#‘it’s been one of those weeks pass the yaoi’ and the yaoi in question is cherry magic

[igirisuscones]

Sleepy little guys :(( 💕

[tuliptired]

hi! can i request a egan x complete opposite reader? like someone so different like a model or actress of some sort

Uptown Girl

Pairings: Egon Spengler/Fem!Actress!Reader

sorry for looking at stantzler yaoi while this was sitting in my drafts

Better formatting on Ao3!

Peter could tell something was up with his friend. Something different from the norm. In the past handful of weeks, Egon’s turned into a fidgety, flighty mess. Misprinting calculations, misplacing tools- all in blue. He was wearing so much more blue. The reticent man never really had a favorite color, something Peter relearned everytime he probed him when bored, but this was just way too out of character. Egon? Color coordinating? Insanity.

He had a discarded newspaper open at his excuse for an office, spacing out while Ray messed around with Janine’s little TV, Winston holding a flashlight over it for him. She had won it when she was small, the faulty wiring spilling out the back panel a testament to its age. 

Janine sat up impatiently, folding her magazine. “It’s almost time Ray, is it working?” 

Ray dropped his pair of pliers. “It should be,” he said unconfidently, screwing the paneling back on as Winston adjusted the antenna. The machine crackled and popped, sounds and images cutting in and out as it gained and lost a signal.

The subject of Peter’s suspicions came down the stairs flinching at the noise, looking to pass and leave the firehouse but too intrigued by the feat of electrical engineering happening at Janine’s desk. “What’s this?” 

Peter’s eyes narrowed at the barely there sight of a shiny, new silver watch. Christ, were those blue diamonds? Everyone who’s regularly stepped foot into the firehouse has tried and failed at attempting to get Egon to upgrade his wristwear, the old brown thing that barely had an audible tick. Peter’s own seasonal gifts for him got fancier and fancier as the years went on, Egon turning down a Timex with an alarm at one point. He insisted that anything he could go out and buy would serve the same purpose as the beatdown leather already owned- regardless of needing to squint to see the arms.  

She opened her magazine back up again, fluttering through glossed pages until she found the right one. “You’ve heard of that one show, right?” Janine held up an advertisement for the program, promoting big guests like Madonna or Robin Williams. “I’ve been trying to catch the reruns-”

“And I’ve been trying to tell her that it ruins the integrity of the show.”

“If I wasn’t locked up in here every Saturday night, I wouldn’t have to. Don’t put down the receiver, Winston.”

Ray watched with his fist under his chin as the signal got closer and closer to whatever channel he had twisted the knob for. Janine sat up straighter, flipping to a different page. “Anyway, there’s a new actress on there, and I don’t wanna miss her.”

Winston leaned over to check if the screen was any clearer. “My sister showed me an article on her. Very fashionable.” 

“I know, her picture was on billboard on 46th,” Janine raved, “you’d like her, Peter.”

He shook his head, licking his pointer finger to get to a different section of the paper. “I’m more into musicians.”

Egon spoke up, eyebrows furrowed. “You’re mistaken, Peter. She’s an incredibly talented actress with an incredible repertoire.”

Looks were exchanged between all of them. If the elephant in the room was offended, he didn’t show it. “What?”

“Nothing,” Ray shrugged, “it’s just…she’s so..”

“Outgoing.”

“Witty.”

“Expressive.”

“And you’re you! Nothing wrong with it,” Ray patted his taller friend’s shoulder.

Egon looked at his colleagues blankly. “I can still enjoy her work, despite certain character differences.”

The TV finally got a stable connection, though not celebrated by anyone in the room as Egon’s anomaly took up all their attention. “I thought you didn’t have a television?” Winston questioned, moving the antenna again and losing the stream.

“I don’t.”

Peter raised an incredulous eyebrow to him from across the room. Something like a realization flashed behind Egon’s eyes, before he turned his eyes from their gaze and cleared his throat. “I’m going home early tonight. Call me if you need anything.”

That certainly didn’t do anything to soothe Peter’s speculation. Egon barely ever went home. If anything, the only reason he had an apartment to his name was because it was expected of him after graduating his last year of university. Even so, he was barely ever there, spending his nights slumped over in a lab- Columbia’s or otherwise. Peter would be surprised if the man was still paying rent.

Ray and Winston must’ve been carrying the same sentiment. “We’ll still be seeing you tomorrow, right Eges?”

 The man stood stiffly, as if under a spotlight. “Hopefully.” He was motionless, before grabbing Janine’s TV and scurrying out the door.

“Hey!”

Strange indeed.

Egon walked briskly under the fluorescent lighting of the hallway. It was almost 7, after all. A warm brown bag of Chinese food sat under his arm as he got closer to the rickety door. He hesitated to turn the key, hearing staticky music on the other side. When he did, there you were, surrounded by brown bags just like his and messing with the antiquated radio by his stovetop. It felt odd, and strangely smug, to have you in his tiny and bland apartment after his friends praised your stardom.

Your manicured fingers turned the volume down. “Sorry! It’s hard to entertain myself here when you don’t have a TV.” The same woman that was all over Times Square was here, in his kitchen, placing a kiss to his cheek. 

“I do now,” he juggled the boxy appliance before you took it from him gently.

“Where’d you get this? It’s adorable,” you smiled, inspecting it. He peered into the bags cluttering his limited counter space as he put down your dinner, some holding groceries and some with wrapped packages.

“A friend. What’re these?” Egon didn’t have to turn to you to see the guilty expression you had while he pulled out containers of takeout. You had a bad habit of buying him luxuries he never thought he would need.

You grabbed a few things from one of the sacks, opening his outdated fridge. “I know we agreed to you bringing dinner, but it’s just a few things for when you’re on your own.” He wrinkled his nose.

“I have food.”

Egon watched you teeter your palm back and forth, grabbing another bag and opening one of his cabinets. “What’s the point of eating-out if you never eat-in?” 

“You shouldn’t have gone through the trouble.”

He felt nice as you smiled at him, folding the discarded paper and tossing it in the bin. “You know I don’t mind.” It would’ve been a sweet moment, if there wasn’t another bag on the counter that caught his attention, which you scrambled to pull away. Before you could, he brought it to his lap, gazing down inside.

He pulled out different wrapped packages, labels from one of the most expensive department stores in the area. “Y/N.”

You put your hands up in defense, lowering yourself into the stool across from him.  “I know, I know. But, look!” You leaned over, showcasing one. “New curtains! And there’s a watch in there, somew-here.”

Egon’s eyes nearly popped out when he found a little box, forgotten at the bottom, with a price tag higher than what two ghostbusters made in a week. “You have to return this,” he decided, hardly opening it before snapping it shut.

“You don’t like it?”

“I do. I appreciate you getting it. But you can’t keep spending your money on me.”

You knelt on your hand, disappointment clearly subsiding as you used the other one to open up the food. “It doesn’t make a difference to me. I was in that area, anyway.”

He passed you a plastic fork. “How come?”

“I had an appointment with my dress guy,” you started. He’d be embarrassed to admit it, but it took him an abnormally long time to realize that you were referring to the people you regularly bought things from, rather than lightly suggesting a polyamorous relationship. “And he showed me the finished product for Friday! Isn’t it exciting?”

You produced a print from your purse, handing it to him with a bright smile. It was a dress on a mannequin- very bold, very you, and very blue. “It is.” Egon grinned sincerely, admiring the idea. “Very beautiful.”

You stabbed your fork into a vegetable, seemingly forlorn as he put the photo aside. “It’s a shame you’ll only get to see it on TV. Unless, you wanna be my date,” you perked.

Egon could feel himself frown. In any other world, he would be at your side every hour of every day- every interview, airing, or red carpet appearance. But he was still Egon, through and through. So you compromised on “waiting until the right time” to make your relationship public.

“Not this time,” he avoided looking at you. You were understanding, you always were, but he could imagine how irritating a constant no could be.

He jumped as your head hit the countertop. “You’ll let everyone know at the wedding,” you groaned. Egon moved to console you, worried about having hurt your feelings, before your head snapped back up.

“Kidding.” He let out a sigh he couldn’t recall holding in. “You wanna be there when I get ready? You could help me with the zipper,” you leaned forward, voice teasing him. He couldn’t refuse.

“Of course,” Egon smiled, before it fell. “I’m sorry. That I keep telling you no.”

You shrugged, waving him off. How undeserving he was, to be loved by someone so forgiving. “I know. You’re an interesting guy, Egon. It’ll happen when it happens.” You had his hand in yours, brushing his knuckles as you looked on at each other earnestly.

Something caught your attention, breaking eye contact, Egon shrinking at the loss of connection. You turned in your seat to the rest of the apartment. “I never told you! I noticed you started decorating!”

It was a small place, only one bedroom and older than most people Egon’s age would be proud of. When he first moved in, the only things he took the liberty of situating were: a bed, a chair, various papers and books and scientific projects. It was more a storage space, rather than one to live in. He dawned on this the first time you offered to have him over, realizing that he’d have to return the favor- after picking up a bit. It’s not much right now, save for more furniture and ambience, but there was always something new whenever you visited. “After you told me it had the feng shui of an asylum.”

“Then we both have something to work on.”

“What was this doing in the mail this morning?” Peter bounded the steps to the second tier of the firehouse. Ray and Winston were trying their best to pick up around the kitchen, while Egon was hunched over his workbench, jittery and unorganized. Whatever he was keeping from them, it did a good job at keeping him from work. This would’ve been a nice change for the doctor, if it didn’t mean Peter had to be alert for any sudden fires.

He passed the booklet to Winston, whose eyes widened like a cartoon as the centerfold unfurled into two more pages. “Holy…”

“Maybe it’s Janine’s?” Ray proposed, cheeks pink as he clumsily folded them back up.

Her voice called up from downstairs, before the front door slammed shut. “I don’t read that brand, and if I did I wouldn’t be working here.”

That left the three men, standing in tense silence. Not Peter, he was tasteful with his filth- tucked away in the hidden part of his filing cabinet. 

“Why would one of us order something like this in the mail?”

Peter gently took it from Winston. “Alright, no need to embarrass anyone. My mail is your mail is your mail is my mail.”’ He jumped to a random page, settling into the couch. “We’re all friends here.”

Ray and Winston hesitantly crowded around him, unabashedly eager to view what was inside. Egon, however, was frozen at his desk, lab coat halfway off.

“Donna Rice stuns in a poolside photo…Madonna looks nice here…” The professor was a second away from crumpling. Schadenfreude.

Ray shrugged one of his shoulders, leaning over the armrest. “Some of these aren’t so bad,” he admitted. 

Peter let out a low whistle. “Here’s the girl you like so much, Spengs. Orange dress.” Egon rose then, a bit less catatonic as he shrugged his lab coat off, back to his friends.

“She wouldn’t wear orange this season. Or any season. It doesn’t pair well with anything and it washes her out.”

Peter blinked. Not the angle he was looking for, but a good psychologist never quits when they’re ahead. “Did she tell you this?”

Egon visibly hardened, turning to face them. “No. In a 1986 interview with People, in the second paragraph of the 12th page, she said she’d never wear anything long and orange at the same time.”

Peter slowly revealed the page to him, speaking even slower. “Sorry, superfan. She was wearing green.”

The professor only stared, before clearing his throat and fixing his clothes a bit, Ray and Winston silent at Peter’s side as he rolled up the print. “I’m leaving for the night. And I’m taking the car.”

He was halfway out the room before Ray stuttered, taken aback. “I can’t remember the last time I’ve seen you drive, Spengs.”

“And you can’t take the car.” Peter chided

Egon stilled on the staircase. “I have the keys. And there aren’t any jobs in the morning- you can do without it. Goodnight.”

Peter tapped the shiny paper against his palm a few times, turning to the men at his side. “He’s either selling drugs, or he’s trying to ditch us."

Sure, Egon wasn’t much of a driver. But he’d make the commute if he wanted to see you. Eventually, streets lined with skyscrapers and taxis melted into roads lined with starlight and trees as he carefully recalled the directions to your house just outside the city, surrounded by woodlands. He knew you'd wouldn’t be back until late in the night, so he was content busying himself with your chores until the sounds of a Mustang screeching to a halt in your driveway peeled him away from the last dish in the sink.

Egon carefully peeked out one of your windows, watching as you jumped out the backseat of the hastily parked car. “I probably just left a light on! One sec!” Your door handle jiggled with the turn of keys, before you poked your head in, voice low.

“Wanna say hi?”

He politely declined, and you were halfway out the door again, waving goodbye to your friends, before they skidded off into the night. Your home was a stark contrast to his own, decorated and personable without becoming clumsy. But, many a night you’d crooned to him over the phone about how empty it can get. So, there he was.

“You didn’t have to come all this way,” Egon felt you mummer against his back, arms wrapped around his middle while he finished wiping down the edge of the sink, light fragrance mingling with the smell of dish soap. You always smelt good, after a night out.

“I wanted to. Did you have fun?” he inquired, hearing you hum as you peeled yourself from him, lurking towards the stairs.

“As much,” Egon bent behind you to collect your discarded shoes, “as I could have.”

He caught the earrings you pinched off from your earlobes. ‘They didn’t show you a good time?”

You paused in front of your bedroom door, waiting for Egon to open it, which he did. “It was a great time- I love premieres.” You lowered yourself onto the large mattress, calling out to him as he went into the master bathroom to start a bath. “But, I think you know very well why I wanted to come home.”

“I wonder,” he mused chaffingly, sitting behind you on the bed. His favorite night time routine, whenever he was around after you successfully painted the town red. The events and invitations just got bigger and bigger, increasingly extravagant the longer he knew you. Here he was, getting farther and farther over the hill. In spite of it all, he liked taking care of you, especially when you were wearied from an evening of fun.

You leaned forward as he gently unclasped the jewelry from around your neck, careful not to bust the fastener. “I’m happy you’re here now, Egon.” he heard you coo tiredly and softly. Egon pressed a devoted kiss to the nape of your neck where the metal had lay, drawing out a delighted laugh from underneath him.

“Then I’m glad I came.”

Both of you just sat there, warmth against warmth until Egon remembered that your faucet was still running. He took to unzipping the back of your gown. “Is it safe to assume my friends are becoming suspicious of me?”

“Oh yeah? What’re they doing?” you pondered, helping him as you stepped out of the pooling fabric.

“Pictures of you. Peter got a hold of one of your spreads.” Egon mulled. He carefully collected the material, laying it out on a chair in front of your expansive closet. He really appreciated those photographers, any other time. Particularly, when you weren’t available for so long.

Another thing he enjoyed about nights like these- you in your underclothing. Oh, guilty pleasures. But the sight vanished into the bathroom almost as soon as he took it in. “Did you tell them I was your outgoing, witty and expressive girlfriend?” 

Egon couldn’t help but follow you. “They seemed to have come to that conclusion on their own.” Egon stood against your sink while you sunk into the water- he knew you were pretty clean, but a washroom floor was still a washroom floor.

“I’m sure you have them fooled.” you guessed, leaning on the edge of the tub.

“I think so. But-” he noticed the look you were giving him. “You’re being sarcastic.”

He let you laugh at his expense, handing you various soaps from the caddy above. He’d been meaning to get a similar bottle to keep at his place, if you were ever willing to spend the night. What would your people say- if you didn’t come around when they were expecting you to? “And you? What do your friends think?” Egon queried. 

“They’ve been onto me. And they tell me: ‘bring him around sometime- one night can’t hurt,’” you teased. “There’s a blue suit to go with my dress waiting for you, if you really want.”

Egon felt so defenseless as you gazed up at him, extending the same invitation you’d been extending time and time again. Reservations be damned. The greatest person he knew was letting him spend a night in their arms- and he’d be anything but himself if he let the opportunity slip away again.

“I’ll go.”

“What?”

“On Friday. I’ll go with you. If you’ll have me.”

You beamed, sitting up and leaning impossibly close to him as he let himself kneel against the porcelain. “Oh, Egon! I could kiss you!” Your wet skin dripped onto the dainty rim.

“Why not?” he teased. Before the question could leave his lips, you had the end of his tie in your hand, nearly dragging him into the bath with you.

He could barf. Absolutely lose his cool in the back of this expensive car, or in front of all your famous friends. As happy as Egon was to experience a slice of your life with you, his nerves were on fire. He must’ve seriously underestimated the turnout of this thing- reality settling in as a number of stylists flooded your house as the evening approached. He felt the embrace of your hands on his jaw, as you made him look at you.

“You don’t have to talk to anyone, if you don’t want to. Just keep holding my hand.” You were glowing. “And- you look great. But…something’s missing,” you muttered. He swallowed hard, dreading what he managed to leave behind. He was breathless as you left a quick kiss off the center of his lips, laughing as you parted. “There,” you giggled.

“Mr. Spengler? There’s a call for you.” the hostess told him, peeling him away from the table of A-listers. As he answered the phone by the kitchen, he could recognize a familiar, angry voice.

“Egon Spengler.”

“Hello, Janine.”

The floodgates opened, and he could practically hear her nails digging into the desk. “I could rip your head off. Is that where you go all day? Hanging out with gorgeous celebrities? Why didn’t you tell us? You’re sitting at dinner with Mel Gibson! You should’ve introduced me. Why didn’t you introduce me? I would’ve killed to meet her- if I had met Einstein I would’ve introduced you. What’s next- you’re having tea with Cher? You disappear for weeks at a time, and we have to watch a tiny TV screen to find out you’re at an award show with a red lipstick stain on your face? You-”

“I’m sorry to cut this so short, Janine. But my wonderful girlfriend has an accolade to accept.”

[pak-pak-suhgar]

Lost One

Pairing: Johnny x Jaehyun

genre: angst, happy ending at the end.

Summary: In which where Jaehyun caught Johnny and Taeyong on their bed. With Johnny on top of Taeyong— topless. How did the two older guys got into that position? Jaehyun doesn't know and Johnny doesn't either, leaving the younger in a broken heart state.

A/N: My first yaoi fanfic on this blog and my first johnjae fanfic as well. This was written on phone so sorry for the mistakes. English isn't my first language either so I apologize for the grammatical error! Happy reading~

Johnny and Jaehyun has been dating for almost 4 years. Yes, you heard it right. They've been together for whole fucking years. So, why is it one of those times now where Jaehyun has to see an unpleasant scene before him? He stood at their door, frozen in his spot. Both guys haven't realized his presence not until he accidentally chokes out a sob. Johnny looked back, ready to glare whoever it was that interrupted them only to have his eyes widen. He immediately got off of Taeyong while the other older guy sat up. Panic was plastered over their face as Johnny quickly dresses himself and sprinted his way towards to Jaehyun. Ready to explain whatever bullshit he could come up with.

Jaehyun remained on his spot, unmoving but his eyes were avoiding the taller one's who was now grabbing both of his arms. Jaehyun was emotionally drained- exhausted, numb. His feelings was all over the place that he doesn't know what to feel, "Jaehyun.. I can explain... It's not what it looks like-" Slap! Jaehyun could feel the excruciatin pain on his palm the moment it landed on Johnny's cheek, "But it is what it looks like." he replied spitefully, as much as he wanted to sound emotionless and harsh. He was too hurt to even try to sound like one. Jaehyun doesn't want to hear Johnny's explanations, so he swatted the elder's hands and made his way towards their shared closet. He grabs his bag and began to put all of his stuff or whatever he could grab from the closet.

This put Johnny on alert as he stood behind Jaehyun and held his wrist in attempt to stop him, "Baby, what are you doing- where are you going?" he bombards the younger with questions. Jaehyun doesn't bother to reply as he only prys Johnny's hands away, when he settled most of his stuff. His eyes were bloodshot red, he looks at Johnny then at Taeyong who couldn't look straight in his eyes. He wanted to shout at both men and tell them off. But he decides that they aren't worth it, so instead pushes Johnny out of the way and left their room, "Jaehyun- baby, wait!" Johnny calls out but Jaehyun never turned back.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A few weeks had passed since Johnny has last seen Jaehyun, he couldn't contact him either and he was worried sick. Jaehyun wasn't in the dorms, that was alarming. Johnny had tried to contact Jaehyun's closest friends, but none of them spoke about the younger's whereabouts. Or at least they wouldn't out Jaehyun just like that considering of what he did to Jaehyun. Johnny runs his hands through his hair in frustration and punched the wall, Taeyong who had witnessed the scene came up to Johnny and held hos hand, Johnny pushes him away and glared at him, "Don't fucking touch me! I-It's all your fault! Jaehyun is nowhere to be found and our relationship is at stake!" Taeyong could only scoff before glaring back at the taller male.

"If you could have had kept your dick in your pants and didn't allowed yourself to get seduced by me, you wouldn't be in this situation, Johnny. You put yourself into this situation." Taeyong says, before he leaves Johnny alone. He remained speechless and unmoving in his spot, what Taeyong said was true. Johnny wasn't able to wait for Jaehyun that he just let his emotions eat him up and control him to give in to his desires. Jaehyun had been fairly busy with his drama film that Johnny barely saw Jaehyun- let alone have sex with him. Whenever Jaehyun comes home, he was dead tired and would knock out the moment he sleeps in their bed. Johnny blames himself from everything that happened. He was afraid, he was scared- scared to death that Jaehyun will leave him for good. He sat on the floor and hugged his knees as he could do nothing but cry his heart out hoping that the pain will fade somehow.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

"Sicheng, I really can't bother you and Kun hyung anymore.. I'm sorry for crashing in but thank you for letting me stay." Jaehyun says, looking so apologetically at Sicheng. The male could only snort and waved his hand in dismiss, "Jae, you're always welcome here. Are you sure you can go back? Are you ready to face him?" Sicheng asks, concern written all over his face as he looks out for his friend. It took Jaehyun a few moments before nodding his head, "Yeah... I have to go home. I can't run away from it forever." he replies, he could feel the tears pricking his eyes but he blinks them away. He had been crying for weeks and his eyes honestly hurt a lot. Sicheng nodded his head in understanding, sighing at his friends' demise before giving Jaehyun a pat on the back, "Fine, but if you wanna come back. You're welcome to." He reassures with a smile, to which the younger returns happily. They hug one last time before Jaehyun went back to the dorm.

~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~

A loud banging woke Johnny up from his sleep, he groans at the noise and flutters his eyes open, "Come in." he says in a groggy voice before sitting up, Haechan slammed the door open as he ran towards Johnny, "Hyung. Jaehyun hyung came back home last night" with the information that Haechan spit out, Johnny became wide awake as he looked at Haechan, "J-Jaehyun? Where is he? I need to go see him." he says, almost wanting to fly towards wherever Jaehyun is, "In his old room! At the 10th floor!" Haechan shouted before Johnny disappeared into sight.

He wasted no time going upstairs and instantly inputting the passcode to the dorm, thankfully no one was inside so he invited himself in. He didn't think twice to barge into Jaehyun's room, his eyes searching for the man everywhere and when it landed on the figure. He felt like he could breathe again, like suddenly the air that was knocked out from him came back. His gaze softens as he looks at the man who was peacefully asleep. But his heart breaks when he realizes that Jaehyun may probably break their relationship off. It explains why he went here instead of going back to their bedroom. Of course Jaehyun wouldn't want to be reminded of what happened in that room.

They made so many good memories but also made the most hurtful one. Johnny was about to caress Jaehyun's face when the younger suddenly woke up from his sleep, he suddenly sat up and moved away drom Johnny, making Johnny's heart break into pieces, "What are you doing here?" Jaehyun was the first to break the silence, sucking in a deep breath as he looks everywhere but Johnny, "I... I know it's too late but I wanted to apologize." Johnny said, pausing for a moment and waits for Jaehyun to respond. When the younger didn't, he assumed that he gave him the chance to explain now so Johnny began doing so.

"I.. I let my emotions get to me. You were just so busy that we barely had time together.. When was the last we had sex? Whenever I took the initiative, you'd brush me off. And whenever you're back in our room, you knock out. I know you have drama filming but you didn't give us some time together-" Johnny was cut off by the loud scoff that Jaehyun made, the younger finally looks at him. And he felt his heart break as he sees the tears in Jaehyun's eyes. "And that gives you the excuse to fuck Taeyong? He seduced you and you give in? Have you even thought of me when you let your 'so called emotions' eat you up?" he asks, Johnny couldn't speak and this made only Jaehyun snort. He was right, it's no excuse for him. It's the end, Johnny thinks.

Jaehyun took a deep breath before finally speaking, "Look.. I know, we haven't spent much time these days.. I was planning to take you out on a trip because we finally finished our last filming. As soon as we finished, I came back as early as I could, John. That day... I planned everything out. But you- you and Taeyong hyung..." Jaehyun couldn't continue to speak as he chokes out a sob. He harshly wipes the tears away before covering his face with his hands, Johnny couldn't take the scene anymore and ended up pulling the younger in his arms. Hugging him flush to his chest as he sniffs in Jaehyun's scent. God knows how much he missed holding the younger in his arms like this, Jaehyun didn't bother pulling away.

When he felt the younger calm down, Jaehyun pulls away and wipes his tears. Johnny dreaded this moment, the silence was triggering his anxiety when Jaehyun kept his mouth shut. He was anxiously waiting for the younger to speak and when he did, he cut Jaehyun off. "Johnny, I think we should-" "No!" Johnny imemdiately declines, startling the younger male. "No... please... don't.. I... I don't-" "You don't wanna make up?" Jaehyun asks, tilting his head innocently. This caught Johnny off. He wasn't breaking up? "You won't... break up with me?" Johnny asks, hope fills his eyes, Jaehyun blinks at him in confusion before slowly nodding his head. "I won't... you hurt me, John. But when we first dated.. I told you no relationships are perfect.. and so is ours.. However, I can't really forget about this. But, no matter how painful it is.. My love is still stronger. I just needed a break and to gather my thoughts.. Breaking up with you crossed my mind and I debated over that for a few weeks that I was gone." Jaehyun says, biting his inner cheek as he confesses his feelings out. "But, I realized that my heart will always long for you, it will always love you. Because you are my soulmate, Youngho. I could never leave you."

And maybe, even if things do get toxic. Jaehyun will be too much of a martyr person to ever leave Johnny. So, they eventually make up and try to patch their relationship again.

Johnny kisses Jaehyun's forehead as he held the younger in his arms, "Thank you, Yoonoh.." Jaehyun tilts his head and glances up at Johnny, "For what?" "For not becoming my lost one."

[translations-by-aiimee]

Dig a Grave to Dig Out a Ghost - Chapter 14

Original Title: 挖坟挖出鬼

Genres: Drama, Horror, Mystery, Supernatural, Yaoi

This translation is based on multiple MTLs and my own limited knowledge of Chinese characters. If I have made any egregious mistakes, please let me know.

Chapter Index

Chapter 14 - Lecture

For most people, it was just like any regular Monday afternoon. The temperature was high and there hadn't been any rain in over a week. A black Audi stopped at the entrance of the school's auditorium and really stood out. In the distance, he saw a big red banner at the entrance of the building: "A warm welcome to Professor Chen XX, appraisal researcher from the Palace Museum, for holding a cultural relic appraisal lecture in our school."

The auditorium had been recently built in the past few years. The entrance hall was very magnificent, with a light blue dome and wall, and the entire wall near the gate was made of glass. From the outside, he could see the crowds of people in the hall. Different from the usual modern style, the overall layout of the hall was more reminiscent of ancient designs. There were two large vases with impressions of a Ming Dynasty maid enjoying spring peaches. The promotional posters were framed by carved wooden windows. It was almost like walking into an antique shop.

The air-conditioning in the hall was turned too high and Lin Yan rubbed the goosebumps on his arms as he stood in the queue, staring at the posters to pass the time.

The professor on the poster looked like an unopened file folder, and even the reflection on his glasses looked like the transparent plastic wrapping paper on the file folder. Lin Yan was stumped, and then suddenly realized why he thought he looked so familiar. This person is the editor-in-chief of "Research on the History of Ming Dynasty Clothing". You could see his headshot when you turn to the first page of the textbook. It was said that he was quite famous in both professional research and folk antique auctions. He had probably seen him in a treasure appraisal program. Lin Yan recalled that he hadn't met him during the internship. Maybe because he had been an irrelevant excavation member.

On the other hand, why would someone ask him to participate in the excavation of a Ming Dynasty tomb?

"There are still 20 minutes before the doors open. Please wait patiently in the queue. Our staff will provide you with an introduction pamphlet for the event and free drinks." A sweet female voice came from the lobby intercom. Not far in front of Lin Yan, a tall boy who had been playing on a PSP with his head down turned his head and smiled wryly. He said to the person behind him: "The girl's voice is so sweet."

What's peculiar is that this person is wearing a modified Hanfu outfit, tailored to fit his body but with wide sleeves. With his pimples on his face and the PSP in his hand, he looked very strange. Lin Yan glanced around the room and was surprised to find that not only the PSP guy was dressed up, but many others had certain ancient style elements in their outfits. One girl even had her hair curled, and the ebony crested hairpiece swaying down by her sideburns.

Lin Yan stared, bored, outside the glass wall, and a familiar figure in a blue cloth robe caught his eye.

It was the little Daoist priest, squatting by the flowerbed not far away, feeding a lazy big yellow cat with some ham in his hand. The yellow cat curled up with a comfortable look, and his chubby figure resembled a large snail with a lot of privilege.

As soon as the little Daoist looked up, he saw Lin Yan beckoning to him. He threw the rest of the ham to the yellow cat in a hurry and ran into the hall with his schoolbag on his back. Lin Yan stepped out of line, and the cold surrounding him moved with him, although it seemed a little reluctant.

"At least A-Yan is a living person. You don't know how long you've been dead." Lin Yan couldn't help muttering. The series of events such as the exorcism and giving him talismans made Xiao Yu disgusted with this little Daoist priest. Every time in the past week that he had called A-Yan to ask about sending away spirits, well, his reaction was clear.

"Come here and wait." Lin Yan greeted the little Daoist priest who had just rushed into the hall. "It wasn't eating well, so I brought some ham for it." A-Yan was still holding half of the red plastic container in his hand. His face suddenly flushed red and he looked at Lin Yan with bright eyes.

His arm was squeezed by a cold hand and it pulled him away from the little Daoist priest. Lin Yan was already uncomfortably cold by the air conditioner, so he frowned and pushed down Xiao Yu's hand.

The lingering cold leaned against him, and abruptly shook against him. Lin Yan thought he must be really angry. When he looked up, he saw a group of students dressed in ancient costumes coming out of the golden gate of the auditorium. Unlike the people wearing the modified Hanfu costumes, these dozen or so people wore put-together Ming Dynasty outfits. Boys wore blue or white cloth with trimmed edges and silk scarves on their heads. Girls wore outer coats with gold and jade pendants and outer sleeves with beautiful embroidery. Some blouses and moonflower skirts were plainer for everyday Ming women, and some of them dressed as graceful ladies with big red sleeves. They each held a plate. There were small disposable paper cups inside, which the staff brought out to distribute.

Something wasn't right with Xiao Yu. His whole body was trembling against Lin Yan. Lin Yan was startled. He tried not to move his lips too much and asked him in a low voice, "Did you remember something?" Xiao Yu didn't answer, but Lin Yan remembered when he saw the ghost on the computer screen for the first time, he was not wearing a high hat at all, it was a futou.

"I'll take over, you guys go on break," a clear voice rang out. Lin Yan was shocked. A familiar figure stood in the staff's team, with short hair set against the various pieces of brocade. While distributing black tea, she turned around and laughed with her acquaintances. No matter how she changed her style, Lin Yan would never mistake that it was Weiwei.

Lin Yan wanted to lower his head and pretend that he hadn't seen her, but Weiwei had obviously noticed him. After a second of pause, Lin Yan called out and walked straight over to the buffet table. The colours of the rice farmer outfit she wore were interlaced and she was wearing very little makeup. There is a small Hetian seed around her neck, which is kind of chunky and stiff, which made a very natural look.

"Long time no see, are you here alone?" Weiwei smiled and handed a cup of black tea to Lin Yan. "Do you want to join us?"

Straightforward people like Weiwei never took embarrassing memories to heart. Lin Yan couldn’t do it. He always felt that he could never be friends with his past love affairs. Since they broke up, he did his best to avoid any situation where he might run into Weiwei, whether it was class reunions or birthdays, he always went with someone else. Of course, there were times he couldn't escape her, such as right now. Lin Yan reluctantly raised his head, forcing a laugh.

"No, no, I came with A-Yan." Lin Yan's face felt very hot, and he hurriedly pulled the little Daoist priest to hide behind.

Probably because of the little Daoist's strange reputation, Weiwei glanced at A-Yan in surprise. She quickly adjusted her expression, took a cup of black tea from the plate and handed it to A-Yan. She also gave Lin Yan two laminated pamphlets. Shee said: "This is the biggest activity of our club this semester. I have been busy preparing for more than two months. I'm losing my hair from how tired I am."

"Sounds great." Lin Yan's answer was a bit awkward.

"I hope you like it." She grinned.

A team of staff members rushed forward as they called her name. When they saw Weiwei and Lin Yan standing face to face without speaking, they began to mock: "Hey, is this the guy you used to go out with?" Shu Shengfu gave Lin Yan a once-over, shifting their gaze from the plaid shirt with good texture to the CK label on the jeans. He said, "You know how to pick the lookers. Such a nice little boy."

Weiwei didn't get angry. She simply turned around and said calmly: "What kind of look? This was the man I almost married. It doesn't matter what kind of person he is, he will marry into someone else's family." Everyone's face changed into realization in the shift of tone, and there was a wave of awkwardness. Shu Shengfu had a grimace on his face, and he pat Lin Yan on the shoulder. "So that's who you are. You had such an amazing girl get away from you. Too bad we don't have time to catch up" The words were addressed to Lin Yan, but his eyes kept staring at Weiwei.

Lin Yan smiled and said faintly: "If you want to know my methods, it'll be 100 yuan per lesson. Although you should look at my state now to see how it turns out."

There was another burst of laughter. Weiwei was a little embarrassed. She glared at Shu Shengfu and turned her face to Lin Yan and said with a straight face: "Don't pay attention to them, they're just fooling around. By the way, you two don't need to line up here. There are a few rows of seats reserved for the staff. We all have to be on duty at the door and can’t go in. It’ll be a pity for them to be empty, and it doesn't look good for the photos. Go sit there.” She pulled out two blue tickets from the bottom of the pamphlet tray, which were similar to those in Lin Yan's hand, except that there was a small yellow VIP logo in the upper right corner.

Lin Yan instinctively wanted to refuse, but when Weiwei said that there was a question-and-answer session in the lecture, she was too nervous to sit in the front row and talk directly with the professor. He clutched the pamphlet hesitantly but eventually accepted the tickets.

"However. . ." Lin Yan thought for a second: "I need three seats, can I?"

Weiwei glanced sharply at the girl behind Lin Yan. Lin Yan shook his head with a strange expression: "No, my friend hasn't come over yet."

Weiwei asked the girl next to her for a ticket, She seemed reluctant to ask, but she whispered: "Lin Yan, are you. . ."

A large group of well-dressed girls swarmed behind him, and the one who took the lead was surprised when she saw Weiwei, gesturing to the handsome guy that was in front of her. Weiwei glanced at Lin Yan helplessly. She wanted to say something, but Lin Yan suddenly interrupted her: "I'll go now if that's alright. My friends are still waiting for me."

A group of people huddled Weiwei and she continued to hand out drinks. She was a very social person. No matter where she went, people always flocked around her. Lin Yan was the opposite. Although Lin Yan was popular, he felt more at ease alone as opposed to being in the crowd every day. Lin Yan handed the three VIP seat tickets to the little Daoist priest, and the two walked along the red carpet to the staff seats together.

The backstage corridor was completely different from the front hall. The western-style decoration was magnificent. The gilded flowers float across the wall. After staring at them for a while, they seemed to jump off the wall. Lin Yan stroked the wallpaper with a finger, unsure of what to feel. He was a little embarrassed, a little nostalgic, he didn't know what expression he should wear. He wasn't sure what to do with himself.

His life shouldn’t be like this. Lin Yan looked up at the crystal chandelier on the ceiling. He had felt that the world was splitting apart when he and Weiwei broke up half a year ago. In a normal world, he and Weiwei would have been the ideal couple, standing at the door of their home together to welcome their guests. Here, he walked down the corridor alone in a daze, and fell into an abyss behind the main entrance of the lecture hall, falling endlessly to the ground.

The cold fingers touched the back of his hand. He held his wrist a little harder. His thumb slid into the palm of his hand and opened his fist, giving his hand a light squeeze. Lin Yan paused and sighed, his fingers curling back around the other's hand. It was as if holding Xiao Yu's hand was natural. It was cold, firm and slender, like holding a piece of porcelain. Xiao Yu turned around and wrapped Lin Yan's right hand in his palm. He didn't know why he suddenly felt so calm. He thought it was always good for someone to stand by him through the most embarrassing moments, regardless of whether or not that person had been dead for almost 500 years.

[symphonicscans]

Fujimi Orchestra - Wandering Violinist (Book 2, Part 1)

Author: Akizuki Koh   Illustrator: Keiko Nishi (Read Book 1 Here)

Content Warning! 18+ Yaoi/BL/Soft Noncon This volume doesn’t have rape per say, but there are references to what happened in the first volume, so just in case I’m still providing a warning. Nothing is super explicit. Also, if you want to start with this book there is plenty of recap throughout the book to catch you up on characters and situations.

And we’re onto book 2! This book also has two parts, so hopefully I’ll have the second done in the next few weeks.  If you want to read on Google Docs: https://docs.google.com/document/d/e/2PACX-1vSuh6ZZf--fQVn8mkSKkovlnZgIfKcD0vL1dmNRBBo2xVNMPw3EHBpNChs0vW4zq5qymXWQcZsvZmib/pub#ftnt1

Part I : Wandering Violinist

I have no apartment… no roost… not for tonight. I looked around in the hot and humid summer night; I couldn't even mumble because I was completely stunned by the situation. If I had to guess at the statistics, I’d say that the Fujimi-cho neighborhood -- where 80% of the residents live in apartments -- is like a ghost-town every year around this time. This is because there are many brave people who insist that they celebrate the ‘Bon Festival in my hometown,’ undeterred by the hustle and bustle of expensive flight tickets or the hellish rush to return home. It kills two birds with one stone: they make their dutiful family trip, and they don’t have to pay for accommodations when they get there. 

Actually, I — Yuuki Morimura — was one of those people. The reason I say ‘was’ is because I had just returned to my dear home-town after a two year absence on one such obligatory trip. I’m 23 years old and a music instructor at a public high school, as well as a violinist and concertmaster of the Fujimi Citizen’s Philharmonic, also known as the ‘Ni-chome Philharmonic’ or just ‘Fujimi.’ I seem to be considered a quiet and serious person because of the glasses I’ve worn since junior high, and often mistaken as younger than my age thanks to my slim body and feminine face (that I’m not so pleased with); I actually think I’m a pretty assertive person. I moved to Tokyo for music school, and then Fujimi-cho, which has become my second home ever since. 

Since my mother passed away, Fujimi feels even more like my second home. So as I returned from my three-day ‘homecoming’ trip and smelled the familiar scents of Fujimi, I breathed a deep sigh of relief. I arrived before Fujimi’s rehearsal day, just after nine o’clock in the evening. Many of the shops in Fujimi Ginza around the small train station were already closed, each shutter with a sign on the door that said they were closed for tomorrow’s Obon holiday; well, as far as the rest of the country is concerned, tomorrow is the real Obon holiday. I took advantage of the fact that I work at a school with summer vacation to beat the rush of people returning home. This was always my trick that I used in the summer when I would go back home to the country. I would take care of my obligations before the proper Bon Festival and spend the three days when Fujimi-cho was quiet, playing the violin in my empty apartment building. It was the only thing I enjoyed in the summer, as I don’t have any other hobbies.

Now the steel frame of the building was exposed to the sky, and underneath my feet was rubble that seemed to be made from the collapsed walls, along with black trash that must have been furniture. I had entered the alley and turned the corner as usual, and saw the scene that was now in front of me; it was a total loss fire. Both my building and the one on the other side of mine were at least 80% burnt down. I scratched my head and turned to the right. The liquor store on the corner was still open.

“Excuse me, good evening!” A lady came out while using a fan. She looked me up and down and made a sympathetic face. “Ah, the Miyajima apartment building over there burned down yesterday evening, I heard about it on the NHK news,” she said.

“I didn’t hear anything about it, I was back at my parents’ house.”

“Oh, you lived there?” The woman scratched her cauliflower-like permed head with the handle of her fan, probably because she was uncomfortable dealing with a person she didn’t know. “That’s terrible. The fire spread quickly and the firefighters didn’t show up for a while because it was right in the middle of rush hour, you know.”

“Um, did anybody...die?” 

“It was a blessing that you weren’t there, the people who were left were burnt to a crisp. They were all dead by the time the firemen got there.”

“I see…”

“I heard it started from tempura oil. Yamamoto-san on the first floor was the origin of the fire. His wife always looked very careless.”

“Ah...Thank you,” the lady seemed like she wanted to keep talking, but I hadn’t recovered enough from the first round of information to keep up with more rumors. I bowed my head and left the store. The only question for now was where I could sleep tonight… I wondered if there were any hotels in this town. I remembered seeing a few love hotels, but as I walked towards the station I realized I needed to find something else: money. I didn’t have any. 

I put down my travel bag and violin under the streetlight and checked my wallet. No matter how many times I counted it, there was only 3,000 yen. Naturally I didn’t have much left, since I had given most of my money to my sister when I left my parents’ house. It was only fair since I stayed for three days at the place she was living with four children and a husband on the salary of a civil servant, while also maintaining a large country house and fields. I wanted to be considerate, and also make a small gesture since I was now a salaried employee, so I left her with enough money for a meal. But now…

“The bank won’t be closed even on Bon holidays,” I said to myself. No — tomorrow is Saturday! No, wait, I can still withdraw money, my card is in my wallet. So in the morning I can get money. I picked up my bag and case, which was now all I had to my name, and started walking. Oh yeah, my scores, my CD player, the CDs themselves, my clothes, my wardrobe, my futon, my toaster… all burned. Everything, everything…! I was hit with the sound of an oncoming car and rushed to get out of the way. As I looked at the red glow of the receding tail lights, I thought of the word ‘penniless.’ I have a violin, an ATM card, and a few clothes for the time being, so I’m not completely broke, but I’d be grateful if I could at least talk to Ishida-san, the caretaker of Fujimi, who I know I could rely on. But he’s on his usual week-long summer vacation. His whole family left for Hokkaido in the country on the same day that I left, and of course his coffee shop Mozart is also closed.

There were only two other members of the orchestra who knew where I lived: Natsuko Kawashima, a flutist, and the conductor, Tounoin. I had been in love with Kawashima for three years, even proposed to her, but we finally settled as friends in the orchestra. And Tounoin… well, I thought about going to him. He would be more than willing to let me stay, but that ‘willingness’ was the problem. He was gay, fell in love with me, and raped me — though the rape was an accident, as Tounoin had thought I was also gay and that I wanted to have sex with him. I respect Tounoin as a genius conductor, and I also think he’s a very good man, as he was willing to give up his affections towards me and not bring that kind of trouble into our relationship as musicians. 

That’s why… I don’t think I should go to his place to stay. No matter how much help he offers or how strong his willpower is, I don’t want to give him the opportunity to spoil me. He’s a human being too, and you never know when his self-control might slip… I don’t want to ruin the friendship we’ve established. I couldn’t impose on him like that, but I also couldn’t think of anywhere else that would let me stay. The list of Fujimi members and school staff had burned to ash in the fire, and there were a lot of people that I couldn’t remember their full names to look them up in the phone book.

I was flipping through the pages of the city phone book, trying to find a hotel, when I heard the sound of rain. It started raining. Then it was pouring. It seems like bad luck was following me like a bad smell. I took out ten yen from my wallet and picked up the phone.

“Hello, do you have any rooms available? Yes, for tonight. Oh, that’s great. Where are you located?” I thanked them, hung up the phone and wondered out loud, “Yeah, that’s pretty far. The cab fare alone would wipe out all my money. I wonder if they would let me stay without a deposit?”

I heard a noise and looked outside. A soaking wet businessman was waiting, so I opened the phone booth and said, “I’m sorry to have kept you waiting,” and dashed under the eaves of a building to avoid getting wet. I hurriedly wiped the drops of water from my violin case. I decided to wait for the rain to let up and then walk to the hotel; since I only had 3,000 yen I really couldn’t spend it on the cab. But the evening downpour, which I assumed would stop if I waited it out, did not let up even after an hour. I waved my hand at the approaching lights of an empty cab and repeatedly counted the contents of my wallet in my head.

---

After going through 5 other hotels, the sixth hotel receptionist — my last ray of hope in the whole town — was a gentle, motherly woman with a pleasant appearance and tone of voice… “Oh, that’s the thing, isn’t it?”

I said quickly, “I have an ATM card, so if the bank is open tomorrow morning, I promise I can get the money! I know you have a rule that you have to pay in advance, but I won’t cause any trouble!” Needless to say, I’m not very good at this kind of negotiation. But there was nothing else I could do. I was so embarrassed that my forehead broke out in a cold sweat, but I persisted desperately. “I’m begging you. I can’t stay out in the open in this rain!” The woman, who seemed to be going through hardship of her own, looked down with a troubled expression. ‘One more push,’ I thought.

“I know it’s a lot to ask, but if there’s any way…”

“Well, let me have your driver’s license.”

“Oh, that’s —“ I was sure that I had finally found a solution. “I don’t have it.”

“You don’t have a driver’s license?” It was heart-wrenching to see her face, which had finally softened somewhat, switch back into cold rejection.

“...my insurance card was burned. But..!” I pulled my ATM card out of my drenched back pocket. “I’ll leave this with you!”

The woman shook her head apologetically. “That doesn’t prove your identity, does it?”

“But if you look up my card number…”

“Can you prove it’s yours?” I was about to open my mouth to argue against her rude suspicion when the sound of rain started up again.

The easy-going face of welcome had turned into a cruel mask when she looked back at me. She said quietly, “Anyway, we don’t accept single guests.” Basically, I was interfering with their business, so get out of here.

“Ah, I see. Thank you.” Apparently this is the way the city is. I thought I could handle the love-hotel atmosphere, but I was naive. I gave the guests that had entered behind me some space so I wouldn’t have to look at them, but it seemed to be an unnecessary precaution.

“Oh, let’s take this room!” I heard the excited girl’s voice behind me as I walked out, not feeling the least bit guilty about being in a love hotel. This was the last of my hotel choices, and I had run out of ideas. I wondered if the heavens had come to regret their cruelty to me, as it was raining lightly when I went outside. But the situation wasn’t any better just because the rain was lighter.

“Police, maybe?” I had heard of something called ‘tiger boxes’ that were used to protect drunks, but I wondered if they would have anything for a lodger like me. ‘It’s all so bad!’ I thought, but that was the only option I could think of at this point. However, the police station was behind the Fujimi train station, which took me 20 minutes to get there by car, and now I had to walk back... “I’ve got 820 yen in my pocket, so I have no other choice.”

The problem was the violin, which could not get wet. I decided to put it in my travel bag, and used my summer jacket as a furoshiki for my overflowing clothes. I walked out into the rain, which was cold on my already soaking body. There was nothing else I could do.

—

“Achoo!” I sneezed, waking up. I was greeted by masculine-smelling air and unnecessary air conditioning. It seemed that I had caught a cold. I put my glasses on and looked at the round clock on the wall; it was barely 7am… I had stumbled into this police station a little after two in the morning, managed to get them to understand my situation, and they let me stay in the dormitory nap room.

“Achoo!” I guess it’s time for me to leave. After all, the air conditioning was too cold in here. I folded the blanket I had borrowed and left the dormitory room. I looked around for the middle-aged policeman that had helped me earlier, but maybe his shift had ended. I turned around and saw a policeman who looked younger than me.

“Oh, you must be Morimura-san.”

“Yes, I was staying here. Thanks to you, I was saved. This is for the person who helped me last night,” I offered him a box of sweets that my sister had given me to take home, “It’s a little wet from the rain, but inside is manju.”

“Oh no, that’s too much.”

“No, I’m really grateful.” As I was saying this, my nose started to itch again. I sneezed and bowed.

The city was already hot and humid, so I was grateful for the chills that were creeping into my body. I bought the cheapest lunch at a convenience store in the middle of the street and headed for the bank. It was 7:24am on August 13th, and in 30 minutes I would be able to say goodbye to the miserable feeling of having just 500 yen in my pocket. But I didn’t know… I didn’t know that today is the day the door of hell would be flung open.

It’s hot… the cicadas are so noisy. And… there was no money. The lack of money I thought I had was extremely shocking, there must have been some mistake. I’m sure it was just some small clerical error, like a paycheck failing to transfer. I did buy a new suit for the school year and paid for it in one lump sum with my bonus, but that should have gone through in July… but the ‘balance of 2,637 yen’ on the statement the cashier spit out was an unquestionable fact from the employee that was working that Saturday. He told me to come back on Monday for more details. The bank book, which was supposed to be a clue to solve my money question, had been reduced to ashes along with my personal seal and ID card. And the only thing that could guarantee that I am Yuuki Morimura was an ATM card, which could be stolen or picked up…

If it had been the bank where Kawashima-san worked, she probably would have taken care of it. Fujimi’s most beautiful flutist, Natsuko Kawashima, who had rejected my desperate proposal, was the type of person who would be strong in an emergency situation like this. But she’s not here, and anyway as a man I couldn’t just go to my girlfriend’s workplace and cry to her. For an hour I was at a loss for what to do, wondering what the hell I did to deserve this, envying the heavens and cursing my fate. Maybe I was stupid to have left with only my violin and a few changes of clothes. But! I had taken proper precautions against fire, and I was only gone for three days. Usually you don’t have to think about the possibility of your apartment burning down in such a short amount of time. 

The sun was shining on the benches, and shadows stretched out over the ground. I was craving grilled fish… but what was I supposed to do now, when it’s two more days until Ishida-san comes back? I was able to withdraw 2,000 yen from my credit card, but with a grand total of 2,511 yen it was barely anything. I pulled out the notepad I kept in my pocket. I knew I had only Mozart, Kawashima-san’s house, and the number of the school staff room written down. The school was closed for the Bon holiday and there was no answer on the phone. Kawashima-san was the only one who could help me. But… I said to myself, ‘Is it really worth it to go through all this?’ Of course, I wanted to just wait it out, but if I had to… if I did, I’d have to stay out in the open for two more nights. The policeman last night was kind enough to help me, but the way he acted made it clear that the police were not a hotel, and I was already feeling sick from my search for shelter in the rain. My pride as a man wouldn’t let me rely on Tounoin. 

As I soothed my dry throat with lukewarm water from the park fountain, I made up my mind. By the time I found a phone booth, I had sweated out more than I had drunk. I wondered if Kawashima-san would be at work or if she was off? In this case, I could barely spare even ten yen. In a desperate mood, I figured that she would have gone to work, so I looked up the number of her workplace in the Town Pages, which I was grateful to have even if it was in tatters.

The reply on the other end of the line was, “Kawashima-san is off today.”

I took my wallet out again… oh, ten-yen coins, you are valuable after all. I dialed her home number, and the voice that answered was that of a mother.

“I’m Morimura of the Fujimi Philharmonic. Is Natsuko-san at home?”

“Ah, the concertmaster. Thank you for always taking care of my daughter,” said the warm voice. I felt the dark clouds in my chest clear. Thank God. 

“Oh, of course. So, where is Natsuko-san?”

“This morning she went scuba diving in Izu with a friend. She’ll be back the night of the 15th.”

I couldn’t remember if I had said a proper greeting when I hung up the phone… as I exited the phone booth I felt that my last hope was gone. I’m finally going to have to live on the street. But… but… what the hell am I supposed to do? I asked myself over and over, and reluctantly arrived at the answer I already knew, the only solution. I have no choice but to go to Tounoin. Go to him… I’ll just borrow some money. As long as I have money I can do whatever I need to do; get a hotel room, ask the principal for a new ID when school resumes after Bon, go to city hall to get a certificate of seal impression, and then take it back to the bank. It’s just a debt, I will owe him a favor, but I can pay him back as much as I borrow. 

I walked, keeping my face down from the sun that was beating down on me. I was sweating profusely, yet an inexplicable chill ran down my spine. I put my hand to my forehead, which wasn’t even hot, but I felt like I was having a heat stroke. I need to borrow money to buy some cold medicine...a hotel… a cool room… I should have called Kawashima-san last night instead of trying to be proud and stick it out on my own. But it was so late at night… and either way it was too late now.

—

The Telephone Pole Mansion was silent and open as usual. On the wall opposite of the door to apartment 11 there was a row of mailboxes with numbers from 11-71 on them, and on box 71 was a handwritten name: “Kei Tounoin.” There was an elevator door next to it, and in front of the door an abandoned tricycle with the name ‘Mamiko’ written on it in permanent marker. I pushed the trike aside and pressed the button. I got off at the fifth floor — which was the end of the line — and climbed the remaining two floors, breathing hard. They say only idiots catch colds in the summer, but I felt myself getting more and more sick. But I had to act cool in front of Tounoin. He’ll probably tell me to use his place instead of a hotel, but I don’t want to accept a favor I can’t return. I had rejected him. Actually, he really wasn’t the kind of guy I could borrow money from, either… I finally managed to get to the apartment, and was anticipating getting to change clothes since the ones I had been wearing were soggy from being worn since yesterday. I put my hands in my pockets — I just remembered, I don’t have the key…

I usually have the key to his place. It was the middle of last month when Tounoin offered me his apartment, since mine didn’t allow the practicing of musical instruments and I had no other decent place to practice. At the time, we were still like a rabbit and a wolf, and I was the rabbit running away. I resisted and resisted, not wanting to be lured into the wolf’s house by some kind of trick. But then we developed a proper relationship as friends, and I decided to accept that his offer was out of kindness, not a trick. Since then, I’ve practiced here every Monday, Wednesday, and Friday night, and Sunday afternoon. I have a duplicate key because Tounoin’s apartment is soundproofed, and he plays music so loud that he doesn’t hear if somebody knocks. He gave me the key so I could come in on my own, but I had left the key in my apartment. On the morning I left, I put it in a bag of rice in the kitchen, along with my personal seal, bank book and other valuables… 

He had no doorbell. I knocked on the door, but there was no answer. I knocked a few more times, then thought to put my ear to the door, but it seemed to be silent behind it. Just to be sure, I looked for a window, but there was not a single window on this side. I went to the edge of the aisle and looked, but no, there was no window on that side either. There was a window across from the door inside… but regardless there was no sign of anybody being in the apartment. 

“He’s finally away…” did he go to his parents’ house, or on vacation, or just out shopping? No matter what Tounoin was doing, my situation was simple: I had no other place to go, no other option. As long as I had the key, I could go in; Tounoin wouldn’t mind if I came in when he wasn’t home. It would be much easier to wait in an air-conditioned room, and I would without hesitation, but without a key… it’s metal, so there is a possibility that it didn’t burn up in the fire. But to find it, I would have to go back down the stairs and walk for twenty minutes in the hot sun. Then I’d have to dig around in that pile of rubble, and what were the chances of finding it? Even if I did find it, it might be useless, and either way I’d have to come back here… by then, Tounoin might have returned. So I decided to just wait. Fortunately there was a roof over the passage, and the elevated location allowed for good ventilation. I sat down in the aisle with my violin case beside me on the concrete, which was cool and pleasant in the shade. Looking through the bars of the railing, the city was the color of scorched gold in the midsummer sun. I’ll wait here until it cools down in the evening, and if he doesn’t come back I’ll go look for the key…. but what if the key doesn’t work? Whether it’s there or not, I’ll have to come back, but what if Tounoin doesn’t come back tonight?

Then I’ll just spend the night here outside. No one but Tounoin comes up here anyway, and it’s summer so it shouldn’t be a problem to sleep overnight… but what if he’s on vacation? I haven’t heard anything about that. He’s probably shopping or something, he’ll be back in the evening. As I stared blankly at the scenery thinking about this, I began to feel sleepy. To tell the truth, I didn’t want to move anymore. The sooner I went to look for the key the better, and the sooner I could take some medicine the better. I didn’t have much of an appetite, but I was thirsty and I knew I could get a cold drink at the convenience store downstairs. But once I was sitting like this, I didn’t feel like getting up again. I felt like I didn’t actually sleep much at the police dormitory, and yesterday was still yesterday…

I had helped Mimiko with her farm work in the morning, took my nephews to the town swimming pool, and taken a six-hour express train ride home, and then when I was feeling relieved to be home, the apartment was gone. And all that time I wasted looking for a hotel… after all that, it’s not surprising that I didn’t get a good night’s sleep. In other words, I was utterly exhausted. And to top it off, I was coming down with a cold. I laid down with my bag as a pillow, just to give my body a rest. After a short nap I would take a fever reducer… and then go find the key… I laid down, staring at the concrete ceiling of the aisle and the blue sky beyond, thinking about the pile of scores I had that were now burned. I hadn’t finished learning more than half of them, maybe I should have brought at least those with me… I couldn’t help thinking about it now. 

...I opened my eyes with a start and realized I had fallen asleep. My body ached all over, probably from lying on a concrete bed. But I didn’t feel like waking up, I was feeling very sluggish, as if I were being held in a metal box. I wanted to look at the time, but I couldn’t lift my arm to put on my watch. ‘Never mind,’ I thought, ‘This is the top floor, and the only room up here is Tounoin’s, so I can afford to take my time. I’m sure he’ll have something to say when he gets back, and there’s no need to move when it’s still so hot…’ With this thought, I was sucked back into the darkness of sleep. But it was a sleep that I shouldn’t have fallen into, like what people experience when they’re in distress on snowy mountains.

I was burning hot when I woke up again. I forced open my heavy eyelids. Through the bars of the railing, at the same height as I was lying, the orange sun was blazing, and I was basking in the west sun. I tried to get up, but my body felt like a bag of wet sand. If I stayed here, I would dry out in the sun. I managed to crawl up on all fours and move to the little remaining shade by the top of the stairs. As I let my head fall limp, I thought of something. The violin! I shouldn’t have left it in the sun like that… I crawled back to the apartment door, grabbed the violin case, and went back to the shade. The coldness of the concrete made me feel uncomfortable, like a myriad of worms were slithering under my skin. Chills kept running down my spine incessantly. I was already starting to doze off, thinking of how awful this was. The sound of cicadas chirping somewhere in the distance was becoming more and more faint. Water… water… when it gets cooler, I’ll have to go to the convenience store… barley tea, juice...water...water…. I found myself depressed. When I came to, it was pitch black. I felt cold, and when I moved my entire body was filled with aches and pains. My head also felt like it was going to crack open, and the breath on my lips was hot. I felt like I couldn’t get up, but I managed to do so because I knew I was in danger of dying out here. Going down the stairs, however, was even more dangerous. My legs were unreliable, and my hands were shaking as I clung to the railing with what little strength I had. Still, I somehow managed to reach the elevator and descended to the ground floor. 

I staggered the 30 meters or so to the corner store and went in. The brightness of the white lights hurt my eyes.

“Excuse me,” I said, leaning against the register, “Do you have any fever reducers?”

“No, we don’t,” the cashier replied, “But there’s a pharmacy a little bit down the street.” He seemed kind. 

“How far is ‘just a little bit…’” It was too far for me now. “Could I have a bottle of Pocari?” The clerk asked me which one. “No, a large one.”

“Two bottles are six hundred and eighteen yen.” 

With trembling fingers I took the change and the heavy package and left the store. I didn’t have time to go looking for the keys. I literally crawled back to Tounoin’s front door on the seventh floor, relieved to see that the violin I had left behind was still there, and then I completely ran out of steam. I would fall asleep intermittently, waking up with chattering teeth, and then fall asleep again only to wake up drenched in sweat… each sleep and awakening had a similar sense of torment and nightmares, and time passed slowly. Every time I woke up, I would first check to make sure my violin was safe, then take a sip or two of Pocari, touch the violin case again and fall back into another painful sleep. 

I felt like my beloved instrument, which was ‘only two million yen’ in the eyes of musicians, was still very precious to me even at this moment when I felt on the brink of death. When I was a student, quite a few of my friends had instruments worth 2 million, and some played on ones worth 3 or 5 million. I wondered how they managed to squeeze that out of their parents. The violin is a small but expensive instrument, with the best ones like Stradivarius costing hundreds of millions of yen. Because of their nature, being made with wood, the sound gets better with age, so the 300,000 or 400,000 yen new violins lined up in the window of a music store are only considered entry-level instruments. When I was a student, I used a brand new violin that cost 700,000 yen. My mother spent all of her savings to buy me the best one she could find in the country, and that was how much it cost to get the violin and the bow as a set. The sound is somewhat proportional to the price, so no matter how hard I tried my instrument could not match that of a 3 million yen instrument. That’s why when I got out of college and started a temporary job, the first thing I did was buy this violin. I had already given up being a professional, but I really wanted an instrument that had a better sound; it was the culmination of around four years of frustration. I sold my 700,000 yen set for 600,000 yen, keeping the bow, and then added 1.4 million yen of my own from a personal loan to purchase my current instrument. I was really happy at the time, and now with only one more payment, my beloved instrument will be mine in both name and reality. Then, I will buy a suitable bow for it… probably something around 500,000 yen… with a loan again, but I will do it to get a new bow. I’m not sure if I’ll be able to afford it. And then I wished I could play the violin just one more time before I died, if this was to be my last moments…. when I think about it, I was being as sentimental as something you’d see in a shoujo manga, and later I blush when I recall being like that. I’m proud of myself for being a violinist, and under normal circumstances I wouldn’t have ever thought of pawning my violin for money. But I’m a fool, and in some way it’s more manly to be foolish.

That was what I was thinking about when I absentmindedly changed thoughts to the man who seemed to not be coming back, no matter how long I waited. I thought I heard footsteps, but figured it was just another hallucination. But the sound was getting closer… a white object appeared on the stairs, quickly turning into a Panama hat with black eyes under the brim. As I was lying on my concrete bed, all I could see was what came into my field of vision from the other side — a man with only a head, then a neck… his eyebrows were tight, the eyes underneath long and narrow, with a well-defined nose that even from the front you could tell was high. 

“No way,” the lips murmured. Then the shoulders appeared under the man’s neck, and a hand came up and lifted the Panama hat, which he fanned his face with. The man’s dark hair was long and full, tucked in tightly from the hat; it didn’t look rude or obnoxious because the style suited him. “Morimura… san? What are you doing here…?” With a clatter of footsteps the whole body appeared, a solid 190cm tall body in an elegant linen suit. He was holding a trunk that had customs stickers in one hand. Had he been traveling abroad…?

“Hey,” I smiled, or at least I thought I did. It was Kei Tounoin, the 22 year old unknown genius conductor who had dropped out of the Music Department of the National Fine Arts University — which he was accepted straight into — because he had ‘nothing more to learn’ after one year, and then he studied abroad in Germany and Austria. His present status was as the permanent conductor of the 2-Chome Phil, or Fujimi Orchestra, an amateur ensemble of people who love music. “I’ve been… waiting for a while…” I said in a raspy, shrill voice. Before I realized it was me speaking, I was folded into the chest of the suit that had quickly appeared. 

“Morimura-san! What’s going on? What the hell are you doing in a place like this?!” 

I was going to answer, but I lost consciousness…

--

When I woke up, I was in the water. At first I just felt vaguely cool and comfortable, when I heard a chuckle in my ear. My face was wiped with a cold towel dripping with water, and I opened my eyes. 

“Oh, you noticed,” The one who said this in a very relieved voice was Tounoin, who was looking right into my face from above. I tried to sit up, as I was using his arm as a pillow, but I heard a bang and realized I was lying in a Western-style bathtub filled with water. Completely naked.

“Wha-ah…” I jumped in shock.

Tounoin said in a serious voice, “I had to hurry to lower your temperature, it was over 40ºC.” I was relieved to hear that, but then my eyelids began to feel heavy… “Wait! Just one sip before you go to sleep,” he said with a panicked voice, and his arm snatched me up in a hug while he placed something hard and cold to my lips. A cup…? “You’re dehydrated, just drink as much as you can,” he said. Adam woke up and took a bite of the apple, but when I covered my crotch with my hand I felt even more embarrassed. “Sorry,” he said and shoved a thin object into my mouth. “It’s a thermometer,” he told me.

When he saw the temperature dropped to 37º he let me lean back into the water. I noticed that the sleeves and chest of his expensive linen suit were soaked from where I was leaning against him. “I’m sorry… I feel lost… put it on…” when I mumbled with the thermometer in my mouth, Tounoin smiled.

“I’m glad you’re okay,” I was scared because I was afraid he was going to kiss me. But he only leaned in to read the thermometer. The door behind him slammed open, and he murmured, “It’s about time he got here.”

“How is it? Has it gone down a bit?”

“Seven degrees in one minute. I’ll move him to the room. Oh, can you get a bath towel for me from the cabinet over there? Two or three for the bed.”

“I should have brought a nurse,” said the man, opening the cupboard as he thrust his stethoscope into his pocket. Tounoin tried to pick me up, but I said I could walk myself. Both of them got irritated at me, thinking that I was just embarrassed. But the problem was the bed that I was brought to… two months ago, I was raped in this bed… but I couldn’t very well say that to Tonouin, who had taken care of me like a mother, nor to the doctor. After all, I don’t have a place to go home to, and I can’t look for an apartment until I get better.

“I’ll give you some glucose. You can still give him water. Basically the only medicine he needs is water and rest. Let him have some porridge when he has the energy to eat. I’ll come back tomorrow to see how it goes,” said the doctor, who left quickly after finishing his diagnosis.

I had enough energy to talk, “Are you related to that doctor?”

“He’s my uncle,” was the reply. I tried to tell him that there were pajamas in my bag, but he ignored me.

Instead, he pushed the dial button on the phone he pulled out from under the bed, but I couldn’t quite hear what he was saying. “Hello, this is Kei. No, from Fujimi… please tell him it will be a little while before I can come back. No, I have a guest.” As I listened I felt his voice soften, and it occurred to me that he had a family, too. I hadn’t thought about it before…

When I woke up after a good night’s sleep I felt much better. I put on my underwear and pajamas, went to the bathroom on my own, which also made me feel better. My precious violin had been placed on the shelf above the audio components. When I told Tounoin about my unfortunate situation, he expressed his deepest sympathy and said I could stay in his place for the time being.

“I can’t annoy you any more than I already have,” I said. He had taken care of me and slept on the floor so I could use his bed.

“I see…” he said, his tone of voice sounding slightly angry. “I don’t think it’s annoying.”

“Well, I think it will still be two or three more days until I can get everything sorted out. So I’m sorry for that.”

“Yeah. But there’s no rush, you can stay here until you have the energy to play the violin. Conductor’s orders.” I laughed, and Tounoin laughed too. He’s a handsome man, but with his usual expressionless face he looks dour and misanthropic. However when he smiles, he looks very youthful and friendly.

—-

It was the third day I had occupied Tounoin’s bed. I had been thinking that tomorrow I could go out and look for an apartment, but I fell asleep… I woke up in the middle of the night because of a faint sound of music, just a murmur. 'That is… that’s Tannhäuser,' I thought, the song that filled up this room when it was at full volume on the night two months ago, when Tounoin forcibly embraced me! ‘Oh my god!’ I thought, and felt like jumping to my feet. But my body stayed still like it was bound up by rope. No, I was holding my breath like a rabbit who had heard the snort of a wolf, who was stalking him. I stifled a gasp, then fearfully opened my eyes. 

The room was dark, illuminated only by moonlight streaming in through the window, where the blinds were lowered… Tounoin was in his usual place, looking like his usual self on the other side of the room: facing the console cross-legged with his back to the bed. The sound of Tannhäuser was leaking from his headphones. The broad shoulders of his back made me wince, and inwardly I took an escape stance. Tounoin raised his arms and folded his hands behind his neck, then slowly curled his body forward. He stayed like that for quite some time. I could only see his curled back as I secretly watched him, fighting the memories that came back to me no matter how hard I tried to push them away. I don’t want to remember, but why is it that inconvenient memories are so vivid? I was attacked and raped while this song was blaring at maximum volume… the feeling of his thing going into me, the pain of it tearing my ass and the sensation of my internal organs being pushed out of my mouth when he was penetrating me. The uncountable minutes of humiliation, feeling crazy, embarrassed, terrible… I felt unbearably miserable, I really want to be able to erase this from my memory! Of course I didn’t want to do it… but I had gasped and moaned, and he was saying, “I love you”... no way! I wish I was lying, but the facts are what they are. 

I don’t know why he’s listening to that song, but before I knew it the sound stopped, and the silence made me choke up even more. The sound of my heartbeat throbbed in my ears as I pressed my head into the pillow, and I was worried Tounoin would hear it. I swallowed hard… how long was the silence going to last? Tounoin, motionless as a stone, murmured faintly, “Yuuki… Yuuki…” in a piercing whisper. Then he took off the headphones and stood up. I shut my eyes quickly. I felt a presence approach the side of the bed, and the raggedness of his breathing was stifling. I tried my best to pretend to be asleep. Tounoin seemed to be staring down at me. “If… if he’s willing…” he said quietly.

I decided what I would do and how I would do it, but I was confused. If he comes at me like he did that other time, I’m going to punch him in the face and run away, but… can I do it? ‘I will!’ I shouted at myself. Tounoin is a good man, and he saved my life, but that’s one thing and this is another! It has to be different! Tounoin was still standing there. The tension in my throat was so great that I felt my face begin to flush, thanks to the struggle to stifle screaming and the feeling of wanting to leap out of bed. 

I thought I had reached my limit when I heard his baritone voice say, “I’m sorry…” and he softly ruffled my hair. I opened my eyes when I heard the footsteps move away from me and the sound of blankets being spread out. Tounoin was lying with his back to me on a blanket on the wooden floor, instead of his bed that he had given up for me. He knew. He knew that I was awake, that I was curious about him. He knew I was afraid that he might do something, even though Tounoin had sworn never to force me and was keeping his vow. I wanted to tell him I was sorry, but I was scared to do that because it would give him hope… if I made him want to try again, when he was trying to give up like a man…. well, honestly I was afraid of Tounoin. Our friendship was built on the thin ice of his self-control, and if I take one careless step and it cracks, I will be swallowed by the flames of his passion that are still burning underneath. I knew that for sure from that afternoon in July.

 I also knew that I couldn’t allow myself to succumb to pleasure in the arms of a man; I couldn’t forgive myself after my body confessed itself unintentionally. He had hugged me with arms that were free of lust and apologized. I had said ‘I understand, but I’m not going to be in a romantic relationship with a man no matter how much he loves me.’ He accepted it when I said those words, and then we settled down into the normal friendship I had hoped for… but the way Tounoin was fighting with himself now, the bitter battle between his true feelings and the pretense he showed me tonight, that was the truth. He only put on the ‘just a friend’ act for me, a false image that twisted his true feelings. I knew I had to snap out of it with an ‘I’m sorry,’ which I was able to say by pushing down my emotions through reason, but it was much more painful than I had expected. He said that we would go find an apartment tomorrow, and that was the scream of his suppressed emotions. I knew I shouldn’t have stayed here… I like Tounoin as a person, but I can’t accept him the way he wants me to. I’m like a fish laying in front of a cat, ready to be eaten. I can’t let him do this to himself anymore.

The next day we took a cab to the real estate office. I said we could walk, but Tounoin was adamant, so we drove. We actually went to four real estate agencies, but couldn’t find anything that I liked so decided to try again another day. While we were out I also went to the school I worked at, which was two stops away by train. The vice principal was there, and he expressed his deepest sympathies for my situation and gave me a new ID card after I had requested him to reissue it over the phone. I immediately went to the city hall, got my seal registration card and went to the bank. Tounoin asked the branch manager to check my bank account in a calm and unobtrusive tone, and got the answer that I should wait for a few days. The bank book with a balance of 637 yen was quickly reissued with a single three-sentence stamp, since he showed his passport and acted as my guarantor. It seemed my body was still not up to full condition since I fell asleep in the cab on the way home, which worried Tounoin a little. 

As soon as we got back Tounoin pushed me to go to bed, and then Ishida-san came to visit suddenly. It seems that Fujimi’s caretaker was very worried about me, since I had been missing since the fire. He said, “Well, I got a call from my landlord as soon as I came back from my vacation. He asked me if I knew where you had gone, so I called your family but they replied that you left them on the 12th. I didn’t say anything about the fire, I just told your sister that I had urgent business for Fujimi. Since the police assured us that nobody died in the fire, I didn’t want to worry her unnecessarily.” 

Come to think of it, Ishida-san was my guarantor for my apartment contract. “Thank you for everything,” I bowed my head from the bed. “I was going to call my sister after I found a new apartment,” I added, “But Tounoin didn’t think I should mention the mishap with the fire. It’s not really a nice thing to talk about, after all.” Ishida-san nodded in agreement. 

“It’s a good thing you have shelter right now. How is your cold?”

“I'm getting better. I’ve been troubling Tounoin-san a lot.”

“So, are you going to find an apartment?"

“It’s hard to find a cheap place where you can also practice violin.”

Ishida laughed, “I hope the landlord decides to rebuild, but he is getting old. I did hear that he will be compensated for the spread of the fire."

“That’s right, even though the landlord didn’t start the fire.”

“Well, that’s about it. So…” Ishida-san rummaged through the bag he brought with him. “There’s not much in there, but be careful when you open it,” he said, placing an envelope next to my lap.

“Oh no, no, you shouldn’t have.”

“It’s not much, just a gift. This is the kind of situation for it, after all. And you don’t need to give anything back in return; we’ve known each other for a long time, even if it doesn’t feel like it.” He smiled at me and sat up. “Are you going to stay here until you find an apartment?”

I was about to reply ‘no,’ but Tounoin said “Yes.” 

“That’s good. I’ll see you later, then. Is rehearsal still off for tomorrow?”

“No, I’ll go.”

“Oh, yes. Well, we can’t have rehearsal without Morimura-chan, and Tounoin-kun isn’t going to attend either. You don’t have to force yourself.” 

After Nico-chan left, looking busy, Tounoin and I had a disagreement about where I would stay until I found an apartment.

Tounoin said, “I’ll be staying at my parents’ place from tonight, so you can take your time finding an apartment.”

“That’s…! No, I’ll go to a hotel.”

“That would be a waste of money,” I choked up… it’s true that if the bank doesn’t figure out my situation, I’m penniless.

“But I can’t just kick you out of your own place…”

“It’s okay, I should be dutiful to my sponsors sometimes, after all.”

“Where’s your hometown?”

“Seijo.”

 Wow, a high-class residential area! “But then, won’t it take you nearly two hours to get here?”

“Well, yes.”

“I can’t bother you like that.”

“I told you, it’s not a bother.”

“But it’s definitely inconvenient.”

“It’s about time I slept on a decent futon anyway.”

“Well, let’s switch. I’ll sleep on the floor tonight.”

“You’re a sick man.”

“I’m better now!”

“Then why don’t you go for a run around the town?”

We were dancing around the subject, he knew it and I knew it. Tounoin wants to get out before his emotions get the better of him. I can’t make the man who saved my life leave his own apartment. But to hold him back would be to continue tormenting him… 'Oh, righteousness or humanity!' I thought, and then I realized that it wasn’t out of duty or courtesy that I wanted to keep him around, is it? It’s just my stubbornness, and that I don’t want to admit that I’m actually afraid of him….

“Okay,” I said. “I feel really bad for you, but if it makes you feel better…” 

Tounoin laughed with a huff, “I’m telling you that I don’t think you can sleep well with me around, so I’m removing myself.”

I was pissed off that he pointed out the truth so bluntly, “I trust you, don’t I?”

“Do you?” 

Now I was really annoyed, “So why don’t you sleep with me tonight?” I thought I’d lost it as soon as the words came out of my mouth, but I couldn’t unsay it. “If you don’t want to sleep on the floor, then sleep next to me. I don’t mind,” I told him, confident he would refuse.

“Oh, that’s a good idea,” he said with a sly smile.

“Then let’s go with that.” He smiled at me as I looked up at him, feeling like I had dug my own grave.

“I’m a better sleeper than Morimura-san.”

—

… Tounoin’s daily routine is that of somebody who is young and doesn’t have a regular job (I think, I never asked him about it), but is very precise. He wakes up at seven in the morning and has bread and coffee for breakfast. Then, he runs the washing machine and cleans the room with a rented mop. When he's done, he takes out a book or two from the cabinet full of scores, spreads them on his knees and studies them. He wasn’t playing recordings this time, but apparently just reading the music in his head; I had heard that only geniuses of Seiji Ozawa’s level could do that sort of thing without the assistance of an instrument. Usually you play piano or something at least. Conductors use the score, a book of music that contains all the parts of the orchestra (brass, woodwinds, strings, percussion), and each page has all the staves needed for the instrumental parts. The conductor’s job is to understand the flow of each part and how it interacts with the harmony in the complex combination as a whole. To be blunt, it was a task that my mind could never handle, but Tounoin apparently can construct it completely in his head. I knew he was a true genius. But of course, he didn’t seem to be doing it effortlessly either. He was doing it in his usual manner, with the score on his knees, but the level of tension and concentration was completely different from when he was reading with the recordings. He doesn’t talk to anyone, but I feel like I need to refrain from even breathing…

He does this from around eight o’clock, sometimes until the afternoon, without taking a break, and then would take a nap. After sleeping like a dead man for an hour, he would put on recordings in addition to reading the scores. Then he had dinner delivered from a restaurant (today while waiting for the food, he remembered the laundry and went to put it in the dryer), and after he finishes eating, goes back to playing recordings and score study.  He finishes up around twelve o’clock, takes a nightly bath, and goes to bed. He doesn’t have any sort of nightcap or alcohol; he was a man who lived a life completely immersed in music. 

I looked at the clock every five minutes, waiting for midnight to come. Well, maybe waiting wasn’t quite the right word, it was more like being in a state of trepidation. It was a little past midnight when Tounoin took off his headphones and turned the components off. He turned around to see if I was asleep (of course I pretended to be), turned off the light and walked past my side of the bed to the back door. Incidentally, this apartment is very well designed, except for the fact that the room isn’t square in shape. The first thing you see when you walk in is the audio equipment with five speakers that look like they cost a million yen. When you remove your shoes, you can see a large window at the other end of the room, and when you step inside the flooring is cork. The bed is at the far end of the room, and next to the double-sized bed there is a row of doors on the wall. The three closest to the entrance are cabinets full of musical scores. The fourth one leads to a cabin in the back, which houses a bathroom with a Western-style toilet, a storage area with laundry facilities, and a dining/kitchen area, all crammed into one functional space. 

After finishing his nightly studies, Tounoin went into the captain’s room for his usual bath, but he didn’t come out for a long time, while I waited and waited pretending to be asleep. He usually doesn’t take long baths, but it was over thirty minutes at least. Tired of nervously waiting, I actually dozed off instead of pretending, waking up when I felt the bed sink. Tounoin had laid down in the empty spot by the wall. He fidgeted a bit behind me with his back to me, but he soon quieted down. Then came the sign of someone who was satisfied with the comfort of sleeping. I couldn’t help but listen attentively to the sound of Tounoin’s breathing less than a meter away. If it didn’t switch to the sound of deeper sleep, I wouldn’t be able to sleep peacefully myself… but it wasn’t long before I started to hear his breathing slow and fall into a regular pattern. For now I was relieved, and was ready to fall asleep too. But… my mind was still racing and I couldn’t quiet it. It wasn’t that I wasn’t tired, but I hadn’t been out of the apartment in days, and even if my body is tired my mind is so sharp that it refuses to sleep. And then the more impatient I am to sleep, the more I hear Tounoin’s sleeping breath, the smell of his shampoo, and other things poking at my consciousness that brought back memories from that night and afternoon. This man who suddenly revealed himself as a passionate person, who attacked me and stole me away, when I had only known him as an impudent and calm conductor… this man who plucked my pride and twisted my flesh into a type of affair I’d never known… this man with wide shoulders, a broad chest and strong arms, that held me captive and dominated me, stopping me from challenging him with his strength…

For a moment, I remembered the feeling of something thick and hot ramming into my ass. I twitched, and at the same time I realized that my penis was on the verge of rising. Why is my body in such a state of rebellion against my will? How was it that a  single, forced experience made me a homosexual who wants a man? But… but… smelling Tounoin’s scent… his presence… is what causes this change in my body. He already understood, I convinced him that I can’t be his lover, and he has not laid a finger on me as promised. I...I...I… stiffened at the sound of a sigh behind me.

“What’s wrong? Can’t sleep?” The sleepy voice had a faint hint of a teasing smile. The bed creaked as he turned over, and then Tounoin fell asleep with a swoosh. 

‘Damn it!’ I thought. I was supposed to be worried that he would break the chains of his reason! Yes, I was. He really wanted to have sex with me, but out of concern that he couldn’t keep his vows he was going to stay at his parents’ house. Because I hinted at that, his vain counterattack was this accusation that I didn’t trust him. The rest was just saying words for words’ sake, but… okay, I’ll buy it. I’ll buy it. I’m determined to see how much more of this you can take, until you give up! But if you lose it and come after me, I’ll laugh my ass off and ask what happened to your vows! Yeah, that’s right, I’m going to laugh about it. Once my mind was made up, all I had to do was sleep. Oh yeah, I’ll laugh it up. He’s going to get a real good night’s sleep…

I woke up twice in the night. Why is that? ‘I’m a better sleeper than you…’ get out of here with that kind of joke!

—

I woke up in a daze. It was cool and chilly, and I nuzzled my nose into the warmth in front of my face. I heard, “Good morning.”

“Mmm…” I replied softly. Huh? 

The warmth was the chest of Tounoin’s pajamas, and I had slept hugging him! I tried to sit up, but he pulled my head back and said, “Now do you understand? I have confidence in my ability to reason,” reminding me of what I had thought before I fell asleep. I steeled myself to prepare for an escape. 

“Yes, but you’re not a good sleeper, are you?”

 Tounoin laughed, “I’ll be as careful as possible.” Now I’m sure you’ll be sleeping with me as long as I’m here. Don’t start barking now that your tail is out, wolf… I’m perfectly fine with it. But the AC is so low in this room that it feels good to be together… I’m in trouble… I fell asleep again and was woken up for lunch, and I felt embarrassed. 

In the afternoon the two of us went out to look for an apartment again, but we didn’t find anything that day either. I withdrew my requirement for being able to practice the violin. I was satisfied with my modest request to be able to afford the rent, and making sure it was in Fujimi-cho, not too far from the station. But I couldn’t even find one that would satisfy those modest wishes. Most of the apartments in Fujimi-cho are bedroom-focused, and the emphasis on family units seemed to be a bottleneck. I didn’t mind living in an apartment with one or more baths, but the rent was accordingly expensive…

 I had a Fujimi rehearsal in the evening, but I was tired from visiting real estate agencies. But I had promised Ishida-san that I would attend, so I started preparing in the evening. I realized that if I don’t play for a day, I can’t move my fingers the following day. Aside from the right hand that uses the bow, the left hand has to play on the strings almost of its own accord. To make up for a week’s absence of practicing, I spent three hours before heading to the Civic Center. But… fuck! This is just Allegro! Why can’t I move my fingers better than this?

“Morimura-san.”

Oh, I’m depressed, I missed it again. And it’s in such an easy position…

“Morimura-san!” He shouted in my ear. I looked up to see Tounoin looking down calmly. 

“Go ahead, I’ll be on my way shortly.”

“Are your clothes OK? If you want to change…”

“No, thank you. It’s fine, it’s fine.” I only had two sets of clothes in my travel bag, and the ones I was wearing at the moment were procured by Tounoin because he thought it would be inconvenient to keep wearing the same clothes. He has good taste.

“So, we should leave soon. We can stop at Fujimi on the way home for dinner.”

“Yeah,” I nodded and thought to myself, is he acting like my guardian? Yeah… he is.

—

Fujimi’s summer vacation lasted ten days, and I returned on the second rehearsal after the vacation. I was escorted (or so it appeared) by Tounoin. We stepped into the main conference room of the Civic Center and got down to business as usual. I took out the folding chairs from the storage area and arranged them, took out the folding table and arranged it, then the tuner and checked the batteries… Tounoin helped me quietly, and when he was done he disappeared to somewhere else. 

The first person to arrive was Ishida-san with his double bass, “Well, you’ve come out after all.” Apparently he had come to set up the venue in my stead. Everybody else seemed to come very quickly as well, and when they came up to talk to me they all knew about the fire in my apartment. I shouldn’t have felt annoyed that they were worried about me, but I also felt embarrassed, so I just said, “Thank you” and “It’s okay.” Kawashima-san also came to give her condolences.

“I was worried when I heard from my mother that you called me. Where on earth did you go…?” as she said this, the beautiful flutist looked at me with a puzzled expression. She knows about my relationship with Tounoin, except she stopped short of saying anything out loud.

I took the initiative, “Yes, actually, I’m staying at Tounoin-san’s right now,” Ishida-san knew about it, anyway. I added firmly, “In a clean and respectable way, as a housemate.”

Kawashima ran her white fingers through her pretty hair, “So are you still following the trend?”

“Of course not! I’m not gay!” 

Kawashima-san cut me off, chuckling, “I’m sorry, I have to admit I have a little grudge against you, so I felt like teasing.” It was a one-way love triangle between me, Kawashima-san and Tounoin. I was in love with Kawashima-san, she fell in love with Tounoin at first sight, and Tounoin fell in love with me… then I was dumped by Kawashima-san, she was rejected by Tounoin, and of course I have no intention of becoming a lover to a man. But it was a joking manner of resentment. After all, she’s the one that keeps trying to get me and Tounoin together. She seems to think homosexual couples are ‘trendy,’ but you know… a man and a man bedding together is just an awful sight. 

That evening we were supposed to be finishing up Finlandia, which we’ve been working on since last month… I took a break, and hadn’t touched my violin for a week. I looked at Igarashi-kun, the student cellist, and thought, ‘Well… let's see.’ I clapped my hands to get his attention. “Since everybody seems to be ready, can we try playing the part together? Strings, let’s do all the strings together and all the winds together. Timpani, please join the winds. Kaizuka-san, please take the lead of the wind section.” 

The principal oboe raised her hand to gather the other winds, and I joined the string group, taking advantage of the rattling and rearranging. “Ichiyama-san,” I called the second violin leader. “I’m sorry, but I need you to be the leader today.”

“But Concertmaster, why are you stepping down?”

“I haven’t played for a week, so my fingers are completely rusty. I want to get back in shape before Tounoin-san gets here. Sorry to be so selfish.” Ichiyama, who was an accounting manager of a construction company in the next town, nodded seriously. 

“I heard you were sick in bed with a cold. How are you feeling now?”

“Better, thanks.”

Igarashi-kun smiled at me as I joined the circle. He was especially happy, but everyone was already tired of practicing the monotonous long notes. The winds began to play and Ichiyama-san frowned. “I can’t hear very well,” he said. For the next forty minutes, until eight o’clock, we concentrated on uniting the string section.

“Stop, stop! We have to listen to each other more. If the string parts are not played like a single instrument, it will be more disjointed when we put it together with the winds. Then, let’s take it from bar 32.” The group with the timpani added to the woodwinds and brass seemed to be working hard to create the right harmony, playing and stopping. Playing and stopping. I had been able to instruct them on the right way to practice.

“Sorry,” said Nico-Chan, scratching his head. Ishida-san, who held the title of ‘Fujimi Citizen’s Symphony Orchestra Caretaker,’ had been sentenced by his wife to have his instrument taken away when he almost destroyed his main business, Mozart coffee shop, because he was so devoted to Fujimi. As a relief measure for the situation when we lost our bass player, we won her pardon so he could return to playing after almost ten years of being benched. He couldn’t help that he couldn’t produce a solid sound, but Ichiyama-san had been a friend of Ishida-san’s since the formation of Fujimi, and therefore had a relationship that allowed them to complain freely. Ishida-san apologized and tried his best to meet the order of playing ‘crisply’ in a serious manner. This was one of the things I liked about Fujimi, how in the family-like atmosphere warnings and advice were exchanged very naturally. We were all getting better together while having fun.

“Morimura-chan,” Ichiyama-san’s voice made me turn around. “You’ve got a lot of tension in your shoulders.”

“Oh, yes,” I lowered my violin and did some exercise with my shoulders. I’m getting really stiff.

“So, let’s start at measure forty-eight,” It’s really wonderful to have such colleagues, I thought. Oh, I’m in tune… yes, it’s going well. Eventually, at exactly the right time, Tounoin walked through the door after his five-minute observation and climbed up on the podium. I wondered where he had gone off to; I had thought he was going to be there for the earlier part of the rehearsal since he came over with me. Then I realized something: could it be that he did it for me? I didn’t mind at all, but it's true that I didn’t want it to be obvious that we had come to rehearsal together. 

—

I was packing up to leave after Tounoin’s usual, ‘We’re done’ when Igarashi-kun came up to me, looking like he wanted to talk. 

“So I heard that you were laid up for a while,” Igarashi is a current student in the cello department of the local music university, who started school the same year I graduated. He’s a cute guy who looks up to me for some reason. He’s talented, motivated, and cheerful, and also tends to be the ‘mood-maker’ in Fujimi.

“I caught a cold when I got stuck without a place to stay,” I replied, “But I’m all better now. Why?” I opened the floor for him.

“Actually…” he scratched his head, “The thing is… I’ve been ordered by the orchestra director to transcribe some music. It’s for a program in next month’s school festival, and it’s due tomorrow. I gathered my friends and we worked hard, but we still have a third of the score left to do.”

“Haha… what’s the piece?”

“A symphony composed by Kitagawa, a senior student in the composition department. It’s long and complicated.”

“Then you shouldn’t have come to rehearsal tonight.”

“If I didn’t take a break from it, I’d be dead by now. I’ve been up all night for two days and still haven’t finished.”

“So are you trying to get another cat’s paw?” Igarashi rubbed the back of his head as I talked.

“Sempai, please. I’ll get you midnight snacks and breakfast!” 

Transcribing music is literally copying music, but not the easy way with the photocopier. What Igarashi and his friends were doing was creating parts from the conductor’s score, the music that represents the entire piece. However, for each player in the orchestra the score is inconvenient, since all the notes of the instruments are written in the music, and each page only consists of four to six measures per page, requiring frequent page turns. So for the performers, a part must be made from the score, a transcription of the part from the general score, and it must be done for each instrument; for first violin the first violin part, oboe for the oboe, percussion for percussion. Of course, for major works by popular composers such as Mozart, Beethoven and Toshiro Mutsu, the publishers give you both the score and parts if you buy them (or if there are copyright restrictions, you can rent them for a fee) — or copy them if you can get away with it. However, the ones that Igarashi and his colleagues are working on are by a student composer, with only the original score to work with…

In other words, the only option was to take the score and write out the parts, which I had done many times. The ‘Freude Orchestra’ was formed as a music college club, and had a tradition of playing newly composed pieces by fellow students mixed in with regular concert programming. In Fujimi, whenever I needed to make my own arrangements for missing parts, I was the one to do the transcribing (Nico could do the arranging as well, but as a busy coffee shop owner he usually didn’t have time to do it). So I know firsthand the difficulty Igarashi and the others are facing. 

“Okay, I’ll help you out,” I answered. “Where have you been working on it?”

Igarashi looked relieved, “In my apartment, we only have the string parts left to do.”

“Is it a good piece?”

“It’s not bad. Mayuzumi said it was a great work, but…”

“Hahaha!” I realized that the only people left in the practice room were me, Igarashi and Tounoin, and everything but the chair I was sitting on had been put away. I told the tall conductor, “I’m going to go with Igarashi-kun to help him with some transcribing right now, so please go home first.” He stared at me for a moment and nodded. He quickly left the room. “I’m staying with him for right now, since I haven’t been able to find a reasonable apartment,” I explained.

“Oh…” Igarashi nodded. After that, I felt like he was secretly biting back a laugh, but that was probably my paranoia. “Well, you really saved my life. I was wondering what I would do if Morimura-san refused me.” 

I finally escaped, didn’t I? But while listening to Igarashi’s smiling voice, I was thinking of how Tounoin’s back looked somewhat depressed as he walked away. It’s not a bad feeling to have somebody worry about you, but he’s being overly protective. I’m a full-grown man, I can take care of myself. I don’t need a guardian anymore.

—-

Igarashi’s apartment was on the third floor of a newer reinforced concrete building, just a few blocks from my old place that had burned down. The room, which was about six tatami mats with a kitchen, was fairly clean, and two exhausted-looking coworkers were waiting for Igarashi to return with his helper.  The windows were open and the air was a bit stuffy, but there was no fan running. A pile of staff paper scattered about the room was the reason why they couldn’t have any inadvertent breeze.

“This is Kikuchi on clarinet and Oyama on piano.” Kikuchi was a small man with pouty lips that looked like the type of person who would play clarinet. Both of them were dressed in running shirts and pants, and their eyes were red, their faces full of stubble and fatigue.

“I’m Morimura. How many more pages do you have to do?” The symphony, titled Yuguna, is a large work with a performance time of fifty minutes, filled with waves of sixteenth notes mixed with thirty-second notes in modulation after modulation, a characteristic of modern music. I could tell from a glance of the score that it was a difficult piece. However, I could see a glimpse of talent in the unique melodic quality of the phrases, which was probably why it was chosen as the piece for the Freude Orchestra’s regular concert. But...I put my face close to the handwritten copy. Is that a C? Or is it a D?...D apparently… it’s hard to tell.

“It’s hard enough to read, isn’t it?”

“I think you should probably re-write the whole score while you’re at it,” I said, and the atmosphere quieted down. I realized that I had lost my mind. Damn it, these people…

“Well, I guess Kitagawa-kun will conduct, so I’ll just leave it at that.”

 I tried to recover my position, but then one of them said, “Yoshida is the senior in the conducting department, he’s going to conduct it…”

“So…”

“I’ll take care of the conductor’s score.” Igarashi’s face lit up as I said it with a sacrificial look of resignation.

“I’ll do the second violin,” Kikuchi said, “Who’s gonna take cello?”

“I don’t mind doing the cello part,” Oyama said, staring at the copy of the score, “Just the cello.”

“How much time do we have?”

 I flipped through the part, trying to assess how long I thought it would take, when Igarashi said in a small voice, “I promised to have it done by nine o’clock…”

“... in the morning, right?”

“Hahaha, well…”

“So we’ve only got ten hours! What are you waiting for? Staff paper! Pens!” There was no point in transcribing music if you can’t make it accurate and legible. And most of the time, you have to race against the clock.

I started with the first violin part, one of the two that I had been assigned. There is only one conductor’s score, but there are eighteen violins in a full orchestra. Priority was given to the many. I wrote in the note heads as fast as I could, going back and adding the stems after I had written a few measures' worth. Then I wrote the accidentals as needed — oops, it’s in B-flat from here. Damn it, I don’t want anybody to get keystroke from… for moving chords around so much. It’s a six-bar break, not five. Oh, is it natural or sharp? No, it’s natural. Hey, is that an E or an F or… uh… 

“Igarashi-kun,” I called out to him from halfway across the table, where he was focused on his own work.

Without looking up, Igarashi placed something in front of me. It was dice.

“Is this..?”

“If it’s an even number, it’s E.”

“So you want me to roll the dice to decide which pitch it is? That’s random…” I mumbled, and began to examine the chords to try and draw a conclusion from their spelling.

“Iga, give me the dice,” said Kikuchi, who was behind me using a beer container as a desk. Igarashi tossed him the dice.

“I need them too,” said Oyama, who was also using a makeshift desk next to me.

“What, you’re all doing it that way? You’re lousy transcribers, aren’t you?”

Kikuchi muttered to me as he rolled the dice for Oyama, “I’m sure Morimura-san will figure out why soon enough.”

I knew that if I had to guess and interpret every chord, I would never make the deadline in time. Damn it, if it’s difficult, it’s probably a great piece. I don’t get this music at all! I started working on it about ten o’clock, and it was past midnight when I finished the violin part with the measure numbers written in. I skipped checking the music at this point and started transcribing the whole score. If there were any mistakes, they could find them in rehearsal and if not, then it’ll be what it is. After all, I had to finish this thick book of sheet music by eight o’clock at the latest… But let’s be real, this is impossible! It’s physically not possible to do in seven hours what it would take three people like Igarashi and his team two days and nights to do. But we had to get whatever we could done. As I wrote the names of the parts on the second sheet of the score, I called out to Igarashi, “The piano parts are done. I can’t finish the score by nine o’clock, but I’ll do as much as possible.”

“You’ve finished the violin part already?”

“Really? Wow, that’s fast!” Igarashi picked up the completed part. “I can’t believe this is handwritten! Morimura-san, you could make a living as a transcriber!”

“What? Which one? Wow, that’s great.”

“That’s true, the first violinists are lucky.”

“Ah…” I didn’t have time to be happy even if they praised me. Okay, brass is done. Next is…. but it’s so hot, even with the windows open, because there’s no breeze coming in. The rest of them were wearing only their underwear; they had told me to take mine off too, and I would feel better. So I took my shirt off, though I wasn’t wearing underwear so I was only naked on top, but it’s only guys here anyway. 

I was writing out the harp section on page 43 when I heard, “Oh, it’s finally done!” Oyama exhaled a deep breath and suddenly fell back onto the tatami floor. “It’s already four o’clock and I’m starving,” he said and rummaged through the bag from the convenience store that was left there.

“There’s a ramen if you want it,” replied Igarashi, still moving his pen.

“If you make it for me, I’ll eat it.”

“What about you, Morimura-san?” He asked me. I was about to answer ‘no’ when I remembered that I had skipped dinner, and I was almost at the limit of my energy with my stiff shoulders.

“I’ll eat. I missed dinner.”

“So you want me to make two?”

“No, just one.” I quickly sipped the cup of ramen while reading the rest of the score, and returned to my writing. As I started the fiftieth page, Kikuchi announced that he was done with his work. As soon as he finished his ramen, he flopped down beside Oyama, who had fallen asleep, and he did the same.

“So depressed that they’re done already,” muttered Igarashi. Oyama was snoring, Kikuchi had a peaceful sleeping breath, and the sound of Igarashi and my pens running on the paper… the smell of ramen and the sweat of tired young people… I noticed a cool breeze coming through the window, and when I raised my eyes it was light outside. I breathed in the brief freshness that comes between the tropical night and a hot day. Now only a hundred pages to go.

When Igarashi packed his and the other’s finished bunches of parts into paper bags and left the apartment, I was still wrestling with a job that would take another six hours. The sun was on the way up. The hot room was somehow even hotter; sweat dripped from my hair as I bent over the staff paper, so I wrapped a towel around my head. It trickled down my bare chest and armpits, even on the back of my hand. Sweat gushes out in beads no matter how much I wipe it off, making the pen slip in my hand. I took a short break when I had just started the 100th page. In order to reduce the remaining 50 pages as much as possible, I did one more page in the three minutes I was waiting for the cup o’noodles to be ready, but it took me longer than I thought it would, and the ramen turned into udon. 

As I slurped down the bloated noodles, I thought about how I was too good-natured. I felt like an idiot for staying up all night on a job that has nothing to do with me or Fujimi… speaking of which, I wonder if Tounoin was worried about me. But at this hour, it would be an imposition to make a phone call, and I don’t even know his phone number in the first place… well, it should be ok, I already mentioned that I was doing the transcription, and he should know that it’s a time-consuming job. I finished the soup, drank two glasses of Aquarius to rehydrate myself, and took up the pen to resume work. Ahh, my hands hurt, my eyes are tired… but if I rested now, I wouldn’t be able to finish the job. Give me strength… I wrote the last symbol on the last page, and the long, long job was done. Eighteen hours of work! My fingers were so stiff they creaked when I tried to put the pen down. I took off my glasses, which felt like they were burrowing into my nostrils, and placed them on top of the finished score. I was tired~

Igarashi and his friends had not returned yet. Come to think of it, he said he had rehearsal in the evening. It’s hard for the underclassmen when they’re overworked by their seniors… I was going to just leave my score behind and go back to Tounoin’s place, but when I laid down to stretch my back — which was stiff as a board — I didn’t want to get up again. I decided to sleep while looking after the house until Igarashi returned. Feeling my tired body falling asleep, I patted myself on the back for a job well done. 

—

I smelled food and drink. The sound of voices, sometimes loud and sometimes guttural. It sounded like I was in the middle of a drinking party. I turned over in my sleep, thinking it was too noisy.

“Oh, Morimura-san, are you awake?” I heard Igarashi’s voice say, and felt him come over to look at me. I pretended to still be asleep. They were probably celebrating being done with the transcription, but right now I wanted to sleep more than drink.

“Morimura-san, we have Oden. Hey, Morimura-san.” I didn’t want it, just let me sleep.

“No, he won’t wake up,” I heard Igarashi say to his friends.

“Ah, well he’s a great person. Did you see the score? He rewrote it down to the last page. I admire him,” Kikuchi replied.

“He’s a very serious person, he never makes mistakes on the violin. He practices like a pro, I bet.”

“And he’s cute, too…” Oyama’s voice said, “I didn’t notice it until I saw him sleeping just now. So amazing.” His speech was slurred, so clearly he was drunk.

“Hey, Oyama, don’t be weird,” Igarashi said with a laugh.

“What do you mean ‘weird’? Beethoven and Karajan had male lovers. Genius lives in homosexuality,” after making this startling counterargument, he seemed to stand up.

“Hey Oyama, sit down,” Igarashi said.

“Hehe, just look at him,” he said, and inwardly I frowned as I felt liquored breath on my face. “The more I look at him, the more attractive he is… so cute. Haha, he has such a beautiful chest… and smooth skin… and perky nipples.”

“Hey if Morimura-san wakes up he’s going to kick your ass!” Kikuchi yelled. Oh, I’ll kick his ass alright.

“Beethoven, Karajan… why are you making up that kind of bullshit?”

“Someday you’re gonna get killed, saying that kind of stuff.”

“It’s not bullshit, and I’m a genius. When I see a guy like this I get so horny… he’s so sexy...” The reason I didn’t take action until the person speaking slammed into me was because I was just too tired to bother moving.

“Whoa!” It wasn’t me who screamed, but Igarashi and Kikuchi. My mouth was blocked by the boozy lips stuck to my face. As I struggled, Oyama gasped and said, “You look so sexy, ahh…” as he groped my chest and stomach.

“You idiot! Stop it! Stop it!”

“Oyama, goddamn it, stop!” The two of them were yelling and trying to pull Oyama off of me. 

I twisted Oyama’s ear, which he grabbed with his struggling hand, then I slapped him as hard as I could in the face.“You perverted son of a bitch!” I shouted and glared at him. 

Oyama looked at me soberly, “This… you! You hit me! I’ll fuck you up!!”

“Oyama! That’s enough!”

“I’m sorry Morimura-san, so sorry!”

“Dammit, let me have a shot at him!” Oyama yelled, and still tried to grab at me while being pinned down by Igarashi and Kikuchi. I almost punched him, but I thought twice about it when I noticed a poster of some chamber music group on the wall behind Oyama. That’s right, I’m a violinist, and my hands are my most important tool. I looked around and saw a bottle of wine. I grabbed it in my other hand and swung it over Oyama’s head; he thought I was going to crack his skull, and Igarashi held up his hands in surprise. But what I threw at his head was… alcohol. After I emptied the contents of the bottle on Oyama’s head, I threw the bottle down.

“There, I’ve cooled you down a bit, asshole!” I spat at him between my clenched teeth. I glanced at the three rigid men and put on the clothes I had taken off. Damn it, if I had known I’d get mixed up in something like this, I wouldn’t have agreed to do anything. I stepped into my sneakers and opened the door.

“Oh, Morimura-san, please wait!” Igarashi dashed after me, but I ignored him. “Sorry, I’m so sorry! I’m really sorry this happened after you helped me so much. I’m sorry!” Igarashi was crying. “When he gets drunk he turns into a monster, but he usually doesn’t do that sort of thing! I’ve never seen him do anything like that before.”

“So are you saying it’s my fault?” Igarashi fell silent for a moment when I sprayed him with the cold anger that was inside me. I looked at him sideways. Igarashi followed me and wept with a crumpled face. I sighed and stopped. “...I know it’s not your fault. I can’t tell you not to worry about it, though.”

“I’m sorry…!” Igarashi squeaked out and sobbed. “Oh I… I can’t go to Fujimi anymore.”

“...are you saying you’re going to make the cello section vacant?”

“No, because I…”

It came out of nowhere. The blood that had been frozen in the pit of my stomach shot up to my head and I yelled as loud as I could, “Don’t be stupid! Don’t you dare waste that shit score I just transcribed for you! And now I’m repaid by getting teased by a drunk and being told that our only cello is quitting? Do you think I’m an idiot?”

Igarashi’s eyes darted as he looked up at me, mumbling, “I’m sorry...I’m sorry…”

“It’s all right, as long as you understand,” I said, and walked away. I thought how the tone of voice I used was like Tounoin’s. Come to think of it, Tounoin… is he worried? It was already night again, and I had left my watch in Igarashi’s apartment, but it was too late to go back. I hurried through the humid night, passing by the convenience store near the apartment. Remembering that I was hungry, I turned around. No, wait, I don’t have any money.  But I went ahead and took a peek at the clock at the cash register before I turned the corner again; just before one o’clock… ‘I wonder if Tounoin is asleep,’ I thought, and then I realized: I don’t have my keys. I still haven’t made another spare since I lost the last one, and the last time I left the apartment I was with Tounoin, so I didn’t realize that I would need it. I’m in trouble… guess I’ll have to camp outside of the door again…

I knocked several times, but there was no answer and the door didn’t open. I twisted the knob, hoping that it would work — the door was unlocked. It was dark in the cool, air-conditioned room, and Tounoin seemed to have fallen asleep. Feeling like a curfew-breaking teenager, I stealthily took off my shoes and entered the room, trying to dampen the sound of my footsteps. Tounoin was in the bed, asleep. I slipped my violin case on the shelf and walked quietly to open the door of the cabin without making any noise. I took a quick shower (the hot water needs some time to come out, but I didn’t want to wake up Tounoin), changed into my pajamas, and crept into the kitchen to get at least a piece of bread. I found a sandwich from the convenience store sitting on the table, a box of cup soup, a cup and a pot of hot water. As I took a bite, my heart was filled with a sincere feeling. ‘You’re a good guy, Tounoin…’ as my rumbling stomach settled down, I was ready to forget about what stupid Oyama had done to me, that damn drunk. I turned off the lights in the cabin and snuck back into the main room. I slipped into the space Tounoin had left open for me, and breathed a sigh of relief.

I heard a half-asleep voice say, “Oh… you’re back…”

“Yeah,” I replied.

“Did you finish the transcription?”

“It was an all-nighter, eighteen hours of work.”

“...are you okay?”

“Yeah, I just want to go to sleep.”

“Good night.”

“Good night,” I said, and I fell asleep right away… around what seemed to be dawn I woke up because it was cold, but it was too much effort to get up and turn off the air conditioner, so I chose to huddle closer to the warmth that was near me. It was so warm… Tounoin seemed to notice and hugged my shoulder, but I was already drifting back to sleep so I didn’t know, and didn’t care. I’m not sure if it’s because I trusted that I would be safe with Tounoin, or because I believed he was different from Oyama and that narcissistic, violent homosexual Yasaka. 

—

The next day was super, as if all the bad luck I had been having was turned upside-down. It was literally my lucky day. First of all, the manager of the bank came to visit me with a gift. He told me that due to a computer processing error, my salary — which should have been deposited into my account — had been transferred to another customer’s account. The manager bowed his grasshopper-like bald head and said, “Please keep this matter to yourself.” He left me a noshi envelope with a greeting card and a brush writing on it. Inside was two months of my salary. I showed it to Tounoin.

“This is how much they gave.” 

He sniffed in frustration, “I’m not sure if that is adequate compensation for their part in causing these difficulties.”

“Well, yes, but it’s all over now…”

“If that’s what you want, then it’s not my place to tell you otherwise.”

“But I feel bad, you know… crashing in front of your apartment and all…”

“I was happy to do it,” Tounoin said, turning away from me with a sigh. I remembered that I needed to find a new apartment as soon as possible; I felt bad staying here forever. 

The second lucky break came at a real estate agency in a neighboring town, where I went separately from Tounoin.

“There’s a one-bedroom and bath for 40,000 yen, a three-year old condo on the 6th floor.”

“In Fujimi-cho?” I was about to jump for it without question, but the old owner’s eyes flashed behind his glasses.

“To be honest, it’s been hard to keep occupied. Since this past April, three people have already left within a month of each other.”

“No way… did somebody just move out again?” The realtor shook his head in disbelief. 

“The person in the apartment above play music loudly at all hours of the night and day. But you can’t complain about it, because it’s occupied by the landlord’s son, so you know…”

What? Could that be…? “Is it a tall apartment building down the corner from a convenience store…?”

“Oh, do you know it? It belongs to the bank president, so the facilities are top-notch, but just that one room on the 6th floor has been vacant since June. The floor is the only part that isn’t soundproof, and nobody could stand the ‘noise’ coming from the ceiling. So the rent has been discounted by 80,000 yen.”

“How big is it?” The realtor gave me a look like I shouldn’t ask, but told me that it was a Japanese-style eight-tatami-mat room with a four-and-a-half-tatami dining and kitchen. It also had AC and heating. “I’ll take it,” I said. “40,000 for a one bedroom with bath, AC and background music is too good to be true, I’d even put up with a ghost or two.”

“Well, if you say so…” the agent pulled out a contract with a face that said ‘Don’t come crying to me later.’ The name on the rental contract was ‘Inmitsu Tounoin.’ I thought of an old gentleman with gray hair, but if he was Tounoin’s father he couldn’t be that old. Rent can be paid via bank transfer; so, he’s the son of a banker, I knew he wasn’t a commoner. I’ve got three months’ deposit and money for the key, plus rent for this month and next month thanks to the ‘condolences’ money from the bank —but that’s a small price to pay for luck. “Ah, also I’d like you to get a guarantor.” The agent pointed to a blank space on the contract, “Here’s where your name and address are, please put your seal here.”

“Is it okay if I bring it back in a couple of days?”

“Yes, that’s fine. Here’s the address. Oh, right, you know where it is, don’t you? Now, the key.”

I took the key and asked, “Which bank president is the landlord?”

“Fujimi Bank, sir?” He looked at me like he couldn’t possibly not know the president of a long-established bank in this area. 

“Oh… and that’s located in…”

“It’s in Seijo. But I’m the property manager. If you need anything, don’t hesitate to ask me.” It seems that I wouldn’t have a chance to cross paths with Tounoin’s father; I was a little curious what kind of person he is. On my way home, I stopped by Ishida-san’s Mozart. 

“Oh, in Tounoin’s building?” He smiled and said, “Well, I’m glad you found a nice place.” He smiled and said, “Since you found an apartment…” he pulled out a cardboard box from under the counter. It was full of sheets, towels, tea bowls, cups, pots and pans… “Kawashima-san is indeed a solid office worker. She made a ‘list of items needed to reconstruct a house’ rather than just gathering donation money, asked people to give their unused items from their houses, and it turned out to be enough for a whole house. That was the idea.”

“She’s going to make a great wife, I’m sure.” She knew that I’d mind if it was money, so she collected practical items. The fish that gets away is always big… “Um, so, could I get some coffee vouchers?”

“You don’t have to give anything back in return.”

“Yes, but I want to give something to Tounoin-san.”

“Oh, I see. So you want some coffee coupons?”

“It’s practical, isn’t it? Please, I’ll take three books of ten vouchers.” Ishida-san smiled a little apologetically; I’m sure that he knows I’m buying them as a way to repay him for the money he gave me when he visited.

“By the way, I’d like to talk to you about something,” Ishida-san stepped up to the counter, changing from owner of Mozart to that of Fujimi caretaker, “For our next piece, why don’t we do Mendelssohn’s Violin Concerto?”

“A violin concerto?” 

Ishida-san looked around quickly and whispered with conspiratorial enthusiasm, “I got the hall reserved at the Civic Center. There was a cancellation for Sunday, November 27th.”

“So… would it be a regular concert?”

“Not anymore, it would be a proper concert.”

“Oh, are you sure we have enough time to prepare?” Ishida-san nodded smugly as I was leaning over the counter.

“I was thinking that we should do it this year, now that we have Tounoin-san with us. I really wanted to do it after New Year’s, but I heard that the hall would be under renovation from January to May. I happened across that cancellation, so I jumped at the chance even though I was a bit busy.”

“Yes, I’ll do it, I’ll do it.”

“So I thought I’d like to include the Mendelssohn.”

“That sounds great! But… what about the soloist?”

“There’s already one,” Ishida-san pointed at me.

“Me…? I’ll be the soloist?”

“Icchan agrees.” Come on…

“But we’ve never done a piece with a solo before…”

“So that’s why we should do it. It’s good for us to do one once and awhile.”

“But then what about the first violins…”

“We have Goto-chan, Miyake-chan, Kijima-san, Nitta-san, Yoshiko Suzuki-san, Hirota-san… why don’t you ask Haruyama-san to join from the seconds?”

“Then the second violins would be Ichiyama-san, Higashi-san, Hirai-san…”

“Seven people would be enough, right?”

“Yes, in terms of just numbers…” but when it came to balance of competence...

The door chime rang and a group of housewives walked in, and Ishida-san turned to welcome them and prepare some glasses of water. “Well, you should think about it, and discuss it with Tounoin-kun.”

“Yes, I’ve always wanted to do a concerto, but…”

“All the strings were saying that they wanted Morimura-chan to do a solo.”

“Hah...haha.”

—-

On my way home my feet were skipping lightly. ‘We can have a concert, we can have a concert. For the first time in two years, Fujimi can have a concert!’ I ran around the corner, bounded up the stairs and opened the door with my freshly made spare key. The sound of the Brandenburg Concerto hit me, but I was deaf to it today.

“Tounoin! Tounoin! I slid down on my knees in front of him, where he was sitting cross-legged in his usual spot. “We’re having a concert! November 27th!”

Tounoin made a gesture of ‘I can’t hear you, please wait’ and went to stop the music. As soon as the sound stopped, I repeated myself, “A concert has been scheduled! Sunday, November 27th, Shimin Kaikan Hall! Ishida-san was able to get a date because of a cancellation, and asked me if I wanted to play the Mendelssohn Violin Concerto!”

Tounoin looked at me from in front of the console, and I realized that I was very excited in contrast to his calm demeanor. My face flushed. “No, but do you know, it’s been two years since we had a concert.”

“November?” Said Tounoin in a cold voice.

“I know it’s soon, so it’s going to be hard, but it’s at the end of the month… so it’s about three months away, right?

Tounoin’s complexion softened, “It depends on how we do it. I don’t mind.”

“Really? Great…! So…” he glanced at the envelope in my hand.

“Oh, did you get something?”

“I was kind of lucky today, I found an apartment as well.” I pulled the contract out of the envelope, and when I was about to show it to him, I noticed the look in his eyes was somewhat complicated. At once I felt something flutter in my stomach; it was the first time I felt that. “It wasn’t a bad idea to crash here, but it was an emergency situation for both of us. Anyway, the place I got is cheap, well-equipped, and convenient. I’ve already signed the contract.”

“That’s good to hear,” said Tounoin with a deep sigh. If I remained here, it would only cause more suffering… the word ‘Love’ is very similar to the word ‘Strange’...

“Well, actually, I do need a guarantor,” I opened the contract and placed it in front of him. “Would you mind?”

“Yeah, well that’s already...” he said as he picked up the contract with a hand that was trying not to show his reluctance… I froze. I wasn’t sure if this was a good idea or not, his normally cool, long eyes were round.

“Not bad, huh?” I asked. Tounoin secretly panicked and turned his head, pretending to read the contract. 

“...It’s okay, I guess. How much is it?”

“40,000. But it’s only a minute’s walk to the civic center. I think it’s great. Now, why don’t you say something?”

With his head down, Tounoin patted various pockets. Then, “I’ll go get a pen,” he said.

“I’ll also need your seal,” I said, starting to stand up.

“Please stay here,” Tounoin said, “...I’m afraid I’m going to have to hug you.” Then he ran off into the cabin. I laughed, I couldn’t believe that the man who sells himself on his pride and arrogance lost his nerve like that. Just because I happened to get an apartment in the same building as his, that’s all. Then I felt a stinging pain in my heart at the thought. I got up and went into the cabin, but when I saw Tounoin’s back at the kitchen table, I didn’t know what to say. I didn’t have the right to ask him if he wanted to continue being a snake charmer for the rest of our lives, and it’s hypocritical for me to consider his feelings when I made the decision that I wanted to be his friend and nothing more… I pulled another envelope out of my pocket and approached his back.

I was spoiled by his kindness, but that together with when he agreed to give up on pursuing me, for the time being made us even. “And also this. I don’t know if I can thank you enough, but I mean, I feel…” I put the envelope over his shoulder on the table. 

He opened it as delicately as if it were a sparrow’s tapestry and froze again, but this time he got over it in an instant. “Thank you, I’ll treat you to Mozart’s coffee for the time being.” He turned around and had put on his poker face… ha, he’s not good at accepting this.

“Yeah, I’m sure we’ll be over there to talk about everything until the performance.” Here as well.

“‘I’ll never go out with you for coffee or dinner,’' He said with a smile, reminding me of what I had told him. After all, this was the game between us. I want to make sure that we are friends, and Tounoin wants to develop into lovers. But I won’t be the one to lose.

—-

I woke up in the middle of the night after being kicked twice. The next morning, while Tounoin was making coffee and I was cooking bacon and eggs, I mentioned it to him.

“Well, you stole the blanket twice and gave me an uppercut,” he replied.

“I think even a double bed is too small for two men.”

When I glared at him, he said, “Well, it’s big enough if you’re embracing each other,” and laughed… that was the first time I ever heard Tounoin laugh out loud. The kitchen here is nice and bright. For the one in my apartment, it remains to be seen.

[yellowcanna]

Summer Sleet

Summary:

When Kamado Tanjirou first saw him, he was mesmerized. The young boy had never met anyone as beautiful as Tomioka Giyuu. Ink black hair with skin as white as the snow around him and eyes that reminded Tanjirou of the sea...he was the Omega of every Alpha's dream.

When Tanjirou's family was slaughtered at fifteen, he never expected to be pulled from the mundane life of a human and into the world of Alphas and Omegas. He also never expected that he only has five more years to live, much less falling in love with his mentor.

Rating: T

Genre: Yaoi, Fluff, Comfort, Omegaverse

Pairing: Tan

Author: Yellow_Canna

Chapters: 1/3

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CHAPTER 1

SPRING SHOWER

When Kamado Tanjirou first saw him, he was mesmerized.

The young boy had never met anyone as beautiful as Tomioka Giyuu.

Ink black hair with skin as white as the snow around him and eyes that reminded Tanjirou of the sea…

He was the Omega of every Alpha's dream.

Tanjirou was fifteen when his family was slaughtered.

It was a bright and sunny day when Tanjirou descended the mountain to sell coals to the villagers. By the time he had returned, his family’s bodies had gone cold and the house bathed by the blood of his mother and siblings.

The only survivor was his sister, Nezuko. Tanjirou found her safely tucked in bed with bandages wrapped over her body and an elderly man wearing a tengu mask sitting by her side.

That was the first time he met Urokodaki Sakonji.

Urokodaki was a samurai wandering the land. He was just passing by the mountain when he encountered his family being attacked by bandits. Although he had swiftly dealt with them, he was still too late and Nezuko was the only one that survived.

Tanjirou never saw the bodies of the bandits.

Urokodaki had disposed of them, but he didn’t touch Tanjirou’s family out of respect. When Tanjirou began digging holes to bury his family, the elderly man helped. It was then that Tanjirou saw just how strong the man was. Despite his age, he could carry weight twice as heavy as his own body and was overall just way more efficient than him.

The man stayed with them for a week before he needed to continue his journey.

On that day, he turned to Tanjirou.

“Your father was an Alpha?” He asked. Although it was a question, his tone was certain.

“Alpha?” Tanjirou shared a look with Nezuko. Neither of them had any idea what the man was talking about.

“If you want to live, go to Sagiri mountain, boy," Urokodaki told him as he put on his straw hat. “Your time is running out.”

Tanjirou wanted to ask what the man meant, but in a blink of an eye, the elderly man vanished as if he was never even there. The two siblings were dumbfounded. They had no idea what had happened…how was it possible for a person to disappear like that? But the deep footprint within the snow reminded them that their eyes weren't playing tricks on them. 

A grown man had disappeared before their eyes.

With nowhere to go and no idea what to do, Tanjirou and Nezuko decided to go to Mt. Sagiri. They could no longer stay in the home they grew up in. There was no telling if there were more of those bandits that might come looking for their missing companion.

They had to leave.

Taking what little valuables they had, the two siblings set off on their journey.

The trip to Sagiri mountain was long, especially with Nezuko was still recovering from her injuries

When they arrived at the foot of the mountain, Tanjirou saw him—Tomioka Giyuu.

The man was standing in the field of white snow with his raven hair tied into a low ponytail. His split coloured yukata was blowing wildly in the chilling wind. Despite dressing so less, the man didn’t seem cold at all.

Those blue eyes were trained on Tanjirou for the longest time before his fine brows furrowed.

“How old are you?” His voice was smooth and the sound made something inside Tanjirou trembled lightly.

“I’m fifteen.”

“Fifteen.” The man muttered, more to himself than to the two children.

“Um, we were sent here by Urokodaki-san—”

“Come with me.” The man didn’t wait for him to finish. He turned his back to the two kids before he took off. Gasping, Tanjirou and Nezuko hurried after the man.

Fast wasn’t something Tanjirou could describe the man’s movement. Each one of his footprints within the snow was at least two meters apart. He was like a snow hare, hopping gracefully through the snowy field. It didn’t take long for him to vanish from their sight. The only clues they had were the light footprints embedded within the snow.

It didn’t take long for Nezuko to reach her limit, so Tanjirou stopped to carry her onto his back before he trailed after the footprints and the light scent in the air.

By the time they arrived at the mountain top, Tanjirou was completely out of breathe. The thin air at the mountain top also did nothing to help the burning in his lungs. Nevertheless, he stared in awe at the huge manor before him with the blue-eyed man standing by the gate with a bunch of people dressed in black kimono lined up behind him.

"Take them in and organize a place for them to stay." The raven-haired man who was apparently the master of the place ordered before he vanished in a similar fashion that Urokodaki had. While the Kamado siblings were once more stunned, the people in black were not and escorted them into the manor.

That was how Tanjirou truly began his life.

Not the life of a child of a coal family, but the life of an Alpha.

The world they live in is populated by beings known as humans.

Within humans, there were only two categories.

Males and females.

These two were the dominant races, but in reality, there were three more types.

The first two were Alpha and Omega.

They have the appearance and forms of humans, but that was it. Alphas and Omegas have heightened senses far surpasses any humans. They can run faster than the eye could follow, they have the power to crush a boulder with their bare fist, and they can channel a special power inside their body, manifesting them during combat.

Alphas and Omegas were natural-born warriors with an average lifespan of three hundred years.

The two are completely identical in everything other than the fact that Omegas can give birth to children.

Lastly, there was Beta.

Betas are the offspring of when an Alpha or Omega marries an ordinary human. Betas were all born powerless. They were pretty much the same as humans, other than the fact that their body was still stronger than humans and their lifespan was as long as the same as the other two dynamics.

A long time ago, Alphas and Omegas were the dominant species in the land.

Humans were the lesser species that these powerful creatures never bat an eye at, as they weren't even worthy of their time. However, as Alpha and Omega strive for power and control, war eventually broke out.

The war lasted years, coming to an end with nearly all the Alphas and Omegas wiped out. Since then, the survivors lived out rather peaceful lives in secret—blending within the humans whose numbers began to flourish.

Nowadays, not many people know about Alphas and Omegas anymore. The only ones that knew were those with long family histories passed down to them. Even so, their existence was considered a myth.

Though there are still those who believed in such myths—the feudal lords being the perfect example.

In these war-ridden times, Alphas and Omegas were the perfect weapons to be used on their enemy. A single one of them could take down thousands of soldiers. Even bullets were useless against them with their superior speed and sturdy bodies. Just a single one of them can easily take down an entire castle. That was why the feudal lords that believed in the existence of Alphas and Omegas searched through the land for them.

Unfortunately for these feudal lords, their searches were bound to be fruitless.

Alpha and Omegas have known to hidden themselves quite well, and even if they were to be discovered, they can easily wipe out an entire army. The chance for the feudal lords to control them was zero from the very beginning.

On top of that, Alphas and Omegas have established their own organization and connections across the land.

There was no name to their organization, so they just called it the Corps.

The Corps was controlled by a single master whom everyone referred to as Oyakata-sama. Beneath the master were the nine leaders—the Hashiras. Each of these Hashiras was stationed at a certain part in the land of the rising sun, governing the region they've been assigned to.

Tomioka Giyuu was one of those Hashiras.

Under these Hashiras were ordinary Alphas and Omegas warriors, sorted into ranks from their strength. And under them were the Kakushis. The Kakushis were Betas that wish to become part of the Corps and have important tasks of serving under each Hashira and managing their households.

Though many Alphas and Omegas seemingly have gathered together, there were still many lost somewhere within the land, their origin and identities long forgotten.

Kamado Tanjirou found that he was one of those lost ones.

He was an Alpha, while Nezuko was a Beta.

To give birth to an Alpha and Beta, one of the parents must be an ordinary human and the other either an Alpha or Omega. Tanjirou’s mother was a human for certain. If she had been an Omega, there was no way she could have been killed by humans—which meant that his father was an Alpha.

Within Alphas and Omegas, there was also something else separates them from Beta and humans.

That is the growth spurt.

Due to their longer lifespan, Alphas and Omegas mature at twenty. The moment they’ve reached thirteen years old, their body stopped growing. During these years where their growth stopped, their bodies were quietly gathering and storing energy. On the day they turn twenty, this energy will burst out, reshaping the Alpha and Omega and they will experience excruciating pain.

Their flesh and bones will stretch and reshape, forcing them to turn into the bodies of an adult over one night.

This was usually a very safe process as Alphas and Omegas were born with strong bodies and have undergone intense training throughout the years to prepare them for the growth spurt.

Unfortunately, the same cannot be said for Alphas and Omegas that had no clues about their identities. If left alone, their body wouldn't be able to handle the pressure of the change and they will die. Even if they were strong enough to survive thanks to their strong bloodline, they will become nothing but sick ridden adults more vulnerable to diseases than humans.

Tanjirou and Nezuko’s father was the perfect example of that.

Tanjirou only has five years to strengthen his body. If he didn’t make it in time, he will die or become just like his father.

◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌

The first time Tomioka Giyuu met Kamado Tanjirou, he didn’t know what to think.

When he had received a message from his mentor about an Alpha he found, he was expecting a child no older than ten.

He was most definitely not expecting a fifteen years old boy.

His first impression of the red-haired boy was less than good. He was weak—too weak. He lacked the physical strength an Alpha should have, and he even lacked the senses an Alpha should possess. His sense of smell was the only thing that remained from his Alpha bloodline.

The boy’s body wasn’t getting the necessary nutrient it needed, so to preserve energy, his body limited many functions he should have had.

The first thing Giyuu did was to write out a training manual. He needed to improve the boy's health as fast as he can. The boy didn't have much time left. Giyuu sent his orders to the Kakushis to make sure that Tanjirou finishes all the meals he’ll be given. Every single day, he could personally train the boy and tried to teach him their breathing techniques that all Alphas and Omegas should be capable of.

However, all of these were fruitless.

The boy’s stomach was only so big and can only shove down so many foods. With his body restraining his potentials, he can never get stronger no matter how much Giyuu trained him. His lungs couldn’t expand enough for him to perform any breathing techniques.

A month down, all Giyuu managed to do was beat the boy black and blue and caused him stomach aches. Tanjirou never complained or whined, but that did not mean that Giyuu didn’t feel the guilt.

The Water Hashira wondered if he was a bad teacher.

What exactly was he supposed to do?

Giyuu didn't know, as he had never taught children before. He had only trained full-grown adults that already knew breathing techniques. All he taught them was swordsmanship and that was still too early for Tanjirou.

Until he figures it out, Giyuu had Tanjirou rest for a couple of days to nurse his bruises. Even the boy's healing speed was slower than his sister. 

As Giyuu was sitting in his room pondering over what he should do, his eyes landed on a stack of letters on his shelves. After the Hashira took Tanjirou in, it was his duty to report to the master to register Tanjirou’s name. After that, words soon spread throughout the members of the Corps, informing everyone that the Water Hashira has finally taken in a Tsuguko. Naturally, the other Hashiras were the first to be notified.

Many of then sent congratulation letters—even Sanemi and Iguro, though it was obvious that their letters weren't written by them but their subordinates. Although their letters were just simple congratulations out of courtesy, the fact that they could be sent at all means the two Hashiras had approved it.

Giyuu looked through the letters before finding the one he had been looking for.

It was a letter that had been dyed into a sakura pink colour.

The letter from the Love Hashira—Kanroji Mitsuri.

That evening, a Kasugaigarasu flew out of the Water Estate.

The very next morning, Giyuu was welcomed with a cheerful Kanroji and a pissed off Iguro at his doorstep...

The Water Hashira stared, completely stunned as he was not expecting the Love Hashira to respond so fast let alone come all the way here.

“Well? Aren’t you going to let us in, Tomioka?” Iguro spat and narrowed those mismatched eyes to glare at the Water Hashira responsible for this unpleasant trip.

“Yes, yes! Let us meet your Tsuguko, Tomioka-san!” Kanroji gushed, adjusting the large bundle tied to her back.

Giyuu stepped aside to allow the two guests in before closing the door. When the Kakushi working in the yard saw the two Hashiras walking in, they nearly wet themselves and frantically got onto their hands and knees, paying respect to the pair.

“Gotou, find Tanjirou and have him meet us in the guest room," Giyuu ordered the head Beta who bowed and hurried off to search for the Tsuguko.

Giyuu led the two Hashiras into the guestroom and the Kakushis immediately prepared hot tea and snacks for the honorable guests.

“Thank you for coming, Kanroji," Giyuu dipped his head to the Love Hashira.

Next to Kanroji, the Snake Hashira twitched in irritation at being ignored.

“It’s no problem! I’m just happy that you’ve asked me to help!” Kanroji was smiling so brightly that Giyuu found it a little blinding. Not used to dealing with these types of people, all he could do was avoid eye contact. Thankfully, Kanroji didn’t even notice and pink flowers were practically materializing from her joy. “You have no idea how excited everyone was when they heard about your Tsuguko! Even Obanai-san was curious—”

“I wasn’t curious!”

“—about this boy!” Kanroji exclaimed, completely dismissing her mate as she gobbled up some snacks. “So where did you find him, Tomioka-san?”

“I didn’t. Urokodaki-san did.” Giyuu replied. “He came across them after their family was killed by bandits.”

Kanroji gasped, her hands flying to her mouth as sadness flooded over her face.

“Them?” Iguro arched a brow.

“He has a Beta sister.”

“What about their parent?” Kanroji asked. "Surely is one of their parents is an Omega or Alpha—"

"Their father was an Alpha, but he passed away due to illness."

“Illness?” Iguro narrowed his eyes. “Tomioka, don’t tell me your Tsuguko is—”

Iguro shut his mouth as his eyes snapped to the door. A couple of seconds later, a shadow of a person could be seen moving on the other side of the shoji before getting down onto his knees. 

“Tomioka-san, it’s Tanjirou.” The voice of a young boy’s called from the other side.

"Come in," Giyuu said, granting the boy permission of entry.

When the door opened, Kanroji stared with wide eyes at the boy that was revealed.

Tanjirou wasn't informed of their guests and looked a bit stunned.

When he saw Giyuu nodding at him, he shuffled over to Giyuu’s side and sat down with his back completely straight from the intense aura rolling off the Alpha Omega pair.

“This is my Tsuguko, Kamado Tanjirou.” Giyuu said to his two companions before turning to Tanjirou. “This is the Love Hashira, Kanroji, and the Snake Hashira, Iguro.”

“Kanroji-san, Iguro-san.” Tanjirou bowed to each of them.

“Such an adorable boy!” Kanroji swooned after getting over the initial surprise.

The Snake Hashira however, wasn’t so impressed as he turned to Giyuu.

“This kid is at least fourteen.”

“He is fifteen.” Giyuu corrected.

Iguro shot Giyuu a glare before shifting his eyes to Tanjirou who sat stiffly under his hard gaze.

“You should send him back to wherever he came from, Tomioka. Training him will be a waste of time.”

“Obanai-san!”

“He never received any form of training or ate enough to store up energy. There’s no possible way for him to survive the growth spurt.”

“Obanai-san, not in front of the child!” Kanroji reprimanded, but Iguro was done.

“This is a waste of time.” The Snake Hashira said as he stood up and walked towards the door. “I will wait for you at the entrance, Mitsuri.”

The door opened and closed. It only took a second for the Snake Hashira’s presence to vanish from the other two Hashiras’ senses.

Kanroji stared at the door, jaw slack, then to Tanjirou apologetically.

“I’m so sorry, my mate didn’t mean anything bad—”

"It's all right." Tanjirou smiled at the kind lady. “Thank you.”

If anything, Kanroji felt even more awful now. She looked to Giyuu who looked indifferent as usual.

“Tanjirou, leave us," Giyuu said, the coldness in his voice made the Love Hashira shifted nervously as she glanced back to the child. Thankfully, Tanjirou didn’t seem to mind Giyuu’s coldness. He just smiled at Giyuu, giving another bow to Kanroji before he left.

Once he was far enough, Kanroji slowly turned back to Giyuu.

“Tomioka-san, Obanai-san didn't mean anything bad. He just…" Kanroji groaned. “He just didn’t want you to get hurt.”

That’s right.

Iguro was thinking about Giyuu’s sake. Even though Iguro didn’t like Giyuu, he wasn’t the kind of person to sit on the sideline and watch him fall. The boy was doomed to die, so he saw no point in Giyuu investing his time and emotion onto the boy as he will only be hurt later on. It wasn’t that Iguro was being cruel. He felt for the boy, but his fate has already been decided.

Giving both of them hope at this point would just be cruel.

Despite how he acted, Iguro was kind.

“Tanjirou’s body doesn't have enough nutrient, so all his functions as an Alpha has been suppressed. He cannot learn any breathing techniques in his current state. I need some ways to increase his nutrient intake as fast as possible."

“Shinobu-chan might have medicines that can help with that but I don't think those would be enough even if he drinks them every day. He needs all sorts of nutrients and…oh!" Kanroji set down the large baggage she had been carrying this entire time. She the cloth, opening it to reveal countless books. “I brought these for you! When I heard you need advice for your Tsuguko, I had no idea what age he was in so I brought as many books as I can!”

Giyuu looked over the books and found that most of them were those foreign books from beyond the sea. The materials for the covers used were very different from their books and some even had pictures. 

Curious, Giyuu picked one up and found that it was a book for parenting. He looked over to another one and it was a fairy tale for kids. When Giyuu finally found a book he was more familiar with, he picked it up. The book was old and ragged with the page already starting to loosen from the string. Judging from the title, this must be a textbook from some school.

The Water Hashira has no idea where the Love Hashira got all these books, but he was thankful. Although these books may not be useful, she had spent her time gathering them for Tanjirou.

“Aha!” Kanroji gave out a victory shout as she held a book into the air. Giyuu couldn't tell what kind of book it was, but it's a book from Japan. The pink-haired Hashira put the book down and began to flip through the pages.

As she did so, Giyuu finally got a glimpse of the title on the cover and froze.

It was an Omega pregnancy guide.

“Ah, don’t misunderstand, Tomioka-san!” The Love Hashira blushed when she realized how misleading the book might be. “I just thought that if your Tsuguko is a newborn, this could be helpful!”

Giyuu just nodded, not sure what she meant by misunderstand.

“It should be here somewhere…” Kanroji mumbled as she flipped through the pages until…

“I found it!” She squealed and began to read.

Giyuu sat there, patiently waiting for Kanroji to finish reading what she needed.

“This is it!” Kanroji beamed as honeydew green eyes snapped up to him. “We can let Tanjirou-kun drink Omega milk!”

“Omega milk?” Giyuu frowned.

“Yes!” Kanroji turned the book around for Giyuu to read. "Omega milk is the most nutritious thing in this world! Not only that, but the milk also contains energy of the Omega! The stronger the Omega, the more nutrient the milk will have! If Tanjirou drinks Omega milk, then he can gather enough strength for his body to release the limit on his Alpha abilities!

Giyuu frowned as his eyes swiftly scanned over the contents on the page.

“We can ask Oyakata-sama if there are any Omegas that can—”

“How do you produce milk?”

“…Eh?” Kanroji blinked at Giyuu, wondering if she had heard right.

“How do Omegas produce milk?” Giyuu asked once more, looking seriously at Kanroji.

Kanroji stared at Giyuu for a long, long time before her face became extremely red with steam shooting out of her ears.

“Ueeeeh?!”

Giyuu blinked, unable to understand the meaning behind her reaction.

“W-wait, I think I have it somewhere!” Kanroji then began rumbling through the books again.

It can’t be that Giyuu was planning on doing it, right?

She was going to suggest asking the master if there are any Omegas that could send some milk to the Water Estate for the boy to drink!

She didn’t think the Water Hashira would take it that way! But then again, if it was Giyuu, then his milk will no doubt be of the highest quality considering his status as a Hashira…but Giyuu wasn’t mated!

On top of that, Giyuu himself only turned into an adult not that long ago! For such young and unmated Omega to nurture a child so old already…

And it’ll be awkward, wouldn’t it? Even if it’s just in a cup, wouldn’t it be hard for the boy to drink knowing where it came from?

“L-let me see...” Kanroji snatched up another book. This one was a guide to Omegas. She had brought it in case Giyuu’s Tsuguko was an Omega.

"Well…there two ways for Omega to produce milk. The first is through pregnancy, the second is if the Omega has a dependent child that needed to be nursed." She pointed at the last section on the page. "Just rub your scent gland over the Tanjirou-kun’s every day to let your body know that a child needs your care, and you should be able to produce milk!"

“…Thank you.” Giyuu said gratefully as he accepted the book. “Thank you, Kanroji.” He repeated, placing his palms flat on the tatami and bowed down. His action startled Kanroji who quickly grabbed his arm and pulled him back up.

“Don’t be like that, Tomioka-san!” Kanroji shouted frantically while internally, she was practically gushing at how adorable the Water Hashira was. To think the usual cold and aloof Giyuu would behave this way!

All for the sake of his Tsuguko!

This must be the power of love!

“I’m a Hashira too! It’s my job to help everyone! Tanjirou-kun looks like a really sweet boy! If there is anything else you need, call me anytime!”

“Thank you.” Giyuu thanked again.

“Well, I should get going. I don’t want Obanai-san to wait too long.” Kanroji clapped happily, getting up with Giyuu following suit.

Giyuu walked the other Omega to the front door where Iguro was waiting. The Snake Hashira was leaning against the gate with his arms crossed over his chest. The Kakushis there were shaking like the autumn leaves, not knowing what they should do considering how it’ll be rude for them to continue working (or pretend not to see) when a Hashira was in their presence.

The dark-haired Omega was completely oblivious to his Betas’ grateful gazes as Kanroji ran over to her mate. With a few more exchanges of words, the two Hashiras took off with speed no one but Giyuu’s eyes were able to follow.

“Caw!”

Hearing the familiar sound of his crow, Giyuu looked up to see his Kasugaigarasu fluttering down from the sky. The Water Hashira held out an arm for the bird to land. The poor thing was clearly out of breath as it panted heavily with its black feathers ruffled. It was obvious that it flew back the moment it finished delivering the letter.

Compared to the abnormal speed of which Alpha and Omega could run at, the crow had done very well.

Giyuu rewarded the crow with a couple of gentle strokes on its head before ordering the Kakushi to give the bird some food and well-deserved rest.

◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌

Tanjirou was sitting in the garden, staring off into space when he smelled someone approaching. By now, Tanjirou had familiarized himself with everyone's scent, so he could easily tell whose scent this was. He turned and smiled at the sight of a raven-haired man walking up to him.  

“Murata-san!” He greeted brightly.

“Hey there.” Murata greeted back and sat down right beside him with a long sigh.

“You smelled troubled, is everything alright?” Tanjirou asked worriedly.

"That nose is amazing as usual," Murata commented. When Murata had first learned about Tanjirou’s nose, he was shocked. Could anyone blame him though? The boy’s body was supposed to be suppressing his abilities as an Alpha, yet he was still able to have such a good sense of smell.

Every time Murata thought about this, he couldn’t help but wonder who were Tanjirou’s ancestors. Whoever they were, they must be strong considering the strong bloodline running through the boy’s veins.

“Nah, I’m just glad those two Hashiras are gone.” Murata sighed. “I don’t think I can stand it if they start coming by often! Just Tomioka-san is enough to handle, don’t you think?”

“That’s not true!” Tanjirou shouted, leaning right into Murata’s personal space and forcing him to back up. “Tomioka-san is very kind and gentle!”

Murata blinked, staring at Tanjirou with eyes as wide as saucers before he broke out into a loud laugh.

“You’re the only one who can say that with a straight face!” His laugher gradually died and turned into a bitter. He looked over the bandages peeking out from under Tanjirou’s sleeves. He knew how battered the boy’s body was, given that he was there most of the time when Giyuu was whacking him into shape.

“Are your injuries recovering well?”

“Yes! I should be fully recovered in another five days!” Tanjirou answered rather enthusiastically.

“I know that Tomioka-san has been pretty harsh on you." Murata began, seeming to struggle with his wordings. "But he didn't mean anything bad. He's just—"

"I know," Tanjirou said with a soft smile on his lips. “Everything Tomioka-san did was for my sake.”

“As long as you know.” Murata let out a small sigh of relief. "I was afraid you might hate him for it or something."

“I would never hate him!” Tanjirou immediately shouted, causing the smile on Murata’s face to brighten.

The older Omega glanced around the rather empty garden.

“There used to be more of us here you know?”

“Eh?” Tanjirou looked at the older man.

"Alphas and Omegas all lived in packs." Murata sighed once more. "I guess you wouldn't know since this is the first place you've come to, but in other regions governed by other Hashiras, there are usually at least ten Alphas and Omegas living together. Everyone is like a family even if we're not related by blood, so we're called a pack. But here, it's only Tomioka-san and me. It gets quite lonely you know? That's why we're all excited when you came, Tanjirou!”

“Can I ask what happened?” Tanjirou asked.

“There was a huge battle here nine years ago. Both Tomioka-san was thirteen at the time and I was fourteen. Not all Alphas and Omegas joined the Corps. Because many of them grew up with humans, they have these…ambitions of taking over the land or something like that.” Murata kicked a rock under his feet and watched it landed not far from him. He heaved out another heavy breath.

“To those people, the Corps was the only thing standing in their way. Oyakata-sama disagrees with their ideals and is set on stopping them for the sake of Alphas’ and Omegas’ future, so I guess you can say that we have wars with those rouges. They waited until Urokodaki-san left for his annual Hashira to attack us. All the Alpha and Omegas here were children, so we must seem like easy targets…well, in reality, we are."

Murata leaned back on his hands and looked up the sky.

“Everyone fought…but I was…I was too scared. I was born in a Beta village and was found when I was ten. I was weaker than everyone else and had only learned the very first Water Breathe technique. My water was so weak you can’t even see it…”

The young alpha stared at the moisture gathering in the Omega’s eyes, wanting to comfort him but not knowing how. Murata sniffed as he used his sleeve to wipe his eyes.

“I was a coward…I was the only one hiding inside the house hoping Urokodaki-san would hurry back. That’s when Sabito-san suddenly appeared in front of me.”

“Sabito?”

“You know Tomioka-san’s half patterned kimono?”

“Yes.” Tanjirou nodded slowly. It was the first thing he noticed when he noticed on the Omega because it was so unique.

“Tomioka-san’s originally wore a pure maroon coloured kimono. The yellow and green patterned side belonged to Sabito-san’s kimono. Sabito-san was Tomioka-san’s adoptive brother. He was the strongest Alpha I’ve ever met…he was also the Tsuguko—the next in line to take over Urokodaki-san’s position after he retires.”

Tanjirou’s eyes widened at the information.

“Sabito-san handed me Tomioka-san who was unconscious at the time and covered in blood. He looked like he was going to die at any moment. Sabito-san told me to use the underground passage and escape with Tomioka-san. That time I hadn’t known…but everyone else was already dead. He left behind to buy us time to escape. I…”

Murata chewed on his lower lips as his hands rolled into tight fists. “I was useless and scared, so I did as he told without even thinking. Whenever I remember Tomioka-san’s reaction when he woke up and realized how everyone’s gone, I kept wondering what if…what if I hadn’t…”

“Then you and Tomioka-san would have died," Tanjirou told him. “You did nothing wrong, Murata-san.”

“You said the same thing as Tomioka-san.” Murata laughed as he wiped off some more tears. “I always wished Tomioka-san would blame me, but he never did. He still treated me so kindly…I sometimes don’t feel like I deserve it. Back then when everyone was still around, Tomioka-san wasn’t like this. He smiled a lot and even laugh with everyone.”

Tanjirou felt a spike of pain inside him as he heard of how happy and cheerful Giyuu used to be. In all of his time here, he had never seen Giyuu smile.

Not even once.

The Giyuu knew he was extremely strict during training, and while he was kind and gentle outside of it, his face would never betray his thoughts.

Suddenly, Tanjirou realized that he knew nothing about Giyuu.

Everything he thought he knew was just a small droplet in the vast lake.

“Murata-san.” Tanjirou looked up to Murata. “Thank you.”

“What are you thanking me for?” Murata laughed as if Tanjirou had said some weird joke. He was still furiously scrubbing at his face, trying to stop the water from leaking out. 

“Murata-san really likes Tomioka-san, don’t you?”

“Well, he’s my Hashira," Murata mumbled, which made Tanjirou smiled even more.

“Tanjirou.”

“GYAH!” Murata screeched as his body jumped a meter high into the air. The moment he landed on his feet, he scrambled around to come face to face with his Hashira who was staring at him with those usual blank eyes. “T-Tomioka-san!”

Giyuu stared at Murata with a frown weighting down the corner of his lips. “What happened to your eyes?”

“E-eh? Ah, this?” Murata spluttered as he rapidly wiped his eyes until there’s nothing weird leaking out anymore. “Just some sand that got blown into my eyes, isn’t that right, Tanjirou?!”

“Ah?” Tanjirou blinked, looking back and forth between the two Omegas before hastily nodding.

“I see.” Giyuu’s voice was hush, but both of them were able to hear loud and clear. “I will have someone bring some clean water to your room.”

“Oh…um…thank you.” Murata thanked. It took him a couple of seconds to realize that Giyuu meant for him to wash his face and get the filth out. Seriously, why can’t his Hashira be a bit more straightforward with these things?

Tanjirou looked between the two Omegas and smiled at their interactions. But then he remembered how Giyuu had called him when he appeared from seemingly nowhere.

“Is there something you need, Tomioka-san?” Tanjirou asked.

“After you tidy yourself up for the night, come to my room.” That was all Giyuu instructed him before walking away. On the way back to his room, Giyuu called over two Kakushis, handing them a letter addressing to the Butterfly Estate.

That night, after a relaxing hot bath filled and cleaning his teeth, Tanjirou headed to Giyuu’s room. He didn’t need to knock, as the door to Giyuu’s room was wide open. The Water Hashira was sitting on his futon, quietly looking through a book with only the blue moonlight lighting the room. 

“Tomioka-san," Tanjirou called out from the doorway as the man closed the book.

“Come, and close the door.”

Tanjirou did as told. The moment he slid the door close behind him, the light faded away, shrouding the room in dark shadows. The young Alpha could barely make out the outline of Giyuu’s form in the darkness as he slowly made his way over. He was just about to stop when he felt his feet stepping on something soft and silky.

It took a moment for him to realize that he had stepped on the edge of Giyuu’s futon. He spluttered a string of apologies as he jumped back and took a seat in front of Giyuu.

"From today onward, you will sleep with me in my room," Giyuu informed his Tsuguko after Tanjirou had fully composed himself…

And then Tanjirou’s mind blanked out.

“…Eh?”

Tanjirou blinked once…then twice…

He waited, hoping Giyuu would give him a follow-up or something, but the Water Hashira didn’t seem like he had anything else to add. For a moment, Tanjirou wondered if he had heard wrong. As the silence stretched on, the boy’s heart was beating faster and faster until those words finally sank in.

"EEEEEH?!"

"We've come up with a solution to quickly allow your body to absorb the nutrient it needs," Giyuu explained and Tanjirou recalled the two Hashiras that were here early this morning.

“Omega milk is the best method at the moment to help your body recover, so you will be drinking that in place of your meals.”

Omega…milk?

“From today onwards, you will need to be in physical contact with me and I will need your scent so that my body can recognize that there is a child I need to care for. Once my body registers that, I should be able to produce milk.”

If Tanjirou’s face was considered red before, then it was now overheating.

He barely understood anything Giyuu had said other than the word milk.

What milk was he going to drink?

Whose milk was he going to drink?!

Kamado Tanjirou’s brain fried right here and there. He could only stare at Giyuu dumbly, unable to come back to reality.

“Let’s sleep.” Giyuu’s announcement was what brought the boy back.

Tanjirou could hear the rustling sound of the blanket being pushed aside and Giyuu was already getting ready for the night.

“Wait, wait, wait! Tomioka-san!” Tanjirou jumped up, only to step on the edge of Giyuu’s futon again. Due to his haste, he didn’t get his footing right and ended up tripping over the futon—crashing right into Giyuu’s chest.

The boy had fallen forward at full force, but Giyuu didn’t even flinch as the boy collided against him. Tanjirou had always expected Giyuu’s body to be hard and filled with muscles considering how much strength he has, but it wasn’t. He could feel the defined lines of muscles through Giyuu’s thin sleepwear, but Giyuu’s body was anything but hard.

If anything, his arms were warm and he was extremely soft to touch.

Tanjirou had learned about Alpha and Omega anatomies. He knew Omegas have better flexibility than Alphas, but never would he imagine that an Omega’s body would be so soft.

And the smell…

Tanjirou didn’t know if he was imagining it, but Giyuu’s scent smelled better and better each passing day. It was as if he was slowly getting drunk on this scent and immersing himself within it without realizing—

No, no, no, that wasn’t something he should be thinking of!

Tanjirou looked up, heart pounding wildly as he saw that gorgeous face looking down at him. Giyuu’s ocean blue eyes seemed to glow in the darkness, adding depths into those eyes as he leaned forward. Tanjirou was petrified as he watched that face coming closer and closer towards his. Just when he thought their noses would touch, Giyuu tilted his head and his face slipped by Tanjirou's—their skin just millimeters from touching.

“Relax, Tanjirou.” Giyuu’s voice whispered by his ears before Tanjirou felt their necks touched.

Tanjirou may have an acute smell, but that was only general smells. Due to the Alpha genes inside him being asleep, he wasn’t able to smell the special scent that Alpha and Omega produces. His scent gland was also underdeveloped—hidden beneath his skin until he fully changes into his adult form.

So right now, all it felt like to Tanjirou was just Giyuu rubbing that small bump on his pale neck against his.

To Giyuu however, it was different. The raven’s brows furrowed as his scent gland itched at the foreign scent latching onto his skin. Since Tanjirou wasn’t his biological child, his body wouldn’t accept the boy immediately. He will have to repeat the process a couple of times until his body familiarized itself with this scent.

Giyuu sighed as he switched to the other side and filled his other scent gland with Tanjirou’s distinctive smell. After that, he pulled a blanket over them both and rested his head onto the pillow with one arm wrap securely around the boy.

"Sleep," Giyuu ordered, already tired as he closed his eyes.

Tanjirou lay in his mentor’s arms stiffly, still trying to wrap his head around what had happened and why it happened.

Needless to say, Tanjirou did not get a wink of sleep that night.

◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌

“Thank you very much!”

Kamado Nezuko bowed to the two female Betas hat had knocked on the Water Estate early in the morning. Bidding them goodbye, she closed the gate with a large package in hand.

“Nezuko-chan, who was that?”

“Gotou-san!” Nezuko smiled at the sight of the head Kakushi coming over to her after hearing the door closing. “The people from the Butterfly Estate came to deliver this.”

“Oh!” Gotou’s eyes shone. “It’s probably the stuff Tomioka-sama requested a couple of days ago. Can you bring it to him?"

Nodding happily, Nezuko hurried off to find Giyuu. Much like Tanjirou, she also really liked the man that had taken his place to become their guardians. More than that, the Omega was doing everything he could to help her big brother—

“Uwaaah!” Nezuko screamed as she jumped back at the sight of her brother who was like a walking zombie.

“Oh, Nezuko, good morning…” Tanjirou greeted in the form of a wide yawn.

“Onii-chan, what happened?” Nezuko gapped at the dark bags under Tanjirou’s eyes. “You looked like you hadn’t slept for months!”

"Just three days," Tanjirou mumbled, rubbing his tired eyes.

Ever since Giyuu announced that they were going to sleep in the same bed three days ago, Tanjirou had not been able to sleep at all. The boy knew he wasn’t going to last at this rate. Tonight, he might seriously fall asleep which would be bad in so many ways.

He didn’t know why he was even struggling or what he was struggling with. He just felt like he shouldn’t sleep no matter what…

Tanjirou had never been so afraid in his entire life, just thinking of the possibly sent a chill down his back.

“Onii-chan?”

“S-sorry Nezuko, I uh…have to go!” Tanjirou hurriedly ran off, leaving a confused Nezuko staring after her brother.

“Nezuko.”

Hearing the call of her name, Nezuko turned around and saw Giyuu standing right behind her.

“Tomioka-san!” She gasped in surprise.

Giyuu didn’t say anything as his eyes shifted to the package in her hands. Remembering what she was here for, she handed it over to Giyuu who muttered a soft thank.

“Have you seen Tanjirou?”

“Ah, he ran off somewhere just now…” Nezuko replied honestly. Giyuu just nodded before he turned and walked off with the package in his arms. Nezuko briefly wondered if something happened, but she shrugged it off.

With Giyuu here, what could go wrong?

That night, Tanjirou found himself in the same, compromising position as he had for the past three nights. His smaller body was pressed against Giyuu with the older man’s arms draped over him. All of his senses were filled with Giyuu but his body was too tired and his heart no longer had the energy to pump as fast as the first night.

His eyelids were heavy and he was using all of his power just to not doze off.

He tried to think of many things to distract himself, but eventually sleep won him over and he fell into the blissful darkness.

It felt like ages since Tanjirou woke up feeling so warm and refreshed. His eyes were still closed, stubbornly refusing to open as he buried his face into the warmth pressed against him. He rubbed his cheek against the smooth texture of the warm object and sighed in bliss.

Just as Tanjirou was about to fall back into the sweet slumber, he caught a whiff of something within the air.

It was a refreshing scent of pine in the frosty winter.

It was Giyuu’s scent.

Tanjirou’s brain that was submerging into the darkness stopped.

He lay there, spending a good minute trying to process the new information when it suddenly came to him like a bucket of icy cold water. Raspberry red eyes snapped open to see the snow-white skin which his cheek was pressed up against. Blood rushed to his face so fast that it made him feel faint.

The boy scrambled up and tried to crawl away. Unfortunately for him, he didn’t get far as his mentor’s arms were wrapped firmly around him.

“Tomioka-san!” If anything, Tanjirou was even more embarrassed when he saw those ocean blue eyes watching his every move without any hint of drowsiness from sleep. 

Giyuu didn’t speak. He just sat up, arms sliding off the boy to reach for his kimono, fixing the collar so that his chest was no longer as exposed.

“Did you sleep well?”

“Y-YES!” Tanjirou shouted as he scrambled up, face burning. “I—”

Tanjirou was about to bow down to express how sorry he was when a pale hand came into his sight. A long slender finger gently brushed by the dark bag under Tanjirou’s left eye, the touch tickled his skin like a feather.

The boy stilled for a couple of seconds—not even daring to breathe.

It was only when the fingers left his skin that Tanjirou looked up and his eyes widened at what he was seeing.

The corners of Giyuu’s lips were curved up slightly and those blue eyes had a gentle look to them as he stared down at him.

“Good.”

Tanjirou watched as Giyuu got up, catching a glimpse of those long slender legs, smooth without any hair, before the white kimono covered them up. Fixing the collar of his kimono, Giyuu walked out of his room just like any other times they slept together.

The young Alpha sat on the futon alone in the large room. His stared at the door where Giyuu had walked through, a little dazed. It took a couple of minutes, but once he snapped out, he quickly got off the futon and began folding the bed for his mentor. After putting everything into the closet and making sure the tatami was spotless, he ran for his room to get changed.

The moment Tanjirou stepped outside, he was stunned by the sight of the reddening sky.

This wasn’t dawn.

This was dusk.

To his horror, Tanjirou realized that he had slept for the whole night and day. Because his body being deprived of sleep, he slept way longer than normal! And what’s more…Giyuu had stayed with him in bed this entire time!

Tanjirou dropped down, crouching in the corner as he covered his reddened face in his hands, heart feeling so full that he felt like it was going to burst.

Once there was the first time, there will be a second time…then the third…

Since that day, sleeping with Giyuu became easier and easier for Tanjirou.

His heart will always beat like crazy, but at the very least the awkwardness was gone.

He even began talking to Giyuu as they lay in the futon together.

Most of the things he talked about were what he used to do before his family's death. He told the Omega about his father as well. Giyuu never speaks. He just patiently listened as those blue eyes trained on the young Alpha in quiet encouragement for him to talk. 

Tanjirou didn’t know when, but he eventually found himself looking forward to his time with Giyuu more and more.

The Omega has a homey scent that just lures him in and lulls him into sleep without realizing it.

It was nearly a month into this odd relationship that Giyuu finally felt a prick of pain in his chest—along with an irritating itch. 

He knew it was time.

His body had recognized that a child is needing his care and his body was producing milk. Giyuu stared at his chest that didn’t look all that different aside from the slight swells. His brows were furrowed as he gently pressed down on his breasts, and frowned at the bloated feeling underneath.

He looked down the book from Kanroji, trying to follow the instruction written on there. He pinched a nipple, trying to see if anything could come out, but there wasn’t. It was most likely not ready yet.

That night, Giyuu went to bed with Tanjiru as usual after soaking his glands up in the boy’s scent.

It was in the middle of the night that Giyuu shot awake to the pain in his chest. It wasn’t any intense pain since as an Omega he got high pain tolerance, but it was still uncomfortable. His chest felt so full that could barely get any air to his lungs.

He sat up, completely forgetting about the boy sleeping in his arms as Tanjirou rolled off Giyuu and fell face-first into the futon. The raven-haired man didn't pay the boy any attention as he looked around the dimly lit room. From the lighting, the sun was still hours away from arriving. 

“Tomioka-san?” Tanjirou’s sleepy voice called out as Giyuu looked down at the young Alpha. “Tomioka-san, are you alright?” Tanjirou was instantly awake when he noticed a bead of sweat rolling down his teacher’s face.

Giyuu was clutching a hand to the front of his kimono as he took in a small breath to steady himself.

"I think it's ready." He muttered, brows furrowed.

“What is?” Tanjirou asked, clearly having forgotten the whole reason he was spending the night with the Omega.

With a small sigh, Giyuu sat up, taking Tanjiou by the arm and pulled him onto his lap. Then after some thought, he pulled the blanket over them both. The book had said that the (baby) child would be calmer when enveloped in the adult’s scent.

Unfortunately, this only made Tanjirou even more nervous as he sat like a statue on Giyuu’s lap, not even daring to move an inch.

“T-T-Tomioka-san?”

Tanjirou watched with wide eyes as Giyuu reached up a pale hand and gently taking hold of his white kimono. His red eyes were rounded like saucers as the white fabric was peeled to the side, revealing the smooth surface of Giyuu’s chest. His nipple was hard, poking out with an obvious swell under it. Tanjirou’s mouth watered at the sight. He didn’t know why, but he felt a strange, primal hunger coming from deep within his soul.

Without even thinking, he leaned forward and wrapped his lips around that perky nipple.

Giyuu jolted a little the moment he felt soft lips wrapped around his nipples, followed by a wet tongue sweeping over the sensitive tip. His lips were pressed into a thin lip as he looked towards the side of the room—eyes focused on a vase placed there by the Kakushis.

His body tensed up when he felt the mouth on him began to suck. The raven-haired man frowned. He could feel some sort of blockage inside when his nipple was sucked, preventing the milk from spilling. He felt the mouth on him sucking even harder as tongue rolled the sensitive nipple around. Giyuu closed his eyes, taking in a deep breath as he tried to smooth out the tension in his body.

He had read this part in the book. After a couple more times, milk should start flowing naturally.

Just as Giyuu was about to tell Tanjirou this, a deep growl emitted from the boy’s throat. The Omega could even feel the intensity of the growl through the boy’s mouth latched on his nipple

The Water Hashira looked down and was met with a pair of dilated pupils.

“This is…!” Giyuu bit down on the bottom of his lips when the boy began sucking his breast hard.

This was the Alpha within Tanjirou—the Alpha that had been asleep for so long.

Giyuu reached out his hands, deciding that the best course of action right now was to comfort the boy. Tanjirou was clearly being overtaken by the Alpha in his blood. Words won't reach him in this kind of state, so he needed to show the boy that he was in a safe environment.

When the Omega’s hands got too close, Tanjirou jolted back with a threatening snarl. Giyuu ignored the Alpha’s warnings and just wrapped his arms around the boy. Tanjirou stiffened but didn't attack as Giyuu pulled the boy against him. He rubbed the Alpha’s soft hair and bared his neck to the boy, showing him how he wasn’t an enemy.

The growling eventually stopped before Giyuu’s nipple was trapped in that overheating mouth again. He held onto Tanjirou tightly as the boy began sucking on his nipple again. After a couple of harsh attempts, the blockage inside the Omega's breast was finally gone. Warm, rich milk was practically gushing from his nipple and into the Alpha’s eager mouth.

Giyuu shivered lightly. Being drank from was…an extremely weird feeling. He could feel the way the milk inside him was being sucked out. Thankfully, he was quick to get used to it and waited for the boy to finish.

When Tanjirou’s sucking turned back into teeth scraping against his nipple, Giyuu knew that his milk had run out. Tonight was the first time, after all. He wouldn't produce as much milk as he should.

The Omega grabbed the back of the Alpha’s collar, about to pull the boy off when Tanjirou suddenly grabbed both of his shoulders and shoved him down into the futon. Giyuu allowed him, observing calmly as the boy grabbed a fistful of his kimono and pulled the other side off, exposing the other pale breast which he instantly latched onto.

The Hashira let out another small shuddered as the process repeated. Ocean blue eyes stared at the child lying on top of him. Unknown to Giyuu, his gaze became impossibly gentle as he slowly threaded his hand through the boy's soft hair and massaged his scalp.

The more the boy drank from him, the weaker Giyuu was becoming. It was as if it wasn’t milk the boy was sucking out, but his own energy. Eventually, Giyuu became too tired. His hand fell from the Alpha’s hair as he closed his eyes, waiting for the child to finish.

When he felt those painful bites and tugs on his nipple, he knew it was done. 

Despite the boy’s hisses and growls, Giyuu’s grip was forceful as he pulled the boy off his chest. As weak as he may be at the moment, dealing with a feral child wasn’t hard for him as he fixed his kimono with his other hand. After that, he cradled Tanjirou within his arms and pushed the boy’s face into his neck, letting the Alpha smell his scent.

Just like how his body recognized Tanjirou as a child in his care, Tanjirou’s body that had been lathered with his scent over the past weeks has recognized him as his caretaker. It didn't take long for Tanjirou to calm down and his eyes slowly reverted to normal.

With the Alpha suddenly awakening like that, the body had taken a very heavy toll. Even though Tanjirou’s reasoning returned, he could barely keep his eyes open as he fell limply against Giyuu. 

The redhead let out a long, comfortable sigh. He rubbed his face into Giyuu’s scent gland before taking a deep breath.

“Tomioka-san smells nice…" Those were his last words before dozing off.

Giyuu checked the boy in his arms. Certain that he had fallen back to sleep, he laid the boy down onto his futon and pulled the blanket over his small body.

The Water Hashira sat there for a bit longer before he changed into his usual kimono and tied his hair back into a low ponytail.

He headed out as if nothing had happened to begin yet another day.

◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌ ◌

When Tanjirou had woken, the first thing he wanted to do was to crawl in a hole and died.

His face was bright red as he was curled under the thick quilt as if this would hide him from the world. His heart was pounding so bad as memories of what he did last night played in his mind over and over.

He couldn’t believe he had done that to Giyuu!

What he had done was practically assault!

He had no idea what came over him. He just…felt something inside him snapped, and then he lost all reasonings.

Tanjirou had no idea how he was going to face Giyuu from now on. He also didn’t know what to do with his sense of smell heightening. It was as if he had never known what the world had smelled like before and just woke up with the ability to do so. It was ironic, considering how his nose has always been his strongest suit.

The heavenly scent wrapped around him in the cover smelled so good that Tanjirou didn’t even want to move. He was completely enveloped within Giyuu’s scent. And within the Water Hashira’s usual scent, there was something else mixed in there.

It was something sweet and rich—similar to the taste of the milk that still lingered on his tongue.

At the thought of milk, Tanjirou’s face burned as he buried himself further into Giyuu’s futon. Unfortunately for him, once the memory began, it just couldn’t be stopped. Tanjirou didn't even know why he could remember everything so clearly when it had been so dark.

He could remember the way that dusky nipple with a tint of pink at the tip felt in his mouth.

He could remember how the skin around his lip felt…how soft and supple they were…

He could remember the way those blue eyes so calmly and gently watched him.

However, there was also something else he remembered. He saw it last night after pulling off Giyuu’s kimono. There was a scar on Giyuu’s left scent gland. It was a ragged scar with the skin there paler than the rest of Giyuu’s body. It wasn’t a large scar nor was it ugly by any means, but something just bothered Tanjirou about it that he couldn’t help but think…

“Tanjirou?”

“WAH!” Tanjirou screamed as he jumped up, blanket falling off his body as he spun around to find Giyuu sitting right beside the futon. “Tomioka-san!”

Before Tanjirou could think about how long Giyuu had been here, the older man brought his hand up to touch his forehead, making him freeze on the spot.

"You're a bit warm, but it doesn't seem like you have a feature," Giyuu noted as he retracted his hand. “How are you feeling?”

“E-eh? Ah, g-good I think?”

“After you drink enough, the limit your body has placed on itself should gradually disappear and you will start to notice changes to your body as well as your senses. If you feel any discomfort, let me know immediately.”

“Yes, I will.” Tanjirou nodded before a soft growl came from his stomach. “Sorry!” He apologized, blushing as he held his arms over his stomach as if that would muffle down the noise.

Giyuu looked at Tanjirou’s stomach for a moment before he sat down on the futon right next to Tanjirou. Before the boy could react, he was once again pulled onto the Omega’s lap. As much as Tanjirou wanted to lean away, thick blanket was soon wrapped around him, pulling his body right up against the Omega's.

“T-Tomioka-san, I could uh, go to the kitchen and—”

“There’s no need for that.” Giyuu calmly cut the frantic boy off. “This will be your food from now on.”

“…EH?!”

“Eating other food will only waste your stomach’s capacity. We need to get your body adjusted as soon as possible, and Omegan milk is your only choice.”

“Y-you don’t mean that I…that I’ll be drinking…f-from you for…?”

Giyuu stared at the jumble of mess the body had become in his arms. He slowly thought over the bits and pieces of words he was able to pick up, vaguely guessing what the boy meant.

“Four times a day should be minimal.” The Water Hashira stated. "Although whenever you feel that you can drink, come to me." 

"That's not what I mean!" Tanjirou felt like he was losing his mind. However, there was also an undeniable joy inside him for the opportunity to be close to the older man.

Giyuu wasn't going to keep denying a young Alpha from getting the nutrient he needs, so he pulled down his kimono, revealing those perky nipples and snow-white breasts that were swelled up once more. 

Tanjirou was blushing hard but was unable to take his eyes off as his stomach growled again.

The boy had to use all of his courage just to look to Giyuu’s chest while the Hashira himself was looking down at his Tsuguko, waiting patiently.

This time, Tanjirou didn’t lose himself to his instinct. He swallowed the saliva in his mouth before he leaned forward and gently wrapped his lips around the right nipple. With just a small, hesitant suck, creamy sweet milk flooded into his mouth.

Tanjirou drank the milk slowly, careful not to spill or hurt Giyuu. He had expected the milk to run out soon considering how there wasn’t too much last night, but it didn’t. To the boy’s surprise, it kept flowing into his mouth, drowning his senses with that sweet aroma. Despite Giyuu’s chest being the same size, there was way more milk in him than he thought possible.

Giyuu’s breathes had already become shallow as the familiar weakness returned to his body. The tip of his toes and fingers were starting to tingle with numbness, but he acted like nothing was wrong and just continued to hold the boy to him. This time, Tanjirou drank much more than last night, but Giyuu knew this still wasn’t enough.

The boy needed way more than this. His appetite will only grow.

To keep up with the milk production, Giyuu was starting to eat enough food for two people and stopped all of his daily training for his body to have the energy to produce milk. To improve the quality of his milk, Giyuu had been drinking the medicines Kochou had sent him every single day.

They don’t have enough time. Within the next four years, Tanjirou had to make up for all the time he lost growing up within the human society. 

As time passed, Tanjirou was beginning to become aware of his body’s changes.

His sense heightened—especially his smell—and his body’s overall physical strength increased. Drinking from Giyuu nearly five times a day, Tanjirou’s body was rapidly recovering.

That’s when the hellish training began.

There was no mercy in Giyuu’s training, but Tanjirou knew it was because the Omega was doing this for him. He only has four years to master the techniques Giyuu is teaching him which will aid him in surviving the growth spurt. Sometimes, the training was so bad that even Murata and the Kakushis avoided coming to the training field.

Every single day, Tanjirou would be pushed to the limit. His lungs felt like bursting all the time and even bones would be broken from the force of Giyuu’s wooden sword. Despite all that, Tanjirou took it without complaints and continue to undergo the Hashira’s harsh training.

"We'll stop here for today," Giyuu said, not even the slightest bit out of breath as he turned to his battered Tsuguko.

“Yes!”

“Continue practicing your breathing technique.”

“Yes!”

With that, Giyuu turned and walked away.

It was only after Giyuu left that Tanjirou allowed himself to collapse onto the ground. He stared at the orange sky as he sucked in the air around him. After resting up for an hour, Tanjirou went to the bath to get himself washed up.

Dressed in a clean kimono, he walked out just in time to see Murata passing by with large trays of food stacked over one another.

“Murata-san, are those for Tomioka-san?” Tanjirou asked as he hurried over to the Omega. After all, only Giyuu would eat such a large quantity of food. When Tanjirou first saw Giyuu eating so much, he was truly shocked. However, after learning later that Giyuu was only eating this much because his body needed them to produce milk, Tanjirou just felt warmed at the length Giyuu was willing to go for him.

“Tanjirou! Good timing!” Murata said as he struggled to look at Tanjirou with the trays blocking his sight. “Can you bring these to Tomioka-san?”

“Of course!” Tanjirou answered cheerfully. Despite just having met, Tanjirou already wanted to see Giyuu again.

It was a very strange feeling Tanjirou always had towards Giyuu. He didn’t know when it even started…

He wanted to see Giyuu at all times.

He wanted to stay by his side.

He wanted to be always bathed in the Omega’s scent.

Tanjirou knew this feeling, whatever it was, wasn’t normal. Never in his life had he wanted to be so close to anyone, not even his family. He had this urge inside him to spend every waking moment next to the man, but he knew that wasn’t possible.

Shaking the negative thoughts from his head, Tanjirou hurried towards Giyuu’s room. As he went, Tanjirou couldn’t help but turned his head away at the bitter smell of herbs flowing from the top tray.

While he couldn’t see if due to the tray stacking up so tall, but Tanjirou knew it was the same medicine Giyuu drank regularly. He was always curious why Giyuu had to drink them but never once asked since it wasn’t his place to.

When Tanjirou arrived at the door of Giyuu’s room, he set the tray of food down and gave the door a couple of light knocks. 

When he heard the response from inside the room, Tanjirou slid open the door. He looked in and found Giyuu sitting on the tatami, reading over some documents.

“Tomioka-san, I’ve brought your food.” The boy grabbed the trays and stepped inside.  

Giyuu set aside the papers, making space for Tanjirou to lay out the food in front of him. The first two trays were cramped with a variety of dishes that was too much even for three people finish. The third, however, contained a bowl of black medicine and a smaller bowl containing white substances.

Tanjirou watched as Giyuu picked up the medicine first. He held the bowl up to his lips, eyes fluttering close as he began drinking it down. Tanjirou watched as Giyuu’s head tilted back, his pale neck stretching out as his Adam’s apple bobbed as he swallowed.

There wasn’t the slightest hesitation in his movements, but Tanjirou could smell displeasure rolling off Giyuu himself. When Giyuu finished, he set the empty bowl back onto the tray. He picked up the bowl of rice in his left hand while his other took the chopsticks.

He may or may not have eaten the rice a little too fast—Tanjirou noticed.

The boy almost wanted to smile at his mentor’s reaction. However, at the thought of what Giyuu had drank was medicine, he couldn’t help but worry.

“T-Tomioka-san, are you… are you hurt?” He asked hesitantly.

"No," Giyuu replied as he used his chopstick to pick out a slice of salmon and put it into his mouth. He chewed slowly, making sure to break down the food before he swallowed. "These medicines help my body to better absorb the nutrient. It's to improve the quality of the milk." 

The moment Tanjirou heard milk, his face exploded into various shades of red. Despite how long it had been, he still couldn’t get used to the whole thing of drinking from the Omega’s chest. Now that Tanjirou learned one more thing to add to his list of what Giyuu had done for him, he felt even guiltier.

Despite Giyuu not liking the medicine, he still drank it for his shake…

“…Tanjirou.”

Tanjirou blinked at the call of his name. He opened his mouth, about to ask what Giyuu needed when a spoon was shoved into his mouth. Tanjirou felt his entire body shuddering with Goosebumps breaking out at the weird, spicy taste in his mouth.

He almost wanted to spit out the slimy thing sitting on his tongue but held himself back when he saw Giyuu staring down at him.

“Is it bad?” Giyuu’s brows were furrowed at the intense reaction on the boy’s face.

Tanjirou tried a couple of times before finally swallowing the thing. He panted heavily as his eyes shifted to the bowl of white goo in Giyuu’s hand.

“W-what is that?”

"Royal jelly," Giyuu replied, scooping a spoon full—the spoon that previously went into Tanjirou’s mouth—and casually put it into his own mouth. Tanjirou felt his face flare, but the terrible aftertaste in his mouth snapped him back out.

"It's rich in nutrients so I thought you could try it," Giyuu explained with his brows furrowed, seeming to realize how wrong he was. He looked at Tanjirou, then to the food laid before him, and gently set down the bowl and spoon onto the tray.

“Come here, Tanjirou.” Giyuu sat back as his legs stretched across the tatami, causing his kimono to open up from the movement, revealing those long and pale legs. Tanjirou swallowed nervously. He knew what his pose meant. With cheeks burning hotly, he nudged himself closer to Giyuu until he stiffly sat down on his lap. Then Giyuu pulled down his kimono to reveal his chest, causing Tanjirou’s blood rushed quicker despite having seen them so many times.

Even though Giyuu was producing so much more milk now, his chest was still the same, looking no different except the small swell underneath. Tanjirou wasn’t as ignorant as before now. He had seen the book Giyuu had been constantly reading and when he asked to look at it as well, Giyuu just handed it to him.

It was a guide for Omega pregnancy. Never had Tanjirou felt as awkward as that moment. However, since Giyuu already gave him the book, he made sure to read through the whole thing. It had been the right decision, as now Tanjirou knew more about how the Omega anatomy worked.

While female Omega develops milk the same way as a human would during pregnancy, male Omegas were slightly different. Due to the limited space in their chest, their breasts weren't capable of storing milk. It was only when a young begin to feed on them that their body reacts by rapidly producing milk to meet the child's need.

This efficiency, however, came with a cost. Omega milk itself was produced with the Omega's energy mixed within. To continuously produce milk would only add burden to their bodies. Every time Tanjirou drank from Giyuu, Giyuu was losing his strength—which would explain the amount of food he needed to eat and how much he slept nowadays.

Tanjirou looked up at Giyuu only briefly before his eyes fluttered close and lean in to take the hard nipple into his mouth. He sucked the breast tenderly, the sweetness of the milk erasing the awful taste of the royal jelly. 

Giyuu cradled him carefully within his arms, lips pressed into a line as usual as he waited for the young Alpha to have his fill.

Their days continued like this for days…months…

Two years passed in almost a blink of an eye.

Tanjirou had become strong.

He had mastered all the Water Breathing techniques—even the Eleventh form that only Giyuu could use. He has also long since mastered Total Breathe Concentration. While he still wasn’t as strong as Giyuu, Tanjirou was undoubtedly progressing extremely fast. There was already no worry as to whether or not he would make it through the growth. 

The Kakushis threw a celebration party for him when the Insect Hashira had personally come over to access Tanjirou’s health and confirmed that he will be fine. The speed of his recovery was unheard of in the histories of Alpha and Omega. That had a large part to do with the milk Giyuu provided him and Tanjirou’s strong Alpha bloodline.

Everyone was happy for Tanjirou. They were all relieved knowing he was fine now…but Tanjirou wasn’t fine.

He wasn’t fine at all.

It was a year ago that Tanjirou finally realized just what his attraction to his mentor was. However, he also knew better than anyone that Giyuu never saw him the same way. From the very beginning, Giyuu—like any other adult in the Water Estate—saw him as a child. The parenting books Giyuu had on his shelf were more than enough proof of that.

Before twenty, all Alphas and Omegas were considered children. To those who had fully grown into adulthood, there was no difference between seven years old and seventeen years old. With their scent premature and smelling like kids that needed to be protected, it was impossible for the adults to ever feel anything for them. 

Tanjirou’s own body was the same.

Although he knew about his feelings, his body was contradicting him. His body was unable to express his desire for Giyuu because it was the body of a child.

Now, every moment he spent with Giyuu felt like a sin.

Giyuu sees him as a child, so naturally, he wouldn't be cautious around him. He even changed in front of him one time, thinking nothing of it because he was simply a kid. Tanjirou was certain that if Giyuu had seen him as an Alpha, then he wouldn’t be so careless. The line between them would be clearer…it should be clearer.

Even now, after getting the result, Giyuu still wanted Tanjirou to drink from him for three more months as a precaution. Tanjirou didn’t want to. Despite how divine the milk tasted on his tongue, he couldn’t do it without feeling as though he was taking advantage of Giyuu.

It just felt wrong.

Everything felt wrong.

That was why Tanjirou decided that he had to get away from this place he had learned to call home—away from Giyuu.

If he continued to stay, Giyuu won’t ever see him as an Alpha. He’ll always see him as the child he had raised and protected, and Tanjirou didn't want that. He needed to go somewhere out of Giyuu’s supervision and become stronger than Giyuu. Only then he can come back and get Giyuu to look at him not as a boy, but as a man.

Tanjirou knew he was being selfish. Giyuu and the rest of the Water Estate had done so much for him over the years, but he couldn’t figure out another solution. He just couldn’t be close to Giyuu anymore.

It felt wrong to touch him.

It felt wrong to sleep by his side with the intentions that he has.

Everything was wrong. It made him feel despicable about himself like he was lying and taking advantage of Giyuu’s kindness.

Late in the night after the party was over, Tanjirou arrived in Giyuu’s room.

Giyuu was already sitting on his futon, undoing the hair tie around his ink-black hair and ran his slender fingers through the silky lock. Bathed in the blue moonlight, Giyuu was gorgeous.

“Close the door, Tanjirou.” Giyuu frowned ever so slightly when Tanjirou never moved from where he sat outside in the hallway with the door wide open.

“Tomioka-san.” Tanjirou placed his hand in front of him and bowed down until his forehead touched the wooden floor. “Tomioka-san, thank you for taking care of me for so many years. I’m grateful for everything Tomioka-san had done for me and Nezuko! I wish that Tomioka-san could grant a selfish request of mine.”

Giyuu frowned at the sight of his Tsuguko prostrating himself like this.

“What is it?” He asked.

“Please allow me to leave the Water Estate.”

Giyuu froze.

His blue eyes were blown wide as he stared at the red-haired boy.

“Come inside.”

Tanjirou obeyed. He entered the Hashira’s room and closed the door. He sat down in front of Giyuu, back straight and eyes determine. Even when meeting his mentor’s piercing gaze, Tanjirou didn’t back down...

“…Why?” Giyuu asked after a long time. His hands that were hidden within his sleeves were trembling lightly.

“Because I’m in love with Tomioka-san.”

“…?!”

That…was not what Giyuu had expected to hear.

"What did you say?" The Omega questioned, needing to confirm that he had heard right.

“I love you, Tomioka-san!” Tanjirou suddenly repeated loudly. As if fearing Giyuu would misunderstand what he meant, he continued. "I love you as an Alpha to an Omega!"

“Tanjirou—”

"Please don't tell me that I'm misunderstanding my feelings for you because I'm a kid," Tanjirou said firmly. This was the first time Tanjirou had ever cut Giyuu off, and the Hashira was genuinely surprised. “I know my feelings better than anyone. I love you, Tomioka-san.”

Giyuu wanted to tell him so many things…such as how that was simply impossible.

Tanjirou was a child. With his premature body, he wasn’t even capable of having any sexual desire. He shouldn’t know anything about love or develop that kind of feelings until he turned into an adult.

The raven-haired man sighed, feeling a headache coming already. How was he supposed to explain to Tanjirou that his feelings might just be a child’s towards his guardian? Should he call in Murata or one of the Kakushis and get them to explain?

“I know Tomioka-san won't believe me right now," Tanjirou said, his voice dropping a little as he gazed at Giyuu sadly. “That’s why…please let me leave, Tomioka-san.”

Giyuu stared at Tanjirou for a long, long time before he finally let out the words.

“Very well.”

He turned his head away, no longer wanting to look at the child. He was afraid that if he does, then something inside him will break.

Perhaps it was for the best. If Tanjirou leaves, his world will only become bigger. He would have the opportunity to meet other Omegas that were his age and realized that his feelings were wrong.

“I will have someone pack your things tomorrow. You can leave now.”

Tanjirou looked complicated by his mentor’s dismissal, but he bowed again and left quietly.

That night, Giyuu couldn’t sleep. He sat in his room, watching from the gap in the doorway as the sky slowly lights up. It was only when the first light of dawn spilled through the horizon did he move.

He pulled out some papers, a brush, and a small but heavy inkstone. He set these items onto his table and poured a bit of water into the stone. He gently picked up the ink stick and began grinding the stone until the water turned pitch black. Taking his brush, he dipped the tip into the ink, giving a brief thought over what he wanted to write before his brush touched the white paper.

That night, a total of ten crows flew out of the Water Estate—each of them carrying a letter on their talon.

When morning came, Giyuu stood at the main entrance of the Water Estate with all the Kakushis and Murata gathered behind him. When they were being told that Tanjirou was leaving, they were all dumbfounded. After all, they had just thrown a party to celebrate the boy’s health…why was Tanjirou all of the sudden leaving?

They all wanted to know, but no one dared to ask. They all lined up quietly behind their Hashira as Tanjirou appeared before them with baggage tied around his back and Nezuko by his side. Even though the girl was welcomed to stay in the Water Estate, she insisted on following her brother.

Giyuu had agreed, and have someone packed her things as well. However, both siblings denied most of the things they were given. All they took was a spare cloth, food and some money for their journey. The rest of the things they placed back into their rooms, showing that they have full intention of one day returning. 

It was such little thing that comforted Giyuu.

“We’ll be going then, Tomioka—” Tanjirou paused a little before he smiled brightly at Giyuu. “Giyuu-san.”

Giyuu didn’t react at the other calling him by his first name. He raised an arm as one of the crows perching on the roof flew down and landed on his forearm.

"Take him with you on your journey," Giyuu said and with a wave of his hand, the crow fluttered its wings and landed on Tanjirou’s shoulder. “He will take you to the headquarter of the Corps. You should go pay your respect to Oyakata-sama.”

“Leave it to me, caw!” The crow spoke in its raspy voice.

“I’ve also sent letters to the other Hashiras to look out for you should you arrive at their place. They each have their methods of training and use different breathing techniques. It will benefit you to train under them."

"Thank you for everything, Giyuu-san." Tanjirou said gratefully. Then, as if finally deciding something, the boy’s gaze firmed up. He reached out his hands, boldly grabbing the Hashira’s larger ones and grasped them tightly within his own.

“I will definitely come back after I turn twenty! By then, I hope that Giyuu-san will consider my feelings seriously!” With that, he leaned forward and pressed his lips against Giyuu’s right cheek.

The sounds of jaws hitting the ground could be heard from the Kakushis and Murata. They stared in a mixture of shock, horror, and disbelieve at the young Alpha kissing their Hashira.

Giyuu was stunned by the boy’s action as well, hence why he just stood there not doing anything.

When Tanjirou pulled back, he was grinning from ear to ear. He took a small step back before the hands around Giyuu slipped away.

The Water Hashira watched as the boy ran over to his sister who bowed at them with a knowing grin. He almost wanted to reach out, to call out to the two children but stopped himself as Tanjirou’s words resonated within his head.

“Goodbye, Giyuu-san, Murata-san! Everyone! We’ll be back!”

And just like that, the Kamado siblings ran off with the crow flying over their heads.

Giyuu watched them go with a strange emptiness inside him. When he turned around, the Hashira was met with dozens of stares burning holes into him.

“What is it?”

He just wanted to ask if they needed anything, but when he spoke with his usual expressionless face and tone—and considering what had occurred—the Kakushis instantly shook their heads. Spluttering strings of nonsense that Giyuu couldn’t make out, the Betas all but fled as they returned to their daily tasks.

When Giyuu turned his gaze to Murata, the latter jumped as if he received some sort of shock and bowed a whole ninety-degree at him before fleeing with a loud, "I-I JUST REMEMBER I LEFT THE STOVE ON!"

Giyuu stared at the entrance that had emptied in just seconds. He gave one last glance back before he headed back into the manor that will from now on become a little quieter.

No…not quieter.

It will just be back to how it was, that’s all.

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[ego-driven-one-wing-angel]

All Ya’ll Suck - Be Nosey Q&A

THIS IS NOT WHAT I EXPECTED. But a promise is a promise lmao~ So here’s all 50

What’s your sexual orientation?

Demisexual 

What are you obsessed with right now?

Final Fantasy and my cats. 😭

Ever done any drugs?

I’ve been offered but no.

What piercings do you want?

I want my triple Helix done so bad. 

How many people have you kissed?

A BIG FAT 0

Describe your dream home.

I’ve always been in love with tiny homes. So I would LOVE to have something similar to an Eco pod in Scotland. With a hot tub, a giant forest background, small enough for me and my cats and maybe my S/O.  It’s almost like a studio apartment but just shoved in the forest and I would enjoy it 100%.

Who are you jealous of?

Probably anyone in a healthy, committed relationship? I’m not much to be envious of others, but when I see couples that are just perfect for another, it makes my heart sink a little because I want that.

What’s your favorite show to binge?

Supernatural, House MD or Criminal Minds. 

Do you watch porn?

I’ll admit, I’ve seen some hentai. BUT I SWEAR IT WAS FOR THE DAMN PLOT.  I also read this Yaoi NSFW manga a few years back, and honestly, I should have guessed it was NSFW because it was wrapped in plastic so you couldn’t look inside. I bought the first two novels, and honestly, they love story in it is probably one of my favorites. 😂

Do you have a secret sideblog?

I DO. It’s a House MD blog.

If you could teleport anywhere in the world right now, where would you go?

Hmm. I have no idea. Scotland for their eco pods? But also I want to go to New Zealand so bad.

What’s one of your fantasies?

Becoming a multi-millionaire writer with a PhD in Forensic Psychology. And having one of my books turned into a tv show or movie and flipping the bird to everyone in high school and middle school who thought I couldn’t make it. 

Do you have/would you get your nipples pierced?

Ouch. No. I don’t have them pierced but I don’t think I ever could. I give props to those that went through with it because anytime I think about a needle coming for my nipple I kind of want to pass out. 

How would you spend a million dollars?

Buy an ECO POD. That’s it. Maybe a couple of Louis Vuitton handbags to match my other ones, but that’s it. I’ll probably give the rest to my mom and she could buy herself the beach house she’s been wanting the past three years.

Are you in a relationship?

Nope.

Do you follow porn blogs?

No. Sorta. Well, kind of? This particular blog doesn’t post straight porn, but it does add a few aesthetic NSFW photos and gifs occasionally. Like more Witchcraft and Dark aesthetics.

Are you angry with anyone right now?

Myself. And maybe my math teacher. I just took a math test and it was timed so I only had an hour and a half to take it. I didn’t get to answer like 4 questions and it brought my math grade down 🙃

What tattoos do you want?

Oh man, I want a lot lmao:

I want a small, american traditional cat just below my ankle.

A watercolor fox on my thigh

A pair of angel wings across my back

A star wars lightsaber on my finger

A watercolor Captain America shield on my hip

I want Cloud’s buster sword and Sephiroth’s masamune down both sides of my thighs

And a little bee or paw prints behind my ear

If you could change your name, would you? What would you change it to?

Probably Katherine. That name has been my pseudonym for years. So it’s almost like a second name already.

What is something you’re obsessed with?

Pens. I’m one of those people that have a million pens and markers. I blame the art side of me, but I just like the idea of new office supplies.

Describe your best friend.

Rambunctious, ambitious, always knows how to make others smile. Halo-obsessed, classic Capricorn, and absolutely LOVES chicken nuggets.

Tag someone you think is hot.

@/SebastianStan

Who are five of your favorite bands/musical artists?

Gorrilaz

Queen

Billie Eilish 

Melanie Martinez

St. Vincent

What are three places you want to travel?

Scotland

New Zealand

Brazil

Describe your perfect Friday night.

Drinking my Dad’s Mexican hot chocolate, playing video games, and sitting with my cat all sounds pretty good to me.

What’s your favorite season?

WINTER 

What’s your pet peeve?

I have this thing where my ears like die when people scrape their fingernails on walls. OR Styrofoam rubbing against cardboard. GROSS. 

Who is the funniest person you know?

Me. Or my mom. We both have the same sense of humor. 

What’s the most overrated movie?

Fight Club. I watched it and was just flabbergasted on how much traction this movie has? It’s okay but not cult classic type of hype.

Tag someone you want to talk to but have been too shy to message.

@ALL OF MY FOLLOWERS

Do you like paper books or ebooks better?

Paper books. I own a kindle and it’s just not the same. I have over 1,200 paper backs and hardcover copies of books. I can open my own library at this point. And I have four boxes of books that sit in the corner because I ran out of bookshelf spaces.

If you could live in a fictional world, what world would you pick?

Probably Final Fantasy 7 or Ridley Scott’s Legend. 

If money was no object, what would your wardrobe be like?

Probably full of Calvin Klein sweaters. I already have about thirty but they’re the comfiest and softest sweaters I own.

What’s your coffee order?

I like a classic caramel frap with two shots of espresso. 

Do you have a crush on anyone?

Sephiroth. But in real life? No.

Do you still have feelings for any of your exes?

I’ve never had an ex lmao.

Have any tattoos?

NO BUT I WANT SO MANY

Do you drink?

I’m a social drinker, so I only have wine or mixed drinks when it’s a party. I don’t like drinking by myself.

Are you a virgin?

Yes.

Do you have a crush on any of your mutuals?

Not really. But I don’t know much about any of you 😭

How many followers do you have?

I just got a whopping 126. But this account is new so getting that much in about three-four weeks is pretty good to me!

Describe the hottest person you know.

Like someone I know personally? Because that’s what I’m going for:

Skin like olive, baby blue eyes, white teeth accompanied by a set of dimples. Dark, curly hair that fits past his ears. Perfect skin, perfect smile. He’s a good friend of mine and we all call him hottie because he makes the girl’s swoon. 

What’s your guilty pleasure?

Watching Nanny Shows on youtube. I don’t want children nor do I like children, but watching these shows is like crack. I can’t stop watching them once I start.

Do you read erotica?

I write it. So take a guess. 

(yes.)

What’s the worst date you’ve ever been on?

I’ve been on very little dates as is, but there was a story I never told anyone because it’s disgusting and embarrassing. But this guy whispered in my ear he wanted to wear my underwear and I deleted his number the moment I went home. I try not to kin-shame, but on a first date? Super weird.

How many people do you follow?

I’m not sure, like 78 I think now? 

If you could marry any celebrity, who would you pick?

Sebastian Stan. I love him so much.

Describe your ideal partner.

Probably just as much as a nerd as I am, sweet, compassionate, likes to stay in and play video games during the weekend. I’m not picky.

Who do you text the most?

My best friend.

What’s your favorite kind of weather?

Rainy or snowy!

Oh I DID IT! ALL 50.

[rising-ashes1421]

The Aimless Wanderer

September 22nd, 1421 Iwate Prefecture, Japan Entrance to Akanobī Village 7:24 pm

The great sun, as a pale, red orb that had cast it's hues across the once azure sky, began to fall down into the great, then orange and magenta horizon of the west. The moonlight, a dim silver in the early autumn evening, proceeded to rise above the red, orange, yellow, and brown leafed maples that dotted the mountain trail. Toshirō had to find some place to say soon. At least for the night, or else the wildlife or worse lurking in the woods that surrounded the mountain trail would begin to stir, and try to take him in the night. The dry leaves crunched under his straw sandals as he padded along, looking around the area for any landmarks. Specifically, signs. The further up the mountain he climbed, the more common they had become. Several of those wooden signs upon the trail had kanji written on them, pointing either away from the mountain, or further up. The one leading further upwards, which was the one he had been following the whole time read; "Akanobī Village," with an arrow pointing up the road. From what he was told in the previous mountain village he passed through, it was a small, quaint village between the west and east mountain slopes just south of Hokkaido, and a due northeast of Mt. Fuji.

The mountain air was crisp and clear as an early September evening in the mountains could be, but it was also thin, and was quite difficult to breath in compared to what Toshirō was used to. At times, he questioned why he traveled from place to place as he has the last three years. At times, it could be treacherous, and even fatal in some places. Why not grow old and fat in one of the major cities, or open up a shop? The thoughts raced through his mind as he climbed ever onward upon the spiraling path through the mountains. However, these thoughts soon ceased as he looked down upon his sword at his side, and hung his head. He longed to forget, but never could cease to do so. “These hands have already taken life away. I cannot turn back from the path I laid for myself.” He thought aloud.

The further he trekked up the gritty, mountain road, the more he could see his current destination. Eventually, he could make out faint orange and gold torchlight hung several meters in front of him, followed by the rank scent of pigs that stuffed their faces in their pens outside of the village. He had finally reached Akanobī village, just as he had hoped he would. “Finally, some rest.” said Toshirō to himself quietly. Before entering the village completely, however, he stood still, and begun to admire the scenery. Several small, wooden buildings lined the road, which lead to a small town square that consisted of a few market stalls, a forge, and to the northernmost part of the village was the Daimyo of the village’s castle. Overall, it all seemed quite normal, and hospitable. It all seemed like a decent place to stay for the night, despite the rancid scent of the livestock and their wastes a few meters behind. But, for some reason, the scent seemed to be getting even closer by the moment. A chorus of screams and shouts stirred his attention from the architecture.

“Everyone! Retreat He’s back!” Shouted one of the men wandering the streets. Toshiro eyed the man with a slight look of confusion, but also a look of concern. “What do you mea-“ As Toshiro began to speak, he suddenly felt a large presence hanging over him. And in front of him loomed a shadow of something obviously large. Slowly, he turned his head only to meet a large, bipedal, and piglike creature behind him. It’s eyes were pure red, and it had two large tusks pointing out from it’s lower mouth. It’s snout blew hot air into his face, and let a mighty roar out from where those viscous tusks protruded from.

The creature then began to charge forward in a bit of a slow, yet quick for it’s size. It almost looked unnatural for the creature to be bipedal, considering how clumsily it had ran, and how stupid it had looked while doing so. Toshiro quickly got into stance, his hip turned outward, and his right hand just below the hilt of his sword. For a moment, the beast seemed to be moving in slow motion to him. He waited until the demon was just within striking distance. Once it was close enough, he clicked the blade out of the scabbard and whirled around, deeply cutting into the yokai’s gut.

The sword broke the beast’s skin with its swift, brisk movement. The boar continued to charge forward for several more meters, until suddenly, the gaping wound bursted open. The yokai squealed in pain. The sound it made was very similar to a normal sized pig, only much deeper and almost distorted. The creature’s skin was far too tough to cut deep enough to do any damage to it’s organs, but not tough enough to where it could cause the demon to bleed quite a bit. The boar proceeded to get down on all fours. With its powerful hind legs, it propelled itself towards the ronin, it’s tusks thrusted towards him. It quickly gained speed, despite it’s bulky size the closer it had got to him.

As the boar demon charged, Toshiro jumped upwards, his blade held at his hip as he began to concentrate for his second attack, only this time from above. The demon continued to get closer and closer with each second. Toshiro bit his lip. He was running out of time! Almost instinctively, he jumped, holding his weapon over his head. He was ready to swing down on the head of the beast whenever he needed to.

In just seconds, Toshiro felt himself being pulled back down to the earth. The boar was  underneath him, just as he had hoped. Then, he began to use his weight to propel himself further downwards, like an arrow flying from above, and his blade the arrowhead piercing the flesh of his enemy. Successfully, Toshiro landed and plunged the tip of his katana into the beast. But his blade missed the yokai’s head, and instead pierced right through the boar’s shoulder, the other end protruding out of his clavicle.

The beast cried in agony at his collarbone being shattered by the katana, and begun to squirm about with Toshiro clung to his backside. In order to fling Toshiro off, it stood back up on two legs and used its massive hands to pull him off. However, the demon eventually got him off by throwing him off of his shoulder. Except now, Toshiro no longer had his blade, as it was still lodged inside the shoulder and chest of the demon. “D-dammit…” Cursed Toshiro under his breath from the ground he was tossed upon. The force of the impact of landing had knocked the breath out of him for a moment, and he begun to cough softly. Soon, it became hard to breathe. The sudden feeling was followed by a sharp pain just above his diaphragm. More than likely, being tossed around had fractured a few ribs. It made it hard to move. But, without his weapon, he was like a sitting duck peering up at the hunter and just asking to be shot. Suddenly, he felt his heart nearly skip a beat. The demon, still having the blade ran through his collarbone, lowered his tusks for one final rundown. He just knew that it would be the end for him, and he was already ready to accept it. His redemption could never be received, anyways. “What’s done is…unghn… done, then…” Winced Toshiro, bracing himself for the oncoming tusk.

.,.,.,.,.,..,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,.,..

(Thanks for getting this far! If you're interested in roleplaying, please bare these things in mind;)

Replies must be at least two paragraphs in length, in third person, and be understandable.

I won't be very active, and there may be a gap of several days, maybe even weeks between responses.

The magic system here is pretty complex, and I'll have to explain it.

18+ please.

No yaoi is allowed.

[socallmelusopp]

I’ll Like You For Always

Pairing(s): None so far.

Genre(s)/ Warnings: Family, Angst, Adventure, Drama, Fantasy. Character Death. Yaoi in later chapters. More to come.

Words: 1668

Summary: “Can I be Max this time?” The small child asked, clutching the rubber man close to his chest. His father smiled down at the book and continued on. “And Usopp, the king of all wild things, was lonely and wanted to be where someone loved him best of all.”

Or the Usopp-centric Toy story AU we were all secretly waiting for.

(an): Inspired by a post from @filettillyoudrop, followed by a Godly idea from @usolu, which was then followed by a gushing art by @filettillyoudrop. And this is where I come in!! Hi! Also, see the end for a sneak peek of the next chapter to come.

Prologue

August 15, 2003

Mauritius, Southeast Africa

On the morning that Usopp’s mother was scheduled to die, a tall scrawny man with yellow hair waddled past his home. He always supposed that if all the gazillion people in the world wanted to hear about his small life, the first thing they’d want to know is where he was born. And what his lousy childhood was like, and how his parents were occupied before they had him, and all the boring things just to hear him talk. Talk. If they wanted to know the truth, he didn’t feel it.

“Usopp, you ready, bud?” But the child’s door is opened before he’s given free rein to answer. The man with the long yellow hair - daddy - stands in the doorway, his brown eyes staring down his son. Behind him, Usopp can see creatures cloaked in dark attire swanning what was once mama’s living room and not just the living room. Their skin varies, dark and light, pale and dead. They smell of human flesh and they stand at empowering heights, almost as tall as the m - daddy.

And despite this, the boy nods slowly. One, two, three times his chin rises and dips. He stands just as slow as well, his heart pounding with every inch he’s off the floor. There, with the swanning monsters. He has to go in there.

Daddy grabs hold of his hand and attempts to pull him out of the lonely room. It’s a tug that he wasn’t suspecting as he looks back at the four-year-old’s arm in mild disbelief. Arms aren’t supposed to fight back. He pulls again, gentle and cautiously. And yet, this one does. The boy can imagine how horrifying it must feel to his daddy. To be a big strong person and then to have it all knocked away by a skinny brown arm that had stitches from a ‘misguided’ rock jump. The arm keeps fighting back and Usopp thanks it graciously.

“Usopp. We’ll be late. Don’t you want to see mommy?”

The boy shakes his head. He can’t do it. He lied. He’s not ready at all. Those monsters will gobble him up. “I’m scared.”

“You’re scared of seeing mommy?” His daddy says nothing more after but continues to stare at him. He’s wearing a big question mark on his head, but the boy can’t find an answer.

“Don’t wanna go,” he tries again. “Scared. I-I-I want my mommy.”

A moment passes between them; father and son who have just met again under very bad circumstances; brown pouring into brown; the confused and afraid. And then the moment settles as Yasopp crouches down to his son’s height. He grabs the boy by the shoulders and Usopp cowers even more under the calloused grip. To him, daddy is a big strong man, clearly unafraid of these monsters. He wants to be like him...but...the boy’s lip trembles. He just can’t.

“Do you know that you are very strong?” He whispers it in kind, but he feels clumsy and awkward. He doesn’t know how to tell a four-year-old not to be afraid. He’s not good at being a father and he had hoped that throughout Usopp’s life, Banchina would be; so that he would never have to go through something like this. He’s just 21, holding the shoulders of an accident when they were stupid kids.

And despite this awkward and clumsy feeling, Usopp stares in confusion and wonder. No one’s ever said that to him. Mama did, but mama was a liar: she only said things to make him feel better. “I am?”

Yasopp blinks at him as if he wasn’t expecting the follow-up. He damn sure has an answer, though. This is easy, he thinks. “Of course you are. You helped mama all by yourself and made her happy. And even when she left, you stayed strong.”

Usopp looks down at the floor shyly, a blush dusting his cheeks like watercolor. “I did?” He whispers. And then he looks up in wonder, all those things coming back to him like a big wave. “I did!” Yasopp grimaces softly at the yell. Because fuck, he’s so loud and cute and determined. This little thing, this kid is half him. “Of course I did, I’m a good leader. I have to be strong.” Yup, half him.

“But Usopp…” at the call, the boy’s fist of determination lowers and he stares openly. “I need you to be even stronger. I need you to do something for me.”

The boy’s eyes widened. “Like..like a mission?” Yasopp nods. And then Usopp gasps and covers his mouth. Discreetly, the boy looks around, his suspicion aroused. “Are we spies?” He whispers. The imagination on this kid is tremendous, no doubt stemmed from Banchina, the young adventurous girl that would dream of everything.

Again, he nods. “I need you to infiltrate-“

“What does influ-tate mean?”

Yasopp smiles awkwardly. Right, four. “I need you to enter the living room and remain as invisible as possible. If no one notices you, they can’t bother you. Only then will we be able to get to mommy.”

“Go into the living room?” Usopp asks, his nerves coming back tenfold. It’s the wave again, but this time he’s stranded in water with no boat or paddle. He looks behind his father again, out the door. The monsters ...they've been replaced. Their horns and sharp teeth went away and in their place stand humans. Humans of all colors; dark and light, chocolate and bright. They’re as tall as daddy, but that’s okay. Because adults are supposed to be tall. He stares back. “Okay.” He nods and says it again. This time stronger. “Okay.”

Yasopp goes to stand and is about to walk out of the room when he’s tugged. When he looks back, the boy has his hand raised. “You have to hold my hand though.”

Yasopp nods and firmly grabs hold of the small limb and together, hand in hand, they enter the swanning nest of monsters.

----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

Yasopp can’t stop watching the way his son’s legs swing beneath his seat, light in the air despite the heavy atmosphere of sadness around them. The child is nervous, no doubt, confused about what’s real and what isn’t.

On their way to the funeral home, he had talked to his son about what it would mean when they put his mommy in the ‘dark scary hole in the ground.’ In the four years that she had him, Banchina never told the kid about death or loss, despite being a doctor. Even when she became terminally ill herself, she never explained to Usopp what never seeing someone again meant.

And in the week it had taken him to travel to southern Africa, none of the caretakers had explained to him either. In that week, he supposed his son had been lost; confused and betrayed. Why wasn’t mommy coming to see him? Why did he have to stay with the hospital’s home of orphaned children? Orphans were children without parents and Usopp could swear he wasn’t an orphan.

And then someone did come to get him, but it wasn’t his mother. It was a man that looked just like him. It was his other parent. One he hadn’t seen since he was three days old. Confused, betrayed, lost.

“What’dya mean we won’t see mommy ever again?” the boy laughed sheepishly. “She’s on a trip right. She does that sometimes. Sometimes, she has to cure an old person in a whole nother city. But she always comes back.”

Yasopp grimaces. He supposes it was karma that he would have to teach the boy about something so grim. It’s a way to get back at him for leaving her and thinking that she could handle a young boy all by herself.

“Dead? Why does everybody say that?”

And then he told him exactly what dead meant.

The child’s eyes grow watery and no matter how hard he rubs them, the tears keep coming. The wave keeps coming. “But she’s joking, right? Mommy does that a lot. She’s a liar...like me. She’ll stop, right? Right?”

“We meet here today to honor and pay tribute to the life of Banchina Kenway, and to express our love and admiration for her. It is only natural that we should be sad today because, in a practical sense, Dr. Banchina is no longer a part of our lives.” Usopp whimpers beside him. Soon, he’ll have to stand and kiss his mother’s head and then watch her get lowered and covered in dirt. And Yasopp knows that’s what he’s dreading; not the ceremony, but the goodbye. “However, today is also a day for memories. Today will be remembered for many reasons, but mainly, I hope, it will be remembered by you all; as a very special day, a special day in which you shared some time with others; in order to pay your last respects; and to say both mentally and physically a sad and fond farewell to a lovely woman…. A woman whom we were all so very privileged to have known. Born in Wales….”

When the time does come, Yasopp doesn’t think his son has it in him. When the boy stands, there’s snot beneath his nose and tears all over his face. His knees are shaking and his teeth are shattering. With a heavy frown, the man grabs the boy’s hand and leads him forward. Usopp doesn’t tug, pull, or protest. Despite being scared shitless, the boy has courage.

They stop by the casket and Yasopp bites at his lip. Banchina looks just like she did years ago when she’d come to Mauritius. Young and pretty and angelic. She was….gone. His stupor is broken when Usopp stands on the tip of his toes and kisses his mother’s cheek, wetting her dead face. He sniffs loudly and cowers back. “B-bye, mommy. I love you. A lot. A lot a lot.”

Yasopp wonders if it’s possible a human can shrink from existence entirely.

AN: So this is totally the AU I said I was going to write. And it’s definitely going to feature a few of our Strawhats as toys for Usopp (especially cowboy Luffy). However, all stories need a plot and I decided I should focus on Usopp as he grows, not only with the toys but what he’s going to face from here on. The kid just lost his mother and now he has to live with a father he barely knows. I hope you guys are excited as I am. I’m going to try my best to post weekly as I am currently working on other fics right now. I just love this AU

Next Chapter: The Sheriff and The Forgotten Samurai

Sneak Peek: At the harsh sound, Usopp lifts his shirt and stares at his brown tummy, and Yasopp notes that his son has an outie belly button that looks like an earplug. The boy looks up sheepishly, his cheeks dusty and flushed. “My tummy growls sometimes. It’s like a cloud... getting mad.” The men stare at the four-year-old in silence. And then Shanks bursts into a fit of laughter. To Usopp, it’s angrier than the cloud in his stomach can ever be, loud and gushing with wind and lightning. The boy blushes and decides that Shanks is cool.

[crunchbites-muscle-structure]

dependent personality

some curst caboose for your dinner table owo

tags: fluff, caboosexcounselor, cabounselor, daddy kink, yaoi

After the fall of Agent Maine, AKA the Meta, certain investigative measures became imperative. Project Freelancer assets had been scattered and returned to a central point. Freelancers themselves had escaped the grasp of the UNSC and affiliated organizations, and were brought back for interrogation. Exactly what happened needed to be known- and that required thorough questioning of all involved parties.

For the first six, this was a simple matter of question-and-answer. Some embellishment, especially from the red sergeant, happened naturally, and some downplaying as well, such as from Agent Washington. Then the Counselor reached someone who neither embellished nor downplayed, but told the story in such a chaotically different way as to demand further observation.

"Could you repeat that, Private Caboose?"

"I think the Meta could have been a good friend! He had some anger problems but so did Tex and she was a nice lady. She helped me learn how to flirt with the tank!"

"Right." Price jotted this down in an illegible calligraphic scrawl only he could read. "And you say 'Tex' and the Meta shared a similar personality issue in the form of 'anger problems'?"

"Yes! They both had O'Malley!"

"O'Malley?"

"That is the AI who has the scary voice and makes people really strong. I do that without any special voices in my head!"

"You do... What, exactly?"

"I get really mad and get really strong and save the day!"

Price sat back in his armchair, brows drawn together in only the faintest sign of scrutiny as he eyed the giant of a private. Michael J. Caboose was quickly becoming interesting, in the way that Agent Florida and Agent North Dakota had been interesting- unassuming strength, an inner fire concealed behind a lie of a smile. They were Price's favorite sort to study, for their individual method of self-presentation. Agents like South Dakota and Carolina had been exceedingly boring, in that they were exactly what their surface suggested. Caboose had joined a rare group- those that invited Price to study further.

"I see," he said, pulling himself from reverie. "And what inspires this enraged state? Competition? A need for victory?"

"I have to keep my friends safe. They are usually good at doing that themselves, but sometimes they are tired."

"And you believe you can protect them?"

"When they need me to."

"And would you consider yourself... A good soldier?"

Caboose's head tilted to the side for a moment, blue eyes sparkling. "I think I am! I try really hard to take care of my team and stay in shape and I am really good at drill!"

"Drill? As in organized movement?"

"Yes! But we don't do that much. We kind of don't do anything until we have to fight somebody. We should really do more as a team, like bake cookies!"

Price was learning he could repeat a single word and Caboose would unravel more of what went on behind those beaming blues. "Cookies?"

"Yes! I love cookies!" Caboose dropped his voice, hushed with excitement. "Are there cookies here?"

"I'm afraid not."

"Can we get some cookies? We could bake some together."

This caught Price off-guard, though no outward flinch or movement suggested as much. "We as in you and I?"

"Yes! You seem like you could use a cookie."

"We are not here to talk about me."

"Maybe we should! Everyone needs someone to talk to."

Caboose smiled brightly, invitingly, and Price stared at him for a moment. Not even Agent North Dakota, known for being far too caring, had ever dared try to pry into the mind of the counselor. What interest had this private in Price's private mind?

~^~

"And Leonard- don't even get me STARTED on Leonard. I've never met a man so flexible. You must be to get your head that far up your asshole!"

"Leonard like Church?"

"The original. Director Leonard Church, the one who made the AI your friend was based off of."

"A-I..."

"Yes. The Alpha AI fragment you knew in Blood Gulch. When I speak of Leonard, I mean the original whiny bastard who created your friend."

"So you were friends with Church's daddy!"

"Er."

"That is okay. Did Church have a mommy, too?"

Those bright, innocent blue eyes. Price cleared his throat. "Not exactly. AI aren't made how people are. Though Alpha did split and form the Beta fragment- which made things even worse for dealing with Leonard."

"That must have been very difficult."

"Managing his mental health was clearly going to be impossible from the start; within two weeks of my assignment with Project Freelancer, I had decided simply to see where encouraging him would lead. It went exactly where I suspected it would."

"And where is that?"

"They're all dead now."

"Oh."

"Yes."

"Death only means they are not here right now!"

"I-" Price paused, reaching for a cookie. "What does that mean?"

"Exactly what I said! But I will slow it down so you are sure to understand. Sometimes people go away and you think they will not come back, but they always do. Church always does! He is still around, he is just in the Epsilon unit right now!"

"You don't think death is a permanent state?"

"I have not seen it be permanent yet!"

"You believe your friend will come back?"

"He always does!"

Price stared at those innocent blue eyes, and something dark in him craved to take them over and introduce Caboose to the truth of death. To tell him his friend would never come back. The Meta and Tex would never come back. Caboose's best friend was dead, and the Epsilon unit was not a replacement. It would be so easy to wreck that innocent, sweet naivety- and watch the ensuing chaos as Caboose's mind broke.

Price took another bite of cookie. It would be as simple as defining mortality.

"Private Caboose..."

"Yes?"

That bright beaming smile. Those wondrous blue eyes.

"Your friends are very lucky to have you."

"They do not think so."

An unexpected flash of indignation sparked in Price's chest. "Oh?"

Caboose whispered, "Tucker is kind of stupid."

"Oh. And Agent Washington?"

"He seems nice. I'd like to keep him. He is not Church, but he could be a Church."

Price's moment of chaotic desire passed. "How is that?"

"He is grumpy. And tired. And he thinks me and Tucker are not smart. I like him."

"You like people who look down on you and have unpleasant personality traits?"

"I think they need good friends to teach them how to be good people!"

Unexpectedly, Price laughed. A grating, breathy sound, one that rusted around his vocal cords from lack of laughing muscles being used, but a laugh nonetheless.

"Perhaps you can teach me."

Caboose took Price's hand. "I think that would be nice."

Price marveled at himself for being unable to bear the thought of destroying that innocence. He had never been averse to ruining minds and consequently lives- but this one time, with Private Michael J. Caboose, Price couldn't do it. Even as he had considered it, figured in a heartbeat how to do it, known that the power of a word could accomplish great and terrible things, he had been unable to.

Caboose smiled. "And then you could be friends with Church's other daddy!"

[brianna-lei]

Butterfly Soup Asks #16

This time including the squad as DnD characters, Liz facts, Noelle getting her yaoi education, and more

I’ve only played Dungeons & Dragons once (1) in my life so I’m no expert! I’d consider my thoughts suggestions (like with my takes on the charaters’ MBTI types, which I’m not an expert of either): 

Noelle as a Wizard sounds right, since she definitely can’t do anything reliant on physical strength. She would be an asshole and attempt things like building a Clone Army

AKARSHA THE BARD. Rogue sounds too cool for her

Diya: I actually want to say she’s a Ranger because the Wiki on 5th edition says “The Beast Master archetype forges a connection between civilization and beasts, allowing the character to interact with animals in certain ways including gaining an animal companion to control.“ Fighter and Knight also sound plausible though! 

Min: Barbarian with high Strength and no Intelligence and Wisdom

I don’t want to say too much because I want to save things for the sequel, but here’s some stuff:

She actually played against Diya in youth leagues before she transitioned. That’s why she recognizes Diya+specifically approached her to sign the baseball club form while Diya doesn’t recognize her. At the first club meeting Liz tells her “I was at one of your games when you were little” -- This is purposefully ambiguous/misleading (sounds like Liz was just watching) because she passes and doesn’t want to out herself to a bunch of club members she doesn’t know well

After transitioning she quit baseball and switched to softball. It was weird being the one trans girl on a team of cis dudes, and additionally when she was younger she sort of felt like she had to prove she was a girl; she naturally has feminine taste, but she’d overperform it by 25%. It wasn’t until she got close to Chryssa and found out she also liked baseball that she reclaimed her interest in it

She has a nice resting face so strangers tend to ask her for directions 

Sunburns easily

Yesss check the FAQ guys! Fangames are fine as long as you explicitly say it’s a fangame!! 

I’m almost mad I didn’t think of this myself. I’m one of those people who overuses “spoopy” 

All art in the game (including the title screen) can be downloaded here!

NO!!! 

Noelle. The day the others find out will be the End of her

Akarsha was reading some yaoi so it came up in conversation, and since Noelle had never heard of it Akarsha gleefully educated her (to Noelle’s horror). Noelle was extremely scandalized that Akarsha kept sending her inappropriate images, and Akarsha was like “i’m doing this out of the kindness of my heart! it’s for ur education!! me: Master Teacher. call me sensei”  

Following this Akarsha changed her chat name to YAOI SEME as seen at the beginning of the game 

Diya and Noelle: Never tried it

Min: Has tried it 

Akarsha: She constantly makes weed jokes but actually only does it rarely 

Yes, I’m planning on exploring this more in the sequel! 

Diya; Dee-ya. Rhymes with “See ya”

Min-seo: Korean way, but most characters like Diya pronounce it like Min-so, with the “Min” rhyming with “win” (not like “mean”). The “so” is one syllable (not like “see oh”)  

Akarsha: uh-KAR-sha

Noelle: No L 

I was planning on making the sprites blink! I’m still a bit sad I didn’t end up doing it

It’s supposed to be fall 2008 when they’re in high school, but I took a LOT of artistic liberties when it came to the references. For example, Akarsha makes a Durarara reference even though the anime didn’t come out until 2010, and there’s a lot of modern memes that ended up in there too...I couldn’t hold back...

The IGF trailer video is especially modern-day meme-wise -- since it broke the 4th wall, it was like, all bets are off. Don’t think too hard about it!

I wanted to put a lot of 90s and early 00s hits in the game for the nostalgia factor, like Complicated, Rock Your Body, Dilemma, etc. I think it would’ve made the experience even more surreal for players who are around my age!

I don’t own the rights to all the music so I can’t distribute it around for people to download! Here’s where you can find everything:

Thought Projection by Ketsa

Holding Your Breath by Ketsa

Thoughts of You by Ketsa

2011-13 by Ketsa

Miyauchi Yuri/110515 (miltata remix) by Miltata

Night Tourist by Miltata

Sound413_Images(short) by Miltata

Sound429_Floating Cloud (draft) by Miltata

Side by Side by Miltata

Blooming by Miltata

Romaras by Miltata

Little Circle by Miltata

Daydream by Miltata

Calling Project 2 by .que

Flame of Love by YOSHI

Valar Morghulis by Bloodgod

Overflowing by Tatsuya Kato

My Heart Will Go On - Recorder By Candlelight by Matt Mulholland

At one point Diya finds out what it means on her own. After she finds out, she uses it for the actual meaning :) (added this to the FAQ now) 

I can totally relate to all of them, but I’d say Diya! (added this to the FAQ now) 

that sounds a bit alarming

(I added this to the FAQ page now, thanks for reminding me)  I’m fine with people shipping whatever!! The only thing I can think of that’d make me uncomfortable is incest and shipping Diya and Min with male characters – other than that, go nuts

Oh noo im sorry, that must’ve been stressful! For those who don’t know, I chatted about my game for a few minutes last week with MEGA (a USC club I used to be in!). I’ve adapted them here with what I assume what the questions were: 

1. Is that your cat on your Skype icon? 

yeah it is!! it's burrito 

(people think it’s a cute name) 

LOL glad you guys approve

2. Was the game made in Renpy? What do you think of Renpy vs. Twine? 

yep! it's made in renpy! I actually started out in twine -- twine is impossible if your game is like longer than an hour and is image heavy. the engine started lagging so bad it would take 30 secs to do anything

2. Would you eat a tiny 2 inch man for $100 million?

LOL it's hard..it's a lot of money. I don't think I would

(but you could use that money to save many more lives! utilitarianism) 

it's a real dude tho! i'd feel awful for him haha it's hard when you have to physically do it LOL

3. How long did it take for you to make Butterfly Soup? 

FOREVER. I thought of it in my junior year over winter break

4. Was it for school (like an assignment)? 

nah! just on my own

(people saying that’s impressive) 

yeah!! self motivation

5. What’s your favorite part of the game? 

hmmmmM I like the "date" with min in the dream. it's so fun, with the dog park

6. Which character do you relate to the most? 

diya!! social anxiety queen, so relatable

(people comment on how she runs around when anxious) 

i really did that before my sat once, ran 2 miles at the school's track

7. Are you from the San Francisco Bay Area

yeah i'm from the bay! east bay

8. Which year did you first come up with Butterfly Soup? 

winter 2014 i think

(people trying to calculate which year was my junior year) 

i graduated a year early so junior year was also senior year

9. Are you making a sequel? 

yes!! once ihave more time. i have a lot of ideas for stuff that goes after

10. Was this a prequel to Pom Gets Wi-Fi? Or maybe spiritual successor?

this is a prequel. i dunno about spiritual successor tho, they're a bit differnt

11. Any tips on how to balance schoolwork and working on personal projects? 

hmm...i honestly sucked at this and could only work on it on breaks lol...if you can try to work it into your school projects, like some bit of it...

other than that i cant think of anything LOL it's hard

12. How did you organize yourself making such a long game? Any tips? 

it was SUPER hard to organize, i was really lost until i split it into 4 sections with each character. so if you're planning on making a game this big definitely think about forcing yourself into sections like that

the art was the most confusing to do bc of how many assets there were. i was going to say "have consistent naming conventions" but that's literally impossible LOL it'll always become inconsistent no matter how hard u try

13. What part of the game took the longest (writing? art?) 

writing, actually, despite how much i complain about art assets. it's really hard making sure the structure and themes come across correctly. like pacing is so hard. art is like #2 biggest time sink

14. How early in did you write the Akarsha/Min skateboard scene?

that came pretty late haha i put it in at last second

15. Are the characters based on real people? 

they're all inspired by combinations of ppl i know! i wouldn't say based on them, tho. for example min is like a combination of 3 friends i have, strategically arranged to play her part in the story

character design is design so u still gotta be deliberate about it

16. Who’s the other cat on the computer? (they’re referring to the cat on my desktop wallpaper) 

that one's maru! he's a famous japaense cat. he's super photogenic

(people speculating that he’s the “tube one”) 

the tube one? probably. he's famous for going into stuff

17. What was your favorite aspect of working on the game? 

definitely getting to put specific Asian-American experiences into it

i was like HAHOH i can do this and no one can stop me! it was really fun getting to do this without any creative direction from like, a studio or anything. so i could just go bonkers. i hate pitching stuff so

18. Any writing advice? 

definitely have other people beta your writing as soon as possible! they always catch stuff you missed. also this is like a cheat, make your characters really extreme. like find one aspect of yourself, and turn it up to 11 and make it into a character. that way they'll be relatable and memorable at the same time. i think most people don't make their characters extreme enough so they're all kinda samey

19. (I can’t remember what they asked me here, sorry! They were asking if a specific meme was in the game)

LMAO nah it's not. i did briefly think about it though, i will admit

20. Would you eat a Gusher the size of your hand? 

that would be pretty cool. i don't think i could eat it all at once tho...i would try to save it. like half

You’re welcome, I’m really happy to hear it helped the game feel relatable!!  

Thank you! I hope you have a good day too!!

haha I feel like my game is almost propaganda bc so many people wish they had girlfriends after playing it! the agenda...Thank you for waiting for the sequel, it makes me super happy to hear people are looking forward to it! 

You’re welcome!! I’ll do my best!!! 

You’re welcome!!!! :>

You’re welcome!!! 

same I’m really happy so many people find them relatable! you’re welcome!! 

You’re welcome!! my kids can never get enough love im very happy 

I’m glad you liked it! Thanks for the support! TT_TT

[thisweekingundamwing]

TWIGW: September 9th - 16th Edition!

Happy Sunday, Lovely Fandom!

We have a HUGE selection of new offerings for you this week, along with some things that got overlooked in the last update (please accept our humble apologies!).

As always, if you find something you love, leave the creator a token of your appreciation in the form of a comment, like, or reblog (or all three!).

Feedback keeps the fandom turning!

To those who have taken the time to submit to the blog - THANK YOU!  Many people even submit things for others and it warms the cockles of our cold, dead hearts.  Please don’t be shy about sending us content!  Even if it’s a duplicate, we still appreciate it, and so do the creators who get recognized.  Many blogs who aren’t active in the fandom, but have maybe posted a small thing and been featured on the blog, have been very grateful for our traffic and feedback.  Please keep up the good work recognizing the contributions you find!

Thank you for all that you do! -Mod CB

Mod note:  We are aware that tags/links are not working, and several mods have made every effort to fix them, including redoing every tag/link in the post and they won’t work, leading us to believe it’s a Tumblr problem.  Please accept our SINCERE apologies.

Below the cut!

Fanfiction: 

(please take note of any warnings within the fics themselves, do not rely on this list as exhaustive)

@chronicwhimsy

Saudade, Chapter 9: Memento Park

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11352189/chapters/26301297

Eventual 3x4, 2+3 bromance throughout

Trowa fluffs a golden opportunity for a snog, and a fun day trip turns unexpectedly introspective.

So You Know it isn’t Real, Chapter 1

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11995671

2x5, pining, End of Summer Tropefest Submission, Love Potion trope

After extraction from a mission gone awry, Wufei notices some unusual side effects. After recruiting Heero to find a cure, Wufei just has to wait it out until a solution is found. And remember it's entirely synthetic...

@claraxbarton

Runaway

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12042747

2x3, NONsmut, giftfic for Kangofu_CB

Just back from a hellish undercover op, Duo is greeted by Trowa.

Ready for You, Chapter 6

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11763066/chapters/27283323

2x3, angst, language, sex

Continuation of Kangofu_CB’s birthday fic.  Herein lies the smut!

Just So

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12067038

3x5xM, NONsmut, giftfic for MaeveMauvaise

Wufei prepares for a very important day with the "help" of Meilan and Trowa.

Just Dancing

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11996448/chapters/27140913

3xS, End of Summer Tropefest submission, fake dating, angst, het smut

Trowa has a mission, and it requires asking Sally Po to be his partner. Of course, this undercover op isn't the kind that sends them to a distant colony to track down weapons smugglers. It's the kind where he needs a girlfriend to take to an ex-lover's wedding.

DarkBluePhoenix

Neon Genesis Evangelion Legacy - Gundam Invasion, Chapter 14

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10464375/chapters/24707484

A Mobile Suit Gundam Wing and Mobile Fighter G Gundam Crossover.  IT’S A GUNDAM!!! *RANDOM EXPLOSION!* The cast of Gundam Wing meet our young heroes and befriend them in this tale of how those who understand, those who fight, those who doubt, and those who pass by, can claim victory against the forces of evil reborn. Mission Accepted. All systems go! Gundams… Evangelions… Launching!

Diana_Lua

Onoma Ovoua, Chapter 3: Given Rights

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12002754/chapters/27158469

2xSolo, AU, angel incest

Sometimes it's necessary to choose a new name to live freely. [AU; 'Where my demons hide' side story (can be read independently of it); Something about Duo's past with Solo; Angst; Shounen-ai; probably yaoi/lemon at ending (Angel incest); Pairing Duo & Solo]

Duointherain

Dark Poetry, Chapter 4

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10965861/chapters/27383274

1x2

It's ten years after the wars and Heero has now been forced into medical retirement. He had lost track of Duo, but looks him up ... and it's way different than he thought it would be - beyond anything he could have dreamed of.

@fadedsepia

Brace

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12104595/chapters/27444231

2x3, rom-com, fluff

Trowa Barton is pulled out of his comfortable existence and pushed into the world dating by well-meaning friends and family.

Greentbag

Friction

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12627540/1/Friction

AU, 3xR

Relena, a preventer agent, is sent on mandatory leave after the death of a colleague.  With no choice, she heads to her favorite vacation spot for some much needed R&R.  No one told her she would be neighbours with the very handsome, very intriguing Trowa Barton

@gundamwing-ellesmith

Standstill

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11998518/chapters/27146736

1x2, End of Summer Tropefest submission, Tropes: Stuck In Traffic, Meet the Parents, Road Trip

Post-canon (following the events of A Queens Valentine's, but can be read separately). Heero isn't really the type of guy a girl would take home to her mother, but when Relena's mother invites them over for Labor Day Weekend, the two must work out their differences while being stuck in traffic.

Help

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12641671/1/Help

1st installment of “The Heero Torture Series”

Heero’s fellow Preventer agents are playing a sick joke to make his life miserable

Red

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12641678/1/Red

2nd Installment in “The Heero Torture Series”

Waking up with a black hole in his memory, Heero tries to recreate what he had done the previous night.  The answer will be his downfall.

For mature audiences only!

@gw-ficrecfriday (Bryony)

A Curious Turn

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12110598

3x9, 6x9, Explicit, Lemon, Infidelity

Trowa has arrived to join Preventers. Noin picks him from the airport, but it seems his reasons for leaving the circus have decided to follow him.

@hatarihatari

Where the Night Goes

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12052695

1x4, past 3x4, Mature, AU, End of Summer Tropefest submission, Trope: songfic, angst

"I wasn’t exactly welcome back around town." “Getting caught with the sheriff’s son’s dick in your mouth can do that." Two childhood friends meet after five years apart.

@helmistress (Talliya)

Eclipse

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11990034

1x4, 2x5, 3xD, explicit, End of Summer Tropefest Submission, sex pollen trope

An archeological dig goes a little funky.

@kangofu-cb

Dia an bhais

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11924007

2x4, End of Summer Tropefest Submission, Supernatural trope

Wufei finds the God of Death, asking for favors.

The Wager

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12078228

2x3, written for the Accidental Sex prompts challenge

“I lost a bet to you and the circumstances were supposed to be a joke but I took them seriously” sex “You were joking about something and I took you seriously” sex

Kayko

A Healing Touch

http://archiveofourown.org/works/4321947/chapters/9799506

1x2

Duo finds out that he is more than a normal human being, but more of the nickname he had given himself, The God of Death. Through a series of events, Heero and Duo's relationship is about to change. The question is it for the better or worse?

Kuroi Uma

Kaeru

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12466802/1/Kaeru

1xR

Who is a soldier out of war? Who is a gundam pilot without a gundam?  Heero thought he knew, but in the aftermath of the Mariemaia incident, with Wing Zero in shambles, he’s no longer sure.  So he sets out in search of his origins and while the road leads him back to Japan, he meets people who will make him rethink his life and help him find his place in the world.

LadyJFox

Hard Line, Chapter 7: Chapter 6

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10901946/chapters/27381453

3x4, 2xH, 1xR

It's been nine years after the Eurussian Incident and the Earth Sphere Unified Nation continues to experience peace through communication and cooperation. Quatre Raberba Winner, while finishing his doctoral thesis in engineering at MIT in Boston, reconnects with his friend and ex-boyfriend, Trowa Barton. A romantic flame is rekindled while an old enemy plots his revenge.

Luvsanime02

Turbulence, Chapter 3

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11927283/chapters/27302370

fem!Heero, language 

The story about what Agent Frank Parks has been up to between Evasion and now.  This is the seventh story in Navigation, a fem!Heero series.

Feed the Hunger

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12065658

5x9.  Explicit.  Mild kinkplay (D/s).  For the Accidental Sex prompts challenge

“I didn’t know you were a Dom, and when I called you sir/ma'am, you almost jumped me” sex. Noin wasn't expecting much out of this meeting. She certainly wasn't expecting Wufei to call her ma'am and mean it.

Bonding Activities

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12081273

1x2.  Explicit.  For the Accidental Sex prompts challenge

“Friends can totally watch porn together and nothing can happen… No, they can’t” sex.  This wasn't really the friendly bonding activity that Duo had in mind. Not that he's complaining.

Just a Little Paint Job

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12089757

2x3.  Explicit.  For the Accidental Sex prompts challenge

“We’re just bros being bros and doing something 100% platonic, but somehow we’re turning each other on because of not-so-buried feelings for each other, and we can’t make it stop” sex. Trowa's tired of painting all day, but at least he has a nice distraction in the form of Duo Maxwell.

Maldoror_Chant (Mod Note - yes this IS the original Maldoror of Freeport fame!)

Trial and Error, 15 Chapters

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11993652/chapters/27134349

Repost of older fandom fic.  Eventual 1x2, Mission Fic, Heero being, well, Heero.

Heero Yuy's mission planner Date: AC199 Mission objective: Find compatible partners for Gundam Pilots 2, 3, 4 and 5 in order to secure their emotional well-being. Timeframe: Undefined. Difficulty: Moderate, despite lack of personal information on the subject of romantic affection. How hard can it be to get people to fall in love?

Bring Your Own

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12065688

weird humor

Total Peace has been declared, the Gundams were destroyed, swords have been beaten into plowshares, the whole nine yards. Yet someone out there, in space, has managed to rebuild several of the original Gundams. Who is this mysterious enemy? Are they trying to bring humanity to the brink of destruction again? Is this some kind of sick game? The one-time pilots of the original Gundams are going to find out.

@miss-m-muses (Miss_Murdered)

Sound of Silence

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12072816

1x2, Mature, ANGST

Duo still visits even though all he hears is silence. 1x2. One-shot.

Mistaken Miracles

When the Tides Change

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12432602/1/When-The-Tides-Change

Preventers learn of a new underground rebellion group, along with the arrival of a new ally.  Can Heero put his feelings aside to trust this ally, or will new discoveries create tension between the Gundam Pilots?  Can they work together to keep the peace?  Or are there too many complications to control?

@namelesspierrot (MorbidBirdy)

Goodbye

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11994591

past 1x3, DEATHFIC, suicide

Trowa wants the pain to go away

@peachandbetty

Breakfast at Midnight

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12049092

1xR

If you've never had next day pizza before, you're lying. Heero winds down from a long-term mission commitment.

Invasion

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12050892

1xR

Home isn't the space you live in, but the space you make available on which others may intrude.

Aloft in Reality

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12109278

1xR, Explicit

Heero Yuy was a pleasant by-product of her space-bound visits but at daylight, she belonged to the world. That it until a conference goes horribly wrong and the balance she'd worked so hard to keep begins to tipple.

Peppermint Teabag

A Previous Engagement, 2 Chapters

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12002754/chapters/27158469

1xR,  mature

Foreplay takes on an entirely new meaning when you are the perfect soldier and the queen of the world.

@remsyk-blog

Blooming for You, Chapter 4

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11981688/chapters/27316464 

1x3, eventual 1x2x3 (I hope!), Mature, End of Summer Tropefest submission, trope: Hanahaki disease

"You made flowers grow in my lungs, and though they are beautiful, I can't fucking breathe." Duo has silently loved for them for years. He watched them find each other, yet the feelings still remained. But now the love he's carried for so long may become the thing that ends him.

Rikku Shinra

Boys Boys Boys

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/9687890/1/Boys-Boys-Boys 

A series of drabbles surrounding our favorite pilots and the people they interact with.  

Robot_Qwerty

Finding Home Again, Chapter 10: Big Brother???

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10496823/chapters/27359988 

4x5, 1x2, 3xOMC, Harry Potter Universe, past child abuse

Morgan lost any family he had left during the horrors of the Canadian Civil War, he lived on his own and carved out his own existence at eighteen years old. Adventure and magic only existed in fairy tales and daydreams, survival is all he knows anymore. The Civil War ends a little before the Eve Wars. So when the new laws after the Eve Wars come into place, his world was turned upside down and Canada's new government left little choice to the die-hard patriots. Finally escaping to the Sanq Kingdom wasn't the sanctuary he had hoped it would be. Add the former Gundam Pilots to the mix and he might just find his escape, or will he never find the freedom he craves?

Shadow Gals

Gundam Wing:  Lethal Beauty

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/10136795/1/Gundam-Wing-Lethal-Beauty 

1xR, 3xOC, 4xOC

Sequel to Missing Links.  The two perfect soldiers time forgot - may be the only hope in helping preserve the peace but with so many new and confusing events in their own lives such as politics, blending in, and (of course) romance, will they be able to keep their own lives toegether well enough to aid those closest to them? (Ignore Frozen Teardrop)

Shadow-Hawk2

Imperial Guard

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12559874/1/Imperial-Guard 

Duo Maxwell is trapped in another part of the galazy far from all that he knows and the woman he loves.  He must learn to survive among primitive violent people and accept that he may never be able to return to Earth.

Shenlong

Bound, Bonded, and Betrayed, Chapter 62

http://archiveofourown.org/works/7188593/chapters/27452781 

1x2, 1xR, 3x4 AU

Heero is the eldest son of the King of Colonia. His 21st birthday is approaching and as tradition dictates his betrothed is soon to arrive. However he is also bound by tradition to select his own personal slave. The events that unfold lead him down a path that not only tests his sanity but his humanity and love as well.

Sinspiration

Not Just a Vacation, Chapter 5

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11512800/chapters/27230112 

1x2x5, mention of NCS, autistic!Heero, slow burn, 

Duo and Heero have to go undercover at a private high school to get close to the son of Archie Bravewater, a man who might have major ties to an underground slave-ring the Preventors have been trying to destroy for months.They're expecting Trowa to be their third and back-up reserve. But something comes up in Australia that he can't leave. They get Wufei instead.During the course of the mission the three not only navigate their assignment, but their developing friendships and, eventually, even deeper feelings.

Strawberrywaltz

The Forgotten, Chapter 7

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11686344/chapters/27457230

1x4, past 3x4, implied rape/non-con, amnesia, abuse

The entire universe thinks that Quatre Winner is dead, but when Heero starts having strange black-outs he begins to realize the rumors of Quatre's death might not be true.

Sol1056

Years Go By

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/3672640/1/Years-Go-By 

3x4

A collection of three sets of stories, revolving around conflicts in a relationship.  The expectation or hope that two people are fated to be together does not necessarily mean unending bliss.

Soloscry

Luxevar

https://m.fanfiction.net/s/12628162/1/Luxevar 

1x2, 3x4, 13x5, AU, Dark, Romance, Vampire, Lemon

A beautiful male, betrothed to the Master Vampire of the City, enrolls himself into a Boarding School under trict orders to find the Human who’s been tracking cult-movements.  His mission: seduce and kill.  But can he do such a thing when his love for the Human becomes stronger than the love he has for his Master?

thehiddenbaroness ( @mercedes-carello )

Resurrecting the Viper, Chapter 15: Carry

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10938852/chapters/27399819 

Mobile Suit Gundam: Iron-Blooded Orphans crossover

Following a routine visit to Vingolf, Orga, Mikazuki and Merribit are surprised by the sudden appearance of a practically naked, injured woman. Although Artima seems to have full recollection of who she is, she does not seem to understand the outside world. Against Orga's better judgment, the Isaribi is soon entangled in Artima's quest to find and destroy her old mobile suit - and discover both she and it are relics from over three hundred years ago that could hold the key to Tekkadan's future.

@the-indomitable-bhg, MorbidBirdy

End of Line, Chapter 16

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10833834/chapters/27404901 

1x3, Tron crossover, angst, action adventure, mentions of NCS

The Grid, the legendary Tron System, has always intrigued Duo Maxwell. After years of dreaming and months of tireless work, he finally receives the final part he needs to unlock the door to the digital frontier. A blast of a digitizing laser later he finds himself in the world of his dreams. However, soon that dream becomes a nightmare as he comes to realize that his existence in this new world is both a danger to him and to the programs who reside there. With the help of Security Program Trowa and a mysteriously damaged and glitchy program named Heero, he embarks on a journey through The Grid to seek help from a mysterious entity known as the Gatekeeper. Will he be able to get out of the Tron System, or will the organizations who are hunting him manage to derez him first?

TheManwell

May Demons Rest, Chapter 20: Anger and Exile

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10944786/chapters/27216921 

2x3, post-canon, bad language, underage drinking, suicidal thoughts

A re-write of my 2004 fanfic "Shinigami Sleeps" - To find and free Duo from his demons, Trowa leaves his uneventful life at the circus for the mean streets of an obscure colony in L2.

Waterlilylf

Anything But Perfect

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12107370 

6x2, romance, humor

Award-winning chef Zechs Merquise can effortlessly create the perfect meal, paired with the perfect wine, but he somehow hasn't managed to find the perfect partner for himself. Until, after a disastrous date, he accidentally comes across a feisty and very attractive young man in distress. Duo Maxwell is anything but perfect and yet....

@weiclown (Moreena)

Opulence

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12109446 

no pairings

Treize has need of a unique uniform to announce the fact that he is the youngest general in history since pre-colony times.

Snippets

@chronicwhimsy :

Study Buddies - Academic AU gift snippet  http://chronicwhimsy.tumblr.com/post/164983772637/study-buddies 

@claraxbarton​ :

http://claraxbarton.tumblr.com/post/165337680120/rickycohete-devin-by-ricky-cohete-there-were 

@gw-ficrecfriday :

A Snippet Without A Story - post-canon https://gw-ficrecfriday.tumblr.com/post/165018991561/a-snippet-without-a-story 

@the-indomitable-bhg :

Crisscross - bodyswap! for End of Summer Tropefest https://the-indomitable-bhg.tumblr.com/post/164915630357/title-crisscross-bodyswapping-trope 

Fanart

@completelycathy​ 

http://completelycathy.tumblr.com/post/165239738158/full-illo-of-gundam-wings-duo-maxwell-for  Duo Maxwell

@chronicwhimsy​ 

http://chronicwhimsy.tumblr.com/post/164947740987/i-am-just-very-pleased-i-have-time-to-sketch  - Wufei Chang, Trowa Barton, Duo Maxwell

http://chronicwhimsy.tumblr.com/post/165009020842/i-am-enjoying-my-time-off-thisweekingundamwing  - Duo Maxwell, Wufei Chang

@claraxbarton​ 

http://claraxbarton.tumblr.com/post/165015266990/did-a-sally-thing-her-lavender-jumpsuit-or-at   - Sally Po in a jumpsuit

@drkstars-art

https://drkstars-art.tumblr.com/post/164940702387/kangofu-cb-didnt-ask-for-this-but-i-got-a  - Duo Maxwell, Trowa Barton

@dangerstreet​ 

http://dangerstreet.tumblr.com/post/164976501123/knocked-out-another-one-in-keyshot-with-booleans  - Wing Zero

@eliaspsuedo​​ 

http://eliaspsuedo.tumblr.com/post/164847808303/god-i-missed-gundam-wing  - photo manipulation

@fictioncoefficient​​​ 

https://fictioncoefficient.tumblr.com/post/164979978614/sometimes-a-character-looks-wrong-just-because  - Trowa Barton

https://fictioncoefficient.tumblr.com/post/165189821427/testing-a-new-brush-pen-feat-an-unusually-pouty  - Heero Yuy/Duo Maxwell

@guiltyaxer​​​​ 

https://guiltyaxer.tumblr.com/post/165079314131/that-didnt-turned-out-so-well  - Heero Yuy

https://guiltyaxer.tumblr.com/post/165114283989/i-tried-to-put-some-arabian-like-clothes-on-quatre  - Quatre Winner

@gundamflexing​ 

https://gundamflexing.tumblr.com/post/165028314553  - Tallgeese... geese! (photomanipulation)

@gundamwing-ellesmith​ 

http://gundamwing-ellesmith.tumblr.com/post/165045105004  Duo Maxwell, Heero Yuy

@jadeune​ 

https://jadeune.tumblr.com/post/164963562471/final-portrait-for-the-behind-their-eyes  - Heero Yuy

https://jadeune.tumblr.com/post/164961170496/after-a-short-chat-last-night-about-being-in-a  - Trowa Barton, Heavyarms

@maevemauvaise​ 

http://maevemauvaise.tumblr.com/post/161361838336/claraxbarton-and-chronicwhimsy-and-whoever  Dorothy in a black dress

http://maevemauvaise.tumblr.com/post/165352164941/claraxbarton-okay-so-this-is-version-one-of  Sally Po scar fic fanart

http://maevemauvaise.tumblr.com/post/165163749501/claraxbarton-okay-and-because-ive-never-done-a  - Sally Po in a violet shirtdress

@napalmarts​ 

http://napalmarts.tumblr.com/post/165035260993/14-years-of-drawing-the-boy  14 years of Duo Maxwell

@outofworkshinigami​ 

http://outofworkshinigami.tumblr.com/post/164921742352/shinigami-of-excellence-look-at-my-masterpiece  Duo Maxwell

@paulgq​ 

http://paulgq.tumblr.com/post/165073357313/just-wild-beat-communication  - Wing Zero

@sir-phobos-boa​ 

https://sir-phobos-boa.tumblr.com/post/165024911211/new-parts-for-grim-first-up-i-started-mounting  - custom Deathscythe model progress

@thenumbersoftomorrow​

https://thenumbersoftomorrow.tumblr.com/post/165120832068/boom-boom-pow-pow  - crossover featuring Trowa Barton and Sally Po

Meta/Headcanons

Horses in space:  https://the-indomitable-bhg.tumblr.com/post/165320550432/horses-in-space 

Treize’s change of heart: http://outofworkshinigami.tumblr.com/post/165320961552/treizes-change-of-heart 

Who Raised Zechs: http://outofworkshinigami.tumblr.com/post/165212645462/who-raised-zechs 

Duo Maxwell aesthetic:  http://sapphires-little-cave.tumblr.com/post/154669141811/duo-maxwell-aesthetics-home-the-streets 

Treize motivation headcanon:  http://outofworkshinigami.tumblr.com/post/165239615492/cynfinnegan-lbro009-outofworkshinigami 

Cosplay

http://lokiofgallifrey.tumblr.com/post/165157846674/i-may-run-and-hide-but-i-never-tell-a-lie-thats 

Calendar Events

Unnatural November by @gwblockparty

Posting the entire month of November.

A fanworks celebration of all weird and supernatural.

Participation information here!

Eve War Event by @gw-evewar​

Posting December 23rd - December 24th.

A fanworks Science Fiction event.

Participation information here!

OC October by @gwoc-october

Posting the entire month of October.

A fanworks celebration of Original Characters.

Participation information here!

[icyhobi]

You Deserve Punishment (M)

Description: You never wanted to see them again, you couldn’t bare facing them in the eyes. Not after what you witnessed. It would forever haunt you. Why? Because you discovered their dirty little secret; Park Jimin was the lover of Min Yoonji, who was actually a man.

Pairing: Jimin x Reader x Yoongi

Genre: Smut (M), angst, university!au

Word Count: 6,350

A/N: Extreme vulgar language use. Name calling, and heavy dom/sub undertones. There is also a lot of yaoi (boyxboy) action. Graphic descriptions of sex (oral, etc...) This is a mature read! You have been warned!

Never in a million years, would you have expected to walk into a full 500 student lecture, only to easily spot the two people you never wanted to see again. There was a big lump held in your throat, as you quickly ducked your head down to find an empty seat. Unfortunately for you, the only empty seat you found was exactly a row behind these certain individuals. Trying to sit down as quietly as possible, you mentally screamed, You’ve got to be fucking kidding me! Since when did they come here?!? How could I not have known?!?

The professor started off by introducing himself, and welcoming all the students to the new school year. You had been extremely excited to start university as a freshman, planning to forget all the bad and embarrassing memories high school came with. But somehow fate decided to be cruel, as you glared daggers into the back of the heads of the two beings who left you traumatized in your senior year. You watched as the one with messy blonde hair, casually leaned into the older man with wavy black hair. You also shamelessly watched, as the blonde started to press light pepper kisses to the elder’s neck. Ohhhh……how you witnessed much naughtier sights back 12th grade, which you wish you could forget so very badly. While the blonde was continuing with his kisses, you noticed the older man slowly move has large hand onto the blonde’s thigh. He gripped harshly, and the blonde let out the quietest grunt/moan then stopped his actions.

For crying out loud, THEY’RE IN BLOODY PUBLIC!! DO THEY HAVE NO SHAME?! You were screaming in your head. But the funny thing was, you definitely should have been used to seeing those sinful acts. Why?.........Because nothing will compare to what happened that fateful day, the day you discovered their scandalous little secret; assistant teacher Min Yoonji, is actually a man, who is the lover of assistant teacher Park Jimin.

Finally, the last school year started. You were now a 12th grader, and was just ready to get the year over with. You honestly hated high school. It was nothing like how cool it was shown in movies and tv, it was just dumb hormonal/dramatic teenagers acting as if they were adults. You always dreamed to be the popular girl, but nope………. you were always seen as that shy quiet girl who sits in the back of every class, thus you didn’t really have that many close friends.

Blankly staring at your class schedule, you lifelessly groaned as you walked to your class, hoping this year will just speed by. Walking in, you clenched your fists as your eye itched; the only empty seat was a desk smack dab in the front. You nervously walked to the desk, and sat down quietly. As you looked down to reach in your bag, that’s when you noticed three pairs of legs at the front of the class. You looked up and were greeted by a holy sight; a man with messy blonde hair and a strong build, and a woman with lean long legs and pale milky skin.

“Alright class, I’m sure most of you remember me as your 11th grade science teacher, and I’m happy to say I’ll also be teaching you for your final year!”, your regular teacher sarcastically said.

You heard a couple of groans, before he continued, “And over here, I’d like if I could introduce our new teaching assistants for the year, Mr. Park Jimin and Ms. Min Yoonji”

The woman with the pale skin walked out first and said with a surprisingly deep silky voice, “Hello everyone, my name is Min Yoonji, and I’m a third-year engineering student in university”.

“Hey everyone, my name is Park Jimin, and I’m a second-year life science student in university”, said the man with the insanely good looks.

You saw the reaction of the class, and could easily tell that you weren’t the only one who was awestruck by your attractive new TAs. All the girls where whispering and smiling at Jimin, to which he let out a small wink at, while the boys shamelessly stared at Yoonji’s legs. ‘Oh great, we get a fuckboi and a super model as our new TAs……….’ You mentally groaned. Why couldn’t this year just go by already?

And with that thought in mind, the year did seemingly speed by. It was already the week before your final exams and you couldn’t be anymore happier as you were finally going to graduate. But to your surprise, this year wasn’t so bad, as your TAs were extremely helpful in understanding course material. And to your embarrassment, you had completely fallen head over heals for Jimin. His voice was so smooth, and his dress shirts helped show off his muscular physique, to which your mouth would water at. On the other hand, Yoonji was quite intimidating. She had a permanent bitch face, wasn’t feminine at all, and she kind of had an icy tone to her voice. But there was still no doubt that she was pretty, and to your horror, you found yourself questioning your sexually at times because of how attractive she could be.

Still daydreaming about your TAs in class, you didn’t notice a pair of long slender legs stand right in front of your desk. “Hey blank face, class is over. Go home and study”, Yoonji spoke as she lightly poked your check.

Coming out of your daze, you pouted while rubbing your cheek, “Blank face? My face looks blank?”

Seeing the cute pout to your mouth, Yoonji’s breath quickened and she licked her lips and smirked, “Well yea, you are blank face because you keep zoning out with a blank look on your face. Haha, I don’t mean to insult you Y/n, I’m just teasing. You are…….kind of cute…you know that right?” As she’s done asking this, she slowly reaches out to grab a strand of hair that is falling out of your ponytail. Your quite in shock as you wouldn’t consider yourself cute at all. In fact, there were much prettier girls in this class you thought, and just couldn’t help but stare curiously at Yoonji.

Jimin on the other hand, was carefully looking at the exchange that was going on between you and Yoonji, then gritted his teeth. He quickly walked his way over to the both of you, and yanks Yoonji’s hand back before she can touch your hair. Yoonji, being a bit shocked by Jimin’s aggressiveness, glares at him. Jimin bitterly smiles at Yoonji, then puts on the best fake smile turning towards you to calmly state, “Well of course Y/N knows she’s cute, I mean you probably get asked out a lot, right?”.

Now you start blushing immediately. Having the ultimate heartthrob Park Jimin call you cute, made you feel giddy inside. But the truth was, you’ve never actually dated anyone. No one bothered to talk to you, or even get to know you because you were so shy. You tucked a stray hair behind your ear, while looking down quietly stating, “Well actually………I’ve never been asked out before………. i guess I’m just to quiet for anyone to notice me..”

Jimin not being the least bit surprised by your answer, put fake surprise in his tone, “Really? But you’re sooooo cute! And plus, you’re not that shy with me and Yoonji anymore, right? But don’t worry, some guy will come your way.” Jimin wasn’t technically lying to you, as he did think you were cute, but he’s been with so many more attractive women, and has eyes for only one person. But this said person was too busy trying to converse with you, which made him become slightly irritated.

“Ohh… well thank you Jimin and Yoonji. That was really nice to hear, but its getting late, and I gotta go and study for exams……thank you again, and bye!” With that said, you quickly scrambled out of your seat grabbing your bag, rushing out of the classroom with a red face and hearing faint “byes” in return.

After your leave, both Yoonji and Jimin were silent. Before Jimin could say anything, Yoonji put a finger to her lips, signalling Jimin to shut up. She slowly walked towards the door, shut it, and turned the knob to lock it. “Jimin, you’ve been very bad……..”, she said in her “feminine” voice. Before Jimin could reply, she quickly interrupted, “I didn’t know little Jiminie would get so aggressive because of a cute little girl……..”.

Jimin gulped, then clenched his fists, bitterly speaking, “Why do you keep going to her? I know you’ve been with far hotter women than Y/n….what makes her so fucking special huh? I could clearly see your dick twitch at her voice.”

Yoonji mockingly kept up with the feminine voice and threateningly spoke, “Awww poor Jimin is so jealous of cute little Y/n, that you even bad mouthed your “noona”…….bad boys deserve punishment no? You need to be disciplined Park Jimin.”

You were getting your coat from your locker, when you realized your ring was missing. It was your favourite ring, as you received it on your 18th birthday which passed not too long ago. ‘Fuck, where is it?’ You start to panic, but remember you took it off in class when writing notes. You then quickly dash back to the classroom, hoping the door is unlocked. ‘Please don’t be locked’……you hoped.

When you arrived at the class door, you find it closed shut and are about to grab the handle to open it……. but then hear something that makes you stay frozen.

“Ahhhh hyung………. please…. I’m sorry…”

A deep mocking laugh is heard, “Now your sorry? Noo baby boy, you have to finish till you’ve learned your lesson from bad-mouthing your hyung…”

What you hear next, sounds like the apologetic person is choking, and you can easily identify that person as Jimin. But who was the other person? There was no way it was Yoonji, as this person clearly had a man’s voice. Beginning to panic that someone was strangling Jimin, you grab the door’s knob and swing it open in one swift movement……. But the sight you see before you would leave you forever traumatized, as you would never have expected to see such a thing. On the floor was Jimin on his knees, with his black tie wrapped around his wrists behind his back. Standing right in front of him was Yoonji, with her skirt and stockings pulled down to her shins. But what made your eyeballs practically jump out of their sockets, was that Jimin wasn’t getting choked, he was getting deepthroated…… by Yoonji.

“You……have..a d-ddick? You’re a man? I-I I d-don’t understand…….” you quietly say before you can stop yourself.

At the sound of your voice Yoongi lets out a deep moan, and finally shoots his white hot load down Jimin’s mouth. He then looks at you with a fucked-out expression, and calmly states in his real voice “Y/n……. you shouldn’t leave your mouth hanging open out in front of your oppas….”

OPPAS?!? So many questions are running through your mind but the most logical action hits you first; you needed to get out of there. You quickly turn on your heel, and start sprinting out while yelling, “I’m so sorry! I promise I won’t tell anyone!”

Before Yoongi can call you back, your already out the door. He groans in frustration, and looks down at Jimin who is wiping up the cum that’s dripping down his chin. Yoongi brings Jimin to a stand, and kisses him gently on the lips, sighing again.

“I’m sorry for getting mad at you hyung……” Jimin timidly speaks, trying to break the silence. He then looks at the wide-open door from which you ran out of, and notices a small glint in the corner of his eye. He turns to look at the glint, and sees that it’s a ring. He picks it up and examines it, realizing that it belonged to you. “I think it’s Y/n’s……. that’s probably why she came back.”

Yoongi looks at the ring, and smiles, but then remembers how easily you opened the door. “I swear I locked the damn door. This schools so fucking old that a bloody door can’t even work.”

It’s safe to say that, after witnessing the sinful act you basically flunked your exams. Whenever you tried to focus on studying, you just kept imaging Jimin getting a cock shoved down his throat, and Yoonji’s deep moan……. was his real name even Yoonji? You quietly thought to yourself as you kept staring at the back of their heads. Jimin’s hair looked about the same since the last time you saw him, which is when you caught the incident. When you looked over to “Yoonji’s” hair, you noticed that he still had black hair, but it was remarkably shorter, making you assume he wore a wig when he was a TA. He was also wearing men’s clothing now, and from the side view of his face, you were starting to blush as you realized he was an extremely attractive male like Jimin.

Still, so many questions ran through your mind, as in why did he even dress up as a girl in the first place? You know for a fact that both him and Jimin aren’t TA’s anymore, as you remember they mentioned they were only doing it for one year. And you should have asked which university they attended!! If I’d known they both attended this university, I probably would’ve accepted another offer, you mentally scolded yourself.

Its not like you hated them or anything, it was just more of the fact that you were too embarrassed to ever face them again. You literally saw Jimin giving a blowjob, to a person you thought was a woman. Looking over at the elder again, you looked over his physique and questioned yourself; you could clearly tell he had the body of a man. Why didn’t you notice sooner? He clearly had wide broad shoulders, and he was even an inch taller than Jimin, but you just assumed he was a triangularly shaped female. And with his uniform, which included a skirt, it was even harder to tell that he was actually a man.

“I’m so stupid….”, you muttered under your breath.

Of course, no one paid any attention to you as they were busy whispering to friends or listening to the professor, except for two individuals in front of you.

Jimin was still leaning on Yoongi when he heard your voice. His ears perked up, and he glanced at Yoongi to see that he also heard it. He slowly turned around, and saw you for the first time since the ‘incident’.

You let your hair down, instead of your usual ponytail he noticed. You also wore a bit more makeup, making your eyes pop out. Your lips still looked a bit pouty as you were silently scrolling through your phone. Those lips………. He really hated your lips. Those were the lips which made Yoongi want to kiss you. Yoongi was his. To Jimin, you were just some stupid bitch he wished to have never met. He found himself glaring at you, and that’s when he felt Yoongi hold onto his hand.

It was Yoongi’s turn to look at you, and he can honestly say that he was pleased at your appearance. He still remembered seeing you walk in a bit late on your first day of class. As soon as he saw you, there was just something about your shyness, and the way you acted which attracted him. You were different from the other girls, which he liked. He learned throughout the year that if you had a problem with a question, you wouldn’t ask for help. So, he would take it upon himself to always talk to you first about it. And the more he was able to see you break out of your shyness, the more attracted he was becoming. Of course, Jimin noticed him purposely always walking by your desk and wasn’t so happy about it. It caused many arguments between them, which resulted in angry make up sex (usually Yoongi would be ramming his dick up Jimin’s ass) but that’s what they both liked. He was in no doubt in love with Jimin, but he still found himself attracted to you. And when his dick started to twitch at the memory of you in your short school uniform, he found himself smirking.

“Y/n?” he whispered.

Hearing that deep voice, you dropped your phone in shock and let out a quiet gasp. Oh fucking hell, they noticed me……you mentally cursed. Not wanting to look them both in the eyes, you quickly lied “Uhhh……. I think I’m in the wrong class……BYE”. And with that, you were doing fucking hurdles trying to jump over people’s legs to sprint out of the lecture hall. You’re just about to reach the door, when two different arms come and wrap around your waist pushing you outside. You can already tell who these two individuals are, as they both lead you outside to the food court. Your heart is beating deadly fast, and you’re about to raise your voice to protest, but a much deeper voice interrupts.

“Y/n………….is that how you greet your oppas? I’m quite disappointed……….I would have never assumed you could be a bad girl…..”

BAD GIRL?!?!?! “S-sorry, I just……I didn’t know what to say…”, you timidly spoke. This was so unreal. Two of the hottest guys you’d ever seen, were walking with their arms around your waist, but all you wanted to do was die. Your face was burning hot and you quickly take a glance at both of them; Jimin being on your left, staring straight ahead and “Yoonji” being on your right, smirking at you. Even though both weren’t that much taller than you, maybe by a few centimetres at most, you were still extremely intimidated.

You couldn’t bare the silence of walking, so you blurted “Is Yoonji even your real name?”

Yoongi didn’t even flinch, and continued walking, while Jimin tightened his grip on your waist. A quiet chuckle came from the older male, “Haha, I guess you never got to find out my real name, did you? If you didn’t bolt out the door that day, I would’ve happily told you.”

Jimin getting more irritated by your presence, coldly replies “His name is Yoongi.” He watched as the said man sent him a glare, and you nodding a quiet “ohh”. He really didn’t care about you, it was Yoongi who made him get up and chase you with him. Why is Yoongi so hooked on this bitch? I’m so much better than this basic whore. But even as he was telling himself this, he started to slowly caress your waist unknowingly. He took another glance at you, and could clearly see you were uncomfortable. Hell, he was too. All he wanted was to go back to his and Yoongi’s apartment, and fuck like there was no tomorrow. He was getting so frustrated that he gripped your waist a bit too harshly, causing you to let out a little squeak.

Yoongi felt his breath quicken at your little sound, and needed to go and find a place to sit now. Jimin on the other hand, was horrified when he felt his dick twitch in his tight ripped jeans at your squeak. What the fuck?!?! I’m not attracted to her, I’m not attracted, IM FUCKING NOT. My dick better stop getting hard…….FUCK. “OKAAYYY, I think I found a nice table for us.” Jimin squeaked, shoving you not so gently into the corner spot abruptly. He then slid in beside you, not wanting you anywhere near Yoongi. Yoongi took notice of this, and smirked when he realized an evident bulge in Jimin’s jeans.

“Aww Jiminie don’t be so rough with her, maybe she’s not into that…….”, Yoongi teased Jimin, while winking at you from across the table.

Jimin clenched his eyes shut, and started to groan. This could not be happening to him. How was he getting so turned on by your little actions suddenly?! That’s never happened to him before, especially not from a female. The only other time this happened to him, was when he first met Yoongi………. FUCK NO! Fuck this stupid dumbass bitch with her cursed cuteness…...C’mon Jimin get a fucking hold of yourself! She isn’t even that pretty…………. but even as he thought that, he knew he was lying to himself. He suddenly put his head in his hands and groaned out “ahhh fuuccckk”.

Being slightly alarmed by his weird behaviour, you gently put your hand on his arm. “Uhh Jimin? Are you okay?”, you genuinely asked. He flinched under your touch, which made you grip him a bit harder, being worried he might be sick.

Yoongi was watching the exchange between you two, with a huge smile on his face. He knew Jimin was becoming more attracted to you, it was completely obvious. He and Jimin spent countless arguments about you, since he mentioned to Jimin that he might’ve been interested in you. Nonetheless, it always ended with Jimin becoming jealous, and saying that “she’s nothing special hyung”. But Yoongi knew you were special, and now he could tell Jimin was also getting affected by you. He smiled as he saw his baby boy………being seduced by his innocent baby girl. Ohhh, how he liked the picture in front of him and the thought came to his mind; you would definitely be both of theirs.

“Y/n, Jimin has just been having a headache since morning”, Yoongi’s rough voice caught your attention, while Jimin still groaned. “Don’t worry about him…….I’ll take care of him soon.”

You weren’t that dense, so you knew by the way his sultry tone mentioned “take care”, it most likely meant something sexual. Starting to blush again at the memories of catching them in the act, you cleared your throat and asked, “So why did you bring me here?” Why did they even come running after you? You’re surprised they even remembered your face………..you didn’t think you would be that memorable. And to make matters even worse, your attraction to stupid Jimin never went away. So what if you found out he was gay? There was no denying how undeniably irresistible he is. And now sitting in front of Yoongi, you were ashamed when your heart would quicken when he would stare at you. God, why are they both so fucking hot? Just kill me now……

“Well both me and Jimin always wanted to explain to you about the situation you caught us in that day. I could explain why I was dressed up as a girl, and it wasn’t fucking fun, trust me. So, will you let us explain?”

Jimin quietly murmured, “yes, just let us tell you what happened.”

You looked at them both, smiled a bit, then nodded your head signalling for them to start.

Six months of university had already passed, and it was safe to say that you enjoyed it a lot better than high school. Surprisingly enough, the two people you hanged out with the most was Yoongi and Jimin. That day they dragged you into the food court, you learned that they both also major in Psychology, which lead them to their biggest experiment; to see how genders affect teaching. They needed to compare between a male and female, so since Yoongi had a leaner built than Jimin, he could pass for being a girl more easily. Not even your regular teacher knew about the secret, only the principle of the high school knew. After each class, they would write up reports on their interactions with students, then compare. When the school year was over, they had to make a presentation about the experiment they attempted, and present it to their psych class. (They both received the highest mark in the class for it.) You admired both of their dedication to the experiment they conducted. Especially Yoongi, as he had to keep cosplaying a girl for an entire year. Of course, they mentioned that they’re both dating, so that would explain why you found Jimin sucking Yoongi’s dick that fateful day. But something still bothered you whenever you would go over to their apartment, or just go anywhere with them; Jimin was abnormally cold to you. Whenever you three would hang out, he would rarely even talk to you, or just completely ignore your presence. Yoongi, would try his best to include you in on all the conversations, which you were extremely grateful for. But what happened to the charming Park Jimin you remembered? His smooth voice, and playboy charms all evaporated when you were around. Maybe he just didn’t really like you���…. but he use to act like himself before you found out their secret, what happened? And for that same reason, you would much rather avoid being alone in is presence.

“Listen Y/n, I’ll be a bit late getting to my apartment today. Jimin should be there already, so he’ll let you in.” Yoongi spoke with his deep voice over the phone.

Groaning, you replied “But Yooooongiiiiii! It’s Friday! It’s movie night! How could you still be at school this late?”

“Ugh, I know. It’s just the professor asked me to stay back to help tutor some dumbass freshman like you” he joked. Before you could retort, he said “Don’t worry, I’ll be there soon, blank face. And plus, Jimin is there, have some fun with him.”

“Can you drop ‘blank face’ already? You said it’s not an insult, but I still find it insulting!”

Yoongi smiled, and soothingly said “Okay fine I’ll stop, go have some fun with Jiminie, Y/n.”

“But wai-” but Yoongi had already hung up, causing you to scream internally. What the fuck am I suppose to do with Jimin? He doesn’t even like me………UGHH. Sighing for the tenth time, you finally started to get ready to head over to Jimin and Yoongi’s shared apartment.

Going up on the familiar elevator to their floor was nerve-wracking. Why couldn’t Jimin be the one who came late instead of Yoongi? They were both incredibly smart, (to which you were envious of) so why couldn’t Jimin be the one to stay back and tutor? You finally got out of the elevator, and walked up to their door. Taking a deep breath, you knocked cautiously three times.

Jimin was in the middle of writing his lab report for his microbiology class, when his phone started ringing. He went to pick it up, and smiled when he saw it was Yoongi.

“Baaaabbbyyyy……….” Jimin whined.

“Jiiimmiiiniee” Yoongi replied.

“What’s up?”

“Mmm, nothing, its just I’m gonna be late coming home. I have to stay back and tutor some first years.”

“What? But it’s movie night, isn’t Y/n coming over?”

“Yeaa she is Jimin. And you’re gonna have fun with her.”

Jimin was already starting to panic, “What? No hyung! Just cancel! She can come over tomorrow when you’re here, or later when you come home.”

Yoongi was smiling to himself, then started laughing, “Ahh Jimin, why are you so afraid of her? You’re always so awkward around Y/n, she probably thinks you don’t even like her…”

“But……. I don’t like her.”

Yoongi snorted, “Tchh Jiminie, you know I don’t like it when you lie to me.” Jimin was about to say he wasn’t lying but Yoongi interrupted him, “Don’t lie to me baby. Do I need to punish you again? I know you act quiet around Y/n cause you’re afraid of admitting you’re attracted to her.”

Jimin getting flustered, aggressively responded, “Hyung can you stop fucking around?!! I don’t like her. Why would I? I only need you baby, so stop saying nonsense.”

Yoongi sighed “Jimin, it’s ok if you want her. I want her too, sooo fucking badly. Just imagine shoving your cock down her tight pussy, while I fuck your firm ass.”

“Hyung…. stop, please….”

“No Jimin. I know you’re scared of her because it’s hard to control yourself around her. I have the same problem. I see you holding onto your dick whenever she’s around, I know you can’t resist her plump ass.”

“Fucking stop hyung!”

“Just imagine spanking it Jiminie, like how I have to spank you sometimes. I know you fucking love the pain I put on you Jimin. But, what if you got to do it to her hmmm? Making her beg to let her cum, with tears running down her pretty face. Hmmm, or maybe you want her to ride you? Watching her bounce up and down your thick red cock, and then letting your sweet cum drip down her wet pussy……. you’d like that Jimin, wouldn’t you?

With a hand rubbing his dick and his breathing uneven, he bitterly says “I fucking hate you Yoongi…”

Yoongi, being satisfied with Jimin’s reaction, sweetly replies “She could be our baby girl Jimin, think about it okay? Have fun with her baby.” And then Yoongi hung up.

With his dick getting bigger by the second, he cried out in frustration. He was so sure that he would never really want a woman again, but then you came along. There was just something so attractive, and addicting about you, it was driving him crazy! He always said you were such a basic girl and nothing special, but the more he got to know you, the deeper he was falling. He hated you. He hated your fucking guts for doing this to him. He was so turned on by the mere thought of you, that he was about to pull down his sweatpants and jerk himself right there, until he heard three knocks at the door.

Oh fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, fucking hell, stupid ass Yoongi gave no warning to what time she`d be here. FUCK my dick is too hard! Yoongi made me get hard on purpose, fuck him. “Uhh... just a sec” Jimin shouted. He tugged his sweater over his crotch, to at least try and make his bulge look less noticeable. He then headed towards the door, looking through the peephole to confirm it was you. He saw you standing there in your oversized winter coat looking cold, so he unlocked the door, and let you in.

“Hi...” you said nicely as you walked in, taking your coat off.

“Hey” Jimin quietly says, taking notice of your outfit; black tights with some parts on the side having a see-through design, and an oversized maroon sweater. He saw you taking off your shoes, revealing your leopard fuzzy socks. Why is everything so fucking cute about her?!?

Taking your shoes off, you looked at Jimin and noticed that he was breathing unevenly, and his cheeks were flushed. “Hey Jimin, have you been running around or something? You look kind of out of breath” you questioned.

Jimin started to grow even more red, and just murmured “yea, I was just doing push-ups a couple of minutes ago.” Smooth one Jimin.

Seeing you just standing there shyly made his cock ache more, and he couldn’t handle it. “OKAYYY, sooo I have a microbiology lab report due soon, so imma finish that. You can go into the living room and watch some tv. Don’t worry, it shouldn’t take me too long” he said abruptly. And with that, he quickly rushed into his shared room with Yoongi, and shut the door, leaving you alone in the hall.  

Once in his room, he sat down on his bed, and instantly pulled his pants and boxers down. His big, red hot dick sprang free allowing him to sigh in relief. He slowly brought his index finger to the tip of his hole, then slowly ran it down along the prominent vein on the underside of his length. “Fuucccckkkk”, he shudders as he’s so very sensitive at this moment. The fact that you were in the living room not too far from him, made his breathing even heavier. He couldn’t lie to himself anymore; he wanted you just as bad as Yoongi wanted you. And with that, he felt no guilt when he roughly gripped his length and started to pump furiously to the thought of you.

You were sitting peacefully on the living room couch watching some Maury, until the service cut out. You patiently waited for two minutes until you got irritated. Dammit!! Was Eric the father or not?!?! Nooooo! Stupid snow storm! You decided you would manually try to fix it, as when your tv cut out, you could usually reboot the satellite. It was kind of just luck that it worked again sometimes, but it was better to do that than to wait till it fixes on its own. You got up from your seat, and headed towards the tv to examine it. Jimin and Yoongi had a big expensive flatscreen, which was completely different from your cheap one. How the fuck do I work this? Maybe if I push this button……no…no…I definitely don’t wanna break it. Ughhh, I’ll just ask Jimin to help me…

You nervously walked to Jimin’s room, and knocked on his door. “Jimin?”

Jimin was completely oblivious to your presence behind his door, as he was too lost in his own pleasure. He was quickening his pace on his dick, having his precum act as a lubricant to thrust faster in his hand.

Slightly confused, you knocked on his door again, “Jimin, are you in here?” He said he was finishing his lab report in his room, didn’t he? Why wasn’t he answering you? Scratching your head, you had a familiar feeling of Déja vu, but shook it off and opened the door.

Jimin didn’t hear the door open, but he saw the hallway light crack into his room, signalling someone had entered. He quickly looked up in surprise as he saw you standing there, with your mouth hanging open and your eyes wide. Ahh…. the humiliation of getting caught in the act again….

You stood there gawking at his thick dick and thighs. How could this have happened again? Why is it, that you have the absolute worst timing ever known in human history? Coming to your senses you blurted out “I’m so sorry!!!!!!!!! Go ahead and continue!” Then you bolted down the hall and jumped onto the sofa covering your red face. Oh my god, why does this keep happening?!

While you were freaking out in the living room, Jimin still sat quietly on his bed, feeling completely humiliated and exposed. But then he remembered the first time you caught him and Yoongi in the act in your old classroom. If you would have just fucking knocked, he wouldn’t have to be dealing with this problem. He wouldn’t have to feel humiliated, and you would have never found out about their little secret to begin with. You and terrible lack of politeness to knock first when entering, was the problem. YOU were the problem. With Jimin’s irrational mindset, his humiliation turned into anger. He pulled his pants back up, then stomped his way out of his room directly towards you.

“DO YOU NOT KNOW HOW TO FUCKING KNOCK?!?”

Jimin’s loud outburst terrified you, but you were quick to apologize “Jimin I’m so sorry! I really am! I did knock, but I guess you didn’t hear! I even called your name!”

“STOP LYING YOU STUPID BITCH!” Jimin was just so angry that he was falling in love with you, that he didn’t realize what he was saying.

You felt your eyes burn at his comment. There was so much venom laced with his voice that you felt he was telling the truth. I guess he really doesn’t like me…But you didn’t wanna back down because you weren’t lying.

“I’m not fucking lying Park Jimin! You’re acting crazy! I know you don’t like me hanging around you guys, and I’m truly sorry for what I did to make you hate me so much! But you’re the one who keeps acting like an asshole to me! You’re just a jerk!” you screeched.

He knew he was acting crazy, he knew he was being incredibly rude, but he didn’t want to listen to you, because if you didn’t leave now, there’d be no way for him to resist you any longer. “Just fuck off already you dumb slut, Yoongi doesn’t even like you either! He was just trying to explain our situation back then. No one wanted a friendship with you. Go back to being the loner girl you once were.”

Now you could feel the tears starting to prick at your eyelids. How dare he? You knew Yoongi wasn’t like that……. there was just no fucking way. “Why do you want me to leave so badly huh? Why do you hate me so much? You’re just speaking bullshit ‘oppa’. God, I wish Yoongi was here. He could just shut you up by shoving his dick down your throat……. like the good little sub you are….” you said with venom in your voice. You didn’t wait for a reply, you just started to head towards the door.

You’re just about to grab your shoes until you feel Jimin’s strong arms come and wrap around your waist, hoisting you up over his shoulder. You start struggling to be let free, but Jimin just lifts your sweater up to your waist, then smacks your ass……. hard. You gasp out in surprise/pain and are about to punch him in his back, until he throws you roughly against his bed. You try to get up, only for him to lean over you and pin both of your arms down.

You start to struggle again before Jimin growls against your ear, “The reason I wanted you to leave is because I couldn’t control myself from you. Every time I see you, all want is to bend you over and fuck you till you beg for me to stop………But you’ve disappointed me Y/n. You disrespected your oppa. You’re so bad Y/n………. and bad girls deserve punishment.”

[pinkuboa]

What is A Mary Sue?

Alright I keep seeing  discourse on this in confessions the past week or so so let’s talk about the term “Mary Sue” and it’s brother “Marty/Gary Stu”.  I’ve been on the internet reading bad fanfics for like 7 years at least so I’ll give you the low down on what it means to me when I use it.

There’s a lot of meanings to “Mary Sue (and Marty/Gary Stu) ”.  A good portion of people say it means “Overpower character who everyone loves and has no flaws.”  And they’re somewhat correct, but it’s a gross simplification. A Mary Sue is not just an overpowered character with a convoluted backstory.   A Mary Sue is a story structure.

A Sue (a more gender neutral shortening) is the author’s spoiled child. Every character whom the audience is supposed to like loves the Sue, or eventually grows to love them.  Every character the audience is supposed to hate dislikes the Sue, and is also probably satan.  Not many other characters in the story get any sort of focus or development and usually have one dimensional personalities.  Other characters aren’t characters, they’re plot devices that serve to either aid the Sue by giving them things the author wants the sue to have, whether it’s money, love, complements, the keys to the kingdom, or even a pony.  If they’re evil, then they’re there to show how persecuted the Sue is, how tortured their soul is because of their tormentors, or because 

A Sue never suffers long term consequences for their actions.  They will either always pick the right choice.  They kill someone who deserves it (and not a thought goes to the deceased one’s family or the family agrees with them), break the rules of wizarding school and not get in trouble, act like a huge jerk yet have tons of lovers and the respect of their superiors, eats a frickton of sweets in one setting without suffering the consequences, etc. Their flaws serve only to make them look cool.  They’ll be moody broody jerks but the kind of moody broody jerk who makes cool quips and still has a posse of people who like them.  They can have a self confidence problem but it only serves to make them look more humble.  They can be painfully shy and overly polite but their shyness is why their love interest notices them and loves them over their terrible siblings.  No flaw has consequences.

This isn’t limited to heroes either:  they can kill a person or a whole bunch of people if they’re evil and never suffer anything because damn they’re too cool/smart/whatever to get caught (and you, the audience, are supposed to think so as well).  Evil sues can also be redeemed easily, and everyone will be like “oh boy Mr./Ms./Dr. Sue!  I instantly believe you’re not evil anymore!” and won’t go to jail or anything.  Those who question the Sue’s loyalty are either proven wrong about their assumption and are won over easy or are someone the audience is supposed to hate.

A Sue has everything handed to them.  They have this one unspecified quality to be the one true love to this incredibly hot and perfect character, they were born special due to a prophecy, they are discovered as the lost royalty and become rich and powerful, they just happen to be the best at what they do naturally and dammit the police chief can’t fire them for that.

A Sue doesn’t have a hard time doing anything.  They can have a long drawn out fight sequence slaying a beast, or have a long drawn out talent show scene where they sing the most beautiful song in the world, but these serve to show how amazing the character is.  They don’t really struggle through them, and there’s no conflict to be found.  They’ll worry about them and be like “Oh no I look like a fool when I dance” but then their love interest is like “lol i got this” and then the two of them look great together dancing and show up everyone else there.  

Since they don’t have any conflict in their lives aside from cardboard cutout villains (or equally Sue-ish villains), the story becomes booooriiiinnnng.  That’s their biggest problem.  Unless you’re buying into the idea of “I want all of this to happen to me!” and just want a mindless story, there’s no conflict or thought put into the story to keep it entertaining. 

A Sue is a collection of various bad writing tropes tied together by author favoritism.  The author’s love of the character turns the Sue character into a black hole, flattening every other possible interesting thing in the story.  A good story focuses on making interesting stories with interesting worlds and characters that go into them, not the author binge-ing on a bunch of twinkies in written form (and they gotta have a cool fight scene! and live up to what I think is right  and make fun of preps!  and I want to be the best/ sweetest/ coolest/ smartest ever!) This is what separates a good Superman or Batman story from a bad one (Compare: The Long Halloween/any good Batman story and All Star Batman & Robin).  It’s what separates most protagonist like Frodo from Lord of the Rings & Alice from Alice in Wonderland from Eragon & Bella Swan from Twilight.  

There’s nothing wrong with writing a Mary or Marty Sue (Or Sue) when you start out.  Your first 10 stories could all be 200000 word Sue stories, and that’s ok - you’re learning how to write!  It’s all good.  Over time, you should gradually grow to be a better writer and naturally shed Sue in favor of making characters people, making interesting plots with fleshed out conflicts, and worlds that feel like characters actually live in them.  They’re not something you should worry about in the long run, unless you’re trying to pass them off as good writing.

The meaning above got lost when Shippers started co-opting the term to mean “Any woman who gets in the way of their beautiful Yaoi ship” (I saw someone call Sakura from Naruto a Mary Sue - what????), and people started using it as a term for  “badly written character”, or “way overpowered character,” and even “OC I don’t like”.  Tv Tropes discusses the various meanings of Mary Sue/Marty Stu/Sues, and has a little page on the story structure thing I talked about above.  

So I don’t know how you guys interpret Mary Sue, but whenever I talk about them, I mean this.

[animusharmonia]

At about the beginning of last school year, I began logging the random stuff I’ve heard or seen around the wonder that is high school. Admittedly, some of this contains some of my shenanigans, because who am I going to pay more attention to other than myself. Writing every single thing all at once would take a while (the document I’ve been using is nearly to 16 pages as of now), so this is just a collection of some of what I deem funnier or more bizarre. 

Class split into groups of 4. The four Asian kids teamed up. The one guy of the group whispered “Asian Invasion” 

The manga section of the school library had two volumes of yaoi

The manga section of the school library being mixed in with the comic section

The comic and manga section of the school library being in the middle of the non-fiction area because “its cultural”

“I can’t reach the top shelf in my house, and who’s going to help me there? My dog? I don’t think so.” 

“Wow! That’s so cool! I don’t care, I might tomorrow. No, wait! It’s Saturday!”

“This one is fancy heels, this one is fancy pants”

“Wait, it’s a different Louis?” “There are a lot of Louii”

“And then the guillotine was too slow, so they shot them instead” “...okay”

“This is due Thursday, right? Let’s discuss who’s doing what slide and leave it at that because yay, procrastination”

The Latin teacher teaching us how to say “Go to hell” in Latin when she told a story about someone in the Latin 3 class having asked what the phrase in question from one of their books meant

The radio was playing music over the gymnasium. My Immortal came on. “I’m so tired of being here” “Hah, same”

“Everyone knows what a coup d'etat is, right?”

We got the majority of the class

“An overthrowing by the military”

And we got this kid

“It sounds like something from Lion King”

“???”

Someone said “Coup d’etat” slowly, to the tuneish of “Hakuna matata”

The realization and understanding dawning across the class

Waiting in those minutes for class to end, a few people sat there quietly singing Hakuna Matata

“A coup d’etat-ta, what a wonderful thing”

“And this guy was like “Hell yeah, we want change…””

“Probably using different words”

“Well yeah, he used French”

“Is that a lacrosse ball?” “Yeah” “We’re in theater, how the fuck did you get that?”

One girl sitting on one of the plastic desk chairs with her knees to her chest, calmly eating a salad as she participated in the class discussion

One girl dislocated her arm in sports and, instead of keeping it in a sling, got this exoskeleton thing made to keep her arm at a 90 degree angle. She was way too excited to discover it was at a perfect angle for dabbing.

“I swear, if we have a pop quiz in that class I’m going to cry. Or kill a man. I can’t tell which anymore”

One girl all but sprinting down the hall as she let out some low shrieking noise, only stopping when she got to her friend’s side and leaned far enough in front of him to make eye contact.

“I was doing, like, six things at once and thought ‘What if the building fell right now? I would get nothing done.’ Because hey, it’s the end of the year, I got all this stuff to do, and it would be really inconvenient.”

One guy had a table in the lobby and stood, roll of tinfoil in hand and tinfoil hat on head, yelling about the Illuminati, aliens, and government. He was passing out tinfoil hats to anyone who wanted them

Someone walked into my Latin class wearing one and magistra asked if the guy was talking about the “Alluminati” instead of the Illuminati

One girl’s promposal where she called out the other girl’s name to get her attention as one friend to her right began playing “Never gonna give you up” and the friend to the right held roses. The sign she held read “It would meme a lot if you went to prom with me” in large shiny foil letters, meme in purple as opposed to the gold of the others, and a pepe in the bottom right corner. It was adorable.

“I nearly got a detention for reading in reading class. I was tempted to continue just for when people asked me what I was in for”

On a Latin test, there was a section where you were given 7 names and you had to give a fact about 5 of them. For Vulcan, the Roman god of fire, someone put “A species of alien that appears in the series Star Trek” and he got a point for that.

A girl put “Got a Yugioh card named after him” in small font for Regulus, but filled in 5 others seriously

One girl who is Very Passionate about Yugioh

The teacher was making hand gestures as he spoke. He paused in gestures with his hand outstretched, still addressing the class, and the person sitting right beside him reached out and gave him a high-five

The guy who gave him the high-five had hacked his (the history teacher’s) computer earlier that year

The common “Final” for jazz band is that the teacher brings in Rock Band and they play that

“I’m amazed, you can hear the lack of brain cells”

One meme of a girl wrote “I’M SCHLEEP” on the whiteboard in band. She took a picture of it and walked away satisfied with herself. A few minutes later, the band director piped up from the back of the room. “Hey, Ashley? What does ‘schleep’ mean?” “I dunno”

Someone hiking up their shorts to the length of girls’ shorts, pulling his shirt down so you can’t see them, and Naruto running a circle around the room

Due to state testing, classes were shortened. On the day of the final band concert, those involved went to their first three classed but remained in third (concert band. Those from wind ensemble were pulled in as well) and lurked there for the rest of the day to practice. Pizza was ordered and soda was brought for a celebration of sorts. The 32 pizzas ordered were emptied within around half an hour.

A group of three girls and two guys. The third girl declared herself the fifth wheel of the group, staring tiredly at the two couples.

She didn’t really seem to care, though, and generally could be found latched onto one of her friend’s arms. Both the friend and friend’s boyfriend didn’t really seem to care either.

The other couple, meanwhile, was fluent in innuendos and suggestive comments that tended to scare away the asexual fifth wheel.

“Freshmen, do not climb into the trash cans, thank you.”

One girl convinced some guy in class that Inside Out ends with the girl dying

“That’s not possible.” “It’s magic, shut up.”

“Why is the final cumulative? I can’t remember shit.”

One girl’s realization that graduation was the following day (seniors have been out for well over a week, it’s hard to tell) and the complaint at how “WE HAVE TO PLAY AT THE FREAKING THING, WHY DOES NOBODY TELL ME THESE THINGS?!”

One kid brought in wasabi candy. He offered some to his table mate before telling him what it was. He ate the offered treat with hesitance and a shrug, but the underlying regret was visible before long.

“I hope you know my scoliosis doesn’t like you.”

Some people (4 or 5?) in the corner of the room, taking the Rice Purity test and comparing answers

Apparently the sole girl of the group had the worst score

A math teacher who doubled as the theater director had his yearbook picture taken in a ghillie suit

The ghillie suits had been gotten for the production of Little Shop of Horrors the year prior

“I love getting stepped on!”

Someone was complaining about how their hair looked bad. Our teacher just “Yeah, tell me about it,” gesturing to his own balding head

One of the freshmen band kids after graduation reverently whispering “You’re free” to every graduate they passed

For graduation, all of the people of the band and choir were wearing muted colors - whites, blacks, pale blues, soft floral patterns, etc. - and then we have one cackling flutist in fluorescent orange

“If Kim Kardashian doesn’t feel ashamed, neither should you” - the fucking valedictorian speech

It contained other golden moments such as “I got to work with some of these students due to my participation in The King and I,” (Note: he was the king) “and one of them said something profound that stuck with me. He beckoned me closer and made me lean down and he whispered in my ear… “yolo.” Now, according to Urban Dictionary, yolo is “a term that should have stopped being used five years ago and means You only live once””

He kept looping back to yolo. “What does yolo mean to you”

Next day some of us from the musical had been talking about that the next day. The collective statement was “Hudson. That was Hudson”

“We were the first class to take keystones, and the last generation to not get touchscreen laptops. What a time to be alive!”

The “corner crew” of Latin class (the people who had taken the Rice Purity test) decided to get a group picture with the teacher. One person in the group is my book-nerd friend who had been placed there by the teacher in an attempt to break up their antics (it didn’t work, they absorbed him, much to his exasperation). My friend is the smallest out of the group, so they decided to pick him up. The picture was taken with “Te Amo, Latin” written on the board behind them, my friend held aloft horizontally, and magistra slightly crouched in front of the group with an unsure smile.

The corner crew also had done a presentation on how Canada is just a government conspiracy and also the government is run by shape shifting lizards

“Did you really assign a project? Mr [Last name], I am appalled! There are four days left in school”

It was a 6 prompt essay. All prompts had to be answered with proper sources and everything.

That got a lot longer than intended, so I only covered the happenings of last year (still 6.5 pages of nearly 16)...

[jgamecartoonfann]

Fanfiction Recommendations

Most, if not all, are SyaoSaku, some are family/friendship. 

(Beginnings (K+) [One-Shot].Thinking about the way they met has Syaoran worrying over the memory. Sakura finds a way to lift him out of the mood.

Butterfly Kisses  (K) (A bit AU) [One-Shot]. Syaoran hates Valentine’s Day. Unless he’s bleeding heavily and stuck in a gym with Kinomoto Sakura, in which case the day doesn’t seem too bad … 

Can They Really be In Love  (T)(AU) [One-shot].The town never believed that these two were together, questioning their motives with every possible explanation. But in reality, it was truly that simple. 

Family Photos (K) [One-Shot]. Syaoran and Sakura are staying in Hong Kong for the winter holidays, and Syaoran's sisters are determined to embarrass Syaoran one way or the other during their stay!

Gonna Have a Baby (K) [One-Shot].The most harrowing nine months of Syaoran's life. Sakura Syaoran goopfic. 

Hanami (K) [One-shot]. It has been one week since Syaoran's returned from Hong Kong, after completing his formalities. After being together, officially, for a year and a half, it is finally time for their first date! S&S 

Here Goes Nothing (T) [One-Shot]. Shortly before a Very Important Date, Li Syaoran stops at home and encounters someone completely unexpected sitting in his front parlor.

I’ll See You Soon (K+) [Oneshot]. "I can't stay your kaijuu forever. All little monsters grow up." - The day Sakura moves out is harder on Touya than he thought it would be. SxS on the side

In Line (K+)  [One-shot]. Sakura wants to do a little something for Syaoran. Kerocentric. Short and sweet, no plot.

Jasmine (K+) (Kinda AU) [One-Shot]. As he did so, he caught a whiff of jasmine – like a faraway perfume he had once liked on someone.

Kiregire  (T) [Multi-Chapters]. A collection of fluffy SxS drabbles, using the names of the Clow Cards as the themes. Mostly set postcanon. 

Landscape (T)(Kinda AU) [One-Shot]. What good is strength, or power, or blood, he wonders, if she must face the abyss on her own? SS. Good for Syaoran fans.

Man to Man (K+) [One-Shot]. Sakura and Syaoran have just announced their engagement, and Touya's not terribly happy about it. So at his sister's begging, Touya decides it's time for him and Syaoran to have a little man-to-man talk. Non yaoi.

Mother’s Intuition (K) [One-Shot].  Yelan knew something was off with Syaoran. Sakura/Syaoran

Not Perfect (K)(AU?) [One-Shot]. He wasn't perfect. But he was Syaoran, and she wouldn't have it any other way. SxS Fluff. 

One Perfect Moment (K) [One-Shot].Cerberus has never cared much for the passing of time. That's why in some ways, it hit him much harder.

One Week (K+)(Complete) [Multi-Chapter]. He knew the girl behind the counter … but she didn’t know him. Short fic set in a world where The Void has taken Sakura’s love for Syaoran.

Reassurance  (K) [One-Shot](No Romance). After being practically used and abandoned by someone you care about, sometimes it's nice to have some reassurance, and on a few nights after Sakura completes Eriol's trial, Yue needs some.

Stuck  (T) [One-Shot]. A past traumatic experience of Syaoran evolves into a deep-seated fear, culminating one day when he and Sakura are trapped in an elevator. Luckily , Sakura's an expert on phobias. (formerly titled "A Growing Fear")

Syaoran’s Surprise  (T) [One-Shot]. For Syaoran, it starts off being a typical Sunday morning. However, this day is far from typical. It is Valentine's Day and Sakura has prepared a little suprise.

The Dare He Should Have Not Consented (K+)(Character Death)[One-Shot].It was but a simple dare Sakura gave. Syaoran never imagined what dire consequence it contained. Then right there and then he now knew: his life would never revolve the same way again.

The Rabbit And The Moon (K+) (No Yaoi)[One-Shot].  Syaoran is back in Tomoeda to stay. Yukito offers his help setting up house, but Syaoran suspects that the silver-haired boy's motives aren't Yukito's own

Three Feet Radius  (K) [One-Shot]. In which Sakura is amused about a particular little detail that always happens when Syoaran's around. All guys - except those she and Syoaran knows well - couldn't get within a three feet radius of her. SxS

Twelve Years of Christmas  (K+)(Completed) [Multi-Chapter]. Tsukimineshrine LJ Christmas challenge. Twelve short stories of twelve years of Sakura and Syaoran's Christmases

The Void (K+)(Uncompleted) [Multi-Chapter].  She doesn’t know this stranger who is so insistent on helping her. But he could be the key to saving her soul … An SxS fic set in a world where the Void has taken Sakura's feelings and memories of Syaoran. Sister story to 'One Week'.

Would You (K+) [One-Shot].  SxS It was an important question. And each silent second that turned into endless minutes just had his heart brittling and decaying. "I'm sorry, it was stupid of me to ask that question." oneshot, angsty, fluff, canon... takes place after 2nd movie

Your Turn (T) [One-Shot].  Syaoran and Sakura play a game. Tomoyo watches, camera in hand, and plans for the future. Kero wishes he didn't understand.

And some Tsubasa Chronicle Syaosaku!:

Kissing It Better (K) [One-Shot]. Syaoran finds out that history has a pretty persistent habit of repeating itself.

Memories Not Recalled (T) [One-Shot]. The memories of the past haunt Syaoran's thoughts, even as he sleeps. But he's never alone in his misery, as Sakura sleeps there beside him. Clones post-reincarnation. 

Pounce (T) [One-Shot].  Pre-manga oneshot. Syaoran is always gone, excavating the Clow ruins, but Sakura is always there to greet him when he gets home. Still, this greeting ended up a little... different than usual. Rated for one slightly steamy bit, but nothing too risque occurs

Second Chance (T) [One-Shot].  Never in a thousand years did he expect to open his eyes again. [Twelve Shots of Summer]

Suitors (K) [One-Shot]. Touya thinks it’s high time Sakura made some new friends. His plan backfires when Sakura decides to take refuge in Syaoran’s bed. SxS fic set PreTsubasa.

Check out @littlewolf-cherryblossom recs if you want to read more fanfiction!