#she is an anxious person and has some troubles socializing so like. i am cutting her some slack for that.
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dandyshucks · 3 months ago
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that last post has nothing to do with what happened last night btw (<- BIGGEST LIE I'VE TOLD ALL YEAR). i definitely did not spend like half an hour thinking about what Guz would say if i told him about the situation, in an attempt avoid spiralling about it for any longer than i already had (a few hours had already gone into perseverating on the msg that person had sent by that point -_-). i was definitely really normal about it and did not cry bc i felt like i'd done smth wrong by just existing as a they/them in the world, even though i'd done my best to make myself more palatable to that group by saying they could use whatever pronouns if they/them was too difficult.... um. i think i need to grow a spine actually. 0-0;;
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nian-7 · 9 months ago
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Heyo, I think matchup reqs are open but if not feel free to ignore (⁠・⁠–⁠・⁠;⁠)⁠ゞ
If it's alright I'd like a romantic and platonic match up for Pjsk and bsd (if not just romantic/ pjsk is fine)
Info:
My names Karma
I'm a minor, 17
I'm afab but I'm Genderfluid and use all pronouns
I'm pretty short for my age, 5’1 the last time I checked unfortunately, sobs. I don't get out much besides going to work for money so I'm pale as hell. I have freckles pretty much everywhere not a whole lot but they're definitely noticeable. I am cursed with a baby face, it gets better when I put on my glasses though, im cursed with terrible vision, I'm not allowed to drive without my glasses it's that bad
My hair is a shaggy wolf cut with curtain bangs, I'm a natural blonde but I always dye my hair ginger cause it's my favorite look on me (I'm trying to look like Chuuya cause I love him sm)
I'm an INFP-T, I'm also Asexual and Panromantic (slightly woman leaning but not an insane amount) I dress in dark academia style almost always: cardigans, sweater vests, long over coats paired with sweaters underneath. I'm very much trying to be that person you fall in love with in the book store 
When I'm in public alone I am very much socially awkward and anxious. I keep to myself and I am terrified of causing trouble for anyone
I tend to be drawn to more loud people; or more like popular/louder people adopt me out of the blue and I go along with it (which is funny considering I'm usually quiet) 
Once I've warmed up with people I very much match energys with whoever I'm with, typically just trying to make friends laugh. I value people's happiness very much
If we're out at a mall or something I'm quieter, but in private I can get very loud 
I also have a very close group of online friends all over the world (Some of us are meeting up soon and I'm very excited)
A lot of people have said that I also have big sister vibes
I do have diagnosed Anxiety and depression, typically I try not to let anyone see that side of me. I can spiral a bit into episodes where I just kind of ghost people and ride out whatever feelings I'm dealing with, then come back about 3-6 days later
I don't really do well with anger in general, weather it be my own or other people's
I also don't really have any appetite most of the time (I'm not sure if it's medical or not) but this can cause me sometimes to get super dizzy out of nowhere because I've forgotten to eat/drink 
I'm a digital artist, and I actually write fanfiction on Tumblr as well. I absolutely love cats, I’d talk about my cat Hazel for hours if I could (She's mean to me but I still love her </3) I also really like Vocaloid/Hatsune Miku music (kinda not surprising considering pjsk lol), I don't usually mention it in person though cause it's embarrassing to explain that shes just a singing hologram
I also have a fox obsession, I own a huge fox plush that takes up a designated corner of my room lol
I don't mind most things personality wise in people, but I do wish to be respected obviously
I like someone I can poke fun at casually and who can poke fun at me as well
My love language is big gift giving (wether it be buying or drawing occasionally) and physical affection (Cuddles always ╥⁠﹏⁠╥)
I've gotten tones of jokes that I only go for gingers, but I have zero preference for looks
I'm an overly patient person and get a little annoyed when people aren't as patient (but it's not a complete put off or anything) 
I also am very much someone who has to be on time. If I am not on time I lose it a bit
I think that's all (Maybe too much ´⁠-⁠﹏⁠-⁠`)
But thank you so much in advance! I hope you have an amazing day/week 💟
hi, anon! i haven't read bsd in a while so i'm a little rusty so i only did prsk. hope you still enjoy!
I match you with... (platonically)
Saki Tenma!
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-The biggest thing for you to be matched with Saki was the big sister vibes that you mentioned. The dynamic would just be too cute to pass up on!
-I tried to pick a more 'loud' or extroverted person and although I decided to opt for Saki instead of Tsukasa, I think you both would mesh together even when she's not necessarily as loud as her brother.
-Saki is like the person you can fall back onto in social situations when you get anxious. She doesn't mind taking the lead and helping you out when you get nervous.
-She's not someone who gets angry often and tries to be there for you when you ghost her or others. She tries her best to understand what you're feeling and tries to sympathize with you.
-You both having the same energy is something that would make the whole friendship mesh well and she has the capabilities to be calmer or quieter if needed.
I match you with... (romantically)
Shizuku Hinomori!
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-Although Shizuku is somewhat different than Saki, I think she's the best match overall. The physical affection she gives to you is one of the big factors.
-As someone who enjoys pda/affection, Shizuku would love to cuddle or hold hands with you all the time. She kisses you in public and just loves to be near you.
-She loves the gifts you give her as well no matter what they are. She'll always gush about them whenever someone asks about something relating to it (whether that embarrasses you or not).
-She's a very light teaser and it comes off more lovingly than anything but she enjoys it when her partner gives her attention through light teasing too.
-Although a bit airheaded, she's treating you similarly to Shiho. Asking always if you're hungry or thirsty, being the talker in public if you need it, etc. She just gives you more romantic affection than sisterly affection (obviously)
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mariana-oconnor · 2 years ago
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The Copper Beeches pt 3
I hope you are anxious to hear the conclusion of the case of ‘The Copper Beeches’.
Yes. Yes I am. Because while it's now pretty certain that the Rucastles are not part of a sex-trafficking ring, they're still really fucking creepy and now I also have to worry about the poor dog who is also being abused.
Family of serial killers, I swear.
"Is there a cellar with a good strong lock?" "Yes, the wine-cellar."
...
😈😈😈😈
"You seem to me to have acted all through this matter like a very brave and sensible girl, Miss Hunter. Do you think that you could perform one more feat? I should not ask it of you if I did not think you a quite exceptional woman."
Leeeeeeettle bit condescending there, Holmes. Although I feel like I am just more sensitive to that because modern perspective and experience. However, I do think think this section needs noting, if only because of all the people who are determined that Irene Adler is the only woman Holmes ever saw worthy of a compliment. Nothing against Irene, she's great, but Violet Hunter deserves better. She's been doing all the legwork herself this case, and she's made a pretty decent detective.
"If you could send her into the cellar on some errand, and then turn the key upon her, you would facilitate matters immensely."
...
heh
heheheh
...
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"Of course there is only one feasible explanation."
I still want to know what the other six possibilities were, Holmes. I want to know.
"Miss Alice Rucastle, if I remember right, who was said to have gone to America. You were chosen, doubtless, as resembling her in height, figure, and the colour of your hair. Hers had been cut off, very possibly in some illness through which she has passed, and so, of course, yours had to be sacrificed also."
Miss Alice Rucastle is having the worst year. First she's sick so badly she has to cut her hair off. Then her father imprisons her in her own home. And on top of all of that her stepbrother is a serial killer in training. Worst. Year. Ever.
"The most serious point in the case is the disposition of the child."
Really? That's the most serious point? Like, I agree it's not good. He's clearly showing signs of anti-social behaviour, aggression, and a worrying taste of having the power of life and death over other living beings, but I'm not sure I'd say that was the most urgent thing right now. I think getting Alice out is the most important thing. You can get him some serious therapy later.
"This child's disposition is abnormally cruel, merely for cruelty's sake, and whether he derives this from his smiling father, as I should suspect, or from his mother, it bodes evil for the poor girl who is in their power."
Ah, okay, you're saying that it's serious because it indicates the level of danger involved. Sure, yeah, okay.
Can't disagree on this point. It's certainly not a good sign.
ALSO, one other thing that has been bugging me since part 2. Does the kid know where his half-sister is? Is he aware she's locked up? He can't be, right? Because there's no way he wouldn't have let something slip. But at the same time, he's just unaware of a whole ass person being imprisoned in his home? It's weird. He's weird.
Dear Little Edward the murderer in training is either oblivious or very good at keeping creepy secrets.
I'm not sure about the stepmother. On the one hand, the crying and the quiet indicate that she's also being abused. But on the other hand she was the one to catch Violet with the mirror and then use it to further the scheme. Although she didn't say 'she has a mirror', which would have made Mr Rucastle angry. That whole bit is weird. Was she trying to stop Violet from getting into more trouble, was she trying to save their scheme? I don't know. But then, if she's living with Rucastle and her darling son all day every day, she's probably been ground down pretty far.
A loud thudding noise came from somewhere downstairs. "That is Mrs Toller in the cellar," said she. "Her husband lies snoring on the kitchen rug."
Suddenly there came a clanging As of someone wildly banging, banging at the cellar door.
And Mr Toller didn't even make it to bed? He's just passed out on the kitchen floor? He's lucky there's a rug in there and it's not just flagstones.
Then he tried the various keys in the lock, but without success. No sound came from within, and at the silence Holmes's face clouded over.
Not a particularly good sign...
"Now, Watson, put your shoulder to it, and we shall see whether we cannot make our way in." It was an old rickety door and gave at once before our united strength. Together we rushed into the room. It was empty.
Breaking down doors! Love a bit of action with my mystery.
"Ah, yes," he cried, "here's the end of a long light ladder against the eaves. That is how he did it." "But it is impossible," said Miss Hunter; "the ladder was not there when the Rucastles went away." "He has come back and done it."
But why would he climb up a ladder when he could just open the door?
I mean we know of the existence of at least one other person who would want Alice Rucastle out of that house and who wouldn't have a key to her room.
I'm just saying, Holmes.
"He's gone for the dog!" cried Miss Hunter. "I have my revolver," said I.
Oh no... poor doggo.
Please don't kill the dog, Watson. Please.
We had hardly reached the hall when we heard the baying of a hound, and then a scream of agony, with a horrible worrying sound which it was dreadful to listen to. An elderly man with a red face and shaking limbs came staggering out at a side door. "My God!" he cried. "Someone has loosed the dog. It's not been fed for two days. Quick, quick, or it'll be too late!"
Two days?! Two fucking days? Seriously.
But it kind of sounds like the doggo is getting revenge. Good boy. Good boy! You eat the bad man.
There was the huge famished brute, its black muzzle buried in Rucastle's throat, while he writhed and screamed upon the ground. Running up, I blew its brains out, and it fell over with its keen white teeth still meeting in the great creases of his neck.
Holy fuck this action escalated quickly. That is graphic and also... poor dog. I mean... I doubt it could have been rehabilitated at this point, but still. Poor thing never had a chance.
I do not remember this story being this brutal. Holy shit that guy's throat was ripped out.
Can't say I'm sorry. Glad the dog got its revenge before it died.
"Ah, miss, it is a pity you didn't let me know what you were planning, for I would have told you that your pains were wasted."
I mean, you didn't exactly give her reason to trust you? Why on earth would she? This is the most ridiculous 'you should have talked to me' ever.
"If there's police-court business over this, you'll remember that I was the one that stood your friend, and that I was Miss Alice's friend too."
I mean, were you? Were you? Alice's friend, sure. But were you Violet's friend in all this?
"He knew he was safe with her; but when there was a chance of a husband coming forward, who would ask for all that the law would give him, then her father thought it time to put a stop on it. He wanted her to sign a paper, so that whether she married or not, he could use her money."
It's Mary Sutherland all over again, just with more violence. Hey, Holmes. Holmes! You remember how you sent Mary Sutherland back into that life and didn't warn her about it? Huh? You remember that? Maybe thinking that wasn't such a good idea now? Huh? Are you?
I've had it with these men and their refusal to let their daughters have their own goddamn money.
"When she wouldn't do it, he kept on worrying her until she got brain-fever, and for six weeks was at death's door."
I know this is like a common Victorian cause of illness and all that, but I'd be real suspicious about that brain fever, because it feels like poison is a real possibility rn.
"...that didn't make no change in her young man, and he stuck to her as true as man could be."
Good for him. Basic minimum achieved. I mean, also he's been trying to get her out of this house, so he's also gone above and beyond. I'm glad he and Alice got away in the end.
"But Mr Fowler being a persevering man, as a good seaman should be, blockaded the house, and having met you succeeded by certain arguments, metallic or otherwise, in convincing you that your interests were the same as his." "Mr Fowler was a very kind-spoken, free-handed gentleman," said Mrs Toller serenely.
Oh, she did it for the money. Not such a good samaritan. But then if she were, she would have just smuggled the girl out.
Mr Rucastle survived, but was always a broken man, kept alive solely through the care of his devoted wife. They still live with their old servants, who probably know so much of Rucastle's past life that he finds it difficult to part from them.
I will admit I am sad the guy survived that. I'm not sure how he survived it. He had a mastiff's teeth 'buried in his throat'. He's insanely lucky his carotid wasn't torn open. But I suspect he doesn't do a lot of laughing anymore. So sad.
You couldn't have waited a little longer before shooting the poor dog, Watson? Let it get its revenge?
Also, that household sounds utterly terrible to live in still. Just a lot of horrible people being horrible to each other because they literally can't get away. And what about the child? What about dear little Edward? Is he still in there with them? I can't imagine that this made him less of a serial killer.
And the man doesn't get arrested for imprisoning his daughter?
Justice has not been served this day.
And that kid is going to grow up and kill a lot of people. I'm just saying. This isn't so much an ending as a 'to be continued'.
As to Miss Violet Hunter, my friend Holmes, rather to my disappointment, manifested no further interest in her when once she had ceased to be the centre of one of his problems, and she is now the head of a private school at Walsall, where I believe that she has met with considerable success.
Good for her.
Also, Watson, leave Holmes alone. He doesn't need a wife. He's fine. It is amusing to see that commentary, though. Like... there were 0 vibes of Holmes being into her. He complimented her a couple of times and was concerned for her safety. But he kept comparing her to a sister and there was no hint of romance in the whole thing. Watson is a bit delusional sometimes.
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olivetreehugger · 4 years ago
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SnK Scouts/Veterans as Health Care Workers
Note: features Eren, Mikasa, Armin, Jean, Connie, Sasha, Levi, Erwin and Hange. A part two to my “SnK Warriors as HCWs” post found here. warning: mentions of blood, trauma, gore (it’s healthcare). Also, I know Hange is nb, I headcanon them as female, so I will be using she/her pronouns. 
Eren: this boy is definitely too involved in everything and has too many people depending on him at once to not be a nurse. The kid barely passed the NCLEX but that didn’t stop him from applying to every trauma center within a 25 mile radius of him. He got hired as a night shift trauma ICU nurse  and he frequently picks up shifts in the ER. He wears the cheapest scrubs he can find, often stained with ink in the pockets area. He isn’t a shitty nurse per se but there are tasks that still need to be done at the end of his shift and he gives a crappy report that’s missing too many details. Nurses hate picking up his patients, it’s always a mess. His charting is really spotty and he gets called into the manager’s office all the time to fix it. 
Still, he tries really hard to improve his time management and skills. He wants to be like his friends Mikasa and Reiner, who are the best nurses he knows. He wants to be involved in the traumatic cases and emergencies because he wants to learn as much as he possibly can. He’s really good at wound care, for some reason (hint hint). He’s kinda cocky sometimes too, which can be troublesome when Dr. Galliard is working. People know to steer clear of those two when they’re both  in the ER. Also, Eren always has a black cloud around him; whenever he works it’s gonna be a hella busy day in the hospital. Lots of emergency surgeries, intubations, codes and deaths. He’ll always jump in to help you if your patient is crashing, though, no matter how busy he is. 
Mikasa: she’s a prodigy. She was a straight ‘A’ student in nursing school, got a perfect 75 on the NCLEX and was immediately hired to the trauma ICU after doing a short internship there. She worked night shift for a year but her sleep schedule was so so fucked she started having night terrors, so she switched to day shift. Eren still calls her a traitor for it :/. She keeps trying to get him to switch over but he just hisses at her and threatens to chug a case of Monster energy drinks. She hasn’t given upon him yet, though.
This girl’s work ethic is beyond measure. She comes in exactly at 6:30 am, looks up her patients, takes report, gives a great update to the doctors when they round, and provides impeccable care to her patients. She knows exactly which treatments the doctors will order before they even speak. She’s incredible at inserting IVs--everyone in the hospital knows Mikasa Ackerman can put an 18g in a 90  yr old lady’s arm AND get blood return (just trust me, it’s flipping impossible). She has great skill when it comes to emergency situations and is a big believer in team work. If she notices your patient’s crashing and you don’t know what to do, she’ll calmly coach you and save your patient, too. All before lunch time. 
It doesn’t take Mikasa long to be promoted to charge nurse. When she’s in charge all the reports, paperwork and audits are completed before shift change. She divides the patient assignments really well and is very fair to the new grads. All around she’s an incredible nurse and leader on her unit, but don’t be fooled. If it’s been a rough day, Mikasa will get in her car and sob so loud her throat goes raw. A lot of people depend on her and working in a trauma ICU is really, really demanding. A lot of patients are demanding, rude and busy. She has a lot of trouble with stress management and is thinking of cutting her hours down so she can catch a break. Someone please hug her <3
Armin: for some reason my brain is just SCREAMING respiratory therapist. Like, I imagine this beautiful blond boy in gray scrubs (the color for RT’s in my hospital) going around helping intubate patients, giving nebulizer treatments and doing blood gases. I can just see him huffing and puffing when the attending doctor is overzealous about weaning vent support. -“Why are we changing the patient to pressure support? do you see how tachypneic he is on volume control?”
-“are you gonna put in the order? if not, your patient’s gonna be on PRVC all day, I’m not changing it without an order”
-“Doc, the patient looks like crap and their blood gas looks like death...oh, you still wanna extubate? ok, well I’m gonna leave the ventilator in here just in case. better yet, let me call a pastor in here, too.”
This kid is sassy af and he knows it. He’s smart af too, knows everything there is to know about the lungs and respiratory care. Knows every ventilator mode better than most doctors. Will certainly tell a resident off for ordering the wrong type of inhaler for a patient. He’s so damn intelligent that he even made the ice queen Annie melt like a popsicle. 
 He has no chill when it comes to his patients and even less chill (like -4078875874670) when a doctor gets in his way. For this reason, Armin has recently been toying with the idea of going to PA school so he can have a little more autonomy. He works al over the hospital, usually frequenting the trauma, CV, and medical ICU. The nurses there love him. 
Jean: Jeannie boy. Baby. Sweetie. He’s also a nurse. He is strictly dayshift and trauma. When he first started, he thought he’d do a year in the ICU and then go to CRNA school. He didn’t want to be around sickly patients with hopes and dreams and fears--it was too icky for him. But, over time, he learned that he LOVED trauma. Jean loves the controlled chaos that comes with the ugly, bloody messes that roll in through the ICU’s doors. He always gears up for trauma season (summer time) by bringing Dunkin Donuts iced coffee for everyone on the unit (day and night shift because he’s a supportive king). He gets really good at dealing with arrogant trauma residents and ortho docs who think they’re hot shit. When Jean sees a resident yelling at a nurse, he jumps in and threatens to have their license revoked. He will dig under their skin and page them incessantly throughout the day, too, just to get back at them. Jean is not a fan of lateral violence in the workplace, no sir. 
He always, always makes sure every room is stocked and new bags are hanging for the next shift. He has a thing where if things aren’t properly organized on the unit his brain just spazzes. He’s on the unit council and education committee because he also loves to teach the new grads. He also doubles as charge nurse, when management can’t be there (there can be one or more charge nurses amongst the staff, they usually work different days, though) He and Mikasa work so well together, teaming up to get tasks done, coding patients, running them down to get scanned, etc. People joke they’re the mom and dad of the unit. It makes them both blush <3 (Eren doesn’t like it, lol)
Jean loves to see patients healing from horrendous injuries, he’s constantly cracking jokes with the awake patients to try to make them feel better, and he’s really good at calming anxious family members down. Our boy just makes such good connections with people. He’s the guy you call when your confused patient is one second away from ripping his breathing tube out. He can convince the most restless, agitated patient to chill out. He’s got the voice for it. Also people love his mullet. It looks great. 
Connie: I really didn’t know at first but I feel like Connie would make a great physical therapist. He’s got great energy, he’s funny and I could see him dancing to Earth, Wind & Fire in front of his patients to hype them up for therapy. He’d be very sweet with them 
Sasha: I’m sick and tired of the food jokes, quite honestly. She’s more than that. In my mind, she’s an occupational therapist, helping disabled patients learn to feed, dress and clean themselves again. She works directly with Connie as they round on all their patients in the hospital, they make a great team!  She’s extremely patient and would make a very good nurse, but is unsure of where life is taking her. That is until she meets Niccolo the dietician in the cafeteria, and she falls hard. He encourages her to follow her heart and she does!  
Levi: Hm. This one stumped me. Levi is a bit...cold. It’s not like he has incredible social skills. He’s meticulous and focused and kinda mean? He reminds me of an anesthesiologist, tbh. Like he’ll sedate the shit outta you for surgery, makes sure you don’t die on the table, and then drops you off to the unit as fast as he can. He never takes off his mask while in the hospital and he scrubs maybe four times before surgery. He is very good at medication calculations and knows everything about nerve blocks, intubation, pain medication and sedation. He can look at a person and just KNOW what kind of sedative to give and how much. Your blood pressure will never bottom out while he’s there, he’ll warn the surgeon and immediately get that norepinephrine started.
 If Zeke is the one operating, Levi is on his ass to finish up the surgery ASAP and to not linger, because Zeke takes his time and ignores the tele monitor alarming in the background. After surgery, this 5′2 demon will scream at the 6′ resident about the importance of blood pressure management and sedation in neurosurgical patients. Levi plays no games and he also just really hates Zeke lol
He seems like a jerk but genuinely cares about getting his peeps through surgery. His favorite surgeon to work with is Hange Zoe, because she’s brilliant and fast, but also cognizant of her patient’s hemodynamics. Levi likes taking trauma cases as long as it’s with her. When he drops a patient off to the trauma ICU or goes there to intubate, he makes sure Jean or Mikasa are there because he knows everything is gonna go smoothly. He trusts them a lot. He likes Armin, too and even let him intubate a few times. On his breaks, he’s drinking tea and reading a Williams & Sonoma catalog or scrolling through cleaning Tik Tok lol.
Erwin: This man. This beautiful and hunky beefcake. Omg. I HC him as someone who went to nursing school, became a charge nurse on the trauma unit back in the early 2000′s and fell in love with it. Erwin would eventually fall in love with leadership and educating, too. He went back to school and earned his Doctorate of Nursing Practice (a practice doctorate). He managed the trauma unit for ten years before his brilliant leadership skills and wicked smart brain got him elected as the Director of Trauma Surgery recently. He is the first person with a nursing degree and DNP to ever accomplish this, so it’s very controversial. A lot of toxic doctors threaten to leave the hospital for this (because they’re assholes), but Erwin threatens to fire them in response and it usually shuts them up. 
He often holds lectures in the hospital auditorium. With a mind and voice like his, people are so drawn in by him. He advocates for nursing staff, for reimbursement when continuing their education, better staffing, parking, etc. He makes nice with doctors and gets them to sign petitions for the nurses to get these things. He’s a bit manipulative He’s also a fantastic manager and director, he’s really good at negotiating things. The nurses and residents all love him because he rounds on every ICU frequently, brings food, and asks them how he can help. He can be a bit daunting because of his height and deep voice but once he starts talking to you, you just get sucked in. All around an absolute king. 
Hange: This character reminds me of a trauma surgeon and intensivist (ICU doctor) we have, Dr. Omi. A great surgeon, really really smart, but takes absolutely NO bullshit. She will yell at you if you freeze during intubating. She wants you to recite every step before you take it, otherwise she’ll take the tube from you and do it herself. In surgery, she’s the same way. She wants you to learn, but by her standards. If she asks a question, you better know the answer or fess up right away, she doesn’t like the “uhms” of uncertainty as you try to search for a shitty response. Either you know it or you don’t. And if you don’t, she’ll teach you. Yeah she can be rough around the edges, but she’s got a big heart. She loves her trauma team. She buys them breakfast and gives them funny personalized gifts. One time, she bought an apply tree for Mikasa and brought it to her car at the end of a shift. Mikasa forgot to plant it and it died in her backseat. Hange will sometimes ask, “Mikasa, how’s your apple tree growing?” and Mikasa will lie through her teeth. “It’s growing!” Fess up, Mikasa. Those google search apple trees are starting to look familiar.
All around Hange loves to work and teach. She is a wonderful trauma surgeon and has saved tons of lives.  
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btswishes · 4 years ago
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Love me for who I am now
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Bucky x Reader ( Chapter 1 )
Part1 / Next 
Summary: You apply for the Stark internship and end up getting it, so now you have 5 months to make a good impression to continue working with the Avengers.
A/N: This is my first Marvel fic and I am taking it as a challenge. It is opposite of what my account was made, but here I go. Sorry for any mistakes made, hope you enjoy it even a tiny bit.
Word count:  3,281
Warmings: fights, harsh language, not part of the original MCU 
Y/N- Your name Y/L/N:  Your Last Name
                                   --------------------------------------
  Through sleepless nights and dark circles, books and pens, through months of work you reached your goal. The moment you received the acceptance letter from Stark University you almost flew out the window without a fear in your mind. This was it!
  Time had passed since that moment, but it is still engraved in your mind- a memory keeping you strong during the hard midterms and piles of work, even the small glimmers of regret. Trying your best wasn’t an option, you could do only that and no less. It was no easy task, lost social life as much as you tried to keep it. You were really lucky you had good friends that understood and supported you. University wasn’t easy for anyone making this one even tougher. People of all ages, backgrounds and cultures were piled up with you in this building. The best of the best as the slogan said, the ones that proved themselves and emerged victorious.
  When you were young ,you used to spend a lot of time with your uncle at his places outside the country. He would introduce you to his work colleagues and things you had never seen before. There was a time where you would spend months on end with him. Not many memories were left from those moments in your head. At one point you spend a few years with him, your mother thought it would be good experience for you and it turned out to be nothing but the truth-at least you hoped so. You learned a lot from him and his friends, it felt like each spend day would offer you more knowledge in areas you never knew of. Computer work, ways of thinking and so much more that had become second nature to you.
  The sky was tinted in a wash of oranges, reds and yellows bleeding one into the other, swirling around the sun emitting them. The day was ending, but you found yourself filling up an application in the library, covered by the silence and smell of exam worry.
  Sponsored and founded by the one and only Tony Stark, this establishment offered an internship. Being part of the Avengers, Tony didn’t let just anyone from the students attending in, even if they were the best labeled by the school. It had been a year and a half since you started pushing yourself harder to be able to apply and there was nothing that could stop you. Pressing your finger over the enter button was very nerve wrecking yet simple. Even if it didn’t work out this year, you planned to do it again and again ,till he had no other choice but give you a chance.
  Usually F.R.I.D.A.Y. went over everything and left only the applications worth going over by Tony himself or Pepper. The next 5 weeks for you were very stressful, but there was nothing more you could do but wait and focus on your own work. The first person you wanted to tell about this was your uncle. He went to work in some distant place where they had no internet so you switched to mail. Not as much paper under his name passed through your hands, as he had stopped answering you. You missed him, but the muddy childhood memories kind of compensated for that.
“Did you send it in?” the phone muffled a bit the sweet voice coming from the speaker 
“Yeah, a few days ago actually.” You answered with a gentle sigh
“And no answer yet?” the girl’s pitch rose at the end of the sentence, amazed at that what she just heard
“I know, I know. Think about it though Nea. Who knows how many applications get submitted. Someone has to brush through them after all.” defending the situation was a form of coping for you, made you feel hopeful.
“So you are trying to tell me Tony Stark’s interface or whatever it’s called, can’t sort them out in a couple of hours? Come on Y/N! You and I both know you are trying to make yourself feel better.” The small pause made you anxious over what Nea said “Listen.” A breathy start of the sentence “ I don’t mean to brag, but I think I am one of the people who know exactly how much you deserve this. You were never the studious type, plus that you were gone for years on end with that mysterious uncle of yours. I never expected you to suddenly go for Stark University. Your dream changed you, from this quiet kid to crazy ol’ you right now on the call with me.I ain’t letting you bust yourself up over this just because it didn’t happen the first time around-”
                Ding ding
  Nea’s deep speech was cut off before she could unleash herself completely, by the slight ring of your phone’s notification.
“Who tf has the audacity to text while the great me is giving this legendary –“
                Ding!
  The second time the sound sung out made her choke up with anger, you could almost see the fumes coming out of the phone.
“WHO IS IT!” a loud hiss pierced your ear
“Maybe if you gave me a minute I could answer your question.” Pulling the call down, your finger ran over the screen to the email, making your notification lamp blink like a car. Almost instantly it opened before your eyes and you gasped. The action made you swallow suddenly and cough out a bit ,giving poor Nea an idea about the level of shock you were in.
“What?What? You can’t just almost die and not tell me what is going on.” She proceeded with a not so tasteful interrogation.
“I-…they accepted my application…” at the end a small smile flowed over your lips contorting the sound coming out
“Stop!?” she choked up as well “You gotta be fucking with me!? No fucking way this is real!”
“I am honest. It says here that they liked my skill set, my grades and the way of thinking I presented in my essay. I got the spot Nea! I fucking did it!” you threw the phone on the bed letting it bounce as you started dancing.
“Of course you did! I told you! You will be working with THE AVENGERSSSS!” at some point it sounded like your best friend was more excited than you “When do you start?”
“Well…” taking a second to calm down and re-establish contact with your phone, you looked up the schedule that came attached with the email “…ok…so it says here that I will be starting on Monday so~ in 2 days? “
“So soon! Any requirements for the job miss Avenger’s sidekick?” and the teasing begins
“A list, surprisingly.” Rolling onto your back, you held the screen away and above your face, scrolling past “ I guess my first job will be with Dr. Banner in the lab. Apparently I will be given some sort of assignments throughout the 5 months work span. I will be monitored by Dr. Bruce Banner and the grading, I guess if you can call It that ,will be done by Tony Stark himself.”
“Basically Hulk will be your babysitter.” once this girl starts teasing she never stops even in amazing situations such as this one, good thing you loved her “That sounds so cool though! You will be able to meet Captain America and Black Widow~! I am so jelly of you I swear! When you leave work make sure to wait for someone from the group to walk by, omgggg I am fangirling so much right now.What if you go to dinners with them!?AAAAA!”
“Fun thing about that.” Your eyes landed on the last paragraph of the email “It says here that I am supposed to move into the compound and stay there till further notice. The whole idea is that if I do things well I will get a permanent job. Weird…” you hummed
“Weird !? How? That is so cool! Who knows you might even become an Avenger! You will be living with them anyways.” at this point Nea was either not breathing or hyperventilating so fast you couldn’t hear it
“Don’t be ridiculous.” your attention landed once more on the thought process you had a moment ago “I don’t get one thing. They say here that my PE grades combined with my IT and overall studies make me a great candidate, but I don’t remember sports being a requirement at all, or even providing them in the first place. Does it mean that if my grades were low in that department I wouldn’t have gotten the spot?”
“I guess people of science aren’t that flexible. Who cares anyways! You got in, no ifs and buts. I am telling you, at this point you could be an Avenger.” poor girl began thinking of names and suit designs for you “ Hurry up and pack those bags before I drop by with take away, so we can gossip over Steve Rogers’s abs.”
“Um…don’t get me wrong he is super hot, I just see the Cap more like an older brother figure than anything.” It was true, you looked up to him since the first time you studied about the Civil War. Fearless, gave his life in a way for his people, astonishing man over all.
“Hey! Let me drool over him! You were always more of a Winter Soldier fan anyways.” Nea pouted audibly . Her words made some lone memory pop up in your head, but it was as murky as the rest. “I don’t know why I am interested in him. Somehow his look is very nostalgic and rugged. Anyways. ”you shook your head out of the mental image of the soldier “I will go pack up, tell my parents and fix up all my documents. Probably find some stuff from former Stark employees online. I want to have a bit of an idea of what he expects and what I am getting myself into.”
“Fine fine, you could have just said you like troubled guys. You were the one who was happy Loki got a second chance after all. I will be over in like 3 hours.” She informed you
“Hey! He deserved to redeem himself, he was used!” a firm Loki supporter as always “Ok then, see ya.”
   Hanging up the call you placed your phone to charge and rolled off your bed. The email gave vague information about what you needed, but clothing wise you would still be able to come home and get stuff if you had to. What was on top of your priorities were papers, documents, all your research materials and tech. Those things had to be organized no matter what ,since they got you this far in the first place.
  Nae came over as planned and you two had a nice sleepover talking about you know who. The night came and left, letting the morning find you in your bed at 11am. Your forearm rested on top of your forehead in a relaxed manner, letting enough space for an exhale to linger in the air in front of you. Your mind was going over everything that was about to happen to you. It was one of your dreams, you worked for it nonstop day in day out, so why were you so worried about meeting the rest of the Avengers? Maybe it was just anxiety or fear of the unknown, yeah made sense.
  All you did during the day was make lists for every piece of tech you were binging with yourself. Things seemed to be in order, but worry kept nibbling on your bones. The moment of truth finally rolled up and so did your suitcase in front of your house. Nea came to send you off as she promised.
“Sweetie, make sure to call us every day. Eat well, don’t overwork yourself and-“ your mom went off with caution about anything and everything that came to mind
“Mom, you know I am going 3 blocks down from here right? Plus I can come home at any time I want to. I am not moving to Mars or getting arrested.” You smirked the panic away from her, giving them a big hug.
“Call me or text me when you get there.” Nea pulled you in, whispering in your ear as quietly as possible “And don’t forget to sneak me a booty pick of good ol’Cap. You know what they say-”
“That is America’s ass.” Your voice came out in a mocking tone
“That i-…let me at least finish it by myself! Geez!” she pushed you towards the door “Ok ok, go now before you spoil me something else” her arms crossed in front of her chest
  The walk wasn’t that long, you were too invested in your own thoughts to notice when the time and distance had passed. The glistening windows of the compound building shined into your eyes. Your lungs filled up with a breath that they kept in for a moment, before releasing it back in the outside world. Pulling out the documents you stepped in. The fresh smelling air hit you making you close one eye for a second.
People were walking around you fast and concentrated. Some looked in a hurry, others were on break with a cup of coffee and a strain-leaving expression.
 Your feet, as slightly shaky as they were, took you right up to the front desk were a lady with a dark rich red colored uniform looked at you. She flashed a professional smile, her eyes asking for your purpose.
“Um, hello. My name is Y/N -Y/L/N.” she saw the logo on your papers and gasped
“You must be the new intern Mr. Stark told us about.” She signed something and reached out “Can you give me your hand for a second.” Your fingers didn’t go past the surface of the desk when she pocked your skin. Pulling in your extremity, your palm wrapped around the spot that began to sting a bit “Don’t worry about it. This is your identification pass. Fancy, no?” she smiled winking. Her body stood up as she pointed at the elevator far in the back of the foyer.
  Instructions were given with each step of the way, calming your nerves a bit. The moment you found yourself inside the elevator she pulled your hand to the sensor on the wall next to the buttons.
Recognized: Code 2514. Welcome Miss Y/N  
 Your head shot up when F.R.I.D.Y.’s voice echoed in the small space. The women smiled giving you a small nod and stepped out of the vicinity. Once her body was outside ,the doors slid closed. Over them glowed a protective blue light layering over the material like a soft veil.
 It felt like you weren’t moving an inch. Your body flinched when the sun stung at your eyes from the window. Your gaze landed over the view of the city, as you went higher and higher, ascending into the clouds  The blues and yellows were covering the inside of the elevator, such vibrant and lovely colors warming your body. For a moment your heart felt heavy- lost memory tugged onto it again. An often occurrence lately, yet you kept brushing off as deja vu. 
Floor 134. Welcome to the Avenger’s compound Miss Y/N
“134!?” the numbers cracked out with your voice. The interface made you turn towards the opposite opening doors revealing a room as big as a hall, if not almost a stadium. The ceiling was high being the lid to this round area. Your heart beat increased pumping blood to your body, dilating your pupils at least twice their original size. It look amazing, almost like you had just entered heaven. The walls were white, the furniture was perfectly placed and cream colored. Stepping outside you jumped at the sound of the elevator doors closing behind you. 
“Wow” escaped your lips, your hand pulling the suitcase closer. So this was the common room or the shared space. The windows were so big they were practically a wall of their own. The bright rays were making themselves at home giving the white paint a new color with each passing minute. The ceilings were probably the equivalent of 3 floors in height. There was this weird feeling of home inside, a bit of isolation maybe mixed in. 
“Miss Y/N?” your head swung to the side when you recognized that shy but bright smile. Throwing the papers on top of your suitcase, you extended your arm at the man.
“Ah.” Good thing your mind automatically responds politely to people without you giving it much thought “Dr. Banner. It is my pleasure to make your acquaintance.” you shook his hand gently a couple of times and let go ,finding the papers and showing them to him “My name is Y/N-Y/L/N.” gentle bow and a smile followed the words skillfully chosen
“Welcome Welcome. Tony is out right now so I might be the only one actively walking around the compound. Well…”he scratched the back of his neck, lightly hunching over with a sheepish smile “I am one of the people you will be working under anyways, so I guess it is good that I came to get you. I would love to show you the lab, but I am sure you would like to set up your things first.” You nodded and he showed you to your room. The corridor had 3 tall doors scattered on the walls, all looking modern and elegant.
“This is the side where usually we have our female members. Natasha and Wanda will be your nextdoor neighbors. Hope it won’t be any trouble.” Bruce looked at you ,when an aggressive shake took over your neck
“No, no. Not at all sir. I am very grateful to have such amazing heroes next to me. As a matter of fact won’t they be troubled with me here?” and here came the normal anxiety that you had for everything
“I am sure they will like you. Don’t worry about it.” Bruce stepped next to the door and waved you over “You don’t have a key or a door handle as a matter of fact. Tony’s idea, don’t ask. If you got up here on your own I assume he made the girls downstairs give you an identification implant. That is basically your entrance for everything here. Kind of an Avengers thing.” You nodded and him wiggling his fingers like a spell. Placing your hand on the door like he told you activated F.R.I.D.A.Y.
Recognized: Y/N. Access and ownership granted.
  The metal frame slid open and you found yourself standing before a big room. It was nicely furnished. The desk was big enough for you to work on it and have everything around. Bookshelves empty and ready to be used on your left and a large bed on your right flush against the wall. The window was once more its own wall right in front of you standing behind the desk. The bathroom door was opening a space before the shelf the same color as the paint in the common room.
“I will let you set up. If you need anything F.R.I.D.A.Y. is always here. The room is interactive, you can ask exactly what works under the interface’s control. The door is one.Take your time.”he was on his way out “Would you like some coffee or tea?”
“I would like some tea, thank you very much.” Bruce flashed you a smile “F.R.I.D.A.Y. the door please.”
Door closed 
  Done as said and requested, clicking behind you. 
Would you like an extensive list of my functions as an assistant?
“Please do.”
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iwaisa · 4 years ago
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► now playing...
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- pairing. atsumu x female reader
- genre. childhood friends to lovers / college au
- warnings. mentions of alcohol and drugs, suggestive content
- word count. 2.2k+
- key. n/n - nickname
- a/n. it’s a day late, but happy birthday atsumu !
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everyone claimed that you and your best friend of almost thirteen years, atsumu miya, were polar opposites. he was the more rambunctious one of the pair, and you were the one getting him out of trouble with your soothing words and personality. in fact, everyone claimed that you and osamu were the twins, cutting atsumu out of the picture.
of course, being best friends with the crazier twin had its perks; he would bring you out of your comfort zone and help you experience things you never expected to enjoy as much as you did. one of those experiences happened to be a house party. 
atsumu never made you uncomfortable, and if you communicated with him that you absolutely did not want to do something he was offering, he would listen. but, you agreed to this party simply because you wanted to let loose, or rather, show atsumu what he was missing.
yes, it’s the classic falling in love with your childhood best friend, but in this story, the person confessing gets interrupted. multiple times. this eventually led to you giving up, and focusing on your academics instead.
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the first instance happened in the sixth grade on valentines day. osamu helped you confess to his brother by making him honmei chocolates in heart shapes. you were extremely nervous, and practically shaking in your shoes when you saw atsumu come out of the classroom where you were standing. 
“hey, n/n! what’re ya doin’?” he ditched his friend and ran up to you, his deep golden eyes instantly landing on the pink and red box you were clutching. 
“oooh~ n/n-chan’s got a crush~!” he teased, pulling your cheeks out, rolling the flesh between his fingers. you scoffed and pushed him away, with him whining in return.
“who is it? tell me~! tell me, tell me, tell me-” you cut him off by putting a finger up to his lips, “‘tsumu, if you don’t shut up right now i’ll make sure osamu never cooks for you again,” you crossed your arms, content at the way your friend pouted.
“but n/n~ i’m yer best friend! i can help! i have good advice, right?” he continued to sulk as the two of you made your way home. “i’m not telling,” you huffed, fumbling with the bow sitting atop the box. atsumu opened his mouth to retort, only to be cut off by a girl screaming his name. 
you watched as she ran up to your friend with a hint of hesitance in her actions. atsumu towered over her playfully, making her face turn red. you held your breath knowing what she was about to do, and you realized you wouldn’t be able to do what you have been preparing all week for.
“miya-san, i like you!” she exclaimed, bowing as she held out her own honmei chocolates. atsumu let out a playful gasp before glancing over to you to wink. you tried to wipe the dejected look off your face, but you couldn’t find it in you to. you thought atsumu and the girl looked good together, as much as you hated to admit.
“ah, i’m sorry!” atsumu started, scratching his neck. “i like someone else! but don’t ya worry! ‘samu has the same face as me, why don’t ya ask him?”
you couldn’t help but chuckle at the current predicament, but you instantly shut up once the girl snapped her head to glare at you. 
you watched as tears began welling up in the girl’s eyes, and she apologized before bolting the opposite direction. he shrugged, and continued walking with a slight pep in his step.
“you didn’t have to be so rude, ‘tsumu,” you muttered.
“eh? but i don’t like her! i’m just speakin’ the truth, ya know?” he sighed.
you never got the chance to give atsumu those chocolates you spent so much time on, so you and osamu decided to eat them together. the calm twin apologized on behalf of his idiot brother, and helped you build your confidence back up.
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the second time was in your second year of high school when you and the twins were hanging out at his house watching a volleyball tournament on the television. instead of watching the screen, atsumu continued talking about the girl who had confessed to him that day.
“-and then she tripped while running up to me! it was kinda funny,” the faux-blond chuckled. “‘tsumu that’s not something ya should be laughing about. it looked really painful,” osamu chided. atsumu retorted by sticking his tongue out at the silver-haired boy. you stayed quiet, counting the many girls who have had the guts to tell atsumu their feelings. that was excluding you.
both you and osamu were equally annoyed at how ignorant atsumu was, and you felt as though you should just give up.
“say, n/n. do ya have a crush on someone right now? you haven’t dated anyone yet, loser.” you stuck your tongue out at atsumu, and he snickered in response.
“‘tsumu, ya haven’t dated anyone either,” osamu sighed, reaching over the two of you to grab more popcorn from the bowl resting in your lap.
“shut yer trap, ‘samu! like ya’ve dated anyone!” atsumu flipped osamu off, making him sigh.
“actually, i have. last year,” osamu smirked, knowing he’s got his brother topped in the relationship category. 
“yeah, for like, two weeks,” you muttered under your breath.
“f/n, i thought we were buddies,” osamu frowned, making you laugh. “it’s not my fault she didn’t like cooking as much as i do,” he defended.
“why don’t ya just date food then?” atsumu mocked.
“what about ya, ‘tsumu? why don’t ya just date volleyball?”
“if i could i would! i don’t have time for relationships if i wanna be a pro anyways. besides, relationships are stupid.”
you felt your heart drop. so much for you and osamu planning a way for you to finally tell him your feelings.
osamu watched your face change in disappointment, and he hit his twin on the head. the twins began arguing as you kept your eyes glued to the screen, trying to push your feelings for someone who didn’t even want to date out of your head.
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by the time the three of you went off to college, you had almost forgotten about those times, along with your feelings for the boy. yet here you were, standing in an outfit you deemed ‘too revealing’ while waiting for the blond twin to pick you up.
you searched for your phone and laid down on your couch. you were in the middle of scrolling mindlessly through your social media before you heard a knock and a familiar voice at the door. “oh princess~? ya ready to go?” you rolled your eyes, grabbing your purse. you stopped before opening the door, attempting to calm your beating heart. 
you exhaled, pushing open the door. you watched as atsumu began stumbling over his words as his jaw dropped open, with his eyes scanning over your body. his eyes dropped from the exposed skin above your breasts, to your plush thighs beneath the short skirt.
“you done drooling?” you teased. in that moment, you felt pretty damn good. it was natural for you each morning before classes to just jump into some pants and an oversized sweatshirt, not worrying it looked as if you just rolled out of bed. 
atsumu on the other hand wasn’t doing so well. as the two of you grew up, he never once saw you wearing an outfit this enticing. he was sure he wouldn’t be able to hold himself back if he saw another guy gawk at you. he felt the sudden urge to place his jacket over your very sexy shoulders, but after seeing your excited face he knew better than to ruin this for you.
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the party wasn’t interesting at all to you. a couple people making out here, a group playing a drinking game there, and most unfortunately for you, atsumu was nowhere to be seen. for the first twenty minutes of being there, you were already bored and in need of a nice shower. instead of sitting at a table in a near-empty room, you decided to take initiative and search for your idiot of a friend instead of just texting him.
as you searched through the rooms, you couldn’t help but grow more anxious. you found an empty room, and decided to wait there for atsumu to call you.
it felt like hours since you entered the room, and you were now laying on a couch tapping your foot along with the faint music bumping outside. you snapped your head up upon hearing the door slide open, and you watched as atsumu waved at you.
“where’ve ya been?” he picked up your feet and sat on the couch, carefully placing your legs on his lap. “trying to find you, idiot.” he hummed, pursing his lips. “sorry for ditching ya. i was talking to suna and some other people on the team.” you nodded in understanding.
the two of you basked in the silence, with the music outside being the only noise. “ya got any dudes’ numbers tonight?” atsumu teased. you punched his arm, shaking your head as he chuckled. “you get any girls’ numbers?” you instantly regretting asking him, growing nervous that he would say yes.
“nah. i’m too busy for any of that stuff. volleyball, remember?” you nodded, letting out a sigh of relief. “although, i am kinda disappointed i haven’t been able to tell this one girl that i like her.” you bit your lip, trying not to show that those words had just stabbed through your heart. after asking who it was, he responded with a simple “can’t tell ya.” you rolled your eyes. “i’ll give you two-thousand yen if you text her right now.” what were you doing? why were you encouraging him to do something you’ve always been scared of? if you were so nervous about him finally getting a girlfriend, why did you just push him to confess to someone? “oh yeah? two-thousand yen then, please.” he chuckled as he held out his hand. “nuh uh. you gotta text her first, and then i’ll pay you.” he clicked his tongue and dropped his hand. 
you watched as he fished his phone out of his pocket, and you felt your stomach knotting up with each growing second. your heart was pounding uncontrollably, and all you wanted to do was run away. you pictured atsumu holding hands with another girl, kissing another girl, doing other things with another girl. that girl would never be you. 
you swung your legs off his lap, standing up to smooth out your skirt. you began making your way towards the door, and you watched as atsumu looked up to you in confusion. “where’re ya goin’?” he tilted his head, his brows furrowing. “i think i’m gonna head home. i’m a little tired.”
“well aren’t ya gonna check yer phone first?”
your mouth dropped open, and you felt your heartbeat begin to pick up again. you began trembling as you reached for the pocket of your purse, slowly pulling your phone out. you kept eye contact with the boy even as you pressed the button on your phone. he smirked as you glanced down to see your contact name for atsumu on the screen, letting out a quiet gasp.
“atsumu miya, this better not be a fucking joke,” you muttered, glaring at him. “if it was a joke i would be laughing, f/n.”
you swiped open your phone, bringing up the chat between you and the faux-blond boy. 
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you looked up from your phone, glaring at him. “ha ha. funny. you almost got me.”
“i’m serious, f/n.” your breath hitched in your throat as atsumu got up from the couch and began walking towards you. “i really like ya.” you felt your heart swell before speaking up, “i like you too, ‘tsumu. since sixth grade, actually.” you watched as he grinned, laughing at how much of a dork he looked like. 
the two of you stared at each other for a while, and you shifted your weight to the other foot. you flinched in sudden pain from your heels, seething. “i hate to cut this short, but can we please leave? my heels are killing me,” you chuckled softly. atsumu nodded, bending down in front of you. furrowing your eyebrows, you asked him what he was doing. “hop on my back, idiot. i’m not letting ya walk home in those heels.”
you smiled as you shook your head, slowly climbing onto atsumu’s back. the two of you laughed as he spun around, your arms comfortably fit around his neck. you leaned over, pressing a quick kiss to his cheek, startling him. he turned his head to look at you, allowing you to capture his lips with yours. he hummed, reaching his hand up to stroke your cheek. 
breaking the kiss, you watched as the corners of his lips quirked into a goofy smile. “alright, time to go home,” he sighed in contentment, patting your legs. “wanna stay over tonight?” he nodded his head eagerly, “i would love to sleep over at my new girlfriend’s apartment.” you groaned in embarrassment at his statement as he laughed boisterously. 
you leaned down, resting your cheek on his shoulder. you closed your eyes as he made his made his way to the front door, finally happy to heading back to spend some genuine alone time with your idiot of a boyfriend.
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manga-and-stuff · 5 years ago
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Interview with Makoto Yukimura, the Mangaka behind Vinland Saga
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REALQ: What kind of child were you? Yukimura: I was a laid back kid, who took a very, very long time to come to a decision. I'd be late to dinner because I was thinking about something or other. Once, while I was alternately touching the right and left eyes of a snail, I became aware that night had fallen. I wondered why my group of friends were always in such a hurry. I would focus on something and lose the ability to tell if time was passing quickly or slowly.
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REALQ: When did you first encounter manga? Yukimura: I was five-years-old and the manga was Akira Toriyama's Dr. Slump. I remember thinking the cover art was cool. When I was little, I used to think that the cover art and the story inside were drawn by different people. [Laughs]    But I watched the Dr. Slump anime before I read the manga. Later, someone told me that there was a manga that the anime was based on and I found the weekly magazine where it was serialized. In the beginning, I was dubious. I didn't see why there needed to be both a manga and an anime. Like, why do the same thing twice? How-ever, after I saw them both it made sense because each had its own idiosyncracies. REALQ: Did your parents say anything to you about reading manga? Yukimura: No, they never said anything. They came from a generation who said reading manga made you an idiot, but they didn't say any-thing. They didn't say anything when I told them at 16 that I wanted to draw manga, either.
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REALQ: Was there anything that your parents, siblings, or people around you would say to you often?
Yukimura: There certainly must have been various things, but I don't remember because I was probably concentrating on something else at the time and didn't hear them. However, one thing I do remember is being told to watch out for cars. Like, at the very least, try not to die. [Laughs] Nevertheless, I really did get into a traffic accident. Once, on my way to the park to play with my friends, I ran out into the street and got hit on the side by a sedan. I rolled over the top of the car—the hood, wind-shield, top, rear window, then the trunk. Strangely, I wasn't seriously injured and played in the park afterwards. Actually, there was also another incident.    My sister and I were riding together in a car. It was just the two of us and as we were going down a hill, a car suddenly appeared and we hit its side. I was sitting in the backseat and was launched forward like a catapult. My sister was so surprised she called out, "Mako, you're flying!" Strangely, I wasn't injured that time either, and we decided not to tell our mother. [Laughs] REALQ: Did your way of thinking change after the accident? Yukimura: I think that if it did change, I wasn't conscious of it. Despite being a near-death experience, it was a miracle I wasn't injured. My mother getting angry at me afterward was more frightening. [Laughs] In terms of my "way of thinking," I'm a little different. Like something in me is lacking. It's often the case that for some reason I don't fully comprehend a conversation even if I'm really trying to concentrate on what the other person is saying. What's the reason? If I'm honest about it, it's because I'll start thinking about something else, even if it's just for a moment. REALQ: Did you also have trouble paying attention during class at school? Yukimura: Yeah. Especially classes that didn't interest me. I continued to have this problem in high school, where I'd often be sitting in class and before I realized it, the bell would ring. However, my notebook would have stuff drawn in it...manga. REALQ: Didn't teachers or friends say anything? 
Yukimura: In high school, I didn't have much of a social life, so nobody said anything. I went to reasonably academic schools [REALQ Editor's note: Yukimura graduated from Chuo University and Suginami High School] and my peers studied quite hard. The feeling that I was so different from most of the people around me had a big effect on me. I didn't fit in. I lived in my own world.
REALQ: Did student life give you anxiety? Yukimura: Anxiety was the only thing I really felt. In a way, isn't school a microcosm for society? Despite it being a microcosm, there's this feeling of being left behind. That made me really anxious and sad. But as a result of suffering in this way, I realized that society existed out-side of this microcosm—a kind of society that I had never experienced inside the microcosm of school.
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REALQ :What lead you to have this epiphany? Yukimura: It occurred to me out of the blue one day when I was feeling totally devastated. I was 16. One autumn day after school I thought to myself, "I'll finish high school because if I don't, it will make my parents sad. But participating in a society reflected in this kind of microcosm will be impossible." It was just like that moment when a cup is filled to the brim with water and suddenly the surface tension breaks and it overflows.  However, thinking this made me feel better. Until that point, the "ruler" for determining success since the first year of high school had been getting good grades, getting into a good college, and then finding a job with a good company. This ruler contained within it a system of values for how one should live their life. When I decided that this was not the ruler I wanted to use to measure my own life, things became a lot easier for me. I used to get burnt out worrying so much about getting decent enough grades that would allow me to get into university. Like, "please let me just graduate!" Realizing that there was another way to live was a lifesaver. 
Of course, I think it made my parents nervous. In that era, there was still a deeply rooted notion that one's academic background was im-portant and working for a good company made you a good person. Back then, this was like saying, "Your child is the type of kid who won't find their way in the world." It was like throwing away the most important ruler and replacing it with a new ruler that was a little bent and covered with indecipherable markings. [Laughs]    REALQ: Was there anyone from your high school days who had an influence on you? Yukimura: A teacher who taught classical literature. He was apparently a teacher with quite bizarre interpretations of the material. More than anything else, what left the greatest impression on me was when he used class time to talk about how wonderful Michael Ende was [REALQ Editor's note: a German writer of children's fiction]. He introduced me to The Never Ending Story. Once I knew about Michael Ende, he became an influence on me. It was the first book I knew of in which someone wrote a book because he had a sense of obligation and a goal in relation to society and the world. I thought that someone who wrote a book because he felt that it was something he had to do was a rather beautiful thing to wish for. REALQ: Next up... Yukimura discusses the connection between himself and Thorfinn Karlsefni, the protagonist of his Vinland Saga. Is there anything that makes you hesitate when you draw your manuscripts? 
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Yukimura: For characters, it's probably the hands. Hands take time to do well. The strength of a character's grip on a sword, for example. Male and female hands are hard to differentiate, too. Hands are the most expressive part of a character, after the face. 
I've heard that you can tell a person's personality from their hands, so I always look at them. [Laughs]    You can fake a facial expression, but your hands will show how hard you work or how hard you don't. If you show the character's life in their hands, you'll get a good result. REALQ: When did you start paying attention to how you drew hands? Yukimura: Since I was young. But I still find it difficult now. When I look at the work of other manga artists, sometimes the faces are well drawn, but the hands are not. To put it bluntly, if I were to choose among artists, I would choose them by how they draw their hands. REALQ: Is there anyone whose work you reference? Yukimura: I'm especially influenced by artists with high amounts of realism. When it comes to hands, it's gotta be Katsuhiro Otomo. 
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It's not just his hands, though. It's everything. [Laughs] 
Also, the young, up-and-coming artists are all quite good. Their hands are pretty, but you can see the structure clearly as well. REALQ: Any thoughts on these hands? [While looking at Sigurd's hands in the manuscript] Yukimura: Yes. These hands are drawn fairly well. In Sigurd's case, de-spite the muscularity, his hands are not rough. That's because he has his underlings do the tough work. In Thorfinn's case, he has many small cuts, and there is more cracked and peeling skin.
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REALQ: Are there any scenes in Vinland Saga strongly influenced by your own experience? Yukimura: When Thorfinn is on his knees, apologizing. [Laughs] The part where he says, "Please. I won't ask you to forgive me, but allow me to live a bit longer." I've been drawing manga for 20 years. There's always a shadow of guilt that hangs over me. I'm sorry for being so selfish. So, I feel I have to, at the very least, draw something that readers will love... I'm nothing without that. Thorfinn is a young viking from medieval Europe. Since his teens, he's pillaged, fought in wars, and done many other terrible things. His feelings change as he grows, and he starts to feel guilt for his past actions. The ghosts of those he killed appears in his dreams, and he is ravaged by nightmares.    I am only here today because of the care of those around me. I am truly thankful. If anything about Thorfinn comes from my experiences, it has to be this. In his current state, the protagonist has no right to convict anyone else. No matter what kind of scoundrel he meets, Thorfinn always feels that he has done something worse in the past. I think it's good this way.
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REALQ: Did you know from the beginning that Thorfinn would become the way he did? Yukimura: Yeah. The story began with the premise that the protagonist is fated to have done many terrible things. He goes from being the oppressor to being the oppressed, and in doing so, he learns many things and becomes an adult. He then departs, saying, "I will go to a new land beyond the sea and build a peaceful country." That is an escape from the values that dominated European society. They do not feel that it is bad to wage war and plunder other countries. And, although their opponents are human beings, they believe they have the right to make the weak into slaves and kill them if they need be. In the society of that time, such things were seen as good things. Thorfinn experiences—and hates—both. But he is powerless to change the system... So he decides to leave. There will be terrible bloodshed if he decides to change the world. So he leaves it to Canute. Because Canute has the power and the shorter path. "I am different," he says. "I will live in a different way." When I put it into words, it seems like a lot of what I think is reflected in my work. [Laughs]
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REALQ: From your childhood experiences and your writing process, I get the feeling you are a perfectionist who doesn't com-promise when it comes to goals or ideals. Do the people around you feel the same way? 
Yukimura: I think I am a perfectionist. In the past, my seniors and teachers would say, "If 100 points is amazing work and 0 points is nothing, it's easy to get to 80 points. However, each point beyond that is incredibly difficult. Past 90, it's so rough that you'll start spitting blood. And nobody gets to 100." I don't know if, by absolute standards, my work is at 80 points. But, for my own standards, I care a lot about each of those 1 or 2 points beyond 80. I care so much that others see the changes I make and say, "He pushed back the deadline for this? What's changed?" [Laughs] I've even rewritten an entire manuscript before. REALQ: Is it really rough when you have to throw out a whole manuscript? Yukimura: It's sad that to know the work won't produce results, but the worst possible thing for me is to feel regret afterwards. If I can choose to suffer for a brief moment as I draw, then I'll do it. The regrets afterward stay around much longer... REALQ: Are you happy about the reactions of your overseas readers? Yukimura: Yeah. It's encouraging to know they like my work. Especially when I heard some of them were reading Vinland Saga side-by-side with a dictionary. I forgot which language they were translating from and into, though. [Laughs]
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REALQ: Let me change the subject: Advice from adults to children... Do you think it's important to emphasize the importance of having dreams? Should we tell kids to have dreams and tell them their dreams will come true? Yukimura: I used to think dreams were just desires. However, I was a good-for-nothing back then, so I think I was being resentful. [Laughs] At the very least, I don't think doing whatever you want to do is a beautiful thing. That's just you doing what you want to do. The truly beautiful things are helping others, volunteering, things like that... Finding a home for a stray dog, or doing things that no other person wants to do—that's beautiful.    This includes me, but to do what you want to do is simply selfishness. I received my role in society, but I couldn't carry it out. I wasn't a modest enough person for that. I said such things because I thought I would do what I wanted to do no matter what other people said to me. It's the same for everyone, I think. Those who do what they want and succeed are simply the ones who ended up with a place in society. It's a miracle. After all, what some people want is to carry out meaningless terrorism... But it's the same thing. Both are "dreams." REALQ: If you could give an hour of advice to your younger self, what would you say? Yukimura: I'd say, reflexively, to be 3 times as careful of oncoming traffic. [Laughs] More seriously, I'd say, "You're worried that you're inferior to others. But don't worry." I'd tell myself that there isn't only one ruler to mea-sure yourself by. "Humans come in all sorts," I'd say. "There's not a single number line that we all stand on." Text by Shuta Miura
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rileychaser · 3 years ago
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Yesterday I had one of the strangest days of my life, and not in the normal way. I'm writing it out in order to release it into the world and get it away from me.
Let's start with some context. Saturday was my wife's birthday, we went out and had a great time just us. Sunday we were supposed to go over a friend's house to help set up some DnD stuff, but we were socially exhausted from the day before. And yes, we were alone on Saturday, but still we put in a lot of mental effort in stores and restaurants. Anyway so we texted and said my wife was hungover and we weren't going to make it. Acceptable exaggeration of the truth. We did drink, but we were fine. It's a case of too polite and too anxious to say "we don't want to hang out today." (working on it) Then we did things around the house, like putting up boxes and unpacking. Nice night, we had a good day.
Cut to Monday. In the morning, I'm driving to work and some guy in this big truck is tailgating me. We are in two-lane traffic in a little town with turn offs on each side for each lane. I'm in the left lane. I'm going five over the speed limit, as fast as the car in front and the car beside me. This guy starts flashing his lights at me. I don't think anything of it, but he does it again. I can't switch lanes, there are cars beside me and I can't speed up, there are cars in front of me. I have no idea what this guy wants me to do. He cuts into the other lane and proceeds to do the same to the car beside me. I can't see in the truck because it's jacked up and I'm in a little car. He's swerving in traffic, I guess trying to get around people. This goes on for about a mile, then he makes a right turn and that's it. Why tailgate in the left lane if you're making a right turn? Whatever.
Next I'm at PT (Physical Training, or Mandatory workout for the military) we are running a 5k. I chose to do my 5k on the track. This track is 3/4 of a mile. 2 laps is 1.5 mi, which is the run we do for our yearly test. So I run my first two laps as fast as I can to see my run time. A little over 14min, I'm getting better, still need more training. The next two laps I do poorly because I gased myself, but I finish them. After I am talking to my friend Pete, who's house I was supposed to go to yesterday. He asks me about my wife's birthday and what kind of drinks we had, just being a friendly guy. For some reasons my lie is horrible, I'm stumbling over my words, can't get my story straight, just bad lying. I'm normally a great liar when it comes to harmless lies to spare people's feelings or curving my own anxiety. That lie, total crap. Then we all talk about the air quality on base and how we need to not run when it's at a certain level. PT over.
I go to work and eat breakfast, watch some TikTok videos the go to take a shower. I work at a firestation so I'm in their women's bathroom. The intercoms goes off, the one they use to announce emergencies, only this time it's a jumbled gargled mess. Weird. I don't think anything of it. The it dings again and I think their going to announce trouble with the intercoms. Nope. It's a jumbled gargled mess again. Weird. I finish showering and I go to the mechanics bay and start my day. My Airmen is practically coughing up a lung so I send him to medical. (he's fine btw, it was the 5k in bad air, not COVID) Hes gone for the day. I spend my morning figuring out a problem with a truck, normal. However I call about a test I need to take at another building, the lady that gives the test, Ms. V isn't their, the guy Mr. L tells me come in at 1010, she will be back around then.
Context. When you in-process a base you see the security person, Ms. V is the security person. When I got here, six months ago, it was Ms. S, who was talking about training Ms C to be the new security person. Ms S has long black hair. Two weeks ago I go up to the office for a different reason, I'm talking to a different person and I swear I see Ms. S at her desk. Doesn't matter, I wasn't there to see her, but I think about how I thought she was moving. Passing thought that doesn't really register.
This Monday I go up to the office Mr L tells me to take a seat Ms. V will be here soon. I sit, I take out my phone, I start scrolling. 15min later a women with died blonde hair comes hobbling in, I say hobbling because she has one of those boots you wear when you break your foot but you can still walk on it. She comes in, she looks at me and I look at her. Never seen this lady. She says, "you looking for me" in my head I'm like no, but Mr. L looks at me like that's the one, so I say "yes". I follow her into the office. This is a completely new person then who I in-processed with and a completely new person from two weeks ago. But the office is covered in personal items so she has to have been there for a while. I ignore it. My brain probably filled in Ms S in her seat two weeks ago because that's what I remember seeing. I take the test and move on.
Lunch is normal, Tiktok and chicken sandwiches. After I start working on the truck problem. The intercoms goes off and it reminds me of this morning so I ask my coworker if he heard that weird sound this morning. He says he didn't hear it. I insist that it happen twice and he says he didn't hear it. He's the only on there so he's the only one to ask and he didn't hear it.
Then I need to take the trash out so I load it all in the truck. We don't have the proper recycling bins at our shop so we bring it to the main shop to dispose of properly. Also, I need to pick up a part. I go into material control and I start talking with TSgt T about performance reports. They are due in 45 days and neither of us has really started. So we talk about SSgt A who has all EPRs and can help us out on how to write ours. (each base has a different writing style. It's real dumb) so I say I'll ask SSgt A for help.
Back at the shop. I strat an email, but I use an old email and hit reply deleting all the old stuff and what I think is all other recipients. I type out. "hey can you send me some old FARM EPRs so I can figure out how they want it written here) then I but send. Then the email comes to my inbox. Strange. My coworker says, Why'd you send this to me. What? Turns out I buy reply to everyone I work with. Shitty. I recall the email. It's really no big deal and I know it. But what a huge embarrassment. And I feel the anxiety creep up. We joke about it. No one even calls or ask about it, so its a stupid private mistakes that anyone who saw the email will know it was a mistake. It was a legitimate email with a real work question so it's no big deal. No one even cares but me. I spend the rest of my day as an anxious mess because it who I am.
I get home. Have a good laugh and talk it through with my wife and it's over. We order Tai and watch a show. We go to bed.
But I'm still awake. So I start talking to her about my strange day. And I tell her that I haven't felt myself all day, like I was off and maybe wasn't me somehow. This is called disassociation and I know this. Then she tells me a freaky story of some girl with a weird experience and how people think she may have went to another dimension. And that's why I feel like now I may have been in another dimension yesterday and that's why weird shit was happening and I didn't return until i got home. Or maybe I never returned.
That's all.
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sweeethinny · 4 years ago
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The Duke - Chapter 3
Another chapter, after some time! I hope you like it, and let me know what you think <3
AO3 | FF.NET | SIYE 
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‘‘Mr Figg, you are a coward.’’ Ginny's voice was loud from above the roof where she was sitting, holding the broom in one hand. ‘’You duel even with your eyes closed, but don’t want to fly with me?’’ He smiled, denying and thinking about how crazy that woman was and gave him more trouble than all the Askaban prisoners combined. ‘’What if I get attacked from up here? You won't be able to protect me.’’
‘’Miss, I believe that few wizards will be able to hit someone on a broom.’’ He argued, ignoring the tightness in his stomach he felt at seeing her in the air like a bird.
''There is! That's a lie, because my father has seen a man fall dead from a broom.'' Ginny climbed up on the broom and flew across the sky like a lightning bolt, turning a blur of colors until she bent down and stood at the height of his head, laughing boldly and keeping her chin up in the best Ginny Weasley way he knew. ''You are afraid.''
''Madam, I will have to disagree with you.'' He wanted to laugh, a lot, but three of her brothers were around, and Henry would never let them think he wasn't doing his job right because he was distracting himself with that Greek goddess. .
Henry knew very well who he was and where he came from.
''Disagree? Aren't you being too bold?��’ Ginny seemed to shine like gold, her hair on fire flying in the wind, and her freckles looking like constellations on her pink cheeks. ‘’But don’t worry, your secret is safe with me.’’ She whispered, before cutting the air again and climbing higher than everyone else.
It had been almost two years since he had seen her do that, in fact, that he had seen her do almost anything, but he never got used to it.
Whenever she laughed, or when she flew like a bird that was born for it, even when she just walked in silence in the gardens, seeming to work some crazy idea that would make him afraid of losing his job, Henry was touched. It was simply impossible, there was no way not to look at the freckles on the top of her nose that stood out when she got too much sun, or how she had an almost dangerous facility to escape from home.
Henry knew he had never met a woman like her.
Not that he had met many aristocratic women, but in general, Ginny was totally different.
She flew for a long time, laughed with her brothers, performed acrobatics that would leave her mother with her hair standing, and challenged Henry to fly with her, but soon gave up and returned to the heights, seeming to have fun like never before, smiling from ear to ear. Her skin becoming increasingly pink from the Sun.
For his part, Henry stood up, strolling around in order to think about some things that Robards had passed on to him last week, trying to recap each part - again - of the attack of two years ago, and of the letter - that never arrived in the Ginny's hands - with horrible misspellings and threatening her with death. The person was very explicit about what he would do if he found her, and for a week, Henry had nightmares that, while sleeping, someone would be able to catch her and kill her. Sometimes it was almost three in the morning and he was walking around the house, looking for a potential killer, going to the garden, to the clearing nearby, and even to the roof. But there was never anyone.
The house was protected, very well protected, but it never hurt to have a look or two.
His mother, Arabella, would be extremely concerned if she knew that he was hunting a murderer with his bare hands, ignoring Robards' commands and doing his own patrol, even reading and rereading the letters and all the investigation, looking for any gap that he pointed out for the culprit.
She would die of worry if she imagined that he had gone to Yeovil alone, curious to the last hair, even if it didn't make much sense.
Later that evening, after her day of enjoying flying and playing with her brothers. Ginny finally landed and got off her broom and followed her mother to socialize, or as her mother called it 'women's time', and then having dinner.
Henry, after already having his dinner - wandered around the property, talking to the elves who worked in the house, and going to the greenhouse to take care of the plants that Ginny might have almost killed. Not that he was the one who was going to tell her that she sucked when it came to herbology, instead, he just took care of the damage and made sure that all the plants survived another day.
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  ‘’Henry.’’ Ginny called out, her voice very low. ''Where are you?''
‘’I’m here, miss.’’ He whispered too, the wand light off, but ensuring that Ginny wouldn’t trip over anything.
It had started a few months ago, when one of the men Mr Weasley tried to choose to marry his daughter, commented unpretentiously that every night on the 31st, at a specific time, you could see lights in the sky that came directly from the mansion where the Duke and Duchess lived. Ginny had barely endured anxiety trying to wait for the time, and as much as she hadn't told Henry about it, he knew she would try to escape.
That's how he became an accomplice to her escapes, almost every night - because he would never let her escape at night alone.
‘’I don’t understand why you’re taking risks like that.’’ She spoke as soon as they left the house, walking under the effect of protective disillusionment, following the same path as always.
‘’Miss, I would never let you do this alone.’’ Sometimes he thought she didn’t know him, even though he had been working there for almost two years.
‘’Is there any danger even at 1 am?’’ She spoke, and Henry abstained from answering a question like that. It was obvious that there was danger even at one in the morning, in fact, he thought there was even more.
After leaving the safe perimeter of the Weasleys' home, Henry extended his arm to Ginny, apparating them sideways to the park where they always went, not wanting to pay much attention to the fact that she always held him tightly and that the feeling was simply overwhelming.
‘’How do they do it?’’ She questioned him, sitting on the bench in front of the water channel and looking up at the sky that glowed towards the west.
‘’I have no idea.’’ He admitted, looking at the golden lights that cut across the little starry sky, feeling a little suffocated, even if they were outdoors. This sensation always scratched his lungs, and he thought it was because of his protective sense, which made him anxious about the idea of ​​being up at dawn, taking a Viscount's daughter for a stroll on the sly. He was risking his job on a whim of that red-haired goddess, who he would never be able to say no to.
‘’When I was a little girl, my mother told me this story of two souls who were intertwined together, and who met, no matter what the circumstances were.’’ Henry looked at Ginny, curious about she was talking about Soul-bonding. Ginny continued; ‘‘I think she was hoping that her words would make the Duke’s son return."
‘’But you never believed!?’’ He questioned, knowing the answer. Happy to be able to treat her so personally now that they were alone. Her smile was always so beautiful when she realized he was doing it.
‘’No. Bonded souls? It sounds silly... I think that, apart from the dukes, nobody ever believed that the boy would return.’’ She looked at him, her brown eyes reflecting the golden lights in an inexplicably beautiful way. ‘’I once heard my father saying that Mr Potter had gone crazy since his son disappeared. Father said that he never left the castle, not attending any social gatherings, except for important meetings. And Mrs. Potter is no longer seen at afternoon teas, or even at events. Only the most special ones where she is required.’’. She shrugged. ‘’Myself, I think I’ve seen her less than five times in my entire life.’’
Henry was unable to give his opinion, the only time the Duke was at Ottery St. Catchpole, it was on a day that he was accompanying Ginny on a boring walk through the center, where she and Mrs. Weasley were looking for a new fabric for a dress. So, apart from photos that were here and there in the newspaper, he was never in the presence of the Duke or seen him.
And he would hardly be, to be honest, Henry was exorbitantly lower than the Potter family.
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cilldaracailin · 4 years ago
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The Show Must Go On
Hello my Tumblr Lovelys!
Random thing today but it was on the news that the dolphin I saw in Kerry last week was missing for two days and they presumed he had died... Turns out he hadn’t and was spotted this morning by a fisherman. Glad to hear he is still around! 
Anywhoo, I am back with the next story in the Robyn and Taron series.
Hope you all enjoy this one!
Suze x
*Disclaimer - I don’t know Taron and this is just fiction and for the purpose of the story, anything medical related, I research thoroughly before using*
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1
“There is a great difference between worry and concern. A worried person sees a problem, and a concerned person solves a problem.”
Robyn was worried. When she stepped off the podium after giving her presentation on the Irish curriculum for Early Years Education at the childcare conference in Paris, she automatically checked her phone to see if Taron had messaged her about their possible dinner plans for the evening but instead of a message from him, she had five missed calls from Lyndsey and immediately rang her back. Once Robyn managed to talk to Lyndsey after her third attempt to call her, she heard the anxious tones of his publicist’s voice.
“He is hiding it from me Robyn but I know him too well and he has been burying it for at least two if not three days.”
Taken aback by how troubled Lyndsay was, begging Robyn to come and see Taron for herself, as he refused to listen to anything Lyndsey had to say, getting nothing but angry at her for even suggesting that he was sick. Robyn had apologised to Emma, explaining that something was wrong with Taron and she had to go. Thankfully Robyn knew once she had completed her obligatory presentation, she wasn’t really needed for the rest of the afternoon and Emma had told her to go, her manager knowing she wouldn’t have been able to stop her work colleague when it came down to anything to do with the Welshman and satisfied she had fulfilled her obligations for the Saturday conference, Emma was happy to let Robyn go.
Robyn wished she had worn her converse and not heels as she sat in the taxi on her way to the hotel where Taron’s current interviews were taking place as she had literally run from the conference centre to a main road in Paris to try and hail a taxi and now her feet were killing her and with her knees shaking with nervous anticipation, it wasn’t helping her poor feet. Neither was the dark navy pinstripe suit she wore and she was feeling warm and overheated in the back of the car, the Spring weather in Paris warm and muggy but the formal wear was necessary for the presentation she had been a part of and she wasn’t taking a detour to get to her hotel first so had to make do with the warm suit and high heels to go and see Taron.
She had followed Taron’s travels and promotion very closely through social media but also by talking with him as often as they could. The time difference when he arrived in Japan, had woken her during the middle of the night twice, Taron apologising profusely when he realised she had been sleeping but Robyn was happy to talk to him, listening to his excited tones which only increased as he finally got his hands on some fried chicken from Korea when his tour moved there.
He was even more elated when they visited China and the movie had received a wonderous reception from the critics and fans, telling tales of more food he had tired, hilarious games he had taken part in and staying up drinking sake and singing karaoke, which he paid dearly for the next day.
He was just as excited when he got to visit Sydney again and had filled Robyn in on all of the antics himself and Matthew got up to, even Colin joining in with the laughter during the trio’s day of interviews, Robyn smiling as she heard the happiness in his voice. Sure, he sounded a little tired but he was always in good form and full of animated chat, not even noticing at one point that once again he had woken Robyn up with the time difference until half way through their call.
She had watched every interview that had surfaced and laughed at his escapade’s with Colin, the older man rolling his eyes as the younger made a few jokes at his expense and frowned when some interviews focused on her relationship with Taron. During one particular table panel in L.A as a question was asked about them, she saw his eyes change colour so quickly and the pure annoyance he was feeling clearly on his face, she thought he was going to storm off the stage. It was a horrendous and inappropriate question he was asked about their sexual involvement and if the CPR was just an act to cover for their long-term hidden personal relationship. With the way the panel had been cut together, Robyn was sure it was Lyndsey or Taron himself who put a halt to the questions immediately, the person who had asked the question completely over stepping their boundaries, as in the next part of the interview, Taron had taken his jacket off whereas before he was still wearing it. Robyn knew Taron was more than willing to talk about their relationship, even telling him to do it herself and not avoid the question but there was a point where even Taron felt under attack with questions he was asked and when he had spoken to her on the phone once they figured the time difference out, she could hear the frustration and irritation in his voice. She managed to get his mind off it by talking about her impromptu flour fight in work with the children, making him giggle and talk about the one they had had together which completely lifted his mood by the time they ended the call.
Naturally the travelling and constant working showed on his face and once the tour had moved to America, she could also hear the strain in his voice at one point ending the phone call she had with him because his voice sounded overworked and extremely tired and it wasn’t long before that over tiredness appeared on his face and although he tried to hide a yawn behind a cup in one interview for Good Morning America, Robyn easily caught it. It was his traveling around Europe during the end of his second week of promoting the movie that his change in mood and persona really and obviously transformed.
It was easy to know which interviews happened on the same day, Robyn using Taron’s clothes to judge which ones happened one after the other and the day he wore his blue cardigan and white t-shirt was the beginning of his complete personality turn around. It was before they had travelled to France, the tour stopping in Germany for a night. The once happy Taron became withdrawn and quiet, the dark circles under his eyes which were expected, now deep crevices on his cheeks making his whole face look hollow and almost sickly looking. Robyn knew Taron still gave his all even when he was thoroughly exhausted and always managed to keep smiling or make a smart remake, a laugh or a joke but he was giving nothing except robotic like answers, leaving a lot of the talking to Matthew as they sat together and he was constantly drinking from a bottle of water. Nothing new for Taron, the endless talking easily dried out his throat but the fact that he wasn’t talking and still milling the water into him was out of character for him. When Robyn had tried to call him, he didn’t answer the phone but text her back explaining he was completely caught up with interviews and promised to call her back when he could, though he never did, another text coming through apologising saying he fell asleep or got caught up with a photoshoot or question and answer session. Even their contact that day had been through text although it was pretty one sided as Taron had yet to answer her back about their dinner that evening. It had been three days since she had actually spoken to him and heard his voice.
So when Lyndsey had contacted her to tell her that Taron was sickest she had ever seen him, to the point where he was almost keeling over with a cough and not eating or drinking, Robyn didn’t hesitate to get into a taxi to go to him.
“He is cranky as fuck, refusing to listen to me and pretending everything is ok and while he acts like it is for the camera, off camera I can see how he is lying to me. He won’t listen to me, won’t stop to take a break, insists on ploughing through but his whole body is held in this stiff position where it looks like if he even moves an inch, he will crumble. I have seen Taron go through a lot, but I am really worried Robyn. He is pale, sweating, breathing hard and his voice is desperately hoarse.” Lyndsey took a quick breath. “There is only one person in this world who Taron will listen too and that is you.”
Robyn could hear the desperation in Lyndsey’s voice and the not so subtle hint that she really needed her to go and see Taron because he was being stubborn and surly and a typical man. When Robyn told Lyndsey that she would be there within the next forty-five minutes, Lyndsey was silent in shock for a few seconds before she thanked her profusely, telling Robyn she would be waiting outside the hotel for her and to ignore the fans outside.
Robyn had never even factored in the possibility of fans or the media waiting outside the hotel and as the taxi pulled up to the hotel, Robyn had no idea how she was going to pick Taron’s publicist from the crowd or even see her over all the heads in front of her. After paying the taxi driver, Robyn got out of the car and stood back allowing it to leave before she figured out her next move. There were security guards positioned at the doors to the hotel and the black cars out the front were obviously the ones laid out for the cast but as far as Robyn was aware this hotel was actually the same one that Taron was staying in that night, Lyndsey taking away some travelling for him by booking him into the same hotel where the interviews were taking place, even though it might not be the most luxurious one, it gave him more time to rest up after a full day of press.
As Robyn stood behind the crowd, she took a breath and walked around to the left edge of the footpath and gathering of people, hoping to find a gap that she could get through so she could try and get a glimpse of Lyndsey but she was having no luck and as she manoeuvred through the fans and group standing outside the hotel, even though she didn’t speak French, she could understand the points and stares that were coming her way and was starting to feeling slightly uncomfortable at being noticed, really feeling at a loss of not seeing Lyndsey immediately and becoming more desperate to get to Taron. She was normally comforted by his hand when she was in a crowd like this, especially a crowd that was becoming more aware of what she looked like and who she was and the fact that she was standing there in the open made her heart flutter a little with nerves and she could definitely hear her name echo through the all the people standing around her. It was only when she blinked as a flash went off that she realised not only was the assembly of people filled with fans but with some press and media and another blinding flash went off in her direction. That flutter soon became a harder thump and she could feel herself getting uneasy as more people started to recognise her and whispered her name, more photo’s being taken of her as she stood frozen on the footpath.
She jumped a little as her phone rang. She pulled it from her large handbag and was glad to see it was Lyndsey.
“Hey I am outside.”
“Me too. I can’t see you.” Taron’s publicist still sounded distressed; her words spoken fast.
“I am behind the crowd.”
“Come around to the right side of the fans and media and I will get you through.”
Robyn listened to the end call tone and with Lyndsey ending the call so quickly, Robyn was beginning to fret now too. Lyndsey always appeared with a calm and collected persona, her focus on her job but now she sounded completely frazzled. Robyn made herself walk calmly around to the right side of the crowd again and managed to squeeze herself in through the people, ignoring the looks of animosity she was receiving from the young girls and the whispered of French around her, standing right in front of the barrier that blocked everyone from the hotel entrance.
“Robyn! There you are!” She looked up to see Lyndsey practically running towards her with a security guard on her heels.
He got the crowd to move back quickly, speaking rapid French and once there was enough room, opened the barrier to let Robyn in, Lyndsey grabbing her hand and pulling her hard away from the crowd and towards the hotel, without even a hello or hug as she normally greeted Robyn with. Even with her back turned to the throng of media and press, Robyn could see the flare from a camera flash roll over her and hated that her picture was being taken in such an underhand way but as Lyndsey had a very tight grip on her hand she didn’t really have a lot of time to think about it too much, especially when Lyndsey started to speak in hurried words to her.
“I have never seen him like this. Sure, I have seen him run down and ill. Always comes with the promotion but he is just so withdrawn into himself, almost forcing himself to hold in how shit he feels. I couldn’t tell you the last time he ate something and in-between interviews, his whole body is completely consumed by this horrible cough. He won’t listen to me and actually bit my head off this morning when I told him he needed to skip today and rest up but he was having none of it.”
Lyndsey was still pulling on Robyn’s hand as she spoke and Robyn was finding it hard to keep up with the pace, her heels clip clopping loudly as they rushed in through the doors of the hotel, past the reception and towards the lifts.
“Ok Lyndsey, slow down.”
“He is really sick Robyn and I am so worried about him.”
“I know that but you need to take a breath for a second. You are starting to panic.”
“He won’t let me help him. Taron always lets me help him. Always.”
Robyn turned to face the older lady and placed her hands on her shoulders, seeing in her eyes the concern as clear as day. “And you know how stubborn he can be especially when it comes to his work and please take a breath for me.” When Lyndsey gave her an exasperated sigh, Robyn frowned. “Do it.” She said a bit more sternly, glad to feel her shoulders rise under her hands. “One more.” Robyn insisted and when the lift doors opened, Lyndsey had calmed down considerably.
“Sorry.” Said Lyndsey as they stepped into the lift and she pushed four on the keypad.
“You don’t have to apologise.” Robyn moved to stand beside her in the lift. “I know how much you care about him, so naturally when he acts out of character you are going to worry about him.”
“He normally listens to me.”
“What about Matthew?”
“No luck either. Got the same very angry and irate answers back. I am hoping maybe you can get through to him. You don’t know how glad I am that you were able to come, that you are here at the same time as he is. You were ok to leave work?”
“Yeah it is fine. I was finished my presentation so I could leave.”
Once the doors of the lift opened, they were met with another three security guards but as Lyndsey flashed her pass their way, the two were let through and Robyn followed the publicist down the carpeted hallway following the signs for conference room four.
“They are in the middle of an interview but due a break afterwards for some food before they continue again.”
“How long has he been working today?”
“Since six this morning.”
“Six this morning?” Exclaimed Robyn. “It’s nearly five in the afternoon. Please tell me it’s not been constant!”
“Mostly. They had an early morning TV show followed by interviews, then a photoshoot for a magazine and then himself and Matthew have been here since eleven going through the French press one by one. There are others here from other European countries too so it is pretty full on for him.”
“What time is he due to finish?”
“It should be seven but everything is running behind because some of the interviewers needed help with translation and they are taking up extra time.”
“Did he sleep last night?”
“My gut feeling is no but of course he told he me did.”
“Of course he did.”
Lyndsey stopped outside a pair of double doors, another security guard standing outside on watch. “She is with me.” Once they were through the door, Lyndsey gestured to Robyn to keep quiet and they walked to a screen behind which they could stand to watch Taron and Matthew who were sitting in the middle of an interview.
Even though Robyn knew she had to keep a low profile and not be seen, she still side stepped a little so she could see him better and immediately her heart dropped out of her stomach. It was the worst she had ever seen Taron look and that was including the first time she met him. He looked thoroughly exhausted, his face completely miserable even though he was trying to hide it with the fakest smile she had ever seen on his lips and the laugh he gave was so forced, it made Robyn cringe. She had never heard him laugh like that before and as he lifted the bottle from between his legs to take a sip of water it was either to avoid answering the question that was asked or as Lyndsey had said, to hold in the cough that was desperate to leave his body and his shoulders shook with the struggle of keeping the cough in. She could also see how Lyndsay had explained how he was holding himself too and Taron sat so straight in the chair, it looked so unnatural and uncomfortable. After holding the bottle to his lips but obviously not drinking, Taron eventually took his turn to answer the question, his voice quiet and Robyn could hear the scratchiness with which he spoke and how gravelly he sounded.
“See what I mean?” Lyndsey whispered to her. “Not himself at all.”
Robyn nodded. “But is doing a very good job of trying not to show how shit he actually feels.” Her eyes were glued to Taron. She knew the tour was going to be tiring on him but she couldn’t get over how wretched he looked, incredible black rings under his eyes, eyes which normally had a little sparkle, were dull and lifeless and she could see the effort it took him to answer an easy question, the short breathes he took to counter the cough he was covering. His cheeks were not the rosy red she loved to see when he was slightly embarrassed but more red raw from a high temperature which she was sure he had as along with his red face, there was a clear and obvious sheen of perspiration of his skin. Robyn wasn’t surprised to see the heat on his skin as he was dressed in a leather jacket, jumper and she could also see the collar of a shirt peeking through.
“How long until they are finished?” Robyn turned to Lyndsey.
“About another five minutes or so.”
“Anyway I can interrupt it and stop it?”
Lyndsey smiled sadly. “Wish you could and would love to let you but it’s best we let them finish. He is already going to be mad at me for ringing you to come over.”
“Let him be mad. I can handle him.”
“And that is why I knew I could call you. He needs you Robyn. He will always need you.”
Robyn didn’t answer but turned back to Taron and just wanted to walk over and hug him tightly against her until he gave in and accepted that he was quite obviously ill, just as Robyn predicted he was going to get back on St Patrick’s Day and it hurt her so much that he felt he had to hide how crappy he felt and put up a front for work, to keep working and not even attempt to take a break, to give himself a break, only working himself past the point of exhaustion and pure illness putting his body completely to test.
As Taron sat in the chair half listening to the questions he was being asked by an interviewer from somewhere in Europe, he couldn’t quite remember where, he shivered violently. He had been feeling cold all morning and even after he had pulled on his jacket, he was still frozen. He had been desperate for a coffee to try and not only wake himself up but warm his body up but he couldn’t stomach it or even attempt to swallow it. His throat felt like it was covered in razor blades and every swallow was painful. He had been feeling a bit rough since Wednesday and he woke up with a headache and scratchy throat and although he had been eating paracetamol to try and lift his cold, it hadn’t been helping and now he felt ten times worse, his whole body filled with aches and pains and what was making everything hurt even more was the horrible chesty cough he had been cursed with. He hadn’t slept a wink the night before, up most of the time coughing uncontrollably and every time he lay his head down on the pillow to try and sleep, his whole chest seized up once more and he had to physically get out of the bed and stand up, hoping it would help ease his cough but it never did and at one point he was holding onto the desk in the room as he tried to catch his breath, his whole body convulsing painfully. In the end he had to sit up in the bed and sit up straight and it was uncomfortable for sleeping. During the day he had tried his best to hide the cough, swallowing it down or making an excuse to go to the bathroom where he hid in the cubicle until his fit of coughing was done but it left a sting in his ribs and any deep breathe only brought the cough on so he did his best to avoid any movement that would rustle his upper body, keeping his posture held tight and firm.
He knew he had been a rotten mood since yesterday and felt awful for taking his sulkily temperament out on Lyndsey but the tour was so important to him even more so because the filming had to be halted due to what had happened to him in Florida in the first place and he wasn’t going to miss any interviews because of a small cold. Lyndsey had been on his case since that morning about taking the day off and staying in bed but he couldn’t do that. He had too many responsibilities to follow through with and after he had taken more pain killers, which scraped and burned his throat horribly, he put on a brave face and used his best acting skills to hide how rotten he was truly feeling.
He had such an amazing time on his promotional tour before he started to feel sick and had enjoyed every moment, even the travelling which would normally bring him down when he was over tired and severely jet-lagged didn’t bother him as before. He was putting it down to the fact that every day, even if he got the time difference wrong, he spoke to Robyn and filled her in on the excitement of the day or his annoyance at the nerve of some of the interviewers asking certain questions about their relationship, really overstepping their privacy boundaries. He had laughed and joked and been as proud as punch promoting his new movie, both himself and Matthew bouncing off each other as they sat on early morning TV shows and Q&A sessions and panels and the whole tour had been absolutely perfect.
That was until he started to feel absolutely shit and the more he sat on the chair under the heat of the lights which normally made him sweat, he felt bitterly cold and found it more difficult to concentrate on what he was supposed to be doing as he worked on repressing the need to cough.
“What would you do Taron?”
He had been focused on trying to rub some heat into his frozen hands, he missed the question asked to him and looked up.
“Sorry?”
“If you were faced with the same situation liked Eggsy where he had to shoot his dog? Do you think you could do it?”
While Taron’s mind cursed the question, he forced himself to smile and try to be good natured with his answer. “Definitely not but if it was a life or death situation or to save a family member or a friend, then I guess I would.”
“Even Robyn’s?”
“Sorry?” Taron couldn’t help the edge to his voice, his pounding head and pain behind his eyes not helping him even try to act professional as her name was mentioned.
“If Robyn’s life was in danger, would you shoot the dog.”
“What kind of a stupid fucking question is that?” He spat angrily, taking both Matthew and the interviewer by surprise. “What do you think? She saved my life but I would give up hers for a dogs? Fucking bollocks.”
“And that is time on the interview.” Lyndsey walked over to stand in front of Taron. As soon as she heard the complete change in Taron’s voice, she knew he had had enough of the interview and needed to see a friendly face in the form of Robyn, Lyndsey praying the Irish woman could help him see sense. “You did get the little memo beforehand about the questions about Robyn.” She said to the interviewer. “And your time is actually up. Thank you very much.” Lyndsey turned to look at Taron and he was scowling at her. “Get that look from your face Taron. I know you feel like shit but there is no need for the attitude you are giving me.”
“I am fine.” Taron retorted, his blocked nose making it hard for him to fully pronounce the word ‘fine’. “And if they are going to talk about Robyn like that, I am going to react.”
“First off Taron, you are not fine and secondly you cannot get up on your high horse and go off on one whenever her name is mentioned. You know this.”
“Fuck off Lyndsey. I am fine. Just need some air from all of this shit.”
“Taron!” Robyn had been listening behind the screen and nodded to Lyndsey when she walked away to quickly to put an end to the interview. Inside her heart had soared to hear him talk so protectively about her even though she knew she probably should have been mad at him for his reaction and how he responded to the question but when she heard his angry words to Lyndsey, she wouldn’t have him treat his publicist in such a way and Robyn being Robyn couldn’t help herself and had to interfere, marching around the screen and over to where he was sitting, standing right in front of him. She immediately saw the surprise look in his tired and blood shot eyes, his features changing quicker than a finger click from infuriated to disbelief. “You do not talk to Lyndsey like that.”
Everyone in the room froze, when the young woman walked with purpose right onto the make-shift interview set up and stood in front of the lead actor with her hands on her hips, a definite scowl on her face and not only because of her sudden appearance but because they knew who she was.
“Robyn!” She could hear the pain it took him to exclaim her name and how gruff it sounded, his voice completely losing its tone before he had finished speaking.
Taron’s whole face switched from anger to surprise to relief as Robyn stood in front of him, dressed in another stunning fitted pants suit and he suddenly forgot what he was angry for but seeing the look of disappointment on her face, his head hung to his chest, remembering how he had spoken to Lyndsey feeling completely ashamed with himself. As he let his body flop a little back in the chair, he wasn’t holding himself as he had been and the strength at which he had been using to cover the cough left him and his whole body crumbled forward with fatigue as he was hit with a severe and brutal fit of a burning cough from his chest and as he over balanced on his chair, finally fully giving into how he truly felt, he expected to hit the floor but instead a strong pair of arms caught his left arm while a very familiar pair went to his shoulders to help keep him upright.
Robyn knew her sudden presence had the people in the conference room talking to each other in quiet French but when she dropped to her knees to catch Taron before he fell forward off the chair, she had definitely heard the gasp from those around her, glad Matthew had also reacted quickly grabbing Taron’s left arm to keep him upright too.
“I’m sorry.” Taron spluttered through painful spasms of coughing. “Lyndsey I am so sorry.”
“Shhh don’t talk.” Robyn gave his shoulders a slight rub, feeling them violently shake under her hands as he coughed. She thanked Matthew as he helped to make sure Taron was sitting by himself and she knelt up, in-between Taron’s legs putting her right hand straight onto his forehead and immediately became more concerned than she already was. As she predicted he had a temperature and as she moved her hand around to the back of his neck, Taron’s skin was on fire with an obvious fever and not only was his skin over heated, it was definitely covered in a layer of perspiration and Robyn wasn’t surprised as he was dressed in more layers of clothes than she had ever seen him wear.
“Robyn?” Lyndsey came to hunch down beside her, so glad that Taron already seemed to be admitting defeat to how he was feeling, immediately letting Robyn in to help him but she saw the look of worry increase on her face.
“I need help to get this jacket off him.” She answered moving her hand from his neck and as she went to slide the leather off his shoulders, Taron’s whole body was stricken with another horrible wave of coughing and within seconds, his face had turned red and Robyn could see the pain in his shattered facial features. “Shh Taron shh.” Instead of trying to take his jacket off, Robyn wrapped her arms around his body and pulled him to her, taking all of his weight as he slumped against her, his arms by his side, as she gently rubbed his back round and round in soothing circles. “Shh Taron.”
Matthew had stood up and was standing behind Robyn, ready to catch her in-case she lost her balance as she held Taron but she looked extremely steady on her knees, so he moved to stand beside Lyndsey.
“She came.” He said to the woman who stood with her eyes glued to Taron and Robyn. Lyndsey had told Matthew in-between their interviews that she as going to call Robyn and although he couldn’t say he was surprised to see her, the woman having flown to New York for Taron, he was definitely relieved. He had watched Taron suffer in silence over the last three days and though had tried to talk to the younger man and help him, he was being his usual stubborn self and refusing to listen. Thankfully there was one person, apart from his mother, who Taron listened too and she was currently holding him tight in her arms, whispering to him.
“Of course she did.” Lyndsey confirmed. “She would do anything for him and I knew as soon as he saw her, he would do this.” Lyndsey didn’t really know what to do as she looked at the two in front of her, if she should go and help Robyn but with the two locked in a tight embrace, more so Robyn holding Taron, she didn’t want to move them until Robyn was ready to.
They both watched as Taron finally let go of everything he had been holding in and he sounded terrible, even worse than Lyndsey had imagined. She had never known Taron to be so secretive about his health before, always being open with her if he had a headache or needed an extra shot of expresso to keep him awake because he had slept badly the night before but for some reason he felt the need to keep it to himself how sick he was really was and as she watched Robyn whisper to him, Lyndsey was so thankful for the Irish women who held Taron’s heart in her hands.
Taron felt like he was dreaming and found it so hard to believe that his wonderful Robyn was in front of him. He literally collapsed into her arms and had nothing but trust for her to catch him and she did and he clung to Robyn, his head on her shoulder and he couldn’t even bury his face in his usual comforting spot on her neck as he was consumed by the pain in his chest and ribs from coughing and he was so caught up in how dizzy and poorly he felt that he hadn’t even properly processed how she was in front of him holding him but there she was, rubbing his back with one hand, her other at the base of his neck.
Robyn could feel her legs shaking as she took all of Taron’s weight but she didn’t dare let him go or ask him to move. As he leant against her she could feel how the horrendous cough travelled through his whole body and not only feel it but hear it too and the rattle in his chest was worrying to her, especially at how long it took for the current bout of coughing to end. Once he had caught his breath, she felt him almost throw his face into her neck and she could feel the laboured gasps for air he made against her skin. She moved her right hand into his hair and cupped the back of his head. “Don’t take deep breathes Taron. Just little shallower ones. Too deep and you will cough all over again.”
Taron always trusted Robyn and followed her advice, concentrated on doing the opposite of what he was used too when he was feeling panicky or his anxiety rise and the quick little intakes of air helped him a lot. As he closed his eyes and breathed Robyn in, he felt her hands move from the outside of his jacket and right under his clothes, her hands on the bare skin of his lower back above the waistband of his jeans and belt and the cold of her hands felt so wonderful on his skin and he moaned when she took them away.
“I need to get you out of this coat.” Robyn pushed her hands up and under his clothes as far as she could and once on his bare skin was met with a little dribble of sweat that dripped down his spine and his body was over heated and temperature ridden as it fought whatever bacterial virus it had picked up.
“I am freezing.” He whispered hoarsely into her neck.
“You have a temperature Taron so while you feel cold, your body is on fire. I need to get some of these layers off.”
Robyn looked to Lyndsey who was standing to her left and nodded with her head, glad that Lyndsey understood that she needed some help. Together, with Matthew helping too, they managed to slide Taron’s jacket down his shoulders and off his body, Robyn feeling a shiver run through him as he still leant against her.
“And jumper. Hun, I am going to have to get you to sit back on the chair.”
Taron moaned in protest at being moved but with no energy at the moment, he couldn’t object as he felt his body being gently moved back in the seat. He looked up to see Lyndsey beside him and he reached over to grab her hand. “I am sorry.” He croaked.
“You can make it up to me when you are not a pathetic sweaty mess and I can say I told you so.” Lyndsey gave his hand a squeeze. “You are bloody lucky to have Robyn in your life and I am glad you listen to her. You are never to let yourself feel this ill again Taron, do you hear me? This could have been sorted three days ago if you had of just been honest with me. You are so much more important to me rather than the bloody promotion and your health comes first before anything.”
With a pitiful nod, Taron brought his hands to cover his mouth as he took another fit of coughing and as his cheeks turned red once more, Robyn could feel his friends starting to panic. Without a doubt, Taron was very ill but he didn’t need to see those around him with worried faces.
“Lyndsey does he have a spare t-shirt or shirt?” Robyn was glad to see her nod. “Can you get it for me please.” Once Lyndsey had walked back behind the screen, she turned to Matthew. “Any cold water around?”
“Cold bottles ok?”
“Perfect.”
Once Robyn was sure Lyndsey and Matthew were distracted for a few minutes, she turned her attention back to Taron who was sitting slightly hunched forward with his eyes squinted closed. Now that he was finally given a break from coughing, she could hear once more how laboured his breathing was and the raspy rattle that was coming from his chest.
“You are a disaster,” She said to him, smiling slightly as he managed the tiniest of nods. “Do you know how mad I am at you?” He nodded again. “Is this why you haven’t actually called me since Thursday?” Another miserable nod came her way. Robyn shook her head. “Can I take this jumper off now?” Taking his next nod as permission, Robyn reached forward and holding the bottom of his jumper started to pull it up his body. “Arms up.” She instructed him, Taron listening to her and lifted his arms up above his head, giving Robyn the space she needed to get the jumper off him. Throwing it to the side, she couldn’t help the sigh that came from her lips. “And the shirt too.” He wore a light blue shirt under his jumper and Robyn deftly opened the buttons and pulled it down his arms and threw it to the side with the rest of his clothes. “Jesus Christ Taron. I am fit to kill you.” Robyn’s eyes glanced over his white t-shirt, sighing at the wet patches from where he had been sweating in his layers. She brought her hands to his face and once her hands touched his cheeks, he immediately leaned into them. “I am glad your mother can’t see you like this.”
Taron groaned, cringing as another cough filled his lungs, his throat on fire, his head feeling like it was going to burst. He could feel his body being guided into Robyn’s again and he couldn’t help but lean against her once more, relishing in the coolness of her neck against his right warm cheek but he shivered, feeling cold in the large conference room. He could feel Robyn’s hands running up and down his back and he felt too unwell to even care that the back of his t-shirt was soaked with perspiration or to even feel embarrassed when her fingers creeped under his top and ran in such delicate circles down his spine. He was exhausted in every possible way and his body was making it very clear that he had taken hiding how ill he was too far.
“Here Robyn.”
Matthew walked back over with two cold bottles of water.
“Thanks so much. You can just leave them on the ground beside me.”
“Here is a clean shirt for him too.” Lyndsey knelt beside Robyn with a fresh crisp black shirt in her hands. “What can I do for you.”
“I would really like to try and cool him down a bit. He is running a desperately high temperature.”
Lyndsey looked to her. “You can tell that just by holding him?”
Robyn smiled a little. “Kinda but if you feel his forehead, the back of his neck and then feel your own you will feel the difference immediately.” When Lyndsey hesitated, Robyn encouraged her by taking her hand and guiding it to the back of Taron’s neck, both Taron and Lyndsey reacting to the difference in temperature that they felt. “Now feel the back of my neck.” Robyn bent her head forwards a little and with her hair twisted up in a plait, Lyndsey had easy access to her skin.
“Jesus Taron is so hot.”
“I knew you always had a thing for me.”
It was a laughter that broke up some of the tense atmosphere around them but unfortunately the laughter turned silent as Taron was consumed by another round of coughing, moving completely away from Robyn and back into the chair as he brought one hand to his ribs and one to his mouth. He could feel Robyn’s hands on his knees which he was very thankful for.
“Robyn what can we do for you?” Asked Matthew.
“He really needs a doctor.” Robyn summarised quickly.
“No.” Taron spoke through a rough cough.
“Taron…” Warned Robyn.
“No doctor. I will be ok. Just need to…” He never got to finish his sentence and bent over with his head in his hands as a sharp pain pricked him behind his eyes and once again, he was catching his breath, rasping sounds coming from his chest. “No.” He said as firmly as he could manage. “I just need to sleep it off.”
The three stared at him before Lyndsey and Matthew turned to Robyn. In her heart, she knew he needed to see a doctor, the intensity of the cough she was sure would only be helped with an antibiotic but if Taron was already refusing to even talk about going to see a doctor, Robyn wasn’t going to waste time to convince him, Taron needing to accept that fact for himself.
“Right ok then well let’s get this t-shirt off.” Robyn had lifted her hands to the hem of his top but stalled and looked around the room to the crowd who had gathered around them. She hadn’t really noticed them before but now as she went to physically strip Taron, she could feel every pair of eyes staring at them. “Any chance we can have the room to ourselves for ten or fifteen minutes? Just to make a start on cooling him down? He doesn’t need a crowd around him.”
Lyndsey got to her feet and walked straight over to the event managers to have a quick word, while Matthew knelt beside Robyn, as Taron sat back in the chair again, taking some shallow breathes with his eyes closed.
“Do you have some magic or something? Maybe some fairy dust from the leprechauns? Can I borrow some for when we film the new movie?”
Robyn looked to him. “Magic leprechaun dust?” She questioned, reaching forward to hold Taron’s hands in hers. “What on earth are you on about?”
“You have this way about you when it comes to Taron, I am wondering if you give him something when he goes to visit you.”
“I do have a fairy fort in my back garden so I have access to fairy dust and magic mushrooms whenever I want. I slip some into the cookies I bake for Taron when he comes to see me.”
Robyn grinned when she saw confusion cross Matthew’s face and feeling a squeeze on her hands, turned to look at Taron who had a small smile on his too.
“Really?”
“Sure Matthew.” Robyn shook her head. “Fairy dust in the cookies,” She turned back to Taron as he cleared his throat a few times, watching as his eyes creased at the side. “Can you take a drink for me?” She asked him, frowning as he shook his head a little. “If you are going to refuse to drink anything for me, this is not going to work and I will be calling for an ambulance, never mind a doctor.”
Taron didn’t even need to look at Robyn to know how serious she was about calling the ambulance. “My throat is so sore.” He winced.
Robyn let go of his hands and placing her thumbs on his jaw, moved her fingers to his neck, feeling the swollen glands of an obvious sore throat. “Of course it is and yet you still won’t go and see a doctor.” Robyn picked up one of the bottles of water Matthew had brought her. “Small sips. You don’t take any water in; you end up in hospital.”
Reluctantly, Taron took the bottle from her which she had opened for him and bringing it to his lips, took the smallest of sips, his throat painfully dry.
“Is there anything other than water around?” Robyn asked, knowing the water probably tasted horrible to Taron at the moment. “Anything like a Lucozade?”
“I think they have something like that, hold on.”
While Matthew stood up and walked over to the refreshment table, Robyn took the bottle of water from Taron, much to his delight and as she screwed the lid back on, Lyndsey walked over.
“We have twenty minutes to ourselves. They are asking when the interviews are going to continue.” She spat shaking her head. “Absolute nerve of them.”
“And you did tell them they aren’t right?”
“I told them as politely as I could that these interviews would not be going ahead with Taron, today or tomorrow.”
“What?” Croaked Taron. “Lyndsey no. I have to do them. I need to promote the movie. Especially after the rush to get it finished on time.” The more Taron spoke, the more awful he sounded and Robyn could hear the ache in his voice. “I will change my shirt and continue on.”
Robyn knelt back on her heels, staring at him. “Are you actually serious?” She questioned him.
“What?” He asked, looking to her, wide troubled eyes looking back at him.
The extreme tiredness was so evident on his face and his scowl made it look so much worse. “You want to sit through another five hours of interviews when you feel like complete and utter shit, can barely talk, are crippled with a horrendous cough and have a banging headache?”
“The movie needs to be promoted.” He insisted, trying to hold in another cough that wrecked his chest.
“Taron you’re about this close to collapsing on the floor from exhaustion and how ill you are.”
“I have managed so far today without anybody’s help. I can keep going.” He insisted.
“I give up.” Robyn stood up.
“Robyn?” Taron asked, his voice breaking as he said her name.
“You know I love you and will always support you, but not this. I can’t watch you sit here hunched over in agony, barely able to drink anything or talk. You are sick Taron and incredibly sick with a stupidly high temperature that could easily become very serious but if you want to put your body through more interviews and answering questions by all means go ahead and do it, but I won’t stand or sit here and watch you do it.” With a quick turn, Robyn walked away from him and headed back towards the door she came through with Lyndsey.
“Robyn!” Taron got to his feet and though he was very shaky as he stood, walked after her as she strolled away from him, pushing past Matthew and Lyndsey who tried to stop him. “Please don’t go. Not again.” He took to a quick jog, every movement hurting him. He caught up with her and grabbed her hand. “You can’t leave me, not like this.” He coughed.
Robyn shook his hand away. “When you are finished the interviews, call me and I will come back.” Robyn picked up her bag from where she had left it on the floor. “I am going to sit downstairs in the bar until you are done.”
“You are serious about leaving me again.” Taron rasped.
“You seriously want to sit through another five hours of this feeling like you do?” Robyn turned sharply to him and gestured to the set up for the interview. He didn’t answer her, his eyes going to the floor. “I know how much this movie means to you and I understand how much pressure you felt for this promotion, how important it was for you to get it perfect. The filming was halted because of Florida but something happened that you had no control over and yet you feel so guilty over that and getting through these three weeks and doing it thoroughly and properly is everything to you at the moment.” Robyn took his hands. “I understand it Taron but it doesn’t mean that I can watch you do it, not when you are this sick and ill and I care about you way too much to watch you suffer through it. Another five hours of this and I guarantee that you will be in a hospital bed, on an IV line. You know where I will be if you change your mind.”
Robyn let go of his hands and turned on her heels away from him. It was a drastic and very unfair move to make on him but her reaction needed to be severe for Taron to see that she was deadly serious about walking away from him when he needed her. She had her hand on the door ready to push it open when he called for her.
“Robyn please.”
It was the hopeless and grave voice with the deep broken tone she had expected to hear and she quickly turned around to face him and dropped her bag onto the floor, her arms out to catch him as he stepped over to her and crippled over from tiredness. This time Robyn wasn’t able to keep herself and Taron standing and she didn’t know how she managed but eased the two of them to the floor, Taron’s face buried under her chin as they sat in a ball together on the floor, Taron’s hands gripping her arm tight.
“Don’t leave me.” He cried unhappily as he dug his face into her shoulder.
“I am not going anywhere.” She assured him as she stroked his left cheek. “Except to get you to bed.”
It was a tight cuddle, one that Taron needed desperately and as his body was crippled with another cough, Robyn laid her cheek on his head, feeling Matthew and Lyndsey stand close by waiting and watching for what was going to happen next. Robyn continued to soothe Taron with hushed words and feather light caresses on his cheek as he held her tightly. It was an awkward and uncomfortable position for both as Robyn knelt and Taron was half sitting and half kneeling against her and once Taron caught his breath, Robyn nodded to his director and publicist and the three got the exhausted Welshman to his feet and back onto the chair.
“Reverse phycology at its best.” Robyn explained to his publicist and director as they questioned her moves and words. “Works like a charm.” She pulled at the hem of his t-shirt and as Taron lifted his arms above his head, finally got the sweat ridden piece of cotton off him.
“Always were good at it.” Taron whispered as he shivered, now in just his jeans, goosebumps covering his upper body. “I am sorry and you are right. I need to go to bed.”
“And you had better remember that and no need to say sorry again. Let me cool you down a bit first before we move you to your room.” Robyn slipped off her own suit jacket and placed it on the ground beside her. She picked up one of the cold bottles of water and poured it over his white t-shirt, squeezing the excess water out so it dribbled onto her jacket and not all over the floor. Once she was satisfied with her home-made cold compress, she knelt up between Taron’s legs. “This is going to be cold Taron but it will immediately help to get this temperature down.”
“You mean how hot I am?” He asked hoarsely.
Robyn grinned at his attempt to smile. “We don’t need to fix that, just your body temperature.” She placed her left hand on his right cheek and placed the folded t-shirt on his forehead, seeing Taron close his eyes at the initial touch, feeling the shiver that ran through him. She moved the t-shirt down to his right cheek and then around to the back of his neck, Taron’s chin moving to his chest to give Robyn more space to cool him down. “You ok?”
“Cold.” He answered.
“Not hot anymore?” Robyn joked.
Taron’s slight laugh turned into a cough and his hands went to his chest and ribs. “Don’t make me laugh. It aches.” He closed his eyes as Robyn moved his wet t-shirt down his back and up to his neck once more before she took the t-shirt way from him. He then lifted his head and looked at her, Robyn’s focus completely on wetting his top again. She was wearing a light blue blouse with a V-neck and if he didn’t feel so rough and rotten, he knew he would be feeling something other than tired and ill. As she knelt in between his legs, once again looking after him, he couldn’t quite believe that she was there for him when he needed her the most and hated her way of making him see that he couldn’t carry on with the interviews and desperately needed to lay down and rest but she did it so well and he knew it was her way of showing she cared. His eyes still did a quite roam over her and his heart jumped as it always did, but he moment of joy was soon overshadowed by his cough and he brought both his hands to mouth. He felt Robyn’s wet hands on his shoulders and as always, he felt comforted by her touch.
“Just let me go over you once more and then we can get you settled in your room.”
Taron wished he had the energy to return a smart comment to her and his chin went back to his chest as she placed the wet t-shirt on the back of his neck again.
“Robyn what do you need?” Asked Lyndsey. Herself and Matthew had been keeping quiet, just watching Robyn look after their friend. Of course, they had heard the stories from Taron about Robyn, about her actions in Florida but to see it first hand, both gave each other a knowing look. There was definitely more than friendship between the two. Lyndsey walked over and crouched beside the Irish woman. “I can make a run to a pharmacy for you.”
“Please.” Robyn gently pushed on Taron’s shoulders, getting him to sit back against the chair and moved the cold compress to his forehead. “Paracetamol and cough bottle for a chesty dry cough and lots of tissues and where the nearest doctor is.”
“No doctors.” Taron murmured.
“And where the nearest doctor is and if they do call outs on the weekend.”
“No doctors.” Taron repeated though he knew he was being ignored as his publicist and best friend spoke in hushed whispers. Through tired eyes, he saw Lyndsey walk away from them.
“I got that drink for you too Robyn.” Matthew now crouched beside her.
“Perfect.” Robyn thanked him. “Not that he is going to drink it.”
Taking the wet t-shirt from his head, Robyn threw it to the side and picked up the black shirt Lyndsey had left on Matthew’s chair for him. She draped it over his shoulders and helped Taron to get his arms in. Once the material was fixed on his frame, she buttoned it for him.
“Best we just get him to his room.” Robyn said to Matthew. “What floor is he on?”
“Seventh.”
Robyn groaned. “Of course, he would be.” She looked at Taron as he sat with his eyes closed, taking short breathes through his open lips. “And how many people would we meet along the way?” She asked herself. “You have a hat?”
Taron shook his head before he started to cough again, the throbbing behind his eyes increasing with each painful cough.
“Ok shh Taron.” Robyn placed her hands on his cheeks, feeling the heat on his skin and left them there until he had stopped coughing. “You poor chicken.” She said quietly. “Really putting yourself through hell.” She turned to look at his director. “Would you help me get him back to his room?”
“Of course.”
Robyn left Taron to grab her handbag and she stuffed her suit jacket and Taron’s clothes into it, actually slipping his leather jacket on herself. “Maybe this is something else I can add to my wardrobe.” She joked but when once again Taron didn’t take to laugh, she knew he was definitely feeling very unwell. She dropped in the bottle of Lucozade type sports drink that Matthew had given her into her bag too, needing something other than water for Taron to drink. “Anything else belonging to you around here?” She asked Taron, who was just sitting in the chair sad and completely deflated.
“No my phone is in my pocket.”
“Ok so let’s go then.”
Robyn looked to Matthew and they nodded to each other and taking an arm each, got Taron to his feet, who was very glad to have the support either side of him, even happier when Robyn slipped her arm around his waist, her grip on him tight and firm. He felt himself leaning more into her than Matthew and once again was so thankful for her in more ways that he could describe.
@fuseburner​ @hitmeonmytspot​ @primaba11erina​ @turkish276​
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takayatweets · 5 years ago
Text
Under the cut is a translation of a now archived interview on Anireko TV about Fruits Basket 2nd Season that aired on the 25th of May 2020. The episode was retweeted by Takaya-sensei here. The special guests are Umehara Yuuichirou (the voice of Kureno Sohma) and Ishida Ayumi (member of girl group Morning Musume ‘20 and Fruits Basket fan)!
I have condensed it down but this interview is still a little long, so for those who are only interested in Umehara-san and Ishida-sans’ parts, you will find the beginning of their sections highlighted in bold.
Translation begins from 0:47 of the video.
Miyama Karen (host): Todays line-up will be this: “Fruits Basket 2nd Season 30 minute special!” The first guest we will talk to live over the phone is Umehara Yuuichirou-san. The second guest will be Morning Musume ‘20′s Ishida Ayumi-san!
Inoue Yuusuke (host): We’re very grateful for their participation.
Miyama: Yes! 
Interview proceeds to 1:53
Miyama: So Inoue-san! Today we will be doing a big feature on Fruits Basket 2nd Season - a show aired weekly on Mondays at 1:30am!
Inoue: It’s an anime full of drama, isn’t it.
Miyama: Yeah *laughing*. Without further ado, let’s get straight into our chat about the story so far!
Inoue: Ok!
Miyama: The protagonist is Tohru Honda - a girl who has been living in the Sohma house for one year at the beginning of Season 2. The secret of the Sohma clan is that if they are hugged by someone of the opposite gender they are cursed to transform into the animals from the Chinese zodiac. Tohru encounters many members of the Sohma family who are carrying various worries and hardships, deepening her bond with them. Living under the same roof, how will Yuki, Tohru and Kyo face this curse?
Inoue: They are moving towards their goals with conviction, aren’t they!
Miyama: Yes! Towards the curse!
Umehara (narrating): What’s more, we will introduce three new characters who arrive in the 2nd season! First of all, vice-president of the student council Manabe Kakeru. His personality is very friendly and he acts freely and uncontrollably.  He is constantly causing trouble for the school council president, Yuki. Next is the school council treasurer, Kuragi Machi, a girl who finds it extremely difficult to deal with things that are organised perfectly.
Miyama: Whats more, another character who is going to greatly push the story forward in Fruits Basket - Kureno Sohma - has finally appeared! He is very popular among fans of the original manga and appears during the ‘vacation house’ arc!
(a montage of scenes from the vacation arc episodes play)
Umehara (narrating): Summer vacation. Tohru and the members of the Sohma Clan have headed over to the family owned vacation house to spread their wings. However, the head of the family, Akito, appears whilst they are enjoying their trip. Akito calls Yuki and the other members of the Zodiac to a separated room from the vacation house in an attempt to isolate Tohru.
(montage footage ends)
Inoue: I see.
Miyama: Finally Akito-san has appeared.
Inoue: It makes you wonder what will happen next, doesn’t it.
Miyama: It makes you anxious, right?
Inoue: Fruits Basket has lots of fluffy, carefree moments, but now it is getting a little heavier, isn’t it.
Miyama: You’re right. I wonder if Tohru-chan will be all right? I’m worried.
First Guest: Umehara Yuuichirou (Kureno Sohma) Time - 4:40
Miyama: And the man who will be playing Kureno Sohma is none other than our own narrator for Anireko TV, Umehara Yuuichirou-san! Today we will be having a discussion with him over the phone! Hello, Ume-san?
Umehara: Yes, this is Umehara, hello.
Inoue: Hold on a second..... Karen-chan, you just called him ‘Ume-san’ didn’t you? Eeeeeeh?
Miyama: *laughing* I’m sorry!! I got too friendly all of a sudden, please excuse me. Umehara-san!
Inoue: Thanks for always doing the narrations for this show!
Umehara: No, thank you - it's very fun.
Miyama: Well then, let’s start to find out what kind of man Kureno -  the chararacter that Umehara-san is voicing - is. Please tell us!
Umehara: All right. You may be able to tell already, but Kureno is a man surrounded by mystery. What we do know so far is that Kureno is a fairly kind man, and he is the type of man who cannot simply leave a certain person alone. You’ll find out more about Kureno in coming episodes.
Inoue: How do you feel about playing Kureno? Were there any hardships in becoming his character?
Umehara: Well, I was told that he should not have too many lines when speaking to other people.
Inoue and Miyama: Oooh?!
Inoue: He does participate in conversations, however he is quite an air-head and spaces out frequently; he gives off the feeling of being quite alienated.
Inoue: So Kureno doesn’t always speak about his feelings out loud?
Umehara: Yes, I think he is not an easy character to understand at first and he may feel out of place among the other characters.
Inoue: I see.
Umehara (narrating): Hello everyone! I’m the narrator Umehara who also plays Kureno Sohma! I have prepared a short clip of Kureno, take a look!
(A clip of Arisa and Kureno speaking to each other is played)
Inoue: How did you feel watching that, Ume-chan?
Umehara: Well.......... it was pretty cool.
(they laugh)
Umehara: It makes me embarrassed, listening to my own voice.
Miyama: Doesn’t it.
Inoue: But after this point Kureno will begin to open his heart a little more, won’t he?
Umehara: He will.
Inoue: When he does, we will find out what kind of past he is carrying, and who he will foster feelings for, I assume?
Umehara: Yes, the next time Kureno makes an appearance after Episode 5 he has a completely different aura about him.
Inoue: Really?!
Umehara: If you watch Episode 5 again after the most recent episodes, I think you will understand.
Inoue: Is that so! That’s really got me interested. Ume-chan!
Umehara: Yes?
Inoue: TELL ME EVERYTHING!
(they laugh)
Inoue: I want to find out about what Kureno will do in future episodes.
Umehara: Please expect good things.
Inoue: Well, you’ve given us a great insight.
Miyama: With that being said, please give us a quick summary of Kureno to wrap things up!
Umehara: Ok. Well, anime-only fans still don’t know what kind of man Kureno is going to be, but little by little his story will progress! Please look forward to seeing Kureno, as well as Fruits Basket!
Inoue: Will do!
Miyama: Thank you very much! 
(short advertisement for Fruits Basket products and new releases)
Second Guest: Ishida Asumi (Morning Musume ‘20): Time - 10:12
Umehara (narrating): Coming up, let’s hear from a famous Fruits Basket fan!
Miyama: So Inoue-san! Next up we’re going to hear from a guest who is a die-hard fan of Fruits Basket!
Inoue: Die-hard, huh?
Miyama: So, the person who is going to speak to us and is connected to us via phone call right now is none other than Morning Musume ‘20′s Ishida Ayumi-san!
Ishida: Nice to meet you, I’m Ishida Ayumi - member of Morning Musume ‘20! Please take care of me~
Miyama: We were told that you love Fruits Basket, so-
Ishida: Yes, yes!
Inoue: You love Fruits Basket and came onto this show to tell us something?
Ishida: Well, my plan as a Fruits Basket fan is to come here and convey just how much I love the show!
Miyama: Our staff sent out an invite to you after they heard that you like Fruits Basket, but to think we were actually able to get you to say OK to coming on the show...
Ishida: I was thinking that there is no better platform to show how much I love Fruits Basket, so I gave the OK. My life is pretty much a Fruits Basket textbook at this point!
Umehara (narrating): Yes! Ishida-san has been uploading her Fruits Basket pictures onto social media and her blog, to share her love of Fruits Basket with her fans!
Inoue: Ah, can you tell us when exactly you became interested in Fruits Basket?
Ishida: The first time I ever saw Fruits Basket was about 1 year ago from now.
Inoue: I guess your textbook was made pretty recently then!
Ishida: Hahah, yes! However, in order to find out things about Fruits Basket that I didn’t already know, I decided to read the manga, and I did a lot of looking into into how other people are reacting to various scenes. It’s really fun.
Inoue: You said you had something to say about this, go ahead.
Ishida: Ok, I’ll give you the title of my objective here! ‘My Goal! Fruits Basket Recognition. I want to become a FuruMusu~!!’
(they clap)
Inoue: What does that mean?
Ishida: You see, I want to prove myself useful to all Fruits Basket fans and show that I will do anything for Fruits Basket, so I will become a Fruits Basket Musume - FuruMusu.
*FuruMusu is a play on Fruits Basket and Morning Musume ‘20, the girl group that she is a member of.
Inoue: But to become FuruMusu-
Ishida: Yes.
Inoue: Does that mean you’re ok to quit Morning Musume?
Ishida: WHY WOULD YOU SAY THAT?!
(they laugh)
Ishida: Please let me be both at once.
Inoue: You can’t be the Musume (daughter) of two groups at once, can you?
Ishida: No no no no, I have been two Musume at once, in the past. In Minimoni and Morning Musume.
(they laugh)
Ishida: So it’s fine!
Umehara (narration): With that said, we have asked Ishida-san to provide us with the best scenes to get people hooked on Fruits Basket! The two genres we have prepared are as follows: A scene to make your heart skip a beat, and a scene to wreck your tear ducts. What scenes has she chosen?
Ishida: I will first introduce you to the scene that will make your heart skip a beat. It is from the First Season in Episode 12. Please pay attention to Kyo-kun when Tohru becomes entangled with some male students!
(a clip is played from Episode 12 where Kyo scares off two boys talking about Tohru)
Ishida: There you have it!
Inoue: What is it that you like so much about this scene?
Ishida: When Kyo-kun says “it’s ok to space out when you’re around me”, he is basically saying “I will protect you”. I JUST CAN’T HANDLE IT!
(they laugh)
Inoue: Ishida-san, so you are a Kyo-kun stan?
Ishida: Sorry, yes I am a Kyo-kun stan.
Inoue: Ok then, so how would you react if Kyo-kun were to do the same sort of Kabedon to you?
*Kabedon is when someone (usually a male) forcefully puts their hands onto a wall to trap or shield the object of their affection (usually a female), just as Kyo-kun does in episode 12. In recent years it has been a big trend in Japan.
Ishida: I’m very sorry. I would not be able to survive something like that.
(they laugh)
Umehara (narrating): Moving on to the next scene - this one will wreck your tear ducts. What is Kyo-stan Ishida’s best scene for this?
Ishida: This scene is where Kyo-kun shows his true form, and bears all the burdens he is carrying to Tohru. I am not able to watch it without crying! Take a look!
(A montage plays of Kyo’s transformation into the cats' true form and flashback scenes of Kyo’s parents)
Umehara (narrating over the montage): Kyo-kuns' true form. That is, the zodiac cats' alternate form that is disgraced and shunned by the Sohma family. Kyo’s birth mother is frightened of him, and his birth father rejects him completely. Kyo, who was born with the cat spirit, has to live a life all by himself, unable to be accepted by others. Tohru, who sees Kyo in this state, chases after him.
(The scene of Tohru comforting Kyo, and Kyo embracing Tohru, plays)
Inoue: How did you feel watching that, Ishida-san?
Ishida: Thank you very much....
Inoue: What are you saying thank you for?
Ishida: Thank you for letting me say such a wonderful scene again.
Inoue: Ishida-san, you are the one who selected the clip!
(they laugh)
Ishida: No matter how many times I see this scene it grasps at my heart. To see the size of the burdens that Kyo-kun is forced to carry, and to then see the moment where his heart is eased of that pain makes us fans feel as if we have also been healed, too. That is the appeal of that scene.
Inoue: This is becoming very philosophical, isn’t it!
Miyama: Amazing!
Inoue: By the way Ishida-san, did you know that when this scene between Kyo and Tohru was recorded, the voice actress for Tohru, Iwami-san, really cried as she said the lines? She told us this when she came on as a guest on our show.
Ishida: I knew that! The first time I watched that scene I cried, but once I watched it again knowing that Iwami-san had cried it made me cry even more!
Inoue: How did you find out about that?
Ishida: Uh, I guess, well it was circling around and-
Inoue: YOU’RE SUPPOSED TO SAY FROM OUR SHOW!
(they laugh)
Inoue: No matter how you look at it, your answer should have been Anireko TV!
Ishida: I’m sorry! I’ll correct my answer.
(they laugh)
Inoue: Ok, I hope that the next time we meet we will be able to meet inside our studio rather than over the phone!
Ishida: I would like that!
Inoue: By that time we will have even more stuff to talk about, won’t we.
Ishida: I’ll probably end up talking my mouth off again, but by all means please invite me round again to liven things up.
Inoue: Today you said you were going to be Fruits Basket Musume, but you really just came as a Kyo fan!
Ishida: Hah, don’t say that! After all I was only able to select 2 clips!
Inoue: And if there were 3 clips? What would you pick?
Ishida: Well that... it would be another Kyo-kun scene.
Inoue: That’s enough!!
Ishida: No!!!
Inoue: You are only talking about Kyo, so you should really be KyoMusu instead of FuruMusu!
Ishida: Well, I’d be pretty happy about that.
(they laugh)
Miyama: With that said, our second guest was Ishida Ayumi from Morning Musume ‘20! Thank you very much!
Ishida: Thanks for having me!
(advertisements for various shows and a short skit, skip to 23:32)
Miyama: And so today show comes to an end! It was really an celebration of Umehara and a celebration of Fruits Basket, wasn’t it.
Inoue: But, like Ishida-san, there are probably a lot of people in the entertainment industry who like Fruits Basket, aren’t there?
Miyama: You’re right, I bet there are a lot!
Inoue: We should really gather all these people together and have a round table discussion about Fruits Basket.
Miyama: Sounds great.
Inoue: I want to hear from fans why their favorite character is so great.
Miyama: That would become quite the heated discussion.
Inoue: Karen-chan, who is your favorite?
Miyama: Yuki-kun!
Inoue: So you think that Yuki has a lot of good sides to him?
Miyama: I do.
Inoue: So then if you create a ‘best of’ clip selection just like Ishida-san did, would Yuki be in it?
Miyama: Yes. Of course.
(they laugh)
-End-
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surveys-at-your-service · 4 years ago
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Survey #358
“i know the pieces fit, ‘cuz i watched them fall away”
Would you ever own a Great Dane as a pet? Oh Lord, my mom wants one so bad. She looooves big dogs. I wouldn't, though. I don't want another dog, period. What was or is your favorite quality about your recent ex? Her resilience, strength, creativity, loyalty, etc. etc. etc. etc. etc. lol. Have you ever witnessed a human being giving birth in real life? No, and I NEVER fucking will. What about an animal? Yeah, cats. What kind of things do you enjoy reading about on sites like Wikipedia? I sometimes do that for straightening out game plots after watching a let's play if I have remaining questions. Wikipedia tends to do well with compressing it. Which country’s cuisine that you haven’t tried, would you be interested in sampling? (e.g. Moroccan, Thai etc.) I wouldn't know because I'm not educated enough on foreign cuisines. What’s the last movie you watched on your own? The Shining, I think, forever ago. Fried, poached, boiled or scrambled eggs? Scrambled. Have you ever got into a club, whilst being underage? I've never tried. Are you happy with your relationship with God, or do you want more from it? I don't have one. Do you struggle with boredom? Very, very severely. I have absolutely awful anhedonia; I'm pretty much constantly bored. Literally. I just... find things to pass the time, even if I'm not really enjoying myself. What famous person do you wish you could be friends with? I'm going to assume here you don't mean a significant other, because uh... y'all been known lmaooo. I would really love to be friends with Gab Smolders (I know that's not her real name, just using her YT name), because we have very similar interests. As well, Suzie Hanson is a fucking SWEETHEART. I miss her channel. :( At some point I want to purchase some stuff from her store to support the darling. Man, thinking of this question, there's really a lot. What would you do if you were famous? Hate it, haha. Do you wish you hair were shorter or longer? It's at a fine length right now. What photo editing website or software do you use? Lightroom and Photoshop. What hair color looks best on you and what’s your natural color? I think my hair looked best black. It's naturally brown. What is your favorite show to watch? Meerkat Manor. It is so, so comforting to me. Are your maternal/parental instincts strong? Not with kids, oddly enough. I've only ever really encountered strong protective instincts with significant others like when they're sick or something like that. In school, do you/did you work better by yourself or in a group? I absolutely worked better alone. I hated group work. Do you know anyone who has a collection of old records? My mom did, once upon a time. I feel like I know someone who does now... but idk. Do you go on any forums often? Just RP ones. Would you ever agree to an open relationship with someone? Nnnnope. Do people always say you’re too thin? Uh, I have the opposite problem. Could you design a whole web page yourself? Not from scratch, no. I've only done so on free sites that give you the bare bones and easy editing. Have you ever cooked an entire dinner for your family? Definitely not. Do you prefer piano music or violin music? Ohhhh, both are beautiful, but I have to say violin. Who do you tend to get in fights with the most? My mom, I guess, not that we fight a lot. Are you attracted to spooky and macabre things naturally? YEP. Have you ever bobbed for apples? Were you successful? No. It's disgusting if you're going after others, and besides, I HATE water up my nose and have never quite figured out how to block it out without plugging it. Hypothetically speaking, if you had a child [too young to make their own decisions], what would you dress him/her up as for Halloween? It would depend on what their interests were. Do you intend to take your children trick-or-treating, if ever you have any? I'm not having kids, but if I did, I definitely would if they wanted to go. What is the coolest jack-o-lantern you have ever seen? Now THAT'S hard, I really don't know. What was your favorite candy to get from trick-or-treating? What about your least favorite? Reese's was my favorite, and I never liked Tootsie Rolls. Did you ever receive anything that wasn’t candy? Maybe? I feel like I have... Have you ever carved a really extensive pumpkin, or were they always simple carvings? Yes; I once carved a pumpkin with a raven design with "and quoth the raven, 'nevermore'" written into the back. The raven wasn't just a flat cut-out, but rather carved in layers so the light came through differently at certain depths. Are you more interested in cute, funny, “sexy”, or scary costumes? For myself, absolutely the scary ones. In general though, I'm not gonna BS ya, I love me some sexy costumes, haha, but also still scary and particularly gory ones. Have you ever intimidated or made another person feel legitimately threatened? If not, do you think that you could ever be seen as scary? I seriously hate admitting this, but Mom has confessed that my yelling has scared her before when scolding our former dog that I fucking hated. In what ways do you or would you need to be validated by a partner? (For example, liking your posts/talking about you on social media, or perhaps by doting on your with gifts.) I absolutely need words of affirmation. I just need to hear a lot that you do still like/love me. Also, if you're unwilling to actually act like we're a couple in front of ANYONE, like you're ashamed of me or something, byyyyeeee. Do you tend to succeed by weaning yourself off of something or by quitting cold turkey? It depends, I guess. Is there a specific type of pet breed/size/etc. that you don’t want? Why not? Any that have underlying medical issues, like pugs, spider ball pythons, Persian cats, etc. etc... It's just a moral thing; I don't want to support the deliberate continuation of poor genes in animals for human monetary gain. It's just wrong to me. Away from breeds, I also don't really want free-roaming animals after my cat passes, because I don't want to endanger the reptiles and invertebrates I want as pets in the future. Have you ever lived in a notoriously dangerous area? If not, would it bother you to do so? I grew up in one, yes. I never want to again. Has a friend’s significant other ever interfered with or damaged your friendship? What about a significant other of yours damaging a friendship? No. What, if anything, is something that you put pressure on yourself about? What do you imagine would happen if you did not live up to this expectation? Getting a job nowadays. I do NOT want to imagine what my life will be like if I never find employment. If you have been in a serious relationship, have you and your partner ever discussed lifetime plans that clashed? Did you reconcile them or did you break up? If you have not been in a relationship, what are some issues that would be deal-breakers? This hasn't happened, no. If you were offered to smoke some weed right now would you accept? Honestly, I want to try weed to see if it would help my anxiety, BUT I'm unwilling to ever smoke something, so no. Have you ever changed clothes in a vehicle? Yeah. Do you listen to country music? No. Have you ever had a boyfriend your parents didn’t like? No. Were you ever a trouble maker? Not really, no. Do you shave your legs? Hell, that's debatable by this point. I haven't since this past October, but I *would* if for whatever reason someone might see my legs. I am not overexaggerating when I say I naturally have men's legs as far as hair goes, oof. Do you have any person in your family with an addiction to beer? That's what my dad always drank when he was an alcoholic. He doesn't touch alcohol now. Have you ever gotten sloppy drunk at a party? No. Have you ever slept naked? Accidentally. Could you ever be friends with the person who hurt you most in life? I really don't think I could be. Do you actually like going to school? I never did. Have you ever really been in a “complicated relationship”? How did that work out? In your opinion, what makes a relationship “complicated”? No. I don't care enough to go into what a complicated relationship means, I think it's pretty obvious. Who was the first person you’ve ever fallen in love with? Is this a person you’re still in contact with? How do you know you’re in love with someone? Jason, and no. And you just... know. It's a wordless feeling . Have you ever successfully broken a bad habit? How about conquered a fear of something? Uhhhh I don't know, really. Well, I used to be AWFUL at picking my eyebrows, particularly when anxious, but I have gotten better at that. I still kinda do it, though. Onto the next question, I don't believe I've "conquered" a fear, but rather they just faded with time on their own. Have you ever read a whole series of books? Yeah. Are you going to walk at your graduation or just pick your diploma up? I walked. Do you own a pair of brass knuckles? No. Have you ever tried to break a Guinness World Record? No. Can you sing your ABC’s backwards? I can't. Do you like Skittles? I love Skittles. Do you know how to read music? I used to. Who would you say has made the biggest impact on your life? Really, Jason. He ultimately led to me getting proper treatment for my depression, which changed my life. I'm in no way giving him credit for it, but you get what I mean. You can only listen to THREE CDs for the rest of your life. What are they? Black Rain and Ozzmosis by Ozzy Osbourne, and uhhh... perhaps The Black Album by Metallica. Do you own any shirts that have a year on it? Yeah, but it's way too small for me now. It's from Back To The Future, when we actually reached the date in the movie. Have you ever done another person’s make-up? Ha, I gave Jason a makeover once. Honestly, do you double dip? Not if I'm sharing the dip with other people. Who were you last on an elevator with? My mom. Do you know anyone that has a black belt in karate? Not to my knowledge. How often do you wear hats? Never. Who is the youngest gay person you know? *shrug* Have you ever watched an animal being eaten by another animal? I've seen cats eat mice and stuff as a kid. What is the strangest, most “out there” thing you believe? Some people I'm sure would consider the fact I believe the government was involved in 9/11 as "out there," but when you look into it, it's far from "out there." Do you get along with people who are especially religious? Why/why not? It depends on how they act about it, not what they keep in their head. Now if they have just purely hateful beliefs that demonize another's existence, then no, we can't get along. Have you ever drawn or painted a self-portrait? Painted, yes, for an art class. Do you have any interesting pillow cases? No. Are you more afraid of spiders or bees? Bees, generally. Especially if we're talking things like wasps, who are just demon spawns. Would you rather donate time, blood, or money? That's a really hard question, but I guess time? Like I'm thinking volunteer work and stuff, or listening to and comforting someone. Can grills be sexy on a guy? They're sexy on absolutely no one. Last strong smell you can remember smelling? Ugh, gasoline. This one car in front of my mom and me smelled awful. Last healthy thing you ate? Apples. Do you know anybody who was abused? Emotionally, yes. Do your parents volunteer anywhere? No. Do you have a steering wheel cover? Mom's car doesn't. What do you think of when you see sharp knives? This is really morbid, but I will immediately envision what it would be like to be stabbed. I'm very afraid of knives. The highway and back roads take you to the same place; choose your route. The back roads, of course. And let me bring my camera.
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mothman-clarice-2 · 4 years ago
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A Rant/Essay about Moira and Sigma and how they’ve changed my life
Hi so I am in a very very very good mood right now and I really want to rant about some things I love. 
As my followers may know very well by now, I LOVE Overwatch. Specifically I LOOOVE Moira and Sigma. I less so have a special interest in Overwatch and more so in those specific characters. 
Quick thing for those who don’t know, a special interest is a term used by people under the Autism spectrum to describe a subject or thing they have a very strong personal connection to. 
I have recently discovered I have Aspergers syndrome, a neurodevelopmental disorder that affects the person’s ability to socialize and causes them to have repetitive and restrictive behaviors and/or interests. Basically it’s very similar to Autism but there are some slight differences that differentiate the two that I won’t go into here because it’ll take too long, but you can research them yourself if you want to of course. 
This has been a HUGE discovery for me because I have known I was very different from other people for a long time but I had no idea why. This discovery explains EVERYTHING. I finally understand why I have such a hard time communicating with people and why I have such unusual tendencies (such as becoming hyper-fixated on things I like). This relates to my love of Moira and Sigma. 
In Overwatch, Moira O’Deorain is a brilliant Irish geneticist on the cutting edge of her field. She has made numerous revolutionary advancements in genetic technology and manipulation. She has devoted her life to her work and advancing the Human race as a species. However, she has a very dark side to her achievements. She has achieved her discoveries by disregarding all ethics and morality in her experiments. She has experimented on everything from animals to herself to even other humans. She has performed experiments on herself that have left her permanently disfigured (her right arm). She has performed experiments on people that have permanently changed their bodies in agonizing ways (Reaper). She believes that ethics are holding back scientific advancement and that they are a waste of time. Pretty horrible right? I wouldn’t blame you for calling that evil. However, you can’t say she is absolutely evil. 
Yes what she has done is horrible and she is completely morally bankrupt, but she also does what she does because she wants to help people. She does what she does because it’s for the betterment of the world. And it has made the world better! In the lore, she has made numerous revolutionary advancements in genetic technology! She is an absolute genius who is helping better the world in massive ways! But at the same time, she is hurting other people to get there. That is the epitome of complete moral ambiguity. 
And I LOVE that. 
You can’t say she’s completely good because she hurts people and disregards ethics as a waste of time. But you also can’t say she evil because she has made revolutionary scientific discoveries that could save the lives of millions. 
I love Moira not just because she is a complex character but I also relate to her on numerous levels. 
For one, she is Irish and I have a lot of Irish heritage. I adore my Irish culture and I love how she seems to be passionate about it as well given that she is fluent in Gaelic (our ancient language which is actually dying out) and she has a lot of Irish oriented stuff in the game. She has actually really caused me to get invested in my Irish heritage and learn about my culture. Another thing I relate to is that she has a great appreciation for art and is just generally pretty eccentric. She loves dressing up and cosplaying and art and music and all of these different things that I also love. 
One of the biggest reasons I relate to her though is her lack of ability to understand people’s emotions. I am a very empathetic person but at the same time I have a very hard time connecting to people. I have always had trouble interacting with people and making friends because I don’t understand how people normally communicate. From what I have seen, Moira is like that too. She doesn’t seem to really have any friends (she was sorta friends with Gabriel but that was more of a business friendship) and everyone seems to either hate her or thinks she’s creepy or weird. I headcanon that Moira is high functioning autistic because of her lack of empathy and difficulty understanding people’s emotions. 
Obviously I am not saying autistic people are unempathetic sociopathic mad scientists, far from it actually. People with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) can either be very empathetic or they can lack empathy to varying degrees on both sides. Sometimes they are just as empathetic as everybody else. Everyone under the autism spectrum is completely different. I just think Moira is one of the people who lacks empathy to a very high degree. I think Moira having autism that causes her to lack empathy is a very good explanation for her beliefs and how she behaves, not to mention it’s something I relate to. 
As for Sigma, he’s a different character entirely. 
Siebren de Kuiper (pronounced “Ki-per” with “Ki” as in “kite”) is a brilliant Dutch astrophysicist. He is known for being a very eccentric introvert with a brilliant mind and a deep, fiery passion for his work. He performed an experiment that would’ve revolutionized technology by being able to harness the power of a black hole but it went terribly wrong. The accident left him completely traumatized and his psyche destroyed. This accident also gave him the ability to control gravity but I’m not really gonna talk about that in this because it’s not really necessary. 
Sigma has a lot of anxious tendencies, for example he has numerous voice lines where he becomes anxious or panicked. He says the phrase “hold it together” many times, a phrase he uses to try and comfort himself when he feels panicked. All of these have caused me to headcanon that he has PTSD and/or some other kind of anxiety disorder (although I haven’t decided which one yet). 
I personally have struggled with generalized anxiety and social anxiety for a long time so I find myself relating to his anxiety. Something about seeing this  62 year old absolute GIANT of a man (he’s 8′1″) having anxiety and relating to me in so many ways is really comforting. 
Whenever I am sad or anxious about something, I think of Sigma and I channel my fears through him. I do that a lot actually, not just with anxiety but with other emotions as well. Whenever I am really really happy about something, I think of Sigma and Moira. Whenever I’m depressed, I think about Sigma and Moira. I channel all of my emotions through these characters by acting out scenes in my head, imagining scenarios with them, or drawing them. Sometimes when I’m sad I’ll imagine Moira and Sigma in happy scenarios to cheer myself up. 
These characters, these fictional things from a video game, have had such an important impact on me I can’t even begin to describe it. I connect with these characters so deeply and so personally. 
I found myself connecting to them mostly during quarantine. This was the time when I was the loneliest I had ever been in my life. I was the most stressed and depressed I had ever been. I had lost a close family member and two beloved pets in a very short span of time. On top of this, I had no friends. I was completely downtrodden and lost. Then I decided to start playing Overwatch again, and everything started to change. 
I fell back in love with Moira more than ever and I found a brand new love for Sigma. I felt more connected to these characters than I ever would've because I had pretty much nobody else to connect to. These characters became my strongest coping mechanism and, in a way, my imaginary friends. I channeled all of my anxieties and sadness and grief and loneliness through them. I used them to help me grieve my loved ones. At the same time, I channeled my joy and pride and passions through them. These characters give me comfort when I need it most. That is something so special I can’t even begin to describe it. I love these characters with every single fiber of my heart and soul. They have been my greatest coping mechanism in these extremely tumultuous times. They helped me find actual friends for the first time in years, friends who I have been able to relate to and who love me despite my odd quirks and behaviors.
These fictional characters, these video game models, these lines of code, they have helped me survive my darkest days and enriched my brightest moments. These characters have fundamentally changed my life. 
And I wouldn’t trade it for anything. 
Thank you Overwatch. Even though your fanbase can be one of the most toxic things I have ever seen, you have given me friends and two characters that kept me going when life was trying its hardest to keep me down. You have really shown me the power of fiction and its ability to change lives. Thank you, from the bottom of my heart. 
And thank you to whoever is still reading this. Seriously, I can’t believe you actually had the patience to listen to me ramble for so long about something so specific to me. It’s frankly incredible and I have endless respect for you. Your attention span is literally god-like if you were able to read through all this and I wanna thank you for blessing me with your priceless time and attention. It really is amazing.
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flowapuddle · 4 years ago
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Haikyuu x Athletic! FEMALE Reader
okay so enjoy this book and the chapters, please don’t copy or take credit of it - Puddle ❤️
Chapter 2- Volleyball Practice pt. 1
“(Y/n) get up...sis you gotta get up” You heard a voice said slightly waking you up outta your sleep
You opened your eyes slightly and began rubbing them as you sat up slowly yawning “
“Oh, goodmorning Aaliyah” You said softly as you yawned a bit stretching you notice once you woke up Aaliyah was already in her uniform as she rose a eyebrow
“I am surprised your not even up, mom and dad told to come and get you” Aaliyah said slowly backing away from your bed making you look at her in question as she opened your door leading out into the hallway
“We have 10 minutes to get to school” She said looking at you with a smirk before shutting the door
“Oh 10 minutes that’s nice to know” You said with your eyes shut still sitting up and smiling
.
.
.
.
“10 MINUTES!!!!!” You yelled out as you immediately jumped out of the bed and started to get ready, you
You patted yourself on the back because you left your clothes out on your desk to use you quickly placed on your clothes and looked in the mirror trying to smooth out any rinkles in the shirt and skirt
You rushed outta your room wearing your school uniform having your backpack and of course of change of clothes for volleyball practice
You ran down the stairs almost tripping multiple times and into the dinning area as you saw Aaliyah, your father and mother sitting down at the table eating breakfast
“NO TIME FOR EATING WE HAVE TO LEAVE—why are you guys just eating...” You questioned looking at each one of them
“Sweetheart sit down, and have breakfast. School doesn’t start for another hour” Your mom hummed out smiling as she started to cut up her egg
“Your father and I wanted to have breakfast with you both, Aaliyah went to grab you to tell you breakfast was done” She said bitting into her egg
“...She was waking me up f-for breakfast....” you said as your eyebrow twitched as your eyes shifted towards Aaliyah as she had a smirk on her face
“Oh for breakfast I thought it was for letting us go to school early” Aaliyah said bitting into some jammed toast humming “Sorry (Y/n)” She said in her usual tone of voice looking back at you
You grumbled under your breathe as you took a seat next to your sister and began to eat your breakfast
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After the morning shenanigan with your sister you both started to make your way outta the house
“Okay my little Pooh Bears make sure to get to school safe the car is waiting outside for you” You mom said smiling at you both and patting your heads
“Your lunches should already be in your backpacks the servants should have made you something, if you have trouble call me or your father. Goodluck at both of your practices today, I know you will make me and your father proud” She conclude as she walked both of you
“Speaking of practices Aayliah after you get done with your basketball practice, you have another one at the house for weights and ball handling drills to get you prepared. I already got a look at your schedule and you have games coming up for this school” You dad said as he looked at Aaliyah
Aaliyah only nodded making a humming noise “Okay”
“Games already?” You said as the front doors were pulled open by the servants
“Yes sweetheart, the games are already coming up I guess there two days away” You father said smiling at you
“Who are they going against?” You questioned wanting to know more information
“Apparently they are going against this school Fukurōdani Academy, it’s something big in girls basketball for the most part it’s the crows vs the owls” You father said
“But it’s nothing that Aaliyah can’t handle and I am sure with a crowd she’ll even play better, besides if your there she will make sure to do good” Your mom added as you started to step into the limo
“Bye loves see you later on tonight” Your dad said as he shut the limo door once you both were inside he waved at you both as you waved at him back and you heard two thumps ontop of the limo signaling the driver to go, as he immediately started to drive
You and Aaliyah sat in quietness
“You think your going to make friends” You said starting the conversation “Like are you nervous” you added on
Aaliyah only looked at you for a bit as her attention went outside the window “No, I have no reason to be nervous for one I hate people, and two you out all people know I get social anxiety easily” She huffed out a bit “but I guess one friend that’s my age, wouldn’t be so bad..” she mumbled out the last part and clearing her throat at bit “What about you? Are you nervous?”
You chuckled a bit “For the most part yeah, I just want people to like me and really want everyone to be my friend” You said as you saw the school slowly approaching
“I wouldn’t worry too much about people not wanting to be your friend” Aaliyah said catching your attention “Your a very umm interesting fun person to be around. You know how to put smiles on people’s faces and you know how to encourage people really well” Aaliyah said sighing out “If I were you I would have everyone like me, but sadly I am my own person and due too what happens to me when I interact with people most people take it the wrong way. So my main point is just be yourself, and don’t try to be anybody your not” Aaliyah concluded as she looked at you with the same bored face her eyes slightly soft as she ruffled your hair
“Also get out of the limo we are at school” She said with a frown
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After you little conversation with Aaliyah you felt less anxious about school and headed to your first class of the day math
You were flying grades in everything expect for the subject math and you despised it
You made your way down to the classroom and seeing a young women with blonde hair and blue eyes, you could only assume this was the teacher
“Ahh you must be Ms. lmaah” The teacher said smiling looking at you, you nodded your head
“Yes that’s me!” You said with a chuckle looking at her
“It pleasure to meet someone with your status at this school you may call me Sensei or Ms. Al since I know your from the states and all I know this can be something hard to adjust to” She said with a smile readjusting her glasses as she kept her smile
You nodded at her “Of course, thank you Ms. Al”
“You can stay out here, once I settle down the class and what not, I will call you inside. Goodluck honey” She said before walking into the classroom
You stood outside the door and waited patiently for the teacher to call you in as you leaned agasint the wall
A few minutes went by until you heard
“Ms. Imaah please come in” You heard the teacher said as you leaned off the wall and walked inside the classroom shutting the sliding door behind you
You entered the class standing infront of everyone as you held your other arm slightly embarrassed as you looked down
“Go ahead and introduce yourself” The teacher encouraged happily
“Umm hello...my name is Imaah, (Y/n) I am from the states. You can call me (Y/n), uhh I play volleyball I am setter and sometime the ace of the team.” You said as you looked at everyone in class slowly getting comfortable with your setting “I hope to be your friend” You said with a smile
“Lovely job Imaah you can seat in next to Tsukishima, please raise your hand Tsukishima” The teacher asked politely
You saw the hand in the air as you slowly approached the hand, the boy named Tsukishima had blonde hair with piercing bright brown eyes and his dollar earbuds around his neck. Along with the earbuds he had black plain glasses
‘Why does he look so familiar to me?’
You questioned yourself as you seat next to him pulling out a piece of paper and a pencil. As you slowly started to take notes on the subject at hand.
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TIME SKIP
As you got done with your last class before lunch you slowly started to pack up your things
“Excuse me” You heard someone said as you looked up seeing the blonde boy you were so desperately trying to figure out the name of
“Uh yes?” You questioned with a raised eyebrow
“Are you the younger sister of Aaliyah?” He questioned as you nodded your head
“Yes why?” You questioned as you raised a eyebrow a bit
“Ahh so this is shortest family member of Imaah, how does it feel to have to look up to your sister, mom and dad everyday?” He said with a smirk
A tick visable formed on your forehead, yes your the shortest in your family so what. He doesn’t have  patronize you about being the shortest.
You frowned looking up to him visable annoyed
“What’s a matter don’t tell me you have a short fuse” He said getting closer to your face holding a slick smirk
You felt your face getting red not because of embarrassment no no no because you were generally annoyed at him in a spam of a couple of minutes , why on earth is he trying to pick a fight with you?
“Interesting from what I have seen, you were a quick fuse person” He commented obviously knowing he was getting a rise outta you
Your eyebrow slowly started to twitch as you huffed out trying to keep yourself calm
‘If this is what I have to deal with then I rather have Aaliyah be blunt with me’
You thought to yourself as you kept hearing this Tsukishima person keep on at it and talking what seemed forever
He had been making remarks about you for a good 2 minutes to get a rise outta you until you had completely blocked him out
“Can you shut up for two seconds, or do you have to keep making remarks to try and get a rise outta me?” You questioned looking at him finally since you shut your eyes you held a frown on your face as he was visable shocked in a way
“Oh the short one has something to finally say—“ you interrupted him as you sighed loudly
“Obviously I would expect someone like you to take a hint since you have glasses that should make you twice as smarter but sadly you can’t take social ques even with glasses” You started out as you notice the door open since it was lunch and Aaliyah with your her stuff looking for you obviously
You thanked yourself as you stood up “Unlike you uhh Tsukishima I think your name was...I don’t have time and enegry to waste on insluting you or whatever the heck is going on” You started to grab your stuff as you looked down at him “See ya later four eye freak” You said mockingly waving at him as you grabbed your lunch and walked towards Aaliyah and left the classroom before a little green head walked in
“Tsukki!! Guess what! Uhh tsukki? Are you okay?” He questioned his friend obviously concerned and confused on why he was smirking while looking at the door
“Oh I am fine, I just have some competition I have to deal with” He said smoothly as he looked at his green haired friend
......
“Yeah Aaliyah and then he said I was the shortest in the family!” You shouted as you two sat down outside she looked at you tilting her head
“But are you not? Your only 167.64 (5ft, 6) and I am 182.88 (6’0)” Aaliyah said bitting into her food with her chopsticks
“Okay so maybe I am! But I didn’t have to be remind of it...jerk” You mumbled as you bite into your octopus shaped hotdog
“Personally I think your taking it too personal it’s obvious he is just trying to get into your head don’t let it mess with you so much, so what your the shortest in the family; your still the #1 best girls volleyball player” She said taking another bite of her cherry tomato
“Yeah I guess it’s true” You said eating another hotdog “How has class been with you so far? Are the college prep class hard?”
“No, in all honesty it’s the same back in the states, very basic and straight forward. In fashion designing class since I am a teachers assistant, there was guy their trying to talk to me. Uhhh he had a manbun he looks very imitating but he is very” A frown visable shown on her face along with her eyebrow twitch as she blinked “Oh great here they come now” She mumbled sighing out
“Who comes?” You questioned looking where her eyes were and seeing Sugawara, Daichi and the person she was just describing with them “The people we meet yesterday?” You questioned
“Yes.” Is all she said as they approached the two of you
“Hi (Y/n) and Aaliyah!” “Hey” “uhh hi” they all said
You smiled at waved at them “Hi senpais, glad to see you again what’s up?” You said eating a bit of your rice as you looked to them
“We were wondering if we could seat with you both” Sugawara said smiling happily looking down at you two
“I am leaving.” Aaliyah said immediately standing up not even finishing her food her usual stoic aura came back as she looked at you and then the three boys bowing her head a bit “I have gym, and I attend to get in their early to work on a few moves” She said before walking off
The three boys sweatdropped as they still sat down and started to eat their lunch as you finished up your lunch, the atmosphere was kinda tense a bit after Aaliyah left you cleared your thoart and looked at them “So how have your classes been going?”
“For me their going good” Sugawara replied bitting into some food
“Nothing to crazy, since finals are coming up. All of us have to score good. I dobut any of us will have trouble but we are concerned about the first years. Also Fukurōdani Academy is hosting a volleyball camp, in three weeks from now are your sister and you able to make it?” Daichi questioned
“Ahh I assume yes, that’s funny to think about though” You said mumbling as you placed your hand under your chin
“What’s fun?” Said the man bun person as he was eating
“Aaliyah has a game at Fukurōdani Academy for basketball” You said shrugging your shoulders
“When is it? Maybe we can get the team to come out and support her” Daichi said finishing up his meal
“It’s three days from now” You said slowly starting to put your things away as you wiped your mouth with a napkin
“Ah, I see maybe we can go out. We just need to convince coach and find rides” Sugawara said mumbling
“Well rides I can do, so don’t worry about that the only thing we need to worry about is how to get out there” You mumbled “And do we want to surprise her, she doesn’t do well with surprises though” You said sweatdropping
“I think surprising her will be fun” The man bun said finishing up his food
“Your right Asahi it would be fun to surprise” Daichi said smiling
“Okay surprise it is, but down blame me when she gets in a mood swing” You said rubbing the back of your head
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(ANOTHER TIME SKIP)
As school let out for the day you made your way out of the classroom getting your notes into your backpack as you slowly started to make your way to the gym
Your sister Aaliyah was waiting for you leaning against the wall with a leg slightly up and her eyes shut as it looked like some random dude was walking to her and her being her wasn’t obviously interested
She heard footsteps as she looked up and started to walk towards you obviously not noticing the presence of the dude next to her as her hair swished back and fourth as she looked down to you with blue piercing eyes “I am walking you to the bathroom so we both can change then to the volleyball gym and meeting you there after my practice is finish” She said bluntly
You nodded your head “Okay sounds good” You said following behind her as you hummed making your way to the bathrooms, once getting inside you both started to change
“Oi (y/n)” You heard Aaliyah called out
“Yes” You hummed out putting on your black spandex and (f/c) sports bra while you put on a plain white compressed shirt as your turned around
“They won’t say anything to me if I have a belly button piercing right?” She questioned as she was putting all of her hair up into a bun barely managing it as she was wearing a gray blackish compressed shirt with rolled up red shorts
Silence hit you
“YOUR HAVE A BELLY BUTTON PIERCING!!!!?”
“You act surprise” She mumbled out as she rolled down her compressed shirt and looked at you “Well is it noticeable?”
You still in shock over the belly button piercing “n-no” you stuttered out
“Cool” She said getting to finally get all her hair up as you could finally see her face and her figure very well
“Let’s go” She said noticing you were done
“Ahh okay okay hold on” You said placing your things in your backpack and started to walk out with her
You both got many looks from both boys and girls as some would whistle at you or both of you
You both made it to the gym as you opened the door placing your things down
As you walked in almost immediately Noya and Tanka started to praise you
“The goddess have returned—AND THEY ARE SHOWING SKIN!!!” Tanka yelled visable making your sister flinch at the loud noise
“Here take my sweater and cover yourselves” Noya said tossing his sweater at you and standing infront of you both
“Can it you too and shut the hell up” Aaliyah said
“Yes Ma’am” They both said making her sigh and roll her eyes
“Please calm down you down” You mumbled out as you gave back Noya sweater and notice the boys starting to come towards you guys
“Ahh hello boys” You said waving at them some waved back and others said hi while a lot Where blushing
“Can i leave” Aaliyah said with a frown not liking the attention at all
“Please Stay” Tanka said whining as he got on his knees
“no, i have my own sport to tend to” Aaliyah hissed out
“What sport is that?” One of the taller boys asked in the black having all black hair he kinda looked like a blueberry
“basketball, like my sister. i play a sport and that’s basketball, I ranked #1 best female basketball player” Aaliyah said bluntly looking at everyone
A bit were taken back not even knowing about your ranking
“Volleyball is obviously the better sport you should’ve done it instead” the blonde boy with glasses—WAIT TSUKISHIMA how did you not notice him, he was in volleyball SON OF A BITC—
“I am fine, unlike you I like psychically things that actual acquire you actual move around and get physical with other people. Unlike volleyball your team is separated from two sides of the court and you don’t touch anybody. With basketball you have to be mentally and physically strong” Aaliyah said looking at him with a frown “That’s something you probably would be able to handle, you’ll just get thrown around the court like a rag doll” She said with a shrug “On that note I am leaving” Aaliyah said turning around to leave
Visable everyone was shocked and some in awe “Whoa so cool!” You heard hinata yelled out after she was gone
You chuckled with a sweatdropped “Lets just get practicing”
“Yeah sure that’s fine” Daichi said clearing his thoart “Coach should be here soon, we wanted to go over a couple of sets if you don’t mind. We need to practice can you be on the mock team going against us?” Daichi questioned
“Yeah of course, sure let me get to plumpt all of you in volleyball!!!” You said cocky as you brought your fist to you hand cracking it “You guys are going to loose!” You added on with a smirk
Everyone in the gym sweatdropped and all at once they all thought
“I need to be on (y/n) team”
——————————————————————————
A/n: Dam hella mf words, sorry I will try to limit it but it’s like 2k or 3k I am honestly not sure
Are you guys enjoying the book so far, y’all have any notes or special requests?
Chapter 3 is here!!!
Chapter Story Board
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highladyluck · 4 years ago
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I've taken a bunch of self-reporting Autism Spectrum tests and I always come out borderline (like, just under whatever the threshhold is, or just under half of a list of items) but I'm really starting to wonder... (detailed thoughts under the cut).
I guess really the most practical thing to do about it is continue to lurk in autistic spaces and maybe see if their tips for alleviating masking stress/communicating with others are useful to me? Idk I just really felt like a space alien who does not know how to human at work this week, and it's starting to get to me. 
One of my autistic friends has said that the way I think makes sense to her, which means I must be non-neurotypical, because she doesn't get how neurotypicals think. It's possible that I'm just open-minded and empathetic towards others, and that reads as non-neurotypical to autistic people because they're used to hostility or confusion from neurotypical people. My therapist told me a story about a straight female friend of hers who kept getting hit on by wlw, and when she finally asked why she was pinging everyone's gaydar, someone explained that this straight person wasn't homophobic /at all/ and that was so rare in straight people, in their experience, that they'd assumed it meant the person was queer. So like. It could just be that. But this year I feel like I've accumulated a lot of little hints that maybe it's more than just the bare minimum of drinking my respect autists juice?
There seem to be a lot of triggers in common between 'what makes me anxious' and 'what triggers autistic burnout', as well as symptom overlap. I find descriptions of what happens when you stop masking (in terms of emotional/social consequences and anxiety about that), or what masking looks/feels like, uncomfortably relatable. I once got really excited talking about something I love with a stranger at a party, and they were really supportive and nice about it and in fact were like 'wow you're so genuine and interesting, I never have conversations like this with strangers' and on the way home and at home afterwards I felt so anxious about having someone see me unfiltered- and recognize that I was unfiltered, and point out that I wasn't following a normal social script- that I had anxiety nausea afterwards thinking about it. The experience was completely positive in the moment, and the feedback about it was totally positive, but being *seen* and *called out* like that really shook me afterwards in a way that I found very difficult to understand. But it sounds *a lot* like what happens if you're afraid someone's caught you being your real self when you are normally always masking.
Another thing that seems masking-related is that I'm really good at cover letters (and explaining how to write them to both my neurotypical and autistic friends) because I have developed a script for them and know what they are supposed to accomplish and why. I've had people tell me after an interview that I wasn't actually qualified for the job, but they brought me in because they liked my cover letter so much. Which like... what. Who does that? And friends who adopt my cover letter formula have gotten more interviews afterwards. I'm also suspiciously good at writing to a set structure and aping a set style, once I can see an example to imitate, which tells me that I'm pretty analytical and have a vested interest in mimicry.
I've had employers tell me that I picked up on the house writing style and content rules much quicker than other people in my role, and my creative hobbies tend to involve parodies and riffing on other people's ideas (filk music) or surrealist or part-to-whole juxtaposition (collage, mosaic). In both cases I'm kind of jamming existing structures and ideas together to make something new, that has direct and inescapable relations to what it came from, but is also internally coherent. But the fact that I need referents for both content and structure, and that exploring part-to-whole relationships is incredibly key to my creative experiences, suggests that on some level my creative practice is 'arranging things I like in an idiosyncratic, complex, and pleasing way', which also seems somewhat characteristically autistic?
I have also always felt like my friends 'rub off on me' and that I absorb their beliefs/mannerisms/skills etc. I feel like I can't control the fact that I'm porous at all, but I can control what I absorb insofar as I pick who I hang out with pretty carefully and with an eye to self-improvement. That could have other explanations than 'I'm conciously or unconciously imitating people who seem to have their shit together', but it seems like part of a pattern when I put it with all of the other things.
Also in my professional life the stuff I get told I need to work on and the stuff I'm good at seem to be autistic-coded things. I tend towards systems thinking (good and bad, I can grasp complex systems, but can't always turn it off and I feel like people call out that I always want to put stuff in context.) I need a lot of preliminary information about a task before I can do it, but I'm also pretty reluctant to get that preliminary information if it involves actually talking to someone else, especially someone I don't interact with regularly. I tend to assume I have the information I need about their motivation up front, and it's just the technical details that I might need to follow up on, when often it turns out I was misled about what they wanted. That's either because I wasn't aware of something about their context (and didn't think to ask), or because they used a technical term that is very meaningful and specific for me, so I assumed they knew what they were talking about, but it actually means something totally different to them and maybe wasn't the correct term for what they really wanted.
I also want to stick to past precedent/established routine/previously used patterns and formulas in a professional context so strongly that I've been chided for my lack of flexibility when new situations come up a couple of times at my current job, although in my super-chaotic toxic former workplace it was a huge asset, because it was my job to develop the standards and make people stick to them and not use 3 different formulas 3 different times to calculate the same metric. I have tendency to infodump on technical stuff that sometimes gets me in trouble, because I feel like I'm providing all of the info needed to explain and contextualize my decision, but it sometimes comes off as overexplaining, which can make you sound less confident/authoritative, or it can just confuse people because all they really need is your decision. It's especially bad in person or if I'm writing a response fast and don't have a chance to edit for that specific audience (or I misjudge what my audience is).
One thing that gives me pause on any kind of self-diagnosis (beside the fact that it seems you have to be traumatized to really fit any of the formal diagnostic criteria fully, which is horrifying and sad) is that I've never had much of the sensory stuff as far as I can tell, and most autistic people I know do tend to have unequivocal sensory neurodivergence. I do really like textures, tend to talk with my hands, and am usually unconsciously jiggling my legs when left to my own devices, and my anxiety results in nausea, but that's about it for sensory stuff.
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bigherosixfeels · 5 years ago
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Okay kinda got a cute idea for a fic request. Considering there's been a lot going on in the world right now, how about Hiro helping Megan through a bad time in her life?
Aw, sounds good!
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Homesick
Fandom: Big Hero 6: The Series
Rating: K
Characters: Hiro Hamada and Megan Cruz
Word Count: 1,625
Summary: Megan misses her previous homes
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The first two weeks of summer vacation had already come and gone. Everyone in San Fransokyo was out and about, going anywhere they pleased. The Lucky Cat tended to do better than usual with business when school was out, resulting in Hiro lending his aunt an extra hand during work hours. His spare time went into night patrols alongside his friends, who were currently looking for work since graduating. 
What was a bit concerning to the teen genius though was that he hadn’t heard much from his good friend Megan in awhile. He hadn’t seen her since the day Trina attempted to unleash her robot revolution on the city. They had briefly texted a couple times before school let out. Since then, Megan hadn’t contacted him once. It was unlike her. Megan was an extremely social person. Hiro figured by now, they would have hung out with more free time on their hands. 
Hiro tried not to be too worried at first. Perhaps she was spending more time with her dad? Or she had plans with other friends? 
After awhile, a thought had occurred to him that maybe she needed space after the whole ordeal with Trina. While Megan initially wanted to get more involved in superheroing since discovering Hiro’s identity, what happened that day had to have been overwhelming. Trina did capture her for a short time. 
With that unsettling memory in mind, Hiro decided to reach out to her. A simple text asking how she was doing. A text that not only she didn’t respond to, but also never read. Was she okay? Was she purposely avoiding him?
After a couple of days with still no response and concerns rising, Hiro took a trolley that let him off in Megan’s neighborhood. He walked at a fast pace as he neared closer to the apartment complex. A wave of apprehension overcame his nerves as he entered the building, accelerating the closer he got to her home.
Not to his surprise, Chief Cruz answered the door. Although, what was surprising was the chief’s attitude towards Hiro. The strict, overprotective man who was always cautious when allowing Hiro to go up to Megan’s room was uncharacteristically welcoming. It may have had something to do with him having more of an appreciation for the young prodigy after rescuing his daughter. However, upon being told that Megan was in her room, he also made a remark about how she could probably use some company right now. There was a hint of sadness in his tone that Hiro chose not to comment on. It only made him worry more, all the more glad that he chose to stop by for a visit.
Hiro walked up the stairs that led to Megan’s room. His eyebrows knit at the closed door, wondering what she was up to. What was going on? Why did her father think she needed company? Had she been up in her room since school ended? 
The teenager paused upon reaching Megan’s bedroom door. Hiro let out a quick, inaudible sigh. He hated the thought of his good friend not doing well. Megan was such a good person. She helped Hiro experience a more casual, teenage lifestyle and had his back in desperate times. If she’s been troubled, the least Hiro could do is help. 
Reaching his arm out, Hiro gave two firm knocks on the door. 
A loud, exasperated groan was made on the other side. “I’m fine, Dad!” 
Hiro flinched. He hadn’t expected that to be the reaction. Clearly, her dad had been checking up on her multiple times. “M-Megan, it’s me!” Hiro responded. “Hiro.” 
There was a short silence. “Hiro?” 
Before Hiro had a chance to say anything else, he could hear Megan’s footsteps approaching closer. Soon enough, the door swung open. The aspiring journalist was in her usual shirt and jeans; her black jacket tucked away due to the summer heat gradually increasing. 
However, the first thing Hiro noticed about her was the dark circles under her eyes. Along with that were widened eyes and a small frown. She raised an eyebrow as Hiro continued to stand in front of her. Hiro noticed this. What was she thinking about? 
“What are you doing here?” 
The soft, yet dejected tone in her voice made a frown form across Hiro’s face. She was usually so excited when he would come over. Something must really be bothering her. 
“I came to see how you were doing.” Hiro sighed heavily. “We haven’t hung out in awhile and you never responded to the last text I sent you.” His frown deepened as he looked over her facial expression again. “Are you alright?” 
Megan glanced down at the floor. She debated what to say and what to do. A lot was going on in her mind, but the last thing she wanted to do was push Hiro away. Especially since he stopped by just to check on her. 
“Come in,” she suggested. She walked out of the doorway, holding her arm out as she invited Hiro into her room. 
Hiro nodded before stepping inside her room. She led the way to her bed, which was neatly made with the exception of the comforter being wrinkled from where she had recently sat. Hiro took a seat at the end of her bed where Megan distanced herself in the middle. 
For a minute, the teens sat in complete silence. They looked away from one another, both trying to find the right words to say. Eventually, Hiro looked Megan’s way first. 
“Megan...i-if this is about what happened with Trina and the whole robot revolution, I am so sorry  you got caught up in that mess. I should have been more--” 
“What?” Megan cut him off. She shook her head at him. “Hiro, I’m not upset because of that.” 
Hiro blinked in shock. He wasn’t sure if he should feel relieved or more uneasy. On the one hand, it was reassuring to know that she hasn’t been too shaken up from that experience. Though now, he was somehow more anxious. What was causing her to be sad? 
“O-okay...then what’s up?” 
Megan’s face fell into a deeper frown. Not wanting her friend to see her so distraught, she faced away from him. She sighed, closing her eyes as she collected all her thoughts together. 
“I’ve just been thinking about the places I used to live before my dad and I moved here,” Megan admitted. She gained the courage to look back over at Hiro again. “You know he’s been transferred before because of his job. So, every time that’s happened, I’ve been to different cities. Different schools. Different people…” Megan clutched onto her arms. “I have friends all around the state. Most of them I haven’t seen in months or years. I’ve been reaching out to them, but everyone has been travelling since summer break started. This sucks…” 
With a frustrated huff, Megan brought her legs up to her chest, wrapping her arms around them. She leaned her chin against her right knee, pursing her lips as her mind went back to thinking of all the friends she’s had to say goodbye to over the years. 
Hiro was at a loss of what to do. He couldn’t relate to how Megan felt. He wanted to provide the comfort she clearly needed, but was unsure how. No wonder she was so upset. She was apart from a lot of her friends and it was making her lonesome. Moving from place to place made maintaining her friendships harder. 
The young prodigy gave a sympathetic frown Megan’s way. He reached his hand out, gently placing it on her shoulder. The second Megan felt his touch, she looked over to her friend. 
“I’m really sorry, Megan.” Hiro sighed. “I...I can’t imagine how hard that is.” 
“It’s just a little frustrating,” Megan admitted. “I want to see them, but for a lot of reasons I can’t. You’re so lucky, Hiro. You’ve lived in San Fransokyo your whole life!” 
Hiro nodded. “Yeah, that’s true…” He rubbed a hand at the back of his head. “But you’re lucky too. I mean, sure you’ve had to move a lot, but you’ve gotten to live in a lot of different places. That’s cool too! You love photography. I can only imagine all the photos you’ve taken of everywhere you’ve been so far.” 
Megan cracked a tiny smile. “Yeah...I have actually.” 
“See? I’m not much for travelling, but I still think it’s awesome that you’ve gone so many places. I’m sorry that all the moving has made it hard to stay in touch with your friends though.” 
“It’s alright.” Megan shrugged. “I guess...it’s not all bad. If I hadn’t moved, I never would have met any of them in the first place. The good thing is that I’ve always met at least one really great person everywhere I’ve been.” She smiled widely at Hiro. “That includes you of course.” 
Hiro chuckled. “Thanks. You know, I don’t exactly have friends my age or a more normal teenage lifestyle. So I’m glad we’re able to hang out when we can.” 
“Me too.” 
Hiro scooted over closer to Megan. Once their proximity was merely inches apart, the teenagers wrapped their arms around one another in a happy embrace. More than anything, Hiro was glad he had stopped by. He was able to cheer his friend up again and understand why she had been distant. 
After a few seconds they pulled away. The smile that had managed to make its way on Megan’s face was far from fading. 
Hiro got up from her bed. “How about we go to Joe’s Diner? It’s on me this time.”
Megan giggled, standing up to follow him. “You’re the best. That sounds great.”
---
Yay, I finally got a request done! This was a cute one to do. Hiro and Megan have such an underrated friendship. I like to headcanon that since Chief Cruz is a police chief/officer, they’ve had to move around a lot with his job. Anyway, thank you so much for the request @blxndeichiban! I hope you enjoyed it! :D
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