#okay these r technically from last year but i wanted to wait to post these

[madmadothestrawberryshark]

Bahhhhdhsuhfjdidj these two 🫶🫶‼️😭

II fans where u at?? 😭🪭🧪❤️💚

(credits to @stale.pankekes for the open species)

[taeraeszn]

hii! how r u :) i hope your requests are open and if they are could you maybe do something about zb1 realizing they missed a date with their partner and try to make it up to them?? its fine if you cant!

when zb1 misses a date with their partner

hey luv! thank you for requesting! just to let you guys know, my schedule is much more busier these days so i will be releasing out request slowly <3

anywho, i'm kinda excited to be doing the opposite of my last post?? obv it's not good that they stood their partner up but how the turn tables

also some of these probably don't even count but i thought some of the scenarios were so cute - sorry!!

warnings: mentions of food but i don't think there is any more?? (ik i say this ALL the time but i really try to avoid any touchy subjects/topics). but pls lmk if there are any!!

kim jiwoong

you were at the place you always met up with jiwoong, a simple park nestled in the heart of your city

jiwoong told you that he would be there in around 30 minutes but that thirty minutes turned up to be almost two hours of you waiting there

you were a bit hurt by your boyfriend's actions and decided to head home as it was reaching the two hour mark

the park was incredibly silent too, it seemed that you were the only person there

but just as you turned to begin walking home, a loud shout of your name came from behind you

"(NAME)!" you heard jiwoong call, he was running with a cap on as well as a black mask, clearly to hide his identity

"jiwoong??" your brows furrowed. when he finally came towards you, he was out of breath

"i-i'm so sorry! i was suddenly called in for practice and i couldn't just leave-"

you immediately shut him up with a hug, he was puzzled but softened into your embrace

"it's ok jiwoong. i understand that practice can hold you up. just please message me beforehand."

he was so thankful that you were understanding and held your hand

"thank you love. now what do you want to do?"

"i just want to relax with you, at home."

"okay then, lead the way my love."

rest of the members are under the cut!

zhang hao

zhang hao didn't technically miss your date, he actually showed up

but he did end up missing it because he ran into an old friend halfway through. the friend was clearly not happy to see you two with your hands interlinked together and decided to make up an excuse that they had no ride home as it was raining

zhang hao being the kind soul that he is didn't hesitate to step up and help, he told you he would be back in a few minutes

well that few minutes didn't happen as you had sat there in silence following his leave that was for nearly any hour. it was very awkward to say the least with everyone sending remorseful looks towards you

you sighed and got up to leave, you know that his friend did that purely to separate you two which pissed you off even more

as you were at the bus stop, you saw zhang hao's figure running towards you

"wait! baobei!" he shouted. you were still bothered by what happened but still gave your boyfriend a smile when he returned

"what are you doing here?" he asked, you gave him a slight smile, "i'm heading home."

"but my car is there." you sighed

"hao, i understand that you wanted to take them home but why did it take so long? i was sitting there by myself for an hour."

he noticed your disappointment and rubbed your shoulder, "i'm sorry. they just began talking with to catch up and i got ahead of time. please forgive me love. i promise i will make it up to you."

you put up your pinky finger to him, "promise?" he connected his pinky with yours, "promise." his warm smile reassured you

he then gently tugged your arm, "c'mon, let's go to my car. it's much better than the bus."

"let's go!" you held his hand and began walking to the parking lot

sung hanbin

for your 6 year anniversary, you two had planned a romantic date together. you were so happy to be with hanbin as he always made you feel special

but your excitement slowly faded away as hanbin had no sign of showing up, causing you sit there alone for nearly an hour

you had called and texted him but to no avail. at this point you were worried. maybe it was traffic? well yeah this was downtown so there must've been...or maybe something abruptly came up?

just then in the midst of your thoughts, there came hanbin an hour later with roses and something else small in his other hand

"happy anniversary love." he handed you the flowers and sat down with you. everyone in the restaurant was giving you smiles and happy looks to hanbin's appearance

"where have you been?" he smirked, "i've been planning something. actually, i've been planning it since we met that faithful day in class."

he got up from his seat and opened the small box that was in his hand to reveal a shiny ring, you gasped and then realized what he was doing

hanbin then got on one knee, causing everyone in the restaurant to share the same surprised expression

"(name), i love you and i want to spend the rest of my life with you, till death do us apart. you are my entire world and i can't imagine spending my future life without you as my partner. will you marry me?"

you were already tearing up and quickly nodded, "yes, yes, yes! a billion times yes! i will marry you hanbin!"

he then got up to spin you in his arms as everyone in the room clapped and congratulated you, hanbin slyly slid the ring down your finger as it shined

"it fit's perfectly." he sighed in relief, "oh thank god, i was worried it wouldn't because i didn't know your ring size."

you embraced him again, "thank you hanbin for choosing me."

"you know i'll always choose you love."

(this actually made me emo hELP ok moving on)

seok matthew

funny enough, matthew wasn't even supposed to miss your date, you two had it all planned out with what time you would go as well as getting your tickets early

but he got sick and had let you know beforehand, but you were incredibly sad as you were going to watch the movie that you both wanted to see together alone

though matthew told you to enjoy it, you couldn't help but feel a teensy bit guilty as matthew was telling you how much he wanted to see the movie

you wished he could've been beside you holding your hand or resting his head on your shoulder, also vice versa

you could barely focus on the film itself as you worried for your boyfriend's health

the credits finally rolled and you immediately made your way to matthew's place

as you opened the door, you heard the sounds of coughing and sneezing coming from his room. you rushed to his cabinet to get some medicine and walked into his room

"matt!" you said, he seemed relieved seeing you but you noticed how he was curled up into his blanket and the tissue box placed on his side table

"(name)! how was the movie?" you pulled him into a hug, not caring if you would get sick, "i missed you. it didn't feel the same without you."

he grinned, "so does that means i have an effect on you?"

you playfully rolled your eyes and you sat next to matthew in the cozy blanket, "yeah, yeah. a huge effect."

"but you didn't answer my question." he said, you shrugged, "it was good but i spaced out for most of the film. i just needed you with me."

he put your head gently on his shoulder, rubbing it. "you have me now for as long as you want."

kim taerae

(taerae is a businessman in this scenario)

you and taerae had been planning a romantic date night ever since he got the promotion at the company he was working for

it was a huge deal and you wanted to congratulate him in some way and give him something to relax with

but this promotion also meant that taerae would get more work that made him stay overtime at the building

you were worried that he would have to stay late on your date night, but taerae continuously reassured you that everything would work out fine

but of course the world isn't that perfect. your worries became reality as you were left alone at the chosen restaurant

you already knew something like this would occur and weren't even shocked when it happened

and then you got the text with taerae apologizing and stating that he would be coming home late. without thinking twice, you left the restaurant without ordering anything

you were up that night watching a tv show in your pj's when the door opened to your shared place, there you saw taerae in his suit. "your still up?" you hummed in response

he then came towards you and suddenly wrapped his arms around you, "i'm sorry. i know how much you wanted to go on that date."

you sighed, "this isn't about me taerae. i wanted you to have a night to relax so you could treat yourself. i'm happy you got your promotion but i wish you could have more time for yourself."

he pressed his lips on your forehead, "i know and i'll try my best to get my work done quicker so i don't worry you. i just want us to have a good life together. i'll do better."

you nuzzled your face in his chest as you hugged him, "thank you taerae. i know how hard you work."

shen ricky

you were waiting for ricky at the downtown aquarium that was well known in your city. you didn't realize how much you were checking the time on your phone waiting for him

"where is he?" you mumbled to yourself. standing by the door made it even more awkward as everyone was staring at you while walking into the front doors

you sighed as it was approaching the one hour mark and there was no sign of ricky arriving. did you do something? what would cause him to not come when he always came to your dates?

you decided to give up on waiting for him and took the train home in disappointment. not even a call or message, nothing, you were bitter to how your night went and just curled up in bed

a few minutes later, you heard frantic knocking at your door. it didn't take a genius to know who it was. when you opened it, you saw ricky holding a bouquet of roses as he handed it to you

"(name), i'm so sorry. it's a long story but i can explain."

you sighed, not knowing how to react to the situation you were faced with, "i don't know ricky. i just feel really let down."

"please, just let me in and we can talk. trust me, i would never leave you hanging on purpose."

you had no choice but to let him in, as you two were sitting on your couch, he handed you the bouquet

"i can assure you that i purposely didn't miss the date. the road i was usually go on got closed and i had to go the other route which took me longer than the regular route i take. by the time i got there, you were already gone."

everything finally made sense and now you felt kinda bad for feeling bitter before

"trust me (name). i love you so much. i'll do anything to make it up-" you quickly shut him up with a kiss on the lips. ricky paused for a second before naturally resting his hand on your side as he returned the favour

"it's okay ricky. just call me next time this happens so i'm not worried."

"next time, i promise i will."

kim gyuvin

"gyuvin where are you??" you asked, looking around the mall for any sight of him

"uh...it's a... long story." he said, pausing in between his words. you were confused to say the least as gyuvin promised to meet up with you at the nearby mall to grab some food and go shopping

"i have lots of time." you replied, just then you heard some people shouting in the background of his call

"gyu, who is that?" you asked, you waited for him to compose an answer as the call went silent for a while

"i'll call you back! i'm sorry something came up! i love you!"

the call then ended, causing you to be left with mixed feelings, what was even going on in that call? it was so random and unlike how gyuvin usually acts

a few hours passed and you were sitting at your dining table at home, devouring on some pasta you had just finished making when you got a facetime call from non other than kim gyuvin himself

you were reluctant to answer but did nonetheless. the first thing you saw was gyuvin running outside, seemingly out of breath. "gyuvin? what are you doing?"

he gave you a slight smile, "i want to talk to so i'm running to your house right now. i'm pretty sure i could win a marathon right now."

you faintly chuckled, "okay...but why?"

just then it cut and a few minutes later you were met with him at your door

"care to explain to me why i was left at the mall alone?" you questioned, he plopped down on your bed, making himself at home

"blame hanbin hyung, not me!" he put his hands up, "i had to stay at practice since i wasn't able to master the dance! i tried to run away but hanbin forced me to stay!"

it finally made sense, "oh...well i guess that explains it."

"yeah so stop being mad at me!" he exclaimed, "i won't! also you should be at the dorms right now."

he seemed unaffected and shrugged, "they can try and catch me but i just want to be with your right now."

park gunwook

there was a small place to grab food near where you and gunwook both lived and he kept begging you to go with him one day

you agreed and though you came at the right time, gunwook had seemed the forget about the date, leaving you by yourself

the owner of the shop, an older woman, noticed you and frowned, "what are you doing here alone?"

"oh well, i was supposed to meet with someone but they haven't showed up."

the owner was kind enough to offer you some free food due to your situation but it didn't get rid of the feeling you had inside of you

gunwook was someone who'd always remember important events or days so this caught you off guard

you ended your visit earlier than expected and began walking home when you felt someone grab your wrist

it was park gunwook, he had a guilty expression on his face, clearly feeling bad for what happened

"i know there's no excuses for missing our date but i promise you it wasn't intentional." he began, "i'm really sorry and if you want we can still go somewhere else to make up for it."

you were still wondering what had caused him to not show up in the first place

so you asked, "gunwook i know you have never missed our dates, what happened today?"

he sighed, "we set the fire alarm off in our dorm while cooking, i should've informed you beforehand."

your eyes widened, "WHAT? is everyone okay?!" he nodded, "yeah but it was mainly my fault."

you hit his chest, "you cooked didn't you?"

he shyly looked down, "i wanted to impress the members but i guess that didn't work out."

you poked his cheek, "you always impress me gunwook. you don't need to prove anything."

he grabbed your hand and began taking you somewhere, "let's go, i have to make up for what i did."

han yujin

well technically an indoor date, yujin had promised you that he'd come over to your house since you were home alone and wanted to watch the drama that you were both binge watching on your projector

so as you prepped the food and drinks, the minutes passed by and yujin hadn't shown up

this was concerning but your brushed it off as something came up. but then another hour passed and he still wasn't here

now it was becoming worrying and you called yujin, only for it to go to voicemail right away

deep down you felt upset that you prepared all of this only for your boyfriend to never show up, and as the night got darker, you began putting the food away and wrapping up for bedtime

your parents had also returned home from their day out so you weren't even home alone anymore

you didn't get an answer to any of this until yujin called you himself

"(name), please don't be mad. i really couldn't leave."

"what do you mean yujin? i prepared everything for us and yet you didn't show up." your tone was obviously very unpleased

"i know, and i'm sorry. i ended up running into a friend while heading to your house and we hung out, i didn't realize how quickly time went by and completely forgot about our date."

though his explanation did tell you why he didn't show up, you were still conflicted with if you should forgive him or not

"then...it's okay. if you want to hang out with your other friends too then that's fine with me."

"no, i want to be with you more than anyone. let's hang out tomorrow, my place. we can watch our drama together then to make up for today." he seemed very firm on wanting to be with you which caused you to grin

"okay, i'll see you tomorrow then. you better show up!" you exclaimed. he chuckled on the other end

"if i don't then you won't ever have to see me again." he joked, reminding you of how much he loved you

[serasarahhhh]

Author: Maxine Pairings: BakuKami Rating: R Chapters: 4/? Summary: Bakugou is eighteen when he decides it's about time to deal with that whole dumb virginity thing. He's twenty-three when Kaminari finds out about it. It doesn't exactly go the way he was expecting. But when does it ever? ~~~~~ CHAPTER 4 “Wait.” Kirishima stares at him, eyes wide. “You’ve already seen him three times this week?”

“Yep,” Katsuki says, overly casual. They’re at the Provisional Licensing Exam, observing Aizawa’s first years as they try their best to become fledgling heroes. Or, well, Kirishima’s observing. Katsuki gets to go down there and play villain with Deku when the next round starts. Heh.

“Dude, it’s Wednesday.”

“Yeah, and?”

“So you’ve seen him every day.”

Katsuki feels himself flush red and tries to hide it by ducking his chin into the raised collar of his uniform. “If you wanna get specific,” he mumbles, and Kirishima snorts.

“I mean, it’s just a fact.”

“Well, what-fucking-ever,” Katsuki grouses. “We got dinner Monday and then he showed up at the agency during my lunch break yesterday.”

“And…he stayed over Saturday night?” Kirishima hedges. He looks a little awkward about it – probably feeling some kind of way from having to acknowledge that two of his best friends are being gross with each other.

Katsuki gets it. It weirds him out sometimes, too, and he’s the one fucking doing it.

…Mostly it weirds him out because it’s been so goddamn easy, though. And yeah, obviously it hasn’t even been a full week yet, but the way Katsuki’s heart has flip-flopped in his chest completely against his will every time he’s seen Kaminari’s face the past few days seems pretty telling.

“Yeah, but he slept on the couch and then went home the next morning,” Katsuki says. He folds his arms over his chest, sinking lower in his seat. “Wasn’t a big deal, nothing happened.”

“Does that even count then? Like, technically you saw him on Sunday, but–”

He cuts himself off as Deku suddenly appears, climbing over the back of the seat on Katsuki’s other side.

“Hey, Kacchan! Kirishima.” Deku grins at them both briefly before turning to look out over the arena. “Did I miss anything exciting?”

“He knows,” Katsuki says to Kirishima, who lets out a relieved breath.

Deku cocks his head in their direction again. “What do I know?”

“About Kaminari,” Katsuki clarifies, and Deku is quick to bark out a laugh.

“Oh, yeah, I know. Kacchan blew me off Sunday to hang out with him.”

Kirishima blinks, then squints at Katsuki. “You just said he went home in the morning.”

“…Yeah.” Katsuki clears his throat. If he slides any fucking lower in this damn chair, he’s going to slip right off the edge of it and form a puddle on the ground. “And then he called me to see if I wanted to get breakfast.”

“Breakfast lasted until dinnertime, huh?” Deku asks dryly.

“Okay,” Katsuki snaps, face burning all over again. Continue reading at AO3. Through chapter 4 now posted!

[niemernuet]

and okay i‘m gonna restrict myself to this being the last one but what if we did "i think this is the part where you're supposed to kiss me" for lucas and felix 😏😏😏 and then MAYBE if we wanted to be really evolved we could combine it with soft kisses becoming heated 😇😏🥰

Gotta be honest, I haven't listened to their podcast yet, so if something doesn't add up I apologise. Also the third one will come later. Thank you so much for sending these asks, I love you. 😘💋

Nobody ever tells you about the meetings. When he was still a racer they used to have meetings with the race director, followed by meetings with the head coach, meetings with the training coaches, and meetings with the service man. Hell, sometimes it felt as if he spent the entire weekend in meetings save for the two minutes of the race. Now that he is a retiree, he still has meetings with the race director, a bit more terse than before, followed however by meetings with the broadcast director of the race, meetings with the director of his station, meetings with the technical crew, and meetings with the people of the programme before and after the broadcast. And there is not even a race anymore that he can look forward to.

The social media guy, a pale, quiet bloke who still dresses for his dream job in a modern art gallery in Berlin and not for his current job in the Austrian Alps in the middle of the winter for the Bavarian broadcasting company, nods once, and starts to put his gear back into the bag.

“Looks good,” he says, and eyes Felix who suddenly feels really, really stupid in his outfit. “I’ll send you the link once I post it on Instagram. Also, the meeting with the team starts in five.”

Felix nods, his fingers tangled in the layers of cheap tulle wrapped around his head and falling down his shoulders. “Just go ahead, I’ll join you shortly.”

How can it be so hard to get this thing off?

The guy hesitates for a second, his gaze still scrutinising Felix. Then, he shrugs, and ambles away. The door to the small room a short hallway from the lobby away is open wide, and the noise of Kitzbühel’s most hectic weekend of the year fills the silence. Lucas observes Felix’ struggles for a while longer, his smile growing bigger and bigger until finally he takes pity.

“Here, let me!” he says, and pulls Felix’ hands away.

“I think the cord’s somewhere…,” Felix says, and hisses when Lucas’ fingers snag in his hair.

“Sorry,” Lucas chuckles. “Where did you find that monstrosity anyway?”

“One of the stylists brought it from the costume stock in Munich. I’m sure you could already see it in films and series.”

“If I watched German tv, that is.”

Felix snorts. “Yeah, tha…ouch!”

“Done!” Lucas announces proudly, and drops the tacky veil in Felix’ lap. “You’re welcome.”

Felix laughs, and sheepishly flattens his hair with his palm. With Lucas so close, he suddenly remembers Marcel’s sarcastic message after Felix’ very public outburst on social media following Lucas’ surprise in Sölden.

And you had the gall to call me cradle-snatcher?

Back in autumn, Felix took the time to write his answer in all-caps. AT LEAST I WAITED UNTIL HE WAS ALLOWED TO DRIVE A CAR!!!

He omitted the addendum that Felix did not snatch anything at all anyway.

That is, until today. His eyes wander over to Lucas, his immaculate curls, and he wonders how they would feel under his touch, how they would wrap around his fingers, how they would look fanned out on a pillow, how…

“I think this is the part where you’re supposed to kiss me.”

Felix blinks. “What?”

Instead of an explanation, Lucas leans over, and gives him a soft kiss on the lips.

“It’s only a real wedding if you seal it with a kiss,” he whispers.

Felix’ hands move on their own, burying themselves in Lucas’ hair, pulling him close for another kiss, and another, and another, until their lips fuse together.

He doesn’t know how much time has passed when they come up for breath, their foreheads pressed together, or if anyone has walked past the open door.

“My room’s on the second floor,” Lucas mutters. “But I understand if your meeting…”

Felix jumps up, and grabs Lucas’ hand. “They can do without me.”

[noxs-daydream]

Casually going to be venting / ranting here, will include screenshots

Also, I will not be as active more than likely while I work on cleaning my room and preparing for the move. Initially I was going to talk to my therapist about it but I can't wait for the 22nd to get a second opinion from someone who knows my situation but doesn't have that personal connection to me

For anyone who does decide to read/look, get the popcorn cause you are getting context and screenshots of my in the moment ramblings too And also feel free to put your opinion as if this were an r/AITA or r/WIBTA post! I've always liked those idk why lmao

this is going to be the exact opposite of organized, but I will trY

First, the context:

since 2021-2022 i have babysat my niece when my sister was unable to afford her babysitter, however there started to be long periods where she was unable to pay the money (cheaper than what it is now, which is 10 USD an hour)

march/may of 2022 (don't remember exact month, but i do know it started with an M) i notified her i would be looking to start my GED soon, and months earlier in 2023, i still have not started it as babysitting has moved to full time, 5 days a week with little to no pay to compensate. she claims to have been looking for solutions/alternatives, while- to my knowledge- not having looked into or signed up for any aids/benefits a single mom could have

i have had to message a friend one day, when i made plans for them to come over and spend the next few days with me, and tell them 'so im babysitting my niece'. luckily they adore my niece, so they didn't care about helping me with watching her (note, i've also had plans change last second on days i was supposed to have off via the one watching her being her actual babysitter; i am neurodivergent - ADHD - and hate things changing last second especially when i have plans)

my therapist even agrees that my life is being put on hold so my sister can have a babysitter, and that i shouldn't have to do it. there is no progress so far for being able to say 'no' to babysitting (notice how it's not technical consent, as i have no room to say no without her getting upset?)

months ago, around May/June, i mentioned going down and living with my partner for a month or two in AUGUST, and she started panicking. not only talking bad about how my mom and i react and jump to extremes when i just notified her of the offer my partner ASKING if it would be okay

In general, my life is being put on hold since 17 and maybe even 16 turning 17, years old to accommodate for my sister's financial trouble without a sign I'll be able to further myself.

Let's add onto the fact that I make money where I can via my art, and I pay my own phone bill. That's it. That's the only bill I have to pay. And I can't even do that when I also want to help my mom out with the bills of where we live.

My last proper stretch of time off had been when my father died. Just 2 weeks of time off. Then back to the weekend being my only day off (except for today because I had to babysit today too ontop of watching her on my sister's day off to clean the house my dad lived in and the trailer i live in because of some spiritual culture stuff)

I'm also gonna point out that she had said 'tr@nny' and did not apologize, just stared at me, when I said 'that is a slur' - i'm trans and she has been transphobic to me before (i doubt her views have changed just because she is getting involved in her culture)

She's also the one who kept acknowledging what happened with the spiritual stuff, after tearing into me a lil bit about "after this is over don't talk about it, don't acknowledge it, etc" and now because of her acknowledging it and asking me about it bcuz IG IT DIDNT STOP, I think IM starting to feel whatever the fucker's effect on people is

Now the screenshots (names will be blurred):

[tnerb90]

01 March 2023

Here we go. 

In my last post (same day), I talked about lessons learned. Now I want to review where I stand. 

Okay. As I alluded to, I left my job at PV around April 2021. And started at Conquest in May 2021. Stress-wise it’s night and day. It’s still a new field for me and there are times I get queries and feedback, which is stressful, especially since I’m a harsh critic of myself to begin with. But on the whole, it’s not even close how much better this job is. For many reasons. Okay, so the underlying stress has been much better. However, I guess I got pretty lax over the last year too. I stopped “dieting”. Stopped exercising. There was a long stretch between like June and December where I barely moved at all. I would sit at my desk all day, go home and smoke, sit on the couch until I went to bed. A few things happened that pushed me to make a change yet again. 

1. We went on a cruise in July and had this excursion to hike up a waterfall. I barely made it. I was panting, sweating, legs were dead. It was embarassing really. Same with just walking around in general. I felt like it was too much. Not cool. Also, felt uncomfortable in my clothes. Belly sticking out. Suit was tight etc. I just didn’t like it. At all. 

2. In September, I worked up some courage (or maybe it was arrogance) thinking I could roll out of bed and start roller hockey. It honestly scared the F out of me, because I couldn’t skate anymore. My balance, my leg strength, my heaviness. It just wasn’t working...  I could barely tie my skates 1st of all. Then when I did start skating, I had about 45 seconds before my feet were in so much pain that I had to stop. I played 1 game (maybe 4 shifts) and stopped after that. I also had knee pain from pickleball with Ashton. 

3. In December, we had a company holiday party, where we went to IoA. I had been dreading it because I still hadn’t been back since the Harry Potter thing way back in 2019 when this started. And I was even heavier at that point. I know in Nov, I had reached 327.5 at one point. And that was before Ash and I went on another cruise together, so I’m sure by then it was even higher than that. Anyway. Walking around the park on its own was nervewracking because I didn’t want to seem like a fat loser sweating and out of breath from walking around. I went on my own for a while, due to fear of not fitting onto the Velocicoaster so I ghosted my group. Tried another couple of rides. Couldn’t go on Hagrids. I rode flight of the hippogrif and thats it....alone. It was a low point. I ended up running into my coworkers (as I was trying to leave the park alone and go back to the hotel) but ended up being convinced to sit for lunch with them. A few wanted to go ride the Hulk. I figured I  could fit on that one at least, since I had ridden a coaster at Seaworld a year back and it was fine. But I didnt fit. We got the front. I had to walk of shame. It was bad. I chatted with Dr. Patel a bit and told him I needed to lose weight. He asked me what my plan was? That was a big moment for me. I was honest with him. I had no plan... I didn’t even know what to do anymore. He encouraged me to start walking, just 10 mins at a time. He invited me to go to his crossfit gym at 5am’s but of course there was no chance in hell I would take him up on that. But just the fact that he was so encouraging and cool about it. Just start walking. What’s my plan? He’s available if I need help. 

So I guess those 3 things did it for me. Not being able to hang with my fam or fit into my clothes on a vacation. Not being able to play hockey. Not fitting on rides again and isolating myself from coworkers because of my weight/ lack of fitness.  Enough was enough. I had to do something. But not yet...of course I waited until January. And even Jan. 3 technically. I smoked all my weed. Commit to going for walks. Etc. Came up with a new plan for my diet and exercise. 

Jan 1, I was 324.5. I had a regular session with Ritta until the end where she got kind of real with me. Made me lay out the plan I had. Encouraged me to get support. It’s cheesy, but it really meant a lot that she didn’t just let me get away with “I got this, don’t worry.” Between her and Dr. P, I think I connected the dots there and realized support would really benefit me. 

I got down to about 318 in early February. That’s when I started seeing a personal trainer and a therapist. Yes, it’s true. I sought help.  It’s been a few weeks now since that, and I’m down to 310 today. So it’s on again. But this time I have help. In Jan, I actually started IF again. Keto again. I’m such a dummy. Ok be nice. I’m such a.... silly goose...? Anyway. I read a ton and listened to podcasts, and read about binge eating etc. And here we are. When I started IF and Keto again, I realized how much irritability and anxiety etc.  I was having again. I realized I had a lot of underlying shit I hadn’t worked through yet. And this is the most honest, productive in therapy I’ve been in a long time. Maybe the pressure being off that I’m not a counselor who needs to know it all and could just be a a human. Also, started working with JS. He’s been great too. Encouraging, patient, but firm and he is working me hard. I’m working with him 2x per week and at first it was hell. It was so much, squats etc. But I’m getting to a point where I’m recovering faster and feeling better while doing the work. He’s teaching me a lot of new exercises and proper form. It’s a challenge for sure. But I’m so happy I’m doing it. My energy has been good, especially when I sleep. My anxiety is getting better. But again, 2x per week. I know I can do more. It was perfect for the first 3 weeks because it gave me enough time to rest and recover and so far, I haven’t gotten hurt. If I can build up to cardio and another strength day or 2, I’ll be buzzing. Dietwise, I’m counting cals again, which I’m undecided on. But I know I have to control my eating somehow to lose weight at a rate i’m happy with. And this time, I’m wayyyyyyyyyyy more lenient with myself if I “slip” e.g. got ice cream on Vday. Got pizza several days for lunch at work, etc. and this time around I have a much better mindset. I just finish out the day normally. If I go over on cals, I go over. I’m focused on nutrition mostly. Protein, fiber, healthy fats, whole grains, fruits, veggies. Essentially I’m making those things the bulk of my diet and going from there. If I have cheese, white flour, halushki, etc. so be it. Don’t get me wrong, I do kind of guilt myself about it, but not nearly as bad. It’s not as dire anymore to be perfect. I just need to be consistent. Ok. I have to shit and it’s 15 mins left in the work day and I have a tx session right after. So g2g. Thanks for listening. Peace. 

[emisirrelevant]

THOUGHTS ON THE FINALE OF PRETTY LITTLE LIARS ORIGINAL SIN!!!!

*SPOILERS* if you haven't watched the last few episodes yet you've been warned

*TW/CW- mature/sensitive content in this post

I am literally still processing everything but:

Was I the only one who thought the Liars' plan with the blood drive was actually kind of creative?

Ohhh the principal rejecting Tabby's film had me SEETHING. I should have known from that scene he'd be the one behind it all/pulling the strings.

Going back and rewatching the scene where Chip tries to ask Imogen if she wants to go to his place for Thanksgiving is now very uncomfortable. Thank god she had Tabby and her mom!! And that's on the tabogen agenda.

I honestly thought Shawn was going to be a part of the A stuff or the guy who assaulted Tabby and Imogen but he was not. If we get a season 2 though, I'm keeping an eye on him. No offense Noa- but he lied about the pills/drugs. Like I wonder if he really was telling the truth when he said later that he threw them out.

The club scene!! Iconic, but the rational part of my brain also was like "Yes Faran good suggestion- WAIT THEY'RE MINORS THEY SHOULD NOT BE OUT CLUBBING"

When Kelly(?) "said call me Karen" to Greg- HUHHH?

I knew Crazy Joe wasn't A

It felt too much like a red herring to me- too obvious

The Waters' house did give me AHS Murder House vibes- they really nailed the creepy vibe with the set

Yess finally I’m so glad they got the moms to talk about Angela- also the fact that each mom's situation with Angela paralleled the daughters in the present

Noa saying "I can't handle juggling two addicts in my life" SWEETIE no :(((((

FARAN LETTING HER HAIR DOWN!!

I'm glad Henry told Faran about Kelly kissing him and didn't keep it a secret. Maybe there is one decent man on this show??

Also Ben Cook heyyy good for him getting those roles!

Ash just eating the pizza instead of directly answering Mouse's mom HAHA

Tabby's mom going OFF on Wes like that!!!

Faran going off on Sheriff Beasley!! QUEEN!

We got to see Imogen’s dad, interesting.

**The fact that he mentioned that Imogen’s mom stated in her will for Imogen to live with the Haworthes if anything bad happened though- TABOGEN WAS FATED! 

Honestly the whole Beasley family situation was really sad- and like the fact that there are some families like this in real life- it was really giving me Melanie Martinez Dollhouse vibes for sure.

Oh I see Kelly x Faran as a potential headcanon.

Oh damn. It was Chip. 

The whole scene when Imogen and Tabby confronted Chip though?Wow. Top tier acting from Bailee and Chandler. Powerful.

"This year has made us very, very good liars" ICONIC!

OMG THE FINAL EPISODE THOUGH HHHHHH

So much went DOWN!!

I'm still in shock with A doing that to Davie's body though- Tabby asking if Imogen was okay "Nope. Definitely not"

IMOGEN ADAMS DESERVES THE ENTIRE WORLD!! Fuck A for giving her life long trauma!

Not Angela's brother being named Archie- STOP WITH THE R*VERD*LE REFERENCES

IT WAS THE PRINCIPAL!!!! That was a good twist, I appreciate it.

Omg Kelly's mom stabbing Sheriff Beasley though was another twist I did not see coming.

1000000000+ points for adding a Motley Crue song in there!!

I absolutely LOVED the moment when the rest of the girls immediately stood up when the principal threatened to shoot Imogen and her baby- RIDE OR DIES FOR EACH OTHER YES

**THE FIGHT SCENE WITH IMOGEN AND A!!

MAKING CINEMATIC HISTORY

The camera angles in this show- absolutely DELICIOUS

Tabby being there when Imogen woke up in the hospital GO TABOGEN GO

The scene where everyone was celebrating Christmas together 🥺🥺 (every other ship kissing and then TABOGEN pls SEASON 2 SO WE CAN MAKE IT HAPPEN!!!)

Also why did I know someone was going to say Die Hard when Tabby asked about favorite Christmas movies and why did it fit Shawn perfectly-

Aww Elodie and Shirley saying they're going to couples therapy GOOD FOR THEM!! (technically they ALL need it lol)

Interesting way to bring back some original PLL with that Aria and Ezra mention.. but when that baby finds out that her parents were in a student teacher relationship-

Overall glad that all those nasty men were EXPOSED. Especially the principal and Sheriff Beasley. Still wondering about Wes though. If there's a season 2 I'm keeping an eye on him too.

So Kelly was Kelly the whole time- I like that there’s a possibility that she stays friends with the Liars in the future- but like what if it’s still Karen? I wanna believe it’s Kelly and that Kelly is good but still.

And finally, Imogen saying she thinks it’s over

But A killed Sheriff Beasley AND came back for Chip-

When I first heard about this show, I was skeptical at first and didn't have many expectations going into it. I never watched the very first Pretty Little Liars series in its entirety, but this spinoff somehow managed to pull me in. Thank you PLLOS Original Sin for everything! What an amazing cast and show. I would definitely recommend this show to others.

SEASON 2, SEASON 2, SEASON 2

[sunwoo-hoo]

↣ the boyz reaction to s/o being shy /insecure 

 ↳ a/n: hello my darlings! we’re back with another reaction for tbz. this was requested by hanagkskgks. i’m so sorry for the wait! i hope you enjoy it. also, these reactions are canon to my as your boyfriend series! so i highly recommend reading those as well! please, if your under the age of 18 do not interact with the post. PS. all bodies are beautiful and you should never feel ashamed for being who you are. x o x o

↳ genre: flufffyyy + smutttyyy 

↳ warnings: stretch marks, pubic hair, dieting, reader with body insecurities

↳ requested? yes

↳ send me your requests here!

↳ word count: 2.8k what the actual fuck these are mini drabbles at this point

↳ the boyz x fem reader

「 Lee Sangyeon  」

you had only been dating for 3 months when you finally had sex with sangyeon for the first time

you had just walked through the dorms from another great date together after spending some much needed quality time 

“where is everyone?” you asked looking around the living room area not hearing the laughter and bickering like you usually did

“the guys all went to get some dinner together, it’ll just be us for a couple of hours.. is that okay?” he responded 

you were nervous to say the least, of course you and sangyeon have kissed many times, even made out but it never lasted longer than 10 minutes because the other members were around and you didn’t want to risk getting caught. 

in this moment it all started to feel very real, were you ready? could fully give yourself to sangyeon? yes, you loved him, tonight was going to be the night.

“it’s perfect” you whispered walking up to him wrapping your arms around his neck giving him a kiss on the lips. 

as you broke apart he smiled at you “baby we don’t have to do anything you don’t want to. i want you to be comfortable” he observed

“no.. i want too. sangyeon i love you. i want this” you whispered he smiled as he grabbed your jawline tilting your head to give you another kiss. 

before you knew it you were in sangyeon’s room, him on top of you kissing your neck making his way down to your breast. he was about to pull off your shirt when you stopped him

“wait.. i-i’m nervous for you to see all of me..” you mumbled 

his eyes soften at you “you don’t have to be baby, your absolutely perfect in my eyes. nothing is going to change that” he promised 

when he finally took of your shirt he looked deeply in your eyes “you’re so beautiful” he whispered bending down to give you an eletricfying kiss before the long night ahead. 

「 Jacob Bae  」

sex was a new thing for you and jacob. having losing your virginity to each other you were still pretty nervous when it came to your body.

while jacob was more comfortable with his you still hadn’t quite matched his level even though to him you didn’t have a single flaw.

as you both were laying in bed watching t.v he started to trail long spicy kisses along the side of your neck making his down to your collarbone. you gently pushed him away

“jacob i’m sorry.. it’s not that i don’t want to it’s just that i don’t feel pretty” you mumbled not looking at his face

in retrospect it sounded ridiculous coming out of your mouth but you just couldn’t help the way you felt

he gave you a shock expression before he lightly grabbed your face to make you look at him

“baby, how can you say something like that? you’re beautiful in every way. in fact your way out of my league.” he reassured you grabbing your hand kissing the back of it

you smiled at his words as he continued 

“you have nothing to feel embarrassed about, i love everything about you. don’t ever forget that okay?” he said giving you a temple kiss

you leaned into his touch pulling him close so that you could continue to cuddle together.

「 Kim Younghoon  」

you were both equally shy when it came to showing your bodies for the first time to each other. 

there you were naked on the bed while younghoon was hovering over you.

you quickly covered your chest and closed your legs shut trying to cover as much as you could

“a-aren’t you gonna say anything?” you whispered not looking into his eyes out of nervousness 

“you’re the most beautiful girl i’ve ever seen in my life” he said turning your head to give you a passionate kiss

it was at the moment where all your troubles went away it wasn’t about your body not being good enough for younghoon

it was about the way he saw you and how you were everything he could possibly ask for

moving your hands away from your breast your arms made it’s way to his neck as you spread opened your legs

he gently aligned himself in your entrance slowly pushing his cock deep inside your pussy as you wrapped your legs around his waist.

「 Lee Hyunjae 」

you and hyunjae were on vlive when it all happend

your relationship had been public for six months even though you were technically together for over a year

for the most part deobi’s were happy for you and hyunjae but you couldn’t deny the negative comments you would see from time to time about not being pretty enough or good enough for him

at first you chose to ignore them but as time went on it started to drag you down mentally and emotionally and hyunjae started to take notice

during the vlive when deobi’s started to ask questions about your relationship you quickly saw the comment that read ‘hyunjae break up with [name] i’m so much better looking’

after of a couple of minutes you swiftly pulled hyunjae out of camera shot and quietly told him that you wanted to end the vlive

at first he looked at you confused until you told him what you had read

appearing back on the camera by himself he told deobi’s “deobi i want you to know that i’m extremely happy with [name] it always amazes me on how beautiful she is. of course deobi’s your beautiful as well but let’s all say how gorgeous [name] looks today.

soon enough comments were rolling in about how amazing you two looked together and how everyone was rooting for you two, giving you well wishes

you scooted your chair back in the camera view and bowed your head deeply in graditude telling deobi’s thank you as hyunjae laced his fingers into yours holding on tightly

「 Lee Juyeon 」

it was one of those weeks, everything was one big blur and you didn’t have time to do your personal self care like you usually did

it all happend during one night when you were getting ready for bed with juyeon when he decided that he wanted to have a little fun before sleeping

his hands stared to caress the side of your thighs making his way up to your hips as you were finishing your skincare routine in the bathroom

“juyeon… i don’t think it’s a great time to do that right now.” you whimpered as he was trailing hot kisses along your shoulder blade making his way to your neck from behind you

“hmm? why not? baby you look so gorgeous tonight you know i can’t resist you” he whispered against your ear “especially when your wear this..”

looking at yourself in the mirror you silently cursed at yourself when you decided to put on your lacy black night gown for the night

“it’s not that it’s just… this week has been so hectic i didn’t get a chance to shave.. you know..” you mumbled covering your face with your hands out of embarrassment

he gently turned you around so that you could face him

“baby you know i don’t care about that, you’re beautiful either way” he smirked as he picked you up placing you on the bathroom counter

he gently pulled down your panties kissing your inner thighs in the process making his way up to your core

it all happend so fast your brain couldn’t even register what happend in that swift moment until you felt juyeon’s tongue on your clit licking it lightly, obviously teasing you.

you moaned trying to reach for anything to grab until your hands found it’s way to juyeon’s hair pulling tightly as you started to feel your first orgasm of the night built up

「 Kevin Moon 」

you couldn’t believe it but it was right there in front of your eyes. as you were changing you couldn’t help but see the noticeable stretch marks that made an appearance in your inner thighs

you were all for body positivity but you couldn’t deny the fact that you felt a little insecure about the new additions to your body

as first you chose to ignore them pretending that they weren’t even there, when you started to wear more jeans and pants kevin started to take notice and become suspicious but he wasn’t sure what it was

one night when you and kevin were about to have sex is when he found out about your little secret

“kevin.. do you think that maybe we can turn off the lights tonight?” you asked

he looked at you confused it was an odd request considering you two would always have the light on when you had sex

“why babe? is something wrong?” he responded

“no nothing! or maybe it’s something! i don’t know.. just look” you rambled as you removed your blanket to show him your thighs

as kevin leaned closer to take a better look he smiled as he looked up at you

“is that it? their just stretch marks babe it’s no big deal, in fact i think it’s super cute it makes you look like a tiger” he said proudly tracing his fingers along them gently kissing the lines

you smiled looking down at kevin realizing you made a big deal out of nothing. regardless of any flaw you thought you had you always knew kevin would always have a way to make you feel irresistible 

「 Choi Chanhee 」

it all started from a doctor’s visit you were just having a regular checkup when the doctor decided that he wanted to measure your height and weight

when he told you had gain a couple of pounds you were a bit confused, you didn’t look any different, to you your body was as healthy as it could be

nevertheless you decided to go on a diet and chanhee quickly took notice when you started to skip a lot of meals

“love, why haven’t you been eating?” he wondered after another afternoon when you decided to skip lunch a third time this week

“oh well… i went to the doctor and they told me that i needed to lose some weight” you mumbled

chanhee gave you a confused look before responding “that’s ridiculous! there’s nothing wrong with your body! and even if you did gain weight your cheeks would just be more cuter to squish” he nearly shouted

calming himself down he continued “love, you don’t need to lose anything i love you just the way you are. promise me you won’t skip anymore meals?” he pleaded grabbing your hand

you smiled and nodded giving him a cheek kiss “i promise” you replied

「 Ji Changmin/Q 」

you loved everything about changmin to his smile, the way he made you feel, his charisma, even his high pitched dolphin screams you would hear on occasion. he was perfect in every way

you on the other hand sometimes felt a slight sense of insecurity being with changmin, your skin wasn’t always the clearest, your body wasn’t always the skinnest, hell sometimes you thought you were too short or too tall for him

you always thought idols dated models or actresses you were just a regular girl. why would changmin like you in the first place?

changmin took notice immediately when your personality start to shift after going public with your relationship

he decided to finally talk to you about it one night before going to bed

“sweetheart what’s wrong? ever since we’ve became public with our relationship i noticed you haven’t been the same. is everything okay?” he asked as he was playing with your fingers

sighing you hesistated before finally coming clean “it’s nothing it’s just… why are you with me q? there’s so much more prettier girls that you can easily have. i’m not good enough for you” you whispered tearing up finally breaking down after it being bottled up for so long

changmin let out a gasp covering his mouth before he answered you “[name]… i never want to hear you speaking like this about yourself ever again. i love you regardless of how you look, to me your perfect” he reassured grabbing your arm as he pulled you close to his chest giving you a head kiss

you nodded as changmin lifted your jaw and wiped your tears away from your face and leaned close giving you a soft kiss

「 Juhaknyeon 」

when it came to your body juhaknyeon had no problem praising it making you feel special 24/7 

you had manage to keep it a secret until he finally saw it the one insecurity that you hated the most about yourself

when you were in high school you had gotten a permanent scar on your stomach from a car accident 

over the years it eventually faded but it was still noticeable if you stared at your stomach long enough

you and juhakyeon were both getting undressed getting ready to shower together when he finally saw your scar

“hey baby what is that?” he pointed to your stomach noticing the small yet faded white scar on your abdomen 

you quickly turned around covering your scar feeling embarrassed

“it’s nothing! i don’t know what your talking about” you stammered 

“c’mon baby let me see” he asked as you hesitantly turned around removing your hands

“aww babe it’s just a scar, it’s nothing to be embarrassed about i have some as well” he told you as he showed you his faded scars from past dance practices 

he continued “it just makes you that much more unique and beautiful”

「 Kim Sunwoo 」

one thing you always loved about sunwoo was that he was not afraid to show others how he felt especially when it came to you

he had no problem giving you kisses and holding your hand in public even though sometimes you had to remind him to behave

you were both visiting your parents when your shyness got the better of you

your parents loved sunwoo to the point where they would call you and ask about him first seeing if he was okay or if he needed anything to sunwoo they were his second parents

it was a nice sunny day when your parents decided to have a BBQ lunch for the 4 of you and sunwoo couldn’t keep his hands off you as he was behind you grabbing your waist pulling you close answering your parents questions

“how are you treating my daughter these days sunwoo?” your dad asked

“like a princess sir, she deserves nothing but the best” he answered truthfully giving you a small kiss on the cheek

“that’s wonderful! that’s what we love to hear” your mother smiled brightly enjoying the small interaction between the two of you

when your parents went inside the house to get the plates and utensils you decide now was the chance to talk to sunwoo

“sunwoo i love you but we’re at my parents house I’m a little shy when your touching me in front of them like that…” you mumbled

you knew your parents didn’t mind the loving interaction between you and sunwoo but you couldn’t help but feel a little embarrassed and shy about the whole ordeal

“oh… i’m sorry baby i didn’t know i just wanted to show them how deeply in love I am with their daughter” he answered putting his hands in his pockets

you smiled up at him and leaned in to give him a passionate yet inviting kiss sunwoo instantly slid his hands behind your neck deepening the kiss

before the kiss got too heated you pulled apart and replied “they’ll be more of that later if you tone it done a little okay?”

he gave you a smile and winked “you can count on it”

「 Eric Sohn 」

being best friends with eric before you got into a relationship was one of the best decisions you could ever make

he already knew everything about you, what you liked, what you hated, what your favorite color was, what you loved to eat, etc.

you loved that there was no awkwardness between you two, or so you thought.

when you finally decided to have sex for the first time after a month of dating you were extremely nervous. you knew eric for most of your life. 

sure, he’d seen you in a bathing suit plenty of times but you were still partially clothed, it was at this moment when it hit you that he was about to see everything 

as eric was about to pull down your shorts you hesitantly stopped him 

“eric wait, what if... what if you don’t find me attractive?” you shakily said

he stopped and hovered over you before he answered “[name] i’ve loved you ever since we were kids, you are the most important person in my life. i’m always going to find you beautiful, you mean the world to me” he vowed 

in that moment you felt your cheeks become wet from the hushed tears that fell 

eric wiped your tears away with his thumb before leaning down giving you a kiss full of love 

✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:* © sunwoo-hoo 2 0 2 1  ✧･ﾟ: *✧･ﾟ:*

[sprinklesandshatters]

A Review on NCT 127′s 3rd Album <Sticker>

So NCT 127 just came back with their 3rd Full Album <Sticker> and this is my first 127 comeback since I became a fan last year! Neozone is such a special album for me as it was their first album that I explored entirely. I've known NCT as the group who never fails any expectations so I've kept mine up although I know they'll exceed it anyway. And guess what, they did! I absolutely love their new album hence this review~

This isn't a technical music review—as I am not a musician myself—but rather a listener's honest takes, goofy notes, and interpretation on each of the tracks in the album. I admit I've also struggled to build my own opinions on some of the tracks until I listened to them over and over again.

I have also heard there are mixed opinions on the title track <Sticker> and a lot says it's another acquired taste. But I think it's not just that, as it can be a grower, just like how most of NCT's songs were for me. Maybe after a few listens and a right passage of time, it will grow on those people. The bottom line here is, I like it a lot! 😛

So I listed down the songs according to their respective track numbers and followed each with a bulleted list of my opinions and interpretations.

(Viewer/reader discretion: before you continue, minors, do not interact as there are few 18+ contents under the cut. Thank you.)

1. Sticker

THEY DIDN'T JUST PUNCH A NEW NOTCH ON THE BELT LIKE THAT

THIS SONG SLAPS, LITERALLY SLAPS… AND WHIPS 

The recorder at the intro boyyyy I thought something was wrong but then I remember it’s NCT lmao

It already stuck in my head from my first listen from the Instagram audio.

With Taeyong opening the verse with his divine rapping, I knew I'm in for a new ride.

STICK-UH STICK-UGH STICK-UGHGHGH

To those complaining it sounding like noise music, imagine it sounding generic. I don't think it would fit as the title track. Not a b-track or in their repertoire, even. They are called NCT because they define the NEO in the music culture and music technology!

It honestly was an unorthodox, just like all of their title tracks, which I’m inherently here for.

Literally, no one does it like them!

The growls and the vocal flexes and adlibs! (You can tell it has Yoo Youngjin's brand.)

The crisp metronome sound that’s consistently ticking except for the pre-chorus and the dance break adds depth to the soundscape. I love how it’s used instead of the usual snaps.

The production quality blew my mind. Like how can someone think those melodies would sound so exquisite? CAN I CALL THEM GENIUS?

The piano at the back, oh my God—Yes! It adds this mystifying element to the song.

I'm not sure if it's a midi violin at the pre-chorus, but it added thrill to the song. It was a great transition from the bass line in the verses to the combination of the flawless harmony with the same instrumental.

"You treat me like a boy, like a grown-up child chasing a dream" JUNGWOO BABY NO MORE HUH

Taeil, Doyoung, and Haechan—the bridge vocal trinity!

But why the heck are they cowboys? I dig the concept, but why? LMAO

BTW GUNSLINGER MARK I’M ON MY KNEES YEEHAW

This is easily one of my favorite tracks from NCT 127's entire discography 💚

2. Lemonade

(⌐■_■)

Jaehyun starting off this song with his deep voice eee

The song opens to a verse oozing with chill confidence. They're like, yeah you're lurking because we’re cool.

This is such a huge slap to their haters. NCT's not chillin' like a villain, nah they're the main characters!

Well maybe they’re villains, but still ya not cooler than them ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

Funny enough how they could have just referred haters as simply lemons whose sour/bitter to the taste, but 127 squad's success is sweeter than all the haters' spiteful remarks so yeah, SIPPY SIPPY LEMONADE 🧃

"WOOF"

I might have just barked too wOW

Yuta’s vocals hooooO his voice just sounds so glamorous mhmm

Also Mark referencing their previous title tracks such as: Firetruck, Cherry Bomb, and Regular (it's Irregular in the lyrics) in his rap part 👌💅

I just love Mark's energy when he raps. HE RESOLUTELY BITES AND STRAIGHT UP EATS EVERY TIME HE DOES.

3. Breakfast

Now breakfast time, oh jeez!

AAAHAHFU—

Summer 127's bestie!

If Summer 127 talks about dancing all night long, Breakfast is the morning after.

You know what it is.

"Even if I gulp and drink you, it's not enough for me." oho Taeyong no you ha—STOP

Sexual innuendos aside, isn't it just sweet if someone tells you they'd want to have breakfast with you every day?  Okay maybe I'm melting at the thought 😩🙈💞

And I can see myself dancing to this song as I make breakfast (in the afternoon or at midnight bc I’m crazy)

This was an okay b-track for me at the first skim on the album, but boy it grew on me wildly.

Honestly one of my favorite tracks in this album.

4. Focus

Did I just invade a private call? LMAO

The analog voice filters make it like so.

Dude, this feels intimate in the level of eavesdropping a phone call between seasoned lovers. Then you realize you hear them whispering their kinks over the line and you're ooh, that's sexy! hfgklhfhf

My first listen to this, I almost went feral because,

"I can't wait to eat you…" when it's actually "I can't wait 'til we chill…" aahaha

"Baby call me when you want me." OKAY!

This sounds relaxing and chill. I'd love to play this on a late night drive or just before bed time along with Fly Away With Me, Sun & Moon, My Youth, and Long Flight.

Belongs to ‘make out session’ playlist  ( ͡° ͜ʖ ͡°)

That was lowkey a playlist recommendation, huh?

I'd be kidding if I don't say I could touch myself while listening to this song AHAHAFGHFJFJ

I didn't know this would grow on me this much lol I love love LOVE THIS!

5. The Rainy Night

Ooh, the holy melancholy!

Piano at the intro—I knew I'd cry to this.

This song isn't just about break-up, but the heartbreak after one.

The yearning; the remnant pieces from the shattering of what was once there.

I think I crumbled from this one.

This hit so hard I felt like I fit in the shoes with the lyrics throughout the entire song.

What’s fascinating is I clearly forgot the title when I mentally said this sounds like a sad rainy day song from the first listen.

Something I’d turn up when it suddenly rains, just because I want to feel the blues.

Taeil and Haechan singing in lower register? I wanna cry :( they’re just one of the best vocalists in K-music industry right now.

Could have been also nice if they added Yuta to the vocals.

"My selfish heart who waits for you to come back," OKAY WHO HURT THEM?

And the fact that they sang it so good that it translated every ounce of the emotions well even before I looked up for English translations is the reason why I love this song too.

6. Far

Hmm… What the hell?! Do I like this? Wait...

Alright!

The jumpy vibe from the first verse to the pre-chorus set the mood for this song. It sounds merry and heavy. It was honestly too much to take until I’ve reached the chorus part.

Honestly, I think this song could fit NCT Dream better, as it gives off a vibe similar to Hello Future's b-tracks. If some credible source say this could have made HF’s track list, I might believe you too fast.

Also Dream’s Deja Vu where they go na nananananana na na na~

Playful yet confident! That’s what I mean!

As usual, the vocals are insane! Vocal flex from left to right!

I swear Jungwoo sounded a bit like Taemin at the second verse that I had to replay it hahaha

I love hearing Johnny as a vocalist! SM, how many signs do you need until you utilize his vocal talent???

Taeil's part where he sings, "go nuts, go nuts, 'til we go bust, go bust" IDEK BUT I SNORTED A LAUGH AT FIRST LISTEN HFCAHKFHK

Not my favorite, but still great though!

But wait it’s actually stuck in my head???

7. Bring The Noize

Yes, they never beat those noise music allegations

HERE'S SOME NOIZE, BITCHES

I love me some noisy percussions. AND THE BASS YO

This screams so much confidence!

The build up from the pre-chorus to the chorus—FIRE!

This song reminds me a lot of SuperM's Super Car, especially with the engine roar samples and the battle cry-like singing at the chorus.

JAEHYUN RAPPING? You mean Jaehyun the visual, the vocalist, the actor, the model, the funny dude, aka my everything?! (markie bb look pls look away for a moment)

THEY DELIVERED IT STRAIGHT FROM NEOCITY THAT'S SOME NCT MUSIC RIGHT THERE NO ONE DOES IT LIKE THEM

When I said I'd play Focus on a late night drive, and if I add this in the playlist, VROOM VROOM SPEED LIMIT WHAT

OUTTA MY WAY

“We got no shame” ouh TAEYONG’S FLOW IS JUST VERY HIM AND HE’S IN A LEAGUE OF HIS OWN

You know what's so clever about this song? It's how it ended with Mark's final rap without any instrumental, leaving you  standing there with a doppler effect-like post experience.

A super car on a super speed just whooshed past you and you look its way as it zips through the road. It's gone in an instant but you're floored dumbfounded at a sidewalk. That's how I describe this song.

8. Magic Carpet Ride

This song… Wow. Oh gosh it's so beautiful.

Their harmony in the chorus—it makes me want to kiss someone so passionately that I'd cry.

This makes me want to feel love that transcends the universe. Literally, just please take me on a magic carpet ride :(

The background harmonies too oh my goodness—HEAVENLY.

Jaehyun's voice is so warm and soulful it fits perfectly with songs of this genre.

Okay alright Doyoung Grande!

And Taeil makes me feel like I'm listening to old school R&B.

The first time I heard this from the track video, I can't stop replaying because it's just that great.

This makes me want to love. I think that sums it up.

9. Road Trip

This is such a soothing song for me, especially how I easily become nostalgic thinking about the road trips I've had.

Whenever I listen to this, my brain immediately conjures up thoughts of my ideal getaways. Gazing at the sky through the car window, stirring up from a nap in the middle of the ride, and   eventually reaching your destination.

Oh, to travel around anywhere... (curse you covid-19)

Okay that's it. I'M PACKING UP.

But where do I go—

I could also imagine Mark playing this on the guitar and the other members sing along together, something like that.

Just Wholesome™ vibes.

I love how it evokes such a nice emotion within me effortlessly.

This isn't my favorite, but I still love this.

10. Dreamer

Eyyyy such a refreshing song!

This song is so bright it makes me want to dance. I play this first in the shower!

It reminds me so much of Elevator (from Neozone)

The horns make it more lively I think!

Yuta and Jungwoo's voice suits lively songs like this.

The background vocal in low register in Taeyong's part in the first verse is so good ahhfhf

Taeil, the R&B vocal king you are...

There's this part where Doyoung and Johnny harmonized, that at first listen they seemed to clash, but it sounded actually fine after a few listens. Maybe it's just that I've never heard them do it before.

And I think it's Doyoung's laugh at the end of the bridge? Oh my goodness I really love this too!

11. Promise You

MY FIRST LOVE AND MOST FAVORITE SONG IN THE ALBUM!!!

The first time I heard this from their NCIT Sharehouse Sitcom, I fell in love with the song already.

It sounds like something you'd feel from a warm, welcoming hug.

The lyrics are so beautiful and endearing. It's definitely a be-there-for-you type of song that will touch your heart.

It definitely sounds like a promise.

A song about platonic intimacy.

This really fits to be the closing song of the album. It's like the end of it but holds a promise that says “see you soon.”

Because they cherish their fans like that.

It's also like I've watched a movie with a happy ending, where the camera pans up to the clear sky and this song starts playing.

Speaking of ending, I would love to hear them sing this as an encore stage in their concert. You know, that moment just before the stage lights die down at the end of the concert where they send final blows of flying kisses to NCTzens. Then you come home smiling and crying.

This wasn't supposed to be this long since I originally planned to write this with just simple phrases and emojis but I got too engrossed lol. I also meant to include my own ratings but I figured it’s pointless since I can’t really decide about them hahaha

I really enjoyed the whole album and I love how they're progressively defining what NEO means by breaking through standards. It's not NCT music if it doesn't make you say "WHAT THE HECK WAS THAT?" But then you realize it’s stuck in your head and you’re enjoying it already.

✨ OVERALL RATING: 127/10 💚

if you’ve reached until here, thank you for letting me share you a braincell or two 💞

[nymph-of-books]

a list of she-ra fanfics that i would recommend

these are gonna be little at first because i only want to be sharing the ones i truly deeply love; i will be editing this post as i go along. additionally these are like... basically all catradora as a general psa !!! i will be adding my own summary of the plot w/o spoilers (if i can help it), whether it's multi-chaptered or a one-shot & complete or ongoing, and my personal reaction to it !! if you didn't notice i adore au fics more than anything note: i'm posting this w/o having completed it because i just want to get it out rn, but i've read much more & these r definitely not the only ones i'd recommend !!! i just have to sort through my history to find the fics i actually read and adored and i don't have all the time to do that all the time rn :) before season 1 in-canon timing (season 1-5) the blood in your mouth written by artemiswords - alternative season five & beyond - written before season five was aired. catradora aren't automatically together - happy ending though! - multi-chaptered, complete - this was the first multi-chaptered fic i've read since like. fanfiction.net days & it got me into multi-chaptered fics because it's just so good. honestly the author's mind >>>> i keep sitting here waiting for something (but i know nothing will happen) written by nymphofbooks. - conversation between catra and adora after the events at the battle of bright moon. they talk about some things and reach a little bit of a mutual understanding - oneshot, complete - not actually one of my favs but self-promo ha. the first of my upcoming one-shots, mostly dialogue & i am a bit rusty on it. hiraeth written by erce3 - mara and angella find each other in the portal, and together they make the eternal loneliness a little less bad. - oneshot, complete - wasn't exactly sure where to put this because technically it's both before, during, and after canon... anyway this literally made me cry & it is very beautiful :( sad face bc it made me sad :( but it's beautiful! after season 5 alternate universe as long as we stay together (if we just stay together) written by herothehardway - astrophysicists in antarctica au. catra & adora are lab partners but aren't allowed to interact outside of the lab due to extenuating circumstances. they used to be roommates (and there's tons of flashbacks) and maybe they'll become something more than lab partners, despite the rules. also, hockey!catradora - multi-chaptered, complete - god, this fiction is incredible. it's clear the author knows a lot about the subject & spent a lot of time on it & it's just great. nsfw scenes though so read w discretion!! anyway this is one of my all-time favourites & i've loved herothehardway's writing ever since. seriously, the way they incorporate the show details... yes more grown up and a better daughter written by herothehardway - multi-chaptered regency catradora au. adora's family is on the brink of financial ruin, and she has to marry someone rich. she is presented to society & on the day of her coming out ball she meets catra, an old childhood friend who mysteriously disappeared without any notice. turns out catra is pretty rich... - multi-chaptered, ongoing - very neat, definitely recommend. again, herothehardway shows they're engaged in the situations of their characters & take a lot of time on accuracy which we stan (and i don't really do myself because i am lazy) the place where we fall written by herothehardway - oneshot wizard catradora au. adora and catra were apprentices to shadow weaver & shadow weaver cursed them before they died to make sure they dueled each other every year until one of them is dead. this is the fifth year - oneshot, complete - HELP IS IT OBVIOUS I ENJOY HEROTHEHARDWAY'S WRITING??? okay i swear this is the last one rn !!! i love it & the vibes & it's generally gorgeous 10/10 recommend :) baby, i'm a house on fire (and i wanna keep burning) written by wittchers. - arranged marriage au between catra and adora, set after the horde win over bright moon. slow burn & neither of them wants it. - oneshot,

complete - fluid & natural & amazing writing, and the original summary completely drew me in. would definitely recommend! i picture it soft & i ache written by erce3 - modern au wherein ceo!catra fucks up in wording & non-profit charity founder!adora defends her in an interview. she says that she knows catra and... you know the internet. everyone believes they're dating & they agree to start fake-dating in order to boost both their public figures - one-shot, complete - i'm normally not one for fake dating but i rly liked this fic !! i rly like how erce3 handled the trope. the writing is amazing! i made myself better to love you written by fairytaleslayer - feral children catradora au wherein catra & adora escape from the horde and find their home in the whispering woods. they are healthily co-dependent & eventually join the rebellion - multi-chaptered, complete - amazing au. i love this sm & it's so accurate to their characters. it's written beautifully & the relationships are absolutely gorgeous

[reinerispretty]

rotations. (zuko x f!reader) pt12

hi!! sorry i’m posting so late, i had a super busy day today! but i’m here now and i hope you guys are all having a wonderful time :) thank you so much for reading and being so supportive!! pls share if you can 💕

pt 1

pt 11

pt 13

Every time she saw him, the memories of all of their fights and the times he had made her cry over him came flooding back. But she also felt relief in knowing that he was safe and seeing that he was trying to make a change. Needless to say, (Y/N) spent most of her time avoiding Zuko, because her head spun every time she was around him.

To say that (Y/N) was happy to be back with her friends was an understatement. She was absolutely ecstatic. As they flew away from the Fire Nation and to the Western Air Temple, they caught her up on all the adventures they had had while she had been in prison.  

“We were hunted by this guy that can shoot, like, supersonic beams from his head,” Toph informed her. 

“I call him Combustion Man!” Sokka cut in. 

“Toph and I got thrown into jail!” Katara said. 

“And I went to Fire Nation school!” Aang called back as he steered Appa. 

“I learned to swordfight from the best Master in the Fire Nation,” Sokka said, flexing his bicep. “Pretty impressive, huh?” 

“Oh, you met Piandao? He’s so nice! He came to my birthday parties every year when I was younger.” Sokka pouted and leaned back into the side of Appa’s saddle. 

“I forget that you lived in the Fire Nation.” 

It took days until they reached the temple. As much as she loved Appa, (Y/N) was so thankful to be back on solid ground. She hadn’t worn real shoes in weeks and it was so nice to feel the stone and grass beneath her feet. 

This Air Temple was just as breathtaking as the first one she had seen, back when she and her friends had traveled to the North Pole. It was built into the mountain, making it virtually inaccessible from any other way except airbending. It extended across the mountain range. The temples themselves looked as if they had been built upside down. 

While her friends set up camp on the main level of the temple, (Y/N) had decided to walk down to the woods where she had seen a river as they flown over. They hadn’t been allowed to shower in their area of the prison, so she had weeks worth of grime and dirt caked onto her skin. She was surprised her friends had held her so tight when she reunited with them. She smelled horrible. 

Sokka was hesitant to let her go by herself. “I’ll be fine,” she reassured him. “I can protect myself.” 

“I know, but...” He let his sentence trail off, but he didn’t have to finish it. The last time Sokka had left her alone, she had been captured by the Fire Nation and tossed into a prison. He hadn’t been sure if she was alive for weeks. She understood his worry. 

She kissed him quickly before smiling. “If I’m not back in an hour, then you can unleash you fury,” she said with a wink, walking away. 

She sat in the river for a long time, just scrubbing her skin and combing her fingers through her matted hair. The water felt so nice on her skin. If she could, she would stay in there forever. But she knew Sokka would seriously come swinging down the hill with a sword if she was late, so she dried herself off and put on the Fire Nation clothes that Katara had given her. 

(Y/N) slipped on a red, long-sleeved cropped shirt and matching flowy pants. The whole outfit felt light and airy and she couldn’t wait to firebend in it. Kneeling down at the edge of the river, she stared at her reflection as she put her hair into a traditional Fire Nation top knot, but this time with the flame bobby pin she had worn in her old life. She had kept it wrapped in fabric, tucked away in the bottom of Katara’s clothing bag. She hadn’t worn it for almost an entire year, but as soon as she stuck it into place, she felt whole again. There were some parts of her that would always be Fire Nation, and that was okay. 

She traveled back up the hill, her hair still wet, but decided she’d just ask Aang to dry it for her. She hoped that Sokka had caught something for them to eat because it had been weeks since she’d had an actual good meal. Fish, rice, and maybe some mashed berries for dessert if they could find some? Her mouth watered at the thought. (Y/N) laughed at herself for a moment. Her palette had drastically changed since she had been traveling with her friends. 

Instead of a nice, hot meal, (Y/N) walked back into the Western Air Temple to find all of her friends looking ready to attack. Confused, she turned her head and there he was. The boy she wanted to see least at the moment. 

“(Y/N)!” Zuko exclaimed, running over to her. He grabbed her hands in his. “I’m glad you’re okay. I went back to the prison to break you out when I left, but you were gone by the time I got there.” 

She pulled her hands out of his as Sokka walked up and shoved Zuko away. “Hey, don’t touch her!” He said, his voice low and threatening. 

“Watch it!” Zuko snapped back. He looked at (Y/N) confusedly and she hated that she could still tell exactly what he was thinking at that moment. What’s going on here? He seemed to silently ask, and she averted her gaze as quickly as possible. 

“You can’t just show up here and ask for forgiveness after everything you’ve done,” Katara snapped. (Y/N) looked up at Sokka. 

“What’s happening?” She asked. 

“He wants to join us,” he said, his eyes still narrowed at Zuko. 

“I’ve changed,” Zuko said, but this time he directed his words at (Y/N). She tried hard to avoid his gaze. 

“Are you crazy? You’ve tried to kill us, multiple times!” Sokka yelled at him. 

“And capture Aang!” Katara pointed out. 

“Please,” Zuko said. “I’m sorry for everything that I’ve done. I’m sorry for trying to capture you, I’m sorry for trying to kill you, I’m sorry for sending that bounty hunter after you--” 

“You sent Combustion Man after us?” Toph questioned. 

“I mean, that’s not his name, but yes.” 

“The answer is no, Zuko,” Aang said decidedly. “There’s no way that we can trust you.” 

“(Y/N)...” Zuko said to her quietly. She crossed her arms and walked away from him. 

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

“I think you guys are just holding grudges against Zuko,” Toph said that night at dinner. “Aang needs a firebending teacher.” 

“You don’t understand, Toph. You weren’t there for all the destruction he caused,” Katara said as she sipped on her soup. “He betrayed me in Ba Sing Se and he’s hurt (Y/N) more times than I can count.” 

“Besides,” Sokka cut in. “(Y/N) can teach Aang firebending!” She shook her head quicky. 

“I’m too much out of practice. My family wouldn’t let me get training while we stayed in the Earth Kingdom. I know a couple advanced moves, but definitely not enough to help Aang beat the Fire Lord.” She smiled at Aang apologetically. 

“On the one hand, it’s hard to forget everything that Zuko has done to us. But the monks taught me that everyone deserves a second chance,” Aang said. 

“And a third and a fourth?” Sokka muttered. 

“What do you think, (Y/N)?” Toph asked. “You were pretty quiet when he was here today.” 

She stared into her soup to avoid everyone’s gaze. “The truth it, I don’t know how I feel about it. He’s done some pretty awful things. But you need a firebending teacher, Aang. A good one. And as much as I hate to say it, Zuko’s good.” 

Sokka stood, his bowl clattering to the ground as he stormed off toward the bedrooms. Katara moved to go after him, but (Y/N) put her hand up. “I’ll do it,” she sighed, setting her bowl down. She walked briskly down the hall to Sokka’s room, where a sliver of light filtered through the door. She slid it open. 

“What’s wrong?” She asked. He looked at her, his brows furrowed in anger. 

“What’s wrong? You’re out there defending him!” 

“I wasn’t defending him, Sokka.” 

“Well that’s what it sounded like! After everything he’s done to you, you still want to just forgive him by letting him into our group?” 

“Letting him in the group doesn’t mean that I forgive him! It just means that I’m willing to push past my own emotions so that Aang has a chance at beating the Fire Lord!” 

“He can do it without firebending.” 

“We both know that’s not true.” Sokka sighed and turned away from her. 

“I don’t want to constantly be around the reason that I didn’t know whether you were alive or not.” She smiled sadly at him. She walked to his side and intertwined their fingers. 

“Technically, Azula’s the reason I got thrown in jail.” She smiled at him until a small smile formed on his own lips. “We don’t have to like him, but we can put up with him for a few weeks until Aang beats Ozai.”

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

Once Zuko had defeated Combustion Man, the four friends begrudgingly let him join their group. It was a difficult decision for everyone, especially Katara, because she still held on to the memory of Zuko betraying her in the underground palace of Ba Sing Se. (Y/N) was also very uncomfortable with Zuko joining their group. Every time she saw him, the memories of all of their fights and the times he had made her cry over him came flooding back. But she also felt relief in knowing that he was safe and seeing that he was trying to make a change. Needless to say, (Y/N) spent most of her time avoiding Zuko, because her head spun every time she was around him. 

She had been laying out the sleeping bags for the night when Zuko approached her. They were completely alone, so there was no one she could run towards as a distraction. She knew he was there but refused to look up at him. He cleared his throat to get her attention. 

“I wanted to thank you,” he said. “For letting me join your group.” She raised her eyebrow at him.

“It was Toph’s idea,” she said simply as she unfurled Katara’s sleeping bag.

“I also wanted to say that I’m really sorry for everything I’ve done to you. I didn’t say that when you came to the shop in Ba Sing Se, but I wanted to. And I wanted to apologize for everything else that happened there.” 

“Like betraying both me and your uncle after we both had thought you changed? Like letting me rot in prison while you played house with your family?” She saw him physically wince from her tone. “You’re here to teach Aang, Zuko. I have no interest in being your friend.” She laid out the last sleeping bag and walked away in search of literally anyone else. 

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

It took Zuko a while to actually start teaching Aang firebending. Because he had lost the anger he had toward the Avatar, he lost the source of his bending. (Y/N) laughed as she watched Zuko create little puffs of fire with his hands. 

“How do you do it, (Y/N)?” Aang asked. She shrugged. 

“My firebending teachers always told me that I was very headstrong and determined. I guess that’s where I get the source of my bending from.” She walked away from the conversation just as Zuko opened his mouth to say something else. 

He and Aang traveled to the Sun Warrior civilization and (Y/N) would be lying if she said she wasn’t glad to have him gone. Not being around him gave her room to breathe. Every moment he was there, she was thinking of what quip she would give when he tried to talk to her, or the nearest way she could escape if he roped her into a conversation. It was nice to be able to walk around freely without having to worry if Zuko was around. 

When Aang and Zuko returned, they both excitedly told the group of their discovery of the two last dragons in existence. (Y/N) was shocked to learn this because in school she had always learned that Iroh had killed the last dragon. She wasn’t surprised to discover that he had done it to protect them. Iroh was conscientious about things like that. 

Slowly but surely, Zuko’s relationship with everyone in their group (except (Y/N) and Katara) was starting to improve. Toph had never had anything against him and quickly forgave him for accidentally burning her feet. Zuko was incredibly rough around the edges, but Aang learned to like him during their time with the Sun Warriors. Even Sokka would take Zuko down to the river sometimes and fish with him. They did it mostly in silence, but it was still an improvement from their previous interactions. 

Every time Zuko tried to talk to Katara, she shut him down with a harsh comment. (Y/N) either did the same or completely avoided him altogether. He cared about becoming Katara’s friend as well, but it tore him apart inside whenever (Y/N) brushed him off like he didn’t exist. Every night, he lay in bed and thought of the good times they had had together. He thought about building sand castles with her at Ember Island, about attending boring etiquette classes and making silly faces at each other from across the room, and about sneaking into the kitchens on his tenth birthday and stealing fruit tarts for her. 

He knew he had caused her a lot of pain, which is why he was trying his best to be patient. But every morning he woke up wanting to talk to her and when she wouldn’t let him, it was like a painful jab to his heart. Whenever he saw her toss her head back and laugh loudly at something one of her friends said, his heart swelled because he loved the noise and sank because he wasn’t the one making her laugh. 

Zuko watched from the bank of the river as (Y/N) and Sokka wrestled each other in the water. They couldn’t stop laughing and sometimes Toph would create mounds of earth to come up and knock one of them off of their feet, furthering their laughing fit. He watched as Sokka wrapped his arms around her waist and tossed her into the water. 

“So...” Zuko said slowly, his eyes cutting to Aang. The young Avatar sat on the ground beside him, feeding Momo berries and rubbing his belly. “Sokka and (Y/N) are together.” It was phrased as more of a direct statement, but he hoped that Aang would provide him with more information. 

“Yeah!” Aang said as he scratched between Momo’s ears. “They’ve been going out for a few weeks now. About time, if you ask me.” 

Zuko felt the anger growing inside of him and took three deep breaths to calm himself down. He had had a feeling that the two were more than just friends for a while now. They sat closer together at dinner and if one of them was alone, they always found the other. They acted the way (Y/N) and Zuko had, long before all of this had happened. He had known it at the back of his mind, but refused to believe it. Hearing Aang confirm it just made him angry. Aang must have sensed this, because he turned to him. 

“Everything okay?” 

“Yeah!” Zuko said, just a bit too forcefully. “It’s just very different being around her now.” 

“You mean how she doesn’t want to talk to you at all or have anything to do with you?” 

Zuko narrowed his eyes at Aang, who gave a sheepish smile. 

“I guess you’re not wrong,” Zuko admitted. Sokka had lifted her over his shoulder and tossed her into the water. She resurfaced giggling and threw herself into him to knock him over. 

“When she first joined us,” Aang said quietly. “We could all tell that she missed someone a lot. It wasn’t until after Sokka rescued her from your ship that we realized the person she was missing was you. I think she really cares about you, Zuko, which makes this a lot harder for her than the rest of us.” 

Zuko smiled softly at his friend. “Thanks, Aang.” 

“No problem!” 

---

Tag List!

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[fortysevenswrites]

📓📔📒📕📗📘📙📚📖!!!!!!!!!

Okay. 9 books, 9 fics. You're welcome.

1. Kastle/The West Wing Crossover Every time I watch TWW, I think about Karen and Donna Moss being friends, and once I thought of a fic where during the early seasons of TWW, the President and staff go to New York and Karen is moderating one of the series of town halls they're there for (specifically one where Josh Lyman is speaking). And of course that one, because reasons I had not yet come up with, gets attacked by The Hand, and Karen, Donna and Josh (who gets injured, because Josh ALWAYS gets injured) get rescued by Frank and it basically ends with the President demanding to meet Frank to thank him for saving Josh's life and everyone is like, "Mr. President do you not understand that Frank Castle is technically a MURDERER and the Secret Service will n e v e r let you in the same room with him and it's bad enough that you're currently on the same ISLAND?" So, yeah.

Here's something I wrote for it:

“Josh, did you hear?”

“I have impeccable hearing, Donna,” Josh says without looking up from the memo in his hand. “What is it that I am supposed to have heard?”

“Carol told me that she heard from Lindsay in credentialing that Karen Page has been assigned to cover the President’s town halls in New York for the New York Bulletin!”

He waits for her to keep going, but she doesn’t so, he looks up and sees her waiting expectantly, “And?”

“Karen Page? What It Means To Be A Hero Karen Page. She’s connected to half the vigilante-superheroes in Lower Manhattan. She was held hostage by ninjas. She interviewed Tony Stark about the Sokovia Accords. Last year, The Punisher himself may or may not have held her hostage after saving her from that terrorist Lewis Wilson.”

“And?”

“And, would it be inappropriate, as a member of the White House Staff, to ask her for her autograph?”

Kastle: The Big Indulgence

This is one of the first long fics I came up with for Kastle (and come hell or high water I WILL write it one day). Basically, it puts the NMCU actually IN the MCU. Post TPS1, Sarah tracks Karen down and they become friends, and at the same time, Frank becomes friends with Bucky Barnes (yes Emily, I know he's not your fav) by way of Curtis' group (Curt, of course, regrets ever letting them interact ever). Karen gets nominated for an award for her journalism work by the Maria Stark Foundation, where she meets Pepper, Natasha, and Darcy, and befriends them as well. Everything comes to a head and Karen and Frank reunite after the discovery that Sarah Lieberman is related to one of Bucky's surviving family members (the Liebermans are Jewish, Bucky's family is Jewish, it works!). Then, things related to Billy and Hydra happen, there's an incident where a few people disappear into an alternate universe for...an... amount of time, the Avengers meet the X-Men to help get them back, and Frank may or may not be a little psychic. Someone ends up coming from that alternate universe who doesn't belong here, but it's okay because she's [redacted] and also Leo's [redacted].

Leo-Centric, Kastle

Leo gets an internship as Darcy Lewis' assistant (well, technically she's working for Jane Foster, but it's basically working for Darcy), where she meets Karen, matchmakes her with Frank, and also gets a girlfriend. I think the summary says it best:

Summer 2021.

In which Leo Lieberman gets the internship of a lifetime—working for Jane!Freaking!Foster’s soon-to-be former personal assistant, Darcy Lewis—both comes out of the closet AND gets the girl, and helps her long-lost murder-uncle finally reconcile with the ace reporter of his dreams.

If Frank was actually bulletproof, it would totally be just like Superman and Lois Lane.

5 Times Seth Tells Kate He Loves Her

A five-times fic where Seth is just ass over tea kettle in love with Kate, and makes sure she knows it and doesn't care what other people (read: Richie and Scott) think about it. The first one takes place the night they get back from Matanzas, and I just love the little bit I've written so far. I know 2 that I'm going to write so far, so...3 to go.

Kate Meets Vanessa Post S3

So I started writing this around Valentine's Day this year, and I might keep it as a Valentine's Day fic no matter what, but basically, in a grand universal coincidence, Vanessa strolls into Jed's just because she's stopping for lunch on her way to...somewhere. She meets Kate, who is covering the bar for Kalinda and Greer (a culebra OC that I will one day actually formally introduce in my fics, I promise), who are downstairs "checking on inventory" read: screwing in a maintenance closet because it's Valentine's Day, and then Seth comes out and there's a little, very awkward reunion, and basically Vanessa is the MOST amused, Seth is the MOST uncomfortable and Kate's just like...okay? And? Also, Seth is still bitter about Vanessa taking the tire iron to his car back in early S1.

The SK/Detroit 187 Fusion

Seth is a detective in Houston PD, who comes into the office one day to discover they...hired an intern? Said intern is Kate Fuller, a grad student at the University of Houston, who is working on her master's thesis by studying something related to crime (duh). Seth thinks she's a Disney princess in human form and they're very antagonistic with one another, but also he likes her way more than he thinks he should (but feels a LOT better about it when he finds out she's 23, not like...barely legal to drink or anything. Angst happens when a gang (Malvado's, but Carlos' branch of it) attacks Kate's family and kills her parents, and Seth takes her to Eddie and Richie for protection while he and his partner, Ximena, and the rest of the department solve the case and put Carlos' crew away.

SK Post 2x02 AU

After Kate and Seth part ways in 2x02, Kate goes back to Bethel, but Scott isn't there (so Jessica lives). She ends up in Houston for two years, working at a gym and keeping her to the ground looking for word about her brother, until one night, she's attacked by a bunch of Culebras, and is saved by Seth, Richie, and Kisa. She finds out that Carlos and Malvado are after her because she's the key to the way to the Blood Well, and Carlos and Malvado's henchwoman, the one and only Sonja, draws them all back to Bethel by putting Jessica in danger, and...it's all going to come to a head in some way that involves them saving Jessica from Sonja and killing Malvado and stopping the events of S3 from ever having to happen.

SK Season 1 AU

I don't know if i'm ever going to go anywhere with this, but I had this thought of...what is Carlos as Kyle wasn't a dick to Kate, and he took her to Mexico instead of Kate going back with Jacob and Scott. She ends up at the Twister before Seth and Richie do, and spends time with Kisa before she goes out to perform, and somehow it ends up with Kate going through the labyrinth with the brothers? I don't know. Something like that.

The FDTD/The Punisher Crossover That Starts Off In New York

So this is one of 2 crossovers I have for SK-meets-Kastle, but I love it. This is post 2x02, and Kate ends up in New York after not being able to find Scott back in Bethel. She ends up going to work as NM&P's assistant, and befriends Karen. To get to know one another better, Karen takes Kate to Josie's, where Kate discovers that Josie is a culebra, and Josie promises to keep Kate's secret. One day, this...guy shows up at the office, asking to talk to Karen, and Karen kicks Kate out of the office while they talk, and when she comes back, the guy is gone and Karen doesn't want to talk about it. (It's Frank, of course it's Frank). Also featuring one day where Frank is on the roof, Matt gets wind of it and goes up there to confront him about seeing Karen again and comes back with a black eye, and Kate is V confused whereas Karen is 10000000% pissed off at them both. Not long after, Kate and Karen are out one night, and they're attacked by a bunch of culebras. Frank helps intervene while Kate really is the one to save the day...and then she has to explain culebras to them. Of course, Karen saw aliens fall out of a portal above Stark Tower, so...snake vampires? Whatever. Kate calls Freddie to figure out why she was attacked and it turns out Carlos and Malvado are after her (and, later found out Karen too). Kate, Karen and Frank end up in Texas and things all come to a head at the blood well, as it does, and while Carlos shoots Kate in front of Seth, Richie, and Scott (which, BAD IDEA), Kate falls into the blood well, and when she's pulled out, she's healed. But...she also has something inside her that wants to destroy the world, and everyone has to race against time to figure out how to get Amaru out of Kate before she takes over completely and destroys them all. They figure out a way, but it has an...interesting side effect for Kate and Seth. Also, this is the one where Maggie takes one look at Freddie and Ximena and shrugs and says, "You know what? Porque no los dos?"

So yeah, there you go!

(Also, I thought about also including the Amaru isn't evil, she's just cranky and wants to go home, S3 AU, but we just talked about it yesterday, so I figured it doesn't count hahaaha.)

send me a book emoji of any kind and i will tell you about a fic idea i have

[boundingfeather]

Please tell us about the angular momentum guy

OKAY SO technically angular momentum guy is not exclusive to reddit, he's been around on various websites for many years (you can find a lot of stuff on Quora about him), but in the last four months or so he's become very active on reddit.

He believes he has found evidence that the law of conservation of angular momentum is false. He has gone so far as to write a paper (which I will link at the bottom of the post) which according to literally anyone with basic physics knowledge who looks at it has many, MANY flaws (if you're like me and forgot all your physics stuff, take a look at the references section of his paper and you'll understand).

The problem is, if you point out the flaws in his paper, he will accuse you of "using logical fallacies". For example, one person on reddit pointed out he used the formula for angular momentum incorrectly. His response?

Another redditor in the same thread pointed out a complex mathematical theorem (Noether's theorem) as proof of the conservation of angular momentum. His response?

On and on. And he has popped up in so many subs to argue about this. He's posted to the obvious ones, /r/Physics and /r/Badscience, but he's even gone to subs like /r/ice-skating and /r/motorcycles. There's now a subreddit dedicated to tracking him, /r/mandlbaur, which contains gems like

Bonus: he got into a fun side argument a month ago on reddit about how light has mass, and got into a 10+ comment argument with a bot who just kept responding "please stop being fucking stupid?" (and if you stopped for a second and went "wait, does light have mass?" Congrats you are better at science than this guy, and for most purposes light does not have mass)

For more fun, his website is http://baur-research.com where, among other things, he has a list of rejection letters from multiple scientific journals.

(Also heres his paper if you just want to jump straight in

http://www.baur-research.com/Physics/MPS.pdf )

[argylemnwrites]

Fight or Flight - Chapter 8: Regret

Pairing: Drake Walker x MC (Riley Liu)

Book: The Royal Heir (canon divergent from the end of book 2)

Word Count: ~3500

Rating: R (language only)

Summary: Thirty one hours since The Walker Absconding

Author’s Note: Shall we even pretend there is a posting schedule at this point? Oh well, another chapter has arrived. This series follows the Walkers, their friends, and Cordonia as a whole after they flee the country with their daughter during Barthelemy Beaumont’s attempted coup. To catch up on this series, check out it’s masterlist. (link can be found via my bio - sorry, Tumblr is once again not putting my posts with links in tag searches)

Drake popped his headphones in, trying not to wake up Bridget as he pulled open a video on his new phone. He was also supposed to be sleeping, at least theoretically. It’s why Riley had gone into the bathroom a couple of hours ago - so that he could turn off the lights and it would be relatively quiet. If he slept now, after all, he would be able to drive through the night. But he’d been wide awake for the past three hours, and at this point, he wasn’t even sure if attempting to sleep was worth it. So he just laid in the dark, his daughter sleeping peacefully next to him. Thank god she wasn’t doing that whole sleep reversal thing she’d been doing last month, where she’d been waking up maybe a dozen times over night. Her being a good sleeper was maybe the one saving grace here.

Today had just been stomach churning since he’d left to go track down a car and supplies. He hadn’t known whether to be grateful or freaked out when he’d returned to the hotel this afternoon, and Riley had a list of things they needed to do typed up on her phone. While he was glad she no longer seemed like she was about to sink into a pit of panic, seeing her planning with this much intensity was just… strange. He couldn’t think of a time she had ever made such a detailed list. She always just adapted to the situation at hand. She never tried to shape the situation herself.

But between what she’d found in her “fugitive research,” and what Hana had told them when she called after the hearing, they were starting to come up with a plan. Hana had told them that Rashad was going to be sworn in as regent tomorrow and that Olivia was technically “investigating” their location at the moment. That as soon as Rashad took on the powers of king-regent, Olivia was going to disclose that Bertrand and Maxwell hadn’t “found” them at Lythikos, so she’d sent Hana to “check” that they hadn’t returned to Valtoria, but that she hadn’t found them there either. They were all repeatedly calling their old phone numbers as well, hoping to make the story believable when Rashad undoubtedly opened an investigation into their disappearance with Bridget.

But all this meant that arrest warrants could be issued as soon as tomorrow morning. The hearing wouldn’t take long, and no one was sure if Rashad would see things as a sign of an attack on all three of them, or if he would correctly deduce that they had made a run for it and willingly left the country with Bridget. Either way, their financial and phone records were likely to be subject to review. And that meant they needed to not be anywhere near Ioannina by the time of the hearing.

The issue was, they wanted to withdraw more cash before the investigation froze their accounts. This meant using the same ATM they’d been using one more time, at 12:01 am when it was a new day and they could withdraw their daily max again without giving anyone a new location to investigate. Then, it would be time to get in the newly-purchased hatchback and drive on to Xanthi, the city they’d chosen as their next stop. Small enough that no one would predict it as their destination, big enough that Riley, a woman of East Asian heritage who only spoke English with a still-persistent New York accent wouldn’t be immediately noticeable. Drake liked that it was past Thessaloniki as well. No one would guess they drove hours further into Greece than a city with an American consulate.

So, in preparation for that drive, Drake needed to be sleeping. Even after several years out of Manhattan, Riley still hated driving, and in all honesty, the thought of her behind the wheel in a country where she couldn’t read the road signs was not reassuring to Drake in the slightest. He wanted to be the one solely responsible for the driving. But that meant he should be napping now. But how was he supposed to sleep at a time like this?

In the past day or so, he’d gone from a very stable existence to literally plotting how to hide out from law enforcement. He’d embezzled money and bribed a used car salesman to look the other way and not require him to register the car for official Greek or Cordonian papers. He’d left the only home he’d ever known, not knowing if he’d ever get to go back. How could anyone sleep after a day like that?

So instead of sleeping, he was watching news coverage of Liam’s speech that he’d given only a few hours earlier. Speculation was rampant as to both why the vote of no confidence was called and as to who the acting regent would be. Who his daughter’s regent would be. Because for the past few hours, the 10 month old sleeping on the mattress next to him had technically been the Queen-Regent of Cordonia.

It was a strange feeling, knowing that going forward, Bridget would be listed as Queen-Regent Bridget in history books, her rule starting today. Liam’s request had kind of always seemed like simple bookkeeping before. Although Liam told the press that Bridget would remain next in line for the throne even if he had children of his own, Drake had always kind of assumed they would readdress the whole situation when Liam actually got married. It had seemed highly likely to him that Bridget would end up just being a temporary placeholder, someone needed to convey stability of the Crown until Liam had a kid or two of his own. And even if she had remained next in line for the throne, Drake never really thought he’d see her take on the title. She was only supposed to rise to that position after Liam’s death.

It was probably something he should have put more thought into, to be honest. But he hadn’t, at least not anywhere near enough. And now there was no great way to undo it. She was the queen-regent now. Abdication for her, as a minor with the title, would be a nightmare at this point. Even if her title was just through the Conclave, the steps that they would have to take to change things now, the support they would need from the assholes who just voted against them and Liam, well… Drake wasn’t counting on that happening any time soon.

He opened up the CBC app to watch another site’s coverage of Liam’s speech, but his phone started buzzing in his hand. The number flashing across the screen had a Cordonian country code, but it wasn’t Olivia or Hana’s burner numbers, which they’d already added to their contact list. This had to be either Liam or Maxwell on a new number. Taking a deep breath, he popped out the headphones and swiped to accept the call.

“Hello?”

There was a brief pause before Liam’s voice came through the speaker. “Hello, Drake.”

Drake didn’t know what to say. It was his turn to speak, but what do you say to someone you’ve known almost your entire life when they lost everything? When you’d let them down? After too many seconds, he finally managed, “So, you… uh, got our new numbers?”

“Yes. Hana and Olivia provided me with them.”

“Right. Well… good. You, uh… you should have our numbers.” Drake ran his hand over his face. He couldn’t be more awkward about this if he tried.

“Indeed,” said Liam, after a beat, “So, how are you all doing?”

“We’re okay, I guess. How are you?”

The pause was longer this time. “It’s been a long couple of days, Drake.”

The weight of that sentence settled over Drake, the guilt he already carried multiplying in that moment. “I’m so sorry, Liam.”

All Liam gave in response was a little hum of acknowledgement, so Drake kept speaking, trying to find some words that would make this better, that would make Liam see how sorry he was.

“We just couldn’t wait around, you know? We didn’t know how things were going to go down, and when Barthelemy started talking about taking Bridget, we couldn’t just risk that, and so we had to do something, right? And I know this leaves you in a tricky spot, but you’ve gotta know, I wish… I don’t know, that we weren’t doing this to you, I guess? But… it’s just fucked up all around, isn’t it?” Drake knew he was rambling, that he'd basically spewed out a whole bunch of garbage, but he just didn’t know what else to do.

“What do you want me to say, Drake? You’re right; the decisions you and Riley made have made things much more complicated for me. Are you looking for me to say that I don’t blame you? That I support this course of action?”

“What else were we supposed to do?” Drake asked. He could hear his voice raising slightly, and he glanced down, checking that he hadn’t woken Bridget, but she was still passed out.

“I told you back when you were trying to have a child that if it ever became too much, to inform me, and we would reserve the proclamation.”

“Are you really trying to tell me that in the middle of everything that was happening yesterday, it would have been a good time to pull you aside and ask to undo all that shit?”

Liam let out a sigh before he answered, “It seems like that would have been preferable to you deciding to commit treason.”

Drake slammed his eyes shut, trying to keep his temper in check. Liam was already dealing with a lot, and he didn’t want to make things worse, but his words were so frustrating right now. “We didn’t even know if you would have the power to undo any of it after that vote.”

“You could have at least waited until we knew the results of that initial hearing. At that point-”

“What if the justice had decided you had no power last night instead of today?” Drake interrupted. He saw Riley coming out of the bathroom and back into their room. She obviously must have heard him on the phone. He just shook his head, trying to reassure her as he kept talking to Liam. “That’s a big fucking gamble to ask of us, Liam.”

“Fine, then some middle-ground or compromise still would have probably been better. You have to know how ill-conceived this scheme you’ve agreed to is, Drake.”

“What would you suggest, then? Sitting around, just waiting to see if we got to keep our kid?”

“Of course not. But if you get arrested and extradited back here, you will absolutely lose custody of your daughter. I would urge you to consider that fact. Additionally, Rashad is not going to be interested in becoming some sort of surrogate parent to Bridget over the next few months.”

“Is that supposed to make me feel better? That the man you have lined up as my kid’s regent has no interest in caring for her?” Riley mouthed “What?” at him from across the room, but Drake just waved his hand and shook his head again. He’d have to fill her in later.

“My point, Drake, is that Rashad would likely be very amenable to you and Riley staying with Bridget in the role as her caretakers and-”

“Stop. I’m not going to listen to that shit, okay? You know that’s not the same. You fucking know it, Liam.”

There was a rough sigh before Liam spoke again. “Fair enough. But you have to understand that you have put me in an awful position. And I’m just trying to find a way to minimize the damage caused by your selfishness here.”

“How is looking out for my wife and kid selfish?” Bridget squirmed slightly next to him as his voice climbed louder yet again. Riley must have noticed, because she scurried over and tucked her against her chest, muttering soothing words against the top of her head, trying to keep her from waking up.

“Did you think about how fleeing the country would impact anyone? Your citizens in Valtoria who no longer have a regional leader? The people of Cordonia who no longer have an heir to the throne? Your friends who have advocated for you and your family time and time again? No. You just left. You only thought of yourselves. That is the dictionary definition of selfish, Drake.”

“I’m sorry, but my family comes first. This isn’t fucking up for debate.”

“Well, some of us don’t have that luxury.”

Both Drake and Liam were silent for several seconds. Drake took a shaky breath, trying to get his emotions back under control. “Liam. I’m sorry. I really am. I never wanted to do this to you, and I know you are left cleaning up the pieces here, but I am not going to come back just for Bridget to get trapped inside the country and possibly taken from us.”

“Drake, don’t be so-”

“She’s queen-regent now, so no way we don’t get stopped at the border if we came back and tried to leave again, right? In fact, I bet we wouldn’t be allowed outside the palace with her, and that’s if we’re allowed to be alone with her at all-”

“Now you’re just being dramatic-”

“Am I? Because to me, it feels like you want me to come back and hang my hat on the hopes that Rashad needs a couple of nannies. I get the risks we are taking here. But at least we have a shot of staying together as a family this way.”

“Look, I understand that this is upsetting and frustrating. I’m upset and frustrated, too. All I want is to try and create a united front here. If we are fractured and divided, it is worse for everyone in the long run. We all want what’s best for Bridget.”

“You aren’t part of any ‘we’ here. She’s not your kid. You don’t get a say.”

The silence on the other end of the line was awful. Riley climbed onto the bed and leaned up against the headboard. One arm still held Bridget tight to her chest, but her free hand snaked behind him and rubbed soothing circles between his shoulder blades. It just did little to calm him. He didn’t know if more of his anger was directed at Liam, for presuming he had any say here, or at himself, for getting defensive when he was the one who had hurt Liam and put him in this position.

“I have never interfered in any parenting decisions you or Riley have made with regards to Bridget. In fact, I have given you both an unprecedented amount of freedom and control, knowing that it was an unusual situation. But it seems to me like we have nothing further to say to each other at the moment. You are unwilling to discuss the bigger picture here.”

“Liam, don’t-” Drake started, but Liam just kept talking.

“I understand why you’ve taken this course of action. But it is apparent that your priorities are only your daughter, whereas I need to focus on Cordonia as a whole. So, I think at this point we both need to just devote ourselves to those tasks and not worry about each other.”

It was a dismissal. A line in the sand. Whatever inner circle Liam had, Drake was no longer a part of it. He let out a sigh and swallowed roughly. “I am sorry, Liam. I just don’t know what you expect me to do here.”

“I don’t expect anything of you, Drake. You should just do what you feel is best for your family, and I will do what’s needed for our country.”

“Come on, it doesn’t have to be this way. I still want to help-”

“No offense, but a couple of fugitives are not likely to be a great resource to me at this point. This isn’t a punishment, Drake; it’s just the reality. We’ve both made the choices we needed to make, and now we both need to deal with the consequences. I need to remain focused on campaigning to regain my title, and I’m not going to have the time or energy to devote to aiding your run.”

“I’m not asking for your help, dammit. I just want-”

“What do you want, Drake? You don’t get to have this both ways.”

“I want… I want us still to be friends.”

He heard a heavy sigh before Liam spoke again. “Of course we are still friends, Drake. We just are headed in separate directions at this time, it would seem. You now have this number, though. You can reach me if you need to, and I will do the same.”

“Liam, I-”

“I wish you and your family the best; I really do. And if you change your mind, you can come find us in Lythikos.”

Drake closed his eyes. There was no salvaging this. Liam was boxing him out and closing the door. He was pretty sure having Liam screaming at him would have stung less. “Alright, I get it. Good luck with everything, okay?”

“Same to you. I really hope you don’t regret your decisions here and that you all can remain safe.” And with that, Liam ended the call.

Drake placed his phone on the bed and leaned forward, dropping his head into both of his hands. He swallowed several times, trying to break up the lump in his throat. He was very aware that although Riley seemed to be in a better spot than she was the day before, watching him cry over Liam was not going to instill much confidence. No need to make things more unsettled.

After a few moments, he took a deep breath and sat back up. Riley was staring at him, head cocked and eyes full of worry. He just shrugged and shook his head. There wasn’t much to say, really.

“Here,” Riley said, shifting forward and passing Bridget to him.

“I don’t want to wake her,” he muttered, but Riley continued, sliding Bridget into his arms before leaning against his shoulder, her hand slipping along his neck and her fingers threading through his hair.

“She’ll fall asleep in the car,” she said. Drake watched as his daughter blinked up at him, her face scrunched up like she was going to start screaming, but she relaxed and started to drift back to sleep when he pulled her against his chest and tucked his head on top of hers.

He just held her for maybe a minute, not saying anything. Riley was quiet as well, her fingers continuing to trace little patterns across the base of his scalp. Eventually, she tilted her head against his shoulder and whispered, “Do you want to talk about it or not?”

“No,” he breathed out, “not… not now.”

He felt her nodding, and her other hand settled on his knee. “Okay. Thank you, by the way.”

“Walker, it’s-”

“You don’t need to say it’s nothing. And I know you don’t want to talk about it now. So just… thank you.”

Neither of them said anything for a long while. They just sat there, trying to brace themselves for the reality of the next 24 hours. They would officially be under investigation and likely be charged with kidnapping of the queen-regent. This was the point of no return, far more than any decisions they’d made up until this point.

Oddly enough, Drake felt more confident in their plan than he had even before. As upsetting as his talk with Liam was, it had somehow helped him see why Riley was so reluctant to rely on anyone outside their family. Something about hearing Liam discuss the risks they would be facing in Cordonia as if they were nothing. As if living under the same roof as Bridget should be enough. As if they had time to wait for things to unfold. Well, it made it very clear that they saw what could be compromised and what couldn’t very differently.  

He wasn’t sure how long they sat there, but eventually Riley sat up next to him. “Did you get any sleep at all?” she asked as he turned his head to look at her.

“No, not really.”

“Well, we better get going then so we can get some coffee before we hit the road.” And with that she slid off the bed and started gathering their few bags of belongings.

She was right. It was time to move on. So he gently clicked Bridget into her new car seat and did one last scan of the room, making sure they weren’t leaving anything they needed behind.

“You ready?” Riley asked.

“Yeah, Riley. Let’s go.”

Permatag:  @walkerswhiskeygirl   @riley--walker  @bebepac @ravenpuff02 @oofchoices @octobereighth @drakewalker04 @kimmiedoo5  @mfackenthal  @thequeenofcronuts  

The Royal Romance/The Royal Heir: @ao719 @mskaneko @katedrakeohd @jovialyouthmusic @marshmallowsandfire @axwalker @kingliam2019 @sirbeepsalot @texaskitten30 @princessleac1 @ladyangel70 @dcbbw @yaushie

Drake x MC: @drakeandcamilleofvaltoria  @iplaydrake @gibbles82 @drakewalkerisreal @notoriouscs  @drakesensworld @drake-colt-lover-99

Fight or Flight: @masterofbluff @burnsoslow @bobasheebaby @shz256 @iaminlovewithtrr​

[deltas-writing-corner]

Warmth: Prologue (2/3)

Fandom: Ikemen Sengoku

Disclaimers: Besides the prologues, I will be posting the first 1000 or so words of every new/next chapter.  There will be a link to my AO3 at the end of the post, where the full chapters are at!

Warnings: mentions of blood

Masterlist: (coming soon)

"Here, let me help with-"

"It's alright!" Fuku shouts as she lifted several rolls of fabric with ease.

To say Fuku was doing a little better is an understatement. She was fantastically better. When Yuki and you came into work the morning after her accident, she didn't greet you both in her usual polite and quiet manner. Fuku had loudly welcomed you both in as if the shop were suddenly a bustling restaurant.

You were mending a ripped seam in the back room when Yuki suddenly enters and whispers, "Please tell me I haven't gone crazy, or is Fuku much more lively than yesterday?"

You resist the urge to smile. She got her spunk back indeed.

"I quite like this sudden shift in her character," you say.

"I do too, really! I haven't seen her like this since I was a kid. But the sudden switch from sweet to sassy is…" her mind trails off with uncertainty. She looks over her shoulder to make sure you two were alone still. "Do you think her accident yesterday had anything to do with her personality change?"

"They say your life flashes before your eyes in an instant when you come close to death. Maybe she decided to drop the quiet act and be true to herself."

"Yeah, that's it isn't it?" Yuki asks more to herself than to you. "But should she really be carrying all those fabric rolls? Those things are heavier than they look."

"Perhaps her back is doing better?"

"In a day?!"

She was getting more confused, more frustrated as she tried to wrap her head around everything. You put your needle and thread down and turn towards her. "Do you remember what I said yesterday?" you ask. Her tense shoulders relax a bit and she nods. "Then trust me on this. She's going to be fine. Would I ever lie to you if I didn't think she would?"

She shakes her head. "I don't know why, but you saying she's going to be okay somehow reassures me that it will be."

You give her a pat on the head, but she pulls you into a tight hug. You would hug her back if she wasn't squeezing your arms against your body. It was strange. Her hugging you like this almost makes you feel as if you two had truly become…

You don't finish that statement, for fear that your rival would hear it and use it against you. You nearly forgot that you could never truly make friends, not when you're still in the midst of a never-ending battle with a damn snake that targets the people around you. One of these days, you're going to get rid of it for good by any means necessary. Even if that means you would have to die with it, so be it. Anything to make sure it doesn't come out victorious.

You won't take away the people I love again.

 _______________________________________________________________

The last time you took a vacation was...never. You've never been on vacation. Your 50-year lone journey could technically count, considering you don't work and essentially goof around most of those years. It wasn't to relax from the stresses of work though. It was merely to pass the time before you could integrate back into society without causing a fuss. It would also help you forget about the people you had gotten to know.

You look over to your co-worker and boss. "Can't I just relax at home? Do I really need to go all the way out to…"

"Kyoto," Yuki finishes your thought.

"Right. Do I really need to go out to Kyoto to relax?"

Fuku shakes her head in disbelief. "Honestly, all you ever do is work! You'll go stir crazy if you don't switch up your surroundings every now and then."

"Besides," Yuki chimes in. "If anyone deserves a vacation, it's you. I don't think you understand how much you work. It's admirable, but also very concerning."

Seeing their worried expression, you feel a bit bashful. They were only looking out for you, thinking you to be tied down to the same limitations they have. You badly want to just bite the bullet and tell them the true nature of who you are. Surely they would understand, right? They would accept you for who you truly are, right? The coiling of the snake around your arm keeps your confession at bay.

Apparently, a vacation for you meant a vacation for it as well. Tormenting you must be such a demanding job after all.

You made sure to sharpen your axe real well the other night.

The chugging of the train grew louder and louder. You and a few other people, mostly fellow travelers from outside your town, walk up to the yellow line on the ground and stand to wait. The train begins to slow down into a complete stop. Once halted, a hiss of steam is let out and the doors creak open.

You turn to give your farewells to your friends and surprisingly find yourself in the middle of a group hug. You give Fuku and Yuki their own pat on the back and they squeeze you a bit harder.

"Have fun! Don't forget to call me and take a bunch of pictures!" Yuki demands.

"And bring a man home," Fuku adds.

You laugh at her comment. She really was a feisty one.

Adjusting the bag hanging from your shoulder, you step onto the train cart and take a seat. After a few minutes, the doors close and you begin to depart from the station. As you look back out the window behind you, you see Fuku and Yuki still standing there, waving you off even as you gradually disappear over the horizon. You swear, they both looked ready to burst into tears.

A tightness against your arm grabs your attention. After wriggling about from under your sleeve, the snake finally pokes its head out and turns its head towards you.

"So," you whisper, as to not attract any attention from your fellow passengers. "It took you awhile to come back. Did I cut you up that badly?"

It hisses at you for mocking it. Uncaring of it feelings, you uncoil it from your arm and drop it in the seat next to you. Should any of the passengers have watched you, they would see you moving nothing. You were actually grateful they couldn't see it. If they did, they would all certainly panic. You did not want to be known as the traveler who carries a deadly snake with them.

You cross one leg over the other and sink in your seat. "Y'know, I should give you a name. It's starting to become annoying just referring to you as 'the snake'."

It seemed surprised that you were speaking to it on neutral terms. Usually, your interactions were hostile and more or less ended with you chopping it into fine bits. It slithers back onto you, this time coiling around your neck. You nearly flinch at the familiar sensation you felt as it tightened its grip to gain stability.

I felt this in my first memory. Go figure.

You pull out your phone and quickly search up an image of a color wheel. You take care to lift the screen up to the snake's eye level while not appearing odd from any lingering gazes. You tell it to tap on a color, and from the one it selects, you would refer to it as that henceforth. It was unimpressed by your naming process but you tell it that it was either this or you give it the most insulting name you can think of.

It looks at the screen for a minute. It then presses the tip of its mouth against the glass and selects the color black.

"How original," you sarcastically say. It responds by tightening around your neck. "Alright. I'll call you Kuro from now on. It'll make cutting you up all the more personal."

Your one-sided chat ends with Kuro, who turns his head away and settles around your neck. You pull up your phone's built-in navigation app and look at the expected arrival time, 3 hours. You lean forward and prop both elbows on your knees. For the next few hours, you just sat there and waited, not bothering to look out the window and marvel in the passing scenery. Your focus was entirely on Kuro, making sure that he wouldn't try to sneak off of you and attack any of the other passengers. He usually only goes for people you had grown attached to or spend most of your time with, but you weren't going to take any chances.

You give yourself a bit of comfort by sticking your hand in your duffel bag and squeezing the familiar handle of your axe.

________________________________________________________________

The city still amazes you. It was hard to believe that in just a couple hundred years, humanity would evolve so rapidly. As amazing as the advancement of humanity was, the air quality has gone to complete shit. Along with sleeping and eating, you didn't need to breathe either. You're thankful you didn't have to subject yourself to the polluted air and spare yourself from burning your lungs. Kuro seems to hate the air as well, as he makes a sort of gagging noise once you step out of the station.

Finally, we agree on something

You robotically push past the crowds, flag down a taxi, and check into your hotel room. You send a quick text to Yuki to let her know you arrived safely and thank her again for booking the room for you. Once you set your belongings down and relax against the plush bed, you get a text back.

'What r u going to do?'

That's right. This was supposed to be a vacation. You were supposed to be going out and doing literally anything other than work.

What the hell are you even supposed to do?

You text back, 'idk.'

'Seriously??? There's a ton of stuff you could do in Kyoto!'

'Like what?'

'I heard shrines are lovely this time of the year'

________________________________________________________________

The fact that you, a god, are visiting a shrine to be very, very hilarious. Kuro hates it apparently, which made it even funnier.

"Aww, don't be like that," you jokingly cooed at him.

You used the ladle from the shrine pavilion to scoop up the so-called purified water and bring it close to him. He hisses so violently that the shrine maiden that acted as a guide for you and your fellow visitors flinched and looks around to find the source of her scare. Deciding to spare him any more stress and reason to go on a frenzy, you put the ladle back in the basin and catch up to the departing group.

The tour was simple, a mere walk around the temple and it's public areas while the guide explained the history behind each building, important figures, and various rituals the worshipers practice. It wasn't the most exciting way to spend your first day on vacation, but you found still found it interesting and very educational.

Near the end of the tour, the guide leads you all up to a statue of a woman. Her skin is as white as milk, half of her black hair twisted up in a bun while the rest flowed down her back. It was a hairstyle your mother would style on you and even taught you how to do it yourself. Her kimono was a faded gold color from years of natural degradation. The pattern on her stone clothing reminded you of flames.

Your tour guide stops and turns back towards you all. "This here is a statue of the sun goddess, Amaterasu. She is a central deity within the Shinto religion. The Japanese nobility claim their divine right to rule by claiming to be her descendants."

Your tour guide went on about the shrine's methods of worship for Amaterasu, but you completely drowned out her words. You found yourself completely enamored by the statue.

Something about it was...

Hearing that name was…

Your body was...

"Miss?" One of the tour-goers waves her hands in front of your vision in an attempt to gain your attention. "Is everything alright?"

As you slowly regain your focus, you notice a wetness on your face. You had shed a tear. You quickly wiped it away and gave the concerned woman a reassuring smile. "Allergies."

She seemed relieved and without a second thought reached into her bag to pull out a bottle. She pops off the cap, shakes out two antihistamine pills and hands them to you. You take them and hide them under your tongue before taking a gulp of water from your plastic bottle. You thank her, waiting for her to walk off with the group before spitting them out.

Kuro gives a condescending flick of his tongue against the cheek your tear descended on. You slap his head away and growl, "Not a word."

You take a moment to gather yourself before heading back with the group. Before you turn the corner and lose sight of the statue, you spare it one last glance. When you looked at it again, you were certain what you were feeling wasn't just a fluke.

You felt warm.

________________________________________________________________

The tour ended not long after you all saw the statue of the sun goddess. You didn't leave until night, when the Shrine closed to the public. You spent the entire day just staring at the statue, basking in the familiar warmth that filled within your body.

"I know you don't care, but that wasn't some coincidence," you say to Kuro. "That warm feeling. It's similar, no, the exact same warmth I summon when I heal people!"

You yank him off your neck and plop him on the nearest surface, a stone tablet of sorts with writing carved into it. It was monument for some historical figure, but you didn't care about it. He looks at you as if he was actually considering your words for once. At this point, you could care less about this ingrained rivalry between you two. If there was anyone else in the world that could ever relate to you, it would be him.

"Who the hell am I? What the hell are we? Who the hell made us so hellbent on screwing each other over? Actually, let me rephrase. Why are we so hellbent on screwing each other over?"

You kept rattling on question after question. Contemplating the meaning of your existence to a snake that no one but yourself could see. In your confused frenzy, you fail to notice the grey clouds engulfing the sky. The loud roar of lightning and sudden rainfall put a halt to your pacing.

So much for clear skies.

The sound of footsteps approaching your figure brought your attention back down to earth. "Are you alright ma'am? Do you have an umbrella?" a man in a lab coat and glasses looks at you with a blank stare, but his voice indicates that he was worried for you.

You shake your head. "I didn't think it would rain today."

The man opens his mouth to say something when suddenly, your eardrums are assaulted by another clap of lightning. This time, it struck the space right next to the both of you. You frantically search your surroundings to locate exactly where it struck. The monument that your rival was on had been completely shattered into pieces.

Shit, I put Kuro on that!

The bespectacled man kneels down towards you and offers you his hand. You didn't realize that you had fallen over until you finally registered the stinging on each of your knees. You reach out towards his offered hand. Before you could place your hand in his own, darkness suddenly enveloped your vision followed by a wave of dizziness. You instinctively shut your eyes and nurse your head in your hands.

The wet and cold air of the rainstorm was suddenly replaced with a suffocating heat. You manage to open your eyes and find yourself in a completely new setting. You were on the balcony of a building, currently blanketed in flames and billowing smoke. You accidentally inhaled due to your shock and began to cough as your lungs fill with black air.

Your fit alerts a figure in the room of your presence. Seeing you, a defenseless woman all so suddenly, they found themselves frozen in shock. Your vision began to slowly clear up enough for you to notice the familiar sheen of metal. Whoever it was that you were looking at had a sword in hand, tip aimed to the floor where a man lied unconscious at his feet.

Instinctively, you reached into your handbag and grabbed your axe. You put all the force you could muster into your grip and threw it at the man with the sword. He gave out a cry of pain, indicating that you had landed a hit on him. He suddenly backs away from the body and you think you hear him mutter some sort of apology before running out the room. With the threat now gone, you make your way towards the man on the floor. He was still unconscious, so you took a firm hold of his shoulders and began to shake him awake. He wakes up with a sputter before taking notice of you.

"Who are you?" his booming voice asks

"No time for introductions! The building is burning and we need to leave! Now!"

You didn't give him a chance to get in another word. Grabbing his forearm and hoisting him on his feet, you pulled him out of the fiery room. You make sure to grab your axe, wedged deep into the wood of the door frame, on your way out.

Miraculously, you manage to find a way out the building. As soon as you're lungs fill with fresh air, you double over into another coughing fit. As you try to calm your breaths, you turn back to building. It was a temple, but not like the one you visited earlier in the day. This one seemed more rustic. It was hard to fully picture what it might have looked like due to it being quite on fire still.

If you hadn't escaped in time, the man you dragged along with you would have perished. If not by the stab of the sword looming over him, then by the flames. Speaking of him, he looks out towards the burning temple with you. Instead of worry or panic, he seemed to be rather annoyed.

"Someone tried to do away with me as I slept? Audacious, but foolish. Killing my guards and managing to get so close to me is another matter."

Who cares if you were asleep or not?! You almost died!

He then turns towards you, taking notice of your grip still on his arm. "You there," he addresses you. "Let go of me."

You let go of his arm and he rubs it as if your grip was uncomfortable. He took in the person standing before him, his apparent savior.

"You may be mere entertainment the monks brought in, but you saved my life nonetheless. You have my thanks."

Did he just insinuate that you were a prostitute?

"I must have missed all the monks among the fire. I don't have a clue how I ended up in there," you tell him.

It's now that you begin to take in your surroundings. You were no longer within the city, not a single skyscraper obscuring the night sky in sight. The air, despite standing next to a burning building, wasn't as disgusting to breathe in. The man you rescued had striking features. His hair black and eyes a carnelian hue. He wore armor sporting colors of black, white, and red. You remember seeing such attire way back when your parents were alive. He was some sort of soldier.

"What are you staring at? Surely you know who I am?" He asks. You shake your head, being at a total loss for words. This genuinely confuses him. "You saved me not knowing who I am? Not expecting reward or favor?" He gives a deep chuckle that echoes throughout the night. "So be it, I shall tell you my name. I am the man who will rule all under the sun-"

Your silence is broken by your faint laugh. Was this man seriously going to monologue and create some sort of suspenseful build-up over his own name? After he just escaped the clutches of death?

He lifts an eyebrow. "Have I said something amusing?"

You cover your mouth to stifle your giggles and shake your head once more. Surely, he must have thought you rude.

Instead, he lets out another round of laughter, this time louder. "You're a curious one. No one has acted so impudently to me before." He takes a step closer to you and you take half a step back. "You intrigue me, which is almost as worthy of praise for saving my life. I am the Lord of Azuchi Castle and Daimyo of Owari, Nobunaga Oda."

Your head involuntarily tilts to the side. You look up at him and say, "...Who?"

His brows furrow. Now he was getting frustrated. "Do you truly not know who I am?"

You fiddle with your thumbs. "Noooooo?"

"You are indeed a strange one. But I have given you my name. Now, give me yours."

You hesitated, but decided it was safe to give him your name.

"I see. A good name befitting my savior"

Was that a compliment? Hang on, where the hell are you?!

You shake your head as if to clear your mind of its confused state. "Now that we got the introductions out the way. Tell me, where are we?"

"We are at Honno-ji. The building before you is-"

"A temple. I can see that. What year is it?"

He seems taken back by your question and of the fact that you interrupted him. "It is 1582. Why?"

Ah, 1582………WHAT?!

Before you could understandably freak out, the galloping of hooves grabs both your attention. The man at the front of the small group heading in your direction shouts, "Lord Nobunaga, you're safe!"

Once he reaches a safe distance, he hurriedly dismounts and approaches you both on foot. The others that rode alongside him turn their attention towards the building and begin shouting out orders to put out the flames.

"Mitsunari," Nobunaga turns to him. "Why have you come? Where is Hideyoshi?"

"Lord Hideyoshi sent me ahead. He should arrive here shortly," Mitsunari explains. He then takes in the sight of the smoldering temple and frowns. "It would seem the information we received about your assassination attempt was correct."

You feel another coughing fit coming and try to muffle it. It is then that Mitsunari takes notice of you.

"Oh, who might you be?"

Nobunaga calls out to you. He gives a nod to Mitsunari as an indication that you were no threat and then commanded, "Present yourself to my subordinate."

"I'm- Ow!"

Something pierces your ankle and you nearly fall over yet again. Mitsunari pulls you towards him and swiftly draws his sword out. As your eyes search the ground for what could have bitten you, you notice the familiar black scales of your rival hidden between the blades grass.

"Kuro! You bastard, I thought the lightning fried you to a crisp!"

As much as you hate to admit, you were glad to see the serpent is alive and well. However, as Mitsunari took notice of the snake, he pulled you further in until you were between him and Nobunaga.

"A snake?! Please stand back!"

He firmly planted his right foot on the ground and raised his sword. You immediately went on the defense and shoved him into the Nobunaga's chest. They were dumbfounded as they saw you place yourself protectively in front of the snake as if they were the threat, not it.

"Stop! He's with me!"

"My lady, the snake could potentially be venomous. Please walk carefully towards me,' Mitsunari beckons you to him.

Oh, he's much more than venomous… hold on.

You look down towards Kuro, then to Mitsunari, then to Kuro and back to the grey-haired man again. "You...You can see him?"

"Of course I can! Now please, get back!"

You glare down at him. "You bastard! You can make people see you at will can't you?!"

Unsurprisingly, he plays dumb and slithers back on you. Like before, he situates himself around your neck before turning his gaze towards the two armor-clad men. He sends an almost condescending gaze at the grown men panicking before him, a tiny viper.

"Ok, before you panic let me explain. This is Kuro. Say hi." You roll your eyes as he hisses at them. What else did you expect? "Lovely. He's my…we've known each other for a long time."

"You say that as if the snake were a person." Nobunaga notices.

Man don't even get me started!

"He's more aware than most, but he isn't harmful. So long as you don't annoy him he won't try to lunge at you." You shift your weight to the foot he had bitten, reminding you of the fact that he sunk his fangs into you just moments ago. "Except me. He'll only bite me."

"He's not venomous, is he?" Mitsunari asks.

"He has venom," you stupidly say, but quickly backtrack on your statement. "But he never shoots it in me, I swear! like I said, you just have to be cautious around him and not give him a reason to bite you."

"A woman with a venomous snake as her companion. There is no end to your amusement, is there?" Nobunaga speaks up, impressed, and not at all ashamed of feeling so, "Mitsunari, this is my savior. Remember her well."

"I thank you for rescuing our Lord," the man, clad in purple armor and a singular beauty mark under his right eye, bows deeply towards you. "My name is Mitsunari Ishida. I serve Nobunaga's right-hand man."

You wave your hands frantically to stop him. "Ah, no need to be so formal! Despite the circumstances, It's nice to meet you as well."

you properly introduce yourself to Mitsunari, who instantly perks up at your more welcoming demeanor. "Is your foot alright? That bite must have hurt. Though now that I've gotten a better look at you, you don't appear to be a nun. Are you perhaps from abroad?"

You look down towards yourself and realized you were wearing nothing but a t-shirt, capris, and some old worn out sneakers. You must look like a clown to them. Also, what were you even supposed to say in this sort of situation? Hey, I'm from 500 years in the future. Did I forget to mention I'm actually a 300 year old deity? Life sure is crazy!

Not knowing what is safe and not safe to say, you remained quiet. Mitsunari takes notice of your hesitation and looks back at Nobunaga for some guidance. The man, now over your rude behavior, steps past his subordinate and towers over you.

"Were you not taught to speak when spoken to? You may have saved my life, but there is only so much disobedience I will tolerate. Tell us where you hail from, and quickly."

You and Kuro glance at each other. Like most of your standoffs, there seems to be a mutual understanding between you two without the need for words. Remain silent. Do not tell them of your origin or of the nature of your being. Even if he decides you aren't trustworthy and strikes you down where you stand, you will survive the blow.

You kept your mouth shut. He seems more disappointed than angry towards your answer and turns towards Mitsunari. "Restrain her. She is now officially a suspect in the assassination plot on my life"

"My Lord. She's clearly disoriented from the chaos-"

"Restrain her," he ordered with finality.

Mitsunari, hesitant but not one to disobey orders, grabs a length of rope from his horse's saddle and walks back towards you. "Please give me your hands,' he politely demands of you. You do as you're told.

"It's alright," you whisper to him. "If it makes you feel better, my reason for being silent is just for my safety. I mean you all no harm. You have my word."

"I…" he appears caught between his orders and trusting in you. "I will trust you. No person with ill intent would risk their life to save Lord Nobunaga."

You thank him by giving his hand a comforting squeeze. He makes sure to tie your hands in a manner that would make escaping impossible, but not tight enough to hurt your wrists. You're escorted away from the temple, to a camp not too far away. You're led to a nearby bonfire and told to sit and not make any sudden moves. Mitsunari steps away from you and is replaced by two of the soldiers he brought with him.

"Hey," you try to whisper as quietly as you can to Kuro, "I have a suggestion. Care to hear it?"

He slithers around your neck until he's facing you head-on. It seems he's willing to listen. "Let's call a truce," you simply state. "The only conditions are that we look out and help one another until we find a way back to our time. After we return, we can go back to despising each other for the next hundreds of years."

Were you seriously offering an alliance with your sworn enemy? Yes, yes you were. As much as you both detest the idea of having to tolerate each other, the current situation made it clear that the only way you two are going to manage to get home is to put your heads together. Maybe even get along for a change?

Ugh, the thought of befriending this slithering asshole is deplorable.

"If you agree to those terms, bite my neck."

He doesn't hesitate to sink his fangs into your throat. You're sure he's wanted to bite you until your body was littered in duo puncture marks. The guards are alarmed at your cry of pain and go to kneel beside you to see what was wrong. They both took notice of the black snake around your neck and bleeding wounds. They look at each other and then nod. "Don't move ma'am. We'll take care of the snake-"

"He's a pet! No need to draw your sword," you immediately explain to them. "Could I maybe get a rag to press against my wound?"

The guard on your right seems hesitant, but his fellow soldier nods in assurance. He leaves in search of a rag, while the guard on your left seems to get closer to you. He's probably keeping a closer eye on you until his partner returns.

Two new people enter the camp. One is clad in blue and white armor, hair a pure white color. The other in green armor with red accents, hair a natural brown. You try your hardest to listen to their conversation. So far, both new figures seem to be concerned for the well being of Nobunaga. They question him on how he managed to escape unscathed and soon the attention is turned towards you.

"This is my savior. Due to her lack of answering my inquiries about her person, I've placed her under custody until we return to Azuchi."

"That one, sitting by the fire?" the white-haired one gestured towards you. You gave him a wave with your tied hands. "What a slender thing, but appearances aren't everything. Shall I pry answers from her mouth?"

The threat of torture puts you both on edge. You more than Kuro as you would be the one subjected to it.

Nobunaga seems to notice your fear and revels in it. "Once we return home, if she refuses to explain herself again, I will leave her in your hands. For now, we prepare for our departure."

The white-haired one nods in understanding before sending a spine chilling grin towards you.

Note to self, watch out for that one.

The brown-haired one comes towards you. While he isn't as scary as the other one, his height makes up for it. He's nearly twice your height and taller than anyone in the camp. He glares down at you and says, "Whoever you are, if you have any plans to harm Lord Nobunaga, I will make you regret ever having such thoughts."

Threat after threat after threat. You were getting pretty fed up with it. You were about to give the man a piece of your mind when suddenly, Kuro lunges at him. His fangs were bared and spurted liquid out of his mouth. That wasn't a warning bite. It was an honest attempt to bite and kill.

"Kuro!" You scold him. "That's not going to help the situation!"

"A snake?! Why haven't you noticed and gotten rid of it?!" The green armored one questions your guards.

They stutter over themselves before you finally speak up in place of them. "He's my pet."

"Pet or not. Allowing such a dangerous animal around Lord Nobunaga is a risk I won't take."

He reaches down to his waist to unsheathe his sword. In your panic, you shot up on your feet and you kick him right in the diaphragm. His arms wrap around his stomach and he nearly falls to his knees over from the blow.

"The next person that points a sword at us, I'm going to hold you down myself and let him pump you full of venom!" you scream. Gods, were you so on edge that you were now threatening people?

Your suddenly thrown face first down onto the ground and pinned from behind. You turn your head to see who it was that had restrained you. It was the white-haired one. The empty barrel pointed at you keeps you still.

I smell gunpowder. That's a rifle no doubt. Father used to have one in the house in case wolves came by at night.

"Those things have a tendency to accidentally go off," you tell him.

He smiles down at you. "Indeed. You'll forgive me if it does, yes?"

Second note, I hate this guy.

Angered by his cockiness, you try to wiggle out of his hold, but it utterly fails. In fact, you actually help him get a better grip on you and make it harder for you to escape. Great job, you dumbass.

"What shall we do with the snake, my lord?" The one pinning you down asks Nobunaga.

He stood over your defenseless self and stared at you with indifference. "It is clearly a hazard, but it has yet to leave it's master side and only struck when it perceived her to be under an immediate threat. Leave it, but keep your distance."

"My Lord, that is too much of a risk. Removing the threat now would be the better option," the brown-haired one protested. Slightly bent over in pain from your hit.

"I hate to say it, but I agree with Hideyoshi," the white haired one says. "Even a moment of vulnerability on our part will result in her releasing it on us."

The one you hit is Hideyoshi. Noted.

Nobunaga smirks at him. "If you're so concerned, Mitsuhide, then I suggest you put your sharpshooter skills to good use and keep an eye on the damn thing. Now, if you're both done bickering, let us head out."

Mitsuhide didn't seem to like his new orders but answers with a practiced "yes sir", before helping you up to your feet. Without any more to say, you're escorted to an large crowd of horses and lifted onto a saddle. Mitsunari is your apparent rider and you quietly thank the heavens for your one saving grace.

"Sorry," you whisper, "I sort of made things worse for myself."

You feel him tense, immediately feeling bad for making him worry even more.

"Once we return to Azuchi, you'll be in a secure place and can speak your truth without fear of lingering ears," he tells you. The horse beneath you suddenly kinks into a speedy gallop and you hold onto him for dear life.

You travel for a few minutes before the steeds around you slow down into a complete stop. A man with an eye patch and blue and gold armor appears with another unit of soldiers. Perhaps he was back up? He sure is late though.

"Lord Nobunaga. I see you're unscathed," he says, a more casual hint in his voice.

"Physically, yes. But my pride has taken quite the hit. We're returning to Azuchi. Have your men follow."

"Damn, I guess I was too late to see some action," he answers disappointedly. He turns back towards his reinforcements and shouts, "You heard the man! It's back home for us!"

His soldiers all let out groans of equal disappointment. He laughs at their expense before maneuvering his horse to join with the rest of the retreat. It's when he and his men fully merge that he takes notice of you and your bound hands. "Who's the lass?" He shouts over to Hideyoshi.

"They're under suspicion for the assassination attempt tonight. She has a snake around her neck and it will strike if you get near."

"A woman with a snake, huh? I like you already. The name's Date Masamune. I hope we can get to know each other well."

First I get called a prostitute, then this asshole flirts with me while I'm tied up! So much for a relaxing vacation!

________________________________________________________________

Kennyo watches the retreat of the Oda alliance with rage. His chance to exact revenge was in the palm of his hand but had been slapped away in a mere instance. The rustling of bushes gains his attention and he turns to see Ranmaru knelt before him, sweaty and disheveled. He's now porting a gash across his normally pristine face. "Are you alright? We need to tend to that wound to prevent it from becoming infected. It'll likely scar."

Ranmaru is on the verge of tears. "Master Kennyo, I failed you. All our efforts to eliminate the head of the Oda have gone to waste because of-"

The monk shushes him. "You've done well, Ranmaru. You've demonstrated how well the devil king trusts you. That alone is enough to be the cause of their undoing."

Ranmaru flinches at the mention of the word "trust." Kennyo turns back to look at the retreating forces once more. He turned back just in time to see that the they had a prisoner in their midst. He becomes even more enraged once he realizes that it was a woman.

"They would go so far as to blame a woman for the fire and hold her captive. The Oda couldn't stoop any lower than they have now."

Kennyo begins to walk away into the darkness of the forest. He gestures for the boy to follow, and he does so without hesitation.

________________________________________________________________

Another set of eyes watch the retreat of the Oda alliance from the sidelines.

"How disappointing. Though perhaps this is a blessing in disguise," Kenshin, initially unhappy seeing Nobunaga escape unharmed, immediately perks up at his own thoughts. "I still have an opportunity to drag the devil king out to battle and strike him down myself."

Shingen shakes his head in disbelief. Although he was frustrated as the rest, seeing the Oda pull out victorious and without a single loss, hearing Kenshin retain his bloodlust was reassuring. "He truly earned the title of devil king. Only a demon could have such twisted luck on his side."

"Lord Shingen," Yukimura suddenly notices an unfamiliar figure among the retreating forces, "look at who is riding with Mitsunari Ishida."

Shingen searches out for the familiar tuff of grey hair. He was in a bad mood, but now he's pissed. That was a woman, bound by the wrist the same way a criminal would be. "Unforgivable," is all the Tiger of Kai could growl out.

"Yes," Yoshimoto nods in agreement with his cousin, "Such a small thing. She must be scared to death."

Kenshin doesn't make any comment at the revelation, but he notices the panic that overtakes Sasuke's face upon hearing that a woman had been taken prisoner.

"I've grown bored. Let us return to Echigo and reconvene another day."

Kenshin doesn't wait for an answer. He turns away and the rest of his allies follow without a word. "Sasuke," Kenshin calls out to his ninja who had yet to move from his spot, "Do not keep me waiting."

He snaps out of this train of thought before following along. "Yes, my Lord."

________________________________________________________________

You had remained quiet the entire trip. A few people called your name, but you were so lost in your thoughts that you didn't even acknowledge whoever was speaking to you. You failed to realize that night had turned into morning. Your surroundings had changed from foliage into a massive fortress-like castle.

Kuro paid attention to your surroundings in your stead. Anyone that had gotten even a little close was hissed at and had transparent venom spat at them. Even Mitsunari, your one and only ally as of now, was not spared of the serpents radar.

You finally speak your first words after hours of silence. "If you keep threatening every man that so much as looks in my direction, I might start to believe you actually liked me all this time."

You're once again bitten, this time on the back of your hand. Blood quickly pools in the twin punctures before rolling down and staining your skin.

Mitsuhide had witnessed the snake sink its fangs into you. "Oh my, such a temperamental pet. Are you sure you have it under control?"

You roll your eyes. "Of course I do. Hey, Kuro," you look down to him. "If things turn ugly, pump me full of whatever you got left."

The snake nods, pleased at the privilege you've given it. Mitsuhide narrows his eyes at you, concerned over your order. You make sure to pat Kuro's scaly head while maintaining eye contact with him.

The entourage heads towards the stable. Stable hands awaited their return and began to board and tend to each steed. Mitsunari eventually dismounts and offers his hand for you to take. You gratefully accept his gesture and he helps steady you on the ground.

"How are your hands? If they feel sore I'll redo my bindings," he offers.

You shake your head. "I'm alright. What's going to happen to me now?"

"Lord Nobunaga requested an immediate council upon his return. It will likely be about the events that took place at Honno-ji and will take some time to inform and gather everyone needed. Until then, you...you will be…"

You didn't rush him. He was clearly having a hard time trying to muster up the courage to tell you what will happen to you until the meeting. You already have an idea what it would entail.

"You will be held in a prison cell until your fate is determined."

There it is.

"Will Kuro be allowed to stay with me?"

He nods. "Hideyoshi requested that the snake remain on your person at all times and visible. I hope his request isn't too unreasonable."

"If it puts the people here at ease then I can live with it. I'd feel safe having him close by anyways, so I'm quite thankful he didn't call in some expert snake hunter or something."

Mitsunari smiles at your words. "Even when the odds are against you, you find the positive within. You are truly admirable, my lady."

You return the smile. "Thank you, but I'm sure I told you before not to be so formal!"

"Very well. I agree with the condition that you address me with familiarity too. Is that alright?"

You nod and, for a brief moment, you forget that you were technically still a prisoner.

Previous chapter | Next chapter

[the1918]

Bespoke, Chapter 5 is taking me a stupid amount of time to finish, and I feel so bad about it that I’m going post post a teaser here :) This is about a quarter of the chapter. Hope you like it!

Teaser for Bespoke, Chapter 5

[Story No. 2 in the Compatibile A/B/O Universe]

Pairing: Shrunkyclunks (Cap Steve Rogers / Modern Bucky Barnes), of the bearded Alpha Steve and Omega twink!Bucky subvariety

Rating: Story Rated E for Explicit, this excerpt Rated T for Teen

Tags: A/B/O, sugar daddy!Steve

***

December 15

Thursday - 2:15 P.M.

Elevators in medical buildings always smelled like rubbing alcohol and iodine, which was definitely not Bucky’s favorite smell. He breathed through his mouth instead of his nose as the elevator descended the fourteen floors from Dr. Pete’s office suite, down to the ground floor.

Bucky had left work early that day to catch his monthly blood work appointment. Unpleasantly sterile smells aside, he was breathing especially easy that afternoon, for two reasons. First, he had finally wrapped up the enormous project he’d been working on in his lab for almost eight months, and he’d passed it off to the StarkTech testing department. Getting that load off his plate was a massive relief, and it came at the perfect time; he could now embark on his Vermont vacation (tomorrow!) with Steve and leave behind the weight of work on his shoulders. Second, the results of Bucky’s blood work had shown his hormone levels right where Dr. Pete had expected them to be, based on the Heat time-table they were anticipating. No early Heat.

Bucky was more stress-free than he could remember feeling in six months.

As he stepped out of the elevator to the ground floor, Bucky immediately felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He pulled it out to find a text message from Steve.

 [2:15 P.M.] Stevie: Done at Pete’s yet?

 Instead of walking out onto the cold, winter-time city streets, Bucky found a bench in the lobby and sat down to respond.

 [2:16 P.M.] Sent: Yep, just finished.

[2:16 P.M.] Stevie: Great. Any surprises?

 Bucky knew Steve was referring to his blood work. He typed out his response knowing Steve would be relieved by the results, just as Bucky was.

 [2:17 P.M.] Sent: Nope. Everything was where Dr. P thought it would be.

[2:18 P.M.] Sent: He says I look on track for April, maybe February if it comes early.

 Bucky watched his phone. There was no response from Steve for a while, and Bucky worried that he may have spooked him with details about their time-table. The two hadn’t talked about Bucky’s next Heat much at all since their first and only therapy visit with Dr. Welsh, but Bucky knew it was hanging over their heads. If his Heat came within the conservative margin of error that Dr. Pete had estimated, they could theoretically be dealing with it in less than 60 days. With it would come Steve’s rut, and if they didn’t make any significant, tangible progress on the knotting issue before then, they could very well be dealing with something they weren’t ready for emotionally. The pressure, however silent, was there.

His phone vibrated again just as he was pulling out his gloves to head out onto the street.

 [2:22 P.M.] Stevie: Good to hear. You got any other plans this afternoon?

 Bucky frowned. He wondered if Steve was going to ask him for a late lunch, and he wished he hadn't already eaten.

 [2:23 P.M.] Sent: No. Was gonna come home for the day, help you out with the lighting installation.

[2:23 P.M.] Sent: Why?

[2:24 P.M.] Stevie: Because you have plans now.

[2:24 P.M.] Stevie: [Blue Serenity Spa]  - You’ve Been Sent a Link on Google Maps!

His confused frown deepened as he clicked the link. It took him to the location of some sort of day spa in northwest Brooklyn, not far from their apartment. Before Bucky could text back a ‘???’, another text from Steve came through.

 [2:25 P.M.] Stevie: You have an open-ended appointment starting at 3:15 P.M. Any and all services you ask for. I got you scheduled for a massage already, but you can change that if you want.

[2:26 P.M.] Stevie: They have my card info. Don’t you dare to even think about looking at the price list.

[2:26 P.M.] Stevie: Better go catch the next train baby ;)

 Flabbergasted, thumbs paralyzed and seemingly unable to type out another text, Bucky decided to just hit the call button on Steve’s contact. He placed the phone to his ear and he suddenly felt antsy as he waited for Steve to pick up. There was no ‘hello’ when the ringing stopped, only Steve’s teasing voice.

“I thought I told you to head for the train?”

“Steve,” Bucky began, emphatically. “What is this? You booked me a spa appointment?”

Steve was silent on the other end of the line for a long moment, and Bucky wondered if it was because he was more nervous than his confident communication let on.

“Yeah, angel. I did. Look,” Steve sighed, “you really don’t have to go if you don’t want to. I shouldn’t have assumed you’d like this, I’m sorry. I just thought—”

“Woah,” Bucky interjected. “Hang on, I never said I didn’t like it. I just… I guess I don’t know why you want — why you think I deserved—”

“—You don’t know why I think you deserved to be pampered, Buck?” Steve interrupted, incredulous. “Really? After you just worked your ass off at work for months to finish a project that no one else could have even dreamed of doing? The technology that Tony’s been yapping to me about since before I even knew you?”

“It’s still technically in R&D,” Bucky muttered, blushing. Steve had always been supportive and enthusiastic about Bucky’s engineering work, but it still never ceased to make him feel a little bashful when Steve got to actually raving about him and his skills.

“Yeah, and the finished product is going to be amazing, because Bucky fucking Barnes developed it.”

Bucky laughed and fiddled with a thread on his sweater.

“You… you’re sure? I’ve never really been to a spa like that before, and it looked really nice on Google…”

“And it will be nice for you, which is exactly what I want.”

“Stevie…” Bucky smiled to himself and shook his head, a little at a loss for words. “I really was going to come home and help, you know. It takes more than two hands to put up some of those bigger fixtures.”

“Doesn’t have to be your hands, though. That’s why Sam is here.” Sure enough, in the background of the phone call Bucky suddenly heard Sam’s voice, hollering something that sounded a lot like, ‘go get a fucking rub down, Barnes!’.

Steve chuckled, and then Bucky thought he could hear him walking away.

“Also…” Steve said, volume lower, “last night, you put a plug in your ass and begged me to nail you on Tony’s conference room table. I think treating my baby to a spa appointment is the least I can do when you’ve just fulfilled multiple fantasies I didn’t even know I had.”

Bucky barked out a laugh at that. He looked down at the clock on his new smart watch—another gift from Steve—and realized that he really did have to head for the train if he was actually going to do this. He stood up and grabbed his bag.

“Alright… alright,” he conceded. Steve’s smile was almost audible through the phone. “You’ve convinced me. Thank you, Stevie.”

“No thanks necessary, baby. I wish you would let me treat you like this all the time, but I’ll take what I can get.”

Finally walking out onto the cold and busy sidewalk, Bucky was just about to say his goodbye and hang up when Steve chimed in again.  

“By the way, I just put in a call to Tony. You’ll be hearing from him very soon.”

Bucky’s stomach dropped. “Shit. Did he figure out what we did? I mean, cleanup was a bitch, and we definitely had to throw away that undershirt after using it as towel, but I think we did a pretty good job covering our tracks? God, I’m gonna be in such deep shit with him—”

“No, nothing like that,” Steve chuckled. “I mean, there’s no way he doesn’t know, but he also knows damn well that he better come to me first if he’s got a problem with it. Besides… He probably considers it payback.”

“Payback? For what?”

“A story for another time,” Steve promised. “Are you at the station yet?”

“I’m walking there right now.”

“Alright, I’ll let you go. Have a relaxing time, baby. You deserve it. And use your time there, okay? I don’t want to see you home before six. Hell— keep ‘em ‘till they close, if you can manage it.”

“Okay,” Bucky laughed. “Thank you, Steve. Seriously… and I love you.”

“I love you, too, and I really love you when you let me spoil you.” Bucky could practically hear Steve wink. “Bye, honey.”

 As Bucky walked the familiar route to the subway station, his phone dinged again, this time from Tony.

 [2:44 P.M.] Tiny Snark: I literally cannot look at your face after what you did to my conference room with your jackass boyfriend.

[2:44 P.M.] Tiny Snark: Do not come in tomorrow.

[2:45 P.M.] Tiny Snark: Consider it extra paid vacation, you disgusting pond scum.

[2:45 P.M.] Tiny Snark: Seriously. I better not see you or your vile beau again until January.

 Bucky probably looked like an idiot laughing so hard alone in public, but he didn’t care.

 [2:46 P.M.] Sent: Thanks Tony. Merry Christmas.

[2:47 P.M.] Tiny Snark: Yeah, and Happy fucking New Year.

 Bucky stuffed his phone in his pocket and abandoned himself to his thoughts as he jogged down the steps into the station, marveling at the wonder that was his boyfriend. Sometimes, he still could not believe that Steve was his. Steve—who had not only been a supportive partner to Bucky from the very beginning, but who was also a powerful and attentive lover, and—most importantly—the single greatest source of Bucky’s joy. By the time he reached the subway platform, waiting for the train, the sudden enormity of his gratitude for Steve had begun to bubble up and spread within the depths of Bucky’s chest, and he felt fit to combust with it. He had to remind himself just to breathe.

How had he gotten so lucky?

***

I hope you enjoyed this sneak peek! Their relationship is about to head in a very special direction, starting in this chapter.