#who was writing for this show and how long have they been on AO3 xP!!?!!!

[chocolate-cream-soldier]

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[versatilewindow]

My Mortal Enemy

Find it on Ao3

Summary: I saw a tumblr post that said, reader insert fic but make it about being enemies instead of lovers, and I immediately came up with this. Read either as an OC or yourself as you go about your day, and finish by curb stomping Sasuke. First chapter is an OC, inspired by the writing style in My Immortal. The second chapter is the same plot but reader insert, inspired by cringey wattpad writing.

A/N: Repost bc i hated the format it was in before. In case it is not clear, this is satire, anyway hope it makes you giggle, also ao3 has a reader version in chapter 2, its the same thing but y/n instead of the oc

I, Blake Dracon’ia Lunacy Crow Wentz, woke up in my cozy bed in Konoha and turned on my favorite Waterparks song (A/N: I know they don't exist in the Naruto world but suc my pp i can do what i want XP) No one else I know listens to them, but I guess I'm quirky like that. I got out of bed and looked in the mirror, I have long midnight black hair (which matches my soul xD) and have two different colored orbs, one pink, and one that's almost darker than my hair. I then turned my attention downward to my big ol’ honkin tiddies. They have been huge since I started puberty when I was 11, now I am 18 and they are impossibly large. Continuing downward I saw my tiny, 24 inch waist; that in combination with my humongo tiddies and juicy earthquake creating ass made me the object of every boy’s attention. I mean my cheeks are just constantly clapping as I walked it made being a sneaky ninja so hard DX, like if I were to run or twerk it would cause a 8.0 earthquake, and if I were sprinting or throwing it back for a real one, it also creates a sonic boom, shattering every eardrum in a 100 yard radius. All of these problems are manageable tho bc I have the tightest, moistest, Gorilla Grip™ coochie, like it sounds like a fresh pot of Kraft mac n cheese.

Then I got changed into my favorite clothes. I put on a v-neck fishnet bodysuit and black Sleeping with Sirens crop top, which was just the right length to cover my nips, and show off the tattoo on my stomach that said “For my vampire boyfriend’s eyes only” with two arrows pointing downwards and upwards. I also put on cute pink leather assless chaps with a lot of chains on them, with a checkered studded belt to hold them up. Then I pulled on my ginormous 12 inch stilettos that have skulls and glitter all over them (If you think the way she dresses is “slutty” then get da hell out of here!!!!) Then I put my super long black hair into high pigtails which made me super Kawaii!!! And then I did my make up. Yes I put on makeup, but not for anyone, I do it for me, so that the outside matches the inside. I used stickers and blush to make it look like there were heart freckles on my face and I put my eyeliner on so that it looked super sharp and pointy. I also made my lipstick look like I had just eaten a cherry popsicle, so it was super concentrated in the center and faded out. To finish off the look, I put on my ninja forehead guard, but tied it around my super tiny waist and I was ready to go out and get groceries.

I had finished getting my groceries, which were mainly dumplings, takis, and Monster energy drink, when I saw HIM, my mortal enemy, Sasuke Uchiha. Ever since the academy, we hated each other, it was a constant battle to see who was more angst, emo, punk, and goth than the other. He doesn't even care about his friends!!! So not punk or Cash Money! I mean I also had a tragic backstory. My dad was an Uchiha, who had an affair with a Hyuga, meaning I was born with both types of dojutsu, then when I was two, they were both killed by Madara Uchiha, who then watched over me until the actual Sage of Six Paths beat him up and he gave me the Rinnegan, and made me capable of using all the powers of the tailed beasts (even the ten-tails!!;!!,.!!) And no, despite all of this I am NOT op. Point blank periodt!!!!

Anyway Sasuke and I caught eyes because the clap of my ass cheeks alerted him from across the street, and he ran towards me activating his sharingan/rinnegan. But he was too late, had already used my Super Speed Shadow Asscheeks Jutsu, causing him to go deaf, and I activated my Byakugan, Sharingan, and Rinnegan Combo eyes. (I can use them all individually but this is my mortal enemy, so I can't take any chances >:3c) Because of my dojutsu. Sasuke just stood there, and I used my taijustu skills to beat the shit out of him.

By now we had attracted a huge crowd, Naruto was there, looking mad because I was beating up his boyfriend (If you dont think theyre boyfriends then you're homophobic!!/11) Sakura and Ino were also there clinging to each other for safety because while they used to like like Sasuke, they realized over the 4th Shinobi war that they were actually in love with each other and got married as soon as the battle was over!! (If you dont think Sakura and Ino would be girlfriends if Kishimoto actually knew how to write a well rounded female character then you’re still homophobic!!!) Then from the crowd I heard Shikamaru and Kakashi and Kurenai cheering me on!!!

“Yes girl curb stomp the shit out of him!!!”

“Show him who’s boss!!!”

“Teach him about what a Poser he is!!! He doesn’t even know who Brendon Urie is !!!!!”

That line got me really mad, How can you even pretend to be emo or punk without knowing who Brendon Urie is????????!!!!! >:^(((. So I concentrated all my chakra into my fist, (like Tsunade but came up with the move first!!!!) and Pummeled Sasuke in the solar plexus, and he flew off into the air, up in the sky to space, a la Team Rocket (If u dont kno who they are then ur the biggest chump ever!!!!!) And then Sasuke came back down and said that I was the most goth, emo, punk person in the whole Land of Fire, and apologized for not knowing who Brendon Urie is. I wish he stayed up in space, but that would’ve made Naruto sad, and he’s my 6th cousin 9th removed, and keeping my friends and family happy is part of my Ninja Way! Believe it!

[artificialqueens]

Échappé / Chapter 4 (Branjie) - DenDenMonMon

A/N: Thank you so much for all the love and support you have been giving to this story. I don’t wanna say anything else in fear of spoiling the chapter. This is one of svpermodel’s favorite chapters so that should say something xP since she’s the one that asked me to write the story lol Hope you enjoy reading it as much as I enjoyed writing it.

- Monkey.

AO3 Link

Chapter 4

We need to talk about this.

Vanessa read the message on her lockscreen and rolled her eyes. It was no different from the ever flowing string of texts sitting unread on her phone. She pressed the side button to turn the screen black, and put the device face down on the table.

She looked at herself in the mirror, half way through her makeup process, and sighed heavily.

Life had never been easy for her, and she had a special talent to make everything a lot more complicated than it should be. She wished to blame it all on destiny, or fate, or whoever was above that liked to mess with her. She couldn’t. She knew that la virgencita had a lot more issues to worry about than a Puertorican stripper trying to make a life for herself in Los Angeles.

It wasn’t that bad, really. She liked her friends, she liked her job, and she liked her tiny apartment. She liked her life. She knew she wasn’t dumb, but she kept making stupid decisions. That was on her.

The phone vibrated again. The sudden flash made her close her eyes, the black pencil left a trail of eyeliner on her temple to the movement.

Shit.

She looked around but couldn’t find her makeup wipes. Everything looked messy, everything was messy. The table in front of her was as cluttered as her own head. It felt like a never ending jungle of ideas up in there, tangled together and clouding any rational thinking. If her thought process had ever been rational, that was. Sure, her mind usually ran fast, leaving her a very small chance to catch up. She was aware of that. Her mouth was even faster, not waiting for her brain to approve the thought before it was already being pronounced. It got her into trouble constantly, but she liked it like that. It was fun, it was entertaining.

If she had to choose, she would pick her chaotic life a million times over a boring one. That didn’t mean that she didn’t need a break from time to time. She could use one right that instant.

A Kleenex, being waved in front of her face, landed her back into reality.

With her eyes, she followed the arm holding the tissue to find Yvie smiling nervously at her.

She twisted her lips, her own smile even less convincing than her friend’s. “Thanks.”

Yvie’s eyes rolled in annoyance.

Vanessa managed to catch it, that was enough to make her snap. “What you rolling your eyes for?”

Her voice was harsh, she could hear it herself, but there was no stopping now. She had all this frustration inside of her, and there was no available outlet. Better yet, she didn’t have the guts to go and tell how she felt to the right person. If she wanted to pick up a fight, just for the sake of getting the anger out, she knew exactly whose buttons to push.

“You can’t stay mad at me forever,” Yvie retorted.

“Just watch me, bitch.”

“Seriously?” Yvie spoke to her through the mirror. “You are still gonna be pressed about this shit? I already apologized, told you how things happened, and you said you forgave me. What’s all this attitude for?”

Vanessa’s hand went up in the air, waving away Yvie’s comment. “I ain’t giving you no attitude, so don’t get me started on that.”

The huff that left Yvie’s nose was filled with frustration. “I’m gonna be forward about how I feel, because you know that’s the only way I know how to go about things.”

“Fierce. Work,” Vanessa let out sarcastically, her eyes on the vanity in front of her, looking for something, she had already forgotten what it was.

“I’m not gonna come here with excuses. We screwed up, but it wasn’t intentional. We didn’t know. I’m gonna be real with you: not knowing the rules doesn’t condone us breaking them, but you are being too hard on us.”

For a moment, they almost forgot there was someone else in the room, until Trixie spoke. “Okay, so my dance knowledge may extend to, like, Dance Moms and a bunch of Abby Lee memes but, what exactly happened?” She walked to stand between them, makeup brush in hand, successfully creating a physical barrier in the battlefield that had been preparing. “Isn’t there like an age restriction for these things? Why were you able to dance but not them?”

Both Vanessa and Yvie looked at each other, silently pondering who should give the explanation, even when Trixie pronounced the question directly to Vanessa.

With a sigh, Vanessa turned around on her seat, facing them for the first time. “Okay, so like, yeah. Not the group challenges. There was no age limita… limi-lim… there was no age limit, okay?” She hated when that happened, when being bilingual became zerolingual and she was unable to speak either language properly. She continued either way, like she always did. “We just had to turn in a list of all the dancers’ names for the Dance Off, so they knew, you know, who was participating and shit. We could only bring those five, and there was no changing them. Any last minute change had to be approved by the judges.”

Trixie nodded her head, finally understanding the disqualification.

Yvie looked at the ground for a minute, before complementing the clarification. “We didn’t know, or I didn’t, I don’t know about Brooke. If she did, I think she was too into the moment to remember.”

“Don’t worry,” Trixie said, her voice softer than usual. “We will get the money somehow. I mean, if this was Brooke’s fault maybe she can put in the money we lost because of her.” She laughed at her own words, oblivious to the fact that Brooke had already offered, many, many times.

Vanessa sat back down, planning to return her attention to the task at hand. “Whatever. I’m not talking to that hoe no more.”

The seat next to her was occupied by Yvie, her long fingers started applying foundation directly from the container. “I know Brooke has been texting you,” she spoke carefully. “You haven’t replied or taken any of her calls. What’s the deal with that?”

“It don’t fucking matter now,” Vanessa tried to close the subject.

Of course, Yvie wouldn’t be her true self if she didn’t push the subject, any subject. “What do you mean it doesn’t matter? Of course it does. She’s been miserable this whole week and you won’t even give her the chance to apologize. You just keep pushing her away.”

Vanessa whipped her head to look at her, her hair flying to rest on her opposite shoulder. “What good is it to ya, bitch?” She was raising her voice again, but Yvie had taunted her. “What do you care so much about this whole mess? This ain’t your motherfucking business, so don’t act like you know what you are talking about.”

“I say the truth.” Yvie matched her tone of voice. “I call bitches out, you know that. So don’t come for me as if this is some new shit. You are always pushing people away. Here you have an amazing person, willing to help you, willing to help the cause, but you have your head way up your ass and can’t see it. It’s fucking selfish.”

“Oh, is that how you really feel? I’m selfish now, okay. What happened to all the wooty-wooty-woot you was crying to me about the other night? About you being my sis and us kicking it and shit?”

She wasn’t going to start a fight again, Yvie took a deep breath and calmed herself down. “That was real, girl. I’m saying you are selfish with yourself. Give yourself a chance to open up. Nobody achieves anything alone, we all need help from time to time, and it’s okay to accept it.”

The room fell quiet, because Yvie was right. Trixie knew it, even Vanessa knew it herself. There was no way she would give her the satisfaction to know that, though. She was ready to fight back, her feisty side was coming up with a million and one responses to her friend’s allegations. Maybe it was anger, maybe it was some actual self restriction, but words wouldn’t come out of her mouth. Her mind was yelling at her, telling her to attack, to go for the jugular, to defend herself, but nothing came out. She simply sat there, eyeshadow pallet up in the air, lips mutely parted in shock.

“Are you ready for a show?”

The sultry voice called everybody’s attention away from the uncomfortable stare battle. They turned around just to see Katya dramatically pressing herself against the doorframe.

The first one to react was Trixie, who screamed in delight and motioned her to come in. Katya did as she was told, moving around as if she had known that dressing room her entire life. She found her rightful place on Trixie’s lap, her legs swinging in between Trixie’s opened ones.

“Ew.” She shuddered dramatically. “What is all this tension? Jesus.” Her hands swatted the air, as if she were trying to keep flies away from her face.

Trixie hid her face in Katya’s neck before pointed at the pair. “They are fighting over Brooke.”

“Brooke?” Katya asked surprised. “Did you finally talk to her?”

“No!” Yvie answered for Vanessa. “That’s what has her so upset, because she’s too stubborn to listen and try to fix things.”

A small fuck you sounded under her breath, but Vanessa didn’t say anything to deny the statement. It wasn’t that she didn’t have much to say. Nobody really knew what had indeed happened, nobody understood her relationship with Brooke. Hell, even she was unsure if there even was one. Brooke was always so poised and distant. She acted so professional that it was hard to understand if she really cared or if the whole situation had been a business venture for her.

It was while trying to unravel that mystery that something Katya said called her attention. “You know, I was probably her first charity case, a long-long time ago.”

Vanessa spun around to see Katya. “What you talking about?”

Katya twisted in Trixie’s lap, unable to separate from her for one second, and faced Vanessa. “Oh, Momma, I was a mess. I had these massive episodes of anxiety. They kept me from… doing anything, really. I couldn’t keep a job, almost dropped out of school. The whole shit show.” There was a nervous smile playing on her lips. “I was really good at hiding how horrible things were, like, mad good. Brooke noticed I was acting differently when she came home during a tour break. She helped me through community college, and gave me a job as soon as I was out. Haven’t left each other’s side since then.”

“You’ve known each other for a long time, then?” Yvie asked, curiosity lacing her voice.

“Oh, we go way back. I hated Canada when my dad was first transferred. Hated it! Brooke lived next door to us in this Godforsaken neighborhood. Brooke told me about this gymnastics class they had at the same community center where she took ballet. We–”

“Community center?” Vanessa interrupted her.

“Yes, bitch!” Katya replied, exasperated. “Why do you think her bony ass is set to save yours? She knows how important they are for the kids. It reminds her of where we grew up. That’s when her dancing career started. It’s a really big deal for her.”

It felt like a bucket of cold water had fallen on top of Vanessa. She had no idea Brooke had gone through any of that.

“Of course you didn’t.” It looked like she said those words out loud, because Katya was responding to her very thoughts. “She doesn’t like to talk about that, about how stinking poor we were. We made it out, that’s all that matters, I guess,” she said with the shrug of one shoulder. “She worked so hard and became this amazing woman who gives back as much as she can. I’m so proud of her.”

The words resounded in Vanessa’s ears. This was a whole new side of Brooke that she didn’t even know existed. It was unimaginable that the picture perfect Brooke she knew had, at some point of her life, had literally nothing. Of course it wasn’t a nice feeling to learn about another person’s pain and suffering, but a new level of humanity had been revealed and Vanessa was struggling to comprehend what it meant.

Thoughts of a young Brooke, having the mere minimum to survive, ran across her head as she finished her makeup. She didn’t know shit about Canada, but she knew hardship, and she knew it well. Vanessa pictured Brooke going to bed without dinner, curling up in a ball, and begging sleep to distract her from the hunger. Because that was what Vanessa had done. The same scene she remembered from her own childhood played in her head, but in Brooke’s there was snow. She did know Canada had snow.

Mental images took her away from the conversation around her, until she was done getting ready. A few minutes before their show started, Silky walked into the room, which forced Katya to say her goodbyes.

“So, will I see you guys at the gala tomorrow?” She asked, swinging in Trixie’s arms, who held her from behind.

The girls agreed in unison, but Vanessa had no idea what they were talking about.

“Wha-what gala?”

“This is our last week here, we always have a big charity event before the closing night,” Katya explained. “I gave Trixie the tickets. You should all come. It’s super fun. There are auctions that go insane. Rich people get so competitive and bid on, like, eccentric trips to Europe and stuff, and all goes to charity. I’m offering a private gymnastic class.”

“I signed up for a night out and dance,” Trixie intervened.

“Yeah, and I’m emptying my savings account ‘cause you ain’t dancing for anybody else, Barbara.” Katya spun in Trixie’s arms and planted a kiss on her cheek.

“Ew! Go away. You are leaving red lipstick on my face!”

Katya lifted an eyebrow but did nothing to move. “I don’t remember you complaining about my lipstick last night.” The tone of her voice left nothing to imagination.

Trixie screamed in surprise. “I don’t remember your lips being on my face, though.”

That was all Silky could take. “Alright, girl, you need to take your nasty ass out of here, right now!”

Between laughs and giggles was that Katya stepped out of the room. Her words still going round and round in Vanessa’s head. All the information she had just acquired made it hard to concentrate. Her set was more or less okay, even if it wasn’t up to her own standards. She did make some money that night, but it wasn’t much.

There was no way she was going to be able to save the center, not in the two weeks they had left before the demolition. As much money as she could put in from her tips, there was simply not enough to spare. So, as she was counting dollar bills in the dressing room, like she did after every show, an idea hit her.

She found Trixie and explained she wanted to sign up for the charity event as well. She could do the dinner and dance thing, just like her.

A quick phone call to Katya arranged everything and they were given all the necessary information.

Vanessa learned that she needed to wear a gown, it was a gala after all. Her picture was going to be taken upon arrival. That picture with her name, along with the cause she was supporting, were going to be displayed during the cocktail hour. Once the auction started, she was going to be pulled up to the front. By then, a list of what the night out would entail should have already been given to her. The bidding would be live, and the highest offer would win.

Katya promised no funny business should be involved, unless both parties agreed to it. But Vanessa was sure that was more of a reminder for Trixie than her.

It sounded simple, really. Yet, when they arrived at the event, Vanessa couldn’t help but feel anxious.

She had heard about the Beverly Hilton before. She had known of fancy events taking place there. She never, not in a million years, imagined she was going to be an actual guest at that venue. There were people tending to her every need, helping her down from the car, taking her coat, walking her inside, and showing her to her table.

For what it was worth, she liked to think that she was a really good actress. She thanked people as if she were used to that type of treatment, and moved around the place with a confidence she didn’t have. She could only hope her acting was believable enough to make her look like she belonged, or at least to make her look less stupid than her friends.

Trixie, Yvie and Silky walked behind her, excitingly whispering and pointing at every single thing that called their attention.

When they reached their table, another wave of insecurity washed over Vanessa. They had been told how to dress, but their most elegant gowns were nothing in comparison to the ladies around them. Vanessa’s group clearly stood out from the crowd of fancy dark-colored dresses, with sparkling embellishments that clearly weren’t rhinestones.

She wore a short red dress that fell over one shoulder, every inch of exposed skin had been covered with glitter. She needed to look expensive, so shining like gold had sounded like a good idea. Yvie wore a green gown, it seemed pretty normal if nobody looked at the train, where a small Hot Wheels car had been attached to it. Trixie was living her Barbie Doll fantasy in a puffy pink dress and a bow that was probably as big as her head. The cherry on top was Silky, who wasn’t really that far off from the dress code, but had her fake church lady voice on as she talked to the other guests.

It became too much. Vanessa excused herself and made her way to the bathroom. Even that space was fancy as shit. At the entrance, there was a small corridor with mirrors all around her. Vanessa analyzed herself from every possible angle before stepping inside the restroom. There were two paths after the second door, one led to a room with at least five vanity desks. Each space had a mirror with big fat light bulbs around it. There was a stack of towels on one side of the table, and a blowdryer and a flat iron rested on the other end.

The other hallway led to the stalls, and that was where Vanessa walked to. She opened the water tap, just to give herself something to do. She read the labels on the many bottles in front of her as she wetted her hands. The cold water worked to calm her nerves down. She didn’t know what she was doing there. Whoever thought it was a good idea to show up at that place, with it’s fancy people, overly nice waiters, and expensive towels, had been crazy. Shaking her head she reminded herself the true reason why she was there. She needed the money.

A door behind her opened. That was when she saw her. Brooke walked out of the stall. She had her blonde hair pulled back as always, as the ballerina that she was. A blue velvet dress hugged every single curve of one side of her body, while the other half gave a nude illusion, an intricate flower design covered her most intimate areas. She looked good. Really good.

“Hi,” she spoke to Vanessa through the mirror. “Katya told me you were coming.”

It took a moment for Vanessa to reply, her eyes lingering in the placement of certain petals. “Yeah, well, she told us some big pockets were gonna be around. We had to try our luck, you know?”

Brooke smiled, but it didn’t reach her eyes. “Hey, umm, I’m sorry. I…” she trailed off, her voice getting caught in her throat.

Before she could say anything, Vanessa shook her hand in the air. “No. Don’t worry about it. I get it. I’m the one that’s sorry.”

“No, I’m sorry,” she insisted.

Vanessa chuckled. “Is this gonna be one of those ‘no, you hang up’ kinda bullshit?”

This time the smile lit up Brooke’s face completely. “Not necessarily, but I do need you to know that I can’t apologize enough. I called everyone I knew. I tried to fix this. I tried, Vanessa, I really did.”

Her voice told her that she was being honest. Vanessa believed her. She was just about to tell her that when Trixie came running through the maze of hallways.

“There you are, bitch! C’mon. Katya needs us.”

She looked at Brooke for a moment, not really knowing what to say but not wanting the conversation to end like that. “Listen, I…”

“You have to go,” Brooke finished for her. “It’s fine. We can talk later.”

By the time she was done pronouncing the sentence, Trixie was already dragging Vanessa by the wrist.

They reached the main stage just in time to see how a ceramic plate was sold for eight thousand dollars.

“Now for the next item, we have a pleasant night out, including dinner and dancing with Miss Vanessa Mateo.” She stepped into the center of the stage as the auctioneer read her qualities as if she were a car on sale. “Originally from Puerto Rico, Miss Mateo is a twenty-four year old dance teacher, who’s donation will go to…”

Vanessa tuned out after that. She played the part, smiling, walking around, and fluttering her eyelashes like it was her trademark move. But she had never in her life felt more exposed; and she danced naked around a pole for a living. It made her feel cheap but, when she saw the first paddle being lifted, she realized there was nothing cheap about the situation.

“A thousand,” yelled a man on the front table.

Another paddle was lifted. “Two thousand.”

“I have three thousand on the phone,” said an operator to their side.

Vanessa stood still as the bids went up one thousand at the time. She could only see numbers on white pieces of cardboard as a man offered more than the previous one. The auctioneer spoke fast, and the paddles move faster. Before she knew it, someone was offering ten thousand dollars to take her out for dinner.

Then a voice came from the far end of the room. “Twenty thousand dollars,” the woman said, her tone firm and inflexible.

“Twenty thousand going once, going twice…” There was an unnecessary pause, nobody was going to top that bidding. “Sold to buyer number five.”

Vanessa looked around, spotting the number on the paddle first, and Brooke’s smile second.

[keelywolfe]

FIC: Biting Off More Than You Can Chew; part 3

Summary: Rus has his answers, there’s just one more person he needs to talk to and he’s a hell of an asshole. This surprises no one.

Tags: heatfic, dubious consent, NSFW, frenemies to lovers, mates, first time, more if I think of them

PLEASE READ THE TAGS: This is a Heat story, so there are going to be issues of consent. I don’t do partner rape, nope, but hey, I want to be straight with y’all. I like heatfics personally, but I understand how they can be troubling for some people. So there it is.

There is still no explicit sex in this chapter. There will be eventually. There is a little violence.

Also on AO3

Read Chapter 1

Read Chapter 2

~~*~~

Underfell was fucking dangerous but Rus knew his way to Red’s sentry station in Snowdin. It was a mirror-version of his own world, a left turn instead of a right, and while miscalculating a shortcut could have consequences, he wasn’t worried about that right now. At least ending up halfway in a tree would solve a few problems.

That said, he didn’t want to step out into the middle of some kind of territorial dispute or road rage, or whatever the fuck it was that made the denizens of Underfell so damn dust-thirsty. His shortcut left him in a nearby copse of trees, looking out from around one of them warily.

There was nothing in sight but more snow and trees, and the sentry station itself. In other words safe-ish, a relative term in Underfell.

The sentry station was even more haphazard than the one in Underswap, made from moldering boards, snow dripping from every eve. And Red was slouched in a rickety chair, eyes closed, with his feet propped up and a slender cigar smoldering between his fingers.

Snow crunched beneath his sneakers as Rus walked over, his feet sinking into the drifts until he got to the road. It was almost insulting that Red didn’t even open his eye, only took a slow puff from the cigar. “you look like a fucking target in that sweatshirt, honey bun. shoulda taken a cue from paps and doctored it up with a little sharpie ‘cause you may as well write yourself up an advertisement for free xp.”

Rus ignored that, the implied insult. He wasn’t a fighter and he knew it, had never wanted to be a guard or a warrior, had never needed to be. He was who he was, and that wasn’t something this asshole could simply abuse.

“you son of a bitch,” Rus ground out. His magic was running hot, untouched by the chilly air, his vision shading into searing orange.

“what?” Red finally looked at him, his sockets slitting open to reveal lazy crimson eye lights. He couldn’t quite manage innocence, Rus had never expected that of him, but he’d let himself be fooled by appearances once. He’d known who Red was, how the denizens of Underfell were, and yeah, Red resembled his brother, but he wasn’t like Blue he was like…

(me)

…an asshole. He really should have known it was Edge who mirrored Blue, the same as Papyrus. The protector, the guardian with an impeachable code of honor. He was clear of the blinders now and what Rus was getting from Red was that he had fucked both him and his own brother over. Literally.

 “do not try that shit with me,” Rus snarled. It still hurt, to think someone with his brother’s face had used him like this. “you knew! there’s no fucking way you didn’t!”

“figured it out did ya.” Red stuck his cigar between his teeth and gestured imperiously for Rus to lean in. Reluctantly, he did and Red tugged down his collar. He winced as Red prodded the bite mark roughly. "got you good, didn’t he.”

Rus shook him away, standing up straight and demanded, “why me?”

It gained him a lazy shrug, Red taking a long draw off his cigar and his words came with a stream of smoke. “there’s no one else, really. can’t trust anyone in underfell, they’d use it against him before the come was even dry. can’t exactly help him myself, even if i wanted to. heats won't mark too close a relative. they smell like dirty fucking socks or spoiled meat, it’s kinda a turn off.”

He tapped ash into the snow, scattering gray, “sans and papyrus, they seem to be too close, they don't work. something about you and the blueberry, though. whatever jumble your universe has going for it, you're different enough to twig to it. noticed it during my last heat.” Red grinned slowly. “bet you remember it.”

He did, Rus realized. At movie night a few months back, Sans and Papyrus had both been complaining about a rank smell all night and had finally left early. Rus had figured that the damn dog had hidden something that was rotting merrily away somewhere in the house, but he and Blue had never found it, hadn’t even been able to smell it. They’d been puzzled by Sans and Papyrus’s complaint and by the next movie night, it had been gone.

“yeah, you remember,” Red said softly. “that’s when i figured out your ‘verses don’t get ‘em. and that was just the pre-show, you weren’t even catching the sweet side yet, the stink comes early so family has time to clear out. gotta tell ya, this is his first heat, they’re always the worst. he was gonna tough it out, but i’ve seen how that can end.” He shook his head, “i can’t risk it, not my bro. so it had to be you.”

Rus really wished he could shove away that niggling feeling of calculated understanding. What would he have done if it had been his brother, what wouldn’t he do…still. “you could have asked!”

“coulda,” Red agreed amicably, “but i didn’t have many ideas if you said no, and then you would have had advance warning. nah, my way worked fine,” His grin turned sly, his sockets half-closed as he tipped a look at Rus. “you should be thankin’ me. figured you were experienced enough to handle it. i coulda picked your brother.”

Any faint sympathy in his soul went cold and the sharp heat of his anger turned to icy fury, "you fucking—"

He didn’t even think, reaching out with blue magic and flinging Red out of his chair into the snow. For a moment, Red blinked up at the sky, wheezing, before he rolled over onto his hands and knees. Slowly, he climbed to his feet, dusting snow off his jacket. His grin bordered on feral, sharp and glistening. “you get that one for free.”

“don’t you even talk about my brother!” Rus shouted, past caring if anyone heard and came to investigate. He sent a wave of jagged bones at Red, watching furiously as he lazily sidestepped it, and impending danger didn’t register until he saw the flare of crimson in Red’s eye socket.

By then it was too late, snow was cold beneath him and he couldn’t breathe, couldn’t breathe, strangling on blue magic that wasn’t merely pinning him down, it was holding him completely, to the point he couldn’t even suck in air. Panicked, Rus struggled, uselessly, his vision blurring, darkening, until it let up enough for him to gasp, gagging on magic. He was still pinned down, but he could breathe again. Some cold, efficient part of Rus noted that it was a remarkably effective attack; couldn’t summon your own magic if you were focused on suffocating.

That infuriating little bastard strolled over to stand next to Rus, his hands in his pockets. Aside from the sharp glow in his left socket there wasn’t even a hint of strain. His grin was cold, calculating, and Rus swallowed down a touch of real fear.

“said you got one freebie, didn’t I, you don’t get to double dip. i could take you back there right now, you know,” Red said idly, nudging at him with the toe of his shoe. “tie you up pretty as a present. i’m betting my bro doesn’t have a whole lot of ‘no’ left in him.”

The pressure tightened again, until Rus strangled out a cry, then it let up entirely, allowed him to roll gasping to his side. “don’t think i need to though. you and i are a lot alike and—"

“we are nothing alike!” Rus spat, struggling to his feet. His clothes were soaked through from snow that had melted beneath him from the heat of their magic, sagging heavily on his bones and his ribs ached from being compressed.

Red only picked up his cigar, grimacing as it drooped soggily. He tossed it aside, muttered irritably, then snapped at Rus, “yeah, you can spout that party line all you want but we both know better. i know you, a little of me is you, you shit, and i know there’s nothing you wouldn’t do for your bro. and i can’t help but think there’s a few things you might be willing to do for mine.”

“you…you…” The cold was creeping in now, fucking hell, and Rus couldn’t tell if it was the chill or his own fury making him stammer.

“besides, you can quit pretending like you’re some kind of screaming fucking virgin anytime now,” Red grinned, but his eye lights were pitiless. He slouched back into his chair, propping his boots back up. “i hear things, even in your ‘verse. you’ve flapped your knees for half of underswap, what’s one more?”

It made him wince and Rus glared at Red furiously, “that was my choice, it doesn’t mean you can set me up as a whore for your brother! if you have a problem with me fucking around, you can stuff it up your sanctimonious cockhole, you psychotic piece of shit bastard.”

“’course it was your choice,” Red said agreeably, “and so is this.” He rolled back to his feet, stalking over and poked Rus in the sternum, his sharp fingertip digging through the thick material of his sweatshirt. “you’re right, that what you wanna hear? i set you up and you can go ahead and be pissed at me. you can hate me all you fucking want. i deserve it. the real question is, are you gonna let my bro die because of it?"

Rus looked away.

“you—” he stopped, grinding his teeth. There wasn’t an insult he could think of that would convey the purity of his anger right now. He doubted he needed one, Red knew exactly what he was thinking, all of it was visible in his smirk. He turned on heel and marched away and moments before he shortcutted away, he heard Red call out, his gravelly voice sweetly cheerful.

“have fun, honey!”

He stepped out of the shortcut into the machine room, the worse place to be with the way he felt. He wanted to break something, feel it shatter, he wanted to scream.

“i’m going to kill him,” Rus ground out, knew it for the lie it was before it ever left his mouth. He wasn’t, he couldn’t. Even if he had a chance to beat Red in a fight, he couldn’t hurt anyone who looked so much like his little brother. He laughed, then, sinking down to the floor, muffling it with his hands, and hating the hysterical edge to it, but he couldn’t stop.

“looks like i’m fucked,” he giggled, laughing until he felt tears sliding down his cheek bones. He wiped them away roughly and shook himself.

Enough self-pity bullshit. Red was right about one thing, at least; this wasn’t Edge’s fault, and if Red had bothered to ask, if he’d actually sat down and told Rus what was going on, he probably would’ve said yes, anyway. Oh, he’d have blustered and fussed about it, he knew himself well enough for that. But…yeah. It wasn’t in him to let anyone suffer, not even Edge. Undyne had said he was going to hurt himself or someone else, and Rus was guessing it would be soon.

“it’s your choice,” he muttered to himself, fingering the mark on his collarbone. It itched, dry marrow flaking beneath his fingertips. “your choice, so fucking make it.” He nodded a little and made his way over to the machine.

If they were going to do this, he had a few things to take care of first.

 tbc

Read the Next Chapter

[chaptersonetoinfinity]

I was tagged by @dreamywritingdragon Thank you very much :) 

rules: answer these 85 questions and tag 20 people (LOL as if!)

— what was your last…

1. drink: coffee

2. phone call: I picked up a call from a telemarketer and promptly hung up

3: text message: screaming about a future scene in my fic with a friend

4. song you listened to: Supremacy by Muse

5. time you cried: huh, I don’t remember. I think I shed a tear or two when I was writing a certain scene in Veracity, though!

— have you ever…

6. dated someone twice: lol I’ve never even dated someone ONCE

7. kissed someone and regretted it: not yet

8. been cheated on: ha! yeah, no, that would require a relationship history which I do not have

9. lost someone special: thankfully, no

10. been depressed: probably not in the clinical sense but that was definitely a mood at some point in my life

11. gotten drunk and thrown up: I’ve never gotten drunk

— fave colours

12. purple/violet

13. all shades of blue

14. turquoise/teal

— in the last year have you…

15. made new friends: yes

16. fallen out of love: no

17. laughed until you cried: most likely, but can’t remember

18. found out someone was talking about you: ... no? I think?

19. met someone who changed you: definitely

20. found out who your friends are: I already know

21. kissed someone on your facebook friends list: what friends list? XP

— general

22. how many of your facebook friends do you know irl: all of them

23. do you have any pets: unfortunately no

24. do you want to change your name: not my legal name, but I am looking for a meaningful pseudonym for writing purposes

25. what did you do for your last birthday: bought 12 slices of cake, all different flavors, and arranged them into one circular cake before devouring them all

26. what time did you wake up today: 7:30 am

27. what were you doing at midnight last night: berating myself for not sleeping while continuing to read without a plan to stop

28. what is something you can’t wait for: finding a job and graduating

30. what are you listening to right now: the awkward silence as all of us waited in front of the classroom for the professor to come unlock the door

31. have you ever talked to a person named tom: strangely, no

32. something that’s getting on your nerves: humanity

33. most visited website: Tumblr, AO3, FF.net

34. hair colour: black with streaks of purple and blue and pink and green (unfortunately all fading now, but will get them back at some point)

35. long or short hair: a layered, medium-length sort of haircut that’s growing too quickly

36. do you have a crush on someone: nope, and never have

37. what do you like about yourself: my imagination (hey, something in common, @dreamywritingdragon​!)

38. want any piercings: MAYBE another ear piercing

39. blood type: A, not sure if A+ or A-

40. nicknames: Sas, Sassy, Tsunami, and a couple less dignified ones XP

41. relationship status: in a love/hate relationship with myself

42. sign: capricorn

43. pronouns: she/her

44. fave tv show: Sense8, Miss Fisher’s Murder Mysteries, Dark, The Good Place, documentaries about architecture/design

45. tattoos: none

46. right or left handed: right

47: ever had surgery: to fix a very broken bone

48. piercings: just a set of standard ear piercing

49. sport: does walking count?

50. vacation: preferably everywhere eventually

51. trainers: like, personal trainers? as in for exercising? please

— more general

52. eating: a lot, usually something sweet if not a meal

53. drinking: everything - tea, coffee, hot chocolate, juice...

54. i’m about to watch: POSSIBLY a movie. gonna see if I can get tickets to Isle of Dogs or Love, Simon

55. waiting for: life to catch up to how I imagined it in my head

56. want: more motivation to write

57. get married: what, now? no thanks

58. career: novelist

— which is better

59. hugs or kisses: HUGSSSS

60. lips or eyes: preferably, they’ll have both

61. shorter or taller: taller, but shorter wouldn’t be a throw-off

62. older or younger: could go either way

63. nice arms or stomach: what even is a nice stomach? nice... overall body. I suppose. so, both.

64. hookup or relationships: relationships

65. troublemaker or hesitant: a hesitant troublemaker

— have you ever

66. kissed a stranger: WHAT? ME? pfffftttt (that means no)

67. drank hard liquor: never even drank much SOFT liquor

68. turned someone down: I’m too aro/ace to even notice

69. sex on first date: NEVER

70: broken someone’s heart: ha! no

71. had your heart broken: nay

72. been arrested: nein

73. cried when someone died: in a movie/TV show/book, yes

74. fallen for a friend: nah

— do you believe in

75. yourself: I hope I do. I usually do

76. miracles: why not

77. love at first sight: in others, but not for me. perhaps an urge to get to know someone platonically though

78. santa claus: not anymore

79. angels: in a metaphorical sense, yes

— misc

80. eye colour: super dark brown

81. best friend’s name: Chris/Christine

82. favourite movie: I can never pick one. perhaps Black Panther.

83. favourite actor: again, can’t pick

84. favourite cartoon: SVTFOE, Steven Universe, and many Disney films

85. favorite teacher’s name: my high school math teacher was pretty cool, and we called him Mr. Patrick

I’ll tag... boy, this is long. I don’t wanna kidnap anyone into it, so consider this an open invitation if you wanna do it :)

[zva-redink]

Learning Curve Ch3/6

Oh man, going from story mode to script writing is driving me absolutely bonkers XP. Hope you enjoy this chapter!

Rating: T

Pairings: Sheith

TW: Angst, Dark, AU, Violence, Murder

Keith is pretty good at learning from his mistakes, and in the first year of his reign as Emperor, he makes his fair share of them, but there are five lessons he learned the hard way that will follow him to his grave– or five times Emperor Keith screwed up, and the one time he kinda didn’t.

(Last Chapter: 4. Shiro Will Always Put You First…Even When He Shouldn’t)

Keith and Shiro’s first hook-up. Keith becomes quite distraught at the idea that Shiro let Keith fuck him when it becomes apparent he might have just been doing it because he thought Keith ordered him too, or that it was his duty…especially when it appears that Keith may have hurt Shiro from the encounter.

3.  Never Ignore A Threat In Your Own Home  

[Ch1] [Ch2]

[On Ao3]

His third major mistake one he thought he’d never make. People who ignored the problems that were happening right in front of their faces in blatant ignorance always pissed him off. He had always been the person to call people out on their bullshit. Yet here he was, willfully ignoring the issues festering right under his nose.

It had been obvious the moment Shiro had seen him with Lotor’s blood on his hands.

It had been obvious leading up to before they had left the Paladins.

It *should* have been even more obvious now, after the…*thing* that had happened in the observation room some odd weeks ago.

Keith had tried to respect his wishes, respect that Shiro didn’t want to become another guinea pig. Kolivan had been diligently working in the background, out of his own respect for Shiro. Using his old Blade resources, reports would appear periodically on Keith’s desk on what they could find of the Druid’s experiments, locations of any Druids still alive (which they were still striking out on–it was as if they had disappeared of the face of the *universe*), hell, even Ulaz’s old records that had been copied into the Blade’s databases had been cracked and left for him to either thumb through or pretend didn’t exist. After what Keith was dubbing as ‘the incident’, even *looking* at Ulaz’s old files made him want to vomit. He had burned it not long after it had been delivered, not wanting to partake in another massive breach of trust.

Really though, he should have paid more attention to the shiver that ran up his spine when Shiro proposed violent and offhandedly cruel battle strategies in the most cold and detached manner. He should have learned by now to listen closer to his instincts.

Kolivan was to his side, going over another successful battle report against Zarkon Loyalists and what had been the start of a rebellion, when they heard the commotion. There was a ridiculous amount of cheering going on, loud enough to be heard through the double insulated metal doors.

Kolivan and Keith shared a look, before they ducked into the hallway, Keith more than thankful he had been able to start wearing lighter armour more and more often now that his authority wasn’t being questioned all the time. Both of them seemed to slip into their old Blade habits, Keith checking the corner while Kolivan kept an eye behind them as they made their way silently down the open hallway to where the noise bounced down the hallway. As they came up to the open archway that led to one of the lower training arenas, a mass cheer spread through the room. Keith was too short to see exactly what was going on, but the moment he saw Kolivan’s expression over the heads of all the bodies packed into the room (was his entire damn *ship* in here?), he searched around until he found a storage locker, ducking his way through the crowd and hauling himself on top, some of the nearest soldiers doing a double take and freezing in a way that would be hilarious if it wasn’t also worrisome. Suspicious.

There wasn’t much in the way that the Galra found entertaining to *this* extent.

Once he was on top, he felt his eyes go wide as he watched Shiro drop a Galra with a spinning back kick. The Galra was picked up by the crowd surrounding the ring, throwing him back into the center, claws swinging wildly from what was no doubt a very rattled brain. Keith winced, memory of being hit with one of those kicks a few months into being a Paladin by *accident* giving him a bad enough concussion to require a healing pod. Shiro dodged each swipe, hands up to protect his face, bending and twisting in a beautiful motion with his crimson cape swirling around him that had Keith’s stomach clenching, bile filling his throat in response to arousal mixed with fear. Keith gave his head a hard shake.

What was *wrong* with him?

He *needed* to stop this…

He launched down from his perch, pushing his way through the larger Galra, heart beating in his throat at the thought of Shiro being surrounded by so many Galra. At the fear of Shiro going down and those packed around him piling on to him, each one wanting Shiro’s spot at the Emperors side. To prove they were stronger than even the Black Paladin. The crowd parted for him at the edge of the ring to Shiro’s back, a growl already working its way up his throat to protect Shiro when he hit what was surely going to be one of the worst panic attacks he’d seen yet…

…and doing nothing as he didn’t see a hint of tension in Shiro’s shoulders.

All his moves *flashy*–he hadn’t been cornered into this fight.

He was showing *off*.

He waited till Shiro knocked his opponent out with a chop and jerk to the back of the neck with his Galra hand, the sickening crunch bring the bile from before back *violently*.

That was senseless.

It was cruel.

“What the *hell* is going on here?!”

Immediately everything stopped, Shiro’s back straightening.

“Sparring.”

Keith blinked at Shiro…not actually sure if he was being serious or if he was doing something stupid like covering up for one of the Galra…but that wouldn’t make sense, he had just *killed* someone in front of Keith…

…for *no* fucking reason.

“This doesn’t look like *sparring*.” Keith said, avoiding looking away from Shiro’s eyes despite how *unnerving* his gaze was.

When had Shiro’s right eye turned gold?

How had he *missed* something like that?

“I haven’t had the honour to spar with my Emperor in quite some time.” Shiro said, Keith just barely avoiding wincing at the reminder that he had been avoiding Shiro everywhere except for in the war room. “I needed more of a challenge.”

Keith physically balked at that, glancing around at the Galra pressed in around him.

“You don’t generally *kill* when you *spar*!”

“He wanted my title. If anyone wants the title of *Champion*, they need to kill me for it.” Shiro stated, like it was the damn *weather*. “It’s only proper, that if he wanted to kill me,” a small smirk spread over Shiro’s face, “then *I* should be allowed to *defend* my title by killing.”

Keith felt his blood trying to drain as several hundred eyes turned to see his response. “If you want title matches it’s going to be by *my* rules.” Keith’s voice dropped to a chill, even as he struggled to keep it from shaking, brain whirring a thousand miles a second. There was no nice way to salvage *this* mess. “Anything more than sparring will be under *my* watch. You want your arena, you can have it, but our numbers are already low enough as it is. Save the *senseless* killing for our enemies. Do I make myself clear?”

There was some shuffling, and Keith could see Kolivan give him a nod from the back of the crowd.

“AM I CLEAR?”

The room snapped to attention, a “Yes, Emperor!” echoing through Keith’s brain.

“Get out. I don’t want to find out about anymore of this *shit* again.”

His deference was given, and the room began to clear out, two galra grabbing the body from the floor for proper disposal. Keith’s hand snapped out to grab Shiro’s arm before he could follow with the crowd, a slight frown on his face. “Not you *Commander*.”

Keith waited until the room cleared, before running his hands through his hair, feet starting to pace as his body screamed to get rid of all the energy, the *emotions* that were starting to boil around.

Shiro remained dutifully at parade rest, even as Keith growled and swore until he had everything bottled back in, until he could *breathe* even remotely better again.

The fist around his heart didn’t let go when he turned back to face Shiro.  

“Shiro…” the sadness welled up, along with memories and feelings and *everything* he had *done* for Shiro to this point. Everything Shiro had done for *him*, his hand reaching up to Shiro’s face without his consent “What…what *happened* to you?”

He didn’t get a response, and he watched Shiro closely for any kind of reaction. Anything other than the twitch into Keith’s palm.

“Shiro…?” he prompted, his breath coming shorter, stinging behind his eyes.

“Shiro is gone,” Was breathed into his palm, and Keith? Keith’s whole world shattered further in a matter of moments. In the span of syllables passing lips that had always tasted like the cherry chapstick because the dessert had made Shiro’s lips crack and he knew Keith’s favorite flavour.

“There’s only the *Champion* now, my lord.”

The last section here is taken directly from @theprojectava’s You Keep What You Kill (2), and I can only hope I did it justice!

[Previous Chapter] [Next Chapter: Coming Soon]

[Burdens] [Routine] [Fade to Black]

[cheetahleopard]

Tagged

 I was tagged by @yes-campaign!! Thank you so much friendo!!

Rules are you answer these and tag 20 people but I’m not going to tag that many people

The Last

1. drink: Caramel Frappiccino  2. phone call: My bro Braidy 3. text message: mah boi Karma 4. song you listened to: I’m playing my ship songs playlist rn  5. time you cried: Last night 6. dated someone twice: No. 7. kissed someone and regretted it: Never kissed anyone. 8. been cheated on: Nope. 9. lost someone special: I guess the mutual separation of me and my old gf  10. been depressed: All the time 11. gotten drunk and thrown up: Nooo

3 favorite colors

12. Seijoh Teal 13. Fukurodani Gold 14. Johzenji Yellow

In the Last year have you

15. made new friends: DISCORD WRITERS CHAT AND BAND CAMP AND I HAD FRESHMAN ORIENTATION YESTERDAY SO HOPEFULLY I’LL MEET SOME NEW PEOPLE 16. fallen out of love: Not romantic love 17. laughed until you cried: Of course. 18. found out someone was talking about you: SO I SWITCHED SCHOOLS FOR HALF A YEAR AND COULDN’T GET MY LOCKER SHELVES OUT AND APPARENTLY AT THAT SCHOOL PEOPLE TALK ABOUT THAT 19. met someone who changed you: Yes, my skype gc. I wouldn’t be here without them. 20. found out who your friends are: I guess? 21. kissed someone on your Facebook list: Don’t use facebook, still haven’t kissed anyone

General

22. how many of your Facebook friends do you know in real life: I don’t use facebook 23. do you have any pets: Kinda a cat at my dad’s gf and I hate my dad and don’t go to his house often. 24. do you want to change your name: Fuck yes. Avien for life 25. what did you do for your last birthday: Nothing special 26. what time did you wake up: Four am 27. what were you doing at midnight last night: On the internet 28. name something you can’t wait for the announcement for: HAIKYUU!! SEASON 4 HAIKYUU!! SUBBED STAGE PLAYS SEIJOH OVA WITH SUBS  29. when was the last time you saw your mom: 5 hours ago 31. what are you listening to right now: My ship playlist 32. have you ever talked to a person named Tom: I think so  33. something that is getting on your nerves: People. Discourse, Bigotted ideals, etc. 34. most visited website: Tumblr and ao3 35. hair color: Blond, pinkish (used to be purple/blue but the kool aid is coming out), green 36. long or short hair: Short rn. To my shoulder on one side, pixie-cut length on the other, undercut 37. do you have a crush on someone: I love my girlfriend as much as my aro ass can!! And also,, Kind of? I want to hold someones hand but I don’t romantically have any inclination towards him? 38. what do you like about yourself: My eyes, freckles/moles, muscle, brain ig This one was hard XP 39. piercings: I wish 40. blood type: IDK I’ve had bloodwork done but not tested =[ 41. nickname: Birb  42. relationship status: In an open relationship with my lovely gf!! 43. zodiac: Aquarius 44. pronouns: They/Zey/He. (I’m toying with the idea that I’m a boy, not nb?)  45. favorite tv show: Haikyuu!! (obviously lol) 46. tattoos: I wish 47. right or left handed: Left handed but I’m training my right hand as well 48. surgery: No. I’m hoping to get Top Surgery in the next 2-4 years though! 50. sport: Volleyball and marching band although I couldn’t do either this year 51. vacation: I don’t like to travel 52. pair of trainers: What? Like sneakers? Any way about it I don’t understand the question (prompt? whatever)

MORE GENERAL

53. eating: I generally,,, don’t? It makes me want to through up most of the time. 54. drinking: Water rn 55. about to: Procrastinate writing more, start my next leg of school 56. waiting for: Inspiration and ideas to write the long ass mhiok thing I been working on 57. want: To write the long ass mhiok fic 58. get married: I’m panpolyalterous so like,,, If I have a partner that really wants to marry me sure 59. career: Gender Therapist is my dream job

WHICH IS BETTER

60. hugs or kisses: If it’s me initiating hugs but I guess kisses anyway? I have no experience but chaste kisses and forehead kisses would be my weakness ig 61. lips or eyes: Eyes  62. shorter or taller: I WANT TO BE TALL 63. older or younger: I don’t understand this one? 64. nice arms or nice stomach: Idk? If this is like... abs v biceps I’d rather have big biceps than abs ig? 65. hook up or relationship: I don’t like sex... Relationship 66. troublemaker or hesitant: A bit of both because I have reached a level of fuck it where it really depends on circumstances

HAVE YOU EVER:

67. kissed a stranger: Nah. 68. drank hard liquor: when I was in like 2nd grade my mom thought it’d be smart to put vodka in a water bottle high in the freezer... I was taller than she thought and I used that particular water bottle a lot so I ended up drinking some. 69. lost glasses/contact lenses: Yes 70. turned someone down: Yes, back when I was romance repulsed 71. sex on the first date: Ew never 72. broken someone’s heart: I’m like 80% certain that I haven’t 73. had your heart broken: I have huge trust issues and I can’t feel romantic attraction. So resounding No.  74. been arrested: Nope 75. cried when someone died: No 76. fallen for a friend: In a non romantic way

DO YOU BELIEVE IN:

77. yourself: Pfffttt nah 78. miracles: Depends 79. love at first sight: I believe that it can happen with very certain circumstances 80. santa clause: Nah  81. kiss on the first date: I mean it depends what kind and how long you knew each other before the date etc. 82. angels: Depends

OTHER:

84. eye colour: Marbled green 85. favorite movies: WE’RE GETTING A HAIKYUU!! MOVIE

If you want to do it say I tagged you!! Also @frenchibi @fragile-euphoria @thewritersquad(any who want to do it)

[fire-fira]

Tag game

I was tagged by @lovelylangst

rules: Write 92 truths about yourself then tag 25 people Long ass post.

LAST… [1] drink: Grapefruit juice [2] phone call: my fiance @radioactive-earthshine [3] text message: either my fiance or one of the other people in my class [4] song you listened to:  Novocaine by Fall Out Boy [5] time you cried: Night before last? I know I was laughing.

HAVE YOU EVER… [6] dated someone twice: Yeah, just my fiance. [7] been cheated on: Nope. [8] kissed someone and regretted it: Nah. [9] lost someone special: If you mean family, then yes. Otherwise no. [10] been depressed: Low level, never chronic, and I’ve been able to work through things on my own or with my fiance’s help. [11] gotten drunk and thrown up: I’ve never even been drunk. I can’t stand the smell of alcohol, to say nothing about the taste.

LIST 3 FAVOURITE COLORS: [12] Greens (usually a forest or jungle green is at the top) [13] Reds (the brighter the red is the more it has to be in combination with other colors) [14] Black, gold, or brown (kind of a toss-up for me)

IN THE LAST YEAR HAVE YOU… [15] made new friends: Absolutely. [16] fallen out of love: No. [17] laughed until you cried: Hell yes. See my earlier point about crying. [18] found out someone was talking about you: Yup. I tend to leave an impression. [19] met someone who changed you: Not within the last year, no. Well no wait, I lied-- I had an awful teacher at this time of year last year who was so terrible that she was the perfect example to me of what not to do as a teacher. [20] found out who your true friends are: Nope. I’m pretty close with all of my friends and I’m the sort of person who doesn’t put up with ‘fair weather friends’. [21] kissed someone on your facebook list: My fiance.

GENERAL… [22] how many of your facebook friends do you know in real life: Uh, most of them? I’m not on facebook all that much anymore, but most of them I’ve at least met face to face. [23] do you have any pets: My adorable ball-of-fluff cat known as Rainy Mazama. [24] do you want to change your name: lol Already did. It was a pain in the ass and I wouldn’t want to do it again. And I still occasionally get mail and things with my birth name. smh [25] what did you do for your last birthday: Went to lunch with my fiance, my mom, my grandma, and my older sister and then proceeded to be ignored by my mom and grandma for the majority of the lunch. It sucked. Red Lobster is garbage, and note just in case anyone is curious: it’s a shitty move to take someone out to lunch for their birthday and then proceed to act like that person isn’t even there. [26] what time did you wake up: 10-something? Daylight savings time, UGH. It would have been 9:00! [27] what were you doing at midnight last night: Just finished watching the first episode of the new season of Samurai Jack, and spent some time on tumblr before crashing. [28] name something you cannot wait for: Season 3 of Young Justice! (I am desperately hoping they bring Eddie in.) [29] when was the last time you saw your mother: x-mas, and she was just as garbage as ever. [30] what is one thing you wish you could change about your life: That my fiance and I weren’t so damned poor and that we had a house of our own built to our specifications. (I miss having easy access to my miniature library.) [31] what are you listening to right now: At the moment just random house noises and the sound of either the washer or the dryer going. [32] have you ever talked to a person named tom: My brother-in-law (my older sister’s husband). He’s one of the best brothers-in-law ever btw. [33] something that is getting on your nerves: People bigoted and/or abusive jackasses. [34] most visited website: Tumblr and Ao3 both. [35] elementary: Was one of the poorest in the district when I went. [36] high school: Was shit when I went there (though some teachers were really good), was also one of the poorest in the district, but now has improved so much that the New York Times apparently raved about it recently. [37] college: Working on my master’s.  [38] hair color: Darkest-brown, almost black, with random silver hairs scattered throughout. (I’ve been getting white/silver hairs since I was 8, and I’ve got this pale patch of hair near my left temple that is going to look really freaking cool whenever it finally goes white or silver.) [39] long or short hair: LONG. (Down past my butt tbh.) [40] do you have a crush on someone: Nope. [41] what do you like about yourself: I like that even with all the crud I’ve been through that I still do my best to do the right thing. I also like the fact that I continuously work to get past any biases I might have. [42] piercings: NOOOOPE. [43]blood type: I don’t even know. I just know that it’s not my mom’s blood-type. [44] nickname: Just my first name, Fira. Though there is my Salish name, in which case it’d be t̓ixʷlm nc̓icn. [45] relationship status: Engaged. [46] zodiac sign: Pisces-Aries cuspal, and for Chinese-- fire tiger. [47] pronouns: jhe/jhur or they/them, either way. [48] fav tv show: I have too many tbh. [49] tattoos: Not opposed to the idea, just haven’t thought of a design that I’d want to live with for the rest of my life. [50] right or left hand: Lefty!

FIRST… [51] surgery: I don’t know. I think there was something to do with my ears when I was a baby? But that might have just been something only my older sister had to deal with. Idk. [52] piercing: Never. [53] best friend: My fiance. [54] sport: Does roughhousing with your older sibling and beating each other senseless with padded fake swords count? [55] vacation: A camping trip when I was about 7 or 8. The instance I’m thinking of I’m pretty sure I’m mixing it together in my head with another time. Maybe one of those times I was 7 and the other time I was 8. Idk. XP [56] pair of trainers: I don’t think I ever had a pair of those shoes.

RIGHT NOW… [57] eating: Nothing (I need to go get something to eat. lol) [58] drinking: Nothing (Same) [59] i’m about to: Eventually get my butt completely out of bed. [60] listening to: An obnoxious room-mate babbling in the hall (and I really wish she’d just shut up). [61] waiting for: My obnoxious room-mate who my fiance and I have dubbed ‘Alfredo-gate’ to shut up. [62] want: To not have to think about homework or the fact of how this quarter has gone down the tubes, for Alfredo-gate to shut her freaking trap, and to have a month or two to just focus on nerdy things (it’d be nice to be able to pause time). [63] get married: To my fiance, absolutely. If it were anyone else, heeeeelllll NO. [64] career: Ideally? Teaching at the college level in gender studies. If I had some classes to focus on nerdy things that’d be cool though.

WHICH IS BETTER… [65] hugs or kisses: Hugs. Kisses are weird to me. [66] lips or eyes: Eyes. Always eyes. [67] shorter or taller: Doesn’t matter. [68] older or younger: Doesn’t matter just so long as the age gap isn’t too huge. [70] nice arms or nice stomach: I don’t care. I prefer the person. [71] sensitive or loud: Sensitive. Loud can have its uses, but there is a point past which it gets to be too much. [72] hook up or relationship: Eeeeeehhhhhh... Let me put it this way--if my fiance hadn’t been as persistent as she has been (not that I mind now), then I wouldn’t be in a relationship. There’s no way in hell I would get into any sort of relationship if the other person wasn’t @radioactive-earthshine. [73] troublemaker or hesitant: A little bit of both. I have my devious streak, but I usually think through the possible consequences before doing something, just to be certain that I think it’s worth it.

HAVE YOU EVER… [74] kissed a stranger? Nope. [75] drank hard liquor? Nooooope. [76] lost glasses/contact lenses? Thankfully no. [77] turned someone down: Yeah. [78] sex on first date? Pfffft. Never even had sex. [79] broken someone’s heart? I think so, but I’m not sure. [80] had your own heart broken? Nope, unless you count some of the crap I realized when I was in my own personal hell (things like my room not actually being mine and just being the place I was ‘allowed’ to occupy, etc). [81] been arrested? Thankfully no. [82] cried when someone died? I tend to go numb first. Tears do eventually kick in, but it’s not my immediate reaction. [83] fallen for a friend? I’m engaged to my fiance... who is my best friend... who I’ve known since high school... and who I love so much that despite being flamingly ACE and ARO (yes in all caps on both of those, I would be amazed if there was anyone more painfully ace and aro than I am), I am going to marry. If that’s not ‘falling for a friend’ then I’m awfully damned close.

DO YOU BELIEVE IN… [84] yourself? Most of the time. [85] miracles? Idk [86] love at first sight? Eeeeehhhhhh.... Debatable. [87] Santa Claus? The actual historical figure, yeah. [88] kiss on the first date? For me, no. For others, depends on the people involved. [89] angels?  Nnnnnnnyyyyyyeeeehhhhnnnnn.... Iiiiiiii dunno. This is one of those things for me of ‘I don’t know if it exists or not but if I saw it then I wouldn’t deny its existence.’

OTHER… [90] current best friend’s name: Angela. [91] eye color: Hazel green. [92] favorite movie: It depends on my mood, but for the moment I’m going to say the ‘80s movie Enemy Mine.

I tag: @radioactive-earthshine, @weirdnonsensefandomstuff, @dizsasqua, @mr-mustache-penis, @coredesignixandnekonee, @puddingmcmuffin, @kitsuberry, @crashtacular, @sounddrive, @hookahpop, @linzerj, @embracesadness, @lifeofblink, @shadowboxmind, and anybody else who cares to do this, just say I tagged you.

[aquaburst3]

Welp. I think I calmed down enough to say my thoughts on the season.

I enjoyed it a lot. First, I want to do bullet points of what I like and didn’t like...

Likes

Galra Keith

Keith’s mom being the badass Galra rebel and a human father

Blade of Marmora

Pidge geeking out over video games

Hunk being an awesome cook and having a huge line of people enjoying his food

That mall cop in episode 7

Haggar’s reveal (didn’t see that one coming, but still cool)

Prince Lotor being named dropped, making him be a huge player in season 3. Can’t wait to see him in the next one, especially with the show runners being fans of him xP

More clues about what happened to Matt and his whereabouts

More focus on Keith’s past

Diving deeper into Keith and Shiro’s bond

Pidge and Lance spending time together in the mall episode

Keith having a team up episode with Hunk

That tutorial video Coran made back in the day (Am I the only one who thought of Steven Universe when I saw that?)

Lance doubting himself, hinting at more development in season 3

More good Galra

That final fight, yo

Hunk’s   “I think you becoming Galra made you a better Keith” line

Return of Shay and the other Balmara

Shiro finally getting a bayard

"He’s like a second dad to me" So Coran and Alfor were gay lovers?  Nice (I kid, but I can dream)

More character development for Keith, Shiro, Pidge, Allura and Coran

How Shiro escaped the Galra

Lance Naruto running and dolphin jumping in the same scene

The mermaids

Lance praising all of his other teammates, being willing to do anything for them

Dislikes

Hunk and Lance not having as much focus and character development in this season. (fingers crossed for more in season 3)

No Lance and Keith team up episode

Where the hell is a reaction scene to Galra Keith thing to his teammates? Really, nothing?

What the hell happened to the cow?

With that out of the way, now my more detailed thoughts.  Over all, I enjoyed this season a lot, and the positives out way the negatives for me.

The season a bit rushed and more story heavy, instead of balancing characters and story more. Certain moments that should’ve developed a whole lot more got glossed over (hi everyone’s reaction to Galra Keith). I feel like certain characters could’ve got more moments to shine and development like Lance. It should’ve been a couple episodes longer, so they flesh out some of these elements more, since the writers tried to cram in a lot of world building and plot into 13 episodes.  

I think the aftermath of the Galra Keith reveal could have been handled better.  I even went back and rewatched the last bit and the first bit of episode 9 a few times because I thought I missed something or I missed a social cue (I have ASD) or something. While I know most of the fandom saw Galra Keith coming from a mile away for several months now, but come on! This is still a huge reveal and a huge news dropped on his teammates…we never see any of their first reactions to it?! It just seems odd and disappointing.

Pidge’s brother and father were kidnapped by them and Shiro was captured and tortured by them for a year, yet we see no reaction from them.

With the Ford Pines reveal in Gravity Falls, which this reminds me a lot of, was handled a lot better. The Author of the Journals theory, from what I heard, was a huge fanon theory that got the canon seal during Not What He Seems (I was only getting into the fandom when it first aired).  They left us on a cliff hanger for months on end – sure (which I am still salty about). But even with that said, there was a whole episode afterwards where Ford and Stan sit the Pines twins down and talk about what just happened. Dipper is angry about Stan hiding things at first, but then calms down right away, knowing that Stan wasn’t kidding about the, “Everything I worked for and everything I care about – it’s all for this family!” line. He even fanboys over Ford a lot, bonding with him afterwards. Mabel calms down about it too, but then seeds of doubt grow in her heart about her and Dipper growing a part (it’s a long story).

I think Voltron needed an episode like that where Keith and Shiro fill everyone in on what happened with everyone’s reaction. Then Shiro accepts him, calming him down; Lance is fine with it; Hunk is hesitant at first, but grows to accept him; Pidge is angered by the whole thing and a bit distant of him for a bit, but then grows to accept him; Allura is salty af about it, even afterwards. But nope, we get nothing....great...

Like I said before, I wish Hunk and Lance got more focus in this season, especially Lance.

However, I have a hunch that might change in season 3 and Lance will get more development  since the show really hints at Lance having self doubt issues about him being a disposable member of the team. If Shiro is out for the count for the next one, that would mean Keith will pilot Black and Allura would fill in for Blue, making Lance fly Red like in Go Lion. That could make those feelings of self doubt and anger bubble up even more since for him it would come off that anyone could have filled in that chair after all and is not as special. While I know the season made it out that Lance is purged of his doubts, I find that highly��unlikely. Trust me. To be a hundred percent honest, one area I can relate to Lance -- among many others -- is the fact  I have self doubt issues. Sure, I panic and do not think straight when I do, unlike Lance, who is a lot more cool headed in those situations, but it is something I struggle with. Not to get super personal, after a certain event in my life, for a long time afterwards I thought I was genuinely stupid and it was pointless to continue writing and drawing since I thought could never compare to my peers. Don’t worry; I am a lot better now than back then, pushing towards my goals more then before.  Not gonna lie, there are moments when I am confident, but those feelings of doubt do came back at times. I think it is the same thing for Lance. Sure, he might have calmed himself down then, but that might not last long and hit him hard in the future.    If my theory about Lotor being Lance’s dark mirror is true, he will have even more moments in the  sun and someone to test him and contrast his personality. I hope to the gods and goddesses so... But hey, I’m optimistic about this since the show staff are talented writers.

With that said, like I said before there are many cool moments in this season and the positives out weigh the negatives outside of what I just stated. My favourite episodes have to be 2, 7 and 8.

Galra Keith is canon now! I  find it cool that it’s implied that his father was the human and his mother was a Galra rebel. Guess those Galra Keith one shots about his mom being a Galra rebel on AO3 were right (um, forget who the author of those were, so if you know, please let me know).

My theory about Keith’s backstory harkening back to Guardians of the Galaxy was also right with it hinting that Keith’s father fell in love with an alien and then got attacked by Zarkon’s forces, killing him. It makes me wonder where his mom is. (Maybe in season 3? ;))

That last fight with Zarkon was intense as hell, but a blast to watch. I still wonder, what the hell happened to Zarkon and Shiro? Personally, I don't think Shiro died and is out of commission...but even that I am wary about. Especially with the show having no problem killing off secondary characters on both sides...

Lotor never showed up in this…I think (I still have hopes he could be that masked dude that Hunk and Keith come across), but he got name dropped and is revealed to be a huge player in season 3 by the show runners. So, is Lotor the villain for the next season? Is Lotor that masked dude that helps out Hunk and Keith in that one episode? (Seriously, who was that?) But hey, at least he’s canon now and will be a main player in season 3. I am super excited about that.  If he’s a villain, I still hope that he is a complex villain like Azula or Yami Bakura and not a piece of cardboard like in Go Lion/the Go Lion dub. And how come I got the feeling the fandom is gonna freak out when Lotor shows up because he is a fan favourite in Go Lion?

Over all, the season is very good, but has a few major flaws. I do have a few gripes with it. To be fair, I think all pieces of media has flaws.

[blastingxff]

Fate that Binds pt. 9

This part: Magical wells and their currency remain a mystery to most. Also, don’t play truth or dare in a graveyard please. (FYI: This fic actually isn’t crack like please proceed with caution)

first part // previous part // next part  Series: Pokemon Characters: Jessie, James, Meowth, Pikachu, Ash, Brock, May, Max, Jessebelle Ships: hints of rocketshipping if you read it that way, mostly just friendshipping though Summary: It had been a throwaway wish, something made out of the frustration of the moment- it wasn’t actually supposed to happen. But the magic of a well haunted by a pokemon’s spirit ended up altering reality. Now, Jessie, James, and Meowth aren’t in Team Rocket. They don’t even know each other. And it’s created far darker a world for the TRio than Ash could have ever imagined, and now he and his friends want nothing more than to change things back to how they were. Genre: Friendship, hurt/comfort, so much angst, all the angst, drama, butchered canon, Words: 2,110 / part 9 out of 16 Trigger Warnings (this part): abuse mention and injuries, swearing Notes: This popped into my head and didn’t get out until I wrote it down. It’s 16 chapters, and entirely written already in about three days. So that will explain a helluvalot. Like the bus-sized plotholes. I just wanted to be mean to my favorite characters, geeze, is that so bad? XP Also can be read on Ao3.

Chapter 9 A Couple Days Before the Wedding 

The next two days continued in much the same manner. Jessie would vanish in the evening, returning the next morning. The twerps, for their part, seemed to be okay with the arrangement- leaving her some breakfast in the morning if they were gone before she returned.

Evenings were what she looked forward to now, seeing him just ended up giving her the biggest smile. She continued to ask the twerps questions about her and James. About their relationship. About what they were like as a team.

“Apparently, according to them, whenever we showed up we said the stupidest thing. A motto sorta? That’s what we called it at least,” She tilted her head one evening. They had made sure to buy extra meat and treats for the meowth who had taken to joining them. Each night he got a little closer, but still kept his distance unless food was introduced. Neither Jessie nor James seemed to mind the hesitancy.

“A motto?” James lifted the beer to his lips. He was relaxed in posture, having detailed his day- how frustrating it was. What Jessebelle forced him into doing, showing Jessie the markings from the whip beneath his clothes. Old and new wounds patterned the skin. Jessie had fought to hide her anger, concerned that James would take it misdirected at him. And then there was the frightened meowth and- well, being a hot-headed person in the company of those who needed no outbursts was taking most of her energy.

James, for his part, seemed to at least appreciate the effort. Meowth was too distracted by the fried food to notice- something Jessie could understand on a personal level.

“Yeah. I’d say like, ‘prepare for trouble’ way dramatically and you’d say, um, ‘make it double’ I think they said. Here, I had them write it down,” she pulled out a scrap of paper, handing it over. James read through it silently, brow raised through most of it. “We went all-out with this thing. No shame.”

“‘To unite all peoples within our nation’? I thought we were a criminal organization? Why are we uniting people?”

“The same reason we’re protecting the world from devastation I guess. Maybe we’re good bad guys.”

“Good bad guys?”

“There’s a market for it, I’m sure. Lovable evil sorta thing.”

James just shrugged, through a breath he spoke, “Sure. Okay. Why not. I’ve stopped trying to make sense of things,” he fixated on the final line- a crease in his forehead forming from surprise, “‘Meowth, that’s right’? Meowth says things? Do pokémon talk in this world?”

“Just the one they said. Well, aside from other poke anomalies, Meowth is really one of a kind,” she glanced over at the pokémon who’s eyes grew with the beginning of a panic. He started to back away, “Sorry, the twerps blew your cover. No pressure though.”

Jessie caught James’ eyes once more. She could tell immediately that they were thinking the same thing. We really were friends. Weren’t we? This sort of… mental connection didn’t just happen, “James. It’s stupid and all but-”

“Ladies first.” He followed her lead, standing up for the momentous occasion.

“Prepare for trouble!” She said as dramatically as possible.

“Make it double!” He continued, following suit.

“To protect the world from devastation!”

“To unite all peoples within our nation!”

“To denounce the evils of truth and love!”

“To extend our reach to the stars above!”

“Jessie!”

“James!”

“Team Rocket, blasts off at the speed of light!”

“Surrender now, or prepare to fight!”

“Meowth, that’s right!”

The two froze with the last sentence, looking down at the Meowth who’s gaze was averted, suddenly incredibly interested in the food before him. Deciding Meowth’s comfort was more important than calling him out on his little show of talent, the two looked at each other.

“That was pretty awesome,” Jessie admitted after a moment, the grin hadn’t left his face either.

 * * *

Two Days Before the Wedding

* * *

On the third day, Jessie sat on the window sill as she had many times before up to that point, “James. I want a change of scenery.”

He was in the middle of changing into the spare clothes he had started hiding under his bed to allow for optimum shenanigans when venturing into the outside world. Their comfort with each other had just grown…exponentially. Maybe she was clinging to a possibility based on a barely believable story, but for the first time in her life she was happy with someone. And that someone didn’t treat her like crap. More importantly, he seemed just as happy with her. The mutuality was enough to give her hope.

“Oh?” He was pulling on his shirt. Jessie had to avert her eyes. The scars on his back made her stomach churn. If she stared for too long, she might do something to that woman who gave them to him.

“Yeah. Wanna play truth or dare in a horribly inappropriate place for a game of truth or dare?”

“Horribly inappropriate place?”

“I’m not a psychopath or anything,” James’ expression told her he didn’t quite believe that. She just smirked in response and rolled her eyes, “but there’s that old graveyard where the well is. The twerps have had no luck with that one or the bigger one and you’re gonna be a married man soon. So we’ve got nothing to lose. Who knows? Maybe we got the charm. Also, truth or dare in a graveyard sounds like a great idea.”

“That doesn’t sound psychopath at all,” James’ voice was dry as he headed to the window, “Well, I don’t exactly have any better ideas. What about our scaredy cat…er… cat?”

She lifted her arm, around it was a plastic bag, “I got food. Some special pokémon treats, courtesy of the twerps. If we get some more meat and stuff, I think we could be going into the pits of Hell itself and Meowth would still follow for a snack,” she paused before adding, “I don’t think we’re going into the pits of Hell.”

“Nah, you’re already here,” he gestured to his prison of a room.

She laughed at his misery, as did he. And the two vanished into the night.

* * *

“Truth,” it came from James. They were already about four rounds into the game, having yet to actually look for the well. They’d get there eventually. Jessie had mostly chosen dares- kissing statues, laying on graves, licking headstones, a variety of largely disrespectful things to do in an old graveyard. James on the other hand, had mostly chosen truths. Answering awkward questions such as penis size, most bizarre sexual fantasy, and other largely disrespectful things to talk about in an old graveyard.

Meowth had mostly decided to watch the humans, judging in his silence as he ate the food provided. Basically all the food provided. Sharing was not his forte, they realized very quickly. It wasn’t an issue though; the two preferring the scrawny little thing get some weight put on.

“Hmm, truth… Fuck, marry, kill- Officer Jenny, Nurse Joy, and um… Your fiancée- no, wait, that’s a bad question-”

“Jenny, Joy, and Jessebelle. Final answer.” He said too quick for her to change the selection. She swore, she could have figured that out.

“Jessie, truth or dare?” He asked as though the answer would be a surprise.

“Dare.”

He mulled over a dare as his eyes went through the graveyard. They had already thoroughly disrespected the place; then he focused on the trees of the woods lining the far edge of the plot of land. They hadn’t even gone close to it, the area giving off a vibe that was far too horror-movie for either of their comforts.

“I dare you to go into the woods over there for ten minutes. I’ll keep time.”

She glanced at the creepy place before turning back to James, “there’s a special place in Hell for you.”

“And you, Miss ‘this is a good idea.’”

She grinned, standing up, heading fearlessly (or at least, visibly fearlessly) into the line of trees.

A minute passed. Two minutes. Three. He kept his eye on the time, the watch he had around his wrist illuminated by its own light. Finally, ten minutes were up, “Come on back, Jess!”

But he heard nothing.

“Okay, funny Jessie, come on!”

He shivered as the wind picked up around him, rustling the bushes and the trees. Was that a ghost? Perhaps a little worry was starting to creep up on him, the man shivering as a bird pokémon of some sort took off from the branches of one of the trees. Meowth stopped eating, curling up in his own nervous fear. Did the pokémon sense a ghost pokémon?

He was sure she was fine, of course she was, she was just being a jerk.

“Jessica!” His voice hadn’t been that high since he was twelve.

With trembling legs and shaking hands he crossed the invisible barrier separating the woods from the graveyard. Only a couple of wavering steps brought him deeper into the thicket. He shivered as a wind blew past him. He was on the brink of tears from the fear of the unknown ghost pokémon. Whatever got Jessie was sure to get him next! “Jessie?”

There was a moment of silence before….

“Boo!”

He had been expecting it. He knew she was going to do that. It wasn’t creative. It wasn’t unique. It was just her being her and antagonizing him. He knew this.

And still he jumped.

And still he fell backwards.

And still he hit his head on something hard, “Ow! Ow!”

“Oh shit,” she said through giggles and wheezes, “James, you okay?” she was concerned, yes, but she was also mercilessly laughing at him. She wiped the tears from her eyes before freezing, “oh. Shit.”

James blinked, turning around to see what she was staring at.

It was what he had hit his head on. A small well, light purple and pink. Golden mouth. Carvings on the top.

“Fuck, this is the Contained one, isn’t it?” She reached out, touching the golden bricks, “James, we can make a wish! It didn’t work for the twerps but… maybe we can get it to work. We can go back to the way it was before! You can avoid marrying Jessebelle, we can be friends, we can- do you have a coin?”

She was searching on her person, hearing Meowth rustle through the bushes to watch the humans scramble for something akin to what was on his forehead.

James frowned, “I don’t have a coin, but I have this?” he lifted a golden circle with rippled edges.

“A bottle cap?”

“Limited edition!”

“I dunno, do wishing wells take bottle caps? Especially ones that don’t like to work usually?” James stared at the bottle cap, fighting with himself. Use it? Or? He didn’t really want to get rid of it… but….

“It is a magic well. Maybe something will happen?” He went to the edge of the well, realizing in that moment that the hope for the life Jessie described over the past few nights was well overriding his desire to keep the collector’s item in his hand. Maybe this other life him had the same cap anyway. He had no reason to need two.

Without another thought he focused his energy on the bottle cap, “This is precious to me, Well, don’t be an ass,” he then proceeded with his wish, “I wish for things to go back to how the twerps said it was… please.” And with a flick of his thumb, the cap fell into the depths of the well.

A moment passed. A minute passed. Two minutes passed. The wind picked up again and the rustling of the bushes scared the cat. But other than that, there was no sign of change. There had been no change.

“Well, that sucks. I liked that cap too,” he tried to hide his disappointment behind flippant comments. Guess magic wells didn’t take precious bottle caps.

“Oh, wait!” Jessie’s sudden words pulled his attention out of his own well of disappointment. She was holding a small round coin between her thumb and index finger, “Look!” she smiled sheepishly, “Sorry about your bottle cap. I am touched though,” It was a light mock, but she respected his hobby. Everyone had to have one. She stood by the well’s mouth, “All right, James, ready? Meowth?” her eyes went to her two friends. She took a deep breath, “I wish things were back to the way things were. Before the twerps made their wish.”

And she flipped the coin into the well.