#occasionally I write things

[thebansacredbanned]

for the wip ask game: the blood of youth de-aged Tang Lian? :D

“Da-shixiong?”

The boy standing in front of Lei Wujie is not his da-shixiong. He’s, like, six. The thing is, moments ago, it had been da-shixiong standing in front of Lei Wujie, and now it isn’t. Lei Wujie cocks his head to one side, and squints. The boy does look a bit like da-shixiong.

Lei Wujie scratches his head.

His first thought is that the boy might be da-shixiong’s son, but that would be stupid. Da-shixiong and Fairy Lady Rui aren’t married yet, after all, so they can’t have any children. And if da-shixiong used to be married, Qianluo-shijie would definitely have told them about that already.

So if the boy looks like da-shixiong but can’t be da-shixiong’s child, for very obvious reasons, then what? A brother? A cousin?

He suddenly realises that the boy is looking up at him with large, watery eyes.

“Aiyo! Don’t cry!” Lei Wujie falls directly to his knees, and slumps down a bit so they’re at the same height. “Are you alright?”

The boy takes a couple of tiny steps back, and tucks his left hand behind his back. “I’m fine,” he says, voice small and wavering. Lei Wujie doesn’t believe him, not for a second. Though, he has to say. Stood like that, lying so terribly, he really does look like...

Ha. Hahahaha. Xiao Se will really have a great laugh at his expense if he ever finds out what thought just passed through Lei Wujie’s head. It’s fine, though, because Lei Wujie will take this child back to whoever looks after it, and then he’ll find where da-shixiong disappeared to, and Xiao Se will never find out that Lei Wujie thought that da-shixiong got randomly turned into a child in the middle of a forest.

(ask game here)

[jianghushenanigans]

Happy 1 year anniversary of me watching episode 26 of The Blood of Youth and having a breakdown about it :) Have a ficlet :)

Lei Wujie’s grief is loud. Loud denial and loud anger and loud tears. Loud cracks as his knees hit the stone floor, shaking with it.

Sikong Qianluo’s grief is deep. It takes a long time to sink in, and a long time to emerge from. Sobs pulling themselves up from the centre of her heart.

Ye Ruoyi’s grief is private. Hiding away in corners, turning her face away when tears come unbidden, excusing herself from company.

Xiao Se’s grief… Xiao Se doesn’t grieve. He buries it deep within himself. He has too much work to do. He needs to be strong.

Tang Lian steps into the Snowfall Villa and smiles.

Lei Wujie’s joy is loud. Loud surprise and loud disbelief and loud delight. Loud steps as he runs towards da-shixiong and pulls him into a tight embrace.

Sikong Qianluo’s joy is deep. It takes time to sink in, but then she smiles properly for the first time in months.

Ye Ruoyi’s joy is private. A smile to herself as she watches her friends wrap their arms around da-shixiong.

Xiao Se’s joy… Xiao Se’s joy…

Xiao Se is shaking. He can’t, he can’t, he can’t stand. He can’t smile. He can’t breathe.

No one notices. Why would they? Why should they? Tang Lian is here. Da-shixiong is here.

He should be relieved. Shouldn’t he be relieved? Da-shixiong is here. Da-shixiong is alive.

The tremors increase. He stares at his hand, prickling with pins and needles, as it knocks over his cup on the table. The liquid flows out. He watches it as it trails over the table. He can’t not watch it. He can’t move. His eyes start to blur. There’s a fist punched deep inside his chest, squeezing around his heart.

Tang Lian is alive. Why does Xiao Se feel like he’s falling apart?

He was strong. He had to be strong. He had lost his mother and he had lost his uncle and he had lost his martial arts and his title and his name and his way of life. He lived through it and he lived through this and he was strong. He was fine. And Tang Lian is alive. Why is he… why is he…?

He manages to jerk his hand back enough to grip the table instead of shaking. The pressure, something to hold, it helps. A little. A little, but it helps. He curls around it, a little. As if that will protect his heart, where he hurts. Where he hurts.

There are sounds, he’s distantly aware. They sound like he’s underwater. They sound like he’s been thrown from a carriage and is bleeding on the floor of the forest and his ears are ringing and he’s all alone and everything he’s ever know is gone.

The sounds are blurs and his sight is blurred and it’s wet and it’s cold and he hurts. He hurts.

“Xiao Se?” A hand on his arm and a voice that is clear through the blur. Da-shixiong. Xiao Se can’t see him. He can’t turn and look. Da-shixiong was gone and now he’s not gone and Xiao Se doesn’t, he can’t, he can’t –

He opens his mouth, he plans to say – to say something. Anything. Instead there’s just a sound. Pained. Indescribable.

An arm around his shoulders. A hand on his back. A side pressed against his. His hand being gently prised off the table and wrapped in someone else’s grasp.

“I’m sorry.” Da-shixiong’s voice pressed against his hair. “I’m sorry. I’m here.”

He’s here. Tang Lian, da-shixiong. He’s here. Xiao Se sobs, tears and gasps that are finally escaping from where he’d hidden them down months and months ago. He’d had to be strong. What else could he be? Da-shixiong was gone and who else was going to protect them?

And now da-shixiong is back, and Xiao Se can finally grieve.

[thelightofthingshopedfor]

Chapters: 4/? Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, Loki & Thor (Marvel), James "Bucky" Barnes/Loki/Steve Rogers Characters: Loki (Marvel), Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes Additional Tags: Everyone Has Issues, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Fix-It, Everybody Lives, Because I said so that's why, Magic, Dark Magic, Swearing Summary: Sanctuary sprawls over the landscape like some sort of spiky, cancerous growth, or a tentacled creature made of metal and bone, and the land is a ruin all around it even beyond the massive perimeter of structures fused with the rock beneath. It hurts Steve and Bucky just to be here long enough to unmake the Stones after Thanos's defeat; the place would probably kill an ordinary human outright. The last thing they expect to find is a living prisoner.

so I finally posted another chapter

[thelightofthingshopedfor]

sure, here's a bit from a "Loki came back from the dead after Infinity War because fuck canon I do what I want (but also he's not handling it super great)" oneshot that has genuinely been almost done since...uh. before Endgame came out. (when I say I'm the slowest writer ever, I'm really not exaggerating.)

“I’ve been thinking we should build a greenhouse for New Asgard,” Thor says. “Not much in the way of trees, but…maybe that would be good?” It’s an odd thought, in some ways. In another life, he supposes, the idea of grubbing in the dirt would have offended him, never mind that he got his hands dirty often enough preparing various potions and spell ingredients, and he often tended the most important plants in the herb garden because he didn’t trust anyone else to do it properly. Certainly, growing food would have seemed too much like commoners’ work. But he’d always loved his mother’s garden, enjoyed coaxing the trickier plants to produce the ingredients he needed, and…he thinks, just now, that he wouldn’t mind getting some dirt under his fingernails, just as he doesn’t mind the cold water dripping from his hair and trickling down his back, or the way his clothes cling to his skin and his socks have gone unpleasantly squishy inside his shoes. Everything feels…easier, more real and less raw, with that connection to simple living things. If he wants to strengthen his connection to the rest of the world in this life he’s regained—which he does; at least he is certain of that—he cannot spend all his time hiding in the forest.

no wait I have another one, the @grandthorkiday fic from 2019 that was also theoretically almost done at the time (probably less done than I think, tbh) except it still isn't finished because I...haven't really worked on it since then...because as usual I wrote it in disconnected chunks that I never figured out how to stitch together...but it was possibly even more fucked up than my original Grandthorki fic for which it was a sequel, which was definitely the most fucked-up thing I've posted.

the relevant snippet is pretty tame, though.

The Grandmaster smiles back at him from where he reclines on the bed—where Loki was, not 30 minutes ago, and now isn’t. “Afternoon, Sparkles,” he says with a little wave. “Um,” Thor says, trying to hide his sudden panic. “Yes. Hello. Have you…seen my brother?” The Grandmaster laughs outright. “He’s got a lot to teach you about subtlety, huh? It’s fine. He’s fine. I mean, obviously, in more ways than one. No cause for even a tiny bit of concern.” “I’m glad to hear that,” Thor says, or at least he would be, if he believed a word of it. “It’s just, after everything, it makes me…very nervous when he’s not around.” Which he isn’t, unless he’s transformed himself into a decorative plant. There’s nowhere to hide, not with all the mirrors.

This week’s word is…

✨ PLANT ✨

(We'll take both the noun and verb!)

Find the word in any WIP and share the sentence containing it. Play however you want: reply, reblog, stick it in the tags, tag us in a new post, or keep it private.

And please interact with other writers who share sentences.

If you’re new here, hello! Word Game Wednesday is open to fic writers in all fandoms. Original fiction writers, you can play too.

[geomimetry]

suggestive monster stuff under the cut

i havent posted art in almost a year and this is what i decide to break the ice with hi

go big or go home amirite

[turtleblogatlast]

[ cw: nightmares / trauma / ]

Post-invasion, Mikey sneaks into Leo’s room and when asked by Leo what the problem was, Mikey just smiles and says since he’s awake and knew Leo would be too, he didn’t want either of them alone. Leo laughs and lets Mikey stick around, both of them clumped together on Leo’s bed, watching grainy compilations of old Lou Jitsu commercials on Leo’s phone.

Technically, Mikey didn’t lie. He just didn’t explain everything that led him to Leo’s room. He didn’t explain the nightmare of his arms burning up too bright, too fast, destroyed before Raph and Donnie have a chance to help. He didn’t explain how he woke up with a wail caught in his throat, phantom pain in his arms and chest alike chasing away any semblance of exhaustion. He didn’t explain how his mind made sure he knew, vividly, that if one thing went wrong with his portal, then he would have never seen Leo again.

He didn’t explain, and he didn’t have to. Leo knows his brothers better than he knows himself, and Mikey has always been easy to read. So it’s no trouble to let Mikey know that he’s still with them, that Leo is here and alive with everyone else. And when Mikey finally regains his exhaustion and falls asleep leaning against Leo, Leo simply maneuvers him into a more comfortable position and stays by his side.

He doesn’t move, doesn’t go to sleep - not that he could, anyway. He just mindlessly scrolls on his phone, the soft snores of his little brother filling the room. He stays in place, awake, because he wants to be sure that when Mikey wakes up again it’s to the immediate sight that Leo is alive and well and home.

And, if Leo’s bring honest, that’s a reminder not just for Mikey’s sake.

[swanerotica]

yeahyeah mike plays the gitaur rockstar byler au yeah yeah but what if byler.. playing in orchestra

[winterspiderpurrs]

Happy never forgets a face. Never. It's what makes him extra valuable to someone like Tony Stark. Tony Stark, who runs Stark Industries. Tony Stark, who is head of the Carbonell Italian mob; though, while there is some speculation, it's never been proven.

Happy had a system. He categorized people into color groups.

Green for these people are no bodies and didn’t touch the crime world and were safe to interact with.

Yellow for people who are some bodies but won't cauae trouble but have connections.

Red are people who have connections and could cause trouble.

Then their were Black. Those are the unknowns, and they could be as bad as the reds. People a little too clean. Or people who maybe could be someone undercover. Not enough information on them.

Before every convention, Happy makes a point to do background checks on everyone. He memorized all the photos of the people attending. Sure, maybe Friday helps break into the databases to get the photos, but he is just trying to protect Tony.

So when Happy saw Tony talking to someone, he was already going through the catalog in his mind to place the person. Catching Tony's eye, he touched his black tie to silently signal the group the person falls in. Doesn’t mean it's gonna stop Tony, but it just means he is gonna be a bit more cautious. Hopefully.

Peter Parker. 20 years old. Just finished with his masters at Columbia University in Biochemical Engineering. Mother was a scientist as well. Mary Fitzpatrick. Irish. No father listed on the birth certificate. She married another scientist 4 years later, Richard Parker. Both deceased. Plane crash. Italian Aunt and Uncle raised him. Uncle died later. Shot at a Bodega. Not their area, so not tied to them. Trained as a gymnast. Big brown eyes, wavy brown curls. Smart. Cute. Flexible. Just Tony's type.

But something nags at Happy as he watches Tony and Peter talk.

He glances around the room when he spots them.

The Winter Soldier leaned against a wall, looking around the room on the left side, looking a little too casual. At the refreshment table section was The Captain. He worked for the government but has ties to the Irish mob, though, like Tony. Couldn't be proven. He was staring at Peter and Tony with a frown, not subtle at all.

Then it hits. See, there were rumors that The Captain had a kid. Had them young before he was involved with potential mob connections. And he recalls another rumor going around that there was a small riff between The Captain and The Winter Soldier, a love interest that was not approved.

He has to get Tony away from this Peter Parker.

Peter Parker, who potentially could be the kid of The Captain Steve Grant Rogers.

Peter Parker, who potentially could be the love interest of The Winter Soldier James Buchanan Barnes

[skyloftian-nutcase]

Ok, writing request time:

Perhaps someone is captured and there’s a rescue. I love comfort with that type of angst hehe

Link had tasted blood many times.

The first time was when he’d fallen flat on his face in Zora’s Domain while chasing Bazz. He’d also lost his first tooth as a result. But he’d gotten himself hurt plenty of times since then.

It had never been like this, though. The taste stayed, stuck in his mouth because he hadn’t had any way to fix it, he hadn’t been able to drink something. His throat was drier than the sand that was stuck in it, and he coughed a little as he huddled in on himself.

He’d been training and training, yet the moment he was confronted with danger, he’d gotten himself captured. He felt absolutely disappointed in himself and angry.

Worse than anything, though, he felt scared. The thirteen-year-old hadn’t expected to be jumped by these strange men, and they’d dared to try and take the Master Sword away as well. He was so stupid, and now he had the indignity of staring at it through the bars of his cell, reminded that he’d managed to get himself into this mess.

“If he bears the sword, then he has to be the one!” one of the soldiers hissed to the other.

“He’s just a kid, there’s no way,” his companion huffed, crossing his arms.

“Then what about the sword?” The first one asked. “We got information that the sword had chosen a wielder, and this kid has it!”

Link glared at the guards, but he didn’t bother saying anything. His father usually wouldn’t when people were threatening him, after all.

His father. He hoped he wouldn’t be disappointed in him. Link was so angry at himself - he’d fought off almost all of them before two of them had hit him from behind. His head still ached horribly from it.

Stupid or not… he just wished someone would notice he was gone. He had to try to figure out how to get out of here, but he’d never been in a situation like this before.

He couldn’t let his fear stop him from escaping. There had to be a way to break out.

Link took a steadying breath, eyes observant as he ignored the conversation going on between the weird guards. They all dressed the same and hid their faces behind masks that looked like some absurd rendition of the Sheikah symbol. Maybe…

Link’s train of thought derailed as the guards turned their attention to him. He grew more alert, stiffening and straightening his back, waiting for some kind of threat. What had they just said? Were they talking to him?

Whatever they were going to do, they never had a chance. One of them yelped as something whistled through the air, a familiar sound to Link’s ears. He perked up immediately, seeing the arrow that embedded into the guard’s back as the other one drew a sickle, ready to fight. Link shot to his feet, rushing towards the felled guard and reaching as far as he could to get to his keys.

The other guard was stabbed through the chest, and Link recoiled his hand as the man nearly fell on it. When he glanced up, he felt immediate relief flood his entire body, and he almost cried at the sight of the familiar soldier.

“Papa!” He croaked, voice cracking, scrambling to the locked door to his cell.

His father stood in front of him, moving so fast Link could barely keep up, defeating every enemy that rushed into the area. Then he hastily grabbed the key from the dead guards, unlocking the cell, and Link slammed into his embrace. The hug was brief, though, far too brief, before Abel ordered him to get the Master Sword. The pair rushed ahead, and Link saw multiple Hyrulian soldiers fighting the strange men dressed in red.

It didn’t take long to find the exit to the canyon fortress, and Link was limping by the time they got to safety. He’d almost forgotten they’d hit his leg really hard, and it was starting to bother him a lot.

Once they were somewhere safe, Abel immediately dragged Link back into a hug. Link could feel his father’s heart racing against his ear, even through the chainmail, and he let himself shiver as the adrenaline wore off.

“Papa, I’m sorry,” he whimpered, hiding his face so no one else could see his tears.

“Ssh,” his father hushed him gently. “It’s not your fault. I’m sorry I wasn’t there sooner, little knight.”

The relief he felt at those words, paired with the steady and tight embrace from safe arms, wrenched a sob out of the young soldier. His father hushed him again, even softer than before, and then gently pulled away to look him over. Link could hardly see him through the tears, but he couldn’t even express how wonderful it was to just see his father’s face.

He hated how scared he’d been. But…

Warm, calloused hands moved along his forehead, then his cheek, tracing the blood trail from his temple. He watched his father’s eyes harden a little at the sight of it before melting once they made contact with his own.

“Oh, Link,” he sighed a little, and Link let out another quiet sob.

He couldn’t keep crying like this, and he knew it. He’d never really seen his papa cry, and he knew that he was the best soldier there was. He couldn’t break down like this every time there was danger - this was part of his job as a soldier!

His father must have thought the same. He didn’t hug him again, though he wiped the tears away wordlessly, thumb caressing his cheek. Link sniffled and but his lips, trying to get the hiccups under control.

“Where are you hurting, son?” Abel asked softly.

“My head and my leg,” he answered, trying to stop his voice from wobbling. “Papa, I’m sorry.”

Abel’s brow furrowed a little, and he pulled Link to walk with him. The young knight couldn’t really tell where they were, the place was surrounded by cliff-sides and rocks, but they were moving towards an area where he could see more Hyrulian soldiers.

“Link,” his father started, and Link stiffened a little at the gravity in his tone. “I… this is my fault, not yours, so stop apologizing.”

“I got myself captured,” Link argued. And I’m crying about it like some scared little child.

“I shouldn’t have left you alone,” Abel said firmly. “This is not your fault. You fought off plenty of them before they captured you. I’m proud of you… and I’m sorry I let this happen.”

He was sorry? He had no reason to be! Link had defeated plenty grown men by this point, he’d proven he should be able to function like any other foot soldier. It made sense to leave him alone like his father had! This was Link’s fault!

Link found that he didn’t have the energy to push the matter, though. He just wanted to hug his papa again, but Abel didn’t seem in the mood, his own expression dark as he strode into the military camp.

By this point Link had managed to stop crying, and he tried not to attract attention to the tear tracks on his cheeks. Many knights glanced at him worriedly, and a few called out in greeting and relief. Link tried to smile and nod at them before he was guided into an empty tent.

Abel set to work quietly, gently pushing Link to sit on the ground and kneeling beside him. He cleaned the blood off his face, washed it gently out of his hair, and he checked his leg, wrapping it up. Only then did he pull him to his chest, and Link melted into the hold. Thankfully there were no more tears, but he never wanted his father to let go.

They stayed there in silence, with Abel slowly working his fingers through his son’s hair, until Link finally fell asleep, safe in his father’s care.

When the boy’s breathing had steadied, Abel finally let his own emotions spill out, burying his face in his child’s hair.

Goddess above. He’d almost lost him.

I’m such an idiot, he mentally berated himself. Just because the child was an adept fighter didn’t mean he should be left to his own devices.

He couldn’t leave Link alone. Not anymore. He wasn’t just a little boy going on adventures. Not with that sword on his back.

It had only been four months, but the boy was attracting attention now. And Abel was terrified.

He’d have to train Link harder. And he was not leaving his son alone again.

Abel huddled closer to his little knight, never letting go, not as the sun set, not as the crickets started to chirp, not as the world quieted around them. He never let go.

[itwoodbeprefect]

meow. meowmeowmeowmeow. meow! 😾

[fideidefenswhore]

so tired of tudor dramas where there are no women… and even when there are women… there aren’t…ykwim?

[thebansacredbanned]

Thebes! I would like to know about Untamed Dajie if you're willing!

“So!” Nie Huaisang had seen Xichen-ge fly off as he was feeding the birds from his bedroom window, and had rushed straight to find his sister. “Have you finally managed to set a date for the wedding? Because you’re in the running for world’s longest engagement at this point, and I really… dajie?”

Nie Mingjue is staring straight at the table, at two barely touched cups of tea.

“There isn’t going to be a wedding, a-Sang.” Her voice is dull and emotionless, so far from the sister he knows.

Nie Huaisang clenches his fist. “That bastard. He called it off? I’ll ruin him, I’ll ruin the whole Lan sect for good measure, he can’t treat you like-”

“You won’t touch him, Nie Huaisang.” Dajie never full names him unless she really means it. But if the wedding, after a decade-long engagement, has been called off, and dajie doesn’t blame Lan Xichen…

He moves a few paces closer to the table. “Dajie…”

Dajie is crying. Dajie never cries.

“Why aren’t you crying dajie? Don’t you miss him!”

“If they see me cry the elders will say I’m too weak to lead. They’ll appoint someone else as acting sect leader and they’ll never give it back. How can I honour fuqin then?”

He kneels at her side, pulling a handkerchief out of his sleeve. She takes it, without a word.

“Dajie… what happened? You’ve been looking forward to this for so long.”

“I called it off. It will be better if I can stay with you, to be your advisor. I can’t ask him to wait any longer.” Her voice is steady, bland. It feels almost rehearsed.

“Did Xichen-ge- did Zewu-jun believe that, when you told him?”

Nie Mingjue laughs, hollow and humourless. “Of course not. But he is honourable enough not to push.”

“Dajie, I don’t… you could have been so happy. You love him.” It’s a statement that has never been in question. Nie Huaisang doesn’t remember a time when his dajie wasn’t in love with Xichen-ge, and him with her. It wasn’t so much an arranged marriage, to Nie Huiasang’s understanding, as the pair being introduced at a young age in the hopes that they would get on well.

The plan had paid off. They had gotten engaged young, with the intention of waiting until Lan Xichen had reached his majority and taken his rightful place as Lan-zongzhu. And then fuqin died, and the decision was made to allow Nie Mingjue to be acting sect leader until Nie Huaisang came of age. And now Nie Huaisang is twenty one and about to take on the role he was born for, the role he never wanted, but at least his dajie could finally be happy.

“I do.”

“Then why?”

Dajie is silent. He watches as she swallows, dryly. She buries her hands in her lap, takes a deep, shuddering breath. “I’m dying, a-Sang.”

(ask game here)

[jianghushenanigans]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: 莲花楼 | Mysterious Lotus Casebook (TV) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Di Feisheng/Li Lianhua | Li Xiangyi Characters: Di Feisheng, Qiao Wanmian, Li Lianhua | Li Xiangyi Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Pre-Canon, Pre-Relationship, Grief/Mourning, Implied/Referenced Child Abuse, Additional Warnings In Author's Note Summary:

Di Feisheng does not care for the peace, does not care for politics. He wants Li Xiangyi to fight him. A battle of equals, a final push for both of them to see where they stand. For one of them to finally come out on top. He will not allow Li Xiangyi to hide away from him. If he will not come to meet Di Feisheng, Di Feisheng will come to meet him.

My fandom5k fic for @yletylyf!!

[thelightofthingshopedfor]

Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, The Avengers (Marvel Movies), Thor (Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Loki/Tony Stark, Loki & Natasha Romanov Characters: Loki (Marvel), Tony Stark, Natasha Romanov (Marvel) Additional Tags: fic of a fic, Christmas, Missing Scene, Slavery, Aftermath of Torture, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Alternate Universe, Loki Has PTSD (Marvel), oh good that's a canonical tag, Self-Worth Issues, Dehumanizing Language Series: Part 1 of Loki fic, Part 1 of Holiday fics Summary: Loki has another one-on-one conversation with Natasha. Set during the Christmas chapter near the end of Downward Facing Dog by @endlessstairway.

I finally finished something, and it’s a fic-of-a-fic that’s been hanging around almost finished for like three years 😬😬

[littleplantfreak]

Say my name - Sakura Haruka

Normally I'm bad with titles but without further ado! A ficlet(?) about Sakura struggling to call his lovely partner by their first name! It's SFW (but still under the cut) btw

I tried to keep it they/them for neutrality but if you find a stray 'she' somewhere that's my bad

(˵ •̀ ᴗ - ˵ ) ✧

“I really don’t know what to do with him Suo! Every time he tries to say it he just freezes and sputters until he calls me ‘you’ or he changes it to another word last minute. Last week he tried so hard he nearly turned purple and gave himself a headache!” whining, you practically drape yourself over the table in defeat.

“Wow…our captain really is shy when it comes to that stuff, huh?” Suo’s holding back but you can tell he wants to laugh. Once Sakura shows up he’ll throw a teasing remark or two in but you’ll still be at square one.

“Maybe a nickname? Or what if you don’t look at him when he says it? What if he spells it out-“

“I don’t think we need to go that far,” interjecting gently before Nirei could start going through an insane list of things that may or may not actually work for the present problem, Suo leans forward, looking at you from across the table. “There’s something we can try that might work if you're up for it."

——

It’s not a bad plan actually, if more simple than you thought it’d be. You’re waiting behind the support wall in the middle of Cafe Pothos, obscured from anyone just walking in. Nirei and Suo are at the same table near the front that you were at before, and Kotoha is cleaning dishes at the sink, though she knows what’s going on and has a ear turned towards the main stage of this event making sure she doesn’t miss a thing.

From where you’re peeking before Haruka opens the door, you can see Nirei’s tense shoulders, both trying and failing to appear casual not that your boyfriend will pay it any mind. Sometimes you're afraid he'll end up like Hiragi and his nervous stomach issues. Suo is the picture of tranquility as he eyes Nirei’s notebook before greeting Haruka. You hear your boyfriend stop, possibly looking around for where you said you’d be waiting for him earlier.

“Where’s-”

“A-ah…”

“Bathroom~,” Suo singsongs smoothing over his partner’s stuttering. “By the way, Nirei’s been wondering about their first name! It seems the notebook page he has on them is incomplete without it…” he’s drawing attention, not to the boy himself, but the pen and notebook he’s gripping on to waiting on Sakura to take the bait. Nirei had opted for silence as he clicks his pen and as if to write it down.

"It’s-" a short pause before he actual says the full weight of your name, matter of factly too, without fumbling it at all and you’re suddenly too giddy to contain yourself.

“S-Sorry I wasn’t listening. Could you say it again?” Nirei squeaks out.

There’s annoyance in his voice as Sakura says it again, and before he can get anything else out, you’ve decided this is your cue.

“Yes, Haruka?” You blink looking at him, poorly portraying innocence but you can tell blood is rushing to your face and you cannot rub your smile off if you tried.

“Oh my~ Sakura you’re so bold calling your partner by their first name!” Red eyes glittering wickedly as he taunts “How romantic!” He gasps with a hand over his mouth. Looking flustered but proud is Nirei, nodding vigorously, and Kotoha giving Sakura a pat on the back in congratulations. You’re proud of him yourself, despite having to coax your name out of him with the help of his vice captains.

He's wide-eyed going between you and Suo, gears clicking in to place that he'd been set up as he settles for firing at the brunette "Wha- you- I'm GONNA KNOCK YA-,"

"Oookay we're heading out now!" Before he starts a fight, you link an arm through his and begin leading him towards the door. He’s puffed up like an angry cat but his body completely yields when it’s you who’s maneuvering him away the cafe after saying a quick goodbye to everyone.

It's quiet, the path you take through town on the way to your house and he doesn't look at you when he mumbles a quiet apology. You aren't quite sure what he’s apologizing for but you stop walking and wait for him to start speaking again.

“Sorry fer takin’ so long to say it.” He’s still not looking at you but your heart breaks a little at how small he sounds. You touch his cheek enough for him to turn and look at you, uncertainty clear in his bi-colored eyes.

“Honey I never meant to rush you. If you’re still working on it that’s okay! I never wanna make you feel uncomfortable,” brows knit together in worry now that you’re holding his face in both hands, searching signs that you took it too far.

“I think I’ll be able to say it now - especially if it makes ya look as happy as ya did at the cafe. Not all the time, but when we're alone I think I can." He’s almost fully settled into your hands now, melting into warmth he’d been craving since he woke up this morning. He always wondered how such soft hands could touch something as rough as him and still continue to make the effort to hold him. You wait for him to finish soaking up his much needed affection for a few more minutes and then you're both walking again, slowed by the urge to stay close for as long as possible.

----

"...and she popped out from behind the pillar and said "Yes, Haruka?"" Kotoha mimics your voice as she's giving Umemiya the rundown of what he missed.

"He's growing up so fast!" He wails theatrically wiping a tear from his eye.

"He's changed a lot since he came here, and even more since they started dating. I think he's getting soft with how fast they were able to drag him away without a fight."

"So he went from alley cat to house cat huh. Nothing wrong with that." he grins digging into his omurice. Kotoha smiles and hums in agreement. Nothing wrong with that in the slightest.

[corpsentry]

edited my pants