#tough guy with gauntlet

[hyperfixatinglove]

Best of Jesse Rentier ♥

[afurtivecake]

You know what my actual favourite Andrew Minyard line in the whole series is? It's not his sentimental lines like, "...from now until May you are still Neil Josten...". It's not even the best love confession in all of literature line, "Doesn't mean I wouldn't blow you." It's when he says "I'm not as smart as I thought I was."

That one line tells you so much about Andrew's character. That's the line that spells out for the reader that Andrew is smarter than he chooses to let on. That's the line that shows you just highly Andrew thinks of his own intelligence and how much he's been relying on it to survive and to keep his promises.

Consider that up until that point Andrew has presented himself with nothing less than the domineering kind of toughness you'd expect to see in a prison scene in a movie. He openly talks about breaking Neil, threatens multiple people with knives and makes everyone work around him. His "tough guy around town" persona and his ability to inflict violence is clearly something he prizes. AND YET. The first time he admits to any kind of dissatisfaction with himself, it's about his intelligence.

That is the point where the reader realizes that Andrew, in his own mind, is an intellectual. He doesn't actually pride himself on being the toughest guy in the room. He's aware that he's all of 5-feet-nothing and he knows at any given moment there's likely to be someone bigger and stronger than he is. What he's counting on in any given situation is being the smartest guy in the room. Fix any issues before they worsen, anticipate and eliminate any threats before they surface, think his way out of any problem that comes up. His intelligence is what he relies on to keep his promises.

That's the moment Andrew realizes that he's been letting his feelings get the better of his logic. He clocks Neil as dangerous from day one. But he's been telling himself that he's letting Neil stay for Kevin's sake or at least just until he can definitively prove Neil is dangerous. But the real reason he let Neil stay and get away with all his sketchy behaviour is because he let the fact that he likes Neil as a person, overcome his logic.

It makes you think, OH, THAT'S WHY Andrew was so interested in Neil in the first place. For someone who prides himself on his intelligence and KNOWS that no one else can match his smarts, Neil figuring out his twin switcheroo trick is the same as Neil throwing down the gauntlet and challenging him to a battle of wits. Andrew keeps trying to trip Neil up and Neil keeps batting his attempts aside and Andrew ends up helplessly charmed by Neil. Because Andrew LIKES that Neil is able to outsmart him sometimes, that Neil is his intellectual equal. And somewhere along the way, he's let himself forget that he "knows better" than to get emotionally attached, than to let someone else best him at his best quality- than to act like every other idiot in love that he's ever met.

You then realize that Andrew hasn't once thought of himself as brawny jock. That off-putting delinquent/school-shooter vibe and psycho reputation is a carefully calculated form of self-defense. It's self-defense in the literal sense of scaring off people who might want to fuck with him, but perhaps also in the sense of protecting himself from being seen. It makes sense, right? If people were to actually try to get to know him with an open mind, they'd soon discover that he IS difficult to get along with in ways they thought they could handle, but can't. Better to act the volatile asshole than suffer the disappointment of people changing how they treat him. And in the unlikely case that people find out that he isn't as tough as he presents himself, they might pity him. And that would be even worse. Much better to be as un-fuck-with-able as possible.

First time reading the book, I was taken in by Andrew's jock-ish façade. But the moment he admitted maybe he ought to be disappointed in himself for not being as smart as he thought he was, I had to set the book down and rethink every assumption I had made about Andrew as a character. The timing of that revelation is so perfect, because it happens just before the Thanksgiving mess. And so as the reader, you're suddenly coming to terms with the fact that Andrew is so much more vulnerable than he's ever portrayed himself to be at the same time that Andrew is being hit with probably one of the worst moments in his life. Like, that absolutely TOOK ME OUT. Which is why, that's one of the best lines in the whole series to me.

[brights-place]

Miles 42 with a little sister who has telekinesis????

Miles 42! & Telekinetic! Younger Sister

Pairings: Miles 42! & Reader (platnoic)

Warnings: Fluff, Amazing older brother, cussing, slight angst, abit of blood

A/N: Uhm so I may or may not have given up at the end because I got tired at the end and Gave up !! Im so sorry I was so sleepy but I hope some of these were good enough for you (˶◡‿◡) Pre Telekinesis⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪ - Miles cared for his family it was obvious but he cared for Mama Rio and You more once Jeff died - Miles never told you he was the prowler and You never told him about having telekinesis - You aspired to be like Miles he helped your mother all the time even if you were 3 years younger then him you wanted to be like him strong, tough and caring so you would always work hard - In you city it was broken and horrible, crime syndicates all around flames, crumbling building, and crimes on the streets something you hated - Though you didn't expect you would have gotten telekenisis when you went through the rumble near the train station to see king pin standing over something... someone? but something stood by something tall that was wearing purple costume with a mask and clawed gauntlets with gadgets. His boots appear to be upgraded Jordan 1 shoes you paused confused 'Why the fuck would you wear badass things if your just gonna wear street shoes' you thought as you peaked through the rubble crawling over and looking up - Confused you reached out to touch the rubble to move it out the way to get a better view unaware there was a sharp needle hidden beneath - As you inadvertently pressed against it a pain shot through your hand and droplets of a mysterious purple liquid seeped into your skin as you yelped grasping your hand staring down at it chucking the needle away

- Kingpin spoke his gaze shifted towards you momentarily, the two of you exchanging a brief glance through the debris. In that instant, your eyes widened before you swiftly bolted away leaving him behind with puzzled thoughts before speaking deeply to the cyborg punk guy - "Follow them" - You were running fast and quick paced as you felt your heart in your ears as your lungs made you start heaving as adrenaline rushed through your vines - you quickly dodged and ran through the streets as the guy- or whatever the fuck it was chasing after you as you ran nothing else rushed into your mind but to Run run faster then you ever did before you just wanted to go home - A bright purple claw gauntlet suddenly illuminated as it lunged towards you - In a panic-stricken moment you instinctively reached out and grabbed a nearby pole flinging it at the man behind you behind you without hesitating - Adrenaline surged through your veins as you continued to shout in terror desperately searching for a means of escape. In a panicked state you raised your hands whipped any projectile you could find towards your assailant a bag of trash being chucked around -All the while the prowler leapt away and watched in surprise as you vanished into a horde of people - When you arrived home you couldn't help but run over to your mother hugging her as rio was confused patting your head as you sighed heading into your room as you didn't want to answer your mothers questions but just muttering a 'I just missed you' - You sighed plopping onto your bed annoyed as you sighed placing yourself under your bed covers before pausing checking the side of your bed for your heaphones before pausing letting out a slight 'huh' when not feeling them - You pursed your lips annoyed raising your hands up in annoyance when seeing your headphones on your desk as you paused "come here to meee" you whined raising your hand towards your headphones making a grabbing hand motion unaware that in a swift motion the item was in your hands as you paused

- You couldn't help but look over to one of your plushies on your floor raising your hand towards the plushie "come to meeeee" you repeated to yourself as you paused annoyed when seeing it not move before you froze when you saw it shake slightly when a light purple glow escaped your finger tips as you opened your palms more as it lifted up slightly from the floor as your mouth widened in shock and in awe before it was close to you it dropped to the floor fast - you stop and stared raising the headphone up in your hands before looking to the plushie on the floor confused slowly placing your headphones back around your neck for a moment - you couldn't help but paused staring at your palms looking up through your apartment window "I want to use these powers for good !! I'll protect my family I'll punish those who do wrong and will make the world right" - You trained yourself secretly but nearly kept getting caught by Miles who barged into your room as you would yell at your older brother in annoyance - How did it lead up to this? you made up a whole hero persona and would stop small crimes due to the fear of doing larger crimes but you didn't ind getting slight injuries you cared for these people - You came up with a name for yourself (Your superhero name) but for some reason others would call you 'Terrorkinetic' you didn't understand that at all you weren't scary at all!! not as scary as the guy who chased after you - You made it a mission the man who chased after you. You needed to find and put him to justice something you needed to do to protect those who you cared for and the people around you. -You didn't expect though when going to your older brother to ask for one of your sticker packets back for your sketch book to see him putting on a familiar mask that folded into covering his face as you froze quickly going back to your room freezing - Yet here you were in your stupid hero costume as you put on a black cape because you thought it looked awesome smiling proudly to yourself before failing to sneak out of your window as you shakily dropped to the side walk before quickly sneaking into the shadows of the alleyways running around to find any crime going on which was always - Here you were chasing after a theif who stole someone purse shouting at them to stop before seeing the male get chucked into the wall in the alleyway as you froze seeing a purple glowing eyes shine glancing at the theif a robotic voice speaking "You... hand over the files you owe kingpin" "YOU! put your hands u-up!" you shouted as the male snapped his head to you as your figure shook as you held out a baton - The guy who stole the lady's wallet pushed the prowler aka miles off as your eyes widened when miles quickly pushed the male to the ground as the theifs eys rolled to the back of his head knocked out as your eyes widened "A kid like you shouldn't be here" he stated walking towards you staring you down "I am- (Super hero name) and I will take you to justice" You shouted proudly yet your figure shook like a baby lamb as Miles eyebrows furrowed behind his mask noting down the familiar voice "Go Home" - "No! You have done wrong and I'll-" your figure was tied with a rope swiftly as you were placed ontop of a street lamp hanging there as you blinked confused behind your mask "EH>!?!" Miles is figure walked away back into the shadows picking the man he just knocked out up over his shoulder - While you shouted angrily "HEY COME BACK! I WILL BRING YOU TO JUSTICE!" even if he was your brother you watched him put on that outfit a bid to kingpin a man the whole family hated so why... why would he do that? work for him? didn't he despise him as much as she did... WARNING FOR BLOOD FOR THIS PART !!

- You couldn't help but stare at your trembling hands as the purple glow that normally emanated from them had faded somewhat leaving behind a metallic red color that seemed to stick to your skin. - Your body shook slightly as your mind raced with thoughts unsure of what had just happened. You had only wanted answers, but you had somehow gotten caught in the middle of something you knew nothing about. - Miles approached you in his Prowler outfit, his mask still firmly in place as he gently grasped your hands guiding you to the river to wash them. - You could hardly bring yourself to look at the scene before you the metallic scent of blood filling your senses and the once vibrantly colored flowers now marred by the stain of violence. - You hadn't meant for this to happen... this wasn't even suppose to happen but fear had overwhelmed you in that moment causing you to lash out with all of your strength using your powers without considering the consequences. - The man who had charged at Miles laid motionless on the ground crushed by the weight of various objects that had been hurled at him with such force. - Miles stopped scrubbing your hands and watched as the red from your skin flower down the river that carried it away by the current - He couldn't shake the question that plagued his mind how had you come to possess these powers..? He was planning to ask you once you got home but for now as the older brother he had to take care of you first Post Telekinesis⋆౨ৎ˚⟡˖ ࣪ - Miles is initially shocked and worried about your use of your powers after finding out about them particularly since he didn't know you had them. - As your older brother you should trust him - He has a lot of questions about how you got them and how long you've been training and he stared at you deadpanned "That's just a shitty workout routine and training its shitty" as you gasped and started to yell at your older brother

- You eventually reveal that you only discovered your powers recently and that you've been practicing secretly and how he nearly walked in on you when you tried to train the best you could - Miles is surprised but relieved that you didn't keep it secret intentionally; he knows you well enough to know you wouldn't hide something like this from the family but you did anyway - when he tried to pull the family card you literally shouted at him how he was the prowler as he stared to the floor "I had to" "YOU DIDN'T HAVE TO DO SHIT MILES" you shouted angrily at him. - TIME FOR SOME POSITIVE ONES INSTEAD TO LIGHTEN UP THE MOOD!! - Miles would ask you to bring him something and when yoru THAT lazy you use your powers to hand it to him as he smacks you at the back of your head for using your powers - He would train you to use your powers with uncle aaron to get you to be able to help in some stuff when needed even though you strictly said its only for the good - Miles found it incredibly endearing how you would sometimes use your powers to play pranks on him such as making his hat float around until he grabbed it with a mock-angry expression or getting his jordans out of reach

- Miles liked to test the limits of your powers playfully seeing how far he could push you and your buttons - He once walked into your room to ask if you saw his sketchbook to see you holding it and speaking in rapid spanish as everything in your room floated like you were getting possessed... he did not even question you for the rest of the day

- he loves to steal your food expecting you to get up and physically take it back from him but instead you'd use your telekinesis to move it out of his reach or get it back as he just stares at you like you just killed someone

- During family game nights he always stares at you intensley since you use your powers to cheat always coming up with excuses like have no idea what your talking about" or saying "your just a sore loser" Miles would protest knowing exactly what you were doing but allowing it to happen anyway because seeing uncle aarons pissed off face was the best part of it all

reblogs + comments are appreciated ⸜(｡˃ ᵕ ˂ )⸝♡

©brights-place 2023 — do not repost on another platform, copy, translate or edit my works! if you fit my DNI list please don't interact

[ladyloveandjustice]

Running the Gauntlet: A Natsume Yuujinchou fanfic (Part 1)

Part 1 of my fanfic based on the idea I had in this post about Natsume's running abilities making his life at school difficult that blew up.

Includes a couple silly footnotes!

Running the Gauntlet

“I wish Natsume wasn’t our anchor,” a classmate complained.

Natsume flinched. It’s not like I wanted to be, he thought glumly. He pretended he hadn’t heard, hunching over and tying this shoe. So many students and teachers milling around on the grass, waiting for the big event, whoever it was probably hadn’t noticed he was nearby.

But then, Nishimura’s response made him feel even worse.

“Man, shut up. You haven’t really seen Natsume run. He’s friggin’ fast. We’re lucky to have him.”

Natsume appreciated Nishimura standing up for him, but inwardly he was screaming at him to please stop talking about this.

Then Kitamoto chimed in, “Yeah, one of the first times we saw him outside of school, he basically dashed out of the woods at warp speed. So don’t be rude.”

He saw Kitamoto glance quickly at him, clearly aware might be in earshot.

“Fast? Come on you two, I know he’s your friend, but the guy is sickly. You’re expecting me to believe someone who collapses every other day is a good runner? I’m not saying he’s a bad guy, I’m just not counting on him to win this”. The classmate, who rarely spoke to Natsume, adjusted his glasses.

“You’ll see,” Nishimura said smugly.

Natsume groaned inwardly, straightening up.

He eyed the various students hanging out in different colored headbands, the boy handing out water bottles from the tent, and some teachers talking off to the side.  There was even a chattering crowd on the small set of bleachers. A crowd that included parents.

But worst of all was the looping black track, sizzling in the sun before him. He, Nishimura, and the rest who’d been chosen for the relay race would be lining up on it soon.

He hated Sports Day.

To be fair, this was his least hated sports day so far. He’d never actually experienced sports day while having friends before. When he was a kid, he could expect being pushed to the ground and mocked, or having classmates complaining loudly to teachers about being paired up with the liar. Best case scenario was he’d merely have to feel lonely as he was left out of class celebrations, watching parents and friends cheer others on when there was no one to cheer for him.

But this year he’d been able to cheer wildly for Taki during the bean bag toss, laugh at Tanuma as he was forced to dance awkwardly with the rest of his class during their group performance, and smile as Tanuma got some sweet revenge by beating him at the scavenger hunt. He’d gotten to high five Kitamoto and Nishimura after every victory, and even Sasada once.

So many parents being here was still a little intimidating, though. He kept expecting one of them to yell at him to get away from their kid, even though he knew it wasn’t like that anymore. The Fujiwaras hadn’t been able to come, as they had a relative’s wedding to attend today. Natsume hadn’t even told them today was sports day, because he didn’t want them to feel bad about it. He was also kind of relieved they couldn’t come, because he would have been even more nervous if they were watching.

Overall, it had been a good day. He was basically enjoying himself.

But there was no getting over the dread of his biggest obstacle yet—the relay race. He was really going to have to pay attention to his running. It was such a tough balance…he didn’t want to let down the class, but he also needed to think of…

“Natsume, are you okay?” He blinked, noticing Sasada was suddenly next to him. “You were spacing out a bit.”

“I’m fine! Actually, are you okay?” She looked pale, and she kept fiddling with her glasses. It was strange to see her without the usual air of confidence.

“I’m nervous,” she admitted. She’d been chosen for the relay race too, and was looking at the track with almost as much trepidation as he was.

“Sasada! Natsume!”  Nishimura ran forward before Natsume could reassure her. “It’s all up to us!”

“Yay,” Sasada said blandly.

“Whar’a wrong, Sasada?” Nishimura grinned smugly at her “Worried you’re gonna be the sports day cliché?”

“The…what?”

“You’ve seen it on TV, right? In anime and stuff? There’s always the one person who trips during the relay race. They scramble to their feet, tears in their eyes, and pass off their baton…” Nishimura imitated the gesture dramatically. “But don’t worry! You can trip all you want, I’m so fast it won’t matter! No need to be nervous!”

Sasada shook her head, putting her glasses back on. “You know what, your stupidity has calmed my nerves a bit, thank you,”

“Glad to be of service.”

---

Considering all that, Natsume wasn’t exactly surprised when Nishimura was the one who tripped.

Natsume winced when his friend went down, hoping he wasn’t hurt. It would be okay, right? Nishimura was so good-humored. This wasn’t a big deal or anything. He’d just laugh it off and…

Nishimura stumbled up, his knee bleeding, his face burning with shame. Natsume could see his eyes were brimming with tears. Of course he was devastated. Nishimura may act carefree, but he hated letting people down.

Natsume sighed.

Fine then.

“Nishimura!” He called out, offering his hand. “Don’t give up! I’ve got this!”

Nishimura’s face lit up instantly. He jogged as fast as he could and slammed the baton in Natsume’s hand. Natsume faced forward. The others had a massive head start, but that wasn’t enough to make him give up.

A yokai is chasing me, he told himself. A big one with sharp teeth.

And next thing he knew, he was crossing the finish line.

Cheers exploded around him as the other runners caught up, lagging after him. And then, suddenly, what seemed to be the entire class was rushing towards him. He had to resist the urge to put his hands up defensively.

Nishimura slammed into him from the side, embracing him. Tears were streaming down his cheeks and he was whooping and laughing. Heat spread up Natsume’s neck and face. It was the first time Nishimura had ever hugged him. Or cried so openly in front of him. He knew it was considered fine for guys to cry and hug only when it involved sports for some reason, but it was still a surprise.  He wasn’t used to that kind of intimacy. Not that it was bad. It was kind of nice.

 The rest of his class gathered around him, yelling things like “way to go” and “that was amazing!” Even Sasada, her face still red and sweaty from her run, was screaming her head off and jumping up and down. Kitamoto clapped Natsume on the back and soon several classmates followed suit. Natsume was sure a red handprint was permanently etched on his back now.

“Dude, I knew you were fast, but I didn’t know you were that fast!!” Nishimura yelled through his tears.

“Seriously, do you have a secret running regimen I don’t know about, or is it just natural talent?” Kitamoto said.

Natsume heard some more cheering explode behind him, and looked over his shoulder to see an uncharacteristically excited Tanuma waving at him from the other side of the track, “Congrats, Natsume!”

“Tanuma, you could at least… pretend to care… that our class lost,” said the boy Natsume had gone up against, still doubled over and panting.

“Sorry.”

There was loud whistle from the stands and Natsume saw it came from Taki. The girl next to her had covered her ears. Taki didn’t notice, and let out another impressively strong blast, waving at him. She removed her knuckles from her mouth and shouted “Woo, Natsume!”

Natsume was torn between being happy his friends supported him and so embarrassed he could die.

“I owe you an apology, Natsume,” said the boy with the glasses, whoever he was.

“Hell yeah you do!” Nishimura responded.

“Nishimura…” Kitamoto’s said scoldingly, his eyes flicking to Sasada.

“Ah…I’m sorry too, Sasada,” Nishimura said sincerely. “You really showed me.” (Sasada had been fast enough to give Nishimura a head start, as Natsume suspected she would be, she’d certainly caught up to him out of nowhere plenty of times in the early days of their relationship).

Sasada wasn’t listening, she was looking at a fit girl with short black hair from another class, who was also still panting from the race. “How about that, Chiyo!” she called over to her.

“You win this one, but I’ll get you next time, Jun! Just you wait!” Chiyo called with a matching huge grin and an excited look in her eyes. For some reason Sasada blushed delicately in response*.

“Okay, okay, give him some room to breathe,” Kitamoto said, shooing at the others. They all stepped back, though Nishimura remained by Natsume’s side. Natsume was grateful for Kitamoto, he was dizzy and overwhelmed. He’d had no idea races like this were such a big deal to people. He was more grateful than ever the Fujiwaras weren’t here to add on to all this.

“Look Natsume!” Sasada had finally torn her eyes away from the other girl and was pointing at the stands. “Even the track coach looks impressed!”

“No wonder, you’re faster than half her team,” Kitamoto said. “Bet she tries to recruit you!”

Natsume’s stomach dropped like a stone. Indeed, the track coach, a woman with short brown hair and sharp eyes, was looking at him with interest. This was exactly what he’d been afraid of. His personal hell had returned. Had winning a measly race been worth it?

Natsume looked over at Nishimura, who was still jumping up and down and hollering about how he was going to treat Kitamoto, Sasada and Natsume to some manju, not even minding when Kitamoto snarked at him about it how it must be a cold day in hell if the man who sponged off everyone was paying the tab for once. He flashed Natsume another ecstatic grin, and Natsume smiled back.

Yeah, it had been worth it.

--

Natsume had experienced a lot of reoccurring horrors, but the most annoying of them was being hounded by track coaches at every school he went to.

Apparently, spending most of his life running from yokai had made him faster than the average person. He’d been unaware of this until his first year of middle school. When it came time to run the track, Natsume had heard whispers around him, a couple of the kids placing bets on when he’d collapse. One boy had even smacked him on the shoulder and screamed “The liar’s gonna come in dead last!” in his ear.

Natsume hadn’t really done much racing against other kids on the playground, and he’d been sick during a lot of gym classes, so he’d also figured he’d struggle against the other kids. It had completely shocked everyone, himself included, when he blew past them all with ease. He’d reached the finish line only to find the other kids several feet behind him, panting and gawking.

The gym teacher’s eyes had gone wide, and he’d immediately started urging Natsume to join the track club. The man had even gone to Natsume’s current guardians about it.

His guardians had resented that he was getting attention while their real kid was an overlooked benchwarmer on the baseball team. They’d thrown lots of snide comments Natsume’s way. And…well, he hadn’t had a good time on the track team at all. When he’d inevitably had to move again after those same guardians got tired of him, leaving the track club behind had been the silver lining.

Upon transferring to a new school, he’d decided to keep his speed under wraps. But then a coach noticed him running when he was late for class one day and his troubles started all over again. At first he’d avoided the coach by coming up with excuses about responsibilities or detention or headaches, but eventually he was just reduced to hiding under the bleachers when he saw the man.

At another school, a coach tried to recruit him for her team SO aggressively he’d made the stupid mistake of running away when he saw her—and naturally, seeing how fast he could book it had just increased her interest.

So, when he was gathering up all the extra water bottles from the hydration station tent at end of the day, and saw the track coach approach him, his heart started pounding, He fought back his urge to bolt, even a flashbacks filled his brain.

“Natsume, right? I’m Sakuragi, if you don’t remember,” The woman had a wide, genuine smile. He’d only spoken to her a few times, but he was pretty sure she was Taki’s homeroom teacher. “You showed some impressive hustle today! Have you ever thought of joining the track team?”

Fortunately, Natsume had his excuses pre-prepared. “Oh wow, that’s such an honor, Sensei!” He said, continuing to gather up the water bottles while still maintaining polite eye contact. “But, you see, I get sick very easily, so joining a team is a bad idea. I’d just end up being absent a lot, and I’d let the team down.”

“That’s not a problem.” To his horror, the teacher bent down and started picking up the water bottles herself.

“You don’t have to trouble yourself—” He began quickly, but she cut him off, saying “ I’d never require you to come in when you’re not feeling well. You wouldn’t need to worry about calling out sick. We’re a fairly large team, so other students can easily sub in for you if you can’t make a race.”

What kind of laid back track team was this? Never mind, Natsume had a backup excuse. “Well, that’s great, but I’m also concerned about making trouble for my foster parents. It’s a lot to ask them, and I don’t want to put them out. I’d be around to help them less. They’d have to pay for expenses, like when overnight trips at the inn when we go to other towns, or shoes—”

“The school supplies the shoes and other essentials, and we can cover trip expenses if need be. Also, I chat with Ms. Fujiwara at the grocery store often, and she loves bragging about you. I can’t see her turning down a chance for you to develop your skills and enjoy some team spirit!”

Natsume looked down at his shoes, sure that he was tomato red right now. Touko bragged about him? What did he even do worth bragging about? “He only missed ten days of class this month”? “His grades were perfectly mediocre again”? “He hasn’t come home covered in dirt in a while”? “He made five whole friends in school, somehow?”*

Still, through his embarrassment, he felt a little warm inside. She was proud of him. It was a still a new feeling, and he wasn’t sure what to do with this strange, shy happiness.

“Natsume?” The coach’s voice snapped him back to reality. “Is there anything else bothering you, or would you like to come do a practice session with us? If you don’t like it, you don’t have to join. I’ll respect your decision.”

“I…” Natsume was searching for another excuse.  

 Nishimura jogged up. “Natsume, do you need any—" He noticed who Natsume was talking to and his eyes widened. “Oh, sorry to interrupt, Sensei! Natsume, are you being recruited? That’s so cool!”

“Ah, you were his teammate today, right?” Sakuragi smiled at Nishimura kindly.

Nishimura flushed a bit, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, Natsume really saved me out there. He’s a dependable guy! And he’s a great runner!”

Nishimura flashed a grin at Natsume, who was wishing he had telepathy so he could tell him to stop. He tried to send a signal by shaking his head slightly, but Nishimura wasn’t looking now.

“Well, that definitely sounds like track team material,” Sakuragi said jovially. She turned to Natsume. “Looks like your friends vouch for you. But it’s up to you, Natsume. Would you mind just stopping by?”

Natsume couldn’t bring himself to directly say no to a teacher in the first place, and now Nishimura and his enthusiasm had been added to the mix. “I’ll give it a try,” he mumbled, forcing a smile.

“Great! Just come to the track after school tomorrow. I think you’ll find it’s a lot more fun than you’re thinking.”

Natsume kept the smile fixed on as they carried the water bottles back into school. When the coach departed and they came ouside again, he and Nishimura met Taki and Tanuma. As always, Nishimura immediately started blushing and fidgeting , but as always, Taki failed to notice.

“I saw you with Sakuragi-sensei!” she said with a smile. “Impressing her is a big feat, Natsume! And don’t worry, she’s really nice.” She put her hand on Natsume’s shoulder, and Nishimura let out a strangled squeak. “She won’t get mad at you, whatever you decide.”

“Are you okay?” Tanuma said softly. Clearly both he and Taki had noticed he wasn’t actually happy right now.

“I’m fine,” Natsume said, letting the fake smile drop away and replacing it with a shrug of his shoulders. “I’ll just check it out. No big deal.”

---

“I don’t get why you’re whining so much about it,” Nyanko-sensei said, trotting beside Natsume as he walked to school the next day. “It’s just one measly meeting. What’s so bad about this running team thing anyway?”

“The people who took care of me when I joined the track team the first time were really bothered by it. They didn’t like having to drive me places, or the attention I got—”

“The Fujiwara’s aren’t like that, so that’s a stupid excuse.”

“That’s true, but it’s more than that,” Natsume sighed. “Last time, I was constantly late or absent. A yokai would attack me or I’d get sick...”

“Wimp.”

“Shut up, Sensei. Anyway, whenever that happened, the coach yelled at me for flaking out. I let everyone down.”

“But this woman said it doesn’t matter if you’re sick and can’t come, right?”

“She says that now, but she might change her mind,” Natsume mumbled.

“You’re so gloomy,” Nyanko-sensei shook his head. “It’s annoying.”

“Look, even if what she says is true, my teammates probably won’t like me. They didn’t last time. And I just…I just hated the feeling of all those people looking at me.”

He’d struggled a bit with just the sports day crowd watching him, but being on a real team was a million times worse. All those people judging, all their hopes riding on him not messing up… He shivered, remembering the way his skin had crawled, the way his breathing turned funny, the way his hands had shook. All those eyes on him…the weight of their gaze had made him want to curl up so small they couldn’t see him anymore.

“And there’s the actual reason. You’re bad with other people and you get stage fright. Boring.” Sensei yawned. “Just get over it. You have yokai trying to eat you all the time, why’s this scary?’

“I’d rather deal with yokai than the track team,” Natsume said emphatically.

Nyanko-sensei scoffed.

“A couple years ago there was this coach who was always chasing after me to recruit me. I was running from her, trying to get off school grounds so she couldn’t follow me, but then I saw that there was this huge yokai on the path out of school. Big fangs, sharp teeth, claws, all that.  I’d have to double back to avoid it, and the coach would catch me. So… I took the better option, and I ran past the yokai.”

“Idiot. Did it attack you?”

“I took a swing at me and knocked me out. But because of that the teacher was reprimanded for making the sickly kid collapse and they threatened to fire her if she ever chased a student again. She stopped trying to ask me after that. So it all worked out.”

“I don’t understand humans,” Sensei sighed. “Anyway, I’m in favor of the track team. If it helps you run faster, that means less of you getting snatched by yokai and less work for me.”

“Stop being lazy and trying to skip out on your bodyguard duties, Sensei. Yokai shouldn’t be chasing me down in the first place, it’s your job to take care of them.”

“I’ve got my own life to live! Stop being so selfish!”

“I’m the selfish one?”

They bickered all the way to the school gate, and though Natsume would never admit it to Nyanko-sensei, it did make him feel a lot better.

---

Part 1 complete! Part 2 to come. This is probably about halfway there, if not more.

Footnotes:

*Yes, Sasada has a sports and academic rival yuri storyline in the background. Yes I'm being self indulgent. It's what she deserves. It probably won't come up much more, I just thought it would be funny. Sasada's having this whole romantic epic while Natsume's worrying about track.

*Touko has been bragging about how kind and helpful you are, Natsume, you dummy. And about the garden he made and how it was good it was and other things Natsume does really well he hasn't noticed. She's also probably noticed he's fast and relatively strong for his size, he's always fetching and carrying stuff for her, but Coach thought she was exaggerating. UNTIL NOW.

[misssmina]

Characterizing Characters

Bakugou Katsuki.

I’ll be using the source material to create a simple list of traits he has already, then based on those traits, things we can infer about him based on those behaviors.

SourceMaterial!Bakugou is a hothead, we know this. However, at UA, his anger is almost never unreasonable. He is regularly the butt of his classmates jokes and teasing, which makes him argumentative. Outside of that he is just a very competitive teen with a grumpy disposition. He is pre-irritated.

SourceMaterial!Bakugou is rarely malicious in his words. Most things he says seemingly comes from a place of indifference. (Calling people extras, taking a long time to learn names and quirks, etc.)

SM!Bakugou is a goody two-shoes, despite his mouth. He sleeps early, studies hard, has been seen yelling at his classmates about making sure to eating well.

SM!Bakugou is socially awkward. He doesn’t just struggle with being nice, he struggles with being appropriate in general.

SM!Bakugou has great deductive reasoning skills. It helps in battle as well as him learning about interpersonal relationships.

SM!Bakugou is half decent with kids, he makes a point of analyzing and understanding their behavior to relate to them.

SM!Bakugou is a tough love kind of guy, but he actively acknowledges his classmates strengths.

SM!Bakugou has mission anxiety from both times he was held hostage.

SM!Bakugo regularly pushes his physical limits, regardless of injury or wellbeing.

Now we can make some inferences based on the information we have already.

ProHero!Bakugou found better outlets for his anger. MMA, quirk ranges, general exercise, etc.

ProHero!Bakugou still hates the press, but has learned how to conduct himself professionally. His interviews give the same cold feel as Aizawa’s.

ProHero!Bakugou would hold youth self-defense classes featuring different heroes, to prevent incidents like the sludge villain from happening again.

ProHero!Bakugou would take on many mentees and sidekicks. Feeling he’d be the best person to whip them into heroes.

ProHero!Bakugou would not give lots of verbal praise to his mentees and sidekicks. He’d just give them more responsibilities as the are able to handle them.

ProHero!Bakugou would have similar scaring to ProHero!Sero. Scars from injury and muscle damage would be most prominent on his shoulders, biceps, and forearms.

ProHero!Bakugou would work very closely with ProHero!Kirishima, ProHero!Jirou, and ProHero!Uraraka. Relying on their skills in combat, reconnaissance, and rescue, respectively.

Now, some personal headcannons I have. 💥

Bakugou rolls his eyes, A LOT. Mainly to keep himself from saying something out of pocket.

He cracks his wrists a lot, and his fingers are always sore.

He is a momma’s boy, but he’s an easier child for his father.

Bakugou is a polyglot.

Bakugou wouldn’t date another hero, but not a regular civilian either. Maybe someone in the medical field?

Bakugou has cuteness aggression with animals and his friends think it’s hilarious.

He takes Yaoyorozu with him to events because, “She’s the only one with any sense around here.”

Bakugou has gotten in trouble for modifying and tinkering with his gauntlets without approval.

Let me know who I should do next. I may do a secondary post the further I get into rewatching the show.

[cuttlefishcommie]

Haven't posted in a while, time for a comics rant.

I love booster gold. I love him so much, he's my favourite ever comics character. He has a couple of basic powers like flight and usually blasts, but spends a lot of time using force fields, which is incredibly cool. It makes him a pretty versatile fighter. Similarly I love his costume, colourful, recognisable and not too complicated (plus it has wrist gauntlets, I love wrist gauntlets), which is basically everything you need for a good super suit.

Outside of the basics, I love his premise. He's a time travelling super hero from the future. There's tonnes of room for great time travel related adventures, which are always incredibly entertaining. Plus plenty of space for fish out of water comedy. Furthermore, the idea of a normal guy coming back from the future with high tech stuff to be a hero, is incredibly amusing and one of the most original premises for a character.

I love everything about him, I love that he's on the JLI. I love that he has a little robot buddy (Skeetz). I love that his arch nemesis is called Dick Hertz.

Boosters story is genuinely amazing. He's brash and he's bold, a confident goofball, but also a massive nerd. He comes to the past as a fame seeker with a less than noble history, he's shaky and he's not great at being a hero. He can be arrogant, and over sure of himself, and at the start he really doesn't feel that he fits in. He feels like an imposter in a world of genuine heroes. As time goes on, booster gold the og fanboy turned superhero (honestly this premise is universally delightful - looking at you Gwenpool) becomes more and more selfless. It's the greatest example of fake it till you make it, booster stop trying to hit the A list, and he's relegated to the B-tier, saving the world time and again, without anyone even knowing. Booster turns from being the arrogantly begrudging "greatest hero you've never heard" of to having that title be a thing of pride, an honoured descriptor. Booster becomes a more genuine hero than most others, all because he knew the future was brighter, and because he wanted to help people here. For many reasons, this story is incredibly personally impactful for me, but there's one other thing that I need to talk about for Booster.

This is to the fandom. Booster Golds most important relationship have never been any of his brief flings, it has never been any of the crazy characters from across time, it has never even been his family. The most important relationship booster gold has is blue beetle. Booster and Ted have one of the greatest friendships in comics. They'll hang out all the time, just for fun. They joke around together. They work together when they can. But when times are tough they always turn up for each other. It's an inspiring friendship for the ages. I understand why many people like to claim this. There are not a lot of gay relationships in comics, and that sucks. But, can we please stop this nonsense of pretending every time two people have strong feelings for each other it's romantic. Can for once, we have some characters with a very impactful friendship, that outclasses romantic bonds. I am so tired of everything being romantic, and as weird as it sounds, alongside bill and Ted's excellent adventure and Shaun of the dead, booster gold gets to be one of those breaks. So please, just for once can we accept there is in fact a platonic explanation for this, Booster and Ted are best friends, and their relationship is what being best friends should look like.

[vesanal]

₊˚｡⋆❆⋆｡˚₊The 17th Day of Writemas₊˚｡⋆❆⋆｡˚₊

Sup guys! How y’all doing on this fine day? I know for one, I am doing amazing. If y’all don’t know about this writing challenge yet then look here at the invite post for all the info!! Today’s prompts are right here! I cannot believe this is almost over, wow. It feels like I just started this.

Prompts used:

Feeling: The sparkle of stars armor

Dialogue: "Take that look off your face. Take your pity and drown in it."

Setting: Nothingness

I had a lot of fun showing a lot of Idalia’s strict tough-on-crime(despite running an ““ex”” crime ring) attitude today! Sure hope this doesn’t come as a response from any past experience wink wink... Have as much fun reading it as I did making it! <3

Read about the WIP here!!

Enjoy!!

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

“What’s this one’s deal?” Idalia spoke, carefully fitting her gauntlet over her fingers, and looking down from her desk to stare directly at the Countress, the defendant of Milev, and the offender, a cuffed young girl, by her side, “Countress, please present the Watch’s case for the criminal.'“

A young girl screamed aloud suddenly, her voice cracking as it filled with as much confusion as it did fear, “Criminal? But I haven’t even had a trial yet! Please, lady, find some compassion within your soul—”

A smack to the girl’s mouth came from the Countress using the back of her armored hand, “Quiet you! Don’t you dare plead with the Sovereign Mistress now when you yourself were the one to have committed an unlawful offense against the people of Milev. We know what we saw. You are very lucky to not already be dead”, she muttered.

The Countress went on, “Lady of the people, ma’am, I hereby declare to you that this criminal sent here today has broken the natural law and brought disorder to Milev. The Watch has given me all the details that I have outlined for you on the parchment before you. Including, but not limited to, theft, destruction of property, resisting arrest, and threatening a Watch member, which is an act of terrorism, as discussed. I suggest skimming the stack of papers over and making a decision accordingly.”

Atop the tall desk standing overhead of the two, Idalia adjusted herself in her tall throne-like seat, leaning back onto her chair and kicking up one of her heavy boots to sit atop the desk. She glanced at a few of the pages and nodded to herself, making a verdict in her head. 

Idalia folded her hands together, “Hm. Well, the cleaners are free today. So, I guess that means this strong-willed young lady will be dealt with by them now. Guards, you are relieved of your Watch duties for right now, take her off right away, please. Everyone else is dismissed.”

“Please reconsider the punishment! Please!” The girl yelled through the commotion again.

The girl pleaded on her knees and up to Idalia. From all the way at the top of the desk, not much could she pick out from her oppressor. Though small tendrils of striking red hair and sparkles of her pristine armor could be partially seen peeking out of the dark nothingness that presented itself before the girl, it was like she was trapped in a black void as something came to swallow her up whole. Dread hit her hard, nothing then at the moment could humanize the women sending her to her death. It was torturous.

"Take that look off your face. Take your pity and drown in it." Idalia decisively stated, her face revealing itself from the darkness.

Grabbing the girl by the chains and yanking her out of the Sentencing Chamber, the Watch members guarding the room dragged her to another room across the hall. Echoed screams tried to escape back into the room to Idalia for mercy. But, with one swift move, the Countress of the closed case shut the doors, silencing the room. 

The Countress wrapped her flowing white hair up into a loose bun on top of her head. She hid her angular face by putting back on her silver helmet that she kept on the table beside her. Masking her pale blue skin, she snapped the heavy metal helmet back into place. In a voice concealed by her helmet she spoke to Idalia again, but a bit more casual this time.

“Last one down, my liege.” She smirked up to Idalia.

Idalia sighed, rubbing her tired eyes with her charcoal hands, as she got up her chair and off the desk she watched over the trial on, “It’s such a shame to have crime on the loose. And here I thought I had eradicated all danger from Milev by now. But no, it feels like more than ever rogues have come into town and broken all the laws I set to protect our own.”

“Mistress, do not worry any further. If more ever do show their faces, fear will work well to keep them in line. Just as well as it does with the Milev citizens. Which is just what we need to prosper.”

“It’s not about prosperity, Countress Aisik. It’s about survival. And agreeing to complete order and passivity for those who are to be protected by us, so we have a reason to die for their safety.”

“Yes. What you wish, my lady.” Aisik held in her tongue as she faithfully bowed her head to her leader.

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

(PLEASE tell me if you wanna get added to a tag list here because I genuinely don't know who to tag lol. I'll edit this and add you in!! <3 )

TAGLIST SO FAR: @sunflowerrosy @seastarblue

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Our wonderful host <3 → @agirlandherquill Have a lovely day everyone!!

[howlingday]

everyone has jaune as a paladin or a fighter, lets see jaune as a barb everyone is terrified of this tall tattooed wild man and they think he's kidnapped ruby... they were just talking about their hobbies why's everyone so mean to ruby's new friend? of course also give us an obligatory jaune rage moment

"There he is."

Weiss and Yang peered from their hiding place to match their view with Blake. Ahead, their abducted leader sat across the fire, trapped by the hulking beast with his eyes on her. She looked like she was about to cry. Yang-

"Wait." Blake held her hand against Yang's chest. "We can't just rush in. Ruby could get hurt."

"Not if I hurt him first." Yang growled.

"Yang, he was able to take Ruby on his own." Blake reasoned. "And with Ruby already taken hostage, we can't risk any harm coming to her."

"Or any further harm." Weiss added.

Yang was angry, but she couldn't just rush in and vent them out on the guy right in front of her. She hated it, but she didn't have a choice. So she sat and waited, watching as her sister wept in front of her.

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

"That's so sad." Ruby sniffled. "And you couldn't do anything to stop her?"

"Pyrrha was always the better fighter." Jaune sighed. "Even if I wanted to, she would've found a way to stop me from taking her place." He traced his fingers down his arm, his digits kissing the spear and shield tattoos decorating his fallen friend and lover. They seemed to glow at his tough.

"Are they... magical?" Ruby asked.

"In a way." He gently smiled. "It helps me connect with her spirit." He chuckled. "Even now, she's ready to protect me."

"Can... Can I touch them?" He nodded, and she carefully approached him. He may have seemed gentle and kind now, but his earlier abduction of her made their friendship a little tenuous. He held out his arm, and she drew close, tracing her delicate fingers as he did. There was a magic in these arms, and the catalyst for their power were these tattoos. "Why did you abduct me?"

"Because I know you were there." Jaune answered. "And I didn't want a friend of Pyrrha to meet the same fate as she did."

"What do you- Whoa!" Ruby fell backwards, slipping in the mud. Jaune caught her arm, and she winced. "Ow!"

"Oh, sorry," Jaune said as he reached a hand out to steady her, "are you oka-"

"GET YOUR HANDS OFF MY SISTER!" Ruby fell on her back as a familiar voice signaled an explosion in front of her. Yang threw a bomb at Jaune's face, likely hoping it would ony slightly injure her and fatally wound Jaune for some protective reason.

"Yang, don't-!"

The blonde bombshell rushed into the taller blond, swinging a hard fist into his face for good measure. Enraged, her eyes glowed red as she continued to strike her foe, unarmed save for the gauntlets covering her fists. There was a thundering crack, signaling that bone was broken.

"Ruby, are you okay?" Blake asked as she kneeled next to her leader.

"I'm fine," Ruby stood up, "but you guys need to stop attacking! Jaune's not our enemy!"

"Who's Jaune?" Weiss asked.

A scream pierced the air, drawing attention back to the mentioned barbarian. Holding Yang in place by a broken arm, what rage she felt died as she was made helpless by him. She couldn't pull away, the pain unbearable at every attenmpt to free herself.

"Yang!" Blake ran in, swing her ribboned blade in a wide circle before launching it at the assailant. As the blade neared, it harmlessly bounced off with a deafening gong. Where it struck, the barbarian's shield tattoo gave an ethereal glow. "How did..?"

"Blake, get back!" Weiss ran past, closing the distance between her teammate and their opponent.

She thrust forward, narrowly missing as Yang was released. Rather than retreat, however, the mountain of a man instead took hold of his longblade, readying it to engage Weiss' rapier. Again, his tattoos glowed.

"STOP!" Weiss and the barbarian lowered their weapons and took notice of Ruby. "Just... let me explain!"

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

"Geez! You could've told me that you were just looking out for her!"

"I couldn't," Jaune said as he healed Yang's arm with his aura, "you broke my jaw."

"Yeah, well, don't be so scary next time. Or kidnap people's little sisters. How would you feel?"

"I would probably do the same thing." Jaune nodded, wrapping a bandage over her arm. "Of course, I wouldn't punch them in the face."

"Guess I'm more of a risk-taker than you." Yang stuck her tongue out.

"Not to interrupt your stupidity, but why exactly did you... carry Ruby away?"

"I needed to get her alone." Jaune said, raising many eyebrows. "Uh, to get her away from anyone who might be listening to you guys. That's why I grabbed her and not her stuff."

"What did you want to tell us?" Blake asked.

Jaune opened his mouth to argue, but there was no point now. They really were a team. He held back tears as memories of JNPR came to mind. Swallowing his pride, he spoke his truth.

"Do not trust Ozpin."

[nightmare-grass]

This might be a controversial take for all the Genshin fans who see Wriothesley with his gauntlets and his handcuffs and his red and black outfit and see a dom sort of character, but I believe I’ve figured out his character after seeing the latest 4.1 trailer, and he’s not what we thought he was.

Wriothesley is not a Jason Todd/Red Hood. He’s not a hunky bad boy with a heart of gold, he’s not a rough and tough guy who don’t play by the Iudex’s rules. He’s not Vi from Arcane, despite the fighting style.

Wriothesley is Mr. Darcy from Pride and Prejudice. He’s very diligent, he’s a great manager, everyone working under him likes and respects him a lot, and he’s rather straight-laced, preferring to stick to protocol unless absolutely necessary, at which point he’ll resort to punching the problem. He probably doesn’t get out much anymore, usually staying at the Fortress of Meropide, so he wouldn’t be a smooth talker like a lot of the fanfics depict him as. He probably has a cold and stoic exterior hiding a heart of pure gold, so it would probably take a bit for him to show more of his true personality. He’s down to earth, honest, hardworking, and resourceful. He’s probably got a strict moral code, but that doesn’t stop him from trying to understand the inmates under his care. He may look scary, and he may be an absolute terror in a fight, but that’s all just the tip of the Wriothesley iceberg.

[lulutaylorsimaginarium]

The Chain

Summary: When the guys get stuck in a situation and hunted down by a drug lord. Frankie makes a call he really doesn’t want to make to the only person that can help them

Words:1,508

Warnings: “creator chooses not to use warnings.” If you click Keep Reading, that means you agree that you’re the right age to handle mature themes. We handle our own triggers with kindness and grace

AN: Mind any grammar mistakes even though the story has been checked. The author is dyslexic and it is the wonders of her brain.

AN2: A little Gabby and Frankie, for those who requested it long ago xx

THE CHAIN MASTERLIST

Nineteen

Nineteen

Frankie had called all the guys on his way to and back from the Lola’s strip club alleyway. They weren’t aware of all the details but they knew they needed to get back as fast as they could. Which took longer for Benny, since he had to sell the car before heading back over the border.

Santiago and Will had just paid for the van and were half an hour into the drive home when they got the call. They drove all night. Breaking any laws they could to get their faster

They didn’t know what they were walking into but were picturing the worst.

Only for them to walk through the front door to find Frankie and Gabby asleep on the sofa. He couldn’t have wrapped his arms around her any tighter then he was. Her face buried in his chest. A big purple bruise along her jaw and that was all they could see at this point but they somehow knew there was more.

Frankie hadn’t explained but seeing them together like this. Both Santiago and Will knew it had to be bad.

The polar opposite of the way Gabby and Frankie had been before they had left.

Frankie felt something above them. His arms instinctually wrapped protectively around her before his eyes flew open. He saw Pope and Will before moving  from under Gabby, lying her back down and kissing her temple. They could see all the damage on her. The bruises on her arms and the marks  and cuts on her hands. She had put up a good fight no matter what happened. Even though proud they were not at all surprised that she had fight in her.

Not knowing what happened made things much worse.

 Frankie ushered the guys on to the front porch before getting an onslaught of questions.

No he didn’t know who it was

No it wasn’t one of Rojas’ men

Yes, she had been the one to do it

No he hadn’t counted the rest of the money. He had other pressing matters.

Pressing matters that were currently sleeping in the next room.

No, nobody was going to find anything

Yes, they would have to talk Gabby into selling this house.

No, he didn’t know how.

Yes, she was banged up and couldn’t hear much but at least she was sleeping.

 Santiago noticed the change. He didn’t know what had changed but there was something more going on but it wasn’t the time nor the place to ask.

A green hatchback started driving up the dirt road and up the driveway. They were all on guard til Benny unfolded his long body out of that thing.

As Benny got up on to the front step they all heard banging in the kitchen.

She was up and they were all in the same place.

But what now.

Things had definitely changed

The brothers didn’t notice it as they walked into the house.

The look that Santiago and Frankie gave each other.

 The gauntlet had been thrown

The game was on and they knew it wasn’t important right in this very moment, but it was on.

#

Frankie walked back into the house with Santiago close behind. Will was standing close to her, checking every mark on her. She just chuckled sweetly

“Don’t worry. I’m tough”

“No doubt about that”

“Coffee?” she asked

“Yeah, its been a long night all round”

“Is there any other kind?”

She got everything ready. The coffee machine beeped and she poured the coffee as if she had been doing it for them every morning of their lives.

“Can you hear?” Frankie asked softly

“Better then yesterday. Still not great” she said sipping her coffee “We’ll probably need to move this money faster. We don’t know if this guy told anyone about it. So the faster we move it the better”

“Listen, I don’t care about the money anymore” Frankie told her, with a little more attitude then he intended.

Gabby put her hand on his chest and smiled softly at him. Before he pulled her closer.

“We’re going to be okay. Its just one final push and we’ll be over the line. Yeah?”

“Yeah” he barely uttered before she looked at everybody else

“You guys hungry?”

“Staving” Benny answered enthusiastic

“Take a load off”

The three guys went and sat at the dining table with their coffees.

“I’ll help” Frankie told her quietly. She nodded her head and thanked him  before filling up both their cups and getting to work.

She was playing the denial game. The nothing-happened game. The distraction game and they were willing to play along because they didn’t know what would happen if they didn’t.

Maybe that was what she needed right now.

One big happy family.

And that. They could do.

Santiago watched them from the table. The moving around each other, the delicate dance they did. The little touches that they didn’t even notice as they cooked with each other. The air was charged with things unspoken.

When breakfast was ready they sat at the table, Frankie’s arm resting on the back of her chair. Stealing each others food. Having full on, secret conversations through tiny glances.

It was intimate 

Things had shifted and Santiago could see it.

#

Will , Benny and Santiago moved outside into the garage and went to work. Santiago went into the storm shelter and counted what they had left.

Leaving Frankie and Gabby in the house alone.

Even they knew there was tension between them.  She was in uncharted waters. She didn’t know what she was feeling. She didn’t know if it had always been there. She knew that life was in the way. She didn’t know if it was real or if she just needed comfort from the person that she trusted the most,

She was confused by it but also didn’t care.

Gabby didn’t notice him walk up behind her til Frankie wrapped his arms around her and pulled her closer

“You need to slow down”

“I’m okay. I promise” she told him looking back “Where did you put him?”

“Nowhere. He’s gone. You don’t have to think about him anymore”

She pulled his arms tighter around her

“We both know that’s not going to happen”

“Gabs, you need to..”

“Sell the house. I know. Florida may be my only opinion right now” she chuckled “I’ve been told you need a babysitter”

“Sorry for ruining your life”

“You saved it. Twice”

“I’d do it again” he told her running his fingers along her jaw “Over and over and over. I’m in love with you, Gabby. I always have been. It’s the wrong time to tell you. I know that. I thought you died yesterday. I don’t expect anything to change. I don’t expect anything from you but I just need you to know that. So you know that. Okay?”

She nodded her head and watched him struggle not to kiss her. How come she had never seen this before. Had it always been so clear.

Gabby turned around in his arms and wrapped her arms around his neck. Pulling him closer, if that was even possible. He lifted her up and sat her on the kitchen bench before she wrapped her legs around him, not even Gabby knew why.

Maybe it was the past few weeks. Maybe it was the things unsaid that were finally told, but they stayed like that for a long time

#

Later that day, the guys were all outside hard at work pulling things apart putting it back together.

She would have taken a moment to appreciate the view if she was in her right mind. Even commit it to memory but she was going stir crazy.

Thankfully her car had already been pulled out down the driveway. She kinda wanted to sneak out unnoticed but she knew them better then that by now.

She actually got the key in the  car door before Frankie caught up with her.

“You okay?”

“Yeah just stir crazy. Going to go for a drive. Get out of my head”

“Might get some looks from people. Don’t worry about it, okay?”

She hadn’t even looked in the mirror today. She had no idea what she looked like.

“I won’t get out of the car” she nodded her head before looking up at him “Does it look bad?”

“Gorgeous”

“Frankie”

“If you need us. Call. If anything feels off . Call”

He opened the door for her and helped her inside, closing the door again

“Yes, dad”

“I’m serious”

“You always are” she teased

“You flirting with me?”

“A little”

“Never stop”

She chuckled and looked away shaking her head.

“Be careful”

“Call” he told her “I’m serious”

He watched her until he couldn’t see her anymore. He wouldn’t have wanted anything like  the past few days to happen to them ever, let alone again. Especially to her but things had changed, shifted between them.

He saw it.

He felt it and so did she.

The problem was that they weren’t the only ones who had noticed.

[hyperfixatinglove]

I'm convinced Jesse cried off screen after he mercy killed his father.

There's certain melancholy to his stance as vampire!William talks his last words like he's finally realizing he's not gonna see his father again, what he was running from, the grief, is settling in inside his bones in his very being.

Not to mention he had to mercy kill him. He was the one who put the bullet in him. Even if Jesse does not believe there's not a shred of William inside the vampire he's hunting nor that his last words are genuine, I do think he feels guilt. He could've saved those people who got massacred by his father, if Emilia was allowed to put a bullet in him earlier. Maybe if he had done something, William would not have been bitten.

How crushing it must've felt, the realization he was now his family's last. Orphan. Not an heir any longer, but director, a leader. Returning to the scene of massacre must've worsened his feelings.

Maybe he locked himself in his room, took off his gauntlet and cried as silently as he could. Alone and miserable. Cried until his grief and sadness morphed into rage to kill Felicity.

@totallynotgayforyou

[therobotmonster]

My Turtles of Grayskull 'Druthers

Okay, since the line is apparently not a limited-concept run but is going to instead run till the doors fall off, I'm gonna lay out my hopes and dreams for sweet-as-heck dumb conceptual mashups.

Lets stick some silly chocolate and some stupid-fun peanut butter together and make a decent candy and an awesome cereal.

I might be hungry.

Anyhow, lets make some monsters!

Ace Duck

I love the Tales of the Gold Monkey-inspired pilot Ace Duck more than the next guy, but this is MOTU we're dealin' with, we need ARCHIE Ace Duck.

He's literally born to be here. Basic body, skeletor feet, reuse the April O'Neil wings, little red thong or trunks (from the wrasslin' line), plus he can get stratos's little arm wings, and an alt head with the Stratos Mask on (evoking a lucha dore mask).

Ty-Gor - NInjor / Tigerclaw (but green!)

Ninjor gets mutated with Eternian Tiger DNA to become Ty-Gor.

Not limiting myself to the Fred Wolf era here. Basically its Ninjor with a Tigerclaw head (masked and two-eyed, unmasked and eyepatched), only with the green with orange stripes eternian tiger coloration. He gets a terror-claws skeletor claw, an eternian six-shooter (later usable for Rio-Blast) and the beastliest feet they can muster.

Mutant Evil-Lyn

Seeking to empower herself with this new "mutation" magic, Evil-Lyn made a potion of mutagen and Mantisaur venom. Ironically not her worst scheme.

Mantenna pelvis with new insect legs, Evil-Lyn torso with humanoid and mantisaur-mutant heads (still wearing her tiara as a mantisaur), slip-over mantis-claw weapons.

Kurai-Khan

I mean, it's not like she hasn't been here before. Lore establishes the Eternian magic gives her full control over her snake-form, and the ability to command the snake men... save for the Ratsnake King.

Deluxe figure, reusing a LOT of Lady Slither, But using Stephanie McMahon legs and torso, some new snake-gauntlets and a swappable set of heads. Snake-head has the spit-fx feature from Kobra Khan, flared cobra hood. And a katana, obviously.

General Pig-Iron - Pig-Head / General Traag (By way of Rokkon)

Krang's mutagenic experiments continue, this time he combines Sun-Man's Pig-Head and the Rock-Soldiers' DNA to make one stone-tough pigheaded warmonger.

The sculpt is mostly Rokkon, with a new stony pighead-face and more Traag-y chest (with ammo bandolier to mimic Pig-Head, 'natch)

The Ratsnake King - Rat King / King Hiss

Disappointed by the Rat-King's failures, Skeletor fuses him with the shed skin of King Hiss via sorcery and good old fashioned mutagen. The new horror can command serpents that were beyond even King Hiss's reach.

Ratsnake King uses the King hiss snake parts, with a new head & chest armor built on a mummy-esq reinterpretation of Rat King, snake-y crossbow and staff. Give him the Reptilax tail so he's a little snakey even in his 'human' form, he's a mutant, after all.

Mutagen-Man-E-Faces

This idea is from @skeletor-enjoyer who posted it in the replies to my previous glow-up post on this dumb-as-heck (affectionate) line.

This one's easy. New torso that allows for the Man-E-faces gimmick and a clear torso that can hold a gooey guts insert. Human face looks like nonmutant Seymour Gutz, Robot face replaced with foot-soldier (toonstyle) face, monster face is a hybrid MM/MEF monster face.

New limbs that will later be reused for Slushhead. Multiple replacement hands/limbs (clawful hand, etc) to simulate mutation/shapeshifting powers.

Foot 'Sploders - Foot soldiers / Blast-Attack

Krang: You know what Skeletoooorrruup? I like the iDEa of robots that are SUPPOSED to exPLooowwddee! Why can't YOU be this kind of go-getter Saaaaakiiii?

Shredder: You always undermine me in front of the crossover villains!

Skeletor: Don't stop on my account! I haven't had this much fun since Grizzlor fell into the slime pit! NYAH!

Excuse to make a somewhat functional Blast-Attack chest. Foot Soldier head with cartoon bomb in place of the foot symbol, long forearm sculpt (useful for 200X Beast Man) with arm-shield accessories. Tons of weapons. Legs from various wrasslers' with pants/boots.

Doctor Orkocutt the Fugilock

Orko uses his magic to fix the Fugitoid, but the spell goes awry, merging them into a single magi-technical absentminded genius. They work better this way, but trouble is bound to follow.

Orko Body, with premolds for a Netflix Orko in Classicverse arms, and a new fugiod-in-a-wizard-hat-head, with many many exchangeable hands.

Mutant Buzz-Off - Buzz-off/Killer Bee

A partially-translucent mutant like He-Man and the other corrupted hero mutants, only Buzz-Off is... kinda wild... wild enough I had to photoshop, albeit in a Q&D...

The basic idea is mutant Buzz-Off uses Mantenna's legs, Mosquitor's torso, a new head that's still compatible with the Mosquitor-grabber, Buzz-Off's left arm, Clawful's right, alt head of grimacing half-killer-bee Buzz_off. The goo is green or purple instead of red, for a mutagen-feature.

If compatible with the Mantenna legs, using the Buzz-Off feet is preferable, the same with the Skeleton Warrior arm and the left arm.

Bionaceraton - Triceraton / Bionatops

Ancient power arises as a Preternian ancestor to the Triceratons is awakened.

I mean, once again we pull out the Andre the Giant mold, this time giving it a tail and a Triceraton head, and slightly remolded chest armor. Garnish with sci-fi guns, put out in a handsome green colorscheme.

Mutant She-Ra - She-Ra / Swiftwind

Having last been in contact with Swiftwind before exposure to the mutagen, She-Ra's becomes an uncontrollable mutant Pegasus.

Am I suggesting they put a Unicorn head and Sorceress Wings on She-Ra, possibly with new 'buff gal' limbs that would make a Netflix-inspired Scorpia Possible? Yes. Yes I am. She's got a unicorn-horn spear weapon and is filled with a horselike rage.

Optikk

Look, its the TMNT crossover. You are required to have at least one of the New Adventures Mutants there, and Optikk is the most on-brand for the concept.

You can make him out of mostly Roboto Parts with a new armor piece for the collar and a new eyeball-head. Or just make the collar lock onto the head joint and have a free-spinning eye.

Mona Lis-Ra - Mona Lisa / She-Ra

Someone has to use the power sword while She-Ra's a nightmare mutant abomination!

It's pretty straightforward, She-Ra torso and upper arms/legs, new finned female lower arms and legs, new tailed female pelvis, new head. She-Ra's gear plus some extras to be shape-shifted forms for the sword.

Savanti Romeo and Renet

They're just there They're already designed for this world. To justify it, they have... uh... Savante has the dragon blast dragon that was used with Ricky the Steamboat Dragon, and Renet has... uh.. the time staff thing Gwildor used. Yeah, that's the ticket!

Bonus Round: Obligatory A-Character Variants:

TechnoWizard Dontatello - Backdoor Donatello #1 figure.

Anti-Eternia Raphael - Archie Comics fans know why.

Mutant Teela - She's a snake, again! This time give her a real snake head and a tail guys.

Mutant Skeletor - Goat Skull head, goat legs.

That's it for now, but even though many of these are a stretch, I'm sure it demonstrates the blood isn't nearly squeezed from this stone.

[poorboypictures]

Ben 10: Biomatrix

(Warning: this is a little long)

Ben Tennyson was 16 when he found a broken Omnitrix in the woods while on a camping trip with some teammates, celebrating their victory in the last game of the season. As he tried to get it off, Ben accidentally activates the device and transformed into an amalgam of himself and a Pyronite. After some mishaps, and a fight with a giant robot looking for the watch, Ben decided to use it to help if/when the opportunity came.

Gwen Tennyson was invited to go camping by Ben as a way to help get her mind off of college exams; though the two weren't close, Gwen took up the offer, reminded of their road trip with Grandpa Max. At the camp site, Gwen was the one to spot the impending forest fire from Ben's transformation, and was the first one to rush to help, discovering Ben, and giving him the idea to create a backfire to stop the original.

JT Mackleroy used to bully Ben after befriending Cash Murray, but changed his tune when Cash voiced his unconcern for anyone caught in the forest fire, let alone Ben or Gwen. Following Gwen to help, JT brought a pair of fire extinguishers to try and douse the fire before it got out of hand, but it was too big by the time he arrived, so just kept the flames at Bay while Ben and Gwen tried coming up with a plan. afterwards, JT apologized for bullying Ben and even wanted to try and be friends again.

After that camping trip, Ben, Gwen, and JT team up when something would happen in or around town: Ben is the muscle, using any one of ten transformations in the newly dubbed Biomatrix; Gwen is the informant, using her research abilities to find any bit of information no matter how minute; and JT is the equipment guy, his time as the Soccer teams equipment manager giving him an insight into any and all items that may come in handy.

Because the Biomatrix is damaged, it doesn't fully transform Ben, but the effect on each alien varies, along with how complete each transformation is.

Hot Shot: Ben's first alien, and arguably the most complete due to how little of "Ben" is left once the transformation is "done", being a few inches taller than Ben, but is still primarily, physically a Pyronite. Abilities include limited Pyrokinesis and heat resistance and detection.

Wildmutt: The transformation is more of a 60/40 split, making Ben look like a Vulpimancer werewolf, and because of this, can talk, though not well, utilizing short simple sentences only when he needs to. Abilities include echolocation, enhanced sense of smell, enhanced strength and flexibility.

Diamondhead: Petrosapien crystals form pieces of armor around Ben rather than actually becoming Ben but aren't as tough as normal Petrosapien crystal. Abilities include crystal generation, enhanced durability, and weapon formation originating from the crystal gauntlets.

XLR8: Due to some of the more important biological features of Kinecelerens are missing from the transformation, XLR8's top speed is a fraction of what a normal Kineceleren can move, but is still incredibly quick, topping out around 200 miles an hour. Abilities include enhanced speed and perception, and limited enhanced durability.

Cerebrum: Even with the partial transformation, Cerebrum is still the smartest alien in Ben's arsenal, but isn't as smart or as small as other Galvans, surpassing the average but is nowhere near the top, and stands at an even two feet tall. Abilities include enhanced intellect and mechanical knowhow.

Tetraman: For some reason, because of the incomplete transformation, the Biomatrix improperly scales the power of a Tetramand to Ben, giving Tetraman more power than natural Tetramands have, while being much smaller in size and stature, standing just under eight feet tall compared to the natural 10-12 feet. Abilities include enhanced strength, stamina, durability, dexterity, and sight.

Flyboy: An odd combination, Flyboy would remind you of some horror character fusion of man and insect, which makes Flyboy one of four transformations useful for interrogations. Abilities include flight, enhanced sight, goo generation from eyes, tail doubles as blade.

Angler: Due to the transformation being incomplete, Angler can stay out of water longer than regular Piscciss Volann's, but not by much, so Ben tries not to use him too much on land but keeps extra water on hand just in case. Abilities include enhanced swimming, strength, and durability, underwater breathing, jaw can unhinge for powerful bites.

Upgrade: The Galvanic Mechamorph primarily takes the shape of Ben, and leaves most of Bens clothes untouched compared to the other transformations, but because of the incomplete transformation, Upgrade can't fully merge with technology, leaving the primary body exposed while the "arms" are engaged. Abilities include technokinesis, "eye" laser, limited plasticity, enhanced durability.

Specter: Something about the transformation keeps Ben from using it too much, describing it as being like someone is always behind him, trying to tell him something; Ben really doesn't like using it, even if the situation calls for it. Abilities include phasing, possession, and flight.

If anyone has any questions or transformations they want to see, feel free to send me some asks, my inbox is open.

[ladyloveandjustice]

Running the Gauntlet: A Complete Natsume Yuujinchou Oneshot Fic

My full fanfic based on the idea I had in this post about Natsume's running abilities making his life at school difficult that blew up.

Includes a couple silly footnotes! ao3 link here if you want to leave kudos

Thank you to @schrodingersauthorii for saying something in the comments to my post that inspired parts of this!

Running the Gauntlet

“I wish Natsume wasn’t our anchor,” a classmate with a sour face and square glasses complained.

Natsume flinched. It’s not like I wanted to be, he thought glumly. He pretended he hadn’t heard, hunching over and tying this shoe. So many students and teachers milling around on the grass, waiting for the big event, whoever it was probably hadn’t noticed he was nearby.

But then, Nishimura’s response made him feel even worse.

“Man, shut up. You haven’t really seen Natsume run. He’s friggin’ fast. We’re lucky to have him.”

Natsume appreciated Nishimura standing up for him, but inwardly he was screaming at him to please stop talking about this.

Then Kitamoto chimed in, “Yeah, one of the first times we saw him outside of school, he basically dashed out of the woods at warp speed. So don’t be rude.”

He saw Kitamoto glance quickly at him, clearly aware might be in earshot.

“Fast? Come on you two, I know he’s your friend, but the guy is sickly. You’re expecting me to believe someone who collapses every other day is a good runner? I’m not saying he’s a bad guy, I’m just not counting on him to win this”. The classmate, who rarely spoke to Natsume, adjusted his glasses.

“You’ll see,” Nishimura said smugly.

Natsume groaned inwardly, straightening up.

He eyed the various students hanging out in different colored headbands, the boy handing out water bottles from the tent, and some teachers talking off to the side.  There was even a chattering crowd on the small set of bleachers. A crowd that included parents.

But worst of all was the looping black track, sizzling in the sun before him. He, Nishimura, and the rest who’d been chosen for the relay race would be lining up on it soon.

He hated Sports Day.

To be fair, this was his least hated sports day so far. He’d never actually experienced sports day while having friends before. When he was a kid, he could expect being pushed to the ground and mocked, or having classmates complaining loudly to teachers about being paired up with the liar. Best case scenario was he’d merely have to feel lonely as he was left out of class celebrations, watching parents and friends cheer others on when there was no one to cheer for him.

But this year he’d been able to cheer wildly for Taki during the bean bag toss, laugh at Tanuma as he was forced to dance awkwardly with the rest of his class during their group performance, and smile as Tanuma got some sweet revenge by beating him at the scavenger hunt. He’d gotten to high five Kitamoto and Nishimura after every victory, and even Sasada once.

So many parents being here was still a little intimidating, though. He kept expecting one of them to yell at him to get away from their kid, even though he knew it wasn’t like that anymore. The Fujiwaras hadn’t been able to come, as they had a relative’s wedding to attend today. Natsume hadn’t even told them today was sports day, because he didn’t want them to feel bad about it. He was also kind of relieved they couldn’t come, because he would have been even more nervous if they were watching.

Overall, it had been a good day. He was basically enjoying himself.

But there was no getting over the dread of his biggest obstacle yet—the relay race. He was really going to have to pay attention to his running. It was such a tough balance…he didn’t want to let down the class, but he also needed to think of…

“Natsume, are you okay?” He blinked, noticing Sasada was suddenly next to him. “You were spacing out a bit.”

“I’m fine! Actually, are you okay?” She looked pale, and she kept fiddling with her glasses. It was strange to see her without the usual air of confidence.

“I’m nervous,” she admitted. She’d been chosen for the relay race too, and was looking at the track with almost as much trepidation as he was.

“Sasada! Natsume!”  Nishimura ran forward before Natsume could reassure her. “It’s all up to us!”

“Yay,” Sasada said blandly.

“What’s wrong, Sasada?” Nishimura grinned smugly at her “Worried you’re gonna be the sports day cliché?”

“The…what?”

“You’ve seen it on TV, right? In anime and stuff? There’s always the one person who trips during the relay race. They scramble to their feet, tears in their eyes, and pass off their baton…” Nishimura imitated the gesture dramatically. “But don’t worry! You can trip all you want, I’m so fast it won’t matter! No need to be nervous!”

Sasada shook her head, putting her glasses back on. “You know what, your stupidity has calmed my nerves a bit, thank you,”

“Glad to be of service.”

---

Considering all that, Natsume wasn’t exactly surprised when Nishimura was the one who tripped.

Natsume winced when his friend went down, hoping he wasn’t hurt. It would be okay, right? Nishimura was so good-humored. This wasn’t a big deal or anything. He’d just laugh it off and…

Nishimura stumbled up, his knee bleeding, his face burning with shame. Natsume could see his eyes were brimming with tears. Of course he was devastated. Nishimura may act carefree, but he hated letting people down.

Natsume sighed.

Fine then.

“Nishimura!” He called out, offering his hand. “Don’t give up! I’ve got this!”

Nishimura’s face lit up instantly. He jogged as fast as he could and slammed the baton in Natsume’s hand. Natsume faced forward. The others had a massive head start, but that wasn’t enough to make him give up.

A yokai is chasing me, he told himself. A big one with sharp teeth.

And next thing he knew, he was crossing the finish line.

Cheers exploded around him as the other runners caught up, lagging after him. And then, suddenly, what seemed to be the entire class was rushing towards him. He had to resist the urge to put his hands up defensively.

Nishimura slammed into him from the side, embracing him. Tears were streaming down his cheeks and he was whooping and laughing. Heat spread up Natsume’s neck and face. It was the first time Nishimura had ever full-on hugged him. Or cried so openly in front of him. He knew it was considered fine for guys to cry and hug only when it involved sports for some reason, but it was still a surprise.  He wasn’t used to that kind of intimacy. Not that it was bad. It was kind of nice.

 The rest of his class gathered around him, yelling things like “way to go” and “that was amazing!” Even Sasada, her face still red and sweaty from her run, was screaming her head off and jumping up and down. Kitamoto clapped Natsume on the back and soon several classmates followed suit. Natsume was sure a red handprint was permanently etched on his back now.

“Dude, I knew you were fast, but I didn’t know you were that fast!!” Nishimura yelled through his tears.

“Seriously, do you have a secret running regimen I don’t know about, or is it just natural talent?” Kitamoto said.

Natsume heard some more cheering explode behind him, and looked over his shoulder to see an uncharacteristically excited Tanuma waving at him from the other side of the track, “Congrats, Natsume!”

“Tanuma, you could at least… pretend to care… that our class lost,” said the boy Natsume had gone up against, still doubled over and panting.

“Sorry.”

There was loud whistle from the stands and Natsume saw it came from Taki. The girl next to her had covered her ears. Taki didn’t notice, and let out another impressively strong blast, waving at him. She removed her knuckles from her mouth and shouted “Woo, Natsume!”

Natsume was torn between being happy his friends supported him and so embarrassed he could die.

“I owe you an apology, Natsume,” said the boy with the glasses, whoever he was.

“Hell yeah you do!” Nishimura responded.

“Nishimura…” Kitamoto’s said scoldingly, his eyes flicking to Sasada.

“Ah…I’m sorry too, Sasada,” Nishimura said sincerely. “You really showed me.” (Sasada had been fast enough to give Nishimura a head start, as Natsume suspected she would be, she’d certainly caught up to him out of nowhere plenty of times in the early days of their relationship).

Sasada wasn’t listening, she was looking at a fit girl with short black hair from another class, who was also still panting from the race. “How about that, Chiyo!” she called over to her.

“You win this one, but I’ll get you next time, Jun! Just you wait!” Chiyo called with a matching huge grin and an excited look in her eyes. For some reason Sasada blushed delicately in response*.

“Okay, okay, give him some room to breathe,” Kitamoto said, shooing at the others. They all stepped back, though Nishimura remained by Natsume’s side. Natsume was grateful for Kitamoto, he was dizzy and overwhelmed. He’d had no idea races like this were such a big deal to people. He was more grateful than ever the Fujiwaras weren’t here to add on to all this.

“Look Natsume!” Sasada had finally torn her eyes away from the other girl and was pointing at the stands. “Even the track coach looks impressed!”

“No wonder, you’re faster than half her team,” Kitamoto said. “Bet she tries to recruit you!”

Natsume’s stomach dropped like a stone. Indeed, the track coach, a woman with short dark brown hair and sharp eyes, was looking at him with interest. This was exactly what he’d been afraid of. His personal hell had returned. Had winning a measly race been worth it?

Natsume looked over at Nishimura, who was still jumping up and down and hollering about how he was going to treat Kitamoto, Sasada and Natsume to some manju, not even minding when Kitamoto snarked at him about it how it must be a cold day in hell if the man who sponged off everyone was paying the tab for once. He flashed Natsume another ecstatic grin, and Natsume smiled back.

Yeah, it had been worth it.

--

Natsume had experienced a lot of reoccurring horrors, but the most annoying of them was being hounded by track coaches at every school he went to.

Apparently, spending most of his life running from yokai had made him faster than the average person. He’d been unaware of this until his first year of middle school. When it came time to run the track, Natsume had heard whispers around him, a couple of the kids placing bets on when he’d collapse. One boy had even smacked him on the shoulder and screamed “The liar’s gonna come in dead last!” in his ear.

Natsume hadn’t really done much racing against other kids on the playground, and he’d been sick during a lot of gym classes, so he’d also figured he’d struggle against the other kids. It had completely shocked everyone, himself included, when he blew past them all with ease. He’d reached the finish line only to find the other kids several feet behind him, panting and gawking.

The gym teacher’s eyes had gone wide, and he’d immediately started urging Natsume to join the track club. The man had even gone to Natsume’s current guardians about it.

His guardians had resented that he was getting attention while their real kid was an overlooked benchwarmer on the baseball team. They’d thrown lots of snide comments Natsume’s way. And…well, he hadn’t had a good time on the track team at all. When he’d inevitably had to move again after those same guardians got tired of him, leaving the track club behind had been the silver lining.

Upon transferring to a new school, he’d decided to keep his speed under wraps. But then a coach noticed him running when he was late for class one day and his troubles started all over again. At first he’d avoided the coach by coming up with excuses about responsibilities or detention or headaches, but eventually he was just reduced to hiding under the bleachers when he saw the man.

At another school, a coach tried to recruit him for her team SO aggressively he’d made the stupid mistake of running away when he saw her—and naturally, seeing how fast he could book it had just increased her interest.

So, when he was gathering up all the extra water bottles from the hydration station tent at end of the day, and saw the track coach approach him, his heart started pounding, He fought back his urge to bolt, even a flashbacks filled his brain.

“Natsume, right? I’m Sakuragi, if you don’t remember." The woman had a wide, genuine smile. He’d only spoken to her a few times, but he was pretty sure she was Taki’s homeroom teacher. “You showed some impressive hustle today! Have you ever thought of joining the track team?”

Fortunately, Natsume had his excuses pre-prepared. “Oh wow, that’s such an honor, Sensei!” He said, continuing to gather up the water bottles while still maintaining polite eye contact. “But, you see, I get sick very easily, so joining a team is a bad idea. I’d just end up being absent a lot, and I’d let the team down.”

“That’s not a problem.” To his horror, the teacher bent down and started picking up the water bottles herself.

“You don’t have to trouble yourself—” He began quickly, but she cut him off, saying “ I’d never require you to come in when you’re not feeling well. You wouldn’t need to worry about calling out sick. We’re a fairly large team, so other students can easily sub in for you if you can’t make a race.”

What kind of laid back track team was this? Never mind, Natsume had a backup excuse. “Well, that’s great, but I’m also concerned about making trouble for my foster parents. It’s a lot to ask them, and I don’t want to put them out. I’d be around to help them less. They’d have to pay for expenses, like when overnight trips at the inn when we go to other towns, or shoes—”

“The school supplies the shoes and other essentials, and we can cover trip expenses if need be. Also, I chat with Ms. Fujiwara at the grocery store often, and she loves bragging about you. I can’t see her turning down a chance for you to develop your skills and enjoy some team spirit!”

Natsume looked down at his shoes, sure that he was tomato red right now. Touko bragged about him? What did he even do worth bragging about? “He only missed ten days of class this month”? “His grades were perfectly mediocre again”? “He hasn’t come home covered in dirt in a while”? “He made five whole friends at school, somehow?”*

Still, through his embarrassment, he felt a little warm inside. She was proud of him. It was a still a new feeling, and he wasn’t sure what to do with this strange, shy happiness.

“Natsume?” The coach’s voice snapped him back to reality. “Is there anything else bothering you, or would you like to come do a practice session with us? If you don’t like it, you don’t have to join. I’ll respect your decision.”

“I…” Natsume was searching for another excuse.  

 Nishimura jogged up. “Natsume, do you need any—" He noticed who Natsume was talking to and his eyes widened. “Oh, sorry to interrupt, Sensei! Natsume, are you being recruited? That’s so cool!”

“Ah, you were his teammate today, right?” Sakuragi smiled at Nishimura kindly.

Nishimura flushed a bit, rubbing the back of his neck. “Yeah, Natsume really saved me out there. He’s a dependable guy! And he’s a great runner!”

Nishimura flashed a grin at Natsume, who was wishing he had telepathy so he could tell him to stop. He tried to send a signal by shaking his head slightly, but Nishimura wasn’t looking now.

“Well, that definitely sounds like track team material,” Sakuragi said jovially. She turned to Natsume. “Looks like your friends vouch for you. But it’s up to you, Natsume. Would you mind just stopping by?”

Natsume couldn’t bring himself to directly say no to a teacher in the first place, and now Nishimura and his enthusiasm had been added to the mix. “I’ll give it a try,” he mumbled, forcing a smile.

“Great! Just come to the track after school tomorrow. I think you’ll find it’s a lot more fun than you’re thinking.”

Natsume kept the smile fixed on as they carried the water bottles back into school. When the coach departed and they came ouside again, he and Nishimura met Taki and Tanuma. As always, Nishimura immediately started blushing and fidgeting , but as always, Taki failed to notice.

“I saw you with Sakuragi-sensei!” she said with a smile. “Impressing her is a big feat, Natsume! And don’t worry, she’s really nice.” She put her hand on Natsume’s shoulder, and Nishimura let out a strangled squeak. “She won’t get mad at you, whatever you decide.”

“Are you okay?” Tanuma said softly. Clearly both he and Taki had noticed he wasn’t actually happy right now.

“I’m fine,” Natsume said, letting the fake smile drop away and replacing it with a shrug of his shoulders. “I’ll just check it out. No big deal.”

---

“I don’t get why you’re whining so much about it,” Nyanko-sensei said, trotting beside Natsume as he walked to school the next day. “It’s just one measly meeting. What’s so bad about this running team thing anyway?”

“The people who took care of me when I joined the track team the first time were really bothered by it. They didn’t like having to drive me places, or the attention I got—”

“The Fujiwara’s aren’t like that, so that’s a stupid excuse.”

“That’s true, but it’s more than that,” Natsume sighed. “Last time, I was constantly late or absent. A yokai would attack me or I’d get sick...”

“Wimp.”

“Shut up, Sensei. Anyway, whenever that happened, the coach yelled at me for flaking out. I let everyone down.”

“But this woman said it doesn’t matter if you’re sick and can’t come, right?”

“She says that now, but she might change her mind,” Natsume mumbled.

“You’re so gloomy,” Nyanko-sensei shook his head. “It’s annoying.”

“Look, even if what she says is true, my teammates probably won’t like me. They didn’t last time. And I just…I just hated the feeling of all those people looking at me.”

He’d struggled a bit with just the sports day crowd watching him, but being on a real team was a million times worse. All those people judging, all their hopes riding on him not messing up… He shivered, remembering the way his skin had crawled, the way his breathing turned funny, the way his hands had shook. All those eyes on him…the weight of their gaze had made him want to curl up so small they couldn’t see him anymore.

“And there’s the actual reason. You’re bad with other people and you get stage fright. Boring.” Sensei yawned. “Just get over it. You have yokai trying to eat you all the time, why’s this scary?’

“I’d rather deal with yokai than the track team,” Natsume said emphatically.

Nyanko-sensei scoffed.

“A couple years ago there was this coach who was always chasing after me to recruit me. I was running from her, trying to get off school grounds so she couldn’t follow me, but then I saw that there was this huge yokai on the path out of school. Big fangs, sharp teeth, claws, all that.  I’d have to double back to avoid it, and the coach would catch me. So… I took the better option, and I ran past the yokai.”

“Idiot. Did it attack you?”

“I took a swing at me and knocked me out. But because of that the teacher was reprimanded for making the sickly kid collapse and they threatened to fire her if she ever chased a student again. She stopped trying to ask me after that. So it all worked out.”

“I don’t understand humans,” Sensei sighed. “Anyway, I’m in favor of the track team. If it helps you run faster, that means less of you getting snatched by yokai and less work for me.”

“Stop being lazy and trying to skip out on your bodyguard duties, Sensei. Yokai shouldn’t be chasing me down in the first place, it’s your job to take care of them.”

“I’ve got my own life to live! Stop being so selfish!”

“I’m the selfish one?”

They bickered all the way to the school gate, and though Natsume would never admit it to Nyanko-sensei, it did make him feel a lot better.

---

The atmosphere of the meet was a lot nicer than he expected. The other students were kind to him, many complementing them on his sports day performance. The team members and Coach Sakuragi were less, well, mean to each other than the team he’d briefly been part of, cheering each on rather than acting sullen when anyone outperformed them. The coach at his old school had always responded to any mistake with a torrent of frustrated criticism that made Natsume tremble in shame. But Sakuragi never acted disappointed or angry. She came off like she was giving friendly suggestions, and she pointed out what they were doing well at lot too. The team responded to her advice eagerly, rather than fearing her.

It was nice, and Natsume almost wished he was the kind of person who could be a part of this. But he knew himself too well. He’d feel terrible each time he missed out due to being sick or waylaid by yokai. And that would happen a lot. The nicer these people were, the worse he’d feel about letting them down. It didn’t matter if they were fine with it, he wouldn’t be. And to be honest, even if he liked his teammates, he didn’t like thinking about huge crowds watching him, he didn’t like the idea of watching other people cry in frustration when he beat them, any of it.

So when Sakuragi asked him if he wanted to do a practice run with the others, he agreed, all while planning to run much slower than usual. He’d explain to her after that the performance on sports day was a fluke, and he usually wasn’t that fast, and there was no way he’d be able to pull it off consistently. Sakuragi would hopefully stop wanting him to join the team, and even if she still asked him, she and the others wouldn’t feel bad when he turned her down.

He took a deep breath, as he stood at the starting line, closing his eyes and blocking the gaze of Sakuragi and the other students out. If he didn’t imagine a yokai was chasing him, running slower was pretty manageable, and he was experienced enough with doing it in Phys Ed that he knew he could pull it off without looking like he was holding back. It would be fine. He’d be fine.

He got himself into position, taking off when Coach blasted the whistle. He lagged way behind the others, while doing his best to look like he was really giving his all. It was going pretty well, he thought, until he looped around on the track and saw a yokai directly in his path.

It wasn’t a big one, not even coming up to Natsume’s knee. It was black, so it had blended in well with the track. It was sort of blobby and shapeless in form, like an inkstain, with beady eyes and a wiggly head.

Natsume’s heart raced and his mouth went dry. It might look small, but he knew better than anyone not to trust a yokai’s appearance. It could be dangerous. Was it here to get the Book of Friends, or was it trying to do something to the people here? It didn’t matter. He had to do something. He couldn’t just slow down, that would give it time to attack.

Instead, he vaulted over the creature. His ankle twisted under him when he landed. He fell, knees and hands scraping the ground. He immediately sprang to his feet and ran as fast he could. He had to lead it away from everyone else.

His sneakers pounded on the rubber and intense vibrations raced through him with each step. It felt like his bones were shuddering. Somone was calling his name, but it was muffled and distant, everything was. He has no room in his brain for anything but his goal. I have to protect the people here. I have to protect the Book of Friends. He crossed the finish line and veered into the grass, ready to grab his bag and sprint out of school grounds. But he looked over his shoulder, he saw the blobby yokai hadn’t moved after him at all. It had simply flattened and spread out on the ground. It’s eyes were closed.

Was it…taking a nap?

Relief filled Natsume as he skidded to a stop. Yes, it was sleeping. Its breathing was even, and as sounds came back to him, he could hear some faint snoring. But he also heard something else, which was Coach Sakuragi screaming at him.

“NATSUME! WHAT THE HELL ARE YOU DOING? WHY WOULD YOU RUN ON A SPRAINED ANKLE?” She shouted while running toward him.

Sprained…? Natsume looked down and saw his ankle was swelling. Suddenly, intense pain shot through his leg, his ankle folded under him, and he crumpled. Sakuragi caught him under his arms before he could hit the ground. She lifted him up easily.

 Wow, she’s strong, Natsume thought dazedly. Bet I look pretty pathetic right now. He could see students had gathered around to stare at him, expressions worried or shocked. One girl called “Are you okay??”

“Y-yeah,” he said as his mind screamed in humiliation.

Sakuragi could have probably carried him, but thankfully she chose to simply pull his arm over shoulder. “Don’t stand on that ankle, keep it raised.” She commanded. She turned to the cluster of team members. “We need the chairs, the ice bag from the cooler, and the first aid kit. Go get them.”

The student’s responded quickly, three of them running off.

Soon they all came back with all the supplies, including two folding chairs. Sakuragi eased him into a chair. Natsume couldn’t help groaning in pain when a student propped up his leg on the chair in front of him, resting his ankle on a folded towel. Sakuragi quickly cleaned out the minor scrapes on his hands and knees with some medicine.

Natsume hated that he was disrupting the entire track meet and making so many people fuss over him, but he knew protesting would be ungrateful, so he softly thanked the other students instead. They smiled back at him.

Sakuragi placed the ice bag on his ankle. Natsume sighed in relief as the numbing cold broke through the pain.

 Sakuragi bent down to examine his foot. “It don’t think it’s broken, but you’re going to need to check it with a hospital. It’s badly sprained because of all the weight you put on it. Hopefully you didn’t tear the ligament completely.”

“A-a hospital?” Natsume’s stomach dropped. That was really going to worry Touko and Shigeru. He felt so stupid, putting them through all this because a harmless yokai was taking a nap.

Sakuragi straightened up and clapped her hands. “Okay, this isn’t a show, people. Give us some space and get back to practice.”

The team dispersed, and Sakuragi crossed her arms, frowning down at him. Natsume winced, thinking she was going to yell again. Instead, she closed her eyes, took a deep breath. “Natsume.” she said calmly. “I don’t understand what you were thinking. This was just a practice run. Your first one, too.  I’ve seen students try to run on injuries before, but this wasn’t even an actual race!”

Natsume’s looked at his ankle, which was rapidly turning purple, burning with shame. “I’m sorry,” he mumbled.

“You don’t have to apologize. I just want to know what’s going on. Why did you run on that ankle?”

“I-I didn’t do it on purpose. It was just kind of…instinct?” Natsume said. He instantly realized that how weird that sounded, and so, apparently, did Sakuragi.

“Instinct?” Her frown deepened and her eyebrows drew together. “Your instinct is to keep running even when you’re hurt?”

“No, no, it’s not like that, I’m just used to—!” He snapped his mouth shut.

What was wrong with him? He was usually better at covering things up. He’d almost said he was used to having to run while injured. He’d twisted his ankle running from yokai plenty of times, and at some point he’d learned to just block out the pain until he got to safety. But obviously he couldn’t tell the coach that.  He desperately searched for another way to end the sentence, but before he could, the coach bent over, looking him directly in the eye.

“Natsume, you looked very frightened when that “instinct” kicked in. Like you were being chased down. Are you used to being chased? Is it something that happens a lot?”

Natsume’s blood froze. Did she know? Why? How? What was going on? His ankle was throbbing so badly now, it was hard to think the haze of pain. His breathing got faster, his ears buzzed… He had to say something, anything to throw her off…

 Sakuragi put her hand gently on his shoulder, “Natsume, you can tell me anything. Is it someone who goes to this school? Or even more than one person? Have they been hurting you? I know it’s scary to talk about it, but I promise I can help--”

Natsume’s shoulders slumped as relief flooded him. She’d was asking if people were chasing him. Obviously she’d meant people.  What was wrong with him? Sure, his ankle felt like it was being hit repeatedly with a giant hammer, but that was no excuse to lose his head.

Doing his best to come off as relaxed, he said “Oh, It’s not like that, Sensei, you don’t need to worry. People don’t chase me at all anymore.”

Sakuragi narrowed her eyes. “Anymore?”

He clearly should just stop talking forever. Maybe he’d sprained his brain along with his ankle.

Yes, he’d been chased by people, of course he had. And not just enthusiastic track coaches. He’d had to run away from plenty of classmates looking to teach the liar a lesson. Running from bullies was usually a lot easier than running from most yokai though, since people eventually tired out. He’d only been caught a few times.

At least this slip up didn’t put his secret in danger, it just made every inch of him cringe. He didn’t want to talk about any of this with her. But he had to make her understand everything was okay. Even if it meant embarrassing himself.

“Sensei, ever since I moved here, things have been so much better. People are so kind to me, my friends are amazing, the Fujiwaras are so warm and giving…” He ducked his head, unable to meet her eyes. “I feel like I belong here. Actually belong. I’m happier than I ever thought I could be….”

Sakuragi was listening to him intently, and when he trailed off, she smiled at him. “I’m glad to hear that. Sorry for the interrogation.”

She took some bandages out of the first aid kit and started wrapping his ankle with a steady practiced hand. “It sounds running is really connected to some… difficult experiences for you. I’m a teacher who’s supposed to look out for you. I shouldn’t have pressured you to run. I should have listened and understood your feelings. I apologize.”

“No no, it’s not your fault Sensei, you’re honestly the nicest track coach I’ve ever—"

But his reassurance was cut off by a shout, “Natsume! What happened?!”

Natsume looked over his shoulder, and saw Nishimura, Tanuma, Taki, Kitamoto and Sasada all coming around the corner of school building

 What the heck are they doing here? His stomach dropped at the expressions of worry on their faces. Nishimura led the pack as they rushed toward him.

“How did you get hurt already?!” Nishimura exploded the second he was within talking range. “It’s been fifteen minutes since school let out! Fifteen! I bet you were doing some kind of crazy thing again, don’t you realize-?”

“Nishimura, calm down,” Kitamoto said, smacking his arm. “But seriously, Natsume, what happened?”

“I—"

“Did somebody trip you?” Sasada asked, fixing the scattered team members with a hawklike glare while they looked baffled in response.  “Are there bullies here?”

“No—”

“It’s not broken, is it?” Nishimura was wincing as he looked at the ankle. “It looks so swollen—”

“Guys!” Taki cut him off. “Why don’t we stop freaking out and let Natsume get a word in edgewise?”

“Well said. I know you’re worried, give him the chance to explain,” Sakuragi said in a slightly amused tone.

Nishimura, Sasada, and Kitamoro jolted, like they hadn’t noticed the teacher before.

“Sorry, Sensei,” Sasada said immediately, bowing her head,

“I’m sorry too. I didn’t mean to yell at you, Natsume,” Nishimura mumbled.

Tanuma, who’d been quietly watching, stepped up and put his hand on Natsume’s shoulder. It was a timid, gentle touch, but Natsume could feel the weight of Tanuma’s concern through it. He smiled reassuringly at him, and then looked at the others.

“I just tripped, guys, that’s really all. I was doing a practice run and I stumbled and twisted my ankle. Though I, uh, also…” He was going to freak them out if he told them he’d kept running on it, and he wasn’t sure how he’d explain it, but—

“He also bumped it a bit while I was guiding him to his chair,” Sakuragi cut him off, giving him a small smile. “That one was my fault.”

Natsume blinked at her, shocked she’d covered for him. She shook her head at him slightly as if to say ‘Just this once’.

“See, Nishimura?” Kitamoto elbowed him. “You of all people can’t be mad at him for tripping!”

“Yeah…” Nishimura said sheepishly.

“No, I’m really sorry for worrying you all,” Natsume said, guilt racing through him. “But, uh, what are you guys even doing here?

“We wanted to support you. The plan was just to meet you when you were done and walk home together,” Taki said.

“I’m sorry we didn’t tell you before,” Tanuma squeezed Natsume’s shoulder slightly, looking bashful. “You just seemed kind of stressed about it, and I was a little… It was a last minute decision. I was thinking if you wanted to, we could even hang out at my place. I probably overstepped.”

‘It was one of those times his friends' kindness and care filled him up so much he thought he would burst. Those times where he  wondered how he’d found people like them after all these years. When he ached to give them even a fragment of what they’re given him.

“No…” Natsume said, hoping he didn’t sound choked up, “No, I would have liked that, thanks.”

“That’s really sweet,” Sakuragi said with a grin, resuming with wrapping Natsume’s ankle. But then her grin dropped, and she looked at Nishimura questioningly. “Does he get hurt a lot?”

“Kind of. It’s all because he’s reckless, Sensei. He doesn’t think things through!”

“A lot of time he’s trying to help someone, though,” Tanuma said hastily. “It’s not his fault, really.”

 “You always go way too easy on him, Tanuma. But yeah, he’ll do things like shove a girl out of the way when a bunch of heavy boxes are falling on her and get conked in the head. He’s too good a guy—"

“Come on, you’re embarrassing him,” Taki admonished, which immediately silenced Nishimura.

Sakuragi seemed to relax at this, and she finished up wrapping Natsume’s ankle. “Okay! Now, can one of you go fetch crutches from the nurse’s office?” Sakuragi took a key out of the first aid box and tossed at Nishimura, who caught it with a startled expression. Kitamoto went with him. Sasada looked around awkwardly, and then did a double take.

“Chiyo, what are you doing here?” Sasada’s hand immediately jumped to her hair, and she started twirling a lock around her finger.

The short-haired girl walked up, wiping her neck with a towel and flashing Sasada a crooked grin. “The track team lets me practice with them sometimes. Gotta train to beat you next time. What this I hear about you threatening everyone and calling them bullies?”

“I didn’t—”

“Oh, now I remember, Natsume, that’s your friend, no wonder you were all aggro!”  Chiyo waved at Natsume, who waved awkwardly back. “Sorry she’s so overprotective, man. She means well.”

“You—come on!” Sasada grabbed the other girl’s hand and dragged her away. Chiyo looked unreasonably happy about this.

Sakuragi had stepped away to chat with some other students too. Taki squatted next to Natsume and Tanuma leaned closer to him.

“Was there yokai trouble?” Tanuma whispered.

Natsume shook his head. “Not really. I basically overreacted. I saw a little yokai on the track, freaked out because I thought it was dangerous, and tripped. It’s harmless, though. It was just napping. I feel pretty stupid.”

“Did anyone notice anything?”

“Yeah, they noticed I was acting really weird. Especially Coach Sakuragi. She’s…intense.”

“Oh, I should have warned you about that,” Taki sighed. “It’s really hard to keep a secret from her, especially if she thinks you’re struggling. Her heart’s in the right place, though.”

Natsume nodded. “I can tell. I feel bad that I worried her. I ended up saying some bizarre things while I was trying to throw her off. I think she thinks I’m traumatized from my childhood or something now.”

Tanuma cleared his throat and looked away. Taki studied her shoes carefully.

“Uh, what’s wrong?” Natsume asked, trying to figure out if he’s said anything strange.

“Nothing,” Taki said quickly. “Hey, what does the little yokai look like?”  She looked off in the wrong direction.

 “Oh, uh…kind of blob-like…” he squinted at the sleeping yokai, examining it more closely. “Oh wow, I couldn’t pick it out before but it has ears actually, Oh, they’re kind of shaped like cat ears…”

Takis gasped excitedly “Is it cute?”

“Uh…maybe ugly cute?”

“Then it’s cute,” Taki said firmly. “I wish I could see it.”

Natsume suddenly realized that it was probably for the best Taki couldn’t see yokai, otherwise she’d be terrorizing every weird looking little monster non-stop.

Tanuma looked around at the team members looping the track, as others chatted and laughed on the sidelines. “Were you having a good time with everyone? You know, before everything happened?”

“Yeah…it was nice. Everyone was really great. I feel bad I ruined things.”

“You didn’t—"

“We’re back!” Kitamoto and Nishimura arrived carrying the crutches.

A shock of pain went up Natsume’s leg like lightning when Tanuma and Sakuragi eased him onto his crutches, but he gritted his teeth, refusing to cry out. He couldn’t worry everyone even more.

“Okay, you’re good to go now," Sakuragi said to him. "But make sure your parents to get you checked at the hospital right away. I will be asking Ms. Fujiwara about that our weekly grocery store chats.”

Natsume nodded meekly, filled with dread at the thought of Touko’s panic and distress. At the same time, he noticed she’d called the Fujiwaras his parents…not foster parents or guardians…just parents. It kind of felt nice. Really nice.

Sasada was still talking with Chiyo, laughing and swatting at her playfully. She noticed that Natsume was up, and reluctantly pulled away, giving Chiyo’s hand a quick squeeze before she left.

Sakuragi smiled as Sasada rejoined the group, observing all of Natsume’s friends clustered around him. “Take care of him, all right?”

“Don’t worry, Sensei, we won’t let anything happen to him,” Nishimura said confidently.

“We’ve got his back!” Kitamoto assured her.

“He helps us a lot. It’s the least we can do.” Tanuma chimed in unexpectedly.

“Of course!” Sasada and Taki finished things off.

Natsume stared at the ground, hoping nobody could see the expression on his face. Taki patted him on the back.

“You’re right, you do have good friends.” Sakuragi ruffled Natsume’s hair. “Do you need me to get you a ride home? Or can your parents come get you?”

“Oh, it’s fine, I can just walk.”

“You’re seriously going to try to hobble all the way to the Fujiwaras?” Taki asked severely.

“Okay, maybe to the bus stop…”

“That’s not coming for another hour.” Sasada tapped her watch. “You can’t wait that long.”

“The Fujiwaras don’t have a car, right?” Nishimura said. “My parents have a car, and Mom should be home. I’ll call her to pick us up.” He pulled out his cellphone, glaring at it. “If I can ever get service in this stupid town…can’t believe I begged for a phone and it’s useless…”

“Nishimura, no, I don’t want to drag your Mom into this…” Natsume said in a panic. “I really can just—”

“Natsume.” Tanuma said quietly but firmly, holding out his arm in front of him before he could hobble away. Natsume’s voice died in his throat.

“My Mom would be mad at me if I didn’t call her about this” Nishimura held his phone high in the air, face screwed up in concentration.

“Oh yeah, that’s right, you get your nosiness from her,” Kitamoto said lightly.

“Man, shut up. Aha! I got some bars!”  And just like that, Nishimura was on the phone with his Mom, and Natsume could do nothing to protest it.

Sakuragi laughed and started to turn away. “Great, I’ll see you—"

“Sensei, wait,” Natsume called quickly.

 She stopped, looking at him questioningly.

“I just wanted I wanted to say, I did have fun here. And, well, I don’t think I can join the team but…would it be all right if I came here once in a while? Just to practice, or I could help with whatever… unless that’s…"

Sakuragi’s face split into a huge grin. “Of course, Natsume! Just having someone like you to race against is a huge help! But are you sure you--?”

Natsume nodded. “I want to.”

“Well then, do your best to heal up and we’ll look forward to seeing you.”

Nishimura got off the phone. “Mom said to wait out front. We'll head to the bench just outside the entrance.”

Waving goodbye to Sakuragi, Natsume’s friends flanked him as he slowly made his way around the school building.

“I’m happy for you, Natsume,” Taki said.

“Yeah, that’s cool that you'll have a place to practice!” Kitamoto agreed.

Thanks,” Natsume said. “I’m sorry I ruined the plans to get snacks and hang out…but maybe we could do it another time? Touko would probably be okay with you all coming over.”

“Of course!”

They all busied themselves planning  the get-together until they reached the bench out front, though Nishimura was oddly quiet.

After Natsume sat down, his friends gave their well wishes and reminded him to check in with them after the hospital, before dispersing to walk home. Taki caught up with Sasada and as they walked away, Natsume heard her say “So you and that Chiyo girl, huh? Do I detect some romance?”

“I have no idea what you’re talking about,” Sasada said primly.

“Come on, it’s me. Come over to my place and tell me all about it.

“Fiiiine, if I must.”

Natsume laughed slightly. He looked over at Nishimura to see his reaction, but for once in his life, he didn’t seem interested in what Taki was doing. He was staring stonily into the distance.

“Nishimura, is something wrong--?”

“I’m sorry, Natsume,” he said abruptly, still not really looking at him.

“Huh? What are you sorry about?” He wondered if Nishimura was still feeling guilty about yelling earlier, and was prepared to reassure him, but—

“You’re hurt because of me.”

“What? What are you even talking about?” Natsume couldn’t help but laugh but stopped when Nishimura glared at him.

“It’s because of me. You don’t like  running in front of people, I know that, but then you had to because I screwed up. And when you were talking to the coach, I could tell you were nervous, I could tell you didn’t want to go. And instead of returning the favor and helping you, I pushed you to do it anyway.” He put his head in his hands. “It was such shitty thing to do.”

“Nishimura, come on, you didn’t--

“I did. You were trying to say no, you can’t pretend you weren’t.” He dragged his hands down his face. “I just…got carried away because you were so cool when you won the race! And you’re kind of down on yourself sometimes,…so I thought maybe if you joined the track team, you’d see how amazing what you can do is and people would see you’re…ugh, it was stupid.”

Natsume’s cheeks burned. “That’s.. it sounds like you were really thinking of me, Nishimura, thank you—"

“No, don’t thank me!” Nishimura said fiercely. “I wasn’t looking out for you or your feelings at all, I just decided what I wanted for you without asking you. And God, I didn’t even think about injuries!”

Natsume stared at him in bafflement. “Why would you need to think about injuries? It’s not like I need special protection. I knew what I was getting into. People get hurt in sports all the time. It’s normal.”

“No, it’s different with you.” Nishimura slammed his hands down on knees, red blotches spreading on his face. “Because when you get hurt, you downplay it or try to hide it, and if you do that in track, it can mess you up for life!” Nishimura was talking faster and faster, the words just pouring out of his mouth. “It’s dangerous because you act like it doesn’t matter, like you don’t matter, and that you don’t get why we all care so much, and I know it’s because you’ve been through a lot and I don’t want to pry, but it makes me so---"

He stopped short, blanching. “Oh shit. I didn’t mean to say all that. U-uh, sorry, just forget it, It’s none of my business…”

A lump formed in Natsume’s throat as shame welled up, hot and bitter on his tongue. “No, I’m sorry, Nishimura,” he said hoarsely. “I didn’t realize you were thinking all that, that you were worried. I never wanted to—”

“Natsume, no, I wasn’t trying to make you feel bad. I know it’s not on purpose, I know it’s not your fault.” Nishimura pinched the bridge of his nose. “This is about me saying sorry, not you. I really am sorry. And I know you told Sakuragi you wanted to come back once in a while because you didn’t want to disappoint her, but you don’t have to go back there, I’ll talk to her—"

“You don’t have to talk to her.” Natsume swallowed his shame for now, determined to set things straight. “I liked the team. I really do want to come back.”

“You don’t have to pretend, I told you, don’t lie if you don’t have to—”

“Nishimura,” Natsume interjected gently, putting his hand on the other boy’s shoulder. Nishimura finally looked over at him, eyes downcast. “It made me really happy. When we won, and everyone was cheering, and I saw how excited you were…I don’t know. Running is just something I do sometimes, and I don’t think it’s special or particularly like it. But being able to help you was the first time I felt like it was something…more.” More than survival. More than something I’m forced to do.

“Really…?” Nishimura hesitated, looking disbelieving.

“Really. And I really am glad I came here. I enjoyed it, you know, until I tripped. But even then, everyone was nice and helped me. It made me want to come back.”

Nishimura stared at him for a while, expression unreadable. Then he sighed and leaned back. “Okay, well, good.” Natsume could see Nishimura’s shoulders slump as the tension drained out of him. “But I still pushed you. You don’t have to make excuses for me. I’m just sorry I did it and I won’t do it again.”

“Okay, apology accepted.”

Nishimura looked startled, like he’d expected Natsume to keep fighting him on this, then his face broke into a grin. “Thanks, man.”

“You don’t have to make excuses for me either. I’m sorry I’ve been stressing you guys out when I get hurt. I’ll stop hiding it or trying to downplay it. I mean, I do want all of you to understand I…” Natsume knew better than to say he was “used to it” now, so he searched around for a less alarming but still honest way to phrase it. “I have a high pain tolerance, so sometimes it really doesn’t seem like a big deal.

“Dude, that doesn’t make me feel better.” He could tell from how Nishimura looked at him he’d heard the “I’m used to it” even though Natsume hadn’t said it out loud.

“No, I know. Look, from now on, I’ll admit when something hurts.” He looked down at his ankle, wincing. “Like my ankle really hurts right now. I don’t want to go to the hospital but I’m kind of looking forward to getting painkillers.” He looked over at Nishimura. “Did that work? Or did it just sound whiney?”

“Nah, you need to whine a little more, man.” Nishimura punched him lightly on the arm. “I’m telling you, it feels good. When I sprained my ankle a couple years ago, I whined to everyone I knew. That whine was weak. Try harder.”

“It’s…uh, agony. I…might die? Was that good.”

“You need to work on your delivery, but it’s a start.”

They both laughed. Just laughing soothed something in Natsume, his stomach unknotted, and his racing heartbeat slowed. His ankle even hurt a little less.

When the laughter settled, Natsume looked down, twisting his fingers in his lap. “Look, I know I… kind of lie and hide things as reflex a lot. But I’ve been trying to be more open with the people I care about.”

Nishimura shrugged. “It’s fine. I mean, Kitamoto and I aren’t that stupid, we know there’s something going on with you, but you can take as much time as you need. I know you must have your reasons.”

“Thanks.”

Nishimura chuckled suddenly, looking past Natsume.

“Uh oh, here comes your cat. He looks mad! It’s almost like he knows something happened.”

Nyanko-sensei was indeed stomping towards them, his eyes narrowed.

“Agh, I’m really in trouble this time,” Natsume said. Nyanko-sensei jumped into his lap, making sure to throw his heavy weight around as he landed. “Oof.”

“Oh, your troubles have just begun. Don’t forget Touko!” Nishimura said cheerfully.

“Like I could.”

“I wouldn’t use the “I could die” line on her, she might believe you.”

“Amazing advice, thank you.”

Nishimura smirked. “I’d tell you to run, but, you know.”

Mmm…” Natsume said, stroking Nyanko-sensei, who was making faint, irritated noises. “That’s okay. There are some things I don’t want to run away from."

---

*Yes Sasada has a sports and academic rival yuri storyline going in the background. Yes I'm being self indulgent. It's what she deserves. I just thought it would be fun and maybe funny. Sasada's having this whole romantic epic while Natsume's worrying about track. *Touko has been bragging about how kind and helpful you are, Natsume, you dummy. And about the garden he made and how it was good it was and other things Natsume does really well he hasn't noticed. She's also probably noticed he's fast and relatively strong for his size, he's always fetching and carrying stuff for her, but Coach thought she was exaggerating. UNTIL NOW. I hope you enjoyed this! It was way longer than I thought it would be. And I wish I could have made it funnier. But I had a fun time with my first Natsume fic!

Here's the ao3 link again:

[alicesadventuresinffxiv]

FFxivWrite2024 Prompt #1

Title: Who wants to steer the Reaper?

Wordcount: 1172

Spoilers through: Stormblood

Alternate Universe: To Catch a Falling Star (Instead of traveling to Doma, Lyse spends Stormblood infiltrating the Skulls, with the ultimate goal of convincing Fordola to defect to the Resistance. When your own army gets decimated, just steal the other guy’s one, you know?)

Relationships & Characters: M’naago, Fordola, and Lyse. Also featuring the freaky thing pictured above.

Summary: M’naago begrudgingly goes hunting with the Skulls, only to discover she has more in common with Fordola than she thought.

.

The beast lay silent, its multitude of thrashing heads having finally exhausted their death throes. M’naago breathed a shuddering sigh of relief, her heart still racing. One moment, she and the M Tribe’s imperial “visitors” had been out hunting, grumbling and trading veiled barbs at having to work together with her after Lyse had insisted they find a way to help out around the village. The next, the earth under M’naago’s feet had shifted without warning, and some monstrous thing had lunged at her and knocked her sprawling with its club-like tail. She’d stared death straight in the eye - or leafy maw, as the case had been - her last thoughts an apology to poor old Conrad for letting down the Resistance. 

And then the head had crashed to the ground, the vines of its neck severed by a ruthless swing of the Butcher’s blade.

“Take my hand!”

Her body moving faster than her thoughts, M’naago had grabbed the offered gauntlet. Fordola yanked her to her feet, then settled into a defensive stance.

“That bow’s not just for looking pretty, is it? Get behind us and shoot the bastard!” The imperial turned and motioned curtly at the Skulls already circling the beast. “I’ll draw its attention, you four attack from the sides! Go!”

Out in the Fringes, survival was tough enough that a Miqo’te who stopped to argue with a lucky break was one who didn’t come home that night. So M’naago had bitten her tongue and notched an arrow to her bow.

It had been a relentless, frantic battle… but a battle they had won.

“What was that? Some kind of warning from the Elementals? But we’re out of the Twelveswood...” Lyse frowned, nudging the plant-like tendrils of the creature with her boot. Then she laughed - even wearing the uniform of the enemy, she still had that warm, playful chuckle that always got past M’naago’s guard  - and punched M’naago in the shoulder. “More importantly, do you think we can eat it?”

The Miqo’te smirked. “Took the words right out of my mouth.” She stepped back, sizing up the carcass. Vegetation was scarce on this side of the Fringes, but the bulbous growths on the monster’s back looked just like the gourds she and her sisters used to lug in for the grill. A haul like this would go a long way to making up for this year’s confiscated harvest. Not to mention the reward they could exchange with Clan Centurio - surely something this large had to be one of their infamous marks.

…if, that is, they could get it back to the Peering Stones. 

“Aye, it’s edible.” M’naago’s shoulders slumped. “But unless you’ve got a pocket big enough to stuff it into, we’ll be leaving half the kill to rot.” 

Her friend winced. After M’naago had spent a little too much time complaining into her sympathetic ear, she probably understood how much it rankled the Miqo’te’s hunter instincts to be so wasteful. 

Lyse then turned pleading eyes on the imperial officer who had been coldly watching the exchange from the side. “Isn’t there something we can do?”

To M’naago surprise, the Butcher appeared thoughtful. Then she gave a single nod. “Leaving it out in the open’ll just attract more beasts. We need to dispose of it, and hauling it off’s as good a way as any.” She pointed to the shadows of the nearby rock formation. “Hrudolf, with me. The rest of you lot, wait there and don’t come out.”

When Lyse and M’naago had curiously done as instructed, Fordola then squinted at the sun and put a finger to the magitek transceiver at her ear. 

“This is Pilus Lupis, requesting Reaper assistance at 29E, 30S. Repeat. Requesting assistance.”

A crackle of static. “Eastern Velodyna patrol is at 25E, 28S. They’ll be within sight in three minutes. Can you hold your position until then?”

“Affirmative.”

“What is she doing?!” M’naago hissed as soon as the line went dead. “I knew we shouldn’t have trusted that traitor!”

“Naago, don’t!” Lyse was definitely getting too cozy with the enemy if she didn’t see what was about to happen! But her arms wrapped around the Mitqo’te, holding her back from making that backstabber pay for her betrayal. 

“Gods, get your tail outta that twist already.” Behind M’naago, one of the Skulls - the wannabe monk, Ansfrid or Ancred or something - rolled his eyes. “Or what, you thinkin’ you’ll drag that monster half a malm using those twigs you’ve got for arms? Sit still an' watch.”

Just because you’re built like a marid and I’m not doesn’t mean I couldn’t take you, M’naago retorted in her head.

But she was heavily outnumbered, so M’naago unwillingly watched as Fordola and her second in command went out to meet the Garlean patrol. Some words were exchanged - what exactly, she was too far away to overhear. Hrudolf gestured in their direction at one point, and M’naago’s heart nearly skipped a beat - but it seemed he was merely indicating the enormous monster corpse.

One of the imperials - the leader of the patrol? - seemed to be arguing back. Then Fordola said something and crossed her arms, and he and his men gave a crisp salute.

And then the patrol proceeded on its way, leaving behind a battered but fully functional Reaper.

M’naago couldn’t believe it.

And then, just to rub salt on the wound, Fordola rode it back and leapt out with an uncharacteristically smug grin on her face. 

“I’ll see to the tow cables. Which one of you wants to pilot a Reaper?”

“Me! Me! I call the Reaper!” came an eager shout from M’naago’s left. It was the other Skull, the excitable girl who’d carelessly lobbed fireballs in the fight. Now she darted out of cover to run a loving hand down the machine’s side. “Don’t you worry, big boy. Mama Emelin will take good care of you,“ she crooned to the lifeless hunk of metal.

Then she suddenly froze, her hand still mid-stroke. “Hang on, Lyse hasn’t had a chance to drive yet.” She slowly turned her head, beaming with an intensity that reminded M’naago uncannily of her friend. “Want to give it a go?”

“Me?” Lyse blinked, then her eyes lit up. “Really? YES!”

“Do you even know how to steer one of those things?” M’naago whispered in alarm.

Lyse’s smile didn’t falter once. “Nope!” She joyfully clenched her fists, matching Emelin’s energy. “But it can’t be that hard, right? Garleans do it all the time!”

“Do you know how to drive anything?” Fordola hurriedly interjected, proving that she and M’naago tragically did share a brain cell. “A drone? A cart?”

“Nope!” Lyse cheerfully replied again. Watching her and the other girl hi-five each other was already giving M’naago a headache. 

“Emelin will be driving the Reaper.” Thankfully, Fordola settled the matter in tones that brooked no argument. 

“Awwww…” the two groaned in tandem.

And M’naago suddenly found herself sitting with the horrible realization that not only had the Butcher just saved her life, she was now agreeing with a bloody imperial. 

What was the world coming to?

[crossdressingdeath]

WIP Whenever

I was tagged by @chronurgy (and then had to write some more because I've been showing you guys basically everything I've written as I write it, haha).

Gortash stares at him for what feels like a very long time, but probably isn't more than a few seconds. “I thought I told you not to come back without Orin's Netherstone,” he says at last.  Kyvir shrugs, moving to lean against the edge of the desk. “You told me that, but your guards let me up,” he says. “Playing tough?” Gortash stands from his chair, stretching and yawning as if he's entirely unconcerned by the assassin in his quarters. “You're alone, surrounded by enemies,” he says. “I could do anything I like, and you wouldn't be able to stop me. I don't need to play.” And what is it you'd like to do? Kyvir has to force himself not to straighten up as Gortash steps closer, determined not to show any discomfort. Instead he settles more comfortably against the desk and tilts his head back to look the tyrant in the eye, well aware that the movement bares his throat. Try it.  Gortash meets his gaze steadily. There's a challenge there, though Kyvir can't figure out what that challenge is. Whatever it is, it only lasts a moment before Gortash smiles and steps away again, pulling out his desk chair with a flourish suitable for a gallant lord. “Please, have a seat,” he says. “Tell me why you're here.” It isn't a request. Kyvir toys with the idea of refusing anyway for a moment, but decides against it; if he gets Gortash's hackles up now, he won't get anything out of him. He sits, pretending it doesn't bother him when Gortash moves to stand behind him. “You know me,” he says.  “I do.” The claws of Gortash's gauntlets touch his shoulders, tapping lightly. A warning? A reminder that he's there? Kyvir thinks he would have known the answer once. “But you aren't here to repeat things we both know, are you?” Is it true, some pathetic, whimpering part of him wants to ask. Did we really plan this together? Were we really allies? Was I really Bhaal’s Chosen? “I would’ve expected the Chosen of Bhaal and Bane to hate each other,” he says instead.  “And you’re wondering why we didn’t?” “I’m wondering what kept us from killing each other immediately,” Kyvir corrects. Gortash hums thoughtfully. “You’re right, it would have been easy.” One hand leaves his shoulder to touch the flower tattoo on his neck, sharp claws lightly scraping against his skin. “I could cut your throat right now, before you could even try to stop me. Even demigods can die.” Kyvir can feel his pulse thrumming against Gortash’s fingers, like his blood is reaching for the other man’s touch. “Don’t make promises you don’t intend to keep,” he says. “You and I both know you aren’t going to hurt me, Enver.”

I don't know who in the mutual circle has WIPs on the go, so if you want to do this consider yourself tagged!