#the three of them are slowly becoming their colors respectively its kinda funny

[dailykugisaki]

Day 279 | id in alt

It bit him in the ass I'll say that much lmao (left to right)

[madame-fouquet]

2020 Anime Retrospective

With the end of the year here, and all the anime that came with it now behind us, I feel like looking back and reminiscing on it. So, following the style of ANN's own yearly retrospectives, may I present my 2020 anime in review! Enjoy.

Best of the year: Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken

    This is actually not the first time Yuasa and his crew of, let's be honest, visionaries have rolled something special out right at the beginning of the year in some weird power move against everything else that has to follow it. They did it back in 2018 with Devilman Crybaby, and then they hit us this year with Keep Your Hands Off Eizouken.     You ever have one of those shows where you're just constantly in awe of everything it does? Where you never found yourself chasing merch or hunting after content based off it online, but you consistently find yourself thinking about it? Yeah, that's what Eizouken did to my brain after I watched it. It was such an earnest love letter to anime and anime production, to animation in general, that I couldn't help but get sucked into its imagination and enthusiasm. The way it was able to so perfectly illustrate that pure, boundless, childlike joy that one can derive from the simple act of creating, I'd be lying if I didn't say that it had a powerful effect on my own desire to continue creating. (Corny as that sounds, it's true.) The sheer amount of love it contains, and the equal amount it puts out into the world make it so I know I am going to be thinking about it again and again for a long long time.

Runner-up: Akudama Drive

    I don't know if it's really quite a matter of my two favorites being opposites, but there are definitely some pretty sharp stylistic and tonal differences between my two top shows this year. Akudama Drive's cocaine-fueled bender of an intro episode made it very clear what it's intentions were and what it wanted us to be prepared for. That doesn't mean I had ANY idea of where it was headed narratively, but I did know I was in for one hell of a ride. And it delivered is spades on that promise.     The twists and turns, no matter how insane, illogical, or steeped in tropes they were, were all such a colorful energetic spectacle that it would be hard to hold anything against the series. Every character was such a force that I didn't really consider any of them a weak point. Yeah, some of them were more or less cardboard cut-outs of antagonistic elements, but when the cardboard cutout looks REALLY FREAKING COOL, it's hard to get too torn up over the details. It's a show that oozes style and knew EXACTLY what it wanted to do and be, and I have to respect that.

Runner-up-up: Toilet-Bound Hanako-kun

    The next few entries aren't really in any sort of order, I actually found it near impossible to sort anything below my top two. Hanako-kun however does hold a bit of a special place for me though because, at least from a stylistic standpoint, it hits so many of my buttons. Just visually this show is the exact kind of thing my younger self would have latched onto immediately, even before knowing anything about the actual content. I suppose not much has really changed though.     I'm absolutely in love with the animation style of Hanako-kun, and I got really lucky that there is an interesting story and delightful cast of characters underneath that visual splendor. Along with the sharp lines, intense colors, and soft characters, I'm also a sucker for contemporary supernatural mysteries. That's a fancy way of saying one of my favorite shows as a kid was The X-files, but both make the point pretty well. The world of Hanako-kun has a lot to offer, and I can only hope it gets a second season so we can continue to delve into it's beautiful and terrifying mysteries.

Runner-up-up: Kaguya-sama: Love is War Season 2

    I know a lot of people will be talking about this one when it comes to “Best of” lists. I know a lot of people were talking about the first season when it reminded us just how funny anime can be back in 2018. Absurd high school comedies (Is that a genre?) could definitely be considered my favorite. Hell, of my top five favorite anime of all time, THREE of them fall under that category. So believe me when I say Kaguya-sama absolutely deserves the deluge of praise it receives. For what describing something as “laugh out loud” is worth, this show had me constantly needing to pause it just so I could finish laughing at whatever ludicrously funny misfortune had just befallen it's cast of lovable morons.     The thing is though, Kaguya-sama understands that you can't just earn love and goodwill on laughs alone, there needs to be a beating heart at the center of all the shenanigans. And when this season had me actually cheering on and feeling sorry for Ishigami of all people, I knew that beating heart was present and accounted for. Look, the cast are all self-centered idiots, but I'll be damned if they aren't also my dear children who I delight in watching slowly grow and become slightly less self-centered idiots.

Runner-up-up: Dorohedoro

    When the Dorohedoro anime was first announced, a lot of my experience was watching a group of people online scream about how they were so pumped that it was finally getting an anime. I had never heard of it before, but the excitement was very real and tangible. And I gotta say, sometimes you need to believe the hype.     I've never been one to shirk a series just because it was CG animation, (Watch ID-0 dammit!) but Dorohedoro makes a strong case for why people shouldn't sleep on something based solely on it's animation. The dirty, grease-encrusted world of Hole is brought to life with plenty of flair and style that, I feel, the CG didn't hold back at all. What I had seen said was that for a long time Dorohedoro was kinda considered “unanimateable” but I think MAPPA did the iconic manga a fair amount of justice. Even if pulpy ultra-violence isn't normally your thing, I still highly recommend giving Dorohedoro a look, it might just end up being a hole worth going down.

Honorable Mention: Show By Rock!! Mashumairesh!!

    I know what you're thinking, but hear me out. The first Show By Rock!! was definitely an indulgence for me. While not something I considered a high level series by any stretch: messy plotting, shallow characters, a weird isekai angle, a lackluster finale, and an even MORE lackluster second season, it still got is hooks into me with its sheer energy and fluffy charm. So despite the, as mentioned, rough second season, I was more than happy to check out the new series in the franchise. And boy was I glad I did.     Mashumairesh!! takes all the heart and sweetness that worked for the first series and dials it up. It then took a hard look at a lot of what DIDN'T work in the first series, and manages to fix most of the issues. Removing the isekai angle and the whole existential threat thing, and just letting the series be a “slice-of-life but in an electric animal filled music world” did wonders for the direction and consistency. Add to that more properly fleshed out characters, and you get a series that is far stronger than it's progenitor.     The next series, Show By Rock!! Stars!!, will be adding back the cast from the first series, and that could very well be a sign that it will be falling back into its old habits, but the presence of the Mahumairesh!! girls gives me hope that it might have a chance of staying the new, far better course.

Worst of the Year: Digimon Adventure:

    This one really hurts to say. What hurt more was how quickly I knew what show I'd be electing for this position. One thing to clarify is that I would not nominate a series that I'd only watched one or two episodes of, that's just not fair. So the award was bound to go to something I had at least dedicated a decent amount of my time too. And in any other year this may have gone to something that was more my “least favorite” or had an ending that disappointed me. But unfortunately I have to be honest and sit here and tell you that the newest entry in the Digimon franchise was easily the worst thing I watched this year.      I have been a long time Digimon fan. Ever since I was but a wee lass watching the original Digimon Adventure premiere on Fox Kids at a family reunion, I have always considered the franchise a sort of cornerstone of my anime fandom. So please understand the excitement I had felt when I found out they were doing a full on remake of that flagship series. Imagine how absolutely pumped I was when the bombastic movie-like premiere of Digimon Adventure: wowed us with everything it delivered, and all the promises of what was to come. And then imagine my disappointment, my despair as the show devolved until it showed us what it really was during the finale of the Fake Tokyo arc.     I would call it a production meltdown, but considering the precedent that got set back in episode 10 during the already shaky Ultimate Evolution arc, has been so clearly informing everything up to the current episodes in the early 30s, I have to be honest with myself and admit: this is what we were going to get all along from day one.     All of the heart that had made the original series so endearing, despite its own flaws, just isn't present here. What you get here is just a non-stop (and I mean non-stop) string of barely related fights with poorly-defined stakes, or sometimes no real stakes at all. It's just one ugly set piece fight after another as the children chase after vaguely implied evils. I think the most damning thing is how much more I could say about just how much this series has let me down. Like I said, this one hurts.

Best Theme-Song of the Year: Night Running (BNA)

     My opinion of BNA as a series is complex. But my opinion of its ED, Night Running, is simple: Its a god-damned bop! I could spend this whole section talking about the artistry of the ED animation itself, its fun and creative use of color, the slight variations for certain episodes, the focus on character, or the fact that it was done by an American animation team. I could even talk about the song's importance to the series as a whole and its place in the narrative. I won't though. The fact of the matter is that even without all that, I STILL probably would've picked Night Running as my best of the year because as a song it is just that much my jam. This is the kind of shit I could listen to on repeat for hours, days, weeks, and still keep coming back to it. Don't get me wrong, Ready To is a damn powerful and catchy tune that goes hard, but at the end of the day, I'm a sucker for a soulful pop tune like Night Running. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WWTFfEnMCCc

Best Character: Sayaka Kanamori

    This was actually probably the hardest category for me to decide on. It was stuck hard between Eizoken's Kanamori and Akudama Drive's Doctor. I know those are a powerfully different pair in basically every way, but it was specifically for their startling differences that both characters stuck out to me so much. In the end though, it was the poignant rounding out of, and emotional hooks of Kanamori's character that let her triumph over her delightfully two-dimensional opposition.     Kanamori already had me from episode one. In a show that I wasn't really worried about the usual diversions of anime ingestion like picking a favorite character, Kanamori sealed herself as “Best-girl” from the word go. I have mad respect for a girl who knows what she wants, and has a clear idea of how she's going to go about getting it (See also: Doctor.) But Kanamori was more than a driving desire for success and money. Underneath her unstoppable ambition there was a very real, very relatable driving impetus. She stood apart, and yet still believably vulnerable and invested in the people she associated with. It was always a blast watching her suffer as the only thing keeping the more creative minds on track, and yet she was never reduced to a simple task master; her love and respect for her friends was always clearly visible. I could go on and on about how Kanamori is a nearly perfect character, but I hope I've said enough already without having to resort to senseless rambling.

Best Moment: Howan confesses her feeling to Himeko (Show By Rock!! Mashumairesh!!)

    By the time episode six rolled around, Mashumairesh!! had already shown marked improvements over its progenitor in basically every area. Not only was the story in a better place by focusing on what had worked in the original series, (Ya know the BAND part of this show about bands) but the cast was also doing a good job of standing out from their seniors and feeling more equally rounded out. Where the original series had just kinda been the Cyan show with guest stars, I felt like I had an actual grip on all four of the main girls now.     There were however the usual issues that come with a cute-girls-doing-cute-things series, chief among them the “ambiguously gay member of the group who constantly reacts with clear romantic interest towards the main protagonist but the writing will never actually do anything with those feelings” trope. Retoree had spent the better part of the first two seasons fawning over Cyan only for nothing to come of it and, despite the increased focus on all of the girls this time around, it looked like we were going to get the same old song and dance with Himeko's feelings towards Howan.     But then the climax of episode six hit and, midst a really intense subplot about Himeko's abandonment complex, Howan comes out with a straight up love confession. And I kept waiting for the usual dead-ends these moments always seem to have. The “I love you! I love the girls too! I love the band!” Or a “I love being with you.” and the dreaded, “I love having you as my most precious friend.” But none of that happened. It was a full on heart-felt, “I love you, Himeko. I want to stay with you forever!” I'm just not used to getting that sort of straightforwardness from my silly little band shows, so I was shocked, but also completely overjoyed. And frankly the series just kept getting better from there.     The evolution of their relationship built off that moment, no dreaded resetting of the status quo. I daresay it was on the power of this moment alone that I wanted to include this series in my top five at all. If there was anything I would want other anime to take from Mashumairesh!! it's that it's okay to introduce radical changes to character relationships partway through a season, and it's okay to let characters unequivocally state their feelings for each other. People will respond positively to that earnestness, I promise.

[subtlereferencetomyinterests]

Complexities Unknowable- Chapter Six

Ao3,    1     2     3     4     5    7,  MasterPost

Relationships: Deintruality, background Analogince

This is crazy long. But I like this one. Also, second to last chapter! Also also, i mention spinny hugs three whole times because I miss Hugs. I miss them. 

Warnings: Cursing, food mention, brief angst/arguing, someone digs their nails into their skin but like unintentionally, crying, Remus-typical jokes and comments (he has some pretty violent thoughts directed towards roman), very very brief alcohol mention (wine, cuz Jan’s Like That), uhhh lots and lots of hugging and fluff. And Janus is still called Deceit, for continuity reasons. lmk if I missed something.

Word Count: 3,657

Patton did end up visiting them- albeit several hours later. Deceit wasn’t quite sure how he felt as he watched Morality make himself at home in The Subconscious living room, but he was leaning towards happy. 

Though ‘make himself at home’, was a tad of a stretch, given all his uncomfortable fidgeting. Deceit could taste that there was something he wasn’t saying, but he didn’t have to wait long to see what it was.

“I- um- I brought you guys something-”

Of course he had.

“-as an apology.”

Wait, what?

Remus’ head shot up from where he was sifting through dvds, flashing Deceit a smug grin. Patton didn’t seem to notice as he elaborated.

“You guys have been so nice to me lately, even after I, uh, didn't exactly respect you as much as I should have. I didn’t give you enough credit for what you two contribute, and that was my bad, so here!” He waved his hand and an enormous, neatly folded quilt dropped into his lap. He stood from the couch, struggling to unfurl it.

Deceit’s eyes were saucers. The blanket was a spiral of triangles of lime green, pale yellow, and baby blue fabric. At its edges were small patches of violet, indigo, and red, along with a gray border and a large black circle in the middle of the spiral. Within that circle was the word ‘Family’, embroidered in vibrant rainbow colors.

“It’s okay if you can’t forgive me right away, but I just wanted you to know that you guys are part of my family now, as far as I’m concerned, and I-”

Remus threw himself at Patton with full-force, picking up the much taller side and twirling him around in what looked to be a crushing hug. Deceit remained silent and caught the quilt as it was flung from the two-side tornado. It was soft, smooth, warm. 

“When did you… how did you have the time to make this?”

Morality’s face was flushed and he laughed, bright and airy, as Remus finally let him down. 

“That’s what took me so long to get here! You guys invited me over, and I didn’t want to show up empty-handed. I know I’m not the most artistic, but I think I’m pretty good at sewing.”

He’d spent hours making them a quilt- by hand, when he could just have conjured it- so he could offer them this olive branch. After everything. Deceit was choked up, but he wasn’t sure which emotions in specific were clogging his throat. His voice didn’t sound like his when he spoke.

“I am also sorry!” So it was a little stilted, cut him some slack! It was hard to focus on being well-spoken and not lying at the same time,  “You are- No, you aren’t- solely at fault for our not at all strained relationship.” 

“What?” Patton didn’t seem to comprehend. Remus, who looked disgustingly proud of Deceit, translated for him.

“He’s saying that we’re also sorry for being giant cunts, thanks for the neat blanket, and let’s call it even?” 

The snake nodded in agreement. 

Patton’s eyes grew wide and his smile faded, leaving behind soft surprise. He clearly hadn’t expected any sort of forgiveness, which was both saddening and admirable. He was just a living teddy bear, wasn’t he?

With an exaggerated groan, Deceit placed the quilt to the side and stood, opening his arms. Remus cheered and caught him around the waist with his arm, pulling all three of them together for a tangled group hug. Deceit pretended to hate it, but it was very hard to.

After the two extremely affectionate traits finally got tired of squeezing the life out of him, Deceit extricated himself and determinedly ignored how hot his face had gotten. He curled up on the couch and held the bundled quilt to his chest protectively. Patton and Remus worked together to settle on a movie before joining him. The latter leaned in very close, whispering right against Deceit’s ear. 

“You think we can convince him into a threesome?”

Deceit turned the volume up twenty notches and sat next to Patton for the rest of the movie, out of spite.

It was hardly the last time Patton visited them. Deceit probably should have expected the clinginess from him, popping in daily to tell them about the latest happenings in The Conscious or show them a “““funny””” meme he’d seen on Facebook. Once that door of camaraderie had opened just a crack, the moral trait had enthusiastically torn it off its proverbial hinges. And the oddest thing was how little Deceit minded. 

Patton was, in many ways, like Remus. Energetic, imaginative, affectionate, and containing depths of emotions that you’d never guess he had at first glance. Some days, Morality would run in with bright markers and an even brighter smile to have Remus to teach him new art techniques. Other times, he’d shuffle to Deceit’s door late at night, eyes bloodshot, asking whisper-quiet for a cup of tea and to spend some time together. Those nights in particular stuck with the lying trait, when he would watch Patton’s expression slowly lighten as they chatted together, talking about everything and nothing.

Another bonus of all that had happened Logan, who had now become a friend to the former Dark Sides (Deceit was very thankful to be able to chat with someone else who was Competent). Never had Deceit been so glad that he was wrong about someone!

But, as he’d quietly admitted to both Morality and Logic just a couple nights ago, there was something missing. He hadn’t elaborated, but apparently he hadn’t needed to. Leading them to now.

When Remus and Deceit had been invited for breakfast that morning, they’d of course agreed (you just can’t say no to Patton’s puppy eyes), but they were quickly abandoned with Roman and Virgil by the two bespectacled sides. The blue-hued traits supposedly had a surprise and would be right back, but Deceit could taste the lie. Yet, constrained as he was by the societal expectation to not freak the fuck out when things didn’t go the way he liked, he waited patiently while refusing to make eye-contact with Anxiety.

But then his good-for-nothing despicable traitor of a boyfriend stood up.

“I’ll be right back, I’m going to go stand in the kitchen and wait for things to be less awkward!”

Roman, similarly the worst, jumped to his feet as well.

“And I left the stove on!” 

So now he was just. Staring at his ex-best friend. Which was fine. 

He took a sip of his drink.

“Are you drinking wine at nine in the morning?” Virgil asked suddenly. Deceit looked down at his own drink, then towards the identical wineglass sitting by the other’s plate. 

“Yes? Aren’t you?”

“This is apple juice,” he held the glass up and swirled it, earning a snicker from Deceit. 

“Why are you drinking apple juice from a wine glass?” 

“Why are you drinking wine at nine in the morning?” 

He jerked his thumb in the direction of the kitchen, brow raised in a silent explanation: I’ve got that one, remember? Virgil nodded solemnly, a smile playing at his lips. With that minuscule, vaguely pleasant interaction, they returned to silence.

“Patton sure is taking his sweet time,” Deceit thought it only fair that he be the one to break the quiet this time, just so they were even.

“Something tells me it’s gonna be a lot longer. It’s kinda obvious what he’s doing.”

“Mm. Subtlety is not one of his virtues. It’s a nice gesture, though,” the lack of hostility in the conversation was beginning to irk him. It was almost nice. God, he’d missed it, he hated how he’d missed it.

“Yeah…” Virgil glanced away and shifted in his seat, “Yeah. He’s nice.”

“I agree.”

“Look,” the anxious side set his glass down, “Pat’s my best friend, so I’m doing this for him. I think he’s been kinda lonely lately, and I feel... responsible. Like, he’s not into me or Ro and Lo, and we aren’t either, but it’s- it’s not the same now, the four of us. And it’s pretty obvious that you guys make him happy- he talks about you all the time- so I’m giving you this one chance. Don’t fuck it up, and don’t you dare hurt him.”

Deceit blinked, blindsided. Sincerity got to him, it got under his skin and tore apart his quick wit like it was paper. He had to clear his throat a couple of times before any actual words came to him.

“I won’t repeat my past mistakes. I-” he nearly shuddered, “I promise it.”

Virgil seemed appeased, his expression easing into something more familiar (painfully familiar and new all at once). His lips quirked up in a smug smirk.

“Good. Didn’t wanna have to nudge you down a staircase, anyway.” 

Deceit chuckled. From there, the conversation flowed almost naturally. It wasn’t like old times. Maybe that was a good thing. It wasn’t quite friendly, not yet, but there was an impression. If he played his cards right, if he stayed genuine, then it would be. Soon. And that was enough for now.

Remus scrambled to the top of the fridge and loomed over his brother. He was, for once, not the first to talk. 

“So we wait it out in here until Sherlock and Watson get back from whatever it is that they’re pretending to do-”

“Which is when Snakey and Virgey kiss and make up-”

“Which will be never,” Roman concluded, sitting on the counter. He idly smoothed down his already meticulously styled hair (vain bitch). Remus picked a flea from his own scalp and flicked it at him spitefully, but it went unnoticed. Just like everything he did. 

“I don’t know why they couldn’t have let me in on their little scheme, I shouldn’t have to be between that situation.”

Remus laughed wickedly, a noise with very little mirth and a whole lot of frustration. 

“Mhm, yeah- you’re just a saint, getting along with everybody! You haven’t got a single problem to work out!”

“I didn’t say that,” Roman replied indignantly, “I know that Deceit and I don’t have a great history, but we get along fine now.”

Unbelievable. No- it was completely fucking believable! Remus should just hit him, tear his arms off and beat him with them, pull out the ol’ morning star and smash his brother’s skull in. How stupid he’d been to think that this could be fixed. Roman was impossible. No matter how hard Remus tried, he’d never get anywhere, no matter how supportive Patton was.

“Whoah, you okay?”

The Duke blinked, staring down at the angry, crescent-shaped marks that he’d clawed into his arms unknowingly. He tilted his head to stare at the other Creativity. 

“Not really, no!” 

Roman seemed taken aback. He leaned up and rested his arms on top of the fridge beside Remus.

“Don’t let Patton see you do that, he’ll have a fit,” he joked, reaching up to grab Remus’ hands. The Intrusive trait scrambled away to the other edge of the appliance.

“Don’t tell me what to do, and don’t pretend to care about what I do!” 

“What? What are you-” Roman cut himself off, his face clouding with realization, “Oh.”

“What is it now?” 

“I- I’m supposed to talk to you, aren’t I?” 

Remus stared at him for a long, thoughtful moment. He then erupted into cackles, spitting laughs out like it was the only thing stopping him from breaking down (it was). 

“Oh, whatever. Don’t pretend you don’t hate me just for Patty’s sake.”

Roman hopped off the counter, standing in front of the fridge with arms crossed. He looked angry- but not angry at Remus? That was new. New and weird. 

“You think I hate you?”

“I know you hate me, Roro,” he pulled himself to the edge of his platform, swinging his legs out in front of him. 

“Do you hate me?”

Remus wasn’t quite sure how to answer that one. It was fine, because Roman didn’t wait for a response anyway.

“Get down here.”

“Why should I?” 

“So I can- so we can- Ugh, just get down!”

The Duke got down. Curiosity killed the cat, after all (or the cephalopod, as the case may be). 

Once within his reach, Roman threw his arms open and wrapped Remus up in a fierce hug.

Remus swayed, suddenly very dizzy. Was the world always this blurry? No, no, maybe he was crying? Or maybe he’d gone blind? It didn’t matter either way, all that mattered was that someone was hugging him. Willingly. 

“You’re my brother,” Roman hissed,  “You annoy the hell out of me. And we don’t get along much. And we fight, a lot, but it wasn’t ever anything more than that. I didn’t mean for it to be more than that. You’re my brother-”

“You already mentioned that part-”

“Shush!”

He shushed.

“I don’t hate you. How could I?”

Oh. Well. Hm. That changed things.

Remus’ awareness jolted back into him then. He lifted Roman off the ground with ease and spun around in wide circles, smiling with all of his teeth (which said a lot; he had quite the array of teeth). He held on like his brother would disappear if he let go, conjuring more limbs for the express purpose of holding on tighter.

“Rem!” 

“Yeah, bro?” his voice was giddy, and distinctly wobbly, but that was irrelevant. He spun again.

“I- I’m very glad that we’re having this bonding moment, but I think you broke my ribs.”

“Oh, oops,” Remus let go immediately, dropping Roman to the floor. He offered a shrug in apology.

“Oh yeah, I don’t hate you either, by the way.”

“I assumed so,” Roman wheezed, using the counter to pull himself back to his feet. He gave Remus a lopsided smile.

“It’s good we don’t hate each other. Now I don’t have to knock you out whenever I wanna hang out with Patty.”

“Yeah, that is a relief.”

“Wow, we’re good at this whole reconciliation thing! Let’s go rub it in Vee and Dee’s emotionally constipated faces!” In mere minutes Remus already forgot what being sad felt like. Life was good and he had no problems anymore! 

“We probably should make sure they haven’t killed each other,” Roman held a hand out, which Remus grabbed gleefully.

“Ugh! Why are you always sticky?!”

“Do you really want the answer to that?”

“Abso-fucking-lutely not.”

They returned to the dining room, hand-in-hand, only to find their respective boyfriends having a perfectly civil conversation. 

‘Coincidentally’, as soon as Remus and Roman resumed their places at the table, Patton and Logan rose up with an enormous stack of stunningly fluffy pancakes. They shared a secretive smile- as though they genuinely believed that nobody knew what they’d done. Deceit didn’t correct them, but only because he hardly wanted to admit that they’d been successful (maybe it was just him that was bad at making plans; everybody else seemed to have it down). 

Breakfast was short. Deceit could’ve just finished eating a five course meal and he’d still find it hard not to wolf down Patton’s cooking, especially his breakfast food.

And naturally, Deceit offered to help clean up, which had also been a quick task. He’d just dried his hands and flashed Morality a small smirk, turning to leave. He didn’t get far before Remus grabbed his arm and swung them both back into the kitchen. 

“Before we leave, aren’t we forgetting something, DeeDee?” 

Patton set down the last plate and shot them a confused look.

“I haven’t the slightest clue what you mean, dearest,” Deceit claimed, pointedly not looking at either of them. Patton was growing progressively more bemused.

“Did you lose something again, Re?” 

“I haven’t, but Dee seems to have lost his manners.”

The dishonest trait threw his arms up and groaned. If he was only a tad less in love, he’d have decked that look off of Remus’ face.

“Alright! Patton, from the bottom of my heart, thank you!”

“What are we thanking him for?” Remus needled.

“Everything,” he’d intended it to come out biting and sarcastic, and was disgusted to find his voice laced with sincerity, of all things! 

There was most certainly an adoring, proud look on Patton’s face. He was looking away, he did not see it. 

“Oh, you two,” he still heard him though, rambling on, “It was just the least I could do!” 

Remus made a noise. It was loud and completely unintelligible, but with a general air of happiness. And, for what was very much not the first time, Deceit was crushed in an over-enthusiastic threeway hug with no means of escape. He hissed, the noise dying on his lips as soon as he saw the wide and excited grins on both Patton and Remus’ faces that were very, very close. 

Morality really had done something amazing for them- something that Deceit had hoped for for ages. Now the side just looked so happy with himself, with what he’d done, and with them.

Deceit looked between Remus and Patton. 

The human half of his face was burning. 

He looked again, just to be sure. 

Those were definitely the same feelings, huh? Oh fuck. 

“You guys are just too much,” Patton laughed, clearly unaware of Deceit’s impending emotional crisis. His hold around Deceit’s waist had tightened, and with little warning, both him and Remus were no longer on the ground.

The former Dark Sides caught eyes. The red of Remus’ face contrasted dramatically with the green of his apparel. 

Double fuck. 

Patton had clearly mistaken their stunned silence as uncomfortableness, letting them down gently and stepping back.

“Sorry, I got a little carried away.”

“It’s fine!” Was Deceit’s voice always that shrill?

“Yeah, don’t worry about it! But we have to go, right now- important, mysterious things to do! You know us, pure villainy!”

“Yes, that, what he said!”

They sunk out.

It was quiet as they appeared in The Subconscious. Remus looked at his boyfriend. Deceit was staring back, but his mind was very clearly miles elsewhere.

“So. We should maybe talk about that.”

The trait opened his mouth to speak, still looking rather dazed, but Remus interrupted him.

“I swear to God, babe, if you say ‘talk about what?’, or ‘oh, Dear, I have no idea what you mean,’ I am going to rip your esophagus out with my teeth and swallow it.”

Deceit’s mouth snapped shut, then open, then shut. He shuffled over to the couch and proceeded to drop onto it like a ragdoll.

“I think I have feelings for Patton.”

Remus sighed in relief and flopped down next to him, draping his arms across the shell-shocked snake side. 

“Glad we’re on the same page.”

“You’re happy?”

He thought the question over carefully, and an absolutely terrifying possibility occurred to him.

“Yeah- I- we are on the same page, right? Like, he’s super cute and nice and fuckable, but you and I still…?” he let himself trail off. There were very few things that Remus struggled to say, but the thought that two of his favorite people would move on from him- together, no less- was both wildly horrifying and too familiar to verbalize. 

Deceit snapped out of his stupor long enough to glare angrily at Remus- more specifically, glare at the train of thought that he knew Remus was following.

“I’ll always love you, you idiot. Nobody and nothing will change that.”

Remus smiled- not a grin, but a smile- and exhaled slowly. Good, back on track.

“I love you, too. Right, now what do we do?”

“...Do?”

The Duke sat up straight enough to bonk his head against Deceit’s, eliciting a small ‘ow’. 

“Yes, ‘do’; when people have feelings for each other they do something about it- especially when that person is their friend. Unless you were planning on ignoring this, pushing it down, and going back to keeping Patton at arm’s length, which would ruin a perfectly good relationship in an effort to not ruin that relationship. Was that what you wanted to do?” 

“Well when you put it like that... No.”

“Alright, my pretty little liar, what do you want?”

Deceit hid his face in Remus’ neck. His muffled voice said something sounding a lot like ‘I have no fucking clue’.

“I can tell you what I’d like?”

More muffled noises: translation ‘If you say threesome I’m going to end you’.

“No- well, yeah- but I meant that we should woo him!”

Deceit pulled back to squint up at Remus.

“Woo him?”

“This whole conversation, you’re just a broken record- yes, do, yes, woo! We could be a throuple!”

The Duke saw Deceit very nearly say ‘throuple?’, before deciding to actually contribute to the discussion.

“I will admit, that sounds… alright, it sounds lovely. In theory. Do you really think that’s a good idea, though? Why should we risk it- we’ve only just fixed things, why go breaking them again?”

“So if Patton isn’t interested, he’s not going to be friends with us anymore, either? Does that sound like something he’d do?”

“Well- not really- but-”

“Who was right about making friends with him in the first place?”

Deceit glowered, answering begrudgingly.

“You were. But still-”

“Who was right about fixing things with Virgil?”

“... You.”

His gaze remained hesitant, so Remus continued.

“And who’s going to be right about this, when the three of us are all sucking face?”

Deceit dropped his head back against the couch and closed his eyes.

“Why do you keep being helpful? I’m supposed to be the smart one in this relationship.”

“Trust me babe, I hate it too,” Remus sympathized, “D’you want me to go microwave some silverware? You can brag to Logan about single-handedly saving my life from the explosion!”

The dishonest side smirked, leaning forwards once more to peck Remus’ cheek. 

“That’s an awful idea, my love.”

Tags:

@deceits-left-glove​ 

@princemesscharming

@shrimp-crockpot

[a-bit-too-much-of-a-zelda-fan]

LinkedUniverse Fanfiction Ch. 16: A Sailor and a Ranch Hand Walk into a Store

Stop! You’ve Violated the Law!

So, you’ve stumbled upon this original post for my Linked Universe fanfiction. That’s okay, it happens to everyone. As of March 2021, I’ve uploaded the entirety of this fanfic to my Archive of Our Own page. Along with finally giving the story a name–Oops! All Links: A Linked Universe Story–I made substantial edits to some of the chapters. These range from minor stylistic revisions to fixing a gaping plot hole that kinda completely broke the character conflict in the earlier chapters. I also renamed and renumbered (but not reordered) the chapters. Specifically, this is now Chapter 18: A Sailor and a Ranch Hand Walk Into a Store

The AO3 iterations of these chapters are the definitive versions. So, if you would like to read this fanfiction, please do so on AO3, right here. With this embedded link. Hehe. Geddit? Link?

Note: My screen name on AO3 is FrancisDuFresne. Yes, that is me. I am not plagiarizing myself.

Anyway, for posterity’s sake, the rest of the original post is below the cut.

Oof, it’s finally done. I’ll try to not let 3-month hiatuses become the norm... The last we saw our heroes, Wind and Twilight ended up in a treasure teller’s shop trying to earn back the money Wind’s missing wallet held. Thus begins the next chapter of my @linkeduniverse fan narrative.

Word Count: 2666

The Links started and whirled around, their hands flying to the hilts of their swords. The heroes scanned the front of the store for the source of the voice. No one seemed to be there. They drew their swords. Sunlight pouring through the high windows danced on the polished blades. A disembodied voice almost always meant bad news.

Suddenly, there was movement in the dark corner. The Links turned it face it. A pale, wrinkled hand seemed to appear out of nowhere and reached up. It drew back a veil to reveal a wizened old woman. Her sparse, stark white hair was pulled back into a loose bun. She looked positively ancient. She stepped forward.

Wind and Twilight stepped back. They now saw that her long robes matched the design of the walls. The same beads of the curtain made up the numerous necklaces and bracelets she wore. Twilight silently cursed himself for not seeing her before. She parted her thin lips in an unsettling smile. “Now, now, young men,” she continued in her dreamy drawl, “this is no place for swords.”

As the woman slowly walked around the heroes to her counter, they exchanged a quick look they understood as “don’t let your guard down,” and carefully sheathed their weapons. Now behind the counter, the woman eased herself onto a stool they hadn’t noticed either. It seemed the same wallpaper was painstakingly applied to the stool.

Leaning her elbows on the counter and resting her chin on crossed fingers, she stared through them. “Or, at the very least, no place for swords pointed at me. Now… how may I help you boys?”

Wind stepped forward. “You think you can scare us like that an—”

Twilight silenced his partner with a sharp nudge. After a fierce glare down at him, he turned back to the shopkeeper. “What my friend here means is ‘why were you hiding from us?’”

“Well…” she drawled, “I do quite enjoy getting a good… read… of my guests.”

“By hiding in the corner and spying on us while we waited for someone to come?” Wind shot.

The woman smiled again. “Yes.”

“You’re lucky we’re disciplined swordsmen,” Twilight said. He discreetly checked his pocket again. His wallet was still there. “We were about a second away from skewering you.”

“Heheheh,” the woman chuckled. “Yes, yes, very lucky indeed.”

Wind considered their options. Leave the store with no rupees or deal with this hag and maybe turn a profit. He decided to feign friendliness. “Well, ma’am, I think we got off on the wrong foot,” he said, offering his hand. “I’m Link, and this is…”

Twilight didn’t hesitate a beat before he finished, “Colin.”

The less she knows about us, he figured, the better.

The woman extended her skeletal, liver-spotted left hand to shake. Wind stared at it for a second. Left hand? he thought. Did she notice how we hold our swords?

The elder of the heroes nudged the younger again. Wind retracted his right hand and extended his left. He awkwardly shook the woman’s hand. Her grip was much stronger than he had expected. She then turned to Twilight. They shook left hands as well. Seemingly content, she crossed her fingers and rested her chin on them again.

There was an awkward silence for a few seconds before Wind asked: “And your name is…”

“Madame Wondra Spectrula Viliafore.”

Another moment of quiet. Twilight decided he needed to keep the exchange rolling smoothly. “Pleased to meet you, Madame Viliafore.”

“Mmm… yes, likewise. Now, I believe you boys are here for a reason?” she asked.

“Yes,” Twilight said. “We have a few trinkets you may want to take off our hands.”

Madame Viliafore’s eyes opened just a bit wider. “Ooh, I do like trinkets. Let us see them.”

Wind tore his skeptical eyes from the old woman and rummaged in his spoils bag. Looking between what was essentially junk and actual quality treasure, he decided to start small and work upward. He grabbed one of the butterfly pendants. It really was garish. After a closer look, Wind could see why no one but that one teacher would like them. He placed it on the counter.

The skeletal hands gingerly picked up the necklace. The old woman inspected the pendant. Her nose wrinkled even more than it naturally was. Wind winced. She lowered the necklace and eyed Wind condescendingly. “Three,” she said with mild disgust; the dreaminess was gone from her voice.

“Deal,” Wind accepted. He was eager to take whatever he could get. He reached into his bag and retrieved the other six. Madame Viliafore raised an eyebrow higher into the folds of her forehead. She snatched them and, with the one already in her hands, placed them at one end of the counter.

Twenty-one… Twilight counted. He didn’t want this woman to pull a fast one on them.

“Anything else?” Madame Viliafore asked. Her voice was floaty again. “Anything less… common?”

Wind nodded. This time, he knew he had to gain her respect. Nothing too fancy, though. He pulled out five colorful feathers by their shafts. He gently placed then on the counter and fanned them out as if doing a magic trick. “These,” the youngest hero started with a dramatic flair, “are tailfeathers of the Helmaroc King, a magnificent and regal bird native to the Great Sea.”

Madame Viliafore picked up one of the feathers and scrutinized it. Sunlight played off the vibrant vane. Spring green faded into turquoise, then sunset orange, dandelion yellow, and finally brilliant gold. It seemed to glitter in the light. Wind was sure these were a step up from the awful butterfly pendants.

The Links waited in silence as the old woman inspected the feather. She turned it over in her hands, running her fingers gently across the smooth barbs. By the way her eyes widened a fraction of an inch, the heroes could tell she was interested. She set it down and carefully looked over the other four. She looked up at Twilight and Wind. “Thirteen each,” she said declared, her voice lacking its dreaminess once again.

Wind nodded. After all the grief the Helmaroc King put him and his family through, he was glad to be rid of the plumes. Twilight quickly crunched the numbers in his head. Eighty-six. Madame Viliafore moved her new spoils next to the chintzy necklaces. She rested her elbows on the counter once more, this time tapping her fingertips together slowly.

After a beat, Wind realized she was eagerly awaiting his next offer. Twilight looked on. He noted how wildly her demeanor changed. Clearly, the floaty dreaminess was a façade, and she was actually a thrifty businesswoman. Wind looked in his bag, reached in, then pulled out another necklace. This one was a set of jet-black pearls strung together on an ornate bronze chain.

This time, Madame Viliafore seemed genuinely interested. She leaned forward and snatched the necklace out of Wind’s hand. He seemed about to protest this rudeness, but Twilight nudged him again. Wind locked eyes with his partner. Even after their conversation in the street, he still felt like he was being treated like a little kid. He decided that problem could wait. For now, though, they needed rupees.

Madame Viliafore looked over the necklace as meticulously as she had the others. She was clearly interested, by the way she worked the pearls through her bony fingers. She raised it up to catch the sunlight, then gently lowered it to the counter. The Links waited with bated breath. At least, she spoke. “This one is a sight to see, my dearies…” she drawled. Then, with her deadpan voice, “Fifty.”

The Links exchanged another glace and a barely noticeable shrug. Wind turned back to the old woman. “Deal,” he assented.

“Heh heh heh…” she chuckled. It sounded as if she was expelling dust from her ancient lungs. “I assume you have more, Mister Link? More you weren’t showing until I gave a price?”

Wind stood and stared for a moment. She had figured out his tactic. Twilight knew she would figure it out instantly, but he gave Wind credit for drawing it out so long. The younger of the heroes didn’t take his eyes off the woman as he pulled an identical necklace from his pouch.

Madame Viliafore chuckled again. “Naturally, naturally… you do seem wise… for a child.”

This time, Wind forced himself to restrain a retort. He could feel Twilight’s eyes on him. “Funny,” he said through gritted teeth, “I’ve been told I’m more courageous than wise or powerful.”

Not bad, kid, Twilight thought as he flashed a grin. He resumed his counting. One eighty-six.

The old woman took the second pearl necklace from Wind’s outstretched hand and put it beside the other spoils. She went back to tapping her fingers together. Twilight noticed her eyes were wider than before; she knew they had more treasure up their sleeves. He hoped his partner could deliver.

Looking in his bag, an orange glimmer caught Wind’s eye. He smiled, reached in, and pulled out a solid chunk of amber. It was so large that it could only barely fit in his hand. Trapped in the center of it was a perfectly preserved horned beetle. Madame Viliafore’s eyes lit up as bright as the stone. “My, my… what do we have here?”

“Goron’s Amber,” Wind said suavely, or at least his best preteen attempt at it. He held it up to the light and an orange shadow fell upon the counter. “Fossilized tree sap so flawlessly preserved you can clearly see this eons-old beetle.”

The teller gazed upon the amber, mesmerized. She had stopped tapping her fingers, now pressing them stiffly together. She seemed to be restraining herself from snatching it out of the young hero’s hand. The Links exchanged a quick grin, knowing they had her in the palm of their hands.

Madame Viliafore stared for a few seconds more, then extended her hands slowly. Wind lowered the amber to her. He let go only when he knew she had it securely. He didn’t want their pièce de résistance shattering on the hardwood floor. Still, her hands dropped a fraction of an inch from its weight. Wind’s heart skipped a beat. The stone didn’t fall.

Twilight noticed a change in the woman. She seemed too awed by the amber to remember either of her façades. With a barely perceptible shake of her head, Madame Viliafore snapped out of her reverie. She looked up from the amber at the Links. She looked back down, then back up. Twilight couldn’t read her expression. “Well, dearies,” the old woman breathed, “you truly have caught my interest…”

The two young heroes glanced at each other again. Wind grinned. Twilight nodded. They looked back to Madame Viliafore. She looked them over in turn. “Eight hundred,” she said finally. Her voice was a confused sort of mixture between her two personas.

“Seriously?” Wind exclaimed. All that for a chunk of amber was a steal. Twilight was about to nudge his partner to mind his manners but was interrupted by the woman.

“Not enough?” she asked. “Fine, fine, nine hundred. No more.”

Wind turned to Twilight. The young seafarer’s eyes were gleaming. Twilight nodded. Wind turned to the woman. “Deal.”

Madame Viliafore perked up. She clearly hadn’t made such a trade in a long while. She gently lowered the amber onto the counter next to everything else she had purchased. Her eyes lingered on it a moment before she looked back to the two heroes. Falling back into her dreamy drawl, she continued, “And anything else for me, my dearies?”

Twilight didn’t wait for Wind’s assent before answering. “No, that will be all.” He crunched the numbers in his head. “I believe you offered one thousand eighty-six rupees for all these.”

The old woman’s face fell; she clearly wanted more treasure from them. Still, she withdrew a key from among the many necklaces she wore and inserted it into a drawer behind the counter. She withdrew three gold rupees, one silver, one purple, one red, three blue, and one green. Twilight grinned as she dropped them into his outstretched hand. He glanced down to his partner, who beamed back at him.

“Thank you, Madame,” Twilight said with a slight bow. “Pleasure doing business with you.”

“Yeah, thanks!” Wind added.

Madame Valiafore looked the heroes up and down again. To Twilight, it seemed she was wondering just who and what they were. How did they come across these treasures? Why was a boy so young armed with a sword and shield? Were they friends, or brothers, or something else? He realized how unusual they must seem to ordinary folk and found he couldn’t blame her for being so interested in them.

“Farewell, Colin,” she drawled. “Farewell, Link. It was a pleasure.”

The Links smiled, turned, and exited. Wind found himself squinting in the morning sun; the store had been rather dim. He turned to Twilight. His friend was fitting the rupees into his own wallet. A thought struck him. “Hey Twi?” he ventured. “Why did you say your name is Colin?”

Twilight glanced back at the storefront as they walked away. “Something about that hag put me on edge. I figured the less she knew about us, the better. It is very unusual that we share our name.”

“I guessed that much, but why Colin?”

“Oh,” he said. “That. One of the boys from my village is named Colin.”

“Ah,” Wind replied. He assumed Twilight was finished so was surprised when he continued.

“Colin…” Twilight almost whispered. His mind flashed with images of Colin, from his hometown to Kakariko Village to the Bridge of Eldin… to his friend bound to a war staff, to fighting furiously on horseback to save him. He shook his head to clear it. “His father practically raised me, so in a way, I suppose we’re… brothers, almost.”

The older of the two looked down to the younger to see him wide-eyed and smiling. For a moment, Twilight couldn’t help but see Colin in his other self. He returned the smile and ruffled Wind’s hair. “That was a good show back there,” he said.

“Thanks.” Wind hooked his thumbs in his belt as he walked. “I was put off by that woman, too. What do you think her deal is?”

Twilight crossed his arms. “Honestly, I think she’s just a weird old coot. She never tried to pull something over on us and paid what she promised.”

“What about the shaking hands thing?”

Both Links instinctively flexed their left hand. “Hm,” Twilight began. “She may have noticed how we held our swords, or she could have been a lefty herself.”

“Ya know, it wouldn’t surprise me if she did it to maintain her mystique. I bet you that isn’t even her real name.” Wind snorted. “ ’Madame Viliafore?’ Yeah, right.”

Twilight chuckled. “I’ll keep my rupees, thanks,” he conceded. It was a silly name.

The two Links shared a laugh. When Wind sobered up, he looked up at the late morning sky. Twilight mentioning rupees stirred a thought in his head. “Twi?”

“Hm?”

“Are you still mad at me for losing my wallet?”

Twilight shrugged. “Well, I was.”

Wind was still looking skyward but glanced at his friend in his peripheral vision. Was? he thought.

“You were irresponsible, and it was a hassle earning back the rupees, but we’re eight hundred rupees richer than we were yesterday. I can’t really stay mad about that.”

The youngest hero let out a sigh. His partner exhaled sharply through his nose and grinned. “Don’t take that as permission to lose your wallet again,” he joked.

“Alright, alright,” Wind waved Twilight off. “I’m sorry. It’s done and over now, though.”

“Yup. Time to buy potions.”

“Ugh, I forgot about that.”

Wind’s shoulders slumping and Twilight’s acute senses relaxing, the two continued their search for an apothecary. Hopefully, Twilight mused, our friends have had an easier morning.

[laulink]

hello again! i sent that last ask, and i think you just wrote a story! i liked how everything worked out and the roles that the characters continue to play in each other's lives. it got me thinking of more questions that mainly involve the romance itself. when did they start dating, who made the first move, who proposed, how did Ghira and Kali react to meeting Weiss, how many kids do they have, and anything else you can think of. i hope this isn't too much trouble!

Not at all ! Honestly, I’ve been spending waaayyyyy too much time thinking about all this so it’s nice to see that someone is interested in hearing more x)

(putting my answer under a read more though because it’s HUGE)

For when they start dating, it kinda depends if I want to stay really canon compliant or if I want to have Weiss and Blake start dating earlier. I can stay canon compliant by having Blake and Yang grow apart at the end of the war, each pursuing different goals while Blake and Weiss start spending more and more time together because of the SDC and the WF. Blake and Yang would end up agreeing that the war changed them, a lot, but now that it’s over and they’re healing, they realise that they’re better off as friends rather than lovers and have an amicable break up. Pretty soon after, Blake starts to notice more things about Weiss, like how she plays with her hair when she’s thinking, how she bites her lower lip when something is bothering her, how her eyes sparkle when she sees or hears something funny, etc... and slowly she falls in love. Weiss has had a crush on Blake for years now, since their time in Beacon, but she never told anyone because she knew Blake had feelings for Yang and she just wanted her to be happy, even if it hurt her to see her with someone else. But now that Blake and Yang have broken up and Blake spends so much time with Weiss, our dear heiress’ feelings come back full force and she can’t help but hope that her feelings might be reciprocated...

One evening after a party in Vacuo both of them attended for political reasons, Blake accompanies Weiss back to her hotel room. They both had a couple drinks during the evening and are under a slight buzz, laughing more easily than usual. When they finally arrive at Weiss’ room, they stand in front of the door a moment too long, not wanting to part just yet. No one knows who leaned in first, but they soon found themselves kissing, softly at first, then more and more passionnately. They decided to stop, however, aware that it wouldn’t do them any good to go too fast, and agreed to meet in the morning for breakfast, then parted ways with one last kiss. Both of them had very pleasant dreams that night~

After that, they decided to start dating and see where it would lead them.

If I decide to be less canon compliant, I think I’d have Blake and Weiss start dating during V6 or 7, support each other through Adam’s death and all the Atlas and Schnee family bullshit going on right now. It wouldn’t change a lot of things for the story and, at the end of the war, they’d start working on rebuilding their world together, with the SDC and the WF.

Whatever the way and moment they get together though doesn’t have much influence on the rest of their story together. For example, in both cases, Kali and Ghira were delighted to know that Blake had started dating Weiss. They met her briefly at Haven and considered her a delight to talk to, very kind, respectful and polite, but with a sharp tongue when needed. Ghira is particularly fond of her since Weiss is hard to intimidate, knows what she wants and can be very determined, but also open to discussion and adjusting her stance on a multitude of matters. Kali likes to act like a mom around her (though she’s the same with Ruby and Yang too, so nothing really special there).

Winter, if Weiss and Blake started dating in Atlas, would be a bit suspicious of Blake at first. She respects her sister’s decisions and wouldn’t dare interfere in her love life, but she still has a bit of a tendency to see Weiss as her baby sister, so she’d give Blake a bit of a hard time at first, using every opportunity she gets to interrogate her on her intentions toward Weiss, why she wanted to date Weiss and all that stuff. Yang finds it hilarious but can also relate and supports Winter as a protective big sister x) If Weiss and Blake start dating after the war though, it would be a context where Winter had had time to get to learn to know Blake and saw Blake’s and Weiss’ growing feelings for each other, so she’d be a lot more supportive of the new relationship and only threaten Blake’s life if she broke Weiss’ heart as a joke (or is it ? =P).

At whatever time the girls start dating, Willow and Whitley would be rather supportive. If it’s in V7 already, they wouldn’t know right away and would only learn about the relationship after they started fixing their relationships with Weiss, so they’d be surprised, but would see how happy Blake makes Weiss, so they’d wish them the best. If it’s after the war, it would be at a point in time where Willow and Whitley are rather close to Weiss and have good relationships with her, so they’d be even more supportive and encourage her to pursue Blake in their own ways (Whitley may or may not try to play matchmaker =3)

The proposal would occur a few years after the end of the war, probably around 3 years after Weiss and Blake started dating. Remnant is getting back on its feet, the SDC is getting ever closer to the point of equality between human and Faunus Weiss wants it to reach and the Kingdoms are more and more open to listening to the White Fang and giving Faunus citizens more rights. Blake and Weiss both figure it would be the best time to get married. They had already talked about it a year or so earlier, but both agreed it would be best to wait until things settled down a bit more for both of them before they decided to throw themselves into organising a wedding. So when the time finally seems to be right, it is all a matter of who will propose first. They are both sort of expecting the other to propose sooner or later, but Weiss is still enchanted and overwhelmed by emotion when Blake goes down on one knee after a romantic date in a quiet park in Vale, near New Beacon. The wedding is held in Atlas because most of their friends and family live their or near the Kingdom and it’s easier to reach than Menagerie, but the girls make sure to incorporate elements of both traditional Atlesian and Mistralian weddings (since I headcanon that Blake, with the name Belladonna and her Japanese aesthetics, is of Mistralian descent and would follow their traditions for ceremonies like weddings). It is not a quiet or private affair since Weiss and Blake are such important public figures and their wedding is one more ray of hope toward the end of the centuries old war between humans and Faunus, but they still manage to have their dream day without having to mix too much politics into it (Ghira, Kali, Willow, Winter and Whitley make sure of that).

Their first child is born about a year after the wedding and is named Winry Belladonna-Schnee. Weiss liked the idea of continuing the tradition of names starting with a W, at least for her first child, and Blake had no objection, especially after Weiss told her that Winry was the name of her grandmother, Willow’s mother and the reason the tradition even existed. Winry is a very smart child, well-behaved when she has to be, but also mischievous at times, especially when she is with her cousin Yue or her younger sister Keyla. She looks like a carbon copy of Blake, but with Weiss’ white, straight hair and blue eyes. She has a patch of black hair cutting through the white and falling over her forehead as well as two cat ears like Blake. She’s always preferred to sport chin-length hair and mostly white clothing.

Yue, born two months before Winry, is Winter and Yang’s daughter. She looks like Yang, but with white hair and blue eyes. Most of her personality comes from Yang, though her expressions are very reminiscent of Winter’s. She grows up alongside Winry, more like sisters than cousins since they live together and are so close in age, which makes them very close friends.

Both Yue and Winry want to become Huntresses, but while Yue wants to be free and travel through the world like Yang, therefore deciding to attend New Beacon, Winry prefers to enter Atlas Academy and aim to become the next General after her Aunt Winter retires.

Keyla, born three years after Winry, has long and slightly curly black hair like Blake with two black cat ears atop her head, but her eyes are heterochromatic : right eye a warm amber and left eye a soft blue. If she wears a colored lens over her left eye, one could believe she is a younger version of Blake. She is calm and quiet most of the time, but can also be quite passionnate and eloquent when defending something that matters to her. She has always been interested in politics and hesitates between joining the White Fang or trying to become part of the Atlesian politic circle. She knows how to fight and built herself a weapon in case she ever needs to defend herself, but she doesn’t want to become a Huntress (a shame, according to all the Huntsmen and Huntresses who saw her fight). Since she was a child, she has always been close to Summer, Ruby and Penny’s daughter, but only after her twelth birthday did she realise that her feelings might go beyond friendship. Summer and her start dating around the age of 15, to the delight of everyone around them who were growing tired of their obliviousness and awkwardness.

Finally, Tanya, Weiss and Blake’s third and last child, was born four years after Keyla. She is a bright and energetic girl with long, white, slightly curly hair and blue eyes with a set of white cat ears atop her head. Much like Summer, she is sort of a “mad scientist”, a genius in her own right, though her calling rests with Dust rather than machines and programs like for Summer. When she first discovers, at age 10, the wonders of the researches on Dust, Tanya becomes passionnate and studies everything she can on the matter. She dreams of joining the BSDC’s reasearch and development team thanks to her own merit rather than her family name. 

Nuts and Dolts bonus (because I mentioned their kid in all this and I think she deserves some more details) : Summer Rose, daughter of Ruby Rose and Penny Polendina, born six months after Keyla. She has long, dark-red hair, nearly black near the roots and a lighter shade of red at the tips. She wears a black bow behind her head, like her Ma (Penny) and adopted her Mom’s belief that combat skirts are the best (though she is not a fighter herself and only wears one for the style). She is a little genius when it comes to everything mechanic and is quite good at programming as well. At age 10, she is her grandfather’s best ever apprentice and at 15 years old, she starts her formal studies at Atlas Tech and Mech Academy (name is totally made up, but that’s basically where Atlas teaches all of its future scientists, no matter the discipline). At the same time, she starts dating her friend Keyla who she has always been close to, more so than to anyone else her age. Summer is a very lively girl, so much so that she’s often hard to keep up with, especially when she is very excited and uses her semblance, Teleportation, while she talks or works. It is basically in-between Ruby’s and Raven’s own semblances : Summer can’t teleport as far as Raven can, but she isn’t bound to one or multiple people, instead being able to teleport anywhere in a 2km radius. On the downside, she can’t take a lot of people with her, the best she has ever managed being five, and anything or anyone that touches her and is not the thing she is standing on will be teleported with her. Summer loves her semblance and often uses it more or less unconsciously when she’s excited, teleporting a couple of meters away when she’s switching ideas or emphasizing a point, etc. She has a lot of energy, but usually manages it quite well when she is not working, in which case she can easily get caught up in her own head and become hyper-focused on the task at hand and/or her theories and experiments. Keyla and her make for a sweet pair and get along well, even when Summer gets engrossed in her work. Keyla is usually the only one who can get Summer to rest or eat something when she’s working on something.

Elderburn bonus : I already stated that Winter and Yang had a daughter named Yue, around the same age as Winry, but they also have a son, Tai, who is also very close in age to one of his cousins, Tanya. He’s a very sweet boy, has blond hair, blue eyes and the most beautiful smile you will ever see~ He chose his name at 7 years old when he told his mothers he felt like being a boy. Both Yang and Winter were very supportive of him and offered to help him decide on a name, but he didn’t need their help to choose Tai, saying that it only makes sense for him to be called that since his grandfather was Taiyang and his mother is Yang : someone had the pick the “Tai” part of the name. (Yang laughed a lot at the way he said that, but agreed it was a good name and Tai never regretted his choice) He takes some time to figure out what he wants to do with his life because he isn’t interested in being a Huntsman, but also doesn’t have a passion like Summer or Tanya, nor an innate talent like Keyla. After he helped tutor one of his classmates in high school though, he realises he loves teaching and since he already knew he loved biology, he decided he would become a biology teacher. His students love him because his classes are lively and easy to follow and understand and he’s always really sweet.

Weapons bonus : none of the canon cast’s weapons change, but I had some ideas for the children’s weapons. Winry fights with a chokuto or a katana and her fighting style is very similar to Adam’s and Raven’s. Raven is actually the one to teach her how to best fight with her weapon, since Blake, Weiss and Winter could only teach her the basics on that matter. Yue usually fights with two gauntlets similar to Ember Celica, but she also has two sabers at her sides and is a terribly dangerous opponent when she takes them out. They are not her favoured weapon though because she prefers fighting with her fists and appreaciates that there’s less of a risk of accidentally cutting someone’s limb off with her fists rather than a blade. For those of you who played FE3H, Keyla’s weapon is very similar to the sword of the Creator : it is a sword divided in a lot of small segments that can separate themselves from each other to extend and bend the weapon, turning it into a sort of sharp, thick whip. Keyla can wrap it around limbs or pieces of furnitures and such or just extend it to hit opponents while staying out of their range. Summer fights with a halberd and, although she’s not interested in being a Huntress, she’s terribly good with it. Unlike her two sisters and eldest cousin, Tanya has no interest in fighting, therefore she only learns the basics of sword fight, adopting a rapier much like her Mother’s own weapon, with a Dust filled barrel. She also had her Mother unlock her aura and teach her how to use her Glyphs in case she needed to protect herself, but she’s not a particularly good fighter, especially compared to her sisters. Tanya doesn’t care though, seeing as she doesn’t think she’ll ever need to fight in her line of work and she’s happy with studying her Dust even if she’s not the best at using it in battle. Finally, Tai is a similar case as Tanya : he doesn’t care about fighting, actually dislikes the idea of hurting others, but learned to defend himself from Grimm and potential human attackers. Yang taught him martial arts and Tai always carries a pair of bracelets Summer designed for him that can turn into gauntlets. They don’t fire bullets like Ember Celica, but they make his hits hurt that much more and blades can sprout from between his fingers if he wants to.

In terms of Semblances, all of the kids (except Summer, of course) have the Schnee family semblance. All of them unlocked their aura and learned to use their Glyphs, including the Summoning. Winry and Yue, thanks to their training, are the best Glyph users when it comes to “basic” Glyphs and how to use them in battle, but Keyla also has a very creative way of using her wind Glyphs to direct her sword once it’s in “whip mode” and is the best at Summoning.

...

Wow, that was a lot. Huuummm... Hope you liked the read ? ^^’

[cruzrogue]

Enter My World

Kinda lost steam to this story… It was created because I had writers block for a gift story (Olicity FanArt/Fic Appreciation Exchange) which is called Home is a Gift and the words to this story came easier then. But I still think about it… so here is an update. I have basically the next chapter down. That next chapter will focus on Moira/Felicity (subject to change) like this one was suppose to be more focused on Tommy/Felicity but landed being more Oliver/Felicity.

It also posted on A03

Anyways I hope you like.

previous chapter 5

Chapter 6

Tommy is busy repainting one of the model airplanes his sister gave him. Red and black being the colors he prefers for this one in particular he’s working on and not the sky blue with yellow flowers. He hears the heavy footprints of his best friend entering the workshop off the garage he is using.

“Whatcha doing?”

“Liccy gave me her planes. Repainting them.”

Oliver is looks at the other two planes off to the side with one that is totally painted in different shades of pink another he actually helped paint its grey with blue patches.

“She gave you her planes. Why?”

“Oh dude, you should see her room. It’s like totally empty.” Tommy points to some boxes. “All that is from Felicity’s room. She now trying to get my mom and dad to sign off on her new wardrobe but my parents aren’t haven’t it.”

“What’s in those boxes?”

Dipping his tiny brush into some more red ink he just tells his friend, “Go look for yourself.”

Oliver pushes some boxes around and opens the lid to see some videos. Grabbing one he looks at Tommy who is intently painting slowly not to mess up. “She’s getting rid of all these movies too? She loves them.”

“Loved. Do you think I should put red on the tip of the wings or leave them black?”

“Loved?” Oliver moves to look at another box of stuff so far, he is confused he looks back at Tommy and just says, “Red tips would enhance it better.”

“Cool thanks, and I swear if I believed in pod people, I would so say she’s one of them.”

“Tommy?” Oliver’s voice has a tremble which his best bud doesn’t catch on to. “Can we talk about your sister.”

Tommy stops to now notice his best friend standing a few feet away from him looking expectant of something. “Um sure. I thought we already were?” Seeing his best friend look sheepish kind of already suggests where the subject is heading. “Is this about liking my sister?” The nod Oliver gives answers that question. “Do you still like her? Like, like her?”

“Tommy, I’ve always liked your sister, but yea I care for her a lot and your dad said somethings…”

“My dad? Okay am I the only non-pod person because this is all just weird. When did you have time to talk to my dad? You just got here.”

“I took your sister home from the party.”

“The one you disappeared from. The one your jealousy showed?”

“You saw? Why didn’t you…”

“No! I heard about it! What I didn’t know is that you had a talk with my dad. About Felicity!” His tone a little agitated. “I can deal with guys like Max Fuller, Ollie. What I can’t deal with is my best friend not respecting my wishes.”

“What about what Felicity wants?”

“Really? You, who shunned her. She isn’t your first choice.”

“Are you upset that I chose you over her?”

Tommy looks at the plane he is working on and back at his best friend. “No. I’m not actually mad at you. I’m pissed with myself. I’m the reason she’s miserable.”

“What?”

“Oliver! There are six boxes, six boxes of Liccy’s stuff right there behind you. She stayed with me the night the painters came. Made me promise not to tell anyone and she admitted to me why she really wants to change.” He sighs and admits.

“Are you going to spill?”

Tommy grumbles. “She thinks she’s a dweeb. I mean she is but that isn’t the point. The point is she thinks it.”

Oliver shakes his head his buddy isn’t being much help. “You mind if I go speak to her?”

“If she’ll talk to you. Good luck.”

*****************************************************************************

Oliver has walked up these stairs many times. It is on the way to Tommy’s room which is across from his sister’s room. He stops at the door and he can hear blaring music. Knocking once… twice… three times and waits for acknowledgment. When he doesn’t get any, he knocks again.

“Felicity?”

The music is still blaring and he takes a moment to look at the closed door wondering if he should knock again or leave. Choosing to knock. He bangs his hand against the door and he can hear the sound playing in the room lowering and soon after the door opens.

His mouth drops at the sight. Felicity just looks surprised and says his name.

“What… what are you wearing?”

She looks down at her ensemble before looking at Oliver. “It’s a replica of the school’s cheerleading outfit. I’m going for try outs this coming week.”

“Why?”

“Why? What kind of question is that?”

“I mean.” Oliver is stumped.

“Did you knock on the wrong door? Tommy’s is that one.” She points.

“Funny!” He lets out a Ha. “I came to talk to you.” Now Felicity looks at him weird.

Figuring that it could be the noise so she asks, “Is the music to loud? I’m just practicing.”

“No. Its fine.” Oliver scratches the back of his neck. This is getting ridiculously awkward quickly. “Can I come in?”

“Um…” she looks back at the mess of her room. She nods and steps aside letting him in. “Why are you here?”

Oliver looks around her sparse room devoid of the busy sweetness he has equated to her quirkiness. “What happened in here?”

She blows air from her nostrils she doesn’t need or feel like she needs to explain herself. Especially to a boy she can’t stop crushing on even when she belittles herself for doing it. Shutting the door to her room she turns to him. “Can’t we just leave it to I’m growing up?”

“We can. But…” He thinks a little to get the right words, “Why the drastic change? Did you really give up on everything you use to love?”

“Please tell me you didn’t come here to guilt trip me? I don’t need another brotherly love advice. Tommy is more than enough!” She starts to pick up her discarded clothing around her bed.

“First, I need to apologize. You were right.” Felicity has no clue about what he is talking about and it shows on her face. “But I do think it something that can be fixed.”

“Oliver, what are you talking about?”

“About us.” He lets out a sigh, “About you and I and what we mean to each other.”

“There is no us. Tommy told me that you were serious with some girl, that you couldn’t even go to that event at the science museum so I…”

“I lied to Tommy.” Felicity makes a startled gesture. “I didn’t know how to behave around you and so I lied and told Tommy and I didn’t even think of the consequence I mean him telling you would-be worst-case scenario but…”

“You lied about seeing a hottie? You tell Tommy everything.” Felicity just can’t believe everything she thought about Oliver Queen being in a relationship could be a lie.

“That’s the thing, I told him that I liked you and the chain of events led us away from each other. Felicity, I’m miserable without you in my life.”

“That was your choice.”

“Don’t I know it.” He looks at her bed that’s holding a pile of discarded clothes. Thinking that if she gets her way, she’ll start go the route of being a carbon copy of everyone else. “Won’t the hectic schedule of being a cheerleader interfere with the math club?”

“If… It is a big if, if I can actually pull it off. I choose being a cheerleader over some stupid math thing.”

Oliver is taken back with that and without thinking he sits on her bed. The girl he has known loved all things about mathematics and the world of science. She pulled him in with how she saw the world. Now he truly is puzzled.

“When did math become senseless?”

“When your mom showed me another way. I want what your sisters have.”

“What? Why? I love my sisters but why would you want to be like them? It’s not like Emilia knows what she wants. She’s figuring it all out. She has her own passions.”

“Well at least she isn’t a dork.”

“Whatever you think my mom showed you is just a piece of any puzzle. Gosh Felicity, you have so many good traits that my baby sister is jealous of. Bet you didn’t know that.”

“Oliver! Please you want me to believe…”

“As cute as you look in that uniform.” He’s been trying not to look at her when she moving erratically in her pacing around her room. “I would really appreciate if you stop twirling its distracting.”

“Well that proves my point. My dorky clothes would never get that kind of comment.”

“Oh, you are so wrong!”

“Oliver can you stop lying to me?”

That makes Oliver finally snap. “I’m not. For someone who is changing so much don’t pretend to know me either.” That brings a silent pause. “Listen, I know you are upset with me. I’m sorry I hurt you. Really, I am. But I also can’t sit here and tell you that I like your change because it’s the dork you hate that I miss. The one who could ramble about statistics and have me eating out of her palms. You have no idea how awesome you are.”

“Then why did you stop…”

“I stopped because… because my thoughts of you weren’t…” He stresses this word out hoping she gets it. “Friendly. Your brother could see it. He was, is only interested in keeping you safe. I get that. That is why I stepped back.”

“I don’t get why you need Tommy’s permission for anything. It infuriates me.” That actually gets him to laugh. “It’s not funny.” He continues to chuckle. He figured out Tommy. Tommy placed all that stress on him to see what he would do. It’s weird. Before coming to see Felicity, his best friend told him that he didn’t think his sister would be so heartbroken. He wants her happy but he doesn’t want to see an even higher cost of his sister being hurt in the long run because after all Oliver is still a few years older and interests change.

“Have you actually seen any of this through my perspective?” The look on her face gives him the answer. “Right there is the reason. Felicity, I’m still a kid myself. It took me a few sit-down adult conversations before I knew why I held back on us.”

“You thought about us?”

“I really… really like you. I really do.”

“There’s a but there, right?”

“Yea, you might hate what I’ll say next but my mom really helped me see this.”

“Oh god, she doesn’t think I’m perfect enough!”

“What? No! That’s…” there is a solid knock on the door. Without either of them answering the door opens and both kids are surprised by who is standing in the hallway. Oliver says surprised, “Mom?”

[alittletournesol]

Get On {JongKey}

A long and repetitive vibration on the mattress slowly wakes Jonghyun up, the young man frowning as he blindly catches his phone. Opening one eye, he checks the screen and sighs before he picks up ; on the line, his best friend is angrily whispering things which don’t sound like words to his still sleepy ears. He grunts and mumbles a “call later”, then he hangs up and puts the device away, eventually turning on his left side.

What he doesn’t expect is for his phone to vibrate once again, this time with a sharp, brief rhythm, which signales several texts coming at once. Jonghyun grumbles even more as he turns over and straightens on his forearm, grabbing the annoying object once again to check who’s preventing him to sleep. He opens the messages app and immediately notices capitalized words coming from Minho. 

JONGHYUN HYUNG.

YOU’RE LATE.

WAKE UP AND RUN.

The young man frowns and sits up straight on his bed, rubbing his tired eyes before reading the texts again. Late ? He repeats the word several times in his mind until it hits him. Late. For his classes. Jonghyun swears out loud and types texts Minho that he’s on his way, before he leaves his bed and runs to his bathroom. 

Fuck, fuck, fuck. His teacher is going to kill him, the student thinks as he hastily washes his face and puts some decent clothes on — actually the first ones that his hands find in his closet. It’s not the first time he’s running late for university because his sleep doesn’t play the game ; but he knows the excuse won’t last long, as honest as it is.

In no time, he’s outside his house and he runs as fast as he can, holding his backpack in his hand and apologizing to every pedestrian he almost runs into. It takes him less than ten minutes until he reaches his university, and he rushes to his lecture hall. He takes a minute to catch his breath before opening the double-wing door, and he deeply bows without even watching his teacher and the dozens of students who turn their heads towards him.

“Please accept my apologies, I—” he starts to say.

“Maybe you should sleep here, Kim.” The woman in her fifties harshly cuts him short. “This way, we would have the honor to see you on time. Take your seat.”

Jonghyun bows once again and keep his head lowered as his eyes search for a free seat. The one beside Minho is taken, so he quickly sits in the last row, far away from the board. He apologies to the student who was sitting alone before his arrival, making him move his things away. The late man is surprised to notice several items of a biker’s equipment, such as gloves and a helmet. 

He looks up as he finally sits down, and finds his neighbor smirking.

“She’s a bitch.” He whispers. “Don’t mind her.”

“I-I beg your pardon ?” Jonghyun asked, his eyebrows raising at the cuss word coming from such a pretty mouth, with heart shaped lips.

“Park. She’s been harsh with you. I never liked her to be honest, too pretentious.”

“Oh... well, I deserved it since I’m late. Again. Sorry I had to disturb you...”

“Don’t worry about it, it takes a bit more than that to bother me.”

The student smiles to him and pulls a sheet from his notebook before he discreetly passes it to Jonghyun. The latter looks at it for some seconds before understanding he’s being given what he has missed from the beginning of the lecture. He shyly blushes and bows his head as a thank, taking his own notebook and pen to rewrite the main points. He then pushes the sheet back towards its owner.

“Thank you...?” He said, letting the end of his sentence outstanding.

“Kibum, but you can call me Key.” His neighbor said, winking at him with confidence.

“O-Okay, Key. I’m Jonghyun.”

“It’s nice to meet you. So... do you live that far away for you’re often late ? No offense, simply curiosity.”

“No, not at all, I’m living above the music shop, you know ? Barely ten minutes from here if you run fast.”

“And you do, I presume.”

“Really fast.”

Key slightly laughs, and Jonghyun smiles at the sound. The student sitting next to him isn’t a new face, he’s pretty known on the campus since he distinguishes himself thanks to his particular style — all about leather jacket and boots, ripped jeans and nice necklaces, rings and ear piercings. But what catches people’s eye the most is, obviously, his motorbike.

He’s curiously the only student who comes to the university by motorbike, others mostly using a bicycle or the bus, when they don’t own a car. However, his outfits always match his transport and Jonghyun can’t help but find it extremely attractive... his complete opposite, though, he who likes to wear comfy sweaters or checked shirts on a plain top. 

And who uses his feet.

“You must like to run then.” Key states as he highlights some words on his notebook with a bright green color.

“Like to run ?” The other student repeats, dumbfounded.

“Yeah. Since you’re late, you must like to run from your house to university. No ?”

“Hum... it’s not... I mean...”

“Relax, Jonghyun-ssi, I was kidding. Trying to break the ice, this class is boring as fuck.”

“Yeah, it is. I wonder why I even bother running for it. Actually I just have sleeping issues and I often miss my alarm clock.”

“So we got an heavy sleeper here. And you like music ?”

Saying this, Key shows Jonghyun’s open backpack on the table, which let his headset peep. The student nods and without really noticing, he starts talking with more ease by the minutes passing, his neighbor willingly answering and holding a long conversation about everything and nothing, from their respective hobbies to some giggles after their teacher calls them out a few times.

This comfortable moment recurs often, as both students share more classes than they expected... and as Jonghyun keeps coming late and only find a free seat next to Key, who always puts his biker’s equipment away with a wink, or a smile. They share their notes with each other, then their snacks, eventually their lives through anecdotes and confessions — like Jonghyun talking about his five years old brother, Taemin, or Key about his hometown.

Weeks flow by and their almost daily meetings are interrupted by school vacations, a short week that feels like three to Jonghyun who’s alone at home while Key’s abroad, spending time with a guy named Jinki or something like that. Even his video gaming afternoons at Minho’s place or helping Taemin with his homework and coloring books don’t satisfy him enough. Something’s missing, and time goes heavily slowly.

At least he can sleep without being scared to be late...

One day, Jonghyun is woken up by a small body climbing on his back, and he slightly laughs before he turns over to catch his brother for a tickling party. Taemin screams and wriggles, and the student smiles, kissing his rounded cheeks. It’s at that moment he notices the little boy is wearing his school uniform. Frowning, he catches his phone and chokes with his own saliva as he become aware of the day and the time : he’s late for his return to school.

Jonghyun’s routine begins again, with him running everywhere and doing his best to get properly ready in the shortest time. He catches his brother on his shoulder as he runs down the stairs, making him scream before he puts him on the floor. He then kisses his mother on the cheek and runs outside, only to abruptly stop in front of the small portal.

There, on the other side, a young man with black hair and wearing a leather jacket turns over to face him, and offers him a smile.

“Long time no see, Jjong.” He says before looking at his watch. “You’re improving, we have ten minutes until the class begins.”

Jonghyun stares at his friend, stunned, and Key can’t help but laugh out loud.

“You should see your face, it’s really funny.” He smiles. “I made some shopping in Japan, equipment is cheaper over there, a blessing. Here for you.”

Key grabs a grey slipcover by its string and hands it to Jonghyun, who takes it. It’s round, as hard as a stone and kinda heavy, what surprises him at first. He loosens a bit the string and unpacks his gift : a helmet, black with a white stripe. The student raises his eyebrows as he examines the object, and when he looks up to ask for an explanation, he finds his friend already straddling his bike with his own helmet on — the visor open — and turning the motor on.

“Get on.” He simply says, loud enough to be heard.

“Behind you ?” Jonghyun bluntly asks.

A simple stare from Key answers his questions and he blushes, putting the helmet on and adjusting it. He tidies the slipcover in his backpack, which he carefully put on his back, before he approaches the engine. After a short moment of hesitation, he firmly holds on to the biker’s arm and gets on ; he sits comfortably and watches Key turning his head towards him, his eyes smiling before he lowers his visor.

“Let’s go baby, hold on.”

He doesn’t wait for an answer and the bike starts moving forwards, surprising Jonghyun who gasps and immediately circles Key’s waist with his arms. He can’t see his friend smiling at the contact, when himself is blushing so hard under his helmet. Without really noticing it at first, he grabs hold of the biker’s top and is pressed against his back. 

Soon, the first ride’s worries vanish from Jonghyun’s mind and he finds himself relaxing against his friend’s body. He can’t really see nor hear anything because of the speed, the only thing he knows is that when Key pulls over in the motorbikes parking of the university, he feels disappointed by the brevity of the moment. When he eventually lets his friend’s top go, he unwillingly caresses his stomach and can feel Key’s abdominals tense.

Jonghyun blushes and clears his throat, checking on his left and his right to think about a way to come down. He manages to make his body slide on the bike, and when he has to make his short leg come down too, he stumbles and falls on his butt. Key laughs and gets off in his turn, putting the stand down and removing his helmet before he walks to help his friend to stand up. He dusts him a bit and helps him removing his helmet too.

The student’s blonde hair is a complete mess and Key laughs again, styling it with his hand under the dumbfounded stare of Jonghyun.

“See ? You’re on time.” The biker says before he crouches to tie his bike.

“Let’s do it again.” Jonghyun bluntly says, blushing when Key stands up and looks at him. “I mean... not now, but... some mornings ?”

The other student smiles and puts two fingers under Jonghyun’s chin.

“It’s planned, baby.”

Happy JongKey day. ♡

gifs made by me~

[princessnowvie14]

My Top Romance Anime

I made a new set of list of my fave romance anime series since I guess i deleted my post accidentally w/c i always update ( i dont wanna talk about it i'm still in shock lol) so here it is i made it as simple as possible, no long description. Just my collection of anime that caught my heart while watching it. 

1. InuYasha

InuYasha follows Kagome Higurashi, a fifteen-year-old girl whose normal life ends when a demon drags her into a cursed well on the grounds of her family's Shinto shrine. Instead of hitting the bottom of the well, Kagome ends up 500 years in the past during Japan's violent Sengoku period with the demon's true target, a wish-granting jewel called the Shikon Jewel, reborn inside of her.

Inuyasha has always been my fave since childhood. I love the love and hate relationship they have. Inuyasha being stubborn but ever since he met Kagome he learned a lot of being a good person. I just hate their love triangle with kikyo nevertheless I love how it ends. It's really worth it after so many years of watching and waiting for it.

2. Kamisama Kiss

 Nanami immerses herself in her divine duties. But if she must keep things running smoothly, she will need the help of a certain hot-headed fox. In her fumbling attempt to seek out Tomoe, she lands in trouble and ends up sealing a contract with him. 

I’ve never been so satisfied in my life until after watching all the episodes of this anime, the twist is amazing . It ends well. My heart was happy.

3. Wolf Girl and Black Prince

 Erika Shinohara has taken to lying about her romantic exploits to earn the respect of her new friends. So when they ask for a picture of her "boyfriend," she hastily snaps a photo of a handsome stranger, whom her friends recognize as the popular and kind-hearted Kyouya Sata.

This is the first time i tried to watch anime series continously, i mean i never wanted to stand up while watching it haha it was good . I love how Kyouya manage to be so mean while everybody thinks he's a perfect prince, but i fell in love with this couple, theyre so perfect. 

4. Noragami

Just as things seem to be looking grim for the god, his fortune changes when a middle school girl, Hiyori Iki, supposedly saves Yato from a car accident, taking the hit for him. Remarkably, she survives, but the event has caused her soul to become loose and hence able to leave her body. Hiyori demands that Yato return her to normal, but upon learning that he needs a new partner to do so, reluctantly agrees to help him find one.

aahh yatori makes my heart crave for more haha i mean dont expect a lot of romance on this, it highlights friendship . Yato being so childish and Hiyori is such a good girl, i cry whenever she loses her memory. The story is fun and I hope for the next season they will give exposure for my fave couple.

5. Inu X Boku SS

But Ririchiyo's troubles have only just begun. As a requirement of staying in her new home, she must be accompanied by a Secret Service agent. Ririchiyo's new partner, Soushi Miketsukami, is handsome, quiet... but ridiculously clingy and creepily submissive.

I love the twist, i dont mind watching this all over again. Their personalities is quite interesting, the story is cute with mix of mystery.

6. My little Monster

Shizuku Mizutani is apathetic towards her classmates, only caring about her grades. However, her cold view of life begins to change when she meets Haru Yoshida, a violent troublemaker who stopped attending class after getting into a fight early in the school year. He is not much different from her, though—he too understands little about human nature and does not have any friends.

oposite attracts haha Haru is so adorable. And their relationship is quite bumpy and unsure. But i think their feelings for each other are genuine.

7. Hatsukoi Monster

After meeting her rescuer yet again and discovering that his name is Kanade Takahashi, she confesses her love to him. Kanade says he would like for them to be a couple, but that Kaho may not want to date him after she finds out his secret. To her shock, Kaho discovers the startling truth: Kanade is a fifth grader!

 Hatsukoi Monster follows Kaho's first steps into love with Kanade, her immature, yet kind, fifth grade boyfriend.

Age doesn't really matter lol. Its kinda weird as it may seems but who cares as long as you love each other then jump and take a risk. You can wait for the right time anyway haha. This anime is funny and i love how their friendship show. Accepting the situation and learn how to deal with differences is the lesson.

8. Guomin Laogong Dai Huijia

Lu Jin Nian and Qiao An Hao were not married by choice. On the first day of their wedding night, Qiao An Hao made three rules regarding their marriage. One, you are not allowed to touch me. Two, you are not allowed to announce publicly that I'm your wife. Three, you are not allowed to say that we are living together.

I've watch only the first two seasons. and i loved it. Its like a prequel to the story but i dont know why im satisfied with it haha, the truth is i dont have the strength to watch the season 3 and i dont even wanna know how it ends. haha while watching i was desperate and frustrated them to be together, i want a happy ending. But all I can see was barriers and situation wont let them be happy together. I hope they will make a movie based on this. All i know is it was too depressing but definitely has a good story line.

9. Red Data Girl

Izumiko begins by cutting her bangs, which shocks both her classmates and protectors. And that's only the start! Her guardian, Yukimasa Sagara, forces his son, Miyuki, to come to the mountain shrine and become Izumiko's lifelong servant and protector. Too bad Izumiko and Miyuki cannot stand each other. They have known each other since they were children, and Miyuki bullied her terribly.  Will Izumiko and Miyuki work past their differences? Is she actually a literal goddess? Find out in RDG: Red Data Girl!

This anime left me hanging and didn’t give me the ending i crave for, i hope they gonna make a next season. but i enjoyed it so much, i love the main characters and the vibe it gives me. It's a serious mystery and a little bit of romance but not much. anyway i love this, never regret watching it.

10.  Shuumatsu Nani Shitemasu ka? Isogashii desu ka? Sukutte Moratte Ii desu ka?

Willem takes refuge on the floating islands in the sky, living in fear of the Beasts below. One day, he is tasked with being a weapon storehouse caretaker. Thinking nothing of it, Willem accepts, but he soon realizes that these weapons are actually a group of young Leprechauns. Though they bear every resemblance to humans, they have no regard for their own lives, identifying themselves as mere weapons of war. Among them is Chtholly Nota Seniorious, who is more than willing to sacrifice herself if it means defeating the Beasts and ensuring peace. 

Not every story has good ending but im glad i watched this. The couple reminds me of kaname and sagara of full metal panic but in different way. Their personalities are so perfect for each other. I wasnt really into anime girls with different hair colors but Ctholly change my point of view, she's exactly one of my fave girls now, her being childish, jealous and innocent around Willem caught me. Funny moments will be present too and their feelings for each other blooms slowly every episodes that you just wanna watch more. I wish the last episode ended the way I wanted, anyway, I still dont get why Willem is involved into two different girls in the past, i guess it wasnt explained that much, i just hate the flashback how he remember the girl while he's with Ctholly,. Well all in all, i enjoy much I just hope they add new season, but i dont know how it will start haha. Im just happy to meet and add this perfect couple in my list.

 So that’s it, i’m still in search of finding good anime romance. I hope i wont let my foolish hand delete this post again lol. Im definitely gonna edit this and add more . Hope you enjoy reading. :)

[aurimeanswind]

It’s Very Hot Outside—Sunday Chats (6/25/17)

I’ve got a nice cold glass of water by my side, air conditioning, and video games, so let’s chat.

Lack of Update

Usually here I have a little blog-y editorial-esque update on my life, what’s going on, and all the complicated things. I don’t know if I have anything I necessarily want to share here. Things have happened. I had some ups and downs this week. A reviewer of video games from the 90s would have probably called it a “mixed bag”.

But there are some things I’m working on that I’d rather not share. A first, for Sunday Chats, I think? But I’m doing alright. I’ve managed to surround myself with supportive and wonderful folks.

To make up for not getting up to anything crazy or fun this week, I’ve tried to watch more stuff that people are out there making, so I’ll try and share that out in today’s chat.

Onto the next thing...

What I’ve Been Working On

My rut of not getting anything interesting written or done continues. But it’s very much self-inflicted. Essentially everything I want to write is a rewrite or a reworking of completed things, and that means I have to go back through the whole thing and find where I need to add, to tweak, to change. I haven’t been making enough time everyday when I write, so instead I’ve been writing new intros to things, or just jotting and half-establishing loose ideas in my head. I’m going to try and dedicate more time to actually writing some things this coming week, but with how my mental state has been, it’s been a bit tougher than usual to focus. I’ll try and get better with it.

I did, however, finish a big post-E3 write up and published that. Making it the first big thing I’ve published in quite a bit. Go check it out!

http://irrationalpassions.com/editorial-who-really-took-e3-2017/

What’s on Tap

Alundra

So I’ve come back to Alundra. I think I may have mentioned it in last week’s Sunday Chats, but this is a very good game.

It’s a Zelda-like, and its definitely up there with Okami as not-Zelda games that are great games. Rivaling even the Zelda games they tried to compete with.

While Alundra is no Ocarina of Time, or A Link to the Past for that matter, it is still really rad.

Alundra has a big focus on platforming, which doing that from the isometric/Zelda perspective is, as you could imagine, challenging. It’s hard to know where you’re jumping to and so there is a pretty wide disconnect with when you jump and where you think you’ll land.

The different planes of view really effect this too. Sometimes platforms are up too high, but positioned in front of you so they kind of look like they’re right next to you.

What I’m saying is Alundra needs a 3DS remake.

Resident Evil 5

Anyone who follows IP on Twitch may have seen I started a new streaming series with this and Jacob Bryant. I’m pretty stoked about it, because Resident Evil 5 is great.

The game is just crazy fun with two people, and the way the arenas and set pieces fall into place is great. It’s a little bit of tension, very RE style, but it’s more an action-based tension, because you’re never without the tools to do something about the onslaught of enemies. 

It makes for a really great challenge. Also we’re playing on Hard Mode for some reason, and we’re probably going to die a lot more.

I’m archiving all the streams on YouTube so go watch them!

Questions

As always thank you everyone so much for your questions <3. If you want to get your question in, find my tweet with #SundayChats in it from sometime Sunday afternoon and reply to it with your question! That’s all ya gotta do.

Colors is easy. My favorite color is red. I prefer Scarlet, as for a specific shade, but any passionate red color is good. Red is passionate. It’s bright and hard but soft and warm at the same time. The same is true of my second favorite, Blue, which I would always go back and forth with when I was younger. Blue or Red? I love them both honestly. 

My third is probably purple, honestly. Which I am coming to realize is very funny because that is red and blue together. But purple is just gorgeous. On a good day it may even be number one.

As for a boy bands... Well, I feel like I’ve been disappointing a lot of people on this recently, but I don’t really have an opinion. I’ve never really listened to them? Like, I respect them from afar, but I think I’ve heard like, two N Sync songs. There is this one Backstreet Boys song I really like, but I can’t even think of the name of it.

So I’m sorry that I’m a disappointment, is what I’m saying I guess.

I could spend forever on this question, so I’ll stick with broad themes and vibes that each gives me.

The first book is just magical. You get whisked away to another world. It totally encompasses you and really makes you feel like every kind of magic is possible.

The second book is great because its so juxtaposed to the first. It becomes so dark and dreary so quickly. It pulls the film back and shows you how dangerous magic is, and how deep-seeded hatred and prejudice runs through this world, just like ours.

The third is awesome. It’s so much about James and what he was like, and hearing more about that is great. It’s the only book Voldemort isn’t in at all, but you can feel him in every corner. You can feel that foreboding horror that is coming in the next book, but you don’t understand it at the time.

Goblet of Fire is like a highlights reel. It’s the summer blockbuster. It’s the high flying action piece of the series, from the World Cup, to each task, to the finale. It’s dark, it’s horrifying, it’s sad, and it’s full of emotion and angst. 

I love everything about Order of the Phoenix. Being so deep in Harry’s mind when he is going through living and watching a friend die. His insecurities, his self-doubt, his self-hatred, his disgust with himself, his dramatic tantrums. Every moment is genuine, and as someone who struggles with depression and hating himself and doubting every decision he has made, that shit hurts and hits home. I love Harry so much because there is so much of me in him, especially in this book.

Half Blood Prince may be my second favorite. It depends on the day. Finally getting all the secrets unveiled and seeing the relationship between Dumbledore and Harry really blossom. It’s all top notch, with an excellent turn of events and set up for the finale.

The seventh book is excellent too. It’s probably my favorite end to a series, one that’s spanned multiple things at least. It’s full of death, and regrets, and struggle, but it blossoms that same home that came from the first book. I adore it.

I have not read Cursed Child, and still know next to nothing about it.

HI!

Now I saw all the internet debates over Keenan and Kel vs. Drake and Josh, and I get it. They are two different eras, and I loved both of them. Drake and Josh was just more my jam.

That’s probably my favorite Nick live action show, just because I remember laughing the hardest I’ve ever laughed watching that show. 

But a special shoutout to iCarly. I know it gets a ton of shit, and I was just starting to grow out of that kind of show when I started watching it, but it was a show about three friends starting an internet sensation and growing into popularity. It was really ahead of its time, because it was about a show thats live-streamed on the internet. That’s like, half my life now? It’s crazy to think that started in 2007.

For a free bonus, to answer the Disney Channel OGM question, which is definitely a lot harder for me, some special shoutouts:

Smart House and Halloweentown are classics. But the real number one in my heart is Zenon: Girl of the 21st Century. I fucking loved that Disney Channel jam to death as a kid. Maybe the “Zequels” weren’t as good, but I liked the first a ton.

Also like, hey, I enjoyed my time with High School Musical. Just the first. And I watched all the Camp Rock movies. But that’s mostly just because I’m a trash human.

I am not going to RTX, unfortunately, but I will be in Austin the same weekend.

Checklist

A few to throw out there. First up:

Persona 3′s Ending made me appreciate all of life’s little endings - Are Technica - By Steven Strom

A really excellent piece on Persona 3, which is now 10 years old in the US. As someone who has also written out a thing on Persona 3 and holds it in high regard, Steven really nailed his message here. I just stumbled upon this one too.

Kinda Funny Games Daily - new show from KF!

I was really worried about this show. It’s hard for me to keep up with daily content and I was concerned that it may lose the magic of that format I really love from stuff like PS I Love You. I am happy to say I was worried for nothing. Greg is excellent as always with his one-on-ones, and hearing that dynamic across different folks like Andrea Rene, who I also adore, is awesome. 

Nite Two @ E3 2017 - Austin Walker, Griffin McElroy, and more - GiantBomb

In my attempt to slowly catch up with the GiantBomb E3 content, I picked a couple of gems out. This was the first one. And whooooo dang is it funny. Having Griffin and Justin McElroy in the same room as Austin Walker, Patrick Klepek, and Jeff Gerstmann = very exciting for me.

The Adventure Zone - The McElroy Family of Podcasts (and Podcasters)

The big god’s honest truth as to why I am so behind on all my stuff is because I’ve been re-listening to The Adventure Zone from the beginning. I am already back on Episode 43 after just two weeks of doing this. And oh my god is this show so good. Griffin is such a good DM, and it’s so funny. The four McElroys have too much fun with their shenanigans in dungeons and gerblins world, and I can’t recommend it enough.

A shorter, more consumable Sunday Chats today. I’m getting excited for my next trip coming up, and I’m hopefully going to start working on some new ideas soon, so I am stoked for what’s coming in the future! 

Thank you everyone for your support, and hey: keep it real.