#would respond to that character getting a female love interest by immediately going 'how dare they make him straight'

[surrexi]

trying to find father brown peeps on tumblr and i am seeing people complaining about sullivan being "made hetero" in series ten and my siblings in christ y'all need to rewatch episode five you can't tell me sullivan's reactions to flambeau and mrs devine weren't pure disaster bisexual panic!

also remember fam you can still write fanfic where he's bisexual or gay or ace or anything no matter what they do in canon (i have only watched the first six eps so idk what happens in the last four, but even if he and isobel have a full-on romance that doesn't even actually mean he couldn't be *canonically* bisexual, let alone affect one's ability to headcanon him that way). in my heart of hearts, lady felicia ran away with flambeau at the end of series nine and canon can never take that away from me, lmao. i have no intention of letting anything in the canon dissuade me from the position that inspector sullivan is 110% a disaster bi.

[sokkastyles]

I was talking about this to my cousin, and I feel like there's this misconception in fandom (especially for this who don't ship) that zuko and katara yell at each other a lot even as friends. Post TSR, I can't think of a single moment where either of them have lost their temper at the other?

Yeah, honestly, when people say that all they would do is yell at each other I just have to laugh because that’s literally the opposite of what we see of them on screen.

I mean, we’ve seen them argue, but never without any reason, and they actually manage to work it out in a healthy way and their relationship becomes stronger as a result. And that’s actually a sign of a healthy couple. If you’re afraid to disagree with your significant other or you can’t resolve fights in a healthy way then that isn’t a good thing. Obviously you don’t want to argue all the time, but no relationship is going to be always without conflict. The key is in whether you’re able to resolve it, and I’d argue that Zuko and Katara actually provide one of the best examples of that.

And the anti discourse around this annoys me in particular for two reasons. One, people insist that a strong female character has to be tempered, and because Katara is a character who does get angry and lose her temper and feels things very strongly, people feel like she needs a man to hold her back. Which she does not.

As for Zuko, because he’s an abuse victim people act like he’s too damaged to have a healthy relationship and he would just not be able to control himself emotionally, which is also false because he had like, a whole arc of learning to control his temper and changing himself and getting rid of toxic behaviors. Like, that happened in the show.

The one scene I can think of after “The Southern Raiders” where Zuko loses his temper at Katara is in “The Ember Island Players.”

This kinda turned into a meta about that episode so whoops.

Zuko complains about his portrayal in the play and Katara teases him, and he shouts at her but it’s without any of the volatile nature of some of the ways he took his anger out on others before.

He doesn’t seem like he’s really angry at her, and look at her face. Look at how much fun she’s having! Katara, the girl who worried about being seen as too serious. Look at how natural she is with him. It comes across more as good-natured ribbing (dare I say...flirting?) on both their ends, even though both of them are upset about their portrayals. Katara isn’t fazed by his dramatic reaction and he’s immediately forced to eat his words. Which I think is an important aspect of Zuko’s arc of learning to control his temper and realizing that he doesn’t need to take everything personally. He’s forced to live with his own embarrassment, which fits with the theme of learning humility. We’ve seen him do the same thing several times after joining the gaang, where he initially gets angry but then makes a conscious effort not to overreact. Which isn’t always easy, but he’s trying.

And part of it is also that he feels safe with her, despite his long face. He knows that she’s not really being mean. Katara can be mean even to people she loves, but she’s transparent with her emotions. 

Contrast that with the way Zuko was with Mai, who he could never figure out. Mai always encouraged Zuko not to show his emotions and he predictably exploded because he was feeling things and he didn’t know what she was feeling or what she wanted from him.

This episode is actually another really good example of how well Zuko and Katara do get along and are able to resolve conflict even in a situation where both of them are upset and dealing with their own individual issues. Even though she made fun of him for it before, Katara is empathetic when she realizes what is really behind his anger, which is that he misses Iroh and feels guilty about the way he treated him.

And it shows how well she knows him. She knows that he can sometimes do hurtful things that he regrets later, but she also knows that he loves Iroh. She knows this because this mirrors her relationship with Zuko. I mean, the relationships literally echo each other in this episode. She’s been in Iroh’s position, he hurt her and then sought her forgiveness (and she was also there when he betrayed Iroh. She is in a position both to understand and know that his regret is sincere and to reassure him that he can get Iroh’s forgiveness, as she also forgave him. That’s why she’s the one to comfort him outside Iroh’s tent a few episodes later.

It’s also kinda funny that they are so close in this scene because the scene right before this one is the zutara crystal caves parody. They go from moving away from each other, embarrassed at the idea of being a couple, to very close in a matter of minutes. The lady doth protest too much, methinks.

This is also right after Aang walks out in a huff, because of the whole stage zutara thing. Like? I wasn’t supposed to ship them here?

Aang and Katara argue this entire episode, and when Katara tries to comfort him about his anger at his portrayal in the play, he takes it out on her.

Katara: Relax, Aang. They're not accurate portrayals. It's not like I'm a preachy crybaby who can't resist giving overemotional speeches about hope all the time. [Everyone looks at her.] What?

Aang: [Turns around and sits down. Sarcastically.] Yeah, that's not you at all.

I remember having a really visceral bad reaction to the way Katara is treated in this episode that I couldn’t really articulate, and at the time I didn’t realize how much it had to do with shipping because I had no idea what the fandom was like when I was watching the show. I described it to a friend as Katara being treated like “the girl” of the group. Even though there are two other girls present, Toph is one of the boys, and Suki is in an established relationship with Sokka so she’s not a threat. But Katara is Aang’s love interest, and their relationship status is uncertain, so she’s treated like a source of conflict for Aang. I was able to pick up on this even though I didn’t feel particularly negatively towards the Kataang relationship at the time, but in hindsight this treatment of Katara is so tied with Kataang that it’s hard to avoid negative associations with the ship itself.

Katara spends a lot of time this episode trying to comfort Aang, who spends most of the episode angry at her for things she didn’t do and can’t help. She also has to deal with seeing a version of herself onscreen that is racist and misogynistic, but who is there to comfort her? Aang, Sokka, and Zuko all get upset about their portrayals, and are allowed to vent and be comforted, but Katara is punished for it and then told that she is like that, and mocked. She has to comfort Zuko, too, but at least she gets to mock him as well and give him a little bit of what she has to put up with. And he’s not the one who yells at her while she’s trying to comfort him, that would be Aang.

If this episode was supposed to be anti zutara and pro kataang, it certainly did a poor job indeed. Even in this scene where they all look at her and fall silent when she says she’s not a sappy crybaby, and it’s supposed to be a joke because “haha, women are irrational, amirite?,” and then Aang responds sarcastically, the blocking clearly places Aang and Katara in opposition to each other, with Aang facing away from her and Zuko between them and the closest person in the group to Katara. The intent was obviously to make the audience worry for Aang that Katara won’t reciprocate, but it actually makes Katara and Zuko look like the more appealing relationship if you are looking at it from Katara’s perspective.

And then Katara and Zuko spend the rest of the finale getting closer while Katara and Aang argue and then wordlessly play kissy face in the last two seconds of the show.

[wanderinginksplot]

Warriors in Red Armor

Next | Masterlist

Chapter One

Hound I

"So, are we going to 79's tonight?" Hound asked. He had meant to be subtle about it, but the question burst out of him the moment his well-worn boots crossed the threshold of the small break space allotted to members of the Coruscant Guard.

As break spaces went, the one designated for the Coruscant Guard's clone troopers was an embarrassment. Some determined being had managed to cram a table and a handful of chairs inside, but it was a tight fit. If more than a few fully armored troopers went inside at the same time, none of them would get back out without removing some armor to clear the traffic jam. The lights flickered, the faucet leaked, the floor was always sticky, and the stuffy air held a hint of the chemicals that had been stored there years ago. Since then, the previous break space had been renovated into an office for one of the few nat-born commanding officers and this one had been created for the clone troopers.

Still, the smell of caf was stronger than the smell of chemicals most days and the light from a nearby advertisement screen lit the room so brightly that the flickering lights didn't give any of the troopers a migraine anymore. Hound always was a man who liked to see the glass as half-full. Maybe even a little more than half, if that glass was sitting under the dripping faucet.

Thire snorted at Hound's question, leaning back in his chair until gravity threatened to topple him. "Well, boys? Hound wants to know if we're going to 79's this lovely Friday evening. What do we think?"

Thorn glanced around the room, looking unamused by his brother's antics. "We think I'm the only other one here, di'kut."

"Exactly!" Thire said in triumph, obviously determined to ignore his fellow commander. "It's the weekend! Why wouldn't we go to 79's?"

"Because you've finally realized that it's a glorified zoo?" Thorn snapped, tone venomous. "79's is where civvies go to stare at clone troopers so they can feel like they're being daring. In reality, they're being irritating."

Having spoken his piece, Thorn tossed back the last of his cup of caf, always consumed as dark as his mood. Hound shuddered at the thought. Corrie Guard caf was brewed at the approximate concentration of speeder fuel and could eat through duracrete. Only a trooper who hated himself would drink it black.

Thorn always drank it black.

"So you don't want to go?" Hound asked again, sounding heartbroken.

"No, I'll go," Thorn told him. "Zoo or not, 79's still has the cheapest booze on Coruscant that doesn't use poison as a mixer."

"Well, that's the most excited I've heard Thorn get about anything for a week, at least," Thire smirked. "Commander Fox, you want in on this?"

The Head Commander of the Coruscant Guard, having just stepped into the break room to fill his mug with caf, shook his head. "No, I'm on duty tonight. The Clone Rights group has been cleared to march and the Chancellor wants an extra Guard presence. Stone will be stuck here as well, monitoring any new arrivals."

"Ugh," Hound said, summarizing everyone else's point of view. "Well, we'll be thinking of you both, Commander."

Fox lowered the datapad in his hand to shoot a look in Hound's direction. "Sergeant, don't you have that ARF PR stunt tomorrow at 0800?"

Hound shrugged. "Yeah, but I can do both."

"Make sure you don't miss it," Fox ordered sternly. "The last thing I need is to have to report to the Chancellor that you missed a chance to give the GAR a boost in civil opinion."

Hound saluted and Fox turned his attention to the other break room occupants. "Thorn, if you let your stubble get any longer, it'll be considered a beard and subject to facial hair regulations. Thire, sit on the chair like a normal being, would you?"

Thorn nodded and Thire grinned as he let the chair's legs slam onto the floor. Fox rolled his eyes at their antics, refilled his cup of caf, and left the break area. Hound idly wondered how many of the gray hairs appearing at the Head Commander's temples were due to the commanding officer team. Still, the Chancellor had let Fox choose his own team of COs, so there was no one to blame but himself.

"Meet at 2100?" Thire asked. "That's prime time for 79's and there'll be plenty of talent. I'll go ahead and apologize, vode. When you look this good, you automatically get your pick of the females."

Thire brushed a hand back across his hair - meticulously trimmed to maintain the subtle horizontal lines shaved into the otherwise regulation cut - and grinned at the other two. Hound and Thire rolled their eyes, but agreed anyway.

---

Kai I

"Hey, do you guys want to go to 79's tonight?" Kai asked, perched on the desk she was supposed to be sitting behind. She was always restless and neither of the other women blamed her for the odd choice of seat - even though it made inter-desk communication a bit of a pain.

Arkularia - who, for the sake of Kai's sanity, allowed the others to call her 'Ark' - was the first to respond. "79's? The clone bar?"

"Do you want to drink, dance, or find a one-night stand?" Ransom asked from behind her expansive tech setup. "Because there are better places for any of those. Closer, too."

"No, I want to go to 79's," Kai said, kicking up her chin. "And as for what I want… I want all of them. All three options, please and thank you."

"Did you just try to order a night out? Like from a menu?" Ransom asked. From the tone of her voice, Kai had managed to earn a rare smile from her boss. Of course, that was only a guess since Ransom didn't emerge from her den so Kai could verify the expression.

"No… but can you imagine how much easier that would be?" Kai asked in her own defense.

"It would take some of the fun out of it, I think," Ark said slowly.

Kai chucked a wad of flimsi at her friend and co-worker's head, cheering to herself as it connected and bounced off of Ark's white-blonde hair. "I know that, Ark! C'mon guys, do you want to come to 79's with me or not?"

"I'm out," Ransom said immediately, shutting down the projector option on her desk. She was still illuminated by the ambient light from the schematics on her datapad. The cybernetic implants in Ransom's arm gleamed in the blue glow as she dragged a hand over her shaved head. "I have to work late if we have any hope of finishing our next job on time."

"Ark?" Kai asked, not too proud to sound like she was begging.

Ark sighed, pale eyes hopeless in the face of Kai's wheedling. "Fine, I'll go along."

"Yes!"

"Ransom, are you sure you can't come, too?" Ark asked, her voice a bit desperate.

"I really do have to stay and work on this," Ransom apologized, gesturing at her assortment of datapads. "My condolences."

"We're going to a club, not facing a firing squad!" Kai admonished. "Besides, I just want to find someone fun."

"Like that last guy?" Ark asked, squinting a bit as she applied her prodigious memory to her own question. "What was his name?"

"Not sure," Kai admitted. "But he was so much fun! Great tattoos."

"So you are looking for a hookup! I knew it," Ransom crowed.

Ark frowned. "Why a clone trooper? They're never on-planet for long before they have to leave."

"Exactly," Kai said with a wink. "Love 'em and leave 'em."

"Didn't the last one stick around for a while? I thought I remembered seeing him more than a few times…" Ark pondered.

"Hardcase! His name was Hardcase," Ransom remembered. "He came by every day of his leave."

"Strange name," Ark commented.

"Strange guy," Ransom said with a shrug.

"But he was hot," Kai countered, folding a piece of flimsi to look like a tooka. At least it did in her imagination. "And so much fun. I need another someone like him."

"What happened to him?" Ark asked curiously.

Kai would have blushed if she had any shame - too bad for Coruscant that she didn't. Instead, she pouted. "He moved on with a Zeltron who works at GAR headquarters. That's the best place to meet troopers, but they don't give access to civilians unless they have official business."

"Hardcase didn't seem like the type to ghost you out of nowhere," Ransom mused.

"I… may have freaked out about him asking me to be his girlfriend," Kai admitted. "I don't want anything serious, you know? Besides, I'm the one who introduced him to the new girl. She's a sweetheart. He adores her and she's the same about him. Can't be too upset with that."

Ark and Ransom exchanged loaded glances, but Kai had no interest in a therapy session. "Right! So, Ransom, you're still out?"

"I have no interest in coming along and I have work to do here."

"Well, that was almost nice," Kai congratulated. "Ark, it's you and me. When should we go?"

Ark shrugged. "Why don't we just stop there on the way home from work?"

"Are you kidding?" Kai asked, aghast at the idea. "We aren't exactly wearing Senatorial dress, but we're still too professional for a club! No, we need to go home, change, and meet there. How long do you need?"

"I don't know… half an hour?"

"How long do you need to find an outfit that makes sense in a club setting?" Kai rephrased her question.

"Two hours," Ark corrected herself, sounding sheepish.

"That's more like it," Kai said, satisfied. Her look turned wicked as she said, "Now, let's talk about makeup…"

"Are you sure you don't need any help here, Ransom?" Ark asked their boss, her eyes widening with hidden significance.

"No, it's too late!" Kai denied. "Meet me at my apartment and I'll help you. Let's say eight."

Ark glanced back at Ransom, who gave a sympathetic shrug. Ark sighed. "Fine, eight."

---

A/N - Hello, and welcome to yet another Clone Wars-based story! I can't leave these poor guys alone. They deserve so much more than they got! So, you may have noticed that some of the characters are a bit different from the way they are normally portrayed in fan fiction. The first fic I read with the Coruscant Guard had Thire as a happy joking guy and Thorn as a serious doom-and-gloom trooper. I'm coming to realize that is not typical for fanon interpretations, but those characterizations are embedded in my mind. I hope you didn't find this too jarring!

I'm experimenting with a new Game of Thrones-style POV tracking format. Hopefully that will keep things from getting too confusing as we bounce back and forth across eight different POVs! I apologize for the short length of this chapter, but it's just a simple introduction of (most of) the characters.

[korgidorgi]

Lena Luthor x AdoptedTeen! Reader

Word count: 2357

Warnings: Swearing, insecurities, mentions of past trauma, creepy dad, fluff?

Summary: Reader (written without pronouns but with the intention of being female) is totally into electronics (which i know absolutely nothing about) and struggles with insecurities and opening up fully. A science fair comes up for her electronics class so she totally dominates it. However her insecurities play in, and a call from her abusive dad who has no custody over her anymore sends them over the edge. Her adoptive mother, Lena, is there with her every step of the way.

“Hey, how is your project coming along?” Lena pops her head in the doorway, wanting to see your progress on your electronics project.

The tunes from your favorite band’s latest album reach her ears, and keep you concentrated on your work. You sit on the floor, bits and pieces of various circuits, metal, wires and other parts of your project are strewn all over the floor. Your project sits in front of you as you find the right parts to build it. You don’t even glance up at your adopted mother as you turn the music down a bit to answer her.

“It's coming along fine, still gotta work on some of the circuits and fine-tune the motor movements.” You answer, attaching some more wires into the body of the project. “A couple of the motors aren’t working properly.”

“You’re doing a nice job there, looks like it's coming along great.” She comments, smiling at your passion for your electronics class. “Well, if you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask for help. I will always help you, whatever you need.”

She leaves your room, leaving you by yourself again to work on your project to the sound of music. The more you work on this one motor, the more frustrated you become. You know you can ask Lena for help, but the fear keeps you from doing so. You continue to power through your frustration, determined to get through this project, like all your projects, by yourself, independently.

“Stupid piece of shit.” You curse at your project.

Not too long later, you hear Lena call you out for dinner, so you surface almost immediately. She sits with you on the sofa and the two of you watch a show while you eat. You watch the show intently, commentating on how the characters are dumb and trying to guess what happens next, only for it to happen seconds after you say so. Lena joins in on the commentary, making you laugh at some of her lighthearted insults to the characters.

You and Lena have your good moments, but you’re still getting used to being under her care and guidance. You’re just counting the months and days until you get put back in the system. Thankfully this is only your second time out of a crowded home, with a family, but it still hurt the first time you were sent back. Although this time feels different. You feel safer here, more comfortable and confident. Lena has been there to help you adjust, learning all she can about parenting to help you. She was there for you when you first broke down at her place. She was there for you when you found out your dad was out of jail. You’re not nearly as closed off as you once were back when she first brought you home a little over a year ago. 

Home. Now that's a word. Will this be your final home? It’s starting to feel like that. Maybe if you just hold onto that hope.

You spot Lena’s car in the pickup/dropoff lane at your school, so you make your way over and hop in the passenger side, tossing your bag in the back.

“What’d you do today, Darling?” Lena asks as she pulls out of the lane. “Anything fun or interesting coming up?”

“Actually, my Electronics class is doing a sort of science fair like the art kids do. We’re supposed to create an original design for the project.” You rant on excitedly. “Basically they gave us free reign to do whatever we wanted, whether it was practical, or for fun, or something.”

Lena chuckles at your enthusiasm as she turns down the street, joining the traffic to make her way back home. “Do you have an idea of what you want to make?”

“Well, I’ve always wanted to make an Iron Man suit. Or just the helmet for a starter. I think it would be really fun!” You respond, thinking up ways on how you could make such a thing.

“I think that would be totally cool, Y/N.” She responds. “How would you go about making something like that? Wouldn’t a full suit take a long time to make? When is this science fair?”

“Well, I would start with the helmet. I don’t think I’d actually have enough time for a full suit, but I would totally make it for fun.” You answer. Lena knows your obsession with the Marvel Cinematic Universe, so she will always encourage you to do what you love, create what you love. “The fair isn't for another month and a half, but I’ve seen videos of people creating cool props with electronics and stuff, so for a helmet they use a whole bunch of materials like cardboard, or plastic, or foamboard or something like that.” You continue to ramble.

“I have access to a 3d printer.” She announces. “However, it’s for work.”

Her response dims your hopeful mood, causing you to let out a small pout. Guess you’ll just have to go with some other material; cardboard, foamboard, some other flat medium.

“I can make an exception though, for you.” She glances at you to watch your reaction, smiling when she sees your face light up. “I can help you design the pieces-”

“It's okay, I can design them myself.” You quickly say, once again finding yourself pushing her away.

“Alright, just let me know if you need help for anything.” She simply replies, not daring to push your limits.

As the date of the Fair nears, you scramble around to make adjustments and updates to your design. You continuously test the motors and placement of the pieces of the helmet and adjust them as so. You test out the LEDs in the eyes, the sound system, and voice control system. You’ve put so much hard work into the project, researching new systems like voice activation and using prior classroom knowledge to go above and beyond expectations. In fact, you’ve gone so far and beyond, you think you’ve gone too far.

As the date comes up just around the corner, you begin to doubt your project. You become self conscious of your project. What if the kids make fun of your obsession? What if they hate you for making such a thing? What if it turns into a complete disaster?

“Hey, darling, are you ready to set up and present your project?” Lena calls from the living room. The fair starts at 7pm, and you’re already having second thoughts about it.

When you don’t answer or come out of your room, Lena quietly approaches your bedroom and softly knocks on the door.

“Honey, you ready?” She gently pushes the door open to find you sitting on your bed, staring at your finished project worriedly. “Everything alright?” She asks, cautiously stepping over to you.

“What if everything goes wrong?” You begin, trying to hold back your emotions. “What if the kids make fun of me? They already think I’m weird. I did too much for the project, even the teachers are going to be mad at me for doing too much.”

“Oh, sweetie.” Lena sits next to you on your bed. “I think everyone will love it. This is one of the coolest things I’ve ever seen you make. And you did it all on your own! I couldn’t be more proud of you.” She gently brings you into a hug, whispering reassurances to you to calm you down and restore the confidence you had when you first talked to her about your project.

You finally calm down enough and the two of you leave to attend the Science Fair. The car ride was a little tense at first, until Lena asks if she can see the functions of the helmet you’ve created. You demonstrate the different features of it, slowly becoming more excited about the fact that you had built this thing by yourself.

Once you reach the school, you make your way inside to the gymnasium, where the fair is held. You receive a name tag to be displayed in front of your project. He and Lena have a short greeting before she helps you find a spot for your project among the many tables set up around the room. Kids and their parents with projects fill the entire room. Teachers wander the exhibits, helping people set up and answer questions about the night and meeting parents. You find an empty table in which to set your project and the label your electronics teacher has provided you with. You set down your covered up project, still a little insecure about your project and the people in the room.

You suddenly feel your phone buzz in your pocket, so you pull it out and answer it, ready to hang up on one of those scam callers or apologize to a “wrong number” person.

“Hey, sweetheart. It's been a while.” Your dad’s voice sounds from the other side of the call.

His voice makes you tense up as he continues. “I heard you’ve got a science fair thing going on tonight? Good luck. Daddy misses you.”

“D-dad?” You quietly stutter into the phone, unsure of what to respond with.

“Yeah, sweetie, it's me.” He chuckles from the other side. “You wouldn’t mind if I swung by to take a look at your project, would you?”

You don’t like the tone of his voice. A gentle hand on your shoulder makes you snap your attention to a concerned Lena. She tilts her head, wondering what's going on. You shake her off and excuse yourself and step out of the gym’s doors onto the school’s blacktop right outside.

“Honey, I know what school you go to.” He says, his words sending chills down your spine.

“N-no, you don’t- you don’t need to come here. I-” You stutter into the phone, losing more and more control of your emotions.

“Sweetie, I want you back.” He continues. “I want you back in my life.”

“Daddy?” A little girl's voice sounds from the other side of the line.

“Not now honey.” You hear him pull away from the phone to shoo the little girl away. “Please, babygirl, come back to me.”

“No. I-I’ve already moved on.” You try to stand up to him. “All you’ve ever done was bully me and make me feel like shit.”

“Hey! Watch your language.” He snaps suddenly before instantly changing his persona. “Come on, baby, why won't you let your dear old dad come visit you?”

“Be- because I don’t want anything to do with you anymore!” You raise your voice. “Don’t call me ever again, or-or try to see me. Cause it’s not gonna happen. I don't ever want to see you again, okay?”

“You can’t get rid of me, I’m your father!” He threatens, making you shake even more. “I will get you back one day!”

“Bye dad.” You hang up, cutting him off, and immediately block his number.

You’re so shaken up, you can’t bring yourself to go back inside. You just need to breathe. You lean against the brick wall of the school, trying to calm yourself down as you pocket your phone. You fidget with your hands as you continue to shake, not noticing Lena’s worried presence. She gives you space to calm down, keeping an eye on you from a distance. You glance around the space outside, trying to distract yourself from the previous interaction, spotting Lena. You finally calm down enough and slide down the wall, clutching your knees in your arms and placing your head on top. Lena gives you another moment before she walks over and sits next to you to give you company. You lean onto her shoulder, to which she wraps her arm around your shoulders in comfort.

“He-he called me.” You whisper, shaking against her. “He knows what school I go to, he knows i'm at a science fair. I told him off, but, Mom, I’m scared.” 

“Hey, it’s going to be alright. I’m proud of you for sticking up to him like that. Take a deep breath. In, and out.” She instructs. “I will never, ever, let him come near you. He will never hurt you again, you understand me?”

You nod against her, trying to take deep breaths to calm yourself down.

“Good. You know we’re friends with Alex, and Kara, and the rest of the Superfriends, and they would never let anything happen to you either.” She reassures you, holding you safely against her.

She holds you for another little while, allowing you to calm down before turning you to her. She wipes your stray tears and pushes some of your hair out of your face.

“Hey, you’re okay. You’re safe.” She reassures. “Why don’t we go inside and show off that awesome helmet of yours?”

She smiles softly at you, allowing you some time to get enough confidence to go back inside to show the teachers what you did for your project.

Despite your insecurities, the rest of the night goes smoothly. Your teacher was very impressed with your project. Parents and other kids were fascinated with the voice control you installed, and how JARVIS actually responds using certain responses to certain commands. Kids wanted to try on the helmet, so you let some of them try it out themselves. It wasn’t long until the night had to wrap up and come to an end. The teachers thanked the students that participated in the fair before calling it a night. The drive home with Lena was a comfortable silence. Lena had her hand resting atop yours the whole time, rubbing the top of yours with her thumb. She pulls up into her parking spot, but leaves the car running for another moment longer.

She finally decides to break the silence. “So, I’m a mom now, huh?”

Before you can open your mouth to apologize about calling her that earlier, she speaks up again, smiling. “I’m honored you think of me as your mother now.”

The two of you finish the night off with some junk food and a Marvel movie as a family.

[viastro]

sweet chaos | jeon wonwoo

ミ★ synopsis: you and wonwoo are the best assassins in south korea. however, underneath it all, the two of you fell in love. what will you do when you’re hired to kill him?

ミ★ genre: assassin!wonwoo, angst, suspense, slight fluff + humor

ミ★ warnings: mentions of murder, minor character death, suggestive

ミ★ word count: 3,405

ミ★ pairings: wonwoo x female reader

ミ★ notes: hi guys! this one is kinda uhh different ?? from what I usually write cause i like writing crack and fluff lmao. this prompt has been in my head for awhile after watching killing eve so i decided it was TIME. i hope you guys like this one! 

“Did you come to kill me, my love?” Wonwoo asks as you open up the champagne bottle in the kitchen. You don’t let the question phase you, taking a sip of the expensive champagne that you brought over. Instead of answering you respond with,

“Want some?” 

Wonwoo stares at your all black attire, as if you were attending a funeral for a loved one. However, in your line of work, the both of you should not have any loved ones. 

“Yeah, sure.” 

It was in the winter of last year when the two of you met. You were attending a gala for the largest mafia boss in South Korea, Kim Hyunwoo. You weren’t there to make any friends or scope out any opportunities by any means, for you were hired to send a bullet straight through Kim Hyunwoo’s head. There was a large bounty on him from the opposing mafia in Gangnam, and that’s when you were hired. YN YLN, the only female assassin South Korea has come to know. 

“Would you like a crab cake?” You turn to glance at the voice, giving your attention to the waiter who is serving the hors d'oeuvres. Looking down at the plate, you feel yourself immediately turned off by the seafood.

“No thank you.” He bows, before turning away and heading over to the next table. You smoothen out the silk of your white dress, gazing boredly at the groups around you holding discussions. Your interest only peaks once you hear the familiar voice of your target boom through the speakers.

“Thank you all for coming to tonight’s event.” Kim Hyunwoo’s voice booms through the mic, and you raise an eyebrow, smirk forming on your lips. After taking a sip of your white wine, you sneak off towards the restroom to prepare. 

“Going somewhere?” A hand is now wrapped around your wrist, and you turn to glance at who may in fact be your next victim of the night. You give him a fake smile, trying to get out of his grasp, only for him to tighten his hold.

“What is it?” You ask boredly, trying your best not to reach out and snap his neck.

“Had my eyes on you all night, you look absolutely stunning.” He compliments, and you finally recognize the man. Park Joowon, the owner of Seoul’s biggest underground boxing ring. He’s known to have been the best back in the day, later creating his own… fight club if you will.

“Park Joowon, what a pleasure.” He smirks at his name leaving your mouth, and you give him a  grin of your own.

“You wanna get out of here?” He asks you, his grip tightening even more, showing that it’s a command rather than an offer.

“Is that really a question? Considering the grip you have on my wrist.” Joowon chuckles at that, giving you an open mouthed smirk.

“Smart girl, now keep that up when I take you out of here.” He mutters, suddenly trying to yank you away. You’re about to pull out the silencer from the slit of your dress, only for another man to rest his hand on Joowon’s arm. You and Joowon glance at the man who stepped in, and you feel yourself in awe for the first time in a long time. 

His hair is black, parted off to the side, showing off a sliver of his forehead and bold eyebrows. He’s dressed in a white turtleneck with form-fitting black pants, a silver dangle earring decorating his ear. You stare into his eyes, those that have a similarity to a cat, a glint within them. 

“Who are you?” Joowon asks, glaring at the handsome man. 

“You’re needed by Mr.Kim right after his speech, which should be ending soon.” The man answers instead, and Joowon rolls his eyes, letting go of your wrist.

“I’ll find you later.” He hisses to you, turning around and walking towards the mafia boss. Once he’s far enough, the mystery man turns to you, giving you a small smile.

“Kim Hyunwoo doesn’t need to talk to him, right?” He shrugs in response, running a hand through his hair. 

“Perhaps.” 

“You know I had it under control right?” 

“I know, just thought this could leave a good impression on the pretty girl.” He says with a cocky smile, and you find a grin appearing on your lips as well.

“I’m yn.” You tell him, holding out your hand for him to shake. Instead, he grasps it softly, raising it to his lips and pressing a kiss onto the back of your hand.

“I’m Wonwoo.” You slowly retract your hand, the feeling of his lips remaining as you let your arm rest to your side. 

“Well, Wonwoo, if you’d excuse me.” You turn around and walk off in the direction of the restrooms, and Wonwoo stays in his spot, staring at your back until you turn the corner. He lets out a small chuckle at your abrupt exit, feeling himself strangely intrigued by you. 

His mind stays on you for a second longer, before he takes notice of Kim Hyunwoo now moving to a table to initiate conversation. Wonwoo remembers the whole reason he’s even here, and heads over to make his move.

meanwhile…

You’re making your move towards one of the interior balconies the ballroom has, taking out your silencer and hiding behind the curtain. You peek past the wall, seeing Hyunwoo in the perfect spot. You let out a small chuckle, getting ready to aim when he suddenly starts... choking?

He falls to the floor and everyone surrounds the man as he starts spasming. You feel anger fill your chest at the fact that he’s fucking dying before you could’ve made a move on the bastard. Which means you won’t be getting paid, unless your employer looks at it like, “Oh, I guess he died at the event anyways. Let’s just pay her!” 

You know for a fact that this isn’t him having a stroke or a heart attack. No, you know this method. Only another person who would know how to poison another human would be able to do this, so this is when you start looking around the room, trying to find who it could be.

Only to lock eyes with Wonwoo, who’s giving you the biggest smirk you’ve ever seen. You don’t know how he noticed you among the chaos surrounding him on the level below you, but he has a look of challenge in his eye.

“You’re an assassin.” You breathe out, and he turns and walks out of the ballroom. You dash out of the balcony, running towards the entrance to catch up with Wonwoo and give him a piece of your mind, only to stop by the vibration of your phone on your thigh. You huff, reaching into the slit of your dress and taking out your phone, answering it on the third ring.

“What.”

“Meet me at the cafe the street over, sweetheart.” You pause at the similarity of the voice, and you find yourself chuckling once you put two and two together. 

“So you’re a hacker too, handsome?” Wonwoo smiles at the other end, already crossing the street.

“What can I say? I’ve got a lot on my resume.” 

“I’ve got a bone to pick with you love, you took my job for tonight. Now I won’t be getting paid.” You say, heading out of the lobby at a brisk pace to meet up with Wonwoo.

“You were too slow, I had to make a move before you did. Besides, my method was cleaner than what you would’ve done.” Wonwoo responds as he stops in front of the cafe. He turns and faces the direction you should be coming in.

“You saw the gun through my dress when you were checking out my ass?” You tease, crossing the street once the light turns green.

“No, I just know your methods of killing people aren’t the cleanest. Your ass is rather nice though.”

“So you’ve done your research on me?” You ask, rubbing your arms with your free hand to offer some warmth as you had forgotten to grab your coat as you left the building.

“YN YLN, only female assassin in Seoul. Best of the best, never failed a job.” Wonwoo explains, and he looks up to see you heading over in that silk white dress. Everyone around you is doing a double take as you pass them, and he raises an eyebrow at one man whose eyes linger far too low on your body for his liking.

“Sounds like you’ve been interested in me for awhile.”

“Guess you could say that.”

“While I’m flattered, that was a lot of money I lost tonight by you taking over my gig.” You breathe, looking up and seeing Wonwoo waiting outside of the cute cafe.

“We can split it.” Wonwoo suggests, smirking at you once you two lock eyes.

“If we split it, that means we’d have to see each other again.” You finally reach Wonwoo, taking a peek inside the heart themed cafe. You hang up the phone, placing it back through the slit of your dress, causing Wonwoo to laugh at the action.

“Why would seeing each other again be so bad?” He asks, and you give him a look that basically means, you should know exactly why that would be bad.

“Have any other ways you could pay me back?” You ask, rubbing your arms once again from the gush of cold. You look up at the sky and see snowflakes beginning to fall on the cold winter night. 

“Are you suggesting something, yn?” You look back at Wonwoo, letting a smirk come over your mouth.

“Aren’t you?” You challenge, and Wonwoo smiles. He leans in to whisper in your ear, lips brushing against it as he mutters, “I’ll pay you back in more ways than one tonight, pretty.”

“It’s been a month since I last saw you.” Wonwoo says quietly, staring at your delicate features with adoration. You don’t dare to look at his face, knowing you’d get pulled back in easily. 

“You’re still as gorgeous as the time we went to see the cherry blossoms together.” He mumbles, reaching out to rest his hand on your cheek. You shut your eyes, feeling his warm breath hit your face.

“You know that I came here to kill you Wonwoo.” You mutter, opening your eyes and finally looking back at him. You feel your breath get taken away at the close proximity between you two, realizing you’ve missed this warmth he brought in the time you forced yourself to stay away for the sake of your jobs.

You two are the best assassins in South Korea, but underneath that title, you’re both just murderers. You’re undeserving of love from the number of lives you’ve taken without as much of a blink of an eye. In your line of work, there’s no such thing as loving another when all you do is kill, and kill, and kill. 

Love doesn’t exist for the two of you, so that’s why you stayed away from him no matter how much you may have missed him. No matter how badly you wanted to run to his house and envelop yourself within his arms, being engulfed in the scent of something akin to vanilla and lavender, to mask the smell of blood that is so encompassed within your brain. 

You were becoming vulnerable, soft, and your boss sensed it. He knew that if he asked you to kill Wonwoo, you wouldn’t be able to. That’s why he suggested for you to kill Wonwoo, thinking that it would make you focus better, but he did it with the lingering thought that you wouldn’t be able to. And he was right, because you decided to just stay away for a month instead of going and killing him on the spot.

The only reason you came was because someone hired you to kill Wonwoo, writing that he murdered his family in cold blood and he wants to avenge them. The man was offering a large amount of money, so it was a job that couldn't have been turned down. Your boss told you to take the job or else he would, and you knew it was no longer up for debate.

“I know.” Wonwoo whispers, leaning down and resting his forehead on yours, staring hard into your eyes.

“Aren’t you afraid?” You ask quietly, eyes trailing down to his lips when his tongue pokes out to wet them.

“No, because I know you won’t kill me.” He answers, before pulling away and sitting down at his dining table. You feel as if you can finally breathe once again, but there’s a foot just pressing into your chest, knowing that he’s right.

“How can you say that so confidently?” 

“Because yn, I know you. You’re just like me.” You walk over and sit down across from him, feeling the unfamiliar prickling sensation behind your eyes, “How?” 

“Because I could never kill you. Me, the man who’s known to kill any person without an ounce of remorse or second thought, could never kill you. And you, the woman who was trained to be an assassin from the moment she could walk on her own, could never kill me.” You bite your lip at the truth he holds to those words, taking a swig from the champagne bottle instead of saying a proper response.

“Did I hit the nail right on the coffin, yn?” Wonwoo asks after a moment, taking notice of the drop of alcohol on your lips from drinking the champagne right from the bottle.

“I don’t know, did you?” 

“So, yn, are you still going to say that you’re going to kill me, or can we go upstairs and cuddle?” Wonwoo suggests, and you finally feel the first tear fall past your eye at the thought of how desperately you want to do that.

“We can’t, we can’t keep doing this Woo.” You say, looking up at his face. He’s staring at you with an expression you’re unable to decipher. 

“Why not? Because we’re assassins?”

“Yes! We’re not- we can’t have weaknesses Wonwoo.” You hiss, staring directly into his eyes to prove your point. He lets out a sigh, running a hand through his fluffy black hair.

“You keep trying to blame our job, but it sounds like you’re just afraid of love, having a relationship with someone. You know fully well that us being together would be beneficial for not only us, but for our employers.” Wonwoo responds, taking the champagne bottle out of your hand and pouring himself a glass, leaving you flabbergasted. You try to come up with a retort, only to fall empty handed.

“I love you, yn.” You shut your eyes at the words, not wanting to look at the man.

“I love you with everything in me.”

“Stop.”

“I want to be with you.” Wonwoo says as you stand up from the dining table, hands going up to cover your ears in an attempt to no longer have to hear the words that are tearing your resolve bit by bit. 

“Stop it Woo.” Wonwoo stands up after you, walking over to where you are and removing your hands from your ears gently. 

“I love you.” You lose it.

You shove him backwards, taking out your gun from your holster and aiming it directly at his head. He stares at you, expression having not changed a bit from when you first entered his house. He’s still looking at you with pure love and affection in his eyes.

“I’m going to kill you.” You threaten, hand shaking as you hold the gun towards his head. Wonwoo gives you a small smile, tilting his head to the side as he watches you have an internal conflict within your brain for a minute.

“Are you?”

You stare at the man you love, wanting nothing more than to just go back into his arms. Knowing fully well that he’s right, and that the two of you dating would be beneficial to your bosses. However, you’re so, so, afraid.

“I’m scared.” You mutter so quietly, and Wonwoo nods his head. He reaches out and takes the gun out of your shaking hands, turning on the safety and placing it onto the dining table. You fall to your knees, watching your hands quiver as thought, after thought, after thought, runs through your brain.

“What if they send someone else after you because I didn’t complete the job?” You panic, and Wonwoo kneels down so that you’re face to face.

“They won’t.”

“But how do you know that? How can you be so confident that it won’t happen-”

“I trust that I’m efficient enough at my job to not get killed. It’d be embarrassing for the both of us anyways.” Wonwoo jokes, and you wonder how he can be so easygoing in a situation like this.

“Let’s go cuddle, hm?” He asks, resting his hand on your cheek once again. You lean into the touch, and Wonwoo smiles at you. 

“Why did you let me in, Woo? When you knew I was going to kill you?” 

You both stare at each other in silence, serious expressions on both of your faces. You’re conflicted, knowing that killing comes second nature to you, but you can’t bring yourself to kill him. While Wonwoo wants nothing more than to just be with you.

“You wouldn’t answer my calls, my texts, my emails. I even wrote a letter to you as if it was the 18th century. So I did what I had to do, I hacked into your database and basically wrote in the system that you need to kill me.” Wonwoo responds with a smile, and you gape at him.

“It was you?!” You sputter, slapping his hand away from your cheek. He gives you a cheeky grin as your eyes bulge out of their sockets at the realization that he was the one who hired the hit on himself.

“Well yeah? I knew it’d be the only thing to work.”

“Are you stupid?! I could’ve killed you!” You screech, and Wonwoo flinches at your raised voice, one that he hasn’t heard in awhile. 

“You wouldn’t have.”

“But I could’ve! I could’ve went and hit you with a fucking truck, poisoned you, shot a bullet through your head-”

Wonwoo cuts you off from your scolding by leaning in and capturing your lips with his. It’s easy to get distracted by Wonwoo’s lips, as he’s not only a skilled assassin and hacker, but also a fantastic kisser. However, you’re not done yelling at him. You bite his lip, making him pull away and pout at you.

“I’m not done scolding your bitchass!” 

“You were so angry! I wanted to try and calm you down.” 

“Calm me down? You just wanted to makeout you horny bitch.” 

“Okay… so maybe I wanted to kill two birds with one stone.” You roll your eyes, hitting his shoulder. He smiles and presses a quick kiss to your cheek, causing warmth to rush up your face, making you look down at your hands.

“Don’t do that ever again alright? Don’t go and order a hit on yourself in order to get my attention.” Wonwoo shrugs, resting his head on his hand to stare at you adoringly. You scoff at the expression on his face, wondering how the hell he can still look at you with all that love even after you pointed a gun at his head. 

“I’m crazy sweetheart, I’d do whatever it takes to get you back in my arms.” You glare at him and he gives you that stupid, endearing smile of his. 

“Can we go cuddle now?” He asks, giving you puppy dog eyes to try and convince you. You sigh, rubbing your cheeks to get rid of any more leftover tears. 

“We’re not done with this talk.” You stress and Wonwoo nods his head, knowing fully well that once you start scolding you don’t stop.

“I know yn, I know.” You stare at him, biting the inside of your cheek. You reach up and rest your hand on the back of his neck, pulling him close to place a quick kiss to his lips. 

With your lips brushing against his, you whisper in between kisses, “I love you.” 

Wonwoo smiles, squeezing your hips with his hands he responds, “I love you too.”

[fritae]

The Missing Piece (Chapter 8)

Anxiety.

gang! au / ceo! au

characters: dabi x female oc, lov, other original characters

status: ongoing

read on ao3 here.

I'm sure Mr. Lane has seen me.

With a groan, I take Dabi aside.

"You can go ahead, sir." I tell him quickly, glancing behind me to see if they're watching me.

Dabi looks over my shoulder.

"Is that what's-his-face?"

I shoot Dabi a look and gesture toward Aliyah. We may be friends but I didn't tell her the real reason I left NNTV. She thinks work became too stressful and I needed a break.

She doesn't know about the argument me and Mr. Lane had after I discovered his support of the Todorokis. Or about his cutting my salary and threatening to fire me.

Besides, bad mouthing a former employer is horrible professionalism.

"It's Mr. Lane. Go, go," I try shoo-ing him away. "I'll see you tomorrow sir."

But Dabi doesn't budge.

His eyes are trained on mine.

"I don't like that look on your face."

I groan. "What look? Sir it's just-"

"Like you're uncomfortable."

The comment catches me off guard and I quickly avert my gaze.

"I-I don't know what you're talking about," I say quietly. "These are my friends."

But that only seems to make him more determined. Dabi turns to face me completely, his feet firmly planted in the ground and his hands tucked coolly in the pockets of his pants. He doesn't look interested in listening right now.

"What are you worried about?" He asks. "Is it him?"

I run an anguished hand through my hair. "Sir please. Please. What happened to not asking about our private matters?"

I don't want Dabi and Mr. Lane meeting. Especially considering how our last conversation went. I didn't tell Mr. Lane I was working for the Blaze, and considering how salty he was that I left after all these years, facing him once again fills me with anxiety.

"Alright I won't ask you," Dabi ignores me. "I'll find out from him."

My eyes widen and I pull him back before he could make his way toward Mr. Lane. Aliyah went to bring Mr. Lane to say hi. I feel my chest get tighter when I see him getting closer.

"See? I don't like that." Dabi eyes me with concern. He tsks and pulls a box from his back pocket. He tries to hand me a cigarette but I shake my head quickly.

Mr. Lane doesn't know I smoke.

And with the amount of anxiety pooling in my gut, it wouldn't even help.

Dabi shrugs, no longer facing me.

"I'm here," He says. The ice in his voice from earlier is gone. I look at him once more before Mr. Lane gets within earshot.

He gives me a small nod and reaches for me, his hand brushing against the small of my back in a way that sends electricity up my spine. "He's not your boss anymore. He has no power over you."

I nod and plaster a fake smile on my face as the short man approaches us.

I hope it's enough to hide my thundering heart.

"Ms. Aoki," His voice sounds as insufferable as ever. "Fancy meeting you here."

I nod my head in respect. "Mr. Lane. It's nice to see you so soon."

As if!

But already, his attention is off of me. Instead, he eyes Dabi up and down.

"Is this your partner?" He asks.

My face heats up immediately. "Oh - no sir. This is my, um - my new boss. Mr. Dabi?"

Just as I expected, Mr. Lane's expression darkens immediately.

I expect Dabi to extend a hand out for formalities. But his hands remains in his pockets. He merely gives him a nod in acknowledgement.

"So you've found a new company after all." Mr. Lane comments coldly.

"Yes. Yes sir."

"What's the name of your company, Mr. Dabi?"

"The Blaze." Dabi says. "I do luxury trading. Rina told me she previously worked for a broadcasting company - what was it called again?"

Mr. Lane's face hardens. "NNTV. We're a leading force in the industry-"

"Right, right. That company that always underperforms?" He asks apologetically.

Me and Aliyah gasp, glancing cautiously at Mr. Lane.

"I have a friend that works at CBS, you see."

There's a smile on Dabi's face.

"I haven't even heard of your company," Mr. Lane quickly counters, evil in his eyes. "When Ms. Aoki abandoned us in such a manner, I assumed she'd join a better known business."

"I'm not surprised you haven't heard of us," Dabi sighs, that same mocking tone in his voice. "You see, we cater to a highly exclusive audience."

Aliyah mouth drops behind Mr. Lane, looking extremely amused. I wouldn't be surprised if this becomes the subject of tomorrow's lunchtime gossip.

"I see," Mr. Lane smiles at Dabi but it is anything but friendly. "Anyway. Careful with this one." He tells Dabi. "She's loyal to the - " He rubs his fingers to his thumb to indicate money. "It doesn't matter how well you treat her, if she finds a better offer she'll run off on you. Looking at you now," Mr. Lane sizes him up. "it probably won't take long."

I didn't leave because of money you piece of shit! If you actually saw me as a person, you'd know that!

I feel Aliyah's eyes on me in surprise.

Great.

Now she thinks I'm making more money and keeping things from her.

I don't face her.

"Hm," Dabi says. "What do you define as a better offer? Because we certainly don't pay-"

Don't say that! I think frantically.

I clear my throat.

Dabi looks at me quizzically. But he understands soon enough.

"...her what she's worth. With how well she's driven up sales this past month, she certainly deserves every penny."

"With all due respect," Mr. Lane smiles apologetically, venom lacing his words. "A secretary who intervenes in your business, gives unsolicited advice, and tries to control decision making is not worth her price. There are many other qualified secretaries who will drive up sales, and do it better than she can."

I feel my heart fall.

Of course he would say that.

Mr. Lane thinks of me as disloyal now. Leaving NNTV so suddenly after all these years, I knew it would matter more to him than he let on during our last meeting.

He doesn't exactly tolerate betrayal. And being his secretary for so long, I've seen how he treats former employees enough to know how vicious he can be.

That's why I didn't want him and Dabi to meet.

My face reddens immensely at the mention of my frequent "interventions" and "unsolicited advice". Because Mr. Lane doesn't believe in teams, he believes in workers who do as they're told. That's it.

But considering how much Dabi cares about his space, the comment fills me with anxiety.

Especially given the conversation we had today.

Will he think this is a pattern now? Will it drive him further away from me - cause his lack of trust in me to balloon even more?

There's an uncomfortable feeling in my gut as my mind questions all these possibilities. I wish Aliyah hadn't seen me.

No.

I wish I just told Dabi I was busy when he asked me for dinner. I hesitantly glance at him, searching for any indication of how he's receiving this.

There's embarrassment written all over my face.

However, Dabi's expression doesn't change. He remains aloof.

Although on closer inspection, I think I see his jaw clench.

I feel my eyes water. Is he angry with me?

He should be.

Perhaps I am too talkative and opinionated for a secretary.

But Dabi's response makes me furrow my brows in confusion.

"She was a member of your team. Of course she would advise you. And intervene as necessary."

My eyes widen.

"It's as much her company as it is mine, so I do hope she does more of that for us in the future."

I look at Dabi in surprise, trying to figure him out. Doesn't he hate it when people intervene in his business though? Is he just saying this in front of Mr. Lane?

That's gotta be it.

Regardless, I'm grateful that he hasn't thrown me under the bus, using me as conversation material. Anyone else would happily listen and even share their own criticism of me to keep the conversation going. Especially considering Mr. Lane is realistically the more powerful CEO of the two. Anyone would say anything to get on his good side.

And part of me feels like Mr. Lane used me in order to shift to Dabi's good side too. After all, what manager doesn't love critiquing his employees?

Only Dabi didn't take the bait.

"I suppose I should thank you actually," Dabi continues, the height difference only further emphasizing the power imbalance in the conversation. Mr. Lane looks small for the first time ever, as he stands there looking up at Dabi. "If you hadn't let her go, our company wouldn't be in the place it is today. She's extremely capable, as you know. And such an agreeable team player, as well."

But instead of responding, Mr. Lane focuses on me with those murderous eyes.

As if it's my fault he was humiliated tonight.

How dare I go on to build up someone else's company. How dare I not cry and beg him to take me back, that I was sorry and have learned from my mistake. That I would never challenge his decisions again and be the loyal, silent employee he expects me to be.

I shrink under his stare, and before I know it, Dabi's hand is once again on my back.

He has no power over you.

I take a deep breath. "Unfortunately, Mr. Dabi has a prior engagement and we don't want to be late." I tell Mr. Lane. "But thank you for coming over personally to say hello. Hopefully, an opportunity for us to meet again arises in the future."

Mr. Lane nods coldly and walks away. He didn't even shake our hands before he left. Aliyah smiles at us apologetically and comes to hug me once again.

"He's a good man," She whispers in my ear. When she pulls away, she gives me a sly wink and my face reddens. She shakes Dabi's hand before she hurries behind Mr. Lane to the outdoor seating area where the rest of NNTV's administration and senior employees lounge.

And Dabi and I are alone once again.

[miraculouscontent]

Ask Explo--

...you know what, you’re right. Name change effective immediately.

Askplosion #10:

(unrelated to everything by the way but I DEMAND THE ANON WHO MENTIONED “REMARRIED EMPRESS” A WHILE BACK COME FORTH AND ANSWER FOR THEIR CRIMES. IT’S SO GOOD BUT IT’S UNFINISHED AND I’M HOOKED, HOW DARE YOU)

Asks responding to previous posts:

It’s okay! I figured that was what it was but it’s been so loooong.

Ah, wow.

Um, that’s definitely not a part 2; I think that’s more like a four-parter/five-parter or something.

Sorry! No can do!

That’s totally fair!

I think the reason I so quickly agreed with it is like--

I’ve been watching the Inuyasha sequel and it’s not like I don’t think the narrative’s apparent punching bag Moroha (who is fourteen years old) shouldn’t be punished when she does something wrong/sneaky/manipulative, but they punish her as if she’s Miroku (who was eighteen years old).

Basically, I want the punishment to take the age into account, or at least only affect Marinette on a more personal level and not be “Heart Hunter” where they take totally understandable feelings of heartache (remember, it wouldn’t have mattered which miraculous she took because Hawk Moth got the Miracle Box and Fu regardless; even beyond her emotions, I feel like she chose the best option available to her considering which temps she knew the location of) and then punish her for them by memory wiping Fu and taking away all of her temps and giving Hawk Moth the grimoire translation.

Yes!! I really wanted to respond to this one, thank you! (It’s this one and then there was another one talking about Luka and Adrien, then talked to me about how I refer to Luka as “soft” but not in a bad way; I unfortunately don’t remember the whole thing.)

Ahaha, and yeah, I feel you. Anti-salters are a very strange conundrum I still haven’t figured out; like, I get not liking salt, but...

I mean, when I don’t like certain content, I just blacklist it. If I end up seeing it anyway due to cross-tagging or a lack of tagging, then I just blacklist the person themself. You won’t see me going after people for that very reason; I only see what people send/ask me if it’s content I don’t like.

I’m glad you’ve found some peace in this blog! Hopefully it continues to be that way for you in the future!

(and yay, a fellow INTJ!!)

New Asks:

There are female writers? ;P I just assumed they were all locked in a closet until the male ones were like, “okay, pretend to help us here, we need one female writer to claim girl power.”

As for Ladybug all like, “Cute, isn’t she?” I think it was rhetorical (she could also be messing with him but “Glaciator” tells us that she didn’t know he crushed on her so who knows). The writers do this thing where Marinette is all panic-y and occasionally self-conscious as herself, but then as Ladybug, she suddenly gets a bit of an ego. I think it’s meant to be there in order to make Chat Noir look less... idk, “obnoxious” when he starts boosting his own ego; trying to balance the two by giving them both big heads, so to speak.

Honestly, I feel like Adrien needs less screen time. :|

Even when he’s not on-screen, characters are usually talking about him, or you see his face in Marinette’s room/somewhere in Paris. I’m become so jaded by the guy that I don’t even think it’d matter if they remade the series and gave it a “totally good and interesting Adrien.” That’s how badly the show has made him out for me; “Adrien Agreste” the character is just... sigh, I’m so done with him.

And yeah, this whole idea about, “Marinette is [x], we need more AAAAAADRIEN!” comes off really bad, lol, especially when Adrien has very little going for him.

(this ask ends off like there should be a part 2 but there isn’t one in my inbox, so sorry if there’s meant to be something else!)

The exact lyrics according to the wiki:

My wish for a cat who's in love, with our own Ladybug. Is that he'll get what he's always wanted! She doesn't know she loves him, only sees Adrien, But Christmas miracles always happen!

Yeah, especially nowadays, those lines bothers me. Not only does it imply “true selves,” but that it’s Chat who should be getting what he always wanted and Ladybug is the one with a problem.

Like, excuse me?

Probably Stormy Weather, even in the first episode. Ladybug and Chat Noir couldn’t even touch her until they arrived on top of the TV station.

+ With all those effects and shots, it made it feel more action-y than typical episodes.

Marinette, Aurore, Luka, Anarka, Jagged...

basically any name that I haven’t really heard before (”Luka��� makes me think of Vocaloid but the Luka there was female), or a name that relates a lot to the character (like “Aurore” for “aurora” since she loves weather things).

dfjbghfkdgfdgnjfdg this anon really like, “I NEED ANSWERS!!!”

It’s as if these characters hit 18 or something and just grow overnight, I swear. I’m hypothetically fine with some more variety in character height (it’s not like the show tries to be realistic, after all), but maybe don’t give us official heights if they’re gonna be this weird/inaccurate.

Especially when they change it just for the sake of a shot anyway. If you watch “Simon Says” when Ladybug and Adrien stand next to each other while looking at the picture of Adrien’s mother, the very next close-up has an obvious difference in their heights from what you just saw.

They’re 3D models!!! This shouldn’t happen!

I... honestly never thought of the “less threatening” thing! Dang!

And yeah, Marinette isn’t helpless or incompetent, but because of the Adrien crush, it makes her that way at times since she’s always falling on him and--

...ugh, actually, yeah, don’t wanna think about those implications. Hard pass.

Gross.

I’m not familiar with that one, though Astruc deletes his tweets all the time (there was one tweet where he confirmed that Luka was poor and it only exists in screenshots now because it didn’t get archived and he deleted it almost like he realized that he was pointing out the blatant classism in the show, oops).

Yeah though, I haven’t seen anything like what you’re describing. Sorry!

It’s okay! Sorry for having you clarify but him choosing and Marinette deciding to never give it back are very different things.

I don’t recall Chat Noir having much purpose in the final fight (in terms of both contributing and actual fighting; I know Cataclysm broke the object to release the akuma but was it needed?) so Marinette might either go cat-less or get a temp. Plagg could also be helpful in his own right because he’s small and blends in with the night, so he could hypothetically sneak up on the bad guy.

Afterwards, there’d need to be a new cat, but Adrien would also have to reconsider his actions and really think about what happened. I could also see Plagg going to Adrien’s house, half to apologize for giving the idea to Adrien that Adrien leave without telling Ladybug, but also half to call him out for giving up without consulting anyone. Adrien is a lot of conflicting things (see Adrien’s passivity compared to Chat Noir’s recklessness) so he’d have to find a middle ground within himself.

Marinette might carry Plagg around in her purse for a while and let Plagg have a say in who he goes to. Plagg might grieve for a bit over not having Adrien around (even if Adrien was flawed, Plagg didn’t ask for any of this so Marinette is doing her best here).

O-oh.

That’s always the rough patch with “endgame ships.”  Once it’s obvious to the audience that they’re endgame, no more effort needs to be put into them.

The other thing too is how Kagami, for example, is friends with Marinette. Even once Adrimi sinks, she’ll presumably stay friends with her. Luka, meanwhile, is Juleka’s brother.

They have lives outside of their love interests. Adrien is so into Ladybug that he doesn’t have that; I mean, Nino is Adrien’s best friend like once in a blue moon.

The entire class is just watching an episode and then calling on raised hands to answer what was wrong with what they just watched.

“Everything?”

“I mean, yes, but I’m sorry, you have to be more specific to get credit.”

I think Aeon herself is fine. It’s mostly just her transformed and that transformed name that I have a problem with (she doesn’t even look uncanny so I don’t get it). I heard there was something wrong with the name “Aeon” but searching the name doesn’t give me anything I would qualify as such so I have no idea. I just wish she was given a little less “I’m programmed to--” (makes her seem less sentient) and more “[anything that doesn’t have to do with pushing the love square]” because I feel like they might’ve done the latter to make her more “likable”? I think fans of anything usually like the “matchmaker” character provided it’s for a ship they like. Also strange that they make her a robot but Max and Markov don’t extensively interact with her, but that’s a nitpick and not a criticism of her character.

...I’m rambling, my bad lol.

(Ohhh, she was supposed to be a mummy? Like, foreshadowing her “dying”?? That went right over my head but I guess that’d be where the name Uncanny Valley came from? No clue.)

Best case scenario is probably the middle or the end of Season 4.

And yeah, it really doesn’t matter to me what they do with the love square. Marinette had gone through too much suffering and the show goes out of its way to show how much stress Marinette is being put under (and also keeping Luka away during episodes like “Gamer 2.0″ even when it makes sense for them to be there, as if trying to make sure Marinette doesn’t have enough moments with him to forget Adrien).

Like, ah, yes, I totally believe that Marinette is in a position where she can make reasonable decisions about her love life while all circles of her life are on fire.

If the Sonic movie of all things can have an interracial couple, there’s no reason why this show can’t, just saying.

And, even with Marinette, she’s white-passing (according to what basically everyone says, I’m really awful about recognizing race so this isn’t my field; I wasn’t aware that Ondine was Asian, for example).

Does Nadja count? Manon’s dark-skinned (I’m still not over the fact that all the kids in this show are dark-skinned; it’s not like it’s a problem from a representation standpoint - though all the kids are also all generically bratty/whiny so there’s that - but the percentages in this show are weird) while Nadja is really light-skinned, meaning either a dark-skinned husband or Manon is adopted.

Though I guess the problem then is that we don’t know, so there’s no established couple there.

Non-Miraculous Asks:

w-who gave you the right to say such things????

Uhhhh, that might be too broad of a question, I’m sorry!

I know this isn’t satisfactory, but I will say that my favorite genre is Fantasy/Romance (it’s why I adore Red Shoes so much; by the way, an anon asked for my opinion on that a while back and I will get to it! I’d need to watch it again to get screenshots) and my least favorite is probably Tragedy/Horror.

I don’t think I’ve watched enough to really be able to say? I’ve kind of been all over but I’ve never fully gone through any of them outside of Miraculous. I’ve seen bits of Sailor Moon, Tokyo Mew Mew, Star VS the Forces of Evil (don’t know if that counts), and I meant to watch Yuki Yuna is a Hero but never got around to it. I saw the entirety of Puella Magi Madoka Magica but you guys know how I feel about that one.

Maybe Cardcaptor Sakura by default then? It was definitely not perfect but I liked some of the character dynamics (I also have a clipcut of it - basically where I go through a series/movie and cut out parts I don’t like so it’s only good stuff - so I’m cheating a little) and the male love interest was a tsundere type that I actually ended up liking, which is really rare.

!!! That sounds sweet~ I know Sailor Moon is popular so I’ll definitely take your word for it on that one.

I would also accept a “reincarnated”/”destined lovers” trope if maybe the ship themselves are the one who set it up in the first place. I have a Lukanette AU, for example, where they basically got together and then prayed to the shrine of the renewal god that they’d “always be together,” which ended up allowing them to reincarnate over and over (as if they set up their own soulmate AU ;P) and continuously find each other.

Though I guess that’s not technically a “meant to be trope,” but still, it’s a form of it but where it was totally consensual on both sides.

Also, I finally thought of a show that ended with the ship I wanted: Gargoyles. I didn’t see the entire series, mind you, but I saw most of it and Goliath and Elisa were just... quality, I adored them.

+ With Beauty and the Beast being my favorite Disney movie, they fit right in with my tastes.

I forget that AangToph (I think the “official” name for the ship is Taang, but don’t quote me on that) exists sometimes, maybe because I’ve never shipped Aang with anyone; I’ve got no problems with the ship though.

Ugh, and this is what I mean when I talk about people who set up these reasons behind people shipping something based on what they saw a few people do. It’s like, “you only ship Adrimi/Lukanette to spite Adrienette!!”

Meanwhile, me having shipped all three at one point and then dropped off the love square.

Also, me shipping Zutara has nothing to do with it being dark/edgy because I’ve never seen it that way (intriguing, sure but dark and edgy? lol) and also avoid dark/edgy ships like the plague.

I still laugh at people who are like, “you can’t ship it because it’s not endgaaaaame!” as if shows can dictate how and why I enjoy something. Like sure, if you want to let a show/movie spoonfeed you how you’re supposed to feel, then by all means, go ahead.

I suppose people may be theoretically happier that way, but it doesn’t make for an analytic mind.

I legitimately thought that “AssClass” must’ve been the actual name for something until it registered with me what it actually meant.

And eh, I guess it depends on the comparison and how accurate the comparison actually is? Like, comparing Puella Magic Madoka Magica to Miraculous... they’re not really close at all, but comparing... idk, Bunnyx to Homura or the concept behind “backfiring wishes”... maybe?

-

(note that the rest of this post is more Puella Magi Madoka Magica salt so you can stop reading here if you’re not interested in that; I’m not sure if this is all the same anon but I don’t mind letting people vent so I let them go off~)

why can’t we just have nice things

I agree, and I give a little eyeroll every time it’s like, “oh, this person had [miraculous]”

+ even just in general, I feel weird about any show that mentions/implies that real world famous people are [x] or [y] in their show. It breaks my immersion; real world locations are one thing but when it’s specific people (unless they’re made up characters like Santa Claus) or games just--break me.

I also don’t know what to think when there aren’t magical boys but you have these magical girls in this frilly outfits/skirts. The demographic is girls so I presume the reason must be like, “you can look pretty and still beat people up” (;P) but having so many magical girl shows without a hint of a magical boy makes me suspicious that it’s for fanservice. Sailor Moon has Tuxedo Mask but I also don’t know what that guy did outside of the meme of him doing nothing so I’ve got no clue.

(edit: I should correct myself that I’m not talking about Sailor Moon specifically; I don’t know magical girls that well, though I do know there are ones clearly intended for fanservice (you could say that for anything, to be fair, but still). It’s just that I see things like super short skirts or very “questionable” shots and I’m just like, “hm”)

Hmmm, good question. I feel like there has to be a lot but I’m also the type who doesn’t watch a lot of TV lol. I’m just familiar with cliches and tropes and such.

The reason I try not to use “ism”s of any kind is mostly because it’s too broad. Like, you know how the English language only has one way of saying, “I love you,” but other languages like Spanish have multiple?

It’s like that, and sometimes I think it’s too easy to throw those words out there. A “small” (possibly completely unintentional/misunderstood) offense is sexism, and then a “large” offense is called the exact same thing. I’d rather go into why something is sexist than just call it that, y’know? The only exception I make is “classism” because I feel like that’s not as... I dunno, divisive?

Anyway, for that same reason, I can’t answer firmly that, “Madoka Magica is sexist.” I will however say that it makes me uncomfortable with how the show makes out the girls being emotional because they’re young and female and then proceeds to make their life a living hell before they’re old enough to properly answer to it (I know that’s the point but that kind of makes it worse?). It doesn’t help with how all the girls have different personalities, so it’s not like you have only “crybaby girls” who are being taken advantage of; it’s basically like... all girls.

Not helped is the fact that their soul gem not only deteriorates naturally, but it can also do so faster if the girl falls into despair, which then turns them into a monster (and I know it’s kind of like an akuma thing, but the fact that it’s only girls is... I dunno, it comes off wrong?). It seems cheap that the soul gem deteriorates no matter what so it constantly needs fed even if the girl is consistently happy.

I would probably opt for the show being centered more around Kyubey being new to this or something - like, magical girls are a new thing - and then have Kyubey being surprised because they presumed that the soul gem would deteriorate naturally since “emotions are powerful but destructive to the person having them,” but then all the girls team up and help each other work out their problems. Maybe the reason magical girls are usually alone isn’t even because of the grief seed (I think that’s what it’s called?) thing not being able to be shared, but because Kyubey intentionally separates magical girls so they can’t do what the main group is doing, but Madoka is so into the idea that, “We shouldn’t have to be alone,” and so she’s constantly pulling all the girls together, which keeps them healthy.

Maybe Homura’s backstory could be that Madoka originally was more sheepish and more afraid to put herself out there, especially since she was a magical girl (who are encouraged to go it alone), which is why their soul gems were both deteriorating; they were friends but kept more of a distance, or maybe they were a team but that’s all they were. Then Madoka gives Homura the last grief seed to save her and that’s what inspires Homura and makes her see Madoka as something more than a teammate, which is why Homura actively tries to save Madoka specifically (which then encourages Madoka to want to keep everyone together as friends).

In the case that Kyubey doesn’t separate them out of concern of fRiEnDsHiP, but for another reason altogether, and then it’s ultimately their own downfall when they allow the girls to hang out and realize that it’s doing a lot of good for them.

“cute and innocent”

That was exactly it. It’s on Kyubey’s trivia section on the Puella Magi Madoka Magica Wiki.

Before the anime's first dark plot twist aired, head writer Gen Urobuchi said on his Twitter account that the "Kyu" in Kyubey's name comes from the English word "cute". This was a lie meant to further mislead fans into thinking that Madoka Magica is an innocent happy show. In a later episode, it was revealed that "Kyubey" is, in fact, short for "incubator".

In my personal opinion, a spoiled plot can’t be “ruined” if it’s a good plot. If you told me that Kagome was trapped in the Modern era for three years and then decided to stay with Inuyasha at the end of Inuyasha, it wouldn’t/shouldn’t decrease the value when I finally see it for myself because it’s good. That’s not to say that everything should just be spoiled right out of the gate, but it’s saying that maybe your plot isn’t good if you have to rely on shock value to make it work??

I FEEL THAT “ASSIGNING IT TO THE WHOLE GENDER” THING SO BAD. It just adds to my “the girls all have varying personalities so it’s not like Kyubey’s only after emotional crybabies or anything” salt.

I have no idea about any of the stuff about the writers so I can’t confirm or deny them. I will very much agree on the target audience thing though, especially with the whole “keeping the dark plot a secret” because really? Who is this for then? Like, the first two and a half episodes are for one demographic and then the others are--???

I dunno. Me personally, I just like feel good stories. I do like some good conflict and drama (for context, Remarried Empress is basically a webtoon that gives you things to feel salty about and then makes its own salt fic as its plot, allowing for endless streams of feels and catharsis, so I’m definitely not against drama), but there are other times where I just want to feel good watching something.

I feel like the show expects the characters to be selfless/perfect and then punishes them even though it’s their writing that’s causing them to act out. I can’t really talking about “out-of-character” but sometimes it’s just obvious where “we did this because we needed a plot/conflict.”

Like, hello? We don’t need the main characters screwing up; why can’t we just have some feel good thing where they take the day for themselves (seriously, imagine a Miraculous episode where Chat Noir actually tells Ladybug to take a couple days for herself, like maybe someone else gets the earrings for a few days as a temp while Marinette gets to breathe; IMAGINE IT). Not everything needs to be high-stakes to be interesting and you need those calmer moments so that the action-packed ones feel more intense.

SAYAKA DESERVES BETTER.

I feel like the magical girl genre as a whole can be way more complex than it’s made out to be. I think people hear the word “magical girl” and think “cute girls in short skirts talk about girl problems and fight evil with the power of friendship and accessories.”

Ugh, just the mention of Rebellion makes me sigh internally.

Congrats on working on your own magical girl story! I hope it goes well for you!

I know it’s not technically a magical girl show, but there was also Totally Spies that Astruc worked on to some degree (I think there was some characters who were based on/a loose reference to the mains from that show but I don’t remember exactly).

The thing about the female characters suffering is that they could make for good lessons on positively directing one’s emotions (like Usagi from Sailor Moon, for example, maybe having a problem with taking her anger out on her friends, but learns that she can save that rage for the bad guys; “Gamer 2.0″ from Miraculous could’ve done that, honestly, by having Ladybug absolutely WRECK all of her gaming opponents in “violent” (cartoon violence obviously) fashion). It’s just a shame that it’s not taken advantage of.

Sayaka??? Selfish???????

*does not compute*

(Also, I wasn’t tired of them, don’t worry! It was a little overwhelming in my inbox but it’s me who’s allowing all the asks to flow in so the blame isn’t on you lol.)

I’m not sure where this obsession came from with, “you have to be selfless and you’re not allowed to use your powers for yourself.” It’s like the world’s going to end if a character leaves to go Self-Care or something. I think what happened is that shows got this idea that promoting only the giving of others is great and it’s not important to take time for yourself (even with “Gamer 2.0,” it was still Marinette playing games with everyone else, and they treated her dedication and seriousness like a bad thing when she literally did not have time to waste and they didn’t give a reason why it was good for her to take a break, only that she should).

This usually leads to the “demonization” of characters who sport a lot of self-confidence or any sort of ego. It works on both sides; Marinette is a punching bag because of her anxiety and occasional lack of confidence, but if she had an ego as Ladybug, there are parts of the fandom who deem her “obnoxious” (i.e: “Reflekdoll”). There’s a delicate balance between “be confident” and “be humble” and it’s a tightrope act.

[cognitivefunk]

Yaaay, I finally finished this request for @maryiii006  I’m sorry it took a couple weeks, I hit a writer’s block so I hope it’s ok~~ Title: Only Look at Me Fandom: Diabolik Lovers Pairing: Shu Sakamaki x Yui Komori Rating: Explicit (smut) Warnings: One sided-affection (side character), smut, oral sex, character death but it’s very ‘read between the lines’/off screen if you will Word Count: 3,350

It had been a little over a month since the two of them had moved out to the countryside. Shu decided it would be best to live in quiet surroundings alongside Yui, unburdened by his brothers or by the noise pollution of busy city life. Ever since he had opened his heart to her, he wanted nothing more than to be by her side, and for her to be by his. Just the thought of being apart got under his skin. It was all the better to do so under the refuge of nature, with the sound of the steam by their modest house and the soothing sounds of nature being their only company.

Be that as it may, Yui wanted something to busy herself with, as they embarked on their life together. She was flustered at the thought of being alone with the vampire at first, since it would be like they were living as a married couple. She wondered if perhaps one day that would be possible, for them to have a little ceremony, but she was happy to be with him regardless. And so began a new chapter of uncharted territory for the pair.

Yui kept to a nocturnal schedule for Shu’s sake, and picked up an evening shift at a small rural clinic. She mentored under the doctor there as an assistant, alongside another girl similar in age by the name of Aoife. She never explicitly asked, but the red haired, freckled woman seemed similar in age to Yui. The doctor was a strange man with dark hair and bags under his grey eyes that never seemed to lighten. He wore thick framed glasses that distracted from the tired features of his face. The man wasn’t particularly old, but the constant lack of sleep defined his face.

--

Yui organized the glass jars of various herbs and medical tools. The clinic had more of an apothecary vibe than a modern medical office. “Yui, could you brew another pot of coffee please?” a rich baritone voice asked from behind the younger woman and she stood up, brushing her skirt as she did so. “Sure thing!” she responded cheerfully. Most of her tasks at the clinic involved cleaning, organizing, and brewing the coffee since she had no real medical training. Aoife typically handled a lot of the patient intake information but she was running late, leaving Yui alone with the doctor for a few hours.

The aroma of freshly brewed coffee wafted through the clinic, which gave the woman a sense of comfort. She poured a mug and brought it over to where the doctor, who was sitting in his chair going over some paperwork. He lifted his eyes toward her when she handed him the mug and took it into his hands, intentionally grazing his fingers over hers and letting them linger for a moment too long. Yui retracted her hands and turned to busy herself with more work but the man reached out to grab her by the wrist.

“Yui…why don’t you help me with some of this work?” he spoke low, pulling her closer to him, moving his hand to place firmly on her hip. “I don’t really know how to do any of that, maybe you should wait until Aoife comes back?” Yui offered, trying to maintain politeness despite her discomfort. She figured the doctor was just being friendly; at least that’s what she was hoping for.

“You’re right,” he stated, setting his glasses on the table beside them. He stood, his hand still on Yui’s hip as he guided her to the exam table and prompted her to sit on the piece of equipment. “Paperwork is Aoife’s job after all,” there was an unnerving cheerfulness in his voice as he spoke, “Instead, I’ll teach you how to do a proper examination instead.” He circled around the young woman, loosening the tie around his neck slightly before lightly brushing his fingers across her exposed thigh. The blonde gulped nervously, but went along with his whim for the time being, still giving him the benefit of the doubt, despite her growing suspicions on the situation.

“Let’s start with a physical,” the doctor turned around, grabbing a wooden tongue suppressor from one of the glass jars beside the metal table. “Say ‘aaaah’,” he ordered, and Yui opened her mouth widely, sticking her tongue out as she followed his order. “Good girl,” he muttered, pressing the stick against her tongue and peering into her mouth. A small smirk spread across his face before he pressed the suppressor further back against her tongue, causing her to gag and pull away. He tsked and tossed the wooden stick into the waste bin beside them. “We’ll have to work on that gag reflex of yours, it’s far too sensitive,” he replied cryptically when Yui gave him a questioning look. “But your mouth is nice and healthy. A lovely color, in fact…”

“Thank you?” Yui wasn’t sure how to respond to that statement, and goosebumps were starting to prick against her skin. Something didn’t feel quite right, and she found herself glancing over at the clock, wondering if her female partner would arrive soon. Her shift was ending soon and she wanted to go home. The older man’s hands were on her neck, feeling around her jaw and lymph nodes at first, but his fingers soon started to caress her throat, gliding up to swipe a thumb over her lower lip. “You’re very beautiful, Yui.”

The blonde swallowed hard, eliciting a look of excitement on the doctor’s face, as he felt the motion of her throat under his fingers. “I, I think I should go for today sir.” She wasn’t sure if she wanted to come back, knowing that the man was interested in her. She wondered how Shu would react if he knew what had happened here. She knew he would be able to smell his scent on her skin.

The doctor leaned forward, intending to capture her lips for his own, but Yui turned her head when she saw him moving toward her, causing his lips to brush against her hair before he tightened his grip on her. “Don’t play coy with me, I know you want this,” he spoke against her ear and she shut her eyes tightly, murmuring a soft, “No,” before bracing herself for his retaliation when suddenly she felt him move away from her abruptly and a pained cry reached her ears.

“Hey, dirtbag, get your hands off of her,” Shu had shoved the man to the ground, situating himself in front of Yui, shielding her from the doctor as he got to his feet. “Yui, who is this?” the man asked, eyeing the vampire with suspicion as he prepared himself to square off with Shu, unaware of the power difference the two of them truly had.

“This is Shu, he’s my uh—“

“Yui is my betrothed,” the blonde vampire said coolly, “I came to bring her home since she was running late. To think she was wrapped up in something like this…” there was an obvious annoyance in his voice as he glanced back at her. A blush crossed her cheeks at the word betrothed, and a smile started to spread across Shu’s face, but his gaze was soon back on the other man, as the doctor had attempted to take a swing at him. Shu caught his arm with ease, twisting it so that his shoulder joint dislocated, earning another pained cry from the assailant.

“Yui, do you really want to be with such a ruffian? I could provide a happy life for you,” the doctor attempted to reason with her, but she recoiled, frowning at the man as he worked on replacing his shoulder back to its rightful place. A nasty snarl distorted his features at her silent denial of his advances and he grabbed a scalpel from the drawer next to his desk.  

“Close your eyes Yui,” the vampire growled out, and she shut her eyes immediately, instinctively covering her ears in the process. “Please don’t kill him,” she pleaded with Shu, but didn’t dare open her eyes. She could still hear the muffled groan as Shu brought his foot down on the doctor’s gut before he leaned down to grab him by the throat.

“Don’t you ever touch her again, do you hear me? She’s mine. Consider yourself lucky she’s even here right now, or I wouldn’t hesitate to end your miserable existence,” his words were dangerous as Shu held the doctor in the air by his throat, letting him claw at his hand in an attempt to escape his grasp. He kept his jaw clenched, as he peered into the man’s eyes, his pupils constricted like that of a predator. His self-control was waning, as he contemplated ending the man’s life then and there when the ring of the door caught his attention. Glancing behind his shoulder, he met the gaze of a young woman as he stood in the middle of the clinic still holding the doctor by his neck.

Emerald eyes took in the situation before her. Aoife looked to the right, seeing Yui sitting on the examination table with her eyes closed and her hands over her ears. Then to the left, where the doctor was quickly losing breath, judging by the blue that was beginning to tint his fingertips and the edges of his face. The scalpel had fallen to the floor in the scuffle. She smiled at the vampire serenely, “I think you should take Yui home. It’s time for my shift, so I’ll clean up this mess.” Her words were gentle, but there was a palpable energy that rolled off of her, signifying the weight of her words. .Shu dropped the man to the floor, watching him gasp for air for a moment before he turned to pick up Yui from the table and walk out of the clinic. “Tch, it’s not worth my time.”

He held her bridal style, walking in silence as he walked down the path toward their home. He was glad they were a distance away when he heard the curdled scream of the doctor followed by a nearly deafening silence. Yui had opened her eyes when she felt his arms wrap around her, and she held onto his neck, leaning her head against his shoulder. “Thank you, Shu…” she said softly, still quite shaken from the event. He didn’t reply right away, however, his jaw only clenched in response. Once they made it back to the house, he set her down on the bed and looked her over, making sure she was alright before speaking.

“Why didn’t you fight back?” he asked, a pained expression scrunched his eyebrows, and he leaned his forehead against hers, his intense gaze peering into hers. “I don’t know, I just froze,” Yui responded, and Shu searched her eyes for any sign of dishonesty before he sighed and kissed the side of her jaw, leaving a trail of kisses over her skin. “I was scared and thought someone would walk in and he would stop.”

“Then I’m glad I came in when I did,” he spoke gently, but there was still an edge of anger in his gaze. “So you really didn’t like him, right?” There was a pleading look in his eyes, as he searched her face. “Of course not, I just didn’t know how to handle the situation. You saw him, he grabbed a knife,” she reasoned, shivering at the thought.

“Don’t think about him. I’m tired of it already.” Yui bit her lip, fidgeting her hands together in her lap. “I’ll erase him from your skin,” he murmured, running his hands over the places where the doctor had caressed Yui, followed by his lips. He worked his way down her neck, then back up to her lips. Yui sighed into the kiss, relaxing into her beloved’s touch. Her eyes fluttered shut, but then Shu pulled back. “Don’t close your eyes this time,” he pressed his lips against hers once more, pulling away only to speak. “Look only at me, Yui. I won’t let anyone else touch you.”

Yui kept her eyes open, her pink irises glittered with emotion as she kissed Shu back, feeling slightly awkward staring into his eyes as they kissed. His fingers found their way to her lap, interlacing his fingers with hers as he deepened the kiss. His tongue ran along her lower lip, asking for entrance, which was granted when she tilted her head and parted her lips. She let him explore her, tasting her sweetness on his tongue.

“Nnn,” she moaned into the kiss, which was far more intense than usual due to the fervent eye contact. She could see the lust burning in his eyes, replacing the anxiety that was there before. “Look only at me…” he repeated again, his gaze piercing into hers in a standoff between cerulean and rose. “I don’t want you to look at any other men, Yui. I don’t want to let you out of my sight ever again,” he cupped Yui’s cheek after freeing his hand from hers, his cool touch leaving a trail of heat where her body yearned for him.

“If you feel that way, I can resign so I can be closer to you,” Yui answered his unspoken question; she could tell he was truly worried for her wellbeing. But he was also acting jealous over the misunderstanding from the one-sided affection of the doctor. She gently tucked a piece of hair behind Shu’s ear and cupped his cheek in return.

“Did you really mean it? When you said…betrothed?” she asked, remembering the way he protected her earlier that night. A blush darkened on her cheeks, and she waited for his response as her heartbeat quickened in her chest. Shu looked taken back for a moment, but he swiftly recovered with a soft smile. “It is,” he paused, suddenly looking bashful. “If you want it to be, that is…”

A sudden bloom of love burst through Yui’s chest, filling her with excitement. “Of course!” she closed her eyes to smile, overwhelmed with happiness in that moment. “Hey, I told you to look at me,” the vampire teased, holding her close to his body. “I want to see your face, your eyes, all of you…I guess I’ll just have to punish you.”

Yui was about to question what he meant by that when she felt his fangs sink into her neck. “Aaah, Shu!!” she exclaimed, grabbing onto his shoulder while he drank from her. He groaned against her neck, moving his hands to undo her blouse, pushing the offending fabric off of her shoulders before pulling back enough to speak. “You’re sweeter than usual today,” he breathed against her skin, trailing down to her breast, undoing her bra and tossing it to the side. He sunk his fangs into the supple mound, eliciting a low moan from the woman.

Shu chuckled against her breast, using his tongue to flick over the sensitive flesh while he rolled a nipple between his index finger and thumb, pinching and pulling while he looked up at her. He had a sinful look on his face, and it made Yui clench subconsciously, arousal stirring in her belly. “Shu..” her fingers wound into his hair, pulling gently on his messy locks. He let go of her breast with an almost animalistic moan, his eyes wild with lust as he pushed her back against the bed.

He slid down her body, pulling her skirt down, along with her underwear, grinning up at her from his place settled between her legs. “Keep your eyes on me, Yui. I want you to watch me while I do this to you. Hm? Pull on my hair if you need to, but keep your eyes on me. That’s it,” he spoke in his rich honeyed voice, descending onto her core with his mouth. Yui trembled under him, using both of her hands to hold onto his head by tangling her fingers into his hair. Her gaze wavered, but she did her best to keep eye contact whilst he pleasured her. His tongue lapped up the length of her wet heat, settling to circle around her swelling bud as she tugged his hair, eliciting several groans from him.

His piercing blue gaze never wavered from hers as he worked his magic on her pussy, using his fingers to spread her open, gaining more access to her heat. She cried out as he tongue fucked her, her lips trembling as desire threatened to swallow her whole. “Shu, I need you now. Please, please, please,” she started to beg, her legs shaking next to his head as he lifted his body to mount his lover.

“You want me?” he teased, rubbing his length up and down her aching pussy, waiting for her to say something in response. “Shu!!” she cried out, hands shooting up to cover her face. “Ah, ah, none of that,” he swatted her hands away, tilting her chin toward him with his free hand. “Tell me that you want me,” he breathed, chuckling at the cute way she blushed and tried to avert her gaze.

“Please, I want you so much Shu. I want you inside me, I want you to take me—“ she was cut off as he sank into her heat, their moans mixing together as they joined as one. “Yui…you’re always so tight,” he spoke through gritted teeth, hissing at the tight heat that surrounded him. “I love you so much,” he leaned down onto his forearms, giving him access to kiss her trembling lips as he buried himself inside of her.

“I love you too, Shu,” she spoke between kisses, wrapping her legs around his waist and her arms around his neck. He shifted to use one hand to angle her hips up before driving back into her at a deeper position. “Fuck…Yui.” He watched her face as she started to come undone, her shyness melting into lust as her face relaxed into their shared pleasure. She kissed him, watching the way his eyebrows knit together, the way he hissed and groaned when he thrust his hips against hers.

“I’m so, ahhn, close,” she moaned against him, writhing her hips against his, their rhythm becoming sloppier with their impending climax on the horizon. “Me too, let’s finish together ok?” He sat back on his legs for better leverage, and Yui wrapped her legs tighter around his waist as he gripped her hips, his fingers digging into her soft flesh. Their cries of pleasure filled the room alongside the creaking of the bed as they reached orgasm one after the other. Yui’s legs collapsed to the bed whilst Shu continued a few shallow thrusts, emptying his seed into her waiting womb.

Shu finally pulled out, lying down beside Yui before pulling her into his arms, cradling her head against his chest and placing soft kisses onto her hair. “I don’t ever want to be apart. I never want to see you in that position ever again. I never want to be in a position where I can’t protect you, Yui.”

He pet her hair as he spoke, her breathing slowing against his chest as she relaxed into him. She reached up to hold the side of his face once again, “I’m not going anywhere, Shu. I love you, and I want to be with you always. We’ll figure it out together, so don’t worry ok? You saved me today, and that’s all that matters to me right now.”

Shu let out a hum of agreement, tightening his grip on her before letting out a yawn. They could hear the early sounds of morning as the birds outside chirped outside the window. “Nn, damn. I’m so tired, let’s sleep for a while, just like this ok?” he nuzzled his face against her soft hair, relaxing his arms around her as she cuddled closer to his chest, wrapping one arm around his waist, allowing them to fall asleep wrapped up in one another.

[brief-candle]

ʜᴇᴀᴅᴄᴀɴᴏɴꜱ - Douma

actually probably failing my a-levels so no university is gonna accept this guy on the medicine course B)

how’s your day going?

so these headcanons are for a modern au with a stalker douma, for context!

series: kimetsu no yaiba/ demon slayer.

notes: MANGA-ONLY CHARACTER, meant to be stalking headcanons but there's surprisingly little mention of it, modern au, cult, douma being a massive snake, yandere, kidnapping.

⊱ ────── {.⋅ ♫ ⋅.} ───── ⊰

modern! douma:

so assuming his cult still exists in this modern au, douma is still perceived as a supernatural entity due to his unnatural yet beautiful eyes. this leads to him being extremely spoilt, even if he was still being groomed to become the leader. he's used to having everything he wants as soon as he asks. however this position of his leads to being lonely, with his lack of attachment to anyone within his cult. well, not complete lack of attachment. not with the female disciples anyway, many of whom he had flirted with and seduced before he'd even become the leader.

it was so easy to get them to do his bidding. just plaster on a cheerful façade, throw in some honeyed words and he had anyone there wrapped around his finger. sometimes he didn't even need to go so far.

sometimes he had to leave, however. to leave that place which stunk of the blood of those who tried to leave, or who turned against one another. his room stank of it the most, as it was the room his parents used to occupy. no matter how much he tried, he couldn't purge that stench. and so he left the little town of his cult and entered the city in the evenings. it was under the pretence of preaching and bringing in new disciples, but that was never done intentionally. many simply decided to join once they were drawn in too much by him, to the point where they decided that they couldn't live without him.

the first time he met you was by coincidence. he'd noticed you staring at him, most likely mesmerised by his eyes. however upon him approaching you, believing you to be like so many he'd encountered before, you'd instead asked if his eye colour was some sort of medical condition. he didn't know how to respond, as no one had ever questioned his eyes. they'd only ever blindly admired them, to such a point that he was revered because of them. however he wasn't given time to figure out how to respond, as you'd realised that such a question was awfully rude and apologised profusely. before he could assure you that it was fine (and continue trying to woo you), you'd already scurried off into the busy streets.

he'd forgotten about you until the second time he encountered you, but you hadn't forgotten about him. you were kicking yourself for asking such a question to a literal stranger and when you saw him again you hoped to god he didn't remember you. unfortunately for you, he did. and when he approached, you didn't give him time to speak, simply inviting him for a couple of drinks in an attempt to make up for your previous inconsideration. he agreed, but with different intentions to you.

you'd chatted for hours after you got your apology out of the way. he was so charismatic (at least, that was what he allowed you to see of him) that the conversation just seemed to flow into the night. he was intrigued by you, who seemed to dodge and duck his flirtatious remarks through either changing the subject or flat-out ignoring them. he was curious as to what your reasons were to blatantly ignore such obvious comments, but you didn't reveal, no matter how slyly he tried to pry them out.

by the time you parted ways, his curiosity had grown exponentially. for his whole life he had been handed everything he wanted without a moment's hesitation. to not be given what he wanted was a real shock for douma, and he was wondering with almost morbid thoughts as to how much it'd take to get what he wanted from you.

your next few meetings were through educated guesses mixed with chance, after which he began to put his plans into motion. perhaps if you trusted him more then he'd get answers, but trust only comes through familiarity. so if he wanted answers more quickly then he'd have to force that familiarity. he asked a high-ranking member of his cult to take over his work for a while as he took care of 'business' in the city. the people of the cult weren't particularly fond of this change, but didn't dare to show it. they wouldn't dare upset the very being that will grant them salvation.

his position being temporarily covered meant he had more time to invest into figuring you out, whether that be from seemingly benign conversation to committing crimes. stalking is a regular occurrence, with breaking and entering coming in at a close second. he's sure you've noticed it by now, but douma doesn't care much. you won't figure out it's him, with how meticulous he is at covering his tracks. his underlings are even more thorough, as the mere thought of him being locked away terrifies them to the core. he uses this commitment to his advantage.

after weeks upon months, all of this is beginning to take its toll upon you, visibly and mentally. you're tired, snappy, jumping at the slightest touch. and douma enjoys it, relishes each backwards glance that you thought was subtle. this helps him worm his way closer to you, playing the good-willed and concerned friend, constantly reminding you that you can tell him anything.

and finally, you do. you tell him of how scared you are of this person, and how badly it's affecting your life. you can barely get your work done. grades are dropping, your part-time job performance is slipping and your life feels like it was beginning to crumble. of course, he knew all of this. at least until that point. when you continued, it was with stuff he'd been surprised to hear.

you confessed that you'd thought he was kinda creepy at first, which probably drove you to blurt out something so rude due to being so uncomfortable. you'd (correctly) guessed that he was approaching to flirt and had immediately wanted out. you had no time for relationships at that point if you wanted to pursue your dream, and barely even went out with friends. at least, before douma wormed his way into your life and had played you like a (damn) fiddle. and, unknowingly, you followed his every move just as he wanted you to.

when you'd finished, you apologised to him, confessing that you'd been wrong about him the whole time. that he was nice, and you appreciated his company and all he did for you. you put the final nail in your coffin when adding that perhaps after everything blew over and calmed down (and when, in your words: 'that bastard is caught'), then maybe you'd have time for a relationship then.

that was the worst choice of words ever. with such wording, douma very easily took it as a hint that perhaps you'd be interested in a relationship later on. it was easy to for him, with his past of easily charming countless women. it would be no surprise to him that he was able to charm you as well.

however he couldn't help but be charmed by you as well. you with your optimism still intact and so goal-driven, even with him beside you. perhaps it was no longer curiosity that forced his hand, but rather love. he couldn't tell. it was hard to know love without knowing any other emotion, yet he put that name onto his feelings immediately. it fit well with the tightness in his chest, and the warmth blooming onto his face. not that you noticed, as you didn't look out for anything suspicious about douma anymore. and that was your second worst mistake, the first being to allow yourself to grow close to him.

that night, he stayed up for what felt like days upon days. he couldn't sleep; his mind was too full with thoughts of the future, with thoughts of the warm butterflies that fluttered in his chest that only made their appearance around you. that night he gave you a rest from the paranoia he usually set upon you, only to be far from restful himself.

then an idea came to him: if you were struggling so much, then why didn't he take you away? take you away to his village, where you needn't struggle anymore, where you could be waited on hand and foot and live out your days in peace. surely that was what you deserved, wasn't it? after all, this emotion you'd introduced him to- one which he only felt when in your presence- brought upon him the closest thing to happiness he'd experienced. it'd only grow with your constant presence, surely. besides, you deserved a reward for it, didn't you?

once that thought set root in his mind, he sprang up to transfer thought to action. preparing a room for your arrival with eagerness. he took control of everything that went on with an iron fist, not allowing it to be less than perfection. and they delivered, as it would not only be you but him staying in this room. it was only natural, with the women of his cult being the way they were. they'd take any opportunity to get you out of the picture just as they'd stab each other in the back with no hesitation. it was a vicious place to live in, but he wouldn't let them ruin you. anyone but you, the person who showed him happiness.

by the time dawn broke out, the only thing missing in the room was you. knowing you, he'd probably have to keep you confined there until you adjust to your new life. douma isn't blind to the fact that he'll be betraying the trust he'd so meticulously built up to that point. however in his eyes, he can simply build it back up again once it crumbles. after all, he knows the human mind best. that's how he's got this far, after all, both with you and with life in general.

though your life will be lonely, with no one to trust, douma will be sure to give back to you what you gave to him. he'll be sure to give you as much happiness as you gave him, as well as the sensation he names 'love' that blooms whenever you are near. no matter what, he'll make sure you experience what he does when you're in his presence.

you'll never be free, but then again, as long as you'd known douma, you were never truly free. the only change is that there's no safety in a crowd of strangers in this place. not that you'd ever be near others in this place anyway, with douma very much aware of how they behave and think.

[another-sonic-blog]

Stages: What is it?

Stages: Intimate Friends: Pt.5 : What is it? (Chapter 18)

Pairing: ShadAmy 

3K

Previous: https://another-sonic-blog.tumblr.com/post/190987431195/stages-amys-day 

.

Rouge wasn't one to impose herself in Shadow's relationships.

It's not like she didn't care, on the contrary, it was one of her priorities. When Maria came part of the 'team', she told Shadow over and over again to leave her. He didn't listen.

Then he was badly hurt. The second time she came into their lives, she didn't bother to bring up the subject. Someone else was on that matter.

Her closest friend, Amy Rose.

And Shadow's new love. Although he was too stupid to realize.

If Rouge really thought about it, she knew she could pint-point the moment Shadow saw Amy as more than a friend. She can even tell the moment Shadow began to feel love towards her.

Like? When they were repairing the bike Amy gave to Shadow, DR.

Love? When Shadow let Amy ride BB, his favorite bike.

Rouge still couldn't believe Shadow let Amy ride his bike after what happened with Maria. She remembers asking for a ride once and Shadow preferred to pay for a taxi for her than to give her a ride.

Amy was in love with Shadow and Shadow was in love with her ... so what was stopping them?

Oh yes, Shadow's inability to understand feelings.

Shadow was confused as to what real love feels like. He might have loved Maria, but Rouge knew that it was mostly the fact that he didn't want to be alone. After all the psychological damage she did to him, it is understandable that he can't recognize when someone is being supportive. Most importantly, he can't realize what it feels like to be in love.

However, Rouge was enjoying the drama too much and instead of intervening, she decided to wait and see.

She only intervened when Shadow was acting like a jerk or stupid. Or both.

Rouge wanted to say something now because at the moment Shadow was being stupid and Amy ... well, she was something else.

"Amy is dating Sonic," Rouge whispered to herself. "Should I tell Shadow?"

"Tell me what?"

Goddamit, Shadow was a sneaky one.

They were currently at Team Dark's office. It was early morning, the sunlight trespassed the large windows of the office. Their desks were nicely illuminated. Rouge's desk was the cleanest. Shadow's could be clean as well, but the constant love letters he got daily filled his desk. Omega had a desk as well but it was empty. As requested of him, Omega didn't need a computer nor other necessities. He made his reports with his internal system and sent them to the Commander's computer.

"Are you going to tell me or not?" Shadow asked again.  

"Nothing, just that Mia passed by. She told me to tell you she was sorry." Rouge replied. It wasn't a lie, she just wanted to stop herself from telling him the news.

"I'll talk to her later," Shadow walked to his desk and very discreetly. Almost as if he didn't want to show he cared, he asked, "... Have you heard anything ... about Amy?"

How interesting.

"You haven't talked to her? I thought you two were close." Rouge sat down on her desk, trying to pretend that she was busy doing work.

"We are," said Shadow.

"How close?"

"That doesn't concern you."

"True. Besides ... " Rouge looked at him teasingly, "You will never be as close to her as she is to Sonic."

Rouge got exactly what she wanted from Shadow. His expression hardens, eyes were sharp and he showed no expression.

"If you are trying to tell me something, then say it already bat." Shadow's voice changed, it got deeper. If Rouge didn't know Shadow, she would be scared. However she knew him too well, he wouldn't dare to harm her.

"You are stupid. Really stupid."

"Look, I am not in the mood to-"

"You love Amy and you don't even realize it."

A few seconds passed and ...

"Holy mother of Chaos, you do!" Rouge exclaimed. "I knew it!"

"I don't."

"You hesitated!"

Shadow sighed as he massaged his forehead. "I don't like her Rouge. If I did, I would know."

"No, you wouldn't." Rouge smiled at him. "You don't know what you are feeling ... you haven't been in love before and Maria doesn't count."

Shadow gave it a small thought. He never considered the possibility because he didn't need to. He liked the friendship he had with Amy. It has been a few weeks since he last saw her but if he was totally honest ... he missed her like crazy.

He didn't know anything about her since the incident at the Star Festival. However, he rested well knowing that if anything happened to her, Rouge would be one to tell him.

But even so, every night before going to sleep he found himself reading their previous text messages.

"Was this lov-"

"You hesitated again!"

.

It was late at night.

Shadow had finally finished his report. G.U.N was empty and only a few guards remained to take care of the building. Shadow was ready to go to his new apartment, Before that, he needed to visit a place.

"Mr. Shadow!"

Oh, he had forgotten about her.

"Agent Mia, how may I help you?"

"Please call me Mia."

Shadow didn't want to be mean but he didn't want to get too involved with the brown hedgehog. Especially after what happened during the Star Festival.

However, looking at how happy she looked, he couldn't avoid it.

"Mia ... is there anything I can help you with?"

"No, I waited for you to come out! I wanted to see if we could walk together home."

It was 1 a.m. Shadow looked up and down to the girl. She was wearing a long black skirt, which was a bit dirty. A blue shirt that didn't match her yellow cardigan. Her hair was a bit messy and her eyes were tired.

"I live in Central apartments," Shadow replied. "It's like a 20-minute walk from here and I have something to do."

"I live there too! I saw you taking out the trash once and I thought we could go home together."

"I have to ... visit someone."

"Oh ..."

Shadow regretted saying that ... just a little. The young hedgehog looked to the ground, embarrassed and a bit sad.

"I am sorry ... I just thought..." Mia's ear lowered and she looked so disappointed. As if she wanted to cry.

How much Shadow hated that. He just couldn't stand seeing anyone cry. Especially females.

"Fine ... but I do need to do something fist."

.

They just needed two more streets and they will be there. Shadow thought if he could get a small peek of the Resistance today, he could sleep at ease.

"Mr. Shadow-"

"I told you before, don't call me Mr. Shadow," He said. "You make me feel old."

"Oh, yeah, sorry," Mia said and after a pause, she added, "Have you ever been in love?"

Again that question. There were multiples ways he could respond to that. After what Rouge told him today, he did a lot of thinking in the office. What he felt for Maria, may not have been love after all. It probably was at first, but the love he had completely died when Maria cheated on him.

And now, Amy.

He knew he loved her but as a friend. He thought that the way he cared for her was normal. Until he realized he will think of her must of his time. Shadow wished he could see her every day and spend his time with her.

"Was this lov-"

For a moment, Shadow forgot how to breathe. There was no Resistance, only leftover ashes and woods. Nothing was left and his mind began to get the best of him.

"Where is Amy? Is she ok? Does she know about this? What is happening? Who did this-"

"Mr. Shadow ... the Resistance-"

Shadow turned around to look at Mia.

"Mia, I apologize but I need to leave you. Take care."

.

On the luxury apartment of a white bat, Amy and Rouge were relaxing. It was a girl's night and watching reality shows and facemasks were a must for the two girls. They laid on the king-size bed and ate some munchies.

"So, what is your plan now?"

"Look for a job, what is there to do?"

"And the Resistance ... you are giving up on that?"

"Not completely," Amy replied. "I want to start another agency but first I need to pay my debts."

Amy was currently staying at Rouge's apartment. Sonic had offered Amy to stay with him but she kindly denied the offer. She needed to concentrate on getting a new job but she knew she wouldn't get anything done if Sonic was with her all the time.

Sonic was ... well ... too affectionate.

Not that she minds, she enjoyed. Because of that, she was scared that she might give to temptation and get distracted.

"As I've said before, I can help you with the money but I know you are going to say no, so I don't even bother-"

"Actually, Rouge ... I think I am going to ask for your help now." Amy said shyly. She was still indecisive and hated asking for help. This wasn't in Amy's character, she didn't like to be in 'debt' with her friends.

Amy studied Rouge's face, she was surprised and that immediately made her back out.

"But, you don't have to! You have already done so much for me and-"

"No Amy! I would love to help you!"

RING RING

The two were interrupted as Amy's phone began to ring. Her eyes widen as the name of 'Shadow' appeared on the small screen of her flip phone.

Amy looked over at Rouge, surprised. She was going to answer but Shadow stopped calling. Then, Rouge's phone began to ring.

"Someone is impatient," Rouge said as she grabbed her phone and showed Amy the screen that displayed Shadow's name.

A few seconds passed and Rouge's phone stopped ringing. Suddenly, they heard strong knocking coming from the door.

"Could that be ... ?" Rouge and Amy share one more look before going crazy.

"Don't tell him I am here!"

"Ok!" Rouge said as she stood up from the bed.

"Wait, no! I need to be civil! If he asks, tell him I am here!" Amy said as she followed Rouge.

"Ok!"

"Wait, no! He was a jerk to me! He ignored me! If he asks, I am not here!"

"Ok!" They were both already in front of the door. Amy stepped away just a little so she could hear the conversation.

Rouge opened the door, just a little and there he was. An angry Shadow looking for answers.

"Where is she?" Shadow asked.

"Who are you talking about?"

"You know damn well who I am talking about."

"Be more specific-"

"Amy, just get out already! I can smell you from a mile away if I wanted to."

Amy facepalmed herself. She sometimes disliked how 'ultimate' Shadow was.

Rouge opened the door fully, knowing already that their plan was a failure. Amy showed herself to Shadow in her pink pajamas, blushing from ear to ear.

"Hey, Shadow."

.

It was awkward. Only the signing of night birds surrounded them and as they walked through the park, the moonlight shone their way.

Shadow seemed to be enjoying himself. He looked at Amy with the corner of his eye. She was in pajamas and trembled a little. It was a cold night after all.

Shadow took off his jacket and put it on top of Amy's shoulders.

Amy shrugged, she immediately took it off. She didn't want to be mean but in a sense, she felt bad. It may be ridiculous but she felt as if she was betraying the blue one. "Oh, I am fine. Thank you tho."

Shadow was surprised at her reaction. She had always accepted his jacket and if he was honest, it did hurt a little her indifference.

"Was this lov-"

"So, how you been?"

His thoughts were interrupted again. Amy's voice had a certain calmness he couldn't explain. He was relieved that she seemed to not be angry at him.

"I am not here to talk about myself," Shadow replied. "I saw what happened to the Resistance, are you alright-"

"I don't want to talk about that."

Amy's voice changed again, a certain hurt in her tone and Shadow began to panic.

"Why didn't you tell me? I could have helped you."

"Just so you can ignore me? No thank you, I don't need your help."

Shadow stood in front of the pink one, "But you accepted Rouge's help."

He said as he meant that Amy asked to stay at Rouge's apartment for some time.

"Unlike you, I trust her."

Damn, that hurts.

Shadow gulped, trying to hide the small pain he had in his chest. "That doesn't mean I don't care."

"You have a very peculiar way of showing it."

The wind blew through the park's tree. It also made Amy's hair dance with it. Shadow analyzed her. He couldn't understand how someone could look as astonishing as her. Even with the painful look in her face, he didn't know what it was about Amy that made him feel a certain way.

He thought of everything, in any way that could make that sadness go away. He knew he had messed up and terribly. However, even now he wasn't sure if he should be this close to Amy. G.U.N was after her, as his mission was to report every aspect of her life.

He didn't want to betray her like that.

But he also didn't want to betray his job.

He needed to figure out it first. Who this villain was ... he trusted Amy more than anyone but G.U.N. had solid proof.

That it was her.

And even so, Shadow didn't care.

Something was pulling him towards her. A strange force was tempting him to get closer to her. Shadow looked at her face and his eyes naturally ended in her lips.

Shadow had never felt hungry, actually, he thought he wasn't capable of feeling that.

Until this moment.

Because he could swear, his mouth water the moment Amy licked her lips.

It was as if her lips were begging to be touched, caressed.

And Shadow wanted to satisfy that.

Almost like an instinct, Shadow placed his hands in Amy's cheeks, softly he began to bring her closer to his face.

He was ready. He just wanted to try them. He just wanted to get lost in their flavor.

"Was this lov-"

Amy pushed him away.

She was stopping herself from crying.

Shadow regretted it.

"I am sorry. I don't know what took over me-"

"Do you think this is a game?"

Shadow didn't say anything. He wasn't understanding what Amy was trying to say. He stood quiet.

"Don't you know how hard it is?" Amy continued.

"Amy ... " Shadow began, "I don't understand-"

"I love you!"

It was quiet as if the world had stopped.

"I love you and it's not the friendly type," Amy replied. "I love how kind you are. How grumpy you are when you wake up, how you smell, how you talk and walk ... and I love the way my life feels complete when I am with you."

Amy cried more. Seeing that Shadow wasn't responding, she gave him her biggest secret.

"And I even love the way you don't love me."

Amy got closer to Shadow and looked at him in the eyes. "So please, don't give me hopes ... because it hurts and I won't be able to forget you."

A few moments passed in which none of them said anything. The silence was killing Amy, especially because she couldn't read Shadow. There were a few emotions she could describe, however. Confusion, surprise, and indecisiveness.  

Amy said that she didn't want to have hope. But in a small corner in her heart, she did have it.

Hope that one day, Shadow would look at her the same she looks at him.

But his expression ... it was everything she needed to know that her feelings wouldn't be accepted.

"You don't have to say anything, I know its weird," said Amy. "I just hope we can still be friends."

Embarrassed, Amy walked away, leaving the dark one alone.

If Shadow wanted to stop her, he would have.

But he didn't want to.

He had messed up with her too much already. Shadow didn't want to say anything that might hurt her later on.

If he doesn't love her and he says that he does, then that would just hurt her more.

He needed to think, but the happiness he felt didn't allow him to. Shadow couldn't believe that someone as pure and kind as Amy was able to love someone as broken as him. Someone as unworthy of love as him.

But if Amy loves ... then does that mean he is worthy of real love after all?

Shadow looked up to the sky and watched the moon.

Yes, it was pretty. But Amy could outshine it.

Shadow would think of Amy, whenever he felt sad and he gets better. Whenever he needs strength, she is on his mind.

But it wasn't only that.

Shadow knew that Amy made him happy, and she had made him the best he could be.

He knew that if there was one person he wanted to spend the rest of his life with ... it was her, it was Amy.

Maybe Rouge was right, maybe he had certain feelings for the pink hedgehog since they began talking. From the moment he saw her at G.U.N.'S New Year's dance ball. To them racing motorcycles, to the saddest moments of his life. Amy was there ... and he wouldn't change that for anything.

Maybe what he thought it was a strong friendship, it was something else.

Shadow kept looking at the moon and stars, he sighed as the realization hit him.

"Maybe ... It was love" He thought.

" ... No... It is love."

.

.

.

.

.

.

.

A/N: Finally, Shadow realizes he is in love with Amy. But Amy is a relationship now, so how will Shadow react to this? Why is G.U.N. going after Amy? Who is this villain?

The end is near.

Next: https://another-sonic-blog.tumblr.com/post/612358382054244352/stages-maybe-jealous

[actuallyvady]

Vady Reads MDZS - Reincarnation

An explanation of these posts can be found here

Wei Wuxian has been resurrected by means of a dark ritual. He has been offered a body in exchange for revenge, but the details of that revenge are unknown to him. He must follow through anyway, or he will be destroyed, never to be reincarnated. He learns what he can of the person who gave him his new body. 

More under the cut.

We get more infodump here, mostly about Mo Xuanyu’s background. I don’t think the specifics are important to record, but there are some important pieces of info.

The Mo family are not cultivators, and regard cultivators with awe. 

Mo Xuanyu was crazy, but only after he was thrown out-- “as if his life was scared out of him.” 

Mo Xuanyu was gay.

Mo Xuanyu was bullied by his family to the point of sacrificing his own life in order to get revenge. 

The story of Mo Xuanyu continues the theme of reputation, and adds a layer of the fickleness of people’s esteem. His mother was the child of a servant, and looked down on. She then attracted a cultivator’s eye, and gained esteem for it-- the family took pride in her. Then he left her and their attitude changed again. Their regard for her, and for her son, changes easily. 

The divide between the Mo family and the cultivation world is an interesting contrast; the prologue was all from the perspective of the cultivation world, and these people… what does the Mo family even know about Wei Wuxian? Would they recognize the name? What rumors would they have heard? Mo Xuanyu would have heard it from his time as a disciple, but the rest of them? This is probably the last place anyone would look for the fearsome YiLing Patriarch, though-- why would he be reborn in this backwater hicktown?

I love the detail that the family thinks Mo Ziyuan could have been a great cultivator-- Wuxian seems real dismissive of that. Does a person have to be born with a talent for it? That may be something that is known to those who are familiar with the genre. Based on Wuxian’s response to the idea, though, it seems like becoming a cultivator requires being born to it, in some way, and that Mo Ziyuan-- a child with no cultivator in his ancestry-- would likely not have it, where Mo Xuanyu-- whose father was not merely a cultivator, but the leader of a prominent sect, and presumably very powerful-- did. 

This is the first time homosexuality is mentioned, and… it’s not entirely clear to me whether it is itself something shameful, or whether the shame was that he “harassed” other disciples. Probably both-- if he had “harassed” female disciples, that would have been normal, not scandalous. Textually speaking, though, that’s not really made clear. He also is wearing makeup-- badly applied, horrible looking makeup, but makeup. Is that supposed to be because he was gay or because he was crazy? 

(I have some thoughts about Mo Xuanyu being crazy, but as I am attempting to keep this centered only on what I have read so far, I won’t mention them-- they’re based on stuff we find out later. I want to see, with this re-read, whether that headcanon holds up.)

(Speaking of things we don’t know yet: let’s start tracking characters that are bullied, picked on, or treated terribly! The count so far is just Mo Xuanyu, and his response was to sacrifice himself to summon the most evil spirit he could think of to kill his entire family. Also, he is treated this way mostly for shit that’s not his fault-- while his disgraceful return to Mo Village was due to his actions, he’s mistreated because his family hated his mother, because they think he ‘stole’ Ziyuan’s chance to be a cultivator, and because he’s crazy. Also, there’s the very real possibility that he was kicked out of the sect because he was gay-- yes, the scandal was due to his actions, but would the same thing have happened if he had been harassing women? Let’s keep an eye on people who are bullied, why they are bullied, and how they respond.)

In this chapter we already start to see cracks in what we were told about Wei Wuxian in the prologue. 

That one of his first thoughts is “when did I do something as immoral as…” is telling. The people celebrating Wei Wuxian’s death certainly would not have put stealing a body past him, but he himself thinks it is immoral and that he wouldn’t do it? His first thought is basically “how dare you!” but after that he’s… confused, groggy, and not at all the terrifying YiLing Patriarch that we heard about last chapter. 

He does realize what happened almost immediately-- he recognizes the array, or is able to decipher it enough to know what it did. It is an “ancient, forbidden technique” that he presumably had studied at some point, to figure it out right away, which does align with what we’ve heard, at least as far as his skills and abilities are concerned. Turns out the talk of his doing evil magics was at least partially true! 

… but he “refuses to accept” the whole deal because he is not, in his mind, an “extremely villainous ghoul.” 

I have to laugh at the phrasing here (and I wish I could read the original to know if the tone is the same) where he thinks “his reputation wasn’t great.” My dude, we just had a whole prologue in which the entire cultivation world celebrated your death. Whether or not you were “extremely villainous,” your reputation was way worse than “not great.” 

It is interesting that he says he was a harmless ghost-- that he did not seek vengeance. That goes directly counter to one of the things we were told last chapter, that if he was ever to return he would unleash hell. 

I absolutely adore that he whines “how could this happen to me…” about being given a body (do you not… want to live again? Or is it the requirement to take revenge that you don’t want to do? In any case, you are the fearsome YiLing Patriarch, stop whining like a child), and that the last thing in this chapter is “you’ve got the wrong person.” Wei Wuxian knows exactly what they said about him-- he lists off several things-- but he also tells us, with that last line, that he is not what Mo Xuanyu thought. 

So, what do we know about Wei Wuxian, now that we’re in his head? 

Whiny*

Does not think of himself as particularly evil

Would not have stolen a body

Experienced with dark, forbidden magics

Thinks he is the wrong person to call on for revenge

Now, looking at this chapter in terms of how it functions… it’s a jarring change. The prologue had no characters; it was all dialogue from unnamed cultivators. It also spoke of great and important events, and the narrator was distant, telling the audience things but not from any one perspective. Here we are in Wei Wuxian’s head, seeing things from his perspective, and the events are… mundane. An asshole cousin beats him up and trashes his room because he complained to his parents. There’s obviously more going on-- a dark ritual, an array painted in blood, a tragic backstory-- but we are thrown into this scene that is very petty. 

Having our viewpoint character not know what is happening is a useful device; we don’t have to be told things he already knows because he doesn’t know what’s going on. We get to figure things out along with him. At the same time, we have this setup where we have been told a lot of things about who our viewpoint character is, and we can immediately see that the grandiose caricature presented in the prologue is… not particularly accurate. The fearsome YiLing Patriarch, whose power could level mountains and empty seas, is confused and annoyed at having been forced into a body to enact someone’s revenge. 

Two chapters in, and we have been shown: do not believe what the rumor mill says, it’s almost certainly exaggerated, and potentially entirely wrong. 

*okay, that might be a bit harsh, but seriously, he repeats “how could this happen to me” several times as he figures out what happened. Still, it’s definitely not the sort of behavior I would have assumed from the prologue’s descriptions of him. 

[mahalkitajohnnysuh]

Housemates (Jaehyun)

Of course, I had to do my version of having Jeong Jaehyun as a housemate. Expect fluffy happenings and realizations on his part in this piece. 

As always, here’s a Jaehyun GIF for you. I just want to poke and squish his cheeks here!  

Mahal ko kayong lahat! :)

–––

Summary: Like the previous ones, this story is inspired by this post. There was one item that I wasn’t able to write about, and one of the scenarios here is inspired by real life. Can you guess what that is? 

POV: This has a mix of both 2nd and 3rd POVs since I wrote them at different times. 

Word count: 2,100 + words, which is the longest I have for this series. 

Warning: Truthfully, I wrote this piece sort of a prelude to their affair, so expect that he’s quite sweet with Essie on this. 

–––

There was a time in Essie’s life that she and Jaehyun were housemates before their affair. Maybe that experience was why the guy fell for her but still didn’t do anything about it until it was too late.

Essie stayed in Jaehyun’s old place when he and Taeil were still housemates. This time, Taeil was staying with Donghyuck since they became closer over time. Not that the old roommates weren’t friends anymore; they just grew apart.

Essie and Taeil loved bonding over music and cats. Jaehyun will observe them from afar, with his trademark dimpled smile, as they played with kittens while listening to Frank Ocean.

“Are you guys hungry?” The pink-haired guy interrupted their moment, moving closer to them so they will notice his presence. “Yeah, we are!” Essie and Taeil said at the same time, which made them giggle afterward. “Aren’t you hungry too, Ying?” The girl cooed at the white kitten on her lap. “I’m sure Yang is hungry!” The guy beside her said, stroking the fur of the black kitten he now carried in his arms.

Jaehyun chuckled at his housemates before grabbing his coat. “I’ll get you your favorites, please wait for me.”

“Okay, bye! Take care!” Both voices said at the same time, along with the soft meowing of kittens.

\\\

“I can’t sleep,” Essie whined one evening when she appeared in Jaehyun’s room. The girl was dressed in men’s pajamas, which she probably swiped from Johnny.

“How can I help you sleep?” The guy asked, motioning her to come further into his room. She walked hesitantly towards the small chair beside his shelf of knick-knacks, her eyes roaming all over his room.

“Your place looks cute and cozy, it’s very you,” she commented before taking a seat on said small chair.

Jaehyun had just closed the door to his room and was now standing in front of Essie. “Thanks sweetie, that’s very thoughtful of you,” he sat across from her on the edge of his bed, “but what would you want to do now?”

She assumed a thinker’s pose – hands cradling her chin – and hummed. “Are you watching anything right now?”

“A series? Let’s see,” he got his phone and checked Netflix. “Just re-runs of ‘Friends’. Would you like to watch it with me?”

She nodded eagerly, and he set up the television. “Thanks, dude. Maybe watching a series might make me sleepy,” she mumbled as she was now seated on one part of his bed.

“No problem, my sweet Essie. I’m happy to help you out,” he said as he plopped on the space beside her as the iconic introduction of the series now played.

A few episodes in and Jaehyun noticed that the girl was yawning. “Okay, I think you’re sleepy now,” he whispered. She gave a small nod before yawning loudly. “Thanks again, Jay. Sorry if I had to crash here just so I can be sleepy.”

“Anything for you, sweetie.” He squeezed her hand, which she returned. “Just drop by when you have a problem or something.”

She got up from the bed and waved silently before leaving his room. This was one of those moments that he felt weird and warm at the same time – he was slowly falling for her.

Maybe he should stop giving her pet names? That might be the reason why he found her more attractive each day. Or maybe he’s just making an excuse because he has always been interested in her from the start.

\\\

“Good morning, honey,” Jaehyun greeted Essie, who looked like she needed more hours of sleep despite sleeping for more than the recommended 8 hours.

“Honey? Yesterday I was sweetie,” she mumbled while rubbing her eyes. “You never seem to run out of nicknames for me, eh?”

“Yup, as long as I think of anything to call you, I’ll call you that.” He said, smiling at her as he handed her the box of cereal. “Do you want anything else?”

“Milk, of course. How am I supposed to eat this without it?” Essie shook the box in front of him in annoyance.

He chuckled at her reaction and handed her a carton of milk from the fridge. “You just want some milk, okay then,” he muttered.

This got her laughing as she remembered a viral video of him studying for his English oral exams, and netizens highlighted that line as one of his iconic moments.

“Don’t you dare bring it up, honey,” he grumbled as he got a bowl and spoon for her.

“But that was really funny, Yoon Oh!”

His only response was a glare, which didn’t faze Essie at all. Instead, she burst into laughter and even slapped the table for emphasis.

\\\

“You poor baby,” Jaehyun said, brushing the strands of Essie’s hair away from her face. “I’m sorry you had to see me like this, usually I get better with meds and rest,” the girl replied, her voice a bit hoarse.

Essie got sick during the second week of her stay in Jaehyun and Taeil’s apartment. The latter was out, and it was just her and the former at home.

At first, she was just sneezing more than usual. Then, she was coughing. Soon enough, she had to wear a facemask despite her aversion to them. Jaehyun noticed that her eyes were red and watery as well.

When he decided to check on Essie a while ago, he saw that she was completely wrapped in her comforter even if the AC was on. He took matters into his own hands, and that’s why they ended up like this.

“I heard from Johnny that your mom always made you warm calamansi juice whenever you got sick,” he said as he reached for the mug on her bedside table.

She got teary-eyed as she took the mug from him. “You didn’t have to do this for me,” she said before taking a sip. “I just needed more rest, that’s all.”

“You’ll get better faster when there’s someone to take care of you.”

Essie felt her insides warm up even more with Jaehyun’s comment, and she drank more of the juice he made her.

“I also made some chicken noodle soup. Everything to get your flu out of the way, okay?” He flashed her a smile and patted her thigh.

Essie was practically burning from his touch but did her best not to show that she felt such. She smiled weakly and went back to sleep.

Despite Jaehyun’s good intentions, his actions made Essie’s temperature go higher.

“And I thought you’ll be better faster with my warm offerings,” he said the following day as he got the thermometer from her.

“I’m sorry, but as I said, I need more rest. But you can make me more of that warm calamansi juice though. Please?” She attempted to bat her eyelashes at him, which made Jaehyun giggle.

“Alright, I’ll make you more of that. I’m glad you love it though,” he said as he kissed her temple.

“Thank you, Jay. You’re the best. Your future girlfriend will be so lucky to have you,” she murmured before closing her eyes.

He took one last look at her before going to the kitchen to prepare her drink.

Yes, Essie. You are lucky to have me.

\\\

One of the things that irked you when you were roommates with Jaehyun was that he always had to put his game on loudspeaker.

You groaned as you heard the sound of machine guns, a female voice screaming ‘Victory’, and conversations between the characters of the game.

“Jay, would you turn it down a bit? I’m trying to focus here,” you said as poked your head in his room.

He was intent on killing the enemy on the screen, and it took him a couple of seconds to respond to your request. He paused the game and flashed you an apologetic smile.

“Sorry about that, I’ll just lower the volume. I like playing games with the sound on, it gets me more in the mood.”

You rolled your eyes at his answer and closed the door. You hoped that he would do what he said since even your noise-canceling headphones weren’t strong enough to block the noises of his game.

Maybe it’s about time that you replace that Bose hand-me-down from your sister.

\\\

You were surprised to see two shirts, a pair of joggers, and a hoodie that wasn't yours in your hamper.

You examined the tags and realized that these clothes belonged to Jaehyun. Your rooms were just beside each other, with your hamper placed outside your room.

Since it was just outside, it was convenient for you to dump your laundry there. And maybe he thought the same since he also did with his clothes on your hamper.

“Jay…” You started as you poked your head in his room again. He was lying on his bed scrolling through his phone. He wore his headband, a black shirt, and a pair of shorts. He looked comfortable in his position – a bit of his torso showed as the shirt had risen.

“Yeah?” He said without turning around. When you squinted your eyes to look at what he was doing, you chuckled. He was responding to tweets from friends and fans.

“May I ask why you put some of your laundries in my basket?”

This got him to stand up immediately and rush to the hamper outside your rooms. “Sorry about that, Essie,” he said, plucking out his clothes that you have now carefully folded on top of yours. “It’s just easier to dump them there than put them in my hamper inside the room.”

“Then why not just put your hamper outside then? I’m sure ours don’t look the same,” you said, peeking into his room for his basket.

Shoot, it looked like yours as well – a wicker basket with a lid and linen lining inside.

“No wonder you’ve been putting your clothes in mine,” you groaned as you dragged the basket outside. “I’ll just put a label on which one’s yours and mine, okay?”

The guy nodded, opening the lid of his hamper and dumping his laundry in. “I’m sorry, Essie. This won’t happen again.”

But of course, it still happened again even if you have put labels on your baskets. Maybe that’s just the way it is with Jaehyun – you’ll always have to segregate what’s yours and his in your respective hampers.

If you only knew that he liked to put his clothes in your basket so it could mingle with the scent of yours. It’s a little bit creepy and sweet at the same time – who knew that the heartthrob has a side like this, eh?

\\\

“I can’t sleep again.”

You said, hoping your voice was loud enough for him through the wall.

“Well, we can talk if you want. Do you want to come here?”

Jaehyun answered, his voice loud enough to penetrate through the wall.

“I’m too tired to move, dude. My legs feel like jelly from bowling, which I haven’t played in ages.” You rubbed your thighs in hopes that they feel a bit better.

You heard him chuckle first before he responded to your comment. “Well, I suppose you didn’t stretch first?”

“Ugh, I forgot about that! I’ll take note of that next time. Anyway, what’s up with you?”

“I’m trying to compose something. I’m talking to you as I sit in front of my keyboard right now.”

“Do you have any chords in mind to start it off?”

“Well, here it goes,” he said, pressing a couple of chords that sounded melancholic. “That seems fitting for an emotional song,” you commented. “Have you thought about the lyrics?”

Your conversation continued even if there was a wall separating you two. Taeil wasn’t at the apartment right now as he went home to his parents. Lately, it’s always you and Jaehyun who hung out. You missed Taeil since only the two of you loved cats, and he brought Ying and Yang home.

As you and your housemate worked on a song together, you couldn’t help but feel warm inside. The AC in your room was on, but the warmth blooming inside you rendered it almost useless. It was nice talking to Jaehyun like this. You were able to collaborate on a song together even if you didn’t have to see each other’s faces.

Before you knew it, sunlight peeked in through your curtains. “Wow, dude. We’ve been talking for what, four to five hours straight? It’s now 5 in the morning.”

“Yeah, Essie. I can’t believe it as well,” he chortled. You heard the sound of a chair being moved and took it as a cue to wrap things up.

“Thanks for talking to me, Jay. And I’m glad that I was able to help you out with your composition.” You said, now lying on your bed instead of sitting on it.

“Sure thing, anything for you. Like I always say, right?” He never seemed to stop chuckling at his words, but you didn’t let it get to you for now.

“Good night, Jaehyun.”

“Good morning, Essie.”

–––

FIN

If you guessed that having warm calamansi juice while being sick is inspired by real life, then you are correct. I miss it though! 

[randomfandomimagine]

The One (Peter x Reader)

Character: Peter Petrelli

Fandom: Heroes

Categories: Reader Insert, Female!Reader, Asexual!Reader

Title: The One

  Requested by (heroes) anon:

I've got a imagine request! Could you write an imagine where fem reader is asexual and has been told that shed change once she met the right man ever since telling her family by her dad. She also grew up in an emotionally abusive environment so she's really nervous around men, especially Peter once she begins to fall for him and doesn't know if he'll be like her dad so she becomes distant once she starts falling. Just some fluffy hurt/comfort? Tysm - Heroes anon!!

  A/N: I guess there are many types of asexuality and many preferences and everything, but I decided to write the character this way because of her background, so please don’t take this as an accurate representation of all asexual people :P

WARNING: Mentions of past abusive relationships. 

I rolled my eyes tiredly, fed up with hearing the same useless lecture over and over again. But my mother kept on talking, insisting that I was wrong and that I would soon realize. But she just didn’t understand. Why wouldn’t she accept it?

“Don’t you want a man to take care of you, Y/N?” She insisted, throwing her hands in the air in exasperation. “A nice man to be with?”

“I don’t need a man, mother!” I angrily replied, also frustrated that she couldn’t understand me. It felt like she wasn’t trying to anyway because she wasn’t interested in my point of view since it clashed with hers. “I don’t need anyone to take care of me, I can do that myself!”

“You say that because you haven’t found the right man yet, you haven’t found the one” She smiled, almost hopeful, like she could change my mind if she seemed kind enough. “When you do, you will change your mind, you just have to find someone to stay by your side”

“You mean like dad?” I said with tears in my eyes, remembering about so many bad memories.

She immediately became silent, shocked by my sudden response. But she knew I was right. She knew that it was because of her need to be with someone that she chose the wrong person. And thanks to that I was brought up in that crappy environment. It was probably because of it that I was the way I was. But I liked it, for once in my life I was proud of being who I was.

“I don’t want to be like everyone else, I don’t want to find a man just because society tells me I need to” I kept talking, seeing as she was speechless all of a sudden. “If I’m ever with a man, it will be because I want to. But I don’t want to”

I nodded vehemently, showing her how serious and determined I was. My mother pursed her lips in a displeased grimace. She opened her mouth to talk, but no words came out of it. So I took the opportunity to continue, expressing my feelings since it felt quite liberating to admit all that out loud, even if it was in the middle of an argument.

“What if it was a woman? You’d still be against it just because it’s not the usual, right? Because it’s not ‘socially acceptable’? I’m tired of doing what people want me to do and being what people want me to be, I want to think for myself for once. And that’s what I’m doing”

I turned around, implying I was done with the conversation, when my mother spoke up again. Her low shaky tone told me that she was sad.

“But who will take care of you? I know you don’t need anyone, but… You should have someone by your side, you should change your mind”

I heaved a big sigh. She just wanted to make sure that someone looked after me, and I appreciated that. But not that way.

“I have friends” I shrugged, trying not to think too much about it. “I have other people who love me”

“But you don’t have the one” My mother probably just wanted the best life for me, not seeing that I was already happy like this.

“Maybe I do” I involuntarily evoked a certain someone’s face, but I tried to shake that thought away immediately. “Just not in the way you might think”

With that, and slightly relived that the argument had developed into softer voices instead of shouting at each other, I exited the room. I didn’t slam the door, but I did close it strongly.

I hesitated as I rested my back against the door and pulled out my phone from my pocket. As I always did when I was upset, I was tempted to call Peter and talk to him because he was the one that always managed to comfort and calm me. But not this time, I was not ready to face the feelings that he provoked within me.

*

A few days had passed and things seemed more stable. The environment was clearly uncomfortable as we sat together like every Friday of every week. Usually, the silence meant that we felt comfortable enough around each other not to have to talk. This time, it meant that there was something wrong with me.

Peter sighed, and I noticed how he quickly eyed me with the corner of his eye. He was worried, but he was scared to talk in case he would upset me. And that was the last thing he wanted to do. He was my best friend, after all.

I closed my eyes tight, cringing at my own thoughts. I was so confused! I felt something for Peter Petrelli. Maybe it was his softness, his kind nature. The way in which he would sweetly smile at me to reassure me, or how tender his eyes were as he looked at me.

But I refused to give in those feelings. It was useless to try anything. I wasn’t interested in a physical relationship, and I couldn’t hope someone to accept that. Who would be interested in being with someone that refuses to even hold hands?

I was just uncomfortable with touching, even as friends. So that was why I appreciated Peter so much, because he respected that and comforted me with a soft glance or a bright smile instead. Wait, no, I was supposed to stop liking Peter, not think about why I liked him!

“Are you okay?” Peter gingerly placed a hand on my shoulder, making me jump slightly at the unexpected yet light touch.

I yelped and slightly scooted away from him, because my heart had begun racing. I was so deep in my thoughts that the physical contact startled me.

“Sorry, I know you don’t like being touched” Peter frowned, absently flipping his hair away from his eyes. “I just… You look upset”

I dared to look into his gentle greenish eyes, he looked genuinely worried about me. I sighed, wondering if I should tell him about it all.

Peter didn’t know about my father either, I never told him. It was something far too personal and hurtful to openly talk about it. But after angrily confessing all of that to my mother before and realizing how relieving it felt, maybe I should try again. Bottling things up was only making it worse, I could try doing things different. After all, who better to open up to than him?

“Y/N?” Peter looked me up and down, concerned.

“I’ve been very distant lately, haven’t I?” I nibbled on my bottom lip, apprehensive about how the conversation would go.

“Well, yeah…” When we locked eyes, I realized he was frowning but observed me intently. “Do you want to talk about it?”

Peter sounded very surprised, because he knew how hermetic I could be. I hardly ever talked about my emotions, and the only way he usually found to comfort me was to distract me from whatever was upsetting me, even if he didn’t know what it was.

“I think so” I mumbled, absently nodding my head.

“You don’t have to, you know?” Peter’s voice lowered to a whisper, almost to fit in with the serious and soft mood that settled in the air.

That was exactly why I loved him so much. He was so kind and selfless, and I knew he would never do something to hurt me. He always tried to make sure that I was comfortable and was always looking out for me.

“No, it’s okay” I nervously licked my lips. “I want to”

“Alright” Peter nodded too, slightly flustered about the change. “I’m listening then”

“I just… I realized that bottling everything up is no help and… I want to try to speak up for once. And actually, I think you’re the one I feel most comfortable talking to” I made a pause, examining his expression. He looked attentive but remained quiet, which was making me even more nervous. “You know?”

“Yeah!” He exclaimed, just realizing I needed him to respond. “Yeah, yeah, I get that. And if you’re ready, you know I’m here for you. You can tell me anything”

Peter put his bangs away from his eyes once again and focused all his attention on me, barely even blinking. It was endearing, but at the same time a bit comical.

“You see, I know I’m a very introverted person sometimes. I don’t like sharing things about myself, I don’t like being touched, and you’re basically my only friend” I had to look away from him, being flustered myself as well. It felt embarrassing to be confessing all those things, buta heavy weight was lifted from my chest as well. It felt like I could breathe better. “I’m especially nervous around men for… well, many reasons that I’m not ready to discuss right now”

“That’s okay” He timidly intervened, afraid to upset me if he interrupted me, but it didn’t bother me. “You don’t have to talk about anything that you don’t want to”

“But…” I gulped, having to pause for a second before I continued. “With you it’s different, all of those things. Or, well, most of them anyway. Because you accept me for who I am”

I surprised myself at my own words. I was supposed to be talking about my privacy issues and how reserved I was, not about how I felt about him. I felt myself blushing and took a deep breath when I realized how fast my heart was beating. I rushed myself to say something else, to change the direction that I was taking.

“What I mean to say is that… I couldn’t expect things to change if I always do the same thing, so I guess I want to start speaking out more” My tone turned into an inquisitive one, almost wondering if I had properly voiced my thoughts and expressed myself correctly. “I don’t know, I’m still trying to figure it out”

Everything seemed so confusing and unstable. The only thing I was still sure about was that I was asexual, even if Peter nearly shook the strong foundation of my beliefs with his kindness, selflessness, affection and thoughtfulness. Yet that was exactly what I made my mind up about. That was why I was distant, because I needed to understand my feelings for him and make sure they didn’t clash with everything else.

“Okay” Peter smiled, with that sweet and warm smile of his that suddenly made my heart flutter. “That’s great, I’m really proud of you. I know it’s a big step, it’s important for you”

“Yeah” I smiled a little myself, feeling better upon seeing his reaction.

“Can I... ask you something?”

“I guess”

“Could I kiss you?”

“N-No” I gasped, taken aback by his sudden question, and I honestly replied without thinking, almost on an instinct.

“You-you’re right” Peter, who was sitting to be facing me, sat up straight and faced his entire body to the TV in front of us, even if it was turned off. “I shouldn’t have asked you, I’m sorry if I made you uncomfortable. Now I feel awful, I… I wasn’t thinking, I’m really sorry, Y/N”

I knew Peter, and I knew he was genuinely sorry about that. I observed him as he blushed and closed his hands into fists. He was clearly lecturing himself on his head for that.

“Why did you ask me that out of the blue?” I mumbled, still watching him in astonishment.

“Because of what you said, I thought that maybe you… But I shouldn’t have asked you, right now you’re feeling so vulnerable and it’s not right. Forget I ever said anything”

I stared at him for a moment, debating on what I should say or do. But first I needed to be sure about his feelings for me. Then I would do something about it.

“Peter, do you… feel something for me?” I asked, and just as I did butterflies flew inside my stomach.

He looked at me with the corner of his eyes, but didn’t dare to completely turn to me. He just crossed his hands and nodded in silence.

My heart skipped a beat. And all of a sudden I realized how long it had been since he did. How lately he showed different emotions, how lately he behaved differently. He was even more caring, even more determined to make me happy, even more thoughtful and attentive. Just when I thought that wasn’t possible.

But I had been too blind and confused about my own feelings to realize until then. Until we were faced with the situation at full.

“I want to try” I found myself saying, having to avert my eyes when they kept falling on his lips.

“Try what?” Peter whispered, still too embarrassed to make eye contact.

“Kiss you”

“What?!”

“I want to try and kiss you”

His eyes were wide as he slowly turned to me. His soft pink blush was now of a violent shade of red instead.

“Are you sure?”

“Yes, I want to give it a try”

“Y/N, you don’t have to…”

“I said I want to!”

I was excited, but at the same time extremely nervous. It would be my first kiss. After all, Peter was the first one I liked that way. Up until then I hadn’t felt any kind of attraction toward anyone. And even if I still didn’t feel a sexual attraction, not even to him, I did feel a romantic one.

“Okay” Peter licked his lips, and I did the same when I realized how dry my mouth felt all of a sudden. “Ready?”

“Yeah” I closed my eyes in anticipation and leaned forward, waiting to meet with his lips.

After a few more seconds, I finally found them. They were so soft, so tender and passionate. Even if the kiss was barely a kiss as our lips merely grazed each other in the gentlest of ways. Yet the feather light touch send pleasant shivers up my spine.

We broke away slowly, and I opened my eyes to reveal a smitten look reflected in his. That made me smile, along with the marvelous sensation the exchange brought me. That weight I previously carried in my chest was replaced by a warm feeling that spread through my entire being.

“How was that?” Peter dedicated me a shy smile.

“Good” I nodded, self-consciously putting my hair behind my ear.

Everything felt slightly awkward but at the same time it was so sweet. I enjoyed that moment, even if I knew we would have to work through that just like we did with our friendship.

“Great” His smile widened a little, becoming a bit more confident and genuine.

We grew silent. I observed him when I realized of the implications of that kiss, of our reciprocal feelings. Maybe we could be more than friends.

“Are you willing to be ‘the one’?” I said, making finger quotes and rolling my eyes a little at the memory of my many arguments with my mother. “Are you willing to?”

Peter hesitated a little, surprised by the question. But then he blinked repeatedly when he realized he was supposed to answer. And his answer was perfect.

“Y-Yes, as long as you want me to” He tilted his head to the side in an adorable way, his soft smile never faltering.

“I do as long as you’re okay with me being… you know, me” I wasn’t going to change for him. I might open up eventually, but only because I wanted to. I promised myself to stay true to myself despite my relationship with Peter. “Even if there’s many things you don’t know about me yet”

“Hey, no” He quickly shook his head and scooted closer to me on an instinct, but for once I didn’t scoot away. “Don’t feel forced to tell me anything, you’re still on your right to keep that for yourself if you want to”

“I know, Peter, it’s just… I want to be honest with you, but…”

“You’re not ready yet”

“Well, no…”

“That’s okay”

I smiled at him once more and hesitantly rested my hand over his as it absently rested on his knee. Peter was the very proof that not all men were like my father, that no all people were judgmental. That being different wasn’t a bad thing as long as you found the right people. And perhaps physical contact wasn’t as bad as long as it was with him. And all on the right measure and with time.

Somehow, Peter seemed to realize this last part. Because he chuckled happily and gently rested his free hand over mine.

Maybe, after all, I had found the one. But not the one that would change my mind, that would make me want to change myself until I became someone I wasn’t. No, maybe I had found the one that loved me for who I was.

[spilledparchment]

I received a comment on my fic, Stormy Winds and Autumn Leaves, which really frustrated me and made me quite upset. I was finally able to craft an articulate response but I feel the need to write some more about Ginny Weasley.

For reference this is the comment I received:

What we see here is the background of a lot of Ginny Weasley Hate but I won’t be deconstructing and writing a rebuttal, I’m going to write about the character I love and why I love her.

Full disclosure, I am not a fan of how Ginny was treated in Book 7. In fact I will rant about it at length. In my fic I wrote my feelings as follows:

She hadn't asked to be Helen, hadn't asked Harry to charge into battle and keep her safe. She was Æthelflæd and Boudica. She was the dancing wind that blew in a storm. She was an eagle flying fierce and free. She'd led a rebellion and broken into the Headmaster's office. She'd been collected by Slughorn on her own merits. She was not born to sit meekly by - to be bridled and cossetted. ... he'd agreed with her mother and tried to lock her in a room in a castle for her own protection. She was no princess, no trophy, or prize. Not for her were the notions of Victorian femininity designed. She was not made for him and she would not force herself to be.

I do think it’s possible to ship Hinny but that ship requires dealing with Harry’s actions in Book 7 and the way he fundamentally stripped her of her autonomy.

Tangent over, let’s analyse the youngest Weasley sibling. aka why I love her.

When we first meet Ginny she’s asking her mother why she can’t go to Hogwarts like her siblings. 

"Now, what's the platform number?" said the boys' mother. 

"Nine and three-quarters!" piped a small girl, also red-headed, who was holding her hand, "Mom, can't I go... " 

"You're not old enough, Ginny, now be quiet. All right, Percy, you go first." 

There’s something to pay attention to here, Ginny is introduced as a slightly pushy girl who needs to be quiet. Which isn’t that dissimilar to Hermione but, crucially, the narrative repeatedly silences Ginny in a way it does not do to Hermione. Interestingly, despite the fact that Ginny cries when her sibling’s leave, she’s cheered up not with the promise of letters but a toilet seat from a prank. This, then, is something she’d appreciate. Her second appearance also involves her mother telling her to be quiet (and a lot of excitement over seeing Harry Potter.)

In the second book she’s introduced shy and nervous over meeting Harry properly. Crucially her silence is considered atypical by her family.

“Ginny,” said Ron. “You don’t know how weird it is for her to be this shy. She never shuts up normally —” 

While Harry is visiting, her mother goes on a tangent about how expensive it is to buy all Ginny’s things even if it’s secondhand. Like her older brother, Ron, Ginny is well aware of her families’ poverty and likely how much more she costs than her siblings. While Ron has hand-me downs from Fred, George, Percy, Bill, and Charlie she is a girl and her second-hand clothes need to be bought fresh.

When she arrives at Hogwarts she’s immediately sorted into Gryffindor - for valuing chivalry, nerve, daring, courage, etc. 

From there she disappears slightly from the narrative, reappearing when Ron talks mockingly about her crush on Harry and again at the beginning of October where we start to notice side-affects from her possession:

Her Pepperup Potion worked instantly, though it left the drinker smoking at the ears for several hours afterward. Ginny Weasley, who had been looking pale, was bullied into taking some by Percy. 

We also get a hint that she’s starting to worry as she blanches when Ron tries to reassure her that they’ll catch the ‘maniac’ who petrified Mrs Norris and killed the chickens. 

The possession continues to have an adverse impact on Ginny. We have a sentence where Percy mentions Ginny is upset but the narrative ignores her, just like the trio does, until after Colin Creevey’s petrification when we learn that:

Ginny Weasley, who sat next to Colin Creevey in Charms, was distraught, but Harry felt that Fred and George were going the wrong way about cheering her up. They were taking turns covering themselves with fur or boils and jumping out at her from behind statues. They only stopped when Percy, apoplectic with rage, told them he was going to write to Mrs. Weasley and tell her Ginny was having nightmares.

So at this point in the narrative we know that Percy is worried about his younger sister’s first year. She’s been crying, she looks ill, she’s been having nightmares. By this point in the narrative we haven’t seen much of the talkative girl who asserts her right to be where her brothers are and do what they do by breaking into broom sheds at night.

Her second spoken sentence in the book comes in Chapter Twelve where:

Ginny didn’t find it amusing either. “Oh, don’t,” she wailed every time Fred asked Harry loudly who he was planning to attack next, or when George pretended to ward Harry off with a large clove of garlic when they met. 

By this point in the narrative, Ginny’s suspicions are firming up. She’s being possessed. Her energy is being stripped from her and her body is being used against her will. She’s worried, has been since the chicken feathers we find out when Tom Riddle appears in the chamber, but is struggling to reconcile her “friend” with the “Heir” and, since nothing horrible has happened in her life up until this point, she has no frame of reference for what to do.

Roughly around Christmas time she tries to destroy the diary only to discover it had fallen into Harry’s hands.

A hush fell over the onlookers. Ginny was staring from the diary to Harry, looking terrified.

Which must have been her worst nightmare. Her hero and crush is in terrible danger.

Ginny is scared out of her mind and yet she still tries to tell him what’s been going on, warn him about the diary,

Just then, Ginny Weasley came over and sat down next to Ron. She looked tense and nervous, and Harry noticed that her hands were twisting in her lap. “What’s up?” said Ron, helping himself to more porridge. Ginny didn’t say anything, but glanced up and down the Gryffindor table with a scared look on her face that reminded Harry of someone, though he couldn’t think who. “Spit it out,” said Ron, watching her. Harry suddenly realized who Ginny looked like. She was rocking backward and forward slightly in her chair, exactly like Dobby did when he was teetering on the edge of revealing forbidden information. ... Ginny opened her mouth, but no sound came out.

but the appearance of her staid older brother who has been mothering her in Molly’s absence - the only sibling constantly looking out for her, who she would probably feel great love for and hate to disappoint - causes her to lose her courage.

As a result she decides to break into Harry’s room and steal the diary in order to protect him. She’s promptly repossessed and damseled for Harry to rescue.

The conversation between Tom and harry reveals a lot about Ginny’s inner life. 

“The diary,” said Riddle. “My diary. Little Ginny’s been writing in it for months and months, telling me all her pitiful worries and woes — how her brothers tease her, how she had to come to school with secondhand robes and books,  ... Ginny simply loved me. No one’s ever understood me like you, Tom.  ... “Yes,” said Riddle, calmly. “Of course, she didn’t know what she was doing at first. It was very amusing. I wish you could have seen her new diary entries . . . far more interesting, they became. . . . Dear Tom,” he recited, watching Harry’s horrified face, “I think I’m losing my memory. There are rooster feathers all over my robes and I don’t know how they got there. Dear Tom, I can’t remember what I did on the night of Halloween, but a cat was attacked and I’ve got paint all down my front. Dear Tom, Percy keeps telling me I’m pale and I’m not myself. I think he suspects me. . . . There was another attack today and I don’t know where I was. Tom, what am I going to do? I think I’m going mad. . . . I think I’m the one attacking everyone, Tom!” 

This is objectively horrifying stuff. It’s worth noting though that the most we learn about Ginny, her life and fears, in two books is through male characters explaining her to the reader. First Ron tells us Ginny isn’t a quiet character then Tom tells us everything that she experienced in her first year.

Immediately after her posession Ginny worries about being blamed for what happened and what her mother will say. A fear which probably wasn’t assuaged when the truth comes out and her parents respond by saying:

“His d-diary!” Ginny sobbed. “I’ve b-been writing in it, and he’s been w-writing back all year —” 

“Ginny!” said Mr. Weasley, flabbergasted. “Haven’t I taught you anything? What have I always told you? Never trust anything that can think for itself if you can’t see where it keeps its brain. Why didn’t you show the diary to me, or your mother? A suspicious object like that, it was clearly full of Dark Magic —”

As a feminist this scene is very interesting. While Dumbledore has just attempted to explain that her assailant has violated people much stronger and smarter than her, Ginny’s parents immediately ask her what on earth she was thinking. As a horror trope possession is next to rape. If we flip it we have a female character worried that she’s going to be in trouble for what was done to her, who is told that her assailant is a repeat offender who has attacked people she would consider more able to defend themselves, she is then immediately asked why she allowed this to happen to her. She knows better than to go out in that dress, hang out with that boy alone, write in a sentient object.

At the end of the book we are meant to accept that Ginny is ‘perfectly happy’ again.

With respect to JK Rowling, that’s unlikely. Which is something she acknowledges in Prisoner of Azkaban when Ginny is one of the characters worst affected by the dementors. Narrative wise Ginny isn’t very present in this novel, quiet and blushing around Harry but she does start to assert herself more as the story progresses.

In Goblet of Fire she properly becomes close friends with Hermione, another girl who “doesn’t know when to be quiet.”hanging around in a boys club and from the moment Harry arrives at the Burrow she talks and asserts her opinions - even if she’s blushing and nervous at the beginning. She shows herself to be clever, correctly identifying a politician and his cabinet position. How many thirteen year olds can do that in our world? She hangs over the edge of the box to see Quidditch better (and they are very very high up). 

Even before she punches Luna’s bullies, she shows herself to be a defender and protector of the less popular. 

“He told me after Potions! Said she’s always been really nice, helping him out with work and stuff — but she told him she was already going with someone. Ha! As if! She just didn’t want to go with Neville . . . I mean, who would?” “Don’t!” said Ginny, annoyed. “Don’t laugh —”

She accepts Neville’s invitation to the ball and honours it, even when she could have said yes to Ron’s proposal - she looked like she wanted to - told Neville she changed her mind and gone with her crush: Harry.

That’s a girl with integrity. 

In Order of the Pheonix she, like her siblings, attempts to listen in at the meetings and  is loudly, continually, exuberant. She is no longer shy around Harry and incorporates fully into the group. She defends Luna from bullies, joins Dumbledore’s Army, proves herself to be magically powerful and capable at Defense, and defends Harry. Ginny unashamedly takes Harry’s place as seeker, without caring what he would think and reveals that she’d been breaking the rules since childhood.

When Harry reveals his fears about Voldemort she gets angry at the way he’s forgotten that she, too, has suffered because of him. She reminds him that she was possessed and would know what it’s like and tells him that she hasn’t been able to forget about it the way he clearly did. To Harry it’s Adventure Two, to Ginny it’s a formative moment of profound trauma which lasted for almost an entire year culminating in her attempted murder.

When Michael Corner becomes upset that she defeated his house team she breaks up with him. When her brothers are horrified that she’s dating Dean Thomas and attempt to slut shame her, she silences them and declares it’s her right to date whoever she wants.

In Half Blood Prince she’s tapped by kingmaker Horace Slughorn as someone who will go far. While I, personally, don’t enjoy the way she treats Fluer Delacour in this novel and excuses Harry’s decision to use sectumsempra on Malfoy - Ginny is golden in this book.

She refuses to allow Ron to slut shame her for kissing her boyfriend. She breaks up with him because of what she assumes to be the latest in a string of incidents where he’s patronised her (in reality Harry knocked into her.) She deliberately crashes her broom into Zacharius Smith after he makes cruel comments.

In short, Ginny remains vibrant and alive. She asserts her right to bodily autonomy and defends those weaker than herself. She can be prejudiced in applying her moral code to those she considers to be undeserving but she follows her beliefs with integrity. When Harry breaks up with her for her own good she accepts it with grace and dignity, even as she points out that it’s “stupid”

Harry, in Deathly Hallows, leaves her behind at the school where we know that she, Neville, and Luna started a student revolution. She breaks into Snape’s office in an attempt to steal the Sword of Gryffindor and makes herself so much of a nuisance that the Death Eaters have to take notice.

One of the great disservices done to Ginny’s character is when Harry sides with her mother in an attempt to keep her safe by keeping her locked in the Room of Requirement. Her jubilation when she’s set free and furious battle with the Death Eaters proves how much she hated it and how wrong it was to keep her there. Ginny is a formidable fighter, her skills could have been used and, like everyone in the Wizarding World, she was never safe while Voldemort was alive. 

The Ginny who broke up with her boyfriend for helping her through the portrait hole one too many times could not have taken kindly to that.

What we see when we look at Ginny’s plotline throughout the books is one where she continually asserts herself and her right to be and do whatever she wants. She defends those weaker than her and is profoundly sensitive to any attempts to control her body - unsurprising after what happened to her at eleven but still inspiring. Despite this, her narrative is one where other attempt to control and silence her. From her mother, to Tom Riddle, to Voldemort and his Death Eaters, to her various boyfriends - Harry included - everyone tries to tell Ginevra Weasley what to do and how to behave. It is one of her greatest strengths and most admirable qualities that she refuses to be controlled.

It says a lot, I think, that in a family which contains a sibling who breaks curses in Egypt, a sibling who works with dragons, a sibling with aspirations for the ministry, and a family with Fred and George - it is growing up with Ginny that teaches Ron anything is possible if you’ve got enough nerve.

[missmeikakuna]

Chad and the Incel Chapter 2

Rated: M

Fandom: Original Fiction (but inspired by the Virgin vs Chad meme)

Relationship type: Male/Male with a bit of Female/Female (the lesbians are adorable, btw) and unrequited Male/Female (in other words, the guys are bisexual).

Description: Chad is, well, a Chad, or at least he looks like one. He’s got his sights set on the cool nerd Becky and enlists the help of her shy incel ex-friend Noah, offering to help him get the gorgeous girl (Stacy) he desperately wants. Noah is reluctant to help, believing that he will be stuck in inceldom forever, but Chad’s interest in his life gives him hope. When their plans go awry, they start turning their romantic attention towards each other.

Content Warning: Given the subject matter, you can guess that this story has dark themes in it, such as suicide and self-harm (plus the mental health issues that often cause them), sexism, slut-shaming homophobia, biphobia and transphobia. There is also swearing and some mentions of sex but nothing too explicit (hence the M rating as opposed to an Explicit rating).

2nd Post: [Venting] Was invited to a Chad’s house, I want to die

Becky wore a scarf one day and five minutes was all it took for Chad to start mourning the sight of her neck. There was no training that day, so after school he headed to the library, knowing she would go there. He was right, and to his delight she took off her scarf. As she browsed the selection, he pretended to do the same thing.

A sizeable chunk of his soul yelled, ‘Creep!’ at the rest of it, but he ignored that voice and slowly encroached upon her until he stood next to her.

‘So…’ he began in a voice deep enough to show vocal fry, which was his attempt to sound casual. ‘What have you been up to?’

Becky gave him a wary stare but answered. ‘Not much. Just reading and gaming.’

‘Oh yeah? What games do you play?’

‘Well, I’ve been playing Final Fantasy 13 again. Lightning’s cute.’ As soon as she said the last sentence, she covered her mouth and coughed into it. ‘So, uh, what book are you looking for?’

‘Oh, well…’ Chad laughed nervously. ‘I kind of just wanted to see you.’ Becky rose an eyebrow. ‘Not in a creepy way! Um, I just…’

‘I’m pretty sure you saying it’s not creepy makes it worse. I’ve got to be honest- I thought you would be better at this than that. I thought you’d have had more practice.’

Chad laughed again. ‘I, uh, um.... guess it means you’re one of the lucky few who I’ve had an interest in.’

‘Whom you’ve had an interest in.’ She lifted her shoulders and covered her mouth again. She took a few deep breaths and let go of her mouth. ‘I’m sorry, but I like someone else.’

Those words pushed Chad’s heart down to the depths of his body. He froze as he felt cold shivers run down his arms and legs. It took him a while to be able to open his mouth.

‘Cool. I’ll… see you later, then.’ He forced a smile onto his face as we waved goodbye and headed out of the library. He took out his phone and went onto his contact list. He reminded himself to get a photo of Noah to add to his contact information. He then reminded himself that it would probably be hard to convince Noah to take a photo of himself. Something along the lines of selfies being ‘a way for attractive normies to show their narcissism and ugly chicks to make themselves forget how ugly they are.’ Noah had then muttered something about ugly girls still getting boyfriends while ugly guys get nothing. Chad had considered asking him for evidence of that, but he decided not to press the issue and instead let Noah’s anger subside. 

Yes, Noah and Chad had had a couple of chats, though they hadn’t made any conclusive plans. The conversation about selfies had come about when they saw a student taking a photo with her food.

Outside the library, Chad leaned against the wall and sent Noah a message.

Let’s head to my place soon to figure out what we’re going to do. Are you free Saturday?

He typed his address and a possible time for Noah to come over. Noah took a while to reply.

Whatever. It’s not like I’ve got anything else to do. Won’t you be busy?

Chad raised an eyebrow before typing.

Why?

Noah’s response caused Chad to be torn between laughing and sinking into self-loathing.

Won’t you be sleeping with some chick?

Chad grit his teeth but didn’t bother replying, somehow knowing that this would result in the conversation spiralling into utter madness.

Saturday arrived and so did Noah, knocking on the door to Chad’s house. This time he wore a shirt featuring a muscular CGI man with a scar across the bridge of his nose wielding two swords. Chad considered asking who it was but he thought he sort of recognised it from a game he hadn’t played. 

He led him to his room and asked if he wanted a snack, to which Noah responded, ‘Nes. I mean no! I ended up combining… never mind.’ The two stood in silence until Noah dropped his backpack to the floor and sat down on Chad’s bed. ‘So, uh, why’d you decide to call a meeting?’ 

Chad sat on the bed next to him before swivelling his body and lying down behind Noah. ‘Well, there’s a slight change of plans. Becky rejected me. Said she liked someone else.’

Noah stood up, looking at the carpet. ‘Okay. See ya whenever.’

Chad grabbed Noah’s arm. ‘Wait, we’ll just have to find a way to get her to notice me instead of the other guy. What kind of guy does she like? Is she more of a personality or looks kind of girl?’

Noah released a single tiny laugh that could easily be mistaken for a cough. ‘Personality? Girls don’t go for that.’

‘You think so?’

Noah nodded. ‘If she’s not interested in your looks, she’s never gonna be interested in you. But… wait… how… how exactly did a Chad like you not attract her? Maybe she’s playing hard to get.’

‘The ‘Chad’ thing again? I still don’t get how I look like a Chad.’

As he sat on the bed again and began explaining, Noah ensured that his head was turned as far away from Chad as possible.

‘A Chad, you know, those guys who are really mus… athletic and… have a strong jawline and… hunter eyes.’

Chad looked at him with the eyes of a puppy being given an unfamiliar toy. ‘What are hunter eyes?’

‘You know… hunter eyes… like, you’re able to swoop in and get any girl you want. Alpha male eyes. You understand what I’m saying?’

 Chad touched below his eyes. When Noah dared to look at him his body tensed up and he instinctively took a phone and pair of headphones out of his bag.

‘Wow, rude, man,’ Chad said with a laugh.

Noah snapped out of a trance. ‘S-sorry. I… I don’t know how else I can calm… I’m not a crazy person or anything.’

Chad chuckled. ‘It’s okay, I guess. You do whatever it is you’re doing while I come up with a plan.’

He closed his eyes and stroked his chin in the hopes of getting an idea into his head. Find a way to make the guy she liked look bad? No, it could make him look bad in the process, possibly worse than the other guy. Maybe he could, instead of dragging the other guy down, he could prop himself up and woo her with a big display of love like a serenade or something like that. No, wait, was this the 80s? What if he impersonated the guy and confessed to her again? 

With this last idea he started laughing so hard he sat up so he could hold his sides better. Noah seemed unperturbed.

Chad leaned over Noah’s shoulder and saw what appeared to be one of those ‘animes’ he heard about online. He found himself chuckling as a girl with a horse for a head, or at least a horse mask, hit a creepily smiling girl with a chair and sent her flying out the window. 

As he pointed at the screen he asked, ‘What anime is this?’ Since Noah didn’t respond, he grabbed his shoulder, sending a wave of shock throughout Noah’s body. Noah immediately flinched and turned his head. He paused for a moment before taking off his headphones. ‘I thought anime was about, I don’t know, ninjas or something. What’s with the horse lady?’

Noah couldn’t push down his smirk. ‘Well, if you must know, this ‘horse lady’ you speak of is wearing the mask to, well, mask her tsundere tendencies. I’ve seen this show before so I know that when she starts to warm up to the other characters and show her dere-dere side, she takes the mask off. It’s a really moving use of character design to convey personality to an audience and it just goes to show how clever character designers use the visual medium of anime to say so much about-’

‘Ha, that girl grabbed another girl’s boob.’ Noah glared at him. ‘Wait, how many chicks are there in this thing?’

‘Well, it’s set in an all-girls school, so…’

Chad gave him a finger gun gesture and clicked his fingers. ‘Lesbians. Nice.’ He almost laughed when Noah’s glare strengthened.

‘Their relationship would be innocent and beautiful. Nothing ‘nice’ about it. Us mere men would be lucky to get to witness such a pure fate come true.’

‘Is it pure to grab another girl’s boob?’

Noah shifted his weight from side to side and looked back at his phone without a word. The two watched the show in silence, part of Chad wishing he could actually hear things since the subtitles were really small on the screen and he couldn’t experience the voice acting, music or sound effects. Then again, he had an inkling that Noah’s protective grip on his headphones would be like a baby’s.

He considered asking him to take the headphones out and let the audio fill the room until a scene cropped up in which one of the characters moaned while being undressed by a faceless being. Granted, in context it was all in that character’s imagination, but Chad’s parents were home.

After the episode ended with the longest ending credits Chad had ever seen, he grinned. ‘Are there any other animes like that?’

‘Anime. It’s the same whether it’s plural or singular.’

‘Oh. Okay…’

When Chad’s voice drifted off, Noah’s eyes widened and he crossed his arms with his phone still in one hand.

‘Sorry for talking so much about this kind of thing.’

How did Chad respond? By ruffling Noah’s already messy hair, of course! Yes, he managed to shock himself with his own actions.

‘Don’t worry too much about it, man. Keep going if you want. I’m probably not going to come up with any ideas, so I may as well make some use out of today.’

‘I can leave if you want-’

‘I said it’s fine. Come on, tell me about these lesbians.’ Chad laughed with his mouth closed. ‘Honestly, the words that come out of my mouth sometimes.’

Noah uncrossed his arms. ‘Well, uh, they’re not technically a lesbian couple or anything. They’re just friends. I just ship them.’

Chad stroked his chin like before. ‘Do girls grab their friends’ boobs? Or is that just a Japanese thing? Fascinating.’

Noah’s eyes narrowed. ‘Shut up.’

‘So what do you mean by ‘ship’?’

Noah talked about anime for a solid two hours, with Chad only interrupting to ask questions. After that, Chad’s mother knocked on the door and suggested that he start doing homework.

Noah left the house with a little smile, though by the time he had reached his computer, that smile on his face was replaced with a furnace within his blood vessels.

He posted to Incels.me.

Anicel1919- [Venting] Was invited to a Chad’s house. I want to die.

He was so smug, acting like he’s actually interested in learning about anime. As if. He’ll forget about me once he gets back to banging femoids. I don’t think I can take being around a solid 9/10. Honestly, if it weren’t for that pimple on his nose, he’d be a 10. And I bet he’s going to end up saying, ‘Don’t worry, bruh, just lift like me and you’ll get all the pussy you want,’ or, ‘just change your personality and everything will be fine!’ It’s too soon to tell, but he strikes me as totally bluepilled. What do I do if he keeps asking me to hang out with him?

[lttlgreg-blog]

“Setting Things Straight”

By Greg A. Oosterhouse 7-9-2017

It was a gorgeous evening in Royal Woods, Michigan, at least what one home preacher born and raised in Michigan would call gorgeous. The snow was falling, the wind was blowing, and the temperature was a lovely twelve degrees Fahrenheit. Indeed, ideal conditions for any fan of winter such as Greg Ostrander. Greg was relaxing in his recliner reading fan fictions based on his favorite cartoon. “I can’t believe all of these different varieties of stories based on a children’s cartoon!” The forty-one year old observed. “Dark, depressing, incestuous, heartwarming, the whole shebang to choose from.” Greg was enjoying a story about the main character having been diagnosed with a terminal disease, and his family’s reaction to the news. He never felt such emotion, especially from just reading a story. “It’s as if my emotions took a walk down a dark alley and got lynched by a vicious mob.” Near tears, he was startled by the sudden noise of the doorbell. “Now who would that be braving this bracing cold?” he thought to himself as he placed his ipad on the end table and got out of his chair. After putting on his shirt, he went to the door. He opened it to a very pleasant surprise. “Oh, hi Luna!” said Greg with a smile. To what do you owe the pleasure of coming by to see me on this lovely night?” he quipped, purposefully reversing the common greeting. “Hi dude!” There is something I would like to talk to you about, get your opinion on. Are you available to talk for a while?” Luna said while brushing the snow off of her coat. “Yup! You can enter only after paying the admission fee!” answered Greg with a smirk. “What’s that?” asked Luna wondering what Greg was getting at. The man simply opened his arms with a twinkle in his eye. Luna then opened her arms and took a step towards him and they shared a nice, friendly hug. Greg and the Loud family, especially Luna, have been friends since he counseled a close friend of hers after a suicide attempt. He gave her a guilt trip as an unconventional means to convince her that life was worth living. Months after, she was a changed person, even attending services at Greg’s home church. Luna was so grateful, she and the family had him over for dinner. They all became fast friends. Being that Greg was around her parents’ age, Luna thought him more of an uncle figure than a friend. Which is why she felt comfortable enough to tell him what was on her mind. “Brrrr!” shivered Luna as she took off her coat, Greg taking it. “I can’t stand this winter weather!” she complained as she took off her boots as Greg directed her to have a seat. One thing Greg hated was to hear people complain about the winter weather, especially his fellow Michiganders. “Well, I happen to love it! That polar vortex we had a few years ago, I thought that was the best winter we’ve had in a long time! He said with a scoff at Luna’s ‘brazenness’. “To each his own, I guess.” said Luna taking a seat on the couch while Greg returned to his recliner. “So what’s on your mind?” He asked as he flung his pen in the air and catching it between his index and middle fingers without looking. “Well, it’s something serious. I have been thinking about it for a while now.” said Luna with a look of trepidation. “Oh.” responded Greg. The autistic man avoided serious issues like he avoided eye contact. As a preacher however, he was confronted with people’s problems on an occasional basis. That time counseling Luna’s friend was nerve-wracking for him to say the least. Luna continued “Yes. Now I come to you knowing that you will not offer your affirmation. But I have seen in you the type of person that is caring. What I have to say is something that goes against your beliefs; the Bible.” Greg perked up with interest at Luna’s words. “You see, I have feelings, romantic feelings for another girl. She’s a rocker like I am. We have been friends for a good while now. I always get good vibes whenever we’re together. For the last few weeks I realised that I feel more than just friendship towards her.” Greg was taking it all in with a little surprise. Not that he ever really thought of it, but if he were, he would imagine Luna having at least one boy interested in her. Not only was she pretty, she was a very talented musician, and passionate about the things she loved. Most of all, he saw her as a great daughter and sister to her family, and almost as nice and sweet as her immediate older sister Leni. If he were twenty-five years younger, even he may have been captivated by her! Though rock was not his favorite type of music, that was classical and opera, he did love himself some Bob Dylan, Led Zeppelin and Pink Floyd among others. “Just last week I dropped a note in her locker expressing my feelings. She had a smile when she read it, but I have yet to hear from her other than that.” “Well, you’re right that it goes against what I stand for, as God made us all male and female, one for the other. In a way you are wrong about my affirmation. In no way will I ever affirm same sex relationships, in the way that you feel about your friend, that is. However, I do affirm you! I love you Luna. You are a very nice young lady. Anyway, just because you are into another girl does not give me the right to condemn you, for now is not the time for condemnation.” “You came to me with this because you knew that I would not go all Westboro Baptist on you, right?” He asked, interrupting himself. Luna chuckled, “Yes, I came to you because I see you as the caring type. I was sure you were not going to damn me to hell like other Christians I have seen on gay pride parade videos.” Luna said, using air quotes with the word Christians. “Well, I find you to be justified using those air quotes. I also thank you for allowing me to present my opinion on the matter. I knew you were a nice young lady!” He said with a smile. “You know, we can’t really fault all of those who speak on the matter whilst using condemning language, we are to warn others of eminent danger, after all. They do have good intentions, I’m sure. I do agree with most of what they say, I just do not agree with their delivery. I truly believe that Jesus is being sorely misrepresented by most of His followers. Indeed, same sex intimate relations are condemned in the Bible, but so is adultery. An adulteress was caught in the act, and brought to Jesus. The religious leaders wanted to test Him to see if they could find fault in Him. It was the law then that those found in adultery should be stoned. Jesus however said to them “Let him who is without sin cast the first stone.” Eventually one by one the crowd went away, each dropping their stones. Then Jesus said to the woman that like the others, neither does He condemn her. He told her to go and sin no more. Sounds like love more than the condemning language used by the people you refer to, doesn’t it?” Luna nodded as Greg continued. “You have heard about John chapter 3 verse 16? Well, if you ask me, a lot of Christians seem to neglect the very next verse.” Greg got up to get his Bible and reading glasses then sat down next to Luna. “I’ll start from verse 16.” “16 ‘For God so loved the world, that He gave His only begotten Son, that whosoever believeth in Him should not perish, but have everlasting life. 17 For God sent not His Son into the world to condemn the world; but that the world through Him might be saved.’” “That is where I get the idea that now is not the time for condemnation. Yes, same sex relations are called abominable, yes, murder is frowned upon, lying, stealing, drunkenness, what have you. All of these and more go against God’s plan for us. Each of those can lead to eternal damnation. But there is another piece of Scripture that mentions sin and where it leads, then tells of the remedy. I Corinthians chapter 6. I’ll turn there now to read that.” “9 ‘Know ye not that the unrighteous shall not inherit the kingdom of God? Be not deceived: neither fornicators, idolaters, adulterers, effeminate, abusers of themselves with mankind, 10 theives, covetous, drunkards, revilers, nor extortioners shall inherit the kingdom of God. 11 And such were some of you: but ye are washed, but ye are sanctified, but ye are justified in the name of the Lord Jesus, and by the Spirit of our God. 12 All things are lawful unto me, but all things are not expedient: all things are lawful for me, but I will not be brought under the power of any. 13 Meats for the belly, and the belly for meats: but God shall destroy both it and them. Now the body is not for fornication, but for the Lord, and the Lord for the body.’” “Listening to a lot of those street preachers and such one would think that the practitioners of those sins, especially same sex are on their way to hell no question. I applaud their motives, but like I said, it’s the delivery, and lack of John 3 vs. 17 and Jesus dealing with the adulteress and such. You are only going to drive people away like that if you ask me. For example, if you came to me tonight just to talk about whatever, to have some nice friends time, and you told me about your love of rock, how you love to listen to and play it, then I come back with scathing remarks about it, and dared even curse the name of Mick Swagger, I doubt that you would see my point to listen to opera instead as valid, would you? You would either storm out of here, or give me a good thrashing, despite me weighing over two hundred pounds!” “I’d beat you within an inch of your life!” Luna said as she grabbed Greg by his shirt collar and got in his face. Straightening his shirt and sharing a little laugh with her, Greg continued. “But I do like rock, and I like Swagger just fine. I also love to “Rock and Roll’ on the way to the ‘Stairway to Heaven’, where you pay ‘No Quarter’ to visit ‘The Houses of the Holy’. ‘I Want You’ to know that no ‘Idiot Wind’ will make me ‘Run like Hell’ into ‘The Wall.’ Okay, I’ll stop now!” said Greg as he realised that Luna is the only one between them who can quote song titles so expertly. “Good idea!” Luna agreed with an eye roll. “’Hey You’! Ha ha! Just kidding! I realise that I never offered you a drink earlier. Would you like something? Maybe something to eat as well?” “Sure, whatchya got?” After showing Luna his itunes play list, Greg was preparing the snacks. Luna selected ‘Tom Sawyer’ by Rush. “You sure do have an eclectic taste in music. It’s no wonder why you and I are such great friends!” Luna said as she further scanned the list of music on Greg’s ipad. “’Zorba’s Dance’, Luna observed as she clicked on it. When the music started, Greg came in, strutting along with it. Luna laughed as she got up to join him. The two were having fun dancing as the music got faster and faster. When the song ended, Luna resumed her seat. “You wouldn’t know I have heel spurs in both feet and tendonitis in my right ankle, would you!?” Said Greg as he strutted back to the kitchen. “Really? Ouch! That sounds painful. You sure hide it well.” “Yup. I am mostly used to it by now.” “Cool, you even have some jazz as well!” Said Luna as she resumed looking at the play list. “Yup, I love jazz. Miles Davis, John Coltrane, Louis Armstrong among others. Speaking of jazz, here’s something Luan would appreciate: What do you call a resident of a monastery who commits crimes?” Luna looked befuddled and shrugged her shoulders. “A felonious monk! Ha ha ha! Get it?” Greg quipped, imitating Luna’s comedic sister. “That was actually pretty good. Corny, but good. If I wasn’t sure that Luan has no idea who Thelonious Monk was, I’d swear you got that from her.” Luna said as Greg returned with the snacks. “Well I used to call myself the Duke of Cornball!” Greg mused as he took his place next to Luna. “Okay, we have my ipad here, you know I have to show you some pictures now!” He said as he selected the photo albums icon. “Ah, yes, proud uncle Greg and his adorable nieces! They are so cute!” Luna swooned as she looked on. “How old are they again?” “The older one is four years and seven months, the other just turned one year last month.” Greg answered with a look of immense pride. “They are my little honey’s.” Watching Greg’s expression, Luna responded “Awww, you’re a cutie too!” she said as she put her arm around Greg and planted a kiss on his cheek. “Ooh! That tickles!“ Luna giggled as she rubbed her lips. “You’re the first man with a beard I have ever kissed!” “And you’re the first pretty girl to kiss me in a long time!” Greg said with a flattered smile. After about a minute of silence, enjoying their snacks, Greg decided it was time to return to the subject they were there to discuss. Putting his ipad aside, he grabbed Luna’s hand with both of his, and looked in the general direction of her eyes. “Earlier, if you’ll recall, during my initial response to your confession, I said that I love you.” “Yes, I remember that.” Luna sais anticipating what Greg was leading to. “Well, I meant it. I love you very much. I don’t tell people that if I don’t mean it. When I say’I love you’, I am saying that I care for you. I want you to be safe, happy and healthy. I want only the best for you. You and your family have been a great blessing to me. I am proud to call you my friends.” Greg ended with a smile and a glistening eye. Luna placed her free hand on top of Greg’s. “Well, Greg, we all appreciate your friendship as well. I cannot tell you how grateful I am for your part in turning Kathy’s life around. I know that I have said that a lot. She is a treasured friend of mine. I don’t know what I would have done if she had succeeded in killing herself.” Luna finished with tears in her eyes as she wrapped Greg in a tight hug. “I love you, too, uncle Greg!” “That’s my niece!” he said as he returned the hug with the same gusto he felt from her. “What I was getting at is I would not be telling you what I have said before, about same sex relations being sinful. If you love someone, you tell them the truth, no matter how much it may hurt. ‘Better to hurt with the truth than to comfort with a lie’, a famous saying goes.” “Yes, I understand“. Luna said as the two released their embrace. “I may not like everything you have said, but I do appreciate the love that you said it all with.” “I wasn’t expecting anything else from you. Back to the condemnation issue. Do you want to know what really grinded Jesus’ gears? What put the feedback in his sound system? “What?” asked Luna with her interest piqued anew. “Not the sinners or unbelievers, nope. It was the religious folks, acting all holier than thou. Jesus called them vipers and all the insults of the day. Luan is the one that washes the dishes, right?” Luna affirmed with a nod. “Well, let’s say that she decided that after cleaning the outside of a glass, she decided that it was good enough, and put it in the cupboard, surpassing Lucy’s and Lynn’s part of the chore as well. When you come along afterward, and grab that same glass to get a drink. You observe the good job that Luan did with the outside of the glass, but then you see the inside. You are disgusted at the gunk inside. That is the way Jesus saw the actions of the religious people. They were clean on the outside, but stinking, rotting graves on the inside. Also, He went ballistic in a certain type of building. Not a place where adulterers, drunkards, or fornicators gathered, but the temple! Where God is to be worshipped. He was so angry with the misuse of the place. He overturned tables, and even used whips on the people to drive them out. Another instance, Jesus told of two men who were praying. The religious man said something along the lines of ‘Lord, I thank Thee that I am not like other men like this sinner here…’ The other man prayed ‘ Oh, Lord, have mercy on me, a sinner.’ I am sure you can guess which one Jesus looked on with favor.” “The one who said he was a sinner.” Luna responded. “Yup! Jesus brings low the proud, and exalts the humble. I tell you what, I have every reason to be grateful for the grace and mercy that Jesus offers, for I sure have not been perfect in this life. Many is the time that I have been so disgusted with myself.” Inspired by that statement, he turned in his Bible to Romans chapter 7, and read the whole chapter. “Just like Paul wrote, I myself long to do what is right, but yet many has been the time I have done the opposite. Just one example of us human beings’ shortcomings, unable to save ourselves. As it says elsewhere …” Greg pauses to look up the phrase he had in mind on his ipad. “There it is.” Turning to Isaiah chapter 64 and read the whole chapter, where it says in verse six that our righteousness is as filthy rags. “We all fall short when it comes to pleasing God. Which is why Jesus came as a perfect substitute. He fulfilled all of the law. So when we put our trust in Him and Him alone, it is like we have fulfilled all of the requirements ourselves. So rich is He in grace and mercy! Considering my faults, I am so grateful that Jesus took my punishment on the cross, punching my ticket to eternal bliss in Heaven. What He did was for all people. He is the only ‘stairway to Heaven’ if you will! As it says in John 14 vs. 6: ‘Jesus said I am the way, the truth and the life, no man comes to the Father but by me.’ As exclusive as the idea is, it is also inclusive at the same time. Simply putting your faith and trust in His saving work on the cross, that is all it takes. Those who say you need to do this and that and to not do that and this, are placing their hope in their own righteousness, and that won’t cut it. As I said, it is what Jesus did and that alone that saves us. We can go on living in sin if we want, but if we really love Jesus, we would want to show it by doing good works. We do not do good works to get saved, we do good works because we are saved. ’Jesus paid it all, all to Him I owe. Sin had left a crimson stain, He washed it white as snow.’” “Wow! You have given me a lot to think about there.” Luna said as she stretched. “Well, you asked me for my input on your relationship with your friend, so I gave it! Notice I did not quote Scripture where it says same sex relations are sinful, only one or two instances. I could have beat you over the head with them! But I chose to use gentle love towards you. The harder stuff is for those who should know better. As it says in I Corinthians chapter 13...” Greg pauses to turn to the text. “Okay, verse one, ’Though I may speak with the tongues of men and angels, and have not charity, love, I am become as sounding brass, or a tinkling cymbal.’ Yup, I can tell you what I have said before, but if I did not put love in with it, it is just a bunch of noise. This is my motivation to use love in telling you what the Word of God says.” Said Greg with a hand on Luna’s shoulder. “There is nothing wrong with you loving your friend. Friends should love each other. When we get to what you told me, though, well that’s different. That is what God says, and I go with that.” Greg said as he got up. “Here, may I give you this?” Asked Greg as he held out a Bible to Luna. “So you can see and know for yourself what God’s will is for your life.” Luna took it. “I’ll take it, but don’t expect me to be a scholar anytime soon!” “I don’t expect you to be. I’m not one myself. I still discover new things every now and then reading it. That’s what the Bible does, If you let it, it will speak to you.” “I also suggest some teachers and preachers to listen to on video.” he said as he grabbed a note pad and wrote on it. “These are pretty good teachers of the Word in my opinion. Jacob Prasch, he knows Greek and Hebrew very well, and uses them to make the Bible clear to his listeners. Robert Rubino from Brooklyn. It is from him that I learned that it is the fault of the church for the world being in the mess that it is in. He is very passionate, I love his style. Zac Poonen, is just as passionate, but much more soft spoken like I am.” “I truly hope that you take what I told you to heart. Also that you will read the Bible and really consider what it says. The first four books of the New Testament are about Jesus’ life and His teachings. Any questions you may have, I’ll be ready to answer, or help you find an answer. My door is always open to you and your family. Any time you or they want to talk, please feel free to come to my door, or to invite me over. Is there anything else you would like to talk about or ask me?” “I’m sure there would be, but it is getting late. Wow, almost ten o’clock! We’ve been talking for three hours! I thought we would be talking for one maybe two hours, but three! I think I better get going.” Luna said getting up. “Before you go, may I pray for you?” Asked Greg also getting up. “Sure.” said Luna. Greg stretched his hands out to Luna, who then took his. “Lord Jesus, thank You for sending Luna to me tonight. May the words I spoke to her be pleasing to You, and penetrate her heart. She is such a precious friend to me, I want only the best for her, and that is You, Lord. Move in her Lord, open her eyes to Your truth. Thank You Lord. Amen and amen.” Greg then wrapped Luna in another tight hug, when her phone rang. “Hi mom. Yes, we just finished talking. I am about to head back home. Greg welcomed me warmly. We had a nice time, he truly is a sweet guy. I will tell you what we said when I get home. Okay, bye mom.” “Well, I better get going. Thank you, Greg. Like I said, I may not like everything you had to say, but you said it with love. For that I thank you.” Luna said with a hand on Greg’s shoulder. “You said I’m sweet!” Greg said with an awe shucks expression. “Well, you are!” Luna replied pinching Greg’s cheek. “You are not walking home, I will drive you. I know it’s only four houses away, but still at this time of night, it is much safer.” Greg said as he put on his shoes and got his and Luna’s coats. “That’s fine with me.” Luna said as she finished putting her boots on, then grabbed her coat. “One more thing, I invite you and the family to services here. Sometimes I play videos of those preachers I mentioned, and others, other times I preach a sermon. I hope if you do ever attend, you would be edified by what you hear.” “That is something to consider. I am open to the idea. I’ll have to see how the others feel about it.” said Luna as the two walked out the door. “Well, here we are.” Greg said as he pulled in the driveway and shut his car off. “I’ll walk you to the door.” As they got to the door, Greg turned to Luna. “Once again, thank you for giving me the opportunity to present the Christian side to the issue. It shows me that you are still thinking about what you should do in pursuing any further relationship with your friend.” “Her name is Sam, by the way. Yes, especially after talking to you, I have lots of thinking to do.” Luna said while watching the snow fall. “Please do not hesitate about coming to see me again. I enjoyed our time tonight. It was a great pleasure to talk with you.” Greg said as he breathed in the fresh, frigid air. Luna just smiled and embraced him one more time. “Thank you, uncle Greg. Thank you for everything.” She said releasing the hug. “Yup!” he said with his Oliver Hardy wave and headed back to his car. Luna watched and waved as Greg drove away. Cradling her Bible, she entered the house, greeted by her parents and her fellow teenaged sisters.

The End