#unless it's somewhere completely foreign to him

[meownotgood]

u have made me more obsessed than i usually am with gun fiend!aki

imagine reader trying to help him relearn how to write, read, and speak

or throwing a surprise birthday party for him and guessing where his eyes are

when you really think about it.... he's actually quite cute.... isn't he.......

when you're able to earn his trust, you're really the only person he can tolerate without wanting to pick a fight, so you have to keep a close eye on him to make sure he doesn't go crazy again. you convinced the public safety commission to allow him to live on two conditions: 1) he benefit public safety somehow, and 2) he doesn't cause any problems.

you spend your time teaching him how to fight devils, trying to jog more of his memory, and teaching him how to do basic things again. he's intelligent and learns quickly, but you need to reteach him everything again, from how to speak to even remembering to eat.

[lalunanymph]

your stepbrother just can't resist you anymore — itoshi. r

flirty!reader, pining rin, heavy stepcest sorz, conflicted emotions, forced orgasms, almost getting caught by parents trope, humiliation, dirty talk, pro-player!rin, rin is 22/ reader is 21, i wrote this completely blasted and came twice to it i fear

Rin never thought he would take this too far. 

He was known to be meticulous, and calculative—a man made out of stone. On the field, off of it.

Fans chanted his name, and newspapers exalted him as the latest football legend. But, it did not change the grinding tension he felt whenever his reflection shone back his dark eyebags and pinched frown—a symptom of overworking himself too much.

Through it all, however, Rin always prided himself on being a smart man. 

That is, until he met you. 

His new stepsister.

You fit every stereotype of a stepsister Rin had heard of from his horndog colleagues. 

Pretty, with a too wide smile. Eager and ready to be his friend. 

He hated to admit how those cheap, sleazy pornos Shidou would mass share in their group chat had a grain of truth in them. 

If they didn’t, he wouldn’t spend his entire time avoiding you, hoping you never noticed how the hairs at the back of his neck stood whenever you passed by smelling of vanilla and sin. He would try to at least give you a hug, not tense everytime you so much as brushed your arm against his. 

The idea of self-hatred was not a foreign concept to Rin.

He had spent countless hours comparing himself to Sae, wondering if he would ever reach the pinnacle of such greatness.

His destroyed ego had been remade too many times to count. And he was starting to suspect you would be his final undoing. 

“Rin-nii.” 

Your soft voice jolted him from his thoughts. He turned the TV down, trying not to let his stare linger on how the shadows from the dimmed blue light threw the curve of your collarbones into sharp focus. 

Both your parents were out of town for the weekend, and you had the house all to yourself. 

Rin lived on his own in a penthouse somewhere in downtown Tokyo, and he rarely came home unless his father called him to have dinner together with his new stepmother and stepsister. 

There was no reason why he should even be here on a Friday night in the first place. 

Plus, with Sae still in Spain, he had no one to turn to as a buffer, and the onus of suffering fell on him to return your unsure smile with a half-hearted nod.

“Do you want to have dinner?” you fiddled with your fingers, and he hoped to whatever deity above tasked with listening to his pathetic ass that you hadn’t noticed the heat dusting his cheeks. 

“Sure,” his voice came out steady, almost bored. Just the way he always sounded. 

Rin’s practised poker face was handy when he had to sit opposite of you, pretending to be absorbed in his plate of udon while you struck up sparse conversation here and there. You talked about work, your colleagues. Sometimes, you brought up your mom and how happy she was on holiday with his dad. 

His father had told him how you were raised by a single mother for your entire life and never really had a family to rely on. This would be the first time you had male figures in your life—and you never failed to express your gratitude at how easily they took you in.

“Ah, ka-san sent me some photos of the seashore,” you mumbled wistfully, picking your phone from the table and scrolling through your gallery with a fond smile on your face. “Isn’t it beautiful?” you shared the screen with him and he reached out to steady your hand, accidentally grazing your fingers. 

He pulled back slightly, mumbling an apology. 

“It’s fine,” you beamed, stowing your phone back into your pocket. “How’s practice?” 

This was the reason Rin absolutely hated you. 

How you could feel his touches but never responded to them.

Was he the only one cursed to feel his heart doubling in size whenever you so much as looked at him? 

Rin wished he could pull back your tall curtains to uncover the orbit of your thoughts—if they were even a millimetre close to colliding with the idea of him. The nuclear reaction was enough to get his mind reeling, and the tightness of his breath and the front of his shorts was enough to snap him back to reality.

“Fine,” he muttered curtly, standing up abruptly, the back of his chair hitting the wall.

You physically recoiled back, and for a second, there was a shadow that passed your pretty eyes, one which you quickly put out when he turned his searing gaze to you.

“Okay, Rin-nii,” you whispered, and your resignation crushed his soul. 

Nice going, Itoshi. 

You slipped on a smile, taking his plate to the sink before he could protest. He couldn’t tell that your hands were shaking, chest crumpled almost to your ribcage with the cold sting of rejection.

“You…” 

His soft voice rose above the clanging of your thoughts, and you stopped scrubbing. Turning to him, your raised brows spoke of honest intentions to hear him out. Unfortunately, Rin was unsure of what else to say, and you waited for your older brother to break the awkward ice. 

The parting between his two lips which revealed his white teeth, zig-zagged through your pulsing thoughts, goading you to crash into him. 

Your shoulders fell from your ears, and you stopped in mid-motion. Cold water ran down your wrists like tears from a crack in heaven, calling you back into the light. But, you ignored the righteous siren.

Those teal eyes, framed with thick lashes and desperation slowly inched up your bare thighs, right to the crease where your cotton shorts was caught in between an affair with your plush thigh and the enticing slope of your—

Rin flinched and spun on his heel, darting up the stairs as quickly as his toned legs could bring him. 

You watched after him, frozen in one spot, fighting the current of disbelief and disappointment threatening to tear you apart. 

The fleeting glimpse of warmth that ignited within the chambers of your lower belly was extinguished by the cold harsh truth: your step brother absolutely hated you. 

Swallowing hard, you turned back to your hands that were starting to prune from the water.

You switched off the tap, drawing your hands out of the sink basin and letting them fall to your side, breath coming out in stuttered puffs. Not caring how a tiny puddle was forming under both your arms. 

Rin snapped back awake to the sound of thunder crashing above his ceiling.

Like the heavens were rioting against the sins plaguing his thoughts, he twisted to this side, trying hard to squeeze his eyes close and allow his mind to drift off. 

Another clap of thunder, and Rin swore he felt a cold draft brush his arm.

The bed dipped behind him, and he jumped, a strangled yelp escaping his throat, ready to fight off whoever dared to interrupt his sleep.

When the whites of your eyes shone in the half-darkness of his room, Rin calmed down enough to exhale noisily, fisting the sheets to still his rapidly beating heart.

“What are you…?” 

Rin trailed off, anger dying in the back of his throat when the shape of you adjusted in the dark. He first noticed the dip of your shoulders, bare under black spaghetti straps. Following the curve of your collarbone which led right into the trap of your cleavage, he couldn’t help caress your soft skin with his heated glance. 

“You can touch them.” 

He blinked, and the whites of your eyes suddenly became more vivid even as the night darkened. The shape of your mouth was coming into focus, his retinas gathering enough light in the pitch black room to illuminate the soft flesh-tone pillows he wanted to bite down on in his frustration. 

The owlish blinks and stuck silence was cut off when you reached for his hands, pulling them into your lap. Rin felt the heat of your thighs seep into his skin, and a low gasp spilled past his defences. 

Lucky Rin, the man who could score even in an unfair match, couldn’t believe if he was dreaming or not when you guided him to slide his palms up your thighs, your touch loose around his wrists. Your night dress hinged off your hips, and he briefly casted his glance to the darkened triangle in between your thighs. It fell back in place, hiding your most vulnerable part like a hasty curtain catching him right in the act.

But, when his larger palms encased your breasts, both of them curving nicely into the concave of his trembling grasp, your nightie’s betrayal was quickly forgotten. 

“Fuck,” Rin whispered despite himself. You were softer than he imagined. “Is this real?” 

It took him a second to realise he had asked that question out loud like a fucking loser. 

Your chest vibrated noiselessly with the buried sound of a laugh. “I can’t believe it either.” 

He flexed his wrists, wishing he could close his fists around such delicate flesh. His grip waned, and he felt like he should drop his hands before this got too weird, when you stopped him with a soft sigh. 

“You’re scared, aren’t you?” 

The shadow of disappointment in your tone, the way your syllables fell flat against your tongue like a limpid towel made a shiver of contempt flash hotly in his chest.  

Taking control over the voices screaming in his head, Rin firmly squeezed your tits, hearing your gasp of surprise and ecstasy rebound across the room. 

“Such a fucking eager slut.” 

Those words slid past the curlicues of his tongue with an ease of deadly poison, each word slowly bringing you up short.

“What—”

“Shut up,” Rin glowered, feeling the stiffness of your excitement between his fingertips as he twisted and tugged on your nipples through the sheer silk. “You seriously interrupted my sleep for this?” 

He yanked you closer to him, your body sprawling open like a chest of precious scrolls above his own. Your hair fell into your face, and your scalp’s sensitive skin cried out when he tugged it back with one hand, forcing you to reveal the truth. 

“Only little sluts try to seduce their nii-sans.” 

The harsh collision of his hot breath and the stinging slap of his palm on your ass made you come up short. Your cry was smothered by his tongue pillaging past the barriers of your mouth, forcing it wide open for him to devour the softness of your sudden shock. 

You barely kissed him back when Rin rolled you onto your front, pushing your face into his pillows. Something hard and insistent was pressing down on your thigh, and you shivered when you felt him reach in between your bodies to yank his shorts down. 

“Begging like a bitch in heat—I’ll show you what desperation truly looks like.” 

“Rin—hah!” 

Another hot slap landed on your skin, this time in between your upper thighs. It seared through your flimsy bleats and protests, crawling up your throat as strangled cries when you felt him shove his hands through the gap of your legs, cupping the heart of your desire right in his palm. 

Two thick fingers parted the wet seam of your folds, finding the flushed pearl which had the power to make you agree to any transgression. Those digits twisted it slightly in between their callous grab, flicking, rubbing and tapping on the fleshy dome with feral insistence. 

You cried out, and a large hand slammed over your open mouth. 

“Shut up,” he whispered, fervently, like he suddenly remembered that the walls have ears. “Our parents, they’re…”

Rin trailed off when the stony silence from his parents room down the hall finally hit him. Like someone had thrown cold water over his unbearably hot impatience, it dissolved into greasy pits of lust which opened up right to the darkness winking at him.

Begging him to choose her. 

“... not here.” 

“Yes,” you whispered, and Rin didn’t know if your shunting hips brushing his aching cock was intentional or not. “T-They’re on holiday, remember? We’re all alone.”

The way you said those last three words—the breathy rejoice of this simple truth—made Rin lean his entire weight into you, the warmth of his breath brushing the shell of your ear feeling like the world’s most beautiful electric shock. 

“Good. We don’t have to be quiet when I fuck you.” 

You were tossed onto your back with barely any grace, and Rin raked his hot stare down the planes of your body at the same time his veiny, outspread hands made their way down towards your hips. He pulled back the flimsy red hem which had so cruelly denied him the pleasurable view of your pussy, baring your glossy folds to him.

“Wet already, little sister? I would’ve never expected this from you.” 

He drove his thick fingers back to the sacred promise of your heat, using your own desire as a lube to take him right down to the knuckles. Your sharp squeal filled him with a masculine pride no goal ever could.

The feel of your warm walls, sucking him in and lovingly keeping him there like nobody had ever done in his whole life, made Rin feel like he could win 20 World Cups in a row. His nostrils flared and he curled his fingers in a seductive motion he once saw a pornstar do. Your arched back and tiny squeal almost made him smile.

“How long have you waited for this?” he whispered, loud enough in the quiet of your heaving breaths. “How long have you waited for me to fuck you?” 

“As long as you’ve waited,” your returning whisper, pushed through the scarlet haze his fingers were eliciting in your body, caught him off guard. 

“As I’ve waited?” 

You nodded sluggishly, half-lidded gaze heavy with emotion when you whispered:

“Since the first day I saw you.” 

Him, in a weathered jersey, coming back from practice while both your parents stood side by side, a cinder block about to explode his entire world while you were seated behind them—hidden from his sights. You were only twenty when you first met Itoshi Rin, but you knew you would love him for the rest of your life. 

“A year ago,” the ghost of his laugh in the crook of your neck made the patch of skin it caressed explode into tiny sparks. “I hated you the first time I saw you.”

As he spoke, he started to increase the speed of his fingers, using his thumb to put constant pressure on your aching clit. Sometimes, he would rub a few circles into it, drawing out your torment and causing your legs to jerk.

“R-Rin—”

“You reminded me of everything wrong about my parent’s marriage. You were my father’s failure right in front of me. I wanted to hate you so much.” His voice quavered, and his fingers stilled inside you. He pitched forward into your neck, covering his powerless side with a muffled sigh right into your throat.  

“But, I could never hate you.” 

Despite how wrong everything was, his words were right. Rin never hated you or your silly laugh or your insistence in making sure he was comfortable around you. Maybe he never hated you at all, just the upheaval in his life that followed along with you. 

He couldn’t blame you for that. It wasn’t your fault that your mother’s love had severe consequences on his upbringing. 

“Never?” you brought him back to the ground with your quaking question. 

“Hmm,” Rin hummed, in a half-answer to your longing. “We’ll see about that.” 

Those fingers were back to bring you towards the edge, ready to have you spilling out your deepest release and desires for him to taste on his tongue.

Rin curved one arm around you, holding you to his chest while his leg instinctively hooked around your thigh, drawing it right to his side and keeping you open to his plunging fingers. 

The hand protectively curved around your shoulders was the same one which pushed your neckline down, revealing your sumptuous breasts topped with heavy, hard nipples right into the chilly room air. 

He eyed how those nubs stiffened and perked under his watchful gaze. Rin couldn’t resist the temptation to pinch them around with his thumb and forefinger, relishing at how such a simple action could render you breathless and arching your back. 

Your hips swayed like a wave threatening to break over his entire wrist, while he skillfully rocked your world with timely strokes and tugs. 

The wet sounds coming from between your legs and spilling from your mouth painted an entire map of your release—the hitch in your breath, the gasping quiver of his name, your pitchy squeal which broke off into a pathetic whine. 

Rin let your body find her release from its shameful tether, those watchful, beautiful eyes never taking off from your undulating hips and flushed chest. 

While you were easing down from your high, he prised your legs apart, resting in between them and thumbing the raw, angry red head of his neglected cock. Your small fists crumpled around his white sleep shirt, the tilt in your waiting hips and the hungry look in your eyes undoing his patience. 

He fisted the base of his cock, giving it a few strokes. Rin was no amateur, but he wasn’t exactly as experienced as the other players. A truth he would take with him to his grave—his ego always needed to know that he was the best.

In your arms, you proved to him that he was worthy of your visceral reactions. 

You gasped out his name when you felt the tip breaching past your rippling walls. It was an exquisite stretch your toys or fingers could never give you.

Rin set a pace which had your tits jiggling freely with every heavy slam of his hips into yours. He hadn’t bothered to fully remove your nightie; something about how the hem was haphazardly draped across your thighs with the full reveal being where his cock was currently churning your insides, and the lewd way your breasts were revealed to his starving eyes from your hastily pulled down neckline, added a layer of wickedness to this already sinful affair. 

He devoured your flushed cheeks with a debauched sneer.

You turned your face away into the fluffy pillows to muffle your groans, but he pried it back to his impatient gaze. Wrapping a hand around your throat, he kept you pinned to one spot, held in place like how a prey would be frozen in fear from a starving predator’s gaze. 

“I’m fucking you so well, huh, Y/N?” his gritted scoff warmed your blood, making it sing in your ears. “You’re taking me like a champ.” 

“Stop,” you whispered harshly, tightening your hold on his loose shirt. “You’re being m-mean—” 

Your protests died as a choked moan when he wrenched your thighs off the bed and hitched them over his broad shoulders. Rin wrapped his arms around your legs, lifting them off slightly from the soft mattress with his sheer strength.

This position deepened his strokes, and coupled with your shaky circles on your clit, it had you right at the edge. 

“Rin… Rin-nii…”

The featherlight whisper of that honorific slammed into him like a tidal wave. 

Rin picked up the pace, the slick sounds coming from your pussy intoxicating him with everything about your presence; your airy moans, the glossy tears in your eyes, how you scrunched his shirt in your hold as if he would float away if you let go. 

You clawed at his chest, scrambling to grip his dark green locks and the back of his neck to draw him closer. Your legs were fully in the air, the deep rut of each sweet plunge in and out of your eager, twitching hole a shameful sign of your surrender to Rin. 

“Say it again,” he growled, the snarl on his face both terrifying and arousing. “Call me that again, little sister.” 

You wasted no time in succumbing to the darker instincts tainting the air tonight.

“Rin-nii… nii-san… please fuck me good…”

He grasped the doughy softness of your hips, sinking his nails into the welcoming flesh to take more and more until you were crying for him to stop. Rin was selfish with many things, and you were not the exception. He wanted to own your every sniffle, sob and moan. Every exhale of pleasure you released was consumed to feed his ego. 

You belonged to him and only him. 

That thought alone could’ve brought him to his knees, and it nearly made him lose control over his own body. 

The teasing darkness, beckoning him into her disastrous embrace, called out his name in a slurry, seductive moan which sounded awfully like your own voice.

“Rin-nii! I-I’m close!” your choked whimper made the red fog in his mind thicken. There was a finger hovering right over his trigger button, held back by his rapidly corrupted morals.

He couldn’t cum in you, you weren’t on any protection, he would get you knocked up, your parents would kick him out, he would be a disgrace—

“Rin-nii, inside,” you hiccuped, slipping your hand right onto your mound; using your index and middle finger to pry your nether lips further apart so he could see the glistening chokehold of your folds clinging around his cock. “I want you to cum inside.”

Those words barely left your spit-soaked lips when a well of warmth filled you right up to the brim. Rin’s guttural groan was primal, muffled into your shoulder. 

You welcomed his weight on top of you; pushing his cock deeper and pressing on a spot which had you seeing stars and releasing all over his twitching length. 

“Rin…” your soft gasp reverberated through his ringing ears. He shivered when you scratched his scalp, the pleasurable itch running down his spine. 

There was nothing else uttered between you two. Sleep came like a feathered down blanket over your consciousness, dragging you into the dark from the sound of his jagged breathing. 

Your stepbrother was right in between your thighs, eating you out for breakfast. 

Rin and you had woken up in a mess of limbs and dried cum, and rather than forcing normalcy after a night where the biggest boundary was crossed, you both continued to fall deeper into each other’s trap. 

“Rin-nii…” 

He had only fucked you twice, and yet, Rin was already feeling a possessive need to keep filling you up if only to hear you airily breathing out his name. 

His tongue slid through your folds, sampling your flavour with the patience of a man starving for his next meal. 

Your back was pressed to the expensive marble counter, and your fingers were yanking on his locks. 

“Mhm!” your teary hitched breath made him throb right in his sleep pants. 

Rin played with your clit, using his tongue to flick the flushed pearl and sucking around the greasy bud until your legs shook around his ears. 

Your nails sank into the underside of the counter, and he didn’t have to glance up to know that your face was crumpled in pure ecstasy. He could sense it in your hips—how they swayed like poetry in motion, spelling out his name and claim on you.

He flattened his tongue to let you slide your soaked folds over it as you struggled to find sweet friction; risking a peek up at you through his lashes. Your head was thrown back, the morning sun haloing your hair. Rin had seen a few women in the pinnacle of their own pleasure, but never one as breathtaking as you. 

Your moans were strained around your need to remain quiet, even as both your parents were still on holiday. He noticed your hand moving to cover your mouth in his periphery, muffling your moans behind a wall of flesh. 

Rin grunted; he couldn’t let you get away with this.

He retracted the pink muscle of his tongue back into his mouth, kissing your clit as a sweet consolation to his change of mind.

“Let me hear you,” he ordered, observing how you pried your teary gaze from the ceiling to the man right in between your legs. 

“Rin-nii,” your broken whisper stirred none of his sympathies. 

“Our parents aren’t home, so let me hear you,” he kneaded your hip with one hand, swollen lips pulled into an uncharacteristic smirk. “Unless… you don’t want to cum as badly as I thought you wanted to?” 

Your breathing hiked, and you tightened your hold on his hair. 

“N-no… m’wanna cum around your tongue…”

He sucked your clit into his mouth, using his lips to massage and roll the tiny bud. Sadistically enjoying how you flinched and tossed your head back to cry out his name. 

“Then let the neighbors know who’s eating you out s’good,” he growled into your flushed folds. “Let them know who this pussy creams for.” 

His words hit you like a freight train.

Running you down the tracks straight into madness, you let Rin order you around, control your reactions with his straitlaced dominance and encouragement to let go for him. 

You gasped, preened, cried out and moaned his name, calling him Rin, Rin-nii, Rin-Rin… 

His name sounded gorgeous wrapped in lust—your lust.

The sound of a car on the driveway knocked you back to the ground in shock, and from your stance in the kitchen, you could look out the window onto the front porch. Your parents were stepping out of the car, a few hours early from their scheduled arrival, lugging suitcases and joking around.

They couldn’t see you from the kitchen window’s heavy tint, but they were just a few feet away. 

“Rin,” you tugged on his hair harshly, begging him to ease up. There was a puddle of spit and juices gathering on the floor, right above where his mouth was still insistently connected to your clit. “Rin, t-they’re here—”

Those large palms caged your hips to the corner of the island, holding you down so you couldn’t squirm away.

“R-Rin!” 

“Cum first,” he muttered roughly, licking up and down your seam to tease you from clit to hole. “Cum on my tongue first and then I’ll let you go.” 

“No!” you whisper-shrieked, thrashing about, trying to push him off you. He stubbornly held on, pinning you to the edge of the counter with one arm, easily pushing his free hand through your thighs and plunging two thick fingers into your well-teased pussy. 

You gasped out loud, back arching.

Footsteps echoed down the gravel walkway, getting closer.

“Rin—”

Your toes curled, and the room started to spin. It felt like your entire skin was covered with flames licking every inch of your body—the biggest ember burning right where Rin was insistently eating you out. 

Despite every nerve that was drenched in horror, the coil in your belly never stopped tightening, thrilled by the possibility of being discovered.

“Rin,” you were sobbing at this point, whether in fear or ecstasy, you had no idea. Your body was in a raging battle, your self-control razed to ashes.

“... wonder how Y/N and Rin are…”

Your parents were just right behind the door, their voices breaching through your foggy mind.

They were a few feet away from opening the huge mahogany slab and finding your older brother on his knees, pleasuring you. 

Dad would freak out first. After all, he had explicitly told Rin to be nice to you—but he hadn’t anticipated how well the younger Itoshi would treat you.

Your mother would cry. She would curse you out for ruining the first family you ever had. 

And Sae, your other brother… 

The thought of your older nii-san and the disdain shining in those detached teal eyes (so similar to Rin’s yet so different) if he was the one to stumble upon the both of you, was the final push your body needed.

Flames licked your entire body, the world falling off its hinges. You crumpled to the floor, in time for Rin to catch you, his fingers furiously pumping in and out of your drooling cunt, squeezing you dry from the pleasure. 

He was frantically lapping at your clit, drinking up your juices, more of them splattered onto the floor. 

“Fuck,” he cursed, kissing and tonguing your folds as you shuddered and creamed around him. “Fuck, so good, so good—”

The lock clicked, and the front door creaked open.

The elder Itoshi found nothing amiss in his house when he stepped in, his new wife trailing behind with their luggage and souvenir bags. 

His teal gaze swept over the spacious kitchen, and the only sounds in the house came from the living room where light was spilling past the archway. Someone was watching TV. 

“Is Rin here?” his new wife asked, always excited to see one of his boys. He hummed, tossing his keys onto the console table and shrugging out from his jacket. 

“Beats me. He comes and goes when he pleases—”

“Tou-san?” 

Sanjiro paused, recognizing his son’s voice calling from down the hall. 

“Rin-Rin?” 

Both parents ambled towards the light source, rounding the corner to find Rin scrolling listlessly through the channels, still clad in his sleep shirt and pants with a cushion fitted snugly in his arms, nestled right on his lap.

He peeled his disinterested eyes from the screen to assess them. “How was your holiday?” 

Your mother spoke first. “It was great! The weather was so good. How has Y/N been? She mentioned you stopped over for dinner yesterday.” 

Rin’s expression barely changed, only a flicker of recollection behind those impassive eyes. “Oh. Yeah, I did. I stayed over in my old room—it was too late to drive. I hope neither of you minded,” he added as an afterthought.

His stepmother, always there to reassure that he was always welcomed in their new house, stepped into her hostess role. “Of course not! This house is as much yours as ours.” 

Never mind that this luxurious double-storey once belonged to his biological mother and father. 

Recognizing that his new wife might have overstepped with this careless slip, Sanjiro cleared his throat gruffly. “So, did you at least try to be nice to Y/N?”

Before Rin could reply, he was cut off by a chipper: “Yes, he was!”  

You drew all three of their attention, bouncing down the stairs with an effervescent grin plastered on your face. You were ready for the day, dressed in a simple pair of jeans and a t-shirt, hair damp from a shower.

“Rin-nii and I watched some horror movies last night and he made fun of me the whole time, did you not, nii-san?” 

There was a crack in his son’s composure—a look of annoyance that made Sanjiro want to chastise him when Rin spoke up, surprising the older man who could faintly make out a teasing lilt in his boy’s tone.

Which was completely unusual to hear coming from his sullen, withdrawn son. 

“Hard not to when you can’t even handle a jumpscare… little sis.”

said i would never write stepcest yet here i am oopsie anyway every reblog and (nice) feedback helps us manifest our own rin-nii bless

©️ all works belong to lalunanymph. do not copy, repost or claim as your own.

[jkriordanverse]

Soc characters as dads (hcs//what i feel they'd be like)

Kaz - 100% baby whisperer. He's been caught several times having ribbons and glitter in his hair from tea parties with his kids and he doesn't care. Criminal prodigy in training. He even brought them a small suit complete with a diamond encrusted on a stick that looks strangely like his cane. Inej catches him baby talking in his office several times, and it goes sth like this.

Kaz, doing taxes: you see, to do taxes, you take this number and multiplies with this. and then divide it with this Baby Kanej, reaching for a shiny object: *baby babbles* Kaz: aha, correct! You are a genius, and i see you have an eye for things. Excellent *proud dad moment* Baby Kanej: *more baby babble*

Wylan - It's wonderful. Wylan's 10 times the dad Van Eck will ever be. He's going to help this child in every way he can, even though he can't read them stories, he makes up his own, and he's quite amazing. When the kid's finally learned how to read, their roles flip and he starts reading Wylan stories. They have tea together and he teaches them the flute and even though the child seems to be quite terrible at it he's proud anywas.

Jesper - This baby's blowing up things and shooting by the age of 5. He's taking this child everywhere he goes (unless it's somewhere dangerous), he's showing it all his friends. he's teaching it all the Jespery moves and the child is getting the full how to Jesper on the dancefloor guide 101. He's showing the kid how to shoot, and he's teaching them secret names for each member of the Dregs (Kaz found out Jesper was calling him names this way)

Matthias - Afraid of his child. Oh no, they're scrunching their face. That means the baby is....erm....mad...right? At what? He's panicking now, he doesn't really know what to do? goo goo ga ga? What does that mean? Maybe Nina is more of an expert on this foreign language.... (//I think he ADORES his child and his hot wife but overall doesn't really know what to do with the kid and handles the baby like you might handle a piece of precious China).

[astronomywriting]

Unexpected Affection ❤️ Shinobu x Fem! Reader

WC: 1.8k Words

Vocab: [H/T]= Hair Texture || [H/C]= Hair Color || [S/C]= Skin Color || [F/N]= First Name || [E/C]= Eye Color ||

Content Warnings: Reader’s father is mentioned to be deceased, and their mother is emotionally unavailable

Premise: The reader is emotionally repressed, but they find themselves wanting cuddles from Shinobu

A/N: This one is a lot of yap with little dialogue. If you happen to have any constructive criticism I’d love to hear it :D

|||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||

You were an exceedingly stoic person. A persona you’ve long adopted, ever since early childhood. Your father passed away unexpectedly, which threw your mother into a pit of depression. Depression that would lead her onto the path of emotional neglect, not only for herself but also for you. Your mother would never go on to tell you why she changed so harshly after the passing of your father, but somewhere you had a feeling it was because you resembled him too much for her to bear.

These unfortunate events made you grow up faster than you would’ve liked. You had to take care of yourself, get back up on your own after something in life had gone wrong, and teach yourself how to adjust as you grew with the ever-changing world. Even now, as an adult, you still hold onto these past techniques, normalizing them into your day-to-day life. You weren’t able to trust easily, and even those whom you’ve left in your life rarely get to see a smile or express basic human emotion.

Which is why, as you lay on the futon alone, you wonder how and when you started missing the company of your girlfriend. You were used to being alone, so what strange circumstances of events led you to greet being alone as a foreign feeling? When did you start longing for her to be around? When did you begin to enjoy the small kisses and the warmth of having a partner to sleep next to?

You didn’t know how to answer such a question yet, but you did know you wanted to drag Shinobu back to bed so you could fall asleep once more. However, there was one small factor stopping you. It wasn’t in your code to just get up and tell Shinobu how much you enjoyed her company and that you couldn’t sleep without her. Even the smallest levels of intimacy were completely untouched by you.

Kisses between you were nothing but small pecks, only to be shared in the privacy of your own home. The only handholding you did was a quick squeeze in between the days. Your type of affection wasn’t something bold or outgoing; it was simply small acts that could be done completely alone. Instead of cuddling, you’d just silently enter a room Shinobu happened to be in and sit down, simply basking in the proximity of your beloved.

Tonight was different, though. Echoes of the past were quite keen on keeping you up, no matter how much you tried to readjust into a comfortable position or try to work on your breathing to lull you into sleep. It was becoming more and more obvious to you that what you needed was another person to help you drift off. Whether it was with her scratching your [H/T] [H/C] hair or whispering small words of affirmation until you fell asleep, the fact was clear. Sleep would not come tonight unless Shinobu was with you.

You sigh as you remove the covers from your body, the chill air hitting you in an instant. You sit on the edge of the futon as you nibble on your lip. Your hands are scrunched up on your thighs, leaving small crescent patterns in their wake. You let out one small, shaky sigh. You knew Shinobu wasn’t like your mother, but it still just felt so nerve-racking. Knowing your girlfriend, she was most likely up late again working on another project of hers. She had her own personal study just down the hall from your shared bedroom.

A short walk was all it would take to get what you wanted. All you had to do was pop the question, and you were sure Shinobu would oblige. Though many times you asked your mother for something small, like a hug or the simple message that it was going to be okay, you were declined instantly. You continue to dig your nails into your [S/C] skin.

You release the grip of your nails on your skin and stand up. Maybe the sleepiness had made you bold, or maybe you were facing the fear of intimacy. Whatever it was, it was enough to make you travel outside of your bedroom and down the hall towards Shinobu’s study. For a moment, you just stand there, staring at the door knob. You command your arm to move so you can enter, but it’s of no use. The light is on; you know she’s in there, but your body lies still.

This is stupid. You think to yourself.

What kind of adult can’t sleep alone? You criticize.

I’d only be bothering her. You admit.

Despite these harsh words, you find yourself slowly opening the door. The confidence you once had is beginning to shrivel away. Your hands turn shaky, and you begin to sweat. You almost want to close the door and run back into the futon to hide under the covers, but you don’t. Twisting the knob ever so slightly with your trembling hands, you see Shinobu, her back turned to you, doing some paperwork at her desk. The chair is pushed to the side, and she is standing.

Your heart begins to pound in your chest and out of your ears. You’re surprised Shinobu doesn’t hear, with her being a Hashira and all. Maybe it was the habit you picked up in your early childhood— wanting to be completely silent as you wandered through the house so as not to upset your mother. Either way, you enter the study silently, and you are now standing behind her. A small part of you wishes to stay inside your comfort zone. Opting for the usual routine of you and Shinobu sharing a space with comfortable silence. But today you feel different, more bold, and more eager.

You find yourself walking behind her, slowly wrapping your hands around her waist, and plopping your chin on her shoulder. She tenses up for a moment, a bit startled, but relaxes when she realizes it’s you.

“Love?” She asks, her voice a little confused.

Normally you get tense when she calls you any sort of pet name, but today you feel yourself relaxing instead.

“Shino,” you start. Your mouth goes dry, and while you don’t mind her calling you a pet name, hearing it come out of your mouth is a different scenario. “Can…can you come back to bed, please?” You mumble.

Shinobu doesn’t respond; she’s a bit stunned for a moment, unused to your small display of intimacy.

“Shino?” You try again, your voice low.

This clears her senses, and she quickly forms a response.

“Ah, yes, [F/N]?” She quickly stutters out.

“I asked if you would go back to bed with me.” You repeat.

“Yes, of course, my dear.” Shinobu agrees; she prioritized her work heavily, but on this special occasion, she simply couldn’t refuse. “May I ask why, though? You’re usually so—”

You cut her off. “Stoic? I know,” you let out a dry chuckle. “I just,” you struggle to find words to represent how you feel. “It’s hard to sleep when you’re not there, and my late-night overthinking is the worst,” you confess.

You realize your hold on her waist, and you step back to let Shinobu readjust her posture. She turns to face you; her purple eyes tear into your [E/C] ones. You see her lean forward ever so slightly, but she stops herself. You know that she knows about your boundaries. You’re hyper-aware of them too. Although not comfortable for a full kiss just yet, you grab her hand. Despite her being a Demon Slayer, her hands are silky smooth.

You bring her hand to your mouth, placing a small kiss on one of her knuckles. It’s short, like all of your other kisses, but the air around this particular kiss feels different.

“I wish to cuddle with you..?” You phrase it as more of a question than a request. “And you don’t have to use my name either,” you add on. “I’m okay.. I’m comfortable with you using a pet name,” you reassure. This all feels dizzying to you.

Shinobu gives you one of her soft smiles, and she goes to take your hand. Not a small squeeze or a simple graze. This touch is lingering and comfortable.

“Of course, my dear,” she says, leading you back to your shared room.

Shinobu lets go of your hand to enter first; you follow after her and realize the air is no longer chilly. She kneels down in front of the futon and pats it, signaling you to come lie down. As you do, Shinobu moves to lay behind you. This time, it’s her who wraps one arm steadily around your waist, while the other comes up to toy with your [H/T] hair.

Your body relaxes, your muscles go limp, and you lean back into her smaller frame.

“Sorry for interrupting your work, ‘Nobu, it’s just today I felt like—“

This time, it’s Shinobu who cuts you off. “Shh,” she coos. “You’re not a bother; in fact, I’ve been waiting for you to get more affectionate.” You feel her warm breath against your neck as she speaks.

“You have?”

“Mhm,” she hums. “I concealed it, but in my study I was practically jumping for joy.”

“That was always your specialty, huh?” You snicker.

“My specialty is medical work,” Shinobu declares. “Speaking of.”

You can’t get a word in before two hands gently run along your shoulders.

“Did you know that massages help with sleep, love?” Shinobu says.

“I did not,” you reply.

Shinobu gently caresses your shoulders before moving down your back. Every now and then, there’s a small pop, and any pain you once had in your back dissipates. You also feel yourself growing drowsy. Eyelids turn heavy, and you can barely focus on the scary feeling of intimacy anymore. The only thing that is present is Shinobu giving you a massage while you flutter into a peaceful sleep.

[mothandpidgeon]

Aunt Flo's First Visit [pre-outbreak!Joel Miller x f!reader]

MASTERLIST - follow @mothandpidgeon-updates and turn on notifications to stay updated with my fics!

Pairing: pre-outbreak!Joel Miller x f!reader

Summary: After Sarah gets her first period, Joel is determined to be a supportive parent despite the fact that he doesn't know the first thing about menstruation. But when he goes to the pharmacy to shop for supplies, he finds himself in way over his head.

Words: 2k

Rating: G

Warnings: period stuff and everything that comes with it

a/n: This is really fluffy and a little silly. I saw a tik tok by a menstrual product company about a customer trying to find the right thing for his daughter and it just gave me such Joel energy this happened. I haven't finished any fic in MONTHS because I'm working on my book and that's not finished either so it feels really good to complete something. (If you want to keep up with my publishing journey, I'm mainly documenting it here.) Please enjoy.

Also, I challenged myself to write in present tense bc I never do and I really was struggling so pretend the grammar is all correct. Thank you.

Joel knows how to do a lot of things. He can manage a crew, change a flat tire, and build just about anything. He never considered himself smart by the classical definition but he knows how to make a car battery from scratch despite the fact that he got a C in chemistry. 

If somebody had told him a decade ago that he’d one day be paralyzed with fear in the feminine hygiene aisle, he would’ve laughed. But right now, Joel would give all his knowledge along with his left arm if he could just figure out what the hell he ought to buy for his daughter.

He knew this day would come eventually. It’s his own damn fault he never prepared himself. Somewhere in the back of his mind, he must’ve expected Sarah to just know how to handle it. Being a single dad wasn’t a walk in the park but he couldn’t imagine how much harder it would be if Sarah wasn’t so damn self sufficient. Even at 13, she can get herself fed and dressed and off to school without help. Of course she could figure this out on her own.

But Joel was reminded that Sarah’s still just a kid when she finally told him that she’d gotten her period for the very first time. She was so embarrassed to admit it, Joel practically had to drag it out of her. 

He was angry with himself. He should’ve been ready, wished that he knew the right words to say. Joel promised himself he would put things right so she wouldn’t feel like she ever had to hide anything from him. 

That was a lot easier said than done, he realizes now.

Joel stands in the aisle overwhelmed and confused. Boxes and soft packages in friendly, pastel colors stare at him from the shelves. He’s never spent much time with the feminine hygiene products, not unless he was scooting by them to pick up a little carton from the family planning section. He hasn’t bothered to learn about that stuff. Women’s stuff. He’s not disgusted by menstruation, isn’t afraid of it. It’s just one of those things he never had to deal with. 

Without Sarah’s mom, though, he’s had to figure out plenty of girl things. He can remember the lesson on managing Sarah’s curls from the kind woman at the hair salon. Names of Shampoos and oils that felt foreign were now routine and he’s mastered using the combs and clips that looked more intimidating than some of his power tools. But he struggled for a good long while before that kind stylist took pity on him. 

And here he is again, flying blind into the female whirlwind. 

There’s so many options on the shelf. Words like HEAVY and gentle and sport. And the prices. Christ! He thought the hair stuff was expensive.  

Joel’s head is spinning but he has to get it together. He’d vowed long ago that he would be Dad and Mom too. That’s what his daughter deserves. 

Just a year ago, he hovered outside of the dressing room at the mall as Sarah tried on training bras. 

“Did you find one? You were in there for a while,” he said when she emerged.

“Dad,” she replied in that tone she was using more and more often, the one that told him to shut up.

It isn’t the changes to her body that scare him, all of the subtle ways she’s becoming less familiar. His little girl is growing up and he mourns her childhood. It won’t be long before she’s driving, going off to college. Maybe she’ll have a daughter of her own but Joel hopes she’ll wait longer than he did, have a chance to make a life for herself.

Speaking of which, he realizes he’s going to have to sit her down for a real talk about boys next. He better get ready for that one. Explaining where babies come from hadn’t been too difficult. Condoms and venereal diseases are a whole different ball game. Teenage boys are gremlins– he’d know– and Sarah’s so smart and pretty, she’s going to have to be careful. 

Joel doesn’t know how long he’s been staring at the shelves when a woman appears in the aisle, another shopper. She’s got her keys looped around a finger, headed straight for the tampons, her flip flops smacking against the bottoms of her feet. Joel has a box in his hands. He doesn’t even know what he’s picked up, it’s just got the least intimidating packaging and the price is reasonable. He can’t help but catch the woman’s eye and the look she gives him is a little wary. It must be obvious that he’s out of his depths. But she gives a polite, tight lipped smile and proceeds to ignore him as she approaches the pantheon of period products. 

He watches as her eyes dart around the shelves and quickly she makes a selection, plucking up a box clad with pink and purple silhouettes. So easy. Well, it must be easy for her. He wonders how many times she’s visited this part of the pharmacy, if her mother brought her to the store when she was Sarah’s age and showed her all the options. 

His free hand fidgets at his side and he swallows dryly. He feels like an idiot but he reminds himself that he’s got to do this. For Sarah. The woman is already half way back to the end of the aisle by the time he’s found his voice. 

---

“Excuse me, miss. Could I trouble you for a second?” you hear from the man behind you. 

You turn around, confused, but there’s nobody else that he could be talking to. Here you thought you could get in and out quickly. You’re cranky and tired and all day you’ve had toe curling cramps. It hits you like a ton of bricks every month. All you want to do is get home to your couch to watch some crappy reality tv. 

But this lumberjack of a man– broad shoulders wrapped in a flannel shirt– is giving you puppy dog eyes. You’ve never been hit on while holding a box of Tampax Pearl but there’s a first time for everything. 

“I apologize. This is real awkward,” he says, rubbing at the back of his neck with a big hand. “I’m trying to get something for my daughter but I’m a little lost.”

His voice is warm and sweet and he’s handsome as hell but you keep your distance. 

“Didn’t she tell you what to get?” you ask. 

His expression grows even more bashful and his voice lowers. 

“I’m afraid it’s, uh…well, it’s new territory for both of us,” he admits. 

You can’t help the sympathetic smile that forms on your lips. Some poor preteen girl just got welcomed into the cruel arms of womanhood. It will be all downhill from here. Wild mood swings, angry breakouts, blood leaking through her favorite pair of pants. At least, it seems, she’s got her dad on her side. It takes a lot of balls for a guy to pick up a box of tampons let alone stop a stranger and ask for help. 

You’d like to tell him that you’re too busy to help– you can hear your Haagen Dazs calling you all the way from the freezer– but you at least owe it to this kid to help him out. 

“What’ve you got?” you ask, nodding towards the powder blue box in his grasp. It looks so little in his big hand. You walk back towards him and take a look. “Oh. Nice try but I wouldn’t go with that.”

He regards his choice again. It’s kind of adorable, the way the corners of his mouth frown as he squints at the words on the front. “What’s wrong with these?” His words aren’t defensive, he’s genuinely curious. 

“Tampons can be pretty tricky when you’re that age. And those don’t even come with an applicator,” you explain. You remember trying to use a tampon that first time. You’d never put anything up there before and it stung like hell.

“Applicator?” His brows furrow and you can see fear in his brown eyes. 

“So you can put it…in,” you tell him and motion with your finger, jabbing your pointer upwards. 

His cheeks go pink. Ears too. You try to suppress a giggle as his brain short circuits for a second. His throat works as he swallows and places the box back on the shelf— gingerly, like it might explode. 

“Which are the ones that don’t…go inside?” he asks. 

It’s impossible to keep from grinning. 

“Pads,” you say. 

He nods. 

You choose a package and place it in his hands. It’s a multipack, everything from light to heavy, and no wings so she doesn’t feel like she’s wearing a diaper. 

“Try this,” you say. “She might not like them. It takes some trial and error.”

He reads over the circle in the corner that claims it’s 100% Leak Free! You can see he’s still overwhelmed but he’s far less nervous. He really is good looking and you have to wonder how he doesn’t have a woman in his life to help him out.

“This many?” he asks. 

“She might need more.” You shrug. “Just stay away from the scented ones. And you have Tylenol at home?”

“I think so.”

“How about a heating pad?”

He shakes his head. 

“Go get one,” you advise. 

He blows out air and then steels himself with a nod, ready to face the red menace. 

“I’m awfully grateful for your help,” he says and you can tell by the look on his face, he means that. 

You feel your own cheeks heat. 

---

Joel ends up behind her in the checkout line after securing an electric heating pad and grabbing an extra bottle of Motrin. 

“What do you think?” he asks, showing her what he picked.

“Good job,” she tells him. Her smile is tinged with amusement but his chest still swells with pride. Maybe he’s not such a failure of a father after all.

Now that he’s less bewildered, Joel can’t help but notice how pretty this woman is. She’s dressed for comfort without any make up as far as he can tell but that smile and the kindness in her eyes is what does it for him. If they met under different circumstances, maybe he’d try to flirt. Not that he’s had the opportunity to practice recently. It’s for the best, though. There’s absolutely no way the combination of bumbling idiot, single parent, and menstruation makes for a romantic connection. Besides he’s here on an errand for his daughter.

Joel tries to keep his eyes from wandering over her as the teenager behind the register rings her up, the pink box and two bags of M&Ms. She gives Joel one last smile before leaving the store. 

He thought he might feel embarrassed buying nothing but period supplies but he’s too busy thinking about how helpful she was. Sarah would just about die from mortification if he told her a complete stranger gave him a crash course in maxi pads. He chuckles to himself. 

“Hey!” someone calls as Joel approaches his truck.

It’s her, the woman from the pharmacy, crossing the parking lot. Joel smooths his hair.

“These are for her,” she says, handing him one of her bags of candy. “Chocolate helps.”

Joel gives a soft laugh as he weighs the M&Ms in his hand. “That I knew,” he says. 

“And, uh, here,” she tells him, holding out the long receipt. 

Joel takes the paper. On the back she’s scribbled her name and phone number. 

“You know, I don’t know. I just thought– if she has any questions. Or maybe if you do,” she says, shrugging. She’s much less confident now than she was in front of that endless selection of menstrual products. It’s cute and makes Joel feel a little less like an idiot for the way he was fumbling a few minutes ago. 

“I owe you one,” he says.

She shakes her head. “Just be patient,” she warns. “She’s gonna be a bitch but don’t take it personally.”

Joel grins. 

“You’re a good dad,” she tells him and he doesn’t know how to respond to that.

She’s already backing away towards her car and waves again. 

Joel looks at her number, once again finding something he doesn’t know. He’d give his left arm to figure out how soon is too soon to call. 

---

MASTERLIST - follow @mothandpidgeon-updates and turn on notifications to stay updated with my fics!

[nonexistentirl]

As I'm re reading Eleceed from the beginning, this bit in chapter 93 caught my attention. It's insinuating that there was once an unaffiliated awakened who betrayed Baekho and S.Korea which dealt them a lot of damage. Now pair that with the fact that we know nothing about who Jiwoo's father is and it certainly does start to paint a picture.

My theory is that, Papa Seo was a really strong awakened. But just like Jiwoo, he too refused to be affiliated with any groups. Han Seongik saw his potential and decided to sponsor him. Things were going fine until, and this is only my theory, Kayden Break appeared. I presume the fight between Kayden and Han Seongik was the catalyst. Papa Seo saw the power of the world class and decided he wanted to become like that too. He couldn't allow himself to be stuck in South Korea where the rankers are dead set on hiding their power. Thus he left. His departure would indeed be a great damage to the firepower of South Korean awakened society.

Now, there's also the possibility that he's a completely normal person. But I find it weird that we haven't seen hair nor hide of him in over 300 chapters of this series. Jiwoo's mom made an appearance in flashbacks as early as chapter 7 before officially appearing around chapter 176. But his father hasn't so much as been mentioned. Even when the others talk about his history they never mention his father. Only he and his mom moving around a lot is ever mentioned. Unless he's like dead or divorced, it's all really suspicious.

Jiwoo and his mother don't share a surname, so the possibility that he's fully Korean are high. There's also the fact that we don't know two of the world's top 10. Jiwoo's dad might be one of them. Han Seongik was the top ranker of Korea before passing the title down to Yoo Jiyoung. If Papa Seo left Korea before becoming one of the top 10, then he wouldn't be Korea's no. 1 anyway.

I'd also like to add the bit about how we don't know two of the top 10 in the world yet. We also don't know the third top 10 who gave Kayden the injury. Kayden said he got injured while fighting three top 10 gathered at a place. We now know two of them are Greg and Mioru. But the third one... The fact that the two of them ganged up with Andrei to fight Kayden again while the third one didn't. Could he have opted out after finding out Kayden is Jiwoo's mentor? Or he could simply be busy somewhere else, idk.

As for the resemblance part, since Jiwoo seems to take a lot after his mother appearance wise, I doubt he looks anything like his father. So Kayden and Han Seongik not recognising Jiwoo is still valid. As for how he managed to stay under their radar, well, that's something we won't know unless we know their entire past. Anything is possible, really.

So, here's the list of possibilities for Jiwoo's dad

He's dead

He's divorced with Jiwoo's mom

He's in jail

He works in a foreign country like Jiwoo's mom

He's a world class awakened one, possibly a top 10 ranker

[sanctum-of-ramshackle]

TWST: Hot Pot/K-BBQ

[Synopsis]: All eight dorms trying Hot Pot/K-BBQ.

[(A/N)]: The family and I went out for Hot Pot during New Year’s Eve in which this idea popped up because I don’t think anyone else thought of this.

[TW]: Some cursing in the HCs and food.

[Edit]: There would be some changes to the writing as I realized there’s some grammatical errors needing to be fixed.

HEARTSLABYUL

Riddle Rosehearts

A first-timer as the concepts of cooking for yourselves at a restaurant is completely foreign to him.

Still new to everything, he probably tried to count how long the food is supposed to cook and/or what to combine which sauces unless there’s a guide to mixing up the franchise’s signature dipping sauce.

Overall he’ll definitely enjoy the experience.

Unless a certain duo ruins the moment.

Trey Clover

Obviously the “unofficial chef” of the group.

Helps orders most of the food for everyone and the other members pitch in for what they want to try.

Has to remind everyone not to forget to eat their vegetables.

He may have more than one dipping sauce from the sauce bar.

Definitely has interesting combinations of food during Hot Pot/K-BBQ.

Cater Diamond

The one who recommended trying out Hot Pot/K-BBQ.

The type who would try out the viral trends involving these kind of eateries like the Meat Strip twirling trend. (Totally did not accidentally flung his strip somewhere at somebody’s face.)

If there’s Hot Pot, he’s ordering the spiciest broth; if there’s K-BBQ, he’s ordering the spiciest marinated meat. Either spicy Bulgolgi or Samgyeopsal.

He takes many pictures and records everything for MagiCam.

Ace Trappola

Most definitely orders more meat/seafood until Trey reminded him to eat his greens.

He would be impatient waiting for the food to be safe to consume.

Would definitely attempt to take one bite of a lettuce wrap. (He almost choked-)

He would fight against Deuce for the last piece of Kobe beef.

Deuce Spade

Would try anything if he likes it or not.

Definitely would order 계란찜 [Gyeran Jjim] [Korean steamed egg] as one of the side dishes.

Planning on taking his mother and grandmother out for Hot Pot/K-BBQ next time.

Would also fight against Ace for the last Kobe beef until Riddle scolded the two.

SAVANACLAW

Leona Kingscholar

We already know this motherfucker hates vegetables so he only orders from the meat section of the menu.

Probably goes to an high-end Hot Pot/K-BBQ restaurant.

Definitely has Ruggie in charge of cooking the food.

Doesn’t really order side dishes.

Ruggie Bucchi

Oh, he hit the jackpot.

He would order something expensive and new because the Savanaclaw Dorm Leader is paying for everything.

Put in charge by Leona to cook the food and also getting the dipping sauces.

If allowed, he’ll ask the waiter/waitress to pack some leftovers so they’re sent to his granny and the other kids back home.

Jack Howl

Actually enjoying the experience.

He’ll order assorted meat and vegetables moderately while also creating his own dipping sauce of his liking.

Waits patiently for the food to be ready to consume.

Would go again, but next time with the First Year gang.

OCTAVINELLE

Azul Ashengrotto

Absolutely coming up with new ideas for the Monstro Lounge while trying out Hot Pot/K-BBQ.

He’ll order whatever he thought would be a new idea as a upcoming concept for the menu back in his business.

If it’s Hot Pot, I can see him ordering a Miso-based broth.

He would absolutely strike up a deal with the restaurant’s owner if they can collaborate with their establishment and the Monstro Lounge.

Jade Leech

One word. Seafood. (Minus any conger eel.)

With Hot Pot, he’ll order some wood ear fungi (plus other assorted mushroom) and let me tell you, they tasted amazing while having a crunchy texture.

With K-BBQ, King Oyster mushrooms (or any available edible fungi) with everything. (Unless he somehow snuck his shrooms in.)

He has patience for the food to be ready to consume.

Floyd Leech

Orders mostly seafood, especially a ton of shrimp related items like Shrimp paste balls, prawns, etc.

Also waits impatiently for his food to be ready.

Has ordered some side dishes to munch on.

He would also try doing one bite of a lettuce wrap. (Not surprisingly, he didn’t choke.)

SCARABIA

Kalim al Asim

Absolutely having a great time trying an experience where you cook food in front of you.

He’s the one asking if the food is ready yet.

Kalim: Is it ready? How about now? What about now?

Has to be careful not to burn himself as he’s basically cooking up close.

Very generous to paying for everything. (Staff members having a pay day.)

Jamil Viper

We already know he’s the “chef” during the experience.

He also has to taste-test the food if there’s no poison or anything lethal to harm Kalim.

Has the best dipping sauce out of everyone in the HCs.

He probably added his own spices in his broth/the meat during K-BBQ.

POMEFIORE

Vil Schöenheit

Last time he went out in public to a Hot Pot/K-BBQ, all franchises of the name were packed with his fans.

Most likely went to a high-end Hot Pot/K-BBQ restaurant like Leona.

He’ll order an herbal-based/a vegetarian broth and more on vegetables than meat.

He would shower three times as this is a downside for this type of meal, every time after you have Hot Pot/K-BBQ, you would reek of smoky barbecue and strong broth smells.

Rook Hunt

He would voluntarily be the “chef” for Vil.

Would likely to ordered something like coagulated pigs blood. (Why? Probably because it reminds him of his favorite food, Liver pâté.) [(A/N): Also don’t be weirded out from this HC because that’s what I grew up eating with whenever I have hot pot.]

He would praise everything. The food, the atmosphere, the service, and the staff members.

He also needs to shower three times because if he decides to roam around doing his “hobby”, it’s better to not let anyone know where he’s hiding.

Epel Felmier

This country boy is having a great time of his life.

Meat is his favorite so he orders a lot of it, but got scolded by Vil to not forget his veggies.

Like Ace and Floyd, he tried to one shot a whole lettuce wrap. (He barely swallowed.)

He tries to not shower as he doesn’t smell anything, but everyone else can so off to the showers he goes. No protests with Vil.

IGNIHYDE

Idia Shroud

We already know this guy is extremely anxious of going outside without the sanctuary of his room, so he used the equivalent of DoorDash to order Hot Pot/K-BBQ.

He’s picky to some of the food, but gets scolded by Ortho for that.

Would have an effective built-in ventilation system to get rid of lingering smells.

Would order again for a Pre-game meal.

Ortho Shroud

He’s just analyzing the food like from the Culinary Event.

Searches interesting facts about Hot Pot and K-BBQ.

Would find recommendations of different franchises.

Scolds his Nii-san for not getting a balanced meal.

DIASOMNIA

Malleus Draconia

Never had Hot Pot/K-BBQ before because…you know. Uninvited and stuff like that.

Had found out from the other Dorm Leaders during their usual meetings and chatted about their times while dining with their dorm mates.

Now he wants to join and luckily found a decent restaurant to try out with the others.

If there is an ice cream bar at the restaurant, he’s down for it.

Lilia Vanrouge

Oh my god, this old fae would have a blast.

You can imagine he’ll order the most oddest choices from the menus. (Like Coagulated pigs blood, pig brains, Gopchang, chicken hearts, etc.) [(A/N): I need to clarify that not all Hot Pot/K-BBQ places have these items I named off of and as a reminder, most of everything I mentioned is what I grew up eating. It’s part of my culture.]

He would have the most smelliest broth for Hot Pot.

Afterwards, he’ll pack some leftovers and would use them for his cooking.

Lilia: Leftovers for the next few days!

Malleus, Silver, & Sebek: *Sweating bullets*

Silver

This sleepy prince would fall asleep while waiting for the food be cooked.

Would order something for his own, even though Lilia insisted on ordering some items. (You already know what bat daddy will get.)

If there’s Hot Pot, I see him getting a something simple like mushroom broth. (Which is an option at a restaurant I went to with the fam.)

I can totally see him having a food coma after the meal.

Sebek Zigvolt

He would try Hot Pot/K-BBQ because Waka-sama also wants to try out the experience. (Fucking simp follower.)

Definitely orders salmon as a start.

Tries to stomach what Lilia offers from his plate.

Needs to shower afterwards if he doesn’t want to reek of barbecue/hot broth during his knightly duties.

Ramshackle ft. Miyeon Choi

MC/Yuu/[Y/N]

Definitely getting their money’s worth because after all they deserve a feast from going through a ton of messed-up shit. (i.e. Overblot cases, NRC students being assholes, etc.)

Also Miyeon is treating them because variants needs to treat each other/themselves.

Just enjoying their meal from assorted meat to seafood to vegetables to interesting fish cakes. (Almost the whole necessary food groups.)

Miyeon would show them some tips and hacks when doing K-BBQ.

Grim

He was mistaken as a wild animal before entering the restaurant.

After the misunderstanding was cleared up, he’s going to gorge himself with so much food.

Also goes crazy with creating his own sauces but MC/Yuu has to stop him from creating a mess at the sauce bar.

He needs to take a bath because the smell got into his fur. (Smelly feline bastard.)

✨[Reblogging helps creators and creates more content.]💫

[simonnebethel]

~ M+S Words into Potions Event ~

Totally not a banner I just made

I am doing Moon + Seraph's Words into Potions challenge in March! Decided it was a good excuse as any to complete the first draft of my romantasy project(and to also give it a name 😅).

Title: To Hear a Lovebird(may or may not be a placeholder 👀)

Genre: Fantasy, Romance, Adventure

Summary: Prunhilt Helisende, an elven farmer living quietly in a dark forest, is forced to travel with a mercenary after they were both seen together by a group of foreign bounty hunters. Just interacting with the charismatic but mysterious Stigbyrr has put a price over her head, and now she has to travel with him until he can find some way to get her back home safely without the elusive bounty hunters noticing. Along the way, the pair find out more about each other that may effect the already blossoming romance between them, or pull them even closer.

I just started writing this and I have not talked about it much, so I have no links besides a small snippet to share.

Also, have this excerpt.

He brought the mug to his lips again, but stilled at the sight of two figures approaching him. Dietrich the tavern keeper, and the pretty lady who played the waldzither only a few moments ago. “Stigbyrr, this is Prunhilt Helisende. Prune, this is Stigbyrr, the mercenary I told you about,” Dietrich turned to Stig after introducing him. “She has a potential job for you.” Prune stared at him for a few moments before turning away, looking down at the table instead. She explained her problem, but Stig was only half-focused on her strange accent. He instead looked at her dark umber hair that was braided to the side, shorter strands framing her sun-tanned skin. Like most of her kind, she had black eyes. Even the sclera was the same inky shade of black, but in the dim lamplight he could see the faintest shade of red. I’m staring, he thought, and quickly shut his gaping mouth and focused on the lady before him. What was she saying? A beast, in the woods? “What kind of beast?” He asked. Her eyes widened just before she averted her gaze again. “I—I don’t know. It only kills at night, and has sharp claws that fester the wound. Worms come to collect their due faster than I’ve ever seen,” She replied. Most creatures of these woods are relatively harmless, as long as whoever is traveling through them respect the Forest Folk who inhabit them. He traced the rim of his cup as he thought. I couldn’t imagine why a farmer who was born and raised here was suddenly having trouble. “Interesting. I’m not knowledgeable in the beast of these lands, but if it’s a nocturnal creature, then it has to have a den somewhere that it sleeps in during the day. Have many caves in this forest?” She shrugged, appearing unsure. “I suppose we do, but I don’t go wandering unless I have a destination in mind. Exploring is a good way to become a sprite’s plaything.” “Oh,” he nodded, “I know all too well. The Forest Folk where I come from are as cold and unforgiving as the weather.” He tilted his head. “And…are you sure this isn’t just some fairy you accidentally ticked off?” She laughed and shook her head, and Stig swore he never heard a sound so pretty. “No. I dare say we have different experiences when it comes to the Forest folk. Any farmer who resides in this forest has to respect the creatures who have lived here long before them if they wish to dwell in it. I swear I have done nothing to anger a forest spirit.” He sighed and sat back in his chair. A job that will require me to get my hands bloody, but a job nonetheless.“Well, I suppose I won’t know what it is until I kill it, yes? I think it would be safer to look for it in the morning, so you’ll just have to risk another night with it lurking around. I must also ask about my payment.”

[leggerefiore]

Here’s a bittersweet idea/question for you:

Do you think Cyrus would be nicer to Erin when Ingo gets sent to Hisui?

His treatment towards Erin wouldn’t do a complete 180, but he’d be sympathetic and may even relate to Erin a little when Cyllene tells him that the boy is without his father.

Thanks!

Probably, not, no. He still would not view Erin as someone he that wants around Cyllene, especially with how emotional he is. (As hypocritical as that may be.) Part of it is just him unconsciously being overprotective over her and another is just him feeling weird about Erin's more sensitive nature.

Seeing him distraught over losing his father likely feels impossibly foreign to Cyrus since he felt nothing but relief about no longer having to deal with his own. Though, he does understand if he views it from Cyllene's perspective.

At best, he tolerates him more, especially during his definite crying fits. At worst, he tries to ignore him and pretend Cyllene is not hanging out with the sad train man.

Unless you meant like... Child Erin, in which case he is more generally tolerant over all. Yeah, a kid will cry when they lose their parent, but he isn't able to comfort him. He just silently lets Cyllene spend a little extra time playing with him. (And asks Erin's other parent what do they mean that Ingo just vanished.)

Somewhere in Hisui, Ingo is continually disturbed.

[laele25]

To expound on my rant I began last night

If you refused to vote for Harris, you have doomed Palestine and Ukraine, and possibly eastern Europe. Trump has already said he will give Bibi what he wants and won't stand in Putin's way. He wanted to leave NATO last time, this time no one will stop him from doing it. Then Putin will invade Poland and we get to do war in Europe all over again. Oh goody. Once again, history in America is often taught by gym teachers and that might explain why most of my countrymen don't recognize a fascist regime when it's goosestepping towards them.

There will be no student loan forgiveness. Hell, expect to pay more in interest since you know they'll be trying to claw back the profits they lost during the Covid freeze and Biden's attempt to offer some relief. Kiss the SAVE act good-bye.

And the tariffs. For those of you still suffering under the delusions of 'Republicans are better on the economy', he added 8 trillion to National Debt you all hate so much last time. You think he's not going to give himself and his cronies a bigger tax cut this time? Everything will be more expensive, because rich guys like him exported manufacturing to foreign countries decades ago so they could pay starvation wages. And about that. Don't be surprised if they decrease minimum wage or do away with it completely. But hey, Trump promised to not tax tips. You know, because anybody is going to have any money for anything after prices on essentials like food triple. The Supreme Court is lost unless Biden goes nuclear and expands the court by four people. Which I don't see happening, because Democrats have repeatedly proven they can't learn from their mistakes. They will sit on their hands until January 6th, then surrender because 'peaceful transfer of power'.

You think infrastructure is bad now? Just wait. They're going to build their big, beautiful wall and let everything else crumble to dust while contractors fight for big checks to do minimal work. And for all you people who see Trump as the 'no new wars' president, I need to explain to you something. Congress declares war, not the president. So if the defense contractors aren't making enough money from the genocide of the Palestinians and the war on Ukraine, you can expect American boots be sent somewhere to terrorize some brown or black people for profit. And Trump can't do a thing about it, especially as all our generals hate him. About that. They hate him, they control all the guns and armor and he's tried to disenfranchise them and threatened to order them to murder American citizens. So a military coup is a possibility. This is not a good thing either. Military coups do not have a good history of 'restoring democracy'. And speaking of coups, all the Jan. 6 rioters will be pardoned and probably given medals next year. Expect the day to become a holiday in the Trump Riech where MAGAts walk to the capital to shit all over the democracy we once had again.

Oh and don't forget he promised us the Purge of people protesting him in any way. Can't have a fascist regime without a police state and suppressing of freedoms.

And of course, since he plans to dismantle the department of education and the EPA, so be sure to tell your kids how it was far more important to vote for a doddering old white man who promised to make them rich than for them to have an education or clean air and water.

So, all in all, the American experiment has failed miserably and the world is lucky, we won't drag it down with us. History doesn't bode well there either. Get your vaccines while they're still covered by insurance and available. Get long term birth control or sterilized, because banning birth control is also big on their agenda.

[fandom-nursery]

Carlos agere headcanons

Regresses to around 2-4 years old 

He started regressing pretty young while he was still living on the Isle but he hid it from everyone out of fear of what would be done to him if anyone found out 

He tends to run off and hide somewhere when he feels himself start to slip even after he is in Auradon and has people who he can trust to take care of him 

Little Carlos wants very badly to feel safe and loved but is also incredibly anxious 

It takes a long time for him to trust new people and he generally prefers to stay in his room while regressed and only be around the other VKs, Ben, and later Jane

Carlos tends to get pretty quiet while little (and has on several occasions gone totally nonverbal) unless he gets super excited about something in which case he starts talking a mile a minute 

Very easily startled by sudden movements and loud noises 

It took a very long time for Carlos to feel safe enough to nap while regressed but once he does he starts falling asleep the second he’s put in bed 

He loves bathtime! On the Isle things like warm water, bubbles, and bath toys were completely foreign concepts and now that he has access to them he can’t get enough 

He is a lego kid. And a block kid. Really anything where he gets to build he loves

One of his favorite things to do while little is play fetch with dude 

He loves sweets but the other VK’s learned the hard way not to give him too many or he will get a sugar high and become crazy hyper 

He is a messy eater and always needs someone to wipe down his face and hands after meals/snacks 

Evie designed him a little black and white stuffed dog out of fabric scraps that he carries with him everywhere and is incredibly attached to. He got so upset when Evie tried to take it from him so she could wash it once that his crying prompted Mal to create a laundry spell on the spot so they could clean it without taking it away from him 

Evie designed him all sorts of comfortable clothing to wear while he’s little. His favorite outfits are the ones with a lot of pockets so he can carry little trinkets and snacks around with him 

Carlos has a paci on him at all times. If it’s not in his mouth its in one of his pockets 

He does occasionally wear diapers while little. Usually Evie or Jay will ask him if he wants them when he first starts regressing and depending on his answer either change him into them or leave him be 

After their quest for the dragon eye when the four of them all became friends Carlos told them about his regression (although at the time he didn’t have a word for it exactly he just knew that sometimes he felt small). He figured it was only a matter of time before he accidentally regressed in front of them and he wanted to be in control of how they found out 

Ben found Carlos regressed during the first week or so of him being at Auradon prep. Carlos was terrified about being found out and immediately went into a panic. Ben stayed calm and helped comfort him, eventually managing to calm him enough to convince Carlos to let him lead the little back to the dorms where Jay took over. It was one of the things that really helped Carlos start to feel safe in Auradon 

When Carlos started to get close with Jane he told her but she isn’t super confident in her ability to care for him when he's little so she usually isn't around when he regresses 

Evie and Jay are his primary caregivers. Mal does her best but being nurturing with children just doesn’t really come naturally to her so she’s typically more like a fun older sister. Ben also tries his best to be a caregiver and for the most part is however, he didn't grow up on the isle and there are just some parts of Carlos and his regression that Ben will never fully be able to understand because of this. 

Because he doesn’t associate the title of mom or dad with safety, love or care he doesn’t use them when addressing his caregivers and just tends to use their names

[the-good-spartan]

So I know that Spartiates were not allowed to leave Sparta except for military excursions and specific rituals/events because of the extreme isolationist policies, but I read somewhere (I think maybe Plutarch but that could be wrong) that outside of those times only on the rarest occasion with special permission from the government could they leave, which would imply that like while rare it did happen at least once or twice for it to be a noted thing that got recorded. Do you have any speculations or theories as to what kind of circumstance could warrant being granted that permission? The only thing I can think of is if like a wife or child fled or was kidnapped and a citizen got permission to go after them and get them back

Thank you for the ask! Here are my thoughts :)

To begin with, the passage in Plutarch is pretty unequivocal:

Consequently [Lykourgos] did not grant Spartiates permission to be away from the city and to travel freely, acquiring foreign habits and copying lifestyles based upon no training as well as types of government different from that of Sparta. [Lyk 27]

There doesn’t seem to be much wriggle room in that; but because he’s writing very late, it’s possible that he has either exaggerated, or is the inheritor of exaggerated information.

By the Roman period, Classical Sparta had become a philosophical icon and taken on a semi-mythological form. Their culture had gone through at least two, perhaps three, complete cultural breaks and had been revived each time after a lapse of many years. There is a lot of room for incorrect ideas of the past to enter the record in all this - from the Spartans themselves as much as outsiders interpreting what they saw and read.

So. Plutarch may be right, and perhaps we should believe that no homoioi traveled - but my feeling is that this is too strict to be realistic. Spartans do pop up in stories throughout the histories in places other than Sparta (when not on campaign or diplomatic missions, obviously) so we know at least some of them could and did travel.

One idea I really like is that it was only those between the ages of 20 and 30 who were barred from travel - a period when they were homoioi, but not yet technically men (namely, the hebontes). There’s an episode during the Arkhidamian War which might support this reading. A group of young men were chosen to stand as governors in Makedonia - their young age was mentioned quite specifically as making it highly unusual that they’d been sent from Sparta.

There’s also the fact that Spartans are attested as having xenia connections all over Hellas, including Athens, and these must’ve - at least in part - been formed and maintained by attending religious games and festivals. I don’t think it’s too much to imagine a homoios going to another polis to celebrate with friends; and I think it highly likely they sometimes used that event as a chance for back channel diplomacy, intelligence gathering, or just testing the mood of an allied polis - as well as having a good time, hopefully, whatever that looked like for a Spartan.

If they were military aged, they probably would’ve needed permission to leave, but unless they were of known bad character, or there was disturbance going on within Lakedaimons borders, I think it would’ve been granted as a matter of course for the most part.

So - if I was writing a story, and needed someone out of Sparta at a particular time - I’d consider giving him friends who’d invited him to the Dionysia, say; or he’d gone to attend the Eleusian Mysteries; or he had a brother who was a contender in the wrestling at the Isthmian Games. These are all likely scenarios.

I hope this answers your question! :)

[withered-rose-unbreakable-lotus]

Dude I can't deal, I will star blocking. This phrase coming from foreigners living in Japan pisses the hell out of me: "It’s ok if you can’t do that (they mention it's ok if you can't come to Japan rn because it is sth hard to do) but don’t try and think you know what’s going on from overseas."

While we can't know everything, claiming we don't know shit as if it's sth completely out of reach unless you are there sounds so fucking entitled to me. Call me bitter, but most of them have that attitude and there's proof they too don't know as much as they think.

I spoke with a girl who shared some live and meet and greet moments of hers with a favorite jrocker of mine with me and it baffled me how much she complained about some parts of his attitude when all she'd been telling me up to that point were normal to me. There was only one thing she told me I didn't expect from him, the others were pretty expected if you read his interviews and pay attention to how he reacts to things. Like honey. Where you are doesn't matter when it comes to basic human reactions. Also I didn't speak about my experience at Kamijo's live here but basically, even though we don't follow Japanese rules at lives here in Europe, even though I didn't have to do choreos or other things "expected from vkei fans", AND it was the 2nd live I've been ever in my 30 years of life cause nb comes where I live and I never have money to go even to the capital to see American artists, AAAALLL of the atmosphere, the live, dealing with other fans etc. felt like sth I do every day. It's a live dammit, it's not rocket science. And Kamijo, a person I'd never once seen in my life up until that point and had only seen live through my screen felt like he was someone doing something I actually have experienced for a long time rather than sth "new" or "unknown" to me. I was at a foreign country I'd never been before. I was scared shitless to go and believed I would fail every single minute as a fan in that arena. Yet I felt this was normal to me. I knew what to sing, what to scream, how to move, and all that? By learning through a screen. Just because you Ms "if you are not here you don't know shit about vkei" never searched beyond what was available to you on vkei while you weren't living in Japan, doesn't mean that everyone stops there. I see many both Japanese and foreign fans being there being just as shitty to jrockers often as some foreign fans living abroad, as if you literally take everything for face value as well, as if you don't know shit, even though you're there. (Not everyone is shitty, what I'm saying is bad apples exist everywhere)

Want me to take it somewhere away from vkei? While studying with 2 Japanese teachers, there were many times I shared stuff with them I enjoy they didn't have a clue Japan has. They'd been locals and yet, there were things they didn't know. Because it wasn't sth they were interested in. Hell, do you know how many times people tell me shit about Greece I don't know? I'm astounded by the knowledge of foreigners, not living in my country, have about my own country's culture in the past. Japan, just like every other country in the world, is no longer a closed off society you can never know shit about. If you look up things, if you ask the right people, locals, and more importantly if you take time to observe and understand them, you will be surprised with how much you learn.

No I don't know everything. And I sure made mistakes while studying, assuming things about a culture different from mine. But I also experienced 2 types of Japanese women who showed me that knowledge lies in the eye of the beholder and how different can people be depending on their maturity and experiences. My first teacher was ambitious, money oriented and didn't know much about subcultures. I found her shallow and selfish, she also looked down on people with mental disorders cause she came from a family heavily affected by it. She didn't value relationships easily and was quick to judge even if she didn't say a word. That person told me about Yoshiki, Gackt and Hyde from a business point of view. I never realized who Yoshiki was in Japan beyond the music industry. Gackt and Hyde too. I was only seeing photos and reading articles so it was refreshing to see them as businessmen from a business standpoint. This woman and I often didn't see eye to eye cause I valued emotions more than ambition and money, yet she was surprised about how much slang I knew for sb who doesn't live there. She was also surprised I knew stuff about mythology, history, Takarazuka Revue, Japanese traditional theater, butoh (which she'd never heard before) etc. Even about the dark parts of Kabukicho's nightlife where she herself had worked. She did add more to my knowledge on that too. My second teacher was much older, much wiser, friendlier and non judgemental. I loved being taught by her cause she was more human and deeper emotionally than the other one. She didn't live much in Japan, she left around her early 20s and kept going back every now and then, but she knew most things a native would and still was so happy when I told her I knew about Takarazuka (she's a fan :P), she wanted to hear about visual kei, she was surprised I knew about Japanese witches, festivals and many more. One of them gave me the nihongo jouzu attitude Japanese people give foreigners, and the other a true appreciation for my love for her country's culture. The latter also told me where to look for more. She encouraged my thirst to learn more instead of disapproving everything she didn't understand about how I approach things. With that old lady we talked shit about Arashi, we talked about SMAP's disband and the industry of idols and talent agencies in Japan. We held a real conversation with plenty of mutual exchange of information xD.

Do tell me or anyone else who doesn't live in ANY country that when you trully love sth you can't know shit about it unless you experience personally. I dare you. And those of you who keep learning things about things you love every day, keep learning, keep asking and let anyone who aquires knowledge ONLY from personal experience doubt you, just cause their learning abilities are limited like that. It shouldn't be a competition, but when you come for my knowledge without even knowing me, I will bite back, cause I can play the "I'm smarter than you" childish attitude too. Help others learn without putting down what they already know dammit, it's not that hard and you are not being "honest" by saying that shit all the time.

[lurxof--thxmaw]

❝ mono is out of place, and he knows this very well. an old, rickety vessel that he’d boarded via television that was somehow more dangerous than anywhere else he’s been. ( there’s so many people here. ) yet he’s climbed and scampered this way and that, and after so long he hopes he’s closer to the exit.

of course, it would be foolish to assume that danger would lessen. the bag-clad boy is quiet as he creeps along shelves, acutely aware of a threatening presence somewhere nearby. no movement has been made toward him yet, so he assumes he’s undetected.

however, mono is one to take precautions. it’s risky, but he attempts to climb to the next shelf above. the boy makes it, but at the last moment—THUD!—he’s knocked over something with his foot and now his heart is racing and he hastens to hide behind what cover he can. he curls up, makes himself small, gray eyes wide behind his bag and watching in case he needs to make a desperate run. static clings to him and it’s all he can do not to suppress it, lest his panic overtake him. ❞ － @buddymuses

The Lady's humming alts.

Her eyes widen behind the mask, her head snapping in the general direction of the noise. She's completely silent, waiting for an indicator that anyone was there at all － after all, it wouldn't be the first time one one of her relics is knocked over by of the remains she had so generously gifted a second chance at life to. Ungrateful little things, they were. However, upon awakening the primordial power laying within her, it seems that she will have to pin her suspicions elsewhere.

The endless pit of her stomach is not reacting to the presence as it normally would.

No regular soul to be found in her immediate proximity. The ghosts under her... " care " had become incredibly easy to track down over the years. Had it been a regular living child, she would have noticed as well. Well, no. Truth be told, what she perceives is a small essence － one tiny enough to fit in her palm. And yet, something about it makes it irreparably different from all the others she has felt before.

There is a foreign power hiding somewhere in her Residence.

One the Lady wishes to avoid at all costs. In truth, she knows not of what it's abilities are yet － and she most certainly does not wish to find out. She has fled the world for a reason. She does not wish for it to catch up to her. Her quarters are vast, and the sound came from a distance large enough that she could simply slip away as though she had never been there. She could. But should she?

Oh, duties, duties... she cannot let an unknown entity run around the Maw so carelessly. Not unless she wishes to risk the stability of the being of which she is the vessel. Choosing her comfort now would not only be shortsighted, but plain idiotic. With a swift step back, the Lady retreats in the shadows before she speaks, her voice reverberating through every spot the shadows touch:

❝ I can feel your presence. There's no point in hiding away. Come forth. ❞

[echantedtoon]

A Bloom In Time Ch15 Poppy's Spaceship Tour And Meeting Cooking Cat

(Warning: Poppy cries near the end.)

The pour woman was shaking all the way to the small clearing looking around her with newfound fear as she did so from the scare. But at least now they could take off and get her to a warmer place with food now....Or at least they would've if Bow hadn't grabbed her hand and jumped when Poppy flinched and yanked her hand away from the girl. The poor flesh still tender and sore from the rope suddenly yanking her up. She gave the girls an apologetic look and it occured to Hattie they couldn't teleport her together now if they couldn't hold her hands. Not to mention she was shaking and she didn't want to risk accidentally letting her go in the middle of teleportation again. So what did she usually do in these kind of situations? Go back and bother Snatcher for help of course! The purple ghost was NOT happy when the small girl yanked on his tail and told him about their situation. PECK NAB IT!! Couldn't he get one moment of peace around here?....Then again, it was rather responsible of her to come to him instead of trying something reckless with Poppy, and he didn't really want a repeat of Poppy crashlanding from space somewhere. She was VERY lucky the first time as it was. So, that's how the ghost was talked into coming over and transporting all four of them back to the ship. Wasn't anything like Poppy expected at all. Much to Poppy's still shocked state, he held the girls in one arm while grabbing her good arm in the other and asked her to close her eyes while the spell took place to keep her from freaking out anymore than she already had to which she gladly did so. Curling into him and pressing her face into the fluff around his shoulders. The movement made him stop and stare for a moment...before he cleared his throat and looked away slightly flustered. The teleporting worked as quickly as any other time he did it. Purple energy completely took over the world around them like the many times he's done this before and swallowed them all whole. He's donw this plenty of times before teleporting himself places or taking the girls home against his will when they fell asleep in his forest. But what was one more trip anyways? Especially since it'd help ease the nerves of his beloved-...beloved FRIEND. Just friend. One moment of dark black-purple later the four of them ended up inside of the kid's ship. The control room to be more precise. The controls to the ship were there as well as her Tv and the giant vault of those menacing time pieces.So imagine Poppy's surprise when she reopened her eyes and blinked at the foreign home to her. But was put back down on the ground by Snatcher again before the spook mumbles something about wanting to take a break and to not be bothered again as he gave a firm look at the girls.

"Stay HERE and do NOT bother me again unless it's actually a real emergency until I say so. I mean it." 

"AH! But why?"

"Because Im the pecking adult! That's why!" Was all he said before purple energy oozed from his being like living fog and wrapped itself around him. Poppy watching in almost horror as it shrank in size until it was either too small to see or actually disppeared from the ship entirely. 

Well.....That was a fast one way trip wasn't it? She was just SO so glad to be out of that nightmare forest she was happy to welcome this.....Space ship. Where was she in here anyways? Looking around she found herself sitting upon a giant pink round rug and a the rest of the floor was covered in green carpeting. Around her were all kinds of strange gadgets and gizmos she'd never seen before. Looking over she was the strangest thing. A child's toy train set and landscape. The cute little engine was making circles around some plastic mountains, a few mountains, and fake plants.  WHich for some reason was on a giant metal pillar and blocked off by rope and pillars. An odd television set sat in the corner where a puppy wearing overralls was trotting across the screen. ....She blinked and looked over to her other side where another similar pillar was there but it had some kind of plush??.......Something. It was a hamburger but she didn't know what the heck that was. Beyond that was brick like walls a yellow thing sticking out of the wall, and a couple doors here and there- 

"oW!"

Something poked against her foot and she looked down. Immediately a small spooked squeal came out of the woman and she scrambeld back and onto her feet as she stared down the little roomba as it continued to just sweet harmlessly past her. But the woman had never seen a robot vacum so her fear was understandable as she pointed at it.

"W-W-WHAT IS THAT CREATURE!?"

"It's ok. He's perfectly safe." Hattie smiled at Rumbi as he harmlessly swept past them towards the ramp near the far wall.

She didn't look convinced but silently watched him sweep away before looking around her more...before slowly looking behind her to the gigantic windows behind her. And. Her. Jaw. DROPPED!!  As she looked out the giant windows,  she could seethe darkened purple land of Snatcher's forest and A giant chunk of white which was vanessa's frozen abyss of the planet. Placing a cold hand to the cool glass and watching as it slowly ticked by and just....watched it. Her blue eyes widened at the sight of thousands of stars twinkling....The world! Her world! It was right there! Big, bold and wonderful! The round planet seemed to have an aura of it's own and glowed perfectly. The perfect gentle blue of the sea, the bright tan yellows of the desert. Many islands. The highest mountains surrounded by pure white clouds even looked as if she could reach out and grasp it almost. It was so much more peaceful and beautiful looking when she wasn't falling through space that was. A sense of being so small came over her and she let out a shaky sigh as she did so.  So this was really reality huh? 

"It's pretty isn't it?," Bow asked walking up next to her and smiling down at the world too and pointing at one small place on the planet. "That's Nyakuza City! I used to live there."

".....Yeah. I-I heard about the Nyakuza Kingdom," Poppy stated softly, "It was supposed to be inhabited by a whole race of cat people."

"It is!" Bow smiled brightly at her that she knew that. "Kitties are the best! They're so soft, and fluffy and really, really cute!!"

Despite herself, Poppy smiled at the cute smile the little girl had on her face. Children always had the ability to make her smile with their adorable nature and innocence. It was just to precious, turning back to the window and staring out she sucked in a breath and let it out slowly. She was really feeling .......confused? Right now. There were too many emotions going through her right now and not enough of it was ok..She didn't have a feeling of being ok. Not after what just happened. She looked back to her slightly scrapped arm. She guessed that's what she got after not listening to a ghost's warnings-

"ACHOO!" Bow flinched and looked up to Poppy who shook her head and looked back to the window sniffing.

"Bless you!"

"T-Thank you." She shivered from her body's still cold feeling. She almost forgot she was still from falling in swamp water and she had been running around all soaked for who knows how long now. She should change out of these soggy rags and warmed up before she caught a cold. So she turned around to ask where the bathroom was so she could scrub the dirt off herself- BAM!! She jumped at least a foot back smacking into the glass window and all three of them looked up towards the ramp area where the pair of swinging doors to the kitchen had been pushed open and small soft footsteps like a child's came scattering out. Another child?? She couldn't see anything past the banister. But all of that was answered when a chef hat and pointy cat ears came into view. All of that was attached to a small plump cat standing on two feet with calico patterns and orange fur. 

What the WHAT?!

"COOKIE!!", both girls shouted and rushed towards the cat who giggled and held her arms open wide for the two to go skittering into her embrace as she did so. The giggling of the cat and girls filled the air as Poppy watched and then blinked at the small cat in chef wear-

"Oh how are you girls? It's been so long since I've been up here!," she cooed at the little children her size. By the voice it was easy to tell it was a lady and had a slight country accent. She smiled as she leaned back and examined the girls before her. "I thought I heard a pair of hungry little tykes scampering around hungry."

"We missed you," Bow answered honestly as she smiled at the cat with adoration.

"Did you make cookies?," Hattie asked practically sparkly eyed as she looked hopefully at her making the small cat laugh. 

"Well you two haven't changed a bit. Always so sweet and hungry for sugar." She shook her head. "No. But I did make some roasted bird and mashed potatoes! Perfect for two little adventures! Now which one of you sneezed? It sounded like you caught a whopper of a cold." Both girls looked at each other for a moment, before looking behind them at Poppy who still watched silently as they all stood there, as soon as 'Cookie' saw her, the cat gasped and one paw came to cover her mouth as she caught sight of the messy grown, shivering woman in front of her. In a blink of an eye the plump cat carefully pushed past the girls and walked right up to Poppy. The red head could only blink and again feel kinda awkward seeing a giant talking talk on two legs......Wait. Was she a Nyakuza citizen? Was she one of those cat people she heard so much about? Well she didn't have much time to wonder until she stopped right in front of her and grabbed a part of her dress and pulled the material heavy and wet from dirty swamp water into her paws to examine. Sniffing at it before snorting and shaking her head, scowling up at her. She felt oddly small under the scowl of the small cat in front of her but still didn't move besides her shivering. "You look absolutely aweful! Look at this!'' She held up the material to her. "Look at your hair! You look like you went rolling around in the mud during a thunderstorm!"

She blinked stunned by the cat's bold and blunt move only responding with, "Uuuhhh....It's....Swamp water??"

"Swamp water?" She eyed the human up and down before shaking her head and dropping her dress, hands....uh..paws coming to stay on her hips. "I've seen plenty of country folk in my time for sure that don't mind to get a lil dirty, but you're the first one I've seen soaked romping through a swamp."

"It...wasn't really my intention to be soaked by gross water, but I crashlanded in some when I landed." She gave a small look to the little hat girl behind her who smiled nervously at her words. But was soon looking back to the cat when she made a small hum.

"So you landed here to? Does that mean you're another alien?"

"W-What? N-no. I'm from here I promise! I just....happen to be visiting their space ship is all," she clarified.

"Oh!" The small cat lady finally smiled at her like she had come to some brilliant conclusion. "Oh now I see. You must be one of their little friends! They have a lot you know."

"You could say t-that- ACHOO!!" Poppy turned her head to the side before sneezing again and sniffing. Her body still fairly chilly. Which didn't go unnoticed by the cat.

"Bless you! By the temperature of your dress, you must be soaked n cold right down to the fur." Her light scowl came back, "Didn't you ever think to change into a dry pair of clothes?"

"I g-guess it must've slipped my mind."

She was cut short when the small cat jumped up and grabbed her hand yanking her into a leaning over position when she pulled her back a few steps. "Well. There's no sense in you staying like this any longer than needed. You all go get cleaned up before you eat a single bite." She made a grimace looking back over Poppy's soaked self and taking in all the dirt covering her body and how tangled her hair was. "And YOU definately go bathe and get a good change of clothes." One of her paws ungrabbed Poppy to shoo the girls off towards the right side of the control room as she lead Poppy towards it-

RRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRRIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIINNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNNGGGGGGG!!!

Poppy Jumped and they all snapped in the direction of the ramp leading up somewhere and the cat let go of her hands. "OH!! The oven timer. Bird's done." She looked to the girls. "Now you go show her where the bathroom is and wash up. I gotta go make sure that birdy doesn't over cook. You know how much I despise burnt food." The girls nodded and the cat smiled again before running to a small green ladder right below the vault and climbed up it, running back through the double doors with another light slam to them as Poppy blinked.

"Who..was that?"

"Hattie grabbed her still extending hand a smile on her face. "Cookie! She's like a REALLY good chef! The best in the world!" Her steps were jumpy and happy like any child making a small smile come to her face as she was lead over to a small door next to the green ladder Cookie climbed. "She visits a lot and makes a lot of food for my fridge!" She licked her lips. "Her cookies are they best! But she's been really busy with her cooking show after finally leaving Mafia Town."

"Mafia.....town?"

Hattie nodded. "I met Mustache Girl there!"...She frowned a little bit. "She's not very nice.....HEY!" Her face brightened again as she got an exciting idea. "Now I can show you how COOL my ship is!"

"But Cookie said she needs a bath." Bow leaned sideways from behind her and blinked.

"But Snatcher said to show her my ship! We're still going to the bathroom, but exploring too!" Bow rolled her eyes as Hattie tugged Poppy over towards the small blue glowing door. A small blue rug with a wave patterned on it stood before the door and to the older woman's surprise it opened automatically by itself giving her a little jump. Technology had really advanced since she was a little girl didn't it? "Come on, come on! I wanna show you the potion room!" She went through the kid sized door no problem....but Poppy had to literally lean down to look down the long mini hallway. 

Bow also looked down it with a worried look. "Hattieeeeeeee!! We're gonna get in more trouble! Knock it off and lets go wash!"

"Y'know we can show her the metro room too," came the sing song voice from down the hallway and an instant Bow's expression change.

"FINE!! But then we wash our hands! I'm hungry!" She called back before also bounding down the hall and poppy lowered more to look in "......Come on Ms Poppy!"

.......She hesitated but braced herself. It couldn't get any more worse than it already was, and she doubted there was any headless statues or dangerous stuff here on a child's chip. Coming down to her knees she went to start crawling as she couldn't stand to walk  through these small halls- Which ended with her doing a yelp and leaning back up onto her knees to clutch her sore wrist which throbbed out a course of pain when she put the slightest bit of pressure on, still pretty sore from the giant yank the noose gave her- Poppy shivered from remembering that encounter. One of the children called out to her again sounding impatient..and if this was indeed the direction to getting cleaned up, then she might as well not complain anymore and suck it up. That's what she always did growing up in a poor farming community. Sucking it up and being grateful for what you're given. Even if it means crawling down a hallway with only one hand, which she did. It was....Kinda embarrassing and time consuming, but a couple little children probably weren't going to judge her for having no choice but to squeeze through these blasted tunnels. As she crawled along she took in the details of the walls and especially the carpet. There was some very impressive details in the blue carpet, they were so beautiful. Some grand weaver must've put a lot of work creating these wave patterns and she briefly wondered how many pons it cost the little girl to buy and put in here. In her day it would've cost a pretty penny. It took a bit more but before she knew it. The other door opened and she was allowed to crawl on through and stand to her feet again. Shivering as a blast of cold air hit her freezing body and opening her eyes to a-.....Very strange sight. 

"What IS this place?" The air was chilly, and down below was a dark blue water which could've been mistaken for water on first glance and a few things like random barrels and chests, with some furniture. A tall closet like space with the words saying Dirty Laundry Cleaner 3000, And a ladder leading up to a different doorway above them there.

"The storage room," Hattie replied before regrabbing her none hurt hand and tugging her towards the left, making her blink down as the two girls excitedly pointed towards another small door to the left. Unlike the one she just came through, this one glowed purple and had a bottle like shape on it. "I wanna show you around!" She wasn't sure what to do but didn't fight against her as she pulled her towards the door which opened with another Whoosh like noise and Hattie disappeared within it's hallway excitedly. Poppy didn't feel like arguing anymore than she already did today, and again leaned down to look down the hall. Unlike the first one, with one has a lighter blue rug with dark blue gear patterns when she looked down it. The children waving at her from the other side of the tunnel as well, excited grins still on their faces as she blinked. "Come on! Don't be a slowpoke!" 

With another sigh, guess who did more slow crawling down another cramped hallway, but she'd be lying if she wasn't curious about an alien space ship. I mean who else from her time would've gotten the honor of being given a tour of a real flying space craft by a real alien no less? She was curious to see what mechanics and insides made up this thing, and besides it'd be rude to say no to someone who's offering to show you they're home so excitedly and if it meant she was going to be staying here for a little while then she might as well know where things were. By the time she got to the other side and was finally able to stand back up, she sighed at the feeling of warmer air at least. Warming up was definately on her to do list. But the almost emptiness of this room compared to all the other rooms Surprised her to say the least. This one was much more open and tidy looking with more stone walls, a couple metal pillars, and equipment you'd see inside a labratory. Right dead center of it all was another metal table thing blocked off by rope like in the control room, but this time it had a giant box of crayons sitting on it. The crayons were a simple green, blue, and red color. 

"This is my potion room!," Hattie announced proudly pointing at the room itself, "But don't touch anything. Snatcher dropped one of those pink potions once and it turned him pink for days. He said we shouldn't mess with weird potions."

"Potion room?" Poppy gave the children another curious look. "Are you sure you're not a witch?"

"No. Only when I wear my brewing hat! But I don't know any magic."

.......That only confused Poppy more so why would a child have a potion room? But she again didn't get the chance to relax before Bow ran over towards the other side of the room and towards a small door like hatch on the floor, the small girl grabbing one side of hatch and pushing. Bow strained and after a few seconds a metalic screeching noise rang out as it opened, both women wincing, cringing back at the fingers on chalk bourd noise, and clapping their hands over their ears in some attempt to block out the screeching noise. Poppy was SURE the creaking, screeching noise could be heard everywhere on the planet from their place in space from how loud it was. Up, up, up the hatch went and one giant push Bow managed to push it over. With a giant metal banging sound, the hatch's round metal door SLAMMED and I do mean slammed against the floor with enough sound to be mistaken for a cannon going off. For a moment nothing happened and both Poppy and Hattie stood there still hands clamped over their ears and eyes shut closed.......before slowly reopening their eyes and after a moment of silence, uncovering their ears to the smiling curly haired girl standing there pointing at the the now open hole in the floor. 

"Geez, Kid! I think you were loud enough to wake the dead all over space!......ACHOO!!" She sniffed again at the third sneeze.

Bow's smiling didn't waver, instead pointing to it. "Come on! You'll like it promise!" With another smile the tiny curly haired girl turned and jumped down the hole. 

"HEY!! KID!!" Poppy ran down the small set of stairs and ran over to the hole in the floor, the fear of the child getting hurt randomly jumping into a hole taking over and immediately looking down the opening. At first she saw nothing. Nothing but a ladder leading down it and some kind of wooden circle thing....but she could definately hear giggling and someone shouting for her to come down as well. ......DO YOU KNOW HOW HARD AND UNSAFE IT IS TO CLIMB DOWN A LADDER WITH A SORE HAND?! Poppy wouldn't recommend it to anyone but the fear of just seeing Bow dive down here and the looming presence of an angry ghost made her do the crazy thing and start to decend the ladder to her uneasy feeling. Which doubled MORE when Hattie fell past her making her cry out for the child only to watch the hatted kid bounce on the round wood circle and catapult herself like a spring out of eye sight. Panic coursed through her as she went down as fast as a sore bodied woman with one good hand could and paused on the ladder when she could actually see the inside of the room. To her relief, Bow wasn't hurt at all but giggling and laying face up at the opening in a pile of weird green paper. The small girl giggled as she made a snow angel in the pile, and Hattie was luckily safe as well looking through another telescope on top of the weird gigantic pile of green paper. Poppy sighed and noticed breifly another small metal table with another small item on it. This time some kind of white dummy and pretty looking gold necklace. With a shake of her head the frazzled woman slowly climbed the last of the steps down and stood by the ladder leading back up. Looking around the room she noticed it looked at it she was on one of the town's busy streets, with plants along the wall behind the metal table, glowing eletric things she was sure only an alien would have mysterious shaped like a blue cat, and behind her by the wooden circle on a spring was a rack with newspapers of all things. .......She blinked. "What is this strange place?" She paused seeing more in color tv screens on fans hovering about and jumped as something rumbled past the window on the far side of the wall flashing yellow making her scramble back. "W-WHAT WITCHCRAFT IS THAT?!"

"That's the illusion created by the monitor," Bow happily replied sitting up now and smiling around the room with a bigger grin, "Hattie said the time pieces add stuff to the rooms on the ship to help show where most are located. *sigh* It....reminds me of home...Without all the crime and bad things. I like it here."

At that little sentence Poppy paused. Before looking away with a guilty look, feeling bad over being about to scold the little girl for scaring her like that being so excited to show her home and the place that reminded her of it. Taking a second look around the weird room, she couldn't understand any of it. Were the Nyakuzian people technicalogically advanced too? Or did all this technology form as she slept? She may never know but the face of longer on the little girl's face hit home almost immediately at her. As far as Poppy knew Bow's home still existed just with 'crime and bad stuff' as she put it. Has she fled the country under a war or something? So many questions buzzed about her skull it was starting to give her a headache as she leaned into the cool metal of the ladder next to her. This was all too much too soon. And she wasn't sure how much more she could take at this pace-

"What are y'all doing down here?!" Poppy yelped and ended up accidentally hitting her forehead against the ladder. Instantly her good hand came to clamp at the sore area as she hissed and looked up above her and saw a pretty familiar orange calico face scowling down at them all, one dark orange paw holding onto the chef hat as she did so. "I thought I asked you all to go get cleaned up. I could hear all that ruckus right through the kitchen floor!" 

Instantly the children had froze at the annoyed cat's voice and now sported a pair of guilty looks at one another. "We were just showing her!" Hattie's voice answered back for them.

"Well then. The next room she sees is the bathroom! Now you all get up here before I take my cooking back for Conductor to eat."

At the threat of their delicious dinner being taken away both children scrambled for the spring pad kicking up more dollar bills in their way. And Poppy watched with slight surprise as both jumped onto the spring pad one by one catapulting themselves all the way back up as Cookie leaned back to not get knocked over by the two shooting girls. ....Poppy briefly looked down to the spring pad then back up the hole.....Yeah. She was taking her chance with the ladder. The slow climb back up was agonizing but by the time she poked her head at the top she witnessed the older cat lightly scolding the girls for taking so long, but as soon as she saw the head of Poppy, Cookie turned and grabbed her good hand. Pulling with surprising strength of a small plump cat and helping her crawl the rest of the way out, sighing when she was able to climb to her knees.

"Are you alright, Pumpkin?," Cookie asked placing a paw on her shoulder before letting go quickly. "Goodness! You're colder than my home made ice cream!"

"ACHOO!!" Poppy sniffed again and looked up to the tiny cat giving a tired smile. "Y-Yeah. I guess I am a little chilly...And tired...and sore. And now that you mention food-" Her stomach gave out a rumble and she winced. She didn't even know she was hungry."

Cookie gave her a sorry look before sighing and looking back towards the watching children. "Ok you two. I think this young lady's had enough exploring for now. You two go wash your hands in the kitchen and eat your plates I placed in the fridge. I'm going to show your friend here to a room where she can get tidied up and warm." The two girls gave excited smiles at the mention of food and with an excited cheer they scampered off towards the hallway with another sigh from the cat who turned her attention back to Poppy. "I'm so sorry. They can be a little over excited sometimes."

Poppy smiled back and waved a hand. "Oh. No, no. It's ok. I should've expected that from children.....ACHOO!!''

"Well, I expect we need to get you all better before you catch a cold instead of just sneezing." Cookie gestured her up at Poppy slowly stood and made a grab to her hand- Fur suddenly bristling when the human yelped and pulled her still sore hand away from the grip of the cat....Which was immediately pulled back with a pained whimper from Poppy as Cookie frowned and held up the sore limb to her eyes. "....You're hurt."

"J-Just a few scrapes. I-I'll be fine."

"That's no excuse young lady. You should get this under some ice!"

"Yeah...That Snatcher ghost told me too."

Cookie hummed before tugging her and walking towards the small hallway with her in tow. "So I see you met this ghostly friend of theirs too."

Poppy blinked at the small cat. "Wait. You know who he is?"

"I stumbled across him a few times coming up here to visit. Hmph! He's very rude and always steals any dish I make with bacon when he's around me cooking. Quite the oddball out if ya'll ask me." The door whooshed open as soon as they were close enough and she walked on through gesturing for her to follow. "But never fear! Cooking Cat is here! I'll have you all better in no time flat. We'll just get you a change of clothing, a hot meal, and some ice then you'll be good to go!"

Poppy could feel her stomach drop a little as she bent down and proceeded to slowly crawl through the hallway after the cat. "Uh...About that. I-I don't have any clothing for myself really."

Cookie stopped mid step in the middle of the hallway before looking over her shoulder at the slowly crawling woman behind her and reached a paw up to rub to her head. "Well aren't you more forgettful than a penguin on the sun? *sigh* Alright then. I suppose I'll just have to borrow the girls' washer and dryer."

"What? Oh n-no! You don't have to go through all that trouble for me, Ma'am! It's fine."

"Nonsense! I'd be ashamed of myself if I didn't offer a hungry person like you some help and this wouldn't be the first time I helped a person get better...OH! That reminds me. You never told me ya'll's name."

"Oh..I-Im Poppy. Poppy Rooo- ACHOO!!....Rose Bloomington, Ma'am."

Cookie smiled at her. "No need to call me ma'am. Just Cookie. Cooking Cat's only mah stage name you know. Nice you meet ya." She smiled and turned to continue walking down the hallway with Poppy right behind her.

A curious question bubbling in the young lady's head and she blurted out, "So...Since you're a..cat. Does that mean you're a Nyakuzian?"

Cookie didn't stop walking or smiling but her tone shifted a little bit to the sad side. "Well, yes...But not anymore I suppose. The city became too crowded for my liking and too many crimes were comitted. Mostly theivery."

"Yes, I think Bow might've said something about that."

"Poor girl. No child should have to grow up in a place like that."

"So ....you two fled the country?"

Cookie chuckled as the door back to the storage room opened up and she walked out. "You could say that. No. I moved to Mafia town persuing my own dreams of being a master chef a long time ago. You see where ah'm from there's lots and lots of food carts and cafe's so I knew I wouldn't stand much of a chance if I just stayed, and even if I did I would've just become another small store in the piles of stores around myself." She stopped a little aways from the door just as Poppy was nearing the exit staring at the ground. "No. I never wanted to be just like the crowd. I knew I wanted more for my nine lives, so after saving as many pons as I could, I moved far away to Mafia town. I heard it was a big fishing community and they sold most of the city's fish to us. There were rumors about their leader being a chef too. So I thought it was the purrrrfect oportunity for me......I wasn't too right about that though."

Poppy was all wars by now as she slowly climbed out at last and rose to her feet. Giving Cookie a sympathetic look as the cat looked back up to her, her body shivering from the cold air again. "I-I'm....I'm so sorry. What happened if you don't mind me asking?"

Cookie chuckled again. "Don't mind a bit. The mafia hired me on bourd straight away in their kitchen....But it turns out they only did so because they wanted me to chase down all the mice they were having a problem with." Poppy made a scowl and Cookie waved her off. "I know. I was disappointed too. You see usually us cats don't have a very good reputation because of all the theives who happen to coincidentally be cats, but it wasn't too bad. I decided to become an under dog hero of cooking if that made sense. I thought I would be doing a good thing if I switched all their bad food for my good food and maybe spare a few taste buds, but I knew I was wasting my talents there." She turned and began to walk again with Poppy following politely listening interested. "Eventually I did grow tired especially after meeting the cute lil alien. And I just couldn't help myself with all the questions. Was alien food really better than ours? Was there advanced tools to better cook with? My curiousity got the better of me and before I knew it I had so rudely snuck into her bridge using some moon penguin's teleporter to get themselves to and from the moon."

"So....Does that mean Bow fled with you?" They had both reached the ladder that lead down to the storage room floor that would let anyone get to the washer and dryer to use and upon reaching it Cookie turned around and descended the ladder. Poppy slowly doing the same but with her sore arm it was still a little slower. "What happened?"

"No. Honestly I have no idea how she ended up in mafia town herself, but that's a different story. Turns out an alien's kitchen is exactly like mine. In the long run I guess I was hoping for some kind of miracle to help me out of my rut but it didn't matter. I got fired by the head boss as soon as I came back for comspiring with traitorious aliens."

"Oh my goodness. I'm so sorry." Poppy's foot touch the ground and she watched as the calico waved her and made her way towards the Laundry Cleaner 3000.

"No. I was sick of working for those brutes anyways."

"So...What did you do next?," she asked as she followed. 

"Well....I stayed home and felt pretty bad for a long time, but then I found an ad in the newspaper for a cruise ship needing a cook! So obviously I took the chance. It was....not better than the mafia to be honest. Those seals were decent cooks but they were so accident prone and their kitchen was so dangerous. I'm almost glad the ship sank, but it just meant I was back to square one again.....I was so about to give up and go back home. Better a small cook like the rest than not being a cook at all anywhere." Her smile grew as she just waltzed right into the closet like space and turned to poppy. "That little alien is more resourceful than you might think."

"Why? What did she do?"

"Why?...She introduced me to the man....or penguin that made all my dreams come true. We met up again by chance when she was on the same cruise, talk about coincidence. She saw how unhappy I was and wanted to help. But I didn't beleive she could do anything about my situation having already had so many set backs." She made almost a happy purr as Poppy finally walked in next to her after gesturing for her to stand next to herself. "So imagine my surprise when one day Mr. DJ Grooves himself arrived on my doorstep and asked ME of all people to star in a cooking show series! He said his little star told him all about the delicious food his staff received on their vacation and my cute face was absolutely perfect for it! IT WAS A HUGE HIT!! Turns out those moon penguins LOVED all my fish recipes and tips! Next thing I knew I signed a business contract and finally saw my dream take off right before my own eyes. I'll NEVER be able to thank them all enough for making it come true."

"A...cooking show? I didn't know they made those."

"Really? I guess swamp people wouldn't have tv. Oh. Push the red button there to take us down." Her paw pointed to a red button on the inside of the machine they were in.

"A-Actually...I grew up on a farm. W-We were pretty poor." She frowned and reached over to push the button like Cookie had asked. Wobbling a little when the ground beneath them suddenly lowered and she looked up to watch as the light disappeard.

"Oh. I'm so sorry. I had no idea," Cookie apologized with a paw placed gently on Poppy's arm. "You poor thing."

"Uh...N-No. It's ok.....You can't change the past." Her frown saddened even more at that.

Cookie's smile came back as she looked at her. "That's true. I can't change how said and how much I struggled then, but that don't mean we can't have a happy future."

".....Heh. Y-Y'know...Y-You're the second person to r-really....t-t-tell me that." When light came back up Cookie's smile vanished seeing the older woman starting to cry but quickly trying to stop once light hit her face." I-I'm sorry. I s-shouldn't get so emotional. I-It's just that so many big bad things have happened recently a-and I.....I-.."

She stopped when a paw grabbed her and Cookie gave her a slightly stern and determined look. "Honey, there is no reason not to cry if you feel like you want or need to cry about it. Now you go on right ahead and don't mind me. Because I'm not gonna stop someone if they need to cry out their emtions. It's unhealthy to keep that bottled up."

That's just what she needed to hear. With watery blue eyes Poppy stared at this little cat for a long silent moment before she sniffed again and finally small little tears began to drip down that face one after another and before she knew it she was on her knees sobbing harder and louder than a baby. Cookie shushing her and rubbing the poor sobbing gal's back as all the pent up emotions finally came out as she cried and cried.

"IT'S NOT FAIR!!," she wailed out to no one between chokes. Her good fist coming down to hit the floor in frustration and anger. "IT'S NOT FAIR!! IT'S NOT FAIR!! WHY DID IT HAVE TO HAPPEN TO ME!? I WANT TO GO H-HOME!!" She hiccuped hard and reached her arm up to wipe at her heated face. "I JUST WANT TO GO HOME!! B-B-BUT I C-CAN'T B-BECAUSE EVERYTHING'S GONE!! *hic* AND I DON'T KNOW WHAT I'M GOING TO DO!!"

"Shh. There, there. I know it must be tough not having a home. Feeling so lost and scared having no one around. But it'll be ok. You just let it all out, Sugar."

"H-How do y-you know?," she hiccuped again and looked to the cat in question with tears blurring her vision.

Cookie smiled sadly. "Because I have a little blonde girl living with me who felt the same way. Sometimes these things happen and we just need a little help." The paw came up to her shoulder as Cookie pulled a small hankerchief from her chef's pocket and offered it to her to which Poppy was rather grateful. "Feel better?" She hiccuped and nodded wiping her face with that small tissue. A little relief coming to her from letting all the emotions out. "There, there. Come on. I bet you'll feel even better after getting all this dirt off your pretty self and getting a bite to eat." 

Her stomach rumbled again at the mention of food and Cookie chuckled. Slightly pushing her body upwards to help motivate the sniffing gal to her wobbly feet once again and have a look around the room once those tears were dried away. ....Oh. This must've been the bathroom they were talking about it was all very clean with sea themed things everywhere. Starfish shaped handles on the drawers, sea shell covers for the lights, towels, a sink, mirror, bottles of soap, laudry soap, and shampoo on the shelves along with the towels, bath toys, and anything and everything else a bathroom would have including what looked like an extra set of washing machines with one right open with what looked like warm water and a stepping stool in front of it. There was even another metal table like thing with a tray of fake cakes on it. But funnily no showers or a bathtub in sight. Perhaps she was supposed to use the sink to wash her face but was surprised when Cookie lead her over to the full washing machine. 

"Alright. Here. I'll get you a nice herbal shampoo, those work wonders for silky, soft hair."

"I-.....B-But this is a- 

"Washing machine? Oh heavens no. It was recycled into a bathtub. Something the aliens call recycling. Fascinating isn't it? Now go on. Wash up. You don't want to be filthy forever do you?"

Well......She was in really no position to argue about anything anymore was she?

[dragoneyes618]

Nothing is as Simple as Black and White

Inspired by the “What if Bruno Madrigal is Carlos de Vil’s father” idea by me and @silverloreley plus this fanfiction by @silverloreleysfanfics.

Carlos hovered nervously at the outskirts of the village.

It looked like a nice little village. Friendly. Peaceful. People bustling around on their everyday business, children playing.

Completely foreign, for an Isle boy.

He scratched Dude between the ears. It had been a hassle, bringing him all the way here - two plane flights, a short boat ride, and a lot of walking, not necessarily in that order - but in Carlos’ opinion it was worth it.

“It’s going to be fine,” he told Dude, rubbing his fur. Dude growled softly in contentment.

“Right,” Carlos continued, emboldened. “We’ll just go in and ask directions to the Madrigal family….there’s a bunch of them, it shouldn’t be too hard to find one…and then we’ll just - well, I’ll just say who I am and ask them to stay and give them the letters he…Oh, forget it,” he said abruptly. His arm dropped to his side. “Who am I kidding?”

Dude barked cheerfully, as though to say, “Me!”

“They don’t even know me,” Carlos muttered. “They probably don’t even know I exist. If they did they would have showed up at Auradon Prep like Snow White did for Evie. They’ll just kick me out and I’ll have to find somewhere else to live for the summer.”

It was hot. He was thirsty. There were birds singing in the trees - even after months in Auradon, he still found that odd - and beautiful, vibrant flowers grew everywhere.

This wouldn’t have been nearly so bad if one of his friends or cousins were with him. But his cousins, of course, were still on the Isle. Carlos had promised to try to get them off, just as Jay had to Jade and Mal had to Hadie and Evie had to Dizzy. But so far, nothing was doing. Being friends with the, admittedly extremely busy, king of Auradon didn’t have as many advantages as Carlos had thought it would. And just being in Auradon didn’t mean they had the power to change things. The newly-arrived and technically on paper not actually in Auradon Freddie Facilier was already getting very impatient.

And his friends weren’t there, because for the summer they weren’t allowed to just live in the dorms. (“We live there the rest of the time!” Mal had argued, but Fairy Godmother had been adamant. “It’s not like the buildings are unfit for human habitation! There’s enough food and running water and plumbing and everything! Why are you looking at me like that? We won’t be lonely, we’ll have each other! We can even catch up on all our schoolwork since we’ll literally be living in the school! What do you mean we need adult supervision and stable family structures?”)

So for the summer, they were all staying with whatever family they had in Auradon. Which wasn’t much.

Evie was staying with Snow White, who was technically her stepsister. From what Carlos had seen so far, the time Snow had come to school to meet Evie and from whatever Evie mentioned about the occasional texts they’d exchanged since then, they seemed to be getting along all right. But then, in a way the Evil Queen was Snow’s mother as well.

Jafar had no known family, so Jay was staying with Coach Jenkins.

Maleficent also had no known family - at least, no known family that could be contacted and was willing to. Unless Mal wanted to wander into the wilderness in Auroria and wait for any fae kin to find her, she was alone, so Ben had convinced his parents to let her stay with them for the summer.

Which left Carlos. The only one of them who had biological family anywhere in Auradon.

Ben had been surprised. “I thought all the de Vils were on the Isle,” he’d said.

“We are,” Carlos had said. “I don’t mean my mother’s family.”

Now, Carlos took a deep breath. “Come on, boy,” he murmured to Dude, slinging his backpack, which contained everything he owned, onto his shoulder. “We might as well get this over with.”

.

Mirabel spun as she danced in the street, laughing. “Come on, dance with me,” she called, and three small figures (usually there would be four, but Tía Pepa had informed Camilo that it was his turn to watch Antonio for the day) ran after her, spinning and dancing to the best of their ability. Which wasn’t much, considering none of them were older than six, but their enthusiasm more than made up for it.

Mirabel liked spending time with the little kids of Encanto. Children were so sweet and adorable and enthusiastic. She played with them and made up games with them and told them stories, and they told her all about the events going on in their lives, competing for her attention, and at least this way she was doing something useful, right?

“Faster!” Mirabel shouted, reaching out her arms; Juancho and Cecilia and Alejandra grabbed her hands - well, Cecilia and Juancho did, Alejandra held both of their hands - and they all spun in a circle until they fell down dizzy, giggling.

“That was fun!” Juancho announced. “Let’s do it again!”

Mirabel stretched in the warmth of the sun and began to sit up.

Her head hit the dirt as she fell over backwards, bowled over by a heavy weight that had materialized on her stomach. She yelped, her vision full of brown fur. Something warm and wet lapped at her face.

The children were laughing and shrieking.

“Dog! Dog!”

“Mirabel! Are you okay?”

“I wanna pet the dog!”

Someone shouted in English, accompanied by running footsteps.

The dog sprawled atop Mirabel shifted, ears perking up. Mirabel tried to sit up again, pushing the dog into her lap and wiping the dog spittle off her face with her sleeve.

A boy of about Mirabel’s age was running forward, his face panicked, calling out in English; Mirabel caught the words no and stop. The dog leapt off Mirabel and bounded over to the boy, tail wagging, as though expecting to be rewarded with treats. The boy gave it an angry look, gesturing to Mirabel, then looked at her nervously as she stood up and brushed her dress off.”

“I’m sorry,” he said in stilted, accented, but understandable Spanish. “He doesn’t usually do this. I am very sorry. Are you all right?”

“I’m fine,” she assured him, but he still looked afraid, like he thought she was going to be furious at him. “No, really, I’m fine! No harm done.”

“Is that your dog?” Cecilia asked.

“Of course it is!” Juancho interrupted before the boy could answer.

The boy looked startled. “Oh - yes, this is my dog. Sorry. Um-”

“Can we pet him?” Alejandra wanted to know.

“Oh - sure - he liked being petted - just be gentle-”

He’d barely gotten a few words out before the dog was laying down with a supremely contented look on its face while the three children gave him belly rubs.

“You’d think they’d never seen a dog before,” Mirabel commented fondly.

“No?” the boy asked.

“I mean, they have, they just get really excited over, well, everything,” Mirabel explained. “Anyway, so…you’re new here?” Clearly, he was; the Encanto didn’t get many visitors, so strangers were instantly recognizable.

“Um, yeah, I’m….My name is Carlos.”

Carlos. That was a Spanish name, but Carlos himself didn’t appear to be. He didn’t look it, and while his Spanish, while fairly good for a foreigner, wasn’t fluent, and his accent wasn’t Colombian either. Perhaps his parents had died when he was young, and he’d been raised elsewhere?

Enough speculation. He was a visitor to the Encanto, and she was the only Madrigal present and so must give him a good impression of the Madrigals and the Encanto. Although that was kind of hard to do with mud all over your skirt.

“I’m Mirabel,” she said. “Nice to meet you.”

Carlos blinked. “I - oh - thanks,” he said. “Um, I’m actually looking for something…someone, I mean, a few people….Would you happen to know where the Madrigal family is?”

Oh. Well. That made sense. To anyone outside the Encanto, the Madrigals were the only notable members inside it, what with the magic most of them possessed. Maybe he needed help, help that only her family’s magic could give him.

“Right here!” Juancho piped up from where he was scratching Carlos’ dog behind the ears.

“What?” Carlos said.

“Mirabel’s a Madrigal,” Alejandra explained.

“Oh!” Carlos, if anything, looked even more nervous. Which was ridiculous, really; no one would ever be wary of her. Not when there was Luisa-Who-Can-Lift-Anything or Dolores-Who-Knows-All-Your-Secrets or Tía Pepa-Armed-With-Lightning (Okay, so Camilo’s imitations were a little funny, she had to admit) to be faced.

Or, once, Tío Bruno. But no one talked about him.

“So….do you want to meet my family?” Mirabel prompted. He’d have to, if he needed their help, but he looked like that was the last thing he wanted to do.

“Um…yes?” Carlos almost squeaked. “Please? If it isn’t too much trouble?”

“Of course it’s not! Come on, Casita - my house - is this way.”

Mirabel led the way. Carlos, who kept glancing at her out of the corner of his eye, followed just behind her, and his dog right behind him, accompanied by the three kids who had apparently decided that said dog was currently their most favorite thing in the world. (“Look! He licked my hand! He likes me! Look, he lets me pet him! That’s nothing, he lets all of us pet him! Ooh, look, he’s smiling at me! Dogs don’t smile! Yes they do! Isn’t he smiling, Juancho?”)

“So, um…Mirabel.” Carlos swallowed. “Could you…tell me about your family?”

“Sing him the song!” Alejandra called from behind them.

They both turned. “The song?” Carlos asked.

Mirabel shrugged. “A while ago I made up a little song about my family, to sing for the kids around town. I guess they liked it.”

“We LOVED it!” Juancho announced, jumping up and down; Mirabel wondered if he’d been at the coffee again. “Sing it again! Please!”

“You have to sing it, for him,” Cecilia pointed out. “Because he doesn’t know your family.”

Mirabel gave a half-laugh. “Oh, all right, but only if we keep walking.” Somewhat self-consciously, she began her song.

She sang of how her family had been blessed, how they used their gifts to keep the Encanto safe and flourishing. She sang of her Abuela who led the family and the village, who had received the miracle so many years ago, through her own love and grief; of Tía Pepa, who could control the very weather with her emotions, calling up a storm in a rage or a rainbow in bliss; of Tío Bruno, the prophet long gone (Carlos flinched); of her mother, the kindest, gentlest soul in the Encanto, with the gift of healing to match; of her father and Tío Felix, who both proclaimed that they’d become the happiest men alive the moment they’d married their respective wives.

Moving on to her generation, she began with Dolores, who could hear a pin drop from the other side of the village. Then on to Camilo, who could change shape at will and perfectly imitate anybody he saw. Antonio, soon to receive his gift. Señorita Perfecta Isabela, beautiful and graceful, who could grow any kind of flower, anywhere. Luisa, gifted with superstrength.

“Wow,” Carlos said when Mirabel had finished. “That’s….a lot.”

“It is,” Mirabel agreed wholeheartedly.

“So what’s your gift?”

Mirabel’s heart sank down to her toes. She’d hoped he wouldn’t ask that.

“Mirabel didn’t get one,” Cecilia informed him.

“No?”

“Nope!” Juancho chimed in. “She’s the only Madrigal not to get one! No one knows why.”

“Oh,” he said. “Uh. Sorry.”

“It’s all right,” she assured him. It made sense that he would ask. The questions - at least the first questions, the ones of “What’s your gift?” and “You didn’t get a gift?” didn’t bother her; they were only to be expected. What did bother her were the ones like “So why do you think you didn't get a gift?”

“Anyway!” she said with some relief. “Here we are!”

Mirabel led him into the courtyard. Juancho, Cecilia, and Alejandra offered to stay at the gate and watch his dog. Carlos said, in English, “Stay, Dude!” to his dog, who plopped himself right down for some more belly rubs.

“Mirabel!” her mother called, coming through the door. “Where have you b- Oh! Who’s this?” She gave Carlos a surprised, almost spooked look.

“This is Carlos,” Mirabel said. “He’s from…” She realized that Carlos hadn’t actually told her where he was from. “Anyway, he wanted to talk to all of you, and I said I would bring him to meet you? He needs our help.” Carlos didn’t contradict her.

Mama blinked several times. “Hello, Carlos. It’s nice to meet you. I’m sorry - it’s just that you reminded me of someone for a moment. Come right in; Mirabel, bring him to the living room, Abuela will see him there.”

Mirabel led him through the hallway, past Tío Felix, whose eyes widened; past Dolores, who poked her head out of a doorway, squeaked, and pulled herself back in; past her father, who dropped the stack of plates he was holding and shooed them both away when they tried to help him pick them up; past Luisa, who was juggling dumbbells; and past the kitchen, where her father had deposited his miraculously unbroken plates and was whispering loudly to her mother “Doesn’t he look a bit like-” before finally reaching the living room.

Sometimes she wished she’d been born into a normal family.

“You can sit if you want,” she offered. She didn���t usually entertain guests and had no clue of what to do.

Carlos jumped a little, said “Thanks,” and sat down gingerly on the very edge of the sofa.

Abuela walked in, took one look at Carlos, and demanded “Who are you?”

Carlos quailed, but drew himself up and answered “Carlos de Vil.”

Devil? Wasn’t that the English for Diablo? What kind of name was that?

“A-are y-you Doña Alma Madrigal?” Carlos stuttered. Mirabel thought he was trembling. He looked terrified.

“I am,” Abuela answered, but before she could say anything else Carlos reached into his pocket and withdrew several grubby, folded pieces of paper; sealed envelopes. He unfolded one, then another, and handed that one to Abuela.

“This is for you,” was all he said.

The envelope was labeled, simply, Mamá.

.

"Oh, Dios mío!” Mirabel gasped. “You’re C!”

“You’re C?” Camilo asked. “You must be!”

“He’s C!” Dolores agreed. “Wow, I never thought we’d actually meet him!”

Carlos looked overwhelmed, like he quite wished no one would be paying any attention to him. Unfortunately, the exact opposite was the case. “C?”

The entire family was crowded into the kitchen. Mama and Tía Pepa were hugging each other, weeping about their poor Brunito, the letters Carlos had delivered to them from him clutched in their hands. Abuela was sitting in her seat, reading her own letter over and over, as though trying to discern some hidden meaning in the words.

Carlos himself was sitting at the table with the heaping plateful of food Julieta had demanded he eat before interrogating him about his father and ripping open her own letter to read. So far, he’d eaten very little of it.

Papa and Tío Felix were huddled together, whispering.

Mirabel and her sisters and cousins were all crowded around poor Carlos.

“You got a door,” Isabela explained. “To your room in Casita, and you would have received your gift when you opened it. It had your initial on it, so we knew you existed, and that your name started with C. But that was all we knew about you. And you weren’t there to open it, so your door disappeared.” She hesitated. “You do know about the doors and the gifts, right?”

Carlos nodded jerkily. “He told me. But I thought it was just a story, then.”

Antonio interrupted them all to come up and wrap his arms around Carlos and the chair Carlos was sitting in. “A new cousin!” he proclaimed. “Hi, new cousin! I’m Antonio!”

“Uh - hi, Antonio,” Carlos said, sitting very stiffly and ill at ease, seemingly uncomfortable.

“Do we also get to meet a new tía?” Antonio wanted to know, still keeping his small arms wrapped around Carlos’ stomach.

“What?” Dolores asked.

“If we have a new cousin,” Antonio explained, “then we also have a new tia! Is she visiting, too? Can we meet her?” He looked around expectantly, as though waiting for the cousins’ new tia to come walking in.

“No!” Carlos snapped, and then again, calmer, gingerly removing Antonio’s arms from they were wrapped around him, “No. You won’t meet her. You can’t meet her. She’s not here.”

Mirabel remembered when Carlos’ door had appeared, only about a year after her own failed ceremony. She’d been so excited, because she’d thought she would finally be getting a gift, after all. But then the door hadn’t even been for her.

She’d been jealous, at first. She had been born and raised in Casita and got no gift or room at all, while the cousin the rest of them knew nothing about would have gotten a room and gift of his own - or would have had, if he’d been there to open his door. But he hadn’t been, so his door had faded as well.

But she’d also felt a strange kinship. After all, the mysterious C was also a giftless Madrigal. There had been no C to open the door. No C to receive a gift. She wasn’t the only Madrigal without a gift, then.

Every year, the Madrigal cousins marked the date the door had appeared as C’s birthday. It was a day of tense silences, a day to be lost in thought, just like the triplets’ birthday was, and Mirabel’s birthday, and a random day near the beginning of November that they had eventually realized was the day Tío Bruno had been taken away.

She’d always wondered if one day, somehow, she would get to meet the mysterious C. And now, here he was.

This is a week or so before Antonio receives his gift.

I figure that Carlos would know some Spanish because if and when Bruno was present in his childhood, he would have spoken it to him. Also, once he found out he’s getting sent to Encanto for the summer, he would have tried to learn some; he’s smart, he’s picked up at least the basics by now.

As an aside, according to Return to the Isle of the Lost, Carlos’ middle name is Oscar. And what was Bruno’s name originally in some early concept art? Oscar.