#* complementary figures

[ukiiseikou]

read don't mess up, my lucky charm, my last chance. before this one. wanderer when he meets your former partner.

you swear wanderer bristles like a cat when yae announces that your ex-partner will be skating with his new partner at your next event - it's a pretty small, insignificant challenger event that you're attending to hammer out the rest of your new programs for the new season, but wanderer seems to be putting in more effort than usual into the practices before the official competition.

you've caught him sneering at photos of your former partner when he ego searches the two of you on the internet, so you really can't say you're surprised when he turns his nose up when the pairs at lined up at the boards, the negative energy radiating off him. to be fair, your former partner doesn't help by stealing constant glances at you.

"i'm better than him, right?" he suddenly pops the question as he holds your hand, doing your usual laps around the rink.

"much better," you affirm, and you resist the urge to laugh when a self satisfied smirk creeps his way onto his face, an expression he tries to hide as he stares down at his laces.

when your former partner tries to corner you at the rink, wanderer nearly charges at you and whisks you away, a "we don't need to talk to scum like them" at his mouth as he marches you away.

he ends up telling your ex partner to keep 'their eyes to themselves' when you manage to cross each other on the rink, all while trying to out-perform them with your hardest lift.

wanderer nearly breaks out in ill-hearted laughter at the kiss and cry when your combined total shows that you've placed nearly ten points above them. you have to pinch his arm to remind him to stop grinning like a villain, even though you're smiling from ear to ear as well.

"sometimes you just need another chance, cause the first one didn't work out, right?"

he's just a little meow meow

[kiruyeen]

an empty grave is only there to console the mourner

meant to elaborate on this

[felinecabinet]

Luckyfiles Analysis

[ID: A somewhat messily colored drawing of Cabby and Clover from Inanimate Insanity. Cabby has fangs and glasses added to her design. Clover is sitting down in front of Cabby, who is playing with one of Clover's leaflets. The two are looking lovingly at each other, blushing.

The background is of Paradise Island, various palm trees, bushes, and leafy plants far in the back. The most notable plants are various flowers closer to the front, simple in style and colored like the lesbian flag. End ID.]

Cabby and Clover, a ship that I will be referring to this point onwards as Cablover (sounds like Cab Lover, which is fun!), is something rather important to me! The two have a lot of potential for a dynamic (could be platonic, too!) that gets often overlooked even by the show itself, and I’m hoping that this will help explain why this has invaded my brain for the past several months by this point. :)

Please note that this was all written before Season 4, and therefore cannot take any of it into account. If there’s something that either furthers or weakens this by then, I cannot know about it! Just keep that in mind if you were to come across this later on.

Dynamic

I think it’s best to start with their overall dynamic, or at least how I’d perceive it. Due to how little these two actually interact, this section in particular may end up having a lot of assumptions, so just keep that in mind.

To start with the basics, I think at its core, Cablover can be considered an “opposites attract” relationship. Clover is more carefree, Cabby is dedicated. Clover is lucky, Cabby has constant bad things happening to her. Clover is a plant and often connected to nature, Cabby is metallic and therefore can be considered “unnatural”. On its surface, there’s a lot of appeal for those who love relationships in which the characters end up rather different.

And yet… there’s still similarities, especially once you start digging! Both the two can be rather perceptive; in fact, Clover can identify her butterflies just by their differences in movement, and that requires a really good eye!

[ID: A screenshot of a transcript. It reads:

Brybee O...Oh... So... how can you tell your butterfly friends apart? They all look similar.

Clover: Oh, well, if you look closely: Cordelia tends to bob a little bit when she flies; Catalina is always precisely two to three inches above the others; Cassandra breathes a bit too loud; and Jake has less flaps a minute than the girls. But he makes up for it by being the lovable wittle scamp that he is. Don't you, Jake?

End ID.]

Both of them can be quite silly; Cabby very frequently cracks jokes about situations, often involving puns of all things.

[ID: A screenshot of Cabby and Bot from Inanimate Insanity. The two are among several gears, Bot even holding one of them. Cabby closes her eyes and points upwards as the captions describe her dialogue as:

"Alright! Now how about we go ahead and- SIFT GEARS! [CHUCKLES]"

End ID.]

Both of them care a lot for others, both of them have different struggles with self-centering, and both of them have felt like they had done too much to hurt others, even sharing a similar coping mechanism of self-isolating.

Their few interactions also indicate a friendly relationship. Cabby states herself that she thinks Clover is a “sweet girl” even if she gets distracted easily and was the first to observe that she was missing from the meeting. It’s also notable to me that Cabby never saw Clover’s luck as a bad thing; rather than viewing it as something that inevitably led others to harm (an assumption made by Nickel that even generally thoughtful contestants like Candle did not disprove, merely instead stating that Clover did not intend this harm), she viewed it as a way to help others in challenges. Even if a large motivation was strategy, Cabby did still seem fond of Clover while including her in the egg drop challenge, even side-hugging her while pulling her close to explain her idea.

[ID: A screenshot of Cabby and Clover from Inanimate Insanity. Cabby has her eyes closed with a finger pointing up, explaining something as she holds Clover close to her. End ID.]

Even shoving her off the cliff was more out of intent to show an example, accurately predicting that Clover would’ve been perfectly okay, and Clover found that fun! This is furthered by Clover directly telling Cabby that she had fun in the Season 3 finale episodes, even.

I think that’s a nice way to segue into more of Clover’s side of things. I think it’s easy to take Clover’s comment about “I would’ve done the same to you!” as some sort of lighthearted threat in response to something she didn’t enjoy, but like…

[ID: An image of Cabby and Clover from Inanimate Insanity. Cabby is looking confidently towards Clover as Clover seems excited, having a big smile with her eyes closed and her arms raised. End ID.]

Look at her :) she was truly so happy to experience that, I can imagine it would’ve been like a fun ride to her! Even if Cabby was confused and maybe anxious at the suggestion, I think it’s very possible that Clover has an inkling that Cabby actually would enjoy such a thing. Cabby is durable, so there’s far less of a danger to her than there would be for many other objects, and she had a blast literally leaping off a cliff in the first challenge; maybe Clover couldn’t have seen how joyous she looked during the action, but she surely would’ve noticed Cabby had no reservations coming out of the tube. Clover herself noted that Cabby had not done anything particularly malicious, and I think this was merely a clumsy attempt to bond with and cheer up somebody who evidently seemed quite unsure of herself even just in her speech.

Building off Clover’s surprisingly good perception, there’s a subtle detail in the argument between Cabby and Test Tube, and how Clover mediates it. Under closer inspection, it’s clear that Test Tube is who turned that into specifically an argument by outright insulting Cabby, even if Cabby was rather irritated while voicing a concern. While Clover does seem to view both sides at fault for the argument, it’s very interesting to me that she, again, goes to first flip Test Tube’s “smile”. Cabby was not perfect in that argument, especially not with what happened after that, but keeping in mind that subtle acknowledgment of the true instigator combined with Clover later saying she hadn’t viewed Cabby as malicious? I think it’s pretty clear that Clover had a far more optimistic view of Cabby than most other contestants did, and saw her intent to do well even through things that could be so, so easy to misunderstand.

Even if that’s about where their interactions end, I think there’s still more to explore with how this dynamic could develop.

Both of them have struggled with their self esteem issues, and even if they largely figured out ways to cope and feel better, that isn’t to say they could never still struggle with those emotions, never feel reminders. How much both of them could connect over the fear of hurting others, assuring the other that they truly mean well, that they don’t seek to cause harm, that they are worth being around.

Focusing on more positives, I think Cabby could help ground Clover in some ways, help her truly bring out that analytical side of her. Clover I think excels most at emotional understanding, leaving logical deduction to be harder for her… at least going off the fact that she assumed Bot would’ve incriminated themself through a crossword puzzle, of all things. They could come up with puzzles as a fun game, perhaps!

Maybe Cabby could even help Clover focus a little more. Obviously it is impossible for anybody to solve everything– Clover’s easily-distracted nature seems to just be how her mind works– but I imagine Cabby could still find coping mechanisms for her that could help, and I imagine it just feels nice to have someone else there for support regardless.

Similarly, I think Clover could help Cabby loosen up a little, feel happier about things. I think Cabby has come a long way in her development, feeling overall better about herself and feeling less of a need to be competitive, but I could still imagine that could be something she’d struggle with over time– and having a little bundle of joy in Clover would be perfect for that. Truly, they could go back to the simple days of leaping off cliffs, kept safe by both Cabby’s durability and Clover’s luck.

Knowing how well Clover can understand others, I think it’d help Cabby a lot to have another perspective on that, too. I imagine that even if she truly tries a lot, it can still be hard to understand others well just because of how her mind works. Having somebody more patient talking through situations with her, helping her analyze things she may be unsure of I imagine could go a long way.

There’s simply a lot to think about! Dynamic-wise, I think this is about all I can extrapolate without getting into outright headcanon territory, at least more than I already have– but I think this is at least a good start. I have more up my sleeve, though!

Connections

There’s some other notable things connecting the two even beyond what I’ve already mentioned, and I wish every single day this was all capitalized on. I can only hope for future content…

Regardless! I think the first thing that’s notable to me is that Cabby had been studying Clover from day one, and we even SEE this in the first episode.

[ID: An image of Clover, Fan, Bot, Goo, Test Tube, and Cabby from Inanimate Insanity. Clover is looking towards the rest of her team, who are all covered in pink dye; while most of her teammates seem excited to have Clover on her team, Cabby instead seems much more focused on writing down something in a file. End ID.]

Like, yes, surely she found her abilities to be very interesting… but, like, she pulled Clover close to her. She called Clover “sweet”. No matter what context you view these interactions in, it’s clear she had a fondness towards Clover.

Cabby’s intense studying of Clover is what led to the wide realization of Clover’s luck, including by Clover herself. In a twist of irony, what Cabby considered to be beneficial for everyone is immediately considered to be a curse by Clover herself, jumpstarting Clover’s arc from being a lighthearted, albeit self-centered girl to somebody with a deep fear of hurting others, now left trying to figure out how to just do good even in the face of outright murder accusations.

…Sounds a little familiar, putting it that way.

Truly, what Clover needed to learn all along is that her luck is beneficial, at least most of the time– she just needed to share it with others around her! Almost what Cabby seemed to pick up on all along by wanting Clover’s luck to help her team.

And yet… Clover does more than that. She needs to constantly be helping, to be making up for this innate gift that she has, no matter how much hatred it’s caused her from some, no matter how she could feel about situations where it may have even hurt her.

I think that’s something Cabby could understand all too well.

The two have had to do so much to prove themselves far beyond the bare minimum, to make up for their very being, just for who they are. They can’t just be baseline acceptable, they can’t just be some person who exists, they need to actively be doing GOOD for everyone around them at all times. I’d argue both have very significant struggles with moral OCD, but I think that’s a conversation for another time. The important bit is… I think both of them would get it. They would get the idea of just their mere selves being what causes harm, just from being there as themselves.

It is evident that this is something the two have also internalized to their core, causing them both to self-isolate in various ways as a result. There are implications throughout I Am Chocolate! that Cabby had been isolating herself away from others, rejecting any means of connection until close to the end, and even episodes later she still says that being alone is “what she does best”. Clover had done similar after believing her luck to be a curse, avoiding others as much as she could in order to avoid potentially “hurting them”.

There’s even something to be said about the avoidance of things deeply meaningful to them. Cabby had stopped using her files for a while after believing them to be a harmful, reductive view of everyone else, and when Clover temporarily became luckless, she went on to talk about how Goo and Balloon being evenly matched is exactly why there shouldn’t be any luck. Neither of them viewed something so important to them as good or helpful, even worsened by how everyone else seemed to treat these things.

And as a side note… even their eliminations have parallels. Both unanimous, and yet so different. Cabby unanimously eliminated out of pure hatred, Clover unanimously eliminated out of pure concern. If Clover is full of luck all the time, then Cabby is devoid of it with how awfully her life had gone throughout the season.

If Cabby was the one to see Clover’s luck as good all along, then Clover was someone who saw Cabby as good all along, even if she didn’t get many chances to say so. Clover pointed out that Cabby wasn’t malicious, and I think she meant it. Even if ultimately Clover wasn’t among those who voted for Cabby, I can still imagine it would’ve meant so much to hear that from somebody, especially somebody less biased due to not quite being friends.

I think there’s a lot of parallels that could’ve been capitalized on between the two. So many things that feel connected, that could’ve led to more ties than what were there. Even if the show hasn’t currently capitalized on any of this, I definitely sure will.

Conclusion

Thank you for reading! I hope you enjoyed reading my thoughts about these two, and if I’ve helped you understand the ship more, then that’s a win in my book :)

As a bonus, here’s Clover’s favorite moment during her time on Season 3!

[ID: A screenshot of a transcript. It reads:

Brybee: Woah! Exciting! I think that's our cue for the lightning round! Fast answers! Phew! I am nailing this! What was your favourite memory from your time on the show?

Clover: Oh, stargazing with Bow and Goo! Cabby and Test Tube told us all about the constellations and how we-

End ID.]

[wackywatchdotcom]

see ragatha with horse legs was 100% written because i found the idea extremely funny and wanted to draw it and wasnt intended to be a hc thing. but maybe it SHOULD be.... hm

[hauntingofhouses]

(concept art of young taigen - source ; art credit: @abigaillarson)

i cannot get over this concept art of young taigen. god.

just look at this angry bratty boy, too many feelings that he doesnt know what to do with! an abused 9 year old kid in poverty always playing with sticks in the dirt, obsessed with greatness and dreaming to escape his decrepit village—and he does!

he does escape. he runs away. this angry little boy, all claws and teeth and biting words uttered with a lisp, going on the run into a world he's never seen before until he makes his way to kyoto. and knowing him he probably forced his way in to be accepted by the dojo, growling and kicking even as he's thrown out, back into the streets, too stubborn to take no for an answer and never knowing when to give up.

taigen calls mizu a dog, weak, an orphan, a scrawny street urchin. but i can't help but think that he feels so bold to use those words because he had them spat at him too.

because taigen had the idea of "this is how the world is" beat into him from birth. he learned quickly that if you couldn't beat the world you could join it. but that meant losing your way, your values, your principles. and isn't that what true honour is? not just titles and status and glory?

we don't get to see what taigen, as a child surrounded by peers encouraging and goading him on, would've actually done if that meteor hadn't fallen right in front of them at that very moment. would he have really tried to throw that stone on mizu, killing her? we don't know.

but we do see what taigen (his true self, with no one around) does, when presented with the same opportunity. when mizu passes out in front of him, unconscious and near death, vulnerable, the path to restoring his honour lays itself out for him on a silver platter. and he wants to take it, wants to kill mizu, to claim what is his and return to kyoto and get back everything he'd worked tooth and nail for. he feels like it's what he should do. but he doesn't.

and later, again he is presented with the chance to betray mizu, likely offered by heiji shindo to get his rank reinstated within the shindo dojo. and again, taigen doesn't take it. he refuses. "stupidly loyal," fowler calls him later. loyal, like a dog.

because now, pulled away from the sneering looks and jeering words of people around him, telling him that this is what the world is, taigen had met ringo and mizu, two outcasts who refuse to follow a predetermined path to greatness. and so inside something blooms in him. something like hope. a chance to live in a world that doesn't kick you down every chance it gets, to live in a world where genuine kindness and and love and friendship and even weakness is possible, allowed to simply exist without fear.

because he'd been running away from the very idea of it the whole time. when he ran from kohama, he never looked back, never wanted to remember what it was like to be a child, afraid and hungry and angry and hurting, without the words to make sense of it, desperately wishing for something. something more. he doesn't know what. but he hears stories of great swordsmen and decides, yes, this must be it. this is what i want: glory, greatness. the twisted seed gets planted and thrives in this barren land.

and when he returns to kohama with mizu and ringo, he at last is forced to stop running. he must face the child within him again, and he tells that child to put down the stones in his hand, tells him to stop barking at anything that moves or looks at him wrong.

the child drops the stone, and taigen buys dumplings instead, gives them to mizu. the child within him, wide-eyed at the prospect of friendship, moves him to pick up a hammer and toss it to mizu. he's smiling inside even as he does it; giggling like a kid hiding a silly prank. as soon as mizu drops the hammer after him, he leaps at her, tackling her to the ground and they wrestle and laugh unbridled like two children playing while the adults aren't around to barge in and yell at them.

and then his gaze catches on mizu's lips, he stares into mizu's eyes, a sparkling blue, inviting like the open sea in good weather.

it's a man's desire that takes hold then, the child in him sinking away again, and he curses himself for it, because it ruins the moment.

everything goes to shit from there, and then it's back to being a man, back to putting on his grown-up's armour to play hero.

it fails. the shogun dies. fowler's beatings reopen all the wounds left by heiji shindo's torture. "honour is meaningless," mizu tells him. "nothing comes from being a samurai but death."

the words follow him, and he follows the words.

as everything burns down, he runs, leaving the fire behind him, and sees akemi, as well as the verdure of spring behind her, calling him. he does not hesitate then to hold his hand out to her, inviting her to come with him. "i don't want to be great," he says. "i just want to be happy."

what is happiness to him? perhaps he doesn't know it yet, or perhaps he does. but really, i believe happiness is what the child in him always wanted but never received. happiness is a home.

[currently-becoming-potatoes]

If I had a nickel for every time a charismatic, well-dressed supernatural being who is either implied or outright shown to be a product of mpreg became a Tumblr Sexyman and ended up resurrecting their fandom through new content regarding their existence coming out in 2024, have two nickels. Which isn’t a lot. But it’s weird that it happened twice.

[pollyannawog]

Funny little cyborg

[hylianengineer]

Thinking about how autism is sometimes thought (not supported by any scientific research to my knowledge) to be worsened by gluten consumption, and how I am both autistic and gluten-intolerant and my gluten symptoms could be perceived as worsening of autistic symptoms. Except no one knew I was autistic when those symptoms first became apparent.

I don't think my gluten intolerance is caused by autism, I think it's more likely that not feeling good in any way makes it harder to deal with things like being overwhelmed, which autistic people struggle with, and makes it harder to mask because being sick takes up energy. Therefore illness may result in reduced ability to manage symptoms and be perceived as worsening of autistic symptoms.

My gluten-intolerance symptoms are almost exclusively psychological and tend towards mood swings and insurmountable overwhelmedness by everyday tasks, including increased adherence to/noticeableness of the weird rules my brain makes up that don't exist to anyone else.

I used to cry for hours because I couldn't figure out how to do my homework the "right" way, except the right way was dictated not only by the explicit instructions but also some nonsense my brain invented and even I can't really explain. This was especially noticeable in creative subjects like English, which makes sense because open-ended and ambiguous questions freak me out. I get convinced there are Secret Rules to the questions just like there are Secret Rules to social interaction and human society in general. If I can't find obvious rules like the ones in math problems, I get paranoid trying to figure out where the extra Secret Rules are, because surely it's not that simple. Things are never that simple, right? (Spoiler alert: they are and to this day I still have to remind myself of that.)

My brain always has weird made-up rules in it, it's just that when I feel extra overwhelmed for any reason (eating gluten is an express ticket to overwhelm), it gets harder to deal with them - either to work within their limits (requires brain to function, which is Bad when I feel Yuck) or to remember they're stupid and I need to ignore them.

I'm sure there are other ways this manifests but that's the core part I remember from the period of my life when I was regularly having gluten intolerance symptoms: I just cried for hours over stuff that would normally be very doable, because my brain decided to be an extra-horrible pain in the ass.

It makes me wonder if all those people who think their kids have autism-related reactions to gluten are in fact just like me in that they have autism and gluten intolerance, separately, but gluten makes everything worse including the ability to deal with autism symptoms, hence the perceived improvement in symptoms when they stop eating gluten. Because when you feel like shit, coping with shit is hard, and if coping with shit is already hard for you, that's gonna be pretty miserable. Psychological symptoms are also a recognized, if lesser known, symptom of both celiac disease and non-celiac gluten-intolerance (I don't know and will likely never know which of those I have). It's not just digestive system issues, even though those are the ones you hear about the most.

[southcarolinawoman]

Al Parker

[leahthedreamer]

The RD theme this year was made for Lopareva & Brissaud they get it so much

[cepheusgalaxy]

can someone give me ideas for renaming kyouka? i dont think that name fits the most and also i chose it maaany years ago now i think it could be cultural appropriation (i tried to compare it with someone naming their oc like Carlinhos and uh... yea feels a lil disrespectful if they dont know much about the name of the culture surrounding it yknow) and i think i can come up with something more meaningful than that. Something relating to the fact she chose her name in a book, and maybe also referencing her whole jester thing going on

[ukiiseikou]

don't mess up, my lucky charm, my last chance.

wanderer x gn! reader. figure skating au.

synopsis: your pairs partner just ghosted you, but no worries! your coach manages to replace him with the next worst thing - wanderer. a/n: hi! making this a series called complementary figures, a figure skating au universe. stay tuned for other characters ^^ thanks for reading

“hi, i’d like to report a missing person’s case.”

ayaka looks up from unlacing her skates, giving you a sympathetic smile, “any news?”

“he’s gone gone, like, poof! i’ve been calling him ever since he disappeared two weeks ago but it’s like he never existed. i even called the police, and all they could say was ‘he’s still alive’, like buddy, i hope so.”

ayaka stands up, offering you a quick hug, “i’m so sorry, it was an asshole move for him to ghost you like this in the middle of the season.”

“it’s fine. i guess it’s all over now. still kind of in shock, but whatever.”

you sigh, sitting down on the bench and kicking off your sneakers as you pull your skates out from your bag. you weren’t even sure why you were here, your partner had up and left you in the middle of the competition season and you can’t perform a pairs routine by yourself. you were content to just wallow in self pity and refreshing instagram to see if, miraculously, any available pairs guy would contact you and ask to try out. in fact, you had been doing exactly that for the past few week and a half, but yae asked you to come in today, saying that you ‘needed to reconnect with the ice’.

you wave bye to ayaka as she walks away, leaving you to your own devices as you start pulling on the strings of your laces.

“y/n.”

yae appears before you, and you strain to get a look at her, a familiar grin on her face.

“hi, coach, what’s up?” you finish tying up your skates and stand up. with your skate, you tower over yae just a little bit, but you always felt like a little kid before her - she’s been your coach since you were little anyway, alongside your former partner.

“no news?” 

you shake your head, and she sighs.

“disappointing, but no matter, we move ahead.”

she beckons you to follow her, and you trail behind her as she steps onto the ice gracefully. you’ve been off ice for about a week now, and you really feel it. there’s a bundle of nerves as you slowly follow her in a lap around the rink, is this where yae tells me my pairs career is over?

“what do you think about getting a new partner?” she stops suddenly, and you nearly crash into her, lost in your thoughts.

“um, if there’s someone out there who wants me?” you offer awkwardly.

she laughs, “well, he better, you’re his last chance.”

“wait, you’re saying someone asked to partner up with me?”

she taps her chin, “it’s more like - i offered and no one else wanted him, so we’re his only choice.”

she finishes with a self satisfied grin, “don’t worry, y/n dear, he’s won a few medals.”

“yeah? like what?”

“world championships, world cup finals,” she lists off a bunch of titles, including national champion.

wait, national champion?

“are you talking about, uh, wanderer?” you interrupt her.

“is that the kid's name? ah, i forgot. he always hissed at me and ran away whenever i went over to ei’s house.”

while yae launches into reminiscing about her shared history with his coach, your mind goes a mile a minute.

wanderer, national champion, current world champion, former junior world record holder, and current world-renowned asshole.

no one can deny his talent and skills, but also that comes with a major attitude. you’ve heard changing room horror stories about him scaring off potential partners; people leaving in tears; a world record in the number of partners dropped; and if he drops you in the middle of a lift it’s not his fault - it’s yours.

“yae, why in the world did you offer to pair me up with some asshole?” you blurt out, “yae, i thought you liked me.”

 “oh look, they’re here!”

yae pointedly ignores your comment and pushes past you, making her way to the edge of the rink. you can feel the drilling stare, even with your back facing him. you just prayed to whatever archon is listening that he didn’t hear you, and you would at least leave this temporary partnership with your ego and self-confidence intact.

“ei! long time no see,” yae stops at the boards, as you slowly turn on your blades and skate towards where the pair is waiting.

“this is y/n,” she beckons you, and you pick up the pace, gliding into place next to her.

“hi, uh, it’s nice to meet you!” you’ll try your best to leave a good impression on his coach, at least.

“likewise,” ei nods and holds out a hand to shake, which you take.

“kunikuzushi,” she angles her head towards you, “say it.”

“hey,” he says curtly, avoiding your gaze. awkward silence settles over the group before yae claps her hands.

“i see. kuni, then? i see your skates are on, good! get up here. y/n, sweetheart, can you get my phone please? i would like to film this, thank you.”

you sigh, moving to grab yae’s phone on the other side of the boards. you watch the boy pull off his skate guards and step onto the ice out of the corner of your eye. you can’t deny it - you can tell by the way he holds himself that he’s far more elegant and well-trained than half of the guys you’ve seen come in and out of the rink door. the two of you make eye contact and you quickly fumble with yae’s phone, placing it near her hand.

ei and yae are chatting, leaving you to awkwardly follow wanderer, or kuni, or kunikuzushi, you weren’t really sure what to call him anymore.

“can you even skate?” he sounds irritated, and you bristle.

“of course i can, can you?” you retort.

“i’m the current world champion. of course i can. are you dumb?” he whirls around to face you.

“yeah? try doing that again without a partner,” you fume.

“i don’t need a partner to win.”

“it’s called fucking pairs.”

he snorts, “and you think your mediocre skills can keep up with me?”

“sorry, but i happen to hear you switch partners every season? you need me. admit it, i’m your last chance, because nobody else is stupid enough to partner up with someone like you.”

“someone like me? it’s okay! you can just call me an asshole again, just to my face. go on.” 

you stop, skates slowing to a halt, you can feel your face heating up at the reminder of the less-than-kind comment you made only a few moments ago. ah, fuck, he heard me.

his eyes narrow at your silence, and he whirls around again and kicks off, throwing ice in your direction and he leaves you behind.

“y/n, honey, you’re supposed to skate with him! don’t tell me you forgot after a week already!” 

you hear yae call from the boards, and you roll your eyes.

you race to catch up to him, but he ignores you. 

“okay, fine! i’m sorry! but like - prove me wrong!”

he turns at you with a strange look in his eyes that you can’t really place. before you can get a closer look, yae yells at you to ‘do a spin or something!’

he grabs your hand, grumbling something under his breath as he slows to match your strokes.

“do you know how to do triple salchow?” he questions over the sound of blade scratching ice.

“side-by-side? i mean, i can try!”

he rolls his eyes at you, but he releases your hand, “you go first, i’ll follow.”

wait, shouldn’t we talk about this?

you nearly stop your momentum but you catch how he’s staring intently at you. your insides squeeze together, your partner could never do a salchow properly, so you haven’t done it in a long ass time.

okay, fine.

you adjust your position, and you can hear his skates against the ice as well, perfectly mirroring your position as you launch yourself into the air.

there’s a foreign feeling in your legs, and next you know it, you end up hitting the ground, legs giving out as you slip and land. wanderer snickers as he slows to a halt next to you, and you just know he landed that triple salchow perfectly.

"not only did you double it, but you also fell on your ass? some skating skills you have."

you fell a thousand times before, but this one stings. you wince as you hang your head, trying to figure out if the dull throb in your leg is anything serious.

"are you crying? archons, i can't believe i have a crybaby of a partner." he sighs, but twists to get a better look at your face. you turn away from him.

"i'm fine," you say, pulling yourself to your feet, there's a shit-eating grin on your face, "let's try that again, partner."

he scoffs, "should've known you were pretending. can't deal with crybabies. you're lucky i'm giving you a second chance."

"watch this one. their debut internationally, the new wonder pair from inazuma. their chemistry is electrifying, and their technical content is one of the best!"

you let out a dry laugh of amusement at the commentators as you splay out across the couch, taking up all the space. wanderer hisses at you to 'get off me' but makes no move to shove your legs off his lap, instead, he grabs the remote from the coffee table to fast forward through the gushing that takes place before you've even entered your beginning pose, eyebrows drawn in irritation.

the two of you watch intently, the bright lights of yae's TV cutting through the darkness of the night combined with tightly drawn curtains. wanderer lets out a snort when you nearly crash into the ground as you land from your throw lutz, only saving it with a ridiculously bent knee that keeps you upright.

"still not used to the height?" he smirks.

"shut up, you're lucky i saved that," you spit. it's true, despite his shorter stature, he's hiding some serious muscle, enough to throw you into the air with height that looks like 'he's trying to send you to the moon' - as the commentators put it. your former partner never threw you that high up, and when you first did it, you felt as if you were in the air for an eternity.

"hah! no. you're lucky i held back."

"let's just call it even," you sniffle, turning back to watch the replay. after months of skating together, you know his little quirks, and when you shake with mock tears he stiffens, and you know you've actually got him wrapped around your finger. when you first actually cried in front of him (after a particularly ugly fall that felt like a broken bone), he spent his time saying that you 'looked ugly when you cry' and holding up tissues to your nose, but you can tell by his eyes his worry when the tears won't stop coming despite his irritated sighs and non-stop shaking of his head.

"whatever," he pats your ankle with a sense of urgency, the sofa creaking as he throws off your legs to stand up, "keep those ankles of steel safe, lucks, you'll need it."

you watch as he moves to ransack yae's fridge, and he sticks his face into the cool air in a desperate bid to stop the red crawling across his face. you're left quiet on the couch, an indescribable feeling racing up your neck at the nickname.

you tune out yae's usual pep talk as you survey the crowd - the arena's more packed than usual, and you're feeling the pre-program jitters. 

wanderer's hand finds your's, giving you a tight squeeze.

"you ready?"

you turn to smile at him, and he returns a rare one, "with you? always."

he snorts, but turns his head away as red tinges the tip of his ears, "don't mess up."

(and, by the way, thanks for giving me a chance back then.)

maybe i will write one where wanderer meets your ex-partner anyways, ♡ or ↻ if you enjoyed, support your writers, thank you!!

[softservesoymilk]

Inigo loves Archie so much it kills him inside :’)

[hershelwidget]

I TOLD Y'ALL IT WAS COMING

Behold! My designs for Arman and Beast!

This took a while for me to get around to posting, honestly because I kept being bothered by their proportions... But then I remembered that it doesn't matter :)

Arman possesses the Gup-A, while Beast has the Gup-B! Their designs borrow heavily from their main drivers and are probably the most obvious of the batch, haha-

Face closeups!

I've decided that y'all can use any of these as icons, but please credit me if you do!

Next up will be Caleb and Darwin, who's beta designs I might share earlier... I am gonna be working on them all through the weekend so look forward to that :D

[night-dark-woods]

for those interested in reading the linked article, be aware there is frank and explicit discussion of specific nonconsensual sex acts!

This is totally random and I can’t fully express what I’m trying to say but: “it’s okay to not want to do kinky stuff in the bedroom” is an important message, but it’s missing something and I’m not sure what.

I mean, for one thing, it’s okay not to want to do anything in the bedroom, and we DO talk about consent, but there’s still this...assumption that a certain set of acts are the Basic Package that constitutes Normal sex, and that all the “weird” stuff is in steps up from there or something, and that being an allosexual individual means you get the Basic Package.

So we don’t often tell people that it’s okay not to want to do oral or to have penetrative sex. In particular, no one encourages people to evaluate whether it’s okay to “expect” that of their partners in the same way they do with “kinky” stuff.

So like, I keep seeing people criticizing the fact that “kinky” stuff is becoming Expected and Normal, but as an autistic person whose sensory experiences are very different from what’s “expected,” it’s like...nothing in particular should be Expected and Normal? “They might not be into that/enjoy that” is just as true of the most “basic, vanilla” sexual acts you can think of as the most out-there weird crap you can think of? There’s no single specific act that every single sexually active person should be presumed to enjoy?

[chrollohearttags]

makeup artist!armin…that is all 🫠

📝: black fem hairstylist!reader, friends to lovers, fluff to smut, praise, he’s also bi, alcohol use, switch!armin, choking, finger sucking, oral (a eating) missionary, cumshot, calls reader babe and my love

🎙️: I’m trying out something a lil’ different and trying to actually make my drabbles short so I hope y’all like it. Also I know like 3 of you might actually see this tonight but posting anyways bc I’m bored

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you never thought you’d see makeup artist!armin ever again..in the flesh at least. It’d been three years since you, him and twenty other attendees of one of the country’s most elite cosmetology schools had graduated as licensed beauticians. A majority of you had gone on to do extraordinary things with your newfound certifications…some working for prestigious salons, others starting their own businesses and continuing ones they were running illegally. But you and Armin? Leagues all on your own! Of course, the same could have been said when you were in school together. Seemingly attached at the hip and matching in both skills and wit. makeup artist!armin was naturally the talk among the class. The only male in a room full of gorgeous girls…chatting and keeping up with the conversations as if he were one of you. Offering advice on boyfriends and husbands, reciting the lyrics to every female rap song that played from the salon floor’s speakers as you all practiced balayage and full sets whilst the instructor watched. makeup artist!armin was a natural..able to analyze a face and turn anyone into the most beautiful version of themselves. Of course, it left much speculation on his orientation but when the question arose, his response was: “I like what I like, that’s all.”

with his fluffy blonde locks, warm blue eyes, scattered tattoos, including the pieces on his neck and hands…fingernails always donned with nail polish and sporting jewelry of some form, he was a dream. But it was him who was enamored with (y/n)..his girl to anyone who asked. Something you always figured to be a lighthearted inside joke, considering the number of empty, flirtatious passes you made at one another. Pretending to kiss, even allowing him to grasp your throat in the process because he’d only follow it up with some effeminate remark before you both broke into a laugh. “Armin moveee, you play too much.” “Babeee, c’mere. You didn’t have a problem last night. Why are you being mean to me?” But makeup artist!armin wasn’t interested in playing games anymore..especially when he saw you all over Instagram, going viral for your amazing work. Laying wigs, coloring, finger waves, silk presses..the works. You were the best of the best and people were dying to get a seat in your chair. Including an influencer with tons of followers and the money to burn, looking to get done up by the city’s finest for a club appearance. What you didn’t expect was the person traipsing behind her to be makeup artist!armin..looking even better than he had before!

“It’s been a while, my love. How are you? I see you look sexy as always.”

Hugging instantly as the excitement over took the both of you. makeup artist!armin couldn’t keep his eyes off of you as you styled the influencer’s hair, watching you two laugh and chop it up..joining in on the fun occasionally. Turns out he had been working with some notorious clientele, using his talents to earn quite a pretty penny and make a name for himself in the beauty sector. But the real conversation wasn’t done until after hours…when he’d finish up with your guest and you were closing up shop. The two of you would down some of the leftover shots you had with the client as part of her pregame whilst he decided to give you a complementary beat for old times sake…

talking about life and what it had been like since you left the academy. Divulging in juicy gossip about friends and old peers alike, work and what it was like having your entire catalogue on display for social media. Of course, what makeup artist!armin and yourself truly wanted to know was if there was a special someone around..

“Me? Nah, me and my ex been done. I don’t have time for dating..the money is my only love nowadays.”

“I feel that. All I do is work and go home.”

but he was hoping to change that last sentiment. Dressed in his black button down and slit jeans with silver bands on his fingers..he’d turn your face towards him as the guise of brushing on your highlight

“Y’know I really missed this, (y/n). I’ve been watching you and I’m so proud of what you’ve done. You’ve worked hard.” “Thank you, Armin..you’re always so sweet.” “Well duh, I’ve already told you, you’re my girl..”

makeup artist!armin couldn’t hold back any longer…bridging the gap of space between you two as the bright lights hung overhead. He'd confess that he’d thought about you everyday and wished that the two of you had kept contact. It was as if all of the sexual tension and feelings that the two of you had been harboring were just seconds from spilling over. Which only in turn led to you moving to the back of your salon, lips crashing together and tongues shoved into each other’s mouth as he mounted you onto a nearby countertop. Completely forgetting his masterpiece he’d painted on your face.

“Arminnn..”

“Shhh..it’s okay, babe. I know..you don’t have to tell me. I know you better than anyone.”

a statement that rang true when he’d pull you into a kiss yet again and clutch your throat as he’d done in a joking manner many times before. A movement they elicited a smile from you both.

“You still like that, huh? So nasty..”

“You said it..you know me better than anyone, baby.”

from your lips to your neck, he’d mark you with pecks, licking and nibbling at your ear as he whispered lecherous things; from how good you looked in the bodycon dress you were wearing to how he needed to hold it up while pounding you from the back..

“Mmmm..see, there you go playing wit’ me.”

“Spread your legs for me, baby and you’ll see how much I’m joking..”

leaving you with a heavy pat to the ass as he scooped you into his grasp and parted your thick thighs. Obviously much more fit than he was when you’d last saw him. makeup artist!armin tugged down the top of your dress, exposing your breasts as he planted a hand into your tummy..peeling your panties back with his teeth before diving into that dripping center. Wasting no time in lapping on your clit, gliding a finger or two in and sucking on your folds as if it were his first meal in months. He certainly was no stranger to eating pussy..regardless of everyone’s opinions on his sexuality!

“F-fuckkkk..Arminnn..” Pushing his head and shoulders back whilst still grinding on his mouth.

“I’m sorry, babe. What is it that you want? Because you’re realllly confusing me..do you want me to stop..or should I keep eating this little pussy until you come all over my face?” Laughing as he spat into your entrance and continued lapping. (Y/N)’s legs began to quiver, breath shallow and chest heaving as your eyes rolled back..you’d never felt anything remotely euphoric as this. He knew each of your spots, what made you tick and how to pleasure you. He navigated your body as well as an eyeshadow palette and like always, he wasn’t done until he was satisfied..

“Awww, babyy—don’t cry. I know it feels good but you’re gonna ruin your pretty makeup. Here..suck on my fingers.” That soft yet dominant taking over as he shoved two digits in your mouth. What followed was a trail of saliva and his tongue breaching your puckering lower entrance. Which nearly caused you to shoot through the roof.

“Look at that..now I’m in all your pretty holes, babe..I’ve waited so long to do this. Fuck..you taste amazing.”

you’d whimper and writhe around, grasping at the marble counters as that orgasm neared..he’d push those fingers in and out until splatters of warm juices hit his chin. “Sorry, my love..I hate to stop you but—” unbeknownst, he had been stroking himself through his boxers and was ready to let you get the real thing.

“If you want to come anymore, it’ll be on this dick. I really need to fuck you.” His voice was much deeper than before and you didn’t hesitate to let him inside. Pinning your legs back to the vanity, makeup artist!armin tapped that head and shaft against your folds before gently gliding in, keeping your eyes fixated on each other with his hand still around your neck. That fat cock splitting open your wet folds.

“Shit…your pussy’s so warm, babe. God, why’d you keep this from me?” But you were too in awe to answer..completely stuck on how big he was and how well he wielded it. Slowly stroking and rubbing your clit with the opposite hand. You were fixated on his gaze and sweet words, listening to him to praise you whilst he resided balls deep inside of you.

“Oh my gosh….’s so fucking big. Fucking me so good..” whimpering and barely able to fork coherent sentences. makeup artist!armin would chuckle softly as he watched it slide in and out, the bulge appearing when he sped up. “Damn, babe. I love this look on you…but I love even more how I look inside of you.” Pounding you into the vanity with his lips melded to yours.

“Ahhhh…yes, baby! Right there..’m gonna come.”

“I told you, if you want to, it’s gotta be on me.” makeup artist!armin would continue thrusting until he drew more splashes out of that cunt, making you squirt all over his torso and the countertop. It wasn’t long until he too was reaching his own climatic peak, burrowed over you with his face buried into the crook of your neck as he called out your name..whining about how badly he missed you.

“Oh God I missed you..I missed you so bad. Can I come for you, my love? Please? I’ve been so good..I waited all this time just for you..”

and it was no question that you’d welcome it..waiting patiently as he pulled out of you reluctantly. He’d spray those thick ropes of cum all over your tummy and even catch your face..

makeup artist!armin reveled in his latest and most prized creation yet. Laughing as those fluffy lashes swatted off remnants of his seed..droplets staining the glossy nude lip he’d just finished.

“I need a kiss after that. C’mere..” “Yeah, I agree.”

makeup artist!armin had long since dreamed of what he’d say and do once you guys reconnected. He was nervous, afraid that you’d reject his feelings but it was no longer a secret. That mounting love that had been festering inside of you both had exploded into a blaze of passion that couldn’t be extinguished any time soon. And now that he was back in your life, you’d never be apart again.