#but stopped myself because that would be a boring reply and I want to entertain

[corrodedcoughin]

So I know the internet is obsessed with babygirl Steve but I've been thinking about the opposite lately? About how Eddie would love how manly and strong and boyish Steve is. Especially after that scene in the Upside Down where Eddie is casually fawning over sweaty and dirty shirtless Steve ripping demobats apart with his bare hands. They're both gross teenage boys and Eddie likes it.

Eddie loves Steve's 5 o'clock shadow, dreams of feeling the scratch of it on his skin, the burn of it as Steve kisses his way down his body.

Dustin still keeps telling Steve he needs to tame his chest hair, shear it down a bit. Steve always refuses because the "ladies dig it" and Eddie can't help but agree that the boys dig it too. He definitely doesn't want to run his fingers through it, tangle his fingers in the strands and feel the warmth of Steves skin underneath.

Eddie loves Steve's strong jaw and broad shoulders. Thick thighs and muscled biceps. Every now and then Steve will wake up early for a jog and at the end, jog his way over to the trailer park. And Eddie gets to watch him with his hair pushed out of his face, unstyled and sweaty but still looking good. Shirt sticking to his torso with sweat. It's so gross but so good. They'll sit on the porch together, Steve drinking water; with Eddie next to him wrapped in a blanket, half asleep, drinking coffee, and thinking about how fucking good Steve looks.

He even likes how Steve will eat a bagel and get crumbs all over his kitchen floor, and then snap at Dustin for even /thinking/ about opening a packet of Doritos in his car because he will get crumbs in the seats. And the Beemer is his baby.

Idk I've just always liked the idea that Steve genuinely likes cars? We all saw him with the Toddfather. And his beemer!!! This stereotypical manly interest that he might have gotten into originally when he was little because it was something he thought his dad would like, but it turns out he actually genuinely likes. Steve will happily spend a Saturday morning washing and waxing his car. Vacuuming the carpet and cleaning the seats. And after all that he'll pop the hood and tinker with the engine. Checking the oil and other car things. And Eddie finds himself noticing the grease and oil under his fingernails that he couldn't quite remove.

And then there's the little things. How Steve will throw something into the rubbish bin or his laundry basket like a basketball from across the room. How he will yell at the TV when watching sports and the ref makes a stupid call. His dumb locker room talk with Robin where they talk about hot girls together, which is endearing as hell because he can see how much it means to Robin to be able to talk like a regular teen about hot celebs and pretty classmates.

Idk I'm just having fun thinking of Eddie fawning over how manly and hot he finds Steve. You just know he's talked about it to the Corroded Coffin boys and they just "can't relate but we'll take your word for it" Because they love and support Eddie in his big fat gay crush on Steve.

(Absolutely no pressure to do anything with this btw I'm just having Thoughts)

I was just reading this and nodding aggressively. I love babygirl Steve but I love the facets of Steve that means he can be both

Oh he’d absolutely take up an interest in cars because he thinks it would earn him points with his Dad. He’s awful to begin with, obviously, but he sticks with it and and the first time he fixes something or cleans it up and polishes it on his own he’s so proud of himself that he just keeps at it. Eventually it becomes an activity he can put all his attention on and just zone out of real life. He gets really competent and this only sends Eddie’s heart rate sky high. He sees Steve wiping his hands off on a dirty rag, flipping it onto his shoulder and squinting at eddie in the sun. Eddie’s brain shuts down, outright staring at Steve. Only reengages when Steve waves a hand infront of his face and laughs when Eddie reboots. Eddie makes sure to ask Steve for more car tips. Demonstrations really, Eddie is a visual learner.

The whole discussion with the chest hair? There’s a similar thing before they are together. Steve actually pulls Eddie into it, he was sitting in the back of the beemer while Steve and Dustin bickered up front. Eddie was half paying attention, half thinking about an unexpected cover corroded coffin were planning next week.

That all stopped when Steve directed a question to him ‘hey! Earth to Eddie! You got to back me up, chest hair is hot, right?’

Dustin squawks ‘no fair!! He’s supposed to be unbiased! No leading questions!’ He turns to face eddie in the back of the car ‘forget he said that. He’s only out for himself. Chest hairs a no, right?’

Steve is watching him in the mirror and Eddie very, very pointedly does not look at Steve’s chest (he does), looks up to catch Steve’s eye and immediately feels his face burning. It gets worse when Steve pipes up ‘come on munson, what’s your opinion, you’ve always got one.’ A smirk evident in his tone of voice, Steve is a big believer in his chest hair, and for good reason. Eddie has lost countless hours thinking about the noises Steve might make from tugging on that hair just right. Countless more hours contemplating if Steve pulls on the hair himself when he’s getting off. Before eddie can stumble much further down that path he pulls himself together, let’s put a high pitched ‘mhm! Yep! Sure!’

Dustin turns back to fave the front in disgust after firing a withering stare at eddie. Steve on the other hand just looks smug as he continues to drive, tapping on his steering wheel along to the music. Thinking to himself ‘harrington’s still got it baby’ and silently thanks his chest hair. He rubs his palm over his face as he thinks about what his next move to get Eddie might be but he catches eddue tracking his hand’s movement through the mirror. Head perking up at the rough scrape sound of dry skin on stubble. Oh this could be interesting.

Overall, Steve and Eddie are big fans of big boy manly Steve with thick forearms and a torso to match. There’s a lot of fun stuff Steve’s body allows him to do, especially once they are together. It’s mainly picking up Eddie and throwing him around, both of them are very big fans of that. But eddie makes sure to let Steve know just what his wide shoulders, thick muscled legs and identifying jaw line does to him. You know, just incase he’s forgotten

[theillusionmachine]

Where Love and Confusion Begin (Ominis Gaunt x F!Reader)

"Do you really think I could be that cruel and careless to you?"

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

December 25th, 1893 The Yule Ball... Wear your best formal attire-

Everywhere I turned I seemed to hear about. Countless after countless bouts of excited, restless chatter would always manage to come echoing back to me. And while I understood why most would be excited about the prospect of a ball, I on the other hand couldn't help but feel... downright anxious about it all.

I knew it sounded silly, completely dramatic. Afterall, I had been through a lot worse things during my time in Hogwarts. But for some reason, my mind, my thoughts, my worries just couldn't relax. And when they did for a short while, they'd slowly begin to drift back onto one person...

Ominis Gaunt.

I was practically infatuated with the man. For a multitude of reasons, besides his obviously good looks. He was marvelously kind, had a whit so quick it could make your head spin, and could be snarky and sarcastic one minute. But caring and loving the next.

Ominis simply made it hard not to love him.

But he did, however, make it hard for me to even think about going to the Yule Ball with him. We were friends, close ones despite the fact that I had only been at Hogwarts for a couple of years. Our friendship would be something I'd always treasure, something I would never want to ruin because my love for him clouded my judgement.

And the thought of losing him because of that was enough to make me nauseous.

"Enjoying a cat nap, are we?"

I slowly cracked open one of my eyes, wincing slightly at the beam of sunlight that had been slowly warming me as I laid down in one of the many alcoves at Hogwarts. But once my vision focused fully, Sebastian came into view. Grinning down at me cheekily.

"I wasn't napping." I muttered, forcing myself to sit up. "Just enjoying the sun.

"You could've gone outside for that." Sebastian suggested, now sitting down on the floor too.

"It's freezing, you sit outside for an hour." I replied, a little too snappy for my liking.

But Sebastian wasn't fazed by my crass mood in the slightest. In fact, Sebastian seemed to find me to be quite humorous. "Aww, is someone missing their nap partner?" He teased, making me grumble in annoyance.

"Oh, shut it, I don't know what you're talking about."

Sebastian let an exaggerated sigh, leaning back slightly on his hands before continuing. "You both are insufferably stubborn you know that right? Ominis was in a terrible mood after History of Magic because you decided to ditch today."

I scoffed at Sebastian theatrics, not even bothering to hide the fact that I had rolled my eyes. "History of Magic is painfully boring, anyone who goes to that class will be in a ba-"

"History of Magic is tiring enough, but her not being their made it worse." Sebastian deadpanned, trying his hardest to imitate Ominis's tone.

"Well, I am very entertaining." I replied sarcastically. "And can you really blame me for skipping out on that class? I swear if I hear one more time how many wizarding cloaks were destroyed during the Goblin Rebellion, I'll lose whatever mind I have left."

"It's 632." Sebastian couldn't help but laugh at my less than amused expression.

"Are you finished? Or did you actually approach me to talk about something important?"

"Yes." He began, clearing his throat. "If you would stop changing the topic that is."

"I am not-"

"Ah, ah, that's the same thing Ominis said to me after classes. You two are so incredibly in sync today." Sebastian teased. "It's quite adorable really. He's moody, you're moody, you're happy, he's smiling up a storm, if you've disappeared to... god knows where, a majority of the time he's right there with you."

It annoyed me to no end how right on the money he is...

"What're you getting at Sebastian?" I questioned meekly, trying my hardest to ignore the flush I was beginning to feel on my cheeks.

"I think we both know exactly what I'm getting at." Sebastian spoke bluntly, raising up from the stone-cold floor. "Maybe you should ask him, Ominis can get into his head rather easily. And you know that can stop him from saying what he wants to."

Sebastian then walked away, leaving me practically dumbfounded on the floor.

Ask him... ask him... merlin I don't know if that idea made me feel better or worse. The idea of being rejected by him was painful. But maybe if I asked to go with him as friends that it would work...

"Sebastian, you might've actually had a good idea for once."

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

I had decided to skip dinner for the night, not feeling too hungry after the talk I had with Sebastian. I figured a moment alone would give me enough clarity to decide whether I'd actually bite the bullet and asked Ominis to the ball.

"Ah, there you. I was starting to think you were avoiding me."

But a moment alone in this school was a rarity... Of course, he was here... why wouldn't he be?

"Ominis, I figured you would've been in the Great Hall for dinner." I greeted, trying to keep my nervous laughter from bubbling up to the surface.

"Wasn't hungry." He answered nonchalantly, turning back to face the fireplace of our common room.

I stood there for a moment, in silence, completely unsure of what to say next. But Ominis beat me to it, filling the silence before I got the chance to.

"Aren't you going to sit?" He began, I hadn't even noticed he had turned his head again, his eyes somehow managing to land right on me.

Just like they always managed to do...

"Or were you really avoiding me?"

That sentence managed to snap me out of my tongue-tied state. That nervous laugh I held in before leaked out before I had the chance to stop it this time around. "You know I wasn't avoiding you."

I finally moved from my spot, walking over and sitting next to him on the couch. I couldn't help but gaze over at him. His hand was lightly raised in the air, his wand beaming red at the tip as a book rested in his lap. A small smile curved his pale pink lips, he looked completely at ease. Which after the past couple of years was a nice sight to see.

"You're nervous." Ominis muttered, and though his voice was soft, I couldn't help but tense up. "You keep bouncing your leg... I know you only do that when you're anxious about something."

"I didn't even realize I was doing it." I admitted, leaning back into the cush couch cushions.

Ominis copied my movements, leaning back against the cushions a mere moment later. His book was now abandoned, the pages of it turning carelessly on their own accord. "Something on your mind?"

I took in a steady breath; thankful it had not trembled like I thought it would. "Maybe." I answered coyly, making Ominis's small smile bloom slightly.

"Are those thoughts the reason I've hardly heard from you all day?"

damn it damn it damn it... think of something to say quick... don't come off as suspicious...

"Hey, maybe you were the one avoiding me. Last time I checked I haven't heard from you too much either today." I deflected, trying to sound humorous.

"Hmm," Ominis hummed. "You've got a good point there... but I have a reason for my... disappearance." He added vaguely.

I leaned forward trying to get a good look at his face. The shadows of the fire danced along his face, illuminating his marble eyes beautiful. His expression was humorous too, and I knew exactly why...

"You know I hate it when you leave me hanging like that." I grumbled, making him let out a smooth chuckle.

"I merely wanted to avoid the constant chatter of the Yule Ball is all. It's beginning to become a bit... excessive."

"You two are so in sync today."

I shook my head, trying to get the words Sebastian had spoken out of my head. "You're telling me, you should hear what I wake up to everyday as of late."

"I could only image." Ominis replied, chuckling once again. "I would rather not hear about something I know I'm not going to."

I could feel my heart sink at his words. I hadn't even thought of the fact that he might not want to go at all.

"N-not going to? Why wouldn't you go?" I questioned curiously.

"A blind person spending their night alone at a ball doesn't exactly sound to enticing to me."

"Oh." Is all I could think to say, I leaned back into the couch contemplating my next move carefully.

Should I ask him... what if he just really doesn't want to go. I don't wanna look stupid.

Screw it...

"Would you want to go with me?"

I tense at my own words, not daring to move to see Ominis's reaction. My heart was racing, so much so it felt as though my pulse was about to burst through my skin. And the silence I was met with after I asked was completely unsettling.

Merlin why did I listen to Seb-

"It's a bit untraditional for a girl to ask a boy to a ball, isn't it?" He pondered.

Okay, it's not a total no... that's a relief.

"Maybe, but it's not like that has to be a bad thing." I replied hopefully. "And besides, it'll be fun to go with someone who... so entertaining to you." I added, attempting to sound boastful, but it just came across as a bit... jumbled.

Another bout of silence came, and in those few moments of the quiet. Part of me wished I was a legilimens, so I could see what was going on inside his mind... so I could hear what he thought of all of this.

When finally, I got my answer.

"I think it'd be nice to go with you."

Oh, my Merlin he actually said yes...

I couldn't stop the smile that began to form, a bubbling shyness began to boil to the surface. And my heart still definitely felt like it was going to beat out of its chest. With what little shred of coolness I had left, I finally was able to reply.

"It's a date...

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

Then, the 25th rolled around... a day I was dreading at one point. But now felt so excited about it that I couldn't sleep.

I felt giddy, or like a swarm of butterflies was fluttering throughout me. I felt restless, I couldn't stay in one place, and I fought the urge to not pace most of the night. But for some reason, I couldn't seem to care... and with every passing hour that I stayed awake, it just revitalized me.

Though, judging from the bags in my eyes, my body didn't exactly share the same sentiment I did.

But thank goodness for Samantha Dale...

I never would've guessed she had such a knack for Herbology. Yet, when she let me up into her dorm in the Ravenclaw tower, after we agreed to get ready together. A whole spread of concoctions was set up.

"You know there is such a thing as beauty sleep." Samantha teased as she stared at my reflection in her vanity.

She carefully places a mint green cream under my eyes, making a pleasant tingling sensation hit me. "That'll clear those bags up in no time!" She stated confidently.

"Thank you." I began to bounce my leg again as the nerves began to creep up on me.

"Nervous?" Samantha asked, sitting down on the edge of her bed.

"Is it obvious?" I asked in reply, letting out a shaky chuckle.

"Just a smidge." She spoke considerately. "But I don't think you need any reason to fret. I find you and Ominis to be a lovely pairing."

My eyes shot up from my hands to gaze at her and I could feel an eyebrow raise questioningly. "P-paring? as in?"

"A couple?" Samantha replied, just as questioningly as I did.

"Oh... we aren't together... like that." I muttered sheepishly.

Samantha chuckled, looking over at me incredulously. "There's no way! Honestly, a lot of people already assume you two are together."

"Really?"

Samantha scoffed, shaking her head at me. "Look, I've seen the way you look at him. And I've seen the way he is around you. People who aren't in love don't act like that."

"Hey, I'm not denying that I've fallen for him." I admitted honestly. "It's just... a hard thing to say to someone you've grown so close to."

Samantha just eyed me for a moment, seemingly taking my words in. "You think he doesn't feel the same way, do you?"

I felt my lips curve into a bittersweet smile. My sights falling onto my hands again. "It's hard to believe that he would."

"Hmm... but, you two are going to the ball together?"

I chuckled at her puzzled words before nodding my head. "Sounds maddening, doesn't it?"

Samantha was quick to shake her head, a sudden, bright smile coming second later. "Not maddening, but an opportunity. You should say something to him!"

"Eh..."

"No, no, just listen for a second!" Samantha exclaimed. "It'd be the perfect opportunity to, honestly this sounds like something that would be in a romance novel!"

"But this isn't a romance novel."

"Exactly! So, it'll be even more beautiful, when the pair of you are slow dancing... and the music and the others around you fade because all you can focus on is yourselves. And before you know it, you two will kiss."

That truly does sound picture perfect...

"Why would it be more beautiful?"

Samantha lovesick smile faded into fondness. "Because it'll be real, and I'll know that the love you feel will be real as well."

I took in a deep breath, trying not to get consumed by the possibilities Samantha planted in my head. But I simply couldn't...

"You have such a way with words." I huffed playfully. "So, I'm really going to do this? I'm... I'm going to tell him that I... love him."

Samantha nodded; her expression full of enthusiasm. "That's exactly what you're going to do! You'll arrive as friends and leave together reveling in love."

"Won't leave tonight as friends." I muttered moreso to myself to... pep myself up.

But Samantha managed to hear me. "Exactly." She spoke, her tone full of satisfaction. "Now, enough chit chat. We must get our hair done." She added, jumping up from her bed before walking over to me.

"Yes let's..."

As I gazed at myself in the mirror, and I felt the occasional tugs of my hair, my mind began to wander. And soon enough, it wandered right onto Ominis. I was sure he was being a lot more composed than me. But part of me wished that he was just as giddy as I was. Or had thought of little scenarios about how out night would go like I had.

But I seriously doubt that would be going through his mind..

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

Cross, shift, pull, tie...

"Ominis?"

Cross, pull... shift, tie

"Uh, Ominis?"

Tie... tie... tie...

"Ominis! Are you trying to fix your tie or choke yourself?" My friends' words were humorous. And I could hear him try to, but fail to hold back a laugh.

"I couldn't tell you honestly." I admitted, laughing myself as I attempted to tug my fingers out of the knot, I managed to get them in.

I could hear Sebastian begin to walk over to me before I suddenly felt a slight tugging on my undone tie. "You can slick back and swirl your hair into... merlin knows how many swirls; you can somehow manage to perfectly button hundreds of those tiny damn things. But you can't fix a tie?" Sebastian muttered humorously.

I let out an exaggerated sigh before I replied. "I can't be perfect at everything can I?"

"Oh, shove off." Sebastian rebutted, breaking out into a laughter. "There, now that looks like a bowtie... you're welcome princess." He added mockingly.

I sighed, attempting to give him a glare. "Don't call me that."

Sebastian bellowed out another laugh before his footsteps began to wander in our room once again. "What would you prefer I call you?"

"Not that." I scoffed, carefully sitting back down onto my bed.

My thoughts began to push to the forefront of my mind, and it didn't take too long for it to fixate itself on her. Since she asked me, I couldn't help but spend many nights thinking about us... about her. Or how tonight would go, if by the end of the night we'd still be nothing more than friends... or something more.

Merlin did I wish we'd end up being something more. I don't know how much longer I can keep up this... facade with her.

"Ah, what's going on in that mind of yours?" Sebastian questioned but before I even attempted to respond he cut me off. "Is it her?"

"When did you get so bloody... observant?"

"I always have been, dear friend of mine. You just never bothered to notice." Sebastian boasted, I could only imagine how cocky his demeanor was as he spoke.

"My apologies, I've simply been too distracted by all the dabbling in the Dark Arts you did." I replied sarcastically.

"Hey, I stopped... eventually." Sebastian grumbled. "S-stop changing the subject... you two are way too good at it. You must've rubbed off on her."

I simply smiled at his words, soaking in the thought of her once again. The smooth sound of her voice, her raspberry iris perfume, her touch. I could drown happily in the thoughts of her, day in and day out.

I couldn't help but not to... I was hopelessly in love with her. And part of me was terrified because of it. But it was a fear I was thankful to experience in some way, and I'd experience it time and time again if it meant I could have her.

But I knew it my heart that I would never get that lucky...

"You should tell her, Ominis." Sebastian suggested, taking me out of my head once again.

I shook my head at his words, doubt began to replace the feelings of fondness I felt before. "I don't know..."

"What's there not to know? Tonight is the perfect opportunity to."

"I don't want to ruin things with her." I muttered lowly.

"Trust me, you wouldn't." Sebastian reassured me. "And, it's better to say something to her now. 'Cause it'll eat away at you mate, and you don't want that."

"How can you be so sure?" I questioned, genuinely wondering how his mind could work so optimisticly.

Sebastian let out a soft scoff, as if he was stating the obvious. "Friends don't act the way you two act with each other. And last time I checked I never saw you and Anne cuddled up on the common room couch."

"Well-"

"Or had Anne playing with your hair while you napped on her lap."

"Okay but-"

"And I know for a fact that I've never seen Anne get... viscerally envious because she heard a group of girls talking about trying to slip you a love potion."

"Okay, okay, I get your point." I managed to speak, letting out a huff. "I understand what you're saying, I do."

"Ah, finally, you admit I'm right. Your life would be so much easier if you said that more." Sebastian boasted once again. "So, you're going to tell her tonight then?"

"I am." I spoke strongly, though I couldn't help but feel that doubt that had stopped me so many times before seep through. "I can't believe I'm going to, but I am."

Sebastian sounded thrilled as he let out an elated laugh. "Finally! Seriously, watching you two pinning over each other was starting to get old."

"Sorry for the inconvenience." I apologized, rolling my eyes at Sebastian's theatrics.

"Don't beat yourself up over it." Sebastian replied nonchalantly.

"Now let's get a move on, you don't want to keep your lady waiting too long now do we?"

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

The second I left the Samantha's dorm and made my journey back to the Slytherin common room. It was like my nerves continuously dashed away with each step I took. I felt levelheaded, as cool as one could be. It almost eerie to me, how I felt so nervous one minute but then completely calm the next.

Things just... felt right, like whatever was bound to happen tonight was simply meant to be. And I couldn't wait to spend my night with him, gently swaying as time seemingly ceased to exist.

Damn Samantha and her romance novels.

"Well, someone knows how to dress up." I turned my head, following the sound of Sebastian voice.

But any reply I attempted to come up with was lost the second I saw Ominis.

Green looks amazing on him...

"Wow," I began, sitting up from the arm of the plush couch. "You look fantastic."

Ominis was stood there, that same, at ease smile I looked forward to seeing so much greeted me tauntingly. "I'm sure you do as well." He spoke gently, my hands were then lightly gripped and placed in his hold.

My eyes mindlessly wandered down to them, and the longer my hands were place in his the more I realized how warm his felt compared to mind.

"Well, on that note, I think I'll leave you two lovebirds alone." Sebastian teased, quickly exiting the common room soon after.

The silence that came after Sebastian left was comfortable. There was no pressure or... plaguing thoughts to think of something to say. It was as if we were taking each other in, or simply just wanted a moment to ourselves.

I began to trace the faint lines I could feel on his palms before moving over to the next. Ominis's smooth laughter came soon after, making me look up to gage his reaction.

"Reading palms now, are you?"

"Mhm," I replied, smiling softly. "You want to know what I see?"

"Yes, very much so."

"Okay, I see..." I paused, tracing over a particularly deep line, one that almost felt like a scar. "That you have great hands."

I could see that he was taken aback, but not uncomfortable. A light, red flush soon bloomed on his cheeks, illuminating his blue marble eyes.

"And, that your cheeks will glow with a marvelous red tinge." I added whimsically.

"Stop it." Ominis muttered, a light laugh following his meek words.

"Fine." I relented easily, smoothly dropping his hands before hooking my arm with his. "We have a ball to get to anyway."

It didn't take too long to find our way to the great hall, that had been transformed into an icy yet stunning ballroom. The sounds of the classical were an easy guide for the pair of us.

"There seems to be a lot of people here." Ominis spoke, I could feel his arm tense under my hold.

"Seems too." I replied nonchalantly. "Doesn't surprise me too much, after all, all we've heard about these past few weeks is the ball.

"I just... don't want to bump into anyone."

I took my eyes off of the crowd and back towards him. He looked nervous, unsure of himself.

Can't have that...

"Oh, don't worry about that, you won't." I reassured him, giving his arm a light squeeze. "That's what your lovely date is here for." I added teasingly, bumping my hip against his.

Though the worry was still evident on his face, Ominis had begun to smile. Hopefully I was able to ease his nerves slightly. "You definitely are lovely."

"Hmm, so are you." I complimented, before gently guiding him through the crowded hall. "More than lovely." I grinned as I saw his cheeks flushed again.

"Darling..." Though he sentence stopped once I did, finally managing to find an open enough place to dance.

Wordlessly, I clasped his hand, Ominis seemed to catch onto what I was doing and was quick to glide his hand from my ribs to the middle of my back. My breath became caught in my throat at his touch and my posture straightened.

Don't tense, don't tense... we're just dancing.

"Is this okay?" He nearly whispered; I hadn't even noticed how close we were to each other, as we glided... cheek to cheek.

"P-perfect." The breath that was got in my throat finally escaped as I spoke. "Wouldn't want to be in this embrace with anyone else."

"I don't think you mean that." Ominis stated bashfully, delicately turning us around before we began to glide again.

"I know that I do." I answered defiantly. "I honestly couldn't imagine dancing with somebody else."

"Really?" He didn't sound completely doubtful this time around, honestly, he began to sound a bit humorous.

"Are you doubting my honesty, Ominis?" I asked, trying to match his playful tone.

"No, no... i just think you haven't... considered your options." He replied carefully, trying his best to articulate his words.

"Hmm, let's me think then... Amit? Nice, but no. Garreth? He's nice as well but not my type... and he's definitely into Natty."

"Sebastian?" Ominis chimed in, his face becoming void of much emotion.

"No, I imagine he'd step on my feet all night. That sounds less than pleasant does it not?"

"You have a fair point." Ominis agreed, before a slightly sinister grin took over. "Leander."

I grumbled at the mention of the infamous Gryffindor's name, the vibrations of Ominis's laugh could be felt soon after. "Don't make me retch."

Ominis's hand began rub circles into my back, I began to smile at the sensation, closing my eyes as he began to lull me into relaxation.

But then...

"So, why, would you choose me?" He asked, my eyes opening once again.

"Wh-why are you-"

"I just want to know." He cut me off gently. "It's been baffling to me as to why you chose to go with me."

"Because I know you-"

"You know Sebastian quite well."

"Not in the same way I do you... not in the same way that you know me too." I explained, finding it hard to believe I was starting to be so open about something I was so used to shoveling down.

But I wasn't going to stop now.

"You... you make me feel safe, and I know that I can trust you with anything I come to you with."

"I'm not always the most... understanding with some of the things you've spoken to me about." Ominis argued, as if he was trying to downplay my points.

"And I love how honest you are with me. You don't fill me with false confidence, or some... mindless delusions. You're my voice of reason, my tie to reality."

His grip began to tighten on my, and I could see his jaw begin to tense. "Reality isn't always the sweetest."

"You make it sweet."

He stopped his movements at my words, his eyes shut, and his head lowered, shaking. "Stop it." He muttered lowly.

"Why?" I spoke quietly. "Why do you want me to stop?"

"You don't mean it, you, you can't mean it."

"You know I'm no liar." I stated bluntly. "I mean every word... and I mean it when I say that I love-"

A harsh bump made the pair of us stumble, our hold finally coming apart. My words fell mindlessly, like the many specks of enchanted snow that surrounded us.

"Oh I'm sorry!" A voice spoke, clearly beggining to panic at what they had just done.

"It's fine don't-" The sound of hurried footsteps stop me once again, and I didn't need to turn around to know who they had belonged to. I didn't bother to try and finish my sentence, instead opting to hurry after Ominis before I lost him completely.

That wand really did imprint this place in his mind...

I could hardly keep up with him as he ran through the mostly desolate hall. The only people who were lingering in them were broken hearted girls, and the occasional... handsy couples.

Thankfully, before Ominis could fully disappear from my sight. I managed to see him slip outside into the courtyard. I hurried toward the large double doors, hoping I had the chance to catch him.

"Ominis wait!" I called out, my breath desperately trying to calm itself.

He was at the now frozen fountain, leaning against the stone tensely. "Why are you doing this to me?" He asked through clenched teeth.

I stepped down from the snow-covered stone steps, carefully approaching him. "Doing what?"

"Toying with me like this!" His voice was trembling, and he was clearly upset.

Was I too forward? Did he not take what I was saying seriously?

"Toying with you?" I repeated distantly. "Do you really think I could be that cruel and careless to you?"

He turned his head toward me, his eyes seemingly swimming in emotions he was struggling to contain.

"Ominis, my emotions, what I've said tonight, was never a game. It's real to me and it always has been." I admitted, feelings of vulnerability began to creep in. "I- I honestly, don't know how much blunter I need to be for you to believe me but, whatever it takes I'll do it!"

"Darling," Ominis called out fondly, he took in a deep breath before he continued. Most likely wanting to compose himself. "I'm sorry I... It's my mind toying with me, not you."

I grasped his hands, gripping them in hopes of emphasizing my point. "Well, tell your mind to stuff it." I huffed, Ominis bit his lip, holding back a bout of laughter.

I then laid my head against his chest, and I felt him rest his against mine soon after. "Friends don't act this way with one another, do they?" His voice was deep, vibrating slightly through his chest.

"No... and most don't cuddle by the fireplace or... spend all night talking, not even caring about how exhausted they felt because... they were with each other.

I felt him drop my hands from his before his arms wrapped themselves around me. "I treasured those nights, you know that?"

"Feelings mutual." I spoke against his chest, taking in a deep breath of his cologne. "And I hope they're still mutual when I tell you that I've fallen in love with you, Ominis."

My heart at that point felt like it was about to burst through my chest. But at the same time, it felt as though a weight had been lifted off of it.

I had never felt so free yet so... terrified at the same time.

One of his hands that had been embracing me began to travel up my body. Undoubtably leaving goosebumps in its wake. My jaw was then cupped, and my breath stuttering once I felt his thumb gently tugged on my lower lip. Before gently tilting my head up toward him.

"Definitely mutual." Ominis muttered, his lips tauntingly ghosting over mine. "Is this okay, love?"

We weren't leaving tonight as friends.

I closed the gap that kept our lips apart, and with that action, my breath dissipated with it. But I honestly could care less about that. Not when it was stolen away because of Ominis, not when he every touch of his lips and hands warmed nearly every inch of me.

Not when I found out that he actually loved me too.

He pulled away a bit too soon for my liking. A tremor quaked through my body. And I couldn't tell if it was cause my body was finally aware of the cold. Or if I simply missed the sensation of Ominis's touch.

Ominis attempted to warm me up, rubbing my arms as he pulled me closer to him once again. "Cold? Would you like to head back inside?"

A mindless smile curved my lips, a hazy wave of lovesickness came soon after. "No, being here is perfect... nearly perfect."

"Nearly? What can I do to make things picturesque for you?"

"Just... kiss me again, please."

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

Hello, I hope you all enjoyed this fic. It was actually a request someone sent in, and I absolutely loved writing it!

Sorry if there were some typos. I tried to proofread it as I went along but sometimes things slip by me. I have another request sent in that I'm going to work on next. But if you liked this one and had an idea of your own. Send it in and I'll gladly take the time to write it for you! Until next time, Illusion.

[wonbriiize]

pairing; wonbin x reader

genre; fluff, friends to lovers

warnings; a bit of cursing, mentions of blood + a few other (small) horror related things

note; it‘s a bit long again i‘m sorry ㅠㅠ i think i just have a habit of writing a lot lmao,, anyway thank you guys already for taking the time to read this <3

for you

in which you go to the amusement park with your friends and you decide to go into the haunted house as pairs. although one of your friends (wonbin) is scared of it, he pulls himself together because he doesn’t want you to go with anyone else…

“come on, it’s going to be so much fun. let’s go in pairs of two!” you suggest excitedly.

“then i‘m going to go with sohee,” seunghan puts his arm around his best friend who nods in agreement. shotaro and sungchan look at each other, already declaring that they’re the second pair. “i really don’t want to go with anton,” eunsok rolls his eyes in annoyance. anton laughs, knowing that eunsok is just joking. they love teasing each other. “oh, stop lying, there’s no one else you’d rather go with than me.” “well, if that thought makes you sleep at night..” eunsok can’t help but to smile.

you look over to wonbin who looks like he would rather jump off a cliff then to go inside the haunted house. shit, you had forgotten that he’s afraid of those things.

“wonbin, you probably don’t want to go, right?” sungchan asks him. everybody knows that wonbin is scared of horror related things.

wonbin shakes his head. “not really. i will just wait outside.”

“then who’s going to go with *y/n*?” shotaro looks over to you, feeling sorry since you don’t have a partner.

“i love haunted houses so i don’t mind going twice,” anton says, smiling over to you. “wouldn’t it be too boring for you the second time?” it was a very nice thought of anton but you don’t want him to feel like he’s wasting his time. anton shrugs. “no, it’s fine. i’ll keep myself entertained with laughing at you for being scared.” “this won’t happen, i don’t get scared easily,” you stick your tongue out to anton and he laughs.

throughout your whole conversation with anton, wonbin kept watching the two of you. he isn’t going to let that happen. if anyone should go with you, it should be him. he decides that his love for you is bigger than his fear of haunted houses.

“i changed my mind, i will go with *y/n*,” wonbin announces, stepping forward.

it’s an understatement to say that everyone was shocked. no, everyone was more than just shocked. sungchan almost chokes on the juice he is drinking right now. “park wonbin is this really you?”

wonbin looks confused with everyone’s reactions. “okay, it’s no biggie, you all can stop acting like this.” “i think this isn’t wonbin, he probably got abducted by aliens and this is just a clone or something,” seunghan actually looks terrified. wonbin smacks his head lightly. “oh, get a grip! so are we doing this or not?”

everyone was still pretty shocked, but you guys nod and start walking to the haunted house.

pair after pair, all of you go inside. first it was seunghan and sohee‘s turn. when they walk out of it, seunghan was laughing but sohee seriously looks like he has seen real ghosts inside. it is the same with shotaro and sungchan. sungchan has the biggest smile on his face but shotaro keeps clinging onto him because he is actually afraid.

after eunseok and anton come out, wonbin and you get ready to go inside.

eunsok and anton both don’t look that bothered so it gives you a good feeling that you won’t be that scared either (you have the same horror tolerance as the two of them). wonbin on the other hand is trying to control himself so no one sees how scared he already is.

“you know some of them run after you with fake knives,” eunseok whispers once we walk past them.

“are you serious?” wonbins eyes look like they might fall out.

eunseok doesn’t reply anything, he just winks and leaves wonbin and you alone in front of the haunted house.

you take a look at wonbin and notice how he’s trying his best to look calm, but he’s failing miserably. his expression is exposing that he’s afraid.

when wonbin feels you intertwining your arms together, he instantly feels at ease. you notice that, which makes you smile.

“ready?”

“no, but let’s go,” wonbin takes one last deep breath and you two start walking into the haunted house.

it’s so dark you guys can barely see anything. there’s something hanging down from the roof, it looks like a spiderweb. all of sudden, you feel something on your head and you scream, scaring wonbin as well. he starts screaming with you.

“WHY ARE YOU SCREAMING??”

“THERE IS SOMETHING ON MY HEAD TAKE IT AWAY!!”

you stop screaming when wonbin pulls you closer. he looks over your head. “there is nothing.” “i swear i felt something.”“well whatever it was, it’s gone now,” wonbin steps back but you notice that he’s holding your hand. trying to play it cool, you clear your throat. “okay let’s move on.”

both of you walk, hand in hand, further into the haunted house. sometimes, there’s a few jumpscares which makes you both scream, but so far, there’s nothing too scary in this haunted house. even wonbin is doing fine.

“it’s not that bad actually,” he says. “i know right. it’s kind of fun,” you admit. “why did you change your mind though?”

“what do you mean?”

“why did you decide that you wanted to go into the haunted house too?”

this question catches wonbin offguard. he takes a few minutes to answer. “do you want me to be honest?”

okay, you think, this is getting deep now. you didn’t expect him to be that serious.

“uhm.. yeah?”

wonbin stops walking and turns around to you, still holding your hand.

“it’s ‘cause i didn’t want anyone else to go with you,” he admits, looking straight into your eyes. “it’s either me or no one. i changed my mind to prove to you that this is how much i like you.. i‘m willing to face my fears for you.”

now this catches you offguard.

wonbin has never said something like that ever before to you. sure, you did think that maybe there’s something true about what the guys have said to you.. wonbin likes you, they said. like, when sungchan came up to you a while ago and said that whenever anyone of them mentions your name, wonbin starts having the biggest smile on his face. of course he tries to hide it but he’s very bad at doing so.

another time, shotaro sat down next to you on the couch and whispered that wonbin has a crush on you. of course you thought that he was joking, but shortly after that, wonbin squeezed himself between the two of you. there was literally no space left but wonbin still didn’t care.

so yeah, you have thought about the possibility of him liking you.. you just never thought that it’s actually true.

the second you open your mouth to say something, your eyes wander to what’s standing right behind wonbin; a clown. smeared with blood all over his face. grinning like crazy. walking closer to you and wonbin.

you start screaming. “OH MY GOD.”

“okay well, you don’t need to make it that obvious that you don’t like me in that way,” wonbin looks down, letting go of your hand.

“SHUT UP AND LOOK,” you grab his shoulders, turning him around so he can see the bloody clown that‘s walking towards you two.

wonbin might have let out a scream that was even louder than yours.

“HOLY SHIT,” he turns back around to you.

you grab his hand. “RUN!”

the two of you start running, not looking back. you don’t even know if the clown is still chasing you, but you don’t care. running while holding hands with wonbin might just be your favorite thing in the world now. he‘s much faster than you so it’s hard for you to keep up with him, but he’s not letting you behind, he’s keeping you close.

arriving at the end of the haunted house, you both stop running. a person wearing a ghost costume approaches you, thanking you both for visiting the haunted house.

walking out of it, you guys are still holding hands. you secretly hope that wonbin will never let go. you don’t want him to.

“thank you for doing this,” you say. “for facing your fears.”

wonbin smiles, but he’s avoiding your gaze.

“this just made me like you way more than i did before. and i already liked you a lot.”

now, wonbin looks at you. his eyes are sparkling. he can’t believe what you just said.

“for you, i would do everything.”

he bends down to give you a short kiss, which leaves you wanting more. you want to keep him this close forever.

“but i won’t ever go to a haunted house again,” wonbin says, smirking against your lips before he kisses you again.

[binzlovenicetingz]

Idk if your taking requests for will or Luca but can you do one where the reader is saving themselves for marriage but is scared which will/Luca would leave them. Im sorry I’m feeling angst, fluffy. Not having a good day😭

hi hi yes i am taking requests imma a little slow with replies due to work but i will try my best and I’m sorry you weren’t having a good day. feel free to message anytime 🤎

I’ll give this one to Luca. You were honestly so scared to tell him that you were saving yourself for marriage because 1) that was still considered old-fashioned by some of your friends and 2) you didn’t want to lose him. the thought of your relationship with ending because you didn’t “put out” was always in the back of your mind every time a kiss getting too heated and you’d feel his need growing before you pulled away. If he was upset about it then he never showed it or was really good at hiding it

you shared this with some friends who shared story after story of their partner leaving or cheating because there was no sex. there advise only sent you spiraling further because what if Luca gets bored of waiting? he was a hot chef with tattoos and beefy arms, there wouldn’t be any issues with him finding someone who would be willing to give up all of themselves to him, you just weren’t one of them.

you thought that you were keeping it all together but Luca noticed a change in you for a while now. Opting to watch and listen until he started to ask what was wrong but you would push it off quickly, a small smile on your pretty lips wasn’t fooling him but you wouldn’t talk him and he could force you too

until one nice, his first night off in awhile and he just wanted to spend it laying in bed cuddled up with you. instead you were scrolling through your instagram, showing him every post that had a woman in a bikini or some tight athletic shorts, asking him if he thought this one was pretty or that one. he entertained you the first time but now Luca couldn’t stand seeing another influencers edit tits being shown.

with a tired sigh, Luca sits up, eyeing you carefully while you continued scrolling “what’s this really about, love?”

“about what?” you don’t look up, scrolling and liking post after post.

“what you’re doing now” Luca reaches over, taking your phone from your hand ad your quickly protest.

“you can’t just take my stuff like that!” you huff but quickly stop when you see the remorse on his face.

“I know and I’m sorry but I need you to focus on me, angel, please.” Luca gently cups your cheek, eyes filled with admiration and worry. “just..talk to me, please.”

you were a goner. instantly you were wrapping your arms around him, tears flowing and you tried to tell him about your insecurities, the worries and thoughts that go through your head.

Luca holds your close, letting you cry out but also soothing you. he couldn’t understand what you were trying to say but you softly whispering, “please don’t leave me” crushed him. after a few minutes, you felt yourself calming down while Luca gently rubbings small circles on your back.

“I’m not sure where this is coming from but I’m not leaving you.” he says gentle yet firm in his words, he makes sure your focus on him, “all those other people you showed me, there’s nothing compared to you, okay?”

you nod slowly before he places a kiss on top of your head. a sign leaving your lips, it was now or never, “I..um..Im-Im a virgin and I plan on keeping it that way until I’m married.”

Luca was slightly taken aback by your sudden confession and he must of looked surprised because you were quick to continue, word vomit claiming you as it’s next victim.

“I-I know it’s probably weird that I’m not putting out or whatever but this means a lot too me and I want to know that I’m g-giving myself to someone who truly loves me. so if you wanted break up or something then just do it now because I heard that if I don’t sleep with you soon, you’re going to find someone who will give it up easily to because that’s just something that’s gonna happen and-“

“whoa, who told you that crap?”

you shrug like a child caught but you still shared the name of some friends who told you those cheating stories. you can tell Luca was annoyed by that but he was quick to reassure you he’s not the type and that you might need to rethink some friendships if they aren’t being supportive of you.”

“I meant what I said, y/n. I’m not going anywhere”

for the first time in a while, Luca was able to see your perfect smile.

Satisfied that you were able to talk to him about your problems and work through them together.

[mixelation]

#5, #12 and #39 for the first askgame

get to know your fic writer

5. Do you like constructive criticism?

Talking about "constructive criticism" is often a trap, especially in fic circles, because everyone likes using this term but no one knows what it means. The word "constructive" implies utility to the writer and the writer's goals for their story; it does not mean the reader just says whatever they want "improved"/changed, no matter how nice or "helpful" you are about it. You cannot give constructive feedback to a writer unless you understand the context in which they wrote their fic and what their goals for it are. In other words, it is impossible to give "constructive criticism" unless the writer has actively communicated to you what they specifically want out of feedback. You must also then respect what the writer wants; giving feedback based on what you as a reader want out of a fic is unlikely to be useful to the writer unless their goal is to be as appealing as possible to your tastes (which.... don't assume that, jfc).

Many people in fandom cry "constructive criticism!" when they want to make demands from a writer to cater to their personal preferences, often with a little side of harassment. So, I might ask a question to readers with the hope of someone giving me actual constructive feedback, but no, I don't like "constructive criticism" in the way fandom at large uses it.

Also, sometimes the stuff I post was written on my phone on a bus, for my own entertainment. Why would I want constructive criticism on that?

12. How does receiving or not receiving feedback/support impact you?

I mostly write for my own entertainment. Sometimes the idea that someone will say something nice to me motivates me to push through on projects. Like, if I were 100% writing for myself, I would probably just not write a lot of otherwise "boring" scenes that are necessary for flow or info. But a lack of support probably wouldn't stop me from writing.

39. Share a snippet from a WIP.

from chapter 19 of Plasticity:

The filling of the first onigiri she bit into was incredibly spicy. She did her best to pretend it was totally normal, even as her sinuses started to run. The second onigiri was also spicy.  “I seem to have made a mistake,” Obito said, and then made an exaggerated noise of sucking snot back up into his nose.  “Why do you keep doing this?” Tori asked. “You know I like spicy food. It’s not going to work.” She was, actually, in tears. She shoved another bite into her face. She wanted to go buy more tea, but that would be admitting defeat.  “That’s why I keep doing it. Eventually it will work,” Obito replied, and he was close enough to her that she could see the rims of his eyes were red. “Russian roulette isn’t a fun game.” “Well, you’re playing it wrong.”

[hugsandchaos]

What Comes After Four?

Summary: Five short stories based on @zumbieve‘s list of little plots and headcanons.

Notes: Please know that I tried doing a bit of research on how to grow lavender, but I don’t have any myself. Or any plants. So to any lavender gardeners reading this, I apologize in advance if I get things wrong. Also, I’m sorry if the hinted sonadow bit isn’t as great as hoped. Any tips or suggestions on how to write it better would be very helpful! Oh, and I’m sorry if the last bit seemed rushed. It didn’t go according to plan, but I think it fits after watching the shenanigans in the Netflix series.

Word Count: 7,624 (This is the longest post I’ve ever made, y’all, my poor fingers)

1.Two Hearts Racing

If there was one thing Shadow truly appreciated about the universe, it was moments like this. Moments when he could relax and enjoy the scenery. The clouds above looked like if someone took cotton balls and glued them together, then made the finished products big and tossed them into the sky. The sunlight was pleasantly warm and bright. It felt as if no matter how much shone down on him, he was stuck between being happy with the right temperature and wanting more.

Shadow stood still in the field close to the edge of the nearby forest with his arms crossed. His head hung low and his eyes were closed. He occasionally opened them to look around, but other than that, he was busy taking in his surroundings with his other senses. It had rained recently, so the pleasant smell or petrichor still lingered in the air.

As for what he was hearing, Shadow’s ears were more sensitive than one would think. He heard all sorts of animals around him, but none of them seemed keen on approaching him. Except for one thing. A pair of footsteps.

Shadow opened his eyes again and turned towards where the footsteps were coming from. They were fast, really fast, and heading right towards him.

Sonic came out of the forest and skidded to a stop next to Shadow.”Hey, Shads!” He greeted. He raised an arm and leaned to the side to try to use Shadow’s head as an arm rest, but Shadow stepped backwards and almost let the taller blue hedgehog fall down. Almost. He grabbed him by the arm to hold him just an inch off the ground. Sonic made a noise of surprise and moved his arms around for a second. He turned to look up at Shadow, who looked down at him with slight irritation.

“I’m not an arm rest, hedgehog.” Shadow said.

Not only was this Sonic taller, but a lot of other anthropomorphic animals that were as big as Shadow were bigger, too. Amy, Knuckles, Sticks, but thankfully not Tails.

Sonic smirked and crossed his arms below him.”Well, why else are you short?” He asked. Shadow resisted a small laugh at the snarky remark.

“Because Professor Gerald knew if he made me any bigger, I’d truly be unstoppable.” Shadow replied. He let go of Sonic and let him fall the very short distance to the ground. Sonic’s face collided with his crossed arms, so there wouldn’t be much damage to it. Sonic let out an “oof!” when Shadow let go.”Now what is it?” Shadow asked. Sonic stood up and brushed himself off.

“I’m bored.” He said with a groan. His arms hung downward as he leaned forward a little to express his statement.”Eggman hasn’t attacked in a while, and there’s nothing to do.” He added.

Shadow raised an eyebrow at him.“Is that supposed to be my problem?” He asked.

“It is now.” Sonic replied. He poked Shadow’s face. Shadow didn’t care much for it the first time, but then the blue hedgehog had the nerve to continue. This time, Shadow turned his head away. Sonic persisted and stepped around him to poke the other side of his face. This time, Shadow lightly smacked his hand away. Sonic crossed his arms and furrowed his eyebrows.

Shadow turned his head to look up at him and simply stared for a short while. It wasn’t exactly his job to entertain Sonic, but what was the harm in doing it for a while? Shadow got an idea.”Alright, let’s race.” He said.

Sonic smiled and pumped a fist, almost hitting himself in the midsection.”Yes! Where’s the finish line?” He asked. Shadow looked around and pondered it for a moment. He pointed at one of the cliffs in the distance. It was so far out that there was a slight tint of blue to it.

“That cliff.” He said.

“You’re on.” Sonic said. He stepped forward to be even with Shadow.”Ready? One, two, three, go!” He said, rushing through the countdown. Sonic was off as soon as “go” left his mouth, and for a split second, Shadow watched the blue hedgehog take off. He fondly shook his head a little. That was an old trick. Then he followed after Sonic.

Shadow pushed chaos energy into his shoes to give them the power needed to gain speed. Soon enough, he not only caught up to Sonic, but passed him. He heard Sonic laugh and say “Oh, no you don’t!” before the blue hedgehog picked up the pace to catch up. Seeing him return, Shadow pushed ahead and let a small smile appear on his face.

~~~~~~

“Ha! I won!” Sonic said.

Shadow stopped and felt a very, very light thud as the power in his shoes vanished and let him back down onto the ground. He rolled his eyes at Sonic.”Yeah, yeah, act like I didn’t go easy on you.” He said.

Sonic smirked and bent over a bit to be at eye level. Honestly, Shadow was a tad bit insulted by it. Not enough to actually make him mad, though.”I know you didn’t. You seemed to be having fun, so I know you were trying.” Sonic said. Shadow turned away and walked towards a cliff.

“Whatever helps you sleep at night.” Shadow said. He stood the cliff edge and looked out at the ocean below. He crossed his arms out of habit.

Shadow wasn’t unfamiliar with tropical climates, but that didn’t mean they were his favorite. The high temperatures and humidity that was pretty much year-round got irritating after a few weeks. And being in the middle of the ocean like this meant storms must be common, especially with an island that was ultimately small like this one.

Surprisingly, he’s only experienced a few regular storms while being here the past few weeks. Still, Shadow much preferred the temperate climates. He liked the changes through the different seasons. Thinking about them, Shadow suddenly missed the snow a little. It was freezing and a bit of a problem in some missions, but still beautiful when he could take a minute to enjoy it.

There were a few mountains high enough that snow somehow remained on the peak everyday. He could go there in a few minutes.

“What are you doing?” Sonic asked.

“Enjoying the moment.” Shadow replied. Sonic sped from the opposing side of the cliff to the other and stood next to the hybrid.

“One of those “slow down and enjoy the moment” times? I didn’t think you were that kind of person.” Sonic said.

He hadn’t said it in an insulting manner, but he did sound a little sarcastic or like he was mocking him or others when he mentioned slowing down to enjoy what’s around you.

“Sometimes.“ Shadow replied. His eyes moved from one small wave to another. He could see several sea birds fishing down below. Their white feathers were a pretty stark contrast to the blue water they were soaring above and diving into. Shadow thought he saw some black moving in there as well. Did he know any black sea birds? Puffins were the first to come to mind, but he doubted they lived on the island.

Sonic sat down and let his legs dangle off the ledge. Shadow felt his heart pick up for a second seeing this, instantly worried that the blue hedgehog would fall. He stopped himself from reaching down and pulling Sonic away from the edge.”I guess it is kind of pretty.” Sonic said. Shadow nodded and soon turned his gaze back to the sea.

This Sonic was different from the one he knew. The most obvious difference being their height. Another thing was their attitude. This Sonic was more impatient and rather dumb. Sometimes, Shadow would watch him and Knuckles and think to himself that there’s only one braincell between the two of them and they either takes turns with it or can’t find it when it’s right next to them.

Not to mention immature, and what was it with hating pants? That didn’t mean he had no good qualities, either. As mean and sassy as Sonic can be, he clearly cared about his friends. He made fun of them, but meant for it to be lighthearted. His love for them often overcame his urge to make comments about things like Amy disliking fun when they were in danger.

Shadow recalled that time Tails had a migraine and Sonic spent the whole day looking after him. He tried setting up a perimeter fence around Tails’ house to prevent anyone from coming in and being loud, then proceeded to close every single curtain and try to get around only by flashlight. Tails was practically grounded that day and restricted to foods easy on the stomach.

Sonic had actually come to Shadow for his help with food that would be okay for Tails to eat without making him feel worse. Shadow helped out, and Sonic kept pacing back and forth as quietly as he could.

He also helped out the rest of the group at times, and when he does, there’s often a lot of effort put into it underneath some snarky or sarcastic comments and jokes. He also cared a lot about the village, despite how stupid and ridiculously rude the villagers can be. Shadow heard about how they got upset at Sonic for calling someone “a guy” and said he needed a lesson in compassion and empathy, even though he saved them from Eggman so often.

He thought it was absolutely ridiculous and ungrateful behavior. Shadow made sure to tell Sonic how he thinks that his efforts to help despite their behavior towards him was respectable and admirable later that day.

He had his flaws, but he also had his strengths. Taking care of his loved ones was one of them.

Shadow paused his train of thought immediately. He pulled the brakes so fast, they snapped and he hit the wall behind him.

His loved ones…

How was he going to explain to Rogue he’s fallen in love with a taller, goofier version of Sonic?

“You know,” Sonic piped up. Shadow blinked and glanced down at him.“I wonder why Eggman hasn’t attacked in a while. It’s honestly suspicious.” Sonic said.

Shadow resisted laughing at his comments.“Yeah.” He said, looking back at the ocean. He could practically hear and feel Sonic turning his head to look at him. Shadow gave no indication that he knew Sonic was looking at him.

“You did something, didn’t you?” Sonic asked. It wasn’t really a question. Shadow briefly thought back to his late night activity of breaking into Eggman’s base and unscrewing several robots and appliances, including but not limited to every pot and pan in the kitchen, then scattering them all around the island.

“I plead the fifth.” Shadow said.

2. Flowery Language

Shadow didn’t like Hedgehog Village one bit. The people were stupid and impolite, and Dave’s voice constantly sounding like a whine just angers a part of Shadow, like a knee-jerk reaction. The people were very noisy, and the town was usually bright. Not to mention the smell. That was partially thanks to the fact that being the ultimate life form obviously meant Shadow had to have good senses, but it turned out to be a double-edged sword.

To put it simply, Hedgehog Village was a small sensory nightmare. Obviously, he could tolerate it and keep his mouth shut, but if he didn’t have to, he wouldn’t. However, Amy asked for his help going to the library to look for a specific book. The library might be at least a little quiet, so he agreed.

He honestly envied her and the others sometimes for not being so irritated by these things in the same way he was.

Surprisingly, he was right about the library. He still heard lots of things, but it wasn’t as loud. Shadow knelt down to look at the lowest shelves and scanned the books from one end to the other. He stood up and shook his head at Amy, who looked disappointed.

“It’s gotta be here somewhere.” She said. She closed the book she had in her hands and put it back onto the shelf.”Let’s check the science section. Maybe it has botany books.” She suggested. Amy turned around and started walking towards the science section of the library. As a whole, it had quite a few shelves for such a small library.

Shadow followed her.“Why the sudden interest in lavender?” He asked. That plant was the reason for the trip in the first place, and they hadn’t found anything in the “Plants” section. He wouldn’t be surprised if it was to research what it symbolizes or if it can be used as a tea, which it can, but he figured he’d ask anyways.

“I want to buy lavender for my garden, but I have to learn how to grow and maintain it, and no one in Hedgehog Village knows how to do that!” Amy said. She’d accidentally let her frustration get to her for a moment and raised her voice.

As if on cue, the librarian — a purple monkey — peeked around a nearby shelf and shushed Amy.

Amy paused and smiled sheepishly.”Right. Sorry.” She said, this time in a much quieter tone. The librarian gave her the probably universal “I’m watching you” sign before rounding the shelf again and vanishing from sight. Amy’s expression fell and she glanced at the ground.“It’s ridiculous because it’s such a nice flower. You’d think at least one person would know how.” She said.

Shadow stood beside her and crossed his arms.“I’m not surprised.” He said. Amy looked at him confused and Shadow felt he needed to elaborate.“Lavender doesn’t grow in high humid climates, and unless you provide it the proper care, you won’t be able to. Lavender typically prefers full sun, well-drained soil, and a climate with cool winters and hot, dry summers.” He explained.

Amy’s eyes widened and she gasped. She suddenly grabbed Shadow by the shoulders. The action was fast enough to startle him, but he didn’t pull away, just glance at her arms.“Do you know how to grow it?” She asked hopefully. Shadow waited a moment to respond.

“Yes. I have a few seeds, actually. Would you like me to help you plant them?” Shadow offered.

Amy pulled her hands off him and nodded.“Yes! Let’s go!” She said.

The librarian shushed at her from around another bookshelf.

Amy’s shoulders scrunched up a bit and she looked at her apologetically.”Sorry!” Amy whispered.

~~~~~~

Back at Amy’s house, Shadow showed Amy the seeds.”These are French Lavender seeds. From what I know, they grow better in warm climates than other types of lavender.” He said. Amy nodded to show that she was listening.”It’s a good thing you brought this up now. Winter is the best time to grow lavender in tropical climates.” He added.

“As you know, the sun can get intense in the summer and afterwards, it rains, which increases the humidity and makes it pretty intolerable for the plant to thrive. I suggest we plant them now in a seed tray.” Shadow said.

Amy nodded.“Got it! I have a spare one in my shed. I’ll go get it!” She said. She stood up and rushed outside. A moment or two later, she returned with a black seed tray. She set it down on the table in the middle of her living room.”Got it. Now what kind of soil will we need?” She asked.

“This lavender grows best in well-drained, slightly alkaline, nutrient-poor soil with a pH between 6.7 and 7.3. You can avoid amending the soil with organic matter before planting. I heard we can mix it with a bit of sand to improve drainage.” Shadow replied. Amy nodded and went out to the shed. Shadow placed the seeds on the table and stood up to go help her find the best kind.

Shadow scanned the bags of soil before he picked out what he believed to be the best choice. He’d done research on how to grow lavender in a tropical climate out of curiosity, so he hoped that this would turn out well for Amy. It only took a few minutes to plant the lavender seeds into the tray.

After that was done, Shadow took a piece of paper from Amy’s Arts & Crafts drawer and started writing down things that Amy would need to remember. That the lavender would need full sun for at least six hours, to water it only one or twice a week when they’re still seeds, and to water them every two or three weeks once the roots are established.

What to look out for and how to fix the problem was written down, too. After, he put the pencil down and looked at Amy. She reviewed it and smiled.“Thanks for the help, Shadow!” Amy said. Shadow could see from the way that her arms moved for a moment that she wanted to hug him, but resisted.

He felt a little grateful for her restraining herself from hugging him without warning or asking. However, now was a time he’d accept a hug, so he stepped closer and offered one. It was just a brief side hug, but Amy’s smile grew, so Shadow took that as a success.

“You’re welcome. If you have any questions, let me know.” He said.

“Well, here’s one! Since it’s lunch, wanna stay for lunch and tea? I’ve got a new kind I think you’ll like.” Amy suggested.

Shadow pondered it for a moment before he nodded.

3. Campfire Talk

It was an odd thing to know how you got yourself into something, and yet still question how you got into it. Shadow knew this, now more than ever, but not in a bad way. There weren’t any threats around, and the weather wasn’t bad. It was good, actually. There wasn’t a cloud in the sky, which allowed Shadow a nice view of the stars through the canopy.

However, when he agreed to go on a camping trip with the group, this wasn’t what he was expecting. He expected them all to go together, not be split up into three groups. Shadow also expected Sticks to want to go with Shadow the least given how she acted strangely about his chaos abilities. Shadow wasn’t going to argue, though. One of the things he appreciated about the feral badger was that she could easily keep quiet and not make it feel awkward.

Sonic and Tails teamed up while Knuckles went with Amy. Everyone else was close enough that they could shout for each other, but they were far enough apart that they wouldn’t hear much of what each other would say. Shadow sat in front of the campfire and stared up at the stars. The fire crackling, wind in the trees, crickets, and occasional owl hooting was little more than pleasant background noise.

Sticks was sitting by her tent and hadn’t spoken much in a while, which was appreciated. Moments like this, when Shadow could take a moment to look around, listen, and relax, they were precious to him.

Unfortunately, it was cut short too soon by the sound of rope being disturbed and pulled, followed by the frantic squeaking of a rabbit. Shadow and Sticks both looked over and Sticks sighed.”Just a rabbit.” She said to herself. She stood up and walked over to the trap that’d been set off with a hunting knife. She cut the rabbit free and started resetting the trap that was meant for actual threats.

The rabbit bounded off like its life depended on it. In a way, it did.“I’ve got some food in my bag if you want any.” Sticks said. She finished setting the trap back up and walked over to the log they dragged to use it as a seat.

“No thanks. I don’t feel like eating.” Shadow replied.

Sticks sat on the log and sighed.“Okay, be completely honest with me. I’ve got to know. If you say yes, I won’t tell anyone of you don’t want me to.” She asked. The atmosphere suddenly turned serious when she said that.

Shadow had conflicted feelings about the badger. As much as he can deal with her paranoia and conspiracy theories, the ones about aliens, science experiments, and agents strike a nerve in him. At least she’s toned it down a little since he said he wasn’t a normal hedgehog and repeated that he was the ultimate life form. They made him sound less of a person.

“You say you’re the “ultimate life form” and not only a hedgehog. My question is; Are you an alien or not?” Sticks asked.

Shadow was used to not showing how he feels, so he was able to avoid letting the conflicted feelings from that question reflect on his face. Shadow could lie, but she promised. Then again, people do lie about promises and break them. But maybe he could give her a chance? She’s his friend now, isn’t she? Friends trust each other with what species they truly are.

“Complicated question. I was created on a space colony, and half of my DNA is from the Black Arms alien race.” Shadow replied. He glanced over at Sticks to see how she’d react.

Her eyes were widened a little in shock, but they’re not also looked curious. Her eyes moved up and down as she looked him over. Shadow would’ve preferred it if she didn’t do that, and he was going to say it, until she looked at something behind Shadow.“Is that why you have those red stripes? And why your quills point up instead of down like Amy’s and Sonic’s?” Sticks asked.

“Yes.“ Shadow replied. He thought for a split second that the reason she looked behind him was that there was something behind him. Guess she was looking at his quills. Sticks nodded in understanding and turned back to the fire.

The campsite descended back into silence. This time, there was something hanging in the air. Nothing heavy, but rather light. It was like a silent understanding, and glancing over at the badger, Shadow soon realized what the “understanding” part was. Sticks was probably realizing that being an alien didn’t inherently mean someone wanted to control people’s minds.

Shadow couldn’t help but think that it was about time she realized that, but better late than never.

“What was it like? Growing up in space?” Sticks asked quietly.

Shadow pondered that question. He thought back to what the ARK was like before and how to put it into words.“It was… quiet. There was the constant noise of the engines and machines, people going about and doing their jobs, but it was overall quiet. Instead of a sunrise or sunset, a lot of the automatic lights would slowly dim until the room was dark. The view of the Earth from the windows never got boring.” He said.

He spoke in a quieter tone than usual. He could feel a wall coming down slowly, and he decided he’d let it. It was a simple, innocent question.“Sometimes, my sister and I would stand in front of one of those windows in a room not very frequented by other people and talk about… everything, I guess.” Shadow said. He hadn’t even realized he was still going until he was halfway through.

He looked back at Sticks again and was a little surprised to see that she had an excited look on her face.“You have a sister? What’s she like?” She asked, eager to learn more about Maria.

If she’d asked that before they became friends, Shadow might’ve been saddened by the question, and that sadness would almost immediately turn into anger. He’d probably have turned around and leave quietly, not wanting to speak and hold himself back from lashing out. Or maybe he would’ve said “She’s dead” and hope it would get her to shut up.

Now, however, Shadow actually felt a little happy she asked. He felt happy to have the chance to talk about her. The corners of his mouth curved up into a small smile.“She was very kind and caring. Professor Gerald might’ve been my creator, but she was my first friend. Her name was Maria. She made me feel safe, especially during the first few months of my life.” He said.

There were a million more things Shadow could say about her. He could talk about her love for the cosmos and prehistoric life, and how she’d request books and even a curriculum for those two subjects whenever she was asked if she wanted anything from Earth. He could talk about how she would fly off the handle at the scientists whenever they’d harm him to test his healing and regeneration abilities.

He could go into detail about the many times Maria would be both encouraging and cautious when he wanted to practice his abilities, or that time he declared her his favorite person and she pointed at Professor Gerald and laughed at him as he dramatically said that Shadow had broken his old, frail heart. Shadow could go on and on about his life on the ARK, and a good portion of it would be spending time with his sister.

Then again, everyone else was often busy, and given their close bond, it sometimes felt like they were the only thing the other truly had during the bad days.

“Would she like me if we met?” Sticks asked. Shadow snapped out of his memory trip and came back to reality. He took a moment to process the question before he answered.

“You know what? I think she would.” Shadow said. Sticks lit up a little at that and smiled as well.“She would’ve joked about how since she grew up on the space colony ARK, she was technically an alien. And something tells me that if she was still around for me to introduce you all to, the first thing she would’ve said was “Oh my goodness, you’re all short” and then laugh.” Shadow added.

Sticks’ face suddenly fell while he was talking. It took Shadow a second to figure out why, but once he did, he wanted to turn away.”Oh. I… I’m sorry for your loss.” Sticks said.

“It’s fine. I’m still going through it, but… I think this was one of the times I wanted to talk about her.” Shadow said. He turned his gaze back up to the stars. Just as he did, a shooting star flew across the sky in a brief streak of light.”Thanks for giving me the chance to talk about her.” He said quietly.

He heard a small hum from Sticks, and surprisingly, it sounded like she was saying “I want to say you’re welcome, but that’d be awkward”. After that, the campsite fell back into the sounds of the crackling fire and other such noises. The air felt a little lighter and Shadow felt a little more relaxed than before.

4. Twenty Thousand Questions

The heavy rain from the storm hit the roof of Tails’ house like a very loud, metallic pitter-patter. It hit the windows with a ton of tiny thuds, and the faint sound of water rushing down the rain gutters was only noticed during moments of silence between the two hedgehogs and one fox kit. Shadow sat on the hanging couch and smiled a little at the fort built in the living room using rearranged furniture and carefully placed blankets held in place by heavy books.

Inside the fort, Sonic and Tails were sitting together side by side. Tails was leaning against Sonic and huddled close to him while he tried to calm himself down. Just like in Shadow’s world, this Tails was afraid of lightning. To help him calm down, Sonic and Tails dipped into their routine and made a blanket fort for them to hide in.

Shadow chose to stay outside of the fort. He simply didn’t want to go in. He’d rather be able to look out the window and watch the rain smack against the glass. The dark grey skies weren’t very intimidating to him, and neither were the flashes of lightning or clap of thunder. He had no reason to hide in there. Although, he’d be lying if he said that he didn’t feel a little bad when Tails seemed disappointed that he wouldn’t join them.

“Shadow?” Tails piped up.

Shadow hummed and glanced down at the entrance of the fort closest to him. Tails had poked his head out of the fort and was holding a clipboard and pencil. Which was a little odd considering Shadow hadn’t noticed him bring it into the fort. Then again, it was Sonic who brought some things inside.“I have a few things I’d like to ask you.” Tails said.

A distraction! Shadow could try to distract him from the lightning by answering his questions. The hybrid gave him a nod. Tails lit up a little bit and he looked at the clipboard. Shadow wondered if he had these questions for a while and just never got around to asking them.“First question; Why do you wear those rings all the time? Even Amy takes hers off every once in a while.” Tails asked.

Shadow’s eyes flickered down to the golden rings on his wrists at the mention of them.“They’re my inhibitor rings. They stay on for everyone’s safety.” He replied. For a moment, he thought back to the last time he had them off for too long. The blast from the chaos energy when it went from gradually building to shooting up in power was enough to knock the rings and himself back.

Luckily, he managed to get them on since he landed very close to them. Still, it hurt a lot, and Shadow needed a day off to recover from the injury he suffered from the blast.

Tails raised an eyebrow at his response.”What do you mean?” He asked. His hand hovered above the paper, ready to write.

Shadow turned his gaze back to Tails.“I was created with chaos energy flowing through my body. Far too much for my body to handle, actually, so I have to wear these rings to help me keep the chaos energy under control.” He explained.

Tails perked up a little and raised an eyebrow.“Oh, yeah, you mentioned that before. What is chaos energy anyways?” He asked. It wasn’t the first time he’d asked that, but at the time, Shadow didn’t answer. He was busy trying to wrap his head around the concept of chaos energy not being present anywhere in this world.

It was funny. Even after a few weeks spent here, Shadow still felt a little shock hearing that question.“It’s… hard to say. It does all sorts of things, and it’s nearly impossible to control. There are seven chaos emeralds in the world where I’m from, each one with the ability to control an aspect of the universe. With all seven, one could turn their thoughts into reality.” Shadow explained.

Tails’ eyes widened and his jaw fell. Sonic scrambled to poke his head out above Tails’, which was honestly a little funny.”What?!” Sonic asked, just as baffled by what Shadow had said as his little brother. Shadow nodded and simply watched as the both of them simply sat in stunned silence.

Soon, they both looked to be zoning out. They weren’t staring at what was in front of them anymore, and frankly, Shadow began to worry that he just broke their minds. He was about to move or speak up, but Tails beat him to it.

“Control… reality?…” Tails muttered under his breath. Then he shook his head.”There’s no way!!” He blurted out in disbelief.

Shadow almost chuckled at this. He knew that in this world, chaos energy didn’t exist. He sensed it from the moment he appeared. The complete lack of chaos energy that he could usually feel around himself, some places more than others, had actually scared Shadow for a while. Ironically, Shadow being a creature of chaos energy seemed to be the reason why he was able to be there without causing some great damage to this universe.

If it didn’t exist in this universe, then he should’ve expected this sort of reaction from someone. Especially a kid. Shadow had a bit of a soft spot for kids. He wouldn’t say he was good with kids, but he definitely wasn’t the worst. He was patient with their endless questions about everything. Sometimes, he rather enjoyed answering them.

Their reactions to the answers he’d give them were often fun to watch. Just like right now. He smiled at Tails and nodded.”It’s true.” He said.

“Wait, so like magic?” Sonic asked.

Shadow deadpanned at him.“Chaos energy.” He corrected. Yes, chaos energy was largely unknown and worked differently than the rest of the laws of the universe, but calling it magic just didn’t seem right. From what he was told, there was magic, but it was different from chaos energy.

“Aaand you have some in your body?” Sonic asked, pointing a finger at him. He seemed to ignore Shadow’s correction.

It was a little irritating, but the hybrid tried to ignore it in favor of answering his question. For now.“Yes, an exceptional amount for any other living being. In fact, it’s how my shoes work. I can push chaos energy into them to power them. The more energy I push, the faster I go.” He replied. Tails started writing furiously on the paper.

The sound of the pencil tip moving around and against the paper was pretty small under the sound of the rain, which was still assaulting the house and ground with as much strength as when it suddenly came down.“So they won’t work if we tried putting them on?” Tails asked, not looking up from his paper.

“No, they wouldn’t.“ Shadow confirmed. Tails scribbled some more before stopping and looking up at Shadow.

“What else can you do with your chaos energy?” He asked.

“I don’t need to eat to live. I can survive off of the chaos energy, which I didn’t realize was something that seemed impossible until I told Rogue about it.” Shadow said. He had more to share, but he waited until Tails had it written down to continue. He found it endearing that Tails

“I use it to teleport. I simply imagine where I want to go in enough detail that it’s as if I’m there, and I’m there, but without any boost, I’m limited to close range teleporting. I can channel raw chaos energy as a form of electricity into a spear-shaped energy construct and fire it as an energy bolt from my hands. The damage done can be manipulated as well, so I can control if it stuns someone or inflicts major injuries.” He continued.

Suddenly, a loud boom from the storm followed by a flash of lightning interrupted the moment. Tails yelped and pulled himself further into the fort, his clipboard and pencil forgotten as the fell to the floor. Shadow leaned forward and turned his body to hop off the hanging couch, but paused.

Sonic was already wrapping his arms around Tails and giving him quiet words of reassurance and encouragement. Perhaps his comfort wasn’t needed. Still, Shadow moved off the couch and walked over to the fort. He sat next to the entrance, hoping that simply being closer would help so he wouldn’t interrupt.

A few minutes later, Tails had calmed down enough to turn back to the entrance. He saw the dark hybrid was closer and moved to grab the pencil and clipboard, then make himself comfortable next to Sonic. Now he wouldn’t have to peek his head out if he wanted to speak to Shadow. It was a small act, but he hoped it would help.

As time stretched on, Tails asked more and more questions. Questions about chaos energy, what Shadow can do with it, how the chaos emeralds and the master emerald work, what the rest of the world is like, and even asked about Rouge and Omega. Before they knew it, the heavy rain slapping the window faded away and the thunder grew more distant until it couldn’t be heard anymore.

The more Tails became fascinated with chaos energy and Shadow’s world as a whole, the less he paid attention to the storm. He was still startled badly by the lightning, but at least Sonic’s hugs and Shadow’s answers helped him relax and calm down easier. At end of it, the kit moved away from his main source of comfort and protection to get closer to Shadow to show him all that he wrote.

The dark hybrid took this as a win, and he hadn’t failed to notice Sonic smiling at Shadow with a certain look. It was like a silent thank you, to which Shadow nodded.

Tails looked up at Shadow from his paper and smiled.“This is all pretty unbelievable, but if you’re here, then it must be true. Still, I want to see some of it for myself! Since the storm is gone, let’s go outside and you can show me!” He said excitedly. He grabbed Shadow’s hand and started pulling him towards the door.

Shadow stopped himself from being pulled very far as Sonic got up. Tails looked at Shadow confused when he suddenly stopped. Sonic walked over to them and put a hand on Tails’ shoulder.“I don’t know, little buddy. It’s pretty dark out and you’ve been yawning for a while. You should head to bed.” He said.

Tails looked disappointed at that.”What? But I’m not even tired!” He said. That was bad timing since as soon as he said that, he opened his mouth wider and yawned. Sonic raised an eyebrow and smirked, silently asking if he was sure about what he just said. Tails glared at him. Shadow almost shook his head fondly at this.

“I’ll show you some of it tomorrow.” Shadow said.

Tails gave him a look of betrayal and stammered. Eventually, he groaned in resigned frustration and let go of Shadow’s hand.“Oh, fine. But I’ll hold you to that!” Tails said. He climbed onto the hanging couch and pushed the back down so he could use it as a bed. He grabbed a pillow and blanket, made himself comfortable, and closed his eyes.“Goodnight.” He said.

“Goodnight.” Shadow said back.

“Goodnight, Tails.” Sonic responded.

5. Brawn Gets A Little Brain

Shadow stood firm on the grass covered ground, refusing to move back even a single step and pushing forward against the red echidna. This other version of Knuckles was easily twice Shadow’s size, but he was far from twice his strength. In fact, it was Shadow who was currently winning. Knuckles grunted and gave another shove, but Shadow remained where he was.”My turn.” He said.

Shadow gave the echidna a shove with enough force to push him back, and nothing more. Knuckles made a noise of nervousness as he started to loose his balance and stumbled back. This was it. Shadow’s chance to end this. He gave another shove and stomped forward to make sure he pushed Knuckles onto the ground.

He let go of Knuckles’ hands when he started to fall back. There was a very small thud when Knuckles hit the ground. Shadow couldn’t help but feel smug and cross his arms. It was only a few minutes ago that Knuckles approached Shadow with a request. It was a simple one. Just a game of wrestling. Originally, the hybrid was going to decline, but Knuckles said he wanted to see how strong a short person can be.

Of course, he didn’t use all his strength, but it wasn’t entirely easy. Knuckles was still pretty strong. Shadow watched him take a moment to lay on the ground.”How’s that for “short person strength”?” Shadow asked sarcastically.

“Awesome! I’ve never been able to actually wrestle with someone.” Knuckles replied. He spoke with genuine happiness and he gave Shadow a thumbs up. He stood up and smiled at Shadow.”That was fun! Let’s do it again!” He said. He wiped a few beads of sweat off his head. Today was especially warm, and frankly, Shadow was most excited for a dip in some nice, cool water.

“Again? Even though you just lost?” Shadow questioned.

Knuckles shrugged and held both arms out.“What can I say? I’m suddenly feeling competitive!” He said. He quickly changed his stance and readied himself for Shadow to tackle him, hands open to grab.“Now come at me!” He said with a smile and playful glare. Shadow rolled his eyes, but obliged. He shoved himself forward and had to reach up to grab onto Knuckles’ arms and start pushing him back. He was met with resistance, but he wasn’t going to give up anytime soon.

(Twenty minutes of wrestling later bc I can’t figure out how to write it T_T)

Once again, Shadow won.

He was sitting next to the panting echidna on the ground and smiling a little, working to catch his breath as well. He breathed in through his nose, and out through his mouth.”You’re a respectable opponent, Knuckles.” He said. He continued the breathing exercise.

“Thanks. You too.” Knuckles said.

Shadow breathed out sharply through his mouth like a laugh. Of course he was. One should expect nothing less from the ultimate life form.

Once they both caught their breath, Shadow stood up and brushed himself off.”Are we going Round Three?” Knuckles asked.

“You mean Round Four. We just did Two and Three.” Shadow corrected.

“Oh, right. Sorry, not good with numbers.” Knuckles said. That was an odd thing about him. Sure, the Knuckles from Shadow’s universe was no genius, but he knew how to count. This one didn’t, and it became clear over time that it wasn’t just some joke between the group. Shadow didn’t really understand it. He figured someone would’ve taught him by now. If not a parent or teacher, at least the others. Should he teach him?

Wait a minute… If they weren’t joking about the numbers thing, then…

Shadow turned to Knuckles as he stood up.”Honestly, I can’t read, either. Or predict the weather! I wonder how the tv people do it.” He said. Shadow looked at Knuckles in disbelief and searched for any hint that he was lying and it was another weird joke. After a moment or two, he realized it wasn’t. Looks like his plans to cool off in the water would have to wait.

“Change of plans. Come with me.” Shadow said. He grabbed onto Knuckles’ arm, and in a flash of blue light, both of them vanished.

(Two Weeks Later)

“I want your love and I want your revenge.”

“You and me could write a bad romance.”

In the kitchen, Shadow worked on the waffles for breakfast. The window to his right let some of the golden morning light in, and his phone was placed on another counter safely out of the way. It was playing a karaoke version of “Bad Romance”, a song that was one of his favorites. It wasn’t on blast or anything, just loud enough for him to comfortably hear while quietly singing along.

The quiet music, pleasant smell of waffles cooking, and gentle morning light in his cabin made for a nice moment for the dark hybrid. Shadow paid no attention to the sound of the group moving around and talking in the next room, as long as they’re left him to his music.

“I want your love and all your lover’s revenge.”

“You and me could write a bad romance.”

Shadow opened the waffle iron and checked them. As expected, they looked great and ready to eat. He turned it off and unplugged it so he could get the waffles out and onto the plate.

“Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh-oh, oh-oh-oh.”

“Caught in a bad romance.”

Shadow left the waffle iron open to let it cool down. He looked over at the plate of waffles and the bowl of scrambled eggs. He was finished. But who said he couldn’t take a moment to let the music finish? It was almost done, anyways. Shadow smiled to himself and turned around the lean against the counter. He paused.

Sonic and Tails were standing in the doorway and staring at him. Both of them had eyes wide in surprise, but Sonic seemed more so than Tails with his mouth slightly agape. Shadow stared back at them. If it wasn’t for the karaoke music still playing, it would’ve been a slightly awkward silence.

Okay, the music ended. Now it was a slightly awkward silence.

Not wanting to appear embarrassed, Shadow raised an eyebrow at them.“Can I help you?” He asked.

Tails nodded.”Oh, yeah! Knuckles said you’ve been him how to read and count?” He asked. Sonic showed no sign that he heard him.

“Someone had to.” Shadow replied. He stood straight and looked over at the food on the counter. He grabbed a waffle off the plate, then his phone, and started walking towards the doorway.”Food’s done. Help yourselves to what’s on the counter.” He said. Sonic finally reacted when he came closer, shaking his head and stepping to the side to let him through.

Tails smiled.”Sweet! Thanks, Shadow!” He said. He rushed to the counter to start getting some food.

“Yeah, thanks! Oh, and Shadow?” Sonic said. Shadow paused and turned around. Sonic smiled nervously.”This is gonna sound really cheesy, but seriously, you sounded like an angel.” He said.

Shadow’s face suddenly felt warmer hearing that compliment. Damn it, how was this idiot making his heart skip a beat with one simple compliment?! He’s heard the same thing before from Rouge. He hoped to whatever god there was that he wasn’t blushing, and if he was, that Sonic wouldn’t notice.

“Thank you. Enjoy your breakfast.” Shadow said. He turned around and promptly made his way outside to stand on his porch and eat in peaceful solitude.

Ironically, Knuckles was sitting on the steps, but he was focused on the book Shadow got for him to start reading. Looks like he was enjoying it. Shadow stood to the right of the door and took a bite out of his waffle.

[wireheadbird]

Missing You [2]

previous chapter

(Al-Rawabi) female reader

Note : I've decided to make it into a Hiba fanfic, but this chapter is still kind of a build up. I'm working on the third chapter at the moment which will finally have much more interaction with Hiba. Also for the side characters which I don't remember the names of I will be making them up (like this chapter, one of Layan's brothers name I think wasn't mentioned?? also can someone remind me how many brothers Layan has? I think it was 3) Warnings : Mentions of death, abuse, slut shaming, mentions of bullying, angst (so much), grief, swearing, blood. Summary : Y/N goes to Layan's memorial and has a fight with the others for allowing Mariam to join, when she's back home a misunderstanding happens causing Y/N's brother to punish her just like old times.

1,440 ___________________________________

It's been a tiring first week, there were already girls who built a high reputation for themselves in such a short period of time. But a group of girls stood out the most to me. They reminded me so much of Layan and I when we hung out with our friends Rania and Ruqqaya. Especially Tasneem, she was so much like Layan and so nice and sweet. But her friend? Hiba? I despised her, hated her with a passion, ever since she banged on the bathroom stall mocking me with just a smile.

Ever since then she hasn’t left me alone as she repeatedly stopped me in halls, classes, locker rooms, restrooms, everywhere. She was everywhere taunting me just because she found it entertaining to do so. “What’s wrong, loner? Don’t have any friends? Aww no one wants to be around you, I can see why.” she would say. And because I never responded she’d eventually get bored and leave only to return the next day.

It was finally the first weekend. I was in my room when I got a text from a number I hadn’t seen pop up in a while, that read ‘It would be great to have you there y/n’ Rania then sent a location along with another attached message, ‘A memorial for Layan’. My finger hovered over the notification until I pressed it. She also sent the time and picture of the entrance. ‘It’s tonight’ she typed, I didn’t reply not wanting to promise anything. 

I put together an outfit carelessly, a sweater and jeans with sneakers. Then checked the time to see how long I had left but not before poking my head out the door listening to see if anyone other than me was home, thankfully I was alone, and I had about an hour to spare so I decided to have a walk around the area, locking my room so they’d think I’m sleeping. 

Once I arrived I was surprised and overwhelmed by how many people were going into the room the memorial was being held in, I contemplated on whether I should go in or just leave and go back home. They’d understand, right? But it didn’t feel right… So instead I decided to watch from outside of the building, the room had lots of windows so it wasn’t hard. For once I was grateful for how dark it was outside because whoever was inside couldn’t see me. More people were flooding in and so did the memories. Eventually Rania came in with Noaf and….Miss Abeer? Shit.

But that wasn’t all, when Rania sang a song in honor of Layan, she nodded towards someone at the entrance to come and sit with a smile. When I shifted my eyes in curiosity as to who came in when everyone was here… “no..” I whispered to myself. ‘How dare she show her face here?’ I thought to myself. To say I was enraged would be an understatement, tears welled up in my eyes in frustration once they comforted her as she cried. I felt betrayed. Everyone knows she’s the reason Layan was caught. If she had just minded her own business, I would still have my older sister. But instead she’s here…crying!? When she clearly has no right to.

I waited until everyone started to leave, leaving only Noaf, Dina, Rania, Ruqqaya, and Mariam catching up sitting in a circle, before slowly walking inside the room tear stains evident on my face. “y/n?” Noaf sprinted towards me for a hug which led the others to come forward as well. However, my eyes didn’t leave Mariam’s face where she awkwardly stood avoiding my gaze which eventually the others realized and let go making the tension in the room grow more intense. “I think…it’s best I leave. My mom is waiting for me” I felt too betrayed to move as I watched her leave.

“Are you guys serious? You invited HER?” My voice cracked while I stared at them in disbelief “she feels remorse, it wa-” Dina attempted to defend her “SHE’S A KILLER FOR FUCKS SAKE!” I take a step towards her with my eyes still wide in shock about the fact that they continuously defended her. “Hey. It wasn’t her fault. She was defending herself from your bullshit. If anything it’s definitely your brother’s fault he killed her for “honor” what kind of family does that? You all are SICK.” Noaf walked out after that with Dina following behind calling her name, neither sparing anyone a glance. 

I turned towards the other two who stepped closer to me in an attempt of comfort but I just stepped back and looked at them, “Is that what you think as well..?” “y/n of course not, I get where you’re coming from, but what’s done is done and throwing the blame around over something that fate had decided is no use.” Ruqqaya pulled me in for a hug, which Rania eventually joined, and my head instantly slumped on her shoulder allowing the tears of grief to fall. No matter how much I cried it never seemed like enough. Never seemed like the grief would end. “I miss her so much” my voice broke into a sob “we miss her too y/n, we miss her too” Rania sniffled patting my back gently. 

__________________________________________

I lost track of time and arrived back home when it was close to midnight, carefully making my way up the stairs knowing that there’s a high chance my parents or brothers are back home. “Where were you?” Saleh, the second eldest, sternly asked, but before I could even think of an answer he pulled me towards him roughly by my hair while he stared intensely at my neck. He gave me a look of pure disgust and hatred, then striking my face which automatically made me yelp in shock and pain. ‘The cigarette burn! I’ve hidden it pretty well for a while I’m sure of it. Must’ve smudged and wore off leaving the angry irritated wound to stand out’ 

“What’s going on? Saleh what happened why’d you hit her??” my mom tried to pry off his hands from my hair but he only tugged harder making my face scrunch up in pain. My eyes were so dry from all the crying today I had no strength to cry anymore. “Your second mistake of a daughter is following into her older sister’s shoes.” He angrily points at the burn, it took me a while to understand what was going through his mind and when I did I tried to clear things up. “No wait you don’t understand! I swear it’s not what you think, I got burnt doing my hair I swear it” I attempted to defend but he didn’t seem to believe me, and neither did my mother with the evident look of sadness and disappointment showing up in her eyes. 

“I say we punish her so she doesn’t turn into her slutty sister. Who died in shame.” He spat, “How could you say such a thing about Layan you stupid son of a-” I attempt to repeat his actions back at him but before I lift my arm to swing it he doesn’t hesitate to smash my head against the railing causing my mom to scream at him to stop but I just feel the tugging at my hair get more intense till he throws me into the shared bathroom and locking me in. My vision was blurry and I could feel some sort of liquid trickling down my head, I reached for it and saw that it was my own blood. Suddenly the lights flickered then went off. This. THIS threw me off. They know I hate being trapped in dark tight spaces. 

“I don’t want to hear a single sound from you. UNDERSTOOD?” my father shoved his pointed finger in my tear stained face. Yelling at seven-year-old me for making a fuss about not eating my food, which I didn’t like because I hated vegetables. When I didn’t respond and just continued crying he put me in his closet and locked it with his key causing me to only scream louder and hit the closet door in an attempt to get out. After a while Layan, who was 8, would always unlock the closet with a screwdriver and get me out. As a way to comfort me we’d play Ludo or other boardgames while we hid from our dad and brothers under the bed. Yes it was tight and dark but she was there with me…protecting me.

next chapter

__________________________________________

None of this is real, all but a figment of my imagination put into words.

[shiraki-yurara]

On-Screen Lovers Part 2 Story Event - Hitaki - Chapter 3 - Sweet End

Disclaimer: Morganatic Idol belongs to CYBIRD & ABC Frontier, Inc.

My Notes: Translation is for entertainment purpose only. Translation may or may not be correct. Please ignore any grammar mistakes.

Hitaki: Would you like to have a "home date" with me now?

After hearing that, I was urged back to the apartment-----

---

Rina: Are we going on a date here?

Hitaki: There's a scene where she cooks a meal for me, so I wanted to recreate that as well.

Hitaki: You often cook here, right? I don’t think it will be difficult for you.

Rina: But as far as acting goes, didn't you get the hang of it on our date earlier?

Hitaki: I think it would be safer to have a deeper understanding of that.

When Hitaki-san said that, I was at a loss for words.

(I wonder if I can make something that suits his taste…… But since I said “I'd do anything”, it would be hard to refuse.)

Rina: I understand. Then, I’ll make something.

It was nearly dinner time so I decided to make cheese risotto.

Hitaki: Oh, you use a skillet?

Rina: It requires less washing up and is surprisingly easy to do.

After cutting all the ingredients, I stirred fry them all at once in a skillet.

It was a task I was used to, but having Hitaki-san watching me made me feel a bit nervous.

Hitaki: Fufu, is it hard to do when I'm watching?

Rina: Er,err.

Hitaki: That's right. Since I’m here, why don't I help you?

Rina: Eh?

Hitaki: Because that kind of thing really sounds like a "home date", right?

Hitaki-san quickly walked into the kitchen and stood next to me.

Hitaki: That said, there doesn't seem to be much I can do. I'll make a salad.

Rina: Are you sure?

Hitaki: It's okay. I can do that much too.

As he said this, his movements while cutting the vegetables were so smooth, it even seemed graceful.

(Hitaki-san can do anything with ease.)

Hitaki: Why are you looking at me so much? Your hands have stopped moving.

Rina: ……I’m sorry.

My heart leaped at the sweet, whispering voice, and I hurriedly resumed my work.

(Then mix the tomatoes, cheese, and rice……)

Once I had finished seasoning, all I had to do was heat it until the cheese melted.

By the time the timer was set, Hitaki-san had finished making the salad.

Hitaki: The only thing left is the dressing. I think we had wine vinegar……

Rina: Ah, you need a bowl.

When I handed Hitaki-san the bowl and whisk, he smiled and said, "Thank you."

The brightness of it took my breath away, and at the same time, I found myself tickled.

(Even though cooking together is not something we normally do. This feels as if we were……)

"Like a real couple" was the phrase that came to mind.

(I……, what am I thinking? Ever since we went to the city, I've been thinking too much.)

The moment I took a deep breath to calm myself down-----

Hitaki: Cooking side by side like this, we're just like a real couple, right?

Rina: ……!

Hitaki: Oh, you thought so too? It's written all over your face.

Rina: ……Yes, I did.

(Wh, why did I reply honestly!? This is so embarrassing……)

I looked away and tried to smile deceptively.

Rina: But……, at first I thought I wouldn't be able to be Hitaki-san's partner.

Rina: So, even if it's just pretend, I'm relieved that I was able to fulfill the role as your girlfriend.

Hitaki: …………

Rina: ……Hitaki-san?

I timidly called out to Hitaki-san, who had fallen silent.

Then-----

Hitaki: Do you feel inferior to me since I am an idol?

Rina: Eh?

Hitaki: I value you regardless of your position.

Hitaki: You’re considerate and hardworking. You’re the kind of person who can do things properly.

Hitaki-san stopped what he was doing and looked at me quietly.

Hitaki: At the city, you suggested the fruit candy and even paid attention to the escape scene……

Hitaki: I was surprised to learn that you even scouted locations.

Hitaki: It was very entertaining and I never got bored because you did unexpected things.

Rina: That, that’s too much praise.

I instinctively shook my head and Hitaki-san slightly raised the corner of his mouth.

Hitaki: Really? I'm just telling you my honest feelings.

Hitaki: And…… I'm sure you worked hard today to prepare for your role.

Hitaki: For my part, I wish you were more conscious of me.

Rina: Eh……!?

His suggestive words made my heart skip a beat for a moment.

(What did you mean by that?)

(It's like…… It's like he's saying he wants to be my real boyfriend.)

My heart was pounding rapidly and I unconsciously put my hand on my chest to calm it down.

Rina: Err, you’re teasing me again, right?

I asked, remembering the night I first heard about the movie.

Hitaki: Ah, you mean when I got you backed up against the wall?

Hitaki: It’s true that I did that because I wanted to see how you would react, but……

Hitaki: For this time, I wonder. Which do you think it is?

Hitaki-san smiled sweetly and reached out to touch my cheek.

I almost squealed at the feel of his smooth stroking.

Rina: ……

Hitaki: You look so cute confused like that. Let me see more……

The moment Hitaki-san's face came closer and I was captivated by his bewitching eyes.

Pipipipipi!

Rina: Ah!

The sound of the timer ringing brought me back to myself, and I instantly moved.

I quickly turned off the sound and before I knew it, he was back to normal.

Hitaki: Looks like it's done. Let's eat it then.

Rina: Ye, yes.

We quickly got the food ready and sat facing each other.

When I took a bite, a gentle flavor spread throughout my mouth.

Hitaki: Yes, it's delicious. It's such a shame that it's only for today.

Rina: That's an exaggeration. But I'm glad you enjoyed it.

Hitaki: So, will you continue to make them occasionally from now on?

The gentle smile reminded me of our earlier conversation, and I nearly fell victim to the illusion again.

Rina: ……Does that mean you want us to practice roles again?

When I asked for confirmation, Hitaki-san smiled and frowned slightly.

Hitaki: Now, no matter what I said, you will connect it to the movie.

Hitaki: If that's the case, that's fine. I'd be happy to have more contact with you, even if just for the duration of the filming.

Rina: Eh……

Hitaki-san's eyes were full of love as he looked at me.

(Just looking at it makes my heart race……)

In the first place, it was impossible not to be conscious of him-----

(Because I'm so happy to hear what you just said.)

As I continued to eat, I silently envisioned a future with him in the back of my mind.

[kachikirby]

GranEssex Chronicles: Chapter 15 - Explosive Past

A few weeks have passed since Meta was on break. While he had slowly gotten back into the habit of doing missions, they were more errands than actual missions. More than likely, it was because his mentor wanted to protect him. He didn't truly mind this too much. He understood Kurabe's reasoning, even if he found all of those errands quite boring. However, tomorrow would make all that boredom worth it. Currently the GranEssex was on its way the planet where the junior tournament was going to take place.

"Sensei, when will we get there?" He asked as he pressed his face against the window, staring intently at the stars as they passed by.

Kurabe chuckled at her student's behavior. "Patience, Meta. Our approximate arrival time is in eight hours. Frankly, I wish we could just hold it here on the GranEssex, but Reedy wouldn't allow it, wanting no participant to have a home field advantage. Sometimes he does manage to make a good point." She said, drinking a cup of tea. That was what she said, but the youth could tell that his mentor was extremely excited.

He let out a sigh. "Can we go train, sensei?"

"Ordinarily, I would gladly take up that offer. However, tomorrow will be incredibly hard on you. I want you to save as much energy as possible."

Her student gave a pout. "Then what am I supposed to do?!"

"That's quite simple. Go and talk with your fellow students. Ask for advice or if you really want something to help pass the time, go talk to Tam. She can talk for hours without pause."

That was probably the best option at this point, minus the part where Tam would talk his ear off.

"What about you, sensei? What do you plan on doing?"

Kurabe sighed herself. "A video meeting with the other division leaders regarding the tournament. Speaking of those who can talk without pause..."

Meta already knew who she was talking about. "Do you need me to talk to him. I might be able to scare him or something."

The ice queen gave a hearty laugh. "That won't be necessary, Meta. I can handle him myself. Besides, this meeting is being hosted by Raiden. Scaring Reedy would be hilarious but ultimately pointless. At least until the meeting is over. Then you can scare him."

The youth nodded. "Ok. Well, I guess I can just go talk to Tam for now."

"A wise decision, Meta. Tam's the best of my students for you to converse with. You'll learn a lot from her... or at the very least, you'll be very entertained by her stories."

The youth nodded and was ready to leave, but stopped to ask one more question. "Sensei, did you participate in this tournament when you were a new member?"

"Of course I did! I even won!" She exclaimed proudly.

"I wouldn't expect anything else from my sensei! I'll try my best to win, just like you."

"Oh, I have no doubt that you'll win. You're my best student anyway."

Meta smiled, eager to prove his mentor right.

"That said, make sure to keep a steady head. Overconfidence is one of a warrior's greatest adversaries. Stay calm and victory will always be in sight."

"I understand, sensei." The youth replied.

For a brief moment, Kurabe stared at him, and Meta was about to leave until he was suddenly wrapped up in a hug by his mentor.

"Sensei?!"

"You're getting worked up again, I just know it. Just relax, Meta, then I'll let you go."

"I am relaxed, sensei."

"I know." She said with a grin, letting go of Meta. "Now, good luck finding Tam, Meta."

"Don't you mean good luck talking with her?"

"Well, you can't talk to her unless you find her first, can you?"

Meta groaned, realizing what she meant. Tam was notorious for being someone who was impossible to find. She found you, not the other way around.

"I suppose I can view searching for her as a type of training."

"Hmm... yes, that's the spirit. I suggest you get to searching now."

He nodded and quickly sprinted out of the room. Kurabe smiled, but not only because of her student's actions.

"When do you think he'll realize you were in here the whole time?" She asked to a seemingly empty part of the room.

At that moment, a familiar fox girl appeared from seemingly nowhere.

"I give him two to three hours." Tam smirked at her mentor. "Brilliant idea, using my illusions to make him work on his detective skills."

"He desired training, may as well teach him something he wouldn't expect that a warrior would need."

"Indeed. Thankfully, it also won't be nearly as exhaustive as training will be."

"Not physically anyway." Kurabe replied with a chuckle.

Suddenly, a familiar blue shape teleported inside the room, surprising them both.

"Back so soon?"

"It was easy figuring it out. Tam likes hiding in places that would be sure to aggravate whoever is looking for her. In this case, she knew that I'd be annoyed at having to come back to the room I started in. Secondly, the way you were talking sensei gave me the impression that you knew Tam was hiding and that you knew where at."

"Oooh? That's impressive." The warrior said as she sipped some tea. "Tell me, what about the way I was speaking tipped you off?"

"When you told me good luck finding her, you said it in your "I know something that you don't" tone."

His mentor was silent for a moment.

"I see." She then stood up and patted him on the back. "You're improving faster every day, Meta. Make sure to keep that momentum."

"I will, sensei. Thank you."

Kurabe nodded. "Well, that meeting will be starting soon. You two enjoy each other's company."

"Ok, sensei. Good luck with the meeting." The youth said before heading out of the room with Tam.

---------

As the two began walking down the hallway, he suddenly heard her speak up.

"You know Meta, the way you talked back there, it sounded like you were calling me predictable."

"You are a bit. But you're not nearly as bad as sensei."

"Care to repeat that?"

Meta heard Kurabe's voice say, but when he turned around, he saw that no one was there and that Tam was laughing to herself.

"Sensei, please stop reading my mind."

This just made Tam laugh more. "Meta, that wasn't sensei, that was me." Tam said, using magic to make her voice sound like Kurabe's.

The youth pouted in response.

"Still believe I'm predictable?" She asked, speaking in Meta's own voice this time.

"...not at all." He said with a chuckle.

"Now I know you want to talk to me, anything you're dying to know about me?"

"Um... I honestly don't know. I just want to pass the time while we head to the planet."

"So, you want a long story, do you? Well, I think I have just the story to tell."

The youth looked at her curiously. "What kind of story is it?"

"It's the very first time I went on a mission with our sensei. Back when I was around your age."

Meta nodded, looking interested in this story as he sat down on the couch in the lounge.

"Well, I suppose the best place to start with is the beginning. The mission was relatively straightforward. We were to search through a heavily populated city to find a group of criminals. While this was normally a job for the stealth division or even the intelligence division, we happened to be the closest to the planet at the time."

Meta gave a frown. "...honestly, I understand why they would do something like that, but wouldn't it be better to just send the right division to take care of it?" The youth asked, remembering the reason why Reedy's crew was given that mission with the Myovam in the first place.

"That's a fair point, however there was a problem at the time. The entire stealth division was focused on handling a civil war on another planet. A planet whose government is a major ally to us so we couldn't afford to remove them from that mission. As for the intelligence division, they actually wanted us to handle it. Or more accurately, sensei "convinced" them to let us handle it." Tam explained, putting air quotes around convinced.

"Of course she would bring that stupid rivalry into this..."

"No, that wasn't actually why."

"It wasn't?"

"Nope. She wanted us to handle it, because of me. You see, and this may come as a shock, I was incredibly unsure about myself and my abilities at the time. I lacked a lot of confidence, heck I didn't even have my explosive fighting style yet. So, she wanted to take me on a mission that would force me to get out of my shell."

The youth looked surprise at that answer. "But wouldn't fighting a group of criminals be too much for you at the time?"

Tam shrugged. "You know how sensei is. Living and teaching dangerously. Though obviously her methods are incredibly efficient."

Meta knew that all too well. "Plus, in hindsight, this group was only like a C rank threat at most. Probably why the intelligence division didn't mind letting us do it."

"I see... would you like to go into detail?"

"Of course, but you better keep close attention to it." The puff nodded as they arrived at the lounge.

Tam sat down and quickly cleared her throat. "Best get comfy, this will take a while."

The puff nodded and sat down next to her.

"The story begins with sensei and me taking a star jet to Belmoore, the name of the planet."

---------

"Sensei, are you sure you want me to accompany you?" A young Tam asked her mentor.

"I wouldn't have asked you if I didn't." The warrior replied.

"But surely there's someone better for this mission than me."

"That type of thinking is exactly why I'm bringing you with me."

"But why?"

"Tam, I won't sugarcoat this. You need to get past this fear of being a cowardly failure. You have the perfect skill set for this kind of mission. The only one better suited for this is Mercury. You want to become strong, right? Then you need to face your fears."

"But I don't know if I could..."

"It's not a matter of knowing, it's a matter of belief. I never know if I'll get through a mission unhurt, but I always believe in my abilities. You need to learn how to do the same. Who knows, you might find a strength you never knew you had. We'll never know if we don't try."

Tam couldn't disagree with that at all as much as she wanted to. "And if I get in a fight without you to back me up?"

"You have an incredibly mean roundhouse kick, Tam."

"Yeah, but that won't help me all the time, won't it?"

"You're right. If only you could become invisible, or make the enemies think the floor is lava. Wait a minute, you are capable of that and more."

"I'm happy you're that confident in me, but I don't think I could..."

"Tam, that's enough." Kurabe pushed up visor, revealing her piercing gaze. "You wished to become some strong enough to protect and care for your siblings, correct? That is why you joined my crew, right?"

"Y-yes, that's why I did."

"You'll never become the woman you want to be if you keep letting fear control you. You have what it takes to become something truly special, I know it. You need to have faith, Tam."

"...ok." The young fox wanted to believe in Kurabe's words, but she still wasn't sure on how to feel.

"If it makes you feel more at ease, I don't plan on leaving your side for the entire duration of this mission." Kurabe stated.

"Thank you, sensei." She replied with a smile.

"But don't expect me to do all the work. Understand?"

"I understand."

"Good. Now relax and when we enter the city, act like how you normally would. We don't want to possibly alert the criminals that we're looking for them."

"Shouldn't you wear some kind of disguise then? You'll stand out to any criminals with how you currently look due to how famous you are."

Kurabe smirked and snapped her fingers. Kurabe's body was enveloped in a bright flash. Once the light dissolved, Tam saw a human woman with similar features to Kurabe.

"You... turned yourself into a human?!" She uttered in surprise.

"Not exactly. It's a magic spell that causes people to see me as something else. Physically, I'm still a Star Warrior."

Still staring, Tam reached out a hand and poked her face.

"This is so cool!" Tam said, extremely interested in this magic spell. "You look so beautiful! I mean, not that you don't always look beautiful. I mean-"

Kurabe gave a chuckle. "Why, thank you, Tam. Actually, this is a spell that creates an appearance based on the user's personality."

"Oh, then no wonder you look so incredible."

"Well, thank you very much..." She uttered, looking away to hide her slowly reddening face. After a brief moment, she stood up. "Get ready, Tam, we'll be landing in five minutes." She said and then grabbed one of Tam's hands. "You can do it, Tam."

The fox girl only smiled in response.

"Now let me give a quick rundown of what we know. This is a small group, only six members. They specialize in smuggling and selling illegal drugs and weaponry. They all have a tattoo somewhere on their bodies. The tattoo looks like skulls and crossbones. With one eye hole red and the other eye hole blue."

"And my duty will be to locate them?"

"That's right. Worry not, I'll never be far away from you. Just focus on doing the best you can."

Tam looked up and down at her mentor's disguised appearance once more. "...shouldn't you also be a bit worried about yourself?"

Kurabe tilted her head. "Not particularly. The wellbeing of my student is more worthy of my attention then my own safety."

The fox girl didn't say it, but she had the feeling that Kurabe's current appearance would cause her to be the target of pickup artists or those desperate for dates.

"Oh, that's what you're worried about? I'm flattered that you're concerned about me, Tam. But trust me, I can handle myself." She said, the air around her becoming cold.

"How did you-?"

"Have you already forgotten that I can read minds?"

Tam giggled at the very straightforward answer.

"Besides, I'm quite used to it already."

"You are?" Tam asked, her ears twitching in surprise.

"Are you implying I'm not beautiful as a Star Warrior?" Kurabe pouted.

"No, of course not, I already said you're always beautiful. It's just that, well... how do you get used to people leering at you, or wanting you just for your looks? It makes me uncomfortable just thinking about it."

"I don't know."

Tam looked confused. "You don't know how you got used to it?"

"More accurately, I've just never cared about the opinions of those that don't matter to me. I've had people many a time throw themselves at me for very superficial reasons. Individuals like that aren't worth my notice, or your notice either."

"That's a bit harder to do than you might think, sensei."

"I never claimed it was easy, did I? However, it's also not as hard as you may believe. Now get ready, we're about to land."

Her student gave a nod as they began to land the ship.

---------

The city, named Zteel, was a fairly big and standard city. Plenty of local businesses, a peaceful looking suburban area. Nothing seemed out of the ordinary. There was one thing that Tam noticed that got her interest. It seemed as if the city was preparing for a festival of some kind.

"The city is celebrating its annual celebration about the creation of this city and its people. With so many people coming to visit, it makes for the perfect cover to search around, doesn't it?" Kurabe stated.

"I think so. Maybe it'll also make it easier for the gang to walk out in the open as well."

"That's correct. Smaller criminals like this tend to blend in with the environment. They aren't physically strong enough to warrant standing out, so they stick to the shadows and hide in plain sight."

"So, I should keep the lookout for a skull and crossbones tattoo with red and blue eyes?"

"Yes. And keep in mind, some of them might be using illusions to hide it. You're perfect at sensing and dispelling illusions. Just be careful to not get hasty. Patience is key in this mission. We can't risk being found out or involving the citizens."

"Understood." The fox girl responded.

She then began to walk through the city, keeping an eye out for any suspicious characters.

"And yes, depending on how this mission goes, we'll partake in the festivities." Kurabe suddenly said.

Tam looked at her mentor in surprise. "Really? Don't we have other missions to do then?"

"Nothing that Mercury and everyone else can't handle. Besides I know you want to explore the festival. It's written all over your face."

Her student then looked shocked at that revelation.

"Oh, don't look so surprised."

Tam nodded, blushing because of how easy she was to read at times.

"Good, now you're less tense already." She then gave a small smile. "Now, shall we get to work?"

"Yes, sensei." Tam replied, her eyes focusing on everyone she could see.

She specifically was looking for anyone that looked suspicious. She was currently having no luck with that. Most of the people she saw were either families spending time together or admittedly cute couples. She was starting to get fed up with this, but then she spotted a nervous looking individual wearing a headband.

"Maybe it might be him...?" she thought as she headed towards the person. She quickly looked behind to see what Kurabe thought before she got too far. Kurabe simply nodded, showing that she was ok with this course of action. Tam nodded back and walked into an alleyway, becoming invisible using her illusion magic.

"Ok, mister, let's see what you're hiding." She thought as she sprinted up to him.

Almost immediately, the person saw the fox girl running towards him and began to sprint.

"If he can see me when I'm invisible then something is definitely up." She thought to herself and began to follow after them. "But how would they be able to see me?"

Her eyes widened and realized what was going on.

"Tattoos can sometimes be magic symbols. Red and blue eyes are associated with vision magic. If he can see through my illusions, then there's only one possibility." She thought, quickly getting close to her target. Tam reached out and grabbed the suspect by the arm and pulled out a taser.

"You can see me, but no one else can. I shock you and everyone will just think you had a seizure. If you want to avoid that, take off that headband." She demanded, surprising herself with how bold she was being. The suspect only glared at her. In response, Tam zapped him for only a second to prove she wasn't bluffing. That one second was enough to make him cry from the pain. "Now talk."

"Alright! Alright!" The man said, taking off his headband and revealing the tattoo she was looking for.

The fox girl gave a satisfied smile. "Alright, now can you guide us to where your friends are?"

"Us?" He replied confused. He then felt a cold hand touch his shoulder from behind.

"Yes, us." Kurabe stated, smiling at Tam's accomplishment.

"Wh-who the hell are you?!"

"Who I am is unimportant. But I can tell you who you will be in the next five seconds if you don't talk. Dead."

"W-what?"

"Five, four, three, two..."

"Ok, I'll tell you!"

"Good, now be quick about it."

"I will if your friend lets me go!"

"Do you want me to resume my countdown?"

"Ok, I'll guide you already!"

"Then quit complaining and get moving. Tam, keep the taser close to him." Her student nodded and kept the taser close to the person as they began to follow after him.

---------

The walk was quiet and tense, with no one wanting to say anything. Tam, while confident looking on the outside, was very nervous on the inside. She looked over at Kurabe for a brief moment to see she was carrying herself with her usual aura of elegance.

"Beautiful as always. If only I could be like that..." She thought to herself.

"You're already on your way there, Tam." She heard a voice in her head say.

The fox girl involuntarily blushed upon hearing that.

"You were the one that spotted and apprehended this criminal. You expertly figured out who he was and took him down masterfully. Be proud of yourself."

She quietly nodded in response. Before Tam could mentally respond, Kurabe drew her sword and blocked a bullet that was shot at her.

"Tam keep following our captive, I'll handle this myself. GO!" Kurabe ordered as she blocked another bullet.

The fox girl gave a worried look, but then nodded and began to run.

"You better not be leading me into a trap, or else I'll take you for much more than just a measly minute." She threatened.

"I'm not! I'm not!" The gang member shouted back. "In fact, shouldn't you be more worried about your friend?" He said with a smirk.

Tam smirked back. "Oh, I have full faith in her. She's not known as "the unkillable" for nothing."

"The unkillable? Oh no... you don't mean she's THE Unkillable?"

"She is."

"...Shit. Why did we have to get the attention of her of all people?" He groaned.

"That's a question you should be asking yourself. Now get back to guiding me to your base."

"I get it, I get it. We're getting close, we just need to take a left up at that alley."

"Ok, then show me up that way."

"I already am!"

"Then do it more quickly!"

Once more Tam was surprised by how bold she was being. Was she always like this? Was she acting like because her sensei believed in her? Those were thoughts she would have to worry about later however as she was now in front of the supposed base of operations. A run down, shady looking house with mold all over it. She glared skeptically at the captive.

"This isn't a trap, is it?"

"No, it isn't! This place was the boss's idea! Said that no one would expect us to hide in a freaking health code violation. And for the past five years he's been right. Until now I guess."

"Very well then. Take me inside."

"Yeah, yeah..."

As he was about to open the door, Tam stopped him. "Hey, what's your name anyway?"

"Mique, why?"

Tam smirked and used her magic to become an exact copy of him.

"Thanks for being gullible." She said as she knocked him out with a roundhouse kick.

---------

With that done, Tam entered the home in disguise. The inside of the house was just as horrid as it was on the outside. The stench made Tam want to gag, but she would have to put up with it.

"Hey! It's me, Mique! Anyone home!?"

"There you are, Mique. Molly saw that you were being hounded by two organization bozos. Guess you managed to get away from them?" A deep voice said from down the hall.

"Molly must be that sniper sensei is dealing with." Tam thought to herself. "Yeah, I barely did. There was this fox girl that was after me and I had to really work to give her the slip."

"And you're sure you weren't followed? The voice asked, becoming even deeper.

"Of course I'm sure! I wouldn't be here if I wasn't sure!"

"...come here, Mique." The voice said with chills being sent down Tam's spine.

"Y-yes, right away!"

Tam took a deep breath and headed towards where the voice came from. Tam stepped into a dining room that was mostly empty save for the table in the middle. Sitting at the table was a large, gorilla like man with the familiar skull tattoo on his right arm.

"What do you need?"

Tam was internally freaking out. She knew she was taking a huge gamble on using a illusion. While the tattoo let them see through invisibility, she didn't know if it applied to other illusions.

"...Mique, where's your headband? You didn't let them see your tattoo, did you?"

"Oh, that's because I was nearly captured, and they forced me to remove it. Admittedly, I was trying so hard to get away that I kinda forgot about it."

"You need to quit getting careless, Mique. One more mess up and you're out."

"Got it." Tam replied with a nod.

"Good, now get to the storeroom and help the others pack. We're leaving as soon as Molly gets back here."

"Alright then." Tam said before leaving towards where she assumed was the storeroom. Admittedly, she was very nervous. Where exactly did she go from here? Is Kurabe ok?

"I'm in over my head. I should just leave and... no. I could never look sensei in the eye again if I just gave up now. Think, Tam, sensei said that this gang only had six members. She's fighting one, I took care of Mique and the boss is by himself. So there's three others. Should I try fighting them myself? ...I should probably meet up with them and judge if I could then."

---------

Tam eventually found the right location. A large storeroom filled with boxes, most likely filled with the smuggled goods. She then saw three individuals, all of them were Knuckles, a race of natural born fighters. None of them have noticed her yet, which was fortunate for her.

"So I was asked to help you all pack. Anywhere you want me to cover?"

"Huh? Oh, hey, Mique, yeah go make sure all the boxes in the back corner are secure." One of them said, half paying attention.

"Got it." Tam replied as she began to head back towards the back corner.

"Alright, now what? Should I fight them head on? They seem pretty out of it." She thought, weighing her options. "...it would probably be a good idea to attack now."

Tam closed her eyes and thought of different tactics. Obviously, illusions outside of invisibility worked on them.

"I guess I'll go with that..."

Tam walked in front of the three and snapped her fingers. Suddenly they began screaming in fear, Tam using her magic to force them so see their biggest fears.

"Huh. It seems it works."

This was a lot easier than she was expecting. Perhaps Kurabe was right about her being able to handle herself.

"Now to quickly knock them out." She pulled out her taser knocked them out cold.

After knocking out the three subordinates, she quickly tied them up.

"Alright. Next, I guess will be the boss himself..." Tam thought.

Now that was something to be concerned about. Unlike these three, she doubted the boss would drop his guard that easily.

"Still, I've made it this far."

Come to think of it...

"Why didn't he notice his subordinates screaming?"

There were three possibilities for why. One, he simply didn't care. Two, he didn't hear them. Or three.

"Maybe sensei made it."

The best option would probably be to go see what was going on.

---------

Tam slowly made her way back to the dining room. Unfortunately for her, the boss was still there, unharmed.

"No sign of sensei. No sign of any kind of fight either. I guess it's up to me..." She stepped into the dining room nervously.

"Mique, you guys done already?" The boss said, reading a newspaper.

"We were almost done, but then the others started screaming and acting strangely like they were afraid of something before passing out."

The boss looked at her suspiciously. "Take me to them."

Tam nodded and began to lead him.

"Um... boss, would you mind opening the door?" She asked.

"Yeah, whatever, just get out of my way." Boss replied, getting in front of her.

Tam smirked as she dropped her disguise. "Thanks, boss~!" With that she tased his back with full power. The boss didn't say anything, as if he was heavily paralyzed by the taser.

"Well, time to tie him up." Tam smiled to herself, slowly processing what she just did. "...I took down this gang, all on my own. I actually did it..."

"Didn't I tell you that you could do it?" A familiar voice asked.

Tam turned around and saw Kurabe, still in her human form, holding onto someone, presumably that Molly, and smiling at her student.

"What took you so long!?"

"Oh, I've been here for the last ten minutes. I was just curious about how you would have handled this situation on your own. As expected, you did a perfect job."

"Well... um... thank you..."

"Tam kick behind you now!" Kurabe suddenly commanded.

Doing as she was told Tam kicked backwards, hitting a now conscious boss in the stomach.

"Hm... you ought to be a bit more careful..." Her mentor sighed.

"...sorry, sensei."

"Enough of that. This mission is a complete success all because of you. Don't let one oversight blind you from success."

"Ok, sensei."

"And wipe that look off your face."

"What look?"

"The "I'm disappointed in myself" look."

"But-"

"But nothing. You won, end of story. You're too beautiful to have such a sad expression."

It was at that point that Tam finally smiled. "Thank you, sensei."

"Now let's get these guys tied up and locked away. And then, we can enjoy the festival."

"Ok!" The fox girl exclaimed as she picked up two of the subordinates.

---------

After dropping the gang at the local prison, Kurabe and Tam were walking around, looking at all the various stands set up.

"Sensei, our mission is over, why do you still have your disguise up?"

"Because I look nice in it!"

"Well, I suppose I can't argue with that without lying."

"Exactly!" Kurabe replied with her usual amount of confidence.

"Do you prefer being in that form, sensei?"

"I like both my forms, actually. This one is just easier to use to mess with people or at least make them flustered." Her mentor replied with a chuckle.

"Making people flustered." Tam repeated, thinking back to the dumbfounded faces on the criminals she tricked. "I think I get it."

"Oh, so you understand now?"

"I guess I do. Sensei, be honest with me, do you think my fighting style needs improvements?"

The warrior took a moment to think. "Honestly, yes. You need a bit more variety in your combat skill to be ready for any scenario. You won't always be able to do hand to hand combat, you know."

The young fox nodded, clearly not upset by the honest answer. "Do you have any ideas sensei?"

"Hm... well, I can't entirely come up with that decision, can I?"

"Well, no, but it's my decision if I want to listen to any idea you have right?"

"I can't deny that." The woman uttered before she began to think. "What would you think of smoke bombs?"

"Smoke bombs? I think something like that could work. Especially if I can combine real smoke with fake smoke."

Her mentor nodded happily. "Indeed. It would work well with your illusions."

"Then maybe some kind of gun?" Tam wondered.

"I don't know, what do you think?"

"I am thinking, sensei. Honestly guns aren't my thing. I have a cousin who loves them though."

"No need to rush then. Take your time, Tam. An idea is bound to explode in that head of yours."

"...explode?"

Suddenly, Tam looked like an idea came to mind.

"Oh, have you thought of something?"

"Perhaps. I'm thinking about how well grenades would work."

"Well, if you ask me, I think they might."

Tam was smiling, something that pleased Kurabe immensely.

"Looks like this mission was the confidence boost she needed." She then gave a smile. "Now, shall we enjoy the festival?"

"Yes, please!" Tam said, her tail wagging in excitement.

"Then let's go." Her mentor said, taking her hand.

"Hey, sensei, did you know there was a festival on this planet or is it a coincidence?"

"Maybe I did, maybe I didn't." She replied cryptically.

"So, you did know."

"You don't know that for sure."

"I do actually. Earlier you said that the festival would make for good cover. That and you weren't surprised by the festival existing. Then again I suppose nothing really surprises you."

"Indeed. Now come on." She replied as she began to drag her.

"So, since you did know, did you come here because of the cover it would provide or was it to help me relax?"

"That's up to you to decide."

"So, it's both. Am I right or am I right?"

"I'd say you need to be quiet and enjoy the festival."

"So, I am right then!"

The warrior only replied with a sigh.

"Well, missy, care for a test of strength?" Kurabe asked, pointing at a arm wrestling booth.

"That seems more of a you thing, sensei."

She smirked. "Then would you care to watch me destroy the competition?"

"Ok then!"

---------

The duo walked inside the booth, noticing three different tables. Each had one other person sitting there and judging by the difference in muscle mass, the tables were separated by difficulty.

"Well, I know which one I'm challenging." Kurabe said as she sat down at the table with the strongest one there.

The man at the table scoffed. "A woman like you challenging me? Don't you think you're in over your head, missy?"

"No, I'm quite sure my head is perfectly fine. I believe I should be asking you that instead."

The man laughed. "When you look like I can snap you in half like a twig? I doubt it!"

"Then what are you waiting for?" She replied, holding out her hand.

"And make that pretty face of yours cry?"

"Then only one crying will be you."

Suddenly, another of the arm wrestlers spoke up.

"Don't you have to be picking up your kids from school, lady?"

Tam winced, knowing exactly what was going to happen next. Almost immediately, Kurabe's eyes lost any shine they previously had and practically transformed into dull red voids.

"What was that?"

"You heard me, granny." The wrestler said, not sensing the danger he was in.

"Put your arm down now."

"Ah, do you think you have a chance against me? OK, let's go then!"

The other wrestler put his arm down. Within one second Kurabe immediately put his arm, using enough force to put a small crack on the table. Not only that, but she pushed on to the point where a loud crack could be heard. There was no doubt what it was. The man screamed in pain, making everyone in the vicinity wince.

"Anyone else care to challenge me?"

Everyone only stared awkwardly in shock, not knowing whether to accept the proposal or not.

"Sensei, let's just go to a different booth before we attract any unwanted attention." Tam whispered to her still angry mentor.

"No, I think I rather take on all the competitors who laughed at me."

"Considering how they look like they are about to pass out from fear, I think you've proven your point already."

"No, no, I think they need to be taught a lesson."

"Sensei, you've already did that. Look, that one guy is literally on his knees. Let's just get out of here. We are supposed to be peacekeepers, right?"

Kurabe only glared at her with void-like eyes.

"Stare at me all you want. You know I'm right." Tam said, surprising herself with how brave she was being. She only continued to remain silent. "Sensei, you need to calm down, please."

"How do you expect me to after something like that?"

"After what, a petty insult? You're better than thar. You've taught me and many others to better than that. What happened to the woman who doesn't care what others think?"

"This has to do with my pride, Tam! It's completely different!"

"And you've already proven your strength. Look at everyone here, they are absolutely terrified of you. Terrified of what you're capable of. Isn't that more than enough?"

"...not enough."

Tam gave a sigh. Her mentor was always this stubborn when she was angry. "Hey, broken arm dude, apologize for calling her old. The rest of you better apologize as well. I certainly can't stop her."

Everyone there seemed too afraid to say anything.

"Fine. Sensei, I'll take you on." Tam said surprising everyone, including Kurabe.

"Tam? Why would you do such a thing?"

"To hopefully get you to see reason."

Her mentor was completely silent.

"Well? Are you going to take me on and break my arm like you did with that guy? Or will you finally calm down?"

"Are you really sure you want to fight me otherwise?"

"I'm sure. I'm terrified, but I'd rather get my own arm broken then let you turn yourself into public enemy number 1."

Silence once more. Kurabe raised her hand and to everyone's confusion, snapped her finger. The man's arm flashed, and all of the pain was gone.

"Magic seal. Reverses any damage done to that body part. What? I wasn't going to leave it broken forever." She then glared towards him. "As long as you don't give me a reason to."

"No, no, we're good! I apologize for what I said!"

Kurabe gave a nod in reply.

"So now are you finally calm, sensei?"

"Oh please, I'm always calm. And good job, I'm impressed with how you handled yourself."

Her student stared doubtfully.

"Now don't look at me like that. Now come on, let's keep going."

Tam stared at her questioningly. "...Sensei, were you actually angry or were you pretending in order to make me stand my ground?"

"...who knows?"

"You really love being cryptic don't you, sensei?"

"I do." She replied bluntly without elaborating.

Tam sighed, the irony of an illusionist getting annoyed at crypticness not being lost on her.

"Now come on, this is a rare opportunity to indulge of carnival and festival food." Kurabe said, dragging Tam by her arm.

"Really? I wouldn't expect you to be interested in food like that."

"I love cooking, Tam. Would you expect otherwise?"

"I know you love cooking. But wouldn't carnival food be too low class for you?"

"Food is food. Even the simplest of creations have something to be admired."

Tam herself couldn't deny that.

"Besides, while I may carry myself like a high-class woman, do I really seem like the type to care about the difference in social classes?"

"You don't..."

"Exactly. If I really cared about maintaining a high-class image, I would barely have any students. Most, if not all of my students come from low to mid class upbringings. Yourself included. Things might be different for me now, but I was once the lowest of low class. I've simply learned that trying to separate people or objects by class, is a foolish endeavor."

"...you were once low class?" Her student asked in surprise.

"Oh, have I not explained this before? Yes, I was once an orphan, moving from shelter to shelter, feeding on scraps just to get by each day."

"And eventually the general found you and took you in?"

"In short, yes."

"Is that why you seem to take in students with rough upbringings?"

Kurabe gave a small smile. "Exactly."

Tam smiled, remembering how Kurabe instantly accepted her as a student when she told her how she wanted to provide for her poor family.

"Now which booth do you think we should check out first?"

The girl looked around, not really sure as to what she wanted. That's when she saw one booth with a peculiar item being advertised. "Pizza...on a stick?"

"Is that what you would like to look at?"

"Well, it sounds interesting at least."

"Indeed. I might as well try it." She uttered.

---------

The two made their way to the booth, looking at other booths along the way to see if they could anything interesting.

"Hmm... is there anything sweet?" Kurabe muttered aloud.

"Maybe you can ask that ice cream booth over there."

"Let's go there after we grab pizza."

"Yes, mam. Dumb question incoming, have you eaten pizza, sensei?"

"Of course I have."

"Is there anything you haven't eaten?"

"That's a good question..."

"Well, I'm sure you've probably eaten a lot in any case. Seeing as you travel often."

"Of course! I've even learned how to make some of it myself!"

"Perhaps one way we can have a cook off. While I might not be as good as you, I've learned a lot myself while looking after my siblings."

"You're on."

"Alright! Well, obviously, not now." Tam replied with a giggle.

"We'll do it the moment we return to the ship."

"The very minute, huh? Alright, I'm game."

"Well, maybe not the very minute. It'll depend on how tired you are when we get back." She then looked away. "Besides, Mercury will probably force me not to anyway..." .

"Why's that? I don't see why she would."

"Because we just got back from a mission."

"Ahh. Then yeah I guess I can understand why now."

"It's quite rude since I'd have more than enough energy for that if we did." Kurabe pouted.

"Considering you can last ten full days with no sleep, that doesn't surprise me."

"Well, if I have a full nap the next day, of course!"

"Soooo, we'll just have to have that competition another day."

"Fine, fine, I guess."

Tam giggled as she ordered the pizza for herself.

"Here you go, enjoy 'em." The vendor said as he handed over the pizzas on sticks.

"Wow, it really is pizza on a stick."

"Well, I'm not sure what you expected, Tam. Still, this is good at least."

The fox girl then took a bite herself. "It is!"

Kurabe finished hers quickly, most likely just wanting to get to the ice cream as soon as possible. This was apparent from her next action as well.

"Come on, Tam, let's go get ice cream." She said, grabbing her student and dragging her towards that line as well.

"But I'm not done eating yet!"

"Eat as you walk."

"Sensei, I take it you love sweets?"

"Absolutely. While not necessarily my favorite thing to eat, I do have quite the sweet tooth."

"What are your favorite kind of sweets?"

"Chocolate. Anything with chocolate in it and especially chocolate-based drinks."

"Any particular reason, sensei?"

Kurabe took a moment to think about her answer. "Not exactly. I remember chocolate was one of the first things I tried after my father took me in. I don't know if that's why or if I just naturally recall like chocolate."

"Is he also how you developed a love of cooking?"

"No, actually. I learned how to cook back at one of the homeless shelters I lived at. The cooks showed me how to cook and once my father took me in and I learned more about cooking I began to love it even more."

"How was the general's cooking? Was it good?"

"Father's? Oh yes, he's quite the competent cook. Very few can make waffles quite like he can."

Tam tilted her head. "I assume you're one of them?"

"Nope. I've surpassed him in everything else, but he is still the king of waffles." She said with a straight face.

"Seriously?"

"I don't see what's so shocking. My father has had homemade waffles every day. Ever since he was twenty."

"It's suprising because you're one of the best chefs in the galaxy, aren't you?"

"So? Being the best doesn't mean being better at every single thing. My father is better with waffles, but I'm better with everything else. It's no different then fighting. I'm the second strongest warrior in the galaxy, yet my father who is 3rd is better than me when it comes to fighting with a staff."

"That does make sense, but I'm surprised you don't mind admitting that there's some things you aren't the best at."

"Please, I like to think I'm not that arrogant Tam."

"...you can be." She mumbled.

"I heard that. I swear what is it with people confusing confidence with arrogance. If I truly was arrogant then I wouldn't be content with being the second-best warrior now would I?"

"Good point..."

"Keep this in mind, Tam, the moment you believe you are perfect is when you become truly arrogant."

"You don't consider yourself perfect, sensei?"

"Of course not. There's always room for growth, never forget that."

Her student gave a smile. "Ok then."

"Glad that you understand. I've seen way too many promising fighters lose their lives due to arrogance. This is a dangerous profession we're in Tam. But that's also why we need to enjoy the peaceful times whenever we can. Now come along, there's ice cream that needs bought."

Tam nodded and followed her.

---------

As the teacher and student stepped up to the counter, the fox girl spoke. "Hey, sensei I have a question. Are all strong people eccentric?"

Kurabe stared at her. "Now what brought this question about? One choice scoop, please." She replied while also asking for ice cream.

"Well, you seem very eccentric. And the general seems eccentric from what you told me."

The woman chuckled at the answer. "Well, to put it simply, yes. We need to be eccentric, or else we wouldn't be who we are." She answered.

"...So, what you're saying is that you present yourself in such a way to remind yourself of who you are?" Tam asked, remembering reading about soldiers who lost all sense of individuality by letting the profession consume them. Something she never wanted to happen.

"Perceptive as always, Tam. Don't worry, though, I promise not to let you lose yourself. The galaxy would lose out on a priceless treasure if you did."

Tam looked surprised by the compliment but decided to take it graciously. Suddenly, a voice could be heard over the intercoms.

"Attention all residents and guests. The festival fireworks will begin in fifteen minutes. I repeat the fireworks will begin in fifteen minutes. That is all."

"Fireworks?" Tam repeated, starting to wish she had ear plugs right now. As if she was prepared for this very situation, Kurabe handed her a pair. "Oh... thank you, sensei."

"No thanks necessary. From this point forward though make sure to always carry some on you. You never know when it will come in handy."

"Even in combat?" Tam asked as she started to put them in.

"Especially in combat. There's many fighters and species that fight using sound as a weapon."

The fox could understand what Kurabe was saying. With so many different types of abilities out in the galaxy, it was probably a good idea to be prepared for any situation.

"Now here, eat your ice cream, Tam. Never let ice cream melt, that's an order." Kurabe said telepathically while handing her a vanilla cone.

"Oh, using telepathy because I have my ears plugged? You really do think of everything sensei."

"Of course I do!" She replied with a viable huff.

Tam raised a brow. "Sensei, why do you sometimes huff when you get complimented? Are you embarrassed?" She teased.

"No, because the complements are quite obvious."

"That's...fair, I guess? Anyway, do you want to see the fireworks?"

"Of course I would!"

Kurabe grabbed Tam's hand and guided her to a quieter, less crowded spot. "I know a place. We'll have a perfect view of the sky."

Her student nodded. "Then lead the way."

She lead Tam towards the ship they took to the planet, immediately Tam knew her plan. "Are we going to be sitting on the top of our ship?"

"Exactly. What better place could there be?"

"I have no idea. I've honestly never seen fireworks except for one time, but I was so young I barely remember it."

Kurabe gave a small smile. "Well, you're going to see them again now."

"What about you, sensei? Have you seen a lot of fireworks?"

"I have, but not as often as I used to. When I was a little girl, my father liked taking me to festivals."

"I'm surprised, I would think the general would be too busy for something like that."

"If he was, he never told me. He always said he had time for me."

Tam smiled, remembering her own parents that sacrificed a lot just to make her happy while growing up. "Your father must really love you, huh?"

Her mentor nodded. "He does. He calls me whenever he can and always takes a day off for my birthday no matter how much work he has to do."

"Sensei, do you think becoming strong for the sake of protecting family is a good reason to become strong?"

"A good reason? It's honestly one of the best reasons you could have."

"Then I'll keep going. Honestly for a while I've been doubting if I could actually become as strong as you think I can be. But after today, I've decided to continue staying on this path I chosen."

Her mentor nodded. "A good decision."

Before the conversation could continue, a loud cracking sound could be heard. The fireworks were starting. Kurabe picked Tam up and jumped onto the top of the ship.

"Get ready for the show of a lifetime Tam. And make sure those earplugs are secure."

"Ok, sensei!" She exclaimed.

---------

After a few minutes, the lights died down and the show began. Right before Tam's very eyes, beautiful explosions appeared in the sky, taking various shapes and various colors. Many were of basic shapes, flags, orbs, but some even took the shape of people, most likely notable residents of this city.

"How interesting, the shapes seem to be becoming more complex..."

"Is that not normal for firework shows?"

"It is, but these are actually more complex than normal."

"Complex, I see." Tam commented, wandering what kind of grenades she could create, using these fireworks as inspiration.

Kurabe gave a smile, noting her student's thought process.

"A piece of advice that my father gave me. Inspiration can be found anywhere, even in the most unlikely of places."

"I see...well. thank you."

"Oh, don't thank me yet." Kurabe said. "Keep watching." She added, seeing Tam's confused face. She didn't stay confused for long as the next firework was in the shape of a girl's face with two fox like ears. Instantly, Tam looked surprised.

"Sensei... was that..."

"I may have commissioned a custom-made firework ahead of time."

"...you planned on this trip the whole time, didn't you?"

"That's...a secret." She replied with a wink.

"She did..." Tam thought.

"Why do this all just for me, sensei?"

"Do I need a reason for all of this?"

"I guess you don't, but still. I'm just one fox..."

"Just accept it, Tam." Her mentor replied with a sigh.

"Alright. Were you as stubborn as I am when you were a trainee?"

"Admittedly, I was."

"Did you ever doubt yourself?"

"Oh, all the time."

"But you're so confident now? It's hard to imagine you ever lacking confidence."

Kurabe chuckled. "Well, I didn't when I was younger. When I was a trainee, I trained extremely often and became frustrated when I wouldn't improve as quickly as I wanted. Honestly, there was just so many times where I went to bed in tears because of how upset I was."

"And how did you overcome it?"

"I didn't do it alone. I spoke to my mentor about it, and he helped me get through it."

"So, in other words, I need to come to you whenever I need help?"

"Not just that, Tam. While I'll definitely help you, you need to help yourself as well. You made amazing progress today. Remember the feeling of a successful mission, Tam."

"I will, sensei."

"You better. You have boundless potential. And I will help you reach it."

The fox girl smiled. "Thank you."

"You're welcome. And congratulations Tam, I'm sure if they were here to see you, your family would be proud."

Tam only nodded as she looked at the fireworks.

---------

"And that's pretty much it." Modern day Tam said to Meta, who was incredibly engaged with the story.

"That was an interesting story, Tam." The puff replied.

"I'm glad you thought so. It's not every day that I tell anyone about it."

"Really? I think you should tell more people about it."

"Nah. I only tell this story to family."

"So, I assume that means that you consider me family?"

"Well, duh. You're like a little brother I never had. I have a few little sisters, though."

The youth gave a small smile. "...thank you, Tam."

"You're welcome~ Now, any questions about the story?"

"Let me think... why did those tattoos let them see through invisibility but not any other illusion?"

"Oh, that's simple. The tattoos were made specifically for seeing through invisibility and only invisibility. Magic seals can be very specific."

"I see..." The youth uttered.

"Yeah, when it comes to magic that counters other magic, you have to get super specific. Magic is either easy or complicated, there's no real middle ground."

Admittedly, Meta understood that too well. There was one too many times where his mentor had lectured him over complicated magic and his head felt like it was spinning.

"Weren't you scared taking a gang all by yourself?"

"Of course I was! Anyone would be scared!" She paused as if remembering something. "Correction, most would be. But I learned a valuable lesson that day. You can't let fear hold you back."

"I understand. That's something sensei taught me as well."

"Yes, but there's a difference between being taught and experiencing it first-hand. Though considering what you've been through, I think you'll be fine."

"I hope so..." he gave a sigh.

"You'll need to do more than just that. You need to tackle any threat head on. You need to be brave. I would probably be dead if I gave into fear. Always remember, caution is a great asset, but don't let it stop you from what needs doing."

"Ok..." He seemed to grumble, as if he was somewhat annoyed by something.

"... I know that tone well, Meta. You're young, but you're certainly not dumb. Hard-headed and brash certainly, but definitely not dumb."

"Thank you...?" He responded, unsure if he was being complimented or not.

"Just accept it as a complement. Like you should just accept this hug." She said before picking him up in one.

"I thought I said I hate being treated like a kid."

"You're never too old to hug someone you care for. Besides, it's obvious you like it."

"I don't!"

"You know one way to stop people from treating you like a kid is to not deny the obvious. If you were a fox your tail would be wagging right now."

"No, it wouldn't!"

"Do you want to test that theory? I know a spell that can temporarily give you a fox's tail."

"I rather you not!"

"Why? Afraid that I'm right?"

"No!"

Tam giggled at his clear embarrassment. "Alright, I'll drop the subject, for now anyway."

Meta gave a sigh of relief as he was placed on the floor.

The fox girl spoke up again. "Now that my stories all wrapped up, do you have any questions about the tournament? I actually won the one I was a part of so I should be able to help."

"How exactly does the tournament work?"

"It's a pretty straightforward bracket styled one. The fight match ups are randomized in order to make the whole thing fair and that no one can accuse any of the fights being rigged. As for the fights themselves there's three ways to win. One, knock them out of the ring. Two, knock them out or at least make it impossible for them to continue, like say putting someone to sleep. Third, making your opponent forfeit the match. The only rules are no killing and no attacking an opponent who has forfeited."

Meta nodded in response. "How exactly are fighters determined? Like how do they pick who can and can't participate?"

"The fighters are all determined by two factors. The teacher or commander recommendation and the soldiers own willingness. If neither of these parties feel comfortable with participating, then they simply won't compete."

The youth nodded in response. "How big of a crowd is there and generally how many people participate?"

"Oh there's no crowd except the other participants and those in charge. As for the number of participants, it depends. There's no way of knowing. But generally, I'd expect at least thirty two."

"No crowd?"

"Well, yeah, don't want any potential enemies learning any secrets, do we?"

"I understand, but not even from within the Organization?"

"I said those in charge, didn't I?"

The youth pouted. "You should explain yourself better. It sounded like you only meant the Big Four."

"Well, sorry for assuming you'd understand that. Those in charge means Organization personnel. Other soldiers, medics, etcetera."

"Alright, that makes sense. But from the way sensei described it, I thought it would be bigger than just a handful of non-combatants."

"Well, you know how sensei is. She tends to go overboard even with mundane tasks like explanations."

"That's true..."

"Don't worry about it, Meta. Sensei made me believe I'd be competing in front of a huge audience. I wouldn't really consider twenty staff members to be huge."

"That isn't huge at all..."

"Tell me about it. I spent the whole time fearing messing up in front of hundreds of people. I don't want to think sensei did it on purpose, but you never really know with her."

"Yeah..." The youth replied with a sigh.

"Now, anything else you'd like to know?"

"Yeah, what's the ring like? Is it straightforward or is there some kind of gimmick to it like booby traps?"

"I'm glad you asked. You see before each fight a wheel is spun. On that wheel are various battlefield types. Stuff like a normal ring, inside a volcano, underwater. Then using magic, the ring changes to what the wheel decided. The only exception to this is the final fight, that always takes place on a normal ring."

"I think I understand. That's to see if we can adapt to any environment right?"

"Essentially. I warn you now, some of those battlefields are down right diabolical. I still get shivers thinking about fighting on a floor of lava."

"...I see..." The youth uttered, hoping he wouldn't have to encounter such a thing. "Are the commanders the one's who come up with these terrains?"

"Yup."

"And sensei was the one who came up with all the dangerous one's right?"

"Actually no."

"Then who did?"

"Each of the Big Four made four arenas. Our sensei chose a standard arena, a field of pure ice, a forest with trees as obstacles and a field surrounded by fog. Difficult hazards to deal with for sure, but nothing too bad. No, it's commander Bio Raiden that made the most dangerous ones. Lava floors, a field littered with land mines, fighting underwater with blood thirsty piranhas and the most annoying one, a desert with the sun super close."

"The head of the Stealth Division? It was him?"

"Yeah. Raiden thinks being put in tense situations like that is perfect training. For ninjas like him, it absolutely is, but for warriors like you and me."

"It's less so..."

"Exactly. Our sensei's thought process was "We're having them fight one on one. There's no need to go too overboard. At the end of the day, this is still training for them." So, she chose areas that would make you adapt but not worry about being randomly blown up."

"That's probably what their meeting right now is about..."

"I'd say that's a safe bet. Hopefully sensei can convince him to not go overboard this time."

"What about the other two? Reedy and Momo?"

"Reedy is actually of a similar opinion as sensei. He values battlefields with interesting layouts instead of just being dangerous. His were a narrow bridge, forcing people to fight with limited space. A field with large pillars, perfect for jumping and hiding. A swamp. And a ballroom. You never know when a fight might break out during a party."

"And what about Momo's?"

"Her's are...bizarre. One arena is made entirely out of sponge. Then one where you're fighting inside a hourglass and you have to win before being buried. One where the entire arena is a giant mattress. Then one where you are fighting in a canyon with boulders falling down."

Meta silently stared for a moment. "I don't even want to begin thinking about how she thought up of those ideas..."

Kurabe's and Reedy's made complete sense to him. All of those seemed like real locations a fight could take place in. Raiden's while extreme, he could see the logic. With Momo's, he just had no idea what to think. The canyon was reasonable, but the other three just seemed nonsensical.

"Then again, I guess expecting the unexpected is an important skill to have." He thought. "Just because I'm curious, what kind of arenas did Kurabe choose? Like I know they're more based on adaptations, but I'd like to know more."

"Well, the easiest to explain is the normal arena. It's just a simple, square fighting ring. The ice arena is based on ice planet she visited. It's a wide open space, no obstacles besides for the slippery floor. On this arena there's no ring outs so you'll have to knock your opponent out or make them quit. The forest I believe is based off a forest on a planet called Dreamland. There's plenty of trees and tall grass. You can ring out an opponent here, if you knock them out of the forest and right to where the sun is shining, it's a ring out. The misty arena is based on a city she visited once. It's perpetually covered by fog. Even if you get rid of it, it'll just come back in seconds. There's no ring outs on this one either. You'll have buildings and street cars to use to your advantage, if you so choose anyway."

The youth nodded in understanding, but there was something the stood out. "...Dreamland?"

"Some country that's on a planet called Popstar. It's way out in the backwater part of the galaxy. I've never been there myself. All sensei has told me about it was that it's a magical place with pretty landscapes."

"...well, if that's what she thinks, it must be a nice place. Hopefully I can go there someday."

"Probably as part of a vacation or a training journey. Nothing really happens in that part of the galaxy, at least nothing important enough for the Organization to have a outpost near it."

"I'll have to ask sensei about it at some point then." He replied.

"She's really the only one you can. I don't know anyone besides her that's been there. Except for the general and Bio Raiden. Apparently that old ninja has family there or something like that."

The puff nodded. "Alright, I'll talk to her about it at some point." He then looked down, trying hard to think of another subject to discuss.

Tam chuckled. "Well, how about we get up and walk around for a bit?" She asked, taking his hand and doing so.

---------

After a few minutes, he was able to ask another question. "How difficult was the tournament you participated in?"

"It was quite difficult, actually." The fox lady quickly responded.

"You won, so I assume you had to really work for it. Were all of your fights difficult?"

"A large majority of them were."

Meta smiled. "So I'm going to get a challenge, maybe even multiple challenges. I can't wait!"

"And I can't wait to watch you!" Tam replied happily.

"So, any advice for the fights to come?"

"First and maybe the most important, always be mindful of where the edge of the ring is. It doesn't matter how strong you are if your opponent can make you leave the ring."

The puff nodded in response. "Anything else?"

"Don't use more energy than you need to. While you'll get time to rest in-between matches, the shorter the wait time is the less time you'll have to regain any spent energy."

"Well, I think that's a bit obvious. Anything else?"

"Look out for the magic division competitors. Some of their magic can seem borderline unfair at times. You might fight someone that can reverse your sense of direction. Make you think left is right, up is down. That sort of thing."

"I assume they don't have any restrictions?"

"Outside of no killing magic or magic that will leave you comatose, no. Same applies to you of course. You can do anything as long as you don't go overboard."

"Even then they still have magic that can be unfair?"

"Yup. But, there's no rule saying you can't apply magic seals to yourself that prevents that kind of magic from affecting you." Tam said, handing Meta a book.

"What's this?"

"A book filled with magic seals. Take a look through and take whichever ones you think will be useful. Be warned, these are only temporary. The effect wears off after an hour of being applied."

"So in other words, I have to apply one during a fight?"

"That's right. Also I totally get why you think it's unfair that the mages have access to unfair abilities. But keep this in mind, you'll have to fight against annoying magic as a soldier anyway. It's unfair, which is why you need to knock em out as fast as possible."

"Right, this is a test of everyone's skills, not just mine. I can't worry about what's unfair." He said as he looked through the book. "What do you recommend, Tam?"

"Get one that prevents you from getting forcibly put to sleep. Sleep spells are very common among the magic division."

"Somehow I'm not surprised... anything else?"

"Turn to page six, there one that prevents you from being frozen solid. Then on page nine is one that prevents poison."

"I assume those are also common?" He then blinked for a moment. "Wait a minute, isn't poison dangerous? Then by that logic, shouldn't it be banned?"

"Normally, yes. But there's plenty of non lethal types of poisons. Like poison that slows down your reaction speed. That seal will prevent any kind of poison from effecting you."

"Ok, thank you. Do you have any other tips?"

"Yeah, if you find yourself stuck in a illusion or hallucination, shock yourself. The shock should snap yourself out of it."

"It's that easy? But I've tried it before on your illusions and it's never worked before?"

"I'm glad you pointed that out. That's because fox illusions are inherently stronger than average illusions."

"That makes a lot of sense..."

"Yup. That's why most of the best illusionists are foxes like myself. Against average illusions a simple shock should be enough. But against advance ones you might need to use more power to snap out of it."

"Anything else I should know?"

"Nothing you don't know yourself. Actually there is one thing. There's a time limit of thirty minutes for every match except for the finals. The final match has a time limit of 60 minutes. Honestly though I've never seen a fight reach or exceed the time limit. The closest would be my own finals match which took forty minutes."

"Well, if no fight was ever decided by a time out, it makes sense that it would slip your mind. But in the case a time out does happen, what decides who wins?"

"The general and two of the big four will vote for who they think performed the best."

"So the best thing to do would be to perform my best?"

"Yup. And if you're wondering why only two of the four vote, it's to prevent bias. Say you and one of Raiden's ninjas tie. Sensei and Raiden aren't allowed to vote just to keep everything as fair as possible."

"Ah, so that means that they aren't allowed to vote if they're from the same division." He then tilted his head. "But what about if it's two people from the same division fighting? Surely, that's happened."

"You're right about that. When that happens the general allows the three other Big Four members to vote. He believes a tie breaker should always be settled with judges. No more, no less."

The puff nodded. "Is there any other way to get disqualified? Other than killing your opponent, of course."

"If you get caught cheating. In this case, cheating is doing something to sabotage your opponent before the fight begins."

"I assume that's happened before?"

"A few times. I can only think of three cases of this happening. Most know better to try anything when some of the most skilled people in the galaxy are watching." She then gave a bitter chuckle. "Especially because that's the fastest way to piss them off in this setting. It'll not only make them look bad, but their entire division as well."

Meta gulped, realizing how serious that kind of situation is. "Do you know who they were?"

"I don't remember their names, but I do remember what divisions they came from. Two from the stealth and one from the intelligence. These happened before I even joined the combat division so admittedly, I don't have a lot of the details."

Strangely, Meta wasn't surprised one was from Reedy's division. No, it was that not just one, but two members of the stealth division that cheated was what surprised him. While he didn't know Raiden that well, he knew he was incredibly strict.

"Those two must of have either been very sure of their skills, or very stupid."

"More than likely. For some reason, the stealth division seems to be bait for some of the most arrogant people in the universe."

"That's bizarre. Bio Raiden seems to be a very humble, if very strict man."

"Indeed. It's quite strange, even to me."

"...So that means no one from our division or the magic division has cheated. Given how sensei has taught us to tackle any challenge head on I'm not surprised by there being no cheaters from our division."

Tam nodded. "As for the magecraft division... well, some of them are too confident with their magic to even consider it."

"I see. Hey Tam, what division has won the most tournaments?"

"That would be ours! The one whose won the second most is the stealth division."

"I assume the Intelligence hasn't won much because they don't specialize in combat and the mage division can get too confident?"

"Yeah, the intelligence hasn't won a single one. But that's mostly because they don't have many competitors. And for the reasons you already said."

For some reason, this was quite interesting to Meta, as he would think that Reedy would take any chance to one-up his mentor.

"Yeah, I know what you're thinking. Believe it or not, Reedy's not always trying to one up sensei. In fact, he never nominates any of his soldiers. If someone from his division participates, it's because they want to. Plus, for Reedy, he doesn't care who wins. The tournament is really just one huge training session. As long as his soldiers learn a valuable lesson, he doesn't care what happens."

"Really?" Meta had a hard time believing that he could ignore their rivalry at all.

"Look, I get you have your problems with him, we all do. But his first priority is to his crew. Not everything he does revolves around sensei."

"It sometimes feels like it does..." he mumbled.

"Yes, it does. But that doesn't make it fact. Tell me, when you were with his crew for that short time period, how many times did he actually bring up Kurabe in a negative way?"

"Counting the times he was clearly trying to one up her?"

"Sure. You can't really think of much can you though?"

"...at least 40."

"Ok, now without you exaggerating."

"...4."

"Exactly. Don't get me wrong, Reedy's an ass, but he's not a complete ass. Besides this tournament is for the competitors, not for the commanders to gloat. If this was a tournament between the commanders then yes, he would try his best to beat sensei."

"Alright, maybe I am being unfair towards Reedy. Anyway I at least know one possible opponent." Meta said, thinking of his friend Fettuccine.

"Really? Is it a friend of yours?"

"Yeah, the newest member of Reedy's Task Force. Her name is Fettuccine."

"Ohhhh, her! Is she your new girlfriend?"

"Please don't tease me like that. She's simply a good friend."

Tam only giggled. "Do you think you could beat her if you had to fight? Or let me rephrase that question. Will you be willing to hit her?"

"I... I think so..."

"Well, you better become sure real soon. I'm sure Fettuccine wouldn't want you to hold back or even forfeit for her sake. Just remember, there's always ring outs."

"I know... I'm just worried about going too far..."

"That's good. Controlling yourself is incredibly important. But for now, don't worry about it. There's no guarantee you'll even fight her."

He nodded. "Speaking of which, can we go see how far we are? I'm just wondering how long it'll be until we get there."

"Well three hours have already passed, so it shouldn't be much longer."

"So, about five hours left. Wait, it's already been three hours?"

"Yup!"

"How? I didn't think that story was that long?"

"Have you heard the phrase "time flies when you're having fun"? That's your answer!" Tam replied with a wink.

"...That's a better explanation than just nothing I suppose. So, what am I supposed to do for five hours? I'm not allowed to train so I can't do that."

"Hmm... how tired are you feeling? Do you need a nap?"

"I'm not tired in the slightest." He said. Given how he hasn't properly used much energy today, that made sense.

Tam then gave her usual smile. "How about now?"

Suddenly, he felt an intense wave of exhaustion flow over him. "Tam... what did you...?"

"Just a little sleep spell. Don't worry, you'll be wide awake by the time we arrive."

"But I-" He uttered in an absent-minded fashion, feeling the exhaustion become stronger. He then let out a grumble. "What is you people's obsession with putting me to sleep?"

"Oh, is it really that common for you?"

"Yes! Always putting me to sleep when I don't want to." He said before falling asleep.

Tam blinked for a moment before giving a giggle as she picked him up and began to carry him to his room.

"Maybe this was unnecessary, but you do need your rest, Meta. Trust me, tomorrow will be taxing on you."

For a moment, she noticed a small smile on his face, as if he understood what she said.

---------

Four and a half hours had passed since then and the planet they were headed to was finally in sight.

"Quite the sight, huh, Meta?" Tam asked the now awake puff, only to get no response. "Oh, come on, I already apologized for that spell, didn't I?"

"...Please just don't do that again without my permission."

"Alright, alright..." She uttered with a sigh.

"Or mine for that matter." Kurabe said. "I appreciate what you did Tam, but I'd rather you not go around and put people to sleep." She said with a chuckle.

"Fiiiine..." She sighed again.

"Not to mention that the tournament starts tomorrow, so Meta is just going to have sleep again anyway." Mercury added.

"Alright I get it! No more Sheep Sleep unless given permission."

"...I do feel more relaxed, so thank you for that, Tam." Meta said quietly.

The fox girl gave a smile. "You're welcome, Meta."

He then turned to his mentor. "So, sensei, do you know how many competitors will be there?"

"Not entirely, I only know how many from my division will be participating. Which is... eight."

"I know one of them is me, but who are the others?"

"Those two misfits that think they can still beat you. Three of the newer recruits we got while you were out on that mission with Reedy. And the other two are Buru and Buri. Two of the more recent Bukisets to join us."

"...new people joined us?"

"Right, I suppose you never got a chance to meet them yet given what's been going on. You three, get in here and introduce yourselves!"

Meta turned around to see three individuals walk up to him. The first one to catch his eye was a bird with a crossbow on his side.

"My name is Vul, and I aspire to be a great captain." He said in a scratchy yet strangely pleasant voice. "Good to meet you, Meta, the captain and vice captain told me a lot about you."

"It's... good to meet you to." The puff replied hesitantly, still clearly not used to talking to strangers.

Next to Vul was a fairly large dog with ears for arms. If he remembered correctly, this was a Boxer.

"...My name is Crate." She replied in a quiet voice.

"It's good to meet you." He replied.

The last one was a person in red armor, commonly worn by those of the Blade species. "Nice to meet you. I'm Blade, or if you want my actual name, I'm Carter."

"Nice to meet you." Awkwardly replied. He wasn't sure what to think of these three, but they seemed friendly enough. Meta decided he may as well try to get to know them, considering they would be comrades. "So Vul, why do you want to be a great captain?"

Vul's eyes softened. "Well, my grandpappy was a great captain himself. He was a major inspiration to me while growing up and I want to become a captain he would be proud of."

"I see... that's quite admirable..." The puff replied, honestly not really knowing what to say to that. However, he then had a question. "Why join this division? Wouldn't something like the intelligence division make more sense for your goal?"

"They just don't fit my style." The bird replied with a smirk.

"Well, alright, that's a better reason then no reason at all. What about you, Crate?"

The dog seemed to jump for a moment before responding. "...fighting is the best I can do. I'm the strongest of my village and I wanted to use my strength for something positive."

Meta nodded. He honestly understood that. Then he turned to the last one. "What about you?"

"Who me? Two reasons, I suppose. I want to become stronger, but more importantly, I want to be useful to my family."

"I see... that's respectable."

Secretly, Meta used his ability to sense emotions. While he had no reason to be distrustful of any of them, he couldn't help but be cautious. To his relief none of them seemed to be hiding anything. For a moment, he noticed his mentor looking at him, as if she knew what he had done.

"Well, it's nice to meet you three." Meta said, not really knowing what else to say. Kurabe let out a giggle, as if she was amused by how shy her student was acting.

"So, you're strong right?" asked Carter. "Wanna fight!?"

As much as Meta wanted to say yes, he knew Kurabe would tell them no.

"We need to conserve our energy for tomorrow. But hopefully we'll get to fight each other in it."

"Sweet, I'll hope to fight you as well."

"Alright, that's enough talk about fighting. I don't want you all getting too excited." Kurabe said.

"Ok, sensei." The puff replied.

"Now when we arrive, we go straight to our room. Each division has a set of rooms for themselves. None of you are allowed to leave the room or see other competitors. This is to prevent spying or any kind of sabotage. Tomorrow after the opening ceremony you'll be allowed to walk around freely."

The entire group nodded in response.

"So, I'll be able to see Fettuccine after the ceremony tomorrow..." Meta thought.

"Now here's some important advice. The people you'll be facing are still our comrades. They are opponents, not enemies. I trust you all know the distinction."

"Understood!" Was the collective response.

"Good. Now I trust you all not to, but I'm still obligated to say this. Cheating of any kind will not be tolerated. If I catch any of you cheating, you'll be thrown out of my division. But I doubt that will happen."

"It won't." Was the collective reply.

"Good. No one from my division has ever cheated in the history of this tournament. It would be truly shameful if one of you broke that streak." She said, her voice becoming dangerous and cold.

Everyone, except Meta, started to shiver in fear. Other than simply being used to it, he knew already that she wasn't talking to him in particular.

"And remember, it's not about winning. It's about testing yourself. If you lose, learn from it and work towards improving your weaknesses. There's victory in defeat sometimes. That said, I expect all of you to give it your best effort."

"Understood." Everyone replied.

Meta, while understanding her words, still wanted to win. What better way to prove that he's becoming strong enough to protect everyone by proving he's the strongest of the rookies? He then noted that his mentor was once more looking at him.

"...all of you, return to your rooms for now. Except for you, Meta."

With several nods in response, the other rookies left, leaving only Meta.

"...sensei, what's this abou-"

He was suddenly pulled into a hug by Kurabe.

"Sensei, what are you doing?"

"Meta... I can already feel you're becoming worked up again."

"I'm not. I appreciate that you're concerned about me, but I'm fine. I'm not getting worked up, I'm excited. You can tell when someone's lying right? Then tell me, am I lying right now?"

"I know but..." She hugged him tighter.

"Sensei, please, I'm perfectly fine."

Reluctantly, Kurabe let go. "Maybe I am just worrying over nothing." She said.

For some reason, when his mentor let go, a part of the youth wanted her to continue.

Despite this, he let out a sigh. "Sensei, I'll be fine. I know you're still worried about me because of what happened a few weeks ago, but don't worry."

"You're right. I have to remember that you're fully recovered. Just promise me one thing."

He tilted his head in questioning, causing Kurabe to suppress a giggle at how cute he looked.

"What is it?"

"It's fine if you're focused on winning but promise me that you'll have fun while doing so."

"But isn't the purpose of the tournaments to win with the best of my ability?"

His mentor let out the heaviest sigh he had heard her given this entire day. "No, the purpose is for you to test yourself. If you win, I'd be incredibly proud of you, of course, and I'll be rooting for you the entire time, as you probably already know. I'm just saying to not let yourself be blinded by the promise of victory. Just focus on doing your best and having fun. It's not every day you get to fight warriors around your strength level. The same could be said for seeing so many of your co-workers all in one place."

"I see..." Was all that he could utter.

"You enjoy a good fight, right? You always have such a bright smile during sparring sessions."

"I do."

His mentor then gave a smile in response. "Then as long as you understand, you can leave. Go to the docking station, we'll be landing shortly."

"Got it."

Just as he was about to walk off, he heard Kurabe speak up again.

"Oh, one more thing, Meta."

He quickly turned back. "What is it, sensei?"

She seemed to hesitate for a moment. "...I'm sorry, but..."

Before he could even question, his mentor hugged him once more.

"...Sensei, don't take this the wrong way, but are you on edge?"

"I... honestly don't know, Meta."

Admittedly, the youth was slightly surprised by that kind of statement. "I see. I suppose I'll stay here until you do know."

"...thank you, Meta." She uttered, but then she let out a sigh, as if she was bothered by something. "It's strange... I should be the one helping you..."

"Don't worry about it, sensei." He replied with a comforting smile.

For the rest of the trip to their destination, the two remained together in silence.

-

-

-

Crate and Vul

[wimzee]

WoL x G'raha Week 2023

Day 1: First Kiss

"I owe you an explanation."

"You couldn't possibly owe me any–"

"Raha, I love you," she interrupted. "And it terrifies me."

The simple statement rendered him silent. She held his gaze and he could see the familiar fear darkening her features.

"Ever since I became the Warrior of Light, I've been entrusted with countless hopes and dreams," she continued. "The weight of the love of this star—of the First, too—it's an incredible burden."

Oh, no. "Iolaine, I—"

"It is an honor to bear it," she continued. "What I mean to say is that I know what it means to place those feelings in someone else's arms. I know how heavy that burden can be. It has made me afraid to… to love. To impose my heavy heart on someone else. And I know that’s what you want from me."

He didn't know what to say. His heart simply ached. All he could muster was a small squeeze of her hands.

"In the First, somehow it was easier to feel that way. Maybe it… we… seemed so far-fetched, I entertained those feelings freely. Especially before I knew who you really were; how seriously could I love someone who’d never shown me their face? But then there was Kholusia, and when Emet-Selch took you—I’ve never felt so distraught, Raha. I knew it then, and when I woke you in the Tower and held you there, it only confirmed that my feelings hadn’t changed. I probably haven't been any good at hiding it, either. I can't help myself. I can't keep myself from you."

It was true—it was relieving and heartening to finally know all those warm glances, every offered hand, each guiding touch of her hand on his back, were as real as he'd wished.

"But I'm afraid. Not for myself, but for you. I am dangerous. Simply being near me is life-threatening. The lives lost on my behalf…" Her voice began to shake as it rose louder, and he saw a tear or two glitter on their way to the ground from her downturned face. "I have seen people who love me die at my feet, and I could do nothing but watch the light fade from their eyes. I saw you struck down before me on Mount Gulg. I watched the Tower consume you. Worse, you did it all for my sake! You would have saved my life only to leave me without you!”

She dropped one of his hands to clutch her chest. She met his eyes now, and the anguish that burned in them bound his chest, choked out any consolation he might have tried to offer. She was right. “I can't stop you from wanting to be close to me, but I can limit you. I can keep you at arm's length. I just— I can't bear to… to lose…"

She wept openly now, dropping his other hand to cover her face. He’d been a fool. Through his eyes, Iolaine was always the picture of a strong, mighty hero. Though she certainly had her struggles and hardships, he knew how resilient she was; she could overcome anything. He didn’t expect this—this sorrow, so powerful that it bore down upon her until she was bent low with whimpering sobs. Here she was, laying bare the ghosts that haunted her; declaring the ways his desires not only burdened her, but disregarded her wishes; and G'raha didn't know what to do, where to look, what to say or hold. For all his years spent studying and toiling to protect the person who mattered most, right now, he’d fallen short. He was helpless.

When she drew one hand away, revealing her tear-stained cheek, he took the foolish gamble, lifting a hand to hold her face. She flinched again, and he feared she would withdraw; but to his relief, she leaned into his touch.

"I can’t bear to lose you, either," he replied. "But you already know what I would do to keep you." She gazed at him with a longing in her eyes he hadn't seen before. He practically rose a fulm off the ground.

"You love this star. You left everything you ever knew to roam it with us. Warrior of Light or not, you'd be protecting it with us either way. That's why this star loves you so. They all know the risk of allying with Hydaelyn's chosen. They still choose you—I still choose you. Because we know that to protect the star, to place our hopes on you, will be worth all the joy you will win, even if we are not there to see it." He could feel himself choking back tears as he thought of the ones who roused him first.

"That does not excuse my actions on the First. I knew my plans would earn the ire of you and yours, but I hadn’t realized how sorely it weighed upon you. Frankly, it was miraculous enough to have brought you to the First; to win your friendship—your love—was an impossibility that I simply hadn’t accounted for. Iolaine, I am so deeply sorry.”

She regarded him wordlessly, tears still spilling down her cheeks. Her only answer was to press his hand closer to her face.

“I know full well that I don’t deserve the privilege after all I’ve done, but please—please know it would be a gift beyond measure to carry your heart as you've carried mine. No risk could outweigh it. And, as you know, I’m not so easily defeated; even a Calamity isn't enough to be rid of me." He offered a weak smile.

She huffed amusedly before drawing back upright. A small smile broke out against her grief. He felt the roughness of her palms as her hands cradled his face, and he held completely still as she lowered her face down, touching their foreheads together.

"Thank you," she whispered.

After a few moments of that enchanted stillness, she began to move. The tip of her nose glided across, then down, his cheek. Her lips were a hair's breadth away, and he could feel the puff of her breath when she whispered, "May I?"

"Yes!" he chirped, unable to contain his nerves. Her eyes seemed aglow with mischief beneath her dark lashes.

The first brush of her lips was feather-light, almost reverent. Each one that followed pressed harder, came faster, and invited him to open wider. Before long, he didn't notice the cold anymore. Her fingers had curled into the locks of his hair, and he held tightly to her wrists for fear of floating away. He was fully lost, a leaf being swept about by the raging wind. It was exultant.

[lookatlavender]

hi sweet 💫 i think if you don’t get any votes for not touching your pussy, you should do 10 ruins instead from your ass and without touching your boycunt. just an idea 💞

i really like how difficult you make each of these for yourself. i’ve cum at least 6 times now reading your replies and your posts. you said you needed something meaner than more ruins… Maybe you should spend a day on no touch, but allowed to cum. 😇

Lately I’ve been thinking about fucking you all sweet and good but having you on really strict rules about cumming and even edging. I’d give you just the amount of pain you beg for, maybe i’d put clamps on you or spank your pussy, I’d bite you up, scratch you, put in your favorite size plug. Right now I would really like to have my fingers on your tdick and suck on your nipples, maybe after you’ve tortured them so they’re all sensitive for me. I’d put my hands around your neck, I’d tell you how fucking good you feel. You’re such a good boy holding back for me when I give you so much pleasure. You’re such a good boy for enjoying being denied by me. Right? I’d fuck you all slow and deep and sweet and make you tell me how you don’t want to cum. You like being my denied toy. You fuck me better when you don’t cum so you shouldn’t cum. When you’re begging me to stop so I don’t push you over the edge I’d put some arousal gel on your tdick and have you take your turn fucking me 💕 I’d be so wet, I’d need your fingers and tongue and strap.

And we’d have punishments in place. For every time you edge you don’t get to cum for a week. For each time you ruin you can’t put anything in your pussy for a week. And if you cum you’ll be on no touch for a week.

But of course any pain you give to yourself goes towards you receiving an orgasm. 💓 So you’d be begging to be hurt more and more, and you’d receive all the pleasure you ask for… but you’ll have to face the consequences later. What do you think, sweet one? How much time would you rack up?

I have to say I really liked the detail that you were playing with your nipples. I’d loveeee to have you tied up on a chair, all exposed, with my mouth on your nipples. And then i’d put it on your clit 💗 I bet you taste so sweet when you’re denied. I’d just have to make sure you don’t cum, because i bet you’d get very close very quickly, what do you think? 💫

i did get votes on that one but there was a tie so i’m gonna a combine those options, which means that i’ll have to do 10 ruins while cockwarming a toy and i’m not allowed to move the whole time 😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫😵‍💫 it’s gonna be how i end out my ruins and i already know it’s gonna be fucking torturous 😵‍💫🙈 i do like that idea tho, maybe if i get bored i can start training myself to cum from anal 😈🤭

i really can’t help it, meaner is just always more fun, it’s the sadist that lives deep inside my brain 🙈😵‍💫 and just going through so many ruins would get boring, but this way i get to make some structure for myself and make it actually fun and entertaining 🤭 plus i like a challenge, not always but sometimes if it’s easy to get off it’s just not even worth it

i like the idea of a no-touch where i’m allowed to cum, or even better (there’s that inner sadist) if i wasn’t allowed to touch but i HAD to cum a certain amount of times, or i’ll be punished somehow 😈

it would be so intoxicating to be teased by you right now, not touching properly for the last few days had me so keyed up now that i have time to think and not be so busy this morning. now that i don’t have something distracting me, it’s my own body distracting me 🤭 i keep playing with my nipples and grinding my thighs together, keeping myself desperate all morning. so far i haven’t cum yet though, i’ve managed to control myself so i’ll be able to really enjoy the ruins with a cock up my ass 😈🤭 you playing with my nipples would be so perfect too, especially after some nipple torture. id get it so they’re sensitive and a bit sore to the touch, you’d probably be able to see little indents in my skin from the clamps and other things id been using 🙈 and that combined with your mouth on my tdick and you fucking me would drive me so insane, it would be so hard to control myself for you but i would try my hardest, try to let the desperation build properly so that when i’m fucking you in return i can rail you just how you like

those rules would make it fun too, soon id be past a month of denial from edges and ruins and cumming i bet, and most of it would be a heavy no-touch period, where we both know you would take your time teasing me so relentlessly. id have it in the back of my head that maybe this would be the time where you could trap me in perpetual denial, always just a bit too long that no matter how hard i try i can’t stand but to add more time to my denial (btw had to stop and slap my tdick a few times thinking about this, i almost ruined playing with my nipples again 🙈)

but then you’d tell me i can earn orgasms by hurting myself, and id try my hardest to take my time down. id be begging for clamps, multiple sets even, and begging for you to yank them off over and over. id beg to be slapped, spanked, beg you to leave scratches along my skin. pretty soon id forget about earning orgasms, my little brain would just be so mixed up with pain and pleasure id just be begging at that point. i might not even manage to earn a significant amount of time back, knowing me id be cumming over and over from getting fucked while you hurt me exactly how i asked for 🤭🙈

i would get close quick from your mouth on my nipples, especially if you switched back and forth between that and teasing my pussy 😵‍💫 it would probably take like less than 5 minutes if i’m being honest, and that might even be generous 🙈 one of my toxic traits is that i can’t help but cum quickly hehe thankfully i was also blessed with basically no refractory period so it balances out

[yourdadsghoulfriend]

I have a crush or maybe i dont Im not sure. I saw a guy at the store who wasnt half bad looking, and my face instinctly averted and my little gay heart yearned. My friend nodded in agreement noticing his softer side looks. I told myself to say something, from even just asking "wheres the bathroom" or "hey you hiring" but my body turned into hot white fuzz and i cringed into oblivion when he acted bored looking away from me. Its easier said than done to understand or feel worthy in the moment towards a visual queer male loving relationship "suck it up and go for it" has no script to me.-- especially since we both look like boring straight gamers. (

Im not straight masc macho ALPHA this that and straught male chasing. Im very much so into flannel and masc leather jacket with my grody e-boy hair..but im very much so into stereotype kawaii and i love talking about my feelings. Overall im a straight passer on the outside but bottom in the inside but im not afraid or hiding my true self. I dress according to how i feel like anyone else.

So to hint im interested? I feel like i have to walk up and say "DO YOU HAVE A BOYFRIEND FOR GAY PER CHANCE?")

He noticed i was staring for too long and smiled down in a leave and I felt pretty cupid arrow to the dignity.

Me and my friend went back to the car but by then I was levels of deflated and healing from cringe. I even lifted my head out of my hands at her in a "why did you tell me to shut up and jump to it?! Im so shitty and emberassing" and in a dis entertained face but solemn reply she said im my own worst enemy and that im extremely tearing myself up in pyschological ways not even a stranger at a store would say if he was straight or gay in rejecting me.

I told her I could never just walk up and come up with a question on the fly to a working man but that also its tooemberassing but that i was so dissapointed in myself. I tell myself that theres nothing I cant do all the time when it comes to work. That I want to meet love organically. I say that im worthy of all sorts of things-

But the moment came and I smothered it alive and then beat myself up with the remains.

I dont know how to orgnically be just gay in public.

You cant just drive to a store and be like "oh i liked ur facial radiating vibes -- we all do- I drove here with the intention of literally healing my anxiety cringe to find hopeless romantic love because im invincible and did i mention I came looking for you!?"

I dont know if it means i missed a good chance forever.

And that if i told myself self love and self care soothing healings was all suoerficial healing- because if I really did believe I was worthy nothing would stop me.

I would just be gay and stop thinking rejection is a relationship ride or die.

You legally owe me some compensation for this.

[avyannaxa]

Should practice making this my safe space instead of my journal

Entry#1 - 13 June 2023

So its 1 am and I have work tomorrow but I can’t sleep. I am laying next to my boyfriend, who actually read my journal that is why I am moving my thoughts here.

Let me tell u a little history about the guy I am currently with. He and I met in my new workplace and when we initially met he said that he was single. But he was actually courting another girl and I found out only when I followed him on instagram.

Moving on, we became good friends with another girl. It was fun hanging out with the two of them. Our trio was a weird, unexpected start but i liked hanging out with them until I started to notice that he was getting flirty with me.

At first I was thinking to myself, maybe I should let it flow and just flirt back since he’s basically single. But one fine afternoon, he chatted in our gc and asked “would you guys believe me if I said that I finally have a gf?” I mean ngl I felt a sting in my heart.

Before that, I would like to mention that I also dated a guy and another guy that were secretly still seeing their ex gfs so thus the ptsd. Then I decided that I don’t ever want to be placed in a situation where I have to question my value. That is why I came up with a solution to keep my distance from him.

And so I maintained distance and a friendship with him with boundaries. Weeks later he started reaching out to me again and I thought to myself, I’m bored why not just have a friendly chat with him and not reply again tomorrow? So I did entertain his chats.

But the bad thing was I can’t stop replying to his messages again and worst is that I was waiting for his chats whenever I get home. I was thinking to myself this is bad but why can’t I stop? You see I finally realized that I have a little crush on this guy.

I mean despite the red flag that he is super friendly with girls, there was kindness and this unique bond/emotional understanding that I share with him. I was thinking that I could maintain such bond by staying friends with him but deep down I know that I actually wanted to be with him.

And so our messages and calls after work continued. I felt more comfortable around him and felt like I wanted to get to know him more. Its been a long time since I opened my thoughts to anyone but with him, it felt so easy. Days after I finally called him to address the situation.

I wanted to clarify the confusing situation that we were having. So I said that I kinda like him and he said he also likes me not just a friend. But at that time I knew that I wasn’t ready to be in a relationship so I said that I think the perfect solution for this confusing situation is to just detach.

Ofc I was still aware that he had a gf at that time so I said that once again, I will remove myself from the situation. But it was hard maintaining the distance. I thought that if I address it, he would understand and keep his distance from me too. But he and I didn’t.

Fast forward to our company’s national convention, things between us became more intense. I think the thrill of wanting to be together but not being able to freely got into me. Might be because of my Aries venus. So on the first night of the convention, we had drinks with our workmates.

It felt nice to finally bond with them but the whole night I was actually trying my best to avoid looking at him. Funny thing tho, during that night I found out that out close girl friend also has a confusing situation with our other workmate who also happens to have a gf. So after drinking we all finally went back to our designated hotel rooms.

That’s when I had the talk with our girl friend and stupidly told her my own confusing situation then we both decided to do something stupid which is to meet both the guys in the hotel lobby at 4 am. So I chatted M to go down and meet me and we all met in the lobby

Funny thing is that we all looked confused and awkward but to get the situation over with I pulled M to the side and gave the two space to deal with their own situation. Honestly, at that moment, I was fixed to just let him go and be the bigger person in this confusing situation.

But when I finally said to him that we should stop, I was shocked at his response. He didn’t want us to end and he didn’t want me to detach myself again from him. At that moment, I didn’t know how to handle the emotions or feelings that was flooding that time.

When the two finally ended their short conversation, they asked us to go back to their room with them. I wasn’t thinking straight and was kinda drunk so I agreed. As we were walking towards their room, the two became more close and started holding hands while M and I were just both confused at the revelation the two showed us.

In my mind, I wasn’t expecting much to happen in the room since I was thinking that M was not the kind of guy to make a move on a girl. When we entered the room, the two weren’t even awkward to each other and proceeded to cuddle in bed. Meanwhile, M and I were just confused so we stayed by the door and talked more.

It was almost 5 am and both of us were getting tired and sleepy so he offered to lay down in his bed and so we did. When I was laying down he removed my face mask and pulled my face towards his face. There, at that moment, the thought that I know he is going to kiss me popped. He run his thumb across my lips and after a few seconds, I felt his lips pressed on mine.

I was confused about how I was going to feel about it at first but I just let him do whatever he wanted at that moment. I was a bit shocked tho, cause M was always perceived as a quiet and respectful guy in the office so I wasn’t expecting him to proceed to kissing my neck or touching parts of my body.

[sub-bi]

Word count: 1,046

I do as instructed, and she takes a seat in the chair to my side. She doesn’t say anything for what feels like an eternity, and I’m trying to avoid looking at what’s in the dog bowl. I glance sideways and my Mistress looks pleased with herself, but I immediately draw my eyes forward again. She tells me that I can either eat it now or later, but this will be the next thing I eat, regardless of when. I start to panic because I’m certain I won’t be able to eat whatever it is, and I also don’t want to be punished for being unable to obey. I try to object and tell my Mistress that there’s no way I can eat it but she refuses to entertain my complaints and tells me that I have ten seconds to make a decision. She starts counting back from 10 to 1, relatively slowly. I’m trying to think, but her counting is distracting me and I’m not sure either option outweighs the other. By the time she’s at 3 seconds, I decide to not decide and instead just accept whatever the punishment is. I’m assuming she will make the decision instead, and it will probably be whichever option she perceives as worse, but I don’t think I’ll manage to eat it regardless so it’s irrelevant. By the time my trail of thought ends, I hear that she has finished counting and has stood up. I’m not sure what’s going on so I try to tune my brain back into the present moment and figure out what I should do next.

I continue looking straight ahead and avoiding the dog bowl, and I hear my Mistress walk back towards the dresser where she leaves the items she brought. She returns a few seconds later and tells me to get on all fours. I try to move backwards to keep my face away from the food, but she tells me to stay where I am and get into position. She orders me to move around a few times, and when she’s finished, I’m on all fours with my face directly above the dog bowl. I have no choice but to look at it, and it looks disgusting. I will myself to stay completely still, regardless of what happens next, to ensure I don’t end up with any of it on my face. I close my eyes for a second but find that it makes it more difficult to anticipate what’s going to happen, so I open my eyes and at the exact same time I feel something hard hit my ass. I think it’s a belt but I’m not completely sure. Then it happens again, and again, and again. I’m trying to stay still, but the more she hits me, the harder it becomes to maintain my composure. I can feel tears welling in my eyes and my ass feels completely raw, but she continues the spanking. When she tires of my ass, she moves her lashes downwards and I can feel my thighs become redder from the assault.

I feel the belt hit my thighs again, and again, and again, until I’m sure I’m going to scream. My arms are beginning to hurt and my legs are going to cave in any minute if she doesn’t stop hitting me there, and I’m starting to wonder if eating it would be better than this. I can’t admit that I should have just done what I was told, so I stay quiet and try not to scream as she continues whipping the backs of my thighs. Luckily, a few lashes later, she bores of my thighs and moves the belt upwards so she’s hitting my back. At first I’m grateful, because at least my back is less sensitive than my thighs, but that quickly fades as I feel her lashes become more and more painful. I’m crying now and begging her to stop. I tell her that I’m going to fall, and I can’t stay in position, but she just replies with “good” and I know that’s what she wants to happen. She continues whipping my back, but occasionally aims the belt elsewhere and I almost collapse from the sudden change of direction. After just a few more seconds of whipping my back, she walks back towards the dresser, and I hear her lay the belt back down. I don’t feel her pick anything else back up, but I’m cautious (for good reason) and remain still. I hear her footsteps approach again. I have no idea how I managed to withstand that entire punishment without falling, and I’m sure my legs are going to give way any second if she doesn’t allow me to move around a little.

I’m not granted any sort of freedom to move around, and instead my Mistress reminds me to stay in position. I think she’s as surprised as me that I managed to maintain my composure through that entire ordeal. I hear nothing for a few seconds and decide to close my eyes and focus on breathing and not falling. That thought dissipates really quickly though as I feel something a lot more painful hit me on top of the existing welts from the belt. The pain is excruciating, and I immediately shout out. I am reminded to remain quiet, and told that I won’t get a second warning. My Mistress doesn’t gag me, probably because I would have some amount of protection from the food if she did, but I’m hoping that if I make more noise, she will have no choice but to use the gag to avoid attention. I remain quiet for a few seconds, still deciding whether I should obey and stay quiet or be a brat, but my mind is made up for me when one particularly painful lash lands directly on my upper back thigh and I unintentionally scream. I feel a sense of panic when I don’t see my Mistress leave to get the gag, but instead walks to my side and repeatedly whips my back with whatever it is that she’s holding. I stay completely quiet, but I feel my legs giving way and within around ten seconds I fall straight down onto the dog bowl.

[swagatron9]

Ambitiosus

Pairings: Thomas Shelby x reader

Warnings: Angst

Summary: You find out that Tommy has been seeing other women the entire time you two were together.

Word got around fast in Birmingham, especially if it had anything to do with the Peaky Blinders. I couldn't lie and say that I was surprised when I had heard some women walking past talking about their nights with Thomas because a part of me had known. I was ashamed to admit that I had stayed with the man I knew was not faithful to me because I was scared of what life would be like afterwards, but I was no longer afraid.

I knew Tommy would be home anytime soon, so I hoped to get everything packed before he arrived and made me change my mind. The plan was simple, I told him what I knew, and then I would leave after breaking up with him. I knew that if I stayed for too long, he would be able to convince me to stay.

My bags were packed as I sat in the living room, waiting for any sign of Tommy's arrival. To say that I was nervous was an understatement. I didn't know how he would react or if he would even react to this.

The front door was unlocked, and Tommy walked in. He was silent as he walked past me, opting to light a cigarette and sit on the couch beside me.

After a few minutes of the awkward silence, Tommy finally spoke up. "Why've you got your bags packed?" He spoke up as he exhaled the smoke.

I scoffed, my anger slowly taking over. "You're cheating on me," I announced. "You've been cheating on me the entire time."

Tommy let out a sigh. "Where'd you hear that?" He wasn't in the slightest bit fazed by my accusation, which made my blood boil.

"Where haven't I heard it, Thomas." The smell of cigarettes filled the room. "Everyone talks about it."

"You need to stop listening to what those women say. Nothing but crazy they are."

"Those women aren't crazy, though, are they, Thomas. Why would they talk about that stuff while simply going for a walk? They weren't telling me anything. I heard it." Thomas puts out his cigarette and stands up.

"You know how people are. They want to spread news to keep others entertained. It's nothing but lies-"

"But it's not lies, though. You are lying to me right now." I could feel the tears begin to well as I attempted to hold myself together.

"You're right," Thomas admitted. "They're right." My heart practically shattered hearing those words. Although I knew, it hurt to listen to him say it.

"Was it anyone in particular? Or just any girl that presented herself to you?" I whispered.

"Whoever would take the money." He replied.

"Oh wow. You were so bored of me that you had to pay people to entertain you." At this point, now I was standing up too.

"I wasn't bored-"

"I've heard enough, Thomas. I wasn't good enough, they won't be, and no one ever will. You're just selfish." With that being said, I grabbed my bags and left. Leaving Thomas to stand in the middle of the living room, staring at the place I once sat at.

I headed to the train station, where I caught the next train out of Birmingham, leaving everything that was once home behind. No goodbyes were needed. No goodbyes were deserved.

[leviiattacks]

CASHIER LEVI AND LIKE THE READER IS THE CUSTOMER AND IT’S LIKE THEY HAVE A CRUSH ON EACHTOHER

author note :: honestly not my best at all..... like at all..... this was actually pretty good but the entire draft got deleted and i just lost all my effort but i felt bad for starting it and not completing it for anon so you may take whatever i have managed to salvage. i hope u enjoy it :’( i am extremely sick rn and yeah writing is the only break i am currently getting from anything :-) SO AGAIN I’ M SORRY ANON..... i may write a 10k + word fic on this though so i can redeem myself bc this is just disappointing 😭

word count :: 3.3k

every single thursday you stop by ackermart. maybe it’s because the day is convenient for you or perhaps it’s because of a certain cashier that works the evenings...

HAHA it’s got nothing to do with a cashier why would it have anything to do with a cashier? :-)

today is like any other. you walk through the fresh produce aisle then proceed to make your way towards the bakery section picking up a loaf of bread

it’s stupid, you know it is but... you think you’ve worked up enough courage to speak to him today!!

and who is him you may ask?

levi at till number four. his tired eyes always happen to pierce into yours and his calloused thumbs brush past your skin when you hand him your rewards card

levi is what his bright red name tag says and although he doesn’t look like a levi you’d like to think your crush isn’t stealing someone’s identity so you believe that it’s his real name

anxiously fiddling with your basket you’re beginning to think this was a horrible idea

the girl ahead of you is flirting up a storm with him and although he’s not reciprocating it by any means you still feel deterred

levi bags the last of her groceries and looks up at her when she asks for a way to contact him. he doesn’t look mad... just bored?

“ma’am. this is an ackermart i don’t think it’s appropriate you ask me for my number. the customer service line is listed on our website.”

the woman raises a brow looking completely flabbergasted. okay, if everything before this wasn’t a warning THIS sure was

she stomps off when she realises levi isn’t kidding and you think you’d feel bad for her maybe if she was more respectful about it

“next customer.” levi calls over his shoulder and you shuffle forward pretending to be engrossed in your phone

“cash or card?” he asks plainly.

you hear the BEEP of your groceries being scanned and think on it for a while before replying with “cash”

you’re clearly pretty good at your pretend to be totally into your phone act because levi tries to get your attention but you don’t hear what he has to say till the third time he repeats himself

but even then you’re still unsure what it is he’s said????

looking down you see his hand is stuck out in front of you and now you’re even more confused

faltering for a second you look at his palm and then speak

“um, i guess your hand is nice? it’s pretty big compared to the rest of you actually.”

“i was asking for your cash?” he says and now you look at his palms in mortification

gasping you yANK your hand into your purse as you laugh awkwardly fishing around to find your money

“oh, OH i knew that. just kidding!! i mean- i meant that thing about your hand?? but i thought it was- i funny? yes the joke funny? i’m-”

he leans back into his spinning chair and sighs contently. “you’re not making much sense peaches.”

“pe- peaches??” you repeat. no way you’ve heard that correct

levi lazily points at the abundance of the aforementioned fruit in your grocery bags

“you must love em.”

“i, well yeah i do like peaches but i also like...” um??? what food would make you look sophisticated and professional?

OH YEAH

“FRENCH CUISINE :-)!!!!” you say rather proudly

“...cool. i guess.” levi hands you your grocery bag which is basically an invitation asking for you to get out

he doesn’t seem mad but he’s definitely going to look back at this encounter and laugh his ass off at how stupid you are

hanging your head down low in embarrassment you make your way out towards your car

there’s always next time!! maybe you can practice in the mirror yeah that does sound like it would help!!!

okay so.

it is officially next time.

actually you never got the opportunity to practice in front of the mirror because you chickened out of looking like an idiot even if it was in the privacy of your own home

but!!! you did try to practice some cool pick up lines because who doesn’t like a good pickup line or two??

the two mini milk cartons in your hand and the pack of doughnuts you have tucked under your arm aren’t too heavy so you aren’t too worried about having to wait in the line

for some reason the guy in front of you keeps turning around and glancing at you as if you don’t even exist

you are not casper the ghost

also casper is a little boy and you definitely aren’t a little boy

finally after a good five minutes the man ahead of you is having his stuff scanned but he’s STILL doing it. even levi notices and gives him an odd look which borders annoyance and anger.

“can i pay for your groceries? maybe walk you to your car?” the stranger asks suddenly

so that’s what this is, he’s simply taken an interest in you

my god this is new but it is uncomfortable and you’d rather say no

“oh, i actually walked here and no thanks i can pay for my own. enjoy the rest of your day!!” you hope your white lie is enough to fool the man but instead of agreeing as any other person would he looks majorly deceived

“i saw you in the parking lot.” ok this is getting a bit too uncomfortable for your liking

“c’mon i’m offering to buy your shit too?”

his voice is raising and you’re not sure what exactly you can do but thankfully for you the manager steps in and takes him away before any more threats can be made

the man had taken up so much of your attention you almost forgot levi was even there until you turned back around

“do you want a member of staff to accompany you to your car? it’s getting dark out.” levi’s comment helps ease your nerves and you try to laugh off what just happened

“i’m good :-)” you say shaking a little. you’re unsure if it’s the cold or the fact you still haven’t completely calmed down

“you sure peaches?”

“i haven’t bought any peaches this time.”

“you’re still peaches to me.” your cheeks flush at his confidence

wait, maybe this is your chance. you’re the last person in his line and they’re closing up for the day so...

“could you walk me to my car?”

and to your surprise even before you can take back what you’ve said levi agrees

it stays like that for a while.

every thursday levi walks you to your car by the end of his shift, all the while the two of you exchange a few words together

like last week you asked him what his favourite colour was (he said purple) you’ve learnt about his hobbies (he’s a decent cook), you’ve even found out about some of his own personal problems. he had mentioned suffering with insomnia in passing.

to be honest each and every time he walks you to your car he has to notice that you begin to park further and further away from the front entrance. but if he does notice he doesn’t say a word about it

“is that all you’re checking out?” you ask with a cheeky grin plastered across your face

looking down at your new dress your lopsided grin is far from fading away any time soon. you especially picked this one out after asking levi what his favourite colour was last week

god. this is so embarrassing but never actually have you had a crush this huge

levi who’s sat behind the counter shoots you a look which almost seems to be on the verge of uninterested. he isn’t entertaining this at all or this is just his typical bored face, you can’t really tell

BUT..... you still have a huge crush on him and you aren’t one to give up this easily

for the record you don’t harass him or anything, just the occasional hint is thrown around but he’s either really dense or doesn’t care

his expression does you no favours, you can’t tell what he’s thinking half the time

“you’re always buying energy drinks... might want to cut down on those they’re no good for you.”

warmth blooms in your chest. he’s just saying it to make small talk but the fact he even thinks to bring that up has your heart fluttering

“i- well- yeah i will!! just have a few overdue essays to get over with :-)” twiddling your thumbs together you think that makes your nerves too obvious so you begin to scratch at the back of your neck

if anything is a dead give away it’s your constant neck scratching, thankfully levi hasn’t picked up on it

“so you wore purple today?” his eyes linger on the thin straps of your dress and you feel the goosebumps rise up onto your skin immediately

“oh yeahhhh-”

“did i tell you yellow was my favourite colour last week?” he asks holding up a neon yellow pack of crisps and for the first time you see him smile

he looks so ?!|>\€|^ pretty ?!/)/&

wait?? yellow??

“didn’t you say purple?”

“no?” he crosses his arms playfully over his chest thinking for a bit

“maybe i did but no it’s really yellow.” he says as he hands you your bag

nodding your head you smile “yeahhhh sure it is.”

damn, now you’re going to have to find a yellow dress just to make him revert back to purple because who even likes yellow?? that’s a deal breaker right there??

update

it’s been two weeks!!

and a yellow dress has been found and secured B-)

it’s been a pretty rough day at work and you need to desperately collect a pack of green tea and get going

you don’t know when exactly being a secretary meant you had to babysit your boss’ children but that’s what the last week has entailed

being made to work overtime to this extent has had an effect on you and you’re ready to head home as soon as you swing by ackermart

not seeing levi for a week made you a little :-( because to be honest he’s the highlight of your thursday evening BUT!! you’ll be able to see him today at least

walking in through the entrance you’re met with connie smiling right at you, he holds the door open for you and smile back greeting him

“so you didn’t come last week...?”

it’s weird for him to ask that, after all you don’t really speak to anyone here apart from levi, you’re surprised you’re enough of a regular to be known by name

“oh i didn’t think anyone would notice? but yeah i had to work overtime you know what boss’ are like.” groaning you crouch down and look at the pot noodles on display

“i didn’t notice it. boss man did.”

“boss man?” you ask feeling out of loop

“levi.” connie answers as he hops into the backroom

????

isn’t he just a cashier??

“you still look confused.” connie remarks as he heads back out with a cardboard box full of pringle’s tubes

“levi’s the boss man, this is his store. he literally only ever mans the cash register on thursday evening because of you.”

at that you start laughing because it makes no sense at all to you

there’s no way connie is being serious

“good one.” you say as you stand up with a chicken flavored noodle in your hand

“i’m not kidding?”

turning around you give him a skeptical look

he sighs and shakes his head.

“listen. me and the part timers are tired of making bets on when he’ll give you his number and i bet that it would happen today so if you could confess to each other that would be perfect!!!”

“who said i like-”

“anyone with a brain can tell you both like each other.” he’s rolled his eyes so far into the back of his head you begin to take him a little more seriously now

“i... did i make it that obvious??” you’re directly facing him trying to get out as much information as you can

“yeah. very. at least levi wasn’t as bold.”

“i think you’ve got the wrong end of the stick he definitely doesn’t like me.”

connie gives you an “are you fucking with me?” look and you look away trying to distract yourself with the the canned goods lining the shelves

“he was worried sick when you didn’t come in for the entire week. he even asked me if he scared you away.”

“maybe i’m just his favourite customer?”

“favourite customer my ass he has a crush on YOU. confess.”

playing around with the ends of your sleeves connie sees he’s fighting a losing battle unless he gives you definitive solid proof

“please... i’ll get free barbecue if i win the bet and i’m kinda broke rn :-(” okay, you do want connie to eat well and be treated and maybe this is a good thing. if levi doesn’t like you then you can move on!!

“i’ll think about it.”

before connie can continue talking you make a beeline towards the tea aisle whilst throwing a “see you next time!” over your shoulder.

by the time you’ve gathered all of your groceries your basket is full to the brim. you’ve been lingering as much as you can out of fear but you think you’ve collected just enough courage to ask for his number

looking at the cash register levi is sat there and your shoulders slump. he’s probably going to say no and you’re going to look like a huge loser.

right as you’re about to take a step towards him levi finally spots you and gives you one look before standing up from his seat

“hi!” you wave at him

“...hey!” he smiles wide but he bites it back pretending it was never there in the first place

placing your basket in front of him he eyes what you’ve got

“hm... lots of peaches as per usual peaches.” the nickname that rolls of his tongue makes you tremble a little. will he call you that after you fuck everything up with this stupid confession?

his tongue pokes at the inside of his cheek when he gets to the heart shaped box of chocolates

“a gift for a friend? didn’t know you had those?” he teases as he scans the barcode

“gift for a crush!” you reply back enthusiastically as you dig through your wallet looking for your card

levi doesn’t respond for a few seconds and an awkward silence fills the air. you glance up to see him looking at you open mouthed in shock

“good luck.” he murmurs under his breath he’s not even returning your gaze at this point and is hurriedly scanning through your barcodes

“you okay?” you ask worrying about his mood

“yeah, yeah. great.” he’s quieter than usual.

the rest of your encounter is the same, levi silently bags your groceries and you can’t tell if this is a good or bad response.

just as he’s about to place the heart shaped box into your plastic bag you lunge forward holding his wrist to stop him

“no i don’t need those.”

he cocks his eyebrow upwards trying to analyse your expression and gain an understanding of your thoughts

“don’t tell me you’re chickening out. whoever it is will say yes.” he scoffs as he places the chocolates into the bag handing them over to you with a warm smile

there it is again. the fear returns and you swipe your tongue over your slightly dry lips.

no way.

is he telling you to confess to someone now? so he must not like you?

taking the bag away from him you scratch your neck out of habit and huff feeling frustrated

“he keeps giving me mixed signals.” you say hoping he catches your drift

“give him the chocolates and let him put two and two together. don’t even say anything.” his advice would be great if he weren’t the guy you were trying to confess to in real time

nodding you reach into the bag and bring the box back out before gently placing it in front of levi

“are you serious?” he asks and your face drops seeing the possible displeasure in his eyes

great, connie and the part timers just over analysed he doesn’t like you, obviously he doesn’t like you, why would he like you?

without looking back you hurry out, the embarrassment is eating you away now and the thought of ever returning to ackermart isn’t even feasible in your mind

at this point you may as well change your name, identity, dye your hair, have a few children and wear sunglasses the next time you come back so you look like a soccer mum and not the foolish y/n who thought they had a chance with their cute CASHIER???

god, you probably look like a creep

the sound of footsteps can be heard behind you and labored breaths follow before levi calls out for you

“please wait up.” he grumbles. slowing down your pace you let him catch up to you. he grabs at your wrist and sighs in relief

turning you see him savour the air

is this the part where he confesses he likes you too or—

“your receipt you forgot it.” he gasps as he opens your hand for you and places it into your palm

oh.

fingers clasping shut onto the paper you feel the humiliation seep into your pores

this.

is.

the.

worst.

moment.

of.

your.

life.

“open it.” he offer you a boyish smile and your nerves don’t let you find comfort in it

you grimace as you fold it open, you’re imagining he’s charged you an extra £100 for having unwanted feelings for him and if that’s the case you’ll die on the spot

but instead your eyes light up in joy. you’re pleasantly surprised

...

inside of the receipt is his phone number haphazardly sprawled across in black biro - you even double check by comparing it to the number for the customer service helpline

hello??

HELLO.?.!/)£ HIS NUMBER???

“if you just wanted to return the chocolate this is embarrassing.” he’s the one who’s now scratching at his neck and you find that he’s endearing this way

the streetlight from above illuminates him, the shadows cast over his face and his brows aren’t furrowed as they usually are

you open your mouth to reply but connie cuts you off unintentionally. he can be heard YELLING into his phone ecstatic that his plan has worked out

“I WIN!!! HA BBQ’S ON YOU JEAN!! MUST SUCK TO BE YOU.”

you and levi look at each other and laugh, reassuring the other of what has just happened.

well...

you guess this is the start of something new? maybe??

:-)