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theolympusfiles · 4 years ago

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rereading the PJO and HoO - part one: the lightning thief

before i start, all italicized parts are from the lightning thief by rick riordan. they're not my words and these are not my characters. my thoughts are the only thing that are mine :)

• "mom, you're coming too." her face was pale, her eyes as sad as when she looked at the ocean. "no!" i shouted, you are coming with me. help me carry grover". - the first(ish) appearance of percy's fatal flaw! i love the early establisment, especially because it helps foreshadow to the sea of monsters when fatal flaws are formally introduced.

• "that's -" "pasiphae's son," my mother said. "i wish i'd known how badly they wanted to kill you." - sally is underappreciated. she's smart as hell and clearly took the time to research demigods. yes, she was a little bit selfish with keeping percy out of the loop and not sending him to camp. but can you blame her? she lost all of her family and if she sent percy to CHB at an early age, that most nearly means she won't see him often (he'll attract monsters because he's aware of his status as a demigod and will most likely be at camp full-time). but sally ensured that she knew enough about the demigod world to protect percy because she knew that her selfishness would come with consequences. best mom.

• i was crying, calling for my mother, but i held on to grover - i wasn't going to let him go. - percy's first loss as a demigod and i am broken. honestly, so sad to think of, especially knowing all the losses he'll face in the future books. this line is also his fatal flaw showing once again (refer to first bulletpoint)

• "it (america) is the great power of the west. and so olympus is here. and we are here." - if olympus follows the west, where would the next location be? obviously, america is still a big powerhouse in terms of western civilization but that's not going to last. my bet is south korea but who knows? would love a fanfic on this tbh

• "the truth is, i can't be dead. you see, eons ago the gods granted my wish. i could continue the work i loved. i could be a teacher of heroes as long as humanity needed me. i gained so much from that wish... and i gave up so much. but i'm still here, so i can only assume i'm still needed." - how will it be decided that he's not needed? honestly, can't imagine CHB without him but chiron also deserves retirement

• i started to understand luke's bitterness and how he seemed to resent his father, hermes so okay, maybe gods had important things to do. but couldn't they call once in a while, or thunder or something? - percy has always showed some hesitance when accepting the demigod world, so i wasn't really surprised to see doubts like this pop up, especially with luke's influence. i'd think most demigods feel this way, luke and percy are just the ones who exhibit it the most in the series. i'm really interested in the parallels between the two and i'm looking forward to reading more and examining them

• "during the winter solstice, at the last council of the gods, zeus and poseidon had an argument. the usual nonsense: 'mother rhea always liked you best', 'air disasters are more spectacular than sea disasters', etc. - despite the fact that the gods are all-powerful beings, i appreciate the petty sibling spats that are mentioned briefly

• "so let me get this straight," i said. "i'm supposed to go to the underworld and confront the world of the dead." "check," chiron said. "find the most powerful weapon in the universe." "check." "and get it back to olympus before the summer solstice in ten days." "that's about right." i looked at grover, who gulped down the ace of heaers. "did i mention that maine is very nice this time of year?" he asked weakly. - this would be perfect for those 30 second trailers

• "gee," i said feigning surprise. "who else would be stupid enough to volunteer for a q uest like this?" the air shimmered behind chiron. annabeth became visible, stuffing her yankees cap into her back pocket. - the way he knows her pretty well already, i-

• the truth was, i didn't care about retrieving zeus' lightning bolt, or saving the world, or even helping my father out of trouble. - early on, we see from the get go that percy has a dislike for the gods. it's small mentions like this that really gets me thinking. he never really showed any dislike of the gods when he first arrived at camp (understandable) but he was hopeful for his father. it wasn't until luke planted the seed into his head that these thoughts came to light. i love this little detail, especially as we know that towards the end, luke does seem to think he can turn percy against the gods. his plan backfired a little bit on him in the end but like i said before, the parallels between luke and percy are so glaring. riordan definitely thought it out extensively

• do not be a pawn of the olympians, my dear. you would be better off as a statue - this is said to percy by medusa and again, feeds into his dislike of the gods. i wonder if monsters have some opinion on this. most would probably hate the gods but i wonder what their stance is on demigods. we know that they work with them (see kronos' army). the real enemy for monsters are the gods, the demigods killing them are just pawns to the gods so maybe that's how some monsters see them

• "so, what's your status?" luke asked me. "chiron will be sorry he missed you." i told him pretty much everything, including my dreams. it felt so good to see him, to feel like i was back at camp even for a few minutes, that i didn't even realize how long i had talked to him until the beeper went off on the spray machine. - there's no doubt that percy really considered luke a friend. he wasn't hesitant to tell luke about his dreams, something that he didn't share with annabeth or grover until later on the book. luke was a sort of mentor to percy and it was conveyed pretty well through their interactions, which makes his betrayal even more heartbreaking

• "you think you'll ever try living with your dad again?" she wouldn't meet my eyes. "please. i'm not into self-inflicted pain." - my heart breaks for annabeth and her relationship with her father. i've read most of the riordanverse books and the growth in annabeth's relationship with her family is definitely something i'm looking forward to watch grow as i make my way through the books again

• i looked over at the desk and saw a girl sitting there, also wearing a straitjacket - so i never paid the dreams any mind but now that i think about it, they're really good for analysis. for example, the straitjacket could mean something like the gods are keeping them restrained. maybe i'm overthinking it or have been analyzing text too much in AP english but i think that the dreams are worth some deeper thinking

• i pretended not to see annabeth wipe a tear from her cheek as she listened to the mournful keening of cerberus in the distance, longing for his new friend - i need to see annabeth play with cerberus again D:

• i turned and faced my mother. i desperately wanted to sacrifice myself and the last pearl on her, but i knew what she would say. she would never allow it. i had to get the bolt back to olympus and tell zeus the truth. i had to stop the war. - percy's growth as a character really shines through here. the lightning thief is a pretty short book and the journey they took was less than 2 weeks but despite that percy's grown immensely as a character. his goal was always to save his mother but in the end, he sacrificed her because he knew it was his duty to save olympus and i respect that

• "you have made an enemy, godling," he told me. "you have sealed your fate. every time you raise your blade in battle, everytime you hope for success, you will feel my curse. beware, perseus jackson. beware." - ares cursed percy to be unsuccesful in battle but does his curse ever take effect? i don't recall any mention of this curse later on the series. obviously, percy is the main character and a really good swordfighter but the curse might have affected some battles right? but then again riordan has a lot of plotholes so i wouldn't put too much thought in it

• i knew dionysus must've filled it out, because he stubbornly insisted on getting my name wrong. - i've always accepted the fact that dionysus called the demigods by their wrong name for humor. but what if it's deeper? what if it's a way to put some space between him and the demigods, just as an extra precaution so he won't get attached. or it could be a ploy to showcase that he's more powerful than them and that they are beneath him, which is why he doesn't need to know their name. i like the former headcanon more though :P

• i opened my eyes. i was propped up in bed in the sickroom of the big house, my right hand bandaged like a club. argus stood guard in the corner. annabeth sat next to me, holding my nectar glass and dabbing a washcloth on my forehead. "here we are again," i said. - the parallel

well, that's everything i had notes on. overall, i liked rereading it. i really do miss this series and i'm finding my love for it be rekindled by rereading. i miss the humor of the early books (i could literally make a whole post of underrated lines). the last time i read the series in its whole was when i was 7 and now that i'm 16, i have more thoughts and can analyze the story better. also loved seeing baby percabeth as they're my OTP. i'm excited to continue with the series. to the sea of monsters!

#Percy Jackson and the Olympians #PJO #Pjato/hoo #reading #rereading #books #Greek Mythology #percy jackson #annabeth chase #luke castellan #Grover underwood #analysis #the lightning thief #pjo series

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cupcakemolotov · 4 years ago

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Fall With You

I ended up pinch hitting for the exchange! It was fun, if slightly wild 48 hours to put this together. Written for the lovely @queencarolinemikaelson. I’m really glad you enjoyed it since it ended up being a fluff fest of roommate co-hab. Also a big thank you to @bellemorte180 for putting this graphic together!

I put the first but under a cut, bit under a cut, but the full story is almost 9K, so the link to the story is at the bottom. :)

Summary: When life throws her a curve ball in the form of her good looking, yet moody roommate, Caroline takes it in stride as best she can. Her living situation was a favor, after all, and rent is anything but cheap in NYC. Its the part where she actually starts to like him that she can't quiet figure out how to manage. Lust was one thing, but feelings?

Warnings: Alternate Universe; Alternate; Universe - Human; Alternate Universe - Roommates/Housemates; Minor Character Death; not otp; Family Drama; Family Dynamics; Fluff and Humor; Domestic Fluff; Tooth-Rotting Fluff; Mild Smut; Human Caroline Forbes; Human Klaus Mikaelson; Living Room Picnics; Wine; Dates That Aren't Dates; They Could Really Get Their Shit Together Faster; but not really; Making Out; Some petting; NSFW just to be safe

It was almost three am, her feet were killing her, and her key was stuck in her front door.

Seriously, what was with her luck today? The door had always been finicky, but until earlier this week the lock had been behaving itself. It’d gone from not wanting to turn properly to straight up mutiny in four days. It was an easy fix, unlike the door, but it also required a trip to the store and she just hadn’t had time. Amazon could have delivered the powdered graphite, but she was on a budget and believed in shopping local.

Her two year savings plan to finish her degree would not manifest itself if she bought things simply because they were convenient.

Squeezing her eyes shut, Caroline seriously considered just leaning up against the door jam and spending the night outside. It was early summer, and the air had cooled to a balmy sixty-five degrees, leaving the usually stifling hallway almost comfortable. If only she didn’t smell so heavily of beer. Shifting her weight, she winced as her shoes squelched, a reminder of the truly spectacular ending to her night. Her eight hour shift had almost doubled when the night shift manager had called in sick. Usually that wouldn’t have been a problem, but the only other person with keys was out of town leaving Caroline holding the bag to close.

She knew from experience that she had about an hour before she crashed, the rush from kicking out the lingering guests who had been clearly on an epic brawl crawl having mostly faded after the hour long subway ride home. Right then, the only thing keeping her upright was the fact that she was starving, her dinner had been rushed and only half eaten, and the knowledge that if she made it into her apartment she had the next two days off. Tomorrow she could sleep in, and if she was really lucky, her roommate’s night had gone well enough he could be coaxed into making pancakes.

Cheered by the thought, Caroline dug out her cell phone from the backpack she’d slung over her shoulder and checked it for a response. She hadn’t been sure if Klaus had beaten her home or if he was still out celebrating, but either way, he hadn’t bothered to respond yet. Her lips compressed into a thin line.

Usually, she could depend on Klaus to be awake when she finished a night shift, her roommates' hours were only reliable on how sporadic they were and depending on her schedule, hers weren’t much better. But with his big event tonight, she had no idea what he had decided to do. Honestly, would it kill the man to respond to her texts?

She’d expected him to ignore her rapidly typed apology and well wishes she’d sent in-between bites of food. Klaus wasn’t particularly good at handling sentiment of any kind and supremely anti-emoji, and she’d made a point to send several of them. She’d hoped it’d give him something to be annoyed about that wasn’t his evening plans. He needed to schmooze, and a scowl-y Klaus would not accomplish that at all.

He could be charming, when he wanted to be. She’d seen it. He just didn’t deploy full dimples unless he wanted something. Her reminders the night before that he needed to earn his half of the rent without getting carpal tunnel hadn't impressed him.

Too bad. She’d been right, and he’d known it.

He had mentioned a couple of his friends were trying to talk him into drinks afterwards, back when she had thought she might be able to join him. Usually, she would be thrilled that he was getting out and actually seeing people instead of trying to live off granola bars and tea. But right then she really wanted him to be home and grumpy so he could unlock the door. She wondered if texting Marcel with an S.O.S would be rude?

Things were a lot less complicated when she only liked Klaus for the rent he helped cover. Wanting him home, even just for a lock-related emergency wasn’t a thought she would have had even six months ago. Klaus was not what one would label as a comfortable roommate for most of the time. He was far too prickly for that, and he could be snarly in the mornings. Which fair, so could she, but the moodiness. Caroline hadn’t been one to spend much time around the art scene, either at Uni or in high school, but she’d spent the last year learning that there was a lot to be said about artistic temperaments, most of it unflattering.

She was fairly certain Klaus had been born a contrary grump, his winning personality had nothing to do with his chosen profession, she could certainly see how he’d been drawn to the lifestyle, talent aside. Most people immediately laughed off his acerbic tongue once they learned he was an artist, his behavior brushed aside as temperamental. His goods certainly helped his cause, and his accent added a layer of charm that otherwise might not have existed.

She was not so forgiving.

The first few months of their co-hab had not been easy. Klaus was messy, absent minded, and had ruined three of her towels with paint splatter before she’d blown her lid. The apartment was small enough that avoiding each other was nearly impossible, and her preferred kind of stress relief had to be timed for when she was alone, and so they’d been forced to deal with their annoyances. To Klaus’ credit, while he’d been snappish in return, he’d somehow managed to keep a lid on the worst of his temper.

They’d argued, multiple times, they were both stubborn and used to being right, but they’d eventually found some kind of middle ground. Snapping had softened into bickering, and Caroline had stopped nitpicking him about his notebooks being spread across the house and the incorrect way he rolled his toothpaste, and he stopped leaving towels on the floor and made a point to contain his absentminded mess to his room.

And then they started to talk, sometimes about work, sometimes about art, and she’d realized she kind of liked him as a person. She’d started dragging him to her group lunches on her days off, much to Rebekah’s despair, and they might have become something like friends. Except for the part where every so often, she’d look at him and something about the way he stood, the angle of his jaw or the line of his throat left her wanting to jump his bones.

It was really frustrating, when her existence didn’t even seem to phase him.

So she’d done her best to ignore whatever that little spark was between them when it flared up, and not upset the status quo. Because the past year had been better than she could have imagined. Before her mom had died, she would never have considered the life she found herself living now as a good one.

She’d just wrapped her third year at NYU, had exactly 24 hours of classes left before graduation, and had managed to wrangle her schedule so that her final semester would be a cake walk of classes. The cherry on top had been the kick ass internship she’d lined up for the summer. Her five year plan was perfectly on track, her excellent grades gave her a shot at graduating with honors, and she couldn’t wait to show her mom around New York City from the eyes of a local. She’d spent three years putting together a binder, collecting menus from her favorite places to eat and brochures from all the museums and the jam packed tourists locations to offer her mom some variety.

Then she’d gotten that phone call that had thrown everything into a tale spin.

Blowing out a breath, Caroline bounced on her toes and debated best her course of action. She could probably get her key out of the lock if she was very careful, though the past twenty minutes said her luck wasn’t great, Forbes women were nothing if not stubborn, but there was also a chance she would break the key off in the lock and she could already see the little smirk on Klaus’ face if she did. Her hand tightened on the strap of her backpack. He still hadn’t forgiven her for being far more comfortable with power tools than he was and her perfectly reasonable gloating probably hadn’t helped much, if she was honest.

She kind of didn’t regret it. Poking Klaus sizable ego was a favorite past time of hers, and he seemed to enjoy their back and forth as much as she did. Her mental tally had her up two points this month, and she wanted to keep her lead.

Unfortunately, things weren’t really going in her favor just then. Sighing, Caroline tucked her phone back into her bag and admitted defeat. She’d have to figure this one out herself. Either Klaus’ event had run long and he had actually taken her advice to schmooze people or he was home and had drunk enough that he was sleeping like the dead.

Either of those options would not help her now.

Her best bet now was to go and eat a giant piece of pie, drink her weight in caffeine, and trudge her way to the little mom and pop shop that sold a little of everything, including graphite, once it became a reasonable hour. She’d fix her lock and then crash for the following eight hours of hopefully uninterrupted sleep, and leave a very pointed sticky note on the coffee pot so Klaus knew not to disturb her.

Satisfied with the makings of her plan, she shifted her backpack to her other shoulder, mentally reviewing the pie menu, and paused when the elevator dinged from behind her. Sliding her teeth between her lip, Caroline turned and blew out a breath when she recognized the tumble of ruffled curls stepping into the hall. The hallway was dimly lit, so it took a moment for her brain to really understand what else she was seeing.

Klaus was wearing a tux.

Logically, she’d known he was going to be wearing one. His event that night had been important, his work had finally made it into a gallery tonight and it was a Big Deal. His first real show outside of the fancy art school he had attended, and he had spent months fretting over his work and brooding silently in his room as nothing met his incredibly exacting standards. Klaus had even brought home a couple of canvas to work in the questionable light of his bedroom instead of the small studio space he and five other artists pooled their money to share.

Much to her annoyance.

No amount of febreeze really removed the scent of acrylics and turpentine, and she’d been worried if she tried to burn her stash of scented candles something would catch on fire. She’d held her tongue though, because Klaus was never nervous. He was in fact annoyingly difficult to rattle even in the most ridiculous of situations, the man had absolutely no shame, and the way he’d almost jittered had been weird and kind of enduring. Since he’d seen her in numerous states of frantic and alarmed, it was nice for things to end up on a little more even ground for once. She’d done her best to force him to eat something that looked like actual food every so often, and tried to stay quiet when she knew he was working in his bedroom.

She’d even helped him pick out the tuxedo from the catalogue he’d brought home from the store he had planned to rent from. There was a fancy evening gown that she’d rented hanging in her closet that Caroline had planned to wear to go with him before work had made that impossible. But knowing all that, and actually seeing him in that tux were not nearly the same thing.

Caroline blinked rapidly. Her paint speckled roommate, with his surly attitude and annoying dimples, was wearing a tux. And he looked really, really good. He’d undone his tie so it hung loosely around his neck, and his jacket was loose and unbuttoned around his waist, his curls still somewhat tamed along his forehead. Something very much like arousal jolted through her as he looked up, the low light highlighting the scruff along his jaw and the length of his neck. For a moment, he just stared at her, as surprised as she and then his head tipped and his brow arched, lips tugging up at the corners.

“Waiting on me?”

The rest can be found here: A03

#my fic #klaroline #klaroline fanfiction #exchange fic

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northernscruffycat · 3 years ago

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Tagged by @101flavoursofweird

I’ll tag @pandirpus @krokonoko @my-artblog-is-ssjumi @yallemagne @amberrgalaxy @swamp-y and anyone else who wants to do this. But this is a pretty long one, so don’t feel like you have to :3 (On that note, I’ll be putting most of this under a cut for exactly that reason)

How many works do you have on AO3?

131 at the moment. But some of those are different oneshots from FFN that I posted into one fic when porting over to AO3, so I’d be fascinated by what the actual amount of fanfics I’ve written is.

What’s your total AO3 word count?

1242922 words

How many fandoms have you written for and what are they?

Just counting what’s on AO3, so far I’ve written for 17 fandoms. They are: Free!, Professor Layton, Hades Game, Steven Universe, Pokemon, Ace Attorney, Yu-Gi-Oh DM, Yu-Gi-Oh GX, Yu-Gi-Oh 5d’s, Sonic the Hedgehog, Super Mario, Dr. Stone, Tintin, Night in the Woods, GetBackers, Good Omens and Cooking Mama What are your top 5 fics by kudos?

‘just wanted to write a fic where senku says ‘get excited’ during sex’ (My SenGen oneshot that gets a wave of attention whenever a new chapter or episode of Dr. Stone comes out)

‘laughable’ (An Ares/Hypnos oneshot I wrote purely as a sample for a zine app and underestimated how popular that ship is lol)

‘the prince with specific tastes; the king with specific regrets’ (THAT Theseus fic. My absolute fave thing I’ve ever written)

‘Shallow Grave, Shallow Bae’ (A Reigisa fic based on Octopimp’s 50% Off! abridged series of Free!; I honestly do think this fic slaps and I’m glad folks like it)

‘Barrel of Monkeys’ (The AsaIku & KisuHiyo collab fic I wrote with Amber that was a lotta fun and I’d love to do something like this with them again one day for a different fandom. Also, I feel like we captained the small KisuHiyo fandom with this fic back in the day)

Do you respond to comments, why or why not?

I generally respond to comments. Almost always, unless I really can’t think of anything to say in reply, which is pretty rare. Comments make me so happy and I just want to let people who do comment know that I appreciate them.

What’s the fic you’ve written with the angstiest ending?

I think the angstiest fic I wrote was a Free! fic called ‘Moves Across the Land’ - the premise of which is that Makoto died as a young adult of an illness and each chapter is a different person in his life receiving a letter that he wrote for them before he died. But that one had an optimistic ending, with Haru and Kisumi unexpectedly finding a newly strengthened friendship in sharing the grief of Makoto’s death. So I guess technically the angstiest ending I wrote was a short Archie/Maxie oneshot where Maxie gets killed by Kyogre lol

Have you ever received hate on a fic?

Yes, but I ended up agreeing with it! Waaay back (probably more that 10 years ago at this point), I wrote a bunch of Layton/Rosetta oneshots that I now don’t stand by. One of them, in my naivety, I went too far with and breached uncomfortable territory. I got a couple of comments about how uncomfortable it was, so I ended up deleting that particular fic and felt better after it was gone.

Do you write smut? If so what kind?

I am a fledgling at writing smut, which is probably obvious to anyone who’s read my smut haha. When I do write it, I prefer to focus on the dialogue between the characters - I like a banterous smut scene. Also, they’re usually pretty tame. I like writing about handjobs, blowjobs and wanking the most when I do write smut.

Have you ever had a fic stolen?

Not that I know of.

Have you ever had a fic translated?

Again, not that I know of, but that would be awesome! A few years ago, a kind person messaged me about potentially translating my Layton fic ‘Grasping Liquid’ into French, but I don’t think they went through with it in the end. Though honestly, the dialogue and slang in that fic is pretty much illegible in English, so I reckon it’d be a tough fic to translate.

Have you ever co-written a fic before?

Yes, the aforementioned ‘Barrel of Monkeys’ that I co-wrote with @amberrgalaxy It was a lot of fun and I love it :D

What’s your all time favorite ship?

Hmm... I don’t think I have a single all time favourite. I jump through a lot of OTPs and they always mean a lot to me, but it wouldn’t seem fair to pick out a single one that’s always shined brighter than the others, because that’s not really how my hyperfixations work. But my current favourite ships are Momus/Heracles (to be narcissistic) and TheseZag from Hades Game. While my oldest ship that I’m still invested in is Yami/Seto from Yu-Gi-Oh DM.

What’s a WIP that you want to finish but don’t think you ever will?

Shockingly, I don’t have any right now. A few years ago (I think 2018?), I made a point of going back and finishing ALL my old WIPs that I’d left hanging but intended to finish, even for fandoms I didn’t plan on going back to. So that freed my conscience of them and felt pretty good. At the moment, my only WIP is ‘if found please return to the underworld’ - an AU where Zagreus does make it to Olympus, so Hades sends Theseus, Asterius and Meg to try to get him back. But I’ve only just started writing that one, so I do hope to stick with it until it’s finished.

What are your writing strengths?

Dialogue. Definitely dialogue. I’m told that I capture the canon voices of characters pretty well and that’s always what I’m trying the hardest to get right, so it means a lot to me. I also feel like I’m good at keeping a fic flowing, without being bogged down by too much detail. But the downside of that is that I often sacrifice description, so I still hope to find the balance. Since Hades Game has more flowery prose than I’m used to, I think getting into that series actually helped me with this.

What are your thoughts on writing dialogue in other languages in a fic?

I do not think I am experienced enough to be able to pull this off well and would worry too much about making mistakes.

What was the first fandom you ever wrote for?

It was Pokemon, but those fics aren’t online anymore. The oldest fics you can still find buried somewhere with my name attached to them are Sonic fics.

What’s your favorite fic you’ve ever written?

‘the prince with specific tastes; the king with specific regrets’ - Sometimes I look back at that fic and wonder if I actually wrote it, since I avoided falling into all of my usual traps: I researched it properly and frequently, I kept the focus on the five main characters instead of getting distracted by introducing a million other character like I usually do, I plotted the fucker out from start to finish instead of winging it, and I worked the flashbacks into it in a way that balanced the present-day out instead of distracting from it. Also, I got the whole thing written in about two months, instead of staling for years. ...Whatever possessed me when I wrote that fic, please come back. (It was the first time I’d had two weeks off together in about three years, so I think that had a lot to do with it) OH YEAH and that same kinda villain OC who I recycle in every fandom I’m in actually landed this time. It brought me so much joy to see how much people loved to hate Momus. Those two months when I was posting that fic are easily a highlight of my life. :D

#*Talking #*About Me #*Writing #*Hades Game #*Dr. Stone #*Free Iwatobi Swim Club #*Professor Layton

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getreadytosmash · 4 years ago

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][All questions for otp meme for Samuel + Rhys][

@blind-mutant

Coffee shop AU: Who is the barista, and who frequents the coffee shop?

Rhys is a barista trying to pay bills and a rundown coffee shop and it SUCKS until Samuel walks in and asks for enough coffee to kill every loving human on earth. Well. Ok. It definitely weirds Rhys out with how Samuel goes into lengthy speeches about his inventions or incredibly depressing talk about hell.

But god he's cute and Rhys loves how Samuel purrs when he gets coffee and the amount of cash Rhys gets when he leaves. It gets better when Samuel mostly comes at night and stutters and walks into a wall thr first time Rhys flirts with him.

Highschool/College AU: Who is the straight-A student, and who’s the backrow slacker?

Samuel is that prick who always reminds the teacher of due homework. Yeah sure, that history paper was only three pages but who cares if he did ten? He wants to do well so that Phil isn't the one who his father is most proud of in the family. He wants to be noticed, needs to be noticed for what he could be one day.

Rhys hates him. God, is there nothing worse than a know it all? The only thing that makes it worse is the fact that Samuel is a cute nerd that makes Rhys wanna bully or kiss him. They get assigned a project together and its hell until Samuel starts to realise why Rhys hates school, the pressure of being a mutant and being seen as stupid. Similarly Rhys sees the pressure Samuel puts himself under to be good enough and well...at least there's a chance of finally being able to shit the nerd up in a kiss.

Rivals to loves AU: Who takes their rivalry seriously, and who is half in it just to push the other’s buttons?

Rhys thinks that the Leader is just an undersized loser who tries too hard. Yes he's brilliant but he ain't tough shit, Rhys has seen Leader without his heeled shoes before. Of course, Rhys knows that he isn't that impressive either, but it's still funny to tease Leader and to hear the other man squawk in offence.

Leader....oh boy he is determined to show Rhys that he is the true superior mastermind, not Magneto or Mystique. Rhys is a fool who should recognise the fact that Samuel is a very impressive villain and therefore should stop teasing and flirting with him! They're enemies! Can Rhys stop smiling so sweetly and making innuendos of everything??? God, he makes Samuel want to press the absolute dolt to a wall and make him see that Leader clearly someone to not mess around and flirt carelessly with.

Enemies to lovers AU: Which one switches sides?

Hitting it a bit different here!! Rhys is a master thief, someone trained to use his shadows and cute face to get anything he wants. Samuel is a hard cracking detective who is determined to work long nights and to finally figure out who this apprentice thief is. Little does he know that said thief often likes to come and visit the agency, doing some filework and essentially being the reason that Samuel still lives thanks to coffee and the occasional healthy meal.

Of course, Rhys knows that Samuel is both highly intelligent and....a dumbass. Which shouldn't be as cute or appealing as it is, but Rhys finds himself...actually wanting to be helpful when Samuel has a migraine or blushing when Samuel says that he's going to marry Rhys for bringing him coffee. And maybe Rhys sends Samuel a mysterious bouquet that's from the "Midnight Stealer" and perhaps he lives to hear the flustered shriek when Samuel finds them.

Soulmate AU: Who is eager to meet their soulmate? Who absolutely does not want to meet their soulmate?

It sounds a bit silly to say that Rhys held out onto the idea of a soulmate, more so when Blue died and she hadn't been his soulmate. Fuck fate and all that, but it's still something that runs on his brain when he's alone. Honestly, I think it would be really neat if it was one of those soulmate aus where you can feel your soulmate die and Rhys is the lucky ass who gets a soulmate that dies multiple times.

Anyway, Samuel sees the flaws in soulmates. He's been to hell and back and he rules it with a green fists. Soulmates are for the living and he lost that a long time ago. It doesn't stop fate from giving him Rhys though and Samuel now spends most of his time panicked and staying away from the other man, less Rhys somehow picks up that they're meant to be together as nature has decreed. He does a pretty good job of it until Rhys, stubborn beloved brat, decides that enough is enough and he will confront Samuel on why he always seems to avoid him.

Samuel wishes deprately he wasn't attracted to such stubbornness.

Single parent AU: Which one is the single parent? (Alt. if they’re both single parents: Which one is open to starting a new relationship from the start? Which one is never planning on finding love again… Until they meet the other and are instantly smitten?)

Rhys really isn't...prepared for the little mute girl to start following him about but. Ok. In his defense he does try to loose her but then the worry of a lost child sets in, especially when said little girl opens her mouth and a small noise of surprise is enough to almost make the windows shatter. Rhys is an early father at the age of meeting his new daughter for five seconds.

Of course, Samuel comes running, out pf breath and now seriously considering doing some of those exercises Red keeps telling him about. He isn't even suspicious of Rhys at first because...well, the man looks like a human Daisy and he can smell the intentions off him. Rhys gasps in offense and Coral is just having a wonderful time right now until she gets grounded for wondering off from her uncle.

Samuel is rather smitten by the man who handled a mute 8 year old rather well and...coffee is always a good way to repay people. Rhys is more than happy to get to know the cute man who is still slightly wheezing, especially when he learn that this isn't the first time his niece Coral has wondered away from him. Samuel is cute and more than willing to do anything reasonable to repay Rhys for looking after someone so precious to him and of course Rhys wants dinner with Samuel because he isn't a clown much and knows not to resist a cute guy who wears leather pants in his free time?

Doctor AU: Which one is the longsuffering doctor? Which one is the patient?

People in the institute aren't well. Rhys knows that so far it has been the doctors, ever since the new guy has shown up, deadly quiet but malice practically written into the air. People get sick and they die and only a few patients have suffered this fate but almost every doctor has gotten ill. He keeps hearing about how they need to use stronger collars or medicines to keep Sterns calm but nothing seems to work. The only time he sees Sterns is when they roll past a body bag that has the man's shape and even then it couldnt have been him, Sterns was walked past Rhys's cell later that night!

They eventually get out. Rhys's own doctor can't lay a single finger on him before he starts vomiting and dies after Rhys kills him for all the previous pain he was forced to be induced to. Everyone is free and Blue dies but then Sterns is there, keeping the collar and bracelets and anklets on for whatever reason and he's telling Rhys he can bring her back. He isn't sure if he believes Samuel but then when the other man starts muttering about how he's going to have to travel and blow himself up again, Rhys needs to come with him.

He isn't quite sure what Samuel is yet. But he definitely isn't human and he isn't good for anyone involved. Which is why Rhys deems him the best choice to tag along with. Samuel seems to know what he's doing and when Rhys let's loose the raccoon eyes...well, he kinda likes the way Samuel suddenly stutters and looks away while letting Rhys do what he wants. He's already been charmed for weeks now.

Bodyguard AU: Who is the bodyguard? Who are they protecting? Which one is secretly pining for the other?

Samuel disagrees with the idea that he needs a bodyguard. His body gives off enough radiation and be can come back from the dead! But apparently that isn't good enough for being left alone in an entire X-men college isn't acceptable. Cue Rhys being left with Samuel since he's nocturnal and now he's faced with someone he might not see or hear for three hours and then find out that Samuel was fast asleep in the lab where he's helping develop Krakoa flowers.

Samuel on the other hand? Holy shit. Cute man they told was to protect him or to make sure that he doesn't do anything shady. He doesn't seem to get weirded out when Samuel purrs or falls asleep midway through work, only concerned. That's why it comes to his attention that obviously Rhys perhaps needs to be charmed or convinced that Samuel, everthe brilliant light he is, should try and get Rhys to come to Vista Verde with him, where the beautiful man would be muh more appeared there!

Pirate AU: Who is the pirate? Who is the member of the royal family who did not sign up for this?

The plan that ends with prince Rhys being kidnapped is brilliant and some of Samuel's best work alongside Red. The only thing he didn't account for was how thrilled Rhys actually is once the other man realises that he was on a pirate ship. Freedom! Adventure! Pretty men in beautiful pirate clothes! Its every horny prince's dream and Rhys makes quick work of letting Samuel know that.

God help Samuel when Rhys gets something more befitting of a pirate when they all realise that his family aren't going to pay the fees. He looks so cute AND hot in tight pants and bellowy shirts and know Samuel is going to wheeze over the ship, but not long before Rhys starts wanting sword fighting lessons from Samuel....personal close lessons.

Childhood best friends AU: Which one was super obviously in love with the other the whole time? Who was oblivious until they were older?

Rhys was very adoring of Samuel as a kid. He didn't seem to care about what Rhys is and he was just thrilled that he had someone close to his own age that he could sit down with and share animal facts. They were close friends for years before Samuel's mother went "missing" and he moved back to Hawaii for his father's work.

And it isn't years later that Rhys tuns into a short green man who is seemingly delighted to see him for whatever reason. Samuel on the other hand can't stop purring as he rambles because Rhys is beautiful and he smells wonderful and Samuel only snort-purrs harder when it finally clicks and his face lights up at his only childhood friend.

Red chucks a pillow and tells them to get a room while Leader shrieks and Rhys giggles.

#ask #blind-mutant #he swims in a sea of regret (leader)#headcanon

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haikyuu-philia · 5 years ago

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HQ!! Secret Santa 2019 - Sent via Mistletoe Post

A/N: Have a wonderful Christmas, everyone!! This post is dedicated to, made for and inspired by the lovely person that I got to be Secret Santa for - @oinkawater <3 Everything was organised by the awesome @supern-a-vengers, thank you so much!

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Sent via Mistletoe Post | A Personalized Semi x Reader Oneshot

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„I wished you could be here for Christmas.“

Semi gritted his teeth at the mere thought of how sad you would sound, if you had said that directly to his face. The message on the screen made his heart ache in a way which he had never imagined before meeting you. But he knew it was just a matter of time for the pain to go away again.

„Seriously, I miss you so much.“

Fate decided to not have any mercy with him. His fingers hovered above the keyboard to type a reply and nearly chose to let the whole idea blow up. Weeks of planning, including taking way too many shifts at the café, would go to waste with it.

It hurt. It physically hurt him to read your texts.

For a moment he had to put his phone at the table to brush his trembling hands through his hair. One message would be enough to make you smile again, three tiny words.

Though he didn’t plan on actually sending them. In less than 48 hours everything would be fine, you would be fine. So he took a deep breath before replying to you to keep up the facade.

Your present will arrive on Christmas morning. Look forward to it!

Well, this wasn’t an actual lie. Something would be there then, but nothing that you were expecting. At least he was hoping so.

And for now the effect seemed to kick in like he had planned to. Finally you were sending emojis again and you started to randomly write in capital letters of excitement to guess what your present might be. Semi cracked a smile at the screen.

If he hadn’t already prepared something, he would have a dozen of ideas today.

With a small groan he rubbed his eyes that were demanding a break. The printer rattled next to the boy, which instantly reminded him of a thousand reasons why he wasn’t allowed to go to bed yet. Tomorrow might be even worse with all those things that he had to deal with before the mission could start.

After he had reached for the slightly warm piece of paper, he nevertheless informed you about going to bed soon.

Looking at the printed timetable Semi couldn’t help it but sigh for the approximately thirtieth time this day. The price of living this far away from you to attend his dream university sucked sometimes.

At the same time he received your goodnight-text, wishing you nice dreams and a comfortable rest.

„Do it for Thea,“ he whispered while smiling at the picture he had set as his background. „Do it for her.“

When he finally had collected all the necessary papers he retreated into his dorm room. On the bed a halfway filled suitcase was waiting for him to finish packing.

In the morning the last thing he put into it, happened to be a little plushie - A bear holding a bright red heart which had ‚Good luck‘ written on it in golden yarn. This cute guy had been your parting present for him when he had to leave you behind on the other side of the airport security for the first time. He remembered how you had hugged him until the last second.

Attaching the keychain to his backpack didn’t come to his mind as it might fall off, get stained or messed up in some other way. Not an option for Semi.

Before he closed the suitcase he gave the bear a light squeeze. You were with him all the time, no matter how far away you actually lived.

„See you soon, little one.“ Even he himself wasn’t sure, if he had been talking to the plushie or to your spirit inside of it.

To the airport by train, then through security and to his gate, resting during the flight, grabbing his luggage before boarding the bus to the station near your dormitory on the campus of Tokyo University - All of that sounded so easy. Stressful, but easy and manageable.

It was, until Semi was actually sitting at his assigned seat in the plane. In his opinion the boarding had been fast earlier, maybe too fast.

Ever since the announcement that boarding was completed had been made, nothing had changed. Minute by minute passed while Semi recalculated his time buffer over and over again.

„Ladies and Gentleman, this is your captain.“ Instantly he sat up straight, ignoring his heavy eyelids. „Due to a current snow storm in Tokyo we will have to remain at this gate. We will start approximately 45 minutes late.“

The not-so-soft backrest collided with his back as he suppressed a bad word from slipping out of his mouth. Of course there had to be the first snow storm in years when he was about to fly there. Such a typical karma-move.

He fingered his phone out of his pocket to connect it with the power bank he had brought with him. Just in case that you would text him like you usually would on a free day.

The moment it began charging, the screen lighted up to reveal his background picture. In order to not attract weird questions the lock screen was a plain standard one. But once he had unlocked his phone, one of his favourite pictures would pop up.

You smiling into the camera, holding up a sign that said I love you in your handwriting.

A week after you had had to go different ways at the airport last year, the message had arrived to cheer him up. Nevertheless the first days in a completely new area had been stressful for him.

Only a few more hours, then he would be able to finally feel your warmth in his arms. He caught himself grinning at the screen like an idiot in the reflection. That was how far you had managed to push him out of his snail shell - To blush in freaking public because he had been thinking about a hug.

And yet the process of getting together with you had been long. So freaking long.

In the end Tendou had been so heavily annoyed by Semi not making a stupid move to settle the redhead’s OTP that he unceremoniously had locked the two of you in a storage room. A pretty dark and small storage room to specify it.

„Why exactly did he lock us in here?“ You had said while he had tried to put his hands somewhere without accidentally touching you.

Staying calm hadn’t happened to be the easiest task as you were practically standing just a few inches away. At the same time his idea to distract himself had consisted of creating plans to kill Tendou as soon as he would get out of this place.

But it had gotten worse.

Out of nowhere Tendou had screamed from the other side of the door: „How about our dear SemiSemi having a thing for you?“

Silence. Awkward silence. He hadn’t been able to see your eyes properly, though he could feel them staring holes into him. Someone was really provoking to be murdered that day.

Basically that was the story of how he had awkwardly confessed to you in a storage room with shallow light and Tendou being less than an armlength away. What an unique experience.

Semi checked his watch for the seventh time since the captain had announced their delayed departure. Right now you would most likely be at the Christmas party that Reon was hosting in his dorm room. A surprisingly high number of former Shiratorizawa third-years were attending Tokyo University at the moment.

Therefore he had planned to casually walk in to surprise you as a living Christmas present. The last time you had seen each other had been more than a month ago for his birthday. No one knew about his intentions of coming.

Especially not Tendou because this nervous dude would immediately spill everything in his excitement.

Well, at the moment he was still waiting for the plane to move at all.

Around him the fellow passengers had separated themselves into two groups: Those who were ranting about the circumstances and asking the stewardesses for update every five minutes. And those who decided to simply play UNO to kill the time.

Additionally, there was him. The dude scrolling through his phone’s gallery to find pictures that would stop him from illegally leaving this crowded plane right this instant.

Like the one that showed you wearing his Shiratorizawa trainings jacket when you were cheering for him during the final that they sadly lost to Karasuno.

Or the picture of the both of you that Tendou sneaked during your graduation dance’s couples dance.

Last but not least, you teaching him a bit of netball in return for him helping you to improve your volleyball skills. The ball had landed in his face gracefully.

He starred at so many photos for quite a while, sliding his fingers down the screen several times to somehow feel close to touching you. Your lips hadn’t brushed his for way too long, even though Semi felt the heat in his cheeks as soon as he imagined it.

This hadn’t changed at all during the nearly two years of your relationship. Instead of forgetting about situations that had been more than just a little socially awkward, like asking you out or thinking about how to ask you to hold hands with him at the summer festival, he remembered every single one of them in the most stupid moments. For example while sitting in a plane.

In his mind the scene was playing how you had visited him back home for the first time, including meeting his parents. Semi could groan because of the memory.

„It’s so nice to meet you, Thea! We have a lot of questions because our Eita usually never talks about your relationship,“ his mom had greeted you.

Death glare from Semi, not effective. Pleading eyes to stop telling embarrassing childhood stories, ignored. Mouthing to distract her from calling him Ei-chan in front of you, denied. His father had witnessed it all and had decided to not jump in to save his son’s honour. Lovely.

Worst had come to worst when they began to ask you, if you could imagine becoming part of the family. Three months into the relationship, nothing more than hand holding and cuddles had happened, but his parents had seemed to have forgotten about the definition of privacy.

The probably most torturing evening of his whole life had ended with him bringing you to the door, where you had said good-bye with a tiny blush on your cheeks.

Before he could react to it, you had pressed a kiss on his cheek and walked away. Seeing him as a flushed mess, not even able to form a decent thought, his parents had already begun to plan the wedding.

Due to the amount of unnecessary questions, the stewardess needed at least five minutes to walk through the plane. On her way she had to explain that she didn’t possess any new information, if so the captain would inform the passengers as soon as possible.

As Semi was sitting far in the back, he could hear and see it all. How she apologized for not being able to hand out anything else but water and for a delay that she hadn’t caused in the first place.

„Ladys and Gentleman, this is your captain again.“

The formerly noisy crowd got silent within a second. Most of them leaned back, buckled their seatbelt and carried a relieved smile on their faces.

„Due to the weather situation at our destination we are still waiting for the allowance to take off. We will remain here for another 45 minutes.“

A monotone sigh went through the rows when everyone realised that the suffering would go on. Life definitely hated all of them today. Probably no one would travel the day before Christmas ever again.

Just like that his phone vibrated in his hands, indicating that he had received a new message. Two finger movements later he had opened the chat to read your text. His display showed a picture of you, Tendou, Reon and even Ushijima more or less smiling into the camera with the most hideous Christmas sweaters on.

8 pm. Let the party begin!!

While answering he leaned back and ignored the annoyed comments from the other passengers that were demanding things from snacks to a refund. He imagined you to squeal of happiness once he would step through the door. Wearing a Christmas sweater as well.

Underneath his brown coat it was waiting to be revealed with a gigantic reindeer as the motive. What a pain it had been to take off the jacket for security and feel the stares coming from everywhere across the hall.

Ugly wasn’t a strong enough word for that piece of clothing.

Exchanging messages with you made him remember how close and yet so far away he was. His legs were slowly starting to ache, a baby had decided to cry a minute ago and the stewards were busy with making apologies.

Semi could tell that things were going South when even the UNO players lost interest in their calmness. Maybe for the first time in his life, he wished to be back in that storage room from two years ago.

But texting helped to lose track of time. Whenever his phone vibrated, he answered you quickly instead of checking his watch every thirty seconds. It didn’t take away his tiredness though.

Traveling was draining, interaction with most people was draining - Nevertheless he couldn’t stress most enough since being around you always managed to restore his energy somehow. Only one of the many things that made you so special.

„Why aren’t we flying already? I’ve been awake for nearly 15 hours and I have work to do!“ Some middle-aged man in the front finally snapped.

And I have a girlfriend to kiss, shut up. - Semi only rolled his eyes before sinking into his chair even more.

In the end the plane took off with a delay of a solid two hours, only for him to make up some stupid excuse for not being able to answer your texts until he would arrive in Tokyo. At some point he fell asleep, despite his efforts to open his eyelids every time they had closed. The constant shacking of the aircraft put him into a deep slumber.

It needed a stewardess, who accidentally collided with his shoulder while passing the snacks, to wake him up. From this second on he knew that you weren’t so far away anymore, which totally kept him from falling asleep again.

Not much later the bright lights of Japan’s biggest city and capital appeared underneath the plane. Like billions of fireflies lighted up the night.

Long story short, Semi preferred to not talk about the absolutely unnecessary chaos that the airport staff had called baggage claim.

But he didn’t care anymore because his mind was busy with figuring out how to leave the grounds fast to get to the trains. According to his new plan he would be seeing you in about an hour once he would have entered the train. Emphasis on would have because the screens informed everyone about the aftermaths of the snow storm - Nothing left the station. No train, no human, no nothing.

Close to midnight Semi found himself stuck at the airport. The taxis were completely overran, the few buses nearly exploded without being able to let everyone enter. And he felt the urge to scream slowly growing inside of him.

Screw it. Screw everything, including all the plans, even his sanity.

He placed his phone next to his ear while it was already trying to reach the other person. Semi wasn’t surprised to hear his loud shouting.

„Tendou, I know you remember locking Thea and me in the storage room.“ For a second he stopped, hesitating about making the right decision here. „You owe me one.“

Only god knew how Tendou managed to pull around the corner in a car, that definitely wasn’t his from what Semi could recall, less than 90 minutes later. Maybe Christmas wonders still were a thing. Or he had committed a felony, as it was Tendou he was talking about.

The red-head beamed at his former teammate: „SemiSemi! Long time, no see! How was your flight? Get in!“

On the ride to the dorms, he had to remind himself why he was doing all of this. From overworking at the café to boarding a plane on Christmas Eve and then ending up in a car with the Guess Monster as the driver:

There was your smile that had the ability to make him forget any kind of stress.

In addition, he couldn’t wait to feel your soft skin at his fingertips while closing his arms around you to feel your warmth. He had always adored your height difference.

The way you said his name or called him by his pet name - Honey - pushed all his buttons and melted his heart on the spot.

Then the moment of truth had arrived after more than half a year of planning alongside saving everything he had to afford the tickets. Sadly, he didn’t have a real present for you when he stepped out of the car at four in the morning.

„Ushiwaka texted me that she has fallen asleep on the sofa in Reon’s room. You could do anything!“

Semi would never admit it in public, but he had somehow even missed Tendou’s bright grin and his comments filled with so much sass that it was nearly impossible to bear. Oh dear god, the sleep deprivation seemed to get the best of him. The time deserved the adjective unholy.

On his way to room 534 they passed multiple mirrors, for example the big one in the elevator. Not even your pleading eyes would have been able to convince to look into one just to confirm his dead-like look. A vampire might be proud or jealous.

When Tendou had carefully opened the door to Reon’s dorm, Semi didn’t move for multiple seconds.

Seeing you all wrapped up and nuzzled into a big blanket while sleeping on the couch, he suddenly didn’t want to wake you. A lot of things had gone wrong for him, but you shouldn’t be interrupted during your rest. It wouldn’t be fair. Simply egoistic, even though he wanted to hear your voice so bad. Your sweet voice that always sounded so different on the phone.

In the silence, Semi exchanged a nod with Ushijima, thanking him for staying up to look after you. The last member of the Still Awake Squad happened to be the host himself.

Reon gave Semi a pat on the shoulder: „I will sleep in Ushijima’s room. See you later.“

After some protest coming from Tendou, they all left him when the door closed behind him. For the first time in 44 days, he could place his hand on your head, dreamily smiling at your sleeping figure. It wandered to your cheek where it rested for some time. If it wouldn’t be so creepy to stare at you like this, he could do it forever.

„Hey Princess,“ he whispered while caressing your cheek with his thumb.

In response you quietly groaned a bit, probably because of being distracted during your sleeping time.

„Sorry that it took me so long. But I’m here now. I’ll be here for two weeks, even for New Year’s. I can’t wait to spend the time with you.“

Every single one of his words dragged you more into reality, out of dreamland and back into the dorm room. When you opened your eyes, they were so heavy that you immediately wanted to close them again. You didn’t even know what date or time it was.

That was until you turned around to not face the backseat anymore, but therefore you ended up staring into Semi’s eyes. Even in the dark you would recognise this beautiful pair. Nevertheless your mind needed a moment to proceed the information.

Once it did, it hit you hard. Your eyes widened as fast as your mouth opened, placing your hand on his in disbelieve.

„Eita? What happened? Why are you here? How did you-„

He cut you off in the middle of the next question by pulling you into his arms. His chin rested on your forehead, which allowed you to look up to him a little.

„I’m sorry, I couldn’t hold back any longer. A charger was more than needed,“ he mumbled close to your ear. „Tendou called it the Mistletoe Post. Please tell me that Reon doesn’t have any mistletoes in here.“

Obviously his body still felt way more than just simply heavy, his head might explode into a migraine soon and every limp begged him to never do something like this again. Holding you in his arms, the suffering didn’t matter anymore. Not even the pain could kill this warm and fuzzy feeling inside of him.

You chuckled, an oh-so heavenly sound in his opinion, „No mistletoes. Just a big, comfortable couch with an enormous blanket that could easily fit two people.“

Honestly, it hadn’t been a real challenge to notice the bags underneath his eyes, his pale skin or cold hands. From what you could tell, everyone else had left anyways.

Soon you were laying on top of Semi - head placed on his chest, feet intertwined - covered in the fluffy blanket. Your boyfriend played with a streak of your hair while slowly drifting off to sleep. At the same time your brain told you go back to bed as well.

„I love you,“ you spoke into the silence.

Semi didn’t stop his doing while he was warming his other hand by having it placed on your back, „I love you, too. Merry Christmas, Thea.“

You nuzzled into him, trying to find the position that would warm him the most. His calm breath told you that he didn’t care about that anymore because he was knocked out. A minute later you followed suit.

Several hours went by before the boy trio checked on you. They used their chance to sneak a new picture for the SemiSemi being soft for Thea collection: Semi and you being all cuddled up on the couch, he protectively holding you close with his arms, both of you wearing nearly matching Christmas sweaters.

What a night to remember.

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I’m off to working on all those amazing requests! See you soon :3

#hqss2019 #haikyuu!!#haikyuu!! writing #haikyuu imagine #haikyuu scenario #haikyuu fanfiction #haikyuu x reader #hq x reader #haikyuu semi #semi eita #semi x reader #secret santa #I HOPE THAT THIS TURNED OUT GOOD Q.Q

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kindahoping4forever · 5 years ago

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Happy New Year!

I wasn’t planning on making a New Year’s post but I'm emo rn and scrolling past a few on my dash made me want to say a quick something. 2019 was a weird year for me. It started off bad and then kind of tapered off and peaked around a dull meh (and that got kind of bad again the past couple weeks). Maybe in the future I’ll see it as transitional but right now I can’t see what I could possibly be transitioning into so it just kind of feels like a throwaway year.

The honest truth is being on this website was my favorite part of 2019. Loving this band is my favorite thing to do, I would’ve been doing it regardless but it is so much more fun and rewarding doing it while being surrounded by other people who feel the same way. At the beginning of the year, I would come here for fun and distraction. But now at the end of the year, in addition to the fun and distraction I’m also lucky enough to get to engage with people, whether it be the friends I am so grateful to know or reading people’s tags or comments on my posts or the occasional ask. This is honestly all I wanted when I started this blog just over a year ago and I could not be more thankful for the experience I’ve had so far.

So first off, if you’ve sent in an ask, reblogged, followed or interacted with me in any way this year, thank you, thank you, thank you. You have no idea what it’s meant to me. (And if we haven’t interacted, let’s! If you’ve seen my posts, you know I’m always down to overreact to anything and everything lol)

Next up, my GC crew: Ashton’s Queens (@irwinvalentines @starwarsmccaffrey @babylon-corgis @ashtonangst @finesos @calumhood-imagines ) and formerly 5SOS Angels now 5SOS Sexy Bitches 😂 (@calumamongmen @beefstickirwin @dontdoitluke @myloverboyash @calsophat @bumblebet-20 @burncrashbromance ) I love talking with y’all and my year would not have been the same without you.

@ashtonsunshine @sexgodashton @cxddlyash @cashtonasfuck @h0tsos I love seeing you on my dash and I love talking to you even more, let's please do that more often in 2020.

Lastly I specifically need to thank the people who I talk to just about every damn day, whose messages I stay up way too late responding to and yet am still thrilled to wake up and see more from. (My insomnia + friends in different time zones = the real OTP of 2019)

@wastethen8 Ayla, I can’t even remember the last time we talked about the boys, now we just share our lives and I think that’s awesome! Thank you for messaging me and becoming my first fandom friend, almost one year ago now! 🥺

@glitter-cal Jen, it's been so much fun getting to know each other and legit one of my favorite memories of 2019 was getting your frantic messages after your Ashton moment at Jingle Ball. (I'm not over it yet, are you? 💪🏼) I'm looking forward to SO much more Scientific Research in this coming year!

@pxrxmoore BETH so much of my time is spent screaming at and with you that your name autocorrects to all caps. These past few months wouldn't have been nearly as much fun without our daily breakdowns over Bro Things and 🥳🥳. I love you (even if your choice to bring back Coachella!SOS still haunts us to this day) and I can't wait to meet you and Lucy this year! May 2020 be the year we finally answer the question: who needs sticks?

@feliznavidaddycal Rach, our bond was forged in thirst (#CalNipplePiercings2020) and has quickly evolved into one of the loveliest, most supportive and understanding friendships I've had the pleasure of knowing. I love messaging you and knowing you'll understand exactly how I feel whether it be about doctors being the worst, bodies being dumb or any of the COUNTLESS Cashton concepts we kill each other with on the daily. Literally as I’m typing this you’re ruining my life on two different social media platforms and I could not be happier (or more distressed) lmao.

@cal-puddies I've never been more happy that I overshare in my tags because that's how this wild ride started. And then I Kool-Aid Man'd my way into your messages and neither of our sleep patterns were ever the same. 😂 There's no one I'd rather stay up all night spinning elaborate headcanons with and you're honestly still my favorite writer. Here's to a new year of lane checks, murder blurbs and discovering even more random things we have in common. The picture says it all. 🤜🏼🤛🏼

#ngl 2020 is only a few hours old for me and i've already cried twice so i wrote this to make myself feel better #let me rephrase i was writing this to make myself feel better and then that ashton content started coming in and i got fucking distracted #but anyways #seriously #i don't know how i would have made it thru the past few months much less 2019 without you guys #anyways that's enough emo shit for today #another thirsty Ash post is coming up shortly lmao #💛💛💛#personal #kh4f post

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odanurr87 · 5 years ago

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2019: My year in K-Dramas - Part 1

I’ve been getting into kdramas for a few years now, but I usually only watch one or two at a time. This year I watched a lot more (and that’s not counting The Bride of Habaek, which I dropped when it became clear it was a very bad adaptation of the manhwa; Crash Landing on You, which started airing a couple of weeks ago; nor Tomorrow With You, which I haven’t yet finished, what’s probably not a good sign), a few being rewatchs of old shows that I like. Seeing as it’s unlikely I’ll ever write up full reviews for each like I did for Goblin (you can read my review here), I decided to compile this list to tell you what I liked and didn’t like about each, what I feel worked and what didn’t. I’m also including a qualitative metric (Rewatch meter) that tries to gauge how likely it is that I’ll find myself returning to the show in the future (Low, Medium, High). Naturally, your very own meter may differ from mine.

For future reference, these are the shows I watched in 2019 and that I aim to cover in this series of posts:

While You Were Sleeping (2017)

W (2016)

My Strange Hero (2018)

The Secret Life of my Secretary (2019)

Angel’s Last Mission: Love (2019)

Strong Woman Do Bong-Soon (2017)

When the Camellia Blooms (2019)

Bring it on, Ghost (2016)

One More Time (2016)

My Girlfriend is a Gumiho (2010)

My Love From The Star (2014)

Descendants of the Sun (2016)

Regardless of which show did better, overall, I find myself drifting more and more towards Korean dramas than your run-of-the-mill American TV show, save for a few bright exceptions, such as The Expanse. Heck, they’re better than most Hollywood movies nowadays.

Since I’ll probably end up writing a lot, I’ve decided to split this review list into two parts. Let’s start with the last kdrama I watched and work my way backwards... if I can remember, that is.

WARNING! There will be spoilers so read at your own risk.

While You Were Sleeping (2017)

Bae Suzy as Nam Hong-Joo, and Lee Jong-Suk as Jung Jae-Chan.

Release Date: September 27 - November 16, 2017

Episodes: 16

Available on: Viki

Summary: Nam Hong-Joo is a young journalist who has had bad dreams about the future since she was a kid, but she has never been able to change the outcome. Jung Jae-Chan is a rookie prosecutor who moves in across the street with his younger brother. When Jae-Chan has a prophetic dream of his own about Hong-Joo being involved in a car accident, and the tragic events that follow, he makes an impulsive decision to interfere, changing Hong-Joo’s fate and that of police officer Han Woo-Tak in the process. When the three of them start having dreams of one another, they realize their lives are somehow entwined. Together, they decide to use their knowledge of the future for good, but changing someone’s fate is never straightforward, and the consequences for doing so may be more than they can handle.

What I liked:

The concept and writing. This is the second show I’ve watched, in chronological order, with Lee Jong-Suk as a lead where I’m really attracted by the concept. Imagine if you could take the precogs from Minority Report and give them (relatively) normal lives inside a kdrama. This is the result. Even better, having Hong-Joo and Woo-Tak have different and often contradicting dreams about the future makes for an interesting twist, as we see prosecutor Jae-Chan struggling to navigate these prophetic waters in search for the best outcome. Curiously, the show makes a point early on about how Jae-Chan’s the variable upon which their dreams diverge, but nothing really comes off it. Naturally, the concept of multiple diverging futures gives the show’s cinematography a chance to play around a bit, often comparing the same event in alternative timelines, or in the same timeline but at different moments in time. It may sound complicated, but it’s pretty to grasp once you start watching. Furthermore, the writing’s pretty tight all around, what’s not a mean feat when you’re juggling multiple realities, with some very emotional payoffs as the show draws to a close. Perhaps its weakest point is exactly how this prophetic dream ability is transferred from person to person (a theory is put forward which doesn’t entirely convince me), and the unnerving (and unexplored, fortunately) implications should someone less honourable were to have these dreams.

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When The Nightmares Started. This is the best track in the entire show and if it’s not the main theme, it damn well should be. It has moments of calm, a hint of romance and hope, and that awesome shit-is-about-to-get-real cue starting at 1:38 that never fails to make a scene tons more epic. Your dish-washing experience will be 100% more epic playing to this track, guaranteed!

The Justice League (and friends). This show could’ve probably gotten on my bad side real fast if it had created a villain with the same superpower as the heroes (depends on the execution to be honest) and, indeed, I thought that was the direction it would inevitably take, revealing at some point that (evil) defense attorney Lee Yoo-Beom also had prophetic dreams and had been using them for his benefit all along, muahahaha! Instead, the show gave us three average people, connected by their prophetic dreams, who decide to team up and use these visions for good. It’s not always easy to change the future, as it has many ramifications, and therein lies the show’s narrative potential that it manages to exploit, perchance to its fullest. Even in the very last episode there’s a hint that maybe the people they’ve helped throughout also have dreams of their own that they use to help others, sort of a pay-it-forward chain. It may be somewhat unrealistic, but it’s a good note to end the show on all the same.

Kim Won-Hae as Choi Dam-Dong. Easily the best supporting character in the show, delivering a stronger and more rewarding performance than in Strong Woman Do Bong Soon, where he played two characters (he was pretty funny as the over-the-top head of development planning at Ainsoft), veering towards the more serious/dramatic/emotional end of the spectrum, although with some comedic elements mixed in. I was surprised by how strong his arc turned out to be, and my respect for his character went up by several points when his arc comes to a close and we finally put all the pieces of the puzzle together. This man can do both comedy and drama, so kudos to him.

What I didn’t like:

Mr. Perfect (also known as Han Woo-Tak). It’s not that I dislike him, far from it. Woo-Tak is so good, smart, selfless, and even good-looking, that he kinda undermines the OTP just by existing. He’s really setting unreasonable standards for any man to compete against. I mean, he even plays Cupid for the OTP... while also being in love with Hong-Joo! On the plus side, the show doesn’t really try to push the romantic triangle angle, what usually has mixed results. The one thing I did mind is how the show hints at him potentially being a better attorney/prosecutor than the main lead since that’s kind of Jae-Chan’s thing. I mean, if you take everything that makes the lead special and give it to someone else, is he still the lead?

OTP: A stronger performance from Lee Jong-Suk than in W, complemented by a relatively (and I cannot stress this word enough) weaker performance by Suzy in some aspects (I think Han Hyo-Joon’s Oh Yeon-Joo in W does sad love better than Suzy as Nam Hong-Joo, but it’s a matter of preference), results in a better pairing with more chemistry. Suzy is great and lovable at being the quirky Nam Hong-Joo (watch the video below if you’re unconvinced) and Jung Jae-Chan is a lot more vulnerable than Kang Chul ever was, but I was left wondering at times whether this couple would’ve gotten as much traction were it not for the strength of their past connection (especially with Mr. Perfect around).

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Verdict: What can I say? While You Were Sleeping was an excellent show from beginning to end. If I were to nitpick, I would’ve chosen the end wedding to be the one between Jae-Chan and Hong-Joo since that honestly makes more sense, and maybe I would’ve made Woo-Tak more of a bro than a somewhat-but-not-entirely romantic rival (think Seo Dae-Young in Descendants of the Sun).

Rewatch meter: High

W (2016)

Han Hyo-Joo as Oh Yeon-Joo, and Lee Jong-Suk as Kang Chul.

Release Date: July 20 - September 14, 2016

Episodes: 16

Available on: Viki

Summary: W is a bestselling webtoon by cartoonist Oh Seong-Moo that follows the adventures of Kang Chul, an Olympic gold medalist framed for the murder of his family, who’s eventually acquitted and becomes a multi-millionaire who fights crime (think Bruce Wayne but without the costume). Tired of his creation, Seong-Moo decides it’s time to kill the protagonist and put an end to the series (much like Sir Arthur Conan Doyle decided to kill Sherlock Holmes at the Reichenbach Falls). Oh Yeon-Joo is Seong-Moo’s daughter, a doctor and passionate fan of W, who is one day mysteriously transported to the world of the manhwa, where she sees a dying Kang Chul and saves his life. Intrigued by his mysterious saviour, Kang Chul decides to learn out more about her and Yeon-Joo finds herself constantly returning to the world of the manhwa. Will Kang Chul learn the truth about her and his world? And if so, what will be the consequences?

What I liked:

The concept. It’s not an altogether original concept, and I’m reminded of Schwarzenegger’s Last Action Hero (Who Framed Roger Rabbit before that), but it’s also not one that you see often on the screen, big or small. The idea of being able to enter the world you’re reading about and meeting the characters you know and love is extremely appealing and there is some fangirling from our protagonist initially. Naturally, since she knows everything about this world, it’s good fun to see her inadvertedly reveal something that she couldn’t possibly know and deal with the reactions/consequences. What’s better is how Yeon-Joo tries to figure out the laws of the manhwa world by applying the real-world concepts of cliffhangers and dramatic revelations, often to hilarious effect. Seeing how the manhwa continues to write itself to reflect events in W’s world, and the reactions by readers (and by Yeon-Joo) in the real world is really entertaining, especially those from the more passionate W fans.

The transition between animation and live-action. I love the blend between animation and live action, as in the example below. There are more subtle transitions, like when a character’s hand oscillates between the real world and the cartoon world. Perhaps it’s a very simple filter but it looks good. Also, what little we see of the manhwa is very well drawn.

Han Hyo-Joo as Oh Yeon-Joo. Despite the fact that Yeon-Joo’s character becomes less proactive in the second half of the series (as I will discuss below), she was the one who really carried the show for me, certainly on the emotional side of the spectrum, where Kang Chul felt a little flat throughout (to be fair, he’s more the analytical type and he’s a manhwa character). She was also able to convey humour quite well, especially in the earlier, funnier, episodes.

The execution (of the first half). The first episode doesn’t waste a second setting up the story and there is never a dull moment. Watching Yeon-Joo read the latest episode of the manhwa and witness her reaction as she sees herself in the comic was gripping and I was eager to see what the next episode would bring. The show was also fairly consistent with the rules of travelling back and forth and what one could and couldn’t do in the cartoon world. We were witnessing an epic struggle between the cartoonist who wanted to kill his creation with his stylus and the daughter who wanted to protect him so much that she had willed herself into his world (if that’s not a good setup for a love story, I don’t know what is). And all the while, Kang Chul was putting the pieces of the puzzle together in his universal and unrelenting search for truth. Every episode brought something new to the table and, much like the manhwa, ended with some revelation or cliffhanger that kept you on the edge of your seat asking for more. Unfortunately, I think that was also its downfall.

What I didn’t like:

The execution (of the second half) and the overall pacing. I think the (relative) downfall of this series was trying to do too much too early. It worked for the first half because the show had a lot of material it could burn through and, in a way, it was refreshing that it was willing to do so. Sadly, my thoughts eventually turned from, “What’s going to happen next?” to “What can even happen next?” The story was moving so fast that I began to wonder where exactly it was going, and that’s when some of the flaws started to seep through. Episode 9 focused on the aftermath of Yeon-Joo resetting events, thus making Kang Chul forget all about her. While I certainly felt for her when she met her amnesiac husband, this was largely thanks to Han Hyo-Joo’s performance (and good track selection), for Kang Chul had been her husband in name only. Had we previously seen more episodes of their life together, this scene would’ve been a lot more impactful, and her desperate crying outside the operating room more heartfelt. Then, the plot thickens as we move into the (overly) dramatic second half of the show, with the introduction of a villain who knows about the real world and starts manipulating events in the manhwa for his benefit... by possessing cartoonist Oh Seong-Moo! What? This was never established as even remotely possible! (not to mention it doesn’t make sense) As you can imagine, this is whereabouts the rules of this universe start to break down and anything goes. Furthermore, when this villain is defeated in Episode 13, the show suddenly remembered it already had an antagonist perfectly cast for the part and finally decided to put him to use, although too little too late for my taste. As if that weren’t enough, a character is killed because drama, since any other explanation would make no fucking sense. This death is entirely nonsensical and I was beginning to conclude the show should have ended a lot sooner.

The amount of flashbacks/dreams/recaps/plans. I don’t mind a good recap or a flashback every now and then, but there came a point where the show started abusing this narrative device a little too much. The show spent a lot of time either: going over things we already know; featuring lengthy dream sequences that are very transparent and serve no purpose (although, incidentally, would make for a better ending); or laying out how events are supposed to go only for them to go in a completely different direction. While they are sometimes necessary, most of the time they were just padding that actually detracted from the story.

How secondary the supporting characters in the manhwa truly are. I know Kang Chul is supposed to be the protagonist but his bodyguard and secretary aren’t given a whole lot to work with throughout the show. I wish they had been active participants in learning the truth of their world rather than passive bystanders.

How Yeon-Joo becomes less proactive in the second half. Maybe it’s just a feeling, but I think our female protagonist became more reactive and less proactive in the second half, with Kang Chul being the one who mostly directed the course of events. It didn’t help that she kept fainting every now and then, what meant she had to spend some time in bed, what was a shame since she was the more interesting character. To be honest, I think the whole father arc should’ve been over and done with in the first half, with Yeon-Joo stepping up to be the new cartoonist.

OTP: Undercooked, but Han Hyo-Joo manages to almost convince me.

Verdict: It’s hard not to say W is one of the most refreshing shows I’ve seen in a while, even despite its more prominent flaws in the second half. I don’t like how powerful the drawing tablet became, especially after it was established that the manhwa could, at times, overrule the will of the real world, as clearly depicted when Kang Chul refuses to commit suicide. I’d rather the manhwa characters had resolved things on their own, aided by Yeon-Joo, without having to resort to some ultra-powerful plot device. Furthermore, I think the show should’ve taken things a bit more slowly rather than try to surprise us every episode, and use that time to build the relationship between Yeon-Joo and Kang Chul. Another thing I feel the show didn’t exploit to its fullest was the fact that Yeon-Joo knows just about everything that’s transpired in W’s world, what maybe could’ve aided Kang Chul in his investigation (sadly, this is undermined by the fact that the murderer really has no identity, what I find odd). Last but not least, Kang Chul never remembering his “past life” was a missed opportunity.

Rewatch meter: Medium

My Strange Hero (2018)

From left to right: Jo Bo-Ah as Son Soo-Jung; Yoo Seung-Ho as Kang Bok-Soo; and Kwak Dong-Yeon as Oh Se-Ho.

Release Date: December 10, 2018 - February 4, 2019

Episodes: 32

Available on: Viki

Summary: When Kang Bok-Soo was a high school student, he was falsely accused of committing acts of violence and ended up expelled from school. Those who brought the accusations against him were his first love, Son Soo-Jung, and a fellow student, Oh Se-Ho. Nine years later, Bok-Soo saves Soo-Jung’s life and suddenly finds himself a mediatic sensation. In order to improve the school’s somewhat tarnished image, he’s invited back to finish his studies. Bok-Soo hesitates, but when he learns Soo-Jung is a teacher there and Se-Ho is the new director, a latent desire to get revenge surfaces. Will Bok-Soo finally get his revenge on the people who wronged him nine years ago? Or will he spend most of his time doing anything but? The latter.

What I liked:

Teacher Park. He’s the kind of teacher everyone would like to have in high school and an example of moral rectitude that Soo-Jung tries to follow. You can tell he really cares for all the students and always tries to be fair and just, no matter the personal cost.

Soo-Jung’s arc. Probably the character who experiences the most growth throughout the show, in no small part thanks to her starting point. She’s the only teacher who stands up for her students, is willing to expose the corruption in the school, and goes so far as to quit her job because she feels she didn’t earn her spot fair and square (despite Oh Se-Ho telling her she was hired because of her qualifications). It is worth noting that when Mr Park gives the other teachers the chance to own up and resign honourably nobody does.

What I didn’t like:

The series meanders a lot early on. Initially, I watched till Episode 14 and dropped it because nothing was really going on. Bok-Soo says he wants to get revenge but his heart really isn’t into it. He certainly doesn’t have a plan like, say, Edmond Dantes in The Count of Monte Cristo, or Emily Thorne in Revenge. In fact, for those first 14 episodes, it only seemed he went there to suffer some more at the hands of the same people who wronged him all those years ago. What leads me to...

Son Soo-Jung isn’t a very likable protagonist initially. I don’t know if this is done on purpose to get us to side with Bok-Soo, but it doesn’t seem like a very smart strategy to have us dislike the lead’s main love interest for almost half the length of the series. I mean, that’s what the antagonist is for. It seems like at every opportunity she twists the knife on Bok-Soo’s back a little more, so much so that a hurt Bok-Soo outright demands, “Why don’t you just ask me what happened instead of constantly making assumptions?” (I’m paraphrasing) Her response, basically telling him to fuck off, didn’t win her any points in my book. That’s about when the writers probably realized their mistake and started filling us in on how Soo-Jung’s life was also miserable after Bok-Soo was expelled so please don’t hate her. They also pull a 180 when she stands up for Bok-Soo during a disciplinary hearing, what I thought was quite out of character for her at the time. The two seem to patch up their relationship awfully fast, what struck me as odd as they didn’t seem to have much chemistry. Having said that, Soo-Jung’s character certainly grows after Episode 14 and has a very satisfying arc, ultimately being the only teacher worth a damn in this school, other than Mr Park.

“Is Kang Bok-Soo’s revenge finally starting?” After I initially dropped this show at the Episode 14 mark, a video popped up in my YT feed with that title (only they used the actor’s name instead of the character’s). It was a scene where Bok-Soo went about exposing the many deeds of corruption within the school. Great, I thought, shit is finally hitting the fan... in Episode 26. I resumed watching from that mark until the end. The series had finally managed to get me invested, almost as it was over, and I decided to watch the episodes I’d missed.

OTP: There are some cute moments but I still didn’t feel the chemistry (what, ultimately, is my entirely subjective take).

Verdict: I don’t feel this is a true romance drama like others on this list, if ever it tried to be, what’s decidedly strange because there are many episodes dedicated to exploring the relationship between Bok-Soo and Soo-Jung with little else going on. Instead, I see it as more of a critique on the Korean education system and the immense pressures students are subjected to in order to meet unreasonable standards, with some romance elements sprinkled on it so that it’s not too depressing. That’s my take on it anyway. As such, it has some enjoyable aspects to it, like seeing Bok-Soo share nuggets of wisdom every now and then, or the students standing up for Bok-Soo and their school, or the revenge/investigation finally kicking into high gear. It’s just unfortunate it took so long to get there and didn’t really encourage me to do so.

Rewatch meter: Low

The Secret Life of my Secretary (2019)

From left to right: Koo Ja-Sung as Ki Dae-Joo; Kim Young-Kwang as Do Min-Ik; Jin Ki-Joo as Jung Gal-Hee; and Kim Jae-Kyung as Veronica Park/Park Ok-Sun.

Release Date: May 6 - June 25, 2019

Episodes: 32

Available on: Viki

Summary: The story follows Do Min-Ik, a prominent director at T&T Mobile Media, and his secretary, Jung Gal-Hee, as together they deal with the onset of an illness that prevents Do Min-Ik from seeing faces, the result of a possible attempt on Min-Ik’s life by some unknown party. On the corporate drama side, this undermines his shot to succeed his (jerk of an) uncle as Chairman of the company, and we see Min-Ik and Gal-Hee struggling to hide the truth of his illness and overcome the many obstacles set on their way to chairmanship. On the romance side, his inability to recognize faces causes him to mistake his secretary for Veronica Park, a rich heiress and leading figure in the film industry, whom he eventually falls in love with... what is kind of a problem since the real Veronica Park develops a crush on Min-Ik’s best friend, Ki Dae-Joo (also a director at T&T), while Gal-Hee falls in love with her boss. And, just in case we didn’t have enough corporate drama, we learn early on that someone may be embezzling from T&T and all the signs point to Dae-Joo. How will this all turn out?

What I liked:

Do Min-Ik and Jung Gal-Hee working together. Min-Ik is one sharp boss, and the moment he’s unable to recognize faces, he starts devising other strategies to recognize people, such as identifying them by their height. Gal-Hee pitches in with the different directors’ hairstyles, and eventually Min-Ik is even able to recognize them by their specific tics. Another example is the first stockholders’ meeting where they team up to prevent Min-Ik’s dismissal. Everything goes so smoothly that it prompts Veronica Park to ask Gal-Hee, and I’m paraphrasing here, “Did you write the script to this play?”

What I didn’t like:

The deceit lasting so long. Min-Ik doesn’t start as the best of bosses, we see that in the first episode, but that very same episode opens the door for him caring for Gal-Hee more than he’s willing to let on. The show does a good enough job of explaining his rather rude behaviour towards his secretaries and why he always fires them within a year, what makes the deceit all the more hurtful. However, the problem I have with Min-Ik not realizing Gal-Hee was pretending to be Veronica Park, is that this happens for 24 episodes! That means we only have 8 episodes left for him to feel betrayed about the whole thing yet also recover in time to start dating Gal-Hee. I don’t feel this was enough time to successfully explore their relationship.

How weak/bland every other story is. The attempt on Min-Ik’s life and the police’s investigation of it is handled abysmally, with the detectives only appearing from time to time to create what some writer thinks is drama. They’re so useless that the perpetrator actually has to turn himself in! I thought Dae-Joo was a bland character throughout, so I had zero interest in his relationship with Veronica Park. The same goes for Gal-Hee’s family. Even Min-Ik’s mother somehow pulls a 180 out of the blue. The only other plot thread that caught my eye was the possible embezzlement and that was wrapped up horribly, what leads me to...

No one facing the consequences of their actions. No matter how much the writers want to frame this secret organisation within T&T as Robin-Hood-like, the fact remains that they were stealing. Not only that, but they can be directly tied to the assault and attempted murder of Do Min-Ik, among other crimes. Sure, they’re all fired at some point, but they all get hired back thanks to Min-Ik. Nobody faces any jail time except for the guy directly responsible for Min-Ik’s accident who actually apologizes to him and turns himself in. The leader of this shadowy organisation comes out unscathed and has her machinations to see Dae-Joo become chairman of T&T rewarded when...

Dae-Joo becoming the chairman of T&T. What a payoff. The blandest and most uninterested character in the entire show becomes the chairman when the character we’ve been rooting for throughout, the only one who’s willing to put everything on the line to help the downtrodden secretaries, gets the short end of the stick. I guess it’s true when they say no good deed goes unpunished.

OTP: There is some chemistry there and I wish we had seen more of it, but sadly the (official) relationship between Gal-Hee and Min-Ik takes place a little too late.

Verdict: Usually, most of the kdramas I’ve watched and liked, to some extent, have some scenes that are imprinted on your mind (much like Gal-Hee’s face is imprinted on Min-Ik) and that you find yourself returning to from time to time. With this show, I honestly had to struggle to recall any such scenes, even with the aid of YouTube playlists. This is not helped by the fact that I can recall none of the music used, and that’s not a good sign. Memorable scenes and songs usually go together, as the next show in my list will prove. Ultimately, The Secret Life of my Secretary, while entertaining enough, didn’t live up to my expectations and, as such, it’s unlikely I’ll be rewatching it any time soon.

Rewatch meter: Low

Angel’s Last Mission: Love (2019)

Shin Hye-Sun as Lee Yeon-Seo, and Kim Myung-Soo (Infinite L) as Kim Dan.

Release Date: May 22 - July 11, 2019

Episodes: 32

Available on: Viki

Summary: Kim Dan, a troublemaking angel with a kind heart, is 24 hours away from Heaven when he meets the beautiful, talented, yet cynical and arrogant, prima ballerina Lee Yeon-Seo. Recently blinded by an accident during a performance, Yeon-Seo somehow manages to spot Kim Dan, who should be invisible to any human. His curiosity sparked, he follows Yeon-Seo around and eventually, in a fit of impulsiveness, saves her life in a car accident. However, for having interfered and saved a human’s life, Kim Dan is fated to turn to dust... unless he’s willing to undertake one final task. His mission? He must help Yeon-Seo find true love, but will he be able to keep from falling in love himself? Obviously not. And, naturally, Yeon-Seo has some evil relatives who are out to get her, because it wouldn’t be a kdrama otherwise.

What I liked:

The songs. I can’t vouch for the entire OST for I haven’t listened to it all yet (Correction: I’ve now since listened to all of it and it really has a lot of good tracks), but there are at least a handful of songs that will stick with you like glue. I can’t say if I like the songs more because of the scenes in which they play, or if I like the scenes more because of the songs that are used, but I can say the songs play an important role in engraving these scenes into my mind. Songs like ‘Sweeter’, by Jess Penner, that play when we’re playfully exploring the relationship between Yeon-Seo and Kim Dan; or ‘Pray’, by KLANG, when some important relevation or dramatic scene is about to transpire; or ‘Oh My Angel’, by Chai, that plays during the more romantic moments; these songs have made it into my Spotify list and are a must-listen on a daily basis for now.

The humor. Beyond the interactions between Kim Dan and Yeon-Seo, which sometimes make for very humorous situations, my hat’s off to the characters of Archangel Hoo, Dan’s senior (played by Kim In-Kwon) and Chung Yu-Mi, Yeon-Seo’s butler (played by Woo Hee-Jin). The former has dozens of opportunities for humor as he’s able to take the form of any human and keeps surprising Kim Dan by keeping tabs on him. The latter is probably the closest thing Yeon-Seo has to a mother (or maybe an older sister), and can be playfully mischievous when she starts noticing our leads may have feelings for each other. There are two scenes that perfectly embody the show’s humor that I would be remiss if I didn’t direct you to. Be aware they contain spoilers.

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The leads and their chemistry. You cannot make a kdrama work if the leads don’t have some sort of chemistry (well, I suppose you could but it would be a bit of an uphill battle) and Shin Hye-Sun and Kim Myung-Soo have that in spades. This shows not only during the more romantic scenes, what’s expected, but also during their fights, what’s even better (if that makes any sense). This isn’t the first time I’ve seen L acting, in fact, he played the character of Yoo Tan in the short kdrama One More Time, with actress Yoon So-Hee playing his love interest, Moon Da-In. He sold me on that show then, as did Yoon So-Hee, but I feel his acting’s improved in this, or maybe the script and length of the show allows him to flesh out his character more, showing us more sides of his personality as the show draws to its end. And it’s really amazing to see how effortlessly Shin Hye-Sun can don the skin of the strong, cold, and harsh Yeon-Seo in one scene, and then swap it for the playful, romantic, and vulnerable Yeon-Seo that Kim Dan falls in love with in the next. Just watch more of those KBS World TV clips if you don’t believe me. These two steal every scene they’re in, but I feel Shin Hye-Sun is really the standout here. (At the time of this posting, Shin Hye-Sun has won the Top Excellence Award (Female) in KBS’s 2019 Drama Awards for her role in this show, so congratulations to her on an award well deserved!)

What I didn’t like:

How the show meanders towards the end. I laid out the plot in the most succinct way possible, but it’s hardly that straightforward. Dan’s mission should, in theory, be over when Yeon-Seo learns to love again, but then the show would then be over a lot sooner than Episode 32. The writers know that so they move the goalpost, at some point revealing that Dan also had to learn to love for the mission to be truly over. Not only that, but they both had to be willing to sacrifice everything for their loved one in order for God to believe their love was sincere or something, what leads one to think they need to commit suicide and the other to think they need to commit murder. I don’t know, by this point the show’s either stretching things out to reach the 32-episode mark or they’re milking each scene for every ounce of drama they can get, probably both. This problem gets compounded by the fact that...

Some (other) things don’t make a whole lot of sense. To start with, the theology and consistency on this show is all over the place. The same God that apparently ordered a couple of angels to shoot someone, gangsta style, because an angel broke the rules and fell in love with a human, is moved by our lead couple’s Romeo-and-Juliet love story and by Yeon-Seo’s ballet performance. Oh, and by the way, shooting someone is not how unruly angels are dealt with, God can simply pull a Thanos and have them vanish into mist, so why did he decide to use a gun that one time? Because drama! God also decides that the best time to send Dan to Heaven is when Yeon-Seo is lying commatose in the hospital (what a dick), to which Dan says, “Fuck it, I’m staying here,” and God lets him return as an angel so he can help Yeon-Seo wake up, interfering once again and thereby ceasing to exist... except he’s still an angel an episode later! What the f*** is going on here?! Archangel Hoo broke the rules once and he got the Thanos treatment, so how come Kim Dan gets so many second chances?

Some characters are either superfluous or their arcs are unclear. As an example of the latter, there’s the character of Ji Kang-Woo (played by Lee Dong-Gun), Yeon-Seo’s ballet instructor and Kim Dan’s rival for Yeon Seo’s affection. It’s revealed early on that he’s an angel-turned-human after breaking the rules and falling in love with a human himself... whom the gangster angels promptly killed. It’s never explained why she had to die while Yeon-Seo and Kim Dan are allowed to stay together, but apparently Kang-Woo is satisfied that his pain was necessary so he could help them trick God or something. I’ve no idea. But the award for the most superfluous character has to go to Ni-Na’s secret ballet instructor who only appears when the script dictates and is not developed at all. I can’t even remember if she had a name! What was her point even?

OTP: Probably one of the best pairings of the year (says the guy who’s watched maybe 4-5 2019 shows out of who knows how many).

Verdict: This is a case of the pros outweighing the cons. There’s simply too much that works for me, so many scenes and songs that stayed with me thanks to the strong performances of our leads and some of the supporting cast. I was never unaware of its more glaring flaws, what prevents this show from reaching Goblin levels of quality, but I could easily find myself rewatching it from time to time.

Rewatch meter: High

Strong Woman Do Bong-Soon (2017)

From left to right: Park Bo-Young as Do Bong-Soon; Ji Soo as In Guk-Doo; and Park Hyung-Sik as Ahn Min-Hyuk.

Release Date: February 24 - April 15, 2017

Episodes: 16

Available on: Viki, Netflix

Summary: Do Bong-Soon has a secret: she is insanely strong, a superhuman ability that has been passed down to the women in her family for generations. She also aspires to create a video game with herself as the main character. When Ahn Min-Hyuk, the CEO of gaming company Ainsoft, chances by her as she’s beating up half a dozen thugs, he’s instantly mesmerized by both her beauty and strength. The recent target of anonymous threats, Min-Hyuk decides to hire Bong-Soon as a bodyguard (she ends up being more of a secretary) and she accepts with the promise of joining the planning department of Ainsoft once the culprit is caught. Meanwhile, detective In Guk-Doo, Bong-Soon’s secret crush and childhood friend, investigates a series of strange kidnappings and murders in Bong-Soon’s neighbourhood. When the culprit targets Bong-Soon’s best friend, Bong-Soon and Min-Hyuk find themselves involved in the hunt for the criminal.

What I liked:

Gangster Bong-Soon. Okay, maybe saying she’s a gangster is a bit too much, but after beating a bunch of school bullies into submission, they soon look up to her as their new boss, taking orders from her and even looking out for her so that her secret isn’t exposed. It’s pretty funny then that Bong-Soon has to save her crew from being harassed by the new neighbourhood bullies, acting the part of a gangster for a short while.

The need for training. I appreciate the fact that Min-Hyuk foresaw the need to help Bong-Soon have full control of her strength, although he also created routines to bolster up her endurance, not to mention some of the moves she learned could have come in handy when she was depowered (sadly, she doesn’t use them). And all of this training does indeed pay off, as we see Bong-Soon fight smartly and using only as much strength as is needed to get the job done, as opposed to her Episode 1 self who used way too much strength with hilarious results. You can witness the results of Min-Hyuk’s training in the fight with the “new bullies” I mentioned previously, as well as the one at the beginning of Episode 9. Beyond fighting, her training also had positive results in her everyday life, like now being able to hug people without worrying about choking them.

youtube

The leads and their chemistry. The chemistry of these two is off the charts (it’s over 9000!!!). Everything about Park Bo-Young as Do Bong-Soon screams cute, from her short height to the way she talks, and even her glares of disapproval when Min-Hyuk does something he shouldn’t have. She’s also confident when she needs to, but not afraid to show vulnerability around the people she loves. I could shower similar praise on Park Hyung-Sik as Ahn Min-Hyuk, especially where the vulnerability department is concerned. Male leads tend to be more stoic (like In Guk-Doo), so it was quite refreshing to see how devastated Min-Hyuk was when he learned the identity of the one threatening him, or how crazy-in-love he is around Bong-Soon (she’s his kryptonite). Min-Hyuk is never afraid to wear his heart on his sleeve and it shows in every single scene. These two can just stare at each other in silence and convey more emotion than any spoken word.

The humor. I’m not talking about the dumb hospital scenes that feature humor more similar to what you’d find in a crappy Hollywood “comedy” (peeing jokes, really?), but things like Hyung-Sik’s ad-libbing throughout the show (he’s having a blast), or the more funny interactions between Min-Hyuk and Bong-Soon, even the ever-changing Romeo and Juliet scenes as Bong-Soon’s feelings for the different characters evolve.

What I didn’t like:

The sudden disappearance of Min-Hyuk’s family. Initially, the show has two distinct storylines: the string of kidnappings/murders, on the one hand; and the threats to Min-Hyuk, likely related to the question of who in his family will become the new Chairman of Ohsung Group. As expected, Min-Hyuk has several brothers who are a bit jealous of his success with Ainsoft and intuit their father will name him the Chairman, so it makes sense one of them is behind the threats. Once the storyline is resolved however, Min-Hyuk’s family is completely out of the picture, even during his marriage, what I find extremely odd.

The randomness of the depowering rule. Very early on the show explains that, while the women of the Bong-Soon family are blessed with superhuman strength from birth, they can easily lose this ability should they try to use it for less than honorable pursuits. It can be something as simple, and apparently harmless, as using this strength to become an Olympic weightlifting champion, as Bong-Soon’s mother soon found out, but it’s usually tied to using this ability to hurt innocent people. Naturally, once this rule was made known, it was only a matter of time before Bong-Soon would lose her powers as well, and this did indeed happen towards the end of the show. The problem I have with it is two-fold: its execution and its consistency. Bong-Soon doesn’t purposefully hurt an innocent man, she’s tricked into doing so by the villain. One could argue that whatever higher power granted this ability can’t tell the difference, except that argument falls apart entirely when you realize Bong-Soon has already purposefully used her power to hurt innocent people, like that one time she crushed Min-Hyuk’s foot to keep him silent (among multiple examples). That this event is played for laughs should have no bearing on the outcome. Furthermore, we later see Bong-Soon pleading for her strength to return so she can save Min-Hyuk, so it would appear that whatever higher power was listening is intelligent. At the end of the day, we all know this happened because the writers didn’t want to limit the fun possibilities of Bong-Soon abusing her power a little bit, saving it for the right moment to amp the drama. So, in reality, I was aware of it, and decided to roll with it.

OTP: Cuteness overload.

Verdict: This is one of the strongest shows in this list (no pun intended), more so given how much it’s able to pull off in 16 episodes as opposed to other shows’ 32, which is why I’m more lenient in terms of its writing. This is simply a good, fun, show, easily rewatchable thanks to the cute OTP. While its soundtrack may not be on par overall with the one from Angel’s Last Mission: Love, it still features some solid, memorable, songs (’Heartbeat’ by SURAN being the most obvious, but also ‘Double Trouble Couple’ by MAMAMOO, or ‘Super Power Girl’ by Every Single Day), not to mention a highly effective and comedic use of sound effects. Definitely one of my favourite shows.

Rewatch meter: High

And that brings us to the end of Part 1. I hope you had a good time reading through this post, maybe even found a show to your liking. What were some of your favourite shows in 2019? Stay tuned for Part 2!

#kdrama #while you were sleeping #kdrama w #my strange hero #the secret life of my secretary #angel's last mission: love #angel's last mission #strong woman do bong soon #strong girl bong soon #netflix #viki #kdramas

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katedoesfics · 5 years ago

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Shadows of Hyrule | Chapter 62

The Hyrulean helicopters brought the soldiers back home, leaving one behind to return with the six Champions. It waited quietly on the landing pad with Daruk, Urbosa, Revali, and Zelda standing just outside. It was late in the evening and the battle had ended hours ago, but they held back to ensure the safety of the city as Mipha was reunited with her parents.

To Link's relief, they agreed to let Mipha remain in Hyrule, promising her they would return soon, though not as soon as they had originally planned due to the battle. And though they didn't seem eager to let Mipha continue on with her heroic duties, they didn't argue or push the matter further. She was sure there would be more to discuss upon their return to Hyrule, but she would deal with that when the time came.

Eager to return home to study for her last few finals, she hurried back to wait with her friends at the helicopter, the engine now started and the blades running.

Dorephan followed them out to the helicopter pad, though hung further back.

“You and King Roham cannot possibly ensure the safety of Termina,” he said as he walked beside Link. “Try as you might. Mipha is in danger, and it very well may be putting you in danger, too. I won't say I care much for you, Link. But I care deeply for my daughter. I will do anything for her – even break my ties with Hyrule. I won't see her die in this war.”

“I won't let her die,” Link said. “I will give my own life before I let something happen to her.”

Dorephan eyed Link carefully for a minute. “I see.” He clasped his hands behind his back. “And what intentions do you have for my daughter?”

Link blinked at him, taken aback. “What?”

Dorephan turned and looked at Link at the corner of his eye. “When are you going to tell her you're in love with her?”

Link pulled his eyes away. “Never.”

He raised a brow. “Never?”

He watched Mipha as she chatted and laughed with their friends. “She deserves better. Better than someone who will definitely get gutted by the King of Evil.”

“You should have a little more faith in yourself,” Dorephan said. “I would be lying if I said I wasn't impressed with the way you handled that attack. I'd say Hyrule is in adequate hands.”

Link glanced skeptically at Dorephan but said nothing further.

“But know I will kill you myself if something happens to my daughter.” He smiled down at Link.

“Right,” Link said. “Get in line.”

Mipha turned and watched her father and Link curiously. She frowned. “I hope he’s not giving him a hard time,” she muttered.

Urbosa turned her gaze to them and shrugged. “I’m sure he is,” she said. Her face turned serious and she pointed a finger at Mipha as she mimicked his voice.

“You protect my daughter with your life or I’ll kill ya.”

Mipha rolled her eyes. “Yeah. I don’t think so.”

Urbosa smiled. “You're his kryptonite,” she said dreamily. “He'll do anything for you, you know.”

Mipha glanced over at them once more. Dorian was making his way back to the city, and Link trotted down the steps of the base. His gaze met her’s.

“Sometimes, I think you're more of a distraction that anything,” Urbosa continued. “He's too focused on you and making sure you're okay. Really, he's only doing this for you. I think you're the only thing keeping him going.”

Mipha held her gaze on Link, and Link showed no sign of breaking away. After a moment, he moved towards them and pulled at Mipha's wrist.

“Can I talk to you?”

Mipha hesitated, her gaze moving from Link to Urbosa, then back to Link. She nodded once and let him lead her away from the group, desperately trying to ignore the stares from their friends.

“They're so OTP,” Urbosa gushed happily as she watched them together.

“You did not seriously just say OTP,” Daruk said.

“Shut up,” Urbosa snapped, still grinning. “Romance turns me into a nerd!”

This conversation, however, went completely unnoticed by Link and Mipha.

“What's wrong?” Mipha asked carefully. She watched Link, but Link did not look at her.

“Last night,” he started.

Mipha grinned. “Oh, wait, let me guess,” she said. “Is it about the selfies you took in Urbosa's skirt?”

Link glanced at her for a moment, his brows furrowed. “What?”

“I mean, Revali did keep his promise. He dared you to put it on in exchange for ten rupees. You said you would have done it for five.”

“Right,” Link said. He shook his head. “Wow. What the fuck.”

Mipha laughed. “Or, did you want to apologize for spilling your beer all over my shirt?”

“Sorry?”

Mipha shrugged and smiled at him. “Don't worry,” she said. “Whatever Revali may have said, you weren't that much of an embarrassing drunk.”

Link hesitated. “Did I... do or say anything else?”

Mipha's smile disappeared. “Like what?”

“I don't know,” Link muttered, turning away.

Mipha seemed to think about this for a moment, then shook her head. “Not really. Nothing out of the ordinary.”

That was a relief, to say the least. How did the expression go? Drunk minds speak sober hearts? He didn't exactly believe Revali, but he felt instantly better knowing that he didn't actually saying anything to Mipha. Not that he would have regretted such a conversation. But being drunk was not the way he wanted to do it. Not that he had planned on doing it at all, really. Not at first. But maybe. Just maybe.

“Whatcha thinking so hard about?” Mipha asked, her smile returning.

“Nothing,” Link said quickly. “Just that I need to get the hell home and to bed if I'm going to survive another final tomorrow.”

Mipha sighed. “Crap,” she said. “Why did you have to remind me?”

*****

The trip back to Hyrule was uneventful, and once they landed, the Champion’s felt able to relax again, even returning to their earlier end of the year high.

“So,” Revali said, practically bouncing ahead of them as they walked through the city. “Where should we take this party?

Mipha shook her head. “No way,” she said. “I’m out this time. We do have more finals this week.”

“Lame,” Revali said. He turned to Urbosa and Daruk. “C’mon, we don’t need these babies.”

Daruk considered this for a moment, the nodded. “I’m down. Let’s do it.”

Urbosa waved them off with a hand. “You boys have fun,” she said. “I’m hitting the mall.”

Zelda perked up at this. “The mall?” She put a finger to her chin thoughtfully. “I could skip a night of studying,” she said. “I need a new bathing suit.”

“I changed my mind,” Revali said quickly. “I wanna go shopping, too.”

Daruk narrowed his gaze on him. “No, you don’t. You want to -”

“I have excellent fashion sense,” Revali said quickly, cutting him off. “I’ll be the judge of which bikinis look best. May I suggest a little thong? It says ‘I’m a fun and adventurous ruler of Hyrule.’”

Urbosa slapped him upside the head. “You’re disgusting.” She turned to Zelda and offered her a smile. “I could use some retail therapy. Let’s go.” She shot a dirty glance at Revali as she took Zelda’s wrist and lead them away from the group.

Revali groaned loudly. “C’mon, Daruk,” he said. “Let’s go find us some tail.”

“Classy,” Mipha muttered.

Daruk shrugged and grinned, waving to them as he followed Revali, parting ways and leaving Mipha and Link alone.

“Guess I can’t convince you to hang out,” Link said, turning to Mipha.

She narrowed her gaze on him. “Don’t you think it would be worth putting a little effort into the finals?”

Link groaned and threw his head back as he walked ahead of her. “Fine,” he said, dragging the word out into another groan. “But only because Ganondorf hasn’t had the balls to show his face around here yet.”

“That’s the spirit,” Mipha muttered.

Link looked at her over his shoulder and smiled. But something else had caught his attention in the form of a flash.

Mipha’s brows furrowed and she followed his gaze, noticing then a man and a woman with a camera. The woman had a microphone in her hand with the logos of one of the news stations. She smiled and waved to them excitedly.

“Is this my life now?” Mipha said, her shoulders slumped. “I didn’t sign up for paparazzi.”

Link took her wrist in his hand and pulled her forward. “Don’t worry,” he said with a grin. “They’ll see soon enough how boring you are and lose interest.”

“Ha, ha,” Mipha said, but she lead Link lead her quickly away from them and towards home.

#legend of zelda #breath of the wild #fic #fanfic #loz #botw #shadows of hyrule #soh62

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highgaarden · 4 years ago

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“You wrote that?” “Volti helped me a little, but mostly me.” “Thank you. It was actually... very touching.”

#thegreatedit #thegreatdaily #peter x catherine #the great #perioddramaedit #minegif #*huzzah #these fuckers #i hate them #but i lov eth em #otp: my brilliant wife #otp: just a few weeks ago i was planning on killing you #~1000

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charliedoyleloves · 5 years ago

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Well. Here he is. The new F/O I hinted to a little while ago.

The Tag will be “otp: sweet strategy”. tagging @insertofalord who listens to the ridiculous number of OP AUs I have and tries to force me to not make them so angsty in the middle. it will never work, but at least there will always be a happy ending

To start this up, considering it was an Arranged Marriage, I’ve done up the Wedding Questions for him! This does exist in an Au, which is tentatively named the “Sweet AU”.

During the time skip, I work with a should be Queen reclaim her throne from the World Government. As I work as the tactician and commander of her army and gain a reputation. During this time, Charlotte Linlin decides that she will help us if she marries a child of her into the royal family. The Queen is not excited about the idea until she remembered a technicality. Being that I’m the Royal Commander, I need to be recognized as a member of her family. So dubbing me her cousin, she put me as the member to be married. The idea being that both members on the throne should be from “our” country, to indicate our independence.

In order to try to keep myself out of a marriage, I pick the strongest Marine Base that I could and told the Charlotte family that only whoever could take over the base could be my spouse. If no one does it within a year, she becomes an ally without a marriage. While the rest of his siblings failed, Katakuri went when they started to make snide remarks that even he couldn’t do it.

However, my cousin notes that not marrying into her family will make Linlin see us as a threat.

Questions and Answers beneath the cut!

Proposal

1.) Who proposes? Technically, it’s me. In a round about way. Someone in his family was going to marry me no matter what, but he was the one who completed the challenge I set for my hand. When he completed it, we were engaged. Because it’s him meeting my standards, his mother is insistent that it means that I proposed. This is a social tactic, knowing that it would make it more awkward for me to go against the marriage. Not that I would, considering my word is my gold. I said I would marry any who met my challenge, so I will. 2.) Where do they propose? Upon taking the Marine Stronghold that I decided to be the challenge, I keep my word. I accept that I’m to be married to Katakuri. So, it ends up being right on the top of the stronghold. Our men are around us, and his are cheering for the moment when I say it. 3.) How do they propose? Is it romantic, or casual? The way I propose is Official. It’s me resigning myself to the fact that I need to be his wife to keep my men down there safe. I tried to look happy about it, but stoic was the best way I could do it. Specifically, I realized that this entire thing was going to be a performance. So I played it up, for his men and his mother. 4.) Were you/they surprised by the proposal? Neither of us are surprised. When he was planning his raid on the base, he realized why I chose this one. The only thing that has ever gotten in and out of this base was air. He knew, both because of logic and his observation haki, that his plan would succeed when he asked for my help. 5.) What does the ring look like?

It was chosen by him, made by his home’s finest jewelers. It was as much away to show his countries skill as it was to make the engagement official. 6.) Planning on a long engagement or a short one? Short engagement. Lowkey, the wedding was being planned before we were officially engaged. This is because of Linlin’s confidence in Katakuri, and his assuring her that his plan would work.

Wedding Planning

1.) Is there a theme for the wedding, or a color scheme? I suppose the closest theme is “Sweet Fairytale”. It’s not so much by my choice, but rather the choice of his home. He’s a Minister in the government, and very well known and respected by his people. (And Feared). The wedding was much more for them than it was us. The both of us would prefer to have a small ceremony and paperwork to make it official. The color scheme became Pink, Magenta, Silver and Royal Purple became the color scheme. It was a combination of his personal colors, my color (grey) and his position.

Like this.

2.) Who does most of the planning? Or do you share the workload equally? There are official wedding planners in Linlin’s employ. They handled the planning while we were taking the fort and returned to his home. 3.) What are the two of you going to wear? I have no sort of control over what I wear. Instead, it’s designed by Linlin’s people. However, upon hearing that I didn’t want a white dress, they went crazy. It’s still a princess style cut, but much more crazy. Almost cupcake like.

Katakuri does end up wearing a suit, though he forgoes the tie for his scarf. 4.) What does the cake look like? Or are you going with a dessert other than a traditional wedding cake? Being that this is a Charlotte family wedding, the cake is extreme. Like, It's big as fuck so Big Mom Linlin can hopefully get full from eating it. Even if for a bit. It was pink as hell, with a lot of sweet decorations to top it off. There was a solid Desert Buffet, during which Katakuri pocketed most of the donuts. Unfortunatly, most of it was too sweet for my taste, so I only took a bit of the donuts and some of the bit of dark chocolate there. 5.) Is it going to be a big or small wedding? Who’s on the guest list? It was a big ass wedding, considering Katakuris family makes it nearly seventy people on their own. While the ceremony itself was just his family, plus my Cousin, her girlfriend, and a few of my higher ranked soldiers. The reception, however, was wild. Both of our armies. The people of Whole Cake Islands. The extended Big Mom Pirates. It was basically a national event, as one of the Sweets Commanders married a technical “Princess" and commander. The reception happened in a city square, where people have traveled to wish us luck in our relationship. 6.) Who have you chosen for best man? Maid of honor? Other bridesmaids/groomsmen? Oven and Daifuku were his best men, supporting their elder triplet. While he wanted to be fair to his other siblings, the other two Sweet Commanders were also his Groomsman and woman out of respect of the military feel of it. On my end, my cousin acts as my Matron of Honor, and the commanders of the army and navy who work under me are my brides men. They both showed up in uniform, while she showed up in a simple gown.

The Big Day

1.) Who’s walking you/them down the aisle? Being in what is technically enemy territory, it’s a member of his won family who walks me down the aisle. However, the one who gives me away is my “cousin”.this is less about her being my family and more about the political implications of the marriage. She is literally giving me to the Charlotte’s for the safety of our people. 2.) Do either of you get emotional when you see each other at the altar? No. While to the people of Totto Land it looked like a picture perfect wedding, it was very emotionless. My cousin cried, out of relief that it was finally done, and a few of Katakuri's siblings did as well. But the both of us knew why we were there. This was a political marriage, not one made from emotions. 3.) Does anyone in attendance object to the marriage? If so, what happens? No, despite my trying to get someone to come to do so. Katakuri swore that if I could get someone who loved me true and marry me in his place, he would step down. However, since I failed in that requirement. 4.) Did you write personalized vows? Can we hear/read them? No. Our vows were the… cookie cutter ones from Totto Land. They are standard Christian styled vows said in front if a priest. 5.) How do(es) the best man/maid of honor speech(es) go? Funny? Serious? Sweet? The speeches are respectful and serious. All the humor and fun is outside the banquet hall, where the people are. In there, however, it takes a bit for the party to ramp up. However, its still just Katakuri’s family who get hype. He, myself, and my “family” are all a little dour because of what the marriage means for each of us. 6.) How’s the first dance? Fun, romantic? It’s awkward as hell. Tho, I do try to make it less so there is the major problem that I am only up to his knee. He ends up having to scoop me into his arms, me sitting on the crook of one while his other hand basically engulfed my hand. It ended up just being an awkward swaying.

Post Wedding/Married Life

1.) When's the honeymoon? Where are you going for it? While we go on an official honeymoon on his ship, it’s a very relaxed affair. We’re trying to get an idea as to how our relationship will work. We keep to his private quarters, with the crew given instructions to leave us be unless entirely needed. The trip is going from Whole Cake Island to his home, though the long way around so it takes about a week. 2.) Get any good gifts from your guests? Mostly just sweets and stuff made from sweets. The people of Totto Land are obsessive with the stuff. As well, I get a few pieces of furniture like vanities, with a piece of soul so it’s alive. It’s… disconcerting… 3.) What’s it like waking up married the next morning? It’s awkward. While we are in the same room, he refused to sleep on his bed the first night. Instead, he slept in a large armchair with his trident by his side. Being that he’s over three times my height, I have a separate bed beside his where I slept. Being used to sleeping with soldiers and crew mates, there’s no trouble for me to go to sleep. He seemed worried that I was going to kill him in his sleep. It takes a while for him to get comfortable around me. 4.) Is being married an adjustment, or does it feel completely natural? It’s an adjustment. He’s the one who needs to adjust more, despite being the one who expected to marry soon anyway. While I’m used to living in close proximity to people, he isn’t. Even when he was younger, he had his own space because of his appearance. 5.) Were you living together before you got married? Or even before you got engaged? We were not living together. All of my (very few) things were moved onto his ship during the reception. I am dwarfed by his presence in my new home, even when he’s not there. It does not help to make me more comfortable around him or his family. 6.) Will you make a scrapbook of your wedding/life together to look back on one day?We do not have to. An official one was made by the wedding planners. We have a large one (a little too small for his comfort and much too big for mine) which is ours to keep, and his mother has one as well. There is an edited one for public viewing in the Totto Land Records Building, if people want to look at it, alongside the rest of his family’s edited wedding albums.

#otp: sweet strategy #si: the acrobat

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shadowdianne · 6 years ago

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Hello there! I just want to say thanks for writing swanqueen they are my otp besides xena and gabby. Just 2 things, i hope that you love japanese cause theres a show called Miss sherlock!! Plz go and give it a try! First time where sherlock and watson are female!!! Its AMAZING!! And lastly a prompt if you can. Drill Sargent regina and recruit emma swan! Almost like officer and a gentleman. PLZ PLZ PLZ!!! Or rival news reporters! THANK YOU AGAIN FOR WRITING IN THIS FANDOM!! Sooooo APPRICIATED 😊

Hey there ;) I’veheard of the show, but I haven’t watched it. Thanks for the rec! I’m notexactly buoyant on free time these days but I’ll try to find a page that allowsme to watch it or something Xd As for your prompts… I decided to do a small nodto a story I eventually took down and do the rival news reporters version of itall Xd I hope you like it and thanks for the prompt

The small caféwas bathed in tranquil murmurs, the vague sounds of people speaking quietlyover coffee mugs a barely-there whisper that didn’t disturb Emma as she kept onstealing glances at her watch, a satisfied smirk on her lips and her notebookin front of her in where haphazardly taken notes stared back at her in a messyhandwriting that very few people could truly understand.

She hadbeen told more often than not that she shouldn’t try to make notes via paper; theblue ink against thin white a problem if she didn’t put them on a screen thesecond she was able to, but the blonde refused to let go of the paper and ink,the aesthetic of it all pleasant to her.

Takinganother sip of her drink as she stole yet another glance at her watch and thehectic whirlwind that waited for her outside of the small café she almostsighed at the office building that rose just in front of the smallestablishment. Humming, Emma rose her brow in anticipation as the door of thecafé swung open, a brunette impeccably dressed walking in with nothing but fireon her eyes.

Emma had purposelypicked the table she knew would be the one new eyes would zero in the secondthey entered into the café but she still feigned surprise as she kept on takingher coffee -the amount of sugar she had previously put there for it to bedrinkable a detail she wasn’t willing to share- while her free hand drummed atuneless staccato at the table’s surface, next to the notebook in where the blueink felt much more vibrant than before.

“Miss Swan.”

The fewpatrons that were seated around glanced up at the icy tone, filled with barelycontained anger despite Regina’s intents of keeping it at bay but they didn’tdo more than that. Many of them were already familiar to the two women meetingsin that same place and knew that there was nothing they could truly do as the newcomerapproached the table, hands into fists and her high-heeled cladded feetmirroring the staccato the blonde was drumming on the table, satisfied smirkwidening just enough for the standing woman to growl at.

From thecorner of her eyes Emma saw Ruby sighing deeply; the waitress that had turnedinto her friend over the last year she had spent working on the Daily Mirrorrising a brow of her own and mouthing a question she couldn’t but chuckle at.

“What did you do?”

ReginaMills, reporter extraordinaire and Emma’s superior in every shape of form if itwasn’t by the fact that any possibility of being promoted was thin at best dueto the harsh times the newspaper was fairing, stopped an inch away from theedge of the table, brown eyes smoldering and murderous.

Rising her cupa little bit higher and giving the brunette a lopsided smile as she tilted herhead a little to the left, Emma hummed, as if she hadn’t known the woman would walkinto the place at that hour.

“Hi Regina.”Free hand finally stilling over the notebook, obvious enough that the brunette’seyes lowered enough to address it, the blonde hummed as she took a sip of heralmost empty mug, quickly placing it next to the scribbled words. “Is your lunchhour already? Funny how time works.”

At anyother time, the brunette would probably have answered to that, a scathinganswer that would have made Emma reply with one of her own as Ruby groanedbehind the counter, the words “just fuckalready” coming out in not so quiet whispers that both reporters wouldfeign total deafness to. But this time was different: Emma knew it, Regina knewit and so the brunette shook her head eliciting her brown locks to shudderbefore falling back into place as she pursed her red lips, the colorcomplimenting the blouse she wore in a way Emma refused to think about. Noteven when, she noted after a quick glance, the usual three top buttons were unmade.Which was, she suspected, the only detail the always proper woman standing infront of her, allowed herself as a way to break the code the even sterner CoraMills had first used when she had opened the newspaper.

Her thoughtswere derailed as the brunette, not even glancing around to any of the patronsor Ruby for that matter, put both of her hands at the table’s surface,shoulders square and fixed as she bared her teeth, grinding her words andinfusing her voice with the anger that burnt on her pupils.

“How.” She began,and Emma felt her smile widening, her own pride shinning through in thedeliberate way she rose her chin, exposing her neck and not missing for amoment the way Regina’s eyes fell to it for a moment, a second that had herclutching the mug’s handle. A detail that, thankfully, Regina seemed to miss asshe glanced back, lips curling. “I’ve tried to get Spencer talk to me for thepast month.” She threw an accusatory finger at Emma’s notebook and, for amoment, the blonde was almost surprised Regina’s incinerating tone didn’t setit on fire. “How did you do it?”

And thereit was. Notebook intact and Spencer’s name on her lips Regina rose to her fullheight -and then some thanks to the high-heels- and let her arms fall at bothsides of her torso, hands still twitching, not quite curled but not relaxedeither. She looked even more riled up that Emma had expected her to be and, forthat, she chuckled and made a sign to Ruby, the one she knew would make thelanky woman sigh deeply before readying Regina’s usual as the patrons kept on eavesdropping.Some of them even with interest going beyond the usual fight, the surnameRegina had so carelessly dropped a powerful one after all.

Noteveryday one got to have a private interview with the corrupt lawyer that hadbeen discovered to be working with Rupert Gold, the two men one of the mostpowerful in the entire town and certainly the direct culprits of huge sums ofmoney always ending up in the hands of the smaller mafia bosses Gold allowed toexist around his own empire. Not everyday one got to make a deal with the devileither, but Emma had been ready for both. Which was something she wasn’t goingto disclose in the middle of the café, the fact that she was enjoying all ofthis a little too much not clouding her mind to that degree.

Preciselybecause of that and waiting until Ruby approached them with a glare on her own eyes, the blonde smiled andnodded as the waitress put Regina’s own coffee in front of the older woman, thelook that granted her enough to turn everyone into ashes.

Which wassomething that Ruby almost did as she bite down on her bottom lip, shaking herhead and turning, pointedly glancing at Emma before backing away once more.

One ofthese days the waitress was going to kill Emma for her antics. But not today.

Feigning nonchalanceand picking the notebook before fanning herself with it, the blonde kept on lookingat Regina, at the untouched coffee and the brunette’s ire.

“I have myways.”

And shedid, she truly did. For every epithet Regina kept using with her every timethey were seated in front of each other, trying to come up with ways of writingnews in this small town, the brunette knew by then that she had ways, that shehad resources, and she planned on showing them all to the brunette. (If the womanallowed her that, not like Emma would ever admit that Ruby’s pleas regardingthat them both needed to bang had any real base)

Jawtightening, the brunette in question growled, the ring she always had danglingfrom her neck catching the light and winking as she ran a hand through herhair.

“Miss Swan,I’m not joking.”

Emma pursedher lips and put the notebook back in the table, placing it closer to thebrunette.

She had herways and was too stubborn, just like Regina was too proud but despite her needto gloat she was also fair. And she knew that Regina needed the exclusive morethan she did after Emma had managed to snatch the coveted interview with ReulGhorm a few weeks ago in retaliation for Regina managing to be the first whotalked with Sheriff Nolan after the first rumors regarding Spencer and Gold’spartnership had made to the public.

Eyesnarrowing and refusing to acknowledge the surprised look on Regina’s eyes, theblonde stood and picked up her red leather jacket with one swift move. She wasn’tgoing to stay and give answers she wasn’t ready to answer.

“Enjoy thereading.” She called just as she rushed past the older woman. “Every squigglyline that will look like an “m” is an “s”, just so you know.”

Yes, Reginawas going to ask for her head, she thought as she heard her surname beingcalled again, every patron gaping at her as she opened and closed the door ofthe café, but she didn’t mind it. Not too much. Not when she knew Regina wouldprobably do something equally big in order to make her be the one who enteredinto the café with anger and surprise and she truly lived for those moments.

Perhaps,she wondered as she crossed the street, she should truly think on Ruby’s ideas.But not today.

#swan queen #SwanQueen #prompt #yes this is a one shot #darkqueenswan

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cupcakemolotov · 4 years ago

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An Unlikely Favor

And forever many days later, my muse finally cooperates. Almost 13K, and dragons (Caroline this time fam!) No Smut, as that just wasn’t going to work for this one. Since it exploded, I don’t feel bad at all.

Warnings: Character Death (not OTP), Fluff, Canon-Typical Violence. I mean. Klaus is Klaus and Caroline is a dragon.

I hate formatting on this hell-site, so I linked you to A03 after this first scene. Also, wanted to give a big thank you to @goldcaught and @klarolinedrabbles who have been a delight and received many text messages and complaints through this writing process (and other stories I am still hitting with mental-sticks).

Caroline set aside her empty glass, the lingering taste of cheap champagne bitter against her tongue. The lead for the painting she wanted was a bust, and irritation clawed sharply at her insides. The artist was no famous painter, but something about the colors and lines had caught her attention when she had seen it all those years ago and she wanted it. It had been an unfortunate turn of events that the family who owned the painting, descendants of the creator, had been so unwilling to sell no matter what she offered them.

Human sentiment could be so frustrating.

At the time she had walked away, because collecting through force was only fun when it was her enemies' heads, and humans did not live forever. She’d had the time. So she’d left behind a few feelers, and made sure she arrived mere weeks after the deaths of those who had owned the painting. But upon arrival, she learned that their entire collection was gone. To her great annoyance, three decades later and she was still no closer to finding where the painting had disappeared to. Once, it had very nearly been in her grasp, but her attention had been needed elsewhere and so she had walked away.

Tonight was turning out to be another long evening of disappointment. Turning sharply on one spiked heel, she headed for the door. Time was on her side, and thirty years was not her longest hunt, but for once her patience was in shambles. She’d come to the city specifically to search for her lost painting and had instead found a hotbed of witches. Usually, that was not a matter of too much concern, as she had learned to hide what she was… and certain spells had been gifted to her over the years to make that easier. But this coven had known who and what she was, and the relaxing week she had planned had turned into something a bit more bloody.

Now she was leaving empty handed and annoyed. Shopping would do her no good, collecting pretty baubles only soothed the rough edges when they were the pretty baubles that she wanted. Maybe it was time to return to one of her more secluded homes and stretch her wings. It had been a few years since she’d allowed herself the indulgence, and her beast was starting to grow restless and bored. Perhaps some time meandering through her collections and flying would help burn the worst of her temper off.

“Hello, love. You look ravishing.”

The sharply accented words were unexpected, and Caroline twisted around to blink at the man standing near her, surprise cutting through the annoyance that for the first time in centuries, he’d managed to sneak up on her. The curling smile on his face as he realized it did not improve her mood. But this particular monster had never bothered with reverence or fear, and charm clung to all the sharp edges of him as he smiled at her.

Tonight, he was dressed in a perfect tux, overdressed for the small gallery and unbothered by it, the leather cords she found endlessly fascinating missing but the dimples and lips she sometimes thought about too long on full display. He stepped closer, the edges of his smile deepening at her continued annoyance.

“Klaus.” She offered him her hand after a dozen heartbeats, giving herself a moment to absorb the impact of him even as a lifetime of greetings nudged at her. As much as she’d learned to love modern familiarity, with Klaus and in public, she’d never been comfortable expressing it. Unchanging he might be, she’d never managed the immunity to him necessary to ignore the way her beast shifted beneath her skin in his presence. Formality was a shield against public eyes. “I didn’t realize you were back in this part of the world.”

“A bit of business, I’m afraid.” He said, brushing a lingering kiss along her knuckles. “Nothing nearly so entertaining as the last time we ran into each other.”

Caroline frowned at his words, the slightly apologetic note, but decided it could be dealt with in a moment. This close and there were other changes that were suddenly apparent and far more important. Ignoring the decorum that had colored so much of their long, long lives she stepped closer and brushed her fingertips along the edge of his jaw, studying the shape of his eyes. Klaus allowed the familiarity, seemed to welcome it, and she breathed deep.

His scent was different.

Finally certain, she allowed herself to smile, her annoyance and irritation pushed aside for happiness for her friend now that she knew he had not learned a new trick. For this, she did not have to fake her delight. “You broke your curse.”

The flash of satisfaction, the smug tilt of his head was achingly familiar. “I did.”

“That’s wonderful,” she told him, letting her hand reluctantly fall away, fingertips tingling. “How long?”

“Less than a year,” Klaus assured her. “Even if business had not brought me here, I would have found you soon.”

“Good,” Caroline murmured “You remembered your promise.”

His look was chiding, starkly serious beneath the charm. “I have not forgotten a single word that has passed between us, Caroline.”

Lips finally curling at the hint of darkness in his voice, she tipped her head. “But if you are not here about your curse, I do wonder what business could possibly bring you to this particular gallery.” She deliberately let her gaze scan the quaint gallery, the mostly casually dressed patrons. “This isn’t quite your scene anymore.”

Klaus chuckled and moved to tuck her arm through his. “As it were, I have been looking for you, just not only for all the reasons I would have liked.”

She paused, fingers resting lightly on his forearm. Rarely did she go longer than two decades without Klaus making an appearance in her life, but this stretch of time had been nearly forty years. Such a small number of years in their lives, but an endless amount of time in terms of humans and their technology, and she had started to grow curious that he had not reached out to her. That he would make a deliberate choice to tell her that this visit was different was both a curiosity and a warning. “And why were you looking for me, Klaus?”

His hand settled over hers, fingers and palms far warmer then she remembered them ever being before. In her heels they were nearly the same height and he met her eyes steadily. “Would you let me buy you a drink? Perhaps dinner?”

Caroline weighed his offer against the disaster of her week and her eyes narrowed. “Do tell me that you are not here with those witches.”

“I am not,” a flicker of something dangerous, a hint of new and unusual yellow and the hard edge of the vampire she’d known for centuries behind his eyes. “But perhaps I will acquaint myself before I leave.”

“There shouldn’t be much left to find,” she dismissed. “I am perfectly capable of killing a few witches, Klaus.”

A laugh, low in his throat. “So I have seen. And perhaps you are correct, but there is always one or two, stashed away who believe themselves safe. I do so enjoy ruining their illusions.”

She huffed and relaxed against him as he led them towards the door. “For you, perhaps, hunting such a thing is enjoyable.”

“Come now, Caroline. You cannot expect me to believe after all these centuries that you do not enjoy a challenge.”

“There are challenges, Klaus, and then there are challenges. Hunting witch covens is an annoyance, I assure you.” She wrinkled her nose. “And these witches are not particularly imaginative.”

“And yet,” he murmured, the set of his mouth unforgiving.

Caroline considered that as they bypassed the humans still mingling, the startled glances thrown their way as they took in the finery. She knew his thoroughness would partly stem from a promise given so long ago, but Klaus had never left her with the impression that their past was a burden he wished to be rid of. In fact, if anything, he always sought for more of her, for more of her time. It fascinated as much as it left her wary, this man who knew more of what she was than any other living creature.

And whatever business had Klaus seaking her out would likely be messy, but hadn’t she just been contemplating how bored she was? Things rarely stayed dull near her favorite vampire, now hybrid she supposed, and more importantly, he had earned the right to ask that she at least hear him out. It was a favor she granted very few, but for Klaus… In all the centuries and decades that they had known each other, he had only ever asked her for one favor. She had been unable to help him, though she had done what she could to mitigate that failure.

That he would come to her again, the ghosts of his creation seemingly laid to rest?

“You may take me back to wherever you are staying,” she said decidedly as they approached the doors. “Hopefully you have better booze.”

His head tipped towards her, brows winging upwards. “As if I’d offer you something subpar, love.”

She laughed at the offended note in his voice, the glint behind his eyes. “No? I remember spending many a night drinking with you what could most definitely be described as subpar. Chicago was just a few decades ago, as I recall, and the booze there was terrible.”

His mouth curled upwards on one side, amused indulgence heavy in his voice. “I assure you, I have not forgotten your preferences.”

“I should hope not,” she drawled before squeezing his arm. “I will listen to your request, but I have one of my own.”

“Do you?”

His eyes glittered at her, something hot and unreadable in those yellow edges of his pupils. She pressed against his side again, and deliberately let her gaze linger on the lines of his face. “I do. You will keep the rest of your promise, and tell me the details of how you finally broke your curse. I want to know everything.”

Find the rest here:

A03 | FFN

#my fic #klaroline #klaroline fanfiction #I am so relieved to finish something #I have been working on this forever

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mattness · 6 years ago

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Space Dementia

Another chapter is here! Read now! ^^ OTP: Jenniwise ///// Chapter V. Famine took him again. It devoured Robert from the inside, causing everything to blur before my eyes and quicker to look for a new victim. He wanted to taste human flesh so that he could no longer hear the noise in him ears mixed with whispering voices. Sometimes it was so unbearable that he had to eat as much as he had not eaten in a month. And it helped. A strange habit developed after many years spent on Earth in the guise of a man on the trail of which could not get the police. With each new victim of forces became more and more. He felt fine, and nothing in this miserable world seemed to be able to stop him or kill him. It's impossible.

To transform from one image into another bring him an extraordinary pleasure. For hundreds of years, having stayed on this planet, whom he only not was, having studied human species as own fingers. Humanity developed, as did technology. It was necessary to correspond to each era, constantly switching to new inventions, forgetting old. He visited virtually everywhere, trying not to leave any mention of himself. No connections with people, as long as there is not a strong need. Of course, he had temporary friends he didn't really appreciate. Such human feelings as friendship or love, was alien to him. Most of all Robert was interested in negative emotions, bad feelings. Them he was ready to eat endlessly. In the twenty-first century, his choice fell on the face of a cruel man-killer (still eat human flesh was almost a necessity), which can not catch the police. On top of that, Robert Grey was rich enough to afford anything he wanted. His hands that were stained with blood, still "clean" because heaps of stupid pieces of paper. Now, saying goodbye to such a naive and pure soul Jennifer, he went along the wide corridors, looking for some poor person. His eyes acquired a bright-red hue, almost glowing, talking about the thirst of his master. Grey's choice fell on the old doorman, who was sitting near the restrooms and reading a book. He was distracted and politely smiled at the guest, as if understanding nothing. However, the doorman really didn't understand nothing. In an instant, the sound of bones crunching resounded along the empty corridor. Robert turned the doorman's neck and easily dragged him into the toilet, locking the door on the latch. Tearing a small piece of skin from the face of the dead victim, Grey smiled happily and began to chew. Blood sprayed on face, staining the floor. But this did not bother the man who was so pleased to gnaw his late dinner. Before his eyes nothing else was shaking, and terrible the roar in his ears vanished. Everything will be fine now. To next week, at least. * * * Closing the door behind her in the room, Jennifer with a happy smile on her face went to the bed and immediately collapsed at it. The last time she felt so good about herself was when she graduated university. The guy who met her at the restaurant wasn't a spoiled and vulgar pervert. He spoke like the most ordinary person with average earnings, without showing or shouting about his wealth at every step. He had no interest in the money. This could not but please Jen, who continued to stay in the seventh heaven on happiness. It would be very nice to have such an interesting person as a friend. Robert communicated so freely and easily with her as if they were old friends who had not seen each other for many years. From this Wright feeling freedom and told him a lot of stories from her own life. With him really was fun and interesting, that much surprised her. To find a common language with the person with whom she met just now, for Jen has always been extremely difficult. Well, or just a mysterious Grey could read minds, but in that girl very much doubted. All thought now filled this a man. Jennifer sighed heavily, suddenly realizing that it is not worthy of such love. He's too good for her. If Robert dares to take the first step, the brunette will go crazy, never believing in the reality of what is happening. In life came to some overly white strip, forcing her to question everything. Wright stopped to dream. Not gonna happen. Especially with someone she only knows for one night. Tomorrow Jen maybe see him one last time and go to Bangor, where from she will go to New York. The hurricane outside the window fell a little, but the rain kept going. The sky long ago was painted in a dark blue hue, and the lights on the streets turned off. Jennifer once again sighed and undressed, climbed under the warm blanket and immediately passed out. Sound sleep was not long in coming. * * * Bright rays of the sun crept into the room and started to warm the girl's face. Feeling the warmth and light, Jen frowned. Wake up didn't want to, but rang on the phone alarm clock has already begun to strain. The brunette slowly opened her eyes and sat on the bed, scratching her head. In the room things still lay in their places. Last night caused a light smile on his lips, giving a kind of inspiration. Jen got out of bed and headed for the bathroom, where she cleaned up her face. Gathering things in a backpack, she looked in the mirror and combed her hair. Now she was ready to go on way. An unplanned stop a little spoiled the plans Jennifer. Upon arrival in New York, she wanted to see Tyra and Margot, but apparently, the meeting will have to be canceled. Hardly enough time to stay in the hotel, where the magazine gave her a room, and to meet with friends. Forces simply not enough. The girl looked around the room again to see if she had forgotten anything. Luckily not. So she calmly left the room and closed the door, taking the keycard and headed for the elevators. "Thank you for using the services of our hotel", smiled receptionist at Jen. "Come to us again as soon as you are in Orono." "Of course", coldly replied Wright and headed for the exit, but at the last moment the corner of her eye noticed his acquaintance of yesterday. He again sat in a makeshift recreational area and, as if he felt the view of blue eyes on himself, distracted from the magazine. Robert looked blank in amazement when the girl shyly waved goodbye and continued on her way. The man immediately jumped from his seat, throwing the magazine aside. "Jennifer!" in the street caught her Grey, neatly stopping at the elbow. "Are you leaving?" "As you can see", Jen shrugged, turning to him. She barely managed to restrain a cry of admiration, marveling at the beauty of Robert in the light of the sun. Pale skin literally glowed, and the gray-green eyes were completely green. How did he even notice her among the other hotel guests? God, what is she thinking? As if Jen suddenly became the main character of a snotty romance about cute vampires, glowing in the sun. Feeling mixed up inside, like Jen first fell in love and didn't know what to do with it. But she wasn't going to succumb to a sudden impulse, because she knew how it was stupid and humiliating. Whatever Robert was not handsome, brunette will try to withstand the pressure of his charms. She need to leave right now and not stop. Get him the fuck out of her head and forget. Deep down, something told her it was the right thing to do. Deep inside, she felt a certain danger emanating from him, mixed with madness. Just because he's handsome doesn't mean he doesn't have demons sitting around waiting for the right hour to break out. "I thought you'd be here for a few more days", Robert smiled confusedly, hesitantly stepping forward to Jen's side. The girl frowned, seem to understand his intentions. Still yesterday she in it have been proved wrong. "I need to go to New York for an internship. And the sooner I get there, the better", explained Wright, his arms crossed over her chest. The girl did not believe a single emotion that was displayed on the face of Grey. "Why would you?" "I'm just interested", Robert waved his hands. "You shouldn't be looking for some hidden meaning in my words." Jennifer didn't answer, suddenly she heard one of the employees of the hotel with a serious look and he called the porters from the street into the room. They quickly came running, hiding for glass automatic doors. Behind the window the brunette was able to see the hustle and bustle, suddenly started for no reason at all. Grey, too, drew attention to it and immediately changed in his face. He pursed his lips, barely noticeably frowning. In the green eyes began to appear in small reddish spots, and his hands involuntarily clenched into fists. A foolish obsession possessed his mind. He wanted to smash everything around him to hell, but Robert well-behaved in hands. He tried to catch his breath and looked again at the girl standing opposite. Another potential victim is about to slip out from under his nose, and he can't help it. Can't attack her right on the doorstep, or he'll get caught. The police will catch him and put him in jail, where he was only twice in his not human long life. The realization that Jennifer will have to let go, unpleasant pressured. "Listen", a faint smile reappeared on his face," I'll be in New York city in a couple of weeks, too. Maybe we'll meet sometime, huh?" "Maybe", shrugged the girl, pretending absolute indifference. Inside, heart pounding, not wanting to believe what is happening. Does he want to continue to communicate with her? It's impossible to believe, thought Jen. "Then here's my number", Robert handed her the visit-card. Jennifer took a piece of paper, folding in pocket sweaters. She certainly wasn't going to call. Card comes out in the pocket bomper up until this very bomper will not appear in the wash. Breath again lost, it was worth to Robert again to shorten the distance. Jen intently watched every action of a high handsome, not knowing what will happen next. She never imagined that Grey read her every thought. Robert grinned faintly, he took notice how the girl held her breath, and her blue eyes stopped for a moment on his lips. Jennifer was very worried. And this excitement mixed with light panic had a special flavor, which he cautiously listened to. For the first time in many centuries, Robert decided to make concessions to his own victim, doing one dirty wish. But then it will pay off with sweet flesh and mad satisfaction. He can try it once. "Mr. Grey, please return to your room", the doorman suddenly called, distracting him from the girl and spoiling the moment. He gritted his teeth angrily and turned to face the man. "It's an emergency?" "Yes. Until it turns out, we ask all guests to stay in their rooms", explained the hotel employee and went back to the building. Robert re-noticed the girl was gone. He raised his eyebrows in surprise, immediately looking around. Jennifer quick step reduced the distance to the old Audi and the key opened the lock, the first thing throwing a backpack in the passenger seat. Grey frowned, not wanting to let her go without a reminder about yourself. He caught the girl. From abound Jen flinched. "What the hell are you doing?" the brunette cried out indignantly as she was grabbed by the shoulders and turned to face Robert. "I didn't say goodbye to you", the man tried to say as calmly as possible, but it turned out crooked and unconvincing. His eyes gradually acquired an orange color that a lot of started to scare Jennifer. He had to show a little cruelty, and all the good impression about him suddenly vanished. Now Jen didn't want anything, except how to escape from those grasping hands that clasped her shoulders, and go away from the damned Orono to Bangor. Quickly as possible. Hearts pounding, the adrenaline was bubbling in the blood. The first time she was scared for his own life, and immediately came the question: who really she has managed to meet? "Let me go, Rob!" brunette tried to escape, but nothing came of it. Robert breathed into the lungs so dear the smell of fear, barely holding himself in hands. He was ready to pounce on the frightened girl right here and now, but by that time the hunger was already satisfied. He didn't want to overeat. So maybe should feel sorry for the unfortunate and let go? Long sixty seconds he took a difficult decision. In the end had to loosen the grip with a guilty smile. Eyes regained a natural green shade, like never became amber. Jennifer frowned, feeling his fingers finally stopped furiously dig into the skin through the fabric of the jackets. Nowhere to retreat: opposite - lost his temper Robert Grey, behind - her own car. There were few options. Jen tried to take a breath and calmly wait for what comes next. "Sorry", apologetically gasped Robert, stepping back. "I... It happens sometimes." The girl said nothing and opened the car door. She sat behind the wheel, inserting the key into the ignition. The motor, of course, the first attempt wouldn't start, forcing her to sighed. Jen noticed how Grey touched with his long fingers, glass door and leaned in the window. He continued to play puppy eyes, silently begging for forgiveness. "My car is on the West side of the hotel", he started, as if by chance. "If you want, I'll give you a lift to Bangor airport." There was no response. Jennifer tried again to start the car, this time successfully. She grunted and closed the side window, shifting gears and preparing to go away. However, puppy eyes does not give rest. Robert continued to stand near Audi, waiting for something. "Jennifer." "What?" "At least leave me your number." "Why?" in surprise, arched her right eyebrow girl. "I should atone for another dinner", Grey quickly rammed, and a new plan immediately began to emerge in his head. Still, he will not leave this person alive. She have painfully delicious her emotions with feelings, and, of course, the flesh. From these thoughts in the mouth has accumulated too much saliva, which had to swallow, hoping that Jen didn't see it. "Give me your phone", with a heavy sigh, quietly said the brunette. Robert smiled smugly and handed her his iPhone, after unlocking the screen. In a few light movements, Jennifer wrote down her number and pulled the phone back to him. The man checked the record, retreating from the car. Finally, the girl with a calm soul turned the steering wheel to the left and pressed the gas pedal to the floor. This crazy new friend was now behind. Ahead waited only New York with a new job. Jennifer tried to get everything that happened last night out of her head. She quickly dialed a message for father to say him that she was on her way to the airport. From Orono to Bangor was less than half an hour drive. The day was in full swing. The sun was shining high in the sky, and the cool wind that blew into the open Windows of the car, pleasantly refreshed his head from the accumulated thoughts and emotions. Girl with large hard tried to recognize recent events. On the one hand, there was nothing wrong with meeting Robert Grey, but on the other… This man was too murky. Even not muddy, and strange. In his eyes sometimes read the real insanity, which, of course, frightened and repelled. Surely he is not all right, and now would like to stay away. Jennifer didn't want to link her lives with whom eventually is to suffer. "I need to talk with Tyra. I wonder what she will say about it", thought the girl, determined to destroy the oppressive inside the car the silence and turn on the radio. Until Bangor remained still ten miles, until New York city — four hours. "Damn Mr. Grey", Jennifer swore, snorting with laughter. "If call me Anastasia, and if I were awkward, clumsy and fabulously stupid, would think that all the idiocy of the book began to be embodied not only in the movie, but in real life. Tyra will laugh!" The car was rapidly heading along a wide highway towards the main cultural center of Maine. Music softly filled the salon, relaxing brunette. Gradually thoughts of spending the night in good hotel of Orono receded into the background, and the girl concentrated on the future flight. The plane was leaving for a while, and if things had turned out differently, and not as it happened, she would have been happy to stay in the hotel a couple of hours. The brain began to generate different outcomes of the same evening, which confused Jennifer: after all, a long absence of relations sometimes made itself felt. The phone suddenly rang, causing Jen to flinch slightly. On the screen flashed a familiar number. Thank God it was Tyra, not Robert. "How are you doing, Jenny?" she heard the joyful voice of a friend on the other end. "Perfectly!" the girl cried sarcastically, slamming her hand on the steering wheel. "You have no idea what happened to me while a hurricane raged in the vicinity of Bangor." "Let me guess: your car broke down as soon as you drove into Derry's driveway?" "No, wrong. And don't guess", Jennifer snorted. "You're the last one to assume it anyway." For a moment there was silence in the receiver. Jen knew that now Tyra frowned thoughtfully and rubbed his chin as she had always done, when she very hard thought. But still went from side to side in her room. The silence began to stretch Jennifer, and she already wanted to tell, but a friend suddenly "woke up" from insight. "Did you really meet someone?" she heard how Tyra cleverly smiled. "Wow! You're guessed", Jennifer chuckled, noticing a sign on the right side of the road with the inscription of the city. "Tell me!" "This is not a telephone conversation. When I get to New York, get to the publishing house, then we'll talk." "I'll take your word, Jen. You've got me intrigued." On this conversation was over. The girl threw the phone in the passenger seat, turning the steering wheel to the right. The car turned smoothly in the right direction, heading to the airport.

19 notes · View notes