#I Just Think It's Interesting (and slightly comical) how friendly they are to each other in person for the most part | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

progenycursed · 5 months

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what’s the pale kings relationship to each of the dreamers? I kept re-reading your comic and noticed how friendly PK and Lurien are, like really friendly like when PV first eats or in the first enhancement (?) to PV. And it got me thinking how PK and Lurien see each other and that lead to how the Dreamers see PK and how the PK sees them. uhh sorry if my wording is weird lol

At long last! Wall of text be upon ye! (ﾉ◕ヮ◕)ﾉ*:･ﾟ✧

Since the comic is still a fair ways from the dreamers being chosen, this information might change in the future. ┐(´～｀)┌ At this point in the comic(chapter 16), the dreamers have not been chosen. With all the set backs with the vessels, the Pale King hasn’t been able to figure out what all the Hollow Knights bindings would look like. He needs to know what the final product is going to be and how the void behaves so he can make the bindings as secure as possible. Can’t make a trap without knowing what materials one is working with. Can’t make a prison cell if you don’t know how the biddings are set up. So at this point, the eventual dreamers, are just people living their lives. Each with their own relationship with the Pale King.

Lurien:

Mentor mentee. Pseudo friendship

Lurien idolizes the king. Coming from an ant colony, a strong devotion and non romantic love for their leader is common place, expected, and instinctual. From this base point, his admiration only grew after the king healed him, gave him his dream job, and extended his life.

So how the pale king acts around him, throws him through a loop. Lurien expects a regal leader, calm, composed, with the highest of manner and indifference to the individual. But instead, he gets very enthusiastic god that sees no reason to hide his emotions or interests, sees no reason to use something as trivial as manners, and genuinely cares about all his people. Lurien wants to try to match that energy and casual nature, but he can’t throw away natural instincts and a lifetime of social training. So he can never really relax to the degree he wants. He is a very well spoken individual that always knows what to say, so when he tries, it’s not uncommon for him to forgets all of it when he talks with a literal god king.

For the Pale King, Lurien is the closest thing a mortal can get to being a friend. Which doesn’t sound like much, but for a being that outlives every mortal he comes across, and with higher beings tendency to hate one another, friends are few and far between. So to him, Lurien is one of the most important people to him. He enjoys his company, but he is well aware that Lurien will always sees him as a god king. So he can’t be as himself as he would like around.

And for those wondering, neither of them have romantic feelings for the other. Lurien has never even entertained the idea. If he ever did, the idea would be appalling to him. The king is his leader, not some romantic crush. As for the Pale King, wyrms are not designed to have romantic feelings. Cause if two fully grown wryms stuck together to raise their young, they would decimate the local ecosystems to feed them, and their offspring would still starve. So the Pale King, doesn’t really experience romantic love. So sorry-not sorry to the shippers on this one, there is no romance between these two in this comic.

Monomon:

Science buddies.

There first meeting was an accident. She needed to talk to the king so she went to find him. In his lab, fixated, working on kingsmold and wingsmold. Not knowing better, and slightly intrigued at seeing void, she approached, and learned first hand what happens to anyone in the lab with him. Unlike other impromptu lab assistance thought, she enjoyed it. She offered advice, suggestions, feedback, and knew when to duck out of harms way. Leading to engaging discussions, new breakthroughs, and not a fixation-breaking dead body. It was only when the fixation ends, did the pale king realize she was there. Sure he was talking with her, working with her, having full discussions with her, but he was fixated. Steps are skipped when you are fixated. For example, the steps to meeting people:

Step 1: Consciously acknowledge there is a person

Step 2: Can talk, interact, and work with said person

He just, skipped step 1. Onto how they see each other.

To her, the pale king is another hardcore science nerd like her, and an untapped resource of knowledge. Few others can keep up with her intellect, curiosity, and drive to learn more. Sure he is the king, but he is another scholar first in her mind. So she is known for just dropping in to see him if she has a new discovery or all her assistants have fallen asleep during one of her multi day science experiments. Her only issue with him is his tendency to keep some things hidden or abstract. He won’t explain anything about the void aside from it’s dangerous for mortals. And when she asks about his experience as a higher being, he explains it in a way that no-one could understand.

For him, she is the only mortal that has a level of intelligence, knowledge, and scientific enthusiasm that is any where near his. She can keep up with his fixations and science/engineering spirals. She can keep up with his ramblings, doesn’t hate them, engages with them, and is willing to act on them with him. And she is smart enough so as to not die or get hurt during any experiments. The age difference does cause problems though. She is a fraction of a fraction of his age, and their are many times that becomes apparent. There have been many a conversation where it becomes clear him and his experiences are alien to mortals. She also lack political grace, so she doesn’t understand there are some things that are better left unknown to mortals.

That is where it ends for the both of them. They don’t have any sort of relationship outside of being science buddies. They never make small talk, neither care to talk about their personal lives with each other. Not for any negative reasons, but because they would rather talk about science. Neither want to risk changing their relationship, so they are never interested in trying.

Herrah:

Political leaders.

When she first went to meet him after her spouse died, she expected a fight. To prove she was the true deepnest leader as she had done with her own people that questioned her. She had all her arguments prepared, and even weapons if it got heated. Instead, when she introduced herself as the new deepnest leader, he just accepted it. No argument, no protest no questioning of her skills. Just Okay, so about the trade agreements. It was with that one sentence that she realized that maybe, just maybe, all the stories she heard about the pale king may have been biased. So she decided to make her own opinion.

Most of the politics between Hallownest and Deepnest are handled by ambassadors. The two of them rarely meet. Usually only doing so in the most serious of political situations. As he isn’t allowed in Deepnest as he is to bright for all the night vision people creatures living there. And she hates going to Hallownest, because it is to bright, clean, and uppity.

Herrah is a smart and cunning leader of the beasts, and show knows better than to pick a fight with a civilization that vastly outnumbers hers. Especially since their standing with the Mantis tribe is, rocky at best. That paired with their well established trade relationship, she plays nice. For the most part. She will still poke at their boundaries to see where the line is with the Pale King. To her, he is a leader that sits behind his walls of luxury and never involves himself with the lower class. A pompous, dainty leader that knows little of the world around him. Just like the rest of the Hallownest upper class that infest the palace. So she likes to try and push his and Hallownests boundaries to test him. To her great irritation, he rarely reacts in a way for her to get a good handle on what kind temperament he has. And he treats her like a common citizen which pisses her off to no end.

For the Pale King, he both likes and dislikes Herrah in different ways. He doesn’t know much about the Deepnest culture, and never understood the whole ‘bloodline’ thing that ran the leader position for so long. To him, she is just another mortal leader. So he treats her like everyone else. When she speaks with anyone, she is blunt and straight to the point. A trait he wishes many of his citizens would have. So many of his citizens talked in long winded political speeches with hidden meanings and requests sprinkled throughout. Making it very difficult for him to respect their privacy and not read their minds just to get to the damn point!

For the dislikes, when she has to get involved in a political conversation instead of her ambassadors, she will barge into the palace and demand to speak with him. Refusing to leave until he shows up. Even the other Deepnest leaders didn’t do that. But it is well within the behavior the spiders employe in their political practices. ‘Poking the wyrm’ as they all liked to call it. Testing the limits of his patiences by pushing the borders between the lands, harassing his citizens whenever they are in the city for negotiations, and the constant threats and posturing that is their ‘trade negotiations.’ He knows how to deal with them, and unlike the other Deepnest leaders, she is far more willing to work with his kingdom and actually think instead of just playing tough. Unlike some other political leaders he has to deal with.

And because I know this question will be asked after all that:

White Lady

Best friend and platonic soul mate.

As a wyrm, he doesn’t really have romantic feelings. It’s not advantageous for his species, so there was no reason to evolve it. Very similar to the White Ladies’. Keeping the mate around would lessen the offsprings chance of survival. So neither of their species is designed to feel romantic love. But the White Lady does feel lust.

My head cannon for their relationship is different than what a majority of the fandom thinks. I don’t think he pursued her. I think she pursued him. It’s cannon, from her mouth directly, that she has a “voracious desire” to breed. (◯Δ◯∥) So I image the moment he was within line of site, she was on him, flirty up a storm. Leaving him, just, absolutely baffled. This was not a behavior he had ever seen from another higher being, let along it being directed at him.

That was how it was for the first hundred cycles or so. Her, trying various ways to seduce him. Him, trying to ignore the horny tree as he learned how to build a kingdom. But as the cycles went on, they slowly began to learn about each other. Whether they wanted to or not.

For her, this was the longest another higher being put up with her flirting without either teller her to ‘f*ck off’ or attack her for being annoying. When he didn’t chase her off, she just started talking with him. Asking him what he was doing. Confused that he was trying to help bugs that weren’t his. He didn’t make them, they weren’t his offspring, why did he care? It was baffling, but intriguing to learn what it was he was trying to do.

For him, it was the longest another higher being had been around him and not attacked. She was persistent, and wouldn’t take ‘I’m not ready for kids’, ‘I don’t even think that is possible,’ for an answer. But she never threatened him or his budding kingdom, so he put up with her. When she started asking questions, he shared his plans to at least placate her. What he wasn’t expecting though, was her actually listening. Which was a new experience for him. Sure some of his new people tried to listen, but his goals were far beyond what they could comprehend. Their eyes always glazing over shortly into the explanation.

With each new interaction, they learned more about the other. She began to see him as something besides a way to procreate. He began to see her as something besides a pushy plant begging for a drink. They would talk for days with each other. Both learning what it meant to be able to relate to another being. They began to enjoy each others company. Getting to a point where they could enjoy each others company without having to say a word.

They became friends, not only enjoying each others company, but actively seeking it out. They began to build the kingdom and rule together. When he cast off his shell, she followed shorty after, spreading her from so far that her main body shrank. They were each others best friend. The only person who understood them on every level in every way. They could vent to each other, bounce ideas off each other, joke with each other. They were always interested in the others newest fixation and would always ask questions. Knowing how much it meant that someone was interested enough to want to know more.

It was’t long until their people started calling them soul mates. A concept neither of them fully understood, but it was accurate enough they never refuted it. Going so far as to confirm their union to the people of Hallownest by solidifying it with each other. The titles of king and queen no longer just symmetrical titles, but official in the strange customs of the mortals. Swearing their commitment to the other with a medallion, then each taking a piece to always keep with them.

Those are, at least at time of writing this, the relationships between the dreamers and the pale king. With a bonus ship thrown in. Again, not sorry about not being on the Lurien/Pale King ship. That will be a running theme in this comic. Loving relationships that don’t end with fucking. Because I want some variety dammit! (ﾉ｀□´)ﾉ⌒┻━┻

#progeny cursed #hollow knight #hollow knight pale king #pale king #hollow knight lurien #monomon the teacher #lurien the watcher #herrah the beast #white lady #answered asks

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livewireprojects · 2 months

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Amy Rose Ref(Lost Prince AU)

I dunno why I took a while to get this setup but here's Amy.

I'm going to admit that I use to not like her thanks to how clingy she was of Sonic.(Slightly ironic by some stuff I watched as a kid like Pucca & There She Is) I was fine with how Amy was I just didn't like how she acted like she & Sonic were a couple when Sonic didn't seem interested even if he cares about her.(Probably made worse by learning at some point Amy was 12 & Sonic was 15)

I've warmed up to Amy & she seems to have mellowed out some. Some fan stuff also helped cause sometimes fandom stuff makes things interesting.

Her younger self is based on Classic Amy & her older/future self is semi base on the idea of Amy needing glasses while her hair/quills are based on Amy's hair style from NannelFlannel & CorvidRoses's Single Parent AU comic.(Amy became baby Cream's legal guardian after Vanilla passed after Cream was born & ended up making a single parents group at the local community center)

Younger Amy:

Amy is a friendly girl that loves to listen to her late parents' stories of knights, it lead to exploring & day dreaming of a prince her parents tell her about. At some point she met(was saved by) Sonic & became convinced they were meant for each other. She started chasing after Sonic after that, occasionally joining him on his adventures & manages to become his friend.

Amy:

Amy is a cheerful girl that was interested in her friend Sonic, the local/mainland wide known hero. She can have a bit of a temper at times but besides that is a strong willed hedgehog that does her best to help her friends & others out. Amy is pretty strong which makes sense as she often swings around a large hammer as a weapon, there's a possibility she might have some telekinesis when messing with her tarot cards but it's never been tested & barely used. When not going on adventures or hanging out with friends she's baking, checking out different stores or working out/practicing her fighting/hammer skills.

Thanks to her & her friends' adventures on the Starfall Islands she's had time to talk things out with Sonic & has put aside her interest in Sonic to go on solo adventures to find/work on herself. It's led to becoming closer to her friends & think about plans for the future. On one of her later solo adventures she ended up finding Metal who had decided to leave Eggman like some of Eggman's past robots. With help from the others Metal ended up living with Amy & with her help has tried to find their own identity outside of being Eggman's soldier.

Older Amy:

Though still as energetic & cheerful as ever Amy has mellowed out over time. Though Amy still cares greatly for Sonic she has moved on & is dating Metal who has learned to be their own person. When she's not busy with adventures or the resistance when it reappears(when needed) she's working at a bakery ran by Vanilla that Cream also works at.

Even though Amy has settled down some she makes sure to keep up with her work outs so she's still as strong as ever. Still shining bright as ever & seems to understand more what her late parents(passed in the after effects of the war from 40 years ago) meant by knights & a lost prince now.

Link to AU master post

#my art #sonic the hedgehog #lost prince au #sonic au #amy rose

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briefobservationdreamer · 10 months

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Kingdom Hearts Characters: Lea/Axel

What I think of the character: So many thoughts about him. Axel was a really fun villain in Chain of Memories and a pretty interesting morally gray character, being the devious assasin throughout his time as a Nobody but was friendly, fun-loving and had a soft spot to him that still made him likeable. However, he did a lot of awful things and deeply hurt a lot of people, but many of them get overlooked once he gets recompleted as Lea and I don't think they should be. I don't take issue with him being a flawed character as long as he learns and fixes his mistakes, but he has a lot of work to do to atone and earn trust and forgiveness. Giving him a keyblade might be fanservice but it was a good way to make him self-reflect, discover what's most important to him, show his determination to fix his mistakes and bring back the friends he lost by his own actions. Unfortunately that potential was lost in KH3 and he didn't really do anything for the war or to atone, he mostly became comic relief with a couple of emotional moments. Xemnas destroying his keyblade and beating him up was just the final insult to his arc. And I think that's a shame because he definitely deserved a character arc and deserved to be more than comic relief. While I don't entirely hate him, I can have a lot of trouble forgiving him for the things he did at times. I do really like his chakrams and keyblade though, and I've always loved fire powers and had a soft spot for characters who use them.

Headcannons:

How he got those teardrop tattoos. We know Saïx gave them to him to help him stop crying, which I like though I wish it had a slightly different context because it's not healthy to discourage crying. Maybe as a charm to wipe away tears, or ward away the need for them? I like to think it happened soon after they became Nobodies, with Lea struggling to cope with everything that happened, especially if Saïx got his scar just before that.

The manga showed that, despite being an extrovert who tries to befriend everyone and taking it upon himself to be the big brother to his group of teens, he isn't as socially smooth and can be a bit more awkward than most realise. He's surprisingly particular about personal space and being touched, and isn't comfortable about physical intimacy with just anyone, only people he's particularly close to. The games kind of hint at this too, so I'm not sure how much this counts as a headcannon, but I'll put it here anyway.

Has a magical connection to the sun, but far more subtle than Isa's connection to the moon. It makes his fire magic easier to use when outside during the day.

Relationships:

Roxas and Xion: I like the idea a lot, and the dynamic is cute. However, what I think a lot of people don't realise is that the relationship is not as wholesome, innocent and harmless as it appears on the surface. Axel used deception and force to keep them with him in the Organisation, and while none of the options were good, it was still toxic and manipulative, and he hurt a lot of other people for them as well. What he did in Days and 2 wasn't healthy, and it isn't cute seeing a grown man do those things because he was obsessed with keeping a pair of vulnerable children. I don't ship Lea with either of them because of the age gap, he's more of a big brother in the role of guardian.

Isa/Saïx: I like the dynamic a lot, and they play off each others strengths and weaknesses very well, and I'm really intrigued by their story. I take huge issue with Axel replacing Saïx and abandoning him when he needed him most, and it's the thing I find hardest to forgive Axel for. I am glad they were able to reconcile, but I wish Lea had taken more responsibility and done more to make up for it and show he really cared about him post recompletion, because there was no excuse. Also no, I don't ship them partly because of what I just said and because I'm not big on romance in general. I just like them as best friends/honorary brothers.

Kairi: It was nice to see them patch things up in KH3 and Lea trying to make amends. It's a shame KH3 was had too much going on to expand on this more, I like to think that Kairi was able to give him some much needed emotional support, help him come to terms with his past and process any guilt he feels about what happened.

Subject X: This is definitely a retcon and sudden thing to bring up now of all times, particularly with Axels many conflicting motivations, but I do like the idea a lot. It adds an extra layer Lea's and Isa's story and motivations, makes things more tragic. It also gives a personal perspective to enhance how messed up the human experiments done by Ansem, Xehanort and the other apprentices did really were, instead of just being facts and figures. Because it's one of many motivations Axel eventually abandoned, despite him claiming not to have given up, its a bit difficult to say how he really feels about it with the "content to miss what's gone" quote from his secret reports in Days. It could be taken to mean he gave up and stopped caring, which would have made his actions and situation with Saix make a lot of sense. But it could also mean he still cares and wants to look, but is 'content to just miss her' for the time being and isn't letting it dominate his life and stopping him appreciating what is going on in the present, which is a healthier attitude to have that is also in line with Lea's personality. We don't know what their relationship was like yet, but I hope they find her in the future.

#kingdom hearts #lea #axel #kh lea #kh axel #sea salt trio #sea salt family #kh lea/axel #lea/axel

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cleekleequlee · 6 months

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Watching me doing field recording

(This "autoethnographic" fieldnote alone takes 2 hours to complete... I spare myself from grammar editing and hope you could spare me of any mistakes too)

The recorder distributed by AK the instructor of the field-recording workshop was the same model as I bought about two months ago from the local music instrument shop, a very light-weight, handheld equipment costing a few hundred Hong Kong dollars. AK supplemented the rest of the set: a white wired 3.5mm in-ear earphone, a wind shield, and two alkaline batteries. This is my first time doing recording with a plug-in earphone on the recorder. With the inbuilt pre-amp that amplifies the sound from surrounding to your liking, my sense of listening was suddenly enhanced. In the room while AK was talking I started to test around, positioning the recorder down the table (as if I was eavesdropping). AK’s talking sound turned muffy-stuffy under the table. Patrick who sits next to me friendly knocked the table, it makes a hollow and nice sound in the earphone.

We were then sent out for 40 minutes with the new device to play around and get familiar with it. Changing lift on the 11th floor there is sharp and adhesive sound of peeling duct tape from the roll. It stands out in the very quiet, almost deadly dormant background. Associating with the female figure I saw, “it might be the helpers packing their belongings to be sent back to Philipines”, I think to myself. These aged industrial buildings can feel spooky without the busy cranky sound people makes. The aisles were very wide for trolleys to pass. But the walls in this one were painted bright colors - red on the ground floor and bright yellow on the 11th - with oversized sans serif characters indicating room numbers. Is it comic sans?

I turned on the "fluffy head" (the windshield on recorder looks cutely crazy) while taking the lift down the massive and old industrial building. Right away a rhythmic sound in the lift caught my attention. “If this is in the mystery sound no one would recognize it”, I thought. In this blank, empty in-between time, waiting to be transferred from one space to another, there was something working in the background, enabling the movement of the lift. My movement is not taken for granted, it is worked out by certain mechanisms, and such mechanisms leave a sonic trace. There was also the sound of different parts of a metal chain touching each other behind the steel sheet that boxes us in the lift. The fan made a low-pitched monotonous vibrating sound. Moving the fluffy head closer I hear it closer to me.

Down at the street level the nuances suddenly disappeared. The sound of the cars and buses suddenly swirled and overwhelmed everything else. My head didn’t spin. It numbed and suffocated. Sound Degradation like what Bernie Krause said, is this mesh of undistinguishable business. From afar in the country parks it turns to a low, roaming background noise, not unlike the electric white noise that persists every clip of recording. Isn’t it like the evasive plants that just expand at all cost, covering and killing everything under it? Our brain filters it out for our survival and it was quite successful. But how about the birds, the anthropomorphised, exhausted asian koel making a hoarse sound in late spring still desperately searching for a mate?

I looked at the map and decided to make my way to the ferry. At least there would be less traffic, maybe some trees and birds, ferry infrastructure will also be interesting (I’m interested in water related structures anyway). Crossing the road I heard the iconic sound of Hong Kong traffic lights. Exotic and exciting it may sound for tourists and new comers, I was however slightly annoyed by it - such an overly-dominant attention attractor! Passing by the green@community temporary recycle station, I wondered whether sound made by the act of dumping waste would be interesting. Then I heard birds remotely but surely. The high-pitch pierced through the background noise and made a pure, rounded and oppulent debut. If my attention was a clock, that chirping sound suddenly took the area between the hour and minute hands of 11:05. It was uplifting, undisturbed by the gloomy ground beneath it. With the sound in my earphone on, I kept walking, trying to get closer to the bird. But the sound in two earplugs can hardly be distinguished. I found it was easier to find the source direction with the earplugs off, using my carnal ears instead. Is this because of the background noise? Or there is something that is yet to be captured by the technology?

Tracing the birds I found myself standing next to a cotton tree (Bombax ceiba). In a rare 30C degree sunny day in late March, the bright red flowers contrast its bleaching white bark and the blue sky. Cotton trees flowers before leaves sprout, therefore this single tree looked less dense than the rest (mostly different kinds of banyan trees) and created a hole where what happens on the branches were more exposed. I clicked “record”, decided to waiting for the chirping to maybe appear, disappear, and change in volume. AK suggested us to make longer recordings. The minimum requirement for soundmap uploading is one minute, and he himself often makes recording 45 min or longer. That means staying in one place for as long as the recording goes and possibly doing nothing other than paying attention.

The chirping is distinct, sometimes chimed in by some lower “goo goo” sound. Then I spotted spotted doves (Streptopelia chinensis) on the taller branches. The minimum Flowers plump to the ground intermittently, making a heavy thud (do I hear the thud, or do I know because I’ve hold the heavy flower in my hand?). Other times dried flower or leave drop too, but I cannot hear a sound.

Through the leafless branches and flowers I saw a bird perching on a branch. The colour was unclear, but its crest instantly revealed its identity of a red-whiskered bul-bul (Pycnonotus jocosus). “Of course”, I thought to myself and suddenly the oppulent and delight chirping sound makes sense. This little thing was not making an mating effort, I think. It had something in its mouth, maybe food, maybe a small fibre for making nests, maybe something else but beyond what human being could understand about bird’s life. It was taking its time under the sunshine, twisting its head in small angles, as paying attention to something. Maybe it was also listening, paying attention. Is it still interested in those sounds - cars and busses and airplanes and dialogues - which are not part of their language systems? Can its brain also screen off the grumbling roaming noises that is below their feet? Maybe the ground under ourselves also makes a background noise, but we will only be able to distinguish it in the playback once we are shipped to another space with a different noise.

The recording was still going. I have the image of a casette tape recorder, when the rolling of the two white circles are visible when recording is going, rolling the thin roll of tape inside of the machine. Me looking at the bird, for a while. This attention forms a relationality, all rolled and compressed in the tape. Conserved and archived as a memory. Life is the finite resource of time, and paying attention to this bul-bul was committing one minute and ten seconds of my time, because this act of recording takes time and constant attention. And the bird, as well as myself who was watching/recording the bird, will be brought back to a renewed life in playbacks, creating new ripples. You never know what will happen when you press “record”, and when the sound is played back, everything already happened. I am fascinated by this playful misplace and the mystery of destiny.

(sorry, the bird is not in the picture)

(sorry, this post is not accompanied with a recording, as the recorder was collected by the organizer by the end of the workshop)

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randomidiocyncrazies · 1 year

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Nimona was good! There are changes from the graphic novel but I think it worked really well for the movie for the most part? Like, the changes are made so that the messages can be delivered in a single movie with less than 2 hours of run time (not to mention animated films are usually marketed as family friendly films, so the tone has to be tweaked as well.)

I love the original graphic novel and i think i still slightly prefer it, but the movie does a good job to communicate its themes of how everyone deserves to be seen, even if they are “different” from others and even if you can’t understand them 100%, and how the people in power can let fear of the Other corrupt them into being the real monsters. I think the trans themes come through a little more strongly in the movie iteration, and i think the tweaks are more relevant to the current social landscape. The animation and voice acting is also top tier, and it’s just a joy to watch!

now, I do think making the knights be descendants of knights/nobles from Gloreth’s time—with Goldenloin being a direct descendant of her—kinda flattens the themes about oppression into an Us vs Them situation. I think it’s almost scarier that the Institution would pick up (snatch up) orphans or coerce poor families into giving up their kids to the Institution to be reared as their enforcers, because it drives home the idea that the ones in power will 1) exploit people who are powerless and use them to perpetuate the unjust system, and 2) create arbitrary scarcity for favors (e.g. only X number of people can be knights etc) so that they can turn people against each other and weed out the ones who don’t blindly obey their orders. By making the knights all nobles (aside from Ballister), it sort of makes the conflict less nuanced? But since the movie only has a limited amount of time to get the conflict across, I can understand why they introduced that element since it’s easy to understand (though i really wish they did more with the classism, if it’s such a prominent part of the sertting in the movie.)

(re:Ballister’s status as the lone commoner, i get that he needed to be an outsider, and “underprivileged underdog vs smug rich assholes” would instantly signal that he’s the one we should be rooting for... I just wish it was more nuanced than that.)

I had also hoped they did more interesting things with Goldenloin being a direct descendant of Gloreth, especially since Nimona herself has a connection with Gloreth in the movie... but Goldenloin’s ancestry is mostly used as a shorthand to show how he’s Mr. Popular in-universe. I feel like his family background didn’t really have a significant impact in the film—if the scroll came from Goldenloin’s family archives instead of the Director, or if he had some vague prior knowledge about Nimona/”the monster” due to his family connection (which could either support or contradict the Director’s story, depending on where the plot needed to go), i think his background in the movie would’ve been utilized better.

(I do like that there’s a hint of resentment from him having to carry the burden of Gloreth’s legacy in his internal monologue, but the movie never really circles back to that, so... it kinda feels like they raised a point and then kind of didn’t do anything with it

also I know they made Goldenloin have short hair because of animation and budget concerns (plus whatever other reasons), but like... how cool would it have been to have him physically resemble the Gloreth statue. It’d make the point (if there was actually a point) about being forced to carry a family legacy he didn’t really want come across clearer, and it’d be more impactful to drive home that people only see Gloreth when they look at Goldenloin etc etc. Commentary about how institutionalized oppression may also constrain those within the system etc)

tl;dr: Nimona movie good! There were some stuff that I liked better in the graphic novel, but over all the main message from the comics was preserved and delivered well, and the tweaks made sense for the movie. I think I still prefer the graphic novel because some of the particular character dynamics/character backgrounds were more compelling for me, but the movie is A LOT OF FUN and also REALLY BEAUTIFUL

#nimona #nimona movie #nimona spoilers

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lepoppeta · 1 year

Note

I’d love to see how your list compares to mine! What is your ranking from worst to best rivals through the series?

NOTE - I am using the official rivals listing on Bulbapedia as of August 2023, before the Scarlet/Violet DLC is released.

24. MAY - I don’t remember much about her dialogue. She’s a less memorable Serena for me, since you’re never directly competing with May during the League Challenge and any personality she happens to have doesn’t stand out in my memory as much as Brendan’s does.

23. SERENA - Probably the most generic of all of the battle-rivals. Her responses are more human than Calem’s, but this results in her being less interesting.

22. BRENDAN - Vaguely interesting in the context of him being a bit of a soft boy compared to May (who, if I recall correctly, is a bit more of a go-getter), but there’s still very little to him. My clearest memory of him being interesting is in Emerald when Scott comments on the fact that Brendan looks very upset after you fight and defeat him (I think this is after the Weather Institute side quest, but I can’t be sure).

21. CALEM - Slightly more interesting than Serena due to his dialogue always coming off as vaguely unsettling to me. A small part of me wonders if he’s an android because of how monotonous he sounds; I entertain the idea that he’s a bit of a stone cold bitch and has a hard time emoting, even around friends.

20. MARNIE - I find Marnie in execution to be incredibly dull and grating. She’s edgy but doesn’t go as comically overboard with it as Gladion does; she’s soft-spoken and confident but doesn’t have the same casual ruthlessness as someone like Penny (who isn’t even an official rival). As an objective concept, though, she’s an interesting narrative foil for Hop. Marie also has an older brother who’s a member of the League, but where Hop hangs his entire worth on being just like Leon, Marnie respects Piers as an individual with his own style and she wants to surpass him on her own terms.

19. BARRY - I find him pretty annoying in general. He has one shining moment though, when Jupiter defeats him at Lake Acuity and he resolves to be more mature and honourable. He’s slightly more difficult to fight in Platinum, especially if he has a Torterra, but he’s nothing outstanding.

18. TRACE - Trace is very cute and friendly, but ultimately unmemorable. I enjoy him in a very surface-level way; the Let’s Go games are definitely “baby’s first Pokemon game”, but I enjoy coming back to them every once in a while.

17. TREVOR - I appreciate that XY re-touched on the idea that rivals didn’t have to want the same things as you do, and could still be rivals without taking on the League, but we don’t see Trevor enough for it to be effective. Trevor is also the biggest indicator that XY, or any Pokemon game outside of the original BW, was deathly afraid of making the player be anything less than perfect. Trevor challenges the player to Pokedex comparisons and he always loses, no matter how few monsters you’ve seen or caught. I wish there was a threshold you had to pass in order to beat him; he deserves to be a winner too!

16. WALLY - Objectively he’s pretty neat and unique, but in reality I forget that he exists like, all of the time. Sorry, buddy!

15. GLADION - I like Gladion in a humorous, meta kind of way. He’s so out of place in the tropical environment of Alola, and I love how Hau is undeterred by his edgelord bullshit. Outside of that, I don’t think about him too much.

14. N - N is curious because he’s pretty specific to his context, which is very unique amongst a sea of generic battle protagonists. He’s an uber-special Magical Boy with the ability to talk to Pokemon, which Ghetsis took advantage of. In my opinion, N is only as effective as a rival as Ghetsis is as a villain; they’re so dependent on each other for their narrative success that I really feel like they both fall apart in B2W2.

13. SILVER - It’s both interesting and annoying to watch Silver use the player as a scapegoat for dealing with his own personal problems. I’m not very familiar with any of the Johto games, so Silver unfortunately loses out on ranking any higher just because I don’t have a lot of experience with him.

12. SHAUNA - There are a few throwaway lines of dialogue that Shauna has that hint at her potential to be interesting: if you play as a boy, she confesses to maybe having a crush on the player (you could also view the scene with the female character through the same lens, but it’s less obvious); shauna makes a comment that pertains to a sense of insecurity compared to her friend group. Neither of these instances are brought up for the rest of the game.

11. HUGH - To be honest, I find Hugh to be pretty forgettable. I like how he has a strong goal outside of being your rival, but his aggressive personality wore a bit thin after a while. I do appreciate that he’s never mean to the player, no matter how he treats other people, and he always counts on your support in full.

10. TIERNO - I really like Tierno’s confidence in his goal and the fact that it’s got nothing to do with collecting badges or becoming Champion. He’s a pretty one-note character, but the note is done relatively well.

9. CHEREN - This is the first time GameFreak approached the idea of a rival really getting frustrated by their losses against the player (Blue might have fiddled with the concept, but I’m not totally sure). Unfortunately, right when his arc starts getting interesting in BW, it feels like the story gets dropped in favour of the Team Plasma nonsense. I do like how Cheren is treated in B2W2 - becoming a League member and being the first Gym Leader you fight. He has to be the sendoff for new trainers rather than a later challenge that can eviscerate you if you aren’t prepared; I think he even brings this up with Prof. Juniper during an X-transceiver call. Granted, he’s not pushover even as the first gym leader, but still.

8. BLUE - The original rival, and he’s a good one too! I appreciate how you can view his jerk-y behaviour as either a signal that he considers the player a good friend and feels comfortable enough to neg them without consequence, or that he’s jealous of Prof. Oak’s interest in the player and antagonises you as a result. I also enjoy watching his following character arc, from GSC/HGSS where he achieves a position of authority, to SM/USUM where he fully mellows out into adulthood.

7. KLARA - I’m not too familiar with Klara since I played Shield instead of Sword, but I like how she’s not a carbon copy of Avery and instead has her own unique backstory and motivation. I prefer her overall design, but I think Avery’s backstory is more compelling.

6. AVERY - One one hand, he’s super cringe and poorly dressed. On the other hand, I love his motivation and the fact that he’s treating you, effectively a little nobody, with such visceral disdain. I love how he’s dying to prove himself worthy to his family name, but he’s put himself into a situation where he doesn’t have to try hard in order to surpass his peers, thus he never improves. When the player walks in and swiftly kicks his ass, he’s completely floored, and responds with a mixture of honest effort and mischievous shenanigans.

5. HAU - A certified good boy! I enjoy Hau a lot - I like his optimism and his mischievous streak. I personally think USUM ruined him a little bit by making him your final League fight instead of Kukui and by having him be bummed when he loses; it takes away some of his charm.

4. BEDE - Bede is such a punchable little snot and I love him. He fulfils his purpose as a rival perfectly; it’s so satisfying to absolutely demolish this frou-frou little jerkwad. I love how he’s still a dick even after his disqualification. My one qualm with how he was handled is that his Pokeball throw animation is changed to something more generic after he become a Gym Leader-in-training, and it sucks because his first one was so much more unique.

3. HOP - I used to really dislike Hop, and I will fully admit that my reasons for liking him boil down to headcanons and heavy personal interpretation, but my opinion of him has definitely improved. He’s like an odd medium between Barry and Cheren - he’s annoying and overconfident in the beginning, but it’s heartbreaking to watch his dreams being crushed in real time and have it basically be all your fault. I initially really wished he would have gotten angry and let loose, but now I understand that that would have been breaking an integral part of his character, which is his kindness.

2. BIANCA - I really love Bianca’s arc, from the fight with her dad in Nimbasa City to her apprenticeship under Prof. Juniper. While May and Brendan might have been GameFreak’s first foray into non-traditional rivals, Bianca is the first character who really nailed the concept. She’s no pushover as a trainer, either!

1. NEMONA - The bestest girl in the whole world; an absolute fucking sweetheart; I would commit crimes for her. I love how supportive she is over the player while also desperately trying to reign in her own obsessive personality (to mixed success). I was always compelled to pick the dialogue options that would make her the happiest. I wish her final team was a bit more challenging, or had more of a theme to it, but that’s my only gripe with her. She’s so endearing and relatable.

#answered ask #pokemon

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boxbusiness · 3 years

Text

Tagged to do this Obey Me OC Template (Link) by @razzledazzle17

Decided to just make a new post cuz it would be a hella long chain >>” I picked my lil’ ol’ DiaLuci love child~ *Edited some things out the template if I didn’t have an answer or didn’t quite apply

Obey Me OC

Personal - Basics

[Name] Adrammelech, Addy

[Race/Species]

Demon [x] Angel [] Human [] Other: []

[Age] Unknown

[Birthday] Unknown

[Height] 6ft 1in (I wanted Addy to be between the heights of Lucifer/Diavolo)

[Fingernail Polish Color(s)] Black polish, but their ring fingers have red polish

[Hair color/description] Short wavy black hair, the bangs in the front fade into a red

Personal - In-depth

[Gender or no | Pronoun(s)] Non-Binary, They/them

[Sexual/Romantic Orientation or lack thereof] Asexual/Panromantic

[Favorite Color(s)] Black, Red, Gold, Blue

[Personality] Generally friendly, and respectful, but can be a tease. Has moments of being childish and at the same time can be serious/mature. Potentially sadistic

Personal - Other

[Likes] Their parents/family, coffee/tea, formal attire, the beach, dahlias/gardening

[Dislikes] Disrespect towards their parents, untidiness, not getting enough sleep, dark wooded areas

[Positive Traits] Their politeness and well mannered behavior, willing to lend a hand to help out

[Negative Traits] Easily gets convinced into shenanigans, Can be obsessive, Not easy to calm down when aggressive

Relationships

*Now I’m not quite far in the Addy’s Origins comic to explain most of these relationships and the comic is supposed to short so Addy doesn’t meet everyone anyway but these are how the relationships would be if I had time to display them. Also slight spoilers here, but it gets decided later to keep Addy being a love child a secret from everyone. The only ones who know are Diavolo, Lucifer, Barbatos, Solomon and maaaaaaybe Simeon. I haven’t decided if I want him in the loop. So Addy thinks of Lucifer’s bros as uncles but they don’t know that they view them as such.

[With Demons]

Lucifer - As their dad, Addy loves and respects him very much, but is aware of Lucifer’s apprehension to except them as their child due to their mysterious appearance. That being said Addy is patient and willing to work hard to earn Lucifer’s approval.

Mammon - The cool uncle, though Addy understands a lot of Mammon’s actions cause his dad stress, they have a soft spot for him since Mammon actually cares and is nice. They do appreciate that Mammon is willing to include them in his schemes.

Leviathan - The quiet uncle, They don’t quite see eye to eye sometimes as Addy is a more active individual, but is very interested and happy when Levi shares his hobbies with them.

Satan - The brother uncle, technically speaking Satan is both their uncle and a brother of sorts, but disregarding the strange family tree situation Addy views him more of an older sibling. They respect him, but disapprove of his untidy room and rebel behavior towards Lucifer at times.

Asmodeus - The Alabama uncle, Asmo will always be an Asmo so he does flirt and get a little handsy with Addy, though they laugh it off as Asmo being affectionately quirky. They often will got to Asmo for outfit advice and accessories since he is the most fashionable of his uncles.

Beelzebub - The sporty uncle, Beel’s appetite does surprise and scare them at times, but Addy enjoys the times when Beel exercises and plays sports with them.

Belphegor - The complicated uncle, Addy is bothered by Belphie’s disrespect towards his dad and father in the past and finds it hard to talk to him for that reason. However, they are aware that Belphie deep down cares, so they make an effort to be cordial with him.

Diavolo - As his father, Addy also loves and respects him very much. They are aware of his position as future King, and much like Lucifer, is careful to not make him look bad. They have a closer bond with each other considering both share friendly/childish behavior.

Barbatos - The unofficial uncle, Addy is very curious about Barbatos’ history and is appreciative that he takes care of his father. They enjoy learning about things from Barbatos and often go to him for advice if he doesn’t seek it from their parents.

[With Angels]

Simeon - Addy can be slightly shy towards Simeon as they don’t particularly have a sense of what angels are really like. They can sense that their father has his issues with angels, but is also aware that their dad is close or at least once was so they remain friendly Simeon.

Luke - Being quite young in appearance, Addy doesn’t take as much caution around Luke as they do with Simeon. They would take part in the running chihuahua joke that their dad and uncles started.

Michael - They don’t have a lot of information about Michael so they only have a neutral opinion of him.

[With Humans]

Solomon - They view Solomon in a similar light to Barbatos. Curious about his past, but willing to trust him. Addy is also interested in learning magic from him considering he’s a powerful sorcerer.

Favorite Things About the Devildom

[Favorite Job(s)] The royal Library/The Mausoleum, They share a fondness for books (not quite on the level of their ‘brother’) and they wish to feel closer to their passed relatives

[Favorite Place(s) to Hang at] RAD, The House of Lamentation, Lord Diavolo’s Castle

[Favorite Food(s)] Behemoth Salisbury Steak

[Favorite Class Subject(s)] Cursed Music

Least Favorite Things About the Devildom

[Least Favorite Job(s)] The Fall, getting gawked at by multiple lewd demons can be overwhelming

[Least Favorite Places to Go] The forbidden woods (Idk the proper name of the area. I couldn’t find it on the wiki but ya know that forest area scene we sometimes see)

[Least Favorite Foods] Foods that should be warm/hot being served cold/room temp

[Disliked Class Subject(s)] Mathematics

[Stuff that Can be Considered a Negative About Devildom] They do wish there was some sort of sun like in the human world

Personality Chart

I don’t tag but hop in if you want~ 🍑🍑🍑

#obey me #obey me oc #tag game #long post #ocs #adrammelech #tagged

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chosonore · 3 years

Text

part one | calmness

calmness [noun. the state or quality of being free from agitation or strong emotion]

pairing: kamo choso/f!reader

summary: falling in love with choso was a gradual and slow process, creeping up on you so inconspicuously that you don’t realize until the feelings hit full force. he’s become a constant in your life, your sun, your home. but does he return the feelings?

wordcount: 8k

content/warnings: roommates au, friends to lovers, fluff, slice of life, mentions of alcohol, language, some pining but not really, the amount of oblivious reader and choso will kill you, slow burn, characters are aged up if not already obvious, lowercase intended, [UNEDITED]

a/n: [hello this is a re-post because my blog was banned for a few days! so if you’ve seen it before, i’ve had to delete it i am so sorry if you’ve saved it. but it’s here to stay now!] here it is, the long awaited roommate!choso series wehfuhuehw if you’ve lurked around on my blog before, you would’ve seen the little drabbles i’ve sent suki a while back. this idea has been floating around in my head for so long and there isn’t really a lot of plot to it, it’s really just a really long slice of life thing. wanted to explore falling in love with choso, i just... love him a lot ╰(*´︶`*)╯♡ i’ve spent a lot of time thinking about how he would be in situations like this and i hope you enjoy!

masterlist - next

you were pretty sure that you’d scared all the costumers away with your constant sighing – even yuuji was looking at you concerned now although you’d told him that you were fine hours prior. the entire apartment hunting issue was now getting to you; a few months prior, your landlord had announced that he would be selling the apartment, leaving you with no other option than to find a new apartment. but rent was astronomically high and you were already struggling as is. even finding roommates was proven to be a difficult feat, you weren’t sure why but you kept attracting weird people and now two weeks before the moving out date, you still didn’t have a place to stay. worst case scenario, you’d have to rent a storage space and crash at your friend’s place.

“y/n, are you okay? you look… very stressed,” yuuji asked gingerly, after he’d closed the store and helped you clean up the cash register area. “uh if it helps, you can vent to me! we’re friends right? so what’s bothering you?”

you were hesitant. sure, despite not knowing him so well since he’s only been working at the store for a month or two now, you would consider the two of you friends. but you felt bad just dumping the entirety of your worries onto him. so you opted to tell him the… short truth.

“ah it’s just- i’ve been looking for a place to stay because, essentially, i’m getting kicked out of my place but it’s been pretty unsuccessful,” you sighed, scrubbing at the counter more vigorously now. “i need to move out in two weeks but i haven’t found a place yet and the people looking for roommates just seem to be people who would drive me insane.”

“oh really?” yuuji sounded hopeful- wait, why did he sound hopeful? “my older brother is looking for a new roommate! his former roommate recently moved in with his boyfriend so the room is vacant right now. if you want, i could arrange a date for you to look at the apartment and meet him? i promise my brother isn’t weird or anything, he’s pretty diligent with chores and is always up to hang out.”

your jaw dropped; yuuji was your lifesaver. he was incredibly friendly and polite, always helping others and looking out for everyone. you were overwhelmed with joy and relief, maybe you were naïve and too hast in trusting his words but his brother had to be similar to him, you couldn’t imagine them being polar opposites. it couldn’t be that bad and at this point, you were desperate. “i would love that! when are you guys free?”

“ah we could actually head over to his place after clocking out,” yuuji put the boxes and pens back into place before ushering you to the staff room and turning the lights off. “he’s been home quite early lately, so i can just let him now right now if you’re free?”

you nodded in agreement, almost too eagerly, as you threw your jacket on and grabbed your bag, waiting for yuuji outside of the store. it was already dark outside and you almost felt bad for taking up his time like this but he had offered after all. yuuji was furiously texting as he stepped out of the building, screen lighting up his face in a comical way. in the dim light of the street lamps, you clumsily fumbled with the keys before finally being able to lock the door.

“you’re in luck, he’s home right now!” yuuji announced, stuffing his hands in the pockets of his red sweater. “said it’s okay if we drop by real quick.”

you hummed in thought, matching yuuji’s pace as you walked across the street. “does he live far away from here?”

“nope, it’s basically around the corner.”

thankfully, the apartment was within walking distance so you had a slow stroll while talking about work, friends and uni. although you shared the same friend circle, it was almost impossible to have both of you in the same room – yuuji was often busy with club activities while you were constantly studying or working. it wasn’t until he started working at the store that you finally got to know each other, immediately getting along much to your friends’ relief. he had never talked about his older brother before so you were surprised that he had siblings at all. but he sounded genuine when he said that his brother was cool so you didn’t think much of it.

“okay so this is the place,” yuuji stopped in front of a building, pressing the doorbell. “please don’t be too intimidated when you meet choso, he looks unfriendly and unamused sometimes but that’s just his face.”

turning around, you took a closer look at your surroundings. it was an apartment building that looked rather cozy, surrounded by tall, expanding trees. to your relief, it wasn’t a sketchy neighbourhood - you’d always felt wary about walking home by yourself after a late shift. in the distance, you could see a playground and screaming, laughing children. it was harmonious and peaceful, easing your soul and initial doubts.

“oh okay,” you bit your lip in nervousness as the buzzer went off, following yuuji into the building. the closer you got to the apartment, the squirmier you got, anxious about meeting his older brother. the door was already left ajar so you could enter, the smell of food wafting out of the apartment to the hallway. you peeked inside before entering, immediately feeling more at ease upon seeing that the apartment was organized and clean. coats and jackets hung up on the coatrack, shoes lined up neatly along the wall. several photos were stuck to the wall - one of a younger chubby-cheeked yuuji, one of what looked like a garden party, another one of a happily smiling group of people. your heart was warming up; yuuji’s brother seemed like a rather attentive person who appreciated his surroundings and close friends and family.

“choso! did you make dinner for me?” yuuji called out as he kicked off his shoes and stormed inside before you could stop him, leaving you to your own devices as you awkwardly stood in the hallway of the apartment after closing the door. you took your shoes off slowly, stalling as much time as possible. should you just wait for yuuji to come back? or should you come in and greet them with the same energy that yuuji just exuded? but then his brother might think that you were weird and reject you straight away. you froze when a deeper voice rang out.

“didn’t you say you’d bring a friend? where are they?”

you hastily took off your shoes and tiptoed deeper into the apartment, hiding behind yuuji as you looked at the taller man in front of him. his brother looked at you curiously, placing the cooking utensils he was holding onto the counter. so yuuji and him did look like polar opposites. yuuji, for the lack of better terms, looked like a soft peach while the man in front of you had tied his dark, long hair in twin tails and was sporting a huge white shirt with sweatpants but perhaps the most striking thing about him was the face tattoo. you hadn’t expected that at all. he spiked your interest, you couldn’t deny that he was attractive. you had to snap out of it, this was your potential future roommate and you did not need to have any further thoughts. not of that kind.

“hi,” you greeted quietly and held your hand out for him to shake. “i’m y/n, nice to meet you.”

“choso.” he shook your hand, giving you an approving nod.

maybe you stared at his hand a little too obviously, admiring his long fingers, his nicely shaped fingernails and the veins on his hand. yuuji cleared his voice, slightly elbowing you in the side. you gasped in embarrassment, jerking your hand from his and hiding it behind your back. choso didn’t seem like he had caught onto your staring. and if he did, he had enough mercy to not bring it up.

“let me show you your room first,” choso explained unfazed, patiently waiting until you followed him. he walked across the living room, pointing to the side. while yes, he was attractive and seemed to be an enjoyable person to be around with, you couldn’t shake the wariness in your bones. choso switched on the lights, letting you step into the room first. it was empty for the most part, aside from a few boxes that were neatly stacked and placed in the corner. the room had a comfortable size, big enough to fit everything that you owned but not too big so that you’d feel uncomfortable with the empty spaces.

“sorry about the boxes,” choso apologized, turning to you. “i’ve been storing some of the stuff from our studio here, since i sometimes work from home and it was more convenient to have it here instead of my room.”

“i see…” you nodded, trying your best not to peek at the contents of the box. “if you don’t mind me asking, what do you work as?”

“some of my friends and me, we’ve opened a tattoo and piercing studio earlier this year. i only do tattoos though, some of the others do piercings additionally,” he explained to you, scratching the back of his head sheepishly. your mouth fell open, making you look like a fish. you couldn’t hide your excitement, eyes gleaming like you’d just discovered the biggest treasure you’ve ever seen.

“really? that’s so cool! yuuji never told me you were a tattooist, i would love to see your works someday,” you grinned from ear to ear while choso looked away from you, not being able to handle the praise. although he appreciated the sentiment, he didn’t know how to respond to compliments - the feeling was foreign to him.

"yeah, sure," choso replied with a strained voice. in the dim light, no one would be able to make out how the tips of his ears reddened and choso was thankful for that. he cleared his voice, slowly trudging outside of the room to show you the rest of his apartment.

when yuuji had mentioned that he’d found a potential roommate for choso, he didn’t tell anything else. choso didn’t expect it to be yuuji’s co-worker, much less someone whose energy was so bright and happy unlike his gloomy self. he briefly wondered whether you were okay with living here - even if you were desperate to find an apartment, surely you'd at least want someone who was… more open and less intimidating than him.

you trailed behind his broad frame, carefully taking in the entirety of the apartment. it seemed like there was nothing to worry about. even though you've only known him for a few minutes, you felt at ease with him and that gave you a better feeling about moving in with him. yuuji was innocently sitting on the couch, spooning the soup choso had prepared earlier while watching tv. his eyes followed the pair, relieved that there was less awkwardness than he anticipated but slightly suspicious because… there was something.

as choso showed you the rest of the apartment - kitchen, living room and bathroom - he comprehensively explained expenses and house rules to you. there weren't many rules to begin with; choso simply disliked clutter and expected everything to be put back to its original place after use, being noisy was a no-go as well. everything in between was negotiable. by the end of the apartment tour, you joined yuuji in the living room. he shot you a questioning look, raising his eyebrow in curiosity. you were certain that you'd take the offer. there was no way this opportunity would go to waste.

"thank you for showing me around, choso," you smiled at him gratefully. "if you're okay with me moving in, i'd love to become your roommate. i think we'll get along well."

the last box was haphazardly tossed in the corner of your room, earning you a disapproving glare from choso. exhausted, you flopped on the bed and spread across it like a starfish. choso placed the remaining boxes on the floor. moving day was, despite choso coming to your rescue, utterly chaotic and tiring. your muscles were aching from overexertion and there was no remaining energy or nerve for you to attend to unpacking. you felt like a jellylike mass.

"i'll cook something for us. do you have any preferences or dislikes?"

you lifted your head slightly to peek at choso who was standing in the doorway, on his way out. “you’ll cook for me? what are you, an angel?”

choso didn’t reply, simply stared at you. he was used to such antics - it reminded him of his childhood when he was still living with yuuji and taking care of him. lethargically, you shook your head and planted your face back in the pillow. "no, i'm okay with anything. will inhale anything as long as it's edible," though your voice was muffled, choso understood you nonetheless. he made a confused, albeit affirmative noise before disappearing. a long exhale left your lips. truthfully, you were lucky to have an amazing roommate like choso. even though you didn't know each other well and he wasn't very talkative, he was very much willing to help. with time, you were sure he would warm up to you and become great friends. your eyes were slowly drooping, the exhaustion settling in your bones. within minutes, you dozed off into a deep, comfortable slumber. you didn't wake until a knock roused you out of your sleep, startling you in the process.

"huh? yeah?" you scrambled hastily, trying to fix the bird's nest that was your hair. choso did not need to see you in this state - delirious from being woken up from your deep slumber, feeling as if you'd woken up in a new century and with imprints of your pillows and blanket on your skin. before you could make yourself presentable, choso had already opened the door and stared at you unabashedly.

you blinked dumbfounded, staring back at him.

“food’s ready. you coming?” choso gave you a questioning look, waiting for a reaction. so apparently, he did not care what you looked like after waking up. he didn’t even bat an eyelid at your messy state, unfazed by it.

“uh yeah, give me a minute,” you replied after a few moments passed, sitting up tiredly. choso nodded before closing the door behind him as he returned to the kitchen. grabbing yourself a fluffy blanket, you wrapped it around yourself and waddled outside. whatever he had prepared, it smelled divine. you hummed in content as you took a seat at the dining table. the table was already set, dishes still steaming and looking so inviting that you had to stop yourself from drooling. choso padded to the table, placing some drinks on the table before taking a seat as well. as he described the dishes he'd cooked for the two of you, you inconspicuously looked him up and down. this time, without yuuji catching wind of it.

you knew choso was tall and very broad but you only realized the full extent of it seeing how the chair seemed tiny in comparison to his frame. his hair was down for a change, falling just above his shoulders. as usual, he was wearing comfortable clothes; a big shirt, big enough that you could admire his arm muscles and hands every time the sleeves moved. not only was he attractive, he was incredibly attentive and helpful as well, not expecting anything in return.

"thank you for cooking, i really appreciate it. looks really good," you complimented choso, taking a bite from the dish. you hummed delighted, wiggling in your seat happily. "oh my god, this is so delicious! where did you learn cooking like this?"

"i used to cook for yuuji and myself a lot."

"i wanna return the favour too but now i kind of feel inadequate," you joked lightly, smiling at him sheepishly. while you weren't the worst cook, you weren't outstandingly great either. choso however, was probably the best cook you knew.

"i don't mind. as long as you do your best, it's the thought that counts."

you nodded in agreement, taking a sip from your drink. silence fell over you; a comfortable silence however, both of you just enjoying the food. you supposed it wasn't too bad if you took your time getting to know each other - after all, choso seemed like someone who would quickly recoil if cornered. it wasn't too much of a concern.

after finishing the meal, you helped him clean up and wash the dishes. nudging him gently, you asked: "do you want to watch some movies after? yuuji recommended me a few that i have yet to check out."

choso took the plates, drying them with the towel before placing them back to their designated spots. "sure, you're responsible for the movie selection then."

spending time with choso was easy, almost too easy. you were glad that the two of you were off to a good start, he didn't seem to mind your company and you enjoyed his. cheerfully, you put the movie on, snuggling the blanket that was wrapped around you. the way you were laying on the couch was reminding choso of a little burrito. unbeknownst to him, the corner of his lips lifted a little at the sight. he waited until you noticed him and shuffled a little so he could sit on the couch as well. the movie you had chosen was a lighthearted comedy, one that yuuji had highly praised and recommended you watch first.

midway through the movies, the exhaustion was creeping up on you, making you feel heavy and sleepy until you slumped against choso's side. he glanced to the side, observing you to see whether you would wake up. soft and steady breaths left your lips, already asleep within seconds. choso pondered whether to wake you now, worrying that you would miss out on the movie that you were so eager to watch. you looked so peaceful that he felt bad, deciding to wake you once the movie was over. but even choso couldn't shake the tiredness, gradually slumping against you until sleep overtook him as well.

as the sun was rising, light was flooding the apartment, filling it with warmth. you scrunched your eyebrows at the brightness, attempting to move so it wouldn't blind you. the first thing you noticed was your strained neck - probably because of the weird position you had slept in - and the second thing was that something heavy was laying on your lap. blinking in confusion, you peeked, groaning inwardly at the blinding light. black hair was splayed across your lap, connecting to… choso? oh no. oh no. you must've fallen asleep while watching the movie and judging how choso was comfortably using your lap as a pillow, he did as well. embarrassment spread throughout your body; this wasn't supposed to happen, much less with someone you didn't know so well.

now that you were unintentionally watching him, you felt creepy. the situation was too perplexing to you - should you wake him now? or just wait… until he woke up? but what if you had to pee. what if choso wasn’t going to wake up until a few hours later? what if he woke up and saw you staring at him like a creep? though you did think he looked vulnerable and peaceful in this state, unusual from his intimidating, unwavering self. it made your heart tingle with an unknown feeling, softly bubbling with curiosity.

beneath you, choso was moving slightly, shuffling around until he felt comfortable. you stayed still, tensely watching his next movements. he remained still for a while, making you exhale in relief. until he didn’t. choso blinked a few times, trying to make sense of his surroundings until his gaze fell onto yours. and you stared back, frozen in fear. even if he was the one laying on your lap, you felt anxious.

“uh i… we must’ve fallen asleep last night, ha ha…”

“you fell asleep early on and i was going to wake you after the movie ended but fell asleep myself, i’m sorry for making you feel uncomfortable,” choso apologized sincerely and sat up right away, rubbing his eyes sleepily. even though he looked rather deadpan, there was a trace of embarrassment on his face.

“oh no, it’s okay! we both fell asleep after all… ah, since we’re roommates, we’re sort of friends now, right? so don’t mind it too much, it happens!” you gave choso a reassuring smile, showing him that there was no bad blood between you.

choso nodded slowly. “i guess so. i’m glad you don’t mind. "

an awkward pause.

"do you have classes anytime soon? i can make breakfast for us.”

and just like that, the tension between you was alleviated. not completely gone, but barely noticeable. choso stretched like a cat, yawning quietly before he got up. you couldn't help but glance at his toned stomach, eyes almost bulging at the sight. turning to the side, you hid your face and cleared your voice. "i don't have classes today but i have to go to work later. so i won't say no to breakfast if you're making it."

"how's living with choso?" yuuji questioned you curiously, leaning against the counter. lowering the pen and writing board you were holding, you hummed in thought. in the past few weeks, the two of you had settled into a comfortable routine. there were minor hiccups here and there but the issues were easily resolved - somehow, you silently understood each other, an important foundation for a good friendship.

"pretty relaxing, to be honest. he's a good roommate and friend," you replied, clicking with the pen which earned you an annoying glance from yuuji. "you should've told me he was a great cook! i don't think i've ever tasted any dishes that were as good as his."

"he cooks for you?" the surprised tone in yuuji's voice startled you. was that out of the ordinary? you just thought he was being a good friend when he prepared dinner for you whenever you had a late shift.

"uh yeah? mostly when i come home late or when we have movie nights together. i always tell him that i can definitely help but he insists that he's fine doing it himself."

"i see. choso just doesn't like people messing with his cooking routine, that's all. i'm not even allowed near the kitchen, even though i'm not that bad of a cook either," yuuji laughed, scratching his head sheepishly. he wasn't going to tell you why he was perplexed by the fact that choso willingly cooked for you. it was too early to make any assumptions; he just couldn't shake the feeling that there was something at play. no one knew his brother better than him - choso would never do any favours for persons he didn't care about, persons that weren't family or extremely close friends. while they had talked about choso's thoughts about you, he never mentioned anything more than getting along well and often spending time together. for choso's standards, you were a quite close friend.

"oh, and here i was, thinking that he must really hate my cooking skills. so it's just that," you concluded, grinning happily. he was weirdly persistent about it but knowing this detail about him, you'd stop pestering him in the future. "hey do you wanna come over tomorrow? it's movie night again, i'm sure you'd enjoy it too."

"hmm, sounds tempting. if you can convince choso to cook, i'm in."

"pff, who would say no to this face," you retorted mischievously, showing yuuji the best puppy face you could muster up. he groaned, pushing you gently.

"show off," he told you jokingly and rolled his eyes. "i don't know how choso tolerates you."

"you're just jealous, huh? didn't think you had that emotion in you. choso and me are the bestest of friends, of course we get along well," you stuck your tongue out at yuuji before leaving him to his own devices as you bolted to the cash register to help a customer. as you animatedly conversed with them, yuuji shook his head. it was obvious that there was some attraction but that was something he'd let you figure out. cupid wasn't a well-fitting job for him. friends, my ass.

"huh, did you say something, yuuji?"

"no, not at all."

soft, melodious music was playing in the background as you silently sat at the counter, watching choso prepare some meals before yuuji was visiting. this time, you heeded his advice, not pestering his brother about needing help and instead just opting to watch him and make light conversation. choso seemed to have noticed as well, mood ever so slightly lifted when he saw you simply taking a seat and asking about his day. he liked this routine, being able to go about his day without someone unwantedly poking their nose into his business until he felt comfortable enough to talk about it. as you absentmindedly doodled on a napkin, choso casually told you about his day at work. about squirmy customers who were getting their first tattoo done, about those that had interesting ideas that he was still trying to find ways to implement, about how noisy his co-workers were and that they wanted to have a night out soon.

“do you wanna join us? you said you wanted to meet my friends,” choso asked, briefly glancing up at you as he was dicing the vegetables. it was true, you did inquire about his friends at some point, more so jokingly and out of curiosity - although he complained about them every now and then, you could tell that he deeply cared about them. choso was the kind of person who acted like a mother hen around friends and sometimes nagged a lot more than you anticipated. but then somehow, miraculously, every minuscule task that would stress you was completed and topped with a freshly made, warm dish by the end of the day. he wasn't good with words but his actions made up for it.

you didn’t expect him to offer you to tag along. he was comfortable enough to introduce you to his friends, even seemed to trust you with them. it felt… strangely heartwarming. "i would love to join you but i have quite a lot of assignments piling up; i'll have to do some night shifts to finish them," you replied and sighed ruefully, putting the pen away. "i'll tag along once i've finished everything, okay?"

choso frowned slightly. "but don't overwork yourself. you'll end up frustrated and burnt out," he told you earnestly, reaching out to pat your head. you gaped at him, the fond gesture making you feel flustered. it was nice knowing that he was looking out for you. choso stared back at you, seemingly startled by his own gesture as well. his hand had moved faster than he could react - he didn't know what to make of it.

the ring of the doorbell interrupted every trail of thought and you jumped up quickly. "i'll get it!" you sprinted towards the entrance, letting yuuji in. perhaps you greeted him too overzealously, yuuji looked at you like he knew something was up. nonetheless, he didn't mention anything, instead presenting you the bottle of wine and some dvds that he brought. choso gave his younger brother an acknowledging grunt, too absorbed in his tasks. taking in his surroundings as he got comfortable on the couch, he noticed some subtle changes in the apartment - the numerous pillows and fleece blankets littered across the couch, the set of matching mugs as well as choso's sketchbooks and, presumably, your textbooks on the coffee table. it was obvious that the two of you spent a lot of time together.

even throughout dinner, yuuji realized that choso had taken a liking to you, more than he probably realized and let on. he almost felt like a third wheel watching how you animatedly talked about trivial things and even more so when it was movie time. like a little burrito, you were wrapped in a blanket, leaning against choso. though it surprised yuuji to see his older brother opening up to you so rapidly, he was happy about it. although chaotic and clumsy, you were a good person and a positive influence. having witnessing how choso had closed up and how hurt he had been after the break up of his previous relationship, yuuji was glad that he wasn't cautious around you and welcomed your presence. even though… both of you were painfully oblivious.

"should we wake her?" yuuji asked as he saw you snuggling into choso's side, peacefully sleeping while the movie was still on.

"no, it's okay. she often falls asleep midway through movies, i just let her sleep. probably exhausted from uni."

yuuji looked at him as if he grew three heads. "so you just let her sleep? and you… sleep on the couch too?"

"hm? yeah, kind of. i feel bad about waking her and we're friends so it's not that big of a deal," choso replied innocently, shifting slightly so he was comfortable while keeping his arm around you. ever so slightly, he leaned onto you.

yuuji buried his face in his hands, silently screaming. don't comment on it, don't say anything, it's none of your business. you might have pink hair but you're no cupid.

utterly exhausted, you made your way into the apartment. you flopped onto the couch, grunting in irritation when you heard choso calling your name. staying put, you just laid there and listened to his footsteps nearing. "you okay? did anything happen?" he questioned, leaning over the couch to look at you. you weren't even sure what to answer, whatever you were feeling at the moment was an accumulation of stress across multiple weeks. you were frustrated with your projects, feeling like you weren't making any progress and not having time for yourself whatsoever. all you needed was a break, a pick me up.

"do you wanna talk about it?" choso repeated again but you shook your head, lifting your head slightly to look at him. he almost felt bad for thinking that you looked adorable, the way you huffed in frustration with a little pout on your lips. you shook your head, hugging one of the pillows.

"not now, later maybe?"

"okay. i'll make you a cup of tea." he disappeared from your field of vision. you listened to the sound of the kettle, closing your eyes as you focused on it. slowly, your erratic thoughts came to a halt. your breath and heartbeat steadied and you gradually felt more calm. clack. choso placed the cup of tea on the coffee table, taking a seat next to you. he was hesitant to touch you just yet, waiting for another reaction from you. sniffling quietly, you sat up and thanked him quietly.

"choso?"

"hm?"

"can i have a hug?" you inquired meekly. he didn't reply, simply pulling you into his arms. without hesitation, you wrapped your arms around him, nuzzling your face in the crook of his neck. he smelled nice, like freshly washed laundry and the shampoo he was using. it reminded you of home, making you feel more at ease. gently, choso rubbed your back; wherever his fingers moved, it left a trail of goosebumps on your skin. not that he noticed anyways, fortunately. for a few minutes, only the sound of breathing resounded. it was calming and warm - choso was warm, so warm - you almost fell asleep. humming quietly, you moved closer to him.

"today was just really… bad. everything went wrong," you confided in him. "it made me feel like shit, like i couldn't do anything right. i guess i just feel really stressed so i can't concentrate on anything."

choso leaned forward, reaching out to grab the cup of tea. you squeaked in surprise, holding onto him so you wouldn't drop backwards. his left arm snaked around your waist, keeping you in place as he leaned back again. you moved back a little, as far as choso's arm allowed you to, and took the cup from him, taking small sips. "i think you're doing okay," he told you, drawing patterns on your back. "it's only natural to feel this way when everything's been piling up. what you need is a good rest and have a reset, you'll feel more refreshed and inspired to work on your projects. and don't hesitate to ask for help, no matter whether it's a professor or classmate."

"i also told you not to overwork yourself, didn't i? and don't think i can't tell that you've been pulling all nighters," he scolded you, pinching your cheek playfully. it made you giggle, tilting your head to get away from his hand.

"yeah i know, i know. just couldn't help it, it's a bad habit. i'll try to get better at it," you promised him, giving him a reassuring smile. "thank you for listening to me."

"it's the least i can do."

a comfortable silence fell over you. choso continued to rub your back in an attempt to soothe your nerves while you sipped your tea. you were grateful for him, he was an amazing friend - you didn’t even know how to show gratitude to him. awkwardly turning to put the mug back on the table, you then leaned against him. “choso?” you hummed against his chest, snaking your arms around his waist. “you know you can talk to me about problems too, right?”

“what do you think we’ve been doing these past few weeks?” he retorted and chuckled in amusement. “you should try to go to bed now. get some rest, you’ll feel better tomorrow.”

you pouted, not wanting to move. fortunately, he couldn’t see the face you were making - you weren’t ready to let him go just yet, wanting to memorize the expanse of his chest, his warmth, the way his arms felt around you. it made you feel safe, like a temporary relief to your anxiety. “can we… can we watch a movie maybe? i’m not sleepy yet.”

of course, choso saw right through you. “you always say that and then you fall asleep midway. you just don’t want to move, huh?”

“okay, you caught me,” you giggled hysterically as he stood up slowly and pretended to let you fall, catching you before you fell. clinging onto his shoulders, you wrapped your legs around his waist. you refused to let go. unbothered, he held you by your thighs as he waddled across the living room towards the console to choose a dvd to watch. while clinging onto choso, you could hear his heart beating rapidly - you chalked it up to how strenuous it must be to carry you around. choso, on other hand, couldn’t put a finger on the warm, tingly feeling inside of him. did he like having you around like this? stupid, of course he did, you were good friends after all. spending time with you was relaxing for him as well. back on the couch, he let you use his lap as a pillow, absentmindedly combing his fingers through your hair. the two of you remained in this position until both inevitably fell asleep, movie still playing in the background.

“y/n. earth to y/n. dude, can you hear me?” nobara was frantically waving papers in front of your face, rolling her eyes as you snapped out of your trance and took them from her. to your delight, the two of you shared quite a few classes this semester which meant that you could usually share the workload as well. you copied some of her notes, hastily scribbling them in your notebook.

"sorry, i was lost in thought. what did you say?"

"i asked you whether you wanna go out later? the whole crew is coming, it's been a while anyways," your friend repeated, placing her little cosmetics bag on the table to check her makeup and apply another layer of lip gloss.

"ah sorry, i already have plans for today, maybe ano-"

"with whom?" she asked pointedly, narrowing her eyes at you. in recent times, you've been rejecting her offers to hang out a lot; whether it be because of studying or hanging out with… "wait, are you having a date with that roommate of yours again?"

"it's not a date!" you briefly paused, giving her a dirty look. nobara was weirdly persistent about this dating thing, claiming that you would never get anywhere if you didn't make a move. "his name is choso, yuuji's older brother. i told you a million times already. he's been a really good friend and taking care of me when i feel stressed, so i thought it would be time for me to do the same for him."

"a really good friend?" a doubtful look was shot your way.

"yeah, i mean yuuji cooks for us all the time, how is it any different? anyways, i'll join you guys another day, okay?"

nobara stayed still for a moment. you truly didn't realize how much you's been mentioning choso. choso this, choso that, choso here, choso there. even yuuji had confided in her that he thought you might have developed a crush on his older brother though he wasn't certain. nobara, however, was sure. but operation make y/n realize things proved to be more difficult, considering you hadn't had a crush before as you were never interested in relationships.

"fine. but in return, you have to tell me about choso. what do you think of him?" nobara stuffed her belongings into the impossibly full handbag. propping her chin on her hands, she leaned closer to you with a shit-eating grin. you sighed, putting the papers away. it was no use trying to focus on your assignments when she was in an investigative mood. she wouldn't let go of the issue until you gave her a satisfactory answer. and for some reason, it irked you that she was inquiring about choso. why was she so curious about him? couldn't she have asked yuuji instead? it was his brother after all. maybe nobara was… interested in choso? you narrowed your eyes at her.

"i think he's great. might be intimidating at first and not very talkative but when he opens up to you, he's actually a softie. very respectful and polite towards people, always thinks of others first. and not to mention, he's really talented too! he often acts like he's annoyed by people or minds his own business but he really does care a lot. you feel comforted by his presence when you're close with him," you rambled, trying to list all the positive points about him that you could think of. nobara nodded slightly as she was listening to you, making it difficult to gauge her stance on him. was she going to confess now? maybe you should confront her about it. yeah, she would never admit it otherwise. "nobara, are you interested in choso? if you wanted me to introduce you to him, you could've just asked."

nobara stared at you with an open mouth. checkmate.

"you know i wouldn't have judged you at all! after all, choso is handsome too. so really, you don't have to sneak around about this," you concluded triumphantly, patting her arm in reassurance. it filled you with pride to be able to catch nobara off guard for once - usually, she was very composed and ready to give you a sassy answer.

"y/n, sweetie. you're so very wrong." nobara sighed, dejectedly pushing your hand away. you were incredibly dense when it came to feelings and relationships. maybe it would be more amusing to just watch everything pan out. “i don’t really care about choso, that’s your man after all.”

“yeah, yeah, i- wait what?”

thankfully, you arrived home earlier than choso did - for once. and for once, this friday was going to be a relaxing one, seeing as you’d finally finished your projects and assignments and could finally engage in a much needed self care day. placing the groceries bags on the counter, you went through the ingredients again just to make sure you didn’t forget anything. yuuji had given you a recipe for his famous meatballs recipe, claiming that it was one of choso’s favourite dishes. in recent times, choso seemed to be exhausted and sometimes even easily irritable after work - considering how much he did for you, it was only fair for you to treat him as well. surprising him seemed to be the best course of action.

making quick work of the ingredients, you took your time to clean the apartment while the soup was still cooking. yuuji was kind enough to lend you a few dvds, not even asking you whether you were going to watch them with choso anymore. while you felt bad about turning your friends down yet again, you promised yourself to make it up to them in the future by inviting them over for a sleepover or movie night. though knowing them, they would not let you stay in the comfort of your home but drag you to a party or club again. especially nobara would always insist on dragging you along, while megumi and yuuji didn’t really care about where they would be going for the night. her excuse was to find you a partner, claiming that it was about time you realized how cute you were, which you vehemently denied. even maki had told her to pipe it down at some point. all the more, it made you suspicious that nobara had not brought the topic up anymore. you couldn’t imagine her giving up so quickly, considering how persistent she had been for almost a year now.

the jingle of the keys and the soft click of the door made you stop whatever you were doing, peeking around the corner to see choso coming in. giggling quietly, you watched as he stopped in his tracks and sniffed the air, seemingly confused about the scent of the soup. he turned around upon hearing you, a small, almost unnoticeable smile on his lips. “up to no good?” he questioned you teasingly, placing his bag and jacket in the wardrobe. huffing, you stuck your tongue out at him and shook your head. you padded over to him, softly tugging at the sleeve of his shirt to make him follow you to the kitchen.

“since you always cook for me, i thought it would be time for me to do the same for you. yuuji showed me your favourite dish but i’m not sure if it turned out as well as he always makes it,” you sheepishly explained, showing him the pot of soup and the bowls and cutlery that you’d already laid out. choso hugged your side, squeezing your waist gently before patting your head and muttering a quiet thank you. your chest filled with pride, finally being helpful to him for once. if you weren’t careful, it would burst - he fuelled your ego even more as he complimented you, telling you how well the soup turned out and that he really appreciated it. you knew he wasn’t lying, for one because he was a sincere person and always offered heartfelt compliments, and because of how eagerly he was eating, practically inhaling the soup in one go. he even looked like he was in a food coma by the time you finished dinner, making you ban him from the kitchen to take a rest on the couch.

after washing the dishes, you came back to the living room to see him lie across the couch, eyes closed and calmly breathing. he looked like he was taking a nap, until he opened his eyes to peek at you as you approached. giddily, you joined him on the couch, showing him the hair products that you’d already placed on the coffee table. “can i give you a massage and do… uh hair stuff? i really like it when people brush my hair and stuff and i thought you might enjoy it too,” you explain to him. choso contemplated for a few seconds before shrugging nonchalantly. yes! you signaled him to sit on the floor in front of you as you pressed play. with the sound of the movie in the background, you focused on choso’s hair and took off the hair ties first. he got comfortable, turning towards the tv and learning his head against the edge of the couch. gently running your fingers through his hair, you made sure to detangle rough knots before massaging his scalp gently. you could tell that choso was beginning to relax by the way his shoulders were slowly sagging. in silence, you worked through the entirety of his scalp before moving on to brush his hair.

if you didn’t already know that choso was a naturally withdrawn person, you would’ve been concerned by how quiet he was and how he didn’t show any reactions to the movie. you were glad that he seemed to like the entire hair spa ordeal; he didn’t even seem to mind that you were using your hair products on him, the soft floral scent now emanating from his hair as you massaged it through the tips and then brushed it in slow strokes. by the time you were done, he looked utterly relaxed, struggling to keep his eyes open as he climbed back on the couch and sat next to you. without having to ask, he wrapped his arms around you. yawning quietly, you moved closer to him, turning your attention to the tv. habitually, his hands moved against your back, drawing shapes and patterns. slowly, choso could feel the heat in his body rising and chalked it up to the close proximity. it did make him feel a little uneasy however; he shifted you around on his lap until he felt comfortable. abruptly halting his movements, he froze as you turned to him, ass grazing his groin. an electric shock ran through him. subconsciously, he jolted at the friction. the tips of his ears turned red in embarrassment but he reassured you he was fine when you looked at him concerned. what the hell was that? was his body now not listening to him after being so relaxed?

“choso, can i ask you something?” you leaned back slightly to look at him.

“you already did. but yeah, go ahead.” choso grinned at the little huff you let out, grasping your hand in time as you tried to hit his chest and intertwined your fingers so you couldn’t move.

“uh this might sound weird but i think a friend of mine is interested in you. nobara, do you know her?” you squeezed his hand, moving it around with yours. “she asked me about you the other day.”

“huh, really? isn’t that one of yuuji’s friends too?”

you nodded in agreement. “yeah, we’re all friends. i only told her good things about you, of course.”

choso hesitated. he wasn’t sure what to tell you, not wanting to say something about your friend that could upset you. but the truth was, he wasn’t really interested in anyone right now. the recent breakup had done a number on him and he felt like he hadn’t properly moved on just yet. not when the thoughts were still obsessively circling in his head. but when choso was with you, they miraculously seemed to disappear, making him feel more at ease. “i’m not really looking for anything right now, sorry. i don’t really want to disappoint her, i’m just not really up for a relationship right now,” he told you truthfully, giving you an apologetic smile.

you stopped in your movements, nodding slightly in understanding. and still, it made your heart seize up for an unknown reason.

ps.: the story of how it takes reader and choso ages until they realize their feelings or alternatively: nobara and yuuji unwillingly turn into cupids

#jujutsu kaisen #choso #kamo choso #choso kamo #choso x reader #kamo choso x reader #choso kamo x reader #choso x you #kamo choso x you #choso kamo x you #choso imagines #choso kamo imagines #kamo choso imagines #jujutsu kaisen fluff #jujutsu kaisen imagines #fic: home #writing

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lifewithdavefarts · 3 years

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DaveFarts - Episode 6 “Fart Bet, Easy Bucks” [Episode List] When, rather immaturely, Tim’s friends are doing some random, silly bets, things soon turn stinkier and gassier as Dave joins the game…

Fart Bet, Easy Bucks

The immature, roaring laughter of me and my friends echoed in the living-room as another pal of mine, Jim, took one last bite of an onion, his cheeks turning red, teary eyes, almost puking in front us. We clapped our hands like the drunk monkeys we were, ignoring our friend’s gagging sounds, and we all took another shot of vodka in his honor.

“Well done, Jim!” Adam laughed, as tipsy as the rest of us.

That’s what we were doing in Adam’s parent-free house: really mature bets. At late night, it was almost 3:00 a.m. Our onion-eating friend just lost one of those silly bets we were challenging each other to do. Pretty stupid tasks, like standing on one foot for 3 minutes or reading stuff upside down. Quite mundane, easy, but try doing it after two bottles of vodka-lemon. Each. The loser had to take a couple of bites of an onion, because as I said, we’re very mature. And clever.

The entire room stunk like that stinky vegetable and alcohol, didn’t help that some of us were also burping loudly and proudly, but we were too tipsy to even notice or even be bothered by that (plus, it’s not like I’m not used to… bad-smelling stuff…). When not betting each other to do shit, we were all sitting on two different couches: Adam, Jim and a couple of other guys were all sitting and burping on a longer couch, while I was on a smaller one with Dave, sitting next to me.

As more laughs roared in the room for no reason, in the chaos, Dave elbowed me and chuckled a bit, bringing to my attention the weird vibrations on the couch: he was ripping one of his big farts, the sound completely muffled by the pillows, his loose dark grey jeans probably making it sound even louder and manlier. I only smiled a bit a took another shot of vodka; my gassy friend did the same, finding my awkward reaction hilarious as usual.

“Tim, it’s your turn!”

I almost chocked on my own drink when I heard my name: Dave’s flatulence usually makes me very absent-minded. I finally realized that Adam was standing in the middle of the room, each one of us, one by one, whistling a song to him: if he guessed wrong, then it’s onion-hell for him. It was my turn to whistle a song then. I think about it for a moment, and then I start to whistle this famous hit from a couple of years earlier, but I was pretty drunk, so I didn’t really realize how weird the sounds coming out of my lips were, but my friends laughing should have been a wake-up call.

Eventually, Adam ran out of time, because he couldn’t guess the song I was “singing” to him. He was mad, almost furious, but it was the alcohol talking.

“Tim, you’re an idiot!” he was understandably angry, because it was my fault. “That wasn’t even a real song, you asshole!”

Didn’t help that we were all laughing at him, but my friend didn’t accept defeat, and he actually had all the rights to.

“I’m not going to eat those fucking onions!” Adam shouted. “Tim made me lose: he should be the one choking on that shit!”

I wasn’t offended, to be honest. I was actually laughing like the rest of the guys.

“Dude… we’re out of onions!” Jim said, noticing the empty plate.

We all laughed even more after that and I may have given to my angry friend a smug-ish look. I was just kidding, but he took it very seriously.

“Oh you’re going down, Tim. Just you wait…”

He eventually convinced our other pals that I was, indeed, deserving a “punishment”.

“Make him lick your dog’s balls!” someone suggested. “Leave my princess out of this!” Adam replied, offended.

It’s like the entire group stopped being drunk just to decide what disgusting task I should have done. I just laughed the whole time: it’s part of the game, they were not mean-spirited. Even Dave suggested some stuff, like drinking expired milk with my nostrils. Each suggestion was met with a mixture of laughter and disgust.

After a couple of minutes of discussion, I felt Dave once again elbowing me.

“Gentlemen, please!” he shouted, in a slightly sarcastic tone. “Since you’re wasting my time, I propose an entire new bet. Whether the result, Tim will still get his… punishment, trust me!”

He was trying not to laugh, but he did earn some puzzled looks from our other pals.

“If Tim survives to this for 5 minutes straight…” he leaned a bit, the couch shaking again under the pressure of his enormous, muffled fart, which lasted 4 seconds. Our other friends laughed immaturely and I started to sweat. “…then you guys are going to give us 20$. Each.”

Dave was insane. Was he really going to do what I think… no, that’s just crazy. It can’t be, come on! There was people watching us! Our friends were a both amused and disgusted. But also intrigued.

“But if he gives up, then Tim owes Adam… let’s see… 200$” “What?!” I thought, the money-part being the only thing I disagreed with. The thought of Dave face-farting me was amazingly distracting as usual.

As our friends discussed Dave’s proposal, my gassy friend just patted my shoulder. “Come on Tim, that’s some easy bucks, right?” he whispered, chuckling a bit. My fetish was just a weird, fun game to him, and I couldn’t have been happier. But in front of our pals? That was too strange even for my standards.

When I turned to my gassy bro, however, he was already leaning on his back, his legs cocked up, his loose dark grey jeans forming that well-known “barrage” made of denim, a really familiar sight for me. I heard my friends laugh, Adam getting closer to me, his hands on my shoulders.

“Come on Tim… I want to see your face turn green!”

He was trying to sound threatening, but he couldn’t help but laugh; I know Adam: he’s just a friendly dork trying to act tough and I knew that he was actually finding the entire situation immaturely hilarious. But he had to look mad, it’s part of his… character.

I heard Dave sucking some air in his ass, his jeans now sagging, exposing a bit of his red underwear (interesting color, that’s for sure). The weird sounds coming from my friend’s butt were the only thing I could hear, despite my friends laughing. Every time Dave farted was like a dream coming true, but this time we were not alone. I stopped thinking about how risky the situation was for a moment, knowing that my friends would never suspect what was really going on between me and Dave, and just listened to the chorus of “Sniff it!”.

I gently buried my face in that soft, denim pillow, his legs slowly wrapping around my head, as if he was hugging me, trapping me in his gas-chamber. With my nose touching his underwear-covered anus, I could still feel the air being sucked in. A moment of silence, and then I felt his butt-muscles relax, and a first fart began.

It was so loud it’s hard to describe. Despite being on command, it was incredibly gross and wet-ish. The smell was rancid and unbearable, the mixture of alcohol and onions in Dave’s stomach probably produced something that no human would have been able to handle. The fart was so strong… loud, manly: my entire face was shaking, I swear I’ll never get used to his gassy talent. I could barely hear my friends laughing: my ears were devoted to Dave’s immense display of flatulence.

I coughed a bit, pretending to hate the smell, when the truth was obviously really different. This first fart alone lasted almost 20 seconds, one of the longest I’ve ever experienced from him. Our friends clapped their hands in approval, having yet another shot of vodka, a toast to the incredible display of fart-talent they just witnessed, and just kept laughing immaturely.

As they laughed, I saw Dave’s face just above that “barrage” of sagging jeans: as usual, he was laughing, and smiled at me, and then winked: his “plan” was working great. I felt his hand brushing through my hair and gently pushing me even deeper into the denim depths of his ass, this time with my nose almost perfectly aligned with his underwear-clad anus.

Dave’s grip, as usual, felt more like a caress, and the fart that immediately followed was just as big as the first one. And hilarious as well. “This is a natural one!” I heard him say, basically bragging about his gassy-abilities, as the fart kept going strong, our friends laughing again. “Pull him closer!” Jim shouted, then (probably him) pushed me even more “inside” of Dave’s butt (I couldn’t tell if it was Jim, as my face –and eyes- was completely buried in my friend’s fart-shooter). Dave made his butt comically wiggle a bit, forcing some toots out: my nostrils were almost burning, the stench being a mixture of rotten onions and burning vodka-lemon.

“That’s so gay!” Adam laughed. Ironically, he was right, about me at least.

“3 minutes already!” I heard somebody scream. I almost lost track of time: as I said, those farts make me absent-minded. Dave just kept ripping this series of loud rips one after one, without even sucking in. I couldn’t tell anymore whether he was farting on command or not anyway: he was just so good at it that the farts always felt natural (and, 99% of times, they were). “Aww man.” Dave chuckled, lying down slowly. He was tired, exhausted. “Can I turn around?!” he asked. They all simply laughed in response, though I also heard some gagging sounds.

My best friend turned around slowly, adjusting his position, his legs somehow keeping my face planted in his ass, as if he was “wrestling” me down, albeit very slowly and gently. He was now lying on his stomach, his loose-jeans butt looking like a beautiful pillow made of denim, his red underwear slightly popping out.

“Do your longest one, Dave!” Adam suggested. I was both mad and grateful for that.

He then came closer and made sure that my face was buried in the farter’s butt, pushing me even deeper in it. Dave just laughed, while I was trying not to get as red as tomato. I just couldn’t believe how open-minded Dave was about this, going as far as face-farting me in front of everyone else; granted, the bet was a smart excuse, but still, I was speechless. I didn’t even feel embarrassed: it was like a big prank, and friends alway prank each other, but the friendship remains intact, if not even stronger.

“Alright, I feel a good one… ready?” my gassy friend said, but it’s like he was talking to me only, as if we were alone as usual, during one of our fart sessions.

It’s like his butt “hugged” my face even more, right before the explosion that engulfed my entire, defenseless head in a cloud of stench. The fart shook my entire face and part of the couch like an earthquake. The chainsaw-like sounds were as loud as a thunder; the whole flatulence sounded fake, but it wasn’t, at all. 10 seconds, but the fart kept going strong, almost unnaturally.

I caught a glimpse of Dave’s smile as he slightly turned his head around, making sure I was enjoying it, but the rest of our friends didn’t notice that apparently, as they were too busy laughing and clapping their hands. “No way!” Adam shouted, in a mixture of anger and hilarity: as the fart was still being ripped, Dave slightly lowered his jeans a bit, fully exposing the red underwear, the sound getting even louder. I felt his hand again pushing me between his buttcheeks, as he spread his legs a bit more. I was having a close-encounter with his anus, the underwear acting as one final line of defense separating me from the real source of that gas. The smell was unbearable: onions smelt nice in comparison. And it was great.

As a “big finale”, as Dave announced it, the flatulence turned as loud as it was humanly possible, the ear-piercing sound almost destroying my own eardrums. My nostrils were burning, my nose getting wet-ish due to Dave’s sweaty buttcheeks. It was the most intense face-farting that my best friend ever made me experience… and he was straight: imagine if he was gay!

“No fucking way!” Adam roared. “5 minutes!”

Everyone else cheered and laughed, playfully throwing pillows at our angry friend. I slowly sat back, Dave doing the same, tying his jeans belt again. He patted on my shoulder, laughing, while I was doing my best to tame my huge boner, hidden by my own jeans.

“No way! You guys did this before, come on!”

Adam asked, ironically (if only he knew…), now laughing too, as he took a 20$ bill out of his wallet. The rest of the guys reluctantly did the same, throwing money at us, disgusted and amused at the same time.

The entire living-room now smelt like onions and rotten alcohol (if rotten-alcohol existed… does it exist?), everyone moaning in disgust, while me and Dave counted the money we just earned… by cheating.

“Easiest bucks we ever made!” he whispered, handing 50% of the cash to me, elbowing me like he did other times. “Great job!” he chuckled.

We all had another shot of vodka-lemon, and the night proceeded as usual, as Jim found another stash of onions hidden in the fridge. As the really clever betting continued, my gaze landed more than once on Dave… just Dave, sitting next to me, as if nothing happened. He’s like a brother, my best friend. He did that for me, he felt he was really gassy because of all the alcohol… and so farted in my face as an excuse, money or not.

Yes, I bet Dave did all of that for me, not just the money. And that’s another bet I’m sure I’ll win.

End of Episode 6

#fart story #eproctophilia #fartkink #davefarts2 #gayfart #malefarts

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tiredspacedragon · 3 years

Text

Some thoughts on the Toa's portrayals in their first meeting:

Tahu: Yeah, here we go again. First, the positives: Bossy? Checks out. Easily aggravated? Check. Bold and proud? Checkity-check. Impatient? A little overblown, but I'll buy that. Competent strategist? Surprised and glad to see this here. Check. So, already a more accurate Tahu than I remember this one being, but still not great, because this Tahu is also a braggart, quick to dismiss other's opinions, and, as Kopaka puts it, believes power belongs to whoever shouts the loudest. Hapka equates Tahu's hot temper with childishness, and the results are jarring because those are not the same thing. It's still early in the Toa's journey, so I wouldn't expect him to already be the leader he was at the end of MNOG, but...yeah. I've gone into this before and I'll do so more, later. There's a fair amount right, here, but the most prominent aspect of Tahu's character in this book is just...not him.

Onua: No complaints here. He's quiet, and agrees with Tahu's plan to split into pairs, combining speed and caution for maximum efficiency. That's Onua.

Lewa: Lewa is slightly different from his prior portrayals, namely that he is more hyperactive, accentuating his speech with acrobatic manoeuvers. This plays into a neurodivergent reading of Lewa mainly mainly based in the Chronicles books that I'll get into more later. Here, of course, it's suggestive of ADHD in Lewa's inability to stand still. It's different, but it adds a layer to Lewa's character without really stripping anything away, making him more interesting without sacrificing another aspect of him to do it, so I'll let it slide.

Pohatu: Pohatu is Pohatu is Pohatu. He's friendly, bit of a himbo but smarter than you might think, and keen to stick with his new friends. Hard to screw this guy up. *glances accusatorily at G2*

Gali: This scene is one of a few in which Gali, despite her great wisdom, is straight up wrong. It's a rarely discussed aspect of her character, but during 01-03 she has a tendency to value unity over practicality. She wants all six Toa to stick together here despite the fact that splitting up to cover more ground is the more sensible strategy in a scavenger hunt. Sticking together would make them a stronger unit, yes, and would be far less dangerous, but would also make finding all 60 masks (5 Great + 5 Noble each) take FAR too long. This Gali is perceptive, and wise to value unity, but she is also a little naive. Perhaps this is how her frustration with her amnesia manifests. For Tahu it's anger, for Kopaka it's reclusion, and for Gali, it's confusion and a desire for a stable support network.

Kopaka: This Kopaka is virtually identical to the Kopaka in Coming of the Toa, which means he is a certified Kopaka. I do find it interesting that Kopaka, normally the most logical of the Toa, makes his decision about teamwork based on his preference, rather than sound strategy.

Judging based on these, and certain later events, if I had to guess I'd say Cathy Hapka read the Bionicle comics as research for this book, but not MNOG. Characters who received strong focus in the comics tend to be more accurately represented in Tale of the Toa, while those who were not prominent or did not appear in the comics differ noticeably (Ex: childish Tahu and nervous Onepu).

Also interesting to note that the Toa form three subgroups. Pohatu and Gali wish to remain united, Tahu and Onua support the idea of working in pairs, and Lewa and Kopaka prefer to work alone. None are the main shipping pairs, though :P

#bionicle retrospective #bionicle readtrospective #tale of the toa #toa mata #tahu #onua #lewa #pohatu #gali #kopaka

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patchies · 3 years

Text

Shadows

Pairing: Dream x Reader x ???

Summary: An apocalyptic world where creatures of the night roam all around it. Searching for living beings to satisfy their hunger. Vicious creatures they are. It’s said that one person called upon their wrath in revenge. You awake in this place with another human being at your side. No memories whatsoever of the life you’ve had prior to coming here. In search of a way out, and your memories, you stumble upon multiple people with many personalities. Some can’t wait to meet you. If you take it the friendly or hostile way is up to you, but worry not… Nothing can hurt you. Or can it, now?

Warnings: none that I can think of

Word Count: 2.8+k

Author's note: hi, hi, hi! I bring you a new chapter after what... 1 and a half months of not uploading anything? My apologies are probably not enough, but I have been working on chapters, I promise! And, drum roll, please, I might have some art in store for this series. It isn't done, yet, but I'm trying to work on it, guys!

Wattpad link: here

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Chapter 4: Forming Friendship

As the sun starts off the next day, you and Nick depart from your home in search of more resources. He throws in a suggestion that you should spread out, so you could cover more ground, and you agree- not like you have anything else to do for the meantime. Unless you want to be stuck at home playing some card games Nick had found while searching for the paint buckets.

You search the places south, just outside the town. All the buildings look the same to your wondering eyes, nothing valuable piquing your interest that much, so you rather opt for wandering further. Through the greenery until a clearing reveals itself before you.

A beautiful and elegant meadow stretches across the horizon. As if a page was torn from a fairy-tale book, and rightfully so. The only thing missing is a royal castle or fairies' houses. Pollen flies in the air and swirls around you enchantingly and a surge of calmness goes through your being. An accommodation in your body along with the feeling of delight.

The nature has truly taken over most of the world.

It's not like you can complain, really. Colours, textures and elements flow with each other in a beautiful harmony, creating an almost painting-like picture that you can marvel at.

Deep down, you were always a fan of the quietness Mother nature has offered you at times in need. Whenever you felt down, really.

You slightly remember how it helped you with your anxiety, shyness and depression when you used to be socially awkward and unwilling to do something about it. It felt peaceful compared to the continuous pressure many people used to put on you. Not many people were harsh on you, but your social battery could take so much until all you were ready to do was just lie down, put on a playlist of your favourite songs and chill. They denied your want to be left alone when the only thing you needed was space and your own time. Their faces are now blurry images of faces you once used to know, but you don't know if you'll ever get back to your life or how long it might take.

I should throw away my pessimistic thoughts…

That was a part of the old you, though. You'd like to think that you're better now, but your pessimism has stayed with you nonetheless. It's about time you started working on it and who knows? You might get to form plenty friendships here who will be willing to help you.

With a shake of your messy hair, you focus back to the beauty in front of you, pushing the vines away and walking towards the flowery meadow.

Yellow grains contrast gorgeously with the sparse greenery the field has to offer here and there.

You bent down and pluck one of the many Dahlias near your feet, putting the pistil close to your nose.

Sniff, sniff, sniff

The flower alone doesn't smell alluring or sweet, like anything. The stem and leaves, on another note, smell bitter with a slight flowery undertone. It strikes a sense of serenity in you as you inspect the innocent white petals be carried away from you by the wind, flying off to the clear sky to join the fine powdery substance.

You let go of the stem and watch it be snatched, following its trace until it falls between the loads of flowers.

Just then, a gentler breeze begins and takes a handful of leaves of the ground, aiming just below a small hill to your left as if it had a mind of its own. You realize that it might actually do as it points you to a lone building sitting at the base, overflown with the finest flora you've ever faced.

A mere bookshop from what you can see from the distance. The walls are built from brick and it still seems in a decent shape, except the nature, but that gives it a special charm. A great place to get away from all this chaotic and death-threating events for even a while.

You carefully move through the grass and blossoms, trekking your way up to it.

• • •

Meanwhile, somewhere far away from you, a deer curiously, yet cautiously, examines you from a cliffside looking over the whole meadow. Its doe eyes flick from you to a small fawn by its side.

It huffs, shakes its head and turns, departing into the forest.

• • •

The inside is wondrous, despite your expectations of it being completely trashed.

Bookshelves line the walls and are all filed with all styles of literature. Slightly used, torn and unkept. It gives you an idea how no one surely visits this place. The place looks great, so it doesn't make much sense to you. You cannot help but be a little happy over the fact at that despite the telling signs of its abandonment.

Your hand automatically lifts up to slide over the spines of the books, keeping your touch light as you advance further inside. The rough, yet extremely soothing, texture extracts a small smile from you and you close your eyes. You begin dragging your other appendage across the parallel shelf until a thud makes you shoot your eyes open in alert, whipping your head behind you, but finding nothing out of ordinary.

With your now unsure footsteps, you slowly walk to the end of the aisle in front of you, peeking around the corner.

You catch sight of a short boy sitting in front of a shelf, or rather a stand, with comic books. He's sat down near the middle where the wooden stand is, flipping through each comic with haste.

A messy brown nest of hair sits atop his head while a flower crown with some scarce plastic bees thrown in reasts atop and a long green scarf messily wrapped around his neck. It strangely compliments his look that is styled with green, golden and black and despite the apocalyptic surroundings and lack of proper resources, you're surprised he's styled it very prettily.

A black stylish coat with golden accents is thrown on the floor near him along with his messenger bag, its contents peeking out. Especially the thick book with a pack of pencils. You wonder what the book contains, but maybe you'll get a chance to see it sometime.

You cautiously and carefully lean against a counter near you, observing the young boy as he shuffles through numerous comics. He huffs out a long sigh, throwing another book aside. It comes tumbling down back to him due to the amount he has already piled on top of each other. His nimble fingers pick up another one, swiping through it with precision.

He mumbles something quietly, softly putting the comic onto another pile beside him that is neat compared to the other one.

This demeanour continues for a long minute, basically choosing a book in a ratio that one is kept and twelve are thrown away. He never seems too happy with his decision, frowning at some in sadness despite having to give up on them. You don't understand why he doesn't put them onto the obvious piles of his favourites, but you stand in your place.

Having enough of watching, you whistle too loudly to get his attention.

Only to see the guy jump up in the air and slip on a paper he has previously abandoned on the ground. He pointlessly flails his arms around until his elbow hits the ground first, followed by his hip and the rest of his body.

You wince.

As if caught in the headlights, he spins his head to you. The previously left out paper now present on his head. You see confusion, fear and surprise fight against who will persevere on his face, so you lower your shoulders back down and give him an awkward smile, “Uh, sorry?”

He unsurely stumbles to his feet and dusts his clothes off, tightening the scarf around his neck with tense movement. His eyes widen and he makes a quick, though awkward, show of pulling out a stick?

He fumbles around with it for a bit before it extends into a normal looking sword, posing heroically, “I'll- uh, stab you! Yeah! I'll use this sword to stab you.”

You quirk an eyebrow at his choice of words, and at the adorable stutter he did, “Do you even know how to wield a sword?”

“Of course, I do! Wait- do I? No, no, no, you're just trying to make me look silly. I do know-”

Cue an uncoordinated swing of the sharpened weapon at his own leg, but at least his reaction time seems to be fast and he slides his foot out of harm's way just in time. One he created, and he watches as the sword penetrates the wooden boards and he struggles to pull it out.

His action makes you doubt his abilities further and a you can't help the small giggle that escapes you, raising your arms in mock defence when he sends you a defensive glare, “You- you cannot be serious. Quit the child's play, I'm not here to hurt you.”

He stays quiet, still pulling on the handle of the sword with unfortunate outcomes. It slips out of his fists multiple times and he sighs before flopping down onto the floor, defeated, “I guess I really don't know.”

You choose not to retort any sassy comeback to his gloomy self, rather analysing his figure and approaching the weapon. Arms still held above your head to show you don't plan on attacking, your features soft, “Mind me getting the weapon for you? I won't use it against you, I promise.”

“Go ahead,” he gives you an absent wave of his hand and only stares as you grip the handle.

At first, you tug and nothing happens, so you try holding it at a specific place and are delighted when you feel a small button press against your palm, giving it one more tug along with a squeeze of the switch.

An imaginary lightbulb blinks above his head as he sees the sword retract from the ground and you're left gripping the stick in your hand, “See? It isn't as hard, is it now?”

“I admit, you're right,” he accepts the handle from your outstretched hand, storing it into his hoodie pocket.

No wonder you didn't notice it before. He's had it hidden there and he had to have pulled it out when you whistled. Although you personally wouldn't own a weapon like that, it probably comes in handy for situations like these. You aren't sure if it'd be beneficial in an actual fight against a stronger and better crafted weapon, though.

A switchblade would do a better job, surely. From what you've seen, they're a lighter object, more portable and friendlier to beginners. Might even suit his style of fighting better, even if you haven't seen it in action yet, to be truthful, “I do believe I'm right.”

“I would beat you if I had my hatchet!”

You chuckle, “Well, we can always engage in hand-to-hand combat, if you're that confident in getting me. Why use weapons?”

His eyes widen and all his courage dissipates, waving his hands crazily and shaking his head, “When you say it like that, I'll pass you on that offer, thank you. Why didn't you attack me, by the way? Oh, and also, I'm Tubbo, since we seem to be okay with each other.”

Refraining from telling him your name back, you swing your arm at his head and watch him yelp, shut his eyes and flinch from you in humorous satisfaction. You stop it inches from his face, lowering it and stepping away from him, “You should've seen your face, Mr. Tubbo. I'd say we are okay, but I had to pull that on you and to answer your question of my peace towards you… You just seemed harmless.”

He stands up and looks at you in feign anger, jabbing an accusing finger into your chest “You're so cruel, what? I can't trust you now.”

Tubbo crosses his arms, turning away from you. You turn away from him and spot his collection of comics. His previous actions coming to the forefront of your mind, “Hey, why were you browsing through so many comics?”

“I was looking for something,” he shrugs, walking past you and picking up quite a big amount of comic books. He catches the incredulous glance you give the items in his hands and nods his head at them, “They aren't for me.”

“You looked quite sad when you couldn't grab one for yourself, why can't you?”

He's surprised you picked up on that, but he just shrugs, “I would. If my bag allowed me to carry so much at once and I just want to surprise my friends.”

You give a small 'aww', making his ears flush pink and cower away, “I could help you carry them. Where is your camp?”

“I don't think I should be revealing that to strangers, but I've never been the smartest with decisions and I'm sure you'd notice either way,” Tubbo stuffs the books inside his bag, barely closing it, “I could just act like I abducted you.”

“Won't that be suspicious? You actually seem like a person who's too nice to do that.”

The bee boy lightly grins at that while putting his coat on, throwing the messenger bag on his shoulder, “I'm bad at acting, too, so they'd surely notice.”

“Are any of them keeping guard on this place, by the way?”

“No,” his answer is straight-forward, without any hesitation, “It might be very shocking, but none of my friends know about this place. Although I visit quite often than not. It gets quite harsh out there, y'know?”

You hum, choosing to drop the subject and return back to an airier topic, “Which ones do you like?”

Tubbo's quick to light up at the change, dropping to his knees and shuffling through the messy mountain of comics once again. He carelessly throws ten of them at you in happiness and leaves you grasping them to your chest. You laugh at his enthusiasm, reading off few of the titles and shaking your head as he keeps on searching for more.

This was probably a crazy idea, but whatever. Tubbo seems like an adorable person to be around.

Not long after you get ready to leave, keeping the conversation loose and it's almost effortless how you get along. The themes get intertwined between you with ease, pointing to some aspects around you if you want to make a point.

He is a strange guy to get a hold of, but you can say that you like how easy-going talking is with him. The male has visibly suffered some of his own stuff, but he still has this bubbly personality around him that you can't wrap your mind around. Though, you enjoy that little perk he has.

At one point, you lose sight of the boy, looking around you in confusion only to have him appear behind you and throw a freshly made flower crown on top of your head. The question of where he got it from is lost to his ears as he babbles on how he needs to teach you the crafting of one, so you could be 'flower crown buddies'. His own words. Your reaction is to bump your shoulder with his, joking how he is too goofy for you to even want to learn. A look of betrayal is thrown at you and you chuckle.

He proceeds to skip at certain intervals during your trek through the forest, too, visibly being excited to earn a new friend who is close to his wave-length. You don't even notice when you get close, having too much fun getting to know each other and goof around, but Tubbo increasingly slows his steps near an old-looking house.

He turns to you, “Well, this is my stop. I shouldn't take you further or I'll get spanked for not listening to my peers.”

“Uh, I won't respond to that, though I hope everything's alright back at your base. You shouldn't go through child abuse anywhere,” you awkwardly scratch at your neck, handing him the comic books meant for him.

Tubbo light-heartedly laughs at your perplexed self, a jokester-like glint appearing in his eyes as he accepts the papers, “I hope we can meet again.”

“I do, too, and hey. The library can be our place, if you're comfortable enough to call it that,” you heartily smile at him, ruffling his hair and receiving a pouty 'hey! my hair, not yours!'.

He shakes his head to fix your doings, throwing a lop-sided grin, “I can allow that.”

“Well, I should go,” you look up to the sky, seeing the sun brightly shining more to the west side now. It shouldn't be that long before you'll have to get ready for the night and report your findings with Nick. Not like you have much to say to him, but there are some things worth mentioning to him, “I have a friend possibly waiting for me already. It was incredible meeting you, Tubbo!”

“Likewise.”

#technoblade #dream #sapnap #apocalypse au #reader insert #mcyt x reader #mcyt #techno #dream team #dream x reader #dreamwastaken #l'manburg #shadows #??? x reader

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lifeofkaze · 3 years

Text

An Art of Balance #30

Orion Amari x MC

A/N: Lovely Julian Bennett belongs to the even more lovely @slytherindisaster

Word Count: ~ 4.000

___________________________________________

Chapter 30: Making Amends

The conversations with Orion and Skye kept gnawing at Lizzie over the next few days. In their own ways, both of them had made it clear to her how important it was to get back on track; not only for herself, but for the general good of their team as well.

Thinking about what they had said, Lizzie realised how much of an open door they had been pushing; there was nothing she wanted more than things to return to their normal state, so she could have all of her friends back. And if making amends would help increase her performance, all the better.

There wasn’t much she could do about either Rowan or Orion at this point, so Lizzie had started thinking about how to get back into Charlie's good books.

Skye had suggested a gesture of goodwill to make him listen to her and after contemplating her advice for a few days, an idea had started to form in Lizzie’s mind.

After sending a few owls back and forth, she now found herself in the hallway of the Eastern Tower. She had been standing in front of the portrait hole hiding the entrance to the Gryffindor Common Room for quite some time now, engaged in a heated discussion with the Fat Lady, the occupant of the picture guarding the portrait hole.

“I really don’t see the problem,” Lizzie rolled her eyes; she had forgotten just how many times she had done this in the last half hour. “I don’t even know if he’s in. Can’t you just go inside and have a look? Or ask another portrait for all that it’s worth?”

The Fat Lady huffed indignantly, fluffing herself up to an even greater volume than she held anyway. “And leave my post unguarded? No way, young lady. I still don’t understand what a Hufflepuff is doing here in the first place.”

She gestured at Lizzie’s attire dismissively. It was the evening before the match and the pre-match party was scheduled to start immediately after dinner. Lizzie was already dressed in her yellow jersey from last season and a black letterman jacket bearing her name and number on the back; it had been a combined birthday gift from her friends back in November.

Lizzie buried her hands in the pocket of her jacket now, feeling the rough parchment of the letter she was carrying. “I told you, I’m looking for Charlie.”

“From what I hear, you have a match against my House tomorrow,” the Fat Lady squinted down at her suspiciously, “you have no business here.”

“Your House?” Lizzie asked with an amused undertone. “You’re a portrait, you are just guarding the entrance.”

“Careful missy,” the portrait puffed and slung her pink feather boa over her shoulder; it made her look like an inflated bird of paradise. “I’ve guarded this Common Room a lot longer than you are around; these are basically my children!”

Knowing that a fight wouldn’t help her much, Lizzie hung her head and sighed. “I’m sorry, I didn’t mean it that way,” she tried a different approach. “I really just want to apologise to my friend.”

Lizzie pinched the bridge of her nose; this was taking a lot longer than she had anticipated. The sound of approaching footsteps caught her attention; Percy was walking down the corridor towards them, his arms stacked with way more books than what looked comfortable to carry.

“What are you doing here?” he barked at her haughtily; Lizzie had to stifle a laugh at the show the little boy she’d known for ages by now was putting on. He had always been a little bit more stuck up than his brothers, but this new persona he was putting on since coming to Hogwarts certainly wasn’t the most pleasant one.

“Hey Perce,” she greeted him sardonically. “You’ve been to the library?”

“I asked you a question,” Percy insisted. The way he was acting up was too comical for Lizzie not to chuckle; angry red spots appeared on the boy’s pale cheeks.

“This is the Gryffindor Common Room,” he pointed out unnecessarily. “Last time I looked, the Hufflepuff Common Room was down in the dungeons.”

Shaking her head, Lizzie rolled her eyes at Percy. “You don’t say, Percy. Do you know if Charlie’s in there?” She pointed her thumb towards the entrance.

Percy sniffled at being laughed at by her. “No, I don’t know if my brother is in the Common Room.”

Slowly but surely, Lizzie was getting annoyed by the constant delay. “Well, could you go and have a look please?”

“What business do you have with him anyway? I don’t think he wants to talk to you.”

Lizzie crossed her arms in front of her chest and glared at Charlie’s younger brother. “Don’t you think that’s best for him to decide?”

Percy opened his mouth to shoot back but got cut off by the familiar figure of Julian Bennett approaching them. The Gryffindor Beater raised his eyebrows at the unusual gathering in front of him.

“Hey, Lizzie,” he greeted her with a pat on the back. “I didn’t expect to see you here; isn’t the pre-match party going down soon?”

Julian’s casual demeanour felt awkward to Lizzie; they hadn’t really talked to each other since her falling out with Charlie, but she was glad for it all the same. It was nice to see a friendly face that was wearing crimson-and-gold for a change.

“Julian, thank Godric you’re here; finally someone with a bit of sense.” Her eyes were shooting daggers at Percy, who shuffled his feet uncomfortably. “I’ve been looking for Charlie for some time now; do you know where he is?”

“What do you want from him?”

“There’s some things I wanted to get out of the way before tomorrow.” She ran her finger along the edge of the letter in her pocket.

Julian nodded. “I see; let me see if I can round him up.”

He turned to the Fat Lady. “Gryphon,” he told her the password, much to the dismay of Percy. But Julian simply ignored his complaints and vanished behind the portrait.

“Was that so hard?” Lizzie couldn’t help but mutter under her breath.

Only a few moments later, the portrait swung aside again and Julian emerged with a scowling Charlie in tow.

Still miffed at the situation, Percy made no move to leave, so Julian simply shoved him back into the Common Room to give Lizzie and Charlie some space.

When they were alone, Charlie looked her up and down dismissively. He raised his chin defiantly. “What do you want?”

Lizzie glanced at the portrait of the Fat Lady, who seemed to be awfully interested in her fingernails all of a sudden. “Could we go someplace more private?”

But Charlie merely crossed his arms in front of his chest. “No,” he brushed her off brusquely. “Listen, I’ve got to prepare for tomorrow; say what you came to say or leave me alone.”

Lizzie tried not to be discouraged by his resentment; she couldn’t even blame him for it. If she were in his place, she probably would have acted the same way.

“Tomorrow is what I want to talk to you about, in a way,” she sighed, inherently hoping he would listen to her apology. “We’ve never faced each other on the pitch while fighting, we were always seeing eye to eye. I don’t want to start this now.”

Charlie’s arms were still crossed but Lizzie could see a bit of tension leave his shoulders; maybe there was a bit of hope to set things right.

“So?”

She drew a deep breath. “I know I acted like a total idiot and I want to apologise; I should never have doubted you and your intentions and it was very wrong of me to lash out at you for trying to cheer me up when I didn’t even tell you how upset I really was. I was hurt and confused and none of this is your fault and for the record, I’d happily play with all of the magical creatures for the rest of our time here with you because without you, it’s not the same.”

The words had stumbled out of her mouth in a quick rush without giving her the opportunity to breathe in between her sentences; she was too afraid to forget something.

After she was done, Charlie just stood there with an unmoving expression on his face. The longer he didn’t say anything, the more scared Lizzie got that he wouldn’t accept her apology.

But then, the smallest of smiles tugged at Charlie’s lips. “Did you rehearse that?”

Lizzie blushed slightly as relief that he didn’t dismiss her right away washed over her. “Maybe,” she admitted sheepishly. “Listen, Charlie, I’m sorry for how I behaved; I miss you. I miss spending time with you, I miss all your random dragon facts you’re throwing at me and I miss you setting my head straight when I need you to. I don’t want to go out and play against you tomorrow when we can’t look each other in the eye.”

Charlie’s freckled features went soft at her admission. “I’m sorry, too.”

“I know you’d never use me or my feelings for your own advantage; it was wrong to assume that.”

He inclined his head. “Thank you for saying that.” He looked at her for a moment, contemplating. “I can’t say what I said was a lie, though. You did change a lot this year. But that’s not what rubbed me the wrong way,” he quickly added as she winced.

“What stung was the fact that you were trying to hide these changes,” he explained. “You didn’t trust me enough to be honest with me.”

“I was scared to tell you because you know me better than anyone else does,” Lizzie replied quietly. “I was afraid you’d call me out and tell me all the stuff I didn’t want to hear.”

“Oh, I certainly would have,” Charlie confirmed matter-of-factly.

“Of course you would have,” Lizzie sighed. “Who knows, maybe the outcome would’ve been better if I had been honest with myself in the first place.”

Charlie shrugged. “Maybe, but we’re not going to find out now. What’s done is done; no use fretting over the past, like my mum always says. But in any case, I’m glad you plucked up the courage to acknowledge your mistakes. Perhaps there’s still more of the old Lizzie in there than I thought after all,” he said with a small grin.

It lessened a little as he continued, “Just don’t lie to me again, please. If you can’t even trust your friends, you’re truly in a really bad place.”

Her eyes were serious as she placed her hand on his forearm. “I promise, no more lies; you can trust me, I’m done running from my problems.”

She reached into the pocket of her jacket and procured the letter she had kept hidden. Smoothing the slightly crinkled envelope for a second, she held it out to Charlie.

“See, I even brought you a present.”

Charlie took it from her with a surprised face. He turned the heavy envelope around, raising one eyebrow as he discovered the logo of the Ministry of Magic printed on the back of it.

“What is that?”

“That,” Lizzie grinned broadly, “is my official offer of peace.”

Charlie looked at her sceptically.

“That was Skye’s idea,” Lizzie added with a shrug. “She thought you’d might give me a chance if I bribed you with something nice.”

Charlie shook his head as he broke the red wax seal. “Just when I thought I’d seen it all… “

His voice trailed off as he started reading the contents of the letter. Eyes wide and mouth hanging slightly open, he read the letter two more times.

“Is that… “ he started croaking before clearing his throat. “Is that what I think it is?”

Lizzie tried her best not to look smug but she couldn’t help the wide grin that had appeared on her face watching Charlie read the letter.

“It is,” she confirmed. “Fresh from the Department for the Regulation and Control of Magical Creatures. It arrived this morning.”

One of the Christmas presents she had gotten from her father this year had been a special one; working for the Ministry, he had gotten wind of an internship place being open with some of the Ministry’s dragonologists; they were supposed to conduct a study on the mating behaviour of Welsh Greens over the summer and were looking for helping hands.

Knowing her interest in Care of Magical Creatures, her father had put her name down without telling her, presenting her with the acceptance letter on Christmas Day.

Lizzie knew she owed her father big time for helping her realise her plan in such a short span of time; he had moved heaven and hell and deployed all of his Ministry contacts to make sure the name on the internship letter had gotten changed.

Charlie was still in a bit of a shock as he looked from the letter to her and back again.

“But this is your internship,” he whispered hoarsely, “you have been talking about this for months. These spots are so rare; are you sure you really want to give it to me?”

Lizzie nodded in confirmation. “Yes, I am. This is my way of saying sorry; and you deserve this spot a thousand times more than I do.” The way she smiled at him was uncharacteristically shy for her somehow. “Besides, after the career advice session I’m not sure I want to go down the magizoologist route anyway.”

“You don’t?”

A blush spread on Lizzie’s face; admitting her career plans out loud for the first time sounded foolish to her ears. “I thought, I might perhaps want to try going for a professional Quidditch career.” She strongly hoped Charlie wouldn’t laugh.

But he only winked at her with an encouraging grin. “As far as I can say, you’d definitely have what it takes, chipmunk.”

As he heard the stupid little nickname leaves his mouth, Lizzie’s mouth curved into a brilliant, hopeful smile. “So you officially accept my apology?”

He waved the letter in her face. “You bet I do. I might even take you out for dinner now.” He wiggled his eyebrows at her, making Lizzie giggle.

“Is that so?”

“Yes, I found this amazing new place the other day. It’s called ‘The Great Hall’; it’s usually a bit crowded this time of the day, but I hear they have amazing sandwiches.”

Lizzie felt like a heavy weight had been lifted from her shoulders as they both started laughing at the same time. All the resentment that had been brewing between them had vanished in an instant and it just felt normal again; it was the best feeling Lizzie could have imagined.

“Do I get a hug now, or what?” Charlie laughed and opened his arms for her.

Without hesitation, Lizzie stepped into them and let herself be enveloped by one of Charlie’s bear hugs she had missed so much.

“Good to have you back,” he whispered against her hair, making her smile broaden until her cheeks hurt.

“Aw, look at the two of you,” the dreamy voice of the Fat Lady, they had completely forgotten about, suddenly broke the atmosphere. “Young love, finally reunited again.”

Charlie let go of Lizzie and they both stared at her reproachfully. “We’re only friends!” they spoke out in perfect unison. Sharing another glance, they both exploded with laughter. Lizzie would say this sentence a thousand times and more if it only meant she had her friend back at her side.

The traces of laughter still hanging onto his face, Charlie stepped towards her and offered her his arm like a gentleman would to his lady; still chuckling, Lizzie took it.

“Now, milady, let’s go get some food.”

The Great Hall was already packed with students when they arrived. Lizzie’s arm was still linked with Charlie’s as they were laughing and joking with each like nothing had happened. She could have let go of him, of course, but she just enjoyed being back in his company way too much.

As they entered the Great Hall side by side, Lizzie didn’t fail to notice the whispers and sideways glances they were drawing from several of their peers. Although the rumours had stopped when the frosty atmosphere between them had become public knowledge, they hadn’t been set right either.

But Lizzie chose to ignore the raised eyebrows and scowls directed at them this time around; she straightened her back subconsciously as they walked through the space between the Gryffindor and Hufflepuff tables and let it all wash over her. She was done bothering with what people who didn’t even really know her would think; the ones she cared for knew the truth and that was all that matters. She had been worrying about other people’s opinions far too much these last few weeks.

When they reached where the rest of the Gryffindor team was sitting, Charlie sat down with them, gesturing for her to join them, but Lizzie declined the offer. She was glad their fight was over, but she didn’t want to push her luck; sitting with the players of the opposing team on the evening before the match maybe would have been a bit too much.

“Alright,” he shrugged as he sat down in between his team mates. “See you tomorrow on the pitch then.”

Lizzie smiled broadly. “I’m looking forward to it.”

“Let’s see if you still think so after I’ve caught the snitch,” Charlie smirked. “But don’t worry, you can have it afterwards, as a consolation prize.”

The other Gryffindors snickered as Lizzie raised her chin defiantly. “Careful Weasley, pride comes before the fall.” But her eyes were sparkling in anticipation of the challenge.

Leaving the Gryffindor table behind, she walked over to her own House Table. She had seen Penny and Rowan sitting a bit further ahead; Lizzie hadn’t really sat with them during dinner in the last couple of days, especially not without Skye joining them, but her dark haired friend was nowhere to be seen.

Walking up to the two girls, her eyes drifted to the head of the table where Orion was sitting with McNully. She had seen him watching her when she’d entered the Great Hall with Charlie; she knew the fluttery feeling inside her stomach didn’t solely come from the anticipation of tomorrow’s match.

He and Murphy were undoubtedly discussing the last details for tomorrow, but as their eyes met for a split second, Lizzie offered him a small smile. It was gone almost too quickly to see, but she knew he’d caught it by the way the corners of his own mouth curved slightly upwards. He gave her the hint of an acknowledging nod before he turned his attention back on his and Murphy’s tactical discussion.

Lizzie was glad he had encouraged her to make amends with her friends; not only because she wanted them back, but also because it made her feel closer to him again.

She braced herself for the next part; Charlie was done, so now onto the next.

Approaching Rowan and Penny, Lizzie put on a markedly cheerful smile, trying to mask the touch of apprehensiveness she felt at her next task. “May I sit with you?”

Rowan just looked at her silently, her eyes unreadable behind her glasses.

Penny however, immediately moved over to make room for her on the bench. “Sure, go ahead,” she beamed up at her. Inwardly, Lizzie sighed thankfully; at least Penny seemed to be as eager to return to their normal state before the year was done than she was.

“We were just discussing if we might need something else for the pre-match party later,” she explained, pointing to a checklist spread out between their plates. “You’re coming, aren’t you?” she asked somewhat hopefully.

“Of course I am,” Lizzie smiled in return. “I’ve never missed one so far, have I?”

In truth, nothing was further from her mind than attending a party right now; the thought about being in a crowd that was working itself up in their excitement for the season finale made her stomach churn. But in a way, popping in to the pre-match parties had somehow become part of her own pre-match ritual; Lizzie wasn’t really superstitious, but figured this maybe wasn’t the best time to meddle with established routines.

Trying to take her mind off the prospect of the party, she poured herself some pumpkin juice. “Sounds like you’re excited for tomorrow.”

“You bet!” Penny beamed at her. “I can’t wait for the match to start! Hufflepuff is playing for the Cup the second year in a row, it’s time to bring it back where it belongs. Gryffindor is a really tough opponent, though; it will be a tough match, but you’ve trained so hard, I’m sure you’ll come out on top…”

When Penny noticed her rambling, she blushed slightly and shut up. Lizzie watched Rowan from across the table; she had been remarkably silent since Lizzie had joined them.

“What about you, Rowan?” Lizzie asked quietly.

Rowan quickly looked up from her dinner. “What about me?”

“You’re coming to the match, aren’t you?”

“I don’t know yet,” Rowan mumbled evasively, pushing her food around her plate while avoiding Lizzie’s eyes. “The O.W.L.s are so close now and I’ve still got so much more to study and revise.”

But both of them knew, this was only partly true. The two of them had lived in some sort of tentative truce the last couple of weeks, each keeping her distance from the other in a way. But the Quidditch pitch was Lizzie’s terrain; Rowan coming along would be a step back into a normality that Lizzie wasn’t sure they would achieve again; but she sure was hoping so.

“Listen,” she sighed. “I know it’s been weird between us ever since… you know.” Lizzie was struggling for words; she just couldn’t bring herself to actually ‘you caught me and Orion making out’ out loud. It was a thought she’d probably never get used to.

“What I want to say is, it would mean a great deal to me if I knew you’d be there tomorrow. You never missed a single match, you were always there to cheer me on.” She offered Rowan a weak smile. “I’m only half as good without you.”

To her surprise, for the first time in ages, Rowan smiled back at her. “That’s nonsense and you know it; you’ll be brilliant no matter who is watching.”

Lizzie grimaced, but secretly, Rowan’s kind words felt like balm for her soul. “Please don’t try to prove me wrong by not coming.”

“Alright, I’ll be there. But be damned if Gryffindor wins and my precious study turns out to be wasted,” she added with a joking threat.

“Don’t worry, I won’t let you down!” A wide, relieved grin spread on Lizzie’s face; she instantly felt a lot lighter. “Skye and I have been practising some new moves, the lions have no chance at all.”

“Where’s Skye anyway?” Penny now piped up. “I haven’t seen her for some time now; I thought she was with you.”

Lizzie’s brow furrowed. “No, I haven’t seen her since class, why?”

“She got a letter earlier and seemed really rattled while reading it. She went all pale and ran off before I had a chance to ask what’s wrong; no one has seen her since.”

Lizzie didn’t like the sound of that at all. She was nervous enough as it was herself, Skye freaking out at the last minute was the last thing they needed. If she had been missing for quite some time now, there was no way to tell if she had worked herself into one of her states again and Lizzie had the very distinct feeling she should go and check on her friend immediately.

Luckily, she had a very good idea on exactly where to find her.

#hphm #hogwarts mystery #quidditch #orion amari #charlie weasley #lizzie jameson #aob #art of balance #the quidditch squad #it's the homestretch everybody!!!!#we're slowly wrapping things up #feels so weird though :(#not that much longer to go #sad or happy?#both I guess

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one-boring-person · 3 years

Note

Hey I had an fun idea for a request

A Terminator lost boys crossover.

After the events of T2 John and Sarah end up in Santa Carla. John meets Sam and the frog brothers (maybe at the comic shop) and swap stories.

I love this request so much, so I hope I've done it justice!

You'd Be Surprised.

The Lost Boys x Terminator: Judgement Day crossover

Warnings: swearing

Masterlist

"What is this place?" John's face is pulled into a tired frown as he looks around the bustling area around them, sniffing at the sickly scent of candy and sweat skeptically.

"The Boardwalk, I think." Sarah replies, body tense as they move further into the crowd, one hand on John's back.

"The Boardwalk?" The youth questions, flicking hair from his face, "Looks interesting, I guess."

As he says this, he has to stifle a yawn behind his hand, once again wishing they hadn't spent all night driving to get to this little coastal town - after everything that happened, John has gotten very little sleep, thanks to the sheer amount of moving around. Nearly everyday is spent driving around, or it was, until Sarah found out about this place, a small town called Santa Carla, which is small enough to be relaxing, but also big enough that it acts as a distraction from everything that happened with the terminators of before. Sarah had been adamant to get here, and it had meant that they hadn't stopped to sleep the previous night, leaving them both dog-tired.

"Looks like it's popular." Sarah muses, steering them through the crowd, unsure of what they're doing here - she had thought it would be a good idea to get out and explore, but now that they're here, she's just this side of uncomfortable.

"Yeah." John murmurs, turning to look across the way at a bunch of stores, his head cocked to the side, "Hey, is that a comic store?"

Sarah glances over, finding what he's looking at.

"Looks like it." She replies, knowing what's coming next.

"Can I go look? I won't go far."

"Yeah, go ahead. Just be careful, ok?" She sighs, watching as he thanks her and moves off towards said store.

Glad to have found something familiar, John heads quickly to the shop, unable to help the small smile that creeps into place as he approaches the comfort of the comic books he knows and loves. As he reaches them, he runs a finger over the rim of the shelf, slowing his stride to pore over the glossy covers, marvelling at the vivid colours and stark linework, idly reading the flashy names and slogans. Comic books have always been his escape from the reality of his world, especially back when his mom had been taken out of the equation (however brief that now seems), finding that he could easily lose himself in the smooth textured pages and their detailed stories. At his foster parents' house, he'd had an extensive collection.

"Wonder what happened to 'em." He murmurs quietly to himself, still somewhat guilty about the deaths of his two temporary carers, knowing it was his fault they ended up how they did.

"Hey man, we don't want no loons in here." A gruff, boyish voice behind him startles him, the sound unexpected as he spins on his heel to face the newcomer.

He comes face-to-face with a kid around his age, possibly a year older, the stern yet curious look on his face giving him a somewhat older appearance. The boy wears clothes not too dissimilar to military fatigues, though they're paired with the usual civilian-wear most people tend to have, as if he's trying to seem tougher, the red bandana wound around his head seeming to emphasise this. John has to bite back a sharp snort as his brain makes the connection it had tried originally to form: the kid looks like he's trying to be Rambo.

As he watches, another boy joins him, his one wearing similar clothes, with a pair of dog tags hung round his neck.

"Don't worry, I ain't no loon." John replies, standing a little tensly, unsure of how to react.

"If you say so, comrade." The second boy intones, frowning as he looks over John's slightly dishevelled appearance.

When they don't immediately leave, John lifts an eyebrow.

"Can I help you?"

"Just checking you out." The first one informs him, crossing his arms over his chest.

"Oh yeah? You the kid cops or something?" John scoffs, rolling his eyes.

"Laugh at us now, but we're the reason you're safe." The same boy practically snaps at him, scowling.

"Sure, buddy." John shakes his head.

"You scared of monsters, man?" The second questions, exchanging a knowing look with his companion.

John only snorts: he's learned it's not the monsters you have to fear, it's technology.

"You should be. Gotta watch out around here." It's almost a threat, the tone of voice in this boy sounding dead serious.

The three boys stare at each other for a long while, brows drawn tight as they face off, bodies tense.

After a moment, a cheerful voice interrupts them.

"Edgar, Alan! What're you doing?" A blonde youth in vibrant clothing comes into view, grinning as he claps the other two boys on the back, "Who's this?"

"Nobody." John replies, smiling tightly as he goes to move away.

"Hey, wait a minute!" The newcomer calls after him, "Were these two giving you a hard time?"

"You could say that."

The two boys go to protest, but the newcomer just shushes them.

"I'm sorry, they're a bit tense. It's been a rough couple of months." The blonde apologises, smiling brightly, "I'm Sam."

He offers John his hand, blue eyes friendly as he looks him over.

"John." He takes the hand, smiling at him a little, "It's been a rough couple of months for me, too."

One of the boys snorts, the Rambo look alike this time.

"I think we have you beat." The dark haired one comments.

"I think you might be surprised." John retorts sharply.

"Think so? Tell us and we'll decide." Wannabe Rambo instructs, placing his hands on his hips.

"Edgar, calm it, yeah?" Sam sighs, rolling his eyes.

"No, it's fine. I'll tell you, but you won't believe any of it." John shrugs - what has he got to lose?

"You might be surprised." Sam mimics him from earlier, grinning cordially.

Shooting him a swift smirk, John launches into his story, giving them all the relevant information, watching as their faces go from impassive and sceptical, to shocked, to enraptured. The three of them listen attentively, clearly enjoying the story, not quite believing parts, until John shows them the scars and marks he obtained, which are too deliberate to be accidental. As he comes to a finish, he waits for the others to react.

"Shit." Is all Sam can manage, eyes wide, somewhat pale after hearing all that.

"Yeah." John swallows, wetting his mouth again as he waits for Edgar and Alan to respond.

They exchange a glance, clearly not having expected that at all, unsure now of how to respond.

"That's some real shit, man." Edgar eventually says, his expression softening slightly.

"Yeah, sorry about your friend." Alan adds, rubbing the back of his neck.

"It's fine." John acknowledges them, trying not to wince at the memory of his brief father figure, the terminator still rife in his mind.

"Maybe we should tell you our story." Sam muses, pulling at his shirt.

"Go for it."

And so he listens to them trawl through their tale, listening intently as they describe the four bikers of the Boardwalk, who they had found out were the ones responsible for the hundreds of missing people in Santa Carla. It sounded unreal: vampires in a small coastal town? Sounds like a child's story, but he supposes it's not too dissimilar to his own in that sense; no one will believe him if he tells his story. As they go on, he finds himself enjoying their company, the wilder antics of Edgar and Alan balanced out by Sam, who seems to have a joking nature and a natural friendliness that rubs off on John. Eventually, they finish.

"Jeez, and I thought I had it bad." John laughs, running a hand through his hair.

"We all did." Sam chuckles, leaning against a nearby shelf.

"Guess we have more in common than we thought." Alan remarks, smiling for the first time.

"Yeah." John nods, grinning.

"John!" He turns to face the entrance to the store, where he sees Sarah standing, waiting for him, "Time to go."

Groaning, he pulls his coat on tighter, before he starts to say his goodbyes.

"You guys here every day?" He asks his newfound acquaintances.

"Yeah." They chorus, nodding.

"Mind if I come back?"

"We'll be waiting." Sam grins, "See ya around."

The other two say their goodbyes, before John walks off to join his mother, the two starting the long trek back to the motel.

"New friends?" She asks, looking at him.

"Yeah." John grins widely, "I think so."

#terminator #the lost boys #terminator judgement day #terminator 2 #the lost boys edgar frog #the lost boys alan frog #the lost boys sam emerson

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free-pool-trash · 4 years

Text

folklore - isaac lahey {1/?}

my first isaac piece... y’all i can’t even lie this kind of got away from me but here we are so let me know if you want me to commit to making this a series!!

this is pre-bite isaac!!!! because i haven’t seen anybody write for him before he was bitten so i wanted to explore the dynamic of him and reader while he was just normal, which obviously i’ll get more into in future parts if anyone would be interested in reading more <33 feedback would be really appreciated !!!!!

masterlist

word count: 3.2k

warnings: swearing, mentions of abuse (i think that’s it but let me know if i missed anything)

mostly fluffy but a lil angsty

i’m gonna tag the people that replied under the post i made asking if anyone wanted an isaac fic hope that’s okay <3 let me know if you want to be added or removed from the list for possible future parts!

tagging: @makeusfreefromthisfandom (thank you for putting up with me while i attempted to write this), @cece-lives-here, @chocolate-raspberries, @tanyaherondale again lemme know if you wanna be removed or added <3

PART 2

You could remember with complete clarity the day you'd met your best friend, who also kind of happened to be your only friend, but that minor detail didn't even matter as you wouldn't ask for anyone else or anyone more and what was better was that you knew for a fact that said best friend felt the exact same about you.

It was the first day of middle school when you'd met your long time best friend, both of you had been wide eyed and hopeful about the coming years as you were seated beside each other in your very first class. He'd been shy at first, glancing at you with a nervous smile and playing with the zip of his pencil case when the teacher instructed you all get to know the person beside you.

"My name's (Y/n), what's yours?" You asked him, a friendly smile on your face- you knew from the get go that you were the louder of the both of you.

"I'm Isaac." He answered you with a smile that was more certain than the last one he'd offered you.

He'd tensed up again, however, when you pointed towards his backpack. Even so early in the day someone had already poked fun at the bag that was covered in comic book characters that the boy loved so much, with the way you pointed at it excitedly he couldn't help the nerves that built up in him, he didn't know why you were excited, you either liked his backpack or you liked teasing people, he seriously didn't know.

His nerves settled down once you'd actually opened your mouth, "Woah, your bag is so cool! You like Spider-Man too?" Your eyes sparkled with excitement and Isaac finally allowed himself to reciprocate it.

"Thanks! Spider-Man is my favorite superhero! Do you read comics?" He asked you with a smile that had widened significantly since the beginning of your meeting.

"No, I don't have any comic books at home…" You explained with a slight frown before your lips lifted back upward as you continued, "I watch all the movies with my dad, though!"

Isaac nodded in understanding, blue eyes shining bright with happiness that he'd made a friend so easily, while he usually found the task quite difficult since he was very soft spoken, your charismatic energy seemed to rub off on him as he found himself talking to you easily.

"I've got some in my backpack, do you want to read them with me at lunch?" The boy asked hopefully, his shy demeanor returning ever so slightly as he realized he'd just taken a leap of faith, something he didn't love doing.

Head nodding enthusiastically, your smile grew only wider, "Yeah!"

The memory always made you smile as you'd sat with each other at that lunch time and at every other lunch time from that day onwards. You and Isaac were a pair, as you grew up you did mostly everything together, his father and brother loved you and your parents loved him just the same.

He knew all of your secrets and you knew all of his, including how abusive his father became after the death of his older brother, he'd told you but under the condition that you didn't breathe a word to anyone else, so you kept your mouth shut but did everything in your power to support him in the aftermath of a punch or emotional scar.

Isaac often voiced how much you meant to him, despite the fact that he wasn't great with putting his feelings into words, he always managed to remind you that he was sure you were some sort of guardian angel to him or how you were really and honestly his favorite person in the whole world. The proclamations more often than not came mixed with shaking breaths and sobs from your favourite boy. You were both sixteen the first time it happened.

A knock on your front door tore your attention away from the show you were watching, you raised an eyebrow in question. Neither of your parents were home and you weren't expecting them back until the next morning, shrugging your shoulders you made your way to the front door, opening it revealing Isaac looking more broken than you'd ever seen him in your five years of friendship, his blue eyes were bloodshot and rimmed with red, cheeks painted in tear tracks and loud sniffles sounded from him along with a sob that threatened to rip your heart out when he met your eyes.

Immediately you'd rushed him through your doorway, barely taking the time to shut the door before you had your arms wrapped around his shoulders, standing on your tiptoes to reach him due to how tall he'd become in the last few years. His arms wrapped around you in seconds as he began shaking against your smaller frame, sobs wracking his body violently.

After a minute, when his cries didn't die down as they usually did, you ushered him towards the couch, sitting him down and taking the seat beside him while you looked him over for any obvious injuries.

The only thing you noticed was that his fingernails were stubbed and bloody, as if he'd broken them trying to claw himself out of somewhere. You slowly and gently placed your palm to his cheek, stroking your thumbs under his eyes, removing his tears as you did. He was cold, no, he was freezing and you couldn't tell if he was shaking from the temperature or from whatever trauma his father had inflicted on him to put him in such a state.

"What happened, Isaac?" You asked softly, scooting closer to him when his hands reached out for you, they clutched the fabric of your hoodie- his hoodie- tightly, he only shook his head, pulling you into him completely, arms now wound tightly around your torso as he cried into your shoulder, you'd never seen him this shaken up, you'd never felt his tears soak through two layers of your clothing but you supposed there was a first time for everything as your curly haired best friend couldn't fight the tears that just kept flowing.

Your hands ran through his curls, scratching softly at the nape of his neck, something that usually always worked in calming him right down, only it wasn't working and you couldn't stand the way he was still freezing, you wanted to help him, you always helped him, you were at a loss as he cried this time though, you didn't know how to help.

"You're freezing." You murmured, his breath hitched at your statement and you had to move his head from its spot between your neck and shoulder, hands back on his cheeks.

Reluctantly you separated from him, fighting the urge to throw yourself back in his arms when he let out a panicked whimper, quickly you grabbed the throw blanket you kept on the armchair beside the couch and made your way back to Isaac's side, wrapping the blanket around his shoulders tightly and rubbing your hands up and down his arms softly, you tried your best to heat him up.

"I'm going to make you a hot drink, ok? Then we can talk- or watch a movie or just- yeah. I'll be back in a minute. I'm right in the kitchen if you need me." You fretted, kissing his forehead before rushing into the kitchen. Hot chocolate always cheered Isaac up, he'd once proclaimed that if he could only drink one beverage for the rest of his life it would be hot chocolate. You really needed a win with him tonight so with shaking hands you began making a cup of hot chocolate for your best friend.

It got hard sometimes, staying strong when you saw him so broken, sometimes you wanted nothing more than to cry with him, let the pain you felt for him consume you, but you never did, not in front of him anyway. If there was one thing he hated more than himself being upset it was making you upset and you knew that, you knew that it you cried for him in his presence he'd be reluctant to confide in you in fear of upsetting you. You couldn't have that, he needed you and you needed to be there for him, even if it hurt.

So you took a deep breath and walked back to your living room, cup of hot chocolate in hand, relief flooded you when you noticed Isaac had stopped crying, he was still sniffling but the tears had ceased.

"Here bub." You placed the cup in his cold, shaky hands before returning to your place pressed against his side, "Thank you."

His voice was scratchy and broken as he spoke, "Not just for the drink." He added on, voice merely a whisper.

Shaking your head you wrapped your arms around his shoulders, "You don't have to thank me for anything." You told him quietly, he'd never ever owe you anything and you wouldn't want him to ever think he did.

"But I want to." Isaac placed the cup on your coffee table and took both of your hands in his, "You're the only good thing I have left." His voice was certain and as steady as he could make it because as horrible as his experiences were, the thought of being able to collapse into you once it was over got him through it.

Without saying a word you rested your head against his shoulder and tightened your grip on his hands, holding them in your lap while you waited for him to continue.

"I don't know what I'd do without you." Titling your head up at his words you let your lips press to his cheek, something you did often.

"Well, you don't ever have to worry about that because I'm not going anywhere." You reassured him, a smile rising on your face when his lips met your forehead.

You and Isaac were always affectionate with each other, from sharing beds at sleepovers to holding hands if one of you was anxious. Naturally, you were very touchy person and it played in your favor that your best friend craved physical affection. The two of you just worked.

And sure sometimes when he'd hug you from behind or when he'd absentmindedly play with your hair you wished that he was more than just your best friend. What you didn't know was that Isaac felt the same, every time he told you that he loved you he wanted you to know just how much he really meant it, let you know that the words ran way deeper than just your friendship.

What made things difficult was trying to act none the wiser about Isaac's home life when his father would invite you over for dinners or movie nights, the same way he used to before he started using his youngest son as an emotional and physical punching bag. It was genius really, he kept up appearances and if you hadn't gotten the truth out of Isaac you probably wouldn't have guessed that his father was such a scumbag.

Tonight was one of those nights. Mr. Lahey invited you to stay for dinner when he noticed you studying with Isaac, helping him with chemistry, at the dining table. Not wanting to leave Isaac alone with the man for any longer than he absolutely had to be you had taken him up on his offer.

You even helped him make the meal, it was times like that you were extremely thankful for your acting skills.

Isaac's father sat at the head of the table while yourself and Isaac sat across from each other either side of the table.

"So (Y/n), d'you find yourself a boyfriend yet?" The older man asked you with a smile, "Dad-" Isaac chastised, his eyes wide and cheeks blushing a rose red.

"Um, no not yet." You answered, glancing at Isaac quickly before moving your gaze to his father, "How are things at the graveyard?" You asked sweetly, praying to God that he'd drop the topic of your love life. What were you supposed to say? "No I don't have a boyfriend but I am in love with your son who you're abusing you piece of shit."?

Luckily, he didn't push on the subject any further, "It's been busy lately with all these animal attacks."

"It's a mountain lion right?" You asked with interest, looking at Isaac now, the boy shrugged, letting out a chuckle at your curiosity, "That's what everyone's been saying."

"I heard from Scott McCall that it's some kind of wolf." You explained, finishing off your plate as Isaac raised an eyebrow, "You know McCall?"

"Yeah, he sits next to me in homeroom, he's pretty nice. Anyway he said him and Stiles were out in the woods and he swears that he heard a wolf howling." You shot off, a million theories cooking up in your head as the words left your lips excitedly. You didn't miss the soft smile on Isaac's face as he listened to you talk so passionately.

The hearty chuckle of his father cut you off and you turned your head to look at him, "There hasn't been a wolf in California in over sixty years." He stated, standing from the table, collecting your plates and placing them in the sink before pointing to Isaac.

"Whatever it is, it got someone else last night so I need you to go down to the yard and start digging." Isaac only nodded, pushing himself up, "I'll walk (Y/n) home and then I'll head over."

"Sure, you kids be careful out there." He replied superficially, letting out one last chuckle as he left the room completely.

"You ready to go, bubs?" You ask, grabbing your backpack and throwing it over your shoulder, "What?" You asked when you noticed Isaac hadn't moved but was instead looking at you with a quirked eyebrow and a fond smile, his arms crossed infront of his chest.

"You gonna be warm enough walking home in that?" He motioned towards your blouse and you threw your head back in frustration and grumbled, "No probably not."

"Wait here, I'll grab you something." He told you, pecking your cheek as he passed you.

It only took Isaac a minute to return to the kitchen, grey cardigan in hand, he loved that cardigan but in all honesty he loved it more when it was on you, which is why he picked it for you to wear on your walk home. Usually you forgot to give his clothes back to him when he'd leave you at your doorstep, which always led to you wearing it into school the next day, he absolutely loved when you wore his cardigans and his hoodies, the way the sleeves hung way past your wrists made you look so adorable to him and he had to stop himself from throwing his entire closet at you.

"Is that your favorite cardigan I see?" You questioned, a knowing smile on your face.

Isaac gave you a playful shrug, handing the cardigan to you and stating, "My favourite cardigan for my favorite girl."

"Hey!" A whisper hissed from the desk behind you, glancing back you saw Stiles Stilinski leaning forward towards you, his entire upper half against his desk.

"Hi?" Your voice was uncertain as the boy with the buzzcut gave you a triumphant grin while Scott rolled his eyes from his seat beside you and infront of Stiles.

"You know Derek Hale right?" The question threw you off slightly, your family had been close with the Hale's before they'd all perished in the house fire six years ago, all except Derek- the prime suspect although you knew it couldn't have been him who set the house ablaze.

"Well, I knew him. He and Laura used to babysit me. I was friends with his younger sister too, back in elementary school." You answered Stiles' question, "Why?"

"Did he seem murder-y to you?" Stiles asked, ignoring your question while Scott let out a tired sigh at his best friend's antics. "No. He was sweet, they all were." You told him sternly, growing tired of his questions about people you would've considered your second family until the vast majority of them burned alive.

Scott's voice was softer than Stiles' when he leaned towards you, "He's uh back in town. We saw him at the Hale house yesterday. We were just wondering if you knew why he was here?"

"Derek's in town?" You asked, eyes wide while Scott nodded in response, brown eyes searching yours for any kind of answer to his previous question. "I didn't even know he was back." Your voice was merely a murmur, you tried your best to digest this new information but all you could think about was how you needed to see him.

"If you're looking for him, I'll help you find him." You offered to the two boys who shared unsure looks causing you to release a sigh, "Come on you two, out of the three of us I'm the only one whose gonna get any answers out of him. He's not exactly welcoming to strangers."

The words left you flatly and the two of them knew you were right, "Yeah you're right. We're going to stop by the house again after school you could meet us there?" Scott agreed, furrowing his brows as he watched you shake your head and scribble something down on the corner of your page, ripping it off, "I've got plans with Isaac after school today but I'll ask my parents if they know anything, they were really close with the Hale's." You explained, handing the scrap of paper with your phone number on it to Scott, "Give me your numbers so I can call you if I find out anything useful." Scott nodded gratefully, scribbling down his number on the side of his page the same way you had while Stiles just looked at you with a funny expression on his face, "Don't you hang out with Isaac like every day? Can't you just ditch him this once?" You let out a humorless chuckle, raising an eyebrow at the boy, "Would you ditch Scott?"

Stiles grumbled something under his breath, finally seating himself back in his seat properly, defeated by your retort.

Stiles wasn't wrong, you did hang out with Isaac almost every day but you'd never once ditched him just as he never ditched you, you weren't going to change that for the sake of two boys that you barely knew.

You'd met Isaac during a dark period of your life, when the Hale fire happened and all the people you'd been raised around suddenly disappeared from your life, he'd been exactly what you needed and he continued to be that person who always made you feel like there was always something to hope for even if everything looked grim.

He was the living embodiment of surviving hardships, and although he'd never realize it, he was the reason you were able to pull yourself out of slumps and keep pushing forward even when you felt like the weight of the world was crushing your chest. One smile or word of encouragement from Isaac and all that weight would evaporate into nothing.

As the bell rang you wanted nothing more than to find the boy who occupied your thoughts and tell him about the information you'd just been given, you definitely needed a pick me up after finding out Derek was back in town and you hadn't even seen him.

So you set off, giving Scott a small smile before exiting the classroom and making your way into the busy hallway, starting your search for Isaac the second you entered the crowd.

#isaac lahey x reader #teen wolf x reader #isaac lahey #isaac lahey imagine

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