#and she could see her cousin visibly wilt. she had to do something. and this prince courting her is sort of not bad and she kinda wants him

[zarnzarn]

y'all think Penelope pulled a "if it weren't for the baby" peeta mallark style on everyone present there to marry odysseus or

[hosannan]

It was strange, but that was all Ares had thought of Leif's no-show.

Not suspicious.

Not worrisome.

Not even an omen of something hanging in the air.

Even as walked right through that increasingly heavy atmosphere to find Nanna once again, alone amongst the slowly thinning crowds, he hadn't thought about it any deeper than that --

"Nanna, have you seen Leif? We have yet to compare our…?"

-- not until he was knocked dumb by her expression, just disturbed enough from her usual serenity that it could register as a flag.

"…Nanna?"

Suddenly, the words to form a better question were hard to find, and what ones he did find were quiet. So instead he made up for it with distance, and the careful steps he took to close it.

"Are you alright?"

"Oh dear..." Nanna glanced at him, glassy eyed, though her insufferable heartache failed to destroy her public presentation. She looked as snow would look, quiet and still, though her hands were still clutched a little too tightly to know peace. "You must be looking for him. I do apologize, Ares. He needed to take his leave early tonight." It was still her duty to save face for her lord, despite acting against him earlier. She would not turn her tongue to speak badly of him, and croaked out a wilting apology. Her chest visibly seized, before she shook it off and held her head tall.

Her cousin... There was fairly little she could do to hide the situation from him, but she found the entire thing too damning to shroud behind weak words. Steadily, she observed his state of dress and the nature of his still eyes. Ares was an unbreakable reminder that they both still had people who cared about them, even if they could not meet each other's expectations. She could only be sorry that he was trapped in the cross-fire, even if he could only feel faint ripples of it from his own pond.

"No, I'm not. In time, perhaps, I will be, but I suspect I need a little time." She wore a faint smile, looking for the nearest exit before picking up her skirts and beginning to take her exit. "Forgive me... I should really clear for the night. And I ask that you forgive Lord Leif, too. We have a lot to think about..."

"I shall not speak for him, but I know he must have been looking forward to..." She weakly ribbed him, knowing how wrong it would sound. But it would be worse if she didn't say anything at all. "Showcasing just how many pins he had fixed to his brooch tonight. I hate to be the bearer of bad news, but he had you beat." Grinning in Leif's place, she pat Ares shoulder like a good sport, and tilted her head forward to silently observe him. Tonight was a night for any other person. She wanted to remember Ares as he was, instead of drowning him in their pre-marital dissonance. Ares had his own life to attend to, and his own thoughts to wrangle. That her cousin managed to collect that many pins for his brooch was a testament to his ability, and his widening world.

Bringing her own brooch up to eye-level, she gave a curt little laugh. If she could not go back to normal, she would have to set a new normal to go back to. "See? You even beat me! You are a winner in my books."

"You put up more than a good fight. I'm proud of you, Ares."

[songmingisthighs]

Hooked

introduction pt. i | pt. ii | pt. iii

ch. lxiv - cowards

<< previous | masterlist | next >>

??? × reader, ateez × reader

A freshman hookup rekindled into something new. With an incentive, of course. But what would happen if your 'relationship' led you somewhere you never thought would happen to you ?

After sending the last text, Mingi and Jongho didn't waste time and immediately rush to (Y/N)'s room. When they arrived, the door was ajar with Seonghwa standing inside. He was staring blankly around, seemingly confused.

"Hyung, have you been here?" Jongho asked, breaking Seonghwa's trance.

"Y-yeah, I did- she left? Just like that ??" Seonghwa asked, still not believing anything that just happened.

Maybe it was Seonghwa's guilt. The fact that his last interaction with you was him accusing you of being a whore didn't sit right with him. There was a lump in his throat and a heavy feeling on his chest. It felt like he was suffocating.

The three of them stood silently, not knowing what to answer.

As they stood silently, the other boys walked in one by one. Wooyoung walked in first with San in tow, they both immediately took note of the silence and just stared at each other with guilt.

One by one everyone else filled the room, staring blankly at the emptiness and letting sorrow and regret fill them.

"S-so that's it? She left us yet AGAIN after having just came back last night?" Hongjoong asked in disbelief. There was no malice in his tone, there were no ill intentions. He was shocked, surprised at the sudden tension.

Mingi turned to look at the eldest with much disdain, "After what happened to her last night, could you really give her blame?"

inking that Hongjoong felt wronged, as he thought his assumption was justified. To be singled out as such was a little bit too much. "Are you trying to be a hero here?" he asked the taller guy. Mingi scoffed at him, "Hero? You think I have some sort of a complex?" "I don't know, do you? I don't think it's a hero complex, but there must be some sort of a messed up complex in you. Because you've been all over the place and overreacting, acting like a mess when you can't find (Y/N) and yet not saying anything when she was here, letting Yeosang ran his mouth at her, driving her off,"

At the mention of his name, Yeosang spoke up from the corner of the room. "I drove her off? Are you fucking serious?" to which San, who was by his side scoffed, "Weren't you the one who verbally attacked her last night? Calling her out on leaving without any explanation was one thing, but to call her a wandering tramp?" "Okay, I was looking out for all of us. YOU especially, San! You don't know how much it affected me seeing you all broken down and you even fell into depression! As your friend, I was fucking worried!" Yeosang defended himself.

Wooyoung chimed in, scoffing at his long-time friend, "Looking out for us? From what? From who? The woman we love? If you wanna go off on her, that's one hundred percent your choice, but don't use us as your excuse. That's just pathetic, man," he told Yeosang whilst glaring at him.

Seonghwa got in between the two, preventing them both from going at it even further. "Okay, enough with you two, you both can't be fighting during this time. Yeosang might've said some... unnecessary things to (Y/N) last night, but things aren't completely his fault," he reasoned.

Surprisingly, Yunho chimed in, smirking at the older man, "You got that right," he muttered. Yunho's voice was intentionally loud enough for everyone to hear, but still low enough for it to seem snarky.

At his chime, Seonghwa furrowed his eyebrows at Yunho, "what's that supposed to mean?" Yunho stepped to Seonghwa while tilting his head as if challenging him, "Don't play dumb, hyung, I heard you last night. Here, you mentioned Yeosang calling (Y/N) names when you basically called her the same thing,"

Whilst the others were left confused, Seonghwa visibly froze. His demeanour changed to a nervous one.

"Yunho, what the fuck are you talking about?" Hongjoong asked.

Yunho looked to the side at Hongjoong casually, "I walked by when I was about to get water last night when I heard yelling from inside her room. Whatever they were talking about, I heard Seonghwa hyung yelling something about (Y/N) staying with guys other than her cousin. The implication was bad, I even heard (Y/N) crying,"

All eyes suddenly shifted to Seonghwa. "Hyung, you made her cry?" San asked, not able to completely believe that Seonghwa was capable of doing that to (Y/N).

Tension rose in the room and suddenly everyone was arguing with each other. All but Jongho who stayed by the sideline, watching the whole thing unfold between his older friends with disappointment in his eyes.

"What happened?" you asked him, appearing by his side out of nowhere.

Jongho sighed before crossing his arms, "They're blaming each other because you left again," he muttered. You frowned and furrowed your eyebrows, "But, I haven't left yet?"

At that, Jongho finally looked at you properly. His eyes widened as wide as they could go, "Oh, hey! You're still here!" He exclaimed loudly, capturing the attention of everyone who was bickering inside.

You stared at them weirdly, "Yeah? Why is that so surprising?"

Mingi stepped out towards you slowly, his hands reached out to grab yours in his softly, "W-we thought you had really left again," he told you, his voice broke from how glad he was.

But that relieved feeling was soon crushed when he heard your answer.

"Well, now I am. I was making sure of something and waiting for Haknyeon to come to pick me up. Since he's here now, I'm... Gonna go," you smiled at them gently. Despite that, there were clear indications that the smile you wore was one of a broken heart.

Seonghwa couldn't help but let his words slip without thinking properly, "You're going back with him and his friends?" to which Yunho immediately nudged him hard on his stomach.

You turn to look at Seonghwa directly. You shook your head at him before answering, "No, I'm not going back to his apartment. Wouldn't be right for me and wouldn't be fair to him. He's just escorting me to my old dorm where I will be staying," you told him. Seonghwa immediately gulped after hearing your answer. He felt bad for jumping to that conclusion, especially after you told him where you were going.

At this point, San had tears brimming in his eyes, blurring his vision, "Wh-why are you going again, (Y/N)? You just got back," he asked as he walked closer to you.

Seeing his tears, you couldn't help but get emotional as well. you let one hand off of Mingi's grasp to cup San's cheek, rubbing it gently with your thumb, "I just have to, Sannie, I'm sorry. I... Just came back up here to tell Mingi and Jongho directly that I'm gonna go now,"

Wooyoung pushed people away to charge directly at you, "Only Mingi and Jongho? That's it? The rest of us didn't even deserve your goodbyes?" there was no resentment in his voice, you noticed. His eyes, however, showed much sorrow.

You sighed and shrugged at him, "With how things went last night, I don't even know if you all wanted to see me again, that's why I tried making my escape as quickly and silently as possible,"

Hongjoong suddenly spoke up, "See, I don't think you wanna leave at all, because if you do, you wouldn't tell us at all and just leave,"

The way he said it set something off in you. Your previous calm demeanour switched within mere milliseconds as you answered Hongjoong bitterly, "of course I don't wanna leave. You think this is easy on me?"

Without realizing it, you slipped your hands off of Mingi's grasp and San's cheek. The others who were in the way moved to the side to let you face Hongjoong directly, slightly afraid of you, "You really think that I came back here just to leave the next day? If so, then not only that you're dead wrong, but you're also an asshole. Every single one of you is acting like I've only been playing around with you all, going back and forth as I please because I don't know what I want. You don't even know why I left. Maybe most of it was because I didn't tell you guys, but part of it was because neither of you even gave me the chance to even explain last night. All of you just turned your backs on me and walked away," you laughed bitterly.

Your words struck them deep. Because they were all true. You might have been the one who started the fight, but they were the ones who delivered the final blow. Not to mention they're male adults who should've been able to communicate and made better decisions. Lastly, there were eight of them and one of you, how was that fair?

The silence and the expression on their faces said a lot, you realized if you were to tell them everything, that was your chance.

So you took a deep breath and spilt everything to them.

You told them about the threat Sunhee gave you, the proof they had, and how they planned on ruining their futures. You told them about how you felt like you didn't have any choice and how you didn't want to make things worse so you just listen to them until you were able to think of something, you wanted to protect them. You also told them how paranoid they made you and how you almost went crazy from worrying over them whilst having to be worried over what those crazy bitches might do.

When you finished talking, you realized that the boys had had tears streaming down their faces. You could see their resolves wilting away and being replaced by regret and shame.

Without even saying anything, Wooyoung pulled you into his arms tightly. He cried, saying how sorry he was for how he acted last night and how he should've trusted you more. Yunho and San wrapped their arms around you too, despite the tears streaming down, they managed to utter how sorry they were for not doing anything. Soon, Hongjoong, Seonghwa, Mingi, and Jongho attached themselves to the growing group hug as well, wordlessly showing their remorse. Despite their lack of words, you understood them just fine.

At that moment, you felt safe, you felt relieved that you were finally able to tell them everything. Things finally seem like they will go back to normal.

Maybe except for one thing.

You lifted your face from where it was nestled in the crook of Wooyoung's neck to meet eyes with the one person who was still rooted in his position.

Yeosang immediately looked away, an attempt you assume was to cover up his own tears.

Though heartbroken that he seemed to still resent you, you took the current win and let yourself bask in the warmth the guys were giving you.

You promised yourself then and there that you wouldn't act so carelessly anymore.

At least not without letting them know.

taglist :

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[unmaskedagain]

Oh Lady Luck (How I miss you so!)

Okay; first off. I hated this. I had a massive case of writer’s block while doing it and lost inspiration near the end.

Oh Lady Luck (How I miss you so!)

           Bustier’s class was the luckiest in school, everyone knew it. They got to go on the most amazing trips, win contest after contest, competition after competition, met all sorts of celebrities, frequently got to meet Ladybug, through the best dances and school plays, and always seemed to have a pep in their step. Anything any of the students went after they always managed to get. Everyone knew Bustier’s class was the luckiest in school. Then one day that changed dramatically.

“You’ve changed,” Alya accused Marinette after the class voted her out as Class president. “You become a bully.”

           Alix snorted, “More like a jealous bitch.”

           There were nods from the other students in class. Lila smiled at Marinette; happy that her promise to ruin the girl was coming true.

“You’re always so mean to Lila,” Rose added. “It’s not nice.”

“You’re worse than Chloe now,” Kim glared.

           Juleka frowned, “We miss the old Marinette.”

“You should’ve chilled out like I told you to, dudette,” Nino said with a shake of his head, clearly disappointed.

“We can’t be your friends anymore,” Alya crossed her arms.

           Marinette had listen to them quietly as they relayed reason after reason why they were ending their friendships with her; all to do with Lila. She didn’t bother to look at Adrien. He had warned her what was going to happen; Nino had told him. There had also been a group text apparently. Adrien made it clear he stood with Marinette. Even more so, when he chose to sit with her in the back of the class, a fierce glare on his face at the other students.

The bluenette placed down her pencil, closed her sketchbook and said, “Fine. Then we’re not friends anymore.”

“That’s counts double for me,” Adrien hissed. “Lose my number. In fact, don’t bother; I’ll just change it. That goes for every last one of you. I’ll be informing my Father and Nathalie that only Chloe and Marinette are on my visitors list.”

           The class blinked in shock. Not expecting that reaction from the blond boy who was usually so amicable and nice.

           Chloe watched with amused eyes. She had been sentenced to the back of the room not long after Marinette. “We’ve never been friends but consider all extra little perks you’ve gotten used to: dead and over with.”

           That was it. None of the other students knew what to say or do. They hadn’t gotten the reaction they expected. Marinette didn’t seem to care. Adrien seemed ready to set them on fire. Chloe looked rather pleased at the idea of seeing them burn. Most shrugged it off; figuring at least two of the three (Marinette and Adrien) would come crawling back in no time.

           They didn’t.

           Things started to change for the students in Bustier’s class the next day.

           Lila woke up in the morning to an email confirming that she would no longer being a model or any type of employee for the Gabriel Agreste brand. Or as Nathalie put it when the sausage hair girl called her, “We will no longer be needing your services, Miss Rossi. Do not contact us again.” Click.

           That was when Lila realized her plan of using Gabriel to get Adrien under her thumb had went up in flames. She hoped that Adrien wasn’t informed so that maybe she could still use his father as a threat against the boy.

           When she go to class, the blond model sent her a vicious smirk. Lila paled. She knew without a doubt that Adrien didn’t just know Lila was fired, he was the one got her fired.

           Nino woke up to the news that the gig he was due to play, his big break, had replaced him. It would’ve been huge for his career.

Oh well, he thought, back to DJ-ing for birthday parties.

           Alya accidently dropped her phone in the toilet; ruining hundreds of videos and pictures for the Ladyblog.

           Alix took a dive while skating; broke her ankle and the watch her dad gave her.

           Max broke his glasses.

           Kim got food poisoning.

           Ivan’s dad ran over his drum set while parking in the garage.

           Rose tried to call Prince Ali and found out he changed his number.

           Nathaniel spilled coffee all over his Ladybug comic strips. Marc had been pissed.

           Juleka’s mom accidently put bleach in with a load of her laundry; it ruined everything.

           By the time they had all got to class, all the students were in a terrible mood. However, when Marinette walked in with a box full of delicious smelling breakfast pastries; they perked up. The bluenette always seemed to know when they needed a pick me up. And there was nothing like a treat from the Dupain-Cheng Bakery.

           Marinette didn’t acknowledge any of their presences. She walked straight to the back of the classroom, sat in her seat between Chloe and Adrien. “Morning!” She beamed at her friends. “I brought treats for the three of us.”

“Awesome!” Adrien smiled, quickly opening the box and snagging a chocolate croissant. “Delicous, Thank you” He said. Or least they thought he said that. His mouth was full and it was mostly garbled.

           Chloe rolled her eyes. She grabbed a mixed berries and cream cheese pastry, “Perfect way to start the day. Thank you, Marinette.”

           Marinette took out her favorite: a berry and jasmine scone. Then she promptly through the box away; making clear that she hadn’t brought any for anyone else. “Anything for my friends.”

“We’ll do lunch at Le Grand Paris,” Chloe said. “On me of course. The chef there is to die for.”

           The other students visibly wilted. Alya in particular who loved going to Le Grand Paris as her mother was the head chef.

           It all went downhill from there.

           Over the next week things went from bad to worse for the students.

           Bustier told the class their trip the Presidential office was cancelled due to an unexpected flooding incident. The plan had been for the class to tour the office and have amazing picnic on the beach afterwards

           Lila’s mother, who had been busy nearly 24/7, officially went on vacation, meaning she plenty of time to spend with her daughter. Her daughter was panicked when her mother inquired about visiting her school.

           Alya discovered that the hits to her site had started to declined dramatically. She didn’t have time to worry about that as her internship with a local new studio had been cancelled; something about realizing Alya didn’t have enough experience. So her summer plans were cancelled.

           Nino’s Dj equipment sparked or shorted out or something but nothing would work anymore. He had cancel the rest of his gigs until he could buy new ones.

           Kim lost a swim match against Ondine.

           Markov got a virus and broke down causing Max to break down in tears.

           Nathaniel lost the expensive sketch pencil he won in a contest.

           Alix’s grandmother brought her a new dresses; frilly monstrosities that Alix’s forced her to wear to school for the entire week.

           Rose, Ivan, and Juleka were heartbroken when Luka announced he was going Solo.

           It didn’t help anyone’s mood that every day Marinette, Chloe, and Adrien walked into class with big smiles on their faces and pleasantly discussed their amazing plans.

           On Wednesday, Adrien invited Marinette and Chloe to come with him to meet the Prime Minister.

           Apparently, Adrien’s dad had called in favors so the three would tour Palais Bourbon, where the French Parliament meets.

“He said I could invite all my friends!” Adrien smiled.

           Marinette had been shocked at this. Until Adrien explained that his aunt had threatened to reveal to the world Gabriel Agreste’s neglectful behavior, his tendency break child labor laws, and his need to isolate Adrien. Thanks to his aunt, Adrien had a much free-er schedule and Gabriel had been in therapy for weeks. “I’ll bring food from the bakery. We can have a picnic!”

“Beach day!” Chloe cheered.

           No one else so much as smiled at the news. Even more so when pictures surfaced on Friday of Marinette, Chloe, Adrien, Ondine, Marc, Mireille, and Aurore with various members of Parliament; including the prime minister.

           Thursday, Chloe loudly invited Marinette and Adrien to an event for her mother, “It’s a fashion show! It’s tonight. Adrien can relax behind the scenes, while Mari and me model on the run way. Mama’s lost a few models so I told her I could recommend a few friends.”

“I’m modeling!” Marinette paled so much, her friends were sure she’d pass out.

“I get to do nothing!” Adrien grinned.

           Pictures of Chloe and Marinette modeling exploded across the internet; multiple fashion websites and online magazines deeming the girls’ Style Queen’s secret weapon and modeling next big thing.

           Most of the guys in class shrugged it off. But a few of the girls turned greened with envy; Lila in particular.

           On Friday, Marinette invited Adrien and Chloe to meet her uncle and her cousin, “He’s back in town on Saturday and he wants to meet all my friends.”

           No one else in class paid too much to that. Who cared about Marinette’s uncle? Or her cousin? They were probably just as stuck-up and nasty as she was.

           Then on Saturday, picture of the same group who went to Parliament, plus Luka, with Jagged Stone and Clara Nightingale started trending on the internet. Jagged Stone posted a tweet about how awesome his honorary niece was, with a picture of him and Marinette. Clara posted a pic with her favorite little cousin, Marinette.

           Alya couldn’t believe her eyes and immediately started texting Marinette for the deets. She received a text back saying; new number; who dis?

           Nino flat-out called Adrien only hear that the number had been disconnected.

           The rest of the class faced the same issue.

           And then one by one, they each remembered that they weren’t friends with any of the tree Ostracized students anymore.

           Monday, Alya found out that BugOut, a competing Ladybug blog, had been officially endorsed by Ladybug and Chat Noir. Something that hadn’t happened with the Ladyblog.

           Max lost the science fair. For the first time. He had to go see the school guidance counselor.

           Kim got kicked off the team for his poor grade.

           Lila’s finally called the school to schedule an appointment. Lila was Akumatized within the five minutes.

           Alix’s grandma brought her more clothes; some which were tacky sweaters with cats all over them

           Nathaniel misplaced his new sketch book, with his redone Ladybug comic strips. He never found it. Marc wasn’t happy.

           Nino got a call to dj a huge event only to have to decline as he hadn’t bought new equipment yet.

           It was Adrien that brought in breakfast for the other two; Mcdonalds. Much to the Chloe and Marinette’s dismay, but they didn’t say anything as the boy was clearly happy about being allowed to eat it for the first time.

           Marinette unwrapped her sausage Mcgriddle, wondering who she hurt in a past life, “Jagged is doing a private concert. You two want to come?”

           Adrien nodded, his mouth full of fried hash brown and bacon. “Count me in,” They think he said.

           Chloe held the egg mcmuffin in her hand like it was physically hurting her to do so, “I’m in,” she said. “And I’m bringing breakfast tomorrow.”

           The class was dismayed at missing at meeting Jagged Stone again.

“Are you going to invite us?” Alya asked with a huff.

           Marinette didn’t even look in her direction, “Sorry Uncle Jagged said I can only invite my friends.”

           Ouch.

           Over the course of the next few months, things continued to fall apart for the class. They tried planning one of their usual amazing dances, only for everything to crash and burn. Then they remembered that Marinette planned everything, and before her, Chloe.

           The class never made enough money fundraising so nearly all planned class trips were canceled.

           They had to deal with seeing pictures of Marinette, Adrien, and Chloe and all their friends meeting all sorts of celebrities.

           Ladybug disowned the Ladyblog; causing Alya to burst into tears.

           No matter what any of the students tried, did, competed in, they never won. They practically failed at everything.

           Rose tried to bake cookies for the class; her kitchen caught on fire.

           Max applied for science camp; all spots were full.

           Nathaniel who had lost his comic drawing for the twelfth time in a row was finally told by Marc to take a hike.

           Nino lost his hat, broke his glasses, a dog at his homework, and he tripped landed face down in the mud; all on the way to school one morning.

           The students were constantly late, frustrated, and always seemed to have something accidently spilled or thrown on their clothes.

           Lila’s  mother, who finally decided to just randomly drop by the school after being told repeatedly by her daughter that it was closed so she couldn’t do the appointment for months, was shocked to say the least when it was clearly opened and active. She had a long talk with the Principle and all of Lila’s lies were revealed to class.

           Class was very apologetic to the three ostracized students after that but it didn’t matter. The three made it clear they weren’t interested in renewing their friendships.

           By the end of the year Bustier’s class went from the luckiest in school to the unluckiest kids on the planet.

           The students of Bustier’s class couldn’t help but wonder aloud why they lucked changed do much.

           Tikki, Plagg, and Pollen, hidden away in their chosens’ school bags just smirked.

[365daysofsasuhina]

[ 365 Days of SasuHina || Day Three Hundred Forty-Eight: Lost Again ] [ Uchiha Sasuke, Hyūga Hinata, Uchiha Itachi, Hyūga Neji ] [ SasuHina ] [ Verse: Catch ‘Em All ] [ AO3 Link ]

 All he wanted to do was impress her...and now they’re lost.

Admittedly, it isn’t the first time Sasuke’s gotten turned around in the Safari Zone. It’s huge! And though divided into sections with paths, it’s so easy to forget where you’ve come from, let alone where you were going. And given that he’s lived in Fuchsia his entire life, of course he’s been here a number of times.

And nearly every time, he’s gotten lost.

So, in reality...this time, he’s lost again.

But perhaps, a bit of backstory.

Hinata’s long-awaited visit from Cerulean had been going pretty well. Sasuke already helped her catch a Goldeen, and Neji almost beat Fugaku for his gym badge. The Uchiha patriarch had agreed to train him a bit, so their stay had been extended (with permission granted by Hiashi, of course).

The two Hyūga had been settling in quite well. Neji spent all of the previous day training with Fugaku, Itachi even coming in to lend a hand. Which, of course, left both younger siblings (or...cousins, in Hinata’s case) without their elders to keep an eye on them. And today was headed in much the same direction.

When they finally headed downstairs, Mikoto greeted them warmly. “Did you sleep all right, Hinata?”

“Y...yes ma’am!”

“Well, I hope you’re hungry - there’s still plenty of breakfast left!”

“Did Neji and aniki already go to the gym?” Sasuke asked, clearly a bit disappointed as his brother yet again left him behind.

“They did. I believe Neji-kun wanted to get an early start on the training Fugaku is offering him.”

“Oh…”

“Don’t worry, they’ll be back when they have a lunch break! Maybe then your brother can spare some time to spend with you, ne?”

Not replying verbally, Sasuke just gave a solemn nod, which earned a sheepish glance from Hinata.

Considering the pair of them as they started digging into their meal, Mikoto then asked, “...Sasuke, why don’t you take Hinata-chan to the Safari Zone?”

He paused midway to taking a bite. “...huh?”

“It’s unlike anything else in Kanto, after all! Especially someplace like Cerulean. I bet you could show her all sorts of neat things.” His mother gave a wink and a smile. “You might even get to see some rare pokémon! What do you think, Hinata-chan? Does that sound like fun?”

Missing Sasuke’s sour pout, Hinata had brightened with starry eyes. “Oh, y-yes please! W-what kind of pokémon are in there…?”

“All sorts! A friend of Itachi’s volunteers there to help keep the pokémon in the reserve safe from poachers. She even has a pokémon of her own that was poached, but saved. She used to live in Lavender Town with an old man who helped take care of abandoned or injured pokémon. I bet she’d have lots of stories to tell you.”

Even as Hinata gushed over the idea, Sasuke picked at his food. While he liked the park well enough...the girl in question bothered him. Itachi seemed to find too many excuses to spend time with her. And with how jealous Sasuke could get about time spent with his brother, well...it meant he wasn’t exactly fond of her.

“You’ll take her, won’t you Sasuke?”

“...yeah, we can go.”

“Good! I’ll send my Butterfree to the reserve and let them know you’ll be coming. Maybe she can give you a tour!”

Sasuke’s expression pinched further. “No!”

Both girls paused, looking to him in question. “...why not?”

“I...I wanna do it! Hinata’s my friend…” And he didn’t want anyone else interfering!

Looking a bit confused but also on the verge of understanding, Mikoto had gently shrugged. “Well...all right. Do be careful - it’s pretty easy to get lost in there.”

“We’ll be fine…”

Once they were finished eating, the pair had thanked Mikoto again before heading north toward the Safari Zone. Sasuke, no longer quite so grumpy, explained what the park was for. “Mostly it’s to help pokémon that are more endangered. They live there with very few trainers allowed to catch them. You gotta pay a fee to go in, and you only have so much time to look before you have to try again. The money helps with the park, and keeping the pokémon there safe and healthy.”

“Rare pokémon…?”

“Well, not all of them are rare, but some are, like Dratini or Kangaskhan.”

“Do you think we’ll s-see one?”

Sasuke hesitated at that. Technically the odds were pretty low, but...Itachi’s friend had one of the pokémon in question. And it was even a shiny variety, hence it being poached. “...maybe.”

Arriving at the entrance to the reserve, the pair paid their fees, allowed a longer stay than a trainer as they weren’t heading in to try and catch any pokémon. And just as they were heading out the door -

“Hey, Sasuke-kun!”

The boy visibly flinched. Great...it was her.

“Heading into the park?”

“...yeah...m’taking my friend to see it.”

“I see! Is she a young trainer like you?”

“Er...kinda…”

“Sasuke-kun caught me a G-Goldeen yesterday! It’s my first ever pokémon!” Hinata replied, looking excited.

“Wow, congratulations! Be safe out there, okay? If you have any trouble, I’m sure one of the park rangers will find you. And Sasuke-kun can always send his Spearow for help if you need it, all right?”

“O-okay!”

Stubbornly taking Hinata’s hand, Sasuke tugged her through the door. “Bye…”

“Bye!”

That was this morning. It’s now early afternoon, and after a thorough romp through several areas of the park...the pair are about ready to call it quits.

...there’s just one problem.

Sasuke isn’t sure where he is…

“Um...Sasuke-kun…?”

“What?”

“Are...are we lost…?”

His stubborn expression only deepens. “...”

“Should...should we send for he-?”

“We’re fine! We just...have to keep going. This way!”

Stumbling a bit as he tugs her forward, Hinata has little choice but to follow. While she’s enjoyed herself thoroughly - they even saw a family of Kangaskhan! - the prospect of being stuck in here is unnerving. Especially since her stomach keeps gurgling… “S-Sasuke-kun -?”

“I don’t need any help. I know where I’m going!”

“But -?”

“I can do this on my own!”

Expression slackening in surprise, Hinata then digs in her heels, jolting Sasuke to a stop. “I-it’s okay to ask for help!”

“I can -!”

“Sasuke-kun…” She gives him a pleading look. “Y...you helped me the other day...right? To catch Goldeen?”

“But...that was different…”

Able to puzzle out at least part of why he’s upset, she flashes a sheepish smile. “I...I’m really glad you took me here! It’s been a lot of fun. But...we need to get back, right…? A-aren’t you tired? O-or hungry?”

His glance aside is telling enough.

“...let’s just send your Spearow, o-okay? Then we can go back, and have lunch with everybody. Ne…?”

“Oi!”

Both kids stiffen in shock, looking over to find a Rapidash galloping toward them. And on its back is the girl from before, worry clear in her expression. Sasuke can’t help a hint of a scowl - out of everyone, why her?!

Sliding from the pokémon’s back, she jogs the rest of the distance. “Are you guys okay?”

“Y-yes, we’re fine! Just a little, um...l-lost. I think I...I got us all turned around.”

Sasuke’s eyes widen. Why is she -?

“That’s okay! It’s easy to get lost in here - even I still get a little confused sometimes! Mikoto-san was getting concerned, so I said I’d come look for you. How about you two ride on Rapidash, and spare your feet the rest of the walk?”

“Oh, y-yes please!”

The elder helps lift them up atop the equine pokémon, smiling. “Don’t worry, she won’t burn you - she’s very well trained to help people here in the park. Now, let’s get you back home!”

Minutes pass by in silence, and soon enough, the entry building looms up out the trees. Both let back to the ground, the pair make their way through the door...and run straight into Itachi and Neji!

“Oh thank goodness…!” Brows wilted in worry, Itachi latches onto his brother, who tenses in surprise. “I was afraid you’d gotten hurt and were stuck somewhere…!”

“I...I’m okay, aniki.”

“Hinata-chan! Are you all right?”

“Y-yes, I’m fine, Neji-nī. Really.”

“Thank you so much for finding them,” Itachi offers, looking to his friend gratefully.

“Of course! They actually weren’t too far out. I’m just glad they’re both safe and sound. Now, you guys better go get your lunch, ne? That’s a long time to go hiking without a snack!”

Waving farewell, the four of them take their leave, walking back to the Uchiha household. All the while, Hinata gushes to Neji about all they saw.

“M-maybe we can go in another time so you can see! It’s beautiful in there...we didn’t get to see any Dratini, o-or Chansey. But maybe next time!”

“Ah, did she not show your her Dratini?” Itachi asks.

“She...she has one?”

“Yes, though…” Itachi glances to Sasuke, who seems to wilt. “...I suppose it isn’t quite the same as seeing one in its natural habitat. Maybe we’ll all go back before you two head home, and we can have a guided tour. It might increase our odds.”

“O-okay! I-I had a lot of fun with Sasuke-kun today, so...I-I’d like to do it again!”

Itachi just gives a small, knowing smile. “...and I’m sure he enjoyed getting to show you more about our town, Hinata-chan.”

Once returned, they all settle in for the lunch Mikoto’s made, the mother greeting the younger pair in relief. But with them safe and sound, the conversation soon drifts.

Noticing Sasuke still looking a bit put out, Hinata gently nudges him with her shoulder. “T-thank you for taking me today. I think...that was one of the c-coolest things I’ve ever gotten to do: see pokémon like that!”

“...really?”

She nods.

“...even if we got lost?”

“I-it’s fine, Sasuke-kun. You still helped me do something I’d n-never have done otherwise.”

After a pause, he manages a smile. “...you’re welcome.”

                                                        .oOo.

     (This is a sequel to days 18 and 88, and is followed by days 125, 127, and 278!)       More pokéverse! Haven't done this one in a while, and it's always fun to revisit. This one kinda falls in the middle, which...I try not to jump around in the order of the mini series, but I kinda had to xD      Poor Sasuke...he just wanted to look cool. Of course something had to go wrong! But it seems Hinata still had oodles of fun regardless, so...it's still a good day!      I'd say more, but it's VERY late and I'm very tired, lol - thanks for reading!

[rhnuzlocke]

Chapter Four: Child of the Moon

The car rumbled softly into a space behind the Petalburg Gym, and Senri climbed out of the driver’s side. Ren paused for a moment to marvel at the solar parking lot and scuff her new boot against its textured glass surface. They were still stiff, and she was not looking forward to how sore her feet would be by the end of the day, but she liked the look and weight of them.

Kenta emerged from his ball, and Tāraki bounced excitedly beside the Ursaring as they walked around to the front. The hulking pokemon yawned, then murmured some doubtless sage advice from his own journey with her father. Tāraki listed with unusually rapt attention, eyes glued to Kenta’s grizzled muzzle. She was going to miss him.

Ren wondered if everyone was in yet and how long this would take. Barry was already at the front desk settling in, and Lei walked out of the changing rooms with their Persian.

“It feels like you just got here, and you’re already on your way!” they complained, but they were smiling. “Are we finally gonna battle when you come back for the badge?”

“Depends how much you train,” Ren shot back with a grin.

Lei laughed. “She’s your daughter alright!”

“That she is.” Senri ruffled her hair. She almost threw him but shoved back the impulse and brushed him off instead. “I’ll go get your things.”

He went back, and a few of the other trainers offered her congratulations and goodbyes. Kenta nudged her when Barry left for the bathroom.

“I’ll be careful,” she told him.

“You are careful,” he said with a chuff.

There was a lot she wanted to say to him, but for a long moment nothing came to the surface. Then something old surged up from the depths, a memory she thought she had forgotten. “I—I’m sorry it took so long.”

“We evolve in our own time, little cub. I don’t hold you to the things you said when you were cave-bound. I’m just glad to see you smiling again—feel the warmth pour out of you like a campfire. I’m grateful for every day you live and every step I see you take. Doesn’t matter the direction.”

Ren dropped to her knees and slung her arms around his neck, burying her face in his soft, thick fur. He put an arm around her, and she was safe again.

“Watashi wa Kenta-sensei ni hibi to gyōseki karite iru subete.”

“I have no regrets,” he returned and hugged her tighter.

“Kenta talks even less than Otōsan but he always knows what to say. I was lucky to have so many parents.”

They have certainly been a formative—and positive—influence.  

At last, she dried her eyes and let go of him. “I’ll see you soon.”

“Good. Ready to say goodbye to the others?”

Ren smiled. “Yeah.”

Tāraki climbed back up her shoulder, and she scratched under his chin as they went back to see the rest of her father’s team. The old Tauros nearly knocked her off her feet as she came in only to be snatched to safety by the Ambipom. The Blissey and Kangaskhan nearly smothered her between them. Even the Vigoroth gave her a fond pat with his claws, only to sulk away when the others poked fun at him. The rest of the crew didn’t know her as well, and she couldn’t understand them, but they wished her well just the same.

Then it was time to leave, and she returned to the lobby with her father.

“Senri, Mr. Scott is here to see you,” Barry called as they entered. A middle-aged man and green-haired teen were waiting with him by the front desk.

“Good morning, Charles! Wally, how are you?” Senri greeted them.

“Very well, thank you, sir,” the boy answered. He was almost eerily pale and didn’t look terribly well but held himself with a certain kind of poise. It made him seem taller than he actually was. He was small—only as tall as Ren—and slighter with delicate features to match.

“Oh! Introductions! This is my daughter, Ren.”

Mr. Scott shook her hand. “It’s a pleasure to finally meet you, young lady.”

“I should have introduced you two a while ago,” said Senri while Ren shook Wally’s hand. “I wasn’t thinking. Ah, maybe it’s just as well. When’s the big move? Soon, no?”

“In a week, sir.”

“Excellent. So, what can I help you with today?”

“I got my trainer license.”

“Wonderful, let’s see it!” Senri beamed. Wally fished it out of his shoulder bag and handed it over. “Look at that photo! I’m jealous. My first made me look like a convict,” Senri chuckled as he returned it. “Well then, let’s go in and meet the greenhorns. I’m sure you’ll find someone suitable.”

“Actually, sir,” Wally stopped him, “I was hoping for a loan. I want to catch my first—my service pokemon.”

“Oh?” Senri said as his mind worked. Then something flickered over his face, and he tried not to grin. Ren knew that look. “Very Good! Now let me see, who can I give you…” He pretended to think it over for a moment, and Ren figured what he was up to before he opened his mouth again. “Actually, Ren, would you mind helping Wally with this?”

“Sure.”

That was surprisingly quick.  

“I knew he had to have a good reason. He was more excited than I was for me to set out.”

“Great! Ren has already caught three pokemon so you’re in good hands, Wally. I’ll see you two later.”

Senri ushered Mr. Scott further inside, throwing Ren a wink over his shoulder. Once they were gone, Wally shifted and wrang the shoulder strap of his bag between his hands.

“Thank you for helping me. I hope this isn’t getting in the way of anything.”

“It’s no problem,” she reassured him as they walked out. “I don’t have a schedule to keep.” He accepted that, and she gestured towards Route 102 since it was closest. They walked in silence for a bit, and he pulled his cardigan sleeves down over his hands.

“So, why do you want to catch a wild to have as your service pokemon, if it’s okay to ask? Are they expensive here?”

He wrung his bag strap again before answering. “Um, the truth is I don’t want a service pokemon—well I do. I’m going to live with my aunt and uncle, and my cousin is a breeder, so I could have gotten one from her—and I still might—but I want to be a trainer. I always have. But, um, I’ve never really been healthy, and my parents wouldn’t let me try.”

“So we’re actually out here to get you a battler?”

“Yeah,” he responded meekly and twisted his bag strap even more.

“Hey, don’t worry. I won’t Rattata you out or anything. But why not just take one of Otōsan’s trainees or your cousin’s pokemon and battle them?”

He reached up and held the carved wood pendant hanging around his neck and rubbed at it with his thumb. “My parents have a point. I don’t know if I can be a real trainer, so I set myself a test of sorts. If I can get a wild pokemon to respect me, show enough potential that they decide they want to be my partner, then maybe I can do it.”

Ren nodded, and Wally looked taken aback by her acceptance. “It makes sense to me. I mean, it does feel like you're being a little hard on yourself, but you’ve clearly given this a lot of thought. And I don’t think it’s strange. I didn’t really ‘catch’ any of the pokemon on my team. I asked them—except for Panahi, who asked me.”

“Oh wow! Really?”

“I think it’s more common in some regions. After all, we didn’t always have pokeballs.”

“I guess that’s true.”

Ren pulled a ball of her belt and held it out to him. He accepted it reverently and cradled it in his hand for a minute. She bumped her eyebrows at him, and a look of determination settled over his features. He threw the ball, Akahana popped out in a flash of red, and he caught it again.

“Oh, what a cool Poochyena! I haven’t seen one like her before.”

“She’s a Striped variant. Akahana, this is Wally. We are going to help him get his first pokemon.” Akahana scrutinized him for a moment and nodded. “She knows Growl, Tackle, and Thunder Fang.”

“Whoa! Really?”

“Yep! And Thunder Fang is great because—

“It has a chance of causing paralysis!”

“Exactly. And Aka here is good at it.” Ren gave him an appraising look. He must have practiced to toss and catch a pokeball that naturally. She remembered doing the same with a rubber band ball when she was young. “You sure know your stuff.”

“I sorta have a library on pokemon training at home. And I watched every battle video I could get my hands on since I couldn’t…” He trailed off.

“That’s great! Whatever pokemon you catch will be super lucky.” He smiled, and Ren grinned back. “What species did you have in mind?”

“I would really like a Ralts.” Ren pulled out her nav and looked them up since it wasn’t a species she had bumped across out with Kai. When she saw the first image, her eyes flickered to Wally’s hair . The resemblance was too close to be a coincidence. She shook her head and turned her attention back to the data. “Hmm, DexNav says they’re elusive. We could be out here a while.”

“I’m sorry,” Wally apologized again, visibly wilting.

“Hey, don’t worry about it. This is super important. Besides, it’ll be fun.”

Wally’s lips parted slightly in surprise, then a wobbly but radiant smile took over his face, and his pale blue eyes shimmered. “Thank you.”

“He shattered my heart with that smile.”

That’s very sentimental of you.  

“Something you have yet to learn about me is that I am extremely and unbearably sentimental.”

And was that the only reason you helped him?  

“No. I was angry at his parents. Otōsan’s encouragement was a lot sometimes, but he never told me that I couldn’t do something. And Okāsan has been there to support me at every tournament and performance for my entire life. It wasn’t fair. So I was determined to give him at least a little of what he was owed.”

Wally and Ren wandered around for hours. Ren consulted the Littleroot Labs data on her nav, Akahana used her nose, Tāraki climbed every tree, Iki peered around from the safety of Ren’s head, and Panahi scanned from above with her keen eyes.

They slowly spread out to cover more ground, though not so far as to lose track of each other. But Ren had Akahana stay with Wally just in case.

Ren was looking through some bushes when she heard coughing so severe that she went running to find Wally, but by the time she was in sight again, he had an inhaler over his nose and had quieted. He put it casually back in his bag, barely looking at what he was doing.

So it was his lungs—probably asthma or some kind of birth defect. That seemed like a particularly frightening ailment to Ren—to at any moment be unable to breathe, suffocate on nothing. It couldn't have been easy for him to grow up knowing each breath could be his last. But then again, maybe that made things simple. It would be a terrible waste not to do what he wanted, so here he was, risking himself on a dream, letting passion drive him.

Ren turned around without making herself known and kept searching.

At long last, Wally gave a shout. “I found one!”

Ren tried not to run, so as not to scare it off only to gasp when she caught sight of it. The pokemon was indeed a Ralts, but with glittering feathers and a bright blue helmet instead of green.

“Nanda, is that a shiny?”

“Yeah,” he confirmed weakly, clearly still trying to process it himself.

“Ralts!” Akahana called out to it before anyone could gather themselves, “this human is a trainer without a pokemon. If he can demonstrate his ability in battle to your satisfaction, would you be interested in becoming his starter?”

The Ralts cocked its head and looked carefully up at Wally through its fringe, first with one eye and then the other. It chirped to Akahana in an odd ringing tone and she shook her head. Then it nodded, and Akahana settled lower to the ground, coiling herself and ready to spring.

“Oh!” Wally gasped. He took a deep breath and a look of determination spread over his face. “Akahana, use Thunder Fang!”

Akahana surged forward, bright tendrils of electricity trailing from her bared white fangs. The Ralts startled at the unexpected move, and its feathers ruffled as it lashed out instinctively with Confusion. The pulsing purple waves bounced harmlessly off of Akahana, and she sunk her teeth into its arm. The Ralts shuddered with the jolt of electricity but held steady. Pink, ringed sound waves erupted from its mouth and struck Akahana off. A close quarters fairy move was a lot for her, but she rolled right back to her feet.

“Hang in there, Akahana,” Wally cried. The Ralts fired off another Disarming Voice, but Akahana leapt to the side. The Ralts twitched stiffly, unable to course correct before the attack was spent. “It’s paralyzed! Get around back and Tackle!”

Ren nodded approvingly as Akahana dove under another attack, sprinted past, and whirled around. Her skull connected powerfully with the Ralts���s back and it fell forward in a heap. It tried to get up but wavered from the paralysis. Akahana pressed a paw between its shoulders and growled. It held stubbornly for a moment before letting its head loll, admitting defeat. Ren heard Wally gasp softly.

Akahana released it and walked back to Ren’s side. The Ralts righted itself and looked directly up at Wally, who started. They were both quiet for a minute and Wally’s lips moved, which meant it was probably using telepathy to speak to him. Finally, Wally pulled out a pokeball and kneeled down, offering it to the Ralts. It pushed the button and flowed inside. Wally clutched the ball tightly for a moment, and then it flashed green.

“YES!” he yelled, jumping up with the pokeball held aloft. “I can’t believe it!”

“Great job!” Ren congratulated him. “You really kept your cool. That’s a tough thing for most beginners.”

Wally was too elated to process her compliments and swept down on Akahana. “Thank you, Akahana!” he said, hugging her tightly. “You were so awesome! Thank you so much!”

Akahana was stiffened in shock at the display of affection, but remained still until he started coughing and had to let her go to use his inhaler.

“Thank you, Ren,” he said, a bit calmer and quieter so as not to upset his lungs again. “This means so, so much to me. I don’t think I could have done that without you here.”

“I’m happy to help, but don’t give me too much credit. That was a pretty even match, and you won it on your own.” He glanced away and she placed a hand on his shoulder to pull him back. “I want you to remember that.”

“Okay, but I still want to pay you back some day.”

She smiled wide enough to split her face. “Deal. Hey, why don’t we trade numbers? I’ll probably be going through Verdanturf in a few weeks. Maybe we can meet up?”

“Yeah, that sounds great!”  

They swapped navs and filled in their contact information. Wally was still radiating joy like a Sunny Day and took the Ralts’s ball in his hands again to let his new pokemon back out. The Ralts looked up at him and smiled too.

“Let’s go to the Pokemon Center. We can heal these guys up and get your trainer card updated. Any idea what you’re going to call them?”

“Faris.”

“It was a lot of fun to go back and show Otōsan that catch. You should have seen his face. He couldn’t believe it!”

I did see it, and it was rather amusing.  

“Oh, right. Well, I’m glad I hung around. And I think it was good for Akahana.”

You’ve accomplished a lot to be proud of. And needed me for so little of it.  

“I—When you put it in that context, it makes it very hard to deny.”

One doesn’t live as long as I without learning a little trickery.  

[noir-renard]

Practice

read on AO3

Minerva was just finishing the corrections on her NEWT student’s first assignment—they all had a lot of revisions to do, clearly—when a tentative knock came at her door. Now who could that be?   She pulled her cloak tightly around her. “Come in,” she called.

The door swung open slowly, and there stood Harry Potter, arms full of what appeared to be muggle clothing. “Mr. Potter,” she said politely, curious in spite of the oddity of the situation. “To what do I owe the pleasure?”

“Good evening, Professor,” he said softly, stepping into her office and juggling the clothing in his arm so he could shut the door behind him.

It was an odd feeling, seeing him here at Hogwarts. He wasn’t the first child of her former students she’d ever taught. Wasn’t the first orphan of war, either. But he looked so much like James. His personality was rather different, however, regardless of what Severus thought.

“I have something to ask you,” he said quietly, shifting his feet nervously. “A bit of a request, actually.”

When he didn’t say anything else, Minerva prompted, “Go on, then. What can I do for you?” It was only the first week of school, and he already had something to ask? She hoped he was not being bullied or harassed for being the Boy Who Lived.

“I was wondering...well, hoping...could you teach me how to transfigure clothes?”

Minerva blinked at him. “That is fourth year spellwork, Mr.Potter.”

“I know. Hermione said the same thing when I asked her for help. So did Percy.” He dumped the clothes into the spare chair in front of her desk, picking up an article of clothing that could have been a t-shirt, once. Perhaps. It also could have fit six Harrys inside, and was a dingy grey color. “I just thought...well, I hoped I could change the clothing to actually fit me.” He was blushing deeply, though it was hard to tell with his tan skin. “And maybe the color as well.”

Minerva pursed her lips. There was something about this situation she wasn’t seeing. “Did one of the older students do that to your clothes?”

Harry frowned. “No?”

“Did you do that to them, by attempting the spells yourself?” She tried not to sound too accusatory, but it wouldn’t be the first time a student got too enthusiastic about the possibilities of transfiguration and unintentionally affected permanent, regrettable change on their belongings.

“No,” Harry said softly, looking down at his feet. Minerva realized he was embarrassed, but she couldn’t understand why, especially if the poorly sized clothing wasn’t his doing. “My clothes have always been like this. Well, they weren’t always grey.”

Ah. So that was why. Another piece of the puzzle that was Harry Potter fell into place. But there was still something else...

“You want to learn wardrobe transfiguration...because your family won’t clothe you?” She hadn’t forgotten what Harry’s family were like, just as she’d never completely forgiven herself for agreeing to leave him there.

“These are the clothes they gave me,” he said neutrally. Minerva just stared at the pile, too horrified and angry to speak. Harry seemed to take her silence as a wish for elaboration. “My family always gave me my cousin’s old clothes, but, erm...he’s not the same size as me. So I thought...well, if you can turn a desk into a pig, surely you can make my clothes actually fit me? And maybe not grey...”

Minerva swallowed the lump in her throat. She’d be having words with Albus for sticking Harry with those monsters. “I can teach you the spells if you’d like, Mr.Potter, but fabric can only handle so much transfiguration before it falls apart. Especially muggle clothing—it isn’t made to hold magic like robes or magically enhanced materials.”

“Oh,” Harry said, visibly wilting.

“However, I would be more than happy to arrange for you to mail order some new clothing.”

He looked up, eyes bright. “You’d do that for me?”

“Of course. Don’t you remember what I said? Your houses are your family at Hogwarts. Families take care of their members, which includes making sure they have appropriate attire.” She smiled at him, certain now that he had not been on the receiving end of enough kindness in his life. “But if you’d still like to learn, it looks like you have a perfectly adequate pile of spare clothing to practice on.”

[thetiredapprentice]

[I kept thinking about the threads I’m in with @two-ofcups and @julianschesthair and I had the thought about what it would be like if the apprentices didn’t get called to the palace but knew each other, running different shops according to their preference or specialty, and this ended up happening. /// There is a cut, because it got long.]

Dillion had been daydreaming, and he was not expecting to be snapped out of it because of a piece of paper hitting him in the face. He jumped, face flushing at the snort that followed his reaction.

“What was that for?” Dillion asked, looking at his cousin accusingly. Attie grinned back at him, and Dillion was suddenly very nervous.

“I said your name three times and you didn’t snap out of it, so that was my next option,” Attie said, gesturing at the paper vaguely. “What had you so deep in thought that you weren’t paying attention?”

“N-nothing,” Dillion replied too quickly, stuttering over his bluff. “Just z-zoning out.”

“Oh really, nothing at all?” Attie teased, crossing their arms in front of them. “Were you thinking of a who, then?”

Dillion felt the heat rush to his face and he knew he was visibly blushing. He felt himself get warmer as Attie’s grin widened, their hunch confirmed.

“I bet I know who,” Attie sang softly. “Have you asked him out yet?”

“W-what? N-no I haven’t… h-how do you know he’s a he?” Dillion stuttered, one hand pulling his hair – he braided it that day – in front of him to fidget.

“Because I know you, Leo,” Attie said, smiling at him mischievously. “And I’ve seen how you look at Morpheus. Completely smitten.”

Dillion groaned lightly, covering his face with his hands. Even if it was Attie, he was embarrassed at getting caught. He hadn’t mentioned his crush and he hadn’t thought he’d been that obvious.

“He’s so sweet, At,” Dillion said softly. “And so nice. Gods, and he’s so pretty too.”

“So hop to it and ask him to dinner or drinks or something if you like him so much,” Attie said, their tone going soft. “I believe in you, and I think you two are a good match.”

Dillion lowered his hands, focusing on Attie again. Their expression was sincere, any hint of teasing gone as they offered him a small smile. Dillion returned it with a wider one of his own, a small wave of happiness running through him. The illusionist stood up from where he had been sitting, moving to wrap Attie in a hug. Dillion kissed the top of their head, squeezing them lightly before he pulled away.

  “You’re the best cousin,” Dillion said, smiling at Attie again. “I promise I’ll try and buck up the nerve soon.”

“You better, or Morpheus might beat you to it,” Attie said, reaching up to flip Dillion’s braid behind his back.

Dillion huffed in mock annoyance, crossing his arms as he eyed his cousin, a thought coming to him.

“How are you and a certain red-head doing by the way?” he asked, his own tone turning slightly teasing. “Because there have been a number of baked goods in the kitchen I know aren’t from the baker’s.”

Attie’s face remained almost neutral; it was their own flushing cheeks and slight eyebrow raise that gave them away.

“Fine. Y’know. Lots of baking. And talking,” Attie mumbled, sentences clipped. They looked away from Dillion, one hand moving to brush a non-existent piece of hair away as they coughed. “It’s nice knowing someone else who knows a lot about herbs. And poisons, that has been, uh… potentially helpful information.”

Dillion’s eyes darted over Attie’s face suspiciously before something clicked, his eyes widening slightly.

“Wait- do you?” Dillion said, pointing a finger at them. “Do you have a crush on Gwen?”

Attie’s eyes widened and their face turned pink, and Dillion could have sworn they stopped breathing for a moment before they relaxed slightly.

“I… I don’t know. Maybe,” Attie mumbled, wilting slightly at Dillion’s skeptical look. “Don’t look at me that.”

“Attie,” Dillion said, drawing out their name as his hands reached up, smushing Attie’s cheeks together slightly. “Be honest with yourself.”

“Leo, stop,” Attie said, pushing his hands away with a small huff. “Okay, fine. Gwen is beyond sweet, she’s cute, and I like her, but I’m still kind of figuring it out. But I like her. Happy?”

“Mhmm. See, I can tease too,” Dillion hummed, crossing his arms as he leaned down slightly, getting eye-level with Attie. Something they had said came back to him, and his expression grew concerned. “Wait, why is it useful for you to know about poisons?”

The grin Attie gave him was not comforting, and Dillion could feel himself pale slightly. He was quick to flush again though as Attie burst out laughing and he reached up, pulling at their cheeks lightly in retaliation for the scare.

[carrieautumn-blog1]

Lilly Cobb

This was a request for Waldorkler, a short story involving their OC. Thanks for the request!

https://lilly-cobb.tumblr.com/

Lilly Cobb

The vapors of a dream drifted up from the dying embers of a violet cigar; the various aristocratic faces caught in the curling tails of smoke began to fade as the young Lilly Cobb stirred. She had fallen asleep in the parlor, lying face first on an antique settee, patterned in wilting silk flowers. Her cigar holder rested precariously between two thin fingers, threatening to catch the rug on fire. She couldn’t decide if the mansion set ablaze would be an awful way to go or not, there was something appealing with the idea of the Cobb Estate pershing in a glorious blaze with it’s last remaining occupant. Yet, she thought again that perhaps it should remain standing as the largest mausoleum in history, a hollow symbol that stood for the loss of an entire lineage.

The Cobb family had been cursed. The entire bloodline had slowly began to vanish, as one by one each member had perished, until the sole remaining member was the young Lilly Cobb. Lilly was not a lonely girl, for whatever reason, the spirits of her late family still roamed the estate. It was not quite the same as when they had been alive, the large estate that had been filled with the constant bustle of life was quieter now, but even so she was never in want for company.

Lilly stretched and pulled the twirls and tangles from her long lavender hair, retrieving her lacy head wear that had fallen to floor. She collected herself, lit another cigar, and began to explore the mansion to see if she could find any of her family and discover what they might be up to. With no purpose in her mind, she eventually came to the nursery. It was made up of two large, adjoining rooms. One was the play area and the other filled with bassinets and small beds. She admired the room that had once held her and many small cousins for generations. She noticed some toys were strewn about the floor and one of the rocking chairs was slowly coming to a stop. Oddly enough, the room was empty. Emptier than a home filled with wandering spirits could be, that is. It was strange, but she moved on chasing the phantom smell of something cooking downstairs.

China lined the entire length of the long dining table. The other banquet tables had been brought out and were also set up, as if to reenact a family gathering. As of late this display was something normally that was reserved only for the rare guests, that occasionally wandered into the mansion. The faint smell of food she had followed downstairs was gone and the dishes remained as vacant as the chairs set before them. Interesting.

The members of Lilly’s families all spent the afterlife in their own way. Some liked to try to rekindle the pleasures or habits they had had when they were alive, with varying levels of success. It was difficult to imbibe earthly pleasures when one was essentially hollow, after all. Others had not taken as well to their new state, despite being in the warm presence of family. They wallowed in their sorrow or madness and displayed uncouth or even violent tendencies. Yet, Lilly only had a smile waiting for them, because what else could she do. Today it seemed she’d find no one in the dining room or kitchen areas so she moved on again.

Before she could return upstairs she saw a flash of light and made a new discovery of her old home. The flickering light illuminated an invisible space between the wall. She ran her fingers over the floral wallpaper until she felt air hit her finger tips. She gave the wall a gentle push, something clicked and the door came open. A gleeful surge came over her as she entered the narrow passage. It was completely dark except for a glowing ball at her feet. It must have rolled down the path and created the light she had seen, the crystal orb bumping on the uneven floorboards. She picked it up and found it was very cold, it’s innards swirling with a pretty white smoke. She used it to light her way down the hall that had more turns than she was anticipating. Lilly followed on, barely able to make out some old portraits of family members she had never seen before. Other odd trinkets like clocks or a compasses were also encased in shadow boxes on the wall, defeating their purpose.

Eventually she came to a room and saw a glowing claw on the table that must hold the orb she carried. She placed it into the hand and the room lit up with star light. Tiny lights began to twinkle throughout the room, a candelabra and sconces on the wall ignited with soft flames until the room was bright with flickering pastel shades of blue, green, lavender, pink and orange-red flames. Now she could see all that awaited her in the room.

Books lined shelves that encircled the room in all the languages of the world, and some that were a world apart. Small herbs and mushrooms grew in a garden that thrived in darkness. Rocks with strange symbols and crystals of all kinds were sorted into slots and glass vials. Cabinets were filled with jars and objects that were labeled with numbers and letters. There was more too, in chests and in alcoves, hanging from the wall and ceilings. All of it, the entire room carried a smell she had never known until now, but she knew it surely, Magic.

Uncertain of how much life she had left to claim Lilly was ecstatic at the prospect of this new hobby.  What girl wouldn’t want to study the wonders and potential esoteric horrors of magic? It was determined instantly in Lilly Cobb’s mind that she would become a witch. That task would be proven easier said than done, shortly.

The first part was organizing, she had to sort the piles of notes and books into an order she could use. First were the books that were written in languages she could understand, and those were sorted into what contents she could even begin to comprehend. This severely narrowed down the resources she could use, but that was helpful in it’s own way. Finally she settled down into trying to decode the notes and books, taking notes of her own. Trying to break the frustrating shorthand took hours, and Lilly found herself tired before even beginning to reach the lower branches understanding. She closed her books and rubbed her eyes. She went off to find food or rest, whichever came to her first, carefully closing the passage behind her, in case any relatives had any ideas about disorganizing her notes. As she began to make her way upstairs once again, she heard a voice.

“Lilly,” It called to her in a high feminine voice she did not recognize. She approached the hand calling from a darkened corridor at the end of a hall. “This should help you.” The voice told her, handing over a blue book with silver moon embossed on it’s moleskin surface. Lilly looked up from the book to say thank you, but the darkness had vanished and so had the pale reaching hand. It must have been a relative she hadn’t met she reasoned, and thought that they might have had something to do with the crystal ball that lead her to the secret room in the first place. After all it was unlikely that ball had rolled off the table and through all those twists and turns on its own.

The next time Lilly entered the room she had the blue book, and when she opened it things began to click. It was written as guide for someone without understanding, and contained an index of simple enchantments and spells. Lilly found the idea of a new wardrobe appealing, specifically for when she was here in the Witches’ Lair. It was as good a starting point as any.

Following the instructions carefully, reading them three or four times, Lilly took spider’s silk from a vial and placed it on old spinning wheel. Chanting a few clumsy words while touching it’s surface, it began to work on it’s own and would make the process far easier. When it gave her piles and piles of gossamer thread, far more than she should have been able to yield. She placed the soft, silky pile carefully on a dressforms’, headless, neck and began to envision what it was she wanted. But first she would need a wand.

She took her cigar holder, and dipped it into a smoking poultice she had made from strange herbs with strange symbols in their names. Then she held it over a flame until the whole of it turned burning orange, yet it never warped or turned to ash. She whispered a few words, and a small puff of visible air came from her lips wrapped around the holder and began to spark. She took it between her fingers, held it up to the mass of thread, ready to test that she had done everything correctly.

She said the words that needed saying, and the thread began to work it’s way down the form like water. She played with the layers, moving her wand like a conductor, shifting the shape this way and that. Finally, with sweat fresh on her brow she was finished. She took the outfit from the dress form and slipped it on, it had an icy burn from the fresh magic still crawling over it’s stitching. Lilly stood before the mirror and admired herself, a proper conical hat with a wide brim and a dress that lightly sparkled, maintaining the webbed pattern from the spider’s silk, with flowing sleeves. The outfit was of course purple, and brought out the stunning shade of her features.

Tired, but overjoyed in her success, Lilly retired her spellcraft for today. Cleaning up her newfound workspace,  she felt eager to to begin conquering her next feat. One a little more difficult, not to mention dangerous. She could already picture it, sailing over the estate, casting a shadow over the moonlit graves.

A few weeks had past, but Lilly was finally ready. With a flick of her wand her cannon began to glow and spark. She had tried to enchant this thing a few times before, and each time at this stage it always went wrong. The last attempt had nearly destroyed the cannon. This time she knew she had it, without breaking connection, she lifted her arms up and then brought them down commanding a cascade of energy onto the cannon. She caught her breath, looking at the cannon, before grinning. This was it.

Lilly Cobb adjusted her cannon skyward before sliding her legs in. She angled herself over the rim while pointing her cigar holder-wand back at the fuse. With a single word the fuse ignited, and so too did the young girl’s heart. She settled into the cannon and looked up at the sparkling sky. She closed her eyes, took a serene breath and felt the blast begin at her feet. The boom of thunder, the crack of lightning, and Lilly flew across the horizon. Up and up the magic carried her until the heat of the had blast faded away. Lilly kept her eyes on the stars, the world leagues behind her, and smiled again. Soon she would be among the cosmos. A dying smoke trail and a faint twinkle beside the moon would be all that was left behind.      

[darnedchild]

Molly Hooper Appreciation Week Part Deux - Day 2

A/N : Welp, I like to use these *insert whatever theme* Weeks as an excuse to step outside my usual fic writing comfort zone – so today we try generically vague possibly Regency AU!  (But it could be Victorianish.  To be honest the entirety of my ‘research’ for this thing consists of once reading some historical romance novels where people have hot monkey sex in carriages—which is tragically not a thing that’s going to happen in this fic, sorry.) Look, history is really not my strong suit (see also math and geography).

On FFdotNet and Ao3

Molly Hooper Appreciation Week Part Deux - Day 2 - ___ At First Sight (Fanworks focusing on first meetings)

The Mayfair Murderer

Another peal of grating, almost crystalline laughter stabbed through the air like a shard of broken glass.  Sherlock didn’t bother to conceal his grimace and one of the more delicate ladies standing nearby visibly wilted.  

He continued to weave his way through the overly crowded room with determination, as if he had a destination in mind or some real purpose other than simply escaping the oppressive crush.

If it weren’t for his promise to Mummy, he would have made his excuses and left long ago.

Hadn’t he suffered enough already? 

His eyes scanned the room, searching for Watson. Between the two of them they would surely be able to come up with a suitable need to be called away immediately. They had done it before.

Sherlock blanched as he caught sight of his brother in the next room.  Mycroft’s posture was perfect as he lead his young wife through the Quadrille.  Up until the marriage two seasons prior, Mycroft would have done his best to avoid such dances; but Mrs Holmes (Anthea, not Mummy) enjoyed them and Mycroft enjoyed pleasing his wife.

If Sherlock had thought Mycroft’s marriage would have lessened the pressure towards making a match of his own, he was sorely mistaken. Once her eldest son was settled (Into what Sherlock might have suspected was a love match if not for the way his brother continued to insist that caring was not an advantage.), Mrs Holmes had turned her gaze toward her youngest.

He had managed to avoid his familial responsibilities for several years, hiding behind Mycroft’s bachelorhood as an excuse to continue to avoid obvious match-making efforts disguised as social obligations.  But Mummy had put her foot down at the beginning of the current season and Sherlock had been forced to agree to ‘make an effort’ to find a wife of his own.

That was quite obviously not going to happen here, however.

He ducked through a set of open doors that lead out to the garden and nearly ran into a young woman standing just outside.  She had been lurking just in the shadows, watching the others dance.  Probably with a wistful and longing expression, he thought unkindly.

Sherlock quickly took in the woman’s appearance:  long brown hair that had been curled and pinned to the point of discomfort, dress a season out of date and a size too large, effort had been made to alter the dress to bring it more in line with the current fashion, clothing obviously borrowed.

She stepped to the side to let him pass at the exact moment he did the same.  Then they both moved to the other side.  After a third such motion, Sherlock sighed and put his hands on her shoulders to hold her still as he stepped around her.

She blushed and stammered, “I apologize, Mr Holmes.”

His name on her lips pulls him up short.  While he freely admits he has a habit of dismissing people as unimportant, he can’t remember if he’d ever seen her before. “Pardon my forgetfulness, but have we met?”

“Oh!”  Her gloved hand flew up to cover her mouth.  Somehow her blush managed to deepen.  “Yes.  Well, no, not really.  At the Bellamy ball.  My uncle had only just finished introducing you to my cousins and was just about to . . . but Doctor Watson made it clear your services were required elsewhere and you had to leave.  It was all rather sudden.”

Sherlock vaguely remembered the ball in question a week prior.  He’d been bored out of his mind and insisted Watson rescue him.

She twisted her fingers together and looked at his feet, as if she were suddenly overcome by a fit of shyness.  “It was the talk of the gathering for nearly half an hour. Until a certain Miss was discovered in the conservatory with Mr Fr-“  She broke off with a gasp and raised her eyes to meet his.  Horror at her faux pas stained her cheeks a becoming pink.

Becoming?

She scrambled for another topic, clearly flustered. “I thought, upon first reading The Morning Post, that you must have been called away to assist with the murder in Mayfair; but I quickly realized that couldn’t have been the case.”

Sherlock had been growing bored, and half of his attention had been diverted toward the sight of Watson dancing with a blonde in a light blue dress; but the mention of murder had him returning his full focus to the woman before him.

“And why couldn’t it have been?”  She was correct in that he had not been summoned to Mayfair that night, but he wanted to know why she thought so.

She laughed.  Actually laughed!  “Obviously once I read the details of the arrest, I knew the likelihood of the man they’d caught being the murderer was very low.  I suppose it is possible that the Yard held several key pieces of information back from the public, but the detective in the paper seemed rather keen to show off.  It was clearly a mistake you wouldn’t have been involved in.”

“Showing off?”  There were plenty who would disagree with that assessment.  Watson and Mycroft chief among them.

“Oh, no!”  She shook her head.  “That’s not what I meant at all, not that I know you well enough to say whether or not . . . I just . . . The suspect.”  

Despite his usual reluctance to spend a second longer than absolutely necessary engaged in social niceties such as small talk, Sherlock found that he was no longer quite so eager to escape this one.  “The suspect?”

“Well, he’s not the murder, is he?  There was a witness who described the attacker as a dark man in a long overcoat with a cane, which he used as the murder weapon. Based on that description the suspect was stopped and arrested no more than five minutes later, several streets away. He was wearing an overcoat but possessed no cane.”

His eyes narrowed as he considered where she might be going with her comments.  He was familiar with the case, and he shared her assessment that the man still in custody was not the one who had committed the crime (not that the constabulary would listen to him until they discovered another victim, which was inevitable judging from the destructive rage the murderer had demonstrated), but he wanted to know what had driven her to that conclusion.  “He could have disposed of the cane in any street gutter or alley before he was caught.”

“True,” she conceded.  “But how would he have managed to remove all traces of the victim’s blood and-“  Her voice dropped to a barely audible whisper that had him leaning closer to hear her. “-viscera from his person in that short of time?  I am given to understand that the body was nearly unrecognizable when it was brought into the morgue at St Bartholomew’s.”

How, he wondered, could she have possibly learned of that? The state of the victim’s corpse had most assuredly not been released to the public and would not have been in The Morning Post, braggart detective or not.

“Conceivably,” she continued, “he might have had another coat hidden nearby, which would presume the attack was premediated rather than a crime of passion as the detective stated.  Regardless, there should have been some transfer under his nails or in his hair, something more to tie him to the crime than a vague description and a coat.”

That was remarkably similar to his thoughts when he’d first read the police report and been allowed to sit in on an interview with the suspect.  He stared at her in silence for a long moment.  

“I’m afraid this isn’t the type of conversation I’m used to engaging in at these . . . “  He waved his hand in the general direction of the ballroom.  “Things.”

He’d meant it as a compliment of sorts, but it was apparent from the way she turned deathly pale that she had not taken it as such.

“Oh, I’m so . . . I see my uncle is . . . Pardon me.” And then she scurried away with her head down as if she had done something of which to be ashamed.

He followed her into the ballroom, but hung back against the wall as she crossed the room to stand near her uncle.  Her uncle indulgently smiled down at her before introducing her to another man and handing her off for a dance.

Watson appeared at Sherlock’s side a few minutes later.  

“Do you know that gentleman?”  Sherlock indicated the man he was talking about with a subtle flick of his wrist and nod of his head.

“Hmm?  Ah, yes. Mike Stamford.  We both trained at St Bartholomew’s, worked together for a bit before I left for the war.  I’ve heard he’s still there, teaching now.”

That could explain the young woman’s connection to the hospital, if her uncle had told her of the condition of the corpse.  

“And his niece?  What do you know of her?”

“I think he took her in when his sister passed this winter. Maggie, no Molly. Molly Hooper, I believe.  Why?” Watson looked toward Stamford, his brow furrowed as if he were trying to figure out a mystery.  Sherlock hated it when Watson did that, it made him look ridiculous.  

Sherlock turned away from Stamford and began to push his way through the crowd toward his hosts, he’d reached the limit of his endurance for the evening and was ready to make his excuses and leave.  “We shall be visiting the Yard tomorrow, Watson. I need to speak to Detective Lestrade regarding the Mayfair murder last week.  And then, perhaps, a visit to St Bartholomew’s might be in order.  I believe I may wish to speak with your friend Stamford.”

[365daysofsasuhina]

[ 365 Days of SasuHina || Day Forty-One: Dreaming Again ] [ Uchiha Sasuke, Hyūga Hinata, Uzumaki Naruto ] [ SasuHina ] [ Verse: Best Years of Your Life ] [ AO3 Link ]

“Sasuke...oi, Sasukeee...wake up!”

Jolting a bit, the teen freezes for a moment, lost in a fog between dreaming and reality. He’s...where is he?

Snickering and turned around backwards to look at him, Naruto has a foxy grin on his face. “Class is over, sleepyhead! Y’gonna grab your stuff and go home, or just spend the night here and be first to class in the morning?”

Sitting fully upright with a quiet groan, the Uchiha rubs a hand over his face. When did he fall asleep…? Last thing he remembers, they were right in the middle of last period, and then…

“Come on, man! I wanna hit up the store on the way home and blow some of my allowance on some junk food!”

“...you’re gonna turn into a soda and a bag of chips one of these days,” Sasuke then manages to retort, now fully conscious. Weird...he was dreaming so vividly, and now it’s just...gone. Something about a...a sword...and fire? Gah, he can’t remember…!

“Sasuke!”

“I’m coming!”

Once he’s got all he needs for his homework load, Sasuke shoulders his backpack and starts walking beside his self-titled best friend. The pair only live a few blocks apart, so it’s tradition more than anything that they take every walk to and from school together. The blond lives with his godfather, who’s apparently some kind of author…? In all honesty, Sasuke’s never paid that much attention.

They make a quick pit stop at a corner convenience store, Naruto stocking up on all manner of unhealthy drinks and snacks. Sasuke doesn’t know how he does it without gaining weight or breaking out all the time. As freshmen they’re still in their gangly stages, but lately Naruto’s hit a bit of a growth spurt. He supposes he can blame that for his friend’s inability to build fat. All the calories are going into his height.

“You want anything?”

“I’m good.”

“What, really? C’mon, just get something!”

“I’ve got stuff at home! Just...hurry up and get your crap so we can leave!”

It’s only once they head out, Naruto guzzling down a cola that he seems to notice Sasuke looking lost in thought. “Hey - what’s eatin’ ya?”

“Huh? Nothing.”

“Man, you’ve been acting really weird lately,” the blond retorts, squinting. “You’re, like...a top student, but now you keep falling asleep in class! And when you’re not asleep, you’re all...spacey! Like you’re a million miles away! Sure there’s nothing on your mind?”

The question earns a sigh. Something on his mind...well, sort of. But is it really on his mind if he can’t remember it? “...I keep having these really weird dreams.”

“About what?”

“I dunno...I can’t remember any of them. Just weird bits and pieces. But I feel all disappointed when I wake up.”

After a pause, Naruto gets a sly look, elbowing his friend. “Not dreaming about a girl, are ya?”

“What? No! All I could remember today was something about fire, and a sword, and…” It’s all so blurry, and just out of reach…!

“Fire...and swords...sounds pretty epic!”

“I guess? I can’t remember, and it’s driving me crazy! I do the same thing at night...maybe that’s why I’m so tired. Whatever I’m dreaming about is too vivid, and I’m not resting.”

“No idea - I dunno anything about dreams and sleep and stuff,” Naruto replies, sipping his drink again. “...maybe you should see a doc-”

“No, I don’t wanna go to a doctor. It’s just a dream.”

“But you can’t sleep! Heck, I can even see dark circles under your eyes, man!”

That earns a scowl. “I’m fine. I’ll take something to sleep tonight and be right as rain.”

Blond brows wilt, clearly not convinced...but Naruto doesn’t argue any further.

They part ways at the proper intersection, Naruto heading north as Sasuke turns west. As per usual, he finds his aunt still at work, cousin and brother both moved out to attend university classes. Grabbing a glass of water and a random snack from a cupboard, he buries himself into his room, and digs into his homework.

The only break he takes is one for dinner when his aunt gets home, general chit chat about their days filling the obvious absence of the other half of their patchwork family. At least it’ll be Spring break soon, and Itachi and Shisui will be home.

After the meal is done and dishes washed, he goes to finish up his assignments before browsing the internet blandly. But once he starts to get tired, he takes a melatonin from his aunt’s medicine hoard, brushes his teeth, and collapses into bed.

At first...nothing. He just passes into an imageless oblivion.

But the next thing he knows, sunlight finds its way to his face, furrowing his brow before squinting open eyes.

...he’s back.

Staying still, Sasuke tries to memorize everything around him. It’s like he’s in some kind of...park? A few kids run around throwing little paper...somethings at each other, adults standing around to gossip.

Looking to himself, that’s when things start to get weird. His outfit is...well, it’s nothing he’d actually wear. Baggy pants, weird sandals, and a shirt that’s half open and far looser than he’d like.

And there, on his hip! It’s a sword!

Gripping the hilt with a glove-clad hand, he marvels at it for a moment before looking around again. No one seems concerned in the least that he’s armed with a freaking sword.

...okay, he’s gotta look around.

Getting up, Sasuke watches his surroundings carefully. All around him are just...people, but their fashion sense is weird. And almost every person he sees has a strange metal plate on their head, with a...a leaf on it? A swirl? Something. And some, like him, are visibly armed. Be it with swords, or little daggers, or...he doesn’t even know what.

And no one seems concerned but him.

“S...Sasuke?”

Jolting as his name’s called, he looks over and sees a vaguely familiar face: the first time he can recall that happening. It’s a girl from his class - Hinata, something?

She jogs up to him, expression harried. “Are - are you -? That is, um...do you know where we are?”

...wait...is she lost, too? He leans back a bit, clearly unnerved. Is this just his brain conjuring something, or...or is she actually conscious in this, too? “...not a clue. I just...fell asleep, and woke up here.”

“That’s what I did! I’ve been doing this for weeks, and it’s s-starting to drive me crazy! I thought I was the only one...but...how would we both…?”

“No idea, but even if this isn’t real, you’re the only person who’s tried talking to me yet.”

“And you’re the only person who’s replied to me. Have you seen anyone else we know…?”

“No, not yet. So,” he cuts in, trying to change the subject. “You have the same dreams…? I’m not crazy?”

Hinata nods. “I do, but...I only remember vague i-impressions after. It’s like...trying to keep water in my hands. It just drains out, and there’s only a few drops left on my skin at the end…”

“Exactly! Something is...going on. What is this place? I look like a samurai or something!”

“I’d say more like a ninja, right? Samurai have all that...a-armor.” She gestures to her own figure.

“Well whatever I am - or, am supposed to be - why do I keep dreaming it? Er, we, I mean.”

“I don’t know...but maybe we’ll remember now! Since we saw each other…?”

“Guess there’s only one way to find out.”

“Sasuke! Sasuke, wake up - you’re going to be late!”

Jolting awake with a start, Sasuke sits up, wide-eyed as his aunt stands over him. “...wha…?”

“I have to get going, but you’d better get out of bed before you miss your first class!”

He waves her away, burying his face in his hands. He has to remember...he has to…! He’d had a sword again...weird headbands...and that girl, Hinata! She said he looked like a -?

Crap, he’s gonna be late!

Sprinting down the road with an apple in his teeth, Sasuke meets a concerned-looking Naruto, who simply falls into step. “Oi, wait up!”

Sasuke, however, doesn’t slow down. Not until they reach the school with a few minutes to spare. Absentmindedly munching his makeshift breakfast, he cranes over the crowds, trying to spot her.

“What the heck’s gotten into you this morning?” Naruto tries to ask, only to be ignored.

She has to be here somewhere...she has to remember, too!

...there!

Talking to a few other boys in their year, she smiles softly, clutching a book to her chest. Even from here, he can tell she looks exhausted. Not sure if he should call to her - that would earn him a lot of stares - Sasuke instead balks as she glances to him.

Her expression alights with recognition, mouth opening to speak -!

And then the bell rings.

“Come on, Sasuke! We’re gonna be late!”

Glancing back as Naruto tugs his arm, Sasuke looks forward and meets her eyes again. Her face clearly shows disappointed understanding - there’s no time.

...he’ll have to find her later.

Maybe then they’ll find out what’s going on!

     Late, guh OTL Guess who's got major chronic tooth / jaw pain the last few days that makes concentrating SUPER hard? This loser!      This prompt was...not very inspiring. While I do like this trope, and I'd like to expand on it...I just don't have the time ^^; At least not tonight. Maybe someday, lol - I say as I throw it onto a growing mountain of maybe-somedays.      Anywho, that's all for tonight! One of these days I'll start doing these before 2 am again...someday...lots of somedays tonight lol - but regardless, thanks for reading!