught early on in such an establishment, if she ever deemed to go one on her own, that she should put her trust in the chef and sample whatever he chose to set before her. But official royal protocol didn't allow it, unless menu modifications were made: shellfish was far too risky and susceptible to food poisoning. "I don't have the opportunity to try much sushi, though I wish I did."

She gave the server her own drink order, a melon soda, before chuckling at his admission. They happened more often now, moments where she taught him something about...well, a great many things. Whether it was the definition of a word or navigating a fancy menu. Sonia felt that he was a bit more reluctant in teaching her his knowledge: the knowledge of causing others physical pain. "Those are beverages we can't order anyway," She explained, smiling as she set her napkin in her lap. "They're alcoholic and we're under age." A fact that she chose to adhere to mostly because she was in the company of others and not at home, where the official drinking age was a very loose guideline for the aristocracy. But then again, the Novosonian aristocracy wouldn't be sampling all they could eat meat, rice, and vegetables, which were now being brought on various trays with accompanying dipping sauces. It was mouthwatering, the perfectly marbled beef, the charcoal grill, and the rich scent of umami that wafted through the air as the first pieces, right alongside a few thick-cut carrots and mushrooms, were arranged beside them.

"Goodness, that smells divine," She sighed happily, staring at the red and pink pieces as they slowly began to turn brown. "I'm familiar with steaks and filets but this is something entirely different! It seems so tender...it's both wonderful and torturous to wait for it to be done!"

[dnarez]

Chapter 7

From that day on you and Izuku were quite inseparable, you went to his house and he went to you, totally geeking out when he saw your dad and your grandpa, since both are heroes.

One day you decided that you were tired of waiting for Izuku at your house, so you decided to go fetch him from school, you two could chat on the way!

You took your small purse and put your cellphone and drawing book on it, with your keys.

Walking out your house and making way to his school was quite easy after you knew the way, and by the looks of it the classes had ended.

You wait for him by the gate, until you hear something falling on the small pound that was next to a window, it was burned.

Walking to the pound and inspecting it you notice that it was Izuku's handwriting on the front, you take it and dry the book patting it on your clothes, as you look around you see the Pomeranian going out of the school, he didn't seem to notice you.

Looking at the burned book and then back at the Pomeranian, after connecting the dots you glare at his back.

You remember that in one of your hang-outs, Izuku had told you about his old childhood friend that became his bully after discovering that he was quirkless, you doubt that there is another person with ash blond spiky hair and red eyes.

You hear someone walking to you, looking at their direction you see Izuku with his head down, mumbling to himself "Izuku? Is everything okay?"

He looks up and smiles when he sees you, then see his book on your hand "y-yes! I'm fine but... what are you doing here?"

"I decided to take you home" you hand him his notebook "He was lucky that I wasn't here! I will kick his ass if I see that Pomeranian bullying you!"

"P-please don't! I don't want you to get involved like this..."

"As your self-proclaimed best friend, I (Y/n) Trafalgar Donquixote! Will always defend you!" you huff and puts a fist against your chest.

He chuckles "Do I have a choice?"

"Nope!' you say popping the P " Now let's go! I'll buy you a drink!" He nods and you both get out of the school.

You pay for two sodas soda from a vending machine, you give him the grape one and drink the melon one.

As you both walk around and talk laughing to yourselves, a villain appears and takes Izuku from your side.

The scene is horrendous, and you just can't move!

Izuku's face of panic, the way he tries to reach for you, but you are froze in fear, you could easily change his place with the can of soda in your hand, or use your lines to pull him, but the fear petrified you, you have had near-death experiences before, but right now you aren't in danger, but your one and only friend.

The guy like villain seems more focused on dealing with Izuku, and doesn't seem to notice you, when you see Izuku's eyes rolling to the back of his head, starting to lose consciousness, you wake up from the petrified state and shouted "ROOM!" activating your quirk.

But before you could do anything fucking All Might appear and put the villain in a bottle, you deactivate your quirk and run to Izuku, helping him up "Izuku!" you look at All Might and start to tremble "I'm sorry Izuku! I'll call you later!" You get up and ran after your eyes meet the pro hero's one.

'If grandpa Doffy discovers this-!!!' You keep running away from them, not looking at where you are going, or noticing that you are going the opposite way from your house.

You knew that the number one hero wasn't a bad guy, on the contrary, he was awesome! Almost got your mother behind bars a few times and grandpa Doffy business was almost entirely destroyed by him, so your mother's side of the family really hates him.

So been born and raised by one of the biggest threats in America that is your mom, and a Pro Hero know by being one of the best doctors in the world that is your dad, made your mind really confused, you do want to help people, but also know that not all heroes are good hearted people, so you always doubt pro hero's intentions.

Donquixote Doflamingo or also know as Joker, is a drug dealer, that traffic humans and exotic animals, while also has his hands on the government, and has the biggest line of information on the whole word, so being his granddaughter means that you have to be careful all the time, no exceptions.

You don't know if the number one hero will recognize you as the daughter and grand-daughter of two powerful villains, but you do know that it's better not to take risks, this is a new experience, your dad trust that you will be safe, and you don't want to lose that trust, so you will do what your instincts tell you to do and run.

...

You don't remember how long have you been running, but you got super tired and sat on a bench that was beside the entrance of a park.

'W-where am I?' You look around while recuperating your breath 'I will have to ask for directions...'

You decide to wait for someone to walk pass you.

...

You receive a call when the sun was starting to set "Hello~ oh! Dad! Yeah.... I got lost, I was running like crazy from All Might, but I guess he didn't even recognized me... no! I did nothing wrong! I... got scared... okay... yeah... okay, see you later!" You get up from the bench and start to walk to the pizza place that was across the road, but before getting close to the door, it opens and your favorite duo comes out.

"Uncle Kid! Uncle Kill!" You run to them and hug the redhead's right arm

"Dondon, it's been too long" Killer pats your head, and Kid tries to shrug you off, but you only hug him tighter.

"LET GO OF ME YOU LIL PUNK!!!" He keeps trying to shake you off but fails.

Killer shakes his head "Hey, Dondon, if you keep like that, you will make him lose half of his right arm"

"It's okay, that way it will look like the other one" you joke

"HELL NA! TAKE THIS SPAWN OF SATAN OFF OF ME!"

You giggle and let go, going to Killer and giving him a short hug

"What are you doing here Dondon? Are you on a break at Corazon's house?" He pets your head lightly

"Oh! You didn't know?" you tilt your head.

"What? Are you moving by any chance?" Kid just glares at you while you and Killer chat.

"I already moved! Dad got divorced from mom, I thought you already knew, since the Newgate's party was enormous"

"We didn't... but why are you alone when it's getting dark? We are kinda far from Corazon's house" Killer crosses his arms

"I got lost! But I was going to the pizza place to ask for directions" Killer looked at Kid, and even though he had his mask own Kid seemed to understand everything Killer wanted to say.

Kid glared at you a little more, then huffs and nodded "Let's take her to Corazon"

"Yay!" You hug Kid again, and this time he pats your head "Thank you uncle Kid!"

Killer took your hand in his and brought you back to their car "You already know the drill Dondon"

You get inside the car, Killer is always the driver, but the car is actually Kid's, "Hey uncle Kid, how's going your new job?" As soon as everyone was inside the car Killer starts to drive.

"I have all the liberty I want! And the suit guys come to me on 4 just to try and get a look at my blueprints! They are crazy if they think they can get them!" He says proudly

You nod "I'm glad that uncle has such loyal costumers to buy your gadgets, have you been selling to the underworld too?"

He nods back "There are some rumors of the Hero Killer coming back to the city, so be careful, do you have a gun?"

"No, I don't have one" you shake your head.

"... do you need one?"

"Eustass!! Don't offer guns to an underage girl! If Corazon hear about this-!!!"

"Yeah, yeah! I know, just... I'm worried about her, if she's out here so late she requires protection!" Kid huffs and looks back at you "do you at least know self defense??"

"No..." you say sheepishly

"Okay, I will talk to your dad, so he can't let you out till this late, It's dangerous if you don't know how to defend yourself " Killer says

"Yeah! We will talk to him!" Kid says with a big maniac smile.

"No! I will talk to him and Corazon, you will keep her company on the car!" The car arrives to your house and Killer stop the car, and gets out, but as soon as he close the door he points at Kid and points down signaling for him to stay where he is.

You chuckle at the interaction "how is the marriage life going?"

Kid looks at you and then at Killer's ass "Pretty good, how's your life going? Any friends?"

"Yeah! I have one! His name is Izuku Midoriya, he's quirkless but very nice and sweet, but..." you look around worried "today we were walking to my house and a villain appeared, All Might saved him, but I just...  I was so scared... I was petrified the entire time... only a little before All Might show up I was actually able to move, but again..."

"Let me guess, he may recognize you since you look so much like your mother?" He had turned around to talk to you.

You nod and bite your thumb fingernail, an old habit "at least I think he did, I was so scared that I just run away as soon as I got the chance..."

"Don't worry too much, if he had recognized you, you wouldn't be here right? He is the number one hero after all" Kid roughly pats your head.

It kinda hurt but since he isn't someone to normally touch others you don't complain.

Killer comes back with your dad, both seem to be talking something serious, they turn to you and your dad makes a sign for you to go there.

You look back at Kid that shook his head "You know I don't like your dad very much, so don't you dare ask me to-" you kiss his cheek interrupting him and smile

"Bye uncle Kid" you wave and get out of the car. Running to your dad and hugging him tightly.

"You will start the physical practice tomorrow morning, I already send a message to Ace"

You pout but nod knowing it was best for you.

"Bye sweetie, see you another day" Killer wave at you, and you wave back before going inside where your grandpa gave you a big welcoming smile.

"Welcome back" he got up from the couch and hugged you. "hope you are read for some training tomorrow morning!"

-----------------------------------------------------------------------------

Eustass "Captain" Kid

Killer (yes that's he actual name)

[tamilkerr]

Lolita lovers

Wondering those busy hallways alone always unnerved Charlotte. Yet here she is  wondering with no sight of her friend, holding down her skirt while she walked around in circles. She was going from the stall that sold the melon soda to the one that sold the figures of pretty girls, and then back round again.

  It seemed that her friend had left the convention without her and she could feel the tears welling up in her eyes “I just want to lay on the floor and cry.” She murmured to herself, but she couldn't, her dress would get dirty.So Charlotte found a solitary corner, crouched down to the floor and started to take many shallow breaths. She did this to stop herself from getting too anxious. She was just about to break down when she heard it. 

 “Hi.” A very soft voice greeted her from above. 

Charlotte looked up to see a hand reaching for her. “Are you ok, you look upset” asked a very cute girl in a similar sort of dress to Charlotte, but this one was black instead of pink. 

“Oh I’m fine, I just..” Charlotte paused and took a deep breath. “I can’t find my friend.” She said.The girl with the black dress and hair to match, simply said “I will help you.” prompting Charlotte to finally take the hand the girl had offered. Soon Charlotte was on her feet. 

 The girls had walked most of the con floor enjoying each other's company and conversation “So you're a gothic lolita then?” Charlotte twiddles her thumbs together, “yes it’s only gothic for me, what about you, what's your style of lolita fashion?”.

 tucking her black hair behind her ear to listen to the answer “well I'm not sure yet, this is my first time wearing lolita” the blonde sounded unsure of herself.    

 Placing a gentle hand on her pink sleeve “well I would continue with the sweet style, it looks really good on you” she blushed at her words but before she could say thanks or give a compliment back.They had walked into the food and seating area and Charlotte’s very loud friend had spotted her “THERE you are!” a tall girl with fiery red hair stood by the small blonde, “I was looking for you everywhere, WHY didn't you tell me you were going to get food” her pink bow almost falling off her head.

 “Aw sorry, I got too ahead of myself” the redhead apologised, the goth girl fixed the blonde's bow and smiled sweetly then went on her way. “Ooo Charlotte, got yourself a girlfriend there” the tall girl teased and a huge blush grew on Charlotte’s face “NO! you just have it all wrong Willow, that gothic girl was helping me find you” wagging her finger in willow face to get the point across.

Much more teasing and walking later the con was at its end, Willow was attempting to join in on a dancing routine with other girls in lolita. While Charlotte was looking about frantically, searching for that kind frilly stranger from earlier “Oh I wanted to give this to her” muttering things to herself as she held a small voodoo doll with black button

eyes “Who’s that for, because it can’t be for you it isn’t pink” Willow gave a toothy smirk.

A little bit of red formed on her cheeks as she answered “It’s for that girl in black from earlier, I just wanted to thank her” Willow did give a small laugh “Nah you just liked her” and with that the taxi for them both had HONKED loudly. 

Backdrop set up and lights just right “Hello my lovely viewers, it’s me Carlottalita” the perky blonde announced “and I’m bringing you the latest in Lolita fashion news.” Charlotte continued the day making videos. As night fell she took her huge ponytail hair extensions out and lay down in bed, posting mindlessly to social media.

“WAKE UP! Charlotte, it’s me willow” a harsh banging on the door, made her shoot straight up in her frilly bed sheets and night dress. “oh COMING! let me find the keys” she had her hand digging around in a bowl filled with many cute keychains. As soon as it was unlocked the women burst through with bags filled to the brim with petticoats, “look at all this, Daisy got rid of everything” she thrust bags into the sleepy girls arms.

“REALLY daisy doo, she’s done with lolita?” Willow nodded at her questions “yup! She announced it with a video early this morning, so obviously I went to console her and maybe get some of her stuff” a very big grin on her lips. Charlotte was still shocked but boiled the kettle to make her and her friend a nice hot cup of tea, so Willow could spill the T.

“That’s not even the best part” Willow stood up after an hour of sitting and chatting “she gave me her tickets to that big con in Paris” Charlotte almost dropped her saucer with her tea cup on it. “Are you serious, France? we are going to France!” her voice went up an octave, she then threw herself at her friend who in return gave her a big bear hug “Yes my tiny friend, so plan out your most loveliest lolita dress yet!”.

That afternoon she was already online looking at bows and socks to match her very expensive dress “wow Lotte that costs the same as a  gaming pc” Willow’s eyes were almost popping out of her head looking at this web page “I know, but this con is really important and special”  twisting and twirling her blonde hair. 

The ginger pinched her cheeks and shook her face from side to side “ohh nah, you're just hoping that you’ll find a fellow lolita girl to fall in love with” Charlotte just swatted her hands away “oh stop it Willow” a big huff escaped her. “just because I fell for someone once, doesn't mean it’ll happen again” the blonde started to daze off thinking of the gothic beauty she had met at one of her first cons.

“she had the loveliest voice as well” unfortunately she had said her thoughts out loud which resulted in her friends endless teasing all through the night. Willow had already made herself comfortable in the pink frilly bed sheets.

Finally the time had arrived to take off “Ahh do you think we have enough bags yet Lotte?” Willow asked as she eyed up the two separate piles of luggage. One pile decorated pink with pandas and the other green with foxes “Haha I worry we don’t have enough” the blonde responded nervously.

After the two had arrived successfully to the airport in separate taxis, with still many hours to go until they got on the plane they messed about in the various shops after putting their luggage through the check in gate.

“Hey don’t I look like Elton John!” the loud mouthed girl bellowed across the shop while she wore novelty pink, sparkly booby glasses. “That is funny because he is in fact gay” Charlotte giggled and nodded as she approached her friend. Against better judgement Willow bought the glasses and wore them as they ate their burgers and fries.

Eventually, they landed in Paris, France after a longer than usual flight due to bad weather Charlotte found one of her bags to be missing. Almost on the verge of tears Charlotte tries her best to hide it from her friend but before they could leave the airport Willow, like a sniffer dog could sense there was something wrong. 

“You had four bags. Now there’s three” she growled. The fiery redhead slammed her hands down onto the help desk “My friend's bag has gone missing” the friend in question watched in horror as she stood alone with the two luggage carts. “Well ma'am luggage does get lost quite often.” She gave a well practiced smile which angered the ginger more “How could you lose it? It's covered in pandas!!!”

Finally leaving the airport the two girls grabbed a taxi heading towards their hotel room. Sitting in an awkward silence the whole journey until they finally got into their pajamas “Thanks Will for trying” giving a soft smile as she spoke.

“I still think we could have gotten it today” still frustrated she wrapped her arms around Charlotte in a supportive cuddle “It’s okay we filled out the form so we should hopefully hear back from them” she returned the cuddle squeezing tighter.

After a while they settled into their beds and put on some TV they couldn’t understand so just ended up chatting to each other “So Lotte what was in that bag anyway? It wasn’t that fancy dress you just got was it?”

seeing the panic in Willow’s eyes she quickly responded, “well it was just some petticoats and a couple of pairs of socks but, you remember that doll I bought for that girl” When she realized what her blonde friend was going on about she gave her a cheeky grin “oohhh I see, you’re hoping you’ll meet her again” giving Charlotte a wink.

Many people stared at Charlotte and Willow as they walked down the streets of Paris dressed in their usual lolita styles. Charlotte in her pastel coloured lace skirt and top with a bow to match, Willow contrasting in multiple shades of brown with the clockwork decoration plus a top hat to top it all off. 

“So how’d you sleep last night Lotti?” she asked her clearly sleepy friend as they sat down outside a cafe “fine! It wasn’t like I was worried about my bags or anything Will” responding in an overly sarcastic tone.

As their tea and assortment of pastries was brought to them the waitress could not help but focus on their garments “Um excuse me but why are you dressed like that?” She couldn’t help but ask as she set down the numerous plates.

“Well we are wearing lolita” Willow couldn’t help but interject. “It’s just an alternative fashion, the woman who had served just looked more confused and with an ‘Oh’ she just walked away continuing to do her job. So the two friends just spent their whole day sightseeing but unknown to them both that girl whom the blonde has been enamoured with was not far from where they have had tea. 

The dark haired girl stood in a room with many lights and cameras wearing a black dress a lot fancier than the one from before “Rio stop daydreaming and get over here” a woman in a very regal outfit commanded “Okay, coming Hina” the two posed in many positions and wore many clothes but Rio’s were always mostly black. 

“That's enough photos for today ladies” a man with very shiny hair and equally shiny blouse told the girls “Well it’s about time, come Rio we must go meet my new friend” linking arms with her gothic friend and guiding her to a very nice car outside. 

Once inside the vehicle a neutral blonde with gray eyes gave them a very wide smile “Bonjour, you’ll be coming to my house for dinner, I’ve got chef’s making it as we speak” she announced as she held her head high “Rio this is Aimee, Aimee this is Rio” Hina introduced them both to each other.

With that they went to Aimee's house and the whole time they were in her home Rio couldn’t help but feel a sense of uneasiness around this new person. 

They were all sitting in Aimee’s bedroom, she had her own small sofa and coffee table which had a beautiful tea set with a matching cake stand next to it “oh you simply must see my lovely collection of vintage polly pockets” Hina’s eyes lit up at those words but her fellow model didn’t really know what these polly things were. On this white wood shelf there were a lot of tiny little pastel coloured boxes that kind of looked like compact mirrors without any glass “Cool” was all Rio could muster. 

After some time Aimee left the room “Hina how well do you know her?” the goth asked, “Not very, I met her the last time I was here for a photoshoot” her friend said it so casually.

 Rio was a little shocked “What! You’ve only known her for a month? Why are we in her house?” grabbing her friend by the shoulders and shaking her a little “Calm down there’s nothing to worry about it’s very unlikely that she’s a serial killer or something” Hina laughed at her and messed her hair up. 

Their conversation was interrupted by the person in question with another big smile plastered across her face. She informed them that a car was waiting to take them to their hotel.

As the two japanese women entered through the door of the hotel, just across the street from them Charlotte and Willow went through the door of the much smaller hotel. 

Hina couldn’t help but tease her friend as she removed her black lipstick “So did you think Aimee was cute?” Rio looked confused by her question “Well I mean, you do have a thing for blondes” responding quickly to her confusion. “N-n-no I don’t” her cheeks clearly flushed bright red.

Frantically they tried to get ready as fast as they could while simultaneously being as cautious and deliberate as they can be, after layers of clothing such as petticoats and tights were finally on both of the girls were ready to put on their fanciest dresses yet for this convention.

“Will! How does this look on me? Was it worth the money?” Charlotte was frantic “Don’t worry Lotte it definitely looks real expensive and you look damn fine in it might I add” Willow thrusted her hips towards her friend in a joking manner,She was not so worried anymore, just really amused because of her friends' antics. 

hair and makeup all done the two of them went downstairs to the hotel's breakfast buffet as they had much time to spare, one wonders why they were rushing or even worried in the first place. 

While getting to the train was uneventful, being on the train the two overly dressed friends were met with many stares and whispering even a few rude words. 

“I had a few words in mind for those people” the fiery redhead snorted “If you just let me Charlotte” she said through gritted teeth “It’s just best to let people be rude and ignore them Willow” putting her hand gently on her friends shoulder in a sort of soothing manner “Be the bigger person” another hand placed on the other shoulder and softly shaking back and forth to get her point across “NEVER!” she grabbed the blondes cheeks in response.

The line outside of the convention hall was chock a block, you have not seen so much ruffles and lace in one place in your whole life, although there was much pastel to be seen there was plenty of goths with their darkness. 

Rio was with Hina, both were staring out of an open window at the crowd below “wow there are a lot more fellow lollita’s this time around” her friend had to agree “It seems that the online shops have really brought more people in” the two of them were dressed head to toe in very fancy attire, Hina looked like pure royalty with her mostly cream and gold dress whereas her fellow model resembled more vampire royalty with her black and purple outfit. 

Our two British besties stood amongst the crowd somewhere in the middle of the line “OMG it’s Carlottalita and The Maiden of the Cog” a young and very hyperactive girl squealed, with her came a group of more squealing ladies. 

“Hi everyone so nice to see you all here!” waving her two hands in the air while her yellow pigtails bounced frantically “What’s up my fellow shipmates” outstretching her arms in the same direction, waving them about to greet the group. “But you’re not a pirate this time” one of the little fangirls told Willow “Yes but I’m in steampunk so I can still have an airship” crouching down with her hands in a diamond shape to emphasize her point.

As the crazy antics went on in the que, the staff were preparing to open up the doors to let everybody into the convention hall. Aimee was standing atop a staircase watching the doors like a hawk “Miss Lamar, we are preparing to let everybody in, you should probably go join the models from in the conference room” she agreed and followed the staff member to the room in question. 

A large hall was lined with stalls that featured a selection of many different J-fashions but mostly that of the lollita variety not to mention plenty of plush toys and much cute art being sold. Although too much pink and purple kind of took over the place, a good helping of black other darker colours were dotted around the place. 

Not long after getting through the doors the ‘Cog Maiden’ dragged her fellow internet personality to the toilet to freshen up, re-applying their lipstick and fixing their lashes made them ready to face the crowds once again.

Suddenly, the door burst open and a very tall woman was dragging someone in with her 

“Come on, don’t worry I’ll get it fixed and I’ll stitch it back up” she reassured the crying girl, pulling a very ornate sewing kit from her equally beautiful handbag. They couldn’t help but watch as she fixed the large rip in the side of the other girls skirt, even adding a few buttons along the way for decoration. Looking at the repair she cried even more “OMG thank you so much waa” she couldn’t keep herself from hugging the tall lady very tightly “No problem” patting her softly on the head.

The newly happy girl ran out of the toilet to leave her tall friend behind “You did a real good job on that repair there” Charlotte couldn’t help but say and Willow behind her gave a big thumbs up and a grin. 

“Why thank you I do never go anywhere without my trusty sewing kit” she tucked said kit back into her decently sized bag. The three of them couldn’t help but gossip and walk around the main hall together, their new friend got along with Willow especially “So my name’s Zoey but most know me as Meime online” explaining as they all sat and had tea and coffee with each other. 

They were already discussing the online lollita community, Charlotte and Willow just got done explaining their online personas “Ah yes now that you mention it, I do remember you two from a daisy doo video” her eyes lit up with the realization that she had seen these two before.

The two Brits side eyed each other “Well I’ve some bad news for you, she’s quit!” Willow was the one to break the news as Charlotte couldn’t bring herself to do it. Zoey looked visibly upset but was quickly comforted by her new friends telling her of all the pretty frocks that they got from the retired internet personality “I think some might even fit you Zo” the bouncy blonde informed. 

The trio were already making plans for their new American friend to come visit the other two in the UK. As this was all going on Aimee was sitting behind the stage where all the lollita fashion models were doing a panel to an audience of mostly bonnet wearers. Hina was just finishing up answering questions from the crowd when it was Rio’s shot to talk, she mostly discussed the many creepy and spooky patterns that she has gotten to wear over the years.

“That's all from Elizabethy, does anybody have any questions?” immediately all of the ladies in black frantically gathered to ask their many burning questions “Aliceness how long have you and Elizabathy known each other?” another model asked Hina “coming up five years now” with that response she went back to watching Rio muddle her way through the question people asked her.

As they all left the conference hall, the wealthy French girl linked her arms with the Asian girl she had become acquainted with “I know of a wonderful place we should go for dinner after the con, my treat” Rio couldn’t help but cringe at her sickly sweet tone of voice, thankfully she did not see her facial expression.

“I absolutely love that idea” the other girl responded much more positively and with that the goth’s fate was sealed. Meanwhile, Zoey was preparing herself to leave with the two mildly ‘famous’ lollita girls “So how far is your hotel from here” satisfied by the answer they gave she texted her sister letting her know she would be spending the night with others. 

A fully decked out restaurant with pristine white walls and the fanciest of chandeliers, although they weren’t poor none of them were quite used to this level of wealth except for Aimee of course. They sat down on very well cushioned dining chairs and the tables were as highly decorated as the walls around them, with at least five different very fancy forks, a couple of knives and a few spoons.

“Oh wow these plates look so regal” of course Hina was mesmerized by this place, Rio couldn’t help but think but she's always been a bit more cynical with people than her dear friend “Oh you must really try the desserts from this place they are fantastic” when they had all finished their meal, they got to try out these desserts for themself. Rio couldn’t help but love her white chocolate and lime cheesecake, looking over Hina was already nearly finished with her strawberry tart with cream and of course the French girl had French macaroons in many pretty pastel colours. 

Eventually getting in after the train was delayed for about half an hour they de-petticoated as soon as they got in “So this is our humble abode Zoey” willow mockingly fanned out her arms to show off the whole room. Charlotte rolled her eyes, took her pigtails out and laid them down on her night stand. All of them couldn’t wait to get their makeup off and watch some internet videos, the conversation went from what they were watching to about Zoey’s personal life.

It mostly focused on her skills as a seamstress but the subject of her sister came up and her eyes seemed to sparkle with pride when discussing her sibling “Yeah my big sister’s so awe inspiring, she’s a photographer” the other two girls were drawn in by Zoey’s clear enthusiasm “that’s why I’ve been here for a week already because of her job” with that Willow couldn’t help but launch into questions about her sister’s photoshoot she was doing and Charlotte quickly followed suit with the interrogation. 

Sleep overcame them all and they continued their discussions the morning “Oh so what are the names of the models” The American looked a bit apprehensive about answering this question but they both promised her that they wouldn’t discuss it outside of this room “Okay there’s Aliceness, she mostly does hime style and Elizabethy is pretty much all gothic” when Charlotte heard the word gothic she perked up a little bit followed by Willow’s teasing. 

None of them really had time to search up the two lollita fashion girls as they wanted to make the breakfast buffet but it was still really cool to them that Zoey’s family member was involved with fashion photography and not to mention their favourite kind. Unbeknown to them across the street the two girls in question were having their own breakfast but they had room service and were preparing themselves for the day ahead which had them on shoot all day in the studio (around the city as well). 

As soon as Zoey found out about the shoot today she was able to convince her sister to let her friends come along. Charlotte promised to help out as they had studied photography in college, Willow wasn’t so quick to offer assistance “But Lotte it’s our holiday” she whinged but reluctantly agreed. The excitement was palpable although they would have to work hard helping out with lighting and such, the prospex of seeing and meeting Japanese models who exclusively wear their favourite fashion was too much Charlotte almost cried. 

The photographer was already hard at work before her beloved little sister came through the door “Emily! It’s me Zo, I’ve brought reinforcements” she yelled with a slight sing song tone. Emily wasted no time in briefing the girls on what she wanted them to do, it was mostly lighting related but they also offered a great deal of help with different backdrops

 “So what time are the models getting here sis?” she couldn’t help but ask as she set down everyone's cup of tea. Emily gave her phone a cursory glance “They should be here soon but the traffic here can always be a bit of a mess” so they sat and gabbed but the mature woman felt out of place with these youngsters but enjoyed their company anyway. 

Everyone’s attention was diverted to Hina and Rio entering the studio, Charlotte’s mouth was agasp; it was her! Their eyes met each other and for a good solid minute they just stared. 

Remembering that she had seen this cute blonde from a convention Rio was surprised that she was here but Charlotte was blushing profusely at the prospex of seeing gorgeous goth again and possibly getting to know her. “This is Hina Satō she does Hime style and Rio Itō is the gothic one” Emily informed “I hope you don’t mind but my sister and her new friends wanted to help out” She explained to the models who assured her it was fine with them and were thrilled when they found out that they too were into lolita fashion.

Although the two of them worked hard on their specific tasks, one posing and showing off clothes the other adjusting lighting and sorting props they couldn’t help but be a bit distracted by their subtle attraction to each other. Everyone was preparing to take the photoshoot outside around different locations in the city, all were very happy to get out of the very hot studio and into the fresh air. 

They did visit many lovely, lush parks but some dingy and dark locations were not out of the question either. One such place was an alleyway that was situated between two very similar looking  bakeries with plenty of seating out front (this is Paris after all) “Okay you two go set up over there, Stand here models, and you hold that reflector” Emily was being very commanding but they all knew to trust her judgement Charlotte was the one holding the reflector and she stood at the entrance of the alleyway, she admired how photogenic Rio was and got lost in thought about her this is how she became unaware of her surroundings.

Suddenly, she felt herself hit the concrete and a weight on top of her. 

It was Rio! “WHY were you just standing there not paying attention” she was frantic but the ditsy blonde didn’t know. What she had failed to realize was while her head was in the clouds someone on a moped was about to knock her down, luckily for her Rio’s sharp eye had noticed her absent mindedness and seen the driver in plenty of time to get her out of the way.

Charlotte upon realizing their position blushed, they both quickly stood up to get out of this awkward situation “Lotte what you doing you twit, almost getting run over”  the redhead was truly fiery now, luckily for the driver he had already apologized and left on his moped otherwise he might incurred the wrath of Willow (even though it was her friends own fault for standing on the road).

The absent minded girl couldn’t help but feel embarrassed about her idiocy however she was very grateful for the dark haired girls intervention. It made her feelings deepen. “Thank you Rio and I’m so sorry to everyone for causing trouble” The whole group was a little bit shook by what happened so all decided it was best to head back.

Not long after they had finally gotten a chance to sit down and enjoy some cups of tea and coffee (maybe some hot chocolate) a fancy looking and very clearly french girl came through the door. Hina's eyes lit up, she went over to her but Rio just sighed and face palmed herself. “I have made more plans for us” she cackled while clapping, of course Hina was overjoyed while her friend was less than amused. The rest of the group didn’t really get much acknowledgement from this girl named Aimee before she left with the two Asians.

Charlotte looked defeated, obviously upset by Rio’s departure. 

The photographer had gone off to tidy up, her sister and the redhead had recognised their friends clear sadness and asked about it. Willow was flabbergasted “You mean to tell me one of those models was that girl you’ve been thirsting after since that con!” she was damn near dancing at this point, Zoey was very amused by this whole thing “Aww it’s like something out of one of those rom-coms” quickly the two were hatching some crazy plans to get these girls together and in this moment Charlotte knew she had messed up. 

After they had all helped clean up the studio Emily wanted to take them all out for some drinks and a meal (nothing like Aimee’s fancy meals) The blonde was thoroughly embarrassed by the other two telling Emily about her crush on the model, “Come on Will and Zo there’s no need for this”. although she’d like to think of herself as the more mature one she couldn’t help but get roped into the other girls romance schemes. 

Waking up a little bit hungover from the night before however, they had only had a few drinks and a meal (they’re probably light weights) When Zoey’s sister called to make sure she was okay she poked fun at their ability to hold their alcohol. lounging about most of the morning till a call came about the bags with the pandas on it “Finally it took them long enough!” Willow obviously got all worked up about it but quickly calmed down after they said it would be delivered to the hotel later.

Delighted at the fact that she would finally be able to give Rio her gift, the two ‘cupids’ were thrilled by this development and were planning to use this (as they are now very much invested in seeing this possible couple come to be) they rested their elbows on her shoulders “well you have to give it to her lotte” they both cooed at her like a pigeon.

Now she couldn’t help but feel a bundle of nerves in the pit of her stomach at the thought of an audience “please don't embarrass me more than I'm going to embarrass myself” Charlotte pleaded. 

Rio lazed about in her hotel room with sweats and hair in a messy bun, whereas Hina was meticulously plucking her eyebrows “I just don’t see what the problem is, she seems perfectly nice to me” was her response to their argument about Aimee “Well I’m glad you like her but I’m not that fond of her” folding her arms in defiance and Hina just shrugged her shoulders, she was filing her nails now.  

Hina suggested they go get some fresh air outside their hotel and raved about a little coffee shop across the street next to the other hotel. As they made their way to the other side of the street they spotted the girls from yesterday that were helping the American photographer, Rio went over to say hi (as she would like some other company that wasn’t some fancy french girl) 

It amused them all to find out that the hotels where they were staying were across from each other. A small delivery van stopped, out came a driver who brought over a suitcase covered in pandas and asked for a Miss ‘Charlotte Rose White’ once it was handed over he was gone. 

Charlotte’s face was flushed, Rio just stood there confused as she watched her shaking hands reach into the bag and pull out a very spooky looking doll. 

Handing over the small gift “I wanted to give this to you at that convention as a thank you...for being so kind” Some parts of what Charlotte just said were too quiet to hear but Rio got what she meant anyway. She did have to admit it warmed her little black heart to know that a small interaction on her part made someone's day (it did help  that she found the girl in question very cute). 

Giving as much of a smile as she could muster “Thanks, she’s my child now” grasping the dolly close to her chest. Although Willow and Zoey were well aware of what was going on, Hina was left out of the loop “when did you two get soo friendly?” placing her arm around Rio’s shoulder and raising an eyebrow. 

Quickly being brought up to speed and flashing a cheeky grin to her friend “Ooh I see well that's nice” she spoke with a teasing tone, the five of them sat in the coffee shop together of course they mostly spoke about clothes and their online pseudonyms. When Charlotte and Rio both needed to go to the loo neither really talked to each other although they did exchange some soft glances and sweet smiles. 

Unbeknown to them that left the two schemers to their own devices and they quickly roped Hina into their plans “So we need to get these two on a date with each other” Some would say they’re a bit too enthusiastic about getting their pals together.

 Both were washing their hands but before they could go back and join their friends, Rio reached out her hand toward Charlotte's face, she closed her eyes “There you go, your little bunny clip was falling” speaking very softly. Opening her bright blue eyes to stare straight into those deep brown ones “thanks, you're too sweet Rio” pink still lay on her cheeks. Giggling a little at her  “your one to talk about sweetness Charlotte, I have the doll to prove it” giving a little wink, when they made it back to the table their friends were giving them a strange look (as if they were planning something).

Hina was the first to speak up “So Rio didn’t you say you wanted to go to Louvre Museum?” she had such a smug look on her face that her bestie was suspicious immediately “Yeah but you said that we didn’t have time for that” She retorted raising an eyebrow . Agreeing but quickly explaining that now they had some new pals who would probably like to go with her “Oh well it definitely won't be me I failed history so I’d just be lost” Willow was the first to back out “Ahh it can’t be me either I’ve already gone with Emily” Zoey just shrugged and smiled.

“Guess that leaves Charlotte then” hina said it in such a condescending way that it made Rio almost want to slap her, whereas the blonde just looked dumbfounded by this sudden request “I suppose I don’t mind museums my favourite part is always the art” her voice noticeably went up an octave when talking about the pretty art. 

Still annoyed by besties meddling Rio couldn’t help but be somewhat happy that Charlotte would want to go with her “Cool I guess we’ll go there tomorrow then” the masterminds were bursting with joy at the two future ‘lovers’.

Worry consumed Charlotte, she hadn’t gone on many dates as it isn't easy to approach women and talk to them (and don't get her started on dating apps). So to say she was inexperienced was an understatement, focusing on things like how should she wear her hair was all she could do to lessen the stress of it all. 

Rio didn’t have much more experience but was just a lot more chill about the whole thing, her friends had often told her she was like a robot with how nothing seemed to phase her. Making a good impression still sat in her mind though, deciding to wear something a bit more colourful than usual (although still very dark) to match pink a bit more.

Staring out the windows of their respective rooms were the masterminds of this whole date, looking down at their two friends meeting each other, chatting a little and walking away from the hotels. Everyone was itching to see how it might go but they knew that following them there to spy was more than a bad idea. 

The walk and subsequent train ride was unbelievably awkward but each other's company was enjoyable nonetheless. Most of what they talked about at first was Rio and her work , unlike other models she didn’t travel too much as Lolita was a fashion subculture mostly localized to Asia. Charlotte was just captivated by it all feeling like she had learned so much more although her date didn’t want to be the only one who chatted, when pressed on her career choice the blonde was hesitant to share because many have scoffed at her  ‘so called job’ as they would put it. 

Far from ridicule she got a positive response when explaining that she made videos about all sorts of things she likes mostly the clothing they both loved so much,  Promising to show some when they eventfully sat down for tea or coffee. Rio took her up on that offer and also promised to share her photo portfolio of some of her best modeling work, the dialogue between them slowed down somewhat as they relished in the egyption section especially our goth girl.

Charlotte’s favourite part was still to come, all that beautiful art with the golden frames she was practically drooling. They both knew that seeing the whole Louvre in a few hours would be very difficult so just focused on enjoying what they could, roaming through the gift shops Rio spied a tiny white vase adorned with pink flowers. Looking at her small gifted doll and back at the vase, she bought it.

Of course the British girl was distracted with the many lovely postcards to notice her date's stealthy purchase, both were finally relieved to sit down as their feet had gotten quite sore. as the two lovely ladies were sharing their many photos and videos with each other a certain ‘la dam’ had spotted them.  

Just as Rio was planning to give her date the little vase Aimee had to stick her nose in and join in the conversation (she took a spare chair at the table). “Hiya Rio, it’s so cool to see you here, where’s Hina?” Looking around until her gaze focused on the blonde her “Oh hello and whom

might you be?” Aimee gave a wide grin that Charlotte found unbelievably uncomfortable. 

Holding in a sigh “This is my date”  she put so bluntly to Aimee and “My name’s Charlotte it’s nice to meet you” cutting in to make this whole interaction less awkward or trying at least. She gave her the cold shoulder and grabbed a chair to sit down next to Rio, preventing the girls on said date from looking at one another. 

Almost pulling her black hair out in frustration at Aimee’s rudeness but Rio didn’t say a word (it would be more hassle to chastise her and cause issues between her and Hina), sitting there and just watching this random French lady completely ignoring her existence.

 Barely an hour had passed before the ‘lovely‘ lady had gotten a phone call and was on her way, leaving them alone at last to bask in each other’s company. 

“I am so sorry, she’s Hina’s friend and unfortunately has spent a lot of time with her” Huffing loudly after finishing speaking. Charlotte couldn’t stop herself from laughing (probably from being too nervous about the whole thing), Rio did join in and they just giggled about the whole thing and made lots of jokes about it on the journey back to their hotels. 

The date had gotten to the point of the goodbyes as they stood where they had met hours earlier,. if this hadn’t been their first date they probably would have kissed at this point but at last it was, so they just gave each other a gentle hug.

“Oh lotte, here I saw this in the gift shop” handing the little vase over to the blonde who’s month was in an O shape and thanked her sweetly for said tiny gift “No problem, after all you did get me my daughter” holding the small doll in her hand and winking.

Charlotte's face was quickly becoming her favourite colour, pink. 

As they both got to the front entrance of their respective hotels they looked back at each other and smiled while also waving goodbye. 

While all this was going on the ones who had set this whole arrangement up were watching intently and fawned over the fact they had cuddled. 

[forasecondtherewedwon]

Spideychelle as parents?

Here it comes―the fluffnami I warned you all about on Monday. You’ve officially waited too long to seek higher ground. The fluff is coming.

Kid-Me-NotPairing: Peter x Michelle (Spideychelle), Ned x Betty (Netty Pot)Rating: T (a very smol swear)Word count: 2060

They think about moving every year, but so far they haven’t.Peter knows it’s both of them, not just him, because sometimes he catches hiswife staring at a particular facet of their apartment, and when she looks athim, he goes, “I know,” and she makes a face like it’s doubtful that he’s readher mind.

The farthest out of the city they get on a regular basis isBetty and Ned’s corner of suburbia. Peter likes the drive and his wife likesthe mature trees, but not the ‘1950s American Dream capitalist bullshit vibe,’as she calls it. She also likes the blonde-bricked houses and Peter takes hisfoot off the gas whenever they pass one so that she has longer to admire themwithout having to state her preference out loud.

A trip to the Leeds’s is a regular thing for them, thoughmore frequent once summer rolls lazily around again. Flo is five now and goesinto a streaming shrill vibration of excitement at the mention of a visit.She’s been raised to call the two Leeds kids her cousins. The drive is just farenough that it used to put her to sleep, but these days the sedative propertiesof the car ride are only powerful enough to lull her small body into a consciousdoze. She exists in this low-power mode with a hand propped under her chin anda serious expression as she gazes out the window, not really noticing theflowers in people’s gardens or the dappled light on the perfect grey curbs, andnot really caring about what she’s missed. Peter’s great delight of the driveis catching glimpses of her in the rear-view mirror.

“I brought club soda for Betty,” his wife remarks idly fromthe passenger seat. Briefly, he grins to himself, rubbing his lip with athumbnail. Her posture is so like their daughter’s and at this point, Petercan’t remember who picked it up from whom.

“That’s really nice of you,” he says. “I’m sure she’llappreciate that.”

She goes by ‘Chelle’ now, which he feels has the sort ofheart-wrenching elegance of a ballet every time he hears it. It’s so adult.Frequently, Peter forgets they are both 34.

Pulling into the driveway is the catalyst for thelast-minute divvying up of who’s carrying what out of the car and which ofFlo’s toys are to be left in the backseat so she won’t scream if the other kidsget a hold of them. (Peter has been diligently working on his daughter’sjealous phase, but prefers not to test her restraint on what will already be ahigh-energy day.)

Chelle and he forsake the formality of the front door infavour of the gate, going straight into the backyard. He and Ned built the gatethemselves and Peter gives it a fond pat on his way through. Flo has alreadyraced ahead; it’s pointless to try to carry her. When she was a toddler, therewas less kicking, but the second her feet were lowered to the ground, she tookoff like a released wind-up toy.

“Hi,” he says to Ned. “Hi,” to Betty. And they’re saying“hi” in return, and so is Chelle, and hi’s are basically flying through the airlike mosquitos.

Sure enough, there are mosquitos flying through the air aswell because Betty’s grown sensitive to the scent of the citronella candlesthey usually scatter around the outdoor living space. In his spare time,Peter’s been working on synthesizing a replacement that will repel pestswithout the distinctive odour.

Arms full of bags of hotdog buns and an entire case of clubsoda (seriously, Chelle could’ve just bought Betty a two-litre bottle. How muchdoes his wife expect her to drink?!), Peter uses his foot to close the gatebehind him, but not before Ned’s devious cat bolts.

“Ohmigodohmigod,” Ned mumbles, flustered, but Betty justtouches him on the arm and steps around him.

“PalPY!” she calls, high and clear.

Emperor Palpatine whizzes back into the yard and the crisisis over. Peter and Ned laugh to themselves, slapping each other on theshoulder. Chelle has spread her armload of offerings on the patio table andwrapped Betty into a hug like a favourite draping blanket. She’s not asqueezing kind of hugger, his wife, but the sort to relax fully into it like avertical trust fall. There are few people she hugs.

“You’re a lifesaver,” Ned declares when Peter hands over thehotdog buns.

“Man, don’t tell me…” Peter begs.

“Yep,” Betty chimes in. “He forgets to buy them every time.”

She bites into a strawberry from a fruit tray she’s justwhisked out of the house. Chelle selects a large cube of honeydew melon,furtively stuffs it into her cheek, then bends down to make their daughterlaugh with a chipmunk impression as Flo slingshots back to her parents in asudden fit of nerves. This happens when the cousins are reintroduced. Sheclings to her mother’s leg as her smile quickly springs back up―Chelle’sstroking her wavy hair.

“Peter expects it by now,” Ned asserts, indicating what hisbest friend of 20+ years has brought.

“Nah, contingency plan, dude,” Peter avows.

“MJ,” Ned says, using the name that’s never unstuck for him(in fact, he’s the only one who still uses it), “club soda? Lame.”

Chelle rolls her eyes as their daughter torpedoes away fromher, chasing her cousins to the back fence.

“It’s for your pregnant wife. Don’t be selfish.”

“He’ll appreciate it later when I’m not sprinting to thebathroom to throw up my hotdog,” Betty predicts.

“Hon, that is so freaking gross. So, who’s hungry?” Ned askswith a chuckle.

He retrieves a pair of beers from an open cooler, rocky withice cubes, and Peter follows him over to the barbecue. Betty is close behind.

“Ned,” she protests, “I can do it.”

“The smoke can’t be good for the baby.”

“The other kids turned out fine. Ned makes up new rules foreach child,” Betty informs Peter with a wry smile.

“Peter wouldn’t let me go out on the balcony when I waspregnant with Flo,” Chelle calls over from where she’s setting out cutlery.They always eat first. Many, many summer afternoons have established theirpriorities.

Peter throws up his hands, careful not to slop the drinkhe’s just opened.

“It stressed me out!”

Chelle shrugs and gives him a smug smile.

“You got used to it.”

“I had to. You started sitting out there every night whenyou were on the phone to Betty or May or your mom.”

She grins in remembered victory as Charlie hurtles intoPeter’s side.

“Hello,” says a kid with Betty’s hair and at least onemissing tooth.

“Hey, what’s up, buddy?” Peter squats and does theParker-Leeds handshake. It transcends generations now, which is pretty cool.

“Are you watching your sister?” Betty quizzes her.

“Yes,” says Charlie, three-year-old sister nowhere in hervicinity.

“Call her like you call the cat,” Ned suggests, attention onraising the lid of the barbecue to shuffle the meat around, burgers crumblingat the edges, hotdogs reluctant to lift from the grill.

“Ooh, do we think Daddy’s in trouble for that one?” Bettychecks with Charlie, who grins, swishing her neatly braided pigtails.

Their other child, Daisy, comes staggering through thegrass, hand clutched in Flo’s. Peter feels a thrill of pride, watching theirdaughter play the big sister.

“We’re going inside,” Flo announces. “Charlie has a newLego.”

“Awesome,” Peter tells Charlie, eyes lighting up. “How manypieces?”

“I might need to snag one of your club sodas,” Chelleinforms Betty. “I feel suddenly nauseous with déjà vu.”

The wives laugh hard at the expense of the nerds theymarried.

“But seriously,” Peter whispers. “How many?”

“One. Hundred. Seventy. Four,” Charlie says, enunciatingwith care to increase the impact of how impressive this is. He thinks she couldread the announcements when she gets to high school, like her mom did, butthat’s a ways off yet. The kid’s only seven.

Flo, tired of being in her father’s company yet not thecenter of his attention, falls dramatically onto his hunched back.

“Why is it called Legos.” She says it like a demand, not aquestion.

“Uh, I don’t know. Lemme look it up…”

Before he can get his phone from his pocket, the nextinquiry has left her mouth. He can see that the Lego investigation has beentemporarily derailed.

“Why is my name ‘Florence’?”

“This is her thing right now,” Chelle explains to theirfriends, shaking an open bag of pretzels in Betty’s direction. “Questioningwhat everything’s called.”

“I know this one,” Betty teases. Peter glances over hisshoulder to watch Flo’s eyes light up with curiosity. He rubs her warm forearm.“It’s because Uncle Ned and I, and your parents, went on a trip to a countrynamed Italy and, while we were there, they realized that they loved each other.Then,” she goes on (Peter can tell by his daughter’s face that she isenthralled), “your mom and dad went back there when they were grown up and theywere in a city called Florence when they decided to get married.”

“Because he asked her to?” Flo clarifies.

“That’s right,” Betty praises.

“Barely managed it,” Ned critiques under his breath.

“Thanks, pal,” Peter snarks back.

His best friend glances down at him and they share a grin,then Ned reaches out for Betty’s hand and reels her in to kiss her cheek.They’re romantics, both of them. Betty probably remembers the moment ofengagement better than either Peter or Chelle, and she wasn’t even there.

“Why is Mommy’s name ‘Chelle’?” Flo wonders.

Peter straightens up to grab a pretzel. He sets his beer onthe fold-out ledge of the barbecue, then picks up Daisy, who is looking forlorn,so far below the tall people.

“Michelle,” Chellereminds her. “That’s because Grandma watched too much Full House while she was waiting for me.”

“Where were you?” Charlie asks, confused.

“Still in her belly,” his wife explains. She points atBetty’s rounded stomach. “Like your brother.”

“Wha’ ‘bow you, Da’?” Flo asks, wandering back from thetable as she chomps a carrot stick smothered in probably too much ranchdressing.

Peter sticks his tongue out at Daisy to make her gigglebefore turning to his daughter with a confused frown.

“What about me?”

“Why is your name ‘Spider-Man’?”

Chelle howls with laughter while Peter attempts to handlethe situation. Ned and Betty have both known his secret for years (there areonly so many excuses he can give Betty for needing to abruptly leave theirhouse on foot with a ragged backpack), but Flo doesn’t really get thedifference between saying it in front of them and saying it to literally anyoneelse.

“Are we supposed to talk about that?” he tests her.

“No. I’ll only tell Charlie.” Quickly, she bounces to hercousin’s side and, over Charlie’s giggling, Peter hears Flo’s high voicesaying, “My dad’s Spider-Man.”

“That’s definitely talking about it,” he says.

“Ok,” she is quick to agree with a mischievous smile, “I’llonly tell Palpy.”

Flo darts off after the cat, who has decided on a franticrun across the yard. Charlie helpfully tries to copy her mother’s method ofcalling the cat, but Emperor Palpatine is not convinced by the imitation.

Peter spins Daisy around once before letting the toddlerinto the fray as well.

“She’s so much like you,” Betty observes to Chelle, watchingFlo track the cat with determination. “Brave, unstoppable.”

Ned snorts.

“Nah, she’s like Peter.”

“Watch it,” Peter warns jokingly, picking up his beer.

“I was gonna say because she has so much energy, dude, duh.”

“Well, that’s true,” Chelle says, walking to Peter andpropping her elbow on his shoulder. He holds her around the waist, longing tocradle her closer than social norms permit. “I don’t know what we’re going todo with two of them.”

For a moment, there is no sound but the sizzling hotdogs(Ned’s probably burning them―Betty is the true grill-master of the Leedsfamily) and the shouts of three little girls. Then, Betty’s delighted gasp andNed’s pure shriek of joy.

Peter’s beer sweats in his hand. He has never been happier.

[crimsonblackrose]

My second and final full day in Tokyo was visiting Disney Sea. The friend I was staying with decided to join me since she was also on vacation and we made our way to the park. We had decided to try something called Disney Bounding, even though it was late September and the parks let adults dress up in actual cosplay of characters. It’s really cool to witness. My friend and I decided to go for villains because we believed Disney Sea was the park that was taken over by villains and maybe we’d see the whole park transformed with a larger Halloween influence than I had last year at Tokyo Disneyland. Disney bounding is putting together an outfit that is inspired by a character to wear at the parks since about 80% of the year adults can’t dress up. My friend chose Scar from The Lion King and I picked Captain Hook from Peter Pan.

I had a lot of fun figuring out an outfit, though to be honest, I failed my first attempt. South Korea has a lot of  really nice underground malls where clothing is a bit cheaper and I spent an afternoon with a friend walking around trying to put something together. I really proud with my finds only to go home and realize that despite being elastic and looking like they’d fit that they didn’t actually. The downfall to shopping in the underground where you can’t try anything on. Lesson learned. I’m still proud of what I ended up with but as family and friends have pointed out I also ended up looking a bit like Carmen Sandiego. It was a happy coincidence.

picture of the monorail with Mickey Mouse shaped windows and gates that say “35 Happiest Celebration”

Once we arrived at Maihama station we had to take the monorail to Disney Sea. The monorail has four stops.

1: Resort Gateway: This is where you catch the train back to Tokyo. 

2: Tokyo Disneyland Station

3: Bayside

4: Tokyo Disney Sea

The monorail isn’t free. It’s 260 yen per ride and you can get a day pass or a two day pass. You can also use the same pass that you might use in Tokyo for the regular trains and buses. I hoped that there was a special Disney one way ticket but there’s not. I had a Passimo (a transit card for Tokyo) which I should’ve just used instead. You can also walk to either park. I walked to Disneyland last year, but it was nice to take the monorail which was comfortable, played Disney music and was very cute.

mickey mouse shaped hanging straps

a view of a boat called Columbia through the view of the Mickey Mouse shaped window on the monorail

Once at Disney Sea we headed to the bathroom so my friend could add the finishing touches to her Scar look. Which included us spending a half hour while she drew the iconic scar on her face with lipstick and eye liner. We took our cute tickets which she’d gotten at a Disney store in Tokyo and headed in. I went straight through but my friend got stopped. There’s a list of do’s and don’ts for the park and despite being on the website it wasn’t anywhere we’d looked before going. To save you time because I couldn’t find it easily while navigating the site you can find rules for dressing up here. We spent nearly an extra half hour waiting for a staff member who was kind enough to run off and get my friend make up remover.

35 Happiest Celebration Mickey Mouse Ticket 7,400 yen (~$74)

Once in the park we looked at the schedule for the day. We arrived early enough to catch the main show we wanted to see “Villains World” but there was already a crowd before it started. Two! Hours! Early! Rather than wait with the crowd for two hours in the early morning sun we headed towards the back of the park towards the Lost River Delta to watch a show called “Out of Shadowland” at the Hangar. We were about an half hour early and there wasn’t too bad of a line. We got good seats and enjoyed the show which was a musical that was 100% in Japanese. I was expecting it to be a little bit like the Lilo and Stitch show I saw last year where it came with a translator but no. The plot is simple and it is possible to follow along. It’s about a group that goes into a woods in search of a special bird. A shy girl named Mei finds and follows the bird and becomes separated from the group and then finds herself in the “Shadowland” where she meets a deer spirit named Yuu. Yuu wants her to help save the world he lives in (with her magical powers) and defeat the evil bird but Mei just wants to go home. Through her adventure she finds courage and confidence. It was pretty to watch and fun, though as a note there is some flashing lights at various parts and possibly some parts that may be disturbing to very small children.

Sign for “Out of Shadowland” with showtimes

The last showing is on March 31st, 2019, after which a new musical will be performed at the Hangar stage. The show is about 25 minutes long. The schedule for the performances change occasionally but in general it seems to be performed about 5 times a day at the Hangar stage: 10:30,  12:00, 1:30,3:45, and 5:15 p.m.

Picture of Mermaid Lagoon, lots of blue and pink coral

After the show we headed to the Mermaid Lagoon to get lunch. Most of the Mermaid Lagoon is indoors in an area called Triton’s Kingdom. Inside Triton’s Kingdom is a very fluorescent space made up of coral mixed with a video arcade vibe. While there aren’t video games, there are tons of rides perfect for children. We weren’t there to ride any of the rides though and none of them really seemed like adult rides. They all seemed to be specifically activities for children. We headed towards the back to Sebastian’s Calypso Kitchen. This is a counter style restaurant where you order, pay and then go up to the counter where they’ll give you a tray with your food. We went here because according to the today page (which is 100% in Japanese) you can get some special Halloween treats.

Cup of coffee, special Halloween Melon soda and Halloween seafood burger with disney villains to go burger bag

close up on Halloween burger with purple bun

My friend ordered their  スペシャルセットwhich was a seafood burger that was a scallop cream croquette with ratatouille sauce on a purple bun. She ordered it as a set so it came with a side of fries and a choice of drink for 990 yen. I misread the today page and thought that it was also the restaurant with Halloween non-seafood burger but it wasn’t. So instead I ordered a sausage pizza ソーセージピザ (700 yen) and their special Halloween drink calledメロンソーダ（ホイップクリーム＆パイナップルシロップ）(380 yen) which was a melon soda with a whipped cream and pineapple syrup topped with little gummy candies in a very cute cup.

Little Mermaid statue of Ariel, Flounder, and Sebastian in the Mermaid Lagoon

Picture of King Triton in a chariot pulled by two dolphins holding his trident at the entrance of Triton’s Kingdom in the Mermaid Lagoon.

A picture of the inside neon lit dim Triton’s Kingdom inside facilities.

A beach version of Donald Duck surrounded by families and children trying to get pictures.

The seating was cute with little clam shell booths but like the rest of Triton’s kingdom it was very dimly lit. When we finished eating and were just enjoying our drinks my friend let out a scream, threw her arms out and then herself over the back of our clam shell booth. At first I thought she’d forgotten something she had to do for work or saw something upsetting, but then I spotted a Donald Duck wobbling past in snorkeling gear. I told her “go” and she bolted. It was probably the funniest part of the day and she managed to get some cute photos with the Donald Duck who was instantly swarmed on all sides by children, just like Pluto that was also wearing beachwear nearby.

After our trip to Triton’s Kingdom in the Mermaid Lagoon we headed to the Arabian Coast. While the Mermaid Lagoon is The Little Mermaid themed the Arabian coast is Aladdin themed. Here we rode Jasmine’s flying carpets which is a ride similar to Dumbo the flying elephant. Only for Jasmine’s flying carpet each carpet can seat up to four people, with two people up front and two in the back. The two sitting at the front get to control whether the carpet slowly moves up or slowly moves down. It’s a bit delayed but fun.

Picture of one of the entrances to the Arabian Coast

Picture of Tiger Fountain in front of the Magical Lamp Theater at the Arabian Coast

The Caravan Carousel, a covered carousel ride that is two stories beneath a beautiful blue dome

A picture of a door that says “Closed by order of the Sultan” with a large padlock on it. Next to the door is a shop sign that reads “Jafar’s Shop of Wonders”

Picture of Jasmine’s Flying Carpet ride in action

Statue of Rajah the tiger in front of Jasmine’s Flying Carpet’s ride

After the ride we stopped momentarily at a snack stand called Open Sesame to buy a pumpkin and maple churro. There was also a large line in the Arabian coast but for what I wasn’t exactly sure. It may have been for either the Agrabah Marketplace which boasts magic tricks as well as items for sale or Abuu’s bazaar which was a place to play carnival style games for an extra fee. Those were at least things in the area I assumed might’ve been the cause of the long line, but there is also a restaurant, some shows and a couple more rides that may have caused it.

The Open Sesame food stand

Pumpkin Maple churro

Our next stop was the most exciting to me: Mysterious Island. Mysterious Island is located in the center of the park and is enclosed on all sides with paths leading in and out. It’s easy to spot from the rest of the park since a large portion of it is a volcano called Mount Prometheus. It’s 189 feet (57.61m) tall and occasionally belches out flame that can be seen and heard almost everywhere. Beneath this mammoth of a man-made volcano are two popular rides and a small cove to excite any steam-punk fan or better yet, anyone who enjoys the works of Jules Verne.

Walkways around the Mysterious island and a train sticking out of the side of the volcano

The Nautilus on the water, a submersible boat (also the name of the nearby gift shop)

view across the water of the entrance to 20,000 leagues under the sea ride

view of Nautilus and the walkways around the Mysterious Island

Jules Verne was a French author in the 1800’s to early 1900’s. He’s most well known for his science fiction adventure stories that are hinted at throughout the Mysterious Island. Actually even the name of this section of the park is the name of one of his novels, specifically his #12 novel in “The Extraordinary Voyages” series. The island is in fact the hide out of one of his characters Captain Nemo who is also found in his book Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea (book #6) which shares a name with one of the rides on the Mysterious Island. The other ride is Journey to the Center of the Earth (book #3), which is another of Verne’s adventure novels.

We headed first to ride Twenty Thousand Leagues Under the Sea and made our way down underground and into a semi-long line with plenty to look at and enjoy. When it was time for us to board our crafts, small submarines that fit six, each set of two with their own window we were quite pleased. The ride was fun and felt in the same spirit as the book, a journey of exploration of the ocean with a bit of danger. Which really was the theme of both rides. It’s a similar style ride to the Peter Pan one found at the other parks.

Spiral staircase with a submarine boat that leads down to the 20,000 leagues under the sea ride

close up of suspended submarine boat

view of Captain Nemo’s office

view of “Captain Nemo’s” office while waiting for Journey to the Center of the Earth

I enjoyed the ride so much that I was ready to run across and under Mount Prometheus to get in line for Journey to the Center of the Earth. This was a bad idea. Outside Journey to the Center of the Earth are a lot of benches and places to sit. I should’ve sat. My feet were already hurting and the line ended up being 70 minutes. Which for park lines isn’t too long, I’ve been in line much longer before but the wait was disorienting. Unlike many rides at other Disney parks there weren’t any “From this point on your wait is___ minutes”. There also wasn’t any staff to ask. We were underground and there wasn’t much difference in things to look at. The line snaked around items and among other parts of the line to the point I didn’t know who else was behind me and who was in front of me to know where I was going next. That coupled with the pain in my feet was just torturous. I was about ready to throw in the towel when my friend spotted what she thought was the start to the ride. What she spotted in actuality were elevators that took us down further to where we entered another line, but this line at least we could see the special drilling device designed roller-coaster car. The ride was a lot of fun and the most intense roller coaster we managed to get on that day. Thankfully it had little places at the front of our seats to place bags and hats or anything we needed to store for fear of loosing. This was another ride that fit about six people.

These rides were a lot of fun and if you’re in a hurry it’s worth getting a fast pass for. We didn’t understand how fast passes worked and didn’t try to get any for the day. There should be fast pass ticket machines near the rides where you can scan your ticket and get a fast pass for a specific time period in which to return to the ride. Thankfully though our 70 minute wait was the longest we had for a ride that day.

After a short rest we left the Mysterious Island and headed down towards the Mediterranean harbor. The Mediterranean harbor is a lake area near the front of the park. This is where all parade like performances are held. We saw two from vastly different view points.  We caught “Villains World” from in front of the Zambini Brother’s Restorante near the Disney Sea Transit Steamer Line. The best place to catch shows is from the front stage however the seating here fills up over two hours before the show starts. The area we sat filled up about an hour before the show. I suggest bringing an umbrella or parasol while you wait and snacks. Because there were two of us, one of us would sit while the other would go off and get snacks. Since it was still hot out I made use of my electric fan. You can’t move much so I highly suggest bringing something to do or something to keep you either warm or cool depending on the weather. People also bring mats to sit on or collapsible chairs that they take down before the show starts.

Screen shot of Mediterranean Harbor with suggested viewing wait spots for the shows. The Yellow Star is where the main stage is and fills up nearly 2 hours or more before a show starts. The black and white stars are other stage spots where characters may disembark from boats as well as where dancers may appear. These don’t fill up nearly as quickly but still try to be there about an hour before the show starts.

I really loved the “Villains World” show. It was fun and entertaining and great to watch. We had good seats since we were right outside a mini side stage where the characters got off their ships to interact with the dancers that were dressed to match the villains. Part of the music was in English and a lot of what the villains said was in Japanese. It was a lot of fun.

Hade’s float with Chip, Dale and Donald Duck in Greek style outfits and Hades with Pain and Panic

Donald Duck, Chip and Dale on the stage with dancers while Hade’s stays on his float

Jafar’s float with dancers

Captain Hook float with Mr. Smee and various dancers on the stage in front of it.

Jafar’s float arriving with Goofy in a similar outfit as Jafar while Chip and Dale look up at the new boat

Captain Hook and Mr. Smee on their boat

The Evil Queen from Snow white and her boat with dancers

Goofy dancing with villain themed dancers with kites, vines and people hydroflying in the background

Jafar’s float with dancers

Hades with Pain and Panic on their boat

This was however a point where I lost my friend for a bit. When the show ended and we gathered up our things she had to go file a complaint with the staff because of an altercation she had with one of the other guests sitting near her. It didn’t go so well and she was gone for about an hour. During this time, since I had no way of contacting her I wandered around the American Waterfront as quickly as I could before going to our meeting spot. There isn’t any wifi at Disney Sea which made me worry how we’d communicate if something happened while she filed her complaint. She also has a phone with very poor battery life which meant she might not have been able to contact me even if she’d wanted to to update me on what happened.

View of Mount Prometheus from the Mediterranean Harbor during Sunset

Disney Sea Electric Railway view in the American Waterfront

Toy Story Mania!

Tower of Terror

Evil Queen statue

Tower of Terror Close up says “Hotel Hightower”

Big Band Beat at Broadway Music Theater

There are some cool things to do in the American Waterfront. You can watch “Big Band Beat” which is a musical performance with characters and dancing at the Broadway Music Theater. It’s thirty minutes with about 5 show times a day that may change depending on the day: 12:20, 1:50, 3:20, 5:20, and 6:50pm. There is reserved and non-reserved seating available depending on the time of day. Reserved seating is usually for orchestra seating and requires getting a seat via lottery. To enter the lottery you need to go to Biglietteria (located near Gondolier Snacks across from Lido Isle at the Mediterranean Harbor) and scan your ticket that you used to get into the park.  (Same as with getting a fast pass) Otherwise head to the Broadway Music Theater before the show to try and get a seat in one of the non-reserved spaces.

Also in the area is The Tower of Terror and a Dockside Stage which is where a twenty-five minute performance called “Hello New York” occurs. Performances happen about five times a day though they do change and sometimes there are less. Usually performances occur at 12:05, 1:35, 3:05, 5:15, and 6:45.

Toy Story Mania is another area in the American Waterfront. It’s similar to Abuu’s bazaar in that it’s mostly carnival games though there is a couple indoor rides. There’s also a beautiful park called the Waterfront Park which was a popular spot to get photos. I saw a ton of people wandering through the park getting pictures of their photos.

New York Deli

Halloween special set of prosciutto with apple sandwich, fries and drink (Kirin apple soda)

After this quick wandering through the American Waterfront I hurried to our meeting spot where the other Halloween sandwich was that I wanted to try. It was in one of the many restaurants on the American Waterfront, this one called New York Deli. The entrance was a little confusing since it wasn’t on the main street but instead around the corner from the main street. I had hoped it’d be a smallish deli where I could easily spot my friend but instead the shop was huge. I did a quick run through to make sure she wasn’t sitting and waiting for me and when I didn’t find her I ordered my meal, スペシャルセット, (1,150 yen) which was a prosciutto and apple sandwich set. I couldn’t remember what prosciutto (raw dry cured ham) was and thought it was just a regular deli meat until I took a bite and saw that it had an unsettling raw color and consistency. I’m not a huge fan of raw foods and despite everything, knowing that it’s meant to be that way just couldn’t really get over the texture. I picked at it, enjoyed my fries and my Kirin apple soda. About an hour later after being super anxious for awhile, my friend showed up and joined me. She didn’t have as much trouble finding me in the restaurant as I feared. We headed off to Port Discovery to ride Aquatopia and were pretty happy to see that it had a short line.

Picture of Aquatopia building at night.

Aquatopia is split into two sections. It’s a water ride where you won’t get wet. You board a small craft that follows an under water track that spins and turns and goes around obstacle’s and water features that may make someone dizzy. It did make me a little dizzy at one point. We ended up enjoying it enough to ride it twice, trying each side of the ride. Afterwards we had just enough time to head back to the American Waterfront and catch the “Fantasmic!” show. We took the Disney Electric Rail that goes from American Waterfront to Port Discovery and back then hurried to the water to try and find a spot to watch the show.

Boats with balloons on the water and The Sorcerer’s Hat

Dragon Maleficent coming through a mirror

water show with rainbow fountains

Mount Prometheus spitting fire

It was fun and a bit like the one shown at Disney World under the same name. It stars “The Sorcerer’s Apprentice” version of Mickey Mouse and includes many familiar Disney characters.

Disney Sea Transit Steamer Line from above

Side of boat says “Disney Sea Transit Steamer Line”

After the show we walked to the other side of the lake to catch the first Disney Sea Transit Steamer Line after the show. The Transit Steamer lines stop at various ports around the park. At each spot you can show a crew member your map and they’ll show you where the boat will let you off. Ours stopped at the Lost River Delta, the only spot we hadn’t really spent much time in and which we had run out of time to enjoy. There are two large attractions here Raging Spirits and Indiana Jones Adventure: Temple of the Crystal Skull. Instead of exploring we hurried back in line and boarded the next Transit Steamer Line back to the Mediterranean Harbor. Riding it around was a beautiful and peaceful experience. We got to see the entire park from a different view and it was lovely. We were even able to catch site of the fireworks from the “Brand New Dream” show that starts at 8:30 every night.

Minnie Ice Bar in Peach and Raspberry Flavor that cost 310 yen

After exiting back at the Mediterranean Harbor it was close to closing time. We popped into one of the shops near the entrance to get souvenirs and I quickly learned that only one specific shop carries pins and it wasn’t near where we were. We were even in what the map stated was the shop with the largest selection of merchandise.

Utterly exhausted and with a couple souvenirs to share with friends and coworkers (Omiyage (お土産)) we boarded the monorail back to the train station. Utterly exhausted neither of us paid close attention to the stops assuming that it’d be awhile till we got off and thus missed our stop and had to ride the monorail around once more. We heard Resorts and tuned out when it continued on to say JR line. It was literally the next stop.

I feel like Disney Sea was a bit harder to navigate than Disneyland. You really need to plan what you’re going to do, especially if you want to watch any of the performances. Unlike other parks there isn’t a parade route that goes throughout the majority of the park that you can catch a decent view. Instead there’s only a man-made lake at the front where you have to be early in order to try and get a good spot. While it feels like there’s less to do at Disney Sea it’s much more spread out leading to rides having a long wait time that can very quickly eat away at your day and time. A lot of things also aren’t really explained in English, only a couple things on the map state: In Japanese only, or give warnings about strobe or flashing lights. If you don’t do a lot of preparation ahead of time you could be caught unaware. Visiting with characters is also a bit more difficult. While there are certain set character visits, our surprise Donald Duck and Pluto in swim gear isn’t along the list of character greetings on the English website, neither was Jafar which I spotted wandering around the Arabian Coast at one point. This meant my goal of finding a Captain Hook to take a picture with for my Disney Bound inspired outfit was a bust. The only time I spotted him was during the “Villains World” performance.

Disney Sea is just a little bit less festive than Disney Land. It wasn’t taken over by villains like I had expected and the amount of decorations was a lot less. Both parks aren’t as festive as my Halloween loving self would like but, each have about one good Halloween performance and some decorations. I think Disney Land, though, wins out by having the Haunted Mansion turned Nightmare Before Christmas.

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue wearing a sombrero found in the Lost River Delta

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue wearing a snorkel and being a musical conductor to some fish found in the Mermaid Lagoon

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found in the Arabian Coast laying down and drinking tea?

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found in the Arabian Coast studying a container he’s holding

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found on the Mysterious Island with a flashlight and in old fashion scuba gear

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found on the Mysterious Island studying kelp

A non 25th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue at a ship’s wheel

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found on the American Waterfront with a fishing spear looking out into the distance with a gull nearby

35th anniversary Mickey Mouse statue found on the Mediterranean Harbor that looks like the captain of a ship, standing at the ships wheel and holding is hat out.

Another thing happening while I was there was the 35 anniversary of the parks. Throughout the parks were special Mickey Mouse statues that reflected the area of the park they were in. I didn’t find them all, but they can be found on the map. It felt a bit like a scavenger hunt when I did stumble upon one.

    Disney Sea My second and final full day in Tokyo was visiting Disney Sea. The friend I was staying with decided to join me since she was also on vacation and we made our way to the park.

[tamapalace]

during the 2024 New York Comic-Con fans saw WANTED posters for the Melon Soda Tamagotchi Connection throughout Hudson Yards. little did they know that Bandai Namco US would make their big announcement that evening.

[phoenix-downer]

It’s a World of Heartless

For SoKai Week Day 1 - Disney theme park date(s). Dedicated to my good friend @cabbage-foam​. Thank you for all your support in my writing endeavors.

Normally, Riku wasn't surprised when the Heartless showed up. But today had been anything but ordinary.

It was supposed to be a group trip. Mickey had promised to take them all to some amusement park called Disneyland. The place was the stuff of legend, one of the few worlds where the existence of other realms was even acknowledged. And not just acknowledged, but turned into rollercoasters and Merry-Go-Rounds and spinning teacups and other themed rides.

Riku had nothing against the place itself. He'd always liked thrills, so the promise of an entire day spent doing nothing but riding rollercoasters and having fun with his friends was a welcome break from the usual grind.

But then something had come up, some business about a malfunction in the Gummi Ship hangar, and Mickey couldn't go anymore. Neither could Donald or Goofy.

And that was how Riku had ended up at the gates of the self-proclaimed happiest place on earth as an unintentional third wheel to Sora and Kairi's date.

"Sorry, Riku," Sora said, all sheepish apologies even as his hand remained firmly around Kairi's waist. They were wearing one of those awful matching couple costumes. Kairi had on a red dress with white polka dots that she'd paired with bright yellow shoes, and Sora wore a matching suit and bowtie.

They'd tried to get Riku to dress up, too, but he'd refused, for obvious reasons. He was happy for them, he really was, but they were in the gushy, touchy-feely, PDA stage of their relationship, and never had the phrase three's a crowd been more appropriate.

But everyone else had bailed at the last minute, they had these special tickets, and it would hurt Mickey's feelings if he didn't use them. So here he was, and here he would be for the rest of the day.

"Riku, what do you want to ride first?" Kairi asked, ever the diplomatic one as she unfolded the colorful park map and studied it carefully. Riku peered over her shoulder and searched for promising rollercoasters.

"That one looks good," he finally said, pointing at the spot on the map labeled Splash Mountain. Kairi handed him his lanyard with the special pass tucked inside.

"Don't lose this," she instructed. "It's the special pass the King gave us that will let us ride anything any time we want."

When they finally walked through the wrought iron gates, Riku could see why. The place was swarming with people. He was feeling drained just looking at all of them.

Now would be a really bad time for the Heartless to attack, he mused. But just as the park's slogan had promised, everyone was smiling. Families and couples and groups of friends were mulling around them, all happy to be there, all enjoying the perfectly beautiful weather.

Huh. Maybe this wouldn't be so bad after all. The three of them made their way over to Critter Country where Splash Mountain was located, and Riku had to admit that the designs for everything were nice. He really did feel like he'd been transported back into the Old West as they passed through Westernland and saw its promising-looking rollercoaster, Big Thunder Mountain, with its train winding through canyons and deserts and trails.

They were about to get in the special FastPass line for Splash Mountain when Sora pulled them aside, a big grin on his face. He led them over to a pop up stand that was selling souvenir cups and sunglasses and hats and headbands of all shapes and sizes. Plucking a pair of mouse ears with a big red and white polka dot bow off of its hook, he placed it on Kairi's head and smoothed her hair down around it. He took a step backward to survey his handiwork, then nodded.

He was next. Kairi found matching mouse ears (of course) and made a valiant effort to tame his spiky hair under the strict confines of the headband. It popped out all over the place, but once she was satisfied that it got the job done, they both turned on Riku.

He held out his hands in defense. "No. No way."

But when there was a will, there was a way. Kairi and Sora were both stubborn on their own, and trying to put a stop to their plans when they'd teamed up against him was hopeless.

"You know, there are a lot better ways to spend your munny," Riku grumbled a few minutes later.

He was now the reluctant owner of a headband of his own, courtesy of Sora and Kairi. But instead of mouse ears, which were actually kind of cute, they had managed to find him the absolute worst, the most ridiculous, the downright stupidest headband of them all: a duck butt, tail feathers and orange duck legs sticking proudly up in the air to greet everyone who was unlucky enough to pass by.

"I disagree. I haven't gotten such a good deal for my munny in a long time," Kairi said, a satisfied smirk on her face.

"When can I take this off?" Riku asked, tugging at the material.

"Not till we leave the park," Sora replied cheerfully. Riku groaned and followed after them, hoping all the people they passed didn't notice how ridiculous he looked.

They finally got in line for the ride, and Kairi piped up with another idea.

"Okay, so you know how they take a picture right as you're going downhill?" Her eyes sparkled, and Sora nodded enthusiastically. Riku had a bad feeling about this.

"I figured we could do something fun," she continued, "and I've got an idea."

And that was how they wound up dropping another 2000 munny on a tacky souvenir photo of the three of them playing rock, paper, scissors as they went down Splash Mountain.

Kairi was scissors, Sora was rock, and Riku was paper. When Sora had asked for the reasoning behind this decision, Kairi had grinned and told him, "Because you're my rock," which had quickly devolved into, surprise surprise, more PDA.

Bleh. “Get a room, you two."

The next few hours went by without too much trouble. They rode ride after ride with Mickey's special passes, getting silly photos and picking up every flavor of popcorn they could get their hands on – caramel, butter, chocolate, cheese, even special flavors like soy sauce, milk tea, and melon soda – complete with special souvenir buckets. By the time they each had two of the buckets looped around their necks, Riku had to point out that they were going to have trouble carrying much more at this rate.

They piled onto a ride called the Haunted Mansion next. Technically, the little cars could fit three people, but that didn't mean they necessarily should. Riku was squished between Sora on one side and Kairi on the other, with all the stuff they'd bought jammed in between.

Still, it was nice to get some rest for his feet. They were beginning to ache from all the walking and standing the three of them had done. Riku glanced from Sora to Kairi, looked at their smiling faces as they rolled through the many rooms of the Haunted Mansion with their ghosts and ghouls dancing and partying and otherwise carrying on, and couldn't help but smile, too.

Maybe there really was something magical about this place.

As they neared the end of the ride, Sora poked him in the side a lot harder than was really necessary to get his attention.

"Ow, what was that for?" Riku turned to glare at him.

"I've heard about this part before. This is where we get our own ghosts," Sora whispered. Riku's eyes flickered to the mirrors in front of them. His reflection stared back, duck butt headband perched on his head and all.

He was taking that silly thing off the first chance he got. As he watched, waiting for his ghost to appear, two yellow lights appeared above his head. Huh. That wasn't exactly what he'd been expecting.

"Sora, are you sure those are ghosts?" Kairi said, frowning. "They look an awful lot like—"

"Heartless! They're Heartless!" 

Read the rest on AO3 or on FFN.

[thebutlers]

our day in san fran

on june 16, 2020 mak, harumi, my parents, and i flew out to san fran for timo and sam’s wedding. we spent the rest of the afternoon touring around some of the most popular places in the city. we ate our way around china town trying sesame red bean balls, melon sodas, onion bread, and curry buns. then we made our way to pier thirty nine to see alcatraz, sea lions, and ate delicious fresh donuts. after that we went to lombard street to drive down the switchback street. to wrap up our day we drove to a scenic stop to view the golden gate bridge. it was one of the most fun days i’ve had in awhile. i love exploring new places, especially with makoto.

xoxo, db

[writerspink]

Basic Topics

Food

cook bread cake pie noodles pasta eggs meat milk cheese oil chocolate chips cookies crackers treats snacks muffin rolls biscuit cupcake brownies bagel biscotti French fries sandwich hamburger salad meatloaf breakfast lunch super dinner snack fruit juice soda pop tea coffee wine beer

Outdoors

snow rain wind sunny cloudy tornado hurricane hail ice freeze thaw hot cold earthquake sand mud dirt dust mountain river lake sea ocean valley plain field park sidewalk fresh air camping campfire barbecue picnick

Animals

cow donkey horse rabbit dragonfly deer squid kangaroo bear wolf chipmunk squirrel dog fox cat pheasant brontosaurus mouse eagle clam parrot crow duck cricket swan housefly pterodactyl goose chicken oyster turkey sheep goat hummingbird raptor owl eel hornet zebra bird mosquito whale cougar shrimp elephant lion bee pigeon gazelle cheetah hippopotamus fish tiger gecko grasshopper rhinoceros walrus octopus otter spider jellyfish penguin falcon snake rat crab leopard T-Rex dolphin orca lizard shark hawk giraffe dinosaur starfish snail

Clothes

hat gloves scarf coat trench coat rain coat umbrella shirt pants shorts underwear vest sweater sweat shirt sweat pants sweat suit jogging suit boots shoes sandles slippers swimming suit suit dress skirt blouse hood hoodie fedora flat cap fedora polo shirt dress shirt T-shirt tank top muscle shirt blazer tuxedo cufflinks necklace bracelet earring

Home

house garage workshop window door screen wall floor ceiling kitchen bathroom living room bedroom window door garbage trash can clean wash rinse mob broom washcloth sink shower bath soap toilet toothbrush towel curtain bed blanket pillow bed sheets table chair bench knife fork spoon plate cup bowl water glass bottle cutting board rolling pin toaster blender stove oven fry pan wok pot kettle baking sheet crock pot coffee maker dish washer refrigerator freezer cellar pantry cupboard counter top cabinet closet toybox chest wardrobe vanity coat rack stand sofa couch love seat coffee table footstool ottoman recliner

Office & School

desk computer phone tablet printer clock watch memo note pencil pen ink eraser glue paper clip stapler rubber band sharpen dull shavings shred ruler protractor compass classroom pencil holder calendar pin board thumb tack desk lamp board room whiteboard blackboard conference table manager supervisor teacher principal team & teammates classmates employee student project assignment study work learn correct edit fix repair update upgrade install enroll graduate finish late on time communicate network energy electricity announcement speakers PA system (public announcement) public private corporation company school district industrial park factory building commerce money market

Roads

car truck motorcycle semi truck pickup truck sport car sedan coup scooter dirt bike bicycle BMX bike skates skateboard helmet seat belt air bag crash collision fender bender ticket parking lot speed limit lane highway onramp expressway freeway toll road bridge overpass underpass train tracks railroad train station bus stop yield distance limousine chauffeur driver taxi tour guide travel

Farm & Garden

barn tractor trailer crops harvest irrigation pesticide herbicide weed-killer fertilizer lawn mower bumper crop hay loft straw alfalfa pasture horse fence gate work gloves planting watering weeding trimming trowel plow hoe rake shovel pruning shears hedge trimmer watering can hose hose butler hose reel hose trolley spigot nozzle sprinkler turret sprinkler spray gun rain barrel rain gauge wood chips seeds blossom pollen silo grainery grain elevator cheesecloth cheese curd dairy butcher cellar canned vegetables frost dew perennial annual tulip bulb rose garden walled garden shrubbery

Sports

baseball basketball football soccer lacrosse golf tennis badminton swimming hockey bat glove mitt hoop basket net goal cleats shin guards pads jersey baseball cap court racket pool referee coach team manager stadium arena referee guard forward pitcher catcher offense defense goalie umpire puck penalty disc frisbee quarterback fowl pitch tee-off green rough course field flag boundary out of bounds clock period inning half quarter round match set play (a football play) line sponsor spectator stands bleachers nose-bleed section admission season playoffs tickets finals halftime

Music

piano clarinet oboe bassoon saxophone French horn trumpet trombone tuba flute percussion drum snare tympani bell chimes harp synthesizer instrument sampling director symphony orchestra band marching band parade color guard cadence harmony melody counter melody solo duet quartet march concerto composer tempo beat dynamics volume drum major field commander captain genre jazz blues pop rock n’ roll big band dixieland waltz tango alternative boogie woogie ragtime classical baroque romance medieval pentatonic scale Major minor harmonic

Cyberspace

computer monitor tablet stylus writing tablet touchscreen smartphone mouse keyboard battery power cord cable display desktop wallpaper firmware software application (app) app store runtime environment operating system kernel motherboard integrated circuit transistor processor processor core central processing unit (CPU) graphics processing unit (GPU) random access memory (RAM) read only memory (ROM) user account website profile page Internet web page homepage dependency software stack markup language scripting language cascading style sheet (CSS) hypertext markup language (HTML) database structured query language (SQL) universal resource identifier (URI) (https://write.pink/vocab) universal resource locator (URL) (https://write.pink) web address texting global positioning system (GPS) geolocation temp file directory structure file system email web application blog (weblog) content management system (CMS) human resource management (HRM) customer relations management (CRM) enterprise resource planning (ERP) personal information management (PIM) words per minute (WPM) social media multimedia terminal command line console client server client side language server side language legacy version version history product road map scope creep bug report feature request install update upgrade beta security malware virus spyware cookie meta data content menu navigation heading header footer article post tag search engine web crawler contacts share embed log error message runlevel priority foreground background radio select checkbox dropdown select text field encrypt certificate session web browser desktop application email client

Hospitality

reservation checkin checkout key deposit hotel motel hostel resort bead & breakfast cruise ship country club waiter waitress server maître d’hôtel concierge host butler bus boy bell hop kitchen crew dish crew chef assistant menu chef’s surprise soup of the day cup of joe appetizer soup & salad main course side dish dessert bread basket pitcher order make ticket make line make table make time delivery time serving tray goblet water glass pilsner glass martini glass shot glass wine glass soda fountain on tap deli deli cut tip / gratuity buffet all you can eat take out doggy bag delivery refill silverware napkin place setting cost per plate guest linens dining room floor bedding double bed queen size bed king size bed twin beds room service wake up call bar bar stool high boy bartender barista clerk open shop close shop “we’re all out” first in first out first in last out last in first out cost of sales five star three star

Travel

navigation driving directions baggage luggage carry-on hand-baggage check in checked baggage baggage claim ticket pass boarding pass departure arrival departure time travel time arrival time estimated time of departure (ETD) estimated time of arrival (ETA) delay on time commute journey embark boarding disembark boarding gate departure gate time table service counter first class business class economy class premium economy frequent flier membership card priority boarding priority seating lounge pass call button flotation device evacuation instructions bulkhead cabin wings air pressure altitude tunnel crash landing splash landing touchdown splashdown turbulence in-flight meal in-flight entertainment airplane mode stow dinner tray reading lamp climate control overhead compartment seat number isle seat window seat dining car sleeper car truck stop weigh station fuel station gas station petrol station passengers crew captain pilot copilot navigator conductor flight attendant helm deck terminal dock ferry plane ship airline cruise ship train bus subway space shuttle transporter beam flying saucer teleportation warp drive hyperdrive hyperspace supersonic lightspeed nautical mile time zone

Dinning Out

Dress

“dressy” festive casual jeans and tie dress pants and tie suit and tie three piece suit dress shirt nice shirt nice T shirt old shirt old T shirt jeans nice jeans rockstar jeans stone washed jeans blazer vest dress short nice shorts jean shorts skirt blouse dress high heels dress shoes slippers loafers sandals sneakers casual shoes [sport] shoes wingtip shoes

Menu

orange soda grape soda red soda cola Dr. Pepper lemon lime root beer ginger ale cream soda bread basket sub sandwich fruit platter cole slaw burrito taco nachos melon lemonade snacks popcorn hot dog chips

Camping

camper trailer mobile home campfire fire pit firewood kindling starter fluid charcoal coals ashes marshmallow s’mores graham crackers hot dog roast hot dog bun condiments relish ketchup mustard paper plate disposable silverware tin foil dinner wrap foil wrapped dinner grill barbecue cookout roasting stick campground toiletries bath house dump station park service park ranger national park state park county park city park recreation off road vehicle recreational vehicle speed boat water skiing wake boarding beach sand dune mountain climbing hiking walking stick mosquito net insect repellent tent tarp AstroTurf picnic table lawn chairs lantern kerosene sing-along

Construction

scaffold nails hammer sledgehammer jackhammer allen wrench screws screwdriver torques head Phillips head straight edge concrete flexcrete cement mortar bricks foundation chimbney threshold partition fire escape story loft lean-to foundation basement construction crew construction site building code building permit detour road construction earth moving equipment shovel rake bulldozer backhoe dumptruck studds drywall log cabin blueprints I-beam welding molding trim work framing carpeting tiling tile floor grout trowel hardhat work gloves safety glasses safety goggles face mask plaster paintbrush pain roller paint can paint can opener paint thinner wallpaper window frame door frame hinge deadbolt lock electric outlet breaker switch breaker box fuse box pluming faucet pipe drain septic tank septic system drain field landscaping survey crew land surveying acre shelf awning tarp fence rebar power grid power lines power transformer electrical pole wiring linoleum formica veneer lumber particle board plywood sandpaper palm sander belt sander saw horse table saw band saw jig saw radial arm saw drill press lathe C-clamp wood glue wood putty wood stain varnish lacquer

Basic Topics was originally published on PinkWrite

[a-gert-lush-holiday]

Day 1 continued, and Day 2

I eventually woke Lucy up at 7pm and advised her that we had two options. 1, she could go back to sleep, however we would be unable to pick up the tickets needed for the Final Fantasy Eorzea Cafe as they had to be collected today, and we would lose the reservation. Or option 2, which was go to Lawson, pick up the tickets and food, come back, eat and sleep.

Needless to say we went for option 2. I cannot tell you how much of a faff getting tickets to Eorzea Cafe has been. I tried to pre-book a few weeks ago, but for holding a reservation for more than 3 days, you need to pay upfront with a credit card. Let me tell you now, upon research online and trying it myself, it seems the only card that will work is AMEX as it can’t be linked to a foreign country. Therefore, I had to hope that 3 days before our trip there were spaces left, go through the booking site in Japanese, and then use the Loppi machine at Lawson also in Japanese. I lucked out on a space near the end of our trip, but trying to find out where to pay for the tickets was even more of a faff.

Sure, I know they’re collected at a Loppi machine in Lawsons, but did you know there are multiple types of Lawson combini in Japan? I was about to say 2, but having just googled it to find out why, apparently it’s 4. 4 shops, same name, different focuses and slightly different products. There’s a Lawson 100 (or as the clerk put it, Green Lawson), and then there’s normal Lawson (Pink and Blue Lawson). And no, Google will not tell you which is which (otherwise I really wouldn’t mind, as it didn’t for us) as it just calls all of the combini Lawson. We had so much trouble, that honestly I would check where the Lawsons are in relation to you, and then use street view to determine whether it had a pink and blue striped sign or not.

Once I had found the right type of Lawson, operating the Loppi machine was fairly straightforward as I had read a few walkthroughs beforehand, and seemed to remember most of the instructions.

Essentially, when you make a reservation you receive a QR code by email. On the machine, you want to hit the middle button with ‘Loppi QR’ on it, scan the QR code, and then it will ask you for the phone number used when making the booking.

What you need to remember then is to basically press the orange button (yes/continue), apart from on the screen where you’re asked about Ponta cards (hit the grey button). You then get to inputting your name, which looks confusing with all the buttons and no English language button, but you can input the name in the Roman alphabet by pressing the third button down in the list to the right of the characters. Input the first name, press the second button in the list for a space, enter last name, then hit orange ok buttons to confirm until the machine spits out a receipt at you.

I’d love to say that’s the whole process, but no. Almost there though. Take the receipt to the counter within 30 minutes (you can pay for shopping at the same time too), pay, sign the receipt as prompted, and the Pink and Blue clerk will kindly hand you the tickets.

Gotta love that bureaucracy! I’m sure there are things at home just as convoluted, but honestly if Lucy hadn’t been bugging me about this for weeks and I myself getting into the game in the past month or so, I probably would have stopped somewhere around my card not working online.

If you’d like to know how to make the reservation, my recommendation would be to follow this excellent guide: https://riikorinkoko.wordpress.com/2017/05/15/riikos-eorzea-cafe-reservation-guide-and-how-to-use-s-loppi-machines-at-lawson-ffxiv-final-fantasy-xiv/amp/

Only addition to this would be to open the page in Chrome if possible, so it can be automatically translated.

Back at the hotel, we ate the snacks we’d purchased, called home (or tried to, in any case), before finally heading off to bed.

I woke up again at 9am on our first full day, after setting my alarm. I spent an hour checking things like emails and trying to trace our bags, of which there was currently no news, before I woke Lucy up. Over the next hour or so we got ready as best we could with a mishmash of clothes, no makeup, and no deodorant (as that’s...kind of not a thing here due to Asian genetics?), before heading out the door around 11:15.

On our way along to Kaminarimon Gate and Asakusa shrine and temple we spotted a shop that essentially was a bit like a Superdrug back home, where Lucy managed to find some basic makeup.

I really enjoyed walking round the shrine and temple; despite the insane amount of people in places the atmosphere was very serene. We both pulled a fortune, and as per usual with me, I get bad luck xD As is traditional, I tied it on the special rack and hopefully that means our bags won’t get even more delayed >.<

We also both got these wooden sticks you write your name and date of birth on which have a wish, and somehow this is supposed to bring you closer to that wish? Nothing particularly special for this, get wooden stick, write on stick, hand back stick to guy you just brought from, done. I mean, when in Rome, but somehow I feel like I just got conned into paying 200 yen to scribble on a stick.

We both picked up a drink at this point from one of the vending machines as the weather had heated up considerably, and then headed to the incense counter where you can buy incense, light it, and then waft it on yourself before putting it in the big burner so that it can be shared with others wafting the incense onto themselves. Wafting incense is believed to cleanse you.

After this we wandered round the local shopping streets and found a nice cafe for lunch. Lucy went for a cola and sandwich toastie with pizza filling; I went for a melon soda float, and spaghetti neapolitan. Both of us enjoyed the food; the soda float was the perfect thing after being in the heat.

After lunch, we headed out to the Tokyo Skytree for our prebooked tickets. We were also fortunate that prebooking allowed us to jump the long queue for the elevator and zoom right to the 350m deck to enjoy the sights of Tokyo from above. However somewhere along our travels the weather turned overcast, and therefore whilst still a decent view of Tokyo, we were unable to see Fuji-san at this point. As we also had galleria tickets, we then went up again to 450m, which again was very impressive. They also had a a barbie exhibition for some reason up at this level and a little pop up barbie themed shop. A browse around later and we both ended up buying a compact mirror each with a pretty illustration on the front.

On the way back down, we went in the main Skytree gift shop where I got a fridge magnet with a stained glass effect for our fridge back home :) At this point, we felt kind of done with crowds and queues, so it was back on the subway to the hotel for us. Unfortunately, our luggage had still not arrived >.< I had received a message earlier in the day advising me that the bags had arrived at the airport, and that they would therefore be passed to the delivery company.

I had to take a break at this point as not long after we got back to the hotel I developed a thumping headache, for which I honestly have to praise past me, who usually forgets everything but her electronics, for packing paracetamol in the hand luggage. I took one of these and lay down for a bit, and by around 7pm this had died down considerably.

At this point I decided to get a drink, so I hit up the 12th floor as the details we were given stated there is a vending machine up there; there very well might be. However, the 12th floor turned out to be the roof, and as it was raining considerably we went down to the ground floor where another one was supposedly located. And there was, only it was outside the back of the hotel, in the street past the parking lot, after going down a flight of stairs 😣 The only upside of this is that I ended up teaching the front desk clerk who helped us the words ‘vending machine’ as he did not know the phrase in English.

At this point we also needed food, so we went back upstairs to grab our coats before making a mad dash across the road to Family Mart. I have to say, combini food in Japan is honestly as amazing as everyone makes out.

In England you go to the ‘to go’ section of ASDA and maybe get a mayonnaise sandwich with a small bit of ham on soggy bread if you’re lucky. Here, you can go to the corner shop, get a meal made with fresh ingredients, have it heated up for you, and then if you really want you can eat it at the counter provided. Buy a pot noodle and want it now? Use the hot water machine to soak your noodles. Not about that life? Have freshly baked proper pastries, or warm chicken instead.

I would go on, but I’m too busy thinking about the hot royal milk tea I had out of a bottle, which was perfect in the drizzle this evening on the way home, the bacon wrapped onigiri, and caramel pudding parfait I had for dinner. And of course, I brought a few packets of kitkats to take home too whilst I was at it.

The rest of the evening was spent resting, as we needed to be up early the next day for our Mt. Fuji trip.

[mechagalaxy]

John T Mainer 28840: Legion of Vega

Legion of Vega

I was on Vega brokering a deal to sell some of the garbage the Spirit of Bunny got on their last raid. Apparently fighting evil energy sucking stormclouds gives you crap for loot. Weathermen don't retire rich, I guess that was one of the reasons I became a pilot in the first place, I didn't want to do honest work, I wanted to shoot bad guys for beer money and shiny shiny loot. There was little danger of any of that on Vega. Vega is a desert world, one of the wind swept hell worlds of the Prince Of Iron's Meiji Shogunate. Settled by Islamist Fundamentalists, they got nuked back to the stone age by one of the early Emperors for an assassination attempt, and only rebuilt partially when the nuking clean up revealed some nasty heavy metals useful in biopic production were discovered, and crystal farming proved to be the one thing that Vega's high radiation atmosphere and almost total lack of surface water was good for.

Vega had been a bright spot for the Shogunate during the war against the Illyrian's, but had fallen into disfavor when the garrison sided with the Prince of Flowers in the late civil war, and the once proud 11th and 14th Legions of Vega were disbanded. The scum soldiers of the Legions of Vega had been an open joke, a dumping ground for criminals, stim addicts, discipline cases, burnouts, and political dissidents, yet when the Illyrians attacked the border, and world after world fell, the father of the current Emperor, the famous/infamous Teddy K, lead the 11th in their doomed stand, and the 14th in their epic war to take back not just Vega, but to drive into the Illyrian border worlds and gut the supply chain for the whole invasion. Since the civil war, they had been without anything but local corporate troops and Internal Security Force security troops. With the increase in pirate and Storm linked activity the governor of Vega, the vastly and cheerfully corrupt "Uncle Chandy" had been authorized to raise a defense force if he could equip it out of his own (cheerfully lined) pockets.

Thus, some of the elite of Mecha Galaxy were gathered on a world that made Arakis look like a vacation spa, that made Pirate Moon look law abiding, and made camels sick of sand. Uncle Chandy was a fat, happily decadent and corrupt man whose vast appetites were only exceeded by his intellect and a strange, almost inexplicable desire, to serve the Shogunate's best interests, whether they knew or approved or not. He was so openly shifty he had three boxes on his desk labeled clearly "Bribes" "Blackmail" "Payoffs", they were all full. One thing Uncle Chandy had oddly never once been accused of, is breaking a deal. Win or lose on a deal, he paid in good coin. Thus it was a few of us were gathered on Vega trying to offload some low level gear, crap crystal mecha, weapons you could possibly bother a rat with if he hadn't been eating well lately, and some decent gear we just couldn't afford to level up.

Uncle Chandy was a generous host, and plied us with all sorts of comforts when we were not negotiating, but when we were, he took a duelists delight in a close match and permitted no distractions, so negotiations were not swift. The first reports of storm disruption of the gates were drifting in to us through our own private networks. If we hadn't been busy trying to out outmaneuver each other, and treating each other as enemies, we might have compared notes and been able to get our asses out of there before it went sideways. We didn't. We each had a report of disruption of some of he gates, we each had reports of raiders hitting some adjacent worlds. If we would have compared notes, we could have summoned our own clans to deal with it before we got cut off. Uncle Chandy, well, he had all of it, and played us like the master gamesman he was.

I was sitting in the waiting room, a scantily clad hostess was plying me with some sort of candied fig while I waited to finalize the sale on a half dozen Cindron when Lewis Reed my Logistics Officer burst in.

"Boss, we got trouble. The gate network is down hard. Something has scrambled all the access routines and we have zero contact with base. From the bit that I got, all the teams are reporting the same. They can't get offworld, and we have over thirty percent of our personnel in all Clans isolated or trapped away from support. We also have word of Deneb and Misery falling. Unknown raiders, not pirates, way too big. Not a raid, they took Deneb's main city and shut down the spaceport and the gate complex both"

I just about choked on my fig. Deneb is a sector capital and well defended. Misery is another hell world, but its an ice ball. To be brutally honest, the only export of Misery is misery....and ice. The water to keep Vega alive came on the ice ships from Misery weekly. With the gates down, the fall of Misery meant we were trapped on Vega with no water, in the sure and certain knowledge that the world that should be enforcing order in this section of space just got conquered by "forces unknown". This was not good.

I swore under my breath. I had to see Uncle Chandy right away and see about trading our Cindron's for one of his ships to get offworld while we still could. I wished for the first time that I had brought the clan in a Warship not taken commercial transport through the gate system. I approached Uncle Chandy's door to see about interrupting his current meeting when I heard voices inside.

"Not on your life, no frigging way. Only a lunatic would agree to that, I don't care what you are paying! That is suicide!" I stopped, my hand about two inches from the call plate on the door. I swear I recognized that voice. The door opened and a hard bitten pilot with a angry scowl just about barreled into me.

It was Able Hunter. He took the cigar out of his mouth where it was being chewed more than smoked in his current rage and jabbed it in my direction. He turned back and shouted one more time at Uncle Chandy before pushing past me and leaving.

"Try that idiot. He is just stupid enough to volunteer to commit suicide for this sand covered crap-hole!"

Uncle Chandy was full of smiles and took my arm and lead me to a nice massage chair in front of his massive desk. Easing himself into his own larger version, two of his many semi-dressed assistants settled glasses of melon soda over ice in front of us. He kept up a constant and happy babble of nonesense and routine Japanese politeness to prevent me from getting to business until he could raise his glass to offer a toast.

"To the glory of the Emperor, the safety of his children, and our own mutual benefit. A drink, and some of the last ice of Misery unless someone of experience and standing undertakes the defense of this world. Sadly, there is no way off this world save the Kigamure, which is reserved to trasport the troops of the Legion of Vega for the defense of this world. Sadly, that is by order of the Prince of Iron, and your humble servant could never oppose the will of the Son of Heaven or his war prince." Uncle Chandy's smile was a mix of the beneficence of Buddha, and cold hunger of the great white shark.

I took a sip of my drink, and considered his words.

"If we don't get off this world, you will run out of water faster" I attempted

He spread his hands, and replied "A hundred or two foreigners more or less won't make a difference when two million of my problem children run out of water, yet with a strong military expedition to restore our water supply and to guarantee our defense until such time as the gates stabilizer, would not your people and my own both profit?"

I looked into his smiling face and sighed. I nodded. "Fine, I will lead your defense. What can you offer me?"

Uncle Chandy smiled and pushed across a box. I opened it and found a memory crystal, code locked to an individuals DNA and brainwave patterns, and the insignia of a Tai-Sa, along with eight matching Legion of Vega pins. Uncle Chandy was beaming and his voice boomed happily.

"I offer you command of the glorious Legion of Vega, and all its resources for the defense and strategic security of this world and its trade. This includes the Kigamure warship as well as all the mecha and support resources you can raise as volunteers. Yours will be the war against Chaos for the glory of Vega, and the enrichment of your troops. I guarentee that each will receive a mecha commensurate to their own glorious contribution, paid for from my own, considerable pockets" Uncle Chandy's voice dripped happy avarice at the end that made my mercenary soul perk up a bit. The fact was, generosity aside, eight mecha is a crappy basis for defense of a world.

I countered "I want command of the ISF batallion. Sure they are green troops, and used to only dealing with civil disobedience and labour disputes, but a batallion is a batallion. I want command of them as well. They can be meat shields if nothing else" I demanded.

Uncle Chandy's face expressed sorrow like a baby basset hound, and he let his implant depolarize his huge office window. Outside the demonstration of Sal-Eh-Dim was in full force. Marches and even mecha carrying or draped with banners "Boycott Chaos" pressed against the line of ISF troopers and mecha out front of the Vegan capital building.

"It is regrettable that I must retain the ISF batallion to keep order here at home, thanks to the peace activists demand we boycott the Chaos war, even if that means failing to restore the Ice supply from Misery, and everyone on this beautiful world dying" Uncle Chandy showed absolute innocence and an odd belief that this waterless pustule of corruption was indeed a paradise worthy of the blood of a legion, but he wasn't wrong. If we let things stand, this world died. He was going to see us paid, and paid well. In the end, if you are a mercenary mecha jock, you chose this profession because you wanted to kick ass, take names, and yes by the gods, be a hero every once in a while.

I pinned on the insignia, slotted the memory crystal into the reader on my belt and felt it synch with my implants. I activated the Legion command circuit and the call for volunteers went out. By the time I got Lewis from the front office and had him book transport for our mecha to the Legion barracks, so long empty and probably looted dry, I was deeply depressed. No eight random mecha platoons can defend a world. I opened the bay doors and walked in. There was chaos underway as swearing pilots and technicians in a mismatch of coverals and even bad Hawaiian shirts struggled to slot a bewildering array of mecha into empty cradles and other deeply suspicious pilots started undogging the unmarked crates Uncle Chandy sent over that seemed to be brimming with Meiji Shogunate munition marks that I strongly suspect the Shogunate does not know are no longer on its shelves.

I pinged the officers from my implant, wondering who I had, and hoping I wasn't looking at a half dozen third level pilots with nothing heavier than a Warhorse when my implant accepted the response from the Legions officers. I gave a low whistle.

Ben Rail, Terry Cole, Lewis Reed, Stroker Spot, Mike Ehmann, Able Hunter, Myeponym, and me. Son of sand rat, maybe we could defend this world. If I had to take eight platoons and bet the life of a planet that I could take Misery, at least long enough to get the ice ships flowing back to Vega, this would be it.

The rat banner of the Legion of Vega flies again. A dumping ground for the disgraced, despised, and the disposable, they had turned the tide of war before, so perhaps we could do so again. We are the Legion of Vega. We are coming for you.

John T Mainer 28840

[tequilaismylaady]

🌸Japan Day 22🌸 The Last Day 😭 Mainly just spent the day doing last minute shopping ✔ Finally got my hands on some Sailor Moon eyeliner ✔ Said goodbye to Hachiko ✔ Finally felt like a local and fell asleep on the train ✔ And of course it happened to be the day I was by myself and missed my stop ✔ Had my last bowl of ramen and melon soda ✔ Broke my suitcase handle because apparently it's a thing now that I have to break the handle on at least one bag when I travel ✔ Got called down to the gate early and freaked out but it was just that they thought they'd broken my handle and they fixed it with tape ✔ I'm not ready to say goodbye to Japan yet, but I am pretty keen to cuddle my dogs again 🐶 Thanks for putting up with all the spam, fam 👍 #farminforramen #biginjapan #johnsonandfriends (at Japan)