#victory valedictorian

[vitikko1]

[fortnite-headcanons]

Victory Valedictorian likes girls, especially Studious Scout and Rebel Rival.

Fortnite Headcanon #259

[giorno-plays-piano]

Binary Star

Part I

Pairing: academic rival!Satoru Gojo x reader

Warnings: yandere, obsession, power play, hurt/comfort, no curse au, this series will get darker as the story progresses.

Words: 1.2k

Summary: It has to pay off, he thinks as he waits for the headmaster to finally announce the valedictorian, knowing she is there too, shifting from one foot to the other impatiently. What face is she going to make when his name will be called? Is she going to cry? To yell at him and publicly demand a re-evaluation? Or will she, perhaps, finally admit he's done a fantastic job and won fair and square?

____________

He is really going to get her this time. This is the finish line, quite literally: the graduation; his last attempt to win and emerge victorious from the very last battle between him and her. It has to be it.

If he couldn't win against her for the last time, Gojo would probably have a mental breakdown right in the middle of the ceremony. Geto standing right next to him rolls his eyes to the ceiling over his friend who's shaking from excitement and fear. Of course, Satoru wouldn't admit it even under torture, but Suguru knows better. The girl his friend has been competing with throughout high school isn't just smart: she's completely insane like Gojo and as big pain in the ass as him. Who knows, perhaps she'll really win this round. He prefers not to think of it.

Satoru searches for her in the crowd, standing on his toes despite already being a foot taller than anyone else in the hall. Is she here? This nightmarish woman who has been pushing him to give high school his all because she dared to take away his crown of the best student during their freshman year? When Satoru saw the scores, he thought he might have had a heart attack. There was no way he was no longer #1.

"That's what you get for messing around the chem lab," Shoko snorted while Satoru dumbly stared at the name of that annoying girl, always the teachers' pet, heading the list. His name was written right under hers.

What the actual fuck?! She got a better score than him? Him, the genius, with his undeniably superior IQ of 180 that he flaunted at any given time? Who did she think she was, Sheldon Cooper or something?

It got him so fired up he actually started studying.

"You're so dumb," Geto eventually said after his friend had gotten in the argument with the girl during their ethics class - again. "You know you could be making out with her now, right? She's the only person who could actually get along with your stubborn ass."

"Wha-a-at? What about you?" Immediately disregarding his question, Satoru was already pouting like a kid. "Wouldn't you date me?"

"Yeah, over my dead fucking body."

To be fair, it's not that Gojo never thought of her that way - she was pretty, even if he was never going to admit it out loud - but she was also so insufferable Gojo really couldn't focus on anything else but beating her in that game they were playing. The best score on the history exam? They both wanted it. Math test? Him and her were working on those questions as if their lives depended on it. Biology project? Satoru made sure to do the impossible, submitting something he would get a Noble prize for, and yet he still somehow managed to get the same grade as her. It was absolutely infuriating.

Why on Earth did she decide she could be better than him? He was Satoru Gojo, after all. The one and only son of Gojo family, who was not only embarrassingly rich but also fucking smart - his parents used to flaunt his talents throughout his whole childhood and continued doing it well into adulthood. He couldn't tell them he was no longer #1. What would his mother say? Dear God, it was hard to imagine what would happen to his father of he learned some random girl got a better grade for that English paper than him. It was, at the very least, unbecoming of Satoru.

But she was unrelenting, irritated with his status of the school genius, and ready to fight him on every occasion. Satoru had no idea what could piss her off so much - in the end, he was the most charming guy around, wasn't he? - but there wasn't a day she'd let him have his way. She was brave, persistent, and knowledgeable, and he hated her very much.

The fact that Shoko and Suguru were asking him to please get together with her and stop antagonizing the whole school only riled up Gojo even more. As if he was going to date that nerd!

When he learned she'd be running for the valedictorian, it was the last drop. No fucking way. She couldn't take it away from him - even if he had never actually cared about being a valedictorian.

If his friends had thought he was obessessing over her, now they realized Satoru went completely nuts. He started studying so much he barely slept: it was a given, considering the bags under his eyes were making his skinny ass look like a starving raccoon. Geto couldn't drag gim out even in between lessons because Satoru was immediately burying his head in the books.

It has to pay off, he thinks as he waits for the headmaster to finally announce the valedictorian, knowing she is there too, shifting from one foot to the other impatiently. What face is she going to make when his name will be called? Is she going to cry? To yell at him and publicly demand a re-evaluation? Or will she, perhaps, finally admit he's done a fantastic job and won fair and square?

Pfft, of course she won't. She'll probably stab him in the parking lot once he tries to get into his car.

But when the headmaster finally announces the results, and his, Satoru Gojo's, name is called, he no longer sees her in the crowd, and the sweet taste of victory suddenly turns to ashes in his mouth.

Where is she? She couldn't have known it would be him. To be frank, he didn't either. How could she leave right before the results were announced?

He gives his speech with a stupid smile plastered all over his face, but his mood has already soured. She had to be there to hear he was named this year's valedictorian! What face did she make? Did she leave right after she heard it wasn't her? Did she cry? Did she run away because she couldn't take it? Wasn't she going to say to him anything at all?

How could she just... vanish?

He doesn't know why he expected her to be the bigger person and come tell him he did great, but he truly did. Suddenly, he realizes he wants her to look him in the face and say he is good enough.

Did he need to be the bigger person, perhaps? But, wait, isn't he a bigger person by default because he's the winner, he wondered. The winner is always the bigger person if he doesn't rub loser's face in the dirt, right?

In the end, he couldn't even enjoy the victory he had been craving for so long.

"She had something urgent come up," Shoko says later in the restaurant, making a tsk-ing sound while Gojo listens to her with a frown on his face. "Something about her family."

Something about her family? What could be as important as the announcement of valedictorian?

"Are you dumb?" With a sigh, Suguru cocks his head to the side. "Plenty of things are more important than this valedictorian crap."

Maybe to somebody else, but not to her, Satoru thinks. Beating him has always been the only thing on her mind, and nothing could have changed that.

__________

He will be mulling over it for a long, long time once he realizes she did not follow him to Harvard despite her scholarship.

Part II

Tags: @minshookie29

[clairyclue]

ride the cyclone fic?

the dead crave the earth, more than anything. the saint cassian choir don’t feel dead. not yet. maybe because karnak won’t let them feel that sweet relief yet, so instead of their bones resting like they should, they are tormented. pulled between two worlds, both of which they do not belong.

ocean was the first to realize her death was upon her. and maybe she was the most terrified. no one else felt the loss the way she did—no one mourned their own lives as much as she did. no one felt the anger the way ocean did. her voice has no claim here, not when that stupid fucking robot can override her decisions. no one has EVER done that before. no one has dared. when she felt the ride car veering off the track, her heart beating twenty thousand kilometers per millisecond, enough to power the uranium mines for millennia, she felt her life’s purpose being ripped from her. what use was it to be written off as a “would-be” valedictorian at her funeral, a page in the graduation program and a commemorative bush planted outside the chapel in her honor if she never got to taste the sweet cake of victory. she wanted her cake and to watch it too. she never got EITHER. it was unfair.

noel gruber sometimes craved death, if you were to ask his bedroom ceiling, of which knew all of his deepest secrets. he did not want to die. but he wanted to be anything other, anything besides this life. he wanted to be reborn and emerge like a butterfly from a cocoon, to shed this life and its miseries once and for all. he didn’t realize the roller coaster had derailed until it was too late. he wishes he could say he went down with a disturbed smile. a coy little smirk no one but him—and maybe mischa—would see. he wishes he could tell you his screams of terror were intermingled with screams of satisfaction, of fulfillment, of excitement. if he told you these things, he would be lying. and it’s that moment that teaches him the weight finality holds on all mortals and that his morbid musings were foolish.

every teenager thinks about death—right? and if she’s wrong she’ll apologize. constance aches for any choice other than uranium. the thought of dying in this town chokes her airways and makes her insides twist. this town chokes and suffocates and smothers the life out of her eyes. parties she never enjoys, dances that aren’t fun, best friends who don’t give you much choice in your own life. no one knows her name. they just know her squeaks of ‘sorry!’ directed their way at some point in their schooling career. when constance feels the car shiver, shake, and groan off the track, her life flashes before her eyes. and she’s never seen anything more wonderful in her goddamn life. she squeezes oceans hand, and screams with delight that the life she’s leaving behind was fucking FUN, and that if anything the way she dies mirrors that. it’s not beverly hills. it’s not rich. she’s not popular. but when she really looks at it from a birds eye view—it was everything she could have hoped for.

mischa is never scared. he wasn’t scared when his mother died. he wasn’t scared when his adoptive parents looked at him in horror when he arrived, older than they hoped and rugged with burdens heavier than they wanted to know of. he’s not scared when he fights people in the school hallways, when his phone is confiscated for the umpteenth time, when he’s sentenced to joining the choir as punishment by mr. whatever-the-fuck and forced under the rule of the five-foot-nothing dictator. and he’s definitely not scared now. he’s not scared for talia. he’s not scared about who’s going to tell her that he’s dead he’s not scared about meeting his mother again, maybe, face to face. he’s NOT SCARED. he’s not scared when noel gropes for any part of him to hold onto—he’s not scared when he grips him back—he’s never been scared. he’s not scared when death looks him in the face—and LAUGHS.

there was a time ricky potts had wanted to speak. years worth of words cluttered his mind, sentences clogging his throat. he wanted so desperately to try and blend in with the kids around him. he never got his chance. not as long as he had lived. (in death, though, that’s something entirely else.) he was uranium’s most imaginative boy. the musings of his own death had crossed his mind, sometimes. he hoped maybe it would be COOL. maybe he would die in a blaze of lightening, revealing the secrets of the earth and beyond just before his final exhale. he’s not thinking about his death when ocean shepherds him into the ride seat. he wonders why she even bothers—he can’t sing. he’s not very interesting. she had to argue with the carnie running the cyclone for twenty minutes just to get him onto this stupid thing. he’s thinking about the girl beside him—she mumbles to herself, and laughs, and he tries to imagine whatever is going through her mind. he spends the lift thinking about how much better zolar woukd make roller coasters—but of course, cats with advanced technology and intergalactic wars dont fool themselves with such trifles. they have better technology than the human mind can comprehend. obviously. he’s halfway through imagining what superior technology zolarians would amuse themselves with when the car lurches itself off the track and he’s almost pelted off the side. the screams of the other choir members haunt his ears. he’s eerily silent. he wonders what HIS screams would sound like.

jane doe… jane doe was not terrified, as far as anyone could tell you. she was not sad. angry. happy. she can’t tell you how she felt, either. the choir tries, they really do, to remember her. but the edges of their memories get fuzzy and they keep circling back to MAYBE. her chest feels empty when she tries to decide if she would be scared. she’s not even sure if she knows what that feels like. (she does. she feels lung squeezing, terrifying fear every time a hand grazes her neck. when she thinks about the afterlife without her soul, living the rest of eternity alone and with a deaf, suffocating emptiness in her chest where her heart should be beating.) penny lamb, however… she is a whole new story. penny did not know the boy sitting beside her. his name was, perhaps, ricardo? that sounds close enough for her. her brother is somewhere in the crowd—six people to a car, and he didn’t want to go ANYWAY—so she had shuffled in beside the kid who never talked and braced to be whipped around. it was fun…as fun as rollercoasters can get, when your guys aren’t being squelched around inside your rib cage. she wonders if it has lasting effects on health. she’s never been to a fair before, much less on a rollercoaster. she snorts to herself—she knows how to grow weed, but not what a rollercoaster is like. ryan shoots her an odd look. nothing else comes of it. she assumes that the shaking, shivering, creaking of the roller coaster is just part of the ride. it jostled her guts, worse than ever, but she grits her molars. penny lamb is no wimp. but as the sink farther to the ground, she starts to think that this isn’t part of the ride anymore. the final fun fact that crosses her mind, before her identity bleeds into the ground with her arteries: human minds can have a few seconds of consciousness when severed from the body. she heard the anguish of the street. everything is a hazy blur, watercolor of vomit, sparkles and garbled speech and sirens.

[arthur-side]

Aiden yelped as he got pushed out of the wheelchair by Tyler, getting a scoff from his father, his smile twitched. “Hey, Tyler-” “What are you doing, Aiden, will you just sit there as this brat takes his victory or something?” Jessica cut Taylor off, rolling her eyes.

“Just-look at him! He can’t even walk without a wheelchair! I don’t get why-” “Jessica.” Emma glared at Jessica, the Clark only scoffing. “But I’m right am I? This brat needs to shoot to survive because he has limited movement, and look at Aiden-!” “Shut up, woman.” Aiden snapped.

The group(excluding Lily) snapped their heads at him, surprised. Jessica’s eye twitched. “What did you just say, child?” “I said,” Aiden got off the ground, a few murmurs of worries coming from his friends, “Shut, the fuck up, woman.”

Jessica laughed. “I am your mother-” “You are no one but a disgrace of the Clark’s.”

Taylor stood up from where she was sitting, worry etched on her face. “Aiden-” “You are no one, but a stranger to me,” Aiden continued, smile gone, “You have been gone, away, nowhere, from my childhood.” He barked out a laugh. “I tried my best to satisfy you abomination of my kind, straight A’s, Valedictorian, I did anything, everything, and yet, I’ve never felt love from my own parents, my own bloodline.” Aiden glared at Ben, “... Except for Ben and his side.”

“I dropped my title, I dropped my smile, my health, and yet you two have never even noticed it.” He scoffed. “You didn’t even care when you came home seeing your son have blonde hair and eyes that looked nothing like yours."

Ben covered Lily’s ears as Aiden continued to rant. The Hernandez side were on the verge of jumping at Aiden for a hug, and the Banner’s stayed silent.

“Do you even care?” Aiden asked, his voice cracking. Jessica was about to open her mouth when Aiden gave her no chance.

“Have you even noticed how your son was always covered in bandages? Have you even noticed how your son’s attitude completely shifted when Ben came in my life?” He snickered. “Never. Never before, you have never, never-” “-EVEN ACKNOWLEDGED YOUR OWN SON!”

[ask-philgraves]

hi

How do i stop being disappointed in myself for academic reasons

I’m always so quick to be upset with myself

you dont have to answer <3

Alright, darling. First things first, you have to celebrate everything you do achieve. A little victory dance for doing a little better than you thought, or a sweet treat whenever you study hard and get that one thing that you didn't understand before the study session. Also, don't take things too seriously. Some teachers/professors are dicks and will unfairly grade you just because. That doesn't reflect how well you are as a student, it's just a fact of life that a person in a place of authority will typically abuse that power. Then, there's the whole, grades DON'T matter. You can achieve the same results at Harvard that you can in your typical state university. Don't feel forced or compelled to shoot for the stars because it could be a wrong choice. Always try to separate your logic and emotions, and see if you really did try your hardest, or if you didn't, why you couldn't. Were you stressed? Tired? Anxious? Then find something that will lower those negative feelings and take care of your mental health. You don't need to finish at a 4.0 GPA. You don't need to be your university or highschool valedictorian. Most people don't remember who was valedictorian anyways or the GPA they had when they graduated. It's not used in hiring processes. The only time you'll need more than a 2.0 gpa is if you are ACTIVELY looking to excel your studies and go for a Masters/Doctrate. Even then, that doesn't necessarily up your chances at getting hired or a guarantee of getting better pay. You're doing your best, and as long as you do your best, then that's all that really matters.

[richincolor]

New Releases - Week of August 27, 2024

We've found eight different new releases to shout about this week. Are any of them on your TBR? 

Bridge Across the Sky by Freeman Ng Atheneum Books for Young Readers

A raw and honest historical novel in verse about a Chinese teen who immigrates to the United States with his family and endures mistreatment at the Angel Island Immigration Station while trying to navigate his own course in a new world.

Tai Go and his family have crossed an ocean wider than a thousand rivers, joining countless other Chinese immigrants in search of a better life in the United States. Instead, they’re met with hostility and racism. Empowered by the Chinese Exclusion Act, the government detains the immigrants on Angel Island in the San Francisco Bay while evaluating their claims.

Held there indefinitely, Tai Go experiences the prison-like conditions, humiliating medical exams, and interrogations designed to trick detainees into failure. Yet amid the anger and sorrow, Tai Go also finds hope—in the poems carved into the walls of the barracks by others who have been detained there, in the actions of a group of fellow detainees who are ready to fight for their rights, in the friends he makes, and in a perceived enemy whose otherness he must come to terms with.

Unhappy at first with his father’s decision to come to the United States, Tai Go must overcome the racism he discovers in both others and himself and forge his own version of the American Dream.

The Sticky Note Manifesto of Aisha Agarwal by Ambika Vohra Quill Tree Books, Harper Collins

“How have you gotten out of your comfort zone?”

That’s the Stanford admissions prompt that valedictorian shoo-in Aisha Agarwal can’t answer. Her life’s been homework and junk food. So, when her crush, Brian, asks her to winter formal, Aisha thinks her fate is changing . . .

. . . until Brian stands her up.

As if on cue, a banged-up Volkswagen arrives outside the dance; the driver profusely apologizing for being late to pick her up. Does Aisha know him or what he’s talking about? No. Does the Stanford essay convince her to take him up on the ride? Absolutely.

To Aisha’s relief, seventeen-year-old Quentin Santos isn’t a kidnapper, but he is failing math. They strike a deal: if Aisha helps Quentin pass math, he’ll help push her out of her comfort zone, using a series of sticky note to-do’s—dares—that will not only give Aisha content for her essay, but will turn her into the confident person she’s always wanted to be.

From New Year’s Eve kisses to high school parties, Aisha’s sticky note manifesto is taking off. But when she falls for the wrong guy, hurts her best friend, and still can’t finish her essay, victory feels far from reach.

Is winning worth it if you end up losing yourself in the process?

Indiginerds edited by Alina Pete Iron Circus Comics

First Nations culture is living, vibrant, and evolving…

…and generations of Indigenous kids have grown up with pop culture creeping inexorably into our lives. From gaming to social media, pirate radio to garage bands, Star Trek to D&D, and missed connections at the pow wow, Indigenous culture is so much more than how it’s usually portrayed. These comics are here to celebrate those stories!

Featuring an all-Indigenous creative team, INDIGINERDS is an exhilarating anthology collecting 11 stories about Indigenous people balancing traditional ways of knowing with modern pop culture.

Bvlbancha Forever, by Ida Aronson and Tate Allen

Walk With The Earth Mother, by Maija Plamondon and Milo Applejohn

Roll Your Own Way, by Jordanna George

Digital Eden, by Raven John and Asia Wiseley

Amplification/Adaptation, by Em Matson and Nipinet Landsem

Welei (I Am Fine), by Bianca “binkz17” and Rhael McGregor

Saving Throws, by James Willier and Sam “Mushki” Medlock

Dorvan V, by Alina Pete

Uncured Horror, by Gillian Joseph and Wren Rios

Airwaves Pirates, by Autumn Star and PJ Underwood

Missed Pow Wow Connection, by Kameron White

Twin Flames by Olivia Abtahi Lee & Low Books

When djinn start to show up in twins Leila and Bianca’s small Virginia hometown, the only way they and their families will survive will be if the twins can get past their differences and start to act like sisters again.

Twins Bianca and Leila could not be more different from each other. Being both Argentinian and Iranian in a small town has always been hard, but with Leila shunning her heritage and Bianca embracing it, the two walk very different paths. They run in different circles of friends, and barely talk anymore. Leila’s a homebody who loves to craft and plans on marrying her high school sweetheart. Bianca’s more anti-establishment and plans to get out of Dodge as soon as humanly possible.

But on their eighteenth birthday, the neighbor’s barn is burned down–and it doesn’t seem to have been caused by anything normal like an electrical or fuel source. When Leila encounters a mysterious monster arising from the fire, suddenly she gains strange powers–and can no longer touch iron or even eat foods with high iron content.

What are these creatures and where are they coming from? What do they want with Leila–or other people in town, for that matter? Can the twins learn to rely on each other–and their cultures–to banish them? It’ll take a sisterly reconciliation for the girls to find out and to save their hometown in this New Visions Award-winning fantasy adventure.

Everything We Never Had by Randy Ribay Kokila

From the author of the National Book Award finalist Patron Saints of Nothing comes an emotionally charged, moving novel about four generations of Filipino American boys grappling with identity, masculinity, and their fraught father-son relationships.

Watsonville, 1930. Francisco Maghabol barely ekes out a living in the fields of California. As he spends what little money he earns at dance halls and faces increasing violence from white men in town, Francisco wonders if he should’ve never left the Philippines.

Stockton, 1965. Between school days full of prejudice from white students and teachers and night shifts working at his aunt’s restaurant, Emil refuses to follow in the footsteps of his labor organizer father, Francisco. He’s going to make it in this country no matter what or who he has to leave behind.

Denver, 1983. Chris is determined to prove that his overbearing father, Emil, can’t control him. However, when a missed assignment on “ancestral history” sends Chris off the football team and into the library, he discovers a desire to know more about Filipino history―even if his father dismisses his interest as unamerican and unimportant.

Philadelphia, 2020. Enzo struggles to keep his anxiety in check as a global pandemic breaks out and his abrasive grandfather moves in. While tensions are high between his dad and his lolo, Enzo’s daily walks with Lolo Emil have him wondering if maybe he can help bridge their decades-long rift.

Told in multiple perspectives, Everything We Never Had unfolds like a beautifully crafted nesting doll, where each Maghabol boy forges his own path amid heavy family and societal expectations, passing down his flaws, values, and virtues to the next generation, until it’s up to Enzo to see how he can braid all these strands and men together.

Our Shouts Echo by Jade Adia Disney-Hyperion

Survival Tip #1: The world is going to shit. Whatever you do, trust no one.

Sixteen-year old Niarah Holloway’s only goal in life is to get through it unnoticed. That, and to spend her first summer in LA building a doomsday bunker in her backyard. Because if the past few years have taught Niarah anything, it’s that the ocean levels are rising, minimum wage is a scam, and the people who are supposed to protect you will hurt you. Now the only thing that helps Niarah stay afloat amidst the constant waves of anxiety and dread that threaten to drag her under is her new mantra: Be prepared.

But Niarah wasn’t prepared for Mac Torres. Not for his disarmingly cute face, or for his surfer lifestyle, or for the way his smile resuscitates her heart. Mac is a bomb that blows Niarah’s world to pieces, but instead of disaster, he fills it with sunset bonfires, breakfast burritos, and new friends.

For years, Niarah’s life has revolved around ignoring the demons of her past, avoiding the problems of her present, and preparing for the catastrophes of the future. Now Mac—with his sunshine laugh and infectious optimism— is determined to show her another way to be. But in a world where the worst feels inevitable, can one summer be enough to light the way to a hopeful future? Can one summer be enough to fall in love?

With Love, Echo Park by Laura Taylor Namey Atheneum

Seventeen-year-old Clary is set to inherit her family’s florist shop, La Rosa Blanca—one of the last remnants of the Cuban business district that once thrived in Los Angeles’s Echo Park neighborhood. Clary knows Echo Park is where she’ll leave a legacy, and nothing is more important to her than keeping the area’s unique history alive.

Besides Clary’s florist shop, there’s only one other business left founded by Cuban immigrants fleeing Castro’s regime in the sixties and seventies. And Emilio, who’s supposed to take over Avalos Bicycle Works one day, is more flight risk than dependable successor. While others might find Emilio appealing, Clary can see him itching to leave now that he’s graduated, and she’ll never be charmed by a guy who doesn’t care if one more Echo Park business fades away.

But then Clary is caught off guard when an unexpected visitor delivers a shocking message from someone she thought she’d left behind. Meanwhile, Emilio realizes leaving home won’t be so easy—and Clary, who has always been next door, is who he confides in. As the summer days unfold, they find there’s something stronger than local history tying them together.

Libertad by Bessie Flores Zaldivar Dial Books

A queer YA coming-of-age set during the rigged Honduran presidential election, about a young poet discovering the courage it takes to speak her truth about the people and country she loves.

As the contentious 2017 presidential election looms and protests rage across every corner of the city, life in Tegucigalpa, Honduras churns louder and faster. For her part, high school senior Libertad (Libi) Morazán takes heart in writing political poetry for her anonymous Instagram account and a budding romance someone new. But things come to a head when Mami sees texts on her phone mentioning a kiss with a girl and Libi discovers her beloved older brother, Maynor, playing a major role in the protests. As Libertad faces the political and social corruption around her, stifling homophobia at home and school, and ramped up threats to her poetry online, she begins dreaming of a future in which she doesn’t have to hide who she is or worry about someone she loves losing their life just for speaking up. Then the ultimate tragedy strikes, and leaving her family and friends—plus the only home she’s ever known—might be her only option.

[oceanbug]

when worlds collide

smau non!idol ningning x reader

11.5. yoo jimin.

•┈┈୨♡୧┈┈•༶༶•┈┈୨♡୧┈┈•༶༶•┈┈୨♡୧┈┈•

Senior Valedictorian; Volleyball Captain, who led Spring Hill’s team to their first tournament victory in over 30 years; And the most wanted girl at Spring Hill High.

She was a legacy; no one else could compare to her. Yet she was still so humble.

She still went home every day and helped her mom cook dinner. She still volunteered at her local pet adoption center. She still stayed behind every day and tutored anyone who needed the help.

Yoo Jimin was golden.

 ___________________________________

Jimin’s P.O.V

Three Years Prior, Spring Hill High School

“Jimin, come sit here! Right here! Hey! Over here! J.I.M.I.N Y.O.O” 

Normally, having someone scream out your full government name would be concerning, but not for you since it was a daily occurrence. It was none other than your loud, eccentric friend, Ah Yujin.

“Shut up! Everyone’s staring at you, dumbass.” And there goes your equally loud friend, Y/n L/n.

Everyone was staring at your friends, but that never bothered you; you were used to it. You did, however, dislike the comments that came with it.

“How could someone like her be friends with them?”

“Doesn’t she have the highest GPA of our senior class? And isn’t Yujin failing every course, including study hall?”

“She’s so pretty; she’d be even prettier if she lost that rat pack of hers.”

You couldn’t seem to understand why their opinions mattered. Why couldn’t you be friends with people you like? Why is it such an inconvenience to everyone else? They didn’t know your idiot friends like you did, so how could they have such awful words to say? Still, you walked past everyone and showed a bright smile in front of your best friends. So, if they ever heard everyone’s opinions, you could at least show them that you don’t care about everyone's negative views. It's not like your friends could listen to anything over Yujin’s screaming, but just as a precaution, you smile extra brightly every day.

“I’m less than two feet away from you, Yu.”

“Just making sure you remember where to sit!” Yujin was practically bouncing off the walls; you couldn’t understand where she got all this energy from.

“We sit at the same table every day, Yu.”

“Hey, Jimin.” The same chipper yet quieter voice came from the other half of the table.

“Heya Y/n.” Y/N was always pretty quiet; you just chalked it up to nervousness. Yujin always knew how to draw a crowd with her antics, so it wouldn’t surprise you if Y/N felt overwhelmed by the attention.

“What’s got you bouncing around today, Yu? You’re usually hyper, but it looks like you took it up a notch.”

“She’s acting like she just had four megadoses of cocaine.” You laughed since your friends always had a way with words. You wished you could speak freely, but that would go against your character.

Your character.

“How could you not be excited? Graduation is less than FOUR days away.”

“You’re just excited to party.”

“Well duh? High School was a fucking drag. Of course, I’m excited to celebrate leaving this place.”

“Maybe if you joined a club, or, I don’t know, applied yourself, it wouldn’t be such a drag.”

“You sound like my mother; sorry, we can’t all be perfect like Yoo Jimin.”

That stung. You hated that phrase. You hated being the one everyone compared themselves to. Was it so bad that you worked hard? Can’t they get off their asses every once in a while and help out? No, instead, they’re too busy blaming you for setting an impossible standard. They blamed you for being Yoo Jimin. Fuck being Yoo Jimin.

You couldn’t say any of this, though; it would be out of character for you. All you could do was smile and laugh. You’re Spring Hill’s golden child; why complain about being told you’re perfect?

 _______________________________________

And so,

All your hard work ended up being worth it. You guess? Here you were at the same graduation party as everyone else. Going to the same college as your close friends. The same college as your friend Yujin, who graduated with a 2.3 GPA, while you graduated with a perfect 4.0. The same college as your friend Y/N, who never did an extracurricular activity in their life while you did in 7.

... Why did you work so hard?

Well, that doesn’t matter now. At least you get to have fun and celebrate with all your friends.

Speaking of which, why was your friend Yujin talking to, Wonyoung?

The Jang Wonyoung? What could she possibly have in common with Yujin?

Why didn't Yujin tell you they were friends? You always got caught up with all the work you did, but you always made time for your friends. Did Yujin not feel close enough to tell you? Since you were too busy being Yoo Jimin? Had the image you worked so hard to maintain caused your friendship to drift apart?

Before you had the chance to speak to Yujin, you felt a sudden voice come slithering into your ear. It was Ning Yi Zhuo.

“Yeonjun’s here with that bitch he left me for; it’ll totally make him jealous if we kiss, don’t you think? He’s a total asshole for cheating on me; he deserves this.”

No. Why would you agree to that? Sure, you heard the rumors about Yeonjun cheating. You agreed that he deserved some sort of payback. But not with you. Why would someone like you kiss Ningning? The school’s known rich bitch? That wasn’t very in character for you. That wasn’t very Yoo Jimin.

…… Fuck Yoo Jimin. You just wanted to live life normally; you wanted to drink and curse. Fail an exam. Stay out past midnight and trespass around town. You hated the high pedestal everyone put you on. You didn’t want to be ‘The Yoo Jimin.’ You just wanted to be Jimin.

So, you kissed Ningning.

•┈┈୨♡୧┈┈•༶༶•┈┈୨♡୧┈┈•༶༶•┈┈୨♡୧┈┈•

masterlist ~ next

(Synopsis) Y/N had never been the type to take life for granted. You grew up with the mindset that if you wanted something, you had to work for it; So getting paired up with the university’s “Rich Bitch” Ning Yi Zhuo for your midterm was the last thing you wanted. Are you willing to step into the world of fame for an A+?

taglist (open): @azraism ; @kimsgayness ; @sewiouslyz ; @winieter ; @llluvbluy ; @i06kkura ; @everydayiloveyves ; @edamboon

[raaorqtpbpdy]

Highway Home

Jazz and Kyle have a little chat about their brothers after the brothers in question leave the two of them stranded on the freeway and forced to walk home.

Based on the prompts: Jazz and Kyle are stuck wandering the freeway after their brothers show up and steal Kyle's car. [from @camels-pen], and “So how do you feel about the fact that ‘that Fenton kid’ always refers to your little brother, whose infamy has made him far more well-known in the school than you?” ...Maybe Jazz wants some crazy rumors too. [from @dragonsdomain]

Read also on AO3

[Warning for death threats (to siblings), and a creepy guy showing up for a hot minutes, but thankfully Jazz and Kyle aren't stupid]

"Well that just happened," Kyle Weston said flatly as his car drove away with his brother and that Fenton kid inside, apparently chasing after something, although Kyle hadn't seen what.

He looked to his side where the other Fenton kid was standing with her arms crossed, looking only mildly annoyed, given the circumstances. She had been catching a ride with him back from the academic decathlon team victory party—they'd kicked Elmerton Central High's ass, and Jackie Calloway threw a huge party at his fancy house in Polter Heights to celebrate.

The party had been awesome, but Kyle wasn't really a night owl, so when Jazz—the team's MVP—said she was gonna head home early, and then her parents wouldn't pick up the phone, Kyle offered to give her a ride.

Now the two of them were standing on the side of the freeway as it grew steadily colder and darker. Which was... significantly less awesome than hanging out at Jackie Calloway's party.

Even so, the two of them knew their respective brothers well enough that a circumstance such as this was all but expected at this point.

"Guess we're walking home," Jazz said with a sigh.

Kyle groaned, but didn't outright complain as the two started to walk along the side of the freeway toward home. The cars on the road passed them at frighting speeds, throwing gusts of wind their way that did nothing to combat the rapidly cooling evening air.

"At least it's only one more exit," Jazz pointed out optimistically.

That one more exit was over a mile away, and they would have to walk the whole way like this. Kyle hadn't even had the chance to grab his jacket when Wes forced him out of his own car, yelling that it was some kind of emergency.

"Wes doesn't even have his driver's license yet," Kyle grumbled. Wes only had. a learner's permit because he spent all his time screwing around with Danny Fenton instead of doing driving lessons with Dad. "If he wrecks my car, I swear I'll kill him."

"I wonder what all the rush was," Jazz said thoughtfully. "They didn't exactly explain much when they kicked us out. I hope they'll be okay."

Kyle really didn't understand what Wes' deal was with the Fenton kid. It seemed like Wes hated him one day, but they were buddies the next, and then enemies again a week later. He hoped they either made out, or broke up, or whatever needed to happen to make the two of them chill out.

He looked over at Jazz again, and reminded himself for the second time that she was a Fenton kid, too. He wondered if it ever made her self-conscious, that even though she'd been going to Casper High for tree years compared to her brother's one, his reputation was so much more significant than hers.

Sure, pretty much everyone knew Jazz Fenton. Her tutoring list was substantial, so a lot of students even knew her personally, but if they didn't, most still knew of her. Kind, helpful, in line to be valedictorian, highest scorer ever on the CAT exam. But people knew Jazz in the back of their minds, whereas what they knew of her brother was front-and-center. His reputation spread far and wide, so basically everyone in town knew of him.

The passing cars had been too loud to let them carry a conversation, but when there was a lull in traffic, Kyle figured he might as well take the opportunity to ask while it was just the two of them.

"So hey... does it ever, like, bother you that when people say 'that Fenton kid', it always refers to your little brother?" he asked. "I mean like, how does it feel that his infamous reputation has made him way more well-known around school than you are?"

Jazz side eyed him, pulling her cardigan closer around her.

"I'd think of all people, you'd know," she replied. "Aren't you basically in the same situation with Wes? I don't think I've ever heard anyone say 'that Weston kid' and mean you."

"Fair point." He shrugged. "But still, I'm curious. Same situation, different people right. Maybe you feel differently about it than I do."

"Alright, I'll bite," she relented. "But you've gotta tell me your feelings on the matter so we can compare. Otherwise, it's not very scientific."

"Deal," Kyle agreed immediately.

Another car drove passed, and they paused their conversation until the Doppler effect had faded enough for them to be hear.

"So how do you feel about it?" Kyle prompted once it was gone.

Jazz looked into the distance, her lips pursed in consideration, and then she shook her head.

"I don't know really," she said. "I guess mostly I'm just concerned for my brother, you know? What if this reputation he's developed as a weirdo and a troublemaker follows him into college and his future career? What if it prevents him from being able to network with people, and make new friends? But also...."

"Yeah?" Kyle encouraged, sensing that this 'also' was gonna be pretty juicy.

"Well... maybe I want some crazy rumors too, you know?"

A car drove by right as she started to reply, and she had to yell to be heard.

Kyle put on an incredibly satisfied grin at that. He was right. That was a juicy 'also'.

She waited for the noise to fade before continuing.

"I mean, there are people at our school who genuinely, unironically believe that my brother's bladder can predict ghost attacks," she said. "How nuts is that? Your brother swears up and down that Danny is a ghost himself. And ever since all that pirate stuff, the entire freshman class thinks he's some kind of ghost hunting badass, even though he still gets bullied by the football players.

"There are people on the academic decathlon team—some of the smartest, most logical kids in school—who are completely convinced, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Danny is some kind of bad luck charm, because of a series of total coincidences that happened when he sat in on one of our practices. None of them were even remotely his fault, he was just waiting around so I could give him a ride home from school because he sprained his ankle.

"Obviously, I don't want people thinking I'm bad luck, but maybe something just a little weird going around about me would be fun," she finished. "Or make me seem like a little less of a goody-two-shoes at least."

"You want some kind of bad girl reputation?" Kyle teased.

"Well... no," Jazz said, half-shrugging and half nodding. "I like being a goody-two-shoes, but that's not all I am, you know? I can be just as creepy, and badass, and mysterious as Danny can." She punctuated her statement with a pout that was neither creepy, nor badass, nor mysterious.

Kyle shook his head and chuckled.

"To be honest, I don't get what the deal is with our school's obsessive ghost superstition," he said. "I've got a lot of friends online in gaming groups and I've never met anyone as adamant about the existence of ghosts as our classmates at school. I don't know if it's a gimmick, or some cultural thing I missed out on, or what, but it's so over the top."

Jazz laughed out loud, although, for the life of him, he couldn't tell if she was laughing with him or at him. She didn't say anything though.

He knew that she used to be just as much of a staunch skeptic as he was, but at some point in the last year, public opinion on the existence of ghosts had shifted dramatically, and he wasn't sure if her opinion had shifted with it or not. Even if she did believe in ghosts, at least she wasn't as much of a fanatic about it as everyone else was. At least she never spent an hour trying, unsuccessfully, to convince Kyle that ghosts were real.

"Alright, I've said my piece," she told him with a smile like she was humoring him. "Your turn. How do you feel about your brother being so much better-known around school than you are."

"Hmm...."

Kyle thought about it for a moment, his brows furrowed under the edge of his baseball cap. He probably should have thought about it before. It wasn't like he didn't know this was coming.

"I would have to say... I guess I'm like, half annoyed, and half relieved."

"Interesting," Jazz replied. "Elaborate."

Another car drove by, and they both shivered in the wind it blew their way. It was fully dark now, and Kyle was really regretting the fact that he hadn't thought to grab his Jacket when they got stranded.

When the chill passed, and the sound of the engine faded, Kyle chuckled to himself.

"Alright, sure," he allowed. "I'm annoyed because most of the people I talk to, when I mention Wes, they immediately recognize his name, and then they say they didn't even know he had a twin brother. So like, at least people know you exist, even if your brother's more well-known than you are.

"And I'm relieved because have you heard Wes' reputation?" Kyle all but snorted. "People think he's a total nut-case, some kind of raving mad conspiracy theorist. I'm much happier to wallow in anonymity than be the target of constant mockery. He's got such a reputation that people won't even believe him when he says something objectively cool.

"In computer class one time, a girl remarked that she hadn't seen any ducks at the pond in the park lately, and Wes said that was because they migrate south for the winter. Common knowledge, right? Except because it was Wes that said it, she opened a new tab and googled it right in front of him."

Jazz busted up with laughter. "Oh my god, really?"

"I swear to god," Kyle confirmed. "So yeah, if my choice is between obscurity and whatever Wes has got going on, I think I have the better end of the deal, honestly."

"Okay, I can see your point. At least for as wild a reputation as Danny has, his credibility is still pretty high."

"He did get featured in Genius Magazine," he remembered. "Some... gorilla thing, right? That'll boost anybody's credibility."

"Ha! Fair enough, yeah," she agreed. "Somehow, I always forget about that."

"Too bad my brother's just a doofus and not a genius," Kyle joked.

But Jazz didn't laugh at that, only smiled in such a way that was knowing as much as it was amused.

"I don't know," she said, and Kyle didn't like her tone as she said it. It wasn't... mocking exactly, but she spoke as if she knew something he didn't, and that bothered him. "Maybe he's just misunderstood."

"Maybe he's just a pain in the rear," he retorted with a scoff.

Another car came by, but this one slowed when it got close to them.

Kyle saw Jazz tense up, and he put himself between her and the strange vehicle, just in case.

A man leaned out the driver's side window to talk to them. "You kids need a ride?" he asked.

"No thanks," Kyle told him, smiling politely. "We haven't got much farther to go."

"Just the same, it's gettin' late," the man insisted. "I don't like the idea of two kids wandering the highway in the dark for any distance."

"And you like the idea of two kids climbing into a stranger's car any better?" Kyle raised an eyebrow. "If it's all the same to you, we'd rather take a mode of transportation that's guaranteed to get us where we want to go, instead of landing us dead and buried in the woods."

The man scowled. "Is that anyway to talk to a good Samaritan just trying to help?"

"What did you expect?" Jazz pitched. "You're a total stranger trying to pick us up off the side of the road even though we didn't indicate in any way that we were looking for a ride? You can't seriously be worried about us running into a creeper and not realize that you're acting like one, can you?"

Kyle glanced back at her and her thoroughly derisive look, impressed for a moment, before fixing his gaze back on the man, who scowled at the both of them, but pulled his head back in his car and drove off, grumbling the whole time. They waited until the man was a long way down the freeway before they started moving again.

"Damn, you sure told that guy," Kyle commended. "You can be badass."

Jazz flipped her hair for effect and rolled back her shoulders. "I did tell you, didn't I?"

"That you did."

"Now, come on. Our exit's just up ahead, let's take it before another creep drives by that we can only hope takes 'no' for an answer."

"Good call."

Their conversation faded as the two of them started to run ahead to the downtown Amity Park exit where they could finally get off the free way and onto the much safer surface roads.

Once they were back in town, they struck up a conversation about academic decathlon, and the computer camp Kyle went to, and the colleges Jazz had been touring lately as she chose where to apply.

Kyle's apartment was much closer than Jazz's place, but since it was already well after dark, he offered to walk her all the way home if she wanted. She thanked him, but politely declined, assuring him she could handle herself for a few blocks, and it wasn't a dangerous neighborhood. All the same, he asked her to shoot him a text when she got home so he wouldn't have to worry about her, and that, she did agree to.

He was just logging into his favorite online game, about ten minutes later, when the text came in from her, letting Kyle know she hadn't died on the way home.

It turned out Wes wasn't as stupid as Kyle thought he was, because he brought Kyle's car back in the same condition he'd taken it, and he'd even filled the tank. After examining it for scratches and dents, Kyle decided that his brother could live another day.

He asked Wes why he had taken it in the first place, of course. But Wes had replied with a long, convoluted story about the Fenton kid losing his powers and they needed it to chase after some evil, uber powerful ghost. After a couple of minutes, Kyle just cut him off and said he didn't need an elaborate lie and if Wes wanted it kept private so bad, he could just say so.

That, of course, made Wes irrationally angry, which was hilarious, and made the whole ordeal worth it in Kyle's opinion. He got to see his brother seethe, and he had a nice conversation with Jazz Fenton, so all in all, he couldn't even find it in him to be that mad about his car being stolen.

[rayrayor]

So, I totally missed the weekly wrap-up last week, but I finally hit the idea, late. Thank you @lingy910y for the #134 prompt and for your prompt date switch with me. and thank you. @galladrabbles, thanks for keeping us with great reads!

The prompt:  Pyrrhic victory (/ˈpɪrɪk/ ⓘ PIRR-ik) is a victory that inflicts such a devastating toll on the victor that it is tantamount to defeat.[1] Such a victory negates any true sense of achievement or damages long-term progress.

Galladrabble 134

Ian's word of the day calendar had pyrrhic featured today. Mickey stands watching all the activity swirling around him. 50 years old and most certainly not fucked for life. Ian, by his side, chatting with Liam. 34 years, the first decade so many battles in the war to be together, fight for each other. " Papa" And the light of their life is running for a hug, hair messy, cap, and new diploma in hand. Valedictorian. Just like Liam had been. Their battle was worth it. Tonight, he would look up the opposite of pyrrhic. Because it all was worth it.

[thechanelmuse]

Lloyd L. Gaines 🖤: In 1938, he filed a lawsuit against the University of Missouri Law. He won his case. 

Three months later (around March 19, 1939), he disappeared never to be found.

Lloyd Lionel Gaines was born in Water Valley, Mississippi in 1911. After the death of his father, he moved with his mom and siblings to in St. Louis, Missouri. He was a valedictorian at Vashon High School. After winning a $250 ($4,000 in current dollars) scholarship in an essay contest, Gaines went to college and graduated with honors and a bachelor's degree in history from Lincoln University, a historically black college in Jefferson City, Missouri. It was the state's segregated undergraduate institution for Black Americans.

Despite an outstanding scholastic record, Gaines was denied admission based solely on the grounds that Missouri’s Constitution called for “separate education of the races.” Because Missouri had no public law school that admitted Black applications, state law required the state to pay Gaines’ tuition at public universities in Iowa, Kansas or Nebraska. 

Gaines sued the University of Missouri seeking an order granting him admission to its Law School. In 1938, he won his case before the US Supreme Court in State of Missouri ex rel Gaines v. Canada. Although the Court did not order that he be admitted to the Law School, it did hold that Missouri’s lack of an in-state law school for Black students violated the U.S. Constitution’s guarantee of equal protection of the laws. Missouri complied with the order by setting aside limited funds for the creation of a Black law school at Lincoln University.

Missouri’s minimal efforts to comply with the Supreme Court’s opinion in the courts was challenged. As the legal battle unfolded, Gaines disappeared under mysterious but unmistakably suspicious circumstances. You know why...

In March 1939, at age 28 and only three months after his Supreme Court victory, Gaines went missing while living in Chicago. Lloyd Gaines was never seen or heard from again. His case was dropped. Not only did Gaines never have the chance to attend the University of Missouri, but neither did any other Black student until 1950. The Law School at the University of Missouri-Columbia did not admit its first Black students until the late 1960s.

Source

[thelensofyashunews]

ian DROPS ANTICIPATED NEW MIXTAPE GOODBYE HORSES OUT NOW

Continuing a rapid ascent fueled by uncontainable fan enthusiasm and impressive numbers, rising rapper ian unveils his anxiously awaited new project, Goodbye Horses, out now.

Ian turned up the heat all around on his follow-up to his 2024 viral breakout Valedictorian. The 13-track Goodbye Horsesflaunts his clever bars and undeniably catchy hooks front-and-center. “Sh*t Sad” revolves around a triumphant loop boosted by horns and strings and a signature Chief Keef cameo. As momentum picks up, ian proclaims, “Baby I swear we’ll be just fine, but Goddamn you really know how to kill my vibe. I’m not playing!”

Elsewhere, Reign pulls up on “Big Wigs,” while Eyesis ignites the finale and title track “Goodbye Horses.” During the latter, ian wrestles with the complexities of newfound stardom. Coated in a warbling melody, his emotionally charged croon transfixes as he relays a revelation, “I think I found the way that I’m gonna take until it’s over.” He revs up “Showboat” with a chantable chorus, “I don’t know what you do, but you do it real good.” Simultaneously, he leans into a fast-paced flow on “My Call,” slowing it back down slightly for the refrain, “I love when you do that little thing you be doing.” Then, there’s “Out West.” Mesmerizing keys underline his deft lyricism as he boasts, “The paper ain’t never gone change, everybody around me proud of me.”

He paved the way for Goodbye Horses with “End Up Gone.” The latter has already stacked up over 5 million streams and counting in addition to receiving acclaim. HotNewHipHop likened it to “a victory lap,” and Ratings Game Music professed “‘End Up Gone’ might be ian’s most authentic release of the year." Ian broke the news of the mixtape during PlagueBoyMax’s Twitch streamearlier this month. Shortly after, he posted the artwork to his Instagram generating buzz across social media. Plus, he hosted a special Atlanta listening party, welcoming surprise special guest Lil Yachty!

Ian is set to ride to the forefront of the game with Goodbye Horses.

[fembutchboygirl]

i think we are mutuals could i maybe get playlisted? cool if it's only for mutuals you talk to regularly but i ♡♡♡♡♡ new music

Not only are we mutuals, but even if you weren't I'd still make you a playlist because there's few things I love more than sharing music with others!! (So if any of you are holding back bc you're not mutuals, don't!!)

THANK YOU for being the first asker with a V in their name because Valedictorian is such a good song and i need to recommend it every time I get a chance. Also Victorious by Wolfmother but that one's not on on the playlist. Just a little extra rec. On the house.

[einsteinsugly]

Fictober 9. That 70s Show. October 1994. In Grandma's Kitchen.

Smoke is billowing throughout the Forman kitchen, and Betsy Kelso takes a blackened pie out of the oven. In absolute shame.

Betsy sighs, slightly panicking, poking at the rigid monstrosity with a fork. "Okay, Ani. What am I gonna do?"

But Becca Hyde, observing at the kitchen table, interrupts Betsy's questionable pondering, before Kitty can even open her mouth. "Turn off the oven, you moron."

"You're talking to the class of 97's future Valedictorian."

Becca rolls her eyes, unrelenting. "Turn off the oven, you moron."

"Uh, fine!" Betsy angrily scoffs, "At this point, I'm gonna be ordering take-out for the rest of my life..."

Suddenly, the smoke alarm starts to blare, and Betsy stands there, utterly clueless. While Kitty tries to dissipate the smoke with a broom.

"That would be a good idea." Betsy is trying to figure out which knob to turn, and Kitty quickly does the honors. "This is your second pie, Bets."

"But I can't fail!" Betsy cries, "I should just buy a pie or something..."

Red storms in, angry and annoyed. The smoke alarm has interrupted his Packers' game, and he's only heard the last little tidbit.

"I wouldn't do that, if I were you," Red grumbles, helping to dissipate the smoke until the alarm falls silent, "Aunt Jackie tried that crap, and she failed."

"I can bake the pie for you, but you gotta pay up." Becca has luckily inherited her father's cooking ability, and not her mother's lack thereof, and she proudly smirks because of that unwavering fact. And, she can use said ability to her advantage. "Or else."

Kitty uncomfortably laughs. "I don't know if that's the right thing to do, Beck..."

But Betsy is quick to cut her off. "I'll give you a twenty."

Becca proudly nods, with a victorious chuckle. "That's cool."

[monterraverde]

Her relationship with Geeta has always been a mess.

Geeta was five years her senior, but was the valedictorian of her graduating class at Naranja. A girl raised in high society and specifically trained to inherit the Top Champion position and all of the political responsibility that came with it.

She had everything going for her, and Rika hated her for it.

When Rika finally got her champion title, Paldea was in the midst of passing the torch- The Top champion that came before Geeta was her final opponent, an enigmatic figure of a man that Rika came to respect greatly. When Hassel eventually came to recruit her for the Elite position, she was convinced she’d be working under THAT champion, not Geeta, so when she eventually took the elite assessment, it came almost with a sense of betrayal.

This wasn’t what she was promised.

So when the time came to battle, she went at it with a fury she didn’t know she could muster. She was 19, and angry at the world, and Geeta was everything that was wrong with it. Prim, proper, pampered- She didn’t have a single clue about the hell she’d crawled through to get there.

This wasn’t about the Elite position anymore- This was about proving a point.

They battled so hard, Rika physically cracked the floor open of the arena, but she came out triumphant with a skin of her teeth victory.

Geeta immediately started dragging her around everywhere to prep her for this new job. No more was she allowed to wear her usual baggy hoodies, she’d need at least business casual clothes, and Geeta went through several tailors until she finally found one that made clothes that Rika actually liked- One Rika would return to many times for the rest of her time in Paldea.

And then it came down to Rikas style of battle- It was aggressive and left no room for people to even have room to breathe. She got in trouble so many times for using pokemon far too strong for the average trainer to defeat- Garchomp and Tyranitar namely- so Geeta approved a team of five for her to use in sanctioned matches, Pokemon she had travelled and bonded with, sure, but they weren’t the strongest members of her team.

The constant dumbing down and shackling had Rika all but fuming, and one such argument wound up with Rika tackling Geeta to the floor out of rage, only to somehow find herself pinned under the Top Champion and held down until she finally calmed.

It took Hassel scolding her and telling her about Geetas aspirations for her to even hear the woman out. Geeta spoke of an ideal Paldea, one free of the Prov Gov’s iron fist, and a place where people like her weren’t left to fend for themselves on the streets- A paldea that shone brightly like a beacon in the night that would lead trainers into a better future for all.

It was hard to argue with her- Well spoken as she was, and Rika found herself moved by the top champions words. It was enough for her to really think about where she was and what would be best for her and the little family she had left… Eventually she acquiesced, Geeta talked a big game, but she made one stipulation- that Geeta actually get on the ground and see where the problems were- Problems that only the people on the lowest end of the social ladder could see.

An accord was struck, and thus started ten years of Rika working to see Geetas dream realized, and eventually giving blood sweat and tears in the name of that dream. Her loyalty to Geeta eventually found her falling in love with the woman, and while they shared mutual feelings, she was quickly becoming disillusioned with Paldeas operations…

She put it out of her mind for a long while, but eventually the Area Zero situation became far too much for the League or even the Prov gov to deal with- So she took matters into her own hands, and wound up burning most of her bridges with it.

Area Zero was no longer a threat, at least.

[darrys-laundry]

fic rec friday fun!

rules: share the links to your wonderful words with the most hits/most kudos/most comments/most bookmarks/most words/least words

tagged by @honestlydarkprincess 🫶

most hits/most kudos

in case of emergency

The 118 discuss their "In Case of Emergency" contacts.

most comments

We’ll Carry It Off

Kevin Price is NOT valedictorian and he's well attuned to this fact. Studies show that participation in extracurricular activities are proven to raise grades and per Mrs. Brown's advice, Kevin auditions for the school musical. He has no faith in his talents, he can't dance and he doesn't know anyone. Should Kevin live to see himself cast in the musical, he'll need Thespian President, Connor McKinley, to show him the ropes. In a showy attempt to raise his grades, Kevin will learn more about himself and become more aware of the people around him as he is forced to learn who they are as people and not just as faces he passes in the hall or sits next to in class.

most bookmarks

break on through (to the other side)

Does it bother you that, like, we might win a championship right after you graduated?

Brenda’s words echo through Steve’s mind as Vecna’s clock chimes a fourth and final time.

Had it bothered Steve? Yeah, of course.

Maybe if they’d won a couple of games every now and then his parents would have come to see him play; but it was probably his fault they’d never won anyway, he couldn’t keep his feet planted, always in reverse, you know? like he’d told Nancy, ever since he was a baby scuttling backwards down the stairs.

In all of his years, Steve had never known a buzzer beater victory, and it seemed his luck was not about to change now.

most words

What Did You Think When You Made Me This Way?

By his father’s standards, Kevin was supposed to complete a successful two-year mission, and then follow in the footsteps of all the Price men before him at Brigham Young University, but his therapist attests it’d been a bit of an unmeetable quota all along and that Kevin can’t measure himself against what his brother’s have accomplished, because they’re not the same person.

least words

come on honey (tell me so)

Jamie follows up on the eyeful he’d given Roy prior to their 4AM training.

no pressure tagging @wherepoetswentodie, @roy-kents, @holdmygum, @morganofthefairies, @bigfootsmom, and @rainbowtartt 🫶