#this is what happens when you treat a zoo like an amusement park

[seabeck]

I have a hard time believing Ingen/whoever would just straight up abandon the park so quickly after the events of lost world. No personnel or anything? All those assets just left there?

[thebibliophilevigilante]

Jason had started walking in the direction of the rides before a delicate hand wrapped around his wrist and jerked harshly. He was slightly taken aback, twisting to Madison in curiosity. As soon as his gaze landed on her, her hand braced against his stumbled jaw and tugged, her lips crashing over his. His teal eyes widened briefly in surprise before he smirked against her, his own hand coming up to cradle the back of her head as he returned the kiss.

When she broke away with a whisper of his name and a tighter yank on his hair, he growled deep in his chest. Her lips met his again and he deepened the kiss, swiping his tongue over her lower lip to seek entrance. With a soft sigh, her lips parted, and his tongue brushed over hers. He almost pouted when she pulled away, but he grinned instead. “Pretty girl, I can do more than just tease. I can drive you just as wild as you do to me.”

She pushed him back and he fake stumbled, laughing as they moved toward the ferris wheel line. As they stood there, his arm wrapped around the small of her back, protecting her from anyone that would come up behind them. His digits interlocked with hers again with her and over his. His thumb brushed over hers while her fingers explored his own.

“A screamer, huh? I’ll make a note after a few dates to soundproof the apartment then,” he teased before nodding at the circular ride. “This one shouldn’t be too scary, unless you don’t like heights. It gives you a great view of the city and the seaside, views straight out of postcards. The only kind of screaming you’ll possibly be doing…” His voice scraped across the ground as he trailed off, his thumb brushing over her knuckles to make a point before he spoke again, “Is in pleasure.”

She posed an interesting question then, and he rolled his neck in contemplation. “Amusement parks are fun,” he stated matter-of-factly. “Couldn’t take you to the zoo so soon, you already went yesterday. Where’s the fun in that? Plus, I can be a bit competitive, and maybe I wanted to play a game and challenge you for a treat of my own.”

Madison was indeed full of surprises. At her offer to take him on a date, he pulled back slightly to gaze at her. She wasn’t meeting his eyes, like she was afraid of what he’d think of the idea. In truth, he was slightly conflicted. Despite the banter and teasing, he himself was a gentleman, and wasn’t it up to the men to spoil their partners?

His partner. The thought made something warm and fuzzy blossom from the center of his breastbone.

Yet, Madison was a modern woman, and had proved that she could hold her own and wasn’t just some delicate creature. And if she asked about it, that meant it was something she wanted, right? Who was he to deny her that?

His arm tightened around her, his hand giving hers a gentle squeeze. “Looks like you’re going to give me a first, pretty girl. No one’s ever offered to treat me to a date. I’d be honored. Just give me the details and I’ll be there.”

As the line shortened, he noticed the way her muscles tensed, how she started shifting her weight from foot to foot subtly. Anxiety and nervousness. He brought their hands to around her midsection, resting them right above her belly button. His thumb brushed over her skin there soothingly, his lips pressing against her bare shoulder. “Hey, hey,” he murmured, trying to capture her attention. “It’s okay. I won’t let anything happen to you. I promise.”

When it comes to getting intel, there are several ways to go about it. One could ask politely, or ask the right questions to eventually draw information from their target. There is intimidation, threatening your target and demanding the information in exchange for remaining unharmed. Then there is incognito surveillance, appearing inconspicuous and melding in with one’s environment just listening and watching.

The current session was the latter.

A raven-haired man with a blanched tuft in his bangs kept his teal eyes trained on the book in his massive, calloused right hand. His left swirled his take-away cup absentmindedly. He was reading words, but they weren’t registering in his brain. His focus was more concentrated on the conversations around him, and what information he could gather before his next patrol.

The first three rules of real estate are location, location, location. Burnley Brewhouse definitely had that, especially for Jason Todd. It was conveniently placed right on the very edge of Burnley, practically at the juncture of where Crime Alley and The Bowery neighborhoods started (which were all Jason’s domain). By day, the neighborhood was full of regular citizens, students and tourists. By night, the whole area was crawling with denizens of the dark wheeling and dealing for their own personal gain and vices while putting others at risk.

Jason brought his cup to his mouth for a sip, his eyes flicking to the counter where two men with heavier builds were waiting for their order. One had a rough 5 o’clock shadow, the other a scraggly, unkempt blond beard, both wearing holy jeans and beat-up leather jackets. He recalled seeing them once during a patrol a couple of weeks prior, skulking around by the Freight Yards. They were definitely up to no good then, and could offer him decent information in the present. The barista handed both of them a take-away cup, and his eyes quickly glanced down to his book again, his peripherals watching as they meandered around to sit at a table caddy-corner from his in the back corner of the shop.

“Terry was telling me about that new candy order he has coming in,” 5 O’Clock muttered lowly to his friend. “Said it should get here overnight, and we can distribute to the stores first thing in the morning.”

Scraggles ran his nails over his beard as he listened. “Loaded with sugar? Y’know these kids can’t get enough of their sugar.”

“He said it was everything needed from the inventory list. He said he has his pal Molly coming in to help with the shipment too.”

There was a small pause before, “How many donuts did he get and where from?”

“11 for the crew. I think he said they’re from Declan’s over on 14th Street.”

Jason had to refrain from rolling his eyes. Those two idiots were blatantly discussing a drug drop in broad daylight just as if they were talking about a regular candy store shipment.

He switched the book to his right hand as he snagged a napkin from the holder and a pen from the table. He scribbled a note to himself, writing the characters’ names from his book, followed by “PG 11, DL 14.” He knew his own shorthand; the character names were to keep up appearances. “PG 11” would remind him the drop was scheduled for 11, and “DL 14” would remind him the ship would be at Dock Bay 14.

His attention went back to his book as he brought the pen to his lips, teeth nibbling on the retractable plunge as he appeared deep in thought. He was about to tune back into 5 O’Clock and Scraggly’s conversation when the cafe’s entry bell rung.

His eyes flitted to the door to assess the entrant, and he froze. A young brunette with piercing dark eyes was glancing around, looking for a place to perch herself no doubt. She was breathtaking, and certainly unlike any other person he had seen come in to Burnley’s. As she turned to the counter, he couldn’t help the large grin that danced over his face. First he got lucky with the tip-off. Would he be lucky enough for that gorgeous girl to sit anywhere within his vicinity?

@rpwiththelilflower

[rainydayotomes]

What do you think the CxM boys would plan for their anniversary with their s/o? Thank you so much for your writing! It’s always a joy to read!

!!! :O of course!! Thank YOU for reading, it really does make me happy that something I made was able to entertain someone out there!

Yanagi

He simply comes out and asks you what you want to do, and is more then happy to go along with whatever you wish!

Although if he had a preference, it is a special day, so he does want to go out somewhere with you!

However, he wants to take you some place special! Expect to go to someplace elegant! Like a fancy restaurant or something!

Its also possible he may take you to some special event, depending on whats happening and the time of year

He'd love to take you to a special festival of some kind, or take you dancing or something

Expect to receive a gift of a necklace, bracelet, or other jewelry!

Enomoto

Poor man has so many damn ideas, but he can't choose to do all of them!

He'd probably switch plans between a fancy restaurant, a picnic, a concert for your favourite band, and a candlelit dinner at home

Eventually however, he comes to settle on taking you on a vacation! ...with the help of Yanagi and Takeru of course.

He plans a trip to some place you want to go, or that he's heard/researched a ton about

If there's no where specific you care to visit, he'd probably take you to a bathhouse, New York, Paris, or some other popular destination!

.....where he then treats you to a wonderful dinner, takes you on a picnic, brings you to a musical performance, and prepares a lovely dinner for the two of you to enjoy in your shared room

Sasazuka

Nothing extravagant, out of the way, or too special for our grumpy boy! He plans for a quiet night in with you, and thats all

However! He definitely goes out of his way to make sure to get a good dinner set up for the two of you!

Yeah thats right, Mr Donut Man himself has prepared a delicious dinner for the both of you to enjoy under some candlelight!

Also, expect to be pampered more then usual.... he says he really wants to have you mewling for him tonight ;P

Okazaki

Kei, unfortunately, would probably have little time to set something grand up for the two of you

But when he gets home from work, you can definitely expect him to hand deliver a beautiful bouquet of your favourite flowers, as well as some of his favourite snack foods for you to try!

Like Yanagi, he's definitely gone out of his way to pick up some absolutely stunning jewelry, be it a necklace or otherwise

Kei would probably get you a necklace over any other jewelry however, because he thinks it would look even more gorgeous around your neck and hanging on your chest

The two of you enjoy an especially peaceful night in, watching your favourite movie and cuddling until dawn

Shiraishi

You think maybe he's waiting to surprise you with something

But as the day goes on.... he doesn't say a word. Nothing. He doesn't do anything or imply anything....

Did.... he forget?

If you express displeasure at the lack of acknowledgement of such a day, Shiraishi is going to be a little surprised

He totally didn't remember. Like at all.

But! He doesn't want you to be mad at him! And he wants to make you happy!!!!

He doesn't understand why it's important to you to celebrate such an occasion, but nonetheless he wants to treat you to something if thats what you wish

He'd probably take you somewhere mundane... an amusement park, a zoo or museum, just... somewhere the two of you can enjoy yourselves at least a little bit so late in the day

Eventually, he takes the two of you further away from the city, and on the outskirts

There, you find Yanagi parked at the side of the road, standing against his car

Shiraishi goes and speaks to him, taking something from him before returning to you

He gets you to follow him to a somewhat large pond a ways off the roadside

He lays down a blanket, and sets out what he received from Yanagi- food!

Shiraishi, at some point, had managed to contact Yanagi and ask him to make food for the both of you as a favour... to which the detective couldn't deny

So you two enjoy a night under the stars, eating some simple yet delicious food Yanagi had swiftly thrown together

The next day, you find a bouquet of roses at your door, with a note from Shiraishi

He apologizes for disappointing you, but hopes that he was able to save the special day in the end!

[hime-hana]

PARK SEONGHWA ♡ DADDY A TO Z ♡

A = Announcement.- How do you tell him and the world that you’re expecting?

He would notice something was off with you for a couple of days but decided not to say anything until one day when you sneak a little envelope in front of him at the dinner table with a shy smile. His eyes would widen when he opens the blue card "What is a Dad?" written on the front. He would not be able to say anything as he reads the next line announcing to him that he will be a father except asking you over and over if it's real. When you give him a positive answer expect more hugs and kisses than you can handle and a Seonghwa who will not be able to stop smiling.

B = Books.- Did he read the books?

You would be joking if you would say you didn't expect him to have already research and know everything. Seonghwa probably read every baby book he could find... twice.

C = Cuddles.- Who cuddles the baby more?

Again Seonghwa; he will want to hold the baby every second of every day if that would be possible.

D = Daddy.- His reaction to being called Daddy and it setting in.

The poor boy is literally melting when your baby first calls him daddy. He would try to look strong, but once the baby smiles and calls him daddy again tears would stream down his face. Nothing will ever sound as beautiful as that.

E = Empty.- Who goes to the store when you guys run out of supplies?

You or him... or both and then you end up bickering in the children's aisle as Seonghwa wants to buy a new baby bottle for the fourth time that month because "we really need this honey, what if the others break?" and you swear that is what he says every single time.

F = Feeding time- Who does feeding time?

Both of you. Feeding the baby will be a time of bonding and teamwork for both of you as you struggle to feed him. Seonghwa will try to distract the baby as you hurry to feed him.

G = Grumpy baby. - Who is better at dealing with a grumpy baby?

Seonghwa will be more gentle, even if your baby cries all the time he won't ever get annoyed or mad. He will simply hold him closer and ask him what's wrong in a cute voice. He will try to sing a soothing lullaby or play little games with him to calm him down.

H = How?- how many kids does he want?

As many as possible. But I also believe he will listen to your concerns and thoughts as you struggle to make a compromise and not have 10 babies. hint: seonghwa will not settle for less than 4

J = Jokes.- best dad joke?

Dad jokes will be a must. Every time you're feeling down "dad joke Seonghwa" will be at your service no matter how much you insist he really doesn't have to repeat the same joke he has already told you six times that week.

K = Kisses.- His favorite place to kiss the baby.

Everywhere but the one that would make him die of happiness would be when the baby holds his finger so tight with his tiny hand and not letting go. Seonghwa would not be able to resist pressing a kiss on the baby's hand each time he did that.

L = Little.- How he feels when he holds the baby for the first time.

He would cry and be so careful since he is holding his entire universe in his arms. His eyes would fill with love and he would just look at you with the happiest smile "we made this, do you see how beautiful he is?"

M = Mommy.- What does he call you?

Classic romantic nicknames. His favorites would be "sweetheart", "darling" and "honey".

N = Nappies.- Who deals with the really bad ones?

Both of you. Seonghwa would be a very reliable daddy and would never say no if you would ask him to help you with anything, even if it included changing a stinky diaper.

O = Onesies- Who likes to dress the baby in ridiculous outfits?

You if you're lucky enough to sneak by guardian Seonghwa. He would prefer rather cute or matching family outfits/colors than a funny one for your baby.

P = Pet names- names he calls the baby.

Every single cute name under the sun. But most often you would hear him call the baby his "little star" because it's the one thing that would make him the happiest in the world.

Q = Questions.- How many questions does he ask the nurse?

Too many. He will want to know every single step, what floor the baby will be on after birth, when he will be able to spend time with him, if he will be able to stay next to his wife the whole time. The nurse will probably lose count of many questions Seonghwa will ask at once.

R = Rely- What is the biggest thing you rely on each other for?

Everything. You would work as a team from the first moment of your pregnancy. I think Seonghwa will want to take on more of the responsibilities and help you as much as he could, but it will always end up being the two of you sharing the parenting duties.

S = Sleep duty. - Who gets up when it’s really late at night?

You both do. Seonghwa will always take the initiative if he notices you are too tired to calm the baby because he knows there are times when you do the same for him. And he also does not mind spending some extra time with him.

T = Trepidation.- Fears as a new parent.

Seonghwa would be quite confident becoming a parent, I do not believe he will have any major fears, rather he would be scared about how you will accommodate with all the new things happening. His overprotective side will kick in when the child gets older.

U = Ultrasounds.- His reactions to the ultrasounds.

He won't be able to take his eyes off the screen when the doctor will point towards it. Will hold your hand throughout the session and squeeze it each time the doctor would mention how healthy the baby is and how well you could hear his heartbeat. He would be beyond happy.

V = Values.- What is the most important value he wants to teach your child.

How to be a good person and treat everyone with respect would be the main things Seonghwa will teach his baby from a young age. He believes it's important for his child to learn everything before growing older.

W = Water.- Who gives the baby the bath

Both of you, but Seonghwa will have a soft spot for bathing the baby and playing with him in the water, bringing all his favorite toys so he won't cry. He will always make it into a fun time which will end up taking longer than expected.

X = X-mas- What do you guys plan for the holidays?

Your holidays will always be very fun and full of activities. He will definitely want to invite the rest of Ateez over because 1 - he misses them and 2 - he needs to boast about how cute and amazing his "little star" is. Then you might visit yours/his family depending on who you haven't seen in the longest time. But above all, he will want to have a family bonding experience during each holiday: taking long walks as a family, going to an amusement park, eating delicious things, and taking too many pictures that he will show off to his members later.

Y = Yelling.- How many fights do the two of you get in?

Not that many. I see Seonghwa as someone who would hate arguing with his wife, especially after/around the baby so I believe all the fighting would be disguised as constructive criticism and long talks over the kitchen counter while you prepare dinner.

Z = Zoo- How crazy is the house after the birth?

It won't be too crazy. Seonghwa will always be careful to put everything in place and for the whole house to be clean and safe so your baby will not get hurt. Sure, there will be times when you both fall asleep dead tired in the middle of the afternoon next to the baby's crib but other than that things will be quite calm.

[lia-jones]

Growing Together - Chapter Twenty-Seven - Footsteps

Before you start:

This work is unbeta'd and English is not my first language. I apologize in advance for any mistakes you may find.

Victor sighed in relief as he placed his keys on the plate in the hallway, finally finding himself at home after a terrible day at work. It had been meeting after meeting, barely having time for lunch, his phone ringing off the hook, numerous emails waiting for him when he dared to look at his inbox.

To add insult to injury, his day wasn't exactly over. Victor couldn't wait to lie on his sofa and simply enjoy the evening nursing a glass of brandy with his wife in his arms, but he would have to spend it on his study instead, all alone, to attend a conference call with the team in Paris, who was in a different timezone.

His bad mood was somewhat eased with the aroma of delicious food being cooked, his heart taking solace in the sound of his wife and son's voices bantering in the kitchen. At least he was finally home, he comforted himself. For the time being, he would indulge in a hot relaxing shower and a nice dinner with his family.

Owen was always the first to notice when Victor or Andrea arrived, and as usual, he was the first to greet him, running to his arms. Although Victor had been feeling back pain pretty much all day, a customary symptom when he was overly stressed, such was immediately forgotten the moment he had his son in his arms. With heartfelt laughter, Victor threw the boy in the air, having him land safely in his arms with a very tight hug. And just like magic, Victor immediately felt better. His family was all he needed to recover from that awful day and get back on his feet to face another battle.

"What is your mother up to?" Victor asked, playfully disheveling the boy's red curls.

"She's in the kitchen, making dinner. I helped." He beamed at his father. "It's Mom's special fish and shrimp stew."

Bouillabaise, one of his favorites. Comfort food was exactly what he needed. Putting the boy down, Victor moved to the kitchen to find his wife minding the large pot on the stove. He hugged her from behind, his chin leaning on the top of her head.

"Hello, handsome." She turned her head to look at him.

"Hmm." He groaned, burying his face in the nape of her neck, taking comfort in her scent and the softness of her skin.

"Long day?" She reached back to run her fingers through his hair, slightly scratching his scalp, making Victor almost purr in delight.

"Hmmmm." He moaned, too entertained with how she was making him feel to form a proper answer.

"You’re tense." She declared as she reached back to feel his shoulders.

"Just a little tired." His arms circled her waist, as she turned to him.

"Dinner will be ready in 10." She spoke while she continued to work on the knots of his shoulders. "Get yourself out of that suit and have a shower. We got it covered here."

She playfully hit him in the chest, pushing him away from her. As revenge, Victor stole a kiss, a soft sweet kiss that made her sigh when he broke it. Feeling smug with her reaction, he left Andrea to her own devices, heading for the bedroom. A steamy shower definitely sounded very good. Despite Andy's massage, his shoulders still felt sore.

"Owen has some news for us today." His wife declared at the dinner table, winking at their son.

"Let's hear it." Victor lifted his eyes to his son, giving him his undivided attention.

"Next week it will be Career Day at my school." Owen said, excited. "They want us to bring one of our parents to class for Show and Tell, to explain to our classmates what they do for a job."

"What an excellent initiative." Victor nodded in approval, reaching for his glass of wine. "You could ask your mother, she will have a lot to talk about, between her study and LCG."

Owen didn't reply, looking down instead.

"I'm not the only option on the table here." His wife intervened. "You could go."

"Nonsense, you are clearly the best option." Victor retorted. "You could bring the GESA award to show the kids, talk about the study, your work at LCG, how your ideas may change the economy as we know it. Besides, you are practically their size. I bet they will find that both amusing and inspiring." He teased.

His wife was glaring at him, probably not happy with his witty remark.

"I think your mother should go, Owen." Victor concluded, trying to diffuse the tension his joke caused. "I'm sure she will do an excellent job."

"Would you mind coming, Mom?" Owen mumbled, looking down.

"Of course I wouldn't, Bug. It will be my pleasure." She caressed the boy's hair lovingly, a hint of sadness in her smile.

Victor watched both of them, somewhat intrigued. Why were both so morose? Weren't they happy with his suggestion?

"May I be excused?" Owen placed his napkin on the table. "I need to feed my ants."

"You may." Victor smiled. "By the way, how is the colony going?"

"Well." Owen left the kitchen without any other word.

Victor furrowed his eyebrows in confusion. When it came to his ant colony, Owen was usually a lot more talkative.

"What's the matter with him?" He almost whispered to his wife. "Did something else happen at school?"

"You are a clueless idiot." Andrea threw at him, irritated.

"What!? Why? What did I do?"

"Don't you think that if he wanted me to go, he would have asked me already?" She scolded him. "He wanted to invite you, and you shot him down before he had a chance."

"Me? You are obviously the best choice, why would he want me?"

"Because you are his father, you big moron!" She almost yelled, carefully adjusting her tone after. "Look, you are his father figure, his male example, the one that he looks up to. He never really had anything like that before. This is important for him, he finally has a father he can be proud of. Basically, he wants to show you off to his friends. God only knows why, you’re an idiot in a suit."

For a brief moment, Victor recalled the moment he sought out for his father's attention and approval, only to be met with closed doors and reprimands on how children shouldn’t waste an adult's time with trivialities. He remembered how much it hurt him to be ignored, to not be important, to be treated like a nuisance. Victor refused to let his son go through the same thing, but most importantly, he refused to be the one making Owen feel like that.

"I see."

"Finally. Now go fix it." She urged.

He found the boy sitting with his legs crossed on the floor, staring absentmindedly at his ant farm. He could see himself at that very same age, and almost guess what was going through his son's mind. Owen was probably blaming himself for not being interesting enough, trying to find a way to make his father notice him.

Victor sat silently on the bed, waiting for Owen to acknowledge his presence. The boy looked at him with sad brown eyes, deep and dark, making the freckles on his nose stand out.

"Is it bedtime yet?" Owen asked, getting up from the floor.

"No, I just wanted to have a word with you."

"Am I in trouble?"

"Do we only talk when you're in trouble?" Victor couldn't help but feel slightly offended. "Sit beside me."

Owen obeyed, sitting next to his father, an expectant look on his face. Victor took a moment to think about how he would approach the subject. He couldn't tell the boy about the conversation he just had with his mother.

"Maybe we made a hasty decision regarding who is coming to Career Day."

"What do you mean?"

"Well, I did say your mother was the best choice. However, after careful consideration, I think I may be a very interesting choice as well. I mean, I know most of your friends from playing soccer in the park, I'm fairly popular already. One could even say I'm... cool."

"You want to go?"

"That is for you to decide. But I would be honored if you’d take me."

"I was going to ask you." Owen confessed. "I even asked Mom if that would hurt her feelings, and she said she would be happy if I chose you."

"Why didn't you say so, then?"

"Because I know you are very busy, especially now that you are opening that new business in France. I overheard Mom scolding you the other day for not getting enough sleep. I thought you were saying Mom could go because you were too tired. And if you are too tired, it's selfish of me to ask."

Victor smiled at the little boy as he pulled him into his lap. He was barely five, and he could be so considerate. He playfully poked his little freckled nose.

"Even if that was the case, even if I was too tired, I would still go. You know why?"

The boy shook his head.

"Because I love you." Victor replied in a soft voice. "You are my son, and there is nothing I wouldn't do for you."

Small arms wrapped around Victor's neck in a tight hug. And the sweetest voice spoke the sweetest words.

"I love you too, Dad. Thank you for doing this, it will be so cool!” He jumped excitedly. “I can already imagine what my classmates will say about the cool things you do at work! Do you know what you will bring to your presentation? Megan's father is a trainer at the zoo, she says he may bring a parrot!"

Victor's stomach turned cold. Only at that moment did he realize what he truly agreed on.

The task sounded fairly simple: to explain his job to a room full of five-year-olds. It turned out, it was a lot harder than he expected.

His job entailed many complicated concepts, like risk assessment and profit analysis, and had big words like enterprise value, equity, and horizontal integration. Those things were already hard enough to explain to a child, but worse than that, they were boring. He had to make his job look interesting, and although it would be fairly easy to seduce an adult by showing profit, children didn't respond to money. He had to make it entertaining, and simple. Yet, he had no idea how. Nothing about his job would seem entertaining to a child.

But then one day, while running, he recalled his Economics teacher’s words from one of his lectures: Economy has existed since primitive times, where things were much simpler, and an economic transaction meant trading meat for animal skin or a cutting tool. The act of trading baseball cards during recess could be considered an economic transaction. To explain it, he would just have to trade the fancy terms for things children could relate to.

Finally, he had a plan. A good one. That didn't mean he wasn't nervous.

“Do you want to call Mom and tell her to come instead?” The boy asked from the backseat as they were driving to school.

“What? No, I’m fine.” Victor gripped the wheel tighter, trying to steady himself.

“Are you sure?” Victor saw his boy frown from the rearview mirror. “You look like you have a tummy ache.”

Did he? He immediately relaxed his face, trying to remain expressionless.

“Mom told me you would be like this.” Owen smiled with a knowing look. “She told me to tell you that you just need to use the charm you used on her.”

Yes, Victor could do that, he had some good moments with Andrea. Well, apart from the interview, and when her car broke down, with the heavy rain and... nipples. And being so embarrassed he could barely speak. The memory only made him more nervous.

He marched bravely into school with a box full of containers with cherries and a bag full of lollipops. Owen was exhilarated to have his father with him, jumping happily in the halls, showing him every piece of art he had made that was on display. Victor, on the other hand, was sweating from nervousness, hoping the AC in Owen's classroom was freezing cold. The teacher jumped on the spot when she saw him.

“Mr. Lee?” She came to him hurriedly, looking puzzled when she saw Victor place the containers in one of the empty desks. “The Principal didn’t tell me you were visiting. By the way, where is he? Are you here unattended? Is this about a fund or something? How can I help you?”

“I’m here for Career Day. We still haven’t had the pleasure to meet.” Victor extended his hand to the teacher. “I’m Victor Lee, Owen’s father.”

“Owen, you didn’t tell me your father was Victor Lee!” She looked down on the boy, flushed.

“I told you my father was a CEO.” Owen quipped, frowning slightly.

“Well, still, how would I know it was Victor Lee?”

“My name is Owen Lee.”

The teacher fanned herself, eyeing Victor with a weird smile.

“Mr. Lee, I know that our installations aren’t quite what you are used to, but I hope you do feel welcome.”

“I’m sure they will do perfectly, thank you.”

Victor was wrong. The chairs were too small for an adult, especially one of his stature. However, standing up was also not an option, as he would be beside Owen and he would block the view, so he had no choice but to sit on the tiny chair, with his legs awkwardly crossed, looking like an idiot.

Megan's father was the first, and he did bring the parrot, making him do all kinds of tricks. The children and the teacher laughed at the animal's shenanigans, and Victor couldn't help but feel disheartened, knowing this presentation would be very hard to top.

Then came Caleb's mother, who was a physician. She taught the kids the many functions of the main organs in the human body, bringing with her a kidney in a jar. The class was rowdy as they passed the jar around, amazed to be able to see a real kidney, like the ones they had in their very small bodies.

"Next we have Owen's father, Mr. Lee, a very successful entrepreneur in Loveland. He will talk about his job as a CEO of an investment company." The teacher announced.

Victor faced the twenty children in front of him, who were looking at him with wide eyes, waiting for him to start. In almost 15 years of being a CEO, he had attended important meetings with notorious businessmen, oil tycoons, rulers and politicians. He had dinner meetings with the mafia and other shady characters, people that held incredible power and precious information, but could also kill him without a second thought.

He could conclude, without a shadow of a doubt, that children were scarier.

For a second he wished he could be like Andrea. She would know what to do. She would probably greet the children with a goofy gesture, making them all laugh. She was fun and witty, she knew what children liked. Victor paused, remembering his wife’s words through his son’s mouth. He could be funny too, he always made her laugh, it had become one of his favorite hobbies. Maybe she was right. Maybe he could do this. With a new sense of confidence, and with a side note to thank his wife for her encouraging words, Victor approached his audience.

“Good afternoon, Ladies and Gentlemen.” He started, ceremoniously. “First of all, I would like to thank you for your time and attention, and the honor of your invitation. My name is Victor Lee, and I’m the CEO of Loveland Financial Group.”

Encouraged by their teacher, all the children applauded.

“Before I begin to explain exactly what I do, let me start with a question. Who knows what an investor does?”

All the children were quiet until a little girl spoke.

“Is it someone who goes to the market and screams ‘Buy! Buy!’ and ‘Sell! Sell!’?

“You mean the stock market?” Victor chuckled. “Yes, it can be, although there are many kinds of investments. At LFG, what we do is help companies grow by lending them money, which they pay us, but with interest. Does anyone know what interest is?”

Many kids raised their hands.

“Is it when things aren’t boring? Like, they are interesting?”

“Ha. No.” Victor forgot that the words would have a different meaning to five-year-olds. “For example, someone asks LFG for ten dollars. The company lends it but asks in return for eleven dollars. That extra dollar is the interest.”

“That’s not very nice.” A freckled boy raised his hand. “Sharing is caring.”

Victor felt himself blush slightly. The boy had made a perfectly logical remark that unfortunately didn’t fit in the financial world. And he didn’t have the faintest clue on how he could explain it better.

“It is nice, because my dad doesn’t just give the money. My mom and dad work with the companies to help them grow, and they get to keep the tools she gives them forever. My dad gives them the money and asks for more because he also helps them get better.” Owen chimed in, basically saving him. Although it wasn’t exactly accurate, it wasn’t wrong either. Victor couldn’t be more proud.

“That is correct and beautifully worded, Owen, thank you.” He smiled at his boy. “Now, to fully understand the kind of work that a CEO of an investment company does, I would like to invite you all to be, for ten minutes, CEOs.” He ceremoniously declared. “Owen, could you help distribute the boxes and the candy to your friends?”

Owen quickly obliged, and in a moment, all the kids had with them a box of cherries and a lollipop.

“Ok, imagine you are the CEO of an investment company-”

“What is the company called?” The freckled boy asked again. Victor suppressed a sigh of exasperation.

“Whatever you want to call it. It’s your company.”

“Can I call it Unicorn?” A little girl raised her hand.

“Yes, you can. Now…”

“Can I call it Wayne Enterprises? Do you think I could be Batman?”

Victor’s memory took another trip down memory lane, to the day his wife blackmailed him into making that ridiculous Batman recording. He felt his cheeks getting slightly warmer. Luckily, the teacher intervened.

“Alright class, it’s nice to see you this excited but we need to let Mr. Lee speak, alright?”

“Thank you. So, as I was saying, imagine you are in a meeting, as CEOs, and two different companies are asking for investment: a lollipop factory and an orchard that grows cherries. You can pick only one. Which one would you pick? Place your hand on your choice.”

Every single child, except for one, held their lollipops. He turned to the girl that picked the cherries.

“Interesting choice. Why would you invest in the cherry producer?”

“Because I want to invest in a company that makes a lot of money. Cherries are more expensive than lollipops.”

Victor smiled at her insightfulness. She was probably a CEO in the making.

“True, but cherries only grow in the spring, that’s why they are more expensive. The candy factory can make lollipops all year.” He retorted. “You still think the orchard makes more money than the candy factory?”

“Yes, because my mom will let me have cherries but won’t buy me candy.” A boy chimed in, and other children agreed.

“Demand, very good, we need to see what sells best. What else would you use to make a decision?” Victor was excited, watching the proverbial wheels turn in their little heads. “What does it take to produce each of the products?”

“You need a factory to make lollipops. In an orchard, you just need to water the trees.”

“Very well, and you need sugar, and flavors and other ingredients, while in the cherries’ case, is given for free by nature. So, have we decided on the orchard?”

“Yes!” They screamed in unison.

“Seems like we have a unanimous decision. And for the record, what we just did here is a very simplistic version of a risk assessment, a study every investor needs to make to know if the investment is worthwhile. Of course, there are other things I do as a CEO, but I can’t possibly describe them in such a short time.” He paused for a moment, all the children’s eyes on him. “Does anyone have any questions before we finish?”

“Are all CEOs men?” A girl asked from the back.

“Of course not. Women can be CEOs too, my wife is a CEO from a different company. And if you ask me, she’s more successful than I am.” He made a silly face, and all the children laughed.

He couldn’t believe it was going so well.

“Anything else?”

“My father says businessmen are dicks in a suit.” A boy declared, while his father looked like he was close to infarction.

“Timothy!” The teacher chastised.

“Well, I can tell you that can definitely be true in some cases.” Victor spoke wholeheartedly. “In any area, you can find good and bad professionals. But let me tell you all about the three qualities I feel a good CEO should have.” Victor raised his hand, lifting his fingers as he spoke. “Intelligence, resilience, and responsibility. Intelligence because we need to know where we stand at all times and make quick decisions, and they better be the right ones, or else we can lose our business. Resilience because the financial world is a fluctuating one, and everything may change in a blink of an eye. We must be resilient enough to embrace the change, and make it work in our favor. And lastly, responsibility, because as we invest, we are not only dealing with our money or a faceless company. We can change the world with our choices, allowing technology, health, and education to evolve so there is improvement in everyone’s lives. I personally invest only in companies where employees are treated with fairness, and environmental rules are respected. We need to put the power we hold to good use and make this world a better place. If we all understand the smallest of our actions can impact the world tremendously, I’m sure miracles will happen.”

“Well, that was brilliantly said.” The teacher cleared her throat, starting to clap. “A big applause to Mr. Lee, thank you for being with us today.”

Victor returned to the car with a smug smile on his face, and a sense of accomplishment he hadn’t felt in a very long time. He had done well, he had honored his son and made him happy. However, as he started the car to leave, he saw his son through the rearview mirror, lost in thought.

“Everything ok back there?” He frowned at the mirror. “Is there something upsetting you?”

“No, I’m ok.” The boy looked up.

“You’re happy?”

“Yes.” The boy smiled.

“I think the presentation went well.” Victor started the car. “Your friends seemed to like it.”

“Yes, it was fun! And we had candy and cherries as a snack, none of the other parents brought snacks.”

Victor smirked, adding that point to his mental scoreboard.

“So why the long face?”

Owen seemed to momentaneously return to his thoughts before he answered Victor’s question.

“I don’t think I want to be an entomologist anymore.”

Victor gave his son a knowing smile.

“I knew the parrot would interest you.”

“No, parrots are dumb!” Owen seemed slightly offended. “I want to be a CEO, just like you.”

Victor could remember himself, at the same age, saying the same thing to his father, to get his approval.

“Owen, you can be whatever you want to be. I will still support you, no matter what you decide.”

“Then you’ll teach me?”

Victor smiled widely, his heart filled with pride.

“I will teach you everything I know.” He was about to offer the keys to his kingdom, but then remembered how he refused the same from his father, wanting to make his own path.

The epiphany came suddenly, clearing his vision and the fear he couldn’t shake from his heart: he had traveled a different road from his father in so many ways. He was a present and loving husband, with a healthy relationship with Andrea. And he was a present and loving partner, caring and supporting his son in every step of his life.

And that meant so much more than being a powerful CEO. Those were the footsteps he wanted his son to follow. The ones that led to happiness.

Author's Note: This project has been going for a year now (it started in February 2020) and it won't be over any time soon, so I would like to ask you, as much as possible, for your support, because we still have a very long way to go. So, if you enjoy the work, don't forget to comment and reblog. It gives it traction and enables other people to learn about it, and for me to get more excited about what I do.

[atopearth]

Brothers Conflict (Passion Pink) Part 1 - Asahina Masaomi Route

I am happy to announce that I will try my best to play Brothers Conflict in Japanese! Yes, it was Christmas so I splurged and bought Diabolik Lovers, Brothers Conflict and Norn9 hahahah. Hopefully I can do this! Apparently Brothers Conflict is an easy read because it's slice of life and uses normal everyday words so let's go! Ema and her squirrel Juli huh? That's kinda cute lmao. Anyway, I know the basic premise but it's kinda crazy to have like 11 new brothers, like wow. And her squirrel talks?! I guess it's nice to have a such a reliable squirrel "parent" for Ema since it seems so capable haha. I don't blame Ema for being so nervous though haha. Oh wow, Miwa (the lady Ema's father is remarrying) is rich and nice! Hahahaha, Ema thinks Masaomi is Wataru's dad, is he that old looking?🤣 Anyway, I know it's a game so Ema has to be surprised to know all these hot guys etc are her new brothers but if this was real life and I was nervous about meeting all these brothers by myself, I would definitely hope to have seen or have a photo of them with me lmao. Anyway, lmao at Wataru giving Ema candy for accidentally hurting her when he couldn't stop his bike in time lolll, who is the little kid here?!🤣 Awww, I don't like fan clubs but I do like Iori! He seems cool and kinda knows how to handle his fangirls. Ukyo mightttt be my type, we'll see🤣 Anyway, Ema is such a considerate daughter for not wanting to intrude on her father's newlywed life and deciding to live in the Sunrise Residence with all the other brothers, I would be so scared to live with a bunch of new random siblings lol.

Is a sunflower badge a symbol to show you're a lawyer or something? That's pretty cool! Anyway, Masaomi is the eldest son?! I totally assumed Ukyo would have been the oldest haha! Guess looks are deceiving. Hahaha, Ukyo calling him "nii-san" (older brother) is a shockk🤣 I admit that Kaname's purple kimono looks pretty cool, but dang, kissing the back of Ema's hand and then saying can he kiss other places too?! That's a great way to introduce yourself... I'm so glad Ukyo hit him for doing that lol. Lmaooo I thought Kaname was going to be a fashion designer of some sort but he's actually a Buddhist priest?! Wow lol. Oooh I like Tsubaki and Azusa's looks! They're cute, are they twins? Okay yep, they are. I love them already🤣 Omggg and they're both voice actors? They're getting cooler by the second🤣 I love how friendly Tsubaki is lol. I love how just as Ukyo hits Kaname for getting out of hand, Azusa does the same for Tsubaki lol. Lmao at Ema thinking to herself whether Tsubaki is "okay" in the sense of whether there's anything wrong with him because of how he talks hahahaa. Awww Subaru seems cute, he's shy with girls even though he's a university student! OMG Tsubaki is older than Subaru? I can't tell these age differences lol!! I like Iori a lot though hahaha. Lmao I thought Iori recognised Ema's school uniform because he knew girls from there but it was actually because Yuusuke (another brother) goes there hahaha, sorry my bad Iori. Tsubaki is so slack to hide from Yuusuke that they were going to have a new sister lolll. But his reaction was funny so I can understand. I find it hilarious how Yuusuke can't handle Ema being sad over him not approving of this loll, so he had to just agree to make her happy haha. HAHAHA, when Kaname asked Ema to call him "onii-chan" LOL, like geez dude!! And then even Tsubaki joined in🤣 I like Azusa, so I'm glad there was an option to call him onii-chan loll. I think it was pretty funny how they got her to keep calling them onii-chan lmao, it was nice how she played along with them and got to enjoy having so many siblings considering that it must have been pretty lonely with just her dad and he's probably busy working a lot of the time.

Awww that's so sweet, Ema woke up early hoping to make breakfast for the brothers! She's such an awesome sister. I have to agree with Ema, Kaname exercising early in the morning is a surprise haha. I honestly thought Ukyo would be the one there...and he is! Ukyo is the one who cooks breakfast and all the meals I guess! Lmao at the cute rabbit apron he wears🤣 Ukyo best boyyy! Omg Rui is pretty, I love his hair. But I find it so funny how he's like touching her hair and Ema is like so calmly just introducing herself to him lmao. Oooh, so we have another idol brother, lmao at Ema thinking the family were fans instead of him being a brother, like what are the chances that they would all be fans of him🤣🤣 Aww Mahoko looks like a cute best friend for Ema. Sasakura (the soccer ace guy) seems pretty friendly to offer to help Ema move. I have to agree with Ema though, Masaomi in work mode is nice to watch, I always think it's so sweet to see guys so kind and patient with kids (even though I don't like kids🥲). It was so sweet how Ema so honestly told him she would have liked a doctor like him when she was a kid, Masaomi blushing at her praise was actually pretty cute lol. Awww, his pocket is full of chocolates and other stuff as rewards for the kids! It's nice that he has a whole variety of stuff like stickers and mini cars since he doesn't want to give them too many sweets. It must be so heavy though lmao.

Fuuto sleeping CG is pretty cute~ LOL did he just say Ema is cute but it seemed like she's dumb?! Well, there goes your idol dreams, Ema lol. Lmao when he said she didn't deny it and said she's an idiot, like woww, way to go Fuuto, you're definitely an ass. He's probably traumatised or annoyed with his fangirls or something. I can so relate to Ema's rage, I would want to strangle Fuuto loll. Okay, I did something wrong and didn't realise I needed to go to the aquarium with Masaomi! Lmao at Ema saying all the fish are cute lol. Blushing Masaomi is so adorable though. It was so cute how he got embarrassed for not realising that he was really close to her, and it was so cute how Ema tried to explain that she didn't hate it and that it just made her heart beat really fast😂 Aww Ema and Masaomi both like small animals. Damn, these guys are rich, do they have a villa on an island?!! I think it's really nice how they all take the time out to go on holiday with the whole family there every summer vacation though. Considering how many of them there are and how busy they are, it's good to see that they try to make the effort to bond with each other. They've even got a private beach on a part of the island, danggg. Anyway, I love how welcoming the brothers are. I agree with Iori, Ema is really admirable to even do supplementary classes to help with going to her dream university, she's working hard!

You know, considering that these guys are her "brothers", I find it funny that they're quite unreserved towards the idea of doing date-like stuff with her loll! Like with the amusement park, Masaomi held her hand to keep it warm after she got a bit freaked out with the haunted house attraction lol! I guess considering the game, I should just throw that all out of the window and just enjoy it for what it is haha. I mean, I gotta admit, it's pretty cute. I guess it's not that cute after I looked at their character profiles and realised that Masaomi is actually 31 and Ema is like 16-17? Oh well, I guess I'll ignore that too😂 Aww, Masaomi seems like such a parent, he's sad that his brothers are older now and they don't rely on him as much for stuff anymore. I guess that would be something good but also sad to see. It's interesting how the dialogue changes when you get more hearts. It's like initially, Masaomi used to be like, nah I'm not free into yeah I'm free, and now he's just like let's go lol. I think the nicest change is that he used to leave to go somewhere else after their outing, but now he goes home with her. I think something that's nice to see is Masaomi "spoiling" her, like he doesn't do anything over the top, just simple stuff like buying her a strap, holding her bags etc, but I feel like because she's always lived only with her father, and now that he has a new partner, she's even more reserved towards not wanting to trouble others, so I think Masaomi treating her sweetly is nice. I find it so sweet how he understands her so well that he knows that she would feel bad about it, so he asks her to buy snacks for everyone in exchange. I love how Ema made a whole bunch of sandwiches on their zoo date, I love little picnics~ And it's so cute how she offered to make him lunch next time since he's always so busy with work that most of the time he just buys rice balls and sandwiches from the convenience store.

I'm so excited for their trip!! Lmao, I really want to see Ema's swimsuit now, considering how Subaru was so surprised by it, he told her to wear his jacket🤣 Aww playing with fireworks at the beach with Masaomi was nicee~ I think Masaomi really gives off that great big brother vibe that will ensure she'll never feel lonely, it's really heartwarming to see. Omggg there's the option to stay overnight in Masaomi's room now!! Not that anything happened (for now) since he just helped her study and she fell asleep there~ but it was really cute to know that Masaomi keeps all the letters he gets from his current and old patients, it's sweet that his room is "messy" because of it haha. Gotta love how Masaomi took his other futon to clean so now they have to share a futon lol, like how far away is Ema's room lolll! But anyway, it's fine I guess because it's cute~ It seems like from way back when he was a kid, Masaomi was already mature and stepped up to be the big brother that would help out his parents because they're so busy. I still wonder how he survives as a doctor if he nearly faints after seeing a little bit of blood lol, but yeah it's crazy how much of Masaomi's life revolves around his family. Even him choosing to be a doctor was because he wanted something stable, good income and have useful knowledge for taking care of his family if anything were to happen so that his parents wouldn't need to worry. He's such a good child. I found it so wonderful how Ema praised Masaomi for his work saying she could really see how much his patients really trust him and see how earnest he is with his work. Can't blame him for feeling so embarrassed hahahha. Okay, I'm dying at how sweet Masaomi's lines become. Now when you ask him on a date, he's like are you sure you want to spend your precious break day with me?! Hahaha, of course we do! And now when you ring his doorbell hoping to stay over, he looks forward to Ema being the one to ring it, I love it so much🥺 I find it so cute how he's more conscious of her staying over so late now hahaha. Omggg, he just asked if it was okay to share the same futon and Ema was like sure, awww that's so cuteee, they're practically together now lol. Omggg he confessed that he liked her when he thought she fell asleep! He even kissed her on the forehead! Awww!! I wonder how Ema will react now~

Kaname really loves to flirt with Ema allll the time doesn't he lol. Subaru blushing at Ema having baked his birthday cake for him is so cuteeee. Anyway omg, does everyone actually already like her?? Even Iori said he was happy that it was because Ukyo was busy so she ended up having to bake the cake and not because she wanted to since the beginning😮 Anyway, it was so cute how Masaomi said he wanted to be the first to congratulate her when she turns 20 (since they just came back from Subaru's 20th birthday), and okay, it seems like Ema lives kinda far from the guys?? Lol, I thought it was a shared house kinda thing. Anyway, their accidental kiss seeming led up to Masaomi giving her another kiss?! I feel like my heart was beating fast like Ema's lmao. LMAO when Masaomi offered a kid to ride on his shoulders to see the dolphin show properly (he even called himself an big brother/onii-san) and the kid still calls him an uncle/oji-san hahahaha. HAHAHA, I love how Ema readied herself to have Masaomi check her with a stethoscope (she was sick) since it feels embarrassing and she raised her clothes so high, he saw her bra or something lmao. LOL, Usa-tan sounds like an amazing doll that can shoot out stationery, record, be a calculator etc, like dang lolll. Omggg that Ema had to wear bunny cosplay for the school festival cafe, lmao when Yusuke saw it and was embarrassed lol. Ohhh, there's another older brother called Natsume who moved out of the mansion! I've lost track of how many there are honestly but Natsume is pretty good-looking. I'm so glad Azusa made Natsume apologise to Ema properly for being so rude to her when he didn't know who she was and reacted badly to her calling his name so familiarly. WHAT, TRIPLETS? Them being triplets is definitely a shock to me like whaaaat omg. Once again, impressed that Miwa had so many children and looks so good. I seeee, so Tsubaki and Azusa are identical but Natsume is fraternal oooo. Anyway, I was so shocked that I forgot to say I didn't even think about a wedding ceremony so I'm glad there is one for her father and Miwa hahaha. LOL when Miwa gave Ema the bouquet and told her if she likes any of her sons, she would help them hold the ceremony, like dang, she's already decided that she wants her new "daughter" to be like a true daughter loll. Gotta love it when your parents are supportive of you marrying your step brothers lolll. Anyway, seriously though, I guess that makes it easier for them later on with no parental drama haha.

It's so cute how Masaomi gives candy to Ema as a reward all the time hahaha. Well, Ema not being the real daughter of Rintaro was unexpected... I felt sorry for her when she found out and felt that she would be all alone if her dad told her the truth properly. I feel like Ema's always tried her best to be strong on her own because her dad was always busy, but he was family and she knew he would always be there because they're tied by such bonds so it was okay even if she was sad that she couldn't see him much, so I feel like her breaking down is understandable. I thought it was really sweet how Masaomi told her that he would always be by her side so she would never be alone, and that if she's still sad after talking to her dad, she can always go to him for help. It's sad that her parents died so early in her life, but I'm glad Rintaro decided to take care of her instead of leaving her all alone in some institution. It was also nice that Ema got to hear what she needed to hear, which was that even if they're not connected by blood, Ema is still his daughter, and I think it really helped her insecurities to hear her dad properly tell her that.

Lmaooo when Ema thought Hikaru was Kaname's girlfriend😂 On the other hand, I'm not sure what to think about Tsubaki and Kaname being "moe" to little sisters lolll, but I guess at least they're quite frank and obvious about Ema totally being their type lolll. Anyway, I guess now we've seen all the brothers! I knewww Miwa was going to ask Masaomi to go to an omiai but danggg. Especially since he's the oldest brother so I guess it was to be expected in his route. Awww I love how Masaomi so honestly told the girl he had someone he liked. I legit can't wait until they both tell each other their feelings, I'm so excited!! Lmaooo, Masaomi in a Santa Claus costume looks so funny hahaha. Awww he bought Ema a Christmas present!! It's nice that Masaomi gave Ema her very own Usa-tan! Anyway, omggg Azusa and Tsubaki are sooo close, it's actually kinda cute how much they love each other haha. I loved how Ema properly thanked all the guys during the Christmas party for looking for her when she ran away after realising her dad wasn't blood related to her, and I loved how they told her it was natural since she's family. When he hugged her thanking her for always encouraging him and supporting him, it was so cuteee, I love how much Ema loves seeing the serious Masaomi that dedicates himself to saving people however he can.

Masaomi is usually so tired from work, but I love how he's always like Ema is always welcome to visit his room! I think it was especially cute when Ema was about to go back knowing that he didn't get much sleep and she woke him up, but he knew that she wouldn't randomly just come to annoy him for nothing, so thankfully he got her to not feel like she was bothering him and gave him the chocolate~ Masaomi blushing is always the cutest~ Lmaooo Ema is like a pro gamer😂 I found it so funny how Subaru and Ema just told Yusuke to pick up items because he's weak😂 Awww Masaomi was sad that Ema didn't react to the pink heart necklace he gave her through Usa-tan! To be fair he did do it in a really roundabout way so I guess it's understandable that she didn't notice it, but luckily she did lol, so now she doesn't need to misunderstand that he thinks of her as just a kid. Ohhh, I thought Masaomi was just jealous that Ema was having fun with Subaru and them, but it was actually because he thought that Ema would probably have more fun and be more happy with a guy around her age and that's why he was sad🥺 I'm so happy that they both told each other their worries and how much they enjoyed their time together. Ema definitely was more brave to say she wanted to always stay beside him though haha. Lmao at Masaomi having eaten so many sweets at that shop he bought the white day presents for Ema loll. Anyway, I didn't realise Fuuto was actually like 2 years younger than Ema, considering how arrogant he seemed, I thought he was around the same age lol. Anyway, I obviously rose the wrong stuff and didn't get the best ending LOL. I was so sad when Masaomi was like, you'll always be my sister or something and it ended, and I was like excuse meeee!? Anyway, I redid the whole thing LOL. I knew that Masaomi had to get over the blood thing if something happened to Wataru so I'm glad Ema was there to kinda wake him up to do that haha. I missed out Ema in a kimono CG!! She was so beautiful!! And omggg, their wedding and expecting a baby endings were nice~ Definitely worth me going through all that again just to see it lol.

Overall, if you can ignore the fact that Masaomi is like 30 and Ema is 17, then this route was quite nice. Well, to be fair, the whole premise is a grey area so I guess the age gap shouldn't be a problem for most who decide to try this game haha. Anyway, I really liked Masaomi. He's like the oldest brother that's super caring about his family, but also a bit childish, maybe because he's kinda like Wataru's father lol. I thought Masaomi was the one who took care of most of the brothers but Masaomi got too busy with his job so that kinda fell on Ukyo instead, which I'm looking forward to in the future! But yeah, I really loved how kind, gentle and sweet Masaomi was all the time, and I really liked how much he had that nice older brother vibe that I super dig lol. You can say, he really soothed my heart LOL, like every time I spend some time going through the route, he always makes my heart warm and makes me smile because of how kind he is, and I just really loved that. I always love how he always takes interest in his patients' interests and does his best to understand them so he can better interact with these kids and make them have an easier time in the hospital. Anyway, I'm super proud of myself that I was able to finish this route in Japanese!! I probably didn't understand 100% of it, but I think I got most of it and I'm so happy about that! I probably spent wayyy too much time on the dictionary searching for kanji but I can definitely see the progress and I'm looking forward to finishing all the routes! It's still kinda crazy to me though, like I still remember once upon a time, I really wanted to play this game and honestly hoped for a localisation one day, but now I've given up and decided to just practise my Japanese with it instead lol. It's interesting how things have come to be, but I'm excited for the rest~

[cupidcreates]

akdsfjkdksj I wasn’t expecting you to churn all this content out so quick (´∀｀)♡ omgosh you went above and beyond with the love language ask!! I love to see your interpretation of these characters so what do the cast consider the perfect date to be? low key vs high key? local vs out of town? -😌✨

Thank you! I’m glad you liked the love language post, sorry it took so long lol. As for their favorite dates I think I’ll do the same characters here:

Katsuki Bakugou

Rock Climbing/Hiking Dates

Canonically one of Katsuki’s favorite things to do is go rock climbing so he’d definitely want to bring a SO along every so often. If you’re an athletic person and enjoy being outdoors this will be a very fun date! If you’re not a very athletic person (as many of us aren’t) Katsuki will settle for just going for a short hike along a trail. Katsuki gets super talkative on hikes as well, as you’re walking he’ll just be talking about literally anything! From Hero work to his friends/family, to things that have been bothering him lately. Whatever is on his mind he’ll share with you while you’re both out, which is incredibly helpful as he doesn’t ever discuss his feelings at any other point in time. Plus it gives him a chance to show off how fit he is in front of you, which you both always consider a plus.

Izuku Midoriya

Movie Dates

A Classic, perhaps a little plain even, but Izuku absolutely loves to take you to the movies. He loves everything about the date, from discussing what you’re about to watch, to getting the snacks, to whispering in the back row (if you’re the type to get annoyed by talking during a movie he’ll keep this to a bare minimum). He loves being able to snuggle up next to you and hold your hand while discussing the finer points of the plot (If you’ll tolerate talking of course). Don’t think he’s being innocent here though, he definitely uses the darkness surrounding you as cover as he runs his hands up your thighs. Unbeknownst to most, Izuku is actually very much a horndog. He conceals it very well but he’s only barely capable of keeping his hands to himself when it comes to his SO. Any chance he gets to touch you he’ll take it, more than likely this is why his second favorite type of date is usually a stay-in date...

Shoto Todoroki

Dinner Dates

Another Classic, Shoto loves to treat his SO to expensive treats with his favorite being food-related dates at lavish restaurants. Not a week goes by that he doesn’t take you out on the town for the night at some place you’re sure you couldn’t even afford a glass of water at. It’s almost never the same place twice either, Shoto is actually a foodie and enjoys trying new types of cuisine whenever he can. He’s got a whole list of places he wants to take you, and if they require reservations he’s already got them locked down. If you love eating Shoto is your man, he’ll make sure you’re set with a wide variety of foods to choose from and always remembers any place you happen to be partial to.

Denki Kaminari

Amusement/Water Park Dates

Denki is a fun-loving guy through and through, he knows how to have a good time and wherever you happen to go he makes sure you do too. That being said, his absolute favorite place to take you is to an amusement or water park. It’s not often you two get to go, as you’re both very busy with your respective hero work most days, but when you do it’s a day-long affair. You’re there from the minute the park opens to the second it shuts down, riding as many rides as you can manage, eating greasy garbage food, and making sure to strike the dumbest poses for any rides that take pictures. You’ve got a whole scrapbook of these photos by now, their ridiculousness increasing with each new one added.

Eijirou Kirishima

Beach Dates

You wouldn’t expect Eijirou Kirishima to be a Thalassophile (Def. Person who loves the ocean) but he is. He adores being on the beach and it’s his preferred location for a date. You’ve spent many a sunny afternoon seaside with Eijirou, building sandcastles, chasing crabs, and just enjoying the ocean. One memorable afternoon you found yourselves right next to a sea turtles nest and you got to watch the babies pop out of the sand and scurry towards the ocean, assisted by Eijirou as he chased off the seagulls looking to make them a meal. Eijirou also enjoys surfing, and if you know how to do so he’ll get you matching boards so you can ride the waves together. If you’re not partial to surfing he’ll be sure to pull out all his tricks while you watch him, he’ll even let you onto his board with him so you two can just float together by the shore. Of course you two can’t go to the beach year round, but when you can you’re both sure to make the most of these sunny days, even if he does get an awful sunburn by the end of it. 

Hitoshi Shinsou

Gaming Dates

Hitoshi isn’t what one would call ‘social’ when given the choice between going out for a night and staying home he’ll almost always choose the latter. So it’s expected that his favorite type of date is one where you two can stay inside and enjoy each others company. You both work so hard as Heros, why not spend your days off relaxing with one another? He can spend hours alone with you, preferably kicking your ass at Mario Party or some other multiplayer game. He doesn’t need anything except you, his consoles, and a pile of your favorite snacks to have a good time. That being said, if you want him to go out for a date the best way to convince him is to take him to some kind of arcade, especially if it’s a VR arcade. He feels a kind of nostalgic joy for these places and won’t hesitate to return and feel like a kid again. Plus it’s always nice to repeatedly prove to you that yes he is the champion of Dance Dance Revolution and you will never usurp this title from him.

Tamaki Amajiki

Park/Picnic Dates

As I’ve mentioned in a previous post, Tamaki loves spending time outdoors; surrounded by and in awe of nature and it’s complex inner workings. He enjoys just taking time to appreciate the world around him, so dates where you can both relax outside and enjoy each other’s company are his favorite kind. He has a specific hill at his favorite park he likes to take you, bringing a lunch of all your favorite foods he sets you both up under the biggest shade tree for an afternoon. You both lay back on your worn picnic blanket and just cloudgaze, talking for hours about anything and everything. Much like Bakugou, Tamaki gets very talkative on these dates, discussing his week with you and anything new he might have learned over the course of it. He’s so very endearing on these dates its easy to fall silent and just listen to him for hours.

Mirio Togata

Crafting Dates

Mirio likes to have memorabilia from your dates, so you can expect a lot of dates to center around making things. More than just your average painting classes Mirio has also taken you to sculpting, woodworking, and glass blowing classes to name a few. At the end of your dates you both exchange what you’ve made and Mirio absolutely adores anything you craft, regardless of its quality in your eyes. He puts his heart and soul into making you something and more often than not it turns out spectacularly. Mirio wasn’t as good with the ceramics class, but you love the warped vase he made (even if it was technically supposed to be a cup at the start, we’ve all been there). Mirio’s kept everything you made him and even has a shelf in his house just dedicated to what you’ve made, it makes him so happy to come home after a hard day of work and see physical memories of his time with you.

Keigo Takami

Aquarium/Zoo Dates

Underneath Keigo’s charming and charismatically upbeat personality lies a bitter and broken man, drained by his role in Hero Society and left an empty shell of his former self. Underneath that personality lies a kid who never got to have a proper childhood and desperately wants to make up for it. He now uses his dates with you to do just that; not that you mind of course, dates with Keigo are always fun and lighthearted and you love to see him truly enjoy himself for once. Keigo’s favorite places to go are definitely large and intricately designed Zoos and Aquariums. He loves to look at the painstakingly accurate and detailed natural habitats, make fun of the stranger animal names you find, and learn new information about foreign bird species. Loves to mimic their calls too, much to the irritation of the birds and the zoo employees. He makes it a point to always get you a stuffed animal at the end of the date, ensuring that you now have a massive collection of them sitting all around your room. You’re always kept up to date on any Zoo or Aquarium events thanks to Keigo, as he has a calendar dedicated to all the unique events they have going on throughout the year.

Touya Todoroki

Crash Dates

Dabi is...well he’s unpredictable at the best of times and it’s very rare that you two have time for anything even resembling a date (being an S class villain does make it hard to exist normally in society and do normal couple things but it ees what it ees). However, when he can take you one a date --well the term “date” is generous here- it’s never a dull one. You’re not sure how he does it but when you go out you always manage to end up somewhere Dabi could never get into naturally. From sold-out concerts, to stand up shows, to parties at lavish houses belonging to people you’ve never even heard of let alone met before; dates with Dabi are always somewhere you two definitely shouldn’t be. One memorable morning he took you to a country club where you got to each fancy exclusive rich people food and play a horrible facsimile of golf before you were eventually found and chased out. It’s always fun to see how long you two can crash an even before being found out.

Tomura Shigaraki

Cemetery/Haunted Places Dates

Tomura Shigaraki is a man who enjoys his space from other people, in his opinion the only good person is a dead one (unless he’s talking about you, of course). So it’s not abnormal for your dates to be in a place far away from others. Again the term “date” is being very generous, more often than not he’ll approach you, tell you to follow him, and you’ll wind up in some abandoned building or graveyard. Normally this would be cause for concern, as this is exactly what happens in horror movies before someone gets killed, but Tomura has a soft spot for you so your safety is ensured. Tomura loves to see a place reclaimed by nature, vines growing over a run down house or worn out gravestones breaking apart into chunks of marble with barely legible words on them. He doesn’t talk much on your dates, but will often give you a random bit of insight about him; like on one date where you both walked alongside abandoned train tracks at dusk and he told you about the dog he had as a child. He seeks no pity from you, and these dates are not the conventionally romantic type, but you enjoy being able to be with Tomura in a way no one else ever has or ever will.

[thorne93]

Long Lost Love (Part 7)

Prompt: Clint just lost everything. He turns to you – an old friend and an old flame – for comfort. Can you keep your old feelings at bay? Can he?

Word Count: 2532

Warnings: The Snap, grief, loss, mentions of abuse throughout series, angst will be the best friend in this fic

Note: This was written after IW, but before Endgame - so I have my own take on how certain things happened. Couldn’t have done this without @arrow-guy @carryonmyswansong @like-a-bag-of-potatoes (my amazing betttaa!) @mrs-dragneel-stark-solo

Aesthetic by @dontshootmespence​

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

After some time, you two decided to go to the city for a break from the farm life. Things were pretty stable on the farm and you could afford one or two days in the city. You fed the animals a little bit earlier than normal, then drove into Manhattan. You took him to some old haunts you’d mentioned and got food at joints that were still open. 

At one point, you took him to the Central Park Zoo. It was open, but only half the animals were there and it didn’t have any of the flair it usually did. They weren’t running any shows or specials or anything spectacular. It was mainly a self-guided tour to any animal enclosure that wasn’t roped off. 

You stopped at one point outside the lion exhibit and as you were watching the animals lie there, you were reminded of your time as a lion tamer.

“I used to come here to remind me of you, us, in the circus,” you stated casually.

He raised his eyebrows in surprise. “Really? It seems like it’d be something you’d want to forget, considering we were treated so shittily.” He muttered the last part with disdain. 

You shrugged in response. “What can I say? I’m sentimental. I was grasping at anything to tie me back to you.” You turned towards him, hoping he’d get the message.

He reached up to your face, his hand resting on the side of your cheek. “That’s really sweet of you.”

“I should show you my whole circus collection,” you said suddenly, thinking he’d like it.

“Circus collection? What’s that?” he asked, chuckling, amused. 

“It’s all the little mementos and keepsakes I kept over the years. I didn’t want to forget about our time together. I know those years were probably the worst of our lives, and I’d never want to go back to them, but they were also the best years. Just you and me against the world.” 

He nodded. “Yeah, they were some of the best years,” he agreed with a smile. Before you knew it, he leaned down and began kissing you softly, tenderly, but swiftly enough to not draw attention to yourselves. You sighed with happiness when the kiss ended, even though you could kiss him for hours and not get tired of it. He hooked his arm around your waist and you rested your head on his shoulder while you two enjoyed the lions some more. 

---------------------------

 It was the middle of the night one night when you were awakened by the sound of loud yelling, and moaning. The sound was that of wailing, the only sound one hears when someone’s being hurt.

You barely had your eyes open as you slipped on your house shoes and ran to the source of the noise - Clint’s bedroom. 

“No, no… Don’t take them. No!” he shouted. There were tears on cheeks. You kneeled on the bed and started to shake him awake.

“Clint, Clint!” 

He didn’t stir at first. He just kept thrashing from side to side, saying no, shaking his head. You decided to shake a bit harder, calling his name a little louder. 

Finally, he opened his eyes and looked at you.

“Y/N?” he said.

“Yeah, it’s me. I’m here. You’re having a nightmare,” you informed softly. You lowered yourself to sit down beside him while he laid there. 

He opened his eyes wide before rubbing his knuckles into them, trying to wipe the tears and sleep from them. “Jesus,” he said, shaking his head.

“That bad?” you asked gently. 

“Yeah… It was about the kids…” He shook his head, trying to get through the statement without crying. “I had a nightmare that Thanos took them.” 

All you could do was nod before sinking down to lie beside him on top of the covers. 

“I’m so sorry,” was all you could offer him. 

“Not your fault,” he said easily. 

“I’ll stay until you fall asleep again,” you suggested. 

He was silent, and you took it as a quiet agreement at your offer. The two of you lied there, staring at the ceiling, it was illuminated by the overly bright full moon. All you could hear was nature, the sound of the A/C every now and then, and each other’s breathing. 

Thoughts began to spin in your head, thoughts that often crossed your mind through the day. The thoughts and questions that scared you. The questions you weren’t sure you wanted an answer to. The thoughts that you were terrified to say aloud. 

You didn’t want to… but you had to. You had to know. This… whatever this was, you had to know it was real, that it meant something to him, that you weren’t just a stand in for his vanished wife and kids. That you weren’t just a bandaid on a gunshot wound. 

After a long time in the silence, you finally opened your mouth to speak. “So, uh, not that I’m complaining but… what… is this? Where is it going?” you asked. Your mouth was dry as your heart hammered nearly out of your chest. Just by asking this, you could very well be putting everything on the line that you'd ever wanted, ever hoped and dreamed and prayed for. But you had to know. You couldn't just blindly be with this man, no matter how deeply or how long you’d loved him. 

It didn’t take him too long to respond when he finally answered, ““It’s going where I wanted it to go years ago.”

“Which is?” you pressed. You needed verbal confirmation on all of this. 

“Permanently. I want us together. I mean, I can’t speak for you, but I’m pretty happy with calling you mine, calling ‘us’ a thing. How about you?” 

“Well… I want to be sure that I’m not just… that I’m not a stand in for the real thing,” you said, toying with your fingers, your voice getting shaky as you got more nervous. 

He could see and sense your jitters. He reached over, not looking at you as he put his hand on yours hands, a comforting motion to you. “You’re not. That’s the last thing you are.”

“Are you sure? I don’t want you to wake up one day and regret this or grow out of it or realize it’s not  what you wanted. I just don’t want to be some sort of distraction.”

“That’s not what this is at all. You make me happy. I want you here. I want to be with you.” 

“Really?” 

“Really. Y/N…” He rolled over to face you and you turned your head on the pillow to face him. “I love you. You know that, right? That I’ve loved you since we were kids,” he emphatically said. 

You smiled at him, happy tears forming. “I thought you’d let me go. I thought you’d moved on. I thought you didn’t want me anymore.”

He shook his head. “No, things just got… complicated, but no, I have always wanted you, don’t ever confuse that. You are no one’s stand in. You are you and I love you.” He cupped your neck before stretching forward to plant a firm kiss to your lips, assuaging your fears. 

You smiled at him, feeling that familiar warmth fill you up again. “Okay. I trust you.” 

“Good. Then it’s settled,” he said emphatically. ”We’re back together.”

Those three words sent your soul soaring. You never knew you’d feel such happiness in your life, and while you were feeling guilty for being thrilled in a man’s bed who had a vanished family, you’d put your whole romantic life on hold for this moment. It wasn’t ideal or anywhere near perfect, but you loved this man. If this was how it had to happen, then, this was how it had to happen.  

“Officially,” you confirmed with an affectionate smile.

He got a giddy grin on his face suddenly. “Shit, does this mean I’ll have to remember this date for anniversaries?” he asked and you took a pillow and hit his stomach hard while laughing. He laughed in response and also curled up in pain before turning to you and kissing you tenderly. 

The two of you embraced for a long time before you two broke apart and he requested, “Stay the night with me? In here?”

You nodded and got up to get under the covers, taking your shoes off. You slipped into bed with him and the two of you held each other all night long, basking in the loving glow of each other. 

-----------------------------

Three more years passed blissfully between you two. The same routine carried on as you two worked the farm and you spent three days in the city at your practice. You eventually sold your apartment though and only rented a hotel when you went into the city or just slept on the cot in your office. 

Clint and you got closer as time went on and before you knew it, you were like a real, normal couple. You made breakfast for each other, met for dinner, went on dates. He missed his family and you were sure to respect any time he brought any of them up and you never took down any of their photos. It wasn’t your place and you weren’t trying to erase their presence or memories, you were just trying to build your own. 

The two of you spent nights on the couch watching TV, or picnics in the fields, or board game nights when you had the time. Clint even taught you archery and while you weren’t anywhere skilled as him, you were pretty good. You tried to get the Avengers together a few times every year, and sometimes it worked out, other times it didn’t. But it was still nice when they did.

You and Nat became best friends quickly and she never held it against you for anything between you and Clint. After explaining your side of things one night, she fully understood the situation from both sides and appreciated it. She loved that you two had made it back to each other. She could easily see why you two wanted to be together and how much you loved and cared for each other. 

It was everything you’d ever wanted. You had a family. You had Clint. You had your career. You were helping society while having your own slice of heaven. 

Everything was perfect. 

Until Nat showed up one day unannounced with a troubled look on her face. She looked as though she had horrible news for you, but there was something else there, an undercurrent of… light in her expression.

You immediately knew why she looked torn.

“Hey, Y/N,” she greeted with a smile as she walked up and hugged you. 

“Hey, what are you doing here?” you questioned, even though you knew the answer.

“Uh, is Clint around?” she wondered, side-stepping your inquiry.  

“Yeah, he should be out back. Come on inside, I’ll go get him,” you said. You opened the screen door to let her in. She stood in the living room before you jogged out back to grab him. He smiled hearing his friend was here and followed you back inside. The two hugged before you all sat down. You offered her something to drink but she declined.

“So… uh, there’s no easy way to say this, so I’ll just say it,” she said, smiling with that familiar twinkle in her eye. “We might have a way to get everyone back.” 

Clint stilled at your side on the couch. He seemed to be in shock, so you spoke for him.

“Everyone? Like everyone, everyone?” you clarified.

“Yep. Long story short, Scott Lang, a guy we fought with in Germany, may have an obscure way to travel through time. Steve and Bruce are already working on the kinks but… it’s looking really promising. But we need everyone if this is going to work.” 

You looked to Clint. This was good. It was complicated for sure, but it was good. He regretted not helping so much before, you figured he’d jump at this chance.

“Can you give us a sec, Nat?” he requested. 

“Sure thing.” Nat looked between you two before standing. “I’ll be right outside.” 

Both of you nodded and she excused herself. Clint stood up and ran his hands through his hair.

“Holy shit. A shot to get everyone back, a chance....” He started walking, pacing, his nervous habit. 

You stood too. 

“It’s all you need, right?” you said, trying to be supportive. 

“Yeah. It’s a hell of a lot more than what we had,” he agreed. 

“Then you have to do it,” you urged, stepping forward and putting your hands on his plaid covered chest. 

He put his hands on your back, staring into your eyes. “Yeah, I do.” 

“I know that,” you said, giving him a soft smile. “Go. Go save the world.” 

He smiled at you, holding back some sweet tears. Both of you knew what this meant if he succeeded, but right now, that didn’t matter. You would have to put aside your selfish needs and wants for the greater good. Everything else would have to wait. 

He kissed you earnestly before saying, “I’ll be back as soon as I can, okay? We’ll sort everything out later.” 

You nodded. He slowly let go of you and looked at you one last time before joining Nat. She gave you a nod and a sympathetic smile before they took off and you were all alone on the porch. 

------------------------

Clint had been gone four days now, and you hadn’t heard anything from anyone. You were worried, of course, you had no idea what any of this time travel entailed. You didn't know where Clint would be going or what he’d be doing, how long he would be there. 

So, in order to keep your spirits up and your mind off the worst possible scenarios, you kept up with your routine. You had a small breakfast each morning, and then did the solo work on the farm that you could do. 

You were working in the barn with the radio going, playing music as you worked. You sang along when you knew the words until suddenly, there was a commotion on the radio. You frowned and stood up, listening to the broadcast intensely.

“People are reappearing everywhere. It’s beautiful and chaotic,” the voice said in somewhat of a panic. 

Your eyes grew wide as a torrent of emotion washed over you. Joy, worry, excitement, hope, sadness slammed into you, leaving you breathless. Your heart began hammering in your chest and as you looked around, you saw it. Cows were suddenly in the field that had been nearly bare. More chickens began clucking, more horses appeared. Your heart felt full and bright and warm, and then suddenly you remembered -- Laura, the kids.

You dropped your tools and took off running towards the house. You ran up the porch, wrenching open the screen door and there stood a brunette woman with her back to you. She turned around and you recognized the face from all the many photos around the house. 

Laura.

She was back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

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[a-libra-writes]

Imagine Dating the GoT Characters in Modern Times

okay im still working on that confession request, but this sucker just got away from me lol. couldnt help meself. this is a bit more casual than the others

if i missed any of ya favs, send my ask box a mail pigeon and ill add em!

In this preference, you'll be dating: Ned Stark, Robb Stark, Sansa Stark, Jon Snow, Benjen Stark, Jory Cassel, Dolorous Edd, Tormund Giantsbane, Theon Greyjoy, Yara Greyjoy, Daenerys Targaryen, Jorah Mormont, Missandei, Grey Worm, Tywin Lannister, Tyrion Lannister, Jamie Lannister, Sandor Clegane, Bronn, Petyr Baelish, Stannis Baratheon, Davos Seaworth, Margaery Tyrell, Brynden Tully, Edmure Tully, Brienne of Tarth, Ramsay Bolton, Roose Bolton, Oberyn Martell, Beric Dondarrion

NED STARK

He always worries so much after you, like if you’re unusually late getting home or you don’t call him back for some time. He won’t bother you about it because knows he worries, and he’s always ready to give you a warm hug when you finally get home. He’s very considerate of how you like things in the home and will fix anything immediately - although, you’re convinced he’s going to drop the AC in a lake if it acts up one more time. He has a picture of your wedding day that he absolutely loves and keeps in a safe spot in his wallet. The same picture is in frame on his desk, along with pictures of the kids. It’s the only decorations he has on the desk.

ROBB STARK

He’s convinced Grey Wind is starting to like you more because you’re the one who gives the goodnight treats. His favorite memories are the times when you both were able to get away to the lake or beach for a few days; he has a picture of you both on his desk at work. If you get him something you’d think he’d like, such as a scarf, he’ll absolutely wear it until it falls apart. Before you two moved in together, he really enjoyed calling you in the evening to hear about your day. Before you started dating, he’d send you pics of Grey Wind because you had the cutest reactions to them - soooo many emojis.

SANSA STARK

She loooves trying new things and hobbies with you, even if it doesn’t always end up so hot. The baking fiasco of 2018 shall not be spoken of, the pictures have been erased, it didn’t happen. She likes doing your make-up if you’ll let her, and she loves it when you two clothes shop together, mostly so she can dress you up. Lady is the most spoiled princess in the Stark family; you and Sansa have an instagram for her, she has her own rhinestone collar and custom bowl, it’s a whole thing. Sansa likes to brush her in the evening while she listens to you about your day or you both catch up with your fav TV shows. You two are way too invested in some of them and sometimes you stay up too late angry tweeting about it.

JON SNOW

You two were mutual friends for a while before you started hanging out exclusively more and more and finally someone asked if you were dating... At that point, you basically were. He really likes going hiking in the woods with you and Ghost, and some of his favorite pictures of you are from these trips - obvs they’re his phone background, and he gets shy if someone looks over his shoulder and asks if you’re his girlfriend. You both have gotten Ghost a nice dog bed and couch but he still likes to sleep at the foot of the bed, then promptly wake you both up at 6am for a walk. Jon was nervous but excited to introduce you to his family; he enjoys holidays with them much more because of you. He loves it when you text him cute things about your day or say you miss him.

BENJEN STARK

He caught your attention when you two began casually dating and he absolutely lit up when he talked about his nieces and nephews, and he showed you lots of pictures. It was just so cute. He absolutely loves it when you wear his shirts, especially the morning after - he will pull you back into the bed. He’s a total night owl but is very considerate of being quiet when you’re asleep. If you end up falling asleep after trying to stay up with him, he’ll carefully carry you back to bed. He works evenings too, so when he comes home early in the morning, he’ll cook you breakfast before staggering to bed (obviously he wants a good morning/night kiss as you get up and get ready).

JORY CASSEL

He’s an absolute sweetheart who will adopt all the dogs and fill up the house with them if you don’t stop him. When he’s playing with them or holding them, you like to take sneaky pictures because it’s just so cute and set it as your phone background. He always has the sweetest compliments for you, regardless if you’re dressing up or you just got out of the shower. The easiest way to fluster him is throw your legs over his lap while you’re wearing shorts or a skirt and just casually snuggle up. One day one of your dogs got out and you two were so beside yourself with worry, calling all the shelters and making posters and just stressing out together. The pup showed up a few hours later covered in mud and you both ran to hug her at the same time.

EDD TOLLETT

You’d actually been hanging out with him for a while because of your mutual friends, mostly Jon. You two had such an obvious crush on each other but wouldn’t make a move, so he and Sam did the trick where they invited you both out, then made an excuse and left you two alone. He’s the master of sending a meme in response to a text you sent two hours ago. He won’t admit how much he really likes it when you wear his shirts, either to bed or out on a date. They’re almost exclusively black metal band shirts with really weird art. You both tend to go to a lot of outdoor music festivals; he always wants to hold your hand so he doesn’t lose you in a crowd.

TORMUND GIANTSBANE

His beard and hair are still wild, don’t you worry, and he’s endlessly amused when it tickles you when he kisses you. His clothes are kind of a mess so you always try to straighten them out or iron them, which he really appreciates. Whenever he sees something cool, he has to immediately take a picture and send it to you. Sometimes he’s too excited about something, he just calls you or comes over. He’d totally want to go to nature reserves, zoos and parks for dates; he loves being outdoors and thinks you look best when the sunlight is on you. He’ll take so many pics on these dates but he’s a pretty bad cameraman (he tries!). He’ll go for the tallest rollercoaster at an amusement park and immediately regret it once the drop starts; he’s secretly relieved if you don’t want to go on one. 

THEON GREYJOY

Let’s be honest, he’s kind of a fuckboy so you don’t date him too seriously. He’s the one who gets attached first and starts exclusively dating you. He really likes collecting guitars and would be stoked if you’d play or sing along with him. He prefers outdoor dates, but sports bars and music clubs are fun, too. No matter what, he’d be giving lots of PDA and wouldn’t take kindly to guys hitting on you. He always finds the most bizarre food or drink recipes online that he wants to try, usually resulting in your kitchen being a warzone afterward. Yara totally bullies him on his insta, no matter how much he blocks her. 

YARA GREYJOY

She’s the definition of the types of girls your parents really didn’t want you to bring home but Here We Are. She has the most badass boots that she wears with an eyeliner with a wing so sharp it could kill a man. She loves pulling you close and being touchy with you in bars and clubs, especially when men are bothering you. Her diet 80% microwave so you have to cook actual food for her and make sure she eats. Family gatherings or phone calls always bother her, so you have to help calm her down afterward, usually with lots of making out. She’d like you to go with her when she gets tattoos so she has someone to chat and laugh with, and she’d subtly suggest you’d look cute with a piercing. She’ll kill the bugs in the relationship as long as you give her a thank you kiss, no matter what you’re in the middle of.

DAENERYS TARGARYEN

She absolutely LOVES Christmastime and wants to decorate the whole house, send a Christmas card with you and her three bearded dragons and wear matching Christmas sweaters (she can be surprisingly stubborn about that). Cuddling on the sofa and watching movies usually ends her falling asleep on you, and if you try to move her she grumbles and hugs you closer. The background for her phone is you looking very worried, holding her three bearded dragons after she posed them on you. She’d much rather wear your hoodies and shirts than her own, sometimes only that if she’s lounging at home with you. She tries to plan a really nice date at least once a month, preferably you two going on a little weekend trip to a musical festival or a beach.

JORAH MORMONT

He texts he loves you at least twice throughout the day. When you go out on dates, he’s always worried if you need a jacket or if you’ve had enough to eat. Heel is digging into your ankle and giving you a blister? This guy has band-aids. When he gets home early, he likes to cook a quick dinner that’ll be ready when you’re home. Watching kdramas with Jorah is great because he gets so baffled and ask you if this is what kids watch nowadays, but then he gets surprisingly emotional over the big confessions and love triangles. Walking through a park or boardwalk at sunset while holding your hand is maximum serotonin for him.

MISSANDEI

Her absolute favorite part of the day is the chat you two have in the evening while you take off make-up, wash your faces and fix your hair before bed. Sometimes you talk about your day, sometimes you listen to music or have a show on. She really doesn’t like phones or laptops in bed because she just wants to cuddle or be intimate. You introduced her to theme parks, and now she absolutely loves them. Missandei will find the biggest coaster and pull you toward it, she also would like you to win her one of those stuffed animals at the shooting games. She’ll put them on a shelf in your room. Sometimes she reads a book that bothers her so much, she has to stop everything, march in the living room and tell you all about it.

GREY WORM

You asked him out by writing your number on his cup at the cafe you worked out. You never got a text or call, but he suddenly showed up a few days later, totally blushing and asking you out. It was kind of adorable. He really likes keeping the apartment tidy and totally loves your baking. You didn’t think he had a sweet tooth, and he's been trying out different recipes to share with you. He can be pretty shy around your friends, so you hang with him solo. He has surprisingly strong opinions on movies, so movie dates always spiral into film theory discussions. He's so baffled by social media but he follows and likes everything you because your posts and pics are cute.

TYWIN LANNISTER

You two met at your company’s expensive party, he interested you right away and you had fun flirting and trading verbal spars. You weren’t sure how he got your number, but he’d end up calling you up for dinners and dates and so on. That ended up turning into trips and long stays at his manor and basically you ended up living there. Tywin enjoys giving you all sorts of expensive gifts and clothes, which he of course doesn’t see as a big deal because you deserve it. Eventually you’d bother him about what you mean to him, and that’s when he’d just outright ask if you’d rather be married. Quite frankly, he doesn’t care about his children’s thoughts on the matter. He really prefers the dates and vacations that are more relaxing, especially when he gets to see you smile at something you haven’t seen. 

TYRION LANNISTER

You and Tyrion discuss books like some people discuss politics. Actually, you both tend to have a lot of long discussions, but you both are so opinionated on books. He actually writes quite a bit and dedicates a lot of it to you. His favorite thing to do is make you laugh in public while you’re drinking something; he knows it drives you nuts and it’s adorable how much you sputter and look for a napkin. He blames you for Jamie’s love of ironic emojis, and he likes to send you screenshots of Cersei’s weird facebook rants. When he’s stressing over a writing deadline, he adores it when you give him a massage and help him calm down.

JAMIE LANNISTER

He’d often tease you about using so many cutest emojis in your text messages, so he started ironically using them. You’re positive he just picks them at random but he figured out that eggplant and peach REAL quick. When you first started dating, he tried to impress you with expensive gifts and dates, but he vastly prefers the lowkey cuddles at your apartment. His head in your lap, your pet curled around his legs and him reading off ridiculous shit Cersei posts on facebook … That’s the ideal. He was a nervous wreck when you met Tywin, although he was trying to play it off and be cool. 

SANDOR CLEGANE

He’s such a grumpy bear that a lot of people wonder how the heck you two got together. You both like to hang out at music bars and clubs, and he’s always got a protective arm around you, and as the evening winds down he likes to nuzzle your hair and receive any kisses you give. He sleeps in really late and grumbles when you pull him out of bed to get his ass outside. He’ll always take care of the yard work and grills the best barbecue. He actually really likes when you ask him what he thinks about an outfit, even if he just says it’s fine, because he likes the way you twirl and show off your backside. There’s probably a football team he’s obsessed with and he WILL text you angrily about someone getting a red card or missing a goal. 

BRONN

When you asked for his number, you were shook that he still had a goddamn flip phone. Even after dating for forever, he still has that damn thing. Your favorite date spot is live music bars, even if he starts to get overly affectionate and pull you in his lap. He has leather jackets and sometimes wears black cowboy boots with them and it just … works? He also probably rides a motorcycle but makes sure you have the proper clothes and helmet and actually obeys traffic laws when you’re riding with him. He’ll still flip off drivers, though. He doesn’t go to the doctor, his sick ass shows up on your doorstep half-dead and you force cold medicine down his throat while scolding him. He just likes being looked after, not that he’ll ever admit it.

PETYR BAELISH

You’re kind of surprised he asked you out, he seemed like a very wealthy, prominent person and you were a little worried. But on all your dates he’s nothing but a gentleman and he wants to go places you enjoy to know you better. Even if you both go somewhere more lowkey like a cafe or an art museum, he just has to impress you by picking you up in a nice car. He’s much more genuine in evenings at your apartment when you cuddle with him, or when you send sweet texts that he has trouble responding to right away because they’re just so nice. He likes to follow your social media just to see what you’re up to, and he has a picture of you on his desk, probably one where you’re wearing something he got you.

STANNIS BARATHEON

He’s on top of anything that needs to be fixed or dealt with around the house, sometimes without you even noticing they were broken. He’s very grateful when you plan dates for fun or for anniversaries, because he has trouble with such things. He also totally melts when you bring him coffee in the morning with a kiss, or take his coat when he comes home. Holidays are an absolute mess; last year he was THIS close to throttling Renly with a string of holly. You like changing his phone background to saucy pictures of yourself, because he already sucks at phones and now he’s bright red and it’s taking him five minutes to figure out how to change it. You were pretty bummed when he finally figured out how to set up a phone lock, so now you just text the pictures while he’s at home. It takes a few seconds before you hear him sputter and drop his phone in the other room.

DAVOS SEAWORTH

Admittedly, Davos is a little insecure about the age difference between you two, but he’s always very comforted when you hold his hand and kiss him in public. He always has interesting places to take you, and somehow he seems to know at least one person there. He always has a new story about how he lost his fingers and now it’s just an inside joke between you two. You think its hilarious how worked up he gets about his sports teams, and he cracks up when you yell at competitive cooking shows. Sometimes he needs your help deciphering Stannis’ weird, cryptic texts. He’s very weak when you’re dressing up to go out, especially when you slip on pantyhose and heels.

MARGAERY TYRELL

You didn’t realize how big of an influencer she was until she innocently asked for a selfie of the two of you. You were on a beach date and you kissed her cheek while she made a cute pose. Much later she showed you the pic on her instagram and holy shit is that’s 20k likes what in the seven hells. If it’s a sunny day, she absolutely wants to go out to the beach or an outdoor mall or anything. She likes to show you pics of outfits, ask your opinion, and buy it as a surprise if you really love it. If you both got a pet together, she’d basically treat it like your kid. She loves taking you with her on her family’s expensive vacations, and she can’t stop holding your hand and grinning the whole time.

BRYNDEN TULLY

Brynden is also worried about the age gap between you two, and it often bothers him when people mistake him for your father while you two are out. He loves talking about you to his nieces and nephew. He held off on telling his brother out of spite, because he knew Hoster was going to bug him about proposing. His favorite thing to do with you is go boating on the family’s lake, especially when you’re laughing as you try to keep your hat on. His absolute favorite picture is a selfie you took while you were in his lap, you’re making a silly face while he’s kissing your cheek.

EDMURE TULLY

He loves doing the silliest, most domestic stuff with you. Doing laundry together while joking around, picking out furniture to match in the living room, even adopting a dog or a kitten who would end up spoiled rotten. He’d actually fall for you quickly while you were dating and already think of your wedding and a family, but he wouldn’t want to pressure you at all. He has the worst bedhead and you have to grab him before he runs out to work and try to tame it. You both have the most ridiculous in-jokes and when you watch dramas, you both get way too emotionally invested and try not to cry in front of each other.

BRIENNE OF TARTH

She’s very shy about taking selfies with you until you encourage her and insist she’s adorable. She takes good care of her health and works out a lot, and she’s definitely want you to join her for the latter. She’s great with motivating and praising you! She likes dates where you two just wander around outdoor malls or museums, you just walk and chat about all sorts of things. You’re absolutely her phone background and lock screen, and when her dad calls to check on her she ends up talking about you a lot. You both like to put on cooking shows while you fold laundry or clean and you end up getting so distracted.

RAMSAY BOLTON

You weren’t totally keen on introducing him to your parents, then they suddenly came over while he was hanging out with you and he was such a Perfect Gentleman™ you almost got whiplash. He’s the reason stray dogs always hang around your backyard and porch, he leaves food out for them. He always frowns when you cover up his hickeys with concealer. He’s not the least bit phased by horror or slasher movies, but puts them on TV anyway so you can cling to him and hide your face. He’s absolutely the sort to threaten any male friends he thinks are too close to you, then play innocent when you confront him. He likes date spots that are a little more secluded, so he can grab your body and give you a deep kiss anytime he’s wanting you.

ROOSE BOLTON

In the morning, he always has to kiss you when he wakes up and before he leaves for work, no exceptions. He’s very private so those he works with are surprised to learn he’s married, but once you two are together at some company party it’s obvious he dotes on you. His kinks are even more pronounced now and he loves buying you things he wants to see you wear. He’d like to have a family with you once you’re ready. He’d be super into you sending him sexy pictures during the day, but he won’t respond right away or pretend the picture didn’t load just to mess with you. 

OBERYN MARTELL

He looooves surprising you with thoughtful gifts, weekend trips or even just flowers sent to your work with a loveydovey note that has all your coworkers teasing you. He hangs around at your apartment so much, you wonder why he just doesn’t move in. He will absolutely love any flirty texts or sexy pictures you send him over the phone, and he’ll respond in kind. When your relationship started getting more serious, he introduced you to his family and daughters, and fell even more in love with you because you were so kind to everyone. He always wants to take you places because he thinks you’re the cutest when you’re amazed by new things.

BERIC DONDARRION

A mutual friend hooked you both up for a blind date, which bothered you a lot, but Beric was so nice, genuine and apologetic that you decided to go through with it anyway. You’re grateful you live in a cold climate because he looooves the fireplace and snuggling with you in front of it. He’s not the best at cooking and would appreciate you teaching him, also you look super cute in an apron so that’s a bonus. Expect a ton of different outdoors and camping trips from him, also he’s the worst about getting injured and insisting he’s fine, even when there’s blood all over the bathroom sink.

[connorandersons-blog]

RK1700: Connor and Nines interfacing for the first time. Any scenario

Nines was everything Connor wanted to be. Well, not everything but pretty damn close.

He knew he had to look softer because he was used for hostage situations. He needed to not scare off people when he walks in. He still tended to do that now with his past reputation, but it generally wasn't instantly from his physical appearance.

So he didn't absolutely hate that he was shorter and less threatening, but looking like Nines had its perks.

Nines was incredibly intimidating, even to Connor. He walked into the room and everyone shrunk back. It was impressive how fast he could get a confession just by staring at the suspect.

His eyes were stunning and seemed to dig into you, finding everything you tried to keep secret. It made Connor squirm when it was directed at him. Plus he was taller so that made it even worse (or better depending on how you looked at it).

He was stronger than Connor was which was already impressive. Connor had to hold back on most of his punches, so he couldn't imagine how strong Nines was. He could easily throw him across the room.

Nines was also faster than Connor. He got to see that first hand when the precinct held a small get together. Everyone got to race against Nines and whichever human got the closest won a prize.

At the end, they all encouraged (using that word loosely) Connor to race. He wouldn't win anything, after all, that wouldn't be fair, but they all wanted to see how much faster Nines was.

So Connor raced him and crossed the finish line one second after Nines. That doesn't seem like much but that one second could be the difference between getting a suspect and not.

Nines had seemed somewhat impressed, or as impressed as Nines could be. He had patted him on the shoulder and Connor was sure his knees would give out.

It was plainly obvious to everyone (except Nines apparently) that Connor had a huge fucking crush on him. It wasn't his fault! Nines was literally built to be perfect, who could blame him for that?

But the thing was, Connor felt like he didn't know anything about Nines. About who he truly was.

He knew his programming but that didn't necessarily mean much with deviancy. Sure, it would affect them, but they got to choose who they were now.

One thing he had noticed was Nines never actually interfaced with another android. He would connect to them but never by using his hand. It seemed like an odd quirk, but Connor didn't question it.

Nines also never drank any thirium in front of anyone. Honesty he had no idea why he did this, but once again he wasn't going to question it. Maybe it had to do with trying to fit in.

But Nines kept his LED in. So maybe it didn't have to do with fitting in with humans. It was nice to see another android to do so, as most androids took theirs out.

Nines seemed to be more machine-like than others. Connor thought it was because he never got to deviate, he was woken up like that. He never got a life before the revolution.

Connor still hadn't decided if that would be better or worse. Nines would have been used to kill and Connor knew how much that weighed on you. But perhaps Nines felt like he was missing out.

So Connor decided to try to help him out. It was just small things like dragging him out to go shopping when Hank needed something. Nines would go along with it if he had time, but often he would brush him off.

So Connor tried other things. He tried to show him where Jericho used to be but Nines hadn't seemed too interested in that either.

But he kept trying. He spent almost all of his money on random trips for Nines. Part of him thought of it as dates, but he knew Nines didn't think so too.

Very rarely did he see Nines smile during the trips, and those generally only happened when Connor did something particularly stupid or had to do with animals.

Turns out the love of animals were a thing in the RK line. Connor had asked Markus and he had immediately agreed to. He also helped out with ideas for the not-so-date dates.

Connor took Nines to the zoo, museum, aquarium, art galleries, movies, an amusement park, and much more. He had to admit, it was funny to see Nines sitting up with a straight face on a roller coaster.

But Nines still barely opened up. He was still silent, but now Connor could see the small reactions. Nines didn't necessarily need to say anything for Connor to understand. Which was progress he guessed?

He had taken Nines to the aquarium again since he seemed to at least not hate it. He had heard they had gotten new two new sharks and Connor was practically jumping with excitement.

He hadn't thought when he had taken Nines's hand and started pulling him towards the shark tank. He looked back for a second and saw Nines open his mouth to stay something before he ran straight into a pole.

He stumbled back, letting go of Nines's hand, reaching up to touch his head. He was bleeding just slightly, but nothing major. It was more embarrassing than anything else.

Nines walked up, putting a hand under Connor's chin to tilt his head up. He stood frozen, staring at Nines as Nines brought a hand up to his small wound. "You should watch where you're going."

"I-um, yeah. Sorry." He mumbled. He didn't even notice the people around them giving them odd looks.

"Why are you doing this?" Nines asks, still not letting him go. Connor swallows, hands going between reaching out before dropping back to his side.

"Doing this?" He asked before shrugging just slightly. "Because I want you to have fun. I want you to be able to experience more than just work."

Nines's eyes flickered down for just a second, but that made Connor's heart skip a beat. "You didn't have to do anything like this for me. I would enjoy myself just…"

"Just what?" Connor whispers. But then Nines is pulling away and Connor feels like slapping himself.

Nines stares at the ground for a second before holding his hand out. Connor looks between the offered hand and Nines's face.

He slowly reaches out and takes the hand and accepts the interface.

Then his mind is flooded with memories. Just moments at the office where Nines listens to whatever Connor could come up with.

It was odd to see it from this perspective, but what was even more striking was the amount of adoration and warmth he was flooded with each memory.

He saw when Nines would look over to just see Connor. Whenever Connor glanced up and smiled a rush of emotions was brought up.

Then it was the not-so-date dates. Nines easily following along, but always more focused on Connor than anything they had been doing.

He could feel the want Nines felt to reach out to him, to hold him or even… to even kiss him.

Then the connection was broken and Nines pulled his hand away, not meeting Connor's eyes. Connor hadn't even gotten the chance to share his memories.

Connor honestly had to take a second to fully process what he had been shown. What Nines had felt.

He… Nines felt the same? Connor had no idea he felt anything other than friendship.

Connor reached up and pulled Nines down, pressing their lips together. It's a mixture between urgent and shy, which ends up making Connor pulling away faster than he'd want.

But then Nines is pulling him back in for a much slower and gentler kiss. Connor gasps and Nines is slow to take the opportunity.

It's almost adorable how shy they both are. Connor had some experience but not much. Nothing with this much meaning anyway.

A few people stop to stare but most just walk around them. Connor couldn't care less about what was going on around them. There could be a tornado and he'd still be more focused on Nines.

They slowly pull away and Connor pants to cool down his systems. He keeps his forehead pressed against Nines's, keeping his eyes closed for a few seconds.

"I had no idea." He mumbled, opening his eyes to look up at Nines. It was honestly unfair how striking Nines is.

"I didn't let you see. I didn't think I was… worthy of you." Nines says, pressing a kiss to Connor's nose.

Connor giggles and scrunches up his face for a second. "How could you not be? You're amazing and you were supposed to be an upgrade of me."

"Exactly. I had to at least be as good as you, but now, well no one is getting replaced. I just have to be myself." Nines shrugs.

Connor holds his face gently, leaning up to gently kiss him. "I like you the way you are. I'm glad you feel comfortable to just be yourself."

Nines gives a slight hum, keeping his arms around Connor's waist. "And I like you the way you are. I didn't want to assume, but were these outings dates?"

Connor can't help but giggle again, nodding slightly. "I wanted them to be. I tried to find things you'd enjoy, but I guess I could take you almost anywhere."

"Then we should make the most of this one. I can treat you to a cafe that just opened for androids. If you want that is. I don't want to assume." Connor had to hold in his coo, but Nines was too adorable for his own good.

"I'd love that. To the sharks?" Connor asks, pulling back and offering his hand.

Nines takes the hand, giving it a slight squeeze. "To the sharks."

[palettepainter]

Long overdue art of these gals, been itching to do something with these two as well as Benjamin and Robbie, but everytime I tried to start it I didn't have the inspiration to draw at the time or I had something come up (work, college, chores, etc) To anyone new Amber (girl on the left) is the daughter to Taylor and Penelope, and Willow (girl on right) is the adoptive daughter to Autumn and Rusty  -Amber and Willow unlike Robbie and Benjamin didn't become friends through their parents, it was actually Benjamin who first introduced Willow to Amber back when they where in primary school. Daphne and Autumn had been close friends since their years at Zoo Pheonix academy, bonding over books and attending debating club together, the two are long time 'nerd buds' as Rusty fondly calls them, so their children where bound to meet. Amber is not shy from telling Willow she's a clutz as the long legged wobbly girl stumbles and jumps whenever she kicks her football at the goal - Amber has a tendancy, like her mother, to always say what is on her mind no matter if its rude. Willow doesn't take lightly to that comment and marches up to the football, she'll see how much a clutz she is when she scores a goal! Willow tried her hardest. She failed miserably. However Willow forgives her rudeness when Amber offers to teach her how to kick a football the right way -The two take forever to finally start official dating, their first date was at a beach party Amber had invited Willow too. The two are both giddy with excitement for the arrangement, but neither dare to call it a date, both get all awkward and blushy and it ends with the both of them laughing it off. By the time the beach party rolls around Willow is fuelled with anxiety and nerves of some clumsy nerd like her going to  a party with Amber, the most badass person she knows. She makes a visit to Kelly who with a sigh, offers to help Willow pretty herself up for this 'totally-not-a-date', all the while calmly reminding her that she's overthinking, you idiot. By the time Willow makes it to the party Amber is all stutters and blushing at seeing her crush looking so gosh darn pretty. They have a blast at the party, and while on their way home Willow shyly admits that she only put on the makeup to feel more pretty, and Amber shyly replies that she already thinks Willow is pretty. Shy giggling and teenie kisses on the cheek are exchanged -Rusty was hostile to the idea of his daughter dating..well, anyone. So it's no surprise that Rusty totally over-reacts when Willow returns home from one of her dates 5 minutes late. Autumn was way more chill about the whole thing and was very supportive for his daughter. He and Rusty eventually sat down and had a talk about Willow's relationship, and its then that Rusty finally lets out all his worries about what could happen to his little girl if she let's her go off into the big world on her own with a lover. Autumn is there to reassure and tell him playfully he's being a sap, and that he is, in fact, a good dad. It was very amusing when Willow actually introduced Amber to her fathers, because Rusty very quickly took a liking to her, Amber was like the snarky little sis he ever had - in short he went ''Kid where the hell you been hidin' this girl?' -Amber having two very rich parents has a tendency to buy Willow overly expensive gifts, Amber doesn't need a reason to treat her girlfriend to a spa day or a fancy three course meal at a five star restaurant. This kind of treatment makes Willow feel as though she's being pampered way too much, and assures Amber that she doesn't need all this fancy stuff (though she did really like that giant teddy plush Amber got her once for her birthday), but Amber insists she likes treating her. Whenever Willow plans a date she always feels like its not up to Amber's standard, a simple picnic in the park with a crumbly pie couldn't match up to the meals Amber had treated her too. But Amber reassures her she loves these cute little picnics, and one time she even brought Willow out to the park for a fancy picnic in the summer. DO NOT REPOST/EDIT/COPY/TRACE MY ART OR THE OC'S!!! Amber/Willow - me

[prettywordsyouleft]

Through His Eyes - Part 4

Summary: Losing your sight after your accident was traumatic, and Jaebum’s guilt of knowing it should have been him instead creates an intricate bond between you both, as you overcome adversity and try to find your way in life again.

Genre: angst / romance

Characters: Im Jaebum x female reader

A/N: This story is emotional and raw compared to some of the content on my blog. It is in no way an attempt to glamourise or undervalue the lives of those who suffer from something similar. This story is purely fictional.

Through His Eyes will be posted every Tuesday at 10am NZST.

Index: Prologue | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | 5 | 6 | 7 | 8 | 9 | 10 | 11 | 12 [M] | 13 - FINAL

“I’m not sure I want to agree to this.”

“Mum, honestly I’ll be fine. You’re letting me attend university again next week, so this will be like a test run!” You grabbed onto her hand as if it would help her agree.

“How is going to JYP Entertainment for the day going to help you with your studies? You can’t even play a recorder, let alone sing.”

“Thanks for the vote of confidence.” You pouted and felt your Mum pat your hand a moment later. You grinned and bounced a little in your chair. “JYP himself suggested it. That means they’ll take really good care of me. Just like Jaebum did when-”

“I’m still very unhappy he took you out without my permission that day. Lord knows what could have happened to you!”

“And we both said sorry for not letting you know, it was irresponsible of us. But this is official and planned and you know where I’ll be and-”

“Breathe Y/N, you sound like you’re going to hyperventilate. Is it really that important for you to go there?” You nodded your head up and down so fast that you felt a little faint when you stopped. The older woman sighed in defeat. “You’ll be home by eight tonight.”

“Eight?!”

“Eight,” she repeated firmly and you inwardly groaned, feeling twelve again. But knowing that still meant you would spend several hours out and with Jaebum brightened you back up again.

“Okay, I’ll promise I’ll be home before it turns seven fifty-nine!”

“Child, you still can twist me around your finger so well.”

“Thanks Mum!” You hugged her tightly and then pulled her up with you. Pressing a button on your watch and hearing the time was already getting closer to ten in the morning, you gasped and dragged her into your room.

“What is all this?!” She pulled away from you when you stopped and you turned to face her, hoping your expression would show your desperation. “What’s wrong?”

“I’m going to hang out with idols today!” You almost squealed, but refrained from setting off your disapproving Mother to your celebrity worshipping ways again. “I can’t just wear anything. I want to look pretty. Please help me.”

“Pretty for who?” she asked with a hint of amusement and you blushed, swatting at the air in embarrassment. “Let me find the ugliest dress you own then. Not one of them will need to eye my daughter in delight!”

“MUM!”

It was nerve-wracking riding in the car to JYP Entertainment, wishing Jaebum had been the one to pick you up. Mum was the same, and almost changed her mind, until Yong informed her of being the personal manager of GOT7. You knew him from several fan meetings and this eased some of your concerns, though he seemed awkward in your company. You should have been used to it by now; most people you came into contact with didn’t know how to treat someone so different as yourself. Even your friends had started to act as if your blindness changed you into something foreign and not relatable. You held onto the hope of being in Jaebum’s company quickly, knowing he was the only other one who treated you the same each time you were with him.

Yong signalled it was time to get out of the car once the vehicle stopped and he opened the door as you fumbled to get out, feeling instantly anxious as you couldn’t decipher where you were. You started to dread coming out today, and almost dove back into the vehicle. Instead, you flinched at the sudden touch of the manager, who apologised and then led you quietly into the building. The air changed and the greyscale world you lived in dulled once you were out of the sun. You could hear multiple voices, bustling around doing their duties within the company. Your hands broke out into a sweat as you entered an elevator.

“Where are we heading?” you asked quietly and Yong cleared his throat.

“Park Jinyoung CEO-nim wants to welcome your visit today. The members of GOT7 will be in their practice room, and our CEO-nim will take you to them himself.”

“Oh, okay.”

“Is that fine? Are you feeling alright?”

“It’s just a little confusing because I don’t know where I am. I’m fine though, thank you.”

“Not much further to go.”

Yong didn’t speak to you again until he knocked on a door and led you into what you presumed to be the office of the head of JYP Entertainment.

“Ah, you’re here. Hello Y/N!”

You bowed in greeting and hoped you were facing the right way. “Thank you for this opportunity.”

“It is my pleasure. We have spoken to your Mother in the past, but I have yet to meet you in person, which is rude of me. Knowing that you now play an influential part in Jaebummie’s life, it’s important that I get to know you too. Shall I take you to their practice room now?”

You nodded lightly and held out your arm to signal needing assistance. The older man chuckled and then placed your hand on his lower arm, leading you to the next destination. Unlike Yong’s awkward behaviour, Park Jinyoung made a point to tell you of each place as you passed it on the journey and explained a little about what was happening around you. You relaxed in his care, feeling warm from the man’s active approach in chaperoning you.

You entered through another door, the music you had heard nearby now playing loudly around the room. It suddenly stopped and you tried turning your head in hopes it would point you in the right direction to Jaebum. You soon smelt one of his colognes and shifted, his arm extended out for you to grab onto. It was as if you both had your own little routine that you executed with ease and you relaxed completely once you had a hold of him.

“Wow hyung, that was crazy! How did you know to grab onto him Y/N, he hadn’t even said anything?!” Jackson uttered in amazement and you blushed lightly, not realising it might seem weird to others.

You heard the elder Jinyoung chuckle behind you and then felt him move closer. “They say people gain extra senses when another weakens off, Jackson. Y/N, I will leave you in the care of these boys. They are to work though, so I hope to hear of some progress on your upcoming comeback, understood?”

A chorus of voices replied positively and you bowed lightly in agreement. You heard the door close and then stood there awkwardly. After realising you were gripping onto Jaebum’s sleeve of his hoodie, you jumped off it, trying to ease yourself back to being calm.

“They won’t bite, come on let’s go sit down with them.” Jaebum led you over to a sofa and you sat down slowly, sensing the other members were all in front of you as well. Jaebum confirmed it as he kicked out a moment later. “Don’t crowd Y/N, it will unsettle her. She’s not an exhibition in a zoo!”

“Like we’d think that. Besides, we all know Y/N from being a fan for so long.”

You nodded at Mark’s statement and smiled shyly. This was harder than you had anticipated. You smoothed down your dress absent-mindedly and prayed Mum had been only joking when she helped you change earlier on.

“You look really pretty in blue, Y/N,” BamBam complimented from watching your actions, and you let out a breath in relief, knowing you only had one blue dress and it was one of your favourites. You were aware of Jaebum pressing against your side a little more than he had been, and you took up his invitation, leaning into him a little and trying to not sit so stiffly.

“So today we’re working on practising our new title track for our comeback. Jaebum actually wrote it,” Youngjae mentioned to break the silence again.

You giggled. “When doesn’t he write the title, he proudly told me about all his efforts on this album the other day on the phone. I personally like it when you all have a part in the song-making process too!”

“Y/N, I feel like we are meant to be friends.” You felt someone sit down beside you and tried to decipher if it was Jinyoung who had just spoken or not. Although they all had distinctive talking voices, you were overwhelmed and it was getting difficult not to feel insecure.

“Okay, this is going to sound really stupid but I’m a little overwhelmed right now,” you admitted, reaching deep inside yourself for confidence to assist your current situation. You took a shaky breath. “I need to feel your hands, is that okay?”

Suddenly the arm to the left of you was in your grasp and you jumped a little at the forwardness. “I’m first, but why our hands?”

“Because the one thing we use the most with our fans is our hands in fan meetings,” Jaebum explained and you nodded, gently feeling the hand within your grip.

You smiled lightly. “Yugyeom.”

“You knew that was him though, it was obvious,” Jinyoung mentioned and you smiled as another hand was given to you. “That’s not me.”

“I know, it’s Mark-oppa.”

“Ha, I’m oppa!” The man proudly declared. You blushed as you reached out for the next hand.

Jaebum sighed. “Y/N is a year younger than Jinyoung, Jackson and I.”

“Not going to lie, but this is really cool,” Jackson mentioned after you correctly guessed the other member’s hands. “I don’t want to be insensitive. Let’s address the elephant in the room though. We’re all aware you’re blind. But we didn’t quite know what to expect or how to treat you.”

“I’m still nervously excited around you all, I’m still a big fan of your music, and I’m still normal. I just need a little help.”

“Well you’ve got it for the rest of the day, how does that sound?” Jinyoung gripped your hand a little and you nodded, feeling another blush rise to the surface. The group became a little animated and you used your free hand to find Jaebum. It wasn’t long until his hand was in yours again and you silently thanked him for not even saying anything to your random need to keep checking he was there when you knew he was.

“I have a question before we go sing though,” BamBam mentioned above the noise and you angled your head towards where his voice came from. “We never have asked you this, even when we were last together.”

“We don’t need to go there,” Jaebum warned, gripping your hand more than he had been.

“What? All I wanted to know was who Y/N’s bias is out of us all.”

“Why ask her something like that?!” Jackson chided the boy and you heard a playful slap happen. “It’s obvious we don’t need to establish that, I’m her favourite!”

“Hang on, where on earth did you come to that conclusion?”

“Easily Mark, Y/N held my hand longer.”

Yugyeom snorted. “Maybe Y/N couldn’t decipher who’s chubby digits she was holding!”

“Hey!”

You laughed along with the others as the two playful members started to whiz around the room and realised that your love for GOT7 truly extended passed their music. They were welcoming and still seemed to be their dorky selves in front of you too. You appreciated it more than they probably realised.

The fan within you rejoiced to be in such great company again.

_________________

[Part 5]

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[GOT7 Masterlist] | [Main Masterlist] | [Request Guidelines]

[mvssmallow]

Memento Vivere

Part XI

Masterlist

In his Real Life, the one where he lives alone in a high rise apartment that record company money paid for, he’d either wake up alone or with people he has no intention of seeing again, much less make small talk with in the morning. If it’s high profile enough, his manager can threaten them with signing NDAs on their way out. It’s not his problem beyond the doorway.

When he’s hungry, he eats. When he wants to play video games, he does. When he wants to go out, hit a bar, hit a club, he throws on his leather jacket and grabs his credit card. His manager and team are permanently hovering but they know that they go where he goes. It’s easier to ask for forgiveness than permission and he knows he’s everyone’s meal ticket so what’s the worst that could happen? Nobody asks questions, he doesn’t offer answers.

But that’s not how all the Jiwons live.

Some Jiwons can’t do anything with getting clearance from an entire army of people, including one who can’t even talk yet.

And that’s how he finds himself now, crouched on the floor helping Minji with the velcro tabs on her Mickey Mouse sneakers and trying to figure out why Hanbin’s packing two backpacks for them when they’re just taking the kids to the Zoo.

Snacks. Water. Sunscreen. Money. A spare change of clothes for both kids. All of Jae’s baby supplies and a camera.

Okay, that’s standard.

But then there’s a whole other black backpack with headache tablets, allergy tablets, a small first aid kit, alternate snacks in case the other options get rejected and spare adult t-shirt and hoodie.

Anyone would think that they were going to Antarctica and not a couple minutes into town.

One of Minji’s Snoopy plushies is poking out of ‘his’ backpack and he doesn’t even remember it being there two seconds ago.

“Er, Hanbin?”

“Hmm?”

“Why do we have to take Snoopy to the Zoo?”

Hanbin looks up from where he’s adjusting Jae’s stroller. “Because I don’t feel like dealing with another tantrum today.”

“Will she even play with it-”

“Don’t you remember what happened last time?”

No he doesn’t. He wasn’t even here last time.

But Hanbin continues on, not even pausing for an answer because, he realises with crushing guilt, the Hanbin here doesn’t expect him to remember anything important.

“She got tired and scared from the snake display and cried for like 15 minutes until we got her a new plushy.” Hanbin recounts without stopping his stroller adjustments. “We’re not getting her a new plushy every time she freaks out. She can have Snoopy.”

“Oh.”

Hanbin straightens up and rolls his eyes. “Yeah. Oh. You think she’s not going to try it again? I’ve got this kid figured out.”

“You make her sound like she’s an evil mastermind.”

“And this is why she plays you so easily.”

He feels like laughing at the melodramatics but Hanbin’s furrowed brows, pursed lips and accusatory tone has him thinking otherwise.

“Sorry.”

“Huh?” There’s a surprised lilt and comically big eyes staring at him.

Even when they were kids meeting for the first time, he always thought Hanbin’s eyes got too big whenever he was surprised by something. Not quite doe eyes. Not quite Bambi. But pretty close. It’s memories like that that really punches him in the gut when he least expects it.

“Um, sorry? I guess. I should probably be more tough with her?” His voice is wobbly and unsure, it sounds nothing like how a Dad should sound. Hanbin’s going to figure all his lies out in 3, 2, 1.....

“Yeah....okay.”

It comes out quietly, calmly, appreciatively and relieved. He really doesn’t want to think about how the Jiwon here treats this Hanbin at all. Not when he himself, a total selfish idiot on his best day, is doing the bare minimum and somehow hasn’t fucked everything up. How much worse is the Real Dad Jiwon?

There’s a dark raincloud following him around everywhere here and he’s had enough of it. Just for one second, he wishes Hanbin would be happy. Not Pretend-Happy-for the sake of Everyone else but Real-Happy-Just-For-Himself.

“Isn’t it a bit hypocritical that we’ve got so many plushies for Jae though?” He jokes to lighten the mood.

Please work. Please work. Don’t get pissed.

Hanbin’s face visibly softens and he shrugs, maybe smiling a little. “He’s the baby. He can have whatever he wants.”

Right on cue, Jae babbles out at the mention of his name and the word ‘baby’.

“See? He agrees with me.”

“Of course he would. You let him have everything.”

“As if you don’t.”

“Well, he is the baby.”

“You do this every time.” Hanbin says with an amused shake of his head.

“Do what?”

“Act like you’re surprised about how much baby stuff we need.”

“He’s so small! Why does he even need that much stuff?”

“I don’t know Jiwon, he’s your kid, why don’t you ask him why he needs his bear and duck toys everywhere he goes?”

“Maybe he just wants to be prepared.”

“Because you never know when a bear situation will arise.” Hanbin replies in a mock serious tone.

And then the weirdest thing happens; they both laugh.

It’s nice.

But then-

“HURRY UP DADDY!”

Yeah, okay. Then there’s that.

****

The day turns out nice.

Weirdly, exhaustingly, overwhelmingly nice.

It’s somewhere between the Polar bear enclosure and Tiger cave that he forgets he’s pretending to be a dad and somehow feels like he is one.

“Daddy? Up?” Minji asks, sweet as can be all the sudden, tugging on his sleeve before holding both arms up at him.

As soon as he bends down, she’s already climbing onto his shoulders with practiced ease and a terrifying amount of trust that he really doesn’t deserve from any of them. He grips her ankles tightly as she yells out tiger commentary at the top of her lungs. There’s a young couple next to them smiling and a slightly older one laughing at the, “Look Daddy! The tiger knows how to swim!”

It takes him a few seconds to recognise the warmth in his chest. He hasn’t felt it in a long time.

Pride.

They think Minji is his daughter. But she’s not. Hanbin should get credit for this.

When he looks over, Hanbin is already looking back at him with an easy smile that he wouldn’t mind seeing more often.

Yeah, that’s really really nice.

And maybe because things are going too well, his dark raincloud decides to swoop in again. The building migraine suddenly throbbing behind his eyes and no matter how hard he tries to ignore it, the grimace hits his face at the worst time.

“Hey, you okay?” Hanbin asks him, reaching up to lower Minji to the ground despite her protests. “The tiger’s gone over there now Min, go look.”

It distracts her long enough for Hanbin to peer worriedly at his face.

“I’m...okay.” He waves the concern off, hoping the movement to comes across as casual. “Just a migraine.”

“Okay.” Hanbin echoes, not sounding convinced at all. “It’s probably time for lunch anyway. Let’s go find a place to sit down.”

They end up on a shady patch of grass near the duck pond and as soon as he sits down, Hanbin is holding out a bottle of water and two Advils. He takes them wordlessly, still marvelling at how one person can change so much in one lifetime.

There’s a gentle breeze through his hair as he sits on the picnic rug and when he closes his eyes, just for a second, he can hear Hanbin talking to both his kids in that patiently gentle way that still floors him.

“Oh no, I left Jae’s dinosaur snacks in the car.”

He’s already standing up. “I’ll go get them.”

“No, I’ll go. You’ve got a migraine. Just stay here and watch the kids.”

He shakes his head, the migraine is still there but he could do with a walk right now. “It’s better you watch them. I’ll go, it’s easier.”

And God, he really wishes he hadn’t said that.

Because next to their Honda, was that Angel-Satan guy leaning against a familiar black Jaguar. His stomach drops so fast that he completely forgets about his migraine altogether.

“YOU!” He hisses. “What are you doing here?”

“Welfare check.” The guy says casually, shrugging and adjusting the dark black sunglasses on his nose. “So, how’s things Jiwon?”

Something about the casual sunny disposition irritates him and he can barely hold it in.

“Listen, I know you know something about what’s going on here, so can you just-“

Angel (it’s what he’s started calling this weirdo in his head), just rolls his eyes but stays exactly where he is.

“You like it here?”

“What?”

“Do you like it here? This family little set up you’ve got?”

“Yeah, it’s....alright,” He starts, caught off guard by the question and unsure how to answer something like that now. “What’s that got to do with anything? Just tell me what the hell is going on?!”

“Just alright?”Angel echoes, tone disappointed and condescending. “Typical.”

“What?”

“Are you always this dense? Seriously?” Angel sneers now, crossing his arms in a way that’s threatening despite his smaller stature. “Actually, don’t answer that. I already know you are. It’s the whole reason you’re here to begin with.”

“I’m not dense! I get it! I know this isn’t right!” He snaps, running a tired hand through his hair. “This isn’t even my life. I’m not crazy. I’m a rapper, I live in Seoul, I have-“

“An album coming out, a girl and two guys you owe dates to, a manager who doesn’t really care about you as long as you’re on the charts and a family you rarely talk to. Empty chairs at empty tables and all that jazz.” Angel finishes with a wave of his fingers. “Yeah I know all about your other life, moron.”

He stumbles back, shocked by the truth for some reason, and it’s only when his hip hits the fucking Honda that he remembers Jae’s dinosaur snacks.

“I need to-“

“They can wait.”

“No, I need to get back. They’ll wonder where I am.”

Angel shakes his head, pointing to the very eerily still world around them. There’s a few families in the car park but they all frozen in mid motion.

“What did you do?”

“What does it look like?” Angel says. “It’s just suspended reality. So we can have our little chats without people thinking you’re nuts.”

“Is this real? Is this an alternate reality?”

“Something like that.”

He wasn’t expecting a real answer but that one sounds even worse.

“Why am I here?”

“To fix your mess.”

“What mess? Fix what?”

“I can’t tell you that. You can leave here when you figure that out for yourself. That’s how this works.”

“What about my other life? What about-“

“Suspended, for now.” Angel says, pushing off the Jaguar to stand next to him. “That sad little life will still be waiting for you when you’re done here.”

“What about the guy here? Me? Future me. Is it me right? I’m their dad right? Not some other guy?”

Angel smiles at the sudden panic in his voice. “Yeah it’s you. I mean, have you even seen your son lately? He looked like your twin even before he was born.”

He leans heavily against the Honda behind them, overwhelmed again but not in a good way.

“Do they know? That I’m not their real dad that usually lives here?” He asks quietly, as if the kids could even hear him from here. “Is this gonna mess them up too? Jae’s just a baby.”

“Ah. So now you’re asking some questions of relevance.” Angel says with soft pleased expression. “Too bad I can’t answer it.”

He wants to be angry but now he’s tired, the fight is gone and he just really wants answers.

“You can’t tell me anything? Not even who are you are or why you even know all this about me? No tips? Suggestions?” He chuckles bitterly, hoping Angel might spare him some sympathy.

“Do you really call me Angel in your head?”

“What? How do you know that?”

“I can read your mind, dumbass.” Angel says with a wide grin. “Anyway, No. I’m not allowed to tell you much else but you wouldn’t be here right now if you hadn’t messed up in your real world. Don’t make the same mistakes twice, that’s my tip to you. The rest is for you to figure out.”

Mistakes?

Which ones?

He’s made so many.

“Oh and Jiwon? The name isn’t entirely inaccurate even though it’s unoriginal as hell.” Angel adjusts his sunglasses again and then he’s gone, like a weird memory lost in the familiar roar of the Jaguar.

He’s not sure how long he stands there leaning against the Honda and breathing heavily. It takes a few good minutes before he slides back into the noise and activity of the world around him. It takes him three attempts to unlock the car door and find Jae’s dinosaur snacks.

“Feeling better?” Hanbin asks when he gets back.

It’s just a simple question but there’s Minji in her yellow overalls and Jae reaching for the T-Rex biscuits and Hanbin’s soft concern and a space on the red picnic rug that they saved for him.

This is more than just ‘alright’.

“Yeah, I’m good now.”

And it’s then that he realises: his migraine is gone.

[petri808]

Now post-curse Shigure/Akito drabble please? c:

Here you go anon UwU 

A Walk in a Park

Post curse Shigure x Akiko

She’d been isolated for so long, that Shigure wanted to show Akito more of the world that she’s been hidden from all these years.  The going had been slow at times, three steps forward, one step back, but those steps back were becoming fewer or far between.  He had the patience to see it through, hell he’d waited twenty years, what’s a few more?  So, he started off small.  Day trips to neighboring towns.  Small festivals or even the movie theaters to help her become accustomed to larger groups of strangers.  

It was a genuine surprise to him one day, when Akito came into his office with a brochure.  

“Look,” she showed him with a genuine smile, pointing to the picture, “Osaka Castle is so beautiful, it would be nice to see it in person.”

He turns and looks first at the brochure then up to Akito.  “If that is what you want, I will make it happen.”  Shigure takes her hand.  “Shall we stay a few days and see more of Osaka’s sights as well?”

Akito blushes and nods her head.

“Then I will make the arrangements,” he kisses the back of her hand.  “Cherry blossom season is right around the corner, that should make for an even better visit.”  

The way her eyes lit up at the word cherry blossom made Shigure’s heart melt.  It was nice seeing these more feminine attributes coming through on Akito.  He chuckles in his head.  She made for a much more beautiful raven-haired goddess than a surly and stressed out male. All those years of waiting for moments like this one were well worth it.  

It took them just under two hours to reach the Chuo Ward of Osaka by car.  Shigure drives them straight to the Dormy Inn Namba where he’s booked a room with a private onsen.  Nothing was too good for his woman’s first trip to a big city and he plans to make the most out of it.  Akito was a little nervous about the amount of people she was seeing everywhere they passed, but Shigure just smiled and held her hand to comfort and assure her it would be okay.

First thing was a visit to the castle where its sheer magnificence made Akito’s fears fade away.  Walking along the bridge that spanned the moat, the castle appeared to rise high above the city atop its stone platform and surrounded by an imposing stone wall.  It’s gleaming white walls, golden trim, and green tiled roof was like seeing Heaven shining down upon their lowly presence.  

As they pass under the trees, a wind blows gently, loosening a few of the blossoms.  Akito gasps, almost giggling, reaching out to try and catch one. Shigure chuckles at the sight of a grown woman acting like a child.  He picks up one of the fallen cherry blossoms and places it in her ear.  “There,” he smiles, “a pretty flower, for a beautiful woman.”

“Always the smooth talker,” she blushes, “but thank you.”

For the next couple of days, they visit other little places around the city.  Sometimes they just walk around, touring shopping districts or eateries.  Akito was excited to find something cute that she was sure Tohru would love.  She didn’t get to see the girl much, now that her and Kyo had moved away to another city, but they spoke often by phone and came back to visit every few months.  Now she would have a gift to give.  Shigure had found it amusing though.  Really, he had asked Akito, an ‘I love cats’ t-shirt that had, of all the types, an orange tabby on it.  But even he couldn’t deny that Tohru would probably find it adorable.

This is where having the private onsen sure came in handy.  All the walking would leave Shigure, but more so Akito with sore feet from not being used to doing so much of it back home.  Besides, it was nice to have an excuse to hold and cuddle with her.  The soothing heat of the water fading their aches and pains away while warming up their desires for one another.  Their first trysts had been a little awkward, but over time, Akito had come to enjoy them.  Shigure for his part was very gentle with her and very attentive to her needs.  A stark contrast from the perverse nature he’d often portray to others.  

On their final afternoon in Osaka, Shigure takes Akito to the Tennoji Zoo a few blocks away from the hotel.  He thought that seeing all the exotic animals might be exciting to see, he knew he was. The last time he’d had to really deal with ‘wild’ creatures, was when Kyo and Yuki were living in his home and fighting all the time.  At first Akito seemed to enjoy the zoo too.  It was a very large park filled with many animals of both land and sea.  Huge enclosures with amazing flora and landscapes as well.

But the longer they walked, Shigure begun to notice a shift in Akito’s demeanor.  Once thrilled she was now a little distraught.  

He finally pulls her aside.  “What’s wrong Akito?”  At first, she just shakes her head, not wanting to answer, but he prompts again and pulls her into an embrace.  Shigure strokes her hair.  “Please tell me what is bothering you.”              

“I feel bad for them,” she whispers.  “All these animals are locked up and forced to live in cages almost like you all had to.”

Wow, he hadn’t even made such a connection and yet obviously this was deeply affecting her.  Unlike all of the others including Akito, Shigure had never truly felt like a prisoner to the curse.  But as he thought about it more, he could understand how she made the correlation.  Guilt over being the God who’d kept them trapped and confined to the Sohma legacy just like these poor animals was eating away at Akito.  

“Akito, I want you to listen to me.”  He holds her gaze.  Even when she tries to turn away, Shigure tilts her chin back to face him.  “It wasn’t all your fault.  You were doing what had been drilled into your head since you were an infant.  We all believed in the bond, that’s not something you created, just got stuck dealing with.”

“But it is my fault, I could have done better,” the tears trickle down.  “I could have treated everyone better.  I-I was so mean to everyone and forced you all to stay by my side even when I knew in my heart you were miserable.”

Shigure sighs and wipes away her tears.  “Akito, my love, you were young and just wanted to be loved.  That’s not a crime.  These animals, they don’t hate their circumstances.  I mean look,” he gestures to a lazily yawning monkey, “they’re fed, housed, no need to worry about predators.  Think of it like a life-long hotel stay where they are pampered for the rest of their lives.”

She looks at the monkey, “I see your point…”

“And another thing.  You aren’t that same person anymore.  You’ll never be that lonely girl anymore because as far as I’m concerned, you’ll be the one in a life-long hotel stay being pampered for the rest of your life.”

Akito sniffles and gives him a half smile.  “Thank you, Shigure, for being so kind to me.”

He kisses her forehead and smiles back, “the honor is all mine, my dearest one.  Now I say, let’s go home…”    

[crossroadsimagine]

(1) Hey I was wondering if I could request a Halloween Naruto match up! I would say that I’m really hard working and that I put my all into anything I do. I also care about people but to an extent worry how people receive me (it’s something I’m working on). I enjoy having fun with my friends whether it’s travelling, going to amusement parks (I love amusement parks), haunted houses, pumpkin picking or Halloween parties.

👻 Matched with Naruto Uzumaki

Naruto takes an interest in you pretty quickly after meeting you but unlikely to immediately ask you out or even show too much of a strong romantic interest in you, simply because he can be shy about it at first and will push to get to know you and develop a friendship with you first. This can be for weeks, months or even years depending on when the two of you first meet, because the younger he is the more shy he is to actually try to express his feelings for you and to ask you out. 

But once the two of you have known each other for awhile and feel comfortable around each other he will begin dropping some hints that he likes you as more than a friend, even lightly flirting with you at times but he’s not always full of confidence when he’s around you even though he can try to play it cool when he’s with you. But he can stutter over his words, get embarrassed, become clumsy or awkward or even just have a hard time maintaining eye contact with you, particularly any day you’re looking really nice. 

If he sees you dressed up in something different than what he’s use to he can become more flustered and awkward, like if you typically wear more casual clothing like pants and a t-shirt and he suddenly sees you in a nice dress or more girly clothes like a frilly skirt and girly blouse. Eventually he will ask you out and when he does he is kind of flustered and shy and tries to get you some place the two of you can be alone, walking you home, a walk through the outskirts of town, stroll through the forest, something simple and easy and nothing too public for people aren’t watching him ask you out. 

Once the two of you begin dating he is very loving, caring and affectionate with you and can even come across as a little overly needy or clingy at first because he absolutely loves having your attention and spending time with you which as a side affect makes him a little smothering or even overbearing at times around the beginning of the relationship. However, this does fade a bit the longer the two of you are together especially if you start to get annoyed or even seem bothered by his clingy behavior because he certainly doesn’t want to get on your nerves. 

He does get better at giving you space and time to yourself but does still really like having your attention and affection, which he really doesn’t mind PDA or at least some PDA but won’t push it on you. After all you really care much for PDA so he is respectful of that though sometimes he will try to hold your hand, but he can show more affection towards you in public if he feels like someone is trying to flirt with you or even just looking at you a certain way, he may hug you or even just put his arm around you. 

But when the two of you are alone or at home, he is far more open to instigating affectionate acts and cuddles, even more so if he sees that you aren’t busy. If he sees you napping, relaxing, watching tv or movies he’ll try to join you to cuddle with you and try to instigate cuddles more subtle at first to see if you’re interested. He loves going out or staying in he just likes doing things with you and having fun so anything he thinks you’d be interested in he’ll suggest or try to get you to do, like going out to a festival even last minute. 

He’ll like going out with friends too and kind of combining your friend groups and going out as a group for things like amusement parks, fairs, the zoo, parties especially around holidays like going out for Halloween parties or going to haunted houses. He tends to act braver than he really is when it comes to things like haunted houses or scary movies, because he can be startled pretty easily especially in haunted houses and will usually get scared after watching a horror movie rather than during the movie, like if he hears a noise or something he can get jumpy. 

But scary movies aren’t really something he likes to watch all the time just occasionally or for certain things like for around Halloween he can push for scary movies, though he will also like to kind of balance the scary out with cartoons or something light hearted after the movie. This also means he won’t mind watching cartoons with you or you watching cartoons at all, he doesn’t judge you one bit for the things you like and enjoy. 

You are very hard working and tend to put your all into something when you do things, though you also care a lot about people even to the extent that you can worry too much about how people receive you and what they think of you. Naruto loves you for you and appreciates your hard-working nature though he can be pretty protective over you and very quick to defend you and become hostile towards anyone who would dare to judge you or criticize you. Though he doesn’t typically jump to become physically aggressive with anyone but he can and will if someone hurts you physically, mentally or emotionally. 

He loves holidays so he likes doing anything for Halloween and costumes will probably be the first thing he brings up when it gets close to Halloween, because he will be up for matching costumes to some degree but also fine with different costumes as well. He’ll want to carve pumpkins too for decorations and not just one but at least a few to sit around outside for decorations, he’ll like going to just about any Halloween parties that are going on but he won’t push to go to all of them and also won’t press to do things when you don’t want to or don’t feel like it. 

Over all he is very loyal, caring and supportive and will do anything for you, he’s encouraging and want’s to see you do well and achieve whatever you put your mind to, he’s protective and has your back and will be right there at your side no matter what happens.

👻 Headcanons between you two

🎃 Loves being able to chill at home with you and make an entire day of it, even making a date out of staying home. Having a picnic in the living room and watching tv shows and movies while cuddling, eating snacks, playing cards or board games and more.

🎃 Tends to get really enthusiastic about any and all holidays and will like to be involved and do as many activities as he can, so taking kids trick or treating, dressing up in costumes, decorating, going to parties and haunted houses he’ll be all for any of it.

🎃 Will dance with you but that certainly doesn’t mean he’s very good at it, but he is willing to learn from you or learn dances with you. He also doesn’t typically get embarrassed very easily so he doesn’t mind to dance with you in private or in public.

🎃 Enjoys being able to take any kids trick or treating whether children of friends or family, he’ll like walking around with them and you but he’ll for certain be asking the children for candy. And can be eating candy the entire time while trick or treating. In fact, he’ll be eating a lot of candy around Halloween in general.

[residentlion]

Here’s that werecat Wesker fic I mentioned a little while ago. It’s not a massive AU, just STARS-era fluff where Wesker is a werecat. Yep.

The gang member hit Chris again, hard enough to snap his head to the side, his ears ringing. He braced himself for another round of beatings and then distantly he thought he heard gunfire. It must not have been only in his mind because the other two men ran off at an order from their boss. He punched Chris in the stomach, doubling him over and he started coughing. Past his own hoarse breaths there was another sound, growing louder, an engine of some kind, Chris thought. Hopefully that and the gunfire meant rescue. The man screamed suddenly, the noise right next to Chris. He looked up, blood running into his eyes, his head swimming, and stared into red, slit-pupiled eyes. Some primitive instinct made him freeze at the sight, trying to understand what he was seeing even as fear gripped him. A clatter made the thing glance away, and Chris finally saw more of it, it was a cat, a massive white beast like nothing he had ever seen. It loped off as quickly as it had arrived, revealing the body of the man lying on the floor behind it. And then Wesker was suddenly there, murmuring to him soothingly as he released Chris from the restraints and Chris passed out.

When he woke up in the hospital he didn’t mention the cat. It seemed crazy, probably a hallucination from blood-loss and dehydration, and he didn’t want to diminish the hard work his team had put into searching for him. Besides, he liked that Wesker had been the one to rescue him, his feelings for the man weren’t strictly professional, even if he didn’t think Wesker felt the same. He only stayed in the hospital for a few days before he was allowed to return home. It would be much longer until he was cleared for duty but at least his friends promised to visit him and tell him the office gossip.

Chris stared out his window into the darkness, unable to shake the feeling of being watched. He’d enjoyed the idea of having the park near where he lived when he’d bought the place but now the woods felt strange and eerie in the cloudy moonlight. Something white slipped through a shadow and he peered at the spot anxiously. It appeared again, creeping out of the underbrush to reveal a pale feline shape. He gasped as it raised its head, red eyes staring directly at him as if aware that he was watching it. Chris didn’t generally believe in the supernatural but the white cat standing outside his backyard was making him reconsider. There was no way it was a normal animal, he was sure of that even though his knowledge of big cats was limited to a few trips to the zoo when he was a kid. Maybe it was the possibility of the supernatural, or the pain medication dulling his survival instincts, or maybe it was simply that he felt like he must be dreaming, but he opened the back door and went outside to confront the cat.

‘Hey.’ He tried, tensing as it prowled back and forth, red eyes fixed on him. Shit, this had been a bad idea, it had probably escaped from the zoo or something and here he was asking to be attacked. But it hadn’t attacked him before, it had saved him. His head hurt and he was just getting more confused.

The cat came closer, narrowing its eyes at him as if glaring and then it was butting its head against him to push him back inside. It was much stronger than him, almost causing him to fall in its insistence.

‘Ok, I’m going.’ Chris protested, feeling inane talking to it like it was a person, but it was acting so oddly.

The cat seemed to roll its eyes at him and shook its head as if in exasperation.

It was such a familiar gesture that Chris laughed. ‘You remind me of my captain, he’d be pissed that I’m out of bed too.’

The cat growled faintly and nudged him again.

‘I’m going.’ Chris conceded and went back inside. He didn’t go to bed immediately though, instead he watched the cat circle his house as if attempting to keep him inside. Or keep him safe. The thought was reassuring as he went to bed.

In the morning the entire thing seemed unreal, it must have been a dream. Just to make sure Chris checked around the outside of his house, but there was no evidence that any kind of cat had been there recently. Maybe supernatural cats didn’t leave footprints though. Or imagined ones, he chided himself. That was far more likely than that he’d somehow acquired a supernatural guardian. Despite telling himself that he spent the rest of the day in a sort of bored anticipation, wondering if it would come back that night. Jill called him later to see how he was doing and it distracted him for a bit until nightfall.

Holding his breath, Chris looked out the window, watching for a while. Nothing showed up and he was almost ready to dismiss the whole thing as a delusion when the white cat casually padded up to his back door. He went downstairs to open the door, staring at it for a long moment. ‘Hey.’

It made a noise more like a friendly purr than a warning growl.

‘Do you want to come in?’ He was treating it like it was a human again but whatever it was it had to be intelligent. It hesitated then shook its head deliberately, turning away to patrol the yard. Chris was disappointed even though he couldn't explain why, he probably shouldn’t be inviting large, dangerous predators into his home anyway.

His friends made sure to come visit him but strangely it was the nightly visits from the cat that Chris looked forwards to the most. He hadn’t made a firm decision on whether or not it was real or what was happening, but he could admit that he liked it, knowing that someone was determined to protect him.

It was snowing. Chris tried to make out the shape of his cat in the overwhelming white, finally catching a glimpse of red eyes as it looked up. He still wasn’t sure what exactly it was, or what kind of cat, but it didn’t seem to like the snow much, its head lowered and body curled up as if miserable.

‘Hey, I’m going to bed, don’t worry.’ Chris held up his hands as the cat glared through the falling snow. ‘Just, do you want to come in? It’s cold out, and I guess you have fur, but…’

The cat glanced down at the snow then back up, finally nodding and padding through his open door.

‘Stay there, I’ll get you a towel.’ Chris hastily ordered before his floor got wet. It obeyed, waiting on the rug for him to return. He didn’t think it was going to like being dried off, but as he rubbed the towel over it the cat started to purr, a low rumble that he could feel vibrating through its body. When its head was dry it started nuzzling his shoulder, almost knocking him over. ‘Hey, easy there.’ Its fur wasn’t actually white as he’d first thought, it was a very pale blond and so thick and smooth that Chris got distracted running his hands through it until the cat shoved him away in annoyance. He couldn’t keep thinking of it as an it, especially not when it was in his house. ‘Just out of curiosity, are you a, uh, guy cat?’

It, he, nodded, seemingly amused at the question.

‘Ok, thanks.’ The cat followed him around like a shadow as he got ready for bed. Having him nearby made Chris feel more secure instead of worried and he slept soundly.

The cat was gone the next morning. He wasn’t surprised given it had vanished on him before, but it made him feel even more lonely.

The snowstorm grew steadily worse, the news reports indicating shutdowns of some services, and power outages, and for once Chris was glad to be off-duty.

The cat returned to keep an eye on him the next night. It was both expected and surreal but it was nice to have someone looking out for him, even if it was a mysterious cat.

When he woke up it was pitch black, and very cold. Groggily, Chris registered that the power had gone out, even the street lights were dark. He shivered, huddling under the covers more.

A head poked up from the floor, faintly-glowing red eyes regarding him steadily.

‘Are you cold?’ Chris asked sleepily, and before he could think better of it he’d flipped the covers back. ‘C’mere.’

The cat stared at him in what seemed to be surprise but he carefully climbed up onto the bed. He settled next to Chris, curling up around him. It was probably another entry on the list of bad ideas, but it was hard to complain about the few hundred pounds of warm cat cuddled up beside him. Chris buried his face gratefully in soft fur, the cat’s body vibrating as he purred.

This time the cat was still there when he woke up. Seeing the blond fur shining in the sunlight, knowing without a doubt that he was awake was the final convincing he needed that the cat was real. Somehow this was all real. ‘Morning.’ He muttered awkwardly as he realised that they’d spent the night in the same bed.

Red eyes gave him an amused stare.

‘Are you staying?’ Chris stroked one of the cat’s ears.

The cat nodded, making a pleased sounding purr. The power seemed to still be out, snow falling heavily and Chris figured that must be why the cat hadn’t left yet. ‘In that case, I guess let’s go see what I’ve got for breakfast.’

Chris pulled some clothes on quickly, shivering in the cold air and then noticed the cat was watching him. He turned to him and the red eyes widened in alarm, looking away as if embarrassed about being caught while voyeuristically watching Chris change. It was sort of weird since he was a cat, but Chris had been the one to undress without considering his guest so he tried to shrug it off.

He gave the cat some meat from the fridge, making himself an equally cold breakfast. The cat looked a bit affronted at the meal but he ate it anyway.

Afterwards, Chris grabbed his guitar before dropping onto the couch, glancing at the cat as he curled up beside him. ‘You like music?’

The cat blinked at him inscrutably.

‘Well, I hope so.’ Chris played for a while, noticing the cat’s ears twitching forwards in interest, his tail flicking side to side in time with the music. As he played the last chord with a flourish the cat purred and butted his leg. Chris took it as applause. ‘Thanks, you’re a great audience.’ He grinned and rubbed the cat’s forehead, scratching behind his ears to the loud rumbling purr of approval. His red eyes closed as he pushed his head further into Chris’ hand and Chris felt oddly content.

Jill called him later to check on him and to complain about dealing with the power outage. Chris listened sympathetically but he was glad to be on leave for once. ‘How’s everyone else doing?’

‘They’re good. Well, I don’t know about Wesker, he took a few days off just before this.’

Chris frowned, that wasn’t like Wesker at all. ‘Is he ok?’

Jill hesitated. ‘I don’t know, he’s not answering his phone, but he is technically on vacation.’

It worried him, but there wasn’t much he could do about it between his injuries and the blizzard. ‘Stay safe, Jill.’

Chris spent the next day with the cat too, napping on the couch or playing his guitar, since there wasn’t much to do while he was injured and the power was out. It was strangely easy to relax with the cat in a way he’d never felt with a human, and he was enjoying the company.

The cat vanished the morning the power came back on. Chris was disappointed but not surprised, the cat seemed to have decided he was his protector but he had only been staying with Chris out of necessity. He still missed his cat though.

Chris opened the door without thinking, assuming one of his friends had dropped by and blinked in surprise at the man ringing his doorbell. ‘Wesker?’

‘Chris.’ Wesker replied blandly.

There was a long pause while Chris stared dumbfounded at him.

‘Are you going to let me in?’

‘Uh, yeah.’ Chris opened the door wider, realising Wesker was carrying several bags. ‘What’re you doing here?’

‘Checking up on you. And I thought you might need some food after that storm.’ Wesker didn’t stop, heading straight for Chris’ kitchen.

‘Thanks?’ Utterly confused, Chris trailed after him, watching him unpack the groceries he’d brought. Of all the people he’d expected to visit him Wesker was at the bottom of the list. He was a good captain, and friendly enough but it just wasn’t something Chris would’ve pictured him doing. But here he was, calmly putting things away in Chris’ fridge and cupboards like he did it everyday.

Chris frowned, Wesker had brought a lot of food, which Chris needed, but it wasn’t the three day storm that had cleaned him out it had been his feline visitor. And he definitely hadn’t told anyone about that. Now that he thought about it Wesker had known where his kitchen was too despite never having been in his house before. He stared at the back of the man’s head, the blond hair that was the exact same colour as his mysterious cat, and a suspicion started to form in his mind. Wesker did seem a bit feline, the way he moved was almost like stalking… No, Wesker had been the one who found him first, so it was simply two things getting mixed up in his mind. But maybe not. Chris argued with himself, that it was insane, that his captain wasn’t some kind of supernatural creature, except… Screw it. ‘It’s you, isn’t it?’

‘What?’ Wesker threw him an annoyed glance but didn’t stop unpacking the groceries.

‘You’re the cat.’

‘What are you talking about Chris?’ His tone was casual but his shoulders were suddenly tense and Chris knew he was right.

‘You’re a werewo-, uh, werecat?’

‘That’s ridiculous.’ Wesker shook his head, turning around to grimace at Chris.

Chris wasn’t going to give up, not when he was positive even though it should’ve been impossible. ‘Well, what do you call yourself then?’

Wesker crossed his arms and stared at Chris, his eyes inscrutable behind his sunglasses. ‘I don’t have a word for it. It’s just what I am.’

‘You’re a cat.’ Chris said just to confirm what he’d heard, trying to wrap his mind around the fact that Wesker had just admitted it.

He scoffed. ‘No, I can turn into a cat when I want to.’

‘How? Why?’ Chris blurted the questions out, half-convinced that this was some sort of elaborate joke. ‘Were you born as one or-’

‘Stop it.’ Wesker snapped harshly, but the expression on his face wasn’t anger, it was fear.

‘Sorry.’ Chris quieted, but he wouldn’t forget that look, he wanted to know what scared Wesker that badly and keep it from hurting him again. ‘Thank you. For telling me, and for looking out for me.’

Wesker shrugged awkwardly as if brushing it off as no big deal.

Abruptly Chris remembered the past few days, cuddling up to the cat for warmth, no, cuddling up to Wesker, the way the cat, Wesker, had looked away when he’d changed in front of him… ‘Wait, you were in my bed. You saw me naked.’

Wesker’s cheeks went pink and he dropped his gaze. ‘You invited me in.’ He murmured defensively.

‘I thought you were some kind of supernatural cat, not-’ Chris gestured at him, fumbling for the most straightforward word. ‘-a man.’

‘You’re right. My behaviour was inappropriate. I apologise.’ Wesker was still flushed, but his voice was ice cold. ‘I’ll see you at the station when you return.’ He tried to push past Chris without touching him.

Chris blocked his way with an outstretched arm. He didn’t care about the werecat thing anymore because he’d just had a far more important revelation and there wasn’t a chance in hell that he was letting Wesker leave now. ‘I didn’t say it bothered me. That you’re a man. That you were in my bed.’

Wesker was so close to him that Chris could hear his breath hitch as Chris reached up and pulled his sunglasses off. Grey eyes searched his face in disbelief. ‘Chris? Are you-’

Chris cupped the back of his neck and pulled him into a kiss. Wesker grabbed for him, practically melting into his arms, moaning desperately into his mouth. ‘Hey, easy, it’s ok.’ Chris reassured him, alarmed at how panicked he seemed. He stroked Wesker’s hair to calm him down, unconsciously following the same path he’d used on the cat, scratching behind his ear. A deep rumble came out of him that almost made Chris snatch his hand back in surprise. ‘Are you purring?’

Wesker snarled, his eyes flickering from grey to red. Well, that explained why he wore sunglasses all the time, but that was something to think about later.

Chris petted his hair again, making the noise resume. ‘God, you are purring.’

‘Don’t push it.’ Wesker warned him, rubbing his head into his hand anyway just like a cat.

Chris did push it once they were in bed and he had Wesker underneath him, and he was thrilled to discover that his hair wasn’t the only thing Chris could stroke to make him purr.