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skellebonez · 3 years

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Who Do I Go To? (Monkie Kid Fanfic)

I totally did not accidentally post this early before I edited it or added everything from my wip file... no... but anon, you gave me so much FREEDOM with this that I just went absolutely off the rails. This is not only set in a post S3 scenario where everyone survives and most of the villains have some kind of at least semi-redemption (except LBD, rip), this does feature a crackship or two of mine (you can read the tags to see the ships before you read)! Sun Wukong also has all of his immortality and some of his powers, I am writing this with the idea that he transferred most of them to MK and some of that was permanent once LBD was defeated and MK got his own back.

So... what if Sun Wukong did start communicating with the others in S3... but still has been bottling up his emotions about the past for so long he doesn’t feel he can talk to anyone because of their shared experiences? And what happens when that guilt and grief finally has someone willing to listen?

“What are you doing here, Si-SUN Wukong?” The Demon Bull King asked slowly, stumbling over his usual insult for the one once so close to him. They still weren’t close, and it was doubtful they would ever be as long as the sworn brothers they once were, but they were no longer at each other’s throats anymore.

That didn’t change how bizarre it was to see The Great Sage Equal To Heaven just... sitting outside his new home with no warning.

“DBK!” Wukong exclaimed, more startled than the larger demon was expecting as he jumped up and turned and if he didn’t look like he’d been hit with a truck metaphorically DBK didn’t know how to describe the way his fur stood on end and the redness in the other’s eyes. “I. UH. Was. Just stopping by to say hi!”

“No you weren’t,” DBK said, face falling into a deadpan glower. “You don’t do that. Even after 500 years I know you don’t.”

“I can start!” Wukong defended, crossing his arms and looking away with a wide teeth showing smile.

Too wide.

Even after everything that happened between them, from Red Boy to what happened when he needed his wife’s fan to sealing him in the mountain and everything that transpired with the Little Thief, he recognized that unhappy nervous smile.

“You can,” DBK said with a nod, gesturing to the smaller being. “You can also be here for a reason. Like what I heard you muttering to yourself behind the door.”

“And that’s my cue to leave!” The Monkey King announced as he turned to walk away before a large hand, with shocking gentleness for the one attached to it, wrapped around his shoulders.

“If you need to talk-”

“No, haha, I most certainly have no need for that!”

“-you know we’ve already made peace. I-”

“You don’t need to do anything,” Wukong insisted, struggling only a little before freeing himself from the other’s grip with an even wider nervous smile.

“-am willing to listen.”

“Don’t have to!”

“Are you at least talking to anyone?”

Neither of them said anything, The Demon Bull King staring down at The Monkey King with both frustrated annoyance and genuine concern in his expression.

The former he could deal with, but the later was so new again that...

Sun Wukong panicked.

“.... OKEY BYE!” He yelled, jumping and allowing his cloud to catch him and take him off.

"YOU CAN'T HIDE FROM YOUR FEELINGS FOREVER SUN WUKONG!"

"I HID FROM THE WORLD FOR 500 YEARS AND I TURNED OUT JUST FINE, I THINK I'LL MANAGE!"

“He turned out fine, he says,” Princess Iron Fan called from behind her husband as she emerged from their home. “So fine that it took him losing his invincibility and his successor nearly being killed for him to admit he needed help.”

DBK grunted, nodding in agreement at her words.

“He needs more, still, my dear. Even I can see that.”

“Let’s call in some reinforcements then, darling. I think there are two people who may be able to get through to him.”

Sun Wukong sat on the beach of Mount Huaguo’s island home, clearly trying not to think about what had just transpired.

“Hey.”

“How did you even know to look for me here?” Sun Wukong asked, not nearly as startled this time. He’d heard the footsteps coming for a long time, the other apparently wanting to make his presence known.

“Bull King called Pigsy’s asking for MK. MK called me since he’s working. I remembered where you like to sulk. Hence: I’m here.”

Wukong groaned, wrapping his arms around his knees and burying his face in them. “I shouldn’t have even left the house today.”

“But you left,” Macaque said with a shrug, watching the other stew in his frustration at himself. “And you went to see DBK... and I guess Princess Iron Fan too? But you ran off. Why?”

“I can’t check up on an old friend turned enemy turned less enemy to ‘not exactly friend but we’re not trying to kill each other’ without being questioned?” Wukong grumbled into his arms.

“Not when you make him sound as worried as he did when he talked to MK,” Macaque continued, voice becoming more tense. “You didn’t go to apologize or explain anything, I was there when all that went down. So... did you finally go to talk about everything e-”

“No.” The word was said with such coldness that Macaque knew it was put on. It wasn’t out of malice but something else, something more worried and fearful. “No. I can’t talk to him about... I told him everything that explained what happened. I apologized. I don’t need to talk more.”

"I don't understand why you're so opposed to to just talking about, you know... how you’re doing," Macaque said with a concerned frown. It almost felt odd on his face. Almost. He was still getting used to the whole "not being mortal eternal enemies and now being friends and kinda sorta caring about each other again" thing. "I know it's been centuries and all and you're out of practice but like... it's been centuries."

"I just... can't, Macaque," Wukong rebutted as he refused to lift his head from his arms. "I just can't."

"Why?"

"Don't."

The single word stayed in their air between them, heavy and hard and meaning more than the immortal would ever admit to.

"Come on, there has to be a reason," Macaque insisted as he sat down beside the other immortal. When no response came he sighed, tail flicking absently and flipping over some of the rocks on the beach as they sat in silence for few minutes. "You know... I started talking to someone."

"What?" Wukong turned his head, just enough to look at the other monkey from the corner of his eye.

“Sandy’s a good listener,” Macaque continued, falling back down to lay flat on his back and gaze up at the clouds. He remembered that Wukong felt better, sometimes, when you looked away when talked to. Didn’t know why, but he remembered. “Not exactly the kind of therapy he thinks I need, but he lends me his cats and he lets me talk and sometimes asks if I want advice. Sometimes I say yes, but when I say no he understands. Sometimes I just want to rant at that one little one eyed cat he has and she listened to... I think. She’s a cat so I wouldn’t know. He thinks I should see someone more experienced, an expert. Maybe he’s right, I dunno, but this helps enough for now.

“... who are you and what have you done with the Six-Eared Macaque?” Wukong asked with a soft glower, one that was clearly in jest from the tiny smile the other could see.

“Same Macaque,” the other said with a laugh, sitting back up with a theatrical flourish. “Just realized that talking to someone isn’t as dumb or useless as I made it out to be in my head. A lot of the stuff I thought about alone wasn’t exactly the best. Or healthiest. But now I can get that out there and sometimes it makes Sandy look like he ate a whole lime which probably means it’s good it’s not in my head anymore.”

“You ramble a lot,” Wukong said with a chuckle, tail swishing softly beside him before nudging against Macaque’s. He tensed before it slowly wrapped around the other’s. “It feels odd, having you try to cheer me up again after... everything.”

“Bad odd or good odd?”

“Good.”

“That’s.... good,” Macaque said, squeezing Wukong’s tail with his own. “Feels odd for me too. Like I’m out of practice too. But it’s good odd...” The two sat in silence for a moment, just enjoying each other’s company before he continued. “I do think you should talk to someone. Anyone.”

“I don’t know who, though. Every time I try I just... clam up and run away. I’ve put so much on MK already,” Wukong said, tail squeezing around Macaque’s loosely in return. “And Pigsy and Sandy... After all that came out, that Sandy is Sha Wujing and Pigsy is Zhu Bajie’s reincarnation... I just... I can’t talk to them either, even though Pigsy doesn’t remember anything at all. And you... DBK... everyone... who do I go to that knows enough about me to know what they’re in for but I won’t have those memories floating around in the back of my head toward making me run away?”

“Well, you could have Sandy help you get a therapist. Prepare them in advance. Or, if you’re not ready for that, you could talk to Tang?” Macaque suggested with a shrug. “He listens to me when I’m not talking to Sandy... but that’s probably because we’re dating, that’s what it is now instead of courting, right? So he kinda has to I think? Pigsy and MK talk to him too but with me I think it’s different.”

"I don't think that's how it works," Wukong said with a half hearted chuckle as he finally raised his head all the way. "Besides, I've known Tang longer."

"By like 3 months."

"3 months more is still enough to know that if he doesn't want to listen to you he won't. The man knows how to make a speedy exit."

"Guess that's one more thing that sets him apart from his great-great-great-great-great-whatever uncle," Macaque admitted with a shrug and a chuckle of his own. He squeezed his tail around Wukong's, smile softening when he felt it being returned.

“Feels... weird though,” Wukong said with a shrug. “The two of them looking so much alike.”

“Yeah, but that’s it,” Macaque rebutted. “He’s Tang Sanzang’s great-whatever nephew 5 times removed or whatever and he looks like him. Other than that? He knows pretty much all of your history. He’s mostly out of the hero worship zone but he still respects you a lot. Aside from everything that happened with LBD and MK you two have the least history out of everyone so maybe whatever’s in your head making you clam up might not stop you. And it couldn't hurt to try. It’s not therapy, it’s just talking about something that’s bothering you. Worst that can happen is you get nervous and fumble and he takes the opportunity to ask you 40 questions about the times you were almost incinerated by a baby."

"That was one time!"

“Uh,” Tang started, staring out the open door with wide eyes at the being before him. “Hi. I didn’t exactly expect to you see today.”

“I didn’t exactly expect to be here today,” Wukong said awkwardly, nervous smile taking over his face as his tone became far too jovial for what he was about to ask. “Macaque sent me to... talk to you. About me?” His smile drooped bit by bit as he said these words, slowly starting to lose his determination to go through with this. “Oh second thought, maybe I should-”

"No," Tang said, reaching out to put a hand on the immortal's shoulder. It was nothing, really, not to someone as strong as he was. Not when he could brush it off and walk away. Go home. Just sit on his couch and watch Monkey King The Animated Series again and just think about how no one deserved to be saddled with his problems anymore. But Wukong didn't. "Whatever it is, we’re going to talk about this now. I know I’m not trained like Sandy is, but I know how to listen. And if you need someone to listen to you, I can. You wouldn't have come here to talk if you didn't."

“... ok...” Sun Wukong said, letting Tang wrap his arm around his back and guide him inside his shared home with Pigsy and Macaque.

It was... odd. Being inside this place for the first time. He’d been outside of the door more than once, invited in as well. But never inside.

“Make yourself comfortable,” Tang said, stopping his guidance once they reached the sofa. “I’m no Sandy, but I was making myself some tea and it is a batch of his own anyway. I’ll grab us some snacks too.”

“Snacks would be great,” Wukong admitted, watching the other disappear into the house’s kitchen before he sighed and gripped his thrashing tail and muttered to himself. “What am I doing..? I shouldn’t put all this on Tang... I should have gone with Macaque’s first suggestion, I’m-”

“Do you prefer lychee or persimmon?” Tang asked suddenly, startling the immortal for the second time that day. “We’re out of peach bao, but MK’s been making them out of lots of fruits and we have so many that I was planning on eating them myself.”

The scholar returned, faster than expected, with a full tray in hand. Teapot, two tea cups, and a steamer box that presumably held the buns he was asking about.

“Uh... persimmon,” Wukong answered, and he watched as Tang poured each of them a cup of tea and removed some clearly fresh (or at least made some time earlier in the day and freshly steamed), pieces of fruit laden bao to put on a plate for his guest before taking a seat in a chair across from him. “You were... getting lunch?”

Tang shrugged, laughing as he took a bite of one of his own. “Just wanted a snack. But,” He smiled, gesturing to the Monkey King. “We’re not here to talk about snacks. What’s on your mind?”

“Awfully forward start.”

“I try to be forward with the people I consider my friends.”

“... You consider me... a friend?” Wukong asked slowly, turning the bao over in his hands. It was well made, perfect he would say. You’d think MK would have been making them all his life, not that he’d learned how to on the drone ship while on the run from an evil super demon bent on erasing his mentor from the world.

“After everything we went through, how could I not?” Tang said, putting his food down to sip his tea and then putting that down as well and looking at him seriously. “You’re here because it’s the anniversary of the day you sealed away the Demon Bull King, aren’t you?”

The bao in his hands wasn’t perfect anymore. Instead the red lychee inside dripped from his claws from where they punctured it in surprise.

“How did you-?”

“My specialty study is your history after all,” Tang said, smile returning with a sad tint. “I’ve known the date for years but I felt it was something to keep to myself. For some reason. Now with you and DBK back I think that was a good choice. It feels too personal to have out in the open for everyone to make a spectacle of.”

“Is it selfish of me to be thankful for that?” Wukong muttered, gently placing the bao on the plate to lick his claws clean.

“I don’t think so,” Tang answered.

“I feel selfish though,” he continued, not managing to take note of how Tang sat up straighter and turned more toward him. “I went to DBK’s to... I don’t know. I wanted to apologize again? But I already did and he accepted it and it feels selfish to want to again. Then I just. I froze.”

“Why?” Tang asked, scooting closer.

“It felt wrong.”

“Because you would make him feel awkward?”

“NO!” Wukong groaned, burying his face in his hands. “I just. I feel...” He took in a shaky breath, claws digging into his skin slightly.

“Don’t,” Tang’s voice came soft and closer than Wukong expected, as did the hands on his own slowly pulling his claws away from his face. “Don’t hurt yourself. And don’t bottle it up. I’ll listen to you. No matter what it is. It’s not selfish, feeling things isn’t selfish.”

“I miss it,” Wukong breathed out, shaky and choppy as his throat tightened as the words started to pour out of him. “I miss him. How things used to be between us and Iron Fan. I miss that I never got to meet Red Son when he was Red Boy. I miss Beng and Ba and Ma and Liu and how things used to be. I miss Zhu Bajie and Sha Wujing even though they’re here. I miss my Tang Sanzang. I’d been alone for 500 years and I missed so much and I did that to myself and it’s selfish to miss like that...”

He didn’t realize his cheeks were wet until his hands had been let go and one of Tang’s rubbed a cloth against them. Tang cupped his cheeks softly before wrapping his arms around him and tucking the Monkey King’s head into the space between his neck and shoulder.

“No... no it’s not. You’re allowed to miss things, Sun Wukong. Just like anyone else.”

Sun Wukong started to feel better.

He didn’t know why that was what did it, but the dam broke. It broke and his tears came pouring out as he hugged the man who reminded him so much of his Master. He didn’t know if anything he said in the mean time made any sense, if he was just blubbering and finally letting himself mourn what he’d lost and never had, but Tang didn’t ever chastise him. He let him weep and hold him and for the first time in years...

“Oh!” Princess Iron Fan startled as she opened the door to see who had knocked, finding herself face to face at sunset with one Great Sage. “You’ve returned.”

“Are you and DBK free?” Sun Wukong asked, smile no longer too wide. “I... kinda just wanna talk with you for a bit.”

“Well... I think that would be lovely.”

#monkie kid #lego monkie kid #fanfic #prompt fill #no ships #gen fic #hurt comfort #sun wukong #monkey king #six eared macaque #liu er mihou #dbk and pif #tang #technically tintedlenses is in here #and hinted freesquidinknoodles i had to add that in after THAT ART TODAY #but it's only a couple lines

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purplellamanator · 3 years

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Second part is up for my @shinranweek fic. Above is my AO3 and again here is the fanfic link. There will be one more part that I will post soon. Thanks for anybody that checks it out :) I'll also post it below the cut again.

As it turns out, the ever righteous Kudou-san could be quite the dictator. He determined when she'd have her meals and even when she needed to rest for the night. It made her feel inept and she wanted to argue out. Every time though, she'd bite her lip. It was as if her body didn't want her to and she got the idea she wasn't used to being waited on.

It was actually . . nice. At times she did feel in the same category as a child, but . . . someone was watching over her. Someone cared about her. Well- that's what it tricked her mind into thinking. The girl knew that Kudou-san had no emotional ties to her. He was doing this because he found her wondering around in a park and felt obligated after thinking he caused her to have a brain aneurism.

She wondered how much longer he would deal with her. Though it still had only been two days, there were no leads and she still couldn't remember anything.

"I didn't want you to overexert yourself today." His sudden voice broke her inner musings and her eyes snapped to where he stood before the kitchen stove, stirring something consistently. Blue eyes glancing her way and realizing he had her attention, he nodded. "We can go out and get you some clothes tomorrow if you're up for it though."

The girl sat there, silently for a moment. Honestly, she felt up to it today. Staying inside the house was making her skin crawl almost and she figured her body wasn't used to it. But . . . "I can't ask you to do that for me," she spoke softly as she watched him cook.

"You didn't. I offered," he replied easily before his brows furrowed again. It seemed he was having trouble with whatever he was trying to make. . . Oddly she wanted to get up and help him but she was sure that was overstepping her boundaries. She already felt guilty that he was cooking for her. Kudou-san appeared like he didn't do it often but was making an effort for her. It would probably be best to suck it up and just swallow down whatever he placed before her.

This time, the scrunched features were from the way he caught the girl staring at him. "R-Ran?" He stumbled over the name embarrassingly, not at all used to or comfortable calling her that nickname quite yet.

Eyes widening and realizing that she was still staring blankly at the poor guy while he attempted to make their dinner, her cheeks heated a bit and she glanced at the wood of the table. "Have those detectives figured anything out?" Ran said suddenly to cover up the awkwardness.

Kudou-san frowned and shook his head as he began grabbing plates down from the far cabinet. "Not yet. There're still looking though," he spoke quickly hoping his first words hadn't discouraged her. "These things can take time."

Well she hadn't remembered anything and how much of his 'time' was he willing to waste on this? Surely he didn't plan on allowing her to live here with him forever. He'd probably realize how much of a bother this really was and take her back to the park where he originally found her, leaving her there alone like he was releasing a stray dog.

Suddenly Ran didn't feel so hungry and after the plate of whatever this was supposed to be was placed in front of her, she really didn't want to eat anything. Schooling her features however, she sucked it up and cleared the plate. He had helped her so much- the least she could do was eat the dinner he tried really hard to make. And somehow she knew and understood just how hard he really had tried.

She was found out however when Kudou-san took one bite and wrinkled his nose in disgust. "This tastes like crap," he admitted and she actually laughed at how bluntly he had said those few words. The man just seemed amazed that she had even ate the whole dish in front of her. He went so far as to scrape his in the trash.

"I can get better at that," Kudou-san promised so seriously but all she could do was chuckle at how earnestly he said it. Didn't he understand she was lucky to even have a meal tonight?

"So, since I don't think I'm the best choice for a shopping partner, I invited a couple friends along."

Ran glanced at him surprised but then again he did have a point. She highly doubted he wanted to spend his entire evening in a mall packed full of girls clothes shopping. "Where will you go though?" she questioned curiously. She couldn't help but wonder, after all, Kudou-san was the only thing she recognized anymore.

He shrugged. "Probably the book store- that's them right over there," he pointed ahead.

Standing some feet away still was a girl and a guy. Both seemed to be about her age though she still wasn't sure what that was quite yet. Doctor Araide had estimated her age to be around her early twenties from the development of her bone structure.

The two had yet to realize they had company and Ran's eyes widened from the language sprouting from the twos mouths'. If it wasn't the heavy dialect that caught her attention, it was the crude and abrasive names they called each other. The girl whom she had assumed would be so kind with her dark hair tied up with a ribbon was shouting equally as loud as the annoyed looking dark skinned boy.

It took Kudou-san clearing his throat before either party even began to quiet down. When they did, they both appeared equally embarrassed as the other at being caught in such a heated discussion. That didn't stop them from continuing to glare at each other from the corner of their eyes.

Eyes narrowed as well, Kudou-san directed their attention to the one unfamiliar face. "This is Ran. Ran- this is Hattori Heiji and Toyama Kazuha-chan." All the while the scowl was firmly in place on his features at the fact the two couldn't get it together just for a few minutes. They still had yet to stop frowning at the other as if they were straining themselves terribly from not yelling again.

Feeling the aggravated tension, Ran swallowed the trepidation down her throat. "It's nice to meet you both," she began and was thankful she bowed her head slightly so they couldn't see the wince she gave from how uncomfortable she sounded. When she straightened she very nearly fell over.

"She is cute." Ran had lifted her head only to come face to face with the girl whom seemed to be scrutinizing her closely. Realizing just what the girl said, her cheeks enflamed brightly.

"Stupid. You're embarrassing her," the man- Hattori? snapped. That got Kazuha-chan's attention off her fast and Ran took the time to scoot closer to Kudou-san.

It took Kudou-san clearing his throat again before either person quieted down again; both looking equally annoyed. "Ran needs clothes so I figured you could help her with that," he directed to Kazuha without any explaining. He probably wanted to get it all out before they started arguing again.

A card was suddenly placed in her line of sight and Ran stared at Shinichi, confusedly. "Just use this. Buy whatever you'd like." He placed the card in her hand considering she hadn't made a move to do so herself.

She stared at the card for a second before glancing up at him. "Where are you going?" she asked again but didn't pay any mind to how the other two stared curiously. Nothing against this Kazuha girl but she wanted to stick with the only familiar face she had and that was Shinichi.

"Hattori and I will probably wonder around. Whenever you're done or if you need something, Kazuha can call me," he shrugged to show her it was no big deal. He was but a phone call away.

This time she did blush a little from how attached she was appearing. She barely even knew Shinichi yet she already felt like he was the only thing she did have. Her only constant in the past few days.

Still not really liking that she'd be walking around without him, Ran nodded slowly with a small grin and they were off. It was quite embarrassing how she kept turning back while they were walking away. She did it every few feet until she couldn't do it no more and each time Kudou-san was standing there looking back at her as if he knew she needed that reassurance that he was right there.

If Kazuha noticed- and Ran was positive she did, she was respectful enough not to comment. And Kazuha simply led the way though she remarked multiple times she was from Osaka and didn't have a clue where all the good shops were. They decided they would stop at any place that seemed promising.

Shinichi stared at the girl's retreating back as it got further and further away. He watched her go until she got lost in the crowds of the other mall shoppers and he could see the girl no more. For some reason he felt a nervousness go through him now that she was out of sight.

"Not bad, Kudou."

And Shinichi startled at the reminder he was not alone either. A brow raised at the sudden comment.

Hattori, whom had also been glancing that way at first looked back at him with a knowing smirk. "She is cute."

Cheeks tinting a light pink, the half lidded glare he sent the Osakan man was impossible to hide. Why was he even surprised? He should've known better than to admit that to Hattori of all people. Still, as a last defense, the man said, "I never said she was cute."

"You said she was 'very pretty'. Same thing," he waved off.

The fact his face got redder had him mildly annoyed. "And you told Toyama-san," he accused.

They were already milling about the walkway and avoiding other passerby as they went. "Man, I live in the same house as that woman. Not that I told her myself- she overheard us talking but you think I'm going to lie about that? Trust me; it's not worth the argument."

Shinichi shook his head but honestly, he wasn't that bothered. Ran was pretty but it didn't change the fact that this was a case. The woman wouldn't want to live with him forever and anyone could see the emotional toll this was having on her.

"Have you found anything out? How about those two detectives?"

He shook his head. "Nothing. They're looking into any accidents that may have recently happened as well if anyone's filed a missing persons report but so far nothing."

Hattori pocketed his hands. "Have you tried tracing her memory back? Can she recall anything?"

"I think anytime she gets close to remembering anything, her mind goes into a panic. It's like she doesn't want to remember," he whispered the last part to himself but was sure the other man heard it anyway. It was a little disheartening though. What was something so terrible that had happened to her that she didn't want her memories back? He couldn't decide if it was the accident itself or her actual past life that had her mind subconsciously shielding her. That's what troubled him the most. Maybe she didn't want to know.

"Jeez, I'm starved!" Kazuha said as they waited together in some line of the food court. Just a minute ago she had texted Hattori letting him know to meet them there. Admittedly Ran was anxious to see Shinichi again. She had fun going through the stores and just being with another girl but she missed that one familiar face. She briefly wondered if he'd be mad by how much she spent and she glanced at the multiple bags she carried in her arms.

A little uncomfortable at first, Ran hadn't wanted to use that credit card given to her. It didn't help that nothing bought in a mall came cheap- even something so small as a pretzel she discovered. But after that, Ran wasn't sure how long they had been. She honestly had lost track of time and was enjoying herself. She was quite fond of this Kazuha girl and she liked her humor even more. Even though Shinichi had given her free reign with his bank account, she was sure to only swipe it on things she really liked. But had there been some unspoken price limit on how much she could use? Would he be mad? Now she was a little nervous to see him.

So trapped in her thoughts, she failed to notice her surroundings. She didn't catch any of the mindless chatter Kazuha was spewing beside her. She barely caught on to when the cashier was asking her what she'd like. So when the people surrounding her started gasping and a commotion began, she hadn't know until Kazuha gripped her arm tightly getting her attention. Blinking, she looked first at the girl in confusion before realizing she was staring somewhere else entirely.

Right before them was a man standing clad in sweats and a t-shirt. He appeared disgruntled and crazed and if that weren't enough to show he wasn't thinking, it was the fact he held a gun tightly in his grasp as he pointed it at them.

Ran could only raise a brow. Unlike in the doctor's office or when she met those detectives, fear was not her initial reaction. If anything, the surprising amount of irritation and annoyance that hit her almost made her giggle. Some man was pointing a gun at her and she wanted to laugh?

Then, "Step aside!" the man practically spit out and she realized he was talking to her. And now she was understanding the gun wasn't for her- it was for Kazuha.

The girl beside her stiffened at that but finally released the grip on her arm, as if silently giving Ran the okay to move out of the line of fire. Clearly the target wasn't her so why should she get shot?

Ran didn't move. If anything her stature straightened and her stance became even more firm where it stood. Ran didn't understand the way her body was having her react. Truthfully, she had wanted to move. She didn't want to die and the guy had a gun. But something was telling her she didn't have to be scared. That she would be okay.

"Move!" He barked again and there were gasps in the crowd when he cocked the gun.

Kazuha was tugging at her arm again now only gently. She was asking her to move like everybody else that had fled away from her the moment they realized she was the target. To get out of the way. She didn't want her to get hurt. "Ran-"

Taking the hand that was shoving her away lightly, Ran gripped it and practically threw her down behind her as she stepped forward. She didn't know what was coming over but she understood what her body wanted perfectly. She didn't have to be afraid and she didn't have to move.

Of course that didn't go over so well with the man standing in front of them and his face contorted in an angry snarl as he prepared to shoot.

Time seemed slower in that moment. So slow, Ran actually found the time to feel her lips tilt up at the sides the barest bit. Her eyes scanned his shaky stance and her grin almost broadened. People probably thought she was crazy but she didn't care in that moment for some reason. Not for the first time she felt trapped in someone else's body.

Then he pulled the trigger.

Screams rang out around them- the more prominent one being her name. But she barely paid them any mind. Her body was already steps ahead of her thoughts and instead of the pain of a bullet entering her, she felt nothing except maybe the breeze of it whizzing through her hair where her head had once been. The man didn't have time to blink before she was already before him and dispelling the gun from his grasp. She didn't really know what she had planned to do after that. Fight the criminal in hand to hand? She'd surely lose but now she wasn't so sure of that fact. If anything, her muscles seemed prepared- welcomed the challenge as if she had been holding back too long. Her body felt something familiar and it was latching onto that.

But by far, she was not expecting herself to turn the tables and actually bare the gun in her grasp. That's how she found her stance. One hand tightly clenching the grip; a finger on the trigger and ready to pull in a heartbeat on the criminal now turned victim. What scared her most was that the weapon was actually comfortable in her grasp.

In the still slowed pace of analyzing her own stance, she barely registered the man had dropped to his knees with his hands above his head in surrender. She couldn't tell if she even cared by the way the barrel of the gun followed his every move. Her eyes narrowed the slightest bit, curious as to if he would try to overpower her but the small grin never left her features. It seemed the idea . . . excited her. Yet she was almost at war with herself. Like she didn't want to pull the trigger but she would if she had to.

And then claps resounded around her and she jumped as she glanced around startled. As if snapping back and connecting her body to her brain again, she realized where and what she was doing- and couldn't of been more appalled. They cheered because they thought she was a hero. But she knew the truth. There was nothing victorious or gratifying about wanting to hurt another human being.

Shinichi and Hattori had arrived before the police did but it wasn't long in between. While the man was getting cuffed and Hattori was prattling and worrying over a frightened Kazuha, Shinichi watched her with stunned but puzzled eyes. She couldn't help but feel they were accusing and so she wouldn't meet his gaze anymore after that. Even as they were walking out of the shopping center and saying their goodbyes to the other couple, he stuck tightly to her side.

The car ride had been a silent one so it wasn't until they reached his house that he finally said anything to her. And it wasn't anything she was expecting.

"Do you want to talk about it?"

Ran swallowed. Did she? Or would that only serve to make her feel worse when he agreed and called her the monster she was?

"I won't make you. I just want to be sure you're okay," he admitted a little reluctantly.

"Kazuha-chan was the target," she dodged. So if anyone wasn't okay it should be Kazuha.

Shinichi sighed. "It was an old client of Hattori's. The man had come to him because he feared someone was stalking his wife and hired Hattori to find him." Here the man shook his head a little sadly. "Hattori found the culprit eventually but it wasn't in time to save the man's wife."

Briefly, she wondered why Shinichi had to tell her something like that and she had to hide her watery eyes. And client. . . ? Client for what, she had to wonder.

Unaware of her confusion he continued with, "Hattori felt so much guilt over it but the client didn't see it that way. He's being questioned now but I think it's obvious he figured Toyama-san was an equal loss to Hattori as his wife was to him."

"When you say a client to Hattori-kun. . . you mean-"

Shinichi blinked a bit confused before they widened in realization. "Hattori's a detective- like me." He said it so matter of factly as if it were the most obvious thing; as if she should've already known this.

She hadn't.

A detective. Like him. Shinichi-kun is a a detective.

A strange type of panic gripped her heart and for some reason it was mingled with betrayal. Her whole reaction was completely unwarranted though she was sure. She wasn't nearly as freaked as in the doctor's office and she had no excuse to feel betrayed. Shinichi owed her absolutely nothing. If anything, she owed him.

But now blanks were being filled in as Ran processed exactly what this meant. For the entirety of the three days she had known Shinichi, she was constantly asking herself why she was here. What made this stranger walk up to her when all she had been doing was sitting on a park bench? It was clear to her now though that it was due to his own instincts. He was a detective and she saw now that when he discovered her she hadn't only smelt of gasoline but of another case.

Heart beating faster and faster as she broke this down, she had the urge to run. Here she thought this was a friend that saw someone whom needed help. That would keep their promise and keep the involvement of police out of this. Feeling stupid now, the understanding that he agreed to that because he was in fact the police disturbed her greatly. She felt duped.

And she didn't appreciate it one bit.

"Ran?"

The woman startled from her thoughts, completely forgetting that he was standing there and they were holding a conversation. The man looked to be waiting for a response of some kind but she didn't know what she should say; didn't know what she could say. In all honesty, she didn't want to speak to him. The urge to just make a jump for the exit was all she could detect. Were the police already on their way over? Would she be detained? Had he understood what she had felt only moments before when she had almost shot a man?

At this point she was worrying him. She could see it in his face, especially when he stepped closer and asked, "Is your head hurting again? Do you need to lay down?"

Laying down was the last thing she wanted to do.

"You lied to me." It didn't come out angry. It didn't even sound like an accusation; just a fact she was simply saying.

He didn't seem to think so obviously by the way his brows scrunched, puzzled and the almost offended expression he bore.

"You told me there would be no public involvement with this and the entire time you were a detective yourself." The saddest thing was that she couldn't find it in her to be mad. She wasn't surprised he had lied because in all honesty, who wouldn't of called the police? At the time it was blatantly apparent she had been in an accident of some sort. She gave off multiple signs that she needed medical attention and she didn't even have any recollection of her own identity. The best place for her would've been in the hospital's care until they could identify her.

"I don't work for the police!" he hurriedly said before she could give this wrong idea anymore thought. "Well. . I mean- I do sometimes but not directly. I'm my own name," he tried to explain when she could only give him confused glances. "I'm pretty well-known so I work independently."

Well, that explained his arrogant manner when he introduced himself. But then that means. . .

"So you're not hired by the police?" she asked almost meekly.

Shinichi shook his head with a small grin that tilted up only one side of his mouth. "Not right now, no."

Her cheeks turned a light pink. "Oh."

Her heart shot right into her throat when he suddenly took her hands in his. "I made you a promise, Ran." He was speaking so firmly and she could see in his eyes that he thought breaking that promise was not an option.

The need to apologize was all she could think of now. Though she hadn't come at him angrily and annoyed, she had accused him. Words wouldn't come out of her mouth however and as she stood there fumbling in her thoughts wondering why she couldn't voice what she wanted to, her gaze kept flitting from their hands to his cerulean eyes that seemed so close to hers. Her chest was still racing but she got the feeling it wasn't for the same reason as before.

What was wrong with her? Maybe she did need to lie down.

The doorbell rang and Ran wasn't too sure why but a certain amount of relief hit her as if she were saved. Saved from what though she wasn't yet aware.

Dropping her hands at the noise, he glanced towards the front foyer. "It's probably Hiabara."

"I still need to introduce you," he continued and the casual air he had about him made her even more antsy if possible. Clearly nothing was wrong if he was acting perfectly normal. Why was it that she was reacting weirdly?

She needed a moment to gather herself. As it was, her cheeks were still slightly flustered and she had no idea why.

"I'll go grab the clothes," she declared and before he could even say a word she was already strolling from the room. It wasn't all just an excuse. They really did need to grab the clothes because after all, it was more than likely the only reason the other woman was there.

Haibara Ai, as Shinichi told her, was his next door neighbor. She was also the person who was kind enough to lend her some clothes until she could go out and buy some for herself.

Making sure not to take more time than normal, Ran returned to the living room with the clothes freshly cleaned and folded inside a laundry basket. The two were already deep in conversation but it seemed their voices were lowered purposefully for the moment Shinichi saw her enter the room was when he straightened and greeted her- almost pointedly.

The other woman, whom she guessed was the neighbor, was facing away from her when she first entered. It wasn't until she turned around that Ran fully took in the light brown hair that was almost red and also cut short. They both seemed to be about the same age but there was also a certain maturity this woman gave off. Her eyes were a hardened teal almost that seemed like they could cut through anything.

And then the woman's gaze fell on her and all of that fell away.

The steely glint in her gaze fell away in an instant as her eyes widened almost impossibly. Eyes doing an automatic scan, Ran watched as her body stiffened to the point that she looked like a string strung so tightly and was prepared to snap. Almost subconsciously, the woman took a step back in what looked like a retreat. It almost seemed like she was trying to hide behind Shinichi.

The smile Ran had originally had on from about to meet this woman for the first time slowly fell away. The brown whicker basket in her hands seemed to feel heavier and heavier by the second. "Um. . . Thank you for the clothes. I-I washed them." She placed the clothes on the coffee table as she stood there uncomfortably. The tension was so thick in the room she was wishing she had made some other excuse or even agreed earlier with Shinichi that she needed to lay down.

Haibara didn't say a single word in response. Ran was sure the woman hadn't even heard her. The only form of acknowledgement was the way those teal eyes watched her every movement as they were stretched wide in what appeared to be terror.

Shinichi cleared his throat. "Haibara, this is Ran- the one I told you about," he admitted. "Ran, this is Haibara Ai. My neighbor."

They both heard the words but it really just passed from one ear right out the other. The two both seemed to be locked in some sort of stare off. Only thing, Ran couldn't understand why. This woman was staring at her as if she were the scariest thing she had ever had the displeasure of seeing.

When Haibara still appeared to be anything less than willing to actually speak to her, Ran forced a smile. "I- I think I'll take a quick shower. Thanks for the clothes- nice meeting you," she said softly but kindly before turning and slowly strolling from the room.

She really had originally planned on going to her room to shower. But something inside of her, that she choked up to the same person as in that mall earlier- a more dishonest and curious side, didn't go far. Only taking a few steps down the hall to give the appearance of her exit, Ran quietly made her way back to the doorway hidden and out of sight.

It was quiet in the other room, to the point Ran almost suspected she had been found out and she should just leave like she had said. But then. . .

"What's with that attitude?"

It was Shinichi and she figured he took so long to speak because he wanted to make sure she actually had left. He spoke differently though. Where as with her his tone was usually patient and calming, this voice was marred with irritation and disapproval.

Even more silence stretched on like that and Ran was beginning to think this Haibara Ai was mute. She had still yet to hear the other woman's voice.

Shinichi seemed to get annoyed after that. "Why wouldn't you talk to her? Do you have to be so rude all the time?" The last part was said a little frustratedly as if the way this woman spoke to Ran was a big deal.

"You need to call the police."

If it weren't the actual words that were spoken, Ran would've stiffened either way. That voice had not been one she was expecting no matter how mature and stern the girl appeared. It was very feminine but the underlining hardened edge to it wasn't hard to detect. But her words however. . . Call the police? Over what? Shinichi voiced as much.

"She's dangerous," Haibara said curtly.

"That's ridiculous! You don't even know her-!"

The interruption came swiftly.

"She's one of them."

Silence again. Ran leaned closer to try and pick up on anything but she couldn't even detect their breaths. One of who?

"Do you have any proof?" His voice was tight and controlled but it was clear he forced out the words between clenched teeth.

Haibara sighed. "You know my proof, Kudou-kun."

"That's not proof. Even if I wanted to believe-"

"You said she dodged a bullet." She paused for added effect. "She disarmed a fully grown man. Is that normal?"

"Being trained in the martial arts is not odd. And you seem to know a lot about her. A lot more than even she does at the moment so if that's the case, please do tell," he snapped almost sarcastically.

"Rum."

Ran could practically feel the tension. Could just feel the way he stiffened and his breath hitched from just that one word. But what did it mean? If she was supposedly dangerous and this the reason, she didn't get it.

"S-she's-" His tone was shaken from just more than being stunned. Truthfully she thought she heard fear.

"No, but she's almost a close second."

"Who is she?"

"A personal favorite to the second in command and a pampered lap dog," Haibara grunted in distaste not at all hiding how demeaning she meant the comment to be. "When she was first introduced in to the Organization and members saw how closely she was sheltered, rumors started going that she was kept around for. . personal entertainment. She rarely showed her face any more than Rum himself- I've seen her just once. But when she did, she was never alone."

Personal entertainment. . The words echoed around her thoughts and Ran swallowed down the nasty thought.

"But it was quickly proven that she was more than just a pretty face. One by one, members were just suddenly dropping- all of which were proven later to be undercover agents. CIA, FBI- there were numerous."

"Sorting out the traitors," Shinichi voiced his thoughts.

There was agreeance in Haibara's tone. "Her innocence and beauty that she radiated made it easy for her to be underestimated then- made it easy for you to underestimate her now," she said pointedly. "She's a master of deception; manipulative. When work isn't getting done and the boss wants results, they send her in."

"But she doesn't know that."

"Or that's just what she wants you to think. You're not thinking of her as the dangerous criminal that she is."

"If she does have her memory and she does in fact know who she is, then what would be her reason to fake that?" It sounded rhetorical like he wanted her to answer to prove a point but the woman answered anyway.

"To kill me. I turned my back on them and that's not something the Organization will take lightly," Haibara responded. "And you've been hiding me as well as trying to expose them."

"If what all you say about her is true, wouldn't you be dead already. And not just you but me as well for helping you? You always say the Organization works quickly, don't you?"

There was quiet after that and Ran got the feeling the woman didn't know how to respond to that. Deep down she probably felt that Shinichi was right. He really was after all. She had no idea what either of them were talking about. Organization? Rum? Trained operative? None of this was making any sense to her but if they knew who she was, shouldn't they tell her?

"I'm telling you, you don't know what you're dealing with," Haibara bit out. "We can't trust her."

"I trusted you. What is the difference between you and her?" he argued.

"The difference is that I didn't kill anyone."

"I'm sure others would debate that."

There was a sharp intake of breath and Ran assumed it was Haibara taking offense. Releasing a shaky breath she finally said, "Even if that were the case and she really can't remember- what will you do when she does gain her memory? After all of what I told you, you know what she's capable of now."

"Then we have until then to show her a better way."

"This could jeopardize everything we worked for," she whispered harshly and it was clear she did not agree at all. "She's practically the princess of the Organization. They'll have every agent searching for her and allowing her to stay here will only paint a giant target on our backs."

Disregarding what the other woman just said, Ran heard the rustle of the whicker basket being moved and she prepared to make a hurried escape. "I'll let you know if anything changes with Ran-" It was obvious he was giving her a dismissal but not for the first time that night, Haibara interrupted him.

"Champagne."

Again, she had to wonder what was with all the alcohol. Was it some code? She had already been saying Rum every few seconds and now she was talking about Champagne.

"What?" Shinichi sounded as confused as her thoughts. And then Ran slowly caught on.

"Her name is Champagne."

Just narrowly making an escape before she was discovered by the neighbor or Shinichi, Ran actually ran to take a shower. That's what she said she would do and how fake she'd look if she returned with dry hair.

She entered the kitchen in a fresh pair of clothes and loose, wet hair to find Shinichi- again, standing over a stove almost hectically. There was a book open on the counter beside him and she watched with amusement as he kept glancing hurriedly from the pages back to the stovetop again.

He had no clue what he was doing.

She shook her head before stepping further into the room. "What are you making?"

The real question was, 'what was he trying to make'. It was obvious he was struggling and she actually felt guilty for wanting to laugh.

Shinichi turned to face her a little jerkily and she really could see now just how much trouble he was having. "Uh. . curry. . I think. . " And something bubbled making a loud popping noise from the pan making him jump his attention back to the stove.

He thinks? How can he not know what he's making?

Before she could even understand what she was doing, her body was already taking more steps till she stood beside him. Now she had a perfect view of the less than perfect . . curry? She wasn't even sure now.

He scoot over a bit while giving her a slightly annoyed glance. "What are you doing-?"

"Do you need help?" It was a question but she was already sliding the wooden spoon from his hand before he could even respond. Their fingers brushed a bit but she didn't pay it any mind and began stirring the pan slowly.

Shinichi appeared to want to protest but again she was already moving before he could get a word in. "This is a bit too high," she commented almost to herself as she turned the burner down and then she was swiping a finger in the sauce and tapping it on her tongue. Her features scrunched the slightest bit and she hoped the man hadn't caught that.

Looking at the recipe displayed in the book, Ran took some of the spices Shinichi already had set out and mixed some more into the mix. Tasting it again she nodded before angling the spoon towards him so he could taste. "It was a little too spicy," she spoke as he blankly swiped a finger into his mouth with the sauce. "See? Is that better?"

He bore an amazed look and she hoped that could only mean he approved.

"If you'd like, I can finish this if you want to set the table," she offered and almost laughed at how fast he made an escape. Honestly, she didn't think she could watch him struggle over cooking her another meal again. And for some reason, she didn't mind cooking either. If anything, she'd say she rather enjoyed it.

And Ran wasn't sure how long she took to fix- finish the curry he had started. But when she finished and was wiping her hands on a dishrag to tell him it was ready to start serving, she found he was already standing in the doorway watching her.

From the way his cheeks flushed and his eyes flit away, it was clear he hadn't been expecting her to turn around just yet. How long had he been standing there and watching her? Was she doing something wrong?

She glanced away nervously herself. "It's done," she spoke softly.

He cleared his throat. "I'm sorry. I didn't mean to stare," and she was stunned to hear him actually apologizing. It wasn't like he had really done anything wrong anyway. "I just feel I need to keep an eye on you," he explained and unknowingly to him it struck a nerve.

"Because I'm dangerous." And his head shot up surprised.

Shoot. Her face turned a bright red and her gaze became even more intensified on the kitchen tiles. If she had wanted to keep her eavesdropping a secret it was too late now! Why had she said that?!

She peeked up curious to see if he was angry.

He wasn't. He looked only calm and relaxed. "I thought you would've heard."

Ran only watched him, a bit perturbed. He's not mad? That conversation had obviously been meant to be a secret one.

Shinichi sighed. "No. You're not dangerous."

"But you both said I was a dangerous criminal," Ran argued.

"Haibara thinks that but that's only because she just met you."

She raised a brow. "You just met me," she pointed out.

"Yet your the closest thing to a friend I have- besides Hattori," he shrugged at that. "So no, I don't think you're dangerous."

The girl blushed. He considered her a friend? "I was afraid to tell you earlier- about the mall," she clarified and swallowed her nerves. "When I was fighting that man. . " She shook here head. "I- I felt at ease. I felt relaxed; at home. Like killing a man was second nature to me." And as if her mind was just realizing this for the first time, her indigo eyes began to water.

When the man must've seen she was in the brink of crying, his own eyes widened worriedly. But that didn't stop her tears like he hoped.

Lower lip trembling, she looked at the floor again. "I felt like a monster. I was standing there pointing a gun at that man and all that was running through my head was how I could actually pull the trigger and not care. Who could kill another human being- take a life, and not care?"

Shinichi remained quiet, still not quite sure what to say. He hadn't expected her to start talking about the mall. But the quivering voice and guilt ridden face she wore almost broke him. And it made it apparent to him that she really had needed to talk about it.

"I am a monster," she finished. "Your friend is right. I am dangerous and you should have me locked away."

Almost angrily, the man stormed closer to her. "You are not a monster. You're not anything like those black crows."

"But you can't know that. I can't fully remember what I was like," she said dejectedly. "I can't even remember my own name."

Ran startled when he gripped her shoulders firmly.

"You decide."

Her eyes went wide.

"You decide what your name is. It's your choice."

"The fact that you're so repulsed by the possibility of killing anyone is all the evidence I'll ever need. I don't believe you're capable of ending another person's life," he spoke truthfully with his face as serious as she'd ever seen.

She choked. "But in the mall-"

"Did you shoot him?"

"No, but-"

"Did you want to?"

"No!" The thought almost pained her and made her voice come out horror filled.

"Then I don't think you're dangerous," he concluded easily.

He made it sound so simple. Made everything so clear when it really was not. Neither of them had any way to know if she was innocent or not. His own friend he obviously consulted with warned him against her. How could he still feel the way he does?

He tilted her chin up slightly so she would look at him and the action made her heart jump again. "You're thinking too hard. Let's eat and I think you should rest."

She disagreed wholeheartedly. She felt perfectly fine and she had already gone a complete week without an incident. But she couldn't find it in herself to argue with the man. And especially, for some odd reason, when he touched or looked at her like that.

Ran nodded slowly and he dropped his hand with an arrogant smirk as if he knew all along she'd agree. "Well, let's start dishing it out."

And she was stuck staring at his retreating back wondering, not for the first time, what was he doing to her?

#dcmk #shinranweek21 #dcmk fanfic #fanfic #fanfiction #day 7 #shinran #shinran fanfic

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4aloysius-porteu · 4 years

Text

i really wish i hated you || tsukishima kei

masterlist | 1 | 2 | chapter 3

pairing: tsukishima kei x f! reader

sypnosis: It was an accident that (Y/N) met a certain tall, blonde male; a memory she isn't fond of remembering, but it is where it all started. And ever since, she magically makes her to his path. The image of the bespectacled man dwelled in her mind more than she thought. Tsukishima pushed away his softer emotions and denied their existence, or at least that's what he told himself. But then, he couldn't believe that this girl he labeled as a clumsy, unlucky creature who smashed his glasses is slowly bringing these strange emotions back to him. She might be irritating and dumb sometimes, but he couldn't get himself to completely hate her. Either that destiny was stupid, or he was blessed or cursed.

genre: fanfiction, fluff

wc: 2.6k

She has met the tall, blonde, and bespectacled male yet again.

"Oh, the midget stalker is here."

"You again?! Seriously, I think it's you who's following me!"

"Hah, what do I get from following an extremely short person like you?" He said, borrowing her words from yesterday.

(Y/N)'s eyebrows creased further in irritation. "Why do you keep mentioning my height?!"

"It was you who started it. Anyways, can you shut up? Do you know that you're in a library?"

She didn't retort back and simply sat on the chair with her arms crossed. It was a fine day then —BOOM— this giant decided to appear out of nowhere. She was trying to forget this person who's associated with some of her embarrassing moments but those just got smashed back to her mind. (Y/N) sighed and pulled a book at the bottom of the stack to start reading, but noticed that the blondie is still standing near the edge of the table, hesitating to sit down while glancing somewhere and back to her.

"What?" (Y/N) frowned.

"Why am I unnecessarily stuck with you on this table?" He sighed, pulling out the chair.

"Because all of the tables here are taken? If you're worried about your glasses being knocked off, don't worry, I won't do anything reckless anymore."

"That's a nice reassurance," He settled down and brought out his studying materials.

Both of them shared the table in the crowded library. Ignoring the people, between them was a silent atmosphere. No one was talking as they both minded their own studies; he was reading quietly and turning pages of a huge book while (Y/N) wrote key points from the printed work and highlighting her notes. Sometimes, the other would leave to return books to their shelves and came back with new stacks. This went on for a few hours until her pen ran out of ink. She scribbled at the back of her notebook in hopes that the ink just got stuck, to no avail. She sighed, resting her head on the notebook. But she really needed to take down notes for her upcoming entrance exam.

"Hey." (Y/N) reluctantly said.

The blonde male looked at her, confirming if he's being called, "What?"

"I'm sorry to interrupt your business but... do you have a spare pen?"

He stared at her with a straight face and placed his chin on the top of his knuckles, implying his refusal to lend one.

(Y/N)'s mentally gritted her teeth. I'm just going to borrow a pen and he's making it hard for me?!

Swallowing her pride, she said, "Look, I need to finish my notes. I'll return it to you right away when I'm done. I promise. Please?"

He scoffed as brought out a pen, "An inkless pen is all it takes for you to become a less lively puppy? You better keep your promise."

A puppy?! "You didn't need to compare me to a puppy but, thanks."

She continued her work but her focus was a bit shaken. This happens whenever she's interrupted or took a break away from writing. Soon, her focus vanished and boredom took over. She tried to read a book to review ideas but her brain won't cooperate. She groaned, her head and arms fell to the table again. The blonde saw but chose to ignore her.

She closed her eyes for a second, however, her gaze fell to the blank paper in front of her face. Her hands are itching to do something other than reviewing and writing, so she put down the pen she borrowed and took a pencil out of her pocket. She placed a pile of books near her notebook so that the male won't notice what she's doing. There, she started to sketch the base of the figure.

She would observe the four-eyed guy who's busy reading some sort of article while taking notes. He has a calm expression on his face rather than an irritated scowl or a mocking grin he usually has. He wears a long blazer and probably a long-sleeved shirt inside. His blonde hair is short yet the edges are a bit curly and his upper eyelashes are prominently long. This was the first time she stared at the jerk's face who she kept bumping into random places that irked the hell out of her, but for some reason, she felt that she had seen this person before the accident in the park, albeit she doesn't know where. (Y/N) came to a conclusion; he was a little good-looking.

The girl looked back to her drawing and shook her head at her own ideas. I can't believe I actually thought that this guy is handsome. How can such a mean creature be blessed with such looks?! Ugh, don't mind, (Y/N). I'm only drawing him because he seems like a great canvas subject, it's not like I haven't done this to other people before...

She went on drawing and drew details to the sketch similar to the boy in front of her. To make the drawing more accurate, she stole small glances at him. She kept things low key because it'll be another embarrassing event if he found out what she's doing. She made the lines smoother in one swift move. The hair and clothes' folds are already well-drawn while she focuses on the detail of his eyes and glasses. She was about to shade when the male finally caught her.

"What is it?" He questioned, closing his book with a low voice and creased eyebrows.

(Y/N) froze on the spot. As much as she doesn't like it, she maintained eye contact with him, thinking of the best alibi that he couldn't argue with. Then, she remembered that she doesn't know his name.

"Uhm... nothing. I was just wondering if you have a name." While talking, her finger subtly moved to grab the nearest object it could get to cover her drawing.

"I have, but why would I mention it to you?" He cooly replied.

"It's alright. I'm not asking you to. Unless you want to be referred to as he/him or the tall, blonde glasses guy all the time?" (Y/N) countered.

He silently turned a page before answering, "Well, it's not like we'll meet every day."

"Oh," was her only reply. Looks like he will stay a nameless guy in her head for a long time. She was about to get back to her business when he spoke.

"Tsukishima Kei."

(Y/N) looked at him in surprise. "I'm not going to repeat it." He added.

She smiled, having clearly heard it right away. "Can you tell me how it is written?"

He looked at her to check for ill intentions but found nothing in her eyes. He hesitantly wrote the characters of his name on a piece of paper.

"I'm (L/N) (Y/N), nice to meet you again, Tsukishima-san." She'd like to initiate a handshake for peacemaking, but she knows how he'd only decline it. She wrote her name for him to see as well.

Tsukishima Kei. She repeated in her mind. What a nice name.

With a notebook covering the upper portion of the paper where she had drawn his portrait, she wrote his name at the bottom. She proceeded to the shading and background features. Backgrounds are one of the things she hates in art because it takes too long to draw one compared to the subject itself. Luckily it's only a sketch so she won't have to suffer. Although she doesn't know if Tsukishima had seen whatever she's doing so she's still cautious. She peered at him for the nth time so she could distract his peripheral vision. Maybe to test the social initiative skills she hasn't used for a long time too.

"Uhh, can I ask something?" She started.

"Hm?" He responded without taking his eyes off the page.

"What school are you from?"

"Amemaru Middle School."

(Y/N) hummed, thinking of another question, "Then, what school are you enrolling to? It must be an upper class one since you had to read those large books and all."

"Not really," Tsukishima closed the book, "I plan to go to Karasuno High School. They may not have a difficult entrance exam, but these readings are for decent grades and some stock knowledge."

"Decent grades, huh... you look like you could achieve more though. I'm pretty sure you'll ace it." She answered, "I was from Kitagawa Dai Ichi. I'm taking an exam in Shiratorizawa soon."

"You're going to that high-class academy? I see, I failed to notice that because you don't look like one. Have fun clashing with other elites there."

"Elites? What are you talking about, you still believe there's such a hierarchy?" (Y/N) chuckled.

"There is though. A gap between them and mere humans in terms of skills and power."

"In the end, they're still humans though. Be it numbers, hard work, or some unique strategy, those 'mere humans' you say will always struggle to step on equal levels with those on the highest rank."

Tsukishima only hummed and stared down at her, "Perhaps I was wrong on assuming you're an elite. You're clearly not."

"Are you underestimating me?" She challenged.

"No, I was just saying. Can I ask something though?"

"What?"

"Why are you suddenly talkative?"

She was caught off guard but tried not to stutter, "Me? Talkative? I'm always like this."

"Really?" He raised his brows, totally not buying it.

"Ugh, fine! I'm tired of studying!" She sighed, "I was scribbling some doodles on my notebook because I'm bored so I thought it wouldn't hurt to talk to Mr. Beanpole in front of me. Forgive me and my awkward social skills."

"Your social skills are not bad. I'm just thankful you aren't using the precious ink of my pen for drawing." He said, stacking the books he used.

She gasped, panicked inside, "You aren't looking at my drawing, are you?"

He got up to return the books,"Don't worry, it's none of my business."

She exhaled in relief, spared from another memory of embarrassment. Her eyes followed his walking figure and watched his movements. She looked at her drawing to compare and used her fingers to define lighting. When Tsukishima got back and placed new reviewers on the table, (Y/N) asked him once more.

"Do you ever get tired of studying?"

"Sometimes I take a break, but I can only do that if I have finished everything."

"What a diligent student you are."

"I hardly see any benefit in being dumb and slacking off all the time."

"Eh, I hardly see any benefit in studying Algebra and Calculus. I have a lot of questions. Do you use derivatives in counting money or salary? Do you use trigonometry in dividing pizzas or corn chips? Why do I need to find the limit of a function if numbers are infinite? Why do I need to get the formula of a certain point in each line or curve I draw on the graphing paper? What is the correct answer for?" (Y/N) complained.

Tsukishima looked at her blankly, doubting her chances of passing the Shiratorizawa's board exam. "I couldn't argue with that, I'd rather read a book composed of words than formulas, but you don't have a choice. Although, if you plan to be an engineer or something, that'll be a different perspective."

"No, thanks, I won't eat math books for breakfast. Other subjects are interesting enough to keep me awake in class, but numbers don't really entertain me."

"Then, what do you do?" He asked, writing on his notes.

"Not much. I just draw, paint, listen to music, and watch anime."

He let out an amused hum, "How about you? What do you do other than to study?" (Y/N) asked.

"I play volleyball, listen to music, and read narrative books."

"Volleyball? So that's what your height is for! I thought it's just for cleaning and reaching high places."

"That's rude."

"If I am, what do you call yourself? Besides, I don't want to make wrong assumptions."

"You just did."

"...right. I'm sorry."

The sense of familiarity took over (Y/N)'s brain, telling her that she definitely had met this Tsukishima guy before. Her face scrunched a little, trying to search her memories and connect the dots. Her eyes found his face again.

"Why do you keep looking at me?" His eyes narrowed, his annoyance towards the girl slowly rising.

"I HAD met you somewhere... before that accident, where did I see you?"

He was about to say something when (Y/N) stopped him, "Shh, I'm thinking."

He crossed his arms and frowned at her. Volleyball, Amemaru MS... She was about to say it but Tsukishima spoke first.

"Were you one of the audience who watched the middle school volleyball inter-high a year ago?"

"I was! Wait, you remember?"

"That was the only place where I could find someone from Kitagawa Dai Ichi." He confirmed.

"Correct. I was a part of the school paper where I was assigned in the sports category. I took a picture of you when my senior was interviewing you! You were the tallest middle blocker in the games! How could I forget that! So that's why whenever you irk me, it was familiar!"

"How am I annoying you? Aren't you the one who kept on talking right now?"

"I've figured out that there's no kind bone in you. And the way you keep on stuffing the spikes from the opposite team. It was never-ending that they didn't have a chance to score properly." She pouted.

"What do you expect from a middle blocker? It was my job to block spikes."

"You could've gone easy on them."

"The game would lose it's sense if that's the case."

"Fine. You're not wrong." Their conversation was cut short after she ceased talking. At least she found out where she first met Tsukishima. She finished the portrait sketch. Grinning, she believed that she captured his features accurately in her drawing. She'd like to hold it near him and compare to make sure though. Satisfied with her work, she went back on turning pages.

"So, you've finally decided to continue to study?" Tsukishima prodded.

She smiled, "I guess. Thank you for talking to me. That was a great stop."

Both of them worked quietly, but now, the irritation they felt towards each other lessened. After some time, a person in the speaker announced that the library will be closing before 6 pm. Tsukishima returned all the books he borrowed and packed his things.

"You're going home?"

"I don't want to come home late. You aren't finished with your notes yet?"

"Yeah, maybe I'll leave five minutes before six."

"Alright. I'll get going now." He swung his bag over his shoulder.

"Hey, wait! Your pen!" (Y/N) abruptly remembered seconds after.

"I don't need it anymore. It was useful, apart from its close on running out of ink."

"But it's yours and you told me to keep my promise!"

"Whatever. Keep it or throw it." He walked out and wore his headphones, having no intention to listen to anyone.

She sighed and checked the ink. More than half of it is gone, but she can use it again if she wishes. (Y/N) placed her fist to her cheek while writing.

Random Tsukishima Kei facts:

In the second prototype chapter (unserialized, one shot, the first idea of the author on how haikyuu will go) Tsukishima was a second-year, which was changed in the serialized version where he's a first-year. His initial height in the prototype chapter is 184cm, a little shorter than his official height (190.1cm). In an extra sketch, Furudate commented, "Tsukki and Tanaka being in the same year would spell chaos!

#haikyuu!!#tsukishima kei #haikyuu tsukishima #haikyuu fanfiction #haikyuu angst #haikyuu imagines #haikyuu fluff #kei tsukishima #tsukishima x reader #tsukishima kei x reader #haikyuu headcannons #haikyuu x reader #haikyuu headcanons #tsukishima imagine #tsukishima scenarios #tsukki

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astro-rain · 4 years

Text

delicate; b.barnes

chapter four - mri’s & other modern commodities

delicate masterlist

word count: 1.8k

synopsis: bucky faces his first day of treatment, and discovers some new things along the way: some scary, some awesome, some maybe slightly embarassing.

pairings: bucky barnes x fem!reader

[A/N]: not my gif

When he woke up, he scanned his room, making sure everything was the same as how he left it the night before. Making sure no one came in while he was asleep and poisoned his brain. Making sure he was waking up in his living quarters in Wakanda and not a damp cell in some secret Hydra base. It was just something he did now.

Some may call it paranoia, others may call it adaptation. Either way, once he stepped outside and made sure he was alone, he allowed himself to take a breath.

Today was the day, the first day of official treatment. He had no idea what to expect; he was just hoping to high heavens that it would end up working. Freedom. That's all he wanted. Liberation from the chains Hydra had had around him since he fell from the train all those years ago.

He was apprehensive for sure, but he tried his best to keep himself optimistic. Bucky was sure that Shuri was smarter than any Hydra scientist he once came in contact with. So, if they can tear apart his mind, perhaps she can put it back together. Right?

Her in addition to (Y/N). That psychologist woman. He had spoken to her the day before at the lake. She was funny, and she seemed decently easy to talk to. That's a good sign, he guessed. She told him that she hadn't minded relocating to assist in his treatment, but he honestly couldn't make out her true feelings. She was rather hard to read. Perhaps it was a psychologist thing; he tried not to look too far into it.

He waited outside his door until two Wakandans came to escort him to Shuri. Bucky noticed they were armed. Guards. He wasn't surprised nor did he blame them. However, that didn't make it any easier to trust. He hadn't had that luxuy in a very long time. The former assassin fought against the voice in the back of his head telling him to analyze their every move in order to ensure that he wasn't in any danger. That any minute they weren't going to strap him down and rip his brain apart the way it had been so many times before. So many times. He gave the slightest wince at the thought. His brain suddenly felt prickly, painful memories creeping up on him.

Not now, don't think about it.

Sometimes, if he fixated on the thoughts for too long, he would drive himself to this panicked state of fear and constriction. He wasn't sure exactly what this thing was. All he knew was that these things - these episodes - were extremely unpleasant, and utterly unnecessary at the moment.

He shook his head (somehow hoping that this would rid him of the prickly memories like a dog shaking off water), strands of long brown hair swaying quickly in front of his eyes, and fixed his gaze to the floor.

Floor. Floor. Floor. Floor. Just the floor. The floor. The floor. The floor-

"Sergeant Barnes!" Shuri welcomed him happily.

Oh. He was in the lab now. He let out a breath he didn't realize he was holding. Let's do this.

"Good morning," he smiled, "and just Bucky's okay."

"Of course, of course. This is my lab! Best place in Wakanda in my humble opinion. Today's only the first day of treatment, so nothing too intensive. But, we will be working all the same!"

He glanced around the lab. The guards were at the doorway and they didn't look like they were leaving anytime soon. Again, he wasn't surprised. Moreover, sitting at a table a few feet from Shuri, was a familiar face. This familiar face soon met his gaze.

"Hi, Bucky" (Y/N) greeted, offering a polite smile. "See! I remembered this time."

Bucky grinned. "Are you still (Y/N), or is it Dr. (Y/L/N) since we're in the lab now?"

"I'm always (Y/N)."

"I don't know, if I went to school for as long as you did, I'd make everyone call me Doctor," Shuri added.

(Y/N) laughed. "Well, if you want to call me Doctor you're more than welcome, Shuri."

"That's the spirit, Doc," she declared before turning to Bucky. "Now, follow me and we'll get a quick MRI done."

"A what?" He quickly caught up to Shuri who already started walking away.

"An MRI. It stands for magnetic resonance imaging. Basically, scanners use strong magnetic fields, magnetic field gradients, and radio waves to generate images of the organs in the body."*

Yes, very basic.

(Y/N) leaned over to Bucky, explaining softly, "It's used to form pictures of the anatomy and the physiological processes of the body."**

"Oh."

"You just lay down and it scans you. Y'don't even feel anything."

"Thats... not too bad, I guess."

"It's a bit of a tight fit though, so I hope you're aren't claustrophobic."

Bucky rubbed the back of his neck. "Well, after cryo, I doubt tight spaces will be too much of a bother for me."

"Right," said (Y/N), "but it's still decently in your personal space. Just so you know - so there's no surprises."

He nodded. They didn't say anything until Shuri stopped short in front of them. She stood a couple feet from a shiny metal table which was lined up in front of an equally shiny and metallic semi-cricle arch. It was long enough to fit - well, would you look at that - a body.

"Oh. I guess there is a surprise," (Y/N) blurted, turning to Shuri, confused. "That isn't like any MRI machine I've ever seen."

"That's because you're in Wakanda," Shuri flashed a proud smile. "Tech's a bit... advanced here."

(Y/N) turned to Bucky. He thought he saw something resembling self consciousness flow across her features, but he wasn't sure.

"Sorry, I guess I was wrong. But, honestly this is way better than a typical MRI set up. It's much more open... and wide. Regularly, it would be like a super narrow tube with hardly any space inside. This way, you'll even be able to see us and the rest of the room."

That's good. More space. More freedom. And he'll be able to see her- them, see them.

Shuri clapped. "Alright! Shall we get started then?"

He had no idea how any of this worked; he was way out of his element here. He just barely learned what a damn MRI was, and had to hide his shock when he found out. Medicine has changed dramatically since 1945. Although it is helpful, he is completely clueless. Great.

"Do I jus-just lay on the table?" He asked, unsure.

"Yep! Just lie there and be absolutely still, and I'll do the rest," Shuri replied, reassuringly as she walked around to a control panel next to the machine, preparing to start.

Bucky took his place on the thin metal table, and he thought he was seeing things. Was it was levitating? Honestly, from what he's seen so far he wouldn't even be surprised. He stared up at the ceiling, getting lost in thought. A string of various questions and uncertainties fluttered through his battered mind.

Would the metal arm interfere with the magnet- oh. Right. No arm. Just a scan, no need to worry. (Y/N) said it would be fine. Can I even trust her Then again, can I even trust anyone yet? She's the best I got right now. Damn it, I wish I wasn't so wary of everyone.

"Hey," a gentle voice pulled him out.

He looked over to the left of him, the side with no arm. (Y/N).

"I can practically hear your brain whirring around right now - which is justified - but do you need anything?"

'Do you need anything?' He hadn't heard that phrase in a while.

He adjusted his body on the table. "I'm alright, just... a bit out of my element here."

She nodded, knowingly. "Honestly, me too. This lab looks like somethin' out of a sci-fi movie for me, so I can't imagine what it must feel like to you."

She was looking down at him. He felt vulnerable, exposed. It seemed like she noticed.

"Here, I have an idea."

With that, she turned and grabbed something from a nearby table. Rotating around to face him again, she displayed what she had taken: a pair of headphones... but without a wire? What the hell?

"Are they broken?" he asked, feeling perpetually confused.

"No, they're wirelessly connected to my phone. It's called bluetooth."

The look on his face was almost laughable.

"Bluetooth? What kind of name is Bluetooth?"

"The kind of name that I didn't invent nor should I be blamed for," she chuckled. "Do you want to listen to music while you're in there? It might help to keep you down on Earth with us."

Music. The thought was almost surreal. He hadn't been privileged with such a pleasure in longer than he'd care to admit. It actually seemed... nice.

"Y-yeah," he said, pondering. "That'd actually be nice."

"Awesome."

She leaned over him to put the headphones on his ears, causing him a very conflicting series of emotions.

First of all, close. She was very close to his face. His face, his eyes, his nose, his lips. It almost seemed a tad bit intimate. And then he realized he hadn't been this close to a woman in forever. A real woman, not some fellow assassin he had to take out. He hoped the shy embarrassment he felt didn't show on his cheeks.

Second of all, she was wrapping something around his head, his brain. He tried not to, but he couldn't stop the muscle memory of what he'd been conditioned to feel. Hydra's machine would wrap around his head and rip his psyche apart. His mind expected pain, the worst pain, the dehumanizing, out of body, mind splitting pain. He hoped the way he flinched ever so slightly didn't offend (Y/N).

She didn't seem offended, and her voice was soft. "You're good. Just music and a scan. Then you're done."

He looked up at her face, reassuring and calm. He took a deep breath.

"Good?" she asked.

He nodded. "Think so."

"If it's too much at any point just let us know, and we'll pull you right out. It's your comfort level, your choice."

His choice. Choice. Control. The prospect gave him comfort.

She gave him one last look before stepping away and signaling Shuri to start the machine. The seemingly levitating table began a smooth descent into the machine when the music started playing. It almost startled him, but he then he was pleasantly surprised by what he heard.

There were loud drums, guitar riffs with attitude, and voices that had so much emotion they were almost screaming. It was like no music he had ever heard before, and he loved it. In fact, he was so into it that he didn't even notice when the MRI had finished. That is, until he felt a feather light hand on his shoulder. His eyes opened, and (Y/N) had the biggest grin on her face. While taking the headphones off of him, she looked very pleased with herself.

She looked at Shuri but declared to no one in particular, "Bucky likes Rock and Roll!"

- - -

* = from wikipedia

** = from wikipedia

#bucky barnes #bucky fanfic #bucky headcanon #marvel #steve rogers #bucky blurb #bucky drabble #bucky fic #bucky imagine #bucky reader insert #avengers #avengers fanfiction #marvel fanfiction

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stxvercgersslut · 4 years

Text

Mirror Sex with Frank

A/n: gif is not mine! Here’s the next Kinkmas for you guys! I know you’ll love this one so much more. Or at least I hope you will.

Warnings: smut! So much smut! Sex in front of a mirror. Mentions of being self conscious.

Descriptions: you’re having a bad day for the first time in a while (that Frank knows of) and he can’t just let you go on like this.

Word count: 2313

Standing in front of the mirror you tugged at the little black dress that you were wearing, picking at each one of your flaws as you begged for it to stop hugging your hips. It was practically suffocating you in your imagination. Something you really couldn't deal with right now. Especially when you had 2 hours left before you would be leaving to attend your reservation with your fiancé for your 2 year anniversary. With Mary at her new friends house actually enjoying a sleepover, now had been the best time to schedule a special anniversary dinner.

It didn't look right, if it was possible the material was shrinking against your skin with every second that went by, causing you to spot even more flaws in your appearance. No matter how hard you tried to will yourself to move it just wouldn't happen. And it was only a matter of time before the tears began to fall from your eyes.

The sound of sniffling had been what had alerted Frank. The fact that you, his fiancé /love of his life, was concerning him the most. Which was why he had practically rushed to his and your shared bedroom with a sympathetic look on his face. But nothing had prepared him for what he saw.

There you were, standing in front of the body length long mirror analysing your ever curve and sobbing as you did. As you continued to break down in front of the mirror Frank could feel his hear shatter in his chest. The thought of something going on in that pretty brain of yours hurt him. Especially since he had no idea what you were crying about.

With gentle feet, Frank tiptoed over to you. Careful not to startle you too much as he wrapped his arms loosely around your waist, his chin resting on your shoulder as he waited for your reaction. Yet all you did was lean into you. Curling your body into his arms whilst continuing to sob as you did.

In the 5 minutes that he'd be holding you, neither of you had made any attempt to speak. Frank had no idea what to do or say, especially since he was terrified of what you were going to say. Scared to once again have to hear you speak ill of yourself.

Frank hated hearing you speak about how badly you detested yourself. It wasn't the easiest of things to hear, but with you it was different. You were the love of his life and the only person, besides Mary, that he found truly perfect in every way. How could you ever think that you were anything less then perfect? It just didn't make sense and it probably never would.

After what felt like hours, most likely minuets, Frank finally found the strength to speak. Still not ready to hear why you were crying but he was as ready as he could be to console you as much as he physically could. "Baby.......speak to me...what's going on...why are you crying?" He whispered softly into your ear, placing a gentle kiss to the shell of your ear as he pulled you closer to his chest. Close enough that his crotch was pressing snug against your ass. Something that shouldn't have felt as erotic as he did. Especially since he was attempting to comfort you.

"T-this dress...." you choked out, barely managing to even speak at all due to the tears that were currently continuing to fall from your eyes, your chest beginning to burn from just how emotional you really were. Surely this couldn't be good for your mental health.

Without a second thought Frank raised his head from your shoulder, glancing up and down your beautiful figure with a soft smile on his face. To him you were perfect, always would be. From head to toe you were stunning. More so thanks to your precious little curves in the dress. If only you could have seen what was going on inside his head. He needed you to be able to see what he saw. "What's wrong with the dress baby? I think you look perfect" he declared, letting his hands go to your waist as he pulled your ass closer to his crotch, allowing you to feel the erection that was steadily forming in his pants just from looking at your form causing you to gasp ever so slightly at his sudden eagerness.

"You have no idea what you do to me baby...your body, your personality, your beautiful face, and oh god that laugh of yours....every little thing about you drives me crazy baby...why don't you see what I see? You're perfect" he soothed, rutting into your ass ever so slightly, his grip tightening on your hips ever so slightly so that you couldn't escape unless you forced him to get off. Of course if you told him to then he would but right now you were objecting. In fact you seemed to be enjoying his forwardness ever so slightly since you were grinding your ass back into him causing the both of you to moan out in equal amount of pleasure.

"T-he dress is too tight..." you whined whilst grinding your ass into his crotch continuously.

Frank kept grinding into you as moan after moan left his lips, keeping himself close to you as his right hand began a trail down to the hem of your dress, tugging it up so it was resting on your hips. The bunched up fabric dug into your hips for several second before finally tearing as it reached it maximum stretch. Nore you or Frank seemed to care as this point.

"Not tight anymore is it baby?" He teased, playfully letting his right hand begin to rub at your clothed pussy slowly at first to test your wetness. But as your eyes fluttered shut his hand came to a startling stop, his left hand opting to send a light smack to your left ass cheek before he smirked.

"Eyes on the baby or I'll stop." He whispered into your ear as he slowly began pushing your panties down your legs, letting them fall to the floor in a heap before working at his belt to free his erection from the confinement's of the fabric. All the while his right hand palmed at your already soaked pussy, pulling moans from your already gorgeous mouth.

“Haven’t even touched her probably yet and she’s already crying for me isn’t she? Such pretty little pussy. How could you ever feel self conscious baby when you’re so fucking beautiful? Look at you..your face is so gorgeous when you’re in such a state of bliss. You’re just so fucking perfect you have no idea what you do to me. This wet pussy right here is gonna be the death of me” he stated, all the while letting his thumb work at your clit with hard circles, letting you revel in the pleasure for a couple more seconds before pulling away. Way too eager now, as you whimper and rived in his arms, attempting to buck up into his hand to regain that pleasure you’d had several seconds before.

“Relax baby, I’m gonna fill this pretty pussy soon.” Frank grinned.

Frank was transfixed on the way your features contorted into a look of pure ecstasy just from his hand being on your aching core. You were soaked and he hadn't even sank himself inside of you yet. That's what he truly admired about you, your body always reacted to him so perfectly. There really was no need for you to feel so insecure around Frank but it was clear that you didn't know that. So he was going to make it his mission to make sure you realised just how perfect you were. Even if that meant showing you.

"You're perfect y/n. You have no need to be worried about how you look...you're perfect to me" he whispered into your ear whilst pushing his boxers down to the floor. It was clear he had no intentions of foreplay since you guys were in quite a rush as it was. But who cared? Frank just wanted to make sure that you were okay, after all he loved you more then you’d ever know. All he wanted was to show you how perfect you were. Even if you didn’t believe him now, he was sure as hell going to make you believe him no matter how long it took.

Whilst slowly pumping his rock hard cock in his hand Frank leaned in, breath got against the back of your neck. “Keep your eyes on yourself whilst I fuck you okay baby? Want you to watch yourself and see what I see.” He whispered gently into your ear before his eyes ran down your body, stopping as he noticed your soaked cunt practically begging for attention.

You nodded frantically, hoping that he’d give you the attention you so longed for. Who would have thought just a couple moments ago you were crying into your hands, now you were turned on just from the idea of having to watch yourself through the mirror as your fiancé fucked you from behind. “Please Frank......baby....I need you” you begged.

It was at this point where he just couldn’t wait any longer. His throbbing cock was pretty much begging to be inside of you and right now he just couldn’t deny you or him the pleasure that he was about to bring you.

So in a matter of seconds he was lining himself up with your entrance, not bothering with any type of contraception since the two do you were trying for w baby anyway. Within two seconds Frank was already pushing inside of you, mouth agape as he slid home inside you.

“Fuck” you both moaned as your eyes fluttered shut for a milli second, resulting in a harsh smack to your ass. Yelping in shock you turned around slightly, eye to e yet with your fiancé who was still refusing to move inside of you.

“Eyes on the mirror beautiful. Want you to watch yourself getting fucked. Then you’ll see just how perfect you are” he growled, harshly turning your head so that it was now back in the centre, forcing your eyes back on you. And only then did he begin to fuck you at an almost animalistic pace.

“Watch yourself baby, watch how your face moves in pleasure. Don’t you dare look away!” He growled as he continued to thrust into you.

“I—I won’t.....look away” you replied whilst still struggling to stare.

It was quite the difficult task to maintain eye contact with yourself as you were being pounded from behind. Gazing at yourself as you moaned or winced at the slight pain was almost enough you make you cringe. But you fought the urge to look away, too afraid that Frank would stop his assault on your already aching pussy if you looked away. And that in itself was something you really didn’t want to happen. Especially since you were visibly enjoying the moment.

Frank, on the other hand, was visibly getting off on watching you struggle to keep up with instruction. His pace quickening as he felt your walls clench at his length with incredible strength , practically warning him that you were gonna cum soon. Which was why his right hand went back down to your clit, rubbing harsh circles around it as he did.

“You gonna cum baby? Can feel your pussy clinging to my cock...fuck you’re so greedy for my cock aren’t you?” He asked, pretty much expecting you to just ignore his question, but to his shock you actually replied with a “yes daddy” making him fuck you even harder then he had been before (if that was even possible at this point.)

The knot in your belly was tightening further and further with every thrust of his hips, causing you to cry out and beg for him to fuck you as your hands grabbed at the mirror in order to steady yourself. But after a couple more thrusts you were a goner, finally falling over that edge into the wonders of your strongest orgasm yet, causing you to scream a prayer of Franks name.

Frank gasped gently as he watched your features scrunch up into a look of pure ecstasy with every move that he made. His thrusts turning sloppy before he finally spilled his warm seed into your bowl throbbing cunt.

It had been 10 minutes before Frank had scooped you up into his arms after pulling out, laying you on the bed and just getting in between your legs. If you’d have thought that this was over then you were terribly mistaken. All plans for dinner out the window by this point as your fiancé pulled your legs apart, beginning to kiss up your right leg.

“How could you hate yourself when you’re so beautiful and so perfect baby? Look at you, already so fucked out from my cock inside you” he mumbled in between each kiss that he placed to the inside of your thigh, working his way up until he was face to face with your still throbbing cunt.

“Fuck.....” he groaned as he watched his cum dribble out of your cunt, forcing the blood to once again rush back to his cock as his touch ran along your slick folds. Collecting a mix of both his and your cum, moaning at the salty sweet taste of your cum mixed with his. God he really wouldn’t ever get enough of you your sweet little pussy.

“Call the restaurant and cancel our reservation, I’m happy just eating you for dinner” he grumbled before hitting home again between your thighs.

You were in for a long night.

Tag list: @chuckbass-love @jtargaryen18 @et-lesailes @harrysthiccthighss @cevans-fics @stargazingfangirl18 @chrissquares @navybrat817

#kinkmas #chris evans #chris evans cute #chris evans hot #daddy! chris evans #chris evans and dodger #his laugh though 🥺#chris evans sexy #chris evans x reader #chris evans x you #chris evans characters #frank adler x y/n #frank adler x you #frank adler smut #frank adler gifted #frank adler x reader #frank adler

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cumbercookiebatchs · 3 years

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When she threw open the apartment door and hollered out in her usual manner, "Papa, the people in my class are fools who spew bourgeois propaganda and I don't know how to—" she didn't expect she would be hastily shushed by a voice she knew for sure didn't belong to her Papa, but to another man who usually didn't appear at their home without their knowledge. Or, well, at least, her knowledge; there was still the matter of that time she had invited the art gallery curator over for dinner without first telling her Papa, which resulted in her very flustered and embarassed Papa opening up the door unpreparedly to a fully suited Grantaire while he himself was clad in his kitten-pajamas, an incident for which her Papa still hasn't forgiven her for. Marianne doesn't really see why; clearly Grantaire was completely enamoured by the whole look, if anything.

But dragging her attention back to the present situation, she watched as her Papa's boyfriend (and wasn't that a bit odd to think about—it wasn't as if she was opposed to him dating, or opposed at all to him dating the gallery curator, considering it was her who pulled the two together—it was just a bit of a jolt to see him hold another's hand or smile when talking of someone romantically—he was her father, so she supposed it had something to do with that, though another part of her suspected it was just the way she still held that little bit of concern from his separation from his dick-of-an-ex all those years ago while she was still a baby—a girl's going to fret a little for her father, right?) ease himself back against the cushions of the couch without waking her slumbering Papa slumped on his chest and perched on his lap (which—once again—was a bit odd to see, considering for many years it was her who had fallen asleep in her Papa's lap, and with a very different kind of love behind the action.) She raised an eyebrow.

"Not that I'm discouraging you from coming over or telling you to stay away or anything, but what are you doing here?" she whispered, mindful of her Papa's sleeping state.

Grantaire glanced down and carded a gentle hand through her Papa's golden curls. "He had a...bit of a day," he replied, equally as quiet.

Marianne frowned. "But he was working from home today." When she realized what must have happened, she swore, and it was a testament to how much she liked Grantaire when he didn't even bat an eye. "I didn't think the work at the firm was getting to be this bad."

Grantaire looked grave. "Bad enough if it warranted the kind of anxiety attack he had when he called me over." He peered down, mouth turning down to a concerned frown for a moment before he pressed a kiss to the top of her Papa's head, something which made her smile, though she dared not do it too largely. She still had the part to play of the daughter disgusted with parental PDA, after all.

One matter, however... "Wait, how did you even get off of work to get here?"

His eyes flashed up to her's. "Renovations, remember? Gallery's closed for three weeks cause of it."

Oh right, the renovations. The memory of having been told of it did come to mind, and even if it didn't, she should have been able to figure it our based on the hoodie and sweatpants the man donned, so opposite the sharp suits he would usually wear for his job. Honestly, how very convenient. Though, she didn't doubt the fact that even if he wasn't off work right now—or at least, off work at the actual gallery, considering she had spent one too many of his infamous rambles listening to him complain of all the work he has to get done at home—he still would have rushed to help her Papa.

Which, at the end of the day, is truly what wins her over once and for all. Smiling, she thinks a little before saying, "You're a good guy, Grantaire."

The upturn of Grantaire's mouth was bright especially in the evening light. He moved to sit up on the edge of the seat, but that was the moment her Papa endeavoured to shift on Grantaire's lap, letting a little sniffle and burrowing deeper into the man's chest, prompting him to freeze and recline back on the couch oncemore instead.

"So," he whispered once he made sure her Papa was settled once more, "I have the approval of the hard-to-win-over-child, then?"

She rolled her eyes. "I never disapproved of you. In fact, I approved of you way before. I'm the one who called you for dinner."

Grantaire smirked. "Maybe. But you kind of have this intense stare to you—kind of like your dad here."

She rolled her eyes once more; her Papa fanboyed over her Uncle Feuilly, there wasn't much fierceness there. "Whatever."

They both fell in a comfortable silence, punctuated at times only by their breaths and what sounded like her Papa's sighs as he would shift and cling closer to Grantaire every so often, a soft look gracing Grantaire's features as he did so. Now, she thought, was fit to proceed into her own room and leave Grantaire and her Papa be, but before she could do so, Grantaire cleared his throat, calling for her attention. With the utmost tried casualty, he said, "I was thinking of taking your father to the Pont des Arts and maybe getting a bit of coffee and..." he trailed off.

She raised an eyebrow. "Are you asking me for permission?"

He looked a bit sheepish. "No. Yes. I don't know, I've never done this before."

"Did you miss the fact that I was the one who asked you over to dinner? I have no problems."

The relief on Grantaire's face was evident.

"That is," she continued. "If he says yes. His word is more important here."

Grantaire nodded hastily. "Yeah, right, of course."

She smirked. "Just have him back by ten." The words caused a rush of adrenaline through her. Damn, she never thought she would ever get to say that about her father.

Chuckling, Grantaire gave her as best a salute he could with his arms wrapped around her Papa and repiled "Yes, ma'am."

Turning, she moved to head to her room at last before one more thought struck her and she turned once more with a devious smile. "By the way, do you think I should clear out for the night?"

Grantaire blinked. "What?"

"I mean I could head over to Uncle Combeferre and Uncle Courf's place, they always let me sleep over if I want."

"I don't know what you're asking," Grantaire said, but the faint blush on his stubbled cheeks knew that that wasn't truly the case.

Her smile grew even more wicked. "Yes you do, I'm asking whether or not you're going to have sex tomorrow."

At this, Grantaire thoroughly coloured red, and he sputtered so badly he didn't notice the man on his lap shifting until he opened his eyes.

"Is that anyway to talk about your Papa?" her Papa asked drowsily as he yawned and craned his head to look at her.

"Oh please," she said, "I'm quite disgusted, but I've gotta know, don't I? I don't wanna be here for it."

"Well in that case," her Papa yawned once more and turned his head to burrow back into Grantaire's chest, "head over to Bahorel's place, Ferre and Courf are at an exhibit at the museum."

Grantaire looked down at her Papa in alarm. "Enjolras."

He peered up at him sleepily. "What?" He stretched up a bit to give him a quick peck on the lips, to which Marianne let out a slight noise of disgust. "Did I say something wrong?"

The red in Grantaire's face simply would not fade away. "Well, I, uh..."

Her Papa hummed. "I didn't think so either." The kiss he delivered now was no quick peck--slow and deep, her Papa winding his arms around Grantaire's neck as his boyfriend pulled him closer—and certainly not anything she needed to see either.

"Papa, no, shit you can't wait for me to leave. What, do you want me to leave for tonight as well?"

Her Papa only broke off to say, "Watch your language." He delivered one kiss more before saying, "No, Grantaire was just about to leave anyways, and I have to help you with your discussion skills to help your class understand that they're spreading bourgeois propaganda and how to prevent that, isn't that right, Grantaire?"

Now, Marianna personally would have been offended if someone were trying to kick her out like that, but perhaps in this moment, it was more of a bail-out for Grantaire rather than a boot-out considering how flustered he seemed at the moment with the two.

"Right, I'll, uh, I'll just." He walked over to the door, her Papa following close behind. "I'll just—"

Her Papa stretched up on his toes to give him a soft kiss on the cheek. "Bye, Grantaire."

Grantaire looked down at him, a grin spreading across his face as he, unaware, reached a hand to his cheeks where her Papa's lips had brushed only a moment ago. "Yeah, bye."

Marianne groaned. "Gosh, save it for tomorrow!"

THEY'RE SO CUTE!!!!

#screams into the void #THANK YOU I LOVED THIS #❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️❤️#PERFECT #MORE PLEASE #Amazing #Enjoltaire #Lovely anon #Enjoltaire fic #I loooooooove

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randomobsessionsofa30something · 4 years

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My top 15 kpop albums of 2020

15. Taeyeon-What do I call you? Taeyeon's 4th mini album was barely released two weeks ago but there's something about the vibe of the songs that just really suit my tastes with quirky melodies and beautiful instrumentals.

14. Kang Daniel-CYAN. His album Magenta is actually really good too but I think CYAN is more my kind of music. A pop album with fun beats. The title 2U is actually my favorite of the album.

13. BTOB 4U- INSIDE. BTOB 4U made a strong debut with this mini album that includes great vocals, interesting beats and r&b. However, it was Alone, a beautiful ballad, that was my favorite.

12. Suho-Self portrait. Suho released his first mini album before enlisting as it's just full of beautiful mid tempo ballads. The fact he wrote a song with a title (Let's love) just like EXO's catchphrase is too sweet. Made in you has an amazing melody and For You Now featuring Younha is also a stand out.

11. KAI- KAI. As expected of an EXO member, Kai made a huge splash with his debut mini album. Just as any EXO album, for me the brilliance of these one is on the bsides. I enjoyed his title Mmmh and it's soo catchy but Reason, Nothing on me and Stranger are the songs that for me made this album a great one.

10. BTS-BE. Even though BTS released their MAP OF THE SOUL: 7 this year, it was BE that I really loved. Just every song is so great. Apart from the titles Dynamite and Life goes on, Fly to the room is my favorite.

9. Zico-Random Box. Zico is just one of those different artists that is in his own laine. And every time he releases an album I can't help but obsess about it. Also he wrote about hating heat and summer so I totally identified with the lyrics of the title. However Cartooon is so much fun and his delivery in No you can't is amazing.

8. SUPERM- Super One. Honestly I could have ranked this one higher but unlike the rest of the albums I actually didn't love every song. However there are some bsides that I am absolutely crazy about. One of my most listened songs of the year is Better days, a ballad sung in english, that basically anyone who lived through this 2020 can identify with. Taemin's vocals on that song are just so sweet. Wish you were here, Together at home and Dangerous Woman are also stand outs.

7. MINO-TAKE. With the exception of Love and a boy I loved every single song of this album. MOBB's song is crazy good. Wa featuring Zion T. is also great. I think however is I want to featuring meenoi, an artist I hadn't checked out, the collab I keep playing over and over. The ballad Sunrise is so pretty and honestly more the style one expects of WINNER more than MINO's. The title Runaway is definitely fun as expected of Mino even if it's about a break up.

6. BAEKHYUN-Delight. Baekhyun's second mini album got him the title of first solo million seller in 19 years. The album is full of pretty melodies, interesting beats and of course loads of r&b. Apart from the title Candy, check out R U riding? And my favorite: Love Again.

5. EXO SC- 1 billion views. I'm so proud of the growth EXO SC had in just a year. They released their first full album and, song after song, you can tell how much effort they put in it. Just like in their first mini album it's obvious they were so involved in the songwriting and producing along with Gaeko. Both 1 billion views and Telephone are fun trendy songs. Nevertheless, what I loved about the other bsides is how personal they felt especially the lyrics including their solo songs. Rodeo Station and Jet lag are stand outs, Fly way featuring Gaeko my favorite and Chanyeol's solo song Nothin' was everything to a Chanyeol biased like me. On me, Sehun's solo, is so strong and stunning.

4. WINNER-Remember. If you've followed me for a while you might know of my love for WINNER. So watching Jinwoo and Seunghoon enlisting was such a blow and of course if you're a kpop fan you know it's coming but it's never easy. This album, WINNER's last for a while, has it all: fun songs like Hold and Just dance; beautiful ballads like Remember, My bad and Dduk (Jinwoo's solo and my favorite of the album, written by Kang Seungyoon); and, the version with four members of their first hits.

3. Taemin- Never gonna dance again. Act 2. For me, Taemin does dance pop like no other and this year he really exceeded my expectations releasing two amazing albums. I don't think I can choose one song of this album as my favorite. I just loved each track equally. Taemin participated in writing the lyrics of a few of the songs. Taemin's voice in Heaven reminds me so much of DBSK's Changmin. Impressionable's beat is just dirty and the angelic voice in the second part is just unfair. The duet with Wendy Be your enemy is so beautiful. Pansy almost made me cry without reading the lyrics and I could go on and on.

2. BLACKPINK-THE ALBUM. Saying this album was long awaited is an understatement. YG is known for being too selective with the music they let their artists release. On top of that, YG was filled with scandals last year so they kept postponing the album but they did not mess around with it and the wait was soooo worth it. Each track could be the title because they are that good so even if How you like that remains my favorite the rest are amazing as well.

1. Taemin-Never gonna dance again. Act 1. Black rose, Waiting for and Clockwork were my favorite bsides. However it is the title Criminal that made me go crazy. I love everything about it: the lyrics, dance, beat and melody. For me, Taemin really was the best he has ever been this year. That's why I'll remember 2020 as the year I went from a casual Taemin listener to a full fleshed Taemin fan.

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espytalks · 3 years

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i've done a lot of thinking this week about this, so i'm gonna put everything under a read more.

i do think, in theory, that the vote is a good thing. I checked, and this is the third one they've done, and only the second one in a row. The first one had four mobs to vote from, and one of them did end up being repurposed into what became the grindstone. It gives me hope that the most interesting or actually useful ideas could be reincorporated somehow.

I mostly think it's partly moj.ang having a lot of ideas, and letting the community feel like they're a part of the development of the game. i think thier image with thier community is important to them, so things like this are a necessity for them. So that means it's partly for settling on ideas for development, and partly for marketing. Sneaky, but not inherently evil.

I wanna trust moj.ang when they say they wanna make the best game they can, and that they can only do so much, and i certainly appreciate this approach more than some faceless triple A company that only wants you to purchase microtransactions.

however

this vote in particular very clearly is presented as a pokeman-style decision. with all three being useful, it's intended to be an equal division, with the main decider being your own personality.

except the allay is clearly the best choice.

the technical community values ways to exploit the game, which is why the copper golem also was a contender, but the allay's features were at least presented as something that was clearly useful for casual players, and exploitable for technicals.

this wouldn't be a problem for most people, but if you liked the glare, either because of it's usefulness or because it's simply cute, it was made obvious the next day that your choice was doomed to fail.

with the changes to lighting in 1.19, most people consider the glare to be obsolete. even though there's professional builders who would still have difficulty lighting up thier base in survival, and even though some people (like me) have difficulty navigating the f3 screen.

you can make assumptions that the golem and glare would come back, maybe as items, but there's no guarantee. they're working on a lot of things aside from mobs, i doubt they simply have the time to add all of these features.

that's why it's so depressing. because if you get attached to one, especially one that never had a chance, there's very little chance that the things you liked about it would ever see the light of day in the game. for me, i liked the glare simply because it was cute, and i still think it's the best design out of the three by far.

I don't like the allay. it's just a recoded vex. it's not really that cute, and i don't think it's as interesting as the glare. these are subjective thoughts, thus they're inherently both wrong and valid. but i doubt i'd get over all of this by the time the allay is added.

i think the worst part though is the vast majority of the fandom legit thinks the glare is a bad choice. i feel like if i said the glare was my favorite, i'd be accused of only liking it because some popular person said i should, or that i'm stupid, or just being different to be different.

my choice didn't matter, and my choice is inherently wrong.

as far as minecrafters are concerned, a mob is only as useful as the farms you can build.

mojang should have known this, and that's why i'm angry.

I went out of my way to pull myself out of of my depression enough to make a god damned drawing of the glare, and my time and energy was wasted. I let myself get excited and it was wasted.

And i'm alone, because i'm only one of maybe a thousand people out of a million that actually cared, and maybe the only person out of that thousand to take it personally.

I'm in the wrong here and i hate it. I'll never forgive the allay for this, and i'm a terrible person because of it.

i voted for the allay in round two though. i don't have any need for randomized redstone.

#espy talks #i didn't vote last year but i also was mildly excited for the mooobloom #and i think everyone but me hated it #i just saw someoen call it a pisscow in a video yesterday #by that logic i should call the moooshroom a peroidcow #pisses me off.bet peopel only voted the glow sqiid cause they thought it'd be a light source

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coinofstone · 4 years

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3x12 The Coming of Arthur pt 1

The title is such low hanging fruit I feel bad cracking a joke about it.

It's a quest episode! I love a quest episode. Srsly feel free to send me any and all Merthur quest fics. I can't get enough 😂

This is the episode responsible for the lovely Leon fanon headcanon that he's immortal. Always handy in an Arthur Returns fic.

Uther: you must go on this mission alone

Arthur: *brings Merlin*

I do love Merlin being being a smart alec and nagging Arthur while packing. Excellent banter.

Arthur said

Arthur threatening a young boy like this is such an ugly and uncharacteristic action it makes me angry.

Merlin tending to Arthur while he's sick and injured 🥺

Also I'm sorry but Merlin shows fuckin Gilli his magic but he's hiding it from fuckin Gwaine while Arthur is suffering? Silly.

Cenred's massive army makes me wonder if it's a result of his tolerance of magic or lower standards than the knights of Camelot, or some combination of both.

Poor Leon, though. He's just got back from near death in that forest and Uther sends him right fuckin back in 😂

Looks like they snuck in to Camelot via the dragon's cave. I doubt that was the intention but I still approve 😂

Knowing he's on a suicide mission, Arthur gives Merlin an out, knowing he'll never take it, knowing he doesn't even want him to: he still presents him with the choice.

How come literally everyone else gets a crown that fits them but Arthur walks around looking like he's wearing hand-me-downs?

Morgana might be evil but she looks damn good on a throne.

3x13 The Coming of Arthur pt 2

There's a post going around Twitter about ppl who nitpick at TV shows... this comment falls into exactly that category 100% but I'm sorry, I cannot just ignore the fact that Morgana's got these massive banners and an entire army's worth of uniforms, I mean look:

Every guard with the sigil on his uniform and half a dozen banners in the council chambers alone. That's to say nothing of the ones outside. I mean look at the sheer fuckin size of these things:

Look how tiny the ppl are next to em! They've gotta be at least 15 feet long, at least. Where did they come from? Were they all magicked into existence? Who designed that sigil? What does it represent? Is it Gorlois' banner? I HAVE QUESTIONS.

Leon isn't someone I've ever been particularly attracted to, personally, but his defiant shout of "Long Live the King" in the face of Morgana's threats, is sexy as hell.

Depressed Arthur is such a mood.

So. Gwen. Originally in 3x12 when Morgana essentially invited Gwen into the fold (insofar as a Queen's servant can be), it seems to be a set up, because Morgana has been treating Gwen like shit for ages, why would she suddenly want her friend back? Especially since Morgana knows something is going on between Gwen and Arthur - there's no way she believes that they were actually under the spell of some random sorcerer, that just doesn't make any sense. So you kind of assume - or at least I did - that Morgana is keeping Gwen close knowing that she'll be useful as bait or a hostage, just essentially as a person of value to Arthur. She's known Gwen for too long to actually believe she'd cross Arthur, there's just no way someone as machiavellian as Morgana doesn't see Gwen's 'loyalty' as a simple survival tactic. All of this is to say, when Morgana and Morgause eavesdrop on Gwen's conversation with Sir Leon, Morgana is just like, 'welp, she's betrayed me. Guess I'll kill her in the morning.' as though she was actually expecting Gwen to do anything else?!?! Like, why? It would've made so much more sense to just cut that line entirely and go straight to something like

Morgana: it's as we suspected, she's betrayed me

Morgause: yes, now she can lead us straight to Arthur

And it would've made so much more sense than the weird sort of purgatory they've implied where Morgana changed her mind about Gwen very suddenly the night before she took the throne. It's not a super important detail in the overarching story but it's another example of how carelessly their story has been handled.

Me rn:

I do love that they made Freya the Lady of the Lake, and that she kept her promise by telling Merlin how to defeat the army of the dead.

How Merlin really sees Kilgharrah:

Gwen really is the smartest of all of them.

I do love that Merlin's first undead kill with excalibur is entirely an accident lol

The subtext between Morgana and Morgause is really gross. I haven't said anything before because I generally don't approve of ship shaming but the not so subtle subtext gives me the heebies.

This is such a great shot

Everything about it, his woman at his left and his man at his right, his romantic rival opposite him on his wife's side, as directly opposite her as possible at a round table with an uneven number of placements. It's a really beautiful shot, fitting for an equally beautiful scene. It's a very moving scene, the music really adds the exact emotion you'd expect for this moment we all recognize... and I feel like the knights' oaths are very well matched. The snarky part of me wanted to make a 'call me maybe' joke about Percival, but he's so sincere I just can't do it. The moment of levity added by Merlin's banter with Arthur is really, really well paced. Honestly I think it's probably the next perfect, iconic scene since Gwen and Arthur's first kiss. Hats off to this crew.

(Don't worry dear reader, I'm sure I'll get back to complaining shortly)

Santiago is so dreamy. I'd share his bedroll any day.

I like that despite all the talk of equality and doing the thing Uther wouldn't approve of, Gwen still worries about the company seeing her and Arthur kiss. Like, he's planning an insurrection with a bunch of commoners and two dudes who've been officially banished from Camelot, but she's internalized the classism and the rules of royalty so deeply that even amongst friends she instinctively keeps their relationship hidden. I'm not sure how intentional that was but it's brilliant.

The fight big fight scene with Merlin just barely missing the cup while the knights are cornered, and Gaius showing up like the brilliant deus ex machina that he is, honestly makes the previous budget-slashed episodes more bearable. Because this really is great, even knowing it's great at the expense of those others.

Morgana's screeching is eerily similar to Aithusa's.

I wonder if they knew they were getting renewed for a fourth season when they wrote this. Because you know, it really could've worked as a series finale as well. An open-ended series finale, but a series finale all the same.

As a Queens kid, I cannot explain to you the joy it gives me to watch Arthur and Merlin just chillin on the steps to the castle as tho it were a stoop, which I suppose, in a sense... it kind of is. Ahhh youthful days.

Commentary is Jeremy Webb and Julian Murphy.

And this kids, is why we're watching with commentary! They've just explained that Morgana's sigil is supposed to symbolize the Rowan tree that's supposed to be at the heart of the Isle of the Blessed. That suggests she designed it herself, so there's at least one of my earlier questions answered.

They talk a lot about how Emila Fox was very pregnant when they were filming her in this season, and they shot entirely around it - and I can't help but feel anger toward Joss Whedon and his 'handling' of Charisma Carpenter's pregnancy during S4 of Angel.

One of them called the round table scene 'curiously moving' and I think that is really fitting. They'd had this in mind for about two years, which is probably why it's so extraordinary. That's a great gestation period for a scene as iconic as this.

One final tidbit: the sword in the stone was filmed in France, and made it back to Wales intact. I guess nobody wanted to take it out. That's kind of an interesting thought, like a little set superstition or something. It's kind of cute.

The DVD extras/special features will get a separate post if I feel I have comments worth sharing.

#bbc merlin #bbc merlin spoilers #merlin #merlin spoilers #merthur #3x12 #bbc merlin 3x12 #merlin 3x12 #3x13 #bbc merlin 3x13 #merlin 3x13 #the coming of Arthur #the coming of Arthur part one #the coming of Arthur part two #the coming of Arthur pt 1 #the coming of Arthur pt 2 #i cannot believe that's the actual title of this episode #onceandfuturerewatch

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ben-solo98 · 4 years

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I can’t believe anyone at Warner Bros thought it was a good idea to release the theatrical version of JUSTICE LEAGUE when this version exists. I’m glad Zack was allowed to come back and show us his true vision. It could just be the 4 hour runtime, but it feels like an epic from the classic days of Hollywood. I really like Zack Snyder, I think he's a visionary director. I also think he's overpraised and overhated at the same time. He has a very vocal and passionate fanbase who think he's a god of cinema and then there's an equally vocal group of people who think he's one of the worst things to ever happen to movies. I like him a reasonable amount. Even if I don't always love his movies in their entirety, he's puts some of the most beautiful visuals on screen that I've ever seen, especially in the comic book movie genre. He also made me appreciate Superman, I've loved superheroes my entire life, but I was mostly into Marvel when I was a kid and when I did venture over to DC it was primarily for Batman, couldn't care less about Superman. Boring. Until I sat in a packed theater in June of 2013 to watch MAN OF STEEL in IMAX 3D and Zack Snyder (and everyone else involved) blew my mind and finally made me understand/appreciate the character of Superman. I'll even defend that Kevin Costner death scene, I don't care. Supes is only a small part of this film, but all of the scenes featuring him and/or the supporting characters from his solo ouing were some of my favorites, because of what Zack and the cast (especially Henry Cavill) had set up in the previous two films, but also because it was usually underlined by Hans Zimmer's amazing Superman theme.

On paper, the story is very similar to the theatrical version, but it feels like a completely different film. I didn't hate the theatrical cut when it first came out, but it definitely felt like it was nowhere near what it could have been and the more time that has passed and more we've learned about the controversies behind the scenes of those reshoots, the more problems I've found myself having with it. There's a different tone to this cut and while it's still not a perfect film, it's executed 1,000 times better. There's only about 4 or 5 scenes that I think are exactly the same and obviously since this movie is twice as long it's mostly new footage. My two favorite scenes from the theatrical version were Wonder Woman's entrance and the History of the Mother Boxes. Both scenes were still present here, but they were extended, more brutal and all around more awesome. Which just proves you gotta let Zack complete his vision, he knows what he's doing. It also proves that most of what was likable about the last one was because of Zack. Ray Fisher as Cyborg was a big highlight for me the last time around. Another character I didn't really care about until I saw his portrayal of him, which really says something about how great of an actor he is because he's been very vocal about how he was mistreated making that version of the movie, plus his role wasn't nearly as significant, but he still came out as one of the only really great things about that film. He's even better here, we get some much needed backstory on his character and next to Superman, he's kind of the heart and soul of the movie, it all falls apart without him. And it's refreshing to see a black character like this portrayed in such a positive way, I'm certainly not an expert on the subject, but I couldn't help but think that we don't really get to see black men cry much on screen. I really hope this isn't the last time we see him take on this role.

Ezra Miller as the Flash is a big step up as well, I didn't hate their interpretation in the last film, but the Flash was definitely my least favorite character. Wasn't ever excited about the character's upcoming solo film until now, my mind has been changed. Ezra Miller is a very solid Barry Allen and brings some much needed humor to the table. His powers are also fully utilized here, that's the thing about this cut of the movie, every character gets their moment to shine. I still think this film was lacking in the Aquaman department, there's some continuity issues between this movie and his stand alone feature. Mainly that we're introduced to two supporting players from his film and they feel like completely different characters. All of my Aquaman problems happen in the first half, I still thought Jason Momoa did a great job. I'm one of the few people (maybe the only person) who's been a Batfleck fan since the day they announced Ben was cast in the role, it's a shame we'll never get to see him in any Batman solo movies, I was really looking forward to that. J.K. Simmons is only in two scenes as Commissioner Gordon, but I want like 5 Batman films with him reprising his role. There's actually a few big actors who were in the first one and I didn't know why they agreed to do it and they don't get much more screen time here, but they actually feel crucial to the story. Also Jeremy Irons is an underrated Alfred, I think Jeremy Irons is just underrated period.

Steppenwolf is definitely a worthy villain this time around. I don't know why Joss Whedon decided to change his design or his motives/backstory, or why you'd completely cut out Darkseid, but that sucked, this was good. Occasionally he'd say something that made him sound like a bad guy from an 80s cartoon or old video game, but overall it was good.

Tom Holkenborg's score is phenomenal. Danny Elfman did it for the other one, I usually like him, but Tom's works a lot better. And some of Danny's comments make it seem like he has a really big ego and Tom's have made me feel the opposite. Almost everytime Wonder Woman came on screen this female warrior cry/siren song (I don't know how else to describe it) would play, at first I thought it was cool, but after 4 hours it got old. That's my only criticism about the score. There were a few "strange" music choices, Zack is known for those, sometimes I think he just does it because he likes to troll the haters, I respect it regardless. But, the last film had two covers recorded for it I really liked: "Everybody Knows" by Sigrid and "Come Together" by Gary Clarke Jr. (Which I've been on record saying it's "better than the Beatles' version"). I missed those songs a little, but also, not a big deal, ultimately.

I thought the 4 hour runtime would be way too long, but honestly, it worked. Nothing felt unnecessary, the story flowed at a reasonable pace. Sure, you could have probably cut out the last twenty minutes because it gives the film 3 or 4 different endings that just set up future films that will probably never happen now (I hope I'm proven wrong), but as a fan, I loved those scenes. I'm looking forward to see what happens and if anything good in the realm of DC films comes of releasing this. 8.6/10.

#thesnydercut #ForAutumn #JusticeLeague #moviereview

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punkscowardschampions · 4 years

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Liam & Edie

Liam: [sends her some kind of coded thing where the answer equals 6 when she works it out so she knows he's not living his best life without her because they're both weird little nerds] Edie: I'm so insanely bored Edie: what lesson are you in and how many negative ⭐s is it Liam: german Liam: all the negatives Liam: [sends her a picture of his textbook with everyone's eyes stabbed out via pencil holes like miss you] Edie: awh, you wanna give me schadenfreude 😍🥴 Edie: that's generous Edie: I was just thinking that a Columbine would liven this place up Liam: write your list, I'll try & think of anyone I'd wanna keep off mine except for you Edie: but being the last ones standing is what we aim for Edie: and what I want right now Liam: anything else you want before I kick that plan off? Edie: don't need time to say any final farewells to any dickhead in this place Liam: you've got a steadier hand, I'll need you to carve no farewells onto the bullets Edie: more deserving use of my time than whatever I'm not being taught right now Edie: how's your aim though? Liam: -9 ⭐s for the lesson you're in Liam: but + it for my aim Edie: my fault for naively thinking Physics might be interesting when I picked it Edie: forgot we were catering for the braindead masses Edie: I believe it, no bullshit brag detected Liam: chemistry would've let you blow more things up Liam: & make 💊 Edie: 😤 I'm mad Edie: no amount of black holes are gonna make up for this Liam: we'll learn it online Edie: but I wanna blow things up with you now Edie: or not learn German vocab Liam: let's go blow up a 🚽 they have to let you out in case you're about to bleed or cry in front of everyone Edie: and am I? Liam: in front of me & whoever else is in there Liam: unless you wanna upload it after Edie: I do need to make the overreaction my fam had over the weekend worth the headache Edie: owed more trouble, like Liam: my dad was on one too, he's the only one not allowed to show up by his logic Liam: you want a bigger scale? every 🚽 in the building Liam: maybe school would have to shut Edie: Know that, my sister is the definition of one rule for her, another for the rest of us Edie: I reckon we could do 'em all without getting caught in the act Edie: more fun after the fact 📹 to claim it Liam: just need to get creative with our explosives, I won't have enough 🧨 to do every bathroom Liam: you in the labs or a standard classroom? Edie: labs Edie: she's scheduled a breakdown any moment now anyway, she's always pissing off to cry herself so I'll take my opportunity and cue as such Liam: 3 HNO3 + C6H7(OH)3O2 H2SO4 → C6H7(ONO2)3O2 + 3 H2O Liam: only need nitric & sulphuric acid from you Edie: you're a hot evil genius, okay Liam: there's a story behind it but maybe I shouldn't give it to you Liam: keep that train of thought intact Edie: but I need it Edie: I can keep 'em both on track, trust me Liam: you need it? tell me about that first Edie: I love stories Edie: and I liked talking to you, a lot Edie: and I like it when you give me things Edie: so yeah, it's a need Liam: to make you happy then Liam: the year is 1846 and this german-swiss scientist was messing in his kitchen Liam: he spilled a mixture of those 2 acids I told you to get on his table & grabbed the first thing he had about to clean it up Liam: happened to be a cotton apron & he hung it on his oven door to dry after, super chill until it exploded Edie: that's perfect Edie: scientists really loved making shit happen on accident, just like all life Edie: 🧫🦠 Liam: I was an accident & look how that turned out Edie: Big same Liam: my sister too, different loser dad though Edie: yeah? Edie: we've got that in common too Liam: does seem to be pretty common Edie: happy little accidents Edie: or not so Liam: I don't wanna be like that Liam: the different girls bit at least Edie: people love repeating their parents mistakes and bullshit Edie: even when they railed on it for years Edie: I don't fucking get it Edie: make your own, at least Liam: maybe you'll think this is one but I gotta say it Liam: I don't care about claiming 🚽💥 I wanna claim you Liam: be with me Edie: You mean it Edie: no bullshit Liam: only if there's bullshit that comes with being official & exclusive all of that Edie: I think that's a really, really good idea Edie: not a mistake but even if it was, I still want it Liam: alright, it's yours, me & the gay 🖤 shit Edie: [sends him a 🥰 selfie] Liam: it's my background Edie: you were already mine Edie: [glitter moment shamelessly] Liam: took the longest shower & I'm still finding it 🗺❌ Edie: good thing you suit it Edie: we can try again though, after the literal shitstorm, a shower is a good idea Liam: yeah, wouldn't suit that Liam: german teacher can disagree as loud as she wants Edie: 😏 Edie: can keep their filth and their hands to themselves Liam: I respect that you only covered me in glitter so that those girls would think I was gay & do the same Edie: people gotta respect territory Edie: works until I perfect your tat Liam: I'll get on the school roof with a 📢 Edie: You're everything Liam: you can sample it when you write a song about me Edie: I will Edie: your friend is not getting a feature Liam: his loss Liam: I'll only gloat for a while Edie: you can go as hard as you want, I reckon Edie: you've earnt it, like Liam: I'll go as hard as you want Liam: you're my girl now Edie: I'm yours Liam: make your physics teacher cry for me then Liam: we've got shit to do Edie: 😄 Edie: done Edie: where are we meeting when I'm fully done and have secured the shit? Liam: [a location] Edie: 👍 Liam: 🔜 Edie: making people cry is a speciality of mine Liam: it won't work on me Edie: I don't want to make you cry Edie: ever Liam: good thing I can't ever, all that toxic masculinity Edie: not missing out on much Edie: even if Miss makes a proper performance out of it Edie: more fun ways to do that Liam: yeah there are Edie: 💣💥 Liam: don't have to hand you a 🧨 to cause 🎇🎆 Edie: you don't even know how true that is Edie: yet Liam: for now it's a guess Edie: I'll show you Liam: I just wanna feel something Liam: that's not only 💊🥤 Edie: I will make that happen Edie: you don't need to believe me, just wait Liam: I'm waiting Edie: you deserve to feel everything Liam: I've tried but it don't work out like that Edie: you can't? Edie: or only certain emotions Liam: there's no 💣💥 in me Edie: we can be dead inside together and make it happen to everyone else Edie: for now Edie: [show up] Liam: [just kiss her too hard because everything you do is a little bit too much boy, okay you're numb but there's too many emotions trapped under the surface that we're not addressing so] Edie: [thank god we're so overwhelmed ourselves that we can just roll with this and have it be the most extra thing] Liam: [this is why you two work] Edie: [just approaching this like you aren't her first honey not even 'cos we're fronting but feelings and trying to make you feel things] Liam: [realistically who have you ever slept with either boy unless you've gotten with one of Rio's friends casually prior to this or something like] Edie: [just out here doing the most from the jump, the fam must be like HELLO???] Liam: [shouldn't be here for it but I am] Edie: [we all are by all I mean us and them, no one else lol] Liam: [imagine how shook he'd be because didn't expect it to be like this] Edie: [awkward, like the levels you must pay attention to no one but Rio 'cos she isn't really conspicuous in how she be lol] Liam: [and if he did get with one of Rio's friends when he first started stalking her it clearly didn't work out so he's probably bracing himself for another failed attempt and then] Edie: [it makes logical sense, like tryna get in the friend group lowkey but none of her friends are really here for it[ Liam: [yeah and like in my head he started stalking Rio when his sister had just died so he wouldn't have been bringing his A game] Edie: [exactly dr phil] Liam: [but obviously nothing happened that she could clock as a red flag when she's thinking of suspects he was probably just really blah because numb] Edie: [yeah, and none of her friends are gonna chat shit on the boy who's sister just died really like it's to be expected] Liam: [it's a good cover like you said] Edie: [just sat here like it's so rude we're gonna kill Edie, as if it wasn't rude before] Liam: [I do feel so bad for him even though he literally fucks with Rio's entire life] Edie: [lol same, it's like if you could just stop doing that tah] Liam: [I think it's partly because we both know she ends up okay and living as happy a life as poss whereas he does not] Edie: [yeah, there's no hope and that's just sad, even if you were an absolute dick, like Ro, per example, still sad she dies for everyone else] Liam: [agreed] Edie: [and you aren't that insufferable boy which is just well] Liam: [nobody is, she's next level] Liam: [anyway also do your vandalism and have way more fun than you expected with that as well] Edie: [when it's just a moment for you immediately and you're all in] Liam: [do we wanna close the school or not let them destroy every bathroom in the place for various reasons lol?] Edie: [on the one hand, maybe get caught before you do every bathroom for that trouble mood, on the other, if you shamelessly upload it you'd get in more trouble for making the school look dumb and shit hmm, I think this time get caught and we'll let you be sneaky trouble causing nerds plenty of other times[ Liam: [I'm about that, we know you're both pretty distracted rn so] Edie: [it feels more legit for this instance, and we can separate you and they'd probably call Ali in for the drama of it] Liam: [you can work your way into the fam later boy you're trying to keep your gf highkey for now, I love the idea of both their mums getting called in and awkwardly meeting haha] Edie: [they'd lowkey want them to kick up a fuss and separate them for the school but Ali knows how well that works so it's like well soz you'll have to cope] Liam: [whereas his mum is the opposite, you know the sort never backs the kid and is just wholeheartedly like yes do whatever you think @ the school] Edie: [ahh the joys] Edie: [once that drama has unfurled and you're in your separate detention moments, sending him a pic from the school website of all the staff but she's digitally ❌d out all their eyes] Liam: I miss you too Edie: I hope so Liam: what else would I be doing? Edie: I don't know Edie: you are full of good ideas Liam: I was thinking about setting the fire alarm off Edie: an acceptable second to thinking about me constantly Edie: would hate to perish in a fire with all these cunts Liam: to be with you Liam: I'd get you before they made you line up in the playground for the head count Edie: then we can leave, like we planned Edie: they'll have let our mas fuck off by now Liam: 🗑🔥 Liam: boring if it wasn't for you Edie: you're like Edie: seeing a new colour Liam: maybe I should leave you there longer so you can work on your song about me Edie: don't though Edie: I know it sounds cliche but that's the only way I can explain how blindsided but transformed I feel from you Liam: you're the only person who's said it, don't think that's how cliches work Edie: I don't just say pretty things for the sake of it Edie: or anything Edie: I mean it, regardless of what it does or don't sound like Liam: I know you mean it Edie: if we both set one, it'll take them longer to get back inside Edie: hide and seek and we can finish what we started? Liam: you're on Edie: 3️⃣2️⃣1️⃣ Liam: 1️⃣ 2️⃣ 3️⃣ Edie: [ahh this poor school lol] Liam: [love that you get to be notorious though gal cos peeps gonna be talking about these antics for ages] Edie: [in this fam you have to make your own rep or life is really hard junie and grace, I said what I said] Liam: [tea though] Liam: [I'm trying to think of somewhere cool they could go and my first thought was like a junkyard vibe so they can destroy more things like life is strange and sex education unless you have any better ideas] Edie: [that's always a mood, also very akin to the barn which will clearly be your domain so] Liam: [yeah and somewhere she's probably been loads of times that she knows all the hiding places of so they don't need to be interrupted again] Edie: [live your best destructive lives] Liam: [when he would be and lowkey forget what he's meant to be doing here, such fun, not devastating me at all] Edie: [the theme of these painful two years lmao, I'm so glad you never find out babe truly] Liam: [though ngl I wish you could survive and we could see if y'all as a couple could survive that] Edie: [ahh when you can't do it all, so rude] Liam: [could've had it all rolling in the deep] Edie: [soz you've got to die my love] Liam: [soz you both have, his poor mother] Edie: [yeah that is no fun] Liam: [soz both your kids are dead babe but we need it for the plot] Edie: [some people have the worst luck truly]

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duanecbrooks · 8 years

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Gabby and Hodie: You're Number One You may recall that, in a past article, I laid out what are my all-time favorite literary creations. You my also recall that I said that the books that I picked as my all-time etc. are those once and for all categorically and for all time. Well, what's happened is, upon further reflection--and upon my dear, warm, sweet,loving cousin Emily's words to me (surely I don't have to tell you what they were) further coming to fruition--I've come to realize my real and true all-time favorite literary offering. And it's a tie between the women's-beach-volleyball sex boat Gabrielle Reece's ("with" Karen Karbo) life-lessons guide My Foot Is Too Big For The Glass Slipper: A Guide to the Less-Than-Perfect Life and the Today-show's-Fourth-Hour gal Hoda Kotb's ("with" Jane Lorenzini) personal/professional memoir Hoda: How I Survived War Zones, Bad Hair, Cancer, and Kathie Lee. Allow me to say here that in coming to said realization, I had to dump quite a lot of weight. At first I thought that the former television-morning-show host Rene Syler's ("with" Karen Moline) parenting guide Good-Enough Mother: The Perfectly Imperfect Book of Parenting deserved to make the aforementioned list. However, further pondering has caused me to realize that, as humorous and as charming as Syler's tome is, in the final analysis it has to do with the doings of children and with the raising of children--and as much as I love kids and love reading/seeing what it is kids have to say, an entire book centering on them is simply not my aesthetic. For a while I sincerely believed that How to Lose Everything In Politics (Except Massachusetts), the then-journalist Kristi Witker's inside-the-1972-McGovern-presidential-try memoir, merited making the cut. Yet in time I remembered that, ever since 1976, when Carter won the White House and kicked Ford and all those other Nixon-era Republican third-raters out on their asses, my consistent interest in politics has majorly decreased--indeed, in the main I've come to sympathize with what the master TV interviewer Dick Cavett once told the 1960s/1970s far-left activist Jerry Rubin: "Politics bores the ass off me." Thus I've arrived at the conclusion that Witker's book, while it's chock-full of lively wit and penetrating insight, when all is said and done involves an area, namely politics, that on the whole has long stopped being my thing. OK. Now I'll go into why Reece's and Kotb's tomes have seized my heart. .The front and back covers of both books are damned enticing. Both the front and the back covers of Reece's tome picture her with her intensely attractive offspring, both times sporting an insanely appealing bathing suit and both times showing off an insanely appealing pair of bare feet (The back cover of Reece's book clearly shows that she has an equally alluring stepdaughter). The front cover of Kotb's tome displays her dressed in a quite stylish blue pullover blouse and adorned in the kind of slacks that fully exhibit what her Today cohort Kathie Lee called her "long Egyptian legs and toes." (The fact that Kotb is wearing red toenail polish slightly takes away from her dazzling visual appeal, but only slightly) And on both the front and back covers there are the sort of endorsements that easily pull you in. On the back cover of Reece's tome the former television Friend Courteney Cox is quoted as asserting: "I read My Foot Is Too Big For The Glass Slipper in one sitting...Everyone who is married--or thinking about getting married--should read this." On the front cover of Kotb's book there are words from People Magazine ("Bubbly and engaging, just like its author") and from the greatly-lauded novelist Adriana Trigiani ("This book is a manual for overcoming obstacles and living life with passion and purpose...Hoda is the working girl's Cleopatra. She rules!"). .The prose of both tomes is colorful and lively. Both Reece's and Kotb's books feature the kind of writing that, upon seeing it, immediately rivet your eyes to the page. Upon seeing any page, its wording has you absolutely hooked, positively pleased to be in the company of such charming, sprightly gals, gals who obviously love life and do not hesitate to embrace it entirely. And, again, that feeling comes no matter what page of theirs you're on (Kathie Lee in her super-bestselling compilation of essays Just When I Thought I'd Dropped My Last Egg at one point said: "I love my new co-host Hoda Kotb. She is an absolute doll and so much fun to work with." The writing style of Hoda causes you to fervently agree with KLG's every syllable). .Both women in their tomes have greatly witty and greatly incisive things to say. In both Glass Slipper and Hoda there's sparkling humor and eye-opening observations, whether Reece in her book is discoursing on how cathartic it can be for a parent to swear ("[A] little bit of cussing does wonders. The later in the day it is, or the earlier in the morning, the more important this is for your sanity, and to help you feel less like an underpaid servant and more like the sassy teenager that is still lurking somewhere inside your bill-paying, car seat-purchasing, sleep-deprived self") or her regular almost-all-women's exercise class ("Sometimes someone comes up to me after class and wants to pay me, or otherwise do something lavish to show her gratitude. I tell her, she's already doing it, by inspiring me with her commitment...When my women show up, day in, day out, with their great attitudes and their great energy, they don't realize that that's their gift to me") or her parenting style ("[Excessively spending time with electronic pleasures] messes with your head, and I don't want it for my kids...So I say no. A lot. And tell me I don't feel like a shit mom when little Brody, who's been cooperative all day, has a meltdown in the afternoon and sobs miserably, 'I. Just. Want. My. Electronics'") or whether it's Kotb in her tome telling of her lifelong struggle to establish her own identity (I will always be asked [as this one "older black woman" did while Kotb was in a phone booth making a call during her early days as a television journalist, taking Kotb's face in both hands and looking into her eyes] 'What is you?' And while I'll proudly explain I'm Egyptian...again, the answer in my head will always be: I'm just me") or acknowledging her refreshingly non-high-minded, purely self-serving motivation for going into and staying in TV news ("Procrastinating to me is simply a way to create a time crunch...After I phone in a takeout food order, I'll stay at work as long as possible, then race home to my apartment to meet up with the delivery guy...[T]elevision news is the perfect career for me. I need to know that my work day has a start and a fight to the finish. I'm competitive, persistent, and not afraid to risk being the hero or the goat when airtime hits") or the near-overwhelming thrill she felt when the Today show's Fourth Hour hosted the always-and-forever-bootylicious Queen Bey ("When Beyonce walked into the room, [Kathie Lee and I] were blown away by her beauty and her presence. She's about 5 feet 7, but her red heels added several inches. She wore a gorgeous short dress, designed in her favorite color, red. She was a knockout. Her frame is sexy and solid and she carries herself with confidence around every curve...Her words were laced with a touch of Texas twang (Beyonce was born and raised in Houston). As her people began touching up her hair and makeup, all I could think was, There's absolutely nothing wrong with her! Bring that stuff over here!"). After reading these books, you effortlessly feel invigorated because you spent quality time with two insightful, funny, considerably observant ladies who have, to quote a line from the classic 1960s song, "looked at life from both sides now" and are bright enough and centered enough to retain the lessons such observing has taught them. Also: Both Reece and Kotb conclude their tomes in grand style. The former closes by assuring her readers that should they choose to assume the role of "queens" of their household, "[y]ou will live interestingly ever after." And she ends her "Acknowledgements" section by lauding her hubby, the professional surfer Laird Hamilton: "I cherish the gift of knowing you, your love, and your partnership. Oh, and when our girls [their daughters] are difficult, I do blame you for those traits." The latter, for her part, ends her book with a forward that itself finishes with her naming her "special wooden box" inside of which is the "letter that lists the three most important traits in my man" and assures us readers that "there's a chance it will end up accidentally buried by books, an over-sized tote bag, a plaque, or other random crap." Kotb's own "Acknowledgements" portion winds up with a fond shout-out to her "co-author," Jane Lorenzini, "the most brilliant writer I have ever known...Your dad was right. It has been an adventure...Your name should be bigger on the [front] cover. Oh, well...next book." During the 1980s, it was Barbra Streisand who famously crooned, concerning creativity: "The art of making art is putting it together, bit by bit, Beat by beat, part by part, Sheet by sheet, chart by chart, Track by track, bit by bit, Reel by reel, pout by pout, Stack by stack, snit by snit, Meal by meal, shout by shout, Deal by deal, spat by spat, Spiel by spiel, doubt by doubt. And that is the state of the art." To read the books of Gabrielle Reece and Hoda Kotb is to bring about enormous gratitude that said authors--and their ghostwriters--took the time and the trouble to put them together, employing every "bit," "beat," "part," "sheet," "chart," "track," "bit," "reel," "pout," "stack," "snit," "meal," "shout," "deal," "spat," "spiel," and "doubt" so that "the state of their art" would make them such eminently satisfying reading experiences.

#Gabrielle Reece #my foot is too big for the glass slipper #hoda kotb #Hoda: How I Survived War Zones #Rene syler #good-enough mother #kristi witker #How to Lose Everything In Politics (Except Massachusetts)#dick cavett #jerry rubin #the 1980s #Barbra Striesand

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