#seems like he got the collage experience without the collage part

[ghosty-writes-23]

I've been listening to a band called Ghost on repeat and it has inspired me to request this:

a crack treated seriously oneshot with RE4! Leon and an amateur heavy metal musician! Reader who was Ashley's college roommate and they were also kidnapped.

Reader never leaves without their guitar, often looks for the positive in everything, and knows how to put on a show!

They've written songs based on what they've encountered in their experience in Spain lol

(feel free to delete this ask if you're uncomfortable with writing something like this)

RE4!Leon & Musician!Reader One-shot.

!TAGS!: Pure Fluff, You Mental Health Matters, Flashbacks, Gender Neutral, Nightmares, Comfort, Music. 

Word Count: 1k

Ghosty's Notes: Hello, thank you so much for another request I love writing these, sorry if this one is a little short, I tried to but everything in here that you asked for, maybe expect the crack part which I hope you don’t mind and I didn’t know if you wanted romance with Leon or not so I just didn’t add it and tried to make this as Gender neutral as possible.

Thank you for all the support, it means a lot❤️

-Ghosty :] ❤️🦝

----------

2 Months….

It has been two months since you were kidnapped and taken to Spain by a dangerous cult, where you had gotten infested with a virus they called the las Plagues, watched a man you had started to think of as a friend die before your every eyes.

The only positive to everything was you had your collage roommate with you Ashley Graham, the president’s daughter, but as time went on your started to think you were both doomed, even if you tried to use your humor and positive attitude to distract her from the danger you were both in.

You thought you were never going to get out, that was until you meet Agent Leon Kennedy, he had been sent by Ashley’s father to come and find you both, he was like a guardian angel but you should have known that was only going to be the start of one hellish night of survival, stopping a ritual, killing monsters of all kinds, and a few games at a shooting range that was set up by a merchant that seemed to always follow you around the island, he always welcomed Ashley, Leon and you with a friendly “hello stranger.” Whenever you visited him.

After battling your way through the island with Leon to rescue Ashley from the many times she got kidnapped, to a point it was starting to get on your nerve, you tried to stay positive and when you had a chance to settle you found a little notepad and a pencil and started to drum your fingers on your leg in a soft beat as a song rhythm came to your head as well as some lyrics.

“What you writing there?” Leon asks as he placed the last of the barricade on the door, this should give you some safety for now. “A song?” you say not looking at him as you keep writing, you almost had the whole chorus done.

“You’re a musician?” Leon said with an eyebrow raised, but you could hear the curiosity in his tone. “Amateur one, but a study music theory and instruments at University.” You say before you looked up at him, he nodded his head as he was checking out the area, it was raining heavy and would make it harder to walk in the muddy trails as it would leave footprints.

“Gotta a style you like playing?” Leon asked as he came and sat beside you, glancing at the notepad with your handwriting scribbled onto it. “Heavy mental mostly, but I do sometimes play other gene’s.” you say glancing at him, even with the light conversation you couldn’t help the worrying feeling that had settled into your gut.

“do you think Ashley will be okay.” You asked Leon wanting a serious answer, he took a few seconds as if he was really thinking about his answer before nodding his head. “yes she will be okay, we will save her I promise both of you will get out of here safely.” Leon promised you and it warmed your heart know Leon was going to protect both you and Ashley and get you home safe and sound.

And Leon Kept to his word, both you and Ashley had returned home safe and sound, maybe with a few new scars and cuts, but they could be easily treated in the medical centre, her father came and gave Ashley a huge hug, he always had tears in his eyes seeing his daughter was home in one piece, your parents had come to visit as well and gave you heaps of hugs and kisses, they were just happy to see you were alive and well

But even if you now settled in back in your dorm room, it didn’t stop the nightmares have plagued your mind ever since you had returned home, every time you closed your eyes you had visions of the cult drawings there symbol on your face with blood, the pain that ran though your body when the Las Plagus virus was running through your body, you would wake up in a cold sweat, panting as your clothes stuck to your body.

In moments like this you did the only thing that brought you comfort, you started writing what you were feeling and about your experiences in Spain and in your nightmares, and soon a couple minutes of writing turned into a couple hours of writing song music’s and using your guitar and pulling together a song and in the morning you show Ashley and she loved it and thought you should perform it, to which you thought was a good idea in due time.

You had never performed in front of people, but you knew you could put on a good show, but what a lot of your friends or people didn’t know was you had stage fright and would choke up in front of an audience, which was why you would rather just keep your concerts in the privacy of yours and Ashley’s dorm room.

But after much convincing Ashley finally got you to record a demo of a coupe of your songs, she was so proud of you and encouraged you to make more copies and sell them. To which you told her you would think about it, but deep down you were a little nervous about, But you decided to take the leap and made a small batch and handed them out at your guys Uni.

Ashley even gave Leon a copy to which you felt slightly embarrassed about, but she reassured you he would love it. It wasn’t until a couple weeks later, Ashley was handing you a small note and said it was from Leon, you opened the note, and a smile came onto your face.

I loved the demo, keep it up and one day you will be a great musician. – Leon.

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©Ghosty-writes-23, 2024. all rights reserved. !I DO NOT! consent to translations or replications or reproduction of my work on any other social media platforms and or make AI Bots without my explict consent and permission.

[dreamii-krybaby]

Y’all remember my raspberry swap au? Which is basically a doll and uzi role swap

Here are like some main ideas

Fist of all, Khan WAS the assigned colony leader but after getting murdered by the disassembly drones (N *cough cough*) alongside Nori, in his will he gave the role to one of his trusted friends, “Adán” (which is Doll’s father btw)

Adán is much more younger than Khan and didn’t have much experience, so getting the role of leader of the colony, plus the fact he is grieving Yeva’s death deeply and has to deal with Doll’s antics takes a heavy toll on him

Adán tried to give the job to someone else but no one wanted and he felt he would be disrespecting khan. So what’s up with his relationship with doll?

Its strained, due to Adán being new to the job and having to manage so many things, he is overworked and burned out and is not in the right headspace at all. And is in deep grieving, which has let him to not pay much attention to doll’s needs, he occasionally seems to be in his own bubble not paying attention to anyone or anything.

Doll is also grieving but in a different way, it has mostly affected her academically. And since her dad hasn’t been paying attention to her emotionally she occasionally lashes out, which lets to arguments which lets to her getting ground and things getting progressively more complicated.

She eventually makes a friend at school, lizzy :3

Meanwhile Uzi kinda goes the same path as Doll does in canon. She plans a whole revenge plan on prom night. On everyone favorite’s boy, N. Who takes more different personality.

Oh and Adán and Doll speak english! But with a very heavy russian accent, but there are scenes where they actually speak russian. Meanwhile Uzi speaks japanese! She got it from Nori.

Also Uzi’s home is similar to doll’s but different aesthetic as in the composition and colors. Also her parents corpse’s are on the living room (get it- haha)

She also has countless of gadgets and weapons littered around and buckets and bags full of drone parts and oil. Also, yes her house is infested with insects but like i was thinking that instead of roaches its like moths or spiders.

Also instead of Uzi bringing knifes she brings many little gadgets, but one of my ideas is that she carries a purse that actually turns into a sort of weapon but still thinking about it.

As for Doll, her equivalent of Uzi’s SAH railgun would be maybe a crossbow or a dagger with poison but am still thinking about it. May go with the crossbow

Also since Doll and Uzi are based on highschooler archetypes, i was thinking that Doll takes more on the “quiet true crimes artsy kid” meanwhile for Uzi, am still figuring her archetype, but definitely am thinking that she is that one kid who gets the highest marks without even trying.

As for Yeva and Nori, their personality wont change that much, as for now. Yeva is more unstable rather than unhinged. As in constant breakdowns, anxiety attacks and dwelling in unhealthy coping mechanisms (Smoking and drinking). She tried her best to make Doll think everything was ok but she became dependent a bit on Adán and all of this happened when she started getting the visions. And I was thinking that instead of doing drawings its maybe something with photography maybe, like collages maybe. But idk

Adán was there for Yeva but things got complicated as he couldn’t deal with how unstable Yeva became. And he blamed himself deeply after Yeva was murdered by the disassembly drones, by being shot in the head.

Also character design wise, Adán is almost the same as his canon design, Doll gets a wardrobe change, Uzi does too. Am still thinking about the rest.

If you have any ideas pleaseeee tell me. I would greatly appreciate it. Also you can ask me anything regarding this AU

Also Yeva’s and Nori’s and Khan’s death didn’t have a big time gap btw, maybe a few months apart.

Also I was thinking of Uzi trying to restrain N by building her own contraption :3

Edit: when the whole “leaving your kid to die” shit happens. When V and Doll team up and beat J’s and N’s ass and win. Adán immediately goes to hug doll and try to apologize but Doll shoves him away and call’s him out, telling him that she feels like she is being treated as nothing but as a burden. Then the rest plays out like in canon mostly

This let’s to Adán trying to find ways to cope (in a healthy way) and get some sort of help with managing the colony and his grief

Edit: Nori’s and Khan’s corpses display nanite acid and have parts that are completely burned or melted off.

[everwitch-magiks]

Faster, Higher, Stronger

When Alex fails to qualify for the 2022 Winter Olympics, it’s all too easy to blame Henry Fox, the dual citizen who’d switched from Team GB to Team USA and snagged the last spot for men’s figure skating. After Alex is abruptly thrown back into the games, he forms an unexpectedly deep connection with Henry. But no athlete who aims for the top of the podium can afford any serious distractions. Will Alex be able to keep his flaring emotions in check and take home the Olympic gold medal he’s always aimed for?

This fic was such a fun story to work on! I love figure skating, to the point that I've actually written another (albeit much shorter) figure skating AU for First Prince previously.

'Faster, Higher, Stronger' was an idea I had in the lead-up to the 2022 Winter Olympics. I wanted to explore Alex and Henry as figure skating rivals unexpectedly competing for the same country, which meant the two of them could compete not only as rivals, but also together in the figure skating team event. It seemed like the perfect high-stakes sports competition type setting: plenty of room for a steamy rivalry, but at the same time with a part of the competition where they'd need to truly rely on each other. I think that's the part of a good rivalry that really does it for me - when it's revealed just how much they respect each other, despite how badly they want the other to lose.

I was originally not entirely sure how far into the games the narrative would stretch, which led to the expected chapter count going up a lot as I kept writing it. The further I got, the more I realised that I couldn't cut the plot off until all the medals had been awarded - and ultimately until I had explored Alex’s entire career in competitive figure skating.

Again, a lot of chapters.

Below the cut is an excerpt from the fic that illustrates how thrown Alex is by his feelings for Henry, and how desperate he is to not let that stop him from taking home the gold. I'll say nothing about how that works out for Alex, but I will say this: falling in love with your biggest rival makes for an interesting Olympic experience.

Also, fun fact: the figure skating costume I used as inspiration in the collage above was worn by Donovan Carrillo at the games in Beijing. Check out this feature on him and on this specific costume at Vogue Mexico!

Alex half-jogs back to his own room, thankfully without running into anyone he knows. He gets in the shower and stands under the warm spray for a long, long time.

This is fine. He’s fine. He just can’t let himself think too hard about it. He needs to focus one hundred percent on his training, which is why he’s going to do exactly that, and it’s all gonna be completely fucking fine. There’s no way in hell Alex is gonna let Henry beat him out for the individual gold just because he got caught up in a Henry-induced sexuality crisis. He can’t let that happen.

Alex gets out of the shower and puts on his pajamas, quickly falling into his nighttime routine of stretches and breathing exercises. Somehow, he almost manages not to think of Henry the whole time.

Almost.

Read 'Faster, Higher, Stronger' on AO3

[karasunology]

⸙ ˚₊ ➷ NEKOMA WITH A SHY! ANXIOUS AND ASTHMATIC MANAGER ! ❞

✎ . . . hello since your requests are open may i request vbc teams (karasuno, nekoma and shiratorizawa) + shy manager with anxiety and asthma? i rlly am hungry for some team dynamics and your work is amazing so if you may? YOU DON'T HAVE TO DO IT IF YOU DON'T WANT TO DO IT THOUGH!

❝ ― submitted by @ nonnie <3 ❞

-ˏˋ ➶ character(s) ━ nekoma vbc <3

[ trigger warnings ━ none ]

✎ . . . TEAM MANAGER HEADCANONS.

[ other parts coming soon . . . ]

NEKOMA VBC.

➜ after finding out about karasuno having TWO managers now,

➜ like they  m u l t i p l i e d ✖➗➕➖

➜ and with taketora's failure of recruiting one,

➜ kuroo was PRACTICALLY BEGGING YOU to be their manager

➜ his reasons being and i quote; “ giving more motivation to the team ” and of course “ to show those bastards the sanctity of nekoma ”

➜ and rooster boi was a determined person, once he sets his mind to something ─ he will do everything to attain it

➜ you knew kuroo ever since you first started first year with him, the both of you quietly competing against each other on your collage preparatory class but soon grew closer to be called friends

➜ but he'd always call you his rival even though it was lowkey one-sided

➜ and after hearing that the club you joined in this year, just for the sake of joining; disbanded, and kuroo was UNASHAMED to ask of you to be the manager of their team

➜ it's been two ever since nekoma had a manager and he was TIRED™ of not having one and it was already his last year playing

➜ you having no other reasons to object, you agreed, but not without asking in a small voice to help you introduce yourself to the team

➜ you were shy to new people ─ hell, even after knowing him for three years you would still get shy around him

➜ and because of that, kuroo was already one step ahead of everything;

➜ talking to the reliable third years ─ kai and yaku, about looking out for you explaining your slight anxiety and asthma problems

➜ homeboy would have a team meeting just to discuss and announce about a new female manager

➜ YAMAMOTO DEAD ASS DROPPED ON HIS KNEES WITH TEARS ON HIS EYES AND PRAISED WHOEVER GAVE HIM THIS OPPORTUNITY

➜ the third years weren't shocked, since kuroo already had a word with them seperately

➜ LEV, BABY BOY WAS ECSTATIC, HE WAS ALWAYS IN FOR THE IDEA OF MEETING SOMEONE NEW

➜ kuroo knew that lev would be ALL UP ON HER FACE if he doesn't do anythibg about it, so he threatened on benching him if he ever does something to scare away this ONE CHANCE of having a real girl manager

➜ fukunaga was curious to say the least, he wondered how it would be like to have a girl manager helping them around since it's always him and yaku

➜ inuoka, being the bubbly boy he is, was excited to have a female manager, since it is his first year in the vbc

➜ kenma was just straight up vibin, he already knew alot about everything he needed to know about you because of kuroo

➜ but still listened as he played with his psp

➜ shibayama and tamahiko were neutral about it honestly, satisfied because their team needed a bit more motivation if they wanted to win nationals

➜ kuroo just wanted to make you feel comfortable and safe with the team

➜ genuinely, the team didn't know how it would honestly flow with actually meeting their manager

➜ scared of scaring her off, they remained uncharacteristically toned down abit right before they meet you

➜ kuroo opened the metal doors to the volleyball gym, while peaking your pretty little head out to see where the members where; you were shocked to see them straightening their backs the second they saw your head peaking out from behind kuroo

➜ it was . . silent, and it was weird since, you've once secretly dropped by on their practices and they were evidently chaotic just by the sounds of their voices which echoed around the gym

➜ your palpitations slowed down a bit as you fully showed yourself to the members before flusteredly bowing at them

“ I HOPE WE CAN GET ALONG ”

➜ it was quiet for a second, before you hear sobbing as you lifted your head up to see yamamoto trying not to cry

“ this, this is my first time having a female manager . . . ” with snot drooling from his nose

➜ being the worried sweet senpai manager you are, you hurriedly took out your unused napkin from your pocket which you packed for the sole purpose of avoiding smoke; offering the napkin to him as it only made him burst into TEARS streaming down his face

➜ like that scene where the third years and second years bursted in tears when kiyoko put up their banner?

➜ yeah that

➜ but it's just taketora LMAOO

➜ before their captain could tell him off, a small laugh came out of you and kuroo just looked at you like

➜ 👁👁

➜ kuroo : ma'AM DID YOU JUST ─

➜ cue kuroo also dying inside because YOU. RARELY. LAUGH.

➜ since you're more on the reserved side

➜ kai and yaku almost had to put their foot down because now you have broken their captain until you spoke out

“ i was honestly anxious when you guys were quiet, since i've never seen you guys as serious whenever i try and drop by to look. ”

➜ in the end of the meeting you've got acquaintaned yourself with shibayama and inouka, though the former seemed a bit flustered.

➜ you've also hold a small conversation with kenma, the both of you kinda clicked right away since both of you were a bit shy aswell. while you listened to lev rambling excitedly, not noticing your slight trembling figure

➜ bECAUSE MANS WAS A WHOLE ASS ONE FOOT TALLER THAN YOU

➜ after meeting them, the team had already attached themselves in your heart

➜ baby girl you are ATTACHED

➜ though it was subtle but you've noticed how the boys really cared about you ─ bruh even coach nekomata since he has noticed that you are a great asset to the team

➜ if not yaku, kai would always remind you of taking your meds for your asthma if you ever have been prescribed one

➜ kenma would always be the first one to notice if you were ever tensed up or your anxiety was acting up

➜ since he's very perceptive and observant

➜ he'd grow a soft spot for you and if he ever sees you stressed, he'd let you borrow his psp

➜ shibayama, inouka, fukunaga and tamahiko would ALWAYS help you carry stuff around because they don't want your asthma to act up or else tHEY WILL ACT UP

➜ fukunaga would always tell you his jokes since now he finally has someone to tell them to whenever he's in the sidelines watching the others play

➜ yamamoto would PROTECT you from any dangers, like literally, mans knew he was done for the day you gave him your napkin 👁👄👁

➜ you're literally one of the first girls he isn't shy to talk to and one of the first girls to not scurry away whenever he's near

➜ as i said, yaku would BE YOUR MOTHER, he'd one step ahead with having extra masks for you on his bag and an extra inhaler he borrowed from you in case you have forgotten yours

➜ LEV, KUROO & YAMAMOTO ARE YOUR BODY GUARDS AND THAT'S ON PERIODT😡💅

➜ period. periodt. periodism. periodic table.

➜ would not let any guy from other teams come your way and bother you while being the good manager you are

➜ and while doing so, shows you off as they are basically saying “ this is the sanctity of nekoma, you bastards wish you were us. ”

➜ these boys CARE FOR YOU like alot and they love it when you reciprocate their love

➜ whenever you surprise them every other day with their favourite snacks despite always being anxious of looking at the eyes of the guy on cash register,

➜ always having their towels and waterbottles ready for them to use after practice

➜ giving them clarity of mind before a match and whenever the non-regulars start to feel insecure

➜ overall, they'd be the sweetest boys of yours that would give and likely to give you the world to you as you would to them😡💝

-ˏˋ playing soleil's tape ˊˎ-

[ 📼 ] . . . i'm crying bubs, y'all had me at 200 last night ?? um okay i didn't even know people like me enought to even follow me 🥺 y'all cute or whateva😳✋ i'm not even DONE WITH MY LOVE LANGUAGE HEADCANONS FOR 100 FOLLOWERS HSJSJDJ but here's a manger headcanons mini series one of my nonnie's requested for to celebrate 200 of you guys !! <33

[ 📼 ] . . . I also know a bit of about asthma because i also had experience with it when i was young, and my little brother still has them while i've already grown out of it.

[fiction-fun]

Fanfiction request?? Power Rangers? If you're still doing it, :)

Sometime in the future of the time force, Jen reminisces her memories with the rangers, looking up a wall of memories, that has pictures of her and the rangers together. (It's based on a fanart i drew) the rest of the premise and story and everything is on you!!

And if you don't wanna do it, it's okay!! But thank you so much ofr listening!!!!

Hey! I am so so so sorry this took so long! I really hope this is something like what you wanted!

Fandom: Power Rangers Time Force

Pairings: past Jen/Alex, past Jen/Wes, otherwise none

Words: 1773

Warnings: None, well general Power Rangers drama

*With Jen*

Jen stared off into the distance as memories washed over her. She smiled faintly as a certain memory danced to the front of her mind.

It was the first time she had met Alex, and although even thinking his name still sent a tinge of pain through her, she still loved remembering the happy times. Like when he helped her, in the beginning. She had just joined the academy and she was a nervous wreck. But he saw in her a potential she didn’t see in herself, and helped guide her through the difficulty that was the academy and allowed her to grow.

Jen let out a small sigh, not sad exactly more wistful. Another memory flooded back to her and she shifted her grip on her helmet.

After a while Alex and her had started dating. Getting onto the same team had been like a dream, even with Alex as her superior officer. She worked hard until her and Alex could stand side by side in strength and reputation. Alex managed to capture the villain Ransik. They both, Alex and her, had attended his trial. And once he was convicted without the threat of Ransik Alex had proposed to Jen, and her accepting without hesitation.

Jen stopped for a second shaking her head, her hands shaking around her helmet even as she gripped it tighter. In her rapid hazy thoughts, she failed to hear the sound of the time portal closing.

Then one day Ransik escaped, they had been waylaid during transport and Ransik had escaped. The team had tried to chase him down but arrived in time to see Ransik shoot down Alex and jump into a time portal. Jen and the rest of the team, Lucas, Trip and Katie followed after him, on the orders of their fallen leader.

Jen let out a shaky breath and reached up to wipe her face, from the tears that had slowly been trailing down.

Meeting Wes had only set off anger in her. The pain of loosing Alex so recently and then having to go to their past and finding someone who looked exactly like her lost love. It unsettled her and upset her.

She took a deep breath, dwelling on the thoughts of how her…friendship…relationship…with Wes started, the journey and path made it an experience she’d never forget. Alex reappearing in the middle of everything didn’t exactly help the matter. Her brain started playing out another memory for her.

Alex appeared in front of them and immediately started reprimanding them for ‘Not following the rules by the book.’ she found herself questioning, did she still love Alex as much as she had? He wasn’t the same person she had fallen for, the carefree, kind and gentle man she had fallen for in the academy had been changed into a bitter and stern man. To a point shed almost call him cruel in his words and actions. But Wes who had shown them all nothing but kindness even if she hadn’t always been the nicest. Alex had immediately taken Wes’s Chrono-morpher back angrily telling him he wasn’t needed, and with his father injured like he was Wes had just left. Dragontron had been a new battle and they knew they were overwhelmed especially with Lucas rebelling against Alex’s harsher leadership. This in turn had led to Katie and Trip to confront Alex and force him to hand over the Chrono-morpher. Wes with the help of Trip, Katie, Lucas, and herself immediately went into battle against him and with Wes working with them it made the battle seem…almost to easy.

She smiled softly as more memories washed over her playing almost like a collage of images in front of her eyes. One memory swam forward and she felt the fear grip her stomach as if it had just happened.

Her fists slammed against the metal and glass of the ship as it took off. Trip was besides her as Lucas and Katie tried to get the ship to stop. Nothing they did seemed to matter. Ransik had attacked, his final battle, and to protect them Wes had locked them in their ship and forced them back to the future. Arriving in their time, the year 3000, they found Alex and all of them demanded that he send them back, that they had to go back to help Wes and Eric. Alex kept denying sending them back, even telling them that Wes ultimately dies in this battle. But that just makes them want to go back even more, and with the time rift over Silver Hills it’d be easy for them to get back. Jen finally makes the last move that ultimately sways Alex to send them back, she gives back his ring. This was the final proof that they’d do anything for their new friends and Alex told them to take Time Force MegaZord, as it was likely the only thing to be able to make the trip.

Jen gave a sigh as the rest of that memory played out not hearing the portal opening behind her.

They got back to the past in time to help Wes and Eric but only barely. Jen managed to lure Ransik away from her injured team, to a warehouse where Ransik immediately attacked who he thought was Jen, only for it to be Nadira. Realized who he had just hot Ransik immediately surrendered, not willing to risk injuring his daughter again. Jen in stunned silence arrested him, still looking at were Nadira was crouching protecting what she could barely make out to be a small baby. After that, things had to move fast, she finally admitted to Wes that she loves him and he returned it! But Jen and the other Time Force Rangers had to return to the future to place Ransik in prison. Jen and Wes shared one kiss they’re first but not last. Jen gave him her Time Force badge before leaving and watched him until they entered the time vortex to go back to their own time.

Jen shook her head; she had been in contact with Wes since then. Not often but she had, she really wished he could be there now. She sighed and shook her head again that wouldn’t be possible not after what happened when she left after hunting down the mut-orgs with the Wild Force Rangers.

She smiled at Wes as he showed up, obviously excited about seeing her. That is until she had told him she had already been there for two weeks. The. He was upset because she hadn’t told him that she was back in his time. He had gripped for a while before finally he just smiled and hugged her; they spent that night cuddled together on the animarium. The next morning, they split up into teams to go find the mut-orgs. After stopping the reaction in the reactor and taking down the remaining mut-orgs, Jen and Alyssa having taken out one already, they all returned to the floating island in the sky for a picnic. The next evening when Trip, Lucas, Katie, Ransik, Nadira and her had to return to the future Wes pulled her aside. He told she meant the world to him, but that he couldn’t handle the long distance. It was to much for him, she understood it would be too much for anyone. They parted nicely but it still stung to think about for her.

She smiled sadly as the memories washing over her started to slow down a bit.

Trip had ended up going back to his own home planet after the mut-org mission, but he kept in touch with his friends and teammates. So, when he got word that the Time Force powers and Morphers were going to be switched out for better powered ones, he knew Jen being an instructor and most attached to her current Morpher would be the one most affected. The others still did cases but less so then Jen. He immediately grabbed Circuit and found a ship that would take him back to earth, reaching where Jen was, he saw her totally out of it. He stood next to her watching the emotions play over her face he could almost tell each memory that she was reliving. He made his decision to go get the others, when he saw a tear trail slowly down her face. In a second, he had a time portal open and had headed to Lucas, the one closest to them in the time stream.

*With Trip ~ back to the top*

Getting to him hadn’t been easy, but convincing him to come get Katie Wes and Eric with him had been easy. Back into the time stream for Katie, they got her and Wes and Eric easily, although the last two did have to make some arrangements before leaving.

*with everyone*

The five of them reappeared behind Jen as she seemed to shake herself out of her memories.

“Hey Jen!” Trip called softly.

His sudden voice surprised her and made her jump and turn around, her eyes going wide as she took in the whole team.

“Hey, what are you all doing here?” Jen asked still a bit stunned to see them there.

“Well, someone.” Lucas paused for a second to point at Trip. “heard about the power refit and came to see you before coming to get us. Said something about you ‘needing friends for support’ although he could have chosen a better time to come get me. The middle of enemy territory not the best time.” Lucas said a small smirk.

Trip rubbed the back of his neck but Katie interrupted him before he could speak.

“At least he didn’t catch you in a…hmm…personal situation.” Katie said good naturedly with a gentle smile.

Trips face darkened scarlet and even Lucas turned a light red.

“Honestly he interrupted a meeting I was happy to leave” Wes said with an easy-going smile.

“Speak for yourself! I was having fun running the newbies through training.” Eric said with a smile of his own.

Jen couldn’t help but laugh as she walked the few steps over to her team, no her friends. They all shared hugs and told stories. Jen knew even with things changing, some things never would. She smiled softly feeling Wes’s arm land on her shoulders. They might not have ended up together for obvious reasons, but she knew he’d always be in her corner, and she in his. The team had become friends and from friendship had born a family that nothing, not even something so minor as 1000 years could break apart.

[luckywatersao3]

Ahhhh I can’t believe I haven’t asked you this but!!! Do you have any fic recommendations (I’ll read any ship honestly and either marvel or hp)? I feel like you most definitely have top tier taste 😋💘✨

“top tier taste” heck yeah 💅

Sorry this took a week to respond to! I kept getting distracted when I was looking through my bookmarks being like "oh wow I forgot about this story" or "why haven't I bookmarked this story?"

Small disclaimer: I only really started using bookmarks in the last year, so a lot of fics that I read before than have fallen through the cracks here, especially in the HP fandom. But here are some that I really like!

Harry Potter

Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter

The Man Who Lived (253826 words) by sebastianL Chapters: 42/42 Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: Explicit Warnings: Graphic Depictions Of Violence, Major Character Death Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter Characters: Draco Malfoy, Harry Potter Additional Tags: Original Characters - Freeform, Sexual Content, Violence, Slow Burn, First Person, Character Study, Enemies to Friends, Friends to Lovers Summary:Draco breaks a cup, and one thing leads to another. A story of redemption, tattoos, dreams, mistakes, green eyes, long conversations, and copious amounts of coffee.Set in New York twelve years after the war.

The Bucket List (32393 words) by GallaPlacidia Chapters: 17/17 Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: Not Rated Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter Characters: Pansy Parkinson, Teddy Lupin Additional Tags: Angst, Angst with a Happy Ending, contrived love curses, terminal illness but in kind of a light hearted way?, Draco Malfoy living his best life, Bucket List, Secret Identities, Sickfic Summary:Draco will die in six months if he can't get Harry Potter to fall in love with him. Since that's not going to happen, he might as well spend his last days working through his Bucket List. Tap-dancing lessons? Rock climbing? Poetry-writing? Threesomes? Cocaine? Getting to know his adorable cousin, Teddy Lupin? Draco will try them all!Feat. Cheerily pessimistic Draco, devoted bitch queen Pansy Parkinson, and a Harry who can't help but notice that something seems DIFFERENT about Draco, these days.Inspired by a lovely piece by khasael called Somebody To Love. Also indebted to You've Got The Antidote For Me by Kandakicksass and IDK My BFF Hermione? by lettered

The Moon Looks Lovely Tonight (35723 words) by Omi_Ohmy Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: Mature Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Draco Malfoy/Harry Potter Characters: Hermione Granger, Ron Weasley, Luna Lovegood, Gregory Goyle Additional Tags: Board Games, Owls, Potions, Sharing a Bed, Grimmauld Place, HP: EWE, Pining Summary:When Harry moves into the damp and empty Black house, it doesn’t quite feel like home. And then the first owl moves in. After that, it’s a steep slope leading to bed-sharing, more owls, assorted housemates, strange potions experiments, and terrible cooking. And a bit of waltzing, too.

Harry Potter/Severus Snape

Between the Lines (22816 words) by Dementordelta Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Harry Potter/Severus Snape Characters: Harry Potter, Severus Snape Summary:Harry discovers a secret in his Potions text and a friend in the Half-Blood Prince.

Final Examination (22807 words) by asecretchord Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Harry Potter - J. K. Rowling Rating: Not Rated Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Harry Potter/Severus Snape Characters: Harry Potter, Ron Weasley, Ginny Weasley, Minerva McGonagall Additional Tags: Pre-Slash, Snarry-A-Thon Challenge Summary:"Is this some sort of test?""Everything that doesn't kill you is.""Mind you," he added, "surviving doesn't always mean you passed."― Michelle Sagara West

Marvel

Peter Parker/Tony Stark

Stipulations (70043 words) by Anonymous Chapters: 11/11 Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Iron Man (Movies) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark, Michelle Jones, Pepper Potts, Aunt May, Ned Leeds, Steve Rogers, James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Sam Wilson (Marvel), Wanda Maximoff, Vision (Marvel), James "Bucky" Barnes, Natasha Romanov (Marvel), T'Challa (Marvel), Nakia (Black Panther), Happy Hogan Additional Tags: Slow Burn, Age Difference, Peter is 18, POV Alternating, Explicit Sexual Content, Power Imbalance, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, author has already arranged a ride to church trust me Summary:Peter Parker’s longterm dream recently went from ‘get into MIT’ to ‘afford going to MIT’. As the time approaches, it’s dawning on him that he won’t be able to pay his tuition and afford the move to Cambridge all at once: he’s out of money, his secrets are beginning to pile up, and desperation has started creeping in...And then one night, he saves Tony Stark’s life.

Wouldn't Be The Worst Thing (7729 words) by deltorafray Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark, James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Natasha Romanov (Marvel), Sam Wilson (Marvel) Additional Tags: Getting Together, First Time, Underage Drinking, (in the US), 20-year-old Peter Parker, Fluff, Smut, Fluff and Smut, Light-Hearted, drama-free, Daddy Kink, Panty Kink, Anal Sex, Oral Sex, Rimming, Anal Fingering, Riding, Sugar Daddy Tony Stark, Sugar Baby Peter Parker, Graphic Sex Summary:In which Peter somehow finds himself having a sugar daddy in Tony Stark without either of them meaning to, but neither really do anything to stop it. It’s not like anyone else bats an eye either, so it just … happens.

Refraction (16300 words) by chelicerata Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark Additional Tags: Post-Avengers: Endgame (Movie), Avengers: Endgame (Movie) Compliant, But also, Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Tony Stark is not Iron Man, (...Yet), Dimension Travel, Multiverse fuckery Summary:In which Tony Stark gets kidnapped (again), meets a real life superhero, and has a long-delayed midlife crisis.

Gift of Choice (11744 words) by tuesday Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark Additional Tags: College Student Peter Parker, Sugar Daddy, Sugar Daddy Tony Stark, College, Explicit Sexual Content, Stealth Crossover, Multiple Orgasms, POV Peter Parker, Lingerie, Sex Toys, Age Difference, Canon-Typical Violence, Sounding, Romance, Flirting, Adult Peter Parker Series: Part 15 of Author's Favorites Summary:Tony Stark had a thing about giving Peter stuff.

Raising Hybrid Puppies (158269 words) by JayPendragon Chapters: 33/33 Fandom: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Iron Man (Movies) Rating: Explicit Warnings: Underage Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Characters: May Parker (Spider-Man), Pepper Potts, Bruce Banner, Ned Leeds, Michelle (Spider-Man: Homecoming), Jarvis (Iron Man movies), Adrian Toomes, Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes, Phil Coulson Additional Tags: Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe - Coffee Shops & Cafés, Slow Build, Unresolved Sexual Tension, Tony Stark Has A Heart, Age Difference, Unresolved Romantic Tension, Tony Stark vs. The Media, jarvis disapproves, Consensual Underage Sex, Last Week Tonight as plot point, Emotional Hurt/Comfort, Eventual Happy Ending, Humor, Angst Series: Part 1 of Hybrid Puppy Verse Summary:When Tony saunters into the coffee shop, he never expected to meet Peter Parker, the incredibly hot barista with a brilliant mind and a passion for engineering only rivaled by Tony’s own. Tony always gets what he wants – which is pushing Peter up against the counter and making sure he forgets his own name.But he can’t.Because Peter’s sixteen.~*~A non-powered Tony/Peter coffee shop AU with billionaire Tony and working-class, teenage Peter. Also, Toomes has a bakery and somehow Last Week Tonight is a genuine plot point.Translations: Korean | Russian | ItalianFANART by plavkivie | COLLAGE by 1r0n5p1d3r

Revelations (126830 words) by Anonymous Chapters: 19/19 Fandom: The Avengers (Marvel) - All Media Types, Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Iron Man (Movies) Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark, Steve Rogers, Pepper Potts, Ned Leeds, Michelle Jones, Happy Hogan, May Parker (Spider-Man), James "Bucky" Barnes, Sam Wilson (Marvel), Bruce Banner, Thor (Marvel), Stephen Strange, Wanda Maximoff, Vision (Marvel), James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Maria Hill, Nick Fury, Natasha Romanov (Marvel) Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Power Imbalance, Age Difference, Peter is 18, Found Family, Slow Burn, Explicit Sexual Content, author has already arranged a ride to church trust me Summary:“I still don’t get it,” Ned says. “How you just... keep being ordinary in spite of all the craziness you’ve lived through. You were in space. You helped Iron Man save the universe. And nobody knows it was you.” His tone softens, becomes almost sad. As though he realizes that what he’s saying is so completely alien to him that he will never be able to understand this part of Peter’s life. “Peter, don’t you want people to know you for who you are?”An AU where they get the Gauntlet off of Thanos that first time, on Titan.

Left Hand Free (7836 words) by tuesday Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Iron Man (Movies), Spider-Man (Tom Holland Movies) Rating: Explicit Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: Peter Parker/Tony Stark Characters: Peter Parker, Tony Stark Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Aged-Up Peter Parker, Canon-Typical Violence, Explicit Sexual Content, Multiple Orgasms, POV Peter Parker, College Student Peter Parker, Flirting, Romance, Banter, Blow Jobs, Anal Sex, Anal Fingering, Civil War Team Iron Man, Adult Peter Parker Summary:Peter and Tony's first meeting is both the same and very, very different. In which Civil War happens when Peter is a college sophomore, and Peter catches Tony on the rebound.—"Are you—are you hitting on me right now?"Tony looked up. "Do you want me to be? Because normally I'd start with how impressive this is—" He gestured with his free hand at where he was stuck to the door. "—but I'm afraid you might take it as encouragement to leave me here."

James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers

Steve Rogers Versus the Classics (34078 words) by thecommodore_squid Chapters: 4/4 Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe, Captain America (Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers Characters: Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes, Sam Wilson (Marvel), Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton, Tony Stark, Thor (Marvel), Lucky (Hawkeye), Rebecca Barnes, Winifred Barnes Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, Modern Bucky, Bucky is a History Professor, Steve is still Captain America, Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder - PTSD, Literature, cinema, Steve's Therapists are a Bunch of Dead Authors, Steve is so Uncultured, Steve Has Issues, Bucky has issues, Healing Through Books and Movies, Amputee Bucky Barnes, Angst, Fluff, Happy Ending, Discussion of Past/Minor Character Death, Discussion of Suicidal Idealation, Drunk Steve is in Love With Thor, Clint Ships It, Violence, Injuries are Definitely Inaccurate, Glorified Movie Marathon and Chill Series: Part 2 of A Historical Relic and a History Professor Walk into a Bar- Summary:Steve narrowed his eyes. “I’m beginning to suspect I’ve been set up.”“I would never,” Natasha said, feigning shock.Steve sighed.“God fucking dammit,” he heard someone say and looked up.AKA An AU in which Steve is still Captain America and Bucky is the unfortunate history professor selected to help him understand those references.

Slide To Answer (6326 words) by relenafanel Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Captain America (Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers Characters: Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Modern Setting, Wrong Number AU, Romantic Comedy, Phone Calls & Telephones, Dating, One Night Stands, Steve accidentally calls Bucky for dating advice, Bucky gives good advice, Meet-Cute, Misunderstandings Series: Part 1 of Slide to Answer Summary:"What do I do?” Steve appealed into the phone. “I’m freaking out.”There was silence on the other end of the line. It lasted so long that Steve pulled the receiver away from his ear and frowned at it. Pay phones were old. Maybe this one wasn’t working despite the obvious dial tone when he picked up.“Ok,” a stranger’s voice said over the phone. “First acknowledge the fact that you dialed the wrong number, but be quick about it because my cab is a few blocks away from my own plans and I’m about to drop some truth bombs on you.”

Etc or Multi pairings

Astronomy In Reverse (184785 words) by pansley Chapters: 25/25 Fandom: Spider-Man: Homecoming (2017), Marvel Cinematic Universe, Captain America (Movies) Rating: Teen And Up Audiences Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply Relationships: James "Bucky" Barnes/Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes & Peter Parker, Peter Parker & Tony Stark, Peter Parker & Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes & Tony Stark Characters: James "Bucky" Barnes, Peter Parker, Steve Rogers, Tony Stark, T'Challa (Marvel), James "Rhodey" Rhodes, Sam Wilson (Marvel), Baron Zemo Additional Tags: Gratuitous Superfamily, Becoming a family, Hydra being a dick, Peter is canonly adorkable, Protective Bucky Barnes, Protective Peter Parker, unfair representation of the foster care system, Fluff, canon amount of angst, amateur (but effective) equine therapy, Civil War Fix-It, bucky is a good dad, Peter is a good kid, Steve is a good boyfriend, Tony is a good friend, and also kind of a sugar daddy, without benefits, Hero Worship, Peter is majorly stanning everybody in this fic and it's cute, world's most adorable basketball Series: Part 1 of Winter!Dad Summary:A year after the Winter Soldier failed his mission in DC, Bucky Barnes is doing his best to stay under the radar from both Hydra and Steve Rogers. His hope for a peaceful day-to-day life in limbo goes awry, however, when he meets Queens’ newest hero; a pure-hearted kid with a death wish and a ridiculous pair of red and blue pajamas.The last thing Steve expects when he finally tracks Bucky down is that, not only has the man been living in Queens all this time, right under his nose, but also that, in the two years since they last saw each other, Bucky somehow acquired a kid.Alternatively: How Peter Parker effectively fucks over Bucky Barnes, and also totally saves him.Dramatic reenactment by fanfictionbookclub on tiktok (WARNING: contains spoilers) LuckyWaters note: This is technically stucky, but it's more of a genfic IMHO

I've Found a New Baby (17756 words) by TellMeNoAgain Chapters: 1/1 Fandom: Marvel Cinematic Universe Rating: Explicit Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings Relationships: Harley Keener/Tony Stark, Harley Keener/Steve Rogers, Harley Keener/Bucky, Peter Parker/Tony Stark, Peter Parker/Steve Rogers, Peter Parker/Bucky, Tony Stark/Pepper Potts, Tony Stark/Natasha Romanov, Clint Barton/Natasha Romanov Characters: Peter Parker, Harley Keener, Steve Rogers, James "Bucky" Barnes Additional Tags: Alternate Universe - Noir, Alternate Universe - Mob, Alternate Universe - 1920s, Period Typical Attitudes, Mob Boss Tony Stark, Mob-Type Violence, Dark Tony, dark bucky, Dark Harley, Dubious Consent, Mental Instability, Mild Kidnapping, Polyamory, Everyone Is Poly Because Avengers Series: Part 1 of Roaring Hot Summary:This is the first story in the "Tony Stark is an insane 1920's Mob Boss and there's sex everywhere" fic that literally no one asked for but that kept me up nights until I wrote it.I'm sorry.But at least we'll be in that handbasket to hell TOGETHER, friends. LuckyWaters note: This is me recommending the entirety of the Roaring Hot series, I just thought it would be excessive to list all 13 parts lol

[notchesandbullets]

Saving Her (Ojiro Mashirao x Wolf!Reader)

Art credit: @ SteamyTomato on Deviantart

Part 7: Returning to Heights Alliance, Bakugou vs you, movie night at the dorms!!

Word Count: 3.8k

It was late when you all got back to the dorms.

Kaminari lugged in your cot as Shoji carried the rest of the bags all by himself. You protested that you could do it, but the gentlemen had insisted.

Well, Shoji had.

Kaminari had been electrocuted by Jirou's jack after picking up the lightest thing as a joke.

You had giggled to yourself. It turned out the electric boy wasn't immune to electricity.

As soon as you stepped foot inside the vacant common area, you made your way upstairs into your empty room, letting Shoji and Kaminari know that they could leave your stuff anywhere. You still weren't sure how you wanted to set up your room.

The girls had split off, needing to complete some of their own things before tomorrow, not to mention, put away all the things they themselves had bought at the mall.

Yaoyorozu and Asui had surprised you along with the rest of the girls with a whole bunch of fancy room decorations. You hadn't seen all of it, but there were mirrors, wall stickers and paper cranes you could have hung down from the ceiling.

You had promised to wait until the next day to put them up so that they could help you. Though, it wasn't a hard decision. You couldn't even think of decorating your room without them since you had absolutely no idea what you were doing.

Shoji, Kaminari and Ojiro, who were lagging behind you with all of your things, set them down pretty quickly outside of your door and Shoji was in the middle of offering to help put together your bed for the night when Aizawa came in.

Leaving it in their teacher's capable hands as you flitted around the room, Shoji and Kaminari took their leave as you envisioned in your mind how you wanted it to look.

Ojiro had homework he still had to do as well as the others so Aizawa was the only one left to help you. He reluctantly left after giving you a hug goodnight, relishing the feeling of having you in his arms before he let go.

But not before he whispered that you could come find him if you had another nightmare. It would be easy since you lived on the same floor, just on opposite sides.

You nodded, thanking him. Not just for his offer but also what he did for you earlier. You were indebted to him, Kaminari, Jirou and Aizawa.

Ojiro just patted your head reassuringly, sending you that tender smile that gave you goosebumps and sent your heart rate accelerating.

Aizawa helped you put together the metal frame of the cot and then the two of you unfolded the large mattress pad Jirou had picked out as soon as Ojiro closed the door behind him. You placed your hands on your hips proudly when it was all done.

Already, your room looked so much more homely.

You hadn't bought a desk. Not only would it not fit in the van so that they could bring it back, but you preferred open space. If it was too cluttered, it would feel too cramped for you to move around in and that was the last thing you wanted.

You didn't say anything about it, but you were pretty sure Aizawa was hanging around and making sure you were okay as you put the finishing touches on your room for tonight. You didn't want to get too into it, having already planned on having the girls crash here tomorrow for a nap party after their classes were done.

"Do you need anything else?" Aizawa shuffled after you, following you around in a way that had you suppressing a giggle. "What about something to eat? Are you hungry?"

This time, you did laugh at his questions, truly touched. "Thank you, Aizawa-sensei, but I'm okay."

You shuffled into your new bed without changing, wanting nothing more than to curl up with the scents from Ojiro's hoodie and Aizawa's scarf after a long day.

Aizawa found himself by your bedside, tucking you in with the sherpa throw that Yaoyorozu had made with her quirk last minute when she saw that you didn't buy one.

"Goodnight, kid." He said softly, unable to resist patting you on the head.

"Goodnight, sensei." You yawned, inclining your head politely despite already being in bed. "Thank you."

He smiled to himself, turning off the light as he let you sleep in peace. There was nothing quite like seeing you wrapped up in his scarf as you slept the night awake.

Nothing quite like it at all.

True to their word, the girls had helped you with the task of decorating your room the very next day.

Fairy lights sparkled all around your room, bathing it in a soft glow when it was turned on. Butterfly mirrors were sprinkled across the wall opposite to where your bed was set up and there was a collage of mini picture frames that went along with the camera Asui had bought for you.

She thought that you would appreciate something that could capture the precious moments with all your new friends and hang them up on your wall once they were printed. You were touched.

Paper cranes hung from the ceiling at all different lengths but it didn't bother you since none of them came down to your head while walking, it didn't bother you.

Ojiro was another story entirely though, since when he visited you, he had to crouch down and mind his head everywhere he went but it was worth it to endure it and get to see your happy smile as you reached high above your head to bat at the origami.

After a full day of decorating with the girls, you were beat.

Uraraka had taught you how to best store your new clothes in the closet so that it took up the least amount of room and Jirou had been thrilled when you shyly asked her to teach you how to play the guitar.

No one complained when she sped out of the room to grab her instruments and the sleepover that followed in your room since the next day was their off day was the best experience you had with girls your age so far.

Ojiro hadn't even complained when Hagakure kicked him out so that you all could have fun, shaking his head and heading down the kitchen to grab something to eat.

Oh, he was definitely going to knock on your door later and check in on you.

A month passed by in a blur.

Each day, you grew more and more open not just with Ojiro but with his friends too that you could now proudly call yours as well.

Kirishima was especially taken with you, the two of you hitting it off when you commented on how his quirk seemed so cool. The red-haired teen had ruffled your hair, beaming at you brightly and thanking you, genuinely touched.

It was not long after that he had admitted to feeling less than everyone else because he didn't have any long ranged attacks one night when your bad dreams kept you up. You were quick to remind him just how valuable he was. Not just his quirk, but how he was the one to make it work.

He was the one to make it strong.

He teared up after hearing you say that, nearly proclaiming how manly it was to hear such a bold declaration from you and you hugged him, glad that he had treasured your words because you had meant every single word.

The two of you had started to talk more after that and as a result, it had brought you closer to him as well as the other students of Class 1-A.

Not that you weren't on speaking terms before, but it was nice to get to know them better.

Kirishima became your training partner for some exercises since he could take the damage of your claws without getting hurt, although you would occasionally be paired up to spar with Yaoyorozu.

Aizawa claimed it was because your fighting styles were so different so it would give you both a chance to learn how to adapt in the moment but you suspected it was also because she didn't have a quirk or heart to hurt you.

You begged Aizawa to push you harder, past your limit so that you could catch up to the rest of them and he had begrudgingly relented when Present Mic complained he was being soft on you.

Of course, the loud pro-hero didn't mean it but you had come to him and enlisted his help in getting your homeroom teacher to change his mind. And who was he to refuse a cutie like you?

So he worked you harder and ended up giving you lessons to hone your skills. You were rather acute in your observations, so it didn't take long for you to catch on in terms of technicality.

The build up of your strength was another story though.

However, with the proper nutrients and rest, you were starting to fill out more and more until you reached a healthy weight another month later.

You were starting to look and sound like a pro-hero in training, always thinking of others before yourself and selflessly giving everything you had to protect people.

Aizawa knew your heart would take you far. Which is why he couldn't, for the life of him, figure out what was going on with his class all of the sudden.

They were being much weirder than usual.

Some sort of gift-giving or showering had transpired while he was asleep during homeroom. He had woken up to Koda giving you an origami swan he had folded.

You had smiled, your eyes sparkling as you thanked him for it, holding onto it for the rest of the day.

It had started out small but eventually, you were being swamped with all kinds of things from your classmates. Your room was starting to get a little crowded.

Ojiro had to help you sort it out more than once because you often got overwhelmed and didn't want to put any of it away, worrying that it would somehow offend the people who had gifted them to you.

Once you figured out how to turn on the phone you had gotten as a gift from Jirou on one sunny afternoon, you had most definitely scampered over to Kaminari to get him to charge it. And even though he complained that that's all everybody thought he was good for, he obliged you almost immediately.

Bakugou's phone flew across the room as he replaced his with yours, the angry pomeranian raging for him to die as he stomped over to pick up his cellphone before angrily plugging it into the wall.

Although he would never admit it, he didn't actually care. He had a soft spot for you, just like everyone else did.

After Jirou's impromptu present, the others all started pitching in, giving you things you were sure you never asked for before.

Books from Iida, handmade hair accessories from Uraraka, a notebook of countless heroes' strengths and weaknesses compiled from Midoriya, a concealed knife that folded flat into the shape of a credit card from Bakugou, a bunch of makeup and new video game console so that you could join them on game nights from Ashido and countless others.

You were pretty certain you weren't the youngest of the group but they sure treated you like you were.

You supposed it was due to your innocence and inexperience, not that you minded. Having not received this kind of attention ever, the love was overwhelming and almost too much to bear. It felt like you had nineteen doting siblings.

Mineta didn't count, Ojiro had nearly thrown him across the room when he tried to give you something you didn't understand but knew it was inappropriate based on Sero and Tokoyami's obvious disgust.

Luckily, your friends took turns flooding you with their time and spoiling you or else you were sure you would've collapsed by now at the consideration of it all.

And right now, it was almost dinnertime at Heights Alliance. Which meant that everyone who was normally holed up in their rooms crawled out and gathered.

In one place.

"DAMN NERD, WATCH WHERE YOU'RE GOING!!!"

"K-Kacchan!!" Deku said nervously, waving his hands to fend off the advancing explosion boy.

He had accidentally walked into him when chatting up a storm with you about the latest hero that had been climbing the ranks: Hawks. A support hero with a flamboyant attitude but a force to be reckoned with in battle.

Bakugou snarled, ready for a fight. Sparks popped out of his hands. "YOU HAVE A FUCKING DEATH WISH, DUMBASS?!?!"

"Calm down." Todoroki stated from the kitchen, where he and Iida were trying to figure out what to make for dinner, Asui coming over to offer her assistance.

"SHUT UP, SHITTY HALF AND HALF BASTARD!!!"

A beat of silence passed.

"Sorry." Came the nonchalant reply.

"AH, FUCK!!!"

You giggled and he whirled around, eyes burning with irritation and anger.

"WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU LAUGHING AT?!?!?!"

Everyone in the room tensed.

He had never yelled at you before. It was an unspoken rule to not raise a voice against you since you were so sensitive to loud noises. That was partly due to the trauma you had endured and also because your ears were much more sensitive than theirs.

Half of them expected you to burst out crying while the other half thought you were going to run out of the room.

To their surprise, you didn't do either. Instead, you doubled over with laughter.

"Y-You should see your f-face!!" You shouted through your hiccups that interrupted you, you were laughing so hard. "You look ridiculous!!"

Bakugou stomped over to you, furious. "OI, WHAT THE FUCK ARE YOU TALKING ABOUT?! DIE!!"

You giggled, running the other way as he began to chase you. "Nope."

"YOU FUCKING PIECE OF SHIT!!! GET BACK HERE!!!"

"You're so cute when you're angry."

"I'M NOT CUTE, TAKE THAT BACK!!!"

"Cute, cute, cute~" You sang as you pranced down the hall.

"I'M GOING TO FUCKING KILL—"

"Uh..."

You froze as your gaze landed on Ojiro, who was standing in the middle of the hallway you were using to make your getaway. You lurched forward as Bakugou wasn't able to stop himself in time and crashed into your back full force, sending you tunneling into the unsuspecting boy.

Ojiro gritted his teeth, using his tail to stabilize himself as he caught you, wrapping his arms tightly around your waist.

"Geez, Y/N." He breathed, relieved you were okay.

This was getting to be a habit by now but he had no complaints as long as you didn't get injured. He was glad his quirk allowed him more of a chance to catch you before you fell.

You blushed bright red, ears drooping in embarrassment. "... 'm sorry, Mashirao-kun."

"It's okay, just be careful." He told you before letting you go, albeit reluctantly, his smile turning sad as your warmth left him.

There were wide eyes and shocked gasps all around when you called him by his first name.

Granted, it still had the honorific but it still stunned them. He rarely let anyone call him by his first name. Even Shoji was still getting used to it since he prefered calling his friend by his last name due to the fact that it was easier to say.

The moment was broken as Bakugou trapped Midoriya in a headlock and you rushed to free the broccoli-haired boy, smacking the explosive boy on the head and running away with Midoriya before he could catch either of you.

Ojiro smiled to himself, knowing that you would be fine. You could handle yourself against Bakugou. Besides, he wanted to save you a seat.

"MOVIE NIGHT!!!" Ashido and Kaminari cheered together, jumping on the couches and sending Aoyama flying from the force.

You cried out in concern, helping him up even though he didn't really need it. He still thanked you though, his eyes sparkling even though he had just crashed on the ground moments prior, taking the same spot before as you turned around, looking for Ojiro.

"I want soba..." You heard Todoroki mumble quietly to himself and caught him longingly looking back at the kitchen where his ingredients were stored as Sato took over in helping Asui and Iida make dinner.

Uraraka had rescued Midoriya and convinced him to join them for one movie, leading him over to the couch where Shoji was at.

You plopped on an empty sofa and patted the seat next to you, inviting Todoroki to come and sit down. After all, it wasn't a movie night if everyone didn't come join. Even if some of them would do it begrudgingly.

Bakugou. And speak of the devil...

"Bakugou, come on!!" Kirishima invited, patting the spot next to him like you had just done with Todoroki.

His forehead creased in annoyance, eyes slitting with irritation. "Like hell I'd do something so irritating!!"

"I bet you can't sit through this whole movie with us." You challenged, grinning inwardly when he stopped dead in his tracks.

"Tch. Fine!!" He shouted at you, throwing up his hands.

He stomped over to Kirishima, shoving his way in between Sero and Ashido with an irritated scowl.

Tonight, you were watching Akatsuki no Yona, an anime about a princess with red hair who undertook a journey of perilous danger as a warrior after being chased out of the castle.

The boys had booed at the romance but it actually had several really good fight sequences which kept their interest, particularly Kirishima's.

He loved how manly Yona's courage was in battle.

Iida had somehow managed to get dinner ready on time and thanks to Sato, it was delicious and completely edible. Unlike some of their dishes.

You had learned the hard way that about half of the class was absolutely horrid in the kitchen. You didn't judge though, even offering to teach Uraraka and Jirou what you had learned from Sato when they had the time and wanted to make dinner next.

They earnestly accepted.

As the food was being served, your ears flicked on top of your head and your attention was stolen by the two figures that strode into the vicinity, one of them being who you were looking for earlier.

Ojiro had gotten sidetracked by Tokoyami, asking about a project they still had to do for their english class and by the time they finished their conversation, all the seats had been taken.

He couldn't stop himself from smiling as you gave up your seat for him, gesturing for him to sit and pouting when he purposefully dragged his feet.

Kaminari shouted for him to get out of the way as Kija and Hak came onto the screen, just about to get attacked by bandits.

"This is the best part!!" He screeched as the red-haired princess was seen pulling back the bowstring, taking out one of the roguish men that was trying to sneak up on her companion.

Jirou rolled her eyes at his fangirling but couldn't help but get swept up as everyone else started to cheer, the girls squealing as the main character's love interest caught her before she fell and the majority of the boys, except for Shoji, Tokoyami and Kirishima gagging.

During that whole time, you had Ojiro had a silent fight over who would take the only empty seat left, ultimately settling on you attached to his back as he sat down.

Your chin was perched on top of Ojiro's head and playing with his hair absentmindedly as you watched the anime. He didn't seem to mind, so you didn't move.

Kaminari was sitting beside him, having stolen his tail so that he could play with it, eyes glued to the screen as the tip of his fluffy tail tickled his cheek.

Your arms looped around Ojiro's neck from behind as you tried to get more comfortable and you shuffled your feet so that your legs were hooked around his waist, watching the TV with rapt attention.

Occasionally, he would reach up and feed you some popcorn that Todoroki had gotten from the kitchen when he got up to make his soba or let you have a bite of his food once it cooled down.

You didn't say it but you appreciated his thoughtfulness. It was easy to be like this with him. You were just glad he didn't say anything about your clinginess and need to scent him, it would be hard to explain that he made you feel safe.

Todoroki on the right and Kaminari on the left with Ojiro sitting in front of you, your heart swelled and you took your eyes off the TV to bury your face into the crook of Ojiro's neck to hide your smile.

He didn't say anything as he reached up to pat your head, smiling himself as you scented him out of reflex, his soft coo at your adorable action lost as everyone leaped up when the characters won a big battle.

Your eyes were closing, you were getting so sleepy now that it was over. Vaguely, you heard Yaoyorozu comment on how good the manga was and how excited she was for the second season to be announced to the girls who hadn't read it yet.

Ojiro didn't move as your hold on him relaxed, knowing you were asleep due to the soft puffs that hit the back of his neck. He longed to see your face but he didn't want to wake you up.

Roping in Shoji to help him, not that the gentle giant needed any convincing, his friend helped maneuver you into his arms so that he could take you upstairs to your room.

The girls and a handful of the guys wished him goodnight and offered to help but he politely declined. He kind of wanted you all to himself after sharing your attention with the rest of them for the whole day.

You were all tuckered out.

He was thankful though, that you got a chance to relive the years you had lost due to that place. The chaotic normalcy that was Class 1-A had been extended to you and you had embraced it wholeheartedly.

He couldn't wish for a better group of friends to surround you.

Leaning down, he touched his forehead to yours briefly as he tucked you in bed.

"I'm so happy you're here, Y/N." He whispered, afraid to break the silence as his eyes shone with emotion. "You've made me so happy."

Please, He begged internally as he left your room. Please never leave.

Taglist: @katsukis-sad-angel​

[voiceless-terror]

Proficient in PowerPoint (The Magnus Archives)

Summary:

“Why are there so many animations?” Jon tapped his foot impatiently through the unnecessarily arduous process of getting to the next page. “I’m not a child. This is for Elias, not a primary school.”

“I thought they looked nice…” Martin said softly, shuffling his feet. “I can take them out, if you’d like-”

“They’re wonderful Martin, don’t listen to him."

Jon has to make a presentation for Elias. Sasha, Tim, and Martin help, with dubious results.

“It’s standard procedure, Jon. Every new department head does a presentation.”   “But I-” Jon left off with a sigh. Being called up to his boss’s office at the beginning of the day to be informed that he would be making a presentation to all of his intimidating colleagues (and superiors, if he were being honest) was not the way Jon wanted to start his Monday. Besides, what was he going to say? How could he explain this mess of an Archive that was currently under his command? That he didn’t really know what an Archivist did, and that when he googled the position it didn’t seem anything like what Elias had described? He might as well get in front of the room, announce his resignation and go home. Somedays this felt like the best course of action.

 He’d heard the whispers following the email announcing his promotion to Head Archivist.  “Him?”  was said more than once. A few scoffs, a few appraising eyes from the other department heads who were all at least a decade older than him. Even Sasha and Tim had given him a sort of silent treatment, only speaking to him in short sentences and one-word answers in the weeks that immediately followed.

Elias seemed to sense his unease. “It doesn’t have to be long. Just a rundown, a simple assessment of the Archives as they are and what you plan on implementing during your tenure. Perhaps a little about you and your team. Introduce yourself. Everyone’s eager to learn a bit more about you.” Jon very much doubted that.

 “Well the Archives, in my “assessment,” are currently a mess.” His candor was not appreciated. Elias was not amused.

 “A mess that you’re going to fix,” Elias gave him a withering glance. “I assumed you could handle this, but if that’s not the case-”

 “No, I-” He sighed again, the only sound he was capable of making. “Al-Alright. You said it was this Friday, correct?”

 “Yes!” Elias gave him a brief smile and ushered him out of the door with a hand on his shoulder, signaling the conversation was over. “Let me know if you have any issues. Not that you will, of course.”  Of course.

 The door shut behind him and Rosie gave him a sympathetic look from her seat. “You hang in there, alright? You’ll do just fine.” Either Jon looked that pathetic, or Rosie truly did eavesdrop on every conversation.

 Perhaps a bit of both.

 __________

 It was Wednesday evening and Jon was staring at a blank screen.

 Everyone else was packing up for the day while he sat in his chair, stewing over what words to write. He should be recording statements like Elias  wanted, not putting together some bureaucratic nonsense so the others could ‘get to know him and his plans.’ He didn’t really have a plan for the Archives besides digitization, and even that was going disastrously. Should he even mention the tapes? He’d likely be met with scorn and laughter. Elias may find them promising, but anyone who took one look at their equipment said otherwise. Google told him that he should share fun facts about the team but that seemed highly unprofessional. Who cared that he liked to watch documentaries in what little spare time he had? Instead, he’d written a very bare-bones outline of what he’d like to say but for some reason typing it out was impossible. The only thing he’d managed to get was a layout and font in neutral, unobtrusive colors. This was very important to him. 

 “Still stuck on the presentation, Jon?”

 Sasha was leaning against the doorway with a gentle smile on her face. She knew how hard it was for Jon to get his thoughts together sometimes and was always a sympathetic ear when it got particularly bad. She seemed to have finally settled into her role (whatever that may be) and was talking to him more and more. Though no one in the department had any experience in archiving, Sasha at least had more concrete ideas.

 “Yes, I’m just-” he sighed, taking his glasses off and rubbing his temples to ward off the approaching headache. “I’ve got no idea what he wants. What is a ‘rundown’ and how can I have one with the Archives like...this?” He gestured to his mess of an office, currently drowning in paper and cardboard boxes.

 “Well, what do you have so far?” Jon grimaced and handed over his notebook, filled with messy scribbles and half-finished ideas. Sasha skimmed it and made a few promising noises; Jon hated the part of himself that sought her approval. She finished and looked up with a grin. “How about you let me have a go at it? You know I love this sort of thing, and then you’ll have some time to record that statement tomorrow, hm?”

 “I-really? Would that be okay? I don’t want you to have to- I mean, it’s my job.”

 “I’m your assistant, Jon,” she interrupted with a placating hand. “So let me assist you!” Her offer seemed very genuine. Jon was loath to ask for help or admit to trouble even in the best of cases, but Sasha had a way of wearing him down with one well-placed smile. He decided to take the hand offered. 

 “Thank you, Sasha. Really.” He leaned back in his chair and gave her a grateful smile, glad for any progress made on the project.

 “And it’s no problem. Really.” She tucked his notebook into her bag and gave a cheerful nod.  “I’ll show you what we come up with!”

  ______

Jon yawned into his fist for the fourth time in an hour. The Amy Patel statement wouldn’t record on the computer so unfortunately he brought out the tape recorder. For some reason every time he recorded to tape he came away exhausted and anxious, unsettled by the words he spoke. Luckily he managed to get to the follow up recorded without too many interruptions- usually one of his assistants would come banging on the door and he’d be forced to start over for the sake of professionalism. 

 “Knock knock!” 

  Speak of the devil.  Tim grinned at him from the doorway, Martin standing close behind him.

 “Yes?” he asked shortly, straightening the files on his desk. “Do you need something?”

 “Your presentation, as requested!” Tim bestowed upon him a flash drive with much pomp and circumstance. “You’re welcome.”

 “Oh! Er, I thought I gave that to Sasha?” He looked in surprise at the device before him. He wasn’t expecting them to actually finish everything- he also wasn’t expecting anyone but Sasha to help him out. If Tim and Martin helped out as well... “I’ll uh, check it out in a few moments, thank you.

 “But I want to show you now, boss!” Tim’s voice reached the whiny pitch that he knew Jon loathed. He sighed however, and plugged it in. After a few moments a window popped open, with a file labeled  Jonny’s First Work Presentation.  He rolled his eyes while Tim snickered.  I’ll need to change that before the meeting…

 The file looked...hellish, to say the least. Jon spied on the first few slides a strange and ugly gradient background that faded from bright green to black, along with garish rainbow WordArt. He was almost afraid to click on anything, lest it blind him or inspire a seizure.

 “It’s really best viewed in slideshow mode,” Tim nudged Jon’s hand out of the way and made it so, the full screen now proudly showing the title page-  Jonathan Sims’ New and Improved Archives!!   Martin and Tim leaned in over his shoulder, the latter clearly excited to showcase his work.  That’s never good.

 “That’s far too many exclamation points, Tim.”

 “There are never enough exclamation points, Jon.”

 The next slide came in with a sort of shutter effect that did nothing to minimize the horrendous resizing done on the Magnus Institute logo, which had been stretched to fit almost the entire page and was unrecognizable due to pixilation. Jon gritted his teeth. “This is unnecessary.”

 “Wow, everyone’s a critic,” Tim rolled his eyes.

 “I-I can probably find a logo with better resolution,” Martin offered timidly. Jon had almost forgotten he was in the room. 

 The next pages were not much better- the Oxford English Dictionary’s definition of ‘archive,’ the audio pronunciation for it had a page to itself. There were several collages of books and artifacts (these looked handmade, as if someone had copy and pasted several finds from google images). Jon felt his anger grow with each laborious click. Was this someone’s idea of a joke? Where was Sasha? “Is there anything of actual substance in this?” he asked, huffing as the current slide disintegrated out of view in a dramatic fashion.

 “God, so impatient! We’re building up to it.” A few more clicks. They got to a page covered with cartoon ghosts and nothing else. “Watch this!” With a click the ghosts all flew away, a clunky piece of animation that revealed  Jonathan Sims’ Plan of ATTACK!!

 “I did that one,” Martin announced in his ear with not a little pride.

 The ‘plan of attack’ included bullet points (which were also little ghosts) regarding the new digitization and accessibility project in clear, cogent prose which must have been the work of Sasha. The rest, however- random paragraphs about ‘synergy’ and ‘dynamic team players’- was clearly unsalvageable and designed to make him the laughing stock of the institute. 

 “I can’t...this is unusable, Tim!”

 “Keep reading! There’s good content there. God, there’s no accounting for taste these days, is there Martin?” Martin did not answer. What could Martin have said? Each page was worse than the last- the current slide had only a picture of what looked to be an ancient Egyptian scroll and nothing else.

 “This is the definition of unusable.”

 “No it’s not!” Tim argued though he was on the verge of laughter. He was smiling, clearly enjoying the entire scenario. “Look, I even put a ‘Meet the Team’ section-” He clicked through the slides, each piece of text gliding across the screen in an obnoxious star pattern. 

 “Why are there so many animations?” Jon tapped his foot impatiently through the unnecessarily arduous process of getting to the next page. “I’m not a child. This is for Elias, not a primary school.”

 “I thought they looked nice…” Martin said softly, shuffling his feet. “I can take them out, if you’d like-”

 “They’re wonderful Martin, don’t listen to him,” Tim had finally reached the first slide of his ‘Meet the Team’ section. Instead of starting with Jon it began with an incredibly large photo of Tim, smiling and winking at the camera.  Naturally.

 “Tim Stoker: A Gentleman and a Scholar,” Jon read aloud. “I’m not saying that. And shouldn’t we be starting with me? I ask for one thing-”

 “I saved the best for last, of course! Martin, you’ll  love this,” Tim began frantically clicking through animations, taking a full minute to get to Jon’s slide. “Ta-da!”

  Jonathan Sims: The Man, the Myth, the Legendary Archivist

 It was a picture of Jon from a happy hour years ago, smiling broadly with half-lidded eyes and sprawled across the bar in a state of disarray. He had a vague memory of Sasha snapping the photo before he fell to the ground and vomited everything he drank.  No no no no  - he attempted to slam down the laptop screen before Martin could see but the damage was done. The man was red and stuttering, clearly embarrassed for Jon. He took a deep breath, attempting to calm down. He contemplated his options- double homicide or self-immolation. Both seemed equally appealing in the moment. 

 “Please leave,” he fumed, his own face a tomato red as he stared at the floor. “Now.”

 “Aw boss, don’t be like that-”

  “Now!”  Two sets of footsteps scurried from the room as Jon threw his head into his hands.

 He had quite a bit of work to do.

 _____________

 Of course he scrapped almost all of it, keeping only the informative parts that Sasha had written.  This is why you should do things yourself. ‘Assist’ my ass. 

 Jon had kept the door closed for the rest of the afternoon, ignoring both the plaintive apologies from Tim and Martin and Sasha’s insistent knocking. He wanted to blame her for letting the other two get involved, wanted to yell and stamp and maybe throw a thing or two. But it was  his  job. He shouldn’t have left it all to them.  Lazy, incompetent, his mind raged but the words were aimed at himself. Perhaps that’s why they sabotaged the slideshow, to tell him they weren’t going to do his dirty work. Hazing the new boss.  Did they realize how important this was to him? Did they even care? He already looked like a fool- why not double down on it?

 He took the ‘Meet the Team’ page down, his fingers angrily punched the ‘delete’ key for every picture and turned it into one slide with only their names and positions.  That’s all they need to know, really.  He managed to throw together a few slides on a new organizational system and something about research follow up, but it all rang false and hollow- any academic would see right through this bullshit attempt. Even the digitization slides seemed trite- why was this his first order of business?  What the hell are you doing?

 It was late into the night when he finally finished, though the presentation was nowhere near what he wanted it to be. The clock informed him it was only ten though, so he still had some time before the last train. He was just going to rest his eyes for a minute and then he’d get up and go.  Just a minute...

  ____________

And then it was tomorrow.

 Fuck.  Fuck! 

 Jon woke up with his head pillowed in his arms and his back almost completely immobile. He squinted at the clock-  7:00 AM. He tripped down the hallway and into the bathroom to freshen up, splashing cold water on his face and cursing under his breath. How embarrassing to be caught in yesterday’s clothes- if he switched out his sweater vest for a blazer, they might not notice. His wardrobe was nothing if not consistent and boring. His hair tamed into some semblance of neatness, Jon went on to his next stop, the break room for a cup of coffee and then finally, back to his office to survey the finished product and perhaps do a few run-throughs.

 He settled in his seat and pressed the power button to coax his laptop out of sleep. The clock on the wall ticked a steady, droning rhythm that somewhat calmed his racing heart and he took a sip of coffee, savoring the bitter flavor. His eyes flickered down to the screen- still black. He pressed it again. Nothing. He looked to the side of the computer, noticing the lack of power cord.  Oh, it’s not plugged in. That’ll do it. He solved that problem quickly and tried again.  

 Again, nothing. He pushed it harder, hurting his finger with the intensity behind it. The screen remained black.

 It was then that Jonathan Sims screamed.

 _____________

It was nine in the morning and he still had no idea what to do. No amount of coaxing, either through nice words or obscenities had managed to wake it up. He removed the battery and put it back in. He prayed to several gods, none of which he believed in. He kicked the desk and promptly fell to the ground, screaming in pain. IT didn’t come in until ten, and his meeting was at nine-thirty. He was well and truly fucked.

 But then he heard footsteps coming down the hall and he dashed to meet them, hoping it was the person he needed. And it was.

 “Sasha!” he panted, taking in heaving, gulping breaths. “Help!”

 “Oh God Jon, is this one of your asthma attacks? Do you have your inhaler?” Her eyes widened and her hands fluttered nervously. ‘I’ve told you-”

 “No,” he grabbed her by the shoulders, feeling more unhinged by the moment. “I-I lost it. The PowerPoint. My laptop won’t turn on, and-”

 “Breathe, Jon! That’s no trouble at all. I can get into your drive, no worries!” she said, pushing him into a chair and booting up her laptop. Jon put a hand to his chest, attempting to follow her advice.  See, it’s fine!  “Where did you save it? On your ShareDrive or on the general Archives one? I’ll need your credentials if it’s the former.”

 His heart dropped.  No no no no. He’d done the one thing Sasha had always warned him against.  “I-I saved it to the desktop…”

 “Oh Jon.”

 And that's when he spiraled. He was going to have to walk into that meeting, hands empty, and face the firing squad. Elias will know he should have never hired him and everyone there will nod and agree that the stupid boy who couldn’t do one simple task does not belong at the table with the rest of him and Jon will be sent on his way, back to research if he’s lucky or fired if he’s not and he can’t do one fucking thing right-

 “Jon. Jon!”  Sasha had a hand on his shoulder, firm and grounding. “Fucking  breathe. It’s fine, you’re fine! Here.” She slipped the flash drive from yesterday into his hand and he groaned, attempting to pass it back

 “I can’t use that one, you know I can’t-”

 “No, this one’s different, I promise,” She grabbed his chin, forcing him to meet her eyes. “I tried to tell you yesterday- I’m sorry about all of that. It wasn’t funny. We fixed it.” She seemed honest, sincere. But Jon was still hesitant, taking in shaking breaths.

 “This isn’t a joke?”

 “I swear. Here, use my laptop.” She passed it over and Jon paused, considering his options, which were few.

 So Jon took the flash drive and laptop and left, ignoring Martin’s greetings as he brushed by him on his way up to the conference room.  Here goes.

 _____________

 “Erm, h-hello,” Jon coughed, clearing his throat. “I’m Jonathan Sims, the new Head Archivist, as Elias...already said, I guess.” He let out a nervous laugh which no one returned. Elias nodded, urging him to go on.

 Jon had made his way to the room with fifteen minutes to spare, giving him some time to boot up the computer and load the presentation. A quick, nervous glance let him know that it was much changed- at least the first few slides. He shook hands with each department head as they came in, trying to see which of their smiles and congratulations were sincere. The answer? Very few. This was not comforting. 

 His hands shook as he clicked his way to the first slide, his heart pounded in his chest to reveal-

  Bringing the Archives into the 21st Century- A Plan for Updating and Digitizing the Institute's Statements

  Well that’s not bad at all.

 He began to speak, his voice gaining clarity and confidence with every sentence. The presentation was lovely- incorporating his preferred neutral color scheme, a great improvement on the nauseating colors of before. The animations were minimal and sleek, making the transitions meld seamlessly from slide to slide. There was a bit introducing Gertrude’s past work and a dig at her filing system that earned him a laugh. There were new slides regarding the preservation of documents, a new organizational structure, the introduction of a database. All ideas they’d briefly spoken about before committing themselves fully to the digitization process as Elias instructed. Everything was written in his favored academic tone- so natural that Jon found himself speaking extemporaneously on the slides he felt more comfortable with. It was all met with approving nods and a studious gaze from Elias that Jon couldn’t parse. There was also no mention of the tapes.

 The dreaded ‘Meet the Team’ section had been heavily reworked- each one of them had the headshot from their IDs (poor Martin had his eyes closed) and a mention of which department they’d transferred from, along with their credentials. It was professional and informative, everything Jon had wanted it to be. Sasha had outdone herself.  Sasha should be the one making this presentation. 

 He tried to ignore the guilt settling in his chest, even as he smiled back at the approval from the academics he so desperately craved. He clicked to the last slide, which had their contact information and-  oh. It was a picture taken from his birthday a few weeks back, where they all looked fairly presentable and were smiling, no idea of the task ahead of them. Elias was there too; Rosie had taken the picture at Tim’s insistence. His audience tittered, though it seemed to be in good humor rather than mocking.

 “Ah, yes. Th-Thank you for your time.” He quickly turned it off and stared at the ground, his face warm with both embarrassment and a creeping sense of belonging that he didn’t know what to do with. He was startled when a small round of applause began and he looked up with wide eyes to find a smiling audience. Out of the corner of his eye, he saw Elias nod and smile as well and he finally felt the sense of accomplishment he’d longed for since the start of his promotion.  

 The room cleared rather quickly (no one really wanted to be in a Friday meeting, after all) but Jon was stopped by a tall, smiling woman he had only seen in passing. “Sonya from Artefact Storage,” she reminded him, shaking his hand again and giving him a warm smile. “I’m looking forward to talking to you more about that database. I was always telling Gertrude she needed one, but of course she never listened to me. Stubborn to the end!” He could only stutter, too overwhelmed to formulate a proper response. A hand reached out to his shoulder.

 “That was nicely done, Archivist.” For some reason the title made Jon feel odd, like he was having an honor bestowed that he had not yet earned. Elias wasn’t that much taller than him, but he always seemed to loom over Jon. “Quite the presentation. Lots of...ideas. But I must stress the importance of getting the statements-”

 “On tape, yes, yes,” Jon said, quick to agree. “I just thought, er- I should let them know some of our other objectives, as well?”  Seems like Sasha wanted to, at least.

 “As long as you don’t forget yours,” A pointed glance. Jon gulped nervously, shoving a hand in his pocket. “Still, a good job all around. That Sasha of yours seems like a good asset. Enjoy your weekend.”

 Jon froze in the doorway. Did he know?  Of course not, don’t be silly.  He shook his head and left the room. Well, at least that’s over with.

 ____________

 “Did it go alright?” Sasha asked immediately upon his entrance. He managed a self-deprecating smile. 

 “Surprisingly, yes. That was-  thank you, I guess.”

 “No trouble at all,” Tim jumped out from the break room, throwing an arm around his shoulder. “Always knew you had it in you. A consummate performer, I was telling our Martin-”

  “Tim!”  He scowled and tried in vain to shove him away, still irritated by his presence.

 “Seriously, though. Sorry about all of that before. Just trying to lighten the mood, I swear we wouldn’t have actually left you with that-”

 “It’s- It’s fine,” Jon sighed, reluctantly giving in to Tim’s insistent affection. “Well, not really, but it turned out alright in the end.” Sasha gave an encouraging grin.

 “Did you like the photo?” Martin asked anxiously, hovering in the corner of the room. Jon paused. He considered telling him no, that he would have never put it in there himself and considered it rather unprofessional on the whole, but one look at Martin’s face told him that was the wrong move.

 “Yes, Martin,” he said, summoning up the equivalent of a smile. “I liked the photo.”

ao3: https://archiveofourown.org/works/27142390

[coffee-obsessed-writer]

When You Least Expect It, Part Sixteen

Jensen Ackles x Musician!Reader

Masterlist - Contains Chapter Links & Wardrobe Collages

A/N: This is a much shorter chapter than the rest, but I hope you enjoy it! 

Spotify Playlist

Series Summary: After a hard breakup, Jensen decides to throw himself into organizing a Music Festival in Austin that is meant to raise money for a few of his most cherished charities and organizations. As he throws himself into planning it, he stumbles upon a spirited, undiscovered performer, who he convinces to come aboard to help plan and coordinate the event with him.

What transpires after that takes both Jensen and his new friend, by surprise. But when their respective pasts come back just before the event kicks off in Austin, they will both have to decide if the unexpected feelings are worth perusing, or if they should just walk away and go on with their lives.

Series Warnings: Language, Break-Ups, Angst, Fluff, Smut, Mild Violence, Talk of Domestic Abuse

Chapter Summary: With the festival rapidly approaching, everyone is both on edge and excited for what lies ahead.

Chaper Warnings: None

WC: 6.5K

Series Beta’d by @closetspngirl​​

Dee

The private investigator Dee hired last Spring had been worth every penny. The information he delivered on Jensen’s new girlfriend gave her more than she could have hoped for. Her plan to contact the little twit’s ex-boyfriend seemed like a good idea at first; but as the weeks turned into months, even Dee could see Nathan’s instability grow. Once word of the incident at Jensen’s brewery reached her, she knew that maybe things had gone too far. All she wanted to do was try and cause some drama, hoping Jensen would shy away from the beach brat he was suddenly so obsessed with and come back to her. But as she sat, nipping at her cuticles while waiting in her rented Beamer for Nathan to show, she realized what a futile effort it had been.

The plan completely backfired, only pushing the two of them closer. Gen had let it slip that Y/N was now living in Vancouver with Jensen, completely bringing Dee’s hopes of a reconciliation crumbling to the ground. Even she had never been asked to move to Vancouver with him while they were together, and was instantly crushed when she heard the news. There was no chance of Jensen coming back to her; Dee knew that now it was a matter of protecting herself. Only God knew exactly what Nathan was capable of, but with the glimpses Dee had caught of him, she seriously began to fear how this would backlash onto her, if her part in everything had come out. 

Everything she had done up until that point hadn’t been illegal, really. All she did was make a few phone calls and provoke a stranger into reacting. Yet somehow she knew that if Nathan was caught, and started talking, her name would be spoken and she’d have some things to answer for. Knowing the light it would paint her in, knowing how it could affect her career, Dee needed to be sure that Nathan would keep her out of it. After all, HE was the one who took things too far. 

Dee turned her delicate wrist and checked the time on her watch; already a quarter past ten in the morning. Nathan had promised to meet her early that day outside of a small diner located in the outskirts of Austin. It was two days before the festival was to kick off, and she just needed a few reassurances before the big day. She still hated Y/N and loved Jensen, but deep down she finally conceded that SHE wasn’t the one he loved; Y/N was. 

Another twenty minutes passed with no sign of Nathan. When she checked her watch again and saw it was nearly eleven, she closed her eyes and felt her stomach bottom out. Dee pushed the start button on her rental and hung her head, long strands of red hair obscuring her face and the handful of regretful tears that ran through her makeup. A soft, yet shaky laugh turned into shaking sobs as the air conditioning began to blow her hair back lightly. She drew in a deep breath and brought her vision back up towards the windshield. Off to the right of the old titanium plated diner, stood a tall, lanky man in a grey hoodie and ripped jeans. She felt his eyes on her and a mild bout of nerves raced through her veins. The man’s hood was drawn tightly around his head, leaving his face in a swirl of shadows. Regardless, she could feel his eyes on her and knew that it was Nathan. 

They had only met in person once before earlier that Spring, and it was a brief encounter at best. Dee had been hesitant to meet face to face, but Nathan insisted. He said he was worried for Y/N, and the kind of people she’d gotten involved with. He was pushy and borderline manic, so Dee agreed to meet at the same diner she was now parked in front of. They drank coffee and Dee listened as Nathan recounted his surprise visit with Y/N. The way he explained it, she had turned her back on him, and then provoked Jensen into attacking him. His expression was concerned and fretful, but Dee knew it had all been an act. She was an actress, after all, and she could spot his lies a hundred miles away. Yet, it didn’t stop her from encouraging him to fight back, and fight for his girl.

The break-in at the condo hadn’t been all her idea, though as she sat in nervous self-reflection, she wouldn’t be able to deny planting the seed of thought in Nathan’s head. But, her little birdies told her that the amount of destruction that had been left was extensive, and far more than she felt comfortable with. 

She killed the engine of the car, again, and slowly opened the driver’s side door. The minute it cracked open, Nathan began to approach her. When he was closer, she could see his features were drawn and his complexion turned ashy. The dark circles under his eyes and the pale tone of his lips caused her brow to furrow.

“Jesus, Nathan. What the hell happened to you?”

Nathan shrugged. “Life.”

“Well, maybe you should rethink the life you’re living if it’s leaving you looking like that.” Dee gave him a good once over, and noticed his hands were shaking. “Are you on drugs?”

He let out a deep, haunting laugh. “What the fuck you know about the drug life, Princess?”

“N-Nothing really, but I’ve been around enough people that do them to know what a junkie looks like.”

“You don’t know shit about shit. What the hell do you want, hm? You nagged me to get here so you could just put me down like everyone else?” His words weren’t threatening, but the tone and body language he delivered them with, was.

“No, I just… shit, man… this all got out of hand. I just wanted to check in, make sure you were okay,” she lied, doing her best to keep her face from betraying her. “I’m concerned.”

“Are you now?” Nathan snorted, and pushed the hood off his head, revealing his shaggy, dirty hair that was plastered to his head thanks to the heat of the Austin summer. “What made you so concerned? I did what you asked. I tried to break them up. But…” he trailed off, his eyes looking in Dee’s direction, but it was clear that he wasn’t actually seeing her.

“I was wrong, okay? Clearly those two idiots are happy together. So, I wanted to tell you that you could stop trying to break them up.”

Nathan shook his head slowly, and in a way that caused a bolt of anxiety to run down Dee’s spine. “Naw, can’t do that.”

“Can’t--can’t do what?”

“Stop trying to break them up…. Y/N is all I got left in this world.”

“But, what if she doesn’t want you? Then what? Do you really want her if she doesn’t want you? You deserve someone who loves you for who and what you are. Don’t get hung up on some past relationship because you think it's what you deserve. Trust me, Nathan, I speak from experience.”

“I give two shits about your experience. Y/N is my girl,” he snarled at her, “...always has been. So why don’t you bug the fuck off and leave me alone.”

“I will, I promise. But first I just need to make sure…” Dee let her words hang in the air, hoping he would get their meaning without her having to actually say it. From his expression, she knew that he got her point, but the concerning grin that unfurled on his face told her he wasn’t going to cut her an inch of slack. “...are you… I mean, can you, leave my name out of it?”

“It?” he asked, goading her into having to say the words.

“You know what I mean.”

“Do I?”

“Jesus.. Fine. Please leave my name out of any involvement with whatever scheme you come up with next? Yes, I wanted them broken up, but the things you’ve done… I can’t be a part of it.”

“Too late, Princess. You’re part of it. And if I go down for any of this bullshit, so do you.”

Jensen

In the few weeks after their vacation at the shore, Jensen and Y/N were busier than ever. Each day brought some sort of hurdle that one or both of them needed to clear. As days dwindled down towards the start of the festival, they were more determined than ever to make it the best weekend Austin had ever seen. A few last minute additions to the various stage line ups caused some headaches, but they made it work and in the end. Jensen was still in awe watching Y/N handle the musicians, the vendors, the sponsors, the various charity groups involved, and all while she was trying to get her own music set list together. Not to mention practicing via video conference with Robbie and the rest of Louden Swain. 

For most of his life, Jensen always wondered if a woman like her existed. Y/N was by no means perfect; she could be moody, and a bit of a slob which sometimes drove him crazy. Then, he would see her sitting on the couch, legs crossed in some ungodly way, with her head buried in her computer or a guitar on her lap, and any of her imperfections just melted away. Y/N did little else other than eat, sleep and breathe the festival. There were times in those weeks where despite the hectic schedule of planning and also filming the show, he half wished it was over already. Jensen wanted to start his life with Y/N, be with her without the current pressure that sat on both their shoulders. He and Jared had discussed on numerous occasions that maybe it was time for Supernatural to come to an end, giving them the opportunity to explore life outside of their precious Impala. But it wasn’t until those weeks between Seaside and the festival, that he was seriously considering it. 

The idea of not living and working in Vancouver with his best friend normally caused a mild panic to settle into his gut. However, the last time he and Jared had discussed it, they both felt that the end was in sight. Jensen never brought it up to Y/N, never felt like the right time. With all their respective traveling and work loads, trying to plan a future needed to be put on the back burner. As much as it killed him to do so, he knew it was best for both their sakes. He decided once the festival was over he’d bring it up to her. Then, they could make a plan. If there was one thing Jensen knew for absolutely certainty, it was that he didn’t see any type of future without her in it.

They were knee deep in filming the seventh episode of the season, so if a decision was to be made about the future of the show, it had to be soon. Production was shutting down for five days solely so the entire cast and crew could fly down for the festival. Every single one of them had agreed to volunteer, or help out somehow, and it warmed his heart more than he could put into words. These people had become his extended family, a support system when he felt he had reached rock bottom, and some of the best damn human beings he’d ever met.

Filming had wrapped for the extended weekend, and Jensen was feeling that last scene in every muscle and bone. Fight scenes were always fun to block out, but once it got to actually throwing the stuntmen around, and executing the moves on camera it tended to wear him out. As Jensen plodded back to his trailer, both relieved and exhausted, he noticed a light was on inside, and saw the shadow of his best friend moving about. A little smirk twitched on his face as he climbed the metal steps to the trailer and quietly pushed open the door.

Jared was singing under his breath as Jensen walked in unnoticed. Jensen leaned against the door watching him, trying not to laugh as Jared’s head bobbed to the song stuck in his head. It was when Jared started making guitar riff noises that Jensen’s resolve broke, and he started clapping loudly, making his best friend nearly jump out of his skin.

“Bravo my man!” Jensen teased and walked slowly through the large trailer. “Hey, how come we didn’t find you a slot in the festival? With pipes like that--”

“Shut up,” Jared sighed and sat down on the leather couch, still clutching his chest from Jensen’s sudden intrusion. “Damn near gave me a heart attack.”

“Yeah, well, now you know what your singing does to me.”

“I’m sorry, DEAN, I thought we were done filming for today.” Jared rolled his eyes, but was unable to hide his own smile at their banter. “Seriously though, I thought we were done. Took you long enough to get back here.”

“Had to re-block one of the fight scenes. I was completely off my game, man. I don’t know if it’s exhaustion or what, but I could feel myself half-assing it.”

“Dude, do you not realize the year you’ve had? There are times I am amazed you’re still standing.”

Jensen shrugged it off and grabbed two cold beers from the mini-fridge, before handing one to Jared and sitting on the recliner across from him. 

“Not like we haven’t been here before,” Jensen replied, but he knew what Jared really meant. Ignoring the look he could feel coming from the other side of the room, he leaned forward in the chair and finally met Jared’s eyes. “Speaking of… I think me, you and Misha really need to sit down and talk.”

Jared snorted a laugh and nodded. “Yeah, I agree. It’s why I’m here, actually.”

After so many years together, the two friends could talk without words. Due to previous discussions and the telepathy that had developed through more than a decade of friendship, neither had to say what was on their mind. 

Jared raised his beer and Jensen followed suit. They clincked the bottles together in cheers and each took a long draw of the dark brew. 

“To one final season of Supernatural,” Jensen said with Jared nodding in agreement. 

“To one more kick ass ride,” Jared smiled and took another pull from the bottle. 

They sat in silence for a moment, feeling the weight of the decision slowly rolling off their shoulders. The air in the trailer felt lighter somehow, as if just saying the words out loud relieved some of the tension it had contained. 

“Misha on board?” Jensen asked and looked up to see his friend nodding. 

“He is. He’s broken up about it as much as we are, but he knows its time.”

Jensen just nodded and sat back in his chair. “Think we got one more year in us?”

“Damn straight we do. Hell, I know we have another FIVE years in us. Truth is, I think we are just both ready for the next thing… whatever that looks like.”

Again, Jensen nodded in agreement but sat quietly, contemplating what that thing was. “Do you know what you want to do?” 

Jared shook his head. “Not really. A few offers have come in for movies, a new show or two, but nothing that really jumps up at me. I just know I want to be home more, help Gen with the kids. Actually be there and see them grow up.” He paused and looked at Jensen, who seemed a million miles away despite sitting two feet in front of him. “Jay? What about you? Do you know what comes next?”

A hint of a smile pulled at the corner of Jensen’s mouth. “I sure do, my brother. I sure as hell do. I want what you have with Gen. Wife, kids, house… the whole nine. When this festival is over, I’m going to ask Y/N to marry me. Whatever happens after that, doesn’t matter. I just know that my life isn’t complete, unless she’s in it with me.”

Jared nodded in agreement, and despite the heaviness of the decision they had come to, he could see the love and excitement in his best friend’s face. He raised his beer again, “That, is the best damn thing I’ve heard you say in forever. I admit I was skeptical at first, but Y/N brings out something in you I’ve never seen before.”

“Oh yeah, what’s that?” 

“Pure, unadulterated, happiness.”

Jensen leaned back in his chair, and for the first time in his life, he knew that no matter what came next, he would be okay because Jared was right. Y/N made him happier and more alive than anything else ever had. The life he had always wanted, with the woman he always dreamed of was right in front of him for the taking.

Y/N

Forty-eight hours from the start of the festival, and Y/N’s nerves were showing signs of strain from the pressure she had put on herself. She wanted everything about the weekend to be perfect; from the many venues, band line ups, vendors and volunteers. She oversaw everything, right down to the signs that she had the local schools help make that marked each section of the festival. 

The idea had hit her months ago, to divide up the Austin Hometown & Brew Fest into little representations of each major city that was contributing food, drinks and music. Each school district in Austin was responsible for creating colorful signs for each “town”, and as she stood looked through the pictures of each one, her tired heart soared with pride and a surge of adrenaline she desperately needed. When she had been offered the job by Jensen, Y/N never believed for a second she would have the knowledge or drive to pull it off. Yet somehow, here she was--in the home stretch and still running. 

Y/N stared at her phone flipping through the images Bri had sent her, as she walked barefoot through the Vancouver apartment waiting for Jensen to get back from filming so they could leave for the airport. They had a late flight to Austin, which didn’t give them much time, but they could make it work. Somehow, they always found a way. With Robbie, Bri and Mama already in Austin, Y/N knew that everything would get done that needed to, because they were just as invested in this as she and Jensen were and she couldn’t ask for much more than that. Y/N had an amazing crew behind her, a boyfriend she loved more than life, and a future with endless possibilities. 

Just as she felt her stomach rubble, and made her way into the kitchen, the phone in her hand began to buzz. Bri’s name popped up, causing Y/N to smile and forget the hunger pains that nagged her. 

“Hey Bri,” she answered with tired enthusiasm, “everything okay down there?”

“Stop being a worry wort, everything is FINE! I’m calling to check on you. How’s the nerves? Holding steady?”

“Eh, let’s just say I am holding it together. Too much to think about for me to start feeling the heat now.”

“Mhm, okay. Now, you want to try to say that in a way that will make me believe it?”

“Hush, I’m fine. Tired, but fine.”

“If you say so. Honey, I promise you, everything is on track here. Robbie has the venues locked down. The stages are finishing being built, all the lights and equipment have been tested. Mama has the two theaters ready to rock n roll. Hell, even Gen is getting in on things. Do you know she took the kids down to the elementary school and helped them finish up the last few banners. I am telling you, there is nothing to worry about.”

Y/N felt a surge of relief, and let it wash over her taking with it the stress of last minute details. Yet, there was a nagging feeling left she didn’t like. One that settled in the pit of her stomach like a led weight. 

“Bri…” Y/N paused, unsure of how to phrase what she wanted to ask. “...has there been any signs… or even a whiff of--”

“Nathan? No. There hasn’t.”

Y/N sighed audibly and felt her knees weaken at the sound of his name. She hated that even after the months that had passed since the breakin and incident in the brewery parking lot, the sound of his name could bring her such anxiety. 

“You sure?”

“I swear. The police still have an APB on him, all the volunteers and security guards have seen his picture and know what to look for should he be stupid enough to try and get into any restricted areas.”

“Okay.” But Y/N wasn’t totally convinced. She felt it could be her own paranoia and years of history with Nathan, but she needed to focus on the tasks ahead, and not look back on a past that would continue to haunt her, if she let it.

“Listen, it’s late. Tomorrow morning, I’ll meet you at Jensen’s place here in town, and we will spend the entire day going over every last minute detail. You can bite your nails and stress the day away, but for now, go grab some food, take a nap, blast some music… whatever is going to make you chill out. Robbie and I got this. Mama, too. That lady is a force of nature and loves you somethin’ fierce. So if there is any one thing out of place, I guaran-damn-tee, Mama June will handle it.”

Y/N laughed, and immediately conjured an image of Mama bossing Robbie around, while Bri sat back chuckling. “You’re right. Between her, you and Robbie, I really have nothing to worry about.”

“Good girl. Now, how long before your flight leaves?”

“We have to be at the airport by ten, and I think it leaves at twelve thirty.”

“Okay, I’ll have a car there waiting to pick you guys up. Now, I know you two horn dogs can’t keep your hands off each other, but may I suggest some SLEEP when you get to Austin. Big days ahead, and we need you both well rested and ready to kick this in the ass!”

“You know Briana, there are days I truly, from the bottom of my heart, cannot stand you.”

“What can I say, it's a gift. I’ll see you in the morning,” she laughed and made three loud kissing noises.

“Love you too, Bri,” Y/N laughed and shook her head, “See you tomorrow.”

As Y/N ended the call, her stomach reminded her of her promise of cold pizza from the fridge. She placed her cell phone on the counter and began to rummage through the two left over pizza boxes. She grabbed two plain slices, and just as she took a huge bite, her phone began to ring again. Assuming it was Bri calling back, she answered without looking at the caller ID.

“I swear, I am going to eat and take a nap!” she mumbled in protest as an answer, with a mouth full of cold pizza, but no response came. Y/N chewed and swallowed as quickly as she could, thinking that her jumbled greeting may have thrown Bri off. “Sorry, had a mouth full of food. Miss me already?” she teased. 

Again, no answer came, and that weight in her stomach twisted up like a tornado and clogged her throat. 

“Hel--Hello? Bri?” She moved the phone from her face and looked at the screen. Bri’s name wasn’t there, nor was Robbie’s. Instead it just said, Private Caller. “Who is this?”

Five, maybe ten seconds passed, but for Y/N, it felt like an eternity. She could hear someone breathing on the other end, and in her gut, she was convinced it was Nathan. 

When the person finally spoke, it was not the voice she suspected to hear. Not a man’s voice, but a digitally altered one. “Just a warning… cancel the festival, or there could be consequences.”

Y/N was speechless. She stood in Jensen’s kitchen, frozen in place with the phone glued to her hand. Slowly she brought the screen away from her face again, staring at the Private Caller and their ominous warning. She wanted to yell into the phone, curse off anyone who would try and scare her away from everything she’d worked so hard for. But her nerves had been pushed to the edge, and no words were coming from her lips. 

The caller hung up before she could find the strength to reply. Her hunger faded instantly, taken over by a swell of bile rising in her gut. Her good feelings from just moments ago were gone. As she felt herself on the verge of puking, she dropped her phone on the counter, and ran for the bathroom so her empty stomach could purge itself. Once she had gotten up whatever had been left in her gut, she sat back on the cool tile, and rested her head against the wall. Y/N had no strength or will to move; the stranger’s words “...there could be consequences…” continued to repeat over and over in her head. 

Y/N never did get up to get back to the kitchen, and when Jensen returned home a short time later, that’s where he found her; half asleep with a tear streaked face sitting in the corner of the bathroom. He didn’t ask her any questions, but instead sat beside her and gathered her into his arms, leaving a soft kiss on the top of her head. 

“Whatever it is baby, I promise you, we’ll get through it,” he cooed in comfort as she felt herself melt into his side. Assuming it was stress and anxiety over the festival, he held her close there on the bathroom floor until it was time to leave for the airport. 

That’s when she knew for complete certainty, she wasn’t going to tell him about the call. She would NOT let anyone interfere with all they had worked towards; certainly not some piece of shit like Nathan, or a petty schemer like Dee. Y/N would never let either of them take anything from her, again.

Nathan

He watched as the snotty little redhead and her fancy ass Beamer pulled out of the diner parking lot. Nathan’s face remained stone-like as Dee’s gaze didn’t leave his until she had turned left and sped out of view. Nothing she had said to him gave him a second of pause; no reconsidering, no backing down. Nathan had reached the “couldn’t care less” portion of his actions months ago, and now all he could think about was how to enact the best possible revenge, on all of them. 

Getting lost in his thoughts, he stood motionless in the parking lot, absently watching the traffic pass him by. Austin had a ton of traffic, and people, making it easy for him to blend into his surroundings and stay unnoticed. He knew the cops were looking for him, so he did his best to stay off the radar. It wasn’t until an Austin City cop car slowly passed the diner, that his feet finally decided to move. He still had too much to do before he could put his last plan into place. 

Nathan pulled his hood back up, then shoved his hands deep into his jean pockets as he casually strolled down the busy Austin streets. He cut through a few alleyways, and popped out a few blocks away. Though he looked like a citizen going for a casual stroll, he knew just where he was going. It had taken a while to get the cash he needed, but snatching a few purses from some old ladies, and that one grab ‘n go hold up at the gas station finally gave him what he needed. His fingers felt around in his pockets for the wad of cash that was now bundled there, giving him an odd sense of security. 

None of his plans had worked out since landing back in Jersey last winter. He had tried being friendly and getting back into Y/N’s life the right way. He gave her space and time to realize her own mistakes, as well as hopefully accept and forgive his own. Nathan thought for sure that would bring them together, but instead, she just ran back to this new guy trying to forget all they had meant to each other since they were kids. Just thinking of it caused his heart to pound, and his fists to clench around the silky bundle of bills stashed in his pocket. That money was the key; it would get him what he needed to make one final convincing argument on his own behalf. If she didn’t see how they were meant to be after that, then he would have to go with Plan B.

Hours later, after he purchased the items he needed, he began to wander the streets, trying to clear his head some. As Nathan passed by a hulking skyscraper, he caught his reflection in the mirrored panels of the structure. He saw what a dirty mess he was and decided to head back to the abandoned warehouse outside of the city where most of Austin’s homeless settled in for the night. It was a risk since the cops liked to come in randomly and bust up the encampment, but one he was willing to take. There he could clean up some, find a change of clothes and try to look the part he needed to play for the next few days in order to win back Y/N, once and for all.

Nathan successfully bartered for a clean pair of jeans, an almost new shirt and one use of the make-shift shower. Once he was clean and newly clothed, he found a quiet corner where someone abandoned a sleeping bag, pillow and even a few packets of Ramen noodles. Being an expert at living on the street, Nathan found a way to make the food, then hunkered down onto the sleeping bag. As the soup cooled, he transferred the items from his old jeans to his new ones and then tossed them aside. He wouldn’t need them anymore, because after he talked to Y/N, they would be together, and she could buy him a whole new wardrobe. After all, she was working with the bigwigs now and he was certain she could afford it. 

Picking at the hot noodles, Nathan let himself reminisce on the days when he and Y/N were happy and carefree. Days on the beach, nights on the boardwalk, him and her hand-in-hand. Countless days spent out on her dad’s boat with her and her brother Dave, and just as many nights drinking under the boards, dreaming of what life was like far away from Seaside. Y/N dreamt of being a rock star or some dumb shit, but Nathan knew she wouldn’t have the guts to really leave their hometown. She was a born and bred local, and no real locals ever got too far away. When she actually left and went on to make a new life for herself, he felt betrayed. He felt abandoned and hurt that he wasn’t enough to keep her put. Now, as he sat on the rumpled sleeping back with a cup of steaming, tasteless noodles in hand, he let his free hand slip into the pocket of his jeans again. This time it wasn’t the bulk of cash giving him comfort, but the touch of the cool metal that lived in his pocket. 

“One way or another,” he mumbled, tossing the soup aside with disgust, “I will have my girl and my life back.”

Austin, Day Before Festival Kicks Off...

Thirty-six hours from the start of the festival, Jensen, Y/N, Briana, Robbie, Jared, Gen, Mama and about two hundred volunteers stuffed themselves into the theater where the Burlesque troop would be performing the following evening. The seven of them stood on the stage watching as swarms of people claimed a seat, all talking excitedly about the events that were to follow. Most of them were familiar faces to Jensen and Jared, having worked on the show with them for so long, but the ones they didn’t know, didn’t give them a second of pause or concern. They were all here to lend their time and services for free in an effort to do their part for the city. Every single person that walked through the doors of that theater had been background checked, and vetted through a private sponsor to ensure the safety of the festival goers, the bands, and especially those behind the scenes putting it all together. 

That was one thing Jensen had insisted on when the idea of community volunteers had first come up. It was well before he and Y/N had fallen in love and had run-ins with Nathan and Dee. He needed to be sure that everyone involved would be safe, and in turn the weekend could be a huge success. Two separate private security firms had been hired, with special attention focused on keeping Nathan out. Jensen didn’t think Dee would have the nerve to show her face, but he made sure that each member of the security team had Nathan’s photo and full description. 

Getting lost in his own thoughts as the stream of volunteers finally closed the vestibule doors, he barely noticed Robbie setting up a microphone and begin addressing the crowd. It wasn’t until Y/N casually made her way to his side and brushed against his shoulder, was he able to pull away from his own mind and come back to the present. 

“You okay there, Hollywood?” she whispered, casually glancing at him from the corner of her eye. “Big crowd here. You got stage fright all of a sudden or something?”

“Huh?” he asked, then quickly shook his head, “No, I’m fine. Just… thinking.”

“About?”

“All of this,” he said and snorted a laugh. “I mean, look at what you put together… all of these people are here because they believe in what you created--”

“What WE created. Jay,” Y/N grabbed Jensen’s hand, and despite two hundred pairs of eyes watching them, turned him towards her and kissed his lips. “I didn’t do this, you didn’t do this. Not Robbie, Bri, Mama… But ALL of us together.”

Before Jensen could respond, Robbie turned his attention towards them, holding out the microphone. When neither of them knew why, he raised his eyebrows then covered the top of the mic with his hand. 

“You wanna jump in on this pep talk, kids?”

Jensen cleared his throat and passed Robbie a sarcastic smile. “My pleasure.” He took the microphone in hand and before he could speak, the applause radiated towards him from the theater like a shock wave. He felt his heart surge at the entire crowd, much like it did every time he was on stage at a convention. The overwhelming love and gratitude was hard to miss when in this type of setting. 

“Thank you guys, really. Y’all are far too kind. It's us who should be applauding you! Because no matter how hard we have collectively worked to put this whole thing together, without you guys lending your time and efforts, it just wouldn’t be possible.”

Another surge of applause from the captivated audience caused Jensen to lower the mic and just enjoy the moment. 

“Seriously, from the bottom of all our hearts, we thank you for not only the love and support you’ve shown us from the get go, but for the love and dedication you are showing to the city of Austin. All the proceeds from ticket sales this weekend will be divided among various city organizations that work towards education enrichment programs, women’s shelters, soup kitchens, including a new music and arts program that will benefit children and teenagers from all across the city.”

Applause again, but this time even more deafening. The sea of faces before him were smiling ear to ear and cheering loudly. As Jensen moved his vision to the right in what felt like slow motion, he caught the wide grins of his closest friends who were sharing the stage with him, who were also clapping along with the crowd. 

Jensen brought the mic up to say more, but he was at a loss for word. The energy and vibe in the theater that night left him speechless, and it took all his will to not let himself shed a tear. Y/N could see his emotions building under the surface, and gently took the mic from his hand. He smiled at her thankfully for it, and took a step back as she proceeded to prepare herself to address the crowd.

“We can’t thank you all enough for the support, and love you brought with you here not only for tonight, but for this entire weekend. Now, we don’t want to take up too much of your time, so I am going to pass the mic over to Ms. Briana Buckmaster who has a few quick things to go over with you. After that, Mama June and I will be at each end of the theater exits handing out your official volunteer shirts for the weekend. One last thing before we get to the nitty gritty, while you are out there working hard to make sure our guests have fun, don’t forget to stop and enjoy the festival yourselves! We have done our best to make sure that all volunteers get plenty of breaks to go enjoy the food and music, as well as give each of you a free admission voucher to pass along to a family member, friend, or just someone you know who would enjoy the event but can’t afford to buy their own ticket. We want this to be an all-inclusive event. So have fun, work hard, and let’s make this something not only the city of Austin, but every other town and city represented here, will never forget!”

For the last time that night, the volunteers cheered and applauded the words of love and encouragement bestowed on them. Y/N passed the microphone to Bri, who’s smile lit up her dimples nearly as bright as the lights of the theater. Briana pulled Y/N into a big hug and held her tightly. Right before she let go, Bri squeezed her and whispered in her ear, “You’ve come a long way from that scared, nervous woman I met New Year’s Eve. I am so fucking proud of you!”

With that, Bri released her from the embrace, reset herself and turned to address the volunteers. Y/N took a step back to stand beside Jensen, and immediately felt his hand snake into hers. They watched on as Bri continued to captivate the audience with her distinct and charming way of explaining the processes and procedures for the weekend. Just as Bri wrapped up her part of the speech, Jensen and Y/N took a moment to meet each other’s gaze. Y/N had all but forgotten the call from the day before, and found herself feeling more confident than ever that everything they had worked so hard for would unfold without a hitch.

Tag List:

Everything:  @coffeebooksandfandom​ / @sorenmarie87​ / @yallgotkik​ / @thefaithfulwriter​ / @sister-winchesters99​ / @thymeheals​ / @keymology​ / @divadinag​

SPN RPF (Jensen): @screechingartisancashbailiff​ / @winchesterxfamilybusiness​ / @sandlee44​ / @wings-of-a-raven​ / @negans-wife​ / @kazosa​ / @deans-baby-momma​ / @teaspoin​ / @whiskeyandapplepie​ / @hobby27​ / @breereadsthings​ / @maddiepants​ / @adoptdontshoppets​ / @squirrelnotsam​ / @faughnphotography​ / @katehuntington​ / @his-paradox​ / @deansenwackles​ / @destielhoneybee​

When You Least Expect It:  @mrsjenniferwinchester​ / @vickyfarley​ / @winchest09​ / @jerkbitchidjitassbutt​ / @aomi-nabi​ / @luciathewinchestergirl​ / @alexiswinchester​ / @seppys-return-to-madness / @donnaintx​ / @deans-baby-momma​ / @the-is13 / @stoneyggirl​ / @captaindorit0 / @fanfictionjunkie1112​ / @focusonspn​ / @deanwanddamons​ / @theebeee​ / @ultimatecin73​​ / @deanwinchesterswitch​​

Wanna get in on one of my tag lists? View the different Tag Lists, and send me an ask with which one you’d like to be on! Series Tags are on one sheet, Character tags on a second sheet.

[howaminotinthestrokesyet]

Radio Friendly Unit Shifter: The Complete Nirvana Videography

Heart-Shaped Box

Nirvana had originally wanted Kevin Kerslake to direct this video, who had written the initial treatment in July 1992. By the summer of 1993, he had written at least five treatments, which included a shot of Kurt Cobain kissing William Burroughs and another of the entire band hanging by their necks from trees. Yet by the end of August, the band decided to go with Dutch photographer Anton Corbijn. The director seemed initially apprehensive about agreeing to do the video as he had heard Kurt Cobain could act overly detailed in production. He would say, “But then I looked at it and I thought that actually it was pretty good. I was very amazed by somebody writing a song and having those ideas as precise as he did." The video begins with the band standing in a hospital room around an old man receiving an IV drip, then moves to a surreal Wizard of Oz type of outdoor setting. The same old man in a Santa and later Pope hat climbs on a crow infested cross as they sing the song. The video also includes a young girl reaching for fetuses in a tree, while at the same time an overweight woman appears with human organs painted on her chest with a pair of wings. Many of these ideas were actually conceived by Corbijn, not the band as he always came up with the ideas on his own for any of his videos. Upon the promotion’s release, Kevin Kerslake sued the band for copyright infringement, as the case would be settled out of court. Upon its release, the clip became the most played video on MTV eventually garnering two video music awards for Best Alternative Video and Art Direction. Dave Grohl, Krist Novoselic, and Pat Smear accepted the awards as Kurt Cobain had already passed. New Musical Express named it as the 11th best music video of all time, while Time magazine called it the number 10 music video ever saying it was both “beautiful and terrible.” In 2016, Dave Grohl reunited with the young girl from the video, who had this to say about the reunion. “Today reminded me that I peaked at 6 years old but I was the most badass kid on the playground. Today was the absolute coolest. Or in Dave's words seeing each other today was a 'historic moment'! What a legend!”

Sliver

A music video for the song was released in 1993 to promote the compilation album, Incesticide. The video would be directed by longtime collaborator Kevin Kerslake. The clip begins with Kurt Cobain holding his young daughter up behind some cardboard as she dances along to the first few seconds of the track. The video moves to Cobain’s garage, where it shows the band performing the song. Dave Grohl is playing on the drums, even though he never played on the original song. Cobain only sings into a microphone, but he's never seen playing guitar. He is wearing a red mohair sweater that Courtney Love had purchased for him from a fan at a Nirvana show in Belfast, Northern Ireland. His whole garage is filled with toys and decorations the singer had placed in storage just before the release of Nevermind that he had collected over the years. The collection included a Chim Chim toy monkey that was given to him from the Japanese band Shonen Knife.

Come As You Are

This video would actually be the first one directed by Kevin Kerslake, who was hired after such a negative experience with the director on Smells Like Teen Spirit. The concept would be developed by Kerslake as Cobain could not come up with any ideas, so he let the director develop the video. The singer’s only requirement was that some kind of reference be made to the cover of the Nevermind album. The clip shows the band in a dark room as water falls around them obscuring their form. Other images include Cobain swinging from a chandelier, a dog wandering around the room, a baby swimming in a pool, and a pistol falling underwater. The end of the video shows the entire group lying on the ground as Cobain kisses the camera.

Lithium

This video originally had a concept of doing a short animated story about a female girl named Prego. This girl lives in a forest, when she finds some eggs and takes them to a king in a nearby castle. Unfortunately, both Kevin Kerslake and Cobain discovered that it would take four months to produce the video, so they abandoned the idea. Kerslake instead created a collage of concert footage for the video made up of their 1991 Paramount Theater concert and other footage from the 1992 film, The Year Punk Broke. Biographer Michael Azerrad would make this critical comment about the clip. "Although [the video] was enlivened by Kerslake's neat trick of using more violent footage during the quiet parts of the song and vice versa, it was something of a disappointment from a band and a song that promised so much."

You Know You’re Right

Chris Hafner directed this video released in October 2002 to coincide with the single of the same name. The clip shows a montage of The band in either concerts or interviews, but giving the impression that they are actually performing the song. The video would reach number two on Billboard’s music videos chart. New Musical Express would go on to nominate it for Best Music Video in 2002.

In Bloom

Two versions of this video exist. The first one showed clips of the band walking around New York City and performing at Maxwells in New Jersey. In the clip, one can see Krist Novoselic in some shots has hair and others a shaved head. The reason for that comes from the fact that he had to shave it as punishment for a mediocre performance during a show at the Pyramid Club. They made this alternate version for a compilation dvd on the Sub Pop label, Sub Pop Video Network Volume One. The second version, which most people remember is called the Nevermind version. This promotional clip would be directed once again by Kevin Kerslake and released in November 1992. Kurt Cobain’s original concept for it was to tell the story of a young girl born into a Ku Klux Klan family until she realizes the evil nature of her parents, but the concept seemed much too difficult to work out. He then switched it into a parody of 1960’s television shows like the Ed Sullivan Show. The entire video was shot in original cameras of the period in Kinescope, while the band did the entire song without a script. The actor playing the host was Doug Llewellyn, who had worked as the reporter interviewing people after their case on the People’s Court. Cobain wanted to make a funny parody video to show that there was another side to Nirvana. He felt “so tired for the last year of people taking us so seriously . . . I wanted to fuck off and show them that we have a humorous side to us.” The entire band would wear suits during their performance, while the Nirvana frontman had glasses that eventually made him quite dizzy. He would later say in a Melody Maker interview that they wanted to parody groups like the Dave Clark Five, but not the Beatles. He would never mock the Fab Four due to their influence on his songwriting. In the clip, Novoselic is wearing short hair, which he liked so much that he never changed it. They eventually destroy all of their instruments and the stage by the end of the song. In Bloom would go on to win the 1993 MTV Music Video Award for Best Alternative Video.

Smells Like Teen Spirit

This video would be directed by first timer Sam Bayer. The director believed that he actually got hired because the work on his résumé seemed so below average that Nirvana thought that it would represent the opposite of anything remotely corporate. The concept developed by the band was to stage a school concert that ended in a riot. The idea had been based on the films Rock ‘n’ Roll High School starring the Ramones and The 1979 film, Over the Edge. The clip begins with the band playing the song during a pep rally in a high school gym as cheerleaders wearing sweaters with the anarchy symbol on them cheer along. Every so often, the camera cuts to a janitor dancing alongside his broom. The video ends with the apathetic students going from the bleachers to the gym floor in a full-scale riot. The apathy from the students was actually real as they had been sitting on the bleachers all day. Cobain was finally able to convince Bayer that the students should be allowed to mosh at the end of the video. The singer said, “Once the kids came out dancing they just said 'fuck you', because they were so tired of his shit throughout the day.” The Nirvana frontman hated the directors final edit of the video so much that he went in himself creating what became the final version. Upon its release, Rolling Stone’s David Fricke would say that it was “the greatest gig that you could ever imagine.” The video would go on the win MTV Video Music Awards for Best New Artist and Best Alternative Video. In 1999, the video was named the number three music video of all time on a list put out by MTV. VH1 named it number 18 in the greatest television moments in the history of music as alternative music now became a “commercial and cultural force.” At the end of 2019, the video had been viewed 1 billion times on YouTube.

[the-mandalorian-clone-lover]

Aces in Spaces Chapter 3

Hey everyone! I think my plan going forward will be to post new chapters on Mondays so in light of that, here’s the next one! 

Summary: Roman gives Butcher the run down and explanation of Asexuality and how it pertains to Erica, warning for excessive cuteness from both. This takes place within a week of the last chapter.

(Chapter 2 can be found here and Chapter 1 here)

Tags: @princessxkenobi @sunshinepascal @rentskenobi @maybege @obaby-wan

If anyone else would like to be tagged let me know?

“Butcher, Erica is an Asexual”. The other man blinks at him and he realizes this may not be an easy fix. “It means, she doesn’t experience sexual attraction.” He takes the moment that the other man spends in confusion to turn on the projector on the table and stands so he can see the slides and Butch in the same space. The first slide is the only opening template that Microsoft power point had that didn’t make him want to roll his eyes so hard they rolled back into his skull, but now that he’s standing in front of Butch he’s convinced it really was just as bad as the others. ‘Asexuality, what it means, what it’s like, and what our response should be’ is written across it in big bolded letters and he takes comfort in the fact that Butch has always been a good listener before, and certainly seems to like Erica, so he should have his attention. He clicks to the next slide, intent on making sure not a single detail is missed, he starts to read the definition he’d gotten of the internet before turning to Butch.

“Did you read the title? I suppose since it’s the two of us this could be more of a discussion, it’ll have to be a briefing when I give it to the boys.”

Butch’s thoughtful face hasn’t uncrumpled itself, nor have his eyes left the screen but Roman’s patient, this is important and he’s willing to do whatever it takes to help Erica.

Butcher closes his mouth to purse his lips before speaking. “So, she likes you for your personality?”

Roman shrugs “I know. I was surprised too.” He says it casually and Butch huffs a laugh, Roman pauses before joining him, it is a funny thought, for how many people have told him he’s incredibly disagreeable. Assuming Butch has absorbed the definition on the screen he continues. “I’ve known for a little while now, but I wanted to be sure she was comfortable coming out before I briefed everyone.”

Butcher nods again. “How do we, is she like a nun?” he leans forward to emphasize the question and Roman turns back to the screen taking a breath.

“Well, that’s the thing. Asexuality is a spectrum, there’s a lot of different types.”

“Like a box of chocolates.” Butch says sagely, and Roman considers it before nodding

“Yes, well. I suppose so. The common denominator is that they don’t experience sexual attraction. Some still enjoy sex, some only with certain people, and some not at all, those are sex-repulsed.” He clicks the button to switch slides again, “Let’s outline the different types of attraction quickly.”

Butch is nodding again, “Yeah, that’s a good start”

“Sexual attraction is wanting to have sex with someone” Roman says it despite how crass it sounds and carries on “Platonic attraction, is wanting to be friends with someone. Aesthetic attraction is thinking something is pretty, wanting to look at it, a painting maybe.” He pauses, having gone through a slide for each definition that featured the pictures he thought best explained each and a few that Erica had suggested in her edits. He turns to Butch “I’d like to add this isn’t all inclusive by any means, I’m still learning, which is why I found a support group that I’d like to start going to, I don’t think I’ll need a guard but you do like to be aware of my schedule.” He turns back to the screen to resume before Butch cuts in, eyes never leaving the slide. “I’ll be along with you then, can’t let you wander around the city alone.”

Roman almost wants to ask if Butch heard what he said but the man says it with such a finality that he doesn’t see the point in arguing. “Well, in general, since Aces, that’s another name for them, don’t experience this attraction, it’s quite common for things that allude to it to go over their heads. The car ride earlier this week for example, Erica hadn’t meant to approach me in that way and was incredibly confused when you left.”

Butcher now looks horrified “Oh, Boss, I never meant—”

Roman shakes his head “She took no offense, it’s just not a place her mind goes.”

The sentiment obviously does little to comfort Butcher and he says as much before adding “I feel like I called her, a, well a whore Boss. I never ever would do a thing like that—” Butcher’s gentle upbringing where women are concerned is making itself known and Roman really needs to send his mother a ‘thank you’ card because it really does help them work well together. “She didn’t feel that way about it at all, I’m mostly telling you this so you can watch for if others try to suggest things to her.” Butcher’s face clears a little in understanding before Roman goes on “She’s handled herself extremely well before knowing me, we both know that, but, well, if someone is getting, well you know, and she isn’t understanding then just get rid of them, yes?”

Butcher’s face is now completely serious and even a little threatening “Consider it done Boss.”

Roman maintains his business demeanor but inside he’s positively thrilled, this is going even better than he thought. “Now I want to talk about Erica specifically, she told me a bit about how she fits into the ace spectrum and its vital for our forward plan.” He hopes Butcher is appreciating that he’s using the same format they do when they discuss upcoming business meetings and the protocols necessary for each one (location, parties involved, and prior contact, etc.) because this really is just as important to him as business. This next part is going to be the hardest though, he spent a whole night on it, because how exactly do you talk about someone’s sex life (or lack thereof) and not make it seem demeaning or judgmental or any other terrible thing? In the end he’d thrown himself on Erica’s mercy and asked how she’d prefer it to be done. He’d even offered to let her come talk to Butch herself, but she had told him she was certain Butch wouldn’t judge her.

“Now, without invading her privacy, she is an ace; so, I want to keep sex related things away from her as best we can. No dirty jokes, no crude gestures, no crass people if we can help it.”

Butch is nodding along with each condition and Roman wants to breathe a sigh of relief because being vague was the best way he knew to keep her dignity. “Any questions?” Butch pauses and shakes his head before pausing again and opening his mouth “Are there, slurs, we should know? Like, if someone calls her a nun, do we get to hit them?”

Roman beams. “That’s my next topic.” He clicks the remote again and he’s suddenly realizing he missed clicking buttons, Butcher usually gives these briefings as the head of security, have to file that away for later. “Some responses aces get when they come out is that they just haven’t met the right person, they’re a later bloomer, or that they haven’t had sex with the right people. Obviously, all of these are incredibly insensitive and downright rude. If someone says these things, feel free to immediately remove them from the premises.” Now its Butcher’s turn to beam, and Roman clicks the remote again “On a lighter note, some aces really prefer food to sex and this definitely applies to Erica. She has said, and I quote, ‘sex may be great but have people ever tried beefy 5-layer burritos?’. Aces also seem to have claimed dragons as their mascot, big ones, little ones, all colors, wings or not, dragons are where it’s at.” The slide for this section is a collage of dragons and when he’d seen Erica light up at viewing it, he’s so glad he included it.

Butcher interrupts his daydreaming with a raised hand “Are stuffed dragons acceptable?”

Roman smiles, “Yes, Erica loves small soft things. I, however, am an outlier and should not be counted.”

Butch snorts at this but Roman decides to ignore him. “As always, it’s no one’s business what she and I do together, but if someone does start giving her a hard time about this, I want you to step in. Only if she gives you a direct signal not to, should you wait.” Roman pauses then, giving an amused hum “but, if she does do that, that means she’s already got a plan to absolutely destroy the person herself so stick around for the fun because that gorgeous woman knows her way around a good insult.”

Butcher furrows his brow at this, “Are you allowed to say that? Can you, say things about her, physical, ness?”

Roman pauses before answering because this was a conversation he’d had with Erica after she came out. He had called her sexy once before and noticed the small bit of hesitation before she had smiled and changed the subject. When he brought it up in light of coming out, she had said she didn’t want to lead him on. She knew her body fit under society’s definition of ‘sexy’, but she didn’t have any intentions of performing the action, so she shied away from the designation. He’d tried to compensate afterward, only complementing her personality or intelligence before Erica had once again set him down and said she didn’t mind being told she was pretty, he’d taken the moment to ask if this meant he could compliment her aesthetically instead of sexually? She had grabbed in him in a hug. He learned this was one of her favorite words and that yes, she would be thrilled to receive compliments on her aesthetic. It’s this sentiment that he conveys to Butch, though he isn’t sure he likes the idea of Butch complimenting her. He swallows the jealousy though, he’s an adult and so is she, he trusts Butch, and Erica, and that extends to conversations they may have.

“I don’t plan to butter her up boss, just looking to make sure I understand all the circumstances that warrant the use of force.” Butch affirms calmly and Roman knows it’s the truth, he scolds himself for thinking otherwise.

“I want to move on to something else that I think is important to mention. There is another sexuality called Aromantic. It means that someone doesn’t experience romantic attraction. Erica defined romantic attraction as ‘I would slow dance in the kitchen with that person in my pajamas as we wait for coffee in the morning’. While it is possible for someone to be both Aromantic and Asexual, aro/ace is the abbreviation, Erica is not. She has said she does experience romantic attraction. Albeit very rarely.” Roman softens a bit picturing himself and Erica in the scenario he’s just described, it’s warm, easy, and while it’s probably too soon to ask her to move in so they can share their mornings, he’s definitely jotting slow dancing down for a date idea. He forces himself back to the present again and fixes Butch with a look “Any questions?”

Butch leans back in his chair and folds his massive arms across his chest as much as his jacket allows before pursing his lips and narrowing his eyes again. “This support group you mentioned, where’s that at?”

Roman clicks the remote again, this slide has a map of about five city blocks as well as the floor plan of the local library that is adjoined to the community center (he may find some of the security briefings a little too detailed but he knows what essentials Butch likes to have by now). “it’s at the local community center, heard about it on the internet” He leaves out that he spent four hours looking for one before he found a random Facebook post about it on the fourth page of chrome results but he figures his dedication is obvious either way at this point. Butch is already typing on his phone, no doubt tasking someone with retrieving more information about the whole affair.

“Do you want a scout to go in first?”

“No” Roman has already thought about this, the likelihood of it being a setup is pretty slim, and he wants to keep the business part of his life out of this as much as he can, for the sake of the other attendees. “I think it’s safe enough to go ahead.”

“Date? Time?”

“Fridays, noon, and its usually about an hour but I’d like to clear the whole afternoon indefinitely”

Butch nods along to the sentence, still typing on his phone before finishing and putting it back into his coat. “Anything else I should know?”

“Yes, I want you to schedule a meeting with the rest of the team, anyone who’ll interact with Erica, I don’t intend for there to be any misunderstandings.”

Butcher grimaces at that, “I really didn’t mean to upset her about that boss, any chance I can apologize for that?”

Roman knows Erica would say it was unnecessary, maybe even brush Butcher off, but he also wants her to know he’s taking the utmost care (Butch is too) to make sure she’s comfortable; so he nods before answering “I know she isn’t offended, but I wouldn’t mind if you did”. It has the potential to build trust between them if nothing else, and if Erica decides she wants to stick around, trusting Butcher will be integral to that process.

[brendanmoviedate]

We fought in an immoral war that wasn't ours for rights we didn't have.

I’ve been trying to write the blog post for 4 months but haven’t been struggling to find the motivation after a terrifying 2020 that’s drained me of the will to do much of anything. So far, 2021 has been much of the same, except it seems like the solidarity that my community shared in 2020 has given way to frustration and defiance. Social distancing and community safety seem to be the furtherest thing from many people’s minds all while our COVID cases are constantly breaking single-day records. While the hope that we’ll soon be out of this is bright, the accumulating darkness and death we’re experiencing right now really nails home how trivial it is to be watching and writing about movies.

Normally, watching a good movie is one of the best ways to escape the banality of everyday life, but without theatres, the movie-going experience is inextricably tied to the banality of being locked down in your own home. For that reason, a number of the movies that I would have enjoyed seeing in the theatre, or even with home viewing in a different context, didn’t resonate with me. Films like Nomadland, which has received unanimous acclaim, or I’m Thinking of Ending Things, which is totally in my wheelhouse, didn’t resonate with me. 

Originally I excused my lateness in writing this post as an opportunity to catch up on 2020 releases that I hadn’t gotten around to (like Minari or Ma Rainey’s Black Bottom), but with April almost over, I still haven’t been able to find the energy to watch them. Instead, I’ve been watching mostly 90′s junk thrillers or pure escapist action movies. Quickly realizing that I probably wasn’t going to get around to the rest of my 2020 watchlist anytime soon, I set the Oscars as my next goal. If I missed that deadline, then nothing was going to get me motivated to write this (I’m actually just finishing it up after a break to watch the Oscars).

Every year I put together a collage image of 30 films that make up my short list. Normally finding the last couple of films to fill it out to 30 is a struggle as is narrowing down the list to the top 10. Oddly, this year, there was no shortage of films for my short list, but I had a hell of a time finding enough of them that I wanted to put in the top 10. So a couple of films that might not have made it in past years have popped into the top 10 because I actually got to see them in theatres (you’ll know when you see them).

10. The Trial of the Chicago 7

Aaron Sorkin’s sophomore directorial effort was one of the biggest films to be sold to streaming because of the theatre shutdown. Featuring a stacked cast and the typical Sorkin pacing and dialogue, The Trial of the Chicago 7 is an actors showcase, with Yahya Abdul-Mateen II and Mark Rylance standing out.

9. Never Rarely Sometimes Always

Never Rarely Sometimes Always is a hard film to describe. It’s essentially a road movie about the difficulty of having an abortion as a minor. The film’s mood is played sullenly for the most part, so when the emotion breaks through in the second act during the questionnaire that the film takes its name from, the impact it has is immeasurable. 

8. The Invisible Man

The Invisible Man was the last movie I saw in theatres before theatres were shut down. Being the only movie on this list from the “before times” probably endears me to it, but nevertheless it was a solidly crafted film. It’s brutal, mean, and scary in a way that horror thrillers too often fail to be. Director Leigh Whannel had a really solid debut with 2018′s Upgrade and proves that wasn’t a fluke with a worthy followup. 

7. Tenet

A new Christopher Nolan movie will always be an event for me. As one of the only blockbuster auteurs, his movies are spectacular and uncompromising at the same time. Tenet came out in theatres at a time where COVID seemed to be under control in Vancouver, allowing me a chance to see it twice on the big screen. My first screening was in IMAX and was rife with the sound problems that made the dialogue unintelligible. However, my second viewing at a different theatre had no such issues, allowing me to fully appreciate the intricate plot. 

Tenet is a much more stylized Nolan film, with the whole thing feeling like a riff on a Bond movie. Despite some of the heavy-handed dialogue (”including my son!”), awkward backwards walking, and underwhelming final set piece, Tenet was the biggest event film of 2020 and was one that I’ll be glad to revisit.

6. Bacurau

Bacurau is a modern day Western set in a fictional town in Brazil that I went into knowing nothing about beforehand, which is the best way to see it. All I’ll say is that Udo Kier comes to town and things get weird. Bacurau made me feel horrified, uncomfortable, and celebratory at different times. 

5. Palm Springs

Palm Springs follows the surprisingly growing trend of Groundhog Day style time loop movies. While Happy Death Day and Edge of Tomorrow apply it to another genre, Palm Springs stays firmly within the romantic comedy genre of its predecessor and provides a goofy yet sentimental story. The timing of Palm Springs’ release couldn’t be more appropriate, as it unintentionally depicts what being in lockdown feels like while simultaneously providing a lighthearted break from it.

4. Undine

As one of the films I watched as part of VIFF’s at home event, Undine was the most compelling of the dozen I watched. It’s a film about jilted lovers, underwater welders, and mermaids that threads the line between romantic drama and fairytale expertly.

3. Da 5 Bloods

Da 5 Bloods is the latest in Spike Lee’s exploration of being black in America throughout different periods of time. Like with BlackkKlansmen, Lee crosscuts real life footage from present day to nail down the connection between the treatment of black people in the United States in the present and the past. While the film is a little shaggy and shifts tone and genre, it’s incredibly compelling and features the best performance of the year in Delroy Lindo’s Paul.

2. Possessor

Brandon Cronenberg’s Possessor has all of the body horror of his father’s early work with a meanness that feels appropriate for such a shitty year. The film looked great and featured a great lead performance from Andrea Riseborough who, between this and Mandy, seems to be the new star of weird horror.

1. Another Round

As much as I love Mads Mikkelsen’s Hollywood work, he’s on a whole other level in his Danish work. In Another Round, he plays a jaded school teacher who starts to appreciate life once he and his friends start maintaining a constant blood alcohol level. It’s funny, tragic, and powerful and the best movie I saw in 2020.

Honourable Mentions

As I mentioned earlier, I had a hard time filling the top 10, so I don’t really have any honourable mentions. However, Mank was originally in there before I actually started to write the list.

2021

Dune, No Time to Die, and Last Night in Soho are holdovers from last year that I’m still dying to see in theatres. Other than that, I’m not super excited about much, as I don’t want to look forward to a movie only to have it delayed or released on a streaming platform. 

At this point I’m more looking forward to a post-COVID world and being able to watch movies in theatres again. I don’t care what the film is, I’ll watch it.

[daggerzine]

The Simon Provencher interview (by Tom Murphy)

Simon Provencher is perhaps best known for his frenetic and creative guitar work for the post-punk band VICTIME out of Québec. But on March 26, 2021 the musician released his debut EP Mesures via Michel Records. It is six tracks of free jazz collages that bear favorable comparison to the avant-garde compositions of Anthony Braxton as Provencher makes creative and playful use of clarinet, electric guitar, percussion and processing to convey a strong sense of mood and place while making one very aware of aspects of the environment around us we often tune out. In pairing aspects of exploratory jazz and musique concrète, Provencher has given us an album that is both soothing and keeps us grounded in the present. The composer and musician recently answered some questions we presented to him via email about the nature of his music, its inspirations and methods of crafting its elegantly evocative passages.

 Dagger Zine (Tom Murphy): Mesures will probably hit some people's ears as akin to a free jazz or spontaneous composition type of record. How did you approach putting together these songs and experimenting with sound compared with maybe how you do with VICTIME?

Simon Provencher: People wouldn’t be wrong in these assumptions at all. Mesures is a record that was written very quickly. I decided to trust my first instincts for much of the record. With VICTIME, our approach has always been more iterative. By that I mean that we’ll loop “embryonic” parts over and over again, slowly changing elements, morphing the composition until we found ourselves happy with how everything sounded together. I’m still very much into this way of writing, but Mesures was a much more immediate affair.

For me, inspiration almost always comes from timbre, usually through loads of guitar pedals. In this case though, I wanted to see what sounds and textures I could get out of the electric guitar without using any external effects or even amplification. Timbre was still my main concern, but in a more subtle way I guess. I slightly detuned the strings and experimented with resonances, chord shapes, finger placement, fingernails, etc. I also “prepared” the guitar: I jammed objects between the strings and tied sewing thread to the strings (if you pinch the thread with slightly wet fingers and slide them around, you get eerie, reverse-like effects).

Enough about me though, another big change was that this record was made remotely with two new collaborators, Elyze Venne-Deshaies (clarinet) and Olivier Fairfield (percussion). Both of them had “carte blanche” (pardon my french) to do whatever they wanted. I can’t speak much to their personal approach to improvisation, but both of them are seasoned veterans and delivered absolutely amazing performances.

 D: Some people might think of any kind of music declared experimental is a barrier to its acceptance but your album seems to me very accessible as a form of pure expression. Do you have a sense of why your songs seem so open and, as one reviewer put it, welcoming?

 S: I don’t quite know actually. I do agree that the songs have a certain softness to them that was certainly somewhat intentional. When I did the initial guitar parts, I did set out to make something conventionally “beautiful”, or at least “not harsh”. I don’t really have the vocabulary to describe what happened there, but the resonances, repetitions and patterns definitely implied a soft mood from the get go.

I guess this foundation inspired Elyze and Olivier to also play with softer tones, to approach the music with warmth and subtlety in mind. They really “got” the vibe of the music without me ever telling them anything about my intentions. A “shift” of some kind happened when the clarinet parts were added to the drums and guitars. I felt like the mood of the pieces almost completely changed (in a positive way, of course). I think there’s something to the linearity of Elyze and Olivier’s playing, in contrast with the repetitive, hypnotic guitars that gives the music a sense of wandering aimlessness which I really love.

On the audio engineering side, I did intentionally mix the songs with a certain softness in mind. We added some warm tape saturation to some of the sounds and carved out a lot of higher frequencies. On the songs with feedback and noise, Simon Labelle, who mastered the record, made it so that when the clarinets get louder, the high-frequency content ducks out of the way a little bit. This nifty little trick does help out a lot with making the noisy songs more warm and inviting too.

 D: Listening through the album I found it resonated with the albums of Anthony Braxton and Ornette Coleman. The former of which never considered his music part of jazz though he is often associated with that form of music and the latter who expanded the range, dynamics and tonal choices of jazz. Were you inspired by in any way by those forms of abstract yet emotionally expressive music? How might you describe its impact on what you've done?

S: I totally was! I discovered Anthony Braxton through Québec jazz guitar great René Lussier. I’ve been a fan of Le Trésor de la Langue for a while and I got into his back catalog last year: his collaborations with Fred Frith, EAI stuff and more, some of which was released on “Les Disques Victo”. “Victo” stands for Victoriaville, a small city between Quebec and Montreal, where there’s a great contemporary music festival named FIMAV. Shamefully, I haven’t actually been to FIMAV yet, but I’ve loved finding recordings of some amazing concerts, a favourite being Anthony Braxton and Derek Bailey’s 1987 Moment Précieux. I was amazed to find out about this rich local history of musical experimentation and improvisation. This record was very much inspired by the whole FIMAV sound.

Coleman is another great point of reference. His records and those of his collaborators, Don Cherry being another big one, all are major inspirations. As a guitar player, I especially got into James “Blood” Ulmer’s career. I really admire his approach to guitar and the immediacy and expressiveness of his music.

 I’m probably paraphrasing it all wrong, but Don Cherry said of Ornette Coleman’s “harmolodic” approach that instead of improvising from chords, like in bebop, you’d start with melodies and improvise to create new forms, harmonies, rhythms to try and reach a certain “brilliance” as he calls it. You’d try to make the music transcend. In harmolodic theory, melody, rhythm and harmony are treated as equals, no solos, no lead and accompaniment dichotomy, no strict timing, scale or tonality.

This is both quite simple but also quite hard to actually grasp in a musical setting, and I’m far from mastering any of it, nor is it necessarily something I strive for, but it is an inspiring way to conceive improvised music for sure.

 D: The first half of the album you make great use of what sounds like atonal melodies yet they perfectly convey the mood and lend a sense of texture. What informed employing those sounds in the songwriting?

S: I’ve always written music without much regard for tonality, key, etc. My musical background is still very much anchored in No Wave and noise music, where skronky chords and weird, unstable melodies are the norm rather than the exception. When playing, I really don’t think much about it, I follow what sounds good to me in the moment.

Looking back on the recorded music though, I feel like there is a lot of nuance to be found in atonality and imperfection. Detuned chords ringing out have such complex and interesting decaying resonances, you can almost hear the frequencies battling each other. These interactions between notes and lines that fall just short of resolving are part of the magic and intrigue of abstract music. In the case of Mesures, I think there’s something special with how some of the atonal, out of tune textures and weird synths clash beautifully with the in-tune clarinet parts, making either one “pop out” depending on where you focus your attention.

 D: The second half or at least the second three songs on the album use processed drones and what some might call noise underneath or in the background, although very much a presence in the mix, of the clarinets? What do you feel this almost contrast in sounds conveyed that say a more conventional arrangement might not?

The second half of the record is basically a rearrangement of the first three songs. There’s four clarinet parts in there! On the first side, they fade in and out of focus, but on side B, everything is there all at once.

This is basically the result of me simply “soloing” the clarinet takes in my DAW (Digital Audio Workstation, the software used to arrange and mix the music). When I heard the four clarinets at once, I really fell in love with the sound.

 So I knew I wanted this to be the focal point of the rearrangement, and I knew I wanted to add something. I just happened to be working with feedback that week, so it kind of fell in place. Feedback manipulation was a technical interest first, I had gotten a new guitar pedal called a Feedback Looper, which sends some of your output signal back into the input of a series of pedals. This creates self-oscillating and rich, detailed noises that are somewhat interactive and malleable. By turning some knobs and flicking some switches on ordinary guitar pedals, you end up with an infinite amount of possible glitches and shrieking high frequency tones.

I don’t know if my ears got accustomed to it or what, but I’ve come to really enjoy the sound of this process. I also really love the tactile aspect of it, it feels kind of like an unpredictable modular synthesizer. When I had recorded the feedback improvisation, which I did in one single take, I thought this sparse, harsh rearrangement was a nice contrast with the more warm, conventional first three songs. At that point, the record felt complete.

 D: The final three songs also remind me of Philip Glass in his soundtrack work wherein he mixes the playful and flowing with the dissonant. How would you say these sounds complement each other in your own music?

S: Especially on this release, while there are a lot of sounds that are contrasting with each other, I also feel like there is a sense of shared directionality. The song Et quart is a good example of this. The high feedback notes start out in almost complete opposition to the meandering low clarinet lines, but, as the song progresses, the sounds somehow seem to merge with each other and they end up flowing in the same direction for the song’s climax.

 D: What are some other artists operating now that you find interesting and/or inspirational and resonant with what you're doing?

There’s way too many to name them all, but I’ll try! I think there’s a very interesting local-ish scene around me. I admire the work of N NAO, either her solo releases or her collaborations with Joni Void. Sarah Pagé does mind-bending music with harp and effects; I’ve had the pleasure of catching her live in Ottawa just before the pandemic started last year. Kara-Lys Coverdale is also a major inspiration, so is Kee Avil, whose live show and guitar playing blew me away.

I also need to shout out my friend (and bandmate) Mathieu A. Seulement, whose end-year list allowed me to catch up on a lot of fantastic new music, including, but not limited to Ana Roxane’s Because of a Flower, Jasmine Guffond’s Microphone Permission, Caterina Barbieri’s Ecstatic Computation and, last but not least, Holly Herndon’s magnificent Proto.

  **the three Simon photos were taken by Charlotte Savoie

www.simonprovencher.bandcamp.com 

[dianapana]

SasuHina Month 2020 - Day 5

Prompt ���Collage AU

Long Distance- Part 3

Hinata POV

Sasuke drives like a pro; whenever I’m in the car with Ino I fear for my life, Neji drives really smoothly but he always goes really really and I mean really fast so, I find myself griping the side of my seat a lot. But with Sasuke the speed is good I don’t feel like we’re about to pierce to the vail of time and his movements are confident and easy; he seems to be at ease. We’ve been on the road for about 45 minutes and we haven’t really spoken much but the silence is pleasant and it doesn’t bother me.

“So, you’re from Konoha and about my age how come we never met in school?” Sasuke is the one to break the silence.

“I was homeschooled until 10th grade. And after that I went to Suna Academy for girls. I am what you would call ‘sheltered’. My mom told my dad I should attend public school before university but he just about had a heart attack. He didn’t really want me going to University either” I didn’t mind being homeschooled I’m more of an introvert and I know that; it’s not because I didn’t go to public school it’s just how I am and I’m ok with that. But I did want to go to university so I fought for that as well and when mom came to my aid too dad didn’t stand a chance. I’m happy with my decision; I’ve made a few really good friends and enjoyed the experience so far. I also loved the freedom of doing whatever I wanted without asking for permission. I’m not a party person but I did discover I enjoy certain things that mom or dad would never allow.

“Ah makes sense. My older brother was homeschooled for about 2 years but neither mom nor dad really liked that so when I started school, they sent me to public school from the get go”

“Are you going to be a senior this year?” he looks older and more mature than I do, or at least than I feel.

“Yep, what about you?” I look from the corner of my eyes at the way his muscles move in his arm when he changes the gear. He’s not built like most guys in my classes.

“I’m also going to be a senior. What’s your major?”

“I only declared my major last semester so despite it being my last year I’ll have a lot of courses to take. I’m majoring in education. I was accepted on athletic scholarship and have been a starter on the hokey team since the second semester of my freshman year so I plan to either go pro or coach. What about you?”

“I major in creative writing and minor in photography or as my dad says, I’m paying money to become a starving artist. I’ve never seen a hockey game; my sister likes it and played a little in middle school but I was away in Suna so I never went to any of her games.”

We talk a little more about collage, I find out that he lives with one of his teammates who is also his best friend and another friend that’s a tattoo artist and is majoring in fine arts at KU. I also applied there but the creative writing program is better at the UoA. I did hear that the graphic design department from KU has some of the pest teachers in the country. I told him about Ino who I met at orientation but, we also share the same minor; her major though is flower arts, surprisingly she has a lot of business-oriented courses to pretty much teach her how to run her own shop. We’re about 15 minutes away from KU and once again I feel guilty; he’s been on the road for 4 hours even though under normal circumstances he’d just now hit the road. After passing KU we finally hit the highway and Sasuke speeds up but it’s still comfortable.  

We talk a little more for the following few hours and I’m surprised by how easy it is to talk to him. He even explains hockey to me as briefly as possible and says he’ll invite me to a game when the season starts. The implication that we will talk after the end of this pleases me. We’re about half the way to Konoha when we stop so Sasuke can fill the tank and so we can go to the bathroom, maybe drink another coffee since we drank the extra ones I packed as well already and eat something. Thankfully the gas station has a McDonalds next to it.

Sasuke POV

Once we hit the road again after eating the only noise is the radio but we don’t talk. The silence isn’t unwelcomed and awkward. After a couple more minutes I peek at Hinata and see she has fallen asleep. I dim the music a little and continue driving. We have about 5 more hours to go.

About 4 hours later I make another stop at the gas station; I need to go to the bathroom. Hinata hasn’t woken up yet. I’m debating whether to wake her up or not when her phone starts ringing loudly and waking her up anyway. She wakes up and answers in a hurry while rubbing the sleep away from her eyes.

“Hey mom. Yea we’re about…” she looks towards me and I mouth ‘1 hour away’ “1 hour away. We just stopped at a gas station. I’ll see you soon ok? I want to go to the bathroom. Bye” she hangs up not really waiting for a reply.

“Oh my god I’m so sorry I fell asleep for like 4 hours.” Her cheeks are red and I can tell she feel guilty and embarrassed but I shrug.

“No big deal” It looks like she wants to apologize again so I get out of the car. Each of us goes to the bathroom and then Hinata buys some snacks and I get myself a Pepsi and we get back on the road.

Hinata rips open the packet of candy she bought and eats a few. “Do you want some?” she asks. Usually I’m not a huge fan of sweets but I do want some sugar to get energy so I nod. I can’t take my hand that instant off the wheel so I make a small pause with full intention to extend it in a few moments but before I can do that Hinata leans over and pops a candy in my mouth. I am shocked and I look at her from the corner of my eye and she is frozen in place, her face red as a beat.

“I…umm I am sorry” her voice is barely a whisper and she leans back in her seat. “I did that without thinking sorry. I do that whenever Ino drives. In the beginning she would take her hand pff the wheel mid turn and it would freak me out so I developed this habit of feeding her rather than her letting go of the wheel. I am so so so sorry” she talks really fast and her hands are over her cheeks.

“It’s ok. You just surprised me” I say. Hinata I realize is very socially awkward. She blushes easily and apologizes a lot about everything. Despite me trying to reassure her she doesn’t talk much for the rest of the road.

Hinata POV

The candy incident happened almost 20 minutes ago but my heart still beats way too fast. I did that on instinct and the moment my fingertips touched his lips I was gone. I am way too aware of him now to be able to talk to him normally. Even if I don’t want to I notice everything about him. From his muscles that shift whenever he moves the slightest bit, to his beautiful profile, to his dark and shiny hair.

I keep my hands joined in my lap because I’m scared, I’ll do something embarrassing again. I want to touch him. I want to take pictures of him. He would be a great subject for a photoshoot. Images of him in a studio dim lighted and a bit destroyed fill my brain. He would suite something grunge or maybe something with neon lights to give him an eerie atmosphere. That is his attitude, if we were to talk about his looks, he is handsome and beautiful; he would look good surrounded by white, that would make him look like an angel. The angel analogy starts to run while when I imagine him naked with only a silk sheet over his lap. I feel my cheeks growing redder again.

I shake my head and look out the window. The familiar scenery tells me we’re only about 15 minutes away from my house, after waking up I gave him my address to put into the GPS. I curse myself for sleeping half of the ride. There’s no use lying to myself. I like Sasuke, he’s easy to talk and cool. His good looks only aid this predicament.

“We’re almost home” I say.

“You don’t sound that happy. You did say you didn’t want to return. Why is that?” He answers, eyes still focused on the road, his voice even. He really does not think about the candy incident. The knowledge hurts a little. I kind of wanted him to be as shook as I am.

“I liked the freedom I have at University. I’ve never really been the one in charge before” Mom and Hanabi are the only ones home which means we will be doing a lot of shopping. They’ll make me try on things I don’t particularly like. Most of my closet consisted of thing mom and Hanabi think look good on me but that I don’t like to wear so when I got to University I started selling them.

“I get that, I feel the same. That was also my reason for not coming back home” He admits and it shocks me a little, Sasuke doesn’t seem like someone that would let himself be controlled by someone else. This makes me relate to him, admire him for admitting something like that, Neji is very prideful and he would never say something like this.

When the car pulls to a stop in front of my house, I have to admit I am glad. I like spending time with him but I feel myself developing a crush on him that can only lead to my own demise. I look to the front door half expecting mother to come running outside but she doesn’t. Sasuke gets out of the car as well and helps me with the suitcases. I go to open the door but it is locked. I unlock it and the house is silent. Sasuke asks me where to take the suitcases and I abuse his kindness and tell him to follow me to my room. In the mean time I call mother.

“Hey mom I got home…but where are you?”

“Hinata baby I’m over at Mikoto’s come with Sasuke. She wants to meet you and we can all have a nice late lunch or early dinner” Her voice is chipper and light, is…is mom drunk?

“O….k?”

“See you soon baby” She says and hangs up on. I look at my phone and then to Sasuke.

“Um…she’s at your house” I say and he laughs.

“Of course, she is. How did we not see this coming?” Sasuke asks rhetorically as we walk back to the car. I top to lock the door. “I mean they are best friends so of course they are together.”

The drive to his home takes about another 10 minutes and this time when the car stops mom and another woman, I assume Sasuke’s mother wait for us on the front porch and they each have a wine glass in their hands. Mom is smiling wide and chats with Mikoto lively.

“Are they drunk?” I say out loud. Sasuke narrows his eyes.

“I don’t know about your mother but my mom is a lightweight. If she drank a glass of wine, she is not only drunk but wasted.”

“Mom can’t hold her alcohol very well either” I admit, we both turn to look at them still chatting away, obvious to the fact that we have arrived. We turn to look at each other and chuckle a little.

“Come o let’s go join them, drink a glass of wine too. Why should they be the only ones to have fun?” He says and gets out of the car. My heart is beating faster once again. I can’t move for a moment. Sasuke opens my door and extends his hand to me, I look at it and take it. His skin is warm and rough but I feel sparks going up my arm. I look up at him and he’s smirking at me. The sun is just now setting behind Sasuke and it gives him a golden glow. That is the moment when I realize that I already like him, this boy I met today. He lets go of my hand to go get his own bags but I can still feel his touch. I close my eyes and take a deep breath in. When I open them he’s next to me and nods towards out mothers, I nod back and we start walking up the driveway. The two of them finally see us, put their wine glasses down and come towards us for hugs. Mom kisses my cheek and tells me how much she missed me; than she hugs Sasuke and thanks him for bringing me while Mikoto hugs me and tells me how nice it is to meet me.

Looking at this scene with them so happy makes me realize that I don’t regret coming home. I’m glad I could make mom happy. I’m glad to see her having fun with a new friend. I peer from the corner of my eye towards Sasuke. I’m glad I came because I met him. I’m still looking at him when he turns his eyes to me as well and smirks. I wonder what he’s thinking. I wonder if he feels even remotely like I do. Even if he doesn’t, I hope he will still be my friend because Sasuke Uchiha is pretty cool and I’d love to have him in my life. If his mother is anything like him, I can’t blame mom for calling Mikoto her best friend already.  

Part 1 (This happens after the 2nd and 3rd part)

Part 2

[fluffychubbyrose]

Tony Stark x Chubby Self Conscious reader.

One Shot.

Requested.

Warnings- Slight Language, Slight NSFW so slight if you blink you'll miss it, Tony Stark might be more OC than some may like, insecurities, and light bullying.

(Also I don't own any of these pictures I just made the collages.)

Tony decided today instead of staying in the tower and relaxing, maybe having a movie marathon or something that we should go shopping to get me some more clothes since I keep telling him that I only have a few outfits to wear that are comfortable when he asks why I'm wearing the same outfits again and again.

The outfits are mostly my old sweats and sweatshirts along with a couple of baggy dress shirts and dress pants that I feel comfortable lounging around the tower or going out in, because they cover me completely and hide my plushness from the prying and judging eyes of other people.

I've been wearing the same outfits on rotation for the past month or two instead of wearing the new dresses or skirts I said I loved and fit good when he bought them for me, even when they were a bit snugger and showed more skin than I'd like them to. But at the time they seemed like a great idea to get because while they were a bit snug, they were beautiful, soft, and lovely material that highlighted my figure and bust. But lately I haven't been as confident as I was when I first got those outfits and wore them around and out and about.

But now looking at myself in these dresses, skirts, and tight shirts they just show to much of me and dont look right on my body anymore, they show too many of my rolls and plushness. "You need more than a measly few outfits to wear love and you know it. If those clothes we bought didn't fit comfortably you should have just said something and we could have gotten a different style or size for you that would have been more comfortable."

He says with a sigh not budging about going shopping and seemingly pouting that I didn't tell him about the clothes not fitting comfortably until now especially since some of the ones I'm refusing to wear are his personal favorites. "I don't think they have any bigger sizes." I muttered. "Hmm what was that?" "Nothing give me a minute to get ready and we can go." I said heading to our shared bedroom to put some light makeup on, tame my hair, and change out of my sweats.

Once I'm finished I walk out and over hear Tony talking to someone so I stay behind the corner to eavesdrop. "Yeah Y/n and I are planning on going on a quick shopping spree but I'll see if she wants to go to afterwards and meet up with everyone and maybe I can talk her into getting a new bikini while we're out to wear to the beach."

"Okay we'll see you there but don't try to trick her into wearing anything she isn't comfortable with Tony." I think that was Steve he was talking to and said "we'll" see you there so is the whole team going to be there? If it's just us that could be fun but last time the "private" beach we went to was anything but. Luckily I had my one piece on and could cover up with my towel. Tony takes any opportunity and turns it into a party. "Me!?! Trick her! Never!" He said sounding appalled making me giggle and reveal my hiding spot.

Knowing very well that he's always up to something and trying to get me to do all kinds of crazy things from experiments in the lab, to getting me drunk from the expensive alcohols that he loves but I can't really stand the taste of. Knowing I was busted I walked around the corner and kissed Tony on the cheek from behind. "Oh there you are Y/n! Are you ready to go sweetheart?" He asks smirking at me with playful look for catching my eavesdropping. "Yeah I'm ready."

(Small timeskip to the shopping center.)

"Oooh I like this one!" Tony says swinging around showing me a nearly see threw black button up shirt with a plunging neckline. "Tony that's basically see threw I can't wear that!" I said embarrassed cheeks heating up at the thought of anybody seeing me in something like that. "Yes you can, if you only wear it for me!" He says with a cheeky grin. I sigh and continue look it through the rack of clothes in front of me.

Most if not all of these clothes are way to small for me. I sigh and continue down the isle looking for cute but comfy clothes that won't hug my body. Which is proving to be more and more difficult with nothing being in my size, and with Tony only picking out provocative clothing. I'm feeling more discouraged and upset by the minute deciding to give up on finding anything today I turn to tell Tony let's just go to the bathing suit store to pick out a new bathing suit for the "not a party at the beach" he managed to convince me into going to.

Until I see Tony with an armful of clothes that upon further investigation are a bunch of outfits I wanted to get but were way to small for me to wear there must be 20 something outfits in his arms while he's talking to the sales associate. "Hi, yes I need all of these 3-4 sizes bigger." He says dumping the clothes into her arms. Looking closer it looks like he got the biggest ones of each outfit which would only need to be 2-3 sizes bigger to fit me well. "I'm sorry sir but these are as big as we carry and besides these would just be a waste on someone like her if that's who their meant for. I mean no offense but they wouldn't even fit like they were made to on someone of her size." She spat sounding irritated and disgusted not apologetic by any means.

"The way they fit, or look, are up to her to decide. Not you or anyone else and say something like that again and I'll have your job by the end of the hour. So again I would like all of these 3-4 sizes bigger so they are comfortable for my girl over there." He motions to me with his head looking as pissed off as he sounds, and the way he said 'my girl' was very possessive. My eyes widen and my face heats up from embarrassment from what she said and the confrontation in general but I'm touched and happy with how he's defending me.

"And if you don't have any bigger sizes then custom tailor it to fit. If you need her measurements I'll send them to you. Here's my card and I expect to be contacted by the end of the day with all of these resized and ready for pickup." The women looks deathly pale after taking and reading the card realising she just offended Tony Stark. Knowing that his threat to her job moments ago was in fact real and emanate if she didn't comply. Seeing her so petrified makes a part of me smug knowing next time she'll think before she speaks at least.

"Yes! Right away, I'm so sorry sir they will be ready by the end of the day! You can pay for them then. I'll be right back." She squeaks out and runs off with the clothes with her head down and tail tucked between her legs hopefully feeling as embarassed and upset as am from her comments. I wrap my arms around my self with head down now that she's gone I feel tears pricking the edges of my eyes hearing her say that just proved what I've been thinking about myself is true that I'm so big that it's repulsive to be this size, hell I can't even fit into a single thing in this entire store without it being tailored to fit, that should say something.

"Hey don't listen to her sweetheart she's just jealous I'm with you and not her. Everything she said was just a spiteful lie trying to get under your skin." He says lifting my head up and wiping under my eyes where a few silent tears slipped past without me knowing. He kisses me softly and hugs me tucking me under his chin while his hands rub up and down my back. I snuggle closer with my eyes closed holding him tight. "C'mon Y/n let's go pick out that swim suit!" He says sounding excited and let's go of me grabbing my hand and dragging me out of the store and down to the next trying to get my mind off of the rude sales associate.

(Another small time skip where we just arrived at the beach.)

"Hey you guys made it!" Steve runs up in just his swim trunks, hair wet, and sand sticking to him like someone pushed him down onto the sandy shore of the beach just moments before. "Yeah we're just gonna go set up our stuff then we'll join you guys in the water." Tony replies with his arm wrapped around me. Steve smiles and nods then runs off down the beach. I'm not sure about getting into the water looking around there's a lot of strangers here all swarming the infamous Avengers wanting to get pictures with them or of them.

The beach isn't packed but it defiantly isn't as dead as it should be if just the team was here, and I don't want a rerun of what happened earlier especially now that Tony talked me into a bikini after all. Though I picked it out and hid it from his view until I changed into it. When I put it on and it actually fit really well supporting me and being snug but not tight when I wasn't expecting it to fit at all with just how small it looked, I couldn't just put it back and pick out a different one. (It's the bikini in the pic above.)

But thinking about it now I should have picked a much less revealing bikini, but I knew Tony would appreciate the colors if you know what I mean. So I put it on in the changing room and put my clothes back on over it, only taking the price tags up to the cashier so I could pay for it and said I wouldn't let him see it until we got here because I was worried I would loose my nerve and pick out another one piece bathing suit after all. Plus I knew that if I let him see me in it that we would never make it to the beach and would more than likely be banned from the store. So he's been rushing to get here and to get me out of my dress shirt and knee high shorts since I checked out at the store. "Hurry Y/n I can't wait to get into the water!" Tony yells twenty or so feet away and winks at me suggestively, dropping our things onto the sand not bothering to actually set anything up.

"Don't lie Stark you only want to see her in her new bikini! You don't really care about getting in the water!" Natasha yells back at him from a ways down the beach playing volleyball with Wanda and few other people I don't recognize against the boys. Both of them wearing their own bikinis. 'That's probably how Steve got covered in sand.' "How did you know about that?" He yelled back pouting harder than he would willingly admit, because she's seen me in my new bikini but he hasn't been aloud to. Natasha stopped playing and said something to a couple of the people I didn't recognize that were on her team and walked up with Wanda right behind her.

"Oh don't get your panties in a twist Stark she sent me and Wanda a few photos wanting some feed back before deciding which swim suit to get." She grumped at him. "But trust me you'll like what she picked out." Wanda said with a knowing smirk. My face heats up when his gaze locks with mine. "Oh I never doubted that I wouldn't like it. Now come on let's get into the water that's the whole point of going to the beach." He said pulling on my hand. "Fine but I have to take these clothes off and I'm not comfortable just stripping on the beach and you have get changed to."

I say holding my towel close to me nervous about showing so much of myself in front of everyone, especially in front of strangers. Tony not needing me to tell him twice took off to the changing rooms with his swim trunks yelling for me join him. "No way or I won't get to swim today! I'll change and be out in a few." I say while walking towards an empty room. I strip out of my clothes and look at myself in the full length mirror they had in the changing room. Feeling insecure and like this was a very bad idea all of a sudden.

Seeing all of my rolls and stretch marks in plain sight is making me feel ugly and disgusted with my self. I'm about to say hell with it all and put my clothes back on and say I'm feeling sick and that I want to go home even though Tony will know its a lie and will be worried about me, I can't handle this, I'm not ready, this is to much. That's when Tony's voice comes through the door. "Almost done in their my beautiful girl? You aren't going to keep me waiting all day are you? I could just come in there and get you if you'd prefer?" He purrs out but sounds worried.

I hurriedly wrap my towel around myself and unlock the door but I don't make a move to come out. "I'm not sure I can do this Tony. This is a bad idea I wanna go home." I'm hugging myself again degrading and upsetting thoughts are rushing through my head making me so overwhelmed that I don't notice Tony's in the changing room with me until he wraps his arms around me from behind making me jump. "Where's all of this coming from? Is it because of what that lady said earlier because she's wrong, so so wrong baby girl your beautiful in everyway!" I cringe trying not to cry knowing what he's saying is true but I can't help but let what she said and what I've been thinking lately get to me anyways.

I whimper and turn around in his arms letting him hold me again. "I'm sorry I don't know what's going on I've been more and more insecure lately for no real reason. That's why I don't wear those clothes you bought me anymore, they fit but they show to much of everything I hate and I wanted to cover up by wearing my old baggy clothes." I pull back looking up at him. Tony's silent for a moment looking at me with a thoughtful expression. "Well we'll just have to fix that now won't we?" He smiles softly grabbing my hand and leaning towards the door.

"Tony no I really don't want to go out there not like this at least." I say pulling back and looking down. "Like what? Your all covered up by your towel. I cant even see that little swim suit you bought earlier that I've been dying to see since we left the store. I love every single part of your body but if you don't want to go out there we don't have to. We can go home or stay right here in this changing room. Hell I bet if I text Capsicle he'll bring us something eat and drink then we can stay in here all day." I giggled at that imagining a confused and flustered Steve coming to the changing room bringing food and water.

"There's my girl." Tony coo's running his hands up my sides trying to tickle me. "Hey hey, No, Tony, Dont you dare!" I squeaked out jumping back hitting the wall of the changing room realizing I'm trapped my eyes widen and I'm about to yell at him again when he launches at me tickling me and I don't feel my towel falling while trying to squirm away laughing until I feel Tony's bare hands on my hips and he stops tickling me. I look up worried about the sudden stop in his "attack" and his silence until I see the desire in his eyes.

"As much as I absolutely love this." He leans close to my ear his grip tightening on my hips. "I'd love even more to see it off and on the floor." He kissed my neck once he finished. Making me gasp as heat floods my cheeks. He mumbles into my neck. "How about I show you just how beautiful you really are." Pressing his body up against mine nipping the sweet spot on my neck.

Let's just say I never got to go swimming in my new swim suit and Steve got more than just an eyeful when he came to check on us because we forgot to lock the door.

@lilacprincessofrecovery

[llamamicrowave]

My Big Family on AO3

https://archiveofourown.org/works/25871098/chapters/62862025

Summary:

Jojo sibling AU Stands still exits. Jonathan has a slightly stronger version of hermit purple. And to compensate for such a weak stand he and Joseph learned Hamon. Johnny and Gappy are their cousins who live in America. Ships in tags

Notes:

Pure cringe. Beware..

Chapter 1

School Sux PT.1Chapter Text

Ships (Minor but exist)

-JonaErina (The only important one)

-Joseph x Suzi Q x Ceaser (Leave me alone)

-JotaKak

-Very minor GioTrish

-Jolyne x Ermes

-GyJo

Jonathan POV

Hi! My name is Jonathan Joestar! A little about my self? Well, I'm 26, I have 4 younger siblings that I take care of since my father is always working. But it's fine I love taking care of them! I have a girlfriend, her name is Erina Pendleton and I'm planning to propose to her soon! Please don't tell her that, or any of my bothers, I don't want them to roast me for being a softy again.

Even though I am the oldest I can't be there some times, so when I'm not there my brother Joseph is in charge. But Joseph sometimes can be... How can I say this without sounding rude? Stupid? Immature? Idiotic? Well, yes to all of those.

Since Joseph can be a bit dumb at times, dad gives responsibly to Jotaro. He's pretty chill but sometimes can come off as rude. It's all a fake though, he loves marine life (especially dolphins lol) and when he was ten he told me he wanted to be a Marine Biologist! So in short, he's a dork.

Then there's Josuke and Jolyne the twins. There the youngest in the family. Josuke is the oldest by a few minutes. He's a goofball but can be serious if needed. Like if someone insults his hair he could go as some might say, Apeshit.

Jolyne, our only sister. Her personality is much like Jotaro. She just says whatever she wants, whenever she wants. I can't really say much about her since I'm being blackmailed by her and Jotaro. They're so alike it's scary.

I know I said I only had 4 siblings but there's another I didn't mention. 3 years before Joseph was born my father adopted a "friend" of his's son, Dio Brando. Dio was, excuse my language, a dick ever since we were kids. He ran over my dog Danny with one of his "friends" cars. As soon as Dio turned 18 he moved to Italy to become a lawyer. But that wasn't the last time I saw him.

While in Italy Dio, had a child with a woman he didn't even know. That woman neglected her son and allowed her husband to abuse him.

"She would leave days at a time and leave little food for him." I looked at the toddler sleeping in his arms, he had black hair and a cute bowl cut. "He's only a kid, he can't survive like that," Dio said to me.

"..."

"I can't let him have the same childhood as me." he looked dead into my eyes. I finally understood where he was coming from torturing me all these years.

"..." I stayed quiet.

"But I'm not taking care of this kid."

And now he lives with us! His name is Giorno Giovanna-Brando-Joestar. He is only a year younger then Josuke and Jolnye. And that's my family!

And remember when I said my dad works a lot, that was a lie...

He died on Jotaro's 11th birthday. He and my stepmother were hit by a drunk driver. Jotaro blames himself for the crash. It's not his fault though, he had no control over it. He was only a kid. I'm sorry to drop this on you now but with my father's death made me like a father figure to them. Dad would be proud.

Ages,

Jonathan- 26

Johnny- 22

Joseph- 20

Jo2uke- 19

Jotaro- 17

Josuke- 16

Jolyne- 16

Giorno- 15

Narrator POV

Jonathan woke up first as normal and recapped his schedule,

Ok, so I have to make breakfast, Make sure they're ready for school, go to work, and meet up with Erina, and? What else do I have to do? ...Oh yeah! Take away Joseph's phone for getting arrested yesterday! Next time he should, you know, not try and run over his WHEELCHAIR BOND COUSIN! Goodness, I got angry again, sorry about that.

Jonathan arose from his bed and began his morning routine. He showered, washed his face, brushed his teeth, and got ready for the day.

He then started to make breakfast for his big family.

Joseph likes bacon with coffee.

Jotaro likes toast with coffee.

Josuke likes eggs with juice.

Jolyne likes yogurt with coffee.

And Giorno likes vegan pancakes with tea.

Oh yeah, Johnny, and Gappy and/or Jo2uke are staying with us! I wonder what they want? I'll just make them eggs.

A door opens from upstairs. Giorno walks out from his room to the bathroom to get ready for school. He liked waking up before the rest of his family.

When Giorno was done getting ready he walked down the stairs, and greeted Jonathan as he sat down.

"Good Morning, Jonathan."

"Good Morning! Did you sleep well?" Jonathan asked.

"Yeah, I think s-" He was cut off by a door slamming shut. Very loudly.

"Must be Jotaro. Jolyne must have gotten in the bathroom first." Giorno commented.

Jonathan laughed. "I guess so."

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Good Morning, retards!" Jolyne came prancing down the stairs.

"Jolyne, that isn't nice," Jonathan said sternly.

"You're right, Joseph isn't here right now." she sat down. Jonathan sighed. saying nothing back to her, defeated.

"Where is Joseph anyway?" Giorno asks.

Jonathan scoffs, "I told him to be awake at 6:00 sharp."

"Why 6:00?" Jolyne asked

"That's his punishment for trying to run over Johnny yesterday."

"Ohh yeah! I remember now!"

"Your next line will be, 'The things he'll do for 20 bucks,'!" a voice from inside the pantry spoke.

"The things he'll do for 20 bucks- JOSEPH!" Jolyne yelled.

Joseph popped out of the pantry fully dressed and looking proud.

"I've been up since 4 am!" he said proudly.

"Did you have another nightmare?" Jotaro said sarcastically walking down the stairs.

"Yes actually, Ocean Man!"

"What did you say?" Jotaro asked sternly. Even though Joseph was 3 years older than him they were about the same size.

"He called you, OCEAN. MAN! O-C-E-A-N M-A-N!" Josuke called from the upstairs bathroom.

"Fuck off." Jotaro sat down. "Langage, Jotaro!" Jonathan told him.

"Joot, you seem more pissy than usual, are you on your period?" Jolyne asked smugly.

"Jolyne, I'm not in a good mood and I want you to know I will not hesitate to choke you out and then feed it to your simp."

"Anasui is not a simp!" Jolyne defended.

"Funny, how you knew who I was talking about without saying his name."

~~~~~~~~~~~

"Have fun at school!" Jonathan yelled at his younger siblings.

"Yeah, fun and school don't mix well," Jolyne yelled back.

Joseph usually carpools with Ceasar and Smokey. Jotaro drives him and his friends to school with Jonathan's car. (Jonathan drives there dads car to work). Jolyne caught a ride with her girlfriend Ermes. Josuke walked with his friends Okuyasu and Koichi. And Giorno either walked by himself or ride with his older friend Bruno, today he was alone with his thoughts.

Joseph POV

"Ugh, collage sucks!" I groaned. "Suck it up buttercup It's only the beginning of the year," Ceasar said, reading a book.

Asshole.

We were in the library supposed to be studying but I got a bit distracted. See Suzi Q was also in the library, by herself. Nobody around her, the perfect opportunity to ask her out, but this blonde bubble-blowing bitc-

"Stop staring at Suzi, it's starting to get creeping now," Ceasar said still looking at the book.

"And why should I?"

"1. We should be studying, and 2. Your so small no girl wants to date you." that asshole wrote something in his notebook.

I. Was. Annoyed to say the least. I mean it's true, BUT YOU DON'T SAY IT! So I did the only rational thing, put him in a headlock.

Good thing the library was empty except for a couple of people who were used to our bullshit by now.

"WHAT ARE YOU DOING YOU BUFFOON!?" Ceasar said, or at least tried too.

Ha, get rekt, bitch.

Jotaro POV

"Ugh, I hate school."

"Can you stop being edgy for 5 seconds?" Polnareff asked.

Dick,

"Can you guys stop arguing and actually help!" Avdol said while he was doing the science assignment, I don't know why. Fucken dork.

"Kakyoin is literally sleeping!" Polnareff wined.

"Kakyoin has had a long day."

"Yeah... what are we talking about?"

"So, sleeping beauty is finally up," I say.

"I know you meant that as an insult but I'm taking it as a compliment, Aurora was fabulous!" Kak laughed like the maniacal little gay shit he is.

"Aww, you guys are so cute!"

"Polnareff focus on the experiment!-" the test tube cut him off, by exploding.

"..."

"Finally something exciting," I said because it was fucking epic.

"I mean this would not have happened Joot and Kak weren't flirting with each other."

"Wtf."

Josuke POV

"Math is hardddddd."

"It's not that hard, Oku."

"Bullshit."

"Okuyasu, you should probably pay attention to my lesson instead of complaining." our math and gym/Hamon teacher Lisa-Lisa said to my friend Okuyasu, and trust me no one wants to get on her bad side, the last person to do that was Joseph, he still has nightmares, and he graduated.

"Yes, Josuke?"

"Is this going to be on the test?" I ask so I could know what to remember.

"Most of it will. But if you're asking me if you should listen in class or not, the answer is yes." it felt like she stared into my soul at that list part.

The bell rang

Lunch finally! Freedom at last!

"Your homework is to study for the quiz I'm giving you on an undisclosed date!"

Giorno POV

I walk over to bleachers outside of school where my friends (And Abbacchio) usually eat.

"Hey, guys." I quietly say. Right now there is only, Bruno, Abbacchio, Mista, and... Trish. Anyways as soon as Fugo and Narancia get here the peace will be ruined. Right now Bruno was talking to Mista and Trish about some party this Friday, and Abbacchio was on his phone with headphones on.

"Hello Giorno, how was your morning," Bruno asked.

"Eh, it was fine. Jolyne almost got ORAed."

"What else is new," Trish said drinking her mineral water. Wow shes really pretty, what?

"SUP BITCHES!" Narancia ran up to the bleachers with Fugo following behind him, sighing. Well, that was fun while it lasted.