#1. he doesn't think he's allowed to have any of that for a plethora of reasons

[saltpepperbeard]

a pensive babygirl™

[picture source]

[nofomogirl]

One of many roots of ineffable husbands' misunderstandings

There are many reasons why the S2 finale took us by surprise so much, and one of them is that we gaslighted ourselves into believing that Aziraphale and Crowley understand each other on the deepest possible level.

They don't.

Because they never talk. Not openly. Not about things that really matter.

I'm sure they've made a plethora of accurate observations about each other over the millennia, yes, but at the same time missed just as many things and formed just as many wrong assumptions.

We know that now.

For the last five months, we've been collectively shattering the illusion (most of us, anyway), and today I wanted to add to that noble effort. Something occurred to me while I was working on another post and I think it deserves to be its own thing rather than a sidenote in another lengthy meta.

It's probably going to be an unpopular opinion, but here I go.

Crowley doesn't actually understand how Aziraphale makes decisions.

I was rewatching season 1 to confirm some things for my next analysis, as one normally does, and I had a minor epiphany about the scene where Aziraphale agrees to get involved in stopping Armageddon.

Let's recall how it went.

Crowley started listing things Aziraphale would lose along with Earth, and things he would have to endure in Heaven.

Aziraphale rejected his idea and tried to leave.

Crowley hooked Aziraphale back in by inviting him for lunch.

Crowley let Aziraphale enjoy his meal and relax.

Crowley bought himself more time by inviting himself over for drinks.

Crowley started giving more examples of things Aziraphale could enjoy on Earth that he wouldn't have in Heaven.

Crowley went on a rant on how nasty Armageddon would be.

Once more Crowley described just how miserable Aziraphale's life would be after Armageddon, for eternity.

Aziraphale cracked and admitted he didn't want Armageddon to happen. However, he insisted he could not disobey God's will.

Crowley pointed out that it might be God's plan for Armageddon to be prevented, that Aziraphale's duty as an angel was to stop whatever the demons were planning to do, and since right now they were planning to bring about Armageddon, he should stop that.

Aziraphale finally agreed and shook on it.

Until now I never questioned that it was a masterful temptation by temptation master Crowley and every stage was purposeful and absolutely necessary to achieve the final goal.

First Crowley made Aziraphale really want to prevent Armageddon and then helped him reframe the situation in a way that would allow the angel to do what he wanted. He gave him an excuse. A plausible deniability.

But what if that wasn't it?

What if what Crowley was actually doing was taking one approach after another until something finally worked? What if Aziraphale didn't really need any softening or priming, and Crowley had just wasted a whole day on ineffective tactics because he didn't know what would do the trick until he finally chanced upon it?

The more I thought about it the more convinced I was that that was the case, and right now I can't believe I was clinging so tightly to the idea that Crowley knew what he was doing with Aziraphale.

Because if he really did understand his angel as well as I used to believe, why would he be so unsuccessful at reaching him when it mattered the most?

A popular interpretation is that in those crucial moments, Crowley simply lacked time, and convincing Aziraphale always required time. When time was lacking Crowley's finesse was useless against the angel's stubbornness, so he failed.

I can see how that makes sense, but as I've said, personally, I changed my mind.

The interpretation I'm suggesting is that Aziraphale never needed all that much time to be convinced of something. It only took Crowley so much time because he was pushing his buttons blindly until something worked. Because he didn't know what the right one was, and when he had only one chance he would always push the wrong one.

So, how does Aziraphale make decisions?

He chooses what he thinks is right.

Yes, it can get rather complicated. On the one hand, he is heavily indoctrinated, and it impacts his judgment. He can just embrace the most ridiculous piece of celestial propaganda on occasion and stick to it stubbornly. On the other hand, we know that his sense of right and wrong isn't really tied to Heaven or even God. We know because we've seen choices he'd made in the Job minisode.

But while it may not be easy to predict what Aziraphale will deem right in any given situation, the fact remains that this is what it comes down to. This is what ultimately informs his choices, especially the big ones, and the most effective way to persuade Aziraphale to do something is by proving to him that it would be the right thing to do. Or that the other option wouldn't.

I don't think Crowley realizes it. And there's a good reason why.

A great many choices aren't about right and wrong. They're just choices between two equally neutral options. Sometimes two equally ambivalent options. Either way, not really moral choices.

The problem with Aziraphale is that while he's managing perfectly fine small morally neutral choices, he's not very good with big ones. I believe that he expects all big choices to be moral choices and he has trouble making them when they're not. I've seen quite a few posts here arguing that Aziraphale is incapable of choosing his own happiness for its own sake, and I wholeheartedly agree.

And Crowley doesn't understand it.

He's not that far off the mark when the choice really is a moral one. When he was trying to convince Aziraphale to the Arrangement his arguments were about how the end result would be the same, ie. how it wouldn't be wrong. When he was trying to convince Aziraphale to kill Adam, he was pointing out how it would save everybody.

But when the choice isn't inherently a moral one, he doesn't understand why it's difficult for Aziraphale.

And in the most dire situations, he doesn't understand he could maybe try and go this route.

[rorywritesjunk]

I can’t tell where the journey will end But I know where to start

Prequel to my Kid Buggy fic, set about 11-ish years before that story.

Buggy meets you by chance when he needs his buttons sewn back onto his jacket. He’s young, up and coming, and he thinks everyone should cower before him wherever he goes, but all you do is smile at him.

Rating: PG-13ish just for some swearing. Warning: Buggy’s in his early 20s. He’s an asshole. He just is because I wanted to write him loud, demanding, everything. Also, I’m not nice to Buggy when he tries to flirt. I definitely write him as a bit of a disaster when it happens. It’s just going to get a bit worse from here. This chapter is just kind of fluffy but also Buggy is kind of young and anxious and has a bit of an attack but Sunny gives him love. Bath time chat as well. A/N: I have no idea when Buggy became a Captain, so he’s a fresh faced captain in this. No clue how long this fic will be.

Title comes from “Wake Me Up” by Avicii.

TAGLIST: @lostfirefly @ane5e @kingofthemfingpirates @the-angriest-angel @tiredemomama @valen-yamyam16 @i-reblog-fics-i-like @plethora-of-fickleness @uhnanix

Chapter 1 + Chapter 2 + Chapter 3 + Chapter 4 + Chapter 5 + Chapter 6 + Chapter 7 + Chapter 8 + Chapter 9 + Chapter 10 + Chapter 11 + Chapter 12 + Chapter 13 + Chapter 14 + Chapter 15 + Chapter 16 + Chapter 17 + Chapter 18 + Epilogue

Chapter 11

“If you’re hanging out here today, I’m putting you to work.” Miss Pins told Buggy as she glared at him as he leaned back in the chair in the shop. You were working on an order for a customer, patching holes in a jacket while Buggy sat and watched you, but your boss wasn’t having any of it.

“Do I get paid?” Buggy asked. She shook her head.

“Your payment will be getting to spend time with Sunny while at the shop.” She told him. “Now, there are some things I need put away in the backroom that Benji can’t reach with a ladder, and I’ve seen some of what that Devil Fruit of yours can do, so go help him.”

And that's how Buggy (begrudgingly) became a shop worker for the day. If it meant he got to spend the day with you, then fine. He helped organize things on the top shelves, cleaned windows, and even helped paint the front exterior of the shop with Benji (while managing to get covered in paint). The only upside was you bringing him lunch once he was hot, sweaty, and covered in purple paint. 

“Looks like you could use a bath.” You chuckled as you set a plate of sandwiches down for him and Benji. 

“What? No.” Buggy took one of the sandwiches, shoving it into his mouth as he continued talking. “I'm fine without one.”

Benji made a face as he picked his own up. “You sure?”

“What’s the damn point? I'm just going to get dirty again.” Buggy told him as he ate. You shook your head and went inside to grab them both something to drink. “Besides, life on a ship doesn't allow for such a thing.”

“You're on land now.” Benji pointed out. “And you stink.” He pinched his nose and stuck his tongue out at him. 

“Yea? Well, that's because I'm a man and you're just a kid!” Buggy shot back. “I smell manly, got it? You just can't handle it.”

“No, he's right.” You said as you came back out with their drinks. “You do stink, Buggy. You need a bath.”

His jaw dropped at what you said. Did you really think so? He wondered if you were teasing him because you sat down and kissed his cheek. 

“One bath on land won't kill you.” You told him, smiling. “And getting caught in the rain doesn't count as one, okay?”

And he really did love you because he was nodding in agreement with whatever you told him. Benji was pretty impressed that he listened to you and was convinced you had magic powers for a moment, because at the end of the work day, you had Buggy in the bathroom and in the tub, washing his hair for him like you would a stray dog.

“Don't you trust me to do it myself?” He asked as you ran your fingers through his hair, making sure the shampoo was able to reach his scalp. 

“Of course I do.” You told him as you tugged on a lock of hair gently. “But why would I miss the chance to play with your beautiful hair?” 

He turned red and covered his face with his hands when you said that. Why did he have to blush every time you said things like that to him? You said nothing after that, just humming softly as you made sure his hair was fully lathered before using a cup to pour over his head, rinsing the shampoo out. It took a few minutes, but once it was done you grabbed a towel and began drying his hair.

“Buggy, can I braid your hair?”

“What? Why?” He asked as he turned to look at you. You twirled a lock of his hair around your finger with a shrug.

“Keeps it out of your face while you wash up.” You replied innocently. He narrowed his eyes suspiciously at you before nodding, wondering what was going on in your mind. Honestly, you just wanted to braid it because you thought it would look nice in a crown braid on top of his head. You got up to grab a comb and some hairpins, humming once more before returning to your spot outside the tub. He turned around to look at you with a frown.

“Why are you doing this?” He asked. “Why are you… so nice all the time to me?”

You looked at him curiously, frowning a bit before you shrugged. “I don’t see a reason not to be nice, Buggy.” 

“Yea, but-”

“I only thought you were an asshole once, Buggy, and you apologized to me for it. Other than that you’ve always been nice to me.” You leaned in towards him and he leaned back just a bit. “I think you’re sweet for a scary pirate captain.”

Buggy’s face turned red as he glared at you. “Are you making fun of me?”

“What? No.” You smiled and put your hand behind his head, pulling him back to you for a kiss. He tensed up, turning redder, and when you pulled back you weren’t sure you’d seen him turn that shade of red before. “You okay?”

“Y-Yea.” He looked away from you. “I’ll finish up. Uh, you probably have things to do.”

You raised an eyebrow but nodded, kissing his cheek before getting up. “Come find me when you’re done, Buggy.”

~

Buggy found you in the kitchen a little while later as you started on dinner. He stood and watched you for a moment, scratching his chin, wondering if you really would marry him if he asked. Would you want to live on a ship for months at a time with him? Would you be happy with him? Why would you even think of leaving this life to join him on a ship? His mind was starting to race as he started wondering why you would even consider being with him, and he almost started to panic just a bit. 

“What’s on your mind, Buggy?” You asked, not turning around and interrupting his thoughts. “I heard you walk up.”

He hesitated but walked over to you and wrapped his arms around you carefully, letting his head rest against yours. You touched his arm softly, stirring the pot of stew with one arm carefully making sure not to spill the contents. 

“Would you really marry me?” He mumbled against you, refusing to move as he tightened his hold. You stopped what you were doing and pushed him away from the stove before turning to look at him.

“Do you not want to suddenly?” You asked with a frown. 

“I-I do! I just… wanted to know if you really want to!” He said. “Or are you just saying that to be nice?!”

You sighed softly and put your hands on his shoulders. “Buggy, honey, I do. I am not saying it to be nice, I'm saying it because I want to marry you eventually. I want to wait until I'm finished with my apprenticeship, okay? And after that you can propose however you want, but I want to marry you.” 

“Really?” He asked. You leaned in and kissed him, catching him off guard for a moment, and when he tried to hold onto it for a second longer, you pulled back and patted his cheek softly.

“Yes, really.” You insisted. “Remember, if I didn't like you, I wouldn't be this nice to you, Buggy. Feeding you, sharing my bed, all that kind of stuff. I do it because I care about you.”

“You really want to live on a pirate ship?” Buggy frowned. You shrugged and smiled at him.

“I wouldn't mind. Besides, my mom was a pirate and she used to say she could see me ending up on a ship one day like her.” You told him as you kissed him again.

“Wait, what?” He jerked away and looked at you, confused by what you just said. “Your mom was a pirate? You never said your parents were pirates!”

“My parents weren't, just my mom.” You chuckled as you smiled at him. “She was a member of the Cook Pirates under Captain Red Leg Zeff.” 

“What?!”

“I guess we got a lot to learn about one another, Buggy.” You said as you turned back to the stew you were making. “But I like that we have the time to do so.” You looked back at him. He looked like he was still processing what you told him. “You okay?”

“Your mom was a pirate?” He asked. “Really?”

“Yea, for a few years.” You shrugged. “Met my dad on a merchant ship they were raiding and fell in love. Decided to stop being a pirate and married my dad.”

Buggy stared at you for a moment, his mind still processing what you said. Your mom was a pirate but wasn’t anymore? Did… did he need to stop being a pirate to marry you, like your mom chose to do? He didn’t want to stop, but he loved you. Was this a choice he was going to have to make? His mind was starting to race; you looked back over at him, saw he was becoming distressed, and walked over to him.

“Hey, stop thinking for two seconds and sit down, Buggy.” You told him as you led him over to the table. 

“I don’t…. I can’t give up the sea!” He blurted out. 

“What? I wouldn’t ask you to do that!” You told him, looking surprised. “Why would you think you had to?”

“Your mom-”

“Yea, she chose to because it was what she wanted to do.” You told him as you made him sit down. “I wouldn’t ask you to do that, Buggy.”

He looked up at you, uncertainty in his eyes. You ran your fingers through his hair and sighed, letting him wrap his arms around you. What was going on, why was he suddenly so panicked? 

“What’s going on in that brain of yours?” You asked softly. “You still will be a pirate if you marry me, Buggy. I wouldn’t ask you to ever give it up and no one should.” 

“I can’t give up being a pirate.” He muttered as he closed his eyes, leaning into your touch. While you were touched that he was this comfortable around you to drop his guard like this, you were a little surprised how anxious he could become over small things. 

“You aren’t going to.” You assured him as you stroked his hair softly. “I promise. I want you to become the most feared pirate, Buggy, and I won’t let anything stand in your way, okay?”

He just nodded, refusing to look at you as you held him. This was such a contrast from when you first met him, when he demanded services after storming into the shop. Now he was sitting in your kitchen, letting you hug him after thinking he would have to give up his piratey lifestyle for you. 

“Are you okay, honey?” You asked. He could only nod. “Okay. I need to finish dinner. You can hold my hand if you want.”

“I’d like that.” He mumbled as you pulled away, his hand slipping into yours and popping off his wrist as you returned to the stove. Buggy stayed at the table, watching as you worked. You were adding a few spices into the stew before checking the flavor. Once you seemed satisfied, you took Buggy’s hand and put it on your shoulder while you set the table. He watched you, wondering now what you thought of him. He felt pathetic, getting worked up over nothing, but you were there for him, comforting him, which made him feel better in the end. 

He was starting to think he didn’t deserve you, but you finished setting the table and reached over to brush his hair out of his face, tucking a lock behind his ear before kissing him on his forehead.

“Dinner’s ready.” You told him. “I can walk you back to your ship after, okay?”

He didn’t really want to leave after dinner, however.

[pizadoc]

Rattatatouille - a fanfic

A Rattata walks off a ship that was hauling cargo from Kanto to Paldea, and this little guy came with nothing but a focus sash in a little bag tied to a string. It knows that strategy where you get hit by a Pokemon several dozen levels above you, and the focus sash keeps you on 1HP so  you can use endeavor to bring your opponent down to 1HP too. Then you quick attack and win the cheesiest victory of your life. Of course, there are a plethora of ways this strategy falls flat. For example, if it got burned or a sandstorm kicked up, it's game over for the Rattata. But listen. It’s a level 1 route 1 rat. Do you think it’s capable of coming up with anything better?

     Well, as it turns out, this little guy has grand ambitions of becoming a champion. 

     Of course the Rattata quickly realizes the hard truth. You know, besides the aforementioned truth that its strategy is absolute, concentrated, 100% artificially-flavored ass. There is also the fact that Pokemon can’t challenge gyms. Mainly because nobody knows that that’s what the Rattata is trying to communicate. All the humans hear is "Rattata, Rattata" because Pokemon could speak English in Kanto, but they could only say their own name. So it needed another way.

     It runs into this dude who just sucks at Pokemon battles. While it watches him battle with the most amateur strategies he’s ever seen, it looks at this guy's stupid little default hat and gets an idea. Without warning, it crawls up his back, dodging the guy's swinging arms and ignoring his panicked screams, crawls under the hat, and grabs his hair, using it to pilot his movement. At first the guy is horrified by his loss of bodily autonomy, but then he realizes that these piloted arm movements allow the Rattata to command his Pokemon. And it’s winning.

     The Rattata realizes that by pretending to be a human trainer, it doesn’t even need to use the silly focus sash strategy. It uses the guy as a meat puppet to battle with a team of other, higher-level Pokemon and win his way through the gyms. The guy being controlled decides that this rat's doing a better job than he could, so he kinda just lets it happen. In all honesty, The guy has received more praise in the past week than he had his entire life! The Rattata actually starts to get jealous, seething underneath the hat as it watches this human take all the credit for its hard work. so it devises a plan to reveal itself.

     As the human stands before Top Champion Geeta, the rat suddenly throws the hat to the ground! Everyone screams, and the Elite Four chase the Rattata off of the roof with broomsticks. Geeta doesn't make the connection that the Rattata has been piloting the human's actions and battle decisions through pulling his hair because why the fuck would anyone come to that conclusion. Instead, she wails, "I’m so sorry, we never have rats here, we're very clean usually." Meanwhile the human is holding in a massive pants-shit of pure terror because he can't do this fight by himself. He had retained zero actual battle strategies under the assumption that he would always have that random Rattata as his safety net. Despite this predicament, however, can this unconfident underdog pull through and prove himself as the shining star he was all along?

     No, actually. He loses horribly. Also the Pokemon league building has to be quarantined for a month so it can be checked for any strange diseases or plagues the rat could have carried over from Kanto. Meanwhile, the guy decides to take up cooking instead. Unfortunately he sucks at that too.

reposted from my ao3, just in case

[moki-dokie]

OTP Relationship Asks

from @/commander-krios

just cause i felt like answering these about jess and russ

1. Who most initiates PDA? Russ. Jess is very shy about PDA - especially Not Straight PDA. society hasn't been all that kind until very recently about that sort of thing and he doesn't like ruffling feathers or bringing attention to himself.

2. Any sleep habits either had to get used to? Not sleeping specifically. Jess starts his day hella early and Russ isn't about that. he's slooooow to get up in the morning.

3. Hot and Steamy or Soft and Tender? hot and soft or steamy and tender. there is no inbetween.

4. How did they first meet? Jess was doing some shopping for his next landscape job out in the local garden center when a distracted and not looking where he's going Russ walked directly into his cart, and then proceeded to run when Jess tried to help him pick up his stuff.

5. What is their love language? Touch, big time. they're always touching even in some tiny way. for Russ, his second would be cooking.

6. When did they realize they loved each other? It only took Jess a couple of months to realize it was a lot more than infatuation, about three to admit to himself he loves him. He's too scared to actually say it out loud though. Russ was a little faster, about a month 1/2 to two months in that he told Jess he loved him.

7. Who is more sentimental? Jess, by like, a LOT. very old fashioned romantic he is.

8. What’s one way their personalities compliment one another? Jess is quiet, patient, reserved, and very modest. The less he's the center of attention, the better. He's a listener, not a talker. He's very insecure and suffers from a plethora of problems like ptsd, severe anxiety, and major body dysmorphia and is extremely hesitant in a lot of areas of life because of it. Russ is loud, blunt, shameless, and high energy. He loves being the focal point and can talk about anything for hours if he's allowed to. While he can be kind of impatient about what he wants, when it comes to someone else his patience is infinite. Having raised his four brothers in poverty and navigating the dangers of running hard drugs, he's got the skills needed to work Jess through ptsd episodes or panic attacks calmly and effectively.

9. How are their personalities different? Jess abides by societal rules of wolves more than he does humans. He was born, raised and lived relatively isolated from the majority of human activity except for their allies with the tribe. the wolf way of life is hard ingrained into him. A lot of obvious things to a human fly right over his head. Russ has only been a wolf for less than a year, and came into it traumatically. He knows nothing at all about how to be a wolf, nor does he particularly care to learn sometimes. They see the world through very different lenses and it leads to a lot of unintentional miscommunication.

10. What are some non-sexual activities they do together?  They work together pretty often, Jess teaching him lots of things about gardening. Jess likes to take him out on dates. Watching movies and chilling. Going out for joyrides on Jess's bike. walks along the beach. once summer comes around, surfing and swimming. also working on russ's car.

11. Which member is more physically affectionate? In private, Jess.

12. Which member is more verbally affectionate? Russ

13. Which member steals borrows the other ones clothing? Russ, if only because Jess is too big to use any of his lol

14. Are they an introverted couple or an extroverted one—AKA would they prefer to go out to a party or event together or would they rather stay in? Both. Jess prefers quiet dates, but he's not all that opposed to going out to party or concerts, as long as he can stay somewhat lowkey and unnoticed.

15. Who is more likely to make an impulsive decision and who is the voice of reason? Russ hardly ever thinks ahead. Jess is always thinking ahead.

16. Who stays up way too late and who tries to drag them to bed? Russ is definitely more of the night owl. Jess usually goes to bed pretty early but he can pull all-nighters pretty easily if he needs to.

17. Who fell in love first? Russ

18. What song fits them perfectly? SYML - You & I Bastille - Shut off the lights

19. How do they deal with being away from each other for a long time? They don't lol but in the beginning before they were together all the time, there was a LOT of texting and sending selfies and random pics throughout their day.

20. Who holds a grudge the longest? Neither of them really hold grudges

21. Which of the two is quick to speak and which one is quick to listen? Russ almost never shuts up, and Jess is perfectly fine just listening.

22. Who gets more easily embarrassed? Jess, absolutely. He's always embarrassed about something.

23. Who overthinks the most? Jess. He's an overthinking disaster.

24. Which of the two is the most competitive? They're both pretty competitive. Jess enjoys a challenge, Russ likes to be challenging.

25. Who’s the most stubborn? Depends on what it is. Jess probably just a little bit more though.

26. How do they comfort each other? Physical comfort is highly important to them both. However, Russ tries to be a caretaker for Jess, since he's always taking care of everyone else. Jess tries to find things to distract Russ from whatever's bothering him and redirect his attention to better, more positive things. Also very sensory-driven comforts.

27. What random everyday object/activity makes them think of each other? Jess has a jar of local honey that Russ got for him before one of their dates that he uses sparingly. Russ's couch that Jess got for him shortly after they met.

28. Do they get along with each other’s friends and family? Very well, actually. Jess's friends are just as much Russ's, and Jess has pretty much adopted Russ's brothers like his own kids.

29. What is their sex life like? Complicated. Jess has LOADS of hangups and anxieties around sex. He's been celibate for the last 30 years, so it's been a slow process getting back into sexual things. Russ is thankfully very patient and understanding, though sometimes he does get a little too excited and they go a little too far too fast. Very bumpy, but overall good.

30. What is their favorite place to kiss the other? (Cheek, hand, closed eyelid, neck, nose, etc.) Jess is partial to the top of his head, neck/collar area, and legs. Russ likes his chest and hands.

31. What’s the relationship like? Smooth? Rocky? Bumpy. Treat each other very well, lots of love between them, both help each other heal from their various hurts, but they both suck at communication. Lots of misunderstandings.

32. How do they resolve their arguments? Talk through the issues and figure out what they got hung up on or where they failed to understand each other. Lots of apologies and making up and making genuine efforts to do better.

33. Who has the most nightmares and how do they deal with them? Jess. Russ typically tries to wake him up before they get too bad. If he's able, tries to get Jess to get back to sleep. If it's a bad one, then Russ will take the steps needed to get him to calm down and anchored. Lots of comfort and love.

34. Do they give each other nicknames? Russ calls Jess Handsome as a term of endearment. Calls him Daddy in the bedroom. Jess calls him Macushla, a kinda old fashioned Irish term like 'darling'. Baby and Good Boy in the bedroom.

35. What movies do they enjoy watching most? A little bit of everything, but they're a little more partial to comedies.

36. How’d they meet each other’s families? Russ's brothers call him pretty much every day, often facetime/videochat. After a few times of them calling while jess was around and the boys asking to talk to him, he just sort of started being part of the conversations all the time. Now he talks to them even outside of their daily brother chats. Jess doesn't have any family left.

37. What do they like the least about each other? Russ can't stand how Jess is always trying to shoulder everything by himself and blames himself for nearly everything. Jess gets irritated that Russ doesn't listen to him when it comes to very important matters, especially wolf-related, and that he hardly ever thinks before doing something.

38. What was their most memorable date? Their unofficial first date and official first date are both about equally memorable for very different reasons.

39. What other couple would your otp get along with the best? They get along with just about everyone, but frequently hang out with Ed, Cole, and Lucky and their weird, chaotic polycule.

40. Who makes the other smile with almost no effort at all? Russ. Jess is always staring at him and smiling like a dopey idiot when he's doing nothing particularly significant.

[lowkeyorloki]

hello it’s BC anon I feel less confident about my Jane theory today but also I sort of feel like you’re trying to throw me off which makes me more confident about the theory🤨 so essentially I Do Not Know! I would give more evidence to support it but I feel like cass really just gave the best evidence there is and said it all like there’s really nothing else I could possibly say??? But anyway I will say this since Loki is obviously gonna be Going Through It and because fatherhood is a big part of the chapter I think those two will connect. Seeing Jane (someone Loki loves) getting pregnant so soon after Loki gets his heart broken will HURT and I feel like it’ll add to his inner turmoil bc obviously he wants so support thor and Jane he loves them and he’s so happy for them but it’s gonna make him think about kids w y/n and that’s gonna eat him up inside and he’s gonna feel like he’s not being happy enough for his family and that’s gonna eat him up inside. Anyway maybe Jane is not pregnant also I realize now I thought both y/n and Jane were pregnant so maybe I need to psychoanalyze myself I really hope I’m not projecting or something bc I am literally 21 years old so I better not secretly want to be pregnant or something

LMAO this is pemdas you know. The confidence and the confusion cancel out and you're just left with a blank space (mind?). But you are SO right that Cass gave the best piece of evidence like. I'll torture Loki and y/n all day every day in ANY of my fics but I will not put Narvi through it!! I will do the opposite. I will give him the bestest life I can 🥺

I LOVE all the points you make especially the one about Loki feeling like he isn't happy enough for his family. I think I've briefly mentioned that before but it's definitely explored in the Loki chapter. It's hard for Loki because he loves Narvi so much, but until y/n came along, he didn't have any close relationships outside his immediate family. Of course he's going to feel unfulfilled to some degree - which makes him feel bad because what father thinks that? Loki has to work on understanding it's okay to want and pursue things for himself even though he is a father. He's allowed to have his own thing (no matter what that is). I think y/n citing Loki's smaller amount of time spent with Narvi might have (unintentionally) validated this idea that Narvi trumps all. Which, to be clear, is true - Narvi IS Loki's #1 priority, as any child should be. But that frame of thinking doesn't have to be around the clock. It isn't Narvi or adult relationships outside of the family unit, it's the question of how to make those two things work together. I think these are situations Loki hasn't had time to think about for a plethora of reasons.

And do not worry BC anon I am also 21 (barely I turned 21 not even three months ago) and I can semi confidently say you probably don't secretly want to pregnant. I also had to sit down and ask myself that when I started this story at 19 years old and plotted it out bc I was like. Why am I focusing on this as someone who NEVER wants kids of her own and also has historically refused to write anything regarding pregnancy. Is this my brain telling me I want this???? I especially worried about it because I had to do a lot of research on pregnancy for the y/n reveal just to be sure I was alluding to things that could or couldn't point to her being pregnant. That late night research resulted in like two pregnancy dreams for me and I HATED it but I was so scared it meant something. I mean, it did mean something: it meant I was doing my research way too close to bedtime lmao. But yeah I wouldn't worry too much... you're just picking up on the clues I left that could very well mean your theory is correct ;)

[pikahlua]

Question about Japanese, but is 理解できねェ and 棚上げして not present tense? He doesn't seem to speak in past tense until 虐めた. I've always been confused on these panels.

Good question! To which the answer is: yes and no and yes and no and oh god why.

Japanese has a big run-on sentence problem.

て "te" isn't really...any tense. It's a conjugation that allows for a plethora of other verb conjugations. It can have sooooo many different meanings as a result, particularly in casual speech.

Let's just assume those two speech bubbles in question are the only phrases Katsuki says (ignore the other phrases before them). Let’s even cut out the extra sub-clause about “rikai dekineE jibun no” (let’s ignore the self-deprecating furigana for ease) to simplify things (but we’ll come back to it later). If this was a complete sentence, it'd look like:

弱さを棚上げして虐めた。 yowasa wo tanaageshite ijimeta.

In this instance, the “te” is functioning as a comma. You could split this into two sentences, but note that the “te” becomes “ta” (past-tense) in order to do so:

弱さを棚上げした。虐めた。 yowasa wo tanaageshita. ijimeta.

This is just how you combine two past-tense sentences in Japanese, like how we would with a comma or a conjunction in English.

“I shelved my weaknesses. I bullied him.” --> “I shelved my weaknesses and bullied him.”

And this is why those other speech bubbles that come before these two phrases are so ambiguous about their tense...because they also end in “te/de.” JAPANESE: RUN-ON SENTENCES GALORE.

それが不気味で sore ga bukimi de 遠ざけたくて toozaketakute

"It feels ominous," "and I want to keep him away."

So now to get back to your question about “rikai dekineE,” because you’re right about that modifier being present-tense.

Because of the run-on sentence issue, a straight reading of the grammar would imply all the sub-clauses in this long-ass sentence should also be in past-tense because the final verb is. However, that just doesn’t make sense given what Katsuki is saying.

Aww yeah, this is absolutely a context thing. Good ol’ high-context languages.

If Katsuki said that phrase in past-tense he’d be implying he ONLY couldn’t understand it in the past, that he DOES understand it now. But here’s the thing: I actually am not sure what it is he doesn’t understand. He could be not understanding why Izuku is the way he is, OR he could not understand WHY he shelved his weaknesses and reactively bullied Izuku. I think it’s the former, but I’m not completely sure.

But regardless, Katsuki is essentially admitting that whatever it is, he still doesn’t completely understand. He’s coming to understand, but he hasn’t wrapped his head around it yet.

So then how do we know that this is the phrase that switches to past-tense? Not from the sub-clause “when I didn’t understand it” but the part it modifies: “shelved my own weaknesses.”

理解できねェ自分の弱さを棚上げして rikai dekineE jibun no yowasa wo tanaageshite

"When I didn't understand it, I shelved my own weaknesses,"

Because Katsuki has talked like this before, in chapter 166:

The Katsuki is self-aware. He’s already identified he “shelved his weaknesses” long before this conversation with All Might. The self-deprecation in pronouncing “jibun” as “temee” gives away the game. He can’t scoff at his own behavior in the present-tense. That’d be nonsensical.

So the last question would be...then how do we know the phrases that came before this are not also past-tense?

Two reasons:

1. The long-ass run-on sentence actually begins in the first panel of the page.

“He... as part of his core, he doesn't add himself to the equation." "I'm sure it's always been that way since way back when." "Even now, when he can do so many more things..."

That last piece is definitely present-tense.

2.  “It feels ominous,”

As I mentioned in the translation notes, the word “bukimi” refers to a bad feeling that has some present- or even future-tense implications. It’s a foreboding feeling. Of course, it can still be used in the past-tense, but given the context of this conversation and the events of chapter 284 and 285, I feel pretty good about this particular judgment call.

Of course, none of this is to say I’m infallible. I am not even fluent in Japanese, nor am I a professional translator. This is just the reasoning I used for you to reference.

[nerdythebard]

#3: Ah Muzen Cab, God of Bees

Hello again, gods and goddesses!

This time, we focus on a very unusual figure. I'll be(e) honest, I had no idea there was a separate function as the God of Bees, but apparently, several ancient religions do have somebody for that specific task. Plus, there is surprisingly very little information on Ah Muzen Cab, who holds that position in the Maya pantheon, but when you think about it, it actually makes sense: honey was believed to have medicinal properties, it has an almost infinite shelf life, and is used as the main ingredient for mead... no wonder people would think of bees as divine creatures and honey as a sacred food. Sure, why not. Let's see what all the buzz is about!

Next time: When there's no more room in hell...

Now, let's set up some goals for this build. What do we need to make Ah Muzen Cab sting:

Bees: Goes without saying, what's a god without his minions? We gotta get those lil' buzzers somehow;

High Movement Speed: Pretty obvious, you're a bee god, you gotta zoom around;

High Attack Speed: Your sting stings and many stings sting even better. Let's make sure we can get a few extra hits on our turn;

Honey: Bees are cute and their puke is delicious. We have to include it somehow.

When it comes to Ah Muzen Cab's race, there were several options. I could've made him a Simic Hybrid for the nice carapace feature; or maybe a Gith, to reference his mysterious origins; at some point, I believe I even considered a winged Tiefling... but luckily, Wizards of the Coast came to my rescue with their latest Unearthed Arcana 2021: Folk of the Feywild.

Ah Muzen Cab is a Fairy. He's not the largest of gods in SMITE, so making him a size Small shouldn't be an issue. Fairies get a ground speed AND flying speed of 30 feet each, and a +2 and +1 to two stats of your choice; let's go with +2 Wisdom and +1 Dexterity. Instead of humanoid, we're now considered Fey creature type, and we have innate, unlimited flight ability (with hovering). We know Common language and one more of our choice (I suggest Sylvan) and we get the Fairy Magic feature, which gives us two spells from the start: Druidcraft, a cantrip that lets us interact with nature in one way or another (by for example opening flower pods, making them bloom, creating harmless sensory effects, etc.), and Faerie Fire, which marks everything in a 20-foot cube range with a bright aura, essentially preventing invisibility if a creature fails the saving throw (it's normally Dexterity, but we can pick Wisdom here, and so we shall). Another curious ability is Fey Passage, which allows us to squeeze through an opening even 1 inch wide.

For Ah Muzen Cab's background, to reflect his solitude and mystery around his very being, we're gonna pick the Hermit. We get proficiency in Medicine and Religion skills, proficiency in Herbalism Kit and we get to learn one language of our choice. We're now prepared to gather pollen and make our own honey. We also get the Discovery feature, which means we possess a particularly important piece of information. It honestly can be anything, from a crucial part of the campaign's plot to something more personal (for example 1001 recipes involving honey).

ABILITY SCORES

For the quick and nimble Ah Muzen Cab, Dexterity will be our first stat. We will be a caster in some degree, and our casting ability is going to be Wisdom. Follow that up with Constitution, for some Hit Points, then Strength and Charisma, and finally we'll dump Intelligence.

CLASS

We have yet another no-multiclass build. Ah Muzen Cab is going to be(e) nature-themed, quick, and ready to deal a plethora of ranged damage. He's a Ranger (Revised) start-to-finish.

As a Ranger, our Hit Dice is a d10. We start with Hit Points of 10 + our CON modifier, proficiency with light armour, medium armour and shields, as well as simple weapons and martial weapons. For Ah Muzen Cab, I think we should go with studded leather armour and a hand crossbow to mimic his carapace and stinger. We don't get proficiencies with any tools, and our saving throws are Strength and Dexterity. We get to choose three class skills, I'd say Animal Handling, Perception, and Survival fit Ah Muzen Cab's personality best.

---

Level 1: We start this build by choosing our Favoured Enemy. That's right, using the power of fantasy racism we can select a type of creature we are most effective against. We have an option of being the natural enemy of beasts, fey, humanoids, monstrosities, or undead. I'd say to choose either humanoids or fey, but this is to be adjusted to the campaign played. What's important is that we gain +2 damage against the chosen enemy type, we have an advantage on Survival checks related to tracking an enemy of said type, and Intelligence checks to recall any information about that type. We also get another language of our choice.

Another 1st-level feature we get is called Natural Explorer. As a master of the wilderness, we receive various benefits:

We can ignore any difficult terrain;

We have an advantage on initiative rolls;

On our first turn of combat, we have an advantage against enemies that hadn't acted yet.

Additionally, we grant the following benefits if we travel for an hour or more:

Difficult terrain doesn't slow our group's travel;

The group cannot be lost (unless by magic);

Even if we're engaged in some activity while travelling (foraging, tracking, etc.), we cannot be surprised by enemies;

If we're travelling alone, we can move stealthily at a regular pace;

We find twice as much food while foraging;

While tracking creatures, we learn their exact size, numbers, and how long ago they were at our current location.

Level 2: At this level, we get to learn some spells. Although we don't get any cantrips, nor can we cast ritual spells, there are a few tricks that will enhance our build. Wisdom is our spellcasting ability and we begin with two 1st-level spell slots and we learn two 1st-level spells: Alarm lets us put a 20-foot cube under magical surveillance for 8 hours. If any undesignated creature enters the cube, we are notified of the intrusion. We can flavour this spell by creating a small hive with bees buzzing around the perimeter. Hunter's Mark puts a target on one enemy for 1 hour (or until our concentration is broken); until the spell ends, the marked enemy receives extra 1d6 damage and we get an advantage on any Perception or Survival checks we roll in order to find it. If the enemy dies while marked, we can spend a bonus action to mark another creature.

At this level, we also get to pick our Fighting Style and Close Quarters Shooter lets us eliminate the disadvantage while shooting at a target that's within our melee range. We also ignore half-covers and three-quarters covers within 30 feet, and we get +1 to our ranged attack rolls.

Level 3: Our bond with nature deepens at this level. We get the Primeval Awareness feature; we can establish some basic-level communication with a non-hostile beast - we can learn of its emotional state, or if it's under any magical influence. Additionally, we can spend a minute of concentration to detect our Favoured Enemy within 5 miles of our current position.

This is also the level at which we pick our subclass and the Swarmkeeper Conclave finally lets us get our bees!

Our Gathered Swarm is a buzzing bundle of bees, which stays with us until we die. On each of our turns in combat, the Swarm can assist us in various ways. After we successfully hit the enemy:

The enemy receives additional 1d6 piercing damage;

The enemy has to succeed on a Strength saving throw, or be moved by our Swarm up to 15 feet horizontally in any direction;

We can be moved by our Swarm up to 5 feet horizontally in any direction.

We also gain access to Swarmkeeper's Magic feature, which grants us extra spells when reaching specific levels. At the 3rd level, we'd get Faerie Fire but we already know it because of our racial features. So we either forget about it or ask our DM if we could replace it with an extra 1st-level Ranger spell.

We also get another spell: Ensnaring Strike is applied to our ranged attack. On a successful hit, the enemy has to make a Strength saving throw or be restrained up to 1 minute (or until the concentration is broken) by magical thorny vines sprouting from the ground... or perhaps a puddle of extra-sticky honey? While restrained by the spell, suffers 1d6 piercing damage at the beginning of their turn (perhaps some bees hide within the honey and sting them).

Level 4: We get our first Ability Score Improvement! Let's raise our Constitution by 2 points, to get some more Hit Points later on. Survivability is important for the quick and nimble ones.

Level 5: At this level, we get our first subclass upgrade and it's... Extra Attack. We can now attack twice instead of once during a single action. It helps with our target goals, so it's good.

We also gain access to 2nd-level spell slots. Animal Messenger lets you select a critter and charm it to act as your courier for the next 24 hours. You speak a short message (up to 25 words) and describe a target and the creature does its best to deliver your words. I don't need to tell you what kind of creature to use, right?

Your Swarmkeeper's Magic feature also gives you an extra spell: Web fills a 20-foot cube space with sticky webbing. Creatures caught in the web must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or be restrained. Once again, we flavour web as honey and we're good to go.

Level 6: Our power of Fantasy Racism grows even stronger with Greater Favoured Enemy. We can pick another type of creatures to gain advantages against. This time, we get to choose from aberrations, celestials, constructs, dragons, elementals, fiends, or giants. We once again learn another language, and our bonus damage against both types of Favoured Enemies changes to a +4. Once again, choose whatever suits the campaign best.

Level 7: Time for another subclass upgrade. Writhing Tide lets our Swarm form a pair of wings around us, giving us flying speed of 10 feet for 1 minute. This ability seems a bit pointless, since we have a much better one from our racial background, so I would consider asking the DM if we can apply this for our party members and give them some slow flight instead.

For this level's spell, I think we should get Healing Spirit - we call upon a nature spirit (gee, I wonder what form it would take) to reside in a 5-foot space. If we or our allies movie into that space, or start our turn there, we get 1d6 points of healing. The spirit can heal only 1 + [our spellcasting modifier] number of times and disappears after the final healing. As a bonus action, we can move the spirit up to 30 feet to a space we can see.

Level 8: Another ASI! Let's put one point in Constitution and one in Wisdom.

At this level we also get Fleet of Foot, which lets us use the Dash action as a bonus action.

Level 9: We get access to 3rd-level spells: Conjure Barrage lets us magically multiply a projectile we shot. Each creature in a 60-foot cone must make a Dexterity saving throw or take 3d8 points of damage (half on a successful save), the type of which is the same as the projectile used.

We get another spell from our Swarmkeeper's Magic feature: Gaseous Form transforms us or whoever we touch into a cloud of smoke (or perhaps pollen). While in cloud form:

We have flying speed of 10 feet;

We can occupy another creature's space;

We have advantage on non-magical damage;

We have advantage on Strength, Dexterity, and Constitution saving throws;

We can slip through cracks and narrow openings;

If we're stunned or incapacitated mid-air, we don't fall.

While in this form, we cannot speak, use items, attack, or cast spells.

Level 10: At the midway point we get Hide in Plain Sight, which helps us hide so well we reach Drax levels of invisibility

When we choose to Hide, we can decide to not use any movement on our turn. If we do so, any creature that attempts to detect us receives a -10 to their Perception check until the end of our next turn. As long as we do not move, we can use this feature indefinitely.

Level 11: Another subclass feature! The Mighty Swarm feature gives us more bees than before. The damage dealt by our Swarm increases from d6 to d8; if a target fails their saving throw against being moved by our Swarm, they are also knocked prone; when we are moved by our Swarm, we get the benefit of half-cover until the start of our next turn.

We also get another 3rd-level spell: Protection from Energy gives us, or any creature we touch, resistance to one damage type of choice - acid, cold, fire, lightning, or thunder - for up to 1 hour (or until our concentration is broken).

Level 12: Time for another ASI! Let's raise our Dexterity by two points.

Level 13: We don't get new class features, but we do unlock 4th-level spells; Grasping Vine creates a wiggly plant tendril in a point within 30 feet from you, which can be directed to lash at a target within 30 feet from it. The target has to make a Dexterity saving throw or be pulled 20 feet towards the vine.

We also get another Swarmkeeper spell: Arcane Eye creates an invisible magical beacon that we can use to scout our surroundings for up to 1 hour (or until our concentration is broken). As an action we can move the Eye up to 30 feet without any distance limit; although it cannot enter other planes of existence, or pass through solid barriers, it can enter through an opening even 1 inch wide.

Level 14: We get to put a little extra sneaky to our build with Vanish. This allows us to take the Hide action as a bonus action (which pairs really well with our Hide in Plain Sight).

Level 15: For our final subclass upgrade, we get Swarming Dispersal. When we take damage, we can use a reaction to transform our body into a swarm of bees for the best representation of Naruto's Substitution Jutsu.

We gain resistance to the damage dealt to us and we teleport into an unoccupied space within 30 feet of where we started. We can use this ability the number of times equal to our proficiency bonus and we regain all uses when finishing a long rest.

We get to pick another 4th-level spell: we use Locate Creature to name a creature familiar to us and learn their location as long as they're within 1.000 feet from us. If the creature is moving, we will detect that as long as they don't live that range.

Level 16: We get another ASI! Let's cap our Dexterity with those two extra points.

Level 17: Here we unlock our spellcasting limit - 5th-level spells: Swift Quiver is a bonus action spell that turns our ammo supply into the infinite quiver of Legolas. For 1 minute (or until concentration is broken) on each of our turns, we can take a bonus action to make two additional attacks with ammo from our quiver. Combined with our Extra Attack, this lets us attack one target four times during our turn for 1d6+5 piercing damage.

Level 18: We get a feature called Feral Senses, which helps when fighting invisible enemies; when we attack something we cannot see we no longer get disadvantage on attack rolls. We are also aware of any invisible creatures within 30 feet of us, provided we're not blinded or deafened and the creature isn't using its Hide action.

Level 19: Final ASI of the build. Let's round-up our Wisdom into 18, and with one point to spare we can't do much so allocate it wherever.

We also learn our final spell for the build: Steel Wind Strike lets us do a flourish with our melee weapon, and turn it into an invisible blade of slashiness. Up to five creatures within 30 feet of us have to make a Dexterity saving throw or take 6d10 force damage. Additionally, we can choose to teleport within 5 feet of one of the targets that we hit or miss.

Level 20: For our capstone we get Foe Slayer: once on each of our turns, we can add our Wisdom modifier to the attack roll or the damage roll of an attack we make.

---

Now, let's see what came out from this build for Ah Muzen Cab.

I think we've reached all of our goals. We got our bees, we've got honey-flavour in some abilities, we get extra Movement Speed with Dash as a bonus action... we even get a good Attack Speed with Extra Attack and Swift Quiver.

Our Spell Save DC is 18, AC is 17 if paired with the studded leather armour, and we've on average 164 Hit Points.

Unfortunately, our Intelligence and Charisma scores are pretty low so any checks and saving throws involving those might give us trouble. We are also pretty much range-oriented, with just +1 in Strength.

But that's it! Hopefully you guys enjoyed this ride, and I'll see you for the next one!

Nerdy out!

[rorywritesjunk]

I can’t tell where the journey will end But I know where to start

Prequel to my Kid Buggy fic, set about 11-ish years before that story.

Buggy meets you by chance when he needs his buttons sewn back onto his jacket. He’s young, up and coming, and he thinks everyone should cower before him wherever he goes, but all you do is smile at him.

Rating: PG-13ish just for some swearing. Warning: Buggy is full of anxiety and insecurity about his relationship for the most part. Someone else shows up briefly but takes the rejection well. Mentions of harassment. Sunny loves Buggy. A/N: I think this main story is going to be about 20 some chapters? And then from then on it will just be any one-shot I think of for these two.

Title comes from “Wake Me Up” by Avicii.

TAGLIST: @lostfirefly @ane5e @kingofthemfingpirates @the-angriest-angel @tiredemomama @valen-yamyam16 @i-reblog-fics-i-like @plethora-of-fickleness @uhnanix

Chapter 1 + Chapter 2 + Chapter 3 + Chapter 4 + Chapter 5 + Chapter 6 + Chapter 7 + Chapter 8 + Chapter 9 + Chapter 10 + Chapter 11 + Chapter 12 + Chapter 13 + Chapter 14 + Chapter 15 + Chapter 16 + Chapter 17 + Chapter 18 + Epilogue

Chapter 13

You were nearing the end of the apprenticeship. Your life for the last 10 years was about to go into a different direction, something you didn’t anticipate, but you were looking forward to it. Gradually you packed away some of your things into a few bags while sorting things you could get rid of. It should have been an easy task but Benji was sitting on your bed one time after dinner, arms crossed as he watched you.

“You don’t have to go, you know.” He said as you packed away some of the dresses you made. “Miss Pins would keep you on full time.”

“I’m ready to leave, Benji.” You told him as you put your photos into layers of clothes to protect them. “Besides, it will allow Miss Pins to get another apprentice or two if I’m not here taking up space.”

“She can find room!” 

“Benji, the point is to leave and start my career elsewhere once I finish here.” You reminded him as you turned to look at him. “I’ve enjoyed working with you for the last few months, but now Miss Pins can focus on you for a while before another apprentice shows up.”

He made a face, not liking the sound of that. He liked having you around and he didn't want that to change. “Why do you wanna marry that clown anyway?”

You glared at him and sighed. “Don't call him that.”

“He's literally a clown.” Benji said, gesturing to his nose. “It honks, doesn't it?”

“Benji, don't be mean. He's sensitive about his nose, okay?” You said, sounding a bit frustrated. “He already got embarrassed by the two previous apprentices about it and I don't want to hear it from you as well. I don’t care if you don't like him but do not make fun of him like that.”

Benji huffed and looked away. “Fine. He smells, though. If you marry him you're marrying a stinky pirate.”

“I can deal with that.”

“What if he mistreats you?”

“He won't, Benji.” You said. “That's not in his nature.”

“But you barely know him!” Benji exclaimed. “You haven't known him that long and you're marrying him!”

“Everyone is different! Love happens differently for people and I can see myself spending the rest of my life with him. It's not going to be all roses and rainbows, you know, just like any relationship.” You told him, growing annoyed by his questions. “We’ll get to know each other just like any couple and have our ups and downs, but I love that goofy pirate and we are getting married.” You closed one of your bags and sighed. “He’s very sweet, you know? Everyone else just looks at him and thinks he's some… clown, not taking anything seriously, but he does.”

“You should have gone on a date with that one pirate, the one who didn't wear a shirt.” Benji muttered. “He was handsome.”

“Why don't you marry him once you're old enough then?” You snapped. “You have no idea what it's been like being a girl working in a town full of pirates. Most don't care who you are or what you do, they just see a pretty girl and think “easy target”. All Buggy did when I helped him with his coat was pay me too much. Never made crude comments or advances. And he came around for silly little things after a while but he never made me feel uncomfortable.”

Benji frowned, listening to what you said. “Does that happen?”

“Yes. Every apprentice I knew while I was here went through it. We all had countless men trying to convince us to come with them, or in my case, that… man with the scar and cigar telling me to marry him.” You shuddered when you thought back to seeing him again. “It's difficult to deal with, okay? So I'm choosing to marry who I want and that's Buggy.”

Benji sat back, thinking about what you said. That man had been scary, and Benji thought himself to be pretty tough, but when he locked eyes with him he was truly scared. Buggy, on the other hand… Benji had no reason to fear him. He found the pirate to be more pathetic or ridiculous than anything, but he kind of got why you'd choose Buggy over anyone else. 

“I still think it's weird.” He mumbled. “Marrying someone you barely know.”

“Well, it's a good thing I'm choosing to do it and not being forced, you know?” You replied as you packed the last bag for the evening. “I'm happy with Buggy.”

“Hmph.” Benji crossed his arms and looked away from you. “Fine, but if I get word that he's made you unhappy, I'll hunt him down.”

You chuckled softly and shook your head. “If I'm ever unhappy, you'll be the first to find out, okay?”

“Good.”

~

You had just a few days left and time was moving slow. Some customers came in, requesting you fulfill their orders, and that meant you had to work faster than normal. It also meant telling Buggy you needed a few days to finish those orders, which he took as well as you expected.

“You don't want me around?!” He demanded as you sat at the table with your sewing tools. 

“I didn't say that.” You said firmly as you worked on an order, fixing tears in the sleeves of a jacket. “All I said was that I'm going to be busy, Buggy. I’m not available for the next few days.”

“But-”

“After I'm finished with these orders, you can have me all to yourself to do whatever you want.” You said as you looked up at him. He stared at you, cheeks turning pink as his brain interpreted what you said. You tried not to roll your eyes at that. “You can come by but I have to work.”

He grumbled softly before taking a seat at the table next to you, arms crossed as he watched you work. You reached over and placed your palm against his cheek; he leaned into your touch and looked at you with big eyes. 

“You're so cute, Buggy.” You smiled before leaning over to peck him on the lips. He was already a bit of a distraction, just sitting there looking at you, but you could handle it. “Maybe Miss Pins has some work you can do.”

“I'm fine sitting here.” He said, scooting his chair closer to you. “I wanna watch you work.”

Shaking your head you went back to sewing. Buggy settled down, leaning towards you as he closed his eyes. You had peace and quiet for only five minutes until the shop door opened and someone entered. Your eyes widened just for a moment when you saw who it was.

“Captain Kuro!” You smiled as you got up to greet him. Buggy opened his eyes and turned to look at who came in.“How nice to see you again.”

When the captain turned around to face you, Buggy's eyes widened and his jaw dropped. Who was this guy and how did you know him? You were smiling quite a bit as you approached him, touching one of his gloves hands while Buggy stared at the two of you. There was a wave of jealousy followed by insecurity that hit Buggy as he watched the well dressed captain kiss your hand. 

This was like that handsome swordsman situation all over again.

“How are you doing, captain? Are you here to have work done?” You asked as you brushed off a few flecks of dust from his sleeve. “I should let you know, I don't think I can take anymore work on. I'll be ending my apprenticeship in a few days.”

“Is that so? Then I suppose my showing up is good timing.” 

You looked at him curiously as he took your hand in yours. You could feel Buggy's eyes on you as Kuro kissed your hand again; surprisingly Buggy remained quiet as he watched what was unfolding. 

“I thought I would ask if you'd like to join me for lunch?” Kuro asked.

That wasn't the reason you were expecting to see him. Admittedly you were surprised by his question, but you withdrew your hand from his, still smiling politely as you gestured to the ring on the chain that hung around your neck.

“I would love to, but my fiancee would be upset.” You told him as you glanced over at Buggy. He was glaring at the two of you from his chair but hadn't moved from it. “We got engaged a few months ago.”

Kuro’s eyes flickered in Buggy's direction, giving him a look over before he turned back to you with a tight smile. “Is that so? Then congratulations must be in order.”

“Ah, thank you.” You smiled. “I'm happy to see you again, Captain, and I'm sorry I won't be able to do any work for you.”

“Sometimes things aren't meant to be.” He kept looking over at Buggy, taking in his appearance. Wrinkled and dirty clothes, messy hair, scuffed shoes, and he hadn't bathed in a week so he was dirty in general. Kuro turned his nose up before smiling thinly at you. “I'll see you again sometime, Miss Sunny.”

“Oh, okay, bye.” You watched as he left, but not before giving Buggy one more look over. Once the door was closed you sighed and went back to the table, looking down at Buggy who looked ready to snap. “Are you okay?”

“Me? I'm fine.” He said through clenched teeth. “Just fine. Who wouldn't be after watching their fiancee get slobbered on by some other man?”

“Ew, Buggy.”

“You let him do that! Why? Why did you let him keep kissing your hand?!”

“Because that's just how he's always treated me.” You told him as you touched his shoulder carefully. He jerked away, glaring up at you, but then he looked down, taking in his own appearance as he thought of how the other pirate was dressed. Why would you be with someone like him when there were others like Kuro? It was hard not to compare himself to the others and his mind started to go into a downward spiral, thinking he didn't deserve you, you should be with someone better than him, but you had put a hand on his shoulder while the other went to his cheek, turning him to face you. “Hey, Buggy, don't.”

He tried to look away but you wouldn't let him. You turned him to look at you. “I'm marrying you because you're the one I want to be with, honey.”

“Yea, but-”

“There's no ‘buts’ with my feelings for you.” You said. “I don't want you to think someone is going to come along and take me away from you because it won't happen.” And Buggy still didn't look convinced so you leaned down to kiss him, feeling him relax a bit. “I'm going to marry you so please don't worry, Buggy.”

“But…”

“No buts.” You told him firmly. “I want to and if you still want to then we will, okay?”

“W-What?! Of course I want to!” Buggy exclaimed. “Why would you think I wouldn't?!”

“No reason.” You said with a smile as you leaned down to kiss him once more. That seemed to snap him out of his funk. He was glaring up at you as he took your hands in his.

“I’ll make you the happiest wife, Sunny.” He told you. “I promise.”