#and clavell would glare at him

[k-chips]

Sada: You talking shit about my man?! I'll fight you-

Turo: Sada no

Clavell: SADA NO

Sada: Hold my lab coat-

Turo and Clavell: NO WAIT

[blazingstar400]

[Clavell trying to understand everyone better]

Clavell: Tell me about your friend group, Florian.

Florian: If I explain all that we’re gonna be here for a while… where do I even start?

Florian: Hm… well… I guess I can go ahead and start with Carmine. She’s tough, smart, hot-headed, hard to read, and scary as heck sometimes. But I think she’s secretly nice.

[Flashback]

Carmine: Tell me who has me for Secret Santa.

Juliana: What? Noooo! That takes all the fun out of it!

Carmine: *glares daggers at her*

Juliana: It’s me. I got you a scarf. It’s blue and ugly. I can return it if you wan—

Carmine, snatches the gift before she can finish: Well now it’s my blue and ugly scarf! Back off!!

[End of flashback]

Florian: Next I guess is Nemona. She’s hyperactive. Not the most brilliant, but she works harder than anyone else. She doesn’t have the best aim or grip on things though.

[Flashback, Nemona unwraps a muffin, then drops it on the ground.]

Nemona: Awww shoot! My muffin!

[As she picks it up, she smacks her head on the table.]

Nemona: Ow! My head! My muffin and my head!

[End of flashback]

Florian: Penny’s probably the most brilliant when it comes to tech and stuff. She was the Leader of Team Star. Gets underestimated because of her looks, so she’s always trying to prove she’s tough.

[Flashback, Penny puts hot sauce on her sandwich. She looks up to see Florian watching her.]

Penny: You think I can’t handle this much hot sauce? I can handle way more than this. *she empties the hot sauce on her sandwich and takes a bite*

Penny, in agony: In... your... face.

Florian: ...I never said anything…

[End of flashback]

Clavell: What about Arven?

Florian: Arven’s probably like the big brother of our group. And he cooks for all of us. If it weren’t for him we’d probably all eat unhealthy or starve…

[Flashback]

Kieran: *is eating a chocolate bar*

Arven: *quickly snatches it out of his grasp and crushes it*

Kieran, now slightly annoyed: Hey!! I was eating that!!

Arven: Not on my watch!! You have been eating nothing but chocolate and candy for the past few days! Don’t you know how unhealthy that is??

Arven, bringing out a well seasoned salad: Here! This would be a lot better for you to eat!

Kieran: *looks down at the salad with a disgusted/grumpy look*

[End of flashback]

Florian: Kieran is the shy and sweet one in our group but at the same time… he’s also really emo and edgy. Also, I think he’s secretly down bad for Juliana but he’s in complete denial. He’d probably kill me if he figures out I told you so just don’t tell him I said that…

Meanwhile, Kieran is in his room petting Furret but suddenly pauses: Why do I feel like Florian is out there somewhere… telling my deepest, darkest secret?

Clavell: And Juliana?

Florian: Juliana’s the strongest trainer in our group. Also, she’s the one with the purest heart. Loves music, helping others, saving the world, stopping then forgiving bad guys, and solving puzzles. The only puzzle she hasn’t seemed to solved though... is how to grow up.

[Flashback]

Florian: Stay here while I get more supplies for our up coming trip okay?

Juliana, beaming: Don’t worry, Florian! I’m not going anywhere!

Florian, closing his eyes and sighing: You better. This store is like a maze. So just stick close to me so you don’t get lost okay?

Florian: …

Florian: Okay?

Florian: …

Florian, opening his eyes: …Juliana?

[He sees Juliana rushing off in the distance after a butterfly]

Juliana: Heeeey!! Come back here!!

Florian, watching with an unamused look: I should have known…

[End of flashback]

Florian: And finally there’s me. I’m really just a typical average person. Not much to say about me.

Florian:

Florian: Honestly, I feel like I’m the only normal person in my friend group….

[wyrdle]

Geeta and Paldea Discussion

Really random thought, but as a sort of counter to Geeta being a bad top champion/chairwoman, I feel like it's important to point out that Paldea is quite the paradise. Each town is filled with life and activity, and presumably the gyms and the Academy's treasure hunt program is what made it the way it is economically. I don't think it'd be impossible to say that Paldea was not like this when she first took over, and it's years of her hard work to change things.

It's said the gym leaders were all handpicked by Geeta, and I think any of these cities success would be attributed to her hard work into changing Paldea for the better.

If we need more tangible indicators, I feel like the Elite 4 battleground being the most sparse battle area speaks volumes as to where her and thus the league's priorities lie. It's about the rest of Paldea's development and improvement, they get the most funding for building up the space into something fun and enriching. At the ace tournament, Geeta also reveals that she had a hand in designing the Academy library renovations, so she very much invests into bettering Paldea/The Academy as a whole.

I do enjoy the headcanon of her actually being a great champion/leader, pushing her coworkers. The quips/hatred towards her feels like fan interpretations being overstretched, not to say she is beloved, but I think the league and it's gym leaders of this region work together better than other gens. And I adore the thought that they have a decent camraderie...

Afaik Geeta runs a tight ship, doing inspections, making the rounds, talking to locals, to students... She's probably a workaholic herself, stretching thinly across the region haha.

Also, another point to her: Assuming she was the leader when the other Academy Director was in power, she likely helped oversee the complete reshuffling/changing of staff... getting someone as dedicated as Clavell, pulling gym leaders she trusts (Tyme) etc to the Academy. She can't micromanage and solve every problem, but i do feel she'd be warmly pleased at hearing the Director's "greatest treasure" resonating with her own... and also the dedication he has to act as Clive LOL. Clavell also helps out with Iono's stream to repay the League once, so I assume it to be true that Geeta has done much to improve the Academy.

There's also things like: Hassel, the guy being harassed by his family. I am sure Geeta would know about it, and the fact that Hassel is both E4 + art teacher feels very much like "Don't touch him, he's Paldea's". Power moveeee. Adore the headcanon of Geeta being very defensive of keeping him as Paldea's, any move from the dragon tamers has political ramifications...

Grusha... iirc has some beef? Idk. Nothing jumps out to me in memory beyond fan interpretations. I like seeing his role as gym leader actually being something of a Geeta pushing him into something after a devastating career blow.

I've already discussed Larry before in another post (His gym being his favourite restaurant is already quite telling that all the gym leaders get plenty of support for their work lol). Tulip's jealousy over her? Just feels in character for her personality but I don't think she means it too much lol.

The only thing that's probably a big glaring mistake is allowing professor Turo/Sada to continue experiments, presumably without supervision. It might've been possible that oversight occured.. or the professor was able to shirk off suspicion so long as they spared the crystals for making tera orbs. Kinda like an operation where they go "You only need me down here to help you harvest the crystals.", the time machine secretly being the focus. The academy/league funded labs were abandoned, one can assume they'd taken their hands off maintaining it, the only valuable thing left is extracting the crystals for Tera orbs. Little did they know the professors obsession... hence the concern/fear the professor's had when the miraidon/Koraidon were seen in public. Their little undercover operation was at risk of being found out.

Combined with the concept of Geeta focusing on the rest of Paldea after the Tera Orb discovery (I like to think she was appointed just shortly after it or very early during it), one professor being down in the crater managing Crystal extraction doesn't seem like a huge priority...

Anyway, those are my rambly all over the place thoughts for Geeta and her role in Paldea lol. Top champion isn't just being the strongest, it's very much a leadership role with influence on people's livelihoods. She's doing a fine job of it, if Paldea is so damn idyllic. I doubt the game will give us these answers or depth, but fjdhsjs Geeta is probably kinder/more empathetic/caring than most fans make her out to be.

[profchamomile]

//I'm behind on off-screen scenes I wanted to post in real time; I'll do my best to catch up.

[Back at the Lighthouse...]

(//A scene from right after the rp thread between me and vigilant-guardian.)

Once Miraidon arrived at the Poco Path Lighthouse, the door flung open with Arven stumbling out.

"Professor!!" He exclaimed, "Hooooly mother of Arc, you actually made it back! Are you alright? Are your Pokémon alright? You didn't get attacked, did you?"

"Oh, Arven..." Chamomile's eyes widened in surprise as they climbed off of Miraidon's back and untied their crutches. "What are you doing here?"

Right on cue, a freckle-faced kid around Arven's age came out of the lighthouse. They were notably shorter than Arven and sporting Naranja-Uva's winter uniform, with their hair half-shaved and dyed purple.

"Oh, I-..." Arven fidgeted with his tie a little nervously. "I came to keep my little buddy Indigo company. Didn't want them fretting about Miraidon, and all!"

They smiled and gave Chamomile a casual wave. "Hey Prof!" They said, "How'd it go?"

"Hi Indigo, it went really well!" While leaning on Miraidon's back for support, they pulled out their phone and pulled up a picture to show the two students: a group photo consisting of themself, Miraidon and a shiny Iron Valiant who seemed to be death-glaring the camera, yet showed no outward signs of hostility otherwise.

Indigo chuckled at the sight. "They don't look too happy."

"Iiii'm pretty sure that's just their face," said Chamomile in a somewhat sheepish tone as they pocketed their phone. "They were actually quite civil!"

"Well I'm glad to hear it..." said Arven, crossing his arms. "I'd hate for you to get hurt after you just moved here."

"Aw, Arven..." They smiled sympathetically before taking their crutches and walking over to the tall, blond-headed teenager. "I'm sorry for scaring you," they said, patting Arven's shoulder, "I didn't mean to cause such a panic. If something like that happens again, I'll try to find a more tactful approach, alright?"

Arven sighed, before managing a smile. "Just glad you're back, Professor," he said, "I'm pretty sure Mabostiff would be pretty sad if I couldn't bring him up here to play with Ignis while he's off-duty, too."

Chamomile chuckled. "Well, we can't have that now, can we?"

"We can't have you disappearing on such short notice, either."

Leaning against the doorframe to the lighthouse was Ms. Raifort, watching Chamomile with pursed lips and raised eyebrow.

Jacq peeked out from the doorway and waved. "Hey, Cam! Welcome back!"

"Chloe, Jacq!" Chamomile smiled and walked up to the two. "Were you both waiting on me, too?"

"Professor Jacq stayed with me to keep an eye on the eggs," said Indigo, having been giving Miraidon belly rubs this whole time, "But I think Ms. Raifort just wanted a head start in teaching us history."

"She infodumps when she worries sometimes," Jacq explained to Chamomile in a slightly hushed tone.

"I wasn't worried," Raifort huffed.

"Oh you must've been REAL worried," Arven remarked, "I think she covered an entire semester's worth of history lessons!"

Indigo snickered.

"Hey, it's starting to get kinda late," said Jacq, smiling to the two students. "Why don't you both head on home?"

"Alright!" Indigo stood up and looked over at Arven, while Miraidon rolled over and shook the grass off of its body. "You wanna have a sleepover?"

"Heck yeah," said Arven, "I just gotta tell Director Clavell where I'll be tonight."

"Alright!" Indigo climbed onto Miraidon's back and patted the space behind them for Arven. "Let's go crash Nemona's place."

"Do we have to?" Asked Arven in an exaggerated tone, as he climbed onto Miraidon's back to sit behind Indigo, "You know she's gonna want to battle. Or talk about battling. I bet she even dreams about battling!"

Chamomile watched the students ride off on Miraidon with a quiet chuckle. "I have to say: I'm not surprised they're friends."

"Yeah..." said Jacq. "They're good kids. If not a bit shenanigan-prone."

"Anyway," he continued, "You've had a long day. You want me to make you something to eat? You know- if I have permission to use your kitchen, of course!"

"Oh-" Chamomile turned to face Jacq, eyes widened in shock. "Jacq, you don't have to do that!"

"Don't worry about it," said Jacq with a bright smile, "I want to do it!"

"No, I'd feel so guilty!" Chamomile's expression shifted from surprise to concern. "You two are the guests, I should be offering you guys something!"

"Nope! Not accepting it!" Said Jacq in a lighthearted tone, as he started marching back into the lighthouse. "If you really don't want me to use your kitchen, then we'll just order takeout! No big deal!"

Chamomile sighed as they watched Jacq enter their house. "Fine, but at least let me let me make you some tea!"

"Too late, the kettle's already boiling!"

Chamomile looked over at Ms. Raifort, who had her arms crossed and her head turned away the whole time, as she leaned against the doorframe.

"Cloe...?" Chamomile stared, somewhat concerned. "Are you alright? I'm sorry if I... Did concern you."

"Tch..." Raifort glanced back at Cloe with a smirk. "Please, I know you can take care of yourself. I'm just upset that you didn't let me come along! Do you realize how much I've wanted to see the ancient Pokémon down there?"

Chamomile chuckled and raised an eyebrow. "Based on things you've told me I'm surprised you haven't."

"I would have by now," said Raifort, rolling her eyes, "But the league keeps denying my requests, and it isn't in my best interest to go against them at the moment."

"Well, unfortunately, just because I'm on good terms with the Iron Valiant guarding the place that doesn't mean I could permit you a visit," they said, "I'm pretty sure the league's gonna tear me a new one anyway..."

"It's understandable why you can't," said Raifort, "It's not often you hear of a trainer to gain a paradox pokemon's trust like that."

"Hey, if you need a character witness to back you up, I can help," Jacq called out from inside the lighthouse, "Now get in here already! Tell us what Area Zero was like!"

Chamomile laughed. "Alright, alright! Let me just get my Pokémon ou-" they paused for a moment, their eyes widening, then facepalmed. "Arc, I'm such an idiot..."

Raifort raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Nurse knows heal pulse," said Chamomile, "That would've made things SO much easier!"

"Are you telling me you didn't bring any of your Pokémon out a single time?" Asked Jacq.

"I didn't want to startle Vigilant; Putty and Circuit can get pretty excitable," explained Chamomile, as they stepped inside, "Plus I heard how powerful the Pokémon are, there; I was expecting to go deeper in the crater so I didn't want anyone to get hurt."

"Y'know what? Fair enough," said Jacq, already starting to chop up some veggies, "At least you had Miraidon with you, though. Ignis and Queenie aren't gonna be upset that you used a different Pokémon for mobility assistance, are they?"

"They might be, a little bit," said Chamomile, "I gotta plan a special day to make it up to everyone."

"Sounds like a plan!" Jacq started opening cabinets until he found a decent sized pan and started stir-frying the veggies. "Hey, we should plan a Pokémon playdate soon! I bet my Arcanine, Fluffy, would LOVE to meet Ignis while he's off duty!"

"I'd love that!" Said Chamomile, sitting down at the kitchen table, "He loves playing with other dog-mon when he's off duty!"

"Perhaps I can join you," said Raifort, closing the door behind her, "Zoroark and Gangar are crazy about Belle."

"Oh my gosh, yes!" Chamomile flapped their hands excitedly. "I forgot to get a picture last time they met each other!"

Chamomile released their Pokémon from their luxury balls. Ignis went to lay in his bed, Circuit possessed the fridge to startle Jacq for a brief moment, Nurse sat down in a corner of the room with a plush pink carpet while Putty rested on top of her head, and Queenie stood next to Chamomile as Belle hopped in their lap.

Queenie tugged at Chamomile's sleeve. "Slooooow?" She said, in a questioning tone.

"Yeah, I'm sorry, Queenie..." Chamomile patted Queenie's cheek. "I was a bit too wrapped up in what I was doing to let you out while we were there. I'll make it up to you, alright?"

Queenie let out a content "sloooow" as she leaned into Chamomile's touch a little.

Raifort sat down at the table next to Chamomile. "What was it like, anyway?" She asked, excitement creeping into her tone, "Did you get to see any ancient Pokémon??"

"You know? Oddly, I didn't," said Chamomile, "But I didn't really see any future Pokémon either. Aside from the one I was helping. But Miraidon and I didn't go that far into the crater to begin with."

"As glad as I am that you didn't have to go too far down," said Jacq as he cooked, "It's a shame you didn't. It'd potentially prove or disprove some theories people had."

"Yeah?" Chamomile went to look over at Jacq. "Like what?"

"Well, very few people have gone in," said Jacq, "but for those who have, the report has been different every time. Some say they only saw future Pokémon, some say they only saw ancient Pokémon, some say they saw both... Even after everything happened with AI Turo, it still seems to change every time. At least, according to Indigo, who sneaks in regularly, apparently.

"That's so odd..." Chamomile furrowed their brows and put their hand on their chin. "Normally I would assume that future Pokémon outcompeted the ancient Pokémon if there was a natural progression in their disappearance, but these changes sound inconsistent and all over the place!"

"Area Zero is overall quite the anomaly," said Raifort, "It has been, throughout history. Which makes it such a fascinating topic of study."

"That is indeed true!" said Chamomile, "If my studies weren't so focused on the Pokemon outside of it, I'd surely be honored to study the crater's environment! Despite the dangers, it's beautiful!"

"Don't tempt me now," Raifort joked, "You have no idea how much I would love to get even glimpse at the mysterious plates that were found there with my own eyes."

"I promise, I'm not trying to!" Chamomile laughed. "I wish I was able to get a picture for you, though!"

"Well, I suppose looking at sketches will just have to do," said Raifort, in a jokingly disappointed tone.

"Small price to pay for keeping your life," Jacq remarked, as he approached the table with two plates of pepper steak.

"Where's your sense of ambition, Jacq?" Asked Raifort.

"Hey, I've got plenty of ambition," said Jacq, as he portioned out six extra plates. "Remember that time I tried to blend in with the Flamigos?"

Chamomile chuckled at the banter between Raifort and Jacq, then looked down at the Pepper Steak, poking at it while lost in thought. They had so many worries on their mind - about the league, about Area Zero, about their job and the shadow of the previous Professors they'd have to step out of...

Could they even do it?

How could they possibly amount to the work that was done before them? They had just recently been certified, and on top of that, they were a foreigner. What if upholding the name of Paldea's official Pokémon Professor proved to be too big a task for them to handle?

"Sloooow...?" Queenie rested a paw on Chamomile's arm, her expression slightly concerned.

"Sorry, Queenie..." Chamomile scratched the bridge of Queenie's nose. "I'm okay; just a little out of it, I guess..."

Jacq paused from handing out extra olates to all the pokemon to exchange a worried glance with Raifort, before motioning towards Chamomile with an insistant head tilt.

"... Hey." Raifort reached over to grab Chamomile's hand and smiled gently. "For what it's worth... I'm glad you made it back."

Chamomile hesitated before giving Raifort a soft, grateful smile in return. "Thanks, Cloe. It really means a lot."

Both of them glanced away for a moment while smiling, still holding each others' hands, before Belle reached over and put her cloth hand on top of theirs with an excitable "Ba-NETTE!"

Raifort startled slightly and let go of Chamomile's hand immediately. "I ah..." she cleared her throat nervously. "It's clear that Belle agrees with me!"

Chamomile laughed as they kissed the top of Belle's head. "Thanks, sweetie, you're the best!"

Jacq chuckled as he finally sat down with his own plate of Pepper Steak. "Alright, all your Pokémon have been fed too," he said, as he went back to the counter to grab everyone's tea, "I'll restock your ingredients for you after work tomorrow."

"Oh, don't worry about it," said Chamomile, "You've already cooked for me; I can't thank you enough!"

"Don't mention it," said Jacq, "I like to cook on occasion. Now go ahead, dig in."

Chamomile finally took a bite, and widened their eyes. "MM!" They took a moment to swallow before looking over at Jacq. "Jacq, this is amazing! Where'd you learn ti cook like this?"

"From Mr. Saguaro, the Home Economics teacher," said Jacq, "I don't think my cooking can even compare to him, though."

"At least it's edible," said Raifort, "You've got that going for you."

"Oh c'mon, you like it too," Jacq teased. "If you didn't, you wouldn't eat it!" Then he looked over at Chamomile. "She's got sensory issues."

"Oh, you too, huh?" Chamomile smiled at Raifort. "I'm right there with you, honestly!"

"Is that so?" Raifort tilted her head slightly, seeming to visibly relax a little. "Glad to see someone else understands the struggle."

"Here's to neurodivergence!" Said Jacq, raising his cup of tea slightly. "Please don't actually clink the glasses together, though; I can't stand the sound."

"To neurodivergence!" Chamomile cheered, raising their glass near Jacq's without allowing them to touch.

"To neurodivergence," Raifort repeated, raising her own glass as well.

The group spent a good portion of the night talking and laughing together, discussing topics of science, history, life, and whatever else could possibly come to mind - which ended up being quite a lot. Even after the meal was over and Jacq cleaned up for everyone, they continued talking, laughing, and sharing stories.

Eventually, both Jacq and Raifort both left, wishing Chamomile a good night. Chamomile went to bed, with a Banette in their arms and their heart full of gratitude.

[the-feral-one]

After Wo had put Pao in charge of looking after his shrine, and after making sure everyone had what they wanted to bring, the family had began to set off on their journey towards where they wanted to go.

The siblings talked about various things with their two dads, including the upcoming wedding. The more that was said, the more that Wo's cheeks went pink. They decided to change the subject after seeing Wo's reactions to their words.

It wasn't long before they were made to stop by something quite familiar.

"Papa Wo, look!"

Wo turned to see what Ogerpon was referring to. His expression turned unimpressed after seeing who she was pointing at.

"Nevah fought you'd leave me be'ind, big guy! What gives?" Chester gave Wo a disappointed look, which was soon dropped after he couldn't hold the face for long. "Jus' kiddin'! I'm not mad."

He stood with his hands on his hips. Ogerpon ran up to him.

"Hey Uncle Chester! Are you gonna come with us too?"

Before the Gholdengo could speak again, Ogerpon turned to Wo.

"Can he? Pleeeease?"

Chester rubbed the back of his head as Wo came up with his answer.

"While I did say that this was a 'family-only event', I...can make an exception this time."

Ogerpon gasped and held onto Chester. The Gholdengo playfully tried to get her to let go.

"Yaaaay!"

"Awright, y' can let me go now! Any more shakin' an' me arm'll fall off!"

Ogerpon let go of Chester.

"Wait..." Wo began, catching Chester's attention. "What about..."

"Peseta?" Chester pointed one finger upwards. "Well, 'oo am I to not let 'em be cooped up in th' stuffy academy all day and all night?" He looked behind him, then stepped to the side. "What I'm sayin' is, that they're right 'ere."

Peseta looked up at Wo as they came forward.

"I needed time away from the academy. Of course I needed to inform Clavell about such actions, but, after some careful negotiations, here I am." They looked to the side and raised an eyebrow at Chester. "It's going to be worth it too, I can tell."

"Eh-heh..!" Chester rubbed the back of his head again. "We gonna set off soon, or..?"

"Oh, yes." Wo nodded and turned around, ready to resume the journey. "Onwards, but only when you're ready."

The group was about to proceed when they were stopped by a distant shout.

"Wo-Chieeeeennn!!"

The snail turned around again, and was met by an eager snow leopard almost colliding with him.

"I'm comin' with ya too!" Pao sat up after falling on his face. Wo gave him a slight glare.

"I...thought I left you in charge of my shrine, Pao..! If you're here, now, who is watching over it?"

"Well.." Pao began, motioning with both paws as he explained. "Y'see, I was doing that, but then Ting-Lu came by. He was lookin' for his two little ones, so I let him see them, but then he asked about you, and I said you're goin' on vacation, and Ting-Lu turned to me and said 'Go find them all and go with them.', so I did after he said he'd look after your shrine."

Wo raised an eyebrow as he tilted his head a little.

"Ting-Lu offered..."

"...to be shrine-sitter 'til you come back." Pao put both paws up and shook his head. "And believe me, Wo - no shrine invader or pesky fishy fireball's gonna get past him. The guy's a wall. You've seen how good he is at lookin' over stuff. 'member what he was like back in the day, when he was a lookout for his village? Body like a wall, eyes like a hawk. Your shrine's never been safer, Wo."

"Hmm.." Wo began, vine raised to where his chin would be. "I guess it's alright. The only issue I have with it is that the allotment is going to be a bit of a mess when we return, but that can be sorted out if I obtain the right items first."

"So I'm with you, then?" Pao asked, tilting his head and putting his paws together. Wo looked off to the side, then pack to Pao and put a vine on his head to give it a few pats.

"You are with us, my friend."

"Thanks, Wo!" He waited for the snail to begin moving with his family(plus two Gholdengos) following close by before running to catch up.

"So where are we going, anyway?" The snow leopard asked.

"We'll find out when we get there, Pao."

[ashketchumseleventhbirthday]

Remedial Classes in Essay Composition

Summary: Due to his extended absences from the Academy, Arven is about to fail out of school. Director Clavell arranges for some help.

Rating: K+ - Suitable for more mature childen, 9 years and older, with minor action violence without serious injury. May contain mild coarse language. Should not contain any adult themes.

Words: 1800

Notes: Arven feels like the sort of person who’s absolutely insufferable if they think they’re right.

There is a right way to react to bad news and a wrong way, and Arven seems hell-bent in always getting it wrong.

“Why the fuck do I have to get a tutor? I have the highest fucking IQ in this school!”

Director Clavell sighs. So much for a mature conversation…

“That might be true, Mr. Turo, but this is not in discussion. It, apparently, has had no bearing on your academic performance.” The older man points out, a chilling glare settling the boy back into his seat.

The blond looks away and a grimace takes over his expression. “I know that my grades are less than stellar, but it’s not that bad.”

“As of the last battery of exams, you have the lowest grades in your class.” The teacher counters. “Since we do not grade on a curve, this would not necessarily pose an issue, but it has become quite clear that, should you not improve significantly on your remedials, you will be inevitably held back this year. Believe me, it is exactly this bad.”

“I…!” A protest rises in his throat, but it dies right back down. “Yes, OK, fine. You know why I don’t attend the lessons, Director Clavell. This is important to me, it’s very important. I’m not like those punks at Team Star.”

The principal sighs again, his countenance softening. “I know, and I understand your situation. If it were up to me, I assure you, we would not have been having this conversation. While I had been able to be lenient with those circumstances so far, the members of the board feel that enough is enough. I am sorry, but my hands are tied. This is the best deal I can offer you.”

Arven takes a moment, and then looks deep into his guardian’s eyes. “What now?”

“Ms. Franco is going to be tutoring you for now and we shall see if your grades improve by the next test.” The principal informs the boy. “Try to make an effort, at least, my boy.”

*_*_*_*_*

Juliana Franco is sitting on her own in an empty classroom, waiting for Arven to turn up.

This is not something that she thought she would be doing at a Tuesday afternoon, but, alas, this is what she gets for not knowing how to say no.

She had been asked to tutor the Turo boy for the next couple of weeks and try to help him get his grades back up. She has a good transcript, between her high grades, voluntary service and battle abilities, but she is hardly the best student in the Academy.

That title would go to Penny, but the girl quickly deadpanned a strict negative, with no room for discussion. The responsibility would, then, fall upon Nemona, but they have a notorious rivalry, one that seems to have culminated with him throwing a chair out of the window. Director Clavell’s third option is Juliana herself, and she could not think of a good reason to say no fast enough.

To say she was nervous is a severe understatement. Whilst she had never actually met Arven, she had heard about his reputation around the school. She can recognize that the student gossip mill is usually overly-dramatic and highly exaggerated, and would usually strive to give him a chance to show himself on his terms, but, well, Nemona is her friend and it is hard not to take her testimony to heart. Especially considering that they still had not fixed the window through which the chair fell through.

“I take it you’re Juliana?” A voice questioned, breaking her away from her reverie.

She looked up and was met with a single glistering green eye. “Arven?”

He nodded stiffly. “Yeah, that’s me.”

“Hi, I’m Juliana.” She said, silently cursing herself for repeating her name when he clearly knew it. “Nice to meet you!”

“Right.” He said, throwing himself in the seat next to her, poignantly refusing to give her the usual pleasantries. “Let’s get this over with.”

“O-kay…” The girl responded, uncomfortable. “Did you bring your homework?”

He picked up a stash of papers and threw them haphazardly on the table with no further words.

“Should we start through History? It’s your worst subject, and it’s a big chunk of your grade at the Humanities Track.” She offers.

“Fine by me.” He deadpanned, cracking the book open.

The pair spent the next couple of hours going through his assigned reading and his last few essays.

Soon enough, Juliana realised why he was so impatient with the whole thing. He was clearly intelligent, perhaps more so than her, in spite of what his grades might suggest. The points he made were actually very convinced and he clearly knew that he was talking about, even if they lacked a certain argumentative refinement and the presentation did not land quite as well. He just needed someone to trim at the edges and they would be golden.

“Arven, I’m sorry. Can I be honest with you?” She interrupts him suddenly.

The blond glares at her. “If you must.”

“I just think that us being here, doing what we’ve being doing, is a huge waste of time.” The girl declared, straight.

He scoffs, bitterly and derisively. “Giving up already? So much for being an exemplar student.”

“That’s not what I mean.” She counters defensively. “I just don’t think that you need remedial classes, strictly speaking.”

Arven looks over at his tutor, encouraging to elaborate on her point through an interest he had not displayed at all so far, but not bothering to express it in proper words.

Juliana picks up one of his assignments. “Look at this, for instance. It’s your paper on food habits in Southern Hoenn. It’s, honestly, great. You know exactly what you’re talking about, there are a lot of sources and the content is great.”

“Of course, it’s great. Raifort is just being a…” He stops short of a curse word, mindful of the company. “She’s just being unreasonably exigent.”

“Well, not quite.” The girl counters, earning her a glare. “I mean it when I say that it’s good, but it’s not perfect. The way that you’ve structured the essay lost you all these marks. It’s confusing, messy, all over the place. If you just move some stuff around and focus on a few arguments, it’s a solid A-work.”

He hummed. “So, I just need to write it better?”

“Exactly! We’ll just go through that until your exam and then you’ll be fine.”

A few thoughts pass through his expression, until he finally settles on a, “Okay. I guess it works for me.”

From then on, Arven was much more receptive to her criticism and her gentle lecturing, letting up of the attitude. Eventually, they even managed to laugh together.

*_*_*_*_*

Juliana is, once again, sitting in the same lecture hall waiting for Arven to show up.

She had been tutoring him every day for the past three weeks, helping him refine and correct his academic writing style and, this morning, he had his remedial exam.

As these things go between them, the girl is much more anxious about the results than her tutee, who went in as if it was no skin off his back. She is going crazy waiting to find out how he did so, when the door shut behind him and she heard his feet on the stairs, she jumped out of her body.

He had a wide smile in his face, and it made her immediately perk up in return.

“You are amazing!” The blond boy exclaimed as he picked her up and hugged her.

Her eyes closed at the feeling of his arms wrapped around Juliana, along his characteristic smell of sugar and spice. Over the past few weeks, she had gradually developed a bit of a crush on him.

“How did you do?” She asks as he loosens his hold.

He holds up the marked paper. “A B+! I’m free!”

She gasps. “Arven, that’s great! I told you that you could do it!”

“Of course, I could do it!” He smirked, self-confident, which earned him a withering glare. “I’m kidding, I’m kidding! Thank you for all your help, I know that I wouldn’t be able to do this without you pointing out my many, many mistakes to me.”

“You’re welcome.” She smiled in return.

“Who would have thought it only took the most well-behaved girl in school to do it?” He mused.

“Wait, what?” She asked, his comment throwing her off. “I’m not the most well-behaved.”

“Oh, come on, Juli! You’re never at any of the parties, you’re always hanging around the school attending every class and, as far as I know, you don’t run an underground racketeering ring like your friend Penny. You’re a complete goody-two-shoes” He teased with a scoff.

Juliana opened her mouth to counter his statements but quickly stopped when she realised that all of the points that he made were correct. His mouth had quirked up into a small smirk when he saw that she had no room to argue and he walked towards her, throwing himself in the seat next to her and leaning over.

“And I bet you’ve never kissed anyone.” He declared, smug.

She inhaled a bit too much air at his comment and coughed, dropping her pen when her body jolted. Cursing under her breath, she leant down to pick it up, gasping again when she felt his hand brush against her own slightly. When she sat back up, she realised that her glasses had slipped down slightly when she leant down and her hand reached up to push them back into their proper position.

As her hand lifted, his own came out to lightly grab her wrist, halting her movements.

“Are you ready?” He asked, confusing her.

“Ready for…?”

Her words were cut off by his lip crashing against hers.

His lips were soft as they guided her own in the kiss and when his tongue crept into her mouth, Juliana found that Arven felt like a rich grape juice with a tangy aftertaste. She started to lean over to him, hands tangled in his hair, keeping his lips pressed against her own as their tongues continued to taste each other.

His hands came down to her waist, tugging her towards him until she pressed up against the arm in between their two chairs. This made they break apart, laughing lightly.

“So, I guess I’m wrong.” He declared holding her chin in his hand.

“What about?” The girl asked breathlessly.

“You’re can’t be the most well-behaved if you know how to kiss like that.” He declared, humorously.

The girl smirked back at him. “Wouldn’t you like to know?”

Until the sun was down in the horizon, Arven and Juliana stayed in that classroom, behaving badly.

*_*_*_*_*

9th Gen Masterlist

[kakusu-shipping]

Lost Time

This was going to be a short comic but everything has to be hard to draw tonight apparently so y’all get another Self Insert fanfic, but this time it’s for Pokemon Scarlet

In which I’ve been missing for weeks

“Emile? Where are you?”

Penny’s voice came through with heavy static, the video of her on the other side of the Rotom phone just as broken up.

“The crater” Emile answered flatly, taking a glance to his floating phone as he removed his glasses to clean them.

“the WHAT-” Director Clavell’s voice broke in the background. Penny flinched at the noise, glancing back as the director pushed himself around his desk and swiped the phone, holding it entirely too close to his face, “Emile you get back to the Academy this INSTANT! The crater is strictly Off Limits!”

“Hi gramps..” Emile sat himself on a rock, calling Koridon to his side, “I’m just doing some training with Koridon, it’s not a big deal. I’ll be back before sundown, promise.”

“Absolutely not! You will call a Taxi right now and return to the Academy at ONCE.”

“Training?” Nemona stepped in, easily pushing Clavell out of the way to steal Penny’s Rotom phone for herself, “With Koridon??? No fair why didn’t you invite me your Best Friend Rivals for Life Pal??”

Emile chuckled, “Next time, Nemona. I needed one on one time with Koridon today.”

“There will be no next time-” Clavell reached for the phone, just for it to float over to Arven.

“Why the crater? Couldn’t you have just gone into the woods or up the mountain like a normal person?”

“No way this is special! The crater is Koridon’s territory now, I have to help him keep it safe! It’s just for a few hours a week, no big deal.”

“Majorly big deal!-”

“Wait, a couple hours...?” Penny slid in between Clavell and the phone one more time, tilting her head a bit, “Emile, how long do you think you’ve been in the crater?”

“Like an hour or so, right? I’m surprised you noticed I was gone so fast.”

Before the crew could say anything more, the feather’s on Koridon’s head raised as he stood on his hind legs, glaring at something off camera. A low growl coming from the Pokemon’s throat.

“Oh- Sorry guys I gotta go! I’ll see you all when I get back!”

With that, Penny’s phone screen went black and returned itself to her pocket. The room stood still for only a moment, before Penny put her fist to her forehead, staring at the carpet as she mutterer, “A couple hours...”

--------------------------

“Alright Koridon! Good job!” Emile cheered, scratching the space behind Koridon’s eyes before planting a little kiss on his nose, “You’re such a good boy, Koridon, so strong and cool~” He cooed. Koridon chirped happily in response.

A loud, recognizable voice broke the moment.

“EMILE!!!!” Nemona came sliding down a slant of rock before sprinting to her fellow champion and scooping him into a hug.

“Nemona??” Emile gasped as Nemona plowed into him like a truck, only catching his breath again when she released him, “Wh-What are you doing here??”

“We’re here to bring you home, though honestly I personally would love to stay and train in here instead!”

“We????”

“Nemona, slow down, please” Penny gasped, running after Nemona after having carfulyl inched her way down the rocky slope. Behind them Arven was helping Director Clavell down as well.

“Penny? Arven?? And Gramps??” Emile’s voice squeaked, “Guys, I said I’d be back by Sundown, you didn’t have to come GET me.”

“It IS sundown.” Arven said when his feet finally hit flat ground, “It’s actually almost dark.”

Emile blinked and looked around at the bright, sunny day around him, “Uhm?? No??”

“Well not in here, but out there, it’s like past dinner time.” Penny added, pulling out her phone to show the clock, “See?”

Emile stared at the clock on Penny’s phone for a solid minute before looking up at the sky again, “Wha- Th-Then why-”

“Time works different in the crater..” Clavell spoke, adjusting his glasses as he approached, “The sun never sets, and time appears to pass much slower than on the surface.”

“So... your saying I’ve been in here all day?” Emile asked. The group shared a glance.

“Emile,” Penny pushed her glasses up, “You’ve... Been in here for almost two weeks already..”

---------------------

The taxi ride home was quiet. Emile stared out the window the entire time, holding Koridon’s pokeball securely in one hand, the other locked with his Grandfather’s, their fingers laced tightly together.

The next day he spent Training his main team with Nemona, and the day after that he spent traversing ruins in search of Gimmighoul with Arven, and the day after that he revisited all of Team Star’s bases, and the day after that his friends all gathered in his room to help him catch up with two weeks worth of missed school work, and time marched on as usual.

And then he went missing again.

--------------------

“Emile?” Penny was surprised the call was answered, though only as a call, not a face time like she attempted, “Where are you?”

She was met with silence.

“I’m not in the Director’s office, if you’re worried about getting in trouble with your Gramps again. It’s just me, Nemona, and Arven this time.”

Still nothing.

“Emile? Hey, it’s your Best Rival For Life. We haven’t battled in a whole month, man. I gotta make sure you’re not slipping.” Nemona chimed, bouncing on Penny’s bed.

Silence.

“Little buddy. Hey, uh, Mabostiff misses you, man. So just- Tell us where you are so he can see you again.” To emphasis Arven’s argument, Mabostiff woofed from his spot on the floor besides the older student.

. . .

“Emile...” Penny pulled her knees to her chest, “It’s been three weeks...”

“...Three weeks...?” Emile finally answered, his voice hoarse, only made worse by the static of an unstable call, “Really... It’s felt like only a few hours... two and a half at most..”

“You’re in the crater again?!” Arven stood, raising his voice and making Penny flinch. She silently motioned for him to calm down, which he didn’t do, but he did retake his spot on the floor.

“Yeah, sorry..” Emile admitted, “I wanted to see... How the time warp works.”

“How it.. works...?” Nemona asked, moving to sit on Penny’s desk to be closer to the phone.

“Yeah. Like, if I didn’t eat the entire time I was in the crater, would I starve faster? Would starvation only hit me when I left the crater? Or would it be like I just haven’t eaten in 3 hours?”

Arven made a move like he was going to yell again, but Mabostiff placed a paw on his thigh to stop him.

“You haven’t eaten anything for 3 weeks?” Penny asked, gripping her knees.

“Or drank anything. I’m a little thirsty, I guess 3 hours is a long time to go without some water. “ Emile coughed, “Don’t worry, I left all my Pokemon other than Koridon in the PC, so they’re all fine, and Koridon knows this place like the back of his paw now, so he can find himself food and water just fine.”

“So... You’re coming back now, right? Part of the experiment is seeing if leaving the crater makes time catch up with you, right?” Penny shifted.

Emile gave a hum, “I think.. I’ll give it a little while longer. Maybe 12 in-crater hours?”

“12 HOURS??” Now it was Nemona’s time to shout, “But every hour in there is like a full WEEK out here, you can’t be gone that long! We miss you!”

Emile laughed, “Sorry. This’ll be the last time I do this, promise. I’ll have a lot of school work when I get out, so I hope you three will be willing to catch me up when I do.”

“Emile, I don’t think-” Arven started to stand.

“-Ah, Sorry Arven. I gotta go. I’ll see you all in a few hours- uh Days? It won’t be long, I promise.”

“Emile-!” Penny’s voice cracked, and the screen went black.

-------------------

“I’m fine, Koridon,” Emile gently pushed the large lizard’s head away from himself, “Yes, I see the steam, and I told you I’m not going to drink anything for the next few hours.”

Koridon gave a whine and looked up to his trainer with his biggest, wettest puppy eyes. Emile quickly looked away.

“You’re not getting me this time. It’s for science, Koridon. I know what I’m doing.” The trainer insisted before turning his back and walking away from the running water.

Koridon followed Emile, glancing back at the stream one more time before galloping a bit to catch up with his trainer. He was worried, of course he was. Humans just seemed so fragile by default, and he could sense his was growing weaker. He wasn’t made for the crater like Koridon was. This flow of time isn’t safe for human minds.

Koridon hoped his human’s friends would come get him again.

-------------------

“Guys-” Emile held his hands up defensively as he found himself faced with his three best friends once again in the crater, “I promise I’m fine, and look, I’m learning so much watching the Paradox Pokemon in their natural habitat, I’m making hourly notes of how I feel, I’m keeping track of everything-” Emile pulled his spiral notebook from his bag, flipping through the pages scribbled with research notes.

Just as quickly as he had it out, Arven smacked it from his hand.

“Wha- H-Hey- Arven-” Emile’s words caught in his throat as the upper class man grabbed him by the upper arms. Tears rolled down his cheeks as he scowled down at the shorter student.

 He shouted, gripping tight enough to bruise, “We haven’t seen you in a MONTH, Emile. A MONTH. A whole MONTH of our time together is GONE because all you care about is this STUPID HOLE.” His voice was cracking, his hands trembling on his friend’s arms, “I don’t care what you’re discovering down here, what breakthroughs you have about the Pokemon down here, what new bonds you form with Koridon down here, I don’t CARE.” He sucked a breath through his teeth, his entire body shook. “I don’t... want to loose anymore family to this... stupid hole...”

Emile stared in shock for a moment. Arven hung his head, sobbing silently as he gripped so desperately onto Emile’s arms.

“I... I’m... sorry... Arven...” Emile muttered, hugging his friend, “Nemona... Penny... Y-You too.. I’m sorry, I-I didn’t..”

Nemona just laughed, and ruffled at Emile’s hair as she joined the hug, “Don’t sweat it too hard. We’ll make up for that lost month in now time.”

Penny, who didn’t like physical contact, especially group hugs, chose instead to give a light punch to Emile’s shoulder, “You know us, we’re a pretty clingy crew. Not even Director Clavell’s lectures about the Dangers of the Crater can keep us from you.”

Emile chuckled as he tangled his hand into Arven’s hair, resting the upper classman’s head on his shoulder, “Thanks... I don’t think I deserve that kind of devotion...”

“Then you’ll just have to earn it.” Nemona wrapped her arms around Emile’s waist, “Lets battle when we get back to school! I wanna see that special training with Koridon in full force!”

Hearing his name, Koridon excitedly lept from his resting spot under a tree and circled the four friends, chirping happily as he forced them even closer together by wrapping himself around them.

“Full force, you sure? He’s gotten pretty strong fighting Paradox Pokemon all this time.” Emile teased.

“For sure!! I want to see him go all out!!” Nemona split herself from the group, jogging in place, “Now I’m pumped!! Come on, let’s get out of this place before I challenge you to a battle right here and now!!”

Emile chuckled, gently shifting Arven to better stand. He looked awful, eyes already puffy, nose running, face scrunched up almost like a Maschiff. He was quiet the ugly crier.

Penny and Emile held back their laughter as he took Arven’s hand in his own and followed after Nemona, who was set on climbing up a rock slide wall rather than taking the long path up. Penny followed close behind, holding loosely to the back of Emile’s suspenders.

The taxi ride home was noisy. The cabin rocket as the four rough housed and laughed. They’d hardly noticed the rising sun out the cab windows, or how tired they were until they’d finally made it back to campus, and immediately all passed out in Emile’s dorm.

And time marched on.

[a-tale-of-legends]

The original title was gonna be "Boy Troubles" like a cliche highschool drama episode, but I realized this had less teasing than I thought it would lmao. So this is just titleless for now. I wanted to write something for Indigo Disk....only to procrastinate. A lot. So sorry if this isn't my best work lol.

~~~

For the first few days after the kitakami field ship, Luca has essentially locked himself in his room, going out when it was absolutely necessary, but otherwise keeps to himself to mope. His friends were understanding, especially after Ramona explained what happened in Kitakami, so they let him be. For a few days that is. Hence leading to now.

Never in Luca's life would he have thought that he’s being the one dragged outside, but here he is, being dragged outside by Arven. He’s going to assume Penny, Ramona and Nemona are all already there wherever Arven’s taking him. Arven is talking about honestly whatever that's coming to his mind, which again, is a surprise for Luca. He's usually the one doing that. But it's nice seeing the older boy just talk so freely with him now, compared to how he was when they first met. Or maybe this is Arven trying to not make this trip super awkward. That's probably it too.

“ I've been talking with Clavell recently. My grades are still pretty low so I'm gonna need extra tutoring. Maybe I can ask one of Penny's friends to help….what's his name? Giacomo?”

“ Hm” Luca only hums, partly listening, partly zoning out into the musk that is his brain right now. Arven pauses his ramblings, looking down at Luca with concern.

“Oh man, R.B wasn't kidding when she said Kitakami hit you hard. You’d usually just be talking with me the whole way there,” Arven says with a small frown. Luca bites back a sarcastic remark, knowing full well that Arven is right. This….funk, whatever it is, is honestly annoying. He missed talking to his friends. He hates feeling so…. grumpy. He’s admittedly amused by his sudden desire to curse up a storm.

“ …Yeah,” Luca managed to squeak out,hoping his voice doesn't sound overtly mean, “ Sorry, I don't know what's gotten over me….” He looks to the side, ashamed, but then he feels a hand on his shoulders. He looks up to see Arven beaming down at him with a toothy grin.

“ Don't worry about it, little buddy! That's why you have us to help you through it, okay? We’re here for you!” Luca begins to wonder if this is how Arven felt when he said that he has Arven's back through it all. A warmth in this chest and a surprising urge to cry.

“ T-thanks,” he croaks out, slightly scolding himself that he should have known that by now, and returns Arven’s smile with his own, “ I needed that, thank you,”

“ No problem, little buddy!” Arven gives Luca a thumbs up, before shifting his attention to…..wherever they were going. They definitely weren't in Mesagoza. Provence Area one? He…. wasn't paying attention.

Looking at where Arven was looking, Luca sees the rest of his friends waving at him at a picnic table. Well, Nemona was waving, R.B was staring at the picnic basket and Penny was on her phone.

“ ….A picnic huh?” Luca says, as if he should really be surprised.

“ Yep! Come on, I even made your favorite!”

Luca perks up immediately.

“ A curry rice and noodles sandwich?” Arven looks at him in utter disgust.

“ Absolutely not. It's bocadillo,”

“ Oh.” He blinks, then gasping, “ Oh, yeah, I really like that!”

Arven rolls his eyes playfully, “ Yeah, I know, you gobble it up everytime I make you one. Now come on, let's eat and you can tell us everything”

Luca frowned slightly, not exactly excited to recap everything that happened. Especially when he was sure that R.B pretty much told them about it.

….Still. It wouldn't hurt.

“ Okay…. sure,”

~~~~~~~

“Wow,” Penny was the first one to speak,a piece of her peanut butter and banana sandwich in her hand, “ It's worse when you say it Luca,”

“Penny!” Nemona scolded, giving the smaller girl a soft glare before turning to Luca, “ I’m sorry Luca, all of that must have sucked,”

Luca shrugged, taking another bite of his sandwich, “ It wasn't all bad. Things were really nice before…” he frowns.

“ Before this Carmine girl ruined it,” Penny finished for him, and once again Nemona shoots a glare at her.

“Penny!"

“ She was a bit of a bitch, yeah”

“R.B!” Nemona wails, getting a short chuckle from the two of them. Arven, however, had his hand on his chin, thinking.

“ Hm…are you upset with Carmine? Is that why you’ve been a bit of a funk recently?”

Luca squints as he thinks, shaking his head, “ Not….really? I wish she didn't push me to lie, and I really wish she was nicer to Carmine but…”

Whenever Luca thinks back to Kitakami, all he can think about Kieran’s face when Luca told him the truth. When he called him a liar, that he just pitied him.That defeated look when Ogerpon chose Luca, not him. Carmine was annoying, yes, but…it wasn't her.

“Then it's Kieran, right?” R.B correctly deduces, given she was there to see the bits and pieces of what went down. Luca nods, going in for another bite of his bocadillo.

“ Yeah….but I still don't get it” he swallows, “ We apologized. I thought we were good but then there was the fight for Ogerpon and-” he huffs, “ I don't know. This is annoying. I shouldn't feel so down right now, I have you guys and-”

“Maybe you feel like you got rejected?” Nemona speaks up again, and everyone turns to her.

“ Huh?”

“ What’dya mean by that, Nems?” R.B questions.

“ Well….from what R.B told us, Kieran and Carmine left, and you weren't even able to say goodbye to Kieran, right?”

“Yeaaaaah?”

“ So maybe that lack of communication makes you feel like you got rejected. And you feel bad because of it”

“Oh…” Luca bites down his lower lip. That….kinda makes sense. He doesn't know what Kieran thinks about him right now, and the thought that he hates him has been eating at Luca for a while now.

“ Hm, that makes sense,” Penny muses, with Arven nodding his head sagely.

“ Yeah, it must suck to feel like you got rejected by your crush-”

“ Wait what-” Luca coughs on his sandwich, pounding his chest so he can breathe properly. He feels a firm hand on his back- properly Arven’s- as he remains his composure.

“ Crush?! ” He exclaims. Arven- who he was right to assume has the hand on his back- titled his head to the side, confused.

“ Uh, yeah? R.B said-”

“ RAMONA!” Luca glares at R.B, who's awkwardly looking away from him.

“ ….Whoops” she mumbles, and Penny snorts and bit, covering her mouth to try and hide her giggles. Nemona smiles cheerfully, her hands together.

“Awwww, it's okay, Luca! It's cute that you have a cr-”

“ I don't!” Luca says quickly, too quickly, he swears he heard his voice crack, “ I don't I don't I don't I don't-”

“ Little buddy, it's really okay-”

“ GAAAH!” Luca yells, then leaning forward to cover his head with his arms. He feels like he's going to explode.

“ …..Guys I think it's a crush,” Penny snickers, and Luca can’t bring himself to glare at her.

“ Shut uuuuuupppp,”

He hears Nemona giggle herself, but fortunately for him, he comes to his rescue.

“ Alright, alright. So you don't have a crush on Kieran-”

“ I don't-”

“ But it still doesn't change the fact that you feel like you got rejected, right?”

After a few moments of silence, Luca looks up at Nemona.

“ Yeah…I don't…..” he grimaces, “ I think he might hate me….”

“Luca…” Penny murmurs, and R.B picks up after her.

“ I mean, we don't know for sure, right? Things ended off sour, but uh. It could end up well?” Luca huffs again, now leaning into the palm of his hand.

“ Oh yeah? How can that happen? He doesn't have a phone and I never got Carmine's number either so….” he sighs, hopelessness sinking in his stomach.

“Well you never know! I mean, there was a time where I thought Mabosstiff would never get better, but look at him now!”

“ For once, I agree with Arven,” Nemona nods her head, giving her friend a cheeky grin as he glares, “ Never say never! I’m sure things between you and Kieran will work out! Right guys?”

Everyone around Luca gives agrees without a hitch, and Luca feels his spirits rise a little.

“ You guys…..thanks. I needed this.” He slaps his hands on his cheeks, determined, “ Okay! I’ll just hope that me and Kieran get to talk one day! ….Somehow!”

His friends cheer with him, and Luca feels like things might be okay after all.

Hopefully.

[madlittlecriminal]

Judge ↦ Jonathan Crane × GN!Villain!Reader

Request: no, i was rewatching The Dark Knight Rises with my dad

Warnings: soft!crane, unwanted glances

In all honesty, you were proud of your boyfriend. Getting rid of every person who seems to only want to do good, but just making it worse for your people. You will admit, you got tired of hearing how bad your people were because you knew it; you just didn’t care. That was just how people were in this life style and if you were being honest, you wouldn’t have it any other way. Sitting on his lap, everyone knew that you belonged to the ruthless judge.

Sure, he wasn’t Joker, but he was Scarecrow and everyone knew how deadly he was with his thin ice and his clavel. Not to mention, they were scared he’d bring back his toxins, so they knew better than to try to flirt with you. Besides, you had no interest in any other guy if it wasn’t Jonathan Crane. A smile was planted on his face as your fingers ran through the hair on the back of his head. “How is it that I’m supposed to be ruthless, yet you make me like this?”

His words were a soft whisper in your ear which made you smile softly. “Because I’m just as bad as you are, but on top of that, you love me.” He nods his head softly before turning over to his new victim. Of course, the person couldn’t keep their eyes off of you which caused Jonathan to clench his jaw. “Do you see something you like?” He knew you felt uncomfortable because you shifted on his lap and your hand that was hidden behind the desk, gripped the bottom of his blazer. The person became bold as he nodded at Crane’s question. “Who you have on your lap caught my attention.”

This causes Crane to snort at the person’s comment and everyone in the room, including Bane, became shocked at the person’s response. “That was bold of you, but I’m afraid you’re making them uncomfortable so if you can please keep your eyes off of them, I would definitely appreciate it.” The person chuckles. “Is that how you feel, mister Crane?” He nods. “Like I said, you’re making them uncomfortable so I would highly appreciate it if you respect them and keep your eyes off of them. Thank you.”

However, the person took no hints and kept their eyes on you. Jonathan couldn’t take it anymore as he felt you slightly shake on his lap. You might be a villain, but that didn’t mean you’re not human; being under the eyes of people who gave you looks of hunger and desire as well as lust, made you uncomfortable. He glared at the person in front of him before grabbing his clavel and hitting it against his desk. “Exile.” Men took them away from the room and before Jonathan glared at everyone else.

“Take my words as a warning. Do NOT look at them in any way. Got it?! If you think I’m bad, don’t you dare try anything with me because they will not hesitate to make you feel pain and make you feel embarrassed. Do I make myself clear?” Everyone in the room, except Bane, agreed to his words. Jonathan knew he didn’t have to tell Bane anything because Bane was like a brother to you. Plus, he definitely didn’t want to pick a fight with him. He told everyone to leave the room before he placed a hand on your cheek.

“You did amazing, (Y/N). I love you, you know that?” You nodded with a soft smile on your face. “I love you too, bird man!” He shook his head with a chuckle. “You really are an evil little thing, aren’t you?” You sucked your teeth and sighed. “That depends what you mean by that, my Johnny boy.” You both let out soft laughter before he resting his other hand on your hip and becoming involved in a kiss.

~~~~

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[svartalfhild]

Fanfic by xChampionOfNiflheimx

Rating: T Genre: Supernatural, Humor, Romance Words: 1,190 Summary: The young witch Rowan Axel writes anime fanfiction while her familiar judges her.  - - - «Vendrás conmigo»? dije? sin que nadie supiera dónde y cómo latía mi estado doloroso, y para mí no había clavel ni barcarola, nada sino una herida por el amor abierta. 

(Come with me, I said, and no one knew where, or how my pain throbbed, no carnations or barcaroles for me, only a wound that love had opened.)

~X~

There was no funeral for Cillian Bran, for despite the cries for justice from the dramatist’s adoring fans, he had been named an enemy of the state, not fit for any recognition.  And so here Theo Velasquez stood in the scrap yard, feline ears drooping as he watched Cillian’s mech, Hemlock’s Shade, be broken down, piece by piece.

As they carried away each component, Theo felt as if they were carrying away a piece of his heart, leaving him hollow and wondering what was left for him on this world.

“Wow, you’re laying it on thick.  Did you have a bad day?” Rowan’s snake familiar, Dave, asked upon poking his head out from under an open book at the witch’s side, which had the words “The Collected Works of Pablo Neruda” stamped across the spine.  Rowan stopped typing and turned to Dave only to give him a “Did I ask?” look.  “Hey, I’m not the one writing tragic romance fic and quoting love poetry,” Dave responded with a wiggle his owner had come to understand as a shrug.

“Listen, in the Firebrands fandom, it’s practically law that you have to put poetry in your fic.  To quote tumblr user rita-callwhomst ‘if it’s not extra af, what is even the point’,” Rowan countered, punctuating her statement by taking a Pringle from the can sitting on her other side and pointedly breaking off half of it between her teeth.

“Okay, but that still doesn’t answer my question,” Dave insisted and Rowan gave an exasperated sigh.

“I’m fine.”

“Rowan.”

“Fuck off, Dave.  I need to finish this update.”  With this, Rowan returned to her typing and blatantly ignored further prodding from her snake.

He didn’t know what would become of him now.  He didn’t know if he could continue to take paychecks from the people who had murdered Cillian.  His first thought was to fully take up his lover’s cause, but he found his heart soured to the idea.  The rebels had done nothing to protect Cillian; how could he stand with them?

Perhaps it would be best if he took his mech and left this planet altogether to make his own way.

“Smells like projecting,” Dave commented.  Rowan threw up her hands in frustration and glared at the snake coiling himself across her lap.

“Boy, why you gotta be all up in my business?”

“I can sense what you’re feeling.  It’s part of the whole familiar package, remember?  It’s my job to be concerned for you.”

“Listen.  I did what you asked.  I’m being more social.  I’ve let Rufus ‘Ghost of a Fucking Dead Man’ Grunberg into my life.  Can we just leave it there?”

“No, because you’re clearly beating yourself up about something.”  With this, Dave nudged his little head into Rowan’s side.  She irritatedly scooped him off her lap and set him behind her, saying nothing further as she attempted to get back to her writing.  She skipped ahead to a different section, hoping it would throw Dave off.

Saying farewell to Rita was not going to be easy.  Theo knew that.  His chest ached at the thought of it.  He hated the idea of wiping the smile off his dear friend’s face and it was written plain as any of his emotions across his feline features, ears drooping with melancholy as he approached the Calloughn estate.

He wandered for several minutes across the vast and carefully landscaped grounds, heading towards the great mansion that stood, old and strong, in white stone at the heart of the lush green property.  About halfway there, however, as he came around a row of trees, he heard voices and saw movement at the corner of his eye.

There, standing in the shade of a willow tree, were Rita and Dante, who appeared to be having an argument.

“Don’t you understand?  This isn’t how my life was supposed to be!  Before our mothers forced us into this for their own convenience, I was going to live my life how I wanted to, be what I wanted to be, be with whom I choose!” Rita ranted, hands gesturing wildly to express what seemed to be a great deal of pent up frustration.  Dante, in return, did not seem so much angry as...perhaps sad?  He was calm as he gave his reply.

“That can still be your life.”

“I don’t want to love you, Dante!  However much you might speak of honor and respect and duty or impress me with your sword,” Rita shot back.  Theo had never seen her so emotional.  The words seemed to come out of her with a great violence, as if she were trying to rip these feelings from her very being.  He desperately wanted to go to her, to take her away from the bastard who had so upset her, but he dared not move from where he stood.

“But do you, Rita?  Do you...do you love me?”  Dante’s voice was almost too soft to be heard as he said this and Rita went still.  For what felt like an eternity, there was no movement or sound between them, only Rita staring in shock at her fiancé, but then Dante spoke again.  “If you don’t, then I will release you from our engagement and never darken your doorstep again.  I could never bear to rob you of your freedom”.

There was a brief moment in which silence and stillness fell again before Rita appeared to make her choice, taking Dante’s face in her hands and pulling him down for a fiery kiss.  He wrapped his arms around her, pulling her closer-

“There it is,” Dave interrupted once again, an irritating smugness in his tone.

“There’s what?” Rowan groaned.

“This absolutely wreaks of projection.  Things going well with Rufus, are they?”

“The fuck you talking about, Dave?”  There was a serious and defensive edge to Rowan’s tone now as she scowled at her snake, who looked back at her innocently, only frustrating her further.  “There are no ‘things’ with Rufus, got it? He’s just a dude I know who I see sometimes outside of class, which was your idea, by the way, so don’t be acting like there’s shit there that ain’t.”

“Wow, do you not even realize how much you sound exactly like your fanfiction?”

“Shut the fuck up or I’ll lock you in your tank.”  It was very clear now that Rowan was not even remotely playing around anymore and Dave seemed to get the message, because he finally slithered away.

“Someone needs to review Loki’s Rule,” he called as he went.

Rowan huffed and returned to her writing, finishing out her fic update in peace.  Who cared what Dave had to say about her personal life when there were people out there waiting for more angst fic from xChampionOfNiflheimx?

- - -

A/N: Firebrands isn’t a real anime.  It’s actually another RPG that my group plays and it’s an anime in the universe of our Monsterhearts game.

Also, Loki’s Rule is a tenet of the Rökkatru sect of Norse paganism which states that no matter what lies you might tell others, you must always be honest with yourself, and the greatest honor is speaking the truths others are afraid to hear.

[mirkwoodshewolf]

Not my father; Sherlock x reader

Here is yet another Sherlock request I had gotten, now this one was especially difficult for me to write because so much was going on in my personal life I couldn’t find the inspiration to write it to make it feel good but thankfully I fell through and found a path I liked when I got the prompt.  Now this request contains child neglect, swearing, violence, mentions of drug use so BEWARE. Anyways I hope u all enjoy this request either way.

_________________________________________________________

It was all an experiment to him. Years before he became the infamous High functioning sociopathic detective "Sherlock Holmes", he was a High functioning sociopath at Cambridge University well mainly forced to go and at least get some form of education. During one of his drug runs he got into it with a woman and mistakenly had me, (Y/n) Holmes.

My then so called mother dumped me on my dad because she would rather use her money to buy her coke instead of baby formula. So for the next five years my dad had left school to raise me....well I really wouldn't even say that either.

Now don't get me wrong he never touched me badly or even beat me but sometimes I wish he would at least notice me once in a while but he was always invested in his work. Sometimes I feel like he doesn't even know that I exist. When I try to get his attention he always either doing some sciency-stuff or trying to score some drugs with some of his friends.

But I guess he must have some kindness in him because whenever he's about to go on the stuff, he drops me off at grandma's and grandpa's house while he does his things. Though still I wish he wasn't like that and would spend some time with me.

One night grandma was tucking me in for the night after spending a week at their house when I finally got the nerve to ask my grandma.

"Grandma?"

"Yes dearie what is it?"

"Is daddy a bad man?" She looked at me with sad eyes and said to me.

"No poppet, he's not a bad man".

"Then why is he never around? Does he not like me?"

"Oh darling, sometimes your daddy just gets a little lost which makes him do things that he doesn't mean to do". She then kissed my forehead and finished, "Never doubt that he loves you, once he gets on his feet he'll find you". She stood up but before he left my bedroom I called out to her and she turned to look at me and I handed her my small flashlight.

"Can you give this to daddy? So that he can find his way home".

"Of course I will dearie, goodnight (y/n)" she told me with a sad smile.

"Goodnight grandma". She switched my light off but turned my small nightlight on and shut my door leaving me alone in my room. As I laid there in the silence of my room I muttered to myself, "Please save my daddy and bring him home safe". Then I fell fast asleep.

A week later I was playing with my dolls when there was a knock at the door. My grandpa stood up and answered it and standing outside was Uncle Mycroft.

"Mycroft".

"Hello father".

"What's this all about son?"

"Not good news I'm afraid, mind if I come in?" Grandpa allowed uncle Mycroft inside and they all headed towards the kitchen to talk. Curiosity got the better of me so I walked towards the kitchen door and leaned my ear against it and heard everything that was being said.

Uncle Mycroft said that daddy had gotten into trouble again and this time the police had to "arrest him" whatever that meant. While I was listening, I didn't notice the two men that Mycroft always brings along with him came up behind me and one of them picked me up and took me outside and placed me inside one of the cars.I was then buckled in and uncle Mycroft came in and he told me as the two men sat on either side of me.

"So sorry about this my dear niece, but we must keep you safe from the name 'Sherlock Holmes'".

"Where are we going uncle Mycroft?" I asked as I held onto my doll tightly in fear.

"Nowhere you need to be afraid of my dear, we're going to meet an old acquaintance of mine. Runs a special safe house for children like you". I didn't know what he was talking about, all I did was just hold my doll tighter as the car drove away from my grandparent's place.

Next thing I know, we arrive at a big building that read "Miss Clavel's Home and Boarding for Orphan Girls". I just looked at the big building with lots and lots of windows. The car stopped and my uncle and his men got out of the car with me being carried by my uncle. We walked towards the building and there stood a young woman wearing a long black dress with a hat over her head that had some white at the top of it and the rest being black.

"Clara Clavel".

"Mycroft Holmes, is this your niece?"

"Yes, (y/n) this is Clara Clavel, she runs the building, now I want you to stay here and be a good girl that I know that you are for her".

"Okay Uncle, will I be coming back home soon though?" He didn't answer me but just set me down and Miss Clavel gently took my hand and the two of us watched as my uncle and his men got back into the car and just drove off.

"Come along now (y/n), let us get you settled in, you're just in time for story time with the other girls". She then led me inside the building and I began my new life in Miss Clavel's Home and Boarding.

*13 years later*

I spent about a year and a half in Miss Clavel's care before I was adopted by a loving and caring family. I excelled in school and graduated 2 years earlier and received a college degree by age 16 and for the next two years I have been working in an internship helping out children who suffer from neglectful or abusive parents.

Although I do check up on the news of my dad and hearing of how he's now become London's "High Functioning Sociopath" Detective, I'm glad he hasn't even tried to come and find me. The more I look back on how my life was with him, the more I begin to think why would he even try to get my mother pregnant with me?

The life I had after my father was far better than the five years I spent with him or my real family. If he truly cared about me he would've tried to at least find me or at least have the decency to get rid of me on his own instead he has his snake of a brother do it for him.

Maybe the Holmes family just wasn't meant to be my family, I'm just glad the (y/l/n) adopted me when they did and groomed me to be the best Child psychologist in America.

It was late one night and I was driving back from the office after a long day's work of talking to young children about their problems. Not only that but I had to stay overtime to catch up on some paperwork and deadline submissions so now all I want to do is go home, take a nice bubbly bath and sleep until lunchtime just thank god my boss allowed me the day off tomorrow.

When I got up to my house, I took notice that the door was unlocked. I could tell because it had looked like someone had recently used a makeshift key or something to unlock my door and enter inside. I then quickly took out my gun that I kept hidden in my purse and slowly entered inside my own home.

I made sure to keep the gun pointed outwards and kept my ears open for the slightest movement. It was then when I came across the living room, I was in for a shock.

"You know for a Holmes you really were hard to track down but thankfully I managed to finally get my brother to spill on where he had taken you 13 year ago and afterwards it was smooth sailing from there thought Miss Clavel did prove to be a bit of a challenge. But nothing that I'm not—" BANG! BANG! BANG! I shot around his head three times. "Now that's a bit rash isn't it? Shooting at your own—"

"Don't you dare finish that statement!" I snarled glaring daggers at him. If looked could kill he'd be all the way in hell where he belongs.

"(Y/n) I—"

"Get out!"

"No I want to speak to you!"

"Get out!"

"Not until I get a word with—" BANG!!

"GET OUT OF MY HOUSE NOW BEFORE I BLOW YOUR HEAD OFF!!"

"Sherlock I think we better leave. Now!"

"No I'm not leaving here without speaking to me dau—" BANG!!

"You've got 3 seconds before I fire, and this time I won't miss! I'm not playing here. Get the fuck out of my house NOW!!!"

"(Y/n) please just—"

"One!"

"Sherlock we need to go now!"

"TWO!!!"

"So sorry to bother you we're leaving now and I promise you'll never see him again thank you cheerio!" The short man stated as he dragged Sherlock Holmes out of my house and slammed the door shut leaving me alone in my house.

I dropped the gun and my hands started trembling and my breathing became erratic as I slowly went to the couch and slowly flipped the cushion around so now one would see the bullet holes. I also picked up the lamp that got broken from the last shot I made and shakily placed the cover back on top of it before finally collapsing to the ground crying.

The next day on my day off, I found myself driving to my office. I hastened through the hallways towards my boss's office desperately needing to talk to him.

"Dr. Wilson I know it's my day off but I needed to—Oh bloody hell".

"Your boss is currently on lunch, as are most of your coworkers and friends, leaving this entire level empty and leaving the three of us alone" stated Sherlock.

"Get out".

"It won't work this time, I know you only carry your gun on your person out of work plus this place restricts any armed weapons including knives and the occasional but weakly used pepper spray. Why is that even considered a weapon? I never found any use for it you do more damage with air freshener"."Sherlock I really don't think now's the time for that" his little partner said.

"Oh god I'm gonna be sick" I stated.

"Then have a seat" said Sherlock.

"I don't take order from you, you're not my father".

"You know that's a lie I am your father".

"Bullshit! You have never been, and you never will be my father. The only father I've ever had is (y/father's full/n)" I sneered. His eyes widened with emotion for once.

"I know that Sherlock can rub off on people the wrong way but don't you think that's a bit too far?" His partner asked.

"Too far? Ehehe too far he says? You have no idea what this man has put me through!""(Y/n) I know I wasn't the perfect dad—"

"Perfect? Oh no. There's not even a word to describe the hell you've put me through throughout the years! You never cared about me! Whenever you went off on your little drug runs to get high on coke or whatever the bloody hell you were taking, you never came back and not in any way that mattered! You just dumped me off at your parent's place. Then you send your own brother to get rid of me instead of having the decency to do it yourself. You Sherlock Holmes are a coward! You're the one who would rather inject a needle than hold your daughter after a bad dream! You're the one who knocked up a prostitute and cared even less than she did even when she had the balls to abandon me when she had the chance!"

"I tried searching for you—"

"BULLSHIT!! You—you had 13 years to find me. And all you did was just make your name the biggest thing since the Princess Diana scandal. You never cared about me so why start now? Hmm? Why try to ruin my life now when everything in my life was finally perfect?" Tears were streaming down my face even harder as I fell to my knees but before I felt the ground, I was leaning against a broad chest and felt arms wrap around me.

"I know, I know I was a complete bugger of a parent. Mycroft told us you were kidnapped and murdered and that he had already buried you, I thought I had lost any chance of ever redeeming myself to you. But as I became a detective I knew there were some things that didn't fit with his accusation. It was then I finally found out the truth of where he sent you. Miss Clavel was then warned about me and refused me any records of what happened to you so I was forced to break in and steal them and find out you were here in America. I know I can never wash away the neglect I have given you throughout your childhood but I swear to you (y/n), my darling and only baby girl, I will redeem myself to you. Even if it takes until the day I die. I want to redeem myself as your father".

Too weak and too busy weeping to even get up, I cling onto my father's suit and cried into his chest as he rocked me back and forth. The one thing I've always longed for ever since I was a child.