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erintoknow · 5 years ago

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too much sun too soon

fallen hero fanfiction chargestep and therapy. this one is uh, long, sorry! ~4.8k words [ao3]

title from [Best to Hate the Man by Mermaidens]

–––

When Dr. Finch enters the room, she does so carefully. A notebook tucked under one arm, one hand holds a cup of coffee, the other a mug of hot chocolate. The steam curls off in twin trails, gently spun by the ceiling fan. She sets the chocolate down on the coffee table in front of you before settling into her own chair.

“Good morning, Ariadne,” Dr. Finch, smiles. “How have been doing this week?”

You give a weak smile and bend down to take the mug in your hands, feel singe of heat on your fingers contrast against the chill of the A/C. “I’m… I’m still here.”

“I’m glad you are.” You can’t pick up any duplicity there, but it’s hard to believe.

These sessions were supposed to be only once a month. That’s what you promised Ortega. And yet… here you are, two weeks after you last talk with Finch, having made an emergency appointment. After…

After last night.

You curl back into the chair, legs folded under you, bringing the mug close to your chest. “I don’t know that I am.”

Finch already has her notebook open, pen in one hand, coffee in the other. “Did you try the exercises I give you?”

“Yes.” You say immediately, then when Dr. Finch doesn’t say anything you take a sip of hot chocolate, let it burn your throat. “…no.”

Again, that frustrating lack of judgement as Finch watches you. “You’re not sure?”

You almost laugh, jostling the mug. “I don’t– I don’t deserve it.”

“To feel better?” Finch scribbles something in her notebook, the concern in her thoughts is cool, almost calming.

You bite your lip, nod your head.

“What makes you think you don’t deserve to feel better?” Finch glances down to her notepad– Writing? Doodling? Can’t tell from here. But you can still feel her focus on you.

Maybe the chocolate wasn’t the best idea after all. You can already feel the nausea eating at you. “There’s…. there’s a lot things. But…”

Finch waits for you to continue.

You squeeze your eyes shut hard enough to hurt. “I– I– I don’t know how to–” Your voice strains upwards. Sharp note. “To– to talk about it.”

That one’s true enough. You can’t exactly dump everything on this poor woman and expect to get away with it. So much effort to keep everything in, it’s like you lost the key to open the door again. But the rot is reaching critical mass; the stench is detectable from outside, strange pools of liquid leak out under the door.

“Why don’t we practice then?” She glances up at you again. “Whatever’s at the top of your mind. Doesn’t matter what.”

“Whatever’s at the top of…” You bite you lip. You mind’s gone blank now. You could laugh, or cry, or both. “Fuck.” You take a long drink from your mug. Put it back on the coffee table before drawing your knees up against your chest. Wrap your arms around your legs. “D–d–do you… know who–” you flinch, back away from the question, “w–what I am?”

You can only pick up professional curiosity behind Dr. Finch’s polite smile. “I’m happy to listen to whatever you want to share with me, Ariadne.”

“Y–yeah, well… I– I wasn’t…” you’re teetering on the edge here. How many years since you’ve had a conversation like this? Since anyone knew? You’re so tired of hiding. Of being alone. “I wasn’t uh– born a– uh– a woman.”

Finch scribbles something in her notebook and you can feel the anxiety twist in your gut. “Transgender…?”

Grip your legs tighter against you. “Y–y–yeah.”

“I’m honored you’ve decided to share this with me.”

That gets a sharp look from you, again, you can’t pick out any duplicity behind her words. If you were smarter, less desperate, you wouldn’t trust it. “D–d–don’t patronize me.”

“I’m being completely sincere.” Again, to your frustration, she appears to be telling the truth. “This is clearly a difficult subject for you, and I’m honored you’ve trusted me with it.”

“I–I–I just… need you to underst–stand the context,” you swallow, the tightness in your throat a pain, “when I– when I say I… k–k–kissed Ortega.”

“Again?”

You hiss and pull yourself tighter, hide your face behind your knees. “M–m-more then that…”

———

You put up a hand when the server turns to you, “I’m good. Not hungry today.”

“Ari…” Ortega looks over at you with upturned eyebrows. “Have you eaten today?”

You can feel your face heat up as you sink down in the seat. “Fine,” you hiss, “I’ll have the– the same as her.”

Ortega winks at the server again as she turns in her menu. You don’t need telepathy to know she’s got the poor kid hooked. God, you swear she’s gotten even worse compared to the old days.

Or maybe you’ve gotten more sensitive to it.

Ortega leans back with a smile as the server leans. “Feels homey here.”

“Y–you know, you c–c–could do this.” You prop your head up with an arm on the bar, “just retire, g–get a bar…” your smile grows sharp, “flirt with the c–customers all day…”

“I don’t flirt.” Ortega pointedly avoids looking at you as she fails to keep the grin off her face. There’s a twinge and her smile fades, “It’s moot anyway, I’m not retired any more. Blew that chance.”

You look up at her, trying to read the expression on her face. “You ever regret going back?” What do you need to do or say to get her to stop? She quit once, why can’t she quit again? Before she gets hurt.

Ortega’s response however is immediate, “Nope.” She gives you a look, “Do you regret retiring?”

You lean back from the table, focus on looking out the window. You should just lie, say everything’s fine. Nothing to worry about here but then you open your mouth and – “I… I–I don’t know. M–maybe.” You close your eyes and for a moment it feels like the weeks of sleepless nights might catch up with you, pull you under. Then you cringe, shake your head, feel the little pinpricks of pain courtesy your hand digging too tight into your leg.

“Ariadne…”

“D–don’t even start.”

“I’m not asking you to… unretire,” The smile has vanished from Ortega’s face, voice low. “Just to do something about it.”

Watch her from the corner of your eye. Still can’t understand it, why is she trying so hard? What does she care for? “Funny.” Try to keep your face blank, “Thought I was.”

“Is…” Ortega sighs and you catch her glancing around before focusing back on you. “Is the therapy helping any?”

“Oh.” You flinch, turn back from the window to stall for time with a drink from your glass. “I don’t know..” You gesture helplessly at the ceiling. “M–maybe? It’s… it’s a lot. I–I–I don’t want to talk about it right now… S–sorry.”

Still bad enough what you admitted to Dr. Finch. The razors, the bridge, the… all the little iterent thoughts like devils pulling at your head. Whispered promises of stopping, a way out: of ending, of no longer being. Maybe not in detail but – acknowledging it at all… it’s a raw nerve burning in open air now. Ortega’s already bad enough, she doesn’t need to know this.

“It’s fine,” Ortega lies. Always too curious for her own good. “I’m just happy you’re going.”

You narrow your eyes at her, “D–don’t rub it in, Ortega.”

“Wouldn’t dream of it.” She sips at her beer but her eyes betray the smile on her face.

“Liar.” You drum your fingers on the table, glance over the heads of the crowd towards the back of the restaurant. “How long do you th–think they’ll take?”

Ortega shrugs, a half smile on her face as she watches you. “The Old Fashioned always takes longer,” she explains, as if you could have forgotten.

“I know,” you cut her off, “they make the burger with actual beef.” You and Ortega must have eaten out at Hoots at least once a week those last two years. Too many nights together, just the two of you. This is starting to feel–

“I was feeling a little nostalgic.” Ortega shrugs, still smiling.

You huff and raise an eyebrow at her. “Oh, so it’s y–your fault.”

She laughs, “You ordered it too.”

“Also y–your fault.” You allow yourself a smirk, “You c–can… make it up to me later.” Oh, why did you say that?

A long, slow smile spreads across Ortega’s face until it reaches her eyes, “I wish you’d let me do exactly that.” It’s like she took that wink directed at the server, turned it up to 11 and put you on blast.

“Th–th–that’s not– um…” You bite your lip, and focus on the cars passing by outside, a tinge of heat on your face as your heart races.

“Mmm? Cat got your tongue, Ari?”

You slide down your seat, “J–j–just shut up. Think about w–what you’ll eat.” You hiss.

“Already am.”

You glance up at her and the smile alone is already is too much and then she winks at you and oh god –

You bury your face in your hands. Shouldn’t have taken off the sunglasses, you’re too exposed without them. “J–j–jesus Christ, Ortega…” What were you thinking, trying to flirt with Ortega? The woman has no sense of shame, and you? Far too much. God. Why can’t you be normal?

The laughter rings in your ears long after it ends. “You okay under there, Ari?”

“Oh,” your voice cracks, “j–j–just wishing I was d–d–dead is all.”

“What happened to all that earlier confidence?”

She hasn’t forgotten about the kiss at either the hospital or the beach, it appears. Neither have you, of course. Dreamed even.

“Th–this is– this is different.” Too real. Too out of your control. Ortega is a current and you’re along just along for the ride. “I–I–I’m trying…” You can’t keep doing this. This has to stop. You’re just setting her up for an even worst heartache down the line.

It isn’t fair, really. You’ve cast off their rules and you’re still as powerless as ever.

There’s an uneven smile on Ortega’s face. “Never thought I’d see the day.”

You glare at her, suspicious, from between your fingers. “See what day?”

She’s trying not to smile so brightly. Trying and failing. “Oh, well…” She gestures towards you. “You seem like you’re doing a lot better lately.”

You put your arms down, lean back unimpressed. “And what does that mean?”

“Well, you stopped dressing like a hobo for one–”

You gasp, throw your napkin at her, “W–what was wrong with th–the sweatshirts!?”

Ortega laughs as she grabs it out of the air. “–you certainly seem like you’re keeping busy these days, and…”

“And w–what, Ortega?”

She gives you a sly grin, one hand around her drink. “And you certainly seem to be getting back in shape.”

You feel your face warm up.

“Oh yeah,” she tilts her head towards you, “also, you’re smiling more.”

A hand shoots up to cover your mouth and you narrow your eyes at Ortega’s beaming face. “Shut up,” you hiss. “It’s y–y–your fault.”

“My fault?” Ortega laughs.

“It–it’s because you won’t leave me alone.” You jab an accusatory finger in her direction. “Always f–f–fussing, worrying…” Your hand wilts and you look away, her eyes on you suddenly too much. “And I don’t– don’t want you to worry.”

“Ari…?” Ortega’s voice sounds like she’s a million miles away. “Are you okay?”

You dig your nails into your arm, “I’m f–fine.” Your response is maybe a little too fast. Wince, then after a moment’s silence add: “I’m… glad we’re friends again. When you turn back to her, Ortega is looking straight at you with a small, sad smile. “W–what?”

“Nothing, I’m just… glad?”

“Glad?”

“To have you back?” She shrugs and rubs at the back of her neck. “It’s like I can finally… move on now. I don’t want to be the Marshal that screwed up and got half her team killed.”

Hands fiddle with the napkin in front of you and you don’t quite meet her eyes. “Ortega… It wasn’t–”

“Ari…” There’s a heavy sigh, “Let’s not do this right now.”

There’s a switch. You look up at her, “Julia?”

She straightens up as she looks over your shoulder, “And here’s our food!”

You frown. Let the server deliver the food. Chew your lip as Ortega broadens her smile, laughs a little too loudly with the server. Prod the hamburger in front of you. It’s huge. To say nothing of the generous pile of fries framing it on the plate. There’s no way you’re eating this all in one sitting, Ortega watching you or no.

But you’re getting distracted. “Th–this is new.” You say, once the server has left again.

That gets her attention, “What is?”

“You not w–wanting to talk about something.”

Her response is distant, defensive. “Well, everybody has things they don’t want to talk about.

“I guess th–that’s true.” As much as you want to push this harder, well, “I know I d–do.”

Now Ortega’s picking at her fries, as bad as you. “There’s a lot of shit I regret about back then. Thought I’d have to live with it forever.”

Regret?

She brightens up a little, “But now you’re here. And alive.”

“Like n–nothing ever changed.”

Did that come off too bitter? Ortega winces. “Or…” She twists a fry in her fingers, “maybe everything has.”

“Everything come out alright, girls?” The server is back and you have to fight to keep your face blank as Ortega smiles at him.

“It’s amazing, give my compliments to the cook, won’t you?” She winks and you could swear you feel the boy’s heart rate spike.

“And th–there’s something that hasn’t changed,” you mutter as the server leaves. You’d swear he’d float if he could.

“What?” Ortega frowns, like she doesn’t know what’s going on.

“Flirting with the– with the staff again?”

“What?” Picture of innocence? Please.

You grit your teeth. “Y–y–you know what I’m t–talking about Julia.” You should just drop this. Don’t let her get to you. In fact, why do you even care? You don’t. Care that is. Why would you? Absurd.

She hides her smile with another drink. “Why would you even, hm…”

“W–what?” You voice pitches up, “Even– even what?”

“Ariadne,” her smile is a little too broad for your liking and you can feel your face warm. “Are you jealous?”

“I– I don’t–” You sink down in your seat under Ortega’s full attention. “Y–you flirt with– with everybody. H–h–how am I s–supposed to– supposed to know w–what you mean?”

Ortega stays focused on you, but her expression shifts. Less confident, more guarded. “You can be pretty hard to read yourself, you know.”

You focus on the hamburger in front you, still untouched. Take a breath, in then out. “Th–there’s easy– easier ways of f–finding out.”

The hole of Ortega’s silence against the background dim of the bar feels overwhelming. You’re about to get up, make some excuse of needing to use the restroom when Ortega shifts in her seat too and you freeze. Look up at her.

She catches your eye, holds your gaze. “Alright.” She takes a breath, makes a face as she thinks. “Well, Ariadne, it would appear that I seem to be having a crush on you.”

“Oh.” You sit back down. It feels like you’ve been punched in the lungs, “fuck.” You bury your face in your hands again, feeling lightheaded. You’re going to wake up at any moment now. Right?

Ortega watches you with a wry look, “I don’t know how to interpret that.”

Slam your hands down on the table, narrowly avoid spilling your water. “F–f–fuck! Fine! Asshole! J–jackass! Y–y–you’re h–h–hot! Okay!?”

“Ariadne–”

You’re spiraling out of control now, hands holding on to the sides of your head. “Y–you’re r–r–really p–pretty and– and s–smart and k–kind and– and– and…” You glare at her, daring her to say something. “I–I–I c–c–can’t stop th–thinking about you!”

Ortega blinks. “Wow.”

Your face feels like it’s on fire and you slide down the seat. “F–f–fuck.”

“You went all-in there.”

“F–fuck you.”

“Only if you’re good.”

You blanche and look back up at her.

“I’m sorry, that was hard for you, I get it.” She’s not… smiling exactly, but there’s this soft glow on her face. The way her eyes focus on you and oh god. “Thank you.”

“Th–thank you?”

“For… I don’t know?” She laughs nervously, “For this? For saying something?”

This… this can’t really be happening. This isn’t how you imagined this conversation going in a million years. This isn’t something you deserve, and you’ve got one last card you can throw at her to prove it. “So… w–what about Jane?”

The expression on Julia’s face freezes. “Ah. You… you know about Jane then?”

“D–did you think I– that I wouldn’t?”

She winces, “It’s not exactly come up.”

It’s like grabbing the blade of a knife with your bare hands but you don’t let go. “Y–you go on d–dates to public events, Ortega.”

“Ah. That is true…”

You knew it. You knew this was too good to be true. Why would Ortega ever want to date something like you when there’s someone like Jane? Young, pretty, funnier, able to do things you never can.

“I hope she doesn’t take it too hard.”

Wait, what? You straighten up in your seat. “Huh?”

Ortega rubs her neck, avoiding your eyes. “I guess I haven’t really been fair to Jane. It’s just…”

“Just w–what?” What is she talking about?

“Nothing,” Ortega shakes her head in a way that makes you think it’s very much not nothing.

“W–wait. You’d… your seriously go–going to break up with her?” You feel faint again.

“We were never officially dating or anything,” Ortega protests, “But you or Jane? It’s no contest, Ari.”

“Just like that?” This is too wild.

“Look. You want the truth?” Ortega sighs, takes another drink. “I was trying to get over you.”

“Oh.” Your voice is quiet and your body feels entirely too light. “W–w–well. Th–that worked out, huh?”

The smile returns to her face, “Now I can enjoy fantasizing about kissing you, guilt free.”

“W–w–wait, what?”

———

Dr. Finch watches you with a soft smile as you lapse into silence. “I’m proud of you, Ariadne.”

You snap your head up, “wait? Why?” Fight back the temptation to just dig out the answer yourself.

Finch is writing something in her notebook but she pauses to smile at you again. “In the short time we’ve known each other, you’ve easily spent at least two-thirds of every session talking about Miss Ortega.”

Wait really?

“So,” Finch continues, “it’s been pretty clear to me you care about her a great deal. I’m glad to hear it’s both mutual and out in the open now.”

“B–but…”

“Yes?”

You press your head against your knees, fingers digging into your legs. “She… she doesn’t know.” Nausea again. Hands shaking, breathing a little too quickly.

Finch’s voice is calm, gentle. “Doesn’t know what?”

———

Like old times, Ortega insists on paying for you. You can’t hide the smile during your perfunctory argument. You feel light-headed, but in a good way. Like you could pull a Herald and float an inch off the ground. You don’t put up a fight when Ortega insists you take the rest of your dinner home with you. Maybe you will even finish eating later, like you promised you would.

Ortega follows behind you out of the bar as you gently shove the box into your purse. “Well,” she says, “I think that might be the best dinner I’ve had in months. But you know what would make an even better desert?”

You close your eyes as you knowingly step into the trap. “W–what?”

She glances at you, as smug as anything. “You.”

Even knowing it’s coming doesn’t stop your face from catching fire. You spin on your heel, intending to shush her with your finger. Instead she catches your hand by the wrist. “You’ve got some ketchup on your finger, Ari.”

Some kind of half-strangled squeak comes out of your throat as Ortega kisses the tip of your finger. There’s a flash of a smile at your reaction and she sucks your finger into her mouth – warm and soft and wet and oh fucking christ. You yank your hand back from her, ears burning as you stagger back a step.

Before you can collapse or fall over Ortega grabs your arm again and pulls you towards her and you fall against her instead into the street. “C–c–christ Julia…”

Ortega laughs, “Sorry, was that too forward?”

“J–j–just surprised.” You find yourself laughing too, and then relaxing against her chest, letting her arms hold you up.

“So then…?” She glances down at you, questioning and you find yourself brushing your hair back. Smile a little too widely. She smiles back and tugs you along. Past Hoots, and then down into the alleyway.

Back against brickwork, Ortega framed by the light, holding you there. You put a hand over hers on your shoulder. Heart pounding and you can’t think straight, can’t focus. It’s just you and her and you’re not running away from this, not this time. What have got yourself into girl?

You laugh first, light nervous energy thrumming across your limbs and then Ortega joins in. Laughter melts into touch and breath and you’re really doing this huh? Kissing Ortega again, your lips on her skin, between her teeth. It feels different, not an act of madness, a different kind of electricity coiling in your gut. Julia’s hand at your back, holding you steady, fingers brushing against bare skin under your shirt–

Your heart seizes and you freeze, one hand digging into her arm a little too tightly.

Ortega pulls back, letting go. “Ari? Are you alright? What happened?”

You run your hands down your front, tug your shirt down. Nothing can be exposed, nothing can be showing. “It’s f–f–fine.” Your hands are shaking in betrayal but there’s not a lot you can do about that. You messed up. You screwed up. What were you thinking. You can’t do this. Be this. Fuck. Fuck. Fuck.

She steps away, giving you space, “It’s obviously not fine, Ari… Did I do something wrong?”

“Y–y–your f–fine!” You hunch down, hugging yourself, struggling to remember your breathing exercises. “It–it–it isn’t your– your fault, I just– I just…” You feel dizzy, nauseous. Almost wish Julia would at least hold you, but she doesn’t, giving you space instead.

“It’s okay, Ari. You’re okay” She’s watching you with worried eyes and it’s a twist of the knife. Impossible not to pretend. You’re damaged. A weirdo, a freak. What kind of person reacts like this? Normal people don’t. People don’t.

How could you forget? What’s wrong with you? You’re a thing, a ghost. You’ve got no business getting involved with Julia like this, and now she can see it. Plain as day.

“It’s– It’s not,” your voice breaks, “I n–n–need to– need to go.”

This was a mistake.

You turn to escape and something pulls your arm, hold you back even as you tense up. Follow Julia’s hand up to her face, worried. Concerned. “Ari, talk to me. Please.”

Shake your hand free, still trembling. “I–I–I can’t. I just– I can’t. I–I’m sorry.”

———

You dig into your leg, finger tracing patterns. “And– and then I j–just ran.”

“I’m sorry that happened.” Dr. Finch says, quiet and honest as ever.

“I–I–I haven’t t–talked to her since.”

“Since?” Dr. Finch tilts her head, mind a careful, infuriating, blank.

“This was… was two w–weeks ago, now.”

“What prompted you to call me last night?”

“I…” You drift off, avoid her looking at you. You don’t want to admit to having stared at the bottle of kitchen bleach a little too long last night. Every attempt you’ve discussed has been safely in the past. Not immediate. What if she suggests something? Alerts someone? You can’t risk it.

So instead you say: “She– she keeps trying to contact me. W–w–wants to talk. About it.”

“I think it would good for you to do that.”

“W–why?” You snap back, “I–I’m just– just a drain on her. And– and now she knows.” You bite your lip. “M–maybe not exactly, b–but that I–I’m messed up. B–broken.”

“First,” Finch scribbles something down. “you’ve been through a lot in your life. That doesn’t make you ‘broken.’ And neither does being transgender. It’s okay to not always ‘be’ okay.”

You stay quiet. It’s easier than arguing. You wish it was true.

“Second, I’ll remind you who got you into this room to begin with. I sincerely doubt that the fact you are struggling at times is a surprise to Miss Ortega.”

This one you can’t leave alone. “I–I’m such a– such a burden on her though.” Not to mention her enemy as Adrestia. Not that you can confess that, even here.

“Has she ever said as such to you?”

You avoid Finch’s gaze. “N–n–no, but– she… she k–keeps saying I w–worry her.”

“And that bothers you.”

You look across the room at Finch, feeling helpless. “Yes?”

“Why?”

Your mouth feels dry, throat tight. You pull at your hair, avoiding look at Finch. “I–I… I don’t know. I…” You laugh, nervous energy overwhelming you. “I–I’m scared?”

“You’re scared of Ortega worrying about you?”

You laugh. “I– I guess I am.”

“Why?”

You stay quiet. Mind locked up in a silent panic. There’s an answer in there someone but it’s too terrible, too painful to grasp.

Finch shuffles some papers. “And now she has expressed interest in a relationship.”

“W–w–well…”

“Ariadne, have you ever been in a relationship before?”

Your heart freezes, and a tight smile forms on Dr. Finch’s face.

“Do you want to be? With Miss Ortega?”

“I… I don’t–” your voice pitches up, throat tight, “maybe?”

“We briefly talked about your being transgender before. Does that have something to do with why you find this so difficult?”

You choke back a laugh before it can turn into a sob. Yeah, sure, that’s one of the many impossibilities about this. You’d forgotten you were using that as the shield to even have this conversation.

Finch’s voice is quiet, “You don’t have to tell her anything you don’t want to Ari–”

“B–but–”

She holds up a finger, “this is clearly a sticking point for you. Perhaps telling Ortega is something you should consider. Once it’s out in the open, you’ll have a better idea how to proceed.”

Tell Ortega? And then where does it stop? You might as well ask her to ship you back to the Farm from the start and get it over with.

“Or… Or…” You grit you teeth, swallow hard. “I c–could just… avoid Ortega forever.”

Finch watches you with sad eyes and she really is trying her best. It’s not her fault she doesn’t have the full picture. “But is that going to make you happy, Ariadne?”

You don’t even laugh as you sink into the chair. “Th–that’s n–never mattered.”

Dr. Finch sighs and shuffles some papers, flipping through her notebook. Her frustration with you clear in her thoughts. “We’re about out of time for today, but I’d really like to continue this sooner rather than later.”

You watch her as she taps a pen against paper.

“How are you for this time next week? Would you be willing to meet then?”

Part of you wants to say no, but… she wants to help. She… cares somehow. As nonsensical as it is. It’s not like you’ll be busy that day now that you’re avoiding Ortega. Come to think of it, Ortega is sort of avoiding you too. It’s been a while since Jane’s seen her at the training dojo. Not looking forward to that conversation.

“Ariadne?” Dr. Finch is looking at you.

You cough, “Th–that’s fine. I’d… I’d like that.” Are you lying or telling the truth? You can never tell anymore.

#fallen hero #fallen hero: rebirth #fallen hero fanfic #fhr #fanfiction #wlw fanfic #mc #ortega #dr. finch #fhr/Ariadne

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yuissamidare · 6 years ago

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@codes i think i may have put this on my artblog but... Here

i guess ill start w ichi bc i always forget about him somehow like i always come up short when im making lists and im like 'oh wait shit yeah that guy’ bc im stupid n i only think of fishing trio + choro. I’m an Idiot. idk i never thought too hard on ichi bc i so rarely think about him but he looks so high its really funny i said this on main but he looks like my friend when he decided to try a weed gummy bear then started babbling about hentai then watched to watch porn with me but got mad all the intro scenes are a billion years long and started ranting about the industry but now that i think about it he looks like someone who used to send me weird shit when he was high like bad pick up lines about body parts i wish i didnt have

and thats so funny that its Ichimatsu who looks like that but also proof that hes high. but anyway!! hes really cute and im mad hes boutta ruin my reputation for my complete and utter lack of care and interest in him no matter what im mad. my friend gwyn said 'Sp lubing us up for the fuckening that is the reason why Ichi is sad in present day’ im really curious at the change like if hes trying a fake it till you make it type thing bc really emotionally exhausted or if hes just genuinely having a good time or hes puttin on a front since like. nails who stand get hammered down right??? just gotta do your best n Never Relax n i can relate to all that. but uhhh old hcs i guess

in kun ichi was the most serious! really smart but just as bad w school as the rest of them apparently but!! yeah so id think that!! ichis that guy who participates in class discussion constantly and is always willing to debate the readings, but turns in sloppy papers with typos and no a coherency or stucture or anything. he’s A+ in participation but has an average of 60% on most of the written assignments with points knocked bc of lateness then more bc its A Mess. you could ask about the prompts for one of his papers, he could babble about his position on it complete with paragraphs and footnotes but like the day before its due hes playing rpgs and watching horror movies.

his classmates think hes so smart n so intimidating. the family knows hes a hot mess. the teachers tell him he has a lot of potential but they don’t think hes applying himself. all are right. also he doesnt cheat or let people cheat off of him since hes always been about rules and boundaries and Rightness n he n jyushi were the only ones who Minded Themselves in kun

uhh jyushi!! let me talk about schoolwork again bc yeah i love jyushi so so so so much and thinking of him in a school environment is so weird i thought about it a lot n i thought about it him in kun n san and Woah!! i really really love delinquent jyushi, bc when i saw that i was like 'huh! that fits actually!!’ i love that like him and choro flip flopped completely from what i thought. his school must be so cold theyre too cheap to afford heating in the winter and in summer the acs Blast. he was so Shy and quiet and he cried and he liked to sing so i always thought that when he participated in chorus festivals hes always like right in front!! he hums a lot in class and also moves around alot bc he actually like school and people like primary trio are the types that make friends often. i wasnt supposed to talk about this yet whoops.

unlike ichi who relatively neat despite everything but has shit notes, jyushis notes are amazing and understandable and utterly illegible.

theyre covered in doodles, arrows and lines leading every which way, different colors but not like color coded n theyre not in order by date, but he opens to a random page every time yet somehow always seems to know where to find each lesson. he writes footnotes and caveats and corrections and criticisms of the teachers and random thoughts and just smears ink everywhere. sometimes his notes are on a completely different subject. the notebook itself is a horrifying mess, the front and back covers both covered in drawings and designs and falling apart, random papers shoved between the pages, coming apart at the seams, covered in stains of unknown origin. assignments are full of emoticons and informal language, and they always manage to make his teachers feel like hes smarter than they are (most likely). he does his projects the minute theyre assigned, and is finished a minute later so can talk to his friends. he loved school.

sophie told me once about how she thought was Like That was bc one of his main concerns is that he thought he had nothing that made him Jyushi n in kun she said he might have been the one who was the most concerned about having a distinctive personality and i talked about how that sorta carried over san and how he always blended in bc of how gentle and soft and push-overy he was. he was actually the and most gullible and weakest in kun so i was like :0 when i saw that and intentionally did stuff like only carry 14 yen in his pockets to be quirky but it always sorta fell flat and he was still invisible so i was like hmmmmm. and i can see how he couldve toughened up and thinking of this now!! i love that. oh im so happy. this is so much better than i ever couldve imagined ever.

totty…. i do not think he was very popular or good at school. i think he’s very decent at schoolwork but he never put much effort into it. just copies whats on the board but if the class runs out of allotted lesson time n he couldnt finish his work he just didnt do it like cram schools a pain in the ass. if he put effort hed be a star student but he just craps out whatever since hes was the laziest!! oh but something i noticed was that him and jyushi would play together often since sometime he felt overwhelmed by karamatsu a lot. also hes the money thief and scammer its great kun todo is so good. he gets shy and flustered easy too!!

but uhh yeah!! depending on the day im always like 'zaimoku love each other so much they are best friends and the perfect other halves!!’ then im like 'these mofos hate each other what the fuck is this trainwreck’ did you see their shitty small talk in the horse episode. what was that. like they are genuinely trying to communicate and are pretty easy with each other but they have nothing to say. its like when youre having a boring day at school and theres nothing to talk about with an acquaintance so you just look at the walls and go 'have you ever noticed how stupid these posters are’ then you both start reading posters aloud but you both know its not that funny and youre just doing it to waste time but you still enjoy their company you just dont want silence. thats their relationship. and i think they are just very similar in very different ways and like. the key things that make them both similar and different and the same fuck them up (like suiriku!! theyre both really similar even if it doesn’t seem like it at first which is why their compatibility in the relationship chart was so low in s1, but i saw a lot of improvement in both of their behaviours and their communication and honestly. s2 was worth it for that sophie was so happy to see her faves get along) like sometimes when you look in the mirror all the things you see are the things you dont like about yourself instead of what makes you wonderful and unique. also i didnt mean to talk about this but i guess i am.

but yeah. totty is bitter n resentful at kara during hs n karas more confused and upset at tottys behaviour in their twenties n thats bc like i said. theyre dumb. karamatsu!! i think was actually pretty popular in highschool n had a good amount of friends - i genuinely think theatre kids are well liked bc i literally know everyone in my department and im friends w a good amount of people and im not even That extroverted. my actual extrovert friends know everyone in the school by name and everyone in my department is so nice even though theres a lot of bitchiness and drama its not as bad as w other humanities studies (jesus christ humanity students outside of theatre are a hot mess.)

uh yeah n that ultimately makes totty feel a bit… betrayed? karamatsu is his partner! theyre supposed to be there for eachother! kara’s the first one to branch out, get friends etc etc and todomatsus left behind bc hes always the one playimg follow the leader and he breaks out of that once they graduate - he grows up resenting karamatsu slightly though he still cares. but this time Hes the one cancelling plans to hang out with friends instead. my friend katie put it best when, in response to me telling them this, they sent me:

'kara: totty you have so many friends now. We barely see you anymore.

totty, applying chapstick: well, I learned it from the best.’

when i told them about it. but at the time gwyn and i were babbling about possibilities and different storylines and how theres a possiblity the movie might break down into three manageable plotlines n she gave zaimoku 'popularity’ and this was me throwing out ideas but honestly. Good. (aha, the end of this scenario ended up with todo throwing hands and shoulder checking someone outside a window and then getting removed from the premise n hanging with atsushi all night after) why am i on this. shit what happened here.

uhh but yeah totty is Def someone with learned behaviours rather than being a natural extrovert honestly just look at him hes an introverted mess masquerading as a decent human being and i know full well how people like that are bc some of them have been my best friends for years n seein the new hs promos solidifies that fact bc look at him. Crybaby. He is Miniscule. A Child.

then its 'delinquent who looks like an honour student’ choro. i never studied him until sophie started liking choro n since i love sophie i wanted to take an interest in him too. n i started to think very hard about him! then gwyn planted this in me n its taken root and im just never not gonna think its great. yall see his shitty gokudo impression what a bossy lil shit. he pulled a whip on kara once and it was mad funny but also Gwyns Big Evidence for him just being the absolute worst not like a casually skips class type but a Choro was a legit a bully and really mean n sabatoged other classmates to make him look like he was 100% That Bitch. maybe not him being Mean and cruel but just an asshole who bums around, is something i really like that one a lot its been one of my faves since gwyn n i started talking about it but i just!! have a ton of other things too!!

hes a lot like karamatsu in that theyre both stupid and weird and embarrassing and they put on airs but they also!! dont try!! they talk so big and such high goals n expectations and they dont do shit bc they have so much hubris but i always talk about them bc suiriku is sophies Beloved so ill like. Not. but he acts like he’s better than all of them n forces the role of the straight man on himself because he wants to be seen as the responible, level headed one even if hes just. So Much.

i think the movies calling back to how touchy feely and clingy he was in kun and adding on to how jyushis a delinquent and kara… Is Like That he’ll be around them the most bc jyushi might either be really protective or push him away and then they do something to mend their relationship later on or hell cling to kara and they just. grow apart. sticking to my hc until the end bitches. oh.

for choro… personally!! i thought hed be a slacker instead of a delinquent but not in the way totty slacked - totty was lazy n knew the work but didnt want to put in effort but choro just. Doesnt. choro has so much energy all the time and choro Can Not deal with school situations. bc like… you always hear people say that studying is meant to be done at the desk, silently, no distractions what so ever!! focus on notes and nothing else!! ise a highlighter but dont use it too much!! make your notes legible but you only have five minutes before the board gets erased!! review!!! look at your notes or youll die! take breaks bit dont take too long and honestly. listen. kun choro wouldnt be able to stand that shit and id think hed just think he was doing it The Wrong Way n he just wasnt meant to do it.

he doesnt like quiet classrooms!! he cant study like that and hell get distracted. he cant sit still n thats why totoko broke up w him in the beer ad and why hes just Everywhere in kun!! hes understimulated and its just Ugh! you know??? he’ll fidget w his pens until he breaks them or hum or tap his foot and annoy everyone or leave for the bathroom at least three times a class just to get up and move.

eventually he just. gives up even though hes super smart he like, stops caring bc if you dont care to understand material then you wont have to read and read and reread and rereread something to get it! classes just make everything uncomphrehensible and makes any idea he may have sublimate into nothing. but he can work on the trains and the buses! he needs something kenetic to get him moving and trains n shit always have enough going on to work with, just like with home!! chorochoro motherfuckers. he works much better moving forward, ironic as that is. he feels sorta set apart from every thing like hes behind some big plane of glass doing everything wrong and being all set apart from everything. eventually he takes to acting like a real fussy mom to avoid his own problems and help everyone else out even though hes annoying and even when he graduates but it gets Worse bc then figures out how much!!! he fucked up!! then he kicks himself into high gear n still cant do shit. ahh.

its illegal for me to talk about choukei bc i talk about them so much and im always being annoying n typing stupid essays about them bc theyre… my faves.. But this is so long…

it actually makes me super happy that he kara acne he still can be really fighty and he cries and he still does stupid impulsive shit for others and even though hes really sweet and caring is still an utter monster and fucking mess of a person. love him. i always like to think his shittymatsu nickname came from iyami n it just morphed from there bc in 66 you can hear iyami calling him specifically garbage. ive always been glad they kept his sewing hobby too. ahh, actually from what i see hes pretty similarities to kun so i wonder when he decided to air out that teremity. idk what to say about him that i havent in tottys section. he just Feels like someone who had a good support group and nice friends bc of how hes able to move in the world. kara feels like some whos doing their growing up in their twenties bc highschool came easy to them and now theyre just really struggling with the real world. like i shouldve expected softboy hs kara and i appreciate him very much!! i talk about choukei a lot bc they were the first characters that spoke so i immediately attached myself to them n i talk about karamatsu Specifically but im not sure i ever mentioned how much i appreciated how smart and cautious hes proved himself to be time and time again, like how hes the only one to point out totokos fish shtick aint doing her favours or how he was the first one to notice osos irritation n how you can pick out his voice warning jyushi to calm down in the bg of 24 or how in the comedian episode he was ready to take Notes from iyami and a lot of other small things!!

i would think hes actually a bit more serious n calm in hs and san is him amping up traits that drew people to him in hs and it backfiring on kara spectacularly - kara is always gauging people and their reactions and acting in a way he believes will get something positive, but at the same time is utterly oblivious when it comes to actually Getting them n i talked about the girls on the bridge but this is also prevalent with ichi who kara just. Doesnt Get and can not figure out how to maneuver their relationship. like oso, kara is and elder brother!! and elder brothers have an image theyre supposed to uphold, but while kara acts the part he doesnt do the shit a big brother does and shrugs that responsibility off on oso until oso fucks up until s2, where they share the role more evenly and his relationship with ichi improves but this is another essay entirely. what im trying to get with that is that hyperfocus on what other people think of him, but his complete disregard when it comes to their actual reaction and instead what he wants their reactions to be would also greatly impact him transtioning from a teen to an adult im sorry im getting sloppy now

osomatsu… i really adore him too much and i understand how totty felt in their episode bc i also lent my phone to a friend who needed to desperately jack it before meeting new people n i talk about him a whole lot too. hes mean and an asshole and garbage n i know a lot of people find him plain n boring but idk. i dont think thats the case hes a really complexed n nuanced character n hes literally has always been way back from kun n thats expected from a main character but… hes always been mean n dumb n sly and he can get so pathetically vunerable and thats literally!! him. hes a normal dude nothing wrong with that n it can be real refreshing. n i suppose im so fond of fishing trio+choro bc they remind me of my friends. but yeah even if hes 'plain’ i dont see why thats a bad thing. n this they always have the most interesting body language like despite kara being So Much his body language was always closed off n singled him out as everything But exuberant and bright, and osos quirks like how he stands on his toes a lot had always been so cute… its relaxed and open n screams Talk To Me!!!!

ahh but i always end up thinking oso was. oso??? theres not much to say that i havent before but i do think that he was a lot more like he was in episode 2 when ranting to chibita about having shitty brothers and then actively Chose to be a good brother even if he wasnt a good person and be a stable rock and be someone they could all come back to at the end of the day. and hes good at math im never letting this die.

#now im sleepy fmxbfbc #mbbbaf #i didnt talk about oso much im ao tired

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wavewood · 7 years ago

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The Girl at the Museum: A Zelink Modern AU

The Girl at the Museum FFN AO3

Word count: 10,344 Summary: "There was little to do on his long shifts at the museum, but he was happy to look at her and let himself craft stories about her life and his life and how one day they would intertwine in the most elegant way. Often times it felt like fate." Link spends a summer working at a museum, Zelda is the mysterious girl who is always there. Zelink Modern AU Oneshot BOTW-ish

Today, Link imagined her as a foreigner.

She came from Termina, had a thick accent, and often said, “How do you say…?” She was here for the summer on a research trip, and at the end of the season she would return to a small town in a distant country to write an obscure archeology book Link would one day find years from now, when she was just a distant memory. She would bike in the early morning to a dusty library to write in a leather notebook and eat pastries her neighbor baked. One day they would accidentally meet at a hotel bar, and she would find him charming and funny.

Yesterday, Link imagined her as a painter.

In reality, he knew nearly nothing about her. Everything he did know he gleaned from watching her, and that was still barely any information. He knew she absentmindedly ran her delicate hands through her long, golden hair when she was reading. He knew she liked to braid it when she needed a break, and then let it loose when she biked away. He knew her milky skin turned pink when she sat in the sunlight for too long. He knew she preferred jean shorts and loose t-shirts with vintage lettering. He knew she loved the museum.

Based off of her appearance, he assumed she had to be around the same age as him, or maybe he just wished it. Was she also eighteen years old, just a few months away from attending university? Maybe she was deceptively young looking but actually worked in a bank and had a husband? He constantly wondered.

At first he tried to control himself and actually do his job, but his job as a Visitor Services Associate at the Mila Vah Windfall Museum was boring. By the third day she was the only interesting thing he could see from the front desk, and so he finally gave up and watched her.

He often imagined her as a girl from his high school who was so shy that he had somehow missed her throughout the past eighteen years. Then he would charm her and she would slowly become comfortable around him. One day he’d drive her to the movies in the rain but they wouldn’t want to leave the comfort of the car, so they’d snuggle up and –

Link hadn’t meant to let his imagination run so wildly, but as the time ticked by each shift she seeped deeper into his thoughts until he spun an entire life story for her, many of which ended up with her enthralled by him just as much as he was enthralled by her.

Today she was sitting in the Wintergarden. Link sat at the front desk, as always, and stared at her through the massive window across the lobby. She sat cross-legged on the step of the small, stone fountain in the center of the glass room. Sunlight streamed down from the windowed ceiling, slipped past the leaves of the enclosed trees, and cast dappled rays on her delicate form. She was absorbed with a large book in her lap, so large that Link would guess it was a textbook. Occasionally she would run her hands through her long hair and nibble at her bottom lip. Surrounded by luscious plants, vibrant flowers, and spotted sunlight, Link thought she looked like a princess.

Sometimes he imagined her as royalty, but those dreams always left him feeling distant and hopeless.

There was little to do on his long shifts at the museum, but he found he did not mind the solitary hours. He was happy to look at her and let himself craft stories about her life and his life and how one day they would intertwine in the most elegant way. Often times it felt like fate.

He vividly remembered the first day he saw her. It was just the beginning of summer - his last one before he went to university across the country - and his first day at his new job. He had been dressed in jeans and a simple black shirt that had the words Mila Vah Windfall Museum in neat, elegant white letters. That morning he had even brushed his light brown hair, but despite his best efforts it still stuck up a bit in the back.

The Mila Vah Windfall Museum was actually a mansion that had once belonged to a wealthy woman who had very expensive tastes. She was a bold, charming woman who, by the end of her life, had collected so many treasures that she needed a museum for them all. After she died, her children transformed her mansion into a display of all her most prized possessions, from paintings and sculptures to animal skins to rare flowers. The museum was technically just a house of junk, but the junk of Mila Vah Windfall was all incredibly expensive and historic. On his first day, Link was required to wander through the rooms to become familiar with the layout and collection. He passed through room after ornate room, each time surprised at what this woman had managed to collect. She had soldier’s greaves from the Reestablishment Era, portraits of her done by Hyrule’s most famous artists, skeletons of Lynels, and even diamond encrusted lingerie.

Despite the vastness of the collection, the museum was not as popular as Link would have thought. It resided on the outskirts of Akkala, high on a hill and surrounded by gigantic trees. Not many people from the small neighboring towns had interest in making the trek, all except for one.

When she came in on his first day he had been ready to greet her as he had done with the few other guests - an overzealous smile and cheery welcome - but she ignored him and strolled past him straight into the Wintergarden. At the time he had just been amazed by her presence. She was beautiful, and he wanted to know her, yet she also had a haughty, unattainable air about her that just made him even more intrigued.

She was there nearly every day of the week from morning to early afternoon. Often times she would read, but she also frequently strolled through the rooms, taking notes in her tiny, leather notebook, and sometimes she would even draw. On these days that she wasn’t in the Wintergarden, Link would make more walkthroughs of the museum. He was supposed to check for discarded maps, but he just liked to see what she was doing.

Sometimes he tried to busy himself with something besides her, but he would always go back to dreaming of finally walking over and making conversation. He had never heard her speak before. He wondered how she sounded. He wondered if they even spoke the same language. He wondered if she would like him.

He generally liked his days off since he got to sleep in and wander around town with a few friends. Sometimes his grandma would give him some money and he’d take his younger sister out for ice cream. Sometimes, though, he found himself thinking of her and he would wait anxiously until the day came where he would work at the museum again.

A month into his job and he hadn’t gotten any better at filling his long hours with something besides watching the mysterious girl. He also hadn’t gotten the nerve to talk to her, mostly because he had no idea what he would even say. Hi, I just wanted to know if any of the many daydreams I had about you were remotely accurate? He had a feeling that would not go over well.

Sometimes when the days were particularly sunny and the amount of visitors particularly low, Link would get so bored he would even attempt doodling. He mostly just colored in the words on the note pad. Today, he was bold enough to attempt flowers. The person who worked before him had drawn intricate flower petals with many patterns and colors. They had left the doodle on the desk, and so Link felt like challenging himself and copying the intricate designs. He was surprised by how absorbed he became in the task. His lines were sloppy and uneven, but he was determined to get better.

“Excuse me?”

Link reluctantly looked up from his masterpiece of a doodle, only to freeze at the sight before him. The mysterious girl who had shown up every shift without fail was now standing right in front of him. He had never seen her this close before. Her face was gracefully round, her pink lips small and cute, and her long hair was a luscious gold. She had stuck a neon pink pencil behind her ear. Her doe eyes were a striking sea green that held such an intensity he thought for sure she knew everything about him, even the fact that he daydreamed about her constantly.

In his shock, he had not replied to her. He stared dumbly at her and noticed that she had a light smattering of freckles across her pale skin.

She lifted a brow. “Hello?”

So, she did speak his language.

“H-h-hi,” Link stammered as if his mind was a computer that had just sputtered to an end. He then abruptly stood up from his chair, accidentally knocking his pen down to the floor.

She paused for a moment and studied him carefully, likely calculating his level of sanity. Her eyes then traveled down to the desk where she noticed his many attempts at drawing flowers. She didn’t say anything, but he knew she must have been judging him for his doodles. His face was becoming redder by the second, and though the museum was required to be at a comfortable temperature, he felt suddenly hot.

“Right,” she said, regaining her composure and remembering why she came in the first place. She took a breath, and then explained in a rush, “There is an error in one of your exhibits. The plaque for the vase depicting the Battle of Lake Kolomo is incorrect. The year should be 1456 at the earliest, since that is when the battle actually took place, and currently it is 1356, which is preposterous because the coalition at Lake Hylia hadn’t even been formed yet. I am sure one of your curators made a simple error, but if there are any questions to my reasoning I am happy to discuss it. I do believe that the vase was made in 1457 since creating pottery took a fair amount of time back then and so it would have been at least a few months. I wouldn’t estimate the vase was made any later than 1460 since that was the year when new pigments were introduced to Hyrule and there are very few colors in this vase. Anyway, please let the appropriate party know of the error and that I am here to explain my reasoning if need be.”

Link could only stare. None of that had registered.

“Sorry,” he said slowly, waking up from his daze. “Could you say that again?”

The girl audibly sighed. “Please tell the curator of the East Wing section to come to the front desk because there is an error in the plaque,” she said, annoyance creeping into her voice.

“Oh,” Link said simply, blinking a few times before he finally felt alert again. “Right, okay…so for complaints you need to fill out this comment card and then – ,”

“No, this isn’t a complaint about the bathroom not having enough toilet paper – which, by the way, it doesn’t,” she interjected, leaning against the counter. “This is a flagrant error in the exhibit, and who knows how long that has been there? This needs to be addressed now.”

Link was still taken aback, now by her boldness and confidence. She gazed at him with those intense green eyes, waiting for him to follow her commands.

Remembering his training, Link placed the complaint card in front of her and replied, “I can assure you that we respond to all of our complaints promptly. This will be dealt with shortly once you have filled out the card.”

“Really?” she replied skeptically, leaning farther over the counter to glare at him. “How promptly?”

“Um…” Link stumbled as he tried not to notice how much closer she had gotten. “Very…promptly...”

They stared at each other for a moment in which Link wondered how far she was going to push this. He assumed she was wondering the same thing.

“Fine,” she resigned. She slipped the pencil out from behind her ear and quickly filled out the form with brisk movements. When she was done she slipped the pen back into her ear, gave one last final glare, and left the building.

Once she was gone, Link quickly looked at her complaint form. She had ignored the lines of the paper and the sections that had requested the date, name, and email; instead, she just wrote in large letters:

Battle of Lake Kolomo is wrong – call me.

Beneath that she wrote a phone number and signed off with her name in bold, confident strokes.

Zelda.

For a moment Link looked at the door in a daze. Zelda was not at all what he had been expecting.

As if on autopilot, Link placed the complaint card in the slot where all the other cards go. He really did hope this error would be fixed promptly.

The next day the girl – Zelda – entered as she always did: quickly and without a single glance towards Link. She didn’t go off into the Wintergarden today, but instead headed straight for the staircase into the heart of the museum. Link felt an odd mix of both relief and disappointment. Now that he had learned her name and actually had an interaction with her, which he began to realize maybe hadn’t gone that well, he couldn’t predict how his shift would go. Would she ignore him? Could he continue to spend his hours imagining storylines for her if he knew her name? Things just felt different and he wasn’t sure how he felt about that yet.

He was so worried about the future of his daydreams that he didn’t even notice her approaching until she slapped a hand on the desk in front of him. Link’s head jerked up with a start to see her staring at him with those keen emerald eyes.

“It hasn’t been fixed.” She stated.

It took Link a moment to process her words. “Oh,” he replied simply. After a second, he swallowed the lump in his throat and continued with more confidence than yesterday. “I’m sorry, Miss. I am sure it will be fixed soon.”

She glared at him a moment, and he could tell she was calculating her options on how to proceed. Like the day before, she huffed “fine,” and walked away from the desk.

The next day followed the same pattern. She briskly walked into the museum and headed straight for the East Wing, and then she briskly walked back to the front desk. She informed Link that the sign remained unfixed and Link assured her that it would be fixed soon, even though he had no idea if that was true. This time she didn’t even say fine, just glared for a moment and then stomped away, her long golden hair swishing behind her with flair.

The same thing happened the following two days. Whenever she spoke to him Link really wanted to do something different – maybe offer to look at the sign with her, or ask why she cared so much – but he would always fall back into the same instinct because her presence made him inexplicably nervous and excited.

He didn’t understand why she had this effect on him. He knew he was prone to romantic, elaborate day dreaming, but this was the first time he had actually felt genuinely infatuated with somebody. Much to his embarrassment, he was a hopeless romantic, and for some reason he was enthralled by her. He must have dreamt of every possible life for her – one where she was popular in the city, studious in a faraway land, a princess in disguise – but somehow he had never dreamt of her as she truly was, and that was perhaps the most exciting part of it all.

At the end of the week the sign had finally been fixed. Link knew this before she came in that day, and he was unexpectedly nervous when she walked in. Would she thank him? Would he finally be able to say something substantial and she would think he actually had a brain? He frantically thought of different scenarios and how he would respond to them in a way that would make her want to hang out with him more.

He was ashamed for the disappointment he felt when she returned from the East Wing only to go straight to the Wintergarden, not even glancing his way.

For a day Link denied that her ignoring him had any impact on him at all. By his second shift he had accepted that he was disappointed. He tried to go back to inventing a storyline for her, this time using the small bits he knew that he got through their interactions to fill in the gaps, but it wasn’t the same. He didn’t have the same engagement with his daydreams like he usually did. He was tired of wondering what she was like. Now he wanted to know.

By his third shift, he was so incredibly bored that he did something incredibly stupid.

It didn’t take her nearly as long to notice as he had expected, and for that he was grateful. He had just finished restocking the pamphlets when she approached the front desk. She stood proudly before him with her hands on her hips and her head held high. By now he had time to prepare himself so that he was bold enough to look her in the eye and not glance away.

“There’s another error,” she stated. “In the West Wing, the sign for the Rito Tapestry of Voo Lota says that the Voo Lota Shrine is in the province of Hebra, but it is actually in the province of Tabantha.”

She spoke in a rush, like her mouth couldn’t keep up with her brain, and it threatened to rattle Link again, but he remained focused. He fought his instincts this time to go back to what he always said, and instead replied with, “So, are you really into history?”

“Excuse me?” She said defensively, crossing her arms.

“You just know so much about it,” he answered, trying to keep a calm exterior when he felt total panic on the inside. “You must really like history.”

“Oh, goddesses, no,” Zelda rolled her eyes. “I detest history. It’s almost entirely memorization, a little bit of philosophical thought, but far too stagnate for me.”

“Oh,” he said dumbly, caught off guard again by her answer. He had thought for sure that she was some kind of history buff. He did not expect somebody who knew all of these random details to hate it. “How do you know so much then?”

She shrugged. “I don’t know, some things you just hear and it sticks, you know. Like when you’re listening to music and you don’t even realize that you have somehow learned all the words to a song you don’t even like.”

Link looked at her skeptically. “Yeah, but that’s for music, not for geography or historical facts.”

“What’s the difference?” She responded, and Link was amazed again by the intensity in her striking green eyes. He had a feeling she was rarely wrong.

Instead of answering her question, he asked one of his own. “Are you a genius? And I don’t mean somebody who has a few good ideas, but I mean a real, certified genius who could read at six months and do calculus in fifth grade.”

She blinked a few times, taken aback, and her cheeks had a hint of red in them now. She looked down at her feet for a second, and he realized it was the first time she had looked away from him during their many interactions.

“The odd thing is,” she said, moving right past his question as she leaned against the counter. “The sign was accurate before, and now suddenly somebody changed the information to something that is completely inaccurate.”

She peered at him curiously and he tried not to smile. “Hm, that is odd,” he agreed. “Thank you for letting us know, will you please fill out this comment card so that we can fix the issue?”

Her lips turned up into a wry smile, and this time he felt himself blushing under her sharp yet amused gaze. He slipped the comment card in front of her but she didn’t even glance at it. “I expect this to be fixed promptly,” she said in an almost teasing way.

“Of course,” he put on his most charming grin and she glanced at him suspiciously one last time before sauntering away, leaving the comment card untouched.

Hours later, once she let her hair down and left the museum, he grabbed the original sign from the drawer. He discretely returned to the tapestry and switched the signs, tossing the incorrect one in the trash on his way back.

It took longer for her to notice the next error, but three days later he was thrilled to see her marching towards his desk again with the same mix of confidence and irritation at there being false information in the world.

It was an especially hot summer day so she had her golden hair in a loose bun. She wore a navy tank top that showed her pale shoulders and a smattering of freckles along her collarbone. Link was jealous of her comfortable attire – a black cotton shirt and pants was not exactly great for this summer heat.

“There’s another error,” she said. Unlike the last time, however, she was smiling. Link hoped she was smiling because of him. “On the Terminan translation for the Book of Vows, one of the words is in present tense when it should be in past tense.”

“I’m not surprised, but you know Terminan?” he asked, trying once again to seem calm and professional but he couldn’t stop himself from grinning.

“Not very well,” she admitted. “Just enough basic grammar to know that the sign is incorrect.”

“Will you fill out a comment card?” He asked.

“No,” she answered, and then spun around and left.

The next time the error was an incorrect date that was off by a year, then the wrong type of rock for a sculpture, then an artist’s first and last name were switched. She caught every single one. Each time she strode confidently to the front desk and announced the flaw. He hoped she played along because she got a reason to speak with him, but he was confident that she just loved to test her knowledge.

On a particularly rainy day she approached him again. “There’s another error,” she didn’t even wait for him to ask what it was. “The sign for the taxidermy crane says the scientific name is Dromaius Novaehollandiae, but it’s actually Gruidae.”

He opened his mouth to reply but she suddenly leaned in much closer than before and his words caught in his throat.

“Make it harder next time,” she whispered. “This one was too easy.”

She quickly jumped away and walked back to her spot, leaving Link stunned and his heart swollen with an undeniable crush.

Link tried his best to keep his eyes on the old women he was talking to, but he could feel Zelda’s gaze on him and he never had to work so hard to just look at something. He gave his usual speech about handicap accessible ramps, and if he smiled a little more than usual he would not admit it was because the mysterious girl finally seemed interested in him.

It had been a week since Zelda approached him and hinted that she knew his game. She didn’t always solve his inaccuracies within a day, but his most recent one had stumped her. On the third day he heard from two of the guards that she had been circling the museum all day reading each placard multiple times, looking more frustrated as time went on. A whole week later and she still had no idea what he had done.

Now she seemed to think the best plan of action was to sit in the Wintergarden and stare at him like he was some kind of specimen on a microscope. Her attentions made him flustered, hot, and a little bit light-headed, all of which he tried to keep hidden but he knew he was doing a poor job of it.

“You feeling okay, young man?” One of the elderly ladies asked, peering up at him through her half-moon glasses.

Link chuckled nervously and continued his spiel about elevators, ignoring her question.

He soon said goodbye to the group of ladies just as his manager came up to watch the desk while he went on his lunch break. He took his paper bag out from the drawer and began to walk across the lobby to the employee break room as he always did. Halfway there, however, Zelda stepped right in front of him.

For a second she just glared at him, but then she said, “Let’s get lunch.”

Link’s heart skipped a beat. Although he became incredibly nervous, he obviously agreed.

“Tell me about yourself,” Zelda ordered as she took one of his grapes from his lunch bag and popped it into her mouth.

They sat on top of the hill just above the museum in the shade of a large tree. It was a cloudy summer day, but the air was warm and the gentle breeze was a relief against his flushed face. They sat side by side on the grass. Link munched on his meager sandwich while Zelda stole his grapes.

“What do you want to know?” He asked.

“Anything that will help me figure out what you’ve changed this time,” she replied, gazing out at the dense forest that surrounded the museum.

“So you want a clue,” he clarified and her sharp green eyes snapped to him.

“No,” she said defensively. “I don’t want you to give it away. I just need to figure you out more and that will help me solve this puzzle.”

Link wasn’t sure how he felt about that. Did he mind being just a game to her? He felt like he should have some dignity and be offended, but he was too excited to be talking to her to care.

“So,” she prompted as she leaned forward with her arms on her knees, looking at him keenly. “Let’s start with your name.”

He chuckled around a mouthful of food. “I can’t believe you don’t know my name after all this time. It’s Link, by the way.”

“Link,” she muttered, mulling it over. “Not what I expected.”

“Oh really? What did you think it was?”

“I’ve always just thought of you as Mr. Misinformed since you’re spreading misinformation to the world.”

Link let out a short laugh, nearly choking on another mouthful of his sandwich.

She popped another grape into her mouth. “Why do you work at the museum?” she continued.

“Needed money and they were the first people to offer me a job,” he replied simply.

“What do you use the money for?”

He felt it was already becoming an odd line of questioning, but he didn’t hold back. “Saving up for college mostly, sometimes I buy food.”

“When are you going to college?”

“In August.”

“Where?”

“CTU.”

“What will you be studying?”

“Don’t know yet.”

“Are you excited?”

“I guess.”

“Are you happy that you’re going to CTU?”

“Yeah.”

“You don’t sound thrilled.”

He paused now and looked at her. “Don’t you think it’s my turn to ask you questions?”

“I don’t see the point in that,” she sighed as she flopped onto her back and stared up at the clouds. Her golden hair fanned around her head, blades of grass poking between the strands.

“Well, I do,” Link said, finally finishing his sandwich.

“You ate that quickly,” she stated bluntly.

“I’ve always thought I should become a professional speed eater,” he replied as he began eating his few remaining grapes.

“Is that what you’ll study at university?” she asked teasingly.

Link gave her an amused look, knowing she was trying to steer the conversation back to him.

“So, are you at university or in highschool or neither…?” He asked, trailing off and wishing he had the same confidence she did.

She sighed, clearly annoyed he insisted on asking her questions. In a rush of words, she said, “I’m about to go into my second year at Rhoam University. I’m still undecided in my major but I’m choosing between mechanical engineering and molecular biology. I was born and raised in Castle Town. I’m allergic to bees.”

“There,” she added a second later, smiling slyly at him as the wind played with a few loose strands of her hair. “Now that you know these basic facts, let’s get back to you.”

“Wait,” Link cut in, the words just registering. “You go to Rhoam University.”

“Yes,” she answered simply and he shook his head in amazement. Rhoam University was the top in the country, one of the best in the world, but he wasn’t surprised she was at that school. Plus, Rhoam was in Castle Town, which is where he would be starting in September…

He stopped his thoughts before they spiraled any further down that rabbit hole.

“So then, what are you doing in Akkala?” He questioned, finishing his grapes and moving on to a granola bar.

She was quiet for a moment and looked back to the passing clouds. Her smile had fallen and she looked a bit sad. After a moment, she replied with a bit less confidence than before,

“My father is sick. Nothing life-threatening, but the doctors recommended that he get away from the city to escape the stress of that lifestyle and get some fresh air. So we came to Akkala where there are plenty of trees and nothing ever happens.”

“I’m sorry to hear that,” Link said quietly, his heart squeezing with sympathy.

“Don’t worry,” she brushed it off, sitting back up again. “It seems to be working well for him.”

They were silent for a second, Zelda staring down at the museum beneath them and Link looking at the pieces of grass now entwined with her hair. He wanted to know more about her father, but didn’t want to push too far.

“Do you like Akkala?” He asked, resisting the urge to pluck the blades out for her.

She shrugged. “It’s fine. I see the appeal, but I don’t have much to do here.”

Link huffed in agreement. That was the story of his life.

“Is that why you’re always at the museum?” He inquired and she looked at him again with a sharp gleam that made his heart flutter.

“Precisely,” she nodded. “This is the most interesting attraction around that I can bike to. And it’s air-conditioned.”

Link chuckled. He always missed the coolness of the museum on his days off.

“Now, enough about me,” she said, regaining the confidence and quickness of her usual self. “I need to learn more about you in order to figure this out.”

And so Link spent the remaining twenty minutes of his break answering an array of seemingly random questions, but apparently it did not suffice. Zelda was still at a loss for what was missing in the museum. Before he returned to his desk, she insisted they get lunch again tomorrow so that she could continue her investigation of his psyche – or something along those lines. Oh, and he needed to bring more grapes too.

Link couldn’t have stopped grinning if somebody paid him to.

The next morning Zelda marched right up to the front desk. When she finally stood before him, she let out a big breath and announced, “I’m an idiot.”

Link smirked, already knowing where this was going.

“It was clever of you, to hide it in such plain sight,” she grudgingly conceded, “but last night I came to a revelation and realized what was wrong here.”

“And that is…?” he asked with a tilt of his head.

“Your name tag,” she answered. “It says Pipit but your name is Link.”

“That’s correct,” he grinned, finally able to snap off the wrong name tag that he had been wearing for the past week. “Are you embarrassed it took you that long?”

“No,” she huffed before spinning around and stomping away, clearly both embarrassed and annoyed. Link, on the other hand, felt triumphant.

Although Zelda had solved the puzzle, Link was happy that it didn’t stop her from demanding lunch with him. The next few days followed a similar pattern as the one before. During his lunch break they would walk out to the shade of the tree on the hill and Link would eat while Zelda stole his grapes and asked a series of questions that popped out of her stream of conscious. With each day Link was able to get her to answer more and more of his own questions. He discovered that she was in fact a certified genius but only had a love for hard science, nothing that couldn’t be quantified. She told him about a volunteer program she was a part of in Castle Town where she taught chemistry to underdeveloped schools. She talked about her roommates who would drag her out of the library to parties, and how she would sometimes dance by herself in her lab when nobody was around. He also learned that her mother had passed when she was very young, and her father was overworked and often gone, but he was kind and all she had left.

He also learned she enjoyed eating chips and apples, in addition to stealing his grapes.

On Friday it was a complete downpour and so they couldn’t go to their usual spot for lunch. Instead, they ate in the Wintergarden on the same bench Zelda always sat in. The rain pounded on the windowed ceiling, and Link noticed her frequently glancing up at it, enchanted by how the water splattered and rippled on the glass.

“What are you studying all the time?” he asked as Zelda peeled one of his oranges. He was sure to bring two this time so that they could both have one.

“Whatever I feel like,” she answered. “Sometimes when I don’t know what to research I find a random artifact in the gallery and learn all I can about it.”

Link was both amazed and intimidated by her desire for knowledge and her ability to seemingly understand anything if she chose to research it. He wondered if that was what she was doing with him: researching him completely so that she could solve all of his puzzles.

He had nearly forgotten about this game he had started. They had begun speaking more as friends and less about the game. She even smiled at him when she came into the museum now. It was a coy, teasing smile, one that took his attention away from whatever he was working on.

“Can I see your notebook?” he asked, pointing to the leather book she was always vigorously writing in. It sat beside her on the bench, the pages thinning and warping with use.

She shrugged and handed it to him like it was no big deal, but Link felt as if he was holding a very important part of Zelda. The leather was cracked in his hands as he flipped through the pages. The notebook reflected much of Zelda’s own mind. It was overflowing with information, words often becoming smooshed together around the edges and arrows drawn between sections, connecting her disparate ideas. Her handwriting was both messy and elegant, the stems and swoops of her letters long and elegant but tight together.

“Don’t you ever get bored of the museum?” He wondered, running his fingers gently across a doodle she did of a flower. Perhaps they weren’t so different after all.

“Sometimes. I wish I could drive to other places, but all I have is my bike so I can’t get too far anywhere,” she answered.

“Where would you like to go?”

“The old research lab up north,” she replied. “I hear it’s a pretty small, unimpressive museum, but that’s where a lot of scientific advancement took place so I’d like to see it nonetheless.”

And, as if his mind had suddenly disconnected from his mouth, he said without thinking, “I could drive you there if you want.”

Link could feel his face become flushed with embarrassment. Why did he offer that? Would she think it was a date? What if they went and she grew bored of him, or he crashed the car?

“Really?” She exclaimed happily, shocking him out of his panicked thoughts. “Would you really take me?”

“O-of course,” he stammered out. “I mean, if you want to – ,”

“I do!” she jumped in, full of a passion that she always gets when she talked about her studies, or fruitcake. “Can we go this weekend? I’ll pay for gas and whatever else you might need.”

“It’s only forty minutes away.”

“Nevertheless, I will make this the easiest forty minute drive of your life.”

Link highly doubted that considering he was now going to lie awake all night in a mix of panic and excitement. He agreed to take her tomorrow anyway, knowing there was no way he would say no to her.

Later, after they had made their plans and exchanged phone numbers, he returned to his desk and came to an important realization. He didn’t actually own a car.

That evening Link had to beg his grandma to let him borrow her car. Even though he would be horribly embarrassed to drive Zelda in it – it was brown with peeling paint and the brakes screeched so loudly dogs would bark – but it would do. He told her that he and some of the boys from school were going to go to the beach for the day. Although he wasn’t doing anything unsavory, he knew that she would become unbearably annoying and thrilled that he was going to spend the day with some girl, so there was no way he was going to tell her. Though she was hesitant at first, she did eventually agree.

“Yes, thank you so much, Grandma,” He said excitedly, kissing her cheek with glee.

“But you should bring Aryll,” she added and his heart dropped to his stomach.

“Grandma,” he started with exasperation but she held a finger up to stop him.

“Poor girl hasn’t been to the ocean in a year. Be a good brother and take her with you. I’ll even give you money for ice cream.”

Link felt guilty – he hadn’t lied to his family since middle school when he stole a candy bar – and now his only hope was that Aryll, his twelve year-old sister, would suddenly hate the ocean and refuse to come.

He was disappointed (but not surprised) to see Aryll bouncing up and down with delight at the prospect of going to the beach tomorrow. What had Zelda done to him? She made him all worked up about going to a museum that he lied to his family and now was in a stupid mess. He supposed he could come clean but then his grandma would definitely embarrass him about going out with a girl and trying to keep it a secret. Shit.

That’s how Link ended up in the car with Aryll on the way to Zelda’s address begging her to lie to grandma and say they went to the beach when instead they were going to a museum up north.

“I’ll do it for a hundred rupees,” She huffed, grinning mischievously at him from the passenger seat. She had always been annoyingly coy and confident while Link felt like a fumbling, awkward boy all the time. He envied how easy everything seemed for her, and then he remembered that she was only twelve and it just made him feel worse.

Despite all that, he still loved her the way brothers do: unconditionally but never to be said aloud.

“That’s absurd,” Link rolled his eyes, steering the car further up the hill towards. “I’ll buy you ice cream.”

“That’s nothing, Grandma told me she gave you money for that,” she retorted. “Just for that, I am making it 150 rupees.”

“Fine, I’ll give you ice cream and ten rupees,” Link countered and she was silent for a moment, pondering the deal.

“That and you fold my laundry for a week,” She replied quickly and Link just shook his head in exhaustion. He didn’t like it, but they were close to Zelda’s address now and he didn’t have any more time to bargain.

“Deal,” he agreed and she squealed with victorious delight. “And don’t be annoying, or ask too many questions, or talk about – ,”

“Wow, you must really like her,” she interrupted with another smirk.

“Shut up,” Link said just as they pulled up in front of the address.

Or at least he hoped it was right. The house was massive and absolutely beautiful with a manicured garden, cobalt paint, and the Hylian flag floating in the breeze outside of their front door. He wondered if anybody else lived with Zelda and her father. Why would two people need three floors to themselves?

As Zelda rushed out of the front door and across the lawn, Link became horribly embarrassed of his Grandma’s car again, and of Aryll who looked positively thrilled to be meeting this mysterious girl Link had tried to hide.

“Get in the back,” Link ordered Aryll but she crossed her arms in refusal.

“I was here first.”

“You aren’t even old enough to sit up front, get back.”

“Fifteen rupees then,” she countered and Link wanted to throttle himself.

“Ugh, fine,” he hastily agreed as Zelda reached the car and Aryll quickly crawled into the backseat.

“Hey,” he greeted her, trying to be as charming and cool as he could in Akkala’s oldest car. The door creaked as she swung it open, and he noticed her wince.

At that moment he really wished he had just continued admiring Zelda from afar. It really was much easier than this.

“Good morning,” she greeted cheerily, plopping into the passenger seat. Even after talking with her for the past week, she still had that unattainable air about her. Her long blonde hair looked paler in the morning light and the sun reflected brilliantly in her emerald eyes. She wore jean shorts and a black t-shrit that had the words Rhoam the Earth on it. Link thought she was the coolest girl he had ever seen.

“Sorry, I had to bring my sister along,” Link apologized nervously as he began to drive again. “This is Aryll.”

Before Zelda could even say hi, Aryll bluntly asked, “Are you rich?”

Link wanted to throttle her now.

“Yes,” Zelda replied without a pause in the same terse, matter-of-fact tone she often used when answering questions. “Are you?”

“No,” Aryll unashamedly replied while Link’s face became scarlet with embarrassment. “What do your parents do?”

“My dad’s a politician of sorts,” she replied, nonplused. “What do your parents do?”

“Mom’s a waitress. Our dad is dead.” Aryll corrected as if it were another ordinary, uninteresting fact. Link kept his eyes on the road even as he felt Zelda glance to him. He had never mentioned his dad. He wondered if she would be weird about it.

For now, at least, the two moved past the topic and continued to bounce questions off of each other. Link was glad that Zelda didn’t seem to be upset about Aryll joining them, and he thought that they got along well. They both were honest and blunt in a way that few people ever are. Link drove in silence as he listened to them talk, and though he was still bitter towards Aryll, he did enjoy learning more about Zelda.

“Do you like Link?” Aryll asked with a teasing lilt to her voice as Link’s face became red again for what felt like the twentieth time that day.

He felt Zelda glance at him again. After a second, she replied with the same mischievousness as Aryll, “He’s alright.” And then the two giggled together and Link once again regretted everything he had ever done to that point in his life.

At the Akkala Research Museum, Link learned very little. It was a tiny museum with even less traffic than the Mila Van Windfall Museum. It sat atop a cliff right on the coast of the East Hylian Ocean and the tall, skinny trees swayed at the slightest breeze.

He followed Zelda throughout the museum, his heart squeezing with affection whenever she pointed something out with excitement or jotted a note down in her journal. She possessed an infectious joy and passion when she talked about her studies, and Link couldn’t help but feel a bit of that same enthusiasm, even though he had no idea what she was talking about most of the time.

Thankfully, Aryll stayed out of their way as she was occupied by a children’s interactive exhibit where she could build little robots. It seemed both girls got something out of their visit, but if anybody had asked Link what his favorite part was he wouldn’t have been able to give an answer. All he knew was that his crush on this mysterious girl had grown into something more and he was thoroughly doomed.

After they wandered the museum for a while, they ate some food Zelda had the foresight to pack and sat on a bench beside the cliff. Despite the panic and embarrassment in the morning, Link couldn’t help but feel content with Zelda sitting beside him and a beautiful view of the sea. Zelda and Aryll talked about the little robots that she had been playing with for a while, but then Aryll decided to wander off on her own and explore the small surrounding area. Link and Zelda continued eating their lunch, contently listening to the squawking seagulls and the distant rumble of waves crashing on the beach.

“I’m sorry about your dad,” Zelda said quietly, suddenly breaking their comfortable silence.

Link looked to Aryll, who was a ways off chasing the butterflies floating amongst the flower bushes. He swallowed a lump in his throat and tried not to think of his dad.

“Thanks,” he replied a bit awkwardly, never really sure what to say.

“My mother died when I was six,” she added.

Link looked at her now. She had a serene yet sad smile on her face and her eyes gazed out to the horizon. In this cloudy weather, her usually vibrant green irises seemed more teal than emerald. He wasn’t sure what to say, but he trusted that Zelda knew he felt the same useless pity that she felt for him. Instead, he talked about his dad, something he almost never did.

“My dad died a few months before Aryll was born,” he explained quietly. “He was in the military and died in combat overseas. It’s odd…I never really knew him that well, but I miss the idea of what we would have been like if he had come home.”

He stared at his sandwich, no longer interested in it. He had never spoken about that feeling before, but it was a relief to finally voice it.

“Do you…” Zelda started softly, before trailing off in uncertainty. She paused, and then tried again in a frail whisper. “Do you remember what he looked like?”

Link turned to her to see her eyes glistening, but that serene smile was still present. He had a feeling that she wouldn’t like his answer, and that she already knew it, so instead he gently placed his hand over hers and hoped that she gained the same comfort from his presence as he did from her.

This time her smile had warmth in it, and it made the heaviness that had fallen in Link’s heart lighten just a little.

At that point Aryll came back and announced that she was bored. They left the museum soon after with Link driving and everybody quietly listening to the radio. As they drove onto the highway, Link glanced to Zelda to see her looking at him with that warm smile on her face again. He couldn’t help but smile as well, and he felt inexplicably drawn to her even more since he first saw her at the museum.

At his following shift at the museum, Zelda brought him peanut butter brownies and a bag of grapes.

“This is me repaying you for taking me to the museum,” she said sweetly, handing over a box of brownies. “Aryll told me you loved chocolate and peanut butter.”

“You didn’t have to do that,” Link started, touched by the fact that she took time to make him food, but Zelda quickly moved past him.

“I know, but I did.” She then pulled out a bag of green grapes and plopped them on the desk. “And these are for all the grapes I’ve stolen from you.”

Zelda then glanced to the side and Link followed her gaze, seeing his manager approaching as he usually did in the mornings to check-in.

She lifted a brow. “See you at lunch?”

“Obviously,” Link replied with a wide grin.

She winked at him and then walked back to her usual spot, her hair swishing behind her.

Link and Zelda became inseparable after that. When he worked at the museum he would constantly glance at Zelda and she would glance at him, and they would share smiles they thought nobody else could see but them. They weren’t as subtle as they thought though, because soon the security guards in the lobby would tease Link every day.

“You should tell her she looks like a model and you want to make her into a sculpture,” one security guard helpfully supplied, chuckling with his coworker as if they once again spent a few minutes trying to think of museum pick-up lines.

“Oh, oh, how about…are you an artist, because I’m drawn to you,” the other one added.

Link wanted to quit right then as the two guards laughed together beside him at the desk.

When he wasn’t trying to evade the security guards, he looked forward to his lunch breaks where they would lie on the grass beneath the tree on the hill. On particularly slow days, Link would watch her draw flowers in the Wintergarden. On the weekends they would meet up and Link would drive her to some part of Akkala she had never been to. Aryll frequently joined, much to his annoyance but Zelda was always happy to have her. The places they went to were areas none of his peers were interested in – burnt forests, lake shores with high mineral deposits, muddy banks brimming with frogs – but he soon realized he would go wherever she wanted just to spend time with her.

He often wondered how to become more than friends. He dreamed of her boldly marching into the museum, announcing she wanted to date him, and then they would kiss and laugh and it would all be so easy. Occasionally he would seriously consider marching up to her and announcing his wish to date her, but just the thought made him horribly nervous and nauseous. He always reassured himself that he had more time to figure it out, that he would know when the moment was right and it would work itself out.

That’s why when she told him she was going back to Castle Town in two days, he felt like time had passed unfairly quickly.

“What?” he gawked as they walked up the hill during his lunch hour.

“It’s a little early,” she explained. “But we start earlier than CTU does, and I need to move into my apartment before classes overtake my life.”

Link didn’t know what to say, but his disappointment must have been apparent.

“Let’s hang out tomorrow night,” Zelda suggested enthusiastically. “I need to have some more of Lon Lon’s Ice Cream before I go back to Castle Town.”

“That sounds good,” Link agreed, but the usual excitement he felt for their get-togethers was mixed with the dread of her leaving. Nevertheless, they made plans to bike and meet there tomorrow to celebrate her last night.

“It’s not like this will be the last time we will see each other,” Zelda smiled, sensing his distress. “Once you get to Castle Town and settle in, text me and we will meet up. I’ll bring you to some upperclassmen parties.”

“Oh, look at you,” Link teased and rolled his eyes. “You’re just a second year and you think you’re all high and mighty.”

“Better than being a first year,” she jibed back. “But seriously, I’m excited that you’ll be in Castle Town with me. It’ll be nice having another friend there.”

Link just smiled and kept the rest of his concerns to himself. Though they would be in the same city he worried she would become consumed by her rigorous classes and labs and hanging out with better, way smarter friends. He bet all the guys she hung out with had their own cars and could follow along when she spoke of molecules and photons.

Those thoughts plagued his mind for the remainder of his shifts, and they still bounced around in his head as he biked to Lon Lon’s ice cream café the next night. He told himself once again to stop thinking about it and just enjoy their last summer night together, but he wasn’t doing a good job of it.

At the ice cream parlor they laughed and chatted and Zelda got some of her vanilla ice cream on her nose, which was so frustratingly cute Link had to look away. They sat by the pond and watched the fireflies slowly begin to awaken and lazily float around them. She laughed at his jokes and briefly touched his arm. He tried to get the courage to tell her he would miss her horribly for the next few weeks, that he liked how much her intelligence intimidated him, that her energy was vivacious and infectious, and he felt drawn to her like a moth to a lamp.

He didn’t know how to say all of this though. Instead, he just said, “You are nothing like I expected.”

She licked her cone and raised a brow. “Oh really?” She teased. “What did you expect?”

Link smiled and shook his head. Twilight was fading into night but her green eyes were still as bright and as intoxicating as they were in the Wintergarden. Her golden hair fell gracefully around her shoulders, and her cheeks and nose had a hint of red to them, still a bit sun burnt from their latest excursion. He didn’t know if it was because he was inclined to romantic fantasies and all that, but he truly thought she looked as elegant as one of those paintings in the museum even in jean shorts and an old t-shirt.

“I don’t know,” he said after a second. “but you are nothing like I ever imagined.”

“Is that a good thing?” she asked.

He grinned at her. “Very.”

They stared at each other for a moment, and Link so desperately wanted to kiss her. His fingers actually ached from resisting the urge to cup her cheek and stroke her hair.

But then she went back to licking her ice cream, and he felt the moment was gone. He asked if she wanted to do anything else that night, but she had an early train in the morning so she decided to head back home.

They slowly walked to their bikes that were propped up against the side of the ice cream shop. It was only a few dozen yards away, but Link frantically spent the entire walk begging time to slow down and thinking of the words to say to show how he felt. All too quickly they arrived at their bikes and Zelda hopped on. She was about to take off when she stopped and looked at him.

She smiled a bit sadly and began slowly, “Well, I guess I’ll see you in a few weeks…”

“Yes,” Link agreed, his heart thumping wildly in his chest.

“You better text me when you arrive,” she ordered with a slight glare.

“Will do.”

What to say? Would she feel the same?

“Well…” she looked to the road and adjusted her pedals. “See you later?”

“Yeah,” Link said even as he internally screamed at himself to stop her and say something different. “See you later.”

“Okay,” she said slowly, shooting him one last weird glance before sighing and adjusting her bike again. She then pushed off the curb and began biking away, her blonde hair floating behind her.

Link watched her till she turned the corner.

He sighed. “Shit,” he said to himself.

Immediately he felt the weight of regret sinking in, and he realized he made a huge mistake. He knew he would never have the perfect words to say, but it would be better to say them than not at all.

Before he could talk himself out of it, he grabbed his bike and began to peddle after her as fast as he could. He weaved between a group of moms and their toddlers, past a truck, and even ignored a puppy to try to catch up with her. It didn’t take him long to find her, but he was still as winded as if he had run a mile.

He peddled furiously down the long straight road, easily gaining on her. When he was a few feet behind her, he called out to her and she spun her head around with a start.

“Link?” She called in confusion, braking to a halt.

Link jumped off of his bike before it even came to a complete stop, tossing it into the grass. His breathing was heavy and his heart was beating furiously. She looked at him with confusion, her eyebrows furrowed and her pink lips pursed together.

“You’re like nobody I’ve ever met,” he said in a rush. “I took up more shifts just so we could hang out more. I think I’ve spent a total of fifty rupees just trying to get Aryll to behave so that she wouldn’t embarrass me in front of you. I also risked getting fired every time I switched those signs because you and I both know that’s not okay, but I did it because…because…”

“Because…?” Zelda urged, looking expectantly at him with her big green eyes.

He swallowed the lump in his throat. “Because I…I like you. A lot. In a, you know, more-than-friends way.”

The grin that immediately broke out on her face was triumphant and wicked and absolutely joyous. Meanwhile, he felt horrified and was ready to sprint all the way home if he had to. She jumped off of her bike and snapped the kickstand into place, never taking her sharp gaze off of him. In just a few steps she was standing before him, her doe eyes gazing up at him and her hands held sweetly behind her back. For a second she just stared at him, and Link forced himself to hold her mischievous gaze even though he was terrified out of his mind.

“It’s about time,” she finally said, and then she tugged on his shirt and brought his lips down to hers.

He was stunned at first. His brain didn’t reboot until she was just starting to pull away, but then it was like he snapped back to life again. His arms circled around her waist and held her against him as his lips moved with hers. Her lips were softer than he ever imagined. Her silky blonde hair tickled his arms and her sweet smell washed over him.

He then started laughing and had to break the kiss for a breath. She laughed with him as they held each other, their foreheads pressed together.

“I’m sorry that took me so long,” he apologized.

“Seriously,” she playfully rolled her eyes at him.

He gently tucked a strand of her hair behind her ear. “Well, why didn’t you make a move?” He asked, not at all accusatory.

“I don’t know…” she shrugged, blushing and looking up at him with those big green eyes that he could never disobey.

“No, I know,” he replied and she laughed merrily again before reaching up to resume their kiss.

They gently held each other and shared kisses again until a minute later when a car whizzed by and honked at them, making them blush and laugh all over again.

“You better come to Castle Town quickly,” she demanded as Link picked his bike off the ground. “I am very impatient.”

“Oh, I know,” he replied and she swatted playfully at his arm. He grabbed her hand and pulled her in for another kiss. He was worried he was starting to become addicted to them.

“I’ll see you soon,” he whispered, giving her one last hug.

“I’ll see you soon,” she echoed, pressing her lips to his cheek. They finally stepped away from each other and got back on their bikes.

“Bring grapes,” Zelda ordered as she slowly began to bike away from him.

“Obviously,” he replied and she smiled at him over her shoulder.

He watched her bike away, already imagining all the things they would do together in Castle Town.

Notes

As usual this took an embarrassingly long time to write and it was supposed to be a short oneshot but it came out to be over 10k words.

This was inspired by “Me at the Museum, You in the Wintergardens” by Tiny Ruins.

The museum is based off of The Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum.

Thanks for reading!

~~Wave~~

#zelda #legend of zelda #link #zelink #zelink fanfiction #botw #loz #loz fanfiction #fanfiction #Zelda Fanfiction #princess zelda #modern au #oneshot

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supremequeenofthejellyfish · 7 years ago

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I read your tags on that byeler post and holy shit i love u this made my day like this day just started but i wont read anything better, pls do tell more

OH MY GOD THANK YOU???!!!!! that whole thing took me like 45 minutes to write oh my god, its so nice to be noticed for once haha (also ur day just started? I’m so glad I made ur whole day lmao. It’s currently nighttime where I am.) Anyway, tumblr deleted like half of my tags from that post cuz I guess I wrote too many? idk man, it was horrible, whenever I tag posts I always check it on my blog to see if it worked correctly cuz tunglr.cob is always messing things up and BOI WHEN I SAW THAT I WAS FUCKING LIVID OH MY GOD U HAVE NO IDEA. Ok so I’m going to try and recreate my tags below from memory, in bulleted form. they won’t be exact but I’ll try my best (here’s the post now go read my tags if u haven’t seen them lol)

If you ask mike, it was only lasted a few days, and the rest of the gang looks into the camera like they’re on the office

At first, mike is pretty nervous about the topic, like he’s super worried (mike: do u h8 me bc I like bois 2???)

(Literally everyone at once: are you serious?? Have you seen will, That boy is gay as fuck.) (will didn’t say the second part he was not ready for that, ya boi was shook)

Mike is “low-key” relieved (and by low-key I mean extremely high key that boy literally collapsed on the couch from relief)

(Dustin: Mike seriously?? We’re ur best friends how could we possibly hate u??)

Even if any of them did have qualms, they wouldn’t show it. They were all outcasts, and they stuck together no matter what

Lets be real tho, they probably didn’t they are all best friends and love each other unconditionally

Mike hasn’t told anyone that he has a crush on will (eleven: Crush?? Mike ur literally in love with him.) he actually begs eleven not to tell them (Mike: Please, you can’t say anything to them, I’m not ready yet.)

Eleven agrees, but internally she’s all like: Mike, they already know, ur so fucking obvious, Lmao.

Except will tho, will low-key (read: high key) loves mike too, but neither of them have realized it yet because they’re both oblivious idiots

Everyone sees that they’re in love except for them and its so infuriating

Eleven has to endure mikes “pining phase” for MONTHS b4 she basically forces them into a room together (alone) to confess

She has to for her own sanity (but also because she wants her bffs to be happy.)

But seriously if mike didn’t say anything soon she would have to kill him and then herself (yikes, he was actually that bad lol)

Will went through a pining phase too (his started about a year b4 mike and eleven broke things off) although instead of pestering Lucas, Dustin, or Max about it he literally has 3 (three) spiral notebooks (college ruled, not that wide ruled bullshit) full of doodles of Mike with hearts around his head (and a fourth one in progress)

He was supposed to be using them for schoolwork, but he gets distracted a lot in class

No one (NO ONE) Is allowed to see those notebooks except for will himself

(Max, probably: Hey will can I borrow you’re notes, I lost mine? Will, slamming notebook #4 shut: NO! Max: *is visibly shook*)

poor Joyce has no idea why he keeps going through so many notebooks?

Anyway, the whole gang is together for a sleep over in mike’s basement (where else would they be?) and eleven takes mike aside and tells him that he has to tell will 2nite or she will fucking scream (she’s totally not kidding)

Mike: but what if he doesn’t like me back?? He’ll probably hate me if I tell him that……

Eleven: mike ur so stupid omg he fucking likes u back ok trust me

(She caught a glimpse of notebook #2 a while back when she and mike were nearing the end of their relationship, and she never told anyone.To this day, will doesn’t know that she saw it)

Mike: *skeptically* ok but even if that’s true I cant just say it in front of everyone

Eleven scoffs, drags mikes by the wrist over to will, drags will by the arm and basically throws them both into the bathroom and locks them in with her powers

Mike: ELEVEN!! OPEN THE DOOR!!! LET US OUT OF HERE OH MY GOD ARE YOU CRAZY?!?!?!?!?!

Eleven: nope :) (how does she do that this is a verbal conversation) not until you tell him.

Will, a very confused boy: huh? Tell me what? Mike what the fuck is going on?!?! What is she talking about??

Mike eventually confesses everything to will (except the pining phase, that was fucking embarrassing)

(Eleven tells him about it later, and mike tries to deny it, but will thinks its so cute???? Like so cute he wants to puke hearts??? But that might just be the butterflies in his stomach)

Mike tries to be smooth when he’s confessing to will but he’s a stuttering fucking mess

Will is so shooketh he doesn’t know what to do with himself so he just grabs mikes hand and says “me too” (he’ll deny it later, but he was on the verge of tears pretty much the whole time)

Mike smiles like the big goofy idiot he is, and eleven, seemingly satisfied opens the door

The gang claps and cheers, and mike and will are confused. Then they look down at their hands, with their fingers still intertwined and are more confused

Lucas: took you long enough

Mike and will: ????????????????

Dustin grabs them by the shoulders and pulls them into a group hugThey stay like that for at least 10 minutes, mike and will hugging each other in the middle, and everyone else crowding around them

Mike pecks will on the cheek and then whispers into his ear quietly: “I love you so fucking much, Will.”

Will Is basically a tomato at this point, a happy tomato, but a fucking tomato nonetheless. (Mike had never seen him so red)

He buries his face into mikes chest, and whispers back: “I love you, too, Mike” (mike blushes almost as red as will)

The others pretended not to notice this little exchange, but oh god did they notice, and it was the cutest fucking thing they’ve ever seen

After awhile they break apart, because its getting hot in mike’s basement

mike and will are left standing outside the bathroom door, still hugging each other. (Neither of them wanted to let go just yet)

Will holds on to mike like his life depends on it, and eventually he hears “Jesus will I can’t fucking breathe”

Will lets go immediately, and mike puts an arm around his shoulder and leads him to the couch

Every one is waiting for them, and no one can stop smiling (especially mike and will, god, those 2 are so fucking in love with each other its not even funny)

this took me way longer than I thought it would omg. I added a few things that weren’t in the original tags that got deleted but they fit in pretty nicely? idk lol I thought it made it that much cuter haha. This was originally supposed to be just a response to the post but I got a little carried away. Tbh I probably put more effort into writing this than I put into my actual homework that I get actual fucking grades on lmao (help). Speaking of which, I have homework that I have to go do now, hahaha. hope u like it lololol

#anonymous #byeler #mike wheeler #will byers #stranger things #stranger things 2 #eleven #Max #Lucas sinclair #dustin henderson #Nancy wheeler #barbara holland #Karen wheeler #ted wheeler #jonathan byers #Joyce byers #did i miss anyone??? probably but whatever #ok now I really have to go do my homework

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flightyrock · 7 years ago

Text

Ectober Day 6: Ghost Hunger

I owe everyone a bit of an explanation before we dive into this fever dream. Yes, I know exactly what ghost hunger refers to, but it just isn’t my thing. It’s a neat concept, but I don’t really find it fun to write for, or even read, except in the rarest of cases. I can stand it if it advances an innovative plotline, but just for its own sake…meh.

So I didn’t have any idea what I was going to do for day 6. I considered skipping it, but that felt like admitting defeat. With this in the back of my mind, I was scrolling through tumblr, as one does, and found this lovely piece by @schnivel.

One of my favorite things about schnivel’s style is the dynamic quality all of his characters have. I don’t know how to explain it, but it draws the viewer in, and sells that these characters are real. Complex emotions are portrayed and conveyed with such ease, I get that creative itch every time. I love everything in your art tag, it makes me so happy. Thank you for sharing!

But anyway. In this particular piece, I love the angle of the external light and the ambient light radiating from the suspiciously viscous fluid clinging to his hands. I think it was the combination of the fluid consistency, color choice, and blood connection that did it.

So as my mind tends to do when I’m tired and see something emotionally charged, it took a running nosedive off the deep end into absurdist territory.

So here is a fic inspired by color choice, texture, and my traumatic experiences with product promotion as a child of the 90s and early 2000s. I am so sorry but also kind of not. Please forgive me, schnivel. Thank you so much for letting me ruin the mood. And seriously, check out schnivel’s blog!

(Sorry for all the notes. Commentary at the end.)

Summary: When a popular variety of novelty ketchup is discontinued, the ghost population of Amity Park clashes over who will claim the last box.

Warnings: Customer service feels, light innuendo

Word Count: ~1700

“You do realize that’s disgusting,” Sam deadpanned, looking on with a mixture of mild horror and disgust as Danny smothered his hotdog in a quantity of green slime that could only be defined as excessive. Somehow it was impossible to turn away. Tucker didn’t seem to share the sentiment, busying himself with his PDA.

Spurred on by the attention, Danny looked Sam dead in the eyes, staring unflinchingly into their icy, amethyst depths while cramming as much of the sandwich into his mouth as possible.

Only to aim a tad low, bumping into his lower lip. Time seemed to slow down as blue eyes widened comically in surprise, hand contracting around the bun reflexively, coaxing gobs of the novelty ketchup to ooze out the back and coat the front of his favorite t-shirt, soaking into white fabric with karmatic vengeance.

Sam and Tucker witnessed the following shift from shock to sudden horror at the state of his shirt became clear. They glanced at each other, unprompted, then lost it completely, howling with laughter as Danny dropped his ‘dog to scrub frantically at his chest with a wad of the worse-than-useless paper napkins the school provided that screamed government subsidy. His response time was impressive, but the damage was done: a prominent, verdant dribble trail clearly illustrated the tragedy that unfolded at lunch that day.

“Are you kidding me? I still have half the day to go,” Danny moaned, hands running anxiously through already messy hair.

“Just phase it off!” Tucker pointed out helpfully, returning to his PDA as chuckles died down into amused sympathy.

“Tuck, intangibility doesn’t remove stains. It’s set too far in the fabric. Otherwise laundry would be so much easier. Hmm.” Danny took a moment to consider the potential, wondering if that was how Vlad managed to keep his ghostwear so pristine. Maybe if he could concentrate his focus…

“You had it coming. I don’t understand why you insist on consuming that promotional garbage.” Sam rolled her eyes derisively.

“Because it’s the best!” Danny insisted. Sam and Tucker shared a look, resigned to their friend’s strange obsession.

Danny didn’t know what it was, but ever since that popular condiment brand out of Pittsburgh developed a line of novelty ketchup, he was hooked. It came in all sorts of unappetizing colors, like green and purple, and the cringe-worthy ad campaign made Danny wonder if the whole thing was an elaborate prank. But it eventually showed up at the discount food distributer his family frequented, and he bought it himself, despite Jazz’s teasing. Funny. He swears he’s caught her using it more than once when she thought he wasn’t around.

While Jazz was exasperated by the blatant exploitation of the mindset of the lower middle working class, Sam objected to the artificial dyes and preservatives, and Tucker insisted it was nothing less than an insult to the integrity of meat, whatever that was supposed to mean. Maybe the dye makes it taste a bit different. Maybe he just gets a kick out of eating food in weird colors and watching his friends squirm. Heck, maybe he’s just been desensitized by enough mutant, home-cooked meals that something so harmless but strange fills him with nostalgia. Whatever the case, Danny couldn’t seem to get enough of the stuff. He even started taking it to school with him as a fun way to avoid looking too closely at what was on his tray.

“Uh oh, dude,” Tucker chuckled, bringing up a specific news article on his PDA. “Looks like your days of ruining hot dogs are numbered.”

“You’re kidding. Please tell me you’re kidding,” Danny begged.

“Afraid not,” Tucker grinned, sliding his tech across the table to deliver the news firsthand.

Blue eyes widened in horror, before the teenager collapsed onto the table dramatically with a moan. “Why is it that as soon as I discover something awesome, it’s gone?”

“Honestly, that’s probably why it appeared on the shelves at Hubert’s in the first place,” Sam remarked flippantly, preferring to pick at chipping nail polish than acknowledge the lump of pouting teenager currently occupying half the table.

“Yeah, brand names are always too good to be true in places like that,” Tucker nodded sagely, patting Danny on the shoulder in mock sympathy.

Danny hauled himself upright with a sigh. “Nothing else for it. I’ll just have to go after school and stockpile all the bottles I can. They can’t be out yet.”

“How are you out?! It was just here less than a week ago!”

But the dramatics of a ketchup-crazed teenager were no match for the practiced apathy projected by the young but seasoned customer service guru manning the register, six hours into a ten hour shift.

“Look, man, I just work here. There’s plenty of purple,” she sighed, glazed eyes carelessly roaming to glace at the condiments section, poking at her monitor screen.

“It doesn’t taste the same,” Danny moaned, prompting a significant look to pass between the duo accompanying him. They had no idea why they thought it would be a good to tag along on this juvenile side quest. This was just embarrassing.

“Huh,” the cashier remarked offhandedly. “Looks like we might have one more box in the back. I’ll go check, if you want…” she trailed off unenthusiastically, distracted by the hopefully bobbing shock of black hair that wouldn’t leave her alone unless she made a show of effort. With a long-suffering sigh, the underpaid civil servant shuffled off to the back, teenagers at her heels until she ducked behind a wildly swinging door, a scuffed sheet of plastic shoved haphazardly into the gateway in a pathetic effort to separate customer-friendly space from the chaos of the warehouse.

The friends waited attentively, then with growing annoyance, Sam scuffing the chipping tile with heavy boots as the minutes ticked by. Around fifteen minutes in, Tucker decided to call it.

“I think she just blew you off, dude.”

“No way,” Danny insisted. “She’s just being thorough.”

At that moment, a familiar figure slouched out from behind the off-white mockery of a barrier. Danny drooped visibly at the lack of bottles in her arms.

“Welp, I found it.” Danny perked up. “Where is it?”

“In the back.” She continued to amble through the aisles, not even bothering to glance at the irritating customer as she returned to the front. Danny followed her, confused.

“And?” he ventured.

“What?” she asked, uncapping a company pen to doodle on a scrap of receipt paper, pointedly ignoring the nuisance in the vain hope it would leave her in peace.

Danny barely restrained himself in time to prevent throwing his arms up in exasperation. “Can I have some?” he dared to ask. The girl acted like she didn’t hear him, outlining a cartoonish face with care, allowing him to stew for a while.

She finally raised hazel orbs full of resignation to meet his. “You somehow manage to get it down, you can just have it.” The just leave me alone was implied. Heavily.

Danny lit up. “Really?”

“Yeah, yeah,” she waved him away, returning to her receipt sketch.

“Thanks!” Danny called over his shoulder, already on his way to claim his prize.

“That was kind of weird,” Sam observed.

“Oh, come on Sam, why do you have to be so pessimistic all the time? She probably couldn’t reach it. All Danny has to do is float up to the shelf, and we’re out of here,” Tucker said, confidently leading the way into the dark space, the main light coming from a desk equipped with a dated microwave and littered with the remains of hurried lunches.

It was kind of weird being behind the scenes. The air felt heavy, stale. It was difficult to shake the uneasy feeling that they dismissed, at first, with being in a restricted area, but that quickly faded into the background.

A puff of cold air suddenly expanded, forcing its way up a certain ghostly throat and expelling in a bluish cloud as it forced vapor in the surrounding air to condense.

“Nice going, Tuck,” Sam punched him lightly in the shoulder.

Danny ignored the exchange, quickly “going ghost” and floating up to investigate. And was not at all surprised to find the Lunch Lady and the Box Ghost playing a less-than-friendly game of tug-of-war with the box of sauce. Okay, maybe he was surprised; he didn’t know either of them had a subtle bone in their bodies…if they had bones. Or bodies. Gah.

He was honestly kind of impressed that they had avoided detection for so long, and wondered if the cashier’s composure spoke to her merit, or to the horrors of customer service. Danny resolved to be nicer to customer service associates.

From there, it was “doom” this and “beware” that. Danny threw some ectoblasts, repelled some processed meat products, brushed off some boxes. It was amazing how much more annoying the two of them were working together. But, still, not even really a challenge, so the half ghost made short work of the duo, while trying not to think too hard about the implications of this team up. A certain young ghost from an alternate future came to mind…

Danny chased the pair off, trying not to think about the two of them sharing a thermos. He was all too glad to claim his prize and head home. It had been an interesting afternoon.

Despite the strange start, the pair of friends thought that the day was pretty successful. As a result, neither Tucker nor Sam were expecting the caricature of despair that greeted them on the front steps of Fenton Works come morning.

“Dare we ask?” Sam muttered.

Tucker sighed, shaking his head. “He’ll let us know soon enough.”

Somewhere in Wisconsin, a certain blue-skinned half ghost emerged from his portal, shiftily checking the entrance before ducking through with his prize.

What am I doing? I live alone.

Still, one could never be too careful. It wouldn’t do to have Daniel catch wind of this. He certainly would never admit it, but he couldn’t help the strange nostalgia it inspired; the off-putting color instilled him with a strange longing for cheap meals of questionable quality cooked with a certain pair of paranormal science students. He still had his dignity after all.

A/N: Anyone who’s ever worked retail knows the best way to get rid of a persistent customer and score an extra break in the process is to “check” the back. Seriously, most places know what they have in the back due to the magic of inventory, but for some reason, that middle-aged woman with too much makeup will not leave us alone, insisting we check the back because she thinks we’re idiots (you know the type). And how dare we come back without checking thoroughly. The cashier probably found the ketchup in less than a minute, determined retrieval was impossible, then spent the rest of the time on her phone. Of course, like 10% of the time, there really is extra in the back so I can’t exactly fault them, but we could do without the condescension.

So…yeah. I think my mind kind of mashed together the fact that the show took place in the 2000s with the fact that ketchup looks vaguely like blood, and the drawing used the two major colors of Heinz’s horrendous EZ Squirt line. As a child who begged for this ketchup, then refused to eat it, I can understand the initial appeal, but it got gross fast, and I didn’t finish the bottle. What can I say, it tasted off to me. I feel like I read about some human instinct regarding food safety contributing to that at some point. But I still remember this product, especially the commercials, with horror.

Thank you so much to @schnivel for the inspiration! Hope everyone enjoyed it!

#danny phantom fanfiction #flightyfiction #schnivel #danny phantom #danny fenton #ooc #maybe

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jasonnkane · 7 years ago

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PENNY

TAGGING → Stacie Kane & Jason Kane LOCATION → Art ‘n’ Soul/Hospital

Stacie: 's due date had been quickly approaching and, while they had everything ready in Penny's nursery, she felt a huge sense of panic. What if something happened during labor? Complications were common, weren't they? Or, even scarier, what if labor went perfectly, but it turned out they just really sucked at the raising children thing and completely screwed up their daughter? It was just like Stacie Kane to overthink things, get anxious, and need Jason to calm her down, but he had been at a business lunch for the last hour and the last thing she wanted was to bother him over something so minor. Inhaling just as a customer entered her gallery, Stacie silently thanked God for sending her this distraction. Standing up from her desk, smile painted brightly on her face, she crossed the room to go greet the man. "Welcome to Art 'n' Soul, is there something in particular you're looking for?"

Jason had been counting down the days until their daughter was supposed to be arriving but wasn't taking the date as a certain thing. Babies had a tendency to be earlier or later than the expected date, so he knew there was a good chance she'd make a surprise appearance or keep them waiting a little bit longer. All he knew was that Penny would be making her grand entrance into the universe sometime very soon and he couldn't wait to meet her. Never having really been an impatient person—that was definitely Stacie in this relationship—Jason finally felt what it was like to have the shoe on the other foot. His mind wandered to all of the things they had to look forward to with their daughter, even at the most inappropriate times: like right now. Instead of listening in on what the customers had in mind for the cover of this one particular book, Jason aimlessly doodled the umpteenth sketch of a penny in the corner of his notes, completely zoning everything else out.

Stacie had been chatting with the customer for a while now, listening to his stories of being a great art collector and always looking for things to add to his collection. She could tell he was wealthy and willing to spend, which meant that Stacie had to seal the deal. After all, a big sale could mean great things for her and Jason and with Penny coming any day now, she knew they could use the extra money. "Well, I have a particularly unique painting hanging on this wall over here. Maybe you'd be interested in adding it to your collection?" Stacie offered, wandering over towards the painting with the man trailing right behind her.

Jason continued shading in certain areas of his drawing, having completely drowned out the chat that was going on around him. It was only when someone actually said his name a little louder than usual did he turn his eyes away from his work. Clearing his throat, he nodded his head a long as though he agreed to whatever the hell his coworker had been saying before sending him an apologetic glance; trying harder now to pay attention to what the hell was going on here.

Stacie was right around closing the deal (the painting had even come off the wall by now), when she suddenly felt something wet dribble down her leg. Raising an eyebrow, Stacie took a glance down at the floor and spotted what appeared to be a puddle just below her dress. Mortified, the woman looked back up at the gentleman in front of her, who was looking down at the floor himself now. "Ahem," he cleared his throat, drawing even /more/ attention to how awkward this exchange was. "I'm sorry!" Stacie blurted out, smacking a hand across her gaping wide mouth, unable to believe that she had just /peed/ on the floor right in front of this guy. Only, she would have known if she was peeing, right? And she definitely hadn't peed. Which meant... /no way/. /Not/ possible. Or was it? Lowering her hand, Stacie's eyes widened and she quickly grasped at her stomach. "Holy shit, I think my water just broke!"

Jason gave it his best effort and soon enough was back on track with the direction of the meeting. There was never any "lets cut right to the point"s like there was in movies. Oh no, business meetings were full day events sometimes. Just a /lot/ of talking about a bunch of crap Jason had no interest in. When his coworker opened the floor up to him, Jason turned his attention back down to his notes and began giving a few suggestions of his own.

Stacie within a half hour, Stacie had been laying in a hospital bed, already hooked up to any necessary machines to help ease her through pregnancy. The doctor told her she hadn't dilated all that much, so she wouldn't be needing an epidural for a few hours, at least. The epidural wasn't the thing that was on her mind, though. Instead, she was wondering where Jason was. Had the hospital gotten in contact with him yet? Did he even know she was there!? In a panic, Stacie reached out to the table beside her, grabbing for her phone. When she finally had it in hand, she typed away one text after another, all a bunch of question marks and "where are you"s.

Jason was kind of on a roll when his phone started making a ridiculous amount of noise. It was just one notification after the other and although he ignored the first few (business protocol) he realized this could have been a genuine emergency. Or...maybe Stacie wanted ice cream or something. After explaining to the people in the room that his wife was pregnant and he had to check, Jason took one look at the notifications before his jaw dropped open. WIthout so much as an explanation, he turned on his heels and head straight outside to his car before driving at a ridiculous speed to the hospital; cursing at every red light. By the time he made it to the right room, he must have looked like a mad man: eyes wide and out of breath. Rushing over to his wife's side, he glanced to all the machines and gave a worried squeak. "Wh-what's happening, are you okay? Is /she/ okay?"

Stacie had been basically falling asleep when Jason burst into her hospital room, stirring her awake. Her body shook when he came to his side, turning her head over to look at him directly. "I'm okay, she's okay, I promise," Stacie insisted, giving him a reassuring smile. "But it would be great if she could hurry up a little bit. I'm sick of waiting."

Jason let out a low breath as his wife assured him everything was fine and that this was all just a normal step of childbirth. With a relieved smile, he leaned in to press his lips against her forehead before sinking down into the seat beside her bed. "Talk about making an entrance," he smirked. "She already takes after you."

Stacie "Me!? I think that comes from you," Stacie told him, a bright smile spreading across her lips as he kissed her. "The doctor said it's going to be a loooong time before anything gets started. Do you think you could grab me a sandwich or something from downstairs?"

Jason had sat down for a grand total of five seconds before Stacie had a job for him to do and he wasn't complaining: after all, she had the hard job to do now. "Sure...can you eat, though?" Jason asked, getting back to his feet. "Don't get me in trouble with your doctors, Stacie Kane."

Stacie feigned offense at the idea of her sneaking a sandwich behind her doctor's back. "I can't once labor starts, but she told me it's a good idea to get some energy in me, thank you very much. Plus, it's late and I didn't get to eat dinner!"

Jason 's eyes widened and he held his hands up innocently, playing along with the blonde. It was good that she still had her sense of humor in all of this —something that he was well aware would fade away depending on how long this labor lasted. "Okay, okay, whatever you want, mama. You get it. Don't kill me."

Stacie "Do what I say and I won't have a reason to," she said, giving him the most innocent smile, though it was intended to come across as a threat regardless. He knew better than to mess with her, especially today of all days. Things might have been fun and games for now, but once things really got started, she knew they could take a nasty turn. After all, she heard Quinn's horror story.

Jason smirked and nodded his head along obediently; knowing that today was the one day he would have to hold off on teasing because he was pretty certain things wouldn't be so funny in here real soon. "I'll go grab you that sandwich," he assured her, walking backwards out of the door. "No child birthing until I get back, alright?"

Stacie "Thank you," she said, actually giving him a legitimate smile now that she was getting what she wanted. "I'll do my best," she agreed, resting her palms on her belly. Lowering her head just a bit so that she could speak directly to her stomach, Stacie continued. "No coming out until your dad gets back, okay, little girl?"

Jason heard her speak to her stomach as he stepped out of the room and felt a smile tug at his lips. Dad. He would be a dad from this day forward. He'd been many things before: son, brother, uncle, husband...but dad? That was huge. Life-changing. Nerve wracking. Jason was just thankful he and Stacie had each other throughout this whole thing, so that they both had backup embarking on this whole parenting thing for the first time.

Stacie An hour later, and Stacie had just started to feel her body contracted and writhing underneath the blankets. It felt /strange/, like a wave moving from the top of her abdomen down to the bottom of her uterus. She could feel a tightening and it came every so often, though she would have no idea how many minutes apart if it weren't for the machines. She wasn't screaming just /yet/, but she had no doubt in her mind it was coming soon. Looking over at Jason with sad eyes, she reached for his hand and gave it a squeeze. "Will you still love me if I say mean things today?"

Jason tried to settle in the room with Stacie but he was just too anxious, nervous, excited, all of the above? It was a strange mix of emotions but he wanted this part over with so that he knew his wife and his daughter were both safe and okay. His foot tapped against the floor nervously and his arms crossed over his torso as he kept his eyes on Stacie, feeling guilty for all of this pain that was coming on her. As she reached for his hand, he met her and squeezed it back gently. "Say whatever you need to, Evans. Lay it on me. I can take it," he assured her with a mischievous smile, bringing the back of her hand to his lips. "Love you no matter what."

Stacie smiled for a very brief moment, just as another contraction came coursing through her body. Why didn't her mom warn her about how painful this would be? She opened her mouth to speak, but only a scream came out. When it passed, she looked at Jason with a look of concern on her face, knowing fully well that he was standing over there feeling guilty for her pain. However, she also knew that it was worth it. Their precious baby girl would be worth the whole 9 months that preceded this birth. But she was still in /pain/ and desperate for an epidural, and she had no shame in admitting it. "I want the drugs," Stacie gasped out, her brow furrowing angrily. "Where's my freaking nurse!?"

Jason 's smile soon faded as Stacie let out an almighty scream and once more he was on the edge of his seat, looking on nervously. God forbid this process took hours and hours because he wasn't entirely sure he was equipped to handle the chaos that was childbirth. At Stacie's question, he jumped to his feet. "I'm gonna go get her," he assured her with a firm nod; heading over to the door to yell down the corridor. "This is ridiculous! My wife needs drugs!"

Stacie was incredibly grateful for Jason in this moment, considering he was doing all of the work for her and making himself look bad rather than her. The nurse came rushing in to check how dilated she was (apparently, she could only receive the epidural once she reached a certain centimeter). She hadn't been /quite/ there yet, but within the next couple of hours, Stacie /finally/ reached the place she needed to be at to receive the epidural. And, within mere moments it was like all of her pain and frustration had dissipated and she was left with nothing but euphoria. The contractions were still coming and she was still breathing heavily, but it wasn't nearly as painful as hours before. According to her doctor, Penny was making her way down and was ready to come at any moment now. All they had to do was keep waiting and hoping. In the mean time, Stacie had focused all of her attention on her phone, where she was heavily texting with her best friend who was just right outside in the hallway. Jason had called Phoebe and Zach once things got moving and they refused to go home at any point, having left Leah with Phoebe's mom who was visiting that weekend.

Jason flapped around like a headless chicken until the nurse finally decided to show up. It was actually pretty embarrassing how much of a mess he'd turned into and it was slightly concerning that the baby wasn't even there yet. The next eighteen years of his life would be incredibly sad and interesting if he fell to pieces on the regular this way. The nurse had nothing but bad news and Stacie had to soldier on through her labor pains like the trooper she was until the time came for her epidural. The change was almost immediate and it soon felt as though Jason could breathe again now that Stacie wasn't writhing in pain. The rest of the day would be a waiting game -- and not just for them, but for Phoebe and Zach, too -- and Jason remained by his wife's side, knowing Penny could show up any minute.

Stacie With the hours passing, Stacie continued pushing as necessary, only to be caught off guard when a nurse came rushing into her room. There was something wrong with the baby's heartbeat—it was dropping with each push. A look of concern washed over her face as she watched the nurse's face carefully, trying to determine whether something terrible was about to happen. She didn't deserve that, did she? God had nothing to punish her for, especially not with something like this. Chewing nervously on her lower lip, Stacie fought the desire to look over at Jason. She couldn't bear to see his reaction to it all. However, that quickly changed when the nurse spoke up once more. "We're going to have to do a c-section," she explained, causing Stacie's eyes to dart over towards her husband.

Jason felt as though the hours were dragging as time went on, causing them to be stuck in this awful transition period with his wife in pain, out of pain and following instructions to no avail. Yes, births could take a while but really? Penny would have a lot to answer for when she finally decided to show up. Jason's eyes were glued to Stacie for the most part, in fact, they only moved away when the nurse spoke up and let them know that there was a change of plans. Instantly, a sick worry took hold of him that made what he'd been going through so far today look like a joke. Something was wrong with the baby's heartbeat and they needed to get her out immediately. Squeezing onto Stacie's hand, Jason nodded along to what the nurse said and before they knew it, they were being escorted down to an operating room. Jason had to wear scrubs and sit by Stacie's side as the proceeded.

Though panicked, the fact that Jason sat by her side every single second that passed helped her remain calm. She was in good hands; her doctor knew what she was doing—she'd probably done this thousands of times before, right? And after it was all said and done, they would have a beautiful baby girl to show for it all.

Stacie wasn't sure how much time had passed between the time that she was rolled into the operating room and the moment she heard her newborn daughter cry for the first time, but none of it matter now that she knew Penny Kane was safe. The nurse held her baby girl up, smiling brightly as she announced that she had given birth to a beautiful and healthy baby girl. It turned out that her umbilical cord had been wrapped around her daughter's neck, causing her heartbeat to drop every time Stacie tried to push her out. Of course, Stacie felt guilty for causing her harm, but the important part was that she was here and she was safe now.

"Do you want to her hold her?" With tears in her eyes and a mesmerized look on her face, Stacie slowly nodded her head, reaching her hands up above her to take hold of her daughter. She cradled her close to her chest, using her finger to gently rub the skin of Penny's cheek. "She's so beautiful," Stacie whispered to no one in particular. She was riding her labor high, and simply cherishing every little thing about her baby girl.

Jason 's mind ran crazy as his surroundings and the whole process of what was happening became a total blur. He had absolutely no idea of the time that was passing, all that he could focus on was his wife's wellbeing and that of their daughters. Like a statue, he remained by Stacie's side throughout the entire thing. The words that the doctors and nurses were saying flew right over his head because he'd gone into some sort of blind panic about the whole thing upon hearing that they needed to operate. However, all panic ceased and everything else but love for this tiny bundle of joy faded away as they brought their daughter back to Stacie. Leaning in to get a good look as she was placed in Stacie's arms, Jason's heart felt completely full and he felt all kinds of emotions well up as he laid eyes on Penny Kane. Grinning brightly at Stacie's comment, he leaned in to press his lips against her forehead before placing another on his daughter's, feeling like he was complete.

#para #para: penny

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miximax-hell · 7 years ago

Photo

Hello, everyone! It hasn’t been long at all since my last post! ...For once!

While I looked for that Tetsukado sketch from last time, I happened to come across some (albeit by no means all, because there were many) of the sketches I made before I came up with HiroGeo’s final design. Given how different they are from each other and from the final design, I thought it might be interesting to bring those to my blog as well. I have no shame in showing how bad I am because it’s no secret, anyway.

As you can see, the first three sketches have been quickly lined in SAI. That’s because the paper sheets I originally drew on were SUPER dirty and it was tough to even distinguish actual lines from previously erased lines and whatnot. Truly a mess, but that’s why they’re doodles and not actual drawings, I guess.

Anyway, I love Hiroto and I felt he deserved some more love--especially because his miximax got many more notes than average, so people must’ve liked it... to an extent. Therefore, let’s talk a bit more about him!

As usual, you can find more information about HiroGeo under the cut.

Now that we’ve made it through the cut, uh, what’ve you guys been up to? After many, many years, I finally beat Final Fantasy VIII the other day. What an amazing game! It had the nostalgia factor going for it, since I first played it when I was rather young, but I never got past a certain point in the middle of disc 2, so it was still full of surprises. A very healthy combo. Kind of like Harry Potter 8, which I’m reading right now, btw.

And, since I was at it, I started playing EarthBound and Broken Sword 5 too. EarthBound hasn’t quite... picked up the pace yet, but I sure am enjoying BS5! It truly reminds me of the first and wonderful installments before Broken Sword 3 ruined everything. Oh well. We can consider that a bad nightmare, I suppose. A very bad one.

Oh, and since I mentioned it in my last update a few months ago, I got the True Pacifist Ending in Undertale. What an incredibly lovely game. I can’t bring myself to go for the killing spree necessary to get the other ending just yet. Incidentally, I completed Layton 2 and beat Tomb Raider, Pokémon Sun and Hatoful Boyfriend while I was still in America. I’m surprised I got so much done even though I was so busy...

Okay, moving on! Since I talked about HiroGeo’s design in depth last time, I can’t resort to the easy solution now. And, for the sake of being sincere, I’ll admit that HiroGeo isn’t a miximax I have thought much about beyond the designing process. Funny, because Hiroto and Geo are both very dear to me, but I guess the design was way too exhausting as it was and I didn’t feel like putting any more effort into it. Whoopsie. ww So, as of now, I only have some ideas regarding his Keshin and... that’s it. I don’t even know much about his powers at this point.

So you might be thinking, “Wait a minute, you stupid idiot!” Yes, you all insult me in my mind. I blame my well-disguised low self-esteem. “If you don’t even know what powers Hiroto would get from Geo, why the hell did you put them together?” Well, that’s exactly what I’ll try to explain today.

Even though 99% of my friends, acquaintances and relatives aren’t aware of this, before Inazuma sucked me into an obsessive vortex for years and years, I was actually a Mega Man Star Force nerd. It was (and is) one of my favourite games, and the one I was into at the time. In other words, it was my last obsession before Inazuma hit me in the face with a flaming ball. As such, I really, really wanted Star Force (from now on, SF) to be part of this project from the very beginning. I didn’t know whom I wanted, but I needed that franchise to be represented here somehow.

As such, much like I have done with other franchises (with more or less success), I started looking for a good aura and a good vessel. While I considered that little shit called Solo/Rogue, I’m not one of those people who enjoy that kind of “I’m evil, but everyone will be obsessed with me” trope. In fact, it usually irks me quiiite a bit. I’m not one to usually like evil guys, sadly. ww

So, really, my only good options were Geo/Mega Man or Sonia/Harp Note. And I’m sure those who’ve played SF will be pissed because I didn’t choose Harp Note and I went with the “easy” choice (and, in fact, it bothered me too, because she’s great), but stay with me, please. There is a bit more to it than meets the eye.

The reason why I chose Mega Man over Harp Note wasn’t a matter of whom I prefered or whom I thought would bring better/more useful powers to the mix. It was because I randomly saw how well Mega Man and Hiroto worked together. I simply didn’t find a match nearly as good for Harp Note.

Hiroto and Geo share a lot. The obvious link, which I have mentioned before, is that they share a theme, and that’s something I love. Both Hiroto and Geo are related/linked to space. Hiroto, being a fake alien and having meteorite-related hissatsus, has an obvious connection to it. Geo is constantly looking at the stars and has a passion for astronomy, goes to space in many occasions as Mega Man, the name of his series is Star Force and even his dad is an astronaut. Which, by the way, leads to the next link.

Even though they are very different, both Geo and Hiroto have *+*+*daddy issues*+*+*. We all know about Hiroto’s: he’s an orphan, his loving adoptive father turned into a monster that forced him to fight, said father ended up in jail... Quite the rollercoaster. Now, Geo has his fair share of those issues too. While not always a main theme in the series, Geo’s lurking objective is to bring his father back home, since he’s been stranded in space... if I remember correctly. Said father has been missing for a loong time, leaving Geo alone as he learnt of his new powers, causing him a heavy depression that kept him from going to school, etc.

They both know what it is to miss a father and to want to save him. They were both very affected when the close relationships they shared with their fathers suddenly changed, so I believe they’d have a lot in common and to talk about. And, well, I find it important to talk about uncomfortable subjects if you are trying to improve your relationship with someone. It brings you two closer, and that’s very important in a case like this.

If sharing a theme and daddy issues wasn’t enough, both Hiroto and Geo are shown to be rather intelligent and good with machines. They are both strong-willed and ready to fight for the “greater good” even when they don’t want to, and they both inherited something very important from their dads: Geo got some weird goggles and Hiroto got... a full successful company. (Hiroto wins this time, I’m afraid. Sorry, Geo bby.)

What makes this extra interesting, however, is how Geo evolves. Hiroto is shown to be mature, intelligent, cold and thoughtful. A reliable, serious person. Almost a big brother to those who know it. However, while Geo starts off cold and in a similar (although by no means same) vein, as he matures and manages to open up to others again, he actually becomes much more laid back, suddenly talking about food and naps and whatnot. Meanwhile, Hiroto’s premature maturity (no pun intended) takes him in the complete opposite direction. I think this is worth exploring as a concept. With Geo’s influence, Hiroto wouldn’t be reverting to a more childish version of himself, because Geo’s attitude doesn’t come from him being childish, but from maturing into a more relaxed and presumably happier person. Hiroto would simply have the opportunity to see life with those same mature eyes, but in a much calmer way. In a sense, it’d give him the chance to “take a break,” if you all know what I mean. To move on from the pain that, show it or not, he holds in his heart. In a franchise like Inazuma, where maturing has constantly meant becoming more serious and angry and powerful, maturing into someone happier would be a refreshing change, I think. Refreshing and much needed.

So, yeah. As I said, I really don’t know much about how Geo’s powers will affect Hiroto’s abilities, but I’ll figure something out. The reasons alone were so good and unavoidable that I’m sure pieces will fall into place on their own as soon as I start thinking about this subject properly. And, as the guy running this stupid blog, trust me when I say that that’s what really turns a normal miximax into a true perfect match.

A match made, rather than in heaven, in the stars.

#Kiyama Hiroto #Inazuma Japan #Inazuma Eleven #miximax #mixi max #info #sketch #reasons behind the miximax

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jo-the-schmo · 8 years ago

Text

Breaking... Ch.7

Part 1 Part 2 Part 3 Part 4 Part 5 Part 6

A/N: Ok so at first this was supposed to be more plot based but I ended up making it really fluffy by accident... sorry about that! I hope you all like this nonetheless :3

Wordcount: 4671

Warnings: Cursing, fluff, FEELINGS, children, alcohol

Tags!!! @iamnotthrowingawaymyshit @renae-writes @deltablue202 @literally-melonkitty @meunicorn Send me an ask if you’d like to be added to the list!

Breaking History

Dear still yet to be named paper thing,

It’s been almost a week since Alex told everyone about the affair and it has been hell. Every time I see Eliza she looks like she just got done crying. She doesn’t talk, doesn’t want help to get ready, Rachel and I can barely convince her to eat. At least I’ve seen Eliza though, Alex is hiding away in his study, I leave food for him in the kitchen because he doesn’t come out during diner but it’s gone by morning. Every time I pass his door I hear pages turning and tiny bits of ranting, I wish I knew what he was doing in there. Angie’s been dealing with this the best out of everyone, I’ve been taking over her and the boys’ lessons. Political history finally comes in handy! AJ, Jamie and Johnny are too young for it but Angie’s been working really hard to learn. I’m so happy to see her back in action. Although I could do without AJ’s antics right now. The boy is a genius, why he uses his talents for evil I will never know. I’ve noticed that Jaimie keeps doodling on his work, little sneak has been hiding a graphite stick in his sleeve and makes huge grey stains! I don’t mind him drawing, I just wish he wouldn’t dirty the clothes I have to clean. Johnny’s as shy as always, I know the boy is only five years old but I thought he’d have warmed up to me by now. The other day I heard him in front of the piano, you’d think he’s talk more with how powerful his voice is, I’ve never heard someone sing like that. The children are all so talented, I hope that they follow their hearts as they get older. Philly is back to being his usual sweet self, that’s been a real help. He wrote me a poem the other day, he certainly likes to throw on the charm. I honestly don’t know how I feel about it; I don’t know how to feel about him either. He’s kind, intelligent, funny, respectful. Whenever I need a word to describe him my mind always turns to beautiful. But I’m scared, I don’t know what could happen and I don’t want to risk doing any more damage than I’ve already inflicted. I need to be careful with my feelings, I don’t like him like that and I can’t like him like that. Even if my face feels hot whenever he’s around I need to ignore it as much as I can, for his sake. Rachel isn’t making that any easier though. Now that Eliza prefers her isolation I can’t seem to avoid the conversation with her. “How long are you going to pretend to not have feelings for him?” “When are planning to admit your affections to him?” “Am I at least invited to the wedding?” As if she knows anything, she’s only a few years older than me! I’ll be nineteen this year and she just turned twenty-one. Now that I’m thinking about it, it’s about time me and her do the dusting, so I better get going.

P.S. Seriously, how does anyone use these stupid feathers?

You put down your quill, stood up and grabbed a rag off your window sill. As you made your way out of the living quarters you turned the corner and saw someone walking out of the study. Alex? You called out to him.

“Alex? Are you alright? I haven’t seen you once all week!” You grabbed him by the shoulder and spun him around. He didn’t look good, his hair was messy, his clothes made him look like he was just hit by a tornado. His eyes were the worst part, you’ve never seen darker eye circles in your entire life, he looked exhausted. He was carrying some kind of satchel. What’s he doing?

“I’m alright Titania, or at least I will be soon. I have important business in town so I won’t be here for a while. With that said, do not expect me until very late. You’ve taken very good care of the children these past couple days and your efforts will not go unrewarded, think you can watch them for the rest of the day?” He asked.

“Of course, but what exactly will you be doing that takes that long?” He placed a hand on each of your shoulders and smiled down at you.

“Setting things right. Do not fear, everything will be just fine.” He stepped forward and placed a kiss on top of your head. Alex? He turned around and walked off, leaving you full of questions. What exactly are you up to Alexander? You clutched your rag close to your chest. You better not be doing something crazy… You took a deep breath and went back on your way. You stepped into the main room and saw Rachel staring at the door. Once she noticed your presence she turned to you.

“Where is Mr. Hamilton going?”

“I have no idea… Is Eliza still asleep?” You asked.

“Actually, she was just recently awoken. Perhaps with Mr. Hamilton out of the house she’ll be more willing to leave her room.” Rachel hasn’t been Alex’s biggest friend recently… “Follow me, perhaps we can motivate her!” She said with hope. She locked her arm into yours and led you down the hall to Eliza’s room. Rachel knocked on the door.

“Miss Eliza? Alexander has left for the day, may we come in?” You heard a very soft sound, Rachel opened the door and the both of you walked inside. The room was a mess, there were clothes all over the floor, the bed was disheveled and Eliza looked a little worse for wear. Eliza… You don’t deserve this… Rachel immediately went over to the bed and began fixing it, you went over to the vanity where Eliza sat and stood behind her. You looked at her through the mirror and noticed how tangled her hair was, seeing the brush you picked it up.

“May I brush your hair Eliza?” you asked gently.

“Yes…thank you Dear…” She said weakly. She looks almost as tired as Alex… You ran the brush through her hair, the hair getting stuck every once in a while due to a bad tangle.

“Eliza… I know this is a really difficult time, I can’t even imagine what you’re going through. But you can’t just stay in your room all day. You don’t have to talk to him or anything like that, just come outside and spend some time with the children, they really miss their mother.” They haven’t seen you all week and they’re starting to get worried. She looked at the mirror sadly, thinking about what. She looked at the mirror sadly, thinking about what you just said, suddenly you saw something light up in her eyes.

“You’re right Dear, the children do not deserve this any more than I do. Rachel, help me dress, Y/N please summon the children to the music room.” A smile started to show on her tired face. There’s the Eliza I know and love! One day away from their studies shouldn’t be a problem… You hurriedly finished with her hair and went out to get the kids. Philip and Angie are probably in their rooms…but the real question is, where are the boys? As you passed by the back door you heard a voice.

“Move out of the way Alexander! I don’t want to scare the butterfly away!” Found them! You stepped out into the garden. AJ had his back facing you, he was kneeling down in front of something. Jamie was sitting beside him but he kept trying to look past him, he didn’t look comfortable. You looked off to the side and saw Johnny sitting on the bench, looking up at a nearby tree. You followed his gaze and saw a bird sitting in a nest on one of the low hanging branches.

“I can’t move James! The sunlight isn’t obstructed by any cloud of foliage in this spot!” AJ responded. Oh no, what’s he up to now? You walked up and stood behind him, clearing your throat. He jumped slightly, letting out a small squeal.

“What exactly are you doing AJ? Last time I let you play outside without supervision you knocked out a tooth trying to catch a rabbit.” Luckily it was just a baby tooth. He stood and turned to face you, a blush spreading across his dark skin, he scratched the back of his impossibly fluffy hair. His hair rivals Jeffershit’s I swear! He gave you a toothy smile and you could clearly see the gap from missing one of his top teeth.

“Just a little experiment TT! Check it out!” He side stepped and you could see some sort of glass on the ground and a candle. Wait a minute…isn’t that my candle? Why is he playing with GLASS?! He saw the worried look on your face and quickly clarified. “The other day James and I noticed that if you use a magnifying glass in the sunlight and point it at a bug, the bug starts to smoke up! John cried for a little bit but he helped us find this candle so that we wouldn’t kill any more bugs. I want to see how long it takes for the candle to light!” Smart kid, not sure if he can sit there for that long, but smart nonetheless. Jamie looked up at you from on the ground, his long, dark hair falling in front of his face. You could still see the large white birthmark on his olive-like skin.

“But he decided that it had to be right in front of my line of sighting! Summer is over so this might be my last chance to sketch a butterfly until Spring!” He said with slight annoyance. Brothers…what can you do? You folded your arms across your chest and heaved a sigh.

“Well put whatever you’re doing away because I come bringing good new! Your mother would like to see us all in the music room!” You smiled, you saw both of their eyes light up gleefully.

“Really? Yay! Mama’s feeling better!” AJ exclaimed. You chuckled. AJ is always so happy!

“Yeah, just give me a second to get your brother and we’ll be on our way.”

“I can get Philip and Angelica if you want.” Jamie suggested.

“Thanks Jamie, that would be appreciated.” You heard Jamie scamper off as you walked over to the bench and sat down next to Johnny. “What’cha doing Johnny?” Johnny looked up at you, his mouth was covered by his cravat. He always pulls it up over his mouth when people are around. He had the lightest skin out of all the boys, his cheeks almost permanently in a rosy state, a few loose, brown hairs had fallen out of his tight ponytail. He pointed up at the bird in the tree.

“Bird…it sounds pretty…” His words were slightly muffled by the neck cloth over his mouth.

“And you were the one who found that candle for AJ?”

“Yes…I didn’t want him to hurt any more buggies… Someone left it by the bench…” Oops.

“Well, your mother’s in the music room. Would you like to join us?” You smiled softly at him.

“…Will Mama play the piano for us?” He asked.

“We can always ask!” You told him hopefully. He nodded his head and stood up, you stood up as well and held your hand out to him. Even though he doesn’t talk much, he seems fine with letting me hold his hand when we walk together. He had to lift his arm up to grab your hand but he still took it. You passed by AJ as you led Johnny out of the garden.

“Aw, why does John get to hold your hand?” AJ said with puffed out cheeks. He’s just like his big brother… Trying to be a little player. It’s cute coming from him though, since he’s only eleven. Johnny pulled his cravat down.

“Because Bigger Sister likes me more.” He teased. Awwwww! Bigger Sister! That’s so cute! You couldn’t help but giggle at their conversation.

“You can hold my hand too if you want AJ, I don’t mind.” AJ looked like he had stars in his eyes, he skipped over to you and took your other hand. The three of you walked into the house and made your way to the music room. AJ opened the door for you and everyone stepped inside. Eliza was sitting at the piano, Jamie was across the room, he seemed to be drawing her from the back. Angie was leaning against the piano and Philip was leaning against the wall by the window. Johnny immediately let go of your hand and took a seat beside Eliza. Philip looked over at you, you could see his smile widen.

“Oh! So you will be joining us as well?” He asked. He noticed you holding AJ’s hand and furrowed his eyebrows. AJ smirked slightly.

“What’s wrong Philip? Are you jealous?” What? Philip’s eyes widened, his whole face turned red.

“Why would I be jealous?” You heard Angie chuckle off to the side. Eliza turned to you.

“Would you like to join us Dear?” She asked.

“I would be honored to!” AJ let go of your hand and stood next to Angie, you closed the door behind you. “I’ve never had the opportunity to sit in on one of your piano lessons so what exactly happens?” Eliza smiled at you.

“Well, I was actually hoping you’d be one of our singers. Angie prefers to play the piano so we are short on female voices. I’m sure John would appreciate it very much.” She laughed. It’s nice to see her spirits up again… She stood up from the piano, Johnny following close behind. “Angie, you know what to do. Philip, take it away.” Philip and Angie both excitedly took a seat at the piano, Johnny grabbed your hand and pulled you over to stand beside it, AJ and Jamie both stood beside you.

“First we do warm ups, they’re my favorite part!” Jamie said. Eliza stood across from you all.

“Alright everyone, let’s show Y/N how we practice!” She actually looks happy! That’s great! Eliza lightly clapped her hands eight times, after the eighth clap Angie and Philip began to play one note at a time while Eliza and all the boys, including Philip, began to sing with each note.

“Un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf!” Angie stopped playing.

“Philly! You did it again!” Angie groaned while Philip chuckled.

“Sorry, sorry! I can’t help myself!” It took you a moment to realize what they were talking about. While they were singing you did catch some kind of dip. It was like someone was making the seventh note longer than the others.

“Your brother has always done that darling, ever since he was a child!” Eliza explained. You suddenly had an idea.

“What about a round? You know, when some people intentionally come in later in the song that the rest. We could do that so that it still fits in.”

“Brilliant idea Dear! But who shall come in later and when?”

“The little ones can begin with you; I’ll follow in with Philly. Does that work?” Eliza nodded in agreement. You looked over at Philip. “Just follow my lead sunshine.” You said teasingly.

“Whatever you say starlight.” Eliza began to clap once more; on the eighth clap the music began once more. AJ, Eliza, Jamie and Johnny began.

“Un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq…” Philip followed your example and began on the fifth note.

“Un, deux, trois, quatre, cinq, six, sept, huit, neuf.” The both of you holding the seventh note longer. Once the piano went silent, Philip turned to you with a giant grin on his face.

“Beautiful…” He trailed off and simply stared into your eyes. Why does my face feel hot? Why do his freckles look more pick than usual? Why am I not looking away? Angie used her elbow to nudge Philip’s side.

“Ahem. Philip, do not drool on the floor, Rachel will get mad if she has to clean it.”

“I’m not drooling!” He persisted. Adorable… Angie stood up with a sly grin on her face.

“Hey Philip, why don’t you show TT your skills.” She grabbed your arm and sat you down next to Philip.

“Wonderful idea Angie! My drop of sunshine, would you be so kind as to help Y/N with the piano?” Eliza asked cheerily.

“O-oh, um, of course M-Mother…” Why does he sound so nervous? Philip scooted closer to you and held out his hands. “May I?” He asked. You laid your hands on the piano and Philip put his over top of yours. He adjusted your fingers so that they were in the right position before getting up and standing behind you.

“Forgive my closeness, this is the only way I can watch your technique properly.” He whispered. You felt his hair brush against your left cheek. Shit, shit, shit, shit, shit, shit! Keep it together! You are a strong willed woman who can handle anything life throws at you! You could practically feel the pitter-patter of his heart as he guided your hands over the keys. The two of you did the warm up once more, after that he pulled away and sat back down beside you. Yes! I made it! Good job Y/N! There was a knock at the door.

“Lady Eliza? I have brought the afternoon tea.”

“Oh, yes thank you. Please come in Rachel.” Rachel came in with a silver tray filled with cups, a teapot and all the essentials. She noticed you and Philip sitting next to each other and instantly had a glint in her eyes.

“Forgive me, was I interrupting anything important.” Eliza noticed what she was hinting at, she covered her mouth to muffle her giggles.

“Oh no, nothing yet!” Yet?! “Thank you for the tea Rachel but I see that you are missing a teacup.” Rachel looked at her with a puzzled expression.

“What do you mean Lady Eliza?”

“Why, for yourself of course! You simply must join us!”

“Yeah! Come on Rachel! I’d be lonely being the only maid at the party!” You encouraged, her cheeks went pink.

“Aw, very well, if my lady insists I suppose.”

You all spent the rest of the evening in the music room, drinking tea, chatting and listening to the children talk about their days. When diner time came around Eliza invited both you and Rachel to eat with them. Afterward you helped Angie change into her night dress while Rachel helped the younger boys get ready for bed. The two of you went downstairs and met Eliza in the main room.

“I would like to sincerely thank the both of for being so patient with me this past week. Today was the first day since Alexander’s confession that I’ve felt…normal. I do not know how I could possibly thank you for that…” Eliza had a sad smile on her face, Rachel stepped over to her and wrapped her arms around her.

“Lady Eliza, you do not need to thank us. You took us in, took me into your home and showed me a kindness I never knew. Being able to help you during these difficult times is the absolute least I could do for you.” They pulled away, Eliza wiping away a few stray tears.

“I believe it is time that I have a proper rest. I shall retire for the evening.” She deserves a good night’s sleep.

“Of course Lady Eliza, I shall help you prepare.” The two of them walked down the hallway and disappeared. You heard someone clear their throat, you turned to see Philip on the bottom step behind you.

“Oh, hi Philly. Are you going to bed as well?” He stepped down and stood in front of you.

“Yes I am, but what sort of gentleman would I be to not wish my luminous star a goodnight after such a lovely day together?” His face changed from his usual flirty grin to a more serious expression. “Thank you, for helping my mother. I have never seen her experience this much struggle before, she is a very strong woman but everyone has their weak days. I hope today was the beginning of a steady recovery from these past events.”

“Me too.” You sighed. Philip moved a strand of hair out of your face and rested his hand against your cheek.

“Hey now, where’s your sparkle? It’s the only thing that I could possibly see that could make this day more wonderful.” You grabbed his hand and smiled at him. Why does he have to be so sweet?

“Ah, there it is! Now I can rest with confidence that I will be at peace.” He pulled your hand to his lips, just as he did the week prior. “May your dreams be filled with thoughts or sunshine and joy, my star.” And with that he climbed the stairs back to his room. What am I going to do? You thought as you tried to still your beating heart. He’s going to get hurt if I keep being this reckless, why is this so difficult?! Rachel soon met you, Eliza having now gone to bed.

“Are you alright Y/N? You seem a bit distressed.” She asked with concern laced in her voice. You shook your head.

“I’m fine Rachel. In fact, I think you should let me do the late cleaning by myself.” Her eyes widened at your proposition.

“Wait, are you sure? I don’t mind giving you a hand.”

“I’m very sure, you deserve a break too. You work really hard to keep everyone happy, don’t think I don’t notice that. Get a couple extra hours of sleep.” She smiled at you and gave you a quick hug.

“You truly are something else Y/N, thank you.” She soon left you in the candle lit room by yourself. Okay Y/N! Let’s tidy this place up! You first put away all the sheet music and gathered all the dishes in the music room, cleaning them with the dishes from supper. You usually didn’t like being in the study by yourself but you could only imagine the state it was in after Alex took residence there. You took a candle and made your way to the door, opening it you were met with a monumental disaster zone. Paper was scattered all over the desk and floor, next to them were piles of dishes. The couch was a complete wreck, you assumed Alex had been sleeping there. No pillows or blankets or anything… First you gathered all the papers and stacked them neatly on the desk. Then you dealt with the ridiculous amount of dishes, much to your dismay. The last thing you did was gather some spare sheets, blankets and pillows to help make a make-shift bed out of the couch. You felt exhausted by the time all the work was done, the moon was already pretty high in the sky. Now I’m starting to get worried. I know he said he would be back late but I didn’t think he meant THIS late! Where are you Alex?! It wasn’t much longer before you were in the main room once more, blowing out all of the candles in the room. Suddenly you heard a long awaited noise. Horse drawn carriage. You were already at the door by the time you heard steps approaching the door. You swung the door open.

“Where have you be-“ You stopped once you realized who was at the door. Alex had his arm wrapped around the shoulder of a very familiar tall man.

“Mr. Madison! Alex!” You were quickly at Alex’s side, wrapping his other arm around your shoulder to help get him inside. Madison closed the door behind him. Alex was barely able to walk and looked more like a mess than when he left. “What happened? Is he hurt?” You asked worriedly. Madison coughed into a handkerchief and shook his head.

“Nothing happened per se…” It wasn’t until that moment that you got a whiff of the smell. He reeked of alcohol. “He was already drunk when I arrived, I thought the least I could do is help him get home safely.”

“Thank you so much, sir. I really appreciate your help. Here, I can take him to bed. Seriously, thank you so much?” You shifted Alex’s weight off of Madison’s shoulder and onto yours alone. He seemed impressed by your strength to hold him up with ease.

“As I said it’s the least I could do… I feel as though I must apologize for what happened. I do not believe that you are actually Alexander’s mistress, Jefferson was just blinded by his desire for power over him. We sullied your name, for that I am deeply sorry.”

“It’s alright, I don’t care about my name. I just hope that this disaster can be over soon. I’m sure that Alex would really appreciate your apology and I’ll be sure to tell him that you’ve done so.”

“Be sure to take care of him, he does not look very well.”

“I will, thank you again Mr. Madison. Goodnight.”

“Goodnight to you as well.” Madison said as he let himself out. Okay Alex, time to get you to bed. You led him down the hall and into the study, moving one of the blankets off the couch you plopped him down onto it, letting out a groan.

“Where the…Where am I?... Titania? How did I get back home?” He asked groggily.

“Shh, don’t worry. Madison found you and brought you back. I want to ask what you were doing but I know me and you are too similar for it to be that easy. I’ll ask you tomorrow, for now you need to get some rest.” You felt sick from how strong the alcoholic smell was. You gently laid the blanket over him and just as you were about to walk away you felt a hand weakly grab your wrist.

“Wait… please do not leave yet… You do not have to stay, just please remain here until I fall asleep… I do not wish to feel alone…” He looked so broken that it made your own heart break. He’s been sitting in this room for a week, I’m the only person he’s talked to that entire time. Madison’s right, he DOESN’T look good.

“Okay Alex, I’ll be right here if you need me, alright?” You sat down on the floor beside the couch.

“Thank you…Y/N…” His words faded from sleepiness. He closed his eyes, his breathing becoming more soft and steady. You rested your arms on the cushion and laid your head on top of them. You sat there for some time, watching him breathe. He’s been like my father ever since I came here, treated me like his own daughter. It hurts to see him and Eliza like this… He loves her, I know he does and I know she loves him as well. He regrets what he did, I’m defending him by saying it was okay. We both know that it was horrible. I hope Eliza can see that eventually, I hope they rekindle what they used to have… You felt yourself slowly fading, slipping into the blackness of sleep. A loud slamming noise awoke you, your eyes straining from the light filling the room.

“Daddy! Wh-“ It was Angie, she looked puzzled by your presence but quickly shook it off and ran to your side. “TT! You haven’t seen it yet have you?” She was holding a bunch of paper in her hand.

“Seen what kiddo?” You said, trying to run the sleep from your eyes.

“This!” She handed you the papers and you read the title printed on the front.

Titania’s Pamphlet

Holy Shit!

#hamilton #hamilton the musical #hamilton fanfic #time travel au #alexander x reader #eliza schuyler #Philip Hamilton #james madison #thomas jefferson #John Laurens #lafayette #mulligan #philip x reader #everything is broken

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