#or if you just want to know how sparring/training works in a teaching setting)

[lightning-chicken]

because i do martial arts and i’m curious:

if you do some form of martial arts, put it in the tags! (only if you’re comfortable of course)

please reblog for larger sample size!

[moon1833]

SEVEN METER -INUMAKI TOGE

“Inumaki Toge had given up on his dream of being able to verbally confess to the person he liked years ago.��

By the time Inumaki turned ten, he fully accepted the fact that he would live his life without anyone fully understanding what he wanted to say.

It was a bit lonely at first, to see everyone around him besides his family talk freely, but he had no other life to compare it to.

By the time he was seventeen, the dream had fell into the furthest corner in the back of his mind, hardly ever remembering it being a thought until you, the new second year student, revealed your technique to him during training.

“Freeze.” His command sounded different off his tongue, but he didn’t notice it right away.

When you kicked your legs out anyway, forcing him off balance and throwing him to the ground, then he realized something was off.

Inumaki’s cheek was in the grass, his arm pinned to his back as your legs stopped him from twisting. From the corner of his eye, he stared at you in confusion, and a bit of admiration.

“It’s my cursed technique.” You couldn’t help the grin on your face. “It stops all techniques in a seven meter radius.”

You step off of him, giving him your hand to help him get up. He takes it, his lips parted slightly in shock.

“I know, I’m sorry.” You help dust some dirt off his shoulder. “You could’ve spoken to me without having to limit your vocabulary when you first met me yesterday, but I wanted to surprise you.”

You wait as he takes the information in, his mind trailing with possibilities, trying to figure out what his first real words would be to you.

“It’s… okay.” He settles on, feeling as though he was attempting another language.

“Here, let’s go again.” You smile. “It’ll be fair this time.”

From that point on, Inumaki couldn’t deny he felt a slight attachment to you. After all, he could talk freely to you and not worry about hurting you.

It was an adjustment, to be sure. He wasn’t used to the sound of his own voice using so many words at a time, and that his throat didn’t hurt when he did.

At the same time, you found yourself at his side as well. He smiled more when you were in the room, and you believed it was because he had someone he could now actually talk to.

Everyone else, however, read into it a different way.

Gojo was convinced you two were both in love with each other, constantly setting you up together in sparring work and putting you on missions together. Maki, Panda, and even Yuuta teased him relentlessly, desperately trying to get the boy to admit he had a crush on you.

Sure, you might’ve been powerful, hard working, and one of the prettiest people Inumaki had ever had the pleasure of seeing, but that didn’t mean he had a crush on you.

Besides, even if Inumaki did, personal feelings was the last thing you wanted to get mixed up in. You had made that crystal clear on your very first day, practically skipping onto Jujitsu High, brimming with determination that rivaled Maki.

Your cursed technique was incredibly useful, but it was still messy. You were hoping to learn to control it better, as well as improve your combat skills. After all, you had people to save, and things like romance didn’t fare well with jujitsu sorcerers.

Even you couldn’t deny, though, there was definitely something going on between you and Inumaki.

You were always training, eating, or even sleeping together. In class, your seats were always together, and he’d whisper commentary about Gojo-Sensei’s weird teaching that would have you covering your mouth to conceal your laughter.

By the time you both had turned eighteen, your classmates had truly had enough.

“Can you two just kiss already?” Maki’s face twisted as she complained, eyeing her friends were practically on top of each other on the couch in the common room.

You removed your legs from Toge’s lap, immediately missing how he drew circles on your knees.

“Honestly, I think you two actually making out in front of us instead of the constant heart eyes would be less intimate.” Megumi suddenly joins the conversation, Itadori nodding in agreement beside him.

Your eyes slightly widen in surprise, and you don’t have to look at Toge to know he’s flushed red.

“Bonito flakes.” He pouts, crossing his arms and shrinking into his hoodie.

“Oh, come on.” Nobara groans, throwing her head against her armchair. “This is borderline annoying.”

“I’m loosing money, you know.” Maki’s grinning a bit now. “We should lock them in a closet or something.”

“No, no.” You say quickly. “You people are insane.”

“And you’re boring.” Nobara whines.

Itadori whispers something to Megumi, and he looks at him quizzically. Nobara must have overheard it, because she’s howling with laughter.

“What?” Maki pries.

“Yuuji thought they were already together.” She says in between gasps.

Toge fully hides his face in his hands, but you can see bits of reddened skin between his fingers.

Luckily, Panda comes back with a few snacks a few minutes later, and the topic changes. The group decides to watch a movie, and for the first time, you try your best to not fall asleep on Toge’s shoulder.

Still, it’s past midnight when the movies credits begin to roll, and your head feels heavy. Your blinks are longer, and you rest your face against the head of the loveseat.

Silently, Toge watches you carefully. You’re fighting (and failing) to stay awake, and your face is scrunched slightly.

The two of you are the only people still awake, Maki was using Panda as a pillow, and the three underclassmen were sleeping on top of each other.

Toge pokes your face, and you snap up. There’s a coy smile on his lips, and you can’t bring yourself to be mad at him.

“What?” You whisper.

He shrugs, a bit worried about speaking with so many people in the room.

“It’s okay, I’ve gotten good at it.” You reassure. You had mastered it last month, being able to target one individual and force them to not have any cursed techniques. Only downside was using it for an extended time would make you pass out.

He nods a bit shyly before swallowing. “That movie was ass.”

You laugh sharply, nodding in agreement. “I’m not sure why we let Itadori pick anymore.”

At his name, the boy in question let out a guttural snore, and you and Toge couldn’t contain your giggles.

“C’mon.” You push him up. “We’re going to wake them up.”

Still holding back your laughter, the two of you ran hand in hand down the hallway and up the stairs.

From the other side of the stairs, you could hear footsteps trotting closer to you. Before you heard his footsteps, you felt his cursed energy. Quickly, you enabled your own technique to hide your and Toge’s trails, holding onto his shoulder to stop his movements.

Realistically, Gojo probably wouldn’t give two shits that you were out past curfew, but on the off chance that he did, you didn’t want to serve detention with him again.

The last time, he had left you in the classroom overnight because he had locked the door and forgot you were there. You had to climb out of the window to get out.

You pulled Toge under the stairwell, unintentionally gripping onto him with both hands. His arms were comfortably wrapped around your waist, and he was grinning ear to ear.

Gojo started to whistle incredibly off key as he walked, and the you made the mistake of making eye contact with Toge as he did.

“Shh!” You covered his mouth with your hand, but you were still laughing. In response, he covers your mouth as well, and you still don’t realize you’re practically nose to nose.

The both of you are still giddy, shushing laughs that are a bit too loud for you to not get caught. You can’t pull away from his eyes, and your mouth parts slightly.

Before you can think about it, you press your lips to his, ceasing the rare opportunity of the boys chin above his jacket.

He giggles into the kiss, holding your face in his hands. You grin, and your teeth graze his lip. He gasps, and your hands grip onto his shirt.

Toge presses harder into you, and you stagger back into the wall. You’re suddenly familiar with how he tastes, and it’s an addiction you cannot want to be used to.

Inumaki Toge had given up on his dream of being able to verbally confess to the person he liked years ago. But, there you were, staring up at him with pretty eyes and a smile that knocked the wind out of him, and the words ‘I love you’ were so so simple to say.

[jnkgrnde]

— glossy kisses, clarisse la rue, pjo

summary — in which, clarisse is in love with the way your lipgloss sticks to her.

pairings — clarisse la rue x black!fem!reader (any descent)

content includes — fluff, soft/sorta needy clarisse, kissing

you sat at one of the makeup tables set up in your cabin, getting ready for the day. it wasn’t much, just some simple coverup and lip gloss.

clarisse’s favorite lip gloss.

your girlfriend hasn’t directly expressed that she loved when you wore lip gloss, but you knew she loved it. she showed it when you walked out of your cabin after finishing getting ready, and she had a smile on her face as soon as she saw you. she was happy to see you, of course, but she also saw you wearing lipgloss that day.

she knew she’d end the day with having multiple glossy lip marks on her face, and eventually one on her lips at the end of the day, when she walks you to and drops you off at your cabin.

the first one came when you met up with eachother at breakfast. today was your day to sit at the ares table. “hi, sweet girl.” she greeted. she wrapped her arm around your waist to bring you in for a kiss. you grinned when you kissed her, and she almost kept going before you pulled away. “patience, pretty.” you reminded her.

clarisse had a ‘bad’ habit of always wanting to have her lips on yours, and it only got worse when you wore the lipgloss. she looked at you with puppy eyes, all because she just wanted to kiss you so bad. “baby, jus’ wait.” you promised. she faked annoyance, “fineee.” she dragged out. you laughed at her antics before interlocking your fingers with hers and walking into the dining pavilion.

you two grabbed your plates and got the food you desired before scraping some of it into the fire. you sat down at one of the ends of the ares table, right across from each other, discussing your plans for the day. “are you gonna come help me teach the little kids how to spar, princess?” you winced at the mere thought of the activity.

“wish i could, but i have to pick strawberries from the fields today. i’ll wish you luck, though!” you grinned devilishly. clarisse fake glared at you in agitation. “you’re training them next time, you know that, right?” you shrugged. “don’t doubt my way to sweet talk people, la rue.”

it was after you two finished eating was when you separated to get your activities done. you usually kept your tube with you, so you reapplied before setting off to the sweet fields. “see you at dinner?” you knew the answer. you nodded, reaching up to grab her face and kiss her cheek. she had such a large grin on her face at the mere fact of knowing she had an imprint from you for the day.

you went your separate ways, clarisse staying to watch you before finally leaving. you ready the strawberry fields, the sun beaming down on your skin. the star was making the smell of the strawberries greater, and you yearned to have at least one before the day ended.

you picked up a sunhat, gloves, cutters, and a basket before setting off into the dirt and through the fields. you hummed softly to yourself while you worked, and before you knew it, it was the end of the day. you breathed out tiredly. the weight of the basket was starting to get to you. it was filled to the brim with the sugary berries.

you made your way back to the front of the entrance of the patch, setting down your basket for the others to collect, not before sneaking some into your fists. you munched on the delicious fruit, the taste exploding in your mouth. you’d always loved strawberries, and these ones only amplified the feeling.

by the time you reached the main campgrounds, clarisse was wrapping up lessons. she was tired and definitely had a few cuts from the kids with swords and spears. she was instructing them to put the weapons up carefully before leaving for the day. she saw you and broke into a tired smile.

you gave her one back before you took notice of the cuts she had. “that bad, huh?” she let out a sigh. “you have no idea.” she loved fighting, she really did, but teaching the younger, newer kids was a whole other level. she pecked your lips, pulling back before actually tasting you. “you taste so good.” she mumbled. you pulled away, “just had a couple strawberries after i finished. need to bring up to chiron that we should make some-“ she cut you off by smashing her lips to yours.

she was definitely addicted. it took some time, but you finally pulled away to get air. “baby, please,” she whined. “i haven’t seen you all day. let me have you.” you giggled at her desperateness. “well, can you at least wait till i’ve washed myself?” you told her. “just ten or fifteen minutes, baby.”

she stood like she was thinking it over before agreeing. she gave you one more peck before letting you go. “don’t be too long, pretty girl.”

you had finished getting dressed when the conch sounded for dinner. you walked happily along the ground, eager to meet clarisse. you two talked about your day and how one of the kids almost stabbed themselves in the eye, and then hers.

it was finally the end of the day. you were worn out and ready to go to bed, and you knew clarisse was too. she walked you to your cabin, hand in hand. you swung them back and forth as you walked, just listening to the campers get ready to go to bed, the fireflies in the air. the atmosphere was just comforting.

the lights at the cabins slowly started going out as some stragglers finally came in and turned out the lights. you and her were some of them. you walked up the steps to the doors, where clarisse turned. “you’ll come to me if anything happens, right?” “always.” you promised. “good. night, sweet girl.”

the night ended with a kiss on her cheek, the same place you kissed after breakfast. she kissed your lips before heading down the stairs with a smile. you went inside your cabin, and she watched for the light to go out. the flame extinguished, and she knew you were turning in.

she walked off to her cabin, her cheek tingling with your form of an imprint — a glossy kiss.

[ilguna]

Hey! I love your work so much. Can you do 4 with four (tobias) from divergent ?

☼ succeed (tobias eaton) ☼

warnings; swearing, fighting, blood mention.

wc; 2.4k

prompt; 4. "Why do you sacrifice so much for me?"

notes; tweaked canon, obviously. not really noticeable unless you’re a huge fan.

--

Dauntless initiation is—unsurprisingly—far from what you thought it would be. To be fair, you’re not entirely sure what exactly you were expecting in the first place. All you know was that you were going to be in for a ride when they made you jump on and off of a moving train directly after transferring. 

This gave you a clue of what was to come, of course, but you took it in a different direction. If they wanted to see how daring you could be by risking your lives, then maybe that meant you’d be doing dangerous tasks throughout the rest of the month. 

On the first day, you assumed that you’d be learning how to throw away your inhibitions and solely rely on your instincts. An idea that isn’t incredibly outlandish when it comes to Dauntless. After all, they’re the ones in charge of security and wall perimeter—the jobs that can end up being deadly.

This is why you didn’t have a significant reaction when you were informed by Four that they’d be introducing you to self-defense. They proceeded to hang you a gun, gave you a target, and told you to shoot until your bullets were gone. And after lunch, they brought you to a large room where you were taught how to properly fight an opponent.

This is when reality had begun to set in. They were not teaching you this in case the situation ever arose, but because they wanted you to use it in the coming week. You’re going to be forced to defend yourself, whether you like it or not. They were just being courteous enough to teach you how to, first.

You didn’t figure this out until yesterday when you saw the chalkboard. While it had previously been devoid of writing, it suddenly held a list of names side by side, pairing initiates up together. For the first few minutes, you were under the impression that it was for sparring.

When they sent Al and Will into the center circle together, instructed to fight one another, you looked at Four. You found his eyes already on you, arms crossed over his chest, face hard. In that moment, you remembered all of his warnings for you to pay close attention to the way he’d been throwing his kicks and punches.

It’s not like you were ignoring him, but you did continuously brush him off because he was being overbearing. He must’ve taken this as you just being a know-it-all Erudite, leaving you to figure it out on your own. You’d have to learn one way or another that your logic wouldn’t help.

When really, you hadn’t heard him when he said that you’d be fighting your fellow initiates. 

You were a deer in headlights when the rules were explained. In these fights, you are to keep going until one of you is unable to continue. And while you could concede, it won’t be done without going unpunished. In the old rules, a brave man can acknowledge the strength of others. In the new rules, made by the newest Dauntless leader, a brave man never surrenders.

You think Four may have recognized that a mistake was made. He was quick to come up with an escape, albeit at the cost of your pride. He called you out in the middle of Eric’s explanation, telling you not to be sick on the floor unless you wanted to clean it. All you had to say was that breakfast wasn’t settling well, and you were excused to go sit down with a trash can.

With there being ten initiates in your group, there should’ve been five fights. You sat out, making it four, but none of you made it past the second one. Will and Al fought just fine, Al even won. The next fight to happen was Christina and Molly, which was following the same pattern as the first fight, until Christina decided that she wanted to concede.

That’s when you were informed that a punishment would go along with it. Eric was pissed, dragging Christina all the way to the chasm in the Pit that hangs above the river, barking at the rest of you to follow. He then made her climb to the other side of the railing and forced her to hold on to the bridge by her hands until he was satisfied.

When she didn’t fall to her death, you were dismissed for the rest of the day. This destroyed your plan of analyzing the fighting techniques of the others to figure out what you’re supposed to do. To make up for it, you thought you could come practice in the middle of the night, but the doors were locked.

So, to put it lightly, you’re screwed. The only way to learn now is from the fights that will be taking place, and even then you’ll still be at a disadvantage no matter how you approach it.

As soon as you step foot into the training room, your eyes find the chalkboard, curious to who you’ve been paired up with today. Yesterday, it was supposed to be Tris, the Abnegation transfer. She would’ve been a good first fight to figure out how you want to be in the ring, but that opportunity has passed.

Today, you are given more of a challenging opponent—Peter.

“Oh no,” A voice says, you glance over your shoulder to see that Christina is limping her way over to Tris. Her face is fairly bruised from the beating she received from Molly yesterday. “At least you aren’t paired with Peter.”

Both of them look in your direction, and you accidentally lock eyes with Christina for a moment. You press your lips together in disgust and turn away, no longer interested in their conversation. You are not a member of Erudite anymore, but that doesn’t mean they’ll stop seeing you that way. Not until you prove to them that you’re not snot-nosed. 

You turn your attention to Peter, who’s got a good few inches on you. Which wouldn’t be an issue, much less have you worried, if he didn’t have the muscle he does. This fight could easily go two ways, but you have a feeling it’s leaning in his favor more than yours. 

“Maybe she can just take a few hits and pretend to go unconscious.” Al suggests loud enough for you to hear. “No one would blame her.”

You grit your teeth at the idea of taking the cowards way out, something that you won’t be doing, no matter how tempting it is. Even if it does work out in your favor, there’s no telling what Eric will do to you when he figures out that you’d faked it. While he made Christina hang from the chasm by her hands, he’d tell you to do something much worse. Or kick you out of initiation altogether for not having the Dauntless heart.

Which isn’t true. You belong here.

Fortunately, you and Peter are not the first fight of the day, it’s Edward and Molly. You might as well be, though. The pair of you are listed directly underneath them. You think that you’d even prefer being the first to go. If you could get it out of the way, you would.

As you mindlessly watch Edward and Molly, you try to pick out some of their moves to remember with Peter. Four had taught the group of you the basics to get started, he never said that you couldn’t mix in what you know as well. Which is nothing, because you’ve never got into a fight before. There was never a need to.

The personalization works out in Edward’s favor. The technique that Molly had used yesterday on Christina is fairly predictable. On top of that, she’s not fast enough to keep up with Edward’s pace. It’s only a matter of minutes before she’s beaten near-unconscious. That’s when Drew and Peter work together to peel her off of the wooden floor and to the nearest wall to recover.

In the short time you have, you take a couple of deep breaths, shaking your hands to rid the anxious energy that’s fueling your body. You make eye contact with Four briefly, and in this time, he gives you a solid nod. He’s confident in your abilities, more so than you are. It’s a shame that you’re probably going to let him down.

Still, you walk your way to the white circle, standing at one end of it while you wait for Peter. When he finally turns his attention to you,. There’s a smile spread across his face, 

“You okay there, Blowhard?” Peter teases, you can almost feel your eyes bulge out of your head at the nickname. “You look like you’re about to cry. I might go easy on you if you cry.”

“Did you just call me a Blowhard?” You sputter out a laugh. “What does that make you, a Crybaby?”

You look past Peter, at Four, who’s standing side-by-side with Eric. His face is twisted, focused hard on the two of you in the ring. Eric, on the other hand, is tapping his foot quickly, impatience shining through.

Peter raises his hands by his face, elbows and knees bent as he begins to prepare for the fight. “Come on, (Y/n). Just one little tear. Maybe some begging.”

Without warning, you swing your leg at his side, intending to land a kick. He’s prepared for this, grabbing your ankle and yanking you forward, pulling you off balance. You land on your back, but quickly twist to get back to your feet, fists returning, readying yourself.

“Stop playing with her.” Eric suddenly snaps. “I don’t have all day.”

This is enough for Peter, as the amused look on his face disappears. His movement is one giant blur, but the pain in your jaw is sharp, as it continues to spread across your face. For a moment, bright white stars and a black void flow across your vision, taking your balance with it. 

You blink rapidly, backing away from Peter as you try to get the room to stop swaying. This lasts for a few seconds at most, because Peter is moving just as quickly as Edward had been. He appears in front of you, foot slamming into your stomach, stealing the air from your lungs. 

You clutch your ribs as you fight through the pain in your abdomen. Peter takes this as an invitation to come closer, but you’re expecting this. You catch his fist as you slide your foot between his legs, tripping him. Instead of falling forward, you throw him back, twisting his arm in the process.

You land on your knees hard. The dull pain is at the front of your thoughts for a second before you’ve got your first slamming into Peter’s nose. You get two hits in, then he takes a fistful of hair at the back of your head, yanking. He repays the favor by punching you in the nose.

It doesn’t matter how hard you kick or slap, because he’s got a tight grip. The next hit he lands is to your ribs, in the same place that you’d been holding onto moments prior. You open your mouth, letting out a strangled cry, and a metallic taste spreads over your tongue. One word comes to mind; blood.

He lets go of your hair, shoving you away. You land on your palms, gasping through your lips, eyes blurry with tears as you search the ground for the white paint. You begin to crawl away, wanting to put some distance between the two of you while you take a breath, but he grabs your ankle, dragging you back toward him.

He draws his foot back, and despite knowing what’s coming, you don’t move in time, letting the toe of his shoe sink into your skin. You cough, the next few seconds are agonizing as you forget how to breathe, like a fish out of water.

“That’s enough.” Four’s voice breaks through the silence. “Get her out.”

“She’s still moving.” Eric tells him. “She gets out when she can no longer go on.”

Your eyes roll to the back of your head when you move to roll over. You won’t play pretend, you refuse to take the easy way out. You are not an Erudite anymore, you won’t run. You’re going to fight.

Somehow you manage to get to your feet, fists raised, eyes barely focusing on Peter long enough to keep track of him. You gather the blood in your mouth, spitting it at his feet.

“Come at me, you little bitch.” You murmur.

Peter flies across the circle, fist coming at your face. You manage to catch it with one hand, and with the other, you slap him with an open palm. The sound of skin-on-skin fills the air, there’s a few audible gasps in the room.

It’s over, you think. Just before Peter knocks your lights out.

When you come back to Earth, you’re suspended in the air, swaying from side to side. You’ve never been motion sick before, but the dizziness is so hard to handle that this is enough to send you over the edge.

“‘M gonna be sick.” You mutter.

The world stops moving for a second, and then you’re placed on your feet. Your hands reach for something to hold on to as support. They come into contact with another hand, which you wrap your fingers around tightly as your breakfast comes back up as a liquid.

When you’re done, you turn to face the person who had just been holding you in their arms. You’re met with Four, who has his eyebrows raised, waiting for you to say something.

“Thank you.” You whisper.

“Why are you thanking me?”

“For putting me down.” You breathe, leaning over with your hands on your knees. “And for trying to get me out of there. And for delaying my fight yesterday.”

When you look at him again, there’s a softer look on his face, different from the scowl that you’re used to seeing. He reaches over, rubbing a hand over your back. “It’s okay, (Y/n).”

“You could’ve gotten in trouble with Eric.” You say, shaking your head as you move to stand straighter. “Why do you sacrifice so much for me?”

Four opens his mouth, and then closes it. It’s silent between the two of you for a minute as he decides how he wants to respond. Or maybe he’s thinking that you’ll change the subject. With your persistence, he sighs.

“Because you’re different.” 

--

this was part of my 3k celeberation!!

[ratsonastick]

You definitely don’t have to do this if you don’t want too! Clarisse x reader where the reader has always been naturally quiet and doesn’t think their good enough for Clarisse cause their total opposites

OF COURSE!!! I am not sure if this is the best, but I tried giving you the before and during the relationship

Requests are still open!

Clarisse La Rue x ShyFem!Reader

Let’s just say you are not one many people know about at camp. You can’t help it but you are honestly just very unsocial because putting yourself out there seems like a lot of work.

You have friends … let's make that clear, but it's not a lot. 

Ever since you have been at camp you've had a FAT crush on Clarisse, I mean who wouldn't? Well maybe a couple of kids because she is very aggressive, but you find it charming. 

But you would never have a chance with her. Because firstly, if you can't even ask the cabin counselor for some help then you most definitely won't be able to ask her on a date. And secondly, you are the complete opposites! You wouldn't last a week together. 

She is loud, not afraid to make her voice heard, and scares others. And you … well you just let things happen and hope for the best.

Not only that she's so athletic and fit. And it's not that you aren't unfit, it's just that you’d prefer sitting alone or with friends. 

Only one of your friends, Nicole, knew of this crush, and she supported it entirely. Every time you walked past Clarisse you'd keep your head down but Nicole would nudge your shoulder and let out a giggle. 

You avoided Clarisse as much as you could but it wasn't till one day when you were asked to bring supplies to the sword training field did you have to talk to her. 

You were SHY! Couldn't look that woman in the eyes as she questioned you. She thought it was cute, to say the least.

“Chiron wanted me to bring these here for you guys to try out,” you spoke softly, setting down a metal bin full of new weapons and other nonsense. Clarisse hummed in approval and picked up a new handle grip. 

Luke, one of the boys from the Hermes cabin walked over with a smile on his face “Finally he took our advice on what stuff we needed … Thanks for bringing them Y/n” he nudged your shoulder in a friendly manor. 

You were surprised he knew your name. You noticed Clarisse sending what looked like a glare in your direction and you took that as a hint to leave. 

“Y/n” her voice called out and you immediately turned to look at her “You good with a sword? I need a new sparring partner … one who I don't know every boring move they make.” She spoke in a harsh voice rolling her eyes in the direction of Luke who was twisting his sword around and making noises like it was a lightsaber. 

“I'm not good with swords, I'm more of an archery type of girlie.” You responded “Sorry” 

Your hands were sweating as you gazed down at the ground. “Then let me teach you … every demigod needs to know how to work every weapon.” she looked you up and down before stepping away, hinting you to follow. 

She picked up her sword and then a spare and handed it to you. You stood there like a dork, and she took a stance.

After what felt like hours she finally stopped, “You're not that bad.” 

“Thanks, you mumbled” trying to catch your breath as you handed back the sword to her. The sun was setting and you felt a rumble in your stomach. “Uhm I should probably get going … I promised my friend I’d get to dinner early for her.” 

Clarisse nodded her head eyeing you “Fine.” 

When you arrived at the dinner pavilion you took your spot at your cabin's table, your friend slapping your shoulder slightly in annoyance for your lateness. 

Eventually, Clarisse arrived sitting down at her cabin's table, and filling her plate with food, she noticed you sitting with your friends. How they all talked loudly and yet you just sat there quietly eating, once in a while smiling at what was being said. 

She thought it was … cute? But she didn't like the mysterious card you were trying to play. 

So the next time she saw you walking past the training field she called your name, with her hands on her hips and hair pulled back as she waited for you to come to her. “Yes?” 

She hinted to the sword on the ground and you picked it up. Luke and Chris had noticed her change of behavior, especially towards you. If that was Luke she called over and he was confused as to why, she would have called him an idiot and to go kill himself. 

But she didn’t tell you. 

After an hour of training, she tripped you and you fell, “Why don't you fight back … you need to slander me.” 

“I'm good” you mumbled standing back up and swinging back “Why are you so quiet? I've seen you yell before yet you won't now.” she taunted you … but hey at least she's noticed you before! 

“I'm just naturally quiet, I'm not big on yelling, it's a lot of work.” You spoke up, clashing the sword down onto hers, this made her smirk slightly. 

When you guys finished up and sat down on the grass she took a sip of water from your water bottle and then handed it to you.

“I want you to go out with me,” she said, looking out in the distance “You're strange,” she spoke up once more. 

“Oh?” 

“You don't have a choice, so don't act bitchy when I pick you up from your cabin. I want you pretty and sweet.” She added with a demanding tone. 

And that's what you did. 

After 2 weeks of dating? (Clarisse wouldn’t clarify, I think she just figured you knew you were because if you looked at anyone else she'd glare at you) you began to have doubts. 

What if your relationship wouldn't work out, you were so completely different it was almost awkward. 

Like for example, when you were told to sit with her at the Ares cabin table, they were all so rowdy and she just kept laughing, and you just sat there with a blank face. 

Or when you went on a library date, she figured that was code for making out, but it was actually just you wanting some company while you read. (She was a little disappointed she couldn't hold your hips)

And it wasn’t just you who thought the relationship was a bit weird, Nicole (that wench) also believed the relationship was … different? But she thought it was so cute how Clarisse was the voice that you didn't like to use. 

For example, when this kid kept talking and was so annoying at the campfire, you gave Clarisse a look that didn't really mean anything but also meant a lot and she shouted at the kid to shut up. 

All the differences outweighed the similarities and it only made you worry, which caused you to distance yourself. 

One thing you didn't realize though is how much Clarisse believed you to be adorable, and how she loved seeing a different side of you when you are alone. Even if it's only a little bit more talkative than usual. 

But she wouldn’t tell you that. Hell no. 

This worry drove you to a lot of self reflection, which took place in your bunk. A party was happening that night and you thought to yourself that maybe if you went and showed how you could act, Clarisse might think you are good enough and keep you around. 

So you found yourself getting dressed with a scowl, sliding a tank top over your head and putting on a skirt. It was a party at the Aphrodite's cabin, and you knew she'd be there for this. 

So when the time came you walked over, and just as you approached the cabin you heard a whistle, you turned and saw Luke and Chris walking a bit behind Clarisse and her siblings. Clarisse gave them a death stare and shouted 'shut up' and walked over to you, leaving her siblings. 

“What are you doing here baby? I thought you said you weren't gonna come.” She said in a soft voice, but in your head, she sounded disappointed, maybe she didn't want you there so she could hook up with some other girl. 

“I wanted to surprise you… I can leave if you want me to.” But Clarisse shook her head grabbing onto your waist “If you leave I'll only follow. I'm just surprised you came, I know this isn't your type of scene.” 

Which was true, you only go to parties with your friends. 

“I just wanted to show you that I can be sociable” you mumbled looking at her with soft eyes which caused her to smile “I know you are princess … but you don't have to go out of your way to change yourself just to prove you can be like me so we are more alike.''

She spoke gently, and she knew that if anyone heard her act this way she'd pause the conversation just to stab them. 

You felt embarrassed now, becoming very aware of how you looked. “You look hot though baby” She mumbled through a smile as she gently kissed you. “Wanna go back to your bunk?” she asked and you nodded your head with a smile.

[callsign-rogueone]

all the small things - g.t.

Garrick Tavis x gn!reader 💌: …would you consider writing something for Garrick that explores some of the little intimate, familiar, or caring details he would do for/with the person he’s in a relationship with? words: 1.1k 🏷: no book spoilers! NSFW at the end, because it’s Garrick and I had to. just some thoughts about Gare being soft and cute (and a little sexy) with his partner. I managed to make this gender neutral. I’m trying a list format this time bc that flows better than a dozen little scraps lol

I feel like Garrick is a quiet partner, that he shows his feelings for you in a lot of little ways that you might not even notice.

He’s just always there.

If you’re studying, he’s studying with you, or working on something else quietly, sharpening his knives, etc.

While you’re chatting with a friend, he’s sitting a foot or two away, slicing a clean dagger through an apple, cutting off a small piece and extending it to you silently.

He is absolutely not afraid to use his stature and his scary reputation to his advantage when it comes to protecting you. 

Some guy made you uncomfortable in the laundry room? Well, now every Thursday night is laundry night for both of you, and he’s gonna stand behind you the whole time, brooding at anyone in the room Xaden-style and making sure they leave you alone.

Your safety is his number one priority.

We all know Dain’s philosophy — I’m going to do everything I can to keep you out of harm’s way

Garrick’s is a bit more nuanced — Harm is going to come to you no matter what, because the world is cruel and we’re literally preparing for war. While I’ll still do everything I can to protect you, I’ll also do everything I can to teach you to protect yourself.

He’s strict about keeping your training routine, giving you extra practice sparring near-daily. He knows when you can handle it and when you can’t. On days when you’re truly exhausted, injured, or at your limit, or something really upset you etc, you’ll spend training time resting — cuddles!

I know this man is an amazing cuddler. All that soft, warm muscle… big hands… strong arms to wrap around you… there’s no escape. Not that you’d ever want to leave lol

… Where were we?

He takes responsibility for your safety (as much as he can in this very dangerous school) while still letting you handle yourself.

That said, he’ll take matters into his own hands for small situations. He will not hesitate to pull you out of the way if people run by and might bump into you, etc. (plus it’s an excuse for him to hug you in the middle of the day lol)

He grabbed you by the back of your shirt once to stop you from hitting the ground when you tripped over your own shoelace — he then proceeded to set you upright and kneel down to tie said shoelace for you. 

Xaden never lets him hear the end of that. (“How come you never tie my shoes for me, Gare?”)

Big acts of service guy.

He’ll fill your water bottle in the morning, and he expects it to be empty at the end of the day or he will make you chug it because hydration is important. He ignores any eye rolls or complaints — you both know that he does this because he loves you.

He makes sure you’re eating, knows your favorite and least favorite foods, and will wordlessly move things on / off of your plate at meals, because you’re sitting directly next to him, of course. You know he wants you close and that’s a way you show love back to him. You also give him your leftovers sometimes. The boy can eat; that's half of how he put on so much muscle.

If you have long hair, he’ll keep one of your hairbands or pins etc in his pocket for whenever the need arises. He likes helping you with your hair, too. He's not the best at braiding or doing other hairstyles, but he’s trying and he’s improving! He also absolutely loves it when you sit in front of him and let him brush your hair / detangle / condition it etc.

He will always take the opportunity to wash your hair. He's super thorough with it and it feels so nice and relaxing.

As Ilya Kaminsky wrote: “Soaping together / is sacred to us / Washing each other’s shoulders. / You can fuck / anyone— but with whom can you sit / in water?”

Garrick. Garrick is whom. he loves showering with you after a long day, washing your back or places you can’t reach, being super gentle with any injuries you have, kissing every bruise and scar.

aaand this is getting nsfw, because it’s Garrick;

Don’t get me wrong though — he loves showering with you for other reasons, too. He loves seeing you naked, obviously, loves gliding soapy hands over your skin, kneading the softest parts of you, massaging gently and getting you all pliant and relaxed for him…

He’ll never pass up an offer to press you against the tiled wall and fuck you until you need to take another shower.

Speaking of fucking… Garrick fucks. 

He took his sweet time with you in the beginning, when your relationship was just starting, because he wanted to make you feel loved and safe with him of course, but also because he was studying.

He’s learned almost everything about your body. He knows what feels good for you, and recognizes all the signs that you’re about to cum — the cute sounds and expressions you make, the way your breathing changes and you grip his hand a little tighter… 

King of praise btw. The boy cannot shut up between the sheets. always telling you how pretty you are, how well you’re taking it, that you deserve to feel so good, just relax and let it out…

But it isn’t all soft and sweet. He's strong, and you’ve put that strength to the test multiple times. He's more than able to pin you down, to keep your legs spread, to hold you in all sorts of positions while he does what he does best.

Being an executive officer comes with a lot of paperwork, and he often gets stuck doing Xaden’s too (they really need to stop using that as a betting chip), but if you sit on his bed all pretty and keep quiet while he works on it, he’ll make it up to you by bending you over the desk when he’s finished.

Remember what I said about keeping you out of danger? There's gonna be consequences if you do something reckless in training or out in the field… That’s all I’ll say on the subject for now 🤭 

I got a little carried away there… Can you tell I’m currently working on three different Garrick smuts? gonna be exploring some of those things in more detail ^^ 👀

all in all, Gare is an amazing boyfriend and he loves you so much 🥺 big strong boy is just so soft for you and only you, and wants to take care of you all the time and make you feel loved and protect you from the cruelty of the world. ❤️

[hollersparrow]

why the fuck was all might allowed to be a teacher. he's teaching at what is widely regarded as the best school in the country, particularly for heroes, but also just in general from what i understand. there is no way in HELL that a school like that would let a person who is uncertified and has no higher education to teach, regardless of how famous they are or how much pressure the hpsc put on the school or even how eclectic and eccentric the school/its teaching styles are. there is simply no fucking way.

at most he'd be allowed to be a guest in some of the hero classes to provide additional feedback, etc etc. he probably couldn't even do administrative work as that generally requires either ample teaching experience or some level of training/school to do as a job.

also, i don't care how much nedzu loves chaos, he also loves his job and wants to protect/care for his students. he would not just skip over all might's lack of ability for this, no way no how; he would expect him to follow the rules set up to ensure that the teachers are equipped to handle the position and to teach the students

semi-related to the above, it is a personal headcanon of mine that many of the UA teachers are not as popular or as widely regarded as other heroes BECAUSE THEY HAD TO GET A TEACHING DEGREE. many of them worked as heroes or sidekicks to gain field experience but did so while also attending university to get an undergraduate degree AT THE LEAST. then, depending on the person, they either went straight into a teaching assistantship or continued working as a hero for a few more years to get more experience. however, many of them weren't able to reach higher levels of notoriety simply because they didn't have the time or the energy to market themselves and they ALSO didn't have a need to, as they were working towards a different goal.

for some, especially those in the support course (i'm thinking powerloader but i'm sure there's others), i could see there being waivers like many schools offer for folks teaching a trade (at least in the US). if you've worked in a trade for long enough, you might only need to get your teaching license which is usually not as long as getting a degree since your work experience shows that you know what you're doing. so i could see some of the teachers for support courses or even business courses being hired through a similar process.

i also think that most of the teachers don't work as heroes during the school year. i think that they keep active hero licenses and are able to be called on at any time (i could also see staff wide training/sparring being a part of this), but that they generally are taken off the roster. there are definitely some exceptions to this, like aizawa who's quirk is super valuable and who is also insanely willing to sacrifice himself and his health to help others (he needs therapy and some sessions on how to set boundaries). i think yamada is also an outlier with his radio show, although i think that started while he was getting his teaching degree and was working for the university's radio channel and he just decided to keep up with it. however, everyone else just teaches and then picks up freelance work during the summers (also see them only being on 10 month contracts or an equivalent type of work schedule).

i also know next to nothing about the requirements for teaching in japan, so take most of this with a grain of salt. but, at the same time, i think bits and pieces of this are probably universal.

it should probably also be mentioned that i really like bnha for the potential and the amount of room left for fanfic and the fandom to play around in the sandbox that is the world that Horikoshi Kōhei has created but i literally can not finish the manga or the anime. i have tried. multiple times. and i can't get past the sports festival for either of them. so maybe this gets better explained or something or maybe my standpoints on the characters are a little off.

[delicious-in-imagines]

combat training with laios and/or kabru? 🖤

(Back to answering stuff in order-) Of course!

Laios Touden

He's going to be a little hesitant, just because he doesn't want to potentially hurt you while training. It takes a run in with monsters to push him to go ahead and train you. You might think that he may take an unorthodox approach - but that comes later on! Initially, he's going to start you on the very same drills that he did when he initially joined the army.

You may notice that he sometimes drifts off when he watches you, before snapping out of it, giving you a slightly dampened smile. He wants to make sure that not only are you capable of defending yourself against monsters - but ones of the people variety too. Once you get past this phase, he quickly returns to the usual exuberant self!

He's going to teach you... everything. From the best way to combat a cockatrice, to the inverse scale on a dragon - while he hopes you'll never encounter the latter, he wants to share this knowledge, not only to just gush about the monsters, but to make sure that you know how to protect yourself when you go into the dungeon.

With each technique and style you master, he's going to sweet up you into one of his signature bear hugs, doting over you with his loud, excited tone. Especially when you manage to take down a creature using something that he taught you how to do!

Kabru of Utaya

While he isn't going to be nearly as harsh of a teacher as Milsiril, he is still going to drill you the entire time that he teaches you. (Not that drilling - you have to ask for a different set of headcanons for that.)

His observational skills are going to be invaluable to catch you when your movements or stance is incorrect, gently teaching you with his hands on your body to move your form to the proper way. If you get flustered during this, he'll give you that little wink before stepping away, teasing you if you continue to be flustered through the training.

While his monster knowledge can't hold a candle to Laios' obsession, he's still got plenty of experience under his belt, and he'll share what he can with you. It'll be up to the pair of you to discover what does and doesn't work for you, adapting it until it comes to you like second nature.

Those close, sweaty moments where the two of you finish sparring, or training, Kabru loves to poke and prod, teasing at you. It definitely helps to set the mood, though usually it's followed by sharing a nice warm bath, and a meal - maybe more!

[oddduckthatgirl]

Title: Seconds Are Welcome

Pairings: Daemon Targaryen x Lannister!female

Warnings: period typical misogyny, arranged marriage, period typical gender roles

Summary: Everyone talks of girls coming of age. No one speaks of when the girl doesn’t desire to be less than who she is.

A/N: this is slightly AU-ish. For this story, Daemon was named heir, not Rhynera (not hate, just a plot). Changed some Lannister names. It’s just a story, let’s not dissect too much. This story will have multiple parts.

Casterly Rock was the ideal hold for any man to feel like a king in his own keep. Jason Lannister attended to his family home with all the devotion any lord would. He has four children. His two sons, James and Jonathon, are both married, each of them having apartments within the walls with their lady wives. Also within the walls are his two unmarried daughters, Jasline and Jaylon.

Jaylon Lannister wasn’t as she appeared. She looked every part a Lannister. Her eyes were such a light shade of blue that they appeared gray in a certain light. A long flowing mane of pale blonde hair. She had a very lean figure, but muscular. She had been tutored all the ways a proper lady should be. She also could read and write seven languages. She and her sister Jasline received the absolute finest instruction befitting their stations. While her sister had to work for every lesson, Jaylon found academics to be simple. As such she had time to learn other lessons.

She spent some afternoons learning about all things equestrian. After all, horses are what helped her family amass their fortune. She wanted to know everything. From an early age, her father Jason indulged her curiosity. He had even found it quite endearing. However, since she was now eight and ten years old and not married he seemed to be irritated by it.

What raised his ire more was her interest in sparring with her brothers. She often would sneak out with them in the evenings so they could instruct her. Until one evening they had been discovered by their father. He hauled her into his study and told her that was not her place as a future lady of a fine house.

“I’m your youngest child Father and your second daughter. I could only hope for a match so great.”

“You will still have a husband to protect you.”

“What happens if he is killed? Who protects me then? Or if he did save my life, now he’s owed a debt. A Lannister always pays their debts.”

Begrudgingly, he relented but insisted on having her train with her brothers. To give her the same teachings. In truth, she was a far more elegant fighter and understood how to use her femininity to her advantage.

Jasline was far more calm. The eldest daughter who had understood her role. She was the picture of a proper lady. Everything a lord could want in a wife. She didn’t argue, she kept her opinions to herself and she could smile all day while appearing to not have a thought in her head. With her temperament, one would wonder her connection to the Lannister name if not for the blonde hair. Most described her as quite pleasant company.

Dull. Jaylon thought of her sister.

She could never live that life.

Jasline had been married to a nice lord from House Blackwood. They had a longer courtship than usual due to some haggling over the dowry. During that time there had been a small uprising that was beginning to become serious. Eventually, it was decided that Jasline and her lord should be married quickly so he could set out with his lord Father to right their lands.

They were wed in a small ceremony. Jaylon was her attendant while he had his cousin. They didn’t even consummate the union before he had to set out.

Young Lord Blackwood never returned. Jasline was a widow before she even had lost her maidenhead.

It made it difficult to find a match for her. So many questions. During the months after, Jasline had occasion to make acquaintance with Thomas Baratheon. They appeared to have a genuine affection for each other, so Jaylon thought, however it would seem their Father didn’t think the young lord, a second son, worthy of his eldest daughter.

Jaylon almost wished her father had those thoughts for her. Once she came of age, her father had her see every eligible second or third son in all of Westeros. She would do her best to be a proper lady but then they would ask her opinion and she would always answer honestly.

“Jaylon, they are not interested in what a lady thinks.”

“Well Father, perhaps they should be.”

She would tell her father about these young lord’s opinions on battle or horses or wine.

“How am I, a Lannister, to sit there and listen to them be so mistaken? They would make a fool of me and by extension, you.”

Jason Lannister was a proud man. He knew his youngest was correct but he would never give her the satisfaction.

“Why must you insist on such obstinate behavior?”

“I believe it is inherent.”

This would most assuredly have her father avoiding her for days on end. Which was fine by Jaylon, more time to devote to sparring and to horses. More time to think of the many ways to make the next suitor for her recoil in disgust. If it wasn’t their misguided crowing about how honored she should be to be their wife and welp their children it was their leering. She even had the moment to strike a young lord who commented on how strong her thighs were from riding.

It was a quick reaction. Truth be told, it was probably the first broken bone the young lord had ever suffered. Judging by his lewdness, it wouldn’t be the last.

Every day is the same. Until it wasn’t.

There was a new tutor. Some Septa sent to them from King's Landing. He told Jasline and Jaylon they were to have lessons in High Valyrian. The girls exchanged a look and knew what that implied.

A Prince was interested in a Lannister wife.

Lucky for Jasline, even more lucky for Father, Jaylon mused. She was just enthusiastic about another language to learn. More than likely she needed to do her best to master it so she could help Jasline. It wouldn’t do her well to not understand it. Jasline focused all her attention on it, while Jaylon made sure to note her struggles.

Jaylon had heard the rumors as had her sister. She could even see the fear in Jasline’s face when people spoke of Prince Daemon. The girls spent hours at night discussing him, his temperament.

“I hear he’s roguishly handsome,” Jasline sighed.

“He’s a Targaryen. Of course he is. And a prince,” Jaylon collects herself, “I suppose if you’re attracted to that sort of person.”

Jasline smirks, “and he’s a wonderful fighter. Quite a quick wit as well.”

Jaylon nods, “much to the annoyance of the small council I hear.”

Jasline shifts to face her sister, “do you think the other whispers have merit?”

“Did you mean the piece about the street of silk or the piece about him murdering his lady wife?”

“Jaylon Lannister! That is treasonous,” Jasline’s face flush.

“Sweet sister. He is a prince. He does as he chooses. He was commanded into marriage, so the story goes. A young prince who didn’t want such a wife. So he did as he pleased. Perhaps he was simply bored.”

“Jaylon. I would bore him so,” she gasped, “you should put yourself in his way.”

Jaylon laughed loudly, “Father wouldn’t dream of that.”

“Why not?”

“Because I’m not you, Jasline. I’m not the first born. I’m just the spare.”

Jasline sighed, “perhaps marriage to the Prince isn’t what I want.”

“Thomas.”

“I love him, sister.”

“I know you do. But we are just women in this world. We are at the whim of every man,” Jaylon reclines and gazes out the window, “and Father knows best for us.”

“That doesn’t sound like you,” Jasline settles herself in her bed, “I would suppose it’s easy to be so placid; the eyes of a dragon aren't fixed upon you. But they should be.”

“Oh Jasline, marriage is an arrangement. You smile, you nod, you bear his children. Everything else you will sort out.”

“I have sorted it. He needs to wed you. You are one of the greatest beauties in all of Westeros. You are intelligent, strong, cunning and most importantly you are not easily swayed by the opinions of others.”

Jaylon rolls her eyes, “sleep sister, you’ll need your strength.”

Jasline settles into bed, “yes I will. I need to convince His Highness of all your virtues.”

Jaylon leaves her sister to rest and makes her way to her room for the night. She laughs thinking over her sister’s suggestion that she be put in Prince Daemon’s way. Her father would never allow it. She imagines the look of rage that would take him over. How he would have to obey the command of his Prince, if he did want her instead. That would raise his ire even more.

She couldn’t help the smile at the thought. Fun but a fool’s wish.

She sat and brushed her hair, staring at her reflection. She wonders what it is about her that these lord’s find appealing. She’s just a young girl, who knows about horses and wine. That reads whatever she can so she wouldn’t be left behind in the conversation of men. Her understanding that information is the greatest and most valuable commodity.

This is how she gathered what she could on the Targaryen prince. She wanted her sister to have every advantage. She also didn’t want to displease the man herself and squander all the work that has gone into this endeavor.

Before she drifted to sleep, she imagined what a conversation with him would be like. Would he be intimidating? Would he be kind? She also hoped for the chance to see his dragon. That isn’t a sight she would soon forget.

[princess-of-the-corner]

Had a really fun episodic idea for Guardian Neos VS Lady Glasswing I thought you might like.

So Chloe's been Guardian for less than a week, but nothing much has happened... Yet, so she's hastily trying to get a handle on everything and one of these things is combat skill.

As Adrien knows she has issues (Her breakdown cver the phone when Fu died) knows how to fence and that she's the Guardian he is able to help somewhat, with nightly combat lessons.

Chloe knows the Guardian is meant to have a staff so she focusses on that and uses Second Chance to cram a lot of extra training in and to always end on a high note by memorizing Adrien's attack patterns.

This means she starts getting a little cocky and critical at school, enough that she ends up antagonizing some of the fencing team.

As this is happening Marinette's brainstorming with Noroo about whether choosing a champion with combat training would be better, but if she can trust them not to turn on her like Magistrix did.

CHloe makes a good and boastful showing of the fencing team, but Kagami being Kagami can see Chloe's skills are rooted in memorizing Adrien's attack patterns more than anything.

When Chloe challenges her, Kagami switches up fighting styles, leaving Chloe with a 404 error file not found failure on her hands & so angry she ignores Kagami's olive branch to prank her instead.

Kagami is Marinette's new test subject.

Chloe: Why does this keep happening to me!? The Kwami in her bag: (Staring at her like they are on the office) Chloe: ... Oh right... Consequences for the thing I did.

There's a battle, Chloe manages to win by creative use of Kwami swapping but ends up having to linger to save Kagami & catch the Butterfly.

She ends up giving the game away, almost, by being like "Weird to see you so worked up" before claiming Chloe told her that when being whisked to safety.

Kagami: Tsk, I shouldn't have bothered trying to help that girl. Neos: You were... Trying to help? Kagami: Se was relying on memorizing one persons attack patterns to win, it would never last her and after beating her to prove that I was offering to let her spar again, but she stormed off. Neos: Oh... Well, just keep an open mind, having been Akumatized I'm sure you see how easy it is for one's anger to run away with them, bye!

LATER

Chloe: I need to speak with you Tsurugi!! Kagami (Takes in a deep breath and turns) What. Chloe: ... I apologize, I apologize for pranking you. I started those duels, and even set the terms, pranking you for a loss was not a victory to me but... A sign I didn't think I could win fairly. That was far from exceptional of me.

Kagami: ... If you want to improve then you need to pit yourself against a variety of opponents, there weill be lost battles, but so long as you win the war, they will be worth the minor blows to your pride. Chloe: Uh, what do you mean? Kagami: If you want to improve, sign up to the fencing club, and we can spar again, good day Chloe.

Chloe stands stuff as a statue for nearly a solid minute before screaming into her hands and storming off, "Why couldn't she have stayed mad at me!?"

Sabrina trotted behind her, "Where are you going Chloe?"

Slapping her forehead in sheer vexation, Chloe only had one answer for her.

"To sign up for the fencing club apparently!"

IE, Chloe does think she broke her own standards by pranking Kagami & felt weird that Kagami was trying to help her, but also still expected her to be mad, which she could handle. She can handle people being angry at or hating her, actually reaching out leaves her floundering for what gear to get her mood in.

But that's how Chloe signs up for fencing classes, & Marinette gained some brand new Akuma data.

Okay but no this really highlights on how Chloé only /really/ learns via positive reinforcement.

Like. The Akuma thing is sort of teaching her some Cause and Effect, but not... not really. She's getting a message of 'when I do something mean, people will be upset. And then they come after me for retaliation'.

But that's a cause and effect she's already aware of. She knows that when someone sleights her, she retaliates. Ofc everyone else does it too, right? It's just that these people weren't able to usually and now they can via Magic Nonsense.

And this works here too. Chloé sees Kagami's actions as an attempt to humiliate her. Which.... it is. She may be trying to teach Chloé something, but she's doing it by 'putting her in her place' in front of an audience.

So she sees it as an insult rather than a lesson, and retaliates in turn. Then Kagami 'retaliates' via Akuma. So Chloé wouldn't have initially learned anything.

But Kagami /talking/ and /explaining/ to her what her genuine intentions were re: 'while you can beat one opponent, you need to have a more general study to adapt against anyone even a stranger' does actually get the lesson through to her!

[kankuroplease]

I've read a lot about the uchiha brothers and 'it's a bit early' but if you have some ideas for... what will Yaya, Mate, Gin, Wakaba ,+ Katsura ?be like as a mother.

The mamas! Under the cut because it’s kinda long

Katsura

She would seek advice immediately other women around her as she knows she’s in over her head

She will also gag while changing her first particularly stinky diaper

But she is a headstrong woman and would set her mind to doing this mothering thing

Once that kid is too big, they are not getting picked up anymore she’s very short, what would she look like carrying a child half her size 💀

Memorizes all their favorite foods and desserts to make them on special occasions

Uses everyday moments as teaching ones

She’s ready to fight the other mothers and their children for her child if need be

Would be the loudest mother cheering for their kid at the the exams

Teaches them about poisons and swordsmanship

She’s the mom that will keep her kid’s secrets. Even from her husband

Gin

She would be so awkward with a baby at first

How do you hold it? She’s supposed to just put it to her chest to feed it? Why does it sleep so much but not when it should?

Once she gets the basics down, she’ll be okay

But very protective of the baby. No you can’t hold them, they aren’t some pet to be passed around

Makes bone play structures for the kids and it would creep people out a bit

She would raise her child(ren) how her father raised her; strict but with love

She’s their first sparring partner and continue to push them to be stronger

Quitting isn’t acceptable. They don’t have to be a legendary warrior, but what ever they chose to do, they better give it their all

“You can date when you’re 27” - Gin. She doesn’t mean it, but she will still be shocked if her kids start dating in their teens.

When she was a teen she was on battle fields fight grown men, so this is better? She doesn’t know

Mate

Would introduce herself at the child’s birthday like “hi… I’m your mother 🥹🥲😭”

Honestly would wrap up her child and carry them everywhere with her

Doesn’t see the point in being overly strict as a child is only a child for so long

Very gentle and nurturing

Kisses scraped knees and elbows as well as gives raspberries

Knows all the remedies for tummy aches and colds

She will cry when her child reaches training age and leaves the house excitedly for the first time to join their father

Makes sure to drop their lunches off with them and that dinner is hearty and ready for them when they get home

Probably not the only mom that would ask their child(ren) if they want a sibling. It’s very important that they are okay with the idea of a larger family

Wakaba

She’s the mother that would get a nanny. Tenko can afford one easily and she likes her beauty sleep, so why not?

Insist on dressing up the baby in silks with pretty embroidery just because

Her maternal instincts need a bit of work, but she is playful with her children

Their tantrums would stress her out

Also would brag about their accomplishments, especially in fire jutsu

Definitely would spoil her children rotten because the deserve the best

Might regret how spoiled she raised them later

Yaya

She’s a natural at motherhood and really enjoys it

The kids are welcome to sleep next to her until their lure grown for all she cares (Inari would have to bribe the kid to sleep in their own room)

She’s the type to help them whenever they need it. Tough love? She doesn’t know her

If they have a problem, mama will help them the best she can

Loves all the kid gifts and would keep them in a chest for safe keeping and would probably pull them out to show them when they’re older

Neighborhood mom, she looks out for all the children and let’s them hang out at her place, although she would send for back up if too many showed up (most likely Ringo, Mate, or Gin)

Learned how to make dango just for the kids

Ringo

Expects her man to help raise HIS kids. Her father was ab active part of her life and wasn’t pig headed about it, so the bar is high

She gets her mom to move in for the first few months with her newborn because she wants her pro tips

Then would proceed to try to do her own thing and end up whining about becoming engorged because she let the baby sleep verses waking them up for a feeding

Probably leaves rouge stains on the babies face from kissing their cheeks too much and tries to get off

She is definitely the mother that can’t cook and everything taste like cardboard (send help)

But she is the fun mom!!

Loves all the funny toddler moments

[kendrene]

“I think you’re angry.”

Ava opens her eyes. Pushes up from where she’s lying, where Lilith left her, sprawled starfish-style on the training mats, clothes soaked through with sweat. She blinks.

“Pardon?”

“I think,” Mary’s foot taps against her side. “That you’re mad.”

“At Lilith?” Ava would wiggle away, but she’s too tired. “Nah.” As far as Ava understands it, Lilith was next in line to become Warrior Nun. After the last, the one they all talk of in hushed whispers when they think Ava’s not listening. When Mary isn’t around. Instead Lilith was passed over once and now Ava is here, and it doesn’t matter that she was a vacant body at the right time. To Lilith it doesn’t. “I’m not angry at her.” She’s had a lifetime worth of people punching down. It would be energy wasted. “I’m not mad at anybody. So.” Ava lifts a hand, makes a shooing gesture. Mary doesn’t move.

Annoying.

“Bullshit.” The toe of Mary’s boot is steel-clad, and when she digs in more roughly it actually begins to hurt. “I think you’re lying.”

“Whatever.” Mary draws her leg back, foot threatening more poking, and Ava rolls to her side. Pushes on all fours before it can connect. “Look, if you could go and do your thinking elsewhere—”

“Nope.” Ava expects more prodding, but Mary holds a hand down for her to take. Open. Beckoning. “Come on. I’ll show you something that’ll help.”

“I said I’m not mad!” Ava is starting to feel somewhat irritated. She just wants to flop back on the mats and close her eyes. Sleep, maybe. The halo burns, coal nestled in the cradle of her shoulder blades, a shower of embers down her spine. Every spot that Lilith hit during their sparring session — and she hit many — hurts. A nap sounds nice. Much better than this thing Mary insists she wants to show her. Nothing can be more important than sleep. If Ava could pick, she’d sleep for a week.

But she doesn’t have a choice, because Mary is dragging her to a corner of the training facility she’s never seen the other recruits use. There, a bag hangs from a hook, the kind Ava’s seen Sylvester Stallone work on in Rocky. She still remembers watching the movie with Diego late one night, the TV muted, fear of discovery far outpaced by the thrill of doing something that they shouldn’t. They’d devoured the whole saga over the course of a sticky hot summer, Diego shadowboxing in what little space they had, Ava coaching him from her sickbed in the corner.

“Here.” A tangle of wraps thwaps Ava in the chest, and as she catches them, instincts kicking in, she wonders what it is with these people. They’re always either hitting her, or throwing something at her.

“I don’t know how to put them on.” Mary heaves a sigh, steps in to help. It’s a few minutes of fighting, of colorful curses, and once Mary’s hands fall away Ava has no heart to tell her the cotton wound tight around her hands feels all wrong.

“Now gloves.” Mary fits the boxing gloves to her hands, ties the straps around her wrists, clicks her tongue and ties them tighter. “Okay.” She gives Ava a shove toward the heavy bag that’s probably meant to be encouraging. In her fatigued state it risks toppling her over. “You’re all set.”

Ava is tired. Ava’s exhausted, really, but Mary seems hellbent on teaching her to fight. In all fairness, she could use the help.

“Okay.” She squares off, facing the bag. One foot slightly offsetting the other, hands up in front of her face, mimicking a guard position she’s only seen in films. Elbows tucked in. “Now what?”

“Now you punch it.”

“Now I—” Ava lets her hands drop. Turns around, incredulous. “That’s it? I just punch it? Aren’t you going to give me tips about stance, or something? What if it’s all wrong?”

“How the hell should I know if it’s wrong?” Mary nods to the bag. “That’s not the point. The point is I want you to punch the bag.”

“This is stupid.” Ava attacks one of the straps with her teeth, trying to undo it. “Get these off. I’m going to go take a nap.”

“Will you punch it just once? Trust me,” Mary grabs her by an elbow, surprisingly gentle, and steers her back to the bag. “Once. I promise it’ll be worth it.”

“If I punch it once, will you leave me alone?”

“Yeah.”

“Deal.”

Ava closes her eyes. Draws in a breath, and when she opens them she’s Rocky in the ring. The last seconds of the last round against Apollo Creed. She lets fly a jab and the shock of the impact races up the length of her arm, numbing before sudden pain flares in her wrist.

“Again.” Mary says, and Ava pivots on the axis of her hip, bringing her other fist to bear. Left. Right. A strange feeling licks up from her gut, the taste of bile but more burning. Ava keeps punching.

“I think you’re angry at the hand you’ve been dealt.” Mary has moved behind her, is leaning in close to speak in her ear. “I think you’re mad that you died, that you had to leave your friend — Diego, is it? — behind.” A mean left hook has the bag swinging wildly. “And you’re angry because you’re alive, but you can’t live your life.” Mary lowers her voice, each word like salt on a wound Ava didn’t want to admit was still bleeding. “You were trying when we found you. You just wanna live, kid. Didn’t think your second chance would come with all these strings attached. Am I right?”

“Shut up.” Ava twists around, arm pulled back for a gut punch. If she weren’t crying, if she was a bit faster, if she actually knew what she’s doing, it might have a chance to connect. She has no clue. So it doesn’t. “Shut the fuck up.”

Ava throws herself forward blindly, seeking a clinch. Mary’s arms wrap around her, the fire winking out, and Ava crashes forward, face pressed to the crook of Mary’s neck.

“It’s okay.” Mary shushes, fingers splayed almost perfectly over the shape of the halo in Ava’s back. Like she’s done this before. Held another bearer just as close. “You’re okay, kid.”

“It’s not fair.” Ava wants to wrench herself away. She wants to never let go. “I didn’t want her to die.” The one she has no name for. The one who had died in the church, so that her friends could survive. So that Ava could live.

“I know.” Mary’s fingers twitch. Dig in. The halo grows hot. “Neither did I. But it is what it is, and it isn’t your fault.”

/

The gloves are old and well creased, inside padding so worn Ava’s knuckles still smart hours after she’s put them to use. Mary gave them to her. “She’d want you to have them” she’d said before leaving Ava at the door of her room.

She sits on the bed as the day outside dies, turning the right glove over and over. Follows the stitching with the tip of a finger, past the logo of a sports company that doesn’t exist anymore, to the inside of the glove’s strap where it’s attached at the wrist. To the set of initials hastily scribbled in black there, the ink mostly faded.

S

Mary had explained that, too. Who it stood for and what she had meant.

Ava clutches the glove to her chest. Curls over it, nose brushing warm leather. It smells of something sharp, something else a little woody.

She has a name now.

Her name was Shannon.

[icey--stars]

Stories To Be Told: PART 8

Series Index

A shadowsinger, a warrior, an Illyrian, that's what she was. Trained by one of the most formidable female warriors. Escaped the Illyrian camps and her clipping when she was barely sixteen and is now the holder of 6 siphons. What happens when she tries to sneak into the City of Starlight? And starts down a whole new road of chaos?

A/N: i was so excited for ya'll to read this part. enjoy lol

↢ 『 ☾ 』 ↣

The next morning, I felt even shittier than before. I almost took Azriel’s advice. Almost. But I was determined to stay strong.

One of the females from Azriel’s group waved at me when I landed. I grimaced slightly, but walked over.

“Hi,” I greeted, voice a bit raspy. “How are you?”

They smiled. “Good.” Her voice was nothing more than a whisper. I smiled.

“I’ll train with you guys today,” I said. I didn’t say that it was because I wanted to avoid Nesta or Cassian who’d surely comment on my appearance. Azriel would too, but from last night, he’d backed off. Maybe I could just promise I’d skip work or something. Even if I wasn’t. My day off was tomorrow, so it’d be good to use the time, but then again, this wasn’t a severe sickness.

Azriel gave me a look when he saw me, but didn’t comment anything and instructed me to help where I wanted. The priestesses seemed happy I was there, which I was happy to notice.

They stretched and then grabbed some practice swords, doing the eight pointed star. I did it as well, using my own sword this time. The moves worked very well with it. Azriel then paired everyone up for some training. He paired me with him, unwilling to let one of the priestesses try against me, even if I would bring myself down to their level for their learning.

“Did your shivering actually stop or are you here against all advice?” Azriel asked as we faced each other down.

“I’m fine,” I replied. I began the fight, unwilling to deal with any more conversation. Azriel just barely won. He managed to turn my attempt to unhand him of his weapon against me. But even then, while the spar might’ve been done, I wouldn’t have lost that fight in one to the death. Even in my unfocused state. I sheathed my sword, watching as the other priestesses finished up their sparring.

I offered some pointers for a few of them, for their balance or just a tip that tended to help me. Tips I learned from Rainne, or from endless mistakes I’d made in a fight that almost cost me my life.

“You better not be going to work today,” Azriel drawled as he saw me stretching out my wings after training. “Or even flying. Are you sure you know how to take care of yourself?”

I shot a glare at him. “Just shut up. I’m off work tomorrow, so I can take a break then.”

Azriel seemed to sigh, exasperated. “Don’t push yourself too badly.”

I leaped off the mountain then, gliding towards the docks. My boss asked me to use my wings again, and I tried to ignore the cold that seemed to seep into my skin much too easily. I sniffled as I landed, finishing the work of loading a couple boxes.

“Good job Y/N,” my boss said before walking off.

I took a moment for a breather, then began more work.

I had a cough, sniffle and an even worse feeling of being cold when I got back to the House. I was fine, I insisted. I could take the afternoon off tomorrow.

-----

The fever didn’t break. In fact, I woke up even worse, despite the bath I took and the amount of blankets piled over me during the night.

I still strapped on my leathers.

But, as I landed on the training areas, I saw Azriel heading straight for me.

“Y/N, you should be in bed,” he observed, glaring at me.

“Fuck off,” I replied, rolling my eyes. “If you didn’t want me over with the other priestesses, you could have just said so.”

Azriel sighed. “No, it’s not that. I appreciated your assistance yesterday. It helped set a few of them straight, but I’m saying you have to take care of yourself. Didn’t Rainne teach you to take breaks?”

“There are no breaks in war,” I retorted.

“And there isn’t any war!” He replied, raising his voice slightly. I pulled myself back slightly. A cold mask sliding onto my face.

“I will do what I wish. If you have a problem, then find someone to pull rank. I don’t care, I'll leave. And don’t insult Rainne. She was the best person in my life. I won’t have anyone disgracing her name or teachings.”

Azriel sighed. “Goddamn it,” he said. “Look, I’m not trying to order you into doing anything. I’m just trying to make sure you don’t hurt yourself.”

“And why would you care? You don’t even know me,” I growled. “And don’t even think about bringing up my past,” I said as I saw him opening his mouth.

He didn’t reply to that. He just simply said, “Rhys is coming to check on the training tomorrow before I leave for a week long trip to Illyria. I sincerely hope to find you healed by then.”

I glared at him for a moment longer before storming off, sitting by the water station for a moment to clear my head.

“Azriel made you that mad huh?” Nedra’s voice said, chuckling.

I looked up to look at her.

“Oh damn, maybe he’s got a reason to say that,” Nesta said, scanning my face. “You do look sick.”

I got ready to start a whole other snarling match.

“Ah, ah, ah- I’m not saying anything. Just observing,” Nesta quickly said. “You have full reason to be mad at him for ordering you around like that.” She took a seat beside me. I saw Emerie and Gwyn also walking over. “If Cassian ordered me like that- I’d have ripped his face off.”

I let a little smile onto my face. “He just doesn’t understand.”

Nesta nodded in understanding. “Males tend to not. You want to prove to yourself you’re strong. Everyone does. Some do it in a good way, some in a bad. Doesn’t really matter as long as you live.”

Emerie spoke up. “To be honest, I find it a bit weird that Azriel is being like this. Normally he doesn’t dare to even talk to me or Gwyn like that. And I’ve been sick quite a few times.”

“Yeah, it is weird. Normally he’s quiet and to himself,” Gwyn agreed. “Weird.”

“If he talks to you like that again,” Nesta said with a grin. “I vote to hit him.”

I chuckled a little, breaking out in a bit of a cough.

“Yeah,” I said, voice raspy. “I like that idea.”

Nesta gave me an evil grin, then stood up and offered me a hand. I took it.

“Great. Now let’s train and ignore Azriel’s weirdness,” Nests said.

Cassian gave me worried glances throughout training, but I evened them with glares. Nesta, I noticed, joined me in this fact. She understood, I realized, the need to prove to myself, not to others, that I could indeed do this, even while sick, because I’d done it before right? Why take a break now?

Azriel came over to me after training. I glared at him, working to strap my sword’s belt on to head to lunch with the Valkyries.

“Get better,” he ordered.

“And you fuck off,” I retorted and then walked past him toward Nesta who was watching.

Azriel grabbed my shoulder. I whirled around, hitting his arm to remove his hand.

“Stop trying to act like you fucking know me,” I snarled. “I know what I’m doing, it’s time you learn I’m not some poor female who’s learning to fight to keep her mind at bay. No, I am a warrior, Azriel. I fight because I must. I fight because I want to. I fight because I WON’T BE WEAK!”

Azriel flinched away slightly, at my sudden raising of volume.

I took a breath. “I’m almost three hundred years old, Azriel. Stop acting like I’m a petulant child who won’t listen. I know how to survive. I know how to take care of myself. I did it after my escape and I’ve done it for the past century.”

Azriel just stared. I glared at him a moment longer before storming off toward Nesta who didn’t touch me, but led me down the stairs for lunch.

“Good job,” Gwyn said as soon as we made it to the warmth of the inside.

For some reason, that brought me no peace. But I also felt cold inside, and it wasn’t just my fever.

We didn’t speak about my outburst, opting to eat and speak upon rumors that Nesta had heard from Velaris. I offered what I heard at the docks as well.

-----

Rhysand appeared at training the next day, as promised. He stuck to the sidelines, but sparred with Azriel. He also kept glancing at me, oddly enough.

I made sure my mental shields were strong, knowing he was a daemati.

During a quick break after an intense round of cardio, the High Lord approached me. 

“You’re very well trained. The Raven did a good job, you’re comparable to Az and Cass,” Rhysand commented. “Have you found your stay at the House comfortable?”

“Yes,” I replied.

“Nesta seems to like you,” he commented, glancing over at the female.

“We’re friends,” I stated, wincing at my short tone. I coughed on air then, wincing from my weirdly dry throat as I stood up straight.

“You alright?” Rhysand asked. “You look a bit… off.”

“I’m alright,” I replied. “Just a touch of a cough.”

He nodded. “Well I’m glad you’ve been doing well. I’ll leave you to train.” Silently, I was glad this male knew when to shut up.

I waved as he walked off, heading for the water station early before returning to Nesta who gave me a little grin.

I went to work after, coughing more and more as I continued. I tried to ignore the glances in my direction, and my boss’s attempt at telling me to leave. “You know you can take days off, right?”

“I know, I’m fine,” I said before lifting a heavy box and loading it onto the ship.

↢ 『 ☾ 』 ↣

TAGLIST: just comment to be added! in the future, i'll work on a taglist for all my works, but for now, its just this story

@mis-lil-red, @bunnymallowo, @judig92, @biblophilefox82, @azzydaddy, @thegirlintheshadows101

[sleepingdeath-light]

breakdancer s/o hcs ; hunter

requested by ; anonymous (17/03/22)

fandom(s) ; the owl house

fandom masterlist(s) ; part one | part two

character(s) ; hunter wittebane

outline ; “Hey, is it okay if I request a Hunter x [maybe human]reader?

I remember reading the martial artist!s/o post you did and that gave me a fun idea.. So let’s say in some scenario Hunter is sparring with them and is impressed at how they’re dodging his moves and such. He thinks they’re some expert fighter and expects that to be the answer when he asks how they were able to do all that. But, much to his surprise, they say “Oh no, I’m just a breakdancer.” And he’s kinda shocked by it [Either in confusion as to what the heck breakdancing is, or, if he does know, how just knowing how to dance makes them such a quick thinker/mover]

thought it would be a funny prompt. And no need to rush on this, take as much time and breaks as you need. <3”

warning(s) ; canon typical references to violence

when you begin sparring, hunter is insistent on going easy on you — you’re human and likely haven’t had much of any training in combat and the last thing he wants is to injure you

he can take his time to work you up to proper combat, he reasons, but for now he just needs to know where you’re at and how/where he can correct you

so imagine the complete shock and surprise when he finds himself matched at almost every step with seeming ease

your movements are fluid and quick and you fight better than he’d even seen luz accomplish

and you’re somehow keeping up with him for the most part as he ramps it up and starts actually fighting

he’s impressed — awe struck even — but he tries not to let it show until your sparring session is finished

and he wins, of course, but he’s still quite out of breath and approaches you with a grin and a question as to where you learned how to fight so well

“fight? nah, i just used to breakdance back home!”

… what?

now understand that breakdancing is a thing in the demon realm (granted the name is a bit different but the vibe is the same) — but hunter was incredibly sheltered

hunter didn’t have leisure time to explore the various forms of dance across the isles; hunter was a living weapon, he was always fighting

so his immediate response is silent bewilderment and to ask you if that’s some abstract fighting style or something

or maybe even self defence

and you laugh a little at his expense before grabbing your drink and sitting down next to him as you explain your hobby and that it’s really not what he thinks — you promise

he starts to understand after a while and, whilst still slightly confused as to how that made your reaction times so quick, he does get it for the most part as you go on

he makes a few comparisons to his training and the techniques he memorised and how some basic moves in your skill set match up pretty well with his own

how spontaneity and improvisation are crucial to both of your respective “arts” and you promise to teach him how to dance after the war is over

when the day of unity has been stopped and you’re all safe again

and maybe even introduce him to your fellow dancers back in the human realm if luz and eda ever manage to fix the portal back home

[faelune-home]

FFXIVWrite 2023 #23: Suit

(A/n: I've written more twins than I have my own wol this month...ah well, my brain keeps going to them for ideas first whenver a prompt comes up.

anyway, set in vaguely earlyish EndW, during one of those training moments with Alphinaud testing his new skillset. there is one instance where you come across them both at a dummy doing that, but this could really happen at any time once he gets the job stone and they're in Sharlayan.

Word count: 549)

“Well, how does it feel so far?” Alisaie asked, sitting on the low wall outside the annex, watching her brother at work against the training dummy. The stuffed mannequin took another defenseless hit against the flying machines, swaying from the force before settling once more. The nouliths settled against his back, a surprising weight to them that almost made him lean back and stand up straighter, despite not even physically connecting to anything.

“It’s interesting, to say the least,” Alphinaud hummed thoughtfully, trying to think of the words to describe it, “The way that words and spells and movements seem to come to mind without even realising, or without the prior study or training. Was it like this when you took up red magic and gained your soul crystal?”

She shrugged.

“Near instant mastery in body and mind? I suppose in a way? Though even I had a mentor to help train me further and explain the nuances of it all. Unfortunately for you, you don’t quite have that available here,” she answered, grimacing.

“True. Though the way these crystals work, a mentor is just an additional aid to understanding. As it is, it's almost natural, despite how briefly I’ve had it now. The magicks that make these crystals work as they do truly is something extraordinary.” Still, his eyes couldn’t help but be drawn to the Rostra at the upper levels, overlooking the whole city. Alisaie followed his gaze, her grimace deepening.

“Mother said it used to be his. The crystal and the nouliths,” she said, “I can’t imagine it though. He’s so stuck in his ways about being against violence and combat, and I know it's a curative role, but it still seems so…unlike him.”

“Nay, I understand. I’m struggling to picture him like this at all,” Alphinaud replied, shaking his head.

“Even so, these weapons were his once, and the spells I weave were cast by him too in years before. Maybe even something penned by him as well. Even if we stand opposed now, perhaps there could come a time, when we can talk face to face again without any formalities, that he could teach me properly. There may be something I can’t just learn from the crystal or something I could be missing.” Alphinaud offered a small smile, mixed with both uncertainty and optimism.

“You’re rather hopeful,” Alisaie said, rolling her eyes, “Do you really think he would?” Despite her dismissive tone, there was a look in her eye, like she wanted to believe the same as her brother.

“Truthfully? …Truthfully, I have to believe that. To think that we may always stand opposed to one another as family is not something I’d wish to consider, even if it is the way of things right now,” he said, expression neutral once more.

He turned back to the dummy, freeing the weapons once more, ready to continue.

“Here,” Alisaie spoke up, standing straight again. She unsheathed her rapier, giving it a flourish for show, a smirk crossing her lips.

“Have a spar with me, see how it handles against a real person. Then you can patch us up after.” Alphinaud smiled at the suggestion, turning his attentions immediately to her. The nouliths flew, whistling through the air in amongst the crackle of electricity and magic.

[kitsmits]

New Chapter of Mono no Aware is UP!

Chapter 27: Trust

The next chapter of Mono no Aware is up on AO3 and FF.net! Check it out, leave a comment…and be ready. It’s a heavy one. Check below the “read more” line for a preview!

“Wake the fuck up, ya snot-nosed baldy!”

Hiyori kicked the orange-haired brat right in his empty skull. “You owe me a hundred sets o’ katas! What kinda weakling passes out after crashing through one measly fucking boulder?!”

“To be fair,” Shinji called out lazily, “he went through that boulder headfirst, Hiyori. And Ichigo's only got one head, so let's not bash it around too much!”

“Shut the fuck up, baldy-Shinji! So what if he's only got one head? Doesn't mean shit when there's no brains in it.”

“Hey, I have enough brains to know that your teaching style sucks!” Ichigo shot back, rubbing his head as he sat up.

“Oh?” Hiyori turned back to Ichigo with her arms crossed. “You wanna make it two hundred kata sets? An’ did I say you could take a break? Get to it already! The longer you make me wait, the harder I'm gonna kick your ass in the next spar!”

Though really, she’d hardly consider what they just did “sparring”; the idiot could only keep control of his masked state for a few seconds at a time. Once those few seconds were up, the brat got so wiped out that Hiyori pretty much spent the rest of the time knocking him around like a ragdoll. Even when he did get a few real moves in, he was way too predictable.

You keep attacking from the front - that’s what I mean by ‘predictable’…

Hiyori’s lip curled into a sneer. Why was she thinking about her freakin’ Academy days all of a sudden? What the fuck did that have to do with anything? Those days were long gone, and no amount of pouting or crying or staring wistfully into the distance would bring them back.

Shinji sidled up to her, watching as Ichigo began performing katas like his life depended on it. “Gotta say, the kid’s got stamina. What’re we up to now?”

Hiyori scoffed. “Ten seconds. Little over. He ain’t tryin’ hard enough.”

“He’s still afraid,” Shinji mused. “We all went through it - well, maybe not Mashiro, but still. We all had to figure out how to live with our new Hollow roommates, an’ it ain’t an easy thing to do. ‘Sides…he ain’t the only one we gotta rely on now.”

“I ain’t relyin’ on anyone who ain’t in front o’ me,” she said, acid lacing her every word.

“But everyone’s kinda behind you right now…”

Lightning fast, in a move she could do in her sleep (and sometimes did), Hiyori whipped off her sandal and smacked him with it. ”Shut up, Shinji! You know what I mean!”

She could rely on the other Visoreds - they’d gotten each other through this hell together, after all. Urahara…she wasn’t so sure about relying on him. Never had been. But he usually came through when it mattered.

Unlike some.

Just then, Hiyori’s pocket began buzzing. She pulled out her phone to see who the hell was calling her at a time like this.

Unknown number…?

Oh, did that clog-wearing dipshit really think she wouldn’t know this was him?! This was a freakin’ spirit phone! He’d sold it to her - no, extorted her for it was more like it, but still! There was no way anyone was calling her on it that she wouldn’t already know about!

She flipped the phone open like a switchblade and snarled into the receiver, “The hell do you want, baldy?!”

"Hiyori-san!” Just as she suspected, Urahara Kisuke’s overly-cheery tone immediately set her teeth on edge. “I’m so glad I reached you! You see, I have a bit of a predicament on my hands. You know Kurosaki-kun’s friend, Sado-kun? He needs a new training partner.”

“Well get some other dopey Shinigami to do it! I’m busy trainin’ yer other idiot over here!”

”Oh, I’m sure Kurosaki-kun will be fine under the tutelage of one of your colleagues for a while,” Kisuke dismissed. “But you’re the only person I could think of for this particular case. I mean, I could just keep having Abarai-kun work with him, but Sado-kun requires a particularly strong Melee-type fighter to help him, and while I would never speak ill of Abarai-kun's abilities, he simply doesn't have your talent. Besides, frankly...he's a bit of a pushover. And I know you would never pull your punches."

Hiyori squeezed the phone so hard she was sure she heard something crack. That damn Kisuke…he thought he knew exactly what to say to butter her up, didn’t he? Like she’d trip over herself to show up some damn Shinigami that she was obviously better than anyway…because he was right, she wasn’t a pushover, and if that Abarai-or-whatever was pulling punches and calling that “training…”

She growled and snapped the phone shut without giving Kisuke an answer - because she was sure he already knew what she was going to do.

“Oy, dumbass,” she called out.

“You talkin’ to me,” Shinji answered, “or the kid? Hard to tell when ya don’t use people’s actual names.”

“Well, both o’ you are dumbass baldies, so what does it matter?! ‘Sides, I’m talkin’ to both o’ you, so listen up!” Hiyori jabbed her finger at Shinji. “Take over baby-kun’s training ‘til I get back!”

Ichigo stopped his kata mid-swing, sputtering in indignation. “‘Baby?!’ The hell you get off calling me a ‘baby’ when you’re barely two feet tall? And what ‘training,’ anyway? You just keep kicking me in the face!”

“Did I say you could stop doin’ katas?!” Hiyori brandished her sandal at him. “Or do ya want a permanent imprint o’ this on yer cheek?!”

He glared at her but resumed his exercises, grumbling under his breath.

”Why d’you need me to take over?” Shinji asked. “Who was on the-“

”Just do it, Shinji! I ain’t gotta explain shit to you!”

“Okay, fine, whatever, do your thing.”

Hiyori could feel Shinji’s lackluster gaze follow her out of the warehouse, but she didn’t care. It wasn’t any of his business what she was doing, and he certainly had no right to tell her off about it. Hell, she was doing old hat-and-clogs a damn favor out of the goodness of her heart! Shinji should be praising her for such altruism!

Hiyori lifted the brim of her baseball cap as she approached the innocuous-looking shop. Just outside the entrance were two small figures, each armed with a broom - though only one was actually using it properly.

“The pitcher winds up,” narrated the red-haired kid, gripping his broom like a bat. “The batter stares him down like a hawk - the pitch is made and whoosh!”

Hiyori caught the broom single-handedly, interrupting Jinta’s daydream. “Oy, brat, watch where ya swing that thing! You wanna hit your customers an’ get sued?!”

Jinta jumped back from her and glared. “Yeah, like you’re a real customer, pigtails! The heck’re you doin’ here anyway?!”

Hiyori’s hand squeezed the broom handle hard enough to make it splinter. “Clearly, your boss ain’t teachin’ you proper manners, but I ain’t got time to give you a lesson! Where is your stupid boss, anyway? He’s the one that begged me to come all the way out here, the least he could do is greet me like a proper host! No wonder you brats don’t know how to mind your p’s and q’s!”

“A likely tale,” Jinta retorted, squinting his eyes at her. “How do we know yer tellin’ the truth, huh?! You could be a spy or somethin’-“

”Ano, Jinta-kun,” Ururu piped up in her mouse-like voice, “We know Sarugaki-san…and if Urahara-san sent for her, then…”

Jinta cut her off by pouncing on her back and tugging at her pigtails. ”Hey, I’m in charge o’ the shop when the old man’s busy, so I’ll decide who comes and goes!”

Hiyori rolled her eyes and strolled past the brawling children. “Whatever. I’ll just let myself in. Not like I was requested or nothin’.”

The shop was quiet inside. “Oy, baldy, get out here! I came all this way, you gonna show some respect for that?”

No answer. With a scowl, Hiyori stomped behind the counter and headed for the back room. If he didn’t want random people barging in, he shouldn’t have left everything unlocked with only a couple of brats in charge! Hell, he should’ve just been a good host and actually been here when he asked her to come over!

There was no one in the back room either - but there was an obnoxiously bright, flashing red arrow pointing at a spot on the floor. When Hiyori looked down, she found a note laid out on top of an exposed trap door. Come on in, Hiyori-san!

”Freakin’ dumbass baldy ‘oh I’m just a humble shopkeep’ Urahara Kisuke,” she grumbled as she lifted the trap door and started down the stairs. She knew where this led; after all, Kisuke had built the Visored’s training area as well. She blinked as the dark stairs gave way to obscenely bright artificial sunlight, momentarily blinding her.

“Ah, Hiyori-san!” came the annoying shopkeeper’s voice. “Thanks for coming so quickly! How’s Kurosaki-kun’s training coming along?”

“Can it, Kisuke,” Hiyori snapped, blinking until her eyes adjusted properly. “Where’s the big lug you wanted me to whip into sha-“

She stopped and stared down into the arena. “The fuck is this…?”

Below them was what could only be described as some sort of ground zero. It looked like a bomb had gone off, but someone had hit the “pause” button mid-explosion; mesas and plateaus had been reduced to rubble that hung suspended in midair.

But that wasn’t what made Hiyori freeze. Down in the arena were two figures, one of whom she recognized - but it was the other one that kept her from leaving right then and there.

It had a mask.

That was the first thing Hiyori noticed. It had a bone-white mask with dark streaks on either cheeks falling from empty sockets; its exposed teeth formed a terrible, mirthless grin.

“Why the fuck,” Hiyori breathed, “is a Hollow in here?”

”That,” Kisuke answered calmly, “is Kaede’s Zanpakuto spirit.”

Hiyori did a double take. The actual fuck? That couldn’t be right. No way was that a Zanpakuto spirit. She’d seen plenty of Shikai in her time, and even a few Bankai; she’d experienced the Hollowfied weapons of her fellow Visored lots of times over the years. None of them made her feel like…like…like a rabbit that stumbled upon a wolf by accident.

Deep in her soul, Hiyori felt her own Zanpakuto stir. Kubikiri Orochi had always appeared to her as a large serpent with a spiked spine that closely resembled the serrated edge of her Shikai; even before her Hollowfication, it had been bloodthirsty and battle-hungry, quick-tempered and all too happy to answer her call. It didn’t matter how strong their opponent was; Kubikiri Orochi took any hint of strength as a challenge to be conquered.

After Hollowfication, that delight in battle had turned to an ever-present ache of hunger that could never be satiated. For the first few decades, she couldn’t even be near human civilization for long because even a whiff of a living Soul’s spirit energy awakened a primal imperative to hunt and rend and tear and consume. Even now, she was wary of coming into Karakura proper too often; high-spec Humans still made her salivate, and there were way too many of those sorts of people in this freakin’ town.

But now…even though she was in the presence of some of the strongest reiatsu-emitting beings in this world, Hiyori’s mouth had gone dry. Her Zanpakuto stirred, but not to strike; instead, it shrank back into her soul, like it was trying to hide.

Whatever the hell the thing in front of Kaede was (because she sure as fuck didn’t buy it being a Zanpakuto spirit), Kubikiri Orochi was afraid of it.

Hiyori swallowed and gritted her teeth. She didn’t care what her Zanpakuto wanted right now; she didn’t run from anything. “What the fuck did you bring me here for, Kisuke?”

“I admit that I called you here under false pretenses,” he said somberly, all traces of false cheer gone. “But I do need your help…and so does she.”

Hiyori jerked out of his hold with a sneer. “She made it real fuckin’ clear that she doesn’t need anybody.”

Least of all me.

Her lip curled into a snarl as she beat back that thought. Who cared what Kaede did or didn’t need? She sure as hell didn’t.

“She’s been training almost nonstop this past month,” Kisuke told her.

“So have all of us,” Hiyori dismissed, looking away from both him and the fight below them.

“True,” he conceded. “But right now, she’s risking irreparable harm to herself-“

”So have all of us,” she reiterated with a sneer. “So what?”

”So,” Kisuke continued patiently, “she’s not doing it to get stronger or to conquer an inner demon. She’s doing this because she’d rather destroy herself than face what happened.”

Hiyori’s gut clenched a bit, because she could absolutely believe that Kaede would do such a stupid thing. Not that she cared.

“Then let her do it,” Hiyori uttered in a hollow tone. She didn’t have the energy left to spare on someone who…who…

”Aw, I know you don’t mean that, Hiyori-sa-“

”You think I don’t?” Hiyori seethed, her fists shaking at her sides. “You think I give a damn about someone who ran away ‘cause she couldn’t face the consequences of her own actions?”

”That’s not exactly what happened,” Kisuke said, an edge to his voice that she didn’t often hear. “She wasn’t running away from what happened to you and the others. If that was the case, why did I find her getting ready to run before she knew what had happened to all of you?”

Hiyori’s eyes widened, her muscles practically seizing with impatience and rage. “The hell does that mean?”

“Maybe it was by design,” he mused, “maybe it was pure coincidence, but I found her in the lab exactly when I was getting ready to come after you and the other Hollowfication victims. I’ll admit, I was as surprised to see her as she was me. Not just because she was supposed to be on assignment in the Human World, but because it was pretty clear that she was getting ready to run away. However, when I told her what was happening, and that you were in danger…she came with me without a question.”

There wasn’t much about that night that Hiyori remembered. Her body remembered the unbearable, ripping pain as her soul was turned inside-out; she vaguely recalled trying to warn Shinji to run…and, though she’d tried to deny it over the years, she remembered a familiar voice shouting her name over and over again…

“Don’t try to tell me that I’m the reason she turned on him,” Hiyori seethed. “I ain’t fallin’ for it. If she actually gave a damn-“

”She left because she gave a damn,” Kisuke snapped back, a hint of impatience coloring his tone. “Look, I could give you my theories on the matter, but they’ll be just that: theories, conjecture based on what I happen to know for certain. Or, you could hear the truth straight from the source.”

Hiyori whirled around and gave Kisuke her fiercest glare, her fists clenched so tightly her skin threatened to split. “She coulda said whatever she wanted years ago, but she fuckin’ ran away instead! Why the hell should I listen to anything she’s got to say now?”

“Because she won’t talk to me!”

Hiyori flinched - not because of his tone, but because of the slightest flare of reiatsu that came with it. She stared down at her former captain in astonishment. In all the years she’d known him, she’d never seen him lose his temper - not with her (despite her best efforts at times), not with anyone. But now…she saw the tension in his jaw, the way his own hands had balled into fists in his lap. Urahara Kisuke wasn’t one to show his hand to anyone, but for this one second, he seemed to slip. Frustration, impatience - no, that wasn’t it.

He was worried.

Within a blink, he had donned his usual, relaxed visage once again. His hands relaxed on his lap; his expression turned thoughtful, even a little sad. “Please believe me when I say that I wouldn’t have asked you here if I didn’t think it absolutely necessary. Of all of the people she believes she directly harmed, you are perhaps the one she feels the most guilt over, and the one she did the most to protect. If anyone is able to get through to her, it will be you. Now please, Hiyori-san, if you’d just wait a few more minutes - it shouldn’t be long now.”