#spr group

[redeemingvillains]

the playlist - mattheo riddle

summary: enzo overhears something about you he shouldn't have and when he tells his friends, all hell breaks loose.

word count: 1.5k

soundtrack: dress - taylor swift

a/n: just some fun, sweet and silly banter with our favorite boys! i made enzo italian? not sure if that's a thing. and i definitely took some liberties with italian, so please forgive me!

warning: the group is lowkey mean to enzo about his english not being very good; this in no way reflects my personal views about that. anyone that even attempts to speak or learn more than one language (esp english!) is amazing ♡

"Alright, I've got another one"

Pansy's voice carried from your bedroom into the bathroom where you were curling your hair, getting ready for your girls' night. She was fiddling with your phone, playing music through your bluetooth speaker.

"Fuck, marry, kill: Blaise, Mattheo, Theo."

"What is the actual matter with you?" you responded, laughing. "I'm not answering that, none of them" you said resolutely about your best friends, even as your heart trilled in your chest at the very obvious answer you had in your head.

She laughed deeply, "Gods they would simply die. Any of them would be on their knees to marry you, I swear to Salazar... or fuck you for that matter."

"Pansy!!"

"Ok, ok, I give up."

"Anyway, how are things with you and Draco?" you asked, looking to quickly change the subject.

A heartbeat. No response.

"Pans?" you asked, your ears listening intently for her answer before you became worried. "You okay?" you asked, concerned as you carefully set down your curler and peered around the doorframe to find her with a shit-eating grin on her face, staring at your phone.

"Pansy..." you said cautiously as you slowly approached her.

"I just found a very interesting playlist on your phone. 'M.R.'? Gee, wonder what that could be?" she said slyly.

Your feet started moving quickly towards her. "Nonono, nope that's not what you think –"

Now she was on her feet, running away from you. "Oh, GIRL, ohhhhh my goddddssss!"

"Give it back!" you shouted, lunging for your phone as she dodged out of your grasp.

"This is all Taylor Swift! Down Bad, But Daddy I Love Him, DRESS!?! I KNEW IT, I FUCKING KNEW IT!!!!" she shouted as she scrambled on top of your bed and jumped up and down. "This is the best thing that's ever happened to me, please, Mattheo is going to lose his mind!!!"

"Oh gods, Pans, please, please you cannot say anything, not to Draco, not to anyone."

Her eyes flicked from you to over your shoulder and your heart dropped into your stomach as you turned to see Lorenzo standing in your doorway.

"...Ciao bellas..." he said hesitantly, eyebrows raised as he took in the scene in front of him, Pansy, out of breath, standing on your bed, you clambering up beside her as you were both shouting at each other.

"Uhh, hey Enz, what's up?" you said as casually as possible as you climbed off your bed.

"I'm here to borrow your potions textbook, you said I could?–"

"–Yes, gods, yes I did" you said, scrambling to search for it from the pile on your desk before brandishing it at him.

"Thank you bella" he said as he left, a cheeky grin on his face.

"Fuck how much of that do you think he heard?" you said, looking up at Pansy.

"Babe, he barely speaks English, you're fine" she said nonchalantly. "But as for me, you have a lot of explaining to do."

Enzo made his way into the common room where the rest of his friends were gathered around the TV playing a video game as he plopped down onto the couch beside them.

"Where the hell have you been?" Draco asked without breaking his concentration on the screen.

"I was with la dolce e la piccante, eh, I needed her book" he said, using his affectionate nicknames for you (sweet) and Pansy (spicy). "Amico, she was talking about you" he said suggestively, his eyebrows wiggling.

"Yeah, what did she say?" Draco asked, his curiosity piqued.

"No, not you, la dolce, she was talking about Mattheo."

Mattheo had been sprawled in a large armchair with his hood over his head and eyes closed, but they fluttered open at that. Be cool he thought to himself, even as his heart raced in his chest. Enzo immediately registered his reaction and smirked.

"Care to share?" Theo grunted, jamming the buttons on his controller.

"She has music for you" Enzo said, his eyes never leaving Mattheo.

Mattheo's heartrate slowed.

"She sends me songs all the time, we have a shared playlist, Enz" he said, waving him off as he pulled his hood back up.

"No, no, it was not for sharing, it was a secret."

"You mean a surprise?" Blaise tried.

"No, no, la picante, she found it and la dolce was upset, it was a secret playlist."

Mattheo sat back up.

"A secret playlist... for me?" he asked.

"Yes!" Enzo said, happy to finally have gotten his attention and the message across.

Enzo's confirmation was met with some chuckles and ooohs and aahhs.

"Did you hear it?"

"What was on it?"

"I bet it was the same depressing alternative shit you two always listen to" Theo said.

"Shut the fuck up" Mattheo snapped back, narrowing his gaze at him.

"–It was Taylor Swift!" Enzo announced proudly, and four sets of eyes shifted to him, with three blank stares.

A pause.

"Ok, but like what era are we talking about here? Lover? Folklore? TPD?" Theo said and four sets of eyes shifted to him.

"What the fuck?"

"Bro, what are you talking about?"

"Am I supposed to know what any of this means?"

"Che cosa??"

"Taylor Swift is a fucking icon and anyone who says otherwise is either deaf or ignorant" Theo retorted before snapping his gaze back to Enzo, the video game in the background long forgotten now.

"Tell me exactly what you heard."

"Ehh, Down Bad, Daddy something something, and Dress" he said, nodding as he remembered each.

Theo's controller fell off his lap as he leaned forward intensely, eyes narrowed on Enzo, "You are fucking certain that's what you heard?"

"...Yes..?"

Theo let out a noise somewhere between a howl and a laugh.

"Oh my fucking gods Matty you lucky son of a bitch!"

"What the fuck are you talking about?" Mattheo asked. He was sitting upright now on the edge of his seat and he could feel his pulse in his neck as he'd watched the conversation going back and forth between Theo and Enzo like a fucking tennis match.

"Dress by Taylor Swift? But Daddy I Love Him? Hellloooo???!!" Theo was cackling now, falling back on the couch, his hands on his stomach.

And then panic ensued.

"Put it on! Someone pull it up!" Blaise shouted, scrambling to his feet in search of his phone.

"Gods" Draco muttered, his hands on his head as he tried to process the information as tears streamed down Theo's face with laughter, and maybe a small bit of bitter jealousy.

Enzo looked around with wide eyes at their reaction, somehow more dramatic than the girls'.

"No!" Mattheo said finally, standing up and grabbing Blaise by the arm as he was frantically trying to find the songs. "All of you, just shut. the. fuck. up" he said firmly, his voice low and serious as he enunciated every word, causing each of them to stop what they were doing and look at him.

"This is bullshit, he doesn't even speak English" he continued harshly, gesturing halfheartedly to Enzo. "I'm not wasting my time with this shit, can we please just get back to the game?"

He sat down resolutely, picked a controller up off the floor and moved to restart their game.

The group exchanged quiet glances with one another before settling back into their places.

Mattheo had been able to project a semblance of controlled anger the rest of the night, despite the sideways glances he received, but on the inside, he felt like a kettle full of boiling water, ready to scream.

He was fuming that Enzo repeated what he'd heard in front of everyone, furious at the way Theo laughed and annoyed at everyone else's reactions. His life, his feelings, and especially his friendship with you were private; it was none of their godsdamn business.

He also didn't like the idea that Theo knew your music better than he did, music was something the two of you had always shared with each other... since when did you listen to Taylor Swift anyway? And why was her music such a big deal?

He was tossing and turning in bed now, playing and replaying the evening's events in his head until finally he reached for his headphones, shoving them in his ears as he grabbed his phone. He needed to know, needed to understand why Theo was making such a big deal out of it. Theo's voice echoed in his head: "Matty you lucky son of a bitch!" and excitement and jealousy stirred in his stomach in equal measures.

It doesn't mean anything he told himself, tampering his expectations. The last thing he wanted to do was get excited, like one song was going to change anything anyway.

Dress he typed - tapping play.

Decent beat he thought, she's got a nice voice...

And then he hit the bridge.

Say my name and everything just stops I don't want you like a best friend Only bought this dress so you could take it off

He had stopped breathing.

Everyone thinks that they know us But they don't know nothing about All of this silence and patience, pining and anticipation My hands are shaking from holding back from you –

He ripped his headphones out of his ears and sat straight up in bed, his hand falling subconsciously to his beating chest as he tried to catch his breath. He swallowed. He blinked several times, trying to register what he'd just heard.

I don't want you like a best friend?

Well fuck he thought, me either.

T H E P L A Y L I S T

🏷️ tagging a few of my beautiful mutuals: @girllblogging777 @draco-dormiens @dracosbabygirl8 @leona-hawthorne @noble-serpent @sectumsempraaa @reys-letters

[memory-of-idle-musings]

⋆.˚┆Injured s/o reactions .

╰─..★.──────★.

﹒✶ | Summary:

How the three first class SOLDIER's react to their beloved s/o getting injured and how they take care of them afterward.

﹒✶ | Characters:

Sephiroth, Angeal Hewley, Genesis Rhapsodos

﹒✶ | Tags:

Angst, hurt/comfort, slight fluff, romance, gn!reader, pre-established romantic relationships, bulleted headcanons

﹒✶ | Trigger warnings:

Mentions and graphic descriptions of physical injuries, blood, combat, physical violence, heavy angst, traffic accident, mentions of death, permanent scarring, gendered terms "god/goddess" used, but gender neutral otherwise!

﹒✶ | Author's note:

I had so much fun with these they ended up being way longer than they should have been. 😅 Hope you enjoy!

↪ ❥ Sephiroth:

〈 Pre-Nibelheim, crisis core timeline 〉

You are on your way home, passing through the quiet, unusually empty streets of a local small town. Like watercolors in motion, the dusk sky begins to shift from the fiery red hues of the sunset to the cool calm of impending stars.

The fridge in your home was all empty after you forgot to go grocery shopping earlier this week, and you found yourself with a grumbling stomach this afternoon. Which is what warranted this rather unusual, late shopping trip of yours. 

You are well aware of how dangerous it is to be walking home this late all on your own. You do wish you had someone to escort you. Alas, with your beloved, Sephiroth, currently away on a long, daunting mission assigned to him by Shinra, you will have to manage alone.

Still, unless you wanted to be left starving tonight, you had no option but to go. Luckily for you, the nearest grocery store just happens to be rather close to your place, and with how empty it usually chances to be at this time of the day too, you find yourself back on the way home in no time.

It's unfortunate that your luck runs out merely a few steps away from your home, when you abruptly notice a group of rather intimidating-looking thugs step out of the shadows from behind a nearby wall. 

You immediately stop dead in your tracks the moment you spot them, your senses are on high alert. You do not know who these men are, nor what they want. Whether they are a random group of thugs that just so happened to notice you out here all on your own, or they were already purposefully targeting you beforehand. They utter no words, and their garments give away no information about their identities. 

But with the way they all begin to encircle and slowly move toward you, you know very well that they mean trouble...

You try to back out, to speak out against them, to turn away and run with the wind as far as your feet can carry you... But the thugs give you no chance to do anything before unsheathing their blades and rushing in right at you.

The men surround you, one of them grabbing you from behind and holding you in place, covering your mouth with his hand, and you can feel the dry taste of his leather gloves in your mouth as you thrash against him, trying to free yourself of his hold on you.

"Now now, there's no need to be so defiant. If you can just cooperate-" His words are cut short by a loud scream that escapes his throat as you bite his hand with all the force you can muster, allowing yourself an opportunity to wriggle free and run.

And you do, you break away from him and run, despite another one of the men who stand straight right in your direction. Seeing you run, with his sword in his hand, he brings it down upon you.

His blade slashes across your chest, a calculated cut, enough to wound you quite severely, but still not enough to kill you. Not that it occurs to you at that time, when you feel the force of the impact push you back and hit the ground before you can even register your injury.

But when you find yourself lying on the ground, surrounded, your body in pain from the fall, you begin to notice the sharp, stinging sensation, intensifying itself across the upper half of your body. Followed by the pool of blood spreading around you...

You don't know what happens next, you don't know how many seconds or minutes pass with you lying helplessly on the ground, firmly clutching your chest with your hands and knees.

But you do recognize the long wave of hair of silver, appearing in front of you in less than the blink of an eye, and you do see him cut down the men who attacked you in an even lesser time than that.

You see him bury Masamune into the chest of the last man standing, watching as the life in his eyes wanes—and when the man responsible for the carnage turns to face you, kneeling down beside your bleeding body, you see the face of a man who thought he may have just lost everything, already mad with grief.

Sephiroth wastes no time, picking you up in his arms and cradling you close to his chest as if he was holding the most precious thing in the world. You are only barely managing to hold on to your consciousness, but you can feel him running at the speed of lightning, even though you do not know where.

As he keeps on running, his eyes wander down to scan your injuries, but they dare not move to your face. He begins to whisper words of comfort to you in-between sharp breaths, and you notice just how truly terrified he looks, in a way you have never seen him look before.

"Please, just hold on, just be okay-"

Sephiroth was always so very protective of you, to a degree which even you thought to be too extreme at times. But he could never help himself, he knew how dark, wicked and brutal the world truly was—and he knew it was even more dark, wicked and brutal to anything that ever mattered to him.

The thought of you, hurt and terrified, all on your own would often haunt his nightmares, far more often than he would like to admit. And it's because of that reason, that he always double-checked his surroundings with you in the area, why he always wanted to be aware of where you were, should you ever need to go somewhere on your own, and why he always stayed just a little too close by your side when anyone dared to even approach you. 

He thought that, should the day ever come that you were in peril, he would be there to protect you—to keep you safe and tell you that he will never allow anything or anyone to hurt you. That even though the world is cruel, his unparalleled strength, that caused so much destruction by Shinra's will, could for once be used to protect something he held dear. 

Was he not dispatched from his missions and able to return home earlier, then you would already be-

Yet now, here he was, rushing through the door of Shinra's emergency department with your now unconscious, bleeding form in his arms. All because he wasn't there to protect you—and he doesn't know how exactly he can ever forgive himself for that.

He stands by your side even as the medics tend to you, checking your injuries, stopping the bleeding and sewing the deep slash spread all throughout your chest. If one of them even suggests that he should not interrupt, he will glare at them with the fury of a thousand demons.

Does Hojo happen to be in the vicinity at the time as well? Oh boy, you bet he will burn down all of Shinra before he ever allows him anywhere near you. Seriously, while he may still have some trust left in his scientific knowledge, he wouldn't trust him with you in his care for even the briefest of seconds.

When your state is finally stabilized and the medics tell him that you will indeed be okay, just left with a rather large, badly-looking scar, he feels the weight of the world fall right off of his chest.

You being alive does nothing to lessen his guilt over what happened—which, by now, is beginning to hit him with full strength—but that does not matter, he will deal with that on his own. Your well-being is far more important to him.

He sits by your bedside without leaving for a moment until you awaken, no matter if it takes days, weeks or even months. And the moment that you do is the moment that he begins to shower you with all the apologies he could think of. His voice nearly breaks as he strains to hold back the tears trying to escape his eyes while seeing you in this feeble condition. 

He promises you that he will never allow this to happen to you ever again, that from now on, he will protect you no matter what it takes. The sincerity of his vow was only intensified by the emotion in his eyes.

Once you are released, he takes you back to your shared home himself. Upon your return, you find that the place has changed quite a bit in your absence. You notice a new medical cabinet full of supplies in your bedroom, bandages and any other necessities sitting on its top. There are new books stationed where there weren't any before, a large, steaming pot of hot stew sitting atop the stove, and a bouquet of flowers with your favorite chocolate awaiting you on your shared bed.

You're not quite sure how he managed to accomplish all of this all the while constantly sitting at your bedside in the hospital. But you have a feeling he may have commissioned the help of two very specific friends. 

As for the men who attacked you? The disgusting animals may be dead now, but says nothing of their motives and who they were. It doesn't matter if they were just some random thugs trying out their luck on you, or if this was a more plotted, intricate scheme, meant to challenge and hurt him directly. He will track down anyone related to them, anyone related to what happened, and he will make them pay.

Once you are back home and now fully in his care, he has already decided that he is not going to disappoint you again. Sephiroth will be very, very diligent in taking care of you while you recover.

You will be forced gently persuaded into eating at least 3 whole meals a day, your wound will be cleaned and bandages changed very regularly. If you are given any meds to take, you will take them at the pin-point exact time that you are supposed to every single day; no butts.

He will also be in charge of your personal hygiene, showering and bathing you with the upmost care and reverence. No matter what, you wont persuade him to allow you to overexert yourself.

Hell, he will even brush your teeth for you if he really needs to.

I like to think that, in order to be Sephiroth's partner in the first place, you both must have a genuinely deep connection. Which is something that would be impossible without also having deep understanding and empathy for one another.

As such, he is very deeply attuned to your emotions. He can sense every single change in your demeanor, every shift in your expression or switch in your tone the moment it happens.

So, whenever he can sense that you are in any way troubled—doesn't matter whether it's about you being bedridden and unable to do anything that you want in your current state, or feeling insecure about the large scar spanning across your whole chest—he will know.

Usually, he will not pressure you to tell him, allowing you the time and space until you feel comfortable enough to come to him on your own instead. However, right now, he might fuss over you quite a bit more than usual, and he will try to gently coerce you into opening up about it sooner. 

With that being said, if you ever feel that he is becoming too much, too overbearing with his worries, tell him. He might not be able to push his worries aside completely while you are still not healed and the guilt of the incident eats away at his subconscious, but he will try. 

While you are recovering, he will take fewer missions and assignments from Shinra than he usually would to be with you. Being a person of his high position and being Shinra's personal favorite pet SOLDIER, he has the advantage of being able to decline more missions than most others would. He may not be able to dodge all of them, but I can assure you that he will try.

While having some free time, or, perhaps in moments where you are asleep, he will make the effort to research any medical knowledge about your injury. Drowning his sorrows and regrets in research on how to better take care of you; how to better tend to your wound, any additional minerals and vitamins that could help you recover, any methods that might help ease your pain—be they of folk, or more industrial, medical knowledge. 

And anything that could help keep the trauma of what happened at bay.

Sometimes at night, he might have nightmares about what happened, or of something even worse happening to you. His guilt manifests itself in many ways. However, this is the major one among them.

When such nights come, comfort him. He truly feels guilty, and that what happened to you was his fault and his fault alone. He will feel incompetent, due to him being unable to protect you. He might still have been able to save you on that faithful day, but he doesn't want to rely on such luck again the next time around. 

Once you finally begin to make your recovery, and the red, rough mark on your chest begins to solidify into soft tissue, Sephiroth will be very wary of how you react to this new addition to your appearance. The scar does not bother him in the slightest, but he is afraid that it might start bothering you.

And if it does, he will absolutely not hesitate to shower you with praise and compliments on your beauty. He reassures you that despite the nasty scar, your beauty shines just as brightly as it did the first day he saw you. And that, personally, it does not matter to him at all. 

He might even like it in a way, as it reminds him of so many of his own scars...

But if it truly does bother you too much, he will go out of his way to find any possibilities on how to make it less apparent and visible for you. 

Sephiroth loves you, he loves you to death. If he had to burn down the world for you and cover himself in it's ashes to keep you safe, he would. So do the same for him, please.

↪ ❥ Angeal Hewley:

Angeal was just getting done with a rigorous training session with some of the 2nd class SOLDIER's.

The trainees were close to wrapping up the session, in the process of overcoming the final challenge in the virtual reality system. They took longer than they initially should have, but Angeal didn't want to interrupt them when they were so close to successfully defeating the enemy.

You, however, know nothing about this. As you pass through the headquarters of Shinra, looking for your beloved Angeal at the same time as you have been nearly every day ever since you two began your relationship together.

You enter the VR training room as you usually would, only to find the surrounding SOLDIER's still wearing their goggles, with the simulation still active as well.

Angeal takes quick notice of you, but before he ever has the chance to pull out his phone and quickly abort the mission, one of the SOLDIER's—currently engaged in combat within the simulation—swords comes swinging down right at you.

It only takes the briefest of seconds for the sharp blade to bury itself into your shoulder, the force of it powerful enough to nearly sever your whole arm right off.

You let out a blood-curdling scream, falling down on the floor as you clutch the deep, open wound on your shoulder with your hand. The searing pain spreads itself from your arm to the entirety of your body. 

A look of utter horror immediately flashes across Angeal's features as he dashes towards you in a single heartbeat.

He shouts your name as he kneels down beside you, his gaze shifting between the bleeding wound on your shoulder and your face while panicking internally.

Honestly? While still not quite on Sephiroth's level, Angeal might just almost be the most protective one out of the three men. Protecting his beloved and keeping them safe from harm is something he considers to be a part of his idea of honor. 

So seeing you, the love of his life, seriously hurt and bleeding on the floor sends him into a state of panic and rage that is rather very unusual for the man.

The said rage is something mostly directed toward himself. He loves you, and cannot bear to see you hurting. How could he have allowed this to happen to you? He was supposed to protect you...

Momentarily, Angeal turns his head to the SOLDIER whose blade ended up slashing your shoulder. His gaze is piercing sharp, and his face contorted in an expression of pure anger, as he shouts at them, asking what the fuck did they just do?!

He was so close to losing control of himself and beating them into a bloody pulp. But still, he knew better and, right now, you were his priority. He will deal with giving out any punishments and lectures later.

He lifted you up into his arms, one wrapped around your shoulders, applying pressure to the open cut with his hand while the other supported your weight.

He rushed out of the VR training room, carrying you bridal style while he whispered words of comfort to you as he silently prayed that you would be alright.

Your arm was going to be okay, you had nearly lost it, but the doctors and medics managed to save it. Although your recovery will be long, and there may be some permanent nerve damage, along with a huge scar left.

Once it becomes certain that you and your arm are going to be okay, the fear and anger Angeal felt initially begins to turn into a chaotic, conflicting mixture of various emotions. 

He feels very angry, both at the trainee who caused your injury, but more so at himself. He should have been able to prevent it, damn it! He should have been faster, more vigilant, more thoughtful. But he will be very careful not to accidentally take his anger out on you. 

Chances are he might forbid you from seeking him out during training again, or wandering Shinra's halls, even.

Sorrow, why do as lovely of a person as you have to endure such pain? He feels for you, very deeply, for all of your fears and hurt. Not to mention the terrifying, soul-wrenching realization that this could have ended much more tragically. You are his dream, he could never bear to lose you...

But most of all, guilt and regret. Again, Angeal puts a huge emphasis on up-keeping his honor and ideals, protecting his s/o and keeping them safe from harm is a big part of that. Something every man and SOLDIER should always strive to do.

It would be an understatement to say that he feels devastated, as if he somehow failed you and all that he stood for, even though things were out of his control and could have turned out much worse. He takes this as a stain upon his honor and pride. You will definitely need to give him some time to come to terms with it.

Unless you comfort him about it, reassuring him that none of this was his fault and that it was an accident he most likely would never be able to prevent, he will definitely feel like he has to atone for this mistake one way or another, struggling to forgive himself.

But either way, he will make a promise—a silent vow, both to himself, and to you—to always be there for you from now on, to care for you, to keep you safe, no matter what.

As for the SOLDIER who accidentally ended up causing your injury? With a bit of time and space, he realizes that they could not have prevented the accident, that it ultimately wasn't their fault.

Still, fear not, Angeal will give them the lecture of their lifetime. They will also have to go through quite the ordeal of begging him not to get them kicked out of SOLDIER. And if they somehow manage to convince him, they will still be punished accordingly. 

Regardless, once you begin to recover, Angeal will want to be with you every step of the way without question. He will spend all his free time by your side. Not only because he still feels at least a little guilty about what happened, but also because he is just genuinely worried about you and your well-being. 

As expected, his SOLDIER duties would often get in the way of that. Be prepared for him to leave for missions often, sometimes even for long periods of time. He doesn't want to, really, he'd much rather be with you, especially right now while you are in such a vulnerable state. But duty calls and he will answer. 

However, if you are okay with it, he will try and find someone to stay and watch over you while he is gone. It could be anyone; a family member, a trusted friend, his or yours - so long as you feel comfortable and Angeal trusts them. He will make the effort to call and text you regularly while he's away either way, but he will be all the happier knowing you have someone near you at all times. 

During your recovery—especially the earlier days of it—he will turn into a bit of a worry wart, actually. Like an overbearing mama, he will want to take care of you in every way possible, constantly fanning over you as he fusses about making sure you remain as comfortable and as safe as possible.

Affectionate, especially while you are injured. The often times stoic and serious man might not look the part, but he holds all the love in the world in his heart, and he is not greedy with it - not when it comes to you.

Be prepared to be smothered with affection and warmth only few are capable of. Anything from tender touches, to encouraging words and attentive care is served on a silver platter for you to eat from and indulge in. 

If you enjoy physical affection, you will definitely not feel lacking. Angeal loves nothing more than to hold you in his arms, gently squeezing you as he whispers words of love and comfort in your ear. He promises to never leave you, to always protect you and keep you safe.

He relishes every hug, every kiss, every soft brush of his hand against yours and will use them to comfort you quite often.

Random touches of reassurance are a given as well. You might just be going on about your day when you suddenly feel a large, rough hand gently press itself against the small of your back.

Or, you might be waking in the morning, moving to sit on the edge of the bed, stretching out your legs as you feel two large, muscular arms wrap themselves around your waist as he leans closer to you, asking you if you're okay.

When it comes to tending to you and your injured arm, Angeal is your man! He will make sure to help you clean your wound, change the bandages and keep an eye on any developments in its recovery - be they positive or negative. He will also be very strict about attending any checks and doctor visits you might have coming your way.

Say goodbye to any chores and household work for the coming months, or at least until your arm is close to recovering. Angeal would totally insist on sweeping the floors, dusting the furniture, washing all the dishes, doing the laundry, grocery shopping, keeping everything tidy and taking out the garbage for you.

Also, cooking! Cooking is something that he always considered to be a small hobby of his, even on his own. But doing it with you is something much more special, and he will secretly enjoy getting to cook for you more than he does for himself, or anyone else, for that matter.

If you are able to, Angeal will make sure to regularly take you out on long, slow and romantic walks in nature. ​He thinks the fresh air will be good for you, as well as keep you less bored overall. He really enjoys taking said walks with you through the nearest woods and botanical gardens he can find. However, he will definitely make sure that they are safe first before taking you there. 

And during your casual little strolls, he would point out any flowers and other flora he has read about or seen somewhere else before. If you are willing, he even will gladly take a stop to admire the plant which has caught his or your attention and tell you anything he knows or remembers about it!

There is a possibility he might attempt to turn your house/apartment into a small indoor garden of his own if you don't stop him in time.

Even after you heal, Angeal will continue to feel a pang of guilt every time he notices the not-so pleasant-looking scar left on your shoulder after what happened to you. There is not much you can do about this, he will always feel at least a little disappointed with himself for allowing this to happen to you. But he promises to do better next time.

Angeal is THE husband material. He is a kind, loving and caring man who will be utterly dedicated to making your recovery as smooth and swift as possible. Always available at your every beck and call whenever he has the time and space to do so, all the while gently teasing you for being so dependent on him.

↪ ❥ Genesis Rhapsodos:

The sun was just beginning to set when Genesis took you out on a dinner date to a fancy restaurant.

Buying you expensive gifts and lavish food with exquisitely aged wine was one of his favorite ways to show affection to you, his God/dess.

You have just finished eating, leaving the restaurant while Genesis stayed behind momentarily, paying for all the food.

You stepped outside with a slight spring in your step and a smile on your face, stopping in your tracks next to the road to wait for your beloved to join you.

It took only a moment of distraction for a nearby truck—its driver speeding down the road recklessly—to hit you at nearly full speed, sending you flying forward.

You weren't even aware of what was happening when your body hit the hard, stone ground, the impact making you lose consciousness instantly.

The restaurant door opened, with Genesis stepping outside. His eyes widened in fear and terror, his jaw dropping as he saw your limp body, lying on the ground from across the road.

He did not spare a moment rushing toward your unconscious form, quickly kneeling beside you, picking you up into his arms with a slight tremble in his hands.

Genesis was a proud, arrogant man. He always tried to reach for what was not meant for him to have, often times hiding his true thoughts and inner feelings behind the mask of dramatic theatrics and cryptic passages.

But he could not even attempt to hide the horror that spread across his features as he looked down at your unmoving body, his eyes scanning for the severity of your injuries.

His mind was a chaotic storm of thoughts, of panic, terror and confusion. What happened? Who did this? It does not matter, they will pay regardless. For now, he had to make sure you were okay.

He stood upwards as the blood from your wounds trickled down his hands, soaking into his clothes. Rushing to get you the help you needed.

The fear that burned inside his chest while the medics tended to your wounds and injuries was excruciating. You would not leave him, you would not dare to leave him... Or would you?

The expression on his face was one of a gut-wrenching worry, its features so still it appeared as if it was made of stone. He paced up and down the waiting room, biting the nails on his fingers.

At the same time, he was overcome with overwhelming guilt. He was supposed to be your hero. How could he fail to save you so?

When your injuries have been taken care of and your state is stabilized, a stone heavy, unlike any other, fell off Genesis's chest.

Thank the Goddess, you weren't off as badly as he initially thought you would be. Mostly just a few broken and fractured bones. But nothing to take lightly either. 

As for your recovery, Genesis made sure to be around during it as much and as often as possible. Juggling between you and his responsibilities as a SOLDIER.

...Who are we kidding? This man would never put Shinra above his darling s/o. Especially while they are in a vulnerable state. He would do his duty, but only while trying to wriggle out of it as much as possible.

He'd spare absolutely no effort in trying to help you heal, always making sure you're comfortable, all the while pampering and smothering you with affection. 

As he usually would, he will bring you small gifts and trinkets in an attempt to cheer you up. Anything you like, he will make it yours.

Absolute drama queen; anytime he sees you flinch, stiffen or whine because of the pain, you will be subjected to the most theatrical display of fear and tragedy ever. He will also exaggerate the severity of your injuries quite often.

Anytime your wounds need cleaning, or you need to change your bandages, he will dash right next to you, telling you to lay back down and relax as he takes care of you. 

But you have to forgive him for teasing you about it sometimes. Like after he changes your bandages, asking whether his services have at last earned him the favor of the God/dess (you).

Need help with regaining the strength in your broken legs once they are close to healing? Genesis has you covered! He would pick you up, arm wrapped tightly around your waist, keeping you steady as he would help you walk, slowly, step by step. 

If you ever end up being bored while trapped in your bed during the recovery, Genesis will gladly read or recite LOVELESS to you (he will do that anyway, even if you don't want him to).

He will also write his very own poems for you, both with you at his side and while he is away on a mission. If he had just a sliver of time, you would wake up to a handwritten letter from him, followed by a touching poem.

He would also gladly write them together with you, if that's something you'd like; and if it is, sometimes, when he comes back home to you from a mission, you and Genesis will trade said poems.

His heart melted at the loving and affectionate words you so often used to describe him. He would attempt to hide the faint flush of red on his cheeks with a quiet chuckle, teasing you for being so overly romantic while being guilty of the very same crime he accuses you of doing himself. 

He is a sleek bastard and will absolutely use every single opportunity and excuse he can to just... Touch you.

Still having to use crutches and need to go to the bathroom? No need to worry sweetheart! He will sweep in and carry you over there bridal style.

Are your legs and body feeling sore? Poor, sweet love... Genesis will prepare you a romantic, hot bath and will insist on helping you wash yourself.

In a similar fashion to Angeal, your injuries are a huge blow to his pride and ego. Genesis holds himself to a high standard and while he does not tend to put a lot of emphasis on what others think of him, he does care more than the rest. This is especially true when it comes to his fans. He fears he may appear as weak in their eyes due to allowing this to happen to his s/o.

As such, every time he returns from a mission and sees that some of the damage that has been done to you has barely improved since the last time he's seen you, he will be equally worried and disappointed. 

He does not want to see you, his divine God/dess in such a state, a reminder of his failures. But more than anything, he is just worried about you.

On another note, he also came to find just a tiny bit of guilty pleasure in the bedridden stage of your recovery. He gets to keep you all to himself without you or him being bothered by anyone... And he loves that.

You might also notice him taking on a slightly more serious, less flamboyant attitude and approach. And while his regular affectionate and somewhat cheesy demeanor does not take a step back, there is a worry in his face when he looks at you that simply wasn't there before.

He may not always show it outwardly, but what happened to you has affected him deeply. He blames himself for not saving you, for not being there when the accident happened, for not swooping you into his arms and rescuing you out of harms way like the hero that he always wanted to be.

Genesis has also grown a lot more protective of you since the accident, even after you have already recovered from your injuries. Being so close to losing you made him realize how easily you could disappear, how thin the thread that held on to the light that was your life truly was. He would not allow any more danger anywhere near you again, he would always be there to keep you safe.

He would not tell you, but the driver of the truck that ended up nearly killing you would end up disappearing a few days later, never to be seen again. And if you somehow find out? He would simply smile, shrugging his shoulders nonchalantly.

Overall, Genesis would make sure to be there for you while you recover from your injuries and that you are never exposed to such danger ever again—not if he can help it. 

[velvetvisionsaurora]

Synopsis: When talented producer Y/n (known professionally as the mysterious "Celeste") accepts a position at JYP Entertainment to help Stray Kids with their comeback, she expects to focus solely on creating music. What she doesn't expect is the immediate connection she feels with Han Jisung—the group's quick-witted, sensitive rapper and producer who's been following her career from afar.

Pairing: Han Jisung x Reader

Warnings: Angst, Smut, Heartbreak

<<Previous Next>>

Masterlist

Chapter 4: Personal Sessions

Sunday morning brought golden light streaming through your newly organized apartment. You stood in your tiny kitchen, waiting for the coffee to finish brewing, trying to ignore the flutter of anticipation in your stomach. It was just a casual music session with a colleague. Nothing more.

Yet you'd spent an embarrassing amount of time deciding what to wear before settling on comfortable jeans and an oversized sweater—casual enough for a Sunday at home but still put-together. You'd also, for reasons you refused to analyze, tidied your already clean dorm again and arranged your equipment in the living room just so.

The gentle knock at your door came at exactly eleven. Han was nothing if not punctual.

You took a deep breath, smoothed your sweater, and opened the door with what you hoped was a professionally casual smile.

"Hey," Han greeted, standing in your doorway with a small backpack slung over one shoulder and a paper bag in his hand. He wore simple black jeans and a soft blue hoodie that made his eyes seem even darker by contrast. "I brought breakfast. Or lunch. Brunch? I wasn't sure if you'd eaten."

The thoughtful gesture surprised you. "I haven't, actually. Come in."

He stepped inside, glancing around your space with curious eyes. "Wow, Felix and I.N. weren't exaggerating. Your place looks great."

"They were a huge help," you said, leading him to the kitchen counter. "Coffee?"

"Please," he nodded, setting down the bag and carefully unpacking its contents. "I got pastries from that bakery down the street. Felix says their pain au chocolat is life-changing."

"Felix does have strong opinions about baked goods," you laughed, pouring two mugs of coffee. "How do you take yours?"

"Black is fine," he answered, continuing to arrange the pastries on a plate he'd found in your cabinet. There was something endearingly careful about the way he positioned each one, as if presentation mattered even for an informal brunch.

"So," you said, handing him his coffee and leaning against the counter. "You mentioned you had some ideas you wanted to work on?"

Han nodded, taking a sip from his mug. "They're not for the album—more personal projects. Things I've been playing with that don't quite fit our group sound."

"I'm intrigued," you said honestly. "What direction are you exploring?"

A hint of shyness crossed his face. "It's a bit more experimental. Less structured than what we usually do. I'm not even sure if it's good, but..."

"But you need to create it anyway," you finished, understanding completely.

His eyes met yours, surprised and pleased. "Exactly. Some ideas just need to exist, even if they never go anywhere."

"Those are often the most interesting ones," you said, breaking off a piece of croissant. "The projects we make just for ourselves."

Han nodded enthusiastically. "No commercial considerations, no company feedback, no worrying if fans will stream it. Just... pure expression."

"The musical equivalent of a diary," you suggested.

"Yes!" His face lit up at your understanding. "That's exactly what it feels like."

You smiled, noting how his initial nervousness seemed to dissipate when discussing music, replaced by animated excitement. It was becoming a familiar pattern—shy, careful Han transforming into confident, passionate Han when creativity entered the conversation.

"Well, I'm honored you want to share your musical diary with me," you said, meaning it.

Han ducked his head slightly, but not before you caught the pleased flush spreading across his cheeks. "I figured if anyone would get it, you would." He hesitated before adding, "Your production always feels so... intentional. Like every choice serves the emotion of the piece."

The observation touched you—he'd clearly paid attention to your work beyond the superficial. "That's the highest compliment you could give me," you told him. "For me, technical choices are always secondary to emotional impact."

"That's what I've been trying to explain to Changbin for years," Han said, suddenly animated. "He gets so caught up in precision and technique that sometimes he forgets music needs to make you feel something first."

"And what about Chan?" you asked, curious about the group's internal dynamic.

Han smiled fondly. "Chan balances us. He has the technical knowledge but also understands the emotional core. He's the mediator when Changbin and I butt heads."

"And you? What's your role in 3RACHA?"

Han considered this, taking another sip of coffee. "I guess I'm the one who pushes boundaries? I tend to bring in the weird ideas that Changbin refines and Chan integrates."

"The innovator," you nodded. "That tracks with what I've observed."

A comfortable silence settled between you as you finished your pastries. There was something easy about sharing space with Han that surprised you—none of the awkwardness from your first meeting remained when it was just the two of you.

"Should we get started?" you eventually suggested, gathering the empty plates.

Han nodded eagerly, already pulling his laptop from his backpack. "Where do you want to set up?"

"Living room," you replied, leading the way. "I have my keyboard and interface already connected."

Your living room had been transformed into a casual workspace, with your keyboard by the window, small monitor on the coffee table, and various cables neatly arranged. Han looked impressed as he settled onto your couch, opening his laptop.

"This is a great setup," he commented, taking in the compact but comprehensive equipment. "Very efficient."

"Years of producing in hotel rooms and tiny apartments taught me to streamline," you explained, sitting beside him with enough professional distance between you. "Now, show me what you've been working on."

Han connected his laptop to your interface and pulled up several audio files. "It's pretty rough," he warned, a hint of his earlier shyness returning. "Just sketches really."

"All great work starts as sketches," you reassured him. "Play it."

He clicked on the first file, and sound filled the room. It wasn't at all what you expected—not the polished hip-hop production Stray Kids was known for, but something more atmospheric and abstract. Fragmented piano melodies floated over distorted vocal samples and unusual percussion that seemed cobbled together from everyday sounds rather than traditional drum kits.

You closed your eyes, letting yourself sink into the composition. It was experimental but intentional, chaotic but with an underlying emotional coherence that kept it from feeling random. Most importantly, it was distinctly Han—you could hear his musical signature even in this departure from his usual style.

When the track ended, you opened your eyes to find him watching you nervously, clearly waiting for your reaction.

"That's beautiful, Han," you said honestly. "It's so different from your group work, but it still feels like you."

The tension visibly left his shoulders. "Really? You don't think it's too weird?"

"It's definitely weird," you laughed softly. "But weird in the best possible way. It reminds me a bit of Burial, but with more melodic elements."

His eyes widened. "Burial is actually one of my influences for this! I didn't think anyone would catch that."

"The textural approach to percussion is the giveaway," you noted. "But you've made it your own. The piano parts especially feel distinctly like your musical handwriting."

Han looked so pleased by your analysis that you couldn't help smiling. There was something deeply rewarding about validating someone's creative risks.

"Can I hear the others?" you asked.

He nodded eagerly, clicking through to the next track. This one was more beat-driven but equally experimental, with time signatures that shifted unexpectedly and vocal samples manipulated beyond recognition.

As you listened, you found yourself instinctively reaching for your keyboard, playing gentle countermelodies that complemented the track. Han watched your fingers with fascination, occasionally nodding when you found a particularly fitting phrase.

"That's perfect," he said when you played a descending motif that seemed to complete a musical thought he'd left unfinished. "Can you record that?"

You nodded, quickly setting up a recording on your system. As you played the part again, Han adjusted elements of his track in real-time, creating space for your contribution. The synchronicity of your workflow was remarkable—you anticipated each other's moves with barely any verbal communication needed.

Hours passed in this collaborative flow state. You shared ideas, built on each other's suggestions, and occasionally debated approaches with a frankness that never felt personal or competitive. When one track was exhausted of possibilities, you moved to another, building a collection of enhanced sketches that were evolving into something cohesive.

"This could be an EP," you suggested during a brief break, stretching your shoulders. "These pieces work together conceptually."

Han looked surprised. "You think they're good enough to release?"

"Absolutely," you affirmed. "Maybe not under the Stray Kids banner, but as a solo project? Definitely."

"I hadn't even considered releasing them," he admitted, running a hand through his hair. "I just needed to make them."

"The best projects often start that way," you said. "Created with no expectations beyond the need for expression."

Han was quiet for a moment, considering. "If I did release them... would you want producer credit? Your contributions have made these so much better."

The offer touched you. "I'd be honored, but these are your personal pieces, Han. I'm just adding flourishes to your foundation."

"Pretty significant flourishes," he countered. "That bridge section in the third track is entirely yours."

"Let's think about it," you suggested, not wanting to commit either way. "For now, let's just create without worrying about credits and releases."

He nodded, seeming relieved by your approach. "Deal."

As you returned to work, you noticed the afternoon light shifting, casting golden hues across your living room. Han had moved closer on the couch over the hours, the initial professional distance between you reduced by the natural gravitational pull of collaboration. Now your shoulders occasionally brushed as you reached for equipment, and neither of you seemed to mind.

"What if we pitched this vocal down instead of up?" you suggested, reaching for his laptop.

Your hands collided as he moved to make the same adjustment, fingers briefly tangling before you both pulled back with a small laugh.

"Great minds," he said softly, gesturing for you to go ahead.

You made the change, hyper-aware of his proximity as he leaned in to watch your screen. His scent—something clean with hints of sandalwood—was subtle but noticeable at this distance, and you found it unreasonably distracting.

"That works so much better," he said, seemingly oblivious to your momentary distraction. "It creates this ominous undertone that wasn't there before."

You nodded, refocusing on the music. "It contrasts nicely with the brighter elements."

As you continued working, your creative chemistry only deepened. There was an ease to your collaboration that felt almost uncanny—the way you could anticipate each other's musical instincts, finishing compositional thoughts like musical sentences.

"Hungry?" Han asked eventually, noticing the time.

You realized with surprise that it was past four in the afternoon. "Starving, actually. We worked straight through lunch."

"Time disappears when the flow is good," he said with a smile. "Should we order something?"

"I was thinking of making pasta," you suggested. "Nothing fancy, but home-cooked. If you want to stay for dinner?"

The invitation seemed to surprise him pleasantly. "I'd like that. Can I help?"

"Absolutely. I'm not letting you off kitchen duty just because you're a musical genius," you teased.

His laugh—a genuine, unguarded sound—made something warm unfurl in your chest. "Fair enough. Though I should warn you, my culinary skills are limited."

"Can you chop vegetables without losing fingers?"

"Mostly," he replied with mock seriousness.

"Then you're qualified as my sous chef," you declared, saving your work and standing up. "Come on. Music will still be here after we eat."

In your small kitchen, you fell into another kind of rhythm together. You showed Han where to find cutting boards and knives, directed his vegetable chopping, and handled the sauce while pasta boiled on the stove. The domesticity of the scene wasn't lost on you—how natural it felt to move around each other in the confined space, handing things back and forth with growing familiarity.

"So," you said, stirring the sauce, "tell me something about Han Jisung that isn't in your official bio."

He looked up from his careful onion dicing, seeming to consider the question seriously. "I collect Pokemon cards," he finally admitted. "Still. As an adult."

"Really?" You smiled, charmed by this revelation.

"Really," he confirmed, looking slightly embarrassed. "I have binders organized by type and generation. The members tease me mercilessly about it."

"That's actually adorable," you said before you could stop yourself.

He ducked his head, but you caught his pleased smile. "Your turn. Something about Y/n that isn't in your professional bio."

You thought for a moment. "I wanted to be an astronaut before I got into music. I was obsessed with space as a kid—had glow-in-the-dark stars all over my ceiling, read every book about astronomy I could find."

"What changed?" he asked, genuinely curious.

"I discovered that producing music gave me the same feeling I imagined exploring space would—that sense of venturing into the unknown, discovering new worlds." You shrugged. "Plus, the math requirements for astrophysics were... daunting."

Han laughed. "I get that. Music is its own kind of exploration."

"Exactly." You nodded, pleased by his understanding. "Okay, your turn again. Biggest fear?"

The question seemed to catch him off guard. He paused his chopping, considering. "Failure," he finally said, voice quieter. "Not just failing at music, but... failing the people who believe in me. The members, the fans, my family."

The vulnerability in his answer touched you. "I think that means you care deeply," you offered. "The fear of letting people down only exists when you value their trust."

He looked at you with such openness that you had to glance away, suddenly feeling like you were standing too close to an edge.

"What about you?" he asked. "What scares Y/n the most?"

You focused on stirring the sauce, buying time to decide how honest to be. "Stagnation," you finally said. "Getting too comfortable, stopping growing. Waking up one day and realizing I've been making the same music for years because it's safe."

"Is that why you took this job? To push yourself out of comfort zones?"

Your eyes met his, surprised by his perceptiveness. "Partly," you admitted. "LA was starting to feel too familiar. The same studios, the same collaborators, the same processes. I needed something different."

"And is it? Different?"

A smile tugged at your lips. "Definitely. In all the best ways."

Something shifted in his expression—a softening, a warmth that made your heart beat a little faster.

The timer on your phone saved you from whatever was happening in that moment, buzzing loudly to indicate the pasta was done.

"Perfect timing," you said, perhaps too brightly, moving to drain the pasta.

Dinner was served at your small table, which you'd cleared of production notes and coffee mugs. The pasta was simple but delicious, and conversation flowed easily between bites. You shared stories about disastrous recording sessions and production mishaps, swapped recommendations for obscure musicians you both admired, and debated the merits of various production software with good-natured intensity.

"No way," Han protested around a mouthful of pasta. "Ableton's workflow is clearly superior for electronic production."

"For certain types, sure," you conceded. "But Pro Tools still handles large recording sessions better."

"Only if you enjoy unnecessarily complicated routing," he countered.

"Says the man who created a percussion track out of processed water drops and pencil taps," you teased.

He laughed, conceding the point. "Fair enough. I do appreciate complexity in some contexts."

The easy banter continued through dinner and cleanup, with Han insisting on washing dishes since you had cooked. As the evening progressed, you found yourself revealing more than you'd intended—stories about your childhood, your struggles breaking into the industry, your creative insecurities that you rarely shared with colleagues.

In return, Han opened up about his trainee days, his ongoing battle with anxiety, and his sometimes overwhelming perfectionism. There was a mutual vulnerability in these exchanges that felt significant, like crossing an invisible line from professional acquaintances to something more substantial.

Back in the living room, you returned to the music with renewed perspective, making final adjustments to the tracks you'd been developing all day. The work flowed even more smoothly now, your creative rapport enhanced by the personal connection that had deepened over dinner.

"This has been incredible," Han said sincerely as you exported the final versions around nine in the evening. "Seriously, I can't remember the last time I felt this productive and... understood, musically."

"Me too," you admitted. "It's rare to find someone who speaks the same musical language."

An idea occurred to you suddenly. "Wait here," you said, getting up and going to your bedroom. You returned with a vinyl record in hand, passing it to him. "I want you to borrow this. I think it might inspire some interesting directions for your solo work."

Han took the album reverently, examining the cover. It was an obscure electronic artist you'd discovered years ago whose textural approach to composition had profoundly influenced your own work.

"This is..." he looked up at you with genuine emotion in his eyes. "Thank you. I'll take good care of it."

"I know you will," you said, touched by his obvious appreciation of the gesture. "Music this special deserves to be shared with people who'll understand it."

The moment felt weighted, charged with unspoken meaning that neither of you seemed ready to acknowledge. Han carefully placed the record in his backpack, movements deliberate as if handling something precious.

"It's getting late," he said reluctantly. "I should probably head back before the others send out a search party."

You nodded, equally reluctant to end the day. "Of course. We do have an early studio session tomorrow."

As you walked him to the door, an awkward tension replaced the easy comfort of the day—the uncertainty of how to conclude what had been, by any measure, more than just a professional work session.

"Thank you," Han said, pausing in the doorway. "For today. For listening to my weird experimental music and making it better. For dinner. For..." he gestured vaguely, "all of it."

"Thank you for sharing it with me," you replied sincerely. "Your music is beautiful, Han. The world should hear it."

He looked at you with such open appreciation that you felt momentarily breathless. Then, with a quick movement that seemed almost impulsive, he stepped forward and hugged you.

It was brief—just a warm pressure of his arms around your shoulders, the faint scent of sandalwood, and then release—but it left you stunned.

"Sorry," he said immediately, looking mortified. "I don't know why I did that. It's just—it was such a good day, and I—"

"It's okay," you assured him, trying to ignore the lingering warmth where his arms had been. "Friends hug."

"Friends," he repeated, a smile returning to his face. "Right."

"See you tomorrow, friend," you said, attempting lightness.

"Tomorrow," he nodded, finally stepping into the hallway. "Goodnight, Y/n."

"Goodnight, Han."

You closed the door and leaned against it, releasing a breath you hadn't realized you were holding. The day replayed in your mind—the hours of creative flow, the personal stories shared over pasta, the way his eyes had lit up when you understood his musical intentions without explanation.

"Just friends," you murmured to your empty apartment. "Just colleagues working together."

But even as you said it, you knew it wasn't entirely true. Something had shifted today, a foundation laid for something that felt dangerously close to the very complication your contract explicitly forbade.

With a sigh, you returned to your living room, gathering scattered notes and turning off equipment. As you worked, you realized you were humming one of Han's melodies, the haunting refrain from his most personal track embedded in your memory like it belonged there.

Six months, you reminded yourself. Just six months, and then back to LA, back to your real life.

But as you prepared for bed, you couldn't shake the feeling that your "real life" was beginning to feel like the distant concept, while this—this borrowed time in Seoul, these people, this work, this unexpected connection—was starting to feel unexpectedly, worryingly real.

Han practically floated back to his dorm, clutching his backpack with its precious vinyl cargo close to his chest. The day had been perfect—better than he could have hoped. Not only had you understood his experimental music, but you'd enhanced it, elevated it, seen potential in it that even he hadn't fully recognized.

And beyond the music, there had been those moments—the casual brush of fingers over laptop keys, the easy conversation over homemade pasta, the way you'd listened so intently when he admitted his fears. The hug that he still couldn't believe he'd initiated, that was probably crossing a line, but had felt so right in the moment that he couldn't bring himself to fully regret it.

"There he is," Changbin's voice broke through his thoughts as he entered their dorm. "The prodigal producer returns."

Han glanced up to find Changbin and Chan lounging in the living room, apparently waiting for him.

"How was your 'casual music session'?" Changbin asked, making air quotes around the words.

"It was good," Han replied, aiming for nonchalance but unable to keep the satisfaction from his voice. "Really good, actually. We got a lot done."

"Must have been productive," Chan observed with a knowing smile. "You've been gone for ten hours."

Had it really been that long? The time had passed so quickly it felt like minutes rather than hours. "We worked straight through," Han explained, which was mostly true. "Then had dinner. Nothing special."

"Nothing special," Changbin repeated skeptically. "Just a casual ten-hour one-on-one session with the producer you've been crushing on since day one."

"I don't have a crush," Han protested automatically, though the denial sounded weak even to his own ears. "We're just creatively compatible."

"Creatively compatible," Chan echoed, exchanging an amused glance with Changbin. "Is that what they're calling it these days?"

Han rolled his eyes, though there was no real annoyance behind it. He was in too good a mood to be bothered by their teasing. "Think what you want. I'm going to bed."

"It's only 9:30," Changbin pointed out.

"Early studio session tomorrow," Han replied, already heading toward his room.

"He's glowing," he heard Changbin stage-whisper to Chan. "Have you ever seen him glow like that?"

"Leave him alone," Chan responded, though Han could hear the smile in his voice. "Let him enjoy his 'creative compatibility' in peace."

Han closed his bedroom door, muffling their continued conversation. Carefully, he removed the vinyl record from his backpack, running his fingers over the cover art with reverence. The fact that you'd trusted him with something so personally significant wasn't lost on him.

Setting the record gently on his desk, Han flopped onto his bed and stared at the ceiling, replaying moments from the day in his mind. Your focused expression as you listened to his music, the way you scrunched your nose when considering a production choice, how you'd laughed at his Pokemon confession, the feeling of your arms briefly returning his impulsive hug.

"Just friends," he murmured to himself, testing the words. "Just colleagues."

But even as he said it, he knew it wasn't entirely true. Something had shifted today, crossing a line from professional admiration to something deeper, something that made his chest feel simultaneously lighter and tighter.

Six months, he reminded himself. You'd be here for just six months, and then back to LA, back to your real life.

But as he drifted toward sleep, still fully clothed and too content to care, Han couldn't help imagining what it might be like if you stayed. If this borrowed time could somehow extend into something more permanent. If the connection that had sparked between you over music might have the chance to grow into something beyond friendship.

Dangerous thoughts, he knew. But in the private darkness of his room, with the memory of your smile still fresh in his mind, he allowed himself to indulge in them just a little longer.

Monday morning came too quickly, dawn barely breaking as you made your way to the company building for the scheduled studio session. You'd slept poorly, thoughts of yesterday's collaboration with Han keeping you restless despite your physical exhaustion.

As you entered the company cafe to grab coffee before heading upstairs, a familiar deep voice called your name.

"Morning, Y/n!" Felix waved from a nearby table, his bright smile contrasting with the early hour. "Join me?"

"Hey, Felix," you greeted, ordering your coffee before sliding into the seat across from him. "You're here early."

"Dance practice at six," he explained, stifling a yawn. "Just finished. You heading to the studio?"

You nodded, gratefully accepting your coffee from the barista. "Meeting with 3RACHA at seven to work on the title track."

A knowing smile spread across Felix's face. "Speaking of 3RACHA members... I heard you and Han had quite the productive session yesterday."

You took a careful sip of your coffee, buying time. "News travels fast around here."

"It's a small company," Felix shrugged. "And Han came back looking like he'd won the lottery, so naturally we were curious."

"We worked on some of his solo material," you explained, trying to keep your tone professionally casual. "He's really talented."

"He is," Felix agreed. "But he rarely shares those experimental tracks with anyone. Must have really trusted you."

There was a gentle probing in Felix's tone that you chose to address directly. "We're friends, Felix. Colleagues who happen to work well together."

Felix studied you for a moment, his usual playfulness replaced by surprising perceptiveness. "You know, when I first came to Korea, everything was so overwhelming. New country, new language, new expectations. Chan helped me through it, became my lifeline. Someone who understood me when I felt lost."

You weren't sure where he was going with this, but you nodded encouragingly.

"I see that same recognition when Han looks at you," Felix continued softly. "Like he's found someone who understands a language he's been speaking alone."

The observation hit uncomfortably close to your own thoughts from yesterday. "Felix..."

"I'm not trying to make things complicated," he assured you quickly. "I just... I care about both of you. Han doesn't connect easily with new people. Whatever you two have—friendship, creative partnership, whatever label you want to put on it—it's special to him."

"It's special to me too," you admitted quietly. "But it's also temporary. I'm only here for the comeback."

Felix's expression softened. "Sometimes the most meaningful connections aren't the longest ones."

Before you could respond, a new voice interrupted your conversation.

"Well, if it isn't my two favorite people in one place," Hyunjin declared, sliding into the empty chair beside you with graceful ease. "What a perfect start to my morning."

"Hyunjin," you greeted, oddly grateful for the interruption of your serious conversation with Felix. "You're here early too."

"Dance practice," he explained, gesturing vaguely toward the practice rooms. "But more importantly, you're looking particularly beautiful this morning. Is that a new sweater?"

You laughed despite yourself. His flirtation was so consistent it had become almost comforting in its predictability. "Same sweater, different day."

"Well, it brings out the pink in your hair perfectly," he continued undeterred. "Very coordinated."

Felix rolled his eyes but smiled fondly. "Do you ever take a break from the charm offensive, Hyunjin?"

"Only when sleeping," Hyunjin replied without missing a beat. "And even then, I've been told I flirt in my dreams."

"Incorrigible," Felix muttered, though there was clear affection in his tone.

Hyunjin turned his attention fully to you. "I missed you yesterday. The dorm was sadly lacking in pink-haired producers."

"I was working," you explained, deliberately vague.

"With Han," Hyunjin added, showing he was perfectly informed. "On his super-secret solo project that no one is allowed to hear."

His tone was light, but you detected a hint of genuine curiosity beneath the teasing. "He's exploring some interesting sonic territories," you offered. "Very different from Stray Kids' usual sound."

"And yet he showed you," Hyunjin observed, studying you with unexpected intensity. "Interesting."

"What's interesting?" you asked, feeling slightly defensive.

Hyunjin's serious expression melted back into his usual charming smile. "Nothing, nothing. Just making observations." He stretched dramatically before continuing, "Anyway, I came to ask if you want to join me for lunch today? There's a great place near here that does amazing bibimbap."

The invitation was delivered with his usual flirtatious confidence, but something in his eyes suggested a sincerity beneath the performance. Before you could answer, Felix interjected.

"Actually, we were planning a group lunch today," he said smoothly. "All the members, to discuss comeback concepts with Y/n. Right, Y/n?"

You blinked, hearing this apparent plan for the first time. "Right... the group lunch."

"Perfect," Hyunjin said, undeterred. "Then I'll see you at lunch with everyone, and maybe dinner just with me another day?"

His persistence was both amusing and flattering. "We'll see, Hyunjin. I do have a pretty packed schedule with the comeback preparations."

"I'm very patient," he assured you with a wink. "When something's worth waiting for."

Before you could formulate a response to this blatant flirtation, Felix checked his watch and stood abruptly. "We should head up. Your session starts in ten minutes, and Han is definitely already pacing the studio waiting for you."

"Han's always early," Hyunjin confirmed, also standing. "Especially when he knows you'll be there."

You chose to ignore the implication, gathering your coffee and bag. "Thanks for the heads up. I should get going."

As you headed toward the elevators with Felix and Hyunjin flanking you, your mind drifted to the upcoming session. Would there be awkwardness after yesterday's personal interactions? Would the easy creative flow continue in the more formal setting of the company studio?

And more concerningly, would Chan and Changbin notice any shift in your dynamic with Han?

"You look worried," Felix observed quietly as you waited for the elevator.

"Just thinking about the title track," you deflected. "Lots of work to do."

Felix nodded, though his expression suggested he didn't entirely believe you. "It'll be great. You and the guys work well together."

"Some better than others," Hyunjin added with a meaningful smile.

The elevator arrived, saving you from having to respond. As the three of you stepped inside, you mentally prepared yourself for the day ahead, trying to establish proper professional boundaries in your mind.

Yesterday had been wonderful—both creatively and personally—but today needed to be about the work. The comeback. The reason you were here in Seoul in the first place.

Everything else—the growing friendship with Felix, Hyunjin's persistent flirtation, and especially whatever was developing between you and Han—needed to remain secondary to the music.

At least, that's what you told yourself as the elevator climbed toward the studio floor, where Han was apparently already waiting.

Just friends. Just colleagues. Just temporary.

The mantra was becoming less convincing every time you repeated it.

Next>>

Taglist: @iknow-uknow-leeknow @loveconsumingmedia @lze325 @hanniesbubuwife @offl-ine @oceanz7 @hhwangsmoon

[in1-nutshell]

Silver Aid the sparkling (long version)

SFW, Platonic, Romance, Slight Famialal, Cybertronian (techno organic) reader

TFA

“WHERE IS SHE!?”

“I THOUGHT SHE WAS IN THE ROOM!”

“SHE’S JUST A SPARKLING, SHE COULDN’T HAVE GOTTEN TOO FAR!”

“HOW DID SHE EVEN GET OUT OF THERE!?”

A few hours before the incident…

“Megatron are you sure this is… wise? We don’t know its full extent; it could be dangerous.”

“That’s why we are testing it.”

“I know the reason Megatron…”

Megatron looked over at Silver Aid.

She had made her way to his side with one servo clutching her med kit. Her optics scrunched a bit in concern and curiosity. Probably wondering who she was going to fix up once this ‘experiment’ was done.

The Decepticons had recently uncovered a ‘relic’ of sorts. It emitted a high energy level, possibly enough to power the spacebridge for longer periods of time. If this worked, more supplies and troops could be sent through the bridge.

“Everything will be fine.”

“You don’t know that Megatron, its dangerous to gamble with relics.”

“It’s a gamble we must take.”

Silver just sighs and closes her optics.

Megatron let a small smile on his face and gently pulled her to his side. He smiled more seeing her fight a growing smile on her face.

“You’ll see my dear. Everything will turn out right.”

Silver Aid huffed a bit giving him that small smile.

“LORD MEGATRON!”

Megatron and Silver Aid jumped apart at the sound of Lugnut’s voice.

Megatron sighed, while Silver Aid giggled a bit at his dismay.

Lugnut walked in front of the pair and bowed a bit to Megatron.

“Lord Megatron! The device is ready for testing!”

Megatron nods.

The three walked behind the safety tape. Megatron moved slightly in front of Silver Aid, who swatted his servos in response.

“Its fine Megatron, or are you going to admit I was right about this being slightly dangerous?”

Oh, Primus she was smirking at him!

Taunting him!

He was not going to lose this round.

The warlord turned to Starscream and Blitzwing who were at the side of the device.

“Proceed with the activation.”

Starscream grumbled under his breath before starting up the machine. He and Blitzwing soon flew to the group on the safe side of the safety tape. The team waited in anticipation for the device to start working.

The device started glowing and whirling with life. Bits of sparks flew, but otherwise remained steady. According to the levels in data pad, the energy it was putting out was increasing rapidly. Soon enough the levels were starting to go above the estimated levels.

Silver Aid tugged at Starscream’s servo and pointed at the increasing levels with a worried look. If anyone here was going to agree with the danger of the surge in power levels, it was going to be Starscream.

Starscream’s optics widen and went to tell Megatron.

BOOM!

The entire group was thrown back from the explosion.

Megatron and Starscream were thrown on their backs; Blitzwing landed on his chassis with Lugnut landing on his wings; Silver Aid had been thrown on her side a few feet farther than the rest.

Silver Aid rubbed the side of her helm groaning.

“Sound off, anyone offline?”

Muffled yelling was heard from underneath Lugnut causing Starscream to wince a bit.

“I think Blitzwing will if Lugnut doesn’t get off of him.”

Lugnut quickly rolled off the Triple changer, his cursing much more audible now.

Megatron slowly sat up popping one of his back struts turning to her.

“Are you alright?”

Silver gave him a smile before it was replaced by a frightened one.

No one had noticed the stray energy beam that had been produced from the explosion. Neither did they realize the beam heading straight towards Silver Aid before it was too late.

Megatron got up and reached out to her.

“SILVER!”

“MEGA--!”

BOOM!

The Decepticons were once again thrown back from the smaller explosion. Once the ringing stopped in his audials, Megatron stood up looking back where Silver Aid had once been. In her place was a bunch of rubble and some pieces of equipment.

“Silver Aid!”

Megatron sprinted to the rubble and immediately started digging through.

Blitzwing, Lugnut and Starscream soon came to his side and started digging.

Starscream muttered under his breath as he continued to dig.

“I swear if you offline and leave me here with them…”

He swore in his mind he was going to personally offline her if she was terminated by a measly blast! The Second in Command’s servos started to shake the more time passed and not a single sign of life was found.

Blitzwing, for once, had settled on one face to concentrate on the digging.

Hot Head was screaming and wanted to blast the rocks so he could find her. An idea that Icy heavily argued against doing.

Random was strangely quiet.

Icy was the most composed and just kept on digging.

Lugnut was getting even more anxious the time went on. He knew as well as the others that Silver Aid was not as durable as they were, curse her softer organic side! He should have done something! Strika would have!

Megatron looked emotionless as he dug.

Inside, however, kept on playing the fearful look on her face before the blast hit her chassis.

Why did these things happen to her!?

What else did the universe want to punish her for?

What did she ever do to offend it!?

He needed to get her out as quickly as he could… she didn’t like cramped spaces.

His digits brushed something warm, the warlord didn’t hesitate to pull it upward.

Megatron was not expecting to be holding… a sparkling?

The sparkling with a familiar color scheme…

The other Decepticons had the same dumbfounded look on their faces.

“What… the… f—”

THWACK!

“Hey!”

“You never swear in front of a sparkling! That’s a new low even for you Starscream.”

Starscream rubbed his helm glaring at Blitzwing.

“Just you wait until I—”

“Enough.”

Megatron stood up with the sparkling in his servo. The little one just blinked while looking around curiously.

“We need to figure out how… this happened. And as soon as possible.”

Lugnut steps up and gently pokes the sparkling on her tummy, a little giggle escaped from her.

“And who should be in charge of watching her?”

Megatron paused thinking about Lugut’s question before he looked down again at the sparkling.

She blinked again.

“Eeta?”

No one knew what that was. Must have been sparkling gibberish.

“Nel?”

Yes, just sparkling gibberish. Megatron shook his helm.

“Everyone will take turns in watching her. In the meantime,”

Megatron walked over to his habsuite and emerged with a crib.

All the Decepticons gave him mixed looks.

“Is that—”

Megatron cut off Blitzwing.

“Silver Aid wanted to try building contraptions out of the left-over scrap that wasn’t safe to have in the base.”

“Sure…”

Megatron carefully puts her down.

She whined a bit before finding a coloring data pad in the crib.

“Decepticons, move out and find that cure!”

Blitzwing and Lugnut waved a bit at the sparkling before leaving.

Starscream shrugged but did eventually leave with a little smile on his face.

Now it was just Megatron and Silver Aid.

“Oppy?”

Megatron looked down at her.

“What?”

“Oppy?”

“I don’t understand…”

The sparkling made an annoyed sound and sat down with her coloring data pad.

Megatron sighed and sat down.

This was going to be a long day…

It had been a couple hours and the babysitting system the cons had was going exceptionally well… until they completely forgot to tell the other it was their turn to watch Silver Aid.

Silver Aid just looked around bored.

The nice bots that were around earlier were nowhere to be found, o one wanted to play and still no sign of Oppy!

…Maybe Oppy, Nel, and Eeta were in trouble!

They were always in trouble when she wasn’t with them. That was the only explanation to why they weren’t with her!

She had to find them!

Good for her, Silver had quickly learned this new webbing thingy was stretchy and strong, maybe if she hit it o those rocks over there…

With one go, the little sparkling was flying across the room and landed a bit roughly on the damp floor.

Wobbly, she stood up and began to walk around until she found an exit.

At the opening, Silver Aid saw a bunch of lights in the sky

Colors red and blue.

Just like Oppy’s colors!

That’s where Oppy must be!

Carefully Silver Aid started making her way down the entrance and followed the pretty colors in the sky.

It was a couple minutes later before all four mech suddenly appeared in the same room.

“Lord Megatron? I thought you were watching Silver Aid?”

“No, was it not your turn Lugnut?”

“No, I thought it was Blitzwing.”

“No, it was Starscreams turn.”

“No, it was Megatron’s turn.”

There was a silence before they all ran to the crib to find it empty.

 “WHERE IS SHE!?”

“I THOUGHT SHE WAS IN THE ROOM!”

“SHE’S JUST A SPARKLING, SHE COULDN’T HAVE GOTTEN TOO FAR!”

“HOW DID SHE EVEN GET OUT OF THERE!?”

[southernbelllle]

also I’d love to see some hcs or crack of them #lighten up the spr fandom

Saving Private Ryan Modern/Crack-ish Headcannons

Including: Miller, Horvath, Reiben, Mellish, Jackson, Wade, Caparzo, and Upham

AN: Yay! First SPR headcannons post! I had so much fun writing these. I wrote a lot for some, and a bit for others. Don't worry if I didn't get to explore your fave this go round. I'll deep dive to them soon I promise. Also, HIHIIIIIII DIANAAAAAA!!!

Miller has a giant iPad that is only used for either watching videos of people opening packs of baseball cards or reading random clickbait articles with size 36 font. He also has a pair of +1.25 readers he wears when he does decide to read on it. He only has two apps, Facebook (for marketplace,) and camera (so he can take pictures of things he's selling on marketplace.)

【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】

Horvath has a sweatshirt that says, “Uncles Greatest Gift.” No one quite understands what exactly he means by that. Reiben believes that his uncle got it for him, therefore insinuating the Horvath is his Uncles Greatest Gift. Mellish thinks that maybe he bought it for a nephew and never gave it to him. The matter is so fleeting however that no one remembers to ask Horvath about it.

【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】

Speaking of Reiben, he downloaded OnlyFans because one of his favorite car youtubers was offering exclusive car content on the website. One day, he left his laptop open and Carpazo immediately spotted the website being on screen and called it out. He swore up and down that it was just for more exclusive car content. That only seemed to make the teasing from Carpazo and Mellish worse.

【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】

Mellish is NOT innocent though. His mother sent him a care package filled with all sorts of necessities. One of them being a lip oil that was scented like strawberry shortcake. He didn’t give it much thought at first, but later found out that it actually did make his lips more moisturized, as well as cover up the smoke smell. So, he used it. He made a habit out of sneaking away after having a smoke with the group to apply the oil. Wade followed him one time, curious as to what exactly Mellish was trying to escape from, and he found a puckered Mellish applying the oil with his eyes closed. Wade cackled and called everyone over. “Mellish is putting on lipstick!” Jackson would shout. “It’s a lip oil! It’s unpigmented!” Mellish would return. He never did quite live that one down.

【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】

Oh, bumpkin boy Jackson, lord have mercy on all of our souls. This man knows every line dance to emerge from the American south. The music at the church potluck remained the same throughout his years of growing up there. The cotton eyed Joe is so entranced in his soul that sometimes, when the group is just standing, he’ll click his heels together or subtly gyrate his hips. It weirds everyone out.

He can’t really help it though, since he’s pretty much banned from every Honky Tonk on Nashville’s main drag. Word of Public intoxication combined with public urination charges travels fast down here.

【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】

Wade’s mom dropped him off at a public beach while she went to work one time. He had a blast. He dug holes in the sand, he caught tiny minnows with a net. The perfect beach day for a little boy. Wade was especially obsessed with pirates as a kid, all of the exploration that came with such a job intrigued him immensely. He even had a little wade sized pirate hat he’d sported. So, when he decided he’d enough of the simple pleasures of the beach, he decided he needed to go on a pirate adventure. He walked and walked until he found a small roped off area. He cut under the rope and looked around to see no one else around him. In a panic, he ran until he found someone. Unfortunately, the first person he found was an old man wondering the beach. A naked, old man wondering the beach. His pirate adventure led him to a secluded nudist beach. After an awkward call from the old man’s phone to his mom, she never let him wonder alone in public again. He threw his pirate hat out and slept in bed with her that night.

【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】

Caparzo has a secret tiktok account where he dons a gorilla mask and grey sweatpants and does that “dancing every day until I get a girlfriend trend.” He has around 50k followers and averages a pretty good like to comment ratio. He is on day 1,379 and has no intention of stopping anytime soon. He's never missed a day.

【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】

Lastly, and most meekly, sweet little Upham. Upham was a very quiet kid in school. He didn’t make much noise or make an effort to participate in clubs. What he did put his heart into however, was the daily writing prompted that his 6th grade language arts teacher would assign the class. The prompt one morning was just “Fat lady Little Boy.” Feeling particularly inspired this day, he wrote about a fat lady who stepped into an elevator, and everyone had stepped out because of her body odor. The little boy was the only one who stayed. After the two talked, the little boy tells her that she’s his long-lost son. She believed him, and the two embraced in a hug. He was so proud of his story. He was even chosen to present the piece to the class after a few others. Every other student’s story, however, were tales of fat witches who ate boys, and large whales ingesting sailors. It was at this point he learned just how soft ant tender his heart is. He went home and just stared at himself in the mirror after school that day.

【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】★【☆】【☆】

I lowkey did not proofread this so if anything is like incoherent sorry OOPS.

[jq37]

The Report Card – Fantasy High Junior Year Ep 16

Kipperlilly Copperkettle and the World's Smallest Violin

Welcome back to Fantasy High where everyone’s graduating with A pluses and we’re *finally* figuring out what the hell Kipperlilly’s deal is! 

But, before we get to that, we have some loose ends to tie up. You’ll remember that the Bad Kids just demolished the Last Stand Exam and dropped Gavin Pundle off at the Council of Chosen office in Bastion City. It’s the day before Spring Break so hypothetically they should be relaxing–they don’t have a Spring Break project like everyone else because of the Last Stand–but these are the Bad Kids. They don’t get breaks. 

First order of business when they get back to Elmville is to check the crystal they left recording at the crime scene. They see a massive figure--14 to 15 feet--wearing a hood approaching Buddy with their back to the camera. The stones behind Buddy glow with Ankarna-style light so they check to see if Bakur is escaping the gem he’s trapped in. He isn't but Riz using his spy tie can tell it's def something Ankarna related based on the magical mDNA he's clocking. Based on the footfalls, it seems like something big and humanoid (though not like a tabaxi or dragonborn with their digitigrade feet. Giant is def on the table though).

The figure moves closer to Buddy and Kristen thinks they’re about to slap the symbol on Buddy’s chest but Buddy’s body spasms and blood spatters as his organs seem to crush. He jolts awake with a pained roar and then says in his southern drawl, "Dang, y'all. I worship a nameless god of rage." The figure kneels over Buddy and they both vanish. 

So, yeah. Good call setting up some CCTV. 

Fig right away speculates that maybe all the Rat Grinders died and were brought back to life in that way. Maybe in the Mountains of Chaos, Fabian adds. Kristen points out that KP has been angry since Freshman Year and they all finally get around to digging into the file that Riz stole. Has she always been a follower of Ankarna or was she scouted at some point because of how insanely aggro she is?

Everyone piles on buffs to Riz’s already stupid Investigation score so he gets a 32. I’m going to bullets to organize all of this info:

Her Freshman and Sophomore Year accomplishments are pretty meh. She was doing quests but pretty low level, easy ones

We find out the reason KP hates Riz so much and it’s his tragic backstory. In a meeting at the top of Sophomore Year, they see KP complaining that it’s so unfair that Kalvaxus killed Riz’s dad. She’s too suburban and normal and she hasn’t been able to find any sordid secrets in her lineage that would make for good plot hooks essentially. Her parents went to *Mumple* for Cassandra’s sake! Over the course of Sophomore year she started having rage outbursts. and saying that kids with tragic backstories had an unfair advantage in adventuring and their grades should reflect that. 

She talks about how much she loves her party. The way she speaks, she's def the leader (which we kinda already assumed from the vibes). She seems especially fond of Lucy and says that she's the only one who sort of "gets it". Apparently, KP came up with the name "High 5 Heroes" and Lucy was supportive of that because it meant a lot to KP. Rat Grinders was a name that Ivy and Oisin came up with (they're the other pair of besties in the group which checks out because they were the ones hanging out and playing beer pong together). Ruben voted for the change to piss off KP and Mary Ann voted for it as well and refused to elaborate (on brand). 

In her Junior Year she gets even more unhinged. She talks about wanting to straight up murder Kristen. She thinks Kristen is going for President as a joke and won't even do the job when she's elected. And she he hates Fig for boxing her out from confronting Kristen.   

There's a note that, for Spring Break, they're going to the Mountains of Chaos for the second time. The last time they went was a week or two after Spring Break last year, right before Lucy died. They had a school chaperone because it was too high an adventure for their abilities in the school’s view and no prizes for guessing who that was: Jace Stardiamond. 

As we kind of already know, KP has been gathering Bad Kid info via Jawbone--specifically, stuff about the Prompocalypse/Kalvaxus fight and the Yes! Stuff. These questions are coming Sophomore Year, post the first Mountains of Chaos trip. 

With a dirty 20 Insight, Fig sees that, starting at the end of Soph Year, there's a change in KP's language where it goes from, "I don't think X is fair"/"I think they get special treatment" to just straight up, "I hate them."

The group wonders if Jace is the mastermind here and scoped out which of the students were susceptible to rage poisoning or if maybe he died during that mountain trip and got taken over just as much as everyone else. As far as they know, he was super chill prior to this. 

They take a brief detour to razz Fabian about The Incident in his dance class with some excellent puns and then another brief detour to IRL razz Murph because he makes the grave mistake of saying the phrase, “honor the cock.” And then, Kristen has a brain blast. She wonders if maybe the difference between someone who gets a crystal put in them and comes back as a rage person (eg: Buddy) vs someone who is left in limbo like Yolanda and Lucy is that you get a choice and you can either come back full of rage or refuse and stay dead with the mark on your chest. Brennan doesn't even make Ally roll for it, Kristen just gets it in one. And everyone realizes it makes sense. Yolanda was super principled and Lucy always stuck to her guns according to Ruben. [Note: This also offers a potential reason that Ivy wasn't shocked to see Lucky at the party–maybe she thought she finally took Ankarna’s deal.]

Another list of info just to keep things neat:

They check the tape from the Coliseum and see that there's a ten minute gap between the Bad Kids leaving and the figure coming to rez Buddy so that’s a bit of a timeline established (assuming no chronomancy BS I suppose). 

They also get the thing about digitigrade feet I mentioned earlier at this point but I just thought it fit better with the other tape stuff above. 

Ruben has deleted most of his social media presence from a little bit before last year but they can see from photos where he's tagged with his friends that the emo thing started after spring break of Sophomore Year, confirming what we assumed from his old Yearbook photo. Before that his vibe was more soft rock/folk pop (based on the musician they reffed who I've never heard of but just Googled--Jack Johnson). 

The Bad Kids think they might have to waste yet another Spring Break, this time chasing the Rat Grinders into the Mountains of Chaos, but before that, they have in-town business and downtime to attend to. 

Everyone's parents and guardians are so happy and proud of them for their Last Stand victory. 

Sklonda asks Riz if there's anything she can help with and he asks if she can look into Bobby Dawn. She says  Bobby used to go to Aguefort (info that has come up before according to Brennan though I don't remember it) and asks if Fig knows he's teaching there. It seems like a non sequitur until she reveals (via Emily figuring it out at the table with very impressive swiftness) that Bobby Dawn was at the center of Sandra Lynn's sordid past! For those of y’all who don’t remember, we learned in Sophomore Year that Sandra Lynn joined a party when she was young as a replacement member. There was a married couple in the group who were older and more powerful than her. She fell in love with one of them and when it all came out, she was kicked out and slandered (even though it takes two minimum to tango, as we all know). She was basically blacklisted from adventuring after that which is why she joined the rangers. Well, now we know who that couple was: Bobby and Pamela Dawn! 

Which, ugh what an upgrade Jawbone and honestly even Gilear are from Bobby Dawn.

(Also, as an aside, we learn Pamela is the chief paladin of the church of Sol which, como se dice, yikes. That whole pantheon needs better reps. Tracker is doing all the heavy lifting herself.)

Gavin checks in to say that the Council of Chosen is looking into things but the body is missing. The Bad Kids, who already knew this, share their footage because they have to do EVERYTHING around here. Gavin also lets them know that they’re completely free from academic requirements other than filling out a teacher eval and attending graduation (which is odd considering they aren’t graduating but Aguefort is a weird school and Brennan never went to trad high school so shrug–we’ll see if that’s just a weird Aguefort thing or a something suspicious).

Back to Riz and Sklonda, he asks his mom if she's ever heard of Eugenia Shadow and she tells him that she's a granddaughter of one of the founders of the Society of Shadows (which was named after their last name--it's literal AND a metaphor. She offers to drive him to the cemetery in Ashgrove which is about 90 minutes away. 

Wilma and Digby are exuberant as always about Gorgug's success. They’ve finally fixed up the Hangvan for him and give him the keys. He thanks them and then asks about why Frosty Fair picked their tree as the new event site. They think it's just because they're heavily in the Frosty Fair circuit and also someone (who we know is Ruben) vouched for them. But they mention that the FF reps had a lot of questions about their tree including whether the tree was a Root Warden. They don't have a Druid or Ranger who would know but Kristen gets a Nat 20 (and Cass is a sylvan goddess so it checks out that she would know some stuff about trees). 

A Root Warden is a tree that is so magical that it's a little more alive  than a normal tree (without fully being a treant) and has an Int of like 1 or 2 instead of zero. So it's basically the big, old tree that guards the other trees in the area and tells them when to have their guards up and protects them from general bad mojo. Brennan calls it a sentinel. The Thistlespring tree is the Root Warden for the trees in all of Elmville county.  Gorgug rolls too low to tell if the tree is corrupted but his parents do tell them that the people who came by to check on the tree dropped something into the roots with eye droppers that was absorbed. Everyone is worried about rage pollen, especially since it’s the middle of spring. And once he’s looped in, Riz can see on a map that Loam Farm is significantly outside the tree network that Thislespring tree is a part of. It seems clear that they were trying to make sure they were not only operating within the network but poisoning its very heart. 

Fabian gets a proud message from his dad now that they’re synced up with infernal/material plane communication. Gilear asks Fabian about baby clothes so, naturally, he burns them all. He also gets another 20k gold allowance because his life is full of intense highs and lows and that’s about it. 

Kristen’s parents text her to ask her to make sure Bucky is going to his classes. Suspicious! She agrees to check up on him. 

Aelwyn has accepted the job at Leviathan so she starts coming by the mansion again since there's a door/portal to the library which saves her the spell slot. Adaine tells her she can just come back home if she wants and Sandra Lynn agrees. Aelwyn asks if all her cats can come and everyone says yes, even if it means kicking out Kristen (which is a joke…mostly lol). So yay, Aelwyn is back in the bunk beds baybee! And during the month of my birth irl and in canon. Ty Brennan. Kristen tries to verbally spar with her because she knows Aelwyn is uncomfortable with people being too openly nice to her but Aelwyn accidentally claps back too hard and sends Kristen running back to her room near tears. Sorry, K! She’s working on her people skills! Fig of course has her President’s back and gives Aelwyn a wet willy which majorly grosses her out but she doesn’t sling any retaliatory spells. Progress! 

Gorthalax makes sure that Fig knows he’s always a resource for any help with anything infernal. Meanwhile, Adaine has a couple of spells she wants to cast. She makes a Simulacrum of Kristen, to make it confusing for anyone who wants to go after Kristen. It’s a clone of her with half her HP which is slightly British and slightly straight. She casts Legend Lore on Kipperlilly and gets no info which means she’s a basic ass bitch. (Riz, in comparison, does get a ping but it’s for being the 5th person to summon the Night Yorb so he is keen to do better than that). Finally, she casts Scry on Kipperlilly and doesn't get anything because she has Nondetection casted on her. She realizes that all of the Rat Grinders do at all times which is 18 third level spells a day which is crazy. Clearly, they’re scared. 

Graveyard time! On Saturday, they head to Ashgrove and find the grave of Eugenia Shadow who died at the age of 111. Adaine swaps to Ethereal Vision to try and find her but Riz (with his Blindsense) is the one who finds her (she’s carefully ducking behind Adaine to dodge her line of sight). Eugenia is annoyed to have two students find her in one year but very happy to drink, smoke, and do drugs with the Bad Kids(just go with it). 

Despite being dead, Eugenia knows a lot about stuff that's going on and congratulates them on passing their Last Stand. Riz asks her about what "the Rogue teacher found her" re: Kipperlilly means and Eugenia says that KP somehow found out that she was dead (despite the fact that as far as Shadow knows, the only records of her death exists in Aguefort’s office) and showed up at the grave with a rented backhoe, threatening to dig her up unless she showed basically. Which, yes, is grave desecration and messed up but is it any more messed up than the concept of a rogue in general? Like, I hate KP as much as the next person but this feels like normal rogue behavior. As Eugenia says in this very scene, rogues do crimes! Anyway, Eugenia reiterates something we already knew about Kipperlilly:  that she's obsessed with technicalities and loopholes. We learn for a fact that she's a Mastermind Rogue and Eugenia says that she's a lot like Riz but walking a darker path. 

As they're speculating how KP could have gotten into Aguefort's office (via Jace maybe?) Mazey comes up since she's acting principal and Eugenia reminds them that Aguefort is not a normal school with normal positions. Things are set up so that whoever is VP has to follow whatever the Principal says no matter what since Kalvaxus is supposed to be in that position as a prisoner. Equally importantly, Aguefort is more than a school. It's a hotbed of very important magical threads that Aguefort had going and they'll unravel without someone at the helm. That fact and the fact that killing her would mean chaos and not a simple transfer of power to another party is probably the only reason no one has tried to assassinate her yet. At his friends’ urging, Fabian texts Mazey to hang out, to help keep an eye on her. 

Eugenia tells them to keep their guards up and that she expects to see all of them in Rogue classes next year. She gives Riz an eval form and Fig asks about a Landscaping Company that KP contacted (which I think must be in cut footage because this is the first time it comes up in the ep. Eugenia says that the name of the company is Loam Landscaping which gives everyone pause for obvious reasons. 

Speaking of the Loams, they're on the same death clock as Lucy since it's been a while since they died and Adaine wonders if they can Plane Shift to where they are if they can figure out where that is. Brennan says that the vibe is that Yolanda and Lucy are probably with Cassandra, wherever Cass is. 

Downtime before Spring Break!

Fabian is up first. 

He rolls a 27 for Popularity. People are hoping he's gonna keep up lofi study nights over the summer and they're so psyched that his birthday is the same day as the election (the 31st). Adaine realizes that THIS must be the bday party/election victory she keeps having visions about and tells him he has to do it. For his second track, he asks Mazey out on an official date to Krom's Diner. She says yes and, on a 20, we get a very sweet scene where Fabian has a nice normal date with a genuinely nice, down to earth person.

Even though she's not supposed to play favorites, she tells him that Kristen's basically demolishing Kipperlilly in the election so far (which she is impressed by because she didn't think Kristen was going to take it seriously). She also lets them know that technically any place (including a big house party perhaps) can be a polling place as long as someone from the school admin is present (which could potentially be Mazey or Riz). 

Mazey gives him a goodnight kiss (getting his kisses in!) and we move on to his third roll which he uses to try and mend fences with Kristen for Gertie’s sake. He offers her any satisfaction she wants from an apology to combat and she chooses combat. With a 30 to her 16, he handily defeats her and she considers her honor satisfied. They'll chill now. And he even gives her some tips on flirting with Kristen. Trying to make sure his girl gets her kisses in too I see. 

Corsica and Terpsicore find him to give him eval forms. (Also, on a Nat 20, Fig steals RIz's eval and changes his one negative comment about her doing drugs with her students into a positive one because of course Fig loves her).  He just barely gets his Owlbears roll with a bardic and that's his last roll. 

Adaine is up next. She uses a portent to get a 29 on mystery to learn about the Astral Plane and figures out that when a god is dead in the Astral Plane there's still some level of intelligence, like how a mortal can die but then have Speak With Dead cast on them and answer questions. She also finds some weird linguistic trickery in a passage about how where gods die, where they go, and where they're borne--not born, borne as in carried. Imagine the laws of the universe hinging on a pun. Wild. They wonder if that's what Bakur was trying to do/if the proper location would have been the Mountains of Chaos.

Brennan also says she gets some interesting stuff about the Mountains of Chaos and its history and is left with the question of, "When Ankarna was said to have 'died' in the Red Waste, what does that mean?" Adaine decides to roll to learn some spells to help her party survive in the Astral Plane if they need to go and on a 29 spell she learns one new spell of each level. She also talks to her teacher (Tiberia Runsetaff) who, in addition to giving her an eval to do, says she's been talking to Aguefort (Chronomancy) and when she mentioned that she was having problem getting supplies for wizarding, Ayda left her a geocache. Runestaff gives Adaine the coordinates and she texts Fig so they can go together because she assumes Ayda left stuff for both of them.

Next, she wants to roll Relationships and throws an ice cream party for the whole manor which everyone really enjoys. She chats with Sandra Lynn who tells her that the Mountains of Chaos have been nuts lately and social animals like wolves have been killing members of their own packs as of the last few weeks. That sounds very rage-y to Adaine so she tells Sandra Lynn everything they know (except for the Bobby Dawn stuff so Fig can be the one to break the news). 

Adaine asks if Sandra Lynn will take them to the mountains since she knows the area so well from work and Sandra Lynn says they might have to sign some liability waivers but she's down as long as her bosses are down. They also have a very sweet conversation where Adaine says she’s very grateful to them for taking her in and she admits that she's not very good at being a kid. Sandra Lynn says that she's always available for any conversations that Adaine wanted to have with a mom and couldn't (on account of her mom being a raging bitch and also being chased by the Vands of course). Adaine thinks she's about to give her a talk on periods and dashes away, much to Sandra Lynn's bafflement. 

Fig does her evals for her teachers including Lucilla who is weeping over her not remembering her name and just calling her "Attractive bard teacher", Porter who is irked to be sharing a sheet with Zara, and Zara who wants to see Fig because she send her a flap of flayed skin with writing on it (the contract from Bill). Valid concern. 

Adaine wraps up her downtime by rolling to Scry on Jace and gives him a 1 to make sure he fails. She sees him sitting quietly working in his office where he's Fantasy Googling the Complicated Women podcast. Adaine doesn't see what else he's working on with a low Luck roll but on a 17 Perception, she sees that he's starting to sweat in his toasty office. He takes off his scarf and, as he does, she catches a glimpse of him in the mirror, revealing a deep ragged scar in his chest. He looks at the scar and, for a moment, his eyes flash red. 

Detention

Kipperlilly for All Of That

Girl are you KIDDING ME?

“Oh boo hoo. Riz is so lucky. School is so easy for him because he has a dead dad to avenge. Some people have all the luck.”

Man, kick rocks. And she was like that *before* she got involved with Ankarna. 

Also, sidenote, it’s not even like Riz ended up killing Kalvaxus because of his tragic backstory. He didn’t even know there was a connection going in. He just wanted to find his missing babysitter and the other missing girls! You’re a Mastermind Rogue. You want a plot hook? Nancy Drew it up, bitch!   

You want Kristen dead? You want her DEAD? You’re jealous of Riz who lives in a household where sometimes you have to eat your cereal with water because there’s not enough milk to go around? Truly, get a grip.

Honor Roll

Kristen for Making a Clutch Connection

This should really go to Ally but yeah. What a great leap figuring out that staying dead is an option and that’s most likely what happened to Yolanda and Lucy. 

This very likely explains a longstanding loose end from much earlier in the season. Ivy didn’t look shocked to see “Lucy” (Fig in disguise) at the party even though we know she was dead. With this new info, it seems likely that Ivy assumed that Lucy had finally given in and come back as a rage acolyte. 

Anyway, baller connection and she got there before I did. I love it when Brennan is so impressed he doesn't even ask for an Insight roll. 

Random Thoughts

Here is a super useful timeline of events Re: the Ratgrinders by @ratgrinders. 

I’ve seen a lot of people assume that the RG’s died in the Mountains of Chaos but I’m not convinced that happened. Because that was way before Lucy died and we know that once she died, she refused to come back as a rage person. And we know you can take a rage crystal without having to die first. That happened in the mall fight with the wizards. If they TPK’d there and Ankara offered to bring them back, then they would have come back without Lucy because she would have said no.

Here’s my current theory: They went to the mountains with Jace. They either stumbled into information about Ankarna or were led there by Jace if he’s proper evil and not just taken over. They were offered a deal and everyone went for it but Lucy. KP really wanted Lucy to join them–esp cause she considered Lucy her best friend. She tried to strong arm her into it (maybe even forging her god change form) and, when she stuck to her guns, she organized everyone to kill Lucy, forcing her into a position where she’d have to say yes to Ankarna in order to stay alive. In KP’s head, Lucy would do this and maybe be annoyed for a bit but in the end see it was for the best and forgive her–maybe even thank her. But she miscalculated the strength of Lucy’s conviction and voila. Dead Lucy. 

Edit: Wanted to come back and edit to note that it is of course possible that in the mountains everyone died except for Lucy and that's when they took the Ankarna deal, but even if that's the case, the rest of the theory would proceed as written. I was mainly thinking that while what we saw with Buddy is a strong possibility it's not the only possibility. If they died then they're a bit more sympathetic because self preservation is an understandable motivator and taking the deal doesn't make them craven--it just makes Lucy and Yolanda extremely principled. However if they just took the deal because it was offered to them then that's more eyebrow raising. Even though I'm skeptical, I'm kinda hoping their hands were forced because I think that's more interesting and we've had straight up petty power grabbing already from Penelope. But anyway, just being thorough.

"Flash of Stupidity” is so funny. 

It's not surprising that Ivy and Oisin are one of the pairs of besties in the RG's--they were introduced playing beer pong together--but I'm super curious about what their dynamic is. And ditto for Lucy and KP. Was it like a high strung one/chilled out one kind of thing? I really wish the Bad Kids had been a bit nosier about their whole deal.

Do we think KP maybe wanted to make sure the BK's died in the last stand alongside Buddy and Pundle so they'd all come back as rage people? Maybe that crossbow bolt was laced with some rage mojo?

KP being mad at Riz for trying to pickpocket Jawbone of her file when (1) she’s literally a rogue as well and (2) she pickpocketed Kristen and Buddy of their revivify diamonds is insane. 

I love Lou committing to the bit of being appalled at the thought of half-siblings via Gilear because I know he knows that every time he explodes it becomes even funnier which means it’s more likely to happen but he can’t stop because he’s Committed To The Bit. Classic Lou. 

Wizards casting Legend Lore on themselves as the in-universe equivalent of Googling yourself. 

I love the detail that Mazey’s family lives in a Labyrinth in the Red Wastes. 

Kinda bummed we didn’t get to do more with the Relationship track so the special ability never came up and Brennan had to just reveal it (it can reduce stress but also increase it). 

I am so stressed about the bylaws and also Bucky. They keep coming up and then falling off of everyones’ plates and we’re running out of runway here. 

Adaine really said, “You didn’t just kill your parents? Skill issue.” She really is Aelwyn’s sister. 

The VP has to do anything the Principal says, right? And Mazey is the Principal, right? There’s gotta be a way to exploit that, especially now that Fabian is in her good graces.

When did Aelwyn get FIVE MORE CATS?

Answered and Partially Answered Questions

Last week I made as thorough a list as I could about what info we were missing and I wanted to note the answers we got this week. 

1) Why the move to Loam Farm for Frosty Faire? (The Thistlespring tree is a Rootwarden) 

2) How is Jace involved? Why is he manipulating Ruben? (We know Jace went w/ them on the trip but that's not a full answer) 

3) What were the exact circumstances behind Lucy’s death? Who was able to put the rune on both of their bodies and what exactly was the goal there? (We know the mark is from getting a rage crystal but rejecting it but we don't officially know who did it or what the goal was though you know my guess.) 

4) How did KP find the rogue teacher? (Threatened to dig up her grave. Info that she was dead was only in Aguefort's office so maybe got that from Jace?) 

5) Also what’s her damage? Why is she obsessed with Riz? What are her anger issues about? (She's a petty basic bitch) 

6) Why wasn’t Ivy surprised to see Fig in disguise as Lucy who was at the time fully dead? (Most likely because she thought she finally chose rage zombie resurrection) 

7) What’s up with the party vision that Adaine has now had at least twice? (We know this is election night and Fabian's bday now) 

8) What made the Rat Grinders become the Rat Grinders when they started as the High Five Heroes? (We know it was a vote led by Ivy and Oisin and joined by Ruben and Mary Ann but not the why behind it) 

9) Where exactly is Cass right now? (We still don't know for sure but it seemed like a realm within Ankarna’s dead body which is prob in the Astral Plane. We do know Lucy and Yolanda are prob with her as of this ep.)

As an aside, we still don’t know how Oblivati Mori was broken to write Ankarna’s name before the Bad Kids found it but is it possible that the person who wrote it was Ankarna herself? Because Ankarna is still “dead” right now, right? Because she’s been active all the same. Oblivati Mori disallows others from speaking your name but does it disallow the god themselves from speaking or writing their name if mortals find them somehow? Kind of a stretch but I’m wondering if there’s enough wiggle room there to make something happen, especially since this episode Brennan said that gods retain some intelligence even when they’re dead on Adaine’s high roll. I dunno, just spitballing. 

(Also, I don’t remember where I saw this but remember how Aelwyn said KP is randomly loaded? The previous best guess on that was money from Oisin–the boy who was just gonna give Adaine diamonds–but is it possible that she’s spending the embezzled Frosty Fair money? We don’t know much much it was so hard to say if it was enough to be funding whatever this is. But wanted to throw that out there since we’re tying loose ends as much as we can.)

Anyway, can’t wait for next episode which I’ve been told will be more than THREE HOURS LONG and Brennan said in the AP that it’s gonna be a doozy. Excited, trepid, and preemptively bracing for another long haul review. See you then!

[anchoris-sailor]

I wanna do a special little thing for the community, so if you want, send me your spr ocs, and I'll do a big ol artwork with all the ocs together like a group photo!

You can show me your oc through the ask box, message, or reblog. All I ask for is a clear picture with color. You have 7 days to submit your oc. Until then, see you later!

⚓️ ⚓️ ⚓️ ⚓️

[askvectorprime]

Dearest Vector Prime,

What do you know of Cybertronian martial arts? How do they differ from one another? You must have encountered more than a few unique styles and practitioners in your travels.

Dear Jet Judoka,

Ever since the first construction crane robot used its crane boom to deliberately knock over another robot eons ago, martial arts have been an integral part of our history.

You might assume that the warmongering Decepticons were the first to codify these disciplines of pugilism—and indeed, the brutality of their attacks and strategies gave them the edge at the outbreak of war. But the Autobots, who had lived as engineers and laborers, were able to disguise their training: every step, every turn of a wheel, every act of physical labor could be a secret technique, practiced thousands of times per cycle, until they had mastered the perfect move with which to surprise their adversaries.

Under Autobot schools of thought, there are two basic elements of physical combat: “Piston” and “Gear” motion. “Piston” is a direct, linear force: delivered by punches, rocket-powered fists, or other inbuilt ballistics. By contrast, “Gear” is a deflecting, rotational force: swiveling at the waist, or rolling, to create a “transmission” of the opponent’s energy into advantageous movement. In time, this framing came to influence Decepticon disciplines, until both groups were using the same terminology.

As the conflict between Autobot and Decepticon continued, fuelled by an escalating arms race to develop esoteric weaponry and enhancements, some chose to eschew ranged combat and instead specialize in martial arts based around stealth and melee. After sneaking into the enemy’s midst, a single warrior trained in this way could quickly dismantle those unprepared soldiers who relied more on their armament and abilities. Being a direct reaction to the highly technological mindset of both factions, it’s perhaps unsurprising that martial arts came to be spoken of using increasingly spiritual terms. Those trained in Circuit-Su turned inwards towards the personal energy of the spark, which practitioners of Metallikato would learned to channel through their weapons, striving to embody the “Ultimate Warrior” of legend. Meanwhile, followers of Yoketron’s Eightfold Path formed an understanding of self based on eight specifications: SPR-INT-SPD-END-RNK-CRG-FRB-SKL, each a separate aspect of Primus.

Other disciplines were influenced by offworld cultures. Crystalocution was developed by medics and structural engineers, after they observed the way Rock Lords would target their opponent’s fracture lines in hand-to-hand combat, and adapted the technique to focus on joints or brittle crystalline components in Cybertronians. The loose assortment of non-lethal forms commonly termed Diffusion, popular amongst the Autobots, are descended from a pacifist fighting style practiced amongst the Circle of Light.

Although these styles have been broadly recognised and adopted by countless fighters, it mustn’t be understated how deeply individualistic the martial arts can be: even within a single style, no two fighters are alike. An exceptional master may try to pass down their techniques, but the unique talent, ability, and perseverance of each student will inevitably transform these teachings into something new. Take, for example, the Turtler School.

Turtler lived as a hermit on an island, on Earth. Having felt undervalued by the Decepticons, he enjoyed the solitude this lifestyle afforded, living in peace from his Seacons. At some point in the distant future, a young simian Maximal arrived on a flying surfboard, wanting to learn martial arts in order to fight in the “Be(a)st Under The Heavens Tournament”. Turtler reluctantly took him on as a pupil, and over the course of several years, put him through a highly unorthodox training regimen. Some examples of the feats he had the Maximal perform included:

Climbing a mountain to catch a bird

Climbing a mountain again to catch a bird, but this time with Turtler strapped to his back in alt mode

Outrunning and outswimming Cybershark in a race

Painting Turtler's home (this one in particular was very unpopular with his student)

Eventually, the young Maximal proved his purity of heart—which wasn’t actually something Turtler had cared about in the least, as he really had just needed a few chores doing—and asked to learn the secret of Turtler’s ultimate technique, the King Poseidon Wave. Turtler, not quite understanding, assumed that the Maximal was talking about his laser cannon. He fired a shot to demonstrate—and to his surprise, the Maximal copied him, pressing two open palms together, and somehow firing a large energy blast! Before Turtler could even process what had happened, the Maximal hopped onto his surfboard and sailed away on a cloud, forever grateful for the good times he’d had with the old hermit over the years.

[autumnmobile12]

"If you're too short to stare down your nose at someone, keep your chin down, your eyes up, and don't blink. It's not as threatening, but it will show you are not afraid." -Mai (probably)

...

In exploring various avenues to go about a Ghost Hunt/My Hero crossover, one of the more entertaining dynamics I think would be the interactions between Mai and Endeavor.

To put it bluntly, there is a strength behind Mai’s character that I don’t think we in the Ghost Hunt fandom give her near enough credit for, and that is the fact that on a fundamental level, Mai is fearless.

As per general anime protagonist behavior, she is almost exactly like Deku when it comes to doing what she perceives to be the right thing.  Reckless, yes, and she is often running headlong into danger, but it’s important to remember Mai has also never been afraid to call anyone out on their bad behavior.

Within minutes of meeting Ayako, she called her out for talking down to her classmate, a classmate she was not even particularly close to.

She often calls out Masako and Naru both for their condescension and attitudes.

Takigawa was physically holding her back from going after the faculty at Rokuryou.

She called out Lin pretty quickly for his bullshit.

And she straight up yells at everyone in the very first case for their bickering and posturing even though she barely knew any of them.

In canon, Mai jumps at ghosts and she is easily unsettled/frightened, but even against Urado, she still has the inherent resolve to think, ‘Okay, you need to go.’

Also recall the fact that she has not hesitated to out Naru twice on minor secrets solely because he pissed her off.  That whole bit in the Labyrinth case where she demands to know why he didn’t tell them the full reason why they were there and he just answers with how ‘some people don’t know when to keep their mouth shut.’  Yeah, he didn’t say that because he didn’t think she could keep the secret.  Homeboy straight up knew she would weaponize that information if given the chance.

For all her compassion and the ‘good girl’ vibes we remember her for, Mai is petty af.

...

This is why I like writing Mai as an adult.  Canonically as a teenager, she’s already formidable in her own way.  As a young adult who’s dealt with Naru and company for a few years and has subsequently gotten used to the constant razzing and sass the whole group brings to the table (and let's be real, nobody in My Hero Academia would be prepared for the full force of SPR's combined sass,) adult Mai would be a force of nature.

So as intimidating as Endeavor is, I legitimately think Mai’s reaction to him would be a resolute,  “I don’t care if he’s three times my size and on fire, nobody speaks that way in my presence and gets away with it.  Hold my purse, hold my beer, time for a verbal ass-whooping.”

And then there’s Yasuhara saying, “Go off, sis,” and filming for posterity.

Speaking of SPR's favorite bespectacled fiend, Yasuhara has definitely hit on everyone in the top ten.

Yasuhara and Mai both have probably ended up in this situation, possibly at the same time and the end result is always the same:

Naru stepping in.

"What exactly is your plan here? Putting them down or harming them are your only two options right now, only one of which is the smart option. Unhand them. You're embarrassing everyone."

...

SPR really be the Animaniacs sibs to every Pro with an ego. Which is, like, 90% of Pros. And villains.

...

But yeah, general cattiness between Mai and Endeavor:

"I didn't see you there, Taniyama. Perhaps your lackluster and unremarkable costume was to blame."

"Not all of us are trying to signal that Gondor calls for aid."

[notwiselybuttoowell]

SEATTLE — A scramble to save parks programs is underway in Seattle after city leaders approved cuts to environmental education programs and laid out plans to strip funding from the Visitor Center at Discovery Park.

Last year, the Seattle City Council approved Mayor Bruce Harrell’s proposed budget which removes or reduces funding for environmental education programming beginning in Jan. 2026.

Seattle Parks and Recreation (SPR) has a $227 million operating budget this year that will increase to $259 million in 2026. However, general fund revenue forecasts fall short of all the costs to be incurred citywide.

As a result, fund reductions and fee increases are being made. Environmental education programming will see a 50% reduction, losing approximately $1 million in funding beginning in 2026.

“We do environmental education programs all over the city for all different age groups,” said Melanie Wienecke, a Seattle Urban Nature guide. “We go to schools, we do programs with seniors with early memory loss, we do general public programs. All of these will be cut by this budget cut."

In addition to the closure of the Discovery Park Visitor Center, nine staff positions within SPR are being eliminated, though the people filling those roles are being offered other jobs.

“They are not equivalent jobs. They aren't environmental education jobs. They don't need that kind of expertise, and in some cases, they work fewer hours for less pay," Wienecke said. “Some of the staff have taken those jobs because they need the reliability for their paycheck. Others have decided to leave, and so after May, we're likely to have only two out of those nine positions filled."

More than 45,000 people engage with the Discovery Park Visitor Center every year to explore park programming and services, according to the Carkeek Watershed Community Action Project.

Students from 65 schools attended Seattle Parks and Recreation nature field trips, and naturalists and education volunteers led 280 programs citywide in 2024. When the salmon return to Carkeek Park in November and December, naturalists host free education stations and walks for the public.

For decades this programming has provided engaging and equitable access to the outdoors across Seattle, but it is no longer being funded. The shuttle down to Discovery Park Beach will meet a similar fate, which seniors and people with disabilities rely on to get down the 1.5-mile trails.

“Absolutely should be a priority. There are always groups of school children out here during the day,” said Michael Newcomer, a Seattle resident who comes to Discovery Park nearly every day. “It's amazing to see, and it would be awful to see any of that go away."

[elizaditton]

TSTBA And Life Update

Hey everyone, I thought I'd give an update on what's going on with me and on my progress with Too Small To Be Afraid. TL;DR at the bottom for those who just want the quick deets.

I've been struggling to work on the story since the start of the summer, mainly because I got a "real" job (as part of the IT department at a local high school). Despite the fact that it's only 17.5 hours a week (3.5 hours every weekday), it was a lot more than what I was used to (which was literally doing nothing except for volunteering at various places maybe one to three times a week), and it took me a really, really long time to adjust to that mentally. I would come home dead tired and just... not feel like writing. Or doing anything at all. Sometimes I'd come home at 3:00 pm and proceed to take The World's Longest Nap™ only to wake up when it was time to go to bed anyway. Part of this, I realize, is probably the result of an undiagnosed sleeping disorder of some kind (my psychiatrist says maybe sleep apnea) mixed with ADHD telling my brain to Not Work™. But yeah, this has been a major contributing factor in my lack of writing time recently. And on top of that, I got another job working for my church on Sundays as a Production Assistant, which has so far been awesome, but it means I'm also exhausted on weekends. Not only am I working 7 hours on Sunday (setup + rehearsal + service + do all that again for the second service), but I'm also waking up at 4:30 am now at the very latest on Sundays depending on what campus I'm working at. And on top of all that, I'm still working occasionally for my old boss one Saturday out of every month until he wants me to start coming in more frequently. So all in all, I'm pretty much working every day but Saturday, except for when I'm also working on Saturday. And I do enjoy working all of these jobs, it's just that I've been struggling to adjust to working so much and how to balance that with my hobbies and my home and family life. So there's been little time for writing these past few months.

The writing club I was a part of also lowkey disbanded as we haven't been meeting for several months. (Hi if any of you are reading this, I miss you guys lol.) Before we stopped meeting, I was pumping out a new chapter at least every two weeks, and it was amazing! I was part of a group that encouraged each other to write and on top of that even edited/critiqued each other's writing. I really do miss it. The group always got me so motivated to write during the week and to write during our meetings, and I haven't felt that same joy about writing since we stopped meeting. I'm thinking I'll start another writing group, either online or at my church. Leaning towards at my church since I need in-person contact with people, but idk hit me up if you're interested in an online writer's group??? Or being a beta reader???

Lastly, something that's actually related to the story itself. The plot. Hoooooooo boy the plot. The plot is... a thing that exists. There's things I want to tie into the story that I want to be a big deal, but I'm not sure if I introduced enough elements beforehand for things to make sense if I go the route I want? Then there's the fact that I look back at the first few chapters and sort of cringe, thinking of all the things I'd change if I would let myself have at it before the first draft is done. But yeah. Things are... going. I've been very, VERY slowly but surely working on fixing up things in my outline so I know where I'm going, but yeah, all the aforementioned has kinda made it hard to actually write.

So that's where I've been. So where do we go from here?

For one thing, I'm at least somewhat confident that chapter 18 WILL come out in the next few weeks, before the end of the month. It's going to be a long one, and I hope it's worth the wait.

I previously had a goal of finishing my first draft by the end of the year, but if I'm honest, I'm thinking I won't get there until at least the spring of 2025. And then, of course, after that comes editing, revising, rewriting, and so on. I'll likely be writing at least a second draft before I even think about printing.

But can you expect me to update more regularly from now on? To be honest, I have no idea. All I know is that this book is still my dream, and I haven't given up on it yet. As long as this fire continues to burn within me, I'm going to continue to write. As long as it takes. Until it's done. But maybe starting another writing club would help hold me accountable for regular updates, ha ha.

Thank you all for your unwavering support as I've gone through this journey. Whenever I see someone's been enjoying this story, it fills me with so much joy, you don't understand. I hold every little comment close to my heart.

Thanks for reading, and I hope to see you soon with an update to the story!

TL;DR: I suddenly acquired three jobs and am very tired all the time. This combined with no accountability after my writing club lowkey disbanded has made writing difficult. I'm still writing, slowly but surely. Expect a new (and long) chapter this month for sure. Hmu if interested in starting a writing club/being a beta reader btw

[brian-in-finance]

The actress Caitríona Balfe, center, taking her seat at the table. Photo: Rich Gilligan

T ENTERTAINING WITH

In Belfast, a Celebration of Art, Community and Pizza

In October, on the second floor of a former spinning mill in east Belfast, the visual artist and author Oliver Jeffers, 46, hosted a candlelit dinner for a group of Irish and Northern Irish artists and friends. The Portview Trade Centre, as the building is called, stopped producing textiles in the 1970s and is now home to 54 artists’ studios and creative businesses, including Jeffers’s, and his neighbors made up a large portion of the guests and the organizers. The occasion was a personal one — the launch of his 20th book, “Begin Again” — but he also wanted to celebrate his wider creative community. Accordingly, the evening combined tributes to both Belfast, where the artist has a home in the Holywood area, and Brooklyn, where he lived until recently and still has a studio.

VIDEO 📹 The author and illustrator Oliver Jeffers invited friends to toast his new book at a dinner in a former textile mill.

Jeffers is perhaps best known for his philosophical, understated children’s books, including “The Book Eating Boy” (2006) and “The Heart and the Bottle” (2010). And true to his style, “Begin Again” is curious, warm and quietly profound. “Not for kids, but not not for kids,” Jeffers says, the book is a vibrantly illustrated exploration of the climate crisis that attempts to lay out a hopeful future for humanity. “It offers an idea of slowing down, of using what’s near us — of starting over,” says Jeffers, “with the realization that we cannot do anything until we start to act with a sense of unity, to tell ourselves new stories that are defined by what we want.”

Jeffers, center (in tan jacket), sat beside the film director Lisa Barros Da’Sa, at left. Photo: Rich Gilligan (and Caitríona Balfe, at right… BIF)

Pearson Morris, the head chef of the Belfast restaurant Noble, pan-fried wild halibut in a makeshift kitchen set up not far from the table. Photo: Rich Gilligan

While guests gathered for drinks, the sun could be seen setting over the city; on the north side of the building, hills rolled down toward the sea. The food too — a collaboration between the local bistro Noble, known for its unpretentious ingredient-led dishes, and Flout, an American-style pizzeria on the ground floor of Portview — was unmistakably rooted in Belfast. Despite a limited power supply and a lack of running water in the room, dishes were assembled and cooked in situ using three portable pizza ovens and a small stove. The table was lit with clusters of white candles and, after the sun finally went down, said Jeffers, it glowed with “the warmth of a hearth at home.”

The dinner table stood at the center of the 10,000-square-foot room. Photo: Rich Gilligan

The attendees: Jeffers celebrated with his wife and business manager, Suzanne Jeffers, and a group of Irish and Northern Irish artists, including the actress Caitríona Balfe, 44; the portrait artist Colin Davidson, 55; the electronic musician and composer David Holmes, 54; the husband-and-wife film director duo Glenn Leyburn, 54, and Lisa Barros Da’Sa, 49; and the writers Glenn Patterson, 61, and Jan Carson, 43. “Everybody at this dinner,” said Jeffers, “was interested in the power of narrative, the impact of what they do and how it makes other people feel.”

The table: Guests sat at two long tables — pushed together to create a more intimate arrangement — in the middle of the otherwise nearly empty 10,000-square-foot room. The events stylist Rachel Worthington McQueen, 30, sourced an Irish linen tablecloth in the same navy hue as the book cover’s background. Mismatched dishes in traditional Blue Willow patterns (originally bought from secondhand websites for Worthington McQueen’s wedding two years ago) held squat candles, and food was served on simple white plates brought over from Noble. Seasonal blooms — including deep burgundy dahlias and pale pink spray roses — echoed the rich palette of the book and were provided by the local, sustainable flower farm Sow Grateful. Each display was tied with bright pink twine, sourced by Suzanne Jeffers to match the exact Pantone color (number 812U) of the book’s title.

New Haven-style mussels pizza by Peter Thompson, the founder of the pizzeria Flout, was served alongside Noble’s halibut. Photo: Rich Gilligan

The food: To start, Noble’s co-founder and head chef, Pearson Morris, 34, served crab and lobster from nearby Bangor Bay dressed with homemade mayonnaise and his Bloody Mary tomatoes (heritage tomatoes steeped overnight in a mix of vodka, celery and Tabasco sauce) on Flout’s blackened focaccia. “I bake things so you think they’re burned — that’s flavor for me,” said the pizzeria’s founder, Peter Thompson, 45. Next was a take on the classic New Haven-style clam pie made with steamed Galway Bay mussels, alongside which Morris served pan-fried wild halibut with a fish head sauce. Then came Flout’s Detroit-style pepperoni pizza and a salad featuring locally grown baby gem lettuces. Dessert was Noble’s chocolate delice — jaconde sponge cake topped with salted caramel, dark chocolate parfait and a chocolate mirror glaze — accompanied by a salted caramel ice cream with Flout’s sourdough chocolate cookies tumbled through.

The drinks: Noble’s front-of-house manager and co-founder, Saul McConnell, 38, oversaw the drinks, which ranged from a vibrant Blanc de Meunier champagne for arriving guests to an amber passito-style Liastos wine from Lyrarakis, Crete, for the dessert course. The Boundary Brewing Company, Belfast’s first tap room and one of Jeffers’s neighbors in the building, provided an alternative aperitif: a full-bodied English bitter called A Certain Romance, a favorite of Jeffers’s studio team.

Jeffers illustrated the evening’s menus. Photo: Rich Gilligan

Noble’s chocolate delice, a jaconde sponge cake with salted caramel and a chocolate mirror glaze. Photo: Rich Gilligan

The conversation: Many artists talked shop, swapping notes on the production problems they encounter in their respective industries, and conversation also turned to global events. “There’s always been a comparison between the conflict in Northern Ireland and the conflict in Israel-Palestine,” said Jeffers. “We talked about the divisive rhetoric that’s going on right now.”

The music: Jeffers enlisted the Irish producer and D.J. Marion Hawkes, who runs the record store Sound Advice in Portview, to create a playlist, which ranged from classic folk to contemporary electronic tracks.

The recipe for Noble’s mayonnaise: It’s hard to beat fresh, homemade mayonnaise, says Morris, and it’s a quick, thoughtful addition to a dinner at home. But despite its few ingredients, it’s deceptively difficult to make. He recommends starting with equal parts white wine vinegar and egg yolk (approximately 2 teaspoons of vinegar to two yolks), which prevents the eggs from splitting as you very gradually beat in 250 ml of oil, then season with 5 grams of sugar and 5 grams of salt. Morris likes to use extra-virgin rapeseed oil for its neutral flavor, and an electric mixer for ease.

The New York Times Style Magazine

Remember… there’s always been a comparison between the conflict in Northern Ireland and the conflict in Israel-Palestine. We talked about the divisive rhetoric that’s going on right now. — Oliver Jeffers

Anon: Thanks… didn’t see your message until 10 minutes after posting. 🙁

[drawingpad-studios]

You know,

Why hasn't anyone tried to make a redo game of SPR (or any of the Paper Roblox games series that are before SPR)? Like I know there was an attempt of an HD game version along with a few other cancelled things(from what I found and know of), but has no one else tried? Not even a written piece? A comic? Anything?

I mean when you think about it, the original creator doesn't own the story and the characters any more. So like it could happen without any like legal shit happening. And I don't mean a Story that is specifically said to be an AU or a continuation story where it builds off the original game's story. I mean a total redo with the same characters and possibly the same setting.

Like the shit a group of people already did with the storyline of the AF series, but with the Paper Roblox series storyline. Sure that AF game is probably a completely new game but still.

I mean, fuck it, if anyone wants/needs a writer for a SPR rewrite, I'm down as hell. I mean I'm already writing a novel length (due to me wanting equal chapter numbers per act and the first of the 3 acts ended up with about 12 chapters not including prologue and epilogue) continuation au fanfic, so I think I can down a full rewrite if someone wanted me too.

[systems-n-stims]

Vanilla cake headmate profile — Requested by: N/A

Name(s)- Vanella, Ciela, Brioche, Frostine, Dottie, Confetta, Marzie, Sugarbelle, Trixie, Blondie

Pronouns- She/Her/Herself, They/Them/Theirself, It/Its/Itself

Neopronouns- Van/Vanilla/Vanself, Vel/Velvet/Velvetself, Fluf/Fluff/Fluffself, Cream/Creamy/Creamself, Fros/Frost/Frostself, Spr/Spri/Sprinkle/Sprinkleself, Dot/Dottie/Dotself, Fun/Funfetti/Funfettiself, Swirl/Swirly/Swirlself, Sweet/Sweets/Sweetself

Gender(s)- Demigirl, Transfem

Xenogenders- Funfettigender, Confettigender, Sprinklegender, Vanillagender, Flufficakegender

Orientation- Unlabelled Sapphic

Age- Age slider 6-21

Species- Cake

Source- Vanilla cake with sprinkles

Role(s)- Soother, antidepressant

Personality traits/details- Bubbly, uses a lot of punctuation, often uses spaces between punctuation (Eg; “Hello ! How ‘ re you ?”)

Likes- Cake, talking, baking, soft colours and aesthetics, celebrations, glitter and sparkles, upbeat music, cute stationary, clouds

Dislikes- Bitterness (Both literal and emotional), being ignored, harsh criticism, loud and overwhelming noises, being rushed, unfinished or messy things, being taken for granted

Sign Off- 🍰🧁

Faceclaim-

[Alt text; This blog does not accept: Homophobes, transphobes, ableists, bigots, sexists, racists, endogenic antis, transmed, problematic twt groups, or anything similar]

[shadowphoenixrider]

Get To Know Me Game

Thank you @elfgirl931 for tagging me! ^^

Last song: Don't Stop the Music by Dave Rodgers (2019 remix), mostly it's the soundtrack inspiring a certain fanfic of mine where I weld X-Men, Star Wars and VR games together because I can

Favourite colour: I'm a sucker for red, honestly

Last book: I...do not remember! XD I think it was So Let Them Burn by Kamilah Cole. Very good, highly recommend. Currently reading The Rise and Fall of the Galactic Empire by Dr. Chris Kempshall, because I am a slut for Star Wars lore.

Last movie: Sonic the Hedgehog 3. Amazing film, really liked how the interpreted Sonic Adventure 2 into it. Teenage SPR would have lost her SHIT about this movie, and I'm happy for her.

Last TV show: Skeleton Crew! I watched its finale last night, and it was amazing! I'd definitely recommend it - it's aimed for kids, but there's stuff for adults too (there's an episode where less abled characters are taken care of by the other kids and my hEART)

Sweet/spicy/savoury: I have a sweet tooth, I think, but I have a liking for them all. Except spicy. I'm a wuss in that regard

Last thing I searched for online: What skin conditions glow under UV light. I was worried someone in our friend group was geniunely unwell until he added the additional information that he was painting with fluorescent paint. We were extremely annoyed that he hadn't led with that information first.

Current obsession: Coral Island. After modding the game so bug catching doesn't make me want to eat my own skin, it's very enjoyable and I'm happily losing hours to it. Also I'm still very obsession with an X-Men whose name begins with 'G' and ends in 'ambit'. I am not immune to that Cajun charm.

Looking forward to: The weekend, and also the release of Civ 7 in February.

Tagging: @starrypawz, @hello-i-am-ber and @manyothermusingsofmine (no pressure to any of you!)

[sweetdreamscafe]

December 1st

"There you are."

Sprinkles yelped and whipped around to face the source of the voice, allowing himself to relax upon seeing it. The speaker- Sandy- tilted his head and raised a brow; Sprinkles looked away quickly, embarrassed.

"I wasn't even trying to be quiet," Sandy chuckled as he closed the distance and met Sprinkles next to the window, "what's got your attention in sucha vice grip you can't hear someone callin' your name from the other room?"

Sprinkles laughed nervously, now even more embarrassed at just how spaced out he had been.

"I was just... thinking," Sprinkles said, voice barely above a whisper. He thought for a moment, then continued before Sandy could inevitably prompt him to. "Sandy is the name your trainer gave you, right?"

Sandy gave another questioning look regarding the direction of the conversation, but responded nonetheless.

"Sure is. Woulda been fine with somethin' else, but Sixes liked it, so I stuck with it."

"Did you have a different name before? Before your trainer, I mean."

Sandy hummed, thinking. A second before Sprinkles could retract the question, worried he overstepped in some way, Sandy answered.

"Not really. Didn't really interact with other cacturne much so there was never a reason for one. When I did group up I'd get a nickname tossed at me, sure, but most of 'em weren't exactly the nicest things. Certainly not names worth keeping."

"Oh." It came out more disappointed sounding than Sprinkles had really intended, but he's sure Sandy would've picked on it anyway.

"Did you?" Sandy asked without missing a beat. Sprinkles shouldn't have been surprised at how quickly Sandy got to the root of why Sprinkles had asked about Sandy's name, but he had been hoping for more time to think of how to answer.

"I... think so. I feel like I did, but I can't-" the words came out in fragmented sentences, spilled out as they came to mind without time to piece them together properly, "...quite remember it."

"That's silly, isn't it?" Sprinkles added on before Sandy had a chance to speak, "Not remembering my own name, I mean. But its just-"

"Its not silly." Sandy asserted. "You were pretty young when you got taken away from your pa, right?"

The question didn't need an answer, Sprinkles knew that Sandy already knew, but he nodded regardless. Sandy hummed once more, turning away as he grabbed for a chair positioned at a nearby table. The shrieking of the chair's legs against the floor made Sprinkles recoil, but it was only a few seconds before Sandy had positioned it- and, promptly, himself- next to Sprinkle's own seat.

"Well," Sandy started, leaning against the back of the chair, "It can already be hard to remember things from when you're that young. Trauma messes with memory too. Real nasty storm, there. Its no surprise some things got lost in the fallout."

Sprinkles knew these things already, but hearing someone say it made him feel better about it. Still...

"I just wish I could remember it."

"I get it. Feels like you ain't got nothing connecting you back to that time, don't it? Having a name to tie you back would make you feel like you had some kinda link back to your pa, right?"

Sprinkles hummed a quiet agreement, watching the snow fall silently. A buzz in his brain signaled a memory trying to surface, but attempts to bring it to attention presented nothing but white noise, memory clouded by a snow storm.

snow.

"Winter," Sprinkles sputtered, "it had something to do with winter. I hatched the first day it had snowed in the Glimwood Tangle for decades."

Sandy looked over to Sprinkles, listening carefully, and gave a gentle smile.

"You just remembered that?" Sandy asked, Sprinkles not having time to affirm before Sandy continued, "That's a good sign. Means the memory ain't completely gone, just lost."

Sandy rose to his feet and reached over to ruffle Sprinkles' hair.

"Just don't strain yourself trying to remember it, that won't help you none," Sandy turned to leave, ending with what he had sought Sprinkles out to tell him to begin with. "Shop's closed up, by the way. Get some rest, kid."

Sandy walked out of sight, leaving Sprinkles by himself. As he stared out the window to the snowy night, Sprinkles drifted into a slumber filled with dreams of black fur and white snow.