#somehow im teaching ALL SONGS for the nativity

[bilehwit]

Gritting my teeth: I LOVE my teaching placement. I LOVE working 10-12 hours a day for FREE

[jocia92]

… So much of an actor’s craft is figuring out the “I want” of their character, but that’s got to be a little different with Tom since he states that he literally cannot want anything. What challenge or opportunity did that pose for you?

I think he wants to improve. I think he wants to calibrate according to Alma’s needs, wants, and desires. I think he’s very ready to learn and to understand. That was the kind of primary objective: listen, learn, calibrate, improve. That’s almost the track of each scenario. He just gets a little better each time, and the process gets a little faster. But certainly, in the beginning, he’s just delivering this sort of 20 classic chat-up lines that he’s been uploaded with and getting it all wrong. It’s fun to watch the machine learn and chart that progress.

On a practical or philosophical level, how did you approach the process of humanizing a character that’s an algorithm, or did you at all?

It was very much about charting with Maria exactly when we want to see the machine, when we want to see the human. Even playing with that ratio was really interesting and fun. It’s not so much about watching him play the machine, but watching a character try to play the human. Certainly, in the beginning, in some of the not quite so successful human moments, shall we say, we deconstructed what we regarded as the conventional human behavior in that. We looked at a lot of screwball comedies, like Cary Grant, Jimmy Stewart, Katharine Hepburn movies. [We were] taking a move or a gesture, breaking that down, and just doing two of the things. It just suddenly looks very odd and wrong, and you’re like, “Oh, this is what a human does in this moment!” But it’s just off. It was really as much about looking at the human.

You’ve mentioned things like The Philadelphia Story as shaping the film and its central relationship. Was that to ground it in reality or further ensconce it in the warped reality of cinema? Grant and Stewart are recognizable to us as people, but things like that mid-Atlantic lilt were entirely manufactured for the screen.

That was a very key point for Maria in referencing Cary Grant. The hair color that we chose for Tom was very much like Cary Grant’s hair color, being a shade darker than is possibly human. And the skin tone being slightly artificial for Tom. You’re right, Cary Grant is often very heightened and mannered sometimes, and it works in the situation in the style of the thing that he’s in. But we quite liked the idea that Tom has been uploaded with some outdated versions of what a romantic lead was supposed to behave like.

It’s striking just how thought-out things had to be down to how Tom responds to dead air space in a conversation. What was the process behind those small moments that can make or break the believability of a character?

It was very fun to play with, and probably quite frustrating for a lot of the human actors. Maren was giving a beautifully naturalistic performance, and the conventional responses that there should be from her scene partner weren’t there. We deliberately strip those away—sometimes without telling her, sometimes without needing to tell her. It’s just the way that Tom was, so it was about pushing those moments into a space that became a little uncomfortable: not jumping in on the lines where you might normally jump in, sometimes coming in hard, sometimes offering a delayed response, sometimes none at all. Playing with those, and watching how comfortable or uncomfortable that made them both, was really fun.

Did that frustration, built in by the process, bleed over for Maren into the character of Alma, do you think?

Maybe for Maren. Certainly, for me, it was frustrating in that I would have to remember not to respond in the way that I might normally and remove some of those things. [I had to] really break down exactly what Tom is thinking, what his programming is doing in that point, how he’s responding and calibrating, and whether we see that or not. Choosing moments to show the human, to show the machine. Along with Maria, that was one of the great joys of the role.

How did you settle on the physicality of the character? Was it at all helpful to have done something like Beauty and the Beast in a mo-cap suit to be hyper-aware of how your own movements translate to the screen?

Very much so. In fact, in pretty much every role I’ve done since Beauty and the Beast, I’ve incorporated not always a movement coach, but I’ve definitely looked at movement theory and physicality in a totally new way because of the challenges of that role. And, I have to say, dance plays a huge part in that. Whether it’s incorporated on the screen or if it’s something that just feels as if it helps the role, I often find that a dance studio is a very fruitful space to discover things about your character’s physicality. Learning the rumba for this role was incredibly helpful because it’s a very precise, technical, almost robotic dance in terms of the laser precision that’s needed to get it absolutely right. I had a fantastically exact teacher in Berlin who was teaching me the rumba the whole way through the shoot. We shot that [one scene] quite near the end of the shoot. Just to have those lessons, that kind of physicality, and that poise with me the whole way through the role was really useful.

How did the role being in a non-native tongue affect the characterization of Tom? Was it all easier to make him seem slightly unreal given that the words might not come quite as naturally as they would in English?

I think it was a deliberate choice on the part of Maria to look for a foreign actor who could speak German. She needed somebody who could both get their heads and their mouths around the very technical German that was required, which, even for a German is pretty complex, but also who had that sense of otherness. I’m sure they could have tailored the screenplay to any number of nationalities, but I was very happy they came to me and made him British. It definitely helped with, as I say, the fact that he’s listening, learning, focusing, trying to improve…that was literally all I was doing last summer, every day.

How do you lock onto the frequency of German comedy, which isn’t always something people associate with that country or people? How is it different than doing something like the more mannered British wit of Blithe Spirit or the broad studio comedy of Eurovision Song Contest?

It’s not a country known for it, but I think they should [be]. I find Germans very funny. They have a very interesting sense of humor. What’s particularly delightful is the way that they can tackle really kind of big, sometimes weighty, issues with a certain wit and lightness of touch, which is not common to all countries. Physical comedy, I think, is fairly universal. I think there’s something almost farcical about some of the physical stuff that we managed to get in this. It was really fun to make people laugh in a foreign language. It was surprisingly delightful. It felt very unifying, somehow, to be able to get a joke across in any language.

[violetnotez]

hello!! how are u today? i hope youre well💖 may i request a baku crushing on a girl who is native eng speaker, but has never heard her speak. however one day the whole class is watching some eng movie n y/n starts dissing the movie in eng bc its so bad n the whole class is sHOCKED BC HER VOICE IS SO FLUENT N SM DEEPER IN ENG. bakubabe is just there like damn thats hot.

Hey babes! I’m doing well thank you, just doing some stuffs for my art blog! I hope youre doing well 💕💕also thank you to @gallickingun for the mangacap, it saved me so much time and I was actually able to color it! 😍

Also: IM ALIVE!!!! I LITERALLY WROTE THIS TODAY AND OMG I MISS WIRITNG! I’ll start on that Dabi x reader fic I mentioned in a little bit, just wanted to post this! Hopefully it’s good lmao

⤷ Genre: Fluff

⤷ Word Count: 2020

⤷ Warnings: cursing its bakubabe

⤷ Synopsis: Bakugo won’t admit it to himself, but he’s conflicted: he knows he has a crush on you, but his dumbass won’t admit it-well, until he hears your sexy American voice.

Song Recs: ⤷If I Cant Have You-Shawn Mendes⤷Thinking About You-Calvin Harris ⤷Rather Be-Clean Bandit

This was so stupid. Completely dumb and a waste of his time.

Bakugo slumped in his seat a little more, a grumble escaping his lips as he tried to focus on the screen in front of him, his broad shoulders crossed in front of him.

He should be sleeping right now, not sitting and watching this dumbass romantic American movie, especially when you were by his side.

There was no reason why his cheeks should feel hotter when you laughed at the movie, or his hands feel clammy with his sweat everytime you shifted your body closer to him.

It was pissing him off, because no matter how much he tried to ignore the pent up emotions in his chest, he had to admit it to himself-he had a goddamn crush.

On you, the goddamn exchange student.

Fucking great.

His lips pouted as he sulked in his seat on the couch, trying his best to glue his eyes to the screen instead of sneaking a glance at your profile.

The TV showed one of the most sickly sweet and horrific scenes he had ever witnessed: the main couple on screen were finally declaring their love to each other, their voices getting louder and more desperate as they tried to one up each other, almost as if battling to see who could last the longest.

“I love you to the moon!”

“I love you to the moon and back!”

“I love you to the moon and all the stars in the sky!”

“And I love you to-“

A laugh erupted next to him, Bakugo swiveling his head over to see you giggling in your seat, your pretty lips parted as those sweet sounds came from your mouth.

“God, this is terrible!” You chuckled, shaking your head as you said it.

Bakugo’s face reddened, his eyes widening from the sounds coming from your mouth.

Your sentence wasn’t in Japanese: it was foreign and new, American sounding.

Bakugo was used to your voice sounding light and airy when you talked in Japanese, like a leaf on a autumn breeze as it floated into his ears and danced in his mind whenever you spoke his native language. Sometimes you would fumble over the words, trying to piece the meanings together as a blush formed on your cheeks and your eyes turned up from embarrassment. He always made fun of you from it, usually telling you to “Spit it out Baka, I don’t got all day”, but really-he absolutely loved it. You sounded so sweet, so innocent and endearing: he just wanted to wrap you in a hug and envelope himself in your sugar sweet voice.

But right now, your voice was somehow the opposite-it was deeper and richer, like warm,auburn honey on a summer evening. It coated his mind in its thick numbness, the only thing he could think of was how deep and sultry, and well, sexy, it sounded coming from your lips.

He squirmed in his seat, hating how much that little change in your tone affected him so much as you continued to giggle at the wreck of a movie in front of you.

Your class turned to look at you, their faces clearly as shocked as Bakugo’s-they had never actually heard your voice when you spoke English, and they weren’t quite used to it.

You looked at your classmates, your face twisted in innocent confusion.

“What? What did I say?” You asked again in that sultry American voice, making Bakugo shift in his seat, his face looking away from you as he covered his mouth with his hand.

Damn you needed to get that voice under control-he felt like you were controlling his emotions when you spoke like that.

“Whoa y/n you know English!” Kamianri propped himself up, his face clearly in awe as he yelled it out the words.

Sero, who was sitting beside him, chuckled at his air headed friend, giving him a judging look.

“Uh, you do realize she’s from America, right?” Sero snickered, Kamianri looking sheepish as he realized his forgetfulness.

“Oops, Sorry!” He yelled out again, earning a laugh from you and the rest of your classmates.

Jealousy bubbled inside Bakugo like a volcanic eruption, the dangerous emotion barely being contained inside him as his fists clenched.

He hated when others made you laugh, especially his freinds, who unfortunately figured out the crush he had on you a few weeks back. Hearing you giggle at his idiot friends made him want to yell out in possession, declaring that they should know that you were his-well would be his- and they should lay off. But you didn’t suspect a thing about his feelings, and he really didn’t feel like looking like a possessive freak in front of you.

He felt your body shift next to his, his heart beating faster as your finger tapped his shoulder.

“Hey, Uh, Bakugo?” You whispered, the sweet tone of your Japanese voice making him shudder pleasantly, as well as long for your deeper American voice.

He grunted in response, his arms still slung across his broad chest.

“Did I talk in my American voice?”

He scoffed, his eyes rolling in his sockets at how adorably oblivious you could be sometimes. He sent you a shit eating smirk, his vermillion eyes dark like wine.

“What do you think?” He stated, but he didn’t say it in his language, no-he said it English.

He watched your face instantly light up, your eyes bright with excitement and awe as you gasped.

“Wait-you know English?!” You yelled out in awe, a smile erupting on your face. That smile seemed to shake his world, his mind eternally thanking that the room was so dark as his cheeks flushed.

“Of course I know English,” he scoffed, “what idiot doesnt.”

You giggled at his comment, your body shifting closer to his.

Damn it, his cheeks were getting hotter-he could feel your shoulder a mere centimeters away from his, your skin radiating a coolness that felt so soothing being near his permanently hot flesh.

You leaned in closer, your eyes watching his face with sweetness. “How long have you been speaking it?” you asked, but in that hot ass American voice-he was about to combust right then and there.

Shit-he would never admit it, but he hadn’t been exactly practicing his second language. He had learned it back in middle school, when it was a required class, and he had passed it with flying colors of course. Over the years though, he began to forget it, and he was pretty rusty now, now only remembering a few phrases (‘What do you think?’ being one of them)

“Ahh-“ he grumbled out, feeling stupid for not even understanding what you had said. He felt those pretty eyes of yours continue to stare at him, making him feel almost guilty for leading you on as you face fell slightly.

“You didn’t understand what I said, did you?” You asked sadly, back to using your airy Japanese voice. He hated seeing you look so disappointed, as if he let you down in some way.

“Of course I do, dumbass, I just-“

“It’s been awhile since you spoken it?”

He grunted in reply, your mind already translating that to a “Yes.”

Your face somehow light up again, your body even closer to his as you shimmied yourself near him.

“Then I’ll reteach you it!”

“Huh?” He looked at you, his eyes slanted as you peered at you with an almost judging look. What the hell were you playing at?

You nodded again, your lips letting out a slight hum.

“Yeah, I’ll teach you a phrase in English! To be honest, I miss having someone to talk to in my language…” you chuckled at your revelation, your eyes coated in embarrassment.

Well shit-if you needed someone to talk to in English, he was going to be the one to do it. With his damn luck Icy Hot and damn Deku would jump in and be your little English buddy. His skin crawled at the idea of you getting all cozy with one of those two bastards, his insides light up like a fire.

“Fine,” he huffed out, pretending like he was giving in, “but I’m not sitting through a whole damn lesson.”

You chuckled slightly, brushing a piece of hair behind your ears.

“Don’t worry, I’ll start off easy,” you smiled up at him, looking up slightly as if in thought.

“We’ll start with a something easy,” you instructed.

“I’ll teach you-“your sweet Japanese voice suddenly turned rich like syrup as it switched to American. ‘Hi my name is Bakugo”,

“Easy enough?” You asked, switching back to Japanese.

“Fucking elementary,” he scoffed, “yeah I can do it.”

“Cool!” You exclaimed quietly, still mindful of your classmates watching the crappy movie. You shimmied again, your face squarely staring at his as you waited for him to start speaking, your eyes expecting and wide with anticipation.

Shit he was supposed to be paying attention?

Bakugo cursed himself in his mind, as he was too preoccupied listening to your hot as hell American accent.

Damn, he was going to have a hard time talking to you in English, especially if you said his name like that. He hadn't realized how mezmorized he was by the way you spoke his name, your voice low and sultry as if you were telling him a secret, something he was only able to hear. His spine tingled and his hands clammed up again, making his mouth feel dry.

Shit, you’d be the end of him.

He opened his mouth, feeling uncharacteristically nervous as he tried to speak the words you had spoken. He could barely remember how you had said them though, the syllables coming out his mouth feeling cracked and awkward.

“H-hi my n-ame is...shit!” He cursed at himself, hating the way the words felt in his mouth. He couldn't say them right, knowing full well he looked like an idiot as his cheeks began to redden.

He heard you giggle next to him, the voice sounding sweet and kind against his ear.

“It okay,” you reassured him, “your just opening your mouth a little too wide...here-“

Before he could register what was even going on, your hand had wrapped delicately around his jaw, the floral scent of your perfume swarming his mind and making him unable to think straight. Your digits were pressing against his hot cheeks, forcing his lips to pout out slightly.

Damn, if he thought he was blushing, it was nothing compared to this-it felt like his cheeks were on fire.

You laughed at his clearly shocked face, his vermillion eyes wide and filled with confusion.

“Don’t worry, Bakugo, I’m just helping you,” you reassured him, your voice feathery as you whispered close to his ear.

Why the hell did that sound so hot?

You sent him another smile, speaking again in Japanese and then back to English, “Just say- ‘Hi my name is Bakugo’,”

he continued to star at you, actually beginning to like the feel your digits pressed against his mouth.

He swallowed, trying to coat his dry mouth with saliva.

“Hi-my name-is-Bakugo,” he stuttered out.

He wouldn’t ever say it out loud, but he had to admit it-his English voice did sound much better with your fingers pressed against his cheeks like that.

You clearly noticed it as well, your face triumphant and proud. “There ya go, that sounded so much better!” You congratulated him, your fingers retracting from his skin.

He already missed the feeling of your cold skin against his hot flesh, his cheeks feeling empty without your digits pressing against them.

He sucked the flesh of his cheeks into his mouth, moving his jaw.

“Shitty woman-need to give me a warning-“ he scolded you, his hands feeling clammy with the sudden change in events.

You rolled your eyes, lying yourself against the couch cushions and returning your gaze to the TV.

“Well, your going to have to get used to it if I’m going to teach you more-“

“Teach me more?!?” He practically yelled out, gaining a few confusing looks from his classmates.

“Of course!” you smiled as if it was obvious, “need to make sure your fluent enough for a conversation dumbie!”

“It’s also fun seeing you blush like that Bakugo,” you playfully nudged his ribcage, sending him a wink as you turned your gaze to the movie, unaware of how flustered you just made him.

Well shit-he thought numbly, a small grin playing against his mouth-you were something else.

Taggings:

@weebartistinc​ @orokayagi​ @leeeah-loooser​ @bakarinnie​

[rexlapi]

i know no one who follows me is into genshin bUT im so proud of this au so i’ll post it anyways

moongod!zhonglixmotal!childe, chang’e/hou’yi au (no previous knowledge of the mid autumn festival is needed, hopefully i explained it well enough in the fic)

am i yours?

rating: teen for inexplicit self harm  wc: 2k

ao3

- -

It had only been a century since the god of the moon, known to the people as Morax, had first come to the barren rock he would soon have to call home. He had no emotional attachment to the place, however he had no other place to call home. Too many years since the man who had once been Zhongli had last seen his love, too long since he had known happiness. 

The earth was rising into view from his palace on the moon, the blue waters always reminding him of his lover’s bright eyes. Zhongli stood on the cold stone floor, staring out into the distance. It was the anniversary of the day when Zhongli had first ascended to yue, a day many mortals celebrated, offering him yuebing, or mooncakes, in hopes that he would bless their families. Every year, he found it in himself to smile upon those who still remembered his story, hoping that one day, his good would come back to him in the form of the one he loved. But of course, the world was a cruel place, leaving the immortal nothing but a barren rock to live his sad eternity on. 

Despite the people’s celebratory gifts, this day was always one of sorrow for Morax. He had only experienced a few decades of imprisonment on this rock, yet somehow Zhongli felt so, so very old. This day only ever reminded him of what he’s lost, of what he will never have again. To be fair, almost everything reminded him of his Tartaglia, from the waters of earth to the orange of the sun. More than anything, these things reminded him of his biggest mistake.

There was nothing in this that the moon god regretted more than his reckless action that got him stuck on this barren rock, never to see the face of the one he loved again. 

The day that ruined Zhongli’s life had been a beautiful day, one of the most beautiful days he had ever seen. The skies were a vibrant blue, streaks of puffy white clouds dotted throughout the sea of blue, the sunlight warm and bright. He had planned on proposing to Tartaglia that day He had everything prepared, an elaborate basket of luxurious gifts for the other man’s family, as well as a lovingly self-crafted pair of matching dangly earrings, for each of them. Zhongli unconsciously brushed his hand over his ear, toying with the rare orange jade bead at the end of his. 

He had been waiting for Tartaglia to return home from an assignment when one of his own students had broken into his house, looking for the small potion of immortality Tartaglia had received for shooting the excess suns out of the sky. His Tartaglia had always been an adept warrior, being proficient in nearly every weapon. Zhongli smiled to himself, wishing he could see the way Tartaglia bounced on his toes before every right, his face stretched into a broad grin, ready for the rush of adrenaline that every fight gave him. 

Zhongli had always loved teaching, wanting to impart his knowledge and wisdom on the next generation of bright minds. He would never forget the look of horror his student wore when Zhongli angrily shoved a spear through their stomach, snatching the elixir out of weakening hands and downing it in one gulp. It wasn’t until Tartaglia returned home shortly after the incident when Zhongli realized what he had done. He remembered how Tartaglia’s eyes had widened, his voice calling out for him, but Zhongli could already feel himself floating away, becoming weightless, as if he had become a spirit. The distraught cries from his love that morphed into sobs, calling his name, begging him to stay, telling him he loved him These cries would forever ingrain themselves into his memory. The elixir would have let them be happy and together forever. Instead, it separated the two of them for the rest of time.

Every year on this day, he would talk into the sky, hoping that maybe, one day, Tartaglia would hear him. Hoping that maybe one day he could see him smile, hear him laugh again. This year was no different. Zhongli busied himself in the kitchen, preparing some of Tartaglia’s favorite foods. He would eat a bite of each dish before leaving the rest as offerings to whatever greater powers lay above him, asking them for mercy, for freedom for this barren rock. Though, behind all of these, he would always ask to see his love, one last time. 

Please, Celestia. This is all I can offer for you. Please, I’d like a way off this rock, freedom from my past mistakes. He looked off into the distance, at the painting he had done of Tartaglia. Please, I’d like to see Tartaglia again. Please.

Years like this one passed. Years became decades, and decades became centuries. Time passed quickly for the immortal, and though it may pass fast, it had no end. Every year, Morax asked the same things of Celestia. Every year, he received no response. He had grown so very tired. 

On his 8880th mid-autumn festival, he awoke to see a sharp periwinkle dagger wrapped in silver silks sitting on the edge of his bed. He carefully unwrapped the fabric to reveal a beautifully carved glaze lily embedded on the handle. A small piece of paper fell out of the wraps, peaking Zhongli’s interest. He carefully set the dagger down onto his bed, picking up the small slip. 

A note, written in elegant, looping, traditional Liyuen. It read: Morax, your prayers have been heard. Celestia sends its regards as well as apologies for taking so long to process your request. Take this dagger as the key to the next journey in your life, where the one you love is waiting. It has been enchanted so there will be no pain. However, if you decide to take this chance, do know that it is irreversible. Do as you wish with it, take the chance or do not. 

I hope you find your peace, Zhongli.

The note was not signed, but somehow Zhongli felt as though he knew the person who had written the note. “Thank you.” he croaked out, his voice rough from lack of use. His hands shaking, he picked up the dagger once more. It was the perfect weight, a perfect balance of light yet solid. It had been, well, ever since he had come onto this rock since he had held a weapon. Not a weapon, a key. A chance. Hope. 

He took a walk around the empty palace where he had lived in solitude for thousands of years, as if saying goodbye. It was a goodbye he was happy to say. He retrieved the hand carved wooden box containing his most prized possession from it’s secret location, securing it in his pocket. He carefully rolled up the scroll containing the image of a smiling Tartaglia and slipping that into another pocket, scared that if he did see Tartaglia again, that Zhongli wouldn’t be able to recognize him. 

He stared down at the dagger in his hands, his fingers curling around the elegant glaze lily. He felt his grip grow tighter, then he felt his hands start to shake. Taking a deep breath, he closed his eyes. He was ready to leave this barren place behind. I will see you again, Tartaglia.

As promised, the blade brought him no pain. 

... 

Zhongli opened his eyes to see an ethereal forest, the trees not quite opaque, as if they weren’t quite there. He looked down to see the beautiful blade that had been gifted to him stained with golden blood. He wasn’t bothered by the golden blood, for it was the blood of immortals after all. He was however, awed by the trees he saw. He hadn’t seen vegetation in what felt like years, not having to eat food in order to sustain himself after ascending to godhood, saving human food for very special occasions. 

He looked around, though he didn’t see anyone. Where the one you love is waiting, the note had said. Zhongli wandered around the forest for what felt like days, looking for a head of bright orange hair or a pair of deep ocean eyes. He saw neither. Had the sender lied? He couldn’t help but lose a little bit of hope, though wherever he was now was still certainly better than the hellhole of a rock he had resided on for millennia. He took a deep breath of the fresh air, feeling more and more energetic by the moment. 

Say something. His brain told him. He was running out of options, so he did as his inner monologue asked. Clearing his throat, he recalled the song he would sing to his Tartaglia. Humming the first few lines to get warmed up, his hope growing with every beat. 

“Xu ni sheng shi shi, wu jue qu de ai,” His voice shook as he switched from his native Liyuen to lover’s Snezhnayan. “Always and forever, in this heart of mine…” The forest was silent. Zhongli felt his heart shatter, not wanting to accept that he really would never see his Tartaglia again. He knelt on the ground, his hand clutching the blade of the dagger, a cascade of golden blood dripping onto his spotless black-gold hanfu. He wished he could feel the sharp pain of the cold blade biting into his skin. 

“Xu ni sheng sheng shi shi, wu jue qu de ai,” 

Zhongli had never stood faster in his entire life, the dagger falling to the ground, forgotten. His eyes widened as the familiar face of his beloved appeared from behind a tree. He stood stunned. The sender didn’t lie.

The sun seemed to illuminate the younger boy, his orange hair glowing golden, his typical gray ensemble billowing in the breeze. Zhongli had never seen such a beautiful sight in his thousands of years of existence. “Always and forever, in this heart of mine… longer than the heavens, and the stars that shine…”

Zhongli and Tartaglia both rushed forward at the same time, the orange haired boy taking the other’s bleeding hand in his, while Zhongli gently placed his uninjured hand on his lover’s face. “Xiang si qing nan nai, yuan yu ni tong zai,”

They both broke out into smiles filled with grief and disbelief, their voices shaking as they finished the verse together. “I am yours, I am yours, forever”

Collapsing into the other man, Zhongli let himself cry. “Tartaglia I-”

He felt strong arms hug him tighter, only making Zhongli sob harder. “Shh it’s okay, I’m here now. You’re here now.” Tartaglia had begun to cry too, having fallen to the ground with Zhongli, the two a tangle of limbs and tears. 

“I love you so much.” Zhongli choked out, letting more and more of his years and years of pain and loneliness fade away with every moment in the other boy’s arms. 

Tartaglia kissed Zhongli through teary eyes, trying to convey the words he couldn’t say in the action. “I’ve never stopped loving you, even after all these years. I love you, Zhongli. So much. Please, don’t be an idiot again and cause us another eight-thousand years of separation. I don’t think I can go through that again.”

Zhongli laughed through a sob, placing a kiss on Tartaglia’s cheek. “I’m not going anywhere, I promise.” He pulled out the box he had carried around with him since he had been banished to the moon. Carefully, he pulled out the other earring he had crafted all those years ago, the same shape and pattern as the singular one Zhongli himself wore. “Tartaglia, would you be mine forever?”

“Only if you’re mine forever" He responded, the biggest shit-eatting grin on his face. 

Zhongli nodded solemnly, completely serious in his consideration of the agreement. “That is a fair contract.”

Tartaglia laughed before kissing Zhongli again. “It was a joke, of course I’ll be yours.”

He dipped his head down, allowing Zhongli to attach the earring to his ear. Perfect. Zhongli couldn’t help but think. The blue jade matched his eyes perfectly, just as Zhongli’s earring matched his own amber eyes. “Forever?”

“Forever."

~~~~~~~~~~

Xu ni sheng shi shi, wu jue qu de ai -> Let your love live forever,

Xiang si qing nan nai, yuan yu ni tong zai -> Love-sickness is unbearable, I wish I were with you

[baegarrick]

hi hello so i’m coming to you because you’re the only person in the zukka fandom that i’ve seen blogging about the old guard and i love that movie SO MUCH and i can’t stop thinking about immortal zukka..... aang as either nile or andy bc i can’t choose, andy wouldn’t lose her immortality, and no one would betray anyone bc i say so 😌 how do you think an atla/the old guard au would work?? (zukkababey)

ok i rly love the idea of immortal everyone but tbh!!! i really dont know enough about asian history to like... go into detail about this honestly and I really didn’t want to come off as racist by fudging some stuff, but here r some bulletpoints about Things

(also u can slide into my dms 2 talk about this if u want, or if u have a discord, sorry it too so long I literally cant stop writing when I get on Topics. I'm so sorry if this gets off topic)

Sokka & Katara

In this au they’re not biologically related, but are both Inuit

Sokka dies first in a skirmish with another group of indigenous people in northern Canada (Inuit Nunangat) sometime prior to 1800

He knows he died, his people saw him die, and he doesn’t understand what’s happening (I really don’t know enough about the Inuit people to say whether they would have rejected him or tried to help him understand what happened to him)

however, I’d like to think they’d at least tell him to talk to the angakkuq, the shaman, and would probably see this as a positive thing

Eventually his band of people would whittle down to just a dozen or so, after long winters and harsh climates, and they were forced to assimilate with other bands who didn’t have ancestors who were there when Sokka died in the first place, so he has to move on.

He travels around for a while, trading and learning and staying in bands for a few years before moving on to another group, until it’s the 1800s

Around this time, Katara is born (and dies)

She refuses to stand down against a white French hunter who wanted to take one of the young women in her village as a wife, and she’s killed, and the woman is taken anyway.

When she wakes up, she’s furious, and before she can understand what happened to her, she finds the man and kills him. She’s arrested and set to be killed when Sokka finds her.

They aren’t biological siblings, but they come from the same people, and the world is changing rapidly and they’re the only people they know who are like this. The idea of marrying Katara is the worst thing that Sokka can think of-- look at her, she’s just a baby!!-- so they call each other siblings and travel together.

Zuko

ok again i know literally 0 things about chinese history like i googled “female chinese warriors” for suki and got like 100 things for mulan

Zuko is old, probably one of the oldest of the (living) group, but younger than Aang

he was the first son of the second son of the emperor in a time of political conflict in China. His father, the prince, was at war with his own brother who Zuko considered a father figure.

zuko speaks out against his father and is killed for being a traitor, but, guess what, he doesn’t die!!! his father does it again for posterity and uhhhhhh still doesn’t die. (or rather, dies, and comes back)

here’s where my uhhhhhh lack of knowledge is Bad

would his father banish him for being cursed? for somehow being against the gods?

or would he force him to fight in his armies, against his uncle, because he can’t die?

I was going to go with “banished” but fighting for decades in a fight he doesn’t want to be in is so! much! worse!

his father wants to know the secrets of his immortality and when he can’t share it he’s tortured and tested for years, and eventually sent out to fight as an immortal soldier who can’t die.

eventually he escapes, and leaves china for a long time (he doesn’t return for centuries)

he is highly distrustful of anyone for years bc of his father!! he wanders around for years like he does in Zuko Alone (or like Quynh before Andy finds her) and while he sees small bits of humanity, he has little faith in it and their wars, because he is Not One Of Them

For money he joins bandit groups or warlords or mercenaries, because why does any of that matter to him? Everyone dies.

Eventually he meets Aang, who is Humanity Personified, and Aang asks him if he thinks they can be friends-- but they’re on opposite sides of this conflict and Zuko is too disillusioned to want that. (they part ways)

He meets a man, Iroh, who reminds him of his uncle. They travel together for far longer than Zuko normally would, because he likes having a father figure, and because Iroh lost a son about Zuko’s age. They travel for years and Zuko never ages, so eventually he has to leave. Iroh finds him a few years later, greyer and slower, but tells Zuko that he knows about Zuko.

Zuko reacts poorly to this, lashing out, but Iroh is calm. Zuko breaks down and tells him he can’t give Iroh what he wants. (what Zuko assumes he wants-- what they all want, immortality)

But Iroh’s like, why would I want that? it sounds like a curse, son. Why would I want to never see my son again?

He tells Zuko: we’re not meant to be alone

After Iroh passes a few years later, he tries to track down Aang but can’t find him. He, however, has dreams about the others.

alternatively///////// japanese zuko?????? RONIN ZUKO???? love it but im too tired to think of More Than That after typing all the chinese zuko stuff up, although im Sure a ton of it would cross over bc im vague as Hell

Aang

he’s the oldest of the group but you wouldn’t know it!!!!

Roku was his mentor, the first immortal that any of them know of. He’s thousands of years old when Aang meets him. (He’s also the first to die. He shows Aang that All Things Must Die)

Aang is Tibetan, a Buddhist monk, one of the earliest, maybe the 7th century?

He dies in a temple fire

here again my complete and utter lack of knowledge is Bad

according to Dzogchen, individuals can transform their body into an immortal rainbow light, so there’s some mention of immortality in certain parts of Tibetan Buddhist culture, but idk how widespread that is since wikipedia didnt even have a source for it

he becomes a missionary and travels around asia for decades before Roku finds him

Roku!!! he’s an Old Immortal, and probably wants to die a little bit at this point, and he eventually does!! but for awhile he and Aang travel around together, and butt heads a bit bc Aang’s pacifist nature, and Roku thinks Aang Will Change as he gets older

aang is absolutely devastated by the Mongol invasion of Tibet in the 13th century

roku dies about a hundred years after he meets aang, and aang travels around a little aimlessly for awhile, learning all kinds of things and befriending people he’ll outlive. it dampens his spirits a bit.

eventually he meets Zuko, who’s far more jaded than Roku was, even, and wants to be friends, but respects Zuko’s decision otherwise.

Eventually, aang travels with the Norse to Canada in the 15th century, but when they leave they don’t take him with them. Instead, he ends up frozen ala steve rogers. Katara and Sokka find him a few hundred years later.

alternatively////// Aang IS the newest kid. he’s the Nile of the group. He’s still a Tibetan monk, and views this as a teaching/learning opportunity. He would also probably like everyone to stop killing each other. Sokka rolls his eyes at him constantly.

Toph

toph is a struggle bc how do you deal with an IMMORTAL BLIND GIRL

I’m gonna stick w her show backstory: rich, blind daughter of a wealthy Chinese family

Is kidnapped and her throat is slit when she’s young (maybe an older teenager) and the kidnappers panic, leaving her body. She’s found, namely unharmed, and resumes life despite the fact she knows she died.

However, being a privileged young girl, she’s kept under watch and it quickly becomes known that she’s immortal.

She’s regarded as a living deity for centuries until she meets Suki, who rescues her from the place and teaches her to fight. (she becomes a myth, later, rather than a historical fact)

alternatively//////// she could have been first generation chinese-american, and therefore the youngest

Suki

Suki was a third generation female warrior of her family who guarded the boarder during the Northern Song Dynasty (960-1127), and trained from a young age in martial arts. (insp by the story of Mu Guiying)

She’s a war orphan, and leads an army of war widows and orphan women, but meets her untimely end with some of her sisters in a reign of arrows. She’s buried by some of her sisters before she wakes up again, and has to claw her way to the surface.

Her sisters don’t know how to react to her (a lot like Nile’s soldiers) so she eventually leaves them.

After her death, she hears rumors of a living goddess (Toph) and goes to see if there really is another person like her, and finds one of the people from her dreams (Toph)

She trains Toph to fight despite her being blind, and the pair become an unusual duo for a couple hundred years.

eventually, they start dreaming about a pair of siblings in the New World (not that new!! people live there!!) and book passage there in the 1800s with the first major wave of Chinese immigration

They dream about each other. it happens a lot at first, but it tapers out over the years. it grows stronger whenever a new one (katara) is born, but Katara and Sokka have NO desire to leave their homeland to go look for these strange people until they find Aang. (what languages might they have in common? russian??? the russians came to settle alaska, I know bc my stepmom is native alaskan and russian--- the Mongols invaded TIbet and Mongolia is right next to Russia, so Aang might know it??)

When they find Aang, Suki and Toph start dreaming of them again, and so does Zuko and they all start making their way to San Francisco. The Chinese wouldn’t arrive in Canada until around the 1850s (according to google) so Sokka probably wouldn’t speak any Chinese (mandarin???? i dont know things), but Zuko might speak some English or Russian. [really just gonna be a bunch of chinese, inuit, and tibetan people speaking russian to each other, isn’t it??]

Aang greets Zuko like an old friend, and Zuko Does Not know what to do with that. he’s skirtish and shy and hasn’t really been around a lot of friendly people. Sokka does NOT trust him. At all!! (he wants Katara to stay FAR AWAY from him. stick with the harmless monk we found at the bottom of a lake, katara.)

They find Suki and Toph in a bar. Toph hustling people for money, and Suki drinking at the bar. It’s very strange to have all of them around, and it’s like, 1830. they all decide they like each other, after they get some good old fashioned stabbing in-- Katara is the only woman Sokka has been around whos like him, and she’s like his little sister, and all he wants to do is Protect Her, so he doesn’t know what to do with women who known knives. (get his ass handed to him, thats what)

I want Zuko to be a broody mess but honestly he’d probably revert back to yelling at people/things in ancient Chinese (mandarin? I’m not really sure what period he’s from exactly). He’s still got that Good streak in him, esp since he’s like, a hundred years off his adopted uncle Iroh.

and you know what? 1830 america is NOT a cool place for anyone!! least of all asian immigrants, native americans, or women of either group

So the Gaang take to helping those people out any way they can. (Aang wants Peace, but you know white people, we don’t listen). They actively get involved in the underground railroad, eventually the civil war, and also helping out native americans, as well as chinese immigrants working on the railroads.

also so sorry I know the ask was about Zukka but I had to write a million words about their backstories first

Zuko + Sokka eventually come to a truce as the only dudes in this entire group who are willing to fight. Sokka is interested in both men and women, but he’s never really shared his life with anyone, and it’s the same for Zuko. Sokka, because he was regarded as an elder with his people, and after that he could only stay a few years. He had lovers, like Yue, but they all eventually died and Sokka couldn’t do anything about it!! Zuko, because while he also had lovers, he couldn’t really bear to be around humanity for a long time after what happened to him. (he’s vehemently opposed to slavery)

I think they get together at first just kind of because there isn’t really anyone else. Suki + Toph are kinda their own thing (are they lovers? sisters in arms? who knows), Katara is like Sokka’s sister (and if Zuko touches her Sokka will end his destiny permanently), and Aang is... aang.

It’s sorta a friends-with-benefits thing, except its an immortal warrior reluctant companions-with-benefits thing because can you really call this a friendship?? (its a family, eventually). Eventually it’s just kind of always been a thing. Sokka checking Zuko first when he comes back to life, counting down the second to make sure Zuko comes back at all. Zuko tells people he’s the only one allowed to kill Sokka, because lets be honest, the first couple of months with rowdy immortals meant killing each other a lot. When Sokka is killed violently in the Civil War, he wakes up half an hour later (slow, slow), to find a field of bodies and Zuko sitting next to him with his dao blades in the dirt, waiting for him. Sokka tries to make a joke, but it just makes Zuko mad, because what if that was the last time. (sokka jokes that he’s young, yet, not like Zuko)

They don’t really talk about it, partially because they don’t live in a world where it’s acceptable. What kind of title fits when you can only use it with 5 other people? But this time, when Zuko was afraid Sokka might not wake up, thirty years after they met, after lifetimes of being alone for both of them?? Sokka has to let Zuko know he loves him. Loves him!!! He’s not just here for the meantime.

thats all I have rn bc its 9pm and I’ve been writing this for like 3 hours. again if u wanna slide into my dms or if u have a discord and wanna talk about this/other stuff hmu. so sorry this got off topic.

also, the order I had them born in is:

roku --> aang --> Zuko --> suki --> toph --> sokka --> Katara

which may or may not be accurate to my timeline lol

Sokka probably speaks all of the Inuit languages, as well as French, English, and Russian, being alive for long enough to learn it all.

Katara refuses to learn French. Hates it. Never wants to learn.

She and Sokka personally keep Inuit traditions and languages alive as elders of their community, though it’s so much harder in modern times to stay connected to their culture bc they don’t age!!

disclaimer: bc the show was written as a complete mashup of several cultures I had to like..... pick where ppl were from. I picked china for Zuko/Suki/Toph bc they have a beautiful culture and a lot of dynasties I have heard a lot about recently while half watching the history channel. I really, really don’t know a lot about non-white culture as a white american from FLORIDA (so like, literally the farthest place you can get from the Inuit people and still be on the same continent). if you know more about these cultures than I do and I said something blatantly wrong pls let me know and I will change it.

[doyouevenshipbr0]

gruvia fic: a song of ice and water

chapter 3

author's note: someone suggested i make an ff.net and......i TRIED BUT IM TOO STUPID IDK HOW TO WORK IT WGWFWUWGSG im baby omg. ok but would it be easier to read itnon ff.net? if so i will try it again but idk my 5 brain cells might not be up for it. ok this season of game of thr*nes was trash btw. its so fucking bad. thats all lol. i hope u guys are liking this fic and its not too hard to follow! i try keeping it as simple as possible in terms of the game of thr*nes aspect. ty for the feedback it means sm<3 enjoy!!!<333

*

Gray watched over the courtyard, looking down on it from high up in one of the towers. He enjoyed just watching, a lot of the time. Watching over his people made Gray feel at ease, and it reminded him what his purpose was.

A small commotion caught his eye. He looked in a corner to see Juvia. She was training with a water magic teacher they found nearby for her. Gray silently commended her for still wanting to stick to her training, even in a foreign land.

After a few moments, he realized his eyes had been stuck on her. He'd never seen anyone move like that before. Every move she made had purpose, and it was all one continuous flow. Nothing was ever harsh and brute. Everything seemed carefully thought out and smart. She was moving like she was actually water. Gray's eyes widened when he saw her defend an attack by turning her body to water, and letting it flow right through her.

"She's intense." Gray jumped at the sound of Ur, his trainer's, voice. He looked over his shoulder and saw her standing right behind him, peering down into the courtyard just as he was.

"Who is?" Gray played dumb.

Ur rolled her eyes. "We both know who I'm talking about."

Gray paused. "Yeah. She's intense." He said, quietly.

"I've been observing her fighting style since she began training. I even sparred with her one time." Ur walked over and stood beside Gray at the window.

"You did? When?" Gray looked at her.

"You wouldn't know. You've been too busy sulking about this damned wedding to even take a second to notice her until now." Ur remained looking out onto Juvia.

"That's not true!" Gray defended.

"Yes it is." Ur said, immediately. "Everyone has been telling you to give her a chance, but you haven't even tried. What good is a lord that won't listen to his people?" She finally made eye contact with Gray.

Gray stood and thought for a moment. He supposed Ur had a point. It wasn't that Gray necessarily had anything against Juvia herself, it was just what she was there to do. He didn't want to take a wife. Because of this, he seemed to be ignoring Juvia altogether, for the most part.

"I've seen the way she looks at you and speakes to you." Ur spoke again. "I'm not sure what it is, or what you did, but she seems to adore you. Don't tell me you haven't noticed?"

Gray paused. He really hadn't thought about it. He didn't think about Juvia at all, actually. "No." He said simply. "I haven't."

"Well you should at least give her the courtesy of attempting to spend time with her." Ur said.

For a moment, Gray wanted to argue back, but he decided not to. "You're right. Thank you, Master Ur."

"I'm always right." She ruffled her hand through Gray's hair before turning around and walking out the door.

Gray smiled admirably at Ur as she left the room. She was his master and like a second mother to him. When he was little, he wanted to be just like her when he grew up, and now that he was practically grown, he still found himself having that same dream. She was his absolute role model. After thinking fondly of Ur, he looked back down to Juvia, still training as hard as ever yet didn't seem to be breaking a sweat.

He continued to be hypnotized by her motions and fluidity. The teacher they found for Juvia was considered to be the best water mage in the north, but he and Juvia seemed to be neck and neck. As he watched her, he thought back to Ur's words.

It truly seemed he really wasn't giving her much of a chance.

-

Juvia panted heavily as the spar between she and her trainer closed.

"You're just as all the stories say." Master Syrio said with his foreign accent, his breath not quite as heavy as Juvia's.

"So Juvia has heard." Juvia grabbed her water bottle and began chugging.

"You certainly did not disappoint me, rain drop." His lips curled into a genuine smile.

"Nor did you, Master Syrio. Juvia has heard tales of you as well." She matched his grin.

"I'm glad. I look forward to teaching you in the future. Though I don't know how much my expertise will help, since it seems you are already familiar with the Water Dance of Braavos." He nodded, in a way of acknowledging her technique.

"Yes. It is not only the origin of water type magic, but it is its truest form as well. Juvia's teacher in Riverrun studied it for almost all his life but never actually got to sail to Braavos and practice it in its native land. Juvia is looking forward to learning it from you, someone who is actually from the beautiful city." She smiled, imagining her old teacher. Her master Mercuphobia was the most extraordinary man she ever met. He was an incredible wizard, teacher, and parental figure for her, since her father wasn't much of one.

"Mercuphobia is an old friend of mine. We've trained together in the past, actually. For a man as stubborn as him, he captures the flow of water more beautifully than anyone I've ever seen. Your style reminds me much of his." Syrio approached her.

"Well, thank you." Juvia nodded. "That means a lot."

"While your skill resonates much with Braavos, I can still see The Riverlands run thick through your veins." Juvia's smile dimmed a bit. While she was proud of her land, the thought of it didn't bring much joy to her. "The 'water body' spell you use was first discovered in Riverrun, though, I'm sure you already know this."

"Yes." Juvia nodded.

"It's quite an impressive spell. No one has been able to learn it for years. Not me, nor Mercuphobia." Syrio said.

"Yes, well, to master it you must be one with the water, and with the curse of the rain, water was certainly a great part of Juvia's life." She smiled sadly.

"But the rain in your life is no more, and the spell still stands." Syrio gestured his arms open, notioning to the sunny sky, a sight Juvia never got tired of looking at. "That is a testament to your ability, little rain drop."

Juvia blushed. Even as great as Mercuphobia was, he was never as generous in his praising as Syrio had been.

"Hello, Ser." Juvia turned at the sound of Gray's voice. Gray nodded to Syrio. "My Lady." He bodded to Juvia.

"My Lord." Juvia and Syrio greeted at the same time.

"Master Syrio, do you mind if I steal away my fiancée for the day." Gray said seriously. Juvia's blush increased tenfold. He'd never referred to her as his fiancée before.

"It is hardly stealing, My Lord." Syrio bowed and held an arm out to Juvia. "The Lady is yours."

"Thank you." Gray smiled. He then turned to Juvia. "Would you like to go for a walk?"

Juvia couldn't speak. She responded with vigorous nods.

"Alright. Let's go." Gray turned and began walking.

"W-wait! Juvia should bathe first. I've just been training for quite a while--"

"We're just going for a walk. No need to get all dolled up." Gray looked back slightly and shrugged. Juvia stammered for a bit, but followed along.

After a bit of walking and no conversation, Juvia finally asked. "Where are we going, Gray-sama?"

"The Godswood. Have you been there yet?" He raised a brow.

"No, but Juvia's been wanting to go." She replied.

"Well, you'll finally get to." Gray said, Juvia smiled back in response.

The Godswood was filled with dozens upon dozens of thick, old trees. She'd never seen anything like that before. It felt like she'd stepped foot in a time traveler and stepped out centuries earlier. It felt like she was in a fairy tale forest that she'd heard about as a child in stories. Not to mention, the forest was somehow warm, even at the wake of winter.

"This is incredible." Juvia said in awe. "Juvia's learned all the history of this place, but never actually thought it would live up to my expectations." She paused and did a few turns, taking in all of it.

"When I was little I used to think this place was haunted." Gray said with a chuckle, and Juvia gave a small laugh as well.

"Juvia can't blame you. This does seem all so much for a child." She noted how the trees draped over each other and seemed to fold in the most beautiful, perfect way.

"If you were so interested in this place, why haven't you visited yet?" Gray and Juvia walked over to a hot spring, and Juvia figured that was why the air was warmer.

"Before Juvia left for Winterfell, my father told me that Juvia should he introduced to the Godswood by a Fullbuster. If Juvia wandered in here on her own as an outsider, the gods would be irritated." She decided to sit on a nearby rock.

Gray snorted. "And you believe all that nonsense about the gods? The old and the new?"

Juvia shrugged. "Juvia knows that her father can be cruel, so she just follows his orders for the most part."

"Oh." Gray looked down. "I didn't mean to-" He stammered. "I mean I've heard about how your father is-- harsh."

"Oh, there is no need for Gray-sama to apologize!" She quickly defended. "Juvia didn't mean anything by it! And besides, Juvia is here with Gray-sama now, so I don't need to worry about my father's cruelty anymore." She sweetly smiled.

Gray furrowed his brows and looked away. "Yeah. Sure."

Juvia's eyes softened as she looked at Gray. Ever since he took the rain away, Juvia had been enamored by him. Everything she did was to get closer to Gray; she really could not get enough. She didn't know just what it was that got her so hooked, but what she did know that he was one of the only people to stick up for her like that, and he was the only person who'd taken her rain away. Unfortunately, Gray didn't seem to feel the same. Whenever she tried to talk with him, he usually kept up small talk for a short while, and then came up with an excuse as to why they had to part ways. She could tell he was annoyed with her, but she didn't mind. She adored him, regardless.

"So you don't ever think of going back home?" Gray finally asked.

Juvia shook her head. "No. Of course I miss the place, but the people, not so much."

"I could never do it." Gray looked down at the water.

"Do what?"

"Leave me home and be shipped off to marry a stranger." He said, bluntly.

Juvia shrugged. "My father always told me he'd marry me off as soon as he got the chance. Juvia's been prepared for this her whole life."

"Sheesh." Gray scratched the back of his head. "Your dad sounds swell." He said, sarcastically.

Juvia softly chuckled. "Like Juvia said, it doesn't matter anymore. Now Juvia has you!" She gave him an excited smile.

Gray didn't reply. He fought a small blush that lingered on his cheeks and kept his eyes on the water.

"But enough about Juvia's father." She followed Gray's eyes onto the water. "Your father, however, Juvia has heard he's a great man."

"He is." A side of Gray's lip curled up.

"Juvia can't wait to meet him."

"That'll be awhile." Gray sighed. "With this war going on, and all."

"Juvia is sure he is doing everything in his power to get back to Winterfell as soon as possible." She said, surely.

"Oh yeah?" He peered up at Juvia.

"Yes. If Gray-sama loves him so much, then Lord Silver must feel the same about him. Feelings are always connected between two people, no matter how far apart they may be. Since Gray-sama and Lady Mika and all of Winterfell's feelings are so strong, Lord Silver must be feeling that love. If Juvia had love like that, Juvia would do everything in her power to get back to it." She gave a reassuring grin to Gray who couldn't help but grin back.

"That's a nice way to look at it." He said. "I hope you're right."

"Juvia is certain about it." She and Gray exchanged grins. "Juvia wishes he could be here for the wedding." She looked up at the trees, imagining how their wedding would look under them. "Speaking of, do you know when our wedding is to be?" Juvia asked. Gray almost choked on air.

"No." He quickly said.

"Neither does Juvia. Maybe your mother would know?" She turned to him.

"Not sure." Gray avoided eye contact.

"Hm. Well maybe-"

"Look, I already said I don't know anything about the damn wedding!" Gray prompty stood from the rock and looked right at Juvia. "Our marriage is the last thing on my mind. I have much more important things to worry about." Gray began to walk away from where they sat, or more like stomp.

"Gray-sama, Juvia-" She stood up and reached out for him.

"Don't follow me." He turned his head momentarily before continuing his exit.

Juvia didn't say anything. She put her hand back down at her side and slowly sat back down. She remained in the Godswood for a little while. She sat and thought about Gray.

As soon as she began to melt the ice around his heart, he seemed to freeze it all up back again.

And she was determined to thaw him completely.

[woozi]

yes, english :3. it's funny my country is literally known for its diversity & endless languages (and it flexes about it too lmao) but in reality does nothing to help in/encourage learning other languages. hindi & eng are the only languages schools teach & 3rd one depends on what state you live in. minority languages are not even in options.

ahhh learning that people out there are trying to preserve their languages and culture <3 it feels good to know, i hope they keep doing it that's really great!

hehe that's good no? :3 trying out new stuff even if only for some time also has its charm <3 and oh godddd those are great picks! 24h & fallin flower will never fail to amaze me <3 callx3 & hit, so trueee i agree! i personally like 'oh my' too! along w/ these. since it clearly speaks for the song's lyrics. like wonu controlling the human cube in start & the thinking poses during chorus. it all vibes so well with the song's concept. i really like when choreo clearly speaks the song to the audience.

yesss ofc! i plan to complete vincenzo before year ends dhjdjdkd. NO WAYYY! PLEASE COME TO HOMECHA UNIVERSE <3 you'll love it here!! dimple couple are very wholesome so are others 🥺.

yes those are the playlists made by spotify! usually i don't like playlists' made by the app for other songs but with kpop especially for indie and rnb songs, i do sometimes check it.

cringe domestic boy made ME a cringe fan today, yza 😭 feeling so deranged rn </3. so many pictures by mr joshu??? are we living in right universe? (maybe i should b*lly him more? this is a sign) ALSO omg i've never heard abt joshua and woozi covering a 1d song fhdjjrkrkedn good for them djjdkddk.

HFJDDKSK 'forgotten love' <//3 next project. but yeah that's true, there is literally so much happening i feel like if i were to pay attention to everything i'd be overwhelmed.

the way you asked abt cb and they dropped the poster dhdjjdkd, i was going to say i actually don't have any particular thing in mind but i'd really like something like fear or good to me or getting closer. something stronger, also yes i agree w you we need some cock music <3 ( ik the insta pictures are behind pictures from their merch shoot but all these soft nature pictures on insta while their other social media accounts have dark layout is so funny to me 😭😭😭 pls don't shatter my strong fiery cb expectations svt)

i'm so surprised that they dropped the poster one month before cb, even more surprised with the scheduler too omggg 😭😭 i've become so used to 2 - 1.5 week before, cb announcements now lmao.

something abt this cb feels so different <3 ( also hoping for studio choom & dance relay this time </3 i miss it 🥺)

that's good to know <3 hope this good energy with uni persists for you <3. also saw that you'll get time during cb release that's so good <3 hope you get to enjoy it to the fullest. i'm doing great! it's raining too much here (it shouldn't rn 💀) so that's lil meh but overall i'm good, thank you for asking <3. omg pls 💗🥺 sending you a hug back!

hjdkdsk i was trying different font to make ask look lil smaller hddjdjkd but yes i do copy- paste bcoz i type in notes first :3 (in case tumblr decides its hungry which has not happened yet hdjdjd) - 🪂

ohh now i get it </3 it's still mostly like that here too, and a lot of native languages of ours are dying as well. it's one of the things i'm so sad abt :/ that's why i was v surprised when they somehow started incorporating more into secondary education!!

LOOOVE THAT PERSPECTIVE SM 😭 im just out here feeling like a jack of all trades, master of none lmao HFHJFDH ALSO YES!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! svt's peak summer concept (... or is it the only hdshjds) tbh <3 i love the choreo on the 2nd half of the chorus sm <3 also v great point!! a lot of creative directors focus on that and the way u presented this just piqued my interest bc... wow their methods Work Well HJDHJDSH

i haven't watched kdramas in a while (mostly bc they're so long fjfhdj) until i came across vincenzo and im so glad i did <3 JHDSHJDSJ SORRY I KEEP TALKING ABT IT ENDLESSLY!! BUT ALSO OMG a lot of my classmates have also been talking abt hometown chax3 and i keep putting it in my list but i saw that it's not finished yet?? is it not?? am i crazy??? from what i've seen on netflix new eps come weekly??? and if i become obsessed and the new ep takes a WHOLE ASS WEEK to come out... what then... but IM SOOO PUMPED FOR IT the previews i have been seeing look so cute </3

ALSO OMG ME TOO!!! i was actually v v surprised when i checked out one of the daily mixes and none of the songs in them were flops HJDHJ

HONESTLY,,, I GET IT,,,,,,, JOSHUA'S BEEN TAKING UP SPACE IN MY CRAMMED BRAIN TOO LIKE,,,, SIR,,,, NOT IN FRONT OF MY SALAD,,??? ALSO,,,,, JOSH FROM THE TEASER,,, OH MY GO,D,,, I NEVER KNEW I NEEDED BAD BOY JOSH IN MY LIFE????????? LIIKE??????????????? I NEVER EVEN IMAGINED IT WAS POSSIBLE????????????????????????? THAT I WOULD BE SEEING T H A T IN MY LIFETIME????????????/ CHURCH BOY JOSH,,, LOOKING LIKE THIS????????????????????????? HELP MEEEEE!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!1

and yes omg there were 2 performances of it iirc HFHJFDHJ here's the first one and another one 😭 also i can't find the josh x jihoon vid (i forgot the song title hfdhf) so here's predebut josh w sunday morning instead hfjhfd HJDSJHSD

and that's v v good that you're doing it at your own pace <3 love that <3 i feel like im working some kind of job keeping up w it all ngl 😭

AND HELL YEAH OH MY GODDD WE MIGHT ACTUALLY BE GETTING A MIX OF ALL THOSE BASED ON THE CONCEPT TRAILER??? WE'RE NOT ONLY GETTING COCK MUSIC, LOOKS LIKE WE'RE GETTING ROCK AS WELL 😭 ALSO UR SO RIGHT HFDHJDFJHFD there's literally no in between when u go to their official ig page they're like,,,,, here's some cute dicon teasers <3 oh and hoshi + mg being whores,,, AND THEN SOME COTTAGECORE BOYS!! <3 and now some fucking cock teasers <3 WHAT IS GOING ON 😭😭😭 everyday i wake up to new shit and although it is Some Work keeping up w them i love it sm it keeps me from going insane w real life fhjdfhj also i know we already talked abt this previously but w all the things coming out rn.... i ask... once again... How... do they have 276 hours in a day wtf 😭

ALSO YES WITH MY WHOLE FUCKING CHEST????????????????????????????????????? i was so surprised when it dropped 😭 i wasnt expecting anything so i turned off all my notifs that day so i could focus on studying and alas.... i was 40 mins late to the announcement oh my god

WHY ARE UR TAKES SO GOOD <3 UR SO VALID AND UR SO RIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! i just know,,, that the studio choom vid will take me out,, i KNOW IT,,, they really seem to be hyping up this cb it really does feel v diff and v Big to me <3 by the looks of it they really should tho it looks like a fucking banger!!

AND NAURR THE WAY U EVEN SAW THAT </3 i have the power of god and anime on my side this semester ig HJFHJFDHJFD i was honestly super worried (i kinda need to touch grass rn lol) that i would be late to the cb since my classes end at 7 pm and the boys usually release by 6 HJDHJSD but it seems like they're targeting another market now so i'm also relieved and excited for them!! and thank u omg, WE will enjoy it together!! <3 the global warming really is so- also do u not like rainy days or 👀 on the other hand it's SOOO fucking hot here when it should be raining so????????????? god what is HAPPENING.

also that is v smart of u <3 i've had WAYY too many asks get eaten.. you stay safe out there 😭😭😭

AGAIN!! LOVE U THANK U FOR HANGING OUT W MEEEE <3 IM SO EXCITED TO SPEND THIS CB W U!!

[briteboy]

why is my bra size a G? Where is that even on the bra size spectrum?

honestly i’m not sure why i got this question but it made for a good cold open to this post didn’t it

Mother I’m having a really bad migraine please help I’ve been throwing up for hours now 😭

OH NO i’m sorry :[ that sucks so much. i’ve only had a migraine once and i’m pretty sure it was because i went to a palm reader who had some untrustworthy evil vibes going on omfg *googles ‘migraine remedies’* uhh uhuh leafy dark greens! a cold dark room! ice packs! i’m sorry i suck at this i will offer you one (1) hug instead

i dreamed last night that last august u sent me an ask with questions from an ask meme i hadn't reblogged and i responded really rudely and then in the present i got a notif for an ask and i looked it and it was actually the already answered ask u had sent me a year ago and i was like 'wtf when did i get this ask when did i answer it why was i so angry???' and i messaged u and was like 'i have no memory of this but im sorry for being such an ass idk why either man' and u were like :/ ok i guess

OMFG :/ ok i guess i apologize on dream me’s behalf for sending you questions u didn’t even reblog. maybe i was just really interested in ur hypothetical answers. it’s okay i forgive dream u for being rude. we’re best friends now in dream land

a half goat, half human is a satyr but I like goat boy more

yeah i’m dumb and realized this after i said it omg. it’s not my fault i’ve only seen the chronicles of narnia once

Could you release astropussy cc merch? 😂 i need it in my life

YES PROBABLY IN THE FUTURE!! it’s on my to-do list!

Do you have a link to the beginning of ur story? Thx

the amount of times i’ve answered this, i just. asjkdfj lmao. it’s on my faq and also at the top of my blog, if you’re on mobile just look at the tags on my post and the general rule is that you can go to that tag and put in /chrono and it’ll go to the beginning. here

Do you follow any astrology blogs??

hmmmm i used to, but i’ve fallen out of touch with that area of tumblr. i still trust @astrologymarina with my life tho

hit me with that astrology shit ! gimme references, everything!

Yo my main squeeze! I’m doing a PowerPoint bout astrology, could u give me some sweet info?

(two different anons, same answer) AHHH *sweats* tbh i learned everything i know from observing my own chart (find yours here), acknowledging the traits of each sign and applying to people i know, then reading up on the planets and houses, and honestly...just exploring the tumblr astrology tag and following the rabbit hole down a twisted web of different astrology blogs. if you start with marina up there ^^ you can probably find a lot of sweet info and other blogs as well.

Hello mother, could you teach me about all the astrology stuff you’re always talking about? Like the birth charts and the planets etc. I find it v interesting but I can’t understand shit bc English is not even near my native language. Help. I’m so very lost lmao

ah well firstly check out the links above ^^ i would personally explain everything but 1) i’m bad at that and 2) ain’t nobody got time 4 dat honestly cafe astrology is a good starting point for beginners, they have everything on that website! if you need any specific sort of help with understanding it, feel free to message me off anon!

i think i finally figured out the birthchart thing?? really cool and very defining for a lot of elements of character design. i'm a aquarius sun, scorpio moon, and taurus rising -- i'm ready to be judged - sirius anon

right!! it’s like a main priority for me in character building! ohoooo that combo is very interesting, because i feel like aquarius and scorpio are not really compatible, in that aquarius influence can make you very distant and unwilling to address your emotions and their importance, but your moon (which controls your emotions) is SO preoccupied with exactly that, which might exacerbate that scorpio intensity because you feel that constant pull between hiding and revealing your true emotions. but then taurus rising kind of balances it out and makes you at least appear to be level headed? so even if you’re suffering on the inside at least people think u got it all together.

i.... i feel like your inbox is now bombarded w/ zodiac related questions.... so i sorta feel bad for dropping this on u but im doing it anyway hehe ok so: sagittarius sun and rising, cancer moon

it is and my wrist is killing me all of a sudden but i do this for u guys because it makes me so happy that u even care oh wow, that’s an interesting combo!! it’s actually one of those combos that like...it never crosses your mind, but now that you think about it, they actually go really well together. sagittarius is the most calm of the fire signs, so it actually might pair well with emotional and highly intuitive cancer. your inclinations are probably pretty bold and outgoing, but then you might think about them for too long and develop a fear of going through with them. in that way your emotional side kinda holds you back, but you should learn to trust your gut instincts!! 

Uhhh can you also do my birthchart? I know nothing about astrology and you're a godess in this topic! I'm Scorpio Sun, Pisces Moon, Pisces Rising

OMFG A GODDESS well i’m just ok, i try ooh boy you’re watery alright!! wow you’re probably dreamy as f*ck, but also moody as f*ck, highly and acutely aware of everything at once, otherworldly, always living inside your head but wanting to get out and experience things with everyone else, always wondering about the mysteries of life and the weird questions no one ever wants to answer. you understand things more deeply than anyone around you, and you probably don’t even realize how strong and adaptable you are!!

Ahhh are you still doing horoscopes? If so can you do mine? I’m Aries sun, Sagittarius moon and libra rising. I’m overwhelmed with how to read these things! Thank you and hope you’re having a good day 😘

hello finally i am answering your question! sorry i just get overwhelmed when i get a lot of these lmao this is an awesome combo!!! sag + libra is always so good and then aries + libra are opposites/sister signs which makes for an interesting dichotomy. i’m actually an aries sun/sag moon as well, so i know this combo very well lmao. you might come off as very calm and appealing (dat libra charm tho) and then when people get closer to you you reveal your optimistic, perseverant and passionate nature. these signs are very harmonious together, you’re probably like the calmer version of me lmao. you might be pretty rational but then your sun makes you want to be more impulsive. it’s good to listen to it sometimes...but not all the time. aries is a child don’t trust him too much

hey sunny! i know you're probably stressed out by all these so feel free to skip this one, but i'm a virgo sun/capricorn moon/cancer rising! idk if i fit in a lot of the virgo stereotypes though but ¯\_(ツ)_/¯

o0o0o0o0o so many sister signs i swear heheh, it’s good though, i like this combo! i feel like you can’t really go wrong with virgo/cap because they’re both earth signs. cap/cancer are opposites so your cancer rising might make you come off as very sweet, soft and emotional, but your moon says otherwise. people probably underestimate you a lot, but underneath your exterior you’ve got a guarded heart and you can’t be pushed around easily. though your virgo and cancer influence might invite people to walk all over you, you are stronger than you know.

Hi! Just felt like letting you know that there's this song called "Red Bottom Sky" by Yung Lean and it always reminds me of Santi every time I hear it.

hello! omg i love these messages, it makes me so giddy when people relate songs to my characters ;-; i’m listening to it right now and this is definitely something he would like lmao. it’s so calming somehow i wanna live in this beat

when i saw the title for lou’s story i immediately thought of the group choker lmao. you should check them out el dorado is my fav song

omg i actually think i’ve heard of this group before!! i’m digging these song suggestions, i like this one a lot! watch me put their songs in this story now lmao

[kariachi]

@mellenabrave

Fic for that idea I tossed out

Argi is fourteen when he overhears his mother telling to woman next door that the only one of the triplets who isn’t in prison isn’t going to college. That none of her children are, they aren’t smart enough.

He’s always gotten good grades, and with so little food spread between his siblings spite is about all that fuels him, so it surprises no one when he swears to prove her wrong.

~~

At sixteen his entire year goes to what’s essentially a college fair, where school upon school has set up booths for the sake of young high school students. Argi makes sure to get information from all of them to browse later. He also looks into every scholarship he could possibly qualify for.

He spends four months putting every spare minute into research and applications. His mother scoffs, the young twins watch with interest- he makes sure to encourage them, as much for spite and love- and the rest of his siblings roll their eyes. Nobody thinks it’ll work, but they’ll allow themselves to be amused by his failure. He doesn’t let it get to him. He’s going places, whether they want him to or not.

~~

Dear Argiñe,

Congratulations on your acceptance into the College of Arts & Sciences at Cornell University!

He makes sure to go to the Library and make ten copies, one for each of his family members, before he rubs his success in their faces.

“And how do you plan on paying for Ivy League, Princess,” Maria asks, and Argi just grins nastily at her.

“I’m selling you all to the mafia.”

~~

He doesn’t sell them all to the mafia, and really his scholarship money and financial aid will cover the costs, but he does hock all his mother’s jewelry to pay the admissions fee.

What’s she going to do, report her stolen goods stolen?

~~

The first person Argi meets turns out to be his roommate. Kevin Levin, a boy a year younger than him who also doesn’t know what he’s going to major in and feels his family can go fuck themselves.

“Honestly,” he says as he mucks about with their beds that first afternoon, somehow procuring wood posts and turning them each into top bunks so they have more floor space, “I only decided to go to college out of spite.”

Within four days he is not only Argi’s first friend, but his first love.

~~

Intro to LGBT Studies also introduces him to a redhead, who sits right beside him in the front row. By the end of class she’s started bookmarking her textbook in relation to the syllabus and Argi has borrowed and chewed half apart one of her pencils.

They are immediate nemeses.

~~

Her name is Gwendolyn and three days later she makes a move on Kevin while they’re all eating lunch. Argi knocks her upside the head with a folder.

Kai, from Kevin’s Intro to Native American Lit course, just about doubles over laughing.

Kevin swears they’re all the worst friends he’s ever had.

~~

The food in the cafeteria is good, but some days they can’t help but yearn for something more. Traditional dishes. Homecooked meals. Argi and the girls often curse the “one appliance per dorm” rule.

Thankfully Kevin works miracles with a rice cooker.

~~

“What do you mean you don’t have to take language classes?!”

“Red, I’m from Spain. They’re not gonna force me to learn another language. Now just show me where you’re getting mixed up. Refuse to let you guys suck at this.”

~~

Gwendolyn went home for Thanksgiving, but the boys and Kai agree to skip the holiday altogether. Instead, Kevin takes over the common room and commandeers everyone’s appliances to fix up a Black Friday feast to shake souls.

“Fuck ‘em all, may they be trampled in their quest for a second rate plasma screen.”

~~

“I’m gonna call that a call to immortality.”

“Sounds like a plan to me.”

~~

They skype over winter break, while the girls visit home and the boys apartment-sit for a graduate student. It’s relaxing, for the most part. Argi is forced to study by the fact that Gwendolyn is still studying, and they’re all dying of envy at all the places Kai’s grandfather is taking her, but for the most part it’s songs over the holidays (Argi teaches them Venid Pastorcitos and Kai is still humming it come February) and everybody sending each other food.

Exactly the sort’ve tradition Argi can sink his teeth into.

~~

GwennyWeatherwax: I found this site, apparently if you send in a dna sample they’ll figure out where your ancestors were from for you

keV: yeah and then they use it to make their evil half-dinosaur clone army, i’ve seen *this* movie before

GwennyWeatherwax: Geez, you try to help your friends…

Wifwolf: We already know what Kev is, G. Half-Oneida, half purely driven snow

keV: think the only thing me and dad have in common is hoping mom got a serious hangover from that bender…

Wifwolf: Im just amazed she thawed out in time to have you

keV: oh she didn’t

GwennyWeatherwax: Okay, okay, enough about Kev’s mom’s pussy please!

Erizo: if i hear one more joke about kevs moms pussy-

Erizo: would be nice to be something other than ‘brown’ tho

keV: how much?

GwennyWeatherwax: $100

GwennyWeatherwax: Each

Erizo: on the other hand brown is an awesome color

keV: yep

Wifwolf: We’ll put it on the ‘once we have cash to blow’ pile

~~

They all sign up for physical education courses in their second semester, just to get them over with. Everyone is surprised when Gwendolyn ‘Beanpole’ Tennyson signs up for one of the martial arts courses and is immediately put into an advanced class. Kevin goes for what is apparently military bootcamp in an academic setting, because he isn’t already 6’2 and 200 lbs. of pure muscle.

Argi and Kai take Trap & Skeet together. At least this way if the others start shit they’ll have weapon proficiency on their side.

~~

“Kevin, we are not taking cooking classes.”

“I cannot be the only person here who cooks!”

“Yes, yes you can. Forever.”

~~

“Seriously, get a room or get boyfriends, because if you keep fighting like this people are going to get ideas.”

…

“Ewww!!”

“Kai no!!”

~~

Finals week is hell, no matter what, but they all pass their courses. They all survive their courses, and each other, despite the odds against them. Yes, Argi and Gwendolyn aren’t allowed back in the Library until they’re 80, but overall their first year has been a success.

They’re all sitting in a booth at a pizza place in town, one Kevin has been raving about since the start of the year and none of them have had the chance to go to, celebrating their collective victory, when Argi motions them all together for a selfie. Everyone seems to understand what’s happening, crowding around him, arms over his shoulders. Kevin even pulls him into his lap, smirking as Argi goes red and the photo is taken. They all grin at him as he gives the image a once over before saving it.

He makes sure his baby sisters still have him friended before he puts it out on Facebook.

“Twenty bucks says I’m not the last Bustillo to go to school.”

“None of us are stupid enough to take that.”

“Damn.”