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arsenal-womens-1 · 4 months ago

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I see you in my reflection part 2

Tw: guns school shooting death blood self harm description of death murder panic attack if there’s any I’ve missed sorry

“The bravest thing I ever did was continue my life when I wanted to die.” — Juliette Lewis

“If you love someone, you say it. You say it right then, out loud. Otherwise, the moment just passes you by.” — Mark Sloan

Six hours later, you are on your way back to Leah's. It was just going to be Beth, Viv, you, and Leah having dinner tonight after you’re planning on watching a movie called *The Fallout*. You have no clue what it’s about, but it’s apparently meant to be good. It’s cold outside, not too cold, but still cold. The car comes to a stop. Finally, you get out of the car and run to the door. Leah walks up the stairs as slowly as possible, finally opening the door. You run in, running straight to the kitchen. Leah had agreed to let you help with dinner. It’s called marry me chicken. It takes about 45 minutes to cook.

“Right, get all the ingredients out, and we can start cooking,” Leah says, pulling out all the ingredients: 30 g of plain flour, 4 chicken breasts, 125 g sundried tomatoes in oil (drained and roughly chopped), 3 tbsp oil (reserved), 1 red onion (finely chopped), 3 garlic cloves (crushed or finely grated), ½ - 1 tsp chili flakes (to taste), 2-3 thyme or oregano sprigs (leaves picked), or 1 tsp mixed dried herbs, 150 ml of double cream, 250 ml of chicken stock, 35 g parmesan (grated), 8-10 basil leaves (torn), and lemon wedges.

Halfway through making it, there is a knock at the door before Leah can say anything. You run to the door. Beth and Viv are just standing there. “Come in,” you say, taking off their shoes and coats. You all walk back into the kitchen where Leah is still doing stuff for the food. “How was media day?” You just shrug your shoulders at that.

“Boring, mainly they all ask the same question, just in a different way,” you reply. Beth and Vivian just shake their heads. You have said multiple times that you don’t like media days. This is only the second one you’ve done, but you still have the same opinion: “Yeah, they do that a lot apart from a few, and since you couldn’t do any work today, you need to do a bit more tomorrow.” The only downside of living with Beth and Vivian is that they make you do schoolwork. It’s the most boring thing.“What if I don’t do any more schoolwork?” you ask.

Viv loses it at your shoes, saying that no matter what you are doing, the work is still there.

You just accept your fate. “Can someone call my phone? I’ve lost it. It’s aging.” Leah holds your phone up and says, “Thank you.” Opening your phone, there is a text from your dad.

Dad:

“Hey kid, I know we haven’t spoken in a bit, but I thought I would text you and see how you are doing. Also, Max and Missy want to know if you are going to be home this summer for their birthday.”

You:

“Hey Dad, I’m doing good. I don’t think I’m going to be able to make it home this summer, but tell Max and Missy that I miss them and I wish I could be there, but I can’t. I’ll send them presents.”

Dad:

“It’s okay, kid. You don’t have to apologize. I know why you don’t want to come back, but they wanted to know if you were able to come. It’s good to hear that you’re doing well. I have to go. The twins need to be dropped off at your grandma’s house.”

You:

“I’ll text you later. I love you too.”

“Who are you texting?” Leah asks as she finishes cooking.

“My dad was asking if I was going home this summer.” In the time the team had, knowing you’ve only ever said that you lived in America, you dodged any other questions, so at one point they all just left it, seeing that you didn’t want to talk about it before you got there. “Are you going home this summer?” they asked.

“No, I think I’m just going to go to another country,” you told them.

They all nodded. “What country are you thinking of going to?”

You had thought about this a lot. “I was thinking Norway, Sweden, Spain, or the Netherlands. I’ve always wanted to go to those countries.” When you said “Netherlands,” Viv smiled a bit for the next 45 minutes. You all talked for 20 minutes before the food was done. It was time for the movie.

The movie starts with a girl sitting on the toilet. Three minutes later, she walks to the bathroom. Viv and Beth are sitting next to each other, and Leah is in the middle. On the end, exactly seven minutes in, it sounds like a door banging and screaming more. It feels like your heart is about to pound out of your chest. A lump in your throat starts to form.

Blood everywhere, screaming, bullets.

“I can’t breathe.” The second you say that, all three of them are beside you. Vivian lifts you up and places you in her lap. “Copy my breathing pattern.”

“Y/N, I’m scared.” The door slams open.

“They didn’t do anything wrong; it should have been me.” Your breathing isn’t slowing down. “They didn’t deserve it; we were just kids.” Beth is now standing behind you, kind of trapping you like a burrito. “Copy my breathing, kid.” You try your best to copy her breathing, eventually doing so.

“Do you want to talk about it?” Your head is still on Vivian’s chest.

“I’m a twin… was a twin. The shock on their faces was something. We were identical. Lucy was 1 minute and 25 seconds older than me. She always would use that or say it was the best time of her life.” Tears were falling down your face. The girls said nothing, so you continued. “When we were 4, we moved from California to New York. Our next-door neighbors had a girl our age. Her name was Lily. She had green eyes, brown hair, and was a little bit taller than us. We became inseparable. We were in the same class. It was grade 6; we were in 4th period English with Miss Cooper. We sat at the back of her class.”

“Today we are learning about Romeo and Juliet.” Lily is to the left of you, and Lucy is to the right. “Lily, give me a pencil; I’ve forgotten mine again.”

“We were 12 minutes into the class when the first shouts could be heard two doors down from us. The screams for help were horrifying. We did everything they said to do. He was down with that class fast. He moved to the one next to us. There was a door connecting both classrooms together. We didn’t barricade it.”

The sound of the door crashing open startles everyone. Before anyone can do anything, he’s shooting randomly all over, and in 2 minutes, he’s gone.

“Lily was on the ground. She was in a pool of blood. He shot her 6 times; 2 of them hit her left lung. I tried to stop the bleeding, but it was no use. Her lungs were filling up with blood. Her beautiful face was covered in blood. She was scared. I could tell because of the way her eyes looked. She would get that look when she was scared. Lucy laid her head on my shoulder. She had been shot once, between her chest and shoulder. I remember Lily’s eyes starting to shut. I remember saying, ‘Come on, Lily, keep your eyes open for me. Keep them open.’ I remember her last words so clearly: ‘Y/N, it’s okay. It’s okay. Go be a superstar, win all the trophies. Don’t give up on your dream.’ There was another round of shots. The color in her eyes was gone. She was gone.”

“No, no, no, Lily, don’t leave me. Please don’t leave me.” Armed police rush through the door. “Everyone show hands.”

“I don’t really remember much about how I got from the classroom to the ambulance. I remember the paramedic saying that I had been shot 3 times. I didn’t even know that I had been shot. I was in shock. I remember the sirens. I remember them asking questions, getting wheeled into the ER. I was next to Lucy. I remember her heart monitor. I didn’t know what it meant except that she was alive. Within 2 minutes of being there, she flatlined. They tried to get her back, but they couldn’t. 14:25 was her time of death. A piece of the bullet had made its way to her heart. They were dead, and I wasn’t. After that, I turned to self-harm and other things. I wanted to be with them. It wasn’t until about 2 months after it all that it sank in that I had lost my twin sister and my first love in the same day

#women’s football #women’s soccer #women’s super league #woso community #barclays wsl #woso imagine #wsl #woso one shot #woso fanfics #woso #woso soccer #leah williamson #beth mead #viv miedema #vivianne miedema #arsenal

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howdywrites · 2 years ago

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The Encounter

WIP: In The Woods Somewhere Characters: Jackie and Benny Word Count: 1,070 ***Content Warnings: no gore but gross descriptions of bodily fluids, mild suspense***

This takes place early in ITWS, when Benny and Jackie run into someone who will not be human very soon. Just a reminder: this WIP is set during the early apocalypse, contains zombies, and is sapphic! Created for mature audiences!

Another note, I have had severe writers block and generally been stupid busy, so this is only 1/3 of the work I did on this novel recently. I’m hoping this will encourage me to keep writing!

Wet, acrid heat engulfed Jackie. This time of year the air was sticky and hot, carrying the scent of pine and goldenrod flowers on the wind. She shielded her eyes with her free hand, leaning against her rake that she stabbed into the moist earth. Buzzards swarmed overhead, cawing and floating along the blue sky.

"Something must've died," Benny puffed, his shoulders hunched and hands resting on his knees. His back moved up and down rapidly as he tried to catch his breath.

"Please tell me you brought sunscreen with you," Jackie raised a brow while looking at the young ranger intern. Benny's cheeks were scarlet, sweat falling in large beads down his freckled cheeks. He lifted his head, dirty blond hair sticking to his forehead, and grinned ear to ear.

"Nope!"

"Goddamn it, Benny..." Jackie unclipped the portable fan from around her neck and handed it to him. "Chief is going to kill you, you know. If skin cancer doesn't get to you first."

"It's such a pain - why do I have to reapply it every thirty minutes? Can't they just make sunscreen that lasts all day?" Jackie knew he was kidding, but the urge to give the young man a tongue lashing crept up the back of her throat. So she gave him a deep frown, watching as he fanned himself at full volume. His eyes widened, brows turning upward in the saddest display of puppy eyes. "C'mon, Jack, you know I didn't mean to. I had a billion things on my mind this morning."

Jackie shook her head, yanking her rake out of the ground. "No, I shouldn't be talking to you like you're a kid. Sorry, Benny." Her face smoothed out, a small smile curling at the corner of her lip. "Let's take care of whatever the hell that is and get out of Dodge." She jutted a thumb towards the carnivorous birds. They had migrated closer to the two of them during their spat, hovering only a dozen feet overhead.

The two rangers were tasked with clearing out the overgrown shrubbery that crept along the [trail name] trail. After hours of backbreaking work under the sun, they had it back to tip-top shape, allowing the path to be seen properly by hikers. While not the ideal task at the park, Jackie preferred being in nature over being yelled at by summer holiday campers at the trailheads and welcome center. The primary downside of working the trails was the inevitability of coming across something dead or finding yet another problem that needed fixing.

"Five bucks it's just a squirrel again," Benny laughed, giving Jackie her fan back and looking much cooler than before.

"I don't know. Four buzzards for one squirrel?" She took the lead, heading into a thicket of trees with her eyes on the birds.

"Maybe, there's been a lot of weird animal things going on lately."

"Maybe."

He wasn't wrong. Jackie had seen a few strange events since summer began. She chocked it up to the summer heat. It was at least ten degrees warmer than last July, and the Wildlife Biology team pointed out that animals were avoiding human contact in larger numbers than in previous seasons. The animals that did interact with humans tended to be far more aggressive than usual, too.

Jackie trembled thinking about her run in with an emaciated bear cub in early spring. How its eyes were caked in puss and mouth dripping with a sickly yellow foam. Rabies, the biologists told her, and abandoned by its mother. But she had never seen bear cubs act like that before - or look like that. It attacked her like it had a grudge against her personally, not like it was hungry.

"Jackie?" Benny's voice behind her grew quiet, nearly a whisper. She took pause, drawing her gaze away from the gaps in the tree canopy. A twig snapped ahead of them. The thick scent of vomit hit her like a ton of bricks. There, in a small clearing among the overgrowth, stood a human. A man, on the heavier side, back hunched slightly and head down like he was sleeping while standing upright. Flies buzzed past her ear, zooming towards the fresh feast of vomit at the man's sandled feet. She swallowed a gag, standing up straighter. If the man noticed their presence, he didn't acknowledge them.

Jackie cleared her throat. "Sir? Are you lost? This trail is closed for maintenance and it's advised that you stick to the path." She used her 'teacher voice' as JJ called it. A mix of disappointment and authority that usually steered park guests in the right direction.

The man's head lulled from side to side, slow and methodical, before lifting. He looked over his shoulder at them, eyes wet and face ghostly white. He blinked, as if he saw through them. "Sorry..." he croaked. His words had the cadence of someone whose tongue was too large for their mouth.

"Do you need medical attention?" Jackie prodded, using a gentler tone. She stepped a few paces closer, Benny staying back.

"Little Bear to Papa Bear, we have a situation out on [trail name]." He muttered into his walkie talkie. "Can we get medical out here, over."

"No." The man's head wavered again and he ran a fist over his eyes. A thick goo stuck to his skin, a bit of it dribbling down his cheek. "Just tired. Where am I?"

"You're near the trail, don't worry." Jackie motioned for him to follow them back towards safety. "Let's get you some water, we have a team headed this way that will get you back to your camp, okay?"

'Papa Bear to Little Bear, medic is on their way, over.'

The stranger shuffled his feet, moving like he was attached to weights and moving through water. When he turned, Jackie noticed the front of his shirt was covered in sweat from collar to belly button. How long had he been standing out in he heat? She tried not to curl her nose in disgust as he hacked up some more bile. It landed between them in a thick puddle.

"Careful, now. Did you know you were sick, sir?"

"Jus'a cold." he followed slowly, just behind Jackie. Benny took the lead back to the trail, straying as far away from the stranger as possible. "Not even that sick."

"Well, we'll let our med team decide that."

Folks who were interested when I posted about sharing a snippet: @draculinawrites @antique-symbolism

#itws short #itws

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inventors-fair · 1 year ago

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Draft Dodging: Innovation Nation Winners

Congrats to the winners!

Crown’s Informant by @hiygamer

I’ll be honest, I had my doubts about this card- mainly due to the disappointment it would cause for new players to open this in a pack, only to be told they can’t actually use it for their commander deck. However, the outcry of the other judges convinced me to give it another look, and... yeah. This card is sweet. It’s another way to solve the color identity issue in draft, I’m assuming they’ll be readily available if it follows the same rules as conspiracy packs (1 conspiracy/draft-matters card guaranteed), and it tells me about a strange chimeric hybrid set of commander legends and conspiracy, which seems like a LOT of fun. It’s not even a free power-up like some existing conspiracy cards, as you have the added flexibility (or ability if you run it for that), in exchange for an increased cost. It’s a clever way to add color identity with a downside, and also lets you run multiple of these without it necessarily always being the best decision. I do think that a commander draft set by its nature might want to play more towards constructed, but I would be eager to be proven wrong, and a clean, simple design like this is the way to convince me.

Ferryn, Glamor Prancer by @bread-into-toast

This card takes the podium because I have no earthly idea what this set would look like, but in the best way. This card conveys plenty of information, enough that I believe you know EXACTLY what this set is all about, but it sends my brain into a theorizing spiral trying to figure out your plans- and that’s exactly what I wanted from this week. Who is the Dungeon Master? Is this an archenemy thing? Is there a story-based campaign element? Is the Dungeon Master not even a player, but something akin to a Horde deck? I want to see the whole set now, and that is an ultimatum. The reminder text is a little silly, considering half of that information is irrelevant when talking about creatures, and the constellation ability seems like it might be a bit on the strong side, though that certainly depends on what enchantments are present in the set. Regardless, this card perfectly shows off what I wanted this week, and does it in a fun and flashy way.

Maniacal Thaumaturge by @misterstingyjack

Time for me to practice my best evil laugh. You can’t hear it from your screen, but trust me, I’m doing it. It’s great. Anyways, Archenemy is fun, and though a draft set raises some logistics questions (does the archenemy use the same packs? Do they know they’re the enemy while drafting? Do they get extra cards?), but this answers some questions and makes me believe you have the answers to the others. This card can be used regardless of your role, but has a lot of versatility. I do have some small nitpicks around that second option, since I don’t believe targeting really works with game objects like this, and you have such a small window to do that ability (namely when the scheme’s ability is on the stack but has not yet resolved) that it could just be worded as “copy target ability from a scheme source you control”, or something similar. Not so much a functional change, but just a cleaner one. However, if I’m getting that nitpicky, you know the card is good.

#mtg #magic the gathering #custom magic card #inventor's fair #commentary #winners #innovation nation

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halothenthehorns · 2 years ago

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Chapter 18: THE PARTY PONIES INVADE

Percy only heard Will's voice read the new chapter title, not the actual words, let alone what Magnus and Jason were asking about so excitedly. Only finally having an upcoming battle with Luke deterred him from sitting around worrying about the how's and why's of someone he'd instinctively known was a friend from the moment he'd seen her. Whatever Thalia's part in this, it had nothing to do with him being replaced...he was mostly sure.

"One on one," I challenged Luke. "What are you afraid of?"

"Losing, probably," Jason said confidently. Percy had already beaten him once on a practice sparing match, and he'd had so much more experience since then. He'd taken down Ares, and Polyphemus. Luke would be an even match at best, and they were still right on the ocean front property.

Luke curled his lip. The soldiers who were about to kill us hesitated, waiting for his order.

Before he could say anything, Agrius, the bear-man, burst onto the deck leading a flying horse. It was the first pure-black pegasus I'd ever seen, with wings like a giant raven. The pegasus mare bucked and whinnied.*

"Wow," Percy said right along with everyone else, even as he ran his hand through his hair in frustration and wondered why on earth a deck of cards came to mind.

I could understand her thoughts. She was calling Agrius and Luke some names so bad Chiron would've washed her muzzle out with saddle soap.

"Chiron can understand horses too?" Nico asked keenly.

"How do you think he always knows the gossip around camp?" Will grinned.

"Sir!" Agrius called, dodging a pegasus hoof. "Your steed is ready!"

"Ready to murder," Alex said, he didn't need to read the flying horses mind to know Luke wouldn't make it to the airport.

Luke kept his eyes on me.

"I told you last summer, Percy," he said. "You can't bait me into a fight."

"And you keep avoiding one," I noticed. "Scared your warriors will see you get whipped?"

Luke glanced at his men, and he saw I'd trapped him. If he backed down now, he would look weak. If he fought me, he'd lose valuable time chasing after Clarisse.

"Percy for the triple win," Jason applauded that was three plans working back to back.

"Gods I hope I don't do everything in three's," he frowned as he instantly imagined three or more bad things crashing around him soon enough.

For my part, the best I could hope for was to distract him, giving my friends a chance to escape. If anybody could think of a plan to get them out of there, Annabeth could. On the down-side, I knew how good Luke was at sword-fighting.

"What exactly was the upside again?" Thalia frowned at him. "Aside from pissing off Luke."

"That's not worth any downside?" Percy smirked.

"I'll kill you quickly," he decided, and raised his weapon. Backbiter was a foot longer than my own sword. Its blade glinted with an evil gray-and-gold light where the human steel had been melded with celestial bronze. I could almost feel the blade fighting against itself, like two opposing magnets bound together. I didn't know how the blade had been made, but I sensed a tragedy. Someone had died in the process.

"Doesn't someone die in every Greek story?" Magnus had gathered. "I get the feeling newly minted ones get no better a treatment."

Thalia pursed up her lips and decided against informing him this blade wasn't new at all. It's original owner had used it to destroy Ouranos.

Luke whistled to one of his men, who threw him a round leather-and-bronze shield.

He grinned at me wickedly.

"Luke," Annabeth said, "at least give him a shield."

"You must love she hasn't tried to scold either of you for fighting," Will said conversationally. "No, no, keep the fight fair boys."

"A great warrior indeed," Percy grinned, but it wasn't very confident. She was rooting for him to win...right? And yet, would she ever forgive him if he mortally wounded Luke?

"Sorry, Annabeth," he said. "You bring your own equipment to this party."

"Tell Annabeth to toss you her hat," Jason pointed out, "same rules as he just used."

"I can't ask her to do that," Percy whispered. He was already worried about the outcome of this, the less she was involved on every level except escape, the better.

The shield was a problem. Fighting two-handed with just a sword gives you more power, but fighting one-handed with a shield gives you better defense and versatility. There are more moves, more options, more ways to kill. I thought back to Chiron, who'd told me to stay at camp no matter what, and learn to fight. Now I was going to pay for not listening to him.

Magnus and Jason exchanged excited looks about Chiron showing up any second to scold Percy about this in person, it was perfect! He'd already been mentioned in Florida, and what else could that chapter title mean?

Percy frowned at the two geeking out this much over his teacher giving out an 'I told you so', if he ever saw him again.

Luke lunged and almost killed me on the first try. His sword went under my arm, slashing through my shirt and grazing my ribs.

Percy rubbed at the graze now and looked around, waiting for someone to start laughing at him or make reet, reet noises. None did. They seemed surprised, worried even. He'd faced monsters and gods without a scratch, who was Luke to be doing this...

I jumped back, then counterattacked with Riptide, but Luke slammed my blade away with his shield.

"My, Percy," Luke chided. "You're out of practice."

He came at me again with a swipe to the head. I parried, returned with a thrust. He sidestepped easily.

The cut on my ribs stung. My heart was racing. When Luke lunged again, I jumped backward into the swimming pool and felt a surge of strength. I spun underwater, creating a funnel cloud, and blasted out of the deep end, straight at Luke's face.

The force of the water knocked him down, spluttering and blinded. But before I could strike, he rolled aside and was on his feet again.

Will was reading as calm and steady as ever as if he didn't notice Percy was having some invisible fight with a game controller, his hands and feet in constant movement, his whole body twisting and moving from a fight he was trying his hardest not to be a part of. He'd yet dealt a real blow back to Luke and the only thing he could let himself focus on was if the others had made it off that ship.

I attacked and sliced off the edge of his shield, but that didn't even faze him. He dropped to a crouch and jabbed at my legs.

Percy hissed, his adrenaline momentarily disrupted by clamping his hands down on his leg at the remembered pain instead of throwing the might of the ocean into Luke's face!

Suddenly my thigh was on fire, with a pain so intense I collapsed. My jeans were ripped above the knee. I was hurt. I didn't know how badly. Luke hacked downward and I rolled behind a deck chair. I tried to stand, but my leg wouldn't take the weight.

"Perrrrrcy!" Grover bleated.

Thalia grabbed Percy's wrist and squeezed tight to stop him choking Will out. "It's okay Percy, you know he's okay," she fervently reminded.

His best friend had been through so much, exchanging one hostage situation for another in mere hours and Percy felt like a failure as he went limp in his seat. He'd lost. He'd let them all down...

I rolled again as Luke's sword slashed the deck chair in half, metal pipes and all.

"Someone's not having fun on the pool deck," Percy muttered, the rapid fire part of his brain remembering the pink towel underneath he'd leapt away from, the scent of sunscreen and blood in the air. He wondered if that family was somehow still alive while he fought for his own.

I clawed toward the swimming pool, trying hard not to black out. I'd never make it. Luke knew it, too. He advanced slowly, smiling. The edge of his sword was tinged with red.

"One thing I want you to watch before you die, Percy." He looked at the bear-man Oreius, who was still holding Annabeth and Grover by the necks. "You can eat your dinner now, Oreius. Bon appetit."

Thalia's nails dug in tight, on any other person she would have broken skin as she flashed with a murderous outrage of her own she was forced not to act on. Some piece of her would never believe Luke would idly stand by and watch something terrible happen to Annabeth, let alone give the order. That same part was now dwindling into a twisted black mess as she slowly released Percy's wrist, but her fingers just contracted into a useless fist on nobody in here.

"He-he! He-he!" The bear-man lifted my friends and bared his teeth.

That's when all Hades broke loose.

"Did Hades change his mind about killing you?" Alex asked in surprise.

"Just what I need, more skeletons," Percy was blinking like a bright light was in his eyes though.

Whish!

A red-feathered arrow sprouted from Oreius's mouth. With a surprised look on his hairy face, he crumpled to the deck.

"The Hunters?" Percy asked in confusion, looking at Thalia.

"Were you not paying attention?" Jason demanded in shock. "How did you miss a word of this?"

"Well I'm so sorry I don't have attention perfection disorder instead," he huffed.

"Rescue," Thalia quickly intervened, "that's the important part here. Go on Will!"

"Brother!" Agrius wailed. He let the pegasus's reins go slack just long enough for the black steed to kick him in the head and fly away free over Miami Bay.

"Now that's a noble steed," Magnus said in delight.

For a split second, Luke's guards were too stunned to do anything except watch the bear twins' bodies dissolve into smoke.

Then there was a wild chorus of war cries and hooves thundering against metal. A dozen centaurs charged out of the main stairwell.

"Ponies!" Tyson cried with delight.

My mind had trouble processing everything I saw.

Percy sympathized with his past self, it wasn't any better remembering, nor having it second hand described with how chaotic these creatures who were so unlike Chiron could be, while his mentor was mixed in made it all the more eccentric.

Chiron was among the crowd, but his relatives were almost nothing like him. There were centaurs with black Arabian stallion bodies, others with gold palomino coats, others with orange-and-white spots like paint horses.

Some wore brightly colored T-shirts with Day-Glo letters that said PARTY PONIES: SOUTH FLORIDA CHAPTER. Some were armed with bows, some with baseball bats, some with paintball guns. One had his face painted like a Comanche warrior and was waving a large orange Styrofoam hand making a big Number I.

"So, for once, I would have accepted the answer of both to our game," Alex whispered in Magnus's ear.

"Good to know who you break the rules for," Magnus grinned back, "I'll be sure to find that centaur and tell him."

Another was bare-chested and painted entirely green. A third had googly-eye glasses with the eyeballs bouncing around on Slinky coils, and one of those baseball caps with soda-can-and-straw attachments on either side.

They exploded onto the deck with such ferocity and color that for a moment even Luke was stunned. I couldn't tell whether they had come to celebrate or attack.

"Why not both?" Will asked sincerely, it really was what they were best known for.

Apparently both.

"You don't get credit for that, knowing this already," but Nico was smiling at how proud of himself Will seemed for quoting the book.

"I'm sure I can find some way to get extra credit down the road then," Will shrugged.

As Luke was raising his sword to rally his troops, a centaur shot a custom made arrow with a leather boxing glove on the end.

"I wonder who his favorite superhero is," Magnus snorted in delight.

It smacked Luke in the face and sent him crashing into the swimming pool.

'I know he's mine now,' Hearth cheered, 'you think if I made one he'd sign it for me?' Making Magnus laugh all the harder.

His warriors scattered. I couldn't blame them. Facing the hooves of a rearing stallion is scary enough, but when it's a centaur, armed with a bow and whooping it up in a soda-drinking hat, even the bravest warrior would retreat.

"Can confirm," Jason assured.

"And who are you to claim being the bravest warrior?" Percy rolled his eyes.

"A man with confidence," Jason smirked.

Percy wasn't impressed, but he was a little jealous. Wasn't the guy as blank on his past as him?

"Come get some!" yelled one of the party ponies.

They let loose with their paintball guns. A wave of blue and yellow exploded against Luke's warriors, blinding them and splattering them from head to toe. They tried to run, only to slip and fall.

Chiron galloped toward Annabeth and Grover, neatly plucked them off the deck, and deposited them on his back.

Percy breathed a sigh of relief for that at least and even exchanged a smile with Thalia. It was nice they weren't the first to be rescued, even when he was the one bleeding to death.

I tried to get up, but my wounded leg still felt like it was on fire.

Luke was crawling out of the pool.

"Attack, you fools.'" he ordered his troops. Somewhere down below deck, a large alarm bell thrummed.

I knew any second we would be swamped by Luke's reinforcements. Already, his warriors were getting over their surprise, coming at the centaurs with swords and spears drawn.

Tyson slapped half a dozen of them aside, knocking them over the guardrail into Miami Bay.

But more warriors were coming up the stairs.

"Withdraw, brethren!" Chiron said.

Jason bit his lip uneasily at the call. It was the right one, better to take this victory and retreat, regroup, but the nagging worry bothered him. If this surprise attack of highly formidable creatures hadn't even made a dent in this army, what was going to be capable of stopping Luke?

"You won't get away with this, horse man!" Luke shouted. He raised his sword, but got smacked in the face with another boxing glove arrow, and sat down hard in a deck chair.

"Revenge from its brethren," Nico smirked.

"No chair shall ever let him forget it," Jason chuckled.

A palomino centaur hoisted me onto his back. "Dude, get your big friend!"

"Tyson!" I yelled. "Come on!"

Tyson dropped the two warriors he was about to tie into a knot and jogged after us.

"A sad but valid need for interrupting that very important work," Alex nodded.

He jumped on the centaur's back.

"Dude!" the centaur groaned, almost buckling under Tyson's weight. "Do the words 'low-carb diet' mean anything to you?"

"Depends on what you call an all peanut butter diet?" Percy was rubbing absently at his leg without a care as he beamed for his little brother getting to live out his dream right then of finally riding on a 'pony.' The smile on his face was almost worth the multiple stab wounds.

Luke's warriors were organizing themselves into a phalanx. But by the time they were ready to advance, the centaurs had galloped to the edge of the deck and fearlessly jumped the guardrail, as if it were a steeplechase and not ten stories above the ground. I was sure we were going to die.

"I've been confident of that several times," Will chuckled, "you've yet managed it."

"And you're always telling us not to tempt the fates," Nico scoffed in agreement.

We plummeted toward the docks, but the centaurs hit the asphalt with hardly a jolt and galloped off, whooping and yelling taunts at the Princess Andromeda as we raced into the streets of downtown Miami.

I have no idea what the Miamians thought as we galloped by.

"Circus," Alex offered.

"A really strange motorcycle gang," Jason shrugged.

"The clowns taking over a rodeo," Thalia said with confidence and a snap of her fingers, and then a smug look at Percy.

He had no clue why, but he gave her a finger back for good measure.

Streets and buildings began to blur as the centaurs picked up speed. It felt as if space were compacting—as if each centaur step took us miles and miles. In no time, we'd left the city behind. We raced through marshy fields of high grass and ponds and stunted trees.

Finally, we found ourselves in a trailer park at the edge of a lake. The trailers were all horse trailers, tricked out with televisions and mini-refrigerators and mosquito netting. We were in a centaur camp.

Magnus whistled in surprise at the idea, wondering how welcoming they were to homeless people stumbling into them. Did they invite them in for a drink and a rest, in-between the near death stunts?

"Dude!" said a party pony as he unloaded his gear. "Did you see that bear guy? He was all like: 'Whoa, I have an arrow in my mouth!'"

The centaur with the googly-eye glasses laughed. "That was awesome! Head slam!"

The two centaurs charged at each other full-force and knocked heads, then went staggering off in different directions with crazy grins on their faces.

"I've finally found the ancient ancestral act of this," Thalia said, "and I wish it had gone extinct."

"But then what would the jockeys do to wake up their brain cells?" Alex rolled his eyes.

Chiron sighed. He set Annabeth and Grover down on a picnic blanket next to me. "I really wish my cousins wouldn't slam their heads together. They don't have the brain cells to spare."

"Ooh, Chiron burn," Percy smirked, "never thought I'd hear that."

"Chiron," I said, still stunned by the fact that he was here. "You saved us."

He gave me a dry smile. "Well now, I couldn't very well let you die, especially since you've cleared my name."

"Is that all it takes to get a rescue from him?" Will chuckled.

"I don't think that's permission to set him up for something else," Nico mock rolled his eyes.

"Darn, there goes Connor's plans for the summer," Will sighed.

"But how did you know where we were?" Annabeth asked.

"Advanced planning, my dear. I figured you would wash up near Miami if you made it out of the Sea of Monsters alive. Almost everything strange washes up near Miami."

"Wow teach, tell me how you really feel," Magnus was laughing all the same for whatever the reason.

"Gee, thanks," Grover mumbled.

"No, no," Chiron said. "I didn't mean ... Oh, never mind. I am glad to see you, my young satyr. The point is, I was able to eavesdrop on Percy's Iris-message and trace the signal. Iris and I have been friends for centuries. I asked her to alert me to any important communications in this area. It then took no effort to convince my cousins to ride to your aid. As you see, centaurs can travel quite fast when we wish to. Distance for us is not the same as distance for humans."

I looked over at the campfire, where three party ponies were teaching Tyson to operate a paintball gun.

"That's a terrifying idea," Will frowned. "What's next, monsters with assault rifles?"

"Those already exist," Nico muttered.

"I think it's cool," Jason smiled, "I call him on the next capture the flag game." No one really wanted to know what Jason would be loading that paintball gun with considering that diabolical smile.

"Like hell, he'd be on my team!" Percy protested.

Thalia cleared her throat loudly and waved Will to keep going before this escalated.

I hoped they knew what they were getting into.

"So what now?" I asked Chiron. "We just let Luke sail away? He's got Kronos aboard that ship. Or parts of him, anyway."

"So who's going to announce the countdown for the ship getting blown up?" Alex asked enthusiastically, though Percy wasn't the only one who winced, Will did too. Alex pursed up his lips and resisted the urge to keep asking, even as he exchanged a concerned look with Magnus why that could ever be considered a bad thing.

Chiron knelt, carefully folding his front legs underneath him. He opened the medicine pouch on his belt and started to treat my wounds.

"Oh good," Thalia snorted, "I was starting to wonder if he was just going to let you bleed out while expositioning."

"I'd rather bleed out than hear what I already know," Percy said tragically.

"I'm afraid, Percy, that today has been something of a draw. We didn't have the strength of numbers to take that ship. Luke was not organized enough to pursue us. Nobody won."

"But we got the Fleece!" Annabeth said. "Clarisse is on her way back to camp with it right now."

Chiron nodded, though he still looked uneasy. "You are all true heroes. And as soon as we get Percy fixed up, you must return to Half-Blood Hill. The centaurs shall carry you."

"You're coming, too?" I asked.

"Oh yes, Percy. I'll be relieved to get home. My brethren here simply do not appreciate Dean Martin's music.

"Someone you should endeavor to look in on," Will gave Nico a hopeful look, "he's Italian, maybe you and Chiron can have a karaoke night."

Nico gave an unimpressed smile now and thought Will wouldn't think himself so clever if he just asked Chiron for another boombox to take into Tartarus incase he needed to scare away more monsters.

Besides, I must have some words with Mr. D. There's the rest of the summer to plan. So much training to do. And I want to see ... I'm curious about the Fleece."

Percy looked from Thalia to the book and back several times like he'd developed a bad twitch. He'd been wrong about Luke, but his doubt had made him think the worst of Tyson when he should have trusted his instincts about this little brother. He didn't want to do the same again about Thalia...maybe he even did want her to be the child of Prophecy.

I didn't know exactly what he meant, but it made me worried about what Luke had said: I was going to let you take the Fleece ... once I was done with it.

Had he just been lying? I'd learned with Kronos there was usually a plan within a plan. The titan lord wasn't called the Crooked One for nothing. He had ways of getting people to do what he wanted without them ever realizing his true intentions.

Over by the campfire, Tyson let loose with his paintball gun. A blue projectile splattered against one of the centaurs, hurling him backward into the lake. The centaur came up grinning, covered in swamp muck and blue paint, and gave Tyson two thumbs up.

"You're little brother is in heaven right now," Thalia gave him a winning smile to which he had no doubts in.

"Annabeth," Chiron said, "perhaps you and Grover would go supervise Tyson and my cousins before they, ah, teach each other too many bad habits?"

"I've heard nothing but good things from all of this," Alex scoffed, "if he wanted them to leave, at least be subtle!"

Annabeth met his eyes. Some kind of understanding passed between them.

"Sure, Chiron," Annabeth said. "Come on, goat boy."

"But I don't like paintball."

"Yes, you do." She hoisted Grover to his hooves and led him off toward the campfire.

"That satyr has been punished enough for a lifetime," Will huffed, "let him go find some tin cans and get some rest for peats sake."

"The part of the story that always gets glossed over," Nico agreed in amusement, "naptime should definitely be in order." Percy hadn't always been the prefect hero, Annabeth didn't have all the answers, but it was nice to think some things he'd always thought about camp were still true. Will probably had hauled in Grover and locked him into a bed when he got back for just this.

Chiron finished bandaging my leg. "Percy, I had a talk with Annabeth on the way here. A talk about the prophecy."

Uh-oh, I thought.

"It wasn't her fault," I said. "I made her tell me."

"Yes, you held your sword point to her and demanded it," Jason raised a brow, "you absolutely did not logic your way into her spilling the beans."

"Like Chiron would have believed that either," Percy scoffed, "this was faster."

His eyes flickered with irritation. I was sure he was going to chew me out,

"A legit worry with two stomachs to contend with," Alex nodded seriously.

but then his look turned to weariness.

"Thankfully the nonlethal one won," Percy sighed.

"I wonder which that is though?" Magnus grinned. "Horses are plenty deadly, so it probably was the human teeth set in."

"You guys are dragging this out way to much," Thalia told them with an unseemly grimace, she did not need the mental image of Chiron switching out dentures for his meals!

"I suppose I could not expect to keep it secret forever."

"So am I the one in the prophecy?"

Chiron tucked his bandages back into his pouch. "I wish I knew, Percy. You're not yet sixteen. For now we must simply train you as best we can, and leave the future to the Fates."

The Fates. I hadn't thought about those old ladies in a long time, but as soon as Chiron mentioned them, some-thing clicked.

"That's what it meant," I said.

Chiron frowned. "That's what what meant?"

"Last summer. The omen from the Fates, when I saw them snip somebody's life string. I thought it meant I was going to die right away, but it's worse than that. It's got something to do with your prophecy. The death they foretold—it's going to happen when I'm sixteen."

Chiron's tail whisked nervously in the grass. "My boy, you can't be sure of that. We don't even know if the prophecy is about you."

Percy's face settled into a grim expression for several daunting moments. The others all braced themselves for something, the room to bend to his power again, Percy to start screaming in pain as he remembered something, but he exhaled quickly enough and waved Will on. Still, the uncomfortable look lingered, and Percy knew he was still missing something. Maybe even something Chiron and Annabeth themselves didn't know about all of this.

"But there isn't any other half-blood child of the Big Three!"

"That we know of."

It took little effort for Nico to school his features and pretend he'd heard nothing of importance, he was used to being overlooked, and that had been plenty true at the time. He actually found himself smiling for a moment as the four not in the know glanced to Thalia, and back to the book. For the first time down here, he actually wasn't looking forward to these books ending. Anonymity was nice.

"And Kronos is rising. He's going to destroy Mount Olympus!"

"He will try," Chiron agreed. "And Western Civilization along with it, if we don't stop him. But we will stop him. You will not be alone in that fight."

A smile came naturally to Percy's face for that assured knowledge, but he still had an uneasy feeling about this matter. This prophecy mess made him almost wish the Camp would abandon him to this for a moment so nobody else would die like Tyson almost had, even if he knew he'd never make it alone.

I knew he was trying to make me feel better, but I remembered what Annabeth had told me. It would come down to one hero. One decision that would save or destroy the West. And I felt sure the Fates had been giving me some kind of warning about that. Something terrible was going to happen, either to me or to somebody I was close to.

That same shadow passed over Percy's face again, and they recognized it this time as grief. For a knowledge he no longer knew about, but a tormented memory none the less trying to overwhelm him. He worried at it now, not wanting to let go of the answer. Annabeth was tied into this key, something had happened he knew he must remember-

"Percy," Thalia said in a very long suffering kind of voice as she glared at the pile of books still to come before smacking his knee. "Don't force it," she finished sharply.

"Right," he jolted back to the here and now, still rubbing his temple, still wishing he could tear into all of those now and just find the one stupid page that would make all of this make sense, but he knew he couldn't. Even the ocean might not heal that, and if his father had wanted him to, he would have appeared here to do it himself without all the run around. There was something in these books he had to wait for.

Boy was he not the patient one.

"I'm just a kid, Chiron," I said miserably. "What good is one lousy hero against something like Kronos?"

Chiron managed a smile. '"What good is one lousy hero'? Joshua Lawrence Chamberlain said something like that to me once, just before he single-handedly changed the course of your Civil War."

"Let me guess, child of Hermes," Magnus sighed, finally convinced nothing would surprise him anymore.

He pulled an arrow from his quiver and turned the razor-sharp tip so it glinted in the firelight.

"Celestial bronze, Percy. An immortal weapon. What would happen if you shot this at a human?"

"Nothing," I said. "It would pass right through."

"The fletching and all?" Magnus's eyes glazed over in confusion for a moment as he imagined the immortal weapon on one side of him and the shaft stuck right through the middle. The weapon might just be the tip, but the rest of that could still hurt someone!

'Intent matters,' Hearth seemed to be saying that's exactly what would happen though as he shrugged.

"That's right," he said. "Humans don't exist on the same level as the immortals. They can't even be hurt by our weapons. But you, Percy—you are part god, part human. You live in both worlds. You can be harmed by both, and you can affect both. That's what makes heroes so special. You carry the hopes of humanity into the realm of the eternal. Monsters never die. They are reborn from the chaos and barbarism that is always bubbling underneath civilization, the very stuff that makes Kronos stronger. They must be defeated again and again, kept at bay.

Alex and Magnus exchanged amused looks. Hearth would swear Alex mouthed a name, but he couldn't follow exactly how that translated to dumbdoor.

Heroes embody that struggle. You fight the battles humanity must win, every generation, in order to stay human. Do you understand?"

It was a hopeless speech made to someone who would never give up, so Will somehow made it sound empowering. Every hero in that room straightened just a little in their seat in a silent promise those words would be true for them.

"I ... I don't know."

"You must try, Percy. Because whether or not you are the child of the prophecy, Kronos thinks you might be. And after today, he will finally despair of turning you to his side. That is the only reason he hasn't killed you yet, you know. As soon as he's sure he can't use you, he will destroy you."

"You talk like you know him."

Chiron pursed his lips. "I do know him."

I stared at him. I sometimes forgot just how old Chiron was. "Is that why Mr. D blamed you when the tree was poisoned? Why you said some people don't trust you?"

"Indeed."

"But, Chiron ... I mean, come on! Why would they think you'd ever betray the camp for Kronos?"

Chiron's eyes were deep brown, full of thousands of years of sadness. "Percy, remember your training. Remember your study of mythology. What is my connection to the titan lord?"

I tried to think, but I'd always gotten my mythology mixed up. Even now, when it was so real, so important to my own life, I had trouble keeping all the names and facts straight. I shook my head. "You, uh, owe Kronos a favor or something? He spared your life?"

"Percy," Chiron said, his voice impossibly soft. "The titan Kronos is my father."

"So?" Percy's scowl was ready to defend his teacher from anybody in here who had a problem with that. "That still never should have put any of this at Chiron's fault."

"Zeus wouldn't even admit Kronos was coming back, so it's still a piss poor excuse to kick him out," Alex agreed testily.

"Nobody at camp really got it either," Will soothingly agreed.

Alex watched Magnus carefully to see what he thought of that kind of news, but he just looked pained as he said, "man, that cannot be fun to live with. Hope Annabeth doesn't have that in common with him." He'd never found out why she left home again this time and was very worried his Uncle Fredrick was still making her life miserable just like that Crooked One was to his kid.

Nico watched Will hand the book to Jason still feeling a little baffled at the underwhelming response. He found it hard to believe not a single person at that Camp had really not blamed the centaur for his fathers actions, but Will was a nice guy. Maybe he just hadn't heard any of the bad rumors, or wasn't sharing them.

PJOPJOPJOPJO

*Question that has bothered me for years, is this supposed to be Blackjack? Percy says in the next book this is the same horse from Luke's ship yet Blackjack's male, when this is a mare. Did Rick change his mind and change the horse's gender, or were there more pegasi that escaped and Blackjack stuck around, which seems least likely as none others were mentioned. If the first, why not just keep Blackjack female? I'm so confused by this unimportant change.

My ultimate conclusion is Blackjack was the first genderfluid character and we never got to see any of Blackjack's feminine days. Sorry Alex.

#Percy Jackson #pjo #reading the books #fanfiction #percabeth #Thalia Grace #Jason Grace #Nico di Angelo #Will Solace #solangelo #Hearthstone #Alex Fierro #Magnus Chase #HDYSG

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dontcallthedoctor · 28 days ago

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My life has been pretty low-key so far, so I'll tell y'all abt a dream I had a couple years ago that's forever stuck with me:

I was playing basketball with, apparently, friends of mine. This was odd for two reasons; Not only do I not play basketball, but none of my friends do either. We were playing in an area that, irl, is occupied by a water park, but in this dream was just an open field with a basketball court in it. Or maybe the court was adjacent to the park? I don't remember.

The sun was setting behind us, hanging over the trees that border the park. After a short while of playing, I decided to head home.

I ran out onto a highway that runs through my city, dodging cars left and right, and just before I reached the other side, I realized “OH SHIT, I DON’T KNOW WHERE MY MOM IS.” and flew into a panic, because apparently, she had taken off in her car without me for some reason, so I started running back across the road.

I flagged down a random car (I think it was some dark blue sedan?), hopped in, and met the secondary character of this story; Peter (or Pierre, I can’t recall). He was a bald black guy who was a fuckin’ dead ringer for Shaq. He dressed kinda like Jerry Seinfeld, with a blue polo and jeans. After I very quickly explained my situation, Peter agreed to drive and follow my mother’s car so I could alert her where I was.

However, the one downside to Peter was that he was obsessed with some Pokémon-esque trading card series. He went on and on about it as we drove, detailing everything about it to me and shoving cards in my face as he explained what character did what and who as who. I remember trying to act interested.

About a minute later, as we passed a Burger King and came to a stop at the light, I saw my mom’s car dead ahead of us. I remember my grandma, who was still alive at the time, being in the passenger’s seat. I remember frantically pointing this out to Peter and both of us trying to get their attention.

Somehow, me and Peter ended up in what was pretty much the Backrooms but with a more modern aesthetic to it. Instead of monotone yellow wallpaper and brown carpet, both the walls and carpet were white. Like your standard apartment hallway. I remember there being a few blind-covered windows spread throughout. They offered most of the light because the overheads weren't super bright.

After some oddly-frantic navigating of the maze of rooms (I remember us running for whatever reason), we came across this larger, homey "kitchen" area, where we finally found my mom and my grandma. Naturally, we were happy to see each other.

The "kitchen" I remember being very scant in terms of appliances. Maybe there was a fridge or smth. The floor was a super dark green marble I remember, as were the counter tops.

More people (I don’t remember identities) materialized out of nowhere, as did food for my mother (and my other grandmother) to prepare. Peter, having fulfilled his duty, high-fived the top of a doorframe, and left.

I milled around for a little while. It felt like a family reunion, everyone seemed to know each other. I was the odd one out. I felt invisible, but didn't mind.

As everybody was enjoying themselves, I decided to go off and explore some. I entered a side room off of the kitchen area (which I think Peter left through), which turned out to be an empty dining area. It sort of reminded me of a small diner in the town where my grandma lives when she was still around. Chairs were packed up onto the tables and the lights were off, as if it had closed up shop for the day. I could see because of a large drape-covered window in the back, the light from “outside” shining from underneath.

I entered another side room off of the diner, and entered a series of short hallways, and came to one with two doors, one of them open. I entered and found myself in a sort-of hotel bedroom-looking room with a lamp that was on (also I think there were clothes on the bed and the bed was unmade?), and if I remember correctly, I entered another side room off of this bedroom which led to another hallway.

I turned right and after turning another corner, I came across a blocked doorway. There was just a white wall inside the doorframe where the door should be. I couldn’t find a way to move it, so I started retracing my steps back to where the people were, and that’s about when I woke up.

Smth tells me that this dream was influenced by The Stanley Parable (which I was hella into at the time and still am), because there's an ending in that game that very closely mirrors how my dream ended. Now that I think about it, I think I've had more than one dream where I reach a dead and and start to turn back, only for it all to end. As Bart Simpson once said, "really makes you think".

@mikiib @fervent-o-nine WHATCHA GOT FELLAS??

it's so weird to me that everyone on this website is a human person outside of their weird internet niche so rb this with a random bit of your lore

#a dream i had #dream story

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sapphic-scylla · 10 months ago

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P5R Teammates (Favored to Less Favored)

I’m not stopping. I’m on a hyperfixation kick and you can’t stop me. We are basing this on how much I use this companion and the usefulness I feel this companion brings to my personal play style. I also won’t be including Futaba because she would take top spot and she doesn’t really fill the same role as the rest of the squad.

Yusuke Kitagawa: A lot of people prefer Ryuji over Yusuke due to the damage difference. Truth is that Yusuke and Ryuji are the difference between a barbarian and a monk. Both are tanks, but in different ways. I prefer Yusuke because not only is he voiced by Matt Mercer, but he also makes for a VERY good dodge tank that can also deal out loads of damage in groups or on a single target. Plus, he has a way of avoiding critical hits that Ryuji really just struggles with.

Yoshizawa: Look, I’m a DEX fighter, okay? I like agile, artistic, creative fight styles. That and she compliments my Curse magic/high crit fight style. Adding in that she can increase critical rate and has a support move, it just sucks she appears so late game because I vibe with her abilities a lot.

Makoto Niijima: My anchor. She doesn’t do a ton of damage compared to the Top 2 spots, but every team has to have a support. And considering she gets both a full team defense buff and a full team heal, she definitely keeps me alive.

Ann Takamaki: I think she fills a role that’s very underrated and she really sets up a solid niche combo that not a lot of people build into. A lot of her abilities are set around High Magic Damage and Ailments. Her only downside is her lack of variety which frustrates me, but she’s great at teeing up Baton Pass combos for Joker.

Ryuji Sakamoto: The Physical Dreadnaught. I love him and I’ll switch him in with my top 4 pretty regularly, but he and I don’t mix well. And it’s not a kit thing, I don’t think. It’s a luck thing. Not the stat, just he is an inconvenience when he shouldn’t be. Trust me, I love his damage capabilities and his tactics mesh with mine, but if he could just get on the stick in terms of not getting crit at the worst times, not dropping at the worst moments, and not getting focused down almost immediately in every fight, that would be great. Dude literally got criticaled 4 consecutive times when I was fighting the Twins, causing me to lose my buffs. That and he has a very late spin-up in my opinion where he gets all of his good stuff like Agneyastra and God’s Hand at level 70-75-ish whereas Yusuke is pretty damn solid from the jump.

Haru Okumura: A surprise to see her down this far. And I do really enjoy her as a teammate, but I genuinely feel like she suffers from success. Too much good stuff put onto one character, forcing you to pick and choose from too many important things. And considering you have too little space, she is INCREDIBLY good and there has to be balance somewhere, but it would have been nice to spread the love around.

Goro Akechi: Truly would be a solid usable option and his Showtime with Joker is fire, but he overstacks on my favored affinities and favored teammates. Being that both Ryuji and Yusuke can match him in damage despite not having Almighty skills and Akechi only shows up for two Palaces, I just have so many better options at that point that it seems like I’m overdoing it at that point to go THAT all-in. He’s useful in very niche fights where I really need to go all in on damage without setup, but me and Yoshizawa usually cover that late game, so really, he’s overkill for how I stack myself.

Morgana: I mean come on. I know. Great support. Fantastic skills. Salvation and Samerecarm, but I really can’t get over how insufferable he is as a character in the first half of the game. Up until Okumura’s Palace, he’s an ego trip. And apparently, if Mona isn’t with me, I just can’t go anywhere for a week straight (yes, it’s practically a week. I counted). He also doesn’t have great stats and doesn’t really put out the damage you want him to when it really matters (Twins and Lavenza). Obviously, you have to build into him, but when Makoto and Sumire can both also heal and wreck house, it’s like why take the cat? Also, Quetzalcoatl and Ishtar can do what Mona can do and better if they want to, so really why take him.

#persona 5 royal #phantom thieves

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incomingalbatross · 2 years ago

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The thing about Ezekiel Jones is that there a couple obvious directions you can go with the cynical, vocally-selfish-yet-charming rogue of the party.

You can make his detachment and cynicism purely the product of circumstances and reveal there’s a deathlessly loyal romantic very slightly under the surface, even if he didn’t believe it himself. This is the Han Solo and Eugene Fitzherbert route.

You can also have him actively yearning for love/connection/trust/worth, but perpetually doomed by his Criminal Inclinations to break every chance he’s given and/or be forever distrusted by the people he’s attached himself to. This is the angstier if more self-aware route, popular with Neal Caffrey and probably others I’m forgetting.

...But Ezekiel took all of that “cocky self-seeking thief who sticks around anyway” setup and somehow effortlessly dodged both these routes, because I guess he’s too awesome for angst or something. Because Ezekiel’s code is, apparently, “do what makes me happy,” like many rogues... but he’s willing to actually see what makes him happy, so it mostly works. Doing good things makes him happy! Being the hero makes him happy! Being around his friends makes him happy! So he’ll do that!

Now, the thing most rogues do see is that all of these sources of happiness will involve suffering at some point, so Type 1 has to be convinced that it’s worth it and Type 2 often fails to hold on to said happiness because they can’t face the downsides. Ezekiel... I think honestly believes that he can dodge any negative consequences, if he really wants to. Which means he doesn’t usually try to hold himself apart from the group or their causes—he doesn’t keep one foot out the door, because he assumes if he wants to make a break for it, it won’t matter how deep in he is.

He’s an honest rogue, and usually that doesn’t work—or it only works because they’re very deluded about their own attachments. But Ezekiel is only deluded (if it even counts as a delusion, considering his archetype powers) about his own ability to avoid negative consequences for his decisions. He’s remarkably clear-eyed about the decisions themselves!

But ALSO this means he’s sincere when he says he’s flat-out unwilling to do anything that's Not Fun. Usually when rogues say that it’s at least a little bit of a pose, but Ezekiel is just being up-front about it. Again, he will do things he doesn’t feel like doing if he’s pushed hard enough, but outside of “actively being forced” he usually feels no obligation to do anything he doesn’t feel like doing. This is why he avoids responsibilities and obligations—they are often Not Fun in themselves, but they also sign you for more not-fun things down the road! Ezekiel wants perpetual opt-out power in everything, even if he doesn’t often use it (because usually there is an immediately obvious purpose to whatever he’s being asked to do).

He wants to be a hero, because who wouldn’t, but he specifically wants to be the Rule-Breaking Maverick who can do whatever he wants because there’s an Actual Authority Figure behind a desk somewhere who will deal with everything else.

...All of which is why “And the Point of Salvation” was such a good device for breaking him. Because he COULD NOT GET OUT. And he couldn’t hand off the responsibility for the team AT ALL.

#groundhog day plots my beloved #long post #i guess #trying to figure out what's going on in ezekiel's head is a unique kind of adventure #because half the secret is that he just SAYS what's in his head!! who does that?#but also there's a special key inside there i think that you have to figure out for everything else to make SENSE #weirdo (extremely affectionate)#anyway he looked at the classic rogue options and said 'eh. too angsty' and just Opted Out #the librarians #ezekiel jones #a distraction of librarians

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kroklay · 1 year ago

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Definitely the Hunter for so many reasons.

The Hunter regains health when damaging enemies, making them far more survivable and aggressive than any other character.

The Hunter has the most powerful and easiest to use parry out of any other character (Wolf’s parry is functionally different, and I don’t consider it in the same category of ability), and when that parry is followed up with a visceral attack…

Visceral attacks can be buffed far more than critical hits in other souls games, can be utilized more frequently, and can heal the Hunter.

Transform attacks (I’m thinking mainly of Saw Cleaver/Spear) do frankly absurd damage and can hit many enemies in a wide area very fast. Other characters can only accomplish this level of crowd control with giant, heavy weapons, which swing slowly and don’t recover well.

The Hunter Tools are… fine

The Hunter also has the best healing of any character, having 20+ heal vials that restore 40%ish of their max HP and are readily available from (almost) any enemy. Though they can’t be used in quick succession like Estus can.

The Hunter’s guns kinda suck for damage, but with the right build: high bloodtinge, bone marrow ash, repeating pistol, etc. it is possible to deal immense damage (viscerals are better, but whatevs). Or use the cannon for some quick long range burst damage.

The Hunter has 2 different dodges, the quick dash dodge, and the long roll dodge. The length of the long roll might be enough to dodge some of the double hit boxes of Elden Ring boss attacks. And the short dash would be strong against the more dueling-type bosses.

Do not even get me started on Beast Blood Pellets. They are absurd. Comical. Up to +70% more physical damage. Insane. Coupled with fire/bolt paper, you can get outrageous damage. At max beasthood every hit deals close to 2000 damage, or even higher with enough optimization.

I’m not even getting into gems or Caryll runes because I don’t know much about them or how they relate to the other characters/games. They make the Hunter stronger, whatever, they don’t even need it.

The Hunter’s one big downside is they cannot backstab as easily as other characters, but that is negligible in the face of all the other benefits.

The Hunter is honestly too overpowered for their own game, much less one of the others. I don’t see how Bloodborne can even be difficult given how outrageously strong the Hunter is.

The only other character who comes close in power is Wolf because of his mobility and one-shot-stealth-deathblows. But he completely pales in comparison to the Hunter. And honestly he’s so mechanically different that it’s hard to rank him against these other characters.

I suppose the Tarnished is also quite strong given the sheer quantity of weapons, spells, talismans, and Great Runes at their use, but I think the Hunter is fundamentally stronger. Hell, the Tarnished needs Malenia’s Great Rune to even poorly mimic the Hunter’s Rally ability. Elden Ring is a much longer game, and as such the damage scaling and health gets much higher than in the other games, but I don’t think that’s what this poll is really about; but even if it was, the Hunter can reach even higher heights of health and especially damage (beast blood pellets are ridiculous) despite Bloodborne being one of the smallest and shortest games in the series. The Tarnished stands no chance.

I'm getting addicted to polls and I love interacting with you souls fans :)

#souls games #bloodborne #elden ring #dark souls #dark souls 2 #dark souls 3 #sekiro #soulsborne #beast blood pellets are ridiculous #rule #196 #r/196 #r196

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asukaskerian · 2 years ago

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Monthly word count - october

TOTAL: 2 804 ... wow. :| POSTED IN PROGRESS -ichigo/grimm&fraccion ABO (220 words) -bleach suburban ot4 (2 584 words) upside, i managed to plot out more of the madatobiizu ABO, so it's not gonna stay stuck the second i figure out how it starts. downside, i just. can't make myself sit down and write. it seems unless somebody's sitting on me and reminding me every other second that they're waiting for more then it just doesn't happen. and since i don't wanna spam people i've been offering less and less! and i've just not even wanted to get on the computer at all recently. it's annoying as fuck that i'm so out of touch with my highs and lows because the big symptom is being more "meh, who cares" than usual. ugh. UGH.

-- grimmichi ABO (mostly snippets here and there) -- He almost takes an arrow to the face. Black Zangetsu uses the distraction to zip off to the other end of the cliff, proving he can haul ass when he feels inclined. Around and around the gulley they go, dodging and slashing. He doesn't use his arrows again, but Grimmjow isn't too annoyed. He saw what they did to Mayuri and he's -- he's so hot he's dizzy with it, cunt pulsing all the way through his hips; his legs wobble the one time and Zangetsu notices. Fucking embarrassing. But then he slows down, like he's *taking pity*, so Grimmjow goes for it. -- bleach suburban ot4 -- Problem number two is the way something in his guts jumps to attention every time one of their guests pretends to flirt, as a joke, because it's *so unlikely* it's *funny,* Kurosaki, get your mind out of the fucking gutter. He already knew they were -- visually appealing. But he's never been the kind to make a move on someone based on nothing but a pretty face. But he knows them now. "What would your husband say if he saw us like this," Grimmjow intones as he helps Orihime get a bowl down from the highest shelf, lips quirked up in fond mockery. Orihime giggles. He's looking down at her and his voice isn't pitched to make extra-sure Ichigo knows he's the butt of the joke. It's Orihime he's teasing, not her husband. It feels... Ichigo doesn't have a cuckolding kink, he reminds himself firmly. ... He doesn't think he does, but he doesn't know what else to call it. "Himeeee the zipper got stuck!" Nelliel makes her way down the stairs in one of Orihime's old maternity dresses. It's a calf-length, pleated thing in lavender and pink and it should clash with her teal hair, but -- yeah, it looks good. Orihime rushes over to fiddle with the back of her dress. Ichigo pretends he's not watching, pretends he's not stupidly disappointed when she only lowers the zipper a couple inches and the dress stays right where it is, draped demurely on Nel's shoulders, cupping her breasts with loving bustier-like support, and right underneath flaring out in long pleats over her belly. "Mm, you're really good at getting me out of my clothes," Nel snickers. "You look so much prettier without them!" Orihime manages somehow to reply, eyelashes demurely lowered and blushing so hard her neck flushes too. Ichigo *doesn't have a cuckolding kink.* Nope. Nopenopenope.

#teaser

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jaeyunverse · 3 years ago

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enhypen in genshin impact

SUMMARY | a look into the members of enhypen if they were a part of the genshinverse.

WORD COUNT | 784

WARNING(S) | possible spoilers, me using a lil bit of my imagination

AUTHOR’S NOTE | hii this is a repost from my old account! you don’t have to agree w this headcanon since these are just my views on the topic. in fact, i would love to hear what you think and which member you would main if this was real :”) feedback is always appreciated <3

𝗹𝗲𝗲 𝗵𝗲𝗲𝘀𝗲𝘂𝗻𝗴

heeseung would probably have a hydro vision

he could pass for a 5* instead of a 4* considering how strong he is and how good his stats are (yes, xingqiu, i'm comparing heeseung to you)

wishing for his cons can get harder than wishing for 5*s

would be a polearm user

he would also be a very strong healer

everyone wants him because he can heal the other players in co-op no matter how far away they are

can also heal with normal attacks

would be one of the best supports

𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝗷𝗼𝗻𝗴𝘀𝗲𝗼𝗻𝗴

jay would probably command pyro

he would also be a claymore user and the npc everyone wants but can’t get because mihoyo is cruel that way

he’d be a 5* when and if he’s made playable

i’m starting to realise jay sounds a lot like diluc in this description

would have a mad strong shield so everyone’s fighting to death to get him

the only downside would be that the cooldown is 20 seconds

rip all the jay mains when your shield runs out during azhdaha and you need to dodge but can’t because you forgot how to

ok he sounds like zhongli now goodbye

like dainsleif, i imagine him to hail from khaeneri’ah

he probably helped the gods to destroy it too

𝘀𝗶𝗺 𝗷𝗮𝗲𝘆𝘂𝗻

i imagine jake to have a dendro vision

he’s the first dendro 5* to be released so everyone jumps at the chance to get him

mihoyo made the mistake of making him a broken character, so non-havers want him to be nerfed

would be a sword user or a claymore user with a very strong ult that has a pretty animation

i’m gonna use some of my imagination over here since there’s no dendro characters:

vines creep up from the ground when his ult is pressed. they envelope all enemies within a certain radius in a cocoon, rendering them completely immobile while also applying damage

afterwords, he can be switched with someone else to achieve elemental reactions, and multiply the damage

could pass for the dendro archon, but unfortunately, isn’t

𝗽𝗮𝗿𝗸 𝘀𝘂𝗻𝗴𝗵𝗼𝗼𝗻

sunghoon’s vision is pretty much a given

he’s obviously going to manipulate cryo

he’s also probably charming and elegant like kaeya, but could be part abyss mage or in league with the order for all we know

he’d be one of the strongest and most versatile 5*s, capable of taking almost every position on the team depending on how he’s built—carry, burst, support, shielder (after a certain talent is unlocked) and enabler

would either be a bow user or a catalyst user

he is one of the strongest fatui harbingers

many doubt that he is tsaritsa, the cryo archon, however there is not a lot of evidence that suggests the same

𝗸𝗶𝗺 𝘀𝘂𝗻𝗼𝗼

he’d have an anemo vision and be the anemo archon (sorry venti)

he’d be a sword user and a very strong healer

his ult is the strongest out of anyone else’s, oneshotting enemies straight out of teyvat in one single click

while he is an average character in terms of physical damage, he is one of the best supports in the entire game

he does wonders in the spiral abyss, though, and because everyone wants to own an archon and a character that gets them a shit ton of primos, he’s one of the most wanted 5*s

𝘆𝗮𝗻𝗴 𝗷𝘂𝗻𝗴𝘄𝗼𝗻

like the traveller, he’s able to manipulate all visions

however, he does not need to resonate with statues to do that

no one knows why he is given such an ability, and mihoyo certainly hasn’t dropped any hints

speculated to be the strongest character in the game

also a npc because, again, mihoyo is cruel

he’s said to remain non-playable for a long time, and will probably be released towards the end of the game

he’s also not from teyvat and neither from khaeneri’ah

lots of theories have been made by the fandom. a few make sense but most are complete bullshit

some people think he’s come from where the traveller has, some think he’s related to the traveller, whereas some think he is the god of all gods which is why he can control all visions

a few theories also suggest that he is the unknown god that separated the traveller and their sibling

𝗻𝗶𝘀𝗵𝗶𝗺𝘂𝗿𝗮 𝗿𝗶𝗸𝗶

niki has geo vision and is a part of the adepti

is a 5* and a catalyst user

he is not as strong as the other 5*s and a few 4*s, however if one had to lose their 50/50, it would be to him

he has opinions that are much similar to keqing’s

for those who don’t know what opinions keqing has, she thinks gods should not be able to determine her fate and that humans should take over liyue

does not want a vision but was still given one

would probably run to inazuma the first chance he gets and offer his vision to raiden

“i don’t care that the decree has been abolished; i don’t want my vision. take it! TAKE IT, I SAY!”

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yutahoes · 3 years ago

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Chances

characters: boyfriend! Yuta Nakamoto x Reader, Shotaro as Yuta’s cousin

word count : 2.5k words

summary : All you wanted was to be in his arms but the worst thing happened.

warning : cheating

genre : angst

This is an anon request where Yuta cheats on Y/N and I know this isn’t the idea you had in mind but it makes me uncomfortable to write a descriptive Yuta cheating scenario. So this deals with the feelings of catching him cheat and I do feel like this is somewhat lacking. I’m sorry and I love you, please don’t hate me. 😣

Being an in-demand photographer had its perks, you can travel to a lot of countries using the reason that you’re working. The downside is that you miss a lot of things, your parents, your friends, and your long-term boyfriend Yuta Nakamoto.

He had been there for you since the beginning, always supporting you and listening to your stories about the sceneries you see and wishing that you’re together. But he’s making his own mark in Japan, his hometown, where you two met years ago.

Now that you were given a week break, there’s only one destination you wanted to go to. Home. To Yuta’s arms.

You took the first flight to Osaka with just one luggage and a few things that you wanted to give Yuta’s family. The way to their home seemed different now but the tingling feeling of seeing him again isn’t new. It’s been months since you last saw each other and you wanted to surprise him. It’s been so long. You just want to be in his arms.

His younger cousin, Shotaro, opened the door and you beamed widely at his surprised face. “Why are you here, Y/N?” He asked and hugged you tight. “Why didn’t Yuta tell me you’re coming?”

“He doesn’t know either.” You whispered then handed him the things you shopped for. “Where is he?” Shotaro shrugged, looking at the bag. “Okaasan? Otousan?”

“They all left and I’m alone once again.” He said with a pout that made you smile. It was Shotaro who introduced you and Yuta together. You were helping him with his Math subject when he introduced his cousin and he acted as a wingman for the two of you. “Do you want to wait for them?”

You shook your head. You’re a bit sleepy. “Do you want to go get some coffee?” He nodded that made you smile, even claiming that there’s a famous coffee shop near town that is good to check out.

You were startled at first when he brought you to the red light district, a number of motels nearby scaring you but he just led the way and showed you a small Renaissance-inspired coffee shop that made you in awe. How can something this pretty be in this place? It wasn’t that full, maybe because of the weird placement of the shop, but it’s cozy.

He ordered for you and you eyed the interior of the restaurant, feeling really bad that you didn’t bring your camera. This will be a great magazine feature. Your gaze fell on the window outside, morning and there weren’t too many people around. You chuckled thinking that the only people you can spot are couples coming out from the motels nearby. Shotaro came back with a latte for you and a cappuccino for him, sitting opposite you. “I’ll tell Yuta that we’re here.” He said before getting his phone out.

A brown-haired guy in black clothes coming out of the motel caught your attention. Yuta? You can’t be mistaken. You knew his shadow, even the ends of his hair. A girl in skimpy clothes followed him outside, holding his arm as the other was holding a phone against his ear. You heard his voice asking Shotaro what it was, the same time the guy you were eyeing was talking to his phone. Even the car that honked in the background is the same one that made Shotaro turn around.

“Shotaro, I’m busy. I’ll call…” But it was Shotaro who dropped the call.

“It’s him, isn’t it?” He asked and you nodded, stunned that you discovered him like this. Outside a motel with someone else? “Y/N, let’s go kill my…”

You shook your head. “I’ll get my things from your house. I’ll just call for a hotel.”

“Y/N.” Again, you shook your head. You can’t deal with this now. You wanted to cry but you can’t cry. Shotaro kept asking you if you wanted him to go with you to the hotel but you shook your head, thanking him for not asking about it. “Y/N, maybe Yuta has a reason. He loves you, you know?”

Then why? What was his reason? Why did he come outside the motel, with another girl in his arms? Your relationship is fine, although long-distance, he made sure that you know that he loves you. So why? Is he sick of you?

The cab came, Shotaro helped in putting your luggage inside, when you heard his voice calling out your name. He looked so happy, so relieved that you’re here. But his clothes were the same as earlier, the clothes that the girl held on to. “Why didn’t you tell me you’re coming? Taro, bring out her luggage…”

“No, I’m leaving.” You gave the younger guy a nod and he just smiled at you before heading inside the house. “Why Yuta?”

He gave you a curious expression. “Why what?” He asked, reaching out for your shoulder but you dodged him. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?” The tears started welling in your eyes. “Why are you crying?”

Yuta stepped forward but you stepped back. Why isn’t he sorry? “Stop pretending. I saw you outside the motel with a girl. Even Shotaro saw you.” He looked surprised. You actually admired yourself for saying those things even if tears were falling from your eyes. “Why Yuta? Am I not enough?”

“Y/N.” He called, holding your arm. “I’m sorry.” But his voice was cold. All the warmth that was in Yuta’s voice is gone now.

What the others said is right. Relationships are like glass. Once broken, even if you put it together, you’ll still see the cracks. “You’re just sorry because you got caught.” He stared at the dirt on his feet that made you sigh. “Can I please at least know why?” It hurts but you demand to know the truth.

“I’m lonely.” He whispered. “You were far away and I’m stuck here. It made me really lonely, Y/N.” You covered your mouth with your hand to avoid making a choked sob. That’s it? He’s willing to throw away everything just because he’s lonely? “I’m sorry. Please give me another chance. I love you. I want to spend my life with you.” He held both your arms but you just shook him away. “Please. I won’t do it again. I’m stupid, please give me another chance.”

You slipped the promise ring from your finger, handing it to him. “Isn’t that enough reason to stop?” You swat his hand away then opened the door to the cab, sliding in the backseat.

In your hazy vision, you can see Yuta’s image from the rearview mirror getting smaller as the driver took you away from that place. “Are you alright?” He asked and you nodded, smiling while wiping your tears. And you knew, you're just lying to yourself.

It's been months, five months to be exact. You never returned to Japan, the memories hurt you so much to enjoy the scenery of Japan. But it was an in-demand country. A country that your magazine editor liked so much. So you're on the plane ride to Japan, nervous to bump into someone you actually know.

It was like the heavens hated you that the editor wanted you to go to Osaka to take pictures. Of all the places, why there? You're too scared. What if you bump into him?

You met with a local to discuss the booming coffee shops in the district. To your surprise, she suggested the renaissance themed coffee shop where you last went with Shotaro. The same coffee shop where you saw Yuta and another girl. The thing you wanted to do before, to take pictures of the said coffee shop, happened. You were still in awe at how it looked, nothing changed.

"Y/N!" Someone called that startled you. "You're here!" Shotaro hugged you and you smiled widely at him, he's always a ball of sunlight. "It was nice to see you again."

"You too." You whispered then bowed at the editor to excuse you for a second. "How have you been?"

The smile on his face is so contagious that you're suddenly thankful you bumped into him. "Good." You smiled, nodding at him. "It's my birthday tomorrow. You should go to our house and…" He stopped when you sighed. He knew you broke up with his cousin, why is he doing this? "Please. He never talked to me after you left." And that startled you. Yuta and Shotaro had been so close, like real brothers. "And grandma would love to see you again so please, Y/N."

You can't say no. Not when he has those pleading eyes and the wide smile. You nodded which made him cheer in delight. "I'll see you tomorrow Y/N." He said while waving goodbye to you. Once you returned back to your work, a heavy sigh escaped your lips. Damn it, you really can't escape him.

Their house didn't change, that was what you thought. The warmth of both Nakamoto and Osaki families are still reflected outside their home. You realized that this is rather awkward. You shouldn't have come here even if you promised Shotaro. Maybe you can just tell him that…

The door opened and you were startled that it was Yuta who was standing by the doorway. "Hi." He greeted and you gave him a timid smile, "Taro was waiting for you." He opened the door widely, helping you with your coat. "Heads up, they're excited to see you again." You nodded, suddenly feeling betrayed that you were the only one nervous about meeting him again. He seemed alright with all of this.

Anyways, it was you who left him.

He was right. The whole family is excited to see you. Their younger cousin was crying when you entered the dining room, saying that she missed you so much. Their grandmother kept on saying that you grew beautiful and all you could ever do is smile at them. They were attentive to you, even the birthday boy who even had other guests as well. Yuta was just sitting far from you on the table. You're used to having him near you whenever meeting his family so this is a new experience. A bitter reminder that you really end everything with him. "Are you dating someone now?" Shotaro's dad asked and you can see how his wife nudged him then stared at Yuta.

You smiled, shaking your head. "I'm too busy with work lately." They started asking about your job and even your family was brought up. Nothing changed except the fact that you felt that you shouldn't be here at all.

It was nighttime when you decided to leave. Shotaro was playing video games with his friends so you decided not to bother about him. His younger cousin and their grandmother are already sleeping so you thought you can now leave. "It's late." Yuta's dad noted. "Let Yuta walk you to the station."

You shook your head, claiming that it's a short walk but Yuta was already wearing his jacket, saying that he will walk you out since he had to buy Shotaro a present. Typical Yuta. You thanked his family then headed out but he stopped you then wrapped a scarf around your neck. You thanked him quietly, walking awkwardly.

This was the first time you were alone with Yuta after what you witnessed that time, something that you wanted to forget but cannot. "Can we stop by the store real quick?" He asked and you nodded, opening the door for you.

The store hasn't changed, the trinkets and accessories on display still captivating you. Even the owner welcomed you and claimed that it's been a long time since you returned. He was also happy that you're still together but you awkwardly shook your head that made him apologize. Your eyes feast on the hair clips as Yuta walked around the store to maybe get something. You thanked the owner when you left the store, Yuta holding two paper bags.

It was another awkward walk to the bus station which you can almost see. You breathed hard, "I'm fine here." You tried to remove the scarf but he stopped you, claiming that it's all yours now. He handed you the two paper bags, a gift for your parents who you were meeting tomorrow. Why is he even like this? “Yuta...”

“I’m sorry, Y/N.” You were startled. It held more emotions than the last time you heard the word from him. “I know I messed up. It’s all my fault and I deserve this. I don’t want you to forgive me but I dream of you every night and I hate that the last time I saw you, you were crying because of me.” You only stared. You wanted to say something, just so you can hold a conversation with him. But you honestly don’t know what to say. “When Shotaro said you’re coming, I knew I had to apologize properly.”

“I’ve been insecure. You’re doing so well with your job that I feel like you’re slowly forgetting about me. But that was just me. I masked it as loneliness and did unforgivable things to hurt you and I’m sorry.” You breathed hard when he looked at you straight in the eyes, apologizing once again. “You were right, I don’t deserve you.”

You shook your head. “I’m sorry for saying mean words. I shouldn’t have ended things like that. And I’m glad we had this talk.” He smiled. That lovely smile which made you fall in love with him. But now, you’re not even feeling anything else. Have you fully moved on?

He removed his necklace, handing it to you. The promise ring serving as its pendant. “Please have this. I don’t think I can give this to any other.” You closed your palm and put the necklace inside your pocket, smiling at him. “I’m proud of what you have become. You deserve all the happiness, Y/N.”

His hand on your cheek is warm. “You too, Yuta.” Once again, he smiled then put down his hand on his side. “And please talk to Shotaro.” He chuckled, nodding at you.

The bus came and you watched as he sighed. “Can I hug you?” You nodded and you were enveloped in a warm hug. The hug that you once called your home. The hug that doesn’t belong to you now. “Next time you come to Japan, call me.” You nodded, thanking him for the gifts and the scarf. “Bye, Y/N.”

You smiled, “Bye, Yuta.”

Farewell. Your farewell to your first love. Your farewell to the right love at the wrong time.

You smiled at Yuta’s form watching you enter the crowded bus. A farewell to your true love with the wrong person.

The bus suddenly ran that made you stumble in your balance. You might have fallen down if not for a guy holding you by the waist, “Are you alright?”

You nodded, smiling. And now you knew, you’re not lying to yourself.

#yuta #yuta nakamoto #nakamoto yuta #yuta angst #yuta nakamoto angst #nakamoto yuta angst #cheating yuta

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generation-of-kuroko-and-kagami · 3 years ago

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Midorima Shintarō: How Strong Is He?

So, I’m making this post in response to a couple asks I got (one by @taigaakagami and another anonymous one) asking some questions about Midorima:

Do I think Midorima is underrated in the GoM? This question includes Midorima being unable to go into the Zone/analysis on if he even needs the Zone.

What would it would be like if Midorima did enter the Zone? I’ll also talk about why Midorima hasn’t entered the Zone/if he even can enter the Zone.

Do I think Midorima is the best shooting guard in the series, despite the fact that characters like Hyuuga, Tatsuya, and Mibuchi are also strong shooting guards?

I don’t know that this post will be super long, but I’m going to try and answer these questions thoroughly. I’ll say upfront that I do think Midorima is the weakest of all the GoM members, excluding Kuroko. I’ve said this before in my posts, and the reasoning goes beyond the fact that Midorima is the only member of the GoM starters that hasn’t gone into the Zone. Let’s break down Midorima’s skills first, and then we can get into the comparisons.

TL;DR in bold

P.S. For the sake of argument, just know that when I say “GoM members” in this specific post, I never mean to include Kuroko. No offense to Kuroko, but on his own, he isn’t in the same league as the GoM starters.

Midorima’s Abilities & Weaknesses

Midorima’s basic abilities include his shooting accuracy, his defense, his intelligence, and his physical strength. He also improved his endurance over the course of the series to enhance his ability to shoot physically draining shots for longer periods of time. Of course, Kuroko no Basket is famous for naming every advanced ability a player has, so Midorima also has a few of those. His Super Three Point Shot allows him to shoot accurate three-pointers from the half-court and full-court lines, and the Sky-Direct Three Point Shot is a combination shot with Takao where Takao will pass the ball to Midorima’s hands--as he’s already in a shooting form--and Midorima makes the shot. This prevents any opponents from blocking the shot as Midorima can throw it off before the opposing team realizes what’s happened. Unless it’s Akashi, but we don’t need to get into that.

Though Midorima’s endurance isn’t a weakness for him anymore, like it was at the beginning of the series, he is still weak when it comes to the physicality of his GoM skills. Yes, he can make incredible shots that no one else can make, but it will definitely tear up his body in the process. If he’s able to make it to adulthood without seriously injuring his joints and muscles, he’ll be unstoppable, but until then, Midorima has to put limiters on his ability to remain healthy. Additionally, he can’t enter the Zone. Whether he needs to enter it or not is something we’re about to get into, but for now, it’s considered a weakness.

Is Midorima Underrated?

Asking if Midorima is underrated is kind of a subjective question, so really, this answer is up to whoever is reading this, but if I’m trying to be as objective as possible, I’m going to look at the comparisons between him and the other GoM members. How do fans of KnB react to Midorima in comparison to the other members? Do they generally think his abilities are weaker? Are his abilities weaker?

Here’s the thing: from what I know of the fandom surrounding KnB, it seems that people simply find Midorima’s abilities boring. Yes, everyone loves the Sky-Direct Three, but that’s because it’s a Midorima/Takao thing. It’s an awesome skill because it needs both of them. I think the mystique that comes with Akashi, the overwhelming awe that comes with Murasakibara, the amazement that comes with Aomine, and the surprises that come with Kise are too difficult to compete with. Midorima doesn’t have the same wow factor that they do. So, to that end, I don’t think Midorima is underrated because he is what he is. Some people really love him as a character and a player, and some people probably dislike him. But I don’t think people are underestimating his abilities. I think it’s perfectly clear to most people that his abilities are the most vanilla, if you will, despite potentially being the most useful. Plus, there’s the fact that he can’t enter the Zone. So, you’d be forgiven if you thought Midorima was the weakest based on that since the other members have all gone into the Zone.

Does Midorima Need the Zone?

Is Midorima underrated on the grounds that people think he’s weak for not being able to go into the Zone, despite him not even needing the Zone to being with? That is a possibility, yeah. I’ll talk about what a Midorima-in-the-Zone playstyle would look like in a minute, but I’ll agree with the notion that Midorima probably doesn’t need the Zone at all.

When players enter the Zone, you’re basically looking at the enhancement of all basic abilities. You’re faster, your more accurate, you’ve got more power. The downside to the Zone is that it drains the stamina of the player significantly. The requirements for entering are vast amounts of talent and passion for basketball.

The way I see it is that Midorima may actually be hindered by going into the Zone. The endurance training he completed to be able to use his abilities for an entire game would be wasted by draining his stamina in the Zone. Also, Midorima isn’t a very mobile player. He can be swift, and he does use power on defense, but his position as a shooting guard means constant movement isn’t necessary. Aomine, for example, needs to be able to drive and jump and dodge and pivot, so an increase in his physical abilities would only make those things more precise. Akashi needs to outmaneuver his opponents at the top of the key and make the correct passes to get the ball through, so being more agile benefits him. For Midorima, though, those improvements would go to waste.

What if Midorima did enter the Zone?

What would it look like for Midorima to be in the Zone? Why can’t he enter it already? Let’s answer that second question first. If Midorima meets both of the requirements for being in the Zone, why hasn’t he entered the Zone? Is it because he doesn’t have the talent? Well, no, because he’s a GoM member. And we know he loves basketball. So, what is it that keeps him away? I don’t think there’s a clear answer to this, but if I had to reach for one, it would be that Midorima doesn’t go one-on-one with people enough for him to focus in the way you need to if you’re gonna get into the Zone. I know that Midorima did go one-on-one with Kagami, but that showdown never had the same high-energy, high-movement feel that the Kagami/Aomine showdown did, or the Kagami/Kise one did.

As a shooting guard, Midorima is basically getting the ball to throw it off right away. He’s not in a position that favors one-on-one moments. I mean, of course, there’s always going to be some moments like that because shooting guards still have defenders, but it’s nothing like a power forward trying to make it past a center or a point guard trying to shake his defender so he can drive. It’s mostly just a.) the shooting guard gets the ball and b.) the defender tries to block it or knock it out of their opponent’s hands. Without the sense of rivalry being enhanced with one-on-one play, Midorima never really focuses hard enough to enter the Zone.

There is also the possibility that he can’t enter the Zone because he relies on his team more than the other GoM members. Which would also explain why Kuroko can’t go into the Zone. All of the GoM members rely on their teammates--well, Aomine is a work in progress, but he’s open to it, so we’ll leave that there--but Midorima is dependent on his team to perform at his best. Before meeting Takao, this wasn’t the case, but his skills elevated with the Sky-Direct Three, so his best now includes that. Meaning, he needs someone else to achieve it. Maybe that’s a stretch, but nonetheless. Look at it this way: Midorima is the only GoM member that hasn’t done the whole, “No offense to my team, but this moment is just about me” thing. Like, even Kise, who is super pro-teamwork, expressed his immaturity during his match with Seirin because he wanted to carry the burden of winning on his own. Midorima doesn’t do that, though, so maybe his lack of selfishness is why he can’t enter the Zone.

But what if he did?

I honestly don’t know that I can imagine a Midorima-in-the-Zone playstyle. It’s not like his accuracy can increase in the Zone if his accuracy is always 100%, right? I really think the only thing that would be different about Midorima in the Zone would be his speed. Which would, essentially, equate to him being able to throw shots off faster. I guess, potentially, he may step out of his traditional role as a shooting guard if he were in the Zone. Like, maybe he’d steal the ball back after a turnover or something. Takao definitely wouldn’t be able to keep up with him in the Zone, though, so I’m sure a game with Midorima in the Zone would end up like any other GoM-in-the-Zone game: Midorima running the whole thing by himself. I really don’t think it would look much different than the games we’ve already seen with Midorima, though. He’d just be sharper. I guess that’s why he was never written to go into the Zone because his abilities don’t really lend themselves to superhuman improvement. Probably because they’re already pretty superhuman.

Is Midorima the Best Shooting Guard in KnB?

Can I answer this with a short answer? Yes, he is. I’m not gonna front and say that the other incredible shooting guards in the series wouldn’t give Midorima a good fight. Tatsuya and Mibuchi, especially, but Hyuuga has also proven that he’s a worthy opponent for him. But it really comes down to accuracy. Midorima could be tricked by Tatsuya shots or foul off of Mibuchi’s, but they can miss. Midorima can’t. Actually, if it came down to a battle of accuracy, Hyuuga is probably the one I’d pick to go up against Midorima. And we’re talking individual abilities here, okay, not a team verses Midorima. One-on-one, Midorima’s basic abilities as a shooting guard outweigh anything else. That’s what they were designed to do when Midorima was written as a character, so I think it’s accurate to say that Midorima would win against any other shooting guard in the series 9 times out of 10. Now, that tenth time may be an interesting discussion to have, but that’s another post for another time.

Well, sorry this took so long to post. I meant to post it about a month ago, but hectic lives don’t leave room for KnB blogs. Anyway, please let me know your thoughts on this topic as I’m sure there are some of you reading that think Midorima is the strongest GoM player or that he’s so weak, any other shooting guard could beat him. I will try to make time for the pile of asks in my inbox in the future, so please bear with me and keep an eye out for what’s to come!

#kuroko no basket #Kuroko's Basketball #knb #Midorima Shintarou #Generation of Miracles #Hyuuga Junpei #tatsuya himuro #Reo Mibuchi #Kuroko Tetsuya #Kise Ryouta #Aomine Daiki #akashi seijuro #Murasakibara Atsushi

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heliads · 4 years ago

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The Hearts of the Hopeless

You are utterly in love with Pietro Maximoff, but he’s an Avenger, and way out of your league. Pietro is utterly in love with Y/N L/N, but she’s an effortlessly cool S.H.I.E.L.D. agent and completely beyond him. However, they may reveal certain truths after one jealousy-filled night at a local bar.

masterlist

If you glance over to your right ever so slightly, eyes narrowed to see through the halfway opened door, you can just manage to see him. He’s leaning against a wall, watching the last couple of minutes of a S.H.I.E.L.D. debriefing. You’re not surprised that he isn’t seated- you don’t think the guy could ever stay still for longer than a couple of seconds. Those happen to be the downsides of moving faster than anyone else around you- you tend to get bored fairly quickly.

Of course you’re thinking about Pietro Maximoff, and of course your eye just happens to fall on him when you’re supposed to be running through some paperwork. But there’s a veritable mountain of forms in front of you, and the man is just a few feet away, so how were you ever supposed to focus? You’re not sure when your little crush developed, but you are sure that it is absolutely, wholly, one hundred percent going to ruin your life. How could it not? Pietro Maximoff is an Avenger, an enhanced speed demon, a smooth-talking flirt who manages to turn your world upside down with just a flash of a smile. You are a perfectly normal S.H.I.E.L.D. officer whose only talent is finding ways to get distracted from doing her paperwork.

You can still remember when you first met him. You had been the leader of a squad of S.H.I.E.L.D. reinforcements sent to help the Avengers out of a situation that had gone south. You had thrown yourself into the thick of the fighting as required, and made eye contact with him for the first time after taking a few shots at retreating enemy agents. Your heart had done a little flip in your chest, and you’d hurried to adjust your gun as an excuse for why you had suddenly stopped dead in your tracks, unable to divert your attention back to the literal battle raging around you.

You weren’t sure what Pietro thought of you other than that you were just another agent. He certainly saw dozens of them per day as an Avenger, yet you had a slight advantage over the other lovesick interns because of your friendship with the Avengers. You’d been close friends with Natasha Romanoff ever since the two of you were stuck on a tough assignment that everyone else was too scared to even attempt. Despite all the dangers, you two had fought together and had each other's backs more times than you could count. After that, it was practically impossible to not see her as a friend. Just like it was practically impossible to not find your eyes catching on Pietro whenever you were spending time over at Avengers Tower, or even now, when you should be focusing on your forms.

You sigh to yourself. Hopeless. You’re so completely, utterly hopeless.

Pietro should be focusing on the debriefing. He should be nodding in understanding with the other agents, he should be scanning the data files for the appropriate information, and he should definitely not be smiling to himself over the fact that he can just make out the form of S.H.I.E.L.D. Agent Y/N L/N through a door that had been thankfully left ajar by some blessed intern.

She’s sitting at her desk, fingers tapping slightly in concentration as she studies a set of forms corresponding to her latest assignment. They share the same habit, actually, of always needing to be doing something. Except whenever Y/N does it she seems like a confident, action-oriented secret agent, and when Pietro does it, he seems like an easily bored sprinter. If he had even a fraction of her cool, he could practically take over the world.

Pietro can still remember the first time he saw her. It was at some battle with the Avengers, when they were outnumbered ten to one. Pietro is used to impossible odds, but that one fight had been too stacked against them so Cap had called in the S.H.I.E.L.D. reinforcements. At first, Pietro had been annoyed. Why ask S.H.I.E.L.D. for help? He knew there would be some greasy nobody in charge, who’d bristle at taking Stark’s orders and just be a hindrance.

But then the doors to the quinjet had burst open, and a young woman had strode purposefully down the landing, gun already raised and taking aim. Every move seemed orchestrated, every step and attack a work of art. She hadn’t actually noticed him until they’d been fighting side by side, and then she’d looked up at him and it was like time stopped moving entirely. She had the most beautiful eyes, and when they’d met his gaze Pietro felt like he couldn’t move a muscle, even at normal speed.

She, apparently, had been just fine, and casually readjusted her weapon before continuing on with the fight. Pietro was left with a stupid little smile on his face until a bullet had come screaming his way, and then he was jolted back to reality in time to dodge the projectile. Still, he couldn’t help sneaking glances her way during the entire fight. She was just so effortless, so amazing. Y/N claims to be human, but Pietro is fairly sure that her secret superpower is pure and utter perfection. How else would she manage to be that amazing?

Pietro looks up as people start filing out of the room, and he realizes that the debriefing has concluded. He lingers for a moment longer, wanting to catch one last glimpse of Y/N, but the other S.H.I.E.L.D. agents are blocking the door. Pietro reaches to the table in front of him to collect his things, and when he looks up again, his sister is standing in front of him, a triumphant smirk on her face. “You know, I’m fairly sure we were supposed to be focusing on the mission reports, not the pretty agent next door.”

Pietro rolls his eyes. “You know, I appreciate you wanting to have twin quality time, but I was assuming the first thing you said wasn’t going to be making fun of me.” Wanda laughs. “You’re hopeless. What else can I talk about? You’re practically obsessed with her.” Pietro gives her a look. “You can’t tease me about that. Aren’t you the one who’s in love with a robot? You could swap him out for one of Stark’s suits and it would pretty much be the same.” Wanda frowns, but can’t keep her grin back for longer than a couple of seconds. “Are you trying to say I’ve gone crazy for falling in love with an android?” Pietro grins. “Honestly, you might have already.” Wanda huffs out an irritated breath. “At least I can focus on a debriefing when he’s in the same room as me. I mean, what would it take for you to pay attention? For her to be the one addressing everyone?”

Pietro holds up his hands in defense. “Alright, alright. I get it. I’m in love with Y/N. Have you made your point clear, or do you want to keep going?” Wanda smirks. “I’m here to offer advice. I heard Natasha’s going to ask around and see if anyone’s up to get drinks. That includes you, but most importantly, it includes Y/N. This is your shot.” Pietro glances back towards that open door, where he can still see Y/N sitting at her desk, a slight frown on her face as she considers the document in front of her. “I’ll ask her. You don’t have to worry about that.”

It’s not like he could do anything differently. Wanda is right- Pietro is absolutely hopeless.

You’ve just managed to finish off your work when Natasha appears in your doorway. She knocks once on the open door frame and you smile at her. “What’s new with you?” Natasha walks in, grinning at you from across your desk. “Actually, you should ask what’s new with us. Specifically, the fact that we are both going to that one bar that opened up recently. It’s just a couple of blocks down- the Amber Cup or something? Anyways, we’re going to go and we’re going to have a great time.”

You laugh quietly. “You know, when people try to make plans with me they usually ask first. Do I have a choice in this?” “Absolutely not. We’re going.” Nat says, and you stand up, stretching your legs. “Sounds good. I’ll be there.” There’s another knock at your door, and you look over to see Pietro standing there, leaning casually against the doorframe. You smile and wave him in, doing your best to keep your heart rate under control.

Pietro walks over to you, eyes brightening when he realizes that you were leaving your desk. “Have you finished your work? Good. I wanted to see if you might be interested in joining me and other friends at that new bar later tonight. I’d love to see you there.” Natasha rolls her eyes. “I already asked, but good try. She’s going.” Pietro tosses a mock frown her way. “Do you always have to ruin my attempts to ask people out?” Natasha grins, making her way towards the door. “Only when they’re my best friends.”

At times like this, you’re not sure whether or not you’re happy that Natasha made it here first. If Pietro had asked you when you were alone, you’re not sure you could have pulled yourself together long enough to give a seemingly unconcerned response.

Pietro feels like he’s about to kill Natasha. He was minutes away from asking Y/N out. Seconds, even. He’s never been slow for anything but yet on the most important event of his life, Nat managed to beat him to Y/N’s office. He can’t stand it.

The bar itself is modern and somewhat large. Pietro and his friends arrive later at night, grateful for the rush of people already crammed together on the dance floor. Large crowds make it easier to go out undetected, and being noticed for your Avenger status tends to draw either enemies or crazed followers. Neither is really what Pietro’s going for right now.

Pietro’s just mulling over a drink when someone slides into the space next to him on the bar. He turns with a start when he realizes it’s Y/N. He promised himself that he wasn’t going to stare, but Y/N looks absolutely gorgeous. Maybe it’s the drink already in his hand, alcohol already lighting fire to the back of his throat, but Pietro is certain that Y/N could outshine every single girl in this club. Maybe even all of New York.

They talk for a little while, and then Y/N disappears to go find Natasha. Pietro tries not to feel disappointed at her sudden absence, and allows himself to get distracted by the blonde woman in the too-short dress who quickly takes Y/N’s spot. However, his gaze keeps flickering back to one agent in particular, no matter what he does. Pietro’s heart seems to clench when he realizes she’s taken to the dance floor, paired up with some man with dark hair gelled back slightly in a more modern look.

As he watches, the man’s hands drift to her hips. Pietro has no right to feel angry or anything, he knows that, but there’s a definite bitter taste in his mouth that wasn’t there before. He should turn away and go back to the half-empty glass in front of him, but Pietro’s already had more than enough to drink. Instead, he can’t seem to let go of the sight in front of him.

Pietro has a feeling that he’s about to do something he shouldn’t, that his feelings are finally going to get the best of him. He isn’t sure that he minds.

You spend more time than you should on your hair and makeup and outfit, checking and double checking to make sure the heels match the dress and the accessories. You don’t get to go out and have fun that often due to your busy schedule, so you intend to take full advantage of tonight. Besides, if Pietro is there it won’t exactly hurt to look good. You know you’re just fooling yourself into thinking he’ll notice you, but what if he does? He did show up to ask you to the bar, didn’t he?

You end up arriving a little later than the rest of the group due to traffic, but your eye instantly catches on Pietro. He’s talking and laughing with friends, and turns aside to order a drink from a bartender. You take advantage of his break from conversation to slip into the place beside him. He greets you casually, and you order a drink for yourself before heading over to find Natasha. He was just in the middle of talking to people, right? He probably doesn’t want you to stay for that long.

This seems to be true- you’ve barely been next to Natasha for a couple of minutes when you see that someone else has taken your place next to Pietro. It’s some beautiful blonde woman, who makes Pietro laugh with just a few brief words. You can’t help but feel an overwhelming wave of sadness wash over you at the sight. How could you think you were enough for him, especially compared to her?

You must still be feeling the aftereffects of a couple of drinks and that sight, because you head to the center of the room, intending to dance your worries away and at least attempt to have a good time. You’re joined by a dark-haired man soon after, and you pretend not to notice when his hands wrap around your hips, dipping lower by the second. Why bother? At least now you can try to move on from Pietro, to act like he can be replaced by another man in a blink of an eye. It’s not true, but at least the pounding music distracts you from him.

Suddenly, your partner is ripped away from you. You’re left standing on the dance floor, blinking in confusion at the sudden empty space in front of you. When you look up, your brow furrows to find Pietro, still standing in between you and the dark-haired man from where he’d pushed your partner away. The man glares at Pietro. “Hey, what was that for?” Pietro returns his gaze coolly. “Don’t touch her like that. She deserves some respect.”

Then he turns back to you, and a thousand emotions seem to flicker through his eyes before he walks away, headed towards an exit out back. Your confusion is quickly replaced by anger. Why does he think he can just walk up and control you like that? You mutter a brief apology to your dance partner before storming after Pietro. Eventually, you find him outside, taking in the crisp air of the outside street. He looks up when you open the door, but he seems confused by your angry expression. You don’t give him time to ask what is wrong.

“What was that?” You ask, gesturing loosely towards the bar behind you. Pietro looks away from you, back at the crowded streets. “He shouldn’t have been putting his hands on you like that. He was a creep.” You laugh bitterly. “That wasn’t your call to make. Can’t I have this one night, this one hour to myself? I mean, you rub it in my face practically every day. Did you really have to take this one dance away from me?”

Pietro frowns at you. “What are you talking about?” You look at him in disbelief. “Are you really pretending you don’t know? I see you around the building all the time, flirting with any girl that crosses your path. I don’t know why I thought I was different, but I figured I deserved at least a little respect. I mean, first you don’t talk to me unless you have to, then you pull some stunt like pretending to ask me out to the bar. You want to play with my heart? Fine, but at least let me have this one night.”

Your hand flies to your mouth. Did you really just say all that? You must have drunk more than you’d thought. Pietro is just staring at you, shocked, and you start to back away. “I didn’t mean- I didn’t-” Then he’s standing in front of you, one hand pressed against the small of your back as he kisses you. He leans back, looking at you with something almost like disbelief. “I’m not trying to play with your heart, Y/N. I’m trying to avoid breaking mine.”

Your eyes widen. “You-” He nods. “I love you. I just assumed that you wouldn’t want anything to do with me, so I tried to play it off like it didn’t matter.” You shake your head slowly. “Why wouldn’t I want anything to do with you? You’re the Avenger, I’m the agent. I thought you didn’t even have the time to talk to me.” Pietro laughs quietly. “Ever since the moment I saw you, I thought you were the most amazing person on the planet. Everything you did seemed flawless, and every impossible task seemed easy. And who was I to you, some guy whose only skill was running fast?”

You feel an incredulous smile slipping across your face. “You were incredible. That’s who you were to me. I was hopelessly in love with you. Still am, and I don’t think I can do anything about that.” “Don’t. I like the idea of you loving me.” Pietro says, and he leans forward to kiss you one more time.

Maybe things have a way of working out after all.

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